ABC/Image Group LA Michael Rays new music video for One That Got Away will arrive on Wednesday. And judging from the snippets hes leaked on social media, it looks like hell be squeezing in one last taste of summer romance before it officially becomes fall.

Michaels been teasing his fans with clues about the video for almost a week.

Real Miami. 5 min. Alley door, a note in one screen grab reads. Add in plenty of palm trees and neon colors, and it seems almost certain the video is set in South Florida. A brunette bartender with a pen in her hand seems likely to be Michaels leading lady.

One That Got Away -- which was co-written by Old Dominions Matthew Ramsey and Trevor Rosen -- is the second single from Michaels Amos album.

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The rallys new components aim to create an energetic environment with a new Voter Village with festival-style booths hosted by activists, politicians and business and the First Time Voter Experience, an area for new voters to mingle with elected officials and community leaders. The event will feature live music and guest speaker Heather Booth, an activist and founder of the Jane Collective, an underground abortion service in Chicago from 1969 until after the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973.
Hurricanes have proved to be good news over the past year for equipment rental firm Ashtead.

After three major storms last year boosted revenues at the group  which supplies tools from concrete mixers to industrial chillers  it said it was setting up a 'crisis centre' in the Carolinas as Hurricane Florence approaches.

The centre will have around 30 staff and will rent out clean-up equipment such as power generators and pumps.

Even before the worst of the hurricane season hit the US, Ashtead  which makes most of its money through its US business Sunbelt  had been raking it in.

Even before the worst of the hurricane season hit the US, Ashtead  which makes most of its money through its US business Sunbelt  had been raking it in

It announced yesterday that rental revenues for the three months to July were up 19 per cent to 961million, as profit before tax shot up 23 per cent to 285.6million.

Nicholas Hyett, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: 'Donald Trump's economic policies are playing out quite nicely for Ashtead.

'A massive cut to corporation tax has done wonders for profits this year, and it's also sparked a round of investment in the domestic US economy which is seeing demand for Ashtead's construction equipment soar.'

Management said full-year profits would be ahead of previous expectations, and it would extend its share buyback scheme.

When a company scoops up its own shares, this makes those left in investors' hands more valuable.

Ashtead also set out plans to go on a spending splurge, to fill out its rental fleet while demand was strong. However, Hyett warned of the need to keep debt to a minimum.

Stock Watch - Produce Investments Potato and daffodil farmer Produce Investments rocketed as it accepted a 53million takeover offer from private equity firm Promethean Investments. Investors were offered 193p per share, which caused Produce to shoot up 31.6 per cent, or 45p, to 187.5p. Produce's chairman Ronald Barrie Clapham, 66, will rake in 11.5million from the deal. Produce Investments's boss Angus Armstrong and his wife Bronwyn will together pocket almost 1million.

He said: 'A construction downturn would hit earnings far quicker than Ashtead can pay down debt. With the boom being fuelled by a presidential administration that's erratic to say the least, we're pleased to see leverage at the lower end of target, and would really rather it stayed there for the time being.'

Shares grew 5.2 per cent, or 118p, to 2398p yesterday.

Despite Ashtead's gains, the FTSE 100 ended the day down 0.08 per cent, or 5.76 points, at 7273.54 as sterling climbed on higher-than-expected wage growth.

Since many firms on the blue-chip index sell their products abroad, a stronger pound generally pushes the FTSE 100 lower. Sterling hit highs of $1.309 in the morning, before settling at $1.301.

Tobacco companies Imperial Brands and British American Tobacco were particularly vulnerable, falling 3.3 per cent (or 90p, to 2608.5p) and 2.7 per cent (or 99p, to 3554.5p) respectively.

In the FTSE 250, Metro Bank's flamboyant founder and chairman Vernon Hill splashed out 818,700 as he bought 30,000 shares in the company.

Investors took the purchase as a sign of confidence, causing shares to creep up 1.2 per cent, or 32p, to 2760p.

Hill, who is often accompanied to meetings by his Yorkshire terrier Sir Duffield II, owns 5.1 per cent of Metro Bank.

Outside the UK's biggest companies, another building business was stacking up gains.

Alumasc, which supplies premium building products, climbed 10.4 per cent, or 13p, to 138.5p.

Its full-year results, despite being lower than last year, matched previous guidance. It has been a tough year for Alumasc, which suffered from poor winter weather, the collapse of contractor Carillion and a lower number of large construction projects.

Asthma inhaler maker Vectura, meanwhile, was preparing for harder times ahead. The company said it was thinking about stockpiling its products in case the UK left the EU with no Brexit deal and its supply chain was disrupted.

The company slid the warning into its half-year results, which showed revenue was up 1.4 per cent to 79.9million. Shares rose 0.1 per cent, or 0.1p, to 74.1p.
Unilever has called a vote on its plan to scrap its UK legal headquarters

Unilever has just over a month to convince investors to back a controversial plan to scrap its UK legal headquarters.

The Marmite maker has called a vote on the change  which will require backing from investors in the UK and the Netherlands  on October 25 in Rotterdam and October 26 in London.

It sets the stage for a showdown between Unilevers bosses and some major shareholders who have raised concerns about the proposals.

The consumer goods group wants to bring the entire company under a single Dutch parent.

Chief executive Paul Polman has insisted it will make the company more agile.

But the move has caused concern in the UK because Unilever will lose its place on the FTSE 100 index.

That would force British funds which track the index to sell their shares in the firm.
500k loss: Good Energy chief executive Juliet Davenport

A green energy fat cat has wasted 500,000 on a failed project run by her husband.

Renewables group Good Energy, which is run by chief executive Juliet Davenport, is writing down its investment in the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon power plant after the Government refused to back the 1.3billion project.

Davenport, 50, is married to Swansea Bays chief executive Mark Shorrock, 48.

The investment dates back to 2014 when Good Energy took a 10 per cent stake in Shorrocks plan for the worlds first tidal lagoon power plant.

In June, however, Business Secretary Greg Clark said it was too expensive and it would be irresponsible for the Government to back it.
The Royal Bank of Scotland has lost 130 billion since the financial crisis and will never give taxpayers back all their 46 billion bailout money, its chairman has admitted.

The staggering figures underline the damage caused by the crisis to Natwest owner RBS, which was the worlds biggest bank before its collapse a decade ago.

Hard times: RBS was the world's biggest bank before its collapse a decade ago

In a talk to mark ten years since the crisis, chairman Sir Howard Davies said RBSs costs from the crisis ran to 130 billion  more than the economies of Cuba, Kenya or Luxembourg.

This included 49 billion on bad loans, 23 billion from a disastrous merger with toxic Dutch lender ABN Amro and 20 billion on fines and compensation for victims of scandals. And Davies said the 46 billion pumped in by the state to keep the lender afloat in 2008 will not be repaid.

Davies, who did not work for RBS at the time of the crisis, added: The bank was rescued to save the UK financial system from collapse, not as a financial investment. That is how it was justified.

Ministers paid around 500p per share when they bought into RBS to stabilise it. But the share price has since dropped by more than half and shows no sign of ever returning to those heights.
A website promising to write a will in just nine minutes for 20 has buried a catch in its small print that could cost families tens of thousands of pounds.

Dozens of internet firms offer cheap will-writing services that claim to save people time and money by cutting out solicitors. But budget DIY wills can include enormous hidden fees and extra charges.

Money Mail discovered that one firm, called Nine Minute Will, has included a clause in its terms and conditions that says its parent company MedEx Direct will be appointed as executors of a person's estate if they use their website to create a will.

Cheap deals: Dozens of internet firms offer will-writing services that claim to save people time and money by cutting out solicitors - but many have hidden terms and conditions

This means that the company  rather than a trusted relative or friend  would be responsible for distributing someone's estate after their death.

Crucially, MedEx Direct will charge 4 per cent of the estate for carrying out its duties as executor  so a customer with a 500,000 estate would hand over 20,000.

The Society of Will Writers  a self-regulatory professional body of which Nine Minute Will's directors are not members  describes the practice as 'unethical'.

Use of professional executors is generally advisable only when someone has no family or friends suitable to take on the role.

Professional executors can also be useful if someone has a complicated estate or where there is conflict between beneficiaries  although even then you should appoint them as joint executor, experts say.

Thomas Stansfield, marketing director of The Society of Will Writers, says: 'Automatically appointing yourself as a professional executor and then referring to it in the small print is very misleading, and I would argue unethical.

'Practices like this could have a negative impact on the profession, including those who do a great job in assisting people at a time of need.'

Mr Stansfield says his members typically charge 1.5 per cent to 2 per cent  less than half the fee at Nine Minute Will.

Appointing executors: Use of professionals is generally advisable only when someone has no family or friends suitable to take on the role

Chris Poulton, managing partner at probate firm Final Duties, says: 'It is common practice for will-writing firms to encourage people to appoint themselves as a back-up executor or even primary executor, basically because it can increase their profits.

'If you fill out a form online there will often be a tick box to name them as executor.

'But it's unusual to not give people the option. That is unprofessional, in my opinion. Even if it is in the terms and conditions, it might not be obvious and not everyone would realise the implications.'

On the homepage for Nine Minute Will it says 'we do not charge for being appointed executors'. The firm then refers customers to its terms and conditions.

Its huge fees for carrying out executor duties are then revealed more than 2,600 words into a 5,000 word document at point 11.2, where it is highlighted in bold font.

Customers who take out wills with the firm must fill out a form online, during which they are asked twice to confirm they have read these terms and conditions.

These say: 'The officer and staff of MedEx Direct Ltd will be specified as executors of your estate if you use our will writing services in the will you create.

'MedEx Direct Ltd will charge 4 per cent of your estate for carrying out their duties as executors.'

Nine Minute Will, which also runs the website Safeandlegalwills.com, says it has been in operation for over 20 years.

The firm, which is based in St Albans, Hertfordshire, charges 19.99 for a single will and 29.99 for a couple if they have similar intentions.

This compares to a fee of around 150-plus if it is arranged through a solicitor.

Steven Katz, director of Nine Minute Will, says that the firm lays out its charges, and the fact that it will be executor of your estate, in a draft will it sends customers and in the final document.

Mr Katz says that Nine Minute Will deals with very small estates that most solicitors would not touch.

He says: 'A High Street solicitor will charge 250 to 500 to write a will, we charge 20. We take a commercial risk on it.

'Our risk is that we may end up doing our work for zero or a few pounds. We look after the orphans and widows, we look after the people with little or no assets.'

Most of the hundreds of reviews on the Nine Minute Will website give it glowing reviews, highlighting its 'streamlined service' and 'cheap prices'. Others describe receiving M&S vouchers as a perk for signing up.

Money Mail contacted several other will writing websites, none of which forced customers to name them as executor in return for drafting the will.

Beyond.life appointed itself as default executor when you filled out its form online and you had to untick a box to remove them.

After Money Mail got in touch, the firm changed its website so customers would no longer be automatically opted in.

Makeawillonline.co.uk, which charges from 29.50, said it did not act as executors for customers. An employee of the firm says: 'I know some others do try to push themselves, but we only draft wills.'

Simplerwills.co.uk and Willsregister.co.uk, which both charge from 19.99, say it was up to the client to select who it wanted to name as executor.

Wills drawn up using online templates can be a low-cost option for straightforward estates. But, while lawyers are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, there is no watchdog for will writers.

It means that families who take out these deals have little recourse if they feel they are over-charged or the company does not do as they ask.

l.eccles@dailymail.co.uk
Lloyds Banking Group is closing another 15 bank branches as it moves forward with plans to reorganise the business.

As many as 23 jobs will be lost when the branches close by the end of March.

The 15 branches due to shut are: Cardiff Business Branch, Buckley, Stapleford, Rowlands Gill, Mickleover, Madeley Telford, Leicester Narborough Rd, Heywood, Heanor, Coventry Earlsdon, Cardiff Bay, Cambridge Mill Rd, Bristol Redland, Blackwater and Basingstoke Winchester St.

Closures: Lloyds has announced it is cutting thousands of jobs and is closing stores across the country in order to focus more on the digital banking aspect of the company

A Lloyds spokeswoman said: 'We have confirmed the locations of a small number of Lloyds bank branches which will close between January and March 2019.

'These branch closures are in response to changing customer behaviour and the reduced number of transactions being made in branches.

'All branches announced for closure have a Post Office less than half-a-mile away so customers can still access their banking locally.

'We continue to make a significant investment in our branches and we are proud to have the largest network of branches in the UK.'

The closures have so far been managed without compulsory redundancies, according to Union Accord.

In charge: Antonio Horta Osorio has been the CEO for Lloyds Banking Group since 2011

In April, Lloyds announced it was cutting 1,230 jobs across its branch network and some central functions.

A further 405 job losses were announced in the summer but the bank said its staff base would only fundamentally be shrunk by 255 roles as another 195 roles would be added.

The bank, under boss Antonio Horta Osorio, recently made 380 employees redundant in the lender's commercial banking, people and productivity, and retail and transformation divisions.

In recent months, Lloyds has been pushing forward with a restructuring of its workforce and branch network.

The reorganisation is hoped to make the bank more relevant amidst a boom in digital banking.

The decision for a reshuffle was part of plans to close a further 49 branches across both its Lloyds and Halifax brands between July and October of this year.

Last year, Lloyds confirmed it was going to shut 100 branches, affecting hundreds of jobs, whilst in February it announced a further 465 roles were being axed.

The bank said it was adding another seven mobile branches to its network and creating 925 roles elsewhere in the business to offset the closures.
Professor Ralf Speth described the prospect of a cliff-edge break with the EU as 'horrifying' (file picture)

The boss of Jaguar Land Rover today warned that 'hard Brexit' will wipe out his company's profits and cost tens of thousands of jobs.

In a stark message intended to up the pressure on Theresa May, Professor Ralf Speth described the prospect of a cliff-edge break with the EU as 'horrifying'.

He said that if the 'wrong decisions' were taken in the negotiations with Brussels, it could result in the 'worst of times' for the UK while the cost to Jaguar Land Rover would be more than 1.2billion a year.

The intervention, at the UK's first Zero Emission Vehicle Summit in Birmingham, is the latest in a string of warnings from worried manufacturing firms, including Airbus and BMW.

Dr Speth told delegates: 'If we make the right decisions this could be the best of times. If we make the wrong ones, they could be the worst of times.

'We are absolutely firmly committed to the UK, it's our home. But a hard Brexit will cost Jaguar Land Rover more than 1.2 billion a year - it's horrifying, wiping our profit, destroying investment in the autonomous, zero-emissions, we want to share.'

He added that the loss of jobs would be 'counted into tens of thousands if we do not get the right Brexit deal'.

The prospects of negotiations failing appear to have been rising amid a standoff with the EU over the Irish border and trade terms.

Mrs May has been holding to her mantra that 'no deal is better than a bad deal', while the government has stepped up preparations to cope with the fallout.

The dire prediction from Dr Speth contrasts sharply with claims from Brexiteers that the UK would thrive under a 'no deal' scenario.

Speaking shortly after the car chief, Mrs May pledged a 106million funding boost for research and development in zero-emissions vehicles.

The Prime Minister said it was her ambition to make Britain a leader in the green technology field, while making traffic pollution 'a thing of the past'.

She said it was part of the Government's drive to build 'a global, outward-facing country outside of the European Union' while investing in Britain for the long term.

Mrs May (pictured giving a speech in Birmingham today) has been holding to her mantra that 'no deal is better than a bad deal', while the government has stepped up preparations to cope with the fallout

'I want to see Britain, once again, leading from the front and working with industries and countries around the world to spearhead change,' she said.

'That is why I have set this country an ambitious mission. To put the UK at the forefront of the design and manufacturing of zero-emission vehicles and for all new cars and vans to be effectively zero emission by 2040.

'We have long lived with the idea that traffic is polluting. We know that no longer needs to be true. And we are on the brink of making it a thing of the past.'

Mrs May also used the event to hold roundtable talks on driving more foreign direct investment into the UK.

She was also having discussions with leading supply-chain companies from Germany, the USA, Japan, China, Spain and India.
LONDON / NEW YORK  As financial firms rapidly increase their investment in public cloud to manage their financial data needs, a global survey of senior technologists and market data managers in the financial services sector found that security is no longer a top concern. A survey from the Financial & Risk business of Thomson Reuters found that currently, firms top three concerns when using public cloud are: data residency (24%), data privacy (19%) and losing control over data (18%).

Such is the turnaround in financial firms attitudes that 82% of firms surveyed believed the need for greater security would be a positive driver towards the adoption of public cloud, while only 12% believed it was a factor inhibiting cloud adoption. Financial institutions are increasingly leveraging the cloud as a key technology to manage the financial data that powers their business decisions, with financial firms planning to ramp up their investment on cloud from 30% of IT budgets to 47% by 2019.

As a heavily regulated industry which holds highly sensitive information about clients, financial institutions have historically been wary of using the cloud because of security concerns. Public cloud providers have adapted accordingly, and invested heavily in industry-leading security, allaying firms concerns and turning security from a blocker to a driver. However, recent data regulations, such as GDPR in Europe, and high profile global data privacy scandals mean that firms are increasingly focused on issues like data privacy and data residency (where sensitive data is stored).

As financial institutions increasingly leverage cloud technology to manage their financial data needs, firms will always need to ensure that sensitive data remains completely safe, says Brennan Carley, Global Head of Enterprise Proposition & Product for the Financial & Risk business at Thomson Reuters. Regulations like GDPR and high profile data privacy scandals have increased the focus on data privacy. The cloud is increasingly seen as part of the solution, thanks to the dramatic improvements to cloud security.

Cloud technology is opening up new opportunities for financial firms to experiment and create value by combining data at scale with other emerging technologies such as AI and machine learning. Ultimately, whatever technology financial institutions use to manage data, they are responsible for ensuring robust controls are in place.

Thomson Reuters Financial & Risk recently announced plans to deliver all its financial data and tools in the cloud.

The Thomson Reuters Financial & Risk business will be known as Refinitiv, following the closing of the strategic partnership transaction between Thomson Reuters and private equity funds managed by Blackstone.

Methodology

The survey consisted of telephone interviews with 250 senior figures across buy- and sell-side financial institutions, in the roles of Chief Technology Officers, Chief Information Officers, Chief Data Officers and Heads of Market Data. It was a global survey, with respondents split equally between North America, Europe and APAC.

Thomson Reuters

Thomson Reuters is the worlds leading source of news and information for professional markets. Our customers rely on us to deliver the intelligence, technology and expertise they need to find trusted answers. The business has operated in more than 100 countries for more than 100 years. Thomson Reuters shares are listed on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges. For more information, visit www.thomsonreuters.com.



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Please come and join me in drafting Jesus Chuy Garcia for mayor of the city of Chicago. We need Jesus, who has a heart thats big enough for all of us, and whose strength of character and love for this city and its people will build a unified bridge between north and south, between east and west, from poor to middle class to rich, from the business community to the hood, Gutierrez said. We will form immediately an exploratory committee and get the petitions going this weekend. And if Chuy doesnt have them ready by this weekend, I will print them myself.
The following companies are subsidiares of Quest Diagnostics: AmeriPath, AmeriPath Cincinnati Inc. (OH), AmeriPath Cleveland Inc. (OH), AmeriPath Consolidated Labs Inc. (FL), AmeriPath Florida LLC (DE), AmeriPath Hospital Services Florida LLC (DE), AmeriPath Inc. (DE), AmeriPath Indianapolis PC (IN), AmeriPath Kentucky Inc. (KY), AmeriPath Lubbock 5.01(A) Corporation (TX), AmeriPath New York LLC (DE), AmeriPath Texas Inc. (DE), AmeriPath Tucson Inc. (AZ), American Medical Laboratories, American Medical Laboratories Incorporated (DE), Associated Clinical Laboratories L.P. (PA), Associated Clinical Laboratories of Pennsylvania L.L.C. (PA), Athena Diagnostics, Athena Diagnostics Inc. (DE), Blueprint Genetics, Blueprint Genetics FZ-LLC (UAE), Blueprint Genetics Inc. (DE), Blueprint Genetics Oy (Finland), California Laboratory Associates, Cape Cod Healthcare - Business, Celera, ClearPoint Diagnostic, Clearpoint Diagnostic Laboratories LLC (TX), Cleveland HeartLab, Cleveland HeartLab Inc. (DE), Clinical Laboratory Partners, Colorado Pathology Consultants P.C. (CO), ConVerge Diagnostic Services, Consolidated DermPath Inc. (DE), DFW 5.01(a) Corporation (TX), DGXWMT JV LLC (DE), Dermatopathology of Wisconsin S.C. (WI), Diagnostic Laboratory of Oklahoma LLC (OK), Diagnostic Pathology Services Inc. (OK), Diagnostic Reference Services Inc. (MD), ExamOne Canada Inc. (New Brunswick), ExamOne LLC (DE), ExamOne World Wide Inc. (PA), ExamOne World Wide of NJ Inc. (NJ), Focus Diagnostics, HemoCue, Hoffman M.D. Associated Pathologists Chartered (NV), Institute for Dermatopathology Inc. (PA), Isabella Street Urban Renewal LLC (NJ), Kailash B. Sharma M.D. Inc. (GA), Kilpatrick Pathology P.A. (NC), LabOne, LabOne LLC (MO), LabOne of Ohio Inc. (DE), Laboratorio de Analisis Biomedicos S.A. (Mexico), Lancet Labs, MACL, Med Fusion LLC (TX), Med fusion, MedPlus, Mid America Clinical Laboratories LLC (IN), Nomad Massachusetts Inc. (MA), Nuclear Medicine and Pathology Associates (GA), Ocmulgee Medical Pathology Association Inc. (GA), Pathology Building Partnership (MD) (gen. ptnrshp.), PeaceHealth Laboratories, PhenoPath Laboratories, PhenoPath Laboratories PLLC (WA), Q Squared Solutions Holdings LLC (DE), Q Squared Solutions Holdings Limited (UK), Quest Diagnostics (Shanghai) Co. Ltd. (China), Quest Diagnostics Brasil Holdings Ltd. (UK), Quest Diagnostics Clinical Laboratories, Quest Diagnostics Clinical Laboratories Inc. (DE), Quest Diagnostics Domestic Holder LLC (DE), Quest Diagnostics HTAS India Private Limited (India), Quest Diagnostics Health & Wellness LLC (DE), Quest Diagnostics Holdings Incorporated (DE), Quest Diagnostics Holdings Ltd. (UK), Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (MD), Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NV), Quest Diagnostics India Private Limited (India), Quest Diagnostics Infectious Disease Inc. (DE), Quest Diagnostics International Holdings Limited (UK), Quest Diagnostics International LLC (DE), Quest Diagnostics Investments LLC (DE), Quest Diagnostics Ireland Limited (Ireland), Quest Diagnostics LLC (CT), Quest Diagnostics LLC (IL), Quest Diagnostics LLC (MA), Quest Diagnostics Massachusetts LLC (MA), Quest Diagnostics Mexico Holding Company Trust (Mexico), Quest Diagnostics Mexico S de RL de CV (Mexico), Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute (CA), Quest Diagnostics Nichols Institute Inc. (VA), Quest Diagnostics Receivables Inc. (DE), Quest Diagnostics Subsidiary Holdings Ltd. (UK), Quest Diagnostics TB LLC (DE), Quest Diagnostics Terracotta LLC (DE), Quest Diagnostics Venture LLC (PA), Quest Diagnostics Ventures LLC (DE), Quest Diagnostics do Brasil Ltda. (Brazil), Quest Diagnostics of Pennsylvania Inc. (DE), Quest Diagnostics of Puerto Rico Inc. (PR), Quest HealthConnect LLC (CA), ReproSource, Reprosource Fertility Diagnostics Inc. (MA), Solstas Lab Partners, Sonora Quest Laboratories LLC (AZ), Specialty Laboratories Inc. (CA), Summit Health, UMass Memorial Medical Center - Anatomic Pathology Outreach Laboratory Business, Unilab Corporation, and Unilab Corporation (DE).
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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Leisure Travelers May Have Moved Marriott Stock as High as it Can Go

Marriott Stock Should Stay on Your Watchlist For Now After delivering a strong earnings report, shares of Marriott International (NASDAQ: MAR) are trading above its 52-week high.

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You look at the economy. You look at jobs. You look at wage growth. You look at ISIS. You look at regulation. You look at the courts and what hes doing on the Supreme Court, the federal court, the circuit courts. If youre a Republican or even an independent, youve got to love the results of what President Trump is doing, he said.
John Hancock Tax-Advantaged Dividend Income Fund is a closed ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by John Hancock Investment Management LLC. It is co-managed by John Hancock Asset Management and Analytic Investors, LLC. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United States. It seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors, with an emphasis on the utilities sector. The fund primarily invests in dividend-paying common and preferred stocks of companies which have dividends that qualify for a more favorable long-term capital gains tax rate. It invests in stocks of companies across diversified market capitalizations. The fund benchmarks the performance of its portfolio against a composite benchmark comprised of 55% Bank of America Merrill Lynch Preferred Stock DRD Eligible Index and 45% S&P 500 Utilities Index. John Hancock Tax-Advantaged Dividend Income Fund was formed on February 27, 2004 and is domiciled in the United States.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Molina Healthcare: Aetna & Humana - Medicare Advantage, Affinity Health Plan, AmericanWork Inc., Better Health Network, Camelot Care Centers Inc, Children's Behavioral Health Inc., Choices Group Inc., College Community Services, Dockside Services Inc, Family Preservation Services Inc., Family Preservation Services of Florida Inc., Family Preservation Services of North Carolina Inc., Family Preservation Services of Washington D.C. Inc., Family Preservation Services of West Virginia Inc., Florida NetPASS LLC, Hclb Inc., Magellan Complete Care, Maple Star Nevada Inc., Maple Star Oregon Inc., Mercy CarePlus, Molina Clinical Services LLC, Molina Healthcare Data Center Inc., Molina Healthcare of Arizona Inc., Molina Healthcare of California, Molina Healthcare of Florida Inc., Molina Healthcare of Georgia Inc., Molina Healthcare of Illinois Inc., Molina Healthcare of Iowa Inc., Molina Healthcare of Louisiana Inc., Molina Healthcare of Maryland Inc., Molina Healthcare of Michigan Inc., Molina Healthcare of Mississippi Inc., Molina Healthcare of Nevada Inc., Molina Healthcare of New Mexico Inc., Molina Healthcare of New York Inc., Molina Healthcare of North Carolina Inc., Molina Healthcare of Ohio Inc., Molina Healthcare of Oklahoma Inc., Molina Healthcare of Pennsylvania Inc., Molina Healthcare of Puerto Rico Inc., Molina Healthcare of South Carolina LLC, Molina Healthcare of Texas Inc., Molina Healthcare of Texas Insurance Company, Molina Healthcare of Utah Inc., Molina Healthcare of Virginia Inc., Molina Healthcare of Washington Inc., Molina Healthcare of Wisconsin Inc., Molina Holdings Corporation, Molina Hospital Management LLC, Molina Information Systems LLC dba Molina Medicaid Solutions, Molina Medical Management Inc., Molina Pathways LLC, Molina Pathways of Texas Inc., Molina Youth Academy, NextLevel Health Illinois, Pathways Community Corrections Inc., Pathways Community Services LLC, Pathways Community Support of Texas Inc., Pathways Health and Community Support LLC, Pathways Human Services LLC., Pathways of Arizona Inc., Pathways of Delaware Inc., Pathways of Idaho LLC, Pathways of Maine Inc., Pathways of Massachusetts LLC, Pathways of Oklahoma Inc., Pathways of Washington Inc., Providence Community Services, Providence Human Services, Raystown Developmental Services Inc., The Game of Work LLC, The RedCo Group Inc., Total Care Medicaid plan, Transitional Family Services Inc., Unisys -Health Information Management, and YourCare Health Plan.
As of Tuesday, more than 1.7 million people in the Carolinas and Virginia were warned to clear out. Airlines had canceled nearly 1,000 flights and counting. Home Depot and Lowe's activated emergency response centers to get generators, trash bags and bottled water to stores before and after the storm. The two hardware chains said they sent in a total of around 1,100 trucks.
Median household income in three of the Capital Region's four core counties rose to record levels in 2017, while the percentage of people living in poverty in Albany was an all-time low, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau's American Communities Survey.

As the national median household income rose 2.5 percent, from $58,820 in 2016 to $60,336 last year, Albany, Schenectady and Saratoga counties all saw similar rises.

The median household in Albany county earned $66,204, a nearly 6 percent increase from 2016. Saratoga county saw an even greater 8.2 percent increase in median income, up to $83,726 from $77,356.

Although Schenectady County saw a more modest increase in median income, up 4.8 percent to $62,514 from $59,665, Rensselaer County bucked the national trend and reported a decrease, from $67,140 in 2016 to $64,050 last year, a drop of 4.6 percent.

With the exception of Rensselaer County, which peaked in 2016, all 2017 income figures are the highest the Census Bureau has reported in each county since 2005, the earliest year data is available, according to Sean Maguire, director of economic development with the Capital District Regional Planning Commission.

All four counties reported a lower poverty rate than the national average of 13.4 percent. Albany county saw its percentage of people living in poverty fall from 12.2 percent in 2016 to 11.2 in 2017 - the lowest number the county has reported since data became available in 2005.

Schenectady and Saratoga counties reported higher poverty rates in 2017 than in 2016, at 12.8 percent and 6.4 percent respectively, while Rensselaer county's rate was unchanged at 11.7 percent.

Health insurance coverage spread from 2016 to 2017, as Albany, Rensselaer and Saratoga counties reported lower rates of uninsured citizens. Saratoga had the most dramatic change, falling from an uninsured rate of 3.9 percent, down to 2.3 percent last year.

At a national level, the number of Americans without health insurance remained relatively unchanged at 8.7 percent, just a tenth of a percent higher from 2016, according to the American Communities Survey.

The Census Bureau on Wednesday released the Current Population Survey, a separate survey analyzing health insurance coverage and poverty with a national focus. The ACS has a greater focus on individual states and counties.

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The ACS reports numerous data sets for states, counties and congressional districts across the country each year.

The report also focuses on other topics like housing, employment, ethnicity and education.

Other findings in the report showed Albany and Saratoga counties, at 44.8 percent and 42 percent respectively, had a higher percentage of individuals aged 25 and older with a bachelor's or graduate degree than the national average of 32 percent.

Rensselaer county (31.7 percent) and Schenectady (27.9 percent) came in below the national average of bachelors or graduate degree-holders.
Rotterdam

Union Pacific has ordered 1,000 new refrigerated box cars, with an option to increase that to 1,600, according to Progressive Railroading, as it plans for growth in the shipment of perishables through its Cold Connect service. A railroad spokesperson declined to say what impact this might have on its Cold Connect warehouse in Rotterdam, where the trains originating in California and Washington state terminate.

"Union Pacific does not release location-specific information," Raquel Espinoza, the railroad's corporate communications director, told the Times Union. However, "(i)n the second half of 2018, Union Pacific expects growth in food and beverage shipments, due to Cold Connect penetration, tightening truck capacity and import beer."

A shortage of truck drivers and rising diesel prices are helping railroads compete for more of the perishables business.

The railroad was an early partner of Railex, along with CSX, which launched coast-to-coast express trains in October 2006 from Washington state. A second train route, from California's Central Valley, was launched two years later.

Railex built the $18 million, 200,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution center at the Rotterdam Industrial Park with state funds paying for $2.735 million in rail improvements at the site.

Union Pacific, which operated the trains as far east as Chicago, purchased the Railex facility in July 2017. At the time, it was believed to have 138 employees, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act filing that Railex made with the state Department of Labor.

CSX operates the trains between Chicago and Rotterdam.

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Initially, one train a week made the trip, with 55 refrigerated cars carrying the equivalent of 200 truckloads of produce  everything from apples and wine to lettuce and potatoes  in five days. Union Pacific last October announced plans to operate trains five days a week, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Refrigerated Truck Quarterly report.

The trip has also lengthened to eight days or more as the trains make stops along the way. Still, that's about four days faster than a traditional refrigerated rail car would take.

And while Union Pacific won't talk about Rotterdam, it's expanding in Washington state with an intermodal facility serving the Port of Walla Walla.

Port officials see this as a key link to the East Coast, according to a report in Railway Age.

"It's going to make your job easier, in trying to get the next manufacturer here, now they can ship direct to the East Coast via containers without having to go via Portland or Seattle," commissioner Mike Fredrickson told Railway Age. "This is, really, the Inland Northwest intermodal facility, operated by the major railroad in the United States."
Albany

Winter heating bills for National Grid customers are expected to drop by nearly 7 percent, as long as it's not colder than normal.

The utility is predicting the average five-month cost to heat homes in its upstate territory will come to $506, compared to last year's average of $543.

However, last year, the typical home used 730 therms of natural gas instead of the 713 therms that National Grid bases its forecast upon.

If last year's bill were to be "normalized" to account for the weather and use the standard 713 therms for its calculation, then the average bill last year would have been $533, which still means that this year's bill would drop 5.2 percent.

The five-month winter home heating period goes from November to the end of March.

National Grid provided the forecast to the Public Service Commission on Monday as part of reporting requirements by all utilities.

However, National Grid spokesman Nathan Stone says the utility does a separate calculation to come up with its annual winter home heating bill forecast that is released every October.

"We have not compiled the final numbers so it is too early to definitively say what the cost impact will be, but we will be making our official announcement in a couple of weeks," Stone told the Times Union.

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The interesting thing is that the drop in bills from last year appears to be driven more by a regulatory mechanism than a real drop in the cost of natural gas or delivering it.

In fact, most of the drop expected this winter is from a reconciling of previous natural gas charges that result in an extra charge or a credit on gas bills each year. The charge represents underbilling from the previous year (a credit represents an overbilling) on estimated gas costs for the utility that are reconciled each year and then spread out over the next year so as not to cause bill volatility.

The reconciliation is known as the gas adjustment clause. Last year, the adjustment resulted in an added charge of $32 over the winter months. This year, it's a $4 credit, which accounts for the nice drop in forecast bills.

About half of the utility bill is what is considered the delivery charge that goes to National Grid to pay for its system and ability to bring gas and electricity to its customers. The other half is the actual cost of the supply of electricity or natural gas  the so-called commodity costs.
The Great Fire of 1848 was the worst in Albany's long history and a headline writer for the Albany Evening Journal struggled to convey the scope of its destruction.

"APPALLING CONFLAGRATION!" the headline read, in all caps, punctuated with an exclamation point.

It was not hyperbole.

Church bells pealed an alarm and signaled residents to flee the flames. The fire could be seen from miles away and fire companies rushed to assist. Firefighters from Troy, West Troy, Greenbush, the Watervliet Arsenal and Schenectady battled the fire alongside Albany's volunteer hose companies.

Buildings were knocked down to create fire breaks to slow the fast-moving blaze that burned out of control for five hours across more than a dozen blocks. A steady rain and a fortuitous shift in wind helped knock down the stubborn flames and the fire eventually burned itself out.

When the punishing heat subsided and the smoke cleared, a staggering loss was revealed. Ten people were dead and scores were injured. About 600 buildings, including rows of residences, were destroyed. The wood frame structures burned like dry kindling. Dozens of businesses were lost. Numerous ships docked at the Albany Basin burned to the waterline. More than 60 acres of the city's historic core were reduced to charred rubble along the Hudson River waterfront.

The burned section amounted to the city's entire commercial heart and it disrupted mercantile trade and dealt a severe and lasting economic blow.

"Our city is literally desolate," a reporter wrote in an extra edition of the Albany Argus.

According to one account, perhaps apocryphal, the historic blaze was started by a chamber maid at the Albion Hotel on the corner of Broadway and Herkimer Street. In trying to smother a small ember with a bonnet she waved vigorously, as the story goes, fanning the flames that spread north for one-half mile to Columbia Street and several blocks up the hill from the river.

Tony Opalka, city historian of Albany, pieced together scattered fragments from the historical record about The Great Fire of 1848. On Thursday at 5:30 p.m., he will lead a walking tour on the 170th anniversary of what later became known as "The Burnt District." The tour is co-sponsored by Historic Albany Foundation and organizers striving to create an Albany Firefighters Museum.

"It will be a challenge and a different kind of tour," said Opalka, who has led walking tours highlighting the city's history for decades. "I normally point to historic buildings along the way, but in this case, everything burned. The fire also altered the street grid. This will be something of an imagination tour. There will be nothing to point to from 1848."

The walking tour, originally scheduled for Aug. 17 on the 170th anniversary date, was postponed because of heavy precipitation. "The rain stopped the fire and also stopped the tour," Opalka said.

Opalka will be joined by Lt. Tim Blaney of the Albany fire department and Bill Tobler, a retired lieutenant. The three men are the driving force behind an effort to create an Albany Firefighters Museum. The Albany fire department, established in 1867, is one of the oldest professional departments in the country.

At the time of The Great Fire, Albany had an all-volunteer firefighting force, leather water buckets and a few horse-drawn pumpers. The limited equipment was no match for the intense blaze. One upshot of the fire was that the city put in place a new building code that extended the area where wooden building construction was banned, replaced by brick construction.

Opalka compared newspaper accounts of the blocks destroyed with listings from the city directory of that era. All manner of mercantilism was lost: shoemakers, barrel makers, warehouses, grocers, print shops, bookstores, butchers, silversmiths, hair dressers, fishmongers, breweries, distilleries and hardware stores.

Landmark buildings also succumbed to the fire, including the United States Hotel, Albion Hotel, a couple taverns and a fire station, Engine House No. 8. One of the only businesses that survived was Goold's Carriage Shop, behind Broadway at Hamilton Street, where employees quickly shifted to firefighting and battled to save the structure.

Many of the fire victims lost both their business and their residence, typically an apartment above a family store.

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"I'll do my best to describe what was here, but it's going to be like walking through a ghost story," Opalka said.

The walking tour, which will meet at the northeast corner of Madison Avenue and Broadway, under the Interstate 787 interchange, will cover several blocks and will pass by the old Trailways bus terminal on Broadway. That's the location that Tobler and his committee are eyeing as a possible future home of the Albany Firefighters Museum. They have enlisted the assistance of John G. Waite, a noted Albany architect who specializes in historic preservation and whose office is in a historic building located on the same block. The bus terminal is also adjacent to the Irish American Heritage Museum.

"It's a shell of a building, but we like the location and we feel it has a lot of potential," Tobler said. "We're moving ahead slowly with our plans."

They have not made a formal offer on the long-vacant Trailways building, an example of mid-century modern architecture with a rectangular shape and walls of glass and steel. The building will require extensive renovation.

Tobler is hoping to convince other non-profits to join in making a bid on the property and to share costs in turning it into a museum, offices, a restaurant and perhaps a rooftop cafe.

A reception with a display on Albany fire department history will follow the conclusion of the tour at 48 Hudson Ave. in the Van Ostrande-Radliff House, built in 1728 and the city's oldest surviving building  just outside the Burnt District.

Space is limited for the walking tour. A reservation is required. Register at www.historic-albany.org or call 518-465-0876 ext. 10. The cost is $15 for Historic Albany members and $25 for non-members.

Paul Grondahl is the director of the New York State Writers Institute at the University at Albany and a former Times Union reporter. He can be reached at grondahlpaul@gmail.com
ALBANY - The state Department of Motor Vehicles office on South Pearl Street plans to relocate to Central Avenue early next year, but discrepancies exist on what will happen come Oct. 31 when the lease is up on its Historic Pastures location.

The state Office of General Services says DMV will be moved to 855 Central Ave. The state will lease and convert existing space at the Central Avenue property, near the Everett Road exit off Interstate 90 in Albany, for the new space, officials said.

"The new centrally located office will be easy to access via public transportation and will also provide plenty of parking," OGS officials said in an emailed statement.

Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy confirmed Wednesday that the state DMV approached the county about a year ago looking to leave the South Pearl Street location, but earlier this year requested an extension through Oct. 31.

Mary Rozak, county spokesperson, said the state requested another extension, but the county declined due to the need to repurpose the building for new use.

McCoy said his office is looking for county agencies that could move into the building at 224-260 S. Pearl St., which the county owns.

Sheriff Craig Apple has expressed concern about relocating 911 dispatch to the county nursing home, and could be seeking another spot for the center. Meanwhile, talks have swirled for some time about relocating county probation from its location across from the Times Union Center. Then there's the county Board of Elections office, which the county rents on North Russell Road in Albany. The county pays over $350,000 annually for the space. All could be candidates for the South Pearl Street site.

While McCoy contends the DMV office's last day on South Pearl Street will be Oct. 31., OGS says it plans to stay there until the new Central Avenue location is ready, which is expected to be in the beginning of 2019.

OGS officials wouldn't say why they've decided to leave the Historic Pastures neighborhood, nor would they comment on the conflicting dates for the relocation.

Over the last few years, neighborhood residents have expressed concern about people loitering  drinking alcohol and engaging in illegal activities  near planters by the DMV's South Pearl Street site, which is located between Green and South Ferry streets and across from the Capital City Rescue Mission. The expansive parking lot in front of DMV is a spot for people to gather, residents have said.

Area residents are already facing the closure of the Rite Aid pharmacy a few blocks away, also on South Pearl Street. The corporation was recently bought by Walgreens, which in turn has begun closing many of the Rite Aid stores its acquired.

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South End residents have been outspoken about the pending Sept. 19 closure of the store at 310 S. Pearl St., which is situated in a neighborhood with few establishments where residents can buy basic food and household items.

Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan said the relocation, which has been talked about for some time, could open up opportunities for growth in the neighborhood.

"For many years, people in the South End have talked about what the potential would be for that site if the DMV wasn't there," she said. "There was actually an overlay zone (within the citywide rezone) that sort of envisioned some different uses that would bring more jobs and businesses to the South End."

What the future holds for the county-owned site is still unknown, but local officials plan to collaborate on whatever is next.

"We'll continue in that spirit to work with the county executive on any further use that they envision for that location," Sheehan said.
ALBANY - Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's administration is pushing back against reports that federal prosecutors have asked state officials  who met with President Donald J. Trump's former attorney on Tuesday  to avoid interfering with ongoing federal investigations.

The state Department of Taxation and Finance subpoenaed Michael Cohen in late August as part of its investigation into the president's charitable foundation. The subpoena was issued shortly after Cohen pleaded guilty to federal charges, including tax and campaign finance crimes. Cohen and his attorney met with attorneys and investigators from the tax department on Tuesday.

"Neither the U.S. attorney's office for the Southern District of New York or any other law enforcement agency expressed that the U.S. attorney's office did not want us to continue with our investigation of state tax matters," a tax department spokesman, James Gazzale in a statement.

Alphonso David, counsel to the governor, said: "No one has told us that the Southern District of New York advised the tax department not to proceed with their investigation."

Multiple reports alleged that the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan, which negotiated the August plea agreement with Cohen, had asked other offices to hold off on actions that might derail their ongoing investigation. A CNN story cited an anonymous law enforcement official saying that the meeting with Cohen represented "clear interference with an ongoing criminal investigation."

The tax department did not address specific questions about communications with federal prosecutors, including whether they expressed concerns about the timing of the department's interview with Cohen.

The subpoenas by the tax department were issued after Lanny Davis, Cohen's attorney, said his client had agreed to work with any law enforcement authorities that sought his cooperation. At the time, it was unclear whether state investigators would have access to Cohen prior to his federal sentencing, which is still months away.

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Prior to the state's tax probe, state Attorney General Barbara Underwood filed a lawsuit in June against Trump and his eldest children challenging the activities of the Trump Foundation. The civil action, which is scheduled for oral arguments at the end of October, stems from a multi-year investigation into the charity's spending.

In May, the New York Times reported that the state attorney general's office struck an agreement with Cohen's former business partner, who is known as the Taxi King, to cooperate with state and federal investigations.

David.Lombardo@timesunion.com - 518.454.5427 - @poozer87
ALBANY  When Domingo Baez was asked why he wanted to become a U.S. citizen, he pumped his fist in the air, grinned and said: "To vote." Twelve years after the 52-year-old hotel cleaner immigrated from the Dominican Republic, he became a citizen and is casting his ballot for the first time in the Democratic primary Thursday.

Baez's vote is a small victory in what civic advocates call an uphill battle to get out the vote among the Capital Region's immigrant and minority populations, who have nationally low rates of voter registration and turnout. Immigrant citizens often have to overcome language barriers, lack of knowledge about the system or fear of the government.

First-time voters and advocates said voting matters because it helps secure government representation on issues important to diverse communities.

"I think one vote makes a difference. It's very important for Latin people to vote because it's more democracy and our vote is as important as any other person born here," said Natalia Salazar, a 36-year-old day care worker from Colombia. She has lived in Albany for seven years and became a citizen this year. "If you vote, you can see big changes."

More than 30 percent of New York's eligible voters are non-white and 12 percent of the state's total population are foreign-born. Statewide data isn't available for voter registration or turnout, but national numbers show minority communities fall behind when it comes to civic engagement.

In the 2016 election, 64 percent of white citizens and 55 percent of blacks voted, U.S. Census reported. Numbers dropped to just over 30 percent for Hispanics and Asians.

Challenges and reasons for low civic engagement vary based on community. HP Wang, the president of Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association's Albany chapter, said many Asian-American citizens are immigrants who don't understand the process. Cessie Alfonso, immigration legal education advocate with Citizen Action, said Hispanics she knows can be nervous about voting because they fear registering in the system will expose family members who may be undocumented.

Other concerns are language barriers, transportation issues, lack of government trust or ignorance about how the system works.

"The voting process in general is not the most user friendly for non-Americans and is not very friendly for someone who is a first-time voter or someone who is not from this culture," said Ladan Alomar, director of Centro Civico, a nonprofit serving the Latino community with locations in Albany and Amsterdam. "In the past we have experienced that someone has been sitting at the (polling place) tables who is not familiar with the last names or someone's accent."

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The Department of Justice requires polling places to provide information and assistance to voters in their primary language, in communities where it's deemed necessary based on U.S. Census data. Outside the greater New York City area, Spanish is the only alternate language that will appear on ballots in places, such as Albany, where there is a need, according to the state Board of Elections.

Advocates are continually brainstorming how to find and get out the vote among immigrants. Centro Civico has worked to register nearly two dozen recently naturalized citizens at its offices, one of which is also a polling site. Wang said he's been to naturalization ceremonies to register voters but only a handful signed up. Alfonso attends community events and distributes literature.

After the primary, she wants to set up mock voting booths outside stores frequented by Hispanics so that the community becomes familiar with the process ahead of election day.

"If we don't vote, we'll be always under. Everybody has to go to out and vote no matter who you vote for," said Miguelina Fabian, community liaison at Centro Civico. "If you don't vote, you don't count."
ALBANY  U.S. Rep. John Faso is in a tough fight to secure a second term, according to a new poll.

The freshman Republican and his Democratic opponent Antonio Delgado are essentially even among potential voters in a Monmouth University poll released Wednesday for the 19th Congressional District, which includes parts of the Capital Region and stretches south into the Hudson Valley.

The Democrat's chances of picking up the seat improve among what pollsters identify as traditional midterm voters, with Delgado leading Faso by 48 percent to 45 percent. Based on another model that assumes a surge of Democratic voters, Delgado's lead grows to six percentage points  though that is still within the poll's margin of error.

The poll is available on Capitol Confidential.

Monmouth University Polling Institute Director Patrick Murray said there is reason to expect turnout for the midterm election will be higher than usual, noting that voters who normally only participate in presidential elections have been taking part in special elections around the country for the last two years.

"This is not a typical year," Murray said.

He also questioned whether the barrage of attack ads against Delgado by outside groups supporting Faso have made a dent in the Democrat's popularity, as he has a net favorable rating of 15 percentage points. Conversely, voters are split on how they feel about Faso.

Green Party candidate Steve Greenfield garnered 1 percent of the vote across the three different polling models used by Monmouth, which could be a deciding factor if the race stays tight through Election Day.

A Siena Research Insitute poll released last month found Faso leading Delgado by 45 percent to 40 percent among "likely" voters, but that survey did not include the Green Party candidate.

The race was deemed a "tossup" in analyses in August from the websites CQ Roll Call and FiveThirtyEight.

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Delgado, a Schenectady-born attorney who lives in Dutchess County, secured the Democratic nomination after winning a seven-candidate primary in June with 22 percent of the vote. He is also expected to appear on the Working Families and Women's Equality ballot lines.

Faso, a former state Assembly minority leader and unsuccessful 2006 GOP gubernatorial candidate, is expected to appear on the Republican, Conservative, Independence and Reform party lines.

The partisan makeup of the district has shifted slightly since being shaped six years ago, when Democrats accounted for 31 percent and Republicans 33 percent. The district is now 32.4 percent Democratic to 31.7 percent Republican, with Independence Party and unaffiliated voters accounting for nearly 33 percent.

The potential voter model used by Monmouth includes anyone who voted since 2010 or is newly registered.

David.Lombardo@timesunion.com - 518.454.5427 - @poozer87
3 1 of 3 Bethlehem Police Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Bethlehem Police Show More Show Less 3 of 3





Two men are each facing 35 felony charges after Bethlehem police say they uncovered a large check-cashing scheme.

Naveion Kirkley, 21, of Troy and Donovan Joseph, 19, of Altamont, were both charged on Monday with 33 counts of criminal possession of a forged instrument and one count each of grand larceny and scheme to defraud.
SCHENECTADY  When a mother was worried her child's stomach pains might be appendicitis, she opened an app on her phone and was connected to Keith Algozzine.

The head of a growing concierge medicine business called United Concierge Medicine, Algozzine is a board certified physician assistant who still practices emergency medicine when he can. So he asked the mother to connect via video and walked her through a physical exam of her child: Does it hurt here? Does it hurt there? Now what about here? He was able to deduce from the child's answers that it wasn't appendicitis.

His advice to the mom? Skip the emergency room, and try instead to see your pediatrician in the next few days. When he called back the next morning to check in, he recalled, the child had passed a "large bowel movement" and was feeling much better.

"We completely avoided an ER visit, and probably some unnecessary CAT scans," he recalled.

This model of around-the-clock, click-of-a-button access to medical care is what's known as concierge medicine, and thanks to a $61,318 state grant it will soon be available to Schenectady residents who face homelessness or live with developmental disabilities.

The grant allows United Concierge Medicine  a Troy company that offers virtual, on-call medical care to patients around the nation  to expand an existing program with the ARC of Rensselaer County to the Schenectady ARC and Schenectady City Mission. The groups had sought the funding through the state's Delivery System Reform Incentive Program, which seeks to restructure health care delivery and reduce avoidable hospital use.

"The reason we're so excited about this is it gets us back to our original mission, which is taking care of the people who need us the most," said Algozzine, who founded UCM in 2014 with Dr. Michael Bibighaus, a board certified emergency physician.

The idea for UCM was born out of their own experience as emergency medicine physicians.

Most of their patients didn't actually need to visit the ER, Algozzine said. They simply did so because they didn't know where else to go when a seemingly urgent illness or injury arose. A high volume of them were poor, homeless and disabled  populations that are more likely to have serious medical needs and less likely to have adequate insurance, primary care or specialty care.

"Our health care system is extremely patient-unfriendly," Algozzine said. "This country needs virtual ER, not just to treat but to triage and to make sure patients get the right care at the right place."

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Through the expanded program, the Schenectady City Mission can now provide concierge medicine services to 105 shelter residents a night for a year.



"We're not a medical facility," said Nathan Mandsager, associate executive director of Schenectady Works, a division of the Mission. "So when someone has a medical issue our only recourse is to call 911. Now with UCM we can say, 'Would you like to speak to a doctor on the phone?' We suspect that's going to cut down on a lot of unnecessary ER visits."

While concierge and telemedicine has big appeal among employers looking to save on costs (each avoided ER visit saves $644, by UCM's data), population health experts also see in it the potential to direct high-cost, at-risk patients to the right place on the first try.

Some cases will require the patient to head straight to a brick-and-mortar emergency room, and the doctor will tell them as much, Algozzine said. But in most cases, a UCM doctor can make a diagnosis, assign a treatment plan, prescribe medicine, order labs, schedule imaging appointments and make referrals right over the phone.

Both the Schenectady ARC and City Mission became convinced the program could work for their clientele after providing UCM benefits to their own employees. The 20 percent reduction in unnecessary emergency room and urgent care visits experienced by ARC clientele in Rensselaer County was also convincing.

"As a nonprofit service provider for at-risk populations, City Mission constantly strives to provide high quality services for our people as efficiently as possible," said Schenectady Mission Executive Director Michael Saccocio. "This incredible new partnership will allow us to provide the highest quality custom virtual care to our people while at the same time avoiding the high cost of an emergency room visit."
NICHOLAS KAMM

President Donald Trump paid tribute Tuesday to the airline passengers and crew members who stormed the cockpit of a hijacked plane and thwarted terrorists in the skies over Pennsylvania on Sept. 11, 2001, vowing to follow their example by standing up to evil.

In his first trip to Shanksville, Pa., as president, Trump led a ceremony marking the 17th anniversary of the terrorist attacks by honoring the heroes who brought down United Airlines Flight 93 into an unpopulated field rather than allow it to be used as a weapon against the nation's capital.
Albany

The map room in UAlbany's atmospheric sciences department was lit up Wednesday as if on the eve of a major battle, but in this case, the invading force was a massive hurricane heading for America's southeastern shore.

And rather than barrel ashore in the Carolinas, incoming Hurricane Florence will instead slow to a crawl as it pummels the area with pounding rain and winds, likely made worse by a storm surge made larger as the stalled storm lingers.

"This is quite frightening," said Brian Tang, an assistant professor and tropical storm researcher, who was one of three faculty who reviewed an array of high-definition digital maps and data as several dozen students looked on.

Models that afternoon predicted that Florence, currently a Category 3 storm with winds up to 125 mph, would veer slightly southwest, due to being blocked by high pressure that extends in a ridge from Texas to New York, as well as another pressure ridge to the north in the Atlantic Ocean that is both blocking and steering Florence.

That means Florence should "slam on the brakes as it approaches the coast ... and start crawling," said Tang. And that makes it likely that heavily-populated shoreline communities could be pounded with rain and wind for several days in a row.

A stalled storm could also cause what Tang called a "trapped wave" of high water pushed inland, which also could inhibit rivers and streams from draining into the ocean. That combination could portend heavy and sustained flooding.

"Two days of storm surge, rain and wind in an area could be a catastrophe," he said.

Depending on where the heart of the storm lands, rainfall records in North Carolina, South Carolina or Alabama from a single hurricane could be in jeopardy, he said, with rainfall totals now estimated at between 30 and 50 inches.

Alabama's current hurricane rainfall record is 27.8 inches, North Carolina's is 24 inches, and South Carolina's is 18.5 inches.

But this storm should have little impact in the Capital Region, said Kristen Corbosiero, an assistant professor in the university's Department of Atmospheric and Environmental Science.

The storm will quickly weaken as it passes through Tennessee and Kentucky, and by the middle of next week, the hurricane's remnants should bring only a gentle soaking rain to the Capital Region that would not appear to be out of the ordinary, she said.

National Grid is monitoring the storm and will decide later whether it will marshal crews to head south to aid in restoration efforts, according to spokesman Nate Stone. He said no impacts are expected in New York.

That would be a far cry from the last major hurricane to hit the Carolinas in 1954 that quickly made its way to New York, where it knocked out electrical and telephone service in the central part of the state.

Hurricane Hazel dumped about a foot of rain once it came ashore near the border of North and South Carolina, and quickly tracked north through Virginia, Pennsylvania, and finally New York state.

The storm killed two people in Norwich, in Chenango County, who were hit by a department store chimney that blew off, according to an account in the Oneonta Star. Winds hit 94 mph in nearby Binghamton.

After picking up strength over Lake Ontario, Hazel reached Toronto, where it caused severe flooding that killed dozens of people.

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On Wednesday, two future hurricane trackers at UAlbany watched Florence's path with interest. Sarah Ditchek, a Long Island resident, and Josh Alland, a native of Minnesota, are both doctoral students in the program with an eye on careers in tropical storm research.

Both said the data behind Florence reminds them of what they studied last summer when Hurricane Harvey blasted the Houston area. That storm was the costliest in U.S history, causing about $125 billion in damage and killing 68 people.

That storm also stalled once it reached land, dumping 40 inches or more of rain, which inundated the low-lying city.

Ditchek said that since it has been decades since the southeastern U.S. has experienced a major hurricane, there will "forgetfulness" by residents in built-up areas who might not appreciate the storm's destructive power.

As part of his program, Alland said he met with a half-dozen U.S. lawmakers of both political parties this summer to urge continued and sustained funding for research into hurricanes and tropical storms.

He said lawmakers were generally receptive to the concept, but that GOP lawmakers seemed wary of funding science that might touch on issues related to climate change.

In 2012, North Carolina GOP lawmakers banned the state from basing coastal land use policies on current scientific estimates of sea level rise.

Environmental groups said the state was buckling to pressure from developers and local politicians who thought such estimates could be used to inhibit building in coastal communities.

After a scientific advisory group estimated that seas could rise by by up to 39 inches by the end of this century, the North Carolina law required proposed new land use policies be based on historical records of past sea level rise, rather than current projections that they saw as alarmist.
A woman accused of smuggling marijuana into the state prison in Dannemora is among the fugitives State Police said they are hunting for a part of their Warrant Wednesday effort.

Laquasia J. Gilley, 23, is wanted by State Police in Chazy on an allegation she had marijuana when she visited an inmate at Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora on April 3, 2017. She was charged with promoting prison contraband and unlawful possession of marijuana after troopers said they caught her with marijuana and synthetic marijuana.

Gilley got out on bail after being sent to the Clinton County jail but did not return for court for sentencing in the case, troopers said.

Kaila A. Custo, 27, is wanted by State Police in Niagara on a warrant that accuses her of driving intoxicated, drug possession and traffic infractions. Custo is accused of failing to go to court in August to answer charges from a May arrest.

Harrison N. Waruingi, 27, is wanted by State Police in Albany on a warrant that accuses him of driving while intoxicated. The warrant stems from a Sept. 4, 2013, traffic stop on the Thruway.

Sarah A. Cahill, 38, is wanted by State Police in Greene on a warrant that accuses her failing to comply with conditions of her release on a driving while ability impaired charge.

Joseph Dardzinski, 45, is wanted by State Police in Rochester on a charge of driving with ability impaired by drugs. Troopers said the arrested Dardzinski after initially stopping his car because it was uninspected.

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Pauly N. Rivera, 19, is wanted by State Police in Somers on charges of criminal contempt and harassment that stem from a domestic dispute in in North Salem.

Curtis D. Grimsley, 51, is wanted by State Police in Haverstraw on a reckless endangerment charge that accuses him of leading troopers on a high-speed chase on the Thruway. The chase allegedly started after troopers investigating reports that tools were stolen from a Home Depot in West Nyack began to pursue a car Grimsley was driving. Troopers said Grimsley lost control of his car, which crashed into a guard rail. Grimsley failed to return to court after his arrest, troopers said.

Joseph A. Wilcox, 20, is wanted by State Police in LaFayette on charges of criminal possession of stolen property and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle. Troopers said they arrested Wilcox in December after catching him with a car with a stolen license plate.
WATERVLIET  Two suspects were taken into custody Wednesday afternoon after they allegedly led Troy police on a car chase and then barricaded themselves inside a Watervliet apartment, police said.

Troy police tried to pull over a car Wednesday morning in the area of Hoosick Street, but the suspects sped away, Troy police Capt. John Becker Jr. said. Officers followed the car to Fenimore Trace Apartments in Watervliet and saw the two male suspects run into one of the units at about 11:50 a.m., Becker said.

Both men had active warrants, were known to have violent criminal histories and were believed to be in possession of a firearm, Becker said.

Tactical teams, K-9 units and dozens of officers gathered at the apartment complex at 150 Troy-Schenectady Road, which was evacuated as a precaution, Becker said.

After about three hours, the two suspects surrendered peacefully. There were no injuries, and no one else was in the unit during the standoff, Becker said.

He declined to identify the men or their ages because charges are still pending and the investigation continues.

No weapon was immediately recovered, but police are working to obtain a search warrant for the apartment and car, Becker said.

The standoff forced Watervliet schools into a "lockout," in which no one can enter the building but regular activity can continue inside. The junior/senior high school, which is located about a quarter mile from the scene, was eventually dismissed as usual, though students who live at the Fenimore Trace and Highland apartments were held back at the high school until the scene was cleared.

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Becker said the apartment complex evacuation and school lockout was done "out of an abundance of caution."

"Time was on our side in this case," Becker said about the situation. "In cases like this, we can afford to slow down, take it step by step and not rush into anything. The public's safety was at the forefront of our decision process."

State Police as well as officers from the Troy, Colonie, Watervliet and Green Island police departments were at the scene. Officers also deployed drones and police dogs.

Rich Sentmier, a former resident of the apartment complex, stood across the street to watch the situation unfold.

"You could hear police coming from every direction," Sentmier said.
Trumps opponents have likewise bandied the word about by saying that the op-ed was not treasonous. Instead, they say that Trump himself is guilty of treason by trying to obstruct the investigation into the claimed Russian interference in the 2016 election. Earlier this year, Trump opponents also claimed he committed treason at his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Gardai in Tipperary are preparing a file for the DPP after the Gardai in Roscrea were alerted to sulky racing at 7.30pm at Ballinakill on September 5.

The alleged offences relate to cruelty to animals.

Meanwhile, there were a number of public order arrests in Roscrea over the past week.

On September 7, two males were observed carrying iron bars in the Railway View area.

It is thought they may have been on their way to another disturbance in the town at the time.

A file is being prepared for the DPP.

And at Railway View on the same date, the Gardai were called to a public order incident in which youths were alleged to be causing an annoyance.

They became abusive towards the Gardai and will be dealt with under the youth referral programme.
To mark World Sepsis Day, the Sepsis Team at University Hospital Limerick will hold an awareness event this Thursday, September 13.

Yvonne Young, Lead for Sepsis at UL Hospitals Group, said: Raising awareness of sepsis, recognition of its signs and symptoms, and how serious it can be requires not only a local but a global effort. To educate and engage, World Sepsis Day is held on the 13th of September every year and is a valuable opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the battle against sepsis.

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition triggered by infection that leads to organ malfunction and failure. Early recognition and initiation of treatment in a timely and appropriate manner is key in order for patients to have the best opportunity to survive sepsis. It is also vital that healthcare workers can recognise sepsis and manage patients in an appropriate and timely manner, commented Ms Young.

It is recognised that the presentation of sepsis is variable in symptoms, signs and time course. Thus, sepsis may not be present or not be diagnosed on first presentation and may not become apparent until the clinical condition evolves further. Documented hospital mortality of patients who have had sepsis has decreased by 30% over the past five years due to a combination of improved recognition and treatment due to increased education and awareness. It also reflects the willingness of healthcare workers to engage in education programmes .

Some 70-80% of patients with sepsis present to the acute hospital sector from the community. In 2016, there were 14,804 cases of sepsis in Ireland and one in five of these patients died. Sepsis is a common, time-dependent medical emergency which can affect a person of any age, from any social background and can strike irrespective of underlying good health or medical conditions. However, people who are older or who have chronic health issues are at increased risk of developing sepsis when they contract an infection. The US Centre for Disease Control has reported that 90% of adults and 70% of children who develop sepsis have a predisposing health condition. If you a chronic health condition you should reduce your risk of getting infection as much as possible through vaccination, good hand and general hygiene and other measures.

If you contract an infection it is important to be vigilant for the signs of sepsis and seek urgent medical review if any are present, Ms Young said.

For further information on sepsis and how to recognise its signs and symptoms is available on www.hse.ie/sepsis. Patient information leaflets and booklets are also available at various information points in UHL.

To mark World Sepsis Day, this Thursday, September 13th, there will be an educational and information stand in the Outpatients Corridor at UHL.
September 12, 2018





The concept of artificial intelligence presents a whole range of concerns, ranging from the moral to the existential. With that in mind, Sparsh Jain reviews Life 3.0, beginning with the opening pages in which MIT (News - Alert) professor Max Tegmark abundantly announces the arrival of Life 3.0: Life 3.0 is the master of its own destiny, finally fully free from its evolutionary shackles. And in one way, the purpose of Tegmarks exploration is to learn how to cope with this new-found freedom. Capitalism, democracy, the printing press, information technology, the decline of religious dogmatism and the rise of rational philosophy are all developments that have given humans greater freedom and greater control of our destiny. Tegmark argues that artificial intelligence will be the final step in the realisation of human freedom and destiny.







That said, greater freedom has always stoked fears of uncertainty and powerlessness, and one of the books most touching moments sees Tegmark crying after visiting the London Science Museum. Here, Tegmark highlights one of the anxieties that fuels the AI conversation: this feeling of inevitability: that a disturbing future may be coming and there was nothing we could do about it. Tegmark chooses to be optimistic about artificial intelligence, encouraging pragmatic cooperation on the problems of the future. To this end he devotes his book; introducing us to what he dubs the most important conversation of our time

First and foremost, Tegmark explains why he is confident that AI will be invented soon (albeit with a more eloquent and precise explanation). Intelligence, he explains, is simply an arrangement of quarks and electrons, and there is no law of physics preventing us from building even more intelligent quark blobs. Given that computation keeps getting half as expensive roughly every couple of years - cutting the computer cost a million-million-million (1018) times in the last century - this may be sooner than we think. Tegmark himself includes the perfect example of this idea: Ernest Rutherford, arguably the greatest nuclear physicist of his time, said in 1933less than twenty-four hours before Leo Szilards invention of the nuclear chain reactionthat nuclear energy was moonshine. Finally, Tegmark explains that if an intelligent being can create a being that is more intelligent than itself, this could cause a runaway reaction that would result in superintelligence only limited by the laws of physics.

However, proving the possibility of artificial intelligence is not the purpose of Tegmarks book. Though he charts developments in science and technology, Tegmark is primarily interested in answering broad philosophical questions in the context of a rapidly evolving world. Before looking at our creations, Tegmark looks at our own nature by explaining from first principles the concepts of intelligence, memory, computation, learning and consciousness. Purpose and goals are also important topics for Tegmark who believes that one of the main challenges in creating sentient artificial intelligence is in making sure that its goals are aligned with ours. To do this we must first look out our own goals: he explains our goals from a physicists, biologists, psychologists, engineers and philosophers point of view. Tegmark is essentially saying that our goals are the specific products of millions of years of evolution. Given this, he opens up the question of what kind of fundamental goals artificial intelligence would have and how this would affect its behaviour.

The concept of destiny is also extremely important to Tegmark. For him, artificial intelligence is the final key to unlocking mankinds wildest dreams. One of the chapters is dedicated to drawing up many possible scenarios as to how the future could look with artificial intelligence and includes scenarios with names like egalitarian utopia and enslaved god. Perhaps the most striking chapter in the whole book is one titled Our Cosmic Endowment: The Next Billion Years and Beyond. Around this point, Tegmark begins to sound like a madman. He speaks of intergalactic cosmic civilisations that build dyson spheres around the sun and evaporate black holes to acquire energy for further computation. He entertains the ideas of creating wormholes, meeting advanced alien civilisations or, more frighteningly, finding out that we are alone in the universe. Though Tegmark is interested in destiny, he is also limited in the things that ultimately limit us. He cites the speed of light and the force of dark energy as limitations to human exploration. Though at times the gigantic scale of Tegmarks ambitions may sound silly, perhaps the true purpose of Tegmarks enthusiasm is to show that man has reached the stage where he need not doubt his wildest dreams, and instead of fearing the future, we should be excited by the boundless possibilities that lay ahead.

Although Tegmarks book deals with deeply philosophical and wildly ambitious ideas, its purpose is surprisingly practical. Ultimately, Tegmarks goal is to introduce people to an important conversation. He is optimistic about the future if the whole world works towards creating the best outcome. He encourages others to follow his lead in creating a conversation around AI, having himself founded the Future of Life Institute in which he has worked with the likes of Elon Musk, Larry Page (News - Alert) , Stephen Hawking and Erik Brynjolfsson to raise awareness in the scientific community about the ethical problems of developing AI. During my own time as an intern with the robotics venture studio Rewired, I saw firsthand how much these questions matter to the fields backers and thought leaders, like the entrepreneur Tej Kohli. Rewired and other, similar projects, are clear proof of Tegmarks belief that the debate has changed from when AI will arrive, to how we deal with it when it does.

Tegmark finishes his book with the following words:

Were the guardians of the future of life now as we shape the age of AI. Although I cried in London, I now feel that theres nothing inevitable about this future, and I know that its much easier to make a difference than I thought. Our future isnt written in stone and just waiting to happen to usits ours to create. Lets create an inspiring one together!

Its a sobering call to arms thats a fitting end to Tegmarks journey into the implications of artificial intelligence and the life it creates.
[September 11, 2018] Seven Percent of Chinese Companies Have Outperformed Peers by Digitizing their Operations to Transform Their Businesses, According to New Accenture Research

A small minority of Chinese companies are leading their industries and achieving higher profits by digitizing their operations and innovation processes to transform their businesses and unlock new growth opportunities, according to new research by Accenture (News - Alert) (NYSE: ACN). This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180911005793/en/ (Graphic: Business Wire) The report, the China Digital Transformation Index, revealed that seven percent of Chinese companies have become what Accenture refers to as "Rotation Champions" by generating more than half of their revenues from new businesses started in the last three years. This at a time when traditional growth efforts are too partial and fragmented to make a real impact in digitally contested industries. The report found that Rotation Champions' efforts have led to stronger financial performance. Rotation Champions substantially outperformed their industry peers, achieving, on average, a 14.3 percent three-year compound annual revenue growth rate, 5.5 times greater than the rest (2.6 percent). They also secured a sales margin of 12.7 percent, compared to 5.2 percent for the others. The Digital Transformation Index was developed to gauge companies' digital proficiency across two critical capability sets - building intelligent operations and driving digital innovation. Rotation Champions scored an average of 66 out of 100 against the two capabilities, compared to the average score of 37. These companies, which stood out in their levels of intelligent operation and digital innovation, were able to venture into previously unexplored markets while driving profound transformation of their current businesses. The report is based on a study of 450 Chinese companies across eight industry sectors in collaboration with the China Service Alliance for the Integration of Information and Industrializaion (CSAIII). The Rotation Champions are spread across all eight industries surveyed, with automotive and consumer electronics sectors seeing the most champions among the industries studied.



"We are proud to join hands with CSAIII to launch the Digital Transformation Index and offer more quantitative analysis, systematic strategies and evaluation tools for digital transformation of industries in China. The Rotation Champions are well ahead of the rest, signifying that there's a gap when it comes to how companies are investing in digital capabilities," said Wei Zhu, chairman of Accenture Greater China. "To close the gap, companies should invest in and deploy digital technologies at scale and at speed, and they must seek to create an agile organization with an innovation culture that will allow them to monetize new ideas." According to the report, these leading companies succeeded in enhancing their digital capabilities by developing seamless digital and physical customer experiences, adopting smart manufacturing and creating intelligent functions on the operations side. At the same time, they drove digital innovation through product and service creation and established digital ventures to accelerate the creation of digital business models.

The report recommends a set of actions for Chinese companies to close the gap with the Rotation Champions: Establish top-down ownership: Drive the digital transformation agenda with senior executives who have organization-wide influence. A dedicated digital transformation taskforce will also ensure effective implementation. Fifty-eight percent of the Rotation Champions said that their C-level executives are responsible for driving digital transformation initiatives, higher than the 42 percent cited by other companies.

Drive the digital transformation agenda with senior executives who have organization-wide influence. A dedicated digital transformation taskforce will also ensure effective implementation. Fifty-eight percent of the Rotation Champions said that their C-level executives are responsible for driving digital transformation initiatives, higher than the 42 percent cited by other companies. Build hyper relevance: Become customer-centric by continually sensing and addressing the changing needs of your customers (e.g. affordability, social connections and quality of experiences). Inform digital transformation with customer insights in order to become a hyper relevant brand. Leading companies trump competitors through constant service improvements based on sophisticated customer analytics.

Become customer-centric by continually sensing and addressing the changing needs of your customers (e.g. affordability, social connections and quality of experiences). Inform digital transformation with customer insights in order to become a hyper relevant brand. Leading companies trump competitors through constant service improvements based on sophisticated customer analytics. Embrace ecosystems: Bring the best innovation to customers by harnessing the power of a carefully managed ecosystem of external partnerships. Create an open-source Research & Development innovation communities.

Bring the best innovation to customers by harnessing the power of a carefully managed ecosystem of external partnerships. Create an open-source Research & Development innovation communities. Improve data fluency: Build a solid supply chain of data by mastering leading-edge technologies, such as cloud solutions, enhanced data infrastructure, improved data connectivity, and advanced AI algorithms. These data-driven improvements can enable business innovation at an unprecedented level and scale.

Build a solid supply chain of data by mastering leading-edge technologies, such as cloud solutions, enhanced data infrastructure, improved data connectivity, and advanced AI algorithms. These data-driven improvements can enable business innovation at an unprecedented level and scale. Create an agile organism: Evolving workforces (specialized, flexible, augmented and adaptive) can help transform a static organization into the agile one. This change can help companies gain a competitive advantage in the digital age. Companies also need to assess employees' performance and evaluate their competence through data visibility. The research and full Chinese report can be accessed here. About Accenture Digital Transformation Index The Accenture Digital Transformation Index is a cross-industry framework to assess a company's digital maturity across four layers of scoring system in two dimensions. The research surveyed 450 Chinese enterprises from eight industries including automotive, consumer electronics, logistics, retail, pharmaceutical, fast moving consumer goods, chemicals and metal. About Accenture Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions - underpinned by the world's largest delivery network - Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With 449,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives. Visit us at www.accenture.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180911005793/en/

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[September 11, 2018] Health Management Concepts, Inc. Identifies and Addresses Security Incident

SEATTLE, Sept. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Health Management Concepts, Inc. ("HMC") announced that it is addressing a security incident involving personal information of the members of one of its clients. As authorized by the client, HMC proactively notified the potentially affected individuals to explain the incident, the responsive measures HMC has taken and steps the individuals can take to protect themselves. HMC also is offering complimentary identity protection services to potentially affected individuals. On July 16, 2018, HMC learned that a server it used to share files with its clients was infected with ransomware. HMC took immediate steps to decrypt the files, provision a new server, begin an investigation, and engage a leading forensic firm to assist it. On July 19, 2018, HMC determined that a file obtained by the attackers contained personal information, including Social Security numbers and health insurance plan informtion. The file did not contain any health care claims or treatment information.



As a result, HMC notified the potentially affected individuals to provide guidance on how they can protect themselves. As part of this protection, the company is offering eligible individuals a complimentary one-year membership in credit monitoring and identity theft protection services through Experian. Individuals with questions should call (888) 579-1194, Monday-Friday between 5:00 am to 5:00 pm Pacific Time. HMC understands the importance of protecting the security and confidentiality of personal information, sincerely regrets that this incident occurred, and apologizes for any inconvenience or concern the incident may cause. To help prevent something like this from happening in the future, HMC is adding enhanced security protocols to its current server, including removing access to the server through Remote Desktop Protocol. It also is migrating its server to another cloud computing service, which will provide additional security. Finally, it has reviewed and, where necessary, enhanced its security protocols to provide a more secure environment.

About HMC

HMC is a healthcare management company located in Jupiter, Florida. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/health-management-concepts-inc-identifies-and-addresses-security-incident-300710605.html SOURCE Health Management Concepts, Inc.

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[September 12, 2018] Cubic Telecom Launches Next-Generation Global IoT Platform with Industry-First Connectivity Management and Service Enablement Capabilities

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cubic Telecom, a leading connectivity technology enabler, today, at Mobile World Congress Americas, announced the launch of its next-generation platform, the Global Connectivity Management Platform offered as a Service. With the platform now available to IoT device manufacturers worldwide, the ability to connect any object anywhere and enable any connected application has become a reality. The first devices hosted on the platform are already being managed in Europe, the USA, and South Korea, with the rollout of locally compliant service to continue across all regions.

This unique platform solution brings industry-first capabilities, including standards-based remote SIM provisioning use and cloud-native advanced connectivity management functions such as zero-touch device registration and connectivity activation across different mobile networks, regions and regulatory conditions. With the number of cellular IoT connections set to reach more than 3.5 billion by 20231, manufacturers and providers of connected devices and IoT applications expect these connected services to work anywhere in the world. Cubic Telecoms next-generation IoT platform has entirely new integration capabilities, making it easy for device manufacturers from an array of different industries to deliver a truly global connectivity solution to end-users through one global SIM and one platform. The Global Connectivity Management Platform has open interfaces and flexible workflow operations, allowing device makers to choose their preferred mobile network operators, IT systems, service providers and vendors for any region or country, and Cubics technology will integrate the end-to-end solution seamlessly. As Cubics software platform integrates to multiple OEM IT systems and mobile operator platforms with Cubics own dedicated global Core Network, there is no need for multiple separate integrations - Cubic provides a single point of control. The new platform is built for maximum usiness flexibility, including the ability to dynamically onboard different mobile networks at any point in a products lifetime. No other technology companies are currently offering this entire suite of services.



With our new platform we are putting control back in the hands of our customers, the connected device makers, stated Barry Napier, Cubic Telecom CEO. By listening to the needs of the customers we communicate with daily, our expert in-house team of software, data and network engineers have built a world-class IoT platform, enabling us to deliver seamless connectivity anywhere. No matter how the device maker chooses to compose its global connected service infrastructure, Cubic Telecoms Global Connectivity Management Platform can integrate an end-to-end solution efficiently.

This solution provides advanced connected services through one global partner and platform across all regions, with complete freedom of vendor choice, continued Napier. With this added flexibility device makers now have the power to control their service experience end-to-end. We are proud to be the first to market with this advanced intelligent solution. Cubic Telecom will showcase this solution at Mobile World Congress Americas this week. It is exhibiting with Enterprise Ireland at stand number W. 912. 1Sourced from an Ericsson report 2018 About Cubic Telecom

Cubic Telecom is a global connectivity platform company that offers mobility solutions that power connectivity for leading Internet of things (IoT), machine-to-machine (M2M) and mobile device companies across the globe. An expert in Connected Intelligence, Cubic Telecom enables global scalability with local connectivity anytime, anywhere. Cubic provides connectivity in over 100 countries; the most robust network, device and retail partnerships worldwide; and flexible over-the-air (OTA) device management for clients and partners. Cubic creates connectivity where there was none before, with a belief in the future of things: a future where everything is connected. Cubics vision of interconnectivity will improve lives and make the world a more interesting and intelligent place to be. Clients which also believe in this work include Audi, Volkswagen, Panasonic, Rakuten and Woolworths. Based in Dublin Ireland, Cubic Telecoms partners and customers include some of the worlds leading Fortune 100 tablet and notebook manufacturers, retailers, and M2M and automotive companies. The company is privately held with over 75 million in funding by Audi Electronics Venture GmbH, Qualcomm, Valid, Enterprise Ireland and the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, among others.

Media Contacts: Susan Donahue Elaine Murray Skyya Communications Cubic Telecom +1 646 454 9378 +353 88 811 1610 www.skyya.com www.cubictelecom.com

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[September 12, 2018] ION sees cross-industry growth in implementation of treasury and risk management systems worldwide

NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- ION, the largest global provider of trading, analytics and risk management solutions for capital markets, commodities and treasury management, is working with an increasingly diverse set of clients to design and implement fully integrated, single platform treasury management systems (TMS) that also provide robust risk management capabilities. In concert with the NeuGroup, a trusted thought leader and advocate for global finance and treasury practitioners, ION will co-host a webinar on September 20, "The RFP Process Costs More than You Think," to help clients prioritize their unique treasury requirements and consider how to select TMS solutions that deliver optimal value. In the past two years, the ION Treasury portfolio added market-leading solutions from Openlink and Reval, and comprises now seven differentiated offerings, including Treasura, ITS, City Financials, IT2, and Wallstreet Suite. The portfolio is suited to clients of varying industries, sizes, budgets, and requirements, with Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), private cloud and on-premises delivery models. As of June 2018, the ION Treasury portfolio serves 1,300 clients, including public and private financial institutions and commodity-intensive corporations, on six continents. One such client is CLP Holdings Limited, one of the largest investor-owned power businesses in Asia Pacific. CLP operates a vertically integrated electricity supply business providing a highly reliable supply of electriity to 80% of Hong Kong's population, and holds investments in the energy sector in Mainland China, India, Southeast Asia, Taiwan and Australia. CLP's diversified portfolio of generating assets uses a wide range of fuels including coal, gas, nuclear and renewable sources. To support its business needs, CLP decided to implement a more integrated TMS that reflects global best practices, helps the business scale upward, and minimizes ongoing maintenance efforts. Upon selecting Reval as its TMS, CLP is realizing measurable value from enhanced automation and operational efficiency.



Francis Ho, Senior Director of Group Treasury & Project Finance at CLP, said, "With Reval as our single, integrated TMS, we have elevated overall on-demand visibility, boosted the quality of our data, and established a more robust and one-stop solution for risk management, compliance, hedge accounting, evolution, treasury reporting and fund flow optimization. Deployment of innovative technology helps us attain better control and efficiency. We are making well informed business decisions that prepare us for the future as CLP's business expands." Alex Triplett, Head of Business Development at ION, said, "The ION Treasury portfolio meets a wide range of needs, spanning core cash management to centralized treasury operations and all the way to large-scale, globally integrated enterprise treasury and risk management. Regardless of industry, size or IT capability, clients can find an ION solution that results in more efficient operations and better understanding of risk exposurealong with real-time reporting, forecasting, and analytics capabilities."

ION Treasury solutions have earned recent industry recognition, with Openlink winning the inaugural 2018 FinTech & RegTech Award from Central Banking for "Best Risk Management Technology Solution" and the 2017 Treasury Management International (TMI) Award for "Best Risk Management Solution" in the technology innovation category. Concurrently, Reval client Microsoft and Wallstreet Suite client Toyota Financial Services earned 2018 Adam Smith Awards for excellence in treasury management, while Reval earned the "Best TMS Partner 2017" award from its partner Fides. About ION

ION provides mission-critical trading and workflow automation software solutions to financial institutions, central banks, governments and corporates. For more information, visit www.iongroup.com. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ion-sees-cross-industry-growth-in-implementation-of-treasury-and-risk-management-systems-worldwide-300710783.html SOURCE ION Investment Group

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RepRisk Adds Four Languages to Its Research Coverage, Bringing the Total to 20 Languages

RepRisk, a leading business intelligence provider specialized in ESG and business conduct risks, is proud to announce the addition of Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia), Malaysian (Bahasa Malaysia), Filipino, and Hindi to its research process. With the addition of these four new languages, RepRisk now covers 20 major business languages as part of its daily-updated ESG risk solutions.

Other languages covered by RepRisk's research are: English, Arabic, Chinese, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Swedish.

"Expanding the languages covered by RepRisk is vital to our research process, as risks first appear at a local level in local languages," says Nicole Streuli-Furst, Executive Vice President of Operations and Research at RepRisk. "These four additions greatly strengthen our local coverage - and early detection of ESG and business conduct risks - in South Asia and Southeast Asia."

RepRisk runs the world's largest due diligence database on ESG and business conduct risks, covering over 110,000 listed ad non-listed companies across all sectors and geographies, including emerging and frontier markets.







By combining artificial intelligence with human analysis in 20 languages, RepRisk translates big data into curated and actionable research and metrics that are used in risk management and compliance, investment management, supply chain, and corporate sustainability. Its research captures and analyzes information from media, stakeholders, and other public sources external to a company, taking a unique outside-in approach to assessing a company's performance.

About RepRisk

RepRisk is a leading research and business intelligence provider, specializing in ESG and business conduct risks.

As a premium due diligence solution, RepRisk helps clients prevent and mitigate business conduct risks related to their operations, business relationships, and investments.

Since 2006, RepRisk has leveraged artificial intelligence and human analysis to translate big data into actionable analytics and metrics. With daily updates, universal coverage, and curated adverse data on companies, projects, sectors, and countries, RepRisk offers a suite of a powerful risk management and compliance services.

Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, RepRisk serves clients worldwide, enabling them to reduce blind spots and shed light on risks that can have reputational, compliance, and financial impacts on a company.

For more information, please visit www.reprisk.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180911005339/en/
[September 12, 2018] Bon Raises INR 7.8 Crore in a Seed Round Led by Omidyar Network

PUNE, India, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Bon empowers self-employed and gig-economy workers in India with easier access to working capital Bon, the FinTech platform that facilitates digital credit for flexible workers, today announced that it has raised INR 7.8 crore ($1.1 million) in a Seed Round led by Omidyar Network, the Silicon Valley-based impact investing firm established by Pierre Omidyar, the founder of eBay. Bon facilitates credit to the so-called 'gig-economy' workers, such as taxi and ride-share drivers, goods delivery, and other contractors in India, many of whom are first-time borrowers of formal credit. Other funders in this round include early-stage investment firm Axilor and Better Capital's AngelList India Syndicate. "Access to working capital is a real pain point for the growing gig workforce - one that can literally make or break a business of one. In India, where credit cards are not pervasive, this issue is even more prominent, as people don't really have a safety net to rely on when they don't have cash on hand," said Bhasker "Bosky" Kode, founder and CEO of Bon. "Bon's mission is to empower these new flexible workers to thrive by providing them an easy money management tool coupled with a credit offering that allows them to keep their business moving no matter what." With the increased penetration of smartphone, Internet access, and digital payments in India, the country has seen an explosion in the offering and usage of ride sharing, food delivery, and other hyperlocal digital services-creating job opportunities for a large pool of flexible workers. Tuned to the growing needs of this gig workforce, Bon launched last year with the goal of facilitating short-term credit to meet working capital needs for recurring expenses by these workers, who can now swipe the Bon card at hundreds of thousands of merchant locations around the country. Since then, Bon has issued over 5,000 cards - processed more than INR 6 crore in transactions and repayments, enabling its users to generate earnings of more than INR 10 crore. Bon has entered into partnerships with leading gig employers and marketplaces, such as Uber, and expande operations to seven major cities.



"As the next half billion of Indians come online in the coming years, creating growth opportunities for digital businesses and flexible jobs, we expect a huge pool of gig workers to be left behind by traditional financial services providers," said Smita Aggarwal, Investments Director at Omidyar Network. "Bon is addressing the acute need of liquidity by this growing segment of people with an offering that has the flexibility of a credit card coupled with a convenient expense management tool app. By controlling the entire stack, from customer acquisition to repayment facilitation, Bon is helping gig workers to build resilience while nudging them to better financial behaviours." Funds raised in this round will help the company further partnerships with banks, non-banking financial companies (NBFC), as well as increase its presence to 25 cities across India over the next 18 months and kick off operations in other markets in Asia.

How does it work: Bon partners with gig marketplaces and employers to reach flexible workers and sign them up to its platform. The company uses smart algorithms to process multiple data points on each user and create its proprietary risk assessment, which is used to facilitate access to credit ranging from INR 500 to INR 10,000 via partnerships with financial institutions and NBFCs. Bon's proprietary credit scores are constantly updated, providing borrowers with dynamic credit limits. Repayments are set up to coincide with customer's cash-flow cycles, helping them keep liquidity and increase earnings reliably. Flexible employers and gig aggregators benefit from higher business uptake and simplified billing and payments processing. To sign up for a Bon card, gig workers can download the Bon app on their iOS or Android device or visit one of their retail outlets. Bon offers more than 10 retail outlets in Pune, Bangalore, Gurugram, Noida, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, and Kochi. After providing necessary documents, a credit decision is made on the spot and a Bon card is issued with a pre-approved credit limit that can increase over time. Through the Bon app, users can see their credit limits, list of transactions, as well as make payments. About Bon Self-employed, entrepreneurs and gig-economy workers lack access to financial services in form factors that salary employees usually get. Bon, a Pune-based FinTech firm, was created to bring financial services to the gig-economy workforce such as taxi drivers, delivery agents, independent contractors, and self-employed workers who are currently financially underserved in India. Bon was founded by Bhasker "Bosky" Kode, whose background in high-frequency online auctioning inspired him to turn every swipe into a lending opportunity by connecting institutional lenders with underserved workers. Bon is run by a young, small team that is growing fast across India. For more information, visit https://bon.pe/. About Omidyar Network Omidyar Network is a philanthropic investment firm dedicated to harnessing the power of markets to create opportunity for people to improve their lives. Established in 2004 by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam, the organization invests in and helps scale innovative organizations to catalyze economic and social change. Omidyar Network has committed more than $1.3 billion to for-profit companies and nonprofit organizations that foster economic advancement and encourage individual participation across multiple initiatives, including Digital Identity, Education, Emerging Tech, Financial Inclusion, Governance & Citizen Engagement, and Property Rights. You can learn more here: https://www.omidyar.com/. Media Contacts: For Bon, please contact us at media@bon.pe For Omidyar Network

Claudia Parazzoli

cparazzoli@omidyar.com

+1-(650)-482-2504

Omidyar Network Upasana Sarkar

The PRactice

+91(858)707-6270

upasana@the-practice.net

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A crackdown on the press in Myanmar has thwarted the free flow of information about the abuses. This month two Reuters journalists were sentenced to seven years in prison for violating a colonial-era Official Secrets Act. The pair had been reporting on a Rohingya village massacre when they apparently were set up by the police. It was a warning against news coverage of the Rohingya, said the Myanmar Press Council, an independent group. The pair should never have faced charges. They should be released.
[September 12, 2018] Global crypto giant Huobi acquires majority stake in Singaporean entrepreneur Eric Cheng's Japanese-licensed crypto currency exchange BitTrade

Huobi, one of the world's largest digital asset exchanges, will partner with BitTrade, one of only 16 regulated and Japanese government-approved crypto currency trading platforms

Leveraging on Huobi's global footprint, brand and the support of Mr. Cheng's international network, the parties intend to aggressively scale this trading platform into the largest in Japan with the potential to extend its services globally SINGAPORE, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Singaporean entrepreneur Mr. Eric Cheng announced today that Huobi Global's wholly owned subsidiary, Huobi Japan Holding Ltd ("Huobi"), will take a majority stake in Mr. Cheng's wholly owned Japanese-licensed crypto currency exchange, BitTrade Co., Ltd. ("BitTrade"). Huobi is one of the world's largest digital asset exchanges which has accumulated a trading volume of over US$1 trillion since its establishment in 2013. Huobi now serves million of users around the world. Geographically, Huobi has compliance teams in Singapore, Korea, Hong Kong, Australia, the UAE, Luxembourg, and other countries around the world. Today, BitTrade is one of only 16 regulated and Japanese government-approved crypto currency trading platforms. Against the backdrop of rising demand for trading in crypto currencies that has swept across the globe, BitTrade remains positioned to capture the growing demand for crypto currency trading in Japan, where nearly one third of global bitcoin transactions in December 2017 were denominated in yen. The management team of both platforms intend to aggressively scale up the platform to provide more professional and compliant services while enhancing its international user-friendly experience. Leveraging on Mr. Cheng's extensive network, the team will also look to scale the platform in other regions across the globe. Speaking on the strategic partnership between Huobi and BitTrade, Mr. Cheng commented, "We are delighted to be partnering with Huobi, a global leader in the crypto currency industry which continues to grow exponentially. Together, we will leverage on Huobi's global footprint, excellent management team and advanced security systems to grow BitTrade into a market-leading position in Japan. Having a long-term partnership with an established brand such as Huobi is the right step for BitTrade as welook to continue our rapid growth trajectory."



Mr. Chris Lee, Board Secretary and Chief Financial Officer for Huobi said, "We found the right partner in Mr. Cheng who has demonstrated his capabilities as an international entrepreneur with a strong track record. Looking ahead, we will leverage on Mr. Cheng's international network and passion for blockchain technology as we continue to expand geographically. We strongly believe in the synergies we can create through continued investment into R&D, and compliance, backed by our world class security and local operations teams across the globe. Leveraging on BitTrade's leadership team and its Japanese government-approved license, this is just the beginning as we look to grow BitTrade into the most dominant player in the Japanese crypto currency market." About BitTrade Co., Ltd.

Founded in 2016, BitTrade is one of the leading crypto currency exchanges in Japan. BitTrade is one of only 16 regulated and Japanese government FSA-approved crypto currency trading platforms. With BitTrade, users are able to monitor their accounts 24/7 with high-definition charting and technical indicators all on one easy-to-use platform. Users may trade Bitcoin, BitcoinCash, Ripple, Etherum, Litecoin, Monacoin and many other crypto currencies at the touch of a finger. The platform is known for its fast execution, outstanding trading support and high security. For more information, visit https://bittrade.co.jp/ About Huobi Global Huobi Group is the leading global digital asset service provider. The company is committed to providing customers with safe, professional, compliant and honest services. Established in 2013, Huobi has become one of the world's largest digital asset exchanges with an accumulated trading volume of US $1 trillion. Having once accounted for half of the world's digital asset transactions, Huobi now serves millions users around the world. It has established compliance service teams in Singapore, Korea, Hong Kong, Australia, the UAE, Luxembourg and other countries and regions around the world, Huobi is able to provide safe, compliant and reliable digital asset services to its customers. To date, Huobi Group has also invested in more than 10 upstream and downstream companies. Its investors include ZhenFund and Sequoia Capital. For more information, visit https://www.huobigroup.com/ About Mr. Eric Cheng Eric Cheng has vast experience in international investments and is a serial Crypto Entrepreneur. Eric has a high-performance team that is dedicated to sourcing high-quality digital assets and investments specialising in initial coin offerings, crypto exchanges, blockchain consultancy and next generation financial services powered by blockchain technology. Eric has investments in countries/regions such as Australia, Mainland China, Cambodia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam where his team has identified high-growth opportunities. Eric and his team studies and develops multi-million-dollar digital transformations, software development, and innovative tech solutions to create world class security exchange systems and trading centres around the world. Eric is frequently featured in the international media including BBC, CNN, Channel News Asia, CoinDesk, Crypto Times, Tech in Asia, Straits Times, Lianhe Zaobao, The Business Times and many others. Eric is also the keynote speaker in various Crypto and Blockchain related seminars and is a multi-award-winning entrepreneur, having invested in real estate development, automobiles and other investments. Eric was the recipient of several notable awards including the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2008, the Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2010 and the Young Entrepreneur of the Year at the 2011 Asia-Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards. He has held several C-suite level management positions in listed companies across Asia. For media enquiries, please contact: Mr. Kamal Samuel / Mr. James Bywater

Financial PR

Tel: +65-6438-2990

Kamal@financialpr.com.sg / James@financialpr.com.sg SOURCE BitTrade Co., Ltd.

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[September 12, 2018] Toys of the Future | Robotix Unveils World's First Screen-free Tech Toy

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts and LONDON, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Robotix announces the global launch of Taco Playbits on Indiegogo Crowdfunding platform Taco Playbits is a tangible coding, screen-free and self-learning STEM toy for kids ages 3 to 8 Taco Playbits, a smart connected toy, helps young kids to build critical 21st century skills such as numeracy, literacy, collaborative learning, coding and more, all through a hands-on and magical learning process. It is comprised of screen-free 'Wand' and 'tags' that utilize patented technology to inspire kids to have fun through imaginative play. Simply touch the tags with the Wand to play music, solve number games, learn English and much more. (Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/742921/Taco_Playbits_Robotix.jpg )

Taco Playbits is designed with everyone in mind. Parents and educators may record their own questions in their language of choice o provide additional unique challenges. It is multi-lingual, so kids can play and learn in any language or accent. It is also braille compatible to enable self-learning for children who are blind and visually impaired.



"Taco Playbits - loved by kids, trusted by parents. Parents are looking for new ways to help their kids learn through play and want to keep their kids away from screen-based devices. Introducing Taco Playbits - A Magical Screen-free Coding toy that will help kids from the ages of 3 to 8 learn their ABCs, play number games, and make their own musical pieces all through the process of playful learning. Parents will love the way Taco Playbits is a self-learning STEM toy that encourages children at their own pace to build their literacy and numeracy skills while engaging them in fun games and challenges," said Mr. Ramana Prasad | Chairman, Robotix Learning Solutions Pvt. Ltd. Taco Playbits will be available on Indiegogo starting at [USD 49] with products estimated to ship in November 2018 in time for Christmas.

Robotix was founded in 2010 to give children playful and powerful learning experiences that make learning fun and empowering them with 21st century skills. With many years of experience teaching STEM, robotics and coding in K-12 schools, Robotix in 2015, launched Phiro Educational Robotic toy, which was successfully funded on Kickstarter and Phiro has been recognized by Intel as one of 'America's Greatest Makers'. For more information, visit https://www.robotixedu.com/ or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter

Contact:

Ramana Prasad

Managing Director

rp@robotixedu.com

Phone: +91-44-4260-7521

SOURCE Robotix Learning Solutions Private Ltd.

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[September 12, 2018] Discover places in Europe you hadn't heard of with KLM's Dream Deals

SYDNEY, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- There are so many European destinations waiting to be discovered! New destinations such as Vaxjo in Sweden or good old favourites like Amsterdam, London or Madrid. Do you need to help to decide where to travel to? KLM, a front runner in digital innovation, can help you discover places you hadn't heard of - with the help of 'BB'  that's short for Blue Bot - a dedicated member of the KLM service family. You can meet 'BB' on Messenger (for booking a flight) and with Google Assistant, for instance on Google Home or your smartphone (for finding a flight and packing your bag) Quentin Voss, Country Manager Australia & New Zealand said, "I am fascinated by how the KLM digital team have managed to bring our service bot "BB" to life! She's not just another smart assistant, but a self-learning system (A.I) and has her own helpful, professional and friendly character, and she is even cheeky from time to time! I would recommend everyone to get in touch with BB as her service is fun and conveniently helps you find the best flight and fare to one of KLM's many worldwide destinations."



KLM Royal Dutch Airlines just launched their KLM Dream Deals. Return economy class fares, including taxes and surcharges from 5 major Australian cities to European destinations start at AUD 1,433. The KLM Dream Deals are on sale between now and 20 September, 2018 for travel until 30 June, 2019. To view all destinations and book a flight visit www.klm.com.au or to learn more about contacting BB, visit KLM's official YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpMLaRgrmr4

For more information and bookings visit: www.klm.com.au

Reservations: 1300 392 192 (Mon-Fri 9:00-19 :30 AEST / Sat 9 :00-18 :30 AEST / Sun 9 :00-17 :30 AEST )

Sat 9 :00-18 :30 AEST Sun 9 :00-17 :30 AEST Social media: www.facebook.com/KLM About KLM Royal Dutch Airlines For almost 99 years, (On Oct 7, 2019 KLM will be celebrating 100 years) KLM has been a pioneer in the airline industry and is the oldest airline to still be operating under its original name. KLM aims to be the most customer-focused, innovative and efficient airline in Europe, offering reliable service and top-quality products. KLM carried a record 32.7 million passengers in 2017, offering its passengers direct flights to 165 destinations with a modern fleet of more than 160 aircraft. The airline employs a workforce of more 32,000 people worldwide. The KLM Group as a whole transported more than 41 million passengers in 2017. In addition to KLM, the KLM Group includes KLM Cityhopper, Transavia and Martinair. The KLM network connects the Netherlands with all of the world's key economic regions and is a powerful engine driving the Netherlands' economy. Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20180906/2228727-1 SOURCE KLM Royal Dutch Airlines

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[September 12, 2018] Alliance for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare (AAIH) Convenes in Boston and Basel to Announce Mission and Launch Activities

The founding members of the Alliance for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare (AAIH) met on September 6th during Boston Biotech Week (Boston, MA), and are meeting on September 13th during the Basel Life Congress (Basel, Switzerland) to finalize plans for the activities for the first 12 months of AAIH operations. The AAIH will officially launch in January 2019 during the week of the JP Morgan (News - Alert) Healthcare Conference in San Francisco. With clinical trial failure rates for new drug IND's continuing to hover around 90%, and the average cost to bring a new drug to market exceeding $2.5 billion according to the Tuft's Center for the Study of Drug Development, pharmaceutical companies are eager to find a more efficient way to develop therapeutics. At the same time, healthcare costs in developed countries are steadily increasing as a result of rapidly aging populations and multiple inefficiencies in the healthcare system. Recent advances in artificial intelligence hold the potential to resolve this ominous trend. As a sign of the growing interest in AI-based healthcare solutions, over 100 startup companies utilizing AI to develop biomedical products have emerged since 2014, with almost all existing large cap companies initiating AI development programs in order to keep up. "We are on the cusp of major breakthroughs in the application of machine learning, computational science, and artificial intelligence, which carry the potential to dramatically improve the quality and affordability of healthcare globally," says Brandon Allgood, CTO and Founder of Numerate Inc. The mission of the AAIH is "to enable advancement and use of artificial intelligence in healthcare and improve patients' lives through innovation and the thoughtful and responsible application of AI in the development of new therapies. Member companies and organizations are building and applying advanced integrated programs (or solutions) to address societ's need for new, more effective, and accessible healthcare."



The potential of Artificial Intelligence to positively impact all aspects of healthcare has become an international discussion. The AAIH will be a key industry advocate, driving public policy, appropriate regulation, and market access for the products developed by the AI in healthcare industry. "If we are to build upon our recent industry success, and realize the true potential of AI, it is crucial that the sector organize immediately to enact policies and practices that will enable efficient adoption, integration, and commercialization," said Alex Zhavoronkov, CEO of Insilico Medicine. The membership of AAIH includes the following areas of AI infrastructure and applications in healthcare: Biomedical discovery, Clinical Research, Diagnostics and Devices, and Precision Medicine. "It is the privilege of AAIH to unify and amplify the voice of companies and organizations from all sectors utilizing AI in healthcare," said Annastasiah Mhaka from Adjuvant Partners. Adjuvant Partners and Holland & Knight are independent firms leading the launch of AAIH.

The list of AAIH Founding Members include: AI Infrastructure developer (to be announced)

Benevolent AI

BlackThorn Therapeutics

The Buck Institute for Research on Aging

Cyclica

Envisagenics

BioPharma 1 (to be announced)

GE Healthcare

Insilico Medicine

BioPharma 2 (to be announced)

NuMedii

Numerate

OWKIN

Recursion

University of Pittsburgh About the Alliance for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare (AAIH) The AAIH is a multi-stakeholder 501(c)(4) non-profit advocacy and education organization dedicated to promoting the further development and implementation of AI in healthcare. To learn more about the AAIH, including partnerships and opportunities to support its programs, visit http://www.theaaih.org. About Adjuvant Partners Adjuvant Partners is a boutique strategic advisory and business development consulting firm working in Artificial Intelligence, Regenerative Medicine, and Advanced Therapies. To contact Adjuvant Partners, please visit http://www.adjuvant.com. About Holland & Knight Holland & Knight is an international legal firm, representing corporate and private entities in a number of industry sectors in both legal and government relations. To contact Holland & Knight, please visit https://www.hklaw.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005177/en/

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[September 12, 2018] Trustwave Opens One of the World's Most Advanced Cybersecurity Command Centers

Trustwave today unveiled the Trustwave SpiderLabs Fusion Center, a cybersecurity command center that employs pioneering actionable threat intelligence to track threat actors, detect them with their clients, and instantly kill those threats inside an organization down to individual endpoints, a feat unprecedented in the managed security services industry. Located in Chicago, the 6,000 square foot, state-of-art facility serves as the central hub for Trustwave's global network of ten Advanced Security Operation Centers (ASOCs), edifices that identify, track, and collect cybersecurity threat intelligence while serving as the delivery framework for Trustwave Managed Security Services. Housed within the center are specialized strike teams formed by "fusing" the elite capabilities of the Trustwave SpiderLabs team of ethical hackers, advanced researchers, threat hunters and incident responders into single cohesive units. These units amalgamated into the ASOCs spearhead immediate action and response as security incidents emerge. In addition, the Trustwave SpiderLabs Fusion Center serves as ground-zero for hybrid cyber range training and real-world threat simulation exercises internally and with customers. "The realization is that organizations today are under constant attack and require the ability to take swift action when facing certain compromise," said Chris Schueler, senior vice president of managed security services at Trustwave. "The quantum leap of actionable threat intelligence achieved through the Trustwave SpiderLabs Fusion Center levels the playing field against cybercriminals employing incredibly sophisticated means to breach networks and remain udetected. Leveraging the managed security services model, organizations of any size can now greatly enhance their security posture to take preemptive steps against rapidly spreading malware, annihilate attacks in progress or strategically distribute security reinforcements to any point on the globe."



The Trustwave SpiderLabs Fusion Center operates as command and control of the proprietary Point of Delivery (POD) system that helps ensure customer-centric delivery and actionable threat intelligence. In a POD setting, Trustwave security experts are grouped and focused on specific customers and industries that result in intricate knowledge of client environments and response playbooks for any given threat situation. The PODs leverage a three-tier threat model to investigate threats and seamlessly escalate analysis from initial detection to proactive hunter/killer response and digital forensic investigations. The Trustwave SpiderLabs Fusion Center threat model includes:

Continuous and Proactive Threat Hunting -- Threat hunters adept at building a cohesive threat taxonomy which plots known attackers against the clients' industry and business. They then seek to identify anomalous activities closely monitoring for unusual markers indicating compromise using Trustwave's threat intelligence paired with big data analytics and machine learning. When threats are detected, these hunters initiate the proper sequence of action.

Threat hunters adept at building a cohesive threat taxonomy which plots known attackers against the clients' industry and business. They then seek to identify anomalous activities closely monitoring for unusual markers indicating compromise using Trustwave's threat intelligence paired with big data analytics and machine learning. When threats are detected, these hunters initiate the proper sequence of action. Advance Response and Containment -- If a threat is escalated, incident responders move in for deeper technical analysis such as malware signatures, payload delivery methods and threat trend correlation with the primary objective of threat containment and breach triage. Incident responders function as the primary squad for terminating threats anywhere in the clients' environment before they have a chance to spread or do serious damage.

If a threat is escalated, incident responders move in for deeper technical analysis such as malware signatures, payload delivery methods and threat trend correlation with the primary objective of threat containment and breach triage. Incident responders function as the primary squad for terminating threats anywhere in the clients' environment before they have a chance to spread or do serious damage. Forensic Investigations and Reverse Engineering -- In situations requiring the highest level of investigation with associated response, a third line housing some of the most progressive minds in security are called to perform deep forensic investigations, reverse engineer malware or track down the most elusive advance persistent threats. If a threat actor is hiding, they will find them. "Top security programs are built by combining the right people and advanced processes with the best technologies. Our new center helps ensure all three," added Schueler. The Trustwave SpiderLabs Fusion Center also serves as a premier education and training center for security practitioners ranging from entry-level IT to accomplished CISOs running large enterprise operations. Within its walls sits a large auditorium for delivering on-premise and remote training curriculums taught by some of the industry's most renowned security experts. Participants learn cutting-edge techniques for detecting threats and defending networks and can earn industry recognized certifications and accreditation in penetration testing, data forensics, incident response and many other fields. The auditorium also hosts regular industry gatherings and think tank events to debate on practical and theoretical applications of new technologies and approaches in relation to the constantly evolving security threat landscape. For more information or to schedule a tour of the Trustwave SpiderLabs Fusion Center please visit: https://www.trustwave.com/Services/Managed-Security/SpiderLabs-Fusion-Center/. About Trustwave Trustwave helps businesses fight cybercrime, protect data and reduce security risk. With cloud and managed security services, integrated technologies and a team of security experts, ethical hackers and researchers, Trustwave enables businesses to transform the way they manage their information security and compliance programs. More than three million businesses are enrolled in the Trustwave TrustKeeper cloud platform, through which Trustwave delivers automated, efficient and cost-effective threat, vulnerability and compliance management. Trustwave is headquartered in Chicago, with customers in 96 countries. For more information about Trustwave, visit https://www.trustwave.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005107/en/

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[September 12, 2018] LD Products Celebrates National Ink and Toner Day

LONG BEACH, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- LD Products, one of the world's largest aftermarket ink and toner providers, is proud to recognize the power of the printer cartridge on National Ink and Toner Day. Once a year, on September 12, the company celebrates ink and toner with a social media contest and exclusive coupon offer. LD Products has been selling compatible printing supplies to homes and offices for close to twenty years. With over 125,000 monthly orders, they offer affordable cartridges for a variety of popular printer models, helping customers across the country achieve quality print results at a great price. "Print is a powerful tool. We may not think about it often, but the ink that brings family photos to life and toner that powers our businesses affect us every day," says Aaron Leon, CEO. "National Ink and Toner Da is a fun day for the company and our customers, giving everyone a chance to appreciate their printer and all of the memories, big and small, that it helps create."



The company kicked off the festivities last week by hosting a National Ink and Toner Day gift card giveaway contest on their social channels. Customers entered the contest by posting a selfie with an LD brand ink or toner cartridge on the company's Facebook and Instagram pages using the hashtag #LDInkandTonerDay. Three lucky winners received a $50 Visa gift card. LD Products is also promoting the day with a special coupon, offering 18% off and free shipping on all compatible printer cartridges on their website. LD Products' National Ink and Toner Day promotion runs one day only. Join in on the celebration and take advantage of this limited time offer by visiting LDProducts.com.

About LD Products Since 1999, LD Products has enjoyed great success as a high quality and cost-effective alternative to printer brand consumables. The company also boasts a large selection of office supplies with discount prices on the most trusted names in the industry. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ld-products-celebrates-national-ink-and-toner-day-300710808.html SOURCE LD Products

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[September 12, 2018] Indegy CEO to Discuss How Attackers are Compromising Industrial Control Networks at SCADA Tech Summit 2018

Indegy, a leader in industrial cyber security, today announced Co-Founder and CEO Barak Perelman will discuss how to safeguard industrial control networks from cyber attacks and malware at the SCADA Tech Summit on Wednesday, September 12.







WHO:

Barak Perelman is CEO and Co-Founder of Indegy, a leading industrial cyber security company. Prior to founding Indegy, Barak led several multi-million dollar cyber security projects for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). He is a graduate of the elite Talpiot military academy, as well as the esteemed 8200 Unit, and has over 15 years of hands-on experience in cyber security and protection of critical infrastructures. WHAT: Contrary to popular belief, industrial control networks are easy to attack, yet extremely difficult to defend. A confluence of events has caused this "perfect storm" phenomenon. Namely, SCADA environments are increasingly being connected to the Internet, exposed to mobile access and leverage Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technologies. Recent incidents at a Ukrainian electric utility involving the Industroyer malware and Middle Eastern oil and gas refinery where TRISIS malware was identified illustrate the growing threat weaponized malware poses to industrial environments. In this presentation, Barak will explain how SCADA and industrial control systems are attacked, the damage that can occur, and the steps necessary to safeguard ICS environments against cyber attacks, unauthorized activity and human error. WHERE: SCADA Tech Summit 2018 at the Double-Tree Oak Brook, 1909 Spring Road, Oak Brook, Illinois.

WHEN: Wednesday, September 12, 2018 at 4:00 PM CDT (News - Alert) .

HOW: To schedule a conversation with Barak Perelman contact Marc Gendron at marc@mgpr.net or 781-237-0341. For more information visit: http://scadatechsummit.com/schedule/safeguarding-scada-and-industrial-control-networks/.



About Indegy Indegy, a leader in industrial cyber security, protects industrial control system (ICS) networks from cyber threats, malicious insiders and human error by providing visibility and control. The Indegy Industrial Cyber Security Suite arms security and operations teams with full visibility, security and control of ICS activity and threats by combining hybrid, policy-based monitoring and network anomaly detection with unique device integrity checks. The Indegy ICS Suite is deployed by manufacturing, pharmaceutical, energy, water and other industrial organizations around the world. For more information visit www.indegy.com, and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005008/en/

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[September 12, 2018] KORE to Provide Insight on Navigating the Complexities of IoT at Mobile World Congress Americas

KORE today announced the details of its significant presence at Mobile World Congress Americas (MWCA), occurring September 12-14 in Los Angeles, CA (News - Alert) . The organization will exhibit at stand S.2536. KORE President and Chief Executive Officer Romil Bahl will deliver the keynote address for MWCA's flagship IoT event, IoT 101 - Digital Transformation University, on Thursday, September 13. Romil will share insight on how enterprises of all sizes can utilize IoT to maximize ROI from their investments. Based on his insight working with KORE's 6,200 customers and their approximately nine million devices around the world, Romil will provide attendees with thoughts on overcoming the challenges of IoT deployments, accelerating time-to-market, generating new revenue opportunities, and gaining additional competitive advantages through IoT.







What: The Importance of Managed Services in IoT Who: Romil Bahl, President and Chief Executive Officer, KORE When: Thursday, September 13, 2018, from 1:00 p.m. - 1:20 p.m. PT Where: Mobile World Congress (News - Alert) Americas JW Marriott LIVE! LA Gold Ballroom 1

KORE Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Sue Holub will also speak at MWCA, participating in a panel discussion titled "Delivering Mobile IoT at Scale" on Wednesday, September 12. With the rapid growth of IoT solutions and deployments, there is increased pressure on network operators to deliver affordable, low-power connectivity solutions. For IoT to truly scale around the world, enterprises need a network that is designed for IoT applications - global, simple to integrate, and very secure. The panel, part of MWCA's Fourth Industrial Revolution theme and its day-long IoT Conference, will discuss how enterprises need a global, secure network designed for IoT applications. What: Delivering Mobile IoT at Scale Who: Moderator Ricardo Tavares, CEO, Techpolis Speakers Sue Holub, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, KORE Dave Mayo, Senior Vice President and Business Chief of 5G and IoT, T-Mobile (News - Alert) Steve Szabo, Head of Global Products and Solutions, Verizon Ludovico Fassati, Head of IoT, Vodafone (News - Alert) Americas When: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, from 2:15 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. PT Where: Mobile World Congress Americas Los Angeles Convention Center Room Petree C For those not attending MWCA, KORE will provide live updates from the event on its Twitter and LinkedIn channels as well as through its blogs on www.korewireless.com. About KORE

KORE Wireless Group ("KORE") delivers transformative business performance through the Internet of Things (IoT). KORE is the largest independent provider of secure managed IoT networks, application enablement, and location based services, and focuses on combining our capabilities and expertise into business-centric IoT solutions. With operations in the USA, Canada, Australia, Singapore, UK, Netherlands, Brazil and the Dominican Republic, KORE serves as our customers' trusted advisor and partner-of-choice for simplifying the complexities of IoT. KORE serves thousands of customers and partners who integrate our services into diverse, industry-specific applications including fleet management, healthcare, utilities, field services, asset management and tracking, and many more. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005007/en/

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[September 12, 2018] Great Bay Software Expands Upon Unmatched Endpoint Visibility and Delivers Better Usability for Teams Challenged with Detecting and Securing IoT and Medical Devices on the Network

MINNEAPOLIS, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Great Bay Software, a leader in Internet of Things (IoT) security and operational efficiency, today announced the version 6.1 release of its Network Intelligence Platform, which delivers unmatched endpoint visibility, real-time device validation and flexible enforcement options. The new functionalities introduced in version 6.1 empower Security, IT and Clinical Engineering teams to better understand the types of endpoints connecting to the network, their location and behaviorknowledge that is critical when responding to a security event. On average, organizations take 191 days to identify and 66 days to contain a security incident.1 And when the mean time to identify (MTTI) is greater than 100 days, the average cost to identify a breach is $8.7 million. It's clear that being able to speed incident response and reduce remediation timelines has a direct impact on the bottom line, which is why Security and IT teams require a solution that can detect potential threats in progress and respond in a flexible and timely manner. Anomalous device behavior can be an early indicator that a potential security threat is in progress. But in order to identify anomalous behaviors, organizations must have a real-time understanding of the types of devices connecting to the network and their typical behaviors. In fact, the Center for Internet Security recommends maintaining an up-to-date inventory and control of all hardware assets as the first step in defending against known cyberattack vectors. However, this can be a challenging task. "Many IoT endpoints, such as medical devices, printers and security cameras, are not associated with a single user and cannot be managed by traditional security software, which makes these devices difficult to detect and secure on the network," states Dino Balafas, VP of Marketing and Product Management. "For industries such as Healthcare, these deice types often expose the organization to cyberattacks that could jeopardize patient safety and continuity of care." This is why many organizations are turning to Great Bay Software to understand what's connecting to the network, where those devices are located and any devices exhibiting risky behaviorsand in real time, so that automated, remediation protocols can be initiated if and when a security event is detected.



"In continuation with the functionality promised in our sixth-generation product suite, we've been partnering closely with the Security, IT and Clinical Engineering teams at leading hospitals and healthcare systems to better understand what information they need to do their jobs and how we can make it easier and faster for them to find that information," said Abed Lawabni, VP of Product Engineering at Great Bay Software. "We've learned that many HDOs simply need an easy way to maintain accurate inventories of all network assets because this is often a manual, time-intensive task that is required for adherence to compliance regulations. Our platform automates this functionality and presents the real-time, asset inventory in a clear, visual manner on the main dashboard. Teams can customize the dashboard to provide additional insights into what device types are on the network, where they are physically located and if they are exhibiting any anomalous behaviors, which could indicate a security event in progress." Holistically, version 6.1 of the Great Bay Network Intelligence Platform delivers better usability, comprehensive endpoint profiling and additional platform enhancements, including:

New and expanded pre-built endpoint profiles for IoT and medical devices so Security, IT and Clinical Engineering teams can easily maintain automated, accurate asset inventories because more of these device types are automatically discovered, profiled and secured

A redesigned, customizable user interface with improved navigation and intuitive, connected workflows that makes it easier to find information, report on events and high-risk endpoints and reduces clicks to remediation

A new framework for crowdsourcing anonymized, endpoint data to further enrich and expand device profiles so IT, Security and Clinical Engineering teams can discover, identify and validate all endpointseven unmanaged and unauthorized devices connecting to the network, including traditional, IoT and medical devices

Platform enhancements including new and full support for data collection via the Cisco Device Sensor and sFlow so teams have the option of leveraging additional data sources to further enrich device profiles and provide deeper behavior analytics for network-connected devices To learn more, visit www.greatbaysoftware.com or register to attend a live demo of version 6.1 of the Great Bay Network Intelligence Platform on September 26 at 11 AM CT. About Great Bay Software Great Bay Software is an IoT security and operational efficiency leader providing comprehensive visibility and control over endpoints on the network so organizations can secure data, preserve customer trust and protect revenue. By delivering real-time insight into device identity, location and behavior, Great Bay helps organizations identify and respond to potential threats and improve operational efficiency, all while supporting millions of connected devices. For more information, visit: http://www.greatbaysoftware.com/. 1 Ponemon Institute's 2017 Cost of a Data Breach Study View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/great-bay-software-expands-upon-unmatched-endpoint-visibility-and-delivers-better-usability-for-teams-challenged-with-detecting-and-securing-iot-and-medical-devices-on-the-network-300709770.html SOURCE Great Bay Software

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[September 12, 2018] Akili Announces Exclusive Licensing Agreement for New Digital Technology Integrating Neural Systems Targeting and Physical Activity as Novel Cognitive Dysfunction Treatment Platform

Akili Interactive ("Akili" or "Company"), a leading prescription digital medicine company developing novel treatments for cognitive dysfunction and brain-related conditions, today announced an agreement with the Regents of the University of California to exclusively license new digital technology integrating neural systems that target cognitive function combined with physical activity. The technology is being studied in multiple clinical trials and holds potential to improve cognitive function in patients with a wide range of medical conditions. The technology was developed at Neuroscape, a research center led by Adam Gazzaley, M.D., Ph.D., at U.C. San Francisco (UCSF), and is delivered through a novel motion-capture video game interface, providing an immersive and engaging experience and the ability to create personalized treatments. The technology is designed to challenge all three core aspects of cognitive control - attention, working memory, and cognitive flexibility - while participants combine cognitive tasks with physical movement. "The cognitive benefits of physical activity have been understood for many years. The ability to generate those benefits through technology that directly engages brain networks associated with cognitive control is extremely exciting," said Adam Gazzaley, Founder & Executive Director of Neuroscape and Co-founder and Chief Scientific Advisor at Akili. "I'm eager to see where Akili's team of researchers and game creators take this important technology." "This technology represents the type of innovation that excites us at Akili as we look to build our pipeline of novel treatments for cognitive dysfunction," said Jason Trees, Research and Development Program Lead for Akili. "We're only just beginning to scratch the surface of the full potential of digital therapeutics, and we are continuously looking for the next great innovation that bridges technology and medicine in ways we can't even imagine today." The newy licensed technology represents the latest in a series of potential new digital medicines Akili is pursuing that directly target and activate specific neural networks in the brain to treat psychological and neurological disorders. Both through strategic licensing and internal discovery efforts, Akili actively seeks out new innovative technologies with the potential to target specific brain networks involved in cognitive function. Akili is currently evaluating several new technologies in numerous clinical studies across multiple different diseases and disorders where cognitive function is affected. These early stage programs will fuel Akili's broad pipeline of programs aimed at treating cognitive deficiency and improve symptoms associated with medical conditions across neurology and psychiatry, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), major depressive disorder (MDD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and various inflammatory diseases. Akili's lead pipeline program, AKL-T01, is currently under review with the United States Food and Drug Administration.



This licensing deal was negotiated with UCSF's Office of Technology Management within Innovation Ventures, which leads licensing and business development efforts on behalf of the university. About Akili

Akili is a prescription digital medicine company combining scientific and clinical rigor with the ingenuity of the tech industry to reinvent medicine. Akili is pioneering the development of digital treatments with direct therapeutic activity, delivered not through a pill but through a high-quality action video game experience. Akili is advancing a broad pipeline of programs to treat cognitive deficiency and improve symptoms associated with medical conditions across neurology and psychiatry, including ADHD, MDD, ASD and various inflammatory diseases. Akili is also developing complementary and integrated clinical monitors and measurement-based care applications. The Company was founded by PureTech Health (PRTC.L) and is a founding member of the Digital Therapeutics Alliance. For more information on Akili, please visit: www.akiliinteractive.com. Forward Looking Statement This press release contains statements that are or may be forward-looking statements, including statements that relate to the company's future prospects, developments and strategies. The forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance and achievements to differ materially from current expectations. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and undue reliance should not be placed on them. These forward-looking statements are based on assumptions regarding the present and future business strategies of the company and the environment in which it will operate in the future. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as at the date of this press release. Except as required by law and regulatory requirements, neither the company nor any other party intends to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005296/en/

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Those violations included instances in which Lincoln towed cars from lots even though the companys contract with the lots owners had expired. In other cases, the company did not have a contract on file with the ICC to operate in a designated lot, or the contract allowed a tow from a lot only if the property owner had requested it. Two of every five of the violations  some 369  involved vehicles being towed by an operator who did not have a valid permit.
[September 12, 2018] Prudential Financial announces leadership succession

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) today announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Charles Lowrey as the company's next CEO and member of the Board, effective December 1, 2018. Lowrey, who currently serves as executive vice president and chief operating officer, International Businesses of Prudential, will succeed John Strangfeld, who will retire as CEO on November 30, 2018. Strangfeld will serve as non-executive chairman until April 5, 2019, at which time Lowrey will also assume the role of chairman. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005505/en/ John Strangfeld (Photo: Business Wire) The Board also announced that Robert Falzon, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Prudential, has been named vice chairman of the company, effective December 1, 2018. Falzon will succeed Mark Grier, who will retire from Prudential and step down from the Board in August 2019, at which time Falzon will join the Board. Grier will transfer his functional management responsibilities to Falzon on December 1, 2018, and will support Falzon and Lowrey in their transitions, as well as focus on concluding some specific strategic projects. "Along with the rest of the Board, I am confident that Charlie is the right leader for Prudential's future," said Strangfeld. "Having successfully led our asset management, U.S. and international businesses, he brings a broad perspective of our operations, a deep understanding of our people and leadership skills that will serve the company well as it continues to grow. The Board is also plased that Rob will assume the role of vice chairman and join Charlie as a member of Prudential's Office of the Chairman. Both Charlie and Rob are outstanding executives with the capabilities to successfully execute Prudential's strategy.



"After a fulfilling 41-year career at Prudential, including almost 11 years as chairman and CEO, now is the right time for the company to transition to its next generation of leadership. Mark and I are delighted to pass the baton to Charlie and Rob, and we do so with great confidence in their leadership capabilities. I am pleased with what we have accomplished during my tenure at Prudential, including creating a more focused company with world-class capabilities in retirement savings, investment management and financial protection capable of generating outcomes that other companies simply cannot replicate. I am exceedingly proud of our distinctive culture, with its emphasis on purpose and strategic collaboration. I would like to thank all of our employees for their dedication and support in helping make Prudential the leading global life insurer and investment manager it is today, and I am confident that Charlie and Rob will lead the company in continuing its momentum for many years to come. "On a personal note, I would like to recognize the extraordinary partnership I have enjoyed with Mark over the last 11 years, which has been both highly productive and personally enriching, and I look forward to Charlie and Rob experiencing the same kind of partnership as they move forward," said Strangfeld.

"John and I look forward to continuing to support the new leadership team to ensure a seamless transition," said Grier. "We are fortunate to have a deep bench of talented leaders, including Charlie and Rob, and the best employees in the industry. I am confident that Prudential is well-positioned for continued earnings growth as we continue to unlock the value in our strategic mix of high-quality businesses to bring financial security more into reach for our growing base of customers." "On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank John and Mark for their leadership and many contributions to Prudential," said Thomas Baltimore, lead independent director of Prudential's Board of Directors. "The executive appointments announced today are the culmination of rigorous succession planning that the Board has been engaged in for the past several years and are modeled in part after the roles John and Mark established working together as chairman and CEO and vice chairman, respectively, over the past decade. I wish them both well in the future and look forward to seeing the company continue its success under Charlie's and Rob's leadership." Strangfeld's retirement concludes a remarkable, four-decade-long career with Prudential, including serving as chairman and CEO since 2008. He has played a key role in the company's growth and transformation and, during his tenure as CEO, has established a clarity of focus on talent and culture as the key drivers of Prudential's innovation, execution and superior performance. Under Strangfeld's leadership, Prudential has emerged as a premier provider of retirement, investment management and financial protection solutions for both individuals and institutions, and delivered strong results, including: Building one of the 10 largest global asset managers contributing to $1.4 trillion in assets under management as of June 30, 2018;

Being recognized with a No. 1 ranking on FORTUNE  magazine's list of the "World's Most Admired Companies" in the "Insurance: Life and Health" category for the past three years, and ranked among FORTUNE 's 2018 list of companies that "Change the World";

magazine's list of the "World's Most Admired Companies" in the "Insurance: Life and Health" category for the past three years, and ranked among 's 2018 list of companies that "Change the World"; Increasing book value per share (excluding accumulated other comprehensive income and foreign exchange remeasurement) by 112 percent from $43.77 to $92.60 as of June 30, 2018;

Returning more than $18 billion to shareholders in the form of share buybacks and dividends; and

Completing more than $100 billion in pension risk transfer transactions, establishing Prudential as an innovative leader in this space. "John is an exceptional leader who played a key role in building Prudential into the strong global company it is today, and I am honored to succeed him as CEO," said Lowrey. "After spending nearly two decades with Prudential, I have experienced firsthand how the unique culture John helped build-with a focus on purpose and strategic collaboration-drives our ability to execute effectively, produce superior performance and grow over time. I look forward to working with Rob and continuing to bring financial opportunity to more and more customers around the world in new, exciting and compelling ways, including our U.S. financial wellness initiative, while delivering sustainable value for our shareholders." As part of Prudential's succession planning process, the company will announce the selection of internal candidates to replace Lowrey and Falzon and expects to name a new chief operating officer, International Businesses, and a new chief financial officer next week. About Prudential Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU), a financial services leader with more than $1 trillion of assets under management as of June 30, 2018, has operations in the United States, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Prudential's diverse and talented employees are committed to helping individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth through a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds and investment management. In the U.S., Prudential's iconic Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and innovation for more than a century. For more information, please visit www.news.prudential.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005505/en/

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[September 12, 2018] ZhongAn Online Embarks Global Technology Empowerment Journey Expanding Insurance Boundary

Rapid development in five technology series marks the third upgrade of technology strategy in five years HONG KONG, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- ZhongAn Online organized its first Corporate Day in Shanghai today, where it showcased to the market its technology offerings and applications in insurance, healthcare and consumer finance sectors through pioneering cutting-edge technology. In addition, the Company announced the launch of new core insurance system "Graphene", a latest product of its S-Series Insuretech. With Graphene, insurance companies are able to link up their channels within a week, process over 2 billion insurance policies, and launch new products in one to three days, thereby propelling cost-saving and efficiency. As China's first internet-based insurer, technology is at the heart of ZhongAn's DNA. Since inception, the Company has invested in technology research and development to build up technological capabilities that differentiate from traditional players and its own "super intelligence". The set-up of wholly-owned subsidiary ZhongAn Technology has helped extend these technological offerings to other players in the market. The technological development of ZhongAn is due to enter a new milestone, where ZhongAn offers technological capabilities to external parties and promotes information upgrade in relevant sectors, actualizing quality and rapid growth of its corporate clients. In the first half of 2018, ZhongAn created five business lines, providing services to approximately 300 corporate clients. Meanwhile, it also formulated the international strategy for its technology offerings, seeking to capitalize opportunities in the Greater Bay Area and develop international market through its base in Hong Kong with an initial focus on Asia. Jeffrey Chen, Chief Executive Officer of ZhongAn Insurance, said, "Insuretech has become more mature after the first few years of development. At first, technology empowerment in the insurance sector emphasized on channels innovation, while it has gradually moved towards the crucial stage of refined management and innovation. Internally, we will further reshape risk control, claim settlements, etc. with technology, while building ZhongAn ecosystem by marketing technology solutions in China and globally, navigating financial regimes and deepening technology inclusion." The first internet insurance policy of New Generation in China To address the demand of the new generation, ZhongAn offers innovative insurance solutions based on its health, consumer finance, auto, lifestyle and travel ecosystems, which are accepted and recognized by the new generation. ZhongAn serves the new generation by driving its dual engines, "Technology and Insurance". Technology empowers isurance while insurance validates technology. For example, to handle immense amount of insurance policies, ZhongAn has developed Wujieshan, the first cloud-based core insurance system in China and put it under continuous optimization. Currently, Wujieshan is capable of processing up to 32,000 insurance policies in one second. It also offers stability, safety and efficiency to online orders at low cost.



As at end-August, the average age of ZhongAn employees is just 29.5. This young and energetic team has already served 300 million users in the first half of the year in which consumers of the new generation aged 18-39 accounted for 57.8% of its users. Take travel insurance as an example. As at end-June, young adults aged 20-35 accounted for 47% of all policyholders of ZhongAn. Jeffrey Chen said on the Corporate Day, "ZhongAn is dedicated to life and risk management since its inception five years ago. Bearing this awe in our hearts, we hope to support and encourage the new generation to unleash their imagination and push beyond their own limits, moving ahead with fearless spirit."

Third upgrade of technology strategy in five years led to the introduction of Graphene Moving ahead with its fearless spirit, ZhongAn has offered small amount, high-frequency and fragmented insurance products to consumers since its inception, a breakthrough from traditional low-frequency insurance with high premium. This business model calls for ultra-high requirements for core IT systems. While the insurance sector moves towards internet-based operations, many players are exposed to higher risks and costs in the modification of core IT system, which may pose limitation to them in developing more new businesses. This has led to the birth of Graphene. On the Corporate Day, Kevin Chen, the Chief Executive Officer of ZhongAn Technology, officiated the launch of Graphene, a new core insurance system crystalized through ZhongAn's technological experience, which also marks the latest product of its S-Series. Graphene is designed to be highly compatible, high-performing and sustainable. It allows insurance companies to link up their channels within a week, process over 2 billion insurance policies, and launch new products in one to three days, hence further saving costs and boosting efficiency. In just five years, ZhongAn's technology strategy has been upgraded from 1.0 to 3.0. The introduction of Graphene is the remarkable achievement stepping into stage 3.0. As at the first half of the year, ZhongAn incubated five series of technology services to the market, including the S series of Insuretech products, the X series of intelligent data products, the H series of Insuretech products, the T series of blockchain products and the F series of financial products, providing services to approximately 300 corporate clients. Currently, the S series and the H series are the most mature series. ZhongAn marks its stage 1.0 of technology development with the focus on the cloud-based core system Wujieshan for agile operations and development of innovative businesses. At stage 2.0, ZhongAn engaged external partners rapidly with its self-developed open platform under the bundled model. As a result, it gained access to more scenarios, connected to more services, and strengthened risk management. The collaboration between ZhongAn and DJI was built on such rapid innovation. High-end equipment like the drones of DJI, are kept in strict confidence before the launch, and ZhongAn is able to customize innovative insurance products in a day through its open platform upon obtaining relevant information one day before it hits the market. Various technological achievements prompted ZhongAn into stage 3.0, where it transforms technology into commodities and provides services to external parties. Since its inception, ZhongAn Technology has been leveraging the technological strengths to power up self-growth and empower external parties. Apart from the insurance sector, it also supports other ecosystems, such as healthcare, automobile and financial industry, dedicated to applying its experience and ability in overseas market. In December 2017, ZhongAn implemented the internationalization strategy and set up ZhongAn International in Hong Kong. Recently, ZhongAn International has entered into the shareholders' agreement with SoftBank Vision Fund, pursuant to which, the parties will invest USD200 million in installment as needed to promote the marketing of technology solutions of ZhongAn in overseas market. Wayne Xu, President of ZhongAn International, said, "Starting this year, we consider offering our technology abroad. Licensing and regulatory requirements for the insurance sector exist in every country and region, and this may not change any time soon. However, all countries and regions share the common view that technology is the key to future development." In parallel with expanding service provision, ZhongAn continues to increase investment in technology research and development, which grew by 91% year-on-year to 374 million for the first half of the year. In terms of human resources, there were 1,536 engineers and technicians working at ZhongAn as at 30 June 2018, accounting for 53.2% of the total workforce. Jeffrey Chen believed that new business ecosystem would emerge for the insurance sector while empowering traditional industries. Supported by cutting-edge technology, the sector would actively seek for cross-sector connection and aim for a more open business model. A big insurance ecosystem with insurance institutions as the centre and risk service as the core would be developed gradually. SOURCE ZhongAn Online

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[September 12, 2018] Airfox Partners with Brazilian Retail Giant on Mobile Blockchain Financial Services

BOSTON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Airfox today announced an exclusive partnership with Brazilian retail giant Via Varejo to extend its mobile financial services to 60 million Brazilian consumers across Via Varejo's retail locations and e-commerce websites. Nearly 1,000 of Via Varejo's Casa Bahia stores will support the Airfox digital banking platform, providing millions of underserved Brazilian families access to Airfox's affordable financial solutions. Underserved consumers now have an easy, fast, and cost-free way to complete daily financial tasks such as buying goods, paying bills, transferring money, and recharging public transit cards using their mobile phones. With the Airfox app, customers will be able to deposit and withdraw money at any Casas Bahia store or over 200,000+ other offline locations, including post-offices, banks, and ATMs. Customers will also be able to pay their Casas Bahia CDC "carnes" bill directly through the Airfox app, instead of going to a physical store. CDCs are in-store loans used to purchase large-ticket items like furniture, electronics, and appliances. Via Varejo issues roughly 300,000 new CDCs per month, and currently has an outstanding CDC loan portfolio of roughly $1 billion. "Our partnership with Via Varejo supports our mission to democratize financial services for the Brazilian population currently underserved by financial institutions," said Victor Santos, co-founder and CEO of Airfox. Airfox offers a mobile digital wallet that is already accessible in the Brazilian market nationwide and will eventually also be available in other emerging markets. This new collaboration allows Airfox to extend its mobile digital wallet to Via Varejo's national customer base and drive mainstream adoption. Present in more than 400 municipalities across 20 Brazilian states and the Distrito Fedral, Via Varejo manages nearly 1,000 stores and serves 68% of Brazil's population. Via Varejo handled sales of approximately $6.3 billion in Brazil last year (USD converted in today's exchange rate). The company's 26 distribution centers, in strategic locations throughout Brazil, average 1 million deliveries per month to the homes of its customers.



"Via Varejo shares the values and mission of Airfox. We both have a deep passion for the customer," said Felipe Negrao, CFO of Via Varejo. "This partnership will distinguish Via Varejo within the innovation environment and improve the shopping experience of our customers." Via Varejo is working to significantly reduce costs using the Airfox mobile platform, while vastly enhancing its customers' experience. Additional Airfox features will include access to microloans, user authentication by biometric facial recognition, QR code charge and payment features, advanced machine learning to assess credit risk from smartphone data, and more.

"Airfox will create an integrated experience for our in-store and online customers with its consumer-driven, innovative technology," said Marcelo Nogueira, financial services director at Via Varejo. "This partnership embodies Via Varejo's forward-thinking strategy in using multichannel purchase and payment options that fit the lives of all our customers." Airfox aims to be the industry leading digital bank for Brazilians in classes C-D-E by providing a more innovative and cost-effective mobile banking experience specifically tailored to the needs of the lower socioeconomic classes. Airfox offers zero fees, cash-back rewards, and in the future will allow cash-based, unbanked entrepreneurs to access microloans at below-market rates compared to other traditional lenders. About Airfox

Airfox is on a mission to provide more than two billion unbanked people in emerging markets with mobile access to financial services. The Airfox app, available on Android, eliminates the need for traditional financial institutions and enables unbanked users without credit access to critical financial services. The Airfox lending platform runs on the AirToken platform (AIR), an ERC-20 token built on the Ethereum blockchain. Airfox has offices in Boston and Sao Paulo. To learn more about the future to mobile banking, visit www.airfox.com. About Via Varejo

Via Varejo, one of the largest electronic retailers in the world, manages the two major Brazilian retailers Casas Bahia and Pontofrio. The company is present in more than 400 Brazilian municipalities, 20 states and in the Federal District, with close to 1,000 stores and 50,000 employees. When Via Varejo opened its first store nearly 60 years ago, it was named Casas Bahia to reflect large numbers of northeastern Brazilian immigrants living in the ABC region of Sao Paulo. Via Varejo offers in-store credit facilities for customers to expand access to consumer goods for lower-income families across Brazil. It continues its commitment to enabling greater accessibility, a central value of its immigrant founder Samuel Klein. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/airfox-partners-with-brazilian-retail-giant-on-mobile-blockchain-financial-services-300710942.html SOURCE Airfox

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[September 12, 2018] Dentist and Educator Dr. Arthur Volker Presents Free CE Webinar on Minimally-Invasive Dentistry

BOSTON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Well-known dentist and educator Dr. Arthur Volker will present "Minimal Intervention, Maximal Outcomes: The Use of Minimally-Invasive Dentistry to Maximize Esthetic and Functional Outcomes," a Continuing Education (CE) webinar on October 4, 2018 at 7:00 PM ET/ 4:00 PM PT. This live webinar is free and open to the public and is sponsored by Pulpdent Corporation, a dental research company and manufacturer. Sign up for Dr. Volker's Free CE Webinar The webinar will focus on minimally-invasive dentistry, which Dr. Volker describes as "a hot topic" among oral health care providers. Dr. Volker explains that, for many dentists, it is very easy to talk about taking away less tooth structure, but i is more difficult to apply this concept to achieve predictable, esthetic, and functional results. The upcoming CE webinar offers insights on how clinicians can successfully and immediately expand the use of minimally-invasive dentistry in daily practice.



An experienced clinician and educator, Dr. Volker graduated from Colombia University's School of Dental and Oral Surgery, and completed a General Practice Residency at the New York Hospital of Queens. He is an attending clinician at Coler-Goldwater Specialty Hospital and Nursing Facility and serves as Vice-Chairman of the hospital's Graduate Medical Education Committee. Dr. Volker was the recipient of the esteemed Fellowship Award from the Academy of General Dentistry, where he serves as the Academy's Vice President of Queens, and is Chairman of the New Dentist Committee. Dr. Volker's free CE webinar "Minimal Intervention, Maximal Outcomes" will be available for On-Demand viewing after October 4, 2018.

About Pulpdent Corporation

Pulpdent Corporation is a family-owned dental research, manufacturing company and leader in bioactive dental materials. ACTIVA BioACTIVE, developed by Pulpdent, is the first esthetic bioactive restorative material. ACTIVA behaves much like natural teeth and stimulates the formation of apatite (the building blocks of teeth), chemically bonds to teeth and helps protect against decay. For over 70 years, Pulpdent has been committed to product innovation, clinical education and patient-centered care in the fields of restoratives, oral hygiene, endodontics, temporization, periodontics, orthodontics, and general dentistry. To stay updated on bioactivity and learn about the Heroic Dentistry Series, which demonstrates ACTIVA's unprecedented capabilities, visit the Pulpdent blog. Media Contact:

Leah Berk

feedback@pulpdent.com

617-926-6666 View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dentist-and-educator-dr-arthur-volker-presents-free-ce-webinar-on-minimally-invasive-dentistry-300710572.html SOURCE PULPDENT Corporation

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[September 12, 2018] Taoglas Delivers Innovation Breakthrough for Antenna Performance

MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS AMERICAS-Taoglas, a leading provider of IoT and automotive antenna and RF solutions, today announced a revolutionary breakthrough in antenna design that will deliver significantly increased antenna performance. This innovation is particularly suited to designs with shorter ground planes, allowing IoT and other device designers to bring to market a wider range of smaller devices that would otherwise not have been able to meet certain stringent carrier certification requirements. Taoglas (News - Alert) will showcase its patent-pending Taoglas Boost technology at Mobile World Congress (News - Alert) Americas (Booth S.2606), being held September 12-14 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The device size versus performance dilemma has long been an issue in the IoT industry. It affects aesthetics, power consumption, costs and use cases. Due to the migration to 4G cellular networks, additional frequency bands are used by network providers to increase service level speeds and throughput. Many IoT devices require that antennas be able to send and receive efficiently at all bands to be globally compliant, without the need to change antennas based on region. Devices may also require 2G/3G fall-back. Traditionally this is achieved by increasing the ground-plane length of the board the antenna is mounted on. As a result, many deices are larger than is required-or practical-for the application they serve.



Taoglas Boost has addressed this challenge by utilizing a new technique to alter the electrical delay in the ground plane to improve efficiency at the lower frequencies (600 to 1000 MHz) typically used for cellular applications. The modification can be implemented in the "keep-out" area of the antenna, the area on the host circuit board reserved for antenna placement, causing minimal impact to the designer in terms of antenna integration. A tuning feature is integrated into the design to allow for quick optimization as Taoglas Boost is implemented in a customer device. The result is an up to 2 dB of antenna efficiency improvement on the same ground plane length compared to traditional technology. Extra antenna gain improves any system-level gain but this improvement can be particularly useful to meeting over-the-air (OTA) requirements for size-constrained devices commonly found in M2M and IoT applications. This new invention and technology can be implemented with any onboard antenna.

"As a leading RF and antenna provider for IoT, Taoglas has long seen the demands smaller device sizes and increased power consumption place on antenna design," said Jeff Shamblin, vice president of engineering, Taoglas. "This patent-pending breakthrough, developed by our team of engineers, tricks the antenna into seeing a longer ground plane, hence increasing antenna efficiency. Taoglas Boost is provided at no additional cost for use with Taoglas antennas, providing our customers 1 or more dBs of performance for free." For more information about Taoglas Boost and its integration with Taoglas' antennas, visit www.Taoglas.com, or visit Taoglas at Mobile World Congress Americas, September 12-14, 2018, in booth 2606 in the South Hall of the Los Angeles Convention Center. About Taoglas Taoglas provides advanced antenna and RF solutions to the world's leading wireless and IoT companies. With eight world-class design, support and test centers in Ireland, Germany, Taiwan, China and the USA, Taoglas works with its customers to provide the best solution for their unique antenna and RF challenges, quickly and easily. In-house manufacturing in Taiwan and USA enable us to deliver the highest quality products. Our team of professionals live and breathe RF solutions, with expertise and experience across different wireless and IoT use cases, from LTE (News - Alert) to GNSS, DSRC, and NFC and beyond to 5G. This expertise is proven in the huge number of success stories across a variety of applications, including Telematics, Automotive, Metering, Smart Grid, Wearables, Medical Devices, Remote Monitoring, and High-Speed Video Broadcasting. For more information, visit www.taoglas.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005356/en/

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[September 12, 2018] Steve Litster Joins Markley Group as Chief Technology Officer

Markley Group, a premier provider of mission-critical data center facilities, cloud computing, and network services, today announced that Steve Litster Ph.D. has joined the team as Chief Technology Officer. With more than twenty years of experience in designing enterprise infrastructure, large scale networks, and scalable cloud-based solutions, Steve will play a key role in shaping Markley's strategies and solutions to meet customers' emerging requirements to address an increasingly connected and data-driven world. "Steve is a technologist at heart and has a track record of designing and implementing technology solutions to drive value within the organizations he has served," said Jeff Markley, CEO, Markley. "With the increasing adoption of data sciences, deep learning, and smart devices across our diverse client base, the new imperative is to securely and cost-effectively enable high bandwidth access to massive proprietary data stores, highly-available scalable computing resources, and intelligence devices on the edge. As we continue to build leading edge solutions to meet these requirements, Steve's leadership and deep experience will bring us to the next level." Steve was most recently the Global Led for Scientific Computing at Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research. At Novartis, Steve successfully led strategy, implementation, and operations of global high performance computing (HPC), application, and data environments. A cloud industry visionary, Steve pioneered the application of ultra-scale public cloud computing clusters to HPC workloads, for which he was recognized with the 2014 HPCwire Award for Best Use of Cloud for HPC.



Prior to joining Novartis, Steve led IT consolidation efforts at Vertex (News - Alert) Pharmaceuticals, adopting virtualization technologies within both the enterprise IT and research computing environments to achieve multi-million-dollar savings. Steve has also held technical positions at Harvard University, where he was responsible for IT systems, data storage, and networking infrastructure. He holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Crystallography and a B.S. in Physics and Chemistry from the University of Salford, UK. "I'm excited to be joining an organization with such a strong reputation of unparalleled performance and reliability," said Steve Litster Ph.D., Chief Technology Officer. "Working with our clients across all sectors of the industry, our goal is to provide services ranging from hosted systems to fully functional managed platforms, reducing the effort and ongoing costs associated with managing data centers, networks, storage, and data movement."

As a leading provider of hosted and cloud-based computing services, Markley is uniquely positioned to help customers overcome the challenges of building the next generation of cloud-to-edge infrastructures. Steve is excited to define and execute strategies that help accelerate innovation for Markley's customers through a services-led, platform-oriented approach that streamlines operations and maximizes organizational productivity. About Markley Group:

Markley Group is a premier provider of mission-critical data center facilities and cloud computing services. The company is trusted by Fortune 1000 companies, major global consumer brands, and the world's most cutting-edge research firms to deliver high availability, consistent performance, and unparalleled client service. Markley Group is the only company in the world that hosts supercomputing-as-a-service solutions. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005215/en/

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[September 12, 2018] SilkRoad Activate Evolves with Offer Letter, Merger and Acquisitions, and Offboarding Capabilities

SilkRoad (www.silkroad.com), a global leader in strategic enterprise onboarding and talent activation to drive business outcomes, announced today three significant enhancements to SilkRoad Activate Strategic Onboarding: Offers, Mergers and Acquisitions, and Offboarding capabilities. SilkRoad Activate Offers: For many organizations, creating employment offers is a manual process that is difficult to standardize and manage at scale. The SilkRoad Activate Offers solution streamlines the enterprise employment offer process to improve talent acquisition and onboarding effectiveness. It enables the creation, approval routing, digital signature, tracking and analysis of offers, and serves as the critical first step in strategic new hire onboarding.

For many organizations, creating employment offers is a manual process that is difficult to standardize and manage at scale. The SilkRoad Activate Offers solution streamlines the enterprise employment offer process to improve talent acquisition and onboarding effectiveness. It enables the creation, approval routing, digital signature, tracking and analysis of offers, and serves as the critical first step in strategic new hire onboarding. SilkRoad Activate M&A Onboarding: Onboarding and retaining talent is critically important to the success of merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions. SilkRoad Activate M&A Onboarding addresses administrative and compliance tasks associated with onboarding many new employees in a short timeframe following a corporate transaction. Just as important, this solution helps introduce and welcome acquired employees to their new organization's culture and guides them through the transition. As a esult, SilkRoad software supports the successful integration of employees into the new organization to retain more talent, avoid turnover and optimize the value of the investment.

Onboarding and retaining talent is critically important to the success of merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions. SilkRoad Activate M&A Onboarding addresses administrative and compliance tasks associated with onboarding many new employees in a short timeframe following a corporate transaction. Just as important, this solution helps introduce and welcome acquired employees to their new organization's culture and guides them through the transition. As a esult, SilkRoad software supports the successful integration of employees into the new organization to retain more talent, avoid turnover and optimize the value of the investment. SilkRoad Activate Offboarding: Consistent and responsible offboarding of departing employees improves productivity, strengthens the employer brand and protects organizations from risk. SilkRoad Activate Offboarding automates critical offboarding tasks and coordinates activities across all stakeholders to save time, improve accuracy and ensure required processes are completed.



SilkRoad is onsite at the HR Technology Conference & Expo in Las Vegas (Sept. 11-14) to showcase the enhancements and discuss findings from its new global survey, "The Awakening: Onboarding Emerges as a Strategic Driver."

About SilkRoad SilkRoad is the world's leader in strategic onboarding for talent activation, helping organizations win the war for retention by engaging people with personalized world-class onboarding to keep talent engaged and connected to business goals throughout their employment journeys. SilkRoad has helped thousands of companies around the world create highly scalable personalized experiences that activate and retain people. For more information, visit www.silkroad.com, follow on Twitter (News - Alert) @SilkRoadTweets or call 866-329-3363 (U.S. toll free) or +1-312-574-3700. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005334/en/

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[September 12, 2018] Ultimus Fund Solutions Presents Fully Integrated Private Fund Administration Services

Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC (Ultimus), one of the largest independent providers of mutual fund, private fund, pooled investment and middle office services, is pleased to announce the completion of the integration and brand transition of Woodfield Fund Administration, LLC (Woodfield), following the acquisition of the private fund administration firm in April 2018. As a result, Ultimus has expanded its offering to include fund administration services for various private fund structures such as private equity, venture capital, real estate and hedge funds. As a fully integrated firm, Ultimus is able to better leverage technology investments, resources and assets, providing current and prospective clients the opportunity to access a wider range of services from one combined firm with a hallmark of exceptional client service. The integration process, completed in a way to minimize impact to clients, included onboarding employees, upgrading certain core technology applications, rebranding, and mapping out further technology investments over the next year. "Offering private fund administration services has been a goal of our firm for a few years," said Gary Tenkman, President and Managing Director of Ultimus. "However, we never wanted to build this product line and service offering from scratch. We sought to acquire a firm with experienced professionals that engage in a client centric culture similar to Ultimus and who also possess deep industry knowledge. Our new colleagues are skilled industry professionals who know the ins and outs of the private fund administration business and we couldn't be more pleased to have them as part of the Ultimus team."



Ultimus' private fund services group, with years of experience, provides a full range of private fund administration solutions which includes accounting, investor services, treasury services, and audit assistance and tax management services to private investment funds. Ultimus now serves 155 clients and over $80 billion in assets under administration, including clients in both the U.S. and Europe. Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ultimus' other locations include Columbus, Chicago, Denver and Indianapolis. All Ultimus fund administration service solutions for pooled investments and private funds are performed within the United States.

About Ultimus Fund Solutions, LLC Ultimus Fund Solutions provides highly customized and comprehensive middle and back office services to investment advisers. Ultimus' high-quality services include solutions for mutual funds, separately managed accounts, private investment funds and other pooled investment structures. Our offering comes with a deep commitment to excellence, achieved through our investments in both talent and technology, with constant focus on maintaining our boutique service culture. As a result, Ultimus has stood out as an award-winning, trusted business partner to investment advisers and fund families since 1999. Ultimus' comprehensive service solutions are performed by seasoned teams of accountants, attorneys, paralegals, application developers and other professionals with a wealth of financial services experience. For more information, visit www.ultimusfundsolutions.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005106/en/

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[September 12, 2018] bridgeMLS Selects dynaConnections' Highly Acclaimed connectMLS Solution to Offer Subscribers

BERKELEY, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- bridgeMLS announced today that it has selected dynaConnections' responsive MLS solution, connectMLS, to offer its subscribers. With a suite of mobile-friendly features including search, reports, contact management, and an embedded TMS, connectMLS will provide bridgeMLS subscribers greater flexibility as well as the ability to customize their MLS environment. dynaConnections specializes in MLS technology and has consistently earned the highest ratings in industry studies. Its flagship product, connectMLS, maintains full functionality on any device, and its interface automatically adjusts based upon screen dimensions to provide an optimal user experience. The robust yet intuitive solution will be a valuable asset to bridgeMLS' increasingly mobile subscribers. "We are very dedicated to finding the best tools and resources for our members and found the dynaConnections team to be responsive to our needs," said Gustavo Rodriguez, Chief Operating Officer of bridgeMLS. "With connectMLS' wide range of features, personalization options, and intuitive design, we're confident that it will be an exciting addition." "It is our mission and goal for bridgeMLS to provide leading technology solutions to our participants/subscribers," said DaVina Lara, Chief Executive Officer of bridgeMLS. "dynaConnections takes us to the next level of serviceand technology. It's a true system of choice that enhances the MLS experience."



"We are looking forward to a strong, cooperative partnership with bridgeMLS and its subscribers," said Tim Ford, Chief Executive Officer of dynaConnections. "We've been impressed with their leadership team and are eager to provide a custom solution that meets their members' diverse needs."

About bridgeMLS

bridgeMLS is a leading MLS provider in the California Bay Area for real estate professionals offering a centralized online source of data. Using innovative technology, brokers and agents have access to more than 10 MLSs, covering 80 percent of the state of California. bridgeMLS is owned by the Oakland/Berkeley Association of REALTORS, and provides MLS services to the Delta Association of REALTORS. For more information on bridgeMLS visit www.bridgemls.com

About dynaConnections Corporation and connectMLS

dynaConnections Corporation is an Austin-based real estate software company that has specialized in MLS solutions since 2001. Its responsive flagship product, connectMLS, has millisecond response time and full functionality on every device. With rich embedded features and seamless integrations, connectMLS is an intuitive, all-in-one real estate transaction manager backed by fanatical support. For more information, please visit www.dynaconnections.com. dynaConnections and connectMLS are registered trademarks of dynaConnections Corporation. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated. For further information, please contact:

Alei Tygert (866) 306-9898 x 119

201510@email4pr.com or Gustavo Rodriguez (510) 435-3614

201510@email4pr.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bridgemls-selects-dynaconnections-highly-acclaimed-connectmls-solution-to-offer-subscribers-300711033.html SOURCE bridgeMLS

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[September 12, 2018] Lazard Announces Cash Tender Offer for 4.250% Senior Notes Due 2020 of Lazard Group LLC

Lazard Ltd (NYSE:LAZ) announced today that its subsidiary Lazard Group LLC ("Lazard Group") is commencing a cash tender offer (the "Tender Offer") for up to $250 million aggregate principal amount (such amount, as it may be increased or decreased, the "Aggregate Maximum Tender Amount") of its outstanding 4.250% Senior Notes due November 14, 2020 (the "Notes"). The Tender Offer is being made upon the terms and conditions in the Offer to Purchase and related Letter of Transmittal dated September 12, 2018. The Tender Offer will expire at 11:59 p.m. (Eastern Time) on October 10, 2018, unless extended or terminated as described in the Offer to Purchase (such time and date, as they may be extended, the "Expiration Date"). Holders of the Notes are urged to carefully read the Offer to Purchase and related Letter of Transmittal before making any decision with respect to the Tender Offer. The following table summarizes certain material terms of the Tender Offer:







Title of Security CUSIP/ISIN Nos. Principal

Amount

Outstanding UST Reference

Security Bloomberg (News - Alert)

Reference Page Fixed

Spread(1) 4.250% Senior

Notes due 2020 52107QAF2 /

US52107QAF28 $500,000,000 2.625% UST

due 08/31/20 FIT1 +35 bps

(1) The Total Consideration (as defined below) for Notes validly tendered prior to or at the Early Tender Date (as defined below) and accepted for purchase is calculated using the Fixed Spread (as defined below), which is inclusive of the Early Tender Premium (as defined below). Holders must validly tender and not subsequently validly withdraw their Notes prior to or at 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time, on September 25, 2018 (such time and date, as they may be extended, the "Early Tender Date") to be eligible to receive the "Total Consideration." The Total Consideration for each $1,000 principal amount of Notes validly tendered and not subsequently withdrawn will be determined in the manner described in the Offer to Purchase by reference to the fixed spread listed above (the "Fixed Spread") plus the yield to maturity based on the bid-side price of the UST Reference Security listed above, as quoted on the applicable page on the Bloomberg Bond Trader FIT1 series of pages, or any recognized quotation source selected by the Lead Dealer Manager in its sole discretion if such quotation report is not available or manifestly erroneous, at 2:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) on September 26, 2018, unless extended by Lazard Group. Holders of any Notes that are validly tendered after the Early Tender Date but prior to or at the Expiration Date and that are accepted for purchase will receive an amount in cash equal to the Total Consideration minus an amount in cash of $30 per $1,000 principal amount of the Notes (the "Early Tender Premium"). The Total Consideration minus the Early Tender Premium is referred to as the "Tender Consideration." In addition to the Total Consideration or the Tender Consideration, as applicable, accrued and unpaid interest up to, but not including, the Early Settlement Date or the Final Settlement Date (each as defined below), as applicable, will be payable in cash on all validly tendered and accepted Notes. The Early Settlement Date is expected to occur on September 28, 2018, the third business day following the Early Tender Date (the "Early Settlement Date"). The Final Settlement Date is expected to occur on October 12, 2018, the second business day following the Expiration Date (the "Final Settlement Date"). On each of the Early Settlement Date and the Final Settlement Date, as applicable, if the aggregate principal amount of Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn exceeds the Aggregate Maximum Tender Amount, the Company will accept tendered Notes on a pro rata basis so as not to exceed the Aggregate Maximum Tender Amount. Notes validly tendered and not validly withdrawn at or prior to the Early Tender Date will have priority over Notes that are validly tendered after the Early Tender Date. Accordingly, Notes tendered after the Early Tender Date but prior to or at the Expiration Date will be eligible for purchase only if and to the extent that the aggregate principal amount of the Notes purchased on the Early Settlement Date is less than the Aggregate Maximum Tender Amount. The closing of the Tender Offer is subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain conditions as set forth in the Offer to Purchase, including the condition that Lazard Group has received, on terms satisfactory to it in its sole discretion, net proceeds from an offering of its senior notes sufficient to purchase the Aggregate Maximum Tender Amount of the Notes and to pay all fees and expenses in connection with the Tender Offer. Lazard Group currently expects that, in the event that less than the Aggregate Maximum Tender Amount of Notes is purchased pursuant to the Tender Offer, it will exercise its right to optionally redeem at the make-whole redemption price, calculated in accordance with the indenture governing the Notes, an amount of Notes such that the aggregate principal amount of Notes purchased in the Tender Offer plus the aggregate principal amount of Notes redeemed in such redemption is approximately $250 million. The Company reserves the right, subject to applicable law, to (i) waive any and all conditions to the Tender Offer, (ii) extend or terminate the Tender Offer, (iii) increase or decrease the Aggregate Maximum Tender Amount, or (iv) otherwise amend the Tender Offer in any respect. This press release is for informational purposes only and is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell the Notes. The Tender Offer is being made solely by means of the Offer to Purchase and related Letter of Transmittal dated September 12, 2018. The Tender Offer is void in all jurisdictions where it is prohibited. In those jurisdictions where the securities, blue sky or other laws require the Tender Offer to be made by a licensed broker or dealer, the Tender Offer will be deemed to be made on behalf of Lazard Group by the Dealer Managers (as defined below) or one or more registered brokers or dealers licensed under the laws of such jurisdictions. Citigroup Global Markets Inc. is acting as the lead dealer manager (the "Lead Dealer Manager") and Lazard Freres & Co. LLC is acting as co-dealer manager (together with the Lead Dealer Manager, the "Dealer Managers") for the Tender Offer. Requests for documents may be directed to D.F. King & Co., Inc., the tender and information agent (the "Tender and Information Agent"), by telephone at (800) 283-2170, in writing at Attn: Andrew Beck, 48 Wall Street, 22nd Floor, New York, New York, 10005 or by email at lazard@dfking.com. Questions regarding the Tender Offer may be directed to the Dealer Managers as follows: Citigroup Global Markets Inc. may be contacted by telephone at (800) 558-3745 (toll-free) or (212) 723-6106 (collect) or in writing at Attn: Liability Management Group, 388 Greenwich Street, 7th Floor, New York, New York 10013; and Lazard Freres & Co. LLC may be contacted by telephone at (877) 364-0850 or in writing at Attn: Liability Management Group, 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, New York 10112. None of Lazard Group or its affiliates, their respective boards of directors, the Dealer Managers, the Tender and Information Agent or the trustee for the Notes makes any recommendation as to whether holders should tender any of their Notes. Holders must make their own decision as to whether to tender any of their Notes and, if so, the principal amount of their Notes to tender. About Lazard Lazard, one of the world's preeminent financial advisory and asset management firms, operates from 43 cities across 27 countries in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, Central and South America. With origins dating to 1848, the firm provides advice on mergers and acquisitions, strategic matters, restructuring and capital structure, capital raising and corporate finance, as well as asset management services to corporations, partnerships, institutions, governments and individuals. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as "may", "might", "will", "should", "could", "would", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "predict", "potential", "target", "goal", or "continue", and the negative of these terms and other comparable terminology. These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of our control. There are important factors that could cause our actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results, level of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, those discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K under Item 1A "Risk Factors", and also discussed from time to time in our reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K, including the following: A decline in general economic conditions or the global or regional financial markets;

A decline in our revenues, for example due to a decline in overall mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity, our share of the M&A market or our assets under management;

Losses caused by financial or other problems experienced by third parties;

Losses due to unidentified or unanticipated risks;

A lack of liquidity, i.e., ready access to funds, for use in our businesses; and

Competitive pressure on our businesses and on our ability to retain and attract employees at current compensation levels. Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance or achievements. Neither we nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any of these forward-looking statements. You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. We are under no duty to update any of these forward-looking statements after the date of this release to conform our prior statements to actual results or revised expectations and we do not intend to do so. Lazard Ltd is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. LAZ-CPE View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005631/en/

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What you learn is this: Trump never changes. His tweets then are the same as his tweets now. His lack of curiosity then is the same as it is now. His petulance, his bullying, his effortless lying  all the same.
[September 12, 2018] Andersen Global Continues Expansion in Middle East with Zalloum & Laswi Law Firm

Zalloum & Laswi, a prominent law firm with a presence in Amman, Jordan, has signed a Collaboration Agreement with Andersen Global, an international association of tax and law firms. Initially established in 1993 as a law office by Managing Partner Azzam Zalloum, Zalloum & Laswi later became a full-fledged law firm and now has more than 20 professionals. The collaboration broadens Andersen Global's presence internationally and is a significant development for the practice in the Middle East. Andersen Global Chairman and Andersen Tax LLC CEO, Mark Vorsatz, said, "The collaboration in Jordan provides us with a platform in a key market and our growth here is part of a larger strategy to continue our existing build-out of the Middle East throughout the next year. Zalloum & Laswi's vast experience in commercial litigation and transactions, as well as their insight on the Jordanian judicial system positions us for continued opportunities for expansion." Zalloum & Laswi provides in-depth knowledge on a wide range of legal issues to a variety of clients, but typially mid to large sized Jordanian corporations or foreign corporations that require representation in Jordan. The firm's practice areas include banking and finance, civil law, contracts, foreign investment, intellectual property rights, international trade and cross-border issues, corporate and commercial law, criminal law, litigation and dispute resolution, mergers & acquisitions, and real estate. Led by Partners Azzam Zalloum and Rasha Laswi, Zalloum & Laswi maintains a comprehensive understanding of local Jordanian laws and regulations.



"We feel that quality and people are the heart of the Andersen Global culture, so we are excited to join the team and collaborate with like-minded individuals who share our value of putting people, both internal and external, at the forefront," commented Rasha Laswi. "Our priority is catering to the needs of each of our clients, which we achieve by providing quality legal services compatible with today's economic challenges. Our collaboration with Andersen Global will allow us to combine best-in-class tax and legal services internationally and even better service our clientele." Andersen Global is an international association of legally separate, independent member firms comprised of tax and legal professionals around the world. Established in 2013 by U.S. member firm Andersen Tax LLC, Andersen Global now has more than 3,500 professionals worldwide and a presence in over 112 locations through its member firms and collaborating firms.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005048/en/

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[September 12, 2018] Samsung Named a 2018 Finalist for U.S. Chamber Foundation's Corporate Citizenship Award

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation named Samsung (News - Alert) Electronics America, Inc. a finalist in the 2018 Corporate Citizenship Awards, in the category of health and wellness, for the Samsung Innovation Center at Children's Health Fund. Samsung was selected as a finalist for its work in the health and wellness category because of its close partnership with Children's Health Fund. More than 20 million children lack consistent, high quality health care in the U.S. due to issues with transportation, lack of insurance, cost and competing urgent priorities. In partnership with Children's Health Fund, the Samsung Innovation Center was created to address this problem by improving health care availability for vulnerable children and families. The Samsung Center provided over 66,000 children with access to needed primary care services such as automated vision screening, telehealth, and toolkits that provide real-time information and test results for low-income families who otherwise would have gone without care. "On behalf of Samsung and the Samsung Innovation Center at Children's Health Fund, we are honored to receive this recognition from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce," said Tim Baxter, President and Chief Executive Officer of Samsung Electronics North America. "For years we have elieved that if we leverage our technology to help today's youth get healthier, we are ultimately helping the communities that we serve get stronger. We are pleased that we've already reached more than 66,000 children and we look forward to continuing to build on these efforts in 2018 and beyond."



The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation's Citizens Awards honors excellence in corporate citizenship. Over the past 19 years, some of the most accomplished social and community initiatives within the business sector have been recognized through the Citizens Awards. The winners of the 2018 Citizens Awards will be announced on November 15 at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. Learn more about the awards program here.

About Samsung Electronics America Headquartered in Ridgefield Park, NJ, Samsung Electronics America, Inc. (SEA), is a recognized innovation leader in consumer electronics design and technology. A wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., SEA delivers a broad range of digital consumer electronics, mobile products and wearables, wireless infrastructure, IT and home appliance products. Samsung is the market leader for HDTVs in the U.S. and one of America's fastest growing home appliance brand. To learn more, please visit www.samsung.com. About the U.S. Chamber of Commerce The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation is dedicated to strengthening America's long-term competitiveness. We educate the public on the conditions necessary for business and communities to thrive, how business positively impacts communities, and emerging issues and creative solutions that will shape the future. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005683/en/

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Pennsylvania Comes Together on October 21 to Walk4Hearing

The Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) invites you to join us for the 2018 Pennsylvania Walk4Hearing on October 21 at the Navy Yard in Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania Walk4Hearing brings together people with hearing loss, their families and friends to raise awareness and support others in the local community. Participating in the Walk gives you a chance to engage with people like yourself, share stories, and make new friends.

The theme for this year's Walk4Hearing is the importance of getting your hearing screened. People with hearing loss often face an increased risk of falls, isolation, anxiety, depression, and possibly even cognitive decline. Let us know that you are taking charge of your hearing health by using #screenURhearing on Twitter (News - Alert) and other social media posts. A hearing screening van will be present at the Pennsylvania Walk4Hearing provided by Salus University Osborne College of Audiology.







The HLAA Walk4Hearing has raised more than $13 million and welcomed more than 90,000 walkers in cities across the country since its inception in 2006. Funds raised support national and local programs for people with hearing loss.

Both national and local sponsors are integral to the success of the Walk4Hearing. Their involvement typically consists of much more than financial support. Many companies form their own teams who take part in the Walk and also have volunteers to assist with many Walk logistics. This year, we are pleased to welcome CaptionCall as a new national sponsor at the Capital level. With CaptionCall's generous support we can now reach even more people to help them on their hearing loss journey.

HLAA would like to recognize and thank all our 2018 Walk4Hearing sponsors:

National Sponsors

Capital

CaptionCall

Premier

CapTel Captioned Telephone

Platinum

MED-EL

Silver

Advanced Bionics

Cochlear Americas

Hamilton CapTel

hi HealthInnovations

Local Gold Sponsors

Pinnacle ENT Associates

Brookman Hearing Services

About the Hearing Loss Association of America

The Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA), founded in 1979, opens the world of communication to people with hearing loss through information, education, support and advocacy. Call 301.657.2248 or visit hearingloss.org for more information.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005235/en/
[September 12, 2018] Shapiro+Raj Acquires Strategic Ideas Agency, Wygant & Co.

CHICAGO, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Shapiro+Raj, a top-ten independent strategic research consultancy, announced today that they have acquired longtime creative partner, Wygant & Co., a strategic ideas agency based in Baltimore, MD. This acquisition marks the continued evolution of the company's transformative business model designed to help marketers solve their toughest problems. Since its inception, Shapiro+Raj has been integrating capabilities to address an unmet market need: a research agency designed by and built for marketers. Beginning with Shapiro's 60-year heritage of top-notch social-sciences based research, the company has added behavioral science experts and senior brand planners to help turn learnings into powerful strategic insights. With the acquisition of Wygant & Co., Shapiro+Raj adds creative talent to transform these insights into executable ideas. "We have all the pieces in place to deliver value to clients that they can't get from any other research company," explained Zain Raj, Chairman and CEO of Shapiro+Raj. "Not only can we deliver insights, but we can bring those insights to life with validated ideas. Whether it's a new product, new positioning or new customer cohort, we can show what's possible and demonstrate a clear pathway to execution. This has been a huge advantage for our clients." Shapiro+Raj's unique model was created in response to the market research industry's pervasive usability problem. Today's marketers struggle with one or more of the following challenges: Smart strategies that aren't actionable

Deep data that aren't tied to consumer insights

Clever insights that stp short of ideas

Creative ideas loosely connected with data



"We have a unique point of view because our team comprises all the disciplines required to conduct, analyze and interpret research as well as make it actionable," said Michael Czuba, Senior Vice President of Strategic Insights. "We know what researchers need because we're researchers, we know what strategists need because we're strategists and we know how creatives think because we're creatives. This translates to a deliverable that everyone in the research process can use."

In addition to partnering with Shapiro+Raj on key engagements, Wygant & Co. and its Principal, Jeffrey Wygant, have helped organizations by combining consumer insight, strategic consulting, and creative execution to drive revenue and build brands. Their clients include Black+Decker, Kaiser Permanente, Citibank, Saab USA, Bermuda Department of Tourism, Time-Life, US Airways, Hyatt Hotels and Resorts among others. Jeffrey will lead Shapiro+Raj's efforts to bring the creative mindset throughout the research and planning process. "What Zain and his team are building is something different," explains Wygant & Co. Principal Jeffrey Wygant. "I'm excited to bring the creative process upstream and play a more integrated role in helping brands find new pathways to growth." About Shapiro+Raj

Shapiro+Raj is a strategic research consultancy built for the Insight Economy. By connecting Shapiro's 60-year leadership in research, insights and analytics with new-world brand strategy capabilities, Shapiro+Raj delivers powerful insights that move people to action. We help Fortune 500 clients improve the value of their brands while driving profitable growth of their business. Headquartered in Chicago, the independent firm also has offices in New York, Los Angeles, Baltimore and Pune, India. For more information, visit www.shapiroraj.com. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/shapiroraj-acquires-strategic-ideas-agency-wygant--co-300711263.html SOURCE Shapiro+Raj

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[September 12, 2018] Save the Storks Celebrates Life with Launch of "Life in 1,000 Pictures" Social Media Campaign

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., Sept. 12, 2018 Save the Storks announced today the launch of a photo-sharing campaign on social media titled "Life in 1,000 Pictures." The goal of this promotion is to share the joy of life with photos of babies and children of all ages. The organization encourages mothers, fathers, caregivers, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends to upload pictures. Rather than shout with a hashtag, this campaign asks families to share images that convey life and love. Pictures may be shared by visiting Save the Storks Facebook account and clicking on the "Life in a 1,000 Pictures" link on the lower left side of the main page. Photos can be uploaded or shared from an Instagram account. Photos can also be shared on social media with #Lifein1000Pictures. "We're so proud and honored to launch "Life in 1000 Pictures." We're asking 1,000 families to share their favorite family pictures ," said Victoria Robinson, Director of External Relations at Save the Storks. "We've all heard the saying 'a picture is worth a thousand words.' At Save the Storks, we thought we'd change it up a little! We strive to celebrate life every single day, so we felt it was an appropriate time to remind everyone about the importance and beauty of life. From all walks oflife, children are an integral, vital part of society. Whether they're being raised by their biological parents, a single mom or dad, grandparent, family member, divorced or adoptive parents, we believe children and their parents or caregivers should be celebrated."



"We receive heartwarming photos from moms, dads, grandparents, legal guardians and pregnancy resource centers daily," added Joe Baker, Founder and CEO at Save the Storks. "Creating a platform on Facebook to upload the smiling faces of babies, toddlers, and children of all ages just made sense. Celebrating life is what we're all about, and we're looking forward to seeing everyone's favorite family photos." About Save the Storks

Save the Storks mission is to revolutionize the meaning of pro-life. This organization partners with pregnancy resource centers in the United States to empower women with choice during pregnancy. Save the Storks has captured the imagination of millions with their compelling Heartbeat and Father's Day videos and with its innovative fleet of Mercedes-Benz mobile medical units, known as the Stork Bus.

To date, Save the Storks has built 45 buses, with three additional Stork Buses in production and nine in fundraising. Storks by the Numbers

79% of women say they weren't counseled on other options outside abortion.

64% of women who chose abortion say they felt pressured by others to abort.

4 out of 5 women who board a Stork Bus choose life for their baby. About Victoria Robinson

Victoria Robinson is the Director of External Relations for Save the Storks. She's the author of countless op-ed pieces on the subject of pro-life, as well as the post-abortive mother and father. She's an author, public speaker, television personality and former host of "Real Talk with Victoria" where her guests included politicians, teenagers, authors, speakers, and athletes. Victoria became an advocate for the pro-life movement following an abortion at six weeks of pregnancy. Involved in the pro-life arena for over twenty years, she has also worked as the Executive Director of three separate pregnancy centers. Victoria is the mother of four daughters, mother-in-law to three sons-in-law and the Mimi to four grandchildren, with one on the way. She resides in Nashville, TN. Media Contacts

Diane Ferraro

Save the Storks

M: 626-222-9388

E: diane.ferraro (@) savethestorks.com Victoria Robinson

Save the Storks

E: Victoria (@) savethestorks.com SOURCE Save the Storks

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[September 12, 2018] Mace Brand Announces Free Overnight Shipping of Mace Alert 911 to States Affected by Hurricane Florence

Hurricane Florence, an extremely powerful Category 4 storm, is set to hit the states of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and parts of the Mid-Atlantic states. Many sources say that this storm is expected to affect millions this week, as some states have declared a state of emergency and evacuations. To help give peace of mind to people in those states, we are offering free overnight shipping to Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia on the Mace Alert 911 product if ordered between now and Thursday, September 13 at 3 p.m. EST. "With the simple push of a button, the user is connected directly to 911," said John McCann, CEO and President of Mace Brand. "Having the Mace Alert 911 on hand during a time of crisis will give a sense of safety to many people affected by Hurricane Florence. The two-way voice capability allows for instant communication with 911 operators and since it is battery operated there is no need to worry about an electrical outlet." Mace Alert 911 works anywhere in the U.S. where there is a cellular connection; the device will ping the closest tower to your location so you can talk to the 911 operator, and best of all does not require any phone contract or any monthly subscription fees. The device includes a lanyard connection and an optional clip for easy acess in case of an emergency. The only cost is the purchase price for the unit, as Mace will ship it for free. The device is battery operated and can be shared with loved ones.



Deliveries may be subject to impacted weather delay depending upon delivery location. We will do our best to work with the delivery carriers in affected areas. Please call the following numbers for any emergency assistance during Hurricane Florence:

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA): 1-800-621-3362

National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline: 866-720-5721

American Red Cross: 1-800-RED CROSS For additional information on Mace Alert 911 or any Mace Brand personal safety products, please visit www.mace.com or call 1-800-775-6223 to purchase the Mace Alert 911. About Mace Security International, Inc. Mace Security International, Inc. is a globally recognized leader in personal safety and security. Based in Cleveland, Ohio, the company has spent more than 40 years designing and manufacturing consumer and tactical products for personal defense, security and surveillance under its world-renowned Mace Brand - the original trusted brand of defense spray products. The company also offers aerosol defense sprays and tactical products for law enforcement and security professionals worldwide through its Mace Take Down brand. MIS distributes and supports Mace Brand products and services through mass market retailers, wholesale distributors, independent dealers, e-commerce marketers and installation service providers. For more information, visit www.mace.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005746/en/

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[September 12, 2018] Sterling Emmal: An Author You Will Enjoy If You Dare

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Sterling Emmal was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. She is a self-branded Shock Value Author who grew up with bipolar disorder and an abusive father. Her writing has always been her pathway to escape reality for a few moments and enter into a plot line that she controls. Emmal's tagline is: "By reading my work you will enter the twisted catacombs of my mind, so tread with caution, embrace the darkness, and enjoy if you dare." Emmal published her first book using the iBooks Author app back in 2015. Now, three years later, she has self-published 11 paperback books, as well as 11 ebooks, that have been sold on an international level. This October, Sterling Emmal will be attending Digital Book World 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee as an exhibitor and a finalist in the Digital Book orld Awards.



What To Expect at The Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author Exhibit: Sterling Emmal's exhibit will be located at Table Top D in the Exhibitor Hall at Digital Book World 2018and she herself will be there. Emmal will be selling paperback copies of her books including her award-winning novella Xenon Phobia and her novel Candidates, Cartel, and Chaosthe book that is currently a finalist in the Digital Book World Awards 2018 "Best Book: Science Fiction" Category. Emmal will also have her business cards ready to hand out along with signed Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author pens. Staying true to her Shock Value brand, Emmal states her fashion will make her look like "the Lady Gaga of the literary community."

Learn more about Sterling Emmal's work on her website: http://www.sterlingemmalbooks.com About Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author: Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author is located in Anchorage, Alaska. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sterling-emmal-an-author-you-will-enjoy-if-you-dare-300711286.html SOURCE Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author

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[September 12, 2018] FCA US and First Bankcard Introduce $1000 Bonus Certificate to 'DrivePlus?' Credit Card

FCA US LLC and First Bankcard, a division of First National Bank of Omaha, have announced the addition of a $1000 Bonus Certificate toward a future purchase or lease of a new FCA US vehicle to their co-branded FCA DrivePlus? Mastercard1. The companies marked the renewal of their partnership to issue co-branded credit cards under the Chrysler, Dodge, FIAT, Jeep, Ram and Mopar brands earlier this year with the launch of the new card. The addition of the $1000 Bonus Certificate1 to the FCA DrivePlus? Mastercard strengthens an already rich package of automotive rewards designed to help drivers with the cost of ownership and dealers to close more sales and increase customer loyalty. Cardholders can earn unlimited rewards on everyday purchases, with double reward redemption at FCA US dealerships toward a new vehicle down payment, Mopar service, repair or accessory purchase. To learn more, visit www.drivepluscard.com or a participating dealer nationwide. "DrivePlus offers industry leading rewards for our customers while helping dealers reach and retain new shoppers who will visit their showrooms again and again," said Jeff Kommor, Vice President of FCA US Sales & Fleet Operations. The FCA DrivePlus? Mastercard includes the following product features: 5% back on FCA US purchases 2

2% back on gas and travel purchases 2

1% back on purchases everywhere else 2

Doble cardholder rewards when redeemed at FCA US dealerships 2

$100 statement credit with the first FCA US in-dealer purchase 2

Special financing on all FCA US dealership purchases of $499 or more

Industry-leading $1000 Bonus Certificate toward a future purchase or lease of a new FCA US vehicle. Model restrictions apply. See official program rules for details.



First Bankcard first partnered with Chrysler Group LLC in 2011 to introduce the automaker's suite of co-branded cards. The new agreement extends a multi-year relationship, now with FCA US LLC.

1 Model restrictions apply. See official program rules for details. 2 See the Reward Terms and Conditions in the Summary of Credit Terms provided at the time of application for details, including earning, redemption, expiration or forfeiture. Percentage back is earned as points. About FCA US FCA US LLC is a North American automaker based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It designs, manufactures, and sells or distributes vehicles under the Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, FIAT and Alfa Romeo brands as well as the SRT performance designation. The Company also distributes Mopar and Alfa Romeo parts and accessories. FCA US is building upon the historic foundations of Chrysler Corp., established in 1925 by industry visionary Walter P. Chrysler and Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino (F.I.A.T.), founded in Italy in 1899 by pioneering entrepreneurs, including Giovanni Agnelli. FCA US is a member of the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (FCA) family of companies. (NYSE: FCAU/ MTA: FCA). About First Bankcard First Bankcard, a division of First National Bank of Omaha, is a leader in the credit card partnership arena, serving approximately 250 financial institutions, co-brand and affinity partners nationwide. For 60 years, First Bankcard has offered quality products and superior service to help its customers achieve their goals. Visit http://partners.firstbankcard.com for more information. About First National Bank of Omaha First National Bank of Omaha is a subsidiary of First National of Nebraska. First National of Nebraska and its affiliates have more than $21 billion in assets and 5,000 employee associates. Primary banking offices are located in Nebraska, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota and Texas. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005743/en/

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[September 12, 2018] Cegid Positioned as an Innovator in the Aragon Research Globe for Corporate Learning for the 5Th Consecutive Year

Cegid, HR and Retail management solutions specialist in North America, is pleased to announce that it has been positioned as an Innovator in the 2018 Aragon Research Globe report for Corporate Learning1. The report examines and evaluates current technology and suppliers in the field of Corporate Learning and HR, which is becoming increasingly digital and mobile. Cegid's HR management solutions include training, recruitment, performance, succession planning, remuneration and business intelligence. Cegid's PeopleVision Analytics offer makes use of a massive amount of data, integrates predictive analysis and provides information on Talent modules. In 2017, Cegid launched partnerships with Open Sesame, among others, to respond to the growing demand for digital training content. Cegid's training and development platformis a complete LMS and includes training videos as part of its basic offer. Cegid Video Learning improves upon the comprehensive approach to social learning.



"We are thrilled that Cegid was named an Innovator yet again by the latest Aragon Research Globe report. We believe this result reinforces our vision for the digital transformation of HR services and the investments we are making to reinvent the employee experience, to help organizations attract and retain the best talent and to drive individual and collective engagement without heavy-handed management," declared Sebastien Maire, President-CEO at Cegid HCM. Aragon Research does not endorse vendors, or their products or services that are referenced in its research publications and does not advise users to select those vendors that are rated the highest. Aragon Research publications consist of the opinions of Aragon Research and Advisory Services organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Aragon Research provides its research publications and the information contained in them "AS IS," without warranty of any kind.

About Aragon Research Aragon Research is the newest technology research and consulting firm. Aragon provides high-impact studies and consulting services that give companies the vision they need to make the best strategic decisions in the realm of technology. Aragon Research's expertise covers the fields of knowledge management, collaboration, workspaces, mobile and tablet technology and user experience and portals. The firm's senior staff have more than 50 years of experience in the field combined. Aragon Research is a private company. For more information, visit http://www.aragonresearch.com. About Cegid Cegid is a major player in terms of management solutions for professionals in the fields of Accounting, Finance and Taxation, Payroll and HR, and Retail. With proven experience as a leader in SaaS (News - Alert) management solutions, Cegid provides assistance in the digitalisation of companies and public sector bodies.

Cegid's vision of business is both pragmatic and forward thinking, and the company has mastered new technologies so as to provide useful innovation, not to mention unique expertise in terms of regulatory matters. Cegid is with its clients for the long haul.

In a constantly changing world, Cegid is opening up new possibilities so that every area of a business can increase its added value.

Cegid has 2,400 employees and sells its solutions in 75 countries. In 2017, Cegid recorded a turnover of 332 million. Pascal Houillon has been the CEO since March 2017. For more information, visit: www.cegid.com ; http://jobs.cegid.com/ 1 Aragon Research "The Aragon Research Globe for Corporate Learning, 2018" by Jim Lundy, June 2018. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005764/en/

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[September 12, 2018] New Marketing Research Report: Reward-Based Promotions Outperform Discount-Based Promotions

LEWISVILLE, Texas, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- New research* completed by Aberdeen Group, a leading analyst firm, finds companies that offer consumers reward-based promotions to drive engagement and purchases are more likely to experience greater marketing promotion success and profitability versus those that offer discount-based promotions. Specifically, reward-based promotions can outperform discounts by driving better purchase intent and sales lift without damaging brands' images from discounting. These are among the findings of the study commissioned by Hawk Incentives, a Blackhawk Network business that provides incentives solutions, to assess the presence and impact of discount- and reward-based promotions among U.S. businesses. Reward-based promotions are defined as those that offer shopper incentives to encourage purchase or action; discount-based promotions reduce part of the purchase price at point of purchase. "Businesses have plenty of choices when determining marketing strategy, but reward-based programs stand out as incredibly impactful options to achieve business goals and drive effectiveness," said Theresa McEndree, Vice President of Marketing, Blackhawk Network. "These promotions enable businesses to encourage consumers to buy products while creating engagement that makes them more likely to make repeat purchases in the future. Consumer loyalty can be fleeting, but reward-based promotions offer businesses the opportunity to keep shoppers coming back while also encouraging revenue growth and building brand reputation." Aberdeen Group's research findings were based on a survey of more than 200 U.S. businesses on the use and performance of reward-based and discount-based promotions. Key takeaways include: Reward-based promotions can generate more annual company revenue and greater profitability per customer. Companies surveyed report an average year-over-year revenue growth increase of 36 percent that can be attributed to reward-based promotions as opposed to 28 percent attributed to discounts. Overall, compared with discount-based promotions, the companies surveyed that offer reward-based promotions generate a six percent greater average profit margin per customer (24 percent for rewards-based promotions versus 18 percent for discounts).

Companies surveyed report an average year-over-year revenue growth increase of 36 percent that can be attributed to reward-based promotions as opposed to 28 percent attributed to discounts. Overall, compared with discount-based promotions, the companies surveyed that offer reward-based promotions generate a six percent greater average profit margin per customer (24 percent for rewards-based promotions versus 18 percent for discounts). Businesses use reward-based promotions to achieve specific business goals. When selecting between reward- and discount-based promotions, businesses choose reward-based to foster customerengagement (58 percent), drive purchase intent (48 percent), drive sales lift and/or purchase frequency (45 percent) and minimize lost revenue potential due to discounting (44 percent).

When selecting between reward- and discount-based promotions, businesses choose reward-based to foster customerengagement (58 percent), drive purchase intent (48 percent), drive sales lift and/or purchase frequency (45 percent) and minimize lost revenue potential due to discounting (44 percent). Companies use reward-based promotions to elevate brand image. To create the impression of a premium brand image versus one that consistently discounts prices, 43 percent of companies surveyed consider using reward-based promotions. When directly competing with a rival on brand image, 44 percent of companies prefer to use reward-based promotions.

To create the impression of a premium brand image versus one that consistently discounts prices, 43 percent of companies surveyed consider using reward-based promotions. When directly competing with a rival on brand image, 44 percent of companies prefer to use reward-based promotions. Marketers measure rewards- and discount-based promotion success differently. Of the marketers surveyed, 67 percent gauge reward-based promotion success on increases in customer retention and loyalty, as opposed to 55 percent of those that sponsor discount-based promotions.



Omer Minkara , Vice President and Principal Analyst for Contact Center & Customer Experience Management, Aberdeen Group. "In fact, other research** has found that the majority of surveyed consumersnearly 80 percentprefer rewards in the form of prepaid cards to other incentives such as discounts or merchandise." Download the infographic for more details.

*About the "Next-Generation Promotions" Research

The "Next-Generation Promotions" research was a study conducted independently by Aberdeen Group on behalf of Hawk Incentives between February and March 2018. The sample size of 212 American businesses was comprised of companies with a self-reported average annual revenue of $4.5 billion, and included companies in the Fortune 500 and Fortune 100. A probability sample of the same size would yield a margin of error of +/-3%. **"Reward Preference" is an online survey of 1,022 smartphone owning Americans completed by Leger for Hawk Incentives between February 10?28, 2017. About Hawk Incentives

Hawk Incentives, a Blackhawk Network business, is a leading provider of rewards and incentives to organizations across the globe, including many of the Fortune 500. We power an inspiring brand experience with proven delivery of customized rewards for consumer, employee, sales and channel incentive programs. Our expansive rewards portfolio includes multiple patents and industry firsts, including digital and mobile rewards. To learn more, visit www.hawkincentives.com. Hawk Incentives, headquartered in Lewisville, Texas, is a division of Blackhawk Network. About Blackhawk Network

Blackhawk Network Holdings, Inc. is a global financial technology company and a leader in connecting brands and people through branded value solutions. Blackhawk platforms and solutions enable the management of stored value products, promotions and rewards programs in retail, ecommerce, financial services and mobile wallets. Blackhawk's Hawk Commerce division offers technology solutions to businesses and direct to consumers. The Hawk Incentives division offers enterprise, SMB and reseller partners an array of platforms and branded value products to incent and reward consumers, employees and sales channels. Headquartered in Pleasanton, Calif., Blackhawk operates in 26 countries. For more information, please visit BlackhawkNetwork.com, CashStar.com, HawkCommerce.com, HawkIncentives.com or our product websites GiftCards.com, GiftCardMall.com, Cardpool.com, GiftCardLab.com and OmniCard.com. MEDIA CONTACT:

Ashley Jackson

719-332-3495

ashley@fletchergroupllc.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-marketing-research-report-reward-based-promotions-outperform-discount-based-promotions-300711313.html SOURCE Hawk Incentives, a Blackhawk Network business

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Upending of basic decency and norms began long before President Donald Trump, but the never Trumpers and the elites resist this president even though he accomplishes the campaign promises made to the people. Yet the civility offensive against this president is not without contradiction.
[September 12, 2018] Volvo Trucks Presents Future Transport Solution With Autonomous Electric Vehicles

GOTHENBURG, Sweden, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Volvo Trucks is now presenting a new transport solution consisting of autonomous electric commercial vehicles that can contribute to more efficient, safer and cleaner transportation. The long-term goal is to offer companies that need continuous transport services between fixed hubs a complement to today's offerings. To view the Multimedia News Release, please click: https://www.multivu.com/players/uk/8397251-volvo-trucks-future-transport-solutions/ Growing world population and increasing urbanization are leading to significant challenges to solve environmental issues such as congestion, pollution and noise. Rising consumption, the fast growth of e-commerce and the wide-spread shortage of drivers put higher demands on efficient transport solutions. "The full potential of the transport industry is yet to be seen. Everything suggests that the global need for transportation will continue to significantly increase in the coming decade. If we are to meet this demand in a sustainable and efficient way, we must find new solutions. In order to secure a smoothly functioning goods flow system we also need to exploit existing infrastructure better than currently. The transport system we are developing can be an important complement to today's solutions and can help meet many of the challenges faced by society, transport companies and transport buyers," says Claes Nilsson, President Volvo Trucks. Volvo Trucks' future transport solution is intended to be used for regular and repetitive tasks characterised by relatively short distances, large volumes of goods and high delivery precision. Transports between logistic hubs are typical examples, but additional use cases can also be applicable. "Our system can be seen as an extension of the advanced logistics solutions that many industries already apply today. Since we use autonomous vehicles with no exhaust emissions and low noise,their operation can take place at any time of day or night. The solution utilises existing road infrastructure and load carriers, making it easier to recoup costs and allowing for integration with existing operations," explains Mikael Karlsson, Vice President Autonomous Solutions.



The operation is handled by autonomous electric vehicles linked to a cloud service and a transport control centre. The vehicles are equipped with sophisticated systems for autonomous driving. They are designed to locate their current position to within centimetres, monitor in detail and analyse what is happening with other road users, and then respond with high accuracy. The transport control centre continuously monitors the progress of the transport and keeps an accurate watch of each vehicle's position, the batteries' charge, load content, service requirements and a number of other parameters. As with an industrial production process, speed and progress are tailored to avoid unnecessary waiting and to increase delivery precision. In this way it will be possible to minimise waste in the form of buffer stocks, and increase availability. Vehicles that operate on the same route cooperate to create optimal flow.

In the near future, Volvo Trucks' transport solution will be further developed together with selected customers in prioritized applications. Facts Volvo Trucks is developing a new type of transport solution for repetitive transports involving high precision between fixed hubs, as a complement to today's solutions.

The transport solution consists of autonomous, connected, electric vehicles and a transport control centre.

The vehicles are used as tractor units and are compatible with existing load carriers/trailers.

The propulsion is entirely electric with zero exhaust emissions and low noise levels. The driveline and battery pack are of the same type that are used in Volvo Trucks' electric trucks. LINK to website: http://www.volvotrucks.com/vera LINK to high resolution images LINK to film

Press images and films are available in the Volvo Trucks image and film gallery at http://images.volvotrucks.com Volvo Trucks provides complete transport solutions for professional and demanding customers, offering a full range of medium to heavy duty trucks. Customer support is secured via a global network of 2,100 dealers and workshops in more than 130 countries. Volvo trucks are assembled in 16 countries across the globe. In 2017, more than 112,000 Volvo trucks were delivered worldwide. Volvo Trucks is part of Volvo Group, one of the world's leading manufacturers of trucks, buses and construction equipment and marine and industrial engines. The Group also provides solutions for financing and service. Volvo Trucks work is based on the core values of quality, safety and environmental care.

For further information, please contact:

Anders Vilhelmsson

Vice President Corporate Communication & Public Affairs

Email: anders.vilhelmsson@volvo.com

Phone: +46-31-3223879

(Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/742986/Volvo_Trucks.jpg )

Video:

https://www.multivu.com/players/uk/8397251-volvo-trucks-future-transport-solutions/ SOURCE Volvo Trucks

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[September 12, 2018] Canadian Businesses Generated 10.4 Billion in Economic Impact Due to Google Search and Ads Tools

The Web is helping Canadian businesses drive success and reach global audiences TORONTO, Sept. 12, 2018 /CNW/ - Google announced today that Canadian businesses, publishers and nonprofits who used Google search and advertising tools to connect with the people and communities they serve, generated $10.4 billion in economic activity in 2017. By using Google products those businesses increased their online presence and were able to grow, bringing more money and jobs into the local economy. Google's Economic Impact report was developed by Deloitte on behalf of Google. "Being online can have a big impact for businesses of all sizes; it's where people can learn, build, connect and grow," said Sabrina Geremia, Country Director, Google Canada. "At Google, we are invested in building products and services that help businesses, entrepreneurs, non-profits, developers, creators and students succeed online. With the open web and accessibility to our tools, Canadians can reach new heights." Google's Economic Impact Report details how businesses like Toronto's Logojoy use digital tools to increase their online presence and reach customers. Founded in 2016, Logojoy has helped over 2.5 million entrepreneurs and small businesses create logos online using artificial intelligence. Logojoy's founder, Dawson Whitfield, credits this level of success and globl reach to the web, "Logojoy is in 188 countries, and Google Ads has been a huge part of that," says Whitfield. The report highlights 22 additional stories of businesses across the country using the web to drive growth.



Key Report Findings: Hundreds of thousands of Canadian businesses generated $10.4 billion in economic activity through the use of Google Search and Google Ads

in economic activity through the use of Google Search and Google Ads Businesses using Google Search and Google Ads are supporting 112,000 full-time jobs

Content creators generated $179 million through Google AdSense

through Google AdSense Canadian businesses using Google Cloud benefitted from $266 million in productivity improvements "Digital technology has become a routine part of people's lives. But rarely does one stop and ask what the economic value is of the current range of digital services available today," says Craig Alexander, Chief Economist at Deloitte Canada. "This report aims to highlight the value of these services for Canadian businesses and our economy as a whole."

Additional Resources: Google Canada blog post

blog post Economic Impact Report About the Report Google commissioned Deloitte to estimate the economic activity generated by Canadian businesses, content creators and developers that use Google services. Estimates of the economic activity are based on top-down and bottom-up approaches to provide a reasonable range of potential impact given publicly available data and Google's privacy policies. The estimates in the study are based on data for the twelve month period between January 1, 2017 and December 31, 2017, and are referred to as 2017 estimates. About Google Canada Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. As a global technology leader, Google's innovations in web search and advertising have made its website a top internet property and its brand one of the most recognized in the world. Google Canada has offices in Waterloo, Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa with nearly 1,000 Canadian Google employees working on teams across Engineering, AI Research, Sales, Marketing, PR, Policy, and HR. SOURCE Google Canada

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[September 12, 2018] A.M. BestTV at Rendez-Vous: Insurers Still Lagging in Promoting and Paying Women, Panel Says

In this A.M.BestTV episode from the 2018 Les Rendez-Vous de Septembre (Rendez-Vous) conference in Monte Carlo, Monaco, a panel of experts said the insurance industry continues to lag behind other industries in the percentage of senior management positions held by women. Click on http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=rvs3918 to view the entire program. The shortage of women in senior leadership contributes to the gender pay gap in the industry. Sian Fisher, chief executive officer, Chartered Insurance Institute, spoke about the results of a recent census her company did. "Looking at the broader U.K. market, the percentage of women in the executive director roles among insurers is around 30%, while within the U.K. insurance brokers' sector, it is still 11%," said Fisher. "When you see these numbers, it's no surprise then that the insurance gender pay gap is at an average of 24%. The inequality is in the seniority and high-earning roles between men and women and this is essentially what has to change." Andrea Keenan, senior managing director, industry relations, A.M. Best, highlighted the gender pay gap from the U.S. perspective. "There are statistics that show that insurance industry has fallen way behind the rest of the industries in the United States when it comes to gender pay for women," said Keenan. "However, what I have seen at the younger professional levels are an enormous crop of highly skilled technical women. These women, I believe, will be advancing throughout the insurance industry." All participants said they agreed that women need to have male support within their organizations in order to advance on an equal level with their male co-workers. Other people that appear in this episode: Barbara Merry, formerly of Hardy Underwriting Group, plc, and co-founder, The Insurance Supper Club; and Barbara Schonhofer, chief executive, Schonhofer, and founder, The Insurance Supper Club. For full video coverage of the Rendez-Vous conference, including exclsive executive interviews, visit http://www.ambest.tv/rvs18.



Recent episodes of A.M.BestTV include: At Rendez-Vous: Expense Pressures and Technology Driving Distribution Evolution : A panel of experts said with brokers now underwriting, underwriters distributing insurance and reinsurers writing direct business, the distribution model is evolving: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=rvs2918.

: A panel of experts said with brokers now underwriting, underwriters distributing insurance and reinsurers writing direct business, the distribution model is evolving: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=rvs2918. At Rendez-Vous: Reinsurers Race Against Whirlwind of Changes : Reinsurers and related professionals gather amid an evolving landscape and challenging market conditions: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=rvs1918.

: Reinsurers and related professionals gather amid an evolving landscape and challenging market conditions: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=rvs1918. Glut of Reinsurance Capacity Constrains Post-Catastrophe Pricing, Say A.M. Best Analysts: DeRose and Associate Director Scott Mangan say disappointing reinsurance renewals in the wake of the 2017 catastrophes provided minimal pricing increases, leaving market dynamics relatively unchanged: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=globalre918.

DeRose and Associate Director Scott Mangan say disappointing reinsurance renewals in the wake of the 2017 catastrophes provided minimal pricing increases, leaving market dynamics relatively unchanged: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=globalre918. Changes Among Reinsurance Rankings Reflect Dynamic Market, Say A.M. Best Analysts: Mangan and Financial Analyst Victoria Ohorodnyk discuss changes in the lineup of the largest global reinsurers and how mergers and acquisitions, market developments and economic trends affect those changes: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=globalreinsurerslist918. A.M.BestTV covers exclusive A.M. Best and insurance industry information and reports, targeted topics and key developments in the insurance, reinsurance and related sectors daily. Sign up for alerts of episodes at http://www.ambest.com/multimedia/ambtvsignup.html. View A.M.BestTV episodes at http://www.ambest.tv.

A.M. Best is a global rating agency and information provider with a unique focus on the insurance industry. Visit www.ambest.com for more information. Copyright  2018 by A.M. Best Company, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005852/en/

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[September 12, 2018] MONAT Canada Recognized for Community Service and Ethical Business Practices by Leading Direct Sales Organizations

MONAT Global Canada (MONAT Canada), a multinational distributor of premium hair care products, was awarded the Direct Sellers Association (DSA) of Canada's Making a Difference Award and Code of Ethics Certificate. Vice president and general manager of MONAT Canada, Jackie McClements, received the Direct Selling Education Foundation (DSEF) Circle of Distinction Award. In addition to receiving the DSA Code of Ethics certificate for conducting ethical business, MONAT Canada was honored with DSA's Making a Difference Award for the corporation's charitable impact on communities across Canada. Through MONAT Gratitude, the corporation's global philanthropic initiative, MONAT Canada donated $5,000 to Wounded Warriors in 2017 and invested more than $14,000 in monetary donations and goods to the Salvation Army Community Centers and Disaster Relief in Fort McMurray, Alberta. MONAT Canada's corporate staff also participated in more than 50 hours of volunteer service at nonprofits like Big Brothers Big Sisters and Yellow Brick House, providing help and hope for Canadian families and youth. "When we started MONAT Global, our goals were to create excellent products, a corporate governance structure of the highest ethics, and make sure we give back - not just locally, but globally," said CEO of MONAT Global, Ray Urdaneta. "Our Canada office, our employees and our Market Partners are all incredible people. I am so proud of our team; these awards and distinctions are richly deserved!"



Jackie McClements, vice president and general manager of MONAT Global Canada, was awarded the DSEF Circle of Distinction Award. The award recognizes individuals who have devoted significant years of service and have made considerable contributions to the DSEF and the direct selling industry. McClements has been an advocate for the network industry for more than 17 years, serving previously as the vice chair and currently as the chair of the board for the DSEF. She also headed the DSEF fundraising efforts for several years while using her platform to educate people about the direct selling industry. "Jackie is an amazing leader. She motivates not just MONAT Global employees, but our Canadian Market Partners. Her certificate of distinction reflects not only her abilities, but her drive to give back and invest in the community," said Stuart MacMillan, president of MONAT Global. "I congratulate Jackie and our entire Canada team."

Follow MONAT on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube. Additional information about the company can be found at its website, www.monatglobal.com. About MONAT Global MONAT Global is a wholly owned subsidiary of Alcora Corp., whose holdings include L'EUDINE Global, an established Direct Selling company specializing in premium beauty and wellness products throughout the US and Latin America and B&R Products, their research, development and manufacturing Laboratory subsidiary. All three companies are headquartered in and around Miami, Florida. MONAT was founded in 2014 to enter the multi-billion dollar haircare market and provides groundbreaking opportunities through a novel Social Marketing approach to Direct Sales. The company offers a unique and exciting business model and one of the most generous compensation plans in the U.S., Canadian and U.K. and European markets. About the Direct Sellers Association and the Direct Selling Education Foundation The Direct Sellers Association (DSA) is devoted to preserving the integrity of the direct selling industry. As the most recognized voice in the industry since 1954, the DSA has established and upheld rigorous standards, ethics and good business practices. The Direct Selling Education Foundation (DSEF) is a branch of the Canada DSA, established in 1994 to serve the public interest by advancing the direct selling industry's support of consumer rights and protection, education, ethics and individual economic empowerment. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005860/en/

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[September 12, 2018] VPT, Inc. Celebrates 25th Anniversary

BLACKSBURG, Va., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- VPT, Inc., a HEICO company (NYSE:HEI.A) (NYSE:HEI), celebrates its milestone 25th Anniversary this year. Throughout the last quarter century, VPT has grown to become a global leader in providing power conversion solutions for use in avionics, military, space, and industrial applications, with an extensive range of award-winning DC-DC converters, EMI filters, and associated products. VPT was founded in 1993 when CEO Dr. Dan Sable joined two other engineers - Fred Lee, former director of the Virginia Tech Center for Power Electronics, and Gary Hua to form the company. In the 25 years since it first began as a three-engineer start-up known as Virginia Power Technologies, Inc., VPT has seen significant and consistent growth in size and sales, regularly expanding product lines, as well as the 2013 addition of VPT Rad, a 5000 square-foot comprehensive radiation laboratory and test services facility. Dr. Sable stated, "Watching VPT grow over the last 25 years from a small start-up to a global leader in the Hi-Rel DC-DC Converter Market has been incredibly exciting. The key to our success has been the amazing group of people that make up the VPT family at our facilities in Virginia, Washington state, Massachusetts, and Taiwan." Acquired by HEICO Corporation in 2009, VPT currently operates as part of the HEICO Electronics Technology Group. VPT has more than 300 employees among its Blacksburg, VA headquarters, Seattle-area sales and marketing office, Boston-area radiation test facility, and a MIL-certified manufacturing facility in Taiwan. In addition, VPT offers sales representation in over 30 countries ad has parts on board many of the world's most advanced programs. VPT employs some of the most inventive engineers in the industry and as a result, holds multiple patents in power technology, as well as numerous awards and certifications. John Hodock, President commented, "We are proud to support many of the world's most advanced space, aerospace, and military programs. Superior products, unequaled service, and a total commitment to quality are the defining characteristics of VPT."



Throughout the years, VPT has earned the trust of many world-class organizations that lead in military, avionics, and space industries because of the proven reliability of VPT's products. VPT's products and services meet the highest industry standards and are made for demanding environments. Because of this, their products have recently been used on many ground-breaking space programs, which includes having parts on a number of reusable systems and equipment, a testament to VPT's high reliability power conversion solutions and the longstanding and ongoing commitment to provide such solutions. About VPT and HEICO

VPT, Inc., part of the HEICO Electronic Technologies Group, is a global provider of innovative DC-DC power converters, EMI filters, and custom engineering services for avionics, military, space, and industrial applications. Every day, organizations like NASA, ESA, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, BAE Systems, Thales and many more depend on high-reliability solutions from VPT to power critical systems. For more information about VPT, please visit www.vptpower.com.

HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI.A) (NYSE:HEI) is engaged primarily in niche segments of the aviation, defense, space and electronics industries through its Hollywood, FL based HEICO Aerospace Holdings Corp. subsidiary and its Miami, FL-based HEICO Electronic Technologies Corp. subsidiary. For more information about HEICO, please visit www.heico.com. Products described in this communication are subject to all export license restrictions and regulations, which may include but are not limited to ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) and the Export Administration and Foreign Assets Control Regulations. Further restrictions may apply. The information provided is considered accurate at time of publication, errors or omissions excepted. VPT, Inc. reserves the right to make changes to products or services without prior notification and advises customers to obtain the latest version of all relevant technical information from VPT to verify data prior to placing orders. VPT, its logo and tagline are registered trademarks in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. All other names, product names and trade names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Contact: Katie Bouchard

Marketing Communications Specialist

425-353-3010 x 8511

kbouchard@vptpower.com

VPT, Inc. www.vptpower.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/vpt-inc-celebrates-25th-anniversary-300711442.html SOURCE VPT, Inc.

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[September 12, 2018] Convergent Services in Argentina, 2018: Ironing Out the Last Few Wrinkles - Featuring America Movil, Cablevision, Fintech, Telecom Argentina, Telefonica, and Telmex - ResearchAndMarkets.com

The "Convergent Services in Argentina: Ironing Out the Last Few Wrinkles" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. In the last Intelligence Report covering Argentina's ICT sector (March 2017), there was speculation that there would be a merger of multi-service providers Telecom Argentina (News - Alert) and Cablevision, since local investment group Fintech had simultaneously strengthened its positions in the two groups. A formal merger proposal did indeed come to pass, in July 2017, and was approved by sector regulator Enacom in December, followed by the antitrust watchdog CNDC's blessing in June this year. This development adds to pressure for rival groups Telefonica (News - Alert) and America Movil to perfect their triple-play offerings, and for congress to pass legislation allowing these two to incorporate DTH service for the Pay TV part of their businesses. owever, all it has done is increase the tension in a kind of stalemate situation, very similar to that between Telmex (News - Alert) and Televisa in Mexico. Telefonica objects to Telecom-Cablevision having a head start in bundled services, including quadruple play, while the latter argues that Telefonica would be too powerful if allowed to rapidly roll out DTH television services.



Companies Featured America Movil

Cablevision

Fintech

Telecom Argentina

Telefonica

Telmex Key Topics Covered

1. Index 2. Merger as a Catalyst for Change? Figure - Broadband, TV and Mobile Market Shares 3. High Penetration, Low Quality Figure - Argentina Ahead in Pay TV 4. Merger and Convergence (News - Alert) : If Something's Worth Doing... Figure - Argentina well behind peers in FTTH 5. Arsat and the Digital Agenda Map - Distribution of Refefo connection points 6. Same Old Story with Spectrum (News - Alert) and MVNOs Figure - 4G Penetration in Latin American Countries 7. Starting to Look Like Sector Reform of Sorts For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/tqchf5/convergent?w=4 View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005933/en/

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[September 12, 2018] Biocom Endorses Nathan Fletcher for San Diego County 4th District Supervisorial Seat

Biocom, the association representing the California life science industry, today announced the endorsement of Nathan Fletcher for the San Diego County Board of Supervisors District 4 seat. "Nathan, a former state assemblyman, has a remarkable record of unprecedented accomplishment working with the life sciences industry," said Joe Panetta, president and CEO of Biocom. "He offers positive ideas on how he can champion the life science industry and enhance its robust economic impact, and we support his vision for the County. Nathan understands the compelling need to ensure San Diego County leads the nation as one of the most robust life science hubs in the world. We are proud to stand with him and endorse his campaign." Prior to his first election to the State Assembly in 2008, Fletcher met with Biocom to discuss its legislative priorities. High on that list was enactment of a single sales factor corporate tax apportionment in California, a formula which rewards companies who invest in California by building facilities and employing Californians. Biocom and other California stakeholders had tried unsuccessfully for many years to enact such a formula. Within three months of being sworn into office, former Assemblyman Fletcher was instrumental in getting single sales factor enacted into law. "Whoever wins the 4th District seat will have huge shoes to fill," continued Panetta. "Termed-out Supervisor Ron Roberts has been a stalwart supporter of the life sciences industry in San Diego for many years. A well-functioning, business-conscious San Diego County Board of Supervisors is critical to the life sciences industry, as the Board serves a vital function overseeing local environmental and air quality standards, which impact our industry. Nathan, a former Biocom Elected Official of the Year, is best equipped to provide the County with the leadership it needs." About Biocom Biocom is the largest, most experienced leader and advocate for California's life science sector. We work on behalf of more than 1,100 members to drive public policy, build an enviable network of industry leaders, create access to capital, introduce cutting-edge STEM education programs, and create robust value-driven purchasing programs.



Founded in 1995 in San Diego, Biocom provides the strongest public voice to research institutions and companies that fuel the local and state-wide economy. Our goal is simple: to help our members produce novel solutions that improve the human condition. In addition to our San Diego headquarters, Biocom operates core offices in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area, satellite offices in Washington, D.C. and Tokyo, and has a continuous staff presence in Sacramento. Our broad membership benefits apply to biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device, genomics and diagnostics companies of all sizes, as well as to research universities and institutes, clinical research organizations, investors and service providers. For more information on Biocom, please visit our website at www.biocom.org. Connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter (News - Alert) (@BIOCOMCA).

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005954/en/

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[September 12, 2018] iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max Bring the Best and Biggest Displays to iPhone

Apple (News - Alert)  today announced iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, the most advanced iPhones ever, taking the vision for the future of the smartphone to a new level. The 5.8-inch iPhone XS and 6.5-inch iPhone XS Max feature stunning Super Retina displays, a faster and improved dual camera system that offers breakthrough photo and video features, the first 7-nanometer chip in a smartphone - the A12 Bionic chip with next-generation Neural Engine - faster Face ID, wider stereo sound, a beautiful new gold finish and introduce Dual SIM to iPhone. iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max will be available for pre-order beginning Friday, September 14 and in stores beginning Friday, September 21. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005963/en/ Introducing iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, the most advanced iPhones ever. (Photo: Business Wire) "iPhone XS is packed with next-generation technologies and is a huge step forward for the future of the smartphone. Everything is state of the art including the industry-first 7-nanometer A12 Bionic chip with 8-core Neural Engine, faster Face ID and an advanced dual camera system that shoots Portrait mode photos with Smart HDR (News - Alert) and dynamic depth of field," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. "iPhone XS is not one, but two new iPhone models, and iPhone XS Max offers the biggest display ever in an iPhone with the biggest battery ever in an iPhone, delivering up to an hour and a half more battery life in your day." Two All-Screen Designs iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max build on the all-screen design of iPhone X and feature the sharpest displays with the highest pixel density of any Apple device. Now offered in 5.8-inch and 6.5-inch sizes,1 these Super Retina displays with a custom OLED design support Dolby Vision and HDR10 and have iOS system-wide color management for the best color accuracy in the industry. iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max offer a million-to-one contrast ratio with remarkable brightness and true blacks while showing 60 percent greater dynamic range in HDR photos. iPhone XS Max delivers a more immersive experience with over 3 million pixels for videos, movies and games, offering the largest display ever in an iPhone in a footprint similar to iPhone 8 Plus. A surgical grade stainless steel band now in gold joins finishes in silver and space gray. Wider stereo playback creates a more immersive soundstage. The front and back glass design features the most durable glass ever in a smartphone with improved scratch resistance, while the glass back enables faster wireless charging. iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max reach a new level of splash and water resistance of IP68 for up to 2 meters for 30 minutes and protect against everyday spills including coffee, tea and soda.2 A12 Bionic and Next-Generation Neural Engine The Apple-designed A12 Bionic, the smartest and most powerful chip in a smartphone, features the first 7-nanometer chip ever in a smartphone that delivers industry-leading performance in a more power-efficient design. A12 Bionic features a six-core fusion architecture with two performance cores that are up to 15 percent faster, four efficiency cores that are up to 50 percent more efficient, a four-core GPU that is up to 50 percent faster, powerful Apple-designed Image Signal Processor (News - Alert) (ISP), video encoder and more. A fast storage controller can deliver iPhone storage up to 512GB. All of this unlocks new experiences for games, photography, video editing and graphics-intensive apps. Even with all this power, iPhone XS offers 30 minutes longer than iPhone X, and iPhone XS Max offers an hour and a half longer than iPhone X, between charges. The next-generation Neural Engine is built for advanced machine learning in everything from photography to augmented reality. A new eight-core design allows it to complete up to 5 trillion operations per second compared to 600 billion in A11 Bionic. This enables new capabilities like faster plane detection for ARKit and new features that use real-time machine learning. For the first time the Neural Engine is open to Core ML, empowering developers to build apps that utilize this highly efficient machine learning engine. Core ML running on the A12 Bionic Neural Engine is up to nine times faster than on A11 Bionic, with as little as one-tenth the energy usage. Breakthrough 12MP Dual Camera System iPhone XS continues to bring innovations to photography, things not possible before iPhone. Capabilities like advanced depth segentation using the Neural Engine, Smart HDR creating photos with high dynamic range and great image detail, advanced bokeh quality in Portrait mode photos and dynamic depth of field that is user adjustable in the Photos app, are all huge improvements in state-of-the-art photographic techniques that everyone can use.



The 12-megapixel dual camera system features dual optical image stabilization with 2x optical zoom, while a new sensor is twice as fast. Smart HDR creates photos with more highlights and shadow detail. Larger and deeper pixels improve image fidelity and low-light performance. Advanced depth segmentation in Portrait mode enables more sophisticated portraits with professional-level bokeh. New Depth Control allows users to dynamically adjust the depth of field in the Photos app both in real-time preview3 and post-capture to create portraits with a beautiful background blur. Portrait mode with Depth Control is also available on the TrueDepth camera for selfies, which includes Memoji and faster face tracking support for third-party ARKit apps.

iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max deliver the highest quality video capture in a smartphone. The larger pixels and larger, faster sensor enable improved low-light performance and video stabilization, as well as extended dynamic range for more highlight and shadow detail in video modes up to 30 frames per second. Using the four built-in mics, users can also record stereo sound to get the most out of video recordings. Advanced Technologies Face ID, the most secure facial authentication system ever in a smartphone, is now even faster. The TrueDepth camera system uses precision depth-sensing technology that goes far beyond the capabilities and security of two-dimensional facial scanners and enables users to unlock iPhone, use Apple Pay, gain access to secure apps and many more features with a simple glance. iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max introduce Gigabit-class LTE (News - Alert) for even faster download speeds4 and Dual SIM5 through the use of a nano-SIM and digital eSIM. Featuring iOS 12 iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max come with iOS 12, the world's most advanced mobile operating system. iOS 12 introduces new AR experiences, helps people rediscover and share photos, and makes communications more expressive and fun with new Animoji and Memoji. Screen Time helps customers understand and take control of the time they spend interacting with their iOS devices, Siri Shortcuts give any app the ability to work with Siri and new privacy features help protect users from being tracked on the web. Pricing and Availability iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max will be available in 64GB, 256GB and 512GB capacity models in space gray, silver and a new gold finish starting at $999 (US) and $1,099 , respectively, from apple.com, in the Apple Store app and Apple Stores, and is also available through Apple Authorized Resellers and select carriers (prices may vary).

(US) and , respectively, from apple.com, in the Apple Store app and Apple Stores, and is also available through Apple Authorized Resellers and select carriers (prices may vary). Through Apple's iPhone Upgrade Program, customers in the US can get iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max with the protection of AppleCare+, choose their carrier (no multiyear service contract required) and have the opportunity to upgrade to a new iPhone every year. The iPhone Upgrade Program is available for iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max at apple.com and Apple Stores in the US with monthly payments starting at $49.91 and $54.08 , respectively. iPhone Upgrade Program customers can get the prep work done before iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max pre-order with the Apple Store app until 4PM PDT on Thursday, September 13.

and , respectively. iPhone Upgrade Program customers can get the prep work done before iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max pre-order with the Apple Store app until 4PM PDT on Thursday, September 13. Customers will be able to pre-order iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max beginning Friday, September 14, with availability beginning Friday, September 21, in more than 30 countries and territories including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Japan, Jersey, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the UAE, UK, US and US Virgin Islands .

and . iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max will be available in more than 25 countries and territories including Andorra, Armenia, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Greenland, Hungary, Iceland, India, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malta, Monaco, Oman, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia and South Africa beginning Friday, September 28.

and beginning Friday, September 28. Apple-designed accessories including leather and silicone cases in a range of colors will be available starting at $39 (US), while the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max Leather Folio will be available starting at $99 (US).

(US), while the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max Leather Folio will be available starting at (US). With Apple GiveBack, customers in the US can trade in their eligible device for an Apple Store Gift Card or a refund on their purchase. If their device isn't eligible for credit, Apple will recycle it for free.

Every customer who buys iPhone XS or iPhone XS Max from Apple will be offered free Personal Setup in-store or online to help them customize their iPhone by setting up email, showing them new apps from the App Store and more.

Anyone who wants to learn more or go further with iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max or iOS 12 can sign up for free Today at Apple sessions at apple.com/today. 1 The display has rounded corners that follow a beautiful curved design, and these corners are within a standard rectangle. When measured as a standard rectangular shape, the screen is 5.85 inches (iPhone XS) and 6.46 inches (iPhone XS Max) diagonally. Actual viewable area is less. 2 iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max are splash-, water- and dust-resistant, and were tested under controlled laboratory conditions with a rating of IP68 under IEC (News - Alert) standard 60529 (maximum depth of 2 meters up to 30 minutes). Splash, water and dust resistance are not permanent conditions, and resistance might decrease as a result of normal wear. Do not attempt to charge a wet iPhone; refer to the user guide for cleaning and drying instructions. Liquid damage not covered under warranty. 3 Real-time preview in Depth Control will be available via a free software update later this fall. 4 Speeds vary based on site conditions and carrier. For details on LTE support, contact your carrier and see apple.com/iphone/LTE. 5 Dual SIM support will be available via a free software update later this fall. Use of Dual SIM requires two wireless service plans (which may include restrictions on roaming). Certain restrictions apply to use. Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV. Apple's four software platforms - iOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS - provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay and iCloud. Apple's more than 100,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it. NOTE TO EDITORS: For additional information visit Apple Newsroom (www.apple.com/newsroom), or call Apple's Media Helpline at (408) 974-2042.  2018 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, Super Retina, Face ID, Core ML, TrueDepth, Memoji, Apple Pay, Animoji, Siri, Apple Store, AppleCare, Apple GiveBack, App Store, and Today at Apple are trademarks of Apple Inc. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005963/en/

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[September 12, 2018] Growers Overcomes Challenge of Big Data in Agriculture, Raises $5M to Expand

Growers Holdings, Inc. (www.growers.ag) has raised a $5M Series A financing led by St. Louis-based Lewis and Clark Ventures. Growers provides software + services that help farmers and their trusted advisors utilize farm data to simplify decision making and increase profitability. In addition to Lewis and Clark, the syndicate included multiple investors with extensive AgTech expertise including new investors Innova Memphis and the VTC Innovation Fund managed by Middleland Capital. All the company's existing investors also participated, including Tiverton Advisors LLC, Albany Private Equity Partners, and Maize Partners. Lewis and Clark Principal Larry Page (News - Alert) explains, "Growers' platform is wholly unique. At Lewis & Clark, we've evaluated hundreds of AgTech companies. Few truly understand the complexities of delivering farm data analytics at scale the way Growers does, and few have a track record of delivering 10 to 20 percent yield improvements with fewer inputs across hundreds of thousands of acres." Since inception, Growers has helped farmers generate $50M more in incremental crop revenue and reduced commercial fertilizer application by over 160M tons, while increasing yield and materially reducing the environmental impact of row crop agriculture. Founder and CEO Steven Valencsin says, "Precisive management, analysis and execution of farm data can create dramatic on-farm results and increased profitability for farmers. The problem is, many of the digital tools on the market today are only partial solutions or are too cumbersome. Growers products and services were built by farmers, for farmers." By developing a process to capture highly accurate field data at scale and coupling that with easy-to-use software, Growers meets the needs of the most progressive, large-scale row crop farmers. Growers software + service offers several distinct advantages the company passes onto their customers. Valencsin notes, "We have built one of the largest independent data sets for soil ranking and product performance. Our hybrid selection and product placement technologies offer farmers a refreshing solution that is brand agnostic, independent, and validated by hundreds of thousands of acres of real results." Coupled with proprietary soil analytics, Growers recommendations routinely deliver a 3-5x ROI. Customers have reported "bottom-line" increases of more than $100/ac. The company plans to use the new funding to accelerate softwar development and grow their channel-based business. "We're excited to work with Lewis and Clark Ventures and our other investors and use this financing to better serve our customers and expand to new markets," said Valencsin. While the company has historically employed a direct-to-farmer model, select partners in the ag industry now have access to the tools and technologies Growers has created.



The management team is rounded out with two executives with deep AgTech experience. Ron Zink, who was previously Director of Digital Solutions at John Deere, was hired in June 2017 as Chief Technology Officer, leading product development. Gabriel Wilmoth, previously an Investment Director at Syngenta Ventures, joined in December 2017 as Chief Operating Officer. Growers' 30 employees cover a 15 state territory and are headquartered in both Raleigh, North Carolina and Seattle, Washington. About Lewis and Clark Ventures

Lewis & Clark Ventures was founded by former operators with the conviction that innovation and entrepreneurial talent are plentiful between the U.S. coasts. Our venture capital firm invests in the highest potential Series A and B stage companies throughout America's heartland in sectors such as enterprise software, healthcare IT and agriculture technology. Our vision for success is to become a trusted partner to every entrepreneur that we back and assist in their journey towards scale and significance. About Innova Innova is an early-stage venture capital firm that was founded in 2007 by Memphis Bioworks. The firm focuses on starting and funding high-growth companies in the Medical, Technology and AgTech fields that match both Innova's expertise, as well as the region's industry strengths. Innova has invested in over 100 companies and has been recognized by Crunchbase, Forbes, and SSTI in their rankings of most active investors. Innova provides the synergy of experienced management, market expertise and venture capital to accelerate the development of new products and services into thriving businesses. For additional information, please visit www.innovamemphis.com. About Middleland and the VTC Innovation Fund Managed by Middleland Capital, the VTC Innovation Fund is a private investment fund focused on early stage life science and technology opportunities across the Commonwealth of Virginia, as well as opportunities outside Virginia with a connection to Virginia Tech or Carilion Clinic. The Fund aims to partner with exceptional management teams to commercialize innovative technologies, accelerate growth, and build long-term value. For more information, please visit www.vtcinnovationfund.com. About Tiverton Tiverton Advisors, LLC ("Tiverton") is a private investment firm focused solely on the production Ag space. The firm invests in both credit and equity structures throughout the United States. Tiverton oversees approximately $1 billion in assets and manages investments on behalf of leading institutional investors, high-net-worth individuals and insurance companies. For more information, please visit: www.tiverton.ag About Albany Private Equity Partners Albany Private Equity Partners, an affiliate of The Albany Group, LLC, is a Texas-based strategic capital provider focused on industry-leading companies and teams that are seeking a true partner as they embark on their next phase of growth. The Family Office has been investing in multiple asset classes and industries for 50+ years which allows us the flexibility and patience to apply our institutional experience with a family office approach. About Maize Partners Maize Partners is a Texas investment firm focused on real estate and agriculture. The firm invests private equity and private debt into high-growth business plans. Additional information can be found at www.maizepartners.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005967/en/

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[September 12, 2018] MRM Proteomics Inc and Exactis Innovation Partner to Establish Unique Clinical Proteomics Tools for Precision Medicine

MRM Proteomics Inc. is partnering with Exactis Innovation to develop and validate a clinical proteomic test that will provide clinicians and scientists with the ability to identify immune signatures and tumour mutation profiles to better match patients with the most effective treatments. The novel diagnostic test will be the first immuno-MALDI test to measure the activity of multiple cancer-associated proteins in patients' tumours. This approach has the potential to transform the selection of cancer treatments by providing direct insight into the mechanisms of disease progression and appropriate drug targets on a patient-by-patient basis. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005976/en/ "Proteomics is in a position to realize the promise of precision medicine. Proteins are the effectors of biological processes in the cells and the targets of most drugs. We need to look to proteins for the next step in precision medicine" said Dr. Christoph Borchers, Chief Scientific Officer for MRM Proteomics. MRM Proteomics will use their proprietary immunoMALDI technology to analyze breast and colorectal tumour samples obtained through Exactis's Personalize My Treatment patient registry. Once validated, the clinically-applicable test will be used to characterize immune signatures and tumour mutation profiles to screen patients for response to immuno-oncologic cancer treatments. An important benefit for clinicians and patients is that the innovative response-prediction tool will enable matching of patients with the most appropriate treatment as early as possible, which increases the chances of survival and avoids exposure to side effects from ineffective treatments. "This is the core potential of precision medicine with proteomics -- the ability to more accurately determine the right treatment up front means better outcomes for cancer patients" said Dr. Gerald Batist, Co-Founder and Scientific Director of Exactis Innovation and Director of the Segal Cancer Centre at the Jewish General Hospital. The partnership builds on recent advancements in precision medicine, molecular assays, quantitative proteomics and proteo-genomics and serves to advance Exactis's mission to accelerate the translation of precision oncology into clinical care. The work also fits with MRM Proteomics's focus on delivering high-quality proteomics technologies for research and clinical settings. "MRM Proteomics is excited to develop biomarker assays for important cancer proteins with Exactis to facilitate the translation of the patented iMALDI test to the clinic where it can benefit patients. The proteomics field is rapidly evolving, making it possible to generate highly accurate and reproducible quantification of important oncogenic proteins to guide treatment. This proect benefits from Exactis's access to a large number of clinical samples and high quality clinical data and represents a remarkable opportunity to realize the potential of proteomics in the clinic" said Mr. Claude Leduc, President and CEO of MRM Proteomics.



The validated proteomic assay is expected to lead to more effective therapy choice with improved outcomes for cancer patients while saving significant costs associated with the use of ineffective treatments. The test also has value in pharmaceutical research setting by providing an efficient way to select appropriate patient sub-populations for precision medicine clinical trials, expediting FDA approvals, and introducing new therapeutic options to the clinic faster. The project showcases the strengths and opportunities for the biotechnology sector in Quebec.

"Exactis is pleased to partner with MRM-P in this project and support a small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) in its goals to provide innovative molecular testing technologies that support the evolution of precision oncology. Support of diagnostic technology development in precision oncology that capitalizes on local expertise helps the expansion of the biotechnology/medical technology industry in Quebec" said Mr. Richard Fajzel, President and CEO of Exactis innovation. About Exactis Innovation Exactis Innovation (Exactis) is a Canadian not-for-profit organization created in 2014 with funds from a public/private sector collaboration, including the Canadian Government Business-Led Networks of Centers of Excellence, and several pharmaceutical, biotech, not-for-profit and research organizations. Exactis is building an integrated, agile research network to improve cancer care for Canadians by addressing the challenge of recruiting and matching cancer patients to clinical studies for targeted therapies that could benefit them. At the heart of the network is a first-of-its-kind patient registry - Personalize My Treatment (PMT) - where patients are recruited by their cancer care institution and agree to have detailed molecular data about their cancer stored in a digital bio-bank and also agree to be contacted if they are considered suitable for future clinical studies that match their cancer characteristics. For more information, please visit www.exactis.ca. About MRM Proteomics Inc. MRM Proteomics Inc. (MRM Proteomics) is a Canadian biotechnology company, founded in 2010 to commercialize cutting-edge proteomics technologies. MRM Proteomics operates as a CRO and research partner for clients in biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. The company's mission is to deliver the highest quality of precision proteomics technologies in the form of products, services, and the development of clinical diagnostics. As experts in mass spectrometry, their portfolio includes offerings for protein quantitation, protein and biosimilar structural characterization, tissue imaging, phosphoproteomics and metabolomics as well as custom-tailored research solutions. MRM Proteomics has also developed and launched the PeptiQuantTM Plus line of mass spectrometry-based kits for protein quantitation and MetaboloMetricsTM kits for metabolite quantitation. About precision medicine & proteomics Although cancer cases are commonly grouped together based on the affected part of the body (e.g., brain cancer, breast cancer, liver cancer), research increasingly demonstrates that each "type" is actually made up of many cancer subtypes, each with a distinct molecular signature. These molecular subtypes help to explain why one patient may respond to a given treatment, while another patient may not. Determining each patient's molecular subtype is therefore a critical step in improving cancer treatment plans. "Proteomics" is a scientific method for detailed molecular profiling, by precisely measuring the proteins that are directly responsible for activities occurring in the cell. To this point, molecular phenotyping has largely relied on genetics and histology analysis of tumours. These approaches provide useful clues about the molecular identity of the tumour and often help in finding biomarkers that are useful for treatment selection, but they cannot reveal current protein activity in a cell. As the effectors of molecular processes in the cell, it is proteins that drive disease progression and that are the targets of most therapies. By enabling direct measurement of specific protein isoforms and their activity, proteomics provides the most direct insight into the mechanisms of disease progression and the most direct measurement of drug targets. This provides proteomics with a unique advantage in determining which therapeutics are likely to be effective for a given tumour. This project will use cutting-edge bioanalytical tools to precisely measure the concentration of protein biomarkers in patient tumour samples and examine those protein concentrations in the context of detailed patient clinical data from Exactis's PMT platform. This will result in the creation of a novel tool to ensure that cancer patients are consistently matched with the most effective treatment as early as possible, thereby improving their chances of survival and avoiding unnecessary side effects associated with ineffective treatments. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005976/en/

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Is he the best choice to be the next mayor of Chicago? I tend to doubt it. Im a big news nerd and have actually visited Sales-Griffins campaign website and interacted with him in my reporting, but I havent yet focused on the upcoming contest to say for sure whether his experience and vision are just what the city needs.
Citi Third Quarter 2018 Earnings Review

Citigroup will issue its third quarter results via press release at approximately 8:00 AM (ET) on Friday, October 12, 2018. At 11:30 AM (ET), results will be reviewed via live webcast and teleconference.

The press release, webcast and presentation materials will be available at www.citigroup.com/citi/investor. A replay and transcript of the webcast will be available shortly after the event.

To dial-in to the live teleconference, please call (866) 516-9582 (for U.S. and Canada callers) or (973) 409-9210 (for international callers). Conference ID: 83786410. A telephonic replay of the call will be available beginning approximately two hours after the event until Friday, October 19, 2018 by calling (855) 859-2056 (for U.S. and Canada callers) or (404) 537-3406 (for international callers). Conference ID: 83786410.

Citi, the leading global bank, has approxiately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services, and wealth management.







Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com | Twitter (News - Alert) : @Citi | YouTube: www.youtube.com/citi| Blog: http://blog.citigroup.com | Facebook (News - Alert) : www.facebook.com/citi | LinkedIn (News - Alert) :www.linkedin.com/company/citi

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005935/en/
[September 12, 2018] Fuji Electric Awarded Geothermal Power Station Contract in Kenya

Fuji Electric Co., Ltd. (TSE:6504) ("FE"), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, led by President Michihiro Kitazawa, is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a contract for a complete geothermal power facility for the Olkaria I Geothermal Power Station (Olkaria I) in the Republic of Kenya from Marubeni Corporation, the main EPC contractor of the project owned by Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen). Marubeni Corporation is headquartered in Chuo-ku, Tokyo and led by President and CEO Fumiya Kokubu. Olkaria I is located about 120 kilometers northwest of Kenya's capital city of Nairobi. It began operations in 1981 and was the nation's first geothermal power station. It currently runs five turbines with a combined output of approx. 185 MW, making it one of the largest geothermal power stations in Africa. This undertaking will be Fuji Electric's first geothermal power plant project in Africa. The contract calls for construction of a new 6th power generation unit (Unit 6). Construction funds for the project will be provided in the form of an Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and financing through the European Development Bank.







 Project name : Olkaria I Additional Unit 6 Geothermal Power Development Project  Location : Nakuru County, Republic of Kenya  Output : 70 MW (nominal)  Expected Year of Commercial Operation : 2021

Geothermal power is a form of renewable energy generated from steam and hot water within the earth. Fuji Electric has been developing its geothermal power business since 1960, installing facilities in the United States, Indonesia, the Philippines, Iceland, Japan, and other areas around the world. To date, Fuji Electric has received orders for 81 power generation facilities (steam turbines, generators, etc.) with a combined installed capacity of 3,132 MW. Under its long-term development blueprint, Kenya Vision 2030, the government of Kenya has set a development target to expand its geothermal power capacity to 5,000 megawatts by 2030. In East Africa, countries like Ethiopia and Djibouti have plans to develop new geothermal power stations as well. Fuji Electric wished to take this opportunity to increase it's supply records of geothermal steam turbine generators in Africa, in the hopes of contributing to both economic development and environmental conservation in the region. About Fuji Electric Corp. of America Fuji Electric Corp. of America is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fuji Electric Co., Ltd., and has been responsible for sales and distribution of the company's products since 1970. Fuji Electric Co., Ltd. began developing power electronics equipment in 1923, and is a global leader in industrial products ranging from semiconductors, HMIs, contactors, relays, and power generation equipment to AC drives and uninterruptible power supply systems. View our complete product guide for Power Generation Equipment, visit our website https://www.americas.fujielectric.com/ or follow us on Twitter (News - Alert) @FujiElectricFEA. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912006080/en/

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After years of hype, consumers are about to see if 5G networking can live up to the promises of blazing fast data speeds  at least if they're living in the right neighborhood to test out the next-generation service.

(Image credit: Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock)

Verizon today (Sept. 11) said it will launch Verizon 5G Home on Oct. 1. That's Big Red's 5G-based internet broadband service, which Verizon is touting as the first commercial 5G service in the U.S. Customers will be able to sign up for the service on Thursday (Sept. 13) starting at 8 a.m. ET by heading to Verizon's 5G website.

This won't be a wide launch. Verizon 5G Home is only available in Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles and Sacramento, initially, and only in certain neighborhoods of those four cities. Verizon says it will expand 5G broadband internet to additional cities, but didn't provide a time frame.

Note that this isn't 5G wireless service  that's not arriving until next year when 5G-ready phones are expected to become available. Instead, this is home internet, which Verizon is touting as ideal for cord cutters looking to ditch cable TV.

MORE: 5G Networking: The Definitive Guide - Tom's Guide

5G promises peak speeds of 1 Gbps. Verizon 5G Home customers will see typical speeds speeds of around 300 Mbps, Verizon says. There are no data caps with Verizon 5G Home.

If you turn out to be eligible for 5G broadband through Verizon, you won't pay anything for the service initially. Verizon will provide the service free to early adapters for three months. After that, though, the cost goes up considerably: Verizon wireless customers with a qualifying phone plan will pay $50 a month while the service will run subscribers without Verizon Wireless $70 a month. Taxes and fees are included in that rate, and there's no annual contract.

Verizon is offering some additional perks to initial 5G Home customers if that $50 to $70 monthly price tag is giving you pause. You'll get three free months of the YouTube TV streaming service that normally costs $40 a month. Verizon's also including a free Apple TV 4K or Google Chromecast Ultra for 5G Home customers. And Verizon says that early subscribers will be among the first given a chance to buy 5G mobile devices as those become available.

Launching a 5G broadband service has been part of Verizon's 5G roll-out for a while, as the carrier gears up toward launching its 5G mobile network next year. In its 5G Home announcement Verizon said it expects to be the first carrier to offer 5G mobile service, though its rivals may have something to say about that.

Just yesterday, AT&T announced plans to expand its 5G roll-out to additional cities by the end of the year via 5G-ready hotspot devices. T-Mobile plans to build out 5G in 30 cities by the year, scoffing at other carriers' plans to use puck-shaped hotspots and fixed routers to launch the service. Sprint is shooting for early 2019 for launching its mobile 5G service.
(Image credit: nd3000/Shutterstock)

It almost goes without saying in 2018 that you don't have any privacy at work, especially on your company computer. In order to keep you off Twitter or even record your every keystroke, many IT departments install monitoring software to keep tabs on workplace activity.

Depending on what theyre looking for and which monitoring software they use, IT techs could be capturing a lot of information about your activities. So, how much could your IT department potentially know about you?

Are Companies Really Looking?

In order to look at the possibility of workplace device monitoring, lets first look at the reality. Though large enterprises may have a vested interest in keeping tabs on their many worker bees, most workplaces are not large companies.

Jon Apter, a Technical Operations Manager at IT provider Ntiva, says that the small-to-medium businesses he works with dont really use device monitoring much. He says that, while a lot of companies have some form of device monitoring implemented either via email logging or mobile device management etc., a lot of them dont really use it. So, when it comes to, say, Is my employee working? How can I check on what work theyve done?, thats really infrequent. Apter went on to say that monitoring is usually carried out in companies that have compliance requirements to meet, such as medical organizations and law firms.

If monitoring is utilized within a typical business, it is usually for the purpose of counteracting information leaks. Alerts can be set up to find keywords in outgoing email, or to notify IT when certain files have been opened; companies that worry about corporate espionage are interested in this type of monitoring.

But lets say that you are working at one of those large companies that worries about its employees leaking information or wasting company time (ie. one that does use any of the many monitoring products available). To what extent can your companys IT department learn your personal information?

Common Items to Track

The intent of computer monitoring software falls into roughly three categories: activity monitoring, content restriction and time management. To manage what you do on your company device, IT can use activity monitoring software to both actively see whats happening on your screen and take periodic screenshots for review. Through this type of observation, techs can create a log of your entire workday and reference your saved screens in case of a mistake or management issue. They could know that youre reading this article at this very second.

Employers can also observe which sites you visit and restrict the content you can access. IT can then learn your personal preferences through search engine queries and favorite websites, while also keeping a record of how many times you attempted to use a blocked website or browsed off task. A few common software offerings also track idling time to keep a record of how long your work appears to have paused (so, yes, they know how long your lunch really was).

Email correspondence is arguably the most valuable thing to be monitored. Both outgoing and incoming email are subject to prying eyes. Reasons for this are to make sure confidential information is not leaked and really just to see what youre talking about at work. Also, according to the American Bar Association, proponents of monitoring argue that employers must take a proactive approach to ensure the work environment is free from hostile and harassing activity. Especially at this point in history, IT and legal are both interested in internal email sleaze.

Something that may be surprising is that your personal email can be observed as well. Although its use is rare, with keylogging software your IT department can see what youre writing to both professional and personal contacts. Through this method, IT techs can glean information about your personal life that youd rather keep private--if you access it from a company device. More worryingly though, active keylogging means that your employer could also know your passwords. But if they're smart, they will think twice about doing anything with your password information.

Legality and Ethics

Thinking about your employer watching your every move you make on company computers can be anxiety-producing. However, most employer spying is perfectly legal. The line confining your IT department to legality lies in what your company does with your information.

The aforementioned keylogging practices have sparked lawsuits by employees whose information was monitored, logged and used by an employer to commit a crime. For example, in a 2011 case an employee filed against her employer, the company installed a keylogging program on an on-site company computer that she used for professional and personal needs. The software periodically emailed the information to company managers, who used the information to determine the plaintiffs password to her personal email account and personal checking account and to access them."

Through these keyloggers, your companys IT could easily log such sensitive passwords. Keep in mind that Ntiva's Apter says that in supporting IT in six years, Ive only had two requests to install a keylogger on an employee's workstation. So it happens, but rarely. The potential for your banking, email, etc. to be wrongly accessed firmly lies in the ethics of your company.

Your personal email information is not necessarily personal on a work computer, but there are some legal protections to keep at least some of your correspondence private. The Stored Communications Act (SCA) allows employers to monitor internal email services because they are the provider of that service. This protection does not hold up when it comes to web-based email (most likely a personal email), so you can hold your employer accountable if they take issue with something you wrote on your Gmail. There are a few other state-level protections for employees as well.

While monitoring is completely legal as long as you keep it kosher, how does an IT department that uses monitoring software reconcile legality with ethics and trust within an organization? Should they tell employees that their work computers are monitored and risk a level of distrust and feelings of malcontent? Or should they use a discrete install feature available through some monitoring software, so workers never know theyre being watched? Employees are likely accepting of a certain level of observation, and every program has its own intention and degree of intrusion.

(Image credit: LeoWolfert/Shutterstock)

How Companies Monitor Corporate Computers

These approaches to corporate device monitoring by IT and higher-ups may have you wondering: which software does my employer use to monitor me? The answer depends on what your employer is worried about. Different monitoring products are marketed for accessing various types of information a company would want.

Here are five products your employer could be using, based on a a list of recommendations for popular monitoring software by Business.com.

Activity Monitor by SoftActivity: This product is directly marketed towards employer anxiety and a desire to take back control! It is installed quietly and only functions in discrete mode, with no notification to the employee. This program allows employers to compile reports to use as a sort of gotcha file to scare workers into compliance. If your employer is using this, you wont know it until they show you the info theyve sourced--and I wouldnt want to be in that meeting.

ContentWatch: This one is standard Internet blocker fare. Email monitoring, website restriction, site logs. If your employer uses this, they want to know where youre surfing and whether or not youre being productive.

Veriato: This program is geared towards companies that are worried about keeping proprietary info in-house. It monitors file transfers, document tracking and logins and can generate alerts if sensitive information is accessed or discussed in email. Your employer may use this product if they really care about keeping trade secrets.

Sentry PC: An all-around workhorse, this product hits all three monitoring categories (activity monitoring, content restriction and time management). Your employer can customize Sentry PC to monitor some or all criteria, and one of these includes keylogging. This is also a stealth program, so you may not know if your employer is using it on your computer.

Teramind: This software is different because it uses machine learning to establish an office baseline and then detect anomalies. Your employer can also create computer rules and set up alerts for when you break them. If your company likes to be hands-off and is less of a micromanager, then they may be using this offering.

So, depending on your workplace and culture, you may know that your employer is monitoring your work computer (if they are at all) or you may not. The program they choose somewhat reflects their attitude toward your information and how they could potentially use it.

Bottom Line

Depending on which monitoring program your employer uses, the IT department could learn a good deal about you through your work computer, including your personal interests, password information, break time and email contents. Consider the types of information you access on your company computer and whether you are comfortable with your employer knowing about it. Your company may not care and may not be watching you at all, but we wouldn't bank on that.
















Quick round-up of some of our favorite stories regarding the Kansas SecState who will probably win by way of election gamesmanship and not because anybody really likes him on either side of the aisle . . .You decide . . .
In confronting sex abuse, a Wyoming bishop confronts a powerful foe: his predecessor The Catholic Church is facing a reckoning today in large part due to a damning Pennsylvania grand jury investigation released last month.

Bishop Joseph Hart has been the subject of old school civil suits filed in Kansas City . . . Here's an important update about his own Church working to bring him to justice. Read more:
Kansas City First Responder Story

Kansas City fire captain recalls response in 9/11's aftermath KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) -- One of the many firefighters from across the country that reported to New York City following the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 was Kansas City Fire Department Chad Dailey. Shortly after the attacks, Dailey left for New York with a federal assistance team the day after the attack.

JoCo 9/11 Testimony

Overland Park family remembering son killed on 9/11 at the Pentagon Hide Transcript Show Transcript WEBVTT PENNSYLVANIA. STEVEN: 17 YEARS AGO, THE WORLD WAS CHANGED BY TERRORISM. TONIGHT A LOCAL FAMILY REMEMBERS THEIR SON WHO KILLED WAS A PLANE HIT THE PENTAGON. BRIAN? BRIAN: YEAH, THIS IS A PERMANENT MEMORIAL BUT NEW TONIGHT, SPECIAL TONIGHT, TAKE A LOOK.

Support From KCMO Troops Here & Now

Tiny home community for homeless veterans expanding in KC and across the country KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- An idea born and cultivated in Kansas City to help veterans is going national. By this time next year, as many as three more cities will have developed tiny home community for homeless veterans like the ones at the Veterans Community Project on 89th and Troost.

Local Helping Hands

On 9/11, Kansas City restaurants raise money for charity that aides first responders KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) -- A group of local restaurants in Kansas City decided to donate 10 percent of their sales to a charity that aims to help first responders. The charity, started a year ago, was founded by a Blue Springs man who retired from 30 years fundraising for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Home Team Tribute

Royals, FOX Sports KC honor military with 'This One's For You' broadcast, special visit KANSAS CITY, Mo. - September 11th, 2001, was a day that would shape America. "I was in 4th grade. He was in 6th grade. We never thought there was going to be a moment in our lives that what happened on that day would directly impact our adulthood," Courtney Fields said.

Some of the most important stories markingaccording to Kansas City history . . .Developing . . .
Former top Dem Mike Sanders wants probation, not prison time | The Kansas City Star Facing up to two years in prison, former Jackson County Executive Mike Sanders is asking instead for probation or house arrest as punishment for his felonious misuse of tens of thousands of dollars in campaign funds.

The former prosecutor, politico and now convicted felon is pleading his case in the newspaper . . . However,on the topic that (probably) won't get locals fired or under a similar investigation. Actually curious as to what our reader community thinks on the topic of crime and punishment for a beloved local political leader.
Being Vietnams first automaker, VinFast has no track record and not a single series car produced yet. But if the two very convincing models it showed at the Paris motor show are any indication, the fledgling automaker has high ambitions and its sights set on the premium segment.

One of the two vehicles it unveiled in Paris is the SA2.0 SUV, a high-riding model almost the same size as a BMW X5, with sleek styling and a rather luxurious appearance. It has been said that the model makes use of a BMW-derived platform and, from the side, it really does look a bit like the aforementioned X5 (the previous generation), especially in the lower part of the body.

VinFast wants its vehicles to evoke the beauty of the land where they were made, which is why it employed Italdesign Giugiaro to come up with the design and then had Pininfarina further refine it before going public. The resulting design is actually quite successful, even if it looks a bit too Mazda Kodo-esque from some angles - definitely not a bad look.

It comes with one turbocharged engine choice, standard rear- but optional all-wheel drive and a modern seven-seater interior complete with massive portrait-style infotainment screen and hints of BMW.
PIDA Week 2018 is set to take place from 29 October to 2 November in Victoria Falls, hosted by the Government of Zimbabwe under the auspices of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).

PIDA Week was inaugurated in 2015 as a platform to bring together key stakeholders involved in the implementation of the PIDA programme by showcasing the projects and addressing crucial issues around resource mobilisation and creating an enabling environment, to take stock of progress, and identify ways to continue to advance implementation.

The first PIDA Week was held in Abidjan under the theme Accelerating Infrastructure Implementation for Africas Integration while the second event focused on job creation  Creating Jobs through Regional Infrastructure Development. In 2017, PIDA Week continued with emphasis on job creation and economic transformation  Regional Infrastructure Development for Job Creation and Economic Transformation.

The Third PIDA Week Final Communique captured specific recommendations and action points emanating from the various sessions and discussions.

The Fourth PIDA Week in 2018 will build on previous events to continue to engage stakeholders on the effective delivery of infrastructure on the continent focusing specifically on good governance and how it can specifically help to:

Enable project preparation and implementation;

Support resource mobilisation;

Promote private sector confidence to invest in PIDA projects;

Encourage integration of PIDA projects into national development plans.

The 2018 PIDA Week will focus on five sub-themes:

(i) Project preparation, Resource Mobilisation and Financing Mechanisms

One of the major pre-requisites for the mobilisation of financing for projects is projects preparation as well as demonstration of bankability of the projects. The mobilisation of resources for projects development, preparation and implementation is also an essential step towards ensuring effective infrastructure services delivery. There are various financing mechanisms that African stakeholders could use to ensure the implementation of infrastructure projects including domestic and international financing mechanism from both the public and private sectors. Recent development have also seen a global increase in innovative financing for infrastructure projects including climate finance as well as Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs). This Session will aim to discuss barriers, opportunities and emerging trends in projects preparation, resources mobilisation, and projects financing.

(ii) Capacity development, Job Creation and Empowerment

Low levels of capacity for projects preparation and implementation presents one of the major barriers to infrastructure development on the continent. There is a major need to build and boost technical capacities and skills at all levels of the project life cycle as well as relevant institutions to ensure efficient development and management of infrastructure. In addition, suitable infrastructure development on the continent needs to also provide a platform to absorb capacities, create jobs and empower people including women and youth. This Session will aim to highlight the relevance and requirements for effective capacity development for infrastructure projects as well as discussing the job creation and empowerment potentials of infrastructure development on the continent.

(iii) Smart and Integrated Infrastructure Development

The continuing demand for effective infrastructure services delivery at the regional and continental levels to promote cross-border trade, industrialisation and the movement of goods and services calls for the development of smart and integrated infrastructure in Africa. New and emerging technologies provide ample opportunities to ensure services from infrastructure are made more efficient, reliable and cost-effective. For example, Smart Corridors would enable transport and trade facilitation and also contribute to: (1) improved corridor coordination and management; (2) reduction of transport cost as an overall component of exports and imports; and (3) reduced corruption along the corridors. This Session will cover emerging trends at the global and regional levels on smart infrastructure as well as discussing the opportunities and roadmaps to ensure integrated infrastructure services delivery on the continent.

(iv) Technology, Innovation and Industrialisation

One of the fundamental issues to address in infrastructure development in Africa is the establishment of a comprehensive framework that fosters innovations, technology transfer, technology adoption, technical co-operation as well as research and development. In Africa, where the system of innovation and the capacity is not adequate, the first step is to build innovation capacity that addresses local and specific issues. This will make it easier for technology absorption, modelling of technologies to meet local standards and conditions, and ensure effectiveness of businesses and public services. This will also drive industrialisation and regional integration as well as leapfrog development and economic growth on the continent, amongst others. This Session will aim to deliberate on various technology and innovation frameworks and how best they could be integrated within the wider objective of regional and continental infrastructure initiatives.

(v) Policy, Legal and Regulatory Frameworks

The development of a sustainable regional infrastructure and the promotion of regional integration and intra-African trade require the development of effective, comprehensive and harmonised continental regulatory frameworks, which will enhance regional co-operation and co-ordination of stakeholders including Member States as well as Regional Institutions. A harmonised regulatory framework at the continental and regional levels will facilitate the creation of an African common market, enhance private sector engagement and mobilise the huge financial and technical resources required to provide efficient infrastructure services to all Africans. There is thus a need to analyse existing regional and continental regulations including assessment of regulatory frameworks and institutions with a view to propose and implement action plans for harmonised continental and regional regulatory frameworks for effective cooperation between Member States and Regional Institutions in infrastructure development. This Session will aim to identify gaps, recommend best practices and actions in developing a harmonised continental and regional regulatory framework in infrastructure development.
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Jayshree Sengupta

Jayshree Sengupta

Senior fellow, Observer Research Foundation

For more than a year, President Trump has been flouting WTO rules openly and is threatening to impose another round of punishing tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, including electronics and houseware. He has already imposed tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods. He has called the WTO a 'disaster' and threatened to pull out of it unless it shapes up.

Born in 1995, the World Trade Organisation is located on lakeside Geneva. The WTO, along with the IMF and World Bank, has predominantly represented the interests of the developed world and its predecessor GATT (General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs), established in 1948, conducted negotiations that went on for years (1986-94) under the Uruguay Round for tariff reduction and opening up of world trade, aimed specially at prying open developing countries' markets. The WTO can be credited with conducting rule-based trade which all its 164 members have to abide by.

India is a member and in return for tariff reduction and reduction of trade barriers like the quantitative restrictions through quotas, India and other developing countries could access the rich countries' markets. But non-tariff barriers remained for India's agricultural exports to the developed countries in the form of sanitary measures that insist on abiding by certain standards of health and hygiene, and inspection.

China was admitted to the WTO amidst controversy in 2001. Ever since its entry, surprisingly, China beat the western developed nations at their own game and made huge inroads at entering their markets without making its own trading system more open or transparent. The western world became flooded with Chinese imports. Today, the US has a $375 billion trade deficit with China.

The US has been trying to straighten out 'trade distortions' caused by developing countries by filing suits against them at the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body. Trump doesn't think China and India qualify as developing countries, but the US does! He wants to have bilateral trade deals and recently boasted that India has been calling him for a trade deal. The US and 11 other countries have complained to the WTO regarding India's export subsidies. Trump is angry that the WTO's dispute settlement mechanism has not been favouring the US in many trade disputes.

WTO weakened

In any case, during the last decade, the WTO has been considerably weakened as there has been a huge growth in bilateral treaties among nations and also mega trade deals like the Trans Pacific Partnership and the RCEP involving 16 countries. Trump has pulled out of the TPP already. But WTO's dispute settlement mechanism has remained active. There are seven judges in the Appellate Body of the WTO that decides on trade disputes and at least three judges are required to take a decision. But Trump has blocked the appointment of new judges to replace the retiring ones. By end of next year, the body will be left with less than three judges, which may stop its functioning.

Not much gain for India



India has not gained much from being in the WTO and resisted opening up its agricultural sector because of millions of small and marginal farmers who would not be able to withstand competition from abroad. India has faced flak in the past about its agricultural subsidies which are far lower than the subsidies the US, Canada and the EU give to their farmers. But their subsidies are supposed to be direct cash subsidies and are allowed under the WTO's Green Box. Most of the subsidies India gives to farmers (MSP, fertiliser) come under Amber Box and there is pressure to make them Green Box-compliable. India has had problems with the way the WTO calculates the MSP for Indian farmers.

India has also had problem with its food stockholding programme to maintain its food security. But the US has blocked a permanent solution to the problem. China and India have opposed the huge agricultural subsidies that the western nations give to their farmers.

China has had more problems with the US than India. China has been accused of dumping goods as it supplies them at rates below the cost of production to the US. China is able to do so because it has no realistic cost accounting. The state-controlled financial system enables it to have low cost of finance and its infrastructure is heavily subsidised. It puts China at a great advantage over all countries, including India. India has filed many suits against China at the WTO and in many cases it has been allowed to impose retaliatory tariffs.

India has had problems at the WTO with the EU because under its General Agreement on Trade in Services, temporary workers from India should be allowed to move freely within Europe, especially under Mode 4 (rule), but they are not. In the area of Intellectual property rights under the Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement, India has been on the defensive at the WTO and the US has had many spats with the Indian industry for not observing IPR rules.

The issues that the developing countries wanted sorted out were to be settled under the WTO's Doha Round which has been stalled since 2008. It is only now when the US has also gone against its inefficient functioning that its existence is threatened.

If the WTO shuts down, big players like China, the EU and Japan will rule the roost without legal restraints. Smaller countries will resort to protectionism which will reduce their volume of trade and income. The WTO has to reform itself, as Trump has proposed, and have fair rules of trade for developing countries that do not interfere with their domestic policies.
editorial@tribune.com

Bijendra Ahlawat

Tribune News Service

Faridabad, September 12

With the Supreme Court ordering demolition of illegal constructions in Kant Enclave nestled in the Aravalli Hills, the occupants  mostly retired persons  are feeling stranded as they have no other place to shift.

I am shocked and depressed, says PK Gandhi (80), a resident of house number C-115 in Kant Enclave. I built this house 20 years ago with all I had got at the time of retirement. Till Wednesday, I had been living peacefully. The Supreme Courts order has shocked me. I dont know where to go if my house is demolished.

The colony was developed around 1990 by R Kant and Co. It has 1,612 plots. In all, 60 houses have been constructed. Of them, 40 are occupied. The plot size is between 160 sq yards and 1,000 sq yards.

All 40 families have valid documents for their houses. How can they be asked to vacate their houses as they have been paying property tax all these years? Gandhi said, adding that isnt the house of a former Chief Justice of India in Kant Enclave proves that the colony is legal?

Satvik Srivastava (29), an engineer-cum-entrepreneur, is another affected person. His father, a retired engineer, had invested in a plot almost 25 years ago in the colony and dreamed of building a house for his children. He could not build it and, now, his son Satvik will wait and watch.

The cost of the plot has escalated over the years. But after the SC order, my family will be not compensated adequately. We do not know whether or not we will be able to get back the money we invested here, he said.

Sanjay Basu, a resident of B Block, said the SC judgment was traumatic for him. Uprooting people who had settled here two to three decades ago is unjust, he said.

Other pockets under illegal occupation

Faridabad: Kant Enclave in the Aravalli Hills is not the only construction violative of the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA). District Town Planner (DTP) Sanjiv Maan said there could be many other constructions in the Aravalli Hills of Surajkund in violation of the PLPA.

The details of land in the district identified under the PLPA have been uploaded on the website of the Forest Department, Haryana. The extent of violation can be known after an investigation, Mann said.

The departments website  haryanaforest. gov.in  shows that total land in the district notified under the PLPA is 5,876 acres spread in eight villages, including Anangpur on whose land Kant Enclave has come up.

Jitender Bhadana of the NGO, Save Aravalli, claimed that educational, residential and commercial buildings had come up in the protected area in the past three to four decades. In spite of issuing notices, the administration has failed to take action against 120 farmhouses found illegal nine months ago, he said.

The farmhouses have been built on the land of Anangpur village, while six banquet halls and marriage palaces have been built illegally in Surajkund area over the years, Bhadana added.

Social activist Varun Sheokand said he had filed a case in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) against the construction of a hotel in the Surajkund area. He hoped the SC order on Kant Enclave might help in checking illegal constructions in the Aravalli belt and save the ecology of the region.  TNS
In many places, the cold and snow can feel unbearable during the winter months. While sunny and warm cities like San Diego have average temperatures above 60 degrees Fahrenheit in January, the average temperature in New York during the same month is a cold 39 degrees. And in January, Chicagoans experience average temperatures as low as 18 degrees. However, there are cities around the world where the word freezing is an understatement and temperatures above 50 degrees F are only a wish. We checked out locations where subzero temperatures during the winter are the norm and annual average temperatures rarely rise above 40 degrees F. To determine the coldest temperatures, we gathered weather data from Accuweather The Weather Channel and the Norwegian Meteorological Institute among many others. Plenty of cities in Russia and Canada are known for their bone-chilling temperatures, but we highlighted cities that show just how chilly the world can really get. (Aaliyah Gibson, The Active Times)
editorial@tribune.com

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 12

A day after Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced slashing of power tariff in the state, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged that the rates were still higher than those in Delhi and people got bills, but no electricity in Haryana villages.

In two Hindi tweets from his twitter handle @ArvindKejriwal on Wednesday, the Delhi CM also asked Khattar to follow Delhis tariff slabs.

In his first tweet, Kejriwal said that Khattar Saab (Haryana CM) had reduced power tariff, but the reduction was too meagre. Haryana should provide electricity at the rates Delhi people have been getting.

In most villages of Haryana, people get bills only, because electricity often plays truant. Like Delhi, Haryana should also provide 24-hour power supply to its people, he said in his next tweet.

Reacting sharply to Kejriwals tweets, state BJP chief Subhash Barala claimed the electricity rates announced by the chief minister on Tuesday were lesser than those in Delhi.

Ever since the BJP has come to power, continuous efforts have been made to improve the power situation in the state. Out of the 6,200 villages of Haryana, 1,750 villages of seven districts have started getting 24-hour power supply. The government is in the process of strengthening transmission lines to start 24-hours power supply in the rest of the villages very soon, he claimed.

The situation was very bad when the BJP took over in 2014, but the Khattar-led government had not only reduced line losses considerably but also reformed Discoms from loss-making enterprises to profit-making ones, Barala added.
rchopra@tribunemail.com

Mumbai, September 12

A fire engulfed an industrial unit in suburban Andheri in the wee hours of Wednesday, a civic official said.

A fireman received burns while dousing the flames and was rushed to hospital, he said.

The blaze erupted around 2 am at the commercial unit located in the SEEPZ industrial area at Marol in Andheri, the official said.

Fire-fighting engines and water tankers were rushed to the spot and the flames were doused by 6 am, he said.

Fireman Shivkumar Suryakant Satarval, 25, suffered burns and was admitted to the Cooper Hospital where his condition was reported to be stable, he said.

No one was present inside the unit at the time of the fire, the official said, adding that the cause of the blaze was yet to be ascertained.

There have been a number of fires in residential buildings and industrial units in Mumbai in the past few months.

A blaze occurred on Tuesday on the second floor of a commercial building situated in Madhur Industrial Estate in Andheri, injuring a firefighter.

On September 4, a commercial unit in suburban Malad caught fire, but no casualty was reported.

On August 22, a fire occurred on the 12th floor of a posh high-rise residential building in Dadar area, killing four people and injuring 16 others.

On August 27, a blaze engulfed a three-storey residential building in Parel area, but there was no casualty.

On August 5, a fire at the Regional Transport Office (RTO) in Tardeo area of south Mumbai destroyed hundreds of documents and other items, but no one was injured. PTI
pardeepdhull@gmail.com

New Delhi, September 12

A Delhi court on Wednesday granted bail to former Air Force Chief S P Tyagi and others in a money laundering case related to the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam.

Special judge Arvind Kumar granted bail to Tyagi and his cousins involved in the case and asked them to furnish a bail bond of Rs 1 lakh with one surety of the like amount.

The bail was granted after they appeared before the court in pursuance to summons issued against them.

The court had on July 24 summoned former AgustaWestland and Finmeccanica directors Giuseppe Orsi and Bruno Spagnolini, Tyagi and others as accused in the case.

The court had asked the accused to appear before it today, while issuing fresh non-bailable warrants against Italian middlemen Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke and Dubai-based businessman Rajeev Saxena in the case.

Besides the six, the court also summoned as accused 28 Indian and foreign individuals and companies, including lawyer Gautam Khaitan, AgustaWestland and its parent company Finmeccanica SPA.

The court had passed directions after taking cognisance of the charge sheet, saying there was enough evidence against the accused in the matter relating to the alleged money laundering to the tune of around Euro 28 million.

However, foreign individuals and firms failed to appear before the court today.

The ED, in its charge sheet, has alleged that money was laundered through multiple foreign companies which were used as fronts to park alleged kickbacks.

On January 1, 2014, India had scrapped the contract with Finmeccanicas British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF over alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of kickbacks of Rs 423 crore paid by it to secure the deal.

Those summoned by the court include Tyagi and his cousins, Khaitan and his wife Ritu, Rajeev Saxena and his wife Shivani, both directors of two Dubai-based accused firms UHY Saxena and Matrix Holdings, O P Khaitan and Co, International Mediterranean Consulting, Tunisia and Infotech Design Systems Gordian Services. PTI
amansharma@tribunemail.com

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 12

India on Wednesday inked two agreements with the Rakhine state government in Myanmar, the seat of the Rohingya exodus. The agreements entered into will facilitate capacity building and economic development in Rakhine state.

Under the latest arrangement, India will supply 15 tractors and crawler harvesters each to the state government, in accordance with a key request made by the Peasants Union in the state. Additionally, the agreement signed with the Department of Social Affairs of the state government will enable the Embassy of India to provide 40 computers and related accessories to the Sittwe Computer University.

"The objective of providing the assistance is to promote agricultural mechanisation in Rakhine state and also to promote computer literacy among youth, which will prepare them for employment opportunity in software sector," said an Indian official statement.

The MoUs were signed by U Kyaw Lwin, Minister for Agriculture, Livestock, Forestry and Minerals (Rakhine State Government) and Dr Chan Thar, Minister for Department of Social Affairs, and Vikram Misri, Ambassador of India to Myanmar in the presence of Chief Minister of Rakhine State, U Nyi Pu.

Even as Bangladesh has made repeated requests to India to leverage its influence on Myanmar asking it to facilitate repatriation of millions of Rohingya refugees living in dire conditions in camps on its soil, Delhi has been following the development path in Rakhine.

India has committed to 25 million USD development grant assistance to Rakhine state over a period of five years. This assistance includes a pilot project to build 250 prefabricated houses in Northern Rakhine for 'displaced members of the Rakhine Buddhist, Hindu and Muslim communities'.

India maintains that 'Recognising the special challenges in and needs of Rakhine state and equitable development of all sections of the State's inhabitants is key to building social harmony, peace and prosperity'.
uttara@tribuneindia.com

Smita Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 12

Amid looming US sanctions, India has conveyed to Trump administration that it couldnt stop its oil imports from Iran, sources say.

Indian officials are believed to have made it clear, in three rounds of technical discussions with US officials as well as the most recent 2+2 Dialogue, that while India was willing to negotiate the amount of oil it could continue to import from Iran, it would be impossible to completely scrap its dealings.

The 2+2 Dialogue were September 6 meetings held between India's Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary James Mattis.

Iran is Indias third largest supplier of oil, behind Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

Another American delegation is expected later this month to negotiate how much India would have to cut down its imports by to help make exception for other kinds of tradings with Iran, such as the Chabahar Port that India projects as humanitarian development project with special significance to Afghanistan.

At the end of the 2+2 talks, US Secretary of State Pompeo in his press interaction said: We have told the Indians consistently, as we have told every nation, that on November 4, the sanctions with respect to Iranian crude oil will be enforced, and that we will consider waivers where appropriate, but that it is our expectation that the purchases of Iranian crude oil will go to zero from every country, or sanctions will be imposed.

India however cites domestic needs, rising crude oil prices, sustainability and supply issues to insist that stopping its nearly 12 per cent crude oil imports is impossible.

Already fuel prices are high in India. If cost of production of oil goes up internationally, it will add to our problems. Companies will pass on added prices to consumers, said an official, pointing out that US was currently isolated internationally over its stance, with Europe, China and Russia still standing by the Iran nuclear deal.

India has been holding separate discussions with Europe over US ultimatum.

Also, India is eyeing the Caspian Sea oil and gas reserves to which Iran has sole access.

Sources say that India has explained to American interlocutors that its economy needs to grow if US wants it to be a major player in its South Asia and Indo-Pacific strategy. Additionally, India has argued that with China now aiming to extend CPEC (China Pak Economic Corridor) to Afghanistan, Indias access to the region through Iran gains significance.

While Americans so far have not promised any India specific waiver, The Tribune has learnt that Delhi has allowed a private Iranian bank to set up shop in Mumbai and is currently ishold ing discussions over payment options to bypass sanctions.

Under the previous regime, India had entered into a barter arrangement through UCO bank for payment towards oil trade.

Realistically, India needs Iranian oil given it has been a traditional energy supplier. Indian companies want to acquire stakes in upstream oil and gas assets in Iran. So one has to look at oil relations with Iran strategically. One hopes US will understand, energy expert Narendra Taneja says. But due to lack of ships for passage of oil and insurers, there is a possibility that imports may come down eventually.
uttara@tribuneindia.com

Kochi, September 12

Kerala police have asked Bishop Franco Mullakal of Jalandhar diocese, accused by a nun of raping her, to appear before the investigating team on September 19, Inspector General of police Vijay Sakhare said Wednesday.

The decision to summon the clergyman was taken after a meeting chaired by Sakhare, IG (Ernakulam range), which was also attended by Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar and Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash amid mounting pressure on police to initiate action against Mullakal.

The nun had recently sought urgent intervention of The Vatican for justice and demanded the bishop's removal as the head of the Jalandhar diocese, questioning why the Church was "closing its eyes to the truth" when she mustered courage to make public her sufferings.

In a scathing letter to The Vatican that was made available to the press on Tuesday, the nun accused Bishop Franco Mulakkal of using "political and money power" to bury the case against him and demanded to know if the Church could give back what she lost. She had accused the clergyman of sexually assaulting her repeatedly between 2014 and 2016.

The bishop had, however, dismissed the allegations as "baseless and concocted", insisting she levelled those as the catholic order had rejected her demand for favours.

Meanwhile, agitation of various Catholic reformation organisations in Kochi seeking justice for the nun entered the fifth day on Wednesday.

Many cultural icons in Kerala, including noted poet Balachandran Chullikkad, have supported the protest.

Leaders of the Mahila Congress, BJP and various rights organisations expressed solidarity with the protesters.

The nun had on Tuesday shot off a letter to the Vatican representative in India to sack the Bishop, claiming he was using political and money power to bury the case.

The allegations come at a time when The Vatican's fighting accusations of sexual abuse against several of its clergymen across the world and, through its silence, even complicity on its part.  Agencies
rchopra@tribunemail.com

Kochi/Kottayam, September 12

Amid mounting pressure on the police to initiate action against a Roman Catholic Bishop accused of raping a nun, a meeting was held on Wednesday to review the progress made in the case even as a clergyman of an influential Kerala diocese slammed the public trial in the matter.

Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar, Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash, who is heading the special investigation team, and other officials attended the review meeting chaired by Ernakulam Range IG Vijay Sakhare in Kochi.

Before the meeting, being held amid allegations of attempts to sabotage the case, Subhash told reporters that a notice might be issued to Bishop Franco Mulakkal of Jalandhar diocese to appear before the investigating team.

Harisankar, however, said the meeting was held to finalise the affidavit to be filed before the high court in this connection on Thursday.

On Monday, the Kerala High Court had directed the state government to inform it of the steps taken by the special investigation team probing the case of alleged rape of the nun by the Bishop.

While considering a plea filed by George Joseph K of the Kerala Catholic Church Reformation Movement seeking a court-monitored probe into the case, the court had said, Law is above all other things and it will take its own course.

Slamming the public outcry over the alleged delay in action against the Jalandhar Bishop, Auxilary Bishop of Changanassery Archdiocese, Thomas Tharayil, sought to know whether declaring a person guilty without an investigation and trial was also a new Kerala model.

Tharayil said he had learnt that one should be treated as innocent till his crime was proved before the court of law.

If an accused is a priest or a Catholic Bishop, he will be treated as guilty till his innocence is proved, he added.

Meanwhile, agitation of various Catholic reformation organisations in Kochi seeking justice for the nun entered the fifth day on Wednesday.

Many cultural icons in Kerala, including noted poet Balachandran Chullikkad, have supported the protest.

Leaders of the Mahila Congress, BJP and various rights organisations expressed solidarity with the protesters.

The nun had on Tuesday shot off a letter to the Vatican representative in India to sack the Bishop, claiming he was using political and money power to bury the case.

Making a fervent plea for urgent intervention, the nun, in a scathing letter, also sought to explain her silence before coming out against the bishop, saying she had tremendous fear and shame and wondered why the church was closing its eyes to the truth.

Speaking to reporters in Jalandhar, the Bishop had said, If I am found guilty, which I am not, I am likely to be punished...I will appear before police if I am summoned. I am a law-abiding citizen.

Senior Kerala minister EP Jayarajan has rejected allegations of attempts to sabotage the case and asserted that the probe is proceeding in the right direction. PTI
amansharma@tribunemail.com

New Delhi, September 12

Congress president Rahul Gandhi Wednesday demanded an immediate probe into the "extremely serious" allegations made by fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya and said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley should step down till the investigation is over.

Mallya, facing charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore and fighting an extradition case, told reporters in London that he met the finance minister before leaving India and offered to settle with the banks.

"Given Vijay Mallya's extremely serious allegations in London today, the PM should immediately order an independent probe into the matter. Arun Jaitley should step down as Finance Minister while this probe is underway," Gandhi tweeted.

Jaitley, however, rubbished Mallya's statement, saying he never gave him an appointment since 2014 but the liquor baron misused his position as Rajya Sabha MP to accost him in Parliament. - PTI
rchopra@tribunemail.com

New Delhi, September 12

The Supreme Court on Wednesday extended the house arrest of five rights activists who were arrested in connection with the Koregaon-Bhima violence case till September 17.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud adjourned the hearing on the plea filed by historian Romila Thapar and four others to September 17 after it was submitted that senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who is representing the petitioners, was busy in another court.

Earlier, Singhvi appeared before the bench and submitted that the hearing on Thapars plea be conducted in the afternoon as he had to appear in another matter.

The court was hearing the plea filed against the arrest of the rights activists--Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha--in the case.

Maharashtra Police had arrested the five activists on August 28 in connection with an FIR lodged following a conclave--Elgaar Parishad--held on December 31 last year that had later triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village.

On August 29, the apex court ordered the house arrest of the activists, saying dissent is the safety valve of democracy. PTI
Kane County Assistant States Attorney William Engerman stated in court that on April 23, 2016, Gregorie and an acquaintance drove to Chicago, where they purchased fentanyl-laced heroin from Moore. Gregorie and the acquaintance returned home and ingested the illegal drugs, the release stated. Gregorie died as a result.
amansharma@tribunemail.com

Ferozepur, September 12

Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Wednesday paid rich tributes to the soldiers of the historic Saragarhi battle on its 121st anniversary, and said the state-of-the-art memorial would be built before its next anniversary.

After paying obeisance in Gurdwara Saragarhi during the state-level martyrdom day function, the chief minister went to 'Barki Square' to pay floral tributes to the soldiers who laid down their lives in the 1965 Indo-Pak war.

Addressing the gathering at Saragarhi gurdwara complex, Amarinder Singh spoke about the exemplary valour of the 22 soldiers of the 36 Sikh Regiment of the British Indian Army stationed near Samana ridge (now in Pakistan), who laid down their lives after a fierce battle following an attack by nearly 10,000 Afghans on September 12, 1897.

A model depicting the architectural and layout of the state of the art memorial has been finalised, the chief minister said, adding the Saragarhi Memorial Management Committee under its Chairman Maj Gen J S Sandhu, GOC, 7 Inf Div would oversee the entire construction.

He assured the management committee that his government would extend full support in the execution of the iconic project as a befitting tribute to the Saragarhi martyrs.

Responding to the demand raised by local MLA Parminder Singh Pinky for establishing Saragarhi Memorial Institute for Competitive Exams in Ferozepur, the chief minister said the state government would take necessary steps after getting the matter thoroughly examined.

He also assured fulfilment of the other demand for setting up Saragarhi Club here. - PTI
editorial@tribune.com

Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 11

While AAP candidates are suffering alleged violent attacks by rival parties, the infighting between the Sukhpal Khaira and Harpal Cheema groups is witnessing a ceasefire of sorts in the run up to the elections.

The Khaira group has not put up separate candidates asking its supporters to vote and support official AAP nominees.

We never want to weaken the party. We have asked the supporters to vote for AAP candidates wherever they are contesting on party symbol. At other places, they should choose Independent candidates and defeat the Congress and other parties, said Kanwar Sandhu, spokesperson for the Khaira group.

Taking a tough stand after the killing of its candidate HS Hinda, AAP on Tuesday announced to gherao a police station in Rampura Phul on Wednesday. Leader of Opposition Harpal Cheema and AAP state co-convener Dr Balbir Singh announced this after a meeting with State Election Commissioner Jagpal Sandhu.

Dr Balbir Singh said reports of forcible withdrawal of papers or through threats or fraudulent means were received from all parts of the state. We are contesting nearly 60 per cent of the seats in the Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections, he said.

JagpalSandhu said he had sought report from returning officers on the allegations by the AAP.
rchopra@tribunemail.com

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 12

EcoSikh, an NGO committed to environment protection, on Wednesday launched a world-wide campaign, 550 Rukh Guru de Naam.

Under this initiative, people would be invited to celebrate Guru Nanaks 550th birth anniversary in 2019 by planting 550 trees each at their respective locations in every country, especially in Punjab.

The organisation is targeting to reach 1 million trees by the end of the next year.

EcoSikh global president Rajwant Singh said, We want to highlight teachings of Guru Nanak on nature and this is the best way to exhibit the close connection of Sikh spirituality with Gods creation: the beautiful flora and fauna. We come together to safeguard the air by making a gift of 1 million trees for our Guru Nanak on His 550th Gurpurab.

He said similar plantation would be carried out at Nankana Sahib in Pakistan.

He said the NGO was investing in nature in a better manner.
gspannu7@gmail.com

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, September 12

The counter-intelligence wing of the Punjab Police on Wednesday arrested three contract killers, who were allegedly involved in the infamous murder of BJP worker Rinkal Khera in Ludhiana, and recovered two unlicensed pistols along with live cartridges and two cars used in the crime.

The accused belong to Doabas Sheru group. The men have been identified as Gurmeet Singh alias Budhu Lohara (36), Manmeet Singh alias Mani Falora (26) of Lohara in Jalandhar, and Bhupinder Singh alias Binda Jandaur (34) of Jandor in Hoshiarpur.

Addressing a press conference, counter-intelligence wings Assistant Inspector General HPS Khakh said on the directions of Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, the counter-intelligence wing has been making strenuous efforts to nab the gangsters.

He said they had received a tip-off that head of Sheru gang, led by Satnam Singh alias Sukhi Dhirowal, along with Bhupinder, Gurmeet, Manmeet, Monu Kaul and Gurpreet Singh alias Gopi Lamber, involved in contract killings and robberies, were conspiring to target an agency and moving towards Bhogpur town in a white Lancer car from Tanda town of Hoshiarpur.

The AIG said the information was timely shared with SSP Jalandhar Rural Navjot Singh Mahal and a joint team of counter-intelligence wing and SHO Bhogpur was formed to nab the gangsters.

An FIR under Sections 399 (making preparation to commit robbery), 402 (assembling for purpose of committing robbery) and 25, 54, 59 of the Arms Act was registered at Bhogpur police station against three of them.

He said three gagsters were arrested while other accused managed to flee and police teams are behind them.

Two unlicensed pistols along with 11 live cartridges and one Lancer car was recovered from the spot, and one Polo car, which was used in Ludhiana murder, was recovered after the statement of Budhu, he added.

Disclosing the preliminary interrogation, Khakh informed that Jatinderpal Singh Sunny, Congress councillor Gurdeep Singh Neetus son, who surrendered before police two days after the death of the victim, hired these gangsters.

He said two days ago Ludhiana police had also arrested two more persons involved in this murder.

Divulging the details of the Rinkal murder case, Khakh said the murder was committed to settle personal rivalry.

He said that the accused, Sunny, who was in good terms with gang head Sukhi Dherowalia, had struck a deal with him to eliminate Rinkal Khera.

Following the deal, Sukhi and his accomplices, Bhupinder, Gurmeet, Manmeet, Monu Kaul and Gurpreet Singh, Vishal and Deepu, reached Ludhiana in a Polo car and met Sunny who booked two rooms in a hotel for them. Next morning, Sunny left the hotel and came back with rods and other sharp-edged weapons.

Around 10 am, all left the hotel to attack Rinkal and two associates of Sunny riding on a bike, joined them on the way and barged in Rinkals house.

Sunny hit hard on Rinkals head with an iron rod following which he fell unconscious but did not stop and continually hit his head.

Khakh further stated that after the crime, they fled from the spot and met Sukhi Dherowalia in SBS Nagar district (Nawanshahr) by crossing Phillaur.

Sukhi was in Nawanshahr for a hearing in a case and they had lunch there and returned to Jalandhar.

A day after, Sukhi called Gurmeet regarding the death of Rinkal and all went underground.

The AIG said one of arrested gangsters, Manmeet Singh, had trimmed his hair to hide his identity after the murder and were continuously changing their hideouts.
pardeepdhull@gmail.com

Curitiba (Brazil), September 12

Jailed former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will step aside on Tuesday so his running mate can stand for the presidency in next months election, party sources said, as leftist candidates strong showing in a poll pulled markets lower.

Lula, by far Brazils most popular politician, hoped the Supreme Court would agree to an appeal for more time to switch the head of the Workers Party (PT) ticket after the top electoral court last week banned him from running due to a corruption conviction and gave him 10 days to remove his name.

Two sources with knowledge of Lulas decision said Fernando Haddad will become the official PT candidate with an announcement outside Federal Police headquarters in the southern city of Curitiba, where the leftist icon has been jailed since April, serving a 12-year sentence for receiving bribes.

Despite appeals pending before the Supreme Court, Lula decided it was time to pass the baton to Haddad on the deadline set by the court and not run the risk of votes for his partys ticket being annulled by the electoral court.

Lula, who controls the PT he founded and determines its election strategy from his jail cell, has kept his candidacy alive for as long as possible, hoping to maximize the transfer of votes to Haddad, a former Sao Paulo mayor who is barely known in many parts of Brazil.

A Datafolha poll conducted on Monday showed that transfer has begun. While still in the single digits, support for Haddad increased from 4 percent to 9 percent, the biggest gain among the 13 candidates running for president.

The same poll also showed strengthening support for another leftist, Ciro Gomes, a former governor and finance minister, whose support rose to 13 percent from 10 percent.

Market favorites who say they will continue President Michel Temers economic reforms had few gains, adding to investor anxiety.

The Datafolha survey showed far-right law-and-order candidate Jair Bolsonaro, who was the top vote-getter in first-round scenarios, increasing by 2 percentage points to 24 percent, less than many expected after he survived a near-fatal stabbing last week.

Former Sao Paulo Mayor Geraldo Alckmin, a centre-right candidate, ticked up just 1 percentage point to 10 per cent.

Mondays poll confirmed previous surveys showing Bolsonaro would lose to every major candidate in a probable run-off vote - with the exception of Haddad, with whom he was in a technical tie.

The potential for a leftist run-off victory spooked financial markets on Tuesday, with the real currency slumping nearly 2 per cent against the US dollar and the Bovespa benchmark stock index losing 1.9 per cent.

Bottom line: one space in the run-off looks guaranteed for Bolsonaro, Juliano Ferreira, a strategist at brokerage BGC Liquidez, said in a research note. Once hes there, his chances of losing look stronger, to whomever it might be. Lulas letter anointing Haddad will be read to supporters who have camped outside the police building for five months to protest his jailing, which they consider a plot to keep him from returning to power, a party official said.

Lula and Haddad huddled on Monday afternoon in his jail cell and began to draw up the letter, the source said.

The sources asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak publicly about Lulas plans.

Lula served as president from 2003-2010. He is ineligible for office under Brazils Clean Slate law, which prohibits candidates from running if they have convictions that have been upheld on appeal. Reuters
pardeepdhull@gmail.com

Vladivostok, September 12

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday the two men Britain suspects of poisoning former spy Sergei Skripal with military-grade nerve agent are not criminals and have been identified as civilians.

Speaking at an economic forum with Japans Shinzo Abe and Chinas Xi Jinping in the far eastern city of Vladivostok, Putin urged the men to address the media and said there was nothing criminal.

We know who they are, we have found them, Putin said.

They are civilians, of course, he said, apparently responding to a claim by the British authorities that the two suspects are members of Russias military intelligence agency.

Putin urged the two men to speak to journalists.

I hope they will turn up themselves and tell about themselves, he said.

There is nothing special there, nothing criminal, I assure you. Well see in the near future. British authorities have issued European arrest warrants for Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, two suspected members of Russian military intelligence, the GRU.

They are accused of trying to kill former Russian spy Skripal and his daughter Yulia with the Novichok nerve agent in the English city of Salisbury on March 4, in an attack London believes was sanctioned by the Kremlin.

The British government has said Putin is ultimately responsible for the attack, a claim the Kremlin has strongly denied.  AFP
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Colombo, September 12

Animal sacrifices in Hindu temples in Sri Lanka could be banned after the Cabinet approved a proposal Wednesday to enact laws banning the primitive methods of worship, amid calls from the Hindu community to make the ritual a punishable offence in the Buddhist-majority country.

The Cabinet headed by President Maithripala Sirisena approved the proposal submitted by Resettlement, Rehabilitation, Northern Development and Hindu Religious Affairs Minister DM Swaminathan.

Hindu Cultural Affairs Director Uma Maheswaran was quoted as saying by the government-owned newspaper Daily News that the slaughter of animals such as goats and fowls in Hindu temples would be banned by this legislation.

He said the Cabinet-approved draft legislation would be sent to the Legal Draftsmans Department for final consent.

It will then be sent to the Attorney Generals Department and published in the gazette. He said the law would come into effect once passed by Parliament.

According to the Cabinet Memorandum, animal and bird sacrifices in Hindu temples or its precincts will be prohibited.

One of the primitive methods of worship is animal and bird sacrifices, while the majority of Hindus do not accept the practice. Slaughtering of animals is carried out in public in open courtyard of the temple without considering health and mental harm of the devotees.

Legislation to ban animal sacrifice in Hindu temples is operative in India. The members of Parliament representing the Hindu Community and Hindu Association in Sri Lanka are of unanimous view that sacrifices of any living being in the name of Hindu religion should be banned and made a punishable offence, the memorandum stated.

Jaffna High Court Judge M Ilancheliyan, delivering a ruling in a case filed by the All Ceylon Hindu Maha Sabha against the killings of animals at the Kavunawatte Narasimmar Kovil festival in October last year, prohibited the slaughter of animals in Hindu temples.

Fundamental characteristics of most of the religions are Ahimsa and non-cruelty towards all living being. Hindu religion practised by a substantial section of the Sri Lankan population is vigorously preaching this concept and declares it as sinful and advocates the prevention of killing of any living being, the memorandum noted.

There is no institutionalised structure for the regulation of activities carried out in the name of Hindu religion. Almost all Hindu temples and religious institutions in the country are managed by individuals or management committees elected by people.

There is no regulatory mechanism to impose or guide line or instruction unified practice in these temples and left in the hands of these individuals or management committees, it added.

Sri Lanka is a Buddhist-majority country with Buddhist Sinhalese making up nearly 75 per cent. Muslims account for 10 per cent of the 21 million population another 13 per cent of the population are Hindus.  PTI
DOING things differently and marketing the destinations strategically is what will draw investors in the local tourism sector to set up shop in T&T.

That was the sentiment from Tourism Trinidad Ltd chairman Cliff Hamilton and Tobago Tourism Agency chief executive officer Louis Lewis as they both spoke at the Hotel Development session at the InvestTT virtual forum on Wednesday.
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.
The proposal is to get approval for a federal loan and tax increment financing assistance through the village of Oswego as part of the plan. The developer is also proposing to invest an estimated $17.5 million in the project, which calls for one- and two-bedroom apartments for seniors at the old school building.
The Trinidad and Tobago Registered Nurses Association (TTRNA) says it does not support any form of discrimination in the provision of Covid-19 treatment and has called on its membership to continue providing quality care to all patients.

This comes following comments made by TTRNA head Idi Stuart who said he was in support of allocating limited Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds to persons who have been vaccinated against Covid-19, if a choice had to be made.
Hello Brian,

I have been to the three places you have mentioned so I'll add my humble opinion.

Puerto Vallarta is a great place, but it's a city compared to the other two places. I stayed in a mid level Riu there and it was very nice. Also took a couple once in a lifetime excursions there. I stayed all inclusive there, but it's not for me. I can only stay on the reservation so long and I have to move around. Also, I think people feel they have to be around at dinnertime most of the time to get the full effect of the AI, but I don't care that much for the buffets, and I don't like to plan my day around a reservation that was made a couple days in advance for food that isn't that great either.

Puerto Escondido is a nice little town, but it seems to me like a regular city that has tourism. It's fairly busy on the roads and in the markets and so forth. I have no experience in all inclusive there , I'm sure they are nice.

I only found one beach there I liked, the surf and water are very rough on the others, at least when I was there.

Huatulco is my favorite , going for my fourth time this winter.

I think it's a much more relaxed atmosphere, the beaches, restaurants, shops and beach clubs are all super convenient. So much so, I might suggest you skip the AI and stay in a smaller local place. There are plenty of them, and too many great restaurants to mention. Not really any hustle and bustle to deal with there, getting from one place to another is simple and incredibly cheap.

Either way you go, you'll have a great time, I love Mexico.

Doug Cincinnati OH
Is the travel visa all I need to get into Aus?

Is the travel visa all I need to get into Aus?

Hi guys,

I'm travelling from Darwin to Perth to Sydney to Melbourne from Ireland (brief stop in Bali on the way) for 2 months in December! Really looking forward to my stay.

I am Irish and i have applied for an electronic travel visa (subclass 651).

It came through as successful almost immediately! Is this something to worry about? I imagine it would take a few days to process?

Also do i need to present this at the airport as in confirmation of email or how will they know?

Also, apart from my physical irish passport, is this visa all I need to get into Australia? Or do i need something different considering I'm going to so many different provinces?

Thanks in advance,

Lil
We've settled on renting a car to drive from Sydney to Melbourne, leaving on October 13 and arriving mid-day October 20 (7 days, 8 nights). I'm booking a place for Saturday the 13th in the Jervis Bay area but have decided to decide each morning where to stay that night.

I've read the FAQ about the drive, looked at a couple of websites ( ) and ( ), and have a couple of Lonely Planet books with info.

Now I'd like some local advice: what would you do if you were planning our trip for us? We want to stop every now and again and do some short walks. We're hoping to do a whale watch tour (what town is the best bet for seeing whales mid-October), is Eden the best choice? Basically, we want to see as much as possible but stay somewhere different each night. So, any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
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Kalgoorlie is a interesting place for some exploring whether you are into fossicking or not, so you can easily spend several days there.

Sorry, I have no personal knowledge of prospecting- have you seen the Kalgoorlie tourist web site information:

The legal obligations and safety concerns are most important. This makes for interesting reading- especially the rescues of prospectors.

Why not do the tour? It gets good reviews and saves a lot of hassle plus of course addresses safety concerns in remote areas.

Maybe contact the Visitor Centre for further information if you dont get responses on this forum.

And a visit to the Perth Mint is recommended.

Edited: 3 years ago
Hi All,

Looking for some expert advice for our upcoming trip to Costa Rica in March 1019 for my mothers 70th birthday.

It will be our first trip to CR and of course we want to soak in what we can.

I'll be traveling with my parents (70 & 81 years young :)

We are all very seasoned travelers (I live in India) but obviously I can't take them on hardcore backpacking trip across the country.

We are somewhat restricted; we can't really do very remote locations or places that require complicated travel.

I am thinking about Corcovado National Park as we really love wild life.

Would this be doable with elderly people or is it perhaps too remote and complicated to reach? Both parents are still in reasonable good health, driving and walking is not an issue. From what I gather its fairly easy driving in CR?

Also considering Manuel Antonio but I'm a bit concerned its very touristy; we would like to avoid masses of people. We would be there in March...

I'm still in the early stages of research but would appreciate any tips on national parks or CR in general.

Much thanks in advance!
Need help with the details! Thank you in advance!!

Three middle-aged, high energy female adventurers using the excuse of visiting semester-abroad child in Singapore to see as much of Southeast Asia as possible in 2 weeks. It's a whistle-stop tour this time. If we like it...we will be back! We enjoy nature, good food, beaches, quaint towns and fun cities. We know we are trying to fit in a lot...here is what we know and what we are thinking...at this point only the international flight is set in stone. Your suggestions are welcome!

Land in Singapore on Monday morning October 8: Stay 1 night in Marina Bay Sands Hotel. Say hello to child, walk around the city, nighttime visit to the zoo.

Tuesday, - Thursday October 9 - 11: Fly to Kuching, Malaysia. Stay 1 night at Bako NP and 1 night in Kuching. Hike, go to Semenggoh Nature Reserve to see orangutans & tour Kuching.

Thursday 10/9 - Return to Singapore to collect child. Fly to DaNang, Vietnam

Friday, October 12 Hoi An

Booked Anantara Resort...comments?

Looking into Hoi An Cooking Class

In addition to walking around town, trip to My Son?, bike around?

Sunday, October 14 Hanoi

Monday, October 15 Halong Bay 1 night cruise

Wednesday, October 17- Friday, October 19, Bangkok

Friday, October 19 - Sunday, October 21: meet child in Phuket/ Krabi/Phangnga Bay? Visit elephants, enjoy beach, relax

Thats it! Back to Singapore and back home to USA

Should we worry about the weather? Are these regional airports easy to get in & out?

Thank you
My girlfriend and I are travelling to South East Asia later this month. We fly into Bangkok to begin our 2.5 month travels. We then travel up to Laos, and then across again to Vietnam, where we will cross at the land border near to Dien Bien Phu.

After exploring the North of Vietnam, we intend on flying from Hanoi to Hong Kong for a few days, then returning to Hanoi.

We are slightly confused about our visa options currently. We are wondering whether it is viable to use our visa exemption upon arrival by land into Vietnam. Then fly out to Hong Kong within the permitted 15 days.

Can we then return with a single entry 30 days visa for the rest of our stay in Vietnam? Which visa is best to get (e-visa, VOA etc?)

Many thanks

Doug
Hello all - we're coming to Vietnam in March next year. We're spending a week in Cambodia first - as we fly into Siem Reap, and then we fly home out of Ho Chi Minh.

Planning on 4 nights Siem Reap, then 3 nights Phnom Penh, before heading to HCM (overland by bus, as we may do some internal flights once in Vietnam, and we have to be budget conscious). We will then have 13 nights in Vietnam before we come home, and we are very much struggling how to pack in good feel for the country without spending our whole time travelling and only 1 or 2 nights in each destination.

However, there is so much to see so we have been wondering whether to do a 'mad dash' type tour of the country - travelling up to Hanoi on a flight straight away from HCM, after arriving off the bus, then working downwards. Or work up the north (using train to do stages), then fly back down to HCM.

But then, we were also thinking of whether to concentrate most of our trip in South Vietnam, and see some of the highlights here, including some extra time on the Mekong Delta (which I'd like to do), and consider coming to north Vietnam again, on another holiday. I do want to visit Hoi An on this trip, so I guess we'd like to go that far north, and back south, HCM is to be a highlight for my fiance.

Na Trang doesn't interest us (nor any commercialised beach resorts), although we would love to visit an idyllic little island for some chill time, if possible. We're far more into culture, nature, landscapes and mountains, however.

So - can anyone help please? Do we stick to the south, and try to put the north out of our minds for another visit, or is it worth trying to move the length of the country?

Thank you!

Edited: 3 years ago
There are many tour agencies for traveling to Japan, as follows, but as I know "Inside Japan Tours" is a popular agency in UK.

But, I think your nephew can travel alone without joining a tour, even if he cannot speak Japanese at all, as many foreign visitors in this forum are doing.

Please let him read these at first.
If you need to take a taxi from the airport you will need cash.

Yes the Western Union does not charge commissions but the exchange rate is already built into their rate .Of course they have to make a profit too otherwise they would not be in business.

I would take cash from the USA and exchange there. Remember that Credit cards from the resort will have a 3% fee on it and also you will pay your bank a conversion fee so the overall may be around 6%. Cash is best..
This is a very difficult time for our family, and we want to thank everyone who has reached out with prayers and support and those who are sharing Dan's story and photo on social media. We are trying to remain optimistic and are hopeful for a positive resolution to this out-of-character disappearance, she said in a statement.
- Jalang'o weight in on the raging debate involving young ladies and the so-called sponsors

- The comedian, on live radio, warned ladies against resorting to older married men for financial favors

- He further explained if ladies must have a sponsor, then they should at least play safe and avoid pregnancy and blackmail

Popular comedian Jalango has weighed in on the unfortunate death of Rongo University student Sharon Otieno even as the online fraternity continues to be divided in opinion on who is to blame in the saga..

There has been heated debate over the past week as prominent personalities have used their platforms to send varying messages on lessons learnt from the brutal murder of the pregnant university student.

Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens

READ ALSO: Picha 11 zinazoonyesha maisha ya kifahari aliyokuwa akiishi Sharon Otieno kabla ya kuuawa

READ ALSO: Police transfer Migori governor's PA Michael Oyamo to Nairobi as public rage heightens in Homa Bay

During a radio show on Milele FM on Tuesday, September 11, Jalango warned young ladies against involving themselves with married older men for financial gain.

While giving his two cents on live radio, the comedian was adamant the issue of sponsors was a reality that needed to be addressed sooner than later.

Sharon Otieno was brutally murdered in what is believed to be foul play after an illicit affair with Migori governor

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: DCI confirms mysterious man who gained access to Governor Obado's PA in cell is KDF officer

The death of Sharon Otieno has become a subject of discussionThis is a message to the ladies that have a sponsor, you have decided that you will have a sponsor, someone elses husband. Its something that is happening, we cannot bury our heads in the sand, sponsors exist. When you have a sponsor, know that you are in a very illicit relationship," he said.

His sentiments are not strange as the question of older men taking advantage of young girls has been a vice that is all too worrying in modern society.

Despite the repercussions of getting involved with aged sometimes married men, the lifestyle only seems to thrive by the day.

Jalang'o is all too familiar of this sad reality and he had some rules of engagement for ladies who are into that sort of lifestyle.

"You are there for the money, get your money and keep quiet without complicating things. Getting pregnant and using blackmail will get you in serious trouble," he went on.

Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news

Teresiah Wambui Story: The Struggles of a Kenyan Woman With Beards - Kenya Untold Stories | Tuko TV:

Source: Tuko
Fear has engulfed Tana River Members of County Assembly (MCAs) after they found a dead cat in the chambers.

On Tuesday, September 11, the MCAs demanded a detailed report from the assembly security department explaining how the cat's carcass found its way into the chambers.

READ ALSO: Baada ya kifo cha Sharon Otieno, Wakenya waorodhesha masharti 10 ya kuzingatia ukiwa na sponsor

Scare and fear has taken control of the Tana River Members of County Assembly (MCAs) after they found a dead cat in the chambers. Photo: UGC

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Tana River man, 25, on spot for impregnating class three pupil

The county Majority Leader Salah Adamo demanded the matter be taken seriously and thorough investigations carried out.

"This matter should not be taken lightly and dismissed like nothing happened. We are worried and we demand a comprehensive explanation and a CCTV footage for us to know what transpired," said Adamo.

READ ALSO: Tana river residents sleep on trees for fear of floodwater

If such animals can get into guarded offices, then there are chances that one can easily plant an explosive in our offices and simply walk away without notice, he added.

The leaders demanded for an explanation from the assembly staff workers to understand how the cat's carcass got through the window grills into the chamber and if they were any more of such animals in the chambers.

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

Fuel shortage in Kenya: GSU officers to escort trucks from depot | Tuko TV

Source: Tuko
- Kuria argued implementation of 16% VAT on fuel would not increase cost of basic commodities

- He said Kenyans must pay taxes if they expected the country to grow economically

- The lawmaker said those who were telling Kenyans not to pay taxes were being unpatriotic

- Members of Parliament had voted to have the new tax law suspended by two years

- Treasury insisted the new tax law must be implemented even after a court suspended it

- Uhuru was expected to assent to the amended tax Bill, failure to which Kenyans would have to pay high new fuel prices

Gatundu South Member of Parliament, Moses Kuria, has told off leaders and Kenyans protesting implementation of the 16% Value Added Tax (VAT) on petroleum products, terming their conduct wrong, unpatriotic and irrational.

Kuria reminded Kenyans that paying taxes was not an option if they expected to see any sort of development taking place in the country.

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READ ALSO: Kenya Motorists Association asks motorists to skip work in protest oh high fuel prices

Gatundu South Member of Parliament, Moses Kuria, rubbished claims the 16% Value Added Tax (VAT) on petroleum products had led to increase in cost of basic commodities. Photo: Citizen TV.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Uproar as ERC releases new fuel prices following new 16% tax law

Appearing on Citizen TV on Tuesday, September 11, the Gatundu South lawmaker sharply disagreed with those who argued the new VAT on fuel would lead to a rise in the cost of basic commodities and eventually cost of living.

"There is no VAT on maize floor and wheat flour. The basic commodities are zero-rated. Even if the VAT is implemented on fuel, the basis consumption products are zero-rated," he said.

READ ALSO: Treasury insists fuel prices will go up despite MPs voting to stop it

Kuria gave a strong indication that President Uhuru Kenyatta would not sign the amended tax Bill that was meant to suspend implementation of the 16% VAT on fuel by two years.

"We are going to pay VAT on fuel. Take this to the bank. For me, taxes are sacred. I am from the philosophical view that kulipa ushuru ni kujitegemea (you pay taxes to be self-reliance). That is what former President Mwai Kibaki taught us," he said.

READ ALSO: Relief for Kenyans as MPs suspend implementation which would have pushed fuel prices up

The president, who jetted out of the country on August 31, left before he could assent to the amended Finance Bill 2018 that had just been passed by Parliament and which sought to suspended the now controversial fuel tax.

According to the amended Bill, the levy on petroleum products was to be suspended for two years following public uproar, but since it was not signed, the National Treasury Cabinet Secretary, Henry Rotich, directed that the new law takes effect from September 1, 2018.

READ ALSO: Yes, it costs KSh 1 billion every month to run Standard Gauge Railway - DP Ruto

Implementation of the 16% VAT on petroleum products saw the cost of fuel significantly go up, leading to increase in the prices of basic commodities across the country.

An attempt by a Bungoma High Court Judge, Stephen Riech, to suspend the levy did not bring any relief, as government authorities continued to implement the new tax law with a litre of petrol retailing at KSh 127 at the minimum.

Uhuru has since returned to the country from China and a section of Kenyans are still hoping he would sign the reviewed tax Bill to reverse the fuel prices.

But Kuria while defending the new tax said millers who had threatened to hike the price of maize flour were being unfair because the items were zero rated and any extra cost they were likely to incur as a result of the VAT was refundable.

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.

Angry Kenyan Sends Message to President Uhuru Kenyatta - On Tuko TV

Source: Tuko
- The Rwandan government said citizens dealing with the company did so at their own risk

- World Ventures was also accused of operating in Rwanda illegally

- Rwanda Development Board said representatives from the company were lying to members of public by claiming they had been authorised by the board

Multilevel travel marketing company, World Ventures, is not welcome in Rwanda after the government said the company has characteristics of a pyramid scheme.

The Rwandan government further warned its citizen against dealing with the company, saying they did so at their own risk.

Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens

READ ALSO: Baada ya kifo cha Sharon Otieno, Wakenya waorodhesha masharti 10 ya kuzingatia ukiwa na sponsor

Rwanda government warns citizen against Wolrd Ventures, terms it a pyramid scheme

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Sharon Otieno will only be buried after her killers are brought to book - Parents

In a letter signed by the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) dated Tuesday, September 11, the board's CEO, Claire Akamanzi, said the marketing company was undertaking its business in Rwanda illegally.

"This company is not registered as a business entity in accordance with the laws of Rwanda," the board said.

"The public is therefore advised to desist from engaging with this company, anyone dealing with them does so at their own risk," Akamanzi added.

READ ALSO: I was not involved in murder of Sharon Otieno - Governor Okoth Obado

According to the board, some representatives from the company were deluding members of public by claiming they had been authorised by the board.

"Having investigated the business model of this company, it is our conclusion that it posses the characteristics of a pyramid scheme. We want to stress to the public that pyramid schemes are not allowed in Rwanda," cautioned the board.

READ ALSO: We are going to pay VAT on fuel, take it to the bank - Moses Kuria

World Ventures is known for its membership of discounted vacation clubs and sales of travel services through multi-level marketing.

Individuals who pay a business opportunity fee to sell the company's products or services are called independent representatives who have now been rejected in Rwanda.

Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko News Tuko news.

Fuel Shortage in Kenya - GSU Officers to Escort Trucks from Depot - On Tuko TV

Source: Kenyan Breaking News
- Obado refuted claims the love affair could have led to Sharon's macabre killing

- The governor was summoned and grilled at DCI Kisumu offices on Tuesday, September 11

- Sharon was kidnapped and later found dead in a thicket in Homa Bay county

- The woman who had separated with her husband allegedly spoke to the county boss six times on the day of her abduction

The romantic affair between Migori Governor Okoth Obado and Sharon Otieno, the murdered Rongo University student, was a matter of public knowledge way back before the woman's photos began circulating online.

Obado's lawyer Cliff Ombeta admitted both the governor and the slain 26-year-old student were people who knew each other well even before she met her death, terming the unfortunate incident a normal weak moment in relationship.

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READ ALSO: Baada ya kifo cha Sharon Otieno, Wakenya waorodhesha masharti 10 ya kuzingatia ukiwa na sponsor

Governor Obado being whisked away from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations offices in Kisumu after interrogation over the death of Sharon Otieno. Photo: Fred Madanje/Facebook.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Migori governor to undergo DNA test in murder probe of expectant university girl linked to him

"They had a relationship that much I can be able to say to that effect, it had been on for sometimes and we cannot deny that. The people in the county knew about it even when the photos were circulating online," Ombeta told KTN News on Wednesday, September 12.

The top criminal counsel however refuted claims the love affair could have led to Sharon's macabre killing and that of her unborn child in the hands of unknown abductors.

"They are people who knew each other and the issue of the relationship was something which was in public knowledge, it was not hidden," he added.

Journalist Barack Oduor implicated Governor Zachary Obado in the case, saying slain Sharon Otieno told him she had been impregnated by the county chief. Photo: Sharon Otieno/Facebook.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Was she raped? Used condom found at Rongo University students murder scene

On Tuesday, September 11, shortly after being grilled by the sleuths from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations in Kisumu over Sharon's death, the governor through his lawyer maintained his innocence even as police continued to hold his aide.

"Obado had to wait to be summoned, he has been summoned. He is avoiding speculations on this and he does not want more. Most of all of course he was not involved in this murder and that is why we are asking for patience ," Ombeta told journalists.

Sharon's body was found dumped in a thicket in Homa Bay county on Tuesday, September 5, a day after she was allegedly kidnapped alongside Nation Media Group correspondent Barrack Oduor.

The government chief pathologist Johansen Oduro confirmed she was stabbed eight times on her neck, back and abdomen and it was also possible she was gang raped.

In a separate news update, Melida Auma Otieno, mother to the slain student confirmed her daughter had a rocky romantic relationship with the governor which was often dogged by empty promises.

Among the promises were county business tenders to the university girl, although the governor never fulfilled his side of the bargain.

Sharon who separated with her husband in January 2018, allegedly spoke to the county boss six times on the day of her abduction.

She is also said to have texted him at around 8pm demanding to know why things were not working out as they had planned.

However, speaking to Citizen TV on Wednesday 5, Migori County communications officer, Nicholas Anyuor, termed the allegations that her boss impregnated and abandoned the deceased student unsubstantiated.

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- Baby Emmanuel was found by a local resident who was tending his farm

- The farmer recorded statement with police officers and was asked to go back with the baby

- The good Samaritan is struggling to take care of the baby as she already has seven other kids of her own

A village in Kisumu county is still reeling in shock and disbelief after a little baby boy was found dumped by her mother inside a Muhoroni sugarcane plantation.

According to the Good Samaritan by the name Joyce who is now taking care of the little Emmanuel Moses, the baby was found by a local resident who was tending to his farm on Saturday, August 4.

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READ ALSO: Baada ya kifo cha Sharon Otieno, Wakenya waorodhesha masharti 10 ya kuzingatia ukiwa na sponsor

Baby Emmanuel Moses was found by a local resident who was attending to his farm on Saturday, August 4. Photo: Eunice Awuor/Facebook.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Esther Passaris visits her former house help who is now a landlady in Kisumu

The farmer informed his neighbours together with whom they alerted the area chief who took the baby through the help of Joyce to a police station.

Joyce and the farmer recorded the statement with police officers and were asked to go back with the minor until the biological mother is found.

Sources told TUKO.co.ke St Vincent Mission Hospital offered him free medication and free milk for six months.

The Good Samaritan, a widow, is struggling to take care of the baby as she already has seven others of her own to support.

In the meantime, Joyce is now appealing to members of the public and any wellwisher to come through for the little angel since Emmanuel needs special care.

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- Oyamo was arrested on Tuesday, September 4, as key suspect in murder of Rongo University student

- He was freed for a few minutes on Tuesday, September 11, by Homa Bay police but was rearrested and transferred to Nairobi

- Oyamo faced a murder charge but was not required to take plea

Migori Governor Zachary Obado's Personal Assistant Michael Oyamo will have to spend more days in police custody to help detectives complete probe in the murder of Rongo University student Sharon Otieno.

This, after the High Court in Nairobi allowed police to detain Oyamo who was arrested on Tuesday, September 4, as the key suspect in the gory decimation of a pregnant Sharon.

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READ ALSO: Baada ya kifo cha Sharon Otieno, Wakenya waorodhesha masharti 10 ya kuzingatia ukiwa na sponsor

The High Court has ordered Migori Governor's PA Michael Oyamo to be detained for 14 more days. Photo: Daily Nation.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: I was not involved in murder of Sharon Otieno - Governor Okoth Obado

Judge Luka Kimaru sitting at the High Court in Milimani ruled the suspect be held at Muthaiga police station for a fortnight as requested by the prosecution.

"The accused will remain detained for 14 more days to help police conclude investigations. He will also be given opportunity every day to meet with his lawyers in case he wants to," read Kimaru.

Oyamo was arraigned at a Homa Bay court on Monday, September 10, but did not take plea, with Senior Resident Magistrate Lester Simiyu ordering police to produce him in court on Tuesday, September 11, with ready charges or release him unconditionally.

Migori governor's Personal Assistant Michael Oyamo was arrested on Tuesday, September 4 over alleged involvement in the murder of Rongo University student Sharon Otieno. Photo: The Star.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: We are going to pay VAT on fuel, take it to the bank - Moses Kuria

TUKO.co.ke understands Oyamo was released by police on Tuesday but was immediately rearrested by other officers who transferred him to Nairobi.

He was presented before the High Court in Milimani where he faced a charge of murder.

The governor's aide was accused of murdering Sharon together with other suspects on the night of Monday, September 3, in Owande area, Homa Bay county.

Oyamo was however, not required to plead to the charge as he was required to continue helping police officers with investigations, having led them to arrest two other suspects on Saturday, September 8.

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- The United States threatened to arrest International Criminal Court (ICC) judges

- Washington warned it would not allow ICC judges to open probe into US war crimes in Afghanistan

- Kenyas Leader of Majority waded into the debate saying the US had vindicated Jubilees position on ICC

- According to Duale, the US had realised Kenya was right that ICC was an illegitimate institution

National Assembly Majority leader Aden Duale has poured cold water on the International Criminal court, terming it illegitimate.

Duale, in a tweet seen by TUKO.CO.KE, openly expressed contentment at the fact that several ICC officers were facing sanctions and prosecution.

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It is now confirmed that ICC is an illegitimate court. A political instrument used by Europeans. We are vindicated, his tweet read.

READ ALSO: How DNA analysis will help unravel mysterious murder of Sharon Otieno

READ ALSO: Baada ya kifo cha Sharon Otieno, Wakenya waorodhesha masharti 10 ya kuzingatia ukiwa na sponsor

The ICC has been out of favor particularly in Africa in recent years, with the African Union (AU) at some point urging member countries to pull out of the international court.

One reason the AU wanted African nations out of The Hague-based court was because it has in recent times been harassing Africans.

It has not been well for the ICC outside Africa either as Washington has threatened to impose sanctions and prosecute judges if Americans are prosecuted for crimes in Afghanistan.

Duale believes the US threatening sanctions on the ICC shows the court's illegitimacy

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Curvy radio girl Nzula Makosi to make comeback on TV

The emerging wrangle between the ICC and the US has seen nations like France and Germany rally behind the Hague-based court even as the White House National Security Advisor John Bolton declared the court "dead" to the US.

Kenyans were also critical of the ICC especially after the case against President Uhuru Kenyatta in 2013 when he was accused alongside DP William Ruto for having a hand in the 2007/2008 post poll violence.

Their cases were terminated for lack of enough evidence.

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Teresiah Wambui Story: The Struggles of a Kenyan Woman With Beards - Kenya Untold Stories | Tuko TV:

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- Johnston Kavuludi said the Commission had not issued its End of Term report

- He said Uhuru had not usurped the Commission's powers as reported by one of the local dailies

- Kavuludi also denied report the Commission had recommended the president should be stripped of power to appoint IG

The National Police Service Commission has dismissed a damning report by one of the local dailies alleging President Uhuru Kenyatta has usurped powers of the Commission and was a huge impediment to police reforms.

The Commission clarified it had not issued its End of Term Report and wondered where the one that was being referred to in a story published on the front page of the Star newspaper on Wednesday, September 12, had come from.

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READ ALSO: Baada ya kifo cha Sharon Otieno, Wakenya waorodhesha masharti 10 ya kuzingatia ukiwa na sponsor

National Police Service Commission Johnston Kavuludi on Wednesday, September 12, dismissed media report that President Uhuru Kenyatta was frustrating police reforms. Photo: CapitalFM.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Uhuru fires Director of Criminal Investigation Ndegwa Muhoro

Addressing the press, chairman, Johnston Kavuludi, said the story by the mentioned local daily was fabricated, malicious, misleading and therefore should be ignored in its entirety.

"The Commission's End of Term Report purportedly being referred to by the newspaper has not been issued by the Commission. The Report can only be issued after it has been authorised for publication by the Commission and presented to His Excellence the President as per the requirements of the Constitution," Kavuludi said.

READ ALSO: Uhuru kicks out cabinet secretaries as he announces new names

He also denied the Commission had recommended amendments to the National Police Service Commission Act and the National Police Service Act to give their successors power to recruit the Inspector General of Police and his or her two deputies without involving the preisdent.

"Such a recommendation would in fact be contrary to the Constitution as Article 245 stipulates that the Inspector General shall be appointed by the President with approval of Parliament," he said.

READ ALSO: Police officer shoots dead girlfriend at police station in Naivasha

He pointed out the appointments of the Inspector General and the Deputy Inspectors General, including the current office holders, were done in strict conformity with the Constitution.

"The newspaper report clearly is geared to bring the Commission into disrepute and to place the Commission at logger-heads with H.E the President and the rest of Government," Kavuludi said.

The Commission penned a letter to the Media Council of Kenya for appropriate action against the newspaper which published the alleged fake report.

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When Uhuru, Ruto and Raila Met at State House - On Tuko TV

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- Matiangi said the instant fines will save the government from spending on the offenders while in custody

- He said the penalties will save many motorists and pedestrians from serving jail terms

- The High Court ruled on Monday, September 10, that petty traffic offenders will no longer be arrested

- The offenders will pay instant fines of between KSh 500 to KSh 10,000 depending on the offense

Interior Cabinet Secretary, Fred Matiang'i has weighed in on the High Court's ruling on instant fines for minor traffic offenders instead of having them put in custody.

According to the CS, the government ends up spending an average of KSh 24,000 of tax payers money on each of the minor offenders in custody.

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READ ALSO: Sharon Otieno will only be buried after her killers are brought to book - Parents

Instant traffic fines to save hundreds of Kenyans from avoidable jail terms - Fred Matiang'i

Source: Twitter

READ ALSO: Rwanda government warns citizens against World Ventures, terms it a pyramid scheme

Speaking during the launch of a policing app at the Kenya School of Government on Wednesday, September 12, Matiangi said it was pointless to have people in custody for months for an offense which would have attracted a fine.

"Sixty per cent of people in remand are traffic offenders and it doesn't make economic sense for someone attracting a fine of KSh 6,000 to remain in custody as by the time they pay the fine like after six months, they have squandered KSh 24,000 of tax payers money," said Matiangi

The CS also said the police service was in the process of decriminalising some traffic offenses and that it was looking forward to implementing the instant fines to save Kenyans from serving jail terms

READ ALSO: Traffic offenders to start paying instant fines of up to KSh 10K in latest court ruling

Instant traffic fines to save hundreds of Kenyans from avoidable jail terms - Fred Matiang'i

Source: Twitter

His sentiments came after the High Court on Monday, September 10, ruled offenders will pay instant fines, dismissing a case which was filed by a matatu trade union in 2016 to challenge the implementation.

The ruling will see traffic offenders pay instant fines ranging between KSh 500 and KSh 10,000 depending on the offense varying from talking on phone while driving to speeding.

The offenders will only be issued with notice to appear in court instead of being arrested when necessary.

READ ALSO: Photo emerge of Nairobi MCAs getting intoxicated before terrorising Speaker Beatrice Elachi

Instant traffic fines to save hundreds of Kenyans from avoidable jail terms - Fred Matiang'i

Source: UGC

The new regulations will not spare pedestrians either as they will be required to pay KSh 500 for obstructing free passage of vehicles, which will discourage crossing roads at non-designated places.

Touts fond of hanging on doors of PSV vehicles will be fined KSh 1,000 for leaving a part of their body outside a moving vehicle.

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The Delutris already operate three restaurants, including one in southwest suburban Bridgeview, and they say they have dreams of opening up to five or six more restaurants across the Chicago metropolitan area.
- KFCB Chairman Ezekiel Mutua said the content of the program should be examined

- Gikuyu TV was accused of not adhering to the watershed period in airing the show

- The programme is usually dominated by action movies with a narration by DJ Afro

- Vulgar language in the show is common where Afro describes sexual scenes

Amid intense complaints from viewers over DJ Afro's Kimonda programme that airs in Gikuyu TV, the Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) has now suspended the session.

The KFCB E Chairman Ezekiel Mutua temporarily stopped airing of the show until after the content is examined and classified for airing in respect to watershed hours.

READ ALSO: Ezekiel Mutua accused of overstepping his mandate

KFCB Chairman Ezekiel Mutua said the content of the programme should be examined. Photo: UGC

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Kenya's moral policeman, Ezekiel Mutua, among top 100 most reputable African

Speaking after a meeting with Gikuyu TV general manager James Mungai, Mutua said they resolved the TV pulls down all unclassified content from the programme and to adhere to the watershed hours.

"The rationale behind content regulation is to promote Kenyas culture, moral values and national aspirations and to ensure that children are protected from premature exposure to harmful and adult content,"said Mutua.

The watershed period which is recommended by KFCB for airing content suitable for family viewing starts at 5am to 10pm.

Ezekiel Mutua in a meeting with Gikuyu TV Management. Photo: Twitter / @InfoKfcb

Source: Twitter

READ ALSO: Kenya's moral police,Ezekiel Mutua, puts citizen TV on notice over obscene programing

"The law protects children from exposure to harmful programs or adverts during prime time and when they are most likely to watch TV or listen to radio," said the chairman.

Kimonda show usually runs on the television during day time with a narration of DJ Afro on action movies.

The use of vulgar language in the programme is very common especially where Afro describes sexual scenes in the movies.

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- Obado said he had absolutely nothing to do with the murder of Sharon Otieno

- The governor addressed the media for the first time since the body of Sharon was discovered at K'Odera forest

- He was accompanied by his wife and two of their children

- Obado called on politicians to stop issuing statements incriminating him and allow investigators ample time

- He pledged to cooperate with investigators and called for speedy conclusion of the matter

Migori Governor Zachary Okoth Obado has reiterated he has absolutely nothing to do with murder of Rongo University student Sharon Otieno and event sent a message of condolence to her family.

Speaking to the media for the first time since the body of Sharon, who was allegedly in an affair with him, was found in K'Odera forest on Wednesday, September 5, Obado said he was innocent and the matter had also traumatised his family.

READ ALSO: Migori governor admits to having an affair with murdered Rongo University student

Migori Governor Okoth Obado said he had absolutely nothing to do with the murder of Sharon Otieno and appealed on politicians to stop proclamations criminalising him. Photo: Edwin Ochieng/TUKO.co.ke

Source: Original

READ ALSO: I was not involved in murder of Sharon Otieno - Governor Okoth Obado

Speaking to the press in Nairobi on Wednesday, September 12, Obado who was accompanied with his wife Hellen Obado, two of their children and county staff, appealed to politicians to stop incriminating him and allow investigative agencies time to do their work.

"I appeal to politicians and the media to stop issuing medieval punishment on this matter. I have nothing and absolutely nothing to do with the killing of Sharon. Kindly allow investigators ample time to do their work so that real killers of Sharon can be brought to book," he said.

Obado said he came forth with his family because the issue had traumatised all of them and sall he wanted was for justice to be done expeditiously.

Migori Governor Okoth Obado called on investigating agencies involved in the matter to move with speed. Photo: Edwin Ochieng/TUKO.co.ke

Source: Original

READ ALSO: MPs opposing 16% fuel levy are hypocrites - Government spokesman

"We are with my family today because we are distressed with this matter hata usingizi hakuna (we have hardly slept). I am a law abiding citizen and I had nothing to do with the cruel death of Sharon. I will help to the best level with the probe. All agencies involved in investigating the matter should move with speed," said the governor.

He thanked his family, supporters and well-wishers for standing by him during the tough times when he was adversely mentioned in the incident.

Obado was summoned and grilled by officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in Kisumu on Tuesday, September 11 and even confessed he had an affair with Sharon.

He was later flown to Nairobi for further grilling.

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Teresiah Wambui Story: The Struggles of a Kenyan Woman With Beards - Kenya Untold Stories | Tuko TV

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- Kenya could suffer the same fate as Sri Lanka should it fail to pay money owed to Beijing

- The country owes China over KSh 479 billion with another KSh 380 billion loan being negotiated

- The country is yet to pay KSh 320 billion used to construct the first phase of the SGR line

- China had promised to cancel loans for some of the poor African countries

- Botswana, which owed China KSh 740 million, is set to become first beneficiary of the write-off

- China may not extend the same favour to Kenya because it is not among the poorest countries in Africa

- In 2017, Sri-Lanka was forced to hand over its port to China after failing to pay debt

China has made the first major step towards fulfilling its promise to cancel bad debts for some of the poorest African countries struggling with huge foreign loans.

Beijing is set to write off KSh 740 million loan it had extended to Botswana but also agreed to give the country another loan for its rail and infrastructure development projects.

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READ ALSO: China's KSh 6 trillion investment pledge to Africa raises eyebrows

The KSh 6 trillion additional investment pledge would go towards infrastructure development in Africa under the now controversial multi-billion dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: We are slowly selling Kenya to the Chinese - Senator Mutula Kilonzo

Speaking to journalists on Saturday, September 8, upon arrival from the China-Africa Forum for Cooperation 2018 Summit, Botswana's President Mokgweetsi Masisi said he had secured KSh 3.1 billion from China.

I am happy to report that, judging from what President Xi Jinping told me, we were successful, he said.

Masisi further revealed China also agreed to write off Botswana's debts, except he did not explain how the country was going to pay the new loan if it could not settle the first debt of KSh 740 million.

Were there strings attached to the loans?

READ ALSO: Why Standard Gauge Railway Is A Grand Corruption Scheme

Addressing the China-Africa Summit, President Xi Jinping assured African leaders China was ready to support the continent not just with an additional KSh 6 trillion investment cash but also by writing off loans for poor African economies, with no strings attached.

"China's investment in Africa comes with no political strings attached. Our 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 told the summit attended by 53 African heads of state.

READ ALSO: Yes, it costs KSh 1 billion every month to run Standard Gauge Railway - DP Ruto

Xi dismissed those accusing Beijing of overburdening African countries with unsustainable debts, which appeared to be the case.

If all the borrowers were able to pay back their loans, then China would not resort to cancelling debts.

The world has not forgotten Sri-Lanka was in December 2017 forced to hand over Hambantota Port to China after the South Asian country failed to pay back a loan estimated at more than KSh 800 billion owed to Beijing, the New York Times reported.

In Kenya, there is growing concern over the Jubilee government's huge appetite for Chinese loans.

The country's total debt owed to China had risen to over KSh 479 billion, about 66% of the countrys bilateral debt, as of 2017.

READ ALSO: Kenya Railways initiates investigations into mistreatment of SGR staff by Chinese bosses

Kenya is yet to repay KSh 320 billion borrowed from China's ExportImport Bank of the United States (Exim), and which was used to construct the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) between Nairobi and Mombasa.

TUKO.co.ke established there was a plan to take another Chinese loan of KSh 380 billion for construction of phase two of the SGR connecting Naivasha and Kisumu.

Although the government insisted phase one of the SGR would start generating profit by 2020 and pay back its own loan, critics like David Ndii, an economist, have repeatedly disagreed with that position.

"We evaluate investment development projects based on four criteria. First, would it make money? Second, will the economic benefits exceed cost? Third, would it promote equity? And lastly, would it be sustainable? The SGR failed on all four parameters," Ndii argued.

If Kenya, which is ranked among the wealthiest countries in Africa, fails to pay the piling Chinese debts, then the country could end up losing one of its assets, just like Sri-Lanka.

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Jalango's Top Success Tips - On Tuko TV

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- The bodyguard was remanded at the Gulu main prison until Monday, October 1

- He was picked by plain clothe police officers barely days after Bobi Wine was arrested

Embattled Kyadondo MP Bobi Wine's bodyguard and a driver have found themselves on the wrong side of the law.

The two were on Monday, September 10, charged with treason, days after they were arrested under mysterious circumstances.

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READ ALSO: Celebrated reggae group Morgan Heritage honours tortured Ugandan MP Bobi Wine with new song

READ ALSO: Bobi Wine's bodyguard goes missing after being picked up by security officers

TUKO.co.ke learnt the two, Sebuufu Edward, known to many as Eddie Mutwe and Musa Senyange who is Wine's aide were slapped with the charges for allegedly blocking a presidential motorcade using an excavator.

The two were arraigned before Justice Ssekaana Musa who passed the judgement and ordered they be remanded at the Gulu main prison until Monday, October 1.

READ ALSO: Bobi Wine rearrested shortly after Museveni drops charges against him

As reported by TUKO.co.ke earlier Mutwe and Musa went missing on Friday, August 24, just a day after Wine was released from detention and rearrested seconds later.

According to reliable sources, Mutwe was picked from Red Pocket Pub, Kampala, by plain clothes Ugandan police officers at night.

READ ALSO: Kampala on lockdown as Bobi Wine's trial begins

Unconfirmed reports also intimated the driver was also picked by the same people hours after Mutwe's predicament.

The charges against the two were pressed just days after Wine was finally released and flown to the US for treatment following the alleged brutal torture in the hands of Ugandan soldiers.

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Ex-Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero Arraigned in Court Over Corruption Charges - On Tuko TV

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- A strange disease has left a family in Malava, Kakamega in financial distress

- The mysterious disease has left a 10-year-old boy with deformities on his body

- He is currently at Aga Khan hospital in Nairobi where the family is unable to carter for the bill

The family of 10-year-old Ayub Masitsa from Butali, Chegulo Ward in Kakamega county is in agony after he was left with deformities following a strange illness.

The minor is currently undergoing treatment at Aga Khan hospital in Nairobi in effort to unravel what plagues him.

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READ ALSO: Woman whose husband was pushed from balcony by lover denies involvement in murder

The 10-year-old boy is currently undergoing treatment at Aga Khan hospital.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Migori governor admits to having an affair with murdered Rongo University student

TUKO.co.ke understands Ayub is set to undergo CT scan and RMI which may amount to KSh 120,000.

He, however, comes from a humble background with one of the parents living with a disability hence in need of financial support.

READ ALSO: KCB, Equity, Cooperative and StanChart banks fined KSh 393 million for facilitating NYS season 2

The 10-year-old boy is currently undergoing treatment at Aga Khan hospital.

Source: UGC

The family is calling on well wishers to help them raise the funds so the young boy can undergo full treatment.

Kindly let's help the boy get the necessary treatment by contributing towards Ayub Masitsa Medical Bill via Mpesa-0727536563.

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William Ruto and Anne Waiguru: Will They Come To Power In Kenya in 2022. On Tuko TV.

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- African countries are in top 16 with highest HIV prevalence among those aged 15-49

- Somalia has the lowest HIV prevalence among adults with a score of 0.4

- Uganda ranked number 10 with a score of 6.5 and Tanzania number 13 with 4.7

Kenyans should be worried on the level of HIV/AIDS prevalence among citizens that has led to the country being ranked number 12 among the leading countries in the world with the highest level of infection.

The level of HIV infection among Kenyan adults (aged 15- 49) is rated at 5.4%, slightly lower than neighboring Uganda with a score of 6.5 % at number 10.

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READ ALSO: Knowing these 10 early signs of HIV can save your life

Kenya ranked number 12 in the World in terms of adult HIV/AIDS infections. Photo: UGC

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Government bans use of HIV drug in Kenya and TUKO.co.ke has the details

In the statistics by Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook, African countries were ranked in the top 16 positions with the highest rate of HIV infections among adults as at January 2018.

Swaziland leads the chart with an HIV prevalence of 27. followed by Lesotho at 25, Botswana at 21.9, South Africa at 18.9 and Namibia closes the top five with a prevalence of 13.8.

READ ALSO: Nairobi tops counties with scary new HIV infection statistics

Interestingly, Kenya is followed closely by Tanzania which comes at number 13 with a prevalence of 4.7.

Surprisingly, neighboring Somalia is ranked among countries with the lowest level of HIV infections with a score of 0.4 being ranked at number 99, with Niger and Senegal with the same score.

TUKO.co.ke advises the unmarried to abstain from sex until marriage or if you must have sex before marriage, then use a condom.

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Phenny Awiti Story: Meet HIV Positive Mom Raising HIV Negative Kids | Tuko TV

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- Wycliffe Wangamati has fallen out of favour with local political leadership

- The governor has been facing opposition from most of the MCAs who say he is a failure

- They claim the governor has failed in initiating development projects for the border county

Bungoma Governor Wycliffe Wangamati's woes have taken a new twist after a resounding 42 out of 63 Members of County Assembly (MCAs) signed a petition to kick him out of office.

The politicians also snubbed a special sitting of the Assembly on Wednesday, September 12, paralysing the intended approval of the names of chief officers and other county staff for vetting.

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Bungoma MCA's demonstrate against governor Wangamati. Photo: Adrian Sakwa.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Doctors perform first open-heart surgery in western Kenya

Led by Tuti Marakaru Ward MCA Joseph Nyongesa and his Saboti counterpart Wamusai Simiyu, the leaders claimed Wangamati had failed the county as he had not initiated even a single development project since he took over office in 2017.

They blamed the county boss of appointing his cronies and setting them up for rejection by the electorate in Bungoma county.

The move came barely a day after the MCAs took to the streets to protest over what they termed as a poor development record by Wangamati.

According to earlier reports, the Ford Kenya governor had said his government has disbursed KSh 34 million to every ward for development.

READ ALSO: Raila pays last respect to Kofi Annan with his signature one hand in the air

However, Nyongesa rubbished off the claims.

He is setting us up against the public. We are going to ensure he leaves office before he brings us down, he said.

However, the governor through his communication team rubbished the impeachment threats as cheap politics.

For a governor to be thrown out of office, it requires two-thirds of all MCAs to support a notice presented to the County Assembly Speaker.

In this case, the notice has met the required threshold after 42 of the MCAs appended their signatures.

The county Speaker is then expected to inform Speaker of the Senate within two days.

The Senate may then through a resolution appoint an 11-member committee to investigate the matter in line with the County Governments Act.

READ ALSO: Nairobi MCAs ignore summonses by EACC over impeachment of speaker, proceed on retreat

The committee is expected to report back to the Senate within 10 days on whether the allegations against the governor have weight or not.

During the committees investigations, the governor is then accorded time to defend himself, a report which would be used by the senators to make a decision.

Should majority of the senators vote for the governors removal, the county boss then ceases to hold the office.

It remains to be seen how Lusaka will handle the matter once it reaches his office bearing in mind the two are political rivals.

Wangamati beat Lusaka during the 2017 gubernatorial race.

Story by Enock Ndayala, Correspondent.

Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news.

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On that day, America saw firsthand the heroism of firefighters and police officers, Oak Lawn Fire Chief Michael Mavrogeorge said of 9/11. On that day, America realized that it truly is not about what your firefighters and police officers do for you every day, it is about what your firefighters and police officers are willing to do for you on any day.
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Ukrainian producers and exporters are invited to participate in an agricultural exhibition in Turkey.

This was reported by the press service of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine.

"On September 26-30, the fourth Agriculture, Husbandry and Technology Exhibition will take place in the Turkish city of Samsun. The exhibition is organized by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the city of Samsun together with TUYAP," the report reads.

Sectoral discussion and business meetings in B2B format are envisaged within the framework of the exhibition on September 27-28.

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The Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company (SALIC) has acquired a large Ukrainian farming company Mriya Agro Holding, thus signing the largest contract in the agricultural sector in the history of Ukraine's independence.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said this at a ceremony on signing the contract between Mriya Farming PLC and SALIC, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"SALIC's decision to buy Mriya Agro Holding is an extremely important event and demonstrates the willingness of foreign investors to invest money in Ukraine, dramatic changes in the investment climate and investors' attitude towards our state," Poroshenko said.

According to him, SALIC is the property of the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, and today it is one of the world's largest investors in the field of agricultural business.

The president emphasized that SALIC's contract with Mriya is the largest contract, the largest purchase in the agricultural sector in the history of independent Ukraine, and, in general, the first investment in the Ukrainian economy of "such a scale" after the beginning of Russian aggression in 2014.

"This contract does not involve the purchase of Ukrainian land. It involves the purchase of Ukrainian assets, raising the level of investment in the Ukrainian agricultural sector and raising the level of technologies that are now coming to Ukraine," Poroshenko said.

The head of state added that these foreign investment would promote the increase of crop yield, export, receipt of foreign exchange earnings in Ukraine, and the creation of new high-paying jobs.

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The first IKEA store in Ukraine will be located at the Ocean Mall shopping and entertainment center in Kyiv and will open in 2019.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said this at a meeting with representatives of IKEA Southeast Europe on Wednesday, the press service of the city authorities said.

"I welcome IKEA's decision to open its first store in Ukraine. I'm also glad that this first store will be located in the capital - in Kyiv. We worked together to realize this idea. We met last year in Davos and at the end of last year here in Kyiv. I am glad that cooperation has come to the stage of implementation," the mayor said.

Klitschko said that the Kyiv authorities had made significant efforts to attract investors and foreign companies to the city market. In particular, the openness and transparency of all management processes in the capital was introduced. The mayor also said that the local authorities would continue to work to simplify the conditions for doing business.

"Today, we are minimizing bureaucratic processes and eliminating administrative barriers so that business could feel the support of local authorities. We are interested in the successful work of IKEA in the capital, since the company is popular in Ukraine, offers affordable products, and provides high-quality service. We hope that you will soon open a second [store], and later more stores in Kyiv and other cities of Ukraine," Klitschko said.

He said that residents of Kyiv were waiting for opening of the first IKEA store in Ukraine, because they have already appreciated the goods offered by the company. However, due to its absence in the Ukrainian market, they were forced to use the services of intermediaries who deliver products to the country.

IKEA will open its first store of a new urban format in Kyiv in 2019. This will be one of the first IKEA stores of this kind in the world. The Kyiv store will be located in the Ocean Mall shopping center. The center is to be opened in 2019 next to the Ocean Plaza shopping mall.

Ukraine will become one of the first markets, along with France, Britain, Denmark, the United States and China, on which IKEA will open a store in a new format. This will be an IKEA store smaller in size and located in the central part of the city, with the possibility of ordering goods online.

IKEA Southeast Europe also implements IKEA's retail strategy in Croatia, Serbia, Romania and Slovenia. IKEA Southeast Europe is part of the IKEA Group (Ingka Holding B.V.).

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The Ukrainian Embassy in Bulgaria condemned the illegal visit of several Bulgarian politicians and journalists to the occupied Crimea to attend a Week of Bulgarian Culture held on September 7-11.

This was stated in a statement by the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Bulgaria, published on its Facebook page.

"The Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Bulgaria categorically condemns the illegal visit to the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea by the representatives of the Ataka Party and the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), as well as some journalists and public figures. The Russian occupation authorities cynically use ethnic Bulgarians in Crimea and their historical ties with their homeland to carry out a hybrid campaign aimed at legitimizing the occupation of the peninsula. The proof of this is the holding of the Bulgarian Culture Week in occupied Crimea on September 7-11, which the delegation from the Republic of Bulgaria visited," the report reads.

The embassy reminded that according to the Ukrainian legislation, entry and exit of foreigners to the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea are allowed only by special permission of the competent authorities of Ukraine through checkpoints of entry and exit, and administrative and criminal liability is provided for violation of the established procedure.

The Ukrainian Embassy urged all citizens and representatives of all branches of power and political parties of the Republic of Bulgaria to refrain from visiting the occupied Crimea, as well as contacts with the illegal occupation authorities of the peninsula.

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Ways of possible Russian interference in the 2019 Ukraines elections

"If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck  its a duck. If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck and denies its a duck  its a Russian duck." This joke about Russian foreign policy is making rounds in Western social media for some time already. It emerged in response to numerous sloppy refutations of evident facts that Moscow has produced in the latest years. Starting with the Russian forces, which "weren't in Crimea" and "are not present in the Donbas," and up to the tragic Malaysian flight MH17 "downed" by Ukrainian pilot Voloshyn which was "confirmed" by air controller Carlos, with the Russian meddling in the U.S. elections, which "never happened"; starting with "Brexit" and up to the poisoning of Skripals and chemical attacks in Syria. "Never trust anything before the Kremlin denied it," another joke goes.

However, we must admit that the policy of interference and denial is a powerful Russian tool, which shouldn't be underestimated. It's easier for those who ignore the rules than for those who follow them. Therefore, Ukraine has to prepare for a possible Russian interference in the 2019 Ukraine's elections. It could be not only of a size of the Kremlin's meddling in the U.S. and other Western countries, but actually larger. Given how much, in Moscow's view, is at stake in the upcoming electoral round in Ukraine.

WHY HACKING COMPUTERS IF ONE CAN HACK VOTERS?

In the XXI century, specialists are busy trying to protect computers from hacking that can damage infrastructure, steal sensitive information, rob bank accounts. They admit it is almost impossible to fully secure a computer. Now it appears something is much easier and cheaper to hack. That something is voters' consciousness.

On July 13, 2018 the U.S. special prosecutor Robert Mueller indicted twelve Russians for interfering in the 2016 U.S. elections. According to reports by American intelligence community, Moscow undertook an unprecedented operation of influence on American public opinion. It had been as early as two years before the voting day that the Kremlin started analyzing the American segment of social networks. Mueller's investigation calls this campaign a years-long multimillion operation of hundreds of people.

During the campaign, Kremlin has spent a staggering $1.25 million per month on ads in social media, which has been targeting carefully selected audiences of Americans and mainly consisted of a devastating critic of the then-candidate Hillary Clinton and praise to the then-candidates Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders. To do that, they created fake accounts posing as Americans (which is a direct violation of Facebook's rules). Using those pages, Russians have not only posted memes and articles from Russian sources, but also called on the U.S. citizens to take to the streets and protest. Notably, both before and after the elections, Russian "Americans" would pose both as supporters of Donald Trump and his critics. At least one case is known when two demonstrations by Kremlin-controlled groups of opposite sympathies appointed their "protests" at the same time and place. Much more than supporting a specific candidate, Moscow primarily wanted and still wants rivalry in the adversary's society, deepening divides and destabilization.

What Kremlin did in Ukrainian segment of social networks is remarkably similar to what it did in the U.S. It was back in 2016 when journalists of Texty.org.ua made a thorough research revealing a network of Kremlin bots in the Ukrainian Facebook segment. It consisted of approximately 2,000 accounts of trolls, who posed as Ukrainian patriots and incited protests with an aim to overthrow the government. It was led by a man who called himself Stepan Mazura  an alleged patriot in the web, and a militant of the Russian occupational administration "DPR" in Donetsk in his real life. The difference between Ukraine and the U.S. is only in the fact that in the United States the Kremlin managed to achieved some result, while in Ukraine it failed to do so until now.

UKRAINE AND THE WEST  FRIENDS IN NEED?

American and Ukrainian examples are just on the surface. The Kremlin-octopus has much more tentacles reaching minds in other countries. In the latest years, Moscow's interference in foreign public opinion in wake of important votes has been seen in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Austria, Moldova, Bulgaria. Having such a wide range at hand it is already possible to define typical topics and methods which the Kremlin uses to influence voters of other countries. Russian duck is still a Russian duck. Even if the Kremlin denies. Especially if the Kremlin denies!

Next year in Ukraine will kick off with the presidential election and conclude with the parliamentary one. The worst thing Ukrainians could do now is to proclaim themselves experts on Russian influence operations and meet the worst scenarios in their warm bath. On the contrary, a thorough research of Russian influence operations in other countries can help avoid or limit threats which lie ahead for Ukraine. Because awareness is the best tool of protection against covert influence operations. Kremlin's tentacles act only where they can proceed unnoticed. Furthermore, Americans, having their own bitter experience behind, are now proposing Ukraine help in countering possible Russian interference in the 2019 elections. It was mentioned at the recent press conference of Valeriy Chaly, the Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S. A week ago, Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko and U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker discussed the topic at their recent meeting in Washington.

Ukraine could also face some new Russian influence operations. Kremlin shouldn't be underestimated. They learn well from their own mistakes and develop their tools constantly, throwing away those that have been exposed and lost their influence, developing new ones.

EXPERTS: ENTIRE ARSENAL OF RUSSIAN METHODS OF INFLUENCE WILL BE USED IN UKRAINIAN ELECTIONS

Yuriy Karin, coordinator of the Ukrainian Information Resistance group, is confident that the Kremlin puts everything at stake in the upcoming Ukrainian elections. "As they understood they can't solve the problem of 'bringing back Ukraine' with military means only, they decided to play the 'hybrid scenario.' Needs to be mentioned, that there will be much more tools of influence on electoral process used in Ukraine than it was used in the U.S. or in the EU. They will apply literally all hybrid tools  from financial and informational support for the pro-Russian candidate till escalations at the frontline with critical losses or encirclements in result," Karin said in an exclusive comment to Ukrinform. It's important to mention that elections in Ukraine differ significantly from other elections in the Western countries, because they will be held at times of a real war in the country.

Jakub Janda, executive director of the European Values think-tank in the Czech Republic, specifies on the arsenal of tools of influence that Russians may use to manipulate Ukrainian electoral process. "The obvious tactics is use of reflexive control operations, basically tailor-made activities which aim at triggering expected reactions of selected segments of the Ukrainian society. There will be the usual disinformation, black PR against specific candidates, fake or staged protests. The direct Russian role might be expected in hacking some parts of the IT systems and electoral infrastructure to strengthen the perception of chaos and Ukrainian state allegedly failing," Janda told Ukrinform in an exclusive comment. He predicts that an American scenario can be implemented in Ukraine too, when Russian hackers will steal internal documents of one of the candidates and dump it into the net, or will previously manipulate and publish them then. He agrees with Yuriy Karin that an element of a direct military pressure could be applied too: "Russian puppet terrorists in the East will also increase their activities to keep the pressure up," he says.

Alex Kokcharov, Principal Research Analyst on Europe & CIS of the UK-based IHS Markit, is specifying on exact thin spots where Russia could apply its military pressure: "Russia will be likely to use a combination of various methods, from military intimidation in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov areas and controlled military re-escalations along the line of contact (LoC) in Donetsk and Luhansk regions to information campaigns (misinformation and disinformation) and even cyberattacks," he told Ukrinform when reached for an exclusive comment. Kokcharov echoes Janda's words when he predicts: "Russia will likely use its information resources to support its preferred candidates during the election and to damage the reputations of their adversaries. Russia is likely to use trade disputes to disrupt normal trade flows or to cause production stoppages at key employers (factories, ports, mines, etc) which would spark protests and civil unrest. Cyberattacks would target information warfare (stealing and publishing sensitive information which would damage the Kremlin's adversaries) and potentially even critical national infrastructure (power grids, water supply, etc)  with an aim to also trigger civil unrest."

DO RUSSIANS WANT WAR? THEY WANT MORE

To counter those threats, it is important to understand which strategic aims does the Kremlin have and try to achieve in the 2019 Ukrainian elections.

Yuriy Karin describes a scenario, which the Kremlin would prefer the most (and thus the most disastrous one for Ukraine): In the spring 2019, the Kremlin plans, a Russian puppet will win the presidency in Ukraine and help them solve the issue with sanctions on Moscow's terms. The scenario is approximately as follows: 1) pro-Russian candidate wins in presidential elections; 2) pro-Russian forces take majority in the parliament and form a coalition to support the Russian puppet in the president's seat; 3) "Federalizing" amendments to Ukrainian constitution are passed; 4) direct talks of the Kremlin-controlled Ukrainian authorities with puppet "heads" of the occupied territories, which would result in returning the temporarily occupied territories of Luhansk and Donetsk regions into Ukraine following a so-called "Chechen scenario." If the Kremlin succeeds with such scenario, it will receive not only easing of sanctions, but also will return Ukraine to its sphere of influence and stop all its aspirations of integration with the West," warns Karin.

Alex Kokcharov agrees with him in formulating Kremlin's aims, but explains why he does not believe the worst scenario is feasible. "Key objectives for the Kremlin would be to assist the election of a president and formation of a cabinet which would reverse the policy direction of Ukraine in the past four years, including re-orientation towards NATO and the EU. Russia would want Ukraine to remain either a buffer state or to return to the Russian sphere of influence. While I doubt that such objectives are achievable considering bilateral relations between the two states, this will be the likely objective, and thus Russia would work towards achieving these goals using various methods described above," he told Ukrinform.

Czech expert Jakub Janda sees Russian objectives as first of all, sowing distrust and polarization between Ukrainians rather than supporting a specific candidate: "The main Kremlin objective is to keep its influence in Ukrainian politics by supporting the perception that there are pro-EU and pro-Russian candidates. This bi-polar perception actually helps Russia and also some of the candidates. Therefore the real scrutiny should be put as on how effective are the plans and actions on internal reforms and what is the track record of various candidates," he told Ukrinform. This analysis basically matches tactics that the Kremlin used in other European countries, where it supported both far-left and far-right forces. Everything that serves destabilization and chaos  goes.

Janda points out some typical tactics that Russia used recently in Czech elections, which could also be used in Ukraine: "What is similar: Use of local proxies for spreading Russian disinformation narratives because directly Russian media have almost zero impact in the Czech Republic and Ukraine. Plus use of domestic anti-establishment or corrupt political forces which can damage pro-EU orientation of the country and at the end serve the Russian interests," he said.

UKRAINIAN DOMESTIC POLITICS IS THE WEAK LINK

How could Ukraine protect itself from scenarios, which are being written in the Kremlin? How to contain threats and avoid influence operations devastating effect? Experts that Ukrinform spoke to give different answers, but they all advise to pay attention to Ukraine's domestic politics.

Alex Kokcharov gives his "recipe": "If Ukraine continues to disentangle itself from the Russian information sphere (media and social media) it would improve its ability to counteract Russian meddling during the election. Continued political alliance with the West, including on issues of continued economic reforms in Ukraine and building stronger military ties, would be useful to strengthen the Ukrainian position during the election. Fundamentally, positive developments in Ukraine, such as concrete achievements from the anti-corruption drive, resumed economic growth, improving trade with the EU and other Western partners, and increased living standards (such as wages and pensions) would probably serve as the strongest method to address the Russian interference during the 2019 elections."

Jakub Janda is confident that domestic infighting in Ukraine is damaging its reputation abroad and can undermine its ability to resist Russian influence. He advises Ukrainian leadership to immediately halt pressure on journalists and civil society, otherwise it will "lose credibility in the eyes of the Western world." He points out Ukraine's own domestic vulnerabilities: "I still believe the Czech Republic has more to learn from brave Ukrainian civil society than the other way around but if there is something what Ukraine can learn from the Czech Republic is that just civil society and good media is not enough for stopping corrupt behavior in national politics, a strong political opposition is needed. That is a lesson which can be taken from all of Central and Eastern Europe today."

On the other hand, Alex Kokcharov recommends not to overestimate the Kremlin's real capabilities in Ukraine. "Russia still views Ukraine as part of the 'Near Abroad' and part of its information sphere, therefore it views that it can understand Ukraine better than Western countries. I am quite sceptic about this though: understanding of Ukraine by Russian policymakers has deteriorated since 2014 when a lot of links were broken and many Russians stopped visiting Ukraine. Most Russians view Ukraine through the prism of Russian chauvinist paradigm, and as a result have a poor understanding of internal dynamics in Ukrainian policy and society. For instance, many people in Moscow think that an openly pro-Russian politician can be elected to presidency in Ukraine. Which is doubtful in my opinion," concludes Kokcharov.

THE SHORTSIGHTEDNESS OF THE RUSSIAN CHAUVINISM IS A CHANCE FOR UKRAINE?

Basing on analysis of the recent Russian meddling in various elections of the Western countries and expert opinions, Ukraine has to prepare for a period of turbulence and Russia applying all spectrum of methods of its influence operations in the run-up to the 2019 elections. Russia has failed to destroy Ukraine militarily in 2014, economically in 2015, informationally in 2016-2017, and now, it seems, the Kremlin puts all bids at the "elections" sector. Ukraine has managed to get rid of many vulnerabilities in the same period. Powerful Armed Forces have been created from scratch, energy dependence on Russia is no more, trade is re-oriented to the West, informational reliance on Russian media is limited significantly. However, domestic political infighting remains the main vulnerability, especially Ukrainian-style political rivalry when opponents tend to fight each other "till the end."

On the other hand, words of Alex Kokcharov on the level of understanding of Ukraine in the Kremlin that viewing Ukraine as a "smaller brother," looking up-to-down at it actually prevents them from adequately evaluating the situation now. One can only understand something if he/she looks down-up. Kremlin's low expertise on Ukraine is currently a vulnerability of the Kremlin and an advantage of Ukraine which, together with other advantages, it's doomed to use if it wants to survive.

Strategically, since 2014 Moscow overplayed itself on "Ukrainian direction." Putin has de-facto carved out of the electoral map around five million Ukrainian voters who had traditionally been Russia-sympathizers. In 2014 Ukraine already passed one cycle of elections (presidential and parliamentary) without them. In 2015-2016 the Kremlin used all opportunities to force Ukraine to return Donetsk and Luhansk into Ukrainian electoral map on Moscow's terms. Somehow Ukraine managed to avoid this scenario. Now there is already not enough time till the 2019 elections to realize it. Which means that Ukraine will go through another cycle of elections with pro-Russian voters at margins of Ukrainian political life. A strategic, clever Kremlin, really?

However, it's not time to relax for Ukrainians. It may seem that the West has just faced Russian behavior while Ukraine has a rich experience in fighting off the Kremlin. But five years of fight have been tiring and the absence of the Russian media in the country can play a bad service to Ukrainians and decrease their attention. Ukrainians shouldn't forget that the Russian duck is still a Russian duck. Even if it denies it. Especially if it denies!

Heorhiy Tykhy, Kyiv
Germany sees Ukraine as an important partner and will continue to make efforts to support the country on its path to stabilization and reform.

German State Secretary Steffen Seibert said this on Tuesday, September 11, at a reception on the occasion of Ukraine's Independence Day and the 100th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Ukraine and Germany.

"There is probably no government of any country outside the EU, with which we would work as intensively as with Ukraine," Seibert said.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, according to him, has already become an expert on Ukraine, and the same applies to all German foreign ministers in recent years. Seibert expressed regret that the reason for such an intensity of relations lied mainly in the fact that in 2014 Ukraine became a victim of Russian aggression and annexation of Crimea, supported with military means.

"The federal government knows how much people all over Ukraine, primarily in Donetsk and Luhansk, want peace, and the Minsk agreements are the only condition to achieve it," Seibert said.

These documents have not yet brought peace, but they did not allow the war to spread to other regions, he said.

"The chancellor, the foreign minister, their advisers continue to work many hours a week in the Normandy format along with Russia and France," the government spokesman said.

Seibert expressed great respect for the fact that Ukraine, with a deadly conflict in its territory, has the strength to carry out reform, fight corruption and meet its European expectations. Germany will continue to remain a reliable partner on this path, he said.

Ukraine's Ambassador to Germany Andriy Melnyk, in turn, noted that Germany, like a hundred years ago, remains Ukraine's key partner and ally. He thanked the country's leadership for efforts to achieve peace in the Donbas, for supporting reforms in Ukraine, and for EUR 1.7 billion in investment, which created tens of thousands of jobs.

The diplomat also drew attention to the intensity of contacts - 13 visits by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to Germany, more than 60 of his telephone conversations with Chancellor Merkel.

The guests of the Ukrainian ambassador were 60 members of the Bundestag from various factions, representatives of ministries and departments, the public, and diplomats.

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OSCE Coordinator in the humanitarian subgroup of the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), Ambassador Toni Frisch managed to meet with several Ukrainian captives in the occupied territory of Donbas.

Ukraine's representative in the humanitarian subgroup of the Trilateral Contact Group for Donbas Iryna Gerashchenko wrote this on her Facebook page.

"Over the last few days, the OSCE Coordinator in the humanitarian subgroup of the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), Ambassador Toni Frisch visited prisons in the territory of Ukraine and in the occupied territory of Donbas. According to preliminary information, in the occupied territories, Ambassador Frisch was able to meet with several military men from the priority list that we submitted with a request to visit and support our guys. A positive moment was that for the first time in all these years he was given the opportunity to talk with our guys tete-a-tete, without prison servants and "representatives" - this is really important for us," Gerashchenko said.

At the same time, she clarifies that the situation in the occupied Luhansk region is particularly alarming, where several Ukrainian military men are completely isolated. This again makes us suggest that they are tortured, that's why they are hid.

On the other hand, Gerashchenko says that the Ukrainian side gave an opportunity for the ambassador to meet "with those convicted of grave crimes against the sovereignty and territorial integrity, who he asked about."

Gerashchenko stresses that Ukraine welcomes the visit of Ambassador Frisch to the occupied Donbas and defends the position that international organizations and their representatives are obliged to take more active position regarding the release of hostages and an access to illegally detained persons.

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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will meet with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas in Berlin on Friday to discuss topical issues, including Ukraine.

German Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Adebahr said this at a briefing on Wednesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reported.

"He [Lavrov] will arrive in Berlin on Friday. Both ministers will attend a conference on the Russian-German Bilateral Year... They will also hold a bilateral meeting and have dinner," the diplomat said.

During the meeting, the parties will discuss "obvious" issues, including Syria - of course, Germany will try to achieve a diplomatic solution; Ukraine, and bilateral relations.

Meanwhile, activists in Berlin plan to hold a rally near the Russian Embassy in Germany during Lavrovs visit.

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The Ukrainian president also drew the ambassador's attention to numerous occasions of the violation of human rights and freedoms in the Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia.

United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Samuel Brownback has said the United States would further support Ukraine in its struggle for the right to have the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church.

"Ambassador Brownback assured that the United States would further support Ukraine in its struggle for the restoration of sovereignty and territorial integrity and the right to have the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church," the Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko's press service quoted Brownback's words as saying.

Read alsoU.S. religious freedom envoy traveling to Ukraine, Poland, Uzbekistan  media

During a meeting in Kyiv on Tuesday, Poroshenko stressed that religious freedom was an integral part of the Ukrainian identity. "We are proud that we have a decent state of religious freedom in Ukraine guaranteed by the Constitution of Ukraine and the Law of Ukraine on Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations, as well as the traditionally high level of tolerance that prevails in Ukrainian society," he said.

Poroshenko outlined the measures taken to establish the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. He thanked the American party for an active support in this process.

The Ukrainian president also drew the ambassador's attention to numerous occasions of the horrific violation of human rights and freedoms, in particular religious freedom, in the Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia. The two officials stressed the need for a rigorous response to the systematic persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Kyiv Patriarchate, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, representatives of other religions in occupied Donbas and Crimea.
Kyiv fights to defend hard-won liberty as sanctions make no dent on Moscow.

At a military parade in Kyiv that marked the 27th anniversary of Ukraine's declaration of independence, pride of place went to the Javelin anti-tank missiles that the government acquired earlier this year from the U.S. Armored vehicles carrying the missiles rolled down Khreshchatyk, the capital's main thoroughfare, in a ceremony that involved military aircraft and some 4,500 troops.

The parade on August 24 underscored the Ukrainian government's determination to send a message, to its citizens and to the world, that Kyiv will not give up in what its leaders see as a grim, life-and-death struggle to defend the national freedom symbolized by the 2014 democratic revolution which overthrew pro-Russian leader Viktor Yanukovych. "Our generation's major goal is to make our independence irreversible, to turn Ukraine into a strong and great country, without the possibility of returning to the zone of Russian influence," Petro Poroshenko, Ukraine's president, told the parade crowd, according to the Financial Times.

Closing the door on Russia, and opening it to the EU via a trade deal, has been a boon to Ukraine's domestic companies and foreign investors in sectors from IT to manufacturing.

But the conflict with Russia and Moscow-backed separatists in the south-eastern Donbas region, now in its fifth year, remains a major threat to the economic recovery.

Read alsoMore Javelins to be produced, including for Ukraine, Lithuania

The 210 Javelin missiles and 37 launchers added to Ukraine's arsenal of modern weaponry will not determine the military outcome. But the missiles are a source of reassurance to the government in Kyiv, fearful that support in Washington and other western capitals may diminish over time as the conflict drags on, with no obvious prospect of a comprehensive settlement.

"The Javelins are important in symbolic as well as material terms," says Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, Ukraine's deputy premier for European and Euro-Atlantic integration. "With clear bipartisan support in Congress, we've been reassured that U.S. policy towards Ukraine is coherent and designed to support Ukraine's independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty under international law."

In July, Kyiv feared that President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, his Russian counterpart, might use their Helsinki summit to reach an understanding about the Donbas conflict, and the Russian annexation of the Crimean peninsula that preceded it. Some policymakers in Kyiv were aghast to hear Mr. Trump speak warmly of Mr. Putin and make no public criticism of Russian policies towards Ukraine.

But Kurt Volker, the U.S. special representative for Ukraine negotiations, says these worries were overblown. The U.S. will keep sanctions on Russia until it changes its behavior and, more specifically, does not support the Kremlin's proposal for a referendum to settle the status of Donbas, Mr. Volker says. Anxious politicians in Kyiv fret nonetheless that western policymakers will come to regard the Donbas war as comparable with so-called "frozen conflicts" in the former Soviet republics of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Moldova, where fighting has ended, but without a political solution. These conflicts erupted around the time of the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991 and, having never been resolved, created ample opportunities for Russia to wield political and military influence in the space that it views as its "near abroad".

A similar outcome in Donbas would not only leave Ukraine  already a truncated state after Russia's action in Crimea  without certainty of regaining control of a strategically important region. It would also give the Kremlin powerful leverage over Ukrainian politics and leave a question mark over the very concept of Ukrainian statehood.

"They'll do whatever they can to undermine Ukraine's democracy and its pro-western course, and to discredit the idea of Ukrainian independence," says Oleksandr Danylyuk, a Ukrainian military analyst of Russian hybrid warfare.

Read alsoRussian-led forces amassing military hardware in occupied Donbas - JCCC

Russia denies direct involvement in the confrontation, despite widespread evidence to the contrary. For their part, Ukrainian government ministers and defense officials say the conflict, far from being "frozen", is very much a "hot" one. Every week brings numerous violations of a ceasefire agreed in 2015 but rarely heeded since. Casualties are reported on an almost daily basis, adding to the toll of more than 10,000 dead since the fighting started in April 2014.

For the moment, the U.S. and the EU are united in maintaining sanctions on Russia. But Ukrainian government and opposition politicians are concerned that cracks are appearing in the west's common front, thanks in part to the rising influence of Russophile political parties in countries such as Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Italy.

"Can Ukraine alone cope with a Russia armed to the teeth? No," says former prime minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk. "The problem has been that the west has not sent a clear-cut message to Putin  that the west will never abandon Ukraine, that Ukraine is part of the western world and that, Mr. Putin, you cannot even dream of taking over Ukraine or setting up new spheres of influence."

Alexei Kudrin, a liberal ex-finance minister of Russia, estimates that the U.S. and EU sanctions have reduced Russian gross domestic product by half a percentage point a year since their introduction in 2014. However, Alexander Valchyshen, head of research at ICU, an investment firm specializing in central and eastern Europe, doubts the sanctions will change Russian behavior.

"I'm not saying the sanctions aren't working. I'm saying that they are not counteracting Russian intentions," says Mr. Valchyshen. "The Russians are not resource-constrained in Donbas and Crimea. I am sceptical that the Russian government is so overburdened that it will withdraw from Donbas."

Meanwhile, western capitals would like the government in Kyiv to make a more serious effort to win the hearts and minds of the roughly 4m civilians caught up in the Donbas conflict, especially those living in separatist-controlled areas.

Kyiv restricts these citizens' access to public services and is reluctant to endorse an amnesty for doctors, teachers and other workers who are not pro-separatist but who have found themselves living behind "enemy lines". Some politicians in Kyiv seem lukewarm about reintegrating Donbas civilians into Ukraine's democratic life on account of suspicions that they might vote strongly, as in the pre-2014 era, for presidential candidates and parties less than enthusiastic about national independence and pro-western policies.

All that said, Russia's intervention in Donbas has been the single most important factor of the past quarter of a century in accelerating the process of Ukrainian nation-building, politicians say. "Ukrainians are finally getting to the point of creating a political nation," observes Ms. Klympush-Tsintsadze. "We are still vulnerable to Russian attacks and influence, but we're further down the road than we were in 2014."
Several official delegations from the Austrian Republic arrived in Ukraine last week. Austrian Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz was the first to come to Kyiv to meet with Petro Poroshenko, the President of Ukraine. The main topics for discussion were recent keeping European sanctions against Russia and bilateral cooperation in the field of culture and restoration of Donbas. The leaders of both countries made it clear that the meeting was productive and necessary. As a result, 2019 will be the year of Ukrainian culture in Austria. The Austrian Republic will continue to provide funding to support people in eastern Ukraine and allocate one million euros for humanitarian aid to Donbas residents.

A few days later, a new Austrian delegation arrived in Kyiv. It consisted of Austrian parliamentarians, members of the Friendship Group between Austrian and Ukrainian parliaments, headed by a representative of The Freedom Party of Austria, Robert Lugar.

The delegation arrived at the invitation of the co-chairman of the deputy group on inter-parliamentary relations with the Austrian Republic, People's Deputy, Volodymyr Bandurov.

The main purpose of the visit of the Austrians was not only acquaintance with Ukraine, but also the work of the Verkhovna Rada. The parties considered the prospects for further economic cooperation, legal enforcement of investment climate in Ukraine and attracting Austrian investments in the economy of our country.

The visit of the Austrians was very fruitful and busy. During their stay in Ukraine, Austrian parliamentarians met with Ukrainian deputies and government officials, namely, with the Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine- the Minister of Regional Development, Construction and Housing and Communal Services of Ukraine, Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration and the Minister of Infrastructure.

But the main task for Austrian parliamentarians was to see Ukraine and its opportunities for themselves.

The delegation got acquainted with the past of Ukraine and its religion, visiting one of the most prominent historical places of Ukraine - the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.

And while visiting the Unit City Innovation Park, the Austrian delegation saw the future of Ukraine and its opportunities. This is not surprising, as for today UNIT City is one of the largest hubs of innovation in Central and Eastern Europe. This is an entry point into Ukraine for investors, partners and new technologies from around the world. Eighty-five resident companies are located here and there are more than 350 jobs. The UNIT Factory IT school has 800 students.

During a short stay in Ukraine, Austrian parliamentarians had some time to visit Odesa, where they took part in the presentation of ADA / UNDP Project and visited the port of TIS, one of the largest ports in Ukraine.

ADA / UNDP Project gives Ukrainians an opportunity to open up new horizons for themselves, to realize their dreams. It supports strategic initiatives aimed at capacity-building to promote comprehensive growth and sustainable human development. It strives to support Ukraine in overcoming poverty, human potential development, getting fair outcome, environmental protection and promotion of democratic governance.

- Austria plays an important role in the European community, - Vladimir Bandurov said. - Therefore, every politician should understand the importance of being its strategic partner in political and economic sense for us. We are interested in deepening economic cooperation between our countries and we must ensure at the legislative level the investment climate in Ukraine that will attract our partners.

Thus, the main purpose of this visit of Austrian parliamentarians was to introduce Ukraine's investment opportunities. We must persuade our Austrian colleagues that investing in Ukrainian economy is very profitable, that Ukraine will always be open and friendly to Austria. Is there anything we can offer for Austrian business? Definitely, yes. This is an attractive IT market, where Ukraine is one of the world leaders. This is an agro-industrial complex, one of the most powerful in Europe. These are attractive offers in the renewable energy sector. We have a chance to attract Austrian investments into Ukraine. But for this purpose we have to be open and ready for cooperation.

The visits of Austrian delegations to Ukraine have shown that Austria remains a reliable partner in political, economic and humanitarian sectors for our country. Austria is ready not only to support Ukraine regarding integration into the European community, but also to invest in our economy and development of our society. The Austrian side has repeatedly emphasized that Ukraine is an equal partner and Ukrainian markets are very interesting to Austrian business. But is Ukraine ready for such cooperation in European format? Fruitful preparation for Austrian visits and presentation of investment markets of Ukraine say that we are ready. But some Ukrainian politicians should understand that and forget about cheap PR and preparation for election, finally prioritizing the interests of the state and its development. Ukraine has no right to waste neither time nor its reliable European partners, which is the Austrian Republic.
The Ukrainian journalist could be exchanged for the Ukrainian PM's interpreter charged with high treason, Feygin stresses.

Russian Lawyer Mark Feygin who represents Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko does not rule out that the his client, illegally sentenced to 12 years in Russian prison on trumped up spy charges, could submit a pardon plea.

"By the way, Roman is ready to write this miserable paper with a request for pardon  I do not see any problem in this, and Roman agrees with me," Feygin told Pryamyi TV channel.

"It does not matter what you write, the main thing is to return to Kyiv," said Feygin.

At the same time Feygin has underlined that Sushchenko does not plead guilty and does not consider that "a pardon plea means that you plead guilty."

Read alsoLetters to Putin from Ukrainian prisons

"We count on the political participation of Ukraine's leadership in promoting Roman's exchange in talks with Moscow, with the Kremlin," the lawyer added.

He believes that Sushchenko could be exchanged for Ukrainian Prime Minister Vlodymyr Groysman's interpreter Stanislav Yezhov, who has been charged with high treason.

Feygin added that the possibility will be discussed of appealing the Russian court's decision with the ECHR.

As UNIAN reported earlier, the FSB detained Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko, a correspondent of the Ukrainian Ukrinform news agency, at a Moscow airport upon his arrival on September 30, 2016.

Read alsoRussian Supreme Court upholds ruling on Sushchenko's 12-year imprisonment

He was charged with "espionage," as the Russian authorities insist he is an "operative" of Ukraine's intelligence service.

The court started considering the Sushchenko case on March 27, 2018.

On June 4, the Moscow city court sentenced Sushchenko to a 12-year term in a high-security colony.

Today, September 12, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation has upheld the ruling, overruling the lawyer's appeal.

Sushchenko says he disagrees with the verdict and will continue the struggle for his release, including by lodging a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights.
Russia has a legacy of Soviet-era tools to drive regional fracture in its periphery  including a vast energy, communications and transportation infrastructure that remains largely under Moscows control.

The conventional wisdom is that Russia is too nuclear and too big to fail. But its also too big to secure  and that means Moscow has pursued a somewhat counterintuitive foreign policy in the surrounding regions.

To protect its borders, Russia splinters and shatters its borderlands, from Donbas in Europe to Damascus in Asia. Russias vast Eurasian borderlands have become the Kremlins buffer zones  a nearly uninterrupted expanse of armed conflict and war, Anna Ohanyan, a Distinguished Professor at Stonehill College, wrote for the Washington Post.

Over the past two decades, Russia has exploited existing regional conflicts and cleavages, and created new ones. In doing so, it explicitly prevented its neighboring states from consolidating into more organic regional groupings. Russia is now a direct party in some of these conflicts and a self-proclaimed security provider and peace broker in others, as political scientist Robert Nalbandov points out. At times, as in Georgia, Russia even assumes both roles at once.

The Kremlin has two main goals: retain influence in its former Soviet space, and elevate Russias significance in world politics. The problem is that fractured regions can become global security threats. They can harden ongoing conflicts, distort development and undermine prospects of democratic futures in the developing world. While the conflicts around Russia appear disparate, chaotic and unforeseeable, they are not. At its core, regional fracture is a divide-and-conquer policy.

Not all of Russias efforts are overtly political or military moves, as is the case in eastern Ukraine. Russia also uses more subtle and technocratic methods (as in the South Caucasus). And Moscow has cajoled or compelled post-Soviet states to join two of its regional organizations, the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), often insisting on exclusivity. This means that a country like Kyrgyzstan, which is closer geographically to Beijing or New Delhi than it is to Moscow, is sealed into Russias orbit via the EEU  at the expense of other regional opportunities. As a customs union, the EEU introduced fresh divisions and institutional demarcations with high trade tariffs and regulatory barriers in the post-Soviet space, making membership costly.

As political scientists Mark Katz and David Lewis point out, Russias support in these regions is uneven. This means some countries opt to stay out while their neighbors join in Russia-backed organizations, further contributing to the process of regional fracture. And Russia has a legacy of Soviet-era tools to drive regional fracture in its periphery  including a vast energy, communications and transportation infrastructure that remains largely under Moscows control.

Read alsoFT: Conflict with Russia hangs over Ukraine's recovery

This centralized control shows up in peacekeeping, as well, as Moscow has consistently sought to dominate peace processes in conflict zones. In Georgia and Moldova, for example, Russia deployed its peacekeeping forces when armed conflicts emerged there after the Soviet collapse. It did so largely to maintain its influence in these areas by freezing conflicts in both cases. In Azerbaijians frozen conflict in ethnically Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh, Russia sought to be a central player in the resolution and mediation processes, while continuing to sell arms and fueling an arms race in this conflict region. In the western Balkans, as political scientist Dimitar Bechev notes, Russia cultivates alliances with political elites within Orthodox-majority states like Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, and Republika Srpska (part of Bosnia)  which gives it a way to project Moscows influence and challenge European policies there.

Of course, regional fracture is not an exclusively Russian policy  and not a new approach. During the Cold War, rival and externally led blocs often subsumed ordinary regional interests, and proxy wars sprung up around the world. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the West looked to peel away individual states from the Russian orbit, offering to include them in Western blocs such as NATO or the European Union.

These efforts, from Russia and the West, though, eroded regional connections between and among smaller states. The E.U.s regional policies have been slow to develop, with marginal effort and capital devoted to region-building initiatives in its own peripheries.

Read alsoWhy Russia is trying to freak out the whole world

And, to globalize market economies and boost geopolitical stability, the West tolerated illiberal governments, fraudulent elections and authoritarian rulers in Russias periphery. More conflict, authoritarian resilience and Russian illiberal resurgence in the post-Soviet space have been the result.

Western development assistance in the post-Cold War period, moreover, did little to encourage regional ties. In interviews, many diplomats and policymakers from donor countries underscored the organizational challenges of designing and implementing regionwide projects. From 1995 to 2005, for example, the World Bank allocated less than 1 percent of its funding to regional or multination operations across the globe.

"Where does this leave the countries along Russias borders? As Caucasus scholar Laurence Broers notes, fractured regions fuel instabilities and armed conflict by empowering authoritarian governments. This is likely to strengthen Russias increasingly institutionalized, and often divisive, presence in the contested areas, if Western capitals neglect regional ties in Eurasia," the author writes.

Politically connected oligarchs stand to profit from links with the distant cities in the West or in Russia. In practical terms, fractured regions leave citizens in these borderlands unable to access their neighbors; they remain confined to inefficient transportation links, loopholes in regional policing of drug cartels, human traffickers and terrorists, and broad-based development goals that go unrealized.
According to intelligence reports, two enemy troops were killed and another five were wounded.

Russia's hybrid military forces mounted 33 attacks on Ukrainian army positions in Donbas in the past 24 hours, with one Ukrainian soldier reported as killed in action (KIA) and another three as wounded in action (WIA).

Read alsoUkrainian volunteer dies in Donbas (Photo)

"One Ukrainian soldier was killed and another three were wounded in the past day. According to intelligence reports, two occupiers were killed and another five 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 12, 2018.

Russian occupation forces opened aimed fire from grenade launchers of various systems, heavy machine guns, and small arms to attack the defenders of the towns of Zolote and Maryinka, and the villages of Stanytsia Luhanska, Krymske, Katerynivka, Luhanske, Novoluhanske, Mayorsk, Shumy, Kamianka, Pisky, Starohnativka, Pavlopil, Hnutove, Vodiane, and Shyrokyne.

In addition, the enemy resorted to 82mm mortars to shell the Ukrainian positions near Vodiane, as well as 120mm mortars near Shyrokyne. Moreover, the Ukrainian fortified positions near Krymske came under fire from weapons of infantry fighting vehicles at night.

"Since Wednesday midnight, Russian-led forces have mounted five attacks on the Ukrainian positions near Krymske, Hnutove, and Vodiane, using grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms. There have been no casualties among Ukrainian troops from the start of the day," the report says.
It became much more difficult for civilians to enter the temporarily occupied city of Donetsk.

Russian-led forces in Donbas have stepped up control at checkpoints in the temporarily occupied areas of Donetsk region following the assassination of former leader of the so-called "Donetsk People's Republic" Alexander Zakharchenko.

"Russian-backed mercenaries are inspecting mobile phones, cars and personal belongings," the sources told the LIGA.net news outlet on condition of anonymity.

"My friend has been questioned for about 30 minutes. They have taken her mobile phone, checked all social networks. Men younger than 50 are given special attention," a source said.

Read alsoMilitary hardware seen relocated in center of Russian-occupied Donetsk (Video)

According to LIGA.net, some local residents have recently had problems with access to social networks.

Another source added it became much more difficult for civilians to enter the temporarily occupied city of Donetsk.

"They are putting psychological pressure. Many are still afraid of crossing the contact line until the situation calms down," he said.

Answering a question whether there are Chechen mercenaries at checkpoints, a local resident said: "I have not seen them yet, but the number of armed men has increased."

As UNIAN reported earlier, "DPR" leader Alexander Zakharchenko was killed in an explosion in a Donetsk restaurant on August 31.

Russian-controlled militants in the temporarily occupied territory of Donetsk region claimed a "Ukrainian trace" in the blast, while Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs echoed the accusations.

The Ukrainian SBU, for its part, did not rule out the Russian special services' involvement in the assassination, adding that local feuds between local terrorist leaders could be the cause.
Volker stressed that Russians had not really done anything in the past several years to ensure peace and security.

U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker has said the "elections" announced by the so-called "Luhansk People's Republic" ("LPR") and "Donetsk People's Republic" ("DPR") are illegitimate and breach the logic of the Minsk agreements.

Read alsoKurt Volker to visit Ukraine this week

"Entities that we're talking about  the so-called people's republics in Donetsk and Luhansk  have no place under the Minsk agreements. They have no place in Ukraine's constitutional order. If you follow the logic of the Minsk agreements and the restoration of this territory to Ukrainian control, then these entities go away. So, holding elections: Not a legitimate exercise in itself given the security conditions, and also because these are not entities that should exist. When there is security, there should be elections for the mayors, oblast [regional] administration and so forward," Volker said in an interview published by Deutsche Welle on September 12.

At the same time, he stressed that Russians had not really done anything in the past several years to try to bring about peace and security.

"I think the Russians have apparently decided that they're not going to be making new efforts for peace right now; they'd rather wait it out and see the results of elections in Ukraine next year," Volker said.
Russia has launched in its Far East the Vostok-2018 (East-2018) wargames, the largest exercises in the last 37 years, according to Russian defense officials. A total of almost 300,000 military are taking part in the drills, along with tens of thousands of armored vehicles, helicopters, aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles. Mongolian and Chinese military forces will also join the wargames at one of the stages. Russian military chiefs specified that maneuvers are aimed at checking the readiness of military commanders to plan and carry out long distance regrouping of troops.

It is worth mentioning that compared to the Zapad-2017 (West-2017) drills Russia jointly conducted with Belarus, the declared number of troops at this year's exercises is much smaller  last year, at least 400,000 military took part, according to official reports. But due to the fact that Vostok-2018 is being held beyond the Urals, in the Asian part of Russia, where the powers of the OSCE monitoring mission do not extend and there are no international observers invited, the actual number of participants may differ significantly  both upwards and downwards. But, I suggest that the announced figures roughly correspond to the real picture, since foreign troops are also involved.

Such large-scale exercises can be regarded as a demonstration of military prowess to the rest of the world

The exercises as such are an actual wargame to train staff command. While earlier, they used to conduct drills, fighting some conventional adversary, such as NATO or one of the Allies (USA, UK, Germany, etc.) , now they are divided into two camps, that is, to dynamically work out military command decision-making while planning and conducting military operations.

By and large, such large-scale exercises can be regarded as a demonstration of military prowess to the rest of the world and an attempt to prove their ability to engage in a continental war. But this is rather aimed at reviving Russia's imperial ambitions and its superpower status, so that the international community sees it and begins to reckon with Russia and discuss with Moscow on an equal footing the whole range of geopolitical issues relating to markets, building a new world order, etc. This, perhaps, is their main objective.

The location was also chosen deliberately. Besides, China also was invited to confirm the authenticity of Russia's intentions. At the same time, foreign observers have not been invited precisely to make sure there is no understanding of what is happening and it is impossible to unravel the essence of the preparation process.

The only springboard is the territory of Ukraine, but this is more difficult, since Ukraine has a large territory and a strengthened army

In parallel with the Russian Federation, NATO is also holding its exercises. The main point of contact is now in Syria, where, in fact, there is a redistribution of the world oil market ongoing between the U.S. and Russia. It is there that the Russian Federation has now deployed its navy armada to stand against the U.S. fleet. Meanwhile, the Vostok-2018 is yet another attempt by Russia to show the U.S. their full combat readiness. But this is more a game of intimidation, since Russia is unlikely to launch an offensive, for example, via the Baltic States, as it is often discussed.

The only springboard is the territory of Ukraine, but this is more difficult, since Ukraine has a large territory and a strengthened army.

By the way, for the same reason, Ukraine has not been accepted to NATO so far, as it is necessary for all Allies to fight for a NATO member state, while it might be just enough for them to provide lethal assistance to a partner country, which Ukraine is today. And this status will further prevail, mostly as a result of Ukraine's geographical location. After all, while previously, the border of confrontation between NATO and Russia passed along the borders of Germany, now it's along the border of Ukraine. And those who will control Ukraine's territory politically will have a huge advantage over the adversary.

Col (Reserve) Oleh Zhdanov is a Ukrainian military expert
The motion will now pass to the leaders of the EU's 28-member states for approval.

Members of the European Parliament voted to censure the Hungarian government on Wednesday for eroding democracy and failing to uphold fundamental European Union values.

The measure to trigger Article 7 sanctions procedures garnered the necessary majority needed to pass, with 448 voting in favor of the motion, 197 against and 48 abstentions. The move means that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government could eventually lose its EU voting rights, Deutsche Welle reported.

Read alsoHungary's voting rights in EU Council may be suspended  media

Prior to the vote, it was unclear how many members of the conservative European People's Party (EPP) bloc, the largest political group in the European Parliament, would support the measure. Although Orban's Fidesz party is part of the EPP, several of the lawmakers voted against their Hungarian allies.

The measure does not immediately penalize Hungary, but it opens the door for sanctions to be imposed. Wednesday's vote also means that a formal warning will be sent to Hungary for violating the EU's values.

Speaking to European lawmakers on Tuesday, Orban described the vote as an act of revenge against Hungary for refusing to take in refugees under an EU-wide resettlement quota scheme. Although Brussels and Budapest have repeatedly clashed over immigration and refugee policy, the vote on Wednesday addressed broader concerns with the state of democracy and rule of law in Hungary.

A report by MEP Judith Sargentini, which triggered the Article 7 vote, found that Orban's attacks on independent media, academics, the judiciary, migrants and refugees and the rights of minorities pose a "systemic threat" to the EU's fundamental principles.

The vote was the first time that the EU Parliament considered launching the Article 7 sanctions process against a member state. The European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, launched Article 7 proceedings against Poland last year over its judicial reforms.

Article 7 of the Lisbon Treaty opens a path for sanctions against a member state and a temporary loss of EU Council voting rights. The mechanism is triggered when one of the bloc's members violates the vales of "human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities."

The motion will now pass to the leaders of the EU's 28-member states for approval. However, a unanimous vote is required to suspend Hungary's voting rights and launch sanctions  a move that is likely to be blocked by Poland.
The Senate Special Committee on Causes of Decline in Tax Collection of Tobacco Sector Wednesday directed Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to develop a comprehensive mechanism to control illicit trade of tobacco, which has been causing loss of billions of rupees to national exchequer.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :The Senate Special Committee on Causes of Decline in Tax Collection of Tobacco Sector Wednesday directed Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to develop a comprehensive mechanism to control illicit trade of tobacco, which has been causing loss of billions of rupees to national exchequer.

The committee, which met here with Senator Kalsoom Parveen in the chair, also asked FBR to identifying the market share of different companies to determine the tax and directed it to prepare a report on the subject and submit before the committee within 15 days.

The committee expressed deep concerns over the decline of Rs35 billion revenues from the tobacco industry despite the fact that the profit of the manufacturers had witnessed over 70 percent increase.

The committee also observed that illicit trade of tobacco was harming the national economy badly and asked for taking strict measures to stop the illegal trade of tobacco.

They asked for proposing an equitable taxation for providing level playing fields to local as well as multi-national companies to stop the smuggling of the commodity, which was denting to the national economy in tune of billions of rupees annually.

Speaking on the occasion, Senator Muhammad Azam Khan Swati said that 3rd tier was introduced in the cigarettes manufacturing industry to enhance the tax collection, adding that after introduction of 3rd tier the tax collection witnessed drastic decrease.

He stressed the need for introducing tracking system to check the illicit trade of tobacco and bringing the culprits to task as it was harming the national economy by tax evasion.

Meanwhile, Chairman FBR apprised the meeting that 3rd tier of taxation in tobacco industry was introduced with the approval of the parliament, which was aiming at controlling the illegal trade of the commodity.

He said that FBR was determined to control the illegal trade and promoting the legal business activity by bringing reforms in its administration and policy reforms, adding that tracking system on cigarettes and supervised monitoring system on Green Leave Thresher would be launched to overcome the illegal movement of tobacco.

Member Inland Revenue of FBR Dr Muhammad Iqbal said that the board intended to establish check posts in different areas to control the smuggling of tobacco.

The Committee also offered Fateha for the departed soul of late Begum Kulsoom Nawaz and prayed to Allah Mighty Allah rest the departed soul in eternal peace and grant patience to the bereaved family members.

The Senators, Muhammad Azam Khan Swati, Dilawar Khan and Dr Ashok Kumar attended the meeting, where as senior officials of concerned departments were aslo present on the occasion.
South Korea's auto exports increased in August from a year earlier on strong demand by new SUVs released by major automakers, government data showed Wednesday.

SEOUL, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :South Korea's auto exports increased in August from a year earlier on strong demand by new SUVs released by major automakers, government data showed Wednesday.

Total exports reached 174,869 units worth US$2.85 billion last month, up 2.1 percent compared with the previous year, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

Shipments to North America, one of South Korea's main auto markets, remained at the same level from a year earlier, and sales in the European Union, the second-largest market, dropped a sharp 25.7 percent.

In contrast, auto sales in non-EU member states and Asia surged over 32.4 percent and 36.1 percent, respectively.

The number of cars produced in the nation also rose a solid 8.1 percent on-year to 296,471 in August as industry leaders concluded labor agreements without major strikes.

Outbound shipments of auto parts inched up 0.5 percent to $1.87 billion, led by upbeat sales in the United States and non-EU member states.

Domestic sales of vehicles gained 5 percent to 146,086 units last month on a consumption tax break and release of new SUV models by Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors.

Sales of locally produced cars climbed 4.1 percent to 125,289 units, while those of foreign brands jumped 11.2 percent to 22,797 as German luxury cars continued to gain popularity among Korean consumers.
(@rukhshanmir)

Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) Bahawalpur on Wednesday announced the results of Intermediate Annual Examination 2018 in details.

BAHAWALPUR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :Board of Intermediate and Secondary education (BISE) Bahawalpur on Wednesday announced the results of Intermediate Annual Examination 2018 in details. As much as 52,331 students appeared in the exam, while 29,105 got success in the examination and the percentage of success remained 55.62 percent.

A simple but impressive ceremony was held at the Auditorium of board Campus here Wednesday which was chaired by Nayyar Iqbal, Chairman BISE Bahawalpur and Commissioner Bahawalpur. He distributed certificates and medals among the position holders. Students, their parents and school teachers attended the ceremony in a large number.

The Chairman BISE said that the examination results have been prepared with due care, transparency and efficiency, adding that results are free and the result-announcement is made according to the given schedule. The details of result of annual examination 2018 have also been uploaded on the websitewww.bisebwp.com.

The Chairman BISE and Commissioner Bahawalpur congratulated the position holder students and hoped that the students would continue to work hard to further excel in their studies. He said that students are the real future of Pakistan.
Sindh Minister for Health and Population Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho has said that bio-metric system of attendance is being introduced to ensure the attendance in health department and the employees had been given September 15 as the last date for the purpose.

KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :Sindh Minister for Health and Population Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho has said that bio-metric system of attendance is being introduced to ensure the attendance in health department and the employees had been given September 15 as the last date for the purpose.

She said this while addressing a press conference here in her office on Wednesday, said a statement.

She said that the health department is a difficult department and it faces multiple challenges, however, to meet the challenges thy have a panel of experts to restructuring, reshaping and for road map in the department.

She said, "We are working on a software to monitor and to keep a vigilant check on the performance of lady health workers/ supervisors and other medical staff while measures are being taken to make EPI program more effective.

" They will be provided smartphones in order to check their performance, she added.

She said that the posts of medical superintendents, DHOs and others would be filled after proper tests, adding that she assured that she would maintain transparency in the department.

She was of the opinion that the MOUs through Public Private Partnerships would be reviewed as their period ends.

She further said that the people of Sindh are enlightened and they know that there should be certain gap in births and in this way they can overcome population.

Replying to a query, she said that in next fiscal year the vertical programs might be regularized.

She said that recently she had visited many government hospitalsbut she was not satisfied with their performance.
The study is to measure the impact of flooding and water quality of the river  which meanders through mostly county-owned properties in Wadsworth, Gurnee, Libertyville, Vernon Hills and Riverwoods  from runoff generated by the Foxconn factory. The Des Plaines levels rose rapidly here after the same round of tropical storms last week that hit Racine County, but nowhere near the July 2017 record-breaking flood.
The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP) announced its half year results for the six months ended 30 June 2018. Total income was US$169.9 million (H1 2017: US$60.0 million) supported by better performance from the Corporate Finance and Investments divisions.

DAMMAM, Saudi Arabia, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 12th Sep, 2018) The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP) announced its half year results for the six months ended 30 June 2018. Total income was US$169.9 million (H1 2017: US$60.0 million) supported by better performance from the Corporate Finance and Investments divisions.

Key drivers of this strong underlying performance were a 40 percent increase in net interest income to US$45.9 million, evidence of an increase of the yield and size of the loan portfolio; dividend income of US$33.4 million and a realised gain from the sale of its 29 percent equity investment in National Petroleum Services.

APICORPs total assets stood at US6.6 billion as at 30 June 2018, a 6.3 percent increase on H1 2017. This demonstrates both the quality of APICORPS investment portfolio and the benefits of its active management strategy and high standards of corporate governance, which helps its investee companies to operate more efficiently.

Commenting on the half year results, Dr Ahmed Ali Attiga, Chief Executive Officer of APICORP, said: "APICORPs excellent half year results reflect the continued progress we have made in implementing our strategy to diversify the business, both in terms of sectors and geographies, and also in establishing a balance between lending and equity investment.

This has been a collective effort across the whole corporation, and our Treasury division plays a vital role in strengthening our own balance sheet and reducing our cost of capital.'' The Dammam-based Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP) is a multilateral development bank established to foster the development of the Arab worlds oil and gas industries. The organization was created under the terms of an agreement signed by the 10 Member States of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) in September 1974 with a mandate to transform the Arab energy industry into a powerful force for the regions economic progress.
Lt. General Hamad Mohammed Thani Al Rumaithi, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, attended the meeting of the chiefs of staff of the GCC countries, Egypt, Jordan and the United States, held in Kuwait on Wednesday.

KUWAIT, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 12th Sep, 2018) Lt. General Hamad Mohammed Thani Al Rumaithi, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, attended the meeting of the chiefs of staff of the GCC countries, Egypt, Jordan and the United States, held in Kuwait on Wednesday.

Lt.

General Mohammad Khalid Al-Khudher, Chief of General Staff of Kuwait , welcomed his counterparts in a speech given at the opening of the meeting.

The meeting saw discussions on several topics related to regional security issues, as well as efforts to combat terrorism and extremism and the challenges facing the security and stability of the region.

The participants stressed the importance of joint action among these countries.
A Yemeni family was hit by a mortar shell fired by the Houthi militia at their home in a village in Al Jah, Hodeidah Governorate.

HODEIDAH, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 12th Sep, 2018) A Yemeni family was hit by a mortar shell fired by the Houthi militia at their home in a village in Al Jah, Hodeidah Governorate.

The latest aggression is part of a series of attacks by the militias against civilians, especially children.

The shell, which was fired on a residential neighbourhood, injured Muslah Saeed Al Ahdal and his children, Khaldoun, Nadher and Duaa, who are aged between one to five years. It also injured a fourth child from another family named Nesrin, who is under the age of five years.

In a quick response to their humanitarian situation, the Emirates Red Crescent provided relief assistance to the injured in order to alleviate their suffering due to the difficult humanitarian conditions they are experiencing as a result of the continuous violations by the Houthi militias against innocent civilians.

Hamad Al Kaabi, UAE Humanitarian Operations Deputy Director for Yemen, said that the provision of emergency relief assistance to the injured comes within the framework of the UAE's humanitarian responsibility towards the brothers in Yemen to help them overcome the difficult conditions inflicted by the Houthi militias who are consistently intimidating the people.

For his part, Adham al-Shabhi, Deputy Director of Al Khokha Surgical Hospital, said that the injured were received in a difficult health conditions, pointing out that they received immediate and appropriate medical care upon arrival at the hospital.

From September 2014 to September 2018, 5,580 Yemeni children were reported killed and injured. The indiscriminate shelling by the Houthis against houses in Al Jah followed their successive defeats in Hodeidah Governorate, and are acts of revenge against local people who rejected them, and are part of their repeated violation of human rights, childrens rights, and international charters and laws that criminalise the targeting of safe civilians and civilian facilities.

Since the Houthi coup, the number of people killed, injured and kidnapped in Yemen has exceeded 67,000.

During his briefing in Abu Dhabi, Mohammed Askar, Yemeni Minister of Human Rights, accused the militias of deliberately attacking populated areas, electricity stations and water wells with mortars and Katyusha rockets, as well as using civilians as human shields in Hodeidah, while affirming that the acts of depredation and malpractices of the Houthi militias have been exposed to the international community.
The Sheikh Zayed Book Award has urged applicants to make sure to send in their entries for its 13th edition latest by October 1st, across the Awards nine categories, which include Contribution to the Development of Nations, Childrens Literature, Young Author, Translation, Literature, Literary and Art Criticism, Arab Culture in Other Languages, Technology and Publishing and Personality of the Year

ABU DHABI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 12th Sep, 2018) The Sheikh Zayed Book Award has urged applicants to make sure to send in their entries for its 13th edition latest by October 1st, across the Awards nine categories, which include Contribution to the Development of Nations, Childrens Literature, Young Author, Translation, Literature, Literary and Art Criticism, Arab Culture in Other Languages, Technology and Publishing and Personality of the Year.

Dr. Ali Bin Tamim, Secretary-General of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, said, "In line with our continuous efforts to improve and upgrade the Awards processes and systems, we have launched a new online nominations portal to ease the application process for all applicants. And I would like to take this opportunity to encourage all cultural and literary entities, both individuals and organisations, to make use of the remaining few days until the deadline to send their nominations to be considered for the 13th edition.

"

The nominations eligibility as per the awards regulations state that applicants must apply online  through a newly developed nomination system. Following the online submission, applicants should send five copies of the book to the Award Office listed on the Awards website. Books may be nominated by individuals, including self-nomination by authors, translators and by publishing houses, and no book may be submitted for consideration in more than one category. Books should also have been published in the last two years of submission. Some categories are treated differently, and more information is available on zayedaward.ae.

In most of the Award categories, nominated titles should be written in Arabic, however, the awards inclusive vision encourages nominations in all other languages as well, through two categories; Translation and Arab Culture in Other Languages.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

He joint Yemeni Resistance Forces, led by the al-'Amalaqah Brigades (Arabic for Giants), have taken control of the Kilometre 10 area and have succeeded in cutting all the supply lines of the Houthi militia to the Kilometre 16 area in the province of Hodeidah. The Kilometrre 16 area is a key point on the route between Hodeidah and Sanaa.

HODEIDAH, Yemen, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 12th Sep, 2018) The joint Yemeni Resistance Forces, led by the al-'Amalaqah Brigades (Arabic for Giants), have taken control of the Kilometre 10 area and have succeeded in cutting all the supply lines of the Houthi militia to the Kilometre 16 area in the province of Hodeidah. The Kilometrre 16 area is a key point on the route between Hodeidah and Sanaa.

Supported by the Saudi-led Arab Coalition Forces, the al-Amalaqah Brigades inflicted heavy losses in lives and material on the Houthis militias in a surprise operation, with dozens being killed or wounded and many others being taken captive.

The joint Yemeni Resistance Forces, backed by the Arab Coalition forces, launched a large-scale military operation from the eastern axis of the Ad Durayhimi District towards the Kilometre 16 area.

The operation was planned so as to protect the safety of civilians, including those being used by the Houthis as human shields.

During the operation, the al-Amaliqah Brigades took control of large areas between the Ad Durayhimi District and the Kilometre 16 area, including Wadi al-Qa'um, Wadi Al-Mashagna and the villages of Lower Juraibah, Upper Juraibah, Al-Zafran and Al-Mukamania. The Forces also succeeded in separating the southern districts of Hodeidah province from the northern directorates such as Zabid, al-Tahita, Ad Durayhimi, Beit al-Faqih and El-Mansuriya, thereby tightening the screws on the Houthi militia inside Hodeidah.
Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Sukkur, Azad Khan on Wednesday told that over 10226 security personnel including 1300 Jawan of Sindh rangers will perform security duties in Sukkur, on the occasion of processions and majalis of Muharram-ul-haram as well main Ashura procession in Sukkur, Khairpur and Ghotki districts.

KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Sukkur, Azad Khan on Wednesday told that over 10226 security personnel including 1300 Jawan of Sindh rangers will perform security duties in Sukkur, on the occasion of processions and majalis of Muharram-ul-haram as well main Ashura procession in Sukkur, Khairpur and Ghotki districts.

The DIG told this in a Sukkur police report about security plan for processions and majalis of Muharram in Sukkur, said a statement here.

He said that there would be 3304 processions of them 101 have been categorized as most sensitive, 671 sensitive and 2532 normal.

The deployment of police in Ghotki would be 3162, in Khairpur 4222. Apart from it the 10 personals of Pakistan Army will remain stand by.

He also directed the police to provide lists of containing contact numbers of SSPs DSPs and all control rooms to the organizers of mourning processions and majalis.

The DIG has directed to install walk through gates at entrances ofImambargahs and venues of majalis and said the security personnel should check identity of participants and perform body search with the coordination of organizers of processions and majalis.
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Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Justice (R) Javed Iqbal here on Tuesday assured the business community to protect the rights of all those who were running their businesses honestly, legally and in the larger interest of Pakistan and its economic development.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Sep, 2018 ) :Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Justice (R) Javed Iqbal here on Tuesday assured the business community to protect the rights of all those who were running their businesses honestly, legally and in the larger interest of Pakistan and its economic development.

Addressing the traders and businessmen here at Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), he said that the business community was playing a pivotal role in the economic development of the country, besides providing jobs to millions of skilled and semi-skilled labor force in the country.

He said that the business community was facing different issues like electricity, gas and water, adding that these issues would be addressed with the passage of the time as the nation was determined to overcome all such challenges.

He said that prosperity and development of the country was directly linked with the progress and development of the business community of the country, adding that NAB would protect their rights and never harass any one.

Javed Iqbal informed that so far NAB had received 39,728 complaints, out of which 1,499 complaints were pending, while 764 inquires were initiated, whereas 174 investigations were also in progress besides 170 references were worked out in order to eliminate the menace of corruption from the country.

The NAB has recovered Rs 297 billion embezzled money from different people, adding that it was a substantial amount for an economy facing different challenges for the development and prosperity of its people.

He said that the NAB had received some complaints that the business community was feeling depressed due to the action taken by the Authority during last days against some housing societies, adding that the action was taken against those housing societies, which had received money from the poor people including widows, orphans, elderly and promised them to provide their plots on time.

The Chairman said that NAB had recovered Rs 85 billion from the owners of housing societies and distributed among affected people of Lahore, Quetta and Multan.

He said that no one would be allowed for robbing the money from the poor people and take a chartered flight for Canada and US.

He said that NAB would chase them to any part of the world and would bring the looted money back to Pakistan, adding that the Accountability Bureau would ensure accountability across the board.

He said that Pakistan was indebted with $ 100 billion and the debt was taken for the development of the country, adding that the money was not spent on the development of the country and it was the responsibility of the NAB to inquire about the borrowed money.

The NAB Chairman stressed the need for strict legislation against corruption and expressed the hope that the new government would pay special focus to eradicate the menace of corruption from the country and fast track economic development.

Replaying to a question , he said that strict action would be taken against all the concern officials of Capital Development Authority involved in encouraging the encroachment and asked the businessmen to send a simple application against tax officials who were harassing them.
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) MNA, Ali Muhammad Khan Wednesday said the PTI government was committed to control the corruption at gross roots level and in this regard, various step including strict mechanism for keeping a check on the flight of the capital was in place.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) MNA, Ali Muhammad Khan Wednesday said the PTI government was committed to control the corruption at gross roots level and in this regard, various step including strict mechanism for keeping a check on the flight of the capital was in place.

Talking to a private tv channel, he said the government has long term economic polices for the development and prosperity of the country and its result could be felt with the passage of time.

To a question, he said that current loan of the country stood around Rs 30,000 billion but the public reposed trust in the government as their taxes would be spent for their well being. He said the government would take measures to bring the country out of the economic crisis. The Government was taking revolutionary steps as the major problems were inherited by it from its predecessors.

Ali Muhammad Khan said the present government would include people in the decision making process to resolve the issues. All institutions were working in their respective domains, he said, adding that during the previous regimes, the prime ministers were not so strong because they had no public agenda.

Ali Muhammad said the Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar had taken good step for the construction of dams. The politicians ought to deal on the issues involving public interest.

Prime Minister Imran Khan, Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, students and citizen were contributing towards this noble cause and supported the Chief Justice of Pakistan, he added.
The police arrested 15 accused and recovered narcotics and illegal weapons from them.

SARGODHA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :The police arrested 15 accused and recovered narcotics and illegal weapons from them.

A police spokesman Wednesday said the accused were identified as Shahbaz, Hassan Ali, Farooq Omar, Shahid, Feroz, Natiq, Parvez Asad Imran, etc.

The police recovered 2,680g hashish, 151 bottles of liquor, four pistols and two guns.

The police registered separate cases against the accused and started investigation.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Like other parts of the globe, United Nations' (UN) International Day of Democracy will be marked on September 15 to raise public awareness about democracy, various activities and events are held around the world to promote democracy on this date.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :Like other parts of the globe, United Nations' (UN) International Day of Democracy will be marked on September 15 to raise public awareness about democracy, various activities and events are held around the world to promote democracy on this date.

The International Day of Democracy aims to raise public awareness about democracy- its meaning and importance.

Many people and organizations worldwide, including government agencies and non-government organizations, hold various initiatives to promote democracy on the International Day of Democracy.

Events and activities include discussions, conferences and press conferences involving keynote speakers, often those who are leaders or educators heavily involved in supporting and endorsing democratic governments and communities.

Leaflets, posters and flyers are placed in universities, public buildings, and places where people can learn more about how democracy is linked with factors such as freedom of expression and a tolerant culture.

Organizations, such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), organize activities such as public opinion surveys about democracy and political tolerance.

There has been a campaign, known as the Global Democracy Day Initiative, which involves a petition being made to the UN and heads of states to officially adopt October 18 as Global Democracy Day to support International Day of Democracy.

The International Day of Democracy is a UN observance day, however, it is not a public holiday.

Background The UN strives to achieve its goals of peace, human rights and development. It believes that human rights and the rule of law are best protected in democratic societies. The UN also recognizes a fundamental truth about democracy everywhere  that democracy is the product of a strong, active and vocal civil society.

general assembly decided on November 8, 2007, to make September 15 as the annual date to observe the International Day of Democracy. The assembly invited people and organizations, both government and non-government, to commemorate the International Day of Democracy. It also called for all governments to strengthen their national programs devoted to promoting and consolidating democracy. The assembly encouraged regional and other intergovernmental organizations to share their experiences in promoting democracy.

The International Day of Democracy was first celebrated in 2008. The UN general assembly recognized that the year 2008 marked the 20th anniversary of the first International Conference of New or Restored Democracies, which gave people a chance to focus on promoting and consolidating democracy worldwide.

SymbolsThe UN logo is often associated with marketing and promotional material for this event. It features a projection of a world map (less Antarctica) centered on the North Pole, enclosed by olive branches. The olive branches symbolize peace and the world map represents all the people of the world. It has been featured in black against a white background.
Every year since that infamous day, residents and others in municipalities like Lincolnwood and Skokie have gathered to pay tribute to the men, women and children who were killed when the hijakers flew planes into each of the World Trade Center towers in New York and the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., as well as led to the plane crash in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police have taken stringent measures to ensure foolproof security arrangements for peaceful observance of Muharram ul Haram.

PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Sep, 2018 ) :Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police have taken stringent measures to ensure foolproof security arrangements for peaceful observance of Muharram ul Haram.

The police have declared five districts including Kohat, Hangu, DIKhan, Tank and Peshawar, the most sensitive while Mardan, Abbottabad, Haripur and Mansehra have been put in sensitive category.

There are a total of 266 Imam Bargahs in the province from which 460 processions of mourners would be carried out. In Peshawar, 118 processions would be carried out from 71 Imam Bargahs and 314 gatherings would be held in the city.

In Hangu, 28 processions would be carried out from 28 Imam Bargahs and 504 gatherings would be held.

Similarly, in D.I Khan, 194 processions would be carried out from 69 Imam Bargahs and 642 gatherings would be held.

As many as 37 processions would be carried out in Tank from 9 Imam Bargahs and 90 gatherings would be held.

In Kohat, 12 Muharram processions would be carried out from 51 Imam Bargahs and 510 gatherings would be held.

Personnel of District Police, Frontier Reserved Police, Elite Force, Frontier Constabulary, Special Police Force and Ex-servicemen would be deputed all over the province for security during the holy month.

In provincial metropolis, 32,782 personnel of law enforcement agencies would be deputed, while 3118 in Hangu, 6566 in DIKhan, 2660 in Kohat, 1624 in Tank, 855 in Haripur, 700 in Abbottabad, 899 in Mansehra, 942 in Mardan, 956 in Nowshera, 1030 in Bannu and 601 personnel would perform security duties in Lakki Marwat.

Arrangements have been made for aerial surveillance and monitoring of Kohat, Peshawar, Hangu, D.I Khan and Tank on 9th and 10th Muharram.

Command Police Post would also be established in Peshawar aiming effective surveillance of the city.

Police officials would also meet Ulemas to seek their help in ensuring security.
Provincial Health Minister, Dr Yasmin Rashid has appealed the doctors community to donate maximum amount in Dam Fund.

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :Provincial Health Minister, Dr Yasmin Rashid has appealed the doctors community to donate maximum amount in Dam Fund.

In a statement issued here on Wednesday, she said the donation of Rs 3 million from the Nishter Medical University Multan was a precedent for other medical institutions.

"I am really grateful and admire the initiative taken by Vice Chancellor Nishter Medical University Multan Dr Mustafa Kamal", she said.

"The fund raising drive will become movement and people belong to all walks of life will participate in Dam Fund", she hoped.

While appreciating initiative taken by Prime Minister Imran Khan and the chief justice of Pakistan, she also appealed overseas Pakistanis to contribute the maximum donations in Dam Fund.

The minister also noted that every Pakistani was whole heartedly wanted to prevent Pakistan from expected water crisis.

"Medical education institutes should lead the fund raising drive," she said.
LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Sep, 2018 ) :Director General Punjab Food Authority (PFA) Capt. (R) Muhammad Usman Tuesday said that the authority is contemplating a strategy to stop illegal slaughtering of animals to provide healthy meat to people.

He stated this during a visit to head office of Punjab Aggriculture and Meat Company (PAMCO) here.

He said that PFA is going to set up a vigilance cell with the cooperation of PAMCO to halt the unauthorized and illegal slaughtering of animals in such slaughter houses which are not upto the standard and have not legal rights to slaughter animals.

He said that the performance of the PFA's vigilance and food safety teams would be improved and cooperation from Livestock department and district administration would also be sought to cope with the threat of substandard meat.

He said that initial line of action has been prepared and massive crackdown will soon be initiated against the illegal slaughter houses.
The Senate Functional Committee on Problems of Less Developed Areas in its meeting here Tuesday, has directed Sui Southern Gas Limited (SSGC) to ensure timely completion of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Air Mix plants to be established in Balochistan province.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Sep, 2018 ) :The Senate Functional Committee on Problems of Less Developed Areas in its meeting here Tuesday, has directed Sui Southern Gas Limited (SSGC) to ensure timely completion of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Air Mix plants to be established in Balochistan province.

Chairman of the Committee Senator Muhammad Usman Khan Kakar while presiding over the meeting, said the population of the country has increased by 120 per cent according to latest Census 2017. Therefore, provision of gas should be made feasible in line with the increase in population, he added.

"Balochistan province faces extreme cold weather in winter season that sometimes drop below -18C where people do not use gas to cook rather survive in that severe atmosphere", he said. The SSGC officials while briefing the Committee, informed that 30 Air Mix Plants would be installed in three phases with 10 plants each. They informed that the provincial government has started providing land for the project where construction would be started and completed soon.

To a question, the Managing Director SSGC said the tariffs for the Air Mix LPG would be the same as for natural gas.

"SSGC has installed new gas pipelines in Shikarpur-Jacobabad and Balochistan to mitigate the issue of reduced gas pressure during cold season", he informed adding that Mastung-Kalat gas shortage issue would also be resolved during this season.

The representative of Sui Northern Gas Limited Corporation (SNGC) briefed the Committee that land acquisition was under way for setting up of Air Mix LNG plants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan where SNGC special teams are taking action against consumers illegally using gas suction pumps.

An official of Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) informed that there are 12,900 employees where it has one year paid internship program. All recruitment were made through National Testing Service (NTS) exams where the top scorers got recruited and there was no quota system rather equal representation of all the provinces ensured, he said.

The OGDCL official said 300 internees are hired with 75 from each province.

The Committee recommended OGDCL officials to give 10-15 percent gross marks to the aspirants from less developed areas particularly Balochistan.
The Supreme Court Tuesday rejected an unconditional apology tendered by Member of the National Assembly (MNA) and anchorperson Dr Aamir Liaquat in a contempt of court case.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Sep, 2018 ) :The Supreme Court Tuesday rejected an unconditional apology tendered by Member of the National Assembly (MNA) and anchorperson Dr Aamir Liaquat in a contempt of court case.

A three-member SC bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar also announced that the court would indict the accused on next date of hearing.

The contempt of court plea was moved by anchorperson Shahzeb Khanzada, Mir Ibrahim of Independent Media Corporation (Pvt) Ltd and Najam Sethi against Aamir Liaquat for allegedly violating previous undertakings that he would not use derogatory language or hate speech against any individual.

During the course of proceedings, clippings from Aamir Liaquat's television programmes were played in court.

The CJP remarked that it was no way to commit contempt and then tender an apology.

The case was adjourned till September 27.
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Pakistan Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) has received pre-qualification bids from as many as five joint ventures of foreign and local firms through international competitive bidding for construction of main dam and appurtenant structures of Diamer Bhasha Dam Project.

MIRPUR (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) ,:Pakistan Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) has received pre-qualification bids from as many as five joint ventures of foreign and local firms through international competitive bidding for construction of main dam and appurtenant structures of Diamer Bhasha Dam Project.

"The pre-qualification bids would be evaluated in accordance with the bid documents and the relevant procurement rules of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC)", a spokesman of WAPDA told APP here Wednesday.

Diamer Bhasha Dam is a multipurpose project aiming at water storage, flood mitigation and power generation. The project will be constructed across River Indus about 40-kilometer downstream of Chillas town. The 272-meter high Roller Compacted Concrete (RCC) Dam will have a gross water storage capacity of 8.

1 million acre feet (MAF).

The project will generate 4500 megawatt of electricity with annual energy generation of more than 18 billion units of low-cost and environment friendly electricity. With construction of Diamer Basha Dam Project, the life of Tarbela Dam will enhance to another 35 years. It will also have a positive impact on the annual energy generation of the projects in the downstream areas, the spokesman said.

It is estimated that the annual energy generation of the existing hydel power stations including Tarbela, Ghazi Barotha, Jinnah and Chashma will increase by about 2.5 billion per annum, while annual energy generation of the future hydropower projects including Dasu, Pattan and Thakot will also surge by another 7.5 billion units, he added.
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Armenia discusses with Russia the possibility of obtaining a new military loan of $100 million, Armenian Defense Minister David Tonoyan said on Wednesday.

YEREVAN (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) Armenia discusses with Russia the possibility of obtaining a new military loan of $100 million, Armenian Defense Minister David Tonoyan said on Wednesday.

"Obtaining a new military loan is a process that will be implemented.

At the moment it is about 100 million [dollars]," Tonoyan told reporters.

The minister noted that he had no right to talk about the types of weapons that were expected to be acquired, promising to provide further details later.

"Cooperation with Russia is developing quite successfully," Tonoyan added.
The Belarusian-Slovakian political and economic dialogue has recently become most dynamic, Belarus' Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrei Dapkiunas said at a function to mark the 74th anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising and the Day of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic on 11 September.

MINSK, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Sep, 2018 ) :The Belarusian-Slovakian political and economic dialogue has recently become most dynamic, Belarus' Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrei Dapkiunas said at a function to mark the 74th anniversary of the Slovak National Uprising and the Day of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic on 11 September.

Andrei Dapkiunas stressed that these dates are notable for the history of both Slovakia and Europe. Belarus deeply respects historical memory, including that of the Second World War. Belarus, millions of people of which sacrificed their lives for the sake of the common victory over Nazism, understands very well the pain of Slovakia for those who died during the uprising of the country's citizens. The Slovak National Uprising occupies an important place in the events that brought about the common victory over the Nazis,' he said.

The deputy minister noted that Belarus and Slovakia have proved their right to self-determination.

Having become sovereign states, they based their constitutions on the principles of humanism, social justice, peaceful coexistence of peoples, inviolability of borders and renunciation of territorial claims.

This year Belarus and Slovakia are marking 25 years of diplomatic relations. "Over the past several years, our bilateral cooperation has been developing most dynamically. We have made significant progress in developing the political, economic, inter-parliamentary and inter-regional dialogue. Each year we open new mutual interests and carry out joint projects in various sectors," said Andrei Dapkiunas.

Andrei Dapkiunas expressed confidence that the current level of bilateral relations wouldbecome a robust foundation for further cooperation.
No country is able to provide sufficient guarantees to North Korea in order to achieve denuclearization alone so international security guarantees are needed, Chinese leader Xi Jinping said on Wednesday, adding that Beijing and Moscow were ready to work on the issue

VLADIVOSTOK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) No country is able to provide sufficient guarantees to North Korea in order to achieve denuclearization alone so international security guarantees are needed, Chinese leader Xi Jinping said on Wednesday, adding that Beijing and Moscow were ready to work on the issue.

"I believe that no single country can provide such guarantee alone. We need joint efforts of the international community. I think that there is such desire on our part and on the part of Russia. We will in turn promote our efforts, but joint guarantees of the international community are needed," Xi said at a plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).

Russian President Vladimir Putin supported Xi's calls and said that North Korea needs international guarantees with participation of nuclear powers.

"It seems counterproductive to me that North Korea is urged to do everything, while the opposite side does not have to do anything. North Korea is supposed to believe words that it will benefit from it. What guarantees can there be? International guarantees ... And the international community could provide such guarantees, including the ones supported by the participation of nuclear powers in such agreements," Putin underlined.

The Russian leader noted that Russia is part to the six-party talks on North Korea, which include nuclear powers.
Europe cannot stay away from the impending humanitarian catastrophe in Syria's northwestern Idlib province amid the looming counterterrorism offensive by Syrian government forces in the area, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said Wednesday.

BRUSSELS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) Europe cannot stay away from the impending humanitarian catastrophe in Syria's northwestern Idlib province amid the looming counterterrorism offensive by Syrian government forces in the area, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said Wednesday.

"What is happening in Idlib in Syria now must be of deep and direct concern to us all. We cannot remain silent in face of this impending humanitarian disaster - which appears now all but inevitable," Juncker said in his annual State of the Union address to European parliamentarians, as quoted by the European Commission.

The Syrian crisis has shown that the international order that had served Europe after World War II was being called into question, Juncker added.

Idlib is one of the Syrian areas which is still controlled by terrorists and militants after years of the government's campaign to retake the country's territories from terrorists.

On Monday, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that Damascus' potential offensive in Idlib could displace hundreds of thousands of local residents and result in the worst humanitarian catastrophe of the 21st century.

Oleg Syromolotov, the deputy foreign minister of Russia, which has been supporting the Syrian forces in their counterterrorism campaign, has said, in turn, that the Idlib operation was being worked on thoroughly and secretly, with humanitarian aspects taken into account.
Mongolia, which has traditionally enjoyed close cooperation with Russia, hardly sees any challenge associated with China's increased influence over the country and the region as a whole, and is taking advantage of working with both Moscow and Beijing, especially in the economic sector, Mongolian Foreign Minister Damdin Tsogtbaatar told Sputnik in an interview.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) Mongolia, which has traditionally enjoyed close cooperation with Russia, hardly sees any challenge associated with China's increased influence over the country and the region as a whole, and is taking advantage of working with both Moscow and Beijing, especially in the economic sector, Mongolian Foreign Minister Damdin Tsogtbaatar told Sputnik in an interview.

Tsogtbaatar, a graduate of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, took office as the Mongolian foreign minister in 2017, prior to which he held various civil service posts both in Mongolia and abroad. Previously, he served as state secretary of the Mongolian Foreign Affairs Ministry, the environment and tourism minister, as well as the construction and urban development minister.

A warming of ties between Russia and China on Mongolia has recently been observed in international relations, with the three countries even sealing their commitments to one another by holding the Vostok-2018 large-scale international military exercises in Russia's Zabaikalsky Territory. This, coupled with economic ties, is just more proof of the comprehensive cooperation between the states.

In his interview with Sputnik, Tsogtbaatar spoke about how Mongolia was managing the balance between the region's if not the world's two major powers against the backdrop of China's rising influence over the country.

"These are global changes. It would not be wise to go up against this global change. It's happening. Whether you're a big country or small country, global processes that are going with its objective drive, no one can change. What you can do is shape it in the form that benefits you," the minister stated.

He added that China's growth contributed to the growth of the entire Asian region, something which was especially apparent during the crisis of the late 2000s.

"For example, in 2009, the global crisis really hit Mongolia, but only for a year. Then it started to grow back again because Asia was still buying, China was still buying. China was keeping the balance. It was still on the path of growth. It was really balancing this negative impact globally, not only on Mongolia," Tsogtbaatar explained.

He stressed that Mongolia was trying to benefit from China's growth, adding that Russia considered also Beijing's concept of win-win growth appealing and forward-looking.

"We're listening to [China's proposals for shared destiny]. And Russia is also listening to it. Therefore, this expanded cooperation is unfolding ... Therefore, this is not a challenge, but an opportunity that we should be embracing," the minister stressed.

Tsogtbaatar emphasized that Mongolia enjoyed a trust-based strategic partnership with both Russia and China.

"This [strategic partnership] is not just a word that describes the state of the relationship. That's because if we see it that way at top levels, there should be a lot of trust between our countries, for three countries to agree on this nature of relationship. When we're talking about this trust-based relationship, it's very expanded cooperation in all walks of fields: economy, politics, diplomacy, culture, etc. It's very comprehensive," the minister stressed.

According to Tsogtbaatar, while the two neighbors had the same influence over Mongolia's economy, the character of these two economic partnerships was qualitatively different.

"We enjoy a trade surplus with China.

Whereas with Russia, we have very traditional long-standing cooperation. In terms of trade, it's also our biggest trading partner. But our trade with Russia has consistently been negative. Therefore, in order to decrease that trade surplus [of Russia], we want to export more to Russia, of course," the foreign minister indicated.

He revealed that Mongolia was working closely with Russia in order to reduce trade barriers between the two countries on a mutual and bilateral basis.

The Mongolian foreign minister also pointed to the expanded ties with China and Russia in the fields of education and culture to substantiate the multilateral nature of its partnerships with these two states.

"In terms of our culture cooperation, and our cooperation in the fields of science and education it's pretty expanded. Especially with Russia, we have traditional and long-standing cooperation. We have a lot of students that are studying here. It's the impact of the scholarship [given out] by the Russian government that is doing a great job of expanding our cooperation in the field of education," Tsogtbaatar stated.

The Mongolian foreign minister then went on to speak about projects that were appealing to all three countries, in particular, the Trans-Siberia transportation corridor to Mongolia.

"If China and Russia are expanding their trade, investments, and commercial cooperation, it creates a lot of drive for active cooperation. Therefore, we should tap into that potential. One of the things that would facilitate this enormous increase in investment and commerce would be logistics and service businesses. Mongolia is located right in between these two giant markets. We can provide logistic services and benefit from it," Tsogtbaatar suggested.

Another potentially beneficial area of trilateral cooperation mentioned by the minister was energy.

"In terms of power transmission lines, China is a growing economy. Its need for energy is growing day by day. It has to be met. Mongolia and Russia are good sources of energy. There's a good market and opportunity for cooperation," Tsogtbaatar stated.

He also indicated that the interests of the three states lay in developing highway systems, which could potentially cover not only the three countries but go beyond them to the Northeast Asian region.

"The third part is the highway systems. It's part of a much bigger infrastructure network and road. It's been envisioned multilaterally for Northeast Asia. It's not only of trilateral significance. All three of our countries are working on implementing this idea," Tsogtbaatar said.

Asked about why Mongolia had decided to take part in Vostok-2018, Tsogtbaatar explained that when two such major powers extended invitations to join them in military exercises, one would hardly hesitate.

"Both countries are our strategic partners. When both countries are conducting military exercises and they're inviting us. As a strategic partner located in between two of them, I will ask a question to you. If these two big countries are doing military exercises and they're inviting to be part of it openly, would you rather choose to be out or in? The answer is quite obvious," Tsogtbaatar argued.

He recalled that Mongolia had been developing defense ties with China quite successfully in recent years, while with Russia it had a long-term history of fruitful defense cooperation.
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Mongolian President Khaltmaagiin Battulga urged Russia and other regional countries on Wednesday to launch implementation of the energy super grid project in Northeast Asia as soon as possible.

VLADIVOSTOK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) Mongolian President Khaltmaagiin Battulga urged Russia and other regional countries on Wednesday to launch implementation of the energy super grid project in Northeast Asia as soon as possible.

"I propose you, without wasting time, to jointly start the implementation of the project of the energy super grid of Northeast Asia to provide the countries of the region with electricity," Battulga told a plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Russia's Vladivostok.

The official also called on China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the North to set up a joint organization on the energy super grid.

"Such organization will be able to coordinate the research work which has been carried out so far on the implementation of the project, define a common policy and develop the necessary documents.

We are ready to host this organization in Mongolia. In order to quickly set it up, I propose to form a joint working group," Battulga underlined.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has also addressed the EEF plenary session, said that the idea of the energy super grid was quite feasible.

"We discussed these proposals with the president of Mongolia at a bilateral meeting. We are familiar with them, we are working on them. In principle, [Mongolia's proposals] are quite feasible," Putin said at the plenary session.
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About one million people have taken to the central streets of the city of Barcelona on Catalonia's National Day (Diada) with the calls to "create the Catalan republic," the city's Civil Guard said Wednesday.

BARCELONA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) About one million people have taken to the central streets of the city of Barcelona on Catalonia's National Day (Diada) with the calls to "create the Catalan republic," the city's Civil Guard said Wednesday.

'TROOPS' OF SPANISH KING ENTER GENERALITAT

National Day is celebrated annually in Catalonia in honor of events that transpired three centuries ago. The paradox is that September 11 is not the anniversary of any victory, but the date of the defeat. The last battle of the War of the Spanish Succession officially ended on September 11, 1714, with the victory of Philip V of Spain and Catalonia's subsequent loss of its autonomy. A national day was established in 1980 by regional authorities and has been celebrated since then.

A reconstruction of these historical events could be observed in the central square, where the buildings of the Generalitat and City Hall of Barcelona are located. The "troops" of King Philip V visited the mayor's office and then, with thundering applause from the crowd gathered in the square, went to the Generalitat.

A sign with the inscription reading "Free Political Prisoners and Exiles" in the Catalan and English languages was put on the balcony of the Generalitat, demanding that Catalan politicians, who were involved in the independence referendum on last year, be freed. Criminal cases initiated against them include charges of organizing an insurrection, insurgency and embezzlement of state funds.

The centrist Citizens party, having the largest faction in the Catalan parliament, which supported the territorial integrity of Spain, held their own event at around the same time. Its leaders, Albert Rivera and Ines Arrimadas, were met by a small crowd, with clearly different political preferences. On the King's Square, the leaders of the movement for the preservation of Spain's unity were greeted with applause from some people and whistling from others. As a result, party volunteers did not allow anyone to come to the square, and a chain of people was built around it for security reasons.

Arrimadas said from the podium that, despite the position of the current Catalan leadership, "today's Diada is a Diada for all Catalans, not half of Catalans." Rivera promised "to protect the interests of all Catalans" and argued that he would "like to celebrate Diada together, [but] the Catalan government prevented this."

"Today is a sad day, but I promise that the time will come when we will celebrate it together," Rivera said.

At the same time, the youth far-left Arran organization protested in the same Gothic quarter. Although it gathered no more than a couple hundred people for the rally, it caused quite a fuss. The rally was held under the slogan "Independence, Socialism, Feminism," with people holding red banners with the hammer and sickle, and red Esteladas, the unofficial flag of Catalan independence supporters.

PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW WHEN TO BE QUIET

The main event took place at exactly 5:14 p.m. local time on Tuesday (19:14 GMT) on Diagonal street. It was organized by the Catalan National Assembly public organization, whose former leader, Jordi Sanchez, is in pre-trial detention in connection with last year's independence referendum, along with eight other Catalan politicians.

Diagonal street was filled with people half an hour before the beginning of the rally. Most of them were dressed in pink T-shirts with the slogan "Let's create the Catalan republic," which could have been purchased in advance in souvenir shops or at the assembly's website. However, the clothes of the protesters were quite diverse; many people came in T-shirts from previous rallies. Every Diada, organizers release new T-shirts designs, depending on the events that are taking place in the autonomous community.

"I have been coming to Diada since 2010. My son was six months old then," one of the participants of the rally said, pointing to the boy standing next to her.

"Maybe not in a year or two, but [the Catalan Republic] will become a reality, we will create a republic," the woman who came from Reus, Tarragona, said.

Five senior citizens came from the small town of Riudoms, which is in Tarragona province, where only 6,000 people live. They arrived by bus. Six buses in total were sent from there, however, as they said, many came to Barcelona by car.

"Here is our flag, the name of our village is written there," they said, showing a large Estelada.

People came to Barcelona not only by buses and cars, but tractors were also parked along the whole street. The tractor drivers, who took an active part in last year's protests, traveled to celebrate Diada from different locations.

Traditional Catalan gigantic figures rose above the crowd, as well as human pyramids.

Yellow ribbons, a symbol of the struggle for the liberation of Catalan politicians, whom the protesters called "political prisoners," were hung in the street. Portraits of the arrestees could be found all along the street.

According to the organizer's plan, a moment of silence was observed at 5:14 p.m., was followed by a signal of a rocket, promoting the crowd to cry out a wave of sound meant to topple the symbolic wall set on the stage. However, a couple of times, the crowd began to shout ahead of schedule, and the organizers persuaded people to keep quiet. As a result, the cry finally reached the stage, the wall was destroyed and the crowd exploded, chanting "Independence."

The word "Independence" was shouted on Tuesday not only on Diagonal street. A group of young people stepped out onto one of the central streets, chanting not only the slogans of independence, but also not very politically correct statements about Spain; they sang the famous "Que Viva Espana" song by Manolo Escobar in their own way, replacing some lyrics with swear words. Tourists filmed this, and taxi drivers were forced to search for detours.

"The roads are blocked every now and then, we have to drop passengers off. It's hard to earn money. This summer I earned way less than I did last year ... I'm not interested in politics, I'm much more concerned how to feed my family," one of the taxi drivers told Sputnik.
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The chances of achieving a truce in Syria's northwestern Idlib province depend on Russia, since Moscow is capable of steering Damascus away from further escalation in order to avoid a humanitarian disaster in this area, the German government spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said on Wednesday.

BERLIN (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) The chances of achieving a truce in Syria's northwestern Idlib province depend on Russia, since Moscow is capable of steering Damascus away from further escalation in order to avoid a humanitarian disaster in this area, the German government spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said on Wednesday.

"It is important to emphasize that Russia and Iran bear a special responsibility [for the situation in Syria] as the parties to the conflict. Russia has influence over the Syrian regime, which is necessary for discouraging this regime from escalation for the sake of avoiding a humanitarian disaster. The current state of affairs is that the chances for the truce are either real or not, depending on Russia's position," Seibert told a press briefing.

One of Syria's de-escalation zones covers Idlib, which remains a stronghold of terrorist insurgency in the country.

Under the ceasefire agreement between the Syrian government troops and armed opposition, military activities in the area are prohibited. However, multiple ceasefire violations continue to be recorded in Idlib.

The offensive to recapture Idlib from terrorists, currently being weighed by the Syrian authorities and the Russian forces supporting them, has raised fears of western countries about a possible humanitarian catastrophe in this area.

However, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov has said that the Idlib operation was being developed thoroughly and secretly, with humanitarian aspects taken into account.
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MEXICO CITY (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) A rally in front of the parliamentary building in Guatemala City caused the lawmakers to cancel the session, media reported.

According to the Prensa Libre media outlet, the protesters blocked entrance to the parliament building and threw eggs at lawmakers arriving at the session, which was promptly canceled.

Guatemala has been witnessing mass rallies over the past several days following Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales' forcing a UN-backed anti-graft body out of the country. Morales, who is now facing a preliminary inquiry over corruption allegations, announced at the end of August that he would not renew the mandate of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG). The decision was harshly criticized by the United Nations and foreign governments.
VLADIVOSTOK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) Russian President Vladimir Putin commended Wednesday progressive development of relations between Russia and Mongolia and noted positive indicators of bilateral economic cooperation.

"The relations between out countries are developing are developing on the basis of previously reached agreements.

In general, we are satisfied [with the progress]," Putin said at the Eastern Economic Forum at the talks with his Mongolian counterpart Khaltmaa Battulga.

Putin also noted positive indicators of bilateral economic cooperation.
Russia's Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled to authorize the decision of a lower court to sentence Ukrainian national Roman Suschenko, who was convicted of espionage, to 12 years in prison, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) Russia's Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled to authorize the decision of a lower court to sentence Ukrainian national Roman Suschenko, who was convicted of espionage, to 12 years in prison, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

"To leave the judgment of the Moscow city court unchanged, [to leave] the appeal unsatisfied," the court ruling said, as read out by the judges.

Before the hearing, Suschenko told reporters that he was counting on being exchanged for a Russian national imprisoned in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry expressed protest to Russia in connection with the Supreme Court's ruling.

"There were no illusions concerning the 'sentence' for journalist Suschenko.

It is an illegal and political decision. We express protest to the Russian Federation, and continue struggle," Mariana Betsa, the spokeswoman for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, wrote on Twitter.

In turn, Suschenko's lawyer Mark Feygin said that the Ukrainian national was ready to apply for a pardon. He added that it did not mean that Suschenko pleaded guilty.

The Ukrainian national was convicted of spying on Russia's Armed Forces and National Guard. According to Ukrinform news agency, Suschenko had been its employee since 2002 and had worked as a special correspondent in France since 2010. The Ukrainian citizen was arrested in September 2016, soon after he arrived in Moscow.

Suschenko has denied the charges.
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MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th September, 2018) Turkish forces have killed or captured 760 militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), considered a terrorist organization by Ankara, between June 1 and August 31 during operations in the country and abroad, local media reported Tuesday.

A total of 35 Turkish security forces officers were killed and another 52 were injured in raids, according to the information gathered by Anadolu news agency.

At least 400 militants were neutralized on the territory of Iraq, the media added.

Tensions between Ankara and the Kurds escalated in July 2015 when a ceasefire between Turkey and the PKK collapsed over a series of terror attacks allegedly committed by the PKK members. The Turkish forces are involved in anti-PKK raids across the country.
WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th September, 2018) The United States has renewed a travel advisory urging Americans to avoid Nicaragua because of a violent crackdown on protesters seeking the ouster of President Daniel Ortega, the US Department of State said on Wednesday.

"Throughout Nicaragua, armed and violent uniformed police or civilians in plain clothes acting as police ('para-police') are targeting anyone considered to be in opposition to the rule of President Ortega," the updated advisory said. "The government and its affiliated armed groups have been reported to arbitrarily detain protesters, with credible claims of torture and disappearances."

At the same time, the State Department lifted a mandatory order for non-emergency US government personnel and family members to leave Nicaragua, allowing the US Embassy to remain open for emergency services as the facility gradually returns to normal operations, the advisory explained.

The alert noted that anti-government rallies and demonstrations occur daily throughout Nicaragua, with government forces, uniformed police and para-police attacking peaceful demonstrators leading to significant numbers of deaths and injuries.

The warning also advised Americans in Nicaragua to avoid demonstrations, crowds, barricades and roadblocks, while maintaining supplies of water, food and fuel and to shelter in place.

More than 300 people have been killed and hundreds of thousands of Nicaraguans since waves of anti-government protests began last spring, according to published reports.
Pope Francis and Archbishop Gintaras Grusas of Vilnius, Lithuania, in the Vatican on February 2, 2015. (Vatican Media)

The Pope Francis is scheduled to make an apostolic visit to the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, September 22-25.

By Robin Gomes

Lithuanians are eagerly awaiting the visit of Pope Francis to their country in a little over a weeks time. The Pope will dedicate two days to Lithuania, and follow it up with a day each in Latvia and Estonia.

Archbishop Gintaras Grusas of the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, spoke to Vatican News explaining the mood in his country ahead of the papal visit.

Listen to Archbishop Gintaras Grusas of Vilnius

The archbishop who is president of the Lithuanian bishops conference said there is great anticipation among the people of Lithuania for the Holy Fathers visit, for which the last-minute touches are being given to the preparations, such as setting up stages for the papal events and registrations of participants.

The upcoming visit, Archbishop Grusas said is coming close on the heels of the celebration of 25 years since the visit of St. Pope John Paul II, in September 1993, which Lithuanians regard as a great gift of the late Pope.

This time, the people are waiting to hear from Pope Francis his encouragement and the Gospel message that he proclaims wherever he goes.

In Lithuania, Pope Francis will visit Vilnius and Kaunas, September 22-23. The theme of the Lithuanian trip is Christ Jesus Our Hope.

The Holy Father will dedicate a day each to Latvia and Estonia, September 24 and 25 respectively, before flying back to Rome.
The nations first cardinal says the civilian government and the army need to work together to make Myanmar "a nation of hope for millions."

Myanmars prominent Catholic Church leader has appealed to the international community to be patient with Myanmar as the nation is passing through a delicate phase, and to continue helping it in its transition to a fully-fledged democracy.

Patience with pace of democracy

Cardinal Charles Bo, Archbishop of Yangon said peacemaking is Myanmars urgent mandate, while democracy is still in its infancy and needs time to be robust.

His appeal came in a statement on September 10, in the wake of a scathing report last month by an independent fact-finding team appointed by the United Nations top human rights body, that demanded the prosecution of Myanmars military leaders who it accused of systematic crimes against ethnic minorities in Rakhine, Kachin and Shan states.

Heal, not open new wounds

"In the hands of Aung San Suu Kyi, the people of Myanmar invest their hope for a country of peace and prosperity," Cardinal Bo said, adding, "Myanmar history is a wounded history. It is time to heal, not to open new wounds."

"Extreme terms like genocide, ethnic cleansing and sanctions will not assist us in our journey towards peace and democracy," the cardinal said. "The way forward is to accept the role of all stakeholders in the durable peace and resolution of all issues."

The 69-year-old cardinal said the civilian government and the army need to work together to make Myanmar "a nation of hope for millions."

"I earnestly request all our friends to recognize this reality and help the people of Myanmar in resolving their problems," he said.

Peace, reconciliation

Cardinal Bo, the nations first cardinal, is a staunch campaigner for reconciliation in Myanmar, where peace negotiations with ethnic armed militias are ongoing and the Rohingya refugee crisis is still unresolved.

He has defended State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi in her efforts to foster democracy by working with the military despite calls for her to be stripped of her Nobel peace prize for staying silent about persecution of the Rohingya. (Source: UCANEWS)
Pope Francis meets delegates of the Tensho Kenoho Shisetsu Kenshokai Association before the weekly General Audience and expresses his wish to visit Japan next year.

This Japanese Association is known for promoting projects of culture and solidarity and on Wednesday Pope Francis met the group in the Paul the VI complex, reminding them of another long journey to meet a Pope.



The Pontiff recalled the visit more than 400 years ago, in 1585, when four young Japanese arrived in Rome, accompanied by some Jesuit missionaries, to visit the Pope, who was then Gregory XIII.

The Pope pointed out that it was the first time that a group of representatives from Japan had come to Europe and he described it as an historic meeting between two great cultures and spiritual traditions and deserved to be remembered.

In particular, Pope Francis recalled the mens leader at the time Mancio Ito, who became a priest, and Julian Nakaura who, he said, like many others, was executed on the famous hill of the martyrs of Nagasaki and was proclaimed blessed.

The Pope during the meeting noted the efforts of the Association to set up a fund for the training of young people and orphans, thanks to the contribution of companies that are sensitive to their problems.

The Holy Father added that, their wish to show that religion, culture and the economy can work together peacefully to create a more humane world marked by an integral ecology was fully in accordance with what he himself was wishing for.

During his greetings to those gathered, Pope Francis expressed his desire to visit Japan next year and also hoped that after Wednesday's meeting the group would be encouraged to return to their country as ambassadors of friendship and promoters of great human and Christian values.






Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation of Nevada continues its third annual shineGOLD campaign to generate awareness and community support in honor of National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month (Pictured: The official Krispy Kreme Vegas Golden Knights Specialty Doughnut)

During the month of September, community partners throughout the Las Vegas Valley have demonstrated their support by shining gold, while other local businesses have helped Candlelighters raise funds by offering specials and deals to support the campaign.

This year, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts launched its official Krispy Kreme Vegas Golden Knights (VGK) specialty doughnut to benefit the nonprofit organization. To commemorate the launch, Krispy Kreme hosted Candlelighters families and the community this past weekend. The event coincided with a special appearance by Chance, the VGK team mascot. The VGK specialty doughnut was designed by Roxy Lopez, an eight-year old Candlelighters child.

The VGK specialty doughnut is an Original Glazed Krispy Kreme Doughnut dipped in White Icing, then Drizzled with Black Icing and finished with a Gold Dusting. Throughout the month of September, for every dozen of the VGK specialty doughnuts sold at all six Las Vegas Krispy Kreme Doughnut locations, Krispy Kreme will donate $6 back to Candlelighters. Proceeds will go toward supporting Candlelighters mission to provide emotional, financial and quality of life services to local children and their families battling a childhood cancer diagnosis.

Clark County Commissioners Susan Brager and Marilyn Kirkpatrick along with Candlelighters families and team members gathered at the Welcome to Las Vegas sign earlier this month to watch the iconic landmark shineGOLD to mark the official launch of the campaign. Other monuments to shineGOLD in honor of National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month include the Las Vegas High Roller, Las Vegas City Hall, the Viva Vision light show at Fremont Street Experience and the ONE Summerlin building at Downtown Summerlin.

Candlelighters, Southern Nevadas first and oldest nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting local pediatric cancer patients, is commemorating its 40th year of service to the community. This year also marks the third year of the organizations shineGOLD campaign which is designed to help spread awareness about the devastating impact childhood cancer has on families and encourage the community to offer support.


The Super Summer Theatre closes out its 43rd outdoor Summer Series with the Gilbert and Sullivans The Pirates of Penzance playing at 7:05 p.m. now through Saturday, September 22.

Sin City Opera brings to life the story of a young pirate-in-training, Frederic, who cant wait for his 21st birthday, the day his accidental pirate apprenticeship ends  or does it? Born in a Leap Year, Frederic discovers he must remain with the raucous band of buccaneers and delay his future with the lovely Mabel who promises to wait, much to the chagrin of her father, the Major General. Bound by his own sense of duty and loyalty to the Pirate King, will Frederic be forced to sail away into the sunset alone or run off to fly high on the seas of love?

This traditional Gilbert and Sullivan presentation comes with Sin City Opera twists and includes one of the best patter songs of all time, along with swoon-fully, catchy tunes in this funny and hopeful operatic farce. Youll be hooked on this swashbuckling favorite about love, laughter, and loyalty.


Las Vegas headliner Mac King has announced that The Mac King Comedy Magic Show has been extended for four more years at Harrahs Las Vegas. Kings contract now extends through 2023, which will give him 23 years at the hotel. In January, he celebrates a historic 19 years at Harrahs, making him the longest running act performing at the same hotel in Las Vegas history.

The Mac King Comedy Magic Show has delivered non-stop laughs and dazzling magic to packed houses at Harrahs Las Vegas since 2000. Im pleased to extend my great run at Harrahs for four more years, said Mac King. To be able to continue my shows at this amazing venue and make people laugh every day is a great feeling.

King was named Magician of the Year by The Magic Castle, Entertainer of the Year by the Las Vegas Weekly Readers Choice Awards, and is a Guinness Book of World Records holder.
The officer who fired the firearm, a veteran with the department, and the other officer involved in the incident were both placed on administrative leave Wednesday pending the investigation, according to Hamady.
The recent release of Cambodias former opposition leader into house arrest does not go far enough to appease critics of Prime Minister Hun Sens government, according to US Congressman Alan Lowenthal.

Sokha was released from prison on health grounds this week after more than a year in pre-trial detention on treason charges. He is now placed under house arrest and is still denied access to his former colleagues at the Cambodia National Rescue Party, which was banned in November.

I am relieved that Kem Sokha has been released. I wish him the very best and hope his health improves quickly. The case against Kem Sokha is yet another example of the abuses of power by the authoritarian regime of Prime Minister Hun Sen to dismantle any and all political opposition prior to the recent national election, Lowenthal said.

Now that Hun Sen has emerged victorious from the sham election he engineered, he believes that the international community will reward him for his seeming beneficence after the fact. We will not. We will continue to advocate for free and fair elections that the Cambodian people were promised, and we will hold the Hun Sen regime accountable for its attacks on Cambodian democracy.

More than ever, the Cambodian Democracy Act, which imposes sanctions on the Hun Sen government and passed the U.S. House in July, needs to be immediately brought up and passed in the U.S. Senate.

Steve Chabot, a Republican lawmaker for Ohio, echoed Lowenthals remarks.

Since Hun Sen began his most recent round of abuses I have called for a strong response. Of course, I am pleased that Kem Sokha was released, but the bogus charges against him have not been dropped and he has little freedom of movement. Without real changes, this is not a step towards democracy, rather a ploy in a tyrants playbook, he said.

Sokha is the highest-profile of almost two dozen activists, journalists, and academics jailed in the lead-up to the July election, most of whom have either been released on bail or pardoned in recent weeks after the ruling party won every seat in the National Assembly.

Sophal Ear, an associate professor of diplomacy and world affairs at Occidental College in Los Angeles, said the release of Kem Sokha on bail was, however, a good sign.

This is a positive development, especially since it looks like he was headed to another six months of arbitrary detention. I believe his health condition was such that to continue holding him like that could lead to some serious problems, the worst-case scenario is if anything happened to him while in detention, he said.

Ear who also the author of Aid Dependence in Cambodia: How Foreign Assistance Undermines Democracy and the The Hungry Dragon: How Chinas Resources Quest is Reshaping the World, said that US Congress will continue to move the Cambodia Democracy Bill ahead.

In a report released on Wednesday, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the Cambodian government should immediately and unconditionally release all those detained for peacefully exercising their rights.

Cambodia has jailed a Whos Who of prominent critics of Hun Sen and his ruling party, said Brad Adams, HRWs Asia director. The government should immediately release all political prisoners and drop all charges, including against opposition leader Kem Sokha. Hun Sen should commit to ending the arrest of critics, which he continues to use to prop up his dictatorial rule.

However, Cambodian governments spokesman Phay Siphan said on his Facebook page that the release of Kem Sokha and others was under the remit of Cambodias court system.

The Royal Government of Cambodia does not have the position to violently act to intimidate and made the arrests. The court carries out its functions and jurisdiction like in other countries.
The United States said Wednesday the denuclearization of North Korea must follow the same speed as the advancement of inter-Korean relations, after Seoul announced the opening of a new liaison office.

North and South Korea will open a joint liaison office on Friday aimed at fostering cross-border communications and relations.

In Washington, a State Department official said the U.S. is aware of this development, urging Pyongyang to honor its commitment to finalizing the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.



We reaffirmed the Panmunjom Declaration during the Singapore Summit and we did so because progress on inter-Korean relations must happen in lockstep with progress on denuclearization, a spokesperson told VOA Wednesday.

South Korea President Moon Jae-in has stated the improvement of relations between Pyongyang and Seoul cannot advance separately from resolving North Koreas nuclear program, added the State Department official.

South Korea's Unification Ministry announced Wednesday the new office will be opened in the North Korean city of Kaesong, located near the border that splits the rivals.

The ministry says the liaison office will become "a round-the-clock consultation and communication channel" aimed at "easing military tensions and establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula."

Both nations will deploy up to 20 officials to staff the office.

The idea for the liaison office grew out of the April summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in. It was scheduled to open last month, but was delayed due to an impasse between North Korea and the United States over the pace of North Korea's dismantling of its nuclear weapons program, a promise Kim Jong Un made during his summit with President Donald Trump in Singapore in June.

The situation has since improved after a South Korean presidential delegation traveled to Pyongyang last week and personally met with Kim, who passed on a letter to President Trump offering to engage in a second round of talks.

The United States had considered opening a U.S. liaison office in Pyongyang in the 1990s, according to former State Department officials.



The move at the time was part of diplomatic efforts to engage North Korea that grew out of the U.S. concerns Pyongyang was trying to attain the capacity to build nuclear weapons. A former U.S. official told VOA that Pyongyang backed off from the proposal in the end.
The United States and two major international organizations have urged the Cambodian government to drop charges against the former leader of the countrys main opposition party, Kem Sokha, and release him from house arrest.

Sokha was released into house arrest after spending more than a year behind bars awaiting trial on treason charges.

Restrictions on Sokha remain in place, including a ban on him meeting with fellow Cambodia National Rescue Party members.

Emily Zeeberg, a US Embassy spokeswoman, said Washington continued to call for the dropping of all charges against Sokha and a return to dialogue.

We continue to call on the government of Cambodia to drop all charges against Mr. Sokha, remove restrictions on the political rights of him and other opposition leaders, and engage opposition leaders in an urgent dialogue aimed at building genuine national reconciliation, she said.

Speaking at the UNs Human Rights Council on Monday, Michelle Bachelet, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and a former president of Chile, said: The government should also release, and drop charges against, all other political actors, journalists, and ordinary citizens arrested or convicted for exercising their human rights.

Minar Pimple, Amnesty Internationals senior director of global operations also issued a statement, saying that Sokha was now a prisoner in his own home.

We call on the Cambodian authorities to drop all charges against him and make his release permanent, full and unconditional. Following reports that he requires hospital care, we also urge authorities to grant him immediate access to adequate medical attention.

But Phay Siphan, a government spokesman, dismissed the calls from the United States and rights workers.

Cambodia is an independent state, a sovereign state. We do not have to be punished or even compelled to put pressure on the democratic process or the judicial process, which is the sovereign territory of Cambodia," he said.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in is calling for the United States and North Korea to "make bold decisions" to achieve the goal of "complete denuclearization" of the Korean peninsula.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in is calling for the United States and North Korea to "make bold decisions" to achieve the goal of "complete denuclearization" of the Korean peninsula. Speaking to his cabinet in Seoul Tuesday, President Moon said Washington should take the lead in convincing the North to abandon its nuclear weapons program.
More than 150,000 people in Western Afghanistan have been forced to leave their homes due to a severe drought that has hit two thirds of the country. Many of them are living in makeshift homes made of tents provided by aid agencies. VOAs Ayesha Tanzeem visited one of the sites in Herat, and filed this report.
Outrage is growing in the U.S. Congress over the U.S. military's role in Yemen, where thousands have died due to the war between a Saudi-led coalition and Houthi rebels. A bipartisan group of American lawmakers added a provision into a defense spending bill requiring Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to certify by September 12th whether Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are finding a political settlement to the three-year-old conflict. VOA's Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine has more.
"There's always the threat and danger of people losing their property or worse, and we know the reality is (this event) could be devastating," Cusack said. "We hope we never have to use our training, but if we do, we're very well prepared and will do our level best," he said.
About a million protesters rallied along Barcelonas main street to demand independence from the Spanish government for the Catalonia Region on Tuesday, according to police.

Protesters waving Catalan flags and wearing pink shirts with the slogan Lets make the Catalan Republic turned the citys Diagonal Avenue into a sea of pink.

Protesters fell silent at 5:14 p.m. to commemorate the fall of Barcelona to Spain during the Spanish Wars of Succession. On a 24-hour clock, 5:14 is 1714, the year of the historic defeat.

Regional leader Quim Torra encouraged people earlier this week to march on the regions national holiday to protest the imprisonment of separatist leaders who implemented a secession referendum last October that led the regional parliament to declare independence a year ago.

Spain has remained in control of the wealthy northwestern region despite the declaration, prosecuting and imprisoning many of the political figures that made it happen.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday his government knows the identity of the two men Britain has accused of carrying out the poisoning of an ex-Russian spy in March.

Russia has denied Britain's accusations that it was behind the nerve agent attack that sickened Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia.

Putin said there is "nothing special or criminal" about the two men, adding that they are civilians and he hopes they come forward to "tell about themselves."

British Prime Minister Theresa May announced last week that investigators had identified two agents from Russia's GRU spy agency as being responsible for the March attack in the British city of Salisbury and charged them with conspiracy and attempted murder.

Authorities said the suspects arrived at London's Gatwick airport two days before the poisoning took place.

Their journey from a London hotel to the crime scene in Salisbury was tracked by security cameras. The two men then flew out of Heathrow Airport back to Russia the same evening.

The suspects' passports gave their names as Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, though police believe the names were fake and asked for help in figuring out their real identities.

Canada, France, Germany, Britain and the United States issued a joint statement applauding the charges brought against the two suspects. They also expressed faith in the findings of British investigators.

"We have full confidence in the British assessment that the two suspects were officers from the Russian military intelligence service, also known as the GRU, and that this operation was almost certainly approved at a senior government level."
California has experienced record heat waves and catastrophic fires in recent years, and climate experts say it is likely to get worse.

A report released Aug. 27 by the state of California, the fourth in a series of assessments, puts the blame squarely on climate change.

California Gov. Jerry Brown is hosting an international summit, beginning Wednesday, in San Francisco to search for solutions.

The worst fires in Californias history came this year and last, with the 2018 Mendocino Complex Fire scorching 186,000 hectares. Parts of northern California are still burning. The largest of the fires, in Shasta County, has burned more than 20,000 hectares and is only 5 percent contained.

Climate research

The California Climate Change Assessment summarizes current climate research and finds a litany of problems caused by greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, which is emitted by the use of fossil fuels such as coal and oil.

If nothing or little is done, the reports say to expect temperature rises of 3 to 5 degrees Celsius (5.6 to 8.8 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2100; a two-thirds decline in water supplies from the mountain snow pack by 2050; a nearly 80 percent increase in the area scorched by fires by the end of the century; and up to two-thirds of Southern California beaches eroding in the same time frame.

From flooding to a strained electrical grid and premature deaths and illnesses, the list is extensive.

I think weve reached the point where the impacts of climate change are no longer subtle, said Michael Mann, who directs the Earth System Science Center at Pennsylvania State University.

Mann was not involved in the study, but said he thinks its finding are, if anything, conservative.

We are literally seeing them play out in real time in the form of record heat waves, floods, droughts and wildfires, he said.

The Trump administration, however, has pledged to overturn emissions curbs and has promised to withdraw from the 2015 Paris climate agreement, an accord of nearly 200 countries that requires national targets for emission cuts but which lacks enforcement powers.

President Donald Trump said the pact is ineffective and kills jobs. Climate experts say something must be done to slow the climate shifts that are underway.

A warmer atmosphere can hold more moisture, so theres the potential for greater rainfall events, worse flooding, Mann said. A warmer atmosphere also dries out the soils, causing drought.

He added, Youre moving the probability curve, and at the tail of the curve are the extreme weather events.

Health effects of climate change

Epidemiologists are tracking health effects of the changes, from more pollutants emitted by fires to warming in the cities, said epidemiologist Rupa Basu of the California Environmental Protection Agencys Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment. Basu was a contributing author to Californias climate assessment.

Theres a larger population living in urban areas, and more importantly, a larger vulnerable population living in urban areas, said Basu, which she said become urban heat islands as temperatures rise. The report says that many rural communities, and Native Americans and other minorities, are disproportionately affected.

Researchers are seeing more emergencies and deaths among the very young, elderly and poor. Analysts compare hospital and emergency room visits, infant birth weights, death and illness rates to temperature and relative humidity, researcher Xiangmei Wu said.

On a global level, climate change can increase the ferocity of tropical storms because of changes to the jet stream that determine weather patterns, although hurricanes are not an issue in California.

Mann, of the Earth System Science Center, said one of most destructive storms in U.S. history, Hurricane Harvey on the Gulf Coast, released huge amounts of rainfall as it stalled in its path over Houston in 2017. He said, Youre moving that probability curve over on the graph of weather patterns, and at the tail of the curve are the extreme warm events.

Extreme weather events

Dan Cayan, a researcher at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and a coordinating lead author of the California report, said climate change exaggerates natural cycles such as El Nino, the periodic warming of equatorial oceans that leads to storms in the Pacific. He said more extreme weather events may well be on their way.

State and local governments and other players are taking this seriously. And I think that trend will grow as climate change symptoms continue to bubble up, Cayan said, adding that he is cautiously optimistic that the world can mitigate the worst effects of the changes.

Gov. Brown, who is hosting the three-day summit that ends Friday, has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in his state to 40 percent below 1990 levels.

Monday, Brown signed a bill requiring California to obtain all of its electricity from clean energy sources by 2045.

Brown is a key figure in a coalition of local and regional governments that have committed to achieving the Paris accords limiting of global warming in this century to 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, whether or not the United States remains in the agreement.

The California summit will look at ways to build consensus and avoid worst-case scenarios.

Protesters who have gathered in San Francisco, however, say it is not enough.

There have been many climate summits with a lot of rhetoric but not enough commitment, activist May Boeve told The Associated Press. She was one of thousands who marched through San Francisco last Saturday, calling for a transition to renewable energy sources and protections for workers and minority groups as the world braces for dramatic changes to its weather.
A global media monitoring group said the climate for press freedom in Pakistan is deteriorating and accused the country's powerful military of "quietly, but effectively" encouraging "self-censorship."

In a report released Wednesday, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), said its findings are based on interviews with journalists during a mission to Pakistan this year. They "painted a picture of a media under siege," CPJ noted.

The research, however, noted a drop in murders and violence against journalists in Pakistan, which, until recently, had been condemned as one of the deadliest for reporters.

WATCH: A Pakistani American Startup Fighting Media Censorship

"While the decline in the killing of journalists is encouraging, the government needs to counteract pressures that have resulted in rampant self-censorship and threats to the media," said CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Steven Butler.

"The military bars access to certain areas, uses direct and indirect acts of intimidation, and even allegedly instigates violence against reporters to prevent critical reporting," the report noted.

Violent attacks in the past decade in Pakistan have killed 22 media workers.The military and intelligence agencies, or military-linked political groups have been a suspected source of fire in half the fatal attacks on journalists.

The CPJ called on Pakistan to address "the disturbing trend of impunity and attacks on journalists to shore up this faltering pillar of democracy."

The report quoted senior editors and journalists as privately telling CPJ researchers that conditions for the free press are as bad as when journalists were flogged and newspapers closed when the country was under military dictatorship.

The monitoring group said it had submitted, via email, a detailed request to army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor for his comment on the report, but he did not answer nor agree to meet the CPJ mission while it was visiting Pakistan.

While there was no immediate reaction from the Pakistani army to the CPJ's assertions, Major-General Ghafoor has previously rejected as baseless and politically motivated accusations his institution is curbing media freedom in the country.

The new Pakistan government, which took office nearly a month ago, has pledged to defend free media. Federal Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry has stated his government does not believe in censorship.

"The freedom gained by media during past few decades is a landmark achievement, which is unique in third world countries," he said at a recent news conference.
For generations, Native American women have been victimized at astonishing rates, with federal figures showing that more than half have encountered sexual and domestic violence at some point during their lives  even amid a wave of efforts aimed at reducing such crimes.

The statistics reinforce arguments that the criminal justice system still fails to protect these women, and its shortcomings again are being exposed as another crisis gains attention: the disappearances of hundreds of Native American and Alaska Native women and girls from across the United States.

In the past decade, Congress responded to the problem of violence against Native American women with intensely debated legislation seeking to close legal loopholes, improve data collection and increase funding for training of tribal police. Those efforts have proven severely limited, however, prompting advocates to again push for more reforms.

"I think the reason that Native women may go missing at higher rates than other groups of people is very similar to the reason that they are at higher risk for domestic violence and sexual assault,'' said Sarah Deer, a University of Kansas professor, member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and author of a book on sexual violence in Indian Country. "The legal system is simply not functioning properly [to prevent] these types of things from happening.''

At the end of 2017, the FBI's National Crime Information Center database had 633 open missing-person cases for Native American women, who make up 0.4 percent of the U.S. population but 0.7 percent of cases in the figures obtained by The Associated Press. African-American women were the only other group to be over-represented in the caseload compared with their proportion of the population.

Figures too low

The numbers are considered an undercount, however, given that reporting is largely voluntary and some tribes didn't gain full access to the database until 2015, under a Justice Department program launched that year.

Just 47 of the nation's more than 570 federally recognized tribes are part of DOJ's Tribal Access Program, which allows them to exchange data with national crime information systems for civil and criminal purposes. The Justice Department has gradually allocated funding to bring more tribes on board, and up to 25 are expected to join the program in the next year, officials said. Other tribes have limited access via state, federal or local law enforcement agencies.

"We think that's an important way of ensuring that tribes have the ability to directly deal with the issues on the ground that their families and their community are dealing with,'' said Tracy Toulou, head of the Justice Department's Office of Tribal Justice.

That program was one of many crime-fighting measures in the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010, which gave tribes authority to hand down longer sentences while mandating that federal officials do more to train tribal police on evidence collection and provide an annual report on Indian Country crime statistics.

Years later, those data collection and reporting efforts are still in development, funding for law enforcement training remains limited, and the Justice Department's assistance with public safety on reservations  a role referenced in multiple treaties with tribes  has fallen short of officials' expressed commitment to Indian Country, according to the Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General.

Prosecutors' track record

In a 2017 report, the inspector general also highlighted U.S. attorneys' uneven track record with prosecuting serious violent crimes on reservations, citing data that must be collected under the 2010 law to help improve those prosecution rates.

Before the law, the U.S. Government Accountability Office found, U.S. attorneys declined to prosecute half of cases on reservations, leading to concerns that the practice was creating a safe haven for criminals on tribal lands. The latest figures, from 2016, show U.S. attorneys declined to prosecute 46 percent of reservation cases, marking only marginal improvement. That included rejecting more than 550 assault and sexual assault cases  more than any other type of crime. (Domestic violence cases typically fall under assault.) Prosecutors blamed the vast majority of rejections on insufficient evidence.

A few weeks ago, at an annual meeting between tribal and federal officials about violence against Native women, Jesse Panuccio, the Justice Department's acting associate attorney general, identified domestic violence and sex trafficking as two underlying issues that may be linked to disappearances of women in Indian Country. He said improving law enforcement's response to those crimes could help.

"Many tribal leaders have testified that the disappearance and deaths of American Indian and Alaska Native women are not taken seriously enough, and that increased awareness and a stronger law enforcement response are critical to saving Native women's lives,'' Panuccio said.

Some tribal leaders and victims' families contend authorities too often are unwilling to help search for missing loved ones or even file a report.

In Alaska, state authorities  who handle criminal investigations in more than 200 Alaska Native villages  have been accused of classifying fatalities as suicides when families feel certain their loved ones died from a homicide, according to representatives from the Akiak, Emmonak and Tetlin communities. The state, which has the highest percentage of Native residents in the U.S., also has some of the biggest crime disparities in the nation, including the highest rate of women murdered by men.

A 2013 report found that at least 75 Alaska Native communities had no law enforcement presence, and Alaska Native officials spoke candidly in a federal report last year about barriers victims face in seeking justice. Some victims needing a sexual assault forensic exam must take a boat or plane to an urban area, according to Michelle Demmert, chief justice for the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes.

As a result of complaints about police response nationwide, proposals have begun to emerge to address how officers respond, with calls for the Justice Department to establish standardized protocols.

One of those proposals, included in draft legislation to renew and broaden the Violence Against Women Act, would expand tribal jurisdiction over a range of crimes. For example, tribal police would be able to arrest non-Native Americans suspected of selling women for sex or running trafficking rings.

A problem of resources

An earlier version of the Violence Against Women Act gave tribal authorities the ability to prosecute non-Indians in domestic violence cases. However, only 18 tribes have met the mandates to do so, the National Congress of American Indians reported in March. Those mandates include requiring tribes to provide an attorney to suspects who cannot afford one  a costly ask for cash-strapped nations.

"We can't guarantee that, because we don't have the funding to guarantee it,'' said Robert LaFountain, a prosecutor on Montana's Crow Reservation, where the per capita annual income of roughly $15,000 is about half the national average. "The funding is always difficult.''

Another measure included in the VAWA reauthorization calls for annual reports on the number of missing and murdered Native Americans, one of multiple federal proposals aimed at measuring the full scope of the problem.

The Violence Against Women Act expires this fall, and prospects for passing any new changes are uncertain. There are no Republican co-sponsors, and the U.S. Justice Department has not signaled its support for amendments. As a senator, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions opposed the legislation in 2013, citing an objection to expanding tribes' authority over non-Indians and other provisions.
European Union governments are failing to comply with air quality limits that are already weaker than the World Health Organization's recommendations, the bloc's auditors said Tuesday.

The findings by the EU watchdog come as Brussels is taking half a dozen member states to court over their failure to enforce the bloc's air quality laws.

Respiratory illness caused by pollution result in 400,000 premature deaths a year, costing governments heavily in health care expenses, the European Court of Auditors found.

"There are still considerable impacts on public health," said Janusz Wojciechowski, one of the report's authors.

As many as 23 out of the bloc's 28 nations are failing to comply with the existing limits on harmful pollutants such as nitrogen oxide and particulate matter, according to EU data.

Responding to the report, the EU executive said it was stepping up action to reduce pollution and defended its policy record, pointing to improvements in some areas.

"The commission is fully aware that there is still an urgent need to further improve air quality in Europe," a European Commission spokesman said.

The commission said in May that it would sue Britain, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy and Romania at the bloc's highest court for breaching rules on air pollutants.
European Union legislators took the unprecedented step Wednesday to begin process of imposing sanctions on Hungary for presenting a "systematic threat" to the bloc's Democratic values.

The European Parliament voted 448-197 to launch an Article Seven process, which could result in the suspension of Hungary's EU voting rights.

The vote dealt a serious blow to Prime Minister Viktor Orban, further isolating him from powerful allies in the midst of his ambitious effort to push Europe toward Hungary's version of an "illiberal democracy."

Orban managed during his eight years in office to deflect his critics, who contend Hungary's electoral system is irregular, media freedom and judicial independence are waning and refugees and asylum-seekers are abused.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto condemned the vote as "nothing less than the petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians." He also said Hungary was considering legal actions because the vote was tainted by "massive fraud" since abstentions were not included in the final count.

There were 48 abstentions, so the 448 votes in favor of the sanctions exceeded the two-thirds needed only because it was based on 645 votes. If the abstentions were counted, there would have been a total of 693 votes.

Judith Sargentini, a Dutch politician who presented the European Parliament's report recommending the sanctions process, welcomed the results of the vote.

"Viktor Orban's government has been leading the charge against European values by silencing independent media, replacing critical judges, and putting academia on a leash," she said. "The Hungarian people deserve better. They deserve freedom of speech, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice and equality, all of which are enshrined in the European treaties."

With European Parliament elections in May, the dispute over Hungary and Poland, which faces a similar sanctions process that was initiated by the European Commission last year, highlights tensions between nationalists and federalist camps on the continent.
British, French and German fighter jets simulated flight interceptions over Western Europe on Wednesday as part of NATO drills to deter Russian planes from entering allied airspace and to showcase European efforts to integrate their air defenses.

Fighter pilots carrying air-to-air missiles from 10 NATO nations took turns to simulate the interception of a Belgian air force transport plane en route to Spain, performing visual inspections of the aircrafts status by hovering off the wings at speeds of 900 km/hour (560 mph).

Some 60 NATO jets, mainly from European allies, are on alert to defend alliance airspace, as NATO deals with a dramatic increase in Russian air activity on its borders since Moscow's annexation of Crimea in 2014, with a record 870 interceptions in the Baltics alone in 2016

This month, Moscow is holding its largest war games since the fall of the Soviet Union, with some 1,000 aircraft.

NATO is relevant. This is not theoretical, said Spanish Air Force Lieutenant General Ruben Garcia Servert on board the Belgian military transport plane, as Italian Eurofighters flew close to the cockpit to simulate interceptions. They later included British Typhoons and French Mirages.

We have not always been successful in showing the taxpayer that we have the means and the capabilities to protect the population, he told Reuters during a rare mid-air public display of flight interceptions.

European allies hope such displays highlight how their air forces are defending Europe in the face of sharp criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump, who at a summit in July railed against Europeans for not spending enough on defense and ports.

Able to divert, force to land or potentially even shoot down combat aircraft, NATO says its so-called air policing is not directed at Russia. But showdowns between rival warplanes in the Baltic and Black Sea are intensifying.

Two U.S. jets escorted two Russian bombers over the Arctic Ocean on Sept. 7 in the latest incident, while Russia has scrambled fighter jets to intercept nuclear-capable U.S. bombers in interceptions that have echoes of the Cold War.

Analysts warn that any collisions in the air over the Mediterranean, Baltic or Black Sea could risk the start of a wider conflict with Russia.

Single sky defenses

Both sides accuse the other of dangerous pilot behaviour, but NATO says Russian warplanes regularly fly without respecting international safety norms, such as responding to air traffic control and requests to identify themselves. Russia says all its flights are conducted in accordance with international law.

We have seen aircraft coming to our borders without flight plans, without any kind of controls ... safety regulations, entering into our area, Garcia Severt said.

We have seen frequent activities in the Black Sea, but not only, sometimes we have seen aircraft flying around Europe, he said, referring to Russian bombers off Portugals coast.

NATO will hold its biggest exercise since 2002 in October and November in Norway, called Trident Juncture, and involving non-NATO Finland and Sweden, with more than 40,000 troops.

While tensions with Russia have already prompted NATO to deploy multinational land battalions in Poland and the Baltics, NATO is also pushing to integrate its air forces, despite political resistance over issues of sovereignty.

Under an agreement being negotiated, individual NATO countries air forces would defend each other's airspaces, regardless of the country they are in, under a single sky concept that could see Portuguese planes defending Spanish airspace, for example.

Today, each nation defends its own airspace, unless, as in the case of the Baltics, it does not have fighter planes.
American teens' use of electronic cigarettes has hit "epidemic proportions," the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in a statement released Wednesday.

In what it called the "largest coordinated enforcement effort in FDA history," the agency issued written warnings and fines to 1,300 retailers for their role in selling the devices to children.

According to the data cited by the FDA, last year more than 2 million middle school and high school students used the devices, which deliver nicotine in an inhalable form.

In a speech at FDA headquarters, Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said, "The disturbing and accelerating trajectory of use we're seeing in youth and the resulting path to addiction must end.''

Until now, the FDA had eyed e-cigarettes as a powerful tool to help adults break their habit of using conventional tobacco products. But research has found little evidence of such products' effectiveness.

Gottlieb admitted that the agency had neglected to take into account how attractive the flavored products would be to youths.

The commissioner said the FDA would continue to study e-cigarettes as a less harmful alternative for adult smokers, but "that work can't come at the expense of kids.''

The FDA said it was giving the makers of Juul, Vuse, MarkTen XL, Blu and Logic, the five top-selling brands, 60 days to present the agency with a viable plan to prevent vaping among children. If they fail, it could order the products off the market.

The five brands account for more than 97 percent of U.S. sales, according to the FDA.

Critics have long argued that the manufacturers of e-cigarettes are deliberately targeting children by offering their products in sugary flavors.

Gottlieb slammed the e-cigarette makers for approaching the problem of underage use as "a public relations challenge.''

"I'm here to tell them today that this prior approach is over,'' he said.
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School officials reminded parents and guardians to work with their children on safety practices going to and from school, and to remain mindful of surroundings when picking up and dropping off their children.
Thousands of people blocked a major highway in Guatemala's western highlands while others protested in front of Congress on Tuesday to demand that President Jimmy Morales allow a U.N.-backed anti-graft body to operate.

Bearing anti-Morales signs and dressed in colorful traditional clothing, indigenous Maya protested Morales' decision not to renew the mandate of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) and to ban the group's leader, Ivan Velasquez, from returning to the country, TV images showed.

Both measures have been harshly criticized by domestic and international observers as a step back in Guatemala's fight against corruption.

The crowd largely lifted the highway blockade at late afternoon, according to Guatemalan newspaper Prensa Libre.

In Guatemala City, demonstrators clustered in front of Congress to protest actions against the CICIG as well as two legislative initiatives: one that would give the legislature power to oversee the process of stripping politicians of their immunity and another that would permit almost 80 congressmen who have defected from the opposition to join Morales' party.

Congress President Alvaro Arzu Escobar said that the demonstration disrupted Tuesday's session in which the initiatives were meant to be discussed.

"It's unfortunate that a small group of violent people volunteered to block work for thousands of Guatemalans and the legislative body," he said in a statement.

Congress is scheduled to resume the session on Thursday.

March planned Wednesday

About 100 people stood outside the Congress building by the afternoon, listening to protesters deliver anti-Morales speeches at a microphone in the middle of the street, facing a line of several dozen police officers. They planned another march at Congress for Wednesday.

Critics say the combination of measures against the commission and the legislative initiatives are designed to protect Morales from legal proceedings in a corruption investigation. Morales says he is protecting the country's sovereignty.



"It is clear we are facing a clear plan by Congress to generate mechanisms of impunity," said Oswaldo Samayoa, a criminal law professor at Guatemala's San Carlos University.

In August, the nation's Supreme Court decided to consider a request to strip Morales of his immunity for his alleged participation in illegal electoral financing. The proceeding, supported by CICIG, is the third against him.

Formed in 2006 to help Guatemalan prosecutors break a cycle of impunity, CICIG is credited with improving the Central American country's justice system.

Morales' predecessor is in prison and standing trial for allegedly running a customs racket uncovered by CICIG. Last year, the commission started investigating the current president's family for alleged corruption and supported impeaching him.

Morales, a former comedian elected in 2015, denies any wrongdoing and says the CICIG has overstepped its authority.
Emergency officials on Wednesday urged millions of residents along the southeastern U.S. coast to finish preparations ahead of Hurricane Florence, which is expected to unleash damaging winds and life-threatening amounts of rain when it makes landfall this week.

Florence was downgraded late Wednesday to a Category 2 storm with maximum sustained winds of 175 kilometers (110 miles) per hour. Although it weakened slightly, forecasters do not expect Florence's strength to change much before it comes ashore near the North Carolina-South Carolina border.

The massive system was about 700 kilometers (435 miles) southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina. The National Hurricane Center said Florence was "forecast to be an extremely dangerous major hurricane when it nears the U.S. coast late Thursday and Friday."

"This is not going to be a glancing blow," the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Jeff Byard said in Washington.

The governors of the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland and Georgia all declared states of emergency.

Byard again urged residents in danger zones to heed warnings to either evacuate or hunker down. "There will be disruptions in our services," he said. "The power will go off. Infrastructure will be damaged. Homes will be damaged or destroyed. So, again, the time to act is now."

There was particular concern about the storm lingering once it nears the coast and moves onshore, allowing it to dump torrential amounts of rain in parts of North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. That happened last year when Hurricane Harvey dumped more than 150 centimeters (60 inches) of rain on the Houston, Texas, area.

Forecasters at the hurricane center warned that as much as 101 centimeters (40 inches) of rain could fall on some parts of North Carolina, with a storm surge of up to 4 meters (13 feet).

Along with the high winds and storm surge, forecasters are very concerned that Florence could be a slow-moving storm. It could linger along the Atlantic Coast, dumping massive amounts of rain before drifting inland and bringing its heavy rainfall across the South and into the Mid-Atlantic states by early next week.

WATCH: Trump's response to Florence

President Donald Trump said his administration was "as ready as anybody has ever been" to respond to the storm.

"We'll handle it. We're ready. We're able," Trump said Wednesday outside the White House. "We're fully prepared. Food, medical, everything you can imagine, we are ready."

The president signed federal emergency declarations for the Carolinas and Virginia, a move that freed up federal money and resources. He also urged residents who live in the path of the storm to "get out of its way. Don't play games with it. It's a big one."

More than 1 million people along the coasts of North and South Carolina and southern Virginia have fled. They have faced gas shortages at some stations, while those who have chosen to stay put are clearing store shelves of emergency supplies.

Experts said this could be the strongest storm to hit the Carolina coast in more than 60 years.

The most powerful and only Category 4 hurricane in recorded history to hit the North Carolina coast was Hurricane Hazel in October 1954. Nineteen people in North Carolina were killed, and 15,000 homes were destroyed.
Residents in a Bangkok neighborhood are trying out a renewable energy trading platform that allows them to buy and sell electricity between themselves, signaling the growing popularity of such systems as solar panels get cheaper.

The pilot project in the center of Thailand's capital is among the world's largest peer-to-peer renewable energy trading platforms using blockchain, according to the firms involved.

The system has a total generating capacity of 635 KW that can be traded via Bangkok city's electricity grid between a mall, a school, a dental hospital and an apartment complex.

Commercial operations will begin next month, said David Martin, managing director of Power Ledger, an Australian firm that develops technology for the energy industry and is a partner in the project.

"By enabling trade in renewable energy, the community meets its own energy demands, leading to lower bills for buyers, better prices for sellers, and a smaller carbon footprint for all," he said.

"It will encourage more consumers to make the switch to renewable energy, as the cost can be offset by selling excess energy to neighbors," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Neighborhoods from New York to Melbourne are upending the way power is produced and sold, with solar panels, mini grids and smart meters that can measure when energy is consumed rather than overall consumption.

The World Energy Council predicts that such decentralized energy will grow to about a fourth of the market in 2025 from 5 percent today.

Helping it along is blockchain, the distributed ledger technology that underpins bitcoin currency, which offers a transparent way to handle complex transactions between users, producers, and even traders and utilities.

Blockchain also saves individuals the drudgery of switching between sending power and receiving it, said Martin.

For the pilot in Bangkok's upmarket Sukhumvit neighborhood, electricity generated by each of the four locations will be initially used within that building. Excess energy can be sold to the others through the trading system.

If there is a surplus from all four, it will be sold to the local energy storage system, and to the grid in the future, said Gloyta Nathalang, a spokeswoman for Thai renewable energy firm BCPG, which installed the meters and solar panels.

Thailand is Southeast Asia's leading developer of renewable energy, and aims to have it account for 30 percent of final energy consumption by 2036.

The energy ministry has encouraged community renewable energy projects to reduce fossil fuel usage, and the regulator is drafting new rules to permit the trade of energy.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Electricity Authority forecasts "peer-to-peer energy trading to become mainstream for power generation in the long run," a spokesman told reporters.

BCPG, in partnership with the Thai real estate developer Sansiri, plans to roll out similar energy trading systems with solar panels and blockchain for a total capacity of 2 MW by 2021, said Gloyta.

"There are opportunities everywhere - not just in cities, but also in islands and remote areas where electricity supply is a challenge," she said.
The Islamic Development Bank has suspended a multimillion-dollar project in Somalia due to accusations of corruption and mismanagement.

Started in October 2016, the Dryland Development Project was being conducted in three rural villages to help pastoralists build resilience to drought, give them access to health and education services, and develop livestock and crops.

The project was set to cost $5 million overall, and since February 2017, the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) had transferred about $1.5 million to an account at Somalia's central bank in three installments.

But according to an IsDB audit of the project, a progress report submitted by the project's coordinator, Abdishakur Aden Mohamud, contained "no substantial information" on what the project has achieved.

A letter by IsDB written on July 5 this year, seen by VOA Somali's Investigative Dossier program, said there was no supporting evidence for the claims made in the report. The letter stated the audit raised several concerns, including the lack of a coherent payment system and overpayments to a supplier.

The IsDB also said while the audit was being conducted, the project coordinator made cash and check withdrawals which it said was "not in line with the fiduciary and financial management system."

The bank has asked the Somali federal government to investigate and take appropriate actions. In the meantime, IsDB has frozen the account.

Somali government prosecution

Corruption is a problem that has bedeviled Somali governments for decades. The problem persists despite pledges from successive governments to eliminate it.

Recently, the government of President Muhammad Abdullahi Muhammad detained 10 people  including several port workers and another project director  for alleged public theft. The government has also suspended Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Mukhtar Mahad Daud for corruption allegations.

As for the Dryland project, the government says project coordinator Aden was arrested August 1.

Deputy Attorney General Jamal Mohamed Ahmed says he is confident the government has a strong case against Aden.

"This is a large corruption case and mismanagement and abuse of power at the office [of the coordinator]," he told Investigative Dossier. "When we received the case we investigated, we obtained documents and we'll present it to the court."

VOA investigation

VOA's investigation into the project suggests it was mishandled from the start. For instance, Aden did not win his job on a competitive basis. He started work in October 2016 without having a proper contractual service with the Ministry of Finance, earning $6,000 a month according to an internal government report seen by Investigative Dossier.

Former finance minister Mohamed Aden Fargeti, who was in charge of the ministry when the project started, confirms that Aden did not have a proper contract, but was given a "letter of appointment" instead.

The internal report details that the project spent more than $505,000 for the salaries of 19 staff members, an amount that exceeds the expenditure spent on the project during the entire first year, which was $407,743.

The report could not find any documentation for nearly $100,000 which was reported to have been spent on office supplies. This suggests that only $400,000 of the first $1 million allocated for the project has been spent on needy people.

Even then there is no evidence showing money was spent correctly on pastoralists.

The coordinator is also accused of withdrawing funds from the central bank account, something that subcontractors and service providers should have done.

The former finance minister, Fargeti, says the letter of appointment did not give the coordinator authority to make withdrawals from the bank without countersignature, as found by the internal government report.

Lawyer rejects allegations

Aden's lawyer, Ali Halane, denies the corruption allegations against his client. He said the government is relying on five individuals who worked at the project to testify against Aden.

He dismissed all the accusations against Aden, including that he made cash and check withdrawals from the bank during the audit. He said the withdrawals he made were countersigned by the Ministry of Finance.

Meantime, a court in Mogadishu has refused to release Aden on bail.

IsDB spokesman Abdulhakim Elwaer praises the Somali government for removing the coordinator and for promising to investigate the issue.

"We received an immediate response from the government taking appropriate action to investigate the case and, of course, make sure the corrective action is taken," he said.

Elwaer says the bank did not ask the government to detain the official, but says they welcome his removal from the post.

"The one that really concerns us from the direct point of view is the replacement of the project coordinator with a new one ... that satisfies one of the questions in terms of lack of management," he said.

He said IsDB set conditions for the resumption of the project. "We have proposed that we will provide the necessary training on financial management for all the staff that are managing the project. We also want the appointment of the project coordinator be done on a competitive basis."

He said the project will resume as soon as the Somali government accepts the conditions.

"So given the urgency and the importance of the matter we look forward to, maybe [in a] couple of months, to resolve the matter and be able to proceed if all goes well," he said.
Former President Jimmy Carter sees little hope for the U.S. to change its human rights and environmental policies as long as Donald Trump is in the White House, but he has a warning for his fellow Democrats looking to oust the current administration: Don't go too far to the left.



"Independents need to know they can invest their vote in the Democratic Party," Carter said Tuesday during his annual report at his post-presidential center and library in Atlanta, where he offered caution about the political consequences should Democrats "move to a very liberal program, like universal health care."



That's delicate  and, Carter admitted, even contradictory  advice coming from the 93-year-old former president, and it underscores the complicated political calculations for Democrats as they prepare for the November midterms and look ahead to the 2020 presidential election.



"Rosie and I voted for Bernie Sanders in the past," Carter noted.



He was referring to his wife, Rosalynn, and their support for the Vermont senator, an independent who identifies as a democratic socialist, over establishment favorite Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary. At another point, he pointed to California's environmental policies  limits on carbon emissions, stiffer fuel-efficiency standards  as the model for combating climate change.



Still, Carter stressed, Democrats nationally must "appeal to independents" who are souring on the current administration.



Trump's job approval rating, according to Gallup, has dipped to 40 percent, mostly because of declining support among independents.



Carter alluded to arguments from self-identified progressives that Democrats will sacrifice votes on the left if they don't embrace the liberal base: "I don't think any Democrat is going to vote against a Democratic nominee," and he insisted that he's not asking the left to sacrifice its goals, only to see that winning elections is necessary to accomplish any of them.



There is some historical irony in Carter's analysis. He came to the White House in 1976 from the moderate wing of the Democratic Party, and he clashed with party liberals, drawing a spirited primary challenge in 1980 from Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy. Carter prevailed, but he was wounded, abandoned by Kennedy's most liberal supporters and unable to win over independents who helped deliver a landslide for Republican Ronald Reagan.

Carter's latest handicapping comes near the conclusion of a midterm primary season that has seen Democratic primary voters move the party to the left.



In some states and districts, that means nominating full-throated advocates of single-payer health care, a $15 minimum wage and abolishing or at least overhauling the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. In other races, it means nominees who back more cautious moves to the left, such as background checks before certain gun purchases, a "public option" health insurance plan to compete alongside private insurance policies, step raises for the minimum wage and an immigration overhaul that offers legal status to some immigrants in the country illegally.



Carter did not delve into those distinctions, instead offering a sweeping condemnation of his latest successor to remind Democrats of the stakes.



He denounced the administration's latest environmental policy proposal to make it easier for energy companies to release methane gas that contributes to climate change. He singled out Trump's policy of separating immigrant families at the border, including those seeking asylum.



"America is inherently committed to human rights, and I think in the future we will let that prevail," Carter said, "but for the next two years, I can't predict the imprisoned children are going to be any better off  unfortunately."

Carter has previously criticized Trump for his repeated falsehoods, and he's chided Trump for his hardline support for Israel over Palestinians. Yet Carter has found common ground with Trump on other foreign policy fronts, and did so again Tuesday.



While avoiding any mention of the special counsel's investigation into whether Trump's presidential campaign coordinated with Russia in the 2016 U.S. election, Carter said he has engaged for years with Russian President Vladimir Putin concerning the ongoing Syrian civil war.



"I have his email address," Carter said, adding that he and Putin share the same Russian river as their favorite spot for salmon fishing. That friendship, Carter said, means when Russia and other nations hold multilateral talks about the Syrian conflict, "Quite often they invite the Carter Center. ... They do not invite the U.S. government."



Carter also praised Trump for meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Carter repeated his frustrations with the last Democratic president, Barack Obama, for not engaging more directly with the insular Asian nation. Carter said he's not sure Trump has made real progress yet with North Korea, but he endorsed calls for the U.S. to formally declare an end to the Korean War and normalize relations with Pyongyang.



"Let them be part of the community of nations," he said. "I think that would be enough in itself to bring an end to the nuclear program in North Korea."
A senior Myanmar official has confirmed that the country's leader, State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, will not attend the U.N. General Assembly session beginning next week in New York.

Minister for International Cooperation Kyaw Tin, who is accompanying Suu Kyi at a meeting of the World Economic Forum in Vietnam, said "She has no plan to go there."



He was responding to a report in the Myanmar newspaper 7 Days citing a Myanmar foreign ministry official as saying that Suu Kyi would not attend the U.N. meeting, which starts Sept. 18. No reason was given.



Suu Kyi, who took power in 2016, also did not attend last year's General Assembly meeting. Myanmar's military is facing international pressure over human rights abuses committed against the Rohingya Muslim minority.
Natasa Kandic, the formidable Serbian human rights campaigner and Nobel Peace prize nominee, shrugs. Nobody likes the truth, she says.

For almost three decades Kandic has been a thorn in the side of those who butchered, raped and tortured during the Balkans wars of the 1990s. She documented abuses and massacres. She protested what was unfolding, cajoling and informing a shocked world, insisting it pay attention to the return of genocide to Europe, and to do something about it.

The evidence she gathered was used in the preparation of many indictments issued by the U.N. International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague, including a video of Bosnian-Serb paramilitaries executing a number of captives, which helped prove Serbia's role in the Srebrenica massacre of 7,500 Bosnian Muslim men and boys.

She has drawn the praise of human rights activists across the world, but in her home country she has seen by many as a traitor and drawn the hatred of the Serbs wartime leaders and their followers, including a new generation of ethnic nationalists who glorify ethnic cleansing and the Balkans conflict, which marked the first large-scale slaughter of civilians in Europe since the Nazi era.

During an interview in downtown Belgrade at the Humanitarian Law Center, an NGO she founded in 1992, she said, The majority of public opinion is without respect for human rights. Truth is not so nice for people and politicians because Serbia bears responsibility for many war victims, wrongdoing, bad relations with neighbors, especially Kosovo. And we dont have politicians who are willing to take responsibility for the wrong decisions of Serbia. All of them participated in making decisions in 1991 at the beginning of the war.

Asked during the interview about continuing threats against her she answers indifferently: It is the normal situation with killing and with war crimes.

Despite the threats, she takes few safety precautions.



When she sat down with VOA, her only guard was an inquisitive tabby cat. Kandic is neatly dressed in white, frail physically but sturdy in argument, and she remains motivated and determined. Asked if it might not be time to retire, she responds: I will not be quiet.

Hours after she spoke with VOA, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic lauded Serbias wartime leader Slobodan Milosevic, describing him in a speech as a great Serbian leader whose "aims were certainly the best. Vucic criticized former Serbian officials, who he dubbed pro-Western, for handing over Slobodan Milosevic and his generals to the U.N. war crimes tribunal in The Hague.

His remarks prompted outrage in neighboring Balkan states where Milosevic's ultranationalist policies during the breakup of Yugoslavia prompted bloodshed and destruction, and the deaths of at least 120,000 people in Bosnia, Croatia, and Kosovo.

For Kandic, Vucic's remarks are not a surprise. Like many human rights activists and war victims in the Balkans she is frustrated with the halting progress made with transitional justice since the end of the Balkans conflict. She believes punishments and prosecutions, acknowledgement, and the apportioning of guilt are necessary to advance reconciliation.

She laments the ending of the mandate of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, which wrapped up its work last year. She says the court changed the landscape of international humanitarian law and its legacy is important, but she worries there is no other body to build on that legacy."

Kandic says Western countries have neglected human rights in the Balkans and is urging them to back her calls for the establishment of a regional commission to register all of the victims, to oblige states to name the victims and with a mandate to collect information to establish the identities of 130,000 victims; to establish the facts about how they lost their lives and organize public recognition."

She asks, "How can you establish the rule of law without punishing the people who committed the crimes in the past?

Kandic clearly is fearful of backsliding amid rising nationalist sentiment across the Balkans. For example, in Kosovo, all the leaders were very active in the war, they were on the top level, they were war leaders. In Serbia, all current opposition leaders were very close to Milosevic.

She is not alone nursing worries. In the Serbian-controlled Republika Srpska, one of the two legal entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Aleksandra Letic of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, bewails an increase in nationalist rhetoric, fanned by the politicians, especially before Bosnia-wide elections next month.

Everybody, in particular the international community, is pretending that the pink elephant [a euphemism for hallucination] is not running through the streets of Bosnia Herzegovina, she says.

A new generation of youngsters are thrilling to the idea of Serbian ultra-nationalism and there is little effort to pull them the other way, she says. In Bosnia Herzegovina monuments are raised to the perpetrators, but the victims are neglected. We have only one official monument for the victims in Republika Srpska and that was built because of international pressure.

What is concerning is that those who are actually supporting war criminals, supporting the ideology of those who actually committed war crimes are young people born after the war, says Letic. She adds the young generation should be the driving force for progress towards an open and democratic society, but is "deeply involved in nationalistic and chauvinistic behavior.

The schools, she laments, do not teach what the war criminals did to get convicted. Some of the history text books end before the peak of the Balkans conflict, she complains.
U.S. Democrats' chances at regaining majorities in Congress are rising, a new poll showed Wednesday, as President Donald Trump's approval rating suffers a fresh hit and Republicans issue dire warnings about upcoming elections.

With 55 days until the mid-terms that will decide congressional, state and local races nationwide, the Republicans who control both chambers of Congress appear increasingly threatened by a resurgent opposition.

The worry among Republicans has risen to such levels that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell recently likened his party's efforts to hold their Senate majority to a "knife fight in an alley."

Asked in the latest NPR/Marist poll which party they are more likely to vote for in their congressional districts in November, Americans chose Democrats by a 12-point advantage.

The shift is particularly acute in the U.S. Midwest, where Democrats have enjoyed a 13-point swing in their direction since July, according to the poll.

Trump's trade wars are unpopular in the Midwest, where tariffs imposed in retaliation for his aggressive levies on cars, steel and other imports have hurt manufacturing and farming operations.

In the poll of 949 adults, half of voters (50 percent) said they were more likely to vote for the Democrat in their district over the Republican (38 percent)  an increase from July, when the Democratic edge was 47 to 40 percent.

Heaping further pressure on poor Republican numbers is Trump's unpopularity.

Just 36 percent approve of the way the president is handling his job, down from 42 percent in August, a CNN poll released Monday showed.

Among independents the drop was sharper, from 47 percent approval last month to 31 percent now.

Democrats need to flip 23 seats in the 435-member House of Representatives to reclaim the majority, a goal several experts say is likely to be met.

They face a far tougher election map in the 100-member Senate, but polling data has shown several races skewing toward Democrats.

McConnell himself expressed doubts about his party holding the upper chamber, pointing to toss-up races from Republican strongholds in North Dakota, Tennessee and West Virginia to swing states like Florida and Nevada.

"All of them too close to call, and every one of them like a knife fight in an alley," McConnell told reporters Tuesday.

"I hope when the smoke clears, that we'll still have a majority in the Senate."
Pope Francis is summoning senior Catholic bishops from around the world to a February summit to discuss the church's burgeoning clergy sex abuse scandal involving attacks on minors and years of cover-ups of allegations against parish priests.

The Vatican said Wednesday the heads of the national Catholic bishops' conferences would meet with Francis from February 21 to 24. The meeting of more than 100 church leaders is believed to be the first of its kind and a recognition that top church officials view the sex abuse scandal as global in scope.

The church is now facing abuse scandals in the United States, Chile, Australia, Germany and elsewhere.

Earlier this year, Francis admitted to "grave errors in judgment," when he at first repeatedly discredited sex abuse victims and the claims they had made against a Chilean predator priest. The pontiff subsequently sanctioned guilty priests that had covered up the priest's abuse.



In Germany, a church-commissioned study detailed 3,677 abuse cases against minors, mostly boys, between 1946 and 2014, involving 1,670 clergy.

The Vatican's announcement on the February summit came a day before Francis is meeting with U.S. Catholic Church leaders to discuss the church's sexual abuse scandal in the United States, where a grand jury in the eastern state of Pennsylvania recently alleged that more than 300 parish priests had abused at least 1,000 young people over a period of 70 years. Prosecutors in a handful of other states have opened similar investigations.

The head of the U.S. bishops' conference, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, the archbishop of the Galveston-Houston area in the southwestern state of Texas, and other Catholic leaders in the United States say they want answers from the pontiff about allegations he knew years ago about credible information that Archbishop Theodore McCarrick of Washington had abused a teenage altar boy in the 1970s and other seminarians and young priests, but did not confront McCarrick about the allegations.

Pope Francis removed McCarrick as a cardinal in July, but the Vatican's former U.S. ambassador, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, has called for the pope step down in the wake of his failure to act against McCarrick until recently.

DiNardo has said that he wants the pontiff to authorize a full-fledged investigation of the McCarrick case and the allegations of a coverup by the Vatican.

DiNardo said the Pennsylvania report "again illustrates the pain of those who have been victims of the crime of sexual abuse by individual members of our clergy, and by those who shielded abusers and so facilitated an evil that continued for years or even decades. We are grateful for the courage of the people who aided the investigation by sharing their personal stories of abuse. As a body of bishops, we are shamed by and sorry for the sins and omissions by Catholic priests and Catholic bishops."
Growing up, my dad made it a priority for my sister and I to speak Spanish to be able to communicate with his family in Mexico. Spanish has served as a bridge that connects me to my Mexican family. My mother read books to us that she cherished from her upbringing. I cannot imagine my life without the enrichment that bilingualism has fostered.
An effort to create a safe haven for whales in the South Atlantic was defeated Tuesday at the meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in Brazil.

The proposal, which was introduced by Brazil in 2001, received support from 39 countries but was opposed by 25, denying it the three-quarters' majority it needed to pass.

Environmental organizations and conservationists had argued that the sanctuary would not only keep the mammoth mammals safe from hunting, but also protect them from getting entangled in fishing gear or being struck by ships.

But pro-whaling nations, led by Japan, argued there was no need for the sanctuary because no countries were conducting commercial whale hunting in the South Atlantic.

Brazilian Environmental Minister Edson Duarte vowed to push to get the proposal passed at future meetings of the IWC.

"We will work in other meetings of this commission this year to ensure that the sanctuary will finally be created," Duarte said.

Pro-whaling nations, including Japan, Iceland and Norway, are pushing for resumption of sustainable hunting of whales and are unlikely to allow for the creation of a sanctuary unless their demand is met.

Japan, which has pushed for an amendment to the ban for years, accuses the IWC of siding with anti-whaling nations rather than trying to reach a compromise between conservationists and whalers.

The issue has fractured the IWC for decades and there appears to be no room for compromise on either side.

The conference ends Sept. 14.
Puerto Rican Governor Ricardo Rossello announced a new hurricane preparation plan, one year after Hurricane Maria devastated the island, parts of which still have not recovered.

The Category 5 storm killed nearly 3,000 people on Puerto Rico  many of whom died after the storm had passed because of a lack of emergency supplies and resources.

Rossello said the new strategic storm preparation plan includes two warehouses stocked with food and water with two more set to open soon.

Vulnerable populations are now officially listed, especially residents of nursing homes.

There are also new satellite communication systems, underground lines, and plans for 168 generators earmarked for the island's water and sewer companies.

Parts of the island are still a wreck a year after the storm. Intermittent power outages are a problem and many people have no roof on their home  just a blue tarp.

Despite Puerto Rico's struggles, President Donald Trump  who complained after the storm last year that Puerto Ricans "want everything done for them"  on Tuesday called his administration's response to the disaster "incredibly successful."

Trump made the comment while discussing federal preparations for Hurricane Florence, which is expected to make landfall along the North Carolina coast Friday and is predicted to be one of the most powerful storms in nearly three decades to slam into the mid-Atlantic region.

At the conclusion of a briefing by the heads of the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the president said, "We are sparing no expense. We are totally prepared."

San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz told CNN that the president's words Tuesday added "insult to injury," saying he has no idea what is going on there. She said he has "no empathy" for anything that doesn't make him look good.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that he wanted to sign a formal peace treaty with Japan ending hostilities from World War II by the end of the year without conditions.

Seventy-three years after the war concluded, the two countries remain technically at war because of a territorial dispute over four Pacific islands.

"Let us sign the peace treaty ... and later we will continue to talk about all of our disagreements as friends on the basis of a peace treaty," Putin said at an economic conference in Vladivostok.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appeared open to a treaty, saying it was "not normal" that one still hasn't been signed after seven decades.

"Japan and Russia  both President Putin and myself  share the same position and determination to solve our territorial disputes," he said.

But a Japanese government spokesman said Japan's position had not changed and that the issue of sovereignty over the islands needed to be resolved before signing any treaties with Russia.

The Soviet Union seized the four islands north of Hokkaido and east of Sakhalin in the closing days of World War II.

Russia calls the islands the Kurils, while Japan calls them the Northern Territories. Russia has sovereignty over the islands. Japan wants them back.

The islands are rich in minerals and rare metals, and its waters are excellent fishing grounds.

Putin and Abe have met more than 20 times to discuss the dispute.

Abe has proposed making the islands a joint economic zone, which could lead to a settlement.
The United States will fall well short of its 2025 greenhouse gas reduction target unless major additional steps are taken, according to a new report.

While U.S. states, cities and companies have promised to step up their efforts to fight climate change as the Trump administration pulls back, the report finds their actions will not be enough to meet the emissions reduction pledge the United States made in the 2015 Paris climate agreement.

But the report outlines steps that can get the United States "within striking distance of the Paris pledge."

Former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg's philanthropy is releasing the study, entitled "Fulfilling America's Pledge," to coincide with a major conference on global action to tackle climate change taking place in San Francisco.

Under the Paris agreement, the United States promised to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 26 to 28 percent compared to 2005 levels by 2025.

U.S. emissions were down 12 percent in 2016, the latest data available.

Economic forces are helping push emissions down, the study notes, regardless of President Donald Trump's intention to pull the United States out of the agreement and his administration's efforts to roll back climate regulations. Coal-fired power plants are closing faster than ever, despite Trump's support for the industry, and renewable energy continues to expand rapidly.

However, many states, cities and businesses remain committed to the Paris agreement. If this "coalition of the willing" were a country, the report says, it would be the world's third-largest economy.

Their actions currently put U.S. emissions on track to drop by 17 percent by 2025. However, that falls far short of the Paris pledge.

The report lists 10 "high-impact, near-term, and readily available" strategies to accelerate progress. They include speeding up the transition from coal to renewable energy; increasing electric vehicle use; improving building efficiency; and stopping leaks of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

These steps would bring U.S. emission reductions to 21 percent.

If that "coalition of the willing" takes bigger steps  "within realistic legal and political limits"  the report says reductions could reach 24 percent.

The Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco this week is a venue to announce new actions. The state of California just passed a bill committing to 100 percent renewable energy by 2045. Other announcements are expected.
South Sudan's President Salva Kiir signed a peace agreement with rebel factions in the Ethiopian capital on Wednesday to end a civil war that has killed at least 50,000 people, displaced 2 million and held up the country's progress since it gained independence seven years ago.

South Sudan plunged into warfare two years after independence from Sudan in 2011, when a political dispute between Kiir and then vice president Riek Machar erupted into armed confrontation.

A previous peace deal signed in 2015 fell apart a year later, after clashes broke out between government forces and rebels. Machar, leader of the main rebel group the SPLM-IO, and other insurgent factions signed the new agreement with the Juba government after assurances that a power-sharing accord would be honored. The deal, mediated by Sudan, reinstates Machar to his former role as vice president.

The stability of South Sudan is also important for Sudan and other neighboring countries, whose leaders fear a new flare up of the conflict could flood them with refugees.

The civil war started in 2013, fueled by personal and ethnic rivalries. The conflict has killed at least 50,000 people, many of them civilians, according to the United Nations.

An estimated quarter of South Sudan's population of 12 million has been displaced and its economy, which heavily relies on crude oil production, ruined.

The secession of South Sudan also hit Khartoum's economy hard, taking with it most of the region's oil reserves. Khartoum and Juba agreed in June to repair oil infrastructure facilities destroyed by the war within three months to boost production and said a joint force would be established to protect oilfields from attacks by rebels.

The United States, Britain and Norway, known as the Troika which back peace efforts, welcomed the signing of the deal.

We hope discussions will remain open to those who are not yet convinced of the sustainability of this agreement, they said in a statement. We must seize this broader regional momentum to secure peace for the people of South Sudan.

Mahboub Maalim, executive secretary of the East African bloc IGAD, said the rivals had been at odds over security arrangements and governance but that the final version of the deal had addressed disagreements.

This is probably the best-negotiated proposal signed so far, he told Reuters after it was signed at a meeting of IGAD leaders.

Asked what a failure to implement the deal would entail, Maalim said: We expect the South Sudanese sides to embrace the wind of change in the region.

The region has seen a series of stunning rapprochements over the past months, including a reconciliation between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

IGAD had been expected to readmit Eritrea as a member on Wednesday, 11 years after Asmara walked out on the body in protest at Ethiopian forces entering Somalia. But that move was postponed for procedural reasons and was likely to take place in the blocs next gathering, officials said.
To whip up a monstrous storm like the one chugging for the Carolinas you need a handful of ingredients  and Florence has them all.

 Warmer than normal sea temperatures to add energy and rain to a storm. Check.

 A wind pattern that allows a storm to get strong and stay strong. Check.

 Higher sea levels to make a storm surge worse. Check.

 A storm covering enormous area, to drench and lash more people. Check.

 And an unusual combination of other weather systems that are likely to stall Florence when it hits the Carolinas, allowing it to sit for days and dump huge amounts of rain. Check.

"The longer it stays, the more wind, the more rain. That means the more trees that could fall, the more power outages,'' National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham said.

"This one really scares me,'' Graham said. "It's one of those situations where you're going to get heavy rain, catastrophic, life-threatening storm surge, and also the winds.''

The National Hurricane Center is calling for 10 to 20 inches of rain, and 30 inches in isolated spots. But a computer simulation known as the European model predicts some places could get 45 inches. Sound unlikely? It's the same model that accurately predicted that last year's Hurricane Harvey, which also stalled over land, would drop 60 inches.

"It does look a bit similar to Harvey in a sense that it goes roaring into shore and then comes to a screeching stop,'' said MIT meteorology professor and hurricane expert Kerry Emanuel. "This is not a pretty sight.''

Florence is unusual in that it is aiming at the Carolinas from the east. Usually storms come to the Carolinas and mid-Atlantic from the south  and those usually curve safely out to sea.

But a weather formation known as a high-pressure ridge is parked over the U.S. East Coast, preventing Florence from doing the normal turn, said University of Miami hurricane expert Brian McNoldy.

After Florence makes landfall, that ridge, now over Washington and New York, will move east  but be replaced by another one forming over the Great Lakes that will most likely keep the storm stuck, McNoldy said.

Florence's path remains uncertain. It may move a little north into Virginia or a little south into South Carolina. But it's such a large storm that the rain will keep coming down in the region no matter where it wanders. And with the Appalachian Mountains to the west, there could be flooding and mudslides, experts worry.

Florence's large size  tropical storm force winds extend 170 miles from the center in all directions  means its fury will arrive long before the center of the storm comes ashore, Graham said.

Some of Florence's behavior, both what has been seen so far and what experts expect, shows the influence of climate change.

Its expected sluggishness is becoming more common, a result of climate change, said National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration climate scientist and hurricane expert Jim Kossin.

The ocean waters that Florence is traveling over are about 2.7 degrees (1.5 degrees Celsius) warmer than normal, McNoldy said. Even normal water is warm enough for a storm to form there, but this adds to the storm's fuel and its rainfall. The air is holding 10 percent more water that can be dumped as rain.

And the storm surge, which could be as much as 12 feet in some areas, will be on top of sea level rise from climate change. For example, the seas off Wilmington, North Carolina, have risen 7.5 inches since 1935, according to NOAA.
U.S. President Donald Trump has authorized additional sanctions against countries or individuals who interfere in upcoming U.S. elections.

The executive order allows the president to impose sanctions on foreigners who interfere in the November midterm elections, such as by engaging in altering vote counts or propaganda efforts.

Lawmakers of both parties, however, say the effort does not go far enough and that Congress should enact tougher legislation as soon as possible.

U.S. intelligence agencies conclude Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential campaign. A special counsel is investigating whether Trumps campaign coordinated with Moscow to influence the election.
U.S. President Donald Trump says emergency agencies are ready to cope with fast-arriving Hurricane Florence, even as he continues to praise his efforts last year on Puerto Rico, the island territory where Hurricane Maria killed nearly 3,000 people.

Trump's latest praise for his handling of the government's recovery operations on the Caribbean island came hours after he told reporters his administration's response had been an "incredible, unsung success," a remark that comes as the island is still facing daunting cleanup and repairs from the September 20 storm.

Puerto Rico's Governor Ricardo Rossello said, "Now is not the time to pass judgment; it is time to channel every effort to improve the lives of over 3 million Americans in Puerto Rico."

"This was the worst natural disaster in our modern history," Rossello said. "Our basic infrastructure was devastated, thousands of our people lost their lives and many others still struggle."

Rossello said the "historical relationship between Puerto Rico and Washington is unfair and un-American. It is certainly not a successful relationship."

The San Juan mayor Trump attacked, Carmen Yulin Cruz, told CNN that the president's words Tuesday added "insult to injury," saying he has no idea what is going on there. She said Trump has "no empathy" for anything that doesn't make him look good.

In his Oval Office at the White House, Trump said, "I actually think it was one of the best jobs that's ever been done with respect to what this is all about." He said the work by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and "law enforcement and everybody did working along with the governor in Puerto Rico, I think was tremendous."

Rossello on Tuesday announced a new hurricane preparation plan, including two warehouses stocked with food and water, with two more set to open soon.

Vulnerable populations are now officially listed, especially residents of nursing homes.

There are also new satellite communication systems, underground lines, and plans for 168 generators earmarked for the island's water and sewer companies.

Parts of the island are still a wreck a year after the storm. Intermittent power outages are a problem and many people still have no roof on their home  just a blue tarp.
Forensic scientists have identified two sets of remains of U.S. troops killed in the Korean War, turned over by North Korea.

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis made the announcement Tuesday, praising the swift work of the scientists.

"There's been already some closure for a couple of families that have waited many, many years for this," Mattis said.

North Korea turned over 55 boxes of what could be U.S. remains after the June summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

One of the boxes contained a U.S. military dog tag, the only obvious piece of evidence that the boxes may contain the bones of Americans.

Using DNA and dental records, it could take forensic experts several years to identify the rest of the remains.

The Pentagon said U.S. and North Korean military officials held negotiations last week on surrendering more remains.
U.N. human rights experts warn that all-out war in the northern Syrian enclave of Idlib would result in the massacre of civilians worse than any other seen throughout more than seven years of war.

Since Syria's civil war broke out in 2011, more than 6.5 million people have become internally displaced. The three-member Independent Commission of Inquiry finds fighting has forced more than 1 million people to flee their homes in less than the first six months of this year. It says this unparalleled number of displacements is due to escalating battles by pro-government forces to recapture territory from armed groups and terrorist organizations.

The U.N. investigators say they fear what might happen if Syria and its allies mount a full-scale war to retake Idlib, the last rebel-held enclave in the country.

"The civilian population ... should not be held hostage to a war on terror," said inquiry commissioner Hanny Megally. "We have no problem with states going after terrorists, armed groups, et cetera, if they have committed crimes or are about to commit crimes. But not at the cost of innocent civilians."

Commission chair Paulo Pinheiro says all parties involved in the conflict and those states who support them must do everything in their power to prevent a massacre in Idlib, which would make all previous massacres pale by comparison. He says a political solution must be found.

"Conflicting parties must cease and refrain from the future of indiscriminate weapons or tactics to target the estimated 10,000 fighters interspersed among 2.9 million civilians, including 1 million children," Pinheiro said.

The commission report highlights six key battles fought between January and June, which led to mass displacements. It says intense fighting in Aleppo, northern Homs, Damascus, Rif Damascus, Daraa and Idlib governorates were marked by war crimes.

The commission notes a large proportion of the 1.5 million people currently displaced in Idlib fled there from those previous battles. It warns that another offensive launched with little regard for civilian life would generate a catastrophic human rights and humanitarian crisis.
For Subscribers Pueblo County claims S-CL football title with win over Pueblo South

The Pueblo County football team took advantage of six turnovers to defeat Pueblo South and claim the South-Centrall League title at Hornets Stadium
A total of 275,000 people have been displaced by drought in western Afghanistan - 52,000 more than the number uprooted by conflict this year - with over two million threatened by the effects of water shortages, the United Nations said.

Reports from the U.N. and aid charities described farmers lacking seeds to sow following crop failures in some areas and livestock dying for the want of anything to eat.

Afghanistan, a country where nearly 20 million people rely on farming, has suffered a 45 percent fall in agricultural output this year as the drought has bitten, officials at the ministry of agriculture have said.

In a regular update, the U.N. humanitarian office reported that 120,000 people fleeing the drought arrived in Qala-e-Naw city in Badghis province in the week to Sept. 9.

A second U.N. report, with data covering August, said more than 100,000 people may have moved to Herat city for the same reason by the end of last month. It estimated 2.2 million Afghans would be affected by the drought this year.

In Qala-e-Naw, where there are an estimated 66,500 drought-displaced people, supplies and humanitarian aid are already insufficient to meet the needs of newly arrived families.

The U.N. cited an assessment by aid charity World Vision International that 99 percent of people in Badghis said their food situation was worse or a lot worse than a year ago.

"The assessment also indicates that most farmers lost last season's harvest and nearly all of them lack seeds for new planting season," the U.N. report said, noting reports that about 40 per cent of livestock has been lost in Badghis due to a lack of pasture and fodder.

The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET), a U.S. funded food security monitoring service, said in a report on Aug. 31 that the number of Afghans in a food "crisis" was atypically high.

"Crisis" is step three on a five step scale, where four is "emergency" and five is "catastrophe" and possible famine.

In Badghis and Faryab provinces, emergency outcomes are expected to emerge in January, FEWS NET said.

"Normally during this time period, food security outcomes begin to seasonally improve in much of the country, but due to drought and severe reduction in wheat production, reduced labor opportunities, and continued conflict more households face Crisis outcomes than normal," it said.
The United Nations says the cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe is a very dire situation because there are now cases outside the countrys capital, where the government has declared a state of emergency.

Zimbabwes health minister, Obadiah Moyo, is calling on international aid agencies to chip in, following 20 deaths and more than 2,000 cases related to waterborne diseases such as salmonella, typhoid and cholera.

Sirak Gebrehiwot, United Nations spokesperson in Zimbabwe, says U.N. agencies have since moved in to try and stabilize the situation.

This cholera situation is very dire situation. The hot spot is Harare but we are getting reports of confirmed and unconfirmed cases in other parts of the country, like Shamva, Masvingo and Buhera," said Gebrehiwot. "The U.N. family we are providing all the support we could; positioning, repositioning essential drugs, at the same time the issue is on strengthening the surveillance system.

Health minister Moyo on Tuesday said his government wants to address the issue of poor water supply, blocked sewers, and irregular trash collection, the factors he said were making a cholera outbreak in the capital worse.

Dr. Norman Matara of Zimbabwe Doctors for Human Rights said his organization has volunteered resources to avoid unnecessary deaths from the cholera outbreak.

But he said the group wants President Emmerson Mnangagwas government to quickly improve the water treatment system.

"Cholera is a disease which is quite ancient, easily preventable. So we just have to provide safe cleaning water, have proper sanitation facilities. You wont have cholera," said Matara. "But we have been seeing all year round; broken down sewer [pipes], sewers all over the places, even the piped water, you would see dirt water coming out of the taps. We were breeding cholera all along, we knew we were sitting on a time bomb; soon we were going to have cholera but nothing was done."

Officials are trying to fix broken sewer pipes in Budiriro, one of the most affected parts of Harare.

A 2008 cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe lasted more than a year and killed about 5,000 people. It only stopped after international groups like United Nations agencies and USAID donated drugs and water treatment chemicals.
U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on Tuesday he would visit Macedonia before a Sept. 30 referendum on changing the countrys name, also expressing concern about suspected Russian interference in the vote, which Moscow denies.

Macedonia scheduled the referendum on the governments deal in June with neighboring Greece to change its name to the Republic of North Macedonia which would open the door for it to join NATO and the European Union.

I am concerned about it ... The kind of mischief that Russia has practiced from Estonia to the United States, from Ukraine and now to Macedonia, it always has adapted to the specific situation and its always beyond the pale, Mattis, who will visit Macedonia over the weekend, told reporters.

Mattis said he wanted to make it clear the United States supported the Macedonian people.

NATO invited Macedonia to begin accession talks with the alliance, but said it would have to change its constitution and adopt the new name first. The EU has also said it would set a date for Macedonian accession talks pending implementation of the name deal.

Moscows ambassador to Skopje has criticized Macedonias ambitions to join NATO, saying it could become a legitimate target if relations between NATO and Russia deteriorate further.

Greece, a member of both NATO and the EU, has refused to accept the Balkan countrys name, saying it implies territorial claims on the Greek province of Macedonia and amounts to an appropriation of its ancient civilization.

Prime Minister Zoran Zaevs government, elected in 2017, pushed for an agreement with Greece. Nationalists, including President Gjorge Ivanov, oppose the deal saying it is against the constitution.

In July, Greece expelled two Russian diplomats and barred two other people from entering the country, accusing them of having meddled by encouraging demonstrations and bribing unidentified officials to thwart the Macedonia agreement.

Russia has denied wrongdoing and responded in kind with expulsions of Greeks.
A U.S. pharmaceutical executive is defending his price boost of a key antibiotic by 400 percent to almost $2,400 a bottle as a "moral requirement," a claim that drew an immediate rebuke from the country's drug regulatory chief.

Nostrum Pharmaceuticals president Nirmal Mulye told The Financial Times he had a "moral requirement to sell the product at the highest price," pushing the price of the antibiotic mixture called nitrofurantoin from $474.75 to $2,392 a bottle. The World Health Organization calls the drug an "essential" medicine for lower urinary tract infections.

Mulye told the newspaper, "I think it is a moral requirement to make money when you can. This is a capitalist economy and if you can't make money you can't stay in business."



He compared his decision to increase the price to that of an art dealer selling "a painting for half a billion dollars" and said he was in "this business to make money."

The Food and Drug Administration commissioner, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, rejected Mulye's justification for the price hike, saying, "There's no moral imperative to price gouge and take advantage of patients."

He said the FDA "will continue to promote competition so speculators and those with no regard to public health consequences can't take advantage of patients who need medicine."

The dispute over the antibiotic's price comes in the midst of periodic complaints by President Donald Trump that drug costs are too high in the United States.

In May, Trump unveiled a plan to try to increase competition among drug makers in an effort to lower drug prices.

"The drug lobby is making an absolute fortune at the expense of American patients," Trump said.
Two U.S. lawmakers are urging the extension of tougher American export restrictions to prevent sales of equipment that could be used in China's massive security clampdown targeting the Xinjiang region's native Muslim population.

Senator Marco Rubio and Representative Chris Smith want foreign entities, including businesses, research institutions, government and private organizations, and individuals seen as profiting from the clampdown added to a watch list, the two Republicans, among the staunchest critics of China in the U.S. Congress, said in a letter Wednesday to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross.

"U.S. companies should not be assisting in the expansion of China's systems for surveillance, detection, and detention, or be complicit in what are gross violations of internationally recognized human rights occurring daily" in Xinjiang, the letter said.

Dozens of Chinese companies are already on the "Entity List," though none with an explicit, direct link to the oppression in Xinjiang. The U.S. has long maintained restrictions on the export of crime control and detection equipment to China.

Listing would place the entities under export administration regulations requiring American companies wishing to sell to them to be subject to "specific license requirements for the export, re-export and/or transfer [in-country] of specified items," according to the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security.

The letter says the director of the bureau's Foreign Policy Division, Anthony Christino, stated in recent testimony before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China that it was evaluating "whether there is sufficient evidence to justify additional end-user restrictions."

It said the commission was awaiting an update "as to the status and anticipated timeline of this interagency process," but said the government should err on the side of caution.

"Given the national integration of China's state security apparatus, we believe there should also be a presumption of denial for any sale of technology or equipment that would make a direct and significant contribution to the police surveillance and detection system," the letter said.

No specific entities were named in the letter, which is the latest sign that the detentions are raising concerns among foreign leaders, governments, activist groups, media outlets and private citizens.

Targeting Muslims

Over recent years, Xinjiang has been transformed into a vast security state, packed with police stations, street cameras and security checkpoints at which electronic identity cards are scanned. Travel restrictions prevent free movement or even the opportunity to visit friends and relatives in nearby towns.

The measures target members of the Uighur, Kazakh and other Muslim minority groups, with the region's ethnically Chinese residents largely exempted.

In addition, monitoring groups say as many as 1 million Muslims have been sent to a system of internment camps, also known as "re-education centers," where they are locked up for months without trial and forced to undergo political indoctrination and renounce Islam and traditional culture.

China has denied operating the system of camps, despite extensive documentation from those interned and relatives, and other evidence such as satellite photos and government documents.

Beijing says it is taking necessary measures to fight terrorism, religious extremism and separatism in the restive region and that criminals involved in minor offenses are sent to "vocational education and employment training centers" to help with their rehabilitation and reintegration into society.

Sanctions request

The Wednesday letter follows one last month from U.S. lawmakers, including Rubio and Smith, to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, calling for measures to address the "ongoing human rights crisis" in Xinjiang.

The letter singled out Xinjiang's top leader, Chen Quanguo, and other officials seen as behind the clampdown, saying they should be sanctioned under the Global Magnitsky Act that allows the U.S. government to place travel and financial restrictions on individuals anywhere in the world given credible proof of their role in human rights violations or corruption.

The letter also mentions two companies that could be sanctioned under a separate executive order, Hikvision and Dahua Technology, both of which make video surveillance technology used extensively throughout Xinjiang to track residents and restrict their movements.

Asked Tuesday about the possibility of sanctions, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the U.S. has "a lot of tools at our disposal" but mentioned no details.

"It's the old standard line on sanctions, that we're not going to preview any sanctions that may or may not happen," Nauert told reporters.

On Wednesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said China "has been firmly and strongly opposed to the U.S. using Xinjiang-related issues to interfere in China's internal affairs.

"The Chinese government protects the Chinese citizens' freedom of religion and belief in accordance with law," Geng told reporters at a daily briefing.

Global concern

A day earlier, China rejected a request from the U.N.'s head of human rights, Michelle Bachelet, to allow monitors into Xinjiang, with Geng saying Bachelet should "respect China's sovereignty, fairly and objectively."

Also Wednesday, Australia's opposition Labor Party issued a statement saying it was "deeply concerned by continuing reports of the mass detention of China's minority Uighur population and other violations of human rights," citing questions brought by members of the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in Geneva last week.

That followed a statement by the Australian National Imams Council condemning the treatment of Uighurs as "inhumane and unbearable" and urging action from the Australian government.

Muslim activists in Bangladesh, meanwhile, marched through the capital chanting slogans and carrying signs demanding China "stop religious persecution" of Uighurs.
The United States is threatening automatic sanctions to deter Russia and any other current or future adversary from interfering in the countrys elections.

President Donald Trump declared a national emergency Wednesday, signing an executive order that mandates a range of economic sanctions and other penalties against any person, group or country assessed to have meddled with the upcoming midterm elections November 6.

The order comes eight weeks before voters go to the polls and covers attacks on Americas election infrastructure, such as voting machines and voter databases, cyber attacks against candidates or political organizations, and disinformation campaigns.

It also comes as the White House is trying to take a tougher line against Moscow after Trump publicly accepted Russian President Vladimir Putins denials of his countrys involvement in any interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential elections, contrary to the findings of the U.S. intelligence community.

Its a further effort, among several that the administration has made, to protect the United States against foreign interference in our elections and really our political process more broadly, National Security Adviser John Bolton said Wednesday while briefing reporters.

We felt it was important to demonstrate the president has taken command of this issue, that its something he cares deeply about, Bolton added.

Russian meddling attempts

There have been ongoing concerns about attacks or disinformation campaigns, fueled in part by Trumps own attacks against the ongoing special counsel investigation into Russias activities and into possible collusion with Trumps own campaign staff.

Trump has repeatedly dismissed the investigation as a witch hunt.

But in a statement late Wednesday, the president said his executive order makes clear the United States will not tolerate any form of foreign meddling in our elections.

When it comes to foreign policy, my administration has delivered decisively and taken action where previous administrations have not, Trump said. By signing this Executive Order, I am adding to my record of implementing the strongest measures to date of any United States president to protect our electoral system.

Automatic sanctions

The new executive order gives U.S. intelligence agencies 45 days after an election to report any efforts to meddle with the outcome.

The U.S. attorney general and the Department of Homeland Security will then have 45 days to review those findings. If they agree with the assessment, it would trigger automatic sanctions.

Those sanctions could include blocking access to property and interests, restricting access to the U.S. financial system, prohibiting investment in companies found to be involved, and even prohibiting individuals from entering the United States.

Additionally, the order authorizes the State Department and the Treasury Department to add on additional sanctions, if deemed necessary.

A key State Department official praised the executive order as a good start.

I applaud the attempt to make it harder to evade, to let something fall away and not be countered, Michele Markoff, the State Departments Deputy Coordinator for Cyber, said during a panel discussion in Washington Wednesday.

Were setting up a process or a mechanism where if we see something, were going to say something, she said. The way we have been doing it [until now] is fingernail-pulling.

Some former officials also praised the order as a step in the right direction.

Growing skepticism

I think its going to be good, said Sean Kanuck, a former intelligence officer for cyber issues, now with the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Still, Kanuck said the executive order alone is likely not enough.

I dont know that it will be a complete solution, he said. I doubt it will completely change the incentive-cost-benefit analysis of the other side.

Other cyber analysts are even less optimistic.

The July Helsinki meeting between Trump and Putin has a visual effect that is searing and long lasting, said Laura Galante, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council who has previously worked with the U.S. government.

Words, and those words in Helsinki, probably speak louder than executive action, she said.

Additional measures possible

Key lawmakers are likewise cautious.

An executive order that inevitably leaves the president broad discretion to decide whether to impose tough sanctions against those who attack our democracy is insufficient, Mark Warner, the ranking Democratic member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in a statement.

If we are going to actually deter Russia and others from interfering in our elections in the future, we need to spell out strong, clear consequences, without ambiguity, Warner added.

Todays announcement by the administration recognizes the threat, but does not go far enough to address it, Republican Senator Marco Rubio and Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen said in a joint statement Wednesday.

But Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Republican Richard Burr expressed hope the new executive order will send a clear message to Russia, Iran and others.

Not just Russia

Trump administration officials said Wednesday they have not ruled out working with lawmakers on additional measures, but said they did not want to have to wait for legislation to be approved before having a chance to act.

And while some of the proposed legislation focuses on Russia, the officials said it was important to take a broader view.

We have seen signs of not just Russia, but from China, of capabilities, potentially from Iran, and even North Korea, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats told reporters Wednesday.

In terms of what the influence is and will be, we continue to analyze all that, Coats added. This is an ongoing effort here, and it has been for a significant amount of time, and will continue on a, literally, 24-hour-a-day basis until the election.
U.S. Homeland Security officials are downplaying the transfer of nearly $10 million from the U.S. disaster response agency to immigration enforcement efforts, first brought to national attention in a TV appearance by a senator Tuesday night.

Jeff Merkley, a Democrat from the northwestern state of Oregon, told a nightly MSNBC news program that the funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, were allocated for detention beds and transportation and removal by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He shared a budget document that showed the funds "reprogrammed" for the FEMA "Operations and Support" fund.

Both agencies are part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

DHS said the transfer of funds would neither affect FEMA's readiness for emergencies, nor support immigration enforcement.

In a statement emailed to reporters Wednesday morning, a DHS spokesperson referred to misinformed reports of the $9.8 million transfer.

The department did not deny the transfer, instead saying the money was not part of FEMAs disaster response.

Citing an unnamed DHS official, the statement added that the mission-impact on FEMA response and recovery of this transfer of funds is zero.

Top DHS spokesman Tyler Q. Houlton tweeted during the show, "Under no circumstances was any disaster relief funding transferred from @fema to immigration enforcement efforts."

A Washington Post report indicates the document was written in June and approved by Congress between July and September.

DHS said the money was left over when FEMA management expenses "came in under budget" ahead of the end of the 2018 fiscal year on September 30, and that FEMA has a disaster response/recovery budget of $25 billion.

The senator's allegation on Tuesday hits the Trump administration on two of its more criticized policies: disaster preparedness and immigrant detention.

The U.S. government response to natural disasters is under intense scrutiny after a study of hurricane deaths in Puerto Rico revised the original death toll  said to have been in the dozens  to nearly 3,000 people killed as a result of Hurricane Maria that hit the U.S. territory last year.

The Trump administration also has come under fire in recent months for its immigration detention and deportation policies, which reached a peak with the separation of parents and children who crossed the U.S. border from Mexico earlier this year.

To prioritize the separation and detention of families over providing relief to disaster-stricken communities is a scandalous use of taxpayer dollars, said Ali Noorani, executive director of the National Immigration Forum. Funding family separation, detention and deportation with money meant to help Americans prepare for and recover from natural disasters flies in the face of American values and puts public safety at risk.

The financial fracas came to light Tuesday as several U.S. states in the mid-Atlantic and southeastern region have declared states of emergency ahead of Hurricane Florence. The Category 4 storm, which prompted the evacuation of more than a million residents of coastal areas in North and South Carolina, is expected to make landfall with life-threatening storm surge and rainfall in the coming days.

At last report, the storm was about 800 kilometers from the U.S. coast.
Eleven Republican and Democratic U.S. senators urged President Donald Trump's administration to "use all tools at your disposal," including imposing more economic sanctions, to ensure "the immediate, unconditional" release of two Reuters journalists imprisoned in Myanmar.

"We write today with great concern regarding the case of two Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who were wrongfully detained and sentenced to seven years in prison in Burma," the senators, led by Republican Marco Rubio and Democrat Jeff Merkley, both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, which was seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

The letter was signed by six Democrats and five Republicans.

The journalists were found guilty on official secrets charges and sentenced earlier this month in a landmark case seen as a test of progress toward democracy in Myanmar. The country, also known as Burma, was ruled by a military junta until 2011.

The government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has come under increasing diplomatic pressure over a security crackdown sparked by attacks by Rohingya Muslim insurgents on security forces in Rakhine state in west Myanmar in August 2017.

The journalists were investigating the killing of Rohingya villagers by security forces at the time of their arrest last December, and had pleaded not guilty.

Their imprisonment has prompted an international outpouring of support, including a call for their release by U.S. Vice President Mike Pence.

The senators said they appreciated Pompeo raising the case in August with Myanmar's foreign minister, Kyaw Tin, and calling for their immediate release, but said there should be further action.

Last month, the United States imposed sanctions on four Myanmar military and police commanders and two army units, accusing them of "ethnic cleansing" against Rohingya Muslims and widespread human rights abuses.
The U.S. State Department on Tuesday expressed deep concern over China's "worsening crackdown" on minority Muslims in the Xinjiang region, as the Trump administration considered sanctions against Chinese senior officials and companies linked to alleged human rights abuses.

Discussions have gained momentum recently within the U.S. government over possible economic penalties in response to reports of mass detentions ethnic Uighurs and other Muslims, which has prompted a growing international outcry, U.S. congressional sources said.

Any sanctions decision would be a rare move on human rights grounds by the Trump administration against China, with which it is engaged in a major trade war while also seeking Beijing's help to resolve a standoff over North Korea's nuclear weapons.

A U.S. official said the idea of sanctions was still in the discussion stage, and one of the congressional sources said a decision did not appear to be imminent.

"We're deeply troubled by the worsening crackdown, not just on Uighurs (but also) Kazakhs, other Muslims in that region of China," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told a news briefing, renewing concerns expressed in recent months by top administration officials.

She acknowledged that the State Department had received a letter from a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers at the end of August asking Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to impose sanctions on a number of Chinese officials accused of overseeing the policies. Those included Chen Quanguo, Communist Party chief in Xinjiang and also a member of the Party's politburo.

Also under consideration are sanctions the lawmakers sought against several Chinese companies involved in building detention camps and creating surveillance systems used to track and monitor Uighurs, according to one of the congressional sources.

"We have a lot of tools at our disposal. But I'm not going to get ahead of any potential activity that the U.S. government may take," Nauert said. "We're not going to preview any sanctions that may or may not happen."

The Washington-based Uyghur Human Rights Project tweeted a photo of activist Dolkun Isa, president of World Uyghur Congress, at the White House on Monday along with the comment, "A meeting with White House officials today provided much-needed encouragement for Uyghur human-rights advocates."

China earlier on Tuesday called for United Nations human rights chief Michelle Bachelet to respect its sovereignty after she urged Beijing to allow monitors into the restive far western region and expressed concern about the situation there.

Beijing has said Xinjiang faces a serious threat from Islamist militants and separatists who plot attacks and stir up tension between the mostly Muslim Uighur minority who call the region home and members of the ethnic Han Chinese majority.

Last month, a U.N. rights panel said it had received credible reports that up to one million ethnic Uighurs may be held in extra-legal detention in Xinjiang, and called for them to be freed.

"There are credible reports out there that many, many thousands have been detained in detention centers since April 2017, and the numbers are fairly significant from what we can tell so far," Nauert said.

U.S. sanctions could be imposed under the Global Magnitsky Act, a federal law that allows the U.S. government to target human rights violators around the world with freezes on any U.S. assets, U.S. travel bans, and prohibitions on Americans doing business with them.
Millions of Venezuelans fled to neighboring countries due to a growing crisis that brought shortages of food and medicine, and a government crackdown. On this week's show, Greta Van Susteren talks with a chief justice of the Venezuelan Supreme Court currently in exile, a former U.S. ambassador, and VOA's Spanish Service Correspondent Celia Mendoza.
People are deserting the English-speaking regions of Cameroon after hundreds of armed separatists and the military were involved in Tuesday's bloody conflicts in five towns and villages leaving at least 15 people dead. Residents complain that the army was slow in responding to simultaneous attacks by the separatists.

Intensive shooting between an unknown number of armed separatists and at least 50 soldiers of the Rapid Intervention Battalion, BIR, an elite corps of Cameroon's military is going on at Mile 16, Bolifamba, a neighborhood in the southwestern town of Buea.

As the military shoots, some of the troops clear the wreckage of vehicles, abandoned containers, trees and heavy metals that the armed separatists are said to have used in blocking all entrances into the town before the military arrived. The military said the attackers also burned vehicles, houses and shops.

Some residents are rushing to various destinations, including the bush.

Businessman Peter Bongkiyung, 24, says he saw two corpses, including that of a soldier, and no longer feels safe in the town.

"I am still believing that, come whatever, I have to go," he said.

Jenine Ita, a 47-year-old jurist working in the town, is also leaving with her three children and wounded husband. She says the armed men invaded Mile 16 as early as 5 a.m. Tuesday, blocking the road and setting some transport buses on fire. Ita said she was surprised that the military, stationed at various entrances to the town, came late.

"We cannot continue living in such an environment where you cannot trust your neighbor. Where are the armed men coming from? How do they get into town without the knowledge of the military?" she said.

Similar simultaneous attacks were reported in four other villages in the Northwest and Southwest regions including Bamenda. Mamfe and Wum.

Bernard Okalia Bilai, governor of the Southwest region, said he is pleading with the separatists to drop their guns and stop the carnage. He said next month's presidential election should offer an opportunity for them to democratically express their views should they be disgruntled with the government.

"The presidential election is a very important moment for all the countries in the world and the southwest should not miss to be fully involved in the presidential election on October 7. We should stop the killings, the kidnappings, the disturbances and all the nuisance that the present crisis has brought in our region," he said.

The government has been assuring voters that they will be protected.

Unrest in Cameroon began in November 2016, when English-speaking teachers and lawyers demonstrated against the overbearing use of the French language. Separatists took over and started demanding the independence of the English-speaking from the French-speaking regions of the bilingual country.

Last Saturday, armed Anglophone separatists burned buses and blocked traffic into and out of the capital of the English-speaking Northwest region and said the action in Bamenda was to disrupt next month's presidential election.

The United Nations reports that 300 people including 130 policemen and the military have been killed, hundreds of thousands have fled for their lives to the bushes and towns in the French-speaking regions. At least 20,000 have crossed over to Nigeria.
In Iraq, a major Middle East grain buyer, will cut the irrigated area it plants with wheat by half in the 2018-2019 growing season as water shortages grip the country, a government official told Reuters.

Drought and dwindling river flows have already forced Iraq to ban farmers from planting rice and other water-intensive summer crops. Water scarcity was one of the issues galvanizing street protests in the country this year.

An investigation by Reuters in July revealed how Nineveh, Iraq's former breadbasket, was becoming a dust bowl after drought and years of war.

This latest move is likely to significantly raise wheat imports.

Deputy Agriculture Minister Mahdi al-Qaisi said irrigated land grown with winter grains, namely wheat and barley, would be halved.

"The shortage of water resources, climate change and drought are the main reasons behind this decision, our expectation is the area will shrink to half," Qaisi said in an interview.

Iraq's agricultural plan included 1.6 million hectares of wheat last 2017-2018 season. Of those, around one million hectares were irrigated and the rest relied on rainfall.

"We expect that the irrigated wheat area falls to half of what it was last year," Qaisi said, implying plantings of 500,000 hectares.

The cut is expected to lower the country's wheat production by at least 20 percent, implying a significantly higher import bill Fadel al-Zubi, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization Iraq Representative said.

Iraq already has an import gap of more than one million tonnes per year, with annual demand at around 4.5 million to 5 million tons.

"Imports will go up as a result of cutting down on production and also as a result of population increase," Zubi said but he declined to give an exact estimate for size of imports next year.

Haidar al-Abbadi, the head of Iraq's General Union of Farmers, confirmed the cut saying water shortage was the main reason behind it.

"Irrigated wheat will reach 2 million donhums (500,000 hectares) down from around 4 million last season," he said.

Qaisi said it was too early to tell the area of land that could be grown with wheat relying on rainfall this season but he hoped it would make up for some of the shortfall.

"We will follow a few programs to increase the crop, like raising yields and bringing Nineveh province back to more production ... that can partly make up for shortfall," he said.

But the rains failed Iraq's Nineveh last season with the government procuring a little over 100,000 tonnes of wheat this year from a region that used to produce close to one million tons annually before Islamic State took over in 2014.

Iraq imports wheat to supply a rationing program created in 1991 to combat U.N. economic sanctions, including flour, cooking oil, rice, sugar and baby milk formula.

The trade ministry is responsible for procuring strategic commodities, including wheat, for the program.

Trade ministry officials were not immediately available for comment on a potential rise in imports.
Vietnam has a chance this week as World Economic Forum host to show curious foreign investors they can ship exports from the fast-growing country to China or the United States without the hazards of a widening Sino-U.S. trade dispute.

The annual event from Tuesday through Thursday in Hanoi this week gives Vietnam access to multinational companies, some of whom have not visited for more than a decade, said Frederick Burke, partner with the law firm Baker McKenzie in Ho Chi Minh City. About 1,000 delegates were due to attend the event with a program focused on Vietnam's broader location, Southeast Asia.

Vietnam looks to foreign investment in export manufacturing to keep its economy growing at 6-7 percent. It will probably impress on delegates this year that investors can ship goods to China as well as the United States without getting embroiled in the Sino-U.S. trade war, experts say.

At the end of the day its about business and getting a bigger slice of the global economy, and thats all happening, Burke said. Its the first time were seeing a lot of the big multinationals come in and have a look at Vietnam from a perspective of, with the changing trade flows and the global economy, how is Vietnam in a position to strengthen its position in the supply chain.

Sidelines take center stage

The World Economic Forums event in Vietnam, which includes leaders from Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, and Sri Lanka, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Myanmar, features discussions on aging populations, the Internet economy and high-tech agriculture. Some of the nine leaders in attendance are scheduled to speak during the sessions.

The 47-year-old forum advocates government-private sector cooperation, and many see it as a pro-free trade organization today.

But its the sidelines that will matter for Vietnam, analysts believe. Business people will see new infrastructure in the country and may learn about government incentives to bring in export manufacturers. Theyre really rolling out the red carpet for everybodyand trying to accommodate, Burke said.

Production in Vietnam costs less than in the traditional factory go-to country China, a selling point for the Vietnamese economy over the past 10 years.

Vietnam may also use the forum to push for multi-country free trade agreements, said Carl Thayer, Southeast Asia-specialized emeritus professor at the University of New South Wales in Australia. Its call would counter U.S. President Donald Trumps focus on bilateral deals instead.

Vietnam hopes, for example, for finalization of an 11-member country Trans Pacific Partnership after its 12th member, the United States, withdrew from the trade deal last year.

With a Sino-U.S. trade war on the sidelines, Vietnam will be able to gauge what other leaders think, Thayer said. They might worry, as Vietnam does, that the trade dispute will shake steel exports and hold back the digital economy, he said. The U.S. announced tariffs earlier this year on steel from much of the world.

Part of hosting these summits is designed to have everybody see Vietnam as a solid international good citizen thats contributing to the good, and for its own interest as well, Thayer said.

Vietnam as a China alternative

Last month the United States imposed 25 percent tariffs on $16 billion worth of Chinese goods following the same rate on another $34 billion worth of products in July. Beijing responded in each case by raising tariffs by the same amount on U.S. imports. The U.S. government has vowed to increase tariffs further.

Exporters that ship to the United States from Vietnam would save money compared to peers in China, with little risk to their cross-border supply chains, an associate with the business consultancy Dezan Shira & Associates in Ho Chi Minh City said earlier this year.

Firms that ship from Vietnam to the United States now include Intel and Samsung Electronics. Chinese companies are keen to set up more factories in Vietnam, touching off protests in June over fears in the Southeast Asian country that they would get too much access to special economic zones.

Vietnam counted the United States as its top single-country export destination last year, when it shipped $46.5 billion worth of goods to the U.S. market. Exports to the United States grew 12.5 percent in August, while exports to China expanded by 30 percent. Foreign investment last year contributed to exports worth $155.24 billion.

Vietnam may be able to convince business people at the forum that it's ideal for intermediate goods such as electronics components, said Alicia Garcia Herrero, Asia Pacific chief economist with the French investment bank Natixis. She added Vietnam is well placed as a China alternative because it trades with both China and the United States.

If they play that card, I think they could do well, she said.

This means more FDI into Vietnam, because people will realize that this is a good platform to get a least part of the China business in terms of value chain into the U.S., and I think this is very, very appealing to Vietnam," Garcia said.
Plans by South Africa's government to change the law to allow land expropriation without compensation have provoked an emotional response, even reaching the ears of President Donald Trump, who signaled his disapproval last month in a controversial tweet in which he ordered U.S. officials to investigate the situation.

South Africas government says it may change the constitution to allow expropriation of some land without compensation, in a bid to redress historical wrongs that left land mostly in the hands of the white minority. Hearings began last month to look into the feasibility of expropriation without compensation. President Cyril Ramaphosa supports the idea and says any expropriation will only happen if land transfer does not harm the economy or the nations food security.



Farmers, many of whom belong to the white minority, say they live in fear of losing their land; meanwhile, pro-expropriation activists say returning land to members of the traditionally marginalized black majority is only right. And some analysts say this is nothing but a political ploy as the ruling party faces a tough election next year.

The farm

Casper Willemse grew up working a 2,000-hectare maize farm about an hour south of Johannesburg. For years, hes toiled in the fields from sunup to sundown, as five generations of his family did before him.



He always thought he would die here, and be buried alongside them.

"I'm the sixth generation that was born on this farm, he said. My children is the seventh ... We are farmers, from the morning until noon to night."



The government hasnt publicly identified which properties, if any, it will target.

Groups like AfriForum, which calls itself a civil rights watchdog with a focus on the white Afrikaans-speaking minority, have circulated what they say are government lists of potential seizures, but the government denies those.

AfriForum says their biggest fear is of the economic impact of such a policy. But even without that, they say talk about expropriation has provoked a rise in illegal land seizures. The group is among many critics of the plan who say they fear expropriation without compensation will hurt South Africas economy and will cause the same economic spiral as was seen in neighboring Zimbabwe, after that country began a series of seizures from white farmers nearly two decades ago.



We are seeing an increase in land invasion throughout the country, said Ian Cameron, the groups head of community safety. So there is a definite threat to property rights at the moment. And the uncertainty being created by government increases that problem.

Willemse said the uncertainty is what fills him with anxiety - and about more than just his future. In the meantime, he said, he has to carry on: he employs 14 people, and cant leave them hanging. Besides, he said, he has no backup plan.

He agreed that South Africas violent, unequal past was wrong. But why, he asked, should he pay the price?



Taking something without compensation is nothing but stealing, he said. Buying the land, and giving that to somebody else, thats a different story. But just taking it for political reasons, and giving it away - its not going to yield anymore, because that guy thats going to get it, they dont have passion about it, they dont have knowledge, they dont have resources. I think thats not going to work.



Land on demand

But the Black First Land First Movement says thats beside the point. The relatively new political movement, which launched in 2015 and calls itself a revolutionary, pan-Africanist socialist movement, says much of South Africas land was stolen from its original black owners by white settlers during South Africas colonial and apartheid periods. Today, the majority of South African agricultural land is owned by white farmers.



The groups deputy president, Zanele Lwana, said all of this land should be returned and no one has the right to ask what the new owners plan to do with it.



We believe South Africa is a black country, she told VOA. And we believe that white people in this country are sitting on stolen property. And the call to call for land expropriation without compensation speaks to historical redress.

Lwana also told VOA that the group considers land occupation a legitimate tactic if the government does not go through with its expropriation plans.



Playing politics?

Analysts and critics say the government is exploiting this sensitive issue to win votes for next years elections, a claim Lwana and her movement echo, alleging that Ramaphosa has no actual intention of enacting meaningful land reform.



Ramaphosas ruling African National Congress has been steadily losing ground at the polls, and analysts say an emotive issue like land redistribution could attract voters, especially lower-income black voters who comprise much of the ANCs base.



It is a genuine issue, but like all genuine issues, it has been handled with the view of securing short term political gains, unfortunately, independent political analyst Ralph Mathekga told VOA.



Mathekga, who owns a 10-acre farm in the rural Limpopo province, said he understands the emotional aspect of the debate. He got permission from local leadership to farm there about three years ago.



I grew up farming, he told VOA. Thats what I did. I used to put together the mules, thats what I did before I went off to university.

He said he has issues with the debates focus on land reform, though, instead of on agricultural reform. If this is going to work, he said, the government needs to assist new farmers in getting into the economy. If not, this story will not end well, he contends.



Ive never made a cent out of [the farm], he said, adding that a recent drought and difficulty in finding eager, competent young workers have made it hard to profit. Its a highly risky business, and I think people need to think very carefully about it."
Zambias government has denied that the country faces an economic crisis, despite widespread concerns that the money it owes China is reaching unsustainable levels.

Speaking from Lusaka, Amos Chanda, spokesperson for President Edgar Lungu, told VOAs Daybreak Africa that, while Zambia may have economic challenges, its far from a debt crisis.

The economy is going at four percent. But that is not to say there is no economic problem. There are economic problems, but you cant call them a crisis, Chanda said.

He also denied reports that Chinese companies were taking over public assets.

There is no single Chinese company taking over, he said.

Zambia secured a $30 million interest-free loan and $30 million grant at the recent Forum for China-Africa Cooperation, held last week in Beijing, Chanda added.

Chinese takeover?

Concerns remain high that China is pursuing debt-trap diplomacy with the aim of taking over Africas strategic assets. One such example comes from Africa Confidential, which, earlier this month, concluded that the state-owned TV and radio news channel ZNBC is already Chinese-owned.

Based on investigative reports from local media, however, the reality appears more complicated.

In 2017, the Zambian government created a joint venture, TopStar Communications Limited, to digitize its broadcast infrastructure, Tumfweko, a local news site, reported last year.

The Chinese firm Start Times owns 60 percent of TopStar, and ZNBC, a Zambian state broadcaster, owns 40 percent. The company is overseeing the distribution of some 1.25 million set-top boxes throughout the country, while generating revenue to repay a $273 million Chinese loan for the project.

Nick Branson, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Londons School of Oriental and African Studies, told VOA rumors and ongoing conversations cant easily be separated from facts in countries like Zambia, where few decisions happen transparently. And although the government would be very reluctant to sell assets, it isnt in complete control of its public finances, and its struggling to manage debts that were acquired in the last three years.

The sale of a strategic national utility, obviously, while not desirable, is a plausible response - whether its an advised one or not, really, is a different matter, Branson said.

Dynasty ties

Chinas longstanding ties to political dynasties in Africa, while touted as a sign of Beijings loyalty to the continent, often do more harm than good. Thats because African leaders, emboldened by these connections, pursue so-called vanity projects that benefit only the elite. These countries tend to face few protests from opposition, civil society, or China itself, Branson said.

Governments with well-defined national planning documents, meanwhile, have had better success converting Chinese pledges into realized deals and then servicing their loans. Insight into their countries infrastructure needs has allowed these governments to enter negotiations with more bargaining power and approach multiple donors to help finance their development, Branson said. And that often leads to better deals for debtor countries.

When there are multiple partners at play, its a lot easier to come up with a concrete proposal and play different potential funders off against each other and try to gain more concessions, Branson said.

A lack of transparency also leads to problems, Branson said. Neither China nor African countries want the specifics of their deals subjected to public scrutiny, and those political factors will prevent clarity of the exact extent to which pledges are being fulfilled, Branson said.

I think it suits all actors from all sides to keep matters as opaque as possible, he added.

Negotiating capital

Resource-rich countries like Angola, a longtime China partner, have benefited from being able to export raw materials that China wants, making it straightforward to service loans. In Angolas case, thats translated into oil for infrastructure.

But for smaller countries, repayment strategies become tricky. East African nations, for example, may struggle to repay multi-billion-dollar loans for railway projects that will take many years to pay for themselves.

As for the possibility that China might seize African assets, Branson said its a risk, albeit not an imminent one. Still, nations unable to export commodities will likely struggle to service their debt in the long term.

The level of negotiating capital that a lot of these African nations have is relatively constrained, Branson said.
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Chen Jian, a native of Qingdao, Shandong province, is inspired by the natural palette of his hometown that boasts a serene seaside view and rows of Western-style houses.

Chen's current exhibition at the National Art Museum of China, Spirit of Simplicity, which runs until Sept 16, showcases dozens of his paintings, including those he did while visiting areas inhabited by the ethnic Tajik people in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

Chen has traveled to Xinjiang every year since 2000. There, he would stay for weeks and months, being engulfed in the scenery and hospitality of the Tajik people.
[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

To mark the 120th anniversary of the birth of late premier, Zhou Enlai, the China Culture Media Group is producing a movie titled Zhou Zongli Hui Yan'an (Premier Zhou returns to Yan'an) which will be in theaters next March.

The Chinese cast includes actor Liu Jin, a "specialist actor" for Zhou, Tang Guoqiang, who plays Chairman Mao Zedong and actress, Huang Wei, who stars Zhou's wife, Deng Yingchao. The film will look back on the revolutionary years between 1935 to 1948, when China's Communist Party was based in Yan'an, Shaanxi province, will tell the stories of the revolutionary pioneers, public servants and people in Yan'an back then. It will also recount Zhou's visit on June 9, 1973, through detailed stories told by his children and bodyguards.

To ensure the veracity of these stories, the producer invited Yang Shengqun, former vice director of the Party Literature Research Office of the CPC Central Committee, and other experts, to act as consultants on the movie, as well as holding several symposiums to discuss the storyline and narrative style.

Liu, who is also directing the film, says that the market lacks film and TV series focusing on Zhou's later life and the day of his return to Yan'an, so the film will provide the audience with an opportunity to learn from the great leader.
A piece of sad news spread across the world recently. On the evening of September 2, the National Museum of Brazil was engulfed in a huge fire and burned to the ground.



The building, founded 200 years ago, was once home to the Portuguese royal family and Brazilian imperial family. After being converted to a musuem in 1892, it became one of the largest museums in the Americas and housed more than 20 million valuable items.

The cause of the fire still remains unknown, but the lack of a sprinkler system in the building was blamed. According to the Associated Press which quoted Roberto Robadey, a spokesman for the Rio fire department, the hydrants near the building did not work and firefighters had to fetch water from a nearby lake.

Beijing's Palace Museum, also once the residence of imperial families, has caught on fire many times in the past 600 years.

The largest preserved wooden structure in the world miraculously preserves to today. The result, to some extent, can be attributed to the effective fireproof methods invented in ancient times that continues to protect the buildings.

1. Install lightning conductors

The Forbidden City was completed in 1420 during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). Just in the second year after its completion, the Palace was hit by thunder and three main buildings, including the Hall of Offering to Heaven, renamed the Hall of Supreme Harmony in 1695, burned to ashes.

Following this, the palace caught fire almost every year. It wasn't until 19 years later that the three buildings were restored.

According to historical documents, 34 out of nearly 100 fire disasters in the Palace's history were caused by thunder. Noticing the problem, the Palace installed anti-lightning devices starting in the early Qing Dynasty.

On the cornices of some of the Palace's halls, you can see animal-like figures stretch out their iron tongues. Each tongue is connected by an iron wire, which runs from the roof, along the pillar, all the way down to the earth. It is a prototype of a lightning conductor.

However, as ancient people lacking scientific knowledge about lightning conductors, not all these devices worked, so the Palace was not exempt from being struck by thunder.

2. Stricter personnel management

Apart from thunder strikes, negligence, including making fire in stoves during the winter and fireworks were another cause of fires.

Although the Qing Dynasty occupied the Forbidden City longer than the Ming Dynasty, the number of fire disasters during the Qing were much lower. It seems that the rulers of Qing Dynasty took lessons about fire control from their predecessors.

A case in point is Emperor Kangxi (1661-1722) of the Qing Dynasty. He reigned for 61 years, with only one case of fire disaster. He was very cautious of fire prevention, stipulating strict rules for fire control and assigning designated eunuchs to inspect fires and candles every day.

3. 24-hour fire extinguisher

There were 308 big or small water vats placed all over the Palace, with almost all buildings having at least one vat nearby. These vats had a beautiful name  lucky vat.

A big vat can hold nearly 3,000 liters of water, just like a mini-size reservoir. Every day, eunuchs refilled the vats with fresh water to ensure it was free from odor.

Under each vat, there is a stone shelf with a hole. During the winters, eunuchs put burning coal inside the hole to heat the covered vats, so that the water in the vat did not freeze.

4. Setting up the imperial fire brigade

Only having water was not enough, there needed to be tools to spray water in the right places. Nowadays, we have water cannons to spray water, but in ancient times, how did people extinguish fires in high or far places?

"Jitong" provides the answer. The device is composed of two poles, with the bigger pole wrapping up part of the smaller one. Put one end of a "jitong" into a bucket of water, pump water up and then push the pole on the other end, the water then is sprayed out.

Named after the device, the "jitong" department, which was set up under the order of Emperor Kangxi, oversaw "jitongs" and took the responsibility of putting out fires.

The department was probably the first fire brigade recorded in China's historic documents. In 1905, the "jitong" department was renamed as fire brigades with a size of 100 to 200 people.

5. Incorporating wide streets and stone walls as barriers

During the Ming and Qing Dynasty, there were more than 20 big fires. But they all had one characteristic.

Taking the Gate of Heavenly Purity as a boundary, fires in history either burned in the inner court of the Palace or the outer court. Never did a fire spread across the gate.

The reason lies in that the Gate of Heavenly Purity faces a 30-meter-wide street, which separates the inner court from the outer court, and prevents the fire from spreading.

Two walls standing on the east and west side of the Palace of Heavenly Purity and the Palace of Earthly Tranquility also serve as barriers. The walls look very much like wooden houses, with beams, pillars, bucket arches, and cornices, but are totally made of stone.

Designed 600 years ago, the Palace makes it difficult for the movement of large fire extinguishing. And for historic buildings, it is not possible to install fire hydrants in the Palace.

Despite advanced fire extinguishing equipment, including robots, the ancient fireproofing methods, which protected the Palace so successfully in the past, are still being used today.

In spring and summer, firefighters fill some vats with water as "the first bucket of water" to cope with the emergency. In autumn the inflammable fallen leaves are cleaned in time and in winter firefighters cut holes in the frozen moat surrounding the Palace to ensure a sufficient supply of water.

Abiding by natural laws, the wisdom of ancient Chinese has lived for 600 years and continues to live on.
Lingdang Pet, a pet service company, and Pet Fair Asia jointly published a white paper on China's pet industry late last month in Shanghai.

The report said total consumer spending in China (on pet dogs and cats) will hit 170.8 billion yuan ($24.9 billion) this year, up 27 percent year-on-year.

The number of people in Chinese cities who raise pets, including fish, reached 73.55 million this year. Of this total, 33.9 million are dog owners and 22.6 million keep cats, according to the report.

The study also found that the majority of cat and dog owners are in their 20s and 30s. About 87.5 percent of dog owners, it said, are women, half of whom are college educated, and white-collars and students constitute the majority of the cat owners. In addition, the report found that cat owners are, on average, younger than dog keepers.

With rising standards of living, consumer spending in the pet industry has been steadily increasing. It is estimated that each dog or cat costs its owner 5,016 yuan on average in 2018, a 15 percent increase from 2017. The average spend per pet dog is 5,508 yuan, higher than cats, which stands at 4,311 yuan per pet. However, the "cat economy" is rising quickly and is now one of the main growth drivers of the pet industry.

The white paper also found that dog and cat owners spend more money on goods rather than services for their pets. Dog owners spend 72 percent of their overall expenses on daily necessities, food and snacks, and the remaining 28 percent on medical services, grooming and hygiene. This same split stands at 82 percent and 18 percent for cat owners.

In terms of food, the report notes that the consumption patterns of dogs and cats are markedly different. Dogs mainly eat staple food and snacks, and cats consume dry and wet food and snacks. It also found that dog and cat owners in the first- and second-tier cities spend more generously on food and services for their pets.

For daily necessities, dog owners tend to spend more on shampoo and hair conditioners, toys and dog leashes, while the top three items on cat owners' shopping lists are cat litter, toys and cat scratching boards.

The report also found that pet owners in their 30s in the first- and second-tier cities are the main consumers of the pet industry. Their personal average expenditure averages 1,826 yuan a year, but dog owners are still spending the most  up to 2,004 yuan per person per year.

An interesting point the white paper noted was that expenditure on medical services is increasingly becoming a larger part of owners' total spend on their pets. Dog and cat vaccinations are among the most expensive of these services followed by sterilization and eliminating parasites.

Despite rising demand and consumer expenditure, pet owners are somewhat dissatisfied with the current standard of medical services. The report found that 47.1 percent of pet owners are not content with the current quality of pet medical services. The lack of regulation and supervision on the prices of these services and the shortage of veterinarians are the main reasons behind their dissatisfaction.
Chinese children are surfing the web earlier in life, with almost 75 percent saying they first used the internet before the age of 10, up from 55.9 percent in 2010, a study has found.

The Annual Report on Internet Use and Reading Practice of Chinese Minors (2017-18), released on Monday, said 98.1 percent of students under the age of 18 have browsed the internet, much higher than the national internet user rate of 57.7 percent.

The study, carried out by several organizations led by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Media Research Center, shows children from urban areas start using the internet earlier than their rural peers.

Those from single-parent households and those whose parents do not hold college degrees all tend to use the internet at a younger age, the report said.

The findings were based on a survey of more than 6,000 students between the ages of 7 and 18 that lasted from October until February. Forty-five percent of respondents were male and 67 percent were from urban areas. More than 40 percent were primary school students and 41 percent were their family's only child.

The report said 75 percent of urban students owned cellphones, compared with 67 percent in rural areas. Sixty-four percent of primary school students owned such devices, while the rate for middle and high school students was 71.3 percent and 86.9 percent respectively.

WeChat, the messaging app, has become the most popular platform for children to access information, with 49 percent saying they use it as their primary source for news. Television was next, with 45 percent saying it is their first choice to find out what's going on in the world.

Though more than half of the respondents said the internet had helped them with their studies, almost 30 percent said they surf the internet for unrelated content while studying, which they said distracts them from their schoolwork, the report said.

The report also found that students are concerned more about the internet's negative impact on physical health, such as damaging their eyesight, than they are about addiction or distraction.

Zhong Fuhai, a teacher at a rural primary school in Macheng, Hubei province, said early exposure to the internet is common at his school.

"The 7-to 8-year-olds are mostly left-behind children whose parents work far away in big cities. Buying what their children want has been a simple way for them to express love," he said to explain the high usage of smartphones.

Despite the learning opportunities brought about by the internet, the teacher voiced his concerns over its negative effects, including addiction to games and inappropriate content for minors.

"I don't regard mobile phones as being necessary for kids, even for middle school students. Parents can get in contact with their kids through other means," he said, adding internet use without parental control does more harm than good.
In the cramped bedroom, plastic bags filled with bread, macaroni and cheese, chips and other food hang above both beds, in an attempt to keep the food away from rats. But ever since the storm, it seems impossible to keep the critters out of Canteros house  the spiders, roaches and centipedes. One day, she found a snake in the bathroom. One night, a scorpion stung her in her bed, just a few feet from her daughter.
A: Theres this lack of understanding that Puerto Ricans living on the island are U.S. citizens. But you get out of the airport and you see the Puerto Rican flag and the American flag. So this idea that because it is an island or because they speak Spanish that somehow they are less American is completely bogus and wrong. What I wanted to do is make this a story of this one kids journey into understanding that. A kid that is reading can come to conclusions themselves. They come to this understanding of what it means to live in Puerto Rico and what that means for their own identity.
Thanks to a consolidation wave that swept over the declining newspaper business in the mid-2000s, the paper wont be all by itself in chronicling the hurricane. Its reporting will be supplemented by journalists from seven other daily newspapers in the Carolinas, all of them owned by its parent company, McClatchy Newspapers of Sacramento. McClatchy bought some of the papers as their owners exited the business over the past 15 years.
This means if someone shows up at your front door while you are at work, you can access the outdoor cameras to see who they are. You can talk to them through speakers. You can even disarm the security system, unlock the door for them and then switch to the indoor cameras to watch them walk around your house. All this from an app on your phone.
The twist, of course, is that the Black Cat was itself a symbol of first-wave gentrification in the corridor, which through the 1970s and 80s was lined with pawnshops and auto-body garages (not to mention folks engaged in far more unseemly trades). If a new, moneyed tide is washing over the neighborhood, it began to trickle in with the rock club in the 1990s.
To me, Hogg was more a performance artist than a visual artist. His accomplishment was his ubiquity, that and the way his street moniker seemed to touch on a confused longing many of us feel. We want others to think were cool, so we start telling ourselves that we are. We want to be Disco, but well settle for Disco.
Deale Rd., 500 block, 1:06 a.m. Aug. 31. Police found a man suffering with a stab wound to his upper body. He was taken to a hospital for serious injuries. An investigation is ongoing.
The business community is going to get more organized and is going to look for candidates that have a good message and candidates that are going to win, said Orange, a former at-large council member. The fact the business community did not get in early shows clearly it was an uphill battle, so folks kind of stood on the sidelines.
Louries programs under the new grant will serve children in the countys northern and central areas. Classrooms are slated to open as early as next month in Riverdale Park and Adelphi, and home-based services will be provided for pregnant women and for children from birth to age 3. Lourie plans to enroll 12 children in a therapeutic nursery program that works with children who have experienced trauma or other emotional challenges.
This is an important first step for getting the word out to our students about the steep increase in the rate of infections and providing a resource to help keep them safer if they are sexually active, said Jill Ortman-Fouse, a school board member who led the effort.
China will use a grid network and remote satellite sensing to better monitor and control air pollution, according to the country's top environmental authority.

The network will monitor concentrations of PM2.5 - polluting particles with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less - in the 28 major cities in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cluster by next month, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment announced recently.

The region has been divided into 36,793 units, each measuring 9 square kilometers. With the help of remote sensing, 3,600 of the units with relatively high PM2.5 levels have been selected as key monitoring areas.

Zhao Qunying, deputy director of the ministry's environmental supervision bureau, said the system may help compensate for the limited number of environmental law enforcement personnel in local governments.

"Limited law enforcement personnel having to cover a very wide area has been a problem for local governments and environmental authorities, especially at the prefecture and county levels," he said. "The territories of many counties spread for almost 1,000 sq km. But the county-level environmental protection bureaus usually have only a few dozen employees, and sometimes little more than 10. They have a lot of difficulties covering the whole county in their monitoring and supervision."

Zhao said the grid network system could help pinpoint sources of PM2.5, allowing limited law enforcement manpower to focus its efforts.

The ministry decided to adopt the system after a successful yearlong trial in Cangzhou, Hebei province. There were 126 grid units in the city chosen as key for air pollution monitoring, and Cangzhou appointed a "grid chief" for each of them, along with special supervisors.

"While chiefs draft rectification plans based on specific problems in their units, the supervisors conduct regular checks to urge implementation," the ministry said, adding that PM2.5 levels in the city have fallen significantly.

The ministry also said it will publicize air pollution problems, dispatch special teams and summon local government heads if progress in controlling air pollution in the grid units is inadequate.

The network will also be expanded to two other key areas for air pollution control. Eleven major cities on the Fenhe and Weihe river plains in Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces will be covered from next month, and 41 major cities in the Yangtze River Delta will be covered starting in February, the ministry said.
Before that existed, Garner said he and other educators had no way of knowing that information. If a student was identified as needing extra support, it was often for academic reasons. To get to their emotional needs, he said, educators had to look closely for signs even as students tried to hide their needs and blend in with their classmates. Then those teachers had to ask the right questions.
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Forecasters with The Washington Posts Capital Weather Gang said that Florence, a Category 2 storm as of late Wednesday, could bring dangerous winds, flash flooding and power outages. It could be one of the most intense hurricanes to strike the Southeast in at least two decades.
According to a police account released on Tuesday, events began shortly before noon when two employees, one a man and the other a woman, were assaulted in the Gucci area of the Saks store. Police said the assaults were carried out by two people.
These were among reports received by the Calvert County Sheriffs Office and the Maryland State Police. Anyone with information about these crimes is asked to call the Criminal Investigation Division at 410-535-2800 or 301-855-1194, the Crime Solvers line at 410-535-2880 or the state police Prince Frederick Barrack at 410-535-1400.
When we first heard about Florence, we reached out to our shelter friends in the southern states and said, Hey, were here for you,  said Claudia Roll, vice president of the Humane Rescue Alliance, an animal-welfare organization in the District. After the storm, it becomes more of a national effort, where you may have a very large truck full of animals that arrives in D.C. to drop off 30 or so animals, but they may have already stopped somewhere else to drop off 20, and theyll have another 50 going to New York. It becomes quite the project.
Notable, however, is that the railroad that has been the poster child for PTC progress  the massive freight rail line BNSF  was the first railroad to seek an extension beyond the Dec. 31 deadline. Although BNSF is fully equipped, has every bit of its tracks covered, and all its employees trained, it has a software issue that is keeping its system from being fully operational. Twenty-four railroads operate on BNSF tracks, and only six of them are PTC-capable.
Tour packages and destinations highlighting health enhancement have emerged as popular choices for Chinese travelers, according to a report by the China Tourism Academy released on Friday.

So-called health tourism includes things related to medical treatment and staying well and featuring traditional Chinese medicine, according to Zhu Haidong, director of the international cooperation department of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Zhao Zihe, researcher at the tourism academy, said health tourism emphasizes slow-paced activities, pressure release and health preservation rather than a tight sightseeing schedule common with traditional tourism.

Chinese visitors bound for Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan or foreign countries for health reasons represented 2.2 percent of all outbound visitors in 2017. And the number is expected to increase this year, the report said.

More than 2 million Chinese traveled overseas to wellness centers or for massage and yoga exercises in India and Thailand last year, the report said.Japan, Thailand, South Korea and the United States are listed as the top destinations for travelers from the Chinese mainland. They also go to Taiwan.

Health tourism has also boomed on the Chinese mainland over the past few years, the report said. Online travel services provider lvmama.com said that Guilin, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, and Haikou, Hainan province, are the most popular mainland travel destinations in the health market due to their agreeable climates and advanced medical equipment.

Traditional Chinese medicine and therapies such as acupuncture and massage - as well as exercise, such as tai chi - also help attract foreign visitors and travelers from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan to the Chinese mainland, the report said.

About 2 percent of visitors from Hong Kong and Macao sought traditional Chinese therapies in 2017, while 0.9 percent of foreign travelers to the Chinese mainland bought tour products focusing on TCM last year, according to the report.

Huang Luqi, vice-president of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, believes the future of China's health tourism is bright, especially for TCM.

"Tour programs for TCM services are a new pattern combining Chinese culture and TCM industries. It will benefit travelers both physically and psychologically by maintaining wellness through traditional medical practices - acupuncture, for example."

Zhang Dongping, a researcher at lvmama.com, said health tourism products will drive the development of a quality tourism market because travelers motivated by health require much higher quality services than other tour products.
But after GOP leaders declined to set dates for considering the Democrats plan or to propose one of their own, Northam last week called on lawmakers to ask the court to draw new boundaries on the states behalf. He said the legislature was at an impasse and would not act by the deadline.
The concrete reality of more than 4,300 individuals losing insurance  diminishing their access to care  is alarming leaders at medical and mental health clinics and hospitals, as well as legal advocates for the poor. They say logistics of the work rules are ill-suited to the lives of many poor Arkansans, who may not have computer access to report their hours online or may not have even received  or understood  letters the state sent telling them how to stay on Medicaid.
Wen, 35, immigrated from China with her family as a child. Her family relied on Medicaid, food stamps and Planned Parenthood for health care as she grew up in California, she said. She succeeds Cecile Richards, who ran the organization for the past 12 years and whose background is more political. Richards was deputy chief of staff to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and is the daughter of former Texas governor Ann Richards.
While Pruitt has kept a low profile since stepping down in July, three individuals familiar with the matter said he is now searching for work in the private sector and is exploring setting up his own business. The individuals spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. Pruitt is said to have raised the idea last week, when he attended the Kentucky Coal Associations annual meeting.
Guangdong and Hainan provinces could be hit by two typhoons in the next five days, with one expected to be the strongest of the year so far, authorities said.

Barijat, the 23rd typhoon of the year, formed on the South China Sea and was increasing in strength as it moved westward at 10 to 15 kilometers per hour on Tuesday morning, the Hainan provincial meteorological bureau said.

The bureau has issued an alert, warning against strong winds and heavy rain brought by the typhoon, with maximum winds reaching 65 km per hour near its center. The typhoon was then 850 km from Leizhou, Guangdong. It is expected to land between western Guangdong and eastern Hainan during the daytime on Thursday.

The National Meteorological Center warned that wind speeds near the center of Barijat may reach 90 to 119 km/h when it lands.

Meanwhile, the China Meteorological Administration noted that Barijat had formed very close to the Chinese mainland.

"Barijat will result in high winds in sea areas and bring rain to the coast. But it will not penetrate far into the Chinese mainland," the administration said.

The national observatory warned, however, that Typhoon Mangkhut, the 22nd typhoon this year, may exceed Typhoon Jebi as the strongest of the year.

"Wind speeds near Mangkhut's eye reached 187 km/h, and its strength is expected to continue to increase and may reach about 223 km/h to almost 245 km/h," it said.

It also said Mangkhut will enter the northeastern part of the South China Sea on Saturday before landing in the central coastal area of Guangdong on Sunday.

The strength and speed of Mangkhut will result in high winds and heavy rain in sea areas, and residents in the coastal areas of Guangdong and Hainan, as well as the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, should take precautions, it said.

The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters held a conference on Monday to discuss preparations for the typhoons. It has notified the three provincial regions to evacuate those working in sea areas and prepare for possible flooding.

The three regions may be hit by mountain torrents and there will be floods in medium-and small-sized rivers in these regions.

The Ministry of Emergency Management has dispatched two teams of experts to Hainan and Guangdong to guide the typhoon control work, it said.
Wooten said an emergency declaration issued by Gov. Roy Cooper (D) last week has helped farmers speed up harvesting by waiving farm-truck weight inspections and allowing the vehicles to operate around-the-clock. And some crops are further along: About 50 to 60 percent of the states tobacco crop has been harvested, as well as 75 percent of the corn crop in the eastern part of the state. Any tobacco or corn not harvested before the storm strikes probably will be destroyed by high winds.
From Sept. 10 to 11, the 2018 China (Quzhou) Africa Investment and Trade Fair was held in Quzhou city, Zhejiang province, with 38 agreements worth US$32 million singed during the fair.

The fair was co-hosted by the Quzhou municipal government, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Zhejiang Provincial Committee (CCPIT Zhejiang), the "Belt and Road" Business and Trade Cooperation Project Acceleration Office of Quzhou, and the CCPIT Quzhou. It was also supported by the Angolan Embassy to China, the Ethiopian Consulate General in Shanghai and the China-Africa Business Council.

Thirty-seven foreign merchants from 15 African countries, including Angola, South Africa, Nigeria and Sudan, attended the fair. Enterprises from Quzhou also took part, as more than 200 company owners engaged in business negotiations.

The African merchants focused on Quzhou's industries that complement their own, such as machinery manufacturing, the information technology industry, the chemical industry, hardware and building materials, solar energy-related products, textile and garment, and e-commerce.

This November, Quzhou will organize a business delegation to Ethiopia and Kenya to discuss cooperation and industrial connection.




By a 3-to-0 vote, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit in Cincinnati said the protesters did not state a valid claim under Kentucky law against Trump or his campaign, and Trumps speech was protected by the First Amendment because he did not specifically advocate violence.
For his part, Ramsey says he tried, over the years, to tip off church authorities about McCarricks behavior. He says he spoke to the late Archbishop Thomas Kelly of Louisville about McCarrick in 1993 and wrote a similar letter to the apostolic nuncio in Washington in 2000, and then another, to Cardinal Sean OMalley, in 2015 . Though he sent his letter to the nuncio in 2000, he received only an oblique acknowledgment that Vatican officials had received and read it in 2006, the year McCarrick retired. OMalley, who is president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, has said he did not see Ramseys letter at the time; instead, OMalleys priest secretary replied to Ramsey saying that, since the incidents cited did not involve minors, they fell outside the commissions purview. (OMalley announced earlier this month that he will now begin reviewing all letters sent to his office related to the commission or containing any abuse allegations.)
A few months ago, they wanted everyone to sign a paper saying we acknowledged we were being paid more than the law required, said Amanda Stewart, who works at a General Dynamics call center in London, Ky. She refused. Shortly afterward, she was given a 30-cent raise, to $12.81. (In a statement, General Dynamics said it takes seriously its federal labor-law obligations and continues to value our people and the work that they perform.)
A man convicted of starting a fire in a KTV bar which killed 18 people was sentenced to death by a court in south China's Guangdong Province on Tuesday.

The Intermediate People's Court of Qingyuan City pronounced the judgment. The arsonist, Liu Chunlu, has also been deprived of his political rights for life.

The defendant said he was angry after he visited the bar with his friends on the night of April 23 and was rejected by a waitress. Later that night his business discussion at a lounge was unsuccessful after being interrupted by another guest.

At around 00:30 a.m. on April 24, Liu removed the oil pipe of his motorcycle parked at the door of the bar, allowing oil to flow onto the ground. He ignited the oil with a lighter, and the fire rapidly spread to the lounge.

A total of 18 people inside died of suffocation. Four others were rescued by firefighters.

Liu was caught by the police at 10 a.m. the same day.
In July, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a letter that would stop almost any parent in their tracks: Chemicals in food colorings, preservatives and packaging can be dangerous to children, and they arent being suitably regulated by the government. A review of almost 4,000 additives found that 64 percent had no research proving they were safe for people to eat or drink; these chemicals can be especially harmful to small children because they are still growing, making them more vulnerable to any ill effects. The AAP called for reforms to the Food and Drug Administrations food additive regulatory process and offered guidelines that could be more panic-inducing than reassuring: Dont microwave foods or liquids in plastic, buy fewer processed foods, switch from plastic to glass or metal whenever possible, avoid putting plastics in the dishwasher.
But the discussions indicate a possible shift in strategy for Manafort, who earlier this year chose to go to trial in Virginia, only to be convicted last month in Alexandria federal court on eight counts of bank and tax fraud. He had derided his former business partner, Rick Gates, for striking a deal with prosecutors that provided him leniency in exchange for testimony against Manafort.
Its sad what happened to our community, said Chelsea Jones, 28, a Lumbee woman who works in a gas station and said she sees girls coming in with teeth rotting from drug abuse. Jones tried to vote in the 2016 election before being told she was not registered. She said she is considering registering in time for the midterms and that if she votes it will likely be for Mark Harris. I might vote this time, Im not sure. I like how Trumps telling people to work for it, not handouts.
She wrote that she was not surprised by revelations in Bob Woodwards new book Fear and the recent anonymous op-ed in the New York Times attributed to a senior administration official. Both works describe a president whose orders are not always carried out by those around him.
In a report published last month, researchers at George Washington University estimated that the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria had caused 2,975 excess deaths in the six months after the storm. The government of Puerto Rico has embraced the estimate, which the researchers arrived at by comparing the number of deaths after the hurricane to typical death rates and adjusting for a range of variables.
You dont want to federalize everything, and thats why this is a delicate balance, Ryan said during an interview with the news website WisPolitics. But thats why the the administration is right to say: We are watching. We are coordinating and we will be penalizing if someone tries to mess with our election security. 
You are here: China

Premier Li Keqiang will attend the 12th Summer Davos Forum in Tianjin from Sept. 19 to 20, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang announced Wednesday at a daily press briefing.

Premier Li will address the opening ceremony of the forum, hold talks with leaders from countries including Estonia, Latvia, Serbia and Samoa and exchange views with representatives from communities such as industry and commerce, finance, think tanks and media outlets, Geng said.

This year's forum will feature a theme of "Shaping Innovative Societies in the Fourth Industrial Revolution." More than 2,000 politicians, businesspeople, scholars and media representatives from about 90 countries are expected to attend.

Established by the World Economic Forum in 2007, the Summer Davos Forum is held annually in China, alternate between two port cities of Tianjin and Dalian.
You know, that, to me, just disturbs me  that thats where we are  and I think it indicates being out of touch with the heart of America at the moment, at this moment and moments that really matter, Kerry added.
Raimondo narrowly won her first term in 2014 and has struggled to unite her party since. A former state treasurer and venture capitalist, she has tried to build her campaign around an economic comeback; wage growth has picked up, and the states unemployment rate has dropped to 4.1 percent this summer from 6.8 percent in November 2014.
The developments signaled the most serious peril yet for Republicans 51-49 majority. Losing the Senate was once an unthinkable prospect as the GOP looked to gain seats in the midterms, and with the partys grip on the House in serious jeopardy, the chamber had been seen as the last line of defense.
Earlier this year, the NARs board of directors adopted a policy change, which will take effect nationally in January, allowing local Realtor associations to publish the names of members who have two ethics violations within a three-year period, along with details of the infractions. The head of the committee that recommended the policy to the board said in a statement quoted in Realtor magazine that this is what people have been wanting for so long. Right now, we dont know who the violators are because its not published.
Orban, who has been elected four times and now presides over what is effectively a one-party state, has been a thorn in the side of E.U. leaders since he came back to office in 2010. He cracked down on media freedoms, rewrote laws to favor his center-right Fidesz party and has blasted Brussels for allowing a wave of more than 1 million migrants into Europe in 2015.
Rossiya 1 featured an interview with Alexander Vasiliev, a former KGB officer who said the charged duo were not professionals, as they did not go through a third country on their suspected mission, and were therefore not from Russian intelligence. They are dressed like a lot of Russian men, but they are definitely not operating officers, he said.
We know that the vast majority of family units who have been released, despite having no right to remain in any legal status, fail to ever depart or be removed, Houlton said. According to the latest DHS statistics, he added, more than 98 percent of family members from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras who arrived between October 2016 and the end of June are still present in the United States.
If it wasnt for the possibility of a pardon, it would be insane for him not to cut a deal at this point, said Cotter. Hes already guaranteed to go to prison for years, hes got little reasonable chance of winning in D.C., its incredibly expensive, and theres no benefit to him (in going to trial). And hes in the enviable position that, even after a conviction, if hes willing to tell the truth, the government is still interested in talking to him. Thats pretty rare.
While most of the criticism came from Democrats, Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.), who sponsored the certification measure, said that many questions remain given the administrations acknowledgment of rising civilian deaths and its statement that the gulf nations have not complied fully with laws regarding U.S.-provided weaponry. I will continue to fight to hold our partners accountable, he said in a statement.
The meeting was publicized one day before the pope is to meet with leaders of the U.S. Catholic Church, including Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, who has requested a Vatican-led investigation to account for how McCarrick climbed the ranks, becoming one of the worlds most powerful cardinals, in the face of rumors about his sexual conduct. Although McCarrick resigned from the College of Cardinals in July, some church leaders say it is critical to figure out who protected McCarrick, who became a cardinal in 2001 and served as archbishop of Washington from 2001 to 2006.
After seven years working in early childhood education, Gwen Alwood still only earns enough to pay her rent in the Sydney suburb of Rockdale with about $100 to spare each fortnight.

"My wage only covers rent and that is pretty ridiculous. I work nine hours a day, five days a week," she said.

Early childhood educator Gwen Alwood. Credit:Wolter Peeters

When she started in the profession as a trainee seven years ago, Ms Alwood said she earned just $20,000 per year.

She is among workers battling for more pay and an increase in superannuation for women who are often in lower paid professions.
The father of one of two teenage boys who drowned in Perth's Swan River as they tried to escape police on Monday night has asked people not to judge his son harshly.

Trisjack Simpson, 17, and Christopher Drage, died as they tried to cross the river in the inner-city suburb of Maylands as they fled from officers chasing them, after a group of five boys were allegedly seen jumping fences at a local bowling club.

At least three of the boys dived into the water in temperatures under 11 degrees as police stood on the banks. One was captured, but Trisjack and Christopher were further away. A fifth boy, who was missing for several hours, was located safely on Monday afternoon.

They made a fatal decision to jump in the river, Christopher Drages father, also named Christopher, told 9 News Perth on Wednesday.
Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins says politics is having a "me too" moment which has forced politicians to examine their behaviour.

In her first comments since Liberal Party MPs raised concerns about bullying inside the party, Ms Jenkins suggested the community response would prompt conservative politicians to push for change.

Ms Jenkins' comments came as West Australian Liberal senator Linda Reynolds said it was time for Liberal MPs to stop talking about themselves and allow the party to deal with the bullying issue internally.

Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins addresses the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

"I have certainly made my feelings known internally and that is where they should stay. These are not issues which need to be, or should be aired publicly," Senator Reynolds, who is now the Assistant Minister for Home Affairs, told Sky News on Wednesday morning.
Washington: Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the most senior cleric in the Church of England, denounced the gig economy as "evil" and accused Amazon and other tech companies of "leeching off" the UK by avoiding taxes.

The inside of Amazon's fulfillment centre in Dandenong South.

Welby, 62, who was an executive at Enterprise Oil and Elf Aquitaine before switching careers, also urged businesses to work toward a more just society and encouraged workers to join labour unions in a speech to the Trades Union Congress in Manchester, northern England.

"Not paying taxes speaks of an absence of commitment to our shared humanity, solidarity and justice," he said on Wednesday in the section focused on Amazon.com and other online firms. "If you earn money from a community, you should pay your share of tax to that community."
"Forty Wall Street actually was the second-tallest building in downtown Manhattan, and it was, actually, before the World Trade Center, was the tallest. And then when they built the World Trade Center it became known as the second-tallest, and now it's the tallest." Trump looked out and saw a scene in which 2,753 people died, and said, Hey, that means my building is the tallest one around! Who thinks like that? Donald Trump, that's who. Trump applied for and received $US150,000 in state funds intended to help small businesses affected by the attacks, despite the fact that his business was not affected. The fund was supposed to cover uninsured losses for small businesses, but Trump somehow received $150,000 ($211,000) in taxpayer money; his application cited "rent loss," "cleanup," and "repair." Yet none of Trump's properties were actually damaged in the attack. Trump later claimed that it was a reimbursement for his charitable efforts. "It was probably a reimbursement for the fact that I allowed people, for many months, to stay in the building (40 Wall Street), use the building and store things in the building," he said.

But not only does that contradict his application, the fund was not supposed to reimburse anyone for pitching in. Which, by the way, there's no evidence Trump actually did. Trump stretched the truth about personally helping to clean up at the site. At a rally in 2016, Trump said this: "Everyone who helped clear the rubble - and I was there, and I watched, and I helped a little bit - but I want to tell you: Those people were amazing," Trump said. "Clearing the rubble. Trying to find additional lives. You didn't know what was going to come down on all of us - and they handled it." While Trump did visit the site a couple of days after the attack and did some interviews, there is no evidence that he got down to help clear rubble, which people would certainly have remembered.

In fairness, this is a minor fib, but it reveals his ongoing attempt to make himself out to be more generous than he actually is. Trump made other false claims about his personal connection to 9/11. Here's something he said at a rally in 2015, describing what he saw from his Trump Tower apartment during the attacks: "I have a window in my apartment that specifically was aimed at the World Trade Center because of the beauty of the whole downtown Manhattan and I watched as people jumped. And I watched the second plane come in. Many people jumped and I witnessed it, I watched that." Trump Tower is four miles (6.4 kilometres) from the site of the World Trade Center. He could not possibly have seen people jump from the buildings during the attacks.

Trump also claimed that he "lost hundreds of friends" at the World Trade Center, but when journalists inquired to his campaign about it, they were unable to produce even a single name of a friend Trump lost. Trump repeatedly told a vicious, racist lie about Muslim Americans celebrating the attacks - even after it was debunked. Here's the story as Trump told it: "Hey, I watched when the World Trade Center came tumbling down. And I watched in Jersey City, New Jersey, where thousands and thousands of people were cheering as that building was coming down. Thousands of people were cheering." The next day, ABC News' George Stephanopoulos confronted Trump with the fact that the police and journalists who investigated this rumour say that it never happened. Trump replied that he had watched it on TV, despite the fact that there is no video anywhere of such a thing happening, then said, "There were people that were cheering on the other side of New Jersey, where you have large Arab populations."
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WSU Alum Shares Story of Skepticism Turned Hope in Liberia

September 11, 2018

OGDEN, Utah  Weber State University alumnus Ben Taylor will discuss how his experience interacting with a Liberian, soliciting for a handout on social media, turned into a humanitarian opportunity and national news. The campus community is invited to hear Taylors speech, Sept. 20 at noon in the Wattis Business Building Smith Lecture Hall Room 206/207.

Joel and Ben Taylor

Taylors story began in 2017 when he responded to what appeared to be a scam message on Facebook from Joel in Liberia. Taylor decided to play along with Joel to expose the tactics of the scam. Taylor wrote to Joel that he was a photographer and would be willing to purchase quality pictures of a Liberian sunset. To Taylors surprise, Joel sent a few photographs taken with his cell phone.

Taylor then sent Joel an inexpensive digital camera with the instructions to work on his photography skills. Joel soon sent Taylor many pictures of everyday life in Liberia. In order to compensate Joel for his work, Taylor published the pictures in a book he sold online for $10. The book, By D Grace of God, sold quickly, and Taylor was able to wire Joel $1,000. Taylor told Joel to keep $500 and donate the other $500 to charity. Joel responded with more pictures. This time the photos were of Joel donating school supplies he had purchased with the $500 to five local schools.

The experience has sparked an unlikely partnership between Taylor and Joel. Ive changed, Taylor said in an interview with CBS Evening News, which aired in March 2018. I set out to embarrass a guy. I ended up helping a guy. I would much rather continue to help people. You feel good when you can help others.

Taylor believes the key for developing nations is to help them grow small businesses. I want to help people learn skills they can use to support themselves, Taylor said.

Additionally, Taylor recognizes the need to improve living conditions in Liberias communities.

Liberia has a lack of clean water, Taylor said. It makes it hard for people to be successful when they keep getting sick.

The proceeds from Joels book are now being used to install water filtration units in multiple communities.

Taylors story is especially appropriate for the John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics Ralph Nye Lecture series said Mike Vaughan, an economics professor.

I hope that while speaking on campus Ben will be able to raise some additional money for his efforts, Vaughan said. What Ben is involved with now is trying to help an individual raise money to improve living standards in his community. Thats an inspiring entrepreneurship story.

As the director of WSUs Center for the Study of Poverty & Inequality, Vaughan brings speakers to campus each semester to raise awareness to the issues.

I think what Bens story shows is that one person in a local community can have a reach, Vaughan said. Ben is having an impact in Africa. I think that an individuals impact can be as large as they want it to be.

Bens lecture is part of Weber State Universitys Engaged Learning Series. The Engaged Learning Series, sponsored by the Center for Community Engaged Learning, is a university-wide series of events designed to engage students, faculty, staff and community in discussion, debate, dialogue, learning and action around an issue of public concern. This year the Engaged Learning Series will focus on the topic Matter of Fact.

Its opened my eyes to a different part of the world." Taylor said of his experience. The best way to lift people out of poverty isnt constant aid. Its treating them like partners and giving them opportunities to use their talents.

Visit this link to see national television coverage of this story.

For more information about the Engaged Learning Series, visit weber.edu/ccel/els.

Visit weber.edu/wsutoday for more news about Weber State University.
WSU Celebrates Constitution Day with U.S. Attorney for Utah

September 12, 2018

OGDEN, Utah  United States Attorney for Utah John Huber will discuss The United States Constitution: Foundation for the Rule of Law at Weber State University Sept. 17 in honor of Constitution Day.

The campus community is invited to the presentation and a complimentary breakfast beginning at 8 a.m. in the Hurst Center Dumke Legacy Hall.

Huber will continue the conversation during a presentation and question and answer session with students at the Wildcat Theater, beginning at 9:30 a.m.

Former president Barack Obama appointed Huber as the United States Attorney and lead federal law enforcement official in Utah in June 2015. In 2017, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions nominated Huber to continue in that position, a nomination unanimously approved by the U.S. Senate.

Huber earned his law degree at the University of Utah. He began his public service in the Weber County Attorney's Office, and later served as the chief prosecutor for West Valley City before joining the U.S. Attorneys Office.

During his tenure as U.S. Attorney, Huber focused on violent crime, combating the opioid crisis and fraud. He has worked to enhance law enforcement and crime prevention through strong community partnerships.

The Constitution Day event is sponsored by the Olene S. Walker Institute of Politics & Public Service in the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences.

Visit weber.edu/wsutoday for more news about Weber State University.
Africa is a land of vast resources, but owing to a history of colonization and exploitation, it has not been able to transform this natural abundance into wealth for its citizens. Today African nations are focusing on nation building, but a massive infrastructure gap  estimated at US$130-170 billion a year by the African Development Bank  is holding them back.



Even after the colonial era, occupying nations never really left Africa. African countries became independent nation states, but imperialist powers continued to drain their resources.

At the start of the 21st century, China, with its economic muscle fuelled by its strong industrial base, arrived in Africa with a completely different approach. It wanted to help build up the continent and it gave local governments freedom to utilize resources for themselves.

China brought along its own invaluable experience of infrastructure development. It lifted millions of its people out of poverty through networks of expressways and railways that connected all parts of the country. The upgraded national infrastructure connected rural areas with industrial areas and cities. Railways contributed to the long-term growth of China and resulted in an enormous inflow of foreign investment, further boosting the national economy.

China is now using its experience in developing its own domestic infrastructure to revive the ancient silk trading routes under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Announced in 2013, the BRI is principally an infrastructure project aimed at improving the connectivity of major industrial hubs and markets.

Now China is offering to Africa the experience it has accumulated in developing infrastructure in China and abroad. Since the construction of the railway line from Tanzania to Zambia in the 1970s, China's aim to bring more development to Africa has made significant progress.

A cornerstone of recent Chinese projects is the railway line from Kenya's capital city of Nairobi to the port of Mombasa. This line became operational last year and is the country's largest infrastructure project since its independence. The railway line is expected to further connect South Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo when it begins its expansion phase.

Apart from building a ring road and a six-lane highway, Ethiopia has seen an upsurge in economic activity after China funded the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway. This line connected the land-locked country with the coast of the Red Sea and collectively, these projects have contributed towards making Ethiopia the fastest growing economy in Africa.

Upcoming Chinese projects in Africa also include a mega port and a pipeline in Tanzania, a port in Kenya, and a six-lane highway in Uganda. China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said last year that China had assisted in building over 6,200 km railways and more than 5,200 km roads in Africa.

Several new infrastructure cooperation initiatives were launched during the Forum on China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit held last week. Some of the more high profile ones announced included a 2,407-kilometer railway line from Sudan's port to Chad's capital city, N'Djamena, as well as a US$3.5 billion contract to build Egypt's new administrative capital. Chinese companies will also be investing an additional US$10 billion in Africa over the next three years.

Chinese assistance towards developing Africa's infrastructure has been markedly different from aid coming from the West. Financial reliefs from Western countries have come in the form of aids, grants, and equipment, but as Africa's largest trading partner, China adopts a more practical and development-oriented approach. It establishes export credits and loans for infrastructure with very few strings attached and also guarantees non-interference in recipient countries' internal affairs.

Western business entities can also launch tripartite projects with Chinese companies in Africa to understand the Chinese investment model. British Prime Minister Theresa May recently expressed a desire to increase trade with Africa. As such, U.K. companies can collaborate with Chinese companies just as their American counterparts have done.

General Electric (GE) is now working with Power China in Nigeria to jointly build power plants and grids. The two companies even launched a roadshow last year across Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Kenya to highlight the challenges in building Nigeria's grid system. U.S. companies like Caterpillar and Honeywell have also partnered with Chinese enterprises to carry out development work in Africa. These projects have not only contributed to achieving the BRI's goals, but also grown their individual businesses.

Since the first FOCAC in 2000, cooperation between China and Africa has come a long way. This year's FOCAC culminated in formal agreements to help Africa further build on its vast potential. As Africa sets out on a journey to bridge its infrastructure gap, the two civilizations are looking forward to a common future of industrialization and prosperity.

Daniel Hyatt is a Pakistan-based freelance journalist and commentator.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
A young couple, nearly wed, step into the sea. Rasik can't swim, so clings to his teenage bride-to-be Jyoti as she winds herself around him in the Indian Ocean. Holding onto each other, the two lovers resist the pull of the tide.

In An Adventure, Jyoti and Rasik hold tight as history sweeps them around a changing world. Vinay Patel's beguiling play follows their relationship over 54 years, from a marriage arranged in newly independent India to a new life in Kenya as colonial rule comes under attack, and on to Britain and the humdrum hardships of first generation immigrant life. It's a story we usually see in distinct segments. Patel follows the thread in full.

At its simplest, An Adventure is a portrait of a marriage  an arranged marriage, but a marriage like any other. Beginning with Rasik's 'audition' for Jyoti's hand  "Yep, you'll do", she scoffs with teenage frankness  it starts flushed with youthful lust and optimism only to flounder as familiarity and family life set in. It's defined as much by its little intimacies  jokes, pecks and care  as its momentous, life-changing decisions. As Patel draws it, beautifully, marriage is an everyday reality that, over a lifetime, adds up to an epic story of its own; an adventure.

So's life, as it weaves its way through unfolding history. By tying an arranged marriage to the end of empire, Patel's play is concerned with the idea of independence. In Kenya, where Rasik buys land on behalf of a native Kikuyu farmer (a powerful Martins Imhangbe), rising up in resistance is offset against keeping one's head down to get ahead. As the Mau Mau spread terror, their principled uprising makes Rasik's peaceful, pragmatism look altogether self-serving. Jyoti, for her part, tacks between the two; refusing to endanger her family by harbouring a fugitive, but leading a workers' strike in Britain at the behest of her husband and daughter. Patel's keenly attuned to the spectrums of power: husbands can colonize wives, the betrayed can betray others in turn.

It's a global story told on the ground, seismic political shifts seen through people's real lives and it's that which makes An Adventure so entrancing. Character comes first, and Patel makes us care for everyone on his stage; all of them doing their best to live well. Anjana Vasan is superb as Jyoti. Gentle but headstrong, spiky but mischievous, she lets us spot the teenage girl in the middle-aged mother. Alongside her, Shubham Saraf balances Rasik's mix of earnestness, irritability and self-abasing driving. Madani Younis' spare, languid direction lets you fall for the pair of them again and again.

That said, it's not without frustrations  big ones at that. After a blistering first act, the play's horizons shrink and its pace slows, just as ours do in life. It does, however, mean the drama drags and as Patel insists on give these stories their due space, he slips into self-indulgence. His aphoristic writing starts to feel strained and a recurring motif about representation  Jyoti's a lifelong cinephile entranced by the possibility of seeing herself onscreen  feels too self-aggrandising, serving little purpose beyond flagging its own efforts in overturning untruths. An Adventure knows it's own brilliance, but in wallowing in it, the play almost drowns.
Sweden, as predicted, lurched rightwards in its recent parliamentary election, which promises to push Europe even more to the brink as a divided continent gripped by soul-searching.



With almost all ballots counted, the nationalist-populist Sweden Democrats won about 19 percent of the vote, compared to 12 percent at the last election. This is a country which, since it renounced its Nazi era post World War II, has been dominated by center-left politics.

The ruling Red-Green coalition remained the overall winner, with 144 seats, with the center-right moderates possibly gaining 143 seats under the system of proportional representation. Under this system the nationalist right should have 62 seats, creating a role as kingmakers in the next parliament.

Sweden, therefore, is likely to enter a long period of political uncertainty as the long-prevailing system of block politics is probably over.

However, numbers don't tell the whole story. The reality is complex. A lot is being made of the fact that the nationalists failed to achieve their ambition to become the second largest individual political party. However, for all practical purposes, that doesn't really matter.

The appeal of the nationalists was hinged on three things: rising crime levels, immigration and problems with social services. Considering the shift in the rhetoric among the main political parties, it's irrelevant if Sweden Democrats win or even hold seats. The entire mood of the country, its politics and what it means for a broader Europe suggests a difficult process of realignment.

What were the causes? There are several. Since 2015, Sweden has taken in the highest number of migrants per capita among European countries. In that year alone, more than 150,000 migrants entered Sweden; that's equivalent to the population of a mid-sized Western city. For a country with a total population of only a few million, these demographic changes are extraordinary.

However, migration isn't the only cause for the rise of the far right. Contrary to popular opinion, most of these migrants are not from war zones like Syria, nor are they vulnerable women and children. Most are men from countries like Afghanistan, looking for jobs in Europe.

The Swedish government under the feminists and Greens had essentially given up on law and order. The police in Scandinavian countries don't follow the principles of deterrence and punitive justice, but follow a very EU-mandated rehabilitation-based system.

That was good in a highly-trusting society; however, mass migration changed everything. There was, for example, instant pressure on social welfare, and Swedes used to living in a high welfare society, were uncomfortable with the welfare problems with people alien to their culture, language and not easily assimilated into the work force.

In fact, the migrants who were in Sweden looking for jobs, didn't get any. Nor were they able to assimilate in the Swedish cities and towns, and a lot of them got drawn into criminal activities. Murder and rape, and even gang violence, uncommon in Swedish society heretofore became a prominent issue, as the police lost control of the streets and the balance of power shifted from the State to the lawless individuals and groups.

The apex of that came a few days before the election, when gangs in several Swedish cities rioted and set fire to around 80 cars and properties, with hapless police failing to control the crowd, and handicapped by the government guidance not to use punitive force.

Where do we go from here? The question is tricky. Sweden votes, added to German protests and the rise of the far right in Eastern Europe is all part of a single trend. Here is a bunch of people who are unhappy with the direction their country is taking.

The social elite don't care about the working class, people are more interested in gender studies and feminism and other pursuits and the resultant migration, job losses and siege mentality mean there's a vacuum, which is being exploited by far-right elements in society. That, added to the return of nationalist sentiments means Europe is bleakly heading for further social turmoil.

Sumantra Maitra is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit:





http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/SumantraMaitra.htm





Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors only, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
By the time you read this, Tuesdays election will be history. We will know whether or not Texans came out...
 Flash

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Tuesday called for promoting sub-national cooperation to cement bilateral relations and benefit the two peoples.

The two heads of state made the remarks while attending a roundtable meeting on regional cooperation between the two countries on the sidelines of the fourth Eastern Economic Forum (EEF), which is running from Tuesday to Thursday in Vladivostok in Russia's Far East.

Noting that China and Russia are each other's biggest neighboring country and most important comprehensive strategic partner of coordination with extensive common interests, Xi said it is conducive to jointly addressing external risks and challenges and boosting common development and revitalization for the two sides to strengthen cooperation and deepen the integration of their interests.

Sub-national cooperation plays an important part in bilateral relations, and cooperation plans between the two countries should rely on their local regions, be implemented in local regions and benefit local regions, Xi said, stressing that the closer the sub-national cooperation is, the more solid the foundation of the China-Russia mutually beneficial cooperation will become.

For future cooperation at sub-national levels, the Chinese president proposed that local governments should strengthen overall planning and coordination, optimize policies, forge more partnerships, and create a better business environment and more convenient conditions for the companies of the two countries to invest in each other's regions.

He called for innovating the ideas for cooperation, expanding the areas for cooperation, better using the platforms and mechanisms for cooperation, and exploring new ways to advance regional cooperation.

Xi also asked local governments to give full play to their complementary advantages and their distinctive sectors, push for more precise ways of cooperation, and create highlights in cooperation.

In addition, he called for increasing people-to-people and cultural exchanges, cementing the mainstream public opinion and social foundation for cooperation, and promoting institutionalized and regular exchanges in culture, tourism, education and media at sub-national levels.

Xi said that it is the right time for the two countries to strengthen regional cooperation as he and Putin had agreed to designate 2018 and 2019 as the years of China-Russia local cooperation and exchange.

The governments of the two countries will support their local regions in making the pie of cooperation bigger and sharing the fruits of cooperation, Xi said, while expressing the hope that the representatives of Chinese and Russian regional governments at the roundtable can grasp the opportunity to usher in a new era in China-Russia sub-national cooperation and contribute more to bilateral relations.

Pointing out that sub-national cooperation is an important part of the Russia-China comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination, Putin said he is delighted that the local regions of the two countries have carried out close economic and trade cooperation as well as people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

The Russian government welcomes Chinese businesses to invest in the country and is willing to continue to offer favorable conditions to strengthen sub-national cooperation between the two countries, he said.

Under new circumstances, Russia and China should improve connectivity, promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, deepen friendship between the two peoples, and push for more results from sub-national cooperation that can benefit the two peoples, Putin said.

The heads of nine Chinese provincial-level regions and 13 Russian federal subjects took part in the roundtable meeting.

Xi arrived in the port city of Vladivostok on Tuesday to attend the EEF. He will address the plenary session, the main event of the forum, on Wednesday.

The EEF was launched in 2015 on the personal initiative of Putin. Xi's attendance will be the first by a Chinese head of state at the forum.

After attending the roundtable meeting, the two heads of state visited "The Far East Street" exhibition showcasing the rich local cultural exchanges between the two countries and investment opportunities in Russia's Far East regions.
Last week, Facebook and Instagram were awash with first-day-of-school photographs, mostly featuring rosy-cheeked kids in adorably oversized backpacks, clutching chalkboards listing what grade they were going into, and what they want to be when they grew up.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/9/2018 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Last week, Facebook and Instagram were awash with first-day-of-school photographs, mostly featuring rosy-cheeked kids in adorably oversized backpacks, clutching chalkboards listing what grade they were going into, and what they want to be when they grew up.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Susie Erjavec Parker, a social media specialist

Back-to-school season is just a microcosm of what happens online everyday; you cant scroll through social media without seeing photos of peoples babies and kids. Which stands to reason: if the point of social media is to share your life, and your kids are part of your life, then why wouldnt you share photos and anecdotes about your kids? Just about everyone has a camera-enabled phone in their pocket, and were taking more photos than well ever look at. Every moment is documented and can be turned into shareable content  which can be monetized if youre a social-media influencer.

But while some parents are reserving Instagram handles for their unborn babies the moment theyve agreed on a name, others are more wary about establishing a digital footprint for a person who hasnt even taken their first step, expressing concerns about privacy, consent and what happens if, say, a photo of your child becomes a meme. Thats the reality of parenting in 2018: figuring out where you land on the issue of posting photos of your kid online.

"Some people feel they have no problem with it and some people, like me, dont do it on purpose," says Susie Erjavec Parker, a Winnipeg-based social media expert. "Its one of those parenting issues that can be quite divisive. The main issue, in 2018, as we reach more awareness and consciousness about consent and privacy, it is incumbent on parents to think about the future repercussions of what they post online."

Social media was on the minds of Shaun Gibson and his wife Whitney before their son, who is now 20 months old, was even born. (Speaking of privacy, not all parents interviewed for this story would share the names of their children.)

"My wife and I had a conversation about not wanting to create a digital footprint whatsoever  and then he was just too awesome," he says with a laugh.

Gibson, who is originally from Winnipeg and is now based in Toronto, also had the nature of his job to consider. He is one of the managers for the National, a U.S. indie-rock group. "Because of their celebrity and because its publicly known Im one of their managers, I get dozens of friend requests per week, sometimes per day. Theyre looking for a behind-the-curtain glimpse into my clients life, not mine. Because of that, Ive chosen to keep all my profiles private."

He mostly limits access to family and friends, and he is intentional about what he posts.

"We try to keep it humourous," he says. "Nothing too personal, just lighthearted moments. Like, this is the digital version of our home VHS tapes. Because we have private profiles, we feel like were just sharing those videotapes to 1,500 of our closest friends. Im sure my parents would have done the same thing if they could have gotten that many people through their front door."

Thats not to say he doesnt have concerns about his son being on social media. "The biggest thing wed worry about is him becoming a target of advertising, or his data is being accessed by third parties, less about heres a photo of him and his family," Gibson says.

Like Gibson, Meg McGimpsey wasnt sure how comfortable she was with her daughter having a social media presence. "As shes gotten older, Ive gotten more comfortable," she says.

"Like most parents, I want my child to feel loved and respected, and I want her to feel supported by her parents as she figures out who shes going to be. And I think she has the same right to privacy, dignity and respect that wed afford to any adult. I want her to have a sense of control and autonomy over her life. Shes three, so thats within limits right now. But as she gets older, and as her independence grows, I want her to feel that were supporting that."

McGimpsey has developed her own social media litmus test for photos. "If it were a friend or a relative and I felt I needed their permission before posting it, I wont post it of my daughter. She cant give me that consent. Even though I have very cute pictures of her in the bathtub, lets say, and theyre fairly modest, Id never share that on social media because I wouldnt share it of my best friend."

That said, McGimpsey says shes not didactic about social media and kids. "Ill add that I love seeing friends and familys kids," she says. "Especially seeing families of friends you dont get to see too often, and seeing them happy and healthy and seeming to enjoy each other, what a wonderful thing."

"My wife and I had a conversation about not wanting to create a digital footprint whatsoever  and then he was just too awesome."  Shaun Gibson

Of course, not everyone is delighted by photos of kids and babies. Some social media users bristle about the rise of sharenting  a portmanteau of "sharing" and "parenting"  online. For a while, there was even a blog called STFU, Parents dedicated to documenting the most egregious examples of parental overshare.

Parents are far from the only ones who are guilty of oversharing on social media. Weve hit a point Erjavec Parker calls oversharing saturation.

"Oversharing has become fashionable," she says. "I think there comes a time in everyones lives where they think, Oh, maybe I shouldnt have posted this on social media, or maybe I should have just kept that for my family. I ask myself, What are the future repercussions of these images being out there? And what is the purpose?"

For Emily Parker, Instagram has been a way to support local businesses, many of them run by moms. She and her daughter Holly have a public Instagram page, @babyhollymae, that has 1,450 followers. Holly is a cherub with a shock of ginger curls. At 2, she is also a tiny influencer, modelling clothes and other goods made by local and Canadian makers. Her photos get a lot of heart-eyes emoji.

"I guess I started off like everybody else with private profiles, but we got into supporting small shops  a lot of them local and Canadian. So shes actually been a brand rep for a lot of them. When you start doing that, you have no choice but to have an open profile."

Still, despite Hollys visibility, Parker has privacy rules for what she does and does not post. "If youre going to post, pretend the world can see it. Is it OK with you? Is it safe?

"There are sketchbags out there everywhere  but theyre out there when you walk down the street."

Like Parker, Elizabeth Spence didnt want to live in fear about posting photos of her kids online.

Her Instagram account, @wellettas, now has 126,000 followers. It blew up when her squee-inducing #NappingWithNora series featuring her youngest son, Archie, snuggled in with her rescue English Pointer Nora, went viral. (Spence is married to Free Press director of photography Mike Aporius.)

"At that point it was like, OK, people are looking at this now," she recalls. "There was a brief point where I turned it private because I felt uncomfortable with people I didnt know looking at the kids  we all know there are pedophiles and people with skewed views about kids out there, and that scared me."

Ultimately, though, she didnt want to let the bad people win. "I have a set of rules in my head. I dont do anything that would embarrass the kids  like, if their school friends saw it, would they feel uncomfortable? Especially with the older kids," she says, referring to her nine-year-old son, Wellington, and her six-year-old daughter Loretta. "They have veto power. They have control over their image." (Like Parker, Spence also does some influencing, and is selective about what brands shell showcase.)

While the response to her heartwarming photos has been overwhelmingly positive on Instagram, it was actually the coverage by traditional media that brought out the trolls. When the photos of Archie and Nora went viral, many outlets  including BuzzFeed, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Good Morning America, and The Daily Mail  picked up the story. Commenters, particularly those at The Daily Mail, were cruel.

"People are horrible on there," she says. "Theyll say stuff like, you should have your kids taken away from you, and somebody was fat-shaming Archie when he was like, nine months old. I dont read the comments. I know people just want to say mean things sometimes."

Spence doesnt allow the bad to outweigh the good. Her account also documents her life with her other rescue dogs and offers some light in a sea of fake news and outrage. "I get a lot of positive feedback," she says. "(My Instagram feed) expresses love and kindness, and thats a thing people want to see in this day and age."

When it comes to navigating social media as a parent, Erjavec Parker says leading by example and having ongoing, age-appropriate conversations is important.

"What do you want your children to see you getting pleasure and validation from?" she asks. "If your children see you posting things and furiously checking your Instagram for likes and comments, what does it say to them about whats valuable in life? Were raising a generation who is already suffering from anxiety and depression from comparison online, and likes and worth. We need to be careful about what were teaching our children about whats real and valuable."

Thats something Spence already discusses with her older children. "Were always conscious of reminding them that things arent real, and that a lot of people are trying to sell stuff," she says. "Theres different sides of social media. Theres the fun aspect of social media, but also navigating that not everything is truthful."

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Gibsons son is still a baby, but as he grows, he will have a say about his image being posted online.

"The moment he wants something to come down, or doesnt want something to be up at all, thats fine," he says. "As he develops, were going to continue to be proud of him and maintain our family narrative to our friends and family in a way that were comfortable with  but as a member of that family, he will have a voice."

McGimpsey is taking a long view, and thinking about who her daughter might be a decade from now. Because thats the thing about eventually stepping into a digital footprint thats already been established for you: sometimes, the shoe doesnt fit.

"I want it to be flexible enough that she gets to rewrite some of that, she gets to decide who she is," McGimpsey says. "Our view of her might not fit with her view of her."

jen.zoratti@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @JenZoratti
 Flash

Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng on Tuesday met with leaders attending the 15th China-ASEAN Expo and the China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit, to be held from Sept. 12 to 15 in Nanning, the capital city of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.





Han, who is also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, extended a welcome to the foreign leaders and said China stands ready to work with member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to take the 15th anniversary of the establishment of China-ASEAN strategic partnership as an opportunity to strengthen coordination, deepen pragmatic cooperation, and make contributions to the building of a community with a shared future for China and ASEAN.





During his meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, Han congratulated Cambodia on becoming the featured country of the expo. He said leaders of the two countries have met many times in recent years, and have reached consensus on inheriting and carrying forward the traditional friendship between the two countries, leading bilateral relations to the best period in history.





Han suggested the two sides take the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations as an opportunity to intensify high-level exchanges, speed up the synergy of development strategies, jointly build the Belt and Road, expand pragmatic cooperation in various fields, solidify friendly public opinions, and make joint efforts to build a community of strategic importance with a shared future for the two countries.
OTTAWA  First Nations leaders are gathering in Winnipeg today to assess how to improve health services for children on reserves, as new data show Manitoba leads the Prairies in jurisdictional payment disputes.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/9/2018 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh Prominent childrens advocate Cindy Blackstock will be among presenters at a two-day summit on Jordans Principle held by the Assembly of First Nations at the RBC Convention Centre.

OTTAWA  First Nations leaders are gathering in Winnipeg today to assess how to improve health services for children on reserves, as new data show Manitoba leads the Prairies in jurisdictional payment disputes.

Jordans Principle is a declaration that children living on reserves should receive care before officials figure out whether federal or provincial authorities should pay. Thats because most on-reserve services, such as health care and education, are under Ottawas jurisdiction, not the provinces.

Today, a hotline tells parents on reserves which level of government will pay for their childs optometrist appointment or speech therapy  and federal officials pick up the tab if its not clear. Before, children often went without care.

Jordans Principle came about after a five-year-old Manitoba boy with complex medical issues died in a Winnipeg hospital, after spending his entire life in the city. Jordan River Anderson could have been sent home to Norway House Cree Nation two years prior, but Ottawa and the province couldnt decide who should pay for his home care.

"It was so frustrating. They would literally spend hours arguing over items that were limited costs  like a shower head  because they were so obsessed with not setting a precedent, of picking up another level of governments costs. And meanwhile, this little boy was languishing in care," prominent childrens advocate Cindy Blackstock recalled.

"His condition deteriorated; in the end, he died of a broken heart," said Blackstock, who will be among presenters at a two-day summit on Jordans Principle held by the Assembly of First Nations at the RBC Convention Centre.

The Anderson family, Blackstock and groups such as the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs crafted Jordans Principle shortly after the childs death in 2005, and pushed the federal government to adopt it.

Parliament ratified Jordans Principle in 2007, but the federal Liberals only made it official policy for health care in July 2016. The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal has since forced Ottawa to apply the concept to child welfare, and it now applies to education, mental health and speech therapy.

New data obtained from Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) show in the first 13 months of the policy, tens of thousands of children have been assisted. There have been 111,843 recorded cases countrywide, though its unclear how many apply to the same child.

Of those cases, 13,746 came from Manitoba; slightly more than Saskatchewan, despite similar demographics.

The data also show a threefold uptick in cases this spring.

ISCs Manitoba head for Jordans Principle said that might be due to First Nations leaders getting the word out about the policy, and it being applied to more than just health care.

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"Before Jordans Principle, we were siloed," Joe Gacheru said in an interview earlier this year. "It brings all the projects together."

In any case, Blackstock said the government ought to provide more data to assess what types of Jordans Principle cases are coming forward, why and which jurisdiction ultimately pays for it. She said she has seen inaccurate government information on which services fall under Jordans Principle, but she said its still making a real difference.

"Ive gotten so many calls from families whose parents literally are crying because their child has finally gotten the help that they need... theyre just so grateful for having their basic needs met," she said.

Ottawa has earmarked $382.5 million for Jordans Principle cases from 2016 to 2019.

"The credit for this whole struggle goes to the (Anderson) family and the First Nations. It should not be reframed as government benevolence," Blackstock said.

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca
OTTAWA  A Winnipeg couple is calling on Canadians to shore up the future of the Experimental Lakes Area (ELA), pledging to match $1 million in donations for a unique facility that nearly sank five years ago.

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This article was published 11/9/2018 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA  A Winnipeg couple is calling on Canadians to shore up the future of the Experimental Lakes Area (ELA), pledging to match $1 million in donations for a unique facility that nearly sank five years ago.

"We take our water for granted," philanthropist Gail Asper said in a Tuesday interview. "Its our responsibility as Canadians, I think, to make sure that that resource is being used to carry out that important research that will impact the world."

The ELA is a collection of 58 lakes about 75 kilometres northeast of Kenora, where scientists have conducted research on whole bodies of water since 1968. Thats meant 50 years of scientists surveying and experimenting with entire ecosystems, instead of just working in a lab.

Last Thursday, Asper and her husband Michael Paterson  who is a senior ELA scientist  called on the private sector to take the plunge and donate to the freshwater research facility.

"We want to give a challenge grant, so that we encourage and induce people to also write cheques," Asper said. "You really want to be master of your own fate, and not be dependent on one funder."

In 2013, the Harper government ceased its annual $2-million funding for the lakes, and had officials dismantle cabins used by researchers. A year later, the Winnipeg-based International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) took over the ELA, with a mix of funding from the Ontario and Manitoba governments as well as private donors.

The federal Liberals restored funding for the ELA in 2016, and although Asper and Paterson praised that decision, they want to make the project less dependent on the whims of whoevers in office.

"It was on deaths door," Paterson said. "The ELA is doing great, but my concern is for the long term, that we develop our own, in-house security rather than be entirely reliant always on governments, or other sources of funding."

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Their funding aims to establish an endowment fund large enough to collect interest, which can be used to fund the ELA. For example, a $60-million fund could collect roughly $2 million or more per year, Asper said, which would take the place of government funding.

Paterson said the ELA is "absolutely unique in the world" because of the depth of possible experiments, and records dating back five decades. The IISD has boosted training programs, while research at the lakes has helped find ways to reduce algae blooms in Lake Winnipeg. The ELA has made waves for its research into the impacts of oil spills and climate change.

The couple will match donations until $1 million comes through, and they havent set a deadline to meet that amount. Asper said shes hoping donors pull through during the ELAs current 50-year anniversary. She suggests people consider multi-year pledges, which can net a bigger tax deduction.

Asper also credited this newspapers reporting on the ELA cuts, for boosting the public support and political pressure needed to keep it operating.

"If it werent for the Free Press, I dont know if the Experimental Lakes Area would even be around," she said.

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca
Allegations of a Lorette teacher's repeated sexual abuse of an eight-year-old girl were aired in court Tuesday, as the girl spent hours on the witness stand.

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This article was published 11/9/2018 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Allegations of a Lorette teacher's repeated sexual abuse of an eight-year-old girl were aired in court Tuesday, as the girl spent hours on the witness stand.

The now-10-year-old, whose name can't be published under a court-ordered publication ban, testified Remi Dallaire repeatedly sexually assaulted her over about six weeks from June to mid-July 2016, when she was finishing Grade 2 and heading into Grade 3.

Dallaire has pleaded not guilty to four criminal charges, including sexual assault, touching a person under 16 for a sexual purpose, inviting sexual touching and making sexually explicit material available. At the time of the alleged offences, he was a teacher at Ecole Lagimodiere, part of the francophone school division Division scolaire franco-manitobaine (DSFM).

In her interview with RCMP -- a video of which was played in court -- the girl said Dallaire taught Grades 7 and 8 in Lorette, 30 kilometres southeast of Winnipeg, but said she believed he would be moving on to a different school.

She got to know him through her mother, who moved into an apartment across the hall from Dallaire at the beginning of June 2016. Her mother testified Monday she became friends with Dallaire, and was initially interested in pursuing a romantic relationship with him. She said he offered to walk her daughter to and from school daily, and look after the then-eight-year-old until her mother got home from work in the evening.

The girl testified Tuesday she spent a lot of time alone with Dallaire -- at her apartment, at his apartment, and at the residence of another adult. She would have sleepovers with him, and she said he didn't do anything inappropriate while anybody else was around. Over the course of a few weeks, she testified, Dallaire gave her a can of beer, showed her a pornographic video on his cellphone, showered with her, and repeatedly abused her.

As is common for children called to testify in court, the 10-year-old sat behind a screen, with a support worker beside her, so she wouldn't have to see the accused.

Under questioning from Crown prosecutor Danielle Simard, and again during cross-examination from defence lawyer Matt Gould, she matter-of-factly described being anally penetrated by the accused.

She said Dallaire told her not to tell anyone what he did to her, which she said he called their "fun."

"I hate that word," she said, shuddering, in the 2016 police interview video.

She testified she told her mother, who then called the police and took her to the doctor.

Gould questioned the girl about whether her mother told her bad things about Dallaire; she said her mother had not.

In her police statement, she described Dallaire as her stepfather, but she said Tuesday she knows that wasn't true. She talked about receiving gifts from Dallaire -- including a stuffed toy cat she said he bought for her.

"I know why he wanted to keep it secret, because he was buying me stuff," she said.

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In her police interview, the girl said she didn't know why Dallaire bought her things, but after she told her mother about the allegations, her mother told her he was buying her presents to keep her quiet. In response to a question from Simard, the girl said she's angry at her mom "because she trusted that man, even if he was a teacher."

When contacted Tuesday by the Free Press, DSFM assistant superintendent Marco Ratte was unable to say whether Dallaire was still employed by the school division, how long he had been a teacher there, nor whether the school board had been aware of his criminal charges before his Court of Queen's Bench trial began this week.

Ratte said he could not answer questions about Dallaire's employment status because he had been given legal advice not to make any comments while the case is before the court.

The trial continues Wednesday.

katie.may@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @thatkatiemay
Despite receiving some encouraging words Tuesday from the prime minister on Manitoba's climate change policies, Premier Brian Pallister emerged from an hour-long meeting with Justin Trudeau admitting the two governments remain entrenched in their respective positions on the carbon tax.

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This article was published 11/9/2018 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Despite receiving some encouraging words Tuesday from the prime minister on Manitoba's climate change policies, Premier Brian Pallister emerged from an hour-long meeting with Justin Trudeau admitting the two governments remain entrenched in their respective positions on the carbon tax.

Pallister said he was unable to obtain assurances from the PM that Ottawa would not force the province to collect a higher tax down the road than the $25-a-tonne levy Manitoba will introduce in December. Ottawa is insisting the tax gradually increase to $50 a tonne.

Asked if he had convinced Trudeau to his way of thinking, the premier said: "Not at this point, but I expect that that's something we're going to have to continue to pursue."

The uncertainty over whether the tax will double in time creates economic uncertainty for Manitoba, Pallister told reporters. "And that uncertainty is hurting our ability to continue the (economic) recovery that we've been generating so far."

Earlier in the day, Trudeau spoke favourably about Manitoba's stance on climate change, as he and Pallister attended the announcement of an expansion of the Canada Goose clothing plant in Winnipeg expected to create 700 new jobs.

"We are very pleased that Manitoba is moving forward with a strong plan to put a cost on pollution," Trudeau said. "We will have conversations about how we ensure everyone is being fair and everyone is doing their part across the country."

He said the work Pallisters government has done could be an example for other provinces.

"To see a leader, indeed a conservative leader, who understands the need to have a concrete plan to fight climate change and takes real action that is going to be in the best interests of Manitobans is something I very much welcome," Trudeau said. "I wish he would encourage some of the other conservative provinces across the country to recognize that having a plan to fight climate change is something that all Canadians, regardless of where they are on the political spectrum, have the right to expect."

In his meeting with the prime minister, Pallister said he made the case for federal funding for a new hydro transmission line between Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Manitoba has surplus hydro power, which Saskatchewan could use to retire coal-fired power generating plants.

Manitoba is looking to Ottawa for a substantial investment in a new east-west transmission line. Pallister didn't say how Trudeau reacted to the idea, but he said he raised it with the PM to show that Manitoba is "serious about getting green and helping others to get green."

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Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister listens as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a press conference at a new 700-employee Canada Goose manufacturing facility in Winnipeg. (John Woods / The Canadian Press)

Meanwhile, in his first media scrum in about a month, Pallister answered questions about recent allegations of sexual abuse and bullying by Hydro workers at past and current northern construction projects.

He also said he is not worried about the province facing a possible court challenge because of its decision to ban home-grown cannabis.

And, he dismissed a question about whether he will withdraw a threat to sue the Free Press after admitting to the Canadian Press recently that he, in fact, did owe taxes on his Costa Rican vacation home. "I'm big enough to admit my mistakes. I'd like the Free Press to admit theirs, too," he said, without elaborating.

-- with files from Martin Cash

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca
A month after he last spoke to media, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister fielded a barrage of questions from reporters Tuesday  many of them about a distressing Clean Environment Commission report, which his government referred to RCMP for investigation.

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This article was published 11/9/2018 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A month after he last spoke to media, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister fielded a barrage of questions from reporters Tuesday  many of them about a distressing Clean Environment Commission report, which his government referred to RCMP for investigation.

The CEC report released Aug. 21 outlined historical allegations of sexual assaults, racism and harassment experienced by northern First Nations communities, starting in the 1960s. Northern residents alleged Manitoba Hydro employees working on construction projects were to blame.

"Thats deplorable behaviour, and I have to admit my puzzlement was why this wouldnt have been investigated sooner or come to light sooner," Pallister said. "That being said, I think by referring the information to the RCMP, our minister (Rochelle Squires) and our governments taken the right approach."

RCMP and the police watchdog Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba have not yet decided whether they will investigate allegations contained in the CEC report.

During CEC hearings, community members testified the RCMP  historically  hadnt always investigated their complaints thoroughly and were sometimes complicit in perpetuating violence.

"Some spoke of instances of institutions intended to protect people, particularly the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, brutalizing men, permitting the exploitation of women, and failing to take local complaints seriously, although there were instances of these complaints being addressed," the commission heard.

On Tuesday, Pallister refuted the notion the government delayed the release of the bombshell CEC report.

Although the report was dated May 28, 2018  and the commission confirmed to the Free Press that was when it was delivered to the province  Squires said she only received it June 14, and made it public as soon as she could.

"The right thing to do is not cover these things up. If you are delaying, youd be attacking me any number of days later for covering up information that was covered up for years. I think the right thing to do is to release the report," Pallister said.

"A lot of this information was in the public domain over the last number of weeks and months, anyway. It wasnt the case of it being new in that respect I would say that the important thing here is that Manitobans were made aware  and that the people who testified were made aware  that they were taken seriously and that their concerns are being addressed."

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Recently, more community members, such as York Factory First Nation Chief Leroy Constant, have come forward with allegations about ongoing sexual violence, racism and discrimination happening in the North at the hands of Hydro workers involved with the Keeyask generating station construction project.

Constant wants to see the provincial government and Hydro launch an inquiry "to acknowledge the collective and individual trauma that has been incurred through northern hydroelectric development in the province," he said in a statement last week.

First Nations leaders, including Fox Lake Cree Nation Chief Walter Spence and Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Grand Chief Garrison Settee (who represents close to 30 northern First Nations communities), have also expressed interest in meeting with Pallister to discuss the CEC report and paths forward.

They prefer to meet with the premier rather than his ministerial counterpart, Eileen Clarke, whos responsible for the Indigenous and northern relations file. Pallister said the province is responding as a team, and wouldnt commit to any meetings, regardless of their symbolism.

"I think most of the communities would prefer that there be jobs in the community, that there be better water and many other tangible things, rather than symbolism," he said.

jessica.botelho@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @_jessbu
Winnipeg Liquor Marts have been hit by thieves an average of five times per day in 2018 and the security guards employed to protect the stores are not intervening to stop the rash of thefts.

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This article was published 11/9/2018 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg Liquor Marts have been hit by thieves an average of five times per day in 2018 and the security guards employed to protect the stores are not intervening to stop the rash of thefts.

The Winnipeg Police Service has received 1,277 theft reports from city liquor marts this year. Since the beginning of September alone, there's been 95  an average of about eight per day.

Phil Hossack / Winnipeg Free Press Files An MLL employee attends to a display at the Pembina Express mini liquor mart in the Pembina Village Safeway. Sources say Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries liquor mart security guards have been told not to intervene when people steal.

Multiple sources familiar with Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries operations told the Free Press liquor mart security guards have been told not to intervene when people steal. That information was corroborated by WPS Const. Jay Murray at a Tuesday press conference.

"Its my understanding that (the security guards) are not (intervening). Often what happens is these individuals will walk into a store, they start to load up liquor or steal it and then they just walk out," Murray said.

Police have witnessed a significant spike in liquor thefts over the past year, according to Murray, who said the situation is having a serious impact on police resources since the investigations are labour intensive.

"We dont have numbers from 2017 to provide, but in speaking with investigators this is a significant increase over what weve seen in the past. These types of files can create a substantial drain on the resources of our detectives, especially in our major crimes unit," Murray said.

In a written statement, MLL communications officer Susan Harrison confirmed the Crown corporation has been seeing an increase in product loss, adding "the numbers the Winnipeg Police Service stated earlier today are consistent" with what employees have been witnessing.

On Tuesday, police released the names of two men recently charged in a string of liquor mart thefts over recent months. Combined, the two men are accused of committing 132 thefts.

Matthew James Swampy, 18 of Winnipeg, has been charged in connection with 52 thefts dating from Feb. 14 to Aug. 20. David Norman Lee Ross, 18 of Winnipeg, has been charged in connection with 80 thefts dating from March 19 to Sept. 7.

The two men have been detained in custody. In both cases, police believe the suspects were selling the stolen liquor online.

'Its my understanding that (the security guards) are not (intervening). Often what happens is these individuals will walk into a store, they start to load up liquor or steal it and then they just walk out'  WPS Const. Jay Murray

"We believe theyre selling these bottles online shortly after. Theyre probably consuming some of it, but we believe ultimately theyre selling this liquor," Murray said.

While there are certain liquor marts being hit harder than others, the thefts have become a problem all over the city, Murray said.

It remains unclear when MLL security guards were told not to intervene into thefts in progress. On Tuesday, police hinted that it was time for the Crown corporation to do a better job at loss prevention.

"We will always work with businesses or agencies to mitigate crime, but there is a certain onus on all business to prevent these types of offences from occurring. Prevention, rather than just reactive policing, will be a key component to alleviate this problem," Murray said.

Murray also pointed to the dangers posed to security guards  and law enforcement  when confronting people engaged in shoplifting.

He highlighted the recent attack of an off-duty RCMP officer who stopped a group of teenagers stealing from a liquor store on North Town Road in Bridgwater Centre. When the Mountie confronted the thieves, they attacked him.

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"Ive watched the video; unfortunately I cant release it, but this person was pelted with liquor bottles. That can show you what can happen if you approach them," Murray said.

A 16-year-old boy later turned himself in to police for his role in the theft and assault. The WPS estimates he stole roughly $11,000 worth of liquor from various stores in a string of 24 incidents.

Harrison also pointed to the assault of the off-duty Mountie as a concern for MLL and the security guards it employs.

"As you are aware from previously reported incidents, we have seen that when someone tries to intervene, the situation can very quickly escalate, leading to people being harmed," she said.

ryan.thorpe@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @rk_thorpe
There they were  Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Premier Brian Pallister and Mayor Brian Bowman  standing in the middle of a newly opened Canada Goose parka factory in northwestern Winnipeg, smiling, nodding, applauding and lavishing each other with praise.

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This article was published 11/9/2018 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

There they were  Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Premier Brian Pallister and Mayor Brian Bowman  standing in the middle of a newly opened Canada Goose parka factory in northwestern Winnipeg, smiling, nodding, applauding and lavishing each other with praise.

Trudeau started his brief address Tuesday by telling journalists and Canada Goose employees how much he likes sharing the stage with the leaders of the provincial and civic governments.

"Its great to be back in Winnipeg with the Brians," the prime minister said. "Its really great to see you guys."

Pallister nodded and smiled. Bowman flashed his famous high-beam smile.

The bromance was officially on, at least for a few hours.

You wouldnt know it from the cool, almost elegant protocol of the event, but at various times over the last couple of years, all three men had been at each others throats.

Trudeau and Pallister have crossed swords on several key public policy files, including health-care funding, climate change and even the legalization of marijuana  on which Manitoba has rejected a federal recommendation to let citizens grow small amounts of pot for personal consumption.

It was just five months ago that Pallister threatened to take the Trudeau government to court if it tried to force him to go above the $25-per-tonne ceiling in the Manitoba carbon tax plan. "I have a simple message for Ottawa  back off or well see you in court," Pallister said at the time.

Although Bowman and Trudeau havent really had an awkward moment to speak of, Pallister has frequently and publicly tussled with Bowman over provincial funding to the provinces largest municipality (including an allegation earlier this year by Bowman that Pallister was going to "renege" on a deal to fund the second instalment of Winnipegs costly rapid-transit system).

None of that hostility was evident Tuesday, as the three leaders basked in the glory of the gleaming Canada Goose factory, a 128,000-square-foot marvel of painted concrete, surgical theatre-quality lighting and space-age sewing machines that will in the future employ as many as 700 people.

In many ways, having politicians smile and applaud each other in public  even while theyre plotting their revenge in private  is hardly an unprecedented event.

Good politicians are, first and foremost, pragmatic. If theres good news to be shared, its better to bury your hatchet and grab your moment in the sun.

It was, however, difficult to figure out exactly who was taking credit for what Tuesday.

By now, many Canadians will have heard the entrepreneurial folk songs that have been written about the rags-to-riches story of Canada Goose.

From its start as a small coat company in Toronto, Canada Goose has become one of this countrys most recognizable brands. Its line of winter coats  which can cost as much as $1,400 each  have become a global status symbol for those who live in cold-weather regions and those who dont, but still want to look stylishly rugged.

The increased investment by Canada Goose to keep its manufacturing operation in Canada is bona fide news. In a day and age when outsourcing the sewing to factories in China or the developing world is considered a best practice for entrepreneurs, Canada Goose is a proud, fierce symbol of nationalistic pride and business acumen.

But why play host to the prime minister, premier and mayor at the official opening? No level of government is making a direct investment in the new factory (although Manitoba continues to provide support to train new workers, many of them immigrants, to staff the three Canada Goose facilities in Winnipeg).

This was a pure piece of political public relations, sort of a "Make Canada/Manitoba/Winnipeg Great Again" type of event where politicians get to sing their own praises in a non-judgmental environment.

All three could use a bit of that right now.

Bowman is fighting an already-bitter campaign for a second term. Pallister is getting ready for a fall session of the legislature that everyone expects will be nasty. And Trudeau, well, hes fighting for his political life on multiple fronts.

At home, the prime minister is fending off criticism for botching the regulatory approval of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project. Abroad, he continues to spar with U.S. President Donald Trump over trade. Hundreds of thousands of jobs in Canada are at stake if a new continental trade agreement cannot be reached.

Trudeau needed to attach himself to a positive story that allowed him to highlight the contrast between himself and Trump on a wide variety of issues, in the hope it portrays him in a positive light, even when so much negative stuff is going on.

Cue Canada Goose.

In a one-hour public appearance, Trudeau got to wave the Canadian flag, celebrate a Canadian manufacturer that has resisted the siren call of low-wage economies, and celebrate Canadas relatively strong economy. He even got an opportunity to use his new friend, Pallister, as a positive example for those premiers who are bucking the federal climate-change agenda.

In response to questions about the threats by Saskatchewan, Ontario and  most recently  Alberta to ignore Ottawas carbon-tax plan, Trudeau lauded Pallister and encouraged him to broker more support from ideologically similar provincial leaders.

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"To see a leader, indeed a Conservative leader, who understands the need to have a complete plan that fights climate change... is something I very much welcome," Trudeau said. "And I wish he would encourage some of the other conservative voices around the country to recognize that having a plan to fight climate change is something that all Canadians have a right to expect."

Under normal circumstances, being enlisted by a Liberal prime minister to sell a climate-change plan to other Tory premiers is the kind of experience that would make Pallister throw up in his mouth.

In a statement issued by the premiers office following a one-on-one meeting with Trudeau later in the day, Pallister clearly wanted the prime minister to know there were going to be boundaries in this budding bromance.

Pallister said following a "positive meeting" with the prime minister, he felt it was necessary to remind Trudeau not to force Manitoba to match the federal carbon-tax plan, which would require a levy of twice what is specified in the Manitoba plan. He said Manitobas own plan "should be respected by the federal government."

It wasnt an end to the newly minted bromance. Just a reminder that one positive news conference does not a life-long love affair make.

dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca
 Flash

UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura on Tuesday continued to meet diplomats from Iran, Russia and Turkey in Geneva to discuss the process of moving forward to end the Syrian conflict with constitution-related discussions.





The UN envoy did not speak to journalists after his discussion. But head of media for the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, Rheal LeBlanc, said at a UN press briefing that the talks were continuing Tuesday and would pick up again on Friday.





Regarding the peace talks, de Mistura said earlier in Geneva that his discussions with the senior Russian, Turkish and Iranian officials taking place on Sept. 10 and Sept. 11 for the new process are the best "roadmap we can see".





Tuesday's talks will be followed on Sept. 14 by further encounters with senior delegations from seven other states -- Egypt, France, Germany, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Britain and the United States.





De Mistura's talks Tuesday came as top UN officials were expressing deep concern about the humanitarian consequences of an expected assault on Idlib, where an imminent offensive by the Syrian forces, aided by Russia, is likely to take place.





Jens Laerke, a spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), read a statement released by Panos Moumtzis, regional humanitarian coordinator for the Syria Crisis, on Escalation of Violence in Northwest Syria.





"The latest escalation is again impacting civilians in a dramatic way. Our fear as humanitarians is the worst may be ahead of us," said Laerke reading from the statement.





"The safety and protection of some 2.9 million civilians residing in Idleb and surrounding areas is at risk. This includes some 1.4 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), the majority of whom are women and children, who came to the region from other areas."





Idlib is one of the four "de-escalation zones" in Syria agreed under a deal reached last year by Iran, Russia and Turkey in Kazakhstan's capital Astana. The other three have all been violated.





While most of the people in Idlib are civilians, terrorist organizations, foreign fighters and armed opposition groups have also gathered in Idlib.
Donald Trumps ascension to the presidency of the United States wasnt supposed to happen. His election in November 2016 confounded pollsters, pundits and great swaths of the media.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 12/9/2018 (1151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

Donald Trumps ascension to the presidency of the United States wasnt supposed to happen. His election in November 2016 confounded pollsters, pundits and great swaths of the media.

But theyre not alone, and they werent the first. His presidency also confounded the expectations of the original 18th-century architects of the U.S. Constitution.

They thought theyd created a "Trump cant happen here" form of new republic. They were dead wrong.

In the late 1780s, the framers of the U.S. Constitution hotly debated whether the 13 colonies that broke from Great Britain in Americas War of Independence should remain a loose confederacy of states or a truly national union with a strong central government and a paramount leader. Ultimately, they chose the latter. In part, to avoid the likes of Donald Trump.

American patriot leaders such as future U.S. president and "Father of the Constitution" James Madison (a moniker accorded him for his pivotal role in drafting the U.S. Constitution) thought the larger the nation, the more diverse its population and the stronger the federal union, the lesser the risk of a populist demagogue attaining the new republics presidency.

Madison had witnessed first-hand the tyranny of the small in various state legislatures. Small state legislative districts too often elected petty demagogues of limited education, narrow perspective and parochial views. He didnt want to see that mistake reproduced on a national scale.

Size was deemed, at least in part, the preventive remedy.

In a larger political union, Madison thought, various interest groups and regional factions would inevitably have to compromise in order to build a coalition that could elect a president. He was encouraged in this belief by the new nations great variety of landscapes, climates, ethnicities, religions and socio-economic classes. The utter lack of homogeneity in the new United States of America was supposed to be insurance against elected abuse of power.

"No common interest or passion," he wrote, "will be able to unite a majority of the whole number in an unjust pursuit."

He was encouraged in his belief by the fact that, even as they were creating a new nation, they were already looking west to expand to lands soon to become the states of Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio. The imminent expansion of the new nations borders would only increase diversity and further mitigate the risk of elected tyranny, he believed.

Madison also believed  more than a little naively from the perspective of 2018  that voters would filter out unworthy aspirants to the presidency, assuring a high-quality national leader. Good and wise leadership would naturally flow from the partnering of diversity and reason, he maintained in The Federalist Papers, a 1787-88 collection of essays written by him, Alexander Hamilton and John Jay to promote ratification of the proposed constitution.

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Madison envisioned a political meritocracy in which only the best and the brightest could ascend to his new nations highest political office. The American republic, he wrote, would "extract from the mass of the Society the purest, noblest characters which it contains." The Federalist Papers is in many ways idealism run rampant. Its predicated on the embarrassingly earnest idea rationalism will always prevail  that a patient presentation of the facts to a national electorate will inevitably produce optimal results for democracy.

Allied to this object of fostering a meritocracy born of compromise was the goal of fostering stability and unity in the nation. Trumps election has confounded this object, too. Time magazine got it right when, naming Trump its 2016 "Person of the Year," it styled him on its cover as "President of the Divided States of America."

Trumps presidency has made America a more tenuous union than at any time in living memory. Largely gone is old-fashioned political partisanship, as vicious as it could sometimes be. The American political system, thanks in great part to Donald Trumps crudity and bullying, is now plagued by an absurd level of hatred.

James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay and the other framers of the newborn American republic would have been astonished at Trumps November 2016 electoral victory. He won a contest they thought, by their very design, theyd put out of the reach of someone like him.

Give the American president his due  hes managed to defeat even the best intentions of his nations founding fathers.

Douglas J. Johnston is a Winnipeg lawyer and writer.
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Iran's nuclear chief announced that the Islamic republic has equipped with a new facility to build advanced centrifuges, Financial Tribune daily reported on Tuesday.





Iran prepares to increase its uranium-enrichment capacity if the 2015 nuclear deal collapses following the U.S. exit, Ali Akbar Salehi, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, was quoted as saying.





The Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered to set up and complete an advanced hall for the construction of modern centrifuges, Salehi said, adding that "this hall is now fully equipped."





Salehi also said that Iran plans to build nuclear reactors for ships which would take 10 to 15 years to complete.





The Iranian official warned that "Iran will possibly suspend some of the limitations, including the volume and level of enrichment, outlined in the nuclear agreement."





U.S. President Donald Trump pulled out of the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal with Tehran in May, calling it "deeply flawed." He vowed to re-impose economic and financial sanctions on Tehran.




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As protests continue to erupt in the streets of Kenosha, Wisconsin, and across the world in outrage against the horrific shooting of Jacob Bla Read more
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Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan said Wednesday that China stood ready to work with Venezuela to safeguard the interest of developing countries.

Wang made the remarks during a meeting with Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez.

Noting that China and Venezuela have maintained long-term friendly relations with mutual benefits and treated each other as equals, Wang said the bilateral relationship should be at the forefront of building a community of shared future for humanity.

Under the leadership of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, the two countries steadily advanced their cooperation in various fields and achieved fruitful results, he said.

Wang said China appreciated Latin American countries including Venezuela in their support of the Belt and Road Initiative and stood ready to work with Venezuela to safeguard the interest of developing countries.

For her part, Rodriguez said Venezuela attached great importance to the relations with China and supported the Belt and Road Initiative as well as the building of a community of shared future for humanity.

She said Venezuela was willing to enhance cooperation with China and promote bilateral ties to a new high.
The following companies are subsidiares of PerkinElmer: Analytica of Branford, Applied Biosystems, Arnel Inc., ArtusLabs, Beijing Huaan Magnech Bio-Tech Co. Ltd., Beijing Longrun Bio-Tech Co. Ltd., Beijing Meizheng Bio-Tech Co. Ltd., Beijing Meizheng Testing Lab Co. Ltd., Beijing OUMENG Biotechnology Co. Ltd., Bio Evolution SAS, Bioo Scientific Corporation, Biosense Picolabs Inc., Biosense Technologies Pvt Ltd., Caliper Life Sciences, Caliper Life Sciences Inc., Cambridge Research & Instrumentation Inc., CambridgeSoft, Ceiba Solutions, Chengdu PerkinElmer Medical Laboratory Co. Ltd., Chromo G.A. SAS, CisBio US Inc., Cisbio Asia Pacific Ltd, Cisbio Bioassays SAS, Cisbio China Ltd., Cisbio Group SAS, Cisbio KK, Cisbio.com, DNA Laboratories Sdn. Bhd., Dani Analitica S.r.l., Dexela, EUROIMMUN (Hangzhou) Medical Laboratory Diagnostics Co. Ltd., EUROIMMUN (South East Asia) Pte Ltd., EUROIMMUN (Tianjin) Medical Diagnostic Technology Co. Ltd., EUROIMMUN AG, EUROIMMUN Brasil Medicina Diagnostica Ltda., EUROIMMUN Diagnostics Espana S.L.U., EUROIMMUN France SAS, EUROIMMUN Italia Diagnostica Medica S.r.l., EUROIMMUN Japan Co. Ltd., EUROIMMUN Medical Diagnostics (China) Co. Ltd., EUROIMMUN Medical Diagnostics Canada Inc., EUROIMMUN Medical Laboratory Diagnostics South Africa (Pty) Ltd., EUROIMMUN Medizinische Labordiagnostika AG, EUROIMMUN Polska Spolka z o.o., EUROIMMUN Portugal Unipessoal Lda., EUROIMMUN Schweiz AG, EUROIMMUN Turkey Tibbi Laboratuar Teshisleri A.S., EUROIMMUN UK Ltd., EUROIMMUN US Inc., EUROIMMUN US Real Estate LLC, Geospiza, Guangzhou EUROIMMUN Medical Diagnostic Products Co. Ltd., Hangzhou EUROIMMUN Medical Diagnostic Products Co. Ltd., Horizon Discovery, Immunodiagnostic Systems, Integromics S.L., Jiangsu Meizheng Bio-Tech Co. Ltd., LabMetrix Technologies, Labtronics, ManCell SAS, Nexcelom Bioscience, NovaScreen Biosciences Corporation, Opto Technology, Orchid Biomedical Systems Pvt Ltd., Oxford Immunotec, Pediatrix Medical Group - Newborn Metabolic Screening Business, Perkin Elmer Chile Ltda., Perkin Elmer Italia SpA, Perkin Elmer Sdn. Bhd., Perkin Elmer Yuhan Hoesa, Perkin Elmer de Mexico S.A., Perkin-Elmer Argentina S.R.L., Perkin-Elmer Instruments (Philippines) Corporation, PerkinElmer (Hong Kong) Ltd., PerkinElmer (India) Pvt Ltd., PerkinElmer (Ireland) Ltd., PerkinElmer (Schweiz) AG, PerkinElmer (Shanghai) Equity Investment Fund L.P., PerkinElmer (Shanghai) Equity Investment Fund Management Co. Ltd., PerkinElmer (UK) Holdings Ltd., PerkinElmer Analytical Solutions B.V., PerkinElmer Automotive Research Inc., PerkinElmer BVBA, PerkinElmer CV Holdings LLC, PerkinElmer Cellular Technologies Germany GmbH, PerkinElmer Danmark A/S, PerkinElmer Diagnostics Global Holdings S.a r.l., PerkinElmer Diagnostics Holdings Inc., PerkinElmer Espana S.L., PerkinElmer Finance Luxembourg S.a r.l., PerkinElmer Finland Oy, PerkinElmer Genetics Inc., PerkinElmer Germany Diagnostics GmbH, PerkinElmer Global Diagnostics S.a r.l., PerkinElmer Global Financing S.a r.l., PerkinElmer Global Holdings S.a r.l., PerkinElmer Health Sciences (Australia) Pty. Ltd., PerkinElmer Health Sciences B.V., PerkinElmer Health Sciences Canada Inc., PerkinElmer Health Sciences FZ-LLC, PerkinElmer Health Sciences Inc., PerkinElmer Health Sciences Pvt Ltd., PerkinElmer Healthcare Diagnostics (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PerkinElmer Holding Luxembourg S.a r.l., PerkinElmer Holdings Inc., PerkinElmer Holdings Pty. Ltd., PerkinElmer IVD Pte Ltd., PerkinElmer Inc., PerkinElmer Informatics Inc., PerkinElmer Instruments (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., PerkinElmer International C.V., PerkinElmer Investments Ky, PerkinElmer Israel Ltd., PerkinElmer Japan Co. Ltd., PerkinElmer LAS (Germany) GmbH, PerkinElmer LAS (UK) Ltd., PerkinElmer Life Sciences International Holdings, PerkinElmer Limited, PerkinElmer Ltd., PerkinElmer Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., PerkinElmer Nederland B.V., PerkinElmer Norge AS, PerkinElmer Oy, PerkinElmer Polska Sp z o.o., PerkinElmer Pty. Ltd., PerkinElmer SAS, PerkinElmer Saglk ve Cevre Bilimleri Ltd., PerkinElmer Shared Services Sp z o.o., PerkinElmer Singapore Pte Ltd., PerkinElmer South Africa (Pty) Ltd., PerkinElmer Sverige AB, PerkinElmer Sweden Health Sciences Holdings AB, PerkinElmer Taiwan Corporation, PerkinElmer VertriebsgmbH, PerkinElmer chemagen Technologie GmbH, PerkinElmer do Brasil Ltda., Perten Instruments, Perten Instruments (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Perten Instruments AB, Perten Instruments France SASU, Perten Instruments GmbH, Perten Instruments Italia S.r.l., Perten Instruments of Australia Pty Ltd., RHS Ltd, RayAl Ltd., Shandong Meizheng Bio-Tech Co. Ltd., Shanghai Haoyuan Biotech Co. Ltd., Shanghai Spectrum Instruments Co. Ltd., Shanghai Spectrum Instruments Co. Ltd., Signature Genomic Laboratories, Solus Scientific Solutions Inc., Solus Scientific Solutions Ltd., Surendra Genetic Labs, Suzhou PerkinElmer Medical Laboratory Co. Ltd., Suzhou Sym-Bio LifeScience, Suzhou Sym-Bio Lifescience Co. Ltd., Tulip Diagnostics, Tulip Diagnostics Pvt Ltd., Vanadis Diagnostics, Vanadis Diagnostics AB, ViaCell, ViaCord LLC, VisEn Medical, VisEn Medical Inc., Wallac Oy, Wellesley B.V., Xenogen Corporation, ZeLab SAS, and chemagen Biopolymer-Technologie AG.
Steelcase Inc. manufactures and sells integrated furniture settings, user-centered technologies, and interior architectural products. It operates through Americas, EMEA, and Other Category segments. The firm's furniture portfolio includes panel, fence and beam-based furniture systems, storage products, fixed and height-adjustable desks, benches, and tables, as well as complementary products, including work tools and screens. Its seating products comprise ergonomic task chairs; seating for collaborative or casual settings; and specialty seating for specific vertical markets, such as healthcare and education. The firm's interior architectural products include full and partial height walls and architectural pods. It also provides textiles, wall coverings, and surface imaging solutions for architects and designers; and ceramic steel surfaces for use in various applications, including static whiteboards and chalkboards through third party fabricators and distributors, as well as workplace strategy consulting, data-driven space measurement, lease origination, furniture and asset management, and hosted event services. The company markets and sells its products to corporate, government

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Manulife Financial Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial products and services in Asia, Canada, the United States, and internationally. The company operates through Wealth and Asset Management Businesses; Insurance and Annuity Products; And Corporate and Other segments. The Wealth and Asset Management Businesses segment provides mutual funds and exchange-traded funds, group retirement and savings products, and institutional asset management services through agents and brokers affiliated with the company, securities brokerage firms, and financial advisors pension plan consultants and banks. The Insurance and Annuity Products segment offers deposit and credit products; individual life, and individual and group long-term care insurance; and guaranteed and partially guaranteed annuity products through insurance agents, brokers, banks, financial planners, and direct marketing. The Corporate and Other segment is involved in property and casualty insurance and reinsurance businesses; and run-off reinsurance operations, including variable annuities, and accident and health. It also manages timberland and agricultural portfolios; and engages in insurance agency, portfolio and mutual fund management, mutual fund dealer, life and financial reinsurance, and fund management businesses. Additionally, the company holds and manages oil and gas properties; holds oil and gas royalties, and foreign bonds and equities; and provides investment management, counseling, advisory, and dealer services. Manulife Financial Corporation was incorporated in 1887 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

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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..
The following companies are subsidiares of Accenture: 2nd Road, 2nd Road Pty Ltd., ?What If!, ?What If! China Holdings Ltd, ?What If! Holdings Limited, ?What If! Innovation Singapore Holdings Pte, ?What If! Limited, ?What If! Shanghai Co. Ltd, ?What If! USA LLC, ACN Consulting Co Ltd, AD Dialeto Agencia de Publicidade SA, AD.Dialeto (Digital Agency acquired by Accenture), AGS Business and Technology Services Limited, ASM Research Inc., ASM Research LLC, ATAN, Accenture (Beijing) Mobile Technology Co Ltd, Accenture (Botswana) (Proprietary) Limited, Accenture (China) Co Ltd, Accenture (Shenzhen) Technology Co. Ltd., Accenture (South Africa) (Proprietary) Limited, Accenture (South Africa) Pty Limited, Accenture (UK) Ltd, Accenture 2 Business Process Services S.A., Accenture 2 LLC, Accenture A/S, Accenture AB, Accenture AG, Accenture AS, Accenture Africa Pty Ltd, Accenture Australia Holding B.V., Accenture Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, Accenture Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture Azerbaijan Ltd, Accenture BPM Operations Support Services S.A., Accenture BPM S.C.R.L., Accenture BV, Accenture Branch Holdings B.V., Accenture Bulgaria EOOD, Accenture Business Services for Utilities Inc, Accenture Business Services of British Columbia Limited Partnership, Accenture Business and Technology Services LLC, Accenture C.A, Accenture CAS GmbH, Accenture Canada Holdings Inc., Accenture Capital DAC, Accenture Capital Inc, Accenture Central Europe B.V., Accenture Chile Asesorias y Servicios Ltda, Accenture Cloud Services GmbH, Accenture Cloud Software Solutions Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions Australia Pty Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions LLC, Accenture Cloud Solutions Ltd, Accenture Cloud Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Co Ltd, Accenture Co Ltd., Accenture Communications Infrastructure Solutions Ltd, Accenture Company Ltd, Accenture Consulting Services Ltd Tanzania, Accenture Consultores de Gestao S.A., Accenture Consultoria de Industria e Consumo Ltda, Accenture Consultoria de Recursos Naturais Ltda, Accenture Credit Services LLC, Accenture Customer Services Distribution SAS, Accenture Customer Services Limited, Accenture Danismanlik Limited Sirketi, Accenture Defined Benefit Pension Plan Trustees Ltd, Accenture Defined Contribution Pension Plan Trustees Ltd, Accenture Delivery Poland sp. z o.o., Accenture Dienstleistungen GmbH, Accenture Digital France Holdings SA, Accenture Digital Holdings GmbH, Accenture East Africa Limited, Accenture Ecuador S.A., Accenture Egypt LLC, Accenture Enterprise Development (Shanghai) Co Ltd., Accenture Federal Services LLC, Accenture Finance (Gibraltar) III Ltd, Accenture Finance GmbH, Accenture Finance GmbH in liquidation, Accenture Finance II GmbH, Accenture Finance II GmbH in liquidation, Accenture Finance II Ltd, Accenture Finance Limited, Accenture Finance and Accounting BPO Services S.p.A., Accenture Finance and Accounting Services Srl, Accenture Flex LLC, Accenture GP LLC, Accenture Ghana Limited, Accenture Global Holdings Ltd., Accenture Global Services Ltd, Accenture Global Solutions Ltd, Accenture GmbH, Accenture HR Services Ltd, Accenture HR Services S.p.A., Accenture Healthcare Processing Inc., Accenture Holding GmbH, Accenture Holding GmbH & Co. KG, Accenture Holding GmbH in liquidation, Accenture Holdings (Iberia) S.L., Accenture Holdings B.V., Accenture Holdings France SAS, Accenture Holdings plc, Accenture Hungary Holdings Kft, Accenture Inc, Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company (Accenture Endustriyel Yazylym Cozumleri Limited irketi), Accenture Industrial Software Limited Liability Company (Accenture Endustriyel Yazlm Cozumleri Limited Sirketi), Accenture Industrial Software Solutions Kft, Accenture Industrial Software Solutions SA, Accenture Insurance Services LLC, Accenture Insurance Services SAS, Accenture Insurance Services SpA, Accenture International BV, Accenture International Capital SCA, Accenture International LLC, Accenture International Limited, Accenture International Sarl, Accenture Japan Ltd, Accenture Korea BV, Accenture LLC, Accenture LLP, Accenture Lanka (Private) Ltd, Accenture Limited, Accenture Ltd, Accenture Ltda, Accenture Maghreb S.a.r.l., Accenture Managed Services SRL, Accenture Managed Services SpA, Accenture Management GmbH, Accenture Middle East B.V, Accenture Middle East BV, Accenture Minority I BV, Accenture Minority III Ltd, Accenture Mozambique Limitada, Accenture Mzansi (Pty) Ltd, Accenture NV/SA, Accenture NZ Limited, Accenture Newco LLC, Accenture Nova Scotia Unlimited Liability Co., Accenture OOO, Accenture Operations Sp. z o.o., Accenture Outsourcing SRL, Accenture Outsourcing Services, Accenture Outsourcing Services S.A., Accenture Oy, Accenture Panama Inc, Accenture Participations BV, Accenture Participations II Limited, Accenture Peru S.R.L, Accenture Peru S.R.L., Accenture Post Trade Processing SAS, Accenture Post-Trade Processing Limited, Accenture Process Ltd, Accenture Product Lifecycle Services, Accenture Properties, Accenture Pte Ltd, Accenture Puerto Rico LLC, Accenture S.A., Accenture S.C., Accenture S.L., Accenture S.R.L., Accenture SAS, Accenture SG Services Pte Ltd, Accenture SRL, Accenture Saudi Arabia Limited, Accenture Sendirian Berhad, Accenture Service Center SRL, Accenture Services (Mauritius) Ltd, Accenture Services AB, Accenture Services AG, Accenture Services AS, Accenture Services GmbH, Accenture Services Ltd, Accenture Services Morocco SA, Accenture Services Oy, Accenture Services Pty Ltd, Accenture Services S.r.l., Accenture Services SRL, Accenture Services Sp. z o.o., Accenture Services Sp. z.o.o., Accenture Services and Technology Srl, Accenture Services fur Kreditinstitute GmbH, Accenture Services s.r.o., Accenture Servicos Administrativos Ltda, Accenture Servicos de Suporte de Negocios Ltda, Accenture Solutions Co Ltd, Accenture Solutions Private Limited, Accenture Solutions Pte Ltd, Accenture Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Solutions Sdn Bhd, Accenture Sp. z o.o., Accenture Sp. z.o.o., Accenture SpA, Accenture State Healthcare Services LLC, Accenture Sub II Inc., Accenture Sub Inc, Accenture Sub LLC, Accenture Systems Integration Limited, Accenture Sarl, Accenture Tanacsado Kolatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Accenture Tanacsado Kolatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag KFT, Accenture Technologia, Accenture Technologia Consultoria e Outsourcing S.A., Accenture Technology Infrastructure Services Pty Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions (Dalian) Co Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions (HK) Co. Ltd., Accenture Technology Solutions (Thailand) Co. Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions - Solucoes Informaticas Integradas, Accenture Technology Solutions - Solucoes Informaticas Integradas S.A., Accenture Technology Solutions GmbH, Accenture Technology Solutions Oy, Accenture Technology Solutions Pty Ltd, Accenture Technology Solutions S.A. de C.V., Accenture Technology Solutions SAS, Accenture Technology Solutions SRL, Accenture Technology Solutions Sdn. Bhd., Accenture Technology Solutions Slovakia s.r.o., Accenture Technology Ventures BV, Accenture Technology Ventures S.P.R.L., Accenture Uruguay SRL, Accenture Vietnam Co., Accenture Vietnam Co. LTD, Accenture Zambia Limited, Accenture do Brasil Limitada, Accenture plc, Accenture s.r.o., Acceria, Acquity Customer Insight Limited, Acquity Group, Adaptly LLC, Adaptly UK Limited, AddVal Technology, Adqptly, Advantium Inc., Agave Consultants Limited, Agilex Technologies Inc., Allen International, Allen International Consulting Group Ltd, Alnova Technologies Corporation S.L., AlphaBeta Advisors, Altima, Altima Asia Ltd., Altima SAS, Altitude, Altitude LLC, Analytics 8 LP, Analytics 8 Pty Ltd, Analytics8, Aorui Advertising (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Apis, Appaloosa Technology SAS, Arca, Ariba - BPO, Arismore, Aspiro Solutions (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Avanade, Avanade (Guangzhou) Computer Technology Development Co. Ltd., Avanade (Thailand) Co Ltd, Avanade Asia Pte Ltd, Avanade Australia Pty Ltd, Avanade Belgium SPRL, Avanade Canada Inc., Avanade Denmark A/S, Avanade Denmark ApS, Avanade Deutschland GmbH, Avanade Europe Holdings Ltd, Avanade Europe Services Ltd, Avanade Federal Services LLC, Avanade Finland Oy, Avanade France SAS, Avanade GZ Computer Technology Development Co. Ltd. (SH), Avanade Guangzhou, Avanade Holdings LLC, Avanade Hong Kong Ltd, Avanade International Corporation, Avanade Ireland Limited, Avanade Italy SRL, Avanade KK, Avanade Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Avanade Netherlands BV, Avanade Norway AS, Avanade Poland Sp. z o.o., Avanade Poland Sp. z.o.o., Avanade Schweiz GmbH, Avanade South Africa, Avanade South Africa Pty Ltd, Avanade Spain SL, Avanade Sweden AB, Avanade UK Ltd, Avanade do Brasil Limitada, Avanade Osterreich GmbH, AvantBiz Consulting Limited, Avenai, Axia Ltd., BABCN LLC, BCT Solutions, BCT Solutions Pty Ltd, BPO Servicos Administrativos Ltda, BRIDGE Energy Group, Beacon Consulting Group Inc., Beijing Genesis Interactive Technology Co. Ltd., Benext, Bionic, Blue Horseshoe, Boomerang Pharmaceutical Communications, Boomerang Pharmaceuticals Communications Ireland Limited, Bow & Arrow, Brand Learning, Brand Learning Group Limited, Brand Learning LLC, Brand Learning Ltd, Brand Learning Partners Limited, Brand Learning Pte Limited, Bridge Energy Group LLC, Brightstep AB, Byte Prophecy, CAS, CRMWaypoint, CadenceQuest Inc., Capable Marketer Limited, Capgemini - North American health practice, Capital Consultancy Services Inc., Certus Solutions Consulting Services Ltd, Certus Solutions Ltd, ChangeTrack Research Pty Ltd., Chaotic Moon Studios, Chengdu Mensa Advertising Co. Ltd., Cimation, Cimation UK Limited, Cirruseo, Cirruseo SAS, Clarity Insights, Clearhead, Clearhead Group, Clearhead Group LLC, ClientHouse GmbH, Cloud Sherpas, Cloud Sherpas (GA) LLC, Cloud Sherpas (SN) (PTE.) Limited, Cloud Sherpas New Zealand Ltd., Cloud Talent Limited, Cloudsherpas, Cloudsherpas Inc., Cloudworks, Codagenic Pty. Ltd., Computer Research and Telecommunications LLC, Concrete Desenvolvimento de Sistemas Ltda., Concrete Solutions, Concrete Solutions Ltda., Context Information Security, Coritel S.A., Corliant Inc., CreativeDrive, CustomerWorks Europe SL, Cutting Edge Solutions Ltd, D5 Global Holdings LLC, DAZ Systems Inc, DAZ Systems LLC, DAZSI Systems (India) Pvt. Ltd., DMA Solutions Limited, Davies Consulting, DayNine Consulting, DayNine Consulting (Australia) PTY LTD, DayNine Consulting (Deutschland) GmbH, DayNine Consulting (New Zealand) Limited, DayNine Consulting France SAS, DayNine Consulting Japan K.K., DayNine Consulting LLC, Declarative Holdings, Declarative Holdings LLC, Defense Point Security, Deja vu Security, Design Strategy and Research de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Designaffairs LLC, Digiplug S.A.S., Digiplug SAS, Digital Consulting & Software Services LLC, Droga5, Droga5 LLC, Droga5 Studios LLC, Droga5 UK Ltd., Duck Creek Technologies, Duck Creek Technologies LLC, Deja Vu Security LLC, ESR Labs, Elcurator SAS, Enaxis Consulting, Enaxis Consulting L.P., End-to-End Analytics, Energuia Web, Energuia Web S.A., Energy Management Brokers Ltd., Energy Quote Private Ltd., EnergyQuote JHA, EnergyQuote JHA Ltd., EnergyQuote Trading Ltd., Enimbos, Enkitec, Enterprise System Partners, Enterprise System Partners B.V. , Enterprise System Partners Bilisim Danismanlik Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Enterprise System Partners Global Corporation, Enterprise System Partners Limited, Enterprise System Partners PR LLC, Enterprise System Partners S.A.S., Entropia, Epylon, Ethica Consulting Group, Evopro Group, Exactside Limited, Exton Consulting, Fairway Technologies Inc, Fairway Technologies LLC, Filmproduction ApS, First Annapolis Consulting, First Annapolis Consulting Inc., First Annapolis Consulting LLC, First Annapolis International, Fjord, Focus Group Europe, Focus Group Europe Limited, Formicary, Formicary Holdings Limited, Formicary Limited, FusionX, FutureMove Automotive, Gapso Servicos de Informatica Ltda., Genfour, Genfour Limited, George Group Consulting L.P., Gestalt LLC, Gestion Altima Canada Inc., Gevity, Global Public Firm S.L., GlobalView SAS, GoodFilm GmbH Filmproduktion Stuttgart, H.B. Maynard and Co. Inc., HRC Retail Advisory, Hagberg Consulting Group, Hangzhou Aiyunzhe Technology Co. Ltd., Happen, Hjaltelin Stahl, Hjaltelin Stahl K/S, Hytracc Consulting AS, Hytracc Consulting Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Hytracc Consulting UK Limited, Hytracc Holding AS, I-Faber S.p.A., IBB Consulting, IMJ Corp, IMJ Corporation, INCAD, INSITUM, IT One Company Limited, ITBS Servicios Bancarios de Tecnologia de la Informacion SL, Icon Integration, Imagine Broadband (USA) Ltd, Imagine Broadband USA LLC, Imaginea Inc, Industrie&Co, Infoman AG, Infoman Schweiz AG, Informatica de Euskadi S.L., Infusion Development Inc., Infusion Development UK Limited, InfusionDev LLC, Innoveer Solutions India Pvt Ltd, Insitum Consultoria Argentina SRL, Insitum Consultoria Brasil LTDA, Insitum Consultoria Colombia SAS, Insitum Consultoria Europa SL, Insitum Consultoria Peru SAC, Insitum Consultoria S.A. de C.V., Intrepid, Intrigo Systems Inc, Intrigo Systems India Pvt. Limited, Intrigo Systems LLC, Inventor Advertisement (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Inventor Technology Limited, InvestTech, Investtech Systems Consulting LLC, Javelin Group, Javelin Group (Bulgaria) EOOD, Javelin Group Limited (UK), Javelin Group SASU, K Comms Group Limited, KCS.net AG, KCS.net AG West, KCS.net Deutschland GmbH, KCS.net Holding AG, KCS.net Osterreich GmbH, Kaper Communications Limited, Karma Communications Debtco Limited, Karma Communications Group Limited, Karma Communications Holdings Limited, Karmarama, Karmarama Comms Limited, Karmarama Limited, Knowledge Rules Inc., Knowledgent, Knowledgent Group LLC, Kogentix, Kogentix LLC, Kogentix Ltd, Kogentix Singapore Pte. Ltd, Kogentix Technologies Private Limited, Kolle Rebbe, Kolle Rebbe GmbH, Kream Comms Limited, Kunstmaan, Kunstmaan NV, Kurt Salmon, Kurt Salmon Canada LTD, Kurt Salmon UKI, Kurt Salmon UKI Ltd., Kurt Salmon US LLC, LEXTA, LINKBYNET, LabAnswer, LabAnswer Government, LemonXL Limited, Logistics Market Place Limited (UK), Loud & Clear Creative Pty Ltd, MAXIM Systems Inc., MCG US Holdings LLC, Mackevision CG Technology and Service (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Mackevision Corporation, Mackevision Japan Co. Ltd., Mackevision Korea Ltd, Mackevision Medien Design, Mackevision Medien Design GmbH, Mackevision Singapore Pte. Ltd., Mackevision UK Ltd, Maglan, Maglan Information Defense Technologies Research Ltd., Maihiro, Matter, Matter Llc, Maud Corp Pty Limited, Maxamine International, Media Audits Ltd., Media Hive, Mediasenz Pty Ltd., Meredith Specialty LLC, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, Meredith Xcelerated Marketing Corporation, Meridian Informed Purchasing Ltd., Mindtribe, Mindtribe Product Engineering LLC, MobGen, MobGen Technology S.L, Moonrise NV, Mortgage Cadence, Mortgage Cadence an Accenture Company, Most Champion Ltd, Mudano, N3 LLC, NBS Marketing Inc., NYTEC, Nanjing Demeng Advertising Co. Ltd., Nashco Consulting, NaviSys Inc., NellArmonia, Neo Metrics Analytics S.L., Neo Metrics Chile, Neo Metrics Chile S.A., New Content, New Content Chile SpA, New Content Editora e Produtora Ltda., New Energy Aborda, New Energy Associates Ltd, New Energy Group, New Energy S.r.l., NewsPage, NewsPage (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, NewsPage China Ltd., NewsPage Pte Ltd, Nice Agency Limited, Northstream, Northstream AB, Northstream Holding AB, OCTO Technology, OPS Rules Management Consultants, Octagon Research Solutions Inc., Octo Technology LTDA, Octo Technology Pty Ltd, Octo Technology SA, Octo Technology SPRL, Octoman SAS, Odgaard ApS, Olikka, Openmind, Openminded, Operaciones Accenture S.A. de C.V., OpusLine, Orbium, Orbium Consulting Ltd, Orbium GmbH, Orbium Holding AG, Orbium Inc., Orbium International AG, Orbium International sp. z o.o., Orbium Licences AG, Orbium Limited, Orbium Pte. Ltd., Orbium Pty Ltd, Orbium Services sp. z o.o., Orbium Sarl, Origin Digital, PCO Innovation, PCO Innovation Canada Inc., PCO Innovation EURL, PIXO PUNCH Limited, PLM Systems S.r.l, POC Holdings, PRION GmbH, PT Accenture, PT Asta Catur Indra, PT Kogentix Teknologi Indonesia, Pach Invest SARL, Pach Invest SAS, PacificLink Group, PacificLink iMedia Ltd., Paja Finanssipalvelut Oy, Parker Fitzgerald Inc, Parker Fitzgerald Inc., Parker Fitzgerald International Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Limited, Parker Fitzgerald PTY Ltd, Parker Fitzgerald Services Limited, Parker Fitzgerald Solutions Limited, Partners Technology Mexico Holdings BV, Pecaso Ltd., Pegasus Production K/S, Perseroan Terbatas. Accenture, Phase One Consulting Group, Pillar Technology, Pollux, Pragsis Bidoop, Pragsis Bidoop UK Ltd, Pragsis Technologies S.L, PrimeQ, PrimeQ Australia Pty Ltd, PrimeQ Ltd, PrimeQ NZ Pty Ltd, Procurian Germany GmbH, Procurian Inc., Procurian International I LLC, Procurian International II LLC, Procurian LLC, Procurian Singapore Pte. Ltd., Procurian Switzerland GmbH, Procurian USA LLC, Proquire LLC, PureApps Ltd., Qi Jie Beijing Information Technologies Co Ltd, Radiant Services, Radiant Services LLC, Random Walk Computing Inc., Reactive Media Limited, Reactive Media Pty Ltd., Real Protect, Realworld OO Systems Ltd., Redcore, Redcore (Asia) Pte Ltd, Redcore (India) Private Limited (India), Redcore (New Zealand) Limited, Redcore Group Holdings Pty Ltd, Redcore Pty Ltd, Renacentis IT Services, Revolutionary Security, RiskControl, Rothco, Rothco Holdings Designated Activity Company, Rothco Unlimited Company, S.C. EnergyQuote S.r.l., S3 TV Technology Limited, S3 TV Technology Ltd., SEC Servizi, SEC Servizi S.p.A., SOPIA Corp., Sagacious Consultants, Sagacious Consultants LLC, Salt Solutions, Sanchez Capital Services Pvt Ltd, Schlumberger Business Consulting, Seabury Airline Planning Group, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace (UK) Limited, Seabury Aviation & Aerospace Asia (Hong Kong) Limited, Seabury Aviation Consulting LLC, Seabury Cargo Advisory B.V., Seabury Consulting, Seabury Corporate Advisors LLC, Seabury Human Capital LLC, Seabury Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Seabury Structured Finance LLC, Search Technologies BPO, Search Technologies BPO Inc., Search Technologies GmbH, Search Technologies International LLC, Search Technologies LATAM, Search Technologies LATAM S.A., Search Technologies LLC, Search Technologies Limited, Sente Partners LLC, Sentelis, Servicios Tecnicos de Programacion Accenture S.C., Shackleton, Shackleton Barcelona S.L., Shackleton Chile S.A., Shackleton Madrid S.L., Shackleton S.A., Shanghai Baiyue Advertising Co. Ltd., Shun Zhe Technology Development Co. Ltd., Silveo, Simian Pty Limited, SinnerSchrader, SinnerSchrader AG, SinnerSchrader Commerce GmbH, SinnerSchrader Content GmbH, SinnerSchrader Deutschland GmbH, SinnerSchrader Praha s.r.o., SinnerSchrader Swipe GmbH, 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, Yesler, Zag, Zenta, Zenta Global Philippines, Zenta Global Philippines Inc., Zenta Mortgage Services LLC, Zenta Recoveries Inc, Zenta US Holdings Inc., Zielpuls, Zielpuls (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zielpuls GmbH, avVenta, designaffairs, designaffairs Business Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., designaffairs GmbH, designaffairs group China Co. Ltd., dgroup, i4C Analytics, iDefense, and solid-serVision.com GmbH.
The following companies are subsidiares of Dover: Accelerated Production Systems, Acme Elevator, Advansor A/S, Advansor Dover International (Poland) sp. z o.o, Advansor Germany GmbH, Alfred Fueling Systems Holdco Ltd., Alfred Fueling Systems Inc., Alfred Fueling Systems Intermediate Holdco Ltd., All-Flo Pump Company, Anman LLC, Anthony Equity Holdings Inc., Anthony Holdings Inc., Anthony Inc., Anthony International, Anthony International Foreign Sales Corp., Anthony International Holding Company, Anthony Mexico Holdings LLC, Anthony North Holdco Inc., Anthony Specialty Glass LLC, Anthony TemperBent GP LLC, Auto Glanz Solutions LLC, Automatik Grundstucksverwaltungs GmbH & Co. KG, Automatik Plastics Machinery (Taiwan) Ltd., BSC Filters Limited, Background2 Limited, Belanger, Belanger Inc., Belvac Middle East FZE, Belvac Production Machinery Inc., Blackmer, BlitzRotary GmbH, Butler Engineering and Marketing S.P.A., CDS Visual, CEP Liquidation LLC, CP Formation LLC, CPC Europe Inc., CPI Products Inc., Caldera, Canada Organization & Development LLC, Chief Automotive Technologies (Shanghai) Trading Company Ltd., Chippewa Square Captive Insurance Company, Colder Products Company, Colder Products Company GmbH, Colder Products Company LTD, Cook Compression BV, Cook Compression LLC, Cook Compression Limited, Cook-MFS Inc., DD1 Inc., DDI Properties Inc., DE-STA-CO Benelux B.V., DE-STA-CO FRANCE, DE-STA-CO Shanghai Co. Ltd., DESTACO UK Limited, DFH Corporation, DFS Netherlands B.V., DSR BZ Holdings LLC, Datamax International Corp, De Sta Co (Asia) Company Limited, De-Sta-Co Cylinders Inc., DeStaCo Europe GmbH, Delaware Capital Formation Inc., Delaware Capital Holdings Inc., Dover (China) Investment Co. Ltd., Dover (Schweiz) Holding GmbH, Dover (Shanghai) Industrial Co. Ltd., Dover (Shenzhen) Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Dover (Suzhou) Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Dover Asia Trading Private Ltd., Dover Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Dover Business Services EMEA Limited, Dover Business Services LLC, Dover Business Services Philippines Corporation, Dover CLP Formation Limited Partnership, Dover CR spol s r.o., Dover Canada Holdings ULC, Dover Canada Operations ULC, Dover Corporation Regional Headquarters, Dover DEI Services Inc., Dover Denmark Holdings ApS, Dover EMEA FZCO, Dover Energy UK Ltd, Dover Engineered Products Segment Inc., Dover Europe Inc., Dover Europe Sarl, Dover Fluids UK Ltd, Dover France Holdings, Dover France Participations, Dover France Technologies, Dover Fueling Solutions Segment Inc., Dover Fueling Solutions UK Limited, Dover Germany GmbH, Dover Global Holdings LLC, Dover Holdings de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Dover Imaging & Identification Segment Inc., Dover India Pvt. Ltd., Dover Intercompany Services UK Limited, Dover International B.V., Dover International Operations Inc., Dover International Ventures Inc., Dover International Ventures Tunisia S.a.r.l., Dover International ithalat ihracat ve Pazarlama Limited Sirketi, Dover Italy Holdings S.r.l., Dover Luxembourg Finance Sarl, Dover Luxembourg Participations Sarl, Dover Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Dover Luxembourg Services Sarl, Dover Operations South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Dover Overseas Ventures Inc., Dover Pumps & Process Solutions Segment Inc., Dover Refrigeration & Food Equipment Segment Inc., Dover Refrigeration & Food Equipment UK Ltd, Dover Resources International de Mexico S. de R.L. C.V., Dover Solutions Colombia SAS, Dover Southeast Asia (Thailand) Ltd., Dover Spain Holdings S.L., Dover UK Pensions Limited, Dover WSCR Holding LLC, Dover WSCR LLC, Dover do Brasil Ltda., Dow-Key Microwave Corporation, Dresser Wayne Data Technology (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Dresser Wayne Fuel Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., EOA Systems Inc., Ebs-Ray Holdings Pty Ltd, Ebs-Ray Industries Pty. Ltd., Ebs-Ray Pumps Pty. Ltd., Em-tec, Espy, Ettlinger, Ettlinger Kunststoffmaschinen GmbH, Fairbanks Environmental Limited, Fibrelite Composites Limited, Fibresec Holdings Limited, Fibresec Limited, Finder, GAL LLC, GIIER LLC, Gala Industries, Gala Kunststoff-und Kautschukmaschinen GmbH, Guangdong Tokheim LIYUAN Oil Industry Technology Limited Company, Highland Park Insurance Company, Hill PHOENIX Inc., Hill PHOENIX WIC LLC, Hill Phoenix Costa Rica Sociedad De Responsabilidad Limitada, Hill Phoenix El Salvador Limitada de Capital Variable, Hill Phoenix Guatemala Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix Honduras Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix Nicaragua Sociedad Anonima, Hill Phoenix de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Hiltap Fittings Ltd., Hydro Systems Company, Hydro Systems Europe Ltd., Hydronova Australia-NZ Pty Ltd, Industrial Motion Control LLC, Innovative Control Systems, Innovative Control Systems Inc., Inpro/Seal LLC, JK Group, JK Group S.P.A., JK Group USA Inc., K S Boca Inc., K&L Microwave DR Inc., K&L Microwave Inc., KPS (Beijing) Petroleum Equipment Trading Co Ltd., KPS Fueling Solutions Sdn. Bhd., KPS Hong Kong Holding Limited, KPS UK Limited, KS Formation Inc., KS Liquidation Inc., KSLP Liquidation L.P., Kiian Digital (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Knappco LLC, Knowles Electronics, LIQAL, Liquip, Liquip International Pty Limited, MAAG, MARKEM FZ SA, MARKEM-IMAJE Corporation, MIP Holdings Inc., MS Printing Solutions, MS Printing Solutions S.R.L., Maag Automatik GmbH, Maag Automatik Plastics Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Maag Gala Inc., Maag Italy S.R.L., Maag Pump Systems, Maag Pump Systems (US) Inc., Maag Pump Systems AG, Maag Reduction Inc., Maag Service (Malaysia) Sdn. Bdn., Maag Systems (Thailand) Limited, Marathon Equipment Company (Delaware), Markem Imaje Center of Competencies Spain S.L.U., Markem-Imaje, Markem-Imaje (China) Co. Limited, Markem-Imaje - Unipessoal Lda, Markem-Imaje A/S, Markem-Imaje AB, Markem-Imaje AG, Markem-Imaje AS, Markem-Imaje B.V., Markem-Imaje CSAT GmbH, Markem-Imaje Co. Ltd., Markem-Imaje GmbH, Markem-Imaje Holding, Markem-Imaje Identificacao de Produtos Ltda., Markem-Imaje Inc., Markem-Imaje India Private Limited, Markem-Imaje Industries, Markem-Imaje Industries Limited, Markem-Imaje KK, Markem-Imaje LLC, Markem-Imaje Limited, Markem-Imaje Limited, Markem-Imaje Ltd., Markem-Imaje N.V., Markem-Imaje Oy, Markem-Imaje Philippines Corporation, Markem-Imaje Pty Ltd, Markem-Imaje S.A., Markem-Imaje S.A. de C.V., Markem-Imaje S.r.l., Markem-Imaje SAS, Markem-Imaje Sdn Bhd, Markem-Imaje Singapore Pte. Ltd., Markem-Imaje Spain S.A.U, Markpoint Holding AB, Midland Manufacturing LLC, Mouvex, Northern Lights (Nevada) Inc., Northern Lights Funding LP, Northern Lights Investments LLC, Nova Controls Inc., OK International, OK International (UK) Ltd., OK International Holdings Inc., OK International Inc., OPW Engineered Systems Inc., OPW Fluid Transfer Group Europe B.V., OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions (Jiang Su) Co. Ltd., OPW Fluids Group Inc., OPW France, OPW Fuel Management Systems Inc., OPW Fueling Components (SuZhou) Co. Ltd., OPW Fueling Components LLC, OPW Iberia Sociedad Limitada, OPW Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., OPW Slovakia s.r.o., OPW Sweden AB, Officine Meccaniche Sirio S.R.L., PDQ Manufacturing, PDQ Manufacturing Inc., PISCES by OPW Inc., PSD Codax Holdings Limited, PSD Codax Limited, PSG (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, PSG (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., PSG California LLC, PSG Germany GmbH, Petro Vend Sp. z o.o., Pike Machine Products Inc., Pole/Zero Acquisition Inc., Precision Brasil Equipamentos E Servicos Para Postos De Combustiveis Ltda., Precision Service - Servicos De Manutencao E Instalacao De Postos De Abastecimento De Combustivel Ltda., Production Control Services, Pump Management Services Co. LLC, RAV Equipos Espana S.L., RAV France, Ravaglioli Deutschland GmbH, Ravaglioli S.P.A., Reduction Engineering GmbH, Revod Corporation, Revod Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Revod SAS, Revod Singapore Holdings Pte. Ltd, Revod Sweden AB, Robohand Inc., Rosario, Rosario Handel B.V., Rotary Lift Consolidated (Haimen) Co. Ltd, SE Liquidation LLC, SWEP Germany GmbH, SWEP Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., SWEP North America Inc., SWEP Slovakia s.r.o., SWEP Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Seabiscuit Motorsports Inc., Simmons Sirvey Corporation, So. Cal. Soft-Pak, So. Cal. Soft-Pak Incorporated, Solaris Laser, Solaris Laser S.A., Somero Enterprises, Sound Solutions, Space S.R.L., Spirit, Start Italiana Petrol Cihazlari Sanayi Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Start Italiana S.R.L., Swep Energy Oy, Swep International A.B., Swep Japan K.K., Sys-Tech Solutions, Sys-Tech Solutions Inc., Systech GB Limited, Systech Shanghai Consulting Company Limited, TQC Quantium Quality S.A. de C.V., TTSI III Inc., TWG Canada Consolidated Inc., TXHI LLC, Tartan Textile Services Inc., The Heil Co., Tokheim Belgium, Tokheim China Company Limited, Tokheim GmbH, Tokheim Group, Tokheim Hengshan Technologies (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Tokheim Holding B.V., Tokheim India Private Limited, Tokheim Sofitam Applications, Trans - Logistic Group S.R.L., Triton Systems, Tulsa Winch Inc., UPCO Inc., US Synthetic, Unattended Payment Solutions LLC, Unified Brands, Unified Brands Inc., Val TemperBent Glass L.P., Vectron Frequency Devices (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Vehicle Service Group LLC, Vehicle Service Group UK Limited, Vos Food Store Equipment Ltd., WSCR Corp., Warn Automotive LLC, Warn Industries, Waukesha Bearings, Waukesha Bearings Corporation, Waukesha Bearings Limited, Waukesha Bearings Russia LLC, Wayne Fuel Management UK Ltd., Wayne Fueling Systems, Wayne Fueling Systems (Rus) Limited Liability Company, Wayne Fueling Systems Australia Pty Ltd, Wayne Fueling Systems Canada ULC, Wayne Fueling Systems Deutschland GmbH, Wayne Fueling Systems Italia S.R.L., Wayne Fueling Systems LLC, Wayne Fueling Systems Ltd., Wayne Fueling Systems Sweden AB, Wayne Fueling Systems UK Holdco Ltd., Wayne Industria e Comercio Ltda., WellMark, XanTec Steuerungs- und EDV-Technik GmbH, and em-tec GmbH.
The following companies are subsidiares of Lennar: 360 Developers LLC, Alliance Financial Services Inc., Ann Arundel Farms Ltd., Aquaterra Utilities Inc., Arbor Mill Veteran Project 2018 LLC, Asbury Woods L.L.C., Astoria Options LLC, Autumn Creek Development Ltd., Aylon LLC, Azusa Associates LLC, B2 Milpitas LLC, BB Investment Holdings LLC, BCI Properties LLC, BMR Communities LLC, BMR Construction Inc., BMTD LLC, BPH I LLC, Bainebridge 249 LLC, Bay Colony Expansion 369 Ltd., Bellagio Lennar LLC, Belle Meade LEN Holdings LLC, Belle Meade Partners LLC, Black Mountain Ranch LLC, Blue Horizons Estates LLC, Bonterra Lennar LLC, Bramalea California Inc., Bressi Gardenlane LLC, Breton Park Lennar LLC, CAP IL 1 LLC, CL Ventures LLC, CML INACTIVE LLC, CML-MO HAF LLC, CML-MO HAF PARKING LLC, CP Block 6aS LLC, CP Block 8aS LLC, CP Block 9aS LLC, CP Center Apartments LLC, CP Center Garage LLC, CP Red Oak Partners Ltd., CP Vertical Development Co. 1 LLC, CP/HPS Development Co. GP LLC, CP/HPS Development Co.-C LLC, CPFE LLC, CPHP Development LLC, CalAtlantic Financial Services Inc., CalAtlantic Group, CalAtlantic Group Inc., CalAtlantic Homes of Arizona Inc., CalAtlantic Homes of Georgia Inc., CalAtlantic Homes of Texas Inc., CalAtlantic Homes of Washington Inc., CalAtlantic Mortgage Inc., CalAtlantic National Title Solutions LLC, CalAtlantic Title Agency LLC, CalAtlantic Title Group LLC, CalAtlantic Title Inc., CalAtlantic Title LLC, CalAtlantic Title of Maryland Inc., Camarillo Village Park LLC, Cambria L.L.C., Candlestick Retail Member LLC, Cardiovascular Medical Specialists LLC, Carolina Blue LLC, Carson 175 LLC, Cary Woods LLC, Casa Marina Development LLC, Central Park West Holdings LLC, Cherrytree II LLC, Club Bonterra Lennar LLC, Coco Palm 82 LLC, Colonial Heritage LLC, Columbia National Risk Retention Group Inc., Commonwealth Incentive Fee LLC, Concord Station LLP, Coventry L.L.C., Creekside Crossing L.L.C., Crest at Fondren Investor LLC, DBJ Holdings LLC, DCA Financial LLC, DTC Holdings of Florida LLC, Darcy-Joliet L.L.C., Durrell 33 LLC, EL Ventures LLC, EV LLC, Eagle Bend Commercial LLC, Eagle Home Mortgage LLC, Estates Seven LLC, Evergreen Village LLC, F&R QVI Home Investments USA LLC, FLORDADE LLC, Faria Preserve LLC, Fidelity Guaranty and Acceptance Corp., Fidelity Land LLC, Fox-Maple Associates LLC, Friendswood Development Company LLC, GDI MANAGER LLC, Garco Investments LLC, Greystone Construction Inc., Greystone Homes of Nevada Inc., Greystone Nevada Holdings LLC, Greystone Nevada LLC, Greywall Club L.L.C., HCC Investors LLC, HPS Development Co. LP, HPS Vertical Development Co. LLC, HPS Vertical Development Co.-B LP, HPS Vertical Development Co.-D/E LLC, HPS1 Block 1 LLC, HPS1 Block 48-1A LLC, HPS1 Block 48-1B LLC, HPS1 Block 48-2A LLC, HPS1 Block 48-2B LLC, HPS1 Block 48-3A LLC, HPS1 Block 48-3B LLC, HPS1 Block 50 LLC, HPS1 Block 51 LLC, HPS1 Block 52 LLC, HPS1 Block 53 LLC, HPS1 Block 54 LLC, HPS1 Block 55 LLC, HPS1 Block 56/57 LLC, HSP Arizona Inc., HTC Golf Club LLC, Hammocks Lennar LLC, Harbor Highlands Group LLC, Harveston LLC, Haverton L.L.C., Heathcote Commons LLC, Heritage Pkwy East Holdings LLC, Heritage of Auburn Hills L.L.C., Hewitts Landing Trustee LLC, Hingham Properties LLC, Huntley Venture L.L.C., Inactive Companies LLC, Independence L.L.C., Independence Orlando LLC, Isles at Bayshore Club LLC, KMC Real Estate Investors LLC, Kendall Hammocks Commercial LLC, Kentuckiana Medical Center LLC, Kingman Lennar LLC, LB/L  Duc III Antioch 330 LLC, LCD Asante LLC, LCI Downtown Doral Investor LLC, LCI North DeKalb Investor GP LLC, LCI North DeKalb Investor LP LLC, LEN - Belle Meade LLC, LEN - OBS Windemere LLC, LEN - Palm Vista LLC, LEN BPT Investor LLC, LEN Mirada Investor LLC, LEN Notarize Investor LLC, LEN OT Holdings LLC, LEN Paradise Cable LLC, LEN Paradise Operating LLC, LEN-CG South LLC, LEN-Cypress Mill LLC, LEN-Ryan 1 LLC, LEN-Touchstone LLC, LENH I LLC, LENNAR HOMES OF TENNESSEE LLC, LFS Holding Company LLC, LH Eastwind LLC, LHI Renaissance LLC, LMC 10th & Acoma Holdings LP, LMC 144th and Grant Investor LLC, LMC 2401 Blake Street Holdings LLC, LMC 2401 Blake Street Investor LLC, LMC 360 Acoma Holdings LP, LMC 410 S Wabash Holdings LLC, LMC 808 Gateway Holdings LLC, LMC 808 Gateway Investor LLC, LMC 8th Avenue Apartment Investor LLC, LMC 990 Bannock Holdings LLC, LMC Axis Westminster Holdings LLC, LMC Axis Westminster Investor LLC, LMC Berry Hill Lofts Holdings LLC, LMC Berry Hill Lofts Investor LLC, LMC Block 42 Holdings LLC, LMC Build to Core III Investor LLC, LMC Build to Core III LLC, LMC Burnside Holdings LLC, LMC Burnside Investor LLC, LMC Chandler and McClintock Holdings LLC, LMC Charlestowne Holdings LLC, LMC Charlotte Ballpark Developer LLC, LMC Cityville Oak Park Holdings LLC, LMC Cityville Oak Park Investor LLC, LMC Cobalt Holdings LLC, LMC Costa Mesa Holdings LP, LMC Crest at Park West Holdings LP, LMC Denver Gateway I Investor LLC, LMC Denver Gateway II Holdings LLC, LMC Development LLC, LMC Downtown Doral South Holdings LLC, LMC Durham Gateway Holdings LP, LMC Evans School Holdings LLC, LMC Gateway Investor LLC, LMC Gateway Venture LLC, LMC Gilman Square Investor LLC, LMC Horton Street Holdings LLC, LMC Huntington Crossing Holdings LLC, LMC Inactive Companies LLC, LMC Lakeside Holdings LP, LMC Leya Holdings LLC, LMC Living Illinois LLC, LMC Living Inc., LMC Living LLC, LMC Living TRS LP, LMC Millenia Investor II LLC, LMC NE Minneapolis Lot 2 Holdings LLC, LMC New Bern Investor LLC, LMC North Park Holdings LP, LMC Parkfield Holdings LLC, LMC Parkfield Investor LLC, LMC Righters Ferry Holdings LLC, LMC River North Holdings LLC, LMC Spring Street Investor LLC, LMC Stonewall Station Investor LLC, LMC Triangle Square Investor LLC, LMC Venture Developer LLC, LMC Verbena Holdings LLC, LMC West Loop Investor LLC, LMCFX Investor LLC, LMCPNW Marymoor Holdings LLC, LMI - Jacksonville Investor LLC, LMI - South Kings Development Investor LLC, LMI - West Seattle Holdings LLC, LMI - West Seattle Investor LLC, LMI - West Seattle LLC, LMI Cell Tower Investors LLC, LMI City Walk Investor LLC, LMI Collegedale Investor LLC, LMI Collegedale LLC, LMI Contractors LLC, LMI Glencoe Dallas Investor LLC, LMI Lakes West Covina Investor LLC, LMI Largo Park Investor LLC, LMI Las Colinas Station LLC, LMI Naperville Investor LLC, LMI Pacific Tower LLC, LMI Park Central Two LLC, LMI Peachtree Corners Investor LLC, LMI Peachtree Corners LLC, LMI-JC Developer LLC, LMI-JC LLC, LMV 1640 Broadway REIT-DC LP, LMV 1701 Ballard REIT-DC LP, LMV 19H REIT-DC LP, LMV 2026 Madison REIT-DC LP, LMV 85 South Union REIT-DC LP, LMV ATown REIT-DC LP, LMV Annapolis REIT-DC LP, LMV Apache Terrace REIT-DC LP, LMV Block 42 REIT-DC LP, LMV Bloomington REIT-DC LP, LMV Bolingbrook REIT-DC LP (DE), LMV Central at McDowell REIT-DC LP, LMV East Village I REIT-DC LP, LMV Edina REIT-DC LP, LMV Fremont WS I REIT-DC LP, LMV Glisan REIT-DC LP, LMV Grand Bay REIT-DC LP, LMV II Grand Bay Pod V Holdings LP, LMV II Kierland Holdings LP, LMV II NoMo Holdings LP, LMV II Venture Developer LLC, LMV II Wynwood Holdings LP, LMV Kirkland REIT-DC LP, LMV Little Italy REIT-DC LP, LMV M Tower REIT-DC LP, LMV Millenia II REIT-DC LP, LMV Milpitas REIT-DC LP, LMV NE Minneapolis REIT-DC LP, LMV Oak Park REIT-DC LP, LMV One20Fourth REIT-DC LP, LMV QR Build to Core Manager LLC, LMV Rio Bravo REIT-DC LP, LMV Scottsdale Quarter REIT-DC LP, LMV Tysons REIT-DC LP, LMV Vallagio III REIT-DC LP, LMV Victory Block G REIT-DC LP, LMV Warren Street REIT-DC LP, LNC Communities II LLC, LNC Communities IV LLC, LNC Communities V LLC, LNC Communities VI LLC, LNC Communities VII LLC, LNC Communities VIII LLC, LNC Pennsylvania Realty Inc., LNC at Meadowbrook LLC, LNC at Ravenna LLC, LS College Park LLC, LS Terracina LLC, LV Opendoor Investor LLC, LV Opendoor JV LLC, LW D'Andrea LLC, Lagoon Valley Residential LLC, Lakelands at Easton L.L.C., Legends Club LLC, Legends Golf Club LLC, Len - Little Harbor LLC, Len FW Investor LLC, Len Paradise LLC, Len-Angeline LLC, Len-Hawks Point LLC, Len-Land LLC, Len-Land West LLC, Len-MN LLC, Len-Verandahs LLP, LenCom LLC, LenFive LLC, LenFive Opco GP LLC, LenFive Sub III LLC, LenFive Sub LLC, LenFive Sub Opco GP LLC, Lenalto CMBS LLC, Lencraft LLC, Lennar Aircraft I LLC, Lennar Arizona Construction Inc., Lennar Arizona Inc., Lennar Associates Management Holding Company, Lennar Associates Management LLC, Lennar Avenue One LLC, Lennar Berkeley LLC, Lennar Bevard LLC, Lennar Bridges LLC, Lennar Buffington Colorado Crossing L.P., Lennar Buffington Zachary Scott L.P., Lennar Carolinas LLC, Lennar Central Park LLC, Lennar Central Region Sweep Inc., Lennar Chicago Inc., Lennar Cobra LLC, Lennar Colgate Urban Renewal Development LLC, Lennar Colorado LLC, Lennar Colorado Minerals LLC, Lennar Commercial LLC, Lennar Communities Development Inc., Lennar Communities Inc., Lennar Communities Nevada LLC, Lennar Communities of Chicago L.L.C., Lennar Concord LLC, Lennar Construction Inc., Lennar Cory Road LLC, Lennar Courts LLC, Lennar Developers Inc., Lennar Ewing LLC, Lennar Financial Services LLC, Lennar Flamingo LLC, Lennar Fresno Inc., Lennar Gardens LLC, Lennar Georgia Inc., Lennar Greer Ranch Venture LLC, Lennar Heritage Fields LLC, Lennar Hingham Holdings LLC, Lennar Hingham JV LLC, Lennar Homes Holding LLC, Lennar Homes LLC, Lennar Homes NJ LLC, Lennar Homes of Arizona Inc., Lennar Homes of California Inc., Lennar Homes of Indiana Inc., Lennar Homes of Texas Land and Construction Ltd., Lennar Homes of Texas Sales and Marketing Ltd., Lennar Homes of Utah Inc., Lennar International Holding LLC, Lennar International LLC, Lennar Lakeside Investor LLC, Lennar Layton LLC, Lennar Living LLC, Lennar Lytle LLC, Lennar MF Holdings LLC, Lennar MPA LLC, Lennar MPA WIP LLC, Lennar Mare Island LLC, Lennar Marina A Funding LLC, Lennar Massachusetts Properties Inc., Lennar Middletown LLC, Lennar Monmouth Redevelopers LLC, Lennar Multifamily BTC Venture GP LLC, Lennar Multifamily BTC Venture GP Subsidiary LLC, Lennar Multifamily BTC Venture GP Victory Block G Mezz LLC, Lennar Multifamily BTC Venture II GP LLC, Lennar Multifamily BTC Venture II GP Subsidiary LLC, Lennar Multifamily BTC Venture II LP LLC, Lennar Multifamily BTC Venture II Manager LLC, Lennar Multifamily BTC Venture LP LLC, Lennar Multifamily BTC Venture Manager LLC, Lennar Multifamily Builders LLC, Lennar Multifamily Communities LLC, Lennar Multifamily Venture DC LP, Lennar New Jersey Holdings LLC, Lennar New Jersey Properties Inc., Lennar New York LLC, Lennar Northeast Properties LLC, Lennar Northwest Inc., Lennar OHB LLC, Lennar PI Acquisition LLC, Lennar PI Property Acquisition LLC, Lennar PIS Management Company LLC, Lennar Pacific Inc., Lennar Pacific Properties Inc., Lennar Pacific Properties Management Inc., Lennar Plumsted Urban Renewal LLC, Lennar Point LLC, Lennar QR Build to Core GP LLC, Lennar QR Build to Core LP LLC, Lennar Realty Inc., Lennar Reno LLC, Lennar Riverwalk LLC, Lennar Sacramento Inc., Lennar Sales Corp., Lennar Sierra Sunrise LLC, Lennar Spencer's Crossing LLC, Lennar Sun Ridge LLC, Lennar Texas Holding LLC, Lennar Ventures LLC, Lennar West Valley LLC, Lennar Winncrest LLC, Lennar at Franklin LLC, Lennar at Jackson LLC, Lennar at Marlboro 79 LLC, Lennar at Monroe LLC, Lennar.com Inc., Longleaf Acquisition LLC, Lori Gardens Associates II LLC, Lori Gardens Associates III LLC, Lori Gardens Associates L.L.C., Lorton Station LLC, Lyons Lennar Farms LLC, Madrona Ridge L.L.C., Madrona Village L.L.C., Madrona Village Mews L.L.C., Majestic Woods LLC, Maple and Broadway Holdings LLC, Menifee Development LLC, Mid-County Utilities Inc., Miralago West Lennar LLC, Mission Viejo 12S Venture LP, Mission Viejo Holdings Inc., Motomic Diagnostics LLC, Multibank 2009-1 CML-ADC Venture LLC, Multibank 2009-1 RES-ADC Venture LLC, NC Properties I LLC, NC Properties II LLC, North American Asset Development LLC, Northbridge L.L.C., OHC/Ascot Belle Meade LLC, One SR L.P., PD-Len Boca Raton LLC, PG Properties Holding LLC, POMAC LLC, PT Metro LLC, Pace Drive Holdings LLC, Palm Gardens At Doral Clubhouse LLC, Palm Gardens at Doral LLC, Palm Springs Classic LLC, Palm Vista Preserve LLC, Patuxent Infrastructure Inc., Pioneer Meadows Development LLC, Pioneer Meadows Investments LLC, Plaza Condominium Ventures LLC, Portside Marina Developers L.L.C., Portside SM Associates L.L.C., Portside SM Holdings L.L.C., Portside Shipyard Developers L.L.C., Prestonfield L.L.C., Quail Roost Lennar LLC, RCCF GP II LLC, RCCF GP III LLC, RCCF GP IV LLC, RCCF GP LLC, RES-FL EIGHT LLC, RES-FL SEVEN LLC, RES-FL VISION ONE LLC, RES-FL VISION TWO LLC, RES-GA CASCADE LLC, RES-GA DIAMOND MEADOWS LLC, RES-GA KAP LLC, RES-GA SOUTHERN PLANTATION LLC, RES-GA THIRTEEN LLC, RES-GA TWELVE LLC, RES-GA WEST LLC, RES-IL ONE LLC, RES-NC ONE LLC, RES-PA LSJ LLC, RES-PA POM LLC, RES-TX BOULEVARD LLC, RH Insurance Company Inc., RH MOA BBCMS 2017-C1 LLC, RH MOA CF 2017-C8 LLC, RH MOA LLC, RH MOA U 2017-C4 LLC, RH MOA U 2017-C6 LLC, RIAL 2014-LT5 CLASS B LLC, RIAL 2014-LT5 LLC, RL BB FINANCIAL LLC, RL BB INACTIVE LLC, RL BB-AL LLC, RL BB-FL ALHI LLC, RL BB-GA LLC, RL BB-GA RMH LLC, RL BB-IL LLC, RL BB-IN AA LLC, RL BB-IN KRE LLC, RL BB-IN KRE OP LLC, RL BB-IN KRE RE LLC, RL BB-MS LLC, RL BB-NC LLC, RL BB-OH LLC, RL BB-SC BROOKSA LLC, RL BB-SC CLR II LLC, RL BB-SC CLR III LLC, RL BB-SC CLR IV LLC, RL BB-SC CLR LLC, RL BB-SC CRRC LLC, RL BB-SC RACEDAY LLC, RL BB-TN BRISTOL LLC, RL BB-TN LLC, RL BB-TN RACEDAY TOWER LLC, RL BB-TX LLC, RL BB-WV LLC, RL CMBS Holdings LLC, RL CML 2009-1 Investments LLC, RL REGI ARKANSAS LLC, RL REGI Alabama LLC, RL REGI FINANCIAL LLC, RL REGI Florida LLC, RL REGI GEORGIA LLC, RL REGI INACTIVE LLC, RL REGI KANSAS LLC, RL REGI MISSISSIPPI LLC, RL REGI MISSOURI LLC, RL REGI NORTH CAROLINA LLC, RL REGI SOUTH CAROLINA LLC, RL REGI TENNESSEE LLC, RL REGI VIRGINIA LLC, RL REGI-AL HP LLC, RL REGI-AL VRC LLC, RL REGI-FL CRC LLC, RL REGI-FL ESH LLC, RL REGI-FL FT. PIERCE LLC, RL REGI-FL GDL LLC, RL REGI-FL ITALIA LLC, RL REGI-FL MRED LLC, RL REGI-FL RDI LLC, RL REGI-FL SARASOTA LLC, RL REGI-FL TPL LLC, RL REGI-FL VARC LLC, RL REGI-GA DRAD LLC, RL REGI-GA HAY DB LLC, RL REGI-GA MHU LLC, RL REGI-GA MPD LLC, RL REGI-GA RLR LLC, RL REGI-MO GMB LLC, RL REGI-MO MOSCOW MILLS LLC, RL REGI-MS Double H LLC, RL REGI-MS OCEAN SPRINGS LLC, RL REGI-NC CIL LLC, RL REGI-NC LITTLE WING LLC, RL REGI-NC MLD LLC, RL REGI-NC Mland LLC, RL REGI-NC RALEIGH LLC, RL REGI-NC SUGARM LLC, RL REGI-NM LLC, RL REGI-SC CTL LLC, RL REGI-SC LAKE E LLC, RL REGI-SC TDG LLC, RL REGI-SC TIG LLC, RL REGI-TN OAK LLC, RL REGI-TN SEVIERVILLE LLC, RL RES 2009-1 Investments LLC, RMF Alliance LLC, RMF Commercial LLC, RMF PR New York LLC, RMF Partner LLC, RMF SUB 1 LLC, RMF SUB 2 LLC, RMF SUB 3 LLC, RMF SUB 4 LLC, RMF SUB 5 LLC, RMV LLC, Raintree Village II L.L.C., Raintree Village L.L.C., Ral-Len BM LLC, Ral-Len LLC, Rannel Capital WeWork Series D LLC, Rannel Holdings LLC, Rannel Interests LLC, Rannel Investments LLC, Rannel Mortgage Investments LLC, Rannel Proprietary Investments LLC, Renaissance Joint Venture, Reserve @ Pleasant Grove II LLC, Reserve @ Pleasant Grove LLC, Reserve at River Park LLC, Reserve at South Harrison LLC, Rialto Commercial Mortgage Securities LLC, Rialto Credit Partnership GP LLC, Rialto Mezz Partners GP LLC, Rialto Mortgage Finance LLC, Rialto Partners GP II LLC, Rialto Partners GP III - Debt LLC, Rialto Partners GP III - Property LLC, Rialto Partners GP LLC, Rialto RSSF GP LLC, Riverwalk at Lago Mar LLC, Rocking Horse Minerals LLC, Rutenberg Homes Inc. (Florida), Rutenberg Homes of Texas Inc., Rye Hill Company LLC, Ryland Homes Nevada Holdings LLC, Ryland Homes Nevada LLC, Ryland Homes of California Inc., S. Florida Construction II LLC, S. Florida Construction III LLC, S. Florida Construction LLC, SC 521 Indian Land Reserve LLC, SC 521 Indian Land Reserve South LLC, SPIC CPCO Inc., SPIC CPDB Inc., SPIC CPRB Inc., SPIC Del Sur LLC, SPIC Dublin LLC, SPIC Mesa LLC, SPIC NC Fremont LLC, SPIC Otay LLC, SPIC Springs LLC, San Felipe Indemnity Co. Ltd., San Lucia LLC, San Simeon Lennar LLC, Schulz Ranch Developers LLC, Seminole/70th LLC, Siena at Old Orchard L.L.C., Sierra Vista Communities LLC, Silver Springs Lennar LLC, South Development LLC, Southbank Holding LLC, Spanish Springs Development LLC, St. Charles Active Adult Community LLC, St. Charles Community LLC, Standard Pacific 1 Inc., Standard Pacific Investment Corp., Standard Pacific of Colorado Inc., Standard Pacific of Florida, Standard Pacific of Florida GP Inc., Standard Pacific of Las Vegas Inc., Standard Pacific of Orange County Inc., Standard Pacific of Tampa GP, Standard Pacific of Tampa GP Inc., Standard Pacific of Tonner Hills LLC, Standard Pacific of Walnut Hills Inc., Standard Pacific of the Carolinas LLC, Stoney Holdings LLC, Storey Lake Club LLC, Storey Park Club LLC, Strategic Holdings Inc., Strategic Technologies LLC, Summerfield Venture L.L.C., SunStreet Energy Group LLC, SunStreet Manager LLC, TCO QVI LLC, TICD Hold Co. LLC, TIH Hold Co. LLC, Talega Associates LLC, Temecula Valley LLC, Terra Division LLC, Terra/Winding Creek LLC, The Baywinds Land Trust, The Bridges Club at Rancho Santa Fe Inc., The Bridges at Rancho Santa Fe Sales Company Inc., The LNC Northeast Group Inc., The Oasis Club at LEN-CG South LLC, The Preserve at Coconut Creek LLC, The Vistas Club at LEN-CG South LLC, Titlezoom Company, Treasure Island Holdings LLC, Treasure Island Member LLC, Treviso Holding LLC, Two Lakes Lennar LLC, U.S. Home Corporation, U.S. Home Realty Inc., U.S. Home of Arizona Construction Co., U.S. Insurors Inc., U.S.H. Realty Inc., UAMC Holding Company LLC, UB 2018C14 MOA LLC, USH - Flag LLC, USH Equity Corporation, USH LEE LLC, USH Leasing II LLC, USH Leasing LLC, UST Lennar HW Scala SF Joint Venture, VII Crown Farm Investor LLC, Venetian Lennar LLC, Vineyard Land LLC, Vineyard Point 2009 LLC, Vista Palms Clubhouse LLC, WCI Communities, WCI Communities Inc., WCI Communities LLC, WCI Towers Northeast USA Inc., WCI Westshore LLC, WCP LLC, WIP Lennar OHB LLC, Waterview at Hanover LLC, West Lake Village LLC, West Seattle Project X LLC, West Van Buren L.L.C., Westchase Inc., Westchase Ltd., Westfield Homes USA Inc., White Course Lennar LLC, Wild Plum JV LLC, Willowbrook Investors LLC, Winncrest Natomas LLC, Woodbridge Multifamily Developer I LLC, Wright Farm L.L.C., and YLRichards4Acres 2015 LLC.
BNP Paribas SA provides a range of banking and financial services in France and internationally. It operates through two divisions, Retail Banking and Services, and Corporate and Institutional Banking. The company offers long-term corporate vehicle leasing, and rental and other financing solutions; and digital banking and investment services, cash management, and factoring services to corporate clients, as well as wealth management services. It also provides credit solutions for individuals under the Cetelem, Cofinoga, Findomestic, AlphaCredit, and Opel Vauxhall brands; savings and protection solutions, including insuring individuals, and their personal projects and assets; and asset management, private banking, and real estate services. In addition, the company offers global market services, including investment, hedging, financing, research, and market intellingence across asset classes; security services comprising clearing, custody, and asset and fund services, as well as corporate trust, and market and financing services; and corporate trade and treasury, debt financing, specialized financing, strategic advisory, mergers and acquisition, and equity capital market services for institutional and corporate clients. The company was formerly known as Banque Nationale de Paris and changed its name to BNP Paribas SA in May 2000. BNP Paribas SA was founded in 1848 and is headquartered in Paris, France.

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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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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.
Bunzl plc operates as a distribution and services company in the North America, Continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company offers food packaging, films, labels, counter-service packaging, foodservice disposables, take-out food packaging, first aid products, point of purchase displays, stationery, bags, and cleaning and hygiene supplies to grocery stores, supermarkets, retail chains, convenience stores, food wholesalers, ethnic grocers, and organic food outlets. It also provides food packaging, napkins, disposable tableware, food service disposables, guest amenities, light and heavy catering equipment, cleaning and hygiene products, and safety items to hotels, restaurants, caterers, the leisure sector, and food processors and packers; and footwear, gloves, safety helmets, workwear, harness equipment, tools, safety signs, traffic management, and ancillary site equipment, as well as ear, eye, respiratory, and face protection products to customers in the industrial and construction markets. In addition, the company offers cleaning systems, floorcare items, hand cleansing products, hygiene paper, janitorial products, cleaning machines, mops, polishes, and protective clothing and washroom chemicals to facilities management companies, contract cleaners, and other industrial and healthcare customers; and counter service packaging, point of purchase display items, stationery, and cleaning and hygiene products to department stores, boutiques, office supply companies, retail chains, and home improvement chains. Further, it provides gloves, aprons, bandages, facemasks, gowns, headwear, mattress covers, overshoes, procedure packs, tapes, wipes, incontinence products, and swabs to the healthcare sector, including hospitals, retirement and nursing homes, and doctors' surgeries and clinics; and various products to government and education establishments. Bunzl plc was founded in 1854 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

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Wall Street analysts have given SPDR Bloomberg Barclays High Yield Bond ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but SPDR Bloomberg Barclays High Yield Bond ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

View MarketBeat's top stock picks here.
Wall Street analysts have given Centaur Media 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 Centaur Media wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

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Columbus Energy Resources plc engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas in Trinidad and Tobago, Spain, Cyprus, St Lucia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. It primarily holds a 100% interest in the Goudron Oilfield located in south-eastern Trinidad. The company was formerly known as LGO Energy plc and changed its name to Columbus Energy Resources plc in June 2017. Columbus Energy Resources plc was incorporated in 2006 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.

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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 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.
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 2021 Market data provided is at least 10-minutes delayed and hosted by Barchart Solutions. Information is provided 'as-is' and solely for informational purposes, not for trading purposes or advice, and is delayed. To see all exchange delays and terms of use please see disclaimer. Fundamental company data provided by Zacks Investment Research.
FTD Companies, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a floral and gifting company primarily in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Ireland. It operates through three segments: U.S. Consumer, Florist, and International. The company offers floral, specialty foods, gift, and related products and services to consumers, retail florists, and other retail locations and companies. It also markets and sells gift items, including gourmet-dipped berries and other specialty foods, personalized gifts, gift baskets, wine and champagne, jewelry, and spa products, as well as gourmet food products; and provides point-of-sale systems and related technology services to its floral network members, including traditional retail florists, and other retail locations offering floral and related products. In addition, the company offers products and services to its floral network members, such as services that enable its floral network members to send, receive, and deliver floral orders, as well as other companies; and fresh-cut flower arrangements, occasion-specific gifts and plants, stuffed bears, and chocolates. It offers its products under the FTD, Interflora, ProFlowers, Shari's Berries, Personal Creations, Flying Flowers, Gifts.com, ProPlants, and Mercury Man logo names. The company provides its products through its Websites, related mobile sites and applications, and various telephone numbers. The company was formerly known as UNOL Intermediate, Inc. FTD Companies, Inc. was founded in 1910 and is headquartered in Downers Grove, Illinois.

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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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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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American Electric Power Co., Inc. engages in the business of generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. It operates through the following segments: Vertically Integrated Utilities, Transmission & Distribution Utilities, AEP Transmission Holdco and Generation & Marketing. The Vertically Integrated Utilities segment engages in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity for sale to retail and wholesale customers through assets owned and operated by its subsidiaries. The Transmission & Distribution Utilities segment engages in the business of transmission and distribution of electricity for sale to retail and wholesale customers through assets owned and operated by its subsidiaries. The AEP Transmission Holdco segment engages in the development, construction and operation of transmission facilities through investments in its wholly-owned transmission subsidiaries and joint ventures. The Generation & Marketing segment engages in non-regulated generation and marketing, risk management and retail activities. The company was founded on December 20, 1906 and is headquartered in Columbus, OH.

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Suncor Energy Inc. operates as an integrated energy company. The company primarily focuses on developing petroleum resource basins in Canada's Athabasca oil sands; explores, acquires, develops, produces, transports, refines, and markets crude oil in Canada and internationally; markets petroleum and petrochemical products under the Petro-Canada name primarily in Canada. It operates in Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; Refining and Marketing; and Corporate and Eliminations segments. The Oil Sands segment recovers bitumen from mining and in situ operations, and upgrades it into refinery feedstock and diesel fuel, or blends the bitumen with diluent for direct sale to market. The Exploration and Production segment is involved in offshore operations off the east coast of Canada and in the North Sea; and operating onshore assets in Libya and Syria. The Refining and Marketing segment refines crude oil and intermediate feedstock into various petroleum and petrochemical products; and markets refined petroleum products to retail, commercial, and industrial customers through its other retail sellers. The Corporate and Eliminations segment operates four wind farm operations in Ontario and Western Canada. The company also markets and trades in crude oil, natural gas, byproducts, refined products, and power. The company was formerly known as Suncor Inc. and changed its name to Suncor Energy Inc. in April 1997. Suncor Energy Inc. was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

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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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Mandalay Resources Corporation, a natural resource company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, extraction, processing, and reclamation of various mineral properties. It explores for gold, silver, and antimony deposits. The company holds a 100% interest in the Costerfield gold-antimony mine covering an area of 7,540.78 hectares (ha) located in Central Victoria, Australia; and the Bjorkdal gold mine that comprises 9 mining concessions and 19 exploration permits located in Vasterbotten County in northern Sweden. It also holds a 100% interest in the Cerro Bayo silver-gold mine covering 29,495 ha of exploitation concessions and 45 hectares of exploration concessions located in the Cerro Bayo district, southern Chile. In addition, the company holds a 100% interest in the Challacollo silver-gold project, which includes 98 mining exploitation concessions covering an area of 20,378 ha located to the southeast of the port city of Iquique, Chile. Mandalay Resources Corporation was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

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Vermilion Energy Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of petroleum and natural gas in North America, Europe, and Australia. It owns 81% working interest in 642,300 net acres of developed land and 87% working interest in 376,700 net acres of undeveloped land, and 613 net producing natural gas wells and 3,034 net producing oil wells in Canada; and 96% working interest in 248,900 net acres of developed land and 91% working interest in 222,100 net acres of undeveloped land in the Aquitaine and Paris Basins, and 325 net producing oil wells and 3.0 net producing gas wells in France. The company also owns 49% working interest in 930,000 net acres of land and 51 net producing natural gas wells in the Netherlands; and 36,900 net developed acres and 965,900 net undeveloped acres of land, and 61 net producing oil wells and 8 net producing natural gas wells in Germany. In addition, it owns offshore Corrib natural gas field located to the northwest coast of Ireland; and 100% working interest in the Wandoo offshore oil field and related production assets that covers 59,600 acres located on Western Australia's northwest shelf. Further, the company holds 138,000 net acres of land in the Powder River basin, and 136.6 net producing oil wells in the United States; and 951,200 net acres of land in Hungary, 244,900 net acres of land in Slovakia, and 2.4 million net acres of land in Croatia. Vermilion Energy Inc. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Quaker Chemical: AC Products Inc., Applied Surface Concepts Holdings Ltd. , Binol AB, Binol Biosafe OY, Commonwealth Oil Corporation, DA Stuart India Private Limited, DA Stuart Shanghai Co, ECLI Products LLC, EFHCO LLC, Engineered Custom Lubricants, Engineered Custom Lubricants GmbH, Epmar Corporation, G.W. Smith and Sons, GH Holdings Inc., GHG Lubricants Holdings Limited, GHGL London Ltd., GHI Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Global Houghton Ltd., Houghton (Shanghai) Specialty Industrial Fluids Co. Ltd, Houghton Argentina S.A., Houghton Asia Pacific Co. Limited, Houghton Australia Pty. Ltd., Houghton Benelux BV, Houghton CZ s.r.o, Houghton Canada Inc., Houghton Denmark AS, Houghton Deutschland GmbH, Houghton Europe BV, Houghton Holdings Limited, Houghton Iberica S.A. , Houghton International, Houghton International Inc., Houghton Italia S.p.A., Houghton Japan Co. Ltd., Houghton Kimya Sanayi AS, Houghton Magyarorszag Kft, Houghton Mexico S.A. de C.V., Houghton Oil (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd., Houghton Polska Sp. Zo.o., Houghton Romania S.R.L., Houghton S.A.S., Houghton Sverige AB, Houghton Taiwan Co. Limited, Houghton Technical Corp., Houghton Ukraine ToV, Houghton do Brazil Ltda., Houghton plc, Internationale Metall Impragnier GmbH, Lubricor Inc, Lubricor Inc., Lubricor Mexicana S.A. de C.V., Lubricor USA Inc., MIH Acquisition Company LLC, MX Systems International Ltd, Maldaner GmbH, NP Coil Dexter Industries, New Houghton Brazil Inc., Norman Hay Engineering Ltd., QH Chemical Limited, QH Europe BV, QH Holdings Limited, QH International Limited, Quaker (Thailand) Ltd., Quaker Australia Holdings Pty. Limited, Quaker Chemical (Australasia) Pty. Limited, Quaker Chemical (China) Co. Ltd., Quaker Chemical B.V., Quaker Chemical CV, Quaker Chemical Canada Holdings Inc., Quaker Chemical Canada Limited, Quaker Chemical Europe B.V., Quaker Chemical Holdings South Africa (Pty) Limited, Quaker Chemical India Private Limited, Quaker Chemical Industria e Comercio Ltda., Quaker Chemical Investment Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Quaker Chemical Limited, Quaker Chemical MEA FZE, Quaker Chemical Operacoes Ltda., Quaker Chemical Participacoes Ltda., Quaker Chemical S.A., Quaker Chemical S.r.l., Quaker Chemical Services EURL, Quaker Chemical South Africa (Pty.) Limited, Quaker China Holdings B.V., Quaker Denmark ApS, Quaker Houghton (Finco) Ltd., Quaker Houghton Holdings Limited, Quaker Houghton Holdings Ltd., Quaker Houghton International LP, Quaker Houghton Ltd., Quaker International Holdings LLC, Quaker Italia S.r.l., Quaker Russia B.V., Quaker Sales Europe BV, Quaker Shanghai Trading Company Limited, Quaker Spain Holding SLU, Quaker Specialty Chemicals (UK) Limited, SB Decking Inc., SIFCO Applied Surface Concepts (UK) Ltd, SIFCO Applied Surface Concepts LLC, SIFCO Concepts Sarl, SIFCO Concepts Sweden, Sterr & Eder Industrieservice GmbH, Summit Lubricants Inc, Summit Lubricants Inc., Surface Technology (Coventry) Ltd, Surface Technology (Dalian) Co Ltd, Surface Technology (East Kilbride) Ltd., Surface Technology (Leeds) Ltd, Surface Technology Aberdeen Ltd, Surface Technology Australia, Surface Technology Holdings Ltd., TecniQuimia Mexicana, Tecniquimia Mexicana S.A. de C.V., Thai Houghton 1993 Co. Ltd., Ultraseal Asia Limited, Ultraseal Chongqing Limited, Ultraseal Germany GmbH, Ultraseal International Group Ltd, Ultraseal Machinery Dongguan Ltd, Ultraseal Shanghai Limited, Ultraseal USA Inc., Unitek Servicios De Asesoria Especializad S.A de C.V., Verkol S.A.U., Verkol SAU, Wallover Enterprises Inc., Wallover Oil Company Incorporated, Wallover Oil Hamilton Inc., and Wuhan Quaker Technology Co. Ltd.
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Orbital Sciences Corporation develops and manufactures rockets and space systems for commercial, military and civil government customers, including the United States Department of Defense (DoD), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), other Unites States Government agencies and commercial satellite operators. The Company operates in three segments, including launch vehicles, satellites and space systems, and advanced space programs. Launch Vehicles segment includes rockets that are used as space launch vehicles. Satellites and Space Systems segment satellites that are used to enable communications and broadcasting, conduct space-related scientific research, other deep-space exploration missions and demonstrate new space technologies. Advanced Space Programs segment includes human-rated space systems for Earth-orbit and deep-space exploration, and satellites used for national security space programs and to demonstrate new space technologies.

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Relations between Turkey and its Black Sea neighbor Romania have been carried to a new level during recent meetings, Turkeys ambassador to Bucharest said. In an exclusive interview with Anadolu Agency, Osman Koray Ertas said a trilateral meeting of Turkey-Romania-Poland foreign ministers was held on Tuesday in Bucharest. These security-oriented meetings between NATOs eastern flank countries are also relevant mechanisms for our countrys relations with the EU, said Ertas. Romania and Poland have traditionally supported Turkeys accession to the bloc, he added. Cavusoglu paid a visit Romania on Sept. 11 to participate in the fourth meeting of political-military consultations among the foreign ministers of Turkey, Romania and Poland. During the consultations, the three ministers have evaluated the results of the NATO Brussels Summit and exchanged views on the current security challenges in the Euro-Atlantic region. We see Romania, who is our neighbor over the Black Sea, as a friend, ally and strategic partner, said Ertas, adding that the military officials of the two countries are in close contact. Praising the 140-year relations between the two countries, Ertas worded Romanias support for Turkey in the fight against the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO). He said that Maarif schools were in the process of being opened in Romania in place of facilities run by the FETO terror group. Turkey established the Maarif Foundation in 2016 to take over the administration of overseas schools linked to FETO. FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the July 15 coup attempt, which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured. Ertas also said that the presence of over 15,000 Turkish firms in Romania and the $6 billion trade volume between the two countries display the level reached in bilateral ties. Efforts to reach the $10 billion trade goal continues, he added.
As colleges and universities in the United States resume classes, one thing is apparent: Support for socialism among youth and students is growing rapidly. Record social inequality, three decades of continuous US imperialist war, soaring levels of student debt, and attacks on democratic rights have not passed unnoticed by the new generation of college students.

Its like they are squeezing us young people, forcing us to join the military because we cant afford a home or find a decent job, one student told members of the International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE) at Northern Virginia Community College during a club fair day last week.

A Gallup poll taken last month found record numbers of people under the age of 30 viewing socialism more favorably than capitalism. Many incoming freshmen will have emerged from a traumatic high school experience, beset by poverty, lack of supplies and a social crisis involving endless school shootings.

The IYSSE found widespread interest in socialism among students and young people at college club fairs across the country. Students spoke on a wide range of issues they were confronting, including wealth inequality, history, opposition to war and militarism, and hostility to the two-party system.

Every injustice in the world can be boiled down to capitalism. Everything is controlled by money and profit, said Margarita, a microbiology major at San Diego State University.

Many students said that the election of President Donald Trump had shocked and spurred them into political action. For decades socialism has been considered a dirty word, but now more and more people support it, said another student at SDSU. I think Donald Trumps presidency has politicized a lot of people. I never became interested in politics until he got elected. Im glad theres an alternative here.

This sentiment was echoed across the country. In Manhattan, a New York University student, Justin, said, Trump is a fool. And its foolish that we are focused on bombing Syria. If we go to war it is just more money spent, and it will only create a continuous trend of war.

Despite the mass hostility to the Trump administration, students did not regard the Democratic Party or the US military-intelligence agencies as an alternative to the Republican president. Mohamed, a student at Northern Virginia Community College, called for the US to end all wars, saying that while the United States had the worlds largest military, it didnt do much good for anyone.

Another student, Rawan, whose family is from Libya, told an IYSSE member, Before the US invaded [Libya in 2011], things were good. You had something called a family passport, which got you a certain amount of food every month. Education was free for us, gas was cheap, then the United States came in.

It was bad, Rawan said, the US bombed buildings people lived in and destroyed many cities. Each time they bombed a building, theyd claim it was a military base. They werent. They took Libyas wealth. Its all about money. [Americans] taxes go into the military, not into fixing roads or things like that.

The hostility to the intelligence agencies was most pronounced at the University of Illinois at Chicago. IYSSE members, who have initiated a campaign against the school administrations new partnership with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), sought to raise awareness of the political implications of the CIAs presence at the school and have called for the agencys expulsion.

Many students were shocked to learn that the worlds largest spy agency will have a regular presence on campus. One student told the IYSSE that his family was from Nicaragua, where we have had many dictators because of the CIA. He was concerned that the partnership was agreed to behind students backs and said he wants more information. Students feared that the partnership would lead to the CIA spying and collecting intelligence on students.

The need to study and learn from history regularly came up with young people who showed interest in socialism. At the University of Michigan, students also had a chance to meet Niles Niemuth, the Socialist Equality Party candidate for Michigans 12th Congressional District.

Niles talked with Joel about the significance of the Russian Revolution, the fight for genuine socialism led by Leon Trotsky and the founding of the Fourth International, and their connection to the genuine socialism that Niles is fighting for in his campaign. Afterwards Joel told the IYSSE that, History is so important, and Im really glad you guys take it so seriously... I am interested in socialism and want to learn more.

Kate, another student at the University of Michigan, expressed her opposition to war: I am interested in socialism because capitalism is unsustainable. We produce as much as possible for profit. Imperialist war is messed up; its a tool for the few that destroys the lives of the many. I am not interested in establishment politics; the Democratic Party does not represent me.

One issue that frequently came up was the difference between the politics of the IYSSE and pseudo-left organizations like the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).

Ryan, a student at Western Michigan University, asked the IYSSE why he should join the IYSSE instead of the DSA. IYSSE members explained that the DSA operates as a section of the Democratic Party. Unlike the DSA, the IYSSE is internationalist, seeking to unite workers and youth across the globe in a mass movement for socialism. This means, above all, a sharp political break with the Democratic and Republican parties as well as the nationalist trade unions which work to contain mass opposition to their pro-business policies. Instead, the IYSSE calls for the building of an independent political party for the working class for the overthrow of capitalism and the creation of a workers state

ShiAjia, a Liberal Studies student at New York University, said, Politics is important for people to express our ideas, but capitalism creates a control Most people in power are for the rich and dont care about small communities.

Angel and Val stopped by the IYSSE table at Hunter College in New York City. Angel said, I think if we had socialism instead of capitalism we could get people off the streets and have free education. If there were no [social] classes, we could work together to make sure the rich dont keep getting richer. Wealth should be divided equally.

Andy is a Political Science Major at Western Michigan University. I actually was attracted to journalism because I think that the working class is bombarded by misinformation, he said. The working class is so busy working two jobs, like 70 hours a week, and then they get home and they dont have the time to necessarily find out whats really going on, or to read history.

The biggest piece of misinformation that I have ever heard, that was taught to me in schools my whole life, is that capitalism produces a balanced society. This is a complete lie. Look at what it actually does. I have a family member who got sick in old age, and the medicine and treatment were so expensive that at some point they had to start choosing between basic needs like food and paying for medication. That is capitalism.

When asked about the Democratic Party, he answered, I am totally disillusioned. They dont seem like they are doing what they should be. I just dont trust them.

Nicolas, a graduate student at University of Florida, said that the capitalist system is not sustainable for both social and environmental reasons. This isnt just a moral question but also a rational one. With the emergence of crisis after crisis, a system based on private profit just cant work.
The 18-member Pacific Islands Forum concluded its 49th annual meeting last Wednesday with the release of the Boe Declaration, named after the district in the island of Nauru where it was signed.

The forum was attended by Pacific island leaders as well as New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and delegations from the US and China. Australias recently-installed Prime Minister Scott Morrison did not attend. Fijis Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, a former coup leader, boycotted the event as he regularly does, asserting its proceedings are dominated by the two regional powers, Australia and New Zealand.

According to the official communique, the Boe Declaration expands the concept of security to include human security, environmental and resource security, as well as transnational crime and cybersecurity. While China is not explicitly mentioned, the enhanced regional security agreement signals deepening tensions between Washington and its local imperialist allies on the one hand, and Beijing on the other.

After one closed-door meeting, Nauru President Baron Waqa complained that a Chinese official had demanded to be heard when other leaders were due to speak. Maybe because he was from a big country he wanted to bully us, he said. Waqa later lashed out at Beijings arrogant presence in the region. Were seeing a lot of big countries coming in and sometimes buying their way through the Pacific, some are extremely aggressive, even to the point that they tread all over us, Waqa told the international media.

Significantly, Nauru is one of the few countries in the world that recognises Taiwan and therefore has no diplomatic relations with China. Most of the facilities to host the forum were built or upgraded with Taiwanese money. With a population of just 11,000, Nauru functions as an Australian semi-colony strategically situated adjacent to the US-controlled Marshall Islands, an American missile testing ground.

Australia and New Zealand have been seeking to reassert their dominant position and push back against Chinese diplomatic and financial presence. According to the Sydney-based Lowy Institute, China is set to overtake Australia as the la rgest aid donor to the Pacific. After funding a $US3.5 billion road project in Papua New Guinea, a former Australian colony, Beijing committed four times more in aid funding than Canberra in 2017.

Ardern described the Boe Declaration as recognising the Pacifics dynamic geopolitical environment, which is leading to an increasingly crowded and complex region. She emphasised: The prosperity of New Zealand is intrinsically linked to the security of our region, which is why this declaration is so important.

New Zealands Labour-led government has embarked on a Pacific reset, including a major boost to aid funding, now totalling $NZ1 billion. This is combined with military upgrades to integrate the country into US war preparations. NZ Foreign Minister Winston Peters has repeatedly warned that the Pacific is a contested space where Great Power rivalries are being played out. The US ambassador to Wellington, Scott Brown, recently lauded NZs support for Washingtons intensifying offensive against China.

Australia is to establish a new Pacific Fusion Centre in 2019 focused on strengthening the ability of Pacific governments to enforce their laws and protect their sovereignty, according to Payne. The centre will enable Pacific leaders to better respond to security threats, including illegal fishing, people smuggling and narcotics trafficking, she said. Canberra will also enhance strategic policy development in the region with a new Australia Pacific Security College.

The Boe Declaration highlighted climate change as the single greatest threat to the livelihoods, security and wellbeing of the peoples of the Pacific. Rising sea levels pose an existential threat for many low-lying islands, including Tuvalu, Kiribati and coastal areas of Fiji. The statement called on the US to return to the Paris climate agreement. President Trump formally announced Washington would withdraw from the agreement in August last year.

According to the Guardian, Australia was responsible for watering down the resolution. The final communique was endorsed by leaders with qualification. Asked at a press conference if those qualifications came from a country beginning with A, Enele Sopoaga, the prime minister of Tuvalu, confirmed that it was. Australia reportedly did not support calling on the US to return to the Paris agreement.

In fact, Pacific leaders felt betrayed by the 2015 Paris summit. They failed to persuade Canberra and Wellington to support their calls for measures to keep global temperature rises below 1.5 degrees centigrade, instead of the current agreed goal of 2 degrees. Pacific nations also want compensation for loss and damage, and recognition for climate change refugees.

Australia and New Zealand have adopted hypocritical positions on climate change. Their own measures have been criticised as weak and unambitious by academics and environmental groups, while Canberra recently abandoned proposed climate targets. Xavier Matsutaro, the climate change coordinator for Palau, told the Guardian that Australia was like an abusive spouse, providing aid to the region to deal with the effects of global warming but repeatedly undermining attempts to halt its progress.

Throughout the forum, Waqa sought to suppress discussion of the more than 600 refugees detained on the island by Canberras criminal offshore processing policy. Some of the 120 refugee children on Nauru have been evacuated because they are suffering from resignation syndrome, a medical condition in which they withdraw socially and stop eating and drinking.

Led by Amnesty International, 84 non-government organisations had signed an open letter calling on the forum to put the fate of the refugees at the top of its agenda. NZ Foreign Minister Peters retorted: Weve got 50,000 people who are homeless back home we have to help fix their lives up as well before we start taking on new obligations of the level that some people would like.

Ardern, who had initially expressed her intention to meet with refugees, failed to do so arguing she did not want to raise their expectations. New Zealands previous offer to accept 150 of the refugees has been flatly rejected by Canberra.

Waqa claimed that refugees are not an issue for other Pacific nations. He hit out at reports of mistreatment of refugees, posting on the governments Twitter account that the children were being manipulated into self-harm by some of their families (supported by activists) in a disgusting & tragic political game. Their end goal, he declared, was to make international headlines & get to Australia.

Over the last five years, Waqa has established a virtual dictatorship. Backed by Canberra, his government has deported and imprisoned opposition politicians, disciplined the police and judiciary, shut down social media web sites, and criminalised political dissent.

Australian Broadcasting Corporation journalists were banned from entering the country to cover the forum. Restrictions were placed on the number of visiting journalists and their ability to report on topics outside the official proceedings. Police detained NZ journalist Barbara Dreaver for three hours and revoked her media accreditation after she was seen interviewing a refugee outside a local restaurant.
ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports

We havent heard from Aaron Rodgers about the fact that he lied about being vaccinated and ultimately was outed as being unvaccinated. When we do, we may hear about his frustration with the process that culminated in his ruse being exposed. Per a league source (the same one who tried to tell me on October [more]
Khartoum (AFP) - At least 20 people have been killed in Sudan's war-torn Darfur region after a hill collapsed onto their village following heavy rain, a rebel group said Wednesday.

Several people are still feared to be buried after rocks crashed down onto their houses in the mountainous Jebel Marra region of Darfur on September 7, the group said.

The remote area is under the control of the rebel Sudan Liberation Army-Abdul Wahid (SLA-AW) group, and getting independent information is difficult.

"On September 7 a part of a hill collapsed on a village in eastern Jebel Marra killing at least 20 people," said Mohamed El-Naier, spokesman of SLA-AW.

"Dozens more are still buried under the debris. The entire village has been destroyed," he said, adding that those who survived were now living in the open without any shelter.

The death toll was confirmed by the shura council of the Fur tribe, the biggest in Darfur.

"We urge the United Nations, NGOs and the government to help us find those still missing and to provide shelter to people living in the open," said Amin Mahmud Osman, general secretary of the council, in a statement.

The region of Jebel Marra, a vast terrain of rocky mountains, has witnessed fresh fighting in recent months between the SLA-AW and government forces, although overall levels of violence remain low across Darfur.

Khartoum restricts international media access to Darfur, an area about the size of France, so it is not possible to independently verify details of fighting or disasters there.

An insurgency began in Darfur in 2003, as ethnic rebels rose up against Sudan's government, accusing it of marginalisation.

Khartoum responded by using militias to crack down on rebels and since then, insurgent groups have fragmented, with fighting punctuated by periods of relative calm.

The United Nations says that over the years the conflict has killed about 300,000 people and displaced more than 2.5 million, with many having set up home over the last decade and a half in sprawling semi-permanent camps.

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With the overall fall in violence in Darfur, a joint peacekeeping mission between the UN and the African Union, known as UNAMID, has been reducing its troops, which currently stand at about 8,700.

Plans are to cut them to 4,050 by June 2019, with mission itself terminated by the end of 2020.

Deployed in 2007, UNAMID once had 16,000 blue helmets on the ground tasked with protecting civilians in Darfurbut the UN Security Council last year agreed to a major drawdown.
John Venable

Security,

A former F-15C pilot said he beat his former fighter in mock dogfights.

What 31 Air Force Pilots Who Flew the F-35 Really Think

The gains and contracting lessons gleaned through concurrent development of the F-35A program are significant. The Pentagon needs to apply them to every major acquisition program for technology and systems that are susceptible to fielding obsolescence.

Air Force Gen. Herbert Hawk Carlisle, commander of Air Combat Command, this week declared the F-35A fighter jet ready for combat. While many pundits and politicians have questioned the worth of this jet, the only people who know the ground truth are the pilots themselves.

(This first appeared back in 2016.)

A total of 174 U.S. pilots currently have been trained to fly Lockheed Martins F-35A Lightning II. The Heritage Foundation interviewed 31 of these former F-15C, F-15E, F-16C, and A-10 pilots. Each expressed a high degree of confidence in the F-35A, their new fifth-generation platform.

Here are nine insights gleaned from those conversations:

1. Even with developmental restrictions that limit the F-35As responsiveness and ability to maneuver, every U.S. fighter pilot interviewed would pick the F-35A over his former jet in a majority of air-to-air (dogfight) engagement scenarios they could face.

2. A former F-15C instructor pilot said he consistently beat his former jet in mock dogfights.

3. A former F-16C instructorand graduate of the Air Force Weapons Instructor Course (Which is similar to the Navy's famed Top Gun school)said the jet is constrained on how tight it can turn (G-limited) now. But even so, the rudder-assisted turns are incredible and deliver a constant 28 degrees of turn a second. When the Air Force removes the restrictions, this jet will be eye watering.

4. Three former F-16CJ Wild Weasel instructor pilots, those tasked with attacking surface-to-air missile sites, said a single F-35A can find and attack SAM sites faster and more effectively than three F-16CJ fighters working together.

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5. The F-35As radar effectively can shut down enemy fighter and surface-to-air radars without those adversaries becoming aware they are being electronically attacked. Coupled with stealth, this jet is all but invisible to enemy radars.

6. A former A-10 instructor pilot said the situational awareness aids associated with the sensor suite of the F-35A allowed pilots to execute close air support missions as well or better than the A-10 in low-threat environments. The F-35A is the only multirole platform capable of conducting close air support in high-threat environments.

7. The research and development that went into the stealth skin of the F-35A removed the high-maintenance and sortie-limiting requirements associated with the radar-absorbing skin of the F-22, F117, or B-2. Stealth does not limit the F-35As ability to fly multiple combat or training sorties each day.

8. Bringing all the tactical sensors of the F-35A into a single display (sensor fusion) is still not optimized, and most pilots complained of ghosts or multiple displayed contacts for the same threat.

9. In full production, the F-35A is projected to cost less than the four-plus generation Eurofighter Typhoon, the French Rafale M, or the latest version of the F-15K Strike Eagle. It will outperform those jets and every other four-plus generation fighter in an air-to-surface role, and none of them would fare well against it in an air-to-air engagement.

Concurrent development of the F-35A certainly has had its challenges, and the risks for delays and cost overruns should have been factored into the acquisition process. They were not.

Component, sensor, and airframe development were (and still are) all happening at the same time, and even small changes in the weight, size, performance, and schedule of any component could affect the weight, size, performance, and schedule of the entire system.

Recommended: Air War: Stealth F-22 Raptor vs. F-14 Tomcat (That Iran Still Flies)

Recommended: A New Report Reveals Why There Won't Be Any 'New' F-22 Raptors

Recommended: How an Old F-15 Might Kill Russias New Stealth Fighter

The biggest single factor in keeping the program on time and under budget is effective, stable leadership. That leadership is now in place and the United States is on the precipice of delivering arguably the freshest, most advanced fighter technology ever fielded.

The gains and contracting lessons gleaned through concurrent development of the F-35A program are significant. The Pentagon needs to apply them to every major acquisition program for technology and systems that are susceptible to fielding obsolescence.

This piece first appeared in The Daily Signal here .

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Shanksville (United States) (AFP) - President Donald Trump paid tribute Tuesday to the "heroes" who fought back against hijackers on September 11, 2001, vowing he would do whatever it takes to keep America safe.

Under a gray sky in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, Trump praised the courage of the 40 men and women aboard Flight 93 who rushed the four hijackers who had seized control of the plane and diverted it towards Washington.

"The passengers and crew members came together, took a vote, and they decided to act," Trump said.

"They attacked the enemy. They fought until the very end. And they stopped the forces of terror and defeated this wicked, horrible evil plan."

He said the "brave patriots turned the tide on our nation's enemies and joined the immortal ranks of American heroes."

After calling their loved ones to say final farewells, many passengers aboard Flight 93 are believed to have charged the hijackers and prevented the plane from striking the US capital.

The plane crashed into a field in rural Shanksville, where a permanent memorial called the "Tower of Voices" has been erected.

"This memorial is now a message to the world. America will never, ever submit to tyranny," Trump said, noting that nearly 5.5 million Americans had joined the US military since 9/11.

"As commander-in-chief, I will always do everything in my power to prevent terrorists from striking American soil," he added, while also paying tribute to the nearly 7,000 US service members who have been killed "facing down the menace of radical Islamic terrorism."

A short while earlier in Trump's native New York, there was a minute's silence at 8:46 am (1246 GMT), the moment the first of two hijacked airliners struck the World Trade Center.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, the US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley and Mayor Bill de Blasio, together with his predecessors, Michael Bloomberg and Rudy Giuliani, were among those who attended.

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"It is not a day to give speeches, it is not a day to talk about politics. It's about the heart," said Alice Greenwald, director of the 9/11 Memorial Museum.

"We need to stand together, that's the only way we can deal with that kind of pain."

In what has become an annual tradition, relatives began reading out the long list of those who were killed, saying a few words about those who died, in a ceremony that takes longer than three hours.

- Deadliest ever attacks -

In all, four planes were hijacked by Al-Qaeda militants who used them to topple the trade center's twin towers and hit the Pentagon. Flight 93 was the fourth plane.

With 2,996 people killed and more than 6,000 injured, the attacks remain the deadliest ever on US soil.

They plunged the United States into a chain of rolling wars against Islamic jihadists.

At the Pentagon, a huge American flag was unfurled over the building's western side at sunrise, marking the spot where Flight 77 smashed into the military headquarters.

All 59 passengers and crew aboard the flight were killed, along with another 125 personnel working in the building.

During a ceremony at the Pentagon's 9/11 memorial site, where the names of the fallen are etched into a series of benches, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said those who died did not do so in vain.

"For in their passing they empowered us forever. And we remember that hatred, disguised in false religious garb to murder innocents, will not prevail," Mattis said.

In addition to those killed on September 11, thousands of first responders, construction workers and residents have since developed illness, many of them terminal, as a result of inhaling toxic fumes.
DURBAN, South Africa (Reuters) - Africa is not ready for next-generation 5G network but would likely be ready to embrace the super-fast technology in about five years from now, MTN's chief executive of said on Tuesday.

5G networks, now in the final testing stage, will rely on denser arrays of small antennas and the cloud to offer data speeds up to 50 or 100 times faster than current 4G networks and serve as critical infrastructure for a range of industries.

"This is the technology that would be used for very specific cases. It would not be a technology for everybody because most people don't need it, your phone works fine on just 3G," Rob Shuter told Reuters at a telecoms conference in Durban.

"You also need the equipment itself. So right now there's no 5G handsets and even the routers that can receive 5G network are very few and very expensive."

Many of MTN's users in emerging markets across Africa and the Middle East are still awaiting 4G and are likely to have to get by with 3G connections for years more.

"What we are doing now is to learn from the technology and get our network ready for it but I think 3G is much more relevant in most of our markets," he said.

Shuter declined to comment on his company's multibillion dollar dispute with Nigeria authorities because the matter is before a court in the west African country.

MTN operates in more than 20 frontier markets including war-ravaged Syria and Afghanistan, which account for a third of its annual core profit.

(Reporting by Tiisetso Motsoeneng; Editing by James Macharia)
By David Shepardson and Susan Heavey

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Six major Web companies and internet-service providers, including AT&T Inc, Twitter Inc and Alphabet Inc's Google, will detail their consumer data privacy practices to a U.S. Senate panel on Sept. 26, according to a congressional statement on Wednesday.

The Senate hearing will give the six technology-related companies, which also include Amazon.com Inc, Apple Inc and Charter Communications Inc, "an opportunity to explain their approaches to privacy," said U.S. Senator John Thune, the Republican chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee.

They will also testify on "how they plan to address new requirements from the European Union and California, and what Congress can do to promote clear privacy expectations without hurting innovation," Thune said.

Data privacy has become an increasingly important issue, fueled by massive breaches that have compromised the personal information of millions of U.S. internet and social media users, as well as breaches involving large retailers and credit reporting agency Equifax Inc.

Separately, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy said in a tweet late on Tuesday that Google "claims to be fair, but gave a 'silent donation' to a left-wing group to stop Trump" and "works w/ China/Russia to censor the internet, but canceled a contract with our military."

He noted Google declined to take part in a Senate Intelligence hearing last week that featured Twitter and Facebook. "Its time for @Google to answer some ?s An invite will be on its way," McCarthy wrote.

Google said in a statement on Wednesday that the "suggestion that Google's products or actions are politically biased is simply wrong." The company said it "will continue to ensure that our products and election efforts remain strictly non-partisan in nature."

The Internet Association, which represents more than 40 major internet and technology companies, said on Tuesday it backed modernizing U.S. data privacy rules but wants a national approach that would pre-empt new regulations in California that take effect in 2020.

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The witnesses at the Sept. 26 Senate hearing include Google's chief privacy officer, Twitter's global data protection officer and Apple's vice president for software technology.

The White House said in July it was working to develop consumer data privacy policies and officials have held more than 50 meetings with major firms and other groups as the Trump administration seeks to help the policies become enshrined in legislation eventually.

California Governor Jerry Brown signed data privacy legislation in June aimed at giving consumers more control over how companies collect and manage their personal information, although it was not as stringent as new rules in Europe.

Under the law, large companies would be required starting in 2020 to let consumers view the data they have collected on them, request deletion of data, and opt out of having the data sold to third parties.

The European Union General Data Protection Regulation took effect in May, replacing the bloc's patchwork of rules dating back to 1995. Breaking privacy laws can result in fines of up to 4 percent of global revenue or 20 million euros ($23.2 million), whichever is higher, as opposed to a few hundred thousand euros.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey and David Shepardson in Washington; Editing by Susan Thomas and Matthew Lewis)
This post has been updated with the results of Thursdays gubernatorial Democratic primary.

Subway delays in the nations largest city cost up to $389 million in lost productivity each year, according to the Office of the New York City Comptroller in October 2017, and city officials are increasingly sounding the alarm.

The problem has gotten worse since the comptroller data was collected in 2016. Naturally, transit dysfunction has become a central component of Thursdays gubernatorial primary vote in the city.

Our subway system is the backbone of our economy, New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer said in a statement to Yahoo Finance. That means with every delay, there arent just lives affected  theres an economic consequence.

Actor and New York gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon rides the subway following a campaign event in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, June 1, 2018. (Photo: Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

It was in a state of emergency long before

According to the State of the Subways Report Card for 2016 by the NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign, 16 subway lines worsened in terms of regularity in comparison to only four that improved.

In June 2017, Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency for the subways. He signed an executive order, pledging $1 billion for improvements. However, few improvements have been made since then.

Cynthia Nixon, who lost to Cuomo in Thursdays primary, made fixing the MTA one of her main campaign issues.

Subway delays in the nations largest city cost up to $389 million in lost productivity each year, according to the Office of the New York City Comptroller in October 2017, and city officials are increasingly sounding the alarm.

Frankly, it was in a state of emergency long before Gov. Cuomo finally declared it one, Nixons campaign told Yahoo Finance in an email. The statement cited declining subway performance, delays becoming increasingly worse, slow-moving trains and poor on-time performance.

Earlier this year, the Wall Street Journal reported that an overhaul of the citys subway and bus systems would take about 15 years and cost an estimated $43 billion.

Nixon says that she would tax the rich to fix the subway. Governor Cuomos office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

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Photo: Mark Lennihan/AP

The transit system is the lifeblood of the city

Marc Molinaro, the Republican nominee who will face Cuomo on Nov. 6, recently released an MTA revitalization plan. He told Yahoo Finance that if elected, he intends to make the subway system immediately respond to the people.

The transit system is the lifeblood of the city and is in a death spiral, both financially and structurally, Molinaro said. Its been in a rate of steady decline for about the last seven years.

Molinaro attributes the struggles of the MTA to the ineffectiveness of Gov. Cuomo. The governor hasnt provided the appropriate level of leadership, the candidate said. He allowed the misdirection of funds to projects that either have nothing to do with transit or have more to do with vanity.

But how does he plan to pay for the overhaul? Some of his suggestions include congestion pricing, an MTA commuter payroll tax and the use of value capture. Molinaro says he would also explore the feasibility of public-private partnerships and finding a way for state, federal and local governments to agree on contributing.

We need to get started, now

New York Citys subway on-time performance stands at 58.1%, according to figures for January of this year, in stark contrast to the Washington Metro system (85.7%), Chicagos CTA (95%), and Atlantas MARTA system (96.7%).

Graphic: Michael Calcagno/NYCSubway.org

According to the 2017 report, the 5 line was hit the hardest with Worst-Case Major Delays, costing $31.5 million in lost productivity (followed by the 7, A and F trains). The 5 line runs north to south from the Bronx, through Manhattan and into Brooklyn.

The longer we wait to tackle the fixes, the worse it will be, Nixon said. We need to get started, now. The Governor has yet to commit to a funding source for the needed fixes. A legislative session just passed without any action on the issue.

Subways are also New Yorks bloodline

Aside from a millionaires tax, Nixons plans for funding included a polluter fee, rebates for low-income drivers, charging private cars and trucks to drive in Manhattans Central Business District and giving drivers far from transit a break.

While Cuomo has tried to push the responsibility onto others, the governor of New York is legally in charge of the subways, Nixon said.

Nixon argues that a decline in subway performance can not only hurt the MTAs finances, but they can also increase street congestion and stall the citys economic success as it competes against global cities with better transportation networks.

Aretha is spray painted next to a sign at the Franklin Street subway station, in memory of singer Aretha Franklin, Aug. 16, 2018. (Photo: Lucas Jackson/Reuters)

Annual subway ridership has declined since the comptroller data was analyzed in 2016. It fell by 0.3% that year and by 1.7% in 2017. The cost is currently $2.75 per ride.

According to the New York Times, subway and bus revenue in the first part of this year was $54.8 million (or about 3%) less than projected in 2017. This is partially due to the fact that more people are turning to ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft.

From an economic perspective, subways are also New Yorks bloodline, Nixon said. When they dont function, the low-income residents get hurt worst of all.

This isnt a choice  its a must

The subways need to be fixed to improve both quality of life and New Yorks economy, according to the statement from Stringer, the New York City comptroller.

The L line  which runs from the west side of Manhattan to the east side of Brooklyn  will be closed for five years to repair damage caused by Superstorm Sandy in 2012. Stringer sees the L train shutdown, which begins in April 2019, as a necessity.

L train commuters work their way across a crowded subway platform in New York, May 2016. (Photo: Mark Lennihan/AP)

Repairing the subway system is absolutely essential to fixing our crisis, and its encouraging that the MTA is taking these repairs seriously, Stringer said. This is a challenge that did not start overnight and wont be fixed overnight.

He added: There isnt one New Yorker who doesnt think were in a crisis, and our analysis shows there is a lot at stake when the subway system decays. This isnt a choice  its a must. The future of this city and [the] fortunes of our economy are tightly linked to the functioning of our subway system.

Have a rant about the subway? Wed like to hear it. Email your thoughts to adriana.belmonte@oath.com.

Follow Adriana on Twitter.

Read more: Planes are ridiculously crowded these days, and a pilot explains why
As Hurricane Florence churns toward the East Coast with catastrophic power, the storm has become a reminder of how vulnerable North Carolina's coast is.

Vast amounts of new development now stand on the shifting sands of barrier islands there, amid the rising waters of climate change.

Except for a few short stretches, the state is flanked almost entirely by those islands, which are susceptible to flooding and storm surges. Climate change and development are only making matters worse. North Carolina's governor has ordered a mandatory evacuation for the barrier islands.

Here's a look at why North Carolina could be particularly hit hard and how climate change and development have made living on the coast even more risky.

WHY IS NORTH CAROLINA SO VULNERABLE?

North Carolina's coast is almost entirely made up of narrow, low-lying barrier islands. And a modern wave of tourist-driven development, including acres of pricey vacation homes, has been built in places where it probably should not have been.

The Outer Banks stretch along the northern half of the state's coast and jut out into the Atlantic. But barrier islands also flank much of the lower part of the state. These islands are particularly vulnerable to storm surges and to being washed over from both sides.

Development only makes the problem worse because communities replenish shorelines that are eroding or have been depleted by storms. As sea levels rise, barrier islands typically move toward the mainland over long periods of time. Holding them in place by artificial means only makes them more vulnerable.

"You look out there and you think the shoreline is a fixed line in the sand, and it's not," said Laura J. Moore, an associate professor of geology at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.

"The sea level is rising and the shoreline needs to move with it," she said. "By preventing islands from moving, we're ultimately leading to the diminishment and loss of the islands."

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WHAT COULD HAPPEN?

Florence could be the most destructive storm to hit North Carolina's coast since record keeping began, said Robert S. Young, director of the Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines, which is a joint venture between Duke University and Western Carolina University.

The storm surge could surpass the one wrought by Hurricane Hazel in 1954, which was 18 feet above median sea level when it hit Sunset Beach near the South Carolina border.

On the Outer Banks, new inlets could form while others are widened and deepened. The storm likely will blow water into the Pamlico and Albemarle sounds. As Florence churns back out, the wind could blow that water back over the Outer Banks.

"We will once again kiss Highway 12 goodbye," Orrin H. Pilkey, a professor emeritus of geology at Duke University, said of the Outer Banks' main highway.

Much of the mainland in eastern North Carolina is also likely to flood from heavy rains because the terrain is so flat and the water table is so high.

But the damage likely won't be as catastrophic as Hurricane Sandy was when it hit New Jersey or other storms that have struck far more developed areas in places like Florida.

"It's not a worst-case scenario for property damage," said Young. "Many of these communities have tried to limit development. But there's still a lot of property value there. The damage still might be catastrophic on a North Carolina scale."

WHAT ROLE DOES CLIMATE CHANGE PLAY?

Climate change is making a bad situation worse.

Warmer waters increase the size and intensity of hurricanes. The storm season is longer. As sea levels rise, shorelines become more vulnerable. Water tables are higher, making coastal areas more susceptible to flooding.

"A storm like this would have been massively destructive 100 years ago, even before we had that century of rising sea levels," Young said. "And it will be significantly greater 100 years from now depending on what sea-level rise does."

Pilkey, of Duke University, said he hopes Florence offers people more motivation to retreat from North Carolina's barrier islands.

"Sooner or later we need to get out of there," he said. "We'll retreat now in a planned fashion. Or we'll retreat later in response to a catastrophe like the one that's about to happen."

For the latest on Hurricane Florence, visit www.apnews.com/tag/Hurricanes .
Rocket launches are usually thrilling to watch anyway, but it's particularly cool watching them from a satellite.

Over the weekend, Chinese private spaceflight company OneSpace launched its OS-X1 rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in the Gobi Desert.

SEE ALSO: SpaceX nails another rocket landing on its droneship

The suborbital test is the second time the company has sent a rocket to space, and its liftoff was captured by the Jilin-1 video satellite.

The footage from space was originally posted on Weibo, and was reposted on Twitter by Dafeng Cao.

And here's what the launch looked like from the ground.

OneSpace launched its first rocket back in May  the first privately developed rocket in China.

While the Chinese government has traditionally directed spaceflight in the country, since 2014 it's encouraged private companies to enter the sector. A host of companies like LinkSpace, LandSpace, and of course, OneSpace, are hoping to make their mark.

OneSpace founder Shu Chang told state media that he expects 10 missions for carrier rockets in 2019, aiming for the company to be "one of the biggest small-satellite launchers in the world."
Senate candidates Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat, and Martha McSally, a Republican, as the two are depicted in a McSally campaign ad.

A pink tutu has become the focus of a critical race for a U.S. Senate seat in Arizona.

Since Martha McSally won the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate seat in Arizona at the end of August, she has charged out of the gate with a clear attack on Democrat Kyrsten Sinema.

McSally, an Air Force veteran who was the first woman to fly a fighter jet in combat, aired a TV commercial that touted her own military service after the 9/11 attacks and mocked Sinema for taking part in an anti-war protest while wearing a pink skirt that McSally referred to as a ballet garment.

While we were in harms way in uniform, Kyrsten Sinema was protesting us in a pink tutu and denigrating our service, McSally said in the ad, which has been knocked by fact checkers as misleading.

Sinema, a 42-year-old congresswoman, is running as an independent-minded centrist and rarely mentions that she is a Democrat. McSally, a 52-year old congresswoman, is intent on reminding Arizona voters of Sinemas hard left past. Sinema, who has been in Congress since 2013, was an anti-war and Green party activist nearly 20 years ago but is now a moderate centrist Democrat who touts her willingness to work with Republicans.

The two women are competing to fill the seat vacated by Sen. Jeff Flake, a Republican who is retiring after his criticism of President Trump caused his popularity in Arizona to plummet.

The race, which Democrats badly need to win to have any chance of retaking control of the Senate, poses questions such as, Is there any place in American politics for a happy warrior? Or has the politics of rage and tribalism subsumed everything else?

Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., volunteers at a food pantry in Phoenix in August. (Photo: Matt York/AP)

Sinema is attempting to run a positive campaign and has an authentic story of going from hard left partisan warrior to a bipartisan centrist. McSally, a congresswoman since 2015, has gone negative and dramatically shifted from being moderate on immigration and critical of Trump, to being an enthusiastic supporter of the president. She now takes a hard line in favor of a border wall and against citizenship for minors brought to the United States by undocumented immigrant parents.

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If McSally wins, it will demonstrate that Republican voters in red states remain more interested in voting for figures who dig in against the Democrats and double down on Trumpism. If Sinema prevails, it will be because of a huge anti-Trump wave, but it will also signal that voters still want to see politicians work with the other side.

McSally is betting that a Trump-style campaign is the way to win. Yet her attacks on Sinema open the Republican up to questions about her own evolution as a politician.

In the summer of 2016, McSally criticized Trump for his derogatory comments about women, his personal attacks on Khizr Khan, the father of a U.S. Army officer killed in Iraq, and his attack on a federal judges Mexican heritage. She called his comments on the Access Hollywood tape disgusting. And McSally declined to endorse Trump and would not say if she voted for him after the election.

On immigration, McSally voted a few times to resolve the fate of children of undocumented immigrants, known as Dreamers, and at one time she supported the Recognizing Americas Children Act, which would have provided a path to citizenship for Dreamers.

Rep. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., speaks with ranchers near Arizonas border with Mexico in August. (Photo: Matt York/AP)

Mot long after Flake announced his retirement in late October 2017, McSally was asked to run for his seat by party leaders who did not have confidence that Kelli Ward, a state senator, or Joe Arpaio, a former sheriff who was convicted in a racial profiling case and then pardoned by Trump, could win a general election if either gained the Republican nomination.

As McSally negotiated with the White House to secure Trumps endorsement, she began to take a harder line, co-sponsoring the Securing Americas Future Act, which did not provide a path to citizenship and was more focused on money for a border wall. McSally secured Trumps endorsement and has since stressed that her voting record is 97 percent supportive of the president.

I have a great relationship with him, McSally said of Trump on Fox and Friends recently.

If allegiance to Trump is the main thing that matters to most Arizona voters, this could work for McSally. And theres fresh evidence it is working. During the primary, when Sinema did not have a serious challenger in the primary and McSally was fighting two other Republicans for the nomination, Sinema led McSally in head-to-head polling by as much as 11 points.

But the first poll of the fall, conducted last week, showed the race to be a dead heat, with McSally up by one point.

Sinema has so far not responded directly to McSallys attacks about her past, and she has been knocked in the press for avoiding questions from reporters.

But Sinema may not be able to avoid talking about her evolution from working for Ralph Naders presidential campaign in 2000 to now hailing herself as willing to work with Republicans. The irony is that she has a convincing story to tell.

Nearly a decade ago, in fact, Sinema wrote an entire book explaining her shift away from hard-line politics to centrism. Titled Unite and Conquer, its a bracing criticism of her own tribe, and a call to look for ways to fight for unity, to work with those who are different, and to find the humanity in ones political opponents.

Progressives love to talk about coalitions, but were not very good at creating or maintaining them, Sinema wrote.

She blamed the lefts shortcomings on an obsession with victimhood and called on her side to reject identity politics, years before one wing of liberalism did so after the 2016 election.

Kyrsten Sinema with Rep. Trey Hollingsworth, R-Ind., before a House Financial Services Committee hearing in June. (Photo: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

Sinema was elected to the Arizona legislature in 2004, and in her book she told the story of realizing after her first two years that instead of being a bomb thrower, she wanted to help solve problems by working with others.

A person who chooses to be a bomb thrower in the legislature is choosing to remove himself or herself from the work of the body: negotiating on bills, working to find compromises, and sometimes teaming up with unusual allies to promote or kill legislation, Sinema wrote.

Her first two years  her time as a bomb thrower  were a miserable experience for her. It didnt fit me, she wrote. I do love to give fiery speeches. But I also love people. I love talking with people, working together, and making friends.

The book recounts Sinemas attempts to work with Republicans in Arizona, and she counsels her fellow progressives to move away from a focus on specific outcomes and toward a quest to find common values with others that will help them solve problems together.

I dont mean that we should all of a sudden abandon our principles and adopt moral relativism. I just mean that we should consider the idea that perhaps people with views different from our own came about those ideas honestly and that those ideas arent inherently evil, she wrote.

Robert Robb, a columnist for the Arizona Republic since 1999, believes Sinema has lived up to that ideal since she published the book in 2009.

I think her willingness to not make politics a hindrance to working with others was well on exhibit in the Arizona legislature and in Congress. I think thats sincere, Robb said. I have described her as a practitioner of cheerful politics, one of the very few in the state or the country.

But nonetheless, Robb said that McSallys pink tutu ad was one of the most effective political ads hed ever seen.

Martha McSally, center, in a January 2018 meeting about immigration between President Trump and Republican and Democratic members of Congress. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Robb said that Sinema has so far focused on her biography as a former Mormon whose family fell on hard times during her youth, including a spell in which they were homeless. She is running positive biography ads in which she argues she is focused on solutions for all Arizonans. She has not wanted to talk that much about her political past so far, he said.

Its something that shes not shown an appetite for, Robb said, but he added that this might be a political miscalculation. Sinema is going to need a very high turnout by independents and a very large share of them. So it may be that that narrative would appeal to that important voting bloc and shes just overlooking an opportunity.

McSally, with her move from moderate to Trump cheerleader, is doing what all career politicians do to one degree or another: adapting to their political environment. But because shes had less time to do it, its been clumsy, to the point that some Republican operatives worry shes overdone it.

Whether that matters to Arizona voters is an open question.

____

Read more from Yahoo News:
Rochelle Garza represented the plaintiff in the only case involving abortion that Brett Kavanaugh has ruled on as a federal judge. Now shes worried how he would handle the issue as a Supreme Court justice.

In 2017, Garza was appointed the guardian ad litem for Jane Doe, the pseudonym used in court for a 17-year-old woman who sued the federal government after she was denied access to an abortion while in federal custody for illegally crossing the border.

Under Texas law, minors need the permission of a parent or guardian, but Doe stated that she had fled domestic violence involving her parents, who were still in Mexico. Even after a state judge said she could bypass the parental requirement, the Office of Refugee Resettlement under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services refused to let her leave its custody to get the abortion.

The case then went to U.S. District Court, where Kavanaugh argued that Does abortion could be delayed until she could be placed under the care of a sponsor on multiple occasions, writing that unlawful immigrant minors should not be permitted to seek an abortion on demand in his final dissenting opinion.

Based off this case and his decision-making in this particular case, Garza told TIME, it appears to me that no burden is too high on a woman to exercise her right to get an abortion.

Last week, Garza shared Does story with the Senate Judiciary Committee, testifying against Kavanaughs confirmation. She argued that Kavanaugh compounded the suffering that Doe experienced, showing no real consideration for Jane or her circumstances.

During testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, he said he understands the importance of the precedent set forth in Roe v. Wade as a general proposition.

But his limited rulings on the issue have left abortion rights supporters reading closely the few details they have.

Some criticized him over a reference in the hearings to some contraceptives as abortion-inducing drugs  a reference to a case involving a religious group which claimed that FDA-approved contraceptives were abortifacients . He was also criticized after emails were released from his days in the Bush White House in which he said that not all legal scholars would agree that Roe is the settled law of the land at the Supreme Court, although Kavanaughs defenders noted that he was merely describing the opinions of the sitting justices.

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But for Garza, the facts of the Doe case speak for themselves.

In her testimony, Garza said that Doe was repeatedly pressured to call her mother and tell her she was pregnant by employees of the government-run facility where she was held.

This continued, according to Garzas testimony, even after Jane disclosed that her parents had beaten her pregnant older sister with firewood and cables to the point that her sister miscarried.

Garza said Jane Doe was taken to a religious-affiliated crisis pregnancy center, prayed over and asked what she would name her unborn child.

Were talking about a young person that escaped persecution in their home country  from their own family  and fled here. She didnt speak the language, was in detention and had no one really to stand up for her, Garza told TIME. And yet, she was unwavering in her decision.

Garza was with Jane Doe when she finally received the abortion she had requested almost a month prior.

I saw the agony she went through while waiting to have the procedure, and the relief she experienced when she finally got the care she needed, she told the committee. She was alone and completely under the physical control of the federal government and at the mercy of decision-makers that knew nothing of what it was like to be her.
BERLIN (AP)  Austria's government says Turkey should provide details about the arrest of Austrian journalist Max Zirngast or set him free.

Chancellor Sebastian Kurz told reporters in Vienna on Wednesday that "we expect Turkey to immediately explain what the journalist is being accused of, and if that's not possible, to release him immediately."

Zirngast was detained along with other people in the Turkish capital, Ankara, on Tuesday.

Swiss-based left-wing magazine re:volt said Zirngast, a contributor, hasn't been officially charged yet but that "Max is doing well under the circumstances." Zirngast has written about Turkey's conflict with the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK.

Austria's foreign ministry said diplomats are providing consular support to Zirngast.
VIENNA (Reuters) - Turkish authorities have arrested an Austrian journalist and activist on suspicion of a terrorism-related offense, the leftwing website where he works said on Tuesday. Re:volt, which describes itself as a "radical left-wing" online magazine, said Max Zirngast had been arrested at his apartment in the Turkish capital Ankara on Tuesday morning. "We condemn this arrest in the strongest terms of course and call for his immediate release," Re:volt said by email, confirming a statement on the arrest from rights group Reporters Without Borders. "Our writer, who has lived in Turkey for many years, is a passionate leftist activist and author who campaigns for freedom and democracy," the German-language publication added. Zirngast is also a student of political science in his late 20s, Re:volt said. It added that it believed the allegation against him was membership of a terrorist organization. Turkish officials were not immediately available for comment on the matter. The Austrian Foreign Ministry said an Austrian citizen had been arrested in Ankara on Tuesday but declined to provide further details on data protection grounds. Ties between Turkey and many European Union countries have been strained by a wave of arrests made as part of a security crackdown by President Tayyip Erdogan following a failed military coup in July 2016. Foreign journalists have been among those arrested, including German-Turkish reporter Deniz Yucel, who was held for a year on alleged security-related offences and released in February. Austria has been particularly critical of Turkey's crackdown. Conservative Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, who governs in coalition with the far right, has called for Turkey's EU accession talks to be broken off, though both countries have recently sought to mend relations. Re:volt's website features an article by Zirngast and others calling Turkey's elections in June "illegitimate". A European rights watchdog said at the time that the opposition had faced unequal conditions, adding that restrictions on media freedom to cover the elections were accentuated by a state of emergency. (Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Gareth Jones)




From Gedde Watanabes Long Duk Dong in Sixteen Candles to Lucy Luis Dragon Lady Ling Woo in Ally McBeal, Asian identity on screen has often played up to Western stereotypes.

These stereotypes present Asian people more as caricatures rather than truly representative characters, and Mr. Chow from The Hangover franchise has been accused of that though the actor who played him says that was exactly the point.

Ken Jeong, who plays Goh Wye Mun in Crazy Rich Asians, helped create the character and says the intention was always to send up these historically exaggerated Asian roles.

Mr. Chow is a meta-joke on the stereotype where youre actually making fun of it, Jeong explained to Yahoo Movies UK. Youre playing something so hard where usually the Asian is very passive.

Mr Chow seems like an Asian stereotype and Ken Jeong says thats exactly the point

Ive never done a live-action role in an accent since The Hangover because youre just going so hard that you cant even top it.

For this film, he dupes the audience into thinking that he is going down the Mr. Chow route when really hes nodding to the ridiculousness of that character, and Asian stereotypes, again.

In retrospect with Crazy Rich Asian doing the accent youve got the audience going, is this Mr. Chow?, and then youre going on and talking without an accent, the actor added. I didnt know if it would make it in the film, you know we thought it would be in the gag reel but [its a] testament to John Chu, he really just kept all our improv in it.

Crazy Rich Asians has been celebrated for its diverse representation of Asian and Asian-American culture but there has also been some backlash over Awkwafinas performance.

Ken Jeong and Awkwafina as Goh Wye Mun and Goh Peik Lin in Crazy Rich Asians

The Asian-American rapper-turned-actress from Queens, New York, plays Goh Peik Lin the best friend of the films lead protagonist Rachel (Constance Wu) but some people have accused her of appropriating black culture for the characterisation.

Writer Muqing M. Zhang says Awkwafinas role is a minstrel-esque performance of the sassy Black sidekick caricature, complete with the actress speaking in forced African American Vernacular English (AAVE), and a number of black female cultural critics have agreed.

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Though some have defended her, like Akilah Hughes who pointed towards her multicultural upbringing in Queens.

Im calling BS on this thread. Awkwafina is from Queens and grew up around black people her whole life. Is Eddie Huang just profiting off blackness too? It just doesnt hold up. https://t.co/9RRCIrHAaI  Akilah Hughes (@AkilahObviously) August 16, 2018

Yahoo Movies UK spoke with Awkwafina at the UK press junket for Crazy Rich Asians to gauge her response to both the criticism and support.

I dont really take the stance where Im just like well you know Im from this [place], Awkwafina said.

I welcome that conversation because as an Asian-American identity were still trying to figure out what that is, so I welcome the conversation.

Crazy Rich Asians is in cinemas this Friday

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Benidorm (Credit: ITV)

Derren Litten, the creator of ITV comedy series Benidorm, took a strip off channel bosses after the show won Best Comedy at the TV Choice Awards, it has emerged.

The show, which followed the lives of those living in and visiting the popular Spanish resort, was axed in July, after 10 series.

But Litten seemed to warn of a possible outburst ahead of the awards ceremony. He tweeted: Hola from the tv Choice awards. P***** already. Hope we dont win because I dont know my own name right now.

And indeed, once he took to the stage to pick up the Best Comedy gong, he let rip, saying: This is a bit awkward  the shows just been cancelled.

I have huge respect for ITV  a show thats getting 5.5million and still picking up awards, but theyve cancelled it. That takes balls.

He went on to say that picking up the award was a bit like being sacked from your job and then being nominated for employee of the month.

The show, which first aired in 2007, featured a host of famous stars, including Steve Pemberton, Johnny Vegas, Margi Clarke, Sheridan Smith, Tim Healy, Cilla Black, Denise Welch and Joan Collins.

A touring stage show of the series, Benidorm Live, began earlier this month.

Meanwhile, it was announced in 2016 that Fox in the US was adapting its own version of the show, called The Big Package and to be set in Mexico, though it is yet to materialise.

Litten is currently working on a new series called Scarborough for the BBC, set in a karaoke bar in the seaside town.

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Bernie Sanders' son struggles as Pappas wins New Hampshire primary originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

Chris Pappas was projected to win Tuesday night's Democratic primary for the 1st Congressional District, according to The Associated Press, besting the son of a marquee name in the party, in order to go up against GOP winner Eddie Edwards in November.

The congressional primary featured a crowded field of 11 Democratic candidates, including Levi Sanders, the son of 2016 presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.

PHOTO: In this Sept. 5, 2018 file photo, Chris Pappas participates in a debate of Democratic hopefuls in New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District at St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H. (AP)

On the Republican side, state Sen. Andy Sanborn conceded to Edwards in a five-person field Tuesday night. Edwards, a former police chief, was endorsed by President Donald Trump.

"I am so humbled that so many people were motivated to help me on this campaign; that means so much to me," Edwards said in his victory speech.

In the state's governor race, the Associated Press has projected that Democrat Molly Kelly has won the New Hampshire primary race and will face Republican Gov. Chris Sununu in November.

When Sanders announced his run in New Hampshires 1st Congressional District, a lot of people thought one major endorsement would be imminent -- from his father, the 2016 presidential candidate.

However, as of Aug. 31, Sanders father still had not endorsed him, according to a Facebook post on his campaign page.

My father doesn't believe in nepotism so I may not have his official endorsement, but I am humbled to have his support, the younger Sanders wrote on the campaign page.

In a statement to the The Boston Globe in June, Bernie Sanders said, Levi has spent his life in service to low-income and working families, and I am very proud of all that he has done, he said.

In our family, however, we do not believe in dynastic politics," the statement continued. "Levi is running his own campaign in his own way.

Since the younger Sanders announced his run at the end of February, the campaign has leveled off.

Story continues

PHOTO: Levi Sanders prior to a debate for Democratic hopefuls in New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District at the Institute of Politics at St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., Sept. 5, 2018. (Charles Krupa/AP)

Leveled off would be a generous statement to describe Levis campaign, Dante Scala, professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire, told ABC News. I would be surprised if he finishes in the top half of the field [of 11].

More: 18 for '18: Midterm races that could reshape Washington and the country

More:Bernie Sanders' son announces run for Congress from New Hampshire

Scala attributes the lull in the campaign to several factors. He said Sanders apparently never received access to Bernies mailing list, he raised little money and does not live in the first congressional district.

Additionally, Scala said, Sanders became notorious for complaining about how the NH Democratic Party was treating him.

As of Aug. 22, Sanders had raised $39,270.48, according to the FEC filing site. By comparison, fellow Democratic candidate Chris Pappas had raised over $820,000, as of the same date.

PHOTO: Levi Sanders, right, shares a laugh with Maura Sullivan following a debate for Democratic hopefuls in New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District at the Institute of Politics at St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H., Sept. 5, 2018. (Charles Krupa/AP)

Sanders placed sixth in a poll by Saint Anselm Colleges New Hampshire Institute of Politics, trailing behind Pappas by more than 40 percent.

Scala told ABC News earlier this summer that Sanders best day on the campaign trail was his first.

So far, the best day of Sanderss campaign was the first day," he said. "The Sanders name doesnt do him a lot of good without his dads fundraising network to fund him. And he lives far outside the district, and that hurts as one might expect."

"Activists here have high standards for campaigns, he said.

The Sanders campaign did not return ABC News' request for comment.
Consumer Reports has no financial relationship with advertisers on this site.

Consumer Reports has no financial relationship with advertisers on this site.

When you need to power your entire house during an outage, you have two options: a home standby generator or a portable model. If you lose power often, you might opt for a standby generator, also called a stationary generator. The unit itself can cost thousands, with an installation bill to match.

But if you live in an area where outages are infrequent or where the lights often come back on in a few hours, youll save thousands by going with a portable generator. These units keep costs down and pack plenty of power to run most of the essentials in your home. Provided, that is, you're willing to pull the unit out of the garage during an outage and exert a little effort when it comes to storing gasoline for an emergency and refueling the generator when you need it.

Portable generators really hit the sweet spot with price and performance, says Dave Trezza, who oversees Consumer Reports' generator tests. Theyll power mostif not allof what you need during a storm, and you can be all-in for under $2,000, including the semipermanent installation.

Unlike a home standby generator, a portable model will work right out of the box, meaning you can add gas and oil, fire it up, and plug in the equipment you want to power. But to get the most out of it, youll want to hire an electricianwell before an outageto install a transfer switch, a device that allows you to connect your generator to your homes circuit breaker panel.

That preparatory step means you can power entire circuits rather than using extension cords to plug in equipment and devices one at a time. It also means that you can run hardwired equipment, such as a water heater or well pump.

The only drawback to portable models? They typically max out at about 7,500 watts, meaning you can power, say, a gas furnace but not an electric range and dryer at the same time, like a home standby unit can. And because they run on gasoline (some burning close to a gallon an hour at peak capacity), youll need to keep a lot of gas on hand, stored with fuel stabilizer mixed in, to sustain you through a prolonged outage. You'll also need a model-specific canopy in order to run your generator during inclement weather.

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Check out our generator buying guide to learn more about portable vs. standby models, as well as large inverter ones, a more fuel-efficient variant of portable generators that we rate separately because their increased efficiency puts them in their own class. CR members can access our full generator ratings.

New Portable Generator Safety Features

From 2005 to 2017 more than 900 people died of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning while using portable generators, according to data from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

To reduce the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning, some new generators feature a built-in sensor that triggers an automatic shutoff if CO builds up to dangerous levels in an enclosed space, and some also have engines that emit less CO in the first place. Recent test data from CR shows that these safety features will likely save lives.

Consumer Reports now only recommends portable generators that pass our new CO Safety Technology test.

But our findings also reveal potentially life-threatening gaps that the automatic shutoff fails to address, reinforcing why its critical for consumers to follow safety guidelines. Never operate a generator indoors. Position a portable generator at least 20 feet from your home with the exhaust directed away from your it, as well as any windows, doors, AC units, or other structures.

How to Run a Generator Safely

3 Top Portable Generators

CR recently tested five new portable generators with an automatic shutoff, and all five passed our new CO Safety Technology test, shutting down before carbon monoxide built up to specified levels in our enclosed space. Three models also did well enough in our performance tests to earn a CR recommendation.

CR members with digital access can read on for ratings and reviews of the only three portable generators that blend enhanced safety and superb performance.

Generator Tips

Damaging storms can happen at any time. On the "Consumer 101" TV show, host Jack Rico learns from Consumer Reports expert, Paul Hope, how to avoid being left in the dark during a power outage.





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Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit organization that works side by side with consumers to create a fairer, safer, and healthier world. CR does not endorse products or services, and does not accept advertising. Copyright  2019, Consumer Reports, Inc.
The boy died after falling from a wall at the King Harold pub in Romford (Google)

A seven-year-old boy has died after falling from a wall at a pub in Romford, police have confirmed.

Emergency services were called to the King Harold pub in Station Road, Harold Wood, at around 5.20pm on Tuesday.

The boy, who has not yet been named, was found with serious injuries and taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead an hour later.

#Romford

7 year old boy dies after falling from a wall by a pub

Police confirmed they were called to The King Harold pub in Station Road shortly after 5.20pm on to a report of a child who had fallen from a wall.Officers & LAS attended and a boy was found with serious injuries pic.twitter.com/NFGatLWZUy  London 999 Feed (@999London) September 11, 2018

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: Officers and paramedics attended and a seven-year-old boy was found with serious injuries.

He was taken to an east London hospital where he was pronounced dead at 6.33pm.

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His next of kin have been informed.

The death is currently being treated as unexplained. A post-mortem examination will be held in due course.

The Health and Safety Executive has been informed.
Brett Kavanaugh testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 6. (Photo: Alex Brandon/AP)

WASHINGTON  Watching Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, legal analyst Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza noticed something curious: In his exchanges with Democratic legislators, Kavanaugh seemed incapable of mentioning Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 abortion decision, without also mentioning Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the lesser known but equally important 1992 ruling on how individual states could (and could not) regulate abortion.

Asked, for example, by Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the committees ranking Democratic member, how he viewed a womans right to choose to terminate a pregnancy, Kavanaugh made a point of quickly turning from Roe to Casey, which he called precedent upon precedent.

Kavanaugh cited Casey again when questioned later that day by Dick Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, about his dissent in Garza v. Hargan, the case of a 17-year-old undocumented immigrant seeking an abortion in Texas. In his only abortion-related opinion, Kavanaugh wrote that the young woman needed to find an immigration sponsor in order to fulfill a parental consent requirement, despite that requirement having been waived by a lower court judge.

Precedent is not like a cafeteria, Kavanaugh said when questioned about that dissent, which appeared to have improved his standing with the conservative groups that have largely guided Trumps judicial appointments. And those appointments have proceeded apace even as other aspects of Trumps agenda have faltered.

Buckwalter-Poza, who successfully sued President Trump for blocking Twitter users, seized on this exchange, which she identified as key to Kavanaughs strategically unclear views on reproductive rights. Contra Kavanaughs claim he cant offer any hints or forecasts, his fondness for bringing up Casey does just that, wrote Buckwalter-Poza, who obtained her law degree from Yale and provides legal analysis to the Daily Kos, a liberal political site. If Kavanaughs confirmed, states will have free rein to eliminate abortion access via increasingly draconian laws.

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Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., questions Brett Kavanaugh on Sept. 6. (Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Kavanaugh testified for two days, becoming entangled in heated exchanges with Sens. Pat Leahy of Vermont and Kamala Harris of California, both of whom routinely called his credibility into question. But his comments on Casey may offer the clearest sign yet of how Kavanaugh would actually rule in an abortion case. And one is bound to come before the Supreme Court, with 14 abortion-related cases now in appellate court, according to Helene Krasnoff, vice president for public policy litigation and law at Planned Parenthood. Any one of them could end up in Kavanaughs docket.

Kavanaughs comments on Casey strongly suggest that, as a Supreme Court justice, he would move to allow states to place onerous restrictions on abortion, restrictions that could come close to outlawing the procedure altogether.

In his testimony, Kavanaugh said that Casey reaffirmed Roe v. Wade. In the narrowest sense, that is true: A Supreme Court stocked with Nixon and Reagan appointees could have overturned Roe, but didnt. Among those who did want to overturn Roe, and who dissented from the pro-Roe portion of Casey, was William Rehnquist, the conservative chief justice whom Kavanaugh has praised as stemming the general tide of freewheeling judicial creation of unenumerated rights that were not rooted in the nations history and tradition.

But despite its narrow affirmation of Roe, the Casey ruling also gave states enormous latitude by creating the notion of undue burden. Crucially, the justices wrote that while the woman has a right to choose to terminate or continue her pregnancy before viability, it does not at all follow that the State is prohibited from taking steps to ensure that this choice is thoughtful and informed. As long as the restriction placed by a state on abortion was not deemed by the courts to impose an undue burden on a womans ability to choose to have an abortion, that restriction was not forbidden by Roe. And of the several burdens presented in Casey, only one  spousal notification  was deemed undue, while state regulations requiring informed consent, parental consent and waiting periods were not.

Demonstrators gathered outside the Supreme Court in April 1992 as the court heard arguments over a restrictive Pennsylvania abortion statute. (Photo: Greg Gibson/AP)

As one abortion rights activist lamented at the time, The justices have blown a hole in Roe big enough to drive a Mack truck through. Casey and the state law that followed in its wake led to six states with only a single abortion clinic.

The deferral to states rights, not the upholding of Roe, makes Casey attractive to conservative jurists like Kavanaugh. References to the case, of the kind the nominee made last week in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee, are widely seen as a kind of coded assurance to conservative supporters. Those supporters openly expect Kavanaugh to curtail abortion rights, even as his opponents continue to make their case against him.

Judge Kavanaughs views on womens reproductive rights are crystal clear, Sen. Feinstein told Yahoo News. There arent any restrictions he would consider too burdensome to violate Supreme Court precedent related to womens reproductive freedom. Those views came into especially stark relief when Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., defied protocol and released a confidential email from 2003 in which Kavanaugh wrote, I am not sure that all legal scholars refer to Roe as the settled law of the land at the Supreme Court level since Court can always overrule its precedent.

But even without that email, Kavanaughs repeated allusions to Casey make clear what he truly believes. He is showing us exactly what he believes, abortion rights activist Erin Matson wrote on Twitter. For Kavanaugh, she said, Casey is the key to blocking access to abortion.

Those beliefs are not outside the American mainstream: 29 percent of Americans want abortion made illegal. At issue is not whether Kavanaugh holds that belief, but whether he has stated his beliefs honestly and completely. He  and his detractors  are acutely aware that in order to gain confirmation from the full Senate, he must win over two pro-abortion-rights Republicans, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. And although he has assured both that Roe is settled law, his views on Casey call into question the candor of such assurances.

Kavanaughs views on Casey are critically important because they could pave the way for him to curtail access to abortion without explicitly overturning Roe, says Nan Aron of Alliance for Justice, a nonprofit that advocates for a liberal judiciary. His record shows that he has an expansive interpretation of precedents, like Casey, that allow states to restrict abortions in many ways as long as they stop short of an undue burden.

Attorney Rochelle Garza, center, who helped an undocumented teenage girl fight for an abortion in Texas, testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 7, the final day of Brett Kavanaughs confirmation hearing. (Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

An indication of how Kavanaugh could use Casey to smother Roe is evident in his dissent in Garza v. Hargan, the case of the Texas teenager. Kavanaugh was the only member of a three-justice D.C. Circuit Court panel to argue against granting the 17-year-old immigrant in question access to abortion. He described her as seeking an abortion on demand, an intentionally incendiary phrase deployed by anti-abortion groups. More importantly, he ruled that the young woman be ordered to find an immigration sponsor, an imposition beyond all the requirements she had already met. Kavanaugh said it was his duty to apply the precedents and principles articulated in Supreme Court decisions.

His argument was obviously intended to placate anti-abortion groups who were then preparing to recommend a replacement for Anthony Kennedy, who was rumored to be on the cusp of retiring. The majority on the court easily dispensed with Kavanaughs meager reasoning, noting that having the young woman spend weeks searching for an immigration sponsor was the very definition of an undue burden.

But if he were to join the Supreme Court, Kavanaugh would become part of a five-justice conservative majority that shares his views on Casey. Those convictions were most recently made clear in dissents by Samuel Alito (appointed by George W. Bush) and Clarence Thomas (a George H.W. Bush nominee) in Whole Womans Health v. Hellerstedt, a 2016 involving new restrictions on abortion access Texas was seeking to impose. Thomas, in particular, returned to Casey as a standard from which the Supreme Court had deviated by preventing Texas from instituting new burdens on receiving an abortion.

Neil Gorsuch, Trumps first Supreme Court appointee, had not yet been seated at the time of the Whole Womans Health decision, and his precise views on abortion are not entirely certain. However, he is widely expected to to share in the conservative interpretation of Casey, which sees the decision as allowing new burdens, as long as justification for those burdens can be provided.

Brett Kavanaugh prepares to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 6. (Photo: Alex Brandon/AP)

Precedent, then, takes on a whole new meaning, as a way to eviscerate Roe, not protect it. An aide to a Democratic member of the Senate Judiciary Committee described Kavanaughs appeal to precedent as disingenuous. Precedent, after all, is nothing more than a decided case, and Kavanaughs favorable view of Casey suggests that he is content with piling new, restrictive decisions upon Roe until the landmark decision is finally suffocated. The more anti-abortion precedent there is, the weaker the Roe precedent will become.

On this, anti-abortion activists agree. One of them, the Rev. Frank Pavone, wrote in an op-ed for the conservative outlet LifeSiteNews, Precedents dont last forever. Precedents can be wrong. He predicted that with Kavanaugh on the court, Roe would go the way of other discarded lies, such as racial segregation.

The irony of the Kavanaugh hearings is that, despite his incessant evasions, his views are remarkably clear. There is no question of how he would vote on abortion, says Amanda Thayer, a spokesperson for NARAL Pro-Choice America. On this, she and Pavone might agree, even if they agree on little else. The question now is whether Kavanaugh will get the chance.

____

Read more from Yahoo News:
Israeli kids play next to an Israeli flag next to the Israeli Syrian border at the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, Israel July 23, 2018. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

Lawrence J. Haas

Security, Middle East

Is the Middle East ready?

If Britain Opts for Corbyn, Then the New Prime Minister Will Clash with Trump Over Israel

The signs of breakdown in the liberal international order are mounting, and theyre coming from disparate directions: Washington battles its closest allies on trade, Beijing and Moscow come together more closely militarily in an anti-U.S. alliance, and Beijing seeks to make its territorial expansion a fait accompli in the Pacific.

But the liberal order is as much about values as about alliances and power plays. In that sense, the most striking recent manifestation of its breakdown involves Washington and Londonlong-standing partners in the special relationshipand their point of contention is, of all things, Israel.

At the moment, the United States is upending decades of conventional wisdom about how to approach the Middle East peace process by aligning itself more tightly with its ally in Jerusalem. Great Britain, meanwhile, faces the prospect that, under Jeremy Corbyn, its Labour Party will seize power and bring an ugly anti-Zionismrooted in an undeniable anti-Semitismto 10 Downing Street and the halls of Parliament.

That would put Washington and London, which (with a few notable exceptions) have cooperated for decades on global matters, on a collision course over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and larger Arab-Israeli peacereflecting a clash of values and a decline in esprit de corps across the Western alliance.

The Trump administration announced this week that it will close the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) office in Washington, and administration officials tied the move to the Palestinian Authoritys refusal to negotiate seriously with Israel and to its threats to take the Jewish state to the International Criminal Court over its settlement policy and recent violent clashes along its border with Gaza.

That move comes in the wake of President Donald Trumps decisions to move the American embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, to cut hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. bilateral aid to the Palestinians, and to end U.S. funding of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA)which has provided huge sums to Palestinian refugees over the years while, critics say, vastly exaggerating the number of such refugees and nourishing anti-Israeli sentiment among them.

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Those steps, in turn, reflect the Presidents decision to upend the longstanding U.S. assumption behind Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking: that Washington must position itself as an honest broker between Israels government and the Palestinian Authority, which runs the West Bank. While moving closer to Jerusalem, Washington is pushing the Palestinian Authority to denounce anti-Israeli terror in unimpeachable terms, recognize Israel as a Jewish state, and negotiate accordingly.

Though U.S. failure on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict may justify a course correction, Trumps unilateral change of direction is creating another chasm between Washington and its European allies. That chasm will grow far wider, however, if Corbyns Labour Party capitalizes on growing discontent with Prime Minister Theresa May and seizes power from her Conservative Party.

Even when hes seeking to tamp down widespread concerns over the anti-Semitism that he exudes and that pervades his party, Corbyn finds new ways to confirm his deep hostility to Israel and Jews. (That hostility has prompted an astonishing two-fifths of Britains Jews to say that they would seriously consider leaving the country if Labour takes over.)

When, for instance, the Labour Partys National Executive Committee last week adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliances definition of anti-Semitism, Corbyn couldnt help but convince the committee also to approve a statement declaring that it shouldnt be regarded as anti-Semitic to describe Israel, its policies or the circumstances around its foundation as racist.

For Labours leader, thats par for a very long course. Among his more notorious acts toward Jews and Israel, he has referred to the Jew-hating genocidal terrorists of Hezbollah and Hamas as his friends; called Britains labeling of Hamas as a terrorist organization a big, big historical mistake, laid a wreath at the grave of a Palestinian terrorist involved with the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics, consorted with Holocaust deniers, and defended an anti-Semitic mural.

Corbyns views about Jews and Israel reflect his broader pro-socialist, anti-colonial mindset. He has praised Hugo Chavez, Venezuelas socialist strongman who paved the way for its current chaos, remembered Cubas Fidel Castro as champion of social justice, praised Libyas Muammar el-Qaddafi on his achievements, appeared on the state-run TV of Irans anti-U.S. mullahcracy, opposed Britains decision to help end genocide in the Balkans, and complained when America killed Osama bin Laden.

If Britain opts for Corbyn, he and Trump will clash mightily over Israel, further shaking the global order.

Lawrence J. Haas, senior fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council, is the author of, most recently, Harry and Arthur: Truman, Vandenberg, and the Partnership That Created the Free World.

Image: Israeli kids play next to an Israeli flag next to the Israeli Syrian border at the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, Israel July 23, 2018. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

Read full article
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP)  Former President George W. Bush is quietly helping boost Republican candidates in places where President Donald Trump has struggled. In so doing, the former two-term president is raising his profile, ever so slightly, in the national politics he eschewed for years.

On Wednesday, Bush held an event in Fort Worth, Texas, for Republican Rep. Will Hurd in a congressional district Trump lost in 2016. On Friday, Bush is set to appear in Florida, which Trump narrowly won, on behalf of Gov. Rick Scott in the state's expensive Senate race.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who will also attend the Scott event, said in an email that his brother "is helping Senate candidates across the country."

These events are a focal part of Bush's re-emergence in national politics ahead before the Nov. 6 election that will help determine control of Congress.

Another former president, Barack Obama, also has come off the political sidelines for the upcoming midterms.

Both parties have much at stake. Democrats want to capitalize on Trump unpopularity and gain the 23 seats they need to regain a majority in the House and launch investigations of the administration and, potentially, impeachment hearings.

Republicans are increasingly concerned about their ability to fend off Democrats aiming to retake the Senate and win complete control of Congress.

The presence of Trump looms large over the elections. He has pledged to campaign as many days as possible to help Republicans defend their majorities, including in Texas, where Republican Sen. Ted Cruz is defending his seat against a strong challenge from Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke.

The president has demonstrated that with one tweet, he can sway the fortunes of Republicans who dare cross him. For Republican candidates in places where voters don't love Trump, that puts them in uncomfortable positions.

So Bush is stepping in, officials in Washington, Florida and Texas said. Doing so could help with voters such as independents and women who want Congress to stay in Republican hands.

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Florida's GOP chairman, Blaise Ingoglia, said Bush will be a "plus" for Scott's bid to defeat the Democratic incumbent, Bill Nelson.

Marc Short, Trump's former legislative director and now a senior fellow at the Miller Center at the University of Virginia, said Bush and Trump "have more overlap than is often reported." Both, for example, are fans of Brett Kavanaugh, Trump's Supreme Court nominee whom Bush first put on the federal bench.

Short said Bush's time away from politics heightens his appeal.

"I'm not going to attempt to gloss over the differences" between Trump and Bush, Short said in a telephone interview Wednesday. "I think that there's enormous respect for President Bush and the class act that he's always been. I think he has significant appeal among not just donors but also voters."

It's not Bush's first move back toward national politics.

Bush re-emerged with a message that echoed with politics at the Sept. 1 funeral of Arizona Sen. John McCain in Washington. The late senator had asked Bush and Obama to give eulogies.

Trump wasn't invited to the service and his name was rarely mentioned in the speeches, but collectively the ceremony was seen as a rebuke by official Washington of his divisive approach to the presidency.

"John's voice will always come as a whisper over our shoulder: We are better than this. America is better than this," Bush said from the pulpit of Washington National Cathedral.

The Bush family has long had a complicated relationship with Trump.

During the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, Trump said Jeb Bush was "low energy" and argued that George W. Bush had failed to keep the nation safe after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Trump didn't attend the funeral this year of Barbara Bush, the wife and mother of former presidents. First lady Melania Trump attended.

Both Hurd and Scott have tried to distance themselves from Trump.

A former CIA agent, Hurd criticized Trump in a New York Times op-ed in July after the president's deferential news conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin after their meeting in Helsinki. Trump, Hurd wrote, was guilty of a "failure to defend the United States intelligence community's unanimous conclusions" that Russia meddled in the 2016 election.

"His standing idle on the world stage while a Russian dictator spouted lies confused many but should concern all Americans," Hurd wrote. "By playing into Vladimir Putin's hands, the leader of the free world actively participated in a Russian disinformation campaign that legitimized Russian denial and weakened the credibility of the United States to both our friends and foes abroad."

Trump urged Scott to run against Nelson, but Scott has publicly kept his distance from the president. In April, Scott skipped a Trump discussion of the tax-cut package in South Florida, heading out of state to raise money for his Senate campaign instead.

In late July, Scott traveled on Air Force One with the president when he visited Florida. But the governor skipped Trump's campaign rally held in Tampa, opting instead to hold a fundraiser in nearby Clearwater.

The governor split with Trump over the administration's policy of separating families at the border but did not sharply criticize the president. Instead, he sent a letter to federal authorities calling for an immediate end to the policy and demanded that state officials be told about children brought into Florida.

___

Kellman reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Jamie Stengle in Dallas contributed to this report.

___

This story has been corrected to reflect that Rick Scott, who is running for the U.S. Senate, is still Florida's governor.
Bangui (Central African Republic) (AFP) - Six humanitarian groups working in the north of the troubled Central African Republic on Wednesday halted operations to protest violent attacks against their personnel.

Baptise Hanquart of the charities' umbrella organisation CCO said 32 incidents had been recorded, including 21 since June, in the market town of Kaga Bandoro alone.

Seven staff have been killed across the impoverished former French colony -- one of the most dangerous for aid workers in the world -- since the start of the year, according to the International NGO Safety Organisation (INSO).

Aid organisations present a "financial opportunity for armed groups", Hanquart said, while vowing they would not "abandon their commitment to the people" of the Central African Republic.

Hanquart described Wednesday's work stoppage -- also observed in other towns -- as a "day of indignation in the face of all that the people and the NGOs suffer."

The local UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said that since the end of June thefts, break-ins and lootings have surged in many towns including Kaga Bandoro.

One of the world's poorest countries, the CAR plunged into a religious-tinged conflict in 2013 when a mainly Muslim rebel alliance, the Seleka, overthrew the majority-Christian country's president, Francois Bozize.

France intervened to help remove the Seleka, and the following year the United Nations deployed a large military force on a peacekeeping and stabilisation mission.

However, the country remains violent and unstable. Most of its territory is in the hands of militia groups, many of them claiming to protect Muslims or Christians and fighting over resources.
Valparaiso (Chile) (AFP) - Lawmakers in Chile on Wednesday passed legislation allowing people as young as 14 to legally change their name and gender identity.

The Chamber of Deputies passed the Gender Identity Law by a vote of 95-46.

It allows people aged 18 and above to change their name and legal gender, while those aged over 14 can do so with the permission of a parent or legal guardian.

The Senate had passed the bill last month, so Wednesday's vote brought an end to a five-year battle in the deeply conservative South American country.

The hotly debated legislation had come close to passing several times, but the issue came to a head earlier this year in the final months of former president Michelle Bachelet's term.

"We are witnessing a historic event which we celebrate with great emotion and joy," said Alvaro Troncoso, head of the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation (Movilh).

"It will improve the quality of life of thousands of people whose dignity and rights have been denigrated simply by the prejudices that exist against their gender identification."

Activists had argued that not allowing people to register legally under the gender they most strongly identified with was a form of discrimination and had caused a variety of social, psychological and legal problems.

"Right now, for the Chilean state, I do not exist," transgender activist Alessia Injoque told AFP shortly before the law was passed.

"Right now there is someone called Alejandro who is not me."

She said the new law would "grant me legal recognition of my existence: recognizing my identity is recognizing a segment of the population that has been ignored and whose identity has been denied."

A survey conducted by Movilh in August of 326 people who identified as transgender revealed that 76 percent of respondents reported having been discriminated against because of their gender identification, limiting their options to find work.

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When the new law comes into effect, single people aged 18 or over will be able to legally change their name and gender by filling out a form at the civil registry office, while married people can do so at a family court.

Young adults aged 14 to 18 will need the consent of at least one parent or guardian to change their gender identity at a family court. If they do not have that, they can ask a judge to intervene.

Attempts to apply the law to those under the age of 14 ran afoul of opposition from conservative lawmakers
Hanoi (AFP) - China warned Wednesday that protectionism threatens global growth and cautioned "individual countries" against isolationism, in a veiled reference to the deepening trade spat between Washington and Beijing that is being closely watched across Asia.

The comments from China's vice premier come as the world's top two economic powers edged closer to an all-out trade war after imposing tit-for-tat tariffs on billions of dollars of imports.

Tensions between the UN and China were heightened last week when US President Donald Trump threatened to hit all China's exports to the US worth more than $500 billion as he doubles down on the "America First" agenda he says aims to protect jobs and industries from overseas competition.

But without directly naming Trump or the United States, Vice Premier Hu Chunhua warned against countries going it alone and upending the globalised trading system.

"Some individual countries' protectionist and unilateral measures are gravely undermining the rules-based multilateral trading regime, posing a most serious hazard to the world economy," Hu said at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Hanoi.

"Self-isolation will lead nowhere and only openness for all represents the right way forward," he added.

The trade row has dominated discussions at the WEF where Southeast Asian leaders have made the case for fewer trade barriers as America retreats from the region under Trump, who has decried trade deficits in the region.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) "is working with like-minded partners to strengthen the rules-based international system," Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said.

"It underpins growth and stability, but is under pressure."

The trade tussle between Washington and Beijing is being closely watched across Southeast Asia where some export-focused economies may be set to gain from the fallout.

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Rising labour costs in China have already precipitated a push into countries such as Vietnam and Cambodia, where Adidas shoes, H&M T-shirts and Samsung phones are made on the cheap.

But the trade rumble has accelerated that process, with several Chinese firms turning to the region to produce items from bike parts to mattresses in a bid to avoid US tariffs.

"ASEAN countries don't want to count their chickens before they hatch," Fred Burke, managing partner at Baker McKenzie in Vietnam, told AFP.

"But I think they see it on a net basis as a gain for them because it means shifting manufacturing into Southeast Asia that was... (earlier) in China."

- Protectionist woes -

Although there could be a short-term boon to Southeast Asia, some analysts warn the long-term may be less rosy.

The region is "very export-driven... so any shift toward more trade barriers... is not good", Rajiv Biswas, Asia-Pacific chief economist at IHS Markit, told AFP.

ASEAN trade increased by a value of nearly $1 trillion between 2007 and 2014 and the bloc had a collective GDP of $2.76 trillion last year after an enthusiastic embrace of trade liberalisation -- a marked contrast to Trump's policies.

In one of his first post-election moves, the US president pulled out of the sprawling 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), calling the trade pact a job killer.

The current edition of the WEF, which closes Thursday, is officially focused on how economies should adapt to so-called "disruptive technologies" such as automation and artificial intelligence that threaten to cull jobs in emerging economies.

Several regional leaders have joined the forum, including Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Cambodia's newly re-elected strongman Prime Minister Hun Sen and Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Suu Kyi is under intense global scrutiny over the Rohingya crisis and is scheduled to speak at the forum Thursday.

Last week the International Criminal Court ruled it has jurisdiction to investigate the forced deportation of 700,000 Rohingya Muslims by Myanmar's military as a possible crime against humanity.

Myanmar has also faced international censure over the decision to jail two Reuters journalists for seven years under a draconian state secrets law for their coverage of a Rohingya massacre.
Fan Bingbing (Credit: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)

Concerns are mounting over Chinese actress Fan Bingbing, who has apparently not been seen in public for months.

The 36-year-old actress is known in the west for her role as the mutant Blink in X-Men: Days of Future Past, but has a career spanning 20 years in China and is the countrys highest-paid actress.

There are now rumours that she has fallen foul of the Chinese authorities, and may even have been arrested and detained for tax evasion.

One story from Chinese state-run publication Securities Daily, which went viral on Chinese social media, reported that she had been placed under control by authorities, and was willing to accept the legal decision, however the story was later retracted.

But The Hollywood Reporter has also cited rumours from a Hong Kong tabloid that she has fled the regime in China, and is now seeking asylum in the US, having been spotted at an immigration office in Los Angeles.

Fan Bingbing as Blink in X-Men: Days of Future Past (Credit: Fox)

That report went on to suggest that she was following advice given to her by martial arts legend Jackie Chan, though his reps denied any involvement as nonsense.

It follows news that the star was recently ranked last in the 2017-2018 China Film and Television Star Social Responsibility Report, an official report authored by academics at Beijing Normal University, which judged celebrities on professional work, charitable actions and personal integrity.

She was said have scored 0% in the report.

Over the summer, Bingbing was also under fire for allegedly taking part in the practice of yin-yang contracting, essentially the falsification of contracts to hide real earnings from tax authorities.

Leaked documents in China suggested that she had earned around $1.5 million for working on a forthcoming Chinese movie, but in fact had earned nearly $8 million.

According to THR, Reps for the actress denied the accusations strenuously, and were reportedly seeking legal advice on potentially pressing charges for slander.

Bingbing is reportedly set to appear in an upcoming US thriller called 355 with Jessica Chastain, Lupita Nyongo and Penelope Cruz.

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Chris Pratt and Katherine Schwarzenegger (Prattznegger, if you prefer) just checked off one of the most dreaded relationship milestones: meeting the family.

The two have been dating for some time now  a lunch date in Santa Barbara here, a church outing with Chris Pratts son there  and now the actor is introducing her to the extended Pratt brood with a wine-fueled weekend getaway.

The Guardians of the Galaxy star and the 28-year-old daughter of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver spent Saturday at Round Pond Estate Winery in Rutherford, California, with the actors brother, Cully Pratt.

The pair has already logged some quality couple time by joining Shriver for a meal in August, but this is the first weve seen of the two spending time with his side of the family.

So thankful for time shared with my family & friends! On Saturday, we had a great (much needed) day-cation get away, wine tasting, Cully Pratt captioned a handful of photos on Instagram.

The social media account for the winery, which also shared a few photos of the actors family at the venue, would also like us to know that the couple is every bit as warm and hilarious as youd think.

After touring the vineyard for the day, the group attended a gala to support the Christian youth charity My Leaven later that night. Chris Pratt wore a classic charcoal suit, while Schwarzenegger glammed it up in a black number with shimmering floral accents.

Chris Pratt and Anna Faris pictured during their last public appearance as a couple.

Schwarzenegger is the first woman Chris Pratt has been linked to since August 2017 when he split from his estranged wife Anna Faris after eight years of marriage. The two share a 5-year-old son, Jack.

Anna and I are sad to announce we are legally separating, the joint statement announcing their separation read. We tried hard for a long time, and were really disappointed.

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While both have since moved onto new relationships, theyve kept things friendly in the year since announcing their break up. The former couple spent two consecutive days together in Santa Monica, California, just last month with their son.

Faris has been dating cinematographer Michael Barrett since October 2017.
Eurosceptic Conservative MPs have denied they are plotting to oust Theresa May as Prime Minister.

A fresh threat to her leadership emerged last night after a group of Tory Brexiteers spent an hour openly discussing how to get rid of Mrs May over her handling of Brexit.

Around 50 MPs were reported to have discussed ways and means of getting rid of May at a gathering of the pro-Brexit European Research Group (ERG).

A number of MPs told how they had already submitted letters of no confidence in the Prime Minister to Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee, and others discussed plans to follow suit.

But leading members of the group have since dismissed the idea they are plotting the PMs demise.

ERG chairman Jacob Rees Mogg, who was not present at last nights meeting, insisted he was seeking a change to the Governments Brexit policy rather than a change in leadership.

I have long said, and repeated again and again, that the policy needs to be changed but I am supporting the person, he said.

Tory Brexiteers are reportedly plotting to oust Theresa May (Getty)

Steve Baker, a leading figure in ERG, insisted this morning that the group was not pushing for the PM to be replaced, saying that anyone calling for her to be ousted was speaking for themselves.

MP Michael Fabricant, who attended the meeting, said that reports of a plot to unseat Mrs May were greatly exaggerated.

I attended the ERG last night.

Reports of @theresa_may's demise are greatly exaggerated.

Of the 40-50 there, only 5-6 people discussed letters to the Chairman of the 1922 and they wrote ages ago.

The rest of us sat in uncomfortable silence.

Though most are unhappy with #Chequers  Michael Fabricant (@Mike_Fabricant) September 12, 2018

Environment secretary Michael Gove, who has spoken out in support of the PMs Chequers blueprint, dismissed the plot as loose talk.

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The PM has faced attacks from her own party ever since she announced her Chequers proposals, which angered Tories fighting for a hard Brexit.

If 48 letters are handed over to the 1922 committee a vote of no confidence would be triggered.

MORE: People in wealthy areas of England have 19 years more healthy life than those in poorest areas

MORE: Westminster Bridge terror attack victim Kurt Cochran had only been in London two and a half hours

How a Conservative leadership election works

What happens if enough letters of no confidence are handed in?

Mrs May would need the support of more than 50% of Conservative MPs  currently 159  in the confidence vote to stay in office. Candidates for the leadership must be nominated by two Conservative MPs. If only one candidate comes forward, he or she becomes leader. If a number of would-be leaders are nominated, the list is whittled down to a shortlist of two by MPs. The final two then go to a postal ballot of all party members, with the position of leader, and Prime Minister, going to the victor.

What would happen if Mrs May wins?

She can stay on as leader, however a narrow victory could seriously undermine her authority and may lead her to question whether it was right to carry on.

What if she loses?

If the PM lost the vote she would not be able to stand in the subsequent leadership contest, meaning a new leader  and Prime Minister  would be elected.
Bogota (AFP) - Colombia's ELN rebels Wednesday freed six people they kidnapped in August, a government precondition for returning to peace talks, the International Committee of the Red Cross said.

"Today in Choco, we were with the humanitarian commission that facilitated the release of the six people who had been held by the ELN since August. We are pleased that they will be able to meet with their families soon," the group said on Twitter.

Choco is a "department" or province in the country's west.

The group -- three policemen, a soldier and two civilian contractors abducted by the guerrillas August 3 -- were handed over to a humanitarian commission made up of the Ombudsman, the ICRC and the Roman Catholic Church.

The humanitarian operation took place "amid a strong military operation" said Uriel, commander of the Omar Gomez Western War Front, who had the hostages in his custody.

"At all times we gave the detainees the best possible treatment in these conditions," the rebel leader said in a statement.

President Ivan Duque said: "I am glad that there are people who are returned to their homes today after having suffered the opprobrious tragedy of being kidnapped."

But he maintained that in order to resume the talks that the rebels must free all the people in their power and suspend "all criminal activities."

"If we do not start there, what we end up with is validating violence as a measure of access to negotiation with the state. That is a historical mistake that has been made in Colombia," Duque stressed.

The government says the ELN kidnapped 18 people between 2012 and September 2018 -- minus these six freed and three more released last week. At least nine remain.

Duque, which took office on August 7 with the promise of toughening conditions on the negotiations, also wants the ELN to stop criminal actions to resume peace talks.

The ELN is Colombia's last guerrilla force. The larger FARC -- Revolutionary Armed forces of Colombia -- has disarmed and become a political party.

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"The Colombian government continues to express a desire for peace, but with concrete actions and not rhetoric," Miguel Ceballos, High Commissioner for Peace, said on Monday.

The rebels, who have some 1,500 combatants and an extensive support network, oppose the conditions.

The talks are aimed at ending half a century of armed conflict. A final peace deal with the ELN would end the last armed conflict in Latin America. It has left more than eight million victims -- either dead, disappeared or displaced.
Prague (AFP) - Czech leaders on Wednesday endorsed a "first step" towards moving the country's embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, following a similar move by the US administration earlier this year.

In a joint statement, the Czech president, prime minister, parliament speaker, and foreign and defence ministers said the opening of a "Czech House" in Jerusalem in November would be "the first step in the plan to move the Czech embassy to Jerusalem."

Jiri Ovcacek, spokesman for pro-Israeli President Milos Zeman, told AFP that the Czech House would host government institutions including the foreign ministry's Czech Centre, the trade agency CzechTrade and tourism agency CzechTourism.

"The Czech House in Jerusalem will be ceremonially opened by Mr president during his visit to Israel in November," he said.

Zeman, a 73-year-old veteran leftwinger with anti-Muslim views, pushed for the embassy move even before US President Donald Trump moved the US embassy to Jerusalem on May 14.

Trump's decision infuriated Palestinians and intensified protests on the Gaza border, where several dozen people were killed in clashes with Israeli forces that day.

Trump's move also ruptured decades of international consensus that Jerusalem's status should be settled as part of a two-state peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians.

In May, the Czech Republic reopened an honorary consulate in Jerusalem following its closure in 2016 owing to the death of the honorary consul.

The Czech Embassy has been in Tel Aviv since 1949 except for when diplomatic relations with the former communist regime in Prague were interrupted between 1967 and 1990.
Beirut (AFP) - A UN commission on Wednesday called on rebel groups in Syria's Idlib province to leave urban areas to protect civilians from any looming regime assault.

The proposal comes after the United Nations' peace envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, last week suggested a deadline be set for fighters in Idlib to pull back from its cities.

UN agencies and relief organisations have warned repeatedly that any major assault on the province of Idlib, which borders Turkey, could spark one of the worst humanitarian disasters of Syria's seven-year war.

On Wednesday, the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria called for jihadists and opposition fighters to leave the most densely populated areas in the region where some three million people live.

"Most of those terrorist groups and other armed groups, they are in the cities. Perhaps one wonderful scenario is: leave the cities," commission chief Paulo Pinheiro said.

Hany Magally, a fellow panel member, said: "Shouldn't the armed groups move out and spare the civilian population?"

Idlib and adjacent areas are largely controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an alliance led by Al-Qaeda's former Syrian affiliate, as well as rival rebels. HTS controls the provincial capital Idlib city.

The northwestern region has seen its population almost double with the arrival of Syrians displaced from other parts of the country, many of whom already depend on aid.

"All the other disasters would be minor events compared to what can happen in Idlib," Pinheiro said.

- 'We've come back home' -

On Wednesday, intermittent artillery fire hit southern districts of Idlib province and adjacent rebel-held areas of Hama province, a Britain-based monitor said.

But for the second day in a row there were no air raids, after deadly strikes and barrel bombing at the weekend, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

In the south of Idlib, a man told AFP he and his family had returned to their home after fleeing for their lives on Monday.

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"I fled two days ago after the regime targeted us with air strikes and barrel bombs," Abu Ammar said in the southern district of Hobait.

"But with warplanes on hold since yesterday, we've come back home."

Since September 4, shelling and air strikes by the regime and Russia have killed at least 15 civilians in the rebel-held zone, the Observatory says.

On Friday, rebel backer Turkey and regime allies Russian and Iran failed to reach an agreement in Tehran to avoid a regime assault on Idlib.

On Tuesday, UN chief Antonio Guterres warned a full-scale battle on Idlib "would unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict".

More than 350,000 people have been killed and millions more displaced in Syria's war since it started in 2011.

- IS hostages -

In the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, US-backed fighters were battling to oust IS from the town of Hajin on the east bank of the Euphrates, the most significant remnant of the jihadists' "caliphate" which once spanned Syria and Iraq.

The operation "will clear remnants of (IS) from northeastern Syria along the Middle Euphrates River Valley toward the Syria-Iraq border," the US-led coalition said.

Since Monday, the battle for Hajin has killed 36 jihadists and 11 fighters from the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, the Observatory said.

Despite a number of military campaigns against them, IS fighters are still present in Deir Ezzor, as well as in the vast desert that stretches from Damascus to the Iraqi border.

Regime forces have been battling IS for weeks in the southern province of Sweida, ever since the jihadists killed more than 250 people in attacks on its provincial capital and nearby villages in late July.

During their rampage, IS fighters also kidnapped around 30 people, most of them women and their children from the Druze religious minority.

IS has since announced the death of an elderly woman and the execution of a 19-year-old male student.

According to a local source, families of a number of hostages received a video on Wednesday showing around 30 people.

In the footage, which was seen by AFP but could not be independently verified, a woman says she is speaking on Tuesday and that the group is being held by IS.

She accuses the Damascus regime and its Russian ally of inaction over the kidnapping and appeals for help to secure the group's release.

Late Monday, 21 regime fighters were killed in an IS ambush in Sweida's volcanic plateau of Tulul al-Safa.
Danny Green thinks Kawhi Leonard will have a hard time turning down Toronto past this season. (Photo by Ronald Cortes/Getty Images)

Since the minute the Toronto Raptors acquired Kawhi Leonard from the San Antonio Spurs, the question people have been asking is how are we going to keep him here?

Danny Green, who also came to Toronto via the trade that sent DeMar DeRozan to the Spurs, has welcomed his new destination with open arms and thinks it will be the same for Kawhi once he establishes himself north of the border.

I dont know where his mind is at for the future. I cant predict or tell you. I can just tell you that the city of Toronto is gonna be hard to turn down after being there, Green explained on his Inside the Green Room podcast. Ive been going every summer for the past 10-plus years. Its a great city and the fans are amazing.

Being a familiar face for Leonard, Green may have a big impact on helping Kawhi become acclimated to the team and the city of Toronto. Leonard reportedly still has desires to join the Los Angeles Lakers after this season.

However, if the two-time All-Star takes a liking to Toronto, and the team can have success in a fairly wide-open Eastern Conference, maybe a deep playoff run could change his mind.

We will finally get to hear from Leonard on Friday, September 21st, when he and Green take part in their introductory press conference for the Toronto Raptors. Kawhi hasnt spoken to the public since March of this year.

Needless to say, one of the quietest stars in all of sport will have a lot of answering to do.

More NBA news on Yahoo Canada Sports:




The book depicts a West Wing where aides disparage Mr Trump and strive to stop him from making calamitous choices: AP

Donald Trump said you have to deny, deny, deny if you are accused of sexual assault by women, according to veteran journalist Bob Woodwards new book.

Mr Woodward released Fear: Trump in the White House  an explosive book which paints a portrait of a White House in chaos  on Tuesday.

Mr Woodward, an associate editor at The Washington Post, spoke to dozens of current and former officials for background but their names were not used. The book depicts a West Wing where aides disparage Mr Trump and strive to stop him from making calamitous choices.

The book, which has been No 1 on Amazon since details first started surfacing a week ago, includes a conversation between Mr Trump and a friend who had acknowledged some bad behaviour towards women.

Video: Bob Woodward on Book That Has President Trump Enraged

For more news videos visit Yahoo View.

While the friend was not named, the president provided him with some advice.

According to the book, Mr Trump  who has been accused by more than a dozen women of inappropriate sexual behaviour  told the friend it is a mistake to display weakness in the face of such accusations.

Youve got to deny, deny, deny and push back on these women, Mr Trump said, according to Mr Woodward. If you admit to anything and any culpability, then youre dead. That was a big mistake you made.

Mr Trump said it was critical to show no hesitation in denying accusations and go on the attack and push back instead.

You didnt come out guns blazing and just challenge them. You showed weakness, he reportedly told the friend. Youve got to be strong. Youve got to be aggressive. Youve got to push back hard. Youve got to deny anything thats said about you. Never admit.

It is not clear when the comments were alleged to have been made.

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At least 19 women have publicly accused Mr Trump of kissing them, touching them inappropriately or having an affair with him while he was married.

The billionaire property developer, who has denied all the accusations, is also currently in the process of fighting multiple lawsuits, including one by former Apprentice contestant Summer Zervos.

Ms Zervos claims Mr Trump sexually assaulted her in 2007 and filed a lawsuit in New York after Mr Trump accused her of lying.

A judge recently ruled Mr Trump would have to answer questions under oath in regards to the defamation lawsuit Ms Zervos brought against him.

Mr Trump has dismissed Mr Woodwards book as a joke, tweeting on Monday: The Woodward book is a Joke  just another assault against me, in a barrage of assaults, using now disproven unnamed and anonymous sources. Many have already come forward to say the quotes by them, like the book, are fiction. Dems cant stand losing. Ill write the real book!

The Woodward book is a Joke  just another assault against me, in a barrage of assaults, using now disproven unnamed and anonymous sources. Many have already come forward to say the quotes by them, like the book, are fiction. Dems cant stand losing. Ill write the real book!

 Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 10, 2018

Several former aides of Mr Trump have sought to distance themselves from the books portrayal of the West Wing.

Former White House staff secretary Rob Porter and Gary Cohn  who was previously the chief economic advisor to Mr Trump  both pushed back against the book.

While neither former staffer directly denied details in the book, Mr Porter issued a statement to say the book offers a selective and often misleading portrait. Mr Cohn told Axios the book does not accurately portray my experience at the White House.

Mr Woodward has steadfastly defended his work in an extensive media tour. On Tuesday, Amazon said Fear: Trump in the White House was out of stock and would be available to ship in one to three weeks.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford speaks to reporters, in Toronto, on Monday, September 10, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov.

The story of Doug Ford versus Toronto city council took a new turn on Monday when the Ontario premier said he plans to use the notwithstanding clause in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to cut the number of councilors in the city from 47 to 25.

The announcement followed Superior Court Justice Edward Belobabas decision that the Ford government crossed the line with its plans to cut the size of Torontos city council.

The matter before me is unprecedented, Justice Belaboba wrote in his ruling on Monday morning. The Province has clearly crossed the line.

I believe this decision is deeply concerning and wrong and the result is unacceptable to the people of Ontario, Ford said in his announcement.

Reporters swarm around Justice Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau after he was sworn-in in Ottawa, Ontario on Tuesday, April 4, 1967. Mr. Trudeau has been Prime Minister Pearsons parliamentary secretary since January 1966. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chuck Mitchell

The emergence of the notwithstanding clause

Section 33 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the notwithstanding clause, has been controversial since with acceptance in 1981 during the Federal-Provincial Conference of First Ministers. It allows Parliament or a provincial legislature to override charter rights, with a lifespan of five years or less.

This clause emerged when first proposed by Saskatchewan in 1980 in the Federal-Provincial Continuing Committee of Ministers Responsible for Constitutional Affairs. It was seen as a compromise for those for and against a Charter of Rights.

In 1981, during the First Ministers Conference, former federal Minister of Justice, Jean Chretien, and the Attorneys General of Ontario and Saskatchewan, Roy McMurtry and Roy Romanow, drafted a Charter of Rights, which included a notwithstanding provision applicable to fundamental freedoms, legal rights and equality rights. Then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau agreed to the extension of the notwithstanding provision to fundamental freedoms, adding that it would be subject to a five-year sunset and re-enactment clause.

Although all governments, except Quebec, agreed to the constitutional accord with the notwithstanding clause, many participants and parliamentarians expressed reluctance or anticipated that it will rarely be use.

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I must be honest and say that I dont fear the notwithstanding clause very much, former Prime Minister Trudeau said after the First Ministers Conference. It can be abused as anything can, but the history of the Canadian Bill of Rights Diefenbaker had adopted in 1960, it has a notwithstanding clause and it hasnt caused any great scandal (sic).

I am concerned about the fact that there are provisions for opting out in important areas, Richard Hatfield, then Premier of New Brunswick said. I want to give you an undertaking that I will do everything possible to urge the Legislature of New Brunswick not to use that opportunity, consistent with my firm view that if we are going to have rights, they must be shared by all Canadians, regardless of where they live.

What the Premiers and Prime Minister agreed to is a safety valve which is unlikely ever to be used except in non-controversial circumstances by Parliament or legislatures to override certain sections of the Charter, Chretien said. The purpose of an override clause is to provide the flexibility that is required to ensure that legislatures rather than judges have the final say on important matters of public policy.

When has the notwithstanding clause been used before?

Quebec

Section 33 debates have since crept up in Quebec language law. Following the 1981 constitutional accord, Quebec expressed its strong opposition by adding a notwithstanding clause in every piece of legislation put before the National Assembly between 1982 and 1985.

The province used the notwithstanding clause in 1985 after the Supreme Court of Canada ruling in the Ford and Devine cases on the language of commercial signs. The court ruled that preventing the use of languages other than French was not a reasonable limit to freedom of expression. The province invoked the notwithstanding clause to keep French signs outside establishments and bilingual signs inside.

Yukon and Saskatchewan

Outside Quebec, the notwithstanding clause has been brought up three times. The first was in the approval of the Yukons Land Planning and Development Act in 1982, which was never proclaimed to force.

The notwithstanding clause was also referenced in provincial back-to-work legislation the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal said was contrary to section 2(d) of the Charter (freedom of association). But the clause was never actually used because the Supreme Court of Canada allowed the provinces appeal, stating the back-to-work legislation did not violate the Charter.

Alberta

In 2004, a Supreme Court of Canada ruling verified that the federal government has exclusive jurisdiction to decide who can marry in Canada. Albertas Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Ron Stevens responded by saying if the federal government legalized same-sex marriage, the province would invoke the notwithstanding clause to maintain a same-sex marriage definition in Alberta.

The federal government then adopted the Civil Marriage Act in July 2005, to define marriage as the lawful union of two persons to the exclusion of all others. The Act includes a provision that section 33 cannot be used to deny the right of same-sex couples to marry.

An Ontario first

If Ford does in fact use the notwithstanding clause to push forward Ontarios Better Local Government Act, this will be the first time the provision is used in the province.

The Better Local Government Act will reduce the size and cost of government while reducing dysfunction at City Hall, Ford said. The people who are most vocal and fighting this move are a small group of left-wing councillors looking to continue their free ride on the taxpayers dollar and a network of activist groups who have entrenched their power under the status quo.
Goma (DR Congo) (AFP) - DR Congo's navy on Wednesday accused Ugandan troops of killing four Congolese fishermen, whose bound and bullet-riddled bodies surfaced on Lake Edward, which is shared by the two neighbouring countries.

Uganda denied the accusation, which is the latest sign of escalating tensions between the countries over the lake, the smallest of eastern Africa's Great Lakes, where the two sides engaged in deadly clashes earlier this year.

"The fishermen had been on the lake since Friday and had not returned. Yesterday (Tuesday) we saw their burnt and tied up bodies floating in the lake," said Jonas Kataliko, head of the fishermen's association in the lakeside village of Kyavinyonge.

Major Jean Tsongo, who heads Congolese naval forces in the area, blamed the Ugandan navy.

"It was Ugandan soldiers who killed these Congolese fisherman," he said.

"They burned their canoes and the bodies arrived here tied up, burnt and with bullet holes."

A Ugandan official confirmed that bodies had been seen floating in the lake but denied the country's troops were involved.

"We are not involving ourselves in DRC problems," the head of Uganda's fisheries protection force, Lieutenant Colonel James Nuwagaba, told AFP.

"That (killing) could be a cover-up for DRC fishermen to continue crossing to our side of the water to steal our fish," he added.

"We suspect the fishermen could have died as a result of fishermen fighting amongst themselves or some wrong elements operating from DRC killing the fishermen."

Strains between the two countries, who disagree over the sharing of energy resources, worsened in July, when 16 Congolese fishermen, four Ugandan military personnel and three civilians were killed in clashes between the Ugandan navy and DRC forces.
Cairo (AFP) - A British couple who died on holiday in Egypt last month succumbed to the effects of an E. coli infection, an Egyptian coroner's report said Wednesday.

John Cooper, 69, died on August 21 "because of severe intestinal catarrh that resulted from E. coli bacteria," said the report released by the Egyptian attorney general.

Cooper's condition was "made worse" because he was "suffering a hypertrophy of the heart and narrow coronary arteries", the report added.

The report also said "ethyl alcohol and hashish were found in his blood test".

The death of Cooper's wife, Susan, who also fell ill in their hotel room, "was caused by a start of hemolytic-uremic syndrome that probably resulted from E. coli", the report added.

The couple died at the five-star Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in Hurghada after falling ill suddenly during an all-inclusive stay at the Red Sea resort.

"The lab tests of the samples has proven negative for any food poisoning microbes", the report added.

Travel operator Thomas Cook moved all its other customers from the hotel after the couple died in what their daughter called "suspicious" circumstances.

Thomas Cook said in a statement on Wednesday that it "notes the announcement today by the Egyptian prosecutor on the results of the autopsies of John and Susan Cooper."

- Experts to review findings -

"We have not yet seen the full report and we will need time for our own experts to review it.

"We are deeply saddened by the tragic deaths of John and Susan Cooper. We will continue to offer every support to their daughter Kelly and the rest of their family," the statement added.

The holiday firm said last week that high levels of E. coli were found during tests by independent experts at the hotel.

The tests on food and hygiene standards detected "a high level of E. coli and staphylococcus bacteria", the operator said in a statement.

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Thomas Cook blamed the high levels of E. coli and staphylococcus for raised level of illness recently reported among guests.

But it said it would "await the results of the autopsies being conducted by the Egyptian authorities", saying the experts who carried out the tests in the hotel and a doctor did not believe that the results "shed any light" on the cause of death.

An examination of air and water quality at the hotel showed no evidence of carbon monoxide.

Dangerous strains of E. coli are typically spread by raw or undercooked ground meat, raw milk or vegetables contaminated by infected faeces, according to the World Health Organization.

The two bodies will be repatriated soon, Egyptian authorities said last week.

Egypt's key tourism industry has been recovering from a devastating blow in 2015 when jihadists bombed a Russian airliner carrying holidaymakers from the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, killing all 224 on board.
U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un walk together before their working lunch during their summit at the Capella Hotel on the resort island of Sentosa, Singapore June 12, 2018. Picture taken June 12, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Erns

Sungku Jang

Security, Asia

Pyongyang was able to write the Singapore Summit Agreement to its advantage. Washington needs to be ready for the next time.

Ending the Korean War Is Much More Than a Symbolic Concession

Last month, President Donald Trump asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to not go to North Korea as he felt that they were not making sufficient progress on denuclearization. The United States has asked North Korea to begin implementing substantive denuclearization, but North Korea requested that America sign a peace treaty to end the Korean War first. At this time, neither side has made any further concessions to one another (although now there is talk of another Kim-Trump summit). What are the chances of negotiations overcoming this impasse?

Many South Korean people think that the United States should declare an end to the war because North Korea has already made concessions such as repatriating some corpses of U.S. soldiers killed in Korea and dismantling one nuclear facility. Also, North Korea maintained its self-imposed de facto moratorium on nuclear missiles testing announced back in September of 2017. Furthermore, some South Korean people also think that the Republic of Korea (ROK) and America dont lose anything from the declaration of peace. But North Koreas concessions are likely a deception because they are trying to obtain political and economic gains while postponing implementation of the denuclearization process. Would signing a peace treaty with North Korea before denuclearization is started be such a bad thing? Policymakers should recognize that Kim Jong-un and North Korea stand to gain three real benefits from a peace treaty that comes before substantive concessions.

First, declaring the end of the war has implications for the United Nations Command (UNC) in South Korea, which North Korea views as a threat. Originally composed of sixteen countries, the UNC has a very symbolic meaning for the south. Although the United States provides the majority of military forces, the United Kingdom, France, and other countries who participated in the Korean War have engaged with the UNC and planned how many soldiers they would dispatch to South Korea if war recurs on the Korean Peninsula. Since 1978, the U.N. has handed over command of Korean and U.S. forces to the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command and has been in charge of the armistice agreement only. If the Trump administration declares an end to the war, the UNCs mandate to remain in South Korea will be lost, forcing Seoul to reevaluate the UN presence within its borders and its broader security situation. Such a result would also be irreversible because the UNC needs approval from the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). Political efforts within the UNSC to reinstate the UNC after its removal would certainly fail as China and Russia would use their veto powers.

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Second, ending the Korean War would allow Kim Jong-un to further consolidate his power in North Korea because he will guarantee his regimes security. According to Thae Yong-ho, a North Korean defector who was the former minister of the North Korean embassy in London, Kim Jong-un told senior officers in the North Korean government, Our nuclear program is a precious legacy which has come from our ancestors. Without nuclear weapons, were dead. This quote shows that Kim Jong-un does not want to give up his nuclear weapons and will stop efforts to the contrary. That potentially includes North Korea concealing their nuclear capabilities and their technical and scientific capital. This means that Kim Jong-un would likely not make any substantial concessions while attaining a guarantee of their regime safety from America.

Third, ending the war will take away the U.S. justification for deterring North Korea through military force. Previously, America has put military pressure on North Korea to attain policy outcomes. If an end to the war is declared, the United States will lose its justification for exercising its military might in the peninsula, making it more politically costly to engage in military drills with South Korea and to deploy strategic arms in shows of force. This greatly increases the difficulty of deterring North Koreas military threats, as Pyongyang would retain its robust WMD that could decimate the south or Japan. After a peace treaty was signed, North Korea and many South Koreans would want the U.S. military to leave the Korean peninsula because the justification for its presence was weakened.

Nevertheless, America should keep negotiating with North Korea to maximize its national interests. Yet the United States must be careful so ending the war will not undermine its own security as well as that of its allies. To ensure that North Korea does not hide many ambiguous expressions in the treatys clauses to deceive America, Washington should focus on three measures to nullify Pyongyangs pernicious strategy.

First, Washington needs an insurance clause that would reinstate sanctions and military support for the South if North Korea acts deceitfully. For instance, the United States should seek a comprehensive list of North Koreas nuclear facilities and the number of the nuclear weapons Pyongyang has before declaring an end to the war. If this happened, it would also fulfill a key initial step towards Americas stated goal of denuclearization. If the U.S later finds out that the North Koreans did not disclose a facility, the declaration of peace should become invalid and punitive measures should be reinstated. If North Korea intends to feign acquiescence to disarmament and peaceful relations, this will effectively punish them for lying. However, if they are being sincere about their intentions, then they have little to worry about. The key point is insuring that Americas willingness to engage is not taken advantage of.

Second, the United States has to understand that North Korea made the summit agreement with Trump very tactfully and skillfully. In the Singapore agreement, Washington overlooked the wording of key sentences, which North Korea is now taking advantage of. Many conservative South Koreans worry about the Singapore agreement because the agreement is written in a way that promotes confidence-building initiatives and ambiguous promises about denuclearization.

For instance, the Singapore statement between Trump and Kim Jong-un states: The establishment of new U.S.-DPRK relations will contribute to the peace and prosperity of the Korean Peninsula and of the world, and recognizing that mutual confidence building can promote the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. This statement doesnt include any commitment from North Korea to denuclearize. Rather, the focus is on the establishment of a new relationship and mutual confidence building before North Korea can consider denuclearization. The Singapore agreement was a big win for North Korea because America was already deceived by North Koreas tricks. So the United States needs to understand North Koreas intentions by carefully scrutinizing the language North Korea chooses to use. Pyongyangs word choice is intentional and should not be overlooked.

Third, Washington must clarify what was agreed to in Singapore. In the third sentence of the agreement, it was written that both sides should promote the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. That the wording was the Korea Peninsula and not North Korea is telling. This language is intended to require the United States to leave South Korea in exchange for the Norths disarmament, as America is a nuclear weapons state. If the United States refuses to disarm or leave the peninsula, then North Korea has another justification to abolish the agreement that follows the peace treaty and keep its nuclear weapons.

Denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula means that North Korea would ask America to withdraw its forces from South Korea. If the United States opposes that demand, North Korea might say that Washington broke the agreement and refuse to make further progress on denuclearization. If North Korea then withdraws from the agreement after a peace declaration was signed, America and South Korea already did two irreversible concessionshaving the UNC dismantled and giving up their justification for military actionso only North Korea would benefit from the process.

America and South Korea must understand what will happen after declaring an end to the Korean War. Both nations should cooperate in preparation before negotiating a peace declaration or peace treaty with North Korea. Judging by public statements from Pyongyang, it is clear that North Korea sees denuclearization as a reciprocal process where it makes concessions in tandem with the United States. If done carefully, all three nations will see improvements in their security environment. However, if done carelessly, the United States and South Korea are the ones that stand to lose.

Sungku Jang is an Asan fellow at The National Interest.

Image: Reuters

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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has defended his country's record - REUTERS

Hungary faces the loss of its European Union voting rights after MEPs triggered a punitive procedure to prevent EU countries backsliding on democracy, the rule of law and human rights.

In an unprecedented vote that exposed deep EU divisions, the European Parliament in Strasbourg backed a report calling for Hungary to be sanctioned for its crackdown on NGOs, the media and universities.

Budapests foreign minister Peter Szijjarto denounced the vote to trigger the Article 7 procedure as the petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians.

He also claimed that the vote involved "massive fraud" since abstentions weren't counted into the final tally, which made it easier to reach the needed majority.

"It is a positive sign of this parliament taking responsibility and wanting action," Judith Sargentini, the Dutch Green MEP who spearheaded the vote, said.

"Viktor Orban's government has been leading the charge against European values by silencing independent media, replacing critical judges, and putting academia on a leash," she said.

Her report accused the country of corruption,a biased judiciary, as well as raising minority and migrant rights.

Hungary has long been at loggerheads with Brussels over its opposition to the EUs mandatory migrant quotas and strongman leader Viktor Orban has allied himself with Eurosceptic leaders such as Italys interior minister Matteo Salvini.

The vote was carried despite needing a two thirds majority. There were 448 votes for to 197 against and with 48 abstentions, in a sign that MEPs were preparing to push back against what has been dubbed Europes populist wave.

MEPs from the European Peoples Party, the largest group in the parliament, turned against Mr Orban after many years of supporting him. His Fidesz party is a member of the centre-right pan-EU faction. Its leader Manfred Weber, who hopes to become the next European Commission president, voted in favour of punishing Hungary.

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British Conservative MEPs voted against, which Jeremy Corbyns spokesman said was absolutely shocking. Downing Street claimed it was not consulted before the vote.

It is the first time Article 7 has been triggered by the European Parliament. Poland is already facing the procedure after it was brought by the European Commission.

Although the nuclear button of Article 7 has been pushed, the ultimate sanction of a loss of voting rights is a long way off. EU member states must unanimously back any further action, which appears unlikely.

Budapest has already vowed to veto any attempt to strip Warsaw of its EU voting rights in the European Council in Brussels. Poland, in turn, has warned it will block any further action against Hungary.

Earlier on Wednesday, Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission, called for a stronger, more united Europe in his annual flagship speech but criticised Hungary in veiled terms.

On Tuesday, Viktor Orban, Hungarys populist strongman leader, spoke in the European Parliament.

He claimed that the verdict had already been written. Hungary will be condemned because Hungarians have decided their country is not going to be a country of migrants," he told MEPs on Tuesday.

He said that European Parliament elections in May next year would be the battleground between pro-EU and nationalistic politicians where Europes future direction would be settled. Prominent far-right figures are floating the idea of forging a pan-European alliance ahead of next year's elections.

Mr Orban insisted that all of the criticism against his government is based on Hungary's tough anti-immigration policies, which include fences built in 2015 on Hungary's southern borders with Serbian and Croatia to divert the flow of migrants and very restrictive asylum rules. He has also expressed his desire to remain within the EPP, which he said was "deeply divided" on the issue of migration.
By Alastair Macdonald STRASBOURG (Reuters) - The European Parliament voted on Wednesday to sanction Hungary for flouting EU rules on democracy, civil rights and corruption in an unprecedented step that left Prime Minister Viktor Orban isolated from powerful allies. Hungary said it would seek legal ways to challenge the 448-197 vote it described as "petty revenge". Delivering more than the two-thirds majority required as many of Orban's allies in the conservative party deserted him, the vote, however, has little chance of ending up with the ultimate penalty of Hungary being suspended from voting in the EU. If nothing else, its Polish ally would veto that. But the 197 votes cast against the parliament's first bid to launch the punitive process of the EU treaty's Article 7 highlighted the substantial minority of European opinion who see Orban as a crusader for the rights of nation states and ethnic majorities against rules of civic behavior agreed in Brussels. Since sweeping to power in 2010, Orban, once a campaigner against Hungary's Soviet Communist overlords, has used his parliamentary majority to pressure courts, media and non-government groups in ways his opponents say breach EU rules. He has also led opposition to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and others who want Europe to take in more Muslim refugees. "Today's European Parliament decision was nothing else but a petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians against Hungary," Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto told a news conference in Budapest. "The decision was made in a fraudulent way, and contrary to relevant rules in European treaties." As abstaining votes had not been counted, he said that changed the outcome of the vote. With Britain about to leave the bloc altogether in March and Europeans voting in European Parliament elections in May, the row over Hungary -- and Poland, which faces a similar sanctions procedure launched by the executive European Commission in 2017 -- highlights tensions between nationalist and federalist camps. In France, where President Emmanuel Macron is campaigning for next year's European elections in direct opposition to Orban, an Elysee source said the vote "was a good signal". "HERO" Judith Sargentini, the Dutch Greens lawmaker who steered the proposal through, said after the historic vote: "Viktor Orban's government has been leading the charge against European values by silencing independent media, replacing critical judges, and putting academia on a leash. "Individuals close to the government have been enriching themselves, their friends and family members at the expense of Hungarian and European taxpayers," she said. "The Hungarian people deserve better." Sargentini praised support for her motion from much of Orban's European People's Party in the chamber -- the EPP includes Merkel's Christian Democrats -- and she called on governments in the EU's Council to now take the unprecedented step of sanctioning a fellow member. Orban had flown to Strasbourg personally on Tuesday to intervene in the debate, delivering a fiery speech that he would not give in to "blackmail" and describing the motion as an insult to Hungarians. But his failure to offer any compromise cost him support within the EPP, party officials said. The group may now consider whether to suspend Orban's Fidesz party. Szijjarto said Fidesz was committed to staying in the EPP but would seek ways to transform its stance from the inside. All the applause for the Hungarian leader on Tuesday came from the far right of the chamber, notably among supporters of France's Marine Le Pen and the UK Independence Party. Geert Wilders, the leader of the Dutch anti-immigration Freedom Party, called the vote - which also weighed on Hungarian assets - "a bloody shame". "Orban is a hero," he said. "He closed the borders for Islamic fortune seekers. He protects his citizens against terror and defends the identity of his country." The Commission has preferred to pressure Budapest through standard legal powers, but the head of the EU executive, Jean-Claude Juncker, also an EPP member, said he would have voted for the move if he were a lawmaker. (Reporting by Alastair Macdonald in Strasbourg, Philip Blenkinsop and Daphne Psaledakis in Brussels, Writing by Gabriela Baczynska, Editing by Alison Williams)
The Conservative party has come under fire after its members of the European Parliament opposed a move to censure the Hungarian government for persistently flouting EU values.

MEPs voted by 448 to 197 to trigger Article 7 sanctions proceedings against Viktor Orbans right-wing administration which could lead to the countrys EU voting rights being suspended.

They cited his governments attacks on media freedom, ill treatment of minorities and meddling with the judicial and electoral systems as evidence that there is a clear risk of a serious breach of the EU founding values.

Human Rights Watch called on Conservative MEPs to stand up for democracy by supporting the action.

MORE: Tory MEPs defy call to stand up for democracy by opposing sanctions against Orban

But Conservative MEPs defied their lobbying to side with Orbans supporters in opposing the motion.

All but three of the Conservatives 19 MEPs joined Nigel Farage and 14 other UKIP MEPs in voting against the sanctions process.

Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry said the Tories had shown their true colours by trying to protect Orban.

Baroness Nosheena Mobarik was the only Conservative MEP to vote in favour of action, while Charles Tannock and Sajjad Karim abstained.

Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban during a debate with MEPs on Tuesday (AFP)

There have been claims their position was linked to Brexit negotiations.

Judith Sargentini, the Dutch MEP who authored the report on Hungarys government, said ahead of the vote: Theresa May feels supported by Viktor Orban in Brexit talks and that is very interesting.

And Green MEP Molly Scot Cato said: In desperation to create new partnerships post-Brexit our government appears willing to prop up all manner of unsavoury regimes, including the Orban government, which has clearly failed to protect freedom of speech and the rule of law.

Orban addressed Brexit during a visit to the European Parliament on Tuesday, saying: We would like a fair Brexit because we love the British. You deserve a good deal, a fair deal.

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But Dan Dalton MEP, Conservative spokesman for home affairs in the European Parliament, insisted the group opposed the motion because MEPs are politicising what should be a purely legal matter.

If the EUs treaties have been breached by any Member State, it is for the European Commission to build a legal case against it, he said. MEPs have no role to play in the process.

Wednesdays vote was the first time the European parliament has triggered the sanctions procedure and was even more surprisingly given a two-thirds majority was needed and Orbans Fidesz party maintains significant political influence.

MEPs applaud Judith Sargentini, the Dutch MEP who put forward the censure motion, after the vote (Reuters)

It is part of the centre-right EPP group, which is the largest in the European parliament. The group has repeatedly been accused of turning a blind eye to the actions of Orbans government.

But the EPP leadership drew a line in the sand on Wednesday by voting in favour of triggering the sanctions procedure.

European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, who is an EPP party member, signalled his support for the move in his state of the union speech earlier on Wedneday.

We continue to be very concerned by the developments in some of our member states, he said. Article 7 must be applied whenever the rule of law is threatened.

As a result of the vote, the European Council, which is made up of heads of government like Theresa May, must assess whether they agree there is a risk of Hungary breaching EU values.

If they unanimously decide that is the case, that could lead to sanctions such as Hungary being stripped of its voting rights.

Sargentini said: Now it is up to the European leaders to take their responsibility and stop watching from the sidelines as the rule of law is destroyed in Hungary.

This is unacceptable for a union that is built on democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights.

MORE: Juncker rejects Mays plan for frictionless trade after Brexit




By Alastair Macdonald

STRASBOURG (Reuters) - An annual address to the European Parliament on Wednesday by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker puts a spotlight on EU elections next year.

WHO'S VOTING AND FOR WHAT?

More than 350 million adults in the European Union's 27 member states can vote, most on Sunday, May 26, 2019 -- two months after Britain becomes the first country to leave in a move that has spurred nationalist, anti-EU groups across Europe.

By proportional representation, they will elect 705 members to the European Parliament, which divides its time between Brussels and Strasbourg. Ranging from tiny Malta with 6 seats to Germany with 96, for five years these MEPs will check and amend laws proposed by the European Commission, subject to approval by national governments in the EU Council.

WHAT'S AT STAKE?

Campaign issues will range from spending, though the EU budget is equal to just 1 percent of member states' combined GDP, to climate change and labour rights. But some who want the Union broken up see it as a Brexit-style referendum on the EU's very survival, pitting advocates of historic, ethnic-based nations against the idea of pooling sovereignty to defend Europe's wealth and values in a world of rising authoritarian powers and global corporations.

Caught up in this centre-versus-states debate are refugees. Nationalists blame the EU for a surge in arrivals in 2015. Federalists say only cooperation can control migration.

Leaders of some eastern states such as Hungary and Poland slam Brussels over migrants and its complaints that they are undermining EU rules on democracy in Warsaw and Budapest; some westerners speak of cutting their EU subsidies in retaliation.

ARE THERE EU POLITICAL PARTIES?

Yes. And no. Eight party groups sit in the current 751-seat chamber, which is about to get smaller due to Brexit. The centre-right European People's Party (EPP) has 29 percent and ensures an establishment majority by often cooperating with the centre-left Socialists and Democrats (S&D -- 25 percent) and ALDE liberals (9 percent). Two right-wing anti-EU groups led by Britain's UKIP and France's National Rally share 10 percent.

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But all the groups are unruly and EU elections are mainly contested by national parties on issues familiar to voters.

DOES THE WINNER GET TO RUN THE EU?

Not really. Well, maybe. Parliament's leaders say they are the heart of European democracy. National leaders scoff at the 43 percent turnout in the 2014 EU elections. In practice, states wield most power and little happens that big countries don't like.

The EU executive Commission is led by Jean-Claude Juncker. A historic power struggle between Parliament and Council will get an airing in the election. Parliament has pledged to force the Council to nominate as Juncker's successor a lead candidate from a winning party in May's vote. National leaders such as French President Emmanuel Macron say they won't be bound by that. That risks Parliament rejecting their Commission nominee, which would be an unprecedented crisis.

I'M CONFUSED. SO WHO REALLY RUNS THE EU?

It's complicated. But the voting and lead candidate rumpus is part of horse-trading among governments to get compatriots or allies into top positions, not just in the Commission and Council but also the European Central Bank.

Germany and France, the two biggest states, have most clout but it's a game even the smallest can play. Juncker is the third EU chief executive from little Luxembourg -- though his hopes of states ceding more power to Brussels remain largely unrealised.

AND SO WILL THE ELECTIONS CHANGE MUCH?

A push by eurosceptics could mean a bigger, more cohesive minority to disrupt EU legislation. But EU optimists also say a campaign that grabs more people's attention could reinvigorate post-Brexit efforts to pull the 27 together.

Polls suggest the far-right could increase its share but probably not enough to sound the death knell of the EU. It seems improbable that either camp, for or against closer integration in Europe, can land a knockout blow.

(Reporting by Alastair Macdonald; @macdonaldrtr; editing by David Stamp)
Samarra (Iraq) (AFP) - Jihadists attacked a restaurant north of the Iraqi capital with a car bomb on Wednesday, killing five people and wounding more than 30, medical and police sources said.

Suspected Islamic State group members planted the bomb in a pickup left outside the restaurant by an important highway in Hajjaj, a police officer told AFP on condition of anonymity.

"Five people were killed and 32 wounded," in the bombing near Tikrit city, 175 kilometres (108 miles) north of Baghdad, the officer said.

The attack took place during lunchtime and targeted "a restaurant where there were travellers returning from Baghdad to Dahuk" in Iraqi Kurdistan to the north, the police officer said.

Medical sources said women and children were among those wounded, while confirming five people were killed.

The restaurant had already been attacked by two suicide bombers in the spring, the police officer said.

On Monday, security forces said they had killed 13 jihadists north of Tikrit as part of a large-scale land and air operation against extremists in Iraq's desert and mountainous areas.

Although Baghdad declared victory over IS in December, members of the jihadist group continue to carry out deadly attacks.

On Tuesday a suicide bomber killed a member of the security forces and injured four others in Anbar province, a western desert area, a security official said.

That attack came a day after jihadists killed four people in Khanaqin north-east of Baghdad, including two Kurdish fighters who were on leave, according to a Kurdish political official in the area.

"IS jihadists kidnapped six people. Two were freed and four others were beheaded," the official said on condition of anonymity.
Singapore (AFP) - A Singaporean disc jockey has lodged a court challenge against a law banning sex between men in the city-state, his lawyers said Wednesday, inspired by last week's landmark ruling in India.

Debate has intensified in Singapore since the Indian Supreme Court last week decriminalised gay sex, overturning a statute dating back to British colonial rule.

Sex between men remains illegal in Singapore due to a law inherited from the same colonial-era statute, although it is rarely enforced.

Lawyers for Johnson Ong -- a former ambassador for Singapore's leading gay rights group Pink Dot and known as DJ Big Kid -- said they will introduce evidence to show the ban runs counter to the constitution's guarantee of personal liberty.

"We will argue that dignity is a foundational concept which forms the bedrock of the fundamental liberties provisions of the Singapore Constitution," they said in a summary of their arguments sent to AFP, adding that they will show this law violates human dignity.

In 2014, Singapore's appeals court dismissed a constitutional challenge by a gay couple against the law -- known as Section 377A of the penal code -- saying it was up to parliament to repeal it.

But lawyers Eugene Thuraisingam and Suang Wijaya, who are representing Ong without payment, said they will cite a 2015 US report which says that sexual orientation "is unchangeable or suppressible at an unacceptable personal cost".

If this is so, "criminalising the manifestation of sexual orientation -- that is, consensual intimate activity -- must be in violation of human dignity," they said.

The lawyers will also argue that since the first challenge in Singapore was dismissed four years ago, there have been court decisions worldwide legalising same-sex marriage or gay sex, including the Indian court's ruling.

While affluent Singapore boasts a modern and vibrant culture, official attitudes toward homosexuality remain conservative.

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But public support for gay rights has been growing, with thousands turning up in recent years for Singapore's annual Pink Dot gay rights rally.

Tommy Koh, a senior Singapore diplomat, Friday urged the country's gay community to challenge the law banning homosexual sex, a rare high-level intervention on the issue.

Singapore Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam said last week the government stood between a majority of Singaporeans opposing the repeal of the law and a "growing minority" who want it abolished.
Accra (AFP) - A steady stream of mourners on Tuesday paid their respects to the former UN secretary general Kofi Annan, as his body lay in state in the capital of his native Ghana.

The diplomat's body was flown back from his home in Switzerland on Monday ahead of a state funeral and private burial in Accra on Thursday.

Nobel peace laureate Annan, who was the world body's first leader from sub-Saharan Africa, died aged 80 on August 18 after a short illness.

His coffin, draped in Ghana's red, green and gold flag, was guarded by senior military officers in ceremonial uniform at the Accra International Conference Centre.

A choir sang hymns and traditional dances were performed as the public got their chance to say farewell to one of the country's most famous sons.

Fritz Kitcher, who spent his career working for the United Nations in Geneva in human rights, said he saw Annan rise through the ranks.

Now retired and back living in Ghana, he said Annan taught him "the benefit of humility, the benefit of honesty, the benefit of decisiveness, and diplomacy from the grassroots".

His role at the UN's first black African leader was "an honour for Ghana", he said.

"It was marvellous in our eyes, it was one of these things that we can only dream... he lifted Africa and showed that we are also able to do great things," Kitcher told AFP.

Most of those who queued to pay their respects wore black and red mourning clothes and passed under large posters of Annan to the sound of pulsating drums.

Cleaner Akwo Kwame Johnson, from neighbouring Ivory Coast said he wanted to pay his last respects to "our great father".

Whenever he saw Annan in the news, Johnson said he felt like he was watching a family member.

"He was a president to all the world," he added

Pensioner Joyce Atiase said she was mourning the loss of a "great man". "We all loved him. He played a major role for our country, he did his best," she said.

Scores of world leaders past and present, as well as royalty, are expected in Accra for Annan's funeral on Thursday.

A private burial service will then be held in the city's military cemetery.
A teacher in Wisconsin body-shamed a female student in leggings. (Photo: Getty Images)

Just months after a group of students at Indian Trail High School in Kenosha, Wis., won a yearlong battle against their school board for the adoption of a fairer dress code, the ACLU is getting involved in ongoing efforts to address the districts discriminatory enforcement of rules in regard to young women.

Back in March, a group of students who had formed the Indian Trail Womens Rights and Empowerment Group made headlines for their success in implementing a new dress code that would have less of a negative impact on the female student body. But even though parents and proactive students were able to claim victory with the removal of the ban against yoga pants, leggings, and tank tops, people across the district have been filing reports with the local ACLU affiliate regarding continued enforcement of the schools old rules.

According to Asma Kadri Keeler, an attorney with the ACLU of Wisconsin, the organization began investigating reports against the district prior to the community coalitions success in March. It wasnt until a report of a student being shamed despite the updated dress code in July, however, that they decided to step in.

The districts updated dress code for 2018-19. (Photo: Courtesy of Kenosha Unified School District)

We got a report in July that a female student at a high school in Kenosha had been called out and shamed in front of her classmates, and threatened to be sent home two days in a row from a summer gym class for wearing a tank top, Kadri Keeler tells Yahoo Lifestyle. So at that point, we felt that it was appropriate to get involved and sort of send the district a letter letting them know that we were concerned about their enforcement of the dress code, despite having revised the policy.

Within the letter, the ACLU asked that the Kenosha Unified School District provide assurance that they would commit to anti-discriminatory enforcement of the latest dress code  including proper training for teachers and administrators so that isolated incidents of inappropriate enforcement wouldnt take place. When the district responded with a blanket statement claiming that they were working on it, the organization decided to provide some extra help.

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We didnt get a sufficient response, Kadri Keller says. Instead, she had to rely on community members to tell her about the dress code guidelines document that provided school staff loose direction on how to enforce it. The latest letter that the ACLU sent on Monday included further recommendations on how to improve those enforcement guidelines.

Two of the biggest recommendations that Kadri Keller details are to make a binding commitment to nondiscrimination in writing and to prohibit harassment and body-shaming when it comes to dress code enforcement. However, two of the most important recommendations that she says arent always considered are eliminating or reducing the amount of time that students are pulled out of class for an alleged violation, and creating a way to collect the data on dress code violations.

During this entire process, we learned that the Kenosha Unified School District does not keep track of how often they cite people for dress code violations, Kadri Keller explains. Not only do they not write any of that down when they remove a kid from class or send them home, or put them in in-school suspension, they dont ever write down why. So weve got all of these reports from people that this is happening, but when you ask the school district to produce any records, they cant.

She continues, We really highly recommend that they institute a policy that requires data collection. And with that, we hope that theyll include the nature of the offense, the race of the student, the gender, the age, along with the teacher or staff member involved in the incident, so we know for monitoring purposes moving forward that Kenoshas committed to accountability on behalf of their staff.

Another part of the issue that isnt being recognized enough is just how widespread this dress code problem is, and how instances across the country are often the result of the same biases.

Our position is that this is primarily a sexist gender issue, Kadri Keller tells Yahoo Lifestyle. These incidents that are cropping up all around the country that various ACLU affiliates and ACLU national are involved in revolve around girls and young women.

She adds, But we certainly have a larger argument here because those issues directly impact other issues. We talk about the disparate impact of discriminatory enforcement against girls, but you can take that a little further, if you kind of narrow down and realize that yes, its against girls, but even more so, amongst girls of color. And so, I think that there are a bunch of other issues wrapped up into this.

In regard to the isolated incidents in Kenosha, the districts chief communications officer, Tanya Ruder, sent this statement to Yahoo Lifestyle:

The Kenosha Unified School District takes seriously its obligation to provide students with the opportunity to participate in an educational environment free from discrimination and harassment. We have taken reasonable steps in order to ensure that the student dress code policy is fair on its face and in its enforcement. In spring 2018, the policy was reviewed and approved for rollout to students and staff at the start of the 2018-19 school year and has been going very well since the opening of school on Sept. 4. We look forward to a successful school year for students, staff and the community.

Beyond the actions that the district has already taken, Kardi Keller hopes that schools recognize how important these recommendations really are.

The focus really needs to be on the fact that these dress codes are unevenly enforced against girls for wearing clothes that are considered a distraction to boys in the classroom, she says. And thats a negative reinforcement of gender stereotypes and how girls should dress, and it of course privileges a boys ability to learn and concentrate over a girls comfort.

She concludes, We really hope they take that into consideration and take it seriously, and make a commitment.

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:

 Mom starts petition to fight witch hunt of dress code

 Parents are outraged after charter school turns away students for minor dress code violations

 Girls dress-code protest shirt lands her in juvenile detention for 6 days

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GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - Thousands of people blocked a major highway in Guatemala's western highlands while others protested in front of Congress on Tuesday to demand that President Jimmy Morales allow a U.N.-backed anti-graft body to operate. Bearing anti-Morales signs and dressed in colorful traditional clothing, indigenous Maya protested Morales' decision not to renew the mandate of the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) and to ban the group's leader, Ivan Velasquez, from returning to the country, TV images showed. Both measures have been harshly criticized by domestic and international observers as a step back in Guatemala's fight against corruption. The crowd largely lifted the highway blockade at late afternoon, according to Guatemalan newspaper Prensa Libre. In Guatemala City, demonstrators clustered in front of Congress to protest actions against the CICIG as well as two legislative initiatives: one that would give the legislature power to oversee the process of stripping politicians of their immunity and another that would permit almost 80 congressmen who have defected from the opposition to join Morales' party. Congress President Alvaro Arzu Escobar said that the demonstration disrupted Tuesday's session in which the initiatives were meant to be discussed. "It's unfortunate that a small group of violent people volunteered to block work for thousands of Guatemalans and the Legislative Body," he said in a statement. Congress is scheduled to resume the session on Thursday. Some 100 people stood outside the Congress building by the afternoon, listening to protesters deliver anti-Morales speeches at a microphone in the middle of the street, facing a line of several dozen police officers. They planned another march at Congress for Wednesday. Critics say the combination of measures against the commission and the legislative initiatives are designed to protect Morales from legal proceedings in a corruption investigation. Morales says he is protecting the country's sovereignty. "It is clear we are facing a clear plan by Congress to generate mechanisms of impunity," said Oswaldo Samayoa, a criminal law professor at Guatemala's San Carlos university. In August, the nation's Supreme Court decided to consider a request to strip Morales of his immunity for his alleged participation in illegal electoral financing. The proceeding, supported by CICIG, is the third against him. Formed in 2006 to help Guatemalan prosecutors break a cycle of impunity, CICIG is credited with improving the Central American country's justice system. Morales' predecessor is in prison and standing trial for allegedly running a customs racket uncovered by CICIG. Last year, the commission started investigating the current president's family for alleged corruption and supported impeaching him. Morales, a former comedian elected in 2015, denies any wrongdoing and says the CICIG has overstepped its remit. (Reporting by Sofia Menchu; writing by Julia Love and Daina Beth Solomon; editing by Dan Grebler and Leslie Adler)
GUATEMALA CITY (AP)  A visit to Guatemala's congress by President Jimmy Morales has been accompanied by a massive security deployment amid protests.

Thousands of police and at least 50 heavily-armed soldiers set a security cordon around the congress that greatly exceeded normal.

About 8,000 protesters had been calling for Morales' resignation, expressing discontent over his decision not to renew the mandate of a United Nation's-backed anti-corruption commission. The commission was investigating alleged campaign violations by Morales.

A day earlier, protesters confronted some government officials, which may have led to the tightened security Wednesday. Faced with the stronger security, protesters decided to move elsewhere.

Gilder Guzman, leader of Guatemala's largest farmworker organization, says the government's response was exaggerated, as protests were peaceful and this constitutes an abuse of power.
Hiker found dead on Mount Hood was likely killed by cougar: Officials originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

The hiker who went missing on Mount Hood in late August and was found dead at the bottom of a ravine Monday was likely killed by a cougar, authorities said -- a shocking twist in the missing persons case.

The body of Diana Bober, 55, was found Monday at the bottom of a 200-foot embankment on the famous Oregon mountain's Hunchback Trail, the Clackamas County Sheriffs Office said Tuesday.

Bober was last seen on Aug. 29 when she went for a hike on the trail. Her backpack was found by two hikers on the following day and her car was left in a parking lot at the base of the mountain.

PHOTO: Search and rescue crews are looking for a Gresham woman, Diana Bober, 55, in the Mount Hood area in Clackamas County Oregon after authorities said they found her car near the Zigzag Ranger Station. (MountainWaveSAR/Twitter)

Craig Roberts, Clackamas County sheriff, made the surprising announcement at a press conference later in the day that Bober was likely killed by a wild cougar, also known as a mountain lion or puma.

"She was discovered deceased on a hiking trail about two miles from the Zigzag ranger station on Sept. 10," Roberts said. "I extend my heartfelt condolences to the Bober family and friends for their loss.

(MORE: Cougar kills mountain biker, injures fellow rider in Washington)

"I want to tell you Diana Bober's autopsy was today, it was determined she died of an apparent animal attack," he explained. "Her injuries are indicative of what experts say was probably a cougar. We're waiting for final confirmation of what type of animal was responsible for this attack."

Bober said the fatal attack was the first on record by a cougar in the state.

PHOTO: This March 8, 2006, file photo provided by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife shows a cougar in the Beulah Wildlife Management Unit in Oregon's Malheur County. (AP)

"Because this is an unprecedented event in Oregon we dont believe that the threat to the public thats posed by cougars is any greater today than it was yesterday," Brian Wolfer, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's watershed manager, said. "However, we dont know and cant quantify the threat that this particular animal may pose to the public."

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The Hunchback Trail has been closed to hikers as a precaution.

(MORE: 'I got attacked by a mountain lion,' survivor of cougar mauling says in dramatic 911 call)

Wolfer said about 6,600 cougars live in the state, and reports of them threatening livestock or pets are common, but human attacks are unheard of. Authorities continue to search for the animal. Male cougars can grow to be 120 to 200 pounds and generally hunt deer, elk, hares and wild birds, like turkeys.

Bober is the second person in the Northwest to die in a cougar attack this year. A cougar killed a mountain biker in North Bend, Washington, in May, and mauled a second rider.

Officials killed that mountain lion following the attack.
Consumer Reports has no financial relationship with advertisers on this site.

Consumer Reports has no financial relationship with advertisers on this site.

When you live in an area, that's prone to hurricanes and flooding you may face evacuation orders when a weather system intensifies. If so, youll need to know how to prepare your home for the oncoming conditions.

Consumer Reports can help protect your home during a natural disasterfrom documenting your belongings to shutting off your power and water. Try to complete as many of these tasks, as needed, as time allows before evacuating.

Take Stock of Whats in the House

Walk around the house with a smartphone or digital camera and take photographs of all the items you own, says Susan G. Millerick, Director of Public Affairs of the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety in St. Petersburg, Fla. Take the device with you when you evacuate.

Be thorough, and dont stop with bigger-ticket items, such as televisions and large appliances. Make sure to take photos of clothing, furniture, cookware, and so on. If something happens to your home, these items probably wont be where you left them, and taking inventory after the fact might be impossible.

Walk through every room and snap a photo from each corner. Then work your way through storage, bookcases, and the like.

Go around and open all the drawers and closets, Millerick says. Insurance companies are going to ask how many pairs of jeans were in your closetwith photos, youll have proof of what you had.

Clear the Yard, and Make Sure Water Can Flow Away From the Home

Store patio furniture, grills, bikes, plant pots, and so on inside. Move loose items to the garage, elevating items (like a gas grill or lawnmower) that wont mix well with saltwater.

You need to get all of the loose debris away from your house, says Michael Lingerfelt, an architect who is based in Orlando and has experience building theme parks to withstand hurricanes. You dont want anything to become a projectile.

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Make sure there arent any objects diverting the water from running into storm drains, because any water buildup can cause your house to flood.

Brace Every Opening

During a hurricane, the first thing that fails in a home is often the garage door, Lingerfelt says. In a rush to evacuate, many homeowners might stack sandbags on the exterior of their doors and windows but forget about the biggest entrance they have: If you can brace your garage door from failing, then itll keep the rest of the house from depressurizing.

Likewise, windows and doors may blow off when met with high winds. An open hole in the house during a hurricane causes depressurizationthe calm air on the inside meets the whirlwind on the outsidewhich can, in turn, cause a house to collapse. Millerick says the IBHS Research Center recommends also closing all interior doors to reduce the overall pressure on the roof.

If you see cracks of light around window frames or door frames, they need to be covered or sealed, Millerick says. Most homeowners opt for plywood to secure their windows because its inexpensive and generally readily available.

Floridas Division of Emergency Management recommends plywood thats at least a half inch thick to provide some impact resistance. Make sure the plywood you buy is suitable for outdoor use.

Even if you have impact-resistant windows, you should still brace them and leave shutters closed, says Chris Gratton, a licensed contractor in the Florida Keys.

Dont bother using tape. Thats an old wives tale, Lingerfelt explains. Its not going to do you any good. Removing tape would also be an unnecessary chore when you returnand youll probably have more important concerns to address.

Elevate Anything That Rusts or Corrodes

Unplug all your appliances, moving portable appliances and electronics to higher ground. Televisions, speakers, vacuum cleaners, even generatorsthese need to be several feet off the ground, such as on a countertop or dining room table, or on the second level of your home if it has one, in case your ground floor floods.

When moving heavier items, such as a generator, be sure you will be able to move it into position on your own or with the help of someone else when you return, advises John Galeotafiore, associate director of product testing at Consumer Reports.

Another tip: If you have area rugs, make sure to roll them up and stand them vertically, Millerick says. Otherwise theyll just become large floor sponges.

Turn Off the Power and Water Lines

Once you feel youve done all you can do to secure your house and youre making your way to the car, FEMA recommends shutting off your electricity and main water valve if you can do so safely before you leave.

To turn off power, find your circuit breaker panel (typically located in your garage or basement) and set the main circuit switch to off.

To cut off the main water valve, walk around the perimeter of your house. Usually youll see a water meter mounted on the side of the house, then the water main valve below it, connected by a pipe. You may need to use a wrench to successfully turn the valve clockwise to shut off the water supply to your house.





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Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit organization that works side by side with consumers to create a fairer, safer, and healthier world. CR does not endorse products or services, and does not accept advertising. Copyright  2019, Consumer Reports, Inc.
LONDON (Reuters) - An Iberia Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency landing due to an issue with its Roll-Royce-made Trent XWB engine, sending shares in the British company lower.

Iberia Airlines flight 6252 made the emergency landing at Boston Logan airport, a representative of the airline said.

Shares in Rolls-Royce fell 3.2 percent by 0932 GMT as traders priced in the risk of issues with its Trent XWB engines, after the chief executive had said problems in other engines did not extend to them.

"We are aware of the issue and will be working closely with the airline to support them," said a spokesman for Rolls-Royce.

"The Trent XWB has enjoyed the smoothest entry into service of any widebody engine and we continue to see the engine achieving market-leading levels of reliability."

(Reporting by Helen Reid, editing by Louise Heavens)
THE HAGUE (Reuters) - The International Criminal Court said on Tuesday it would "continue to do its work undeterred" a day after U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton threatened sanctions if the tribunal investigated U.S. activities in Afghanistan. The Hague-based court said it was an independent and impartial institution with the backing of 123 countries. "The ICC, as a court of law, will continue to do its work undeterred, in accordance with those principles and the overarching idea of the rule of law," it said in a statement. ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said last year there was a reasonable basis to believe war crimes and crimes against humanity were committed in Afghanistan and that all sides in the conflict would be examined, including members of the U.S. armed forces and Central Intelligence Agency. Bolton said on Monday that if such an investigation was launched, the Trump administration would consider banning ICC judges and prosecutors from entering the United States, sanctioning funds they have there and prosecuting them in U.S. courts. The United States did not ratify the Rome treaty that established the ICC during the presidency of Republican George W. Bush. Instead, it adopted the American Services-Members' Protection Act, nicknamed the Hague Invasion Act because it authorized the use of any means necessary to free U.S. personnel held by the court. France, a major advocate of the ICC, said the institution should be left to do its work without hindrance. "France, with its European partners, supports the International Criminal Court, both in its budgetary contribution and in its cooperation with it," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll said in a statement. "The court must be able to act and exercise its prerogatives without hindrance, independently and impartially, within the legal framework defined by the Rome Statute," it said. (Reporting by Anthony Deutsch and John Irish in Paris; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
(TEHRAN, Iran)  Irans nuclear chief told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he hopes the atomic deal between Tehran and world powers survives, but warns the program will be in a stronger position than ever if not.

Ali Akbar Salehi also told the AP in an exclusive interview Tuesday in Tehran that the consequences will be harsh if there are any new attacks targeting Irans nuclear scientists. A string of bombings, blamed on Israel, targeted a number of scientists beginning in 2010 at the height of Western concerns over Irans program.

Salehi also said that President Donald Trumps decision to withdraw America from the 2015 accord puts him on the losers side of history.

He added: That deal could have paved the way for building the trust and the confidence that we had lost.

Salehis comments come after Trump decided to pull the U.S. from the deal in May. The 2015 accord, struck under President Barack Obamas administration, saw Iran agree to limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions.

In the wake of Trumps decision, Western companies from airplane manufacturers to oil firms have pulled out of Iran. Irans rial currency, which traded before the decision at 62,000 to $1, now stands at 142,000 to $1.

I think (Trump) is on the losers side because he is pursuing the logic of power, Salehi said. He thinks that he can, you know, continue for some time but certainly I do not think he will benefit from this withdrawal, certainly not.

Salehi spoke about Irans efforts to build a new facility at Natanzs uranium enrichment center that will produce more advanced centrifuges. Those devices enrich uranium by rapidly spinning uranium hexafluoride gas.

For now, the nuclear accord limits Iran to using a limited number of an older model, called IR-1s. The new facility will allow it to build advanced versions called the IR-2M, IR-4 and IR-6, which can enrich uranium much faster.

If we have to go back and withdraw from the nuclear deal, we certainly do not go back to where we were before, Salehi said. We will be standing on a much, much higher position.
GENEVA (Reuters) - Iran shares the United Nations' concern about a potential humanitarian catastrophe in Syria's Idlib province and will seek to avert it, Hossein Jaberi Ansari, special assistant to Iran's foreign minister, told reporters on Tuesday. Iran and Russia are President Bashar al-Assad's main backers in Syria's seven-year-old civil war. Last week, Russian and Syrian warplanes resumed a bombing campaign in Idlib, the last rebel enclave in Syria, after weeks of quiet, in an apparent prelude to a full-scale offensive. "We are also worried. We are going to work toward that not happening," Ansari said as he arrived in Geneva for U.N. talks about setting up a Syrian constitutional committee. The talks are hosted by U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura and also include senior Russian and Turkish officials. Idlib is the insurgents' only remaining major stronghold and a government offensive could be the war's last decisive battle. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said in an article in the Wall Street Journal that a Syrian government offensive in Idlib would cause humanitarian and security risks for Turkey, Europe and beyond. Erdogan failed to secure a pledge for a ceasefire from Russia and Iran at a trilateral summit in Tehran. U.S. President Donald Trump's national security adviser said on Monday the United States, Britain and France had agreed that another use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government would result in a "much stronger response" compared to previous Western air strikes there. U.S. officials have said in recent days they have evidence that Syrian government forces are preparing chemical weapons ahead of a planned assault on Idlib. "I am not going to tell the world ahead of time what we are going to do, it is just not my style," U.S. Defence Secretary Mattis told reporters in Washington on Tuesday. Trump has twice ordered U.S.-led strikes against targets in Syria in response to what Washington called the Assad governments use of chemical weapons against civilians. "The first time around (Assad) lost 17 percent of his pointy nosed air force airplanes. He's been warned and so we'll see if he's wised up," Mattis added. (Reporting by Babak Dehghanpisheh in Geneva and Idrees Ali in Washington; Editing by Tom Miles and Alistair Bell)
By Giuseppe Fonte and Massimiliano Di Giorgio ROME (Reuters) - Italy's 5-Star Movement denied on Wednesday that it had threatened to demand Economy Minister Giovanni Tria's resignation unless he approved billions in spending next year for its flagship campaign promise. Earlier in the day, state news agency Ansa reported that the job of Tria, an economics professor who is a member of neither party in the coalition government, was at risk. On Tuesday, 5-Star leader Luigi Di Maio said that if the 2019 budget did not include a universal income for the poor, "it will be a problem for the government". Then Stefano Buffagni, a cabinet undersecretary and 5-Star member, said on a TV talk show: "I respect Tria, but he must respect the political forces that support him." The movement, which shares power with the far-right League, wants at least 10 billion euros ($11.6 billion) in spending to cover the universal income measure, a senior 5-Star source told Reuters. However, 5-Star denied it was trying to remove Tria. "That 5-Star is putting pressure on minister Tria is unfounded, as is any reference to his possible resignation," the group said in a statement. Italian bond yields rose on the Ansa report, and held higher after the official denial, widening the gap with the benchmark German Bund yield. MARKETS The government took office in June and the two coalition parties have held a series of meetings in recent weeks to hammer out a compromise over next year's budget law. For its part, the League is seeking sweeping tax cuts -- its main campaign pledge. Both parties also want to roll back a 2011 pension reform and head off a 12.4-billion-euro automatic VAT increase due next year. But to ease tensions in financial markets - which sold off Italian bonds amid fears that the government would go on a spending spree and fail to keep its mammoth debt in check - Tria and others came forward last week to say the main measures would be phased in over its five-year term. Massimo Bitonci, an undersecretary at the economy ministry and a member of the League, said at the weekend that the coalition parties would have 5 billion euros each to implement their campaign promises in the 2019 budget. The coalition is due to present Italy's latest economic growth and public finance targets by the end of the month, before a draft budget plan, which must be delivered in October. Further complicating matters for the government are signs that the economy, the euro zone's third biggest, is slowing. Industrial production fell sharply in July from the previous month, statistics office ISTAT said on Wednesday, taking the index to its lowest level since May of last year. A slowing economy will make it even harder for the two parties to meet their campaign promises while keeping the country's debt, already worth more than 130 percent of annual output, under control. ($1 = 0.8623 euros) (Reporting by Massimiliano Di Giorgio and Giuseppe Fonte, writing by Giselda Vagnoni and Steve Scherer; Editing by Crispian Balmer and David Stamp)
ROME (Reuters) - Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, who also leads the far-right League party, said on Tuesday he wants the new European Commission to be led by conservatives and populists. "The aim is to cancel the duopoly between the socialists and Christian democrats," Salvini told reporters after taping a talk show in Rome. A new Commission will be seated after a European Parliament election during the first half of 2019. When asked if he wanted populists to ally with the European Popular Party to back the new Commission, he replied: "Yes, that's the goal." (Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte, writing by Steve Scherer, editing by Francesca Landini)
A mink whale on the deck of Japanese whaling ship - AP

Governments and animal rights organisations around the world have condemned a proposal put forward by Japan at the meeting of the International Whaling Commission to resume commercial hunting of whales.

Tokyos motion to lift a global moratorium on whaling that was adopted by the IWC in 1982 was introduced at the commissions biannual meeting in the Brazilian city of Florianopolis on Monday.

Japan is chairing this years conference and its delegation is headed by Joji Morishita, who once described Minke whales as the cockroaches of the ocean.

Science is clear: there are certain species of whales whose population is healthy enough to be harvested sustainably, the submission reads.

Japan proposes to establish a committee dedicated to sustainable whaling (including commercial whaling and aboriginal subsistence whaling).

A whale is unloaded at a port after a whaling for scientific purposes in Kushiro Credit: AP

Tokyo is also seeking to change how the IWC votes and wants the commission to reach agreements based on a simple majority vote of member nations, instead of the three-quarters majority that is required at present.

Japan has accused the organisation of being intolerant of different opinions on whaling and claims that it is has descended into a forum for confrontation.

Since the moratorium was introduced, Japanese whalers have used a loophole that permits scientific whaling to slaughter thousands of the creatures in the Pacific Ocean.

You dont need to be a vet to know that firing at a whale with a harpoon... is going to cause appalling and completely unacceptable suffering

Claire Bass, Humane Society International

In its most recent hunt, the fleet met a quota set by Tokyo of 333 Minke whales, the meat from which was sold in supermarkets and to restaurants. Critics say the scientific hunt is thinly disguised commercial whaling.

Japan could not possibly have advanced a more regressive and reckless proposition, imperiling both the conservation and welfare of whales, said Claire Bass, executive director of the British branch of Humane Society International.

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You dont need to be a veterinarian to know that firing at a whale with a harpoon that explodes inside its body, in many cases not killing it immediately, is going to cause appalling and completely unacceptable suffering, she said.

There is no humane way to kill whales at sea, and that fact alone should be enough for countries to reject Japans proposal.

Japan has declined to provide data on how long it takes whales to die after they have been harpooned, although analysis of video footage of Japanese whalers operations suggests it could be at least 33 minutes.

Julie Bishop, the Australian foreign minister, and Josh Frydenberg, Canberras environment minister, released a statement calling on like-minded nations to resist Japans proposals.

Australia remains steadfastly opposed to all forms of commercial and so-called scientific whaling and continues to be a leader in seeking to strengthen the International Whaling Commission to protect whales.

We strongly support the 30-year global moratorium on commercial whaling and will vehemently oppose any attempts to undermine the processes that support it, including through changed voting regimes or the establishment of catch-limits for commercial whaling, the statement added.

The meeting is scheduled to end on Friday.
Vladivostok (Russia) (AFP) - Shinzo Abe confirmed Wednesday his plans to visit China this year in what would be the first trip to the country by a Japanese prime minister since 2011, the latest sign of warmer ties between the two rivals.

"I intend to visit China this year, the year in which we commemorate the 40th anniversary of the conclusion of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and China," Abe said in a speech at an economic forum in the far eastern Russian city of Vladivostok.

"After that, I very much wish to invite President Xi to Japan," said Abe, speaking after meeting China's leader Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the forum.

"Through this exchange of visits at the leaders' level, I hope to raise Japan-China relations to a new stage. I am firmly determined in this regard."

Japanese media have suggested that Abe's visit would be timed to the anniversary of the Sino-Japanese friendship treaty signed on October 23, 1978.

Abe and Xi have met numerous times over the last few years on the sidelines of international events.

However no Japanese prime minister has paid an official visit to China since 2011 and no Chinese president has visited Japan since 2010.

Abe praised his meeting with Xi, saying they held "highly significant talks regarding Japan-China relations and the various issues that we face together."

A Japanese foreign ministry spokesman, Takeshi Osuga, said the two leaders "shared their determination to promote bilateral relations and to make progress on all fronts."

Relations between China and Japan soured in 2012 over a territorial dispute over several tiny islands in the East China Sea.

Upon returning to power in 2012, Abe took a firm position on Japan's claims to the disputed island chain, 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.

mp-gmo-ma-as/wdb
By Alastair Macdonald

STRASBOURG (Reuters) - European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker on Wednesday renewed a pledge of close trade and security ties with Britain after Brexit, but said the European Union would not compromise on key withdrawal terms.

Delivering his annual state-of-the-union speech to the European Parliament, Juncker said the EU will not allow Britain to participate only in some parts of the bloc's single market after Brexit without honouring all of its rules.

The EU respects Britain's decision to leave, Juncker said. "But we also ask the British government to understand that someone who leaves the union cannot be in the same privileged position as a member state."

"After 29 March 2019, the United Kingdom will never be an ordinary third country for us. The United Kingdom will always be a very close neighbour and partner, in political, economic and security terms," Juncker said.

Markets have been reacting increasingly nervously to Brexit news in recent weeks as the EU and Britain have yet to reach a comprehensive agreement before Britain leaves on March 29, 2019.

Businesses fear a disruptive "no-deal" scenario under which Britain would crash out of the EU next year with few agreements in place to transition into a new reality. Avoiding reintroducing checks on the EU-UK land border on the island of Ireland remains a key obstacle.

The EU has highlighted in recent weeks a willingness to work closely with Britain after Brexit, to help Prime Minister Theresa May convince her divided cabinet and parliament to accept Brexit terms, including the Irish fix. But Juncker made clear key demands by the bloc held firm.

"The European Commission, this Parliament and all other 26 member states will always show loyalty and solidarity with Ireland when it comes to the Irish border," Juncker said.

CLOSE BUT NOT THERE YET

A senior EU official said separately it would be sending a "wrong signal" to suggest there was a softening of the EU line, and dismissed suggestions the bloc's leaders might rejig instructions for chief negotiator Michel Barnier when they meet May in Austria next week.

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Juncker sent a positive signal on parts of May's Brexit proposal, known as the "Chequers" plan for the country residence where it was hammered out in July.

While the EU opposes May's call for Britain to stay in a free trade zone with the EU for goods only, Juncker said the two sides should seek a broad free-trade deal.

"I welcome Prime Minister May's proposal to develop an ambitious new partnership for the future, after Brexit. We agree with the statement made in Chequers that the starting point for such a partnership should be a free trade area between the United Kingdom and the European Union," Juncker said.

The plan is opposed in Britain by both supporters of closer ties and those who want a clean break, including a strong eurosceptic wing of May's own Conservative party.

Poland, which has broken ranks by suggesting in a closed-door meeting of the remaining 27 EU states that they may have to pick between a tough stance on Ireland and having any deal with Britain, also sent a positive signal to London.

"We are very close to an agreement," Polish EU affairs minister Konrad Szymanski, told a news conference in Warsaw on Wednesday, adding that most issues were not controversial.

(Additional reporting by Marcin Goclowski in Warsaw, Writing by Gabriela Baczynska, Editing by Peter Graff)
Strasbourg (France) (AFP) - In an age of trade wars, terrorism and rising nationalism, Europe must become a global player with a muscular foreign policy to match its economic strength, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker declared Wednesday.

Juncker used his annual speech to the European Parliament to call for the bloc to stand up for the international order in the face of "trade and currency wars", in a swipe at US President Donald Trump's "America First" approach.

Europe's ability to take strong diplomatic action is often hampered by the need to get agreement from all 28 member countries, so in a bid to simplify the process, Juncker announced plans to abolish the need for unanimity on some foreign policy issues.

With Brussels and Washington at loggerheads on a host of major issues from trade tariffs to the Paris climate agreement and the Iran nuclear deal, Juncker said it was time for Europe to play a more influential role on the world stage.

"We must become a greater global actor," the head of the EU executive told lawmakers in French, before switching to English to add: "Yes we are global payers, but we have to be global players too."

The EU must do more to push the euro as a world currency, Juncker said, questioning why Europe pays 80 percent of its energy bills in dollars when only two percent of its energy imports come from the United States.

Boosting the role of the euro as a reserve currency would also create a means of skirting US sanctions that it disagrees with, such as those slapped back on Tehran by Trump when he pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal earlier this year in the face of bitter European opposition.

A European diplomat said in advance of the speech that Juncker knows it is a "critical" moment to prepare Europe for a world in which Trump's United States is an unpredictable foreign policy friend and a protectionist trade rival.

Juncker urged the EU to strike a "new alliance" with Africa that would create millions of jobs and include a free trade deal -- a move Brussels hopes would both showcase its international influence and help to stem the flow of migrants across the Mediterranean.

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But despite his impassioned call for greater assertiveness, Juncker made no mention of Russia -- accused of meddling in numerous elections across Europe and launching a chemical attack in Britain -- or of the war still rumbling in the EU's eastern neighbour Ukraine.

- 10,000 border guards -

Juncker's showpiece speech is his last before the May elections that will pit Europe's rising populist movements against his centrist supporters, and he issued a rallying cry to maintain a "continent of tolerance and openness".

Populist, nationalist and eurosceptic forces have gained ground in many countries, and the polls for the European parliament could well bring in more of Juncker's opponents to rock the boat just as he tries to consolidate what he sees as real successes in restoring forward momentum to the European project.

As part of efforts to tackle the issue of illegal immigration, which has done much to fuel populist sentiment since the height of Europe's migrant crisis in 2015, Juncker confirmed plans to revamp the bloc's border protection.

"The European Commission is today proposing to strengthen the European Border and Coast Guard to better protect our external borders with an additional 10,000 European border guards by 2020," Juncker said.

Germany's powerful Chancellor Angela Merkel has been a Juncker supporter but warned that the European elections marked a crucial turning point, and that immigration would be a major issue.

"The migration question is an even bigger challenge for EU cohesion than the euro crisis," Merkel told lawmakers in Berlin.

"Will Europe succeed in the face of those who want to destroy it and fragment it, those who want to withdraw in on themselves?"

Juncker leaves office on October 31 next year after a term marked by crisis after crisis: a refugee influx, soaring debt and Brexit.

He said he respected Britain's choice to leave, but undermined a key part of Prime Minister Theresa May's plan to quit the bloc, warning London it cannot expect to selectively remain in parts of the single market.

"Someone who leaves the union can not be in the same privileged position as a member state," he said, while welcoming May's proposal for an "ambitious new partnership" based on a future free trade agreement.
Brussels (AFP) - Greek debt. A refugee influx. Brexit deadlock. Jean-Claude Juncker has not had an easy term as head of the European Commission, the EU executive branch.

But what if his toughest year is yet to come?

On Wednesday, the 63-year-old former Luxembourg premier plans to lay out an ambitious reform programme for his last 12 months in charge.

His supporters point to a track record as a calm builder of compromise to suggest he can still get the European project back on track.

His detractors say his reliance on consensus only underlines Europe's weakness in the face of rising populist and eurosceptic forces.

During Juncker's final months, the politicians he is so practised at herding will be keeping an eye on May's EU parliamentary vote and what it means for their own futures.

Nevertheless, he plans to address them Wednesday on plans to build a robust EU border force, respond to cyber-crime and reform the reception of migrants.

The challenge will test his cheery demeanour and facetious sense of humour, much mocked on social media but deployed to mask a complex personality.

Born in 1954 in the heart of a Europe still recovering from war, Juncker sees himself as an heir of the European project's founding fathers.

The revival of euroscepticism and outright nationalism in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis has forced him to tone down his federalist instincts.

But he remains true to his credo: "Europe is capable of great things when it combines its strengths and energies."

His background helps. His native Luxembourg is the smallest of the union's founding members, sandwiched between the might of France and Germany.

He has been attentive to the concerns of other small countries, but as Luxembourg's leader between 1995 and 2013 he also rubbed elbows with a generation of greats.

Juncker knew France's president Francois Mitterrand and called Germany's late chancellor Helmut Kohl a mentor, friend, and "the very essence of Europe."

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- 'A political rainbow' -

Juncker hails from Europe's centre-right Christian Democrat bloc but his ideological colours have proved so supple that one EU source dubbed him a "political rainbow".

His father was a steel worker and Franco-German leftist Daniel Cohn-Bendit once called him "the most socialist Christian Democrat that ever lived".

In office at home he governed largely in coalition with social-democrats and in Brussels he has proved adept at negotiating alliances to push compromise measures.

Dogged by reports -- strongly denied -- of excessive drinking, he is often underestimated as a negotiator.

But in July, to general surprise, he hit it off with the author of The Art of the Deal himself, US President Donald Trump, and halted or delayed a threatened trade war.

In Brussels, Juncker may well be known for his wicked humour, but he has blue periods, and doubts, especially about the relative decline of his beloved Europe.

"By the end of the century we will represent four percent of the world's population," he has mused.

When he came to office in November 2014, Juncker hoped to boost the standing of European institutions in the eyes of an often sceptical public.

But the coming months of his tenure will be thoroughly overshadowed by negotiations on the "Brexit" divorce of one of the bloc's biggest members: Britain.

- 'King of the slackers' -

Many in European politics like and respect Juncker.

"He's the right man in the right job," said his successor as Luxembourg premier, Xavier Bettel.

"Everyone knows Jean-Claude. He's an emotional person, who speaks his mind and has strong personal relationships. A whole person, who doesn't say things by half."

But others are much more sceptical.

Green MEP Eva Joly wrote a polemical pamphlet denouncing Juncker as both "the wolf in the hen-house" and "king of the slackers", in hock to elite vested interests.

His public profile was certainly tarnished by the LuxLeaks whistleblower document dump, which showed him negotiating cosy tax breaks for multinationals in Luxembourg.

He can also be stubborn -- and vengeful.

He has defended the opaque promotion of his chief of staff Martin Selmayr to the EU Commission's top administrative post despite a stern ombudsman's report.

Eurosceptic media have also found him a rich source of anecdotes. A heavy smoker and reputed bon viveur, he has sometimes appeared inebriated in public.

Juncker's office insists he has sometimes been unsteady on his feet because of sciatica, a lower back affliction, but images of him cheerfully slapping and kissing colleagues have gone viral.

He is determined this will not be his legacy. Wednesday's speech, aides say, will not be a swansong, but the start of a new stage of an activist presidency.
European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker delivers his state of the union speech in Strasbourg (Reuters)

Jean-Claude Juncker has dealt a fresh blow to the credibility of the Chequers plan by rejecting Theresa Mays proposals to maintain frictionless trade after Brexit.

The European Commission president struck an upbeat tone on post-Brexit relations in his annual state of the union speech, saying the UK will never be an ordinary third country for us.

But he came out strongly against the prime ministers plan to keep trade flowing and avoid a hard border in Ireland after Brexit by effectively keeping the UK in a single market for goods.

We respect the British decision to leave our union, even though we continue to regret it deeply, Juncker told MEPs in Strasbourg.

MORE: Key parts of Mays Chequers plan for Brexit are unworkable, says Barnier

But we also ask the British government to understand that someone who leaves the Union cannot be in the same privileged position as a member state.

If you leave the union, you are of course no longer part of our single market, and certainly not only in the parts of it you choose.

Juncker said instead that the Chequers plan was a good starting point for a free trade agreement.

His position was welcomed by UKIPs Nigel Farage, who had earlier given Juncker a pair of union jack socks to mark the occasion.

I kept my promise to @JunckerEU and gave him a pair of Union Jack socks!  pic.twitter.com/nsxxW1XfyP  Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) September 12, 2018

You said our vote to leave was a vote to leave the single market and its associated parts  I agree with you, said Farage.

Why Mrs May at Chequers wants to opt back into much of it I dont know.

The Chequers plan includes a proposal for the UK to accept EU rules on goods in order to avoid border checks and maintain the just in time supply chain which many businesses depend on.

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The EU believe that allowing the UK to benefit from the free movement of goods without accepting the free movement of capital, services and labour would lead to calls for other countries for bespoke deals and ultimately bring down the single market.

MORE: Honda could stop car production in Britain post-Brexit

UK negotiators insist the proposal is not a threat to the single market and are continuing to push the idea, along with a customs arrangement that would see the UK act as if it were in a combined customs territory with the EU.

As well as being beneficial for trade, the UK government say it is crucial for avoiding a hard border in Ireland  the major issue holding up the Withdrawal Agreement.

On Ireland, Juncker said he was open to a creative solution to avoid a hard border but added that the EUs loyalty and solidarity will always be with Ireland on the issue.

And he said: It is not the European Union, it is Brexit that risks making the border more visible in Northern Ireland.

EU Brexit chief Michel Barnier talking with Jean-Claude Juncker before Wednesdays speech (Reuters)

Far from dominating the EUs agenda, Brexit was the last major issue to be addressed in Junckers hour-long speech which he delivered mainly in French and German and centred on dealing with migration, terrorism and global trade.

He did though make some thinly-veiled digs over contentious Brexit issues, such as on the EUs Galileo satellite project.

The UK have threatened to claw back its 1bn investment and set-up a rival system if its not allowed full access to Galileo after Brexit.

MORE: Britain to demand 1 billion back from EU in Brexit satellite row

Juncker insisted that no single member state could have created Galileo alone, saying: Without Europe there would be no Galileo.

The address is likely to be Junckers last before his term as commission president ends next year.

Manfred Weber, the leader of the European Parliaments centre-right group and a potential successor to Juncker, said of Brexit talks: Europe is united and ready for a deal but London cannot give us clear answers. So the EU is united and London is in trouble.




(Reuters) - President Donald Trump's nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court is now in the hands of the U.S. Senate, where the likelihood of a party-line vote to confirm him was not much reduced last week by his multi-day confirmation hearing.

A handful of senators who sometimes cross party lines will hold the key votes, with 51 needed for confirmation. The Republicans have that many votes if they stick together.

It's also possible that a handful of Democrats running for re-election in states won by Trump in 2016 could back Kavanaugh.

A final Senate vote is expected by the end of September.

REPUBLICANS

* Susan Collins. She said on July 1 she would not support a Supreme Court nominee "who demonstrated hostility to Roe v. Wade," the 1973 high-court decision legalizing abortion.

After Kavanaugh's hearing, Collins said generally positive things about his statements regarding Roe v. Wade.

In 2017, Collins voted to confirm Neil Gorsuch, Trump's first nomination to a vacancy on the Supreme Court.

* Lisa Murkowski. She has promised to be "rigorous" in her review of Kavanaugh's record. She has not said how she will vote. Like Collins, Murkowski's support of abortion rights has led some Democrats to believe she could oppose Kavanaugh.

Also like Collins, Murkowski helped block Trump's 2017 bid to fully repeal Obamacare. But earlier that year, she voted in favor of confirming Gorsuch.

* Dean Heller. He is the only Republican senator up for re-election on Nov. 6 whose state was won by Hillary Clinton in 2016. Democrats see him as vulnerable and he is in a close race.

Nevertheless, Heller said in a statement after meeting with Kavanaugh in July that has no reservations in confidently supporting Judge Kavanaughs confirmation.

Heller also voted to confirm Gorsuch.

* Rand Paul. A maverick who sometimes breaks from Republican ranks, Paul said in late July he will support Kavanaugh.

* Bob Corker. He has clashed with Trump and is not running for re-election, but has described Kavanaugh as a "superb nominee" who he plans to vote for.

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* Jeff Flake. A Trump critic who is leaving the Senate after this year's election, Flake was complimentary toward Kavanaugh during the confirmation hearing.

* Ben Sasse. Another senator who has clashed with Trump, Sasse has said he will vote for Kavanaugh.

DEMOCRATS

* Heidi Heitkamp. A Democrat up for re-election in a heavily pro-Trump state, she was one of three Democrats who voted for Gorsuch. On Kavanaugh, she has been keeping her head down.

* Joe Manchin. Also up for reelection in a pro-Trump state, he says healthcare is his test of whether to support Kavanaugh, whose critics say will rule against Obamacare the first chance he gets on the Supreme Court. Manchin voted for Gorsuch.

* Joe Donnelly. Non-committal thus far on Kavanaugh, Donnelly, too, is up for re-election in a red-leaning state.

* Claire McCaskill. With a tough re-election bid ahead in a heavily Republican state, she is quick to say she has voted for most of Trump's judicial nominations. She voted against Gorsuch.

* Doug Jones. The first Democratic senator elected from Alabama in over 20 years. To stay in office, he must show he can be independent-minded. The Kavanaugh vote could be a test.

* Jon Tester. He has not come down firmly on Kavanaugh. He opposed Gorsuch.

* Bill Nelson. He has not stated explicitly whether he would vote for Kavanaugh, but he said in a July fundraising email that Democrats need to stop Republicans' "plans to put another right-wing extremist on the Supreme Court. Nelson opposed Gorsuch.

(Reporting By Richard Cowan, Amanda Becker and Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Susan Thomas)
South Korean President Moon Jae-in called for a "bold decision" by US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on denuclearisation Tuesday as the White House said it was planning another summit with Pyongyang.

"The complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula is an issue that should fundamentally be resolved between the US and North Korea through negotiation," Moon told a cabinet meeting.

"But until talks and communication between the North and the US become more active, we cannot but work to mediate between them," he said, adding: "President Trump and Chairman Kim have asked that I play this role."

His comments came after the White House said it was "in the process of coordinating" another summit between Trump and Kim, after Pyongyang proposed a second meeting in a letter delivered to Trump.

Moon, who brokered June's historic Singapore summit between Trump and Kim, will fly to Pyongyang next week for his third meeting with the North Korean leader this year.

"A big vision and a bold decision between the leaders of North Korea and the US are needed again in order to advance to a higher level in discarding Pyongyang's existing nuclear weapons," Moon said.

In Singapore, Trump and Kim signed a vaguely-worded agreement on denuclearisation, which was touted by the US leader as a breakthrough deal to end the North's nuclear programme.

Little progress has been made since then, prompting Trump to abruptly cancel Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's planned trip to Pyongyang late last month.

But the new letter showed signs that the discussions remain alive despite weeks of apparent deadlock.

North Korea also refrained from displaying its intercontinental missiles in a massive parade celebrating the country's 70th birthday on Sunday, which Trump called "a big and very positive statement".
Rapper Mac Miller and singer Ariana Grande backstage during the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards.

Ariana Grande was deeply helpful and effective in getting Mac Miller sober during their relationship, according to one of the late rappers closest friends.

The 26-year-old Miller was found dead in his San Fernando Valley home in California on Sept. 7 after an apparent overdose. His substance abuse, which he mentioned frequently in his music, was an issue for Grande, who previously described their two-year relationship as toxic and scary.

Some people continue to blame the pop star for his death, but Shane Powers, a longtime friend of Millers, praised her for being unbelievably involved in every step of the rappers sobriety journey.

They were very much in love, and I have to say she was incredible when he was first sobering up, he said on his podcast, The Shane Show. She was a fucking G to him. There could not have been anybody more supportive of him being sober than Ariana. I saw that. I was around it.

Miller and Grande on their way to an Oscar party in Los Angeles on March 4. (GC Images / Getty Images)

Powers went on to say that Grande called him from time to time when concerned about Millers health to ask, How do I help? What do I do?

This little girl was unbelievably involved and helpful to him being healthy, Powers added.

The pop star and the rapper split in May after two years of dating (and many more of being friends). Days after their breakup, Miller was involved in a car collision and later arrested on DUI and hit-and-run charges, which were dismissed after his death.

Whether hes an addict or not, the way that Mac partied was not healthy, Powers continued on his show. There was no one in his life more ready to go to the wall for him when it came to him being sober. She was an unbelievably stabilizing force in his life, and she was deeply helpful and effective in keeping Mac sober and helping him get sober. She was all about him being healthy. Period.

Grande is now engaged to Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson. They started dating weeks after her relationship to Miller ended.

Miller and Grande onstage during the One Love Manchester benefit concert, June 4, 2017. (Kevin Mazur / One Love Manchester / Getty Images)

In the wake of Millers death, Grande disabled the comments on her recent Instagram posts after she received countless responses directing blame for the tragedy her way.

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On Sept. 8 she shared a sweet black-and-white photo of Miller without any accompanying text.

Four days after Millers death, thousands of fans gathered in his hometown of Pittsburgh to remember the rapper at Frick Parks Blue Slide playground, which inspired the name of his first album.
Paris (AFP) - France is famously America's oldest ally, but more than half of French people no longer consider the United States a reliable partner, according to a survey released Wednesday.

Just 44 percent said the US was a "trusted ally" under President Donald Trump -- a 33 point plunge since the same survey was done in May 2014, when Barack Obama was in the White House.

Only 17 percent said they had a positive opinion of Trump in the Ifop poll, commissioned by the American Jewish Committee advocacy group, France's Foundation for Political Innovation and the Sursaut think-tank collective.

Some 54 percent said they had a "very bad opinion" of the Republican leader.

Supporters of the far-right National Rally party led by Marine Le Pen -- formerly the National Front -- were the only group to express a more positive opinion, with 42 percent backing Trump.

Despite warm ties dating back to the American Revolutionary War in the 18th century and their alliance in World War II, US policy has long been a source of criticism in France, not least since the conflict in Iraq.

As Trump pursues punitive trade tariffs, 78 percent believe the US is bad for French growth.

And with Trump's decision to pull out of the Paris climate change agreement, 88 percent also see his country as an adversary in the fight against global warming.

The figures do however point to a slight improvement in opinions since Trump's victory in November 2016, when just 38 percent considered the US a trusted ally.

Attitudes also vary between age groups, with the oldest French nationals holding the most pessimistic views of the US.

Only 38 percent of those over 65 see Washington as a trusted ally, compared to 52 percent of those aged 18 to 24.

The survey questioned 1,007 people online on September 10 and 11.
Rabat (AFP) - A law to combat violence against women in Morocco entered into force Wednesday, following years of heated debate and after thousands called for action in a recent gang-rape case.

For the first time women in Morocco have legal protection from "acts considered forms of harassment, aggression, sexual exploitation or ill treatment".

The new law also paves the way for victims of violence to be offered support.

Families minister Bassima Hakkaoui hailed the legislation as "one of the most important texts strengthening the national legal arsenal in the area of equality of the sexes," in an interview with the official MAP agency.

The text was first drafted five years ago and was adopted by parliament in February, following lengthy debate.

But the law has been deemed inadequate by some, with the former women's minister Nouzha Skalli arguing it fails to take into account "international definitions" of violence against women.

She has highlighted the example of marital rape, which is not criminalised under the new legislation.

In Morocco, media and rights groups regularly raise the alarm about endemic violence against women.

More than 40 percent of women said they had been "victims of an act of violence at least once", in a survey carried out by Morocco's High Commission for Planning which surveyed those living in towns and aged between 18 and 64.

The first woman to benefit from the legal change could be a 24-year-old who on Tuesday filed a complaint against three men for harassment, according to Moroccan media.

As authorities begin enforcing the law, a dozen suspects are being held over the alleged gang-rape of a teenage girl.

In a video posted online last month, 17-year-old Khadija Okkarou said she had been kidnapped, raped and tortured by a gang over a period of two months.

Okkarou's testimony triggered a petition signed by thousands of people urging King Mohammed VI to provide her with medical and psychological care.

The next hearing in the case is set for October 10.
Frankfurt am Main (AFP) - Countries that strictly enforce a worldwide pact against foreign bribery are far outnumbered and outweighed by those that turn a blind eye, a report published Wednesday by watchdog Transparency International found.

TI charged that 22 countries accounting for 39.6 percent of global exports practise "little or no enforcement" of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) 1997 Anti-Bribery Convention, which requires signatories to criminalise bribery of foreign public officials.

The list of slackers includes non-signatories like China and India, but also members of the pact like Mexico, Japan or Finland.

That compares to just seven countries, weighing in at 27 percent of global exports -- the United States, Germany, the UK, Italy, Switzerland, Norway and Israel -- classed as "active" enforcers of the agreement, the highest rating.

Since TI's last report in 2015, eight countries improved their level of enforcement, with Israel shooting from the lowest to the highest bracket as it successfully concluded its first-ever foreign bribery case and opened a slew of new ones.

But four countries also slid back in the classification, while China -- rated for the first time -- entered at the lowest level.

"The convention's fundamental goal of creating a corruption-free level playing field is still far from being achieved, due to insufficient enforcement," the authors wrote.

As the world's doughtiest exporter at 10.8 percent of the global total, they singled out China as a country with "special responsibility".

"China's performance regarding international anti-corruption standards influences attitudes and behaviour in other major exporting countries," the authors wrote.
Most affordable sofas look the same. There are straight lines, boxy cushions, and either square or tapered ("midcentury") legs. But all that's changing due to some unlikely news. Nate Berkus and Jeremiah Brent, design world darlings and parents of two, have launched a new line of upholstery for the furniture brand, Living Spaces. What's not surprising is that the pieces are super chic: an enormous burnt orange velvet sectional, a boucle-like loveseat in ivory with vertical tufting, and on and on. Coming from a pair whose new L.A. home clocks in at a casual 9,000 square feet, every inch of which is accentuated with cool, tasteful antiques, this is par for the course.

What's therefore so surprising about this glamorous new collection is how it's priced. Take the Gwen Sofa, which we zero-ed in on immediately upon spotting the collection.

It's both entirely contemporary and also accessible, with soft-looking cushions, chunky peg legs, and funky cylindrical arm rests that seem to clip to the sofa's sides. You can imagine it fitting right into the couple's gorgeous homeor your own living roomand actually being comfortable to cozy up in. "The Gwen Sofa and chair were inspired by the modern architectural works of Zaha HadidQueen of the Curveand Santiago Calatrava, whose structures are heavily influenced by sculpture and movement," Nate and Jeremiah exclusively shared with our team. "We intentionally chose a color palette and created a shape [for the Gwen sofa] that felt versatile It could work in a New York apartment, or a beach home in Malibu." No surprise that the color is a warm off-whiteNate and Jeremiah are known for their love of layered neutrals. Before you write it off as entirely impractical, you should know that the fabric is 100% polypropylene (read: SO easy to clean!) even though it looks like a nubby linen.

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But here's the real kicker: Despite how very distinct the piece feels, the Gwen Sofa is somehow just $995. What?? is how our whole team reacted to hearing that number. "I want to redecorate my whole apartment around that couch," one person said.

The designers attribute this pricing to the fact that all the new pieces were manufactured in California. The three other sofas in the line are also under $1,000: that shearling-inspired piece, the Liv Sofa; a black velvet number with midcentury lines, the Ames Sofa; and a cool tufted option with rounded corners, the Mateo Sofa. (The huge sectionals in the line are more, between $2k and $3k, but you're basically getting twice or three times the seating.) There are upholstered armchairs to match the sofa designs, plus ottomans and pillows... all lovely, all well-priced ($49 pillows for the win), but we're in too deep with the Gwen to get to them yet.
MEXICO CITY (AP)  Hundreds of people in the central Mexican city of Puebla are returning home after billowing clouds of flammable gas apparently caused by an illegal pipeline tap forced an early morning evacuation of several neighborhoods.

Authorities closed dozens of schools early Wednesday, and urged residents to turn off lights, heaters and stoves and leave .

Crews from Mexico's state-run gas company Pemex were able to control the leak and by late morning people were allowed to return. The leak also shut down activities at the city's main wholesale market during the morning crush of business.

Pemex says via Twitter says the leak was in an underground gas line apparently damaged by an illegal tap. It immediately closed the pipeline.

Thieves drilled 10,363 illegal taps into state-owned pipelines in 2017.
Abuja (AFP) - Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday formally submitted his candidacy to stand for a second term of office at elections in February next year.

The 75-year-old leader travelled to the headquarters of his ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party in the capital Abuja to hand in his nomination form.

He was accompanied by state governors, government ministers and party supporters.

He said afterwards he was seeking the nomination "with all humility, sense of responsibility and an unquestionable desire to serve and protect the interest of all Nigerians".

Well-wishers and supporters clubbed together to pay the 45 million naira ($125,000, 108,000 euros) for the nomination form.

"I assure them and the rest of Nigerians that if nominated and if elected, I shall continue to serve you to the best of my ability," Buhari said.

Former military ruler Buhari in 2015 became the first opposition candidate in Nigerian history to defeat a sitting president at the polls.

He was elected in the landmark election on a platform to improve security, tackle endemic corruption and boost the economy.

But despite Boko Haram Islamists remaining a threat to security, his anti-corruption campaign is making slow progress while the nation recovers from recession.

There have been questions, too, about Buhari's fitness to govern after he spent months being treated for an undisclosed illness in London last year.

Buhari told his supporters to guard against complacency "but to prepare, strategise and win 2019 elections".

The APC has been hit by a wave of defections to the main opposition People's Democratic Party (PDP), with critics unhappy at his perceived autocratic style.

In a dig at the PDP, Buhari added: "We must not allow those who brought the country to its knees from 1999 to 2015 to come and take us back."

The APC has scheduled presidential primaries for later this month but a party spokesman told AFP no one else has picked up a nomination form, making Buhari the only candidate.

The PDP has extended its closing date for submissions of interest to stand in presidential primaries and will choose its candidate by October 6.

Among those who have already declared their intention to stand are former vice-president Atiku Abubakar and the leader of the Senate, Bukola Saraki.
Photo credit: Christian Kargl - Getty Images

From Delish

A grocery store in Ohio recently had a deli debacle. Giant Eagle Supermarket, in Lawrence Township, called the police on an employee who had allegedly been eating on the job. The grocery store claims the woman ate several slices of deli meat each day. Turns out, multiple slices over eight years really adds up-the woman allegedly ate $9,200 worth of deli meat, according to NBC4i.

A loss prevention manager at the grocery store reportedly received a tip that one of the employees was eating three to five slices of ham every day, and occasionally salami, NBC4i reports. The store manager estimated that the missing ham was worth $9,200.

Though many outlets are reporting that the woman was charged with a crime, the Tuscarawas County Sheriff's Office posted a statement on its Facebook page on September 8, explaining "While our office did take a report of the issue as requested by the store, no determination of charges has been made."

Sheriff Orvis Campbell, who wrote the statement, says his office does not have the authority to make the final decision in the case, though he does "feel confident that once all of the facts are relayed to the Prosecutor, Felony charges are unlikely."



He continued on to clarify: "When called to investigate a matter, our office holds an independent duty to report on behalf of the complainant and sometimes make immediate arrests. We did NOT make an arrest and there have been no formal filing of charges."

Many people, including community members, responded to the Facebook post, thanking the police department for clarifying and expressing disappointment in Giant Eagle.

One user wrote, "Boo Bolivar Giant Eagle!!! They should be ashamed!" Another said, "Three to five slices of meat a day is nothing compared to what ends up in the dumpster at the end of the day."

Some were just exasperated: "Oh for crying out loud." One person said, "for real I thought it was a joke. smh."

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Only time will tell whether this cold cut conflict will be deemed as a crime. We will update as we hear more details.

('You Might Also Like',)
Omarosa Manigault Newman, still hitting the press circuit for her book tour, has a theory about the identity of the author behind the earth-shattering anonymous op-ed published by The New York Times last week.

I took some time and went back and looked through all of my emails, particularly emails out of the vice presidents office, because the first time I read the op-ed, it just seemed kind of familiar to me, Manigault Newman told Yahoo Finance on Tuesday. After looking at memos and correspondence from the vice presidents office, Im pretty convinced that it came from that way. Not just because of the term lodestar, but because of the style and tone of it.

The person she said she narrowed it down to as a likely suspect was Nick Ayers.

The former White House aide made the same suggestion on The View earlier this week, but elaborated on her comments, saying Vice President Mike Pences chief of staff had the most to gain from the publication of the piece, which described an active resistance inside the Trump administration.

All of these guys work in these groups together and could see themselves as some sort of hero trying to save the country from Donald Trump, but to me Nick Ayers is the one who has the most to gain from writing this, she continued.

Ayers, a political strategist who has served as Pences chief of staff since July 2017, is one of the vice presidents most trusted aides.

Pence, for his part, has denied he or any member of his staff was affiliated with the editorial, as have many other senior staffers in the White House. Officials scrambled to craft a list of suspects shortly after its publication, but no one has yet to be identified as the author.

Let me be very clear. Im 100 percent confident that no one on the vice presidents staff was involved in this anonymous editorial. I know my people, Pence said Sunday during an interview on CBS Face the Nation. They get up every day and are dedicated, just as much as I am, to advancing the presidents agenda and supporting everything.

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The vice presidents office did not immediately return a request for comment.

Trump said last week that he wants Attorney General Jeff Sessions to investigate the editorial, declaring it a breach of national security. Shortly after the piece was published, the president also raged on Twitter, likening the story to treason.

Watch the full interview here.

Related Coverage

Senior Trump Official Rips Administration In Anonymous Op-Ed

That New York Times Op-Ed Is Propaganda Disguised As Resistance

Obama On New York Times Op-Ed: 'This Is Not Normal'

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By John Davison CAIRO (Reuters) - Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki described on Tuesday President Donald Trump's decision to halt U.S. funding for the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA as an attack on international law. Trump's decision has left UNRWA trying to cover a $200 million shortfall from Gulf and European donors, and has further strained tensions between Washington and the Palestinian leadership. Relations have sharply deteriorated since Trump decided to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital last year, reversing decades of U.S. policy and prompting Arab warnings that it could fuel crises in the region. Foreign governments and organizations, with exceptions including Israel, criticized the move. "The U.S. administration has begun to attack the rights of the Palestinian people and international law," Maliki said at a meeting of the Arab League in Cairo, convened to discuss the issue. Internationally-brokered peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians have stalled since 2014 and Israeli settlements in the occupied territories have steadily expanded. Palestinian leaders say their political situation has deteriorated since Trump took office in 2017 as Washington has pursued policies that favor the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is a close U.S. ally. Netanyahu has broadly welcomed Trump's support. On Monday the United States also announced it would close the office of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) in Washington for seeking to punish Israel through the International Criminal Court. "The United States has made the right decision regarding the PLO mission in Washington," Netanyahu said in a written statement on Tuesday. "Israel supports the American steps which are meant to clarify to the Palestinians that refusing to negotiate and trying to attack Israel in international forums will not advance peace, Netanyahu said. Turkey, one of the strongest critics of Washingtons Middle East policy, said on Tuesday that the decision was a worrying step and "another sign that the USA has lost its impartial stance on the Middle East peace process". Washington said last month that it was halting all funding to UNRWA. Last week, Trump ordered that $25 million earmarked for the care of Palestinians in East Jerusalem hospitals be directed elsewhere as part of a review of aid. The United States said UNRWA's business model and fiscal practices made it an "irredeemably flawed operation". Jordan, a U.S. ally, said the decision would only fuel radicalism and harm prospects for Middle East peace. Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said at the Arab League that Jordan would hold a meeting "in cooperation with Sweden, Germany, Japan, the European Union and Turkey" on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly later this month "in an effort to get more aid". Three Gulf States have announced a total of $150 million in funding for UNRWA this year, and other countries have made new or increased contributions as the agency scrambles to continue operating. "I humbly appeal to all of you to ensure the pledges that were made (to UNRWA) are indeed transferred," the head of UNRWA Pierre Krahenbuhl told Arab League delegates in Cairo. "Please also consider opportunities for further donations at this critical time." (Additional reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen and Maayan Lubell; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg and David Stamp/Mark Heinrich)
By Jonathan Landay WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday that he certified to Congress that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were working to reduce civilian casualties in Yemen, avoiding a limitation on U.S. help for its ally Saudi Arabia. Without the certification, U.S. tanker aircraft would have been restricted in the refueling of Saudi-led coalition aircraft conducting strikes against Houthi rebels backed by Iran. Pompeo's decision drew the derision of critics of the Saudi-led air campaign, which has long been denounced even by Western allies for the number of civilian casualties it has caused and for driving Yemen to the brink of famine. The three-year-old war in Yemen, widely seen as a proxy battle between regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran, has killed more than 10,000 people. Pompeo said in a statement he advised Congress on Tuesday that "the governments of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments." A number of factors underpinned Pompeo's decision, including the Saudi-led coalition's admission of blame and agreement to compensate the victims of an Aug. 9 air strike on a bus that killed dozens of people, including 40 children, a State Department official said. The coalition also has pledged to hold accountable those responsible for the air strike, while Saudi Arabia and the UAE have continued supporting U.N. efforts to find a political settlement to the conflict, said the official, who requested anonymity. But some lawmakers on both sides of the aisle pushed back. "Pompeos certification is a farce. The Saudis deliberately bombed a bus full of children. There is only one moral answer, and that is to end our support for their intervention in Yemen," Democratic U.S. Representative Ro Khanna said in a post on Twitter. Republican Representative Justin Amash said the United States should stop selling weapons and providing military assistance to Saudi Arabia. "This war in Yemen is unconscionable, and the United States should not be a party to it," Amash said on Twitter. U.S. lawmakers, concerned about a growing humanitarian disaster in Yemen, required Pompeo to certify by Wednesday that the Saudis and the UAE were taking meaningful measures to reduce civilian casualties and allow humanitarian aid deliveries. Without the move by Pompeo, U.S. aircraft would have been barred from refueling Saudi-led coalition aircraft in mid-air except when they were striking Yemeni factions of al Qaeda and Islamic State, the Houthis' use of ballistic missiles, or protecting U.S. military units and international commercial shipping. Larry Lewis, a former State Department adviser to Saudi Arabia on reducing civilian casualties, called Pompeos statement "objectively false." "Theres more that can be done," Lewis, now the director of the Center for Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence at the CNA, a Washington think tank, wrote in an email. "Whether the U.S. government is willing to do more is another matter." U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said he backed Pompeo's finding. Saudi Arabia is leading a Western-backed alliance of Sunni Muslim Arab states to try to restore the internationally recognized government of Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, ousted from the capital Sanaa by the Iran-aligned Houthis in 2015. An attempt to convene U.N.-mediated peace talks in Geneva collapsed last weekend after the Houthi delegation failed to show up for three days. The United States and other Western powers provide arms and intelligence to the alliance. Human rights groups have criticized them over coalition air strikes that have killed hundreds of civilians at hospitals, schools and markets. The Pentagon believes that its assistance, which includes refueling coalition jets and training in targeting, helps reduce civilian casualties. (Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu and Idrees Ali; Editing by Alistair Bell and Bernadette Baum)
Vatican City (AFP) - Pope Francis will host a meeting in February of senior bishops from around the globe to discuss "the protection of minors", the Vatican announced on Wednesday.

The Catholic Church has been hit by a series of child abuse scandals in recent years, with widespread allegations of cover-ups, including against the pope himself.

The meeting of Episcopal Conference presidents will be held at the Vatican from February 21 to 24, the C9 cardinals' conference that advises the pope on reform said in a statement.

Three cardinals were absent from the latest C9 meeting, including Francisco Javier Errazuriz, who is accused of ignoring reports of abuse in Chile, and George Pell who faces prosecution in Australia for child sexual offences.

The C9 said on Monday it was considering changing its structure and composition.

Conservative US Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano sparked a firestorm last month when he claimed Francis had personally ignored abuse allegations against prominent US cardinal Theodore McCarrick for five years.

Vigano, a former Vatican envoy to Washington, also called on the pope to step down.

Francis has so far refused to respond to the allegations.

The affair exposed a rift in the Church between some ultra-conservative Catholics and a pope they see as a dangerous progressive interested in social issues to the detriment of Church doctrine.

The Church was also rocked in August by a devastating US report on child sex abuse which accused more than 300 "predator" priests of abusing more than 1,000 minors over seven decades in the state of Pennsylvania.

Francis will on Thursday meet leaders of the US Catholic Church, including their president Daniel DiNardo, who said last month he was eager to meet the pope following the scandal.

Two other officials of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops will be at the meeting, as will Cardinal Sean O'Malley, the head of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors

The commission set up by Francis said on Sunday that the fight against abuse must be a Church priority and emphasised the importance of listening to victims.

Otherwise "all of our other activities of evangelisation, works of mercy, education, are all going to suffer," said O'Malley.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) has received 3,000 coat hangers in the mail. Women dressed as handmaids in red robes and bonnets have shown up at her home in Maine to protest. Activists have raised over $1 million for her 2020 challenger should she vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh.

And the pressure continues to mount on Collins and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), the Senates two potential swing votes, in the final days before a decision on President Donald Trumps Supreme Court pick  a conservative judge who could potentially gut abortion rights in the United States.

Planned Parenthood launched a six-figure cable and digital ad campaign in Maine on Wednesday that features a focus group of independent female voters who strongly want Collins to oppose Kavanaugh. NARAL Pro-Choice America put an additional $500,000 into its $260,000 ad campaign in Maine this week, which will run on TV and online in Maine until the vote.

Planned Parenthood and NARAL have also spent over $1 million in Alaska, with the latter taking out ads in the Anchorage Daily News as well as on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google. Polls commissioned by Planned Parenthood in both states show that a strong majority of voters would like to see Roe v. Wade upheld. Kavanaugh has indicated hostility toward the landmark 1973 abortion rights decision.

Collins and Murkowski both claim to support abortion rights, and have bucked their party before to protect federal funding grants to Planned Parenthood. Both senators claim to be undecided on Kavanaugh. Collins has said shes impervious to outside political pressure.

Attempts at bribery or extortion will not influence my vote at all, she said Tuesday, referring to the crowdfunding campaign for her potential opponent.

Sen. Collins will make up her mind based on the merits of the nomination, spokeswoman Annie Clark said in a statement. Threats or other attempts to bully her will not play a factor in her decision-making whatsoever.

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Murkowski has been more tight-lipped about her decision-making process, and she is now facing additional pressure from Alaska natives, who are flooding her offices to urge her to oppose Kavanaugh over his views on fishing rights and environmental protections. Tribal communities were crucial to Murkowskis re-election as an independent in 2010, after she lost the GOP primary to a tea party challenger.

Collins could face serious challenges from both the left and the right in 2020, making her decision on Kavanaugh a particularly high-stakes one. Celinda Lake, a leading pollster and Democratic strategist, warned that Collins will lose her credibility as a moderate if she votes to confirm Trumps pick. The presidents popularity is declining in Maine, and independent voters there, on whom Collins relies for re-election, are wildly in love with Sen. Angus King (I-Maine)  who has indicated that hell vote against Kavanaugh.

If she votes differently from Angus King, that puts her under pressure. Thats going to make her seem a lot less independent, Lake told Huffpost. And her safety has relied on her having a lot of strength with independent and Democratic women.

Thus far, the ads from Planned Parenthood targeting Collins and Murkowski have been relatively positive, holding up both senators records in supporting womens rights rather than threatening a negative response if they vote for Kavanaugh.

But negative marks from Planned Parenthood could damage Collins and Murkowski, and the family planning provider is planning to score the Senates vote on Kavanaugh. Planned Parenthood only endorses politicians who have a 100 percent rating on choice issues, so the group hasnt endorsed Collins or Murkowski since 2010 and wont again. But it did give Collins an award last year for her vote to protect President Barack Obamas health care law, and it could turn around and use its massive political influence against her in 2020 if she votes the wrong way on Kavanaugh.

So far, however, the group has been relatively quiet on what it will do if Collins and Murkowski vote for the nominee.

Senator Collins needs to listen to the women of Maine, Planned Parenthood warned in a statement on Wednesday, and continue to stand up for their most basic freedoms by opposing Brett Kavanaugh.

Related...

The Pressure Is On For Collins And Murkowski To Protect Roe v. Wade

Woman Dies From Botched At-Home Abortion Days After Argentina Rejects Abortion Bill

Brett Kavanaugh's Confirmation Hearings Have Been Shrouded In Secrecy

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New York (AFP) - The executive producer of "60 Minutes," America's flagship investigative television news program, was out at CBS Wednesday in the wake of accusations of sexual misconduct and allegedly tolerating an abusive culture.

The exit of Jeff Fager comes three days after the television giant announced the departure of president, chairman and CEO Leslie Moonves, whom at least 12 women had accused of sexual misconduct stretching back decades.

"Jeff Fager is leaving the company effective immediately," CBS News president David Rhodes wrote in a note to staff reported by CBS News.

Fager's exit was "not directly related to the allegations surfaced in press reports" but he had "violated company policy," Rhodes added.

CBS News quoted Fager as saying that his contract had been terminated over a "harsh" text message he sent to a CBS reporter demanding that she be "fair" in covering the story.

"One such note should not result in termination after 36 years, but it did," Fager was quoted as saying.

On July 27, The New Yorker broke the first public accusations against Moonves and also reported that 19 current and former employees accused Fager, a former chairman of CBS News, of allowing harassment in the workplace.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ronan Farrow reported that Fager would allegedly touch staff, making them uncomfortable at parties, and that he once made a drunken pass at a junior staffer. Fager has denied the claims.

Fager previously served as chairman of CBS News and had been executive producer of "60 Minutes" since 2003.

In August, the CBS board of directors hired outside lawyers to investigate the claims against Moonves, as well as "cultural issues at all levels of CBS."

Moonves is one of the biggest scalps of the #MeToo era. CBS announced his departure on Sunday, saying that he and the network would donate $20 million to supporting the #MeToo movement and equality for women in the workplace.
By Ali Sawafta KHAN AL-AHMAR, West Bank (Reuters) - When the residents of Khan al-Ahmar awoke on Tuesday morning, they were greeted by the sight of five brand new shacks on the outskirts of their village, a cluster of tumbledown huts on a desert hillside in the occupied West Bank. The structures are the work of dozens of Palestinian activists who have come to protest against Israel's plan to demolish Khan al-Ahmar and relocate its 180 residents - Bedouins who scrape a living by raising sheep and goats - to a site 12 km (7 miles) away. Organized by activists from several rights groups and the Western-backed Palestinian Authority, the protest action comes a day before a temporary injunction that had put the demolition on hold is due to expire. "We are just waiting to see if they are going to come tonight and expel us and demolish the houses," said Feisal Abu Dahok, 45, a resident of the village. "We will not leave voluntarily. If they throw us out we will return to stay in this place. There is no other place for us to go." Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Britain have followed the European Union and the United Nations in urging Israel not to demolish Khan al-Ahmar, citing the serious impact on the community and prospects for peace. But last week Israel's Supreme Court rejected petitions to prevent the move, siding with the authorities which say the village was built without the required permits. Palestinians say such documents are impossible to obtain. PALESTINIAN APPEAL TO ICC The Palestinian leadership has submitted an appeal to the International Criminal Court to intervene, senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat said on Tuesday. "It included the focus on the war crimes facing Khan al-Ahmar, specifically the crimes of forceable displacement, ethnic cleansing and destruction of civilian property," Erekat told reporters. Khan al-Ahmar lies beside an Israeli highway that runs through the West Bank from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea. Palestinians say the demolition is part of an Israeli push to create an arc of settlements that would effectively cut off East Jerusalem from the West Bank, territories Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war and which the Palestinians seek for an independent state. Israel has not said whether it plans to build a settlement on the site after demolition. Most countries consider settlements in the West Bank as illegal and an obstacle to peace. They say they reduce and fragment the territory Palestinians seek for a viable state. Israel disputes this and cites biblical, historical and political connections to the land, as well as security needs. Home to members of the Bedouin Jahalin tribe, which the military expelled from southern Israel in the 1950s, Khan al-Ahmar sits between a major Israeli settlement, Maale Adumim, and a smaller one to the northeast, Kfar Adumim. Visible on the hills on the other side of a barren, rock-strewn valley, Kfar Adumim's white-washed apartment blocks and tree-lined roads lie in stark contrast to the ramshackle wood and tin huts of the Bedouins. Israel plans to relocate the community to an area near the Palestinian village of Abu Dis. The new site is adjacent to a landfill and rights advocates say that a forcible transfer of the residents would violate international law applying to occupied territory. Israeli authorities could not be reached for comment on Tuesday - the second day of the Jewish new year holiday. Helped by some of the villagers and working quickly under the cover of darkness, the activists assembled the shacks in time for sunrise. Some were flying the Palestinian flag. "It is our right as Palestinians to live in these lands," said one protester, Mohammed al-Khatib. (Writing by Maayan Lubell; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
Heres a look at some of the companies the Yahoo Finance team will be watching for you today.

Change is coming to Prudential. The insurers long-time chairman and CEO, John Strangfeld, is retiring after 11 years at the helm. The current chief operating officer, Charles Lowrey, will take over. Strangfeld plans to stay around until next April to help with the transition.

TV ratings company Nielsen may be looking to sell. The company says its expanding a strategic review under pressure from a hedge fund. Now its working with JPMorgan Securities and Guggenheim Securities, along with a law firm, to find a potential buyer. Its not clear if any other firm has expressed interest yet in a deal.

Tiffany also in the spotlight today after a big upgrade. Oppenheimer now says the stock will outperform and has raised its price target to $152 a share. Tiffany boosted its earnings forecast last month as earnings soared 26%. The CEO says it is making key investments to achieve its full growth potential.

Theres more pressure today on Tesla with a key rival set to launch its U.S. IPO. Depository receipts for the Chinese electric car maker NIO start trading today on the New York Stock Exchange. But it has priced shares at around a billion dollars, far below the $2.3B expected. NIO is already producing one electric SUV in china and plans to start delivering a second model next year.

More trouble today for Uber. A new lawsuit in California claims the car sharing service is cheating drivers to the tune of $500M a year. Thats because Uber classifies its drivers as independent contractors, not employees. No response yet from Uber.
By Vladimir Soldatkin VLADIVOSTOK, Russia (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday Russia had found the two men accused by British prosecutors of trying to murder ex- Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Britain, but that there was nothing criminal about them. British prosecutors last week identified two Russians they said were operating under aliases - Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov - whom they accused of trying to murder the Skripals with a military-grade nerve agent in England. The duo had entered Britain on genuine passports, prosecutors said, while British Prime Minister Theresa May described them as military intelligence officers almost certainly acting on orders from high up in the Russian state. Putin, speaking at an economic forum in the Russian Pacific port city of Vladivostok, said Russia had located the two men, but that there was nothing special or criminal about them. "We of course checked who these people are. We know who they are, we found them. Well, I hope they will come out themselves and speak about themselves. It will be better for everyone," said Putin, responding to a question about the case. "There's nothing special and criminal about it, I assure you. We'll see soon... They are civilians of course. I would like to appeal to them so that they hear us today. They will come somewhere, to you, the mass media..." Hours after Putin spoke, Russian state TV said one of the two men, Petrov, had told it by phone that he might comment on the case next week. Asked about Putin's remarks, Prime Minister Theresa May's spokesman said Britain's attempts to get an explanation from Russia over the poisoning of the Skripals had always been met with obfuscation and lies and that had not changed. "These men are officers of the Russian military intelligence service, the GRU ... The government has exposed the role of the GRU, its operatives and its methods, this position is supported by our international allies," the spokesman told reporters. "We have repeatedly asked Russia to account for what happened in Salisbury in March and they have replied with obfuscation and lies. I can see nothing to suggest that has changed." "SIMPLE PEOPLE" Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement in the poisoning, casting it as part of a Western plot to smear Russia to justify more sanctions against it. The Kremlin said on Wednesday that Putin had not spoken to the two accused men and refused to say how and by whom they had been found. Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the Russian leader had merely voiced a hope that they would appear publicly in the future. Lets wait for that moment, Peskov told reporters. Viktoria Skripal, the niece of Sergei Skripal, said last week she did not know anything about the two men. She told the Interfax news agency on Wednesday she now knew through sources she did not name that they were "simple people". "I knew from day one that this story about the involvement of Petrov and Boshirov was fake," she said. While one of the two accused, Boshirov, looked like a photograph released by Britain, the other, Petrov, looked nothing like the other photograph and had not been in Britain at the time of the attempted poisoning incident, she added. Skripal - a former GRU colonel who betrayed dozens of agents to Britain's MI6 foreign intelligence service - and his daughter were found slumped unconscious on a bench in the English city of Salisbury in March. They spent weeks in hospital before being discharged. Britain and dozens of other countries kicked out scores of Russian diplomats over the poisoning of the Skripals, and Moscow responded tit-for-tat with an identical number of expulsions. The affair worsened Russian relations with the West, already under strain over Ukraine, Syria and other issues. The affair returned to the headlines in July when a woman near Salisbury, Dawn Sturgess, died and her partner Charlie Rowley fell ill after Rowley found a counterfeit bottle of Nina Ricci perfume containing the Novichok nerve agent and brought it home. (Additional reporting by Denis Pinchuk and Polina Nikolskaya in Moscow, Elizabeth Piper in London Writing by Andrew Osborn and Tom Balmforth Editing by Mark Heinrich)
Residents in the eastern United States are bracing for Florence as it barrels toward the region, posing a serious threat to lives and property.

A state of emergency has been declared in five states - South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia and Maryland, as well as Washington, D.C., - to help people prepare for the hurricane.

"There's never been a storm like Florence. It was located farther north in the Atlantic than any other storm to ever hit the Carolinas, so what we're forecasting is unprecedented," AccuWeather Vice President of Forecasting and Graphics Operations Marshall Moss said.



Eastern US coast prepares for Hurricane Florence

AP Photo/Garret Fischer

First, at vero eos et accusamus et iusto odio dignissimos ducimus qui blanditiis praesentium et accusamus et iusto odio dignissimos ducimus qui voluptatum.

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(AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Sand bags surround homes on North Topsail Beach, N.C., Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018, as Hurricane Florence threatens the coast.

(Photo/NASA Astronaut Ricky Arnold)

Hurricane Florence as seen from the International Space Station on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018.

(AP Photo/Mic Smith)

A gas station in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina, alerts motorists that it is out of gas due to the heavy demand caused by Hurricane Florence Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018.

(AP Photo/Mic Smith)

Preston Guiher carries a sheet of plywood as he prepares to board up a Wells Fargo bank in preparation for Hurricane Florence in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, Sept. 11, 2018.

(Instagram photo/@kellybinderim)

There is no traffic on eastbound lanes of Interstate 26 in South Carolina from Columbia to Charleston as evacuees are directed away from the coast ahead of Florence's arrival.

(Twitter photo/Sarah Shinners)

Vehicles line up at a Costco gas station in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, on Sept. 10, 2018, to fuel up before Hurricane Florence's arrival on the East Coast.

(AP Photo/Mic Smith)

Walker Townsend (right), from Isle of Palms, South Carolina, fills a sandbag held by Dalton Trout, in a municipal parking lot where sand is distributed free of charge in preparation for Hurricane Florence's arrival.

Story continues

(AP Photo/Mic Smith)

Police cars block the Ashley Phosphate Road exit ramp off Interstate 26 in North Charleston, South Carolina, as both sides of the highway flow westbound toward Columbia, South Carolina, on Sept. 11, 2018.

(AP Photo/Mic Smith)

Larry Pierson, from the Isle of Palms, South Carolina, purchases bottled water from the Harris Teeter grocery store in preparation for Hurricane Florence on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018.

(Instagram photo/@trendingtasha)

Shelves are bare at a Walmart in Wake Forest, North Carolina, on Sept. 10, 2018, as residents stock up on water and supplies before Florence arrives.

(AP Photo/Mic Smith)

Residents of the Isle of Palms, South Carolina, fill sand bags at the Isle of Palms municipal lot, where the city was giving away free sand in preparation for Hurricane Florence on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018.

(U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Justin Wolpert/U.S. Navy via AP)

In this Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, photo released by the U.S. Navy, the guided-missile destroyer USS Nitze departs Naval Station Norfolk after the announcement of Hurricane Florence, in Norfolk, Virginia.

(Image via Erin McNeill)

The Oceanic restaurant boarded up in preparation of Florence in Wrightsville Beach near Wilmington, North Carolina.

(AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Laura Gretch, Humane Rescue Alliance transport manager, holds an 8-year-old Chihuahua mix as she helps unload 26 cats and dogs arriving in Washington on Tuesday Sept. 11, 2018, from Norfolk Animal Care and Control in Virginia in advance of Florence.

(AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

An onlooker checks out the heavy surf at the Avalon Fishing Pier in Kill Devil Hills, N.C., Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018 as Hurricane Florence approaches the east coast.

(AP Photo/David Goldman)

Korea war veteran Ed Coddington and wife Esther wait with Markia McCleod, her aunt and daughter in a shelter for Hurricane Florence to pass after evacuating from their nearby homes in Conway, South Carolina, on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018.

(AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

Heavy surf crashes the dunes at high tide in Nags Head, N.C., Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018 as Hurricane Florence approaches the east coast.

(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Fishermen launch a boat as they attempt to recover their haul-seine fishing net, Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018, in Virginia Beach, Va., as Hurricane Florence moves towards the eastern shore.

(AP Photo/Tom Copeland)

Waves from Hurricane Florence pound the Bogue Inlet Pier in Emerald Isle N.C., Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018.

(Image via Extreme Meteorologist Reed Timmer)

Drone footage above Topsail Beach, NC approaching high tide ahead of Hurricane Florence.

(Image via Brunswick County Sheriff's Office)

Bay Street area in Southport, North Carolina flooding before Florence makes landfall.

(Image via Brunswick County Sheriff's Office)

Bay Street in Southport, North Carolina flooding as Florence approaches.

(Image via Brunswick County Sheriff's Office)

Bay Street in Southport, North Carolina turning into a river. While this area collects water at high tide everyday, the water will rise more during Florence.

Evacuations began on Tuesday morning as people living near the coasts of South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia fled inland. Traffic patterns were altered to help speed up evacuation efforts, including lane reversals on several major roads in South Carolina.

Residents in the path of the storm have been stocking up for days, leading to long lines at gas stations and empty shelves at grocery stores all across the region. Some gas stations have already run out of fuel.

Download the free AccuWeather app to stay up to date with Florence's expected track and impacts to the eastern U.S. coast.

3:23 p.m. EDT Wednesday:

Duke Energy estimated that power outages could be between 1 to 3 million customers in the Carolinas from approaching Hurricane Florence.

More than 20,000 people are in place to restore power, which will be the largest resource mobilization ever for Duke Energy.

More than 8,000 Carolinas-based workers are being joined by 1,700 workers from Duke Energy Midwest and 1,200 from Duke Energy Florida to respond to this storm. An additional 9,400 resources will be coming from other utilities to help.



2 p.m. EDT Wednesday:

Hurricane Florence is now a Category 3 storm, according to the National Hurricane Center. Despite weakening slightly, the storm remains extremely dangerous as it tracks closer to the East Coast.

The storm is about 435 miles southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina.

A NOAA buoy located about 100 miles northeast of Florence's eye recently reported a sustained wind of 53 mph (85 km/h) and a gust to 74 mph (119 km/h), the NHC stated.

AccuWeather meteorologists believe that the hurricane will stall and meander near the Carolina coast from Thursday night to Saturday.

As this happens, coastal areas will be bombarded with torrential rain, high winds, coastal erosion and storm surge, not for a few hours, but possibly for a couple of days, according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.



Florence eye

This is what the eye of Hurricane Florence looked like on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018. Alexander Gerst, an astronaut on the International Space Station, took the photo.

1:20 p.m. EDT Wednesday:

The runways at Charleston International Airport will close at 11:59 p.m. EDT Wednesday and are not expected to reopen until Friday at the earliest.

"Rapidly changing conditions associated with the path of Hurricane Florence will affect general aviation and commercial air service operations at Charleston International Airport at least through Friday," airport officials said in a statement.

The exact time the runways are reopened depends on the storm's path and impact on the area, according to Paul Campbell, CEO and executive director of the Charleston County Aviation Authority.

"The safety of our passengers and airport employees is our no. 1 priority. We cannot safely continue flight operations without crash, fire and rescue services available," Campbell said. "The runways will reopen when the Air Force determines it is safe, and that depends on the impact Hurricane Florence has on the area."

The Air Force owns the two runways at the airport.

12:47 p.m. EDT Wednesday:

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal has declared a statewide state of emergency. Georgia is the fifth state to institute a state of emergency ahead of Florence's impending arrival.

The declaration came on the recommendation of Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA/HS) officials.

"The state is mobilizing all available resources to ensure public safety ahead of Hurricane Florence," said Deal. "In light of the storm's forecasted southward track after making landfall, I encourage Georgians to be prepared for the inland effects of the storm as well as the ensuing storm surge in coastal areas. GEMA/HS continues to lead our preparedness efforts as we coordinate with federal, state and local officials to provide public shelter and accommodate those evacuating from other states. Finally, I ask all Georgians to join me in praying for the safety of our people and all those in the path of Hurricane Florence."

11:12 a.m. EDT Wednesday

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he is deploying members of the New York Air National Guard to assist in response to Hurricane Florence.



I'm deploying the New York Air National Guard to assist in response to Hurricane Florence.



New York knows first-hand the devastation that storms can leave behind, and we stand ready to help those who are in the path of Hurricane Florence in any way we can.  Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) September 12, 2018

The mayor of Charleston, South Carolina, John Tecklenberg, is urging any residents who haven't evacuated the city yet to do so immediately.



"Florence is a deadly storm on an unpredictable path, and the only safe place to be is out of harm's way. If you haven't evacuated, now is the time to get on the road. We'll be here to mind the store until you and your loved ones can return safely." Chas. Mayor John Tecklenburg  City of Charleston (@CityCharleston) September 12, 2018

Over 37,000 sandbags have been given out in Charleston. City officials also announced that residents could park their cars for free in city parking garages.

10:10 a.m. EDT Wednesday:

AccuWeather Extreme Meteorologist Reed Timmer is stationed in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, covering the ongoing evacuations.

Morehead City, Florence

Russell Meadows, left, helps neighbor Rob Muller board up his home ahead of Hurricane Florence in Morehead City, N.C., Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. (AP Photo/David Goldman)



8:15 a.m. EDT Wednesday:

In its 8 a.m. EDT advisory, the National Hurricane Center says that Florence remains a Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph.

Florence is located about 530 miles southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina. An Air Force Reserve reconnaissance aircraft is currently investigating the hurricane.



Here is the latest satellite image of Florence. Most likely arrival time of tropical storm force winds in our area is late morning/early afternoon tomorrow. Today is the last day to safely travel out of the area. Please heed any evacuation orders and we will continue to monitor. pic.twitter.com/tKs4dmYWEE  NWS Wilmington NC (@NWSWilmingtonNC) September 12, 2018

7:22 a.m. EDT Wednesday:

President Donald Trump is urging Americans in the path of Florence to heed evacuation orders and to listen to their local representatives.



3 a.m. EDT Wednesday:

Hurricane and storm surge warnings are now in effect for a large swath of the Eastern Seaboard, stretching through eastern South and North Carolina as well as into far southeastern Virginia. Residents are urged to prepare for catastrophic damage from wind and storm surge.

Fuel shortages are increasing across the Carolinas as residents prepare to evacuate, draining local gas stations' supplies.

Anti-price-gouging laws are now in effect in North Carolina and South Carolina; anyone witnessing exorbitant prices on gas, lodging or food along evacuation routes can complain to the attorney general's office, according to NPR.



AP image gas shortage 9/12

A gas station in Mt. Pleasant S.C. alerts motorist that it is out of gas due to the heavy demand caused by Hurricane Florence Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. (AP Photo/Mic Smith)

Another growing concern associated with Florence involves the many open-air hog farm "lagoons" scattered throughout eastern North Carolina.

While farmers are doing all they can to prepare for feet of incoming rainfall, there is a chance that barriers could fail, allowing the manure-filled lagoons to overflow into nearby rivers and streams. These farms have survived previous storms without incident, but the farmers understand that each storm is unique.

"We try to pump down as much as we can, but after that, it's kind of in God's hands. We're kind of at the mercy of the storm," Marlowe Vaughan of Ivy Spring Creek Farm in Goldsboro, North Carolina, said to NPR.

8:06 p.m. EDT Tuesday:

Conditions will begin to deteriorate on Wednesday night; final preparations should be underway or completed by now.

Gas stations are on the brink of running out of fuel in Wilmington, North Carolina. Stores are running extremely low on necessities such as food and water.


Tripoli (AFP) - Rockets were fired at the only working airport in the Libyan capital Tripoli overnight, with no reports of casualties or damage, an airport source said early Wednesday.

It came within days of Mitiga International Airport's reopening after it was forced to close for a week because of deadly clashes between rival militias in and around Tripoli.

A Libyan Airlines flight was diverted to Misrata airport, some 200 kilometres (120 miles) east of the capital, the source said, adding that preparations were also underway to move planes on the tarmac in Tripoli to Misrata.

The airport had reopened on Friday after a ceasefire overseen by the UN was signed between the armed groups waging a bloody conflict mostly in Tripoli's southern suburbs.

The agreement has largely been respected but witnesses reported brief clashes in the south of the capital on Tuesday night.

The fighting has killed at least 50 people and wounded 138 others -- most of them civilians -- since August 27, according to the health ministry.

Thousands of families have fled the violence to nearby towns or have had to seek shelter in other districts of Tripoli, authorities have said.

During heavy clashes last month, at least three rockets landed in the airport's vicinity, forcing staff to reroute all flights to Misrata.

Tripoli has been at the centre of a battle for influence between armed groups since the fall of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011.

Mitiga, a former military airport in the east of the city, was first opened to civil air traffic after the destruction of Tripoli's international airport in the capital's south during unrest in 2014.

Since then only Libyan airlines have operated in the country, running internal flights and regular connections to a handful of countries, including Tunisia and Turkey.

Libyan airlines are banned from European Union airspace for "security reasons".

Separately in the capital, the Islamic State group claimed responsibility on Tuesday for a suicide attack a day earlier against the headquarters of Libya's National Oil Corporation which killed two employees.

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Three attackers died in the assault on the NOC's offices, IS said in a statement published by the US-based SITE Intelligence Group which tracks extremists.

That attack came four months after the headquarters of the country's electoral commission in the capital was hit by suicide bombers, killing 14 people and also claimed by IS.

The jihadist group gained ground in Libya in the chaos following Kadhafi's ousting and despite being driven in December 2016 from its main fiefdom of Sirte, east of the capital, it continues to carry out deadly attacks.
By Andrew Osborn MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia began its biggest war games since the fall of the Soviet Union on Tuesday close to its border with China, mobilising 300,000 troops in a show of force that will include joint exercises with the Chinese army. China and Russia have staged joint drills before but not on such a large scale, and the Vostok-2018 (East-2018) exercise signals closer military ties as well as sending an unspoken reminder to Beijing that Moscow is able and ready to defend its sparsely populated far east. Vostok-2018 is taking place at a time of heightened tension between the West and Russia, and NATO has said it will monitor the exercise closely, as will the United States which has a strong military presence in the Asia-Pacific region. Russia's Ministry of Defence broadcast images on Tuesday of columns of tanks, armoured vehicles and warships on the move, and combat helicopters and fighter aircraft taking off. In one clip, marines from Russia's Northern Fleet and a motorised Arctic brigade were shown disembarking from a large landing ship on a barren shore opposite Alaska. This activity was part of the first stage of the exercise, which runs until Sept. 17, the ministry said in a statement. It involved deploying additional forces to Russia's far east and a naval build-up involving its Northern and Pacific fleets. The main aim was to check the military's readiness to move troops large distances, to test how closely infantry and naval forces cooperated, and to perfect command and control procedures. Later stages will involve rehearsals of both defensive and offensive scenarios. Russia also staged a major naval exercise in the eastern Mediterranean this month and its jets resumed bombing the Syrian region of Idlib, the last major enclave of rebels fighting its ally President Bashar al-Assad. CLOSER CHINA-RUSSIA TIES The location of the main training range for Vostok-2018 5,000 km (3,000 miles) east of Moscow means it is likely to be watched closely by Japan, North and South Korea as well as by China and Mongolia, both of whose armies will take part in the manoeuvres later this week. Analysts say Moscow had to invite the Chinese and Mongolian militaries given the proximity of the war games to their borders and because the scale meant the neighbouring countries would probably have seen them as a threat had they been excluded. The exercise - which will involve more than 1,000 military aircraft, two Russian naval fleets, up to 36,000 tanks and armoured vehicles and all Russian airborne units - began as President Vladimir Putin held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in the Russian port city of Vladivostok. Relations between Moscow and Beijing have long been marked by mutual wariness with Russian nationalists warning of encroaching Chinese influence in the country's mineral-rich far east. But Russia pivoted east towards China after the West sanctioned Moscow over its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region in 2014 and trade links between the two, who share a land border over 4,200 km long, have blossomed since. Russia broadcast footage of some of 24 helicopters and six jets belonging to the Chinese air force landing at Russian air bases for the exercise. Beijing has said 3,200 members of the People's Liberation Army will join in. China's official People's Liberation Army Daily said on Wednesday that the drill was aimed at maintaining regional peace, was not aimed at any third party and did not "have anything to do with the regional situation". "The Chinese officers and soldiers participating in the drills will demonstrate the determination and ability to maintain regional peace and stability with practical actions," it said. Some experts see the war games as a message to Washington, with which both Moscow and Beijing have strained ties. "With its Vostok 2018 exercise Russia sends a message that it regards the U.S. as a potential enemy and China as a potential ally," wrote Dmitri Trenin, a former Russian army colonel and director of the Carnegie Moscow Center think tank. "China, by sending a PLA element to train with the Russians, is signalling that U.S. pressure is pushing it towards much closer military cooperation with Moscow." When asked if he was concerned about a potential military alliance between Russia and China in the future, U.S. Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said he did not see the two countries aligned in the long-term. "I think that nations act out of their interest. I see little in the long-term that aligns Russia and China," Mattis told reporters in Washington. Putin, who is armed forces commander-in-chief, is expected to observe the exercises this week alongside Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, who is overseeing them. Shoigu has said they are the biggest since a Soviet military exercise, Zapad-81 (West-81) in 1981. (Additional reporting by Idrees Ali in Washington, and Ben Blanchard in Beijing; Editing by Alison Williams and Alistair Bell)
By Dean Arrindell

This week it was reported that U.S. intelligence agencies suspect Russia is behind mysterious attacks on diplomatic personnel in Cuba and China.

The attacks seem to have begun in November 2016, when U.S. diplomats and their families in Havana began suffering from symptoms that included dizziness, cognitive difficulties and problems with balance, hearing and vision. Half of the diplomatic personnel in Havana were sent home as a precaution.

Then, this May, diplomats at the U.S. consulate in Guangzhou, China, began suffering from similar symptoms. Eleven diplomats were sent back to the U.S. for testing.

The U.S hasnt formally blamed Russia for the attacks, but is reportedly suspicious, based on intercepted communications.

What is this illness?

Some researchers speculate the symptoms are consistent with traumatic brain injuries. Another line of research indicates that damage to the inner ear causes the symptoms.

The illness remains a mystery, as does the cause.

Last week, the Pentagon brought scientists together to present their research on the illness  dubbed the Havana Effect by some  and said they believe the attack was caused by a neuroweapon.

One popular theory is that some kind of microwave weapon was used. Other theories are that the symptoms were the unintended consequences of a new spy device or devices, or even that the victims were drugged. The military has been reportedly trying to reverse-engineer the weapon or device used to cause the illness.

Another consequence of the attacks is that they have strained relations between the U.S. and Cuba. Havana has denied involvement and has also said there is no evidence the attacks ever happened.

The relationship between the U.S. and Cuba is delicate because the two countries just restarted diplomatic relations in 2015 following more than 50 years of hostility.
Vladivostok (Russia) (AFP) - Russia's top diplomat Sergei Lavrov condemned US foreign policy on Wednesday, stoking tensions between the two powers by accusing Washington of imposing sanctions before it enters negotiations.

Moscow has faced increasingly harsh punitive measures since angering the West and Kiev by annexing Crimea in 2014 and backing separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.

In recent months the US has imposed fresh sanctions over alleged Russian interference in the presidential elections and the poisoning of a former spy in Britain.

"In most cases, the United States is not very willing to negotiate," Lavrov told young diplomats on the sidelines of an economic forum in the far-eastern Russian city of Vladivostok.

"First, they announce sanctions, then more sanctions, and only after that they open talks," he said, warning that such policies were unlikely to lead to "long-term success".

The foreign minister said he was not only referring to ties between the US and Russia, which are currently "the most toxic", but that the pattern could also be seen in America's dealings with North Korea, the EU and China.

The US is currently embroiled in an escalating trade war with China, with efforts underway to avert a spat of similar magnitude with allies the European Union.

Last month Washington imposed new sanctions on Russia over the attempted assassination of ex-double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter in the UK using a lethal nerve agent.

They included halting foreign aid to Russia, blocking the sale of items or services related to defence, and banning government credit support for any exports to Russia.

Britain says the attack in Salisbury, England, was undertaken by Russian operatives. Russia rejects the allegations and has said it will take reciprocal measures in response to the latest sanctions.

Lavrov's comments also came the day after Russia launched what it called its largest ever military drills, with hundreds of thousands of troops taking part along with Chinese soldiers in what NATO has called a rehearsal for large-scale conflict".
Vladimir Putin has said there is nothing criminal about the two men accused of attempting to murder former spy Sergei Skripal with a novichok nerve agent in Salisbury.

The Russian president said his countrys officials know the real identities of the suspects and insisted they were civilians rather than military intelligence officers.

The Metropolitan Police last week released images of two men charged with poisoning Mr Skripal and his daughter Yulia in an assassination attempt the UK government believes was approved at a senior level of the Russian state.

Detectives said the Russian suspects were operating under aliases, Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, when they travelled to Salisbury in March.

Mr Putin, speaking at an economic forum in the Russian port city of Vladivostok on Wednesday, confirmed his officials know who these people are but denied Britains claims that the men were members of GRU, Russias military intelligence service.

We have found them, he said. There is nothing special or criminal about it, I can assure you. Well see soon.

Asked during a panel discussion if the men worked for the military, Mr Putin said: They are civilians of course.

He suggested the men should come forward and speak to the media to clear their names.

I would like to call on them so that they can hear us today: they should go to some media outlet. I hope they will come forward and tell about themselves, Mr Putin said.

Suspects Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov were pictured on CCTV in Salisbury (AP)

British investigators believe the suspects are officers from the Russian military intelligence service, Theresa May told MPs last week.

The prime minister stopped short of blaming Mr Putin personally but hinted the Kremlin had ordered Mr Skripals assassination, saying: The GRU is a highly disciplined organisation with a well-established chain of command. So this was not a rogue operation. It was almost certainly also approved outside the GRU at a senior level of the Russian state.

British prosecutors have deemed it futile to apply to Russia for the extradition of the two suspects, both thought to be aged in their 40s, but have obtained a European Arrest Warrant and sought the assistance of Interpol.

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The men are also likely to be charged over the death of Dawn Sturgess, a 44-year-old mother-of-three poisoned in June after her partner Charlie Rowley inadvertently picked up a discarded perfume bottle containing the novichok in Salisbury.

The suspects are unlikely to ever face justice in the UK, home secretary Sajid Javid conceded on Sunday.

They fled back to Moscow on the day they allegedly poisoned Mr Skripal and will likely only be arrested if they stray into a country that is allied with Britain.

The Russians will probably never let them leave the Russian Federation, said Mr Javid.

The UK has hinted at new sanctions against Russia, with government insiders suggesting key GRU figures could be targeted with travel bans and asset freezes.

Mr Skripal served in the GRU for more than a decade before passing secrets to MI6 that unmasked undercover Russian spies in Europe.

He was sentenced to 13 years in prison for treason by espionage in 2006, but freed four years later as part of a high-profile spy-swap and flown to Britain.

It was assumed that he would be given a new identity and secret home, but he lived an apparently quiet life under his real name in Salisbury.

Mr Putins suggestion that the alleged state assassins may break cover recalled the assassination on British soil of former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko.

His suspected killers, Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitry Kovtun, have given TV interviews in which they denied any involvement.
Lima (AFP) - Peru's Shining Path leader Abimael Guzman, who is already serving a life sentence, was handed a second life term on Tuesday for a 1992 car bombing that killed 25 people in Lima.

Three judges at the National Criminal Court issued life sentences for Guzman, 83, and nine other leaders of the Maoist-inspired insurgency which began in the 1980s.

In the attack, a car packed with 500 kilos of explosives blew up in a narrow street in Lima's upscale Miraflores district, killing 25 people and wounding more than 100 others.

The blast, which destroyed shops, cars and homes, was the first time Shining Path had attacked a civilian target in the Peruvian capital.

The sentences were delivered at a six-hour hearing broadcast live on television at the end of a 20-month trial, which Guzman denounced as a farse, insisting he had nothing to do with the attack.

He said it was a mistake committed by followers.

When Shining Path began its campaign in the 1980s, its goal was to overthrow the government and install communist rule through a "dictatorship of the proletariat"

But when Alberto Fujimori took over as president in 1990, he launched a major crackdown on the Shining Path, and after Guzman's arrest in 1992, the guerrillas' activities declined sharply.

That year, Guzman was sentenced to life in prison for treason by a military court but the sentence was overturned by Peru's Constitutional Court in 2003.

A retrial began the same year and in 2006, Guzman was sentenced to life for terrorism, murder and other crimes committed during the two-decade insurgency which was responsible for the deaths of some 70,000 people.

A 2003 report by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission found that just under half of the victims were killed by the Shining Path while a third died at the hands of government security forces and local militias. The rest were unattributed.

Although Fujimori was credited with crushing the Shining Path, he was accused of authorizing a "dirty war" to eradicate them and members of the Tupac Amaru, a rival leftist guerrilla group.

In 2009, Fujimori was sentenced to 25 years in jail for corruption and human rights abuses during his time in office.

Today, the Shining Path is a largely defunct, renegade group of rebels hiding out in the jungle and working with drug traffickers to fund their operations.
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Smithfield Foods [SFII.UL], a unit of China's WH Group, will temporarily shut down the world's largest hog slaughter plant in Tar Heel, North Carolina, as early as Wednesday due to looming Hurricane Florence, a company employee and the head of the North Carolina Park Council said on Tuesday.

The powerful storm was expected to hit North Carolina on Friday. The Smithfield employee, who was not authorized to speak with the media, said the plant that slaughters an estimated 32,000 hogs per day would likely be closed from Wednesday through Saturday.

Andy Curliss, chief executive of the North Carolina Pork Council, said the facility would likely shut down on Thursday and Friday. Smithfield did not respond to requests for comment.

(Reporting by Michael Hirtzer, P.J. Huffstutter, Karl Plume and Tom Polansek; Editing by James Dalgleish)
By Aaron Maasho ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - South Sudan's President Salva Kiir signed a peace agreement with rebel factions in the Ethiopian capital on Wednesday to end a civil war that has killed at least 50,000 people, displaced two million and held up the country's progress since it gained independence seven years ago. South Sudan plunged into warfare two years after independence from Sudan in 2011 when a political dispute between Kiir and then vice-president Riek Machar erupted into armed confrontation. A previous peace deal signed in 2015 fell apart a year later after clashes broke out between government forces and rebels. Machar, leader of the main rebel group the SPLM-IO, and other insurgent factions signed the new agreement with the Juba government after assurances that a power-sharing accord would be honored. The deal, mediated by Sudan, reinstates Machar to his former role as vice-president. The stability of South Sudan is also important for Sudan and other neighboring countries, who fear a new flare up of the conflict could flood them with refugees. The civil war started in 2013, fueled by personal and ethnic rivalries. The conflict has killed at least 50,000 people, many of them civilians, according to the United Nations. An estimated quarter of South Sudan's population of 12 million has been displaced and its economy, which heavily relies on crude oil production, ruined. The secession of South Sudan also hit Khartoum's economy hard, taking with it most of the region's oil reserves. Khartoum and Juba agreed in June to repair oil infrastructure facilities destroyed by the war within three months to boost production and said a joint force would be established to protect oilfields from attacks by rebels. The United States, Britain and Norway, known as the Troika which back peace efforts, welcomed the signing of the deal. "We hope discussions will remain open to those who are not yet convinced of the sustainability of this agreement," they said in a statement. "We must seize this broader regional momentum to secure peace for the people of South Sudan." Mahboub Maalim, executive secretary of the East African bloc IGAD, said the rivals had been at odds over security arrangements and governance but that the final version of the deal had addressed disagreements. "This is probably the best-negotiated proposal signed so far," he told Reuters after it was signed at a meeting of IGAD leaders. Asked what a failure to implement the deal would entail, Maalim said: "We expect the South Sudanese sides to embrace the wind of change in the region." The region has seen a series of stunning rapprochements over the past months, including a reconciliation between Ethiopia and Eritrea. IGAD had been expected to readmit Eritrea as a member on Wednesday, 11 years after Asmara walked out on the body in protest at Ethiopian forces entering Somalia. But that move was postponed for procedural reasons and was likely to take place in the bloc's next gathering, officials said. (Reporting by Aaron Maasho in Addis Ababa and Denis Dumo in Juba, Writing by Ingrid Melander, Editing by Angus MacSwan)
A recent study on teen suicide found the highest rate among transgender youth. Experts say lack of acceptance may be a contributing factor. (Photo: Getty Images)

A large new study that analyzed survey data from adolescents has some disturbing findings about teens and suicide. The study, which was published in the journal Pediatrics, analyzed data from 120,617 teens that was collected over nearly three years. Overall, researchers found that nearly 14 percent of all teenagers who participated in the survey said they had tried to kill themselves.

The numbers were much higher for transgender or nonbinary teens: Slightly more than half of transgender male teens (50.8 percent) said they had tried to kill themselves, while 41.8 percent of teens who identified as neither male nor female, and nearly 30 percent of transgender female teens said the same thing. About 28 percent of teens who identified themselves as questioning their sexual orientation also said they had tried to kill themselves.

Those numbers are starkly higher than those for cisgender female and male teens, who reported rates of 17.6 percent and 9.8 percent, respectively.

The findings echo the results of a huge survey of transgender people released in 2016 by the National Center for Transgender Equality. That survey found that 40 percent of the 27,715 transgender people who were surveyed said they had tried to kill themselves at some point.

Unfortunately, this isnt anything new. Stories of transgender teens committing suicide have made headlines for years. In March, a mother shared the suicide letter left by her son, Eric Peter Verbeeck, who was transitioning into a woman named Hope, with the People magazine. I felt that I could no longer live my life as a lie, living as a boy instead of the girl I knew I could become, the letter read. I was losing hope in the world and could not see my way out of the wrong body so I decided it was time for my life to end as a whole. Please forgive me for lying to you and any and all sins that I have committed.

In 2017, Leo Etherington, a transgender male, took his life because he was angry with [his] school, which wouldnt allow him to change the name he was born with (Louise), his father told the Guardian.

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Its not surprising that a lot of trans youth attempt suicide, but that amount is shocking, Camden Hargrove, the community and digital organizer at the National LGBTQ Task Force, tells Yahoo Lifestyle. There are a lot more youth that are feeling like they understand their gender identify earlier, but that doesnt mean that there are resources available or that families are supportive.

Joshua Safer, MD, executive director of the Mount Sinai Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery agrees. The findings are not surprising at all. Transgender individuals  and kids in particular  are exposed to quite a bit of hostility in society and a lack of acceptance, Safer says. Teenagers are certainly at an age where individuals are more vulnerable to these thoughts and actions.

As for the marked difference between suicide rates among transgender male and female teens, its difficult to speculate the different reasons why teenage trans boys report a higher rate, Sarah McBride, national press secretary for the Human Rights Campaign, tells Yahoo Lifestyle. In fact, in adult transgender males, its often the opposite, Safer says. Adult transgender males sometimes have an easier time than transgender females do, he says.

Ultimately, the data shows that more work needs to be done when it comes to suicide prevention rates in the transgender community, especially among teens. These harrowing statistics lay bare the urgency of building welcoming and safe communities for LGBTQ young people, particularly for transgender youth, Ellen Kahn, the Human Rights Campaign Foundations director of the Children, Youth and Families Program, tells Yahoo Lifestyle. The distressing reality reflected in this study is preventable, and our nations schools, political leaders, and communities can take concrete steps to combat this epidemic.

Chase Strangio, staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union, sheds further light on societys role in the statistics. The fact that we gender young children and code so many things as being for girls or for boys or boys bodies as opposed to girls bodies makes growing up trans exceedingly difficult, Strangio tells Yahoo Lifestyle. Not only do you face the overt discrimination from family, friends, educators, and others but the alienation from and rejection of your body. It can feel bleak to imagine a future in such a world on top of the many other factors that make adolescence difficult.

We all have a role to play in increasing the life chances and survival opportunities for transgender youth, Strangio says. It starts with breaking down the gendered structures we impose on youth and giving them tools to inhabit their bodies and exist in the world safely and with support.

If you have a transgender teen in your life, its crucial to create an accepting and welcoming environment for them, Safer says. The second most important thing is to talk to them, he says. If you have a transgender kid with whom you have some contact, simply talking about life, the stresses of life, and how those can be dealt with is part of the solution.

In the past people thought that not talking about these issues would be reasonable, Safer continues. But actually discussing these things and creating opportunities for the kids to have a safe place to talk about what theyre thinking is the better strategy.

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Anton Du Beke and Susannah Constantine (Credit: BBC)

Susannah Constantine is taking on some rather unorthodox preparation as part of her Strictly Come Dancing training regime.

In a post to Instagram, the What Not To Wear presenter has revealed that shes started taking a horse medication called JointPro.

This is what vets give to old, knackered horses who need their joints and tendons oiled. Taking one scoop [per] day with water. #kidyounot, she captioned.

The supplement, which retails from 59.99 a pot, contains ingredients designed to support the health of the equine joint to help with the upkeep of regular training and the prevention of long-term injury or afflictions such as DJD (Degenerative Joint Disease), according to its manufacturer.

High quality natural ingredients in JointPro have anti-oxidative potential and anti-inflammatory potential, it adds.

In response to Constantines post, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society told The Daily Mail: People should stick to medicines for human consumption.

Constantine has been teamed with Anton Du Beke for the show, and on being paired up on last Saturdays premiere proclaimed bring on the Strictly curse!

She married her husband Sten Bertelsen in 1995, and they have three children together.

The presenter also revealed that she has already damaged her ribs in training, posting a video to Instagram to inform fans.

Bet you cant guess what that is? she says in the clip. That is my strapped up ribs, because my intercostal muscle issue.

It is causing a lot of pain but thank goodness I can laugh my way through it, because I am with the funniest man Anton du Beke.

We laugh every second of the day  I nearly wet myself three times yesterday because  ouch!  I was laughing so much.

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Hes a genius. Hes the best teacher Ive ever had. Best university professor, better than any horse riding instructor  just superb.

An absolute god and I really mean that. Really mean that! I love him.

The shows first dance off airs on September 22.

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Brasilia (AFP) - Fernando Haddad, the man stepping into former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's shoes at the last minute after the jailed ex-leader finally dropped his bid for re-election, has a good chance of making the run-off in next month's polls.

But to win the presidency, Haddad will have to distance himself from the iconic Lula, a towering figure of Brazilian politics.

Lula, who held office from 2003 to 2010, gave his blessing Tuesday for Haddad to replace him, two weeks after the Supreme Court upheld a ban on his own candidacy issued by the country's electoral commission.

Lula waited until the last minute of a court-imposed deadline to pass the baton to Haddad, after having exhausted all his legal options to allow him to run for a third term despite being jailed for 12 years on corruption charges.

But he gave his former education minister, seen as a less fiery but more also more conciliatory figure, his full blessing for the election, due to take place on October 7.

Haddad, who has also served as mayor of Sao Paulo, the country's business hub, faces an uphill battle, with very little time left to launch a campaign and with his rivals already well ahead of him on the trail.

- "A matter of time" -

The 55-year-old lawyer and former university professor was not widely known across the huge country, and latest polls showed just eight or nine percent of the population planning to vote for him. That is well behind the 40 percent backing that had made Lula a front-runner, even after being jailed.

But Haddad will be able not just to count on Lula's support but also on the powerful electoral machinery of his Worker's Party, which Lula, a former trade union leader, founded back in the 1980s.

He will also have benefit of the second-largest allocation of television airtime, a trump card in a country where the vast majority of voters form their political opinions based on television viewing.

The Workers Party also has a powerful presence on social media networks, as well as a dedicated army of grassroots activists.

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"Given all of that, it's hard to imagine him not making it to the second round," Lincoln Secco, a Sao Paulo University professor specializing in the history of the Workers Party, told AFP.

"It's only a matter of time before voters recognize Haddad as Lula's candidate," he said.

One the key challenges for Haddad will be wooing voters away from the center-left candidate Ciro Gomes, who is well established in the struggling northeast of the country -- part of the Workers Party heartland -- and whose campaign has already got off to a flying start.

Gomes, who also served as a minister under Lula, is currently in second place in polls, with between 11 and 13 percent, trailing the far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro who has 24-26 percent of the vote, according to surveys.

- Lula's puppet? -

The sometimes stifling influence of Lula on the Workers Party decision-making process, and the fact that Haddad has made multiple visits to the jailed party boss' prison cell, have prompted the question in some quarters of whether the new candidate will be any more than a Lula puppet.

On social media networks, the Workers Party itself launched a campaign promoting the hashtag #LulaeHaddad ("Lula is Haddad").

"In the first round, Haddad will be the voice of Lula, but for the second round, he will have to assert his independence and show his more moderate side," said Thomaz Favaro, a political analyst at the Control Risk consultancy.

Given the likelihood that he will have to face off against Bolsonaro, a former military officer, in a second round, the pressure will be on Haddad to appeal to the center-right of the electorate, which is viscerally opposed to the leftist Workers Party.

And if he does make it to power, Haddad will inherit a country mired in crippling debt, with feeble growth and 13 million unemployed.

The serious economic situation could call for him to ask Brazilians to tighten their belts and put a brake on the Workers Party's ambitious social reform programs.

"If he is elected, he'll have to find a balance between his conciliatory nature and the party, whose program has become more radical since the last elections," said Favaro.
Part of Texas is being put on alert for possible widespread flooding and dangerous surf as a new tropical threat is forecast to emerge in the western Gulf of Mexico to end this week.

"Following downpours that have been pestering central and coastal Texas since last week, a new potential threat from the tropics may arrive late this week by way of the Gulf of Mexico," said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski.

"As if there were not enough tropical concerns with Florence bearing down on the Carolinas, Olivia taking a cruise through Hawaii and Isaac on a path through the Lesser Antilles and Caribbean, we have a feisty mass of showers and thunderstorms taking aim at the Gulf of Mexico his week," Sosnowski said.

The feature of interest will push slowly northwestward from the Caribbean and into the Gulf.



static Gulf tropical threat 9/12 3am

"While some wind shear is present over the Gulf, waters are sufficiently warm to support development," Sosnowski said.

Wind shear is a change in wind direction and/or speed with altitude and over a geographical distance. If too much wind shear is present, it can prevent tropical development.

"Given the conditions, there is a chance this feature slowly develops as it moves toward the Texas coast by the end of the week," said AccuWeather Hurricane Expert Dan Kottlowski.

It could ramp up from a disturbance to a tropical storm in a matter of hours and may do so right before moving ashore.

The two names on the list of the 2018 Atlantic hurricane season are Joyce and Kirk, as there is a chance that a new disturbance over the middle of the Atlantic may be named prior to the system in the Gulf.

"Aside from most likely minor impacts from wind and beach erosion, flooding may be a significant threat due to the slow-moving nature of the storm, although impacts will be substantially fewer than records set during Harvey," Sosnowski said.

Recent and ongoing downpours from a stalled non-tropical system have left the ground saturated, making it harder for any additional rainfall to soak into the ground and further increase the flood risk.



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Static Texas Flood Risk

At the very least, people in the area should anticipate delays and disruptions to travel and outdoor activities toward the end of the week.

This includes, but is not limited to, Houston; Corpus Christi; San Antonio; and Brownsville, Texas.

Areas in Mexico bordering Texas are also at risk for flooding rainfall.

All interests from western Louisiana to Texas and northeastern Mexico should stay up to date with the latest developments on the tropics by continuing to check back to AccuWeather.com and downloading the free AccuWeather app.

Drenching rain would not be bad for everyone. There are locations in central Texas that could benefit from non-flooding rainfall, due to long-term drought conditions.
President Donald Trumps trade war may soon escalate if the U.S. slaps more tariffs on import goods from China. Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic adviser at the Allianz Group and former CEO of PIMCO, assuaged U.S. investors by noting that the chance of the U.S. getting a better deal from the trade war is 3-in-4.

I think its really important to make a distinction between the journey and the destination, El-Erian said on Yahoo Finances The Final Round on Tuesday. The journey will involve lots of noise, lots of rhetoric about trade wars, and the technically vulnerable asset classes, such as emerging markets, are going to get hit because of that.

As for the destination, El-Erian predicts a promising outcome for the U.S. The most likely ending of this trade war is a fairer trade system with small tweaks, but no fundamental changes, said El-Erian, assigning a 60% probability to this scenario.

The U.S. will get its way. Well get concessions from other countries, but it wont fundamentally change the whole trading system, he said.

El-Erian says there is 15% of chance that Trumps trade war plays out like Reagans cold war. Credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr, Getty Images)

However, the U.S. could still win, but the victory may take a longer period of time to achieve and it may be more painful, economically and politically. El-Erian compares this scenario, which he says has a 15% chance of occurring, to the Reagan moment, when then-President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s embarked on a military buildup race with the Soviet Union.

It was a race that the U.S. was destined to win from day one as long as it was willing to tolerate the fiscal cost and the risk of a conflict and it did win it. And it changed completely the geopolitical landscape, El-Erian said. The Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

El-Erian sees some resemblances between Reagans cold war and Trumps trade war and believes the U.S. is willing to incur the risk of a trade war. Trump has been targeting a rising superpower  China. Other countries, finally, with longstanding problems in the trade system, change to the better the way the trading system operates, El-Erian said.

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El-Erian isnt the only economist seeing Trump borrowing a page from Reagans playbook. Art Laffer, a former Reagan economic adviser, told Yahoo Finance that Trump used tariffs as a leverage to get China into the free trade world and to behave like a proper country. But so far, China has shown no signs of retreat despite the recent meltdown of its stock market. It has been fighting back with tit-for-tat tariffs on the U.S. and vows to continue to do so.

The worst case, according to El-Erian would be a full-blown trade war that sends the global economy into recession, which is especially disastrous to the emerging markets. El-Erian said theres a 25% chance of this happening. The tariff dispute with the U.S. will probably cost China 700,000 jobs, if Trumps proposed tariffs materializes and China retaliates, according to a note from JPMorgan Chase on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moodys Analytics, predicts the same measure will cost 354,000 American jobs.

Despite the potential for a global recession, El-Erian is optimistic. Seventy-five percent probability is this better outcome, which is why the markets very rationally do not overreact to all this walk of talk of trade wars, he said.

Krystal Hu covers technology and economy for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter.

Read more:

US is a closed economy so trade isnt that important: economist

Why the $375 billion US-China trade deficit can be totally misleading

How Chinas tariffs on soybeans fueled the US GDP bump
Nearly 3,000 people died in Puerto Rico from Hurricane Maria

San Juan mayor calls comments a stain on his presidency

Donald Trump on Tuesday touted the incredible, unsung success of the federal response last year in Puerto Rico, where the government estimates nearly 3,000 died as a result of Hurricane Maria.

The presidents remarks drew swift condemnation from the island and the mainland as Trump sought to assure the public that his administration was as ready as anybody has ever been for the powerful 500-mile wide Hurricane Florence swirling toward the Carolina coast.

This is an offensive, hurtful and blatantly false comment from the president, Senate minority leader Charles Schumer tweeted on Tuesday. Nearly 3,000 of our fellow citizens died in Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria. That is the complete opposite of success.

Carmen Yulin Cruz, the mayor of San Juan and a fierce critic of Trump, said his comments added insult to injury.

She told CNN: This is a stain on his presidency. He says hes done a good job when 3,000 people have died? God bless us all if this man continues on this path.

Bernie Sanders added:Nearly 3,000 people died. That is not a success. That is a tragedy and a disgrace.

Trump spoke from the Oval Office, where he was receiving a briefing on efforts to prepare for Florence by Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) head Brock Long.

Asked on Tuesday what lessons his administration learned from responding to storms in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico last year, Trump boasted that he deserved top marks.

I think Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success, he said. Texas, we had been given A-plusses for. Florida, weve been given A-plusses for. I think, in a certain way, the best job we did was Puerto Rico but nobody would understand that.

The administrations efforts in Puerto Rico were widely criticized as slow and insufficient. During a visit to the island last September, Trump tossed paper towels into a crowd and told Puerto Rican officials that they should be proud the damage did not compare to the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, which he described as a real catastrophe.

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As many as 1,800 deaths are attributed to Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans. Last month, nearly one year after Maria struck Puerto Rico, the islands government raised the official death toll to 2,975 people  a dramatic increase on the previous official figure of 64.

Puerto Rico was, actually, our toughest one of all because its an island you cant truck things onto it. Everything is by boat, Trump said. We moved a hospital into PuertoRico  a tremendous military hospital in the form of a ship.

He continued: I think Puerto Rico was incredibly successful.
WASHINGTON (AP)  President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday authorizing sanctions against foreigners who meddle in U.S. elections, acting amid criticism that he has not taken election security seriously enough.

"We felt it was important to demonstrate the president has taken command of this issue, that it's something he cares deeply about  that the integrity of our elections and our constitutional process are a high priority to him," said national security adviser John Bolton.

In the order, the president declared a national emergency, an action required under sanctions authority, to deal with the threat of foreign meddling in U.S. elections.

The order calls for sanctioning any individual, company or country that interferes with campaign infrastructure, such as voter registration databases, voting machines and equipment used for tabulating or transmitting results. It also authorizes sanctions for engaging in covert, fraudulent or deceptive activities, such as distributing disinformation or propaganda, to influence or undermine confidence in U.S. elections.

It requires the national intelligence director to make regular assessments about foreign interference and asks the Homeland Security and Justice departments to submit reports on meddling in campaign-related infrastructure. It also lays out how the Treasury and State departments will recommend what sanctions to impose.

With the midterm elections now two months away, National Intelligence Director Dan Coats said the U.S. is not currently seeing the intensity of Russian intervention that was experienced in 2016, but he didn't rule it out. He said the U.S. is also worried about the cyber activities of China, North Korea and Iran.

Coats said Trump's order directs intelligence agencies to conduct an assessment within 45 days after an election to report any meddling to the attorney general and Department of Homeland Security. The attorney general and Department of Homeland Security then have another 45 days to assess whether sanctions should be imposed.

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"This clearly is a process put in place to try to assure that we are doing every possible thing we can, first of all, to prevent any interference with our elections, to report on anything we see between now and the election, but then to do a full assessment after the election to assure the American people just exactly what may have happened or may not have happened," Coats said.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., are pushing a bill that would prohibit foreign governments from purchasing election ads, using social media to spread false information or disrupting election infrastructure. They said Trump's order recognizes the threat, but doesn't go far enough.

The order gives the executive branch the discretion to impose sanctions for election meddling, but the bill would spell out sanctions on key economic sectors of a country that interferes. Those backing the legislation say that under the bill, a nation would know exactly what it would face if caught.

Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, ranking Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee, said the order leaves the president with broad discretion to decide whether to impose tough sanctions. "Unfortunately, President Trump demonstrated in Helsinki and elsewhere that he simply cannot be counted upon to stand up to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin when it matters," said Warner, who is sponsoring the bill.

At a July 16 news conference with Putin in Helsinki, Trump was asked if he would denounce what happened in 2016 and warn Putin never to do it again. Trump did not directly answer the question. Instead, he delivered a rambling response, including demands for investigation of Hillary Clinton's email server and his description of Putin's "extremely strong and powerful" denial of meddling.

That drew outrage from both Republican and Democrats.

Trump has pushed back, saying that no other American president has been as tough on Russia. He has cited U.S. sanctions and the expulsion of alleged Russian spies from the U.S.

Mike Rogers, former director of the National Security Agency, said he thought Trump missed an opportunity in Helsinki to publicly scold Russia for meddling. Rogers said when he used to talk to Trump about the issue, Trump would often respond to him, saying "Mike, you know, I'm in a different place."

Rogers said he would tell Trump: "Mr. President, I understand that, but I'm paid by the citizens of the nation to tell you what we think. Sir, this is not about politics, it's not about parties. It's about a foreign state that is attempting to subvert the very tenets of our structure."

In his first public comments since he retired in June, Rogers said: "That should concern us as citizens. That should concern us leaders. And if we don't do something, they (the Russians) are not going to stop."

Rogers, who spoke Tuesday night at the Hayden Center at George Mason University in Virginia, also said earlier media reports claiming Trump had asked him to publicly deny any collusion between Moscow and Trump's campaign were inaccurate.

James Clapper, the former national intelligence director who appeared with Rogers and other former intelligence officials, said he personally believes that the Russian interference did influence the outcome of the 2016 election, but didn't elaborate.

"The Russians are still at it. They are committed to undermining our system," Clapper said. "One of the things that really disturbs me is  that for whatever reason, I don't know what it is  the president's failure to dime out Putin and dime out the Russians for what they are doing."
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the federal government would spare no expense in responding to the likely damage from Hurricane Florence, which is forecast to slam the Carolina coast later this week.

"Any amounts of money, whatever it takes, we're going to do it," Trump told reporters at the White House as he met with top aides and federal disaster officials.

In remarks aimed at Americans who could find themselves in harm's way, the president noted that experts were predicting a storm the likes of which the East Coast of the United States has not seen in decades.

"I would say everybody should get out, he said. "It's going to be really, really bad along the coast."

Federal forecasters expect the storm to make landfall on Friday with 130 mile-per-hour (215 kph) winds and massive waves, with rains taking a heavy toll inland. Some 1 million people have been ordered to evacuate their homes.

The government's top disaster response official, Federal Emergency Management Agency head Brock Long, told reporters that residents in areas likely to be affected should not under-estimate the threat.

"This has an opportunity of being a very devastating storm," Long said. "The power is going to be off for weeks. You are going to be displaced from your home in the coastal areas, and there will be flooding in the inland areas as well."

Trump, who has faced criticism for his administration's response to Hurricane Maria in 2017, which killed an estimated 3,000 people in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, knocked out power to all 3.4 million residents of the Caribbean island, with thousands still without power even six months after the storm hit, said the federal government was "totally prepared" for Florence.

"We're ready. We're as ready as anybody has ever been," he said.

Asked what lessons could be learn from Maria, Trump said the government's response in that case was complicated because Puerto Rico is an island and its electrical grid was already impaired.

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"I actually think it was one of the best jobs that's ever been done," he said. "I think that Puerto Rico was an incredible unsung success."

The mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico's capital, Carmen Yulin Cruz, blasted Trump for touting his administration's response to the hurricane as a success.

"This was a despicable act of neglect on the part of his administration," Cruz told CNN.

Florence, a Category 4 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, was located about 785 miles (1,260 km) southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, at 4:30 p.m. EDT (2030 GMT), according to the National Hurricane Center.

(Reporting by Jeff Mason; Writing by Tim Ahmann; Editing by Mohammad Zargham and Leslie Adler)
U.S. President Donald Trump boards Air Force One at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, before his departure back to Washington, U.S., December 2, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

Salvatore Babones

Security, Asia

North Korea's Kim Jong Un may be dragging his feet on denuclearization, but soon enough he'll be crying uncle to Uncle Sam.

Trump Is Right to Talk to Kim

Just two weeks after canceling a visit by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to North Korea, the Trump administration is entertaining a request from Kim Jong-un for a second summit meeting with the President. However, the fact remains that North Korea has not visibly denuclearized. But its aggressive program of nuclear tests and intercontinental missile launches ended abruptly after Trumps January 3 nuclear button tweet, and the Hermit Kingdom has been quiet all year.

To be fair, it probably wasnt Trumps tweet that scared the Supreme Leader into submission. American-led economic sanctions have probably been much more effective. But these would not have had quite the same bite if the Trump administration had not strong-armed China into enforcing them.

Trumps critics claim that by agreeing to the last summit, held in Singapore on June 12, the President gave away all his negotiating leverage over Kim. But if all it takes to defeat a totalitarian dictator is to refuse to shake his hand, then the last eleven U.S. Presidents should long ago have brought democracy to North Korea. It seems hard to believe that North Koreas true war aim has always been to score a meeting with an American President.

In reality, Trumps dealings with (and pressure on) North Korea have given the United States and its allies almost a year of peace and quiet on the Korean peninsula. In exchange, America has suspended joint military exercises with the South military exercises that, to be fair, were explicitly designed to prepare for an attack by the North.

Given that the United States continues to maintain twenty-four thousand troops in South Korea (plus a further thirty-nine thousand offshore in Japan), engages in regular joint training exercises throughout the Pacific, and has a bilateral treaty pledging to defend South Korea against all potential enemies, it seems safe to hold off on annual exercises in order to give peace a chance.

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Post-Obama Senate Democrats, who have suddenly become the toughest of hardliners when it comes to North Korea, seem to have forgotten that it was Democratic Presidential candidate Jimmy Carter who in 1976 campaigned on a pledge to withdraw all U.S. troops from Korea within five years. That pledge went the same way as Barack Obamas pledge to withdraw from Afghanistan.

The truth is that South Korea, with twice the population and anywhere from forty to eighty times the GDP of North Korea, can very well defend itselfall the more so since the South is assured of full access to American battlefield intelligence, naval power, and air support. The only reason South Korea should need American boots on the ground would be if China were to throw its weight into the North Korean war effort, as it did in 1950. That seems extraordinarily unlikely today.

In the final analysis, talk is cheap. Trump is right to give it away, as long as he keeps the sanctions screws tightly turned on North Koreas economy. The United States has suspended military drills in exchange for North Korea suspending missile and bomb tests. That seems a reasonable trade, all the more so considering that North Korea (not the United States) continues to suffer under crippling economic sanctions.

Kim isnt coming to the table for a photo op. He doesnt have to please North Korean public opinion or worry about his image in the North Korean press. Kim is coming to the table to cry uncle. This means Uncle Sam should have the good grace to hear what he has to offer.

Salvatore Babones is an American sociologist and professor at the University of Sydney, Australia. He focuses on China, the global economy, quantitative methodology and the long-term impact of technology. He has written extensively and is the author of The New Authoritarianism: Trump, Populism, and the Tyranny of Experts.

Image: U.S. President Donald Trump boards Air Force One at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, before his departure back to Washington, U.S., December 2, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

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Istanbul (AFP) - The Turkish secret service staged an operation deep in the heartland of the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad to capture and bring back to Turkey the prime suspect in a 2013 bombing, officials said Wednesday.

Turkish citizen Yusuf Nazik, who is accused of planning a bombing in a Turkish border town in May 2013, was apprehended in an operation carried out by the National Intelligence Organisation (MIT).

He was captured in the Syrian city of Latakia -- a stronghold of support for Assad that has never slipped from his control -- and then brought to Turkey, the Anadolu news agency said.

More than 50 people were killed in the bombing -- one of the deadliest in Turkey's modern history -- in Reyhanli, on the border with Syria in the southern Turkish province of Hatay.

Ankara at the time blamed the attack on the regime of Assad and allied groups. The Syrian government rejected the charges.

Anadolu published a video of Nazik, dressed in a tracksuit top and jeans and standing by a Turkish flag, giving what it described as a "confession", saying he was behind the attack and it had been ordered by the Syrian regime.

He said a man "working for Syrian intelligence" had given the order for the bombing and called on others in Syria to "return before it is too late", saying Turkey will "look after us".

Nazik, 34, from the Turkish southern city of Antakya, said he had been responsible for making contact with Syrian intelligence, bringing the explosives inside Turkey and obtaining the vehicles used.

Turkish Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul hailed the operation as "successful" and vowed Turkey's "independent judiciary will give the necessary punishment".

- 'Assad's bastion' -

A senior Turkish official, who asked not to be named, confirmed Anadolu's report and said the testimony of Nazik "confirmed long-standing rumours about the Assad regime's active role in the bombing".

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Turkey has been an implacable foe of Assad throughout the over seven-year Syrian conflict and has repeatedly called for his ouster.

Yet Ankara has also been working in recent months more intensely with its main allies Russia and Iran on ending the conflict.

Attention is now focused on Turkey's reaction should the regime go ahead with a planned assault on the last rebel stronghold of Idlib, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warning such a move could lead to a humanitarian disaster.

That the operation to capture Nazik took place in Latakia is significant as the city has been a regime stronghold throughout the civil war and not an area where Turkey would usually have any influence.

Timur Akhmetov, Ankara-based researcher at the Russian International Affairs Council, said Russia was keen to channel Turkey's Syria policy towards security issues -- where Ankara could find common ground with Damascus -- rather than backing rebels.

"I think that the Yusuf Nazik operation was carried out within this intention of the Russia and Syrian authorities," he told AFP.

There were no further details on whether the operation had been carried out with or without the knowledge of the Syrian authorities or Russian forces who are present in the area.

But Anadolu said no logistical or intelligence support had come from "any foreign state" and the "detection, monitoring, operation and transfer" had been carried out entirely by MIT units.

"A giant operation in Assad's bastion," said the pro-government Hurriyet daily.

- 'Never stop hunting' -

The operation is the latest in a series of high-profile swoops by the MIT which is led by Hakan Fidan, a shadowy figure regarded as hugely loyal to Erdogan.

The intelligence service has brought back to Turkey in recent weeks suspects accused of links to preacher Fethullah Gulen, the accused mastermind of the 2016 failed coup seeking to topple Erdogan, from several countries including Kosovo, Gabon, Moldova and Ukraine.

"Nazik's capture and repatriation should serve as a reminder to all other criminals that we will never stop hunting them," said the senior Turkish official.

Ankara is keenly aware of the boost to public morale of successful secret service operations after the audacious 1999 nabbing in Kenya of Kurdish militant leader Abdullah Ocalan gave a huge boost to the government of the time.
Ankara (AFP) - Turkey expressed alarm Tuesday over the United States shuttering the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) mission in Washington, saying it showed America could no longer be an impartial player in the peace process.

The State Department announced Monday it would close the mission, accusing the Palestinians of refusing to engage with the United States or Israel and of rejecting outright a still-unseen US peace plan.

But the PLO said it was being blackmailed by a White House blatantly biased in favour of Israel.

"The decision is worrying and it is another sign that the US is not an impartial party in the Middle East peace process," Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said.

The announcement would "only embolden" those who want to destroy the two-state solution, Aksoy added in a statement.

The PLO is regarded as the representative of the Palestinians by the international community and its chairman is Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who regards himself as a champion of the Palestinians, has bitterly criticised the current US administration for its stance on the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

Erdogan led the international outcry when US President Donald Trump recognised the disputed city of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and moved the US embassy there from Tel Aviv, twice holding summits of Muslim leaders in Istanbul.

And while Turkey, unlike most majority Muslim countries, maintains full relations with Israel, Erdogan has repeatedly lashed out at the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Ankara ordered out Israel's ambassador in May after Israeli soldiers killed dozens of unarmed protestors along the border with the Gaza Strip.

Erdogan claimed in July that Israel is "the world's most Zionist, fascist and racist state" while Netanyahu hit back by saying Turkey had become a "dark dictatorship" under Erdogan's rule.
The Trump administration may sanction Chinese government officials and businesses over human rights violations against ethnic Uighurs and other minority Muslim groups, The New York Times reported.

The bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China sent Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin a letter two weeks ago urging them to adopt sanctions against government officials complicit in human rights abuses as well as entities that help the government to carry out mass detentions and surveillance of ethnic minorities. It also asked the Commerce Department to prevent the sale of American technology that could play a role in surveilling the Muslim minority groups.

The sanctions could be one of the first actions the Trump administration takes against China over human rights violations, according to the Times. U.S.-Chinese relations have experienced ups and downs throughout the Trump presidency so far, as President Donald Trump threatens to impose billions in tariffs on Chinese goods, but the administration has stayed fairly quiet on human rights issues.

The administration has been in talks with the Treasury and the State Department for several months about how to proceed, according to the Times.

More detailed information about detention camps for Chinese Muslims has come to light in recent years. Hundreds of thousands have reportedly been detained in the northwest region of Xinjiang, where theyre expected to denounce Islam and learn about Chinese culture.

The scale of it  its massive, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), one of the letters signatories, told the Times about the detention centers. It involves not only intimidating people on political speech, but also a desire to strip people of their identity  ethnic identity, religious identity  on a scale that Im not sure weve seen in the modern era.

China ramped up its crackdown in 2014 with the aim of eradicating terrorism, according to a Human Rights Watch report published Sunday. It resulted in mass arrests and the placement of about 1 million people in secretive facilities. The government also reportedly tracks people through the compilation of biometric data in order to root out those who pose a threat to the Communist government.

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Related...

China Says Tariffs Constitute 'Blackmail' As Trump Touts Success

Who Are The Uighurs? China Is Detaining This Muslim Minority By The Million.

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Antonio Guterres appeals to Russia, Iran and Turkey to spare no effort in protecting civilians in last major rebel stronghold in Syria

Syrian rebel fighters from the recently formed National Liberation Front pictured in Idlib province on 11 September. Photograph: Aaref Watad/AFP/Getty Images

United Nations secretary general Antonio Guterres has appealed to Russia, Iran and Turkey to spare no effort to find solutions that protect civilians in Idlib and said it was absolutely essential to avoid a full-scale battle in Syrias rebel-held province.

This would unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict, he told reporters.

About 3.5 million people are crammed into Idlib and the surrounding areas, at least half of whom have fled areas retaken from the opposition by the regime.

Syrian government and Russian warplanes began airstrikes in Idlib last week in a possible prelude to a full-scale offensive to retake the region. They say they are targeting terrorist groups.

I understand that the present situation in Idlib is not sustainable and the presence of terrorist groups cannot be tolerated. But fighting terrorism does not absolve warring parties of their core obligations under international law, Guterres told reporters in New York.

His comments came after Turkey renewed calls for international backing for a ceasefire, telling the UN security council that an all-out assault would trigger a huge wave of refugees and could threaten Europe.

Russia called for the council meeting to brief members on a summit it held with Iran and Turkey on military plans to retake Idlib, the last major rebel stronghold in Syria.

There is no doubt that an all-out military operation would result in a major humanitarian catastrophe, the Turkish ambassador, Feridun Sinirlioglu, told the council meeting.

Further airstrikes and bombings would trigger a massive wave of refugees and tremendous security risks for Turkey, the rest of Europe and beyond, he warned.

Turkey, which has sent troops to Idlib and supports some of the armed groups, called for an immediate ceasefire and urged the international community to vocally and actively support our efforts to this end.

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But Russia and Iran have rejected Turkeys call for a ceasefire.

The US ambassador, Nikki Haley, said Syrian forces, backed by Russia and Iran, had already launched 100 airstrikes on Idlib this month and that their sole aim was a bloody military conquest of Idlib.

Haley warned of dire consequences if mass casualties were caused if the assault went ahead. The world will hold them responsible, she added.

Britain and France backed the call for a ceasefire, recalling that these had been agreed under arrangements for a de-escalation zone in Idlib that were overseen by Russia, Iran and Turkey.

Russia and Iran insisted that a military offensive in Idlib would be a counter-terrorism operation and that measures would be taken to spare civilians.

We cannot allow terrorists to hold hostage and use hundreds of thousands of people of Idlib as human shields, said the Russian ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia.

However Russias Syria envoy said on Tuesday it would be up to Turkey to separate terrorist elements from the moderate opposition.

We are saying the situation in Idlib should be settled most preferably in a peaceful way. It is possible to abstain from using military force, Alexander Lavrentiev told reporters following talks in Geneva with the UN envoy Staffan de Mistura.

Idlib province is  a sort of zone of responsibility of Turkey; it is their responsibility to separate the moderate opposition from the extremists, from Jabhat al-Nusra and other groups, other terrorist groups, he said.

The UN security council meeting came days after it heard warnings from De Mistura about a looming catastrophe from the military offensive in Idlib.

This story includes material from Agence France-Press and Reuters
HANOI, Vietnam (AP)  A court in central Vietnam sentenced an activist on Wednesday to 12 years in prison after finding him guilty of associating with an outlawed dissident group.

The state-run Quang Binh newspaper said the People's Court in Quang Binh province convicted Nguyen Trung Truc in a half-day trial of attempting to overthrow the government. The court also ordered five years of house arrest after Truc finishes his sentence.

It said Truc, 44, was the head of the central region branch of the outlawed Brotherhood for Democracy. He was arrested in August last year.

The Brotherhood for Democracy wants to change the leadership of the ruling Communist Party and build a multiparty system.

Truc was the 9th member of the group put on trial since the beginning of this year. The others, including the group's alleged co-founder, Nguyen Van Dai, were sentenced to up to 15 years in prison in April. Dai and another convicted member were released in June on condition that they go into exile in Germany.

International human rights groups have called for Truc's release.

"All Nguyen Trung Truc is guilty of is speaking out for human rights and advocating for democracy in Vietnam, " Minar Pimple, Amnesty International's senior director of global operations, said in a statement Wednesday. "He has been deliberately targeted simply because he has expressed views and taken up causes that the country's authorities disapprove of."

Pimple was denied an entry visa to Vietnam where he was to attend this week's World Economic Forum gathering in the capital, Amnesty International said Monday.

Last month, a court in Ho Chi Minh City sentenced 12 activists including two Americans of Vietnamese descent to up to 14 years on similar charges.

Despite sweeping economic reforms since the mid-1980s that opened the country to foreign trade and investment and made the country one of fastest-growing economies in the world, the Communist government tolerates no challenge to its one-party rule.
Vladimir Putin has said that Russia has identified the men accused of carrying out the Salisbury nerve agent attack  but insists there is nothing criminal about them.

Police and prosecutors last week said Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov had been identified as members of the GRU, Russias military intelligence service.

Russia has repeatedly contested the allegations and on Wednesday Putin escalated the war of words by denying the men were members of military intelligence.

Alexander Petrov (left) and Ruslan Boshirov were accused of carrying out the Salisbury spy poisoning (Getty)

Putin insisted there was nothing criminal about Petrov and Boshirov (Getty)

In an address to the Easter Economic Forum in Vladivostok, he said: Of course, we looked who these people are. We know who they are, we have found them already.

He added: There is nothing special and nothing criminal about it, Im telling you.

Questioned on whether the pair were civilians, he replied: Of course they are civilians.

In an unusual move, he then called on Petrov and Boshirov to appear before the media to talk about themselves.

His intervention risks widening the gulf between Russia and the UK over the attempted assassination, which triggered a wave of diplomatic expulsions by both sides.

MORE: Russia and China launch biggest war games in decades in veiled threat to the West

MORE: Chuck Chequers! New threat to Theresa May as Brexiteers plot leadership challenge

Former GRU officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were left critically ill after being exposed to the military grade nerve agent Novichok in Salisbury in March.

Detectives believe it is likely the two suspects, thought to be aged around 40, travelled under aliases and that Petrov and Boshirov are not their real names.

Prosecutors deem it futile to apply to Russia for the extradition of the two men but a European Arrest Warrant has been obtained and the authorities are also seeking the assistance of Interpol.

Sergei Skripal was attacked with nerve agent Novichok in March (Getty)

Officers have formally linked the attack on the Skripals to events in Amesbury when Dawn Sturgess and her partner Charlie Rowley were exposed to the same nerve agent (Getty)

Officers have formally linked the attack on the Skripals to events in nearby Amesbury when Dawn Sturgess, 44, and her partner Charlie Rowley, 45, were exposed to the same nerve agent.

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Ms Sturgess died in hospital in July, just over a week after the pair fell ill.

A police officer who visited the home of the Skripals shortly after the attack, Nick Bailey, was also left critically ill from exposure to the substance.
West Ham have found to be over inflating their home attendance by has a whopping 22%

Premier League clubs have been caught exaggerating their home attendance by as many 12,000 spectators per match.

A study by the BBC has revealed huge discrepancies in the official attendance figures released by the clubs, and those recorded by local authorities.

In fact, of the seven Premier League clubs where the independent data was available, only Manchester United hadnt inflated their figures.

READ MORE: Sunderland want to sue their own players

READ MORE: The Premier League players injured on international duty

West Ham were the worst culprits but Manchester City, Southampton and Watford were not far behind in the discrepancies. Tottenham and Chelsea were also found to have officially overstated crowd numbers at games.

Premier League crowd discrepancies. Source: BBC

Figures divulged by Newham council following a Freedom of Information request by the BBC revealed that, across the 12 matches they attended at the London Stadium last term, they recorded an average crowd of 42,779  way short of the Hammers official record of more than 55,000.

In fact, in West Hams match against West Brom on January 2, the clubs official attendance was 56,888 but the council said it was 39,365  a difference of 17,523 fans.

While West Ham endured a poor season in a stadium many of their own fans dont like, the empty seats at the home of the champions a little more difficult to explain.

City reported an average of 53,274 fans but Greater Manchester Polices average figures were almost 7500 lower. This means Citys actual average home attendance was less than 46,000, and with the Eithad Stadiums capacity listed as 55,097, that means the ground was on average only 83 per cent full for each home match.

That included the figures from the match against Southampton in November, where their attendance of 53,407 was 15,277 lower than the actual number of bodies inside the ground  38,130.

Plenty of empty seats could be seen at West Hams win over West Brom in January

Meanwhile, there were patches of blue seats as City marched to the title

Interestingly, there was no disparity between the figures released by Manchester United and those collected by Greater Manchester Police and Trafford council.

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One club where the actual crowd attendance appeared to lower than club figures last season was at Arsenal.

The official average was 57,054 at Emirates Stadium last season  2,813 short of the 59,867 capacity  but the Arsenal Supporters Trust claims the actual average attendance was about 46,000. However, the Freedom of Information request was unable to confirm or deny either figures.

READ MORE: Something is amiss with Kane  but its not all his own doing

READ MORE: Carragher: Rashford has to leave Man United

Tottenham were found to have inflated their figures by just under 4000, but strangely there were five matches at which Tottenhams published number of tickets sold was lower than the councils attendance figure.

The club even under-reported their north London derby match against Arsenal, which was the Premier Leagues record attendance. The club said 83,222 people attended the match when official figures showed it was actually 83,290.




Every justice on the West Virginia Supreme Court is facing impeachment or has resigned. What to know about the unprecedented trial that begins today. originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

In the wake of scandals that have forced every member of West Virginias Supreme Court to either resign or face impeachment, three justices are due in impeachment proceedings today in a move that critics say is politically motivated.

The West Virginia House of Delegates voted last month to impeach all four of its sitting Supreme Court justices, an unprecedented move prompted by the growing scandal surrounding the judges spending habits. A fifth justice, threatened with impeachment, resigned earlier this year.

There are some legislators who are pretty outraged about the courts spending and so theyre primed, if you will, to hold them fully accountable, said Bob Bastress, a leading scholar on West Virginia Constitutional Law and Professor at the University of West Virginia.

West Virginia Supreme Court justices are elected to 12-year terms. The justices were impeached after the August deadline to hold a special election, which allows the Republican Governor, Jim Justice, to fill the positions of both Republican and Democrat justices.

Governor Justice has already filled two interim seats, giving conservatives a court majority.

(MORE: The Downfall of Coal King Don Blankenship)

PHOTO: West Virginia state Supreme Court justices, from left, Robin Davis, Allen Loughry, Beth Walker and Margaret Workman. (AP)

In June, state lawmakers opened an investigation into potential spending and ethical violations of every member of the court. In the early hours of August 14, based on the findings of the committee, the West Virginia House of Delegates voted to impeach four justices, Margaret Workman, Allen Loughry, Elizabeth Walker, and Robin Davis, on charges related to lavish spending and the waste of state funds. Justice Davis announced her immediate retirement on August 14. She is accused of spending approximately half a million dollars renovating her office.

A fifth member, Justice Menis Ketchum, announced his resignation on July 11 before the House considered articles of impeachment against him. He later pled guilty to one felony count of wire fraud for improper use of a state fuel credit card.

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Now, Justices Margaret Workman, Allen Loughry, and Elizabeth Walker are set to face impeachment proceedings in the state Senate. Workman is facing accusations that include overpaying judges salaries and falsifying accounts. Walker is facing accusations that include wasting state funds. Loughry is facing a federal indictment on charges that include the misuse of state vehicles, and lying to FBI agents.

This may be among the worst crises to confront the court, but its not the first.

In 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court forced then-Justice Brent Benjamin to recuse himself after coal businessman Don Blankenship spent $3 million to push for Benjamins election while a case involving Blankenships company was pending. The year before, Justice Elliot Spike Maynard was pressured into recusing himself from the same case when photographs surfaced showing him on vacation with Blankenship on the French Riviera. Maynard was later voted out of office.

Trouble resurfaced in 2014, when Justice Davis faced scrutiny after an ABC News report revealed that a lawyer with a major case before her raised thousands of dollars for her re-election campaign in 2012. The same lawyer had reportedly bought a Learjet from Davis husband in 2011 for more than $1 million. Davis never disclosed the airplane deal, telling ABC News that she was under no obligation because it involved her husband, and not her.

But ethics experts have questioned that assertion.

(MORE: https://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4852923&page=1)

This does not look good for the rule of law, James Sample, an expert on judicial ethics and Professor at Hofstra University Law School, said in the ABC report. A million-dollar sale of an airplane while litigation involving the lawyer who purchases the airplane is pending before the court? Absolutely no question. Its proper to disclose, and it is improper to not disclose.

References to the airplane deal resurfaced in recent weeks as state lawmakers were debating whether or not to pass articles of impeachment against Davis for allegedly over-spending on office renovations. Articles of impeachment were passed against her, but her resignation means she is no longer subject to an impeachment trial in the Senate, as she willingly removed herself from the bench.

In her retirement announcement on August 14, Davis accused the majority party of the legislature -- Republicans -- of using the impeachment process for political gain.

They have erased the lines of separation between the branches of government. In fact, the majority party in the legislature is positioning to impose their own party preferences, she wrote.

A legislative battle has waged since the beginning of the impeachment proceedings, with Democrats agreeing with Daviss assertion that the attempts to re-cast the court are being driven by politics.

(MORE: Lear Jet Justice in West Virginia? A 'Circus Masquerading as a Court')

The power of choosing our next Supreme Court Justice should belong to the people of West Virginia, not politicians and lobbyists in a back room, wrote Democratic Minority Leader Timothy Miley, in an August statement about Justice Loughry.

Impeachment proceedings against the judges in the West Virginia Senate are set to begin today. If the remaining judges are removed in the upcoming Senate session, their open seats will be filled by West Virginias Republican Governor Jim Justice.

Sample told ABC News that political wrangling is not what the state needs.

The court is desperately in need of not liberals or conservatives, Sample said. Its desperately in need of individuals with high integrity.

ABC News has reached out to Justices Walker and Workman for comment.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House has not yet made a final decision on whether U.S. President Donald Trump will make a stop in Ireland as part of his trip to Paris later this autumn, a spokeswoman said on Tuesday. "The president will travel to Paris in November as previously announced. We are still finalizing whether Ireland will be a stop on that trip. As details are confirmed we will let you know, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters. (Reporting by Roberta Rampton; Writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by David Alexander)
A former "Sex and the City" star Cynthia Nixon, who is running for governor of New York state, cried foul on Monday over a pro-Andrew Cuomo mailer paid for by the Democratic Party that suggests the Hollywood actress called to boycott Israel, with the candidate calling on the governor to apologize to New Yorkers.

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The mailer says Nixon opposes funding for Jewish schools, supports "racist, xenophobic" calls to boycott Israel over its treatment of Palestinians and that she has been "silent on the rise of anti-Semitism."

"With anti-Semitism and bigotry on the rise, we can't take a chance with inexperienced Cynthia Nixon, who wouldn't stand strong for our Jewish communities," the mailer reads.

Cynthia Nixon (Photo: Reuters)

Nixon, who has two children being raised in the Jewish faith, called the mailer "dirty, sleazy politics" and said Cuomo's explanation that he didn't know about the mailer isn't believable.

"The idea that they would accuse me of being soft on anti-Semitism is an outrage," she told Buzzfeed's news show AM To DM on Monday. "The idea that Andrew Cuomo didn't know this was happening is completely bogus and I think he actually owes an apology not just to say it was a mistake, but that it's factually wrong...This is fear-mongering for political gain at its worst."

Cuomo controls the state Democratic Party and recently transferred $2.5 million to its account for election-related expenses. He said Sunday he wasn't aware of the mailer until angry voters began complaining about it and still hasn't seen it.

State Party Executive Director Geoff Berman has called the mailer a "mistake" and offered to use party money to pay for a Nixon mailer of her campaign's choosing. Nixon says it's too late to send a mailer and on Sunday suggested that Cuomo instead hold a press conference to apologize.

The state party hasn't said who approved the mailer, or how many were sent out to voters. Messages left with the Cuomo campaign and the state party were not immediately returned Monday.

A poll released Monday suggests Cuomo has widened his lead over Nixon, an education activist and former "Sex and the City" star. According to the survey, Cuomo now leads Nixon 63 to 22 percentage points.

The poll was taken before questions surfaced about the anti-Nixon maileror before the state was forced to close the second span of the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge just a day after Cuomo held a celebratory ribbon cutting.

The second span was supposed to open to the public on Saturday but crews disassembling the nearby old Tappan Zee Bridge discovered that it had destabilized and could fall, potentially hitting the new span. The span is expected to reopen to traffic Tuesday evening.
Racist graffiti was discovered on the door of a home of a former IDF Arab-Israeli soldier in the northern city of Afula overnight Saturday, calling for death to Arabs.

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The 25-year-old soldier, identified as S, served in the Givati Brigade for three years in some of the most difficult areas and participated in Operation Protective Edge in 2014.

S., who recently moved to Giv'at ha-Moreh in Afula, described the moment when he discovered the racist graffiti. I returned home at about 11pm and discovered the writing on the house door, he said.

'Death to Arabs' sprayed in Hebrew (Photo: Courtesy)

They drew in red paint on the door. Its the last thing I thought would happen to me. I never thought it could happen, he added.

S. was born and raised in a village in the Galilee and at age 18 decided to draft into the IDF. After being discharged from the military, he worked as a security guard and five months ago moved to Afula with his wife and children.

According to S., he has never experienced any form of racism until discovering the graffiti on his door.

It was like a blackout. It is disgusting and shameful. It is either a price tag attack or children, he said, vowing that the incident would have no significant impact on his opinions.

This act will not make me change my opinions. I am not scared and I will continue to live in Afula without a second thought, S., added.

I have never harmed anyone and no one will harm me. A person who served in the IDF for three years and fought in Protective Edge will not waste time on anyone carrying out a price tag.

Police said that an investigation had been launched into the incident.
An explosive device was detonated on Tuesday near the settlement of Adei Ad in the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council. No casualties were reported.

According to the IDF Spokespersons Unit, in response to the incident the security forces confiscated thousands of shekels intended for terror purposes in the village of Al Mawair.
An Israeli who volunteered to fight with the Ukrainian army against pro-Russian forces was found dead in an apartment in the city of Kiev.

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Bar Bonen, the 36-year-old volunteer who was found with gunshots to the head, committed suicide, according to the Ukrainian police.

A 9mm handgun was also found by Bonens body. However, commander of the forces Bonen joinedthe Georgian Legioncast doubt on the conclusions drawn by the police, insisting that his death could not be attributed to suicide.

Bar Bonen

We are extremely sorry about the loss of a friend and a like-minded person, wrote the legions commander, Mamuka Mamulashvili, on his Facebook page.

We hope that the investigation will be objective because Bar was not the kind of person to kill himself. There are many facts which are not consistent with the investigations version, and we hope that the truth will be brought to light, he added.

Fellow fighters in the legion also said that it is hard to believe that Bar committed suicide, adding that he loved life.

Bonen fought together with the Ukrainian army against pro-Russian rebels supported by the Kremlin in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine where the civil war broke out in the country and where separatists declared in July 2017 the independence of a new country in Donetsk and Lugansk, which they named Malorossiya.

Police in Ukraine said that it was continuing to investigate the incident and noted that the exact cause of Bonens death would be determined according to the results of the probe.

Despite the suspicions surrounding the circumstances of his death, Bonen published on his account shortly beforehand what appeared to be a suicide letter:

I am a broken soul, and I didn't open it very much to most of you. I can no longer tolerate this internal pain ...," the message began.

"I just want to say goodbye to all the people with whom I had the honor of being familiar and be close in my life ... And to ask forgiveness from those whom I offended or hurt by my actions ... Please remember me as a good man who did a much and mostly good deeds in his life

Bonen presented himself on his Facebook account as a military advisor in Ukraine and as a founder of a tourist company in the country.

Other detail on his account included the fact that he served as an officer in the IDF and as a detective in the Israel Police. He also noted that he had worked in the past for cyber companies in Israel and abroad and also held a position in the Ramat Gan Municipality.

Bonen studied military strategy at the Open University, according to his Facebook account.
The Jerusalem Magistrate's Court extended on Tuesday the arrest of two Palestinians suspected of carrying out an arson attack in the Einot Tzukim Nature Reserve near the Dead Sea, which resulted in a massive fire that burned around 400 dunams of unique vegetation.

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The suspects, Suliman Batza and Muntasser Gitt, from east Jerusalem, claimed their car broke down after running out of gasoline, which prompted one of their friends to transfer fuel from his vehicle to the suspects' car.

Suspects in court (:  )

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However, the police said the alleged perpetrators version of events does not match forensic evidence and had therefore asked, unsuccessfully, the court to extend their detention by 15 days.

Suspects in court (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

The police said the scene of the fire is reminiscent of what has been seen in the Gaza border communities following months of fires caused by incendiary kites and balloons.

"By looking at the images of the area that was burned down, you might get the impression that its somewhere in the Gaza border region and not the Dead Sea," said a police representative at the opening of the hearing in Jerusalems court.

Tuesdays fire had also killed a large number of animals, with the Israel Nature and National Parks Protection authority saying it will take years to completely rehabilitate the area.

(Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

The two east Jerusalem suspects, in addition to another Palestinian man from al-Eizariya, were arrested shortly after the blaze had erupted, and two of them were later brought before the court.

A hearing regarding the extension of the third suspects arrest is due to take place on Wednesday in the Ofer military court in the West Bank.

The uncle of one of the suspects reiterated the official statement made by the three men, suggesting they are innocent.

"They traveled to the Dead Sea, like many young people of their age do. The three of them are friends and on their way home they had run out of gas, so one of their friends helped them transfer fuel from his vehicle to theirs," the uncle asserted.

"Afterwards the police arrested and questioned them with regards to the suspected arson attack, but they are not connected to the incident, he insisted.

The mother of one of the suspects shared the sentiments, claiming her sons innocence.

Damage to the nature reserve (Photo: Amir Aloni)

"My son just went traveling and got stuck without fuel. The police claim the fire started after someone had lit a cigarette and threw it into gasoline, but our son doesnt even smoke," the mother stated.

Defense attorneys Ataf Farhat and Mahmoud Rabah claimed during the hearing that the suspects had no motive to commit such a crime.

"Did they set fire to the reserve because they hate nature? Were they interrogated on suspicion of causing damage to the State of Israel? The police statements are entertaining for the media but there is no truth to them, stressed the lawyers.

Damage to the nature reserve (Photo: Amir Aloni)

Even if they did start the fire, it is far from being nationalistically motivated as the police are implying, the attorneys concluded.

At the end of the hearing, Judge Ilan Sela decided to only partially grant the police's request and extended the alleged perpetrators arrest until Thursday.

Einot Tzukim nature reserve was almost completely consumed by a massive blaze that broke out a decade ago.
It's hard not to see China wherever you look in Iran.

From Chinese goods flooding markets to its business people eager for deals as Western business interests flee, Iran likely will further embrace Beijing as an alternative market for its crude oil and financial transactions amid uncertainty over the nuclear deal.
Iran has between 3,000 and 4,000 active centrifuges, Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said Wednesday, according to the Tasnim news agencystill within the limit allowed under its troubled nuclear deal with world powers.

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The rare announcement of specific data on the nuclear program came days after Iran's nuclear chief said it had completed a facility to build advanced centrifugesTehran has said it will increase its capacity to enrich uranium if the nuclear pact collapses following Washington's withdrawal in May.

Under the terms of the 2015 deal, Iran agreed to curb its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

Ali Larijani (Photo: EPA)

The deal allows the Islamic Republic to operate up to 5,060 first-generation centrifuges for 10 years at its Natanz plant and 1,044 first-generation centrifuges at its underground Fordow enrichment plant.

Before the deal, Iran had 20,000 centrifuges installed at Natanz and Fordow, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The remaining signatories to the dealRussia, China, Germany France and Britainare trying to salvage the accord.

"America and Israel have a program against Iran and they scrapped a deal they requested," Larijani said, according to Tasnim.

"After America withdrew, European leaders asked that Iran not give a quick reply to this action and they asked for time, which is passing now," he added.

The remaining powers say the deal is the best hope of preventing Iran from developing a nuclear bomb. Iran says its atomic program is for electricity generation and other peaceful purposes.

Irans nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi told the Associated Press on Tuesday that he hopes the atomic deal between Tehran and world powers survives, but warns the program will be in a stronger position than ever if not.

Salehi also said that President Donald Trumps decision to withdraw America from the 2015 accord puts him on the losers side of history.

He added: That deal could have paved the way for building the trust and the confidence that we had lost.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Europe on Wednesday of being soft on Irans aggression.

"While Iran is sending terror squads to European soil to carry out attacks that we have helped them to thwart, European leaders are busy appeasing Tehran," Netanyahu said at the beginning of the cabinet meeting.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised on Wednesday the US decision taken earlier this week to close down the Palestinian diplomatic mission in Washington in reaction to the Palestinian refusal to enter into peace negotiations with Israel.

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"The US made the correct decision when it decided to close the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization) offices in Washington. The Palestinians refuse to enter negotiations with Israel even as they attack Israel with false claims in international forums, Netanyahu said at the opening of the weekly Cabinet meeting.

The State Department said the US step came after a review of the office of the Palestine Liberation Organization centered on the fact that no "direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel" are underway despite previous warnings.

PM Netanyahu (Photo: AFP)

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert officially announced the move in a press briefing.

"To the contrary, PLO leadership has condemned a US peace plan they have not yet seen and refused to engage with the US government with respect to peace efforts and otherwise," Nauert said in a statement.

Israel very much appreciates the Trump administrations decision and supports American actions that are designed to make it clear to the Palestinians that the refusal to enter into negotiations with Israel and the unbridled attacks against Israel will not only not advance peace but will certainly not make things better for the Palestinians, the prime minister said, full heartedly rallying his government once again behind President Trump.

Palestinian Liberation Organization's mission in Washington (Photo: AP)

Netanyahu used his remarks remember the New York 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2011, while noting the role in international terror by Iran.

Yesterday we marked 17 years since the awful terrorist attack against the American people at the Twin Towers in New York and at the Pentagon in (Greater) Washington, Netanyahu said.

This operation was carried out by Al-Qaeda, Al-Qaeda has passed the torch to Daesh (ISIS), even as Iran also promotes international terrorism.

The world, Netanyahu continued, is facing a two-pronged challenge stemming from radical Islamradical Shiites on the one hand led by Iran, and radical Sunnis led by ISIS.

Both, he said, have a single goal: to eliminate the free societies, as we recognize them, to eliminate Israel and in the end to eliminate the West and others as well, the Israeli premier warned.

Netanyahu called on the world to unite against terror organizations. While praising the world for forging an alliance against ISIS, the prime minister lamented what he described as an appeasement of Iran by foreign leaders.

On the contrary, what we are seeing is that while Iran is sending terrorist cells to Europe, European leaders are appeasingand reconciling withIran, in the same week that the terrorist cells were due to carry out their operations, which we helped thwart. This is unacceptable, he bemoaned.

The appeasement of Iran abets the relentless assault on the values and security of the free societies, and the time has come for Western governments to join the strong and clear effort by the Trump administration against the terror regime in Tehran," he concluded.
The Trump administration has reopened a case against Rutgers University that was quashed by the Obama administration, which prompted critics to accuse the former US president of ignoring evidence that the New Jersey college campus allowed for hostility toward Jewish students, according to a report in the New York Times (NYT) published on Wednesday.

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The initiative to revisit the case was spearheaded by Kenneth L. Marcus, the assistant secretary of education for civil rights, and will potentially allow for federal involvement in the definition of anti-Semitism.

The move also defines Judaism as an ethnic origin, in addition to a religion, which will essentially broaden the meaning of what constitutes anti-Semitism and could include specific types of protests held on college campuses

The original complaint was filed in April 2011 by the ZOA when Rutgers had been trying to address growing unease among Jewish students caused by the rise of activities launched by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanction (BDS) movement.

By doing so, the Education Department has adopted the definition of anti-Semitism as defined by the International Organization for Holocaust Remembrance (IHRA).

Points in the definition include the prohibition of Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavour."

The definition also includes a clause defining as anti-Semitism Applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.

Palestinian rights activists argue that the move is calculated to equate advocating the Palestinian cause with anti-Semitism.

With BDS activity rife on college campuses, and anti-Israel protesters accusing Israel of being an apartheid statean inherent accusation of racismPalestinian activists believe that holding exhibitions and waving placards during anti-Israel events such as Israel Apartheid Week could be prevented on grounds of anti-Semitism.

This is exactly what we feared would happenhe (Marcus) has a long track record of pressuring universities and government bodies to trample on free speech, Rahul Saksena, senior staff attorney at Palestine Legal is quoted as saying.

A spokeswoman for the Education Department, Liz Hill, is also quoted in the NYT as saying that the Office for Civil Rights aggressively enforces civil rights law, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity or national origin.
A rescue team was sent Wednesday to aid an Israeli backpacker stranded at an altitude of more than 2,700 meters while tracking in Kyrgyzstan.

The backpacker sent distress signals via satellite phone.
BEIRUT -- UN investigators warned Wednesday that a war against some 10,000 extremists in northwestern Syria should not take 3 million people hostages. They added that the expected attack by Syrian troops on Idlib province would make other battles in the country look minor.

The UN Commission of Inquiry said government forces carried out three chemical weapons attacks in Syria and that violence displaced the largest number of people the year, the largest since the conflict began in 2011.

It warned that an attack on Idlib "with little regard for civilian life would generate a catastrophic human rights and humanitarian crisis." It called on parties to the conflict to protect civilians, as required by international humanitarian law.
Syrian government forces fired chlorine, a banned chemical weapon, on a rebel-held Damascus suburb and on Idlib province this year, in attacks that constitute war crimes, United Nations human rights investigators said on Wednesday.

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The three incidents bring to 39 the number of chemical attacks which the Commission of Inquiry on Syria has documented since 2013, including 33 attributed to the government, a UN official told Reuters. The perpetrators of the remaining six have not been sufficiently identified.

Douma, Syria chemical attack (: )

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Weaponising chlorine is prohibited under the Chemical Weapons Convention, ratified by Syria, and under customary international humanitarian law, the investigators said in their latest report.

"To recapture eastern Ghouta in April, government forces launched numerous indiscriminate attacks in densely populated civilian areas, which included the use of chemical weapons," it said, referring to incidents on Jan. 22 and Feb. 1 in a residential area of Douma, eastern Ghouta, outside the capital.

Women and children were injured in the attacks, suffering respiratory distress and requiring oxygen, it added.

Gas canister found in Douma

Indiscriminate attacks

"The Commission concludes that, on these two occasions, government forces and or affiliated militias committed the war crimes of using prohibited weapons and launching indiscriminate attacks in civilian-populated areas in eastern Ghouta," it said.

A surface-to-surface, improvised rocket-assisted munition had been used in the two Douma incidents, it said. "Specifically the munitions documented were built around industrially-produced Iranian artillery rockets known to have been supplied to forces commanded by the (Syrian) government," the report added.

In the northwest province of Idlib - where the United Nations fears a major imminent assault by Syrian and Russian forces against the last rebel-held stronghold - chlorine was also used on February 4, the UN report said.

A child suffering from a gas attack

"Government helicopters dropped at least two barrels carrying chlorine payloads in the Taleel area of Saraqeb," it said, adding that at least 11 men were injured.

"Documentary and material evidence analyzed by the Commission confirmed the presence of helicopters in the area and the use of two yellow gas cylinders".

The report, based on 400 interviews, also examined aerial and ground attacks by Turkey's 'Operation Olive Branch', conducted with allied Syrian rebels, which wrestled the northwest Afrin region from Syrian Kurdish forces this spring.

Afrin's main hospital, a market and homes were hit, it said.

"In conducting airstrikes beginning on 20 January, the Turkish air force may have failed to take all feasible precautions prior to launching certain attacks, in violation of international humanitarian law," the report said.

Bashar Assad (Photo: Reuters)

Rebels of the Free Syrian Army were "notorious for their arbitrary arrests and detention" in Afrin, it added.

More than a million civilians were displaced in six major battles across Syria during the first six months of the year, many marked by war crimes, the report said.

Thousands of displaced civilians still live in dire conditions in severely overcrowded centres, "where many are still being unlawfully interned by Government forces", it said.

Merkel: Germany must respond to chemical weapon use

Chancellor Angela Merkel suggested Wednesday that Germany must be prepared to respond if chemical weapons are used in war zones, remarks that come amid a debate over possible military involvement in the Syrian conflict.

Angela Merkel (Photo: AFP)

Merkel told lawmakers: "to simply say we can look away if somewhere chemical weapons are being used and international conventions are not kept, that can't be the answer."

Germans are widely against the country's participation in combat missions and Merkel did not elaborate. Her junior coalition partners, the Social Democrats, have strongly rejected getting involved in the war in Syria and the party's leader made clear Wednesday that it wouldn't agree to any intervention without UN authorization.

"Only the Security Council or the UN General Assembly can empower the international community to take military action," Andrea Nahles told lawmakers. "As long as this does not happen, we Social Democrats cannot vote for any intervention by force in Syria."

German military deployments abroad require parliamentary approval.

In a report based on anonymous sources Monday, Bild newspaper reported the Defense Ministry is examining the possibility of some kind of involvement in future military action if Syria's government carries out a further chemical attack, following a US request to the chancellery.

On Monday, Merkel spokesman Steffen Seibert said that "of course the German government is in contact with partners and allies" on the situation in Syria, but did not directly confirm the Bild report.

Germany stayed out of previous US-led airstrikes but voiced its support for them.

Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen stressed the importance of preventing the use of chemical weapons, without committing to any specific course of action.

"I am fully aware that diplomacy is needed first and foremost, but credible deterrence also is needed," she said. "And we, Germany, cannot act today on this specific issue as if it had nothing to do with us, so I welcome this debate."

"We must be prepared, because we do not know what concrete situation we will face," she added.
BERLIN - German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned xenophobic attacks and the use of Nazi slogans in a robust speech to parliament on Wednesday after the most violent far-right demonstrations in decades exposed deep divisions in the country.

In an unusually rowdy session in the Bundestag (lower house) later, far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) deputies stormed out of the chamber after a Social Democrat accused them of being "unsavory" right-wing radicals.

Protests by right-wing militants in the eastern city of Chemnitz two weeks ago after the fatal stabbing of a German blamed on two migrants have reignited a fierce debate about Merkel's 2015 decision to let in more than a million refugees.

"There is no excuse or reason for hunting people down, using violence and Nazi slogans, showing hostility to people who look different, who have a Jewish restaurant, for attacks on police officers," Merkel told the Bundestag.

"We will not allow whole groups in our society to be quietly excluded," she said, adding that Jews, Muslims, Christians and atheists all belong in German society, and stressing that human dignity was paramount.
RAMALLAH -- Over 60 percent of Palestinians oppose resuming dialogue with the Trump administration after the US cut hundreds of millions of dollars in aid, according to an opinion poll published Wednesday.

The poll was another sign of trouble for the White House's proposed Mideast peace plan, which has been in the works for over a year but still has not been released.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has already rejected the plan, saying the US is not an honest broker. He has cited the Trump administration's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and cuts in aid to the Palestinians and the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. Over the weekend, the US also announced it was closing the Palestinians' de facto embassy in Washington, deepening Palestinian anger and mistrust.

Wednesday's poll, published by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, found 90 percent of respondents believe the US is biased in favor of Israel, and just 6 percent consider the US an honest broker. Sixty-two percent oppose resuming dialogue.
Turkey is reinforcing its military posts inside Syria's rebel-held province of Idlib, Turkish and Syrian rebels sources say, seeking to deter a government offensive which it says would unleash a humanitarian disaster on its border.

President Tayyip Erdogan has warned that an assault by the army and its Russian and Iran-backed allies on Idlib, home to around 3 million people, will uproot hundreds of thousands in one of Syria's last rebel strongholds.

Already hosting 3.5 million Syriansthe world's biggest refugee populationTurkey says it cannot absorb more victims of the war and has accused the West of abandoning it to face the consequences of President Bashar Assad's reconquest of Syria.
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman met Wednesday with his Georgian counterparts and the country's prime minister.

This is an Israeli defense minister's first visit to Georgia.

Lieberman discussed the situation in the Middle East and signed a memorandum of understandings regarding cooperation between Israel and Georgia's defense ministries.
Over 60 percent of Palestinians oppose resuming dialogue with the Trump administration after the US cut hundreds of millions of dollars in aid, according to an opinion poll published Wednesday.

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The poll was another sign of trouble for the White House's proposed Mideast peace plan, which has been in the works for over a year but still has not been released.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has already rejected the plan, saying the US is not an honest broker. He has cited the Trump administration's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and cuts in aid to the Palestinians and the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. Over the weekend, the US also announced it was closing the Palestinians' de facto embassy in Washington, deepening Palestinian anger and mistrust.

Donald Trump (L), and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (Photo: Reuter, AP)

Wednesday's poll, published by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, found 90 percent of respondents believe the US is biased in favor of Israel, and just 6 percent consider the US an honest broker. Sixty-two percent oppose resuming dialogue.

The poll questioned 1,270 people in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

"Anything that's coming from the Americans is not going to be supported by the Palestinians," said pollster Khalil Shikaki. "The Americans have damaged their credibility such that they are destroying any chance to convince Palestinian leaders to bring their constituents around to whatever idea they have."

President Donald Trump is trying to facilitate the "deal of the century" between the Israelis and Palestinians and bring the two parties back to the negotiating table for the first time since 2014.

Despite the mistrust, 53 percent of respondents still support the idea of an independent Palestinian state in areas captured by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day war, while only 24 percent backed a solution of one state of Israelis and Palestinians together.

The vast majority, two-thirds of Palestinians polled, reject the idea of a Palestinian-Jordanian confederation, which Abbas said the Trump Mideast team has suggested.

Nonetheless, 56 percent of those questioned said a two-state solution to the conflict is "no longer practical or feasible due to the expansion of Israeli settlements" in the West Bank, the poll found.
After flaring up again Wednesday evening, firefighters have regained control over the fire which destroyed hundreds of dunams of the Ein Tzukim Nature Reserve near the Dead Sea on Tuesday.

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As the fire erupted again, Highway 90 was closed to traffic and was reopened once the firefighting teams managed to put out the blaze.

Fire burns at Ein Tzukim Nature Reserve (Photo: Firefighters spokesman)

The spokesman for the West Bank's fire department said two firefighting teams had operated in the northern part of the reserve, and managed to prevent the flames from spreading.

Three Palestinians suspected of executing the alleged arson attack causing the fireresidents of east Jerusalem and nearby village of Azariawere arrested shortly after the fire sparked Tuesday morning.

According to the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, the rehabilitation of the Ein Tzukim Nature Reserve will take years.

Suspects detained on suspicion of arson (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

Between 300 and 400 dunams of the reserve's unique vegetation were destroyed and many animals perished as well.

(Photo: Amir Aloni)

The police representative said at the Jerusalem Magistrate's Court hearing to extend the remand of two of the suspects that, "From looking at the pictures of the (scorched-ed) reserve, one can think he is looking at one of the Gaza border communities, rather than at the Dead Sea area."

The suspects claimed that they had been stranded without fuel and one of their friends helped them transfer fuel from his vehicle.

The police argued that "their version does not match the findings on the scene," adding there are contradictions in their narrative.

Judge Ilan Sela was asked to extend their remand by 15 days. However, he determined the suspects would remain in custody for merely two more days.

"Both are suspected of arson with the goal of causing harm to the nature site. The investigation indicates a reasonable suspicion linking them to the fire in the reserve, Sela stated.

(Photo: Firefighters spokesman)

One of the suspects' uncle said, "They traveled to the Dead Sea to enjoy themselves, like many young people from the area do their age, and on their way back they ran out of gas, so one of the friends helped them transfer fuel from his vehicle to theirs. Then the police arrested them on charges of arson, but they have no connection (to the incident)."

The mother of one of the suspects added, "My son just went for a ride and got stuck without fuel. The police claim that the fire was sparked after someone lit a cigarette and threw it near the fuel, but our son does not smoke at all."

Fire damage (Photo: Yaniv Cohen)

Attorneys Ataf Farhat and Hammad Rabah, lawyers for two of the suspects, said, "They didn't have anything against the nature reserve. They are not nature-haters.

"Were they investigated on suspicion of harming the State of Israel?" the attorneys wondered.

"Perhaps the police's allegations are satisfactory for the media but they have no basis of truth. Even if they caused the fire, it was surely not nationalistically-motivated as the police imply, they have no reason to harm birds, trees or vegetation, they went on to say.

In 2008, a larger fire broke out following the infiltration of smugglers from the Dead Sea and since then much of the vegetation has not yet been rehabilitated.

Security forces searching for the infiltrators fired illumination bombs, with one of them leading to a huge fire that destroyed some 2,000 dunams of the reserve.
Turkey is reinforcing its military posts inside Syria's rebel-held province of Idlib, Turkish and Syrian rebels sources say, seeking to deter a government offensive which it says would unleash a humanitarian disaster on its border.

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President Tayyip Erdogan has warned that an assault by the army and its Russian and Iran-backed allies on Idlib, home to around 3 million people, will uproot hundreds of thousands in one of Syria's last rebel strongholds.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan (Photo: Reuters)

Already hosting 3.5 million Syriansthe world's biggest refugee populationTurkey says it cannot absorb more victims of the war and has accused the West of abandoning it to face the consequences of President Bashar Assad's reconquest of Syria.

At a meeting in Tehran on Friday with the presidents of Russia and Iran , seen as the last realistic chance to avert all-out conflict in the insurgent-held region, Erdogan failed to win a pledge of ceasefire from Assad's two main backers.

But his Defence Minister Hulusi Akar says Turkey remains determined to halt the weeks-long air strikes on Idlib and forestall a ground offensive, while officials warn that Turkey would respond if its forces inside Idlib come under fire.

Three Turkish security and government officials told Reuters that troops, armored vehicles and equipment had been sent to the Syrian border. A senior security source said the army has reinforced 12 Turkish military posts inside Idlib itself.

Rebels in Idlib (Photo: MCT)

"We have a military presence there and if that military presence is damaged or attacked in any way, it would be considered an attack on Turkey and would therefore receive the necessary retaliation," the source said.

The observation posts were set up in the Idlib region last year under an accord with Russia and Iran designating Idlib and parts of neighbouring provinces a "de-escalation zone".

Three similar zones, on Syria's southern border with Jordan, to the east and to the north of Damascus, have since been recaptured by the Syrian army and its allies.

A senior Syrian rebel said Turkey had sent dozens of armoured vehicles and tanks, as well as hundreds of special forces personnel to Idlib, a move he said showed Idlib would not share the fate of the other rebel regions.

"There are very big reinforcements of Turkish forces inside Syria and these observation posts have now in effect become permanent military bases," Mustafa Sejari said.

Rebel groups in Syria's Idlib (Photo: MCT)

The Turkish military does not comment on troop movements, but Reuters television footage has shown military convoys heading to the border region in the last week.

Rebel sources told Reuters that Turkey has also stepped up supplies to the rebel forces in Idlib in recent days, including ammunition and rockets.

Although it opened its doors to Syrians escaping the fighting in the early years of the conflict, Turkey has since built a wall along its 900 km (560 mile) border with Syria.

It says it cannot take more refugees, and Turkish aid and security officials say that in the event of conflict in Idlib they would seek to shelter displaced people inside Syria rather than hosting them on Turkish soil.

"The refugees ... will not be accepted into Turkey because previous experiences have shown that with such migrant waves, the entrance of radicals and terrorists into Turkey have been too much," the security official said.

"We will keep the refugees in Syria for the safety of both Turkey and European countries."

Refugees fleeing to Turkey (Photo: AFP)

UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura said two weeks ago there were an estimated 10,000 fighters in Idlib designated by the United Nations as terrorists.

There are also tens of thousands of rebels from Turkey-backed Free Syrian Army groups as well as millions of civilians already displaced from other parts of Syria.

Turkey has said for months that jihadi fighters, who control several major towns in Idlib, should be specifically targeted to avoid the humanitarian consequences of an indiscriminate war.

Thousands of Syrians are already sheltering in camps close to the Idlib border, relying on proximity to Turkey to protect them from Syrian or Russian air strikes.

The security source said Turkey was preparing more camps, but said discussions were still continuing about the scale of the aid operation inside Syria.

Erdogan's spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said a refugee influx across Turkey's borders would have international repercussions.

"The global community also needs to take responsibility," Kalin said after a cabinet meeting on Tuesday. "Another migrant wave coming to Turkey at a time when we already host millions of refugees will cause other complications," he said."

"This will spread from here to Europe and other countries."
Aussies could use a reminder that a good location is a key to successful property investment. This, after a new study from Property Investment Professionals of Australia (PIPA) showed that property prices had halved in many mining regions over the past decade.

PIPA Chairman Peter Koulizos is in the process of re-examining research he undertook for a book published in 2008, and, as part of the new research, Koulizos examined CoreLogics data to calculate the best and worst performing areas over the past 10 years. From there, he found a clear frontrunner for bottom of the pile  mining locations.

What this data shows us is that if you had bought property in one of these towns, not only did your property not increase in value over this 10-year period, but it is actually worth less, Koulizos said.

West Australia (WA)  which benefited the most from the mining boom  has also suffered the most from the mining bust.

Koulizos noted that there a lot of underperforming mining towns in WA, but the worst was South Hedland, a suburb in Port Hedland. The area saw house prices drop by 74.8% over the period.

Newman came in a close second  this town in Pilbara, whose median house price used to be $501,000 in 2008, currently has a median of only $147,000.

Queensland mining towns and their suburbs were also among the lower performers.

Gladstone, meanwhile, had been promoted by many property spruikers. Unfortunately, findings reveal that they have come unstuck.

South Gladstone house prices fell by 31.7%, and West Gladstone house prices fell by 47.6% over that time period, Koulizos said.

However, these two suburbs are not the worst performers. Property prices in the mining town of Dysart fell a whopping 77.4%, while at the same time Brisbane house prices increased by 24%.

Roxby Downs in South Australia joined the ranks of underperforming locations as it house prices have declined by 36%, while its sales have sunk from 140 in 2008 to just 51 in 2018.

As an ending, Koulizos underscored the importance of closely evaluating the location before deciding to capitalise on any property.

Its important to understand that buying property outside of capital cities still makes financial sense. In fact, there are many regional and country areas that are deserving of your investment dollars, Mr Koulizos said.
The Housing Industry Association (HIA) addressed the elephant in the room last week as the industry group underscored how increasing deterrents are dissuading investors from capitalising on the home market.

The sentiment was rooted in the recent Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data on housing finance for the month of July 2018 showing the drop in the value of lending to investors. Numbers declined by a further 1.3%, making the value 15.7% lower than in July 2017.

Investors played a significant role in the record levels of new home building that occurred in recent years. By the same token, their retreat from the market will weigh on activity over the near to medium term, said HIA economist Diwa Hopkins.

Hopkins pointed out that investors started backing out from the housing sector when Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) intervened at the end of 2014 and in early 2017.

Directives coming from the government have also contributed to the weakening number of investors.

In addition, state and federal governments have acted to deter foreign investors by levying additional taxes and charges on their investments in the domestic market, she said.

More recently the Banking Royal Commission has seen lenders further tighten their practices beyond APRAs initial requirements and yesterday two of the other major banks joined Westpac in raising their variable mortgage rates.

Add to this, a situation of falling dwelling prices in the key Sydney and Melbourne markets as well as the prospect of increased taxes on investment housing through negative gearing restrictions and increased capital gains tax, and the list of deterrents to investors in the housing market is comprehensive. 

Ending the disclosure, Hopkins questioned APRAs plan of action directly.

Overall, most of these factors are having the effect of limiting credit availability.

The concern now is [that] APRAs interventions appear to have run beyond their usefulness, she concluded.
News

Washington, DC - In Ukraine, Ambassador Brownback will meet with government officials and religious leaders to discuss efforts to protect and promote religious freedom.

In Poland, Ambassador Brownback will attend the 2018 Human Dimension Implementation Meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe as part of the U.S. delegation. He will participate in discussions about repressive measures against peaceful members of ethnic and religious groups. This annual meeting brings together hundreds of civil society representatives and government officials from North America, Europe, and Central Asia for talks to advance human rights and fundamental freedoms. Ambassador Brownback will also participate in a host of bilateral meetings with government officials and religious leaders to discuss religious freedom issues.

Ambassador Brownback will also tour the Auschwitz concentration camp, where he will participate in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Auschwitz Wall of Death and a candle-lighting ceremony at the International Monument at the conclusion of the tour.



In Uzbekistan, Ambassador Brownback will meet with senior government officials to discuss Uzbekistans recent positive steps on religious freedom policies and encourage legislative reforms that ensure Uzbekistan upholds its international obligations on freedom of religion or belief.
News

Washington, DC - Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo: "We honor the nearly 3,000 people who were killed in the terrorist attacks 17 years ago on September 11. Tomorrow also marks six years since the tragic loss in Libya of Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, Glen Doherty, Sean Smith, and Tyrone Woods.

"The diverse nationalities of the victims of 9/11 and the attack in Libya remind us that terrorism is a global issue that requires the efforts of every sovereign nation to defeat it. Diplomacy plays a central role in counterterrorism by combating extremism and promoting stability and freedom worldwide. While we have made great strides over the past 17 years, our efforts to eradicate terrorism continue today. The men and women of the U.S. Department of State are proud to stand side-by-side with partners from all over the world in this effort, and we will not waver in our resolve to pursue peace, security, and justice.

"Tomorrow we join with people across the globe in remembering the victims of 9/11. Those who were lost will never be forgotten. We continue to pray for guidance, wisdom, and protection for the men and women in uniform who fight each day to guard the world against terrorism, and we pray for the unity of our nation and the world in times of peril and peace."
News

Washington, DC - Fact checkers have called out attacks on Judge Kavanaugh for what they are: absolutely false.

THE WASHINGTON POST: DID BRETT KAVANAUGH SIGNAL HE SUPPORTS GOING AFTER BIRTH CONTROL?

Harris took aim at Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh for comments he made regarding abortion-inducing drugs when discussing a case brought by an antiabortion religious group challenging Obamacare rules on providing employees health coverage for contraception.



During the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) questioned Kavanaugh about the case, asking: Can you tell this committee about that case and your opinion there?

[Kavanaugh replied] It was a technical matter of filling out a form, in that case with  that  they said filling out the form would make them complicit in the provision of the abortion-inducing drugs that they were  as a religious matter, objected to.

The issue at hand is Kavanaughs reference to abortion-inducing drugs. A plain reading of his sentence, with its reference to they said, suggests that he is merely reflecting the plaintiffs argument. Harriss decision to snip those crucial words from her first post on the video is certainly troubling.



[I]ts pretty clear from the context that he was quoting the views of the plaintiffs rather than offering a personal view.

Harriss original tweet, with the they say language removed, was slightly mitigated by the second tweet a day later, providing the full context. But there was no acknowledgment by Harris that the original tweet was misleading. She earns Four Pinocchios  and her fellow Democrats should drop this talking point.

Read the full article here.

POLITIFACT: DID BRETT KAVANAUGH CALL BIRTH CONTROL ABORTION-INDUCING DRUGS? NO

Democrats rallied around Judge Brett Kavanaughs reference to popular contraceptive methods as abortion-inducing during his Supreme Court confirmation hearing.

Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., tweeted an 11-second clip in which Kavanaugh said, Filling out the form would make them complicit in the provision of the abortion-inducing drugs that they were, as a religious matter, objected to.



Harris tweet takes Kavanaughs statement out of context.

Harris cut an important second out of the clip  the attribution. Kavanaugh said, They said filling out the form would make them complicit in the provision of the abortion-inducing drugs that they were, as a religious matter, objecting to.

They refers to a Catholic nonprofit group, Priests for Life. Kavanaugh was answering a question from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, about a case in which he argued Priests for Life shouldnt have to provide women with the contraceptive coverage mandated by the Affordable Care Act for religious reasons.



In the follow-up to his answer, Kavanaugh says the government did, in fact, have a compelling reason to ensure birth control access to the employees. But he determined the government could provide it without doing so on the backs of the religious objector.

Harris tweeted a clip in which Kavanaugh said, Filling out the form would make them complicit in the provision of the abortion-inducing drugs that they were  as a religious matter, objected to.

In Harris tweet, Kavanaugh appears to define contraception as abortion-inducing. But the video failed to include a crucial qualifier: They said. In fact, he was citing the definition of the religious group Priests for Life. He has not expressed his personal view.

We rate this statement False.

Read the full article here.

DAVID LAT IN ABOVE THE LAW: IN DEFENSE OF JUDGE BRETT KAVANAUGH

The claims that Judge Kavanaugh lied under oath are without merit.



There are legitimate and illegitimate reasons to oppose the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court of the United States. Unfortunately, the illegitimate ones seem to be taking center stage right now.



The illegitimate reasons relate to Judge Kavanaughs integrity and ethics. As David French put it in an excellent essay for the National Review, the nominee has been the victim of unfair and unfortunate attacks on his character.

The most recent attacks accuse Judge Kavanaugh of committing perjury. He has testified for dozens of hours at three separate confirmation hearings  in 2004 and 2006 for the D.C. Circuit, and last week for the Supreme Court  and his opponents have been scouring this voluminous testimony to try and find what they view as false and misleading statements.



After viewing the testimonial and documentary evidence, I concluded that the claims lack merit.



[T]his perjury argument is without merit  an unfair and unfounded attack against Judge Kavanaugh. Vote against him if you disagree with his jurisprudence, fine  but please dont slander him. Thanks.



Read the full article here.
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Darya Marchany-Rivera, a doctoral candidate at the University of Puerto Rico, has known she wanted to be a scientist since tenth grade when she competed in a NASA challenge to find ways to grow crystals in the microgravity environment of space. In 2015, she reaffirmed her love for crystallography when she and others from her university traveled to the Department of Energys SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory to take part in RapiData, a week long course organized by the Structural Molecular Biology Division of the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL) that provides lectures and hands-on training on crystallography.

Last fall, Marchany-Rivera and four other graduate students had the opportunity to return to SLAC as part of an internship program designed to give students affected by Hurricane Maria a chance to conduct research using the divisions user resources and cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) center. The internship program, funded by SSRL and the BioXFEL National Science Foundation Science and Technology Center, was spearheaded by SLAC scientist Aina Cohen with help from SLACs student program advisor Enrique Cuellar, BioXFEL director Edward Snell and BioXFEL Education and Diversity director Bill Bauer.

But when the students returned to Puerto Rico that winter, they faced lingering effects from the hurricane. Buildings were condemned, laboratories were still without power and much of their equipment was destroyed, Cuellar said.

Cuellar and Cohen wanted to provide the students with the space and facilities they needed to continue working on their projects. After Cuellar secured additional funding from work2future, a local nonprofit organization, the students were able to return to SLAC once again this summer.

I think it's really good that these students have an internship requirement for their studies because often graduate students can be kind of isolated, Cohen said. Its important to have students get out there, go to new places and meet people from different parts of the world. We are honored to be a part of this and are grateful for the opportunity to host them here at SLAC.

Several of the students are working with researchers at Stanfords Macromolecular Structure Knowledge Center (MSKC) to learn how to purify and grow protein crystals. Darya Marchany-Rivera has joined a collaboration with Mark Wilson of the University of Nebraska and SLAC scientist Henry van den Bedem, and will be involved in an upcoming experiment at SLACs Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS).

In addition to having access to world-class facilities, its important that the students also have the chance to work alongside scientists in their field and expand their connections, Cohen said.

Probing nicotine addiction

At SLAC, Jose Del Toro-Dominguez, a masters student and participant in the program, is studying a receptor in the brain related to nicotine addiction. Its been shown that when nicotine binds to this protein, it can lead to a release of dopamine, creating an attachment to nicotine.

Dominguez is investigating the protein using cryo-EM with guidance from SLAC and Stanford professor Wah Chiu. After suspending the protein in solution and flash-freezing it, Del Toro-Dominguez hits the sample with a beam of electrons, which scatter in a pattern that he can use to see how the proteins atoms are arranged in space.

Through this research, Im hoping to reach a better understanding of the shape of this protein, Del Toro-Dominguez said. This could inform the design of structure-based drugs that can either block or activate it, which has implications not just in treating addiction but also in neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimers.

Threshold between good and bad

Marchany-Rivera is studying the interaction of myoglobin, a protein that stores oxygen in muscle, with hydrogen sulfide, a flammable gas that was thought to be toxic to humans until researchers discovered that our bodies produce it in small concentrations.

Theres a whole field in biomedicine dedicated to trying to understand how hydrogen sulfide is produced and how our bodies use it, Marchany-Rivera said. The threshold between good and bad is based on concentration: Its been correlated to a lot of illnesses in high concentrations, but in low concentrations it can have therapeutic effects.

To investigate this, Marchany-Rivera works with a class of proteins called hemeproteins, crystallizing them and studying their structure as they bond with hydrogen sulfide with a method called X-ray crystallography. After growing the crystals, Marchany-Rivera uses a micro-spectrometer to measure how the sample interacts with light, which allows her to identify the coordination of heme, an iron-containing compound, inside the protein. She then collides X-ray beams from SSRL into the crystals, using the patterns formed by the scattered X-rays to examine the structure of the protein as it reacts with hydrogen sulfide.

Hands-on experience

Keishla Sanchez-Ortiz, an undergraduate involved in this research at the University of Puerto Rico, also came to SLAC this summer under the DOE Office of Science-sponsored Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships program. In collaboration with Cohen, SLAC scientist Silvia Russi and Danielle Fernandez of the MSKC, Marchany-Rivera and Sanchez-Ortiz are working to optimize how they grow the crystals and how they use SSRL to study them.

The first time I walked around SSRL was kind of intimidating, Sanchez-Ortiz said. There are a lot of tubes and so many different sounds. Its been an amazing experience learning how to use it. When you scoop out the crystals and you put them on the X-ray beam, you can see how the crystal moves and all the diffraction patterns produced and its really cool. It's something I never experienced before.

A different world

The effects of the hurricane were especially harmful to this research, Marchany-Rivera said, because the crystals they grow are extremely fragile, and have to be frozen so they can be sent to synchrotrons to collect data. Due to power outages, many of their samples were destroyed. At SLAC, they have more flexibility to refine their crystals because they can experiment with different ways of growing them and test them right away.

Its an entirely different world, she said. There are so many resources available to us that we don't have back home. Having access to the beamlines, which is the main technique of my project, helps me move my research forward and strike up collaborations with other people. I hope to become a staff scientist at a synchrotron facility one day, and this gives me a sense of what I can expect.

SSRL and LCLS are DOE Office of Science user facilities.

For questions or comments, contact the SLAC Office of Communications at communications@slac.stanford.edu.

SLAC is a multi-program laboratory exploring frontier questions in photon science, astrophysics, particle physics and accelerator research. Located in Menlo Park, Calif., SLAC is operated by Stanford University for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.

SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is supported by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy. The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit science.energy.gov.
China Aviation Daily | Sep. 11, 2018

Highlights: Biggest Passenger Throughput in 2017, millions CAN - 65.8 DEL - 64.5 SIN - 62.2 Biggest Passenger Throughput in the 1st half of 2018, millions DEL - 35.0 CAN - 34.2 SIN - 32.1 Fastest Passenger Throughput growth, 2014-2017, % SGN - 16.88 DEL - 14.75 KMG - 10.85 Most important destinations in S. and S.E. Asia Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Philippines, Vietnam Airports with direct flights to North America SIN DEL CAN

In recent years, Kunming Changshui Intl. Airport (IATA: KMG) has seen sustainable growth of passenger throughput. Additionally, it has been eyeing expansion to international destinations in South and Southeast Asia. In order to find out KMG's competitiveness in South and Southeast Asia, the CADAS team has done an analysis based on data provided by VariFlight.

At present, airports located in Yunnan's neighboring regions have vast development potential. However, these opportunities standing before all of Kunming Airport's competitors present the hub with considerable challenges. This report presents the analysis of Kunming Airport's competitive advantages and shortages comparing its passenger throughput, transport capacity, and carriers' operations to other major civil aviation hubs of South and Southeastern Asia: Guangzhou Baiyun Intl. Airport (China, IATA: CAN), Indira Gandhi Intl. Airport (Delhi, India, DEL), Changi Airport (Singapore, SIN), Suvarnabhumi Airport (Bangkok, Thailand, BKK), Tan Son Nhat Intl. Airport (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, SGN), Kuala Lumpur Inlt. Airport (Malaysia, KUL).

1.Passenger Throughput

Passenger throughput recorded in 2017 put Kunming Airport on the 6th position among the airports included in the report. There is a notable difference of 23.56% between passenger throughput of the hubs that took 5th and 6th positions. So far in 2018, this difference has been slightly less: 21.48%.

In the first half of 2018, Indira Gandhi Airport demonstrated the highest passenger throughput among 7 airports overcoming Guangzhou Baiyun Airport.

The largest proportions of local passengers among all 7 hubs traveled through Kunming Airport, Guangzhou Baiyun Airport and Indira Gandhi Airport in 2017. In particular, only 9.3% (4.15 million) of international passengers traveled through Kunming Airport last year against Guangzhou Baiyun's 24% and Indira Gandhi's 26.7%.

Passenger throughput dynamics of these 7 airports has also seen notable changes in recent years.

Guangzhou Baiyun Airport saw the highest passenger throughput growth in 2014-2017. Indira Gandhi Airport demonstrated the steepest PT slope at the same period of time with 72.84% growth of passenger numbers in 4 years.

Looking at the average annual passenger throughput growth rates provides different results. While dropping in 2017 due to capacity trend changes, Tan Son Nhat Airport's average passenger throughput growth during 2014-2017 was 16.88% which is the highest growth rate among all 7 airports. The same trend can be observed with Indira Gandhi Airport and Kunming Airport that were ranked 2nd and 3rd with 14.75% and 10.85% growth rates respectively. The lowest average annual growth rate (3.8%) was recorded in Singapore Changi Airport, the slope almost faced stagnation in 2016 and 2017.

2.Transport Capacity and Route Network

1 South and Southeast Asian markets

South and Southeast Asia are undeniably the most important markets for the airports included in this report. In the 1st half of 2018, Kunming Airport saw the largest share of international passengers traveling in the region: 80.45% (of all international passengers served by the airport during that time period), higher than past year. International passenger proportion on South and Southeast Asian flights was the lowest in Indira Gandhi Airport: 34.26%.

For all the airports included in the report, the following countries of the region served as the most important destinations in the 1st half of 2018: Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Philippines, Vietnam, etc.

Changi and Kuala Lumpur airports demonstrated their competitive strength with remarkable transport capacity outputs in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia.

In addition, Thailand and Malaysia have been serving as major markets for Guangzhou Baiyun and Kunming airports. Transport capacity numbers of both hubs can largely be accounted for their operations in these countries. However, Guangzhou Baiyun Airport's transport capacity is still 50% larger than Kunming's TC. Kunming Airport's transport capacity exceeds Guangzhou Baiyun Airport in other markets that lack much space and chances for newcomers: Myanmar, Laos and Brunei.





Guangzhou Baiyun Airport and Kunming Airport demonstrated the fastest average annual transport capacity growth in 2014-2017 among all airports included in the report: 21.16% and 24.86% respectively. While these numbers exceed average transport capacity growth rate of Chinese airports, they are still lower than the average growth rate in the markets of South and Southeastern Asia.

2 Long Distance Flights. Europe and North America

South and Southeast Asia play a crucial role in these 7 airports' development. Although these hubs do not operate many links to the European and North American regions, long-haul flights are still crucial to them sustaining their international networks.

Among all 7 airports, only Singapore Changi, Indira Gandhi and Guangzhou Baiyun have direct flights to North American destinations with Guangzhou Airport demonstrating the highest transportation capacity on flights linking it with West. Kunming Airport that concentrates most of its operations in Asia, has the lowest transport capacity on long-haul routes, just 2% of Changi Airport's TC.

3.Airlines Operations and Transport Capacity

In order to evaluate these 7 airports more properly, air carriers operating at the hubs were also analyzed.

All 3 airlines with the highest transport capacity in Guangzhou Baiyun Airport are full-service carriers while a major share of airlines operating at Changi are low-cost. 2nd and 3rd airline at Tan Son Nhat Airport by transport capacity (which accounts to 39.41% of the airport's TC) are budget carriers as well. IndiGo, the airline with the highest transport capacity at Indira Gandhi Airport, is also a low-cost carrier.

In total, 7 airlines are based at Kunming Airport including China Eastern with the largest transport capacity share (36.93%), Lucky Air (12.75%), China Southern Airlines (8.93%), Sichuan Airlines, Kunming Airlines, Ruili Airlines, Hongtu Airlines.

Apart from transporting 1/3 of the airport's passengers, China Eastern also conducted almost a half of the hub's international operations - 44.57% which is 11.4% of all the airport's flights. However, compared to the share China Southern had in Guangzhou Baiyun, this number is not that large with the latter airline conducting 27.4% of Guangzhou Airport's operations.

In addition, China Eastern's flights frequency in Kunming Airport was 11% while the frequency of China Southern in Guangzhou Baiyun Airport was 25.1%

4.Conclusion

Currently, Kunming Airport faces considerable competitive forces in South and Southeast Asia. On one hand, Singapore Changi, Bangkok Suvarnabhumi and Kuala Lumpur airports operate regional route networks with comprehensive coverage. On the other hand, neighboring countries such as India and Vietnam have airports capable of accommodating more international carriers. For example, American Airlines announced plans to launch direct US - Myanmar flights. Additionally, Vietnam Airlines is considering to link Vietnam and US thus increasing its presence on the regional and international arena.

Aside from that, other airports in China are striving to expand their operations. For instance, Guangzhou Baiyun Airport can be considered Kunming Airport's strongest domestic competitor. It has been operating both within and outside China for a longer time, and the hub's overall transport capacity is 2 times higher than Kunming's.

China Eastern Airlines possesses the largest share of operations in Kunming Airport as it is based in the hub, and has the most influence on its operations and development among other carriers. At the same time, the airline's transport capacity output is limited and not as high as of the other carriers.

All in all, considering that the hub still has weaknesses that might not let it develop with the desirable pace, more research has to be conducted on the target market, as well as the airport's capabilities and opportunities.

Contributed by VariFlight
Over the years, Guaranty Trust Bank, popularly known as GT Bank, has become a very well known and respected bank in Ghana. They are known to be a very professional, friendly and innovative bank which has a strong youth base as well as top executives. Their internet banking, mobile banking and other innovative services that they offer have been very well received by patrons. In Ghana, GT Bank has 34 branches in total. In this article, we will take a look at GT Bank branches in Accra, where and how you can reach them in the capital city.

GT Bank Head Office

Source: UGC

Branches of GT Bank in Accra

Accra is the capital city of Ghana and the financial hub of Ghana. In this article, you will get to know some of the services offered by GT Bank, location as well as the working hours of the bank. In Accra alone, GT Bank has a total of 21 branches out of the total number of 34 branches. The 13 remaining branches are spread across the Ashanti, Western, Northern, Volta, Central and Brong Ahafo regions. Below are the various locations of GT Bank branches in Greater Accra.

READ ALSO: All the reasons why the five local banks collapsed

1. GT Bank Ghana Head Office

Well, you might be wondering where to locate the headquarters of the GT Bank in Ghana. The headquarters ensures that all branches operate under the set standards of the bank and regulator. The head office is open from 8 a.m to 4:30 p.m. It is around this stated time that banking services are available, although there are ATM services scattered across the country where people can deposit and withdraw money, and also other electronic channels customers can use to engage in other banking services like the opening of a new account.

Contact and location

Location: 25A, Castle Road, Ambassadorial Area, Ridge in the capital city Accra.

Head Office contact numbers; +233 302-611-560 / 302-677-704 / 302-687-757.

P.M.B CT 416, Cantonments Accra, Ghana.

2. GTBank No. 1 Airport Square branch

This branch is located just metres from the Kotoka International Airport and serves the business community within that vicinity. You can expect quality service from this branch of GT Bank Ghana.

Contact and location

Location:No. 1 Airport Square, Airport City, Accra.

Contact numbers; +233 577-149-399

3. GT Bank Abeka Lapaz

.The Abeka Lapaz Branch is a very busy branch due to the nature of businesses within the area. This branch is fitted with an ATM that has the ability to accept various card payments such as Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, Cirrus China Union Pay cards.

Contact and location

Location: Parcel No. 206 BlocK 3, Section 51 Apenkwa

Contact numbers; +233 289-547-536 / 289-547-537

4. GT Bank Abeka Lapaz 2

This branch also has a 24-hour ATM that accepts Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, Cirrus China Union Pay cards from anywhere in the world. It is Strategically located on the opposite side of the N1 Highway from the first Abeka Lapaz branch adjacent to Allied Oil Filling Station, residents, businesses, individuals and commuters in and around this area can enjoy first-class banking services no matter which side of the Highway they are on, as GTBank has a branch on either side

Contact and location

Location: H/No. B49/30, N1 Motorway opposite Abrantie Spot, Abeka Lapaz

Contact numbers; +233 577-149-399

5. GT Bank Achimota

The Achimota branch can easily be found as it is close to the roadside. Walk in for all your banking needs.

Contact and location

Location: Parcel No.9 Block 1, Section 168, Achimota

Contact numbers; +233 289-547-529 / 289-547-530 / 289-547-532

6. GT Bank Airport

If you stay within the Airport area then you should visit this branch of GT Bank during banking hours to benefit from their services.

Contact and location

Location: House # 49, Patrice Lumumba Road, Airport Residential Area Accra

Contact numbers; +233 577-149-399

7. GT Bank Ashiaman

The Ashiaman GT Bank branch has an ATM that you could use even when the bank is closed on weekends.

Contact and location

Location: No. 427C, Road, Ashiaman

Contact numbers: +233 577-802-473

8. GT Bank Baatsona

This bank serves residents in Sakumono, Baatsona and even Nungua. They also have an ATM that can be accessed 24 hours a day.

Contact and location

Location: No.495, Block 7 Section 107, Nungua-Accra

Contact numbers; +233 302-814-831

9. GTBank - Dansoman Branch Accra

This branch of GT Bank is located in a very busy business district in the capital. The bank is usually busy during business hours.

Contact and location

Location: PMB CT 416, Cantonment, Accra. Opposite Alpha Beta Education Centre, Sahara, Dansoman

Contact numbers; +233 289-677-581 / 302-302-507

7. GT Bank Dome

Dome is one of the most populous suburbs in Accra so it's no wonder that GT Bank has decided to open up a branch here. The bank is just off the main market road.

Contact and location

Location: Dome main market road, property no. 42, Dome Accra

Contact numbers; +233 577-149-099

8. GT Bank East Legon

East Legon is associated with the wealthy in society. The East Legon GT Bank branch is one of the most visited branches in Ghana. You can find it in a prime location on the Lagos avenue in East Legon.

Contact and location

Location: Plot No. 201 Lagos Avenue

Contact numbers; +233 302-544-312 / 302-544-313 / 302-544-314 / 302-544-316

9. GT Bank GPHA

GPHA stands for Ghana Ports and Harbour Authority. This branch is located in the harbour city of Tema and serves the business people who need to transact on a daily basis.

Contact and location

Location: GPHA Towers, Tema Habour

Contact numbers; +233 302-230-992

10. GT Bank Graphic Road

The Graphic road is an iconic road in Ghana so it's no surprise to spot a GT Bank Branch on it. This branch, like many others, has a 24 hour ATM for the use of the general public.

Contact and location

Location: No. I Graphic Road, Auto Parts Building, Accra

Contact numbers; +233 302-230-992

11. GT Bank Labone

Labone is a suburb of Accra located almost in the very centre. The Labone GT Bank branch serves the residents and businesses within this area.

Contact and location

Location: No. 3, 3rd Soula Street, Labone, Accra

Contact numbers; +233 302-771-463

12. GT Bank Madina

Madina is one of the most over populated and busiest places in Accra. The GT Bank branch is located at the popular Zongo Junction. They have a friendly and efficient staff to cater for your banking needs.

Contact and location

Location: Sisters Annex, Madina- Adenta Road, Accra

Contact numbers; +233 289-547-524

13. GT Bank Makola

The Makola market is the largest market in the Greater Accra region. Thousands of people converge here everyday to trade and make commerce. This branch is one of the GT Bank branches in Accra central located near the SRC Mall in the heart of Makola. All banking services are available in this branch. Contact and location

Location: Opposite Ghana Law School, near Methodist Bookshop, Accra Makola

Contact numbers; +233 577-143-200

14. GT Bank North Industrial Area

The North industrial area is home to major corporations and industries. This branch is strategically located to serve the companies in this area through their friendly staff and the use of technological innovations.

Contact and location

Location: Plot 4, Block 10, Ring Road, North Industrial Area, Accra

Contact numbers; +233 302-225-396 Fax: +233 302-225-391

15. GT Bank Opera Square

The Opera Square branch of GT Bank is located in the heart of Accra Central. It serves the market traders, business executives and other residents within Ghana's largest market.

Contact and location

Location: House No. D857 / 3, Pagan Road, Opera Building, Accra

Contact numbers; +233 577-145-200

16. GT Bank Osu

Osu is well known for its ability to attract tourists and weekend party fanatics. The Osu GT Bank branch is located just off the famous Oxford Street in the heart of Osu.

Contact and location

Location: No. 577, Oxford Street, Osu R. E

Contact numbers; +233 302-772-449 / 302-781-231

17. GT Bank Ring Road

This branch can be found just off the Ring Road in Asylum Down. The bank is well equipped to serve the people within that vicinity.

Contact and location

Location: House Number C810/3, Asylum Down, Accra

Contact numbers; +233 303-973-338

18. GT Bank Spintex Road

This branch is located on the Spintex Road, close to the Palace Mall roundabout. It is equipped with an ATM for convenience.

Contact and location

Location: No. 40 Spintex Road, Tema Motorway Industrial Area

Contact numbers; +233 302-816-621

19. GT Bank Tema Community 6

One of the three GT Bank branches located in Tema. It is situated in a busy district where business thrives.

Contact and location

Location: Plot No. VC/Res/16, Block A, Black Caesar Casino Building, Tema Community 6

Contact numbers; +233 303-201-048

20. GT Bank Tema Main - Community One

Community One is undoubtedly the busiest community in Tema. This GT Bank Branch in Tema is perfectly situated to provide top-notch banking services to the people of Tema.

Contact and location

Location: CT/401, Tema Town Centre, Community One, Tema

Contact numbers; +233 303-973-338

21. GT Bank Tudu

Tudu is located in Accra central and it has a GT Bank branch with able staff ready to render their services to the general public. You can always get in touch with the bank for any of your needs.

Contact and location

Location: House No. E144, Kinbu Road, Tudu, Near Aflao Lorry Station

Contact numbers; +233 577-142-677

GT Bank Internet Banking

With so many branches in Accra alone, you would think that GT Bank does not need online banking but on the contrary, they are well known for award-winning internet banking. The bank invests heavily in internet banking to allow customers to transact business on the go. These services can also be accessed via the banks internet banking platform. GT Bank has won several awards for its innovative electronic banking channels developed for the convenience of every customer.

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GTBank Saturday banking Accra branches

GT Bank Saturday Banking

Source: UGC

On March 31st this year, GT Bank officially seized its Saturday banking operations in all its branches nationwide. The reason being that they want users to take advantage of the technology that the bank has heavily invested in to perform banking transactions on weekends.

The various branches of GT Bank spread across Ghana offer all the regular universal banking services like Online/Internet Banking, Retail Banking, Corporate Banking, Investment Banking and Asset Management services. GT Bank has also partnered with Data Bank to help facilitate Data Bank's growth in Ghana.

Contact GT Bank Ghana

For any enquiries regarding GTBank Ghana Limited services, you can visit www.gtbghana.com or Email gh.corporateaffairs@gtbank.com. They can also be contacted on Tel: (+233 302) 611560, 677704 or Toll-free 0800 124 000. You can also search for any GT Bank branch in Accra with Google Maps.

Due to the bank's unmatched technological innovations, clients have unhindered access to funds at any time of the day at all their branches. Some of the awards include being named Best Digital Banking  Ghana award winner, in 2017 and 2018. GTBank is also a member of the elite club of mandated primary dealer (PD) banks in the Government of Ghana (GOG) Securities for internal use and trading purposes. GT Bank branches in Accra are accessible and a great choice for anyone, no matter their occupation.

READ ALSO: Here are the prices of Kantanka range of vehicles

Source: Yen
Cape Coast University school fees is still a mystery to many however we have the fees for you. The university of Cape Coast is among the best universities in Ghana located in the Cape Coast Region. This university was founded back in 1962 with the aim of providing quality education for the graduate teachers. Throughout the years, the university has expanded and it trains doctors, health practitioners, and top ranking ministers.This post takes you through the UCC fees and also the graduate and post graduate courses offered and so much more.

The university is committed to ensuring that each student is well equipped for the outside world. The school motto is truth our guide and this university ensure that the results are very genuine meaning that every graduate from this university has worked for their degree. The Chancellor is Sam E Jonah. Currently the university has over 67,000 undergraduate students and over 5,000 post graduate students. The school is well equipped with playing grounds, well equipped with a spacious library and many more. The school has a strong team that works together to ensure that all the student are very well equipped.

Once you want to major in a various course, feel free to visit the university for adequate knowledge about the course that you want to take and the requirements that are necessary.

University of Cape Coast departments

The university is made up of 5 colleges, they include:

1. College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences

This college is basically for students who take up bachelors in Agriculture and Agriculture related courses.

2. College of Education Studies

This college is made of of all students undertaking education. Students can do a combination of subjects like Mathematic and History and they can also choose to major in one. Education is a very essential part in every public university and every year Ghana trains a big number of teachers.

3. College of Humanities and Legal Studies

This college offers all the humanities courses and also law. From this college students are in a position to understand the Ghanaian law and also interpret the constitution and everything that pertains to it. University of Cape Coast has brought up very outstanding lawyers, ministers and also leaders of the nation.

4. College of Health and Applied Sciences

This college is made up of students who are undertaking Bachelor of Science in health sciences and also applied sciences. Students in this College are in a position to do practical and the University is equipped with equipments.

5. College of Distance Education

This college is responsible for distant learning at University of Cape Coast.

All these courses are different and they offer quality education. UCC student fees is paid to the respective department.

Modes of study University of Cape Coast

A student has the ability to choose the mode of study that he/she prefers. It can either be regular part time or distance learning. The regular study involves full involvement in the classroom. Students show up during the day to be taught from morning to evening. This mode of study is the best for fresh undergraduate students. The part time mode of study is mostly set for the post graduate. They have an option of studying during weekends. Lastly, the university is equipped with technology so students from other countries can practise distance learning. The students have to apply for this using their original documents. All students should also be in a position to follow the instructions as provided by the university if at all they want to study at this particular university.

UCC sandwich programme

The University of Cape Coast offers a sandwich programme for students with practical courses. In these cases the theoretical and the practical parts are normally interwoven. Such that an individual does theory in a year or two then he/she goes for a practical at an industry or an area that they gain practical knowledge. Students in the sandwich programme or those who desire it should always be alert because the university opens a timeline for the application. UCC fees for continuing students in this programme is updated each semester.

READ ALSO: Best universities in Ghana ranking

UCC admissions

After a successful application to the university, all students are welcomed with a nice matriculation ceremony. They are introduced to the university, the colleges and the heads. The students are then required to register their units and learning starts from there. The University always ensures that students are comfortable. The university also provides a good learning environment for every student.

University of Cape Coast admission fees

To apply to the university online, all you have to do s to buy a scratch card. The scratch cards are available at the cashiers office at the university, post offices in Ghana, University of Cape Coast Accra office and also at the Universitys distance learning centres. The scratch cards go for GH 220 for undergraduate, and 120 US dollars for the international students. The post Diploma students pay GH 230 for the scratch cards. Each scratch card has a unique number that every student is required. The scratch cards can be bought by a visa card this applies to the international students. The deadlines for buying the cards and applying are always communicated.

For the online applications, students are required to provide the necessary mandatory information. The best thing about the application process is that there are instructions that will guide you into filling the admission form. Once you apply, you should know that practical examinations dates are normally announced. This applies for medical students and those taking physical sciences. Once you fill the application form, make sure to attach the copies of passports and result slips. The documents are then forwarded to the school head of academic affairs. Once a student is qualified for the course that they want, the school produces a list of the students and the students are normally contacted.

School fees for Cape Coast University

Below are the UCC fees 2018-2019. For undergraduate students taking Bachelor of Arts either in communication, theatre studies and music and dance fees for fresh and continuing students the UCC fees is from GH 2100-2900. This amount of course is the tuition fees and it varies each year. Non-resident students pay relatively less because the fees exclude hostel fees provided by the university. Mostly fresh students are admitted and they are assigned hostels within the school compound that they can stay.

For students wishing to take up science courses like medical laboratory science, forensic science and nursing the UCC medical school fees range from GH 2500-4000. Education students pay fees ranging from GH 2300-3000. For Humanities or education, business, science and agriculture including Entomology, masters students pay tuition fees of between GH 3800-4500. PhD students pay more around GH 4300-4900. Other courses offered at the postgraduate level include nursing, aquatic science, biomedical science and many more.

These are not the only courses offered at the University of Cape Coast. There are other courses that have emerged and if you want to know more about them you can visit the school website or the school itself and find out more about the courses offered nod their fees.

UCC distance learning

Distance learning is available at UCC. With improved technology, students can now learn from their homes away from school. The lecturers are also very professional with the students. All distance learning students have the ability to gain access to the portal and access the exams. The students also have to forward their exams on time and ensure that they read all the notes. Fees for distance learning do not include accommodation. Fees for UCC distance learning is indicated below;

UCC distance education fees for fresh, continuing and final year students

Here is the list of UCC distance learning fees:

Diploma-Basic Education GH 2110, GH 1179, GH 1720

Diploma Business administration-GH 2451,GH 1697, GH 2057

Post-Diploma B.Ed GH 2153, GH 1762

Post-Diploma Business administration GH 3034, GH 2609

Post Diploma BSc in VOTECH, GH 1726, GH 1457, GH 1890

Postgraduate diploma mentoring- GH 2773, N/A, GH 2217

BBBA/Bsc in Business administration GH 2436, GH2046, GH 2490

BSc IT, GH 2046, GH 2490.

Med maths, science and English GH 3463,GH 3109.

MA in mentorship by distance GH 3463, GH 3109

All the fees stated above are not static because they can change as per the university policy. Students have already been admitted for the September intake and for students who wish to join this university can apply next year or for the next intake. To get more knowledge about the various intakes, visit the school website and find out more. This university does not only support school work but also there are other extracurricular activates. The students are supposed to get the admission forms from the school website.

Cape Coast University contacts

Phone numbers; +233 (0)332 13903 or +233 (0)332137904.

Fax: +233 [03321] 32484

Email: registrar@ucc.edu.gh

Join the Cape Coast University and experience the good learning environment that the university offers, quality education, and also professionalism at a whole new level.

READ ALSO: Knutsford University College fees and programs

Source: Yen.com.gh
Since its establishment 70 years ago, Ghana National College has stood out as one of the best performing institutions in the country. The first president Kwame Nkrumah, with only eight students who had been expelled from St. Augustine College by the British Administration, started the institution.

After formation of the college, one girl and sixteen boys enrolled as the first students and later became prominent members of the society. They included:

Ghana National College first alumni

Prof. Francis Kofi A. Allotey  World renowned scientist and former Vice Chancellor, UST

Mr. Twumasi Ankrah  died prematurely from activities related to his political career

Prof K. Osei Manu  University of Columbia

Dr. Asare Berkye  Obstetrician and gynecologist in Cairo, Egypt

Dr. L.K.A Derban - Rtd. Industrial Medical Officer, Volta River Authority

Mr. S.I.K. Boakye-Agyean  Charterede accountant

Mr. Joseph Kingsley Bentum-Williams  First head prefect, and for many years CEO of GIHOC

Prof. Kofi Amoa Oduro  Professor of Anesthesia at the Ghana Medical School

Ghana National College address

Ghana National College is located in Cape Coast with their address as below:

Telephone: (233) 04232357

Email: ghanacol@yahoo.com

Postal address: P.O. Box: 161, Cape Coast Ghana

Website: Ghana National College

The institution has merged with the community to ensure it focuses on providing its citizens with the best most formidable background. In turn, students are well prepared to work and live in a global community. Students in this school come from a myriad of backgrounds, and guided by the schools fundamental principle of equating all people before God.

Ghana National College in Cape Coast

The prestigious school is found on a hill that is 5 miles on the historic Castle town in Cape Coast, the moment you leave the Accra-Takoradi highway. To ensure the needs of each student was met accordingly, the co-ed boarding school offers a combination of elective and core high schools courses ranging from business, languages, and fine arts.

Ghana National college has also won various accolades including reaching the semi-finals in the 2016 national Mathematics and Science quiz. Based on the 2015 WASSCE results, it was placed among the top 20 best performing schools.

After its inception, various focused citizens who ensured it prosperity and fame in Ghana headed the institution, among them:

Mr. H.P. Nelson who was a tutor at the school until 1952, before leaving to further his studies in the UK with JJ Mensah-Kane

Mr. Kwesi Plange was the first headmaster at the Ghana National College before leaving to pursue a political career, which earned him a seat as a member of parliament until his premature death at the age of 27. He was in the school from 1948 to 1950.

Mr. J.J Mensah-Kane became the schools head from the year 150 to 1952. He went back from 1960 to 1970 when he retired and this helped him to earn good working rapport with the Ghana Education Service Board.

Lt. Col (rtd) H.W.A.K Sackeyfio was one of the teachers at the Ghana National College until 1952.

Ghana National College houses

Female students occupy eight dormitories on the south side of the school, which overlooks a part of the Cape Coast City. Boys on the other hand live in four dormitories on the north side. Like any African Society, boys and girls were put in separate dormitories and different parts of the campus to maintain the highest form of discipline.

One of the boys hostel is Afadu house whose land was provided by the Twidan and Afadu families. It has been nicknamed the royals and has a students population of 129, as further illustrated below:

SS3-51

SS2-39

SS1-39

Another perfect house is the Wardbury house now called the Masters flats.

The girls houses include:

Elsie Dadzie house

Faustina Daniels house

Charlotte T-plange house

Although an old school, the houses have been well maintained to provide a conducive environment for students learning at Ghana National College.

Ghana National College Facebook

Social media and the internet has taken the world at a neck-breaking speed. On this note, Ghana National College does not want to be left behind hence it has a Facebook page that can allow thousands of people to reach them.

On their page they have various positive reviews regarding what they offer such as:

Thanks to this institution am on the right path to becoming whom I have always wanted to be in life.

Ghana National College instills in you the discipline you require and guides you to becoming a self confident citizen

Aside from being a center of excellence, the school helps you how to interact with people at a more personal level

All these positive reviews define the kind of life lessons one will get from Ghana National College. Which parent will not want their child to study in an academic center of excellence? As though not all this is enough, Ghana National College Website has an area where the alumni and students can share the ideas on making the school a better place.

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Since its inception during the colonial period, Ghana National College has produced some of the best and high-ranking people in the society. It is not only a center of excellence but the institution molds a person to fit in any type of society globally. A majority of Ghanaians are successful in life due to the never-ending discipline they learnt from the school.

Source: Yen
- On Monday, September 10 2018, the mortal remains of Kofi Annan touch soil where he was born

- The once energetic peace keeper was whisked away by death after suffering from a short illness in Bern, Switzerland

- A video showed Kofi Annans daughter crying when his body arrived in Ghana

A video of one of Kofi Annans daughters shedding tears after seeing the mortal remains of her late father could just be the saddest thing you see today.

The former United Nations (UN) Secretary-General died over three weeks ago while in Switzerland.

However, his mortal remains were brought back to Ghana on Monday, September 10, ahead of his state burial.

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The statesmans body was accompanied by his widow, Nane Marie Annan, children and some selected executives of the UN.

President Akufo-Addo led a delegation of government officials to welcome the convoy at the Kotoka International Airport.

Although the aftermath scenes were all emotional, the sight of one of Kofi Annans daughter crying upon seeing the remains of her father caught the attention of many.

Standing together with some family members, she immediately broke down in tears after sighting her late dad.

Kofi Annans burial ceremony will be held at the Accra International Conference Center on Thursday, September 13, before he is finally laid to rest at the Military Cemetery.

Ghana News Today: Ghana-China Agreement - Ghanaians Reaction | #Yencomgh

READ ALSO: Mourners disappointed over Kofi Annans closed casket

Want to be featured on YEN.com.gh? Send us a message on our Facebook page or on Instagram with your stories, photos or videos

Source: Yen
- The 94-year-old has been trending as the country digested intimate details he shared about wooing his wife

- An emotional Mugabe told the story of how he met his met and fell in love with his wife, Grace

Former president of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe has disclosed the circumstances which led to his love relationship with current wife Grace.

The 94-year-old fell in love with Grace in the mid-1990s, with the pair eventually tying the knot in 1996.

But the ex-leader has now revealed that it was love at first sight when he met Grace, who was then serving as his secretary.

Robert Mugabe kisses his wife and former first lady Grace during the country's 37th Independence Day celebrations in Harare April 18, 2017.

Source: Getty Images

READ ALSO: Kofi Annan's daughter cries as she sets eyes on his body

Speaking to guests at his mother-in-law's wake, Mugabe gave intimate details about how he wooed his wife.

He said he could not resist Grace's charms and went ahead to kiss her when he first set eyes on her.

This was despite the fact that he was still married to his first wife Sally at the time.

He disclosed that his first wife was battling a terminal disease and was on admission at the hospital during that time.

"Yes we got involved when Sally was still alive, I had to. Grace and I never dated, I was just introduced to her, and I said to myself, 'she is a beautiful girl,'" Mugabe said, as quoted by CNN, via local media.

"I looked at her lustfully. Then one day, I said to her 'I love you,' and she was numb. I then grabbed her hand and kissed her. She didn't refuse or protest and then I said to myself 'now that she has accepted to be kissed, it's game over.'"

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He went on to explain that he felt torn by his church doctrine against adultery and the pressure from his mother who wanted grandchildren, as Sally could not have children.

Mugabe ruled Zimbabwe for 37 years before being ousted by the countrys military in November last year.

Ghana News Today: Lack of Evidence Against Former GFA President | Yen.com.gh

READ ALSO: 6 Ghanaian statesmen who passed away in the year 2018

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Source: Yen
- A former Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Health, Robert Cudjoe, has opened up about his loyalty to the NPP

- This was contained in a letter he wrote to the then flagbearer Nana Akufo-Addo in August 2016

The former Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Health, Robert Cudjoe, has released a letter he wrote in August 2016 to the then flagbearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

According to a report by MyNewsGH.com, Cudjoe, by releasing the letter, sought to prove to the New Patriotic Party (NPP), that he was a faithful member of the party.

He also denied accusations that he was the one who announced the opening of UGMC in 2018 to embarrass the government.

Former Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Health, Robert Cudjoe Source: www.citinewsroom.com

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: 6 Ghanaian statesmen who said good bye to this world in 2018

He further stated that that he has always been loyal to the party and President Akufo-Addo, and that he foresaw the Akufo-Addos presidency in the year 1992.

In the letter, he stated that he was inspired to write it because he was convinced NPP will win the impending elections.

Cudjoe also revealed his passion to see Akufo-Addo assume office as president. He began by detailing his first encounter with Nana Addo on the campus of the University of Ghana, Legon.

He stated that a lecture was organized to after the ban on political activities was lifted and a Danquah-Busia club was formed.

He went on to describe their first meeting after the lectures, and the bond of friendship they formed then.

Cudjoe also wrote about how his confidence shot up as Nana Addo declared his intention to run for presidency in 2012.

This, he explained, was because Ghanaians were crying for change, and there also a general economic down.

The results did not go as expected, but four years later, he went before God and prayed for success for the NPP in the elections, and God responded via a revelation.

In the revelation, two flags each coloured with NPP and NDC colours struggled till that of the NDC fell and vanished from the scene, signaling victory for the NPP in the 2016 elections.

READ ALSO: Kofi Annan's daughter weeps as his body arrives in Ghana

Ghana Funny Tricky Questions: 6X9? | #Yencomgh

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Source: Yen
- Political activist, Akua Donkor, has pleaded with President Akufo-Addo to help bury Kofi Annan at the Asomdwee park

- According to her, it will be wrong to bury him at the military cemetery

- Kofi Annan will be buried on Thursday, September 13, 2018 with a 17-gun salute

The Founder of Ghana Freedom Party (GFP), Akua Donkor, has asked President Akufo-Addo, to ensure that the former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, is buried at the Asomdee park.

According to her, Kofi Annan should not be buried at the military cemetery, as that will limit the number of people who wish to visit his grave.

She explained that, the military men would hardly give the general public the opportunity to visit the tomb of Kofi Annan compared to Ghanas first presidential mausoleum, the Asomdwee Park.

Akua Donkor Source: Supplied

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Sacked MoH PRO releases secret letter to Akufo-Addo

In her opinion, he should be laid to rest at the Asomdwee park where Former President Professor John Atta Mills was buried.

He should not be buried at the military cemetery. He should be taken to the Asomdwee park. He is not a soldier hence people can easily visit to watch him anytime. Soldiers would hardly give the general public the chance to see him, she argued.

Annans body arrived in Ghana on Monday, September 10, 2018, draped in a UN flag aboard a chartered flight from Geneva, Switzerland.

The general public, heads of department, associations and others filed past his body on Tuesday, September 11, 2018.

On Wednesday, September 12, 2018, former ministers of state, members of the diplomatic corps, Members of Parliament, ministers of state, members of the Council of State, members of the Mfantsipim Old Boys Association, chiefs and queen mothers, the Akwamuhene and his delegation and Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu IIs delegation will also past his remains.

There will also be a private burial at midday on Thursday at the Military Cemetery with full military honours and a 17-gun salute.

READ ALSO: 6 Ghanaian statesmen who said goodbye to this world in 2018

Ghana Funny Tricky Questions: 6X9? | #Yencomgh

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Source: Yen
- Many Ghanaians who have been to the International Conference Center have expressed disappointment over developments

- According to them, they were at a loss as to why the casket of late Kofi Annan was not opened

- The Deputy Minister of Information has however addressed the issue

Some Ghanaians who filed past the remains of the late former Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), Kofi Annan, on Tuesday, 11 September 2018, expressed disappointment that the casket was covered.

Ghanaians who visited the Accra International Conference Center hoping to see late Kofi Annan's face for the last time as they paid their last respects, were left saddened by the turn of events.

They wondered why organizers did not open the casket to allow those of them who never had the opportunity to see the man alive, do so before he is buried.

Kofi Annan's mortal remains being conveyed. Credit: Facebook/Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Video: Security Personnel in formation dance to Kuami Eugene's 'Wish Me Well'

Kofi Annan's casket was closed and draped with the national flag.

According to a report sighted by YEN.com.gh on Pulse.com.gh, Deputy Information Minister Pius Enam Hadzide explained why the mortal remains of the former UN General Secretary was covered.

He said the wish was to have a modest funeral leading to the casket being closed during the public viewing.

"There are high-profile funerals that Ive attended that Ive seen the casket covered even in this country and, so, its not a major problem; the important thing is that you see the family sitting in state, and, so, the man Kofi Annan himself is a modest person, and, so, he doesnt want a lot of flamboyance around the funeral with a lot of frills," the deputy minister indicated.

"Yes, this is a state funeral, we admit, but even as we give him a befitting state funeral, we think that it is still important that we respect his wishes of keeping it a little modest, a little soft and so far, its been very good," he added.

READ ALSO: Kofi Annan's daughter cries as she sets eyes on his body

Today, Wednesday, 12 September, dignitaries including recognized groups, chiefs, Members of Parliament and Ministers of State and world leaders, will have their turn to pay their last respects to the former UN boss.

A burial service will be held on Thursday, September 13 at the Accra International Conference Centre, followed by a private burial at the new military cemetery with full military honours and a 17-gun salute.

The mortal remains of the former UN Boss was flown into the country on September 10 and was received by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and a team of government functionaries.

Kofi Annan dies in Switzerland at the ripe age of 80.

READ ALSO: Sherifa Gunu breaks up with Nigerian husband

Watch: Ghana New Today: President Akufo-Addo Receives Remains of Kofi Annan| #Yen.com.gh

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- A Nigerian traveler has narrated his ordeal at the hands of Ghana Narcotic Board officials at the Kotoka International Airport

- He said he took out his phone to record the ordeal only for the officials to threaten to put him in jail

- He said the officials demanded to look into his phone but he refused for which he ended up in their interrogation cells

YEN.com.gh has chanced upon a note making rounds on social media about an aggrieved traveler who claims to have been maltreated at the hands of some officials of Ghana Narcotic Boards at the Kotoka International Airport.

The affected traveler, a Nigerian, whose name is not immediately known to YEN, revealed how he ended up NACOBs interrogation cells after he refused to allow the officials to look through his phone.

According to him, he had finished with all his check-in requirements and was waiting to board the plane when he was beckoned by one NACOB official by name Emmanuel Lawson, to hand him his passport.

READ ALSO: Fans accuse Fella Makafui of wearing fake hips in latest photo

Lawson then discovered that he was a Nigerian, and asked him what kind of work he did.

According to the traveler, he answered that he worked with a pharmaceutical company in Germany.

The answer, he revealed, led to another lady beside Officer Lawson asking what they did as a pharmaceutical company, to which he replied, We sell drugs.

His response seemed to have offended the woman, who allegedly threatened to deal with him for being sarcastic.

This, according to his narration, led the officials to call him names such as foolish and stupid Nigerian, and vowing to teach him a lesson.

READ ALSO: Twin sisters with same first name set to marry two different guys with same first names on same day

Tests were later run on him to ascertain if he was dealing in illicit drugs, but all proved negative. The man said after the tests, his expectation was that he would be released, but the officials still held on to him.

According to him, he took out his phone to record all that was happening but this further infuriated the officials, who snatched the phone and demanded to examine it or detain him.

After preventing them from examining the phone, he was pushed into the NACOB interrogation cells, from where he typed his ordeal and shared on social media.

Some Ghanaians who have gowind of this information have registered their displeasure at the happening, and have criticised NACOB for that treatment.

For instance, Kwaku Addai said the NACOB officials are unprofessional.

Haruna said the NACOB officials are incompetent.

Nii branded the action of the NACOB officials as "illegal and foolish".

Meanwhile, the Nigerian traveler had his luggage disembarked from the plane at the order of the NACOB officials, making him miss his flight.

YEN.com.gh will follow this new development and update readers.

READ ALSO: Menzgold shut down by SEC with immediate effect

Ghana News Today: Duncan Williams - The Shocking Truth About His Divorce | Yen.com.gh

READ ALSO: Angel Obinim attempts second flight to heaven

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China Aviation Daily | Sep. 11, 2018

Air freight volumes will grow at a healthy rate of 4.2 per cent annually through to 2032, but only if current air cargo modernization continues to be robustly and cooperatively pursued by governments and industry.

This was one of the key messages conveyed by ICAO Secretary General Dr. Fang Liu at the Organization's latest Air Cargo Development Forum, which took place last week in Zhengzhou, China. Both the first and the second of these ICAO Forums received funding and hosting support from the City of Zhengzhou and the Henan Province governments, reflecting in part, the tremendous recent growth of air cargo and e-commerce activity in the region.

The latest Forum's timing references how, in 2017, air services carried 34.6% of the total value of all goods shipped through all modes of transport, as well as ICAO's desire to increase public and private sector awareness of the critical importance of efficient air cargo operations to local and global economic development.

"With current consumer expectations for same day or next day delivery driving a great deal of today's growth in e-commerce and air freight, we cannot allow the speed and efficiency of commercial operations to be impeded due to network capacity shortfalls or other infrastructure-related risks," Dr. Liu said, adding that governments everywhere now have much greater investment certainty thanks to the guidance, targets and indicators reflected in ICAO's strategic global plans.

Stressing ICAO's fundamental commitment to safety, Dr. Liu further highlighted ICAO's ongoing efforts to open airspace to cargo drones and integrate them effectively with existing low-altitude aircraft operations, issues which the Organization will explore in much more detail next week with the international experts arriving for its back-to-back Unmanned Aviation events in Chengdu.

Another key point of Dr. Liu's remarks concerned the cooperation being undertaken in three areas which are essential today to the sustainability and profitability of air freight operations.

"The first of these pertains to the modernization of the regulatory framework, to help remove impediments which can hinder the flow of global trade," she underscored. "The second is the development, expansion and modernization of aviation infrastructure. And the third key area is the deployment of emerging technologies."

Dr. Liu noted that air transport liberalization has helped accelerate air cargo regulatory reform, and must continue, whether through bilateral or multilateral instruments. She pointed to the tremendous success of ICAO's Air Services Negotiation (ICAN) events in this regard, and to ICAO's current work on an international agreement to address regulatory and operational constraints. "ICAO is developing a specific international agreement to further facilitate this dynamic," Dr. Liu said. "Our objective is to help States modernize and harmonize their regulatory frameworks on a multinational basis."

Concerning infrastructure gaps, Dr. Liu stressed that ICAO is helping to foster and support new aviation investment through a variety of events and initiatives, and that there was never a more pressing need for increased air transport modernization. She emphasized the work ICAO is undertaking, in conjunction with the World Customs Organization, to replace slow and costly paper-based legacy documentation which encumbers efficient trade, mindful of related cybersecurity issues with e-Air Waybills and similar initiatives toward greater digitization.

Dr. Liu concluded her remarks by calling on States to reinforce the regulatory foundations of global cargo operations through the implementation of ICAO economic policies, and stressed the urgent need for governments to ratify the Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules for International Carriage by Air (Montreal Convention), which was adopted under ICAO's stewardship in 1999.

Contributed by ICAO
- Menzgold has been shut down by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

- The SEC said Menzgolds trading activities were illegal

- But the management of Menzgold has assured the public to remain calm because all investments with them were safe

The management of Menzgold Limited has asked the general public to keep calm in the wake of the company being shut down.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) shut down the gold trading company following some allegations, according to an earlier report by YEN.com.gh.

According to the SEC, Menzgold was dealing in the purchase and deposit of gold collectibles from the public, and issuing contracts with guaranteed returns with clients, without a valid license from the Commission.

Nana Appiah Mensah. CEO of Menzgold

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Fans accuse Fella Makafui of wearing fake hips in latest photo

This, according to the SEC, is in contravention of section 109 of Act 929 with consequences under section 2016 (I) of the same Act.

Therefore, it ordered Menzgold to desist from its trading activities.

In a response, the management of Menzgold has issued a statement assuring clients and investors of safe investment.

The management also descried the release of such information to the public by the SEC, calling it distasteful.

Among many things, the Menzgold management revealed that the company had contacted its lawyers, assuring customers that the right action will be taken on the matter soon.

READ ALSO: Nigerian man accuses NACOB of detaining him illegally

Please read the full statement here:

The Management of Menzgold Ghana finds it very unfortunate that a letter relating to business discussions between the organization and the Securities and Exchange Commission has found its way to the public.

Menzgold in the wake of the Bank of Ghana warning to the public to desist from doing business with the organization availed itself to all relevant State Institutions for various consultations and dialogues designed to arrived at a productive and sustainable resolution. One of such organizations is the Securities and Exchange Commission with whom we are hopeful of arriving at a cordial resolution to all matters if any, then we submit to its standards,.

Menzgold however expressed concerns over:This needless leaks believed to be coming from the Securities and Exchange Commission or the Bank of Ghana, is in a very bad faith and distasteful; as it defeats our confidence in the bodies and an upfront to cooperation of which we totally condemn.

We find its rather very interesting that, the same note from the SEC that seems to forbid new transactions on grounds on illegality, is directing the promotion of existing ones by the same letter. A clear contradiction, ill-principled and a shot in the foot.

As a law abiding organization, we have referred the matter to our lawyers and rest assured, the right action shall be taken.

We hereby assure all our cherished customers that neither Menzgold as a business entity nor any of its products has been shut down. We urge for calm as we deal with this matter to its logical conclusion.

Your gold trades are very safe and business is proceeding as usual.

READ ALSO: Group drags EC and AG to court over 6 new regions

This is not the first time Menzgold has been in the news for a controversy.

YEN.com.gh recently reported on the brawl between the Bank of Ghana and Menzgold, after the collapse of five banks.

BoG declared its intention to shut down Menzgold, but Nana Appiah Mensah, CEO of Menzgold and Zylofon Media, rubbished BoGs move, calling it a mere joke.

Celebrities including Sarkodies wife, Tracy Sarkcess, also descended on BoG, asking it to go after the banks and leave Menzgold alone.

She also said that the BoG must know the difference between those squandering money and those helping the masses.

READ ALSO: Twin sisters with same first name set to marry two different guys with same first names on same day

Ghana News Today: Duncan Williams - The Shocking Truth About His Divorce | Yen.com.gh

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Source: Yen
- The Tourism Minister, Catherine Afeku, has stated that Kofi Annan's death will bring a lot of benefits to Ghana

- She explained that people from all over the world will be in Ghana to pay their respects to him

The Minster for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Catherine Afeku, has claimed that there are benefits to be derived from the death of former United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan.

Speaking at the forecourt of the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC), she added that the late statesman will be forever honoured.

According to her, Kofi Annan was a consummate diplomat and an honourable person who will forever remain in history.

Tourism Minister, Catherine Afeku Source: Supplied

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Don't bury Kofi Annan at a military cemetery - Akua Donkor pleads with Nana Addo

He was a true African. His behaviour meant he was a consummate diplomat. We have lost an illustrious son.

He is an honourable person and it will remain history that we buried an illustrious son in the continent, she added.

Touching on the impact of his death on the tourism industry, she explained that people will travel from all over the world to see the global icons final resting place.

She went on to say that he had etched his name in history, and for that reason, Ghanas tourism and transportation industries will be positively impacted.

Former ministers of state, Members of the diplomatic corps, members of parliament, ministers of state, members of the council of state, members of the Mfantsipim old boys association, chiefs and queen mothers are expected to pay their last respect to the global icon on Wednesday, September 12, 2018.

Also filing past his remains on the same day are members of the traditional council, chiefs and queen mothers, the Akwamuhene and his delegation and the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.

Kofi Annan passed away on Saturday, August 18, 2018 in Switzerland. His body has since been flown to Ghana.

READ ALSO: EC, Attorney-General in hot waters as group drags them to the Supreme Court

Ghana News: President Akufo-Addo Receives Remains of Kofi Annan | #Yencomgh

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Source: Yen.com.gh
- Menzgold has been shutdown by the Securities Exchange Commission for alleged illegal activities

- Management of Menzgold have called on customers to be assured of safe investment

- Nana Appiah Mensah himself has descried the treatment, saying he is not less of a Ghanaian

YEN.com.gh reported the news of Menzgold Limited being shutdown by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), for alleged illegal activities.

According to the SEC, Menzgold was dealing in the purchase and deposit of gold collectibles from the public and issuing contracts with guaranteed returns with clients, without a valid license from the Commission.

This, according to the SEC, is in contravention of section 109 of Act 929 with consequences under section 2016 (I) of the same Act.

Nana Appiah Mensah

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Fans accuse Fella Makafui of wearing fake hips in latest photo

Therefore, it ordered Menzgold to desist from its trading activities.

But Nana Appiah Mensah, CEO of Menzgold and Zylofon Media, seems to be very angry with the treatment being meted out to Menzgold.

In a new post sighted by YEN.com.gh, Nana Appiah is decrying the situation, lamenting of being treated less of a Ghanaian.

He spoke of how some of his family members played crucial roles in the struggle for Ghanas Independence, indicating that he is a true Ghanaian who must be allowed to do his business without any form of attacks.

READ ALSO: Nigerian man accuses NACOB of detaining him illegally

According to him, his grandfather, Samuel Brew, fought in the Second World War and in the build up to Ghanas Independence.

He added that an uncle of his called Uncle Ernest Wood, also served as the Colonial Secretary during the transition from Gold Coast to Ghana, therefore he is not less of a Ghanaian.

Nana Appiah Mensah wrote: Grandpa of blessed memory Samuel Brew, fought in the 2nd World War and in the build up to Ghana's Independence, Uncle Ernest Wood served as the Colonial Secretary to transition from Gold Coast to Ghana. I am not less of a Ghanaian. Freedom is expensive. I AM DETERMINED TO PAY.

His post is as if to ask Am I not eligible to run businesses in my own motherland Ghana which my family members also fought for?

READ ALSO: Be calm; your investments are safe  Menzgold assures customers

Meanwhile, the management of Menzgold has assured customers of safe investment with them.

The management also said the company lawyers were being contacted to deal with the issue.

READ ALSO: Kofi Annans death will benefit Ghana  Tourism Minister

Ghana News Today: Duncan Williams - The Shocking Truth About His Divorce | Yen.com.gh

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Source: Yen
- Three people have reportedly lost their lives in an accident which occurred on Accra-Tema motorway

- Several others were also injured and are receiving treatment in a hospital

Information available to YEN.com.gh shows that three people have lost their lives in an accident on the Accra-Tema motorway accident.

According to sources, several others were also injured. The accident occurred on the night of Tuesday, September 11, 2018, as the vehicle was moving from Sogakope-Ada stretch to Accra.

An unidentified eye witness revealed that the incident occurred when the brakes of a Hyundai H100 with registration number GB-1667-12 failed.

Source: www.adomonline.com

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Kofi Annan's death is important for Ghana's tourism industry - Tourism Minister

The driver then lost control of the vehicle and in the process, veered off the main road.

At least, three people on board the vehicle which was travelling from Sogakope, Ada stretch to Accra died on the spot.

The bodies have since been deposited at the morgue while the injured are receiving treatment at a hospital.

READ ALSO: Ghanaian journalist advises Stonebwoy to sue Shatta Wale

Ghana News: President Akufo-Addo Receives Remains of Kofi Annan | #Yencomgh

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Source: Yen
Bishop Daniel Obinim is the founder of the International God's Way Church and he is known for his wild miraculous statements.

The self-acclaimed Man of God has made lots of miraculous statements in his church and it has attracted many comments from Ghanaians.

YEN.com.gh brings you the top 5 miraculous statement by Bishop Daniel Obinim.

Bishop Daniel Obinim (Photo credit: Myjoyonline.com)

Source: Depositphotos

READ ALSO: Stonebwoy must sue Shatta Wale - Odi Ahenkan

1. Snake and Tiger comment

Bishop Obinim in an interview said he could transform into a snake, enter any room, bite his target and disappear after the mission. He also indicated that he once transformed into a tiger with Jesus by his side who also transformed into a lion and visited someone.

2. Turning into an Angel

In one of his miraculous comments he said he is an Angel. He added that he could transform from Angel into God.

3. Acquiring money from the spiritual realm

Bishop Obinim revealed the source of his wealth saying that he acquired his money from the spiritual realm. According to him, he acquired his money through the spiritual realm before converting them into physical Ghana cedis.

READ ALSO: Divorcing my Nigerian husband has affected my children - Sherifa Gunu

4. Vanishing

The popular Man of God was seen in one of his church branches during service and he was trying to vanish into heaven.

It appeared that the pastor, during the prophetic and deliverance service wanted to take off into the skies.

READ ALSO: Fans slam Moesha Boduong over her latest video

Ghana News: President Akufo-Addo Receives Remains of Kofi Annan | #Yencomgh

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Source: Yen
- Sarkodie and Shatta Wale have been in the news together recently

- Wale accused Sarkodie of disrespecting him among other accusations

- Sarkodie has replied Shatta Wale with a new song, asking him to shut up

Shatta Wale seems to have extended his controversy from Stonebwoy and Samini to his formerly good friend Sarkodie.

Shatta Wale had accused Sarkodie of disrespecting him in a way, for which reason they were no more close friends like they were.

According to Shatta Wale, Sarkodie refused to shoot a video for a hit sing he featured him on, Megye wo girl, despite pleading with him to do that for a long time.

READ ALSO: Fans accuse Fella Makafui of wearing fake hips in latest photo

However, Shatta Wale claimed Sarkodie was quick to shoot a video with Nigerias Patoranking when they collaborated on the No kissing song together.

This, according to Shatta Wale, was gross disrespect to him, and a clear indication that Sarkodie didnt want him in his video.

But this attack on Sarkodie infuriated his fans, and they descended heavily on Shatta Wale.

Wale later blamed Sarkodie for the way his fans insulted him (Shatta Wale), and asked him to call them to order.

READ ALSO: Zylofon boss breaks silence on Menzgold shutdown and he is angry

In a report sighted by YEN.com.gh on Ghanaweb,com, Sarkodie is said to have released a new song in reply to Shatta Wale.

In the song which is yet to be released, Sarkodie is said to have asked Shatta Wale to shut up.

Sarkodie sang in the Twi language: . Shatta Wale se s3 y3tu me fo a menfa, mahunu atra.., meaning Shattta Wale says I dont listen to his advice, but I have seen more than this...

Sarkodie is noted for his self-respect and calm way of dealing with things in the industry as he has often kept out of controversies.

READ ALSO: Be calm; your investments are safe  Menzgold assures customers

He even apologized to Shatta Wale recently for the accusations he leveled against him.

Sarkodie was also in the news following his plush wedding with his long-time girlfriend, Tracy Sarkcess.

Their spectacular wedding cake landed from the ceiling in a stylish manner that got excited Tracy to call it Africas first from the ceiling wedding cake.

Sarkodie also disclosed his greatest fear which is the fear of not being able to keep his family close together.

READ ALSO: Nigerian man accuses NACOB of detaining him illegally

Ghana News: President Akufo-Addo Receives Remains of Kofi Annan | #Yencomgh

READ ALSO: Twin sisters with same first name set to marry two different guys with same first names on same day

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Source: Yen.com.gh
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Credit: Danny NorthThe nominees for the 2018 American Music Awards were announced Wednesday, and U2 came away with a nod in the Tour of the Year category.

The Irish rockers will vie for the honor with Beyonce & JAY-Z, Bruno Mars, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift. U2's current trek, the eXPERIENCE + iNNOCENCE Tour, is in support of the band's latest studio album, 2017's Songs of Experience.

Hip-hop and R&B star Drake and rapper Cardi B scored the most nominations with eight.

The 2018 American Music Awards, hosted by black-ish star Tracee Ellis Ross, will air live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on October 9 on ABC. For the full list of nominations and to vote for your favorites, visit TheAMAs.com.

The current leg of U2's eXPERIENCE + iNNOCENCE Tour, which is visiting a variety of European cities, is mapped out through a November 13 show in Berlin.

Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
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Concurs de granturi adresat COMUNITATILOR (APL) pentru sporirea rezilientei lor la schimbarile climatice si FEMEILOR ANTREPRENOARE in vederea dezvoltarii unor afaceri prietenoase mediului
To find trees in the desert, we often have to go up in the mountains. I grew up in the Midwest, so every once in awhile I get a yearning to ...
ISGD 2019 will be held on Saturday August 3, 2019 and provide an opportunity for Scottish gin makers, bars, restaurants, bottle shops and consumers to discover, celebrate and promote Scottish gin.

Established by The Gin Cooperative, a husband and wife business which aims to promote Scottish gin through its website, ISGD will provide businesses with the chance to shape their own event around the day.

Co-founder Natalie Reid said: The Gin Cooperative was established at the beginning of 2018 along with my husband Martin as a business that works with Scottish gin makers to tell their story and the broader story of Scottish gin to the consumer.



Were currently engaged with a variety of UK-based and international stakeholders to ensure that International Scottish Gin Day 2019 has the right global reach.



Weve got lots of great content planned and are already speaking with stakeholders, including some premium tonic brands who have shown great interest in being the international tonic sponsor.

The Gin Cooperative is also in talks with members of The Worlds Best Bars and a selection of other businesses to bring commercial benefits to the Scottish on-trade.

Reid added: With the scheduled promotional campaigns, weve estimated ISGD content, which will be rolled out between October 2018 and August 2019, will be seen by a global audience of close to 100m people based on our own social media, website analytics and those of the Scottish gin makers and other stakeholders that we work with.

This is before weve even added new participants from across the on and off trade sectors.
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Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) is produced by polymerization of vinyl acetate monomer followed by hydrolysis. PVA finds application in various end-use industries such as food packaging, paper, textile, construction, coatings, and pharmaceutical. Polyvinyl Alcohol exhibits resistance to moisture and therefore, is predominantly used in the food packaging. Due to high water solubility and biodegradability, PVA has increasingly been used in the packaging industry.

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Polyvinyl Alcohol use is growing in packaged food products due to the benefits associated with it such as film forming and retention of taste & texture of the product. It is also used in the nutritional supplement pills, tablets and capsules owing to its viscosity. Growing apparel and textile industry with changing fashion trends are driving the product demand globally. The use of PVA is increasing in the healthcare industry by virtue of its biocompatibility and biodegradability and consequently rising awareness among the consumers about the plastic wastage is also uplifting the PVA market. It finds extensive usage in the paper industry owing to excellent oil & grease resistant properties. The product usage is increasing in the paper industry due to its suitability for water-based barrier coatings. A few PVA products such as Kururays Poval, Elvanol and Exceval are widely used in the paper industry as a result of strong water born film forming.

Product innovation for a new application is a noted trend for the Polyvinyl Alcohol Market. For instance, in 2016, the Kururay opened a new plant in the U.S. which is believed to be cost competitive with the use of shale gas and other inexpensive raw material. a In 2018, the same company is set to launch a new product under the brand name MOWIFLEX to be used by filament fabrication-based printing processes due to excellent water solubility and moisture resistance. However, key players in the market are increasing the prices of their PVA products as a result of a hike in the cost of raw materials, which may affect the market growth to some extent.

Key Players

Some of the key players in the Global Polyvinyl Alcohol Market are Sekisui Chemical Co, Ltd (Japan), The Nippon Synthetic Chemical Industry Co., Ltd (Japan), Merck KGaA (Germany), Anhui Wanwei Group (China), SNP, Inc. (U.S.), Kuraray Co., Ltd (Japan), Polysciences, Inc (U.S.), Polychem (Mumbai), Astrra Chemicals (India), Japan Vam and Poval Co., Ltd (Japan).

Regional Analysis

Asia Pacific is the fastest growing market for Polyvinyl Alcohol as a result of rapidly growing demand from packaging industry especially pertaining to convenience food, from the working class in the developing economies such as India, China, Thailand, and South Korea. The product demand for packaged food products is growing due to convenience and longer shelf life of the products. Growing healthcare industry is also propelling the market growth with respect to rising disease burden among the consumers.

North America is set to witness significant growth over the forecast period with respect to the growing demand for packaged products. Growing construction industry coupled with technological advancements such as the internet of things (IoT) for tracking operational activities is likely to drive the market growth.

Europe is another prominent market for PVA due to increasing use of biodegradable plastic by the packaging industry owing to the ban imposed by the European Union on landfill as of 2016. Growing apparel industry together with rising purchasing power and changing trends are stimulating the product demand especially in the U.K and Germany in this region.

Latin America and the Middle East & Africa are expected to drive the market with growing product demand from packaging industry as a result of rising environmental concern and increasing urbanization.

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The global energy harvesting system market is expected to reach $659.6 billion by 2023, growing at a CAGR of 11.0% during 20182023. Growing measures to reduce carbon footprints, lower dependence on fossil fuels, rising adoption of IoT and big data, and growing demand for power-efficient systems are some of the major factors driving the growth of the market.

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Of all applications of energy harvesting systems, building and home automation has been contributing the highest revenue globally, with an estimated contribution of more than 35% in 2017. It is also expected to be the fastest growing category during the forecast period. This is due to rapid increase in implementation and installation of sensor-based technologies, and increase in demand for energy efficient power systems, from residential and commercial sectors.

Europe has been contributing the largest revenue share to the energy harvesting system market, followed by North America. It is mainly attributed to the rise in automation of buildings and homes, and rapid growth of the industrial automation sector in these regions.

Energy harvesting system market is developing well, and IoT and big data technologies have given it a real impetus. It is generally considered as the abstraction of operational power from the atmosphere to decrease the requirement of external power sources or batteries. Habitually, electricity is utilized to achieve some active sensing and interconnect the sensor data wirelessly over local area network (LAN) or wide-area network (WAN). In the coming years, millions or billions of devices are going to be connected to the internet. It is not surprising to allude that energy harvesting will be highly beneficial for IoT applications.

Energy-harvesting to drive wearable devices and ultra-low power devices, that comparatively require less amount of power than conventional sources. In 2017, a team of researchers at Georgia Institute of Technology developed the ways to produce mechanical energy from the movements of human body, not only in standalone devices but also by integrating technology into fabrics. The emergence of new energy harvesting techniques has been proven to drive energy in ultra-low power applications. This provides immense growth opportunities to the energy harvesting system market across the globe.

Explore report at: https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/energy-harvesting-market

Some of the key players in the energy harvesting system market are Arveni, Convergence Wireless, Cymbet Corporation, Powercast Corporation, Texas Instruments Incorporated, Fujitsu Group, ABB Ltd., Honeywell International Inc., STMicroelectronics N.V., EnOcean GmbH, Voltree Power, Inc., Bionic Power, Inc., Energy Partners, and Yantra Harvest Energy Private Limited.
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According to the new market research report by IndustryARC, titled Aquafeed Market By Ingredient (Corn, Soybean, Fish Oil); By Type (Natural Feed, Artificial Feed); By Animal Type (Salmon, Mollusks, Catfish, Others); By Additive Products (Amino Acids, Vitamins, Anti-biotic, Others) - Forecast (2018  2023), the market will be enhanced by growth in fish meat consumption due to the increase in the population worldwide.

Asia Pacific will lead the Aquafeed Market in the coming years. The growth of the aquaculture industry in China and India due to factors such as availability of raw materials, favorable climatic conditions for aquaculture and cheap labor will accelerate the market growth in Asia Pacific. Europe is expected to have a steady growth of aquafeed in the coming years due to the rising popularity of protein rich food among consumers in the region. North America will also experience higher growth due to the presence of established vendors in the future.

Selected Regulatory Analysis Done in the Full Report

Carps are the largest application segment in the aquafeed market. They are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and provide protein which is low in fat. The increasing consumer awareness about omega 3 health benefits will augment the demand for carps which, in turn, drives the growth of aquafeed. Mollusks and Crustaceans are the other segments in the market. Crustaceans such as shrimps, lobsters, crabs and mollusks such as oysters are being used as exotic food products. This factor also enhances the demand for the aquaculture feed during the forecast period.

Selected Driving Factors Mentioned in the Full Report

Growing demand for quality fish will drive the growth of the feed additives during the forecast period.

Growing consumption of sea food in European countries, such as, Norway and Germany will elevate the demand for shrimp feed.

Increasing government initiatives to support aquaculture and growing disposable income will spur the growth of animal nutrition during the forecast period.

Increasing focus on nutraceuticals, such as Omega 3 enriched products will create opportunities for aquafeed applications.

Request for table of contents of the full report @ https://industryarc.com/Report/15096/aquafeed-market.html

Key players of the Aquafeed Market

The companies which dominate the Aquafeed Market include Aller Aqua, Beneo Norel Animal Nutrition, BioMar A/S, Avanti Feeds Ltd. and Cermaq ASA. Aller Aqua produces fish feed for saltwater and freshwater aquaculture. It has branches in Denmark, Poland, Germany, Egypt, China and Zambia. Norel Animal Nutrition produces food ingredients for animal nutrition. BioMar A/S produces feed for shrimps and fishes. It provides feed for cold water species such as Salmon, trout, and cod. Avanti Feeds Ltd develops prawn culture.

The Aquafeed Market is Segmented as Below:

The increasing consumption of seafood will drive the growth of the Aquafeed Market.

Aquafeed Market By Type Natural Feeds Plants Animals Trash Food Others Artificial Feeds Medicines Vaccines Others

Aquafeed Market By Additive Products Amino Acids Vitamins Antibiotics Feed Acidifiers Antioxidants Feed Enzymes Others

Aquafeed Market By Aquatic Animal Type Salmon Molluscs Tilapia Catfish Carp Crustaceans Others

Aquafeed Market by geography(covers 15+ countries)

Aquafeed Market by entropy

Company profiles Aci Godrej Agrovet Pvt Ltd Addcon Group Gmbh Aller Aqua A/S Cp Aqua Culture Ltd De Heus BASF SE Beneo Gmbh Biomar A/S Evonik Industries Ewos Group Grobest Feeds Corporation Ltd. Nutreco N.V. Nutriad International Vega Pharma Limited Water Base Ltd Zeigler Bros., Inc.



Appendix: Abbreviations, Sources, Research Methodology, Bibliography, Compilation of Experts, Disclaimer.

Sample Report @ https://industryarc.com/pdfdownload.php?id=15096

What can you expect from the report?

The Aquafeed Market Report is prepared with the main agenda to cover the following 20 points:

1. Market Size by Product Categories

2. Market trends

3. Manufacturer Landscape

4. Distributor Landscape

5. Pricing Analysis

6. Top 10 End user Analysis

7. Product Benchmarking

8. Product Developments

9. Mergers & Acquisition Analysis

10. Patent Analysis

11. Demand Analysis (By Revenue & Volume )

12. Country level Analysis (15+)

13. Competitor Analysis

14. Market Shares Analysis

15. Value Chain Analysis

16. Supply Chain Analysis

17. Strategic Analysis

18. Current & Future Market Landscape Analysis

19. Opportunity Analysis

20. Revenue and Volume Analysis

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Simon Tam, head of wine at auction house, Christies Hong Kong, has warned that buyers in the US and Europe will not be able to compete with Asia when it comes to buying top quality wines in the future.

Tam was officiating over a wine tasting to launch the Stellenbosch Cabernet initiative in Cape Town on the eve of Cape 2018 (September 11). The purpose of the initiative from South Africas premium wine-producing region, was to establish that it can produce Cabernet Sauvignon wines that can compete with the best in the world.

At the tasting a range of Stellenbosch Cabs were matched against the likes of Pichon Longueville, Comtesse de Lalande, Leoville La Casses and Dominus from Californias Napa valley, all 2015.

As he officiated over the proceedings, Tam told of once being asked which soft drink went best with Chateau Petrus from the Bordeaux, one of the worlds most famous wine brands. It was decided Fanta went best with the 82 Petrus.

He said: When Asia takes off, there will not be anything left. He went on the criticise British buyers and retailers for chasing deals and suppressing prices. He predicted that they will lose their allocations.

In promoting the quality of Stellenbosch Cabernets compared to any others, when it comes to selling them, Tam exclaimed: I will bloody make it happen.

Certainly the wines from Le Riche, Rust en Vrede and Waterford, compared favourably against their more famous French and US Cabernets.

Tam was dismissive of South Africas other varieties. He said: Why Stellenbosch Cabernet? Cabernet is the king of cultivars. Stellenbosch has to put its best foot forward. Paarl is Shiraz-land. You could not do it with Merlot or Pinot Noir. Tons of Chenin do not count. As for Cinsault, Pinotage - seriously? They are not going to work."

Tams comments annoyed one of the participants, particularly in regards to Pinotage. Tam then claimed that Pinotage was not world class as are South Africa's Cabernets, and particularly Stellenboschs.

Tam challenged Stellenbosch producers to step up and take on the big guns of top Cabernets. Opportunities are made, he pronounced. They don't just happen. Cabernet is a cash cow. It needs to walk and roam, he said.

It is important to put quality first - on an international platform, Tam concluded.
SITT gears up for Autumn events in London and Leeds

The Specialist Importers Trade Tasting (SITT) will be visiting Leeds for the first time, following the success of this event in London, Bristol and Manchester.

The event was created with the aim of bringing together handcrafted wines from around the world, leading UK specialist importers and independent buyers from the off and on-trade.

This year the SITT Autumn event will take place in London on Monday September 24, with a second event in Leeds just two days later on the 26th. The Autumn events have been scheduled to help drinks buyers source their stock for Christmas.

SITT founder, Judy Kendrick, said: "SITT Autumn has one 'roving' location and I am thrilled that it is coming to Leeds. I hope all wine buyers in this vibrant city and surrounding areas will support and visit the Specialist importers Trade Tasting: it is a fantastic opportunity to experience one of the country's top wine tasting events with the UK's most knowledgeable wine importers."

At SITT London there will be a masterclass at 12pm, hosted by Dr Jamie Goode, with the theme: New York State Wines, Exploring the Finger Lakes and Long Island; and another at 3pm by Wines of Hungary, which will include a Hungarian Oak workshop and tasting. The masterclass will aim to highlight the differences in oak influence via a fascinating tasting which will review oak samples from across the globe.

The UKs 50 Best Indies will be announced after SITT London, and at both events there will be a free-pour zone, where buyers can freely taste the exhibitors highlighted wines.

Simon Evans, managing director The Naked Grape, said: There are many tasting events across the year but SITT is always top for me. There is no other event so well-suited to the independent wine merchant and thats why I always look forward to SITT.

And Gavin Smith, purchasing manager, The Vintner, said SITT London is, one of the essential tastings on the London circuit!.

SITT London will be held at HAC (one minute walk from Old Street and five minutes from Moorgate) on Monday September 24.

SITT Leeds will be at Aspire (three minutes walk from Leeds main railway station) on Wednesday September 26.

For more information about visiting, or details about how to exibit for SITT 2019, visit www.sittastings.com/contact-us.

Related articles:
Editorial

The rights of all are threatened

The government believes that the working class is not as united as it once was and the Australian Labor Party, in which so many workers have traditionally placed their trust, is torn by factional strife and the promotion of anti-worker policies. On many important issues, the right-wing ALP leadership agrees with the policies of the Liberal Coalition.

Employers have never let up in their attempts to weaken and destroy militant, class conscious trade unions.

The aim now is to destroy all unions.

The big corporate bosses are the driving force behind the coup-like push to entrench the fascist-minded right into the Liberal-National Coalition leadership.

This includes top-of-the-list priority to introduce total deregulation of the conditions covering the employment of workers.

The government plans include:

A further savage attack on awards and the complete removal of penalty rates for weekends and overtime

Reduce workers rights under enterprise agreements

Smash laws covering unfair dismissals

Wipe union right of entry provisions

Further curtail any ability to take strike action

Reduce annual and sick leave

Cut the minimum wage

Aggressive pushing of individual employment arrangements

Continue the attacks on unions, foremost shipping and construction

Undermine the existing State systems reducing workers rights, pay and conditions.

It is going to require the full might of a highly organised and united trade union movement along with support from the broader community and left and progressive organisations to defeat the employer offensive.

The Australian people have a great track record of standing up to attacks on democratic rights. Workers have rallied in huge numbers to defend democratic rights and to defeat attacks on them by the conservative forces.

These struggles include the Eureka Stockade, the struggles against conscription, the defeat of the cold war ban of the Communist Party, the 1967 yes vote in the referendum for Indigenous Australians to have the right to vote and to be counted in the census, the defeat of the infamous penal clauses imposed on the trade union movement which culminated in mass industrial action in 1969, the defeat of the attempt to destroy the Maritime Union in 1998.

The time has come to launch new struggles to defeat the attacks that are again being made against the trade union movement and the democratic rights of the people generally.

At the centre of this struggle must be the working class and its organisations. The trade unions must mobilise like never before without concern for craft or industry divisions or for individual gain. The rights of all are under severe attack.

The CPA is of the view that the building of a powerful united front of all trade unions and working class political parties and their supporters is needed to overcome these attacks on the trade union movement and the rights of workers. The union movement will be pivotal in building this united force.

A great educational campaign needs to be launched to explain what the government and employer policies of individualism, competition policy, choice and privatisation really mean and that on the other hand the trade union movement and workers organisations are built on collectivism, cooperation and mutual solidarity.

Industrial actions taken by workers need to be strongly supported by helping workers and unions establishing pickets, printing and distributing literature to other workers and the community, establishing support groups and fighting funds for striking workers and their families, and lobbying for the widest support from political parties and community organisations.

The formation of groups of activists to act in solidarity with workers who are under attack could help to reinforce pickets established by workers and their trade unions. A magnificent example was given by the huge community support for the MUA during its 1998 dispute with Patrick

Above all, it is necessary to bring about a united front of workers, trade unions and labour movement activists irrespective of political affiliation, all directed to defeat the governments dangerous offensive and implement policies that are in the interests of the working people.

The CPA strongly advocates these measures and declares its willingness to assist with its resources in every possible way.

The assault can be stopped if the initiative and creativity of workers is unleashed with the organised labour movement playing a central role.
Early childhood education

Biggest ever walk off

Seven thousand early childhood educators, from 350 centres across Australia walked off the job from lunchtime last Friday to call on the federal government to fund equal pay.

This was Australias biggest early education walk off. This is unprecedented action from the sector, and the fourth walk off in 18 months.

Educators are mobilising to send a message to the government. Times up. For too long the government has ignored and failed educators by not funding equal pay. Educators are making equal pay an election issue.

Queensland-based early childhood educator Kirstie Fildes says: We are qualified professionals doing crucial work in our childrens earliest years, yet we are paid as little as $22 an hour. Early childhood educators have had enough of this Government caring more about their own jobs than our work educating Australias next generation.

Time is up for this government, we need equal pay now. A responsible government would have funded this already.

We will be taking to the streets, holding political rallies in every state and territory to demand our politicians fund equal pay and recognise the importance of quality education. The current government has shown time and time again that they dont care about our work, and they refuse to address this issue. In the lead-up to the next election, whenever that may be, we will be out there.

Helen Gibbons, assistant national secretary of United Voice, the early childhood union and a former educator says, Times up on the sectors wages crisis. In 2018 its outrageous that Australias qualified early childhood educators are earning $22 an hour. The anger and frustration felt by educators has led to Australias biggest ever early education walk off today.

Today, Australias early childhood educators are taking to the streets. We are putting Scott Morrison and this government on notice. Times up on their inaction. Times up on this government.

Educators have an enormous responsibility and duty. They are shaping the future, one child at a time. Educators are highly skilled professionals who each have qualifications and work to a national curriculum.

Every time this government asks more of this workforce, to upskill, to meet national standards, they do it. Yet, despite meeting these demands, pay rates are too low compared to industries with equivalent qualifications. Its just not good enough for a feminised workforce to be facing such a staggering gender pay gap in 2018.

We are sick of the buck passing. The job of educating Australias young children is too important. Thats why educators are making equal pay an election issue. 100,000 educators will talk to millions of Australian parents about how this government has failed educators on equal pay. This government has not changed funding for early childhood educators. So we will change the government.

September 5 was Early Childhood Educators Day  a day to appreciate one of the most important jobs in Australia. And a reminder that we cannot have high quality early childhood education in Australia without equal pay. Australia is a wealthy country: we can afford a world class early education system.

Educators are walking off the job with the unwavering support of parents who have chosen to keep their children at home for the afternoon so that their educators can participate in the walk off. Educators fulfil a vital role in early education and families recognise that for this work pay rates should be higher and are supportive of the action. Families value the work educators do: childcare workers are stating that its time the government did too.

Educators are walking off with the support of parents and their centres. Parents and carers have been informed in advance about closures.

A new national workforce study has identified an alarming turnover rate of educators of 37 percent per annum. This is roughly double the national average and triple that of primary school teachers.

Turnover is higher in remote areas, at 45 percent. Such high turnover figures are of national concern. It is time for this government to show commitment to the workforce that delivers early learning outcomes and take responsibility for funding professional wages for educators.
EU myths and Greek reality

Sadly, the journey travelled by the Greek people since 2010 was not some Homeric odyssey, filled with adventure, but rather a living nightmare for millions of Greek people.

Greek pensioners chant anti-austerity slogans during a protest in central Athens.

In particular, Greek workers and their families, as well as small family farmers, have paid a very heavy price at the hands of both the Greek ruling class and their EU overseers in the form of the EU Program for Greece (similar to the Program for Ireland) imposed on the Greek working class.

Both policies were for making the working class pay for the crisis of the system and for them to shoulder the massive corporate debt. The economic crisis provided the pretext for an attack on the advances gained by workers in Europe over many decades. They just dusted off a strategy they had sitting on a shelf waiting the opportune moment to implement it.

All the schemes imposed by the European Union, the EU Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund are similar, with the same demands, requiring a similar outcome.

Yet they tell us the crises in all these countries are different, and are the product of government failures. How can this be so?

The Syriza government in Greece and the EU have portrayed the fact that Greece formally left the EU program at the end of August as a success story for both the Greek government and the EU strategy. Nothing could be further from the truth. But dont let the truth get in the way of a good bit of propaganda!

The Greek national debt now stands at approximately 295 billion, with interest payments of 18.66 billion per year. The share of national debt per citizen is 31,204, while the debt accounts for 186 percent of the countrys gross domestic product. Most of the outstanding debt is owed to the European Union:

European Financial Stability Mechanism and European Stability Mechanism: 168 billion

Euro-zone governments: 53 billion

Private investors: 34 billion

Greek government bondholders: 15 billion

EU Central Bank: 13 billion

IMF: 12 billion

The Greek economy is now 25 percent smaller than it was in 2010. Greek workers have indeed paid a heavy price.

The official unemployment figure stands at 20 percent.

One in ten of the population of working age has left the country.

Youth unemployment accounts for nearly 40 percent of those left in the country.

Average incomes have slumped by a third.

Successful state enterprises were bundled up as security for the bail-outs and have either been privatised or abolished.

Workers wages, terms and conditions have been cut to pieces.

The retirement age has been raised by ten years since 2009.

The average monthly wage has gone from 1,462 in 2011 to 1,060 in 2018.

The wages of low-skilled workers went from 1,080 per month to 747.

Many people, especially pensioners, decreased or stopped their daily medicine intake as as a result of reforms after 2012.

Life expectancy has gone down.

The Syriza government and the European Union have hailed the fact that Greece has officially left the EU bail-out program as a success. One has to ask, A success for whom? And at what price for workers and their families and communities?

Because Greece has officially left the EU-imposed austerity program, does it mean that austerity is over? Far from it. Greece is still burdened with massive socialised corporate debt. Successive governments gave priority to foreign private banks, bailing them out on the backs of working people.

In late June 2018 the Greek parliament was obliged to push through another batch of economic changes demanded by creditors, including further reductions in pensions and reforms of the health system and taxation.

George Papandreou, head of the PASOK government (equivalent to the Labour Party), signed up to the first memorandum with the troika of the EU, ECB, and IMF. This first bail-out was to save the zombie European banking system, mainly French and German banks exposed to defaulting Greek debt.

This was the same policy that the Irish government accepted when we bailed out the banks and took responsibility for 42 percent of European banking debt, to save the euro.

As the statistics show, the Greek working class was sacrificed at the behest of the European Union and the Greek ruling class. In other words, they were sacrificed to save a bankrupt economic system.

For the bail-outs had nothing to do with alleviating the economic condition of the mass of the Greek people. The second bail-out was to save the failing banking system, that is, to directly save the Greek ruling class.

The third bail-out, the one that the left charlatan Tsipras agreed to, was to push through privatisation, welfare cuts, assaults on workers rights and modernisation of the economy that PASOK could not achieve because of massive resistance by the Greek working class. In stepped the wolf in sheeps clothing: Syriza, headed by Tsipras.

Presenting themselves as friends of the working class, Syriza delivered what the first two agreements could not. While the government was imposing savage cuts in public spending  on schools, hospitals, and pensions  they increased military spending, at the behest of NATO and the EU.

Not alone were these policies a savage attack on workers, but democracy and national sovereignty were set aside. EU bureaucrats daily bullied the Greek people, bluntly stating that, to stay in the EU and remain within the euro zone, democracy and the democratic expressions of the peoples will, in the form of elections and referendums, had to be set aside.

The ECB banker Lucas Papademos, who became the unelected prime minister in 2011, and the former minister of finance Yannis Stournaras, who became governor of the Greek central bank in 2014, were nothing more than the local branch office of the EU Central Bank.

Working people should not understand these events or actions merely as those of a weak and vain leader. It was the weak and compromising response by Greek social democracy, similar to what has been done and is being done by social democratic and labour parties all over Europe.

Despite the severe battering of the last decade, the Greek working class has continued to fight back, thanks in no small measure to the resistance, courage and leadership shown by the Communist Party of Greece in its mass mobilisation and the leadership of the All-Workers Militant Front (PAME).

Here in Ireland, as we approach the tenth anniversary of the bank bail-out, it has to be repeated again and again: the debt imposed upon the Greek, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Irish people is simply unsustainable. All the so-called sacrifice has had little or no effect. The rich have got richer and working people are poorer.

Austerity has worked. It was always for the transfer of wealth from working people upwards to the rich and also outwards to fill the coffers of foreign banks. The Irish people were sacrificed to save the euro.

The Greek people may have formally left the memorandum period, but they will still be constrained by quarterly inspections from the EU and ECB to make sure they are still toeing the line. Their budget  like the Irish budget  will go to Berlin and Brussels first before we hear anything about what is in it.

Capitalism will be protected at all costs.

Socialist Voice
This blog may be a labor of love for me, but it takes a lot of effort, time and money. For over 14 years and 30,000 articles I have been providing accurate, original news that would have remained unnoticed. I've written hundreds of scoops and sometimes my reporting ends up making a real difference. I appreciate any donations you can give to keep this blog going.
Gazas medics always on duty

Since the beginning of the Great March of Return at the end of March, the Israeli military has left no doubt that it will not feel restrained in dealing with Gazas demonstrations. With rules of engagement that have left at least 125 demonstrators dead, more than 5,000 wounded by live fire, among them over 800 children, the message is clear: Protest and risk death and injury.

But even those not protesting are not safe. Israeli forces have killed two journalists and at least 90 have been injured. Three medics have also been killed.

Still they come: demonstrators, journalists and, of course, medics.

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, there have been at least 370 instances of paramedics being injured during the demonstrations and nearly 70 ambulances have sustained damage.

I believe in the saying, he who saves a life, saves all humanity, said 43-year-old Muhammad al-Hissi, a paramedic with two decades of experience.

Al-Hissi, now director of emergency medical services at the Palestine Red Crescent Society in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, is an ever-present figure at the demonstrations of the Great March of Return. And his 20 years on the job also make him a veteran of the entire second intifada and all three Israeli wars on Gaza.

He has the scars to prove it.

A sense of duty

He was first injured, he told The Electronic Intifada, in an Israeli airstrike 2002 that left him needing several surgeries to remove shrapnel from his right hand. In 2014, during Israels 51-day offensive on Gaza, he was injured again in the same hand in another airstrike, and this time needed a metal implant that he still carries around. And during the latest protests he was hit in the chest by a tear gas canister leaving him out of action for five days.

Yet he is not discouraged.

Our humanitarian work is greater than the Israeli occupation, al-Hissi said. A sense of duty, he said, carried him through the tear gas, the blood and rubble.

Its hard to save people from buildings that have been shelled. The rubble keeps coming down over our heads. When that happens, I try to remember the injured, and I decide to pull myself together, al-Hissi said. My job is to save peoples lives.

In the line of fire

Al-Hissi said he has been shocked at the number of casualties and not just among protesters. He has reached out to international organisations including the International Committee of the Red Cross and the World Health Organisation to help them pressure Israel not to target paramedics doing their jobs.

Among the many injured multiple times in the line of duty during the Great March of Return is Ibrahim Talalqa, 23. Talalqa volunteered in a civil defence medical services team for three years to become a certified paramedic.

He has been wounded three times in the past three months, most recently on August 3 when he was strafed by shrapnel while attending to an injured youth. The shrapnel, he said, came from an exploding bullet that detonated near his ambulance as it was approaching the injured person.

In Gaza, paramedics leave home not knowing if they will ever come back to their families, Talalqa said. He does his best to ease his familys concerns, he added. My mother worries about me, but she stands strong before me and supports my choice. When I get injured, I do not tell her until I am back home.

Talalqa remembers the May 14 protests as the worst  these also claimed the most casualties of any of the series of demonstrations to date. He was not wounded on this occasion, but it was close.

At one point, he had to crawl on his stomach to reach a youth who had been injured near the boundary. When he finally got there, he had to try to carry the young man, who had a chest injury, back to an ambulance. Yet he initially could not reach the ambulance because of the intense shooting. Talalqa ended up having to drop to the ground and wait with the wounded man until an ambulance could finally pick them both up.

Perhaps worse was when he saw a colleague shot in the leg as he was carrying an injured 12-year-old who was then again wounded with a shot in the back. Eventually the medical teams nearby succeeded in extricating both child and medic from the scene. Both survived.

Battle-hardened medics

Adel al-Masharawi is another veteran paramedic. The 41-year-old began in 2000 and says the situation has only become worse. He has fainted four times during the recent protests as a result of inhaling tear gas and is convinced that the chemical composition of the gas has changed over the years. He worries that too much exposure will result in future diseases.

But, like the other medics, he is determined to carry on.

We are part of the Palestinian struggle, he said. It is our duty to work and save lives whatever their injuries and where they may be.

It may be a duty for these battle-hardened medics, but those who are rescued will always be grateful.

On August 3, Bashar al-Muzaini, 18, found himself on the edge of the protests waving a flag and wearing the distinctive black-and-white Palestinian kuffiyeh. He and friends were staying at a distance of 500 metres from the boundary, a distance they thought would be safe. But at one point, as a thick cloud of tear gas descended on the group, al-Muzaini found himself alone, nauseous and disoriented.

Eventually al-Masharawi found his way to the confused youth, helping him get away from the gas and providing him with medicine to take away the nausea.

Al-Muzaini later realised that he had been lucky to escape only with tear gas poisoning. The area had been the site of heavy shooting while he was lost in the fog. But when he tried to thank al-Masharawi he was almost rebuffed.

When I went to thank the medic he told me this happened every day, al-Muzaini told The Electronic Intifada. I wasnt the first, and I wont be the last that he will rescue like this.

The Electronic Intifada
Culture & Life

Puerto Rico

Fatal negligence

SAN JUAN: The new Puerto Rico death toll estimate from Hurricane Maria a year ago  2,975, virtually equal to the number killed in the 9/11 attacks in 2001  comes as support is rising on Capitol Hill for eventually making the 3-million-person commonwealth the nations 51st state.

Inadequate infrastructure and hit-and-miss repairs currently leaves the islands residents vulnerable to the same nightmare they experienced almost a year ago.

But there are a lot of conditions attached to that effort.

Meanwhile, Puerto Ricos advocates, including Service Employees Local 32BJ, Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and UnidosUS are using the numbers to demand the Trump administration really get off its ass and help the island recover from the killer storm and follow-up Hurricane Irma.

The new push for action came after an independent investigation disclosed the new numbers.

The 2,975 dead include not just people who died in the immediate days following the devastating hurricane, but those who died later from inadequate medical care, storm-related diseases, unsanitary conditions, lack of transportation for care due to smashed roads, or after-effects of accidents and depression. And Puerto Ricos kids must still travel to damaged schools over unpaved roads a year after Maria, said AFT President Randi Weingarten.

This third independent study confirms yet again what we have known all along, that the federal governments attempt to downplay the severity of Hurricane Maria and lack of urgency in helping the people of Puerto Rico was lethal, said Melissa Mark-Viverito, campaign director for Power 4 Puerto Rico, the coalition which includes the unions, LCLAA and union-backed Make The Road New York.

If the (Trump) administration fails to learn from and act on these lessons, they will be guilty of fatal negligence, Mark-Viverito told an August 30 press conference on the island.

The people of Puerto Rico are nearly a year from when Hurricane Maria tore through their homes, families, and livelihoods, and we are only starting to get some of the answers as to why the federal and Puerto Rican governments responses were shamefully inadequate not only in preventing this tragedy but also in assessing its scale.

The study by physicians and investigative staffers from George Washington University in DC also confirms the need for a 9/11-style investigative commission to conduct a full accounting of why the federal and Puerto Rican governments were unable to save the lives of so many of our fellow citizens, Mark-Viverito said.

One big reason for the high death toll is that Maria left the islands already crumbling and creaky infrastructure  including its old and patched-up electrical grid  a wreck. Much of the island stayed without power for months after the storm, despite repair work from union volunteers. That killed people who depended on regular power to run their medical devices, such as a dialysis machine

And the roads were so blocked that patients needing to see doctors or get to clinics for care couldnt do so. Inadequate infrastructure and hit-and-miss repairs currently leaves the islands residents vulnerable to the same nightmare they experienced almost a year ago, the coalition added.

That gives a push to the statehood bill H.R.6246, which the islands non-voting congressional delegate, Republican Jennifer Gonzalez-Colon, filed earlier this year. Every day, we are closer to culminating the claim of the majority of Puerto Ricans who aspire to a worthy status on an equal treatment with their fellow citizens in the states, she said in a press conference in late August.

H.R.6246 would establish a congressional working group on Equality for American Citizens of Puerto Rico that will have 13 months to recommending amendments or repeal of laws that differentiate Puerto Rico from the mainland, temporary economic measures to help the Puerto Rican transition and studying the impact on Congress and the electoral college of admitting Puerto Rico to statehood.

The statehood bill is also a response to the federal governments inadequate response to the hurricanes devastation, congressional supporters said. Even the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which recently announced it would terminate housing aid to Puerto Ricans, admitted its response was inadequate, SEIU 32BJ President Hector Figueroa said last month.

The agency said that it didnt properly prepare for the storm and didnt provide enough supplies to Puerto Ricans, he told the Amsterdam News.

AFT President Weingarten, a New York City (Brooklyn) middle school history and civics teacher, said the new death figures reinforce the federal governments disastrous response to the hurricane.

Given the findings from the tragic report released by George Washington University, it is difficult not to conclude that this administrations response to Hurricane Maria was not just negligent, but malevolent. Hurricane Maria was a terrible natural disaster, but its death toll was worsened by the lack of a quick and adequate government response, she said.

We will honor the memory of those who died by demanding the federal government rebuild Puerto Rico to standards we expect as American citizens. And we will make sure the politicians who aided and abetted the administrations negligence are held accountable in November, she vowed.

Peoples World
Although Bush was no longer president, he happened to be in Kuwait that April to commemorate the victory over Iraq in the Gulf War. Also present were his former secretary of State, chief of staff, Treasury secretary, his wife, his daughter-in-law Laura Bush, and two of his dopey sons (George W. stayed in Texas, presumably unwilling to miss a single episode of Melrose Place). The plan was to blow up Bush's car in the parking lot of Kuwait University, using a Toyota Land Cruiser loaded with 180 pounds of explosives. Although the Iraqis fumbled Bush's itinerary, and were discovered by Kuwaiti authorities, if they'd managed to park the Land Cruiser "very close" to Bush's armored car, half the Bush family and White House staff would have become a fine mist.

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If that had happened, we're guessing the American response would have still a bit harsher than the 23 cruise missiles Bill Clinton launched two months later. Like, a few thousand missiles and bombs harsher.

We're talking a full-blown Iraq War during the 16-bit era, albeit under Clinton's leadership instead of Halliburton's. Would it have stabilized the region, or would it have been a bigger military disaster than Vietnam? Your guess is as good as ours. All we know is that the press would've been too distracted with Clinton avenging the Bush family to care how he rolled his cigars.
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Nine years after the bloody war against the Tiger rebels we still hear of violence taking place in some form in the north. Despite the rebels being completely wiped out and guns and bombs falling silent there is news from the north of sporadic attacks taking place using swords. At a time when hard earned peace is not valued it seems apt to review the book titled Thiyunu Asipathaka Sevana Yata-(Under the refuge of a deadly weapon)- the life story of ex-tiger rebel Thamilini Jeyakkumaran.

In the book Thamilinis story is penned by Swaminathan Wimal following a request made to the former by Dharmasiri Bandaranayake to rekindle the past she had with the LTTE. In the book Thamilini talks about the glories associated with the LTTE and how the dream of building a separate nation was shattered, largely due to the wrong decisions made by the rebel hierarchy. The ex-tiger rebel was battling cancer at the time she fed the author of the book with the information about the war and finally succumbed to the disease.

As one reads the 260-page book its evident that the LTTE never valued peace and even disliked the idea of promoting unity among communities. The organisations only vision was to build a separate nation and for that cause it laid down certain rules and regulations which the tiger rebels and the civilians had to adhere to even if they disliked them. Questioning the LTTE hierarchy and probing to find more information than what was provided was considered a crime within the organisation.

Thamilini, like other desperate Tamil women in the north, joined the organisation when order within the civil society was sent into oblivion due to the constant fighting between the Sri Lanka Army and the LTTE.





According to Tamilini the role of the women in the Tamil society had changed immensely with females joining the rebel movement

Her only ambition was to excel in studies and enter the university, but a cruel war put her on a path to disruption. Between 29th July in 1991 and 16th May in 2009 she saw the world through the eyes of a terrorist. The book tells us that she was largely used by the organisation for political propaganda work; given her oratory skills.

She rose swiftly within the ranks of the organsation and became the head of the womens political wing. However she recalls instances during which she realised certain flaws in the LTTEs decision making like imposing taxes on people and the forced recruitment of civilians to the organisation during the latter stages of the war. She says she was depressed when trying to find the answers to the question as to why a rebel organisation, fighting for the liberties of the Tamil people, had decided to use the same citizens as human shields when battling against the Government troops in Jaffna.

Change of womens role

According to Tamilini the role of the women in the Tamil society had changed immensely with females joining the rebel movement. The otherwise restricted role of women being housewives changed to one of importance with the gun-slinging women making their contribution towards building a separate homeland for the Tamil people.

Whether the rest of Sri Lanka likes it or not Tiger rebel Leader Velupillai Prabakaran had an immense presence and a commanding personality and was considered as a demi god, according to Thamilinis description of her leader in the book.

Even when the war intensified in the Wanni in 1999 and the Army was advancing, Thamilini stated that those within the organisation believed that Prabakaran had a solution for the problems that existed.

The book intricately describes the turning point in the whole conflict which was the closing of the Mavil Aru Reservoir by the LTTE in 2006. This move had adversely effected the Sinhalese farmers in the area. The Army then acquiring Mavil Aru pretty soon that year had dented the confidence of the rebels. The Government again closing the A 9 road and the war intensifying in 1999 had pushed the Tamil civilians from pillar to post.

According to Thamilinis description of the finals stages of the war she had managed to keep a sound mind which she says was helpful in taking some vital decisions.

This decision she says, pertaining to her, was taken after realising that the Tiger hierarchy had abandoned the remaining members of the organsation

Leaving the organisation

As the Army closed in on the Tigers she had valiantly tried to keep in contact with LTTEs Political leader Nadesan, but her efforts proved futile. It was then that she had given the order to the other cadres under her command to leave the organisation which she herself did eventually. This decision she says, pertaining to her, was taken after realising that the Tiger hierarchy had abandoned the remaining members of the organsation. These gripping chapters of the book give a glimpse into the mind of a honest lady who was true to her conscience.

The skills of the writer Wimal are best showcased in these chapters where the fall of a world renowned terrorist organisation is described in telling fashion.

The chapters in which Thamilini surrenders to the Army and spends her jail term underscores the fact that she was willing to undergo punishment for her wrongdoings. But the most important thing about the experience in jail is that she comes out keeping her head straight and wanting to see a new beginning to her life.

The rehab process she talks about in the book suggests that the Government of Sri Lanka had a solid plan to reform these ex-tiger rebels and make them fit into society again. Thamilini says in the book that she was surprised to see that people who were in charge of the rehab programme were not hostile to her.

In the book Thamilinis story is penned by Swaminathan Wimal following a request made to the former by Dharmasiri Bandaranayake to rekindle the past she had with the LTTE

Finishing the rehab programme she finds her future partner in life, Jeyakumaran. But destiny is not kind to her even during this stage of her life because she is diagnosed with cancer. Death swiftly takes her life despite receiving the best of treatment at the Maharagama Cancer Hospital. While helping pen her life story, Thamilanis request was to donate the proceeds of this book to the cancer hospital where she received treatment.
Sinhalese civilisation is nothing without the wewa. It was at once a repository of life and the foundation on which was built a great many marvels of engineering. And yet, from the time of Vijayas arrival until the flowering of the Anuradhapura kingdom, our rulers were content with building tanks to conserve the rainfall the villages received.

The flowering as such of Anuradhapura begins with the reign of Vasabha (AD 67-111), under whom a scheme encompassing 12 reservoirs and 12 canals facilitated the diversion (and not merely conservation) of water from the wewa, paving the path for large-scale irrigation works which became the cornerstone of our way of life.

I refer to this period as one of a flowering, or a gradual opening up of a new era, because the first seven centuries of the Anuradhapura kingdom, until Dhatusenas reign (AD 455-473), consolidated gains in the economic and cultural spheres. From Dhatusenas reign in the fifth century till the seventh and eighth centuries, according to Professor K. M. de Silva, the kingdom matured. There was political instability but that was limited to the occasional entry of Tamil mercenaries. (Not until Raja Raja Chola I captured power in Anuradhapura and with it two-thirds of the island in the eighth century, did those invasions become pivotal to the trajectory of our civilisation.) It is in the early period of the Anuradhapura kingdom, then, that the wewa and tank became identifiers of our civilisation.

Anuradhapura was the first real base of power of the Sinhalese. But even in its most formative years, it was prone to dynastic conflicts (between the Lambakannas and Moriyas) as well as sprouts of regional patriotism across the island. Unifying the country was, given this, more an aspiration than a reality, particularly since there was no real army with which such instability could be combated (apart from a small force which had among its ranks mercenaries from South India).

These were obvious disadvantages, and they would dent the kingdom. But it is to the credit of the Sinhalese that, despite the odds against them, they were able to construct a vast network of reservoirs, tanks, and canals buttressed by a device from the third century BC: the bisokotuwa, the inventors of which still havent been identified by scholars. This gap in our history, or the inability to source the foundation on which our hydraulic civilisation rests, no doubt led Western theorists to generalise our history rather erroneously. Among them, the Marxists.

it is to the credit of the Sinhalese that, despite the odds against them, they were able to construct a vast network of reservoirs, tanks, and canals buttressed by a device from the third century BC: the bisokotuwa, the inventors of which still havent been identified by scholars.

Both Marx and Engels wrote copiously on the Asiatic Mode of Production, which remains to this day a seminal part of Marxist literature. The AMP, as its referred to casually today, was for Marxist scholars very different to its European counterpart in that it depended for its perpetuation a rift between a powerful State and a society of vassals. The State exerted a monopoly over land and with it an unparalleled level of control over irrigation. Irrigation, therefore, was the most important determinant of such societies, which in later years were to be categorised as hydraulic empires and repositories of Oriental despotism. The writings of Karl Wittfogel are of particular interest here, since he coined if not popularised those two terms in his major work, Oriental Despotism: A Comparative Study of Total Power (first published in 1957).

Wittfogel lists down certain prerequisites to his theory of the relationship between irrigation and despotism in Asiatic societies. In particular, full aridity, hydraulic enterprises led by the State (a hydraulic bureaucracy), and staticity. He does not, curiously, mention Sri Lanka, which is just as well, since Sri Lanka and Burma were home to irrigation systems which rebelled against his theoretical framework.

And heres why. Sri Lanka was never fully arid (it was dependent on two seasons, alternating between rainfall and aridity). Its irrigation and hydraulic schemes were, while built from the centre, never really retained by it (the tanks, once completed, would sometimes be ceded to a private party, if not gifted to a monastery). Most importantly, it was never static, in the sense that except for the last few centuries of the Anuradhapura kingdom (when construction of tanks and reservoirs came to a standstill owing to diminishing trade), it continued to evolve, and sporadically so.

The truth is that the Marxists, like the Orientalists after them, attempted, without much success, to generalise the culture and mode of production in societies very different to theirs. It cannot be said that Marxists harboured a bias against Asiatic civilisations, but many of them were sceptical of the potential of those civilisations to grow out of their supposedly arrested stage of historical development. They consequently tended to view the hydraulic empire by which countries like Sri Lanka prospered as evidence of feudal totalitarianism, of a powerful State which wielded absolute power against its own subjects. When, of course, the reality was very different.

The Oriental despotism model assumed that once a civilisation was determined by those who had a monopoly over access to water, it would regress to if not remain in stasis. According to this view, land ownership was the preserve of the State. In Sri Lanka, this was not the case.

It has already been pointed out that the irrigation works of the Anuradhapura Era did not always revert to the State once they were completed. (To give just one example, it is said that after the completion of the Kala Wewa, Dhatusena ceded half its income to his brother.) But that is not all. In actual fact, there was never really a feudal system in Sri Lanka. While the principles of freehold tenure did not make inroads until the advent of the British, there are records which conclusively prove that a regime of private property was in place in Anuradhapura, which went hand in hand with the maturing of a hydraulic civilisation. Inscriptions from the ninth century AD, for instance, describe a kind of tenure called pamunu, which roughly correspond to the modern system of heritable right in perpetuity. After the ninth century, this gave way to the divel system, which effectively empowered a manorial class dependent on the patronage of the king. It was a definitive precursor to the rajakariya or free labour system, the closest to feudalism that Sinhalese civilisation came to.

And yet, even here, there was never really the kind of feudal aristocracy that was spreading itself out around the time in much of Europe. The prerequisites to such an aristocracy were simply not in place here. On the other hand, scholars like Bryce Ryan contend that the classes of land tenure here did correspond to the feudal regime which ran riot in Medieval Europe. In any case, whatever the conclusion, it cannot be held that the intricate system of tanks and reservoirs our kings pioneered was not based on land tenure, however different it may have been to its Western counterpart.

After the British annexed Kandy, the authorities, barring governors like Maitland and North who tried to continue the irrigation works (but failed), professed ignorance of and indifference towards agriculture. That was only to be expected, because having abolished the rajakariya system in 1832 and instituted minor courts in 1843, they had disturbed the foundation on which the agricultural life of this country had subsisted.

The ancient Sinhalese devised a legal system which, while largely oral, dispensed justice in a less bureaucratic manner than the British did. At the lower end of the hierarchy were the gamsabhawas, which was based on unity among the community, and from which one could resort to the ratasabhawa, state officials, and monarch. One characteristic of this hierarchy was that we never separated our legal system from our way of life, and we never secularised it as the British did. Owing to this, the irrigation works which nourished us were, barring the occasional period of neglect, kept alive.

So once the gamsabhawas were abolished through the establishment of minor courts, those works began to collapse. And why? Because the gamsabhawa centred on the vel vidane, who while a minor official, had the ability to marshal village labour towards the construction and repair of tanks and reservoirs. When the community was forcibly removed, with it went that official and the ability to marshal that labour.

Having noted the destruction they had facilitated through these minor courts, Henry Ward (Governor from 1855 to 1860) thus endeavoured with John Bailey (soon to be his own son-in-law) to revive the gamsabhawa by enacting the controversial Paddy Lands Irrigation Ordinance No. 9 in 1855. But while commendable, the Ordinance was short-lived: it achieved what it set out to achieve in terms of the amount of land cultivated, capped adequate returns, empowered communities, and was extended for another five years with the enactment of the Paddy Lands Irrigation Ordinance No 9 of 1861. And yet, despite this, Wards successor Charles McCarthy discontinued the grants-in-aid that had hitherto been extended to the project.

The truth was that despite Wards enthusiasm, the motives of the colonial authorities were different and vastly so: administrators were never interested in agricultural life. They were more concerned with setting up a plantation sector, through which they could squeeze profits more easily back to the centre of the Empire. With the British, as was expected, Sinhalese civilisation had, effectively and definitively, dried up.
It is praiseworthy that the editor has highlighted a burning issue with the above title in OUR THOUGHT in the DM issue of Tuesday 11th September. As stated quite rightly, the lack of trust on the peace efforts of the government during the past four decades is the principal cause of failure. Two Parliamentary Select Committees, one in 1984 and the other in 1994 failed in their task, despite the huge expenditure incurred.

The year 2015 saw the birth of two ministries, targeting national harmony. Three years has passed and are we anywhere near the target?

Apart from these two more bodies namely, the Office for National Unity and Reconciliation (ONUR) and Secretariat for Coordinating Reconciliation Mechanisms (SCRM) have been established for the same purpose.

Creation of entities will not serve the purpose unless the masses are mobilised. There should be mass scale activity towards reconciliation and every opportunity must be grabbed and availed of. It must be remembered that many an activity goes on at grass root level with the active participation of all nationalities and religious groups, hardly known to those at the helm of those entities created by the government. Those manning the government entities may not be very knowledgeable of the subject, as often they are selected not on their expertise but on other considerations and hence doomed to fail; being government entities, large sums of peoples hard earned money are allocated, which go down the drain. Not achieving the target jeopardizes the future of the nation too.

One such voluntary activity started about 35 years ago by Messrs Yogendra Duraisamy and Bogoda Premaratne, when on the occasion of the National New Year, people of all faiths and nationalities assembled at the Vajiraramaya Buddhist Temple in Bambalapitiya, after offering flowers and lighting lamps they march to the Kathiresan Hindu Kovil in Wellawatte, participate in the Pooja and disperse after fellowship; a tremendous show of harmony in society. This annual activity has gone on uninterrupted, to date. These should be encouraged in other parts of the country as well.

Big peraheras in Buddhist temples are organized and held colourfully with the help of people of all faiths in the respective areas. It is the same with big feasts in Christian churches. These activities need enhancement and encouragement from the government. We have even seen Muslims in certain areas organizing and participating in Danselas during Wesak and Poson.

The year 2015 saw the birth of two ministries, targeting national harmony

Even local temperance societies (amadyapa saba) with membership of all nationalities and faiths have existed, spread throughout the country, functioning for over half a century. If these are encouraged and empowered they would create a big impact. Instead what happens is that entities such as Mathata thitha and Presidential Task Force for drug abuse are created and stuffed with lackeys who lack sincerity and have no direction or vision pertaining to the task in hand, resulting in their failure and even abandonment midway, with loss of large sums of money voted for such activities. Our National Holidays too can be utilized meaningfully to achieve National Harmony. Of the 25 declared National Holidays each year, 23 are connected with events of Religious and National importance. If these holidays are re-structured and activity encouraged to enable everyone to participate in the commemoration of each others events, it would be a big leap in achieving harmony.

Language teaching/learning goes on in a big way, supposedly with the intention of creating harmony. What have we achieved? Sinhala people learn Tamil and Tamils learn Sinhala as stipulated by the government, in order to pass the proficiency bar; the matter ends there with them earning their proficiency and related salary increments. The language is forgotten soon after and does not in any way promote harmony. Instead there should be incentives for people to use the language in conversation; conversing in a language makes its study easy and brings the people closer too.

Lets give serious thought to build National Harmony. In this direction, no stone should be left unturned, lose no time, for it is only National Harmony that will ensure a united Sri Lanka, and a contented people.
Commemorating the 50th Death Anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.

Luther King Jr.

.Having a bitter experience of the thirty-year-old war, we have come to feel the need of national reconciliation. This has been so often expressed by the countrys present leaders. When discussing national reconciliation, Martin Luther King Jr., an American civil society activist, plays an important role in his views. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to look at how the education system of a country can be responded to in the exercise of national reconciliation.

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) was an American clergyman and Nobel Prize winner and one of the principal leaders of the American civil rights movement and a prominent advocate of nonviolent protest. Kings challenges to segregation and racial discrimination in the 1950s and 1960s helped to convince many white Americans to support the cause of civil rights in the United States. After his assassination in 1968, King became a symbol of protest in the struggle for racial justice.





They relate to educational content, language policy and teacher training





The most memorable speech of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., from his life as an activist, I Have a Dream, was delivered August 28, 1963 before more than 200,000 people in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. as part of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

The main message of the speech is that we should consolidate rights and freedom of human beings. It means every person in a society must be recognised as a human being and should have equal opportunities to education and other matters and the basis of reconciliation is equality and humanity. The sub messages of the speech are how important the principles of racial equality and nonviolent, social change, social justice, and human dignity to fulfilled Martin Luther Kings vision of the country as a place of true equality. Our world is becoming smaller and ever more interdependent with the rapid growth of technology and increasing contact between people and governments. In this light, it is important to reassess the rights and responsibilities of individuals, people and nations in relation to each other and to the world as a whole.

Kings was a vision of a completely integrated society, a community of love and justice wherein brotherhood would be a reality in all of social life. In his mind, such a community would be the ideal corporate expression Integration, as King understood it, is much more inclusive and positive than desegregation. Desegregation is essentially negative in that it eliminates discrimination whereas desegregation can be brought about by laws; integration requires a change in attitudes. It involves personal and social relationships that are created by love and these cannot be legislated. Once segregation has been abolished and desegregation accomplished, blacks and whites will have to learn to relate to each other across those non rational, psychological barriers which have traditionally separated them in their society. His assumption that human existence is social in nature, the solidarity of the human family is the most important factor. Liberalism and individualism provided its theoretical and philosophical foundations, and nonviolence the means to attain it. A Vision of Total Relatedness with a stagnant equality of sameness Stanza of the civil rights movements, the concept of brotherhood to a vision of total interrelatedness and meaningful relationships with other persons. The civil rights movement provides Justice for Everyone Obviously. The mankind of the future in this moment of luminous and genuine brotherhood In Kings view, the interrelatedness of human existence means that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.





How to respond to the ideas of Martin Luther King

The great majority of countries worldwide can be characterised as multi-ethnic or multi-cultural societies. Countries are either multi-ethnic because their societies are naturally composed of different ethnic group (majority and minority groups, including indigenous populations), or because they have experienced long-standing migration. Education systems within any country have been planed and constructed to forge identities and foster loyalties, but also have the potential or either easing or exacerbating ethnic conflict through the way, it is organized and delivered to different ethnic groups. The school is where life chances are distributed-often unequally and thus may either favour or hamper social mobility of different ethnic groups.





It is important to reassess the rights and responsibilities of individuals



This is why the policy forum explored three different models of organising education systems for addressing ethnic and cultural diversity in terms of their intellectual roots and philosophy, as well as their principles of organization and implementation: (a) the integration model where individual merit which was gained by personally, decides personal future; (b) the multicultural model whereby diverse groups  both migrant and indigenous  cultivate differences within the same unitary system in terms of language of instruction and ethnically sensitive content; and (c) the parallel model whereby different segments of the school system are designed to cater to different linguistic or ethnic groups.

These are the three particular areas where policy-makers and educational planers can make a difference in the context of multi-ethnicity. They relate to educational content, language policy and teacher training. With regard to educational content, the policy forum discussed whether there should be a single universal set of content for all students, or if there is room for specificity of content relating to the various ethnic groups. In other words, they need to be prepared for teaching in an environment that is very different from the one in which they themselves went to school, and one that is continually adapting to the changing demography.





The main message of the speech is that we should consolidate rights and freedom of human beings



Therefore, beyond the elaborate structures of system of education, a key consideration for democracies is the strength of education institutions to prevail over private or non-state actors, from corporations to warlords. Also, education is to have an impact on societies that face ethnic and cultural diversity, it is the society that has to consciously accept such diversity and work towards assimilating the diverse cultural and different ethnicities in to the main national stream and so only can have such societies to create a truly effective plural educational system. This is the only way to make the Dream of Martin Luther King, a reality.

(The writer is the Deputy Director of Education (Planning) at the Provincial Department of Education-Southern)
L-R Ms. Janet Hyde  Investment Specialist - Private Sector Operations Department, ADB,

Mr. Prasanna Premaratne - Vice President - Trade Services & International Remittances, DFCC Bank, Mr. Anton Arumugam - Vice President- Liabilities and Trade Business Development, DFCC Bank and Mr. Steven Beck  Head of Trade Supply Chain Finance, ADB.

DFCC Bank was bestowed with the Leading Partner Bank in Sri Lanka award by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) at its fourth annual Trade Finance Programme (TFP) Awards held on 4th September 2018 in Singapore. Over 200 guests from banks and other financial institutions around the world attended the event. The TFP Awards recognized 23 leading partner banks from 15 countries  with DFCC Bank being the only bank from Sri Lanka awarded at the ceremony. The TFP Awards was held on the first day of the Global Trade Review's annual conference in Singapore, GTR Asia Trade and Treasury Week 2018, one of Asias leading trade finance conferences.

Expressing his pleasure, CEO of DFCC Bank, Lakshman Silva said, DFCC Bank extends the full range of trade facilities for institutions ranging from small enterprises to large corporates, while boosting local industries to access new markets. Our tireless efforts have borne fruit, with a widening customer base for our trade finance services, which has been duly recognized at the Trade Finance Programme Awards held recently by the ADB. We thank ADB for partnering us in growing import and export activities in Sri Lanka. DFCC Bank is committed to growing its capacity to serve trade finance customers by leveraging on decades of experience in the area coupled with technology-backed innovative products that add real value for trade finance customers. We are committed to digitizing our trade finance products and services to empower our customers.

DFCC Banks International Trade Services offer all types of products and services for importers and exporters by facilitating import and export transactions to any bank of their buyers or suppliers choice, through a global network of over 400 correspondent banks located around the globe. Further details on the Banks trade finance services can be obtained by calling (011) 2 350 000.
Its politicians like Rajapaksa who through their greed for abusing power made the post of president look like something disastrous and harmful to the country (Photo AFP)

If one turns the pages of time, the president who abused his portfolio the most was Mahinda Rajapaksa



This is a country which encounters opposition on the way to establishing any change, whether its for the good or the bad



This amendment was all about arming the president with absolute power



President Sirisena was able to put a stop to certain questionable decisions by the Government ministers because of the executive powers bestowed upon him



The question arrises what if there comes to power a politician who wishes to follow in the footsteps of former President Rajapaksa?





Nine years after the bloody war and three years into the Yahapalana Government, Sri Lankans are still scratching their heads and looking for ways of putting this nation on a strong footing.

The countrys citizens have tried both the leading parties-the United National Party and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party- and now seem to realise that even a Government comprising members of both these parties has not delivered in keeping with the expectations of the people.

In this context the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) believes that the solution to all these ills the country is plagued with has been caused by the title of executive president. JVPs parliamentary member Vjitha Herath was quoted in the Daily Mirror this week stating that the post of president has caused for much damage to the country. According to Herath, the JVP has proposed the 20th Amendment to the Constitution which, if passed, will restrict the role of the president.

True. If one turns the pages of time, the president who abused his portfolio the most was Mahinda Rajapaksa who not only weakened the opposition, but also the judiciary and the media. He took the best advantage of being the executive president and initiated the passing of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution. This change allowed anybody to be the president of this country any number of times. This amendment was all about arming the president with absolute power. Its politicians like Rajapaksa who through their greed for abusing power made the post of president look like something disastrous and harmful to the country.

Just for the record, most of the past presidents of this country, including Rajapaksa, and even the incumbent head of state Maithripala Sirisena stressed the fact that they wished to abolish the presidency once they were voted into power. But these promises have never been kept and the presidents in power did realize as they served in this capacity that having so much power also made their task easier.

President Sirisena was able to put a stop to certain questionable decisions by the Government ministers because of the executive powers bestowed upon him. The scrapping of the decision taken to allow women the opportunity to purchase liquor and annulling of the decision taken to increase the salaries of Government ministers by some 200% were done with the speed of snapping a finger, thanks to the powers vested upon the executive president.

But still a large percentage of this countrys citizens believe that the powers vested upon the president is excessive. This nation might not have a president like Sirisena forever. The question arrises what if there comes to power a politician who wishes to follow in the footsteps of former President Rajapaksa? This is why people fear the powers that the executive president of this country exercises.

JVPs Herath has said that he believes that present President Sirisena would extend his support for the enacting of the 20th Amendment

The JVP has now proposed the 20th Amendment to the Constitution and presented it to the Constitutional Assembly with the view of reducing the powers of the president. According to JVPs proposal, the 20th Amendment will restrict the presidents role to that of overseeing the Provincial Councils. Herath has said that the proposed amendment was to reduce the powers of the president, but not to abolish the post in its entirety.

JVPs Herath has said that he believes that present President Sirisena would extend his support for the enacting of the 20th Amendment

The JVP claims that it has had discussions with the UNP and members of the opposition regarding the proposed amendment. The party believes it can obtain enough support to enact this amendment in parliament.

This is a country which encounters opposition on the way to establishing any change, whether its for the good or the bad. We have seen in the past how motorists reacted aggressively when new traffic laws were imposed to discipline drivers. This is how people, representing whats bad, respond to change. There is always opposition to something good thats to be introduced like a factory or a hotel in a village; projects which generate so much jobs and offer benefits.

JVPs Herath has said that he believes that present President Sirisena would extend his support for the enacting of the 20th Amendment. President Sirisena, after being sworn in as president, affirmed that Sri Lankans had got used to a slave mentality during the past regime and added that they should get used to the new freedom that he wished the country would embrace. But he warned that the slave mentality was one that is hard to break free from.

The Yahapalana Government is in the process of drafting a new Constitution and presenting it to Parliament. But all signs point towards this process taking some time before the law makers get to see this draft. The only thing discussed by law makers about this new Constitution is how it defines the status given

to Buddhism.

Sri Lanka needs to prune the powers of the executive president and enhance the authority of the premier. There are cries from the opposition that such a move would lead to Federalism being established in the country. Pivithuru Hela Urumayas Udaya Gammanpila has already filed a petition in Supreme Court asking for a referendum if the 20th Amendment is to be passed.

Given that Sri Lanka doesnt see any future leader being groomed to take over as president of this country, it seems wise to get the proposed 20th Amendment to the Constitution passed in Parliament and see the face of politics in the island change for the better.
iStock/Thinkstock(DOWNEY, Calif.) -- Police are responding to reports of a shooter at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Downey, California, in Los Angeles County, authorities said.



No injuries have been reported, authorities said.



One suspect has been detained, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office said.



Officers are searching the building room by room for evidence or more possible suspects, the sheriff's office said.



Those in the building are urged to shelter in place.



This story is developing. Please check back for more updates.

Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
The Movement for Protecting Driving School staged a protest today outside the Department of Motor Traffic against the Governments move to privatize the issue of driving licenses. Pix by Nimalsiri Edirisinghe


Heavy traffic has been reported from several areas in Colombo due to three separate protests, the Police said.

The road from Borella towards Narahenpita, was congested as a group of drivers from training schools have launched a protest outside the Department of Motor Traffic (RMV) against the privatization of driving licenses.

Police said Maitland Place in Colombo was also congested due to a protest carried out by a group of unemployed graduates demanding employment in the public sector near the Ministry of Public Administration.

Meanwhile, Lotus Road in Colombo is also congested due to a protest march by the Inter University Students Federation (IUSF).(Indika Sri Aravinda)

Video by Sanjeewa
Expert warns of systematic risks which could harm policyholders

IRCSL refuses to comment



Sri Lankas insurance industry regulator, the Insurance Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (IRCSL) has been operating without a permanent actuary or an actuarial consultant since last year, posing risks to policyholders, an Industry professional alleged.

Writing to the President of Sri Lanka, an industry professional on the condition of anonymity expressed industry concerns to the President, urging swift actions to avert a disaster. According to International Actuarial Association (IAS), the primary roles of actuaries are to identify financial and underwriting risks, maintain appropriate pricing and perform reserve analyses of insurance portfolios which contribute to maintaining the financial soundness of the carrier in order to protect the financial viability of the insurance sector, including the interests of the general public.



The Sri Lankan law (Insurance Act) requires long term insurance companies in Sri Lanka to retain the services of an actuary on full-time basis.



Even though insurance companies are required to retain an actuary, the institute regulating and overseeing these insurance companies is functioning without any actuary resources. The IRCSL has been operating without any actuarial resources for the last nine months. Is it allowed? Is it professional? the professional questioned.



When Mirror Business contacted the IRCSL Director General (DG) Damayanthi Fernando, she refused to comment on the matter.



IRCSL had been planning to setup an Actuarial Unit with 4 permanent positions recognising the fact that it was paramount that several actuarial personnel are employed on a full time basis in the organisation, given the important role they hold in the insurance industry. The first newspaper advertisement in this regard was published in February 2017.



The professional claimed that although there were suitable applicants, the posts remain vacant.



According to industry sources, IRCSL had various actuarial consultants both local and foreign until October 2017. Since then the IRCSL has had operated without even an actuarial consultant. However, the IRCSL hired an actuary for a specific project.



According to the professional, IRCSL earlier at a forum few months back stated that it would get an actuary through The new Financial Sector Modernization Project (FSMP) under the World Bank (WB).



It does not make sense that they are trying to appoint an actuary only through the WB project, as the in-house permanent actuary and the WB project actuary will have different roles.



But the IRCSL is not even appointing the actuary through WB project. Although, there are suitable qualified professionals, IRCSL is delaying appointing such a person. Why? Why are they delaying the appointment of suitable persons to both actuary roles? What about the Actuarial Unit? There are five positions to be filled, he pointed out.



He warned that in case an insurance firm becomes insolvent, the innocent policyholders could end up paying the price.



Actuaries play an important task in the modern insurance industry in identifying the systemically relevant insurance companies and measuring their systemic relevancem which is vital for financial system stability.



IRCSL is presently headed by Mano Tittawella who was appointed along with other new members of IRCSL in 2018.



(NF)
With suicide among students being a crisis in Sri Lanka also, the World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday marked the World Suicide Prevention Day and various events were organized by the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP). According to Sri Lankan newspaper reports, many Sri Lankan female students are known to be committing suicide or thinking of doing so because of the sadistic ragging they are tortured with when entering universities. Tragically those involved in this crime are mainly second year students, who because of some psychological disorder, want to sexually harass the first year students. This year in some universities first year students were reportedly forced to attend classes without wearing brassieres, the stress and tension are so severe that many parents say they prefer to even take a loan or mortgage property to send their daughters to foreign universities instead of allowing them to be sexually harassed in a crude manner.

Higher Education Minister Wijedasa Rajapakshe recently ran into a controversy by telling incoming female students to box in the ear those who try to sexually harass them. He said that suspension from the university and jail terms were among the options available to the government to deal with the crisis of ragging, which is one of the main causes of suicide.

With such sadistic ragging going on among university students, there is a grave concern over what sort of attitude the next generation would have when they take up highly placed jobs or even political positions. If new technology and modern standards are producing a sadistic generation, Sri Lanka needs to consider effective counter measures because it appears that many students are being influenced by sexual harassment and the worst form of pornography they have access to with a press of a button on their smart phones.

According to the WHO, a person dies every 40 seconds by suicide and up to 25 times as many again make a suicide attempt. There are also many more people who have been bereaved by suicide or have been close to someone who has made an attempt.

WHO says the projected global suicide rate for year 2020 is one in every 20 seconds. Suicide is now among the three leading causes of death among those aged 15-44 years. More males commit suicide while more females attempt.

While suicide is rapidly increasing around the world, delightfully in our small country, the suicide rate has greatly reduced from an alarmingly high of 47 per 100,000 population in 1995 to a rate of about 15, according to Sri Lanka Sumithrayo, one of the main movements involved in counseling to prevent suicides.

Although this reduction gives reason to be pleased the rate is still high, and yet more disturbing is the number of attempts which is 10 to 20 times more and steadily on the rise. Death by suicide is more common in the rural areas where agricultural chemicals are readily available, despite great attempts made with respect to use of less toxic chemicals and safe storage.

This brings our focus to the ever-present causes of suicide and the need to be aware, more attentive and concerned about those who may have suicidal feelings, Sumithrayo adds.

Taking a minute to reach out to someone in your community  a family member, friend, colleague or even a stranger  could change the course of anothers life. Individuals who have survived a suicide attempt have much to teach us about how the words and actions of others can be important, and many of them are now working as advocates for suicide prevention and have informed resources which are now readily available, WHO says in giving the positive dimension of this crisis.

According to the WHO people are often reluctant to intervene, for many reasons, including a fear of not knowing what to say. It is important to remember, there is no specific formula. Empathy, compassion, genuine concern, knowledge of resources and a desire to help are key to preventing a tragedy. Another factor that prevents individuals from intervening is the worry of making the situation worse. This hesitance is understandable as suicide is a difficult issue to address, accompanied by a myth that suggests talking about it may instigate vulnerable individuals to contemplate the idea or trigger the act. Evidence suggests that this is not the case. The offer of support and a listening ear are more likely to reduce distress, as opposed to exacerbating it, the WHO says.
SAGT Chief Executive Officer Romesh David exchanging the partnership agreement with Mobitel Chief Executive Officer Nalin Perera. Also present were (from left) Mobitel Head of Business Solutions Chamith Hettiarachchi, SAGT General Manager Information Technology Chinthaka Abeynaike, Mobitel General Manager Enterprise Business Prabhath Gamage, Mobitel Head of Enterprise Sales Ravi Sivasithamparam and Mobitel Account Manager Enterprise Business Asela Kariyawasam.

Mobitel, the National Mobile Service Provider was selected by the South Asia Gateway Terminals (Pvt) Ltd (SAGT), a leading container terminal operator in Sri Lanka, as its trusted provider of mission critical communications. This collaboration is even more significant for Mobitel, because this is the first-ever mission critical secure communication network implemented in Sri Lanka, with Mobitel being the sole technical partner for SAGT. After designing and implementing the system, it is currently managing the network on behalf of SAGT.

As part of this exciting partnership, Mobitel has delivered a communication system based on the ubiquitous LTE technology, which it customised for SAGTs mission critical communications within the shipping port. In doing so, Mobitel ensured SAGT benefitted from the advantages of deploying the world-renowned 3GPP standardised LTE technology. Some of the benefits accrued to SAGT as a result are mass market device availability at significantly lower costs, utilisation of licensed spectrum ensuring the network is safeguarded from radio frequency interference, proven network security and secure communications, and alignment with Mobitels 25-year experience in operations.

Mobitel has firmly positioned itself as an Innovator and as the National Mobile Service Provider, it is driving Sri Lankas ICT transformation. Mobitels march on its strategic path is ever more apparent in the solution it has deployed for SAGT. Ensuring mission critical services over LTE required Mobitel to specifically optimise service reliability within the geographic boundaries of the port, while increasing bandwidth and redesigning the network for reduced latency, a key parameter for mission critical services.

As the National Mobile Service Provider, the company has put its We Care. Always. promise into operation by institutionalizing the same in its strategic organizational framework. The innovative customisation of Mobitels globally acclaimed LTE network has resulted in improved productivity of the port operations owing to Mobitels unparalleled service reliability.

This solution was customized for SAGT by Mobitel Business Solutions (MBS), which is a dedicated division of Mobitel formulated to cater the corporate clients with unique ICT solutions embraced with mobile technologies to realize their fullest business potential. MBS could be contacted on 0711 717171 or via email: mbs@mobitel.lk
Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa who is in India has said his brother is certainly a contender for presidential poll in 2019 but the SLPP and the coalition will have to decide who the people want.

In an interview with the Hindu, Mr. Rajapaksa said his son Namal Rajapaksa cant be a presidential candidate since the government has now raised the minimum age to 35 years instead of 30.

So Namal cant be considered in 2019. My brother is certainly a contender, but the party and the coalition will have to decide who the people want, he said upon asking whether the next presidential candidate of SLPP will be a member of the Rajapaksa family or someone outside of it.

When asked who would lead the SLPP into elections in 2019, Mr.Rajapaksa said he would lead the party.

There is a view that despite the Amendment I can fight elections and then fight it out in court. But I still have to decide whether to take that risk. Another option is to announce a candidate acceptable to all, he said.

When asked about his opinion on whether the LTTE cadres who were convicted for Rajiv Gandhis assassination should be released, he said he has no view on the matter.

It is up to the Indian government, it is an internal matter for India. If this was in Sri Lanka we would have taken a different line. But how can I say anything when the issue is in India?, he said.

Meanwhile, he said India and his political camp had a lot of misunderstandings just before and after the elections in 2015.

Now of course, I think it is about time to move on. However, no one should meddle with somebody elses elections. It is an internal matter of a country whom the people decide to bring to power. I think now they all have understood what went wrong at that time and what they did. So we need to forget about the past. This is the time to move forward and look forward, he said.

Commenting on the allegations that he had accepted campaign funds from Chinese companies, Mr. Rajapaksa said China did not fund him.

This is what people talk about because this government has nothing else to accuse us of. When they came to power, they were looking for my $18 billion, but they are still looking for it (laughs) despite the help of the US and other countries. They havent even found a dollar, he said.

He also said Sri Lanka could have settled the loans his government obtained but the Sirisena government has messed things up.

For the Colombo Port City, we didnt have to pay anything, it was a contract sharing arrangement, where they got a share of the land they developed. At the time of the Hambantota port deal, our debt from China was less than our debt from the US and other countries and debt-to-GDP ratio was under control. So if the problem has grown now, and the government has not managed it, then how can you blame us?, he said.




Nagananda Kodituwakku, a public interest litigator, has drafted a constitution for Sri Lanka. It would be the Third Republican Constitution since Independence if it moves from the draft, through discussion, and amendment (if necessary) to ultimate replacement of the Second Republican Constitution and its amendments.

He has detailed sweeping changes in judicial, executive and legislative powers, treaty obligation, size of parliament and cabinet, parliamentary privileges, election system, the right of recall as well as transitional provisions. We need to salute this indefatigable fighter for citizens rights, true representation and accountability for the efforts expended in drafting this document. It deserves perusal and discussion.

The British reneged on the agreement inked in the form of the Kandyan Convention with respect to the status of Buddhism



What needs to be understood here is that recalling history is a dangerous game and if such correction is the norm constitutions would have to be constantly amended as per changing demographic realities

Now a republic can be defined as a state in which supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives and which has a leader who is elected rather than a monarch. Given diversities of all kinds, a leadership of a republic should ideally be representative of that diversity or at least sensitive to it. Typically its the majority sway that finds expression in the governments that are elected. The majority can take many forms and where identity has sway there should be checks and balances to ensure that this edge does not slide to a tyranny where those who dont make up the majority are not reduced to lesser citizens in any way.

Also, it must be understood that citizens are not entities without culture, philosophy and identity. Representation, therefore, gets inscribed by all this. This is why majorities mark the state one way or the other. Such things can be legislated out of course, but then we need to have a different definition of republic.

That said, lets get to the secular-wish of Kodituwakkus proposal. He has been bold and clear and this is good. Also, let us not rush to think that he is proposing just a word-change. Constitutions give direction. Key elements such as secularism would obviously require amendment and/or repeal of any articles in order to keep intact the integrity of the notion. Governments obtain from these and proceed to amend policies to affirm the constitution.

This is what the summary which he has made public recently says:

[There will be] strict anti-racial [and anti-]discrimination laws with severe penal sanctions against any form of discrimination, guaranteeing human dignity, self-esteem and respect would be guaranteed to every citizen. He adds: Every citizen is identified as a Sri Lankan only and any reference made to race or religion in any instrument will be cancelled forthwith and no Sri Lankan shall be compelled to declare his/her race or religion.

Theres a rider that might cause some problems, though: Every citizen will be required to respect the culture, religion, rights and freedom of other social groups and to further national interest and the national unity.

The problem is this: religions and therefore religious practices, depending on the religion and the practice, of course, can by definition infringe on other religious communities and their rights. In other words religions can spill outside the particular religious body; for example, those religions which consider proselytization an article of faith or whose religious texts define religious others as infidels who need to be eliminated by any means necessary. Where do we draw the line and who decides a) if lines should be drawn and b) what these lines are? The questions raised will be hard, but they need to be raised and addressed.

It might help to consider certain scenarios that exist and/or are recommended. There are some, for example, who claim that injustices should be remedied. The British reneged on the agreement inked in the form of the Kandyan Convention with respect to the status of Buddhism. A correction would mean that we need to reaffirm the particular article. Some might say this was done via Article 9, i.e. Buddhism being conferred the foremost place and the State required to protect and foster the Buddha Sasana. However, it can be argued that this special status is immediately and effectively negated by Articles 10 and 14(1)(e). What needs to be understood here is that recalling history is a dangerous game and if such correction is the norm constitutions would have to be constantly amended as per changing demographic realities. If, for example, theres some kind of mass slaughter of a particular religious community (and we have seen this happen), someone might say, now go ahead and legislate for the changed reality! An extreme example is given here to illustrate the point: Buddhists can ethnically cleanse the island of Hindus, Christians and Muslims, or Muslims can eliminate those of other religious faiths. What then of true republicanism? What then of the secular wish?

We can defer such things to such a tragic eventuality of course. What we cannot defer is the non-secular interventions of the state in a would-be secular state.

Here are some of the questions that secularists would have to address:

In a secular state enacted through constitutional reform on the lines proposed by Kodituwakku and others, can there be more than one system of law, i.e. special laws for particular religious communities? If theres going to be one law for everyone (as proposed), what then of customary law? Will Thesavalamai Law, Kandyan Marriage Law, aspects of Sharia Law embedded in the Constitution be repealed?

What is required then is a system of rationalization. A Christian friend mentioned one irrationality (and this is not about secularization): Ours is a religion that sanctions wine in the church itself, but liquor shops are closed for Christmas which is a day of celebration and not Easter, a day for abstinence, penitence and general reflection.

There need not be bo leaves on the national flag because that would be Buddhist. The Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act will have to be repealed. All legislation, as well as other written and unwritten understandings for religious exceptions for Muslims during Ramadan and in the event of widowhood, divorce and childbirth, would have to be removed.

Note also that provisions enabling Christian and Catholic priests to function as marriage registrars would have to be abolished. If the state requires to recognize such unions priests shouldnt be allowed any part in the matter.

That would not mean of course that religious practices are outlawed, but just that no one can make any claim on the state for special privileges.

If you want to keep all that because thats how it has always been then we immediately make room for historical claims and with it we cannot leave out the articles in the Kandyan Convention.

The issue is this: are we really serious about secularism? Will secularists respond? Whether they do or do not, the following must comment Nagananda Kodituwakku, Rohan Pallewatte, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Patali Champika Ranawaka, Ranil Wickremesinghe, Maithripala Sirisena and any other individual entertaining hopes of becoming the next President of Sri Lanka.
Following the Ethnic conflict in the Rakhine state in Myanmar,Rohingya refugees have found Coxs Bazaar in Bangaladesh a safe haven. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the refugee camps around Coxs Bazaar homes the worlds largest refugee camp.The influx is said to be the worlds fastest growing refugee crisis with the UN describing the situation in Rakhine, as a textbook example of ethnic cleansing.

 Various health issues have inevitably cropped up in Coxs Bazaar owing to the conditions in the camps and the heavy monsoon. Against this backdrop Dr. Padmini Perera from the World Health Organization (WHO) Country Office in Sri Lanka assisted in providing the technical expertise required for providing health services.

She has worked in the area of emergency preparedness since 2010, initially at the Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka and now at the WHO Country Office. In an interview with the Daily Mirror, Dr.Perera shared her experience of working in Coxs Bazaar during a recent three week visit there. She gave an insight into the health issues prevalent and how the WHO contributed in maximizing the health services provided. She said that the refugee influx in Coxs Bazaar was a Grade 3 emergency that required a massive response.

Excerpts of the interview:

Q To start off- what were your initial observations of the situation in Coxs Bazaar?

I had to lead the health operation team in the Coxs Bazaar field office. We had around 11 people working in the health operations team and we worked along with the Epidemiology, Admin and logistics teams in the WHO field office. WHO has an Operations Plan for the response and my task was to streamline the work in line with the Operations Plan.

This was all a continuation of the services that have been provided by the WHO since the start of the influx in 2017. This time the conditions were far more settled than last time when I went there in December last year. Last time when I was there, there was an outbreak of diphtheria.

The WHO has a way of classifying the emergencies as ungraded, Grade 1, Grade 2 and Grade 3. This is a Grade 3 emergency where a massive response is required. Its not easy to provide health services to 1 million refugees. There are many barriers including language barriers. They speak a different language which is neither Bengali nor the language spoken in Coxs Bazaar.

I was anticipating most of the problems. Its the same kind of things that crop up at any emergency. The context is different, but its the same issues that come out.

Sri Lanka has a very strong healthcare delivery network. The public health network is very much in place to make sure that any person in the country can be reached

Q What were the main health issues that arose?

One main issue was the spread of communicable diseases. Then there were issues related to water, sanitation and hygiene. There were quite a few camps and they were cramped up. There were a lot of partners working in the field trying to improve the situation.

Q There was limited funding and the circumstances were obviously dire. How challenging was it to treat refugees?

WHO is the cluster lead for health emergencies globally. We provide the technical lead. We support the development of plans, protocols, and provide guidance to partners. We are also involved in monitoring and the evaluation of health services in the field along with the other health partners. WHO doesnt directly provide patient care in the field. There are almost 100 other health partners like MSF, UNICEF, UNFPA, Brac which is a local NGO, the Red Cross, the Red Crescent etc.

Q Did you interact with the refugees while working there?

My task was to provide technical guidance to the health operations team coordinating with the other technical teams and also other health partners. I was not directly involved in interactions with the refugees.

Q The press release issued by the WHO states that cholera was prevented this time and that measles and diphtheria were curtailed. How was the WHO instrumental in this?

It was through the immunization campaigns. We had around three rounds of vaccination for cholera. It was the same with diphtheria. We had several rounds of diphtheria vaccination. So we were able to curtail the diphtheria outbreak. There were no reported cases of cholera. But due to the camp conditions there, the cholera vaccine was given. The WHO planned the immunization programme together with the other health partners and the Ministry of Health of Bangaladesh.

Q In terms of emergency preparedness how do you think the Sri Lankan health sector can improve taking into account the experiences of working in Bangladesh?

Sri Lanka has a very strong healthcare delivery network. The public health network is very much in place to make sure that any person in the country can be reached. Even in disasters and emergencies we use the same network. Having such a resilient and strong system has been a plus point. We also have a well-trained health staff. In addition we have the national disaster management framework and all stakeholders support each other for any emergency.

Q How did your experiences of working in emergency situations in Sri Lanka assist you during your time in Coxs Bazaar?

It was easier for me to understand the challenges in the field and also what the needs would be. That helped a lot.

Q Apart from dealing with disease outbreaks, how has the WHO been able to deal with the psychological state of the Rohingya refugees?

It was through the mental health and psycho-social support programme. In Bangladesh it is led by Action Against Hunger (ACF), which is an international NGO which is the lead for mental health and psycho-social support. WHO provides the technical leadership to the partners in Coxs Bazaar.

Q Seventy percent of births are taking place outside health facilities. What measures has the WHO taken to encourage people to access sexual and reproductive health in Coxs Bazaar?

UNFPA leads the sexual and reproductive health technical programme. All partners in that particular group as well as the health sector has been working towards improving peoples understanding of the services available. You have over 200 health posts. Not all have labour facilities, but still, there is a good network. What we want to promote is for people to access these places, and not just stay at home (camps). We encourage people mainly through awareness by urging them to come to maternity clinics etc.

I had to lead the health operation team in the Coxs Bazaar field office. We had around 11 people working in the health operations team and we worked along with the Epidemiology, Admin and logistics teams

Q Are there adequate sanitary facilities?

You have adequate numbers. You have adequate sources of water. But the problem is the quality. WHO is working with the partners on water quality assessment in the field.

Q Do refugee children have access to education?



Now they have schools. There is an education cluster which is working in the field providing education to the children.

Q Whats the specialty of the early warning alert and response system thats established there?



WHO has established the Early Warning and Response System (EWARS) in the camp settling. You get alerts from the health posts on communicable diseases.

If there is a communicable disease that is reported with a potential for an outbreak, the WHO along with other partners immediately sends a team to investigate and assure that measures are taken to prevent further spread.

For example, if its a watery diarrhea case, we dont know whether its just watery diarrhea or cholera. So you go to the field immediately and investigate, and do some active case finding- to see if there are more cases. Then we take remedial measures and make sure it doesnt spread beyond that particular point.

Q Do you have any memorable experiences from your time there which you would like to share?

The thing which struck me most was visiting the Coxs Bazaar laboratory. The last time I was there we were working towards establishing a field laboratory.

The second time I went there it was functioning and it is so close to the camps. It contributes much to the health service delivery in the field, especially in the area of communicable diseases. It was really a pleasant experience visiting the functioning lab which we were working towards several months back.

Q Any constraints you faced?

Any emergency context has so many challenges and this is a situation involving refugees and not a situation with internally displaced individuals. There are many social and political issues involved.

This added that extra layer of complexity to providing health services in the field which was quite a challenge. The partners are doing a good job considering the difficult conditions and WHO is providing technical assistance to ensure that the best possible healthcare is given in the field.

Pix by - Damith Wickramasinghe
Kala Madam from the North who got into hot water by publicly yearning for the return of the Tigers had to face yet another predicament the other day, they say.



This happened at a public meeting held to mark the opening of a new law court in Kilinochchi.



Kala Madam well ahead of the function which was to be attended by a dozen of distinguished guests including the top team member for justice and the chief of the apex judiciary, had asked the organizers to reserve a seat for her in the front row itself and to include a special talk by her as an important item in the agenda of the function.



However, the organizers had told Kala Madam who is incidentally involved in a legal issue as well, that there was no possibility for accommodating her in the front row. Undeterred she had made the request to the top team member for justice, but the latters request to the organizers on behalf of Kala Madam had too failed to get a positive response.



So, Kala Madam had to sulk in a back seat on the stage throughout the proceedings, they say.
The moment you see those tiny little hands, small feet and cute little eyes looking at you, is a moment of happiness beyond description. The birth of a child is surely a significant occasion in any parents life, and from that point onwards every parent envisions the best for their little one, including establishing a sound financial foundation. To help achieve this and much more for your bundle of joy, Amana Bank is joining in celebrating this joyous occasion by gifting your little one a Childrens Savings Account with a pre-loaded balance of Rs 500/, encouraging the habit of savings for both the parent and the child from a very young age.

Through this promotion, Amana Bank is not only limiting its rewards to parents with new born children, but is also extending this reward to all parents with children below the age of 2 years, giving them the opportunity to experience savings from their childhood. To benefit from this promotion parents orguardians can walk into any Amana Bank branch with a copy of the birth certificate of the child andobtain the gift of a new childrens savings account, with a pre-loaded deposit of Rs. 500 on or before 31 December 2018. The Bank also offers an attractive gift scheme on the basis of how much their account is grown during a given period.

Commenting on this promotion, the Banks Vice President Retail Banking and Marketing Siddeeque Akbar said This program is to encourage parents to prioritize early savings for their new born which in future would be very beneficial for the parents aswell as the new born in achieving their dreams.

Amana Bank is the countrys first and only Licensed Commercial Bank to operate in complete harmony with the globally growing non-interest based banking model. With the mission of Enabling Growth and Enriching Lives, the Bank reaches out to its customers through a growing network of 29 branches, 14 Self Banking Centres and 4000+ ATM access points and has introduced an array of customer conveniences such as Internet & Mobile Banking, Debit Card with SMS alerts, Online Account Opening, 365 Day Banking, Saturday Banking, Extended Banking Hours, 24x7 Cash Deposit Machines and Banking Units Exclusively for Ladies.

Amana Bank PLC is a stand-alone institution licensed by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka and listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange with Jeddah based IDB Group being the principal shareholder having a 29.97% stake of the Bank. The IDB Group is a AAA rated multilateral development financial institution with an authorized capital base of over USD 150 Billion which has a membership of 57 countries. Fitch Ratings, in June 2018, affirmed Amana Banks National Long Term Rating of BB(lka) while upgrading its outlook to Positive from Stable. Amana Bank does not have any subsidiaries, associates or affiliated institutions representing the Bank.
The Ministry of Petroleum Resources Development has called for Requests for Qualification (RFQ) to issue new licences to import, export, supply, blend and distribute lubricants with certain barriers under the third round of lubricant industry liberalisation.



The interested parties, either local or international who intend to blend or produce lubricants and grease in Sri Lanka are required to possess at least 5-years of experience in the lubricant business while showcasing the ability to invest a minimum of US$5 million, according to the RFQ published on the Ministry of Petroleum Resources Development webpage.

In order to apply for license to import, export, supply, distribute lubricants and greases, the firms are required to show their ability to invest a minimum of US$1 million.

The Ministry of Petroleum Resources Development noted that there is a greater potential for such exports, especially in view of bi/multi-lateral concessionary trade agreements between Sri Lanka and other countries.



Petroleum Resources Development Ministry Secretary Upali Marasinghe earlier told Mirror Business that the number of new licences to be issued would depend on the soundness of the proposals.



During the year 2017, lubricants (automotive, marine and industrial) sales amounted to 64,485 Kilo Litres at a value of Rs. 26.5 billion.



The automotive, industrial, marine and other (including greases) lubricant sales accounted for approximately 72.58 percent, 16.48 percent, 6.45 percent and 4.49 percent of the market amounting to Rs. 19.7 billion, Rs. 3.6 billion, Rs. 1.5 billion and Rs. 1.78 billion respectively. During this period, approximately 45,367 Kilo Litres were blended locally, while approximately 24,740 Kilo Litres were imported as finished products. In addition, during the same period, 4,568 Kilo Litres of Lubricants were exported to regional markets.



Sri Lanka has 13 market players and 22 authorized lubricant brands, while around 70 percent of the lubricant market is served by 10 licence holders.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is in Vietnam, has said he didn't believe that Sri Lanka was falling into a debt trap caused by high-interest Chinese loans.

On the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN in Hanoi on Tuesday, Mr. Wickremesinghe has told the CNBC that,We are dealing with China. There are a fair amount of Chinese investments. There are China loansI can't see it as a threat,

The Premier has also denied the often cited claim that Sri Lanka was ceding control of strategically vital ports to Chinese control.

He has said the government inherited debt racked up through the mismanagement of the prior administration.

"We took over the government and stabilized the economy ... they ran away, we were the only ones left," he said.

Meanwhile, he said Sri Lanka is not under "threat" from growing China-US trade tensions, despite Sri Lankas reliance on Chinese investment.

Despite concerns voiced earlier this month by ratings agency Fitch about a "challenging" external debt servicing outlook and political uncertainty following regional polls, Mr. Wickremesinghe has said he didn't believe Sri Lankan sovereign bonds were on the verge of a downgrade.

"We and many others are running deficits in Asia and that certainly would be a matter of concern, but so far we have been able to negotiate with the rating agencies and it has certainly not affected our borrowing capacity," he said.

Japanese bank Nomura Holdings on Monday identified Sri Lanka as one of 30 emerging markets most susceptible to an exchange rate crisis, a claim vehemently denied by Sri Lanka's central bank and Mr.Wickremesinghe, who called it "false."

Sri Lanka, bailed out by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 2009 and mid-2016, should not need further support from the global lender, the prime minister said.

"We have been going to the IMF a bit too often ... Sri Lanka and Pakistan, and I hope that we will be able to manage. The IMF saved us at a crucial period, I must acknowledge it, but we must learn now to go on our own," he said.

Meanwhile, Mr.Wickremesinghe has said he "can't see an early election."

Sri Lanka not under 'threat' from US-China trade tensions, says PM from CNBC.
Minister John Amaratunga launching the Island Escapes tactical promo campaign in the presence of Sri Lanka Convention Bureau, Chairman Kumar De Silva

Pic by Kusan Pathiraja

By Nishel Fernando

Sri Lanka Tourism has upped its tourist arrivals target to three million from 2.5 million this year, while eyeing four million tourist arrivals next year as the new tourism promotional campaigns are getting off the ground.



The Minister of Tourism and Christian Affairs, John Amaratunga yesterday officially announced Island Escapes tactical promotional campaign which is to be kicked off in three key source markets of Sri Lanka tourism: India, China and Middle-East under the first phase aiming to transform Sri Lanka to a 365-day

holiday destination.

The Island Escapes promotional campaign is scheduled to kick off from 15th of September this year with the objective of increasing tourist arrivals during lean months from September to November and April to June with special discount packages.



The Ministry of Tourism and Christian Affairs has budget to spend Rs 65 million in the first phase of the campaign with an objective to reach over 10 million audiences on social and other digital channels.



J. Walter Thompson Sri Lanka and GroupM Sri Lanka have been chosen to carry out the campaign.



Addressing the launch event, the upbeat Minister said, If you see by the end of this year, the figures will change dramatically as we are now getting into the promotional campaigns. We are now heading into the higher bracket.



We will be able increase number of tourist arrivals from 2.5 million to 3 million during upcoming months. We are hoping to go up to four million next year; for that, we have to find ways and means as to how we can get there.



Speaking to Mirror Business, he said that US$3.5 million digital marketing campaign in India, China, Germany, France and United Kingdom would be kicked off this October as the cabinet already awarded the contracts to marketing agencies.



Meanwhile, Amaratunga revealed that the new country branding for Sri Lanka Tourism will be unveiled at the ITB Berlin (Internationale Tourismus-Borse Berlin) in March 2019 revising the earlier target to launch the new branding at the World Travel Mart (WTM) in London in November this year.



The cabinet of Ministers last week approved the cabinet proposal presented by Minister Amaratunga to select agencies to develop the new country branding and to carry out a promotional campaign to promote the new brand.



However, due to time constraints, the new country branding along branding promotion is expected to be launched at the ITB Berlin in March 2019 which would be followed by a much anticipated global promotional campaign.



Amaratunga pointed out that by launching the new country branding at the worlds largest tourism trade fair would give the widest publicity to Sri Lanka tourism.

Speaking at the gathering, SLTPB, Managing Director Sutheash Balasubramaniam pointed out that 50 percent of the year was termed as off season leading to low occupancy. Hence, he stressed that the changing of this perception which was promoted by foreign tour agencies is a must to double the number of tourist arrivals and yield by 2020, which was also acknowledged in the 2017-2020 tourism strategy.



He noted that the Island Escapes tactical promotional campaign was the first step towards transforming Sri Lanka to a 365-day holiday destination.



However, Balasubramaniam emphasised that Sri Lanka doesnt intend to become a cheap destination, however, would offer fairly attractive prices during lean periods to curtail low occupancy levels. The promotional campaign is a collaboration between the Ministry of Tourism and the key tourism stakeholder associations including tour operators, airlines and hoteliers.



As a part of the campaign running between September and November 2018, participating hotels are expected to offer several attractive packages including a 4 days/3 night package at US$99 million.



Amaratunga noted that these rates are a 40-50 percent discount on current rates.



In addition, 15-20 airlines in the region including Sri Lankan Airlines, Emirates and Qatar has also come onboard to offer special rates on airfares.



We have seen countries like Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam do this kind of thing very successfully and based on the success of the campaign, we will fine-tune it next year, the Minister said.



Sri Lanka has attracted 1.58 million tourists with a 12.5 percent YoY growth during the first eight months of the year.
Tourism and Christian Affairs Minister John Amaratunga launches Island Escapes tactical promo campaign in the presence of Sri Lanka Convention Bureau Chairman Kumar De Silva

Pic by Kushan Pathiraja

By Nishel Fernando

Sri Lanka Tourism has upped the tourist arrival target to three million arrivals from 2.5 million this year, while eyeing four million tourist arrivals next year, as the new tourism promotional campaigns are getting off the ground.



Tourism and Christian Affairs Minister John Amaratunga yesterday officially announced the Island Escapes tactical promotional campaign, which is to kick off in three key source markets of Sri Lanka  India, China and the Middle-East  under the first phase, aiming to transform Sri Lanka to a 365-day holiday destination.



The Island Escapes promotional campaign is scheduled to kick off from September 15 this year, with the objective of increasing tourist arrivals during the lean months from September to November and April to June, with special discount packages.



The Tourism and Christian Affairs Ministry has a budget to spend Rs.65 million in the first phase of the campaign, with an objective to reach over 10 million audiences on social and other digital channels.



J. Walter Thompson Sri Lanka and GroupM Sri Lanka have been chosen to carry out the campaign.

Addressing the launch event, the upbeat minister said, If you see by the end of this year, the figures will change dramatically, as we are now getting into the promotional campaigns. We are now heading into the higher bracket.



We will be able to increase the number of tourist arrivals from 2.5 million to three million during the upcoming months. We hope to go up to four million next year; for that, we have to find ways and means as to how we can get there.



Speaking to Mirror Business he said that the US $ 3.5 million digital marketing campaign in India, China, Germany, France and the United Kingdom would kick off this October as the Cabinet has already awarded the contracts to marketing agencies.



Meanwhile, Amaratunga revealed that the new country branding for Sri Lanka Tourism would be unveiled at ITB Berlin (Internationale Tourismus-Borse Berlin) in March 2019, revising the earlier target to launch the new branding at the World Travel Mart (WTM) in London in November this year.



The Cabinet of Ministers last week approved the Cabinet proposal presented by Amaratunga to select agencies to develop the new country branding and to carry out a promotional campaign to promote the new brand.



However, due to the time constraints, the new country branding along with the branding promotion is expected to be launched at ITB Berlin in March 2019, which would be followed by a much-anticipated global promotional campaign.



Amaratunga pointed out that by launching the new country branding at the worlds largest tourism trade fair would give the widest publicity to Sri Lanka tourism.



Speaking at the gathering, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Managing Director Sutheash Balasubramaniam pointed out that 50 percent of the year was termed as off season, leading to low occupancy. Hence, he stressed that changing this perception, which was promoted by foreign tour agencies, is a must to double the number of tourist arrivals and yield by 2020; it was also acknowledged in the 2017-2020 tourism strategy.



He noted that the Island Escapes tactical promotional campaign was the first step towards transforming Sri Lanka to a 365-day holiday destination.



However, Balasubramaniam emphasised that Sri Lanka doesnt intend to become a cheap destination but would offer fairly attractive prices during the lean periods to curtail the low occupancy levels.



The promotional campaign is a collaboration between the Tourism Ministry and key tourism stakeholder associations, including tour operators, airlines and hoteliers.



As part of the campaign running between September and November 2018, the participating hotels are expected to offer several attractive packages, including a four-day/three-night package at US $ 99 million.



Amaratunga noted that these rates are a 40-50 percent discount on the current rates.



In addition, 15-20 airlines in the region, including SriLankan Airlines, Emirates and Qatar, have also come on-board to offer special rates on airfares.



We have seen countries like Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam doing this kind of thing very successfully and based on the success of the campaign, we will fine-tune it next year, the minister said.



Sri Lanka has attracted 1.58 million tourists with a 12.5 percent year-on-year growth during the first eight months of the year.
Co45 which is a budding art gallery and workspace in the heart of Colombo held an art exhibition, featuring artist Ikuko Deguchi,who is a Japanese Ink & Ceramic Art Specialist, from August 17-26. The paintings at the exhibition depicted the theme of time and space. Ikuko is a resident of Sri Lanka living in Negombo, she has lived in Sri Lanka for 13 years. She has been exhibiting art in Sri Lanka for the last 10 years. The objective of CO45 is to create a platform for International artists and to create a community of international family-oriented art education platform along with nonprofit projects of supporting the women and children in Sri Lanka.

Emiko Hanano the owner and founder of Co45, in an interview with the Daily Mirror said,This particular exhibition was a Japanese artist solo exhibition. This is the second exhibition of the CO showcase. We launched on April 7 and we invited the Japanese Ambassador and other excellencies and guests to participate. the Ambassador himself spoke about the significance of cultural exchange through art.We are not focusing on the sales of the painting. Therefore, our exhibitions are not a commercial gathering, but rather a cultural exchange hub. We want to create a platform for both the local and international creators, to exchange culture and their perspective through art.

She also spoke about her vision for CO45, I want it to be a long-term art hub, something that is sustainable for all artists. I do not want it to be something one off, like a firework. I want this project to take roots, and bloom and grow into the future. I want it to be a sustainable platform that artists can rely on.There are many Japanese art students interested in this project. Hence, we are trying to make a programme for them as well in the near future. We are planning to do some animation and digital workshops as well

She spoke about her message to the art community and the importance of art in our lives,I want people who have the passion for art to know that art is not just about selling art. I want people to know Sri Lanka has the potential to be a predominate platform for art tourism and art exchange. We need professionals and amateur lovers to join to achieve this dream.I believe art truly connects people. Many people used to ask me why are you drawing? Is it to become famous? But I truly wanted to give a message through my art. Visual messages are very strong and does not need language to convey them.

Ikuko Deguchi, the solo artist of the exhibition gave an insight to the thought process behind her paintings, I wanted to try to understand the universe through my paintings. My technique is that I use canvas, paper and silk as painting material and I used various Japanese inks, minerals, pigments, paper and powder gold, colour pencils and pencils as drawing tools. I live in Negombo next to the lagoon, and the water truly inspires my work. I admire the nature and beauty of this country, it is my true muse. Speaking on the theme she said, the theme time and space is nothing new but I decided to out my own spin on it. Paintings are 2D, but I use different techniques such as different inks and pigments and the use of light for my paintings to appear 3D.





The objective of CO45 is to create a platform for International artists and to create a community of international family-oriented art education platform along with nonprofit projects of supporting the women and children in Sri Lanka





She spoke about her message through her art and her journey as an artist,I began my journey as an artist at the age of 6 years. When I was 17 I went to the Tama university of art, Tokyo, for sculpture. I lived around the world and was inspired by different styles of the world. I combine my experiences throughout my life and I present it in my art. In our technology dense world, I believe art is important.Art is something that comes from your soul. It is there to connect with people. Our world is getting more and more disconnected. I believe something truly touching such as art, will build that connection again. Art is very personal information, that can be shared visually. It is hard to understand art, sometimes there is no explanation. But, I believe it brings some kind of feeling whether the viewer understands the art or not.

Her final message was, I want people to be free through art. Where there are no barriers of cast, creed, language or race. It is important for people to be flexible in their art, where they learn from many countries. It is important to be respect your traditional art roots, but the nature of art itself will be contradicted if one does not free themselves through art.

Upcoming Exhibitions of ikuko

2018 Co45 Gallery - Colombo,

Sri Lanka 2018 The Museum of

Kyoto - Kyoto, Japan

Get connected with the CO45 via http://co45gallery@gmail.com or contact Emiko on 0770846619 and support the art community.
In a statement to the UNHRC, on behalf of the Sri Lanka Core Group, the United Kingdom urged Sri Lanka to prioritise and drive forward implementation of the UNHRC Resolutions 30/1 and 34/1, before the Council next considers Sri Lanka in March, next year.

The Sri Lanka Core Group comprises Germany, Macedonia, Montenegro and the UK.

Our view remains that, with determined leadership and a clear time-bound action plan, this Government can make more progress towards delivering its Council commitments, and that doing so will better position Sri Lanka and its people to enjoy a more enduring reconciliation and prosperity, the UK said.

We welcome further recent steps Sri Lanka has taken to implement commitments made to the Council in 2015 and 2017. We welcome the Governments continued engagement with the UN system and actions to implement its National Reconciliation Action Plan and Peacebuilding Priority Plan.

We applaud the Office on Missing Persons commencement of work and encourage everyone able to advance or contribute to its work to do so. We hope the Government will establish an Office for Reparations quickly. We also welcome the return of further private land in the north, and commitments to return the more military-occupied land to civilian ownership.

Nonetheless, the pace of progress on important areas remains much slower than many hoped for. As time passes, lack of progress in delivering key steps risks undermining reconciliation efforts.

In co-sponsoring resolution 30/1, Sri Lanka recognised that national accountability mechanisms are essential to dealing with the past, and to restoring confidence among its communities. These have yet to be established. The Prevention of Terrorism Act has not been replaced with a law that accords with international standards. And, though processes to consider reform to important provisions of the Constitution, including devolution of political authority, has been ongoing since 2016, a way forward has not been found. We are concerned by recent reports of harassment of and attacks on human rights defenders.
MR TO GIVE A FORCEFUL FIGHT TO THE UNP AT THE THREE POLLS



NEW SLFP GOVT UNDER MR WILL BE A NEW BOTTLE WITH NEW WINE AND NEW TASTE



MR IS THE MOST MARKETABLE POLITICIAN IN THE COUNTRY RIGHT NOW



I WILL BE THE FIRST TO WISH DUMINDA IF HE COMES OUT OF YAHAPALANA GOVT.



I MUST REMIND YOU THAT THEY MET THEIR MAIN OBJECTIVE OF MAKING COLOMBO STANDSTILL

The Daily Mirror spoke to SLFP rebel group front liner and former Minister Dilan Perera on politics, forthcoming PC, Presidential and Parliamentary polls and groups preparation for the challenges etc. He shared the following:

Q How about your groups preparation for the forthcoming Provincial Council polls?

Our group of 15 MPs minus one from the original 16, who quit the Yahapalana Government on April 11, are now working hard to ensure the victory of the joint opposition at the forthcoming PC, Presidential and Parliamentary polls. None of us have obtained the SLPP membership but remain as a separate SLFP group of the JO. Many other SLFP members who crossed over to the JO from the government before us are not members of Pohottuwa either.

Question of joining Pohottuwa is not vital under the prevailing political situation and answer to your question on our preparation for the three polls is simple. From day one since we joined the JO we have worked hard to bring all anti UNP forces under one roof and only that strategy would bring an absolute victory for the JO, not only at the PC polls but at the Presidential and Parliamentary polls that would follow. In short, all progressive, anti capitalist and anti imperialist forces that would stand against the UNP must be formed as a formidable front under ex-President Mahinda Rajapaksa to give a forceful fight to the UNP at the three polls.





Filing charges against a person in a court of law and finding him guilty are two different matters. But I can assure you that the SLFP or the SLPP would not give nominations to any of the members if convicted in a court of law for any offense





Q A number of pohottuwa (SLPP) and SLFP members have been charged in various courts on allegations of corruption, murder, embezzlement and several other crimes. At this backdrop, are you still going to form the next government with them?

Filing charges against a person in a court of law and finding him guilty are two different matters. But I can assure you that the SLFP or the SLPP would not give nominations to any of the members if convicted in a court of law for any offence. I would like to draw your attention to the presumption that one is considered innocent until proven guilty well known in the legal parlance. Besides, you must not forget that a majority of cases filed against members of the JO and some officials served under the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime are politically motivated.

However, I agree that there were mistakes and blunders committed by the previous government. We would definitely rectify those omissions and commissions in a government formed under MR after the next Parliamentary polls and give real meaning to the concept of good governance. I also would like to tell you that a new SLFP government under MR will be a new bottle with new wine and new taste. Not old wine in a new bottle because we have learnt much from our past mistakes.

However, I agree that there were mistakes and blunders committed by the previous government. We would definitely rectify those omissions and commissions in a government formed under Mahinda after the next Parliamentary polls and give real meaning to the concept of good governance

Q But Shakespeare has famously said Caesars wife (must not only be above any allegations but) must be above suspicion in Julius Caesar. Dont you think this applies to public figures and politicians on the whole?

As I told you earlier, many of the court cases against SLFP or SLPP members are the work of the UNP who is on power. Almost all the cases are selective and individual targeted. They have not been charged on bona-fide intentions but on political victimization.

What action the government has taken to bring the biggest fraudster in history and first accused in the Central Bank bond scam, Arjuna Mahendran even after the Interpol issued a red warrant on him? How many times the Prime Minister has said in Parliament that he would take the responsibility to bring him back? You can check the Handsard for this. At the same time I admit that we have bad eggs among us and I never say that all our members are clean and lily-white.

Q The PC polls expected in early 2019, Presidential and Parliamentary polls that would follow, will be a bitter fight between the three main political parties, the UNP, SLFP and the SLPP. What are the plans in store to win these elections?

Answer is simple. I dont think the JO or the SLPP will have a fight at hand at all in the three elections. But the UNP under Ranil will have a bitter fight with us, no doubt. I am confident that the SLFP will not contest separately. If the SLFP did not join the JO and contested separately, it will also be a bitter fight for it. Most probably, that will also be the end of SLFP.

What is the current thinking of voters today? At the February local government polls, the SLPP which is as a young as a baby drew 49,41,952 votes out of a total valid votes of 123,72,816 recording 44.65%. The UNP in a distanced second got 36,12,259 at 32.63% while the UPFA got 491,835 votes at 8.44% of the total valid votes while the SLFP was able to woo only a poor and miserable 949,821 votes at 4.44% of total valid votes. When you go through these numbers the results in future polls are very clear. What would be the scenario if and when the SLFP or the UPFA contests separately and what would be the situation if both parties joined the JO. The SLPP supported by the JO needs only another 6% to record an absolute majority in Presidential and Parliamentary elections and we can reach that target even without the SLFP or the UPFA with the support of minority parties. Another important factor is that the socio-economic and political tide has swept much in favour of the SLPP and against the government since February.

However, if there is going to be a joint front comprising the JO-led SLPP, SLFP and UPFA against the UNP, the victory to our camp would be a Grand Slam. This is a reality and not a possibility and I believe and pray that the SLFP hierarchy would give a deep thought to this. Otherwise, their political future is doomed.

A new SLFP government under Mahinda will be a new bottle with new wine and new taste. Not old wine in a new bottle because we have learnt much from our past mistakes

Q Is any rapprochement possible between the UNP and SLFP after the PC polls to set up administrations in local government bodies as it is extremely doubtful that a single party would be able to secure a majority in many of the provincial councils...

We dont mind, President Maithripala Sirisena remains as the President further but not backed by the UNP. We dont expect from President Sirisena to put the signal to the left and turn to the right as happened in the last three years. The only way out for us from this political imbroglio is to form a formidable and strong political front led and blessed by MR with all progressive forces and like minded minority parties that include the MEP led by Dinesh Gunawardana, NFF led by Wimal Weerawansa, DLF led by Vasudeva Nanayakkara, PHU led by Udaya Gammanpila and all Muslim and Tamil parties led by Rauff Hakeem,Arumugan Thondaman, Rishad Bathiudeen, Mano Ganeshan,Palany Digambaram,Douglas Devananda and many others. The only exception is Prof. G.L.Peiris who is not an SLFP member.

Q The split among many factions within the SLFP and the SLPP has come to a peak now. This will affect badly on the party at future polls, no doubt. How are you going to tackle this major issue?

Yes, my simple answer to this is whoever is to become President or what ever party or front to form the government in future, the blessings and support of MR is extremely vital and decisive. There will be no president or a government without his support and blessings. In the circumstances, it is up to the SLFP and the UPFA and minority parties to decide with whom they join at the forthcoming polls. It is not a problem for the JO or the SLPP.

Q Soon after the success of the SLPP at the Local Government polls, the undisputed candidate of the JO or the SLPP was Gotabhaya Rajapaksa. The situation is much different now as names of Dinesh, Kumara, Chamal and even of Kumara have been mentioned by various dissenting members of the JO. So, who will be the JO candidate?

My personal view is that Gota has himself got undermined his position as a possible Presidential candidate by taking the extremist line of people like Kamal Gunaratne and Sarath Weerasekara. If he expects the support of minority parties for his victory he must get distanced himself from former Military officers who are famous for their anti minority ideology. It Gotas responsibility to convince the masses that he is a candidate representing all communities that include Sinhala Buddhists, Tamils, Muslim, Upcountry Tamils, Malays and Burgers could vote for him. My view is that Chamal Rajapksa is the ideal candidate with the blessings and whole- hearted support of MR. If any candidate thinks he/she could achieve victory only with Sinhala Buddhist votes, it is a mistake.

What ever said and done, I would like to see MR as the PM and someone out of the Rajapaksa family as the President. It will relieve us from many issues that may crop up in the local and international forums. Meanwhile, the JO will take a decision on its Presidential candidate when the elections are announced by the Elections Commission.

Q Will there be Constitutional implications if and when MR becomes PM?

I think the Supreme Court must give an interpretation to this as there is a possibility that MR could become Executive President for a third time (which will be a violation of the Constitution) if Presidency becomes vacant while he remains as the PM. The Constitution has not drawn its attention to this possibility and as such needs an interpretation.

We want MR as PM and Maithripala as President to run a most democratic and people friendly administration after 2020.





I support a probe on NYT exposure on Mahinda if Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and Finance and Media Minister Mangala Smaraweera publicly say that Trump was wrong when he castigated CNN and NYT as fake and therefore no one can take the US media as the cardinal truth

Q Though you are a member of the SLFP and do politics under the leadership of President Maithripala Sirisena, you virtually stand with the former President during each and every national issue. How and why?

I dont think MR will agree with me on power devolution. I have campaigned for 13+ and I will continue to do it in future too. Whether we like or not we must accept that Tamils have genuine grievances. I stand with him because he has given the leadership to the left leaning JO though he will not agree with my 13+ stand. I have remained in my entire political carrier as a politician with leftist ideals and policies. Besides, MR is the most marketable politician in the country right now.

Dont forget Ranil won the general election in 2002 when Chandrika Kumaratunga was the Executive President with full powers. Any future amalgamation between the SLFP and the SLPP must yield us a win-win situation between these two.

Q How do you see the exposure of the New York Times which alleged that the China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) had funded MRs Presidential Polls campaign in 2015?

President Donald Trump is on records saying that the NYT is fake. So why should we quote a fake newspaper to prove a point?

I support a probe on NYT allegations if PM Ranil Wickremesinghe and Finance and Media Minister Mangala Samaraweera publicly say that Trump is wrong when he accused CNN and NYT as fake, and therefore, no one can take the US media as cardinal truth.

Q There are media reports that a new General Secretary would be chosen at the next UPFA General Meeting and a new SLFP General Secretary at the next SLFP convention in early September. Are these true?

Yes, not only a new General Secretary to the SLFP but a new secretary to the UPFA would be elected shortly as Duminda Dissanayake and Mahinda Amaraweera take decisions from Sirikotha. We dont want them to wash dirty linen of the UNP and therefore, there will be two new General Secretaries for both parties. When Minister Mahinda Amaraweera talks I feel like his words are coming from Mangala Samaraweeras mouth.



If he (Duminda) leaves the Yahapalana Government I would be the first person to accept him to the JO with both hands, give a big hug and a kiss to his both cheeks

Q It seems that the euphoria the SLPP and the JO generated among their supporters with the success of the local government polls has now been evaporated. Do you agree?

No, I dont agree. On January 8, 2015, people voted en-mass in favour of President Sirisena and in August that year gave a majority of parliament seats to the UNP as their list of pledges were long and attractive. None of these pledges have been fulfilled in the past three years and the voters displayed their resentment in a big way at the local government polls in February this year.

I dont think mindset against the government and the UNP have changed. That is why we ask the government to hold PC polls as early as possible.

Q What is this love  hate relationship between you and your erstwhile friend, Minister Duminda Dissanayaka?

In fact, I love him and adore him. He has a future in Sri Lankas politics. He and I are buddies from our childhood and I have a great respect for his father, late Berty Premalal Dissanayaka whom I consider as one of my political gurus. His family or his residence in Anuradhapura is very familiar place to me. When we had a quarrel as children, Mr. Dissanayaka stood by me and advised both of us. He was an SLFP colossus in Rajarata and did much for the people of Rajarata while fighting with politicians like Adikari and Mahindasoma. So, serving in a UNP led coalition government is a wrong decision taken by Duminda.

I appeal to Duminda, treating him as my younger brother, please come out of the government, as it is not your place. You have a great future in the SLFP and dont get ruined your place in the party. If he leaves the Yahapalana Government I would be the first person to accept him to the JO with both hands, with a big hug and a kiss to his both cheeks.





If there is going to be a joint front comprising the JO led SLPP, SLFP and UPFA against the UNP the victory to our camp would be a Grand Slam. This is a reality and not a possibility and I believe and pray that the SLFP hierarchy would give deep thought to this. Otherwise, their political future is doomed





I also admit that Mr. Dissanayaka was treated badly by the last regime and he died with a broken heart. He was not appointed as the Chief Minister after the PC polls in September 2012 as he came second in the voting list. But the MR government chose to appoint candidates who elected with second best votes in other provinces as the CM. This should not have happened in the first place because Mr. Dissanayaka had sacrificed his entire life for the SLFP.

Q Finally, the overall assessment among politicians of the divide, among the media and the public is that the Janabalaya Colombata protest on last Wednesday was not successful as the JOs protest held at the Galle Face Green on May Day, 2017. Your comments?

Only the media and the UNP say that the Janabalaya Colombata was a flop. Basil Rajapaksa, who organized the May Day Rally of the SLPP in 2017 at the Galle Face Green is a man of action.

What happened on last Wednesday (5), was that the protesters did not converge at a specified place like Galle Face as they came from all parts of the country through five different highways to Colombo.

Therefore, their gathering in Colombo did not make a big impact as they were spread all over Colombo. I must remind you that they met their main objective of making Colombo standstill.
Ahlul Bayt World Assembly issued a statement on the advent of Muharram 1440 A.H., the Martyrdom Anniversary of Imam Hussein (peace be upon him).



AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Ahlul Bayt World Assembly issued a statement on the advent of Muharram 1440 A.H., the Martyrdom Anniversary of Imam Hussein (peace be upon him).



The full text of the Assemblys statement is as follows:



In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful



The Holy Prophet of Islam, peace be upon him and his infallible household, said:

Verily, Husain is the Torch of Guidance and Ark of Salvation



The sad days of Muharram and Safar provide the opportunity for Muslims and philanthropists all over the world to learn epic lessons of courage, trust in God, and self-sacrifice for His sake.



The philosophy behind the mourning ceremonies, too, is to deepen our knowledge on the objectives of Imam Hussein (pbuh).



Today, we have to follow the path of the martyrs of Karbala. There is an urgent need for the solidarity of the oppressed to solve the economic problems of Islamic communities. We must try to frustrate the ominous plots of our enemies in spreadingaccusations and gossipsfor raising disputes and pessimism between Muslim authorities and ordinary people. To neutralize the conspiracies of enemies, we have to safeguard the sanctuary of the Ahlulbayt and adhere to them, particularly Imam Hussein as the Ark of Salvation. We must also respect the Islamic seminaries, Muslim clerics, and Grand Ayatollahs to be able to thwart the satanic schemes of arrogant powers against us.



Through his speeches, Imam Hussein, peace be upon him, publicly announced that the most obligatory task to save Islam and humanity from the hegemony of satanic forces is to fight the tyrannical rulers of time. All Muslims must learn a lesson from this concept; that is, not to fear the enemies, to trust in God, and to have confidence in their potentialities. We must know that the seeming grandeur and power of arrogant powers and our enemies is too unstable. Their power compared to the unity, solidarity, and synergy of Muslims around the world is too weak. If Muslim nations do not withdraw from their positions against the threats of arrogant oppressors, the tyrants will be forced to retreat.



The Ahlulbayt World Assembly extends its condolences to all Muslims on the occasion of mourning days of Muharram and Safar, and draws the kind of attention of all brothers and sisters, particularly its representatives, members, and missionaries, in all countries to following points:



 Ceremonies for Imam Hussein and Ashura are among the most outstanding privileges of Islamic society compared to other societies; it is therefore advisable to hold such ceremonies in the most glorious possible form. These gatherings teach all men and women how to sacrifice our souls for protecting the religion of God and the holy Quran.

Thats why the enemies of Quran and Islam are angry with these ceremonies and try to destroy them.



 During the majalis and functions of Muharram and Safar we must take the advantage of preaching to promote the authentic and documented teachings and lessons of Imam Ali and Imam Hussein (peace be upon them), which are the same genuine and pure teachings of Islam and the Holy Quran.



 According to the viewpoints of major Shia authorities and Ayatollahs, insulting the great Sunni personalities is a conspiracy promoted by British Shia and American Sunni. We must be vigilant to avoid superstitious actions and combat heresies and insults that create divisions among Muslims; because such deviations are far from the culture of Ashura and degrade the dignity of Islam and Muslims.



 The other important matter is the security of ceremonies to protect the souls of the mourners for Imam Hussein. Bloody events of past years during Muharram in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and Nigeria show that some states in the region are not able or do not want to provide security for the followers of the Ahlulbayt and their ceremonies. Therefore, it is incumbent upon the managers of mosques, Husseiniyahs, and other gathering places to guarantee the highest degree of security for the events and the participants.



 Today, the Islamic World is sad because of the bloodshed and massacre among innocent people of Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bahrain, Palestine, Myanmar and specially the catastrophe in Yemen led by the criminals of Saudi Arabian government. Thus, all preachers, eulogists, reciters of mourning poems, etc. to highlight these crimes and disclose the behind-the-scenes terrorist actions in Muslim World in order to reveal the true nature of Takfirist groups for the people and prevent the enemies of Islam from fanning the fire of sectarian conflicts.



 We must also elaborate the inhumane actions of Israeli regime against the defenseless people of Palestine and the conspiracy of moving embassies to Jerusalem as well as the initiative of the Zionist regime's parliament (Knesset) in approving the "Jewish Nation-State Law". Furthermore, we must raise awareness regarding the U.S. hegemonic strategy on Islamic regions to weaken Muslims, secure its illegitimate interests, and support dictator states and terrorist groups.



In the end, we strongly condemn the brutal and unmanly actions of the enemies of Islam and humanity. We further extend congratulations to the family members of the martyrs of Islamic Resistance Front; and pray for the healing of all injured ones as well as for the elevated status of the martyrs.



The Ahlulbayt World Assembly



1 Muharram 1440 A.H.

11 September 2018



.............................................

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A Bahraini youth is reportedly being subjected to severe torture following his transfer to Bahrains Dry Dock Detention Center.



AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): A Bahraini youth is reportedly being subjected to severe torture following his transfer to Bahrains Dry Dock Detention Center.



Activists reported on Tuesday that Sadiq Rida Hassan Abbas Aborwais was being brutally beaten and electrocuted by guards at the prison.



Aborwais was arrested at a police checkpoint last month without proper cause.



His case is only the latest in a long string of allegations against authorities at Dry Dock who are accused of subjecting prisoners to a systematic campaign of harassment and torture.



Last year, inmates described the prison conditions as intolerable and tragic.





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DARBY BOROUGH  Mother Alphonse Maria Eppinger, who was beatified by the Roman Catholic Church in France on Sunday, was remembered locally for her contributions that reached out to Delaware County.

The Friends of Woodburne gathered at the Woodburne Mansion in Darby on Sunday for a small celebration of the ethereal occasion in honor of the now-Blessed Alphonse Maria, a French woman who in 1849 dedicated her life to promoting health and wellness to the sick with the founding of the Sisters of the Redeemer. The religious order owned and operated the Little Flower Institute orphanage in the historic mansion located along Springfield Road.

Starting in 1936, the Sisters gave refuge to orphans and displaced persons for many years, said John Haigis of the Friends of Woodburne in a prepared statement. We are celebrating that tradition of service and compassion as well as the local connection.

The Sisters ran and maintained the mansion until 2005, when its use has shifted to that of a nursing home until its closure. It has since fallen into despair.

We understand Mother Alphonse Maries life work was to alleviate physical and spiritual misery by practicing the works of mercy and making people feel God loves them very much, said Haigis. The Friends of Woodburne are working to make the mansion, known at various times as Woodburne and as Little Flower Institute into a school to teach heritage building arts and create new life and opportunities for buildings, people and communities and we think that Mother Alphonse Marie might approve.

Eppinger was beatified at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Strousburg by Cardinal Angelo Becciu on the Blesseds 204th birthday. Pope Francis during Sunday Mass at St. Peters Square in Vatican City said Eppingers silence and prayer provided a testimony of Gods love especially for those who are sick in body and spirit.

The miracle leading up to her beatification occurred in France in 1955 where a 66-year-old woman with bowel obstruction underwent two surgeries within five days without improvement of her condition. She prayed to Mother Alphonse Maria on that fifth night and the next morning her health had vastly improved. She would live for another 19 years.

She was honored with the title Venerable Servant of God by Pope Benedict XVI in 2011 and her miracle confirmed by Pope Francis earlier this year.

According to the Sisters of the Redeemers website, the order was founded in 1849 by Eppinger who continued with her passion to help the sick until her death in 1867. In 1924, sisters of the order began their move to the United States. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia asked them to start an American branch and did so in Meadowbrook, Montgomery County, where they are still based.

A Mass of thanksgiving for the Blessed Mother Alphonse Maria will take place on Sept. 23 at St. Albert the Great Church in Huntingdon Valley at 3 p.m. Auxiliary Bishop of Philadelphia Michael Fitzgerald will be the main celebrant.
Iran's foreign ministry has described White House statement on recent unrest in Iraqi city of Basra as 'striking, irresponsible, illegitimate and provocative', emphasizing that Tehran prefers to see Iraq as a secure and developed country.



AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Iran's foreign ministry has described White House statement on recent unrest in Iraqi city of Basra as 'striking, irresponsible, illegitimate and provocative', emphasizing that Tehran prefers to see Iraq as a secure and developed country.



The US policies are the main cause of instability, unrest, tension and division in the region as its policies in Iraq have brought nothing but insecurity and instability, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said on Wednesday.



'The recent unrest in Iraq, including attack on Iran's consulate general in Basra, are the results of the same policies, as well as overt and covert unwise support for the groups that are promoting violence and extremism to make the phenomena a way of life,' he said.



The US government should be held accountable for its multi-year support for the groups in the region, he said, adding that issuing such 'blame-gamish and suspicious' statements will not free Washington from its accountability for tensions and attacks on diplomatic centers and government buildings in the country and other parts of the world.



These days, many statespersons, politicians and intellectuals across the world are well aware of the US increasing role in destabilizing and bullying other countries, the Iranian diplomat said.



Emphasizing that Iran's principled policy is based on preserving peace and stability in the region, Qasemi said, 'A secure, developed Iraq has always been among Islamic Republic of Iran's demands and preferences and no third party can prevent the long-lasting, strong relations from being promoted and developed.'







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After 45 years in business  including nearly three decades in Del Mar  Patricia Straight will close the doors to her Peaches En Regalia clothing store for good Sept. 30.

The now-78-year-old businesswoman plans to retire and close the Del Mar contemporary women's and men's clothing shop, which she opened in 1989 at the Del Mar Plaza following years of success in Aspen, Colo.

Growing up in fashion, from designing clothes for paper dolls at age 5 to becoming a model in her preteens, Straight always dreamt of one day owning her own clothing boutique.

Patricia Straight Courtesy

Following stints of competing in surfing competitions in Hawaii, walking the catwalks in couture outfits and even dabbling in private detective work, the Del Mar resident got her start with her own clothing business in the early 1970s in Aspen when she redesigned vintage clothing she found in thrift stores. The single mother would then flip the outfits for a profit by selling them out of the trunk of her Volkswagen Bus to support her growing son.

"Someone told me, 'You really need your own store. You're so talented, and I love what you have,'" Straight remembered.

She opened her first brick-and-mortar Peaches En Regalia store in Aspen in 1973, moving from several locations before finally landing a space on the town's main road.

Straight remembers being one of the first stores to bring high-fashion to the ski resort town for the first time. Customers who were used to seeing cowboy getup in store windows now saw the likes of Giorgio Armani and Valentino in both men and women's lines, she said.

"I was the first person in Aspen to bring in fashion that wasn't western," she said. "I brought those lines in because that's what I knew from being in LA. I had a lot of movie stars shopping there because I had this kind of merchandise."

Still, after 30 years of business in Aspen  a town she had originally planned on only staying in for a few years  Straight longed for the California ocean waves and her family. She decided to return to her home state to open a second Peaches En Regalia store, while still maintaining the Aspen business and living in that city.

The upcoming and booming Del Mar Plaza was an ideal choice for her sophomore shop, Straight said, noting she was one of the first retail businesses to open there. Straight, who also opened a menswear store called Ryans Collection, permanently moved to Del Mar in 2002 to escape increasing rents in Aspen.

She said while she is sad to close her business, she is looking forward to spending time with her family and husband, as well as traveling.
Encinitas parent Sabrina Erwin saw the end of a two-year process this spring when the U.S. Department of Educations Office of Civil Rights made a finding in favor of her complaint that the San Dieguito Union High School District improperly exited her daughter from a Section 504 plan to accommodate her challenges with Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

This is a big win, Erwin said, one she hopes leads to positive changes in the way San Dieguito and all school districts handle identifying and serving Section 504 students.

I witnessed it happen to my child and I didnt want it to be repeated. It would be difficult for any child or parent to experience. I felt it was incumbent on me to do something about it, Erwin said. I want other districts to be on notice that children with disabilities cannot be ignored. I want Yasis life-altering experience to mean something. I want my daughters suffering to make an impact on other students so that her sacrifices in seventh, eighth and ninth grade meant something and affected change.

Section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 requires that all qualified students with disabilities receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE) designed to meet their unique needs. To be eligible for a 504 plan, a student has to have a physical or mental impairment that must rise to the level of disability, having a substantial impact on one or more major life activities.

Any dispute as to the identification, evaluation, or placement of any student with a disability may be resolved with a request to initiate an impartial due process hearing.

Many parents dont exercise their rights because very simply, they dont know how, said Maureen Dempsey, director of North County Educational Advocates who represented Erwin and families in over 20 school districts throughout San Diego and greater Southern California.

Erwin, an attorney, felt it was too important not to take action.

When I saw how egregious this systemic problem was, I realized that this was not just about my daughter, but was about the poor treatment of children with disabilities, Erwin said. I told my daughter to be patient during this legally intensive and emotionally difficult time in her life. I told her that her suffering would help those who were unwilling or unable to stand up for themselves.

The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) concluded May 4 that San Dieguito Union High School District (SDUHSD) was not in compliance as it did not evaluate the student using the correct definition of a disability. To address this, the district signed a resolution agreeing to revise its form to correct the non-compliant definition. The resolution was signed by the then-director of school and student services, who has since retired.

SDUHSD Assistant Superintendent of Administrative Services Mark Miller said for the last three years, the district has been in the process of looking at Section 504 and updating the policies and procedures to reflect new language in case law some of this work proceeded his time at the district as he was hired in June 2016.

By the time the district received the OCR finding in May this year, many of the changes had been implemented already, he said. Since 2016, the district established new policies and procedures, new parents rights forms, a new uniform policy for appeals and updated all forms and language in terms of evaluations of how a student qualifies under 504. All-staff training was conducted in the fall of 2016, 2017 and again this year.

Miller said he could not comment on the specific case but said the district has been actively updating forms, policies and procedures to meet all requirements under Section 504.

Im very confident that what OCR has mandated the district do, we already have done prior to receiving the letter from OCR, Miller said. We want to make sure its a user-friendly process for the community and that all of our staff on all of our sites are trained.

We want students who qualify for 504 to benefit. Were here to serve students.

A parents lengthy challenge for one students rights

Erwins case centered on her daughter Yasi and the districts brazen and unapologetic behavior regarding identifying her disability and accommodating her rights to a free appropriate public education.

We went through torture, Erwin said of the process she experienced. She is a confident kid and it broke her.

Yasi was initially identified as a student with a disability and placed on a Section 504 plan while in the sixth grade at Olivenhain Pioneer Elementary School in the Encinitas Union School District. Diagnosed with ADHD, her symptoms included inattention, hyperactivity and impulse control challenges. Her 504 plan provided her with accommodations such as auditory and visual instructions, movement breaks and extended time on tests.

Once she got to SDUHSDs Diegueno Middle School in 2015, Yasi was exited from her 504 five weeks into her seventh grade school year.

The then-principal of Diegueno had determined that Yasi no longer qualified for a 504 because of her good grades and because she was taking ADHD medication and doing extra studying to help her compensate. Erwin said she and her husband were encouraged to sign the exit as they were not familiar with the legal requirements and because they were told that if Yasi had any trouble, she would be put back on the 504.

Within just two months, Yasi was back to being unable to focus, knitting in the back of class, losing her homework and her self-esteem had plummeted. Yasi said when she asked her teacher if she could take a test in a quiet room so she would have no distractions, the teacher told her that she needed to grow up, embarrassing her in front of the class. As a result, Yasi said she never asked for any accommodation again.

My daughter wanted to quit school, Erwin said. She regularly came home from school in tears. She regularly felt that her teachers and principal mocked her disability because they thought she made it up.

She earned good grades because she was relentless, doing her homework multiple times in a frenzy, studying until 1:30 a.m.  Yasi said thats what she needed to do to get the information to stick in my brain and come out the right way.

In February 2016, Erwin asked for the reinstatement of the 504. A meeting was scheduled and then canceled in the spring as Yasi was determined no longer eligible because of her stellar grades, satisfactory attendance and excellent behavior, leaving her without a 504 for her entire seventh grade year.

In the 2016 school year, her eighth grade year, the Erwins went through three 504 meetings over the course of three months. They detailed all of Yasis major life activities that were affected by her impairments, including thinking, concentrating, learning and sleeping. The Erwins also provided a letter from her physician providing evidence of a disability, past teacher report cards and evaluations about the impacts of her ADHD, and at the third meeting, Yasi herself presented a heartbreaking Power Point presentation about her challenges and how her passion for school and learning had disappeared since her 504 plan was taken away from her.

She asked for a quiet room for tests, a white board for math tests, written instructions and to not be embarrassed in front of the class about ADHD-related mistakes.

If I had no legs, would you deny me a wheelchair ramp and force me to crawl up the stairs? I crawl up the stairs every day, Yasi said. One of my teachers told me that I shouldnt worry about doing well in school because if I dont do well I can go to junior college. She said this to me in front of the class. Why does wanting to learn seem to be such a problem?

The district team concluded that Yasi was not substantially impacted by her ADHD and that she was not a student with a disability.

It was unacceptable the way the district treated her, Erwin said. The district had an adversarial approach that was very inappropriate, with teachers parroting the lawyer and district administrators. The districts lawyer argued every point, and there was even eye rolling.

Erwin filed a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights in July 2016, after she discovered that the reasons the district had used to exit Yasi from her 504 were the wrong legal standard.

In 2016, the OCR issued a guidance letter stating that as the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 clarified a broader scope and definition of the term disability, more students with ADHD are now entitled to protections under Section 504.

The letter stated that from 2011 to 2015, the OCR received more than 16,000 complaints alleging discrimination on the basis of disability. About one in nine complaints were related to allegations of discrimination against a student with ADHD as districts were having problems identifying and evaluating students who need special services because of ADHD.

According to a 2016 Department of Education resource guide for students with ADHD, the Amendments Act broadened the interpretation of the terms that define disability by expanding the list of examples of major life activities by adding things like sleeping, standing, lifting, bending, breathing and concentrating. The act also stated that mitigating measures such as the ameliorative effects of medication shall not be considered in determining whether an individual has a disability, as was done with Yasi.

The guide also stated that students with ADHD may achieve a high level of academic success but may still be substantially limited in a major life activity because of the additional time or effort he or she must spend to read, write, or learn compared to others.

Solely relying on a students grades is wrong. You cant look only at childrens grades to determine eligibility under Section 504, Dempsey said.

The guide stated that although a district could request relevant information from parents, the district cannot require the parent to provide certain data or information before conducting an evaluation.

You cannot burden a parent with establishing a disability, Dempsey said. Most do not have the means to do this.

The guide also stated that post-Amendments Act, the definition of disability, is to be construed broadly and the determination of whether an individual has a disability should not demand extensive analysis. Dempsey pointed out that the Erwins had endured meetings that were over two and a half hours long each over the course of those three monthswhich she would qualify as extensive and exhaustive.

It shouldnt take hours and hours for school administrators to determine if a child has an impairment that rises to the level of disability, Erwin said.

Were talking about a family with two highly-educated parents who have the resources and are able to take time off from work, Dempsey said. What about the parents who cant take that time off work?

After nearly two years, the OCR released its decision in May, finding that San Dieguitos three meetings were procedurally inadequate because the district team members incorrectly interpreted the legal definition of a disability. OCR found that the district did not consider what Yasi was like without her medications and without supports in place and only considered her good grades, attendance and attitude during the school day in making its determination.

OCR also found that SDUHSD had systematically exited students from 504 eligibility and failed to identify students as being eligible for services under Section 504. During the review, OCR found another case in which a seventh grader was found ineligible in 2015 that was not consistent with the ADA Amendments Act.

Dempsey said Yasis case is an example that all school districts need to be aware of amendments and changes, what is correct and what is no longer relevant.

Its a lack of education and understanding of the well-established law. It all goes back to professional development, Dempsey said. Countywide in San Diego, districts are still producing parent handbooks with erroneous information on 504 and procedural safeguards. That is concerning.

She said parents experience a chilling effect with the 504 appeal process and there is a sense that most parents dont know what they are getting into. Dempsey has also noted a troubling trend on the rise: the practice of asking parents for a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) release in determining 504 eligibility.

Moving forward

Miller said the numbers of students with 504 plans continues to increase exponentially throughout the state. In the 2014-15 school year, San Dieguito had 432 students on a 504 plan. In the 2017-18 school year, there were 744, up from 563 in 2016-17.

Partially the reason is that the law was adjusted to be broader and cover more people so more students are qualifying for a 504 plan, Miller said.

School districts do not receive additional funding to supplement the additional staff required for 504 plansit is incorporated into the duties of existing staff so Miller said the district does the best it can to make sure staff is trained on updated policies and laws. He said the districts talented new Director of Student Services, Tiffany Hazlewood, and Coordinator of Student Services, Melissa Sage, who handle Section 504s, both understand the law. Each school site also has its own 504 coordinator.

He said the district frequently coordinates with experts and works together with other school districts to ensure they are all up to speed with the right information.

Procedural safeguards are in place, like the one Erwin undertook.

I believe we are doing a great job of working with parents at the site level, Miller said, noting that there has not been another appeal like Erwins.

Yasi left the San Dieguito district and for her freshman year attended a charter school briefly until the Erwins discovered that unfortunately the school was not accredited. Yasi then went to a community college in the spring and all summer to make up for that year community colleges are not required to provide FAPE but they are required to provide academic adjustments if the student qualifies. Yasi did and was given the accommodation of using a quiet testing center.

While the OCR ruling included that Yasi be reassessed for a 504 by SDUHSD using the correct legal standard, she is now a sophomore at a private school. She is still relentless to succeed and willing to do whatever it takes in her education.

In her Power Point presentation she said: No matter what you do to me, I will survive and work as hard as I need to... I will succeed because thats what Ive always done since I was little.

Erwin hopes that the OCR finding will make a difference for all kids all over the country who have been improperly denied of a 504 or never identified to begin with.

Sabrina really is a champion, fighting for her daughter and other childrens rights, Dempsey said.
By Justin Wise

12 September 2018

(The Hill)  The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said this week that millions of water bottles meant for victims of Hurricane Maria have been left undistributed at an airport in Puerto Rico for more than a year.

CBS News journalist David Begnaud reported on Wednesday that FEMA acknowledged that loads of water bottles were brought to the island in 2017 in the wake of the hurricane and that it turned them over to the central government.

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However, a photographer working for a Puerto Rican police agency, Abdiel Santana, noticed that the water was still sitting at the airport runway one year later, according to Begnaud.

FEMA says the water, and were talking what could be millions of bottles of water, were brought to the island by FEMA last year. FEMA tells me the water was turned over to the central government, Begnaud said in a video posted on Twitter Wednesday night.The question is what happened after that. Where was the breakdown? Begnaud asked.He added that the water was kept in an area that was pretty hard-hit during the storm and could have used all the water they could have gotten. []Trump on Tuesday said that the government did a fantastic job in its response to Hurricane Maria, a comment that quickly led to a wave of criticism from lawmakers. Success? Federal response according to Trump in Puerto Rico a success? San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz tweeted. If he thinks the death of 3,000 people [is] a success God help us all. [more]
By Anna Driver 11 September 2018 HOLDEN BEACH, N.C. (Reuters)  Powerful Hurricane Florence grew larger on Tuesday and is expected to bring days of rain, deadly flooding, and power outages lasting weeks after it slams into the U.S. Southeast coast later this week. Winds and massive waves will pound coastal North and South Carolina when Florence makes landfall on Friday, and its rains will take a heavy toll for miles inland, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) warned. With winds currently at 140 miles per hour (225 km per hour), the storm was a Category 4 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale and expected to get bigger and stronger, the NHC said. This storm is a monster, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper told a Tuesday news conference about the most powerful storm to approach the Carolinas in nearly three decades. Its an extremely dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane  The forecast shows Florence stalling over North Carolina, bringing days and days of rain.

U.S. southeast braces for days and days of floods from Florence

By Jamiles Lartey

11 September 2018

NEW ORLEANS (The Guardian)  More than a million people living along the coastlines of Virginia and the Carolinas have been ordered to evacuate their homes on Tuesday, as parts of Americas mid-Atlantic coast brace for what could be the most powerful storm to ever hit the region.Hurricane Florence is expected to bring potentially catastrophic winds, flooding and storm surge. Forecasters predict it will make landfall late on Thursday.Currently rated as a category 4 storm  the second most powerful on the national weather services (NWS) classification system  Florence would be the first storm in recorded history to make landfall at that magnitude so far north if it remains on its most likely track.In its latest advisory on Tuesday morning, the US national hurricane center (NHC) said the storm is close to category 5 in strength, and had slightly increased in speed as it headed toward the east coast. It is expected to be an extremely dangerous major hurricane ahead of its potential landfall.The bottom line is that there is high confidence that Florence will be a large and extremely dangerous hurricane, regardless of its exact intensity, the hurricane center said. []The NWS is predicting life-threatening storm surge and inland freshwater flooding, with some models predicting upwards of 2ft of rainfall. With winds of up to 150mph forecast, Florence will likely fell tree limbs and trigger power outages.Some forecasters are concerned that the storm appears likely to slow dramatically at about the time of landfall, like 2017s Hurricane Harvey, which stalled out Houston, dropping huge amounts of rain over several days. That storm brought $125bn in damage last summer, mostly in Texas.Florence stands a significant chance of joining 2017s Harvey and Irma as just the third storm to make landfall on the US mainland at category 4 strength (or higher) since 2005. When storms of that magnitude hit the lower 48 states, they usually travel through the warmer waters of the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico and rarely make landfall so far north up the eastern Atlantic coast. The last storm to hit the Carolinas as a category 4 was Hurricane Hugo nearly 30 years ago in 1989. [more]
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$14B ferry plan calls for 5 new vessels

SEATTLE (AP)  The Washington State Ferry System's long-range plan asks for five more Olympic class ferries  two to maintain the fleet and three to replace vessels due to retire.

KOMO-TV reports that 25 million riders have traveled among Puget Sound communities in 2017 alone.

That makes the ferry system the largest in the United States, but it's an aging fleet. Ridership is expected grow by 30 percent by 2040.

Ferry system assistant secretary Amy Scarton says they can't serve the public if they don't have new vessels.

Over the next 20 years, 13 of the 22-vessel fleet will be eligible for retirement.

The primary challenge for state ferries, according to the draft plan, is lack of capital funding.

Implementing the plan over the next 20 years will cost $14.2 billion.




This week in San Francisco, a new kind of climate summit

Cities, states, businesses and charitable foundations from around the world are getting into the act.



By SETH BORENSTEIN

AP Science Writer

The international effort to fight climate change is about to get injected with a bit of Hollywood flash, a lot of Wall Street green and a considerable dose of cheerleading rather than dry treaty negotiations.

Business leaders, mayors, governors and activists from around the world gather this week in San Francisco for the Global Climate Action Summit, where participants will trumpet what they've done and announce new efforts to slow a warming world.

In addition, a smattering of celebrities such as musician Dave Matthews and actor Alec Baldwin will add a touch of red carpet feel to the summit, which starts Wednesday.

It will involve trillions of dollars of pledges for spending on cleaner energy and getting out of investments in heat-trapping fossil fuels, according to officials involved. And it will include a newer way of fighting climate change by emphasizing more climate-friendly land use, food production and diets, along with massive increases in forests  something one expert called the forgotten climate solution.

Cities, states, businesses and charitable foundations are all going to get in the act.

It's a bit like a game show, said summit communications director Nick Nuttall. It's going to be loads of Hollywood-style announcements.

And when you are talking about shifting trillions of dollars to finance initiatives, the private sector needs to get involved and that's happening, said Nigel Purvis, chief executive officer of the non-profit Climate Advisers and a former climate negotiator in the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations.

This is the climate action summit, emphasis on the action, Purvis said. Despite the lack of leadership from Washington, it's really about action.

But so far such pledges have produced more talk than action, said Angel Hsu, an environment professor at Yale University and the National University of Singapore. She is the lead author of a United Nations report released Monday on what businesses, states and local governments can do and already have done.

That report says businesses and lower levels of government have the potential to cut enough greenhouse gases emissions to keep global warming below the danger point of another 2 degrees Fahrenheit (nearly 1 degree Celsius) from now. However, the same report says so far, 8,000 pledges from those groups haven't accomplished much.

To keep from hitting that 2 degree mark, the world has to cut its expected annual emissions by nearly 15 billion tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2030, including what's pledged in the 2015 Paris climate agreement. The businesses and states basically get about 4 percent there, according to Hsu.

It's not much, she said. We were actually shocked to find that the numbers were so low.

Hsu also looked at pledges made in 2002 in a South Africa conference and found that 65 percent of the pledges had no records showing they were acted upon.

This week's summit aims to create momentum for 2020 when world leaders return to the bargaining table to pledge even deeper cuts of heat-trapping emissions than set out in 2015, said Christiana Figueres, the former top United Nations climate official. She proposed this summit right after the Paris agreement was signed.

This is sort of the real economy speaking for itself, Figueres said. She hopes the summit creates a virtuous cycle where businesses and states spur national governments to do better, which in turn spurs businesses again.

Pete Ogden, a former Obama climate and national security official and now a vice president at the United Nations Foundation, said if Paris is going to work it needs to have that positive feedback loop.

Showing what people closer to the action can do and are doing to fight global warming will help global leaders pledge to do more when they gather in 2020, Ogden and Figueres said.

The key for Canada is phasing out coal  the dirtiest fossil fuel  by 2030, said Canadian environment minister Catherine McKenna.

It's really important to showcase that the world is moving forward on climate action, McKenna said. Everyone is acting on climate change not only because it is the right thing to do but also because there's a huge economic opportunity.

As the market gets on board on with climate friendly actions, she said, that makes the billions flow into trillions.




EIS planned for Newport smelter

NEWPORT, Pend Oreille County  The Washington Department of Ecology will conduct an environmental review for a proposed silicon smelter in Pend Oreille County.

Canada-based PacWest Silicon plans to build a $325 million smelter on more than 180 acres at the Washington-Idaho border to produce up to 73,000 tons of silicon metal each year. The process combines quartz rock, wood chips, coal and charcoal with extremely high temperatures to produce the metal.

Ecology is seeking input from the public through Oct. 11 on what to include in the environmental impact statement.

More information about the project, including how to comment, is available on the Ecology website at http://bit.ly/2p1d6A5.




55 Tukwila units sell for $9M

TUKWILA  The Terra Tukwila Apartments, at 6206 S. 153rd St., have sold for just over $9 million, according to King County records.

The seller was P&B Construction Co. LLP, associated with the Ketcham family, which had owned the property for decades.

The buyer was PUR San Juan LLC, which is associated with Pacific Urban Residential of Palo Alto, California.

The sale was arranged by Sidney Warsinske, Ryan Dinius, Giovanni Napoli and Philip Assouad of Kidder Mathews. The transaction was worth about $166,772 per unit.

Developed from 1966 to 1980 on almost 3.3 acres, the Terra has nine low-rise buildings, one of them an old house, with 55 units and surface parking. The complex is north of the Westfield Southcenter Mall.

Pacific Urban has about 100 multifamily properties on the West Coast. Last year it bought the 357-unit Wasatch Hills apartments in Renton for $67 million.




Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said that if the Islamic Republic of Iran had not acted astutely against ISIS, they would have further undermined the security of the region.



AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said that if the Islamic Republic of Iran had not acted astutely against ISIS, they would have further undermined the security of the region.



He made the remarks on Wednesday in a meeting with Shia and Sunni clerics of the Fars province in Larestan county.



Highlighting the role of Iran in the fight against terrorism, Larijani stated that economic development doesnt occur in the atmosphere of insecurity. Having security has its costs and we suppressed the enemy outside our borders, he added.



Elsewhere, he touched upon the history of Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and the US animosity towards Iran, saying that the United States and Israeli regime have devised plots against the Islamic Republic by violating the agreement that they themselves had requested.



After US withdrawal from the deal, European countries asked Iran to not give a quick response and demanded some time, he said, adding that now the clock is ticking.



It is some 12 years that Iran is being posed with challenges regarding its peaceful nuclear program while the country has always pursued a clear strategy in this regard, he stressed.



Calling for increased unity among political and religious streams in Iran, Larijani said that Iranians will continue the path of the Islamic Revolution with political vigilance.





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Northeast Regional Library is pleased to announce another round of Story Walks for the fall. We invite you to visit walking trails in Belmont
Comment

Trump Is Giving Protectionism a Bad Name Tariffs and subsidies to support infant industries can be key for economic development in the Global South.

BY WILLIAM G. MOSELEY | September/October 2018

This article is from Dollars & Sense: Real World Economics, available at http://www.dollarsandsense.org

This article is from the

September/October 2018 issue.

While it might not seem like it now, President Donald Trump is a gift to free marketoriented economists and policymakers. His clumsy approach to protectionism has ignited a trade war that inevitably will harm the U.S. economy. When the pendulum inexorably swings the other way after the Trump fiasco, free-trade ideology will return with a vengeance. This is a potential tragedy for left-leaning policy analysts who have long been concerned about the excesses of neoliberalism and argued for a more measured use of tariffs to foster local economic development. As such, it critical that we distinguish between Trumps right-wing nationalist embrace of tariffs and the more nuanced use of this tool to support infant industries.

As a development geographer and an Africanist scholar, I have long been critical of unfettered free trade because of its deleterious economic impacts on African countries. At the behest of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the majority of African countries were essentially forced, because of conditional loan and debt-refinancing requirements, to undergo free market oriented economic reforms from the early 1980s through the mid-2000s. One by one, these countries reduced tariff barriers, eliminated subsidies, cut back on government expenditures, and emphasized commodity exports. With the possible exception of Ghana, the economy of nearly every African country undertaking these reforms was devastated.

This is not to say that there was no economic growth for African countries during this period, as there certainly was during cyclical commodity booms. The problem is that the economies of these countries were essentially underdeveloped as they returned to a colonial model focused on producing a limited number of commodities such as oil, minerals, cotton, cacao, palm oil, and timber. Economic reforms destroyed the value-added activities that helped diversify these economies and provided higher wage employment, such as the textile, milling, and food processing industries. Worse yet, millions of African farmers and workers are now increasingly ensnared in a global commodity boom-and-bust cycle. Beyond that cycle, they are experiencing an even more worrying long-term trend of declining prices for commodities.

One of the consequences of the hollowing out of African economies has been the European migration crisis. While some of this migration is clearly connected to politics, war, and insecurity in the Middle East and Africa, a nontrivial portion is related to grim economic prospects in many African countries.

After the global financial crisis of 2007, as well as the global food crisis of 2008, even mainstream economists and policy analysts began to realize that unfettered free markets were a problem for the development of African economies, not to mention other areas of the world. As a consequence, some in the development policy community began to reconsider the strategic use of limited tariffs and subsidies to protect and support infant industries. After being demonized for 30 years, import substitutionthe idea that some goods could be produced at home rather than imported from abroadwas beginning to have a renaissance.

For example, the middle-income African nation of Botswana has long mined and exported diamonds. In fact, Botswana was and continues to be the largest exporter of gem-quality diamonds in the world. Nearly all of these were exported as rough diamonds, with the actual cutting and polishing done in countries like India and the Netherlands. Beginning in 2013, Botswana made a concerted attempt to onshore some of these value-added activities by subsidizing a domestic diamond-cutting and -polishing industry. Such industries take time to develop, since you need to cultivate a highly skilled labor pool. But the payoff is more and better-paid employment for a countrys population.

While the Botswana example is still unfolding, it is worth noting that both South Korea and Taiwan also skillfully protected industries in the 1960s and 1970s before breaking onto the world stage as export-oriented manufacturers.

Now the recent Trump fiasco with tariffs is threatening to tar and feather the whole idea of fostering local economic development for decades to come unless the left pushes back with a more nuanced perspective. After the inevitable crash of the American economy, not to mention the collateral damage, the global policy community, and broader publics, will likely reembrace free-market policies because they appear to be the opposite of Trumps racist, nationalist, and nativist stance.

This potential scenario is eerily reminiscent of what unfolded in South Africa in the early 1990s. With the African National Congress (ANC) and Nelson Mandela coming to power, one would have expected that they would have adopted left-leaning, redistributive economic policies given their socialist history and the economic divisions in the country. Instead, what ensued was the full embrace of free-market policies. This remarkable shift has been attributed to a global policymaking community that deftly associated any use of tariffs, subsidies, and protection with the Apartheid regime and South Africas National Party. This sleight of hand allowed them to position free-market policies as the foe of Apartheid and the friend of the rainbow nation. Sadly, while these policies initially spawned economic growth, they also deepened inequality, creating a problem that continues to plague the ANC and South Africa today. We need to be sophisticated enough to disentangle policies that promote local economic development from the horrific antics of the Trump regime. Import substitution and the fostering of infant industries are critical aspects of economic development for many countries in the global South. These policies must not forever be associated with the right-wing nationalism of Donald Trump.

is a professor of geography and director of the Program for Food, Agriculture, and Society at Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minn. He may be found on Twitter @WilliamGMoseley.

Cadman Atta Mills, Structural Adjustment in Sub-Saharan Africa, Economic Development Institute of the World Bank, October 1989 (worldbank.org); A hopeful continent, The Economist, March 2, 2013 (economist.com); Gumisai Mutume, Loss of textile market costs African jobs, Africa Renewal, April 2006 (un.org); William G. Moseley, Judith Carney, and Laurence Becker, Neoliberal policy, rural livelihoods, and urban food security in West Africa, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, March 2010 (pnas.org); Mark J. Perry, Julian Simon: Still More Right Than Lucky On Commodities In 2013, Seeking Alpha, January 13, 2013 (seekingalpha.com); Africa: International migration, emigration 2015, African Studies Centre Leiden (openaccess.leidenuniv.nl); Andrew England, Botswana seeks to reap more than diamond dollars, Financial Times, December 27, 2015 (ft.com); Dani Rodrik, Getting Interventions Right: How South Korea and Taiwan Grew Rich, Economic Policy, April 1995 (nber.org); Richard Peet, Ideology, Discourse, and the Geography of Hegemony: From Socialist to Neoliberal Development in Postapartheid South Africa, Antipode, January 2002 (wiley.com); Jason Beaubien, The Country With the Worlds Worst Inequality Is... Goats and Soda, April 2, 2018 (npr.org).

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President expressed condolences over the advent of Imam Husseins (AS) mourning anniversary, stressing: Today is the day of loyalty and following the path of Abolfazl (AS), backing the political system and standing against enemies.



AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): President expressed condolences over the advent of Imam Husseins (AS) mourning anniversary, stressing: Today is the day of loyalty and following the path of Abolfazl (AS), backing the political system and standing against enemies.



Speaking at the meeting of the Council of Ministers on Wednesday, President Hassan Rouhani said: Muharram has always been reminiscent of the devotion and self-sacrifice of Imam Hussein and his loyal companions.



This lasting page of the history teaches us every year how to overcome great issues that the Islamic society and Muslims face, he continued.



The President also said: Imam Hussein (AS) is the permanent victor in history and there is nobody in the history judging what happened in Ashura and Karbala and not knowing Imam Hussein (AS) the absolute victor.



Stating that today, the scenes of Ashura can be outlined, Dr Rouhani said: Today, we are at a clear war against the aggressors of history. Today, a group are lining up against the Iranian nation and dont have any political and intellectual supporter except a few countries.



Referring to the current state of affairs in the United States, he continued: Today is one of the worst times in the history of the US. Today, there are few researchers, intellectual and experts in the US who agree with those who sit at the White House.



Today, the allies of America are not supporting them politically and even Americas traditional allies have distanced from this country and they are proud of this distance, while once they were proud of being with the US, the President continued.



He also went on to say: Today, the US is in the worst conditions in the world and even international organisations like UNESCO, UN, IAEA and ICC do not agree with US policies.



The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran also said: Despite facing unwelcome economic war and individuals who do not respect any international law, the spirit of steadfastness of the Iranian nation, especially in Muharram days is exemplary.



Today, there is no good higher than giving people hope in the path of steadfastness and no wrong higher than creating fear and apprehension in peoples hearts, added Rouhani.



The President continued: Today, those who have a tribune, the media and those whose voice is heard throughout the country have a very heavy responsibility, because today, we are at a great test and all media and authorities and those who have power should help the great Iranian nation.



Definitely, the Iranian nation will be the victor of this scene, said Rouhani adding: If we stand and give people spirits, it means that we have decreased their expenses, but if we promote fear, apprehension and despair, we have increased peoples expenses.



Of course, people will have problems in this war, because its not possible for a war to not have any casualty, but this is a war that we will certainly win and we will defeat the enemies, added the President.



He went on to criticise not telling people the truth, saying: If we calculate our GDP based on peoples purchasing power or the value of the market, import of goods and services that rely on foreign currency are very few, based on some calculations, about 5 per cent and based on some others who dont take into account the value and the purchasing power in their models, about 10 per cent.



We have a long time left until the elections. No one should think that defamation of the government can create votes for them in the next year's and 1400 elections, and the Iranian nation will judge them, and after passing through this test, their words, behaviour, and sentences will remain in history, and people will judge how they behaved in hard times to reduce or increase peoples problems, he continued.



The President also referred to Supreme Leaders remarks describing such a behaviour as the virus of pessimism, adding: Some are spreading the virus of pessimism in the country through their speeches, tribunes and media.





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Human Rights Watch (HRW) has expressed concern over Saudi Arabia's continued detention of a top cleric because of his political views, urging the Riyadh regime to "immediately" release him.



AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Human Rights Watch (HRW) has expressed concern over Saudi Arabia's continued detention of a top cleric because of his political views, urging the Riyadh regime to "immediately" release him.



Saudi authorities detained top Sunni preacher Salman al-Awda on September 7 last year, and have held him in solitary confinement without trial ever since.



HRW said Wednesday that, according to family members, the 61-year-old cleric had finally been allowed to contact a lawyer for his first ever hearing on September 3.



At the hearing, prosecutors brought 37 charges against Awda, mostly connected to his alleged ties with the Muslim Brotherhood and the Qatari government, and his public support for imprisoned dissidents, according to HRW. They also requested the death penalty.



Saudi Arabia blacklisted the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization in March 2014.



HRW condemned the charges as "vague" and said the ongoing crackdown by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman against dissidents and anti-regime activists will only hurt Riyadh's ambitious economic plans.



At a time when Saudi Arabias ambitious economic plans such as the Aramco IPO are stalling out, the crown princes prosecutors are investing in threatening clerics and womens rights activists with execution, said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.



Unless Saudi Arabia has evidence that al-Awda committed a recognizable crime the authorities should release him immediately.



Aeda was among the first of scores of people detained by government forces in mid-September 2017, months after MBS rose to power.



The cleric was a prominent member of the Sahwa Movement in the early 1990s, which opposed the decision by Riyadh to let the US military into Saudi Arabia in order to prevent a potential attack by Iraq.



He has been an advocate of greater democracy and social tolerance since 2011.



In January, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights called for Awda's release, describing him as an influential religious figure."



Court documents viewed by HRW stated that the cleric was accused of expressing "public solidarity with imprisoned dissidents, opposing the Saudi-led isolation of Qatar in mid-2017, and alleged ties to the Qatari government."



He is also charged with publicly opposing the Saudi regime's hosting of former Tunisian president Zain al-Abedin Bin Ali, mocking governmental achievements, and offending patriotism and loyalty to the government and the country.





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I am not as die-hard Korean Novela fan like a lot I know, I occassionally watch Korean Drama on TVTonly ans the latest one I watched was Korean Odyssey.

Some of the classic Korean Novelas I enjoyed were Full House, Jewel in the Palace and Winter the Sonata. Good news is theyre now available on HOOQ!

HOOQlargest Video on Demand service in Southeast Asia  caters to every interest of its audience. There is no doubt that the Korean wave or hallyu is one of Koreas biggest exports. These days, KDrama is very much an important part of Filipino pop culture.

Before the current wave of popular Korean dramas, there were the classics such as Autumn in my Heart, Jewel in the Palace, Winter Sonata, Dong Yi, Queen Seon Deok and Full House. These dramas, which helped pave the way for the Korean wave, can be streamed in their Tagalized versions on HOOQ, including Full House which will premiere on HOOQ on September 20.Autumn in my Heart and Winter Sonata are bittersweet love stories while Dong Yi and Queen Seon Deok go back in history to tell two very interesting stories.

How to get HOOQ

Its easy to get HOOQd. Customers can simply download the HOOQ app from Apple Store or

Google Play, sign up or log in, to access HOOQs extensive library of Hollywood and Asian

hits. Watch shows on HOOQ via Chromecast, Roku, and Android TV. Smart, TNT and Sun

users can enjoy a 30-day free trial. Globe mobile users can enjoy a 45-day free trial. Find out

more and sign up today for a complimentary trial at www.hooq.tv.

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Jewel in the Palace is one of the highest rated Korean dramas of all time. It was later exported to 91 countries, including the Philippines, and has earned $103.4 million worldwide. It is the story of a woman who was orphaned and became a cook and later on, the kings first female physician.Sheila Paul, HOOQ Philippines Country Manager, said, Korean dramas have captured a global audience and we see it resonate deeply with the Filipinos. This is the reason we arebringing the Korean titles that started the craze in the Philippines to our HOOQ subscribers,dubbed in the language closest to their hearts.Aside from Korean titles, HOOQ also has content from Indonesia, Thailand and India, including The Teachers Diary, Pee Mak, Ong Bak and Critical Eleven.


By Town Hall , Sep. 10, 2018





In rural America, theres a sigh of relief: Barack Obama is no longer president. For eight years, the Obama administration waged war against the coal industry. In doing so, the government was waging a war against hard-working Americans whose livelihoods depended on coal mining. Big tech and Silicon Valley aren't going to save these people. They aren't going to get job retraining, which has become a political escape hatch for politicians bracing for their constituents to get screwed out of a job. MRCTV ventured into West Virginia to gauge the level of economic distress inflicted upon these communities from this Obama-era policy. Its extensive.

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US consumers may look on tags on their underwear and find that it is "hecho en El Salvador" -- made in El Salvador. El Salvador garment factories have long been a source of underwear for the US market and that trend is continuing.An article on an apparel industry website today notes that HanesBrands is investing to expand its factories in El Salvador where underwear for the US market is sewn: According to an article in Just-Style, the garment manufacturer will invest a total of $10.4 million on its facilities here and increase employment by 430 jobs.HanesBrands decision to increase investment in El Salvador is attributed in the article to a new customs union among Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador as well as the country's decision to cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan.You can read HanesBrands public relations pieces about its operations in El Salvador here Balance those public relations pieces with a 2010 inspection report by the Fair Labor Association which found numerous violations of workers rights at a Hanes facility in El Salvador.
It's time for Assad to worry

Everybody knew that Assad organised deadly attack that killed 53 people in Reyhanl in 2013. After today it's officialised.

Turkey's National Intelligence Organization (MIT) carried out an operation in Syria's Latakia and captured a key plotter of the 2013 Reyhanl attack.

NAZIK WAS LISTED IN 'BLUE' CATEGORY

Yusuf Nazik, who was listed in the "blue" category of Turkey's most wanted terrorists' list, was brought to Turkey by MIT agents and interrogated.

HE ADMITTED CRIMES

Nazik, 34, admitted to looking for alternative places for attack and exploration, bringing the explosives from Syria to Turkey and organizing planting the explosives into two vans on the order of Syrian intelligence units.

NAZIK GAVE INFORMATION ABOUT MIHRAC URAL

Key plotter of the attack Nazik gave detailed information about Mihrac Ural. He is known as the leader of a small Shabiha group known as the Syrian Resistance (Al Muqawamat al-Suriyah) and sought by Turkey for his role in Reyhanl bombing and several other terrorism cases, and other suspects that took part in the attack.

TURKISH OFFICIALS HAD BLAMED ASSAD FOR THE ATTACK

In addition this deadly attack killed 53 people, the attack devastated the district, damaging 912 houses, 891 businesses and 148 vehicles. Turkish officials have since blamed the Assad regime and Syrian military intelligence group known as the "Mukhabarat" for the attack.
Turkey nabs key suspect of 2013 Reyhanl attack

Yusuf Nazik brought to Turkey from Syria's Latakia following an operation by Turkish intelligence organization.

Turkey's National Intelligence Organization (MIT) has captured a key plotter of the 2013 Reyhanli attack from the Syrian port city of Latakia.

53 PEOPLE KILLED IN THE DEADLY ATTACK

According to information gathered by Anadolu Agency, the MIT has brought Yusuf Nazik to Turkey and began an interrogation on the deadly attack that killed 53 people in southern Turkey.

Nazik, 34, who was marked in the blue category of the Interior Ministry's wanted terrorist list, confessed in video footage available with Anadolu Agency, that on a tip-off from Syrian intelligence units, he scouted the crime scene prior to the attack and moved explosives from Syria to Turkey.

The May 2013 bombings in Reyhanli district of southern Hatay Province near the Turkish border with Syria left 53 people dead.
Turkey warns Europe about the attack on Idlib

A possible attack on Syrias northwestern province of Idlib will sabotage the ongoing political process and cause a serious crisis of confidence, the Turkish presidential spokesman said on Tuesday.

Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalns remarks came after a cabinet meeting chaired by President Erdogan at the presidential complex.

ATTACK ON IDLIB TO SABOTAGE ONGOING POLITICAL PROCESS

Since the beginning of this month, at least 30 civilians have been killed in Idlib and Hama -- and dozens injured -- by airstrikes and attacks by the regime and Russian warplanes, according to the White Helmets civil defense agency. The Syrian regime recently announced plans to launch a major military offensive in Idlib, which remains under the control of various armed opposition groups.

Last week, the UN warned that such an offensive would likely lead to the worst humanitarian catastrophe of the 21st century. Kaln said Turkey expects all parties to make constructive contributions and agree on a political solution on Syria. He urged the West including the U.S. to join hands in stopping a possible attack on Idlib.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc shakes hands with Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono (Photo: VNA)



The Government leader made the statement when he received Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono who paid him a courtesy visit while here to attend the World Economic Forum on ASEAN (WEF ASEAN) 2018 in Hanoi and to co-chair the 10th session of the Vietnam - Japan Cooperation Committee.

At the reception, PM Phuc also expressed his hope for strengthened ASEAN - Japan and Mekong - Japan cooperation, especially when Vietnam shoulders the role of the coordinator of the ASEAN - Japan relations in the 2018-2021 period. He also spoke highly of Japans provision of official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnam in the recent past and affirmed that the Vietnamese Government highly values and strives to effectively implement the ODA projects.

The PM asked the Japanese top diplomat to accelerate the economic linkage between the two countries, especially in the fields of great potential, and spoke highly of the significant activities to mark the 45th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations which, he said, make important contributions to the strengthening of the trust and intensifying of the people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

For his part, Foreign Minister Kono expressed his desire to contribute to the success of the WEF ASEAN 2018 and the further pushing up of the Vietnam - Japan relations and cooperation. He affirmed that Japan highly values the proactive role and active contributions by Vietnam in international and regional issues, and asked for close coordination from Vietnam for the success of the coming Mekong - Japan summit.

The Japanese top diplomat reiterated that Japan will share with Vietnam experiences in building an e-government and support the viewpoint of Vietnam and other ASEAN countries in the East Sea issues when Vietnam takes the role of the coordinator of the ASEAN - Japan relations from 2018./.
United Technologies Corporation agreed Wednesday to pay the SEC $13.9 million to resolve charges that it violated the FCPA by making illicit payments in its elevator and aircraft engine businesses.

United Technologies subsidiary Otis Elevator Co. bribed Azerbaijani officials for public housing elevator sales in Baku, the SEC said.

Connecticut-based United Technologies, through a joint venture, also paid a Chinese sales agent in an attempt to obtain confidential information from a Chinese official to help win engine sales to state-owned Air China.

The SEC also said that United Technologies improperly provided trips and gifts to various foreign officials in China, Kuwait, South Korea, Pakistan, Thailand, and Indonesia through its Pratt & Whitney division and Otis subsidiary.

The gifts and trips were provided in an effort to retain business, according to the SEC.

United Technologies agreed to the SECs order (pdf) without admitting or denying the findings. The company agreed to disgorge $9 million plus interest of about $919,000, and pay a penalty of $4 million.

The SEC settled the case through an internal administrative order without going to court.

In Azerbaijan, the Otis Elevator unit hired agents from Russia without doing any due diligence.

None of [the agents] had local experience in Azerbaijan or reliable experience in either import/export or the elevator industry, the SEC order said.

In fact, one of the intermediaries was not a registered entity until . . . well after participating in Otiss transactions in Azerbaijan.

In China, an agent for a joint venture that included Pratt & Whitney asked for and received a commission advance of $2 million purportedly for an office expansion, the SEC said. The agent didnt provided any documentation to support its need for the advance.

The joint venture paid the China agent $55 million in commissions from 2009 to 2013.

In March, the DOJ notified United Technologies that it had decided to close its investigation into the matter, according to FCPA Tracker.

In late 2013 and early 2014, United Technologies self-disclosed to the DOJ, SEC, and the SFO the status of an internal investigation regarding a non-employee sales rep for the sale of jet engines and aftermarket services in China.

____

Harry Cassin is the managing editor of the FCPA Blog.
Shypple, a Rotterdam, The Netherlands-based digital forwarding startup, raised 1.7m in a second funding round.

Backers included regional development fund Brabantse Ontwikkelmaatschappij (BOM), August Ventures, and private investors. In conjunction with the funding, Patrick Kerssemakers from August Ventures will join Shypple as an advisor.

The company intends to use the funds to further improve the product and simplify freight shipping.

The startup is active in the retail, E-commerce and wholesale segment. Shypple is planning to make its online platform suitable for air cargo as well.

Founded in 2016 by Jarell Habets, Shypple is a digital forwarder that offers all services required to ship goods from door pick-ups, pick-up, customs brokerage, ocean, air and rail freight to on-demand warehousing.

The startup provides companies with a centralized web application that acts as a dashboard providing real-time visibility on every aspect of the supply chain. For intercontinental trade, it offers a centralized and digital web app that acts as a supply chain dashboard, which oversees every movement and action in the process and foresees in a variety of booking, planning, delivery and communication possibilities.

Multiple users can collaborate within this tool and are in direct contact with dedicated operations coordinators.

From the web app, logistics teams can directly search, compare, book and follow shipments for both air- and ocean freight.

Shypple currently connects more than 800 ports worldwide.

The company currently has 25 employees.

FinSMEs

12/09/2018
Sysdig, Inc., a San Francisco, CA-based cloud-native intelligence company, raised $68.5m in series D funding.

The round, which brought total funding to date to $121.5m, was led by Insight Venture Partners, with participation from previous investors Bain Capital Ventures and Accel.

The company intends to use the funds to extend its business reach.

Led by Suresh Vasudevan, CEO, Sysdig provides enterprises with an intelligence platform to operate reliable and secure containerized infrastructure and cloud-native applications.

The companys cloud-native intelligence platform was built with an understanding of the modern DevSecOps workflow across Kubernetes, Docker and both private and public clouds. Its open source forensics technology, called Sysdig, and its open source security project, Sysdig Falco, have a community of millions of users, and provide the foundation for a rich, commercial product set.

Dozens of Global 2000 enterprises use the platform, including many of the worlds largest financial institutions, media companies, cable companies, technology companies, and government agencies.

With Sysdig Secure, launched in October of 2017, the company made its cloud-native intelligence Platform the only solution to offer unified security, monitoring, and forensics with native Kubernetes and Prometheus integration for containers and microservices.

Sysdig recently opened second headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina, which added to offices in San Francisco, Belgrade, and London.

FinSMEs

12/09/2018
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) receives RoK Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha (Photo: VNA)



He made the statement while receiving RoK Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, who is heading the countrys delegation to the World Economic Forum on ASEAN (WEF ASEAN) 2018 now underway in Hanoi.

During the reception, the Government leader asked the two sides to continue maintaining the high-level contacts and to closely coordinate with each other to accelerate the bilateral cooperation in every field, especially in investment, and to facilitate Vietnams exports to the market in the RoK so as to narrow the trade imbalance. PM Phuc also stressed that the two should strengthen their cooperation on science and technology to meet the new requirements of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Besides, PM Phuc also said he hopes the RoK will soon take effective measures to assist Vietnam in building an e-government, and asked the RoK Foreign Ministry to help the Vietnamese country in the country.

Foreign Minister Kang conveyed regards from President Moon Jae-in to the host and spoke highly of the socio-economic development and international integration recorded by Vietnam in the recent past. She said the RoK attaches great importance to the boosting of the relations and cooperation with Vietnam and stands ready to join hands with the country in solving the issues in trade.

The RoK will help the Vietnamese community in the country and share experiences with Vietnam in building an e-government, FM Kang stressed, adding that she herself and her ministry will continue closely coordinating with Vietnam in accelerating the implementation of the high-level agreement in a practical and effective way, thus contributing to the bringing of the bilateral relations to a new height./.
.                 - .         ,        5-   ,  ,   ,        3.         ,     ,    ...
Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang (R) on September 12th received Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono (Photo: VNA)



President Quang took this occasion to send his sympathy to Japanese people over the huge losses caused by a devastating earthquake in the northern prefecture of Hokkaido.

The President said he was happy at the rapid, comprehensive and practical development of the Vietnam-Japan strategic partnership in all fields, especially in economic cooperation, trade, investment, agriculture, human resources training, cultural and people-to-people exchanges, as the two countries are celebrating the 45th founding anniversary of diplomatic relations.

He affirmed that the political trust between the nations has been strengthened through visits and meetings by their senior leaders, notably the Vietnam visit by the Japanese Emperor and Empress in 2017 and the state visit by the Vietnamese President and his spouse to Japan in May.

President Quang asked the Japanese FM to make greater efforts to deepen the Vietnam-Japan friendship and cooperation, and promote collaboration in economy, trade and investment.

He voiced his hope that Japan would continue providing official development assistance (ODA) for Vietnams infrastructure, human resource development and climate change adaptation.

The President spoke highly of Japans assistance to Vietnam in firefighting and search and rescue, as well as activities marking the 45th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties, which enhanced mutual understanding and friendship between the Vietnamese and Japanese people.

In reply, Japanese FM Kono expressed his delight at the robust development of the Vietnam-Japan partnership in all spheres, especially after the Vietnam visit by the Japanese Emperor and Empress in 2017 and the state visit by the Vietnamese President and his spouse to Japan in May.

He pledged to spare no efforts to accelerate the implementation agreements signed by senior leaders of the two countries, thus helping to develop bilateral relations in a more practical and effective manner.

Vietnams sustainable development will contribute to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region, the diplomat said, adding that Japan will support Vietnams sustainable development.

He also voiced his hope the two nations would increase coordination and sharing of views at regional and international forums, such as the United Nations, ASEAN and related mechanisms, especially when Vietnam assumes the role as coordinator of ASEAN-Japan relations in the 2018-2021 period./.
The Fort Myers Beach Town Council on Monday approved a tentative millage and budget for the 2019 fiscal year during its meeting at Town Hall.

The council voted unanimously to set the not-to-exceed millage at .8700 mills, the same as last year, while setting the budget at $18,121,265.

A mill is $1 for every $1,000 of taxable property valuation.

There were two issues that came up during the budget discussion; the amount of money spent on recreation areas such as the Mound House, Bay Oaks and Newton Home & Park, and the need to maintain the budget for the Lee County Sheriffs Office presence.

Council member Dennis Boback said for many years the recreation areas accounted for more than half the towns budget and, even now, is concerned about the money being spent.

Im not trying to get rid of them. Theyre assets for the town, but there comes a time when you have to stop the bleeding, Boback said. I want to see the taxes creep down.

Mayor Tracey Gore was upset over the budget that had slashed $15,000 from the Sheriffs Office expenditure, saying there are people sleeping under the bridge and there is a need to get them out.

Gores plan to fund law enforcement; stop funding fireworks for New Years Eve.

I dont want to shoot them over the water and dirty up the water even more with the fireworks, Gore said. Maybe we can do a laser light show. We need to take care of our backyard.

Council member Anita Cereceda said she liked the budget.

The budget is a working document and throughout the year so I dont get too emotionally attached, Cereceda said. The LCSO supports this community. They always have, so I never have a concern with them.

In other business, the town council was mixed in regard to confirming the selection of new town attorney Thomas Thanas.

Cereceda said Thanas did not meet the requirements regarding experience working in Florida.

Vice Mayor Joanne Shamp said that state experience was only preferred and that if they wanted it as a requirement they should have said so.

Im concerned. There are a lot of nuances and the complexities of the issues here. We put Florida experience in for a reason, Cereceda said.

Gore supported Thanas, saying that he reminded her of former town manager Jim Steele, who also practiced law up north.

Boback said he was on the fence, but Thanas met the requirements and the town council chose him on Aug. 20. He was the deciding vote in a 3-2 vote to confirm Thanas, with Cereceda and Council member Bruce Butcher dissenting.

The vote on his contract was 4-1 with Cereceda again dissenting.

The town also extended its suspension of parking fees at all pay stations until Sept. 30. It had originally suspended them to Sept. 10 during its last meeting. It also approved a condominium conversion on Estero Boulevard.
The weeks events:

 Wednesday, Sept. 12 at 10:30 a.m.. Preschool Story Hour in Childrens area.

 Wednesday, 10:30 a.m. Gems and Their Stories

 Monday, Sept, 17, 1:30 p.m. Hummels in 2018. Pre-register.

 Tuesday, Sept. 18, 10:30 a.m. Book Discussion

Artist of the Month

On exhibit are the photographs of Geoff Coe who moved to Lee County in 2004 and, like many newcomers, was fascinated by the variety of birds and other wildlife he saw. He began taking his camera on paddling trips along Florida beaches and wildlife habitats. In 2008, he founded Wild Images Florida and left his career as a technical communicator to photograph birds full-time. Trained as a scientist at Dickinson College and The John Hopkins University, he creates images that emphasize birds behavior and their relationship to their surroundings. My favorite images are ones that show the bird in beautiful light and tell a great story.

More details of the exhibition and Awards he has received are on in a poster near the voting box on the third floor.

Biography

The collection of biographies may be found on the second floor with over 1700 titles available for current check-out. As you arrive on the second floor you will see two large American flag art tapestries and the Florida book cases. The Biographies are behind the Florida cases and to the right of the flags.

M. William Phelps

Author M. William Phelps is a history and true crime writer. A driving force that inspired Phelpss fact-based creativity is his personal experience of the double murder of a pregnant family member. He is an award-winning investigative journalist who is a crime scene expert driven by the desire to help victims of crime. The Library collection of M. Williams Phelps books are in TRUE CRIME.

Phelps is considered to be an expert on the subject of serial killers and host of Investigation Discovery series Dark Minds. He has appeared on TV more than 100 times and is a frequent guest of radio shows. He consulted on the first season of the Showtime original series, Dexter.

Beachcombers Books

There are summer specials available in the bookstore. Let yourself have one in browsing. A large selection of Scholastic books for children have arrived, waiting to be discovered. Note also the special Fort Myers Beach greeting cards added.

Cleaning

To keep the Library physically and biologically clean and neat in appearance involves using methods and supplies that do not promote decay or damage to library materials and equipment and people. The little things you do such as only carrying water in an enclosed bottle, and eating/munching only in the Library Commons on the third floor, or picking up little debris you see on the stairs or floor, helps a lot.

Should you have an hour or two in your schedule during September or October, consider volunteering to have a shift (1 or 2 hours) to dust.. We can use your skills and goodness to help keep the Library safe and clean.

Healthy for Your Brain

The mind has two separate hemispheres or lobes called right and left-brain with each one dealing in different functions. Right brain works with emotion and performs tasks holistically while the left-brain functions in linear fashion. When you use both sides of the brain, your mind power is harnessed to its best and gets better.

Jigsaw puzzles help exercise both parts of your brain. While working on jigsaw puzzles, it has been studied that there exists continuous activity throughout the brain, involving all the cells and parts of the brain. This intense activity works to exercise the brain cells and thereby activate them and increase their efficiency and capacity. Several studies have found that people who have been used to doing jigsaw puzzles as well as crosswords and were fully active, were more likely to have a longer life span and lessen chances of falling prey to Alzheimers, memory loss, dementia and other old age challenges.

We generally have two or three puzzles on the puzzle tables on the second floor. Have fun. Be healthy.

SeptemberLibrary Cards

September is National Library Card Sign-up month. Andrew Carnegie, a self-taught, lifelong learner notes, The library outranks anything a community can do to benefit its people. The care of Carnegies philanthropy lives on today; he left an astonishing legacy, 1,689 libraries in the United States alone! The Beach Library card is a free service for full-time residents. Visitors and shorter-term stayers can sign up for a library card for $10, enabling access to library materials and services.

Gems

Enjoy the presentation on natural gems on Sept 12. See also the gems on display on the second floor relating to these treasures.

Patriotic display

View the display on the second floor highlighting factors and documents relating to our nations founding and growth. This display is courtesy of the Estero Island Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution.

Care of DVDs and Audios

When you check-out and enjoy one or more of these, please handle discs by the outer edge or the center hole. Keep the discs clean and dust free and return discs to their cases immediately after use. The care enables us all to use these without missing something because of misuse.

Library Hours

When we are closed, the hours of operation are included in a recording when you call in. Stop by Monday to Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. and on Saturday between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. We look forward to seeing you.
This blog covers software patent news and issues with a particular focus on wireless, mobile devices (smartphones, tablet computers, connected cars) as well as select antitrust matters surrounding those devices.
Ariel Winter is speaking out against actor David Henrie after he was reportedly arrested for carrying a loaded gun to an airport earlier this week.

"So...you didnt notice the *loaded* gun in your bag when you were packing for the airport????? In other words...why was your gun not stored safely in a place where you knew where it was and why in the f--k was it loaded??" the "Modern Family" star wrote on Twitter Tuesday.

As previously reported, Henrie, 29, was going through a TSA screening at Los Angeles International Airport Monday morning when agents reportedly discovered an M&P Shield 9mm pistol that was loaded, according to TMZ.

Per the outlet, the former "Wizards of Waverly Place" actor was immediately detained and then taken to a nearby police station.

'HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER' STAR ARRESTED FOR CARRYING A LOADED GUN IN AN AIRPORT

Following the incident, Henrie took to Twitter to apologize, saying that he was "humiliated" and "embarrassed."

"I take responsibility for the situation at LAX today," the "How I Met Your Mother" star wrote. "I unintentionally brought my legally owned gun which is registered in my name to the airport. I am so sorry for any trouble it caused, but I am appreciative of TSA's efforts in implementing the safety laws that are in place to protect our beautiful country."

He continued: "More than anything I am humiliated and embarrassed that this even happened. But I am thankful to the TSA, LAPD and all involved today for their kindness and their professionalism during this process."

Winter, 20, posted a separate tweet in response to a social media user, stating that she was "glad" Henrie apologized, however, noted that there was a "bigger issue."

"If he wasn't a celebrity would he just be able to say sorry and walk away after bringing a loaded firearm in his bag to the airport?" questioned Winter.

She added: "I am a licensed gun owner. I would never, ever accidentally bring my firearm anywhere. I lock them up legally and know where they are at all times. That could be a deadly mistake."

According to People Magazine, Henrie, who has not yet responded to Winter's tweets publicly, is expected to appear in court on Oct. 1.

Fox News' Tyler McCarthy contributed to this report.
The Los Angeles County District Attorneys Office on Tuesday said they declined to charge Nick Carter, a member of the Backstreet Boys, after he was accused of sexual assault.

An unidentified woman claimed to be the "victim of a sexual assault" in Carter's apartment in 2003, a charge evaluation document obtained by Fox News revealed. The woman said she was 18 years old at the time.

However, officials wrote that the statute of limitations had since expired in 2013 and the matter is declined.

Nick Carter was cleared today when the L.A. County District Attorneys Office rejected the charges against him," Carters lawyer said in a statement provided to Fox News.

"Nick has denied these allegations ever since he first learned of them last year, and was confident the District Attorney would conclude that there was no basis to pursue charges against him. He is happy to put this matter behind him.

BACKSTREET BOYS NICK CARTER UNDER REVIEW BY LOS ANGELES DA OVER ALLEGED SEX ASSAULT

The case against Carter, 38, was presented by the Santa Monica Police Department in early August, the district attorneys office previously confirmed, following a police report filed against him in February.

The Santa Monica police confirmed to Fox News earlier this year that a report was filed against Carter, and that an investigation was underway, but the department did not identify the person involved in the report.

Around the same time, former pop star Melissa Schuman, of the girl band Dream, tweeted that she was "finally doing what I thought I could no longer do," seemingly confirming she'd filed the report against Carter.

California did away with its statute of limitations for rape in 2016. Schuman told The Associated Press on Tuesday that it's unfortunate the state didn't make the move retroactive to accommodate victims like her.

My family and I were well aware of the likelihood that my case was not prosecutable, she said, adding that even so, speaking out was the best thing I could have ever done for myself.

NICK CARTERS ACCUSER MELISSA SCHUMAN GOES TO POLICE OVER CLAIM HE RAPED HER IN 2003

In November 2017, Schuman wrote in a blog post that she was "forced to engage in an act against my will," maintaining that Carter took her virginity when she was 18 and he was 22.

"After kissing for a moment, he took my hand and brought me into the bathroom adjacent to his office," she wrote. "He shut the door and we continued to kiss. I asked him what we were doing in there. He didnt respond and continued to kiss me.

"He then picked me up, put me on the bathroom counter and started to unbutton my pants. I told him I didnt want to go any further," she added. "He didnt listen. He didnt care."

Following the accusations, Carter maintained that Schuman never expressed to him that anything we did was not consensual.

Fox News Nicole Darrah, Kathleen Joyce and The Associated Press contributed to this report.




Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, and Standing Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son attended a press conference on September 11th to launch the book, forming part of activities in the framework of the ongoing WEF on ASEAN 2018 in Hanoi.

Klaus Schwab, author of the book, expressed his hope that the book will serve as a catalyst that helps Vietnamese people become a major force in the 4IR.

My message is countries which miss the 4IR will be the losers of tomorrow, Klaus Schwab said. We cannot overestimate the impact of the 4IR, not only to business models but also to economy and society, he added.

Economies need to make sure their policy making will help entrepreneurs see the revolution not as a threat but as opportunities, not only for Vietnam but for the whole region, thus making the region the most competitive force in the future, he said.

In the book, which has been translated into 29 languages, Prof. Schwab described how new technologies are fundamentally changing the way people live, work and communicate with each other, showing that the 4IR goes beyond what we saw in the past in terms of size, speed, and scope.

The book provides a comprehensive overview of major trends which shape our world while giving readers with a way of thinking and analyzing the historic changes to ensure the benefit of this revolution, Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Son said.

Son, who instructed the translation of the book into Vietnamese, expressed his thanks to Prof. Schwab for granting the book translation and publishing in Vietnam, saying that it will be a valuable reference for Vietnam to be well prepared for the 4IR.

Answering reporters at the press conference on Vietnams preparation for the WEF on ASEAN 2018, Klaus Schwab emphasized the effective cooperation and partnership between the WEF and Vietnam for the event.

The WEF ASEAN 2018, with participation of over 1,000 delegates from the region and global businesses, is the WEFs biggest meeting in ASEAN. It shows confidence and potential of Vietnam and ASEAN, he said.

The WEF ASEAN 2018 themed ASEAN 4.0: Entrepreneurship and the Fourth Industrial Revolution is taking place in Hanoi from September 11th -13th.

The 1,000 participants are from 43 countries and regions. Among the delegates are the prime ministers of Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, and Sri Lanka, the presidents of Indonesia and the Philippines, and Myanmar's State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi.

The event provides platform for government and business leaders to discuss and share policy ideas and initiatives for the regions key issues, especially in the face of the 4th industrial revolution.

In 2010, Vietnam hosted the World Economic Forum on East Asia for the first time.

The WEF was established in 1971 as a non-profit foundation and is headquartered in Geneva. The forum engages political, business, and other leaders to shape global, regional, and industry agendas.

Founded in 1967, ASEAN groups together Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam./.
Rapper Bow Wow revealed his battle with drug addiction in a series of tweets Monday, just days after the suspected overdose death of hip-hop star Mac Miller.

Bow Wow, whose real name is Shad Moss, encouraged his followers to stay away from drugs and admitted to using lean, a combination of promethazine, codeine and soft drinks, every day about 10 years ago.

To the youth- Stop with these dumbadrugs, he tweeted. Im going to let something out. When me and omarion worked on FACE OFF album. I was high off lean everyday! When yall saw me on BET going off on torae i was high off lean. My attitude everything changed.

Bow Wow revealed his family and friend began to turn on him while he was working with Omarion for their 2007 collaboration Face Off. He then recalled using the drug several times a day while he was on tour with Chris Brown. He said at one point he walked off stage and woke up in a hospital.

I never felt a pain like that ever. It was summer but i was walking round with 3 hoodies on because i was so cold, he tweeted. I missed the chicago show of that tour baltimore show BECAUSE I WAS F HIGH AND SICK!!!! that s is not cool and i was doing it to be cool!

Bow Wow, who also starred in movies Like Mike, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift and Roll Bounce, had one more message to his fans.

Kick that s! Be a good son or daughter. Be the best you. Ima start being more vocal. We gotta save the youth from going out early. Parents watch your kids. Explain to them. We want yall to live man. I almost died f with syrup, he wrote, adding DRUG FREE IS THE WAY TO BE!

Bow Wows message comes days after Miller was found dead in his Los Angeles home of a suspected overdose. Millers struggle with drug addiction had been made known through his rap lyrics.
Two Louisiana residents have filed a lawsuit against Brad Pitts Make It Right Foundation, claiming the actors nonprofit built houses after Hurricane Katrina that are substandard, rotting and falling apart.

Lloyd Francis and Jennifer Decuir, residents in New Orleans Lower Ninth Ward neighborhood, were forced to file the lawsuit because they are stuck with houses that are deteriorating at a rapid pace, their lawyer Ron Austin told NOLA.com.

"While the citizens of the Ninth Ward are grateful to Brad Pitt, they were forced to file this lawsuit because the Make it Right Foundation built substandard homes that are deteriorating at a rapid pace while the homeowners are stuck with mortgages on properties that have diminished values," Austin said.

Pitt founded the venture in 2007 with the help of award-winning architects two years after Katrina devastated the city and essentially washed away what would become the Make It Right enclave.

The foundation began building the homes in 2008, eventually erecting 109 houses that provided residents the chance to return to the neighborhood they called home before the storm hit. The avant-garde dwellings were lauded as storm-safe, solar-powered, highly insulated and green.

The nonprofit, however, never met its goal of constructing 150 houses. The structures were also riddled with issues because they were deficiently constructed and built with defective products, the lawsuit said.

Residents have been dealing with mold, rotting wood, poor air quality, as well as plumbing, heating and electrical issues, according to the residents.

"Where is Mr. Pitt?" neighbor Doris Wyman told NOLA.com. "I wonder, if he saw that house, what would be the first words out of his mouth?"

BRAD PITT'S FOUNDATION FACING LAWSUIT OVER DEGRADATION OF NEW ORLEANS HOMES

Residents said in the lawsuit that problems began as early as 2013, but they believed the foundation would make it right and come around for repairs. The nonprofit then handed homeowners a packet that included nondisclosure agreements that werent properly explained. The owners signed "on agreements that would deprive homeowners of important legal rights while the homeowners are under duress," the lawsuit claimed.

Pitt and the foundation have not publicly addressed the lawsuit.

A source told People that Pitt is confident in the foundations team and that repairs began months ago.

Brad has confidence in the Make It Right team; he made a promise to the people of the Lower Ninth and he intends to keep fulfilling it, and to keep contributing money as he has been all this time, the source told the magazine.

The lawsuit comes as Pitt continues his highly publicized custody battle with ex Angelina Jolie over their six children. Pitt is also currently filming the Quentin Tarantino movie Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
It seems Nicole Kidman hates audience Q&As as much as the rest of us.

The Aussie star shut down an audience members cheeky question at a post-screening Q&A for her latest film "Destroyer" at the Toronto International Film Festival.

"Destroyer" is just the latest in a string of transformative roles for Kidman, who this time de-glams to play an LAPD cop plagued by past trauma who, as director Karyn Kusama told Vanity Fair, wears her ugliness on the outside.

Given so many of Kidmans recent roles  from "Lion" to "Big Little Lies," "Paddington" to "Top of the Lake"  have seen her donning different wigs to create her characters, one plucky audience member asked the star an irreverent  but not unreasonable  question.

The audience member was a man by the name of Sam Herbst  a genuine Kidman fan who even hosts The Kidmanifes to described as the first and only podcast dedicated to the queen of acting, Nicole Kidman. (This is an excellent topic for a podcast, FYI).

News.com.au reached out to Herbst directly to find out just what he asked. Heres his question in full:

Ive spent the last year ranking your movies by things like wigs and this movie is pretty wig-heavy; how do you think it ranks and do you have any other favorites?

Kidmans response, as reported by LA Times writer Mark Olsen who was also in the audience, was: Thats an awful question. I am shutting that question down.

According to Olsen, Kidman shut it down lightly but genuinely, but still  ouch.

Herbst told news.com.au that the Q&A moderator then repeated the question for both Kidman and the audience to hear, before suggesting they move on to the next question.

I was a little embarrassed at first because I didnt want her to think I was being trivial or reducing her craft to wigs or costumes, but now I think the whole thing is so funny, Herbst told us.

And shes welcome to come on the podcast anytime to help me rank 'Destroyer.'

Let the record state: Nicole Kidman  wearer of wigs in just about every on-screen role shes had for the past decade  is not here for your silly wig questions. Wig, OK.

This article originally appeared in News.com.au.
Victoria's Secret model Devon Windsor is facing backlash after comparing being blonde to the challenges models of color face in the fashion industry.

In a clip from E!'s new show "Model Squad," model Shanina Shaik who is of Lithuanian, Pakistani and Arab descent, is seen explaining how she has been bullied in the industry for her skin color.

"A lot of black girls would have to miss Milan because they werent able to walk in the shows because they dont want girls of tha color," she says.

Windsor responds by saying, "I literally f--- went through hell and literally lived in different countries like every other month, and didnt speak that language. I didnt speak Paris, didnt speak Italian. And I did that for like, two years."

The model then responded to Shaik's diversity struggles by saying, "You know how hard it is to be blonde? I have to get a highlight every month! Do you know how expensive that is?"

The clip of Windsor's comment was quickly shared all over social media and was met with harsh criticism by fans.

One user called out the model and said, "Theres so many young women looking up to you right now instead of being a role model,your just out here being a dumb blonde who complains about traveling the world, when so many girls would take your place without hesitation."

Another user wrote, "Joking or not what an ignorant thing to say."

One person even tagged Victoria's Secret in the comment sections and urged the company to get rid of Windsor while others made fun of the model accidentally calling Paris a language.

"Oh poor girl.... dont worry, Paris is a really hard language to pick up," one user wrote.

The backlash from the clip prompted the 24-year-old model to release an apology to fans.

The Victoria's Secret angel explained that her comment was meant to be taken as a joke, but she has since realized that her "joke" was "incredibly insensitive."

In a Twitter post, the model wrote, "I want to apologize for what I said. It goes without saying that the comments in the show are incredibly insensitive."

Windsor continued, "The majority of the conversation was edited and if a peer of mine wanted to discuss such a serious subject, I would never follow it with a joke. I have an immense amount of respect for my peers. I know the struggle of diversity and inclusion in my business as well as in so many others is not one to take lightly."

Earlier in September, Windsor spoke to Fox News and opened up about her experience in the cut-throat modeling industry.

The biggest challenge for me, and I think for most girls, is just the criticism, the amount of criticism that we take, honestly, every day, she said. Were being critiqued every day, whether you hear them critiquing you or its behind your back, whether its the client, casting, friends, agents  youre constantly being judged and youre constantly being denied."

Windsor acknowledged that modeling offers plenty of perks, including getaways to some of the most beautiful and exclusive locations in the world, plenty of couture, as well as non-stop invites to celebrity hot spots and parties.

Fox News' Stephanie Nolasco contributed to this report.
One New Mexico Wendys employee is being praised for going the extra mile to ensure that two blind patrons enjoyed their meal.

A fellow customer was so moved by the workers kindness that she shared the story to social media, where it has since struck a heartstring with many.

Cindy Griswold shared photos of the sweet scene she witnessed on Sept. 9 at the fast-food chains location at 2203 Wyoming Blvd. in Albuquerque to Facebook.

So this Wendy's employee, took care of this two blind customers with so much love! He didnt do it because is part of his job, he did it because he wanted to help from the bottom of his heart, Griswold wrote. I went and [thanked] Richard because these little things are a big impact on peoples lives and such a positive attitude the way he made them feel.

NORTH CAROLINA CHICK-FIL-A WORKERS, DINERS PRAY FOR STAFFER BATTLING CANCER IN VIRAL VIDEO

He made sure the table was in a good spot and he carried the sodas, straws, napkins, ketchup and of course, he place the food in the right order, so they knew who's sandwich was in front of them. He went back several times to make sure everything was fine, she continued. We need more Richards in this world.

Many Facebook users agreed and chimed in with similar sentiments.

Now this is what I love to read about. God bless you Richard for your caring heart! one applauded.

Amen thank u Richard, another said.

Thats awesome, another mused.

KRQE identified the staffer as Richard Wise-Attwood, who told the outlet that in the moment, he had no idea that his photo was even being taken.

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"I didn't know about the post on Facebook actually," Wise-Attwood said. "I just took over the situation. I just asked them what they would like to drink, helped them get their drinks, sat them down.

"They were cool, they were real nice, didn't bother anybody, they didn't ask for help. I just did it because I knew they needed it," he recalled.

Meanwhile, the news comes as no surprise to Wise-Attwoods manager.

"He's very outgoing, very helpful with the customers," Wendys shift supervisor Adalecia Garcia told KRQE of his kind deed.

For Wise-Attwood, he hopes that the story inspires others to treat others with kindness  always.

"I'm hoping that it does show people that even if you do work at an establishment such as Wendy's or McDonald's, customer service will show somebody a good day and they'll pass it on to someone else," he said.
The King of Beers is proving once again it can be the Highness of Hydration in a pinch.

A Georgia brewery that churns out Budweiser is shifting gears to send 300,000 cans of clean drinking water to help anticipated victims of Hurricane Florence. The Anheuser-Busch brewery in Cartersville made the switch after the American Red Cross asked if it could to pause beer production in order to can emergency water.

Anheuser-Busch has donated 79 million cans of emergency water to areas in times of natural disasters over the last 30 years. The Cartersville facility, which also has made the change before during natural disasters, according to WXIA, will send a six-pack of truckloads to communities in North Carolina and South Carolina, a representative for Anheuser-Busch confirmed to Fox News.

CARLSBERG BREWERY DEVELOPS 'SNAP PACKS' HELD TOGETHER WITH GLUE

The news came the same day Anheuser-Busch announced that its brewery in Fort Collins, Colo., is also ready to can emergency water if needed.

For the last 30 years, we have been working with the American Red Cross and our wholesaler partners to provide clean, safe drinking water for communities hit by natural disasters, said Michel Doukeris, CEO of Anheuser-Busch, in a news release.

Earlier this year, we recognized the employees who help make the program possible in Budweisers Super Bowl commercial and made a new commitment to expand our capacity to produce safe, clean drinking water for disaster relief at our Fort Collins Brewery. Today, we are pleased to deliver on that promise, doubling our production capacity to help our fellow Americans in times of need.

Anheuser-Busch is commemorating the Fort Collins announcement with new cans and trucks that capture the spirit of the program, according to the release.

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In August 2017, the same brewery in Cartersville sent over 50,000 cans of water to victims of Hurricane Harvey. Anheuser-Busch even highlighted the facility in its Super Bowl LII commercial, titled "Stand By You," which showcased the company's employees efforting the process.

This is not something that we are doing today just for the Super Bowl, we have been really working on this for 30 years, and its a global initiative to make sure our company does what it thinks is the right thing to do, Michel Doukeris, Anheuser-Busch CEO and AB InBev North America Zone president told FOX Business shortly before the ad debuted.

Hurricane Florence, currently a Category 2 storm, is expected to affect millions on the East Coast, and bring storm surges, flash flooding, heavy rainfall, forceful winds and possibly even tornadoes to the Carolinas and parts of Virginia.
As Hurricane Florence, now a Category 2 storm, drives toward the East Coast, Waffle House is monitoring the impending dangerous weather by activating its storm center.

The popular Georgia-based diner chain, renowned for its 24-hour service 365 days per year, has an emergency routine thats so well-regarded, the Federal Emergency Management Agency unofficially uses the restaurants' status as an indicator for the severity of a natural disaster.

After several Waffle House locations closed or were serving only a limited menu in 2004 when Hurricane Charley hit Florida, FEMA officials noted the severity of the storm damage based on the fact that the chain never closes.

HURRICANE FLORENCE: HOW TO PREPARE YOUR HOME FOR THE WORST

If you get there and the Waffle House is closed? Thats really bad. Thats where you go to work, then FEMA administrator Craig Fugate said.

When a storm strikes, local officials will put out a call to the nearest Waffle House and find out whats on the menu. The Waffle House Index has three, color-coded levels: green means the restaurant is open and serving a full menu; yellow indicates the menu has been scaled back and there may be water but no power; and red indicates the restaurant is completely shut downand the area is likely in need of serious assistance.

The restaurant tweeted a photo Wednesday of employees at the corporate office in Norcross siting around a table monitoring the storms path as they determine if any locations will need to close.

Waffle Houses Vice President of Culture Pat Warner told Fox News in 2016 that while the chain does everything in its power to stay open, their number one priority is the safety of our staff on the ground and our customers.

ANHEUSER-BUSCH SENDING 300,000 CANS OF WATER TO HURRICANE FLORENCE VICTIMS

Were a 24-hour restaurant, so oddly enough shutting down is a big deal for us, Warner said. When it comes to making the final decision, we let our operations team on the ground, like individual restaurant managers, make the final decision based on local conditions. But our job [as corporate officials] is to give them all the support they need to stay open.

The company has a fleet of response units, complete with Waffle House-branded trucks and vans, that transport generators, communication technology and other items that can help local stores reboot quickly during most emergency situations.

The companys emergency response plan was set up in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed seven Waffle House restaurants and forced 100 more to close in 2005. Since then, Warner says the company has invested heavily in its emergency response technology and deployment systems. When a major storm is in the forecast, Waffle House vehiclesknown as jump teams or go teams-- are deployed from headquarters to the edge of emergency zones so they can come in as soon as the worst of the storm is over and begin necessary repairs or provide assistance.

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A lot of times, especially after a big storm, were the only ones still open because weve got generators, said Warner. Right after storms, business is brisk. We have a lot of people come in and are only able to get their first hot meal at a Waffle House."

Fox News Michelle Gant and Garrett Tenney contributed to this report.
The Deuel County Sheriffs Office was called to the scene of a restaurant in Gary, S.D., after workers made a bombshell discovery on Monday evening.

While remodeling the Alibi restaurant, employees discovered what appeared to be a live hand grenade in an upstairs section of the building  and one concerned worker even walked it outside, police confirmed on Facebook.

PETA CONTINUES BILLBOARD WAR WITH BALTIMORE RESTAURANT: 'WHY SO CRABBY?'

A bomb unit later arrived to safely dispose of the device.

Sheriffs Deputies responded and secured the area the grenade had been placed in until the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation bomb unit could arrive and dispose of the grenade, according to police.

RESTAURANT CLOSES AFTER DEAD RAT FOUND IN SOUP

Authorities later determined the grenade to be at least 40 years old, and not a model mass-produced by the military. Police also said that, over the years, some people who had come into possession of this model had filled them with explosive powder, but authorities were initially unclear whether this was the case and treated it as a live explosive.

Residents and passersby later commented on the scary and wild news, while others reported seeing an increased police presence at the restaurant on Monday night.

I thought it looked a little crazy around there last night! wrote one user who responded to the Deuel County polices Facebook post.

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Thought something looked a little strange when I was headed home more cars than normal when went though around 9 and 10 [p.m.], a resident added.

I'll have a chef special and a hand grenade, joked another.
A messy fight broke out between a customer and several employees at a Tex-Mex restaurant in Texas Friday.

Video of the argument-turned-food fight at Chachos in San Antonio was posted to Facebook with the caption, Dinner and a show.

SRI LANKAN AIRLINES STOPS SERVING CASHEWS AFTER COUNTRY'S PRESIDENT SAYS NUTS WERE NOT FIT FOR DOGS

A woman with hot pink hair in a camo outfit can be seen yelling at employees behind the counter. The workers then start throwing plates and food trays at her.

As the shouting continues, the woman tries shoving something back at the employees as dishes and food continue to fly toward her and plates smash on the floor.

A group of customers begin to gather near the woman as several employees come from behind the counter to try to break up the fight. The group is then escorted out of the restaurant.

While its unclear why the fight broke out, commenters on the video joked that the restaurant must have put "too much cilantro in her tortilla soup," or "messed up her king kong nachos."

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Mikayla Hartfield, who posted the video, told KSAT the police showed up, but by then the people involved in the fight had already left.

She also said she suspects the argument started because the food was taking too long.
General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong (R) welcomes Indonesian President Joko Widodo in Hanoi (Photo: VNA)



He welcomed the state visit to Vietnam by President Widodo and highlighted its significance as the two countries enter a new stage of development after 63 years of diplomatic ties and five years of strategic partnership (2013-2018).

The Party chief asked both sides to boost cooperation across all fields, especially in trade, investment, and cultural exchange, as well as within the framework of ASEAN and regional and international forums for peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the region and the world as whole.

President Widodo expressed his pleasure in meeting Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong again when he attended the World Economic Forum on ASEAN (WEF ASEAN) in Hanoi. He said he is glad to witness Vietnams recent achievements in socio-economic development under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

The President briefed the General Secretary on outcomes of his meetings with Presidents Trang Dai Quang and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, while affirming Indonesia will closely coordinate with Vietnam in maintaining peace, stability, and cooperation in the region, as well as in building the strong and united ASEAN Community.

He expressed his wish to promote comprehensive collaboration through the Party, Government, and people channels in the time ahead, especially in the exchange of delegations.

On this occasion, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, on behalf of the Party, Government, and people of Vietnam, extended deep sympathy on the great losses caused by recent earthquakes in Lombok to President Widodo, the Government, and people of Indonesia./.
U.S. health officials are sounding the alarm about teenage use of e-cigarettes, calling the problem an epidemic and ordering manufacturers to reverse the trend or risk having their flavored vaping products pulled from the market.

The warning from the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday cited recent data pointing to a sharp rise in underage use of the devices, including Juul, Vuse and others.

It marks a shift in the agencys tone on e-cigarettes. Since 2017, FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb has discussed e-cigarettes as a potential tool to ween adult smokers off cigarettes, although that benefit hasnt been proven.

But Gottlieb said in an address at FDA headquarters that he failed to predict the current epidemic of addiction among youth, mainly driven by flavored products.

The disturbing and accelerating trajectory of use were seeing in youth and the resulting path to addiction must end, Gottlieb told agency staffers and reporters.

The FDA said it remains committed to exploring e-cigarettes as a less-harmful alternative for adult smokers, but Gottlieb added that work cant come at the expense of kids.

E-cigarettes are vapor-emitting devices that have grown into a multi-billion dollar industry in the U.S. despite little research on their long-term effects, including whether they are helpful in helping smokers quit. Theyre generally considered a less dangerous alternative to regular cigarettes. But health officials have warned nicotine in e-cigarettes is harmful to developing brains.

They typically contain nicotine, and sometimes flavorings like fruit, mint or chocolate.

Health advocates have worried about the popularity of vaping products among kids and the potential impact on smoking rates in the future. A government-commissioned report in January found substantial evidence that young people who use e-cigarettes are more likely to try cigarettes.

Gottlieb cited unreleased federal figures that he says will be made public in coming months.

We didnt foresee the extent of whats now become one of our biggest challenges, he said, in prepared remarks. Hindsight, and the data thats now available to us, fully reveal these trends.

In June, a government survey found teen vaping seemed to be holding steady last year. Some experts were cautious about the results, however. They noted the survey did not ask specifically about Juul, a sleek, heavily-marketed e-cigarette brand that exploded onto the market and accounts for 70 percent of U.S. sales, according to analyst estimates.

I think it became clear to FDA that if they didnt get their arms around this issue the use of these products by kids across the nation would undo decades of progress, said Matthew Myers of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. His group and several others are suing the FDA over a decision to delay federal review of most e-cigarettes.

Under regulations developed by the Obama administration, manufacturers were supposed to submit most products for review by August 2018. But last year Gottlieb delayed the deadline until 2022, saying both the agency and industry needed more time to prepare.

The decision was criticized by anti-smoking advocates who say e-cigarette makers are targeting kids with candy flavors and marketing that portrays their products as flashy, hand-held gadgets.

Under Wednesdays announcement, the five largest e-cigarette manufacturers will have 60 days to produce plans to stop underage use of their products. The companies sell Vuse, Blu, Juul, MarkTen XL, and Logic e-cigarette brands, which account for 97 percent of U.S. e-cigarette sales, according to FDA.

If the plans fall short, the FDA could block sales of the products by enforcing a requirement that companies provide detailed design and health data about their products before marketing them. The FDAs delay on that requirement has allowed the industry to flourish with little oversight. But its not clear how quickly the decision could be reversed.

Wells Fargo analyst Bonnie Herzog said Juul is the brand most at risk from an FDA crackdown and that a potential ban on the companys products would boost Altria and other cigarette makers that also sell e-cigarettes.

Shares of Big Tobacco companies surged in trading Wednesday. Altria Group Inc. and British American Tobacco Plc had the biggest one-day percentage gain in about a decade.

San Francisco-based Juul said it is working to prevent underage use of its products but added that flavors can help adult smokers quit.

By working together, we believe we can help adult smokers while preventing access to minors, the company said in a statement.

The FDA also announced 1,300 warning letters and fines to online and traditional stores that have illegally sold Juul and other e-cigarettes to minors. Regulators said it was the largest coordinated crackdown in the agencys history.

The FDA is in the process of rolling out a sweeping anti-smoking initiative designed to make it easier for smokers to quit by cutting the nicotine levels in regular cigarettes. As part of that plan, Gottlieb has suggested some smokers could be directed toward alternative products that deliver nicotine without the carcinogens of cigarettes. Those products could include e-cigarettes, though the FDA has not given any company permission to advertise its device as a quit-smoking aid.

On Wednesday, Gottlieb criticized e-cigarette companies handling of the underage use problem, saying they approached it as a public relations challenge rather than seriously considering their legal obligations.

Im here to tell them today that this prior approach is over, he said.
A 30-pound cat named Meatloaf passed away from liver failure only 19 days after being adopted by Iraq war veteran, Steve Gusman, as a therapy pet to help his post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Iowa-based Gusman first learned about 11-year-old Meatloaf when The Kings Harvest Pet Shelter in Davenport posted a picture of the chubby feline on Facebook that went viral.

DOMESTIC CATS REPORTEDLY FACING POTENTIAL BAN IN NEW ZEALAND TOWN

Gusman and fiancee Mary Armstrong of Moline saw the viral post and felt the fat cat would be a good fit as a therapy pet for Gusmans PTSD.

They were going to heal each other, Rochelle Dougall, assistant director of King's Harvest Pet Shelter said, Daily Mail reports.

However, the couple knew adopting a bigger cat meant Meatloaf had some health problems such as jaundice and liver issues from being overfed.

At first Meatloaf got along well, Armstrong told KWQC.

ARMY SOLDIER RETURNING HOME SURPRISES DOG WITH 'WHAT THE FLUFF CHALLENGE' IN ADORABLE VIDEO

He is doing very well, enjoying the attention and going up and down stairs himself and chasing toys, Armstrong said a few days after they brought Meatloaf home.

Unfortunately, only 19 days after Meatloaf was taken in, the cat began acting funny and appeared jaundiced. Last Saturday, Gusman and Armstrong rushed the tabby to the hospital, where he died.

It was liver disease from the human food he ate before being adopted, Armstrong said to KWQC.

It took him 10 years to get Meatloaf after our first cat, Tiger, passed.  Mary Armstrong

The shelter reportedly sent the pair a condolence card and told Gusman he could return and adopt another cat for free when hes ready.

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Steve is taking this very hard, Armstrong said to KWQC. It took him 10 years to get Meatloaf after our first cat, Tiger, passed.

Despite the short time, Armstrong  and Dougall  are happy Meatloaf was part of a loving family for his final days.

I'm just really glad he got to have his last days in a loving home. We were there for him as much as he was for us. Hard to walk into our house and not have him greet us at the door, she said to KWQC.
One Wisconsin school district may have relaxed its dress code for the 2018-2019 year after complaints from the school community, but the ACLU says that the administration is enforcing the new regulations in a sexist way.

On Sept. 11, WUWM reported that the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Wisconsin was putting the squeeze on Kenosha Unified School District school board officials over an incident that reportedly occurred in June during summer school. According to the outlet, a female student was criticized by a teacher for wearing a tank top and shorts to gym class.

NEW JERSEY CHARTER SCHOOL SLAMMED FOR TURNING AWAY STUDENTS FOR MINOR DRESS CODE VIOLATIONS

For context, the Kenosha Unified School District school board added tank tops, yoga pants and leggings to its list of permitted sartorial items after backlash from students and parents last year that such stipulations were discriminatory against female students, BBC reports. The school district encompasses 24 elementary schools, five middle schools, three high schools and five choice schools, six charter schools and one specialty school, as per their website.

Though the new dress code featured on TMJ4 News mandates that bottoms must be mid-thigh length and cover all private body parts at all times and allows tank tops with straps [that] are at least one inch in width, the trouble apparently was not yet over.

A female student had been shamed in front of her classmates and threatened to be sent home two days in a row for wearing a tank top and shorts to a summer gym class, ACLU Wisconsin staff attorney Asma Kadri Keeler recounted to WUWM. Upon further investigation, Kadri Keeler reported she found the policies regarding dress code enforcement for Kenosha staffers to be lacking.



Our position is that this is primarily a sexist gender issue, Kadri Keller further told Yahoo Lifestyle. These incidents that are cropping up all around the country that various ACLU affiliates and ACLU national are involved in revolve around girls and young women.

Moving forward, the ACLU has issued a statement urging the Kenosha school district to clarify the enforcement measures for their new dress code policies and protect students from body shaming and harassment if they face a violation.

Representatives for the ACLU of Wisconsin and Kenosha Unified School District did not immediately return Fox News request for additional comment on the story.

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I spent 26 years with the Los Angeles Police Department, retiring in 2015 as a detective. To this day, Im saddened when I think of the many innocent victims of the rampant violence and crime so pervasive during the crack epidemic in Los Angeles in the 1990s.

In 1992, over 140 people were murdered in my police precinct in South Central Los Angeles. Twenty years later, the toll (though still tragic) had fallen by 80 percent, thanks to tough laws that locked up the worst criminals.

Good policing, tough state and federal sanctions for offenders, and having secure places to keep the bad guys cleaned up that neighborhood and hundreds like it across the country.

But sadly, many members of Congress have developed collective amnesia about the bad old days of rampant crime that plagued Los Angeles and far too many other U.S. cities.

These well-intentioned but deeply misguided lawmakers want to shorten federal prison sentences for dangerous repeat offenders  both violent criminals and drug traffickers.

By reducing the penalties for serious crimes and putting criminals back on the streets sooner, members of the House and Senate supporting shorter sentences would make our communities more dangerous and inevitably increase the number of crime victims  including those seriously injured and killed.

All the while, heroin, its deadly cousin fentanyl, and other dangerous drugs take more lives each year than the number of U.S. military service members who were killed during the war in Vietnam.

Decades ago  when do-gooder lawmakers passed weak laws and soft-on-crime judges released violent, dope-peddling criminals back onto the streets  everyday citizens were rightly outraged that their communities were being used as guinea pigs for social justice causes.

In my career as a Los Angeles police detective, I saw hundreds of convicted criminals released after months, weeks or sometimes even just a few days thanks to programs like early release and judicial leniency.

Unsurprisingly, many  if not most  of the released convicts did not become law-abiding citizens, but instead returned to a life of crime. The drug dealers sold their poisonous wares to desperate addicts. Some former prisoners gunned down innocents and each other in violent turf wars.

Eventually, voters and lawmakers wised up and cracked down  taking repeat offenders off the street for good. Crime fell dramatically and neighborhoods that were no-go-zones are now flourishing.

Lulled into complacency about crime, Californias leaders have undone years of progress on public safety. With their hands tied, cops are now arresting fewer criminals because they know that perpetrators wont see any jail time. Felony arrests are down 30 percent in California since 2014, when tough sentences were rolled back.

Now, dangerous repeat offenders  once locked up or incapacitated in state prisons  roam the streets of California. In Los Angeles County, fully 40 percent of the offenders arrested and prosecuted under the new, more lenient rules have been subsequently arrested at least twice  with 32 percent of the repeat offenders charged with serious felonies.

Since 2011  when California first began its soft-on-crime policy by releasing so-called low-level offenders  violent crime has risen 15 percent and is getting worse, rising 18 percent in just the last four years when the state accelerated handing out what amounts to get-out-jail-free cards.

While felony arrests for sex offenses have fallen by 26 percent, rape is up an alarming 92 percent in the last seven years.

Behind all these statistics there are crime victims whose lives were changed permanently  and who lost their lives in the worst cases. And each of the crime victims had loved ones whose lives were also affected by the actions of criminals.

Why, then, are some lawmakers more concerned with pushing through legislation that would reward criminals (including noncitizens)? Bills before Congress would give dangerous drug dealers and violent criminals lighter federal prison sentences, allow some to serve sentences under house arrest in their own homes, and shorten sentences of prisoners who participate in prison programs.

Meaningless and undefined terms like evidence-based recidivism reduction programs or participation in productive activities  which could mean almost anything, including dog grooming  qualifies a prisoner for time off under bills before the U.S. House and Senate.

The bills before Congress do not even require research on the effectiveness of reduced prison sentences or data collection on what happens to prisoners released early. So there are no reasonable metrics for the success of these soft-on-crime programs.

The First Step Act, which passed the House and is now before the Senate, gives participating prisoners one day off for every three days of successful participation.

A prisoner taking full advantage could cut a 10-year sentence for drug trafficking in half, to less than five years.

The sentencing bill even repeals mandatory minimum sentences for traffickers who smuggle drugs into the U.S. by boat or submarine, nicknamed the Scarface provision. These mostly foreign narco-traffickers have never been eligible for leniency before. In a four-month span last year, the Coast Guard seized 18 tons of cocaine from such vessels, worth over $500 million.

Furthermore, a provision in the federal sentencing bill rewards serious criminals for getting off easy for past crimes. Because some states like California have lessened penalties for crimes or have afforded weak-on-crime judges too much leeway, the current legislation before the Senate requires that the offender have been imprisoned for an offense for more than 12 months  instead of convicted of a crime carrying a maximum penalty  to be considered a serious offender.

In other words, a convicted rapist who got six months in jail for his crime would not be considered a serious, repeat offender if he were prosecuted for a future crime simply because he won the judge lottery and did not spend more than 12 months in prison.

Justice requires fair treatment under the law, but it also means that the innocent people and their property are safe and secure  that our streets are safe, and that our homes are a refuge. As California illustrates, coddling criminals does not reduce crime or enhance public safety.
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Ive seen a lot of smiles and innumerable nods of appreciation coming from members of the incoming freshman class at the New York University School of Medicine after they learned they wouldnt be charged tuition. But the larger question remains  what will going to medical school tuition-free mean to long-term career choices, as well as a new doctors passion to practice medicine?

Consider that todays doctors are weighed down by increasing demands of computer documentation. While electronic health records move us closer to the goal of more efficient and more effective information exchange, they also increase the joyless impersonal time doctors must spend without financial reimbursement.

In fact, a recent study in the Annals of Family Medicine found that primary care doctors must spend more than half their doctoring time (over six hours before and after office hours) interacting with electronic health records.

Doctors now also must learn to jump through more insurance and government approval hoops, so-called meaningful use regulations. And in the near future we will be rewarded for the quality of care we provide rather than for the service. This change could prove challenging in complex non-compliant cases.

Will not having to pay tuition be enough to steer budding doctors in the direction of lower-paid specialties, with all the hurdles we still have to climb?

The answer isnt in yet, but I believe that the incredible generosity on the part of New York University ($450 million raised over 11 years, including a $100 million donation from Chairman of the Board Ken Langone) to eliminate medical school tuition is a big step in the right direction. It is sure to be copied by medical centers throughout the country that want to remain competitive.

I remember choosing the State University of New York at Buffalo as a medical school in part because the tuition was much lower than at private medical schools. Then I chose Bellevue Hospital in New York City for my internal medicine residency, in part because I had taken out a New York state loan that I was able to repay by working at Bellevue.

These steps helped steer me in the direction of primary care medicine. I believe that not having to pay tuition at all will have an even greater impact on the motivation and direction of new doctors.

Implementing a tuition-free policy at the NYU School of Medicine couldnt be happening at a better time. The Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) has expanded insurance coverage and federally qualified health centers have created a greater demand for doctors. But nothing has been done to increase the supply of doctors.

In fact a recent report from the Association of American Medical Colleges predicts the U.S. will have 120,000 fewer physicians than we need by 2030, with 15,000 to 50,000 of these being primary care doctors.

Doctors should choose the specialty that suits them best  whether its surgery or interventional radiology because they are skilled with their hands, or psychiatry or neurology because they are best at thinking through problems that involve the brain.

Not having to pay medical school tuition increases the likelihood that a doctor will at least consider a lower-paying specialty like family medicine or pediatrics if it suits him or her, whereas a chokehold of loans might have interfered with this choice before.

A family doctor has traditionally been a safety net for an entire family. Patients have enjoyed our commitment without necessarily considering our struggle. This is as it should be. No good doctor wants his or her patient worrying about how to pay our bills for medical care.

At the same time, Im sure my patients would rather I spend my time worrying about their wellbeing than about how I intend to repay my loans. Getting rid of medical school tuition entirely is a laudable way to get this to happen.
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My grandfather was the first generation of our family born in the United States. His parents came to this country from Norway and became farmers, which is what my grandpa did too until the day he died.

Grandpa was fiercely proud to be an American citizen. He once told me his father wouldnt teach him Norwegian because this family is American now. Grandpa never forgot it.

I havent forgotten it either. When you come to this country, you join a family  the American family. And in America, we stick up for one another, believe in one another, fight for one another.

Unfortunately, our ruling elite has given up on all that. Theyve become globalists first and Americans second. If you want to see Exhibit A, look at Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., who I am running against in the November election.

While illegal immigrants pour across our southern border, bringing drugs and gangs and lower wages with them, McCaskill wont vote to build the President Trumps proposed border wall. She wont vote to secure the border. And she lavishly praises the extremists in her party who want to abolish the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.

Thats bad enough. But now she is sponsoring the most radical open-border bill ever introduced in Congress. Her bill was written by California liberal Democratic Sen. Diane Feinstein, and it would give a free pass to any illegal immigrant who brings a child to the border. With McCaskills approach, illegal immigrants who use children as human shields would win release into the interior of this country, no questions asked.

Thats wrong. Thats lawless. Thats not Missouri.

But McCaskill doesnt stop there. Shes also trying to prevent the government from asking Americans about citizenship on the 2020 census. She wants illegal and undocumented immigrants to count toward a states representation in Congress, just like you and I do.

If McCaskill gets her way, law-abiding Missouri citizens may well lose seats to California and other states sheltering large numbers of illegal immigrants. But maybe that shouldnt be a surprise, since McCaskill has voted to protect sanctuary cities and give them federal funds.

I dont know who she thinks shes representing, but it sure as heck isnt the state of Missouri.

McCaskill and her globalist allies live in a fantasy world where citizenship doesnt matter and national borders are embarrassments. Their most important priorities are getting cheap labor at home and cheap products from aboard.

I promise you this. Ill never apologize for protecting American citizens and Ill never shrink from defending our way of life.

We need an immigration policy that works for the citizens of this country, not the global elite. That begins with securing the southern border. Enough apologies and temporizing. Build the wall. Fund the border patrol. Back ICE. You can count on me to fight for all of the above.

Next, we need to reform our legal immigration system to make it work for Missouri workers. For decades now, weve admitted millions of immigrants with few or no skills  the percentage of foreign-born is at its highest levels in nearly a century.

These low-skill immigrants are competing for jobs with folks in our own country struggling to find work, while driving down wages for those who are working hardest.

Its time to do right by American workers. Limit the number of low-skilled immigrants who come to this country. End the visa lottery system. End chain migration. Replace that with a skills-based immigration system that prioritizes the training and know-how we need to create new jobs in this country for our own people.

My familys story is no different from that of most other people in Missouri. Missourians know that while this country has a noble heritage of welcoming strangers from many lands, we are a nation of Americans. Its time we had a senator who acts like it.
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Every four years, New Hampshire plays an outsized role in politics because it holds the first-in-the-nation presidential primary. And in the presidential election it is a swing state, fiercely contested by Democratic and Republican presidential candidates.

Otherwise, the states politics dont get much national attention. But New Hampshire was the only state holding a primary Tuesday and the results of intraparty contests for two U.S. House seats and the governorship have set up some interesting races for November.

The outcome of the midterm elections may provide valuable clues about to which party will have the advantage in the state the 2020 presidential race.

1st Congressional District

The 1st Congressional District is a classic swing seat, having bounced from one party to the other in the last four elections. In 2016, it was one of only two New England districts to vote for Donald Trump  but just barely.

This year the seat is open due to the retirement of Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porter, and gives Republicans one of their best chances to take a seat from the other party.

The winner of the five-candidate GOP primary for the 1st District seat is former police chief Eddie Edwards, an outspoken African-American conservative. Edwards had to win a bitter primary that often resembled a personal feud with state Sen. Andy Sanborn, a conservative with a libertarian streak who was endorsed by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky.

Edwards is a U.S. Navy veteran who also served as the state liquor commissions chief law enforcement officer. He had the endorsement of President Trumps lawyer and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

The race became so heated that at one point that Edwards walked off a debate stage rather than take a pledge to back Sanborn if Sanborn won the primary. But in the end, the voters seemed to view the back-and-forth insults as balancing out and opted for Edwards, the candidate with the closest ties to President Trump.

Edwards will now face Democrat Chris Pappas, a member of an old New Hampshire family, who won the Democratic primary.

Whoever is elected in November will make New Hampshire history. Edwards would be the first African-American member of Congress from the state. Pappas would be New Hampshires first openly gay U.S. House member.

Pappas used his roots in the state to defeat Maura Sullivan, a former Obama administration official, in the Democratic primary. She won the endorsement of liberal womens groups and raised $1.8 million, but was then buffeted by charges of carpetbagging because she only moved recently to the state.

It turned out that 97 percent of the money Sullivan raised came from out-of-state. Then it was learned that last year she had apparently explored running for Congress in both Illinois and Virginia before finally deciding to move to New Hampshire.

Levi Sanders, the son of Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, ran on the same issues his father had raised in his unsuccessful Democratic presidential primary campaign against Hillary Clinton.

But the elder Sanders declined to formally endorse his son and the younger Sanders took heat for living more than 50 miles outside the district. He trailed badly in the 11-candidate Democratic primary for the House seat, with only about 2 percent of the vote.

Governor

In the race for governor, former state Sen. Molly Kelly easily defeated former Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, getting about twice as many votes as Marchand.

In the November general election Kelly will face popular Republican Gov. Chris Sununu, who had no primary opponent. Sununu  the son of former Gov. and White House Chief of Staff John Sununu  has a proven record of winning support from independent voters and is the early favorite in the race. Democrats nonetheless believe Sununu could be toppled this fall if a truly massive blue wave develops.

While in some Democratic primary contests around the country the candidate running farthest to the left as the anti-establishment insurgent came out on top, that didnt happen in the New Hampshire gubernatorial primary.

Kelly is a former four-term state senator who was endorsed by New Hampshires two Democratic U.S. senators  Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan  and by Democratic U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster.

Kelly badly outspent Marchand and had the backing of the states two largest teacher unions, Planned Parenthood and Emilys List, which supports pro-choice women candidates.

Marchand painted Kelly as a cautious member of the establishment. But in a state that has never swooned for flashy pols, Democratic voters decided they liked that.

2nd Congressional District

In New Hampshires 2nd Congressional District, Democratic Rep. Kuster had no primary opponent. She seems to have a firm grip on the seat for the November election, even though Hillary Clinton only won in the district by two points in the 2016 presidential race.

Republican state House member Steven Negron defeated six other candidates to win the GOP nomination to challenge Kuster in November. The Air Force veteran, who later worked in the defense industry and then founded his own small business, campaigned in favor of gun rights and in opposition to illegal immigration.
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After leaving office, most modern presidents have largely eschewed partisan activity and avoided the normal rough-and-tumble of politics.

Some former presidents would do an occasional private fundraiser for candidates, appear at campaign rally or two, or deliver an address at the partys national convention, as former President Clinton did in 2012, nominating President Obama for re-election.

Even then, President Clinton aimed to rise above politics. Sure, there was fulsome praise that night for President Obama and his record. But there was also explicit praise for several Republican presidents  Eisenhower for the integration of Arkansas schools, Reagan for welfare reform, Bush 41 for education standards and Bush 43 for confronting AIDs in Africa.

Most modern ex-presidents have similarly handled their post-White House political activities by accentuating the positive about their party and its candidates, rather than turning themselves into attack dogs.

Not so President Obama. He launched himself into the campaign for the Nov. 6 midterm elections with a speech Friday at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

The Democratic former president delivered a full-throated, highly partisan address designed to make the midterms an Obama-Trump matchup. It was followed quickly by an appearance in Orange County, California, to stump on behalf of Democratic candidates, in the first of many planned campaign swings.

The Obama speech had a few grace notes  for example when he suggested that making democracy work means holding onto our principles  and then having the confidence to get into the arena and have a serious debate. He also encouraged every citizen to get involved, saying self-government only works if everybodys doing their part.

President Obama also praised President George Washington for gracefully exiting the political stage, making room for new voices and new ideas. But then Obama engaged in the fiction that he could somehow deliver a simple message about the midterms as a fellow citizen, not as an ex-president.

But Barack Obama is and will always be both a citizen and an ex-president. Most of his University of Illinois speech was the worst kind of political hit job.

Despite saying we wont win people over by calling them names, Obama proceeded to call his political opponents names.

Republicans are politicians who have no compunction and no shame about tapping into Americas dark history of racial and ethnic and religious division, President Obama said. They are bigots and fear-mongers and demagogues who promise simple fixes to complex problems. As for the Republican agenda, its not conservative.  Its radical.

Obama questioned the motives of those on the other side of the aisle. He said that if you dont stand with him, then it was because you are part of the powerful and the privileged who want to keep us divided and keep us angry and keep us cynical because that helps them  keep their power and their privilege.

Those who oppose higher taxes and redistribution of income do so because they are at the top of the economic pyramid and want to skew things even more in their direction, the former president said.

President Obama also just plain made stuff up, for example attacking the Republican Congress for having championed the unwinding of campaign finance laws and systematically attacked voting rights. Just what the heck is he talking about?

In his University of Illinois remarks, President Obama also couldnt escape his tendency to be sanctimonious. For example, the man who in 2016 dealt with Russian election meddling by sharing stern words with Vladimir Putin in private at an international meeting now castigates Republicans for cozying up to Russia.

This comes after Republicans in Congress led bipartisan efforts to pass new Russian sanctions in 2017, and after the Trump administration has slapped several rounds of sanctions on dozens of Russians  the most recent in August  and indicted the Russian spies who led the election meddling.

Some of Obamas remarks came across as tone-deaf or even hypocritical, as when he said  after all his punishing attacks against Republicans across-the-board  that we have to bring people together, not tear them apart.

Another example of this hypocrisy came when the former president encouraged Democrats not to do the same things to Republicans that they do to us, adopt their tactics, say whatever works, make stuff up about the other side.

Those words came at the end of a week when Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., declared I am Spartacus and said he was willing to risk expulsion from the Senate for releasing confidential documents dealing with Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh  even though the documents had already been approved for release.

At the same Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Kavanaughs nomination, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., suggested that Kavanaugh committed perjury  without a shred of evidence to back up the suggestion,

President Obamas speech was also narcissistic, stuffed with I and my and me and the papal we. For example, he claimed sole credit for ending the fiscal crisis with policies that returned the economy to healthy growth.

But didnt Obamas Republican predecessor  President George W. Bush  propose and sign into law the legislation that pumped liquidity into the banks, stopped the auto companies from going belly up and stabilized the financial system?

No mention of that, just the declaration that we  meaning Obama  pulled the economy out of crisis.

Its all so tiresome, but will it be effective? The answer is mixed.

Yes, Obamas abandonment of the traditional post-presidential demeanor so he can take up the cause of partisan warrior will help Democrats raise money. It will, on the margin, help increase Democratic turnout.

But President Obamas barnstorming in the fall of 2016 didnt save Hillary Clinton. His most effective contribution to Democrats will be to draw attention to the argument that America needs as a real check on the Trump administration.

Obamas presence will also stir up  again on the margin  GOP turnout, bringing home some suburban Republicans who like Mr. Trumps policies, dislike the man and his tweets and are reminded by Obamas tedious rhetoric why they wanted change in 2016.

However, the biggest impact on all this negative politicking will be to show Mr. Obama is a self-absorbed partisan warrior, not the senior statesman around whom Americans can rally.

Is the country better served by another political hit man instead of a respected former president who rises above petty partisan concerns? Maybe George Washington was right and President Obama should gracefully surrender the political limelight and strive to assume the mantle of statesman.
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It is an outrage to think that brave American troops defending our security on the battlefield in distant Afghanistan should be second-guessed, investigated and even prosecuted for alleged war crimes by an international body with no accountability to the American people.

It was therefore refreshing to see President Trumps National Security Adviser John Bolton deliver a full-throated denunciation Monday of the International Criminal Court (ICC), the international body in question.

President Clinton signed the Rome Statute that created the court in 2000, but it was never ratified by the Senate. President George W. Bush implemented workarounds that would protect our men and women in uniform from arbitrary and unaccountable actions by foreign powers.

Nevertheless, President Bush softened his stance to include cooperation with the ICC. This approach was extended by President Obama.

Thats all history now and quite rightly. Bolton said starkly that the International Criminal Court is already dead to us and that the United States would not just refuse to cooperate with the court in any way, but would actively block any efforts the court makes to unjustly prosecute American military heroes.

Bolton made clear that the Trump administration would be prepared to prevent ICC judges and prosecutors from entering the United States, sanction their funds in the U.S. financial system, and even prosecute them in the U.S. criminal justice system.

Good. And not just because this action is right in itself. But because it is a perfect example of a profound shift in foreign policy by the Trump administration, exactly as promised by the president.

When Trump spoke about putting America First, it wasnt just a slogan. It was a strategy and remains so today.

You see it in the presidents approach to trade. You see it in his approach to international alliances. And now you see it very clearly expressed in Boltons tough announcement on the ICC.

Predictably, elitist critics have condemned this latest America First move  just as they condemned the whole Trump approach in the first place  as an abdication of American global leadership. In fact, it is the exact opposite. It is an assertion of American leadership.

At the same time, America First is a resounding rejection of the globalist approach that has dominated foreign policy for far too long. No wonder the elitists hate it! For years they have  sometimes subtly, sometimes directly  worked to subjugate the nation-state and elevate some vague notion of the global interest. This highlights one of the deepest distinctions between elitism and populism.

The nation-state is an indispensable part of our social fabric, and a key component of our conception of the populist society. This is not for the kind of tribal, nationalistic reasons that elitist critics of populism like to claim.

The nation-state is indispensable to our social fabric because its where we resolve our inevitable differences, legitimately and democratically. A country can do that in a way that an international multilateral organization can never accomplish. Americas motto is E Pluribus Unum  not E Pluribus U.N.

The elites in the media and the Ivory Tower would have us believe that allegiance to a nation- state necessarily means being bigoted and xenophobic. Thats why they keep talking about nationalism as a threat to be resisted.

But the elites have never explained the basis on which any national leader could possibly be justified in doing anything other than putting his or her own nations and peoples interests first. Is that nationalism? Or simply a functioning democracy?

The globalist demand is for national leaders to demote the interests of their country and their people in pursuit of ... what? The global interest? Who decides what that is? Oh wait  the globalists do. You might call that oligarchy and youd be right.

Positive populists embrace a patriotism that celebrates their own country and harnesses its power for positive ends. Yes, these ends should primarily benefit people at home, but theyre not motivated in the slightest degree by a desire to disadvantage people elsewhere.

You neednt put down other countries to put yours ahead. Citizenship means something. Its the pinnacle of an intricately designed system of governance that the framers of the Constitution ensured means more to American citizens than most.

American patriotism is a positive and inimitable phenomenon. But its not just the flag. Its not just the anthem. It requires sovereignty and accountability for citizens. And it requires the rejection of any argument or ideology that would place power in the hands of any organization or group  such as the International Criminal Court  that American citizens cannot control with their votes.

The consolidation of the global economy in the past few decades has partly driven this consolidation in governance. After all, nation-states are an inconvenience to the global corporations that crave a world where they can operate everywhere without constraints.

But nobody ever cast a vote for Goldman Sachs or Google. We need to take power out of the hands of the arrogant and unaccountable globalist elite and put it back in the hands of the people, in the form of democratic nation-states.

International bodies like the ICC cannot, by definition, be democratic. As Roger Scruton wrote: Democratic politics requires a demos. Democracy means rule by the people and requires us to know who the people are, what unites them and how they can form a government.

The globalist manifesto argues that our nations affairs should be governed by multilateral institutions  that the edicts of bodies like the World Trade Organization, European Union, International Monetary Fund and World Bank should have primacy over national bodies like democratically elected governments.

And therein lies globalisms fatal flaw: It is not democratic. Even if we concede the wisdom of global bureaucrats, it is clear that they are not accountable to people. They have their own agenda and by centralizing decision-making, they give themselves the power to implement that agenda free of any democratic checks or balances. On those grounds alone globalism is unacceptable, even if it delivers positive outcomes.

An argument against globalism isn't an argument against internationalism. Nation-states have long benefited from exchanges of people, goods and ideas with other countries.

But something that for centuries was a natural and organic expression of human curiosity and ingenuity has more recently become fetishized as an absolute and mechanistic end in itself. Our ruling elites have subjugated the notion of nationhood to globalism, something they see as more righteous and noble.

The positive populist doesn't begrudge international cooperation  even multilateral cooperation. But if the system is ever to be accountable, it needs to be dismantled and replaced with case-by-case alliances between sovereign states.

The positive populist understands that America needs to look out for its own interests. So does every other country. Nation-states should cooperate when they determine that its the right thing to do  not because some bureaucracy requires it.

Countries can and should work together to make important strategic and policy decisions. But instead of doing it at absurd summits run by bureaucrats, leaders should meet according to their rules, not someone elses.

When two countries have a dispute between them, they should determine how it is mediated, and no one else. The globalist bureaucracies created in the wake of the Second World War served a purpose at one time, helping a whole generation of leaders to formalize relationships on defense, trade and foreign policy. But we no longer need the heavy hand of these organizations to guide us.

We know our interests and understand our relationships. Where alliances like NATO have served us well well push forward. But theres no need to perpetuate bureaucracies that have acquired their own agendas and their own leaders who act as if they are the ones chosen by the voters.
A Republican House candidate in Northern California was attacked by a knife-wielding man who was shouting profanities about President Donald Trump at a local fair over the weekend, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Tuesday, citing authorities.

Alameda County Sheriff's Office spokesman Sgt. Ray Kelly said no one was seriously injured when Farzad Fazeli allegedly attacked Rudy Peters at the Castro Valley Fall Festival on Sunday afternoon.

Kelly said Peters was manning one of the vendor booths at the festival when Fazeli, 35, approached him "in an aggressive manner and made disparaging remarks about his political party and elected officials."

All of a sudden we hear someone screaming, F Trump, f Trump! a witness said.

At that point, authorities suspect, Fazeli pulled out a switchblade knife and tried to stab Peters, but the weapon malfunctioned.

Kelly told The Sacramento Bee that Fazeli may have also thrown a glass mug at Peters. He added that at one point, the candidate used a campaign sign to defend himself from the attacker.

"You're dealing with a knife  a deadly weapon," Kelly told the paper. "Anything you can use, including a sign, would be a good option. It would provide you some level of protection."

Fazeli fled the scene, but was arrested a short time later on charges of felony assault, criminal threats, brandishing a weapon and possession of a switchblade. He is being held at the Santa Rita Jail.

Peters, a 56-year-old Navy veteran, is taking on three-term Democratic incumbent Eric Swalwell in California's 15th Congressional District.
Japan Self-Defence Forces search for missing people after the quake in Hokkaido Prefecture (Photo: Kyodo/VNA)



Also on September 11th, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh sent his sympathy to Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono.

At least nine people were killed and about 300 injured by a magnitude 6.7 earthquake that struck Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido early September 6, destroying houses, ripping apart roads and causing a number of massive landslides, including some that buried parts of towns.

The quake also cut power to all 2.95 million homes and a nuclear power plant in the prefecture, causing the cancellation of flights and disrupting train services to the popular tourist destination.

The temblor, which occurred in southern Hokkaido at a depth of about 37 km, registered the highest reading of 7 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale in Atsuma and upper 6 in Abira, both southeast of Sapporo. No tsunami warning was issued.

Smaller aftershocks continued and the Japan Meteorological Agency warned that earthquakes with a similar intensity could continue in the area for about a week.

The quake is the latest in a series of natural disasters in Japan this year, and came just days after a powerful typhoon roared through western Japan, killing more than 11 people, injuring more than 400 and forcing the temporary shutdown of Kansai International Airport, one of the country's key gateways.

The incident brought back memories of the 2011 quake and subsequent tsunami, which knocked out both the main and emergency power supply at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant and caused three reactors to melt down./.
George Papadopoulos, who misled federal investigators about his meetings with Russia-connected Maltese professor Joseph Mifsud, spoke to Fox News to share his version of events.

I didnt plead guilty to collusion, Ive pled guilty to lying, Papadopoulos, the former Trump campaign adviser, told Sean Hannity Tuesday night.

He said because of the chaotic moment, he made a mistake.

Papadopoulos was sentenced last Friday to 14 days in prison and a $9,500 fine for lying to the FBI during Special Counsel Robert Muellers probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Muellers team had sought a longer six-month sentence.

According to the Mueller teams federal indictment, the 31-year-old was told by Mifsud in April 2016 that Russian officials had dirt on Hillary Clinton in the form of thousands of emails. The defense portrayed Papadopoulos, who served as a foreign policy adviser to President Trumps campaign, as an eager aide who was in over his head, and pushed back on claims by the prosecution that he had harmed the FBI investigation.

Papadopoulos said on Hannity he never met a Russian during the campaign.

Papadopoulos said his meeting with Mifsud, a shady professor from Malta, during the campaign was about establishing better relations with Russia. They met randomly in Italy, and Papadopoulos said Mifsud told him he was connected to governments in Europe, including Russia. Papadopoulos said Mifsud invited him to a British hotel for breakfast, where the professor claimed he had information that the Kremlin had some of Clintons emails.

Papadopoulos told Hannity it felt like a bomb was dropped on him.

Over drinks in London, Papadopoulos then told Australian diplomat Alexander Downer about his conversations with Mifsud. Downer was said to have informed U.S. officials, leading the FBI to open its Russia investigation during the 2016 election.

Papadopoulos told Hannity that he alerted the FBI to his conversations with Downer because of his suspicions.

Papadopoulos appeared with his wife, Simona Mangiante Papadopoulos, who has been campaigning on his behalf. They met through Mifsud.

Noting she gave the information to Congress and the FBI, Papadopoulos wife said she knew the professor for five years through the European Parliament, and his background didnt fit the narrative of a Russian agent.

PAPADOPOULOS SENTENCED TO 14 DAYS IN PRISON

Lawyers for the Democratic National Committee have said it's possible Mifsud is dead.

In a filing in the U.S. Southern District of New York, the DNC said Mifsud is missing and may be deceased. The lawyers said they will monitor news sources for any indication of Mifsuds whereabouts and will attempt service on Mifsud if and when he is found alive.

However, a close associate of the professor told The Daily Caller that Mifsud apparently is alive, living under another identity.

The DNC is suing Mifsud and others as part of its lawsuit accusing Trump officials of conspiring with Russia in the 2016 election. The Trump campaign has denied any collusion with Russia.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A Rudy Giuliani-backed congressional candidate seeking to make history as New Hampshire's first black congressman emerged from a crowded field to win the state's GOP primary on Tuesday, as Sen. Bernie Sanders' son was trounced by a large margin in the Democratic contest.

Eddie Edwards, a Navy veteran, won convincingly over state Sen. Andy Sanborn, who had the endorsement of Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul.

Giuliani called Edwards a strong conservative who believes in low taxes and is a supporter of the America First agenda of President Trump.

The contest -- for a critical seat Republicans hope to flip in November -- was a brutal, highly personal slugfest. Sanborn has been accused of making a sexually explicit comment to a Statehouse intern in 2013 and allegedly frequently commented on an aide's dress and appearance. Sanborn has denied the accusations, calling them a witch hunt.

During a surreal party-organized debate last month, Edwards was even asked to step off the stage  amid chants and screams from supporters of both candidates  after refusing to pledge to support the eventual nominee if Sanborn won the primary.

While the effects of Giuliani's endorsement were unclear, candidates backed by President Trump and his administration have proven to be powerhouses ahead of the midterms, after wins by Brian Kemp in Georgia, Troy Balderson in Ohio, Ron DeSantis in Florida, and Katie Arrington in South Carolina, among others.

Edwards has said the presidents doing one hell of a job in Washington and its about time we had a president who understood the values of our country and stood up for our country.

There had not been an open seat in New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District in more than 16 years, and fittingly, 16 candidates vied on Tuesday to fill it, including 11 Democrats and 5 Republicans. The district, which Fox News ranks as leaning Democratic in November, is considered a key potential battleground in November and a rare opportunity for the GOP to snatch a blue seat.

GOP SEES GLIMMER OF HOPE IN ROWDY, NASTY NH HOUSE PRIMARY RACE

Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porters retirement makes the seat a true jump ball, Republican consultant Ryan Williams said.

In 2016, the district backed Donald Trump, leading Edwards to call it his district. However, also in 2016, the district re-elected Shea-Porter, who is stepping down after four terms.

On the Democratic side, Chris Pappas, a former state lawmaker who is serving his third term on the governor's Executive Council, won the party nod. Pappas, who is openly gay, topped Maura Sullivan, a U.S. Marine and Iraq War veteran who served in the Department of Veterans Affairs and at the Pentagon during the Obama administration.

Both finished well ahead of Sanders' son, 49 -year-old Levi, who did not pick up his father's endorsement. Levi explained, In the Sanders family, we dont do dynastic politics.

In early results, Sanders had picked up less than three percent of the vote in New Hampshire, which his father won by double-digits in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary.

The younger Sanders' platform included Medicare-for-all and a higher minimum wage, but he was criticized during the race for living not only outside of the district, but also out of the state's political mainstream.

SOCIALIST TORCHBEARERS FLAME OUT NATIONALLY, DESPITE HIGH-PROFILE BERNIE SANDERS ENDORSEMENTS

New Hampshire is host to another House primary on Tuesday, for the 2nd Congressional District, held by incumbent Rep. Annie Kuster, a Democrat, who didn't face a primary challenger. The seven Republicans vying to take her on in November all vocally supported Trump and his agenda.

In the New Hampshire gubernatorial primary, first-term Republican Gov. Chris Sununu has sailed through the primary unopposed. The GOP currently holds the governorships of four out of six states in the deep-blue New England region, including Vermont, Maine and Massachusetts. New Hampshire had a Democratic governor for more than a decade before Sununu took office in 2016.

Hoping to help the Democrats make a dent in the Republican hold on the region's governorships were former state Sen. Molly Kelly and former Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand, considered an outsider candidate. Kelly won convincingly on Tuesday, by a margin of 66 percent to 34 percent, and is set to face Sununu in November.

Kelly emphasized her experience as a single mother who raised three children while putting herself through college. While Marchand touted his progressive plans, Kelly said she has the track record to prove it on issues such as support for public education, women's rights and gun safety. She accused Sununu of pandering to the Trump administration with his support of a school voucher bill that ultimately failed.

Accustomed to going first in the presidential primary, New Hampshire voters are among the last to nominate candidates for November, with Rhode Island and New York holding the nation's last primaries later this week.

Fox News' Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Paul Steinhauser and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
President Trump on Tuesday touted what he described as the incredibly successful response to the back-to-back hurricanes that struck Puerto Rico last year.

The presidents remarks came in the midst of an update in the Oval Office with officials on the status of Hurricane Florence, currently making its way towards the East Coast.

I think Puerto Rico was incredibly successful, Trump said, adding that he thought the storms that hit the island were probably the hardest thus far due to the island nature.

The job that FEMA and law enforcement and everybody did, working along with the governor in Puerto Rico, I think was tremendous. I think that Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success, Trump said. Texas we have been given A-pluses for. Florida weve been given A-pluses for. I think in a certain way the best job we did was Puerto Rico but nobody would understand that, I mean its harder to understand.

HURRICANE FLORENCES PATH: TRACK THE STORM HERE

Hurricanes Irma and Maria struck the island in September 2017, the latter of which had its official death toll increased last month from 64 people dead to 2,975.

The updated number came via an independent investigation ordered by the local government, prompting Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello to raise the official total.

The Trump administration's efforts in Puerto Rico received widespread criticism. But after visiting the island last September, the president said that Puerto Ricans were fortunate that the storm did not yield a catastrophe akin to the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Katrina along the Gulf Coast in 2005.

In response to the presidents comments, Rossello issued a statement Tuesday on the worst natural disaster in our modern history.

No relationship between a colony and the federal government can ever be called successful because Puerto Ricans lack certain inalienable rights enjoyed by our fellow Americans in the states. The historical relationship between Puerto Rico and Washington is unfair and unAmerican. It is certainly not a successful relationship, Rossello said.

This was the worst natural disaster in our modern history. Our basic infrastructure was devastated, thousands of our people lost their lives and many others still struggle, the statement continued. Now is not the time to pass judgement; it is time to channel every effort to improve the lives of over 3 million Americans in Puerto Rico.

PUERTO RICO GOVERNOR RAISES HURRICANE MARIA DEATH TOLL FROM 64 TO 2,975

Several Democratic lawmakers came out against the presidents words on Tuesday, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., who tweeted that Americans expect their presidents to own up to their failures and that Trump must stop trying to deny that tragedy & take steps to save lives in the future.

House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md., released a statement calling for the president to apologize.

President Trumps characterization of his administrations botched response to Hurricanes Irma and Maria as incredibly successful and one of the best jobs thats ever been done is offensive to the families of the nearly 3,000 Americans who were killed and the countless more who suffered for months without power or running water, Hoyer said in a statement. He ought to apologize, and Congress ought to investigate what went wrong with the Trump Administrations response and identify steps to ensure it does not happen again.

With another storm now threatening our country, I pray that the President and his team are not taking the same approach they did last year in preparing to meet this challenge, the statement continued.

With the pending arrival of Hurricane Florence, Trump on Tuesday vowed that the safety of the American people is my absolute highest priority and that the government was totally prepared and would be sparing no expense in response efforts.

Fox News Chad Pergram, Nicole Darrah and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A crowdfunding campaign has raised over $1 million as of Tuesday for the opponent of Senator Susan Collins, R-Maine, if she votes to confirm Brett Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court, a move she likened to bribery.

Liberal activist groups have posted the campaign on the platform Crowdpac, drawing supporters and critics.

Senator Collins votes NO on Kavanaugh and you will not be charged, and no money will go to fund her future opponent, the platform wrote. Senator Collins votes YES on Kavanaugh and your pledge will go to her opponent's campaign, once that opponent has been identified.

Collins called it an attempt at extortion in a response through a spokeswoman, according to The Washington Post.

And anybody who thinks these tactics would work on Senator Collins obviously doesnt know her, spokeswoman Annie Clark said in a statement. Senator Collins will make up her mind based on the merits of the nomination. Threats or other attempts to bully her will not play a factor in her decision making whatsoever.

An ethics expert told The Post that it may very well violate federal bribery statutes.

But Jordan Libowitz, a spokesman for the Citizens for Ethics and Responsibilities, told the Post it doesnt rise to the level of bribery, because theres no agreement.

Its just the way money and politics tend to work these days, he said.

Meanwhile, supporter Julie B endorsed the campaign, saying women will stand together to protect our rights and what is right.

The people of Maine are asking you to be a hero, Senator Collins, the campaign wrote.  to stand up for the people of Maine and for Americans across the country, every dollar donated to this campaign will go to your eventual Democratic opponent in 2020. We will get you out of office.
Washington journalist Bob Woodward shrugged off suggestions that his controversial book Fear has driven a wedge between President Trump and White House Chief of Staff John Kelly.

Well, I dont know, Woodward told Dana Perino during her show, The Daily Briefing, on Wednesday after she told him several sources told her the book has caused mistrust between the president and the retired United States Marine Corps general.

But Woodward said he did know, with certainty, that Kelly was trying to gain control of the White House  but is having a hard time doing so.

As anyone who has worked for Trump knows and I think that establishes this also, Woodward told Perino, that its very hard to control Trump.

Woodward sat down with Perino to discuss his tell-all, which went on sale on Tuesday and has been widely discussed. The book describes the inner workings of the White House and describes it as a chaotic place filled with staffers overwhelmed by infighting and animosity.

In a series of tweets, Trump has called the book "total fiction," "boring" and "untrue."

But Woodward insisted his book was accurate and said he carefully vetted each description included in the book.

I think this book shows in meticulous detail what happens at specific meetings, where the issues are addressed by President Trump and his staff, foreign affairs, North Korea, Afghanistan, the Middle East, all of the immigration, trade issues, he said. I think you need to measure a presidency by what actually is done on the issues that affect people.

The Watergate legend said the president called him last month saying he wished he had been interviewed for the book.

Gee, I wouldve liked to have talked to you, he said the president told him. He was coy when asked whether hed include the presidents side if Trump offered him an interview.

Well, the book is already out, he said. Maybe for the second book.

So, will there be a second book?

Well, Woodward said, who knows?
Sen. Cory Booker, continuing to fuel speculation about a 2020 White House run, is set to headline a Democratic fundraiser next month in a state that plays host to the Souths first presidential primary.



The Orangeburg County Democratic Party announced that Booker, D-N.J., will attend its annual fundraising gala on Oct. 18 in South Carolina, according to The Associated Press.

The organizations chairman, Kenny Glover, said that Booker was invited because he wanted a national figure to speak to the more than 1,000 South Carolina Democrats expected to attend but he stopped just short of calling Booker a potential presidential hopeful.

Oh, we do not endorse, he said.

This will be the second major party event Booker is poised to attend. He will also headline the Iowa Democratic Partys fall gala next month.

Booker told The Des Moines Register he knows that a prominent speaking engagement might suggest presidential ambitions, but he insisted that his visit is geared toward Democratic gains in the midterm elections.

I think its irresponsible for anybody really to be focusing needed energy on an election two years and two months from now, as opposed to an election just two months from now, he said.

Booker faced a significant amount of backlash after releasing confidential documents during the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh earlier this month.

Republicans slammed Booker, saying that his White House aspirations had outweighed concern for committee rules.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
When it comes to climate change, America's most passionate voice is not in Washington, but California, where Gov. Jerry Brown spent decades attacking global warming.

But that perception is now under scrutiny, not from the right but environmentalists and critics on the left who call the governor a hypocrite.

"This week Gov. Brown is going to stand on the world stage and say California is leading the way on climate change and it is just not true," said Consumer Watchdog president Jamie Court. "The governor has made his own record of hypocrisy by failing to do anything to go after fossil fuel companies and the oil industry."

Consumer Watchdog is among a coalition of some 800 community and environmental groups, including Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth, who plan to protest Brown Thursday morning at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, where the governor is hosting a Global Action Climate Summit for some 4,000 scientists and activists from around the world.

The coalition, calling itself "Brown's Last Chance," said while the governor warns of a coming climate catastrophe he is overly accommodating to California's fossil fuel industry, accepting more than $9 million in campaign-related donations since becoming governor in 2011.

"Jerry Brown has permitted 20,000 new oil wells as governor," said a 30-second ad, paid for by Consumer Watchdog and Food and Water Watch. It features a child in front of an oil rig. "Gov. Brown how could you be so cruel and heartless?"

But Browns office takes exception to the ad, saying California under his leadership has led the U.S. in environmental stewardship and oversight.

"Clearly, the world needs to curb its use of oil and the phase out is already underway in California where the state is committed to cutting consumption in half. At the same time, oil production in California has dropped 56 percent," Browns spokesman, Evan Westrup, told Fox News.

Brown claims the industrial world can't afford to go cold turkey off oil. He claims the state is a leader in electric cars, wind and solar energy, and renewable energy targets  while also being the nation's sixth highest-producing oil state.

"We're not going to solve the problem of global warming without a lot of problems, without a lot of controversy, without a lot of heartache, but we can keep our eye on the ball and keep moving forward," Brown said Tuesday.

On Saturday, Brown went after President Trump, signing two bills making it virtually impossible for the administration to drill for oil in federal waters off California by banning any new infrastructure to support the projects.

"California's message to the Trump administration is simple: Not here, not now," Brown said in a statement. "We will not let the federal government...destroy our treasured coast."

Yet, according to records, Brown approved 233 permits for oil companies to drill in state waters, within three miles of the California coast. Environmental critics say the threat of a spill from these wells is no different than drilling in federal waters.

But Westrup says the state has not opened a new lease area since 1968. Multiple permits can be granted in existing leases.

"The number of annual permits issued has dropped since Gov. Brown took office and just 1,495 of the approx. 20,000 (onshore) permits granted since 2011 were issued over the past two years, which tracks with the drop in statewide production and the global price of oil," Westrup responded.

"While the governor complains about federal offshore drilling and President Trump, he controls four times as many wells in state waters than Trump controls in federal waters," Court said. "The governor has never met an oil permit he doesn't like. He isn't touching fossil fuels, he isn't touching oil, he isn't touching fracking, yet at same time California is burning up in wildfires."

Brown remains undeterred. Monday he signed an executive order committing California to be 'carbon free' by 2045, becoming the first state or political entity to pledge such a goal. To many, it seals his legacy as an environmental pioneer, and a symbol of resistance in the Age of Trump. Others, see it a public relations stunt.

"He talks a good game," RL Miller, told the California political newsletter Capital and Main. Miller, who runs the progressive non-profit Climate Hawks Vote, once told Brown "to stop being Chevron's stenographer."

Fox News asked Browns office how the governor could criticize Trump for encouraging fossil fuel development while approving the new oil-drilling permits, and to respond to any critics who may see it as a sign of hypocrisy. The governor did not provide a direct answer.

In reality, Brown has pushed for tougher environmental rules almost across the board and most mainstream green organizations recognize his political leadership, but are reluctant to criticize him on oil.

Other politicians who violate the keep it in the ground standard are fair game, which is why others see their silence on Brown as a double standard.
California has positioned itself as the center of the Trump resistance...Its bloody combat.  Jessica Levinson, a clinical law professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles

The Trump administration and lawmakers in California have seemingly been at odds from the day the president took office. Last weekend, their long-running battled moved to the seas.

California Gov. Jerry Brown put his signature on two pieces of legislation over weekend that effectively ban the construction of any new offshore oil and gas pipelines in the states waters and thwart a Trump plan to open nearly 1.7 billion acres of coastal waters to drilling.

Today, Californias message to the Trump administration is simple: Not here, not now, Brown said at the signing of SB 834 and AB 1775. We will not let the federal government pillage public lands and destroy our treasured coast.

The new laws represent Californias latest strike against the Trump administrations energy agenda and its moves to dismantle Obama-era climate regulations. Together, they continue a trend of state officials here working to combat the White House on everything from land use to immigration.

California has positioned itself as the center of the Trump resistance, Jessica Levinson, a clinical law professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, told Fox News. Its bloody combat.

Issues like sanctuary cities and other immigration-related matters have been front and center in the California-versus-Trump fight, given the presidents focus on cracking down on illegal immigration and building a border wall.

But there is perhaps no other area where Brown and state Attorney General Xavier Becerra have been more effective at resisting the White Houses agenda than the environment.

While California cannot directly block oil and gas drilling off its coast, the legislation that Brown signed last weekend aims to drive up the operating costs of these operations enough to make the effort unprofitable. The new law does this by blocking state land managers from permitting the construction of new pipelines, piers, wharves or other infrastructure projects necessary to bring oil and gas from offshore drilling sites to land.

In a state where 69 percent of the population opposes drilling, according to a recent poll conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California, the new laws were praised by many conservation groups.

We are extremely pleased, said Kim Delfino, the California program director of Defenders of Wildlife, according to The Mercury News. The bills are intended to make it difficult to bring any new oil to shore, so it makes any new offshore oil drilling unlikely.

"They put up a pretty significant obstacle. They dont make it economically feasible for an oil company to do new drilling.

The legislation, however, also created some strange bedfellows, as it was panned by both oil industry insiders and some environmental groups, who called Brown a hypocrite.

Todays announcement is incredibly ironic since Brown has refused every effort by hundreds of community groups to get him to slow the pace of new permits for oil wells, 350.org co-founder Bill McKibben said in a statement.

California banned offshore drilling in state waters out to three miles back in 1994 and there havent been any new platforms built in the last 30 years. But California is the nations third-largest oil-producing state, behind Texas and North Dakota, and there are still 32 offshore oil platforms and artificial islands in federal and state waters off the coasts of Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles and Orange Counties.

Brown has himself approved more than 20,000 new drilling permits across the state since 2011  although fewer than 1,500 of those have been issued in the last two years  and his previous gubernatorial campaigns have received hundreds of thousands of dollars from oil giants like Chevron and Occidental.

Despite the cries of hypocrisy, California  under Brown and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom  is dedicated to fighting back against the White Houses energy agenda.

California already has a waiver under the federal Clean Air Act allowing it to impose tougher emission standards than the U.S. rules, which runs counter to the Trump administrations move to roll back Obama-era rules focused on curbing greenhouse gas emissions. It is also one of 17 states suing the Trump administration over the rollback.

As he prepared to host a summit of climate change leaders from around the world in San Francisco (starting Wednesday), Brown earlier this week also signed legislation phasing out electricity in the state produced by fossil fuels by 2045

"We want others to do likewise, and if enough people often enough do what is needed we will curb global warming," Brown said during an interview with The Associated Press. "But we're definitely at the beginning of what's going to be a long and difficult and contentious journey."

In filing suit against the Trump administration over emissions standards  and over the federal census, and over separation of migrant families, and over regulations on small business health insurance policies, and in more than three dozen other lawsuits  Brown, Becerra and other Democratic lawmakers in California are taking a page from the playbook of Texas Republicans.

During the Obama administration, Texas filed so many lawsuits against the White House that the state Attorney General Greg Abbott, who is now the governor, joked that I go to the office in the morning, I sue Barack Obama, and then I go home.

And with the demographics of California continually shifting in favor of the Democrats and the administration not looking to drastically shift its own agenda, experts say that the Golden State and the White House look to be at odds for the foreseeable future.

The marriage is broken and were in litigation right now, Levinson said. Neither side has any motivation to back down.
California Gov. Jerry Brown got a long-time a six-figure job at a government agency despite not exactly having the experience for the role, the friend admitted.

Juan Pedro Gaffney, a former Bay Area choir director, admitted his friendship with the outgoing governor landed him the job at the state Workers Compensation Appeals Board, a position populated mostly by lawyers, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

What shall I do, should I not plead guilty? Yeah, Im a friend of Jerrys. We go way back. Jerry knew me when I was active in social action and politics. He didnt forget that part of me, Gaffney said when asked whether his friendship with Brown got him the job.

"What shall I do, should I not plead guilty? Yeah, Im a friend of Jerrys. We go way back. Jerry knew me when I was active in social action and politics. He didnt forget that part of me."  Juan Pedro Gaffney

Gaffney attended St. Ignatius High School in San Francisco with Brown. He said that he knows that that people who have served long in the field look with raised eyebrows over his appointment to the board.

The job involves deciding whether people who they claim they were injured in the workplace should receive workers compensation. The board meets once a week to decide which cases to divide between themselves. All members of the board are paid $147,778-a-year during their six-year term.

I did not understand this to be a plum. I did not go after it as a plum, Gaffney continued. To me it is hard work and I am glad to do the hard work, but others have given me to understand that they were passed by to accommodate this appointment or at least that this appointment passed them by. I am aware of that. What can I say? Im sensitive to it. I realize its a legitimate sentiment, a legitimate reaction.

"To me it is hard work and I am glad to do the hard work, but others have given me to understand that they were passed by to accommodate this appointment or at least that this appointment passed them by."  Juan Pedro Gaffney

The confession raises ethical concerns about the legacy of Brown, who will now be replaced by either Democrat Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom or Republican businessman John Cox, whos been trailing his opponent by mere 5 points, according to the latest poll.

This is not a thing that brings down democracy or forces state government to crumble, but it is what it looks like, a favor to a friend, Los Angeles Loyola Law School professor Jessica Levinson told the Chronicle.

And its not a victimless favor, because there could be someone with a resume that is better suited who was passed over. And this position serves the public. Does the public get the benefit of having the best people serving in this position? she asked.

The outgoing governor defended the decision to appoint Gaffney, saying workers and businesses will certainly benefit from Mr. Gaffneys diverse background and experience.

Though Gaffneys position should mostly be occupied by lawyers licensed in California, according to the rules, two of the seven commissioners dont have to meet any minimum qualifications.

Gaffney said that although he doesnt have the exact expertise to hear workers compensation cases, his intelligence makes him qualified for the job.

If you arent a lawyer, you quickly learn to be in this game, he told the Chronicle. My Lord, Im stuffing my eyes, ears, nose and throat with all things legal since Ive come on board. My days there are 10 hours. Im making it my business to educate myself.

This is the second time Gaffneys relationship with Brown helped him. Last year, he was appointed to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Appeals Board. He was paid just over $25,000 a year and his position involved meeting once a month to analyze decisions made by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, the Chronicle reported.
The Huffington Post headline was designed to get its anti-Trump readers to click.

"Kellyanne Conway: Trumps Anti-Media Attacks Are Not Healthy.'"

What? Was she saying this publicly? Was even the president's counselor off the reservation?

But it turned out to be a blatant distortion.

Here's what Conway actually said, when asked by Christiane Amanpour on her new PBS show whether "the president might take a stance of his own to pull back from this," meaning attacks on the media.

"I do agree that it's not healthy for the body politic on either side," Kellyanne said. She said that she and others "have tried, the president has tried, to turn down the temperature, to give more access."

So Conway's it's-unfortunate-both-sides-do-it-but-we've-tried-to-fix-it sentiment got twisted into her criticizing her boss. And what the short piece didn't mention was that she also said this: "We see things every single day on TV and in print that I promise you, I swear to God, are patently false."

This is why people don't trust the press.

And yes, the obvious rejoinder to that the White House sometimes struggles with the truth. On Monday, economic adviser Kevin Hassett said the president was wrong when he tweeted that "the GDP Rate (4.2%) is higher than the Unemployment Rate (3.9%) for the first time in over 100 years!" It's actually 10 years. (But those figures do show a booming economy.)

Still, pointing to presidential misstatements and distortions doesn't let the press off the hook when it comes to accuracy and fairness.

A new study out yesterday from the Knight Foundation and Gallup shows that most Americans are losing faith in the media, and their reasons largely center on matters of accuracy or bias. A stunning 69 percent of adults say they have lost trust in the media over the past decade, a figure that rises to 94 percent for Republicans. Among Democrats, 42 percent have lost trust, and the number is 75 percent for independents.

Those of us in the news business have company. Social media, run by the tech giants, were once seen as a liberating and democratic force. Now there are deep suspicions of Big Tech, and its increasingly maligned leaders have lost their heroic glow.

Here, too, self-inflicted wounds play a major role. These outfits were slow to police their sites, combat Russian propaganda, address the scourge of bullying and fabrication andin an echo of the MSMs plightare regularly assailed for discriminating against the right.

As NYT columnist Nathaniel Popper puts it: "Admiration of the tech world has, in the wake of a growing list of scandals, quickly soured into an intense suspicion that manages to cross partisan lines, similar to what Wall Street faced after 2008."

Now Facebook, Twitter, Google and the like resemble a machine that its makers can no longer control, even if they are willing to spend the vast sums that would require.

All these doubts seem weaponized in the age of Trump, given that much of the country distrusts the president and a sizable chunk of the country admires the president while distrusting his adversaries.

This constant warfare, which Kellyanne alluded to, leads to sinking confidence in both sides, as the White House and the press routinely trade charges of lying and bias. Its as though airlines were constantly running ads accusing the others of being unsafe.

Things have reached the point where not only do many people believe the New York Times shouldn't have published the op-ed by the unnamed senior official, but some accuse the paper of outright deception by saying the author actually works there. That is of a piece with Bob Woodward describing a dysfunctional administration and the president accusing the veteran journalist of writing fiction and making up sources.

Maybe, in another time and place, the media and other institutions can regain some of the trust they have lost. Some people in the Knight study, at least, say they're open to that. But it doesn't seem to be on the horizon any time soon.
At the talks (Source: VNA)



The Vietnamese President welcomed the first Vietnam visit by Widodo and expressed belief that the visit will make important contributions to further promoting the traditional friendship and strategic partnership between the two countries.

Discussing bilateral ties, the two Presidents stressed the need to further deepen the bilateral strategic partnership in a more practical and effective way for the benefit of the two countries people, and for peace, cooperation and prosperity in the region and the world, in the context of deep changes in the Asia-Pacific region in general and ASEAN in particular.

Both sides agreed to increase all-level visits via the State, government, National Assembly channels and people-to-people exchange; make effective use of bilateral cooperation mechanisms and share views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.

They spoke highly of the signing of an action programme on realising the bilateral strategic partnership for the 2019-2023 period, towards celebrating the 10th anniversary of the establishment of strategic partnership by 2023.

The Indonesian President took note of Vietnams proposal on removing regulations on the rate of local content in Vietnams key export items such as mobile phones, television, agro-forestry-fisheries, steel, construction material and, electrical equipment, making it easier for those products to enter the Indonesian market.

The two sides spoke highly of the outcomes of national defence-security collaboration over the past years, especially the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding on strengthening cooperation between defence officials and related activities signed in 2010 and the Declaration on Joint Vision on Defence Cooperation for the 2017-2022 period. They agreed to enhance cooperation between their navies and air forces, and partnership in defence industry and crime prevention.

Host and guest consented to assign the technical task force meeting to accelerate negotiations on demarcation of the two countries exclusive economic zones in line with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982 UNCLOS).

They affirmed that the issue of arrested fishermen and fishing vessels should be handled in an humanitarian spirit and in accordance with the two countries friendship and international law.

On the occasion, they welcomed joint work to address illegal fishing, including the signing of a joint communique on voluntarily joining international cooperation in preventing illegal, unreported and undocumented fishing, and agreed to make efforts to soon reach a Code of Conduct at sea and sign a memorandum of understanding on marine and fishing cooperation.

The two leaders discussed measures to intensify links in the fields of energy, agriculture, culture, tourism, and in marine-based economy, marine sciences and environment, as well as build a consultation mechanism on marine issues.

They committed to effectively carry out the agreement in farm produce and consider establishing joint ventures in aquaculture, wood processing and wooden furniture export, expanding tourism cooperation, especially sea and island tourism and soon launching the Hanoi  Jakarta direct flights.

On regional and global issues of shared concern, the two Presidents said both sides need to maintain consultation on issues regarding regional security and strategy, coordinate to build a united ASEAN, successfully realise the ASEAN Vision 2025, and enhance ASEANs central role in the regional architecture and in dealing with strategic issues in the region.

The two sides pledged to work closely together at multilateral forums, especially the United Nations, ASEAN, APEC and ASEM.

The two sides affirmed their consistent stances on the East Sea issue, including supporting the peaceful settlement of disputes in line with international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS; refraining from the use of force or threat to use force; fully respecting diplomatic and legal processes. They highlighted the importance of non-militarisation, refraining from activities that could cause or escalate tension, abiding by principles of international law and widely-recognised standards.

The two leaders reaffirmed their support of the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea and acceleration of negotiations on a practical and effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea./.
Scott Wallace, a liberal millionaire candidate running for Congress in Pennsylvania, was a member of a controversial private club in South Africa that used to discriminate against Jewish and black people and invited controversial speakers, including former head of the Apartheid chemical and biological warfare program.

Wallace, grandson of a former vice president whos running as a Democrat in Pennsylvania's 1st Congressional District against Republican incumbent Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, has been living in South Africa since the mid-2000s and has called it his second country.

During his time in the country, sometime around 2014, Wallace became a member of the Kelvin Grove club in Cape Town, an exclusive members-only club whose motto is Respecting The Past, Embracing The Future.

The past that the club say it respects is notorious. Due to its strict membership policies, including asking two existing members to vouch for you, the club effectively barred Jewish and black people from becoming members for decades.

A 2004 Cape Argus newspaper published a photograph taken in the 1940s that asserted the clubs anti-Semitic past. In the foreground, the Kelvin Grove club looks like a large farmstead at the centre of thickly hedged cultivation. The pretensions of gentility are misleading: what Kelvin assuredly was then was a bastion of Waspish Cape Towns more brutish impulses  no Jews allowed, read the photographs caption.

The pretensions of gentility are misleading: what [Kelvin Grove club] assuredly was then was a bastion of Waspish Cape Towns more brutish impulses  no Jews allowed  The Cape Argus

The club insists that it never had a written rule to discriminate against any religion or race, while local South African Jewish groups said in the early 1990s that the Jewish community is mistaken to perceive the club as anti-Semitic.

Wallaces membership at the Kelvin Grove club may raise particular scrutiny, especially after the fund he leads, the Wallace Global Fund, has donated around $300,000 in the past to anti-Israel groups that support the boycott campaign of the Jewish State.

Since the controversy over donations, Wallace has disavowed the anti-Israel groups and their efforts, issuing a statement explaining that the donations were made by a member of the Wallace Global Funds leadership from a discretionary fund that other leadership did not exercise authority over.

Many of the positive changes at the Kelvin Grove club came after the fall of the Apartheid regime in the country, which made it intolerable to discriminate against certain people. But the future the club embraced since the end of Apartheid raises concerns.

In 2013, the club invited Wouter Basson, the former head of the Apartheid chemical and biological warfare program, whos been dubbed as Doctor Death over his alleged actions during the regime years, to give a motivational talk at the club.

Basson was found guilty of unethical conduct by a Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) tribunal in December 2013  though the ruling was later overturned following his appeals  for actions that include the production of deadly drugs or other substances that were used against the regimes critics, the South Africas Times reported.

The so-called Doctor Death also went to trial in 2002 after he was accused of multiple crimes, including 229 murders. He was acquitted of some of the charges thanks to technicalities, according to the Daily Maverick.

The club was unapologetic about inviting Basson, replying to its critics on social media. He spoke well & those members present found his talk interesting. Its best to keep an open mind, the club tweeted.

Later that same year, the Kelvin Grove club also hosted a Cape Town Press Club event that featured then-ANC (African National Congress) Western Cape Leader Marius Fransman, who made comments perceived as anti-Semitic.

The reality is 98 percent of the landowners and property owners actually is the white community and, in particular, also people in the Jewish community, the South African Press Association quoted him saying at the club.

The lawmakers comments werent a surprise as he previously also made anti-Jewish comments, according to the Forward magazine. He accused an opposing dominant party in the region of giving Jewish businessmen building contracts that were previously held by Muslims.

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies reportedly complained to the South African Human Rights Commission over the latter remark. Fransman fired back demanding an apology from the Jewish group.

TOP DEM HOUSE HOPEFUL FUNDED GITMO DETAINEES LEGAL HELP JUST AFTER 9/11

The Wallace campaign did not answer Fox News questions whether he was aware of the clubs history before joining it. Instead, the campaign accused Fox News of trying to smear Scott Wallaces character.

Scott Wallace joined this club with thousands of members at a time when black South Africans were joining, more than two decades after Apartheid ended, when South Africa was embracing a new, democratic future in the spirit of Nelson Mandela, Zoe Wilson-Meyer, communications director for Wallaces campaign said in a statement.

Scotts work running a global foundation took him to South Africa to be a part of this changing country, where Scott helped empower women by working to stop female genital mutilation and end forced child marriages. Perhaps Fox News should be looking into reasons that Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick attended an event with a Holocaust denier and took money from misogynist Trump cronies like Elliott Broidy, she added.
Jason Crow isnt just trying to replace Rep. Mike Coffman, R-Colo., as a U.S. Congressman. Hes hoping to replace Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., as the Democratic leader in Congress, too.

We just need a new generation of leadership thats willing to step up and move past this culture that we have in Washington right now, Crow said.

Crow is one of 17 military veterans on congressional ballots across the country, after being recruited by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, or DCCC. Democrats are hoping that candidates who have served in the armed forces will energize districts that are GOP strongholds, believing that military heroes will have a strong shot at courting conservative voters.

"Veterans have incredible records of service to our country and communities, and Jason Crow is an incredible example of these men and women who are stepping up to serve yet again. Across the country these candidates excite the grassroots base and prevent Republicans from successfully putting them into ideological boxes, said Molly Mitchell, a DCCC spokeswoman.

FULL MIDTERM COVERAGE AND RACE RATINGS

Mitchell said the party worked hard to recruit veteran candidates.

The DCCC knew that voters would flock to the stabilizing influences of veteran candidates and worked tirelessly to recruit a historic number of these patriots, she said.

During a speech at the 2012 Democratic National Committee conventions in Charlotte, N.C., Crow addressed the crowd by insisting, Im not a politician  Im a veteran.

Now that hes on a ballot, Crows argument about not being a politician has evolved into an argument that hes nonpartisan.

When I served in Iraq and Afghanistan, it didnt matter whether someone was a Republican or a Democrat or an Independent, Crow said. We had a job to get done and we found a way to get it done.

But Coffman, the incumbent, insists he has quite the independent streak of his own.

People ask me, what do you think about Trump? Honestly I dont care for him much, Coffman said in a 2016 campaign ad.

Coffman is still carefully trying to show Coloradans that he isnt too cozy with the president  who lost this district in 2016.

The only time the president did reach out for my vote, I said no, Coffman said.

But that doesnt mean Coffman always keeps the Presidents policies at arms-length.

This district has benefitted from tax cuts, from deregulation, weve got incredibly low unemployment, Coffman said.

The Fox News Power Rankings have the Coffman vs. Crow fight rated as a toss-up, but Coffman is still confident he can convince Democrats to support him, in this district that has been re-drawn in recent years.

I was at an Ethiopian event last night where they are registered Democrats, but they are organizing for my campaign, Coffman said.
President Trump won Tennessee by 26 percentage points, and he remains popular in the Volunteer State.

By a 20-point margin, Tennessee voters approve of the job hes doing (58-38 percent), and by an 8-point margin, more say their vote in the Senate race will be to express support for the president (35 percent) rather than opposition to him (27 percent).

CLICK TO READ THE COMPLETE POLL RESULTS.

That helps Republican Marsha Blackburn top Democrat Phil Bredesen, yet its surprisingly close given Trumps wide win two years ago. Blackburn gets 47 percent to Bredesens 44 percent in the race to fill the states open Senate seat, according to a Fox News poll of Tennessee likely voters. Her three-point advantage is within the polls margin of sampling error.

The candidates are vying to fill the seat of retiring Republican Sen. Bob Corker.

Eighty-one percent of Bredesens backers feel certain they will vote for him compared to 74 percent for Blackburn. Overall, one in five say they could switch their pick before November. With another eight percent undecided in their vote choice, theres room for the race to change.

Not everyone who approves of Trump is backing Blackburn, and that makes for a close race. Among Trump approvers, 76 percent go for Blackburn and 16 percent for Bredesen, who served as governor of Tennessee from 2003 to 2011.

Bredesen garners 93 percent of the vote among Democrats, while Blackburn gets 83 percent of the GOP vote.

Blackburn is up by 15 points among men, 15 points among whites and 35 points among white evangelical Christians. Bredesen is preferred by 9 points among women, 10 points among voters under age 45, and 61 points among non-whites.

The economy is the top concern for Tennessee likely voters. Twenty-nine percent say that will be most important to their vote for Senate, followed closely by 27 percent who say health care.

Economy voters pick Blackburn (+9), while those prioritizing health care go heavily for Bredesen (+35).

The candidates are about equally popular, as just over half have a favorable opinion of Bredesen (54 favorable vs. 36 unfavorable) and Blackburn (51-39 percent).

Bredesen is within striking distance of Blackburn, which is unusual for a Democrat in Tennessee says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who conducts the Fox News poll with Democrat Chris Anderson.

But Bredesen is personally popular, with a net favorable rating of +18, and hes up 13 points among those who are extremely interested in the race. Thats got to cause some anxiety in Blackburns camp.

When voters are asked to compare their familys financial situation to two years ago, more than twice as many say things are better (34 percent) rather than worse (15 percent). For half, 50 percent, its the same.

Views are divided over the presidents trade policies, as 39 percent say they are helping the U.S. economy, and 37 percent say they are hurting.

In the race for governor, Tennessee likely voters back Republican Bill Lee (55 percent) over Democrat Karl Dean (35 percent) by 20 points. Sixteen percent of those backing Bredesen in the Senate race cross party lines to support Lee.

The Fox News Poll is conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R). The poll was conducted September 8-11, 2018 by telephone (landline and cellphone) with live interviewers among 686 Tennessee likely voters and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. Registered voters were randomly selected from a statewide voter file, and respondents answered screening questions about their likelihood to vote in the November elections.
Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill, a two-term incumbent, tops her Republican challenger Josh Hawley by a narrow 44-41 percent margin, according to a Fox News poll of Missouri likely voters. Her three-point edge is within the polls margin of sampling error. Third-party candidates get six percent.

While women back McCaskill by nine, the candidates are tied among white women. Men go for Hawley by four points. Suburban women support McCaskill by 14 points, while white evangelical Christians prefer Hawley by 34.

CLICK TO READ THE COMPLETE POLL RESULTS.

McCaskill gets stronger support among Democrats, 90 percent, than Hawley captures among Republicans (79 percent). Missouri voters are more likely to identify as Republican than Democrat by seven points.

Assuming partisans come home by Election Day, as is typical, Hawley will benefit, says Democratic pollster Chris Anderson, who conducts the Fox News poll with Republican counterpart Daron Shaw.

But if Republicans splinter to independent and Libertarian candidates as they are showing signs of now, that could be the difference in the race.

Seventy-nine percent of McCaskills backers are certain they will vote for her -- far more than the 68 percent of Hawleys supporters who are sure.

The race could change. Eight percent of Missouri likely voters are undecided. Plus, 27 percent of those currently backing a candidate say they could change their mind before November.

In a hypothetical head-to-head matchup, McCaskill and Hawley tie at 45 percent each.

Health care (29 percent) and the economy (26 percent) are the top concerns in Missouri. Health care voters back McCaskill by 34 points, while economy voters prefer Hawley by just 3 points.

Missouri isnt the only place where health care is a major issue, and it is helping the Democrats so far, says Shaw.

If McCaskill survives this race, it will likely be because Missouri Democrats are more fired up and united about health care than Republicans are about the economy.

Show-Me State voters are divided as well on President Trump, who carried Missouri by 19 points two years ago. Today, they split (49 percent approve versus 48 percent disapprove) on his job performance.



Among Trump approvers, 75 percent back Hawley. A Trump trip to Missouri for Hawley scheduled for Thursday was canceled due to Hurricane Florence.

Slightly more voters say their Senate vote will be about opposing the president (33 percent) than supporting him (29 percent).

Meanwhile, by a 7-point margin, more think the presidents trade policies are hurting (45 percent) rather than helping (38 percent) the U.S. economy.

From a personal perspective, 47 percent say their family's financial situation is about the same as it was two years ago, and 22 percent say it's worse. Thirty percent say they are doing better.

McCaskill hasnt said how shell vote on Brett Kavanaughs nomination to the Supreme Court, but a no vote could hurt her with Missouri voters. Among the one quarter of voters who say they might still change their mind in the Senate race, 32 percent say they would be less likely to support McCaskill if she opposes Kavanaugh. Thats twice the number who would be more likely to support her (15 percent).

At a glance, McCaskill and Hawleys favorable ratings look about the same (48 and 47 percent respectively). However, her strongly unfavorable (35 percent) is eight points higher than his (27 percent).

The Fox News Poll is conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R). The poll was conducted September 8-11, 2018 by telephone (landline and cellphone) with live interviewers among 675 Missouri likely voters and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. Registered voters were randomly selected from a statewide voter file, and respondents answered screening questions about their likelihood to vote in the November elections.
President Trump remains popular in Indiana, a state he won by 19 percentage points -- and thats bad news for incumbent Democrat Sen. Joe Donnelly.

A Fox News poll of Indiana likely voters shows Republican challenger Mike Braun ahead of Donnelly by 45-43 percent. Libertarian Lucy Brenton captures three percent and eight percent are undecided.

CLICK TO READ THE COMPLETE POLL RESULTS.

The result is far from certain. Brauns two-point edge is within the polls margin of sampling error, and one in three voters say they could change their mind before Election Day.

The poll, released Wednesday, finds 54 percent approve of the job the presidents doing, and twice as many say their financial situation is better rather than worse compared to two years ago (37 vs. 18 percent).

Meanwhile, 33 percent say they will cast their Senate vote to show support for the president, while 31 percent say it will be to express opposition.

Braun tops Donnelly among women by five points and voters over age 45 by 10 points. One of the widest margins comes from white women, who prefer the Republican by 16 points.

In an electorate that is likely to be nearly 90 percent white and majority female, a Democrat has almost no path to victory without at least drawing even among white women, says Democratic pollster Chris Anderson, who conducts the Fox News poll with Republican Daron Shaw.

This is a Republican state and this seat is one of the most difficult that the Democrats are defending, adds Shaw. Donnelly is even with suburban whites and manages to get 12 percent of Hoosiers who voted for Trump, yet hes still down in the race right now.

Donnelly is considered one of the most vulnerable Senate Democrats, along with Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill and North Dakota Sen. Heidi Heitkamp.

Donnelly could make it even harder on himself if he votes against Brett Kavanaughs nomination to the Supreme Court. Voters who say they could switch their pick in the Senate race say a vote against Kavanaugh would make them less likely to support Donnelly by a 29-21 percent margin. The largest share, 38 percent, say it wont make a difference.

The top three issues in the Senate race are the economy (28 percent), health care (27 percent) and immigration (16 percent). Voters prioritizing the economy and immigration prefer Braun by wide margins, while health care voters strongly go for Donnelly.

Donnelly is better liked, as 52 percent have a favorable view of him (39 unfavorable), while 47 percent have a positive opinion of Braun (38 unfavorable). Neither matches Vice President Mike Pence, who is well-liked by fellow Hoosiers: 56 percent view him favorably vs. 39 percent unfavorable. Some 35 percent have a strongly favorable opinion of Pence.

The Fox News Poll is conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R). The poll was conducted September 8-11, 2018 by telephone (landline and cellphone) with live interviewers among 677 Indiana likely voters and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. Registered voters were randomly selected from a statewide voter file, and respondents answered screening questions about their likelihood to vote in the November elections.
Republican Kevin Cramer tops incumbent Democrat Sen. Heidi Heitkamp among North Dakota likely voters by 48-44 percent, in a Fox News poll released Wednesday. Cramers edge in the Senate race is within the polls margin of sampling error.

Both Heitkamp (85 percent) and Cramer supporters (84 percent) have a fairly high degree of vote certainty. Overall, 15 percent say they may change their mind before voting in November.

CLICK TO READ THE COMPLETE POLL RESULTS.

Theres a wide gender gap, as women prefer Heitkamp by 7 points, and men back Cramer by 15 points. He also gets strong support from white evangelical Christians (+30) and voters prioritizing the economy (+36).

Heitkamp comes out on top by 49 points among health care voters. Health care is the top issue for North Dakota voters (30 percent), followed by the economy (18 percent).

Voting against Brett Kavanaughs nomination to the Supreme Court might hurt Heitkamp. One in three voters who say they could change their mind before November say they would be less likely to vote for Heitkamp if she opposes Kavanaugh, while 21 percent would be more likely.

Heitkamp is seen as one of the most vulnerable Senate Democrats, along with Indiana Sen. Joe Donnelly and Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill.

North Dakota is an uphill fight for the Democrats, says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who conducts the surveys with Democrat Chris Anderson. Its a red state overall, and anti-Trump sentiment just isnt a rallying point here like it is in some other states.

President Trump carried North Dakota in a 36-point landslide, and a 54 percent majority approves of his job performance.

Meanwhile, 26 percent say they want their Senate vote to express support for him. Twenty-four percent say their vote will be to show opposition, and 46 percent say he wont be a factor. Trump campaigned in North Dakota for Cramer last Friday.

A majority, 53 percent, says their familys financial situation hasnt changed in the last two years. The rest are more likely to say things are better rather than worse by a 31-15 percent margin.

In the race for North Dakotas lone House seat (the seat Cramer is vacating to run for Senate), Republican Kelly Armstrong (48 percent) leads Democrat Mac Schneider (34 percent) by 14 points.

The Fox News Poll is conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R). The poll was conducted September 8-11, 2018 by telephone (landline and cellphone) with live interviewers among a random sample of 701 North Dakota likely voters and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
Hillary Clinton on Wednesday repeated a Democratic talking point about Judge Brett Kavanaughs use of the phrase abortion-inducing drugs -- a claim that has been repeatedly debunked by fact-checkers.



I want to be sure we're all clear about something that Brett Kavanaugh said in his confirmation hearings last week, she tweeted. He referred to birth-control pills as "abortion-inducing drugs." That set off a lot of alarm bells for me, and it should for you, too.



Kavanaugh, at his Supreme Court confirmation hearing on Thursday was asked about a case he ruled on involving Priests for Life, a pro-life group that was challenging ObamaCares contraceptive mandate that the group said violated its religious beliefs.



"That was a group that was being forced to provide certain kind of health coverage over their religious objection to their employees. And under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the question was first, was this a substantial burden on the religious exercise? And it seemed to me quite clearly it was," Kavanaugh told lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee.



"It was a technical matter of filling out a form in that case," he said. "In that case, they said filling out the form would make them complicit in the provision of the abortion-inducing drugs that were, as a religious matter, objected to."



Democrats and pro-choice groups seized on the reference to abortion-inducing drugs, which Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., described as a dog whistle for going after birth control. A video she tweeted out cut out the preface that showed Kavanaugh was making it clear he was summarizing the arguments of Priests for Life.

KAMALA HARRIS, PLANNED PARENTHOOD SLAMMED FOR TAKING KAVANAUGH OUT OF CONTEXT ON BIRTH CONTROL REMARKS



After a wave of criticism, particularly from the White House and Republicans, Harris tweeted out a fuller version of the video, but stood by her claim that it was a dog whistle terms used by extreme anti-choice groups to describe birth control.



But the claim drew criticism not just from Republicans, but also from fact-checkers -- which were scathing in their analysis of the Democratic talking point.



Did Brett Kavanaugh call birth control abortion-inducing drugs? No read the headline of Politifacts fact check -- which rated the statement False.



In Harris tweet, Kavanaugh appears to define contraception as abortion-inducing. But the video failed to include a crucial qualifier: They said. In fact, he was citing the definition of the religious group Priests for Life. He has not expressed his personal view, Politifacts check said.



The Washington Posts Glenn Kessler said that its pretty clear from the context that he was quoting the views of the plaintiffs rather than offering a personal view. He said that original tweet by Harris was slightly mitigated by the tweet offering fuller context, but still gave the claim Four Pinnochios.



She earns Four Pinocchios -- and her fellow Democrats should drop this talking point, the factcheck read.



But Clinton did not heed that advice, and in a lengthy Twitterstorm on Wednesday, accused Kavanaugh of using a dog whistle to the extreme right.



When Kavanaugh called birth control "abortion-inducing drugs," he made it clear that safe and legal abortion isn't the only fundamental reproductive right at grave risk if he is confirmed, she tweeted. Access to birth control is, too.



The Clinton tweet drew a swift backlash from commentators, journalists and Republicans.



This claim received Four Pinocchios yesterday. No excuse to repeat it today, @HillaryClinton, tweeted the Posts Kessler.



Nothing is more characteristically Hillary Clinton that going in on a particular partisan talking point only *after* it has been extensively litigated, fact-checked as false, etc, said New York Times columnist Ross Douthat.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, called the claim "a debunked smear." The remark also drew the ire of Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, -- who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee and has been one of the most vocal critics of the initial claim when Harris made it.

I want to be sure were all clear: this didnt happen, his office tweeted. Numerous fact-checks have ruled this false and the Washington Post gave it 4 Pinocchios.



Then, in a snarkier flourish, his office made reference to Clintons failing in the 2016 campaign to visit some key midwest states.



Maybe the fact checks she missed were in Wisconsin, it tweeted.


Ahead of the impending midterm elections, John Kerry on Wednesday said he didn't favor some specific Democrat talking points, including a call to abolish ICE and a push to impeach President Trump.

Instead of abolishing ICE, Kerry instead advocated for "reforming and fixing" it. If the agency is eliminated, he argued, youre going to have to invent something else in its place.

Kerry, the former secretary of state in the Obama administration, made the remarks during an interview on Fox News' The Daily Briefing with Dana Perino, where he also discussed his new book, Every Day is Extra.

Regarding calls to impeach President Trump  of which Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., has been a leading proponent of  Kerry described the maneuver as a miscalculation.

TRUMP SLAMS JOHN KERRY AS FATHER OF IRAN DEAL AMID 2020 SPECULATION

I think its a mistake to talk about impeachment. I think that we shouldn't be politicizing it. If you put it in the discussion now, youre making something political, Kerry said. I think we have to be really careful and be very analytical about whatever evidence is there and its not there yet because the Mueller investigation really has to run its course and then you can make an evaluation.

The former secretary of state also touched on topics like Iran and Syria, the latter of which he said would not be resolved via a military solution but rather with an agreement.

I agreed with President Trumps use of force, I thought it was the appropriate thing to do. What I think was missing, and is still missing, is the diplomatic initiative because theres not going to be a military solution to the opposition in Syria, Kerry said. Yes, you can clear the community, you can drop a lot of bombs but the only way to finally try to put the country back on track is having an agreement.

JOHN KERRY NOT RULING OUT 2020, DISMISSES TALK AS TOTAL DISTRACTION

He added that no solution to the problem in Syria can be made without also having countries like Iran and Russia, at the table.

Kerry also defended the Iran nuclear deal, which he helped negotiate, saying that even with the agreement, other sanctions were placed on the country. Trump has since withdrawn the U.S. from the deal, which Kerry said he believes has made the situation more difficult.

What people dont realize is even in the agreement that we made with Iran with respect to their nuclear weapons, we kept the sanctions on missiles, Kerry said. We kept the sanctions on human rights abuses. We kept the sanctions on their transferred weapons to Yemen. And we raised those sanctions several times.

So we object as much as anybody to those activities. But we differ in how youre going to control them. We believe by pulling out unilaterally, the president has actually made it harder for an Iranian leader to deal with him, Kerry continued.
A federal judge appointed by former President Barack Obama on Tuesday struck down a 95-year-old California law that had banned handgun ads at gun shops, calling it "unconstitutional on its face" and slamming the state for its "paternalistic" assumption that its residents can't make up their own minds about firearms.

Officials in California had claimed the advertisements would trigger people with impulsive personality traits to buy more handguns, leading to increased suicides and crime -- assertions that U.S. District Judge Troy Nunley in Sacramento all but mocked in his ruling.

"The Government may not restrict speech that persuades adults, who are neither criminals nor suffer from mental illness, from purchasing a legal and constitutionally protected product, merely because it distrusts their personality trait and the decisions that personality trait may lead them to make later down the road," Nunley said in the decision, which was made public Tuesday.

"Moreover, in the effort to restrict impulsive individuals from purchasing handguns, the Government has restricted speech to all adults, irrespective of whether they have this personality trait," Nunley added, saying the law was overinclusive.

The 1923 law provided that "No handgun or imitation handgun, or placard advertising the sale or other transfer thereof, shall be displayed in any part of [a gun store] where it can readily be seen from the outside."

"[T]he Supreme Court has rejected this highly paternalistic approach to limiting speech, holding that the Government may not 'achieve its policy objectives through the indirect means of restraining certain speech by certain speakers,'" Nunley wrote.



In 2011, the Supreme Court held in Sorrell v. IMS Health that "'fear that people would make bad decisions if given truthful information cannot justify content-based burdens on speech. The court continued: The choice between the dangers of suppressing information, and the dangers of its misuse if it is freely available is one that the First Amendment makes for us.

Nunley added in his ruling that the state failed to show the law would prevent suicides or crime, and provided only "speculation and conjecture" in its efforts to show a link between impulsive buyers of handguns and people who commit suicide or commit crime impulsively.



Further undercutting the state's argument, the California law did not restrict ads for other firearms -- meaning it was both underinclusive and overinclusive, according to Nunley.

For instance, Nunley noted in his ruling that gun shops could display a large neon sign reading, "GUNS GUNS GUNS" or a 15-foot depiction of a sporting rifle. The judge said they could also place ads for handguns elsewhere such as on a billboard blocks away.



MORE THAN 500 GUNS SEIZED FROM CALIFORNIA HOMES

California has other laws that could prevent handgun violence without restricting speech in violation of the First Amendment, the judge said. For instance, Nunley wrote, the state could try an educational campaign focused on the dangers of handguns or the consequences of impulsive decision-making." But, Nunley made clear, California may not accomplish its goals by violating the First Amendment.

The ruling came in a lawsuit filed in 2014 by several gun dealers who were fined by the state for handgun ads.

"If you are someone who is providing a constitutionally protected product or service, you should be able to communicate that to people in the same way a bookseller should be able to advertise they sell Bibles and Qurans," said Brandon Combs, executive director of The Calguns Foundation, a gun rights group. "Dealers should be able to say they sell handguns."

CALIFORNIA LAW PROMPTS SPIKE IN ASSAULT RIFLE REGISTRATIONS: REPORT

A spokeswoman for the state attorney general's office, which defended the law, said the office was reviewing the decision.

The state Department of Justice cited one of the plaintiffs, Ten Percent Firearms, for a metal sign shaped like a revolver in the store's parking lot that an inspector spotted in 2010, according to Nunley's ruling. Another plaintiff, Tracy Rifle and Pistol, received a citation after an inspector in 2014 found large vinyl decals depicting three handguns on the store's windows.

"As the Court explained today, the government cannot censor commercial speech in a paternalistic effort to keep citizens from making unpopular choices - or choices the government doesn't approve - if they are told the truth," Brad Benbrook, an attorney for the plaintiffs said in a statement.

California has among the strictest gun-control laws in the nation, including some that have arguably backfired. One 2016 law banned the sale of semi-automatic assault rifles with so-called bullet buttons  a feature that requires a separate tool to swap out magazines and reload  and required such rifles purchased before the law were required to be registered with the state by June 2018.

That prompted a 43 percent spike in assault weapons registration and a lawsuit by gun rights advocates, The Los Angeles Times reported in July. The law stipulated that bullet button rifle owners that havent registered their weapon by deadline face up to a year in jail and confiscation of their weapon.

First Amendment scholar Eugene Volokh, who consulted with the plaintiffs in the case, said he expects the state will appeal to the liberal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The appellate court had previously ruled against the plaintiffs in the case on their request for a preliminary injunction, but did not ever assess the First Amendment claims key to the case.

Fox News' Edmund DeMarche, Bradford Betz, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
New text messages between ex-FBI employees Peter Strzok and Lisa Page reveal others were "leaking like mad" in the run-up to the Trump-Russia collusion probe, according to new communications between the former lovers obtained exclusively by Fox News.

A lengthy exchange dated Dec. 15, 2016 appears to reveal a potential leak operation for political purposes.

Oh, remind me to tell you tomorrow about the times doing a story about the rnc hacks, Page texted Strzok.

And more than they already did? I told you Quinn told me they pulling out all the stops on some story Strzok replied.

A source told Fox News Quinn could be referring to Richard Quinn, who served as the chief of the Media and Investigative Publicity Section in the Office of Public Affairs. Quinn could not be reached for comment.

Strzok again replied: Think our sisters have begun leaking like mad. Scorned and worried, and political, theyre kicking into overdrive.

In one passage, Strzok apparently misreads a reference to "rnc" as "mc," and then, realizing his error, blames "old man eyes."

It is unclear at this point to whom Strzok was referring when he used the term sisters.

'Think our sisters have begun leaking like mad. Scorned and worried, and political, theyre kicking into overdrive.'  Peter Strzok to Lisa Page

Retired FBI special agent and former FBI national spokesman John Iannarelli told Fox News it could be a reference to another government agency.

Sisters is an odd phrase to use, Iannarelli told Fox News Wednesday. It could be any intelligence agency or any other federal law enforcement agency. The FBI works with all of them because, post 9/11, its all about cooperation and sharing.

There are 17 agencies in the Intelligence Community, including the CIA, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the National Security Agency, and the FBI.

The leaking like mad text came on the same day that several news outlets reported that U.S. intelligence officials said they were convinced that Russian President Vladimir Putin was personally involved, and approved Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.

Days before, The New York Times published an article titled Russian Hackers Acted to Aid Trump in Election, U.S. Says, citing "senior administration officials."

A story published by The New York Times weeks, on Jan. 10, 2017, suggested that Russian hackers gained limited access to the Republican National Committee. Jan. 10, 2017 is also the same day BuzzFeed News published the infamous anti-Trump dossier.

Following the text about sisters leaking, Strzok wrote to Page:

And we need to talk more about putting C reporting in our submission. Theyre going to declassify all of it

Page replied: I know. But theyre going to declassify their stuff, how do we withhold

We will get extraordinary questions. What we did what were doing. Just want to ensure everyone is good with it and has thought thru all implications, Strzok wrote. CD should bring it up with the DD.

A source told Fox News that C is likely in reference to classified information, whereas CD is Cyber Division, and DD could refer to former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe.

McCabe was fired by Attorney General Jeff Sessions in March for making an unauthorized disclosure to the news media, and "lacked candor" under oath on multiple occassions.

It is unclear what submission Strzok and Page were referring to.

A source told Fox News that the messages were part of a newly released batch of Strzok-Page communications from Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz, uncovered as part of his investigation into the start of the FBIs Russia investigation.

A spokesman for the inspector general declined to comment to Fox News.

Strzok and Page were first brought into the spotlight last December, when it was revealed that Horowitz discovered a series of anti-Trump text messages between the two officials, who were romantically involved.

Strzok and Page both served on Special Counsel Robert Muellers team investigating Russian meddling and potential collusion with Trump campaign associates in the 2016 presidential election. Page served on the special counsels team on a short detail, returning back to the FBIs Office of General Counsel in July 2017.

The discovery of the anti-Trump messages exchanged with Page ultimately got Strzok booted from Muellers team and reassigned last year to the FBIs office of human resources.

In July, Strzok lost his security clearance and was escorted from his FBI office. In August, Strzok was officially fired from the FBI.

Both Strzok and Page testified on Capitol Hill this summer.

IG REFERS FIVE FBI EMPLOYEES FOR INVESTIGATION, AS MORE ANTI-TRUMP MESSAGES REVEALED

Horowitz released a 600-page report on the FBIs handling of the investigation into Hillary Clintons use of a private email server while conducting official business as secretary of state.

The inspector general report found that some bureau officials appeared to mix political opinion with discussions about the MYE investigation. MYE refers to Midyear Exam, which was the FBIs code word for the Clinton probe.

IG CONFIRMS HE IS REVIEWING WHETHER STRZOK'S ANTI-TRUMP BIAS IMPACTED LAUNCH OF RUSSIA PROBE

Horowitz, found no evidence that the political bias found impacted prosecutorial decisions in the Clinton email probe.

Horowitz confirmed in June that he is currently investigating whether Strzoks anti-Trump bias factored into the launch of the bureaus Russia investigation.
Vietnamese laborers work in a Japanese plant. (Photo: VNA)





According to statistics from the Japanese Ministry of Justice, as of late October 2017, over 240,000 Vietnamese laborers were in Japan, accounting for 18.8% of the number of foreign laborers in Japan, making Vietnamese laborers the second largest foreign community in Japan, only after China with 373,000. Vietnam is assessed to be the country with the fastest growth in labour among foreign laborer communities in Japan, with a year-on-year increase of 39.7%.

Vietnamese laborers qualifications and ability are appreciated by Japanese businesses. Vietnam News Agency reported that at Koganei Seiki Companys Maebashi factory in Gunma, where hi-tech components for jet planes, Formula 1 racing cars, special motorbikes and cars are produced with almost zero error, there are 39 Vietnamese engineers. A majority of them who graduated from the Vietnam National University - VNU Hanoi and the Hanoi University of Science and Technology have worked for the company for 3-11 years.

Being one of the 300 outstanding mechanics companies in Japan, Koganei Seiki has started to recruited Vietnamese laborers over the past 12 years with work requirements completely similar to Japanese staff.

Its leaders confirmed that Vietnamese staff had made great contributions to the plants prosperity, especially in providing technical initiatives which bring big profits.

Minoru Ogawa, Director of Lead Giken, a Kanagawa prefecture-based small mechanics business, said that it was difficult for such small business to recruit Japanese laborers due to the countrys ageing population. Meanwhile, Vietnamese laborers, once recruited, work very hard and enthusiastically.

Real Kensetsu, a construction business, has also had access to Vietnamese laborers since 2014. At present, there are 20 Vietnamese working here.

Vietnamese laborers have been considered an important source of human resources in the Japanese market as they have full opportunities for work equally in Japan - a very promising destination./.
A candidate for the New York state Senate Tuesday accused a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of sexual assault, amid fears that she would be outed by a news story concerning the incident.

Julia Salazar, a 27-year-old Democratic Socialist looking to unseat Brooklyn state Sen. Martin Dilan in Thursday's Democratic primary, said in a statement on Twitter that she came forward about the alleged assault after being contacted by a reporter from the conservative website The Daily Caller.

"Before this runs, I want to come forward and confirm that I was a victim of sexual assault by David Keyes," Salazar wrote in a statement posted on Twitter. Ive spoken to other journalists who were investigating accusations against David Keyes on background about this experience, but have never spoken on the record about it until now.

Netanyahu aide Keyes has denied the allegation.

Salazar added: "I strongly believe sexual assault survivors should not be outed in this way, and am saddened by the effect this story may have on other women.

The website acknowledged in a story on Tuesday that it had pushed Salazar to confirm that she was the alleged victim of sexual assault by Keyes.

Following Salazars revelation, Wall Street Journal reporter Shayndi Raice also accused Keyes of sexual assault.

The man had absolutely no conception of the word no, Raice said on Twitter. No matter how often I said no, he would not stop pushing himself on me. I was able to extricate myself quickly and it was a very brief and uncomfortable moment but I knew as I walked away I had encountered a predator.

Raice added that the purported attacks happened before Keyes was working as Netanyahus spokesman.

Keyes, who had a successful career in public relations before becoming the Israeli prime ministers spokesperson for foreign media, has denied the claims.

This false accusation is made by someone who has proven to be repeatedly dishonest about her own life. This is yet another example of her dishonesty, Keyes said in a statement in reference to Salazar.

Salazar has made numerous claims about her background which have been challenged and investigated by the media.

During interviews early in her campaign, she described herself as an "immigrant from Colombia," when in fact her father became a naturalized citizen from Colombia and she was born in Florida. She also has previously described herself as Jewish and suggested that her father was a Colombian Sephardic Jew, but an investigation into her family lineage found she is descended from a line of prominent Catholics in Spain and Latin America.

Salazar also came under fire after describing her family and upbringing as "poor" and "working class. Both her mother and her brother refuted this claim and local media in New York discovered that she had a trust fund worth approximately $685,000 in her name, left by her father.
Accustomed to going first in the presidential primary, New Hampshire voters on Tuesday were among the nations last to nominate candidates for the November midterms, providing one of the final barometers in the countrys mood ahead of the general election.

New Hampshire

Gubernatorial primary results:

Molly Kelly, a former five-term state senator from Harrisville, defeated former Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand with 65.6 percent of the vote in Tuesdays Democratic gubernatorial primary. During the campaign Kelly emphasized her background working through college as a single mom.

Kelly will face Republican Gov. Chris Sununu in November. Sununu, who sailed through the primary unopposed, said he looks forward to promoting his pro-growth, pro-jobs agenda.

GOP Primary  Chris Sununu Uncontested

Dem Primary  Molly Kelly Votes: 75,531 Vote Percentage: 65.6%

U.S. House of Representatives

New Hampshires 1st District comprises much of the eastern half of the state. Its being left vacant by Democrat Carol Shea-Porter, who is stepping down after four non-consecutive terms.

Eddie Edwards, a Dover native who was endorsed by Trump administration attorney Rudy Giuliani, narrowly won a six-way race in Tuesdays GOP primary for the 1st Congressional District, earning 48.1 percent of the vote. Edwards is a Navy veteran and former police officer. If elected in November, Edwards will be the states first black congressman.

Executive Councilor Chris Pappas, an openly gay former state lawmaker, won the Democratic primary for the 1st Congressional District, earning 42.4 percent of the vote. The 11-way race of Democratic candidates included Levi Sanders, the son of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

Pappas closest rival in the primary was Maura Sullivan, a former Obama administration official who earned 30.2 percent of the vote in Tuesdays primary.

Steward Levenson, a doctor, conceded victory early Wednesday against rival Steven Negron, a state lawmaker, in the GOP primary for New Hampshires 2nd Congressional District. Negron earned 26.5 percent of the vote against Levensons 24.9 percent. Negron will face Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster, in November.

District 1: Dem Primary  Chris Pappas Votes: 25,656 Vote Percentage: 42.4%

GOP Primary  Eddie Edwards Votes: 22,332 Vote Percentage: 48.1%

District 2: Dem Primary  Ann McLane Kuster Uncontested

GOP Primary  Steven Negron Votes: 10,648 Vote Percentage: 26.5%

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A tweet that President Trump was about to send could have set off a war with North Korea, political journalist Bob Woodward told the Daily Briefing's Dana Perino.

Trump uses the social media platform to communicate with the masses  but it often stirs controversy. There has been a concerted effort in the White House to tamp it down, Woodward told Perino during an interview on Wednesday's show about his controversial new book, Fear.

While past presidents have often used different mediums to speak to the public  Franklin D. Roosevelt had the fireside chats and Ronald Reagan went on TV  Trump uses Twitter with a volume and bluntness never seen before. Woodward said at times that could be dangerous.

A tweet he almost put out could have started the war with North Korea, he said.

The tweet said the U.S. was going to "pull our dependents from South Korea... Family members of the 28,000 people there," Woodward told CBS News in another interview. But the Pentagon stopped the post from being sent, Woodward said.

"At that moment, there was a sense of profound alarm in the Pentagon leadership that, My God, one tweet and we have reliable information that the North Koreans are going to read this as an attack is imminent, Woodward told CBS.

Not all of Trumps tweets are controversial. But the ones that are attract attention, Woodward told Perino.

[Trump] would analyze them, he said. And he discovered that the more contentious, the more outrageous, if you will, the tweet was  the more attention it got. And the more people liked it.

Trump does see himself as prolific on Twitter. Woodward said at one point, when Twitter changed the characters from 140 to 280, the president seemed disappointed.

Its such a shame, Woodward quoted the president as saying, because I was the Ernest Hemingway of 140 characters.

The Washington journalist also spoke about how the president and Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and senior adviser, led the charge to find a new paradigm shift in the Middle East.

The book says Kushner, during the first months of the Trump administration, began trying to forge close ties with Saudi Arabia and Israel, both of which are enemies of Iran.

What they did is they built an alliance with Saudi Arabia of the Gulf Cooperation Council counties and Israel, Woodward said, all working together to thwart Iran.
President Trump signed an executive order Wednesday authorizing sanctions against any country that interferes with U.S. elections, declaring election meddling efforts a national emergency.

The executive order, signed just two months ahead of the November's midterms elections, addresses not only interference with campaign and election infrastructure, but also propaganda efforts.

The order, which is considered a national emergency due to sanctions authority requirements, instructs the Office of National Intelligence and the intelligence community to conduct regular assessments about potential foreign interference in elections.

The process, according to Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and White House national security adviser John Bolton, would take a total of 90 days.

Following Election Day, the intelligence community would have 45 days to collect data and assess whether interference had occurred.

At that point, the agencies would pass the findings to the Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security, where officials would have 45 days to make their assessment based on the intelligence information, and decide whether to pass sanctions on potential actors, countries, or institutions that participated in potential interference.

After the reports are complete, the Treasury and State Departments would decide on the appropriate sanctions to impose on the potential actors or countries. The order, according to administration officials, is broad in terms of who and what can be sanctioned.

We felt it was important to demonstrate that the president was taking command of this issue, Bolton told reporters Wednesday.

But Coats stressed that the order was not country specific, noting that there have been a number of occasions where threats to U.S. elections have come from a number of sources.

Its more than Russia here that were looking at, Coats said. We have seen signs of not just Russia, but from China, and the capabilities potentially from Iran and even North Korea.

Bolton and Coats said the 90 day process would be private, and that the public would be notified of decisions when sanctions are announced.

We have not seen the intensity of what happened in 2016, but its only a keyboard click away, Coats said. So were taking nothing for grantedwere putting a process in place, and significantly improved our ability to warn officials as to what we see and what steps we can take prior to the election, in addition to what we will be doing after.

The executive order comes after the intelligence community and several congressional committees determined that Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential election.

Fox News' Kristin Brown and Jennifer Bowman contributed to this report.
The northern lights just got a boost thanks to a big hole in the sun's atmosphere, and there could be something of a repeat showing tonight.

A moderate geomagnetic storm made flickering auroras visible to skywatchers as far south as Minnesota and Wisconsin early this morning (Sept. 11), according to Spaceweather.com.

That storm was triggered by an especially potent and fast-moving burst of solar wind  the stream of charged particles flowing constantly from the sun  which escaped through a gaping hole in the sun's outer atmosphere, known as the corona.

The northern and southern lights result when such particles slam into molecules high up in Earth's atmosphere, generating a glow. Earth's magnetic field channels these particles toward the planet's poles, which explains why the auroras are usually restricted to high latitudes. But special circumstances  such as coronal holes and giant explosions of solar plasma called coronal mass ejections  can extend the intensity and the reach of these dazzling light displays.

The geomagnetic storm responsible for this morning's ramp-up is now subsiding, Spaceweather.com reported. But there's still a 70 percent chance of minor storming through tomorrow (Sept. 12), according to forecasters with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center.

So, look up tonight if you live in the upper Midwest, New England, the Pacific Northwest or somewhere else along similar latitude lines  you may just get lucky!

Originally published on Space.com.
NASA's new mission to the sun may reveal clues about alien worlds, too.

Every day, we rely on the sun for warmth and light, but we need Earth's atmosphere to protect us from our star's harsh conditions  and because in the end our sun is just another star, the same could be true of life on other worlds, planetary scientists told Space.com.

That means studying our sun up close could teach us about planets in distant solar systems as well. And a NASA mission may soon begin to do just that: This fall, the Parker Solar Probe, which launched in August, will start investigating how our star works. Exoplanet scientists are watching the mission to see what data it might offer them about exotic worlds. [Launch Photos! NASA's Parker Solar Probe Blasts Off to the Sun]

"We can learn so much from our sun and particularly for other sun-like stars," Evgenya Shkolnik, an astrophysicist and planetary scientist at Arizona State University, told Space.com. In particular, she wants a better sense of the high-energy particles and photons, or particles of light, stars produce. "It's critically important to understand all these things for exoplanet hosts, for sure," she said.

We know about the dangers of those particles and photons from our own experiences here on Earth, where the planet's atmosphere buffers us from the worst side effects of living near the sun: Only with extreme sunbathing do we absorb enough ultraviolet radiation to damage the DNA inside our cells enough to potentially kill us with cancer, and only during the most extreme solar outbursts, called coronal mass ejections, do its highly charged particles overwhelm Earth's magnetic field and thus interfere with our technology.

If an exoplanet is less fortunate in its natural protections or in its star's temperament, those high-energy particles and photons could be the deciding factors in an exoplanet's habitability, said Ravi Kopparapu, a planetary scientist at NASA. Even if a planet develops an atmosphere, if it's bombarded by too many stellar particles, that barrage can destroy the atmosphere. "They can strip away the atmosphere and then make the planet uninhabitable," Kopparapu told Space.com.

But both types of high-energy outflow are incredibly difficult to study at a distance  hence the appeal of piggybacking on the Parker Solar Probe.

The spacecraft's path through the sun's broiling outer atmosphere will allow it to get within 4 million miles (6 million kilometers) from what we consider the sun's surface  about the same distance many exoplanets are from their stars, Shkolnik said. In fact, in her lectures about these planets, she edits images of the solar eclipse and planet depictions to convey the incredible environment around these planets.

"I show the corona and put fake exoplanets in there because it is amazing to think that these planets are actually streaming through their suns' coronae," Shkolnik said. Many of those planets are what scientists have dubbed "hot Jupiters" and are uninhabitably gaseous themselves  but that might not be the end of the story.

"There is talk of whether or not moons around these hot Jupiters could be habitable," Shkolnik said. (Scientists haven't discovered any such moons yet, but they're still honing their ability to spot planets, which are much larger.) "That's not a crazy thought, because we think that the moons of Jupiter and Saturn might be places to look for life in our solar system," Shkolnik said.

So Shkolnik is watching for the data Earth's solar probe will beam home beginning later this year, in hopes of using it to isolate information about habitability near at least other sun-like stars. "I won't know how hard or easy that analysis will be until I see the data," she said. [The 7 Earth-Sized Planets of TRAPPIST-1 in Pictures]

And high-energy radiation like ultraviolet light doesn't just potentially destroy ill-shielded life; it can also trick scientists into thinking someplace is more lively than it really is. That's because ultraviolet radiation can break down water and create oxygen, one of the key molecules scientists look for as a potential signature of life. Extrapolating data from the Parker Solar Probe may stop scientists from being fooled by these fake biosignatures, Kopparapu said.

Perhaps most valuable will be any understanding the spacecraft can give us of how the sun's dynamics are shaped by its magnetic field, which seems to guide much of what happens in and around a star.

"Somehow, it's all related to the sun's magnetic field," Shkolnik said. "Even if we don't have the details, we know that much."

Original article on Space.com.
Millions of Americans throughout North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia are preparing for Hurricane Florence, a Category 4 storm that's expected to bring massive amounts of rainfall, flash flooding and havoc-wreaking winds.

But the storm  said to be a once-in-a-generation event for residents in the Carolinas and Mid-Atlantic states  could also result in mudslides, due to the regions topography, a meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations (NOAA) National Hurricane Center warned.

This is one of the impacts you have to be worried about, Joel Cline, a meteorologist and tropical storm coordinator with the NOAA, told Fox News.

Hurricane-induced mudslides are a common effect when a tropical storm hits a mountainous region, such as the western half of North Carolina.

Areas in the Southeast experience orographic lift  when air from a low elevation is forced over a higher elevation  as air moving from the Ohio and Tennessee valleys makes its way to the Appalachian Mountains.

HURRICANE FLORENCE'S PATH: TRACK THE STORM HERE

When this occurs, the air moves up the side of the mountains before it begins to cool and condense, the North Carolina Climate Office explains on its website. This effect can cause showers and thunderstorms to form.

The three things that create a lot of rain are moisture, lift and instability [in the atmosphere]. We have two of these with tropical weather and the third is the lift  provided by the mountains in this case, Cline said. On the slopes that are facing the oncoming winds directly  which is a very local effect  can create localized areas of heavier rain.

In other words, the slopes that are facing the oncoming winds and heavier, localized rain are more susceptible to mudslides, while the slopes that are angled away from the moisture-laden winds will have less rain and are ultimately at less of a risk for mudslides.

Michael Ventrice, a meteorological scientist at The Weather Company, has a similar explanation for the phenomenon.

There's going to be a good deal of moisture advection by Hurricane Florence, towards the Appalachians. This will encourage upsloping on the leeward side of the Appalachians, which can produce very heavy precipitation through mesoscale climate interactions, he told Fox News, noting mudslides are not a concern when a tropical storm hits a state like Texas because of its flat topography.

Parts of North Carolina have experienced a lot of rainfall in recent days, softening the ground and loosening the soil. Combined with the looming storm, the potential for mudslides is greater.

When the upper part of a soil profile becomes quickly saturated with water, it can start to move, especially if the soil porosity differs between the upper and lower parts of the profile, David Peterson, a research biologist and forest ecology expert at the University of Washington, told Fox News.

Steep slopes and slopes without tree roots to hold the soil are especially vulnerable, he noted.

HURRICANE FLORENCE: SAFETY TIPS FOR PETS

As for Hurricane Florence, Ventrice said he's concerned mudslides could be triggered in areas that have "never experienced such events."

Florence is a rare tropical cyclone due to the intensity of the system and would be a large wind-field associated with the hurricane's circulation," he added.

Fox News Christopher Carbone contributed to this report.
Drones were once seen as the ultimate hazards in the highway of the skies, especially for commercial aviation. Arbitrary and archaic rules ran roughshod over an emerging industry full of potential. Many drone pilots and tech experts wondered when, if at all, would government regulatory agencies catch up.

This year, a new program, however, is taking hold in 10 regions across the country to do just that: letting the FAA catch up with the drone industry by fast-tracking projects in the hopes of creating a future regulatory framework.

Its all about integration between private partners and government entities facilitated by the FAA. Its called the Integration Pilot Program (IPP), which was announced last year in a memo by the Trump Administration and Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao. It is seeking advances on many fronts.

Meant as a fast-track to foster opportunities for a variety of drone uses that might be currently out of bounds of regular flight, IPP works with government entities to better instruct and inform possible future regulations as drone flights take off.

Acting Administrator of the FAA, Dan Elwell, recently spoke at Interdrone, a trade conference for the industry in Las Vegas. He lauded the efforts of the program and highlighted how drones are now a constant presence in the daily workflow of the agency.

To be engaged in one new entrant piece, which is drones, on almost a daily basis, tells you how much attention is being paid to drone space, said Elwell.

The programs partners are using drones in creative and innovative ways. They include mosquito mitigation in Florida to curb the Zika virus, feral hog population containment on the Choctaw Nation reserve in Oklahoma, and delivery in real time of defibrillators to victims who didnt have access to them in Reno, Nev.

IPP's partners have already made history in the drone space.

Flirtey, the company partnering with the Reno government, successfully made a delivery using one pilot for multiple drones, an industry first.

We just conducted the first FAA approved multi-drone deliveries under the fast-track program. This is a huge milestone because a single Flirtey pilot has flown multiple delivery drones simultaneously, said Matthew Sweeny, CEO of Flirtey.

The idea is to send a defibrillator to someone experiencing cardiac arrest right to their home before an ambulance arrives, lessening the time it would take emergency responders to arrive in traffic or when resources are lacking in rural areas.

Sweeny estimates that Flirteys drone delivery service can help save up to 150,000 lives a year by increasing the national survival rate from just 10 to 50 percent.

Drone experts and enthusiasts alike have long bemoaned the federal governments need to catch up with the fast-paced technologies that are enhancing drone use nationwide. Elwell said the IPP program is an essential first step in breaking down that bureaucratic divide.

Silicon Valley is used to doing changes in their tech generations in months. The FAA and the big aviation world is used to doing technological refreshes and changes in decades, so the federal level is catching up, but its impossible to say how long its going to take because we dont know the extent to which drones are going to come into the space, Elwell said.

With a regulatory framework in mind, the programs successes are promising, but there is still a long way to go. IPP is illustrative of how the public and private sector can both lead the way in ensuring industry safeguards, while also still innovating.

Were a country thats very good at doing iterative involvement in aviation, Elwell said. We just dont throw things up there and see what happens.
The European Union is proposing massive fines for online providers that arent fast enough in removing terrorist content from their services, raising pressure on big tech firms like Facebook and Google that have backed voluntary approaches.

The blocs executive arm Wednesday proposed new legislation that would create a legal obligation for any online service to remove terrorist content within an hour of being notified of its presence, and to install automated systems to prevent removed content from popping up again.

In March, the EU issued new guidelines ordering faster content removal with the explicit threat of introducing legislation if actions werent taken fast enough.

Systematic failures to remove content within one hour would expose companies to fines rising to a maximum of 4% of their world-wide revenue for the prior year, according to the proposal. For Alphabet that would be a maximum of $4.43 billion and for Facebook it would be $1.63 billion.

One hour is the decisive time window, when the greatest damage can take place, said European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker during a speech Wednesday in the European Parliament.

GOOGLE FIRES BACK AT POLITICAL BIAS ACCUSATION, DENIES 'DONATION' TO LATINO GROUP

The proposal requires approval from the EUs parliament and member states to become law.

The imposition of obligations and heavy fines is a starkly new approach for the EU, which is under pressure from member states to act. Until now, the EU has asked for voluntary cooperation from tech companies to speed up their removal of terrorist content from their services.

Tech firms said Wednesday that they support the EUs goal of rapidly removing all terrorist content from their services. Google and Facebook both said they have invested heavily in using artificial intelligence tools to flag potential terrorist content, and at times to remove it automaticallyparticularly in the case of content that had been previously removed.

Google says its automated tools flag violent extremist YouTube videos so quickly that over half of those it removed in the first quarter had been seen fewer than 10 times. Facebook last fall said that 99% of the material it removes from Islamic State and al Qaeda is blocked before it is seen by any users.

The EU said in January that big tech companies that were part of its voluntary code of conduct companies had removed 70% of the content notified to them by European authorities within 24 hours, up from just 28% in mid 2016.

26 PERCENT OF AMERICANS GIVE #DELETEFACEBOOK A TRY

But political pressure has been rising from EU member states, such as the U.K., France and Italy, to move fasterand to make sure smaller tech platforms are obliged to comply as well.

EU officials also want to get ahead of plans in some member countries to implement their own rules holding tech firms responsible. Already, Germany requires social-media companies like Facebook and Twitter to delete illegal contentranging from libel to terrorist contentor face fines of up to 50 million.

Separately, the EUs executive arm made another legislative proposal Wednesday to better safeguard its elections from foreign interference and online manipulation. The new rules would make political parties and organizations liable for fines of up to 5% of their annual budget if they are found in violation of EU privacy laws in an effort to influence the outcome of EU elections.
Google is firing back at accusations of political bias after an employee's leaked email mentioned the companys efforts with a Latino nonprofit prior to the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

The email, written by Googles former head of multicultural marketing and obtained exclusively by Fox News Tucker Carlson Tonight, details various ways the company worked to increase voter turnout.

A spokesperson from Google hit back at claims of political bias on Wednesday.

LEAKED GOOGLE EMPLOYEE'S EMAIL REVEALS EFFORT TO BOOST LATINO VOTE, SUPRISE AT TRUMP'S SUPPORT

The employee's email is an expression of her personal political views about the outcome of the 2016 election and those views do not reflect any official stance by the company, the spokesperson told Fox News. We have nearly 90,000 employees comprising a broad array of political affiliations. The email itself explicitly notes that she is speaking personally, and that Googles efforts were non-partisan.

In the last paragraph of the email, the employee writes that they are sharing "personal opinions."

The executives email also mentioned the tech giants support of Voto Latinoa nonprofit group cofounded by actress Rosario Dawson, according to its websitewhich seeks to transform America by recognizing Latinos innate leadership.

Although the email states that Voto Latino helped ferry voters to the polls in key states, something the Google employee labeled as a silent donation, a source familiar with the matter told Fox News that Google was unable to find a record of any donation to the nonprofit.

Our election and voting information is made available to all Americans who search for itit is not targeted to any locations or demographic groups. And contrary to reports, we made no donationmonetary, in-kind, silent or otherwiseto Voto Latino to drive people to the polls, the Google spokesperson told Fox News.

The California-based company also rejected claims that its pre-election actions were biased against conservativesnoting its work with the non-partisan National Voter Registration Day and its efforts to protect elections from hacking or digital attacks.

The suggestion that Google's products or actions are politically biased is simply wrong, Googles spokesperson said. As we approach the midterm election, we will continue to ensure that our products and election efforts remain strictly non-partisan in nature. Our goal is to equip users with accurate, up-to-date information about their electionsnot to support any particular candidate or ideology.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) holds talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok, Russia, Sept. 11, 2018. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, expressed their firm determination to promote bilateral ties and safeguard world peace and stability during their talks here on Tuesday.

Xi arrived in the Russian port city of Vladivostok earlier in the day for the fourth Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) at the invitation of Putin.

During their talks, Xi and Putin acknowledged that China-Russia ties have been developing with stronger momentum this year and have entered a new period of faster development on a higher level.

Regardless of the changes in the international situation, China and Russia will unswervingly promote their ties and steadfastly safeguard world peace and stability, said the two heads of state.

Recalling their productive meetings in Beijing and Johannesburg this year, Xi told Putin that the close high-level contacts between China and Russia have demonstrated the height and uniqueness of the bilateral relationship and showed that the two countries give top priority to the ties on their diplomatic agendas respectively.

Thanks to joint efforts of both sides, the political advantages of China-Russia relations have been translated into tangible cooperation fruits continuously, Xi said.

China and Russia have steadfastly supported each other in pursuing development paths that suit their respective national conditions and in safeguarding their security and development rights, setting an example of major-country relations and neighborhood interaction, Xi said.

He urged both sides to consolidate their traditional friendship, strengthen comprehensive coordination and promote the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination to a new height so as to better serve the interests of both peoples.

China and Russia should strengthen the synergy of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), expand cooperation in such fields as energy, agriculture, scientific and technological innovation and finance, promote steady implementation of major projects and boost joint research and development of cutting-edge science and technology, Xi said.

Since this year and the next year are designated as the years of local cooperation and exchange between China and Russia, the two countries should seize the opportunity to encourage more local participation in bilateral cooperation, Xi said.

Supporting each other in holding large-scale events has been a good tradition for China and Russia, Xi said.

The EEF, proposed by Putin, has become an important platform for pooling wisdom and jointly discussing regional cooperation, said the Chinese president, adding that he believes this year's forum will bring new opportunities for China and Russia to deepen regional cooperation, including Far East cooperation.

Both as permanent members of the United Nations (UN) Security Council and major emerging economies, China and Russia shoulder the task of safeguarding world peace and stability and promoting development and prosperity, Xi said.

He urged the two countries to maintain close communication and coordination within multilateral frameworks such as the UN, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS, push forward political settlement of hotspot issues together with the international community, and jointly protect international equity and justice, as well as world peace and stability.

He also called on the two sides to firmly uphold the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, jointly oppose unilateralism and trade protectionism, and forge ahead with the construction of a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind.

Putin, for his part, expressed heart-felt gratitude and warm welcome for Xi's attendance at the EEF.

President Xi and I have kept close exchanges, which shows the high level of Russia-China ties, Putin said.

Hailing the robust momentum of the development of bilateral ties in recent years, Putin said the mutual trust between China and Russia has grown increasingly strong and bilateral cooperation in various fields such as politics, economy and security has been fruitful.

He said both sides should continue to promote the synergy of the EEU and the Belt and Road Initiative, expand cooperation in such fields as investment, energy, aerospace, finance and e-commerce, boost cultural and people-to-people exchanges and promote local cooperation.

Russia and China share many similar views on the current international situation, Putin said, calling on the two countries to enhance coordination and cooperation in international affairs, firmly oppose unilateralism, safeguard a fair and rational international order and realize common development and prosperity.

The two leaders also exchanged in-depth views on international and regional issues of common concern and witnessed the inking of multiple bilateral cooperation documents.

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[ Editor: Zhang Zhou ]
This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," September 10, 2018. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: Welcome to "Hannity."

Let's just start out and be blunt. The stakes have never been higher. Fifty-seven days from today if Nancy Pelosi, Maxine Waters, Chuck Schumer, if they take over the House, the Senate, this is what you can expect to look at in terms of what's going to happen to your country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MAXINE WATERS, D-CALIF.: They said, Maxine, please don't say impeachment any more. And when they say that, I say impeachment, impeachment, impeachment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: So, let tonight be a clear warning, with just two months to go until the single most important midterm election of our lifetime, you have the power. You will decide whether or not Maxine Waters, Nancy Pelosi get their way.

Now, meanwhile, the RNC is appropriately calling the Democratic Party crazy town. Tonight, we will highlight the Democrats and their candidates that are up for election, including Congresswoman Waters, and those that are living up to their nickname. We're going to show you every Senate race that matters.

We have identified on the show 75 House races that will determine the balance of power in the House. In other words, you might want to look and see if your district is in play tonight.

And we have a message for former President Obama. He's back in the spotlight, talking about his favorite topic, himself.

Plus, the deep state, house of cards literally now coming crashing down. Tonight, we are on the verge of breaking it wide open. Believe it or not, there are brand new text messages between Lisa Page and Peter Strzok. Now we know for a fact what the insurance man was, we have coordination between the DOJ and the FBI, and we have the evidence that they were to leak anti- Trump information to you, the public, in the spring of 2017 to destroy the president. Even Mueller's pit bull Andrew Weissmann himself was allegedly involved in all of these dirty deep state leaks. We now know what that insurance policy was.

This is yet another damning wrinkle in our investigation into deep state corruption. And meanwhile, the president looks poised to finally declassify critically previously redacted sections of FISA applications against former Trump campaign associate Carter Page. Oh, by the way, the coordination thing between the DOJ and FBI, it was about Carter Page. He will join us in just a few minutes.

All right. Sit tight, buckle up, it is time for breaking news opening monologue.

(MUSIC)

HANNITY: Fifty-seven days, you cannot say you were not warned. For months here on this program, I have been sounding the alarm about the Democrats' true agenda, including item number one on their to-do list. This will happen if they get control of the House.

How do we know? They're saying it about impeaching Trump. They want him gone as soon as possible. Yet most Democrats, even Maxine Waters admitted this, she's told not to say it.

They're trying to keep it secret. They whisper it behind the scenes. They don't want to tell you the truth about their intentions are.

But over the weekend, the de facto leader of the Democratic Party, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, oh, she couldn't contain herself. She just let the cat out of the bag, which we already knew. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WATERS: I'm in this fight. I'm in this fight and I'm not going to move. And as you know, there's a difference in how some of our leadership talk about how we should handle all of this. They say, Maxine, please don't say impeachment anymore. And when they say that, I say impeachment, impeachment, impeachment, impeachment, impeachment --

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: The worst part of that -- please, just don't say it, don't say it, just stop. But that's what they want to do.

And, by the way, Congresswoman Waters is no exception. Impeachment is now a foundational pillar in what is the Democratic agenda. It's not about you. It's not about the forgotten men and women in this country that deserve health and service from their government.

Even Senate Minority Leader Chuckie Schumer, he wants to impeachment the president, quote, the sooner, the better. We have that tape. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When y'all going to impeach Trump?

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER, D-N.Y.: Sooner the better.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sooner the better? That's not answering the question.

SCHUMER: We got to get a few more Republicans (INAUDIBLE). Democrats are on your side.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: The sooner the better.

So, this threat is real. And if the election were held today, look, I'm always going to be honest with you, I am not confident in any way that Republicans hold the House.

And, of course, impeachment is only one part of the radical Democratic plan for America. Nothing on their agenda is to help you. They want to rescind the tax cuts. They think they deserve your money. They want to preserve Obamacare, bring back the individual mandate tax.

By the way, how's that Obamacare working, did you keep your doctor, your plan, paying less? They tried, and they will likely fail to block the Kavanaugh nomination to the Supreme Court. But if there's another appointment, they will try and block it again and probably have more chances of success.

We know they want open borders. We know they want to abolish ICE. They will definitely kill off all of the investigations into the deep state, which means the biggest corruption scandal, abuse of power scandal on our history. They will burden this president with what will be never-ending investigations into nothing. It will never stop.

This is what is at stake in 57 days. All of the progress we've made as a country, in, what, 19 months, will stop dead in its tracks. It's over.

One congressional candidate actually wants to block funding to our number one ally in the Middle East, Israel, because of their discriminatory treatment of Palestinians. And there's one Democratic district attorney, candidate, wants to decriminalize, get this, trespassing and shoplifting and destruction of property. Jeez, we have no laws at all and so much more.

And don't forget the congressional candidate from Illinois who once compared Trump to Osama bin Laden. He's now claiming that actual Nazis are working in the White House.

Which brings us back to Congresswoman Waters. She's bragging about her recent threats towards Trump administration officials. Now, imagine if Republicans are saying this and Obama was the president. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WATERS: I got up and talked about the president's cabinet, I said if you see them anywhere, you see them at a restaurant, if you see them in a department store, even at a gasoline station, just tell them you're not welcome here anywhere. And, of course, the lying president said that I had threatened all of his constituents. I did not threaten his constituents, his supporters. I do that all the time shall but I didn't do it that time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: Threaten them all the time.

Appropriately enough, the RNC just released an ad they called the Democratic Party for what it is, "Crazytown". This is your future if you don't vote in 57 days. Don't blame me. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Please get up in the face of some Congress people.

WATERS: You see everybody from that cabinet, you see them in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Those Republican leaders and President Trump don't give a (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

(INAUDIBLE)

REP. NANCY PELOSI, D-CALIF.: I just don't even know why there aren't uprisings all over the country.

(INAUDIBLE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: You want that in 57 days? You want to pay higher taxes? Do you want unfettered illegal immigration, eliminate ICE? You want the progress we've made in 19 months to stop.

Because none of the people you just saw have any agenda to help improve the lives of you, your neighbors, your family. None of them plan to put more money back in your pocket. None of them will increase your safety.

Look at the screen. This is what is at stake. We have nine current tossup states in the Senate. If you are from one of those states, take a good look. We'll put it up every night between now and election night, including by the way, many with vulnerable incumbent Democrats.

There's a huge opportunity mere. McCaskill, Missouri. Heitkamp, North Dakota. Nelson, Florida. Manchin, West Virginia. Donnelly, Indiana.

And in the House, so many pivotal close races will decide the future of this presidency. See -- follow that, see if that's your district. We will run these every night.

And if your House district that you see scrolling on your screen, if that goes blue, guess what? All of the progress we've made will go away. And Democrats will be happy.

Higher taxes will follow. Open borders are on the way. The Trump agenda will be halted, endless investigation.

And when you hear Democrats and their friends on the left, mainstream media calling Republicans, this is going to happen and it's happening, racist, sexist, misogynist, homophobic, Islamophobic, xenophobic, they want dirty air, water, and they want to kill children and throw granny over the cliff. That's what they say every election.

Just know this happens every two and four years. Nothing more than the same old playbook, shameful political tactics because they want their power back. This is not about serving you. In their quest for more power, Democrats are now rolling out their savior, here he comes, the anointed one himself, Barack Obama.

Now, he thinks the midterms to bring sanity back to the country. Like when he was president. Really saying. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT: There's a consequential moment in our history. And the fact is that if we don't step up, things can get worse, where there's a vacuum in our democracy, when we are not participating, we're not paying attention, when we're not stepping up other voices fill the void. But the good news is in two months, we have a chance to restore some sanity in our politics.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: All right. Let's go to his definition of sanity. What was it like under the Obama administration?

Lowest labor participation rates since the 70s, lowest home ownership rate in 51 years, the worse the recovery since the '40s, 13 million more Americans on food stamps, 8 million in poverty. And, of course, he took on more debt than every other president before him combined, anemic growth, burdensome regulation, billions of dollars in cash and other currency to the mullahs in Iran, all while they were actively funding terrorism around the world and chanting death to America and death to Israel.

Former President Obama thinks he was extremely successful. In fact, he was so proud of himself that during his recent hour-long speech, he talked a lot about himself, 102 times in one hour. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: I want to be clear, I have to kind of remind them, actually, those job numbers are the same as they were in 2015. I'm glad it's continued but I have to say, this I don't agree with it. I don't agree with that.

I believe. I believe. I have seen it. I have lived it. I'm one of them.

I know. I know. I know. I know. I know.

I'm here to tell you. I'm here to tell you. My administration couldn't have reversed 40-year trends. When I was on the ballot. People like me.

I won states in the presidential election. I got votes from every demographic. I did.

I mention when you hear how great the economy is doing right now, let's just remember when 24 recovery started. I'm not making that up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: Toby Keith, all about me, all about I, all about number one, all mine, all mine, what I see, what I know, what I want, what I want, what I see. I love talking about you usually. But I want to talk about me.

I'll say it again. Fifty-seven days from the most important election, midterm election in our lifetime. It's not easy to win a midterm. Democrats want to return to the status quo, you can't allow it to happen, or you can and you'll pay the price.

Too much is at stake including pivotal investigations into the deep state. Of course, the deep state never wanted Donald Trump to be president and for good reason. His administration is aggressively exposing what we now know to be a dark, seedy, corrupt underbelly of this country's massive federal bureaucracy. There is a swamp, there is a sewer, night after night, right here on this program, we keep bringing you damning information about how corrupt some of these officials are, some who have been hell-bent on defeating President Trump with lies and taking him down with lies.

And tonight, even more breaking news. We thought we had them all, we don't. Brand new, tonight, text messages uncovered between former FBI love birds, Strzok and Page, proves everything we have been telling you for months. Look at this. A letter from Congressman Mark Meadows of North Carolina, to the Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein saying, quote, a review of these new documents suggests a coordinated effort on the part of the FBI and the Department of Justice to release information to the public domain potentially harmful to President Donald Trump's administration.

They actually did it. Specifically, the spring of 2017, high level officials, leaking sensitive information about FISA warrants against one- time Trump campaign associate Carter Page who will join is in a few minutes.

Look at this text from Strzok to Page, April 10th, 2017. Quote, I literally just gone to find this phone to tell you, I want to talk to you about media leak strategy with the DOJ before you go.

OK, the DOJ and the FBI coordinating likes to the media. It's an ongoing investigation. On April 11th, 2017, the very next day, "Washington Post" publishes a story about Carter Page and his FISA application. Now, naturally, this led to multi-day media obsession about so-called Trump- Russia collusion.

Let's go to the next day, April 12th, 2017, one day later, Strzok texting his girlfriend, Lisa Page, job well done all while referring to two derogatory articles about Carter Page.

John Solomon reporting tonight this could have been an attempt to smear Carter Page. Why? In order to cast a negative light on the president and potentially spur new investigations.

And there's even more. Congressman Meadows points out other newly unearthed documents show that Mueller's pit bull, yes, we've told you about them, Andrew Weissmann, Robert Mueller, your number one guy, and other DOJ officials also leaked similar information to the press.

They were coordinating the DOJ and FBI to lie. To lie to you, the American people. Why? To destroy the president.

We now have discovered what the insurance policy is. You have all of these Trump-hating deep state actors, Peter Strzok, Lisa Page, Bruce Ohr, Nellie Ohr, Andrew McCabe, and I'll add Christopher Steele to the list, they have one thing in common, they all hate President Trump. Remember, this was about a month before Andrew Weissmann's boss, Robert Mueller, started the phony witch hunt and he's still working for Mueller, Weissmann is.

Now, this comes as President Trump looks poised to declassify important sections of Carter Page's FISA documents. And we're talking about everything that was shown to the "Gang of Eight", specifically the pages 10 through 12, 17 through 34, potentially we're told exculpatory information on Carter Page. Now, all of the associated footnotes, all the so-called 302s, which are the reports that say Bruce Ohr talking about Christopher Steele in the context, terms of what they were talking, this declassification can happen any time.

Now, I haven't seen them, but according to my sources the information will be explosive. We'll ask Carter Page about that in a moment considering it's about him. And if he's such a danger, why hasn't he been charged with anything?

Joining us now, author of number one New York Times best seller, "The Russian Hoax: The Elicit Scheme to Clear Hillary Clinton and Frame Donald Trump", Fox News legal analyst, Gregg Jarrett, and Fox News investigative reporter and contributor, Sara Carter.

Sara, we'll start with the news as we always do, and then we'll get Greg's analysis.

What's first? We have the FBI and DOJ colluding to leak phony Russian lies, to damage the president, the same DOJ that hired Mueller and the same Mueller team, Ohr, Steele, surrounding the information.

SARA CARTER, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Sean, I think these are some of the most important documents, and important text messages to come out yet. What they show is that the DOJ and FBI, high level senior officials, were working hand in hand together to leak information on a counter intelligence investigation. They basically confirm --

HANNITY: An ongoing investigation.

CARTER: That's right, an ongoing investigation, exactly, on Carter Page, a foreign intelligence surveillance warrant. I mean, this is, I believe, and Gregg can explain this more clearly, I was speaking to intelligence officials about this and this is absolutely prosecutable. I mean, you do not talk, confirm, leak to the press anything about a counterintelligence investigation.

I think this is going to be very important, moving forward, and I think this is the main reason why the president needs to declassify the rest of the documents that you just spoke about. The FISA document, as well as the Bruce Ohr's 302s, those are his interviews with the FBI and --

(CROSSTALK)

HANNITY: Strzok and Page communications that haven't been released. This is brand new, how did we not see this before?

CARTER: Because they were withholding the information. The Department of Justice is withholding that information, and it trickles out slowly to Congress, because Congress has been fighting over and over for these documents. Just think how many more documents we haven't seen, Sean.

HANNITY: Now, this goes to the issue of firewalls that Steele was talking about with Ohr. This goes to the issue of the insurance policy with Strzok and Page. This goes to the issue of Christopher Steele asking Bruce Ohr if he got his information to the special counsel.

This is what we have. I don't think can you get more corrupt. You have the FBI and DOJ, DOJ is running this investigation supposedly, colluding to leak what we now know to be lies --

GREGG JARRETT, FOX NEWS LEGAL ANALYST: Sure.

HANNITY: -- to the American people to hurt the president.

JARRETT: That's right.

The same DOJ, hired Mueller and Steele is feeding information through Bruce Ohr to Mueller vis-a-vis Weismann.

JARRETT: It's the definition of corruption. If there was ever any doubt that Comey's FBI and Obama's Department of Justice were engaged in an illicit and illegal scheme to frame Donald Trump, this should erase any doubt. And they are bragging about it in their text messages.

They were using deliberately, knowingly, willfully, false information that they were peddling in this case to "The Washington Post", which so biased and gullible, they swallowed it hook, line and sinker. And then afterwards, they're bragging about it to each other.

HANNITY: When you get Ohr and McCabe and Page and Strzok and Steele and then you look at -- they don't want to be exposed, Steele didn't want to be exposed, the fire walls, and the leak to the special counsel, I'm thinking we found -- we now know what the insurance policy is. These are the five hating -- the five big Trump haters.

JARRETT: Right, the insurance policy in the event that Hillary Clinton lost the election.

HANNITY: And this is post election in April of 2017.

JARRETT: Exactly. Was to frame Donald Trump and undo the decision of American voters, undo the election results.

HANNITY: With lies.

JARRETT: That's right. And it's a violation of federal felony statutes, most notably abuse of power.

You're not allowed to use your public office to interfere, disrupt with somebody's constitutional rights, the rights to privacy, Carter Page. And the president of the United States peddling a false story that they knew was fabricated.

HANNITY: At this point in time in April 2017, this is Rod Rosenstein's Department of Justice.

CARTER: That's right.

HANNITY: Jeff Sessions was recusing. And now, he has a special counsel. But he's got another little problem, is that he's up to his eyeballs in all of this, he appointed the special counsel. And he himself signed the four FISA warrant, the third renewal application.

CARTER: Actually, Sean, it was the fourth renewal application. And he knew everything. Or he should have known everything that happened prior to that.

So, the first three applications, those first three renewals, that went over and over again until he finally got it, had all of the information backlogged, all of the information that the FBI would have had, Peter Strzok. So, Rod Rosenstein, this is Rosenstein's FISA. And he should have known, that is why the DOJ and the FBI are fighting so hard not to declassify the information.

Those 302s by Bruce Ohr, the information contained in the interviews, show they withhold exculpatory information from the FISC court. When they get those 302s and compare them to the application warrants, I think all of our answers will come out and I've also been told when --

HANNITY: If that's the case, who goes to jail?

JARRETT: A lot of people could be subject to prosecution, including all the individuals, Rod Rosenstein, James Comey, Sally Yates, Andrew McCabe, who deceived the court, perpetrated a fraud on the court deliberately.

HANNITY: Do you realize that what we have here is that they are leaking -- the Department of Justice coordinating leaks of unverified information and Russian lies to the American people?

JARRETT: That's right. And yet they refuse to answer those same questions when Congress asks them.

HANNITY: All right. Thank you both.

Now, the man at the center of this, Carter Page, he'll weigh in on tonight's breaking news. Also, Ed Henry and much more, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HANNITY: Lawmakers are now pushing for President Trump to declassify FISA documents that led to the government spying on former Trump campaign advisor Carter Page who will join us in second.

Joining us now with more first is FOX News chief national correspondent, Ed Henry -- Ed.

ED HENRY, FOX NEWS CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Sean, great to see you.

That's right. House Republicans are renewing their push for the president to declassify a whole series of key documents after receiving a batch of new text messages from the FBI and the Justice Department that raise new questions about anti-Trump bias. In particular, Republican Mark Meadows firing off a letter to the deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, about these texts suggesting there was a coordinated effort by FBI and DOJ officials to leak damaging information about the president and some of his advisors to keep the Russia investigation alive.

In particular, in April 10th, 2017, text exchange between FBI officials Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, suggest they have what they call a media leak strategy. The following day, "The Washington Post" published a story about FISA surveillance of former Trump campaign adviser, Carter Page.

Then on April 12th, Strzok congratulated his colleague over two negative articles about Carter Page saying that one was worse than the other for the Trump team. Strzok added, quote: well done.

Now, Mark Meadows' letter to Rosenstein, it's interesting it went to him, because remember, he signed off on one of the FISA warrants that continued the surveillance of Carter Page. Republicans want to see the president declassify documents that may shed more light on how the DOJ handled the investigations to both President Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton around the election.

House Republicans also want to see the documents that may shed light on why Justice Department official Bruce Ohr kept such close touch with the former British spy, Christopher Steele, who, of course, put together the dossier that laid the ground work for the surveillance of Carter Page -- Sean.

HANNITY: All right. Dossier that even Steele himself doesn't stand by, as we know from the interrogatory in Great Britain.

Ed Henry, thank you.

Here now with an exclusive interview, reaction, is former Trump campaign associate, he is at the very center of tonight's breaking news, the FISA abuse scandal, Carter Page.

Great to see you, sir.

Just to remind people, when you were on last time, you traveled to Russia and other places. When your country, when you came back, they often debriefed you.

CARTER PAGE, FORMER TRUMP CAMPAIGN ASSOCIATE: Very often, yes.

HANNITY: And you cooperated with your FBI because you're a patriot?

PAGE: Throughout my life, yes.

HANNITY: And with the CIA and other agencies.

PAGE: Yes.

HANNITY: So, they considered you a friend.

PAGE: I always thought they did, yes.

HANNITY: Yes. Well, you are at the heart of all of this. The quote, media leak strategy, which was on April 10th, 2017, Strzok and Page communicating with each other. Then it likes the next day, the 11th in the "Washington Post." Then Strzok is congratulating page for a job well done with two derogatory articles about you.

That's the FBI and the DOJ coordinating against you to leak in an ongoing investigation. Your reaction?

PAGE: You know, Sean, Thompson (ph) I think said it best on your show, you know, going back weeks, it's not about me, they're just trying to get to the Trump administration, the Trump campaign. This is just a way of tearing down all of the great things that President Trump is doing.

HANNITY: Well, let's be honest here, though. I mean, this is about your name, your reputation, your life, and it's an ongoing investigation. You just heard what Sara Carter said, 302s are released, the unredacted portions of the FISA released, you are going to be exonerated with exculpatory evidence withheld.

Let's assume Sara is right, considering she hasn't been wrong yet. What would that mean to you?

PAGE: Well, Sean, I just remember six years ago tonight, my good friend Chris Stevens lost his life in a very similar situation.

HANNITY: Benghazi.

PAGE: You know, where these people -- people in Washington, there's no concern about his safety, and they're very much worried about their narrative for the media. That's the focus. It's not -- it has nothing to do with safety, they're just focused on their own spin for their own personal gratification.

HANNITY: A systemic culture of media leaking by high officials at the FBI and DOJ related to ongoing investigation. That's what we're talking about, you are in the center of it.

You know, my mother was a prison guard. My dad was family court probation. I had more people in the NYPD. The two -- the two people we've referred to is deity, we're FBI guys. We're not talking about the FBI.

We're talking about a few people in the FBI and the DOJ that abuse their power and basically used you as the single person to go out there, to get the president. Do you have any doubt they're trying to get the president now?

PAGE: There's no doubt whatsoever.

HANNITY: When you spoke to these people, now interestingly, you haven't been indicted.

PAGE: Of course not.

HANNITY: Are they talking to you anymore?

PAGE: I haven't talked to anyone from the U.S. government this year. Other than the people in the DOJ where I was, you know, had my case against the U.S. government. But, and they keep, similar to the FISA court, Southern District of New York keeps giving this false testimonies to the court.

(CROSSTALK)

HANNITY: About you.

PAGE: About, you know I have a case against the U.S. government. And you know, the fake news propaganda.

HANNITY: You have lawsuits that you're moving.

PAGE: Absolutely.

HANNITY: And you don't want any money you told me.

PAGE: One dollar just, you know, nominal.

HANNITY: How do you pay lawyers with $1? I don't know anybody.

PAGE: I want to fix this terrible thing that's happened to our country. You know, this is just on principle, but it's just so corrupt right now.

HANNITY: So tell me if this is wrong, the FBI and DOJ we learned through these text messages were colluding to leak what are phony Russian lies about you and then the same DOJ hires Mueller to investigate it. But the DOJ is working with the FBI leaking it.

And then we find out, through Bruce Ohr and Christopher Steele's contacts, Christopher Steele is saying did you get my info to your friends in the special counsel. Tell me what's wrong with that picture.

PAGE: Well, Sean, look, I have, you know, dozens of lawyers that I'm up against in DOJ. And that's on the civil division. It's been, you know, told to friends with the Washington Post and New York Times that I talk to--

(CROSSTALK)

HANNITY: Did they ever apologize to you for taking laks that are unverified?

PAGE: Absolutely not, no. And you know--

(CROSSTALK)

HANNITY: By the way, if they do it, it's going to be on page 836 in the bottom right-hand corner, nobody will find it.

PAGE: Hopefully they start fixing this a little bit, Sean.

HANNITY: Are you going to sue them?

PAGE: Well, it's just like the first -- the fake intel report by Clapper, Comey, Brennan on January 6, 2017, two weeks before the inauguration. It was split into two themes. One is the hacking, the other is government propaganda. I am doing, I have a legal action right now, and the government propaganda. We'll see about the hacking.

HANNITY: We get this information that we wanted declassified and unredacted, are you convinced there's exculpatory evidence they withheld, do you know that there's exculpatory evidence?

PAGE: The more information that comes out, it's just going to keep showing how ridiculous this whole thing is.

HANNITY: So you think when you look at the players Steele, Ohr, Strzok, Page, McCabe do you think that was the insurance policy?

PAGE: Sure, it's definitely seems like it.

HANNITY: All right. Good luck. I appreciate it. Sorry you were lied about.

PAGE: Wouldn't have happened with (Inaudible).

HANNITY: All right. Alan Dershowitz and Andy McCarthy react next, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HANNITY: All right. here with reaction to my interview with Carter Page, author of bestselling book in New York Times "The Case Against Impeaching Trump," Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz is with us, also Fox News contributor Andy McCarthy.

It comes down to this, both of you I know are good people. I know, Andy, your work in the Southern District of New York. I know where you stand on indicting a ham sandwich and criminalizing political differences Professor Dershowitz.

But when you have the upper echelon of the FBI and the DOJ coordinating leaks that turn out, professor, to be untrue in an ongoing investigation at what point do people get held accountable for this?

ALAN DERSHOWITZ, PROFESSOR, HARVARD LAW SCHOOL: Well, this is a very serious problem. We have too many leaks, many of them are unlawful. Many of them are in violation of the laws and the rules. And we have too little disclosure of allegedly classified material, and exculpatory information.

They have it backwards. They should be disclosing this material that they claim is classify, 95 percent of it, designed to protect people, not to design to protect national security. And they must reveal exculpatory material. But they should never be leaking.

And the tragedy, is that the former head of the FBI, James Comey, gave permission to leak. When he leaked material and laundered through a Columbia law professor that put the green light to many people, and say, hey, if the head of the FBI can leak, why can't we?

HANNITY: What about the coordination, the FBI and the DOJ, you know, they even say it, Andy, media leak strategy. Then they leak. And then they, you know, job well done on two derogatory articles about the guy we just had on. Now maybe a lot of people don't have empathy--

(CROSSTALK)

ANDREW MCCARTHY, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Sean--

HANNITY: I don't want to be leaked about the FBI and the DOJ and I don't think either one of you do.

MCCARTHY: Well, nobody wants to be leaked about. But I don't want to get ahead of what we know here. I've been in investigations where there were leak problems. And sometimes you have to have a leak strategy because your investigation is being damaged by leaks.

Other times, you have what I regard as a corrupt endeavor by government officials to intentionally leak information in order to as I say tickle the wires, that is to say you have people who are under surveillance, you put information out in the media, and you see how they react, who they speak to, et cetera. It's not a tactic that I think is a worthy one. But it does happen.

So, I think we need to find out, I agree with Professor Dershowitz, that what we need is disclosure, disclosure, disclosure. But I don't want to pounce on what we don't know yet because we don't know what leak strategy--

(CROSSTALK)

HANNITY: Well, we have two text messages that talk about a media leak strategy, and then they're congratulating each other over leaking about Carter Page and talking about further likes.

MCCARTHY: Right.

HANNITY: Let me ask this, professor, because there's a big question the president now is going to have to answer. And I have not seen them, but I hear if he declassifies and sends out unredacted FISA applications, the 302s that Sara Carter says has exculpatory evidence in there that they withhold, the gang of eight material, all of the Page, Strzok e-mails and texts, that it will be exclusive and will show corruption at the highest levels.

More -- my sources say each one has said at least nine or 10 out of 10 in terms of corruption exposure.

DERSHOWITZ: Well, I think first of full, sunlight is the best disinfectant as Justice Brandeis said. And so we want to see all of this information the public ought to have the opportunity to judge, the media ought to be able to assess it, it ought to be put in context, let's see what there is.

Let's not have selective disclosures, either by Republicans or Democrats, which helped their narrative. Let's disclose everything we can, unless it really raises serious issues of national security.

(CROSSTALK)

HANNITY: By the way, you sound like Spartacus--

DERSHOWITZ: And when in doubt, put it out.

HANNITY: You sound like Spartacus now.

DERSHOWITZ: Well, put it out.

HANNITY: But in all seriousness, you're right.

(CROSSTALK)

DERSHOWITZ: Well, there is an issue on that.

HANNITY: And Andy, would you call for an--

DERSHOWITZ: I mean, we shouldn't be withholding material about Kavanaugh either. I think what's good for the goose is good for the gander, it has to come out on all sides.

HANNITY: I'm not disagreeing, but Kavanaugh, in fairness they released more documents than the five previous nominees. But go ahead, Andy.

DERSHOWITZ: Not enough, though.

MCCARTHY: Yes. I would say not just on Republicans and Democrats, but not by the FBI and the intelligence community. The big problem you have when you have a government that leaks is that it cherry picks leaks--

(CROSSTALK)

HANNITY: Well, should the president unredact?

MCCARTHY: -- so that the (Inaudible) of events that may not be reality.

HANNITY: Should the president declassify?

MCCARTHY: Of course, he should have done it the first day in office.

HANNITY: We specifically--

DERSHOWITZ: The president has the power to declassify but he should do it not politically. He shouldn't to serve his interests or the interest of his party but the interest of full disclosure and the America -- the Americans citizens' ability to read for themselves.

You know, when we hold information back, we insult the American public. And they have a right to see it. That's what democracy is all about. You can't have democracy without information. And so we need more disclosure and fewer leaks.

HANNITY: Last word, Andy.

MCCARTHY: Two years, two years, put it out. Two years.

HANNITY: Yes. Is Rod Rosenstein conflicted, and as considering now it was head this DOJ, FBI, and they're the ones now that we find out they have people leaking and that he's appointing Mueller and he signed the last FISA warrant? Is he conflicted?

DERSHOWITZ: He's so conflicted, he's so conflicted even beside the fact that he's a potential witness in the case.

HANNITY: Bingo.

DERSHOWITZ: He has become a player in this case rather than the objective neutral chief prosecutor.

HANNITY: You agree with that, Andy?

MCCARTHY: I do, and I think his memo, his August 2nd memo which is roughly contemporaneous with the FISA warrant that he signed also should be unsealed and revealed.

HANNITY: All right. Thank you both. The house of cards is about to fall. When we come back, the ladies of The View vicious, hateful swipes at our first lady. We'll play you the tape. We'll get reaction, Judge Pirro and Tammy Bruce as we continue.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HANNITY: All right. The ladies of The View they're back, and they already going after the first family. They can't control themselves. Just look at the swipes taken from some of the hosts at the first lady, Melania Trump. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUNNY HOSTIN, CO-HOST, ABC: I was shocked by Melania's statement. She said -- yes.

(CROSSTALK)

WHOOPI GOLDBERG, CO-HOST, ABC: Do not -- don't do it.

HOSTIN: I can't come back.

GOLDBERG: No. That's why we tell you don't do it.

HOSTIN: Good. Right. Don't try it I can't do it. She says, people with no names are writing our nation's history. Words are important. And accusations can lead to severe consequences. If a person is bold enough to accuse people of negative actions they have responsibilities to publicly stand by their words and people have the right to be able to defend themselves."

As far as I recall--

(CROSSTALK)

JOY BEHAR, CO-HOST, ABC: Who wrote that, Michelle Obama?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: Joyless Behar then continue to bashed the first lady over the weekend. Let's watch her.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEHAR: She is now enjoying the fruits of the American country. Her parents are now, in the chain, what do they call that chain migration?

VAN JONES, CNN HOST: Yes, chain migration.

BEHAR: They're enjoying chain migration which a lot of people in this country unfortunately are not enjoying because her husband wants to stop it. Why shouldn't she go along with it? You know, she was in Slovenia, doing nothing, I don't know what she was doing there. What was she doing there?

JONES: I think she was working as a model.

BEHAR: Ok. She was a model. Now she's the first lady. I mean, come on, as my mother would say, who's better than her?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: Wow. Pretty vicious. Joining us now with reaction, Fox News contributor, Tammy Bruce, and author of the number one, that's right number one, did I say number one New York Times best seller "Liars, Leakers, and liberals: The Case Against the anti-Trump Conspiracy," the host of Justice here on Fox. And she fills in for me but she complains about it all the time.

JEANINE PIRRO, FOX NEWS HOST: I do not! I love to fill in for you, when you taking off again?

HANNITY: When are you going to drop dead, I'll jump right in the grave. You know, I really have had it with the attacks on Secretary Nielsen, Pam Bondi, Sarah Sanders, first lady, Ivanka, even Baron Trump. I had it.

Leave -- leave the wife of the president and leave the children alone and leave the women that serve their country alone. Because if Republicans did this we know what the reaction would be.

PIRRO: You know, I have personally experienced the kind of attacks that you just saw on The View. it wasn't that long ago when I went on for my book.

HANNITY: That was such a bad idea.

PIRRO: No, no, I'll go toe-to-toe with anyone. They don't scare me. But here's the bottom line.

HANNITY: Nobody watches.

PIRRO: There is so much hatred by the left toward the right, all of a sudden racism is acceptable. Sexism is acceptable. Derogatory statements.

Look, I know Melania Trump, the woman speaks five languages, she is extremely classy and bright. You would never hear her say, for the first time in my adult life, I am proud of my country. You would never hear Melania talk about the fact that, you know, it is not right that so and her parents came.

You know, the comment about chain migration, the reason she says chain migration isn't what it should be, is that people are coming in illegally. They're just crossing the border. That's what Michelle Obama wanted.

HANNITY: Melania came in legally.

TAMMY BRUCE, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Legally.

HANNITY: Number two, the English is her fifth language, not first, not second, not third, not fourth, her fifth language.

BRUCE: Yes.

HANNITY: Can I barely speak one. And not only that, she's a good mother, she represents our country well, and I just can't believe the vicious, vile attacks.

BRUCE: Yes.

HANNITY: Never-ending. Like that idiot, Jimmy Kimmel.

BRUCE: Well, let me tell you, as a woman, if you experience this and you recognize it for what it is, they're jealous. And when you're growing up, if you are a special individual, you are excelling, you are beautiful, there is a crowd of the mean girls who go after you because they can't stand it. It's clearly jealousy.

At the same time, you've got Melania who frankly can take the heat in that kitchen. But you notice what they were attacking was Melania personally. Not her ideas. Because the statement she made about freedom of expression and taking responsibility, is at the core of what matters to every American, right?

But instead, even the Joy Behar remarks implied, horribly, that the first lady is a prostitute. That she's doing things for certain reason just to get stuff. When in fact, I think we're dealing with some projection here, aren't we.

The first lady's approval rating is the highest, really, of the president, of everybody else in politics, certainly of anybody on the view. She's well liked for a reason, because she represents what makes this country great.

Yes, immigration, people want to come to this country to become Americans. And then honor us with embracing the American ideal. That is what they hate, that is what they're going after, and it is why the president will be re-elected and why this nation -- I welcome it. It exposes the left for what they are.

(CROSSTALK)

HANNITY: It's going to happen in 57 days.

PIRRO: And you know what, that is the reason that Donald Trump is the president. Everything you are saying is true.

BRUCE: That's right. That's right.

PIRRO: The reason he's the president is because people rejected that Barack Obama and the Michelle Obama legacy. It's really as simple as that.

BRUCE: Yes. Look, I think that first lady herself particularly represents what makes the country great. What the American people recognized in that couple. And why she, frankly, with her programs for kids, her speaking out against this anonymous op-ed piece in the New York Times, she knows what makes this nation especially great. And her life experience--

(CROSSTALK)

PIRRO: She is an elegant woman.

HANNITY: She is an elegant, lovely, beautiful, wonderful person.

(CROSSTALK)

PIRRO: Elegant and classy. And I want her to keep speaking up. keep speaking up.

HANNITY: Thank you both. All right. If you have family or loved ones on the East Coast you need to see a report, hurricane Florence is real. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HANNITY: We do have a Fox News alert. And you've been hearing about hurricane Florence now miles off the coast. It's headed right to the Carolinas. Now beware. It is headed straight for the East Coast of the U.S., according to projections, as my friend Joe Bastardi says, this is a pattern hurricane, which means it's likely not going to change course.

It's a cat four, it's 140 miles per hour, set to make landfall on Thursday in the Carolinas.

Look, we love you. If you live in North Carolina, South Carolina, if you are in Virginia, Wilmington obviously it looks like ground zero right now. This storm is headed for you.

Mandatory evacuations are now in place in certain areas. We urge you, please heed those warnings. You know what? We've seen enough damage. As a matter of fact, when hurricane Hugo went to the same area, this particular storm, hurricane Florence, is a slower moving storm.

Hugo did so much damage in the Charleston area, the Carolinas, that literally, it decimated entire communities. You've got to take this seriously.

We, remember, we can always rebuild homes. I know it's not easy come I know it's inconvenient, I know it's a pain but take your possessions, take your kids, take your animals, and if they tell you to evacuate, please get out. Please.

There's the one time in my life I'll tell you to listen to government. And also pay your taxes. Those of you who don't they'll put you in jail. Anyway, please be careful. We are going to follow it here on the Fox News Channel throughout the week. And we are praying for all of you that are in harm's way.

All right. We are always fair and balanced. We are not the destroy-Trump media. Let not your heart be troubled. Laura Ingraham is standing by. Big show tonight, Laura.



Content and Programming Copyright 2018 Fox News Network, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Copyright 2018 CQ-Roll Call, Inc. All materials herein are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of CQ-Roll Call. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content.


As Hurricane Florence plans to land a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolinas this week, locals and visitors are making the best of the natural disaster by posting Hurrication photos on Instagram.

On Tuesday, one user uploaded a photo of herself enjoying beer with her friends, writing: Cheers to hoping hurricane Florance is kind to us here in Charleston.

Some people are even hitting the water, like one user who uploaded a bikini photo of herself in Sullivans Island Beach in South Carolina.

Another user grieved the impending Category 4 storm by posting modeling portraits of herself in Charleston. Florence dont take our city, she wrote.

President Trump declared a state of emergency for Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina, calling for mass evacuations in those states.

This will be the storm of a lifetime for portions of the Carolina coast, the National Weather Service wrote on Tuesday.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post.
The national airline of Sri Lanka has removed cashews from the in-flight menu after the countrys president blasted the quality of the nuts after a recent flight.

President Maithripala Sirisena had reportedly flown on a Sri Lankan Airlines flight from Kathmandu, in Nepal, to the Sri Lankan city Colombo last week, the BBC reports. Then, on Monday at a farmers association event, Sirisena publicly complained about the quality of the snacks he was served in business class.

SEE IT: KOREAN AIR PASSENGER DRAGGED OFF FLIGHT WHILE SHOUTING, RESISTING POLICE

"When I returned from Nepal, they served some cashew nuts on the plane [that], let alone humans, even dogs can't eat, Sirisena reportedly said, per the BBC. Who approves these things?"

The Sri Lankan president did not specify what, in particular, he found so offensive about the nuts. But days later, on Wednesday, a representative for Sri Lankan Airlines confirmed that the offending nuts were removed while the airline changes its supplier, the South China Morning Post reported.

The cashews were previously obtained from a Dubai-based supplier, according to the post.

FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan Airlines is currently $1.4 billion in debt, according to News.com.au, and has been accused of being a drain on the countrys economy. A special presidential commission of inquiry is also investigating the airline over corruption accusations, the outlet reported.
As Hurricane Florence, a Category 4 storm charging for the East Coast, is expected to make landfall Thursday, animal shelters are asking volunteers to help protect animals.

North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Maryland are all under a state of emergency as the "monster" storm has forced governors to order mass evacuations for their millions of residents.

SAFETY TIPS FOR PETS AHEAD OF HURRICANE FLORENCE

Animal organizations, consequently, are urging those along the eastern seaboard to take care of their pets  and to help those in areas expected to be hit by the barreling storm.

One shelter in Norfolk, Virginia evacuated eight dogs and and 18 cats to a shelter in Washington, D.C. run by Humane Rescue Alliance  an effort made to make room for incoming animals expected to be displaced by Florence.

"Usually, if people do not have a place to take them or if the animals get lost in the shuffle of the storm, they may end up as strays," alliance spokesperson Matt Williams said. "The animals will be held for a period of time and then they wait for the animals to be claimed."

In Charlotte, North Carolina, a local Humane Society is taking in animals from areas of the state that were ordered to be evacuated.

RESCUE GROUPS, LAW ENFORCEMENT WORK TO SAVE ANIMALS DISPLACED BY HURRICANE HARVEY

The shelter asked on Facebook Monday if those within the Charlotte area could foster "dogs, cats, and kittens," noting that, "The more animals we get to fosters, the more animals we can shelter from the coastal areas."

The Greenville Humane Society in South Carolina was more than 200 animals over capacity as of Monday  with over 60 of them taken in from low county areas forecast to be hit hard by the storm.

These shelters are a few of many requesting fosters and donations across the eastern states expected to be slammed by Florence later this week. Shelters are asking for donations of newspapers, food and litter.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) warned that people should make sure to include their pets in any emergency plans in preparation for the storm, even though the organization remains "ready to assist."

In 2017 alone, the ASPCA said they responded to Hurricanes Maria, Harvey and Irma, in addition to other natural disasters, and rescued or assisted upwards of 37,000 animals.

Pet owners, according to the ASPCA, should prepare with a disaster plan, which includes ensuring all pets are wearing ID tags and preparing an emergency kit with food, medications, medical records and water bowls.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Authorities say a dead hiker whose body was recovered this week was likely killed by a cougar, marking the first fatal attack by a wild cougar in Oregon and the second in the Pacific Northwest this year.

Search and rescue teams found the body of Diana Bober, 55, on Monday off a trail in the Mount Hood National Forest in Welches, about 40 miles (65 kilometers) southeast of Portland. Her body was several miles from where searchers found her car last week near a ranger station.

Bober, an avid hiker who often trekked in the Mount Hood and Columbia River Gorge area, was last heard from by family and friends on Aug. 29. She was reported missing on Friday and it's still unclear when she started her hike, said Sgt. Brian Jensen of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office.

Her body had injuries consistent with a cougar attack and a medical examiner ruled out the possibility that she was mauled after she died of another cause, Jensen said. DNA samples collected at the scene were being flown by the Oregon State Police to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service laboratory for further analysis, he said.

Authorities warned a local school district of the attack and advised other hikers to stay out of the area.

Oregon wildlife officials are attempting to find and kill the animal, he said.

"This is an unprecedented event in Oregon," said Brian Wolfer, watershed manager for the Department of Fish and Wildlife. "We don't know what risk it poses to the public."

Cougar sightings are relatively common in Oregon, particularly in more rural areas, but Bober's death appears to be the first fatal attack.

There are about 6,600 cougars  also called commonly called mountain lions or pumas  throughout Oregon. State wildlife officials get about 400 complaints about the animals each year, according to authorities.

Cougars can be killed by landowners or law enforcement officials when they pose a threat to human safety or cause damage to livestock or agricultural crops. They also can be hunted.

Over the past decade, about 20 cougars have been killed each year in the wildlife management area where Bober's body was found.

In May, a mountain biker in Washington state was killed by a cougar on a trail east of Seattle, the first fatal attack in that state in 94 years.

___

Information from: The Oregonian/OregonLive, http://www.oregonlive.com
U.S. Border Patrol agents scooped up 131 illegal immigrants, including 22 unaccompanied minors, in just a little over a day in the Rio Grande Valley, officials said Tuesday.

The arrests stem from two separate incidents in a span of just over 24 hours.

Weslaco agents first arrested 66 illegals from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras on Monday. The group comprised 20 families and 11 unaccompanied minors.

Then on Tuesday, Weslaco agents arrested an additional 65 illegal immigrants from Guatemala and El Salvador. That group was made up of 25 families and 11 unaccompanied children.

Officials said in a press release that all 131 illegal immigrants were being processed by the Border Patrol.
An Oregon woman who had been reported missing nearly two weeks ago was most likely killed by a cougar in an "unprecedented event," investigators revealed Tuesday.

The body of Diana Bober, 55, was found Monday off a trail in the Mt. Hood National Forest in Welches, about 40 miles southeast of Portland, according to the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office.

OREGON WOMAN FINDS MOUNTAIN LION NAPPING IN HER HOME: 'THIS IS WILD'

The medical examiner's office determined that wounds found on Bober's body were "consistent with a suspected cougar attack," and ruled out the possibility that she was mauled after she died from a separate cause.

DNA samples will be flown by the Oregon State Police to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service laboratory for further analysis, officials said.

Bober's death by a cougar is the first recorded attack of its kind in Oregon state history, officials said.

Authorities previously said that Bober, an avid hiker from Gresham, was considered a missing person, and noted her car was found on Saturday.

"This is a terrible tragedy, and our sympathy goes out to Dianas family and friends," Brian Wolfer, of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, said. "All of us at ODFW are thinking of you today."

The sheriff's office said Oregon has roughly 6,000 cougars  also commonly called mountain lions or pumas  throughout the state, and that ODFW "tracks conflicts" with the animals in situations where they kill non-wild animals or threaten humans.

"This is an unprecedented event in Oregon, we are asking people to avoid this area while we attempt to remove this cougar," Wolfer said. "We dont know what risk it poses to the public."

Over the past decade, about 20 cougars have been killed each year in the wildlife management area where Bober's body was found.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Polk County sheriff is warning of a dangerous new "drug" that's gaining popularity inside the jail system.

During a news conference on Tuesday, Sheriff Grady Judd said people are spraying roach poisons, like Raid and Roach Motel, onto paper and smuggling it into county jails. Those papers are then eaten or smoked by inmates as a dangerous way to get high.

"Who would think to do this?" asked Judd. "When the chemicals are infused on the paper, then they eat it or smoke it. Are you kidding me?"

Judd and his staff discovered the strange new method during a bust this week in the county. Nine people were arrested for using a similar method to smuggle K2 and synthetic amphetamines into one of the Polk County jails.

Judd said, in that case, family and friends of inmates were spraying the chemicals -- obtained by mail from China -- onto sheets of paper that looked like legal documents, letters from home, and even bible verses.

Deputies discovered those papers were being sneaked into piles of legal documents when those families met with their attorneys, and the attorneys, who had no knowledge the chemicals were on the papers, would bring them into the jail.

"Here's a message to the other attorneys: the criminals inside are trying to take advantage of you, said Judd.

As a result of the bust, Judd said one local attorney has had their jail visitation privileges suspended for six months. Judd said the roach spray was not discovered on any of the papers in his jail, but the trend became apparent as deputies looked into the case.

Click for more from Fox35Orlando.com.
The Latest on the Sept. 6 shootings in a Cincinnati bank building (all times local):

10:01 p.m.

The woman who was shot a dozen times when a gunman opened fire Thursday in Cincinnati has been released from the hospital.

UC Health spokeswoman Kelly Martin says the woman was discharged Tuesday evening.

Waller Austin said in a statement Monday that his wife "still has a long road ahead in her recovery both physically and mentally." Whitney Austin, a 37-year-old Fifth Third Bancorp vice president, is one of only two who survived their injuries.

Omar Enrique Santa Perez, 29, began shooting inside bank headquarters building Thursday morning. Police say he had some 250 rounds of ammunition for his legally purchased 9 mm handgun. He killed a bank employee and two contractors before police shot him dead.

Police say they're investigating the shooter's motives. Florida court records show he had a history of mental problems.

___

This story has been corrected to Monday, not last week.

___

2:34 p.m.

The county coroner describes the gunman in fatal shootings in downtown Cincinnati as determined to kill "as many people as he could."

Dr. Lakshmi Sammarco (LAK'-schmee sam-MAHR'-koh) reported Tuesday on autopsy findings from the Fifth Third Bank building shootings Thursday. She says the gunman who used a 9 mm handgun fired both standard bullets and hollow-point bullets, which often inflict more damage to bodies.

A Fifth Third Bancorp employee and two contractors were killed before police killed the 29-year-old gunman. The coroner says the shooter died from a shotgun blast to his head. Police are still investigating why he attacked in the building that headquarters Fifth Third.

She says on Sept. 11, it's appropriate to highlight the fast, heroic work of first responders.

One person remains hospitalized.
The Latest on a fatal shooting involving an off-duty Dallas police officer (all times local):

9:10 p.m.

Family members of a white Dallas police officer charged with manslaughter in the fatal shooting of a black neighbor deny allegations on social media that some of them made racist gestures in photos posted on the internet.

An arrest affidavit says Amber Guyger told investigators she mistook Botham Jean's apartment for her own and shot him thinking he was an intruder.

Some people on social media have accused the officer's brother-in-law, Noe Garza, of making hand gestures in photos symbolizing "white power." But Garza told The Dallas Morning News on Tuesday that he and other family members don't support white supremacists.

Garza said his hand gestures were meant to shape the numbers "6'' and "9'' in celebration of his father-in-law's 69th birthday.

The newspaper said Guyger's family members declined to discuss her or the shooting.

___

5:45 p.m.

The police chief in Dallas says she is concerned to hear of reports that pepper-spray projectiles were used at a protest over the death of a black man who was fatally shot inside his apartment by a white off-duty officer.

Monday's demonstration came a day after Dallas police officer Amber Guyger was arrested for manslaughter in the shooting death of her neighbor, 26-year-old Botham Jean. Authorities have said that Guyger said she mistook Jean's apartment for her own.

Protesters gathered outside Dallas police headquarters, and several dozen blocked traffic as they marched. News reports said police used the pepper-spray projectiles at one point to help control the crowd.

Police Chief U. Renee Hall says she plans to meet with protest leaders to "address their concerns." She says she has asked for a "full review."

Hall says the projectiles should only be used if there is an immediate threat to the public or if an on-scene commander calls for them to be used.

___

1:20 a.m.

Attorneys for the family of a black man who was shot and killed by a white Dallas police officer who says she mistook his apartment for hers are criticizing an affidavit that gives a narrative of what happened.

The lawyers said the arrest affidavit released Monday contradicts neighbors' accounts.

Amid their concerns, though, the district attorney said the case against Amber Guyger will get a hard look by her office and be presented to a grand jury, which could decide on more serious charges than manslaughter in last week's shooting of 26-year-old Botham Jean.

Benjamin Crump, one of the attorneys for Jean's family, said the affidavit "is very self-serving."

Lee Merritt, who is also representing the family, called it an attempt to "condone what happened, give her a break."
Keith Lane/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort has been in ongoing negotiations with special counsel Robert Muellers office over a potential plea agreement, sources familiar with the negotiations tell ABC News.



The discussions, which have picked up steam in the last several weeks, come ahead of Manaforts second trial, which is slated to begin later this month in federal court in Washington, D.C.



Sources tell ABC News that Muellers office is seeking cooperation from Manafort for information related to President Donald Trump and the 2016 campaign. Manafort, however, is resisting and his team is pushing prosecutors for a plea agreement that does not include cooperation, at least as related to the president, sources said.



A spokesperson for Manafort declined to comment.



A representative from the special counsel's office also declined to comment.



It was just under a year ago that Manaforts troubles with the special counsel began when he was charged in Washington, D.C., with several counts of fraud and failing to register as a foreign agent. A second case was opened in Virginia earlier this year on related charges that ended with a jury finding Manafort guilty on eight counts out of an 18-count indictment.



Manafort has been held in jail for the last several months after prosecutors accused him of witness tampering.



The 69-year-old veteran GOP operative joined the presidents campaign in March 2016, tasked with wrangling delegates ahead of the Republican National Convention. He was elevated to campaign chairman in May 2016, taking command of the presidents campaign just before he captured the GOP nomination.



Manafort left the Trump campaign in August 2016.



Manafort departed the campaign in August days after the New York Times and the Associated Press ran reports that he had been tied to alleged undisclosed foreign lobbying practices in Ukraine.



Earlier Wednesday, prosecutors filed a brief providing further insight into what sort of evidence they plan to offer against Manafort if the upcoming trial proceeds. The brief came in response to the defenses efforts to exclude at least one thousand proposed government exhibits.



Prosecutors argued in their brief that photos, invoices and email records they want to introduce show evidence of Manafort using illegal financial practices to fund his lifestyle. Photos of Manafort's homes and lavish goods would be pieces of evidence that "make clear that the expenditures were for personal purposes."



The prosecutor's brief was in response to a filing by the defense on Sept. 4 which opposed the introduction of many pieces of evidence on the grounds of relevance and hearsay.



Telephone records and emails showing communications between Manafort and other individuals in the indictment were also included in the brief as "direct evidence of Manafort's obstruction of justice."



According to statements by the judge in Manafort's DC trial last week, exhibits would have been the topic of a pre-trial hearing that was set to take place Wednesday morning. That hearing was rescheduled for Friday.



No explanation was offered for why the date of the hearing may have been moved.



This is a developing story. Please refresh for details.

Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Photo taken on Sept. 10, 2018 shows the assembling site of a shield tunneling machine in Chattogram, Bangladesh. China's largest shield tunneling machine for export, which is 12.12 meters in diameter and weighs 2,200 tonnes, will be used for opening a 3,500-meter road tunnel under Karnaphuli River. (Xinhua/Liu Chuntao)

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[ Editor: Zhang Zhou ]
All five New Mexico compound suspects were indicted by a federal grand jury on Tuesday on firearms and conspiracy charges, less than two weeks after they were arrested by the FBI, officials announced.

The indictment charged the suspects - Jany Leveille, 35, Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, 40, Hujrah Wahhaj, 37, Subhanah Wahhaj, 35, and Lucas Morton, 40  with conspiring knowingly to provide an alien illegally and unlawfully in the United States, possession of firearms and ammunition, a news release from the District of New Mexicos U.S. Attorneys Office said.

Leveille, a Haitian national who was in the U.S. illegally, was also accused of possession of firearms and ammunition, the news release said.

The defendants are accused of conspiring to get Leveille firearms and ammunition from at least November 2017 through August, the news release said, in addition to moving firearms and ammunition in December 2017 from across Georgia to New Mexico.

The indictment further alleges that, between December 2017 and August 2018, the defendants established a training camp and firing range in Taos County, where they stored firearms and ammunition and engaged in firearms and tactical training as part of their common plan to prepare for violent attacks on government, military, educational, and financial institutions, the news release said.

FBI ARRESTS FIVE NEW MEXICO COMPOUND SUSPECTS DAYS AFTER MULTIPLE CHARGES WERE DROPPED

All five suspects were arrested on Aug. 31 by FBI agents and subsequently charged with violating federal firearms and conspiracy laws. Their arrest followed local prosecutors decision to drop charges related to the death of a 3-year-old boy whose remains were found at the compound site, and it came days after three of the suspects were released from custody when child abuse charges were dropped.

The five suspects were initially arrested by authorities after an Aug. 3 raid following a monthslong inquiry into the disappearance of Abdul-ghani Wahhaj, the 3-year-old. He had severe medical issues, and disappeared from Georgia in December. The occupants of the compound were "most likely heavily armed and considered extremist of the Muslim belief," an official said at the time.

Siraj Ibn Wahhaj was allegedly training children to commit school shootings, according to prosecutors, who later alleged that the juveniles were taught how to use firearms, as well as tactical techniques, in order to kill teachers, law enforcement and other institutions they found corrupt.

All five suspects are due back in court in New Mexico on Wednesday afternoon, the news release said.

Fox News Matt Richardson, Nicole Darrah and Katherine Lam contributed to this report.
A romance novelist arrested last week in Oregon for the alleged murder of her husband at a culinary school last June reportedly once wrote an essay entitled "How to Murder Your Husband."

Nancy Crampton-Brophy, 68, allegedly killed her husband, 63-year-old Daniel Brophy, at the Oregon Culinary Institute on June 2, and later mourned his death on a Facebook account that seemed to belong to her.

Crampton-Brophy, a romance writer who has several books listed for sale on Amazon, wrote a 700-word essay in 2011 about ways to "murder your husband," The Oregonian reported.

On a protected WordPress website titled "See Jane Publish," the news outlet said that Crampton-Brophy detailed her thoughts on murder in the essay. "As a romantic suspense writer, I spend a lot of time thinking about murder and, consequently, police procedure," she reportedly wrote.

"After all, if the murder is supposed to set me free, I certainly don't want to spend any time in jail," the author allegedly wrote, noting that "divorce is expensive."

ROMANCE NOVELIST ALLEGEDLY MURDERED CHEF HUSBAND AT OREGON CULINARY INSTITUTE

Crampton-Brophy reportedly wrote that she "find[s] it is easier to wish people dead than to actually kill them. I don't want to worry about blood and brains splattered on my walls. And really, I'm not good at remembering lies."

"But the thing I know about murder is that every one of us have it in him/her when pushed far enough," she apparently added.

A biography on the author's website says that her books "are about pretty men and strong women, about families that don't always work and about the joy of finding love and the difficulty of making it stay."

Neighbors told the newspaper that after she allegedly killed her husband, Cramphy-Brophy didn't seem affected by his death and mentioned that police considered her a suspect.

Crampton-Brophy reportedly appeared in court on charges of murder and unlawful use of a firearm.
A Texas man is being treated for injuries he sustained after booby-trapping his home using shotgun shells, officials say.

Deputies with the Harris County Sheriffs Office responded to a discharging-weapons call about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in Tomball, northwest of Houston. They said they encountered a disoriented 73-year-old man in the home who was yelling out about danger in the house.

Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said that the unidentified man appeared to have gunshot-type wounds to his body from a booby trap. The man was rushed to a nearby hospital, Fox 26 reported.

It was not immediately clear why the man was booby-trapping his home but officals say he could face charges for rigging the house with explosives, The Houston Chronicle reported.

Gonzalez said that as a deputy attempted to enter the home and assist the injured man, he encountered a second discharge of some type.

We dont know if the door was booby-trapped or someone fired from inside, he said.

The deputy who attempted to help the man was said to receive minor injuries from discharged fragments.
As Hurricane Florence continues its charge toward the southeastern U.S., mass evacuations have been ordered in North and South Carolina and Virginia.

Federal officials have urged those in the Category 3 storms projected path to leave and seek shelter. While still a few hundred miles from shore, Florence is expected to regain strength and turn back into a more potent Category 4 storm.

Now is the time to finalize your plans to get out, Joel Cline, a tropical program coordinator with the National Weather Service, told Fox News on Tuesday.

Factoring in potential catastrophic storm surges, devastating flooding and mudslides and a potential loss of power for a long period of time, Cline stressed that the safest way to prepare for Florence along the coast was to heed evacuation warnings.

But not everyone is heeding those calls  and getting out of harms way isnt necessarily as easy as it might sound.

TRACK HURRICANE FLORENCE HERE

For Charleston native Joshua Walker, waiting out a hurricane is something he was raised dealing with in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. He has boarded up the windows at his house in downtown Charleston and prepared for possible flooding  something he says Charleston residents often deal with even when theres not a hurricane  and plans to keep his bar, Wine & Company, open throughout the week.

We dont want people to be crazy or dangerous, but when the storms not crushing the city, were going to be open, Walker told Fox News.

Wine & Company, he said, is situated on higher ground and is equipped with hurricane windows and generators.

We talk about the physical impact, but theres a lot of psychological weight to sitting in a powerless house for three days, Walker said. Its nice to have a break, to have a sense of community and see other people.

But for April Ellis, the decision on how to proceed was a financial one. Along with her son, fiance and pets, Ellis lives in Goose Creek, South Carolina  about 15 miles inland from Charleston.

We talk about the physical impact [of hurricanes], but theres a lot of psychological weight to sitting in a powerless house for three days.  Joshua Walker of Charleston, South Carolina

Both Ellis, who works in retail, and her fiance, a contractor, are required to return to work as soon as the emergency is lifted, otherwise they wont get paid, she told Fox News.

Being a family on a budget with a 15-year-old son and two animals, evacuating for a storm, its like going on a mini-vacation; it requires money that we just dont have, Ellis said.

HURRICANE FLORENCE REMINDS CAROLINIANS OF HUGO, OTHER MAJOR STORMS

Those concerns were echoed by Nicklaus Cox of Georgetown, South Carolina, about 30 miles south of Myrtle Beach. Coxs mother is an emergency room nurse who will need to work this week, and the family decided not to leave without her.

Cox pointed out, Without knowing the extent of damage the hurricane could cause, we couldnt afford to stay in a hotel for a long period of time should it come to that.

Without knowing the extent of damage the hurricane could cause, we couldnt afford to stay in a hotel for a long period of time should it come to that.  Nicklaus Cox of Georgetown, South Carolina

If the damage is bad enough  all those who evacuate will not be allowed to come back into the area until it is deemed safe by local authorities, Cox told Fox News. Who knows how long that could take?

As for Gordon Reddicks, a 74-year-old store owner in Wilmington, North Carolina, he said hes been through so many hurricanes already, that he plans to wait this one out. He has already prepared for the worst the storm could bring.

AS HURRICANE FLORENCE BARRELS TOWARD COASTAL CAROLINA, RURAL, POOR COMMUNITIES BRACE THEMSELVES

After this many, it doesnt bother me. Ill drink a few beers, relax, go to sleep, wake up, watch a little TV, Reddicks told The Greenville News. What are you going to do? This is part of it.

The process of evacuating has caused problems for some.

By Wednesday morning, more than 624 flights had been canceled across the U.S., and nearly 5,600 were delayed. Additionally, some 429 flights scheduled for Thursday were already grounded, as well as nearly 100 for Friday.

Raleigh-Durham Charlotte Douglas and Charleston International Airports are among the hubs primarily affected by Florence. Charlestons airport said it expected to close runways by midnight Wednesday.

Michelle Stober loaded up her valuables Tuesday at her home on Wrightsville Beach to drive back to her primary residence in Cary, North Carolina. But finding fuel for her trip was difficult.

She told The Associated Press that she drove for an hour trying to find gas in Cary but everyone was sold out.

Fox News Janine Puhak and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Heavy rains from Hurricane Florence could cause an environmental disaster in parts of rural Virginia, South Carolina and North Carolina where waste from hog manure pits and coal ash dumps could threaten drinking water supplies for months and wash into homes.

Florence, a powerful Category 4 storm, is expected to affect millions of people in the Carolinas and in parts of the Mid-Atlantic states. Fox News Senior Meteorologist Janice Dean warns it could become a major flooding event, while Jeff Byard, an associate administrator at FEMA, warned the ferocious storm is going to be a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolina coast.

Latest weather models forecast more than 3 feet of rain in the eastern part of the state.

HURRICANE FLORENCE'S PATH: TRACK THE STORM HERE

Early figures from data provider CoreLogic indicate nearly 759,000 homes across the Carolinas and Virginia lie in the path of the storm surge. If the monster hurricane rolls ashore as it is predicted to do, the company forecasts reconstruction costs at more than $170 billion.

Sewage and waste can also contaminate groundwater, affecting the well water that many rural communities depend on for their drinking water supplies, CoreLogic said. Coal ash ponds can (and do) also leak toxic containments.

The last time a significant storm slammed into North Carolina was in September 1999. Rural residents say they still remember the aftermath of Hurricane Floyd, which drenched an already-soaked region with 2 feet of water.

What happened next was one of the worst natural disasters in the states history with memories that still haunt residents.

'EXTREMELY DANGEROUS' HURRICANE FLORENCE TO BE A 'MIKE TYSON PUNCH TO CAROLINA COAST'

My grandfathers farm was swept away, Erin Lohr told Fox News. When we came back after the storm, everything was destroyed. It was one of the most devastating times in our familys lives.

When Floyd roared ashore as a Category 2 storm, entire towns were under water. Bloated and bobbing carcasses of hundreds of thousands of chickens and hogs mixed in with the stench of fertilizer, bile and gasoline made it near impossible for rescue workers to do their jobs and residents to get back to their homes.

It was disgusting, Lohr said.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue said Wednesday that the government has programs in place to help rural communities, farmers, ranchers and other small businesses hit by Florence.

HURRICANE FLORENCE'S POTENTIALLY CATASTROPHIC PATH INCLUDES 'AT-RISK' NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS

If we know anything about American farmers, its that they can handle adversity, he said in a statement. Even so, USDA is ready to help with the resources they need to be able to weather storms and recover from damages. As hurricanes approach, we have USDA personnel in every county in the nation, standing by to assist in any possible way.

Florence's predicted path also means trouble for some of the poorest communities in eastern North Carolina and South Carolina, said Susan Cutter, director of the Hazards and Vulnerability Research Institute at the University of South Carolina. Dozens of poor black communities like Princeville across the region will have a harder time coping with Florence "partly because of the historic inequality that was there," she said.

PICTURES: PREPARATIONS FOR HURRICANE FLORENCE

"What I'm fearful about is there are a lot of people who are not going to be OK because they don't have elevated structures," she added. "They're in low-lying flood prone areas and they didn't leave because they had nowhere to go and no resources to get there."

Princeville, the first U.S. town built by freed slaves, was swamped by Floyd.

HURRICANE FLORENCE COULD BRING CATASTROPHIC STORM SURGES: WHAT ARE THEY, AND HOW CAN YOU PREPARE?

A levee built after the storm failed to protect the town from Hurricane Matthews floodwaters two years ago. Homes were swept away or severely damaged. The Town Hall and local elementary school have yet to be rebuilt.

Like his hometown of Princeville, Antonio Draughn is still recovering from Matthew. His biggest fear, he told WRAL, is losing his sense of home  again.

(I dont like) not having a home to come back to, showing my kids where I used to play and things like that, he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
As U.S. Catholic leaders head to the Vatican to meet with Pope Francis about a growing church abuse crisis, the cardinal leading the delegation has been accused by two people of not doing enough to stop a priest who was arrested this week on sexual abuse charges.

The two people told The Associated Press that they reported the priest and met with Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. One of them says she was promised in a meeting with DiNardo, several years after she first reported abuse, that the priest would be removed from any contact with children, only to discover that the priest remained in active ministry at another parish 70 miles away.

The priest, Manuel LaRosa-Lopez, was arrested Tuesday by police in Conroe, Texas. Both people who spoke to the AP are cooperating with police.

The priest's arrest and allegations that DiNardo kept an abusive priest around children cast a shadow over a Thursday summit at the Vatican between Pope Francis and American bishops and cardinals. DiNardo is leading the delegation, putting him in the position of having to fend off abuse allegations in his own diocese while at the same time calling on the pope to get tougher on clergy abuse.

In addition to his responsibilities in Houston, DiNardo is head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, a position that has made him a prominent figure in the church's response to a new wave of allegations that Catholic leaders covered up sexual abuse. He has been outspoken in his calls for Pope Francis to investigate ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who was removed from his post in July after a credible accusation that he groped a teenager.

DiNardo himself is now facing criticism for his role in handling a priest accused of abusing children.

LaRosa-Lopez, 60, is accused of fondling both people when they were teenagers and he was a priest at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Conroe. He is charged with four counts of indecency with a child. Each count carries a maximum possible sentence of 20 years in prison.

LaRosa-Lopez is now the pastor at St. John Fisher Catholic Church in Richmond while also serving as the archdiocese's episcopal vicar for Hispanics.

The archdiocese issued a statement Wednesday confirming that both people had come forward to report abuse by LaRosa-Lopez, one of them in 2001. The archdiocese said it reported both allegations to the state Child Protective Services, and said it was unaware of any other "allegations of inappropriate conduct involving minors" against the priest. A spokesman for CPS on Wednesday declined to comment, citing confidentiality of the reports. LaRosa-Lopez did not immediately return a phone message left Wednesday.

"To anyone affected by any form of abuse by anyone who represents the Church, the Archdiocese deeply regrets such a fundamental violation of trust, and commits itself to eliminating such unacceptable actions," the archdiocese said.

Both accusers who say they went to DiNardo are now in their 30s. The Associated Press typically does not identify victims in sexual abuse cases, and both people asked that their names be withheld.

One was flown by the church from the West Coast to Houston to meet with DiNardo and the victims' assistance coordinator for the archdiocese. They met at the archdiocese on the afternoon of Aug. 10, just as he was taking on a greater role nationally in responding to the McCarrick saga.

The man wrote down notes from the meeting quickly after leaving, and shared a copy of the notes with AP.

"Cardinal seemed dismissive of situation," the notes read. He also wrote down what he says is a quote from DiNardo: "You should have told us sooner."

"It was a dismissive tone," he recalled. "In the back of my head, I was thinking about his comment. I was so mad afterward."

Both said they had believed their cases would be too old to prosecute under statute of limitations laws. But the Texas Legislature in 2007 removed the statute of limitations for indecency with a child cases. Montgomery County prosecutors say that change means their cases remain eligible to be prosecuted now.

The group Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, has called for the Texas attorney general to investigate the Houston archdiocese and others for whether they covered up sexual abuse in their ranks.

"DiNardo needs to come clean on what he knows," said Michael Norris, a member of SNAP.

Both victims say they were teenagers when LaRosa-Lopez tried to befriend them over a period before initiating physical contact.

The male victim said he became interested as a teenager in joining the clergy and going to seminary. He started to attend Mass and got to know LaRosa-Lopez. Eventually, he got a job where he worked nights at Sacred Heart as an assistant.

He remembered LaRosa-Lopez being known as "touchy-feely," and that the priest's contact with him became more physical over time: first touching on the arm, then hugging, then a kiss on the cheek.

One night, he said, the priest showed him pictures of young seminarians that "he had a lot of fun with," and tried to take the teenager's clothes off and put his hands down his pants. He pushed back and quickly left the residence. He said he reported the incident to church authorities last year. The archdiocese said Wednesday it was "formally presented" with the allegation in August.

The female accuser said LaRosa-Lopez befriended her during her weekly confession at Sacred Heart. "He basically was my only friend," she said.

The female victim declined to detail what LaRosa-Lopez did, saying only that he touched her inappropriately shortly before Easter, after she had turned 16.

She says her father found out what had happened and the family reported it to the church. Church officials told her that LaRosa-Lopez would be moved.

The archdiocese confirmed Wednesday that LaRosa-Lopez was re-assigned in 2001 to another church, St. Francis de Sales, and then moved in 2004 to St. John Fisher, his current assignment. It would not confirm he was moved due to an abuse complaint.

She eventually resumed going to her church with LaRosa-Lopez transferred to a new location.

But in 2010, she saw a copy of the archdiocese's internal newsletter, which announced LaRosa-Lopez's appointment as vicar of Hispanic ministry. She thought there was a chance DiNardo didn't know about her complaint because it had predated his time in Houston.

She contacted the church and started to meet with a therapist paid for by the archdiocese. Eventually, she met with DiNardo and other top clergy in the diocese. She says they told her that after she had come forward, LaRosa-Lopez was sent to a hospital for psychiatric treatment twice and that would no longer be allowed to work with children.

Then LaRosa-Lopez was brought in for about 10 minutes, she confronted him about the abuse and he apologized.

She says she later discovered that LaRosa-Lopez remained at St. John Fisher, in the presence of children.

Of DiNardo, the woman said, "I'm tired of all of his empty words."

"If he's going to go meet with the Pope and pretend that all of this is OK and his diocese is clean, I can't stand it," she said. "I can't be quiet."

The Associated Press asked Tuesday to interview DiNardo and other top leaders at the archdiocese. It also submitted a list of questions about both victims' allegations.

A spokesman for the archdiocese declined the interview requests or to address specific allegations about what DiNardo told the victims.

LaRosa-Lopez was not present at Mass in St. John Fisher on Saturday night or Sunday. A reporter who visited both days saw that a parking spot, marked with a sign reserving the space for "Father Manuel," was empty.

Parishioners were told on Sunday morning Mass that LaRosa-Lopez was "at a retreat."
The Dallas police chief said she has called for a full review and plans to meet with protest leaders after learning about reports that police used pepper-spray projectiles at a demonstration over a black man's death.

Chief U. Renee Hall said in a statement Tuesday that the projectiles, which are called pepper balls and usually contain the chemical in pepper spray, should only be used if there is an immediate threat to the public or if an on-scene commander calls for them to be used. The projectiles irritate the nose and eyes.

Hall said she wants to meet with protest leaders to "address their concerns."

Monday's demonstration came a day after a white Dallas police officer, Amber Guyger, was arrested for manslaughter in the off-duty shooting death of her neighbor, 26-year-old Botham Jean. Authorities have said that Guyger said she mistook Jean's apartment for her own when she fatally shot him last week. She was released on bond.

Demonstrators gathered outside Dallas police headquarters, and several dozen blocked traffic as they marched about half a mile. At one point, police used the pepper-spray projectiles to help control the crowd, according to news reports.

Jean grew up in the Caribbean island nation of St. Lucia before attending college in Arkansas. He graduated from Harding University in 2016 and had been working for accounting firm PwC.

Attorneys for Jean's family have criticized the officer's account of the shooting, saying it contradicted statements from neighbors.

The officer's description of what happened was included in an arrest affidavit prepared by a Texas Ranger and released Monday, shortly after the district attorney announced that the case would be presented to a grand jury, which could decide on more serious charges than manslaughter.

Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Jean's family, said Monday that the affidavit is "very self-serving." Lee Merritt, who also represents the family, called it an attempt to "condone what happened, give her a break."

Guyger, a four-year veteran of the police force, told investigators that she had just ended a 15-hour shift Thursday when she returned in uniform to the South Side Flats apartment complex. She parked on the fourth floor, instead of the third, where she lived, according to the affidavit, possibly suggesting that she was confused or disoriented.

When she put her key in the apartment door, which was unlocked and slightly ajar, it opened, the affidavit said. Inside, the lights were off, and she saw a figure in the darkness that cast a large silhouette across the room, according to the officer's account.

The officer told police that she concluded her apartment was being burglarized and gave verbal commands to the figure, which ignored them. She then drew her weapon and fired twice, the affidavit said.

She called 911 and, when asked where she was, returned to the front door to see she was in the wrong unit, according to the affidavit. Authorities have not released the 911 tapes.

The Dallas County medical examiner's office said Jean died of a gunshot wound to the chest. His death was ruled a homicide.

Merritt said Monday that two independent witnesses have told him they heard knocking on the door in the hallway before the shooting. He said one witness reported hearing a woman's voice saying, "Let me in! Let me in!" Then they heard gunshots, after which one witness said she heard a man's voice say, "Oh my God! Why did you do that?"

Merritt said he believes those were Jean's last words.

Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson emphasized that her office was conducting its own probe, in addition to the investigation by the Texas Rangers. She will have the option of presenting more serious charges to the grand jury.

It's not clear if Guyger has an attorney.

Guyger's blood was drawn at the scene to be tested for alcohol and drugs, according to Hall, but authorities have not released results.

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Florida inmates were discovered to have been using chemically-laced papers as a dangerous new way to get high, officials said Tuesday.

Polk County Sheriffs deputies made the discovery last week during a bust at the county jail, according to FOX 35 Orlando.

People have been spraying the roach poison onto sheets of paper, smuggling it into county jails and giving it to inmates, Sheriff Grady Judd said. The paper is then smoked or eaten by the inmates.

Who would think to do this? When the chemicals are infused on the paper, then they eat it or smoke it, Judd said at a news conference. Are you kidding me?

Several others were also arrested for using a similar method to smuggle K2 and synthetic amphetamines into a Polk County Jail, according to FOX 35 Orlando. In that particular case, Judd said family or friends of the inmates were spraying chemicals onto sheets of paper, including legal documents, letters or Bible verses, and smuggling into the jails.

Deputies discovered the chemically laced papers were being snuck into legal documents when family of the inmates were meeting with attorneys. Judd had a message for the attorneys: The criminals inside are trying to take advantage of you.

The roach spray wasnt discovered on the legal documents in Judds jail, but he said the trend was discovered when deputies investigated further.

We've received information from sources in the jail that said, K2's cool, synthetic amphetamines cool, but what we really like is the Raid! Judd said. There's a nerve agent in this stuff and that's what they're using.

Once the inmates received the laced papers, they would eat them to get high or find small metal pieces to create electrical arcs that would allow the chemical to be smoked, Judd said.

One attorney who was found to be smuggling in the drugs had their visitation privileges suspended for six months, Judd said.
Evergreen State College enrollment plummeted after fallout from the controversial Day of Absence in May 2017 when all white people were asked to leave the campus.

The publicly funded college  committed to social justice  became the poster child of a campus overrun by hyper-political correctness when students shut down the campus and shouted down then-evolutionary biology professor Bret Weinstein for merely questioning the event kicking white people off campus.

Weinstein, who describes himself as deeply progressive, ultimately lost his job and was labeled a racist and white supremacist.

Although just estimates, a representative from Evergreen said they expect around 350 freshman this fall, with a total of 3,000-3,100 total enrollment, both of which do represent significant decreases as compared to before the 2017 unrest.

Its a catastrophic drop, but Im hoping well recover, Evergreen Professor Mike Paros told Fox News.

Advocacy and activism rather than the pursuit of truth and knowledge is being promoted as a way of recruiting desperately needed new students, Paros wrote. Bringing in new faculty or guest speakers with conservative or centrist political perspectives is considered risky and out of the question at the moment. Fear and self-censorship is pervasive among Evergreen faculty, especially under the existing budget crisis.

Paros is the only remaining Evergreen educator on Heterodox Academy, an advocacy group of professors to counteract narrowing of viewpoints on college campuses, and the practicing veterinarian who teaches biological and environmental sciences is offering a new class this fall to help change that.

The class is called Liberal Education in the College Bubble: Crossing the Political and Cultural Divide. He is using the college as a case study to show students how higher education deals with issues of political diversity, free speech, freedom of thought, and censorship.

Paros course description includes a trigger warning: Students who require ideological safe spaces where particular viewpoints are considered offensive may want to seek a different program.

He hopes the class, which is full despite low enrollment overall, will show how Evergreen students are more open to diverse viewpoints than they have been portrayed.

The professor also pointed out that an independent External Review Panel exonerated the president and administrators while blaming Evergreens woes on Bret Weinstein and alt-right agitators prompted one journalist to ask, Who Will the Evergreen Mob Target Next?

EVERGREEN PROFESSOR WHO MADE ANTI-WHITE COMMENTS RESIGNS, GETS $240G SETTLEMENT

Even though Evergreen is the only four-year college in the state of Washington to see a decrease in applications, the schools president, George Bridges, instead of pointing to the race-based protests as the problem, said it is really complex and not attributable to any one factor.

In May, to prepare for the drop in enrollment, Evergreen cut $6 million out of its budget  a little over 10 percent of the total  and laid off 20 faculty and staff, as well as not filling 19 vacant staff positions, the Seattle Times reported.

Evergreen is the states smallest public college, but over the past five years has seen a drop of 1,000 students. In addition to the negative publicity and unsafe environment on campus, some students have said the college was not rigorous enough as their reason for leaving.
Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz addresses a press conference in Bucharest, Romania, on Sept. 11, 2018. Visiting Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz on Tuesday accused some European officials of using "double standards" in their statements. (Xinhua/Cristian Cristel)

BUCHAREST, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz on Tuesday accused some European officials of using "double standards" in their statements.

"We believe that sometimes double standards are used, and so something that is accepted in some countries or may not be so when happening in Romania, Hungary or Poland," Czaputowicz told a joint press conference with his Romanian counterpart Teodor Melescanu at the end of a Romania-Poland-Turkey trilateral meeting.

According to him, Poland has a right to reaffirm its judiciary in line with European standards, and the rule of law or other provisions implemented in Poland are those existing in Western European countries.

The official said that there is no breach of the rule of law or instances in his country in which the values of the European Union (EU) are not respected.

"We disagree with such statements," he said, stressing that "They do not reflect reality."

Czaputowicz stated himself against what he called the attempt to punish some countries on the grounds of non-observance of the rule of law, classifying the "accusations" as "a political tool used by some leaders."

"We will be against the attempts to combine the rule of law with this attempt to punish a region or certain countries," he said, asking rhetorically how one can assess whether the rule of law has been respected when there are actually no objective evaluation mechanisms.

"We believe that the accusation of our countries is a political tool used by some (European) leaders," he stressed again, firmly pointing out that "we will be against the punishment of Hungary or Romania for using this mechanism because it is not justified."

The European project is in "mortal danger" because a number of nations want to destroy it, budget Commissioner Gunther Oettinger claimed a week ago in Brussels, picking out four countries within the EU, namely Poland, Hungary, Romania and Italy, want to "weaken or even destroy" it.

In response, the Romanian foreign minister wrote on his social media page last Wednesday that the statements "are promoting discourse lines which contradict the constructive attitude of a European Commissioner" and "they don't have a coverage based on reality."

[ Editor: Zhang Zhou ]
Hurricane Florences potentially devastating winds and rain could be like a Mike Tyson punch when the storm slams into the Carolina coast later this week.

The hurricane, which was downgraded to a Category 3 early Wednesday afterrnoon, remains strong as it continues its approach to the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region with maximum sustained winds of 125 mph, the National Hurricane Center said in its 2 p.m. advisory. Florence was 435 miles southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina, and moving northwest at 16 mph.

It's expected to go back up to a Category 4 by Thursday morning.

Steve Goldstein, FEMA's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration liaison, said Wednesday morning that the agency expected the storm to hit late Thursday or early Friday morning.

HURRICANE FLORENCE'S PATH: TRACK THE STORM HERE

Jeff Byard, associate administrator for the Office of Response and Recovery at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), urged residents in the mandatory evacuation zones across the region to pack up and leave the area sooner rather than later.

Its a very dangerous storm  heed the warnings and evacuate if you are in one of those zones. Today is the day, he said Wednesday morning. This is going to be a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolina coast.

According to Fox News Senior Meteorologist Janice Dean, Florence could stall upon reaching the Carolina coast and make a slight shift south once it makes landfall, becoming a major flooding event.

HURRICANE FLORENCE COULD BRING CATASTROPHIC STORM SURGES: WHAT ARE THEY, AND HOW CAN YOU PREPARE?

In addition to the hurricane-strength winds blowing ashore Friday, Florence has the potential to bring a storm surge upwards of 6 feet in parts of the coastline including up to 13 feet from Cape Fear north to Cape Lookout.

The hurricane could also produce heavy and excessive rainfall  up to 40 inches in isolated areas in the Carolinas and anywhere between 6 to 12 inches elsewhere in the Appalachians and Mid-Atlantic region.

It will also pass directly over two nuclear power plants -- the Brunswick Nuclear Plant, which is located 30 miles south of Wilmington, as well as the Shearon Harris Nuclear Plant in New Hill, about 23 miles from Raleigh.

Flooding well inland could wreck environmental havoc by washing over industrial waste sites and hog farms.

HURRICANE FLORENCE EMERGENCY CONTACTS TO NOTE AS 'EXTREMELY DANGEROUS' STORM HITS EAST COAST

On Wednesday morning, President Trump urged caution to residents refusing to evacuate coastal towns, saying Florence is bigger than anticipated.

Hurricane Florence is looking bigger than anticipated, Trump tweeted. It will be arriving soon. FEMA, First Responders and Law Enforcement are supplied and ready. Be safe!

He then released a video urging residents in affected areas to get out of its way.

Dont play games with it  its a big one, may be as big as theyve seen, Trump added.

Earlier this week Trump declared states of emergency for North and South Carolina and Virginia, opening the way for federal aid. All three states ordered mass evacuations along the coast. But getting out of harms way has proved difficult.

PICTURES: PREPARATIONS FOR HURRICANE FLORENCE

Local resident Michelle Stober loaded up valuables on Tuesday at her home on Wrightsville Beach to drive back to her primary residence in Cary, N.C. Finding fuel for the journey was tough.

"This morning I drove around for an hour looking for gas in Cary. Everyone was sold out," she said.

People across the region rushed to buy bottled water and other supplies, board up their homes, pull their boats out of the water and get out of town.

Long lines formed at service stations, and some started running out of gas as far west as Raleigh, with bright yellow bags, signs or rags placed over the pumps to show they were out of order. Some store shelves were picked clean.

"There's no water. There's no juices. There's no canned goods," Kristin Harrington said as she shopped at a Walmart in Wilmington.

AS HURRICANE FLORENCE BARRELS TOWARD US, 'WORST CASE SCENARIO' SIMULATION OF CATEGORY 4 STORM SHOWS CATASTROPHIC DEVASTATION

Despite all that, 65-year-old Liz Browning Fox plans to ride the storm out in the Outer Banks village of Buxton, N.C., despite a mandatory evacuation order. Her 88-year-old mother refused to evacuate and will stay with her.

"Everyone who is staying here is either a real old-timer, someone who doesn't know where would be better, or someone involved in emergency operations one way or another," said Fox.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The family of the Dallas police officer who shot and killed a black neighbor in his apartment have been forced to deny they are racists after social media photos surfaced showing a family member appearing to make hand gestures that have been linked to white supremacy.

Amber Guyger, who shot and killed Botham Jean last week after she entered the wrong apartment, faces manslaughter charges. An arrest affidavit obtained by Fox News said Botham allegedly ignored Guygers verbal commands before she opened fire.

Soon after the shooting, social media users began questioning three photos of Guyger and her family, the Dallas Morning News reported. One photo appears to show Guygers brother-in-law, Noe Garza, making the white power hand gesture. Another photo shows Garza holding up an "L" and "W" sign.

Garzas hand gestures show some similarities to, but do not exactly match, the peckerwood and white power signs that have been adopted by white supremacists, according to the Anti-Defamation Leagues list of hate symbols. The W sign combined with the other gestures have also been associated with the white supremacist prison gang.

FEMALE DALLAS COP WHO KILLED MAN IN HIS HOME CHARGED WITH MANSLAUGHTER

The third image showed Guygers mother wearing an All Lives Matter shirt  a slogan often seen as going against the Black Lives Matter movement.

In an interview with the newspaper, Garza said the hand gestures resembled a six and a nine. He denied that his family has any connections to white supremacists or supported their messages, adding that he hated "the fact that I have to prove I'm not racist."

"My last name is Garza. I'm a Mexican," Guygers brother-in-law said. "I don't care about your nationality. I don't care about the color of your skin. We all bleed red."

"None of these are racist photos," he added. "I am not racist."

"It's was his [my father-in-laws] 69th birthday, so it was a 69," Garza explained. "That's all it was."

He said the second photo was of him making an L and W in honor of one of his favorite band Lagwagon.

As for the third picture, Guygers sister Alana Guyger said the shirt was a gift to their mother following the 2016 ambush that left five Dallas police officers dead.

Guyger had ended a 15-hour shift last Thursday when she returned in uniform to the South Side Flats apartment complex. She parked on the fourth floor, instead of the third, where she lived, according to the affidavit filed for the officers arrest warrant, possibly suggesting that she was confused or disoriented.

ARREST AFFIDAVIT OF DALLAS POLICE OFFICER WHO KILLED NEIGHBOR SHEDS LIGHT ON CONTROVERSY

She entered the apartment after realizing the door was unlocked and slightly ajar. Guyger saw a figure in the darkness, gave verbal commands because she believed her apartment was being burglarized.

She then drew her weapon and fired twice, the affidavit said.

When she turned on the lights, she realized she was in the wrong unit, according to the affidavit, which appeared to be based almost entirely upon the officers account.

Jeans family disputed the account detailed in the arrest warrant affidavit. Lawyers for Jeans family also questioned why it took three days for Guyger to be charged and why she was so quick to use deadly force in her encounter with 26-year-old Jean.

Fox News' Frank Miles contributed to this report.
Hurricane Florence's heavy rains could cause an environmental disaster in North Carolina, where waste from hog manure pits, coal ash dumps and other industrial sites could wash into homes and threaten drinking water supplies.

Computer models predict more than 3 feet of rain in the eastern part of the state, a fertile low-lying plain veined by brackish rivers with a propensity for escaping their banks. Longtime locals don't have to strain their imaginations to foresee what rain like that can do. It's happened before.

In September 1999, Hurricane Floyd came ashore near Cape Fear as a Category 2 storm that dumped about 2 feet of water on a region already soaked days earlier by Hurricane Dennis. The result was the worst natural disaster in state history, a flood that killed dozens of people and left whole towns underwater, their residents stranded on rooftops.

The bloated carcasses of hundreds of thousands of hogs, chickens and other drowned livestock bobbed in a nose-stinging soup of fecal matter, pesticides, fertilizer and gasoline so toxic that fish flopped helplessly on the surface to escape it. Rescue workers smeared Vick's Vapo-Rub under their noses to try to numb their senses against the stench.

Florence is forecast to make landfall in the same region as a much stronger storm.

"This one is pretty scary," said Jamie Kruse, director of the Center for Natural Hazards Research at East Carolina University. "The environmental impacts will be from concentrated animal feeding operations and coal ash pits. Until the system gets flushed out, there's going to be a lot of junk in the water."

North Carolina has roughly 2,100 industrial-scale pork farms containing more than 9 million hogs  typically housed in long metal sheds with grated floors designed to allow the animals' urine and feces to fall through and flow into nearby open-air pits containing millions of gallons of untreated sewage.

During Floyd, dozens of these lagoons either breached or were overtopped by floodwaters, spilling the contents. State taxpayers ended up buying out and closing 43 farms located in floodplains.

To prepare for Florence, the North Carolina Pork Council says its members have pumped down lagoon levels to absorb at least 2 feet of rain. Low-lying farms have been moving their hogs to higher ground.

"Our farmers and others in the pork industry are working together to take precautions that will protect our farms, our animals and our environment," said Brandon Warren, the pork council's president and a hog farmer. "The preparations for a hurricane began long before the past few hours or days. Our farmers take hurricane threats extremely seriously."

The Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday that it would be monitoring nine toxic waste cleanup sites near the Carolinas coast for potential flooding. More than a dozen such Superfund sites in and around Houston flooded last year in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, with spills of potentially hazardous materials reported at two.

Also of concern are more than two dozen massive coal ash pits operated by Duke Energy, the state's primary electricity provider. The gray ash that remains after coal is burned contains potentially harmful amounts of mercury, arsenic and lead.

Since power plants need vast amounts of water to generate steam, their unlined waste pits are located along lakes and rivers. Some of the pits were inundated during past storms, including during Floyd and Hurricane Matthew in 2016.

After a 2014 spill at a Duke plant coated 70 miles of the Dan River in toxic gray sludge, state regulators forced the Charlotte-based company to begin phasing out its coal ash pits by 2029. Because that work was already underway, wastewater levels inside the ash ponds have been falling, Duke Energy spokesman Bill Norton said Tuesday.

"We're more prepared than ever," said Norton, adding that crews will be monitoring water levels at the pits throughout the storm.

The company is also preparing for potential shutdown of nuclear reactors at least two hours before the arrival of hurricane-force winds. Duke operates 11 reactors at six sites in the Carolinas, including the Brunswick Nuclear Plant located south of Wilmington near the mouth of the Cape Fear River.

The Brunswick plant's two reactors are of the same design as those in Fukushima, Japan, that exploded and leaked radiation following a 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Following that disaster, federal regulators required all U.S. nuclear plants to perform upgrades to better withstand earthquakes and flooding.

Duke Energy did not respond to requests for information about specific changes made at Brunswick, other than to say emergency generators and pumps will remove stormwater at the plant if it floods. The company issued assurances this week that it is ready for Florence, which is predicted to pack winds of up to 140 miles per hour and a 13-foot storm surge.

"They were safe then. They are even safer now," said Kathryn Green, a Duke spokeswoman, referring to the post-Fukushima improvements. "We have backups for backups for backups."

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Associated Press writers Seth Borenstein in Washington and Alex Derosier in Raleigh, North Carolina, contributed to this report.

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Follow AP investigative reporter Michael Biesecker at http://twitter.com/mbieseck .

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For the latest on Hurricane Florence, visit https://www.apnews.com/tag/Hurricanes .
A Florida woman was arrested Monday after she allegedly threw hot sauce into her husbands eyes during an argument, police said.

Esmeralda Lopez, 41, was arguing with her husband inside their Lacoochee home when she struck him in the face and poured the condiment into his eyes, according to Pasco County sheriffs deputies.

The dousing of Lopezs husbands eyes was done against the victims will and without his consent, FOX 13 Tampa Bay reported, citing an arrest affidavit.

FLORIDA HUSBAND STABBED WIFE WITH BOX CUTTER FOR PUTTING 'VOODOO' CURSE ON HIM POLICE SAY

The husband, who wasnt identified, was treated for injuries at a hospital. Deputies said Lopez admitted to arguing with her husband, but denied injuring him, according to the station.

Lopez was charged with domestic battery.
The man who-- along with his girlfriend-- stands accused of spending $400,000 they raised for a homeless veteran was arrested Monday in New Jersey on an unrelated outstanding warrant, authorities said.

Mark DAmico, 39, was taken into custody at his home and brought to the Burlington County Jail, the Florence Township Police Department wrote on Facebook. DAmico was released Tuesday after posting $500 bail, WPIX-TV in New York City reported.

Police confirmed the outstanding warrant was unrelated to the GoFundMe investigation.

The warrant originated from an October 2017 traffic stop, where police say he allegedly drove with a suspended license, failed to turn his license over while suspended and drove a vehicle with a broken taillight, Philadelphia news station WPVI-TV reported.

DAmico failed to appear in court for the citation and was arrested in May 2018, the station reported. He posted bail, but again reportedly failed to go to court in July. Police said they reissued the warrant and arrested him Monday.

DAmico and his girlfriend, Katelyn McClure, 28, are under investigation for allegedly mismanaging donations raised through GoFundMe for homeless veteran Johnny Bobbitt, who used his last $20 to buy McClure gas when she was stranded on Interstate 95 in Philadelphia last year.

D'Amico and McClure have earlier denied wrongdoing or misusing the cash, saying theyre wary of giving Bobbitt large sums because they feared hed buy drugs.

Ernest Badway, the couples lawyer, said earlier on Monday that they could be charged in the case.

"(Since) it is expected that one or both of the defendants will likely be indicted, my firm and I will no longer be able to continue our representation of them in this matter," Badway wrote.

Chris Fallon, Bobbitt's attorney, earlier said he had gotten about $75,000 of the cash. But Badway has said Bobbitt got about $200,000.

GoFundMe announced last week that it will ensure Bobbitt gets the full amount he is owed, whether or not the civil suit recovers any money, NJ.com reported.

No charges have been brought in the GoFundMe dispute.

Fox News Amy Lieu contributed to this report.
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Developing now, Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018

Hurricane Florence could become a once in a lifetime storm and cause historic flooding, some meteorologists warn, as officials in Virginia and North and South Carolina have ordered mass evacuations of more than a million people

A Rudy Giuliani-backed former police officer seeking to become New Hampshire's first black congressman won the state's GOP primary while Sen. Bernie Sanders' son was defeated decisively in the Democratic contest

Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has warned that Republican lawmakers in hotly contested races will be in a 'knife fight' to hold on to their Senate seats in the midterm elections

A war of words between fired FBI official Peter Strzok and a top Republican lawmaker has erupted after newly-surfaced emails showed Strzok discussing a 'media leak' strategy against President Trump

Pope Francis will meet with a delegation of U.S. cardinals and bishops at the Vatican on Thursday to discuss new sex scandal revelations that have rocked the Catholic Church

THE LEAD STORY  'THIS STORM IS A MONSTER': As Hurricane Florence, a Category 4 storm, drove toward the East Coast, lawmakers from three states in the monster storms path ordered mass evacuations for more than a million people Tuesday ... North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, whose state  alongside South Carolina and Virginia  is forecast to see life-threatening storm surge and damaging winds, warned residents of the potential extreme conditions. Forecasters said Florence was expected to blow ashore late Thursday or early Friday, then slow down and dump 1 to 2 feet of rain that could cause flooding well inland and wreak environmental havoc by washing over industrial waste sites and hog farms.

President Trump on Tuesday was given an update on Florence by the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and vowed that the government was prepared to respond to the impending hurricane, adding that the publics safety was his absolute highest priority. Trump has declared states of emergency for the Carolinas, as well as Virginia, and canceled campaign events Thursday and Friday in anticipation of the storm.

WILL A BLUE NEW HAMPSHIRE SEAT TURN RED? - A Rudy Giuliani-backed congressional candidate seeking to make history as New Hampshire's first black congressman emerged from a crowded field to win the state's GOP primary on Tuesday, as Sen. Bernie Sanders' son was trounced by a large margin in the Democratic contest ... Eddie Edwards, a Navy veteran, won convincingly over state Sen. Andy Sanborn, who had the endorsement of Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul. Giuliani called Edwards a strong conservative who believes in low taxes and is a supporter of the America First agenda of President Trump.

Democratic Rep. Carol Shea-Porters retirement has made the New Hampshire seat much-coveted among Republicans. There had not been an open seat in New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District in more than 16 years, and fittingly, 16 candidates vied on Tuesday to fill it, including 11 Democrats and 5 Republicans.

The district, which Fox News ranks as leaning Democratic in November, is considered a key potential battleground in November and a rare opportunity for the GOP to snatch a blue seat. On the Democratic side, Chris Pappas, a former state lawmaker who is serving his third term on the governor's Executive Council, won the party nod. Pappas, who is openly gay, topped Maura Sullivan, a U.S. Marine and Iraq War veteran who served in the Department of Veterans Affairs and at the Pentagon during the Obama administration. Both finished well ahead of Sanders' son, 49 -year-old Levi, who did not pick up his father's endorsement.

MCCONNELL ADMITS SENATE MIDTERM 'BRAWL': Majority leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday said Republican candidates in the most competitive races across the country are in "a knife fight" to hold the Senate ... McConnell, speaking to reporters in Louisville, Ky., said it's "just a brawl in every one of those places." The Kentucky Republican said he hopes "when the smoke clears we'll still have a majority in the Senate." He named nine states, including Tennessee and Indiana, as places where Senate races are "dead even."

Not long ago, 2018 was expected to be an easier year for Senate Republicans: Democrats were supposed to be playing defense as Senate candidates ran in conservative states that President Trump handily won two years ago. But Real Clear Politics lists eight Senate races as toss-ups: Texas, Arizona, Indiana, Montana, Missouri, Florida, Tennessee, Nevada and North Dakota. Some involve red state incumbent Democrats: Joe Donnelly in Indiana, Claire McCaskill in Missouri and Heidi Heitkamp in North Dakota.

MARK MEADOWS VS. PETER STRZOK: A top Republican congressman and fired FBI agent Peter Strzok's lawyer traded scathing, no-holds-barred accusations of deliberate dishonesty on Tuesday, one day after newly unearthed text messages showed Strzok discussing a "media leak strategy" with the Justice Department in April 2017 ... The texts were first outlined in a letter sent by Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on Monday. In one of the messages, dated April 10, Strzok tells former FBI attorney Lisa Page, "I had literally just gone to find this phone to tell you I want to talk to you about media leak strategy with DOJ before you go."

According to Strzok's lawyer, Meadows wildly misinterpreted those texts when he told Rosenstein that they "should lead a reasonable person to question whether there was a sincere desire to investigate wrongdoing or to place derogatory information in the media to justify a continued probe."

The term media leak strategy in Mr. Strzoks text refers to a Department-wide initiative to detect and stop leaks to the media," Aitan Goelman, Strzok's attorney, said Tuesday. The president and his enablers are once again peddling unfounded conspiracy theories to mislead the American people.

CATHOLIC CHURCH FACING ITS SINS: A delegation of U.S. cardinals and bishops is going to the Vatican Thursday to meet with Pope Francis over a sex abuse and cover-up scandal in America roiling the Catholic Church ... In addition, embattled Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl, who is facing calls to step down over his handling of sex-abuse cases, revealed he will travel to Rome to meet with the pope "very soon" to discuss his possible resignation -- which the cardinal had proposed two years ago. Vatican spokesman Greg Burke said Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, would meet with Francis on Thursday in the Apostolic Palace, along with Cardinal Sean OMalley, Francis top sex abuse adviser. Also involved are two officials from the U.S. conference, Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez and Monsignor Brian Bransfield, according to a Vatican statement.

DiNardo has said he wants Francis to authorize a full-fledged Vatican investigation into ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who was removed as cardinal in July after a credible accusation he groped a teenager. DiNardo also has said recent accusations that top Vatican officials  including the pope  covered up for McCarrick deserve answers.

AS SEEN ON FOX NEWS

JOE'S NEW LOW: "He has the Trump Derangement Syndrome now so bad that hes willing to embarrass himself so severely by writing something so insane. You dont like Trump? Fine. You dont like questions about his character? Fine. Youre equating him now with potentially being worse than terrorists? Youve completely lost your mind."  Jedediah Bila, on "The Five," blasting MSNBC's Joe Scarborough for his commentary on President Trump on a day reflecting on the 17 years since the 9/11 attacks. WATCH

DEEP STATE TRAP: "The set-up narrative is very credible if you look at the evidence."  Former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino, on "The Story with Martha MacCallum," arguing that it is increasingly apparent that former Trump associate George Papadopoulos is not a conspirator in alleged collusion activity but instead "part of a set-up" to hurt President Trump. WATCH

TRENDING

'Nothing criminal' about suspects in Novichok poisoning, Putin says.

Apple's newest iPhone could have big screen and big price.

Inside the FBIs secret bomb lab: Unprecedented access to elite forensic team and the IEDs that shaped global security.

Leaked Google employee's email reveals effort to boost Latino vote, surprise that some voted for Trump.

Eagle perches on Minnesota 9/11 flag display: See the photo.

THE SWAMP

Activists raise $1M to pressure Sen. Collins to vote against Kavanaugh, report says.

Four impeached West Virginia justices to face trials.

Judicial Watch sues Justice Dept. for records from Anthony Weiner laptop.

Chicago sets up universal income task force as city seeks ways to tackle poverty.

ACROSS THE NATION

Elizabeth Smart blasts kidnapper's pending release: 'It is incomprehensible.

Founder of GoFundMe account for homeless man is arrested on traffic warrant: report.

Washington state in legal battle with six states after it refuses to build coal export terminal.

Border Patrol in Texas nabs more than 130 illegals in just over 24 hours.

MINDING YOUR BUSINESS

U.S. businesses to lobby against Trump's tariffs.

Tesla is 'no longer investable' due to Elon Musk's antics, firm says.

TV ratings company Nielsen to explore sale.

Home prices rising fastest in these states.

Wilson Sporting Goods maker gets $5.3B offer from Chinese firm.

Americans are making this big financial mistake.

FOX NEWS OPINION

John Stossel: Hey, San Francisco and New York  Dont kill scooters. Let's see where they take us.

Dr. Marc Siegel: Free tuition at medical schools can improve health care.

Sen. Ted Cruz: Will Texas prevent us from recognizing the heroes of the Alamo?

HOLLYWOOD SQUARED

CBS anchor Gayle King calls on network to release findings of Les Moonves sex misconduct probe.

Louis C.K. called Roseanne Barr after her firing, says close friend Norm Macdonald.

Mike Rowe says Nike should have honored 9/11 victim Tom Burnett.

DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THIS?

Future Mars colonies? Scientists sketch out research bases that could take root on the Red Planet.

'Mysterious radio bursts' in outer space detected by alien-hunting artificial intelligence.

Second monkeypox case recorded in England: report.

STAY TUNED

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On Facebook:

Check out 'FOX News Update,' our new Facebook-exclusive news program!

On FOX News:

FOX & Friends, 6 a.m. ET: North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and FEMA Director Brock Long on preparations for Hurricane Florence; a preview of Apple's unveiling of its new iPhone. Other special guests include: Tomi Lahren; Ken Starr; Eric Trump.

The Daily Briefing with Dana Perino, 2 p.m. ET: Special guests: Bob Woodward and former Secretary of State John Kerry.

On FOX Business:

Mornings with Maria, 6 a.m. ET: Special guests include: House Majority Whip Steve Scalise; Jonathan McNamara, red Cross spokesman; Rep. Joe Wilson.

Varney & Co., 9 a.m. ET: Rep. Jim Jordan; Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers; Leo Gerard, United Steelworkers president.

Cavuto: Coast to Coast, Noon ET: Sen. Chuck Grassley.

The Intelligence Report, 2 p.m. ET: Capri Cafaro, executive in residence at American University School of Public Affairs.

On FOX News Radio:

The FOX News Rundown podcast: President Trumps attorney Rudy Giuliani joins the podcast to discuss the anonymous New York Times op-ed and Bob Woodwards new book, Fear. Hurricane Florence looms off the coast of the Carolinas. FOX News' Eben Brown and FOX News meteorologist Adam Klotz discuss the extremely dangerous potential impact of this "monster" storm. Plus, commentary by "Media Buzz" host Howard Kurtz.

Want the FOX News Rundown sent straight to your mobile device? Subscribe through Apple Podcasts, Google Play, and Stitcher.

The Brian Kilmeade Show, 9 a.m. ET: Martha MacCallum and Harris Faulkner on the top headlines of the day. New York Post columnist Michael Goodwin on Obama vs. Trump. Brad Meltzer on his new book on Neil Armstrong.

The Tom Shillue Show, 3 p.m. ET: Podcast star Hitha Herzog and comedian Ryan Reiss join Tom Shillue's nighty panel to discuss Norm Macdonald's recent comments about the #MeToo movement and the latest news of the day!

#OnThisDay

1987: Reports surface that Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden had borrowed, without attribution, passages of a speech by British Labour Party leader Neil Kinnock for one of his own campaign speeches. (The Kinnock report, along with other damaging revelations, would prompted Biden to drop his White House bid.)

1977: South African black student leader and anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko, 30, dies while in police custody, triggering an international outcry.

1959: The TV Western series "Bonanza" premieres on NBC.

FOX News First is compiled by FOX News' Bryan Robinson. Thank you for joining us! Enjoy your day! We'll see you in your inbox first thing Thursday morning.
A teen in Georgia was praised by officials with the Cobb County Police Department for his quick thinking after two of his Target co-workers were allegedly stabbed over the weekend by a robber, police said.

Mario Alexander, 17, was instrumental in saving a life at a local Target store, the police department wrote in a statement on Facebook, which had more than 2,000 reactions and 600 shares as of Wednesday afternoon.

FAMILY OF DALLAS COP WHO FATALLY SHOT NEIGHBOR SAID THEY ARE NOT RACIST AFTER PHOTOS SURFACE ON SOCIAL MEDIA

On Sunday evening, Alexander noticed that two of his coworkers had been stabbed and cut by an escaped robber and rushed to their assistance, the police department said. One employee was bleeding profusely from a stab wound on his arm, while the other had suffered a neck wound.

Using the materials at his disposal -- which included his work shirt -- Alexander created a tourniquet to stop the bleeding on the first employees arm. He then used gauze to apply pressure to his other coworkers neck. Alexander stayed with the two workers as they waited for authorities and medical personnel to arrive, according to the police department.

Alexander is reportedly an explorer corporal with the Cobb County Police Explorer Program, which trains high-school students in basic first aid knowledge and police work, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

Corporal Alexander credits the training he has received as a Cobb County Police Explorer for preparing him for this event," the police department wrote, praising the 17-year-old for his speedy response. "Among the various training they receive regarding police work in general, Explorers also receive specific training on applying tourniquets to wounds that might otherwise result in massive amounts of blood loss and possibly death."

PREGNANT MOM OF 3 KILLED IN CRASH WITH PROFESSIONAL BOXER SUSPECTED OF DRUNK DRIVING

His actions more than exemplify our commitment and dedication to public safety, the police department added.

Following the incident, a 27-year-old man was arrested on two counts of aggravated assault and one count of armed robbery, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Harvards billion-dollar investment arm has come under fire for land conflicts and environmental destruction in developing countries spanning the globe, a damning new report has concluded.

The Ivy League schools Harvard Management Company (HMC) has spent around $1 billion accumulating more than 2 million acres of farmland around the world.

The diverse portfolio accrued by the group has included vineyards in California, dairy farms in New Zealand and operations producing cotton, soybeans and sugar cane in countries including Brazil, South Africa, Australia, Russia and Ukraine.

But the report, released by the activist groups GRAIN, based in Barcelona, and Sao Paulo-based Network for Social Justice and Human rights, charges that HMC's farmland acquisitions were undertaken without proper due diligence and have contributed to the displacement and harassment of traditional communities, environmental destruction and conflicts over water.

The report claims that the aggressive acquisitions were particularly dire in Brazil, where the fund has bought more than 700,000 acres of land in the Cerrado region, which contains 5 percent of the planets biodiversity.

One of Harvard Universitys massive industrial soy plantations destroyed a small Brazilian village  once known for lush savannahs and abundant waters  now facing new health problems from pesticides being aerially sprayed on the farms and blown into homes with polluted water sources drying up from deforestation and irrigation.

HARVARD NEVER CONSIDERED ELIZABETH WARREN AS NATIVE AMERICAN IN HIRING PROCESS, REPORT SAYS

We are here, afraid of dying of thirst. If only these projects would stop, water would come back. But they dont stop. No, said Palmerina Ferreira Lima, a 77-year-old woman from the village of Melancias. They will probably stop when the river is all dried up.

Harvard Universitys investments have been the subject of controversy before  from fossil fuels, private prisons and companies connected to Israel  but this time its from little-known farmland investments that span the globe, which the groups say should be a cautionary tale to other institutions.

The risks Harvards fund managers took have not paid off financially for the university and have instead left it with a legacy of land and water conflicts to deal with, the activists write in the report, which included a year-long investigation of tax returns and local property records, as well as on-the-ground interviews.

HARVARD UNIVERSITY CLASS FOCUSES ON 'OMNIPRESENT' FECES IN FRENCH LITERATURE

An overseer of the fund, Kat Taylor, resigned in protest in May, calling HMCs endowment opaque funds and saying the Ivy League school failed to lead compared to its peers because of land purchases that may not respect indigenous rights, water holdings that threaten the human right to water, and investments at odds with the safety of children and first responders.

The report calls on Harvards endowment fund to cease all its investments in farmlands, take immediate action to resolve all land conflicts and adequately compensate communities for damages.

HMC CEO Narv Navekar, in a letter one year ago, wrote that the university is moving toward a generalist investment model, pointing out that some of the natural resource programs have significant challenges and will be changed incrementally in a multi-year process.

HMC spokesman, Patrick McKiernan, told Fox News that Harvard is in the middle of repositioning their investment portfolio with a focus on environmental, social and governance issues.

We have sold a number of assets and are considering divestment from others, he said. The team has also instituted a more proactive approach to working with managers of new and remaining assets  a partnership that provides more oversight and ensures that we can leave the land and community better than when we first invested.
Its not a professional move, its a desperate move, said Crystal Cross as she looked at furniture loaded into a rental truck outside her waterfront home here.

We loaded a U-Haul with a three bedroom house in under 18 hours yesterday, Cross said. Nothing was wrapped in bubble wrap. Its just trying to get it out of harms way.

Cross home faces Banks Channel, one of two waterways separating her barrier island community from North Carolinas mainland. The house has taken on as much as four feet of water in previous storms.

Anxious to protect her property from a potentially catastrophic Hurricane Florence, Cross said she and a neighbor drove up and down the island looking for anyone working with tools.

A foreman at a construction site gave her five pieces of plywood. And a custom home builder agreed to help her install the boards over her windows.

Ever since Sunday, its been nonstop, said Sean Swain, co-owner of Coastal Cypress Building Company. Our phone doesnt stop ringing.

Faced with a mandatory evacuation order, Wrightsville Beach residents have been eager to secure their property and get off the island before weather conditions begin to deteriorate.

In addition to hammering plywood onto windows, Swain and his employees have been helping residents move furniture.

A lot of people have stuff in their garages that theyve got to get up multiple floors, Swain said. So, weve just been helping with whatever we can. Its not just the windows.

Swain said hes glad to help people in need, but much prefers custom building to storm prep.

We dont want to make money off of peoples misery, he said. Ive been in this community for 25 years and I dont want landmarks to get taken off. I dont want something to happen to this house.
Hurricane Florences potentially devastating winds are generating enormous waves as high as 83 feet as it continues to make its way toward the East Coast and insurers predict it will become the costliest such storm to ever hit the continental U.S.

The National Hurricane Center said Wednesday the massive waves were produced by being trapped along with very strong winds moving in the same direction of the storms motion. The center said the waves were measured by satellite.

HURRICANE FLORENCE'S PATH: TRACK THE STORM HERE

As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, Florence was downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane, but it is expected to go back to a Category 4 by Thursday morning. The storm was about 435 miles southeast of Wilmington, N.C., and moving northwest at about 16 mph.

The National Hurricane Center said the hurricanes peak winds have decreased slightly to 125 mph but the size of the wind field has increased to outwards of 70 miles from the center..

Forecasters predict the storm will make landfall late Thursday night or sometime Friday.

According to Fox News Senior Meteorologist Janice Dean, current forecast puts Florence stalling upon reaching the Carolina coast before making a slight shift south and barreling down South Carolina. She said it will become a major flooding event.

The shift south and west will encompass more of South Carolina and western North Carolina. The National Weather Center said Florence will likely be the storm of a lifetime for portions of the Carolina coast.

HURRICANE FLORENCE COULD BRING CATASTROPHIC STORM SURGES: WHAT ARE THEY, AND HOW CAN YOU PREPARE?

In addition to the hurricane-strength winds blowing ashore Friday, Florence has the potential to bring a storm surge upwards of 6 feet in parts of the coastline including up to 13 feet from Cape Fear north to Cape Lookout.

The hurricane could also produce heavy and excessive rainfall  up to 40 inches in isolated areas in the Carolinas and anywhere between 6 to 12 inches elsewhere in the Appalachians and Mid-Atlantic region.

It will also pass directly over two nuclear power plants -- the Brunswick Nuclear Plant, which is located 30 miles south of Wilmington, as well as the Shearon Harris Nuclear Plant in New Hill, about 23 miles from Raleigh.

HURRICANE FLORENCE EMERGENCY CONTACTS TO NOTE AS 'EXTREMELY DANGEROUS' STORM HITS EAST COAST

Analytics firm CoreLogic predicts that the damage from Florence could be more than $170 billion  making it the most expensive hurricane to hit the continental U.S.

Hurricanes Katrina and Harvey, which decimated parts of the Gulf states and Texas in 2005 and 2017 respectively, cost more than $125 billion. Hurricane Sandy, which hit the Mid-Atlantic and New England areas in 2012, came in at $65 billion, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Authorities, including President Trump and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), are urging residents in the Carolinas as well as parts of Virginia and Georgia to evacuate as the storm continues its path.

Jeff Byard, FEMA associate administrator for the Office of Response and Recovery, called Florence a very dangerous storm.

This is going to be a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolina coast, he warned.

EXTREMELY DANGEROUS HURRICANE FLORENCE TO BE A MIKE TYSON PUNCH TO CAROLINA COAST

Trump declared states of emergency for North and South Carolina and Virginia, opening the way for federal aid. All three states ordered mass evacuations along the coast.

On Wednesday morning, the president urged those in the path of Florence to get out of its way.

Dont play games with it, he added. Its a big one.

On Wednesday, people across the region rushed to buy bottled water and other supplies, board up their homes, pull their boats out of the water and get out of town.

Forecasters with the National Hurricane Center said that while Florence is expected to slow down considerably by late Thursday and into Friday, it will still be an extremely dangerous major hurricane when it makes landfall.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Arken Imirbaki, vice chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, attends a reception celebrating the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic

[ Editor: WPY ]
A Kentucky deputy responding to a complaint at a highway rest stop overnight Tuesday was hospitalized after a shootout with a suspect, reports said.

The unidentified Scott County Sheriff deputys condition remains unclear, Lexington station WLEX-TV reported. The suspect was reportedly killed in the exchange at the rest stop off Interstate 75 in Georgetown.

Kentucky State Police told local station WKYT-TV that the deputy was responding to a complaint along with federal agents.

A police investigation is ongoing.

This is a developing story. Check back for details.
A Louisiana woman stopped a knife-wielding man who was attempting to rape her by biting his genitals, police said.

John Patton, 54, is accused of luring an unidentified woman he met on the dating website Plenty of Fish to his home and raping her. The 50-year-old victim told investigators she met up with Patton after they chatted on the dating site for a few weeks, NOLA.com reported.

The duo initially agreed to meet at a daiquiri shop Friday evening, but Patton asked the woman to come to his home in Westwego so he can introduce his sister to her, police said. The woman went into Pattons apartment and down the hallway where he said his sister was standing.

When she was turning to leave, Patton allegedly placed his hand over her mouth, pulled her into a bedroom and "implied he wanted to have sex," police said. She told police she agreed to have sex with him out of fear for her life.

The woman said she found her first chance to escape when Patton demanded oral sex after he was unable to perform. She allegedly bit Pattons genitals and ran from the bedroom without clothes on, NOLA.com reported. She then barricaded herself in the corner of the house using a coffee table after realizing the doors required a separate key to be unlocked.

INDIANA WOMAN PLANNED ATTACK AT PARK TO FULFILL 'RAPE FANTASY': REPORT

"She was just cowering in the corner with the table. He approached several times (with a knife), and she fought him off with it," Westwego police spokesman Lt. Eric Orlando told NOLA.com.

Patton attempted to stab the woman with a knife several times. She disarmed Patton the first time and deflected the other blows with the table. The two were in a standoff for hours until Patton agreed to hand over her clothes and items and let her go around 9 a.m. Saturday.

"He opened the door and told her, 'You need to leave,'" Orlando said.

COUGAR APPARENTLY KILLED OREGON WOMAN MISSING FOR NEARLY 2 WEEKS, INVESTIGATORS SAY

The woman ran to a nearby store and called 911. Police arrived at the scene and attempted to contact Patton inside his house for seven hours until they deployed a canister of gas.

Patton surrendered and was booked into jail on second-degree rape, aggravated sexual battery and false imprisonment while armed with a dangerous weapon.

At the time of the incident, the 54-year-old was on parole for an aggravated possession of cocaine conviction.
A man was allegedly spotted uprooting mini American flags in the Somerville Veterans Cemetery and then urinating on them Monday, police in Massachusetts said.

George Gatteny, who said he first saw the man pull up the flags from the WWII memorial inside the cemetery, later detailed the incident in a now viral Facebook post. The man, who has not yet been identified, was accompanied by a woman, whose identity is also unclear at this time.

I witnessed something today that outraged me! Gatteny began the post, which had more than 30,000 reactions and shares as of Wednesday afternoon.

PREGNANT MOM OF 3 KILLED IN CRASH WITH PROFESSIONAL BOXER SUSPECTED OF DRUNK DRIVING

Gatteny wrote he witnessed the incident as he passed the cemetery while driving down Broadway. When he saw the man allegedly urinate on the flags, he got out of his vehicle and approached the couple.

I quickly pulled over, got out of my car and headed over to them. The girl was standing by the gate (she must have been the lookout). I started yelling at them to stop, asking him as I approached 'what the hell he was doing'. He stopped urinating, pulled up his pants and started walking out of the memorial. Both of them walked up Broadway laughing, he wrote.

Then, after he walked behind them for awhile telling everyone I pass what they did, Gatteny wrote he returned to the memorial to see what damage was done.

The flags appear to be drenched in urine in a photo Gatteny shared.

Outraged, he felt he needed to do more.

I got back in my car and drove up Broadway (toward Tele Sq) to see if I could find them. I wanted photos of them, he wrote. Gatteny then located the couple and took a few photos of them.

Gatteny said he later went to the Somerville Police Department, giving authorities there his statement and the photos.

FAMILY OF DALLAS COP WHO FATALLY SHOT NEIGHBOR SAID THEY ARE NOT RACIST AFTER PHOTOS SURFACE ON SOCIAL MEDIA

In a statement to The Boston Globe, Somerville Police Deputy Chief James Stanford said the police department is aware of the Facebook posting and have opened an investigation into the matter.

This is an active and ongoing investigation and no further information is available at this time, he added.

"They weren't concerned about the consequences. They are going to be concerned about it now because a lot of people are upset by that," Gatteny told Boston 25-News.

Stanford was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Fox News on Wednesday.
A College of Southern Nevada (CSN) sociology professor allegedly shot himself while on campus last month to protest President Trump, police said.

Mark Bird, a professor emeritus at CSN in Las Vegas, was found suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound on the morning of August 28, Richard Lake, a CSN spokesman, told Fox News. He was treated for the injury to his arm and was arrested, Lake said.

Bird was charged with carrying a concealed weapon without a permit, discharging a gun within a prohibited structure and possessing a dangerous weapon on school property, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

In their report, police said Bird told them he shot himself near a campus bathroom to protest Trump, according to the Review-Journal. A $100 bill was also taped inside the bathroom with a note indicating it was for the janitor, the report said.

EX-PROFESSOR ACCUSED OF HITTING TRUMP SUPPORTERS WITH BIKE LOCK AT 'FREE SPEECH' RALLY IN BERKELEY GETS PROBATION

Bird was first hired at the school in August 1993 and still remains employed there, Lake said.

The professor has a preliminary hearing for Sept. 17 in Las Vegas, according to the Review-Journal.
For many vacationers on North Carolina's Outer Banks, a trip there is not complete without at least catching a glimpse of the majestic wild horses that roam the islands. As Hurricane Florence approaches, many are expressing concern about how the horses will fare during the powerful Category 4 storm.

The Facebook page of the Corolla Wild Horse Fund was peppered with comments from worried tourists and residents.

"Thinking of all of the horses as Florence approaches. ... Praying for their safety," wrote one concerned woman.

"Prayers for protection from the storm for these beautiful animals & the young foals," wrote another.

Wildlife experts say they needn't worry. Wild horses are believed to have first settled on the Outer Banks hundreds of years ago and have survived many powerful storms.

Sue Stuska, a wildlife biologist based at Cape Lookout National Seashore, where 118 wild horses live on Shackleford Banks, said the horses are highly sensitive to weather changes and instinctively know what to do in a storm. She said they go to higher ground during flooding, including the dunes, and head for shrub thickets and a maritime forest during high winds.

"Naturally, they are meant to be outside and they have high ground and they have thick places to hide," Stuska said.

"Don't worry about them. They've survived for hundreds of years, and we expect that they'll be just fine."

The Corolla Wild Horse Fund, a group devoted to protecting and managing a herd of wild Colonial Spanish Mustangs that roams on the northernmost Currituck Outer Banks, posted a message on its Facebook page Monday to reassure horse lovers that they expect the animals will be just fine.

"The horses have lived on this barrier island for 500 years, and they are well equipped to deal with rough weather," the group wrote.

"They know where to go to stay high and dry and are probably in better shape right now than most of us humans who are scrambling with final preparations. They are much better off without any help from us; anything we might do in the hopes of 'protecting' them would probably end up being more dangerous and stressful for them than the storm."

Horse deaths during storms are not unheard of, however.

John Taggart, an associate professor emeritus who teaches environmental science at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, said five wild horses drowned after they were swept off the Rachel Carson Reserve near Beaufort, North Carolina, during Hurricane Isabel in 2003. But that kind of loss is unusual during storms, Taggart said.

"They do have an instinct for protection, of trying to head for higher ground, getting out of the wind and then sticking together in a group," he said.

___

For the latest on Hurricane Florence, visit https://www.apnews.com/tag/Hurricanes .
A former police officer in an Ohio village was sentenced Wednesday to 43 years in prison for sexually assaulting four women while on duty, including two women he had taken to the police station.

The crimes of Justin Sanderson, 33, are "reprehensible and disturbing," Montgomery County prosecutor Mat Heck Jr. said in a statement after the sentencing.

Sanderson, an officer in the Montgomery County village of Phillipsburg, said in court that he still considers himself innocent, the Dayton Daily News reported. Judge Steven Dankof, who found him guilty of rape, kidnapping and gross sexual imposition during a bench trial in late August, said it was the court's "darkest voyage" into a man's actions.

Sanderson, of Huber Heights, won't be eligible for parole for 33 years. He resigned from the A person who answered the phone at his attorneys' office said no one was available to comment.

According to prosecutors, Sanderson was arrested in July 2017 after two women told police they had agreed to have sex at a motel with someone they had connected with on Backpage.com, a classified ad website shut down this year by federal authorities. The women said Sanderson came to their room in uniform, told them he was investigating human trafficking and prostitution, and gave them a warning.

They said Sanderson left, returned a short time later and had sex with them. They told police they thought they had no choice because he was a police officer, prosecutors said.

His arrest prompted two other women to step forward, prosecutors said. One woman said Sanderson stopped her for drunken driving in May 2017 and forced her to have sex at the police station, while a second woman said she was forced into sexual conduct after her arrest on a warrant.

Sanderson resigned from the department in July 2017, the prosecutor's office said.

"This defendant used his authority as a police officer to force four victims into sexual activity," Heck said. "Not only will he never be in a position of authority in the future, but he will be unable to victimize anyone else."

A 2015 investigation by The Associated Press found about 1,000 officers nationwide who lost their licenses in a six-year period for sexual crimes and misconduct.

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Information from: Dayton Daily News, http://www.daytondailynews.com
Bay Area Rapid Transit approved advertisements from a group that promotes Holocaust denials and anti-Semitic sentiments, citing the organizations right to free speech.

Institute for Historical Reviews billboards feature the words History Matters! The billboards are in rotation in at least two BART stations in San Francisco, The Guardian reported Wednesday.

The group was founded by Holocaust denier Willis Carto in 1978 and the group published an article saying there was no evidence for Nazi gas chambers and Germans were no more anti-Semitic than any other people.

Mark Weber, the organizations director, told the newspaper the group paid $6,400 for the ads and was initially denied when the designs included a link to their website. Once the link was removed, the ads were approved, he said.

SAN FRANCISCO TRAIN CONDUCTOR REPORTEDLY WARNS RIDERS TO WATCH 'FOR NEEDLES' AMID 'NEEDLE LITTER' EPIDEMIC

The groups website has published articles and items that reasonably could be called Holocaust denial, but it doesnt necessarily represent my view or the views of the IHR, Weber told The Guardian.

BART spokeswoman Alicia Trost said: We cannot deny the ads.

You have to look at it for exactly what words are used and what images are used  There is plenty of case law and court rulings that show if you deny the ad, you can be taken to court, and youll lose, and thats obviously costly.

Trost said she understood the public backlash.

BART RIDER CALLS COPS ON PASSENGER FOR 'DINING' ON BURRITO IN VIRAL VIDEO

When people look into it, they are upset about the ads, which is understandable, she said.

The Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum characterizes the Institute for Historical Review as a group that concentrates on spreading revisionist propaganda on the Internet and on sending speakers to appear at various forums, including universities in the USA.
As more than a million people head for higher ground, South Carolina officials say they have no plans to move 650 inmates at a medium-security prison  opting instead to have them take their chances with a monster Category-3 hurricane barreling towards them.

Current plans call for a pre-planned crew and inmates at MacDougall Correctional Institution to stay put as Hurricane Florence - expected to gain strength Wednesday night- heads right for them.

Its a strategy theyve used before.

Department of Corrections spokesman Dexter Lee told Vice News that in the past, its been safer to stay in place with the inmates rather than to move to another location.

Inmates at MacDougall did not evacuate during Hurricane Hugo, a Category 4 storm, and the prison didnt have any structural damages, Lee said.

MacDougall is located in Berkeley County, one of five counties under a mandatory evacuation from the governor.

Inmates at the Ridgeland Correctional Institution in Jasper County are also staying put. While initial forecasts had Jasper in Florences crosshairs, updated information has downgraded the threat posed to it.

Its a different story in North Carolina. Officials there started evacuating hundreds of inmates from state prisons and local jails on Monday.

Department of Public Safety spokesman Jerry Higgins told The Charlotte Observer that hundreds of state inmates are being moved to larger facilities. Hundreds more serving time in county jails will be moved to state prisons. Inmates will be moved back to their assigned prisons once Florence passes.

All offenders affected by the move will be allowed to make a free phone call to a family member over the weekend, he said.

In Virginia, about 1,000 prisoners at the Indian Creek Correctional Center in Chesapeake were relocated Monday after the governor issued a mandatory evacuation for low-lying coastal areas.

The prisons website describes the medium security, dormitory-designed facility as an intensive long-term institution-based treatment program for incarcerated substance abusing offenders.

The Virginia Department of Corrections said the inmates were transferred to the Greensville Correctional Center  the states largest prison.

With less than 48 hours before being expected to make landfall, Hurricane Florence was downgraded to a Category 3 storm Wednesday afternoon. The storm, which is likely to intensify to a Category 4 storm early Thursday, is likely to flatten homes, snap power poles and lead to massive catastrophic flooding. Its being described as the most intense hurricane to hit the region in 25 years.

This will likely be the storm of a lifetime for portions of the Carolina coast, the National Weather Service said.


Pieces of hurricane evacuee Melody Rawson's South Carolina life are now spread out on a grassy field, a slab of concrete and a picnic table at a campground outside Atlanta Motor Speedway.

They include two dogs, a cockatoo in its cage, a couple of coolers with sandwich meat and the mangled remains of a tire that blew out at midnight as Rawson and her companions ferried it all to the relative safety of Georgia.

The speedway has opened its campgrounds to Southerners escaping Hurricane Florence . It's one of many impromptu shelters that have sprung up across the region as a refuge for the evacuees.

Rawson was among the first few who arrived early Wednesday at the speedway south of Atlanta. Among her family members is her partner Lisa and her 17-year-old son who has spina bifida and uses a wheelchair.

"We're thankful for this generosity of free services, and we hope to have something left when we get home," Rawson told The Associated Press. "We live in a first-floor apartment in Myrtle Beach, so you can't take the chance, you know?"

More than 10 million people across the region were under hurricane watches or warnings , and hundreds of thousands have been ordered to evacuate.

As of Tuesday, more than 1.7 million people in the Carolinas and Virginia were warned to flee. More than 300,000 people had already left the South Carolina coast, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said Wednesday.

Gas shortages and jammed freeways loomed for evacuees seeking safety in far-away shelters, campgrounds and hotels. In North Carolina, one in 10 gas stations in Wilmington and Raleigh-Durham had no gas by midday Wednesday.

Colin Richards, a U.S. Navy diver based on Virginia's coast, said he and his family planned to head for Grand Rapids, Michigan, where Richards is from. He was among the military personnel leaving coastal Virginia and North Carolina ahead of the hurricane. The 28-year-old was mostly concerned for his daughter who is one month and two days old.

"It's very simple," he said Wednesday in Norfolk. "We don't want to live without power with a newborn."

In Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, Phoebe Tesh paused while loading her car to sip a glass of wine on the steps of the house where she and her husband rent an apartment.

Tesh said Wednesday that the couple had been making trips back and forth to carry valuables to her parents' house on the mainland in Wilmington, where they planned to ride out the storm.

About a half-dozen campers had arrived early Wednesday at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia, but racetrack officials expected many more once word got out that evacuees could camp there. Equipped with restrooms and showers, along with power, water, and sewers, the racetrack's campgrounds can accommodate about 5,000 people.

Opening up the racetrack's campgrounds is "just simply the thing to do," Atlanta Motor Speedway President Ed Clark said Wednesday.

"It takes a little bit of that worry away when you leave home and don't know where you're headed to," Clark added. "You can imagine the storm is coming, you call three campgrounds and they're all full. Where do you go?"

The Georgia speedway has hosted storm evacuees before, along with pets and, in one case, three cages of chickens, Clark said. Last year, as Hurricane Irma threatened Florida, the speedway hosted at least 100 evacuees.

Bristol Motor Speedway, near the Tennessee-Virginia line; Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina; and Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama also are opening their campgrounds to people fleeing Hurricane Florence.

Georgia state parks are also welcoming evacuees from Florence, and is offering some camping at no charge for them.

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Associated Press writers Jonathan Drew in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina; Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia; Meg Kinnard in Columbia, South Carolina; Skip Foreman in Charlotte, North Carolina; and Sarah Rankin in Richmond, Virginia, contributed to this story.

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For the latest on Hurricane Florence, visit https://www.apnews.com/tag/Hurricanes .
A 16-year-old Michigan high school student died Wednesday after she was stabbed during a fight, police said.

The fight was between two female students in a Fitzgerald High School classroom, Warren police said. The teen who was stabbed died from her injuries. She wasnt immediately identified.

A 17-year-old female student, whose identity wasn't released, was arrested in the stabbing, according to FOX 2 Detroit.

The fight between the two students started around 9:30 a.m. and was thought to have been over a boy, but that couldnt immediately be confirmed, Warren Police Commissioner Bill Dwyer said. The 17-year-old student stabbed the victim twice in the chest with a kitchen knife, he said. A school resource officer began giving the victim CPR until paramedics arrived.

No other students were injured, Dwyer said.

Warren police were planning on pursuing a murder charge, according to FOX 2 Detroit.

The school was placed on lockdown when the fight started, Fitzgerald Public Schools Superintendent Laurie Fournier said in a statement. The school was dismissed at 10 a.m.

Warren is located about 15 miles north of Detroit.
The information was shared at a Vietnam-Japan investment cooperation forum, which recently wrapped up in Yokohama, Japan.

According to Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment, Vu Dai Thang, in recent years, Vietnam-Japan relations have been constantly developing. Japan is the largest official development assistance (ODA) provider for Vietnam, its second largest foreign investor, third largest travel partner and its fourth largest trade partner.

In the Southeast Asian country, Japan has invested in over 3,865 valid projects, with total registered capital worth US$56 billion, accounting for 16.7% of the total FDI inflows into Vietnam.

A recent report from the Japan External Trade Organisation showed that the investment environment in Vietnam has received positive comments from the Japanese business community, in which 87.7% of Japanese businesses believed that expanding their business in Vietnam help them to increase their benefits. More than 60% of Japanese businesses were profitable in 2017 and 66.6% of those investing in Vietnam are planning to expand their business and continue to see Vietnam as a key investment destination.

In recent years, Japanese corporations have been very active in the equitisation of Vietnamese enterprises and have become strategic partners of large enterprises in the key sectors of Vietnams economy, such as finance, banking, aviation, energy and pharmaceuticals.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Vu Dai Thang speaks at the forum. (Photo: VOV)



Vietnam is promoting mergers and acquisitions associated with the equitisation of large SOEs in such areas as transportation, infrastructure, food stuffs, agriculture, telecommunications, services, tourism and construction.

"This is a great opportunity for Japanese investors and businesses to become strategic partners of Vietnamese enterprises in areas with great potential for development," Deputy Minister Thang affirmed, adding that the Vietnamese Government has pledged to continue creating favourable conditions for Japanese enterprises to participate in equitisation and become strategic partners of Vietnamese enterprises.

Japanese companies could invest in manufacturing facilities in Vietnam or cooperate with local partners to export the items that Japanese market is lacking back to Japan, especially the products that are strengths of the Vietnamese agricultural sector, Thang suggested.
A gradually weakening tropical storm hit Hawaii on Wednesday, dropping nearly 8 inches (20 centimeters) of rain on a part of Maui and lashing an airport with 51 mph (82 kph) wind gusts.

Lori-Lei Rawlins-Crivello, owner of one of the two gas stations on the small island of Molokai, said she was watching a nearby river rise. She said she'll send her workers home if water starts to go over the bridge near her Texaco service station.

"It will cut off a whole portion of the island from coming in and out of Kaunakakai town," she said.

Most stores in town were closed, she said. If the rain gets harder, she anticipates closing by the afternoon.

"We've had steady rainfall all day. It's starting to come down a little heavier now, along with some gusts of wind," she said.

The Central Pacific Hurricane Center said Olivia was about 40 miles (60 kilometers) west of Kahului on the island of Maui and 60 miles (95 kilometers) east of Honolulu on Oahu, the state's most heavily populated island. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph (75 kph).

The storm made landfall in the west Maui mountains before continuing to move further west.

Forecasters say 5 to 10 inches (12 to 25 centimeters) of rain could fall in the state, with some areas getting as much as 15 inches (38 centimeters).

A flash flood warning was issued for Molokai island and Maui. A wind gust of 51 mph (82 kph) was recorded at the airport on the island of Lanai.

The storm, which was a hurricane earlier in the week, slowly lost power as it neared the state.

Matthew Foster, a meteorologist with the hurricane center, said strong winds will likely continue on Maui through early afternoon and then start to die off. They'll pick up on Oahu around midday and last through the early evening.

Tropical storm warnings were canceled overnight for the Big Island and Kauai, but remain in place for Oahu, Maui and small islands surrounding Maui.

Schools, courts and government offices were closed in Maui County in preparation for the storm.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency sent emergency teams and supplies to Maui ahead of the storm. The National Guard has mobilized personnel and trucks to the east side of Maui.

Hawaiian Airlines cancelled flights by its commuter airline, Ohana by Hawaiian.

The owner of the only hardware store in the small town of Hana on the east side of Maui said he opened his store normally at 7 a.m. The store lost electricity about a half-hour later and needed to use backup generators, said Neil Hasegawa, owner of Hasegawa General Store.

Residents were bracing for the community with a population of 1,200 people to take the brunt of the storm, Hasegawa said. But he was feeling relieved the rain wasn't as hard as he feared.

"It's way better than I expected," he said. "We're not out of the woods yet ... I'm hoping it seems like it's going to keep going north."

Hana is a popular day-trip destination for travelers staying in Maui's resort towns. But Hasegawa urged people who don't need to be in Hana to stay away because they could become trapped and take up limited shelter space.

People were mostly staying off the roads, Hasegawa said. The state Department of Transportation said crews cleared a landslide on Hana Highway and reported there were some fallen trees.

Public schools on the Big Island, Oahu and Kauai were open.

On Oahu, Nakoa Ching prepared for the storm with a hurricane kit, food and stoves and had friends with generators.

"We cleaned up all the loose material, put (it) in the sheds and stuff but we didn't go buy and invest in plywood or anything like that. It is what it is, you know," Ching said.

___

Associated Press writers Caleb Jones in Honolulu and Mark Thiessen in Anchorage, Alaska, contributed to this report.
Two U.S. lawmakers are urging the extension of tougher American export restrictions to prevent sales of equipment that could be used in China's massive security clampdown targeting the Xinjiang region's native Muslim population.

Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Chris Smith want foreign entities, including businesses, research institutions, government and private organizations, and individuals seen as profiting from the clampdown added to a watch list, the two Republicans, among the staunchest critics of China in the U.S. Congress, said in a letter Wednesday to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross.

"U.S. companies should not be assisting in the expansion of China's systems for surveillance, detection, and detention, or be complicit in what are gross violations of internationally recognized human rights occurring daily" in Xinjiang (SHIN-jhang), the letter said.

Dozens of Chinese companies are already on the "Entity List," though none with an explicit, direct link to the oppression in Xinjiang. The U.S. has long maintained restrictions on the export of crime control and detection equipment to China.

Listing would place the entities under export administration regulations requiring American companies wishing to sell to them to be subject to "specific license requirements for the export, re-export and/or transfer (in-country) of specified items," according to the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security.

The letter says the director of the bureau's Foreign Policy Division, Anthony Christino, stated in recent testimony before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China that it was evaluating "whether there is sufficient evidence to justify additional end-user restrictions."

It said the commission was awaiting an update "as to the status and anticipated timeline of this interagency process," but said the government should err on the side of caution.

"Given the national integration of China's state security apparatus, we believe there should also be a presumption of denial for any sale of technology or equipment that would make a direct and significant contribution to the police surveillance and detection system," the letter said.

No specific entities were named in the letter, which is the latest sign that the detentions are raising concerns among foreign leaders, governments, activist groups, media outlets and private citizens.

Over recent years, Xinjiang has been transformed into a vast security state , packed with police stations, street cameras and security checkpoints at which electronic identity cards are scanned. Travel restrictions prevent free movement or even the opportunity to visit friends and relatives in nearby towns.

The measures target members of the Uighur (WEE-gur), Kazakh and other Muslim minority groups, with the region's ethnically Chinese residents largely exempted.

In addition, monitoring groups say as many as 1 million Muslims have been sent to a system of internment camps , also known as "re-education centers," where they are locked up for months without trial and forced to undergo political indoctrination and renounce Islam and traditional culture.

China has denied operating the system of camps, despite extensive documentation from those interned and relatives, and other evidence such as satellite photos and government documents.

Beijing says it is taking necessary measures to fight terrorism, religious extremism and separatism in the restive region and that criminals involved in minor offenses are sent to "vocational education and employment training centers" to help with their rehabilitation and reintegration into society.

The Wednesday letter follows one last month from U.S. lawmakers, including Rubio and Smith, to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, calling for measures to address the "ongoing human rights crisis" in Xinjiang.

The letter singled out Xinjiang's top leader, Chen Quanguo, and other officials seen as behind the clampdown, saying they should be sanctioned under the Global Magnitsky Act that allows the U.S. government to place travel and financial restrictions on individuals anywhere in the world given credible proof of their role in human rights violations or corruption.

The letter also mentions two companies that could be sanctioned under a separate executive order, Hikvision and Dahua Technology, both of which make video surveillance technology used extensively throughout Xinjiang to track residents and restrict their movements.

Asked Tuesday about the possibility of sanctions, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the U.S. has "a lot of tools at our disposal" but mentioned no details.

"It's the old standard line on sanctions, that we're not going to preview any sanctions that may or may not happen," Nauert told reporters.

On Wednesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said China "has been firmly and strongly opposed to the U.S. using Xinjiang-related issues to interfere in China's internal affairs.

"The Chinese government protects the Chinese citizens' freedom of religion and belief in accordance with law," Geng told reporters at a daily briefing.

A day earlier, China rejected a request from the U.N.'s head of human rights, Michelle Bachelet, to allow monitors into Xinjiang, with Geng saying Bachelet should "respect China's sovereignty, fairly and objectively."

Also Wednesday, Australia's opposition Labor Party issued a statement saying it was "deeply concerned by continuing reports of the mass detention of China's minority Uighur population and other violations of human rights," citing questions brought by members of the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in Geneva last week.

That followed a statement by the Australian National Imams Council condemning the treatment of Uighurs as "inhumane and unbearable" and urging action from the Australian government.

Muslim activists in Bangladesh, meanwhile, marched through the capital chanting slogans and carrying signs demanding China "stop religious persecution" of Uighurs.
A Washington convenience store clerk was on life support Tuesday after suffering a heart attack Saturday when he confronted two teen robbers that left him to die on the store's floor, authorities said.

The teens -- instead of calling 911 or rendering aid -- returned several times to steal cigarettes and empty the stores cash register of $178, Angela Sharapova, the store's manager, told Seattle's KOMO-TV.

The clerk, identified as Zarif Kelada, collapsed during a confrontation with the two teens, Auburn police said, according to KOMO-TV.

"Its absolutely heartbreaking. And were just all kind of coping with it  hoping that our guys going to make it," Sharapova told the station.

The incident occured in Auburn, which is about 27 miles south of Seattle.

The Saturday evening incident began when an adult man walked in with two teens, police said. One of the teens took a pepperoni stick from the counter and starting eating it, then gave a second one to his friend, police said. Police have identified the man and two teens, Seattle's Q13Fox reported on Tuesday.

When the man tried to purchase a different item, police said the clerk tried to also charge him for the two pepperoni sticks. An argument broke out before one of the teenagers offered the clerk a dollar bill, police said. Kelada, a father of three, circled the counter to confront the teens.

Co-workers told the station that Kelada collapsed moments later after suffering a heart attack. Police called it a medical issue.

I couldnt watch it the first time, Sharapova told Q13Fox. I had to stop and walk away. It totally broke my heart.

Investigators said the adult man was not involved in the incident, the station reported.

This is not something you see very often, Steve Stocker, Auburn Police commander, told Q13Fox. It really shocks people and makes people wonder when people can be this cold to other people.

Another man who works at nearby food truck called 9-1-1 while several customers performed CPR, KOMO-TV reported.

"If you see someone like that, you know, you try to do as much help as you can," the man said.

Co-workers have set up a GoFundMe page to help Kelada with his medical bills.

Police have not yet released the adult man's name. It was not immediately clear if the man and two teens would be charged, according to Q13Fox.
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Brazil's top court on Tuesday spared leading presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro from having to stand trial for racism, less than a week after the far-right politician was injured in a knife attack during a campaign event.

A court panel voted 3-2 to drop a racism accusation against Bolsonaro, who leads polls ahead of October's election after Brazil's Workers' Party decided that it would not field imprisoned former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as its candidate.

Justice Alexandre de Moraes ruled that Bolsonaro had the right to voice disrespectful opinions toward blacks in a 2017 speech at a club in Rio de Janeiro. He also pointed out that Bolsonaro has immunity as a sitting lawmaker.

Bolsonaro said last year that members of rural settlements founded by the descendants of slaves, called "quilombolas," are "not good even to procreate." He also talked about the weight of those slave descendants using a measure that Brazilian farmers apply to animals.

Moraes said those comments did not exceed the limits of his freedom of expression.

Bolsonaro will still have to stand trial for accusations of slander and incitation to rape. Both are related to an incident at Brazil's lower house in 2014, in which he said he would not rape left-leaning congresswoman Maria do Rosario because she was not his type and "did not deserve it."

The Sao Paulo hospital where Bolsonaro is being treated for the knife wound to his abdomen said Tuesday that he is no longer in intensive care and is instead in a semi-intense care unit.

A tape obtained by TV Globo showed Bolsonaro's alleged attacker, Adelio Bispo de Oliveira, giving his first testimony in court after Thursday's attack in Juiz de Fora, a city north of Rio de Janeiro.

De Oliveira calmly says he only wanted to give Bolsonaro a scare and acted alone because of political and religious motivations.

"I feel threatened, like millions of people, by the speeches this citizen has made," de Oliveira said.

He also admitted he stopped taking his medication. His lawyers argue he is not mentally fit to stand trial.

A Datafolha poll published on Monday shows Bolsonaro leading with 24 percent support, ahead of left-leaning Ciro Gomes at 13 percent support, centrist Marina Silva with 11 percent and right-leaning Geraldo Alckmin with 10 percent.

Former Sao Paulo Mayor Fernando Haddad, who the Workers' Party announced as da Silva's replacement on Tuesday, had 9 percent.

If no candidate gets more than 50 percent of the votes on Oct. 7, a runoff will be held on Oct. 28.

The Datafolha poll had a margin of error of 2 percentage points. All the 2,804 voters sampled were interviewed on Monday.
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Heads have been rolling in the Algerian army, the North African nation's most respected institution, and in other security services, with generals in top posts fired  without explanation  at a rate never before seen.

The across-the-board changes, and the silence, are highlighting the opaque nature of the nation's power structure.

Since late June, nearly all top officials in the security hierarchy have been replaced. The changes are especially dramatic in a country with the best-equipped military in North Africa and the Sahel that has honed for more than a quarter-century its skills in fighting Islamic extremists. Today, Algeria is a bulwark against extremism for the West.

Yet the noisy Algerian press, which habitually decodes the often inscrutable world of politics, has been unable to decipher the reason for the massive clearout.

Is a scandal surrounding a huge cocaine seizure the reason for at least some of the firings, or is it a about traditional rivalries among powerful clans? Or are the changes connected to next April's presidential elections, which is the subject of another mystery  who is running? No candidate has yet emerged because everyone is waiting to learn whether President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, 81, partially paralyzed and rarely seen in public, will seek a fifth term.

Such changes in the military hierarchy, only some of which have been announced publicly, are the prerogative of the president, who is also minister of defense. But the influence of the army is a perennial mystery.

The wave of changes began with the firing June 26 of Gen. Abdelghani Hamel, head of the General Directorate of National Security, the top echelon of Algeria's police. Along with Hamel went the men he had placed in more than a half-dozen top regional police posts, from Algiers, the capital, to Setif, in the east  as well as the commander in charge of Algiers' international airport.

The most recent to be axed were the Air Force commander and the head of the Air Defense Force, announced last week by the Defense Ministry.

The ousting of Hamel, who had held the top police post since 2010, may  or may not  be linked to the May seizure by the Coast Guard in the port of Oran of 701 kilograms of cocaine hidden among frozen meat on a cargo ship from Brazil, and his harsh words directed to the gendarmerie investigating the affair. However, eight days after Hamel's ouster, it was the gendarmerie chief, Maj. Gen. Menad Nouba, who lost his job.

The sword then fell on the top brass of the army, the backbone of the Algerian state. Region by region, top leaders were removed. Only one of the six military regions has been left untouched.

"No one is indispensable," said political sociologist Nasser Djabi, "even the all-powerful." He recalled the removal in 2015 of one of Algeria's most powerful figures, intelligence chief Gen. Mediene, known as Toufik, after 25 years on the job. "If you ask me who profited from these changes, what is the balance of power ... I'm unable to say. It's very opaque."

Ahmed Gaid Salah, army chief of staff since 2004 and vice-defense minister, and among Bouteflika's most faithful servants, has overseen ceremonial changeovers in the regional commands, at one point saying they were dictated by "competence" and "merit."

In a fuller explanation, the army review El Djeich said last week the new appointments "embody the principle of alternating posts of responsibility" and "are an opportunity to encourage human capacities, reward experience and push (new chiefs) to redouble their efforts in the service of our army."

The army, which grew out of the fighting force that won Algeria's independence from France in 1962, was long seen as the kingmaker in presidential elections. Only Bouteflika  in office since 1999  and the country's short-lived first elected head of state have been civilians.

However, army chief Gaid Salah cast aside in July any notion of an army role in politics, brusquely responding to a proposal by an opposition party for the army to head a transition period and delay presidential elections.

"The National Popular Army is an army that knows its limits, the framework of its constitutional mission that in no case can be mixed up in entanglements in parties and politics," he said.

___

Ganley contributed from Paris
A British couple found dead at an Egyptian resort hotel in late March died after contracting the bacteria E. coli, officials said Wednesday.

John Cooper, 69, and his wife Susan, 63, were found dead while on vacation at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Hurghada. Cooper suffered acute intestinal dysentery caused by the E. coli, an Egyptian prosecutor announced Wednesday.

Susan Cooper had haemolytic uremic syndrome most likely caused by E. coli.

Officials said no criminal violence appeared on the bodies. Samples of the hotels water and air also tested negative for harmful bacteria, Sky News reported.

HOTEL ROOM WHERE BRITISH COUPLE FOUND DEAD HAD 'STRANGE ODOR,' EGYPTIAN OFFICIAL SAYS

Kelly Ormerod, John and Susan Coopers daughter, told Sky News on Wednesday she doesnt believe her parents died from E. coli.

"The Egyptians are looking for someone to blame and I don't believe for one minute that caused their deaths, Ormerod said. "It is unheard of that someone dies of E.coli in such a short space of time."

Thomas Cook, the travel company, said last week that high levels of E. coli and staphylococcus bacteria, which can cause toxic shock syndrome, were found at the hotel where the couple stayed. The company evacuated 300 guests as a precaution shortly after the Coopers deaths.

BRITISH COUPLE DIES IN EGYPT HOTEL, DAUGHTER SAYS 'SOMETHING IN THAT ROOM' KILLED PARENTS

Ormerod previously recalled finding her parents seriously ill in their room.

"As I opened the door, I could see that my dad was extremely ill and he was staggering back to the bed, she said.

"They [the doctors] tried basically to save his life and they couldn't  they did CPR on him but nothing could help him, nothing could save him, she said. "Mom had no idea what was going on  she was oblivious to what was actually happening because she was so poorly."

E. coli is a bacteria commonly found in intestines of humans and animals. Most strains are harmless, but some could cause serious illnesses if toxins are produced.

Fox News' Travis Fedschun contributed to this report.
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European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Wednesday unveiled new plans to beef up the EU's coast guard and asylum agency to better police Europe's outside borders and speed the deportation of unauthorized migrants.

The proposals come as EU nations bicker over who should take responsibility for people rescued in the Mediterranean Sea trying to seek better lives in Europe, even as the number of crossings has declined sharply this year.

"External borders must be protected more effectively," Juncker told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg, France, in a self-styled "state of the European Union" address.

He said the EU's executive Commission is proposing a standing corps for the border and coast guard agency numbering 10,000 staff, including guards and migration experts, to be up and running by 2020.

Juncker said the corps should be funded by some 2.2 billion euros in EU money from the bloc's next long-term budget.

But EU nations still have to endorse his plans. Beyond that, the Commission's idea of what the 2021-2027 budget should look like and what its priorities should be are certain to differ from that of member states.

The border and coast guard staff would be able to check ID papers and stamp travel documents, detain people who are crossing the border without authorization, and help ensure those not eligible are deported.

Many nations have expressed concern about having their borders policed by staff from other countries, even if they are European partners.

In recent months, Italy's new anti-migrant government has refused to allow some ships carrying rescued people to enter its waters, routinely leaving the boats stranded at sea for days while a short-term solution is found. Austria, France and Malta have argued over who should take charge.

"With every new ship we can't be talking about ad-hoc solutions for the people on board," Juncker said. "We need a lot more. We need more solidarity, and solidarity must be lasting and organized."

EU leaders meet in Salzburg, Austria, next week to thrash out better ways to manage the arrivals, many reaching Italy from lawless Libya.

Juncker's proposals also include a plan to help countries deport people who do not qualify for asylum because they do not face the threat of death or violence in their home countries. Just over one in three people denied international protection are actually sent home.

The border and asylum agencies would help identify those to be returned, obtain travel documents  often a time-consuming business  and prepare the paperwork so countries can send them back.

Juncker noted that one of the jewels in Europe's crown  the passport-free Schengen travel area  is under threat due to barriers and tougher border ID checks being imposed by some countries. He branded such obstacles "an unacceptable backward step in Europe."
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European Union lawmakers voted on Wednesday to launch action against the Hungarian government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban for allegedly undermining the bloc's democratic values and rule of law. Hungary called the vote fraudulent and vowed to challenge it.

The lawmakers voted 448-197 in favor of a report recommending the launch of a so-called Article 7 procedure, which could lead to the suspension of Hungary's European Union voting rights.

It is the first time in EU history that the European Parliament had initiated and approved such a motion, which needed a two-thirds majority to pass and was approved by 69.4 percent of the lawmakers.

For years, Orban had been able to deflect much of the international condemnation thrown his way. Critics say that Hungary's electoral system is disproportionate; media freedoms and judicial independence are dwindling; asylum-seekers and refugees are mistreated and there are limits placed on non-governmental organizations.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, echoing Orban's longtime position, called the Wednesday's vote "petty revenge" against Hungary for its tough anti-migration policies.

He also claimed that the vote involved "massive fraud" since abstentions weren't counted into the final tally, which made it easier to reach the needed majority.

There were 48 abstentions, so the 448 in favor exceeded the two-thirds needed only because it was based on 645 votes. If the abstentions were counted into the final tally, there would have been a total 693 votes, so the 448 in favor wouldn't have reached two-thirds.

Szijjarto said Hungary was considering legal options to appeal the result because of the way the vote was tallied.

But Judith Sargentini, who presented the report prepared by the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, welcomed the outcome.

"Viktor Orban's government has been leading the charge against European values by silencing independent media, replacing critical judges, and putting academia on a leash," Sargentini said. "The Hungarian people deserve better. They deserve freedom of speech, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice and equality, all of which are enshrined in the European treaties."

"This is a historic result for Hungarian citizens and for European citizens everywhere, that the European Parliament has voted by a large majority to stand up for the values we all hold dear," Sargentini said.

The move saw some members of the European People's Party bloc  of which Orban's Fidesz movement is a member  vote against their ally in Budapest.

Even EPP leader Mandred Weber, who earlier was supportive of Orban and is seeking to become the European Commission president next year, said he had voted for triggering Article 7.

"I have always been in favor of building bridges and I want to continue to do so, but yesterday (Tuesday) I didn't see any readiness from the Hungarian PM to make a move towards his EU partners and address our concerns," Manfred tweeted.

While Weber had called on Orban to show a willingness to compromise on some of the most high-profile issues  like an agreement being delayed by the Hungarian government for the Central European University, founded by George Soros, Orban's ideological opponent, to remain in Budapest and recent laws criminalizing the work of civic groups working with asylum-seekers and refugees  Orban remained steadfast that his policies wouldn't change.

"I have nothing to compromise about since the questions they objected to were decided by the Hungarian people," Orban said Tuesday in Strasbourg, France, after the debate in the European Parliament on the report on Hungary. "There is nothing to talk about."

Orban, who was re-elected in April to his third consecutive term in office, fourth overall also said Tuesday that he expected lawmakers to approve the motion with the support of some EPP lawmakers.

"The order has arrived from Berlin and they will vote accordingly," Orban said, in reference to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose governing Christian Democratic Union is the largest party in the EPP.

Orban has insisted that all of the criticism against his government is based on Hungary's tough anti-immigration policies, which include fences built in 2015 on Hungary's southern borders with Serbian and Croatia to divert the flow of migrants and very restrictive asylum rules. He has also expressed his desire to remain within the EPP, which he said was "deeply divided" on the issue of migration.

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Pablo Gorondi reported from Budapest, Hungary.
Using unprecedented disciplinary action, the European Parliament voted Wednesday to sanction Hungary, saying the country poses a systemic threat to democracy and the rule of law.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbans government has been accused of breaching the EUs core values in areas of migration, rule of law, and the media  which he denies.

It was the first move of its kind in the EU against a member state, garnering two-thirds of the votes.

If approved by national leaders, Hungary is set to face punitive measures. The ultimate sanction, the suspension of Hungarys voting rights in the EU, is unlikely as Poland is set to veto that move.

Dutch MEP Judith Sargentini led the process and received a standing ovation after the result was announced.

The Hungarian people deserve better, Sargentini said. They deserve freedom of speech, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice and equality, all of which are enshrined in the European treaties.

The Hungarian foreign minister, Peter Szijjarto, called the vote petty revenge against his countrys tough anti-migration policies.

The vote involved massive fraud, Szijjarto claimed, since abstentions werent counted in the final tally, which made it easier to reach the needed majority.

On Tuesday, Orban said his country was being targeted for choosing not to be a country of migrants as he dismissed charges of corruption.
Iran is stepping up its involvement with political and militant Shiite groups in Pakistan, in what foreign affairs experts see as an escalating shadow proxy war with Saudi Arabia in a country with the world's second-largest Muslim population.

Iran is continuing to work to help rebel groups to form in the minority tribal region. There are Sindhi and Baluch separatist groups that Iran will help fund and support, said retired Lt. Col Anthony Shaffer, a former intelligence specialist.

Shaffer and others believe Iranians have long funded an array of insurgent outfits in Pakistan, in part as a means to destabilize U.S. efforts in the region.

One of those groups, the Tahrik-e-Jafaria Pakistan (TJP), freely acknowledges its ties to Iran, but denies accusations it engages in violence.

We are alleged to be a militant group, but I refute this statement, Deedar Ali, vice president of the TJP, in the countrys Gilgit Baltistan (GB) region, told Fox News. We havent participated yet in militant activities, though we Shiites have the dominance in GB."

TJP is officially considered a Shiite political party, founded around the same time as the Iranian revolution of 1979. It has twice been banned by the Pakistani government as a terrorist organization.

The U.S.-based Terrorism Research and Analysis Consortium (TRAC) defines the TJP as a group focused on creating a society based on pure Islam, and both a protector and a propaganda distributor of Shiite ideas.

So just how devoted to the Iranian brand of Islamism is TJP?

We have close links to Iran and a mutual aim under a shared ideology to stand united under the current longtime supreme leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, who is the ultimate power for us, Ali said. His words stand no less than a decree for us.

TJP leaders also frequently visit Tehran, but claim they receive no direct funds from the Iranians.

We operate under the direct guidance and control of Irans supreme leader, which binds us to travel to Iran," Ali said. "I wont deny the fact that we receive a state guest honor upon our arrival in Iran because we support their ideology as we work together to formulate new strategies to gather mass support. But the members of this group present a monthly amount to run our campaigns; we dont get funding from Iran.

The State Departments most recent Country Reports on Terrorism, released last July, names Iran the worlds foremost state sponsor of terrorism, a distinction it has held for decades.

Most notably, the U.S. accuses Tehran of using the Quds Force, an elite unit of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a cover for intelligence operations and destabilization across the region.

According to several U.S. intelligence and diplomatic officials, the Trump administration is more concerned about Iranian influence in war-torn, neighboring Afghanistan than it is about the activities of other insurgent groups in Pakistan.

The extremist Sunni creed adopted by the likes of the Taliban in Afghanistan against Iran and the Shiites is one part of the burgeoning proxy conflict. But while Shiites are vastly outnumbered in Pakistan, making up an estimated 20 percent of a Sunni-majority population of almost 200 million, Irans quiet support for Shiites could be significant.

Iran seeks to exert influence by backing militant Shia groups inside Pakistan, but there are obvious limits to how far such an effort can go, as Pakistans Shia are far outnumbered, explained Jonah Blank, a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation.

Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), situated in the northernmost part of Pakistan, shares its borders with China to the north, India to the east and Afghanistan and Central Asian states to the west. Previously called the Northern Areas, it has exercised semi-autonomy from Islamabad  but has for years chugged on as a precarious, disenfranchised region without the independence of a recognized state.

Irans shadowy presence in the area has come under scrutiny in more ways than one,

Thousands of Shiites from Pakistan and Afghanistan have been recruited by Iran  specifically from the Gilgit and Baltistan areas  to fight alongside President Bashar al-Assads forces in embattled Syria, offered monthly salaries and postwar employment opportunities in Iran. Recruiters are often Shiite clerics who have studied in or have direct ties to Tehran -- the fighters are to augment its regional clout.

We want to work closely with Pakistans government, but our priority to get a constitutional status for GB in Pakistan can never be stamped down, Ali asserted. Why are we yet to get a status? But if this were to happen, I can foresee GB will turn into a battlefield of the Taliban.

RAPE, MURDER OF KASHMIR GIRL RAISE TENSIONS

PAKISTAN OUT TO CLEAN UP KARACHI, ONCE WORLD'S 'MOST DANGEROUS CITY'

Analysts worry Pakistan will spiral into an even more violent and complicated intermediary war between the regions archenemies, Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Iran backs Shia groups and Saudi Arabia backs ones that adhere to its own strain of Sunni doctrine, Blank said. Iran sees this as a largely defensive operation  protecting co-religionists against a violent onslaught that the Pakistan state is unwilling or unable to stave off.

Some efforts are being made to quell sectarian unrest. In May, Pakistans security forces carried out a raid near Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan Province, killing leaders of the outlawed, Taliban-aligned group known as Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), responsible for the deaths of more than 100 minority Shiites.

LeJ started as an anti-Shiite, contrary movement to the Iranian Islamic Revolution almost four decades ago  in which Tehran was quietly exporting its revolution to Shia communities abroad  and later aligned itself with the extremist Taliban and Al Qaeda insurgencies.

Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) emerged from LeJ in the 1980s, and has been accused by many of ushering in sectarian violence across Pakistan.

Those names were formally prohibited by the Pakistan government in its post 9/11 crackdown. So the group's leading member, Mulana Khalil Saqib, founded a new group with the operational name of Muttahida Deeni Mahaz (MDM) in 2013.

Although its illegal to have unlicensed arms in Pakistan, in GB each and every man carries and has a heavy stockpile of illegal arms for a counterfight in the case of any terrorist activity, he boasted. As far as financing is concerned, we dont have backing.

Saqib later declined to deny he received hefty funds from Saudi individuals, stressing that the group has a firm conviction that Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are brother countries with shared values.

The group's objective is clear: Push back the Shiites, and the TJP, in GB.

This Iranian group has been involved in militant activities and innocent killings of Sunni Muslims. We do have demands to wipe off this Iranian group from GB because they have created unrest, Saqib said. Their unending sectarian violence has caused us to fight back for our rights. We want the Pakistan government to plan stern action against them.

Saqib also asserted they have more than 50 camps operating across Pakistan to train militants destined for Afghanistan, and he expressed thanks for the blessing of the long-running war that opened the door to opportunity.

U.S. intelligence and military officials have long accused Pakistan of harboring and aiding such terrorist groups, despite being issued hundreds of millions of dollars in aid as a primary U.S. partner in the post-2001 war on terrorism.

Pakistan consistently and vehemently denies such charges.

In January, President Trump sent a New Years Day tweet accusing Pakistan of failing to act against terrorist sanctuaries, which have waged war over the border in Afghanistan, and cut $2 billion in military aid to the country. Last week, the United States suspended a further $300 million.

But several officials in Islamabad vowed to Fox News that they now have full control of a country once teeming with terror, and that all such safe havens have been mopped up and eliminated.

And while Pakistans new prime minister, Imran Khan, has vowed to be something of a middleman to help improve the increasingly hostile relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iran, playing two sides inserts Islamabad into something of a quagmire.

Pakistan and Iran are thought to be getting closer, with the two countries having recently resumed discussions over continuing a $7.5 billion Iran-Pakistan pipeline project that started five years ago but has largely remained stalled. Yet government officials are said to assessing how Trumps pullout of the JCPOA, better known as the Iran nuclear deal, and the subsequent reimposition of economic sanctions may hinder the project.

On the flipside, Islamabad and Riyadh have long been potent allies with a history of close military cooperation. However, Pakistan refused to contribute troops to the Saudi-led war against the Shia-minority Houthi rebels in Yemen, souring bilateral relations.

Pakistans Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad and the Washington Embassy did not respond to requests for comment.

The Foreign Ministry in Tehran refused to comment and the Iranian Interests Section of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the U.S.  which is within the Pakistan Embassy, given that the U.S. has no direct diplomatic relations  did not respond.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry did not respond to requests for further comment.
The five projects include the project on upgrading the provincial-level road 266; the project on building an ecotourism and resort area and a road linking with the Hanoi-Thai Nguyen expressway; the project on developing the Viet Bac market, an exhibition and convention centre and an urban area in Thinh Dan ward in Thai Nguyen city; the project on solid and industrial waste treatment complex in Pho Yen town; and the project on hi-tech agricultural production in Tien Phong commune, Pho Yen town.

Addressing the ceremony, Secretary of Thai Nguyen provincial Party Committee, Tran Quoc To, affirmed that the province and its localities pledge to create favourable conditions for investors and the T&T Group to carry out the projects.

Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of T&T Group, Do Quang Hien, expressed his delight at the commitments of the province and expessed his wish that the local authorities would stand side by side with the investors during the implementation of projects, particularly helping them with all legal procedures.

Hien noted that, with its experience and capacity, the T&T Group will implement projects aligned with the commitments in the MoU.

Earlier, at the provincial investment promotion conference held on July 1, the province authorities granted investment certificates and approved in principle 50 projects worth over VND46.7 trillion (approximately US$2 billion).
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It's hard not to see China wherever you look in Iran.

From Chinese goods flooding markets to its business people eager for deals as Western business interests flee, Iran likely will further embrace Beijing as an alternative market for its crude oil and financial transactions amid uncertainty over the nuclear deal.

That doesn't mean China offers a safe haven to Iran without conditions. Beijing will try to extract the maximum benefit, analysts say, and there is growing concern that China may take advantage of Iran.

Iran "has had to rely on China to offset the Western-induced isolation, predominantly championed by the United States," said Arianne Tabatabai, an associate political scientist at the RAND Corp. who recently co-authored a book exploring Iran's ties with China and Russia. "I think that what we're going to see . is the return of a quasi-monopoly of key sectors of the Iranian economy by the Chinese."

Trade and ties between China and Iran date back over 2,000 years to the ancient Silk Road caravan routes that brought the textile to Europe. Modern relations began under then-ruler Mohammad Reza Shah in 1971 after the Americans acknowledged Beijing's Communist government. The 1979 Islamic Revolution that overthrew the shah caused ties to cool until the mid-1980s.

For China, Iran for years served as a crucial gas pump for its rapid economic growth. Up until 2012, Iran was China's third-largest source of crude oil imports, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Then came sanctions over Iran's nuclear program, sparked by the West's fears that Tehran's enrichment and stockpiling of uranium could allow it to build nuclear weapons. Iran has denied wanting atomic bombs.

The U.S. under President Barack Obama and European nations pressured China and other Asian countries to cut back on their purchases of Iranian crude, leading to the 2015 nuclear deal. Under it, Iran agreed to limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for Western sanctions being lifted.

Now with President Donald Trump's decision to pull America from the accord, Iranians likely see China as one of the few avenues now open to them.

"China is a vast economy and has enough middle-sized companies that don't have a lot of exposure to the U.S. that Iran is going to be able to continue large quantities of trade there, assuming the Chinese government lets that happens and wants that to happen," said Peter Harrell, a fellow at the Washington-based Center for a New American Security and a former U.S. diplomat who worked on Iranian sanctions issues with Beijing.

The Chinese have stressed they want the nuclear deal to continue and support any talks toward that end.

"China has been carrying out open, transparent and normal business cooperation with Iran in the economic, trade and energy sectors. Such cooperation is reasonable, legitimate and lawful," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said in August. "It contravenes no U.N. Security Council resolutions or international obligations China has pledged into, undermines the interests of no one, and thus deserves to be respected and maintained."

He added, in an apparent dig at the Trump administration: "China always believes that reckless imposition of sanctions or threatening to use them will not help solve the issues." China already faces a billion-dollar tariff fight with Washington itself.

First among China's wants likely is Iran's energy supplies as other U.S. allies cut off their purchases by a November deadline. Nearly a quarter of all of Iran's oil exports went to China in 2017, according to the Energy Information Administration, making it the Islamic Republic's biggest single market. While oil imports from Iran have dropped some 20 percent between May and August, "China will keep any reductions to a minimal level," the Eurasia Group said Wednesday.

After French oil major Total SA pulled out of a $5 billion, 20-year agreement to develop the Iran's massive South Pars offshore natural gas field, growing rumors circulated that China would take over the concession.

Meanwhile, India may face growing pressure to pull out of Iran's Chahbahar port on the Gulf of Oman after pledging $500 million to improve it, allowing China to expand its own presence there. China already has invested in Pakistan's Gwadar port, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) away. Both provide a link to Afghanistan and other landlocked central Asian nations.

"China is really going to be the major savior of Iran because even though other countries say they're not going to comply with U.S. sanctions  India for example  when push comes to shove, they can't afford to risk their relationship with the United States," Tabatabai said.

But already, there are rumblings of concern among the Iranian public.

At Tehran's Grand Bazaar, most acknowledge Chinese goods are substandard to the ones sold by Western firms and remember how they flooded the market when nuclear sanctions bit into the country in 2006. Fishermen along Iran's southern coast already complain about Chinese firms gaining access to their fishing grounds.

Analysts expect Beijing also will ring major discounts from Tehran for buying whatever crude it otherwise can't sell after the November deadline.

China "will want to articulate the moral high ground" by mentioning the U.S. backed out of the nuclear deal, but business will come first, Harrell said. China remains both Iran's top import and export market.

"One thing I'm sure China is doing with the sanctions is leaning on Iran to get oil price concessions," Harrell said.

The one thing China, the world's top oil importer, does not want to see happen is any military action driving up the price of crude oil.

When Iranian President Hassan Rouhani made veiled threats about Iran's ability to close off the Strait of Hormuz, the Chinese immediately reached out to the Iranian government to express concern.

"If Iran does something stupid that sends global crude oil prices from $73 to $100 a barrel, China is actually the biggest loser by the move by far," Harrell said. "They have a very strong interest in stability, particularly in the Middle East."

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Associated Press writers Gillian Wong in Beijing and Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.

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Follow Jon Gambrell on Twitter at https://twitter.com/jongambrellAP . His work can be found at http://apne.ws/2galNpz .
Italys populist government said this week that it is considering cutting funding to the United Nations after the new U.N. human rights chief blasted the government for its crackdown on mass migration.



Former Chilean Socialist President Michelle Bachelet was appointed as High Commissioner for Human Rights last month, and has wasted no time in continuing her predecessors attacks on the populist and nationalist wave sweeping through Europe.



In her maiden speech at the controversial Human Rights Council on Monday, Bachelet criticized Italys populist governments policy of denying entry to NGO rescue boats from the Mediterranean to its ports.



This kind of political posturing and other recent developments have devastating consequences for many already vulnerable people, she said.

Italy's coalition government of the populist Five-Star Movement and the nationalist League has taken a hard stance on migration, and has stood by its policy in turning away boats of migrants crossing from North Africa, despite strong criticism from the E.U.

ITALY'S POPULIST GOVERNMENT WON'T PERMIT BOATS CARRYING MIGRANTS TO DOCK, DESPITE EU PRESSURE

In her opening statement, Bachelet said her office would be dispatching teams to both Italy and to Austria -- where a right-wing, anti-migration government formed in December.



We also intend to send staff to Italy, to assess the reported sharp increase in acts of violence and racism against migrants, persons of African descent and Roma, she said in her opening statement.

Her remarks sparked a fierce response from League leader and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, who said that Italy may slash funding to the U.N.

"The U.N. is an organization that costs billions of euros, to which Italy gives over 100 million every year in contributions and we will weigh with our allies on the usefulness of continuing to give these 100 million euros to fund waste, embezzlement, theft for a body that wants to give lessons to Italians and that also has countries that engage in torture and (still have) the death penalty," he said, according to ANSA.

If I were the U.N." Salvini continued, "I would have half a world to send inspectors to before Italy. Go look for racism elsewhere, not in Italy."

The Italian Foreign Ministry released a statement, calling Bachelet's remarks "inappropriate, ungrounded and unfair."

MICHELLE BACHELET, SOCIALIST EX-PRESIDENT OF CHILE, IS TAPPED FOR UN HUMAN RIGHTS POST

"Thanks to our decisive contribution, we have recorded a 52% percent reduction in the number of people drowned in shipwrecks in the Mediterranean since the beginning of 2018 compared to the same period of 2017. This is a result we are proud of," the statement said.

"And we are also proud that our efforts  humanitarian, political, diplomatic, financial and material  have produced an 80 percent reduction in the arrival of migrants on the coasts of Italy, and therefore of Europe, over the last 12 months," it said.

Salvinis skeptical stance on U.N. funding comes amid a push by the U.S. to trim its obligations to the world body. The Trump administration has hailed cuts to the U.S. contribution to the budget, and has also cut funding to the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency.

Last month, National Security Advisor John Bolton told The Associated Press that the U.S. intends to cut funding to Bachelets office as well as the Human Rights Council.

In June, the U.S. announced its departure from the Human Rights Council, with U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley describing it as a cesspool of political bias.
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The Latest on Europe's response to mass migration (all times local):

4:30 p.m.

Malta is contesting the Italian premier's assertion that it had responsibility for a group of nearly 180 migrants eventually picked up by an Italian coast guard ship and brought to Italy.

The Maltese government called Giuseppe Conte's remarks while testifying before lawmakers on Wednesday "inaccurate."

It said in a statement: "The Italian government clearly bears full responsibility for the disembarkation" in Italy under international and European Union law.

The government says the boat carrying the migrants last month had refused assistance, and "given that it was on the high seas, Malta could not intercept the vessel with force."

It added that Maltese authorities continued to monitor it closely.

The migrants were blocked from getting off the boat until other EU nations agreed to take a number of them.

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10:25 a.m.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker wants to beef up the EU's coast guard and asylum agency to better police Europe's outside borders and speed the deportation of unauthorized migrants.

Juncker told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg, France, Wednesday that "external borders must be protected more effectively."

He says the executive Commission is proposing a standing corps for the border and coast guard agency numbering 10,000 staff, including guards and migration experts.

The force would be fully operational by 2020 and Juncker says it should be funded by some 2.2 billion euros in EU money.

EU nations still have to endorse the proposal. Many nations have expressed concern at the idea of having their borders policed by staff from other countries, even if they are European partners.
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Leading Brexit-supporting lawmakers insisted Wednesday that they aren't about to topple Prime Minister Theresa May, despite strong opposition to her plan for taking Britain out of the European Union.

A faction of May's Conservative Party opposes her proposal to keep the U.K. aligned to EU rules after Brexit in return for free trade in goods. They say that would keep Britain tethered to the bloc and unable to strike new trade deals around the world.

Several dozen rebel lawmakers have discussed attempting to trigger a no-confidence vote in May in hope of replacing her with a strongly pro-Brexit politician such as former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, a fierce critic of May's Brexit blueprint.

But pro-Brexit Environment Secretary Michael Gove said Wednesday that speculation about a leadership challenge is just "loose talk."

He said May is doing a "great job at the moment."

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis, who quit the government in July over differences with May, added that she is a "very good" prime minister with whom he disagreed on one issue.

Britain is due to leave the EU on March 29, but divorce talks have foundered amid Conservative divisions over how close a relationship to seek with the bloc.

Hopes are fading that Britain and the EU can strike a deal at an EU summit in October as originally planned, but there are growing expectations that the EU is planning another meeting for November.

EU leaders have issued encouraging statements recently, saying a deal is possible in the next two months if both sides are realistic.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said Wednesday that EU negotiators "stand ready to work day and night to reach a deal."

"I welcome Prime Minister May's proposal to develop an ambitious new partnership for the future after Brexit," Juncker said during a speech in Strasbourg.

But a deal is far from done, and the U.K. has stepped up planning for a "no-deal" Brexit, which could disrupt trade, transport and other sectors of the economy. The chief executive of automaker Jaguar Land Rover on Tuesday called a no-deal Brexit a "horrifying" scenario that could cost tens of thousands of jobs.

Conservative opponents of May's "Chequers" plan  named for the country-house retreat where it was drawn up  are trying to show they have an alternative proposal for breaking free of the EU.

The "hard Brexit"-supporting European Research Group on Wednesday published its plan for solving one of the thorniest outstanding issues  the border between the U.K.'s Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland. Britain and the EU both say there must be no customs posts or other infrastructure along the currently invisible frontier, but they have not agreed on how that can happen once the U.K. leaves the bloc's tariff-free customs union.

The Brexit-backing group said technology and "trusted trader" programs could remove the need for border posts, and a U.K-EU agreement on common biosecurity standards would allow the smooth movement of agricultural products.

"It can all be done electronically," said lawmaker Owen Paterson, a former Northern Ireland secretary. "There is absolutely no need for new physical infrastructure at the border."

Critics said the EU has already rejected similar proposals as inadequate to protect the open border, a cornerstone of Northern Ireland's peace process.

Robert Hannigan, former director of Britain's GCHQ intelligence agency, said Wednesday that a hard border would lead to a rise in smuggling, increase tensions between Irish nationalists and pro-British unionists and "fray around the edges of the peace process."

"So it's a very unhealthy development," Hannigan told the BBC.

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Lorne Cook in Brussels contributed to this story.
Missiles were fired at Libya's capital Tripoli, including the city's only functioning airport, forcing authorities to divert flights to another airport to the south, government and airport officials said Wednesday, less than a week after the U.N. brokered a cease-fire between rival armed groups.

The source of Tuesday's missile attack was unclear and there were no casualties reported, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media.

Mitiga International Airport posted on its Facebook page late Tuesday that the airport was closed and all flights were being diverted to Misrata International Airport.

Pilots were called Tuesday night to fly planes out of Tripoli to Misrata so they would not be hit, said one official.

"This was the only option to make sure they were not destroyed after the missiles landed on the airport grounds," he said.

Also on Wednesday, the U.N. envoy for Libya, Ghassan Salame, met with the head of the U.N.-backed government, Fayez Sarraj, and military commanders in the western town of Zawiya to discuss a "Tripoli security arrangement," according to the U.N. mission in Libya.

"There is readiness by the international community to deal firmly with those who manipulate or violate the cease-fire," Salame said in the meeting.

The missile attack followed recent fighting in Tripoli between rival armed groups, which left at least 61 people dead. A cease-fire has been in place since last week.

Clashes in Tripoli erupted Aug. 26 when militias from Tarhouna, a town south of Tripoli, attacked southern neighborhoods of the capital, prompting militias supporting the U.N.-backed government in Tripoli to come to the city's defense. The fighting has killed 78 people and wounded 216 including eight children and six women, according to the Health Ministry.

Separately, the extremist Islamic State group on Tuesday claimed responsibility for an attack on the headquarters of Libya's national oil company in the capital Tripoli that killed two people and wounded at least 10 others.

Islamic extremists expanded their reach in Libya after the 2011 uprising plunged the country into chaos and toppled and later killed longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi.

IS was driven from its main stronghold, the coastal city of Sirte, in 2016 and fled inland.

Libya is currently split between rival governments in the east and the west, each backed by an array of militias.
Macedonia's conservative opposition leader has told supporters to vote "with their conscience" in an upcoming referendum on changing the country's name.

The opposition is strongly against changing the country's name to "North Macedonia," a move meant to resolve a longstanding dispute with Greece, and had been widely expected to urge a "no" vote for the Sept. 30 referendum. Their appeal Wednesday appeared to be the latest boost for the "yes" campaign, which has received strong backing from the United States and western governments.

In remarks published on the VMRO-DPMNE party's website, leader Hristijan Mickoski said the vote was up to "each individual, with their conscience and morals" to "decide what's best for their family and our beloved Macedonia."

The name change means Greece will drop its veto over the country joining NATO. Greece has worried that its neighbor's name implied a claim on the ancient heritage of its own region of Macedonia.

Macedonia's center-left government launched its referendum campaign earlier this week, urging people to support the name change.

The campaign is being vocally supported by western governments, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel all visited the capital Skopje last week to urge Macedonian voters to back the deal.

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters at a Pentagon briefing Tuesday he was planning to visit Macedonia at the weekend, adding that he was concerned about alleged acts of "mischief" by Russia to try and block the country's path to NATO membership.

Russia denies claims of interference but openly opposes NATO expansion eastward.

Wess Mitchell, a U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, will also visit Macedonia Thursday.

Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci also buoyed the "yes" campaign at a meeting Wednesday in Skopje.

"From my humble position, I call on all people in Macedonia to participate in the referendum and to say "yes." I think this is an historic moment that needs to be seized," Thaci told reporters.

___

AP Writer Derek Gatopoulos contributed from Athens, Greece
A senior Myanmar official has confirmed that the country's leader, State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, will not attend the U.N. General Assembly session beginning next week in New York.

Minister for International Cooperation Kyaw Tin, who is accompanying Suu Kyi at a meeting of the World Economic Forum in Vietnam, said "She has no plan to go there."

He was responding to a report in the Myanmar newspaper 7 Days citing a Myanmar foreign ministry official as saying that Suu Kyi would not attend the U.N. meeting, which starts Sept. 18. No reason was given.

Suu Kyi, who took office in 2016, also did not attend last year's General Assembly meeting.

Myanmar is facing international pressure over human rights abuses allegedly committed by its military against the Rohingya Muslim minority.

About 700,000 Rohingya fled to Bangladesh from Myanmar's western state of Rakhine last year after the army launched a brutal counterinsurgency campaign in response to August 2017 attacks by Rohingya militants on security forces.

The army is accused of committing mass rape, murder and setting fire to thousands of homes. A report issued two weeks ago by a specially appointed U.N. human rights team recommended prosecuting senior Myanmar commanders for genocide and other crimes.

Last year, Suu Kyi's office said her reason for not attending the 2017 General Assembly session was because she had to handle domestic security issues after the attacks that triggered the army crackdown.

Although the violence in Rakhine state has eased, Myanmar has to deal with its aftermath, especially the repatriation of the Muslim Rohingya who fled and the underlying causes of tension that makes them targets of discrimination and repression in overwhelmingly Buddhist Myanmar.

The 7 Days newspaper article said the Myanmar delegation to the General Assembly meeting would "explain about current developments on repatriation and cooperation with international organizations." U.N. agencies have an agreement with Myanmar's government to help resettle the Rohingya when they are repatriated.
Pope Francis will summon the presidents of every bishops conference to a meeting in February to discuss preventing clergy sex abuse and protecting children, his advisers revealed Wednesday.

The Vatican is grappling with claims that the leader of the Catholic Church helped cover up an American cardinals misconduct.

The Feb. 21-24 meeting at the Vatican is believed to be the first of its kind, according to the Associated Press, and signals a realization at the highest levels of the church that clergy sex abuse is a global problem, as many church leaders have long tried to insist.

A delegation of U.S. cardinals and bishops is already heading to the Vatican Thursday to meet with Francis over accusations from a retired Vatican ambassador that he rehabilitated a top American cardinal from sanctions imposed by Pope Benedict XVI for having molested and harassed adult seminarians.

POPE TO MEET WITH HEAD OF US BISHOPS' CONFERENCE OVER SEX ABUSE, COVER-UP SCANDAL

The Vatican hasn't responded to the accusations by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, but has promised "clarifications" that presumably will come sometime after Francis' meeting Thursday with the U.S. delegation.

The Vatican said Tuesday the meeting would be headed by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and also include Francis' top sex abuse adviser, Cardinal Sean O'Malley.

Di Nardo has said he wants Francis to authorize a full-fledged Vatican investigation into ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who was removed as cardinal in July after a credible accusation that he groped a teenager.

The Vatican has known since at least 2000 that McCarrick would invite seminarians to his New Jersey beach house and into his bed, the Associated Press reported.

St. John Paul II made him archbishop of Washington and a cardinal in 2001, presumably because Vatican officials were impressed by his fundraising prowess and considered his past homosexual activity a mere "moral lapse" and not a gross abuse of power, it added.

POPE FRANCIS FACING CALLS TO RESIGN; SEXUAL ABUSE SCANDAL EXPOSES RIFTS IN THE VATICAN

DiNardo has also said recent accusations that top Vatican officials - including the current pope - covered up for McCarrick since 2000 deserve answers.

In addition, embattled Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl, who is facing calls to step down over his handling of sex-abuse cases, revealed this week he will travel to Rome to meet with the pope "very soon" to discuss his possible resignation -- which the cardinal had proposed two years ago.

Earlier this year, Francis faced what was then the worst crisis of his papacy when he repeatedly discredited victims of a notorious Chilean predator priest. He eventually admitted to "grave errors in judgment" and has taken steps to make amends, sanction guilty bishops and remake the Chilean episcopacy.

Fox News Frank Miles and the Associated Press contributed to this report.


Pope Francis said Wednesday he hopes to visit Japan next year, a trip that would enable him to draw attention to both the legacy of Christian martyrs centuries ago and survivors of the atomic bombs in 1945.

Francis made the announcement while meeting with members of a visiting Japanese cultural association.

"Taking advantage of this visit, I want to announce my hope to visit Japan next year. We hope to do it," Francis said, speaking off-the-cuff.

Francis has long expressed his admiration for Japanese culture and history, and famously had hoped to become a missionary in Japan after he was ordained a priest. His superiors dashed his hopes, however, citing his frail health at the time.

But during his five-year papacy he has repeatedly spoken in admiration of the missionary work of his Jesuit order to bring Christianity to Japan in the 16th century, and of the witness of the martyrs who suffered from the anti-Christian persecution that ensued.

Any papal visit to Japan would certainly include a visit to the Museum of the 26 Martyrs and monument in Nagasaki at the site where 26 Christians were killed in 1597.

Visiting Nagasaki would also allow Francis to draw attention to its devastating atomic legacy; Francis has called for a world completely free of nuclear weapons and earlier this year had the Vatican print up thousands of cards purportedly of a Nagasaki child survivor carrying his dead brother on his back with the words "the fruit of war" printed on it.

Earlier this year, the mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki reportedly asked Francis to visit to encourage survivors. And Japan's bishops have been urging him to visit since he was elected, in part to honor the so-called "Hidden Christians" who kept the faith alive during decades of persecution.

Jesuit missionaries first began spreading Christianity in Japan in 1549, famously led by St. Francis Xavier, one of the founders of Francis' Jesuit order. By 1585 Christianity had spread so much that a delegation of four young Japanese Catholics traveled halfway around the globe to participate in the festivities of the election of Pope Sixtus V in Rome.

But a backlash against Christians was already brewing and persecution became rampant and systematic, with Christians executed en masse, including the famous 26 martyrs. In 1612, a famous anti-Christian edict was passed and a few years later Christianity was banned outright.

Today, Japan has a tiny Catholic community; Francis has praised its strong faith as a result of the history of brutal Christian persecution.

St. John Paul II was the first pope to visit Japan, in 1981.
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South Sudan's warring parties on Wednesday signed what they say is the final peace agreement to end the country's five-year civil war, which has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions.

Several preliminary agreements have already been signed but both sides say this is the concluding version.

President Salva Kiir and head of the opposition, Riek Machar as well as the other opposition parties signed the "final final" deal in neighboring Ethiopia, government spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny told The Associated Press. He said the agreement is acceptable to all parties and noted that Kiir and Machar had an amicable chat after the signing.

"The president was interacting very well with Riek Machar ... he was talking to him in a very friendly way," said Ateny.

The latest signing comes following weeks of negotiations in Khartoum, Sudan, on outstanding issues between the factions. While the government is optimistic about the new deal, many international observers remain skeptical.

"We remain concerned about the parties' level of commitment to this agreement and to the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement," said a statement on Wednesday by the UK, the U.S. and Norway, the troika that worked to bring South Sudan to independence in 2011. To be convinced of both sides' the commitment to peace, they need to see a significant change in approach, said the three countries in a statement, indicating they want to see an end to the violence, full humanitarian access given to aid workers, the release of political prisoners and see checks on executive and majority power and the transparent use of resources.

A Washington-based advocacy group also questioned the deal.

"Today's peace deal lacks meaningful checks and balances on a presidency that already wields immense powers, which are primarily used to loot the country's resources and deploy extreme violence against opponents," said John Prendergast, founding director of the Enough Project, which has focused on South Sudan.
The affirmation was made when the Party leader attended and delivered a speech at the opening of the second Vietnam  Hungary rectors conference in Budapest..

Describing the conference as an important and very practical cooperation mechanism among universities of the two countries, Party leader Trong also spoke highly of the collaboration between the two countries relevant ministries in organizing the event with an aim of further developing relations between the universities, helping implement cooperation documents signed between the two sides.

Speaking at the event, Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister Mihaly Varga expressed admiration at Vietnams achievements in various fields, especially education and training, stressing that Vietnam is an important gateway for Hungary to advance to Southeast Asia. Hungary is enjoying high development prospects to become a motive of economic growth of Europe, and this will create good chances for Vietnamese firms, the official added.

At the conference, participants focused their discussion on the prospects of bilateral cooperation in training and scientific research, with the core contents being strengthening joint education programmes between the universities of the two countries, boosting the exchange of students and lecturers, and forming joint research groups, among others.

Vietnam  Hungary cooperation in education and training is a prominent point in the bilateral relations. Over the past nearly 70 years, Hungary has helped trained over 3,000 Vietnamese students, many of them have held and are holding important positions in the State management apparatus, science, culture, art and business in Vietnam.

Recently, the number of annual scholarships granted by the Hungarian government to Vietnamese cities has seen a sharp increase, to 200 now from only five in 2012 and 100 in 2016. Currently there are nearly 500 Vietnamese students studying in Hungary while a large number of Hungarian students are studying in Vietnam.

The first conference of the rectors was held in Hanoi in November 2014 with the participation of representatives from 50 Vietnamese and 15 Hungarian universities, on the occasion of the Vietnam visit by President Janos Ader.

The conference this time was held on the occasion of the official Hungary visit by Party leader Nguyen Phu Trong, drawing the participation of representatives of over 30 Vietnamese and 20 Hungarian universities.

The signing of up to 15 agreement documents at this years conference is described as evidence of attention from universities to the utilization of cooperation potential and chances in the field of education and training between the two countries.
A U.N. commission tasked with investigating battles in Syria has accused the Assad regime and affiliated militias of carrying out war crimes as it released a damning report Wednesday highlighting atrocities that have collectively displaced more than one million men, women and children.

The 24-page document by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic focuses on happenings inside Syria between January and July of this year. It is based on hundreds of interviews, satellite images, videos, medical records and government communications during that time period, among other sources.

"The Commission finds that pro-government forces committed the war crimes of deliberately attacking protected objects, intentionally attacking medical personnel and using prohibited weapons, and that, on four occasions, pro-government forces did not direct attacks at a specific military objective, which amounted to the war crime of launching indiscriminate attacks in civilian areas, the report says.

GERMANY IN TALKS WITH US ON POSSIBLY JOINING AIRSTRIKES IN SYRIA IN THE EVENT OF CHEMICAL ATTACK: REPORT

"On 4 February, at approximately 9 p.m., Government helicopters dropped at least two barrels carrying chlorine payloads in the Taleel area of Saraqeb," another excerpt of the report says.

On April 7, numerous aerial attacks were carried out in Douma, striking various residential areas, it adds.

A vast body of evidence collected by the Commission suggests that, at approximately 7.30 p.m., a gas cylinder containing a chlorine payload delivered by helicopter struck a multi-story residential apartment building, the report continues, noting that the attacks left at least 49 people dead that day and wounded another 650.

The report also cites chemical weapon use in Ghouta, outside the Syrian capital of Damascus.

US NAVY FIGHTER PILOT RECEIVES VALOR AWARD FOR SHOOTING DOWN SYRIAN JET IN 2017

"In an unprecedented development during the period under review, warring parties carried out battles in Aleppo, northern Homs, Damascus, Rif Damascus, Daraa and Idlib governorates, which collectively displaced more than 1 million Syrian men, women and children, it says.

Meanwhile, government forces have been massing troops on the edge of Idlib in preparation for an offensive on the last major rebel stronghold in Syria, according to the Associated Press.

"Idlib should not become the next massacre, the final massacre in the battles in Syria and common sense now needs to prevail," Commissioner Hanny Megally told reporters after the release of the report. The civilian population "should not be held hostage to a war on terror."

U.N. Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura said last month that 10,000 Al Qaeda-linked fighters and their families are located in the densely populated region, which is now home to 2.9 million people. Many of those have been displaced from other parts of Syria in recent years.

Commission Chair Paulo Pinheiro said the presence of 3 million civilians in the area is "something that has to move the powers involved in the decision."

"You are fighting 10,000 armed people, terrorists, and the 3 million population will be the price to fight," said Pinheiro. "Of course we don't have anything against fighting terrorists but something has to be done to protect the rights of the 3 million people and (including) 1 million children."

"All the other disasters would be minor events compared to what can happen in Idlib," he said.

The White House warned Assad last week that if he chooses to use chemical weapons in the offensive against Idlib, the U.S. and its allies "will respond swiftly and appropriately."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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U.N. investigators warned Wednesday that a war against some 10,000 extremists in northwestern Syria should not take 3 million people hostages. They added that the expected attack by Syrian troops on Idlib province would make other battles in the country look minor.

The U.N. Commission of Inquiry said government forces carried out three chemical weapons attacks in Syria and that violence displaced the largest number of people the year, the largest since the conflict began in 2011.

It warned that an attack on Idlib "with little regard for civilian life would generate a catastrophic human rights and humanitarian crisis." It called on parties to the conflict to protect civilians, as required by international humanitarian law.

Government forces have been massing troops on the edge of Idlib in preparation for an offensive on the last major rebel stronghold in Syria.

Government bombardment of Idlib has dropped as of Tuesday after days of stepped up bombing campaign against the Syrian opposition's last bastion in the country.

A summit between Russia, Turkey, and Iran on Friday failed to bring about a settlement. Iran and Russia are main backers of the government while Turkey backs the opposition.

"Idlib should not become the next massacre, the final massacre in the battles in Syria and common sense now needs to prevail," Commissioner Hanny Megally told reporters after the release of the report. The civilian population "should not be held hostage to a war on terror."

U.N. Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura said last month that 10,000 al-Qaida-linked fighters and their families are located in the densely populated region, which is now home to 2.9 million people. Many of those have been displaced from other parts of Syria in recent years.

Commission Chair Paulo Pinheiro said the presence of 3 million civilians in the area is "something that has to move the powers involved in the decision."

"You are fighting 10,000 armed people, terrorists, and the 3 million population will be the price to fight," said Pinheiro. "Of course we don't have anything against fighting terrorists but something has to be done to protect the rights of the 3 million people and (including) 1 million children."

"All the other disasters would be minor events compared to what can happen in Idlib," he said.

The inquiry blamed the government for chlorine gas attacks during its offensive on eastern suburbs of the capital Damascus known as eastern Ghouta and on Idlib as well.

"To recapture eastern Ghouta in April, government forces launched numerous indiscriminate attacks in densely populated civilian areas, which included the use of chemical weapons," the report said.

It said in the Idlib attack, government helicopters dropped at least two barrels carrying chlorine payloads in the Taleel area near the town of Saraqeb. The eastern Ghouta attack occurred in Douma.

"The Commission concludes that, on these two occasions, government forces and/or affiliated militias committed the war crimes of using prohibited weapons and launching indiscriminate attacks in civilian populated areas in eastern Ghouta," it said.

It said the Douma attacks occurred on Jan. 22 and Feb. 1. The report added that "specifically, the munitions documented were built around industrially produced Iranian artillery rockets known to have been supplied to forces commanded by the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic."

The U.S., Britain and France launched a missile attack in April to punish President Bashar Assad for another chlorine attack that they blamed the government.

The White House warned Assad last week that if he chooses to use chemical weapons in the offensive against Idlib, the U.S. and its allies "will respond swiftly and appropriately."

The report also said that Syria this year witnessed levels of internal displacement not seen before in the seven-year conflict, warning that a large proportion of those displaced currently languish in Idlib.

Syrian government forces captured wide areas around the country from insurgents earlier this year.

The inquiry said in a 24-page report that over 1 million Syrian men, women and children have been displaced so far this year "with most now living in dire conditions."

The areas include southern regions on the fronts with Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights as well as eastern Ghouta and parts of the central province of Homs.

Turkish troops and Turkey-backed opposition fighters also captured earlier this year the northern Kurdish enclave of Afrin leading to the displacement of tens of thousands of people.

The report said most battles were marked by war crimes including launching indiscriminate attacks, deliberately attacking protected objects, using prohibited weapons, pillaging and forced displacement, including by armed groups.

"It is completely inexcusable that no party to this conflict adhered to their obligations toward civilians displaced by their military operations," Pinheiro said.

____

Keaten reported from Geneva.
A potential marker for stomach cancer risk

H. pylori infection is one of the strongest risk factors for stomach cancer, but how much it predisposes individuals to gastric cancer varies around the world. Up to 50 percent of people in the U.S. carry H. pylori in their stomachs; of those millions infected with the bacterium, only about 26,000 people are expected to be diagnosed with stomach cancer this year. In China, the rate of H. pylori infection can be as high as 67 percent, but gastric cancer is the second-most common type of cancer. According to the World Health Organizations most recent worldwide cancer statistics, more than 400,000 people in China were diagnosed with stomach cancer in 2012.

The global differences in stomach cancer risk can be partly attributed to differences in H. pylori itself. One way that H. pylori varies is in the cagA gene, which encodes a toxin that helps the bacterium better attach to cells lining the stomach. Particularly in Western countries, not all strains of H. pylori have cagA. In the U.S., the mere presence of cagA is linked to a higher risk of gastric cancer. But in other areas of the world, such as East Asia, nearly all strains of the bacterium have cagA. However, the sequence of cagA can vary as well, specifically in a section known as the EPIYA motif. Most cagA-carrying H. pylori strains in the U.S. have an EPIYA C, or Western version. The most common East Asian variant is known as EPIYA D.

Working with collaborators at Zhengzhou University offered Salama and her team the opportunity to look more closely at H. pylori in patients who had progressed to cancer. Lead author Dr. Sarah Talarico, a postdoctoral research fellow in the Salama Lab, had previously developed a sensitive test to detect H. pylori and its cagA variants. The team drew on stomach endoscopy samples and stool samples from study participants at Henan Cancer Hospital in Zhengzhou, China, who had tested positive for H. pylori by the urea breath test, a standard test for H. pylori infection. The preliminary study included samples from 25 patients with stomach cancer and 24 patients without cancer. Blinded to which samples were from patients with cancer, the researchers used their test to detect which cagA variant each patient carried and compare the amount of bacteria in their stomachs and intestines.

Going in, people said all strains are essentially cagA-positive, and it will be this East Asian [EPIYA D] type, Salama said. Instead, she and her team saw both East Asian EPIYA D and Western EPIYA C variants in their patient pool, made up of all ethnically Han Chinese participants.

Strikingly, presence of the more virulent EPIYA D variant was linked to stomach cancer. Ninety-one percent of cancer patients carried H. pylori with this variant, while only 50 percent of cancer-free patients did.

Even with this tiny sample size  if we just say, Does having EPIYA D correlate with cancer? it does, in a statistically significant manner, Salama said. Its a preliminary study, but its really interesting.

H. pylori persists in cancer

Many questions about how H. pylori contributes to gastric cancer remain to be answered, Salama said. The bacterium appears to trigger a cascade of events that begin with stomach inflammation and can result in gastric cancer, but whether (and how) H. pylori influences  or even survives  later steps in this process is unclear.

Salama and her team looked at the amount of bacteria in the patients stomach tissue and stool samples to see if they spotted any differences that might shed light on how H. pylori responds to the changes, such as increased stomach pH, that go along with gastric cancer development.

My pet hypothesis was that H. pylori loads were going to be lower in the gastric cancer cases, Salama said.

But instead of less H. pylori, the team found about six times more in stool samples from patients with gastric cancer than in patients without cancer. They also detected H. pylori in the stomach samples from patients with stomach cancer but saw no difference in the amount when compared to patients without cancer. The findings add to a growing body of work suggesting that H. pylori persists during stomach cancer development and may be contributing to that process at several steps.

Next steps

As interesting as the results may be, the small number of study participants limits conclusions that can be drawn, Salama noted.

Confirming the findings will require a much larger study of either previously collected samples or new samples collected from patients with H. pylori infections who are followed over time to see whether those with the EPIYA D type of cagA are much more prone to stomach cancer, she said.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, the National Cancer Institute and the Henan Science and Technology Breakthrough Project funded this study.
Newsbrief: Since Pokemon Go's explosive launch, its playerbase has shot up and down on a rollercoaster ride that can only be expected when a game has become one of the world's most popular MMORPGs. But in a company blog post today, Niantic has confirmed that its number of total active players has once again been ticking upward, touting a 35 percent growth since May of 2018.

The blog post, which also takes time to discuss the company's partnership with the Knight Foundation, slipped in this statistic while discussing how players have been coming together for the last few months. In June, Niantic released Pokemon Go's social update, which implemented a full friend system and gave players the ability to send gifts to their friends.

These new features, along with a slew of community and company-organized events, appear to be the driving factor behind the new growth.
Below is the full text of the joint statement.

1. At the invitation of His Excellency Tran Dai Quang, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and Madam, His Excellency Joko Widodo, President of the Republic of Indonesia, and Madam paid a State Visit to Vietnam from 11 to 12 September 2018. The visit underscored the closeness and the importance of the relations between the two neighbouring countries and strategic partners.

2. During the visit, President Widodo was accorded an official welcome ceremony at the Presidential Palace and held bilateral talks with President Tran Dai Quang, who hosted a State banquet in President Widodos honour. President Widodo also called on His Excellency Nguyen Phu Trong, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and met His Excellency Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Prime Minister and Her Excellency Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, Chairwoman of National Assembly of Vietnam.

3. The Leaders had a wide-ranging discussion on bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest. The Leaders affirmed the long-term and time-tested friendship between the two countries, the foundation of which was laid by the late President Ho Chi Minh and President Soekarno, nurtured by successive generations of leaders and people of the two countries.

4. The Leaders witnessed the signing of the Plan of Action for the Implementation of Strategic Partnership between the Republic of Indonesia and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (2019-2023) and the Joint Communique on Voluntary International Cooperation to Combat Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and to Promote Sustainable Fisheries Governance.

STRENGTHENING STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP

5. The Leaders expressed their satisfaction with the excellent state of the Strategic Partnership, which is further deepened by strong mutual trust and extensive cooperation on all areas, among others are economic, defence, security, socio-cultural and people-to-people links.

6. The Leaders agreed to maintain the current momentum of high-level exchanges and to create more opportunities to exchange views, ideas and initiatives on strategic issues through bilateral mechanisms and consultations, including the Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC).

7. The Leaders expressed satisfaction with the implementation of the first Plan of Action (2014-2018) and welcomed the signing of the Plan of Action for the Implementation of the Strategic Partnership between the Republic of Indonesia and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (2019-2023) on this occasion and underlined the importance of the full and effective implementation of this Plan of Action in laying foundation for substantive cooperation.

8. The Leaders commended the progress in the negotiations on the delimitation of the Exclusive Economic Zone between the two countries and further agreed to task the Technical Meeting to accelerate the negotiation for an early agreement based on international law, particularly the 1982 UNCLOS.

9. The Leaders acknowledged the significant progress made in defence cooperation, especially through the implementation of the 2010 MOU on Strengthening of Cooperation between Defence Officials and Its Related Activities and the Joint Vision Statement between the Ministry of National Defence of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Indonesia on Defence Activities Cooperation towards 2017-2022. The Leaders determined to explore further cooperation in the field of science and technology for defence industry.

10. The Leaders reaffirmed the importance of enhanced cooperation to combat transnational organized crimes such as illicit drug trafficking, people smuggling, terrorism, cyber-crime, and money laundering. The Leaders expressed determination to expedite the consideration of an agreement on the prevention of trafficking in persons.

11. The Leaders reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen close and effective coordination to protect each countrys national security interests.

12. The Leaders agreed to intensify judicial assistance cooperation, particularly within the framework of the 2017 MOU on Legal and Justice Cooperation, including experience exchange on law enforcement, administrative reform, anti-corruption, etc.

13. The Leaders encouraged the implementation of the 2010 MoU between the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia and welcomed the establishment of the Vietnam - Indonesia Parliamentary Friendship Group to strengthen cooperation between the two sides.

ENHANCING ECONOMIC COOPERATION

14. The Leaders reaffirmed their determination in promoting a strong, balanced and sustainable two-way trade volume, striving forwards the target of USD 10 billion as soon as possible, building on the platform created by the ASEAN Economic Community and an open, stable and conducive business environment of the region.

15. The Leaders agreed to have stronger measures to facilitate and promote bilateral trade, including removal of unnecessary trade barriers and measures which are inconsistent with international and regional trade rules and norms, providing broader market access for two countries goods and services.

16. Considering the development of economic cooperation, the Leaders agreed to task the relevant ministries to conduct a review on the 1990 Agreement between the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Government of the Republic of Indonesia on Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation.

17. The Leaders encouraged greater two-way investment. The two leaders welcomed and supported increasing bilateral investment in infrastructure development, manufacturing, agriculture, services, tourism, information technology, health, transportation, construction and logistics.

18. The Leaders further agreed to ensure a conducive trade and investment climate through consistent implementation of national policies and regulations and tasked the relevant ministries to find solutions for the obstacles faced by the business people.

19. The Leaders agreed to further promote cooperation on energy sector and encouraged active participation of state-owned and private enterprises from both countries in particular in the oil and gas exploration and production, refinery industry and services.

20. The Leaders pledged to work actively to implement the 2013 MoU on Agricultural Commodities Cooperation, including the early convening of the first meeting of the Working Group on Agricultural Cooperation. They reiterated the shared commitment in encouraging and facilitating smart production of agricultural commodities.

21. The Leaders agreed to increase the air and sea connectivity of the two countries to ease the movement of goods and people. Indonesia took note of Vietnams request for the exchange of experience in inland waterway transportation.

22. To cope with the challenges of the industrial revolution 4.0, the Leaders agreed to promote innovation through enhancing joint research, capacity building on Intellectual Property (IP), and technical assistance and training of IP professionals.

23. The Leaders agreed to further enhance cooperation in rural development through the implementation of the 2017 MoU on Rural Development and Cooperation, strengthen cooperation on rural flagship products to improve rural economic productivity, on rural community empowerment to promote self-reliant village, on sharing of best practices in rural development and appropriate technology, and on training and assistance of rural development.

24. The Leaders agreed to enhance maritime cooperation, by prioritizing sustainable maritime economy and marine resources, marine investment schemes, marine scientific research and development related capacity building activities and environmental sustainability.

25. The Leaders welcomed the signing of the Joint Communique on Voluntary International Cooperation to Combat Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and to Promote Sustainable Fisheries Governance and instructed the relevant Ministers for the full implementation of the Joint Communique.

26. The Leaders commended the commitments on maritime cooperation stipulated in the Agreed Minutes of the 3rd JCBC and instructed the Ministers to accelerate the implementation of the commitments therein.

PROMOTING SOCIO-CULTURAL COOPERATION

27. The Leaders agreed to continue implementing the 2017 MOU on Education Cooperation and to expand cooperation in education and training through, among others, exchanges of teachers and students.

28. Sharing the view of the importance of human resources development, the Leaders agreed to task relevant agencies to develop direct link between vocational institutions and industries in the two countries to ensure the readiness of human resources to support the development in the industrial sector.

29. Recognizing the importance of encouraging greater people-to-people links, especially among the youth, the Leaders tasked the relevant Ministries to increase activities including through youth exchange.

30. The Leaders affirmed their commitment in facilitating the promotion of each others image through journalist visit program, exhibitions and expanded tourism cooperation.

31. The Leaders acknowledged and encouraged further contribution of the Vietnam - Indonesia Friendship Association and Indonesia - Vietnam Friendship Association to enhance the relations between private sectors as well as people of the two countries.

ENHANCING COOPERATION ON REGIONAL AND MULTILATERAL FORA

32. The Leaders shared convergence of views on various regional and international issues. They agreed to continue to work closely to address global and regional challenges, including transnational crimes, climate change, natural disaster risks, food - water - energy security nexus, among others.

33. The Leaders noted with satisfaction the excellent cooperation between both countries in regional and international fora, such as ASEAN and ASEAN related mechanisms, APEC, ASEM, WTO, the UN and agreed to continue this tradition. Indonesia thanked Vietnam for the latters support for Indonesias candidature as Non-Permanent Member of the UN Security Council (UNSC) for the term 2019-2020 and expressed its support for Vietnams candidature on this position for the term 2020-2021.

34. The Leaders reiterated their determination on maintaining ASEAN centrality and unity as well as ensuring the full and effective implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025. They emphasised their support for an ASEAN-centric regional architecture, which is open, transparent, inclusive and rules-based.

35. The Leaders reaffirmed the commitment to a rules-based multilateral trading system and also an early and successful conclusion of the negotiations for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) with balanced and mutually beneficial outcomes, which would allow economies of different levels of development to actively participate in and benefit from an open and inclusive regional economic integration.

36. The Leaders underlined the importance of maintaining peace, stability and the rule of law in the region, which includes the safety, security and freedom of navigation in and overflight above the region, including in the South China Sea. In this regard, the Leaders reiterated their commitment in, and support for the resolution of all disputes by peaceful means, without resorting to the threat or use of force, in accordance with international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS, with full respect for legal and diplomatic processes.

37. Both sides emphasized the importance of non-militarization, the exercise of self-restraint in the conduct of activities that may raise tensions or escalate the disputes, and further adherence to universally recognized principles of international law and norms. Both sides reaffirmed their support for the full and effective implementation of the Declaration of the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) and welcomed the continued improving cooperation between ASEAN and China and were encouraged by the progress of the substantive negotiation towards an effective and substantive Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC).

38. The Leaders exchanged views on an Indo-Pacific concept which enables ASEAN to continue its role as a primary driving force in the wider regional architecture. Indonesia expressed its appreciation towards Vietnams support on the initiative to develop an ASEAN Indo-Pacific concept, which embraces key principles such as ASEAN centrality, openness, transparency, inclusivity, and respect for international law, while contributing to mutual trust, mutual respect and mutual benefit.



39. The Leaders expressed satisfaction at the open and candid discussion in the spirit of mutual understanding, as well as at the significant outcomes of the visit. President Joko Widodo highly appreciated the warm hospitality and courtesies extended to the Indonesian delegation by the State and the people of Vietnam during the visit and cordially invited President Tran Dai Quang to visit Indonesia at a mutually convenient time. President Tran Dai Quang took the invitation with pleasure.
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Hey Long Beach! It's me, Jesse. Did you know Bixby Knolls has a "National Park?" Me neither! Join me as we explore one of the city's smallest parks and chat with the man behind this unique attraction, Blair Cohn of...
During the first working day on September 11, the minister delivered a speech at the Russia  ASEAN discussion session. He said Vietnam now has trade ties with nearly 220 countries worldwide with total value worth US$ 425 billion and average gross domestic product per capita of roughly US$ 2,400. In the first seven months of this year, the Vietnamese economy grew by over 7 percent. The country has attracted a total US$ 334 billion of foreign direct investment from 129 countries and territories worldwide.

With political stability, constantly improving business environment, competitive costs, upgraded transport infrastructure, numerous business incentives, a golden population, promising market and widespread global integration, Vietnam has become an attractive and strategic destination for foreign investors, he said.

In recent years, Vietnam has actively invested abroad, mostly in ASEAN member states. Besides, Russia accounts for 13 percent of Vietnams outbound investment, ranking third among 75 countries and territories with Vietnamese investment.

Minister Dung said Vietnam now invests in 23 projects worth nearly US$ 2.9 billion in Russia, mostly in oil and gas exploration, telecommunications, shopping malls, agriculture, milch cow farming and milk processing.

The minister affirmed that Vietnam wants to continue promoting investment in traditional markets such as Russia and ASEAN. As Vietnam was the first country to sign a Free Trade Agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), which took effect on October 5, 2016, he said economic ties between Russia and Vietnam, and between EAEU and Vietnam will continue to thrive in the near future.

Vietnam will help Russia expand ties with ASEAN Economic Community  a dynamic market with a population of over 600 million people and gross domestic product of around US$ 2.5 trillion, he said.

Minister Dung said the freshly-concluded visit to Russia by General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong brought new opportunities for Vietnam-Russia ties to reach a new high. During meetings as part of the Vietnamese Party leaders visit, both sides vowed to create favourable conditions for their business communities to cooperate in energy, oil and gas, agriculture, urban transport infrastructure, information and telecommunications.

Minister Dung expressed his belief that on the back of Vietnam  Russia comprehensive strategic partnership, Vietnamese firms will invest more in Russia in general and the Far East in particular, and bilateral trade will increase in the near future.

At the forum, the Vietnamese minister was updated about Russian governments investment incentives in the Far East such as tax reduction and waive, land support policy, Aqaba Special Economic Zone development and free seaport mechanism in Vladivostok which holds potential of attracting investment in energy, infrastructure, agro-forestry, technology.

The three-day event attracted delegates from 60 countries worldwide. The Vietnamese delegation delivered speeches in several sessions.
No way out : Couple couldnt get out of parking garage in Bad Godesberg

BAD GODESBERG A couple went to get some groceries and couldnt get out of the parking ramp at the City Terrassen in Bad Godesberg. For nearly an hour, they tried in vain, even the emergency number didnt work. The owner says it was a technical defect.

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Paul and Monika Haag got into a difficult predicament. As customers of the Rewe supermarket in the City Terrassen in Bad Godesberg, they parked on the fourth deck of the parking garage. At the entrance, a friendly cashier informed them that they could have the parking ticket validated with a purchase of at least 15 euros, which they did.

"But then we had a surprise: at the exit, the machine did not accept the ticket, and the barrier did not open." Haag hurried to the parking payment machine to pay for a normal parking ticket. The machine responded with the message: The customer has already paid. The couple reported that it then tried to insert the ticket at the exit in all different ways but to no avail.

They pressed on the emergency button many times but got no response. Other drivers asked about the problem but they could not help. Finally, they just had to move off to the side. They walked to the entrance to get a new ticket, but one couldnt get a ticket without a car entering through the gate. Further attempts to reach someone at the emergency call button did not result in any contact.

"We felt terrible," said the Haags. Only after three quarters of an hour did a person answer the emergency call button. "Immediately, the barrier went up, and we were free." They will not forget the incident so quickly. It should be possible to drive out with a ticket validated by Rewe, say the customers. And a parking garage employee needs to be available to deal with issues that arise - parkers shouldnt have to wait nearly an hour to get out.

Parking garage not operated by the supermarket

Thomas Bonrath, spokesman for Rewe Markt GmbH, answered a GA inquiry, saying the parking garage in the building was not operated by Rewe, but by the landlord. Rewe was not aware of the incident. Bonrath concluded that it was a regrettable individual case, and an individual problem with the parking ticket or a short-term technical disruption.

Because the description of the problem indicated that the parking fee had been paid, Bonrath believes it was a technical defect in the gate system. He said he would contact the parking garage operators about personnel not being accessible when the incident occurred, to make sure such an experience is not repeated.

The landlord of the parking garage regrets the incident as well. In response to GA, Anke Sostmann, Executive Director of Feldhoff & Cie. GmbH in Frankfurt said: "We are sorry that a customer experienced inconvenience because of an error in the gate system." There had been some maintenance work done on the gate on the morning of that day. However, to find out exactly why the emergency call did not work, they would need the exact departure time of the customer. "With validation of the parking ticket at Rewe, the customer may park exactly for one hour - otherwise parking fees apply," said Sostmann.

Orig. text: Ebba Hagenberg-Miliu
Police release search photo : Man molests young woman in Bonn city center

Wer kennt diesen Mann? Foto: Polizei Bonn

Bonn Police have released a photo of a man accused of molesting a young woman at the ladies restroom in McDonalds on Poststrae in Bonn city center. They are hoping for tips from Bonn citizens.

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Police are looking for a man who is said to have attacked and molested a young woman on August 19 in Bonn city center. The man allegedly followed the young woman into the ladies restroom at the McDonalds on Poststrae (corner of Maximilianstrasse). The incident occurred at around 7am.

When the woman wanted to leave the restroom, the man tried to hold her back, he kissed and touched her. The woman fended him off and he left her alone, and then he exited the fast food restaurant.

So far, investigators have not been able to find the suspect. They are asking for help from Bonn residents.

According to witnesses, the man is around 35 years old and between 1.7 and 1.8 meters tall. He has a normal build, dark hair, a three-day beard and noticeably yellow-brown teeth. He wore a gray-striped shirt.

Foto: Polizei Bonn Wer kennt diesen Mann? zuruck

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With total investment of about USD$650 million, this will be Vietnams biggest investment project in the mining industry of Laos.

The project is located in Dakcheung district of Sekong and will cover nearly 100 sq.km of land. It is part of the roadmap for implementing the agreement on economic, cultural and scientific-technical cooperation between the Vietnamese and Lao Governments.

It not only matches the socio-economic development plans and the expansion of relevant infrastructure in relating localities but will also help ensure security-defence in areas with bauxite mines, particularly in Sekong province and the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Development Triangle Area.

At the signing ceremony, VPG General Director Phuong Minh Hue thanked the authorities of Laos and Sekong for supporting her firm over the last 10 years to carry out the agreement on bauxite exploration inked with the Lao Government.

She said the successful implementation of this project will contribute to the development of the Lao economy and help increase the proportion of industry in the local economy and industrialise and modernise the country.

She also called for more support from the Lao Party, Government and people for project implementation and pledged that with its capability and experience, VPG is determined to carry out this project successfully so as to help implement the two countries socio-economic development cooperation programme and reinforce their special friendship.

When operational, the project is set to create thousands of jobs for local residents and contribute millions of USD to the local budget each year, VPG General Director Hue added.
Evacuations in the area : World War II bomb discovered in Siegburg

Siegburg A 125-kilo bomb from the Second World War was found at the Sieg River in Siegburg. Evacuations were taking place in the area affected. Part of the A560 is affected as are some homes in Siegburg and Sankt Augustin.

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During renaturation work on the Sieg River in the part of Siegburg called Zange, a 125-kilo bomb was found. For safety reasons, the area around the bomb must be evacuated within a radius of 500 meters. Affected is also the A560 and some residential buildings. The refugee accommodation on the street "Siegdamm" had to be evacuated as well. Residents have been provided with short-term accommodation at the municipal construction facility.

The World War II bomb has two detonators, both of which are still in the bomb. Bomb disposal experts are on site to examine it. Police are preparing road closures but there has not been a time given as to when the A560 will be affected. The large-scale closures will only go into full effect during the defusing of the bomb and when this will happen is still to be determined. In the immediate vicinity of the bomb, on the trails along the Sieg, the area has already been closed off.

Line 66 is not expected to be affected by the closures. Cologne / Bonn airport has also been informed, as the area is located in the airport's control zone.

The city of Siegburg has released two telephone numbers for citizens to call if they have important questions: 02241/102295 and 02241/102301.
The Vietnamese PM made the remark on September 11 while receiving Gilbert Kaplan, Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade of the US Department of Commerce, who is in Vietnam to attend the 2018 US-Vietnam Business Summit.

Lauding the USs initiatives and efforts to promote regional cooperation and connection, PM Phuc affirmed that the US is among leading partners of Vietnam and expressed his hope to further promote the comprehensive partnership with the US.

The Vietnamese PM said the visit of the US Under Secretary of Commerce has opened a new space for bilateral ties, especially in trade.

In the first six months of 2018, exports of the US to Vietnam surged more than 20 percent year-on-year, and Vietnam has inked major contracts to purchase goods from the US.

Vietnam will continue with its reform policy and international integration, as well as improve business climate, creating optimal conditions for foreign firms, including those from the US, PM Phuc said.

He expressed his delight as many major corporation of the US have been present at Vietnam, adding that the World Economic Forum on ASEAN (WEF ASEAN) hosted by Vietnam offers a chance for US businesses to study opportunities for investment and business in the country.

The PM also voiced his hope for balanced trade with the US in the coming time.

For his part, Under Secretary of Commerce Gilbert Kaplan agreed with his host that the bilateral relations have been thriving in many fields.

He said his visit aims to affirm the USs commitment to bolstering cooperation with Vietnam, and also to discuss measures to enhance bilateral trade and investment.

The official added that his working sessions with Vietnamese ministries and departments during the visit had made good progress.
In light of the ongoing trade dispute with China, the Courier arranged an interview with former Ambassador to China and Senator from Montana, Max Baucus. This interview was conducted an the afternoon of Tuesday, Sept, 4, the day federal aid became available to farmers impacted by the trade dispute.

Max Baucus served as ambassador to China from February, 2014, through January, 2017, when the new administration installed their own appointment, which had him in China during the presidential election. During the administrative changeover Ambassador Baucus remained on the ground, giving him a unique opportunity to witness reactions from Chinese government officials and gauge how the country might react to America's new trade policy.

The Ambassador speaks of the Chinese with respect, noting that Americans tend to think of themselves as very intelligent, perhaps more so than other cultures or countries. But, that type of thinking can be detrimental in underestimating the intellect of our global competitors. He says, "The Chinese are just as intelligent as us, and may be even more driven and focused." This drive and focus allowed them, in responding to U.S. tariffs, to strategically target their retaliation on areas of America which supported President Trump, in a clear effort to make him feel more political pain, according to Baucus.

"China is quite sophisticated about the American political process, and are becoming more so, even by the month." Baucus described watching the growing understanding of the government officials during the campaign season, how he could see the sophistication and knowledge growing month by month. In particular, when discussing what the United States' trade policy might look like under the differing potential nominees, the Chinese grew much more specific in their inquiries.

"What happens over the next few days will really determine where this goes." The President had a self-imposed deadline of Sept. 6, on how to proceed against China. Leading up to the deadline, it was speculated that he may decide to pull the trigger on another $20 billion in tariffs. In addition, he has said he may raise tariffs from 10 percent to 25 percent. Despite the President's claims that trade wars are good and easy to win, Baucus holds a different view, "At that point, it clearly becomes a trade war. And no one wins. The U.S. doesn't win. China doesn't win. No one wins."

According to the Ambassador, the passing of the deadline with no new tariffs, could be a good sign that the administration may be signaling to China that a true trade war may be held at bay. At his rally in Billings on Sept. 6, Trump briefly touched on the trade war, saying simply, "We are in a skirmish, but doing well with China, really well." At the time of this writing, the President's self-imposed deadline has come and gone with no escalation. However, recent news articles indicate Trump has not ruled out further actions.

On Sept. 8, Fortune reported President Trump was still threatening to intensify the ongoing trade war by imposing tariffs on $267 billion worth of Chinese exports to America, on top of the $200 billion worth that he might target with duties. The magazine notes the total of current and threatened tariffs is now at $517 billion. Total goods purchased by the U.S. from China the previous year totaled $505 billion.

Baucus told the Courier he has two major problems with Trump's approach to negotiations with China. First, China is a protectionist nation, which makes it difficult for American businesses in China. The Ambassador stresses the point, "Enacting tariffs does not get to the heart of the problem, which is Chinese protectionist policies." These unfair practices include intellectual property theft, currency manipulation, forcing businesses to turn over patented technology as a condition for doing business in China, and taking advantage of American businesses through manipulations of permits and approvals. Baucus states, "Tariffs are not going to force China to back off pursuing economic growth."

As to his second concern, Baucus says the administration cannot go about this unilaterally, the U.S. cannot do this alone. Trump's approach has discombobulated the Chinese, which may work in business, as outlined in The Art of the Deal, but Baucus opines it does not work well with countries. He says the President likes a big splash and strong statements, but that he may have overstated his position. President Trump will find it difficult to back down and save face. At the same time, the Chinese will also need to save face and will find it similarly difficult to deescalate. "We're not going to bully China. China is not going to bully us," Baucus says. "We need to work with our allies, in concert, cooperatively. We need to stand together to encourage change."

"I think Donald Trump is wrong with his America First policy, which is disengagement from international affairs, especially international economic affairs. We should lead," asserts Baucus. He cited the decision to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) as an example. Ambassador Baucus believes the TPP to be one of America's most important deals, showing that the United States would be present in the world. He asserts that when we pulled out of an agreement that improved standards of trade and labor production, the U.S. signaled to China and to Asia at large that we are disengaging and that withdrawal left a void, which China is now filling. China is attempting to convince other countries that the U.S. is an unreliable trading partner, where they are offering stability to potential allies.

Baucus played a lead role in the creation of TPP during his time in the Senate and staunchly believes in the necessity of the 12-nation agreement between allies, "It was a big mistake to pull out of TPP. I think we need to re-negotiate TPP. I don't care what it's called. The President could call it Trump PP for all the name matters. But the deal is good for America and it's good for the world."

Asked if he sees anything coming out of China right now as a cause for optimism, Ambassador Baucus says, "Not really, not yet." In his view, the Chinese are befuddled and perplexed by Trump, which leads them to hesitate in regards to negotiations. They see the President changing positions, a split between what he says and what his administration says on trade and foreign policy. Baucus believes they will wait until after the midterm elections to see what effect will be had on U.S. policies, but that even after that, they will dig their heels in. He notes the Chinese are a proud people who play long ball. They are visionary and patient, even more so than the U.S. They have a strategic plan and we don't. And they know that.

Baucus highlighted the importance of remembering that in dealing with China, the U.S. is dealing with a polar opposite form of government. In China, the communist party controls everything from the press to the markets. The party knows what levers to pull and what buttons to push to keep their people happy. The former Ambassador says there is a Faustian bargain in that country: if the people are happy, with their jobs and economy, they won't question the legitimacy of the party or government. They have total control to fight America in a trade war, giving them an advantage, at least in the short term. In America, if farmers can't sell their crops, they will demand changes. But in China, if the people aren't happy, the government has the ability to make them happy.

The Chinese government wants their economy to keep growing, to keep their people happy, and to do so, they want to deal with the U.S., but they want cooperation. They don't want a trade war but they also won't be pushed around. Baucus points to history to understand the position of the Chinese government, going back to when China was an empire, to losing stature in the world and facing what they saw as humiliation and domination from other nations. The country is back, they have grown so much in a short period of time, and are very proud of who they are, with good reason. "China may be prouder of China than the U.S. is proud of the U.S.," explained Baucus.

On the U.S. side, the American public remains quite proud of its own unique history and institutions. Ambassador Baucus points out the upcoming midterm elections will have a direct impact on how the trade dispute plays out and how long it may take to see progress. China will wait to see if Republicans win elections and negotiations may depend on who gets elected stateside. But he cautions, after elections it takes a while for elected officials to settle in and establish policy.

He does, however, see this as an opportunity to advocate for improving American foreign policy. Pointing to the strength and depth of knowledge regarding Europe and Russia, and the corresponding presence in those regions, he states the U.S. is relatively weak on China. "We Americans need to know and understand China better than we do."

Baucus maintains that enacting tariffs will hurt American workers and farmers. Further, a continuation or escalation of the trade dispute risks losing global markets. The U.S. has already lost a portion of the soybean market to Brazil. The Ambassador stresses that once a market is lost, it is difficult to get it back. Montanans may remember the pain of losing the Chinese barley market forever. Baucus uses the historical example of President Carter's grain embargo against the Soviet Union as one example of the long-reaching effects of poor trade policy. Baucus warns that China will go elsewhere for their import needs.

Indeed, the same day Baucus spoke with the Courier, Time reported that Chinese officials at the annual meeting of the U.S. soybean export group in Kansas City, Mo., laid out how they plan to avoid the intended consequences of the trade dispute. Beyond looking to other countries, such as Brazil, for their soybeans, the Chinese will look to Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan as sources for alternative crops, such as palm mill, rapeseed, sunflower seed, and other crops.

In Montana, President of the Montana Grain Growers Association Michelle Erickson-Jones expressed frustration over the markets and the trade situation. Financial estimates from the organization for market losses due to the tariffs came down at 75 cents per bushel, while the aid package offered by the Trump administration is only offering wheat farmers up to 14 cents per bushel. She also noted China hasn't purchased any wheat from Montana since March.

Baucus maintains the longer Trump pursues these tariffs, the more they hurt U.S. workers and farmers. Tariffs increase taxes on Americans. He points out America is not a mercantilist nation. There is an expectation for fair deals and level playing fields. And farmers would much prefer to sell their products over relying on federal assistance.

Despite the hopes of American farmers and workers that there will be resolution soon to alleviate market concerns, the current situation here and abroad points to many more months of bluster and negotiations. Yet, Baucus is not completely discouraged, "I'm always hopeful, always optimistic, but right now, today, I'm not seeing anything out of China to indicate an end to this."
Niko Jondahl, 20 of Glasgow, received a sentence of 60 years with 45 deferred Sept. 4, from District Judge Yvonne Laird after being convicted of sexual intercourse without consent. According to charging documents, Jondahl had sex with a 13-year-old girl at his residence in Glasgow last April.

According to County Attorney Dylan Jensen, Jondahl will likely be eligible for parole after four years at the state penitentiary and after completing the first phase of sex offender training. He will also be required to register as a level one sex offender following confinement. Level one indicates the lowest risk of re-offense to the community, according to the Montana Department of Justice.

In sentencing proceedings, District Judge Yvonne Laird rejected the notion that Jondahl could be treated in the community saying, When you (Jondahl) committed the crime you were already receiving the best care and therapy the community could provide.

Laird went on to describe Jondahls actions as unacceptable and illegal. She commented that Jondahl had taken advantage of and abused a 13-year-old girl. She also stated, Punishment needs to be commensurate with the crime committed and the harm caused. Laird said she rejected the notion that Jondahl posed a low risk of re-offense in the community.

According to charging documents, the victim was supposed to be with friends at church when she was invited to Jondahls house. Police later discovered the victim at the residence but did not have enough evidence to investigate. Later, the girls mother reported that she had been told by her daughter that she had been raped and a full investigation by the Glasgow Police Department lead to the conviction.

Those same charging documents stated that Jondahl claimed he believed the girl to be 15 years of age. In Montana sexual intercourse with anyone below the age of 16 is illegal and punishable by up to life imprisonment but not less than four years.
The talks were held on the occasion of Hues attendance at the 15th China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit (CABIS) and the 15th China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO).

Deputy PM Hue spoke highly of the organisation of the 15th CABIS and CAEXPO in coincidence with the 15th anniversary of the ASEAN-China strategic partnership.

He noted with satisfaction that relations between Vietnam and China have continued the positive development trend and made new strides with important common perceptions reached during visits and meetings between their leaders.

China remains the biggest trade and tourism partner of Vietnam, and Vietnam also ranks first and eighth among ASEAN and global trade partners of China, respectively. While cooperation in agriculture, science-technology, culture, sports, tourism, education and health care has enjoyed good progress, people-to-people exchange has continued to be reinforced.

Hue proposed that the two sides further enhance political trust, maintain high-ranking visits and meetings, better implement important cooperation mechanisms between the two Parties and the two countries, and step up locality-to-locality collaboration and people-to-people exchange.

He also asked China to continue taking effective policies and measures to better remedy Vietnams deficit in bilateral trade; create favourable conditions for Vietnamese goods, especially agricultural products, to enter the Chinese market; coordinate with Vietnam to thoroughly settle hindrances to some Chinese-invested projects in Vietnam; and continue to facilitate the movement of people, goods and vehicles in border areas.

With regard to sea-related issues, the Deputy PM called on both sides to seriously comply with the common perceptions reached by the two countries leaders, especially the agreement on basic principles guiding the settlement of sea-related issues, control sea-related disagreements well, persist in resolving disputes by peaceful means in line with international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, maintain peace and stability in the East Sea and the region, fully and effectively carry out the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea, and join ASEAN countries in promoting substantive negotiations to build an efficient and effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea.

For his part, Vice Premier Han Zheng welcomed the Vietnamese Government delegations participation in the 15th CABIS and CAEXPO, which he said shows that the Vietnamese Government attaches importance to China-Vietnam relations as well as China-ASEAN cooperation.

He stressed that the Chinese Party and Government treasure the ties with Vietnam and will join Vietnam to maintain high-ranking visits and meetings, increase political trust, and bolster result-oriented cooperation, particularly in economy, trade and investment.

China will also work with Vietnam to expand people-to-people exchange, consolidate the traditional friendship, control differences well, and develop the countries comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in a stable, healthy and sustainable fashion, he added.

Also on September 11, Deputy PM Hue received the Secretary of the Communist Party of China Committee of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Lu Xinshe.

Hue expressed his delight at the vibrant cooperation between Vietnamese localities and Guangxi, which has generated many significant outcomes and practical benefits for both sides. He noted that Guangxi has continually taken the lead in economic and trade connections with Vietnam while Vietnam has been the biggest trade partner of Guangxi for 14 straight years. In 2017, trade between Vietnamese localities and Guangxi hit US$ 24 billion, accounting for 86 percent of ASEANs total trade with this Chinese region.

The Deputy PM asked Guangxi to create more favourable conditions for strong commodities of Vietnam like milk and dairy products, fruits, seafood, pigs and pork to be imported to China. He also sought the regions help for Vietnamese goods to be transported by railway through Guangxi and other Chinese localities to enter Asian and European nations.

The Vietnamese official also urged the Chinese side to provide the best possible conditions for customs clearance of goods in border areas, well implement the three documents on land border management between Vietnam and China, and cooperate closely with Vietnam to fight cross-border crimes, including smuggling, child trafficking, and illegal exit and entrance.

Secretary Lu affirmed that Guangxi respects the traditional friendship and win-win cooperation with ministries, sectors and localities of Vietnam.

It wants to join Vietnamese localities to realise the common perceptions reached by the countries leaders, increase mutual visits by their leaders, step up discussions about infrastructure connectivity and transport projects, and foster cooperation in economy, trade, people-to-people exchange and tourism in a substantive manner, thus contributing to the China-Vietnam comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, the official said.

The same day, Quang Nam province of Vietnam and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China signed an agreement setting up bilateral friendship.
Dear Editor,

I am writing this letter in support of Rex Rank as candidate for Clerk of the Montana Supreme Court. The office Rex seeks plays an important role in the licensure of attorneys in the State of Montana and maintaining records attendant...
Dear Editor,

I would like to thank the Glasgow Volunteer Fire Department, Valley County Long Run Fire Department, Valley County Sheriffs Office, and Glasgow Police Department for their immediate response in addressing the gas leak on Glasgow...
Etix Blockchain opens two large scale Blockchain facilities in Iceland

September 2018 by Marc Jacob

Etix Blockchain, a new player in the Blockchain industry

Following the evolution of the IT industry, Etix Group decided to launch Etix Blockchain, a division dedicated to provide colocation services for HPC and Blockchain applications and mining as a service capacity. As the banking and financial industry is becoming increasingly invested in the Blockchain field, they are looking for hosting infrastructures of higher standards, still offering a competitive price. Etix Blockchain benefits directly from the expertise developed by Etix Everywhere for the data center industry but also from the security products developed by Etix Labs.

To ensure a successful implementation in Iceland, Etix Group acquired 55% of Borealis Data Center, a pioneering company providing HPC and Blockchain services since 2014. With increasing data center footprint Iceland is becoming a strategic location for IT services. This partnership will expedite Etix Blockchain expansion plans.

Antoine Gaury has been appointed as Head of Etix Blockchain. He will leverage his market knowledge to expand the footprint of the company worldwide.

Iceland, a perfect location for highly-efficient facilities

Etix Blockchain will benefit from Borealis knowledge of the Icelandic market and from their expertise of operating highly-efficient facilities since 2014. Iceland is a strategic location for HPC and Blockchain facilities thanks to its reliable and economical energy and its cool climate. explained Bjorn Brynjulfsson, CEO of Etix Everywhere Borealis. According to international studies the country is among the safest data center locations on the planet and produces 100% renewable energy. These ideal conditions enable us to offer competitive solutions for HPC and Blockchain infrastructure.

The current facility buildup is scheduled to be completed by end of year, at which time the two campuses combined will offer hosting capacity of about 30,000 servers.

Due to demand by international institutional customers that are making long-term strategic investments in HPC and Blockchain the two campuses are already sold out.

An international network of Blockchain facilities

Aside from its first Icelandic operations, Etix Blockchains strategy is to build a worldwide network of Blockchain and HPC facilities. The company will rely on Etix Everywhere expertise and Etix Labs products to offer quality infrastructure at a competitive cost.

Etix Blockchain designed two business solutions in response to market demands:

 Colocation: for customers who want to host their own servers into Etix Blockchain facilities.

 Mining as a Service: for customers who prefer to outsource everything and acquire computing capacity generated by Etix Blockchain servers. Mining is only the first step of the Blockchain revolution, many other industries will soon embrace this technology. declared Antoine Gaury, Head of Etix Blockchain. The segmentation between premium Data Centers (Tier III and IV standards) and low-cost mining farms will fade, in favor of intermediary standards offering competitive financial solutions in line with the quality requirements of institutional customers.

Etix Blockchain is currently securing new sites in Iceland and in the Nordics.
CALGARY, Alberta, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --  ATCO Ltd. (TSX: ACO.X, ACO.Y)



ATCO today announced that it is further diversifying its extensive portfolio of infrastructure assets and services with an agreement to acquire 40 per cent of Neltume Ports, a leading port operator and developer in South America, for approximately CAD$450 million (USD$340 million). Neltume Ports, a subsidiary of Ultramar, operates in 16 port facilities and three stevedoring businesses primarily located in Chile and Uruguay.

This acquisition represents an important milestone in the execution of ATCOs long-term strategy to diversify and complement our portfolio of existing businesses and geographies in industries that are fundamental to global growth and prosperity: housing, real estate, energy, water, transportation and agriculture, said Nancy Southern, Chair & Chief Executive Officer with ATCO. We are excited to announce our investment in Neltume Ports which further builds and strengthens our existing partnership with Ultramar. Both of our companies view South America as an area poised for significant growth.

Headquartered in Santiago, Chile, Neltume Ports portfolio is highly diversified across both cargo types and volume mix. Neltume Ports handles nearly 51 million tonnes of product annually, including copper, forestry products, consumer goods and agricultural products, and employs approximately 3,900 employees.

After a competitive sale process, we are proud to announce ATCO as our strategic partner  a partner with shared values and cultural fit with Ultramar, said Richard von Appen, Chairman of Ultramar. We have defined a growth strategy with both sizeable and attractive opportunities that support the companys long-term regional development. This agreement reaffirms Neltumes commitment to the port sector and represents a great opportunity for ATCO to meaningfully contribute to the companys growth plans in a highly dynamic South American infrastructure market.

ATCO will fund its investment in Neltume Ports with a combination of cash on-hand and funds from committed credit facilities, and later refinance a portion through a capital markets transaction. ATCO will acquire a 40 per cent interest in Neltume Ports through the issuance of new shares from Neltume Ports. Funds from ATCOs investment will be used by Neltume Ports to finance opportunities for growth.

The acquisition is expected to be accretive to ATCOs earnings per share in the first full year of ownership, as well as deliver sustainable profitability through the execution of Neltumes growth plans.

The transaction complements ATCOs existing businesses, which include electricity and natural gas infrastructure, modular construction and logistical support services, and further cements ATCOs position as a premier global infrastructure holding company.

ATCO partnered with Ultramar in 2016 through ATCO-Sabinco, which provides modular solutions, container offices and workforce mining camps in Chile. Recently, the company completed construction on a new, 100,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility.



Webcast and Teleconference:

ATCO will host a webcast today, Wednesday, September 12, 2018 at 11:00 a.m. EDT (9:00 a.m. MDT), to discuss this investment. Nancy Southern, Chair & Chief Executive Officer, Siegfried Kiefer, President & Chief Strategy Officer, and Dennis DeChamplain, Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer will deliver remarks with slides. There will not be a question and answer session.

The webcast will be available on ATCOs website, and a copy of the presentation and the webcast will be archived and accessible for replay. Analysts, members of the media and other interested parties are also invited to listen in by calling 1-855-859-2056. The passcode is 1096348.

With approximately 7,000 employees and assets of $22 billion, ATCO is a diversified global corporation delivering service excellence and innovative business solutions in Structures & Logistics (workforce housing, innovative modular facilities, construction, site support services, and logistics and operations management); Electricity (electricity generation, transmission, and distribution); Pipelines & Liquids (natural gas transmission, distribution and infrastructure development, energy storage, and industrial water solutions); Commercial Real Estate; and Retail Energy (electricity and natural gas retail sales). More information can be found at www.ATCO.com .

Investor Inquiries:

D.A. (Dennis) DeChamplain

Senior Vice President &

Chief Financial Officer

403-292-7502

Media Inquiries:

Spencer Forgo

Manager, Corporate Communications

403-662-8467

Forward-Looking Information:

Certain statements contained in this news release may constitute forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as anticipate, plan, estimate, expect, may, will, intend, should, and similar expressions.

Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information.

The Companys actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in this forward-looking information as a result of regulatory decisions, competitive factors in the industries in which the Company operates, prevailing economic conditions, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company.

The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking information should not be unduly relied upon.

Any forward-looking information contained in this news release represents the Companys expectations as of the date hereof, and is subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities legislation.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fac6813b-ce28-404f-8391-4d354e56a626
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GTX Corp (OTCBB: GTXO) (the Company), a pioneer in the field of wearable GPS human and asset tracking systems and wandering assistive technology, announced today Scandinavian distributor, SafeCall was awarded a coveted 2 year contract to supply the municipality of Oslo, Norway with wearable GPS devices along with a 24/7 cloud service center to assist in remote monitoring and look after people with cognitive disabilities. The Norwegian Government has identified two target groups which will receive the fully subsidized solution, elderly people with dementia and cognitive impairment who still live independently, and children or adolescents with disabilities, especially who are the most at risk and therefore would benefit from using wearable GPS technology.



Post being award the contract, GTX launched its size small SmartSole which is now being considered to be added to the contract by the Oslo municipality.

We are delighted that SafeCall has been awarded one of the biggest contracts in Norway to assist those with cognitive impairment or disabilities, said Tommy Rasmussen, founder and owner of SafeCall Denmark. Our ability to provide Norwegian municipalities a comprehensive, easy to use and cost saving solution of a wearable GPS tracking device like the patented GPS SmartSole and our intuitive cloud services, enabled us to secure this contract.

In addition to the Oslo Municipality which has identified two groups of approximately 1,000 people (500-700 elderly and 300-500 people with disabilities), there are currently a dozen more municipalities in Norway evaluating GPS wearable wander assistive technology.

The GPS SmartSoles were one of three devices ultimately approved after having been thoroughly tested throughout Oslo, Norway over the past 2 years in cooperation with SINTEF, which conducts contract research and development projects. Headquartered in Trondheim, Norway, SINTEF is an independent research organization founded in 1950, which operates in 75 countries, has over 2,000 employees with annual revenues of three billion Norwegian kroner.

Some of the results and findings from the pilot was that the consequences of not using GPS technology would significantly impact the quality of life of seniors and ultimately may also result in them being admitted to nursing homes earlier than necessary. The cost savings for prolonging institutionalized care in a country that provides government subsidized healthcare could be significant, therefore creating an ROI for the government. Other results came from relatives who did not mind taking on the caregiving role knowing there was a 24/7 monitoring center as their backup. As for the other target group, children or adolescents with autism or functional impairments, the technology contributed to increased self-esteem in leisure activities, giving them a better overview of time and activity while helping them to perform and enjoy activities themselves. In short the wearable GPS technology empowered them to live a better life.

This is wonderful news coming out of Europe, between the vetting of our GPS SmartSoles by SINTEF to the actual contract being awarded, this places Norway as the first European country to realize the benefits and cost savings of implementing wearable GPS technology such as our SmartSoles and authorizing country wide financial support. We hope other countries such as the U.K. and Germany which are currently conducting GPS SmartSole pilots through the NHS or other government institutions will conclude the same, stated Patrick Bertagna GTX Corp CEO.

In 2012, Alzheimer Europe estimated the number of people with dementia in Norway at 77,158. This represented 1.56 % of the total population of 4,960,482. The number of people with dementia as a percentage of the population is similar to other European countries with an average of 1.55% and in the U.S. with a slightly higher average of 1.66%.

We see this as a stepping stone with other municipalities following step and we are thrilled that after extensive testing and SafeCalls tenacity, the Oslo Municipality, has decided to move forward and provide GPS SmartSoles to its residences suffering from cognitive disorders both young and old, said Andrew Duncan President Business Development. We commend the hard work Safecall put in to earn this contract and wish them much success with their other proposals.

GTX Corp's patented GPS SmartSoles are the worlds first wearable yet invisible tracking recovery technology that are placed in the wearers shoes and contain a GPS chip connected through a global cellular network that sends a signal to a central monitoring website or app showing the exact location of the individual wearing the SmartSoles. They are water resistant, come in several trim to fit sizes for both men and women, are made with the highest quality electronic components and assembled in Rhode Island, U.S.A.

The simplicity behind the SmartSole Platform is that when someone wanders off, becomes lost or abducted, a text or email alert is sent to a caregivers phone and computer with a direct link to a Google map plotting the location. Alerts can be directed to a local authority and/or a private call center to provide continuous monitoring and support.

About Safecall

Safecall Denmark ApS was founded in 2004 and has been focusing on GPS localizing systems for people who wander. The Safecall localizing platform has been developed through the years, and is now the market-leading platform in Denmark, used by thousands of people in the healthcare sector every day. The platform makes it possible to use different kinds of localizing equipment, but with the same easy user interface every time. This enables the healthcare staff to concentrate on the care and not on the IT systems. It is possible to use whatever preferred device for localizing, PC, SMS messages, Laptop, Native APP for both IoS, Android and Windows. An API is used when integrated into nurse call systems.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at :http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1739e1d9-0091-42fe-9146-02bc2e5886e9

About GTX Corp

GTX Corp (GTXO) is a pioneer in smart, mobile and wearable GPS tracking and recovery location-based products, supported through a proprietary IoT enterprise monitoring platform. GTX offers a global end-to-end solution of hardware, software and connectivity. GTX Corp develops two-way GPS tracking technologies, which seamlessly integrate with consumer products and enterprise applications. GTX Corp utilizes the latest in miniaturized, low power consumption GPS, Cellular, RF and BLE technology, enabling subscribers to track in real time the whereabouts of people or high value assets through a complete end to end -- customizable transceiver module, wireless connectivity gateway, smart phone Apps, middleware, and IoT portal. Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, GTX is known for its game-changing and award-winning patented GPS SmartSole -- think Dr. Scholls meets LoJack, the worlds first invisible wearable technology tracking device created for those at risk of wandering due to Alzheimers, dementia, autism and traumatic brain injury. GTX Corps business model is built around technology innovation and holds over 85 patents, with many issued patents in the area of GPS tracking. The company has international distributors servicing customers in over 35 countries and is a U.S. Military Government contractor. Other customers include public health authorities and municipalities, emergency and law enforcement, NGOs, private companies, public and private senior care homes, and consumers.

For more information, visit www.GTXCorp.com , Track My Workforce or www.GPSSmartSole.com

Social media - #withyou #smartsole #connectedandprotected #trackwhatyoulove

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General information, investor relations, wholesale licensing, consumer purchase:

213.489.3019

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IR@GTXCorp.com

http://GTXCorp.com/contact-us/

GTX Corp United Kingdom

In the UK, GTX Corp operates from its London office. Please contact: Nelson Skip Riddle

Email: NSRiddle@GTXCorp.com

Tel: +44 7785 364100

Disclaimer: GTX Corp does not warrant or represent that the unauthorized use of materials drawn from the content of this document will not infringe rights of third parties who are not owned or affiliated by GTX Corp. Further GTX Corp cannot be held responsible or liable for the unauthorized use of this documents content by third parties unknown to the company.



Forward Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements. The terms and phrases expects, would, will, believes, and similar terms and phrases are intended to identify these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and assumptions made by GTX in light of its experience and its perception of current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors that GTX believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Many factors could cause GTXs actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Certain risk factors that may cause actual results to differ are set forth in GTXs Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (which may be obtained on the SEC Website ). These factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on GTXs forward-looking statements. GTX has no intention and undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

Attachment
This is the first official visit by the Party General Secretary of Vietnam to one of the countries in Central and Eastern Europe since the regime transition in these nations. The visit also affirms Vietnam's policy of considering Hungary as a key traditional partner in Central and Eastern Europe.

Over the past 70 years, the traditional friendship and multifaceted cooperation between Vietnam and Hungary have seen strong growth, particularly in more recent years. In order to lift the bilateral relations to a new level, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban agreed to enhance bilateral ties to the level of comprehensive partnership. The heightening of bilateral relations expresses a deep strategic vision and meets the interests and aspirations of the two peoples for the new era.

The leaders and people of Hungary gave General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation a warm and sincere welcome. Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong had a diverse and effective working agenda in Hungary, including talks with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, meetings with President Janos Ader and Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Hende Csaba, participation in the conference of rectors of Vietnam and Hungarys universities, and a visit to Szentendre city, among others.

The talks and meetings took place in a friendly and sincere atmosphere, discussing rich content on bilateral cooperation, and regional and international issues of mutual concern. The Hungarian leaders congratulated Vietnamese achievements, particularly in socio-economic development under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam while evaluating the role and position of Vietnam in the region and the world. They affirmed that Hungary always supports Vietnam and considers Vietnam to be its leading partner in Southeast Asia.

The General Secretary and Hungarian leaders agreed to regularly maintain meetings and exchanges between the two countries' leaders and strengthen political consultations and strategic dialogues between all bodies of the Party, the Government, the National Assembly, ministries, sectors and localities.

The two sides are determined to work together to promote effective cooperation in various fields, particularly economics, trade, investment, defence, education - training, science - technology, environment, health, culture, sports, and tourism in addition to sharing experiences in preserving and promoting cultural identity and national tradition in the national development process.

The General Secretary and Hungarian leaders said that economic, trade and investment cooperation has always played a very important role in the overall relations of the two countries. They are determined to further boost the development of bilateral trade and investment in order to match the strong political and cultural relationship and the potentials of the two countries.

The two sides agreed to step up the operations of the Joint Committee for Economic Cooperation between Vietnam and Hungary, promote measures to support the business community of the two countries, and facilitate the import and export of goods while expanding cooperation in the areas of health, water management, information technology, pharmaceuticals, food safety, environmental protection, and renewable energy.

The General Secretary affirmed that Vietnam supports and stands ready to act as a bridge for Hungary to expand economic cooperation with ASEAN countries. Meanwhile, the Hungarian PM pledged to support and promote the comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and the European Union and hasten the early signing, ratification and full implementation of the Free Trade Agreement between Vietnam and the EU, contributing to enhancing the linkages between the EU market, including Hungary with Vietnamese and ASEAN markets.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong appreciated Hungary for considering Vietnam as a priority partner in its development assistance policy and suggested that the two sides work closely to carry out projects aligned with Hungarys capacity and the demands of Vietnam.

The Hungarian PM highly valued the position and contributions of the Vietnamese community in Hungary and affirmed that the Government of Hungary will continue to create favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community to stabilise their lives, integrate well in the host country and promote their role as a bridge for the growing relations between the two countries.

The important results achieved during the official visit to Hungary by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong will be a solid basis to consolidate and deepen the comprehensive partnership between the two countries. At the same time, the visit affirmed the determination of the two sides to further promote the bilateral relationship in all fields in accordance with the potential and aspirations of the two peoples for the benefits of the two nations and for peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.
The Education Department's new civil rights head has re-opened a discrimination case against Rutgers University brought by a Zionist group that the Obama administration closed four years ago -- essentially changing the definition of anti-Semitism on campuses, according to a New York Times report.Kenneth Marcus, the recently-confirmed assistant secretary of education for civil rights, announced the move in an Aug. 27 letter to the Zionist Organization of America, and looked at the group's case as discrimination against an ethnic group, not as religious discrimination, the Times reported.Marcus is also adopting a definition of anti-Semitism that includes "claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor," the Times reported.Marcus' appointment was fiercely opposed by pro-Palestinian activists, who refer to him as a "crusader" who "has spent years advocating for laws and policies aimed at punishing students who advocate for Palestinian rights."The federal government's decision "classifies virtually all criticism of Israel as anti-Semitic," the group Palestinian Legal said in a statement Tuesday.ZOA's complaint, filed in 2011, accused the pro-Palestinian group Belief Awareness Knowledge and Action of charging Jewish and pro-Israeli students an admission fee to attend a campus event, the Times reported. At issue was a heavily-redacted e-mail that suggested the fees were charged after "150 Zionists" showed up.The group's organizers contended that they charged a fee at the last minute to cover increased rent and security costs, and federal investigators at the time found all attendees paid a fee to get in, the Times reported.Marcus wrote that he wants to re-examine that e-mail, writing, "In cases such as these, it is important to determine whether terms such as 'Zionist are actually code for 'Jewish,'" the Times reported.ZOA praised Marcus' decision as "ground-breaking.""It took a leader like Kenneth Marcus to finally decide the ZOA's appeal and to also make it clear that (Office of Civil Rights) will finally be using a definition of anti-Semitism that makes sense and that reflects how anti-Semitism is so frequently expressed today, particularly on our college campuses," ZOA president Morton Klein said in a statement this month.
Voters in Massachusetts handily struck down a limit on the number of patients that hospital nurses can helpat one time. With just 14 percent of precincts reporting, the measure was defeated 70 percent to 30 percent, according to. It would have been only the second state in the country with nurse-to-patient ratio requirements.Question 1 would have created legal ratios based on the type of patients that nurses are dealing with. Nurses aiding women during birth and up to two hours after, for instance, would have been limited to one patient. If they were working with children, they could have seen four patients at once. In the psychiatric ward, nurses could have helped up to five patients.It was one of the more controversial measures on the Massachusetts ballot this year. While nursesunionsand progressive political groups backed the ballot measure, most medical groups -- including the Massachusetts chapter of the American Nurses Association and the state's Health and Hospital Association -- opposed it. Republican Gov. Charlie Baker also opposed the measure.The ballot measure's supporters argued that not regulating this negatively impacts patient care and overall health outcomes.There is overwhelming evidence when you look at studies and talk to nurses that when there are limits, there are better health outcomes, said Kate Norton, campaign spokewoman for the Committee to Ensure Safe Patient Care, which was the official campaign for Question 2.Opponents of the measure argued that it would have worsened the existing nurse shortage there. Right now the vacancy rate for registered nurses in Massachusetts hospitals is 6.4 percent.If it passes, the estimates are that hospitals will have to hire 6,000 more nurses [according to a study led by the opposition camp]. Where will they get them? said Jake Krilovich, director of policy and public affairs for the Home Care Alliance of Massachusetts, which opposed the measure.But according to data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the state is projected to have a surplus of nurses by 2030.Though supporters outspent opponents early in the campaign, opposition groups -- led by the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association -- raised $26 million to fight the initiative. Seven states have laws that require hospitals to have committees that address staffing issues, but California is the only state with a cap on the number of patients a nurse can see during one shift. A 2011 study in the journalfound that nurse-patient ratios in California resulted in decreased mortality rates after surgery and an additional half-hour of care for patients overall. Advocates have struggled to gain support for ratio laws elsewhere, in part because the hospital industry doesn't believe there's enough evidence to support them.California's regulations were drafted by the states department of health and have been in effect since 2004. There was some fear at the time that hospitals would be forced to hire more nurses with less education in order to comply with the ratios. But according to the 2011 study, that didn't happen.Opponents of Massachusetts' measure also worried that it would have forced hospitals to make deep cuts to critical programs, such as opioid treatment and mental health services. Many community hospitals will not be able to absorb the added cost and will be forced to close.In California's experience, those fears are likely overblown. Research by the California Healthcare Foundation in 2009 shows that while leaders reported difficulties in absorbing the costs of the ratios, and many had to reduce budgets, reduce services or employ other cost-saving measures, the impact of the ratios was not discernible on hospital finances.Research further shows that hiring levels only increased slightly after the mandate. But California is expected to have a nursing shortage of more than 44,000 by 2030 . It's not clear how big a role, if any, the staffing ratios play in this shortage.
Anyone in public life expects criticism. But sometimes it gets personal. The temptation in those situations is strong to shut up the naysayers, but doing so might be against the law.In May, a judge ruled that President Trump could not block people from following him on Twitter. It was the most prominent in a series of rulings finding that access to public figures on social media is a constitutional right. The suppression of critical commentary regarding elected officials is the quintessential form of viewpoint discrimination against which the First Amendment guards, Judge James Cacheris wrote in a case involving a supervisor in Fairfax County, Va.Politicians often claim that their social media accounts are personal, not public property. But public officials also use these same accounts to conduct official business or make announcements. Some politicians argue that theyre simply clamping down on trolls who use offensive language. Their level of discourse sunk to a level that even as an elected official I felt I shouldnt have to tolerate, David Lim, a former mayor of San Mateo, Calif., told the. If you walk into my office and start yelling at me, I can walk out of the office.But public officials cant block people preemptively from their offices. In effect, by blocking them on social media, thats what theyre doing. The internet, particularly social media, is where so much of our public discourse is happening these days, says Thomas Kadri, a resident fellow at the Yale Information Society Project.Some officials silence not only hostile malcontents but also reporters whove written less-than-flattering articles about them. Alondra Cano, a member of the Minneapolis City Council, blocked tworeporters after they wrote about her less-than-perfect attendance record. Washington state Sen. Michael Baumgartner blocked areporter for asking the senator about his policy on blocking people. I dont think they should block anybody unless theyre being threatening or particularly nasty, says Matt Szafranski, editor of the political blog, whos been blocked from official Springfield accounts. Im known for being a critic of the administration in the city, but I dont think of myself as being particularly unfair.The ACLU has sent letters to lawmakers around the country warning them about the need to keep their accounts open to the public. They must accept that First Amendment rights are protected on social media -- not just free speech, but the right to petition to redress grievances. Obviously, you cant go and harass or threaten your local agency, but you do have free rein otherwise to make your point, says Angela Greben, who monitors government accounts that block people.Technology allows insulted public officials the ability to mute or unfollow harassers, protecting them from seeing hostile messages but letting those individuals see the statements they put out. But most officials recognize that taking some knocks comes with the job. If you dont want to be described as scum, Greben writes on her blog, then maybe you shouldnt run for political office.
Former state Sen. Molly Kelly of Harrisville won the Democratic nomination for governor Tuesday, earning the right to take on incumbent Republican Chris Sununu in November.With 55 percent of precincts reporting, unofficial election results showed Kelly with an almost 2-1 lead over former Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand, 67 percent to 33 percent, as of 10 p.m. Tuesday."What a night," said Kelly, who gathered with campaign staff and supporters inside the Keene State College Alumni Center. "Tonight we celebrate. Tomorrow, we take on Chris Sununu. When I'm governor, the people of New Hampshire will come first. It's time to put people's interest ahead of corporate special interests."Just after 9 p.m., Marchand thanked supporters who gathered at Penuche's Music Hall in Manchester to watch results."I'll make a few remarks so we can do some eating and drinking, I think I'll be doing some drinking," said Marchand. "I spoke with Molly Kelly. She has my full support in the general election. We need to defeat Chris Sununu in November. Thank you all for your support." Throughout the campaign, the two Democratic candidates for governor embraced liberal themes on gun control, immigration, aid to education and raising state taxes to meet New Hampshire's needs.Kelly, 68, got into the gubernatorial race late but as a former four-term state senator she attracted plenty of support from party leaders. U.S. Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, both D-NH, endorsed her, along with Rep. Annie Kuster, D-NH, and the state's two biggest teacher unions. Planned Parenthood and Emily's List, the nation's two most powerful groups supporting pro-abortion rights candidates, also backed her.Kelly is the second of 11 children. After attending Keene State College and Franklin Pierce Law Center, she began working as a financial adviser.She successfully ran for the state Senate for the first time in 2006 and was re-elected four times. Since leaving the Senate in 2016, Kelly has served as acting director of the Antioch University of New England Center for Civic Engagement in Keene.She has a daughter, three sons and seven grandchildren, and lives in Harrisville with her husband, Art Luptowski.Marchand, 44, never stopped campaigning for the state's corner office after finishing a distant second to Colin Van Ostern in the 2016 primary. A Manchester native raised on the West Side, Marchand received a B.S in international relations, a B.A. in public affairs and a master's degree in public administration from Syracuse University.He served as mayor of Portsmouth from 2006 to 2008 and worked as the director of corporate relations for the University of New Hampshire. He and his wife, Sandi Hennequin, live in Portsmouth with their two daughters.Democrats are hoping this November to regain New Hampshire's corner office.Sununu, the son of a former governor and younger brother of a former U.S. senator, broke the Democrats' winning streak of six in a row and eight of the last nine elections, narrowly defeating fellow Executive Councilor Van Ostern, a Concord Democrat, in 2016.Since being elected, Sununu has brought forth a balanced two-year state budget, another round of business tax cuts, full-day kindergarten and a five-year expansion of Medicaid from the Republican-led Legislature.Throughout the campaign, Kelly and Marchand both accused Sununu of "shooting from the hip" too often, sucking up to the Trump administration and embracing an energy policy that's far more friendly to major utilities contributing to his campaign than it is to energy consumers in the state.Sununu issued a statement just after polls closed at 8 p.m., saying he is "humbled" to have the opportunity to seek a second term."Today in New Hampshire, more people are working than ever before, wages are rising, and a family's zip code no longer defines their child's chance to succeed," said Sununu. "I am humbled by the support, and look forward to promoting our pro-growth, pro-jobs agenda over the next 56 days. We are getting the job done for New Hampshire -- without raising taxes or fees -- and Granite Staters are taking notice.""New Hampshire Democrats have finally settled on which sacrificial candidate will lose to Governor Sununu in seven weeks: tax and spender Molly Kelly," said NHGOP Chairman Wayne MacDonald in a statement. "Molly was a far-left liberal senator, and she's a far-left liberal candidate. She was wrong for New Hampshire in the state senate, and she's wrong for the New Hampshire corner office. New Hampshire is on the right track under Chris Sununu, and we cannot risk going back to the economic stagnation, tax hikes, and limited opportunity we experienced under Democrat administrations."The Republican Governors Association wasted no time issuing a statement calling Kelly a "tax hiker."Democratic Governors Association Executive Director Elisabeth Pearson countered by saying Sununu's record puts him "out of step" with New Hampshire residents."Over the past two years, Chris Sununu has made it clear at every turn that he puts special interests and Republican party politics ahead of the needs of the Granite State's working families and small businesses," said Pearson.
Controversial state Senate candidate Julia Salazar said Tuesday that she was sexually assaulted by a top spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.The 27-year-old Democratic socialist said she was divulging the secret to get in front of a soon-to-be-published news story expected to discredit her and other sex assault accusers of David Keyes.Salazar, whose campaign has been marred by a series of questionable claims, did not identify the publication or provide details of the alleged attack."This story appears to be an effort to cast doubt upon my, and other women's, accusations against Keyes," Salazar said in a statement."I've spoken to other journalists who were investigating accusations against David Keyes on background about this experience, but have never spoken on the record about it until now.""There's a reason women don't come forward after a traumatic experience -- because of the triggering and vicious responses that follow," she added. "I strongly believe sexual assault survivors should not be outed in this way, and am saddened by the effect this story may have on other women."Reached Tuesday, Keyes, 34, sharply denied the allegation."This false accusation is made by someone who has proven to be repeatedly dishonest about her own life," Keyes told the Daily News. "This is yet another example of her dishonesty."Keyes was the subject of news stories in April 2016 when a woman took to Facebook to claim that he sexually assaulted her.In the post, the woman said she met Keyes after writing an article about Israel. After meeting for a coffee, the post said, she returned to his place where he forced himself upon her, according to The Times of Israel."Eventually, after I insisted on leaving his apartment repeatedly, he physically coerced me," the woman wrote."After I submitted to him, he finally allowed me to leave. I remember going into the elevator and sobbing, and getting off before the ground floor so that I could wipe my face with a tissue, so the doorman wouldn't embarrassingly see me leaving his building in tears so late at night."The post was later deleted and the identity of the woman remained a mystery. She described herself, as Salazar has falsely, as a graduate of Columbia University. Salazar, a first-time candidate running against incumbent Sen. Martin Dilan, attended the school but never graduated.Keyes reportedly denied the charges. "There was absolutely no coercion in our encounter," an official said on Keyes' behalf, according to Army Radio.The NYPD said at the time it had not received any complaints against Keyes, according to The Times of Israel.Salazar has been on the defensive since reports emerged poking holes in her personal narrative of growing up a Colombian immigrant in a working-class family.Even the candidate's brother spoke out against Salazar, who was born and raised in Florida, saying they had a comfortable upbringing.Salazar found herself batting away more uncomfortable questions last week when it was revealed that she once claimed the ex-wife of Mets legend Keith Hernandez falsely accused her of having an affair with the retired ballplayer.The allegations came out as part of a bizarre 2011 case that kicked off with Hernandez's ex-wife claiming to police that Salazar tried to access her bank account.
Tens of thousands of low-level marijuana convictions could be erased with the OK of Brooklyn's top prosecutor under a new plan for wiping records clean of offenses no longer being prosecuted in parts of the nation's biggest city.Dist. Atty. Eric Gonzalez announced Friday that he is inviting people to request conviction dismissals. He expects prosecutors will consent in the great majority of a potential 20,000 cases since 1990 and an unknown number of older ones.To Gonzalez, whose office has stopped prosecuting most cases involving people accused of having small amounts of pot, it's only right to nix convictions that wouldn't be pursued now."It's a little unfair to say we're no longer prosecuting these cases, but to have these folks carry these convictions for the rest of their lives," the Democrat told the Associated Press.
New Jersey's top prosecutor is creating a semi-autonomous team in his office to target a wide swath of government wrongdoing, from bribe-pocketing public officials to abusive police officers and wrongful convictions.Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said the newly formed Office of Public Integrity and Accountability will be led by a longtime federal prosecutor with a record of high-profile public corruption convictions.Thomas Eicher, the former head of the criminal division at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Newark, will answer directly to the attorney general. His first day was Monday.He will oversee an office of detectives and prosecutors charged with routing out "criminal abuses of the public trust and handle other sensitive matters that implicate the public's confidence in both government and the criminal justice system," according to an announcement from Grewal's office.
The Chinese official is leading a delegation at the ongoing World Economic Forum on ASEAN (WEF ASEAN) 2018, which started the same day.

At the reception, PM Phuc said the attendance reflects Chinas support for Vietnams hosting of the event and congratulated China on its successful organisation of the first session of its 13th National People's Congress and People's Political Consultative Conference.

PM Phuc also spoke highly of the outcomes of the strong collaboration between the two countries last year, particularly in economy, trade, and investment.

He suggested the sides continue to exchange and take measures to boost balanced and sustainable development of bilateral trade, with Vietnam reducing its trade deficit with China.

The Government leader asked China to facilitate Vietnamese goods, particularly farm produce, invest in high-tech projects in Vietnam, and carry out joint projects in line with bilateral agreements with progress and quality ensured.

Both sides need to accelerate cooperation in transport, agriculture, environment, science-technology, finance, and currency, PM Phuc said, adding that the effective use of Chinese aid packages for Vietnam is also necessary.

Measures to cut production costs should be studied in a bid to increase rail transport of goods from Vietnam to Eurasian countries via China, he noted.

The PM also requested China create favourable conditions for Vietnamese airlines to operate and launch new air routes.

Regarding issues on the sea, Phuc stressed the sides need to continue their serious implementation of their leaders common outlook, and of the Vietnam  China agreement on basic principles guiding the settlement of sea-related issues.

He highlighted the bilateral respect of each countrys legitimate and legal interests in line with international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982 UNCLOS).

The Government leader recommended that the sides push for the improvement of mechanisms of maritime negotiations, effective and full implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and collaboration with the ASEAN member states to build the code of conduct in the East Sea (COC).

For his part, Hu Chunhua affirmed that the Chinese Party, Government and people are ready to work with Vietnam in enhancing their neighbourly friendship and comprehensive cooperation. He expected the sides to seize the opportunity for mutually beneficial engagements across different spheres.

The Vice Premier underscored Chinas goodwill in increasing its imports of Vietnamese products, particularly farm produce, in the demand to balance bilateral trade, and in the management and tackling of disputes to sustain peace and stability in the East Sea.

Healthy and stable development of the Vietnam  China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership is also needed, he stated.

The Chinese official wished Vietnam a successful hosting of the WEF ASEAN 2018.
Description

GIS  12 September, 2018: The findings of the research project entitled A Mass Media Communication System Using Mobile Voice Technology for Information Dissemination during a Disaster situation in Mauritius were presented today during a seminar organised by the Mauritius Research Council (MRC) at Ebene Cyber-city.

The presentation of the research findings was made by Mr R K Moloo of the Faculty of Information and Communication Digital Technologies, at the University of Mauritius. The research project was funded under MRC Unsolicited Research and Innovation Grant scheme.

The project comprised the development of a mass media communication or early warning system using voice technology. It has been developed in collaboration with the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Centre (NDRRMC) and provides a simple and effective technology-based solution to prepare and warn vulnerable population groups well in advance in case of disasters, hence minimising casualties.

The early warning system via voice technology is accessible to everyone through phone calls without the need of higher-end phones and internet connectivity. Within minutes, the system can be deployed to mass call a particular vulnerable group through its user-friendly web interface. Valuable reports/statistics can also be retrieved giving the percentage of people who received the calls, hence showing the effectiveness of the response.

The findings indicate that conclusive results have been obtained, especially in terms of the acceptance of such new technology by the targeted population. The system was tested on various Community Disaster Response Teams provided by the NDRRMC as well as amongst planters and fishermen in Mauritius and Agalega.

Results show that voice calling is an active and immediate tool to warn vulnerable groups compared to SMS messages/Mobile App notifications, which are passive.

Around 94% of the persons called answered their phones immediately, suggesting an enhanced reach out of the system compared to others. Surveyed population unanimously agreed on the importance of such a system and provided valuable inputs in enhancing the system.
Description

GIS 12 September, 2018: The third meeting of the National Road Safety Commission, chaired by the Minister Mentor, Minister of Defence, Minister for Rodrigues, Sir Anerood Jugnauth, was held yesterday at the Sir Harilal Vaghjee Hall in Port-Louis, with a view to examining and adopting the National Strategy in regards to road safety. The third meeting of the National Road Safety Commission, chaired by the Minister Mentor, Minister of Defence, Minister for Rodrigues, Sir Anerood Jugnauth, was held yesterday at the Sir Harilal Vaghjee Hall in Port-Louis, with a view to examining and adopting the National Strategy in regards to road safety.

Several eminent personalities including the Minister of Public Infrastructure and Land Transport, Mr. Nandcoomar Bodha, the Minister of Education and Human Resources, Tertiary Education and Scientific Research, Mrs Leela Devi Dookun-Luchoomun, the Minister of Social Security, National Solidarity, and Environment and Sustainable Development, Mr. Etienne Ghislain Sinatambou, the Minister of Housing and Lands, Mr. Purmanund Jhugroo, as well as the Commissioner of Police, Mr Karl Mario Nobin, attended the meeting.

In his remarks, Sir Anerood Jugnauth deplored the alarming situation as regards road traffic accidents despite the numerous initiatives taken at both governmental and private sector levels. He pointed out that since January 2018, some 116 persons have died as a result of road accidents, adding that e very year 150 persons are victims of road fatalities while some 660 persons are seriously injured on our roads. He added that road fatalities not only cause grievances to the victims families but also result in social and economic costs, wherein it impacted to 1.5% of the GDP and cost Rs6 million in 2015.

Sir Anerood Jugnauth observed that factors such as indiscipline and careless road user behaviour, in particular young drivers who engage in highly risky road practices along with drunk driving contribute largely to road accidents. The alarming road situation of the country, he said, warrants constant monitoring, sustained concerted actions and innovative endeavours to effectively address the problem.

On that score, he emphasised that ensuring road safety remains a national urgency and priority for Government. By adopting a proactive stand, without making any compromise to implement strong measures on all fronts, Government is determined on clearly focusing equally on the main pillars of the National Road Safety Strategy which include education, engineering and law enforcement, he said.

According to the Minister Mentor, key Governmental measures such as sensitisation campaigns and the enforcement of the law, are bound to bring positive changes. Other measures in this regard, consists of: ensuring safe road infrastructure; creating road safety data base; implementing safety laws; and amending the Road Traffic Act for tougher fines and penalties.

Furthermore, Sir Anerood Jugnauth urged the Commissioner of Police to further reinforce police mobilisation and called for sustained severe actions in a bid to ensure that road traffic offenders are not left unpunished and to deter other potential offenders. He also appealed to all Ministers to favour a coordinated approach and work closely with the National Road Safety Council to implement National Road Safety Strategy, to pave the way for achieving the set target.
North Carolinas burgeoning capital city is ahead of schedule on its digital transformation, which is guided by a multifaceted IT strategy, its technology leader said recently.Raleigh continues to add population and is now home to 465,000 residents, its CIO Darnell Smith told attendees at the North Carolina Digital Government Summit Aug. 30. And so far, its digital transformation has outstripped predictions, he said. In 2016, the citys percentage of business that was digital was 27 percent, predicted to rise to 33 percent by 2019. But, Smith said, Raleigh has already taken 47 percent of its business digital and may reach 55 percent by next year  a bar initially set for 2021.That hasnt come without a lot of hard work, the CIO told attendees, noting that while the city is projecting correctly on its digital transformation, theres a lot we need to do to catch up. In April, he talked with Government Technology about various initiatives underway, including getting off paper, and implementing body-worn cameras for police. But none of this would be possible, he said, without an IT shop at the ready  and a blueprint for that success.Raleighs ongoing IT modernization is empowered by a five-part strategy that begins with the idea of focused enterprise  boosting efficiency and automation through tech, engagement, measuring service and achieving a clarity of demand, the CIO said. He offered two use cases for how this is being accomplished: a partnership with Esri to stand up an Emergency Operations Center (EOC) dashboard to inform mobilization, and the use of 3-D modeling as a platform for citizen engagement that is still being implemented.Raleigh is a growing city, and this is a way for us to basically model where the buildings are going in and allow citizens to see what the impact is on surrounding areas, Smith said. The strategy also includes IT Excellence, the concept of a high-functioning organization where IT works just like a light switch, he said.The citys IT strategy also includes engaged community, the idea that the incoming customer or resident has a good experience. It features smart city enablement, providing tech leadership to spur smart city efforts, and actionable information, the idea of providing residents and officials with information in the right format, at the right time and at the right level of detail to inform decisions. Raleigh has empowered actionable information, Smith said, by more fully mapping its functions, people and capabilities around IT, and has basically standardized on Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) around our organizational processes.IT shop members are all ITIL-certified, the CIO said, and the agency is working toward Control Objectives for Information and Related Technologies (COBIT) certification for management. The city did a proof of concept earlier this year on actionable information, Smith said, and selected Microsofts Power BI analytics service  which is now deployed through most departments.Understanding the data, understanding what metrics they need to build in the right dashboards, so that people can make decisions with real-time data, its a process, but everybody is fully engaged, Smith said.There is a need for data now like a person in the desert that needs water. And so, it is us making sure the data is there and available in a way with our VI [visual insight] tools, he added in an interview, describing Raleighs efforts on integrating data as early in the journey.Smith, who became CIO in January 2016 , said smart cities were new to him as this is his first time in government, but pointed out Raleighs effort has been underway for years. It has examined Big Belly smart, solar-powered trash cans that monitor refuse levels, Soofa Bench solar cellphone charging stations downtown, and wireless Internet at its community centers through an AT&T partnership.The city is also building a mobile app to drill down on the downtown parking situation, and now has a live help ticket feed through its Cityworks back-end system, to push its pothole filling process in real-time.You have to have your shop in order to be able to do smart cities in an efficient manner. It is consistent data at the enterprise level, so that you can do these integrations one time, Smith said, noting that Raleigh was recognized by the company for its implementation of the technology on an enterprise level.
By the end of the year, Philadelphia will have rolled out a new internal system called One Philly, to replace nearly half a dozen outmoded systems  some so old that the only employees who knew their coding languages have started to retire.The One Philly project has been in the making for years, dating all the way back to a genesis of June 2014. But now, it's slated to go live this December, and when it does, it will see a unified platform that replaces outdated and separated systems handling a number of vital internal tasks, including payroll, human resources, pensions, benefits and timekeeping.Once complete, One Philly will be an integrated system that handles all those functions, made possible by working with Oracles E-Business Suite. A key feature for city employees is that this one suite not only modernizes those disparate systems, but it also integrates them with each other.Rick Stewart, who is the One Philly project director, said the new system's integrated functionality stands to increase efficiency in no small part by reducing the instances of public employees entering the same information across multiple applications.What these will be is a complete integrated suite of all of the software necessary to manage our workforce, Stewart said, and its replacing a number of legacy systems and technologies that are challenged.Another major upgrade being made comes with the addition of a hosted solution for data storage via a vendor in Virginia and disaster recovery services out of California. Disaster recovery for its valuable data is something the city has never had before.Stewart and other stakeholders with the city said working with Oracle was appealing because the citys status as a large-scale customer means that input from users in city hall can potentially sway the development of new capabilities for the product.Some of the legacy systems the new platform is replacing are three decades old, written in coding languages that todays workforce doesnt learn. In fact, the city is facing a problem because the only employees who do know the coding languages have started to retire  a common problem among state and local governments around the country.In addition, the One Philly system will enable the city to see exactly where funds like overtime pay are being spent, which will foster better workforce management and use of taxpayer money.
2018 Innovation Awards Maryland received an innovation awards for its Enterprise Widget Framework (EWF) API Library, which makes it easy for state agencies to deliver unified branding. A big problem with agencies at the state level is the lack of common components and capabilities, said CDG Chief Innovation Officer Dustin Haisler. Maryland is focused on connecting the dots, enabling agencies to maintain consistent branding and standards so we are all operating off the same playbook and it all feels like the same site.



A recognized public-private partnership in Miami-Dade County brought together city officials, AT&T, Ericsson and MetroTech Net in support traffic management in the countys Smart City Operation Center. Normally in a partnership you have one vendor with one agency. In this case you had a very diverse group of entities all supporting improved efficiencies and improved outcomes, Haisler said. This approach is really interesting: They are creating an entire ecosystem. This is how agencies should go about public-private partnerships, by leveraging a diverse set of stakeholders with a broad range of skills.



Albuqeurque was recognized this year for its 311 service requests, which leveraged Alexa in novel ways, going beyond earlier, information-only applications. They offer the ability to actually request a service, Haisler said. Most of the time these voice assistants regurgitate information: What is the number for the DMV? How do I renew a hunting license? This is the first we have seen at the local level that allows people to actually request trash pickup or a graffiti cleanup.



No stranger to an Innovation Award, Utah used Amazons artificial intelligence products to sift through user feedback and ferret out citizen needs. We took all the data from our feedback database  feedback on dozens or hundreds of online services  and we applied AI to look at trends and sentiment analysis, said Utah CTO David Fletcher. That allows us to address specific services, things like drivers license renewals and vehicle renewals, so that now it only takes a few seconds to do a vehicle renewal on mobile. We were able to make those changes in part based on that AI analysis.





Utah  First Place in the State Category

Oakland County, Mich.  First Place in the County Category

Louisville, Ky.  First Place in the City Category

While citizens have always been at the heart of government work, the way they experience their governments in a digital age is in many ways a new frontier. The second annual Government Experience awards, conducted by the Center for Digital Government,* offer ample evidence that the variety, availability and quality of the citizen interaction is a front-and-center consideration among state, county and local technology leaders.At the state level, a surprising 80 percent of those surveyed rank chatbots and Alexa-type artificial intelligence (AI) implementations among their top three experience avenues. We knew a lot of agencies were experimenting with it, but the fact that it made the top three for so many of them was really interesting, said Dustin Haisler, CDG chief innovation officer.States also are digging into the citizen experience with government more deeply than ever before, focusing not just on the user interface but also on under-the-hood issues. Theyre developing policies to ensure experience is not only available but effective.They are using their governance to look at how they select channels, to measure what they are doing, especially with the new technologies, Haisler said. Do we have people using these new technologies? Are we reaching the right segments of the population? Its about fitting all these things together.At the county level, social media has risen to the fore. They use it to disseminate public information, which everybody did five years ago, but then they also are using it for service requests, which is new, Haisler said. People can actually do things on social media  they can initiate requests, they can engage with the county in new ways.Counties also are leveraging social as the venue of choice in support of emergency communications, another novel iteration.At the city level, its all about mobile, with 64 percent of respondents citing mobile apps as one of their top three engagement channels. These are not just mobile websites but actual native apps, Haisler said. Mobile is not cheap, you have multiple platforms with frequent update cycles, so it was surprising to see that sheer volume of native, standalone applications.It all adds up to a big year for citizen experience, both in terms of the diversity of platforms available and the breadth of services on offer. Looking ahead, a current focus on breadth  expanding experience across multiple platforms  could drive a push toward some form of consolidation.If you have 90,000 local government agencies and each one has 10 different channels, that gets to be a pretty big number, Haisler said. We are going to see them streamlining. People will query using whatever interface they prefer and it will find the relevant information for them. Thats where all of this is leading.Long an active player in the effort to expand the digital citizen experience, Utah in 2018 set its sights on the emerging realm of AI and the automated assistant.Our goal is to try to be wherever the people are, to provide services and information beyond just the Web, said Chief Technology Officer David Fletcher. To that end, the state has been rolling out digital assistants. We have interactive services on Amazon Echo and Google Assistant. We have a drivers license exam on both platforms so people getting their drivers license can take a practice test online. We have a notary practice test on the Google Assistant, which they can use on their mobile phones or on the Google Home devices.Fletcher sees the voice-friendly platforms as the next wave in citizen experience, and he envisions expanding the portfolio. Ultimately, we want to enable many different services, but we are starting simple, with things like fishing reports on different bodies of water around the state. Then well see where it goes, he said.The state is also looking at emerging interfaces. Last year it launched its first-ever Apple Watch application to deliver updates on bills going through the state Legislature. In pursuing this course, the device makers penchant for more open environments is proving helpful.Most of these platforms have an open API [application programming interface] environment, so we develop all our services using APIs and Web services. Then as new platforms become available we can use those existing APIs and not have a big development effort, Fletcher said. We want to develop our platform in a way that we can take advantage of these new opportunities, instead of just being siloed into these legacy systems. The APIs allow us flexibility moving forward.Oakland County, Mich., CIO and Deputy County Executive Phil Bertolini views government experience as a conversation, and hes looking to facilitate that dialog.Take social media, for instance. The county is deep into Facebook and Twitter, Pinterest and LinkedIn. The effort draws over 590,000 visitors in an average month, and when they have questions, Bertolini wants to be sure they can get answers.That means backing up the technology with a human element, a social media team whose job it is to broker connections between user needs and relevant county agencies.We have live people at the other end who engage, and they dont just throw it out there and assume its taken care of. Our social media team will monitor that discussion and if there is no response form the department or division, they will follow up, he said. Theres nothing worse than initiating a conversation and then just having dead air.In addition to offering a timely, human response to incoming queries, the county also actively courts citizen input. Last year the IT team crowdsourced a GIS-enabled inventory of holiday lights, using citizen input to create a map of festive displays.It sounds trivial, but it shows us what is possible when you listen to people, Bertolini said. Some of these displays were generating revenue for charity, and in one case revenue went up 150 percent based on information citizens were putting out to us, and that we in turn were sharing with everyone else.Whatever form the citizen experience takes, it is more than likely going to unfold on a cellphone  thats where 60 percent of the countys digital traffic comes from. With this in mind, Bertolini has placed a special emphasis on making all county offerings phone-friendly.This has an IT aspect: It means using responsive design, building pages with bigger buttons and implementing ease of navigation. But theres a human element as well.We have 170 content managers across government and we are constantly training them: Dont put that giant graphic on there, make it more concise, more streamlined, Bertolini said. Educating our people has gone a long way toward making government more accessible.Tech leaders in Louisville decided the raise the usability bar this year, with revamps to the citys website in both desktop and mobile versions.Visitors to the website now are invited front and center to enter their address information, a simple step that unlocks broad functionality. It automatically populates information like your street-sweeping date and how to contact your council member. The most important information is right there at your fingertips, said Sharon Meador, manager for business systems in the Louisville Metro Government IT department.A new quick-search function makes it easier to reach commonly read pages, as does a new popular pages tab driven by Google Analytics and updated weekly.The mobile site got a similar facelift. With more than half the citys public Web traffic now coming via mobile, IT Director Chris Seidt said his team sought to make information more visible. We want those most commonly accessed pieces to be right in front of the user, rather than people having to go and hunt, he said.The city this year also expanded its ongoing collaboration with traffic app maker Waze, in which the city supplies data on road closures, for example, while Waze delivers valuable traffic information.This year the city moved the program to Amazon Web Services for greater scalability, and also opened the source code in order to spur participation by other municipalities. Now other cities can stand up their own data analysis tools and run those programs very easily, Seidt said. Now they can collaborate with us, and even add functionality that maybe we hadnt thought of.The city has taken IT out into the physical world as well, teaming with the American Printing House for the Blind to develop smartphone-based wayfinding systems for the visually impaired. After prototyping a system in a small civic building, the city rolled out a large-scale version in its 50,000-square-foot judicial center.Now people are able to get audible navigation cues on their phone: 'You are 40 feet from making a left turn.' It allows for more independence for our visually impaired residents, Seidt said. Thats not something that the city would lead on typically, but with this partnership it was something that we could help to foster and grow.Government Technology's
Why Chromebooks?

Issues raised

(TNS)  After rolling out an initiative last year to provide all incoming Cambridge Rindge and Latin School freshmen with laptops, the district has expanded the program this year, offering the entire CRLS student body -- over 2,000 teens -- Chromebooks.At a cost of $543,465, over 1,700 laptops will be handed out to the incoming freshmen as well as juniors and seniors, according to school officials. Sophomores will continue to use the same devices they were issued as freshmen last year.The district said the initiative is an attempt to level the playing field by bridging the digital divide."We are very proud to be able to launch a 1:1 technology program at the high school," said Superintendent Ken Salim in a written statement. "We know that access to information and online resources has become essential for teaching and learning. Last year's pilot proved that through this model, we can level the playing field for students, while allowing CPS educators to truly integrate technology into instructional design across the curriculum."Students will have access to the devices at school as well as at their homes throughout their entire enrollment at the high school.The decision to use Chromebooks rather than a different laptop was a combination of familiarity, price, and features, according to Gina Roughton, assistant director of Educational Technology for Cambridge Public Schools, who was interviewed last year."They're an amazing device in terms of a tech-perspective. They boot up in seven seconds, so there's no loss of instructional time," Roughton said in 2017. "And the obvious is that they are on the Google environment and we've been a Google for Education school district for seven years now, so it's our preferred use for online collaboration and productivity tools."To encourage responsible use and to ensure student privacy, the district limits internet access through filters and bans on certain applications and websites both on and off campus.The privacy standards set in Cambridge were adopted regionally by the Massachusetts Student Privacy Alliance, and now are the basis of the national student privacy model, according to Principal Damon Smith.At the Sept. 4 School Committee meeting, some complaints were made that those students who already have high-powered devices are not able to use them in the classroom, just designated areas such as the cafeteria, Media Cafeteria and library.Part of the limitation on personal-device use is due to bandwidth, officials said. Smith said the school is prioritizing Wi-Fi access to school-issued devices in order to ensure they are working fast enough to not result in loss of instructional time."This summer, CPS invested in improving the Wi-Fi capacity in common areas of the high school such as the library and cafeteria. At the same time, because this is such a high volume of devices coming online, they've decided in classrooms to restrict Wi-Fi access to the Chromebooks," said Rosalie Rippey, communications manager for CPS.Smith said there's also a benefit to having consistent technology across the board."When you have a bring-your-own-device platform in school -- where some students have Windows, G Suite and some students have something completely different -- I think that creates a level of dissonance in the classroom that doesn't lead to effective instructional support," he said.At the meeting, students and parents also expressed privacy concerns and the lateness in which the district announced the new policy. Several students said they already purchased personal laptops without the knowledge of this incoming requirement.Smith said while he respects the arguments brought up at the meeting, it may come down to just a difference of opinion. The initiative is not new, he said, and has been on the table and discussed for over four years. Also, all computers used on campus are subject to the same filters, he said."This is about, in essence, an equity issue. This is about making sure our district and our school in particular is walking our talk. Making sure the devices we use are ones everyone can use and access to do whatever they need in school," he said.
(TNS)  Beginning Thursday, some Sacramento residents will be some of the first in the world to be able to purchase Verizons 5G broadband Internet service, which will start Oct. 1.Sacramento is one of four cities in the U.S. to receive early access to the at-home Internet service, along with Houston, Indianapolis, and Los Angeles, according to a Verizon press release.Residents of the city can sign up for the service online, and after a free trial period of three months, they can expect to pay $50 to $70 per month, according to the press release.Verizon spokesman John OMalley said typical 5G network speeds average 300 megabits per second, which Verizons website says is fast enough to download an iTunes update in 7 seconds, whereas 4G LTE speeds range between 5 to 12 megabits per second.Mayor Darrell Steinberg said in a press release 5G service will expand digital access for underserved communities and boost the citys efforts to establish itself as a center for autonomous vehicle testing.Steinberg said Phantom Auto, an autonomous vehicle technology company, recently announced that it would begin testing driverless cars in Sacramento. Faster cellphone data speeds up communications between the vehicle and the backup driver.Coverage in Sacramento will be limited to certain areas of the city, with widespread availability being expected early 2019, according to Steinberg.
Asking for help

As school districts intensify their focus on campus safety and security, the role of local law enforcement is changing. From providing real-time access to surveillance videos to shared trainings, messaging systems, two-way chat dialogs and providing school resource officers, an intense collaboration is emerging. Police are no longer just responders. Theyre increasingly becoming partners.Theres no way [a school district] can do it alone, said Gary Sigrist, CEO of Safeguard Risk Solutions, a security consultant. Nor can you let law enforcement come in and say, This is how youll do it. Both are bad ideas.After the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that killed 26 in 2012 in Connecticut, the departments of Homeland Security and Education published a report about the importance of collaboration between first responders and schools.The report said schools should develop Emergency Operation Plans with the help of the local first responder and emergency management community. There is a need to help ensure that our schools emergency planning efforts are aligned with the emergency planning practices at the national, state and local levels, the report reads.That approach seems to have been placed on a fast track, at least in some jurisdictions, after the shooting that killed 17 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., in February.Parkland hit home for a lot of school districts, said Sgt. Kynrick Koralewski, with the Fort Worth, Texas, Police Department, assigned to the School Resource Unit. Theres definitely been more change than anything else Ive seen.This year, the Moses Lake School District in Washington state deployed a SafeSchools Alert website where district officials can get anonymous tips reporting threats, harassment or other safety concerns. The city of Brewer, Maine, is deploying a desktop and mobile application allowing two-way chat between police and school administrators and teachers; and in Fort Worth, schools and law enforcement are ramping up shared surveillance, and law enforcement has started following up on leads with home visits.The Fort Worth Police Department School Resource Unit consists of 67 officers and monitors five school districts, including the Fort Worth Districts 143 schools. Each district has its own contract with the resource unit that can include training, officer access to video surveillance cameras and off-hour response to problems like social media threats.There are up to 10 officers who are ready to respond at any time, even during the middle of the night if there is a threat, such as on social media. Officers take all social media threats seriously and begin investigating immediately, contacting the school district and parents. A home visit and a chat with the parents and the student may lead to a search of the home where any weapons may be confiscated, and other appropriate action can be taken to eliminate the threat.The Fort Worth Police Department has access to video feeds at its Real Time Crime Center and officers can view live video from their phones and laptops. Any information gleaned from video feeds can be immediately transmitted to officers on the street, along with floor plans and other intelligence about many of the schools. The police department is already talking about incorporating facial recognition into the surveillance systems as well.Since Parkland, weve gotten a lot better at working with the school districts in terms of security, and thats sparked interest from the districts as far as what they can do to harden targets and make schools safer, Koralewski said.He said the districts understand that they need local law enforcement and are more readily coming to the table for help. That has also led to more continuity in response protocol and language used across districts and counties.The police are more than willing to accommodate the districts when they ask for help. School administrators have started accompanying officers to the police academy to take part in simulation training. We have a judge and a video screen that displays different scenarios, Koralewski said. It puts the administrators in certain situations where they would have to make a call.The districts are also allowing police to use school buildings for training, like in active shooter scenarios, that let police get familiar with the settings.Probably the most important outcome of the increased collaboration between the districts and police is a familiarity and trust between the two. The attitude, from both police and school administrators, has changed dramatically over the years. Sigrist, whose career includes years as both a school administrator and police officer, shared an encounter he had when he first took a job as a project director for readiness and emergency management for an Ohio school district in 2008.I ran into the sergeant in charge of community relations with the police department. He shook my hand and said, If something bad ever happens in one of your schools, Im going to help the parents sue you because you guys arent doing [anything] to protect these kids.That led Sigrist to contact all the first responders, emergency managers and anyone remotely connected to school safety. He started conducting joint meetings to build relationships. Though he is retired from that position, the meetings continue today.In Ohio, where Sigrist is based, schools do tabletop, functional and full-scale exercises that include first responders and school administrators. The biggest benefit that comes from the exercises is the familiarity thats built among everyone involved. The same officers you train with are the ones that are going to show up when something goes wrong, he said. You cant do this alone.After the Parkland shooting, Sigrist saw a big spike in clients. The first question he has for them is about their law enforcement partners. Where is police and fire? he asks.One of the schools wanted me to do a security and vulnerability assessment and make recommendations for their district, he said. He agreed, but only if he could do so alongside the local police and fire departments. We wrote our recommendations, but they didnt come from me  police and fire signed off on it.Its no different in Fort Worth, where the police department, even during the summer, is intent on building relationships with kids and families.When I was in the unit in 2010 and 2011, our main focus was security, Koralewski said. Then we went into relationship building, and now we have to do both.
Kanawha County, $58,721 for precinct ballot scanners/vote tabulators, and for carts to securely transport ExpressVote touchscreen voting systems.

Putnam County, $373,353 for future payments for voting machine purchases.

Cabell County, $667,724 for ExpressVote touchscreen voting systems.

Jackson County, $316,736 for ExpressVote systems, and for physical security improvements.

Boone County, $213,021 for ExpressVote systems.

Lincoln County, $209,516 for ExpressVote systems, and physical security improvements.

Fayette County, $52,735 for precinct ballot scanners/vote tabulators, and physical security improvements.

Roane County, $24,175 for physical security improvements.

Raleigh County, $16,246 for computer upgrades.

Clay County, $7,543 for software upgrades and for physical security improvements.

(TNS)  West Virginia Election Commissioners Tuesday approved federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA) grants totaling $6.53 million to 41 counties.Donald Kersey, Election Division director for the Secretary of States Office, said the funds will be used to upgrade or replace voting systems, upgrade cybersecurity and improve physical security for areas where voting machines are stored.Physical security, right now, I think is the most vulnerable, Kersey told the commission. Our [voting] systems dont touch the internet.Since the voting systems are not online, the only potential risk for vote rigging would be through tampering with voting machines prior to Election Day, he noted.Of the 41 counties receiving grants, 17 will use all or part of the funding to improve physical security through a variety of methods, including installing limited-access keycard systems, adding security cameras, and putting bars on windows and installing steel doors to rooms where voting machines are stored.Jackson County, for instance, will be installing a locked chain-link fence in the portion of the county warehouse where the voting machines are stored.Additionally, 24 counties will be upgrading cybersecurity systems, while 26 counties will be upgrading voting systems.The upgrades to the voting systems, Kersey said, account for the vast majority of grant funds.A five-person panel, including Kersey, two county clerks, an advocate for the disabled and a representative from the governors office, reviewed the grant applications.I think it was a very fair process, Kersey said. The grants board considered counties actual needs and perceived needs.The panel rejected a number of grant application requests for items including furniture, printers, generators and employee reimbursements.He said the panel also approved only a limited number of requests for funding for electronic poll books, to replace the traditional paper books in certain precincts, given the comparatively high cost of the technology.Security improvements funded through the grants should be in place for the November elections, Kersey said.The purpose is to get the money to the counties as quickly as possible to use as soon as possible for the 2018 elections, he said.New or upgraded voting systems funded through the grants will be ready for the 2020 election cycle, he said, adding that county clerks are generally reluctant to change voting systems between the primary and general elections in the same election year.Locally, grants approved Tuesday include:
Christian Horner says it's "crazy" that a driver of the calibre of Esteban Ocon could be left without a F1 seat.

In the next days or weeks, the Frenchman is expected to lose his place at Force India to Lance Stroll, whose father Lawrence has bought the team.

Options at Renault, McLaren and Sauber have run aground, and Red Bull's junior team Toro Rosso is also out of the question for now.

"It's crazy that a driver like Esteban risks not having a seat next year," Red Bull Racing chief Christian Horner is quoted by Sky Italia.

"But for him at the moment it's not helpful that he's a Mercedes-contracted driver.

"If he was released, he would be an obvious candidate for Toro Rosso, but we cannot invest in a young man tied to one of our opponents, and I think that if the roles were reversed it would be exactly the same," Horner added.

On Twitter, 21-year-old Ocon admitted that he has struck a "tough situation" in his career.

"As you know there was no easy way throughout my career," he said.

"I can promise you that it's not at this moment that I will give up. Motivation is high and my old rivals are in top cars which makes me hungrier than ever," added Ocon.

"I dream F1, I train F1, I eat F1, I play F1, I think F1. I'm born to race and my only goal is to be champion and always will be."

(GMM)
>>> WEF Chairman hails Vietnam for facilitating start-ups



>>> WEF ASEAN 2018 opens in Hanoi

The WEF ASEAN 2018, themed ASEAN 4.0: Entrepreneurship and the Fourth Industry Revolution, attracts leaders of ASEAN countries and partner nations, over 1,000 delegates who are WEF members, and representatives of businesses from around the world.

The opening session, which also saw the presence of General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong, focused on ASEAN priorities in the age of Industry 4.0.

WEF Executive Chairman Schwab said Industry 4.0 will bring fundamental and breakthrough changes in business models, economies and societies. Global competition will be shaped by competitiveness instead of cost factors. In this context, the countries succeeding in mastering Industry 4.0 will have innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems.

To have successful directions in Industry 4.0, ASEAN governments need to create favourable conditions for start-ups as well as small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The coordination between governments and businesses is very important to obtain progress in Industry 4.0, he noted.

He expressed his belief that ASEAN countries, with appropriate visions, the best policies, young population and high entrepreneurial spirit, will take the lead in this revolution.

Addressing the event, PM Phuc stressed that high technology and digital economy are highly potential fields in ASEAN. They are forecast to rise fourfold to surpass US$200 billion by 2025.

Analysing opportunities that Industry 4.0 brings to ASEAN member states, he mentioned breakthroughs in productivity in the five major industries: electronics, chemicals and oil and gas, consumer goods, food, and pharmaceutical. It is also necessary to promote more inclusive growth towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals by applying Industry 4.0 to create connectivity and share new values and innovations.

He believed that Industry 4.0 will also open up chances for connecting SMEs with trans-national and global markets. ASEAN can also bypass old ways of industrial development by bravely developing artificial intelligence, robots, automation, drones, satellite devices or sensory systems to improve productivity and optimize resources.

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc speaks at the WEF ASEAN 2018 plenary session in Hanoi on September 12. (Photo: VGP)



Regarding challenges facing ASEAN, the Government leader of Vietnam pointed to the risk of job loss to automation, quoting statistics of the International Labour Organisation that 56% of jobs in five ASEAN countries are at risk.

He noted Industry 4.0 can raise income for the people and countries with talent and knowledge, but it can also widen income gap and increase the risk of social instability.

Facing those opportunities and challenges, PM Phuc asked ASEAN countries to prioritise such fields as digital connectivity, data sharing, harmonising the business environment, promoting the formation and connection of innovation incubators, seeking and tapping into talents, and forming an ASEAN education network and the lifelong learning systems.

At this forum, Vietnam will propose new initiatives about a shared mobile network with the same prices across ASEAN and cooperation in intelligence, ensuring cyber security, manpower training, and information technology, he added.

Mentioning the launch of a passenger transportation service using Industry 4.0 technology by Go-Jerk of Indonesia and Go-Viet of Vietnam on the occasion of the WEF ASEAN, the PM said the Vietnamese Government hopes to see more cooperation like that to tell the world that the cooperation and entrepreneurial atmosphere is spreading in ASEAN.

With a combined population of over 640 million accounting for 8.5% of the global population, ASEAN is now the third biggest economy in Asia and the fifth in the world.

Amid the Industry 4.0 expansion and fierce regional and global competition, countries need to bolster cooperation and solidarity and bring into play the blocs internal strength to build a people-oriented and people-centred ASEAN of peace, stability and resilience basing on rules. ASEAN has and will continue making efforts to affirm its central role in the region and join partners to maintain peace and stability and ensuring freedom on air, on land and at sea, PM Phuc said.
Kimi Raikkonen will keep his F1 career alive for another two seasons at least, despite losing his place at Ferrari to youngster Charles Leclerc.

The 38-year-old has been signed up by Sauber, the small Swiss team where he started his career way back in 2001.

"I heard about this possibility already at Monza," former team owner and boss Peter Sauber told Blick newspaper.

"That is happens is a great signal for the team and the fans," he added.

Sauber thinks it is the changes made at the team, such as the alliance with Alfa Romeo and the new management headed by Frederic Vasseur, that convinced Raikkonen to join.

"A year ago he probably would not have taken this step," said Peter Sauber.

Still, the Finn will be 41 when this new contract ends, while "There are 18 year old guys out there," noted former F1 driver Mika Salo.

But he thinks Raikkonen will be good for Sauber despite his age.

"F1 is a business, and Kimi's name brings sponsors, finances and a better financial base. It's a big deal for Sauber," said Salo.

It could also work out for Raikkonen himself, the former Sauber driver said.

"As expectations are not terribly high, he can race without pressure," Salo told C More broadcaster. "Maybe he can drive a bit more relaxed.

"There are also a few stories around that Kimi would like to buy into Sauber as well," he added.

"In my opinion this is about more than just driving," Salo said.

(GMM)
LEVC (London EV Company) announced it will start trials of its new electric van with potential customers in London in the second half of 2019.





Unliveried van.

The business is currently in discussion with a number of major public-sector fleets about joining the trials of prototype vehicles. This includes the Metropolitan Police Service and the London Fire Brigadeboth of which have ambitious programs to clean up their vehicle fleets, with a target for all new vans being zero-emission capable from 2025.

Earlier this year LEVC, which currently manufactures an electric taxi, announced it would enter the van market with a zero-emission capable product. Like the taxi, the van will combine a fully electric powertrain with an economical gasoline range-extender.

LEVC previously announced that this product is not intended for last-mile delivery and will instead focus on fleets where vehicles undertake demanding duty cyclesfor example, travel of more than 100 miles a day. This is a segment currently dominated by 1 tonne medium-sized diesel vans.
In his opening address, the Vietnamese leader affirmed that the CAEXPO and CABIS have become important mechanisms to promote the friendship, trade and multi-faceted cooperation between ASEAN and China.



He added that ASEAN-China cooperation is one of the examples of successful cooperation in the Asia-Pacific, underlining its increasingly robust development amidst uncertainties in the global economy.



The Deputy PM stated that economic cooperation between Vietnam and China is increasingly stronger, while affirming that Vietnam always encourages and facilitates Chinese and ASEAN businesses to invest in Vietnam, especially in the fields of renewable energy, infrastructure, high-tech industries, organic farming and the digital economy.



At this years CAEXPO, Vietnam is represented by 150 enterprises with 250 booths covering a total area of 5,000 square metres, the largest among the ASEAN countries, showcasing agricultural produce, processed food, timber products, handicrafts and consumer goods.



On the same day, Deputy PM Hue received Jiangxi Vice Governor Wu Zhongqiong, who informed the Vietnamese leader that the Chinese province has 10 enterprises currently investing in Vietnam.



She added that Jiangxi province values and wishes to promote its cooperation with Vietnam.



For his part, Hue stated that the Vietnamese government supports cooperation between the two countries provinces and cities, and asked Jiangxi province to increase its delegation exchanges with Vietnam and promote economic, trade and investment cooperation between the two sides.



Deputy PM Hue also received leaders of two Chinese companies: Huawei and China Pacific Construction Group. Deputy PM Vuong Dinh Hue and Jiangxi Vice Governor Wu Zhongqiong (Photo: VGP)
McDonalds employees in Chicago. Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Fast-food companies are, no two ways about it, terrible. Labor issues plague the industry, where underpaid workers are particularly vulnerable to issues like sexual harassment and abuse. According to one survey, 40 percent of female fast-food workers say they have experienced sexual harassment at work. In hopes of getting management to do more about this issue, McDonalds workers have voted to go on a single-day strike in ten cities next week.

The strike will take place during lunchtime on September 18, at certain locations in Chicago; Durham, North Carolina; Kansas City, Missouri; Los Angeles; Miami; Milwaukee; New Orleans; Orlando; San Francisco; and St. Louis. It was approved by womens committees formed by employees at dozens of McDonalds franchises, and organizers believe it is the first U.S. strike against sexual harassment in workplaces that will take place in multiple states. Fast-food workers have gone on strike for better wages in recent years.

The organizers include McDonalds employees who filed complaints earlier this year with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission about harassment at some McDonalds franchises. Those women include New Orleanss Tanya Harrell, who alleges that her managers teased her but otherwise did nothing about her EEOC complaint, and Kansas Citys Kim Lawson, who alleges that her mangers responded insufficiently when she reported sexual harassment.

In an email sent to the AP, McDonalds said it has anti-sexual-harassment policies and training in place, and that we firmly believe that our franchisees share this commitment. The company will also bring in outside experts, including from Seyfarth Shaw at Work and RAINN, to help work on its policies and procedures. But labor lawyer Mary Joyce Carlson, who has been working with the women who filed complaints, argues that there are no signs of any real change.

Through the strike, the organizers are demanding improved procedures for dealing with harassment complaints, required anti-harassment training, and the formation of a national committee focused on sexual harassment. They want leaders of national womens groups, workers, and representatives of the corporation and franchise locations involved.
Kokage by Kajitsu. Photo: Scott Heins

Its tarred with a frat-boy reputation  and deservedly so, as a walk past the Third Avenue bars on any given evening will attest  but Murray Hill has its share of restaurants that do not serve shooters and wings. Were defining the neighborhood here as Madison Avenue to the East River, and 42nd to the north side of 34th Street (and well note that there are quite a few restaurants on 33rd Street, which well cover separately in a Kips Bay list). General notes: Its a good neighborhood for Japanese food but short on Italian, with a lot of decent bars and uneven Chinese takeout (though a couple of good places west of Madison will deliver). If all else fails, theres a Shake Shack at 40th and Third and a Bareburger at 35th and Third. Here, the absolute best restaurants in Murray Hill.

The Absolute Best 1. Kokage by Kajitsu

125 E. 39th St., nr. Lexington Ave.; 212-228-4873 Kokages cod-roe pickle in sake lees, and sun-cured firefly squid. Photo: Scott Heins Gorgeous, austere, tranquil: Kokage and its vegan upstairs sibling Kajitsu are very unMurray Hill places. That said, do not mistake its Japanese minimalism for joyless severity. Kokages menu includes an unusual sushi preparation called saba-zushi, sort of an oversize inside-out roll made with cured thin-sliced mackerel, and a lot of preserved and pickled dishes along those lines. But a number of better-known options (tempura, noodles) fill out the menu, and if you order something simple like a bowl of soba, what comes out is unique, with an astonishing mix of sweet, tart, herbal, and floral notes in the broth. (Were recommending Kokage over its sibling because, no matter how good a vegan restaurant is, youll have a hard time getting some of your protein-eating friends to go there.) The music is better now, too.

2. Sarges Delicatessen & Diner

548 Third Ave., nr. 37th St.; 212-679-0442

Photo: Melissa Hom

One of the last great New York Jewish delis, opened in 1964 and spiffed-up a few years ago after a fire, has stayed a little bit under the radar all its life. Its time to change that because theres a good case to be made that Sarges pastrami is  yes  better than Katzs, better than 2nd Avenues, better than anybodys. (Your palate may differ.) The rest of the traditional menu  the chicken soup, the kreplach  is more than solid, and locals know that the burger is much better than your average diner slider. It is also open 24/7, making it a genuine goddamned treasure.

3. The Shakespeare

24 E. 39th St., nr. Madison Ave.; 646-837-6779

Built in (and retaining the feel of) the old Williams College clubhouse, its actually two restaurants: a burger-and-beer pub below grade and a more elevated menu above. The fancier food upstairs is in the gastropub vein with an English inflection, and the cooking is precise and the quality control high, with a menu that changes each month. If the steelhead trout  which looks uncannily like salmon but is not  is still in season, go for it, and do not discard the crispy skin. The dinner prix fixe is a really good deal for this level of cuisine soignee: $37 for two courses, $42 with dessert.

4. Momosan

342 Lexington Ave., nr. 40th St.; 646-201-5529

Its a noisy noodle bar built more or less on the Momofuku model, with open kitchen and highly tattooed chefs. (This Momo, though, is not David Chang, but Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto.) Its hopping on weeknights, and for good reason: You will not find a better bowl of pork-belly ramen around. Sharp, rich broth; silky, fatty chunk of meat; mild garlic-oil kick  all for $11. Get a beer and youre still out for less than $20. Best cheap meal in the neighborhood.

5. Hakubai

66 Park Ave. S., at 38th St., at the Kitano Hotel; 212-885-7111

Photo: Melissa Hom

Couldnt be more different from Momosan: This is a basement hotel restaurant, with the waitstaff in somewhat costumey kimonos and tasteful neutrals everywhere. It is also formidably expensive. (The kaiseki dinner, omakase-style, is $200 per person, and a beer is $14.) But it is also committed to sushi, and the basic assortment is an amazing mix of texture and bite, fatty toro and lean white fish. Go when youre expensing it.

6. Little Alley

550 Third Ave., near 37th St.; 646-998-3976

Murray Hill had been light on good Chinese takeout for some time. (Billy J, rest in peace.) That changed recently with the arrival of Little Alley, which has a menu that omits the General Tso, the lo mein, and most of the usual neighborhood-takeout staples. Instead, there are things like salted duck eggs with corn, a great marinated-cucumber appetizer, and a house-special fish head with chopped chilies. If seafood-offal is a little too much for you, the way to go is the pork buns, which are not exactly buns, but are instead like a Peking-duck setup (crepes, meat in sweet plum sauce, cucumbers, scallions) with pork substituted for the poultry.

7. Wine:34

127 E. 34th St., nr. Lexington Ave.; 212-213-1700

Photo: Melissa Hom

Its a wine bar, obviously, one whose name is hard to remember no matter how often one sees the sign. (You know, that place down on the corner. 34th and Wine? 34 Wines?) And the menu is a pretty straight-up bistro selection  steak-frites, grilled salmon over red quinoa. But heres whats important: The kitchen is much better than it has to be. The chicken is crisped up really perfectly every time, and the pastas are reliably excellent. One of the best places around where you can eat very late (till 2 a.m. on weekends).

8. Villa Berulia

107 E. 34th St., nr. Park Ave.; 212-689-1970

Photo: Melissa Hom

A restaurant that intends to convey a whiff of the Adriatic is, in fact, a trip to 1981. The waiters are older men in dinner jackets; the linens are white, the walls stucco; the celebrity-visitor photos in the vestibule include Ed Koch and a couple of other dead folks; the zingiest thing on the dessert cart is a lemon tart. Zero innovation has taken place on the menu; in fact, its the opposite of innovative. But the thing is, you order your veal piccata or your shrimp francese or your Dalmatian seafood stew over pasta, and its  really pretty good. (That lemon tart isnt half bad either.) There are so few of these survivors nowadays  and even fewer that havent gone to pot  that dinner at Villa Berulia is a real pleasure.

9. Rare Bar & Grill

303 Lexington Ave., at 37th St., at the Shelburne Hotel; 212-481-1999

Another one that doesnt feel very New Yorky, but who cares when its this tasty? Most people are here for steak and/or burgers, and the kitchen certainly knows how to do that well. But try an out-of-left-field item on the menu: the lobster burger. Grilled rather than fried (so its not quite like a crab cake) and containing nearly a half-pound of lobster meat bound with ground scallops, it is springy and meaty and a pretty solid deal at $23.

10. Teds Corner Tavern

523 Third Ave., at 35th St.; 212-689-2676

This place is at least as much bar as restaurant, and the menu isnt huge. But Ted, or his chef, knows his Greek food, and theres a very good pastitsio (here billed as Aegean lasagna) on the menu, which is made up mostly of small plates and mezedes. Raw oysters during happy hour (or rather happy two hours, because it runs from five to seven) are a buck apiece. If you are here to drink rather than eat, the very large, very varied beer menu is the way to go. On weekends, its open till 4 a.m.

11. Wokuni

327 Lexington Ave., nr. 39th St.; 212-447-1212

It looks slick and annoying, a high-ceilinged, showier version of the restaurant in a Hyatt somewhere. But honestly, the fish itself is what matters at a sushi restaurant, and at Wokuni it is extremely fresh and bright, and it comes out fast, nicely if not super inventively presented, at a middling price. You can spend more and eat less well at many, many sushi restaurants. A good place to bring a big group because nobody will care if you get a little loud.
News

Afghan parents desperately seek missing infant handed to US troops amid chaotic Kabul airlift

Mirza Ali Ahmadi and his wife Suraya found themselves and their five children on Aug. 19 in a chaotic crowd outside the gates of the Kabul airport in Afghanistan when a US soldier, from over the tall fence, asked if they needed help.
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At the meeting, President Widodo spoke highly of Vietnams careful preparations for the WEF ASEAN 2018, which served as a foundation for the success of the event. He added that it is an important event, offering huge opportunities for the development and application of creative industries and digital technology.

The two leaders expressed their delight at the positive development of the Vietnam-Indonesia strategic partnership in the five years since its establishment. They also lauded the signing of an action programme on the implementation of the strategic partnership for the 2019-2023 period, towards celebrating the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the strategic partnership in 2023.

Both leaders affirmed their determination to fully tap the two nations potential in economic cooperation in order to bring bilateral trade to 10 billion USD in 2020 and towards an equal trade balance. President Widodo welcomed Vietnams export of agro-forestry-fishery products, steel, and electronic products to Indonesia.

The two leaders also agreed to devise a suitable mechanism to promptly handle troubles and suggestions from businesses of both sides, creating favourable conditions for bilateral investment.

PM Phuc and President Widodo consented to accelerate negotiations on the demarcation of the exclusive economic zones between the two countries in line with international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982 UNCLOS).

The two sides promised to cooperate closely to limit illegal fishing and affirmed that the issue of arrested fishermen and fishing vessels should be handled in a humanitarian spirit and in accordance with the two countries friendship and international law. On this occasion, President Widodo said Indonesia will return 155 Vietnamese fishermen who are currently being detained in the country.

The two leaders agreed to increase consultations on regional and international issues, coordinate to build a united, self-reliant ASEAN, and enhance ASEANs central role in the regional architecture.

They reiterated their consistent stance on the East Sea issue; ensuring peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation; settlement of disputes through peaceful measures and in line with international law, particularly the 1982 UNCLOS; full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea, and acceleration of negotiations on a practical and effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC).






Haiti - FLASH : Moise convenes Parliament to the extraordinary





Less than 24 hours after the end of the second ordinary session of the legislative year, President Jovenel Moise, convenes for Wednesday, September 12, 2018, all parliamentarians to the extraordinary for the ratification of the General Policy of the Prime Minister named Jean Henry Ceant



In the official journal "Le Moniteur", 173rd year, No. 159, dated Tuesday, September 11, 2018, was issued the message convening to the extraordinary the legislative body for this Wednesday, September 12, 2018.



Text of the convocation :



"Considering the Constitution, in particular its articles 92-1, 92-2, 102, 106 and 107;



Considering that the second ordinary session of Parliament ends on the second Monday of September;



Considering the urgency of the ratification of the Prime Minister's General Policy Statement;



The Legislative Body is convened to the extraordinary on Wednesday, September 12, 2018.



This special session will be devoted to the ratification of the Prime Minister's General Policy Statement;



This session will last until exhaustion of the subject of this convocation.



Made at the National Palace, in Port-au-Prince,



September 11, 2018, Year 215 of Independence.



Jovenel Moise."



HL/ HaitiLibre
























Haiti - Security : Departure of General Monchotte, the PNH loses a very important collaborator





Monday evening was held the ceremony of medal and departure of the French Commander of the UN police component, Brigadier General Georges-Pierre Monchotte, Special Representative of the Secretary of the United Nations and Officer in Charge (OIC) for Minujusth. The Director General of the National Police of Haiti (PNH) who attended this ceremony by invitation, intervened with great emotion.



Extract from the speech Michel-Ange Gedeon :



"My dear friends,



This is not a light heart that I will speak tonight, but rather with a pouting face and a crying soul. Indeed, it is not always easy to separate from someone with whom one has good work habits.



General Monchotte will leave. He will leave behind a saddned and melancholic PNH. Indeed, ladies and gentlemen General Monchotte has played his role well by my side. It is not an exaggeration to say that he was the man of the moment. I share with him many of my successes at the head of the police institution.



We understood each other half-heartedly and he took up the problems that we often had to deal with. God alone knows how much he has lavished salutary guidance on me to go out sometimes of a dead end. He gave me the impression of always being on guard to defend the achievements of the institution. He was an indefatigable man who often enkindled me with courage and determination.



He embraced the causes of the PNH arm-in-arm. Together, we have had success in managing a number of issues, including the Accompaniment and Advisory Program, the PAC. He threw himself body and soul into the arena to model behaviors, observe, supervise, control the devices put in place. Today, we are unanimous in recognizing that this program is enjoying tremendous success [...]"



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Education : Latest measures adopted by the Ministry on the renovated Secondary





Tuesday at a press conference, Meniol Jeune, the Director General of the Ministry of National Education, accompanied by the Director of Secondary Education Maxime Mesilas and Jackson Pleteau the Chief of Staff of Minister Pierre Josue Agenor Cadet, provided details on the latest measures adopted by the Ministry around the implementation of the renovated Secondary



Meniol Jeune recalls the latest measures taken by the Ministry concerning the implementation of the Renovated Secondary School, particularly with regard to the subjects anticipated in Secondary III and those required for the final exams (Secondary IV) https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-25461-haiti-flash-secondary-renovated-early-exams-new-provisions.html Recalling that schools that are still slow to re-enter the ranks and do not yet follow the implementation of the New Secondary's generalized programs since 2014, have a two-year deadline to comply with the principles and regulations of the renovated Secondary School.



In his speech, Maxime Mesilas, Director of Secondary Education, said that computer science and citizenship education were among the subjects that will be evaluated only in schools. He also recalled that actions of the Department of Secondary Education (DES) to raise awareness of all stakeholders, especially inspectors and teachers, on all aspects of the renovated Secondary have already occurred in several school districts and will continue. Adding that the DES had also made provision for the provision of educational programs and modules for the 4 years of the Secondary renovated.



For his part, Jackson Pleteau emphasized the efforts undertaken by the Ministry to support all stakeholders in the process of setting up the renovated secondary school, indicating that several teachers for new subjects have been appointed for all the high schools of the Republic, inviting the directors of institutions to obtain the tools of the renovated Secondary, in particular the programs and modules with the DES, available in digital or paper format, or on the Ministry website.



See also :

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-25463-icihaiti-education-500-teachers-gathered-around-the-implementation-of-the-renovated-secondary.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-25461-haiti-flash-secondary-renovated-early-exams-new-provisions.html

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-25447-icihaiti-education-monitoring-the-implementation-of-the-renovated-secondary.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-23712-haiti-education-changes-envisaged-in-the-new-secondary.html



HL/ HaitiLibre




















At a meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo in Hanoi on September 12, Ngan suggested the parliaments of Vietnam and Indonesia coordinate closely in supervising and accelerating the implementation of agreements signed between the two nations, and actively build and promulgate legal documents to create favourable and stable legal foundations for bilateral cooperation.

The NA Chairwoman recalled the good outcomes reached during the Vietnam visit by the Chairman of the Peoples Consultative Assembly of Indonesia in 2014 and the trip by the Speaker of the Regional Representative Council to attend the 26th annual Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF-26) in Hanoi in January 2018.

The two leaders expressed their pleasure at the fruitful development of relations between the Vietnamese and Indonesian parliaments both bilaterally and multilaterally. They agreed to continue maintaining the exchange of visits by leaders of the parliaments and its committees in a bid to enhance political ties and mutual understanding.

Ngan warmly welcomed Widodos first state visit to Vietnam, believing that it would make an important contribution to strengthening and further promoting the traditional friendship and strategic partnership between the two countries.

Widodo thanked leaders and people of Vietnam for their sympathy with the Indonesian people over huge losses caused by a series of recent earthquakes.

Both leaders held that the establishment of the strategic partnership in 2013 opened up a new, more comprehensive, reliable and profound chapter in bilateral relations. They agreed to further promote cultural and sport exchange activities, cooperation among localities and tourism cooperation to enhance peoples understanding and awareness about Vietnam-Indonesia ties, towards the 10th founding anniversary of the strategic partnership in 2023.

Widodo promised to urge the Peoples Representative Council to soon establish an Indonesia-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentarians Group, thus creating another bridge for cooperative activities between the two parliaments. The Regional Representative Council of Indonesia will consider signing a cooperative agreement with the Vietnamese NA similar to that with the Peoples Representative Council, he said.

Discussing regional and international issues of mutual concern, the two leaders agreed to continue coordinating together, especially at multilateral parliamentary forums, and further promote the ASEANs centrality in regional matters, including the East Sean issue, helping to create a peaceful, stable and cooperative environment in the region.
The hi-tech lab, which is designed to be contained in a Kamaz van, can detect 78 kinds of virus and identify factors which cause the most dangerous diseases such as plague, smallpox, and Ebola.

It is scheduled to be transported to Vietnam in late November of this year on the 30th founding anniversary of the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Centre.

According to Rospotrebnadzor, the lab will help to supervise natural epidemic hotbeds in Vietnam as it meets the requirements for biological safety by using advanced monitoring and detection technologies.

Currently, Vietnamese and Russian experts at the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Centre are working together to prevent infectious diseases, helping to ensure food safety, while implementing scientific research in epidemiology, parasitology, and many other areas.

In 2014, a similar lab was successfully put into operation in Guinea, allowing the conduct of a series of research trips amid extreme weather in remote areas of the country.
The municipal Department of Tourism said on September 11 the city welcomed an estimated nearly 20 million tourist arrivals in the first nine months of this year, or a year-on-year rise of 9.2%. Of the total, foreign visitors are estimated at 4.3 million, up 20% year-on-year, and accounting for nearly 40% of the total number of foreign tourists to Vietnam.

Foreign tourists to Hanoi come from nearly 190 nations and territories, with China, the Republic of Korea and Japan continuing to top the list.

Tourist attractions in the capital city include the Thang Long Imperial Citadel, the Huong Son relic site, the Temple of Literature and the Culture-Tourism Village of Vietnamese Ethnic Groups.

Director of the municipal Department of Tourism Tran Duc Hai said the city has upgraded infrastructure and diversified tourism products to better serve tourists.

Recently, the Department debuted a new bilingual portal where tourists can find all the information they need for a trip to the Vietnamese capital.

The site http://tourism.hanoi.gov.vn offers tourism information and services in Vietnamese and English and helps connect users with accredited service providers.

The move is part of the departments efforts to build Hanoi into a safe, friendly and civilised tourist destination.

Earlier, a US$2 million deal between Hanoi and the US television network CNN from 2017-2018 has spurred international tourist arrivals to the capital city. TV commercials aired by CNN have been introducing the best of the 1,000-year-old capital to people around the world since early 2017.

In 2017, international tourist arrivals to the city were estimated at 4.95 million, up 23% on year and 15% higher than its yearly target. The number included 3.53 million accommodated visitors, an annual increase of 22%.

Hanoi welcomed an estimated nearly 20 million tourist arrivals in the first nine months of this year.



This year, Hanoi aims to welcome more than 25.4 million tourists, including 5.5 million foreigners.

The city has also received high rankings and wide coverage by overseas travel firms and magazines. The online marketplace and hospitality service Airbnb named the Vietnamese capital city among the worlds top 10 intriguing travel destinations in 2018. Hanoi was also listed among the worlds top 13 destinations for international travellers in March based on a poll by readers of the US-based Business Insider magazine.

Hanois Old Quarter is a good place for visitors to spend time roaming around, experiencing open-air eateries and hearing the noise of whizzing motorbikes, Business Insider said. Hoan Kiem Lake in the citys centre provides a peaceful respite from the frenzy, as do numerous Buddhist temples and pagodas, it added.

Last month, the UKs weekly magazine Hello named Hanoi among seven best backpacking destinations in Asia.

Ideal for travellers on a tight budget, Vietnam's capital city is one of the cheapest destinations for backpackers, the magazine said.

Not only is accommodation and food remarkably affordable, but youll be spoiled for choice of things to see and do in the city, which has a mix of Southeast Asian, Chinese and French influences, the magazine wrote.

Apart from the many popular places like Hoan Kiem Lake, Hai Ba Trung Temple and Hoa Lo Prison Museum, the magazine highlights a special attraction  bia hoi (local draft beer). It notes that backpackers often spend their evenings gathered at bia hoi bars across Hanoi, where youll find the cheapest beer in the world at around 25p a glass.
From Ed Sheeran, Sean Paul and Chronixx,

to Forthcoming Album feat Snoop Dogg and Missy Elliott, All Roads Lead to Jamaica

From an impressive four weeks at #1 on the Billboard charts, to twenty weeks and counting on said charts, "Tropical House Cruises to Jamaica" embodies the spirit of what Jamaica has musically offered the word's mainstream inspiration. The album, a fusion of Jamaica's organic roots features such stars of the genre as multi-GRAMMY winners Damian Marley, Stephen Marley, Mojo Morgan (Morgan Heritage) and Sean Paul, to Ed Sheeran and Wycleff.The 15-track album hosted by The DJ Grid was the brainchild of Sean "Kontractor"Edwards whose aim was to bring an all-star cast uniting reggae/dancehall and pop music under the tag 'tropical house' that has been used in recent years to identify pop hits influenced by Jamaican reggae/dancehall stars (Justin Biebers Sorry and Ed Sheerans Shape of You, among others)"On one of my yearly UK trip I had the chance to meet, develop a friendship and subsequently get into music business with Jethro Sheeran, first cousin of Ed Sheeran. Ed having been influenced with the sounds of my island just seemed serendipitous for what I was trying to do" explained executive Producer Sean Contractor Edwards.Ive always been influenced by Caribbean music. The first set I ever did was a medley of reggae and hip-hop, Jethro wrote the raps and a reggae band from Bristol (England) called Laid Blak had a song called 'My Eyes Are Red,' which I incorporated in the medley. - Ed Sheeran for Bilboard.The hit filled compilation includes such hits as Sean Paul Regular Thing,, VH1 Love and Hip Hop star Safaree (Samuels) featuring Sean Kingston Paradise; Swiss reggae artist Cookie The Herbalist and the legendary Lee Scratch Perry Eaze, Rollie Fresh and Chronixx Good Life,, Reggae star Sizzla and Tony D Rise Up, Mojo Morgan featuring Damian and Stephen Marley and Wyclef Jean."Jamaican music has always been an influence to the world and it is more so visible now-a-days at anytime on television, commercials and the airwaves. There is no denying or stopping it's prominence I guess the saying "If you can't beat them, join them" holds some truth. We are actively working on two more albums. One is Hip Hop cruises to Jamaica which is a straight hip hop album which will feature Tupac, Snoop Dogg, Missy Elliott, Flo-Rida and many more. The other album we are coming out with is called tropical house cruises to Jamaica deluxe edition and this is another reggae album" - Sean Contractor Edwards."Tropical House Cruises to Jamaica" was digitally released by Jamaica based Contractor Music Group and distributed by Atlanta-based Amada Records under the EAE Management Group.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin attend a roundtable meeting on regional cooperation between the two countries on the sidelines of the fourth Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia, Sept. 11, 2018. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Tuesday called for promoting sub-national cooperation to cement bilateral relations and benefit the two peoples.

The two heads of state made the remarks while attending a roundtable meeting on regional cooperation between the two countries on the sidelines of the fourth Eastern Economic Forum (EEF), which is running from Tuesday to Thursday in Vladivostok in Russia's Far East.

Noting that China and Russia are each other's biggest neighboring country and most important comprehensive strategic partner of coordination with extensive common interests, Xi said it is conducive to jointly addressing external risks and challenges and boosting common development and revitalization for the two sides to strengthen cooperation and deepen the integration of their interests.

Sub-national cooperation plays an important part in bilateral relations, and cooperation plans between the two countries should rely on their local regions, be implemented in local regions and benefit local regions, Xi said, stressing that the r the sub-national cooperation is, the more solid the foundation of the China-Russia mutually beneficial cooperation will become.

For future cooperation at sub-national levels, the Chinese president proposed that local governments should strengthen overall planning and coordination, optimize policies, forge more partnerships, and create a better business environment and more convenient conditions for the companies of the two countries to invest in each other's regions.

He called for innovating the ideas for cooperation, expanding the areas for cooperation, better using the platforms and mechanisms for cooperation, and exploring new ways to advance regional cooperation.

Xi also asked local governments to give full play to their complementary advantages and their distinctive sectors, push for more precise ways of cooperation, and create highlights in cooperation.

In addition, he called for increasing people-to-people and cultural exchanges, cementing the mainstream public opinion and social foundation for cooperation, and promoting institutionalized and regular exchanges in culture, tourism, education and media at sub-national levels.

Xi said that it is the right time for the two countries to strengthen regional cooperation as he and Putin had agreed to designate 2018 and 2019 as the years of China-Russia local cooperation and exchange.

The governments of the two countries will support their local regions in making the pie of cooperation bigger and sharing the fruits of cooperation, Xi said, while expressing the hope that the representatives of Chinese and Russian regional governments at the roundtable can grasp the opportunity to usher in a new era in China-Russia sub-national cooperation and contribute more to bilateral relations.

Pointing out that sub-national cooperation is an important part of the Russia-China comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination, Putin said he is delighted that the local regions of the two countries have carried out economic and trade cooperation as well as people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

The Russian government welcomes Chinese businesses to invest in the country and is willing to continue to offer favorable conditions to strengthen sub-national cooperation between the two countries, he said.

Under new circumstances, Russia and China should improve connectivity, promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, deepen friendship between the two peoples, and push for more results from sub-national cooperation that can benefit the two peoples, Putin said.

The heads of nine Chinese provincial-level regions and 13 Russian federal subjects took part in the roundtable meeting.

Xi arrived in the port city of Vladivostok on Tuesday to attend the EEF. He will address the plenary session, the main event of the forum, on Wednesday.

The EEF was launched in 2015 on the personal initiative of Putin. Xi's attendance will be the first by a Chinese head of state at the forum.

After attending the roundtable meeting, the two heads of state visited "The Far East Street" exhibition showcasing the rich local cultural exchanges between the two countries and investment opportunities in Russia's Far East regions.
Polarization turned bloody as politicians fought over slavery

Todays polarization in Congress has nothing on its antebellum antecedent. In her new book, The Field of Blood: Violence in Congress and the Road to Civil War, Yale historian Joanne B. Freeman documents dozens of literal brawls involving congressmen and senators as the conflict over slavery reached a boil.

Members of Congress now insult each other regularly, but they dont often fight. Before the Civil War, however, insults could lead to fisticuffs, and drawn knives and pistols. Why the difference? America was different, Washington was different, and Congress was different. Violence was

taken for granted in life and in politics, and Congress reflected the country. The atmosphere in the Capitol made matters worse; the building was hot, airless, and smelly, and representatives were sometimes drunk and often armed. Add the simmering problem of slavery, and you have a recipe for violence. Between 1830 and 1860 there were at least 70 physically violent incidents involving congressmen or senators, including one death by duel in 1838. Most of these fights, as well as countless near-misses, have been long lost to the historical record.

What caused this? At first, violence mainly centered on party politics, but slavery eventually fanned the flames. Southern congressmen saw opposition to slavery as an affront

to their personal and sectional honor, as well as a threat to their regions economy. They responded as slaveholders were wont to do, using insults and threats to bully opponents. Northernersalready at a numerical disadvantage because of the Three-Fifths Compromisewere also at a cultural disadvantage; many of them considered man-to-man violence in Congress ungentlemanly and condemned dueling as barbaric.

How did Southern bullying resonate? At times, Southerners intimidated noncomba-

tants into compliance or silenceeven in committee meetings, which were closed to the press and public. Southerners sometimes forced Northern committee members to go along with official reports that gave the South some advantage. Intimidation also shaped debate on the House and Senate floors, where some Northerners opted to remain silent rather than risk being challenged to fight and called out as cowards if they refused.

You chronicle congressional violence in the prewar decades through an insiders eyes. What makes House of Representatives clerk Benjamin Brown French a useful guide? One of my goals in writing The Field of Blood was to use feelings and emotions to offer new insights into the growing distrust between Northerners and Southerners that tore the nation apart. Benjamin Brown French was an ideal anchor for telling this story. As a House clerk and later the House clerk, French was constantly on the floor or at the speakers desk, copying and organizing records, tabulating votes and adjudicating points of order. He was always there, always watching, and over the course of the book he undergoes an amazing transformation. He starts out as a doughface, a term for a Northern Democrat who appeases Southerners on slavery to preserve the Union and promote his party. Liked by Whigs and Democrats, French gradually gravitates to the antislavery Republican Party and arms himself in self-defense, prepared to shoot Southerners if need be. Seeing the period through Frenchs eyes let me get at the emotional underpinnings of the story of the coming of the Civil War, and the reality of seeing ones nation torn in two.

Southerners aggressive behavior backfired. Congressional debate over slavery became more heated and violent as westward expansion brought new states whose slavery status had to be determined. Beginning in the late 1840s, the telegraph and an increasingly independent press spread news of that violence throughout the nation with ever-increasing speed and reach. Northerners realized their representative rights in Congress were being trampled by a Slave Power that suppressed debate over slavery. For many, that sense of powerlessness had a more immediate impact than their feelings about slavery itself. They refused to be bullied any longer.

In 1856, on the Senate floor, South Carolina Representative Preston Brooks caned Massachusetts Senator Charles Sumner. On May 19-20, 1856, Sumner, a Northern abolitionist, made an incendiary antislavery speech. Brooks took Sumners remarks as insults to his state, his section, and a relative of his, South Carolina Senator Andrew Butler. On May 22, the outraged Brooks confronted Sumner at his Senate desk. Instead of challenging Sumner to a duel like a gentleman, Brooks beat him over the head until his cane shattered. It would be three years before Sumner returned to the Senate. Thanks to the telegraph, within hours people around the country learned of the attack, which had an intense emotional impact. After years of bullying and a spate of physical assaults by Southerners in Washington, Sumners beating outraged Northerners, inspiring some to urge their congressmen to fight.

Talk about three Northern senators pact to fight to the coffin. In 1858, antislavery Republican Senators Benjamin Wade of Ohio, Zachariah Chandler of Michigan, and Simon Cameron of Pennsylvania had had enough of Southern bullying. Outraged by insults and talk of crushing the Republican Party, the men signed a pact swearing to challenge Southern offenders to duels, and fight to the coffin. This was riskynot only physically, but because their constituents disapproved of dueling. The alternativedepriving their constituents of their full representative rightswas unendurable. I discovered this pact in a statement that they made, addressed to posterity, explaining their cause and their fight. Reading of their humiliation, their outrage, and their commitment to their principles brought tears to my eyes. Their powerful statement of purpose seemed to speak to me.

These days most politicians dont carry weapons in Congress, but civility is in short supply. Will things get worse? There are indeed some similarities between the 1850s and the present. Our extreme polarization, splintering political parties, and the prevailing distrust in national institutions echoes the past in many ways. But I wouldnt presume to predict the future. I would hope that our constitutional system of government would do what its supposed to do, and channel national divisions, rather than enflame them.
Want the best results out of your employees? Then be nice to them.

New research from Binghamton University, State University at New York finds that showing compassion to subordinates almost always pays off, especially when combined with the enforcement of clear goals and benchmarks.

"Being benevolent is important because it can change the perception your followers have of you," said Chou-Yu Tsai, an assistant professor of management at Binghamton University's School of Management. "If you feel that your leader or boss actually cares about you, you may feel more serious about the work you do for them."

Tsai and his fellow researchers wanted to determine how both the presence and lack of benevolence affects the job performance of followers.

Tsai partnered with Binghamton University colleagues Shelley Dionne, professor and associate dean of the School of Management, and Francis Yammarino, distinguished professor, as well as An-Chih Wang of China Europe International Business School, Seth Spain of Concordia University, Hsiao-Chi Ling of Kainan University, Min-Ping Huang of Yuan Ze University, Li-Fang Chou of National Cheng Kung University and Bor-Shiuan Cheng of National Taiwan University for the research.

They surveyed nearly 1,000 members of the Taiwanese military and almost 200 adults working full-time in the United States, and looked at the subordinate performance that resulted from three different leadership styles:

-Authoritarianism-dominant leadership: Leaders who assert absolute authority and control, focused mostly on completing tasks at all costs with little consideration of the well-being of subordinates.

-Benevolence-dominant leadership: Leaders whose primary concern is the personal or familial well-being of subordinates. These leaders want followers to feel supported and have strong social ties.

-Classical paternalistic leadership: A leadership style that combines both authoritarianism and benevolence, with a strong focus on both task completion and the well-being of subordinates.

The researchers found that authoritarianism-dominant leadership almost always had negative results on job performance, while benevolence-dominant leadership almost always had a positive impact on job performance. In other words, showing no compassion to your employees doesn't bode well for their job performance, while showing compassion motivated them to be better workers.

They also found that classical paternalistic leadership, which combines both benevolence and authoritarianism, had just as strong an effect on subordinate performance as benevolent-dominant leadership. Tsai said the reason for this phenomenon may extend all the way back to childhood.

"The parent and child relationship is the first leader-follower relationship that people experience. It can become a bit of a prototype of what we expect out of leadership going forward, and the paternalistic leadership style kind of resembles that of a parent," Tsai said.

"The findings imply that showing personal and familial support for employees is a critical part of the leader-follower relationship. While the importance of establishing structure and setting expectations is important for leaders, and arguably parents, help and guidance from the leader in developing social ties and support networks for a follower can be a powerful factor in their job performance," Dionne said.

Because of the difference in work cultures between U.S. employees and members of the Taiwanese military, researchers were surprised that the results were consistent across both groups.

"The consistency in the results across different cultures and different job types is fascinating. It suggests that the effectiveness of paternalistic leadership may be more broad-based than previously thought, and it may be all about how people respond to leaders and not about where they live or the type of work they do," Yammarino said.

Tsai said his main takeaway for managers is to put just as much or even more of an emphasis on the well-being of your employees as you do on hitting targets and goals.

"Subordinates and employees are not tools or machines that you can just use. They are human beings and deserve to be treated with respect," said Tsai. "Make sure you are focusing on their well-being and helping them find the support they need, while also being clear about what your expectations and priorities are. This is a work-based version of 'tough love' often seen in parent-child relationships."

Source: Press Release
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GENEVA, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- China asks for the authorization from the World Trade Organization (WTO) to impose an annual trade sanction of 7 billion U.S. dollars on U.S. goods, as a result of the failure of the United States to comply with a WTO's ruling, according to documents published on Tuesday by the WTO.

A document circulated to all WTO members said China requests authorization from WTO's Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) to "suspend concessions or other obligations" with respect to the U.S. "at a level equivalent to the nullification or impairment suffered", due to the failure of the U.S. to comply with the recommendations and rulings of the DSB.

The level of nullification or impairment totals approximately 7.043 billion USD annually, added the document.

China won a WTO ruling in 2016 in a dispute on certain methodologies applied by the U.S. during its anti-dumping proceedings. The ruling was later confirmed by an appeal last year. However, China considers that "no substantive effort and progress has been made" by the U.S. to fulfill its implementation obligation.
North Adams Council OKs Armory Funds, Refers Board Stipend



The council approved extra funding to complete repairs to the stonework on the Porter Street side of the Armory. NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  The City Council on Tuesday approved funds to complete exterior work on the Armory with little discussion but sent the issue of a stipend for the Retirement Board to the Finance Committee after nearly a half-hour of debate.

The $90,000 to repair the stone stairs on the Porter Street side of the Armory was reappropriated from $176,600 approved last year for inspections of the dams at the Mount Williams and Notch reservoirs. Those total funds are being replaced by grant from the state Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs for the engineering study.

The Porter Street was an add-on to the request for proposals for repairs to the stonework on the parapets and the stairs on the Ashland Street side. That work had been done nearly a decade ago began falling apart after the short-term guarantee expired.

Some $254,250 from the fiscal 2017 Community Development Block Grant is being used for this final phase of work. The low bid came in at about $322,000, with another $98,000 for the Porter Street add-on. Mayor Thomas Bernard said afterward that there was enough unexpended funds from prior grants to fund all but the $90,000 being requested.

"It will do everything but the lower garage level but everything from the first floor up will be completed," the mayor said.

The building has been under renovation for at least a decade, largely through CDBG funds, and has included renovating the interior, which now houses two alternative schools, the gymnasium, parking, an elevator and other improvements. Only the garage level has not been renovated.

In answer to questions, the mayor said the inspection of the dams is underway but he couldn't speak to whether the funds being reappropriated might be used for any dam repairs.

The council voted 8-1 to authorize the funds with Councilor Wayne Wilkinson voting nay. Afterward, Wilkinson said he was not opposed to renovating but felt his vote was a statement that it was "time to stop spending money on it."

Councilor Marie T. Harpin had brought forward a request to provide stipends to the members of the Retirement Board.

The board, through its Administrator Beth A. Matson, is asking that the council adopt Massachusetts General Law Chapter 32 that allows the Retirement Board to set a stipend of no less than $3,000 and no more than $4,500 annually for each of its three members.

The council has asked the retirement system to poll its members on how they felt about the stipend. An anonymous survey was done over five weeks with a 46 percent response rate of which 83 percent indicated they were in favor of the providing the stipends. The survey results were released at the board's August board meeting.

Although it had been indicated the stipend would be paid out of the investment revenue under the board's control and not from city coffers, the councilors were confused by some of the answers they were getting. There were concerns it would affect the city budget through the annual appropriation to the retirement system.

"They're doing mostly volunteer work but I was for this because it didn't cost the city any money and they polled the members who were in favor," said Wilkinson, chairman of the Finance Committee. "I was told tonight that this does affect the city budget."

He asked the mayor his opinion and Bernard responded that he was agnostic on the matter.

Councilor Eric Buddington also reiterated his concern about providing stipends for one board and not for the other many boards and commissions.

Councilor Benjamin Lamb said it seemed that the funds would be coming out of the investments made by the Retirement Board  but also would become part of the budgetary appropriation. Yet the board would be the body that would be voting on its own stipend.

"That feels odd that we have to vote on other budgetary items ... and we would not be approving this," he said.

Harpin objected that there had been no trickery and the process had been completely transparent.

"This is not directly hitting the city of North Adams' budget," she said. "There is an appropriation that hits the city budget determined by the board ... [the stipend] is not going to change the budget, it's being appropriated in the portfolio."

Matson also tried to explain but Councilor Jason LaForest said she'd answered one question and raised more in his mind, and expressed his concern about the size of the city's future retirement and post-employment benefits.

"I'm not opposed completely I just have further questions," he said. "I realize $15,000 is not related but I would like clear answers to the questions that are on the table and I think that's in the best interest of everyone."

The council voted to refer to the Finance Committee and Harpin said she would contact the retirement system's actuary to see if he could attend and answer questions. Wilkinson said he would like it to get it back to the council in two weeks.

"This has been an issue that's been hanging here too long and it's time to get it taken care of," he said.

In other business, the mayor made proclamations on September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month with Kathy and Joseph Arabia and on supporting Start with Hello Week in the public schools with Superintendent Barbara Malkas, part of the Sandy Hook Promise to encourage connections and prevent bullying.

The council also approved Joel Cross of North Adams and Korey Baskin of Readsboro, Vt., to drive for RJ Taxi.
John Kennedy, a United States senator from the state of Louisiana, has called for barite to be omitted from the proposed 25% tariff on Chinse mineral imports.

The Republican Party senator warned that an...
Home Search ICH I Prowled The Front Lines In Idlib, But Found No Massed Syrian Army



After warnings of mass murder and catastrophe in Idlib, I prowled the front lines for two days. I didn't find what I'd expected.



By Robert Fisk



September 12, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - The only massed forces I came across were vast herds of sheep and, close to Aleppo, a string of camels. War might be coming, but not yet Every journalist would like to start a report with the words: All quiet on the western front. Or the eastern front. And I had actually scribbled all quiet on the northern front in my notebook, on my rural way to the far northern village of Kansabba on Syrias front line opposite Idlib province, when an artillery piece in the forest banged off a shell over our heads. It took 25 seconds for the sound of the explosion  on the hills to the north-east  to echo softly back to us through the trees. Then a second round. And a third. A few Syrian soldiers on motorcycles purred along the road. Front lines are like this. Sunlight, lots of clouds, a winding country lane way, an explosion and then a herd of sheep drift out of a field at the bidding of a cowled shepherd. So goodbye to the all quiet bit. But heres the problem. Syria makes no secret that it has amassed 100,000 troops around Idlib province for the last battle against its Islamist enemies; give or take any who can be persuaded to reconcile with the Syrian government via the Russians, go home  Tajikistan, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Chechnya, you name it  or surrender. And as we all know, a lot of the jihadis in the Idlib terrorist dustbin  the Russians and Syrians use terrorism now with all the alacrity that George W Bush deployed after he invaded Iraq  preferred to battle on in Idlib after leaving the big cities of Syria. Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter Then there are the experts in the West who tell us that there are 30,000 fighters in Idlib. I suspect closer to 10,000. Civilians, we are informed, compose between 2,500,000 and three million of the souls in Idlib; half a million of them, in other words, may or may not be there. The civilians trapped in eastern Aleppo turned out to be a gross exaggeration once the siege ended in 2016. But maybe the higher figure in Idlib is the right one. And how do we know that 100,000 Syrian soldiers is the correct statistic? But if so, it is the largest massing of Syrian troops since the start of the war. Thus Trumpian-UN-Merkel-Erdogan warnings of humanitarian catastrophe, mass murder, chemical attack and Armageddon had me prowling along Syrian front line roads for all of two days; yet the huge Syrian invading force remained oddly elusive. I travelled from the Turkish frontier at Kassab, through Rabia and Kansabba and behind Jourine and then up the Syrian military supply route from Hama to Abu Adh Duhour and through villages unheard of outside Syria  Omalhouteh, Tel Maseh, Ewanat Skieh, Bardah, Kafr Abeed, Blass, Alhadein  and the massed Syrian army was nowhere to be seen. Was this really the start of the last battle, I kept asking myself? Amid a sylvan grove east of Kassab, I suddenly came across 200 Syrian troops, steel helmets, arms at attention, on parade  their commander sent a motorcycled soldier after us to ask why we were taking photographs  for this was, to be sure, a good Boys Own Paper picture for The Independent. Readers, please note my colleagues snatched snapshot with this dispatch. But there were no armoured vehicles, no Iranians, no Hezbollah, no Russians, no convoys of field artillery  though I had seen the photos of the Syrian convoys a couple of weeks ago  and the only massed forces I came across were vast herds of sheep and, close to Aleppo, a string of camels. Not a single soldier was carrying a gas mask. Which would surely be a sure sign of an imminent chemical attack anywhere on the front, whoever was dropping the stuff. Now this doesnt mean the invading army wasnt there. Perhaps far behind the front lines or far above Aleppo, waiting in faraway fields for zero hour, they may be passing their time. The Syrians have loudly announced their intention of crushing the last Islamist bastion in Idlib  and I can confirm that Syrian jets took off from the Hama air base on Saturday morning at around 8.30 because I could hear their roar a mile away over breakfast  but I saw no smoke clouds drifting down from Jisr al-Chougour or east of Idlib a couple of hours later as I watched from that all-too-smashed security-supply route up to Aleppo. A lone, low-flying Russian-made Syrian helicopter came thudding over the desert near Abu Adh Dahour, whose own air base was recaptured by Syrian troops last year. Just one. So heres what I did find on my 300-mile tour around the frontier of Idlib. At the old Kassab border crossing, the Turks are still building a massive concrete wall along the Syrian frontier, topped with barbed wire and arc lights below a cloud-shrouded mountain on which stood, just visible, a range of reconnaissance aerials. From there, a Syrian captain told me, Nato watched Syria and could probably listen to Syrian communications  although the Syrians could apparently not listen to Nato. I climbed the staircase of a broken house, its former Nusrah Islamist forces graffiti painted out on the internal walls  and stared across the Turkish border. There was even a bust of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk on the Turkish side of the frontier station. The Independents Robert Fisk looks towards Nusrah positions from a Syrian army post on the edge of Idlib province (Nelofer Pazira) Then a sense of deja vu. A group of Syrian security agents walked sullenly towards us to ask the Syrian army what we were doing. There was an altercation  an instructive moment  between the two Syrian forces before we moved away. Interesting. But exactly two years ago, the same Syrian army had been confronted by the same security men at the same spot asking the same question about my presence. Not a bad repeat performance. And when I drove further east, those guns began firing across the forest, yet  again, exactly two years ago, at this very spot  the Syrian artillery  quite probably the very same guns  had lobbed off shells over our heads at the same distant Nusrah-held hillsides. Plus ca change, I suppose. And then, near Kansafet, I climbed the crumbling steps of a shell-scarred villa where the Syrian front line troops manned sand bags above a smashed mosque and a smashed church and a bullet whacked past us from the Nusrah snipers above. When I suggested to an obliging Syrian officer that I thought there might be no great offensive  just a slow gnawing away at the boundaries of Idlibs mini-caliphate while reconciliation talks dragged on between the Syrians and the Russians and the Turks and the armed groups and, hopefully, the tens of thousands of civilians trapped there  the soldier nodded and told me I was 50 per cent correct. It was an eerie journey. A vast empty motorway  its blue Aleppo, Lattakia and Damascus road signs proving it to be the old international M4 highway cut off by the Idlib fighters; a towering railway viaduct captured by the Syrian army; and a massive but still incomplete concrete river dam whose equipment, so the Syrians say, was stripped by Nusrah and sold to the Turks. And thousands and thousands  and thousands more  abandoned, crushed houses and cattle sheds and huts destroyed over the past three years of fighting. Nusrah had tried to bring down a motorway bridge, but their charges  exploded long ago  appeared to have blasted downwards rather than upwards, and the structure still stood. It was around this time that I realised the purpose of the Syrian armys presence in this sector. Not, I suspect, for an offensive against Idlib, rather to fight off opposition fighters if they were under air bombardment and tried to escape west and cross the walled Turkish border. If there is to be a last battle, Syrias armed enemies are not supposed to slip away this time  unless, of course, the Russians and the Iranians and the Turks  basking in the aftermath of the only slightly successful Tehran talks last week  can still work out a peaceful settlement. So this was no launching pad for an attack against Idlib. This place is so full of mountains, valleys, hills and rocks, it would need six divisions to fight here and weve only got one, a Syrian officer vouchsafed. In any case, I asked myself, how can you start an attack with massed tanks through a forest? And you can forget historical memories of the Ardennes. These forested hills are far more difficult to cross, let alone plunge down  in the style of Byrons Assyrians  like the wolf on the fold. On the further mountains, a clutch of elderly T-62 tanks of Warsaw Pact vintage nestled beside the road amid 80mph winds. The military road east of Idlib province, cratered and lined with the same shattered villages, was marked only by the now familiar red, white and black flagged Syrian checkpoints and flanked by vast basins of desert. Save for the lone helicopter, there was no sign of imminent catastrophe for the people or the defenders of Idlib. The sand appeared to be that cliche of all war reports  a deserted desert  and the horizon was 15 miles away. Could Syrias legions be out there in the shimmering heat, waiting to strike? Quite possibly, but I thought I should have spotted some of them. Out of Aleppo, six heavy duty supply trucks, new imports from Russia, ground up a hill. They were all empty. The villages along this tour of the front lines were as miserable as they were depressing. Largely abandoned, several, on the last stage of the journey, still boasted the remains of Nusrahs illicit oil pumps  a mass of broken ironwork with black stains around them  but a few stores had reopened, closer to Aleppo. But who would want to return here when the last successful Syrian offensive in Deraa had ended with a mysterious Isis incursion in which scores of Druze civilians were slaughtered? Well, I took a return journey down the supply route. Forty soldiers in a corrugated iron shed coffee shop, five helicopters  one reconnaissance  hovering around the recaptured airbase  a longstanding radar position  and four covered non-military trucks. Not much evidence of Operation Dawn of Idlib as the Syrian army are now officially calling it. Well, you cant have a war without a war. However true or illusory the reports are of heavy air raids in Idlib  and it remains a fact that not a single Western journalist reporting them is, so far we know, in Idlib itself  it would be ridiculous to suggest that the Russians and Syrians are not bombing the province and its cities. They are. Touring the front on military roads, as I have just done on the Syrian side of the line, does not mean that I can see every valley and wadi or spread of desert. It is a fact that there are several Russian observation posts here  but I did not see them. And one Turkish post, installed under the Russian de-escalation agreement, which I could not find. My guess is that the last battle is still a while away. It must happen, surely. The Syrian government has said repeatedly that it will not permit its enemies to stay in a province of 6,097 square kilometres  warning, even THAT statistic might be a trifle too high!  but Syria does not want to go to war with Turkey. Will the Turks, who allowed so many of these men into Syria, survey the future battlefield and be intimidated by the massed Syrian army (for they can assuredly survey it better than me)? No, I dont think Turkey will be intimidated. But with Vladimir Putins hand on his shoulder, the Sultan Erdogan across the border might be a little more accommodating. Perhaps someone will take back the foreign fighters. Or send them to fight and die in another country. Libya, perhaps? Yemen? These men  and their families  have moved around the Middle East quite a lot these past years. Therell be more negotiations, I suspect, between Putin and Erdogan and Assad and  through Putin  perhaps with the Saudis? Meanwhile, our leaders huff and puff and froth and roar and  across that little valley, be sure Syrias guns continue to fire this morning. Its not all quiet on the northern front, then. But not yet war. This article was originally published by " The Independent " - ==See Also== West cries foul over humanitarian crisis in Idlib, which isnt even happening  top Russian diplomat Note To ICH Community We ask that you assist us in dissemination of the article published by ICH to your social media accounts and post links to the article from other websites. Thank you for your support. Peace and joy Search Information Clearing House === Click Here To Support Information Clearing House Your support has kept ICH free on the Web since 2002. Click for Spanish , German , Dutch , Danish , French , translation- Note- Translation may take a moment to load.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- More than 1.5 million residents along the U.S. East Coast are under mandatory evacuations as Category 4 Hurricane Florence is approaching, the authorities said Tuesday.

Hurricane Florence, seen as the strongest storm to take aim at the region in decades, is "a very dangerous storm" expectedly to hit the East Coast, Jeffrey Byard, the associate administrator for response and recovery with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), said at a news conference.

"There is currently nothing that's projected to slow the storm down, to weaken the storm," said Byard. "We are planning for a hard impact of a Category 4 storm."

Washington D.C. on Tuesday declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm, joining South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Maryland. West Virginia has declared a state of preparedness.

"Hurricane Florence will lash the Carolinas and Virginia late Thursday as an intense hurricane with life-threatening storm surge, destructive winds and potentially catastrophic inland rainfall flooding in one of the strongest strikes on record for this part of the East Coast," U.S meteorologists warned Tuesday.

"If you're in the East Coast threat zone, it's time to finish up your hurricane preparedness plan and be ready to implement, if necessary. Residents in coastal areas should follow evacuation orders from local officials because of the potential for life-threatening storm-surge flooding," they urged via the U.S. Weather channel.

Byard said FEMA is also expecting "massive damage" including power shortage, infrastructure destruction and potential loss of life when the storm makes landfall.

"We cannot stress the importance to our citizens that are in evacuations to heed the local and state warnings," he said.

The first outer rainbands from Florence could move into the outer banks of the Carolinas and southeast Virginia Wednesday night, according to an NBC News report.

Hurricane-force winds could extend inland into central North Carolina and central Virginia later in the day on Thursday and a large area of tropical storm-force winds were expected to last until Friday, said the report.

The hurricane could also linger over the region until early next week, with rainfall totals potentially exceeding 15 to 20 inches and even up to 30 inches in some areas, which the U.S. National Hurricane Center said "could produce catastrophic flash flooding."

As of 8 a.m. ET on Tuesday, Florence was packing maximum sustained winds of near 130 mph (215 kph).
Thanks to Obama Bailouts and Trump Tax Cuts, Five Largest US Banks Have Raked in $583 Billion Since 2008 Crash

September 12, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - The 2008 financial meltdown inflicted devastating financial and psychological damage upon millions of ordinary Americans, but a new report released by Public Citizen on Tuesday shows the Wall Street banks that caused the crash with their reckless speculation and outright fraud have done phenomenally well in the ten years since the crisis.

Thanks to the Obama administration's decision to rescue collapsing Wall Street banks with taxpayer cash and the Trump administration's massive tax cuts and deregulatory push, America's five largest banksJPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Goldman Sachshave raked in more than $583 billion in combined profits over the past decade, Public Citizen found in its analysis marking the ten-year anniversary of the crisis.

"With no jail time for executives and half a trillion in post-crisis profits," said Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen, "the big banks have made out like bandits during the post-crash period. Like bandits."

Using data from the Federal Reserve, Public Citizen also calculated that America's the banks now hold a combined $9.7 trillion in assets.

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"In the aftermath of the Great Recession, American families continue to struggle. A new report by the Urban Institute finds that nearly 40 percent of Americans had trouble paying for basic needs such as food, housing or utilities in 2017," Public Citizen notes in its report. "The banks, on the other handwith more than half a trillion dollars in profits over the past decadeare doing just fine."

If recent earnings reports are any indicator, big banks are on track to continue shattering profit records thanks to President Donald Trump's $1.5 trillion in tax cuts. Big banks are also expected to see a boost from a recently passed bipartisan deregulatory bill that analysts argue significantly heightens the risk of another crash.

"Wall Street's grip on Washington is painfully evident in the corporate tax giveaways and deregulatory favors that Congress routinely bestows to this bonus-besotted industry," Bartlett Naylor, financial policy advocate for Public Citizen's Congress Watch division, said in a statement.

According to a Washington Post analysis published on Saturday, many of the lawmakers and congressional aides who helped craft the Democratic Congress' regulatory response to the 2008 crisis have gone on to work for Wall Street in the hopes of benefiting from big banks' booming profits.

"Ten years after the financial crisis brought the U.S. economy to its knees, about 30 percent of the lawmakers and 40 percent of the senior staff who crafted Congress' response have gone to work for or on behalf of the financial industry," noted the Post's Jeff Stein.

Meanwhile, Main Street Americans who lost their homes, jobs, and savings as a result of the greed-driven crash are still struggling to get by on stagnant or declining wages, even as unemployment falls and the economy continues to grow at a steady clip.

This article was originally published by " Common Dreams " -

==See Also==

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By Finian Cunningham

September 12, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - The September 11 terror incidents in 2001 are said to be the biggest-ever deadly attack on US soil. Shamefully, exactly 17 years later, the US president and Pentagon military chiefs are threatening to go to war in Syria  to defend the same ilk of terrorists.

Shamefully is perhaps not the most fitting word here. Consistently would be more appropriate.

Officially, the spectacular plane-crashing mayhem 17 years ago in New York City was due to 19 Arab hijackers affiliated with the Al Qaeda terror network.

That account of the world-changing event has been hotly disputed, with many respected authors and organizations claiming that evidence shows the US intelligence agencies are implicated in an inside job. The death of some 3,000 American citizens was hence exploited as a pretext for launching a series of US overseas wars, whose hidden agenda was for promoting imperialist objectives.

In any case, the official story is that Al Qaeda operatives hijacked four airliners on the morning of September 11, 2001, and flew them into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York, as well as into the Pentagon building near Washington. The fourth plane crashed in a rural area in Pennsylvania, allegedly after passengers challenged the terrorist pilots.

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The Al Qaeda terror network, with its ideological links to Saudi-sponsored Wahhabism, was declared enemy number one by then President George W Bush, who proceeded to launch wars on Afghanistan and Iraq, supposedly to avenge the 911 atrocity perpetrated against

American civilians.

The so-called war on terror has since become a much-overused blank check for successive US governments and their NATO allies to launch wars anywhere in the world to defeat terrorists. It has been used to justify increasing Western state surveillance powers against its own citizens in the name of counter-terrorism.

To be sure, the official story on 911 and subsequent US and NATO military rampaging around the globe has been challenged by skeptics and critics.

One of the key lines of contesting the official narrative is the documented evolution of the Al Qaeda terror franchise, which grew out of US sponsorship of motley radical Islamist groups in Afghanistan during the 1980s. That covert ploy was to give then occupying Soviet troops their Vietnam. American and British military intelligence along with lavish Saudi funding created the Frankenstein Monster of Islamic terrorism that mutated and spread across the Middle East and beyond.

So, the very notion that, post-911, the American creators of the terrorist monster would serve to protect the civilized world from their own creation was always a deeply suspect proposition.

The truth is that the US never stopped colluding with these terror groups since the days of the putative Afghan Vietnam for the Soviet Union.

The 911 incidents may have been some form of blowback or, plausibly, it was American intelligence handlers contriving a plot which would give imperialist planners their much-desired new Pearl Harbor  a blank check to declare war on the planet for the benefit of advancing US strategic interests.

Granted, the success of that nefarious covert scheme is questionable given the unforeseen huge financial and social costs to American society, as well as from general bedlam undermining global security.

For observers willing to see, it seems indisputable that there is something of a symbiotic relationship between Islamist terror proxies and the US imperialist state. The official enemy is a boon for justifying oppressive state powers against citizens; it serves as a pump for bloated budgets to the military-industrial complex at the heart of the American capitalist economy; and this enemy can also serve as target practice for illegal military intervention in foreign countries  US interventions that would otherwise be seen for what they are, as criminal aggression.

Further, the terror proxies continue to serve as a cats paws for US imperialism, as in the earlier formation in Afghanistan against the Soviet Union. Rather than direct large-scale American military involvement, the Al Qaeda brigades are deployed to do Washingtons dirty work. Syria is emerging as the new Afghanistan.

Officially, the Pentagon and US corporate news media scoff at these claims of collusion with terrorists. We are bombing Syria to defeat terrorists, so goes the mantra. Substitute any number of countries for Syria, as required.

Well, if thats the case why have senior US military people like Michael Flynn admitted that the former Obama administration deliberately cultivated the terror brigades in Syria? Why have hundreds of millions of dollars gone into forming a non-existent moderate rebel army in Syria only for the American weaponry to end up in the hands of terror groups like Nusra Front?

What about credible reports of US military helicopters airlifting Nusra commanders out of harms way to other, safer parts of Syria? Similar reports of airlifting, or airdropping weapons, have come out of Afghanistan, where the Pentagon is still fighting terrorists  17 years after 911.

It has taken a painfully long time over the eight years of war in Syria to uncover the full and real extent of criminality by the US and its British and French allies, along with the Saudis, Turks and Israelis.

But now we are coming full circle. President Donald Trump and his officials are warning that they will launch military strikes on Syria if the Syrian army and its Russian and Iranian allies proceed with the offensive to retake Idlib province. The northwest province is the last-remaining stronghold of anti-government militants. These militants are not the illusory moderate rebels the Western media have long bamboozled the public with. The militants comprise Nusra Front, Ahrar al Sham, Islamic State, and other self-professed Wahhabi jihadists of the Al Qaeda franchise. The myriad, mercurial names are merely part of the US cynical cover.

Trump  the supposed non-interventionist president  has even discarded the earlier ruse of invoking chemical weapons as a pretext for a US military attack on Syria. He and his officials are simply saying that any offensive by the Syrian army to retake all of its territory is an unacceptable escalation that will be met with a US military response.

There is no other credible rationale for such military deployment by Washington in Syria. The Western media are as usual riding shotgun with the mendacity, claiming that the Syrian army offensive will trigger a humanitarian crisis, rather than reporting the salient fact that the offensive is aimed at eradicating the most vile terror groups from that country.

In Syria, today, 17 years after 911, the real relationship between US authorities and terrorism is on display. The United States of Anarchy.

Finian Cunningham has written extensively on international affairs, with articles published in several languages. He is a Masters graduate in Agricultural Chemistry and worked as a scientific editor for the Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge, England, before pursuing a career in newspaper journalism. He is also a musician and songwriter. For nearly 20 years, he worked as an editor and writer in major news media organisations, including The Mirror, Irish Times and Independent.

This article was originally published by " SCF " -

==See Also==

Edward Snowden Just Retweeted About The CIA Being In Cahoots With Al-Qaeda One Day After 9/11 Anniversary

U.S. Is Funding and Backing Al Qaeda in Yemen

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By Cesar Chelala

September 12, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - I remember vividly the terrible day when our lives (our world) changed forever. I was listening to the radio in my apartment, a few blocks from Ground Zero, when the plane hit the first tower. I could hear the cries from the street below: Oh, no, no, no! Oh, my God! I ran downstairs just in time to see the second tower crumble like a sand castle. It was 9:59 am. I joined others rushing to the spot when a large group of people came running back shouting: Go back, go back, for Gods sake, go back! We rushed back only to discover later that it was a false alarm, that there would be no more attacks on the towers after the second plane hit. Without fully understanding the significance of events, I felt that a relatively peaceful way of life had been replaced by a darker, more sinister one. A great sadness came over me.

Soon after, we learned the details of what had happened, and heard stories and saw pictures of those who had thrown themselves voluntarily to their certain death rather than remain trapped inside an inferno. Richard Drew, who photographed one of the iconic images of that fateful day, the Falling Man, the lonely image of a man falling to his death with one of the towers in the background, said recently that for him it was the image of the Unknown Soldier. An estimated seven percent of those killed in the attack on September 11 did so by jumping into the void from their offices.

We also learned of the heroic behavior of hundreds of firefighters who risked their lives and of the many other people who lost theirs. One of the firefighters was a 34 years-old Argentine by the name of Sergio Villanueva. That day, about an hour before the attack on the Twin Towers, he had finished his shift. But, like on so many other days, he had stayed behind to have breakfast with his colleagues. When they heard news of the attack, he decided to join his fellow squad members and went with them to the towers to help in the rescue efforts. Neither he nor his fellow brigade members ever returned.

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We also heard heartbreaking stories about people we knew who were killed in the towers. One, the son of friends, had just enough time to call his brother and say, Please tell Mom and Dad that I love them a lot as I love you, before the line went dead. To this day his parents have not regained their joie de vivre. Or the employee of a large company who left the towers, called his wife to say he was fine after the first tower had been hit, then returned to retrieve documents from his desk and died when the fire ravaged his office.

What promised to be a peaceful September morning turned into a nightmare. As usual, that day (a beautiful diaphanous day with a very clear sky) my wife and I woke up about 7 am. We had breakfast and she left for work on Long Island, about 45 minutes from home. I was planning to have a working lunch at United Nations headquarters.

After the second attack on the towers I tried to contact my wife at work. It was impossible to communicate by phone with her. I learned, however, that I could call Queens, where a medical colleague, Dr. Juan Rivolta, lived. I wanted to see if I could communicate with my wife through him. I summarized what had happened. He thought I was joking but changed his attitude when he heard the desperation in my voice and finally was convinced when I told him to turn on the TV.

Juan was able to communicate with my wife and told me that she was safe. When we spoke later that day she explained that soon after arriving at her college someone had called the office so they turned on the TV and were able to witness the horror of the events taking place. Since virtually all roads leading to New York City were closed, my wife stayed at a colleagues house for the next three days.

Satisfied that my wife was safe while I was still in a state of shock, I went to a nearby square and sat on a bench watching people hurrying to the scene. That state of shock stuck with me, like with many other New Yorkers, for months after the attacks. We could smell the pungent odor of burned materials, some of which certainly came from the incinerated bodies of the thousands of people who had perished there. One was Sean Rooney, whose last moments were described by his wife, Beverly Eckert. He called her from the 105th floor; he was unable to find an escape route; the flames were approaching ominously and, during his last minutes of life, he only managed to say I love you, I love you. Then, when the smoke prevented him from speaking, Beverly heard the terrible noise of something cracking, followed by the sound of an avalanche and a groan.

It seems impossible that anyone trapped inside the towers could have survived. Yet that is what happened to 20 people, including some firefighters and police officers and an administrative secretary of the Port Authority, Genelle Guzman-McMillan. As Matthew Shaer tells it in New York magazine, Genelle followed a group of colleagues to the smoke-filled stairway. As they descended, Genelle was certain that she would survive and could go down and meet her boyfriend, as they had planned. However, when the building collapsed, she suddenly lost her balance and was dragged to the ground floor surrounded by tons of cement and steel. Finally she stopped, and felt something soft and warm under her  it was a dead person. She remained silent for 27 hours, praying and asking God for her life. A German Labrador named Trakr found her.

The shock people experienced as a result of the attacks perhaps mirrored the shock that Americans felt after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Such was the state of fear that the noise of aircraft crossing the sky was enough to frighten New Yorkers. Such fears led to unexpected reactions. A friend, an art teacher at a university in New York, told me recently: Although I am a total agnostic I must confess that after the attacks I felt something strange, as if my house had been invaded by ghosts whose steps I seemed to hear at night. I was so frightened that I asked a Buddhist priest to exorcize my apartment and assure me that I was not going crazy. 

The attacks on the Twin Towers produced the most concentrated response to an emergency in the history of the United States. It is estimated that at least 100 emergency units and dozens of private ambulances headed to the scene to pick up the wounded and take them to nearby hospitals. At the same time, more than 2,000 police officers searched the towers and rescued survivors. But the weight of the response fell to the New York Fire Department, whose response to the events was truly heroic.

One of the lessons to be drawn from that tragedy is that violence begets violence and intolerance breeds intolerance. Unless there is a new approach to preventing terrorist acts we will continue to live under the threat of terror. Confrontation is not the answer. While it is easy to create enemies, it is much harder to understand the other, a necessary approach if we wish to eliminate conflict, and honor the desire for peace and security of all people in the world.
The US: The Century of Lost Wars

By James Petras

Introduction

September 12, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - Despite having the bigest military budget in the world, five times larger than the next six countries, the largest number of military bases-over 180- in the world and the most expensive military industrial complex, the US has failed to win a single war in the 21st century.

In this paper we will enumerate the wars and proceed to analyze why, despite the powerful material basis for wars, it has led to failures.

The Lost Wars

The US has been engaged in multiple wars and coups since the beginning of the 21st century. These include Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Somalia, Palestine, Venezuela and the Ukraine .Besides Washingtons secret intelligence agencies have financed five surrogate terrorist groups in Pakistan, China, Russia, Serbia and Nicaragua.

The US has invaded countries, declared victories and subsequently faced resistance and prolonged warfare which required a large US military presence to merely protect garrison outposts.

The US has suffered hundreds of thousands of casualties- dead, maimed and deranged soldiers.. The more the Pentagon spends, the greater the losses and subsequent retreats.

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The more numerous the vassal regimes, the greater the corruption and incompetence flourishes.

Every regime subject to US tutelage has failed to accomplish the objectives designed by its US military advisers.

The more spent on recruiting mercenary armies the greater the rate of defection and the transfer of arms to US adversaries.

Success in Starting Wars and Failures in Finishing Them

The US invaded Afghanistan, captured the capital (Kabul) defeated the standing army and then spent the next two decades engaged in losing irregular warfare.

The initial victories laid the groundwork for future defeats. Bombings, drove millions of peasants and farmers ,shopkeepers and artisans into the local militia . The invaders were defeated by the forces of nationalism and religion linked to families and communities. The indigenous insurgents overcame arms and dollars in many of the villages, towns and provinces.

Similar outcomes were repeated in Iraq and Libya. The US invaded, defeated the standing armies, occupied the capital and imposed its clients- which set the terrain for long-term, large-scale warfare by local insurgent armies.

The more frequent the western bombings, the greater the opposition forcing the retreat of the proxy army.

Somalia has been bombed frequently. Special Forces have recruited, trained, and armed the local puppet soldiers, sustained by mercenary African armies but they have remained holed up in the capital city, Mogadishu, surrounded and attacked by poorly armed but highly motivated and disciplined Islamic insurgents.

Syria is targeted by a US financed and armed mercenary army. In the beginning they advanced, uprooted millions, destroyed cities and homes and seized territory. All of which impressed their US  EU warlords. Once the Syrian army united the populace, with their Russian, Lebanese(Hezbollah) and Iranian allies, Damascus routed the mercenaries.

After the better part of a decade the separatist Kurds, alongside the Islamic terrorists and other western surrogates retreated, and made a last stand along the northern bordersthe remaining bastions of Western surrogates.

The Ukraine coup of 2014 was financed and directed by the US and EU.They seized the capital (Kiev) but failed to conquer the Eastern Ukraine and Crimea. Corruption among the US ruling kleptocrats devastated the country  over three million fled abroad to Poland, Russia and elsewhere in search of a livelihood.. The war continues, the corrupt US clients are discredited and will suffer electoral defeat unless they rig the vote .

Surrogate uprisings in Venezuela and Nicaragua were bankrolled by the US National Endowment for Democracy (NED). They ruined economies but lost the street wars.

Conclusion

Wars are not won by arms alone. In fact, heavy bombing and extended military occupations ensure prolonged popular resistence, ultimate retreats and defeats.

The US major and minor wars of the 21st century have failed to incorporate targeted countries into the empire.

Imperial occupations are not military victories. They merely change the nature of the war, the protagonists of resistance, the scope and depth of the national struggle.

The US has been successful in defeating standing armies as was the case in Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan , Somalia, and the Ukraine. However, the conquest was limited in time and space. New armed resistance movements led by former officers, religious activists and grass roots activists took charge

The imperial wars slaughtered millions, savaged traditional family, workplace and neighborhood relations and set in motion a new constellation of anti-imperialist leaders and militia fighters.

The imperial forces beheaded established leaders and decimated their followers. They raided and pillaged ancient treasures. The resistance followed by recruiting thousands of uprooted volunteers who served as human bombs, challenging missiles and drones.

The US imperial forces lack the ties to the occupied land and people. They are aliens serving time; they seek to survive, secure promotions and exit with a bonus and an honorable discharge.

In contrast, the resistance fighters are there for the duration. As they advance, they target and demolish the imperial surrogates and mercenaries. They expose the corrupt client rulers who deny the subject people the elementary conditions of existence  employment, potable water, electricity etc.

The imperial vassals are not present at weddings, sacred holidays or funerals, unlike the resistance fighters. The presence of the latter signals a pledge of loyalty unto death. The resistance circulates freely in cities ,towns and villages with the protection of the local people; and by night they rule enemy terrain, under cover of their own people, who share intelligence and logistics.

Inspiration, solidarity and light arms are more than a match for the drones, missiles and helicopter gunships.

Even the mercenary soldiers ,trained by the Special Forces, defect from and betray their imperial masters. Temporary imperial advances serve only to allow the resistance forces to regroup and counter-attack. They view surrender as a betrayal of their traditional way of life, submission to the boot of western occupation forces and their corrupt officials.

Afghanistan is a prime example of an imperial lost war. After two decades of warfare and one trillion dollars in military spending, tens of thousands of casualties, the Taliban controls most of the countryside and towns; enters and takes over provincial capitals and bombs Kabul. They will take full control the day after the US departs.

The US military defeats are products of a fatal flaw: imperial planners cannot successfully replace indigenous people with colonial rulers and their local look-alikes.

Wars are not won by high tech weapons directed by absentee officials divorced from the people: they do not share their sense of peace and justice.

Exploited people informed by a spirit of communal resistance and self-sacrifice have demonstrated greater cohesion then rotating soldiers eager to return home and mercenary soldiers with dollar signs in their eyes.

The lessons of lost wars have not been learned by those who preach the power of the military  industrial complex which makes, sells and profits from weapons but lack the mass of humanity with lesser arms but with great conviction who have demonstrated their capacity to defeat imperial armies.

The Stars and Stripes fly in Washington but remain folded in Embassy offices in Kabul, Tripoli, Damascus and in other lost battlegrounds.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara has formally declared his intention to re contest. Dogara, who has been in the senate for eight(8) years said he had planned not to recontest because he was already getting tired but was compelled to, after his constituents visited him in Abuja, begging him to recontest in 2019.

Though still officially in the ruling All Progressives Congress(APC), many political observers have predicted that the Speaker might soon defect from the party. His defection was predicted to have followed that of his ally, Bukola Saraki, Senate President but Dogara has kept eeveryone guessing as to where is loyalty now lie.

Accepting the offer to recontest, Dogara wrote via Twitter on Tuesday thus:

It was a heartwarming moment today when I received hundreds of constituents who visited my Abuja home, imploring me to recontest in 2019. Representing the people of Bogoro/Dass/Tafawa Balewa federal constituency has been a great honour and today, I saw many people who began this journey with me in 2007. The voice of the people is the voice of God; even though I had been considering not running this time around, now that my people have called upon me to do so, I feel compelled to heed their call. To those who have said that they will retire us from active politics, it is imperative to know that all power belongs to God and it is up to the electorate to decide, not them. The people have always spoken through the ballot and 2019 wont be any different.

See reaction

This is the familiar storyline told by politicians. People will always meet you urging you to contest in Nigeria provided you have the cash and influence. This for us is no news, maybe soon you will get those that will purchase your nomination ticket. This is Nigeria!  Joseph Shoremekun (@JShoremekun) September 11, 2018

A return to House is good for your political career but most likely not retain Speakership. You made history as a minority from Bauchi state as Number 4 Citizen. History can't forget u in a hurry.  Dami Agunloye (@Dami4Change) September 11, 2018
A Muslim preacher has sparked an outrage after he declared that its a major sin for a wife to refuse sex with her husband.

Nassim Abdi, a fundamentalist preacher in Sydney, Australia told an Auburn mosque in the citys west, that a woman would be cursed by angels for refusing her husbands demands for sex

If the husband calls the wife to be intimate and theres no legitimate reason for the woman to say no, then she must answer the call of her husband, he said on Friday night.

She must answer the call of her husband and if not she has committed a major sin.

If the man calls the wife to bed and she refuses, the angels curse this woman and he sleeps with her whilst hes angry, the angels curse her until she wakes up.

His statement has sparked major concern among Feminists, with long-time feminist Eva Cox describing him as a nutter for disrespecting womens rights.

Somebody needs to inform the preacher that hes preaching something which is illegal, she told Daily Mail Australia.

Preaching something which is illegal maybe should be banned. Im sorry weve got these nutters.

Macquarie University research professor Catharine Lumby, a gender adviser with the National Rugby League, described the sermon as hate speech.

That kind of speech should be investigated. I believe in freedom of speech but I believe in limits to freedom of speech where violence is being advocated, she said.

It is absolutely against the law in this country what hes advocating. Its a form of hate speech.

While Professor Lumby said Mr. Abdis sermon could encourage Muslim men to commit domestic violence.

I would say its incitement to commit a criminal offence: if your wife doesnt submit, then you still have the right to take her. That is a crime under Australian law, she said.

Shocking. The more I think about what this fundamentalist preacher said, in a way hes advocating a form of domestic violence.

Watch the video below.

It is a major sin for a wife to refuse her husbands demands for sex  Muslim Preacher (Video)
Protest, on Tuesday, greeted the announcement of the All Progressives Congress (APC) consensus candidates for some elective positions by Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State as scores of youths stormed the Presidential Lodge venue of the exercise to protest alleged imposition by the governor.

Daily Times

Former Governor of Oyo State, Otunba Alao Akala said gap in communication between Oyo State governor, Abiola Ajimobi and the owner of fresh FM, Ibadan, Yinka Ayefele, caused the demolition of the property.

Leadership

In line with repeated calls for the passage of the Independent National Electoral Commissions budget for the 2019 elections by the National Assembly, observer groups, Election Monitor and The Movement for Transparent Elections are set to begin a nationwide protest tomorrow to demand reasons for the delay as elections draw near.

The Authority

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, Tuesday ended speculations over his political future, when he accepted the request from his people to re contest for the Bogoro/Dass/Tafawa Balewa Federal Constituency seat of the House of Representatives.

Tribune

Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State has written to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) notifying the agency that he will make himself available to it on Tuesday, October 16, 2018.
Senator Ben Murray Bruce has said the only achievement, the president Muhammadu Buhari administration can boast of is collecting more debt in 3 years than PDP took in 16 years.

According to the lawmaker, the Buhari administration spent the last three years blaming the previous government, and that has impeded on its achievement. Ben Bruce noted that if Buharis government hadnt exerted so much energy into blaming former president Goodluck Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), it would have had one or two things to boast of.

Speaking via Twitter o Wednesday, Ben Bruce said right now, the only thing they(APC?Buhari) can boast of, is collecting more debt in 3 years than PDP took in 16 years.

He werote:
LOGO RITCH MUELLER 320 x 215

These regimes follow policies to attract investment (ie zero, or significantly reduced, income tax rates) that allow taxpayers to shift/shelter profits in such jurisdictions and erode tax bases in detriment of other jurisdictions. To counter such practices, Mexico and many other OECD countries have enforced various anti-avoidance rules under their own legislations.

PTR rules were included in the Mexican Income Tax Law as of 1997. When conceived, the Mexican PTR rules focused on blacklisting certain jurisdictions considered to be tax havens; if the jurisdiction was not listed, the PTR rules would not be applicable. Still, there were jurisdictions that, even when not listed, allowed taxpayers to devise tax evasive practices. Therefore, in 2008, the approach followed by Mexican regulators focused on avoiding the use of PTR by establishing an effective tax rate criteria, rather than simply blacklisting specific jurisdictions.

As of today, PTR rules generally seek to levy income derived by Mexican residents through foreign entities or legal vehicles in which they participate, directly or indirectly, prior to such Mexican residents effectively obtaining the income. This mainly aims to avoid indefinite tax deferrals being achieved by delaying the repatriation of capital into Mexico.

To achieve this, the Mexican Income Tax Law establishes that income obtained through foreign entities or vehicles in which Mexican residents participate, directly or indirectly, is considered to be derived from a preferential tax regime  and therefore taxed according to the PTR rules  if such income is: (i) exempt from tax; (ii) subject to income tax that is 75% lower than the tax that would have been paid if the company obtaining the income was a Mexican resident for tax purposes (ie lower than 22.5%); or (iii) earned through foreign legal vehicles or entities that are tax transparent abroad.

If a taxpayer lacks effective control over the foreign entities or vehicles (or over their administration) to an extent that would allow them to decide the timing of distributions of income, profits or dividends obtained by such entities or vehicles (either directly or by a third party), the aforementioned provisions are not applicable. In such cases, the taxpayer should pay the tax attributable to such income at the moment in which the foreign vehicle effectively makes the distribution to the Mexican shareholder in terms of its corresponding tax regime.

These rules may also have an impact on, for instance, Mexican source payments made to foreign legal entities, entities that are considered tax transparent, or to any other legal figures created or incorporated under foreign law that are subject to a PTR, in which case the applicable withholding rate would be 40%, to be reduced only to the extent that a tax treaty executed by Mexico so permits (some exceptions may apply).

We want to draw particular attention to the impact that PTR rules have on the tax treatment applicable to foreign residents deriving capital gains income from the sale of shares under Mexican tax law, and in particular, the treatment for US residents.

In general, income derived by foreign residents from the sale of shares issued by Mexican residents, or shares that derive their value, directly or indirectly, from immovable property located in Mexico, are subject to tax at a 25% rate on the gross income. Alternatively, taxpayers may apply a 35% rate to the net gain obtained upon the transfer to the extent that certain requirements are met, amongst which is that the income derived by the seller must not be subject to PTR regulations.

Following the United States Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, corporate income tax in the United States (US) was reduced from 35% to 21%, which implies that income derived through US entities or vehicles should, in principle, be subject to PTR regulations. For this reason, taxpayers expressed great concern considering that this effectively implies that the 35% net gain alternative applicable upon a transfer of shares that is levied under Mexican legislation would not be available.

The Tax Administration Service (Servicio de Administracion Tributaria) issued a fairly simple PTR FAQ guidance letter, addressing two main questions: (i) Is the US a PTR?; and (ii) must local taxes be considered to determine the effective tax rate? Generally speaking, authorities established that they are not empowered to characterise any country or jurisdiction as being a PTR and that such a determination is to be made by taxpayers abiding by the provisions of the Mexican Income Tax Lawand other applicable regulations, thus implying that the US should be considered as a PTR only if the effective tax rate paid pursuant to the 2017 Tax Act is accounted for.

As per the consideration of local taxes for calculating the effective income tax rate, they established that since the Mexican Income Tax Law does not distinguish between federal income taxes or state income taxes, all income taxes effectively paid shall be considered, regardless of the authority to which they were paid (the Mexican Temporary Tax Resolution had already clarified that corporate income taxes, either federal or state, were considered when calculating the threshold).

Since in many cases US investors are not subject to state income taxes and, therefore, the effective tax paid in the US is not above the 75% threshold, PTR rules should be carefully observed for US residents intending to apply the 35% net gain alternative when selling equity participations in Mexican companies.

However, from a treaty perspective, there might be some alternatives still available to access the 35% net gain alternative, to the extent that the MexicoUS treaty is applicable and provided that the limitation on benefits provision is met.

To that end, investors that engage in share-purchase transactions that are taxable in Mexico should carefully review the facts and circumstances surrounding them to avoid any potential or unnecessary tax contingencies.

This article was written by Oscar A. Lopez Velarde, Juan Jose Paullada Eguirao and Daniela Inigo Arroyo of Ritch, Mueller, Heather y Nicolau, S.C.

Oscar A. Lopez Velarde (olopezvelarde@ritch.com.mx)

Juan Jose Paullada Eguirao (jpaullada@ritch.com.mx)

Daniela Inigo Arroyo (dinigo@ritch.com.mx)

Ritch, Mueller, Heather y Nicolau, S.C.

www.ritch.com.mx





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U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a ceremony held at the Flight 93 National Memorial, marking the 17th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, the United States, Sept 11, 2018.(Xinhua/Yang Chenglin)

WASHINGTON, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Memorials were held in New York City, Washington D.C. and Pennsylvania on Tuesday to mark the 17th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

In New York, the ceremony took place at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, located where the World Trade Center towers once stood.

The ceremony started at 8:39 a.m., and the reading of names proceeded with six pauses of silence, each marking a time when the planes hit the two towers and the Pentagon, when another crashed in Pennsylvania, and when the towers crashed.

The ceremony is scheduled to last until 12:30 p.m.

At the U.S. Department of Defense near Washington D.C., a ceremony featuring U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Defense Secretary James Mattis began at sunrise with a U.S. flag unfurling on one side of the Pentagon building.

The names of the 184 people who died here were read, followed by remarks by Mattis and Pence.

U.S. President Donald Trump visited Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed, killing 40 on board.

Hundreds of people turned out for the event despite cloudy and chilly weather with a light drizzle, to hear the names of those 40 called along with bell tolls.

Trump hailed the heroism the passengers on flight 93 demonstrated when they fought for control of the aircraft after learning the hijackers' intentions, telling their relatives "America will never forget what your loved ones did for all of us."

The United States came under multiple terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, after four civilian aircraft were hijacked and steered toward prominent U.S. buildings. Three of the planes hit their targets in New York and Washington D.C., while the fourth crashed en route to Washington as its passengers battled for control of the aircraft with the hijackers.

The attacks left nearly 3,000 killed or missing and were the largest terrorist attacks on U.S. soil in history.
Iowas Board of Regents will convene Wednesday and Thursday at the University of Iowa, covering a wide range of topics that will impact students at the three regent universities in Iowa.

Spanning from 11 a.m. to shortly after 3 p.m., day one of the meetings will focus primarily on funding requests from Iowa schools alongside reports on metrics for each, including investment earnings and audit reports.

Iowa State University, the University of Iowa and the University of Northern Iowa all rely on and work with the Board of Regents to get approval for changes to their higher education programs  new buildings, program changes and requests for funding all go through the board.

Board of Regents to consider $20 million funding increase for regent universities The Iowa Board of Regents will consider a funding increase of more than $20 million to Regen

Wednesdays meeting will open with requests regarding buildings and property, with Iowa State asking for permission to begin planning for a new veterinary diagnostic laboratory. Submitted plans state the construction has an estimated cost of $75 million and would require the demolition of Veterinary Medical Research Institute buildings 1, 12, and 35.

Educational and program-related requests will follow. Iowa State has submitted a request to split the Department of Supply Chain and Informational Systems into the Department of Supply Chain Management and the Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics in an effort to grow their international reputations.

Iowa State has also submitted requests for two new programs. One of the programs, Bachelor of Science in Cyber Security Engineering, is the first of its kind in Iowa. According to the submitted proposal, students in the program would take the core of the already existing computer engineering program with additional classes focusing on cyber security. This would allow students to earn a degree in a field with strong expected growth.

An additional program request was submitted by both Iowa State and the University of Iowa in order to create a Doctor of Education Program. Iowa States submission states this degree would replace two existing programs within the School of Education: A 30-credit Certificate of Advanced Study and a doctorate with emphasis on community college leadership.

The document also emphasizes the need for highly-educated educators in the state of Iowa in teaching and administrative roles. It says this need is exacerbated by an aging workforce in school superintendent positions.

Day two of the meetings begins at 9:15 a.m. and will primarily consist of administrative matters and the congregation of committees. Several matters from the first day will be re-discussed within the context of their relevant committee. Board of Regents meetings are open to the public and can be live streamed on their website.
With Apple making multiple announcements at its iPhone event today, there was one for the HomePod owners as well. In anticipation of the speakers arrival in Spain and Mexico, the company has added support for Spanish with Siri. Users in Canada will get access to Canadian French. Both languages will be made available with a free update.

Apple also talked about a couple of new features that are coming to the HomePod. First and foremost, you can now have Siri Shortcuts enabled on the HomePod. This will be possible thanks to a new app called Shortcuts, allowing you to add and remove shortcuts as you please. A single voice command can set off a series of events such as ordering coffee from an app on your phone or read out the calendar appointments for the day.

Users can now set multiple timers on the HomePod, which means you can have two or more timers for a variety of tasks at the same time. The HomePod now lets you make and receive phone calls as well. The user has to read out the name of the contact (or the number), and a phone call will be initiated on your iPhone. The audio can be routed to the HomePod or back onto the iPhone using the audio picker on the iPhone.

Lastly, and perhaps my most favorite feature is the ability to play a song by merely reciting the lyrics. So if you know a songs lyrics but dont know its name, this feature can come in handy. The HomePod also supports multi-room audio now, encouraging users to invest in multiple units for their home.

The HomePod leverages the vast library of content available on Apple Music. While alternative music streaming services like Spotify are compatible with the HomePod, Siri commands are only functional with Apple Music.

[Via Apple
The Federal Communications Commission has informed T-Mobile and Sprint that it needs more time to review their proposed merger before granting them the final approval. So, it has stopped the 180-day transaction clock for this particular case as it needs to do a thorough staff and third-party review of all the documents submitted.

The FCC notes that on September 5, Sprint and T-Mobile submitted a revised network engineering model which is significantly larger and more complex.

The newly-provided network engineering model is significantly larger and more complex than the engineering submissions already in the record. It appears to incorporate new logic, methodologies, facts, and assumptions, on a subject central to the Applications-the transactions claimed network benefits. Accordingly, the Commission and third parties will require additional time to review it.

There was also a delay on T-Mobiles part in submitting some important business documents which the FCC needs time to review. And the Un-carrier also plans on submitting more documents that will help in the merger of the companies.

Finally, T-Mobile recently disclosed that it intends to submit additional economic modeling in support of the Applications, beyond that strictly responsive to the various economic analyses in the Petitions to Deny. This new economic modeling will also require additional time for review. We also understand that these models may interact with or support one another in ways still unknown to the Commission and third parties . It will take time to evaluate, understand the relationships between, and prepare responses to these models. Moreover, those evaluations may also require additional information and explanation about the new modeling.

After multiple back and forth, T-Mobile and Sprint officially announced their merger plans back in April this year. The combined entity will become the second largest operator in the United States, with a customer base just shy of 100 million. Both companies are hopeful of closing the deal in the first half of 2019.

[Via FCC
Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua (L) meets with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in Hanoi, Vietnam, Sept. 11, 2018. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

HANOI, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- China and Vietnam promised on Tuesday to further promote their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

The pledge came during a meeting here between Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua. Hu is in Hanoi to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) on ASEAN 2018 from Sept. 11 to 13.

Hu said the leaders of the two countries have made top-level designs and strategic plans for the development of bilateral ties during their exchange of visits last year.

China is willing to work with Vietnam to follow through on what the leaders of both countries have made so as to move forward China-Vietnam comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, he stressed.

Noting that China welcomes Phuc leading a delegation to the China International Import Expo (CIIE) to be held in November, Hu said China stands ready to facilitate Vietnamese companies' participation.

Phuc, for his part, said Hu's attendance at the WEF not only shows the importance attached by China to the Vietnam-China relations, but also demonstrates the brotherly friendship between the two countries.

The Vietnamese prime minister noted that developing good neighborliness and friendship as well as across-the-board cooperation with China is the top priority for Vietnam.

Vietnam supports and is willing to actively participate in the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, he said, adding that Vietnam will join hands with China to promote their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.
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RAMALLAH, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- The United States has taken a series of measures against Palestinians in order to increase pressure on them to accept a new peace plan to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which is rejected by Palestinians.

The Palestinians say the U.S. plan, known as "Deal of the Century," is meant to eliminate rights of Palestinians, mainly refugees' right of return.

The U.S. administration announced Monday that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) office in Washington will be shut down, citing its failure to advance the start of direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel.

The decision was linked with U.S. concerns with Palestinian attempts to prompt an investigation into Israel by the International Criminal Court (ICC), the U.S. State Department said.

The Palestinians have requested the ICC to investigate Israel on various issues including disputed settlement buildings in the occupied West Bank, the civilian casualties in the 2014 Gaza war and others.

Despite having opened a preliminary probe in 2015, the court has yet to move to the next stage.

The Palestinians have boycotted Washington since it recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital and moved its embassy to Jerusalem.

Washington said last month it halted all funding to the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA and Trump last week ordered that 25 million U.S. dollars earmarked for the care of Palestinians in East Jerusalem hospitals be directed elsewhere as part of a review of aid.

"The U.S. administration is waging a war of blackmailing against the Palestinians in an effort to impose the 'Deal of the Century,' using all means of pressure," Hani Habib, a Gaza-based political analyst told Xinhua.

Habib pointed out that Washington "is using cheap money to blackmail the Palestinians politically and financially."

"Washington wants the Palestinian leadership to abide by the U.S.-Israeli vision to accept the U.S. plan for peace... I believe this will not work," he said.

Hani al-Masri, Director of the Masarat Center for Research and Studies in Ramallah, said the Palestinians consider Washington's actions to be forceful.

"Trump's administration has made Israeli security the supreme reference to any principles for a future solution...it has thrown away the Jerusalem, refugees and settlements files," he added.

According to Masri, this shows that "Deal of the Century" "did not die" despite the Palestinian rejection, stressing it is being applied on the ground in an accelerated manner.

"Trump is going on with his plan, hoping that the Palestinians will accept it later," Masri said.

Trump's senior advisor Jared Kushner told Palestinian Al-Quds newspaper in June that the United States will announce its peace plan soon.

While Kushner refused to reveal details of the plan, Israeli reports said the U.S. initiative suggests that Abu Dis village in East Jerusalem will be the capital of the future "unarmed" Palestinian state.

The reports also said the U.S. government will ask Israel to withdraw from three quarters of Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, adding that Israel will maintain control of major settlements in West Jerusalem as well as the Jordan Valley.
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BEIJING, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said on Tuesday it regretted Canada's complaint filed with the World Trade Organization (WTO) about its anti-dumping duties on cellulose pulp from Canada.

China will deal with Canada's request for consultation according to the WTO dispute settlement procedures, an MOC official said in a statement.

China started to impose the duties on cellulose pulp imported from countries including Canada in 2014 after dumping was found and then decided to review the trade measure in August 2017 in response to a WTO ruling published four months ago.

The MOC announced in April that the anti-dumping duties would continue as the reinvestigation again confirmed substantial damages to the domestic industry due to the dumping.

China respects the WTO ruling and has completed the review in line with WTO rules, the official said.

Cellulose pulp, made from plant fiber, is used as a raw material in the production of viscose and acetate fiber.
(File Photo)

Three departments responsible for implementing family planning policies have been removed from the new structure of the National Health Commission, the commission has announced on its website.

The departments have been replaced with a new one that will focus on population monitoring and family development, and will be responsible for putting forward advice related to birth policies.

Three new departments have also been set up to take charge of work related to family health, eldercare and occupational health, according to the announcement, released on Monday.

It detailed 14 specific responsibilities of the commission after the organizational restructuring, including formulating national health policy, coordinating and deepening medical and healthcare system reforms, disease prevention and control, and formulating pharmaceutical policies.

After restructuring, the commission now has 21 departments, with 525 administrative staff members. It emphasized the importance of building a comprehensive system for disease prevention and tackling challenges arising from an aging population.

In March, "family planning" was dropped from the commission's name as part of a sweeping government overhaul to reform official departments and reduce red tape.

The removal of the three departments that used to enforce family planning policies triggered public conjecture that the government may be planning to scrap long-standing limits on the number of children its citizens can have.

"The restructuring doesn't mean that family planning will no longer exist," said Yuan Xin, a population studies expert at Tianjin's Nankai University.

"But in the new era, the major tasks have shifted from birth control to providing comprehensive reproductive services in support of the development of families."

As of 2017, people age 60 and older accounted for about 16.2 percent of China's population.

About a third of the country's population will be over 60 by 2050, according to the China National Working Committee on Aging.

By comparison, the number of working-age people is set to fall to 700 milliona decline of nearly a quarter.

Alarmed by the rapidly aging population and shrinking workforce, the government relaxed the family planning policy, which was introduced in 1979, and implemented a two-child policy in 2016.

"The establishment of the new department to serve the aging population shows the government's attention to the elderly. But issues related to an aging population cannot simply be solved by boosting the birthrate. Instead, enhancing our competitiveness in the global market and maintaining stable economic growth is the solution," Yuan said.

Apart from the commission, several other ministerial departments recently released restructuring plans, such as the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.
People walk past a sign of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia, on Sept. 11, 2018. World leaders and business tycoons gathered in Russia's Far Eastern port city of Vladivostok to discuss cooperation at the fourth Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) that opened Tuesday. (Xinhua/Bai Xueqi)

Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the Fourth Eastern Economic Forum from Sept. 11 to 13 in the city of Vladivostok, Russia, at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. It will be the first time for a Chinese head of state to attend the event.

The forum draws attention from the international community who projects high expectation for the event to achieve fruitful results.

They, first of all, expect more results on the new development plan of the Far East region, the largest federal district of Russia which covers 36.1 percent of the countrys territory.

The Russian government is attaching more and more importance to the Far East region and giving priority to its development in recent years. For example, the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East has been established to ensure the development of the district on a national level.

Thanks to the strong support of the Russian government, the Far East maintained steadily economic growth in recent years, becoming a region with the fastest growing investment across the country.

They also eye for new fruits from China-Russia relations. China and Russia have made remarkable achievements in bilateral relations this year.

Heads of state of the two countries have kept close exchange with each other. Putin paid his first state visit to China this June after beginning his new term in office, during which Xi conferred on him Chinas first Friendship Medal. This July, Xi made in-depth exchange with Putin during the BRICS summit, their second meeting this year.

Xis attendance to the Fourth Eastern Economic Forum will be the third meeting in 2018. His trip this time is believed to create better conditions and friendly atmosphere for in-depth exchange of views between the two heads of state, elevating bilateral relations onto a new level.

Another highlight would be the boosted cooperation between Chinas northeast region and Russias Far East, which adjoin each other, have distinctive advantages for cooperation, setting a model for regional cooperation between the two countries.

China has become the largest partner and source of foreign investment for the Far East after years of development. It has participated in dozens of leap-forward development zones and free ports of the Far East and implemented over half of the investment projects of the district.

Development of Russias Far East is also beneficial to Chinas northeast region. Currently, the two regions have scored rich results from comprehensive cooperation in such fields as connectivity, finance, agriculture and energy.

New opportunities of regional cooperation will also be a highlight. The Russian Far East is a part of Northeast Asia, and regional countries including China, South Korea, Japan and Mongolia have been actively engaged in its construction and development.

These countries, adjacent to each other, have huge market and cooperation potential, as they are rich in resources and highly complementary in economic structure. Leaders of these countries will gather at the Fourth Eastern Economic Forum to advance cooperation.

Under the guidance of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Eurasian Economic Union, these countries have expressed stronger desire to dock their development strategies, such as South Koreas New Northern Policy and Mongolias Prairie Road Development initiative.

It is believed that the cooperation among the countries in the region will make greater contributions to pushing for open global economy and add more power to regional development.

(Ou Yi is an international affairs observer)
On Sept. 9, 2018, a teacher (left) from Ocean All-Russian Children's Center reunites with Tang Yifei, a girl traumatized in 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. The teacher showcases a photo taken with Tang 10 years ago. (Photo by Yin Xinyu from Peoples Daily)

Numerous touching stories happened over the history of China-Russia friendly exchanges, and the huge support from Russian government and people to China during the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008 is especially unforgettable, said Fan Xianrong, Minister-Counselor of Chinese Embassy in Russia.

Russia invited thousands of Chinese children from disaster-stricken areas for rehabilitation, which was definitely a laudable move, said Fan, who witnessed the helping hand extended by Russia as the then Chinese consul general in the Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk.

Ten years ago, Russia was the first country in the world to send relief materials to Chinas earthquake-hit zone. Racing against time, it also sent rescue and medical teams to the disaster areas and saved a senior Chinese from the ruins.

In late May, 2008, the Russian government sent an invitation to students from the disaster areas to Russia for rehabilitation. A total of 18 rehabilitation centers from 15 Russian states and cities applied to accept the more than 1,500 Chinese children.

Russia attached high importance to these young visitors. The All-Russian Children's Center "Ocean", one of the most famous children's camps located in the less developed Far East region of Russia, was one of the applying centers. It specifically selected some best buses in the city to pick up the Chinese children at the airport, despite the limited number of vehicles it actually owned.

There was nobody in the center that could speak Chinese, but the center still showed their love for the Chinese children traumatized in the earthquake in Chinese style.

They prepared a banner that said Sichuan, we are with you! China and Russia are friends forever! in Chinese, and consulted Fan.

It really touched me, since it indicated the sincere friendship of the Russians, Fan told Peoples Daily, adding the sincerity was the reason for them to create such inspiring banner.

Chinese is a nation that requites favors. Responding to Russias invitation, in 2010 and 2011, the Chinese government invited about a thousand of Russian elementary and middle school students to China for summer camp in Beijing, Shanghai, Dalian and Qingdao.

The ties between the Ocean All-Russian Children's Center and China have continued in the past decade, becoming an epitome of the enhanced communication and friendship between the young generations from the two countries.

According to an employee of the center, the center has witnessed expanded cooperation with China in recent years, and the communication between the young generations from the two countries is getting more frequent.

Recently, the center established regular exchange mechanisms with Chinese provinces including Heilongjiang and Shandong, the employee told Peoples Daily.

Both Chinese and Russians share a common aspiration to have the seed of friendship root, sprout, bloom and yield fruits and the traditional friendship passed on from generation to generation.
(File photo: Fu Ying)

Editor's Note: In a signed article Fu Ying, vice chairperson of the Foreign Affairs Committee of China's National People's Congress, published on Bloomberg, she expressed her views on current China-US relations. The Chinese people will stand firm against US bullying over trade, Fu said. She added that the Chinese have to stay cool-headed in the face of tough but confusing messages from the US.

"We must stay focused on China's development, and overcome our own difficulties," said Fu. The signed article is an edited version of a speech she delivered at the Asia Society last month. The following is the full text of Fu's signed article.

How Should China Respond to a Changing US?

Stand firm. Stay cool. And keep talking.

Visiting the US recently, I was told by virtually every American I met that attitudes toward China had shifted. This phenomenon, they claimed, cut across bipartisan lines as well as government, business and academic circles. The US was frustrated at not having shaped China in its own image, despite bringing the country into the World Trade Organization and helping to enable its economic takeoff. Instead, China had ripped off the US by taking advantage of it in trade and business. There was concern at how fast China was climbing up the global economic and technological ladder, and that its military was threatening to elbow out the US from Asia.

Although attitudes may have changed, I'm not convinced theyve settled yet. Judging from American history, major strategies are usually shaped through trial and error, in response to specific challenges. Consensus develops along the way. Any adjustment in the US posture toward China will therefore take time. This also means that the final outcome will be affected by how the two countries act and react in the coming months and years.

In evaluating next steps, the Chinese people first have to ask whether US criticisms are fair. It's true that economic growth hasnt produced in China a political system similar to the US. Interestingly, I recall attending an American government program in the mid-1990s designed for diplomats from developing nations. The topic was US security strategy and policy-making. I had one question: What were Americas strategic objectives for the post-Cold War era? The answer was unambiguous: to promote US-style democracy and human rights worldwide. And indeed, the US has pursued those goals consistently over the last two decades, at huge cost to itself and others.

China isnt America's only failure  nor the worst one. In fact, given whats happened to some countries since the color revolutions and the Arab Spring, the US should be thankful that its efforts havent thrown China into political turmoil and economic chaos. The fact that China has maintained social and political stability and followed its own economic path has contributed to global economic growth, especially after the 2008 financial crisis. Rather than draining US finances the way the nation-building efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan have, China has added greatly to American prosperity.

True, China's fortunes have risen as well. Taking advantage of the globalization promoted by the US and Europe, hardworking Chinese gained access to global capital, technologies, expertise and markets, all of which facilitated the growth of industry. Hundreds of millions of Chinese came out of poverty, and living standards in the country have risen substantially.

But it's important to remember two things. First, Chinese workers paid a steep cost for these developments, just as American workers did. After entering the World Trade Organization, Chinese enterprises were suddenly thrown into direct competition with global peers. Many of them didn't survive, leading to huge layoffs all over the country. At the same time, more than 2,000 laws and regulations had to be revised or abolished at the national level and about 190,000 more at the local level, causing widespread dislocation.

Second, China's gains have benefited the US as well. According to Oxford Economics, US-China trade helps each American family save $850 every year. Between 2001 and 2016, US commodities exports to China expanded five times, much higher than the 90 percent average increase. The advent of the internet of things and rapid growth in the number of Chinas middle- and upper-class consumers will offer even more opportunities for US companies. China is not only an integral part of the global economy, but also an indispensable source of growth. Any attempt to decouple it from the US or the global economy will hurt all countries, including the US.

So what should China's response be? The Chinese have to stay cool-headed in the face of tough but confusing messages from the US. We must stay focused on China's development, and overcome our own difficulties.

China is not adopting a more confrontational stance toward the US Its current attitude is part of its overall foreign policy, which is aimed at ensuring a sound environment that facilitates effective cooperation with the outside world to serve Chinas development goals. For its purposes, there's every reason for China to maintain an attitude of constructive cooperation with the US.

In fact, changes in US-China relations may help to push China's own desired reforms. Some requests raised by US companies, such as increased market access, dovetail with recommendations from China's leaders. The government is, in fact, opening up: Eight out of the 11 market-opening measures announced by President Xi Jinping in April have been put in place, covering banking, securities, insurance, credit rating, credit investigation and payment, and so on. The government is also working harder to improve the business environment and strengthen intellectual property protections for both Chinese and foreign enterprises. Chinese reformers can turn outside pressure to their advantage, using it to bust through internal resistance to necessary changes.

But make no mistake: The Chinese people will stand firm against US bullying over trade. There is talk about Chinas economy sliding down as a result of the trade war. Some expect China to succumb soon. I can tell you that this is wishful thinking.

Yes, China is in the process of deleveraging, which is uncomfortable and painful. But it is a price worth paying for sustaining healthy development. It's worth remembering that China adopted a stimulus program to help overcome the global recession triggered by the 2008 financial tsunami in the US And it's worth noting that the trade war may slow the necessary process of deleveraging.

Finger-pointing and hurting each other won't solve any problems. They will only make things worse. This is why China will continue to work with all countries, including the US, in areas of mutual concern  from climate change to transnational crime to epidemics to nuclear nonproliferation.

This is also why China should continue talking to the US. Many in China believe that the root causes of US troubles lie within  and therefore need to be solved by Americans themselves. We can see that the US system requires a major overhaul to overcome deep sociopolitical divisions and economic disparities. But that doesn't relieve China of the responsibility to engage in dialogue, to find out where the two sides can and can't agree, and to seek solutions or at least ways to manage persistent disputes.

Such an approach won't appeal to those who seek confrontation now. But, to borrow a saying, if some folks want to chase butterflies, why should the rest of us go dancing along with them?

(Compiled by Han Xiaomeng)
WARM SPRINGS, Ore.  A head-on collision in Wasco County claimed the life of a Medford man on Tuesday, leaving the other driver critically injured.

According to Oregon State Police (OSP), troopers and emergency personnel responded to the scene around 5:30 p.m. after reports of a two vehicle head-on crash along Highway 26 near milepost 74.

Investigators believe that 65-year-old Lanny Hawley of Gresham was driving a red 2000 Ford E-350 eastbound on the highway before crossing the center line for "unknown reasons." Hawley then struck 52-year-old Kyle Estes of Medford, who was driving westbound in his black 2016 GMC Terrain.

Estes died of his injuries at the scene of the crash. Hawley survived, and was airlifted to a trauma hospital in Bend with critical injuries.

OSP says that Hwy 26 remained closed for about six hours following the crash.

Estes is the second Medford man to die in a crash on Hwy 26 in Oregon within the past week.
A few visitors look out into the Pacific Ocean from the coastal town of Poneloya, Nicaragua, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. Economists estimate that since the unrest started in April, 200,000 jobs have been shed, including as many as 70,000 in the tourism sector, which has become Nicaragua's top source of foreign currency in the past two years. (AP Photo/Alfredo Zuniga)
Participants in the second annual Be the Light event Monday evening at the Polson Park bandshell in Vernon form a circle of remembrance around a tree under which they had placed lanterns.
P.E.I. Premier Wade MacLauchlan, left, chats with Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen at a meeting of the Atlantic Growth Strategy Leadership Committee in Summerside, P.E.I., on July 10, 2018. Prince Edward Island's government is scrapping a controversial business immigration program where participants have drawn federal investigations for allegedly never settling on the Island. In a news release today the province says it will no longer accept applications from immigrants looking to set up a business on the Island in entrepreneur stream of the Provincial Nominee Program. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan
Sebelum Anda bermain, Anda perlu mengetahui apa yang Anda butuhkan untuk masuk ke dalam permainan roulette kasino online ini. Jika Anda sudah mendaftar di situs judi casino online dan sudah memberikan user ID, login terlebih dahulu dan pilih menu live casino yang tertera di situs judi tersebut. Pertama pilih dealer dan putuskan sendiri, lalu pilih meja atau kursi di dalam ruangan. Jika namanya tertera dan berwarna coklat, maka kursi tersebut sudah ditempati oleh pemain lain, dan pilihlah kursi kosong berwarna hitam.

Kasino Roulette adalah salah satu permainan paling populer di situs perjudian kasino. Jadi dalam permainan ini kamu harus menebak angka berapa yang akan keluar. Ada 36 nomor berbeda dalam permainan populer ini di mana sebuah bola kecil diputar dan dilemparkan ke dalam mesin roulette. Anda harus menebak dari mana bola kecil itu masuk dan di nomor berapa ia berhenti. Ada banyak jenis pilihan angka dari 0-36, dan mereka dihitung secara berbeda. Sebagai agen casino terpercaya, panduan permainan roulette ini juga memberikan informasi tentang jenis pilihan dan nama permainan roulette casino online sebagai berikut:

Jika Anda ingin bermain roulette di situs kasino online, caranya sangat sederhana. Anda dapat bermain di Kasino ION, Kasino Sbobet, dan Situs Kasino. Di bawah ini adalah artikel panduan bermain di mana Anda dapat mempelajari roulette langsung dan memainkannya di situs judi online mana pun.

tangkapan layar

Sebelum Anda bermain, Anda perlu mengetahui apa yang Anda butuhkan untuk masuk ke dalam permainan roulette kasino online ini. Jika Anda sudah mendaftar di situs judi casino online dan sudah memberikan user ID, login terlebih dahulu dan pilih menu live casino yang tertera di situs judi online tersebut. Pertama pilih dealer dan putuskan sendiri, lalu pilih meja atau kursi di dalam ruangan. Jika namanya tertera dan berwarna coklat, maka kursi tersebut sudah ditempati oleh pemain lain, dan pilihlah kursi kosong berwarna hitam.

Panduan Bermain Online Kasino Roulette

Kasino Roulette adalah salah satu permainan paling populer di situs perjudian kasino. Jadi dalam permainan ini kamu harus menebak angka berapa yang akan keluar. Ada 36 nomor berbeda dalam permainan populer ini di mana sebuah bola kecil diputar dan dilemparkan ke dalam mesin roulette. Anda harus menebak dari mana bola kecil itu masuk dan di nomor berapa ia berhenti. Ada banyak jenis pilihan angka dari 0-36, dan mereka dihitung secara berbeda. Sebagai agen casino terpercaya, panduan permainan roulette ini juga memberikan informasi tentang jenis pilihan dan nama permainan roulette casino online sebagai berikut:

1. Straight Up: Penempatan angka tunggal dari 0 hingga 36. Contoh perhitungan straight up adalah mengalikan taruhan dengan 35. Ini adalah jenis taruhan tertinggi dalam permainan roulette kasino, jadi 50 dikalikan dengan 35 memberi Anda 1750, mengapa jenis taruhan ini menghasilkan pengembalian yang begitu tinggi? Hal ini karena tidak mudah untuk memenangkan pilihan nomor dengan memilih hanya satu nomor dari banyak.

2. Taruhan split: Jenis taruhan yang ditempatkan pada dua angka atau di antara dua angka yang berbeda. Misalnya, menempatkan di sela-sela angka 9 dan 12 atau 13d dan 14 dihitung sebagai jenis taruhan split. Setiap nomor dapat ditempatkan dalam jenis ini selama nomor tersebut berdekatan dan persis seperti Gambar A dan B. Untuk taruhan ini, jika Anda memenangkan contoh dan mengalikannya dengan 850, Anda akan menerima jumlah taruhan yang dikalikan dengan 17. .

3. Taruhan jalanan: bertaruh dengan 3 angka ke bawah, misalnya 1,2,3 atau 10,11,12. Semua taruhan jalan akan menerima kemenangan dikalikan dengan 11. Misalnya, 50 dikalikan 550.

4. Taruhan sudut: Jenis taruhan di mana empat angka ditempatkan saling berhadapan, seperti 13,14,16,17 atau 19,20,22,23. Semua angka valid karena terdiri dari 4 angka yang diisi seperti kotak dan taruhan dikalikan 8 (misalnya 50 kali 800).

5. Taruhan baris: Atau, Anda dapat mengatakan bahwa ada 6 jenis taruhan yang terdiri dari 2 baris, tetapi 6 poin dengan 2 peregangan, seperti taruhan jalanan. Misalnya, jika Anda memilih angka 7 hingga 12 dan 13 hingga 18, taruhan 50 adalah 5 kali dan kemudian dikalikan dengan 250 kemenangan.

6. Kolom Inner Bet: Jenis taruhan vertikal dengan 12 poin berturut-turut, seperti kolom numerik 1,4,7,10,13,19,22,25,25,28,22,24,34 atau kolom lainnya. Dan jika dia memenangkan kolom, 50 taruhan digandakan dan 100 taruhan.

7. Lusin : Jenis taruhan menempatkan 12 angka tetapi menempatkannya pada kotak berbentuk seperti contoh Kolom A dengan angka 1 sampai 12 dan odds dengan kolom lain untuk dipilih dengan memilih 1 kotak pertama untuk Kolom A. Kalikan dengan 2, 50 taruhan 100.

8. Zero part : Cara bertaruh 0.1,2,3 sama persis seperti di gambar, karena berdekatan dengan angka 0, anda hanya bisa bertaruh 0.1,2,3. Menempatkan taruhan ini mengalikannya dengan 50. hingga 8.

9. Zero Corner: Bertaruh pada angka 0.1,2 atau 0.2,3 adalah dua pilihan karena Anda hanya bertaruh mendekati angka nol. Jenis taruhan ini dikalikan 11 jika taruhan menang.

10. Two Dozen: Jenis taruhan dengan hanya dua pilihan: 1-18 atau 19-36. Jika taruhan Anda adalah 50, itu dikalikan dengan 1 hingga 50 jika Anda menang.

11. Merah atau Hitam: Masukkan taruhan Anda dengan memilih Merah atau Hitam sebagai warna angka yang muncul saat taruhan 50.

12. Genap/Ganjil: Pilih angka yang menghasilkan jumlah jenis taruhan ganjil.
The Gaofen-5 satellite is launched off the back of a Long March 4C rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Shanxi Province at 2:28 a.m. Beijing Time on Wednesday, May 9, 2018. [Photo: China Plus]

The traffic jams in Bangkok, Thailand's capital, are known to be some of the worst in the world. However, that could soon be a thing of the past, thanks to Chinas Beidou Navigation System, as China sets out to develop a high-precision positioning system for the city, Chinanews.com reported recently.

China is working on a high-precision navigation tool for an intelligent transportation system in Bangkok, said Wu Yirong, director of the Aerospace Information Research Institute under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He spoke at the China-ASEAN Forum on Building a Belt and Road Spatial Information Corridor, which was held on September 11, 2018, in Nanning, capital of south Chinas Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

While at the forum, Wu Yanhua, vice director of China National Space Administration, revealed that China now has over 200 satellites in orbit, providing services in areas including communication, navigation, remote sensing, and space science.

China has signed more than 30 cooperative agreements with 15 Belt and Road countries and regions, and will strive to contribute Chinese solutions to ASEAN countries, added the vice director.

According to Wu, China will make efforts to promote the construction of infrastructure, public platform and industrial development of satellite application, and speed up international cooperation on the peaceful use of outer space, to provide support for the spatial information development of ASEAN countries.

Chinas new generation geostationary orbit optical remote sensing satellite, Gaofen-4, can now provide ASEAN countries with disaster prevention and mitigation services, said the vice director.

He disclosed that the China-ASEAN Remote Sensing Satellite Data Sharing and Service Platform had already provided technical support for logistics management in Cambodia, agricultural and forestry management in Laos, and port management in Singapore.

Wu also pointed out that the data receiving and distribution system of Chinas Fengyun series satellites has dramatically improved the comprehensive capabilities of many ASEAN countries in meteorological monitoring and disaster prevention.

"China has cutting edge satellite technology, and can provide off-the-shelf services in telecommunications, internet, industrial and agricultural production for ASEAN countries who dont have satellites, said Mr. Vincent Wong Wai Sang, CEO of the Malaysian Innovation Hub.

Wang divulged that Malaysia would carry out closer cooperation with China in the field of spatial information to meet the needs of ASEAN's economic development and benefit people in the region.

The assistant executive director of Thailands Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency is also looking forward to the cooperation with China. He said that Chinese satellites could provide accurate and comprehensive real-time data for Thailand, which will bring tangible benefits to their work in smart city construction, major project planning, as well as disaster prevention and mitigation.
The Arab Quartet Ministerial Committee met in Cairo on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Arab League's 150th ordinary session to discuss ways to counter Irans continued interference in the domestic affairs of Arab countries.

The committee denounced Iranian officials provocative anti-Arab statements, as well as its policies of stirring sectarianism and arming groups and militias in some Arab countries, which threatens Arab national security and obstructs regional and international efforts to resolve the conflicts in a peaceful way.

The Arab Quartet consists of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE. It was formed in mid-2017 as a diplomatic bloc to coordinate political stances against terrorism and foreign interference in Arab countries' affairs.

The quartet renewed condemnation to the Iranian support to hostile acts in the Arab region, including the firing of ballistic missiles against Saudi Arabia from inside Yemeni territories. It also condemned the Iranian intervention in the kingdom of Bahrain, including presenting support to ' evil cells', which are undermining the security in the kingdom.

The Arab Quartet voiced concern over Iran's commitment to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), doubting its capability of preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons in the future, especially given Tehran's current hostile policies in the region.

The quartet also condemned the Iranian and Turkish interference in the Syrian crisis, warning of the serious repercussions it has on Syria's future, sovereignty, security, independence, national unity and territorial integrity.

It also expressed support to the Kingdom of Morocco's decision to cut diplomatic ties with Iran over Tehran's intervention in the kingdom's internal affairs and undermining its safety and stability.

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VENTURA, Iowa - Some residents are wanting drivers to slow down when driving through town.

A petition was delivered by a resident during during the August 27th city council meeting to address a speeding problem on West Lake Street. The Clear Lake Police Department, which also serves Ventura, installed a speed trailer in response.

Mayor Joe Schmit was at the meeting, and notes that there have been some issues in the past with people driving too fast on the street, including on East Lake Street next to where he puts docks in the lake.

"When you come up from the lake to cross the road, that's definitely a blindside corner, so it makes it real risky for especially young kids. Parents have gotta make sure they got their hands on 'em so that they don't step out on the street without checking it because they definitely can be come cruising around there."

He says the city has been proactive in getting drivers to slow down, such as adding speed cameras on entrances into town.

"We have our own for the city that's there, and then plus they did that one [the speed trailer]. And they've increased some of their presence with police cars and stuff like that. I think it's definitely helped a bunch that way."

Schmit adds that on East Lake Street, the city recently installed a larger speed bump called a speed table, and are currently testing it and asking for public feedback to see if they should add additional ones.
ROCHESTER, Minn.  Civilians and emergency personnel moved to help someone standing on the edge of a bridge Tuesday afternoon.

The Rochester Fire Department says it was called to the 41st Street bridge over Highway 52 just before 2:30 pm. Firefighters arrived to find three people standing outside the protective fence along the bridge. The Fire Department says two people had gone outside the fence to assist a rescue victim. Law enforcement and other people on the bridge then helped those two until emergency crews made it to the scene.

A ladder truck was set up and firefighters used webbing to hold the three people on the edge of the bridge until the trucks bucket could reach them. All three people were safely removed from the bridge.

Rochester police, the Minnesota State Patrol, and Gold Cross Ambulance assisted with this incident.
Egypt has slammed the European Union's criticism of a recent Egyptian court ruling sentencing dozens of people to death as "subjective" and failing to respect the rule of law.

An Egyptian court sentenced 75 people to death earlier this week including prominent leaders of the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood group in a mass trial over a 2013 sit-in.

Maja Kocijancic, the EU spokeswoman for foreign affairs and security policy said on Tuesday "the circumstances of this mass trial cast serious doubts on the respect of due process and in particular the defendants' rights to a fair trial."

Egypt said the comments represent "a persistent approach of subjective positions of the commission, and ultimate judgments driven by bias and deviation from the principles of respect for the rule of law and judicial authorities," the foreign ministry said in a statement late on Tuesday.

"Egypt will continue to abide by the principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries in line with the Charter of the United Nations, which shall be respected by all members of the international community, including the European Commission," the statement added.

The sentencing on Saturday included prison terms for more than 600 others in a mass trial in which people face charges of murder and inciting violence during the pro-Muslim Brotherhood sit-in at Rabaa Adawiya square in Cairo. The court decision can still be appealed.



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CLEAR LAKE, Iowa- Tuesday marks the 17th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centers. Each year North Iowans, including Scott Kennedy of Clear Lake, pay their respects with a monument that is from the Ground Zero.

Its a very good remembrance for us, he said. My father served in WWII and we have strong feelings for those who served our country and that piece is a remembrance of their importance and that we do need them.

The piece is one of over 14 hundred that have been spread out across the United States. The idea is to give those who cant make it to the memorial in New York a chance to remember the events in their own home town.
GOODHUE COUNTY, Minn.  A Mower County driver is not injured after a two-vehicle accident Tuesday in Goodhue County.

The Minnesota State Patrol says an SUV driven by Peggy Gay Nelson, 76 of Kenyon, was stopped at the intersection of Highway 52 and County Road 8, then pulled in front of a southbound pickup truck driven by Vicky Jean Hardecopf, 53 of Dexter. The collision happened around 8:43 pm.

Hardecopf was not harmed but Nelson suffered non-life threatening injuries and was taken to Cannon Falls Hospital for treatment. The State Patrol says both drivers were wearing their seat belts.

The Goodhue County Sheriffs Office and Cannon Falls Ambulance assisted at the scene.
CLAREMONT, Minn.  Rachel Harberts and her two children were on their way to school Friday.

They were waiting on Highway 14 to turn left onto County Road 3 and were struck from behind, killing Emerson Harberts.

You dont expect it, especially when you just see someone three days ago and you had plans to go boating that weekend, says Rachels sister-in law Kelsy Flowers. You just dont think thats going to happen.

Flowers says shes left wondering if she could have done something to prevent the collision and save her eight-year-old nieces life.

You read comments like, it happens all the time on that County Road E and there needs to be a turn off, says Flowers. Thats why they started making Highway 14 a four-lane the whole way and thats the last section thats a two-lane from Dodge Center to Owatonna.

Earlier this year, the Minnesota Department of Transportation received more funding for the Highway 14 expansion project. The MnDOT map shows it will expand the highway to four lanes from Owatonna to Dodge Center, a move that looks to improve safety and mobility but cant ensure it.

If you move a vehicle out of the main traveling lane, says Mike Dougherty of MnDOT,  that does reduce risk but then it gets back to how attentive are the drivers ,what are the conditions, can everybody see, is everybody traveling at a safe speed?

The first roadblock for the $143 million project was funding. Now, its time as construction will start either next fall or the following spring and take two years to completea wait that has the Harberts family wanting to remind others to never take life for granted.

Hug those loved ones tight, says Flowers, because you just never know when theyre going to be taken away from you.
MASON CITY, Iowa- Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds made a stop in Mason City on Tuesday to recognize First Citizens bank for its participation in the Give Back Iowa challenge.

Each year, businesses are encouraged to get their employees excited about volunteerism and log the hours they volunteer in their community for the months of April and May.

For the third year in a row, First Citizens Bank is being honored for its efforts. Those with the bank say this year they recorded 2,335.9 hours volunteered, an increase from years previous.

According to the Governors Office, they arent alone in racking up volunteer hours. Across the state, 23 groups joined the challenge for a total of 83,000 volunteer hours. Governor Reynolds says they hope First Citizens Banks efforts will encourage more businesses to volunteer next year.

Hopefully them winning three years in a row and laying down the gauntlet will encourage other business owners to get out and let their employees volunteer, said Gov. Reynolds.

Those with First Citizens Bank say they will log their hours next year, but will not be participating in the challenge so that another company can step up and be recognized.
ST. PAUL, Minn.  Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson is launching a sex assault investigation work group.

Sexual assault is a horrendous crime, and the survivors deserve justice and compassion, says Swanson. The goal is for this work group to develop legislative and policy recommendations before the start of the next legislative session for improvements to the criminal justice systems response to these crimes. I thank the members of the work group for their willingness to serve.

The Work Group consists of:

- Barb Johnson, Chair. Ms. Johnson served as President of the Minneapolis City Council for 12 years, beginning in 2006, and previously worked as a registered nurse.

- Dr. Mark Hudson is the Medical Director at the Midwest Childrens Resource Center, a child advocacy center and clinic in St. Paul. Dr. Hudson has been an expert witness in abuse cases.

- Lisa Lovering is the Chief Deputy at the Isanti County Sheriffs Office. Chief Deputy Lovering is an experienced sex crime investigator. She has been a deputy sheriff since 1994, and held the positions of investigator and patrol sergeant before becoming chief deputy in 2015.

- Nicole Matthews is the Executive Director of the Minnesota Indian Womans Sexual Assault Coalition, a victim advocacy agency representing native American women throughout Minnesota.

- Dr. Carolyn Porta is a professor and Director of Global Health at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing. Dr. Porta is also a practicing sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE nurse).

- Teri Walker McLaughlin is the Executive Director of the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault, a victim advocacy agency in St. Paul dedicated to preventing sexual violence and providing resources and support to victims and criminal justice agencies.

- Elizabeth Richards is the Executive Director for the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women, a victim advocacy agency in St. Paul committed to social justice.

- Paul Schnell is the Inver Grove Heights Police Chief. Chief Schnell has over 25 years of policing experience, including providing training on investigating crimes of violence against women. Chief Schnell previously served as Chief of Police for Maplewood and Hastings.

- Nichole Sipes is a Sergeant with the St. Paul Police Department. Sgt. Sipes has been a police officer for over 10 years and is a veteran sex crimes investigator.

- Paul Young is the Criminal Division Chief at the Anoka County Attorneys Office. Mr. Young has been a career prosecutor for 25 years.

He served Anoka County as Violent Crime Chief from 2006 to 2015 before becoming Criminal Division Chief.

Swanson says Minnesota does not have mandated training or uniform policies for the investigation of sexual assault cases, unlike some states, even though they are some of the most difficult and complicated cases our law enforcement agencies face. She says the Work Group may explore best practices, more modern and innovative training programs, and better allocation of resources.
GARNER, Iowa - The Hancock County Board of Supervisors is discussing ways to make the county courhouse safer and more secure for both the public and employees.

At last Tuesday's supervisors meeting, County Attorney Blake Norman discussed the addition of bullet-resistant glass, a service window and a secured door system to his office.

The week before, County Communications Director Andy Buffington, who is also in charge of Zoning and E911 for the county, presented his security recommendations to the board.

Buffington is also part of the safety committee, and says a recent all-department active shooter drill highlighted some gaps when it came to security. He adds that the changes should be done in a way to keep the building operational.

"One of the things that really came to light was people have access right into that office from counter top height. One of the things is we want to be sensitive too, so that folks that do come in for normal business at the courthouse are still able to conduct that business and it's not imposing to them," Buffington said. "We're open records. There's really not a whole lot that we have here that people don't have the right to be able to examine. But at the same time, we don't want just unfettered access in. It could be for somebody who wants to do violence, but that would be a very low as far as probability or possibility."

Buffington adds that there is no set timeline yet for the modifications, as it is dependent on the Board's decision and if funding is available. He adds that some exterior doors were recently equipped with electronic locking systems, with interior doors to be modified as well that are expected to be completed by the end of the month.
MASON CITY, Iowa  Law enforcement says it found over 200 grams of marijuana at a North Iowa mans home.

Authorities executed a search warrant on April 27 at the home of Timothy Charles Cassady in the 400 block of 1st Street NE in Mason City. They say they found 214 grams of pot in several different plastic bags. Court records say eight of the bags contained an ounce of marijuana, common packaging for drug sales.

Law enforcement says the search also turned up several pills of hydrocodone biratrate and oxycodone hydrochloride, a baggie containing 2.2 grams of methamphetamine, and two small vials containing liquid testosterone.

Cassady was arrested on August 28 and charged with a controlled substance violation, unlawful possession of a prescription drug, possession of meth-1st offense, possession of a controlled substance-1st offense, and failure to use a drug tax stamp. He was booked into the Cerro Gordo County Jail and posted $20,000 bond.

Court records say Cassady has two prior drug convictions but both were at least 18 years old.
OLMSTED COUNTY, Minn.  A two-vehicle crash east of Byron Tuesday afternoon killed one person.

It took place around 4:21 pm at the intersection of Highway 14 and County Road 3. The Minnesota State Patrol says as 16-year-old male driver was heading south and trying to cross Highway 14 when he collided with the eastbound vehicle driven by Scott Alan Gifford, 60 of Byron.

The 16-year-old driver and Gifford were taken to St. Marys Hospital. Gifford suffered what are described as non-life threatening injuries. The 16-year-olds injuries are not being described but he was not wearing his seat belt.

The State Patrol says a passenger in the teenage drivers vehicle, Michael OConnor Hendrix, 18 of Beroun, died in the crash.

The Olmsted County Sheriffs Office, Byron Fire Department, and Gold Cross Ambulance assisted at the scene.
RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept 11 (Reuters) - A Brazilian court ruled that a mine planned by Toronto-based Belo Sun Mining Corp in the Amazonian state of Para should be examined by federal authorities and its licenses reviewed, prosecutors said on Tuesday.

The decision could further lengthen the approval process for the company, which has been seeking to set up Brazil's biggest gold mine just upstream of the massive Belo Monte hydroelectric dam on a tributary of the Amazon River. The company had forecast outlays of 1.22 billion reais ($293 million) over three years.

In April last year, a federal judge suspended its license until the miner conducted a study of the mine's impact on nearby indigenous communities. The project had already been blocked by a state judge due to irregularities in the acquisition of land for the mine, according to prosecutors.

In the decision announced Wednesday, the court said the relevant indigenous authority was federal rather than state-based, and that the nearby dam was licensed by federal environmental authority Ibama.

Ibama should review all the licenses previously granted to the mine, it added.

Belo Sun said its state licenses "remain valid" and that it will seek clarification from the justice system and environmental authorities. It also said data was being collected for its study on indigenous community impacts.

($1 = 4.1521 reais)

(Reporting by Marta Nogueira; Writing by Alexandra Alper, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

Reuters Messaging: alexandra.alper.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net -
(Kitco News) - China will play a major role in the global silver market for years to come, both as an industrial user and a silver miner, said the Silver Institute in a report released Wednesday.

The report, titled Prospects for the Chinese Silver Market, was released at the 17th China International Silver Conference in Shenzhen. The report was researched and prepared by the London-based precious-metals consultancy Metals Focus.

The report called China by far the largest consumer of silver globally, accounting for 18% of global fabrication demand in recent years. Further, it said that China is the third-largest silver-producing country, as well as a key nation for processing primary raw materials from around the world.

Chinas photovoltaic demand for silver in solar applications rose in recent years to an estimated 65 million ounces in 2017, the report said. In fact, more than 70% of global solar panel production takes place in China and local powder fabricators can only provide a portion of the powder and paste for manufacturing, therefore relying on imported silver to fulfill requirements.

Although policy changes will most likely see volumes decline modestly this year, the long-term uptrend is expected to resume in 2019, assisted by still sizable local installations and strong sales abroad, the Silver Institute said.

Additionally, growth across a wide range of end-use applications is fortifying electronic and electrical demand, the report said.

Significant areas of growth include touch panels, light emitting diodes and equipment used in electricity generation, the Silver Institute said. Chinese consumption of silver for electronic and electrical uses was estimated at 78 million ounces in 2017 and is forecast to grow modestly this year.

The report also calls for gains in demand for brazing applications that rely on silver during the years ahead as the country remains focused on developing its infrastructure. Brazing alloys and solders accounted for 24 million ounces of silver demand in 2017.

A wide range of end-use applications, including railway infrastructure development, increasing car sales, refrigeration and air conditioning should fuel this growth, the Silver Institute said.

Jewelry and silverware demand has fallen in China during recent years, with combined fabrication reaching 29 million ounces last year, the report said. However, the authors of the report also said they believe the end of this downtrend is near, with silverware already turning the corner and silver-jewelry demand expected to start growing again around 2020.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry discussed combating terrorism and dealing with regional supporters of terrorist organizations during talks with his Saudi counterpart Adel Al-Jubeir in Cairo on Tuesday.

Shoukry urged "coordination between the two countries in the face of the dangers besetting the Arab region, namely external interference in Arab affairs and the aggravation of...terrorism and extremist ideology," a statement by Egypt's foreign ministry said.

The Egyptian minister also called for working to "dry up sources of funding for terrorist groups and dealing with regional parties supporting them," the statement added, without elaborating.

Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE severed diplomatic and transport links with Doha in June 2017, accusing the oil-rich state of supporting terrorism and meddling in their internal affairs, sparking the region's worst diplomatic dispute in years. Doha denies that charge leveled against it and says the boycott is an attempt to curtail its sovereignty.

The duo also talked about the crises in Syria and Yemen and thawing relations across the Horn of Africa, following Eritrea's rapprochement with Ethiopia, the statement said

Saudi state news agency SPA said the two leaders discussed "bilateral relations between the two countries in various fields."

The meeting was held on the sidelines of an Arab League meeting convened to drum up support for the UN agency that helps Palestinian refugees after a shortfall caused by a US aid cutoff.

Shoukry also met Tuesday with his Kuwaiti counterpart Sheikh Sabah Khaled al-Sabah. The pair discussed "promoting joint Arab action, confronting external interference in Arab affairs, and ways to unite Arabs," the Egyptian foreign ministry said in a separate statement.

The Egyptian minister held bilateral talks earlier on the day with Jordanian and Iraqi counterparts where the officials discussed mutual cooperation and regional issues.



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(Adds detail from interview)

By David Milliken

LONDON, Sept 12 (Reuters) - China's financial system poses one of the bigger risks to global financial stability, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said in an interview with the BBC to mark the 10th anniversary of the global financial crisis.

Carney also cited domestic risks to Britain from Brexit, a further significant rise in household debt and cyber-attacks on the banking system, risks the BoE has previously highlighted in regular reports on Britain's financial stability.

In its last report in June, the BoE hit back at European Union concerns that banks operating in Britain were poorly prepared for the risk that the country leaves the EU in March next year without any kind of transition deal. "One of the bigger risks for the global economy are developments in China," Carney said in an extract of the interview released on Wednesday on the BBC's website.

"China is a great source of growth in the global economy, an economic miracle -- lots of positives. At the same time their financial sector has developed very rapidly, and it has many of the same assumptions that were made in the run-up to the last financial crisis," he added.

A new financial crisis on the scale of that which started in the United States a decade ago could not be ruled out if bankers and regulators grew complacent, Carney warned.

"Could something like this happen again?" he said. "Could there be a trigger for a crisis -- if we're complacent, of course it could."

However, British banks were now required to hold significantly more capital to protect themselves and the public against downturns than was the case 10 years ago, he added.

(Reporting by David Milliken; Editing by Kim Coghill and Clarence Fernandez)

Messaging: david.milliken.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
(Adds details, quotes after speech)

STRASBOURG, Sept 12 (Reuters) - European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called on Wednesday for the European Union to promote the euro as a global currency to challenge the U.S. dollar.

"We must do more to allow our single currency to play its full role on the international scene," Juncker told the European Parliament in Strasbourg as he presented his annual programme.

"It is absurd that Europe pays for 80 percent of its energy import bill  worth 300 billion euros a year  in U.S. dollars when only roughly 2 percent of our energy imports come from the United States," he said.

"It is absurd that European companies buy European planes in dollars instead of euro," he added.

While Norway prices its substantial supplies to the EU in euros, an EU official said, other countries use dollars. Among the most important of these are Gulf states and Russia.

"The euro must become the face and the instrument of a new, more sovereign Europe," Juncker said, as he called for the bloc to become more of a global player and exert more influence internationally with a unified stance.

(Reporting by Alastair Macdonald; editing by Philip Blenkinsop)

alastair.macdonald.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
* China c.bank trying to coax banks to lend as economy cools* Aug loans 1.28 trln yuan, less than f'cast but up sharply y/y

* Corporate loan demand weaker, consumer lending rises

* Aug M2 money supply up 8.2 pct y/y, vs f'cast of 8.5 pct

* Aug TSF 1.52 trln yuan, vs 1.04 trillion yuan in July

(Adds analyst comment, details)

By Kevin Yao and Fang Cheng

BEIJING, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Chinese banks made fewer new loans in August than expected, highlighting problems facing the central bank as it tries to boost credit to smaller companies facing weaker demand at home and shrinking export orders.

With U.S. trade duties threatening to ratchet up pressure on China's already slowing economy, its policymakers have shifted focus in recent months to growth-boosting measures, pushing banks to lend more and bringing down financing costs.

Chinese banks extended 1.28 trillion yuan ($186.40 billion) in net new yuan loans in August, according to data released by the People's Bank of China (PBOC) on Wednesday.

Analysts polled by Reuters had predicted an August tally of 1.3 trillion yuan, down from July's 1.45 trillion yuan but nearly 20 percent more than the same month last year.

"Financing demand is relatively weak as firms are unwilling to borrow," said Luo Yunfeng, chief analyst at Merchants Securities in Beijing.

Corporate lending fell from July, while household loans picked up sharply, suggesting banks are taking on more exposure to relatively safer consumer loans as corporate credit quality deteriorates along with the slowing economy.

Corporate loans fell to 612.7 billion yuan in August from 650.1 billion yuan a month earlier.

Household loans, mostly mortgages, rose to 701.2 billion yuan in August from 634.4 billion yuan in July. Household loans also accounted for 54.8 percent of total new loans in August, versus 43.8 percent in the preceding month.

Adding to signs of fading credit confidence, analysts pointed to a sharp rise in banks' bill financing amid suspicion that they are seeking to expand their loan books with such short-term loans to limit default risks.

Bill financing jumped to 409.9 billion yuan in August, accounting for nearly a third of new loans and up from 238.8 billion yuan in July.

Broad M2 money supply grew 8.2 percent in August from a year earlier. Analysts had expected it to rise 8.5 percent, matching July's pace.

Outstanding yuan loans grew 13.2 percent from a year earlier, matching expectations and in line with July.

POLICY SHIFTING TOWARD STIMULUS, LOOSENING

To head off a sharper slowdown in the economy and weather the U.S. trade row, China is ramping up infrastructure spending and pumping ample liquidity into the financial system to guide borrowing rates lower.

The central bank also is trying to encourage banks to keep lending to struggling small and mid-sized private firms, which traditionally have a tougher time accessing affordable funding than their larger, state-owned peers.

Regulators reportedly said in August they would encourage banks to roll over loans to smaller firms without requiring repayment of principal.

But China's commercial banks are increasingly cautious. Non-performing loans jumped sharply for smaller banks in the second quarter and corporate bond defaults are on the rise, even as Beijing tries to maintain a broader clampdown on riskier lending and prevent another explosive jump in debt.

At least 13 lenders, including 10 rural commercial banks, have had their credit ratings cut or outlooks downgraded to negative since the start of 2017, according to a Reuters analysis in July.

MORE SUPPORT MEASURES EXPECTED

With the Trump administration expected to trigger more tariffs against Beijing at any time, and possibly extend them to cover virtually all of China's exports to the United States, analysts are pencilling in more fiscal and monetary policy support measures in coming months.

The PBOC has already cut banks' reserve requirement ratios (RRR) three times so far this year, with at least one more RRR cut expected in 2018.

TO be sure, total new bank loans in the first eight months of the year jumped nearly 19 percent from a year earlier to 11.76 trillion yuan. That is well on track to set a new full-year record, eclipsing last year's 13.53 trillion yuan.

But increased bank lending has barely compensated for shrinking off-balance sheet shadow loans, which have been one of the major targets of regulators as they seek to reduce systemic financial risks.

Shadow lending has been an important source of funds for cash-starved private firms.

Combined trust loans, entrusted loans and undiscounted bankers' acceptances, which are common forms of shadow banking finance, fell by 267.4 billion yuan in August, following a slide of 1.75 trillion yuan in the first seven months.

Annual growth in outstanding total social financing (TSF), a broad measure of credit which includes off-balance sheet forms of financing, slowed to 10.1 percent in August, the lowest on record, from July's 10.3 percent.

TSF did rise to 1.52 trillion yuan in August from 1.04 trillion yuan in July. Capital Economics believes that a sharp jump in local government bond issuance supported the monthly reading, but said the pace is not sustainable given they are close to hitting their annual quotas.

"Policymakers will soon need to turn to other measures, such as further monetary easing or a relaxation of constraints on off-budget local government borrowing, in order to put a floor beneath credit growth and help prop up economic activity," senior China economist Julian Evans-Pritchard said in a note.

(Reporting by Kevin Yao and Cheng Fang; Editing by Kim Coghill)
(Adds quote by President Kabila)

KOLWEZI, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sept 12 (Reuters) - D emocratic Republic of Congo's mines minister said on Wednesday that a new mining code signed into law in March that hikes royalties and taxes cannot be called into question.

Addressing a mining conference in the copper and cobalt-mining city of Kolwezi, Martin Kabwelulu called on industry leaders to work to implement the code as it was promulgated by President Joseph Kabila.

Major mining companies including Glencore and Randgold bitterly opposed the code, which axes tax exemptions and hikes royalties and profit taxes. They have been holding out hope it might be watered down in further negotiations.

"It is not the place of any participating party, whether civil society, mining companies or even the government to try to call into question the text governing the mining sector," Kabwelulu said.

Kabila addressed the conference later, urging all parties to implement the new code. He also called on mining companies to explore beyond their existing concessions, most of which were state-owned before being privatised over the past two decades.

"I call on investors to move beyond the comfort of the land and concessions that were ceded to them by different state companies ... to take real risks by exploiting the rest of the country," he said.

Companies say the new code's tax hikes and cancelling of 10-year exemptions for existing projects against changes to the previous fiscal and customs regimes breach previous agreements with the government and will deter further investment.

Congo is Africa's top copper producer and the world's leading miner of cobalt, a mineral which has seen a surge in demand to manufacture electric car batteries.

Other major mining companies with investments in Congo include AngloGold Ashanti , Ivanhoe Mines, China Molybdenum , Zijin Mining and MMG.

(Reporting by Aaron Ross and Amedee Mwarabu Writing by Sofia Christensen, Editing by Tim Cocks, Matthew Mpoke Bigg, William Maclean)
The seminar was chaired by Maya Morsi, head of Egypt's National Council for Women, who said Egypt had made great strides on women's rights

Egypt has achieved many great strides in legislation on womens rights, Maya Morsi, the head of the National Council for Women, said at a seminar on womens rights in Egypt, Bahrain in Qatar on Wednesday.

The seminar took place on the sidelines of the 39th session of the International Council for Human Rights in Geneva.

Morsi, who chaired the seminar, said that women in Egypt currently hold 25 percent of leading positions and decision-making circles, adding that the 2014 Egyptian constitution laid down the principles of citizenship in terms of rights and duties, and that 2017 was the Year of the Egyptian Woman, during which the 2030 Womens Development Strategy was put in place.

The 30 June revolution in 2013 preserved womens rights from being lost as a result of extremist groups ideologies, Morsi added.

The seminar also discussed the forced displacement of the Tawergha tribe in Libya and the process of revoking citizenship from members of the Al-Ghufran tribe in Qatar, as well as terrorism and its impact on the human rights situation in Yemen, Syria, Libya, Iraq, and Egypt.

Out of some 200 judges, there are only two female judges serving in Qatar, commented Said Abdel-Hafez, the chairman of the Forum for Development and Human Rights Dialogue, an Egyptian organisation.

The UN Committee on the on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has called on Qatar to define racial discrimination in its legislation, he said.

Article 12 of Qatar's Nationality Law, no. 38 of 2005, recognises racial discrimination against non-Qataris, while Article 16 of the same law affirms the unequal status between citizens of Qatari origin and naturalised citizen, said Abdel-Hafez, also a consultant to the human rights committee of the Egyptian parliament.

The Qatari National Human Rights Committee, a government committee, has reported blatant discrimination between men and women in Qatar, Abdel-Hafez concluded.

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The Egyptian Organization for Human Rights (EOHR), a non-governmental body, has refuted claims of forced disappearances in Egypt while calling on lawmakers to tighten oversight over state security service regarding the matter.

According to EOHR President Hafez Abu Seada, the interior ministry said 500 people, out of a total of 700 who were reported to have been forcedly disappeared in complaints received by the organization since 2015, are detained pending trials.

Other cases included people who turned out to belong to terrorist groups and have been announced martyrs by their groups for taking part in terrorist attacks, or people who have illegally immigrated from the country, Seada said.

Seada made the remarks during a seminar on forced disappearances in Egypt held on the sidelines of the 39th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Wednesday.

Egyptian authorities have in recent years faced accusations from international rights groups of using enforced disappearance as a key instrument to stifle dissent. Authorities have repeatedly denied the allegations.

Seada urged the Egyptian government to respond to all complaints about forces disappearances from local rights groups and the UN's Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances as a key measure to address the matter.

The organization's secretary-general Essam Shiha has called on Egypt's parliament to tighten control on security authorities to ensure it does not contravene the Egyptian constitution and relevant legislation criminalising forced disappearances.

He also called for passing a law criminalizing any act associated with forced disappearances, whether by taking part, aiding or incitement.

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An impressive military celebration in Alexandria on 6 September accompanied the launch of ENS Port Said, the first Egyptian-built Gowind-class corvette.

The ship was built in less than a year at the Alexandria Arsenal. The ENS Port Said is the first of three Gowinds to be constructed in Egypt in collaboration with the French national shipbuilder Naval Group.

A frigate bearing the made-in-Egypt stamp was a huge challenge, says Rear Admiral Ibrahim Khalil, former director of the Egyptian Naval Academy. It took resolve to realise this Egyptian dream which came true today on the ground.

During the launch ceremony the Armed Forces Department for Morale screened a documentary on the challenges involved in the construction.

With facilities updated to vie with the most modern companies in the field, the Alexandria Shipyard Company is now equipped to complete the construction of the three corvettes in accordance with the contract signed with France.

The purpose of the project is to technologically update and strengthen Egypts maritime industries and bolster their ability to meet growing demands and challenges.

Khalil said that before contemplating the building of such an advanced ship, infrastructural challenges had to be overcome.

The Alexandria Shipyard, the fruit of Egyptian-Soviet cooperation, was decommissioned after the October 1973 War and fell into neglect. When the government put it up for sale the Egyptian Armed Forces offered to buy and refurbish it.

No one at the time envisioned anything like a technologically advanced military ship such as the Gowind. They thought it would be possible, again, to build commercial ships, in which field Egypt already had the expertise.

The transfer of French technology to Egypt to allow for the construction of this state-of-the-art vessel posed a second major challenge.

Khalil explains: The French would probably have preferred Egypt to receive more ships than the number originally contracted for without having to transfer the construction knowhow.

However, thanks to Cairos persistence and the willingness of the French to accommodate us, the two sides struck an agreement involving technological transfer.

Captain Nabil Abdel-Wahab, one of Egypts valiant frogmen in the October 1973 War and a hero of the sinking of the Eilat after the 1967 War, says the launch of the first Egyptian-made Gowind-class corvette made him doubly happy.

First, it showed how far the Egyptian navy has developed technologically and, second, because the ship was made by Egyptians.

To command the seas is to command ones fate, he said.

The Egyptian Navy has always been a force to be reckoned with. It has never been defeated in battle. Today, we are continuing on course as the Egyptian navy takes its place at the forefront of the navies of the Middle East.

It took 650,000 man hours of work to build the corvette, in addition to 110,000 hours to support the construction process.

The project was divided into several stages, starting with technical preparation and passing through the planning and follow-through phases, all designed with an eye to optimising the benefits from this collaboration with the French-based Naval Group.

A total of 2,100 Egyptian engineers and technicians were involved.

During the launch ceremony, Commander of the Egyptian Navy Vice Admiral Ahmed Khaled explained that Egypts General Command was intent on carrying out a comprehensive strategy for the development and modernisation of the Egyptian fleet in order to enhance its capacity to face regional threats.

The new ship is the most advanced piece of hardware in the Egyptian navy, he said, and bolsters [the navys] ability to achieve maritime security, protect borders, safeguard economic interests in the Red Sea and Mediterranean, as well as ensure safe maritime navigation and guarantee the security of the Suez Canal.

The difference between what we had in the past and what we have today is one way to express the added value of the Port Said, said.

In the past we used to depend on destroyers, says Captain Abdel-Wahab. They are important, of course, but they are large ships and therefore slow. The new corvette is known for its speed and stealth. It is a complete, integrated warship that can strike long-distance targets accurately under combat conditions and handle both surface and underwater targets such as submarines.

Expressing, again, his pride and happiness that the corvette was made in Egypt, he added, the most important thing is for us to manufacture our weapons ourselves.

We are now one of the worlds blue-water navies. We operate on the high seas and do not have to return to port until our missions are complete. Today, in addition to our deployment off bases in Alexandria and Port Said, we are deployed in the Red Sea where we have established a Southern Fleet, Khalil said proudly.

Naval Group CEO Herve Guillou said that the new Gowind is equipped with multi-purpose high capacity electronic sensors and combat systems, enabling the ship to carry out a range of surveillance, tracking and interception tasks with air, surface and underwater targets.

Tewfik Aclimandos, political science professor at the French University in Cairo, told Al-Ahram Weekly: There is high level cooperation between Cairo and Paris in the military realm. I believe that this is a sign of mutual trust. There is French trust in the Egyptian economy and politics. There is also confidence in the technological advances and a desire to sustain cooperation.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 13 September 2018 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly under the headline: Manufacturing our own weapons

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Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon, second from right, speaks about the worsening job market at a meeting in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap



By Park Hyong-ki



The government will use all available resources at its disposal to revive the job market after seeing more shocking employment data, Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said Wednesday.



The number of jobs created in August stood at 3,000, continuing its decline from last month when the country only created 5,000 jobs.



The youth unemployment rate has reached 10 percent, which is close to the 10.7 percent in 1999 when the Asian financial crisis hit the country. The number of unemployed stood at 1.13 million. It has stayed above 1 million for eight straight months.



Again, the state-run Statistics Korea explained the worst job figures were due to the downturn in the shipbuilding, automobile, retail and services industries, coupled with the country's demographic changes.



The population is not only getting older, but also is starting to decline amid the current low birthrate.



The finance minister said in a meeting that it will be very difficult to overcome the job crisis in the short term.



But it will readjust some of its policies and relax rules governing the private sector to encourage innovation so it can boost job creation in the long run.



This means it will also have to slow down increases in the minimum wage, one of President Moon Jae-in's election pledges. The incumbent administration is seeking to raise it to 10,000 won per hour over the next four years.



"All ministers will put their heads together even if we have to create one job by the end of the year," Kim said.



"The government will listen more closely to businesses, and hear about their troubles. It will flexibly manage and implement its policies."



He added the central and regional administrations will rapidly execute a 43 trillion won ($41 billion) supplementary budget to create jobs.



In addition to the shipbuilding and automotive industries reducing their manpower, the retail and services sectors such as education, lodging and restaurants have had to downsize staff.



The diminution in services jobs was in part due to the fast rise in the minimum wage, which increased youth unemployment.



"Given the economy is not looking good, services and manufacturers are continuing to reduce manpower," said Bin Hyun-joon, a director at Statistics Korea.



"The slow increase in the population cannot alone explain the reason behind the worsening job market."



Overall, the unemployment rate stood at 4 percent in August, while the employment rate decreased 0.3 percentage points to 60.9 percent. The job rate has been staying at around 60 percent for the past two years.



Analysts expect the number of new jobs to remain below 100,000 for the rest of the year. Last year, the average number of jobs created per month was 300,000.



"It will most likely remain below that level as small- and medium-sized service companies face further difficulties in hiring following a hike in the minimum wage for next year," said Lee Mi-seon, an analyst at Hana Financial Investment.








By Jung Da-min, Park Si-soo







Nearly 43 percent of North Korean people (11 million) are suffering a chronic food shortage and ensuing malnutrition, a report by five U.N. agencies showed on Tuesday.







It was a 2.6 million increase from 10 years ago, the report said, reflecting the North's continuing food insecurity.







A major culprit behind these calamities is raging climate extremes in recent years, coupled with natural disasters that wreaked havoc on the North's grain fields. International sanctions were considered another factor.







The report is titled "The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World: Building Climate Resilience for Food Security and Nutrition." The U.N. agencies involved are the World Health Organization, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the World Food Program, the U.N. Children's Fund and the Food and Agriculture Organization.







"Analysis in the report shows that the prevalence and number of undernourished people tend to be higher in countries highly exposed to climate extremes," the agencies said.







"Undernourishment is higher again when exposure to climate extremes is compounded by a high proportion of the population depending on agricultural systems that are highly sensitive to rainfall and temperature variability."


By Kim Bo-eun



The much-awaited inter-Korean liaison office will open Friday in the North Korean city of Gaeseong, the Ministry of Unification said Wednesday.



The office will house resident representatives at the now-closed joint industrial complex ahead of the upcoming summit between the leaders of the two Koreas in the North's capital of Pyongyang, from September 18 to 20.



The unification ministry said the office will become the first channel enabling around the clock contact between the two Koreas.



"We are hoping that through this communication, we will be able to stably manage inter-Korean relations, and this will contribute to bringing progress in the denuclearization talks between North Korea and the U.S.," ministry spokesman Baik Tae-hyun said in a media briefing.



The opening of the office comes as Seoul extends its engagement with Pyongyang.



While some say there appears to be a widening "rift" between Washington and Seoul over specifics on how to achieve the North's denuclearization, the foreign ministry said Tuesday that the office is a result of consultation with the United States given the North's unavailability to get financial support from the international community.



The unification ministry said Seoul will be in charge of supplying electricity and other amenities to the office.



The liaison office will be co-headed by South Korea's Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung, and a North Korean official of comparable level. They will have a meeting once a week, while working-level talks will be held on a frequent basis "as necessary," the ministry said.






Civic groups hold a press conference in front of the Supreme Court in southern Seoul, Wednesday, criticizing local courts' unfair treatment of a judicial abuse scandal. Prosecutors have been requesting search and arrest warrants for those involved in the top court's abuse of power scandal under former head Yang Sung-tae, but courts have delayed or rejected almost all of the requests, giving time for some former Supreme Court officials to allegedly destroy evidence. Yonhap
By Kim Hyun-bin



The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) is having difficulty receiving passenger information on an Emirates Airlines flight that carried a man who was confirmed to have been infected with the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).



The 61-year-old man departed from Kuwait for Incheon with a transfer at Dubai, and later tested positive for MERS after arriving in Korea.



The KCDC obtained a list of passengers on the flight from Dubai to Incheon and has been monitoring them, especially those who sat close to the patient. But it has not obtained a list for the flight from Kuwait to Dubai.



"We need passenger information on the flight from Kuwait to Dubai to verify who sat around the patient, but we have been unable to receive it," a KCDC official said. "We have submitted a request for cooperation to the Emirates Airlines."



The patient took Emirates flight EK860 at 10:35 a.m. Sept. 6 and transferred to Emirates flight EK322 bound for Incheon the following day at 3:47 a.m.



"The airline does not want to release the passenger list for the first plane as the flight did not land in Korea, citing privacy issues, which is why it is taking a long time to confirm," the KCDC official said.



More than 400 people, including passengers on the second plane, came into possible contact with the patient. They are being monitored and have to report to the quarantine authorities about their everyday condition, according to the KCDC.



Of them, 10 people who had shown MERS-like symptoms have tested negative for the disease and were released from quarantine.

The KCDC is also strengthening efforts to prevent the deadly virus from entering the country, including double checking passengers with symptoms such as diarrhea and muscle pain.



The move comes as the MERS patient was able to pass through airport quarantine even after reporting diarrhea symptoms as he had no signs of respiratory problems or fever.


By Kim Jae-heun



Female students attending middle and high schools here can easily be seen wearing tight shirts with short skirts.



Some elderly people seeing them sometimes criticize them on the street.



However, many students say it is not their fault that they are wearing "too-tight" uniforms



"It is not like I want to show off my body. I feel extremely uncomfortable wearing a uniform that is too small in the first place," said 17-year-old Kim Ji-eun, a high schoolgirl in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province. "I feel embarrassed too, wearing super tight shirts. People may think I shrank the size but this is the original size that was bought straight from the shop."



Like Kim, many female students are unhappy with their school uniforms, which are made by major companies and promoted with skinny entertainers to show how students can have "good body shapes."



The issue of discomfort with the uniforms, often called a "modern-version corset," emerged earlier this year with a Youtube video clip that showed many middle and high schoolgirls' shirts were similar in size with shirts for seven-year-old children.



Such school shirts are not only tight but also short and flimsy, so dark-colored underwear can be seen through them.



Girls are dissatisfied at not only the uncomfortable shirts but also being forced to only wear skirts.



A middle schoolgirl said she wears skirt while going to school but changes into gym pants in her class.



"It is much more comfortable wearing pants and I don't have to mind about things that I do when I wear a skirt. But my school does not allow girls to wear gym pants. I hope anybody can wear pants regardless of gender," she said.



Such discomfort has led many female students to contribute to a petition on the Cheong Wa Dae website calling for more comfortable school uniforms.



One of the petitioners, a high schoolgirl, argued that forcing female students to wear skirts and small-sized uniforms was sexual discrimination and an anachronistic practice. She added that it was a violation of human rights to make female students wear a certain type of school uniform.



Thousands of people have signed the petition.



Following this, President Moon Jae-in ordered Education Minister Kim Sang-kon to consider ways to change girls' school uniforms into more comfortable ones, at a Cabinet meeting in July.



The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE) also revealed a plan to promote a campaign to allow students to wear comfortable uniforms, an election pledge from Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon.



It set up a committee to deal with the issue, with members including office staff, students, parents and teachers.



The committee conducted a survey of 1,000 citizens starting Aug. 1 on their thoughts about students wearing comfortable uniforms, and will run a discussion session with 300 students. The SMOE will come up with guidelines on school uniforms based on the survey and discussion by November.






By Lee Kyung-min







Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Yang-ho was questioned, Wednesday, over an allegation that he used company funds to pay the salary of security guards at his home.







It was the second time the chairman has been questioned by law enforcement agencies this year, following the first by the prosecution in June over tax evasion allegations. He avoided arrest at the time as a local court rejected the prosecution's request for a warrant.







Before entering the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency building, Cho declined to comment about how he felt about the summons, only saying it was not an appropriate time for him to speak about the issue.







"I will sincerely answer the questions of the police officers," he said.







Cho is suspected of having used the fund of a group affiliate, Jungseok Enterprise, to pay a security agency which provided security services at Cho's home, an act police say could constitute breach of trust.







The questioning followed a months-long investigation following a tip that the agency signed a contract with Jungseok but sent the guards to Cho's home.







Police earlier seized bank account information to track financial transactions between the companies and questioned 32 people involved. They also searched the headquarters of Jungseok located in the same building with Hanjin Group in April.














By Kang Seung-woo







Leaders of the global tourism industry are flocking to Seoul as the capital is hosting a series of high-profile tourism events until next week.







The Seoul International Travel Mart (SITM), which kicked off on Monday, is underway at the Grand Hilton Seoul until Friday and a conference of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) will be held from Sept. 16 to 19 at the Seoul Shilla Hotel, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Wednesday.







The city government plans to take advantage of the two global events as a springboard to promote its tourist attractions as well as infrastructure for meetings, incentives, conferencing and exhibitions (MICE). As part of its move, it plans to run various programs, including Seoul night tours and shopping and visits to the Joint Security Area (JSA) and Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).







The SITM, an annual travel expo since 2015, is drawing 400 foreign buyers from 45 countries as well as 800 representatives from local travel agencies.







The fair has gained a reputation for serving as a platform providing international professionals with business opportunities with domestic organizations and showing recent tourism trends of Seoul and Korea.







Some 900 representatives from 50 countries are expected to attend the seventh UNWTO Global Summit on Urban Tourism  the largest event in the industry.







Plus, Seoul will be the first city in Northeast Asia to host the conference that will take place under the theme of "A 2030 Vision for Urban Tourism."







The global summit is an annual event, first held in 2012 in Istanbul, Turkey.







The summit will provide opportunities to exchange ideas for creating a sustainable and competitive city and discuss important issues regarding the future of urban tourism.







Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon will be accompanied by tourism ministers from countries renowned for tourism, including Thailand and Spain, and have opportunities to exchange expertise and experience to help enhance urban tourism.







"With Seoul gaining a presence in global tourism, we are set to discuss the city's advantages in the Fourth Industrial Revolution and urban regeneration," a city official said.










Two 1938-built houses in Jeong-dong, central Seoul, are set for demolition this month in a city government plan to restore Deoksu Palace. Korea Times photo by Jon Dunbar





By Jon Dunbar







As the Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA) moves ahead with a controversial long-term plan to expand Deoksu Palace to its full dimensions, some historians decry the disappearance of modern heritage sites and question the need for the renovation project.







"The area is full of actual, historical buildings that still stand," history researcher Matt VanVolkenburg said. "But the pathways that are currently being built around Deoksu Palace are a mix of recreated and invented history."







Last month, a compound of six imperial-era houses was opened to the public. The first of the houses was constructed in 1938 behind the U.S. Legation in historic Jeong-dong, which had been the 1392-1910 Joseon Kingdom's foreign quarter since the 1800s, housing the U.S., Russian and British legations.







According to historian Suk Ji-hoon, a Ph.D. student at the University of Michigan, the property had been split off from palace grounds in 1920, the year after King Gojong's death. It was used by Haein Temple, then Boseong College, the predecessor of Korea University, and later Chosen Savings Bank. The houses were constructed in 1938 for the bank's president.







After liberation, the Japanese resident was evicted and a U.S. soldier moved in, according to VanVolkenburg. Later the houses became housing for the U.S. vice ambassador, remaining in U.S. hands until the early 2000s.







The "King's Way" path leads from Deoksu Palace to the former site of the Russian Legation in Jeong-dong, central Seoul. Korea Times photo by Jon Dunbar





In June 2003, the U.S. proposed moving its embassy to this spot. But when the palatial background of the site was revealed, the subsequent controversy over U.S. use of it led to the collapse of the plan. The houses have been abandoned ever since.







"Parts of the houses had deteriorated due to a decade or more of disuse, and most of the houses were in reasonably good repair," said VanVolkenburg, who visited the houses last month. "It does not seem like it would be that difficult to restore these buildings."







But the houses are scheduled for demolition this month to make way for the palace restoration, beginning with a passage the Americans in the late 1890s called "the King's Road." King Gojong used this walkway to visit the Seonwonjeon compound, which housed the portraits of past kings. According to Suk, the path extended to the Russian Legation, but its actual purpose was to connect to an overpass leading to nearby Gyeonghui Palace.







"There was not much of a secret involved in this, contrary to what people believe," Suk said.







Suk also calls out the enduring myth of an underground passage connecting Deoksu Palace with the Russian Legation.







Within the Chosen Savings compound, several underground entrances are visible, leading visitors to speculate this was part of Gojong's underground route. But they all lead to shallow chambers, likely constructed by the Japanese as air-raid shelters in anticipation of U.S. bombing in World War II.







A tunnel did exist, discovered in the 1970s, but Suk says it was most likely built for Russian guards and did not connect to the palace.







"The myth is quite persisting because many people assume that back in 1896 Gojong sought his refuge to the Russian Legation from Deoksu Palace. In actuality, he came to the Russian Legation from Gyeongbok Palace," Suk said.







Although the city government's walkway plans paint the foreign legations as intruders encroaching on palace grounds, both historians caution against such interpretation.







"The entire reason Deoksu Palace was chosen as the site of a new palace was because it stood next to these legations that King Gojong hoped would protect him," VanVolkenburg pointed out.







The palace expansion plan calls for the eventual restoration of the whole Seonwonjeon compound, which is to be done in three stages and completed in 2038, according to the CHA.







"Other than a few pictures we have, we don't really know much about how it looked back in the day," Suk said. "We don't even know how these monarchs actually looked."







Most of the Joseon royal portraits were destroyed in a 1954 warehouse fire in Busan.







"The other problem with recreating Seonwonjeon is that there is already one _ well, two, actually," VanVolkenburg said.







According to him, Deoksu Seonwonjeon stood for only 20 years from 1900 to 1920. Its materials were recycled to construct another Seonwonjeon in Changdeok Palace, Suk adds, in addition to the older Changdeok Seonwonjeon built in the 1690s. Both are still standing at Changdeok Palace.







"I am frankly quite skeptical about the restoration of Seonwonjeon," Suk said. "Even if they restore this section, the only thing they can build up in this place is nothing more than a facade, without any purpose or function whatsoever."







VanVolkenburg added, "Over the last decade it has become clear that city planners and preservationists are erasing all vestiges of the 20th century _ particularly anything connected to Imperial Japan _ in order to either recreate or reinvent Joseon-era buildings or race into the 21st century. But how is anyone to learn from the 20th century if nothing built during that difficult period is left standing?"


Egypt's Nature Protection Department, in collaboration with the Environment Police nd Giza Zoo, said they were able to seize five African lions that were found at a warehouse in the possession of a smuggler in Abu-Zaabal settlement in Al-Qalubeya governorate.

According to the information received by the Nature Protection Department, the five African lions originating from South Africa were set to be illegally sold in violation of Environment Law No. 4 of 1994 and international conventions banning the trafficking of endangered wild animals.

Khaled Allam, the Head of the Central Department of Biodiversity, said that as soon as the information was received by the nature protection sector, all measures were taken in coordination with the Environment Police and enlisted authorities to save the animals.

The lions were identified as three females and two males that were brought into the country without valid official documentation.

The lions were examined by the veterinary department before they were transferred to the Giza Zoo.

The Egyptian Environment Law prohibits the possession of any living organisms regulated by international conventions signed by Egypt, especially predators.

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Letters help maintain dialogue momentum, but major tasks remain



By Kim Bo-eun



The letter diplomacy between the leaders of North Korea and the U.S. continues to unfold, proving to serve as a breakthrough in the deadlocked denuclearization talks.



The White House said earlier this week preparations for a second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un were underway after Trump received another letter from Kim.



The letter was delivered amid stalled negotiations between the countries, due to differences over the initial steps to take in the denuclearization process. This led the U.S. to recently delay Secretary Mike Pompeo's trip to Pyongyang.



White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Trump received a "very warm, very positive" letter from Kim. Sanders also referred to the letter as "further evidence of progress," along with North Korea's low-key military parade, Sunday.



The parade was held to mark the 70th anniversary of the regime's founding. Kim Jong-un had stated in his New Year message that there would be a massive event to celebrate the day.



In a military parade marking the anniversary of the founding of North Korea's military forces in February, the regime displayed intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) capable of reaching the U.S. mainland, which irked Washington.



But this latest parade did not feature any mid- or long-range missiles, and Kim Jong-un did not deliver an address. There were also no references to the state's nuclear program during the event. It focused on economic development instead.



Trump praised the North Korean leader for the parade that was held this way. "This is a big and very positive statement from North Korea," he tweeted.



Kim's letter was delivered after a delegation of South Korean envoys met with the North Korean leader in Pyongyang last week. National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong, who led the delegation, said the North Korean leader affirmed his trust in the U.S. president as well as his willingness for the regime to denuclearize and for this to be achieved within Trump's first term.



Inter-Korean projects, which were barred for weeks during deadlocked denuclearization talks, have started moving forward. A joint liaison office in the North's city of Gaeseong opened Friday, about a month after the initially scheduled date. Cheong Wa Dae said the postponement of Pompeo's visit affected the office's opening.



The letter is the fourth Kim has sent to Trump. The first was delivered to the White House in a large white envelope by top North Korean official Kim Yong-chol in June. The letter, delivered after Trump canceled the scheduled summit citing hostile remarks from Pyongyang, is seen to have put the meeting back on track.



The second letter was handed to Pompeo when the secretary made his third visit to Pyongyang in July. Trump disclosed the letter on Twitter. The third was sent when North Korea repatriated some of the remains of U.S. soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War.



"The letter this time has helped maintain the dialogue momentum," said Shin Beom-chul, senior fellow at The Asan Institute for Policy Studies. "This was also the case when the first letter from Kim was delivered to Trump."



Tasks ahead



However, Shin said this would not be enough for a second summit to be held.



"While the North Korean leader affirmed his willingness to carry out denuclearization in his meeting with South Korean envoys, there needs to be a promise to take action _ such as stating it will submit its inventory list," he said. "This is because the second summit needs to generate a tangible deal, as President Trump was criticized for being unprepared for the first summit."



Expectations grew for the June summit in Singapore, but it only produced an agreement that the countries would work toward North Korea's denuclearization, achieve peace on the Korean Peninsula, and improve bilateral ties, with no concrete steps given.



The professor said this puts weight on the inter-Korean summit to take place in Pyongyang next week. Denuclearization is on the agenda, along with developing inter-Korean relations.



"President Moon's role has become very important with regards to North Korea's denuclearization as the two decided to discuss the matter," stated Cheong Seong-chang, senior researcher at the Sejong Institute.



Moon and Trump will also meet on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly later this month, where Moon is set to share about his meeting with Kim.



Shin said the second summit between Kim and Trump is expected to take place in October, after Moon meets with Kim and Trump, and before the U.S. midterm elections in November.



Meanwhile, Pompeo's postponed visit to Pyongyang is set to take place soon, for talks on progressing North Korea's denuclearization.



"Secretary Pompeo is also tasked to achieve progress when he visits the North, as he faced criticism for returning empty-handed last time," Shin said.



It is yet to be seen whether Pyongyang and Washington will reach a deal on the North's submission of its nuclear inventory, for a reciprocal measure from the U.S., namely, declaring an end to the Korean War. Denuclearization talks were stalled due to differences over which measure would be taken first. North Korea wants the war to be ended to remove hostilities and protect its regime, while the U.S. has been calling for North Korea to take tangible and verifiable denuclearization steps first.



So far, North Korea shut down its Punggye-ri nuclear testing site and dismantled some of its facilities at its Tongchang-ri missile testing site, but these measures have yet to be verified. The North Korean leader stressed in his meeting with South Korean envoys that these were notable measures, but that the international community was not giving Pyongyang credit for them.


By Kim Jae-heun



A decades-long dispute over whether to abolish the death penalty has been reignited, following a human rights watchdog's recommendation to do so.



The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) decided Tuesday to recommend the government join an international covenant to abolish the death penalty.



The decision was made during an 11-member commission meeting, the first meeting held by new Chairperson Choi Yeong-ae.



The Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, first introduced by the U.N. in December 1989, is aimed at ending the practice of capital punishment, providing a procedure for abolishment of the system and renouncing execution of war criminals.



Only four countries among the 36 OECD member nations have not signed the protocol, which includes Korea, the United States, Israel and Japan.



Several human rights watchdogs including the U.N. Human Rights Council and the U.N. Human Rights Committee have been recommending Korea join the protocol and renounce capital punishment.



The NHRCK also expressed its opinion to abolish the system to the chairman of the National Assembly in April 2005, and to the Constitutional Court in July 2009. Last December, the human rights watchdog consented on the abolishment of capital punishment in military criminal law.



Sixty-one people have been sentenced to death and they are awaiting execution, according to the NHRCK, but nobody has been put for death here for over 20 years since Dec. 30, 1997.



Korea has practically suspended capital punishment  despite its issuance of the system  but it has not officially declared its discontinuance of executions.



"Looking at the results of several public opinion polls collected in the past, we know how much people still want the death penalty against heinous crimes. People believe it will prevent further dreadful crimes and realize justice while relieving extreme pain and sense of loss among victims' families," an NHRCK official said during the meeting.



"However, we don't see taking the criminals' lives is the only genuine compensation to the victims and their families. With our recommendation, we expect the government to vote for a U.N. resolution on a moratorium on the death penalty during the U.N. General Assembly scheduled in December," the official said.



But many still want to keep the system, with the latest poll in August showing 69 percent of the public agreed with capital punishment.



"We should stop thinking that abolishment of the death penalty is the answer to becoming a developed country in human rights and retaining the system is a conservative practice. Of course, all human lives have dignity but if we don't punish those who commit brutal crimes like murder, how can you compensate for the pain of victims' families?" a commission member said.



"The nation should make 100 times more efforts than now in protecting victims' human rights. Then it can talk about abolishing the death penalty to protect criminals' human rights," a blogger said.


By Steven L. Shields





At the Gay Pride event in downtown Seoul this year some Christian groups protested; some clashed with the police. I saw a banner that called attention to presumed LGBT sin.







The banner said that such a call to repent was an act of love. It seemed, though, this was done in anger. Such acts are not the acts of love I find expressed by Jesus. Yes, all are called to repentance, but who is judge and jury?







For many Christians, "biblical" means whatever they want it to mean. It means whatever supports their prejudices and practices. I often hear Christians say, "Well, my pastor says ..." My response is "Sure, but what do you think?" Usually, they haven't done any thinking of their own. Nor have they committed to searching the meaning of the Bible.







No one dares argue with the pastor. At the least, this is irresponsible discipleship  passing the responsibility on to someone else. These folks tell us the Bible needs no interpretation; needs no deep thinking except for memorizing the select passages that support their biases.







Let's take the conservative position for a moment  that we should read the Bible literally, with no need for interpretation. The gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke set the "Last Supper" of Jesus and his disciples before the crucifixion as the Passover meal.







Thus, the use of unleavened bread. But in the gospel of John, the meal is the day before Passover, and the bread is leavened, or regular bread. Which version is correct? Come on; now, you've told me the Bible doesn't need interpretation; that it should be taken literally. What bread does your church use for communion?







Let's apply this to the bias against LGBT people. Some of you tell me the Bible condemns homosexuality. However, the word "homosexual" appears nowhere in the Bible. At least not in the original Hebrew or Greek.







Such a word didn't exist until the 1800s when some conservative Christian in England invented it. You quote Leviticus 18:22, which reads "You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; such thing is an abomination."







(Some Korean-language Bible versions are in error. The translators used their own bias, and dishonestly inserted the Korean word for "homosexual"  which is not how the Hebrew text reads. The Korean Living Bible is one of these.)







How do you get from this verse that "God condemns homosexuality"? Are you, perhaps, "interpreting" rather than reading it "literally"? Are you telling me that "lie with a male as with a woman" means a sexual act? How did you come to your "literal" conclusion?







And who is the "you" in this verse? Is the verse speaking only to men? How do you know? Why are you picking out this one verse to condemn LGBT people while ignoring other Old Testament injunctions? (By the way, the one or two New Testament verses often used suffer the same problems.)







Have you forgotten that in Exodus 21:7 it is permissible to sell your daughter into slavery? Or how about working on the Sabbath? Those who do are supposed to be put to death according to Exodus 35:2.







What are we to do with the many good Christians who work on Sunday? (Or, Saturday, if you prefer). What about wearing clothing of "two different threads"? The Bible says, in Leviticus 19:19 and Deuteronomy 22:9-11, that this is forbidden. Are your clothes all "pure"?







Most conservative Christians ignore these and many other injunctions. Or they pick and choose what's convenient for their agenda.







I often see people on the subway reading their Bibles. I praise their devotion. However, I'm not sure the train is a compatible setting for Bible reading. The Bible is a library of more than 60 books (depending on Protestant or Catholic canons the number is slightly different). In fact, the word "bible" (ta biblia in Greek) means "the books."







The Bible is not a textbook, nor is it a novel. The Bible is not a book of history and science, but a book of faith. The separate contents (or books) of the Bible were written by different writers, edited over the centuries, and are set in different times and places. The book is not easy reading. It's all about interpretation, plain and simple.







Don't stop reading your Bible; there are some great stories and many good moral lessons there. But it was not meant to be read from front to back as an ordinary volume.







Ask questions as you read. "Why was this important to the people who wrote it? What does it reflect about their understanding of God? How did this come to be considered scripture? What do I think about it? How does it help me in my understanding of God?"







May your insight be broadened and may you welcome all to the sacred community with the open arms of Jesus  without judgment, without labeling, without worrying about what goes on in someone's bedroom; who to love. Jesus didn't stutter when he said, "Love your neighbor as yourself."







) lived in Korea for several years in the 1970s and 1990s to 2000s. He served as a copy editor of The Korea Times in 1977. He is a retired clergyman and a life member of the Royal Asiatic Society-Korea Branch.





Steven L. Shields ( slshields@gmail.com
An unnamed senior administration official claims there is a cabal of "resisters" in the White House working overtime to save the president from himself, or maybe just undermining him, depending on whom you believe.



The president, for his part, turns ever more apoplectic, screaming not only about "witch hunts" but also "treason" as he hunts for disloyal leakers. On Capitol Hill, a confirmation hearing in a staid Senate office building is repeatedly interrupted by protesters shouting at the nominee and the senators; 70 people are arrested.



Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III's criminal investigation into the administration continues; a porn actress who received $130,000 in hush money from the president poses for Vogue and "packs them in" at a Portland, Maine, strip club.



A new book by legendary reporter Bob Woodward reveals that even the White House chief of staff, John F. Kelly, calls President Trump an "idiot" who is "off the rails." In one meeting, the book asserts, Kelly said what everyone must surely be thinking: "We're in Crazytown."



Yes, we are. And even by today's Crazytown standards, this has been an extraordinary week in which a surreal picture emerged of a White House out of control, led (if that's the word) by a volatile president whose behavior appalls and terrifies even his own top aides. On one level, nothing much was revealed that we didn't already know. But last week the level of disarray and dysfunction was laid out for us once again in a stark, unvarnished and deeply depressing way.



As usual, some of this is just noise. It's been a challenge since the beginning of this administration to separate the meaningful outrages that demand a response from the empty ones that should be ignored. Name-calling, gratuitous insults, expressions of late-night petulance, resentment and bitterness  much of Trump's Twitter blasting doesn't add up to much, or is designed to misdirect our attention to the wrong things.



But that shouldn't obscure the fact that the president is a profoundly powerful man, the commander in chief of an enormous war-fighting force and an executive capable of unilaterally reversing the nation's efforts to combat climate change or provide healthcare to its citizens.



He has ripped families apart at the border, incarcerating young children; he has irritated countries as powerful as China and as closely allied as Canada; at home, he has fanned the flames of polarization and mistrust into sweeping wildfires. Arguably, he has sought to obstruct justice. If his own most trusted aides see him as a demagogue or a narcissist or an ignoramus or a bigot, surely we need to know that.



Our democracy is held together by venerable and resilient institutions: the rule of law, the electoral process, the free press, the courts, the loyal opposition.



But Trump is testing them in ways they have not been tested for years. He has worked assiduously to undermine each of them  for instance, calling news reporters "enemies of the people" and attacking judges and judicial rulings and his own attorney general. He has also called for political opponents to be prosecuted and threatened voting rights with his now-disbanded sham commission on "election integrity."



Still, these institutions seem likely to outlast him. Laws, we hope, are stronger than men; voters, in the aggregate, decide the fate of presidents. Our democratic system of government has survived a civil war, several impeachments and a Great Depression. And, most likely, it will survive Donald Trump.



For now, we could call on him to step back, calm down, hit the pause button and think about the needs of the country he has been given the authority to lead. But that seems unlikely to happen. We could call on Congress to play its constitutional role as a check on presidential power and misbehavior.



But the Republican leaders who control the House and Senate have repeatedly failed to challenge Trump in any meaningful way, making them complicit. At the moment, it is left to the voters  oh, and the prosecutors  to defend the country from its president.





The above editorial appeared in the Los Angeles Times. It was distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.




Koreans envy Chinese tycoon's respectable leadership



China's richest man Jack Ma, the co-founder of Alibaba, unveiled plans Monday to step down from his post of executive chairman at the e-commerce giant in September 2019 to direct his focus to philanthropy and education.



In a letter to Alibaba customers and shareholders, Ma confirmed his succession plan to hand over the company to Alibaba Group CEO Daniel Chang. "I have put a lot of thought and preparation into this succession plan for 10 years." Ma said. "A sustainable Alibaba would have to be built on sound governance, a culture-centric philosophy and consistency in developing talent. No company can rely solely on its founders."



Given that Ma is still in his 50s, his decision to retire from being an entrepreneur early is somewhat unexpected. It is also noteworthy that he will give his position not to family members, but to a career businessman in his mid-40s who has been serving as the CEO since 2015. In Korea where hereditary succession is still pretty much the norm at major conglomerates, Ma's kind of succession plan is virtually unheard of.



Ma is one of the wealthiest people in the world, but he is also known as a phenomenal motivational speaker as well. As a former teacher, he has often spoken of his interest in young people in his speeches. After Alibaba, he will focus on education. "I plan on continuing my role as the founding partner in the Alibaba Partnership and contribute to the work of the partnership. I also want to return to education, which excites me with so much blessing because this is what I love to do. The world is big, and I am still young, so I want to try new things  because what if new dreams can be realized!"



Ma was famously turned down for numerous jobs, including a waiter at KFC, before building a tech empire despite having little knowledge of computers. It is humbling that after all he has achieved in business, his ultimate passion lies in young people and helping them grow. He has often spoken on the need to share the lessons from his Alibaba journey with others.



In Korea, tycoons are rarely seen in a positive light and are often slammed for outdated management practices and a lack of social responsibility. Ma is the kind business leader that more Koreans would like to see at the nation's top companies.


Kim Jong-yoon, chief business officer (CBO) of Yanolja, speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at the firm's office in Seoul, Sept. 6. / Courtesy of Yanolja



By Jun Ji-hye



Yanolja, a hotel and motel booking app operator, has been transforming itself into a global hotel and leisure mobile platform by forming business ties with global companies.



These include Rakuten LIFULL Stay, an affiliate of Japan's e-commerce giant Rakuten, according to a senior company executive.



Yanolja has also been seeking to move into Southeast Asia by investing $15 million in July in Singapore-based Zen Rooms, the budget hotel network startup founded by Rocket Internet.



The investment will enable the Korean company to fully acquire the Southeast Asian startup afterward as it retains the rights to buy 100 percent of the Zen Rooms business.



In a recent interview with The Korea Times, Kim Jong-yoon, chief business officer (CBO) of Yanolja, said the company will use this investment as a stepping-stone to plant its business model in Southeast Asia, and then expand its businesses to global hotel chains and system businesses as well as the leisure and activity market.



"We believe travel businesses are not for the domestic market but for export," he said. "Yanolja cannot be a great company if it only stays in Korea."



He chose Zen Rooms as the target for the undertaking as he is sure of the growth potential of the startup.



Since its establishment in 2015, Zen Rooms has shown an average annual growth rate of 185 percent and secured more than 6,000 rooms at budget hotels in five Southeast Asian countries _ Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand.



In 2017, the startup posted 1.5 billion won ($1.3 million) in sales and is expected to achieve 7.5 billion won in sales this year.



Zen Rooms fulfills reservations and sales activities through its own online platform, having a great possibility for development as an online travel agency, Kim said, noting that once Yanolja's business knowhow is integrated, its "R.E.S.T." platform, which stands for refresh, entertain, stay and travel, will be established in Southeast Asia in a short period of time.



"I realized that the current Southeast Asian market is similar to what Korea was like five to 10 years ago. There are a lot of motels and budget hotels but most of them have yet to be digitized," he said. "This was why I thought it would be great to take Yanolja's business model to Southeast Asia as we were the first in Korea to introduce app-based motel booking."



The CBO stressed that Yanolja is aiming to export its business model rather than copying others.



"We hold a lot of patents and intellectual properties in preparation for exporting our business model," he said. "We will work hard to set up small- and medium-sized budget hotel chains in Southeast Asia and offer cost-effective, personalized services to our customers so they can go anywhere they want and do whatever they want at reasonable prices."



He noted processing real-time data is important to offer meaningful services to customers, adding that this has become especially important following the revision to the Labor Law that reduced the maximum workweek from 68 hours to 52 hours, which went into effect on July 1.



"People have more and more leisure time. This will change the way people travel," he said. "Previously, people made long preparations before going on a trip and spent a lot of money. This will make it difficult for them to spend their increasing leisure time effectively."



He said an increasing number of people are now looking for day trips, citing the recent trend among young people to seek a work-life balance.



"We need to satisfy those needs, and for this, effective management of real-time data is definitely necessary," he said.



Real-time data processing is also important for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, in which many services will be activated by robots and artificial intelligence (AI) technology.



"Technology will enable customers to get their room keys as soon as they complete booking, and the time required for check-in will be significantly reduced," he said. "We are already connected to many partners specializing in such technologies."



At the end of August, Yanolja signed a business agreement with KT, the nation's second largest mobile carrier, to connect the telecom company's voice-recognition AI platform Giga Genie to Yanolja's room management system.



The Giga Genie-based infotainment system will be applied to Yanolja's hotel brands _ Heyy and H Avenue.



Under the agreement, the two companies are also co-developing services that connect Giga Genie to the internet of things (IoT) products.



Other than Japan and Southeast Asia, Yanolja plans to make inroads into other regions such as the Middle East and Africa, Kim noted.



"We are aiming to connect all accommodation around the world to our platform. We will not stop exploring more markets," he said.



Yanolja began the mobile app service in April 2015. Since then, the app has achieved 10 million downloads from Google Play Store, on June 23, becoming the app used by one in five people here.



Having recently added the leisure and activities reservation service, the firm achieved 30 billion won in sales between July and August.



Kim said the firm's remarkable performance has been built on the trust of its customers.



"For the past three years, we have never sold any services at high prices," he said. "Customers know that they can enjoy diverse services at reasonable prices through our app."



Kim studied chemical engineering at Seoul National University and worked as an online sales and operation account manager at Google from 2007 to 2009. Then, he served as an engagement manager at McKinsey & Company from 2011 to 2015 until before joining Yanolja.


Subway International Korea country manager Colin Clark

By Park Jae-hyuk



Subway has come under criticism for "unfair" contract terms that the U.S. sandwich franchise has signed with owners of Korean franchised restaurants, industry officials said Wednesday.



Its franchise agreement reads that conciliation of disputes between Subway International and its franchisees is only available in New York. The contract also specifies Connecticut is the only place where franchisees can file lawsuits against Subway, if the New York court regards resolution of a dispute as impossible.



These clauses have hindered Subway's Korean franchisees from counteracting the franchise headquarters' unfair treatment, because they have to defend themselves in English in the United States, paying a large sum of money to American lawyers.



Due to the franchise agreement, one of the franchisees here claimed recently he was treated unfairly, bringing the matter to the Korea Fair Trade Mediation Agency under the Fair Trade Commission.



The franchisee surnamed Ji, who has run a Subway store over the past five years in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, said he received a sudden notice of cancellation of contract from Subway last October. The franchise headquarters pointed out use of Korean detergent, poor hygiene control and lack of ingredients.



Ji said he immediately corrected the errors, but the franchiser ordered a shutdown of the store.



According to the franchisee, he could not fight back against Subway, because he could not afford a U.S. lawyer.



Industry officials say the terms of Subway's franchise agreement are unprecedented in Korea.



"I have never heard about any foreign franchise in Korea demanding conciliation of disputes outside of the country," a Korea Franchise Association spokesman said.



However, he said the association cannot regulate Subway, as it is not a member of the association.



Subway also bans former franchisees from selling sandwiches within 4.8 kilometers from where its store was located. The "selling" includes opening of a sandwich store and working for the store.



The sandwich chain refuted the criticism of its franchise agreement.



"Our franchisees sign contracts with the U.S. headquarters, so the contracts are subject to the law of the country where the headquarters is located," it said in a statement.



"We sincerely follow the laws of countries where we do business. As we prioritize each country's law, we basically try to resolve disputes in Korea with Korean law first. We have never brought disputes in Korea to New York so far."



The company also said Ji repeatedly failed to satisfy the company's hygiene standards.



It added its employees in charge of franchise agreements explain the contract terms in detail to those who want to open Subway stores.


Hyundai Group Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun returns to South Korea on Aug. 3 through a border office in Gangwon Province, after visiting Mount Geumgang in North Korea to commemorate the 15th anniversary of her late husband Chung Mong-hun's death. / Yonhap



By Nam Hyun-woo



With Cheong Wa Dae expressing its intent to include businessmen in the delegation accompanying the inter-Korean summit scheduled for next week, companies and business organizations are paying keen attention on who will join President Moon Jae-in's visit to North Korea.



However, some companies expressed concerns over joining the delegation because the North is still under U.S. and U.N. economic sanctions for its nuclear and missile program.



Earlier this week, presidential chief of staff Im Jong-seok said Cheong Wa Dae "wants businessmen to join the visit" to Pyongyang for the inter-Korean summit, slated for Sept. 18-20.



Upon Im's announcement, company officials said they are monitoring the progress over whether their CEOs can join the trip.



"As far as we know, nothing has been confirmed over who will join the delegation, with companies paying keen attention to the issue because it is a serious and delicate matter," an official at a domestic conglomerate said asking not to be named.



"Joining the delegation and exploring new business opportunities in the North are fine. At the same time, however, it could be a burden for companies because the international recognition on the North is still far from being friendly and the sanctions are still effective."



In 2000, when then President Kim Dae-jung met then North Korea leader Kim Jong-il, former Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Yun Jong-yong, former LG Chairman Koo Bon-moo, former SK Group Chairman Son Kil-seung and former Hyundai Group Chairman Chung Mong-hun came along too. Three business organization leaders also joined the historic meeting.



Seven years later, more business tycoons joined then President Roh Moo-hyun, including Yun, Koo, Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, Hyundai Group Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun and former POSCO Chairman Lee Ku-taek. The number of business organization leaders also grew to 12.





Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Park Yong-maan


By Jung Min-ho







The Chinese government has condemned a Japanese man for kicking a symbolic statue for the victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery, also known as "comfort women."





Local media reported Tuesday that Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said China hopes Japan will take up its responsibility and handle the act of vandalism in Taipei properly.





CGTV, a Chinese state-run broadcaster, reported that Geng also said what Japanese soldiers did to the victims was inhumane and their crimes have been recognized by the international community.





The statement comes after Mitsuhiko Fujii, a Japanese right-wing group member, kicked the bronze statue in Tainan on Thursday.





His behavior caused dozens of human rights activists to rally outside Japan's de facto embassy in Taipei on Monday to call on the Japanese government to apologize.





As many as 200,000 Taiwanese, Koreans and many other Asian women were forced to work in Japan's wartime military brothels. In Taiwan, there are two publicly identified victims alive today.


The Turkish secret service has captured in Syria and brought back to Turkey the chief suspect in a 2013 bombing on the border with its conflict-torn neighbour that left over 50 dead, state media said Wednesday.

Yusuf Nazik, who is accused of planning the May 2013 Reyhanli bombing, was apprehended in an operation by the National Intelligence Organisation (MIT) in the Syrian city of Latakia and brought to Turkey, the Anadolu news agency said.

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The Islamic State (IS) militant group has claimed responsibility for an attack on the headquarters of Libya's national oil company in the capital Tripoli that killed two people.

IS made the announcement in statement carried by its Amaq news agency late on Tuesday.

Monday's attack wounded at least 10 others. It followed recent fighting in Tripoli between rival armed groups, which left at least 61 people dead. A cease-fire has been in place since last week.

Islamic extremists expanded their reach in Libya after the 2011 uprising plunged the country into chaos and toppled and later killed longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi.

IS was driven from its main stronghold, the coastal city of Sirte, in 2016 and fled inland.

Libya is currently split between rival governments in the east and the west.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online.

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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday that he certified to Congress that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were working to reduce civilian casualties in Yemen, avoiding a limitation on US help for its ally Saudi Arabia.

Without the certification, US tanker aircraft would have been restricted in the refueling of Saudi-led coalition aircraft conducting strikes against Houthi rebels backed by Iran.

Pompeo's decision drew the derision of critics of the Saudi-led air campaign, which has long been denounced even by Western allies for causing massive civilian casualties and driving Yemen to the brink of famine.

The 3-year-old war in Yemen, widely seen as a proxy battle between regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran, has killed more than 10,000 people.

Pompeo said in a statement he advised Congress on Tuesday that "the governments of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments."

He provided no details of the measures taken by Saudi Arabia and the UAE that underpinned his decision.

Last month, a Saudi airstrike on a bus killed dozens of people, including 40 children.

"Pompeos certification is a farce. The Saudis deliberately bombed a bus full of children. There is only one moral answer, and that is to end our support for their intervention in Yemen," Democratic US Representative Ro Khanna said in a post on Twitter.

US lawmakers, concerned about a growing humanitarian disaster in Yemen, required Pompeo to certify by Wednesday that the Saudis and the UAE were taking meaningful measures to reduce civilian casualties and allow humanitarian aid deliveries.

Without the move by Pompeo, US aircraft would have been barred from refueling Saudi-led coalition aircraft in mid-air except when they were striking Yemeni factions of al Qaeda and Islamic State, the Houthis' use of ballistic missiles, or protecting US military units and international commercial shipping.

US Defense Secretary James Mattis said he backed Pompeo's finding.

Saudi Arabia is leading a Western-backed alliance of Sunni Muslim Arab states to try to restore the internationally recognized government of Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, ousted from the capital Sanaa by the Iran-aligned Houthis in 2015.

An attempt to convene U.N.-mediated peace talks in Geneva collapsed last weekend after the Houthi delegation failed to show up for three days.

The United States and other Western powers provide arms and intelligence to the alliance. Human rights groups have criticized them over coalition air strikes that have killed hundreds of civilians at hospitals, schools and markets.

The coalition has promised over and over again to end unlawful attacks, to credibly investigate, to provide civilian victims redress. It hasnt, instead continuing to bomb weddings, homes, markets, a bus filled with children just a month ago," said Kristine Beckerle of Human Rights Watch.

The Pentagon believes that its assistance, which includes refueling coalition jets and training in targeting, helps reduce civilian casualties.

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France's foreign minister said on Wednesday that the indiscriminate bombing by Russian, Syrian and Iranian forces in Syria's Idlib region could amount to war crimes.

"The hypothesis of war crimes can not be excluded ... once one begins to indiscriminately bomb civilian populations and hospitals," Jean-Yves Le Drian told lawmakers.

He also said that efforts should be made immediately to prepare for a mass humanitarian crisis should thousands of people be displaced by the fighting.

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The US Treasury Department has targeted the leader of a Libyan militia with sanctions for directing attacks on oil facilities in the country, it said in a statement on Wednesday.

Ibrahim Jathran damaged peace and stability in Libya by overseeing forces that attacked Libyan oil facilities in the "oil crescent," a lucrative target for rogue militias and criminals, the department said.

It said the militia had caused many fatalities in Libya this year.

"Jathrans repeated militia attacks on Libya's oil facilities have done colossal damage to its economy and robbed the Libyan people of billions of dollars in oil revenue," said Sigal Mandelker, Treasury undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.

She said Jathran's attacks have affected Libyan oil exports since 2013.

Forces led by Jathran violently attacked and seized control of the Libyan oil ports Ras Lanuf and Al Sidra in June, the department said, costing Libya more than $1.4 billion in revenue and setting back efforts to promote political progress and stability.

The UN Security Council Libya sanctions committee blacklisted Jathran on Tuesday, subjecting him to a global asset freeze and travel ban.

Jathran is sought by judicial authorities in Tripoli for blockades of oil terminals and attempts to export oil independently.

Libya, which has been in turmoil since a 2011 uprising that toppled Muammar Gaddafi, has been divided between rival governments and military factions based in the east and west of the country since 2014, causing political deadlock and an economic crisis.

Armed groups regularly block oilfields to make demands. Several armed men attacked the headquarters of Libyas National Oil Corporation in the capital Tripoli on Monday, killing at least two staff members, a security official said. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

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South Sudan's President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar signed a peace agreement on Wednesday in the margins of a regional summit in Ethiopia.

South Sudan plunged into warfare two years after gaining independence from Sudan in 2011 when a political dispute between Kiir and Machar exploded into military confrontation.

A previous peace deal signed in 2015 fell apart a year later after clashes broke out between government forces and rebels, forcing Machar to leave Juba.

The new agreement, mediated by Sudan, reinstates Machar, a former vice-president, to his former role.

The United States, Britain and Norway, known as the Troika which oversees peace efforts, welcomed the signature of the deal by Kiir, Machar and other groups.

"We hope discussions will remain open to those who are not yet convinced of the sustainability of this agreement," they said in a statement. "We must seize this broader regional momentum to secure peace for the people of South Sudan."

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One suspect was taken into custody Tuesday after reports of an active shooter at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Downey. No injuries were reported.

Just before noon, the official Twitter account for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Norwalk Station reported "a fluid, emergent situation" and advised people to avoid the area as they assisted the Downey Police Department.

The suspect, identified as 34-year-old Jesus Chavez of Lynwood, had "fired rounds inside the building," according to the sheriff's department.

Security guards had confronted Chavez after he reportedly threw a chair through a hospital window, and that's when he pulled out a gun, according to Downey Police Chief Carl Charles.

Chavez was arrested and a gun was recovered, Charles said.

It's still not clear if the man was a patient there or visiting someone at the facility.

Both affected buildings, A and B, have been cleared and deemed safe. Suspect did fire rounds inside the building. Sole suspect arrested. Gun recovered. The investigation will continue. Streets will open up soon. Thankful it worked out. #Teamwork.  LASD Norwalk Station (@NorwalkLASD) September 11, 2018

The facility had gone on lockdown until it was deemed safe, and all appointments were canceled for the rest of the day, according to Elita Fielder, spokeswoman for Kaiser's Southern California region.

"The safety of our patients, employees and physicians are paramount. We recognize the stress that can be brought on by a situation like this," Fielder said in a written statement shared with LAist.

Fielder said the company is offering mental health services and support to patients, employees and physicians who were onsite.

In a follow-up email, she said the hospital, emergency and urgent care departments, and most of the Orchard Medical Office Building had reopened and that staff were working to reschedule the canceled appointments.

An investigation remains underway.

The L.A. Times reports that Downey police conducted active shooter training at the facility in April, at the request of the hospital.

ABC7 spoke to a witness who told the station the suspect started pounding on a door and cursing, saying, "I had an appointment at 11 o'clock! I deserve my appointment..." She told the station the man then kicked walls and threw tables out of a window before security arrived. When security did arrive, she said, the guard told her, "He's got a gun, run."

Updates:

Updated Sep. 12 at 4:52 p.m. and 5:22 p.m. with comments from Kaiser spokeswoman.

Updated Sep. 13 at 12:15 p.m. with the suspect's identity.

News happens every day. Here at LAist, our goal is to cover the stories that matter to you and the community you live in. Now that we're part of KPCC, those stories (including this one you're on right now!) are made possible by generous people like you. Independent, local journalism isn't cheap, but with your support we can keep delivering it. Donate now.
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Governor Jerry Brown asked California to stop polluting and use entirely electric energy by 2045 on Monday. By Tuesday, L.A. answered. (OK, judging by the very glossy roadmap they handed out, they might have had the answer already prepared.)

But here's the plan:

City officials want to eliminate 25 percent of our smog before the world arrives for the 2028 Olympics. And they say the path to doing so is by electrifying transportation.

David Wright of LADWP says doing that means a rapid evolution for how we get around L.A.

"We're going to change the entire way transportation is powered in a very short period of time," he says.

What does that actually mean?

FEWER GAS GUZZLING CARS, WAY FEWER

Dealing with cars dominates any roadmap to reducing pollution, particularly in car-culture Los Angeles.

Step No. 1 is making electric cars affordable, safe and easy to buy. And they'll have to be to meet the plan's goal to have as many as 45 percent of private cars be electric within 10 years.

Now, that's a stretch. A big one. California overall currently has about about 35 million private vehicles, only about 360,000 of them electric. So they're talking about going from about 1 percent to nearly 50 percent.

That also means increasing charging stations from less than 10,000 now to as many as 130,000.

There are interim goals along the way. For example, Wright says they want to see 15 percent of all vehicle purchases to be electric by 2023.

Beyond that, the group wants almost completely electric public transportation and small vehicles like electric scooters in places where walking doesn't make sense. And most autonomous cars that pop up between now and then will have to be electric too.

MOVING STUFF

Anyone who's seen the black smoke spewing from the pipes of a semi knows it's not just sedans and SUVs causing smog. That's why the plan also includes up to a quarter of those big semis and up to half of medium delivery trucks (the FedExes and UHauls of the world) to be electric in the next decade.

L.A. County Chief Sustainability Officer Gary Gero says changing how we move goods is one of the most important pieces.

"We can and must replace dirty diesel trucks with cleaner alternatives as quickly as possible, and this effort will kickstart our initiative so our children can breathe cleanly," he says.

The coalition also wants freight boats and trains to look into electrification as well. And if delivery by drone catches on, there's a line that makes sure those are electric too.

CREATING A NEW NORMAL

Matt Petersen, CEO of LA Cleantech Incubator, is part of a coalition working towards these goals that includes county and city officials, as well as groups like Metro, the Department of Water and Power, car companies and electric companies.

"The biggest challenge ahead of us in fighting global warming and California leading is transportation, and that's why this is so important," he said.

Petersen says hitting these lofty goals meant trying something the city's never done before.

Jack Kitowski of California Air Resources Board says this new solution is long overdue.

"We absolutely must stop and mitigate the devastating impact of climate change," he says. "And it's necessary because low-income and disadvantaged communities that are most impacted by air pollution simply cannot and should not wait longer."

READ THE FULL PLAN:

Correction: A previous version of this story reported too low a number of both private vehicles in the state and electric vehicles. LAist regrets the error.

News happens every day. Here at LAist, our goal is to cover the stories that matter to you and the community you live in. Now that we're part of KPCC, those stories (including this one you're on right now!) are made possible by generous people like you. Independent, local journalism isn't cheap, but with your support we can keep delivering it. Donate now.
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Google's arcane mapping practices are still on full display in Los Angeles. Just grab your phone, open the app and see for yourself.

The latest example comes in the form of "Brooklyn Heights," a long-antiquated name for an area in the northern section of Boyle Heights that fell out of use in the early 1900s.

I swear I am not making this up. Google Maps currently referring to Boyle Heights as Brooklyn Heights.  Please explain. pic.twitter.com/45MinNbItp  Gabriel Kahn (@gabekahn) September 11, 2018

Last month, I reported on Google's mapping system when I noticed two neighborhoods with names that residents and city officials don't use in real life -- Silver Lake Heights and North Highland Park.

I reached out to Google about these labels and asked for some basic information about how its engineers build and manage maps, but a company spokesperson declined to comment on the record. A few days later, North Highland Park and Silver Lake Heights had vanished.

RELATED: This Amazing Map Features Every Neighborhood in L.A.

Some apt readers pointed out that "Silver Lake Heights" had been referred to by that name -- way back in the 1920s, according to an old map from the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Since my first story, I've been exploring Google's L.A. map for more inexplicable labeling. They haven't been hard to find.

Spotted some more Google Maps weirdness in LA.

"New Downtown" ?

Little Tokyo x 2 pic.twitter.com/qqg65O46oX  Ryan Fonseca (@RyFons) August 15, 2018

Several SoCal residents also reached out about confusing labeling they've noticed in their communities -- and it goes beyond Los Angeles city limits.

Just south of LAX is the imaginary city of "LAirport"https://t.co/BnNQhkZTPz pic.twitter.com/1u2Y3ECcgK  frangeleno (@fran_geleno) August 14, 2018

Some of those San Gabriel Valley labels refer to Census Designated Places, or unincorporated communities of L.A. County. It gets a bit tricky, because many of these areas share a mailing address with a neighboring city. For example, addresses in Mayflower Village show up as Arcadia because they share a postal code with that city, according to Jason Kruckeberg, Arcadia's assistant city manager.

There are also labels for East and West Arcadia, which Kruckeberg clarified are "not specific neighborhoods for planning purposes... just used more often when residents are describing where they live."

Exploring the SGV-area map led to a few more strange finds and digital border disputes, like the case of the real city of El Monte and the very-not-real "El Monte City."

Google even gave this fake city its own borders, which absorb parts of the real El Monte, invade the separate city of South El Monte and overlap into unincorporated communities.

There's also a map view on Apartments.com that shows listings within "El Monte City," using Google data. Could this be a self-perpetuating phantom city? How do discrepancies like this happen on the most popular navigation app on the market?

(Screengrabs via Google)

We simply don't know. Google remains tight-lipped on how and where they get the data that informs -- and misinforms --how they map out communities. A Google spokeswoman kept it vague in a recent New York Times story about their mapping practices, saying only that they create their maps using information from third-party data, public sources, satellites and Google users.

It's that last source that might be particularly at blame for all the cartographic chaos, with users geotagging places they call by a certain name that may not be widely referred to, or even accurate.

So, LAist is asking: Do you live where Google thinks you live? What confusing labels have you seen on your local map? Post a screenshot on Twitter and tag @LAist (or email us the weirdness at tips@laist.com and use the subject line "Google Maps").

News happens every day. Here at LAist, our goal is to cover the stories that matter to you and the community you live in. Now that we're part of KPCC, those stories (including this one you're on right now!) are made possible by generous people like you. Independent, local journalism isn't cheap, but with your support we can keep delivering it. Donate now.
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You might think that local environmentalists would be fawning over Governor Jerry Brown this week. After all, he just signed bills to move the state to 100% renewable electricity and ban off-shore drilling. But instead, many of them are protesting at his international climate change conference in San Francisco. What's going on?

WHO ARE THESE PROTESTERS?

They're part of the environmental justice movement, many people of color from less well-off, more polluted places like South L.A. or Wilmington. They want the fight for climate change to result in cleaner air for them right now.

Meanwhile, the people they are protesting (Governor Brown and his allies) are part of the mainstream environmental movement, which is often wealthier and whiter. Mainstream environmentalists support big, sweeping actions to fight climate change globally and generally think environmental justice groups are trying to twist climate laws into fixing air pollution, too.

WHAT DO PROTESTERS WANT?

They want the Governor to stop issuing new drilling permits for oil wells. And they want him to phase-out existing oil production by creating a buffer: any well that's within 2,500 feet of a home, school, or park would have to be shut down. In Southern California alone, that's a whole lot of wells. Here's a map giving you some idea of just how many:

Screenshot shows the location of oil wells in Southern California. (California Dept. of Conservation)

"California's climate policy won't be complete until the state address its own dirty oil extraction," said Kassie Siegel with the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group allied with the South L.A. activists. "It's hard to be climate leader while also being a top oil producing state."

WAIT. HASN'T GOVERNOR BROWN DONE A TON TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE?

Yes, he has.

He signed a law committing California to slashing its carbon dioxide emissions by 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030.

His administration heavily subsidizes electric vehicles and trucks.

New building codes passed this year require all new homes to have solar panels.

His attorney general, Xavier Becerra, is fighting to preserve California's strict greenhouse gas standards for cars, which the EPA is trying to repeal

We could go on, but you get the idea.

Still, protesters say this isn't enough. Martha Dina Arguello, the head of Physicians for Social Responsibility in Los Angeles, says Governor Brown's climate policies aren't helping people who are most affected by oil drilling.

"The people who live near these oil wells, it's really time to put them first," she said.

HOW MUCH OIL DOES CALIFORNIA PRODUCE ANYWAY?

Look we're not Texas, but California is the number six oil-producing state in the country. The oil industry is about three percent of California's GDP and employs about 400,000 people, according to a study commissioned by the Western States Petroleum Association.

Arguello acknowledges that if oil drilling were to end, a lot of people could be out of work. But that's why she and other activists want what they call "a just transition" to help oil workers find new jobs.

"WE HAVE THE TOUGHEST RULES ON OIL."

Brown, meanwhile, thinks this idea is totally impractical. The last time protesters heckled him in public, at the 2017 UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany, he told them that would have devastating impacts on the economy. "If I could turn off the oil today, 32 million vehicles would stop!" he said.

Later, in an interview with Amy Goodman from Democracy Now, he elaborated, "We have the toughest rules on oil. I don't think we should shut down oil in California and then take it from Venezuela, or places where the rules are even worse."

TL;DR

In short, Brown seems unlikely to ban oil drilling before he leaves office, especially given that existing climate policies will slash oil consumption over time. As a result, protesters are also focusing on cities like L.A. and asking them to phase out oil drilling -- which the city is actually studying.

This story is part of Elemental: Covering Sustainability, a multimedia collaboration between Cronkite News, Arizona PBS, KJZZ, KPCC, Rocky Mountain PBS and PBS SoCal.

News happens every day. Here at LAist, our goal is to cover the stories that matter to you and the community you live in. Now that we're part of KPCC, those stories (including this one you're on right now!) are made possible by generous people like you. Independent, local journalism isn't cheap, but with your support we can keep delivering it. Donate now.
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A county official showed up last month at the Los Angeles Unified School Board meeting to deliver a stark reality check.

"Although LAUSD is a large district," said Candi Clark, CFO of the L.A. County Office of Education, "it is not a district that is too big to fail."

Clark's warning: If LAUSD did not stop spending more money each year than it took in, county officials had the power to intervene -- and maybe even appoint a "fiscal advisor" with the power to veto school board decisions.

On one level, the timing of Clark's Aug. 21 warning is surprising. In previous years, LAUSD has submitted more grim budget projections to the county -- and the county's response has been more measured. Now, LAUSD officials believe they will (barely) be able to balance their books in each of the next three years.

But LAUSD is now in the middle of a tense, costly contract negotiation with its teachers union, United Teachers Los Angeles. County officials now seem worried that those talks might un-balance LAUSD's budget. (Rank-and-file UTLA members recently voted to give their leadership the power to call a strike.)

So Clark returned to the board Tuesday to underscore her warning one more time: "I'm concerned," she said, "that that window of opportunity is closing to address the district's fiscal challenges."

The appointment of a fiscal advisor would not only mean a loss of local control of LAUSD -- it would also likely mean layoffs and cuts. But how likely is that scenario? Let's break it down:

FIRST, THE BASICS: WHAT HAPPENS TO A SCHOOL DISTRICT HAVING MONEY TROUBLES?

California law requires school districts to update their budgets annually. But districts are also required to submit a spending plan that covers the next three years -- and a forecast of whether they'll have money left over at the end.

If a district projects a deficit in any of the next three years, state law requires county-level education officials step in. Sometimes, the extent of the county's intervention is to suggest a few edits to the budget.

But in severe cases, the county can appoint a fiscal advisor with the power to "stay and rescind" board actions he or she deems fiscally irresponsible. (L.A. County took that step last year in Montebello Unified.)

In the most dire emergencies, the state will take over the district -- as it did with Compton Unified in 1993 or Inglewood Unified in 2012. In districts that fall into "receivership," the state strips the school board and superintendent of all authority and appoints an overseer with broad powers to restructure the district's finances.

EXACTLY HOW DIRE IS L.A. UNIFIED'S BUDGET SITUATION?

This question gets to the heart of the contract dispute between LAUSD and the teachers union -- a dispute we broke down in detail here. But, in brief:

UTLA leaders argue LAUSD has amassed a huge reserve -- now estimated at more than $1.8 billion -- all despite district officials' warnings year after year that fiscal calamity was not far away.

The district "has a history of using [those projections] to justify draconian cuts and neglect on our campuses and in our classrooms," UTLA vice president Cecily Myaert-Cruz said Tuesday, "However, the sky never falls."

But LAUSD leaders already plan to spend almost that entire reserve. If they didn't spend that money, they say the district would quickly fall into the red; at its current pace of spending, LAUSD will expend around half-a-billion dollars more each year than it will take in.

LAUSD did set aside some of its reserves to pay for some of the items UTLA wants to negotiate into its new contract, like raises for teachers, smaller class sizes, and more nurses, deans and counselors -- but that's precisely what seems to have Clark and L.A. County officials worried.

"It's very clear you're living off the reserves," Clark told board members on Tuesday. "That's not wise, that's not prudence, that's not fiscal solvency."

BOTTOM LINE: HOW LIKELY IS THE COUNTY OR THE STATE TO INTERVENE IN L.A. UNIFIED?

Indeed, a county or state intervention would be a rare exercise of power. At Tuesday's board meeting, UTLA leaders dismissed the insolvency talk as an attempt by the district to put public pressure on the union. After all, Clark's original warning in August came during a meeting she attended at the invitation of new LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner, who is locked in tough negotiations with the union.

Those negotiations concern county officials, who have sent up red flags about the contract talks with UTLA. Their concern? The district might pay for concessions to the union out of its dwindling reserves.

In a letter sent Monday to the district, Clark wrote "any salary and benefit increase, if paid from reserves or other one-time resources, could adversely affect the fiscal condition of the district. We caution the district that this approach of funding ongoing salary increases with one-time resources is not a best business practice."

"[Clark] is doing her job and she's doing it well, actually," said Michael Fine, who runs the state's Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team, which assists financially-troubled school districts.

In an interview, Fine said he believes Clark's warning is meant to be taken seriously: "Do I think, in any way, it's meant to be a scare tactic? No."

And here's the bottom line: Even if the district made no concessions to the union in its contract negotiation, it would still face huge, structural threats to its budget.

Student enrollment is declining -- and when enrollment declines, state funding declines.

The district is not setting aside enough money to pay for retiree benefits.

Health care and pension costs will soon consume half of the district's annual budget.

Said board member Nick Melvoin said in a recent interview: "If the only way to fix that -- because we have an unreasonable teachers union who is not putting the interests of kids, families and teachers first -- is to go into state receivership and force a restructuring, then that has to be on the table, because we're not playing around."

UPDATE, Weds., Sept. 12, 1 p.m.: A spokesperson for the L.A. County Office of Education sent a written statement from Clark. Here's part of the statement:

Our concerns regarding LAUSD's budget issues are not new. We have raised many of the same concerns in recent years in our letters to the district ...



The key concern is that the district has said it will reduce expenditures by close to $73 million in 2019-20 and $73 million in 2020-21 but has not identified where the reductions will be made.





Clark went on to say that LAUSD's board must pass a more specific plan to cut expenses in the next two years. Until they do, county officials will count those undefined cuts as deficits. That means, as far as the county's concerned, LAUSD's projection that the district will just eke out a surplus in 2020-21 is incorrect; the county thinks LAUSD will end 2020-21 with a deficit of more than $67 million.
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However you feel about teacher compensation, charter school funding or standardized testing, everyone connected to the Los Angeles Unified School District seems to agree on one thing  the greatness of LAUSD's coffee cake. Students, teachers, administrators, janitors... mention the coffee cake and they get a misty, contented look in their eye.

"It is warm and scrumptious and it is our soul food, here, when we're doing a parent meeting or something special where we just need something from the heart," says Lorraine Machado, the principal of Marina del Rey Middle School. She's also a coffee cake fan. She's certainly not alone.

"No doubt about it, it is our most popular item," says Manish Singh, LAUSD's interim director for food services. "We've introduced many things. Breakfast burritos, egg sausage sandwiches. You name it and we've done it. But nobody beats the coffee cake."

Lorraine Machado, the principal at Marina del Rey Middle School in Los Angeles, and Manish Singh, LAUSD's interim director for food services, sit in front a platter of the school's famous coffee cake, circa August 2018. (Photo by Elina Shatkin for LAist)

He estimates that the district's 700 or so cafeterias make about 800,000 servings of coffee cake per month amounting to more than 10 million servings each year. Impressive stats, especially since it only shows up on school menus twice a month. But there are other excuses to serve the treat. Nearly every time her school holds an event or a meeting, Machado says people request the coffee cake. When it does show up in the cafeteria, students can buy a slice for 75 cents while faculty pay $1.75.

With classes back in session at the district's approximately 900 schools,* cafeterias are working overtime to churn out the dessert for parent meetings, administrative committees and staff events. Okay, not literally overtime because it'd be way too expensive to pay staffers time-and-a-half just to bake cake (hyperbole!), but people really, really, really love the stuff.

The coffee cake at Marina del Rey Middle School in Los Angeles, circa August 2018. (Photo by Elina Shatkin for LAist)

What's the deal? Is it nostalgia? Has the LAUSD achieved some sort of culinary witchcraft? Or do people love this coffee cake because it's the best thing the LAUSD kitchens churn out?

Boyle Heights native Aaron Perez has been known to serve a version of the LAUSD coffee cake at his Whittier restaurant, Vaka Burger. Plenty of other recipes are floating around.

One of the most important elements of the coffee cake is its scent. Whenever the kitchen bakes it, you can smell the cinnamon and sugar wafting across campus.

"That's really one of the first things which happens with the coffee cake, as it goes out. Everybody gets that smell and the taste buds are already kind of salivating. They're just waiting to dig into it," Singh says.

Dusted with a crumbly, brown sugar topping, it's also substantial. Each fluffy slab is approximately two inches square.

"It's something like maybe grandma would've made. It's very comforting," Machado says.

Not all LAUSD coffee cakes are created equal. "I'm a bit of a foodie and all the cafeterias do a great job on the coffee cake but when I came and ate it at Marina del Rey, I felt that it had gone up a notch higher," Singh says.

The coffee cake at Marina del Rey Middle School in Los Angeles, circa August 2018. (Photo by Elina Shatkin for LAist)

Principal Machado credits Evelen Guirguis, the school's cafeteria manager.

Guirguis has been baking coffee cake for nearly two decades although the treat has been on school district menus for more than 60 years. The LAUSD's earliest coffee cake recipe dates to 1954. It features the basics  flour, sugar, water, cinnamon  as well as powdered nonfat milk, vinegar and "salad oil."

A vintage recipe for the Los Angeles Unified School District's famous coffee cake. (Courtesy of the LAUSD)

These days, LAUSD's coffee cake comes from a mix.

Guirguis leads me into the food storage area at Marina del Rey Middle School's cafeteria. Amid industrial-size tins of granola and giant cans of fruit, salsa and black beans, you'll find 51% Whole Grain Coffee Cake Mix from Buena Vista Foods.

Each 4.75-pound bag  which contains a blend of whole wheat flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, unbleached wheat flour, nonfat milk, modified food starch, double acting baking powder, salt, soybean oil, cinnamon and nutmeg  makes 48 servings. Guirguis adds eggs, water, oil and a little bit of vinegar. She says the last ingredient enhances the smell and "breaks the taste little bit."

Nearby, you'll find 1.25-pound bags of coffee cake topping, also from Buena Vista Foods.

Guirguis is modest when asked why her coffee cake, of all the coffee cakes in all the cafeterias in the school district, is so special. "Because maybe you are in the west," she says with a laugh before she gets serious. "Because we make it from love, maybe."

Evelen Guirguis, standing at the far right, oversees coffee cake production at Marina del Rey Middle School in Los Angeles. (Photo by Elina Shatkin for LAist)

The recipe has changed over the years, mostly due to regulations about the kind of food public schools can serve.

The Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act, which became law in 2010, banned trans fats and artificial sweeteners and required schools to serve more whole grains. To comply with the law, LAUSD replaced some of the white flour in its coffee cake with whole grain flour. They also replaced the shortening with oil. So the cake in today's school cafeteria won't taste like the coffee cake from decades ago but whatever culinary sense-memory this dessert triggers, 10 million slices per year don't lie.

The coffee cake at Marina del Rey Middle School in Los Angeles, circa August 2018. (Photo by Elina Shatkin for LAist)

*That number doesn't include charter schools, which often have their own food service.


On Sunday, Sept. 9, Dr. Roger Mugford of London made what he estimates to be his 10th La Jolla trek. As he has every three or so years for the past 30, the renown animal psychologist checked up on the Childrens Pool seals in the company of his favorite La Jollan, animal-rights activist Florence Lambert. (The two met through their mutual work with the UKs Born Free Foundation.)

If theres a more beautiful environment in which to view animals than La Jolla, I cant think of it, Mugford said. The wonderful thing about this place is that the animals are free. It is wildlife laid out before you, for no charge and in the middle of a big city.

Mugford is famous in Britain as the Royal Dog Whisperer, having tamed Queen Elizabeth IIs beloved Corgis after they bit the Queen Mother in the late 90s and then, in 2004, achieving repeat success with Princess Annes Bull Terrier, Dotty, who nipped the royal maid and fatally mauled one of the Queens aforementioned Corgis.

The Queen really does love animals, Mugford said. Shes got a big, soft heart. And when she talks about her animals, shes not the stuffy sort of unhappy-looking person shes often portrayed as. (Mugford said the Queen delighted in telling him how she kept President Lyndon Johnson waiting 40 minutes, when he came to London to visit her, because he had posed for a photo on the White House lawn lifting one of his beagles by the ears in 1964.)

Mugford delivers a lesson in seal biology to interns at a Park & Rec education tent. COREY LEVITAN

Mugford strolled through Scripps Park just as the sun broke through the morning marine layer, stopping to hobnob with locals and tourists and to investigate a replica of a seal skull displayed by two Department of Parks & Recreation interns in an education tent.



Seals are very much like dogs, he educated them. In evolutionary terms, theyre well-separated, but theyre remarkably similar in terms of their teeth, they live in packs and engage in group-hunting for fish, and theyre unfortunately prone to some of the same diseases, including canine distemper virus.

Mugford reported being very pleased, once again, by the situation at the Childrens Pool, where he smiled as he watched seals frolic in their protected environment.

Fortunately, the population seems to be stable, he said. Theyre not an endangered species. But equally, theyre not increasing in numbers. Theres about half a million of them worldwide, and how many humans are there? Five billion? I think we can find spaces for them like this.

Mugford enjoys watching seals frolic in the ocean off the Children's Pool. COREY LEVITAN
When a 33-year-old hiker got bitten by a rattlesnake at Torrey Pines State Park recently, the Light headed to the area in search of answers. What might she have done wrong that we can all learn from on the trail?

In our Aug. 29 article, headlined Snakes on a Trail, the Light gave the last word to Torrey Pines park ranger Dave Richards, who said: I wasnt on the call, but from what I heard, she may have gone slightly off-trail and may have stepped around a barrier by the closed Broken Hill Trail Loop as she descended the Yucca Trail to Flat Rock Beach.

HIPAA privacy laws prevented the Light from discovering the identity of the victim and getting her side of the story at the time. After our story was published, however, the victim read it and contacted us to set the record straight.

Thats not what happened, she said. We never stepped across any barriers or went into any brush or anything. We were on the trail.

The victim explained that she was hiking with her husband at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 19. The couple had moved to La Jolla in July after marrying a month before. This was their first time in Torrey Pines State Park.

The Light verified the womans identity but she has asked us not to publish it because she has a high-profile career and would rather be Google-able for her accomplishments than her near-fatal mishaps.

I can see what the rangers are saying, the victim said. There was a sign saying how Broken Hill is closed off. So my husband and I were reading the sign. But I just stepped sideways quickly and the snake struck out from the side of the trail under some branches.

Ironically, a sign meant to warn hikers of danger is what brought danger upon one. (Because we were reading the sign, the victim said, I guess we didnt see the snake.)

The bite, to the fourth and fifth toes of her left foot, didnt hurt that much, the victim said  at least at first. She described thinking that coals from a fire had fallen on my foot or a bee had stung me.

She said she was confused because there was no audible sound and the snake didnt have its rattle out.

It might have been asleep and I might have woken it up just in time to think I was going to step on it, she said. But my husband, who has lived in San Diego for a while, recognized what happened.

Calling for help

The couple tried dialing 911 but couldnt get cell service. Since her phone was already out, the victim snapped a photo of the snake, thinking that doctors might need to know what breed of rattlesnake it was. (Later, she was told that it was a Southern Pacific rattlesnake, the very breed that herpetologist Steve Bledsoe, who accompanied the Light on its fact-finding mission, called crazy due to its highly toxic venom and its quickness to bite.)

Seconds after she was bitten in the foot, the Torrey Pines rattlesnake victim took this photograph of her attacker. (COURTESY)

I now think that was a little risky of me because I had to lean towards it to take the photo, she said. (Surprisingly, the victim said, the snake stayed where it was for the whole 45-minute ordeal; later, she heard that it was removed from the area.)

The next group of hikers to approach, about two minutes later, dialed 911. Thats when the first effects of the venom kicked in.

I started dry-heaving and then I had this crazy sensation going through my body, the victim said. People were freaking out. (A crowd began to gather once other hikers realized what happened.)

A group of lifeguards  the closest emergency personnel  arrived first, within 15 minutes. They ran up the nearby stairs from the beach. They tied a tourniquet around the victims left ankle to slow the venoms spread to the rest of her body.

I was having this really intense paralyzing feeling in my face, neck and arms and I started to have chest pains, she recalled.

EMTs from San Diego Fire-Rescue arrived 15 minutes after that, followed 15 minutes later by a helicopter on the beach with two additional EMTs. The victim described herself as conscious but terrified during her airlift.

I really didnt know anything about snakebites, she said. I grew up in New England. Especially with the crazy chest pains I was having and the fact that they were helicoptering me out  which I now realize is about the damage to my foot  I was just really scared.

And they didnt have room for my husband.

Several signs on the Yucca Trail warn of danger from rattlesnakes. (COREY LEVITAN)

Hospital measures

The anti-venom was administered about an hour after the victim arrived at Scripps Memorial.

It takes a while to mix the solution, she said. I actually needed a lot. Even though there wasnt a huge amount of tissue damage, the anti-venom (CroFab) is derived from the most common type of snake to bite people (North American) and it doesnt work very well on the hemotoxin given off by the Southern Pacific Rattlesnake.

Obviously, the victim said, I know a lot about snakebites now.

To slow the expansion of any damaged flesh, three CroFab doses were required.

The victim was lucky. Her attacker didnt deliver as much hemotoxin as it could have.

We heard stories in the hospital about how lots of snakebites cause people to lose their limbs, she said. You run to the hospital and theyre like, Sorry, your leg is gone.

But hemotoxin, which a snake uses to pre-digest its prey, is not the only scary component of a snakes venom. Theres also neurotoxin, for paralyzing prey. There is no antidote for neurotoxin. However, it usually wears off after about four hours  if it doesnt stop your breathing first.

Eventually, the paralysis reached my face and I couldnt open my eyes, the victim said. An hour after that, it was a feeling of weird muscle tension throughout my neck and face.

Doctors put her to sleep while closely monitoring her progress.

When I woke up, everything was back to normal, the victim said, except that my foot was in pain and still is sometimes.

She spent three nights in the intensive care unit but was told she will suffer no long-term effects.

The total cost of that sideways step while reading the sign? Just north of $250,000. Fortunately, the victims insurance promises to cover all but $1,500.

The whole episode was very surprising to me, the victim said, particularly because everyone said this never happens and this was our very first time in Torrey Pines State Park.

She said she reached out to the Light because this could have happened to anyone, and she wants people to know they should always wear pants and closed-toed shoes while hiking.

Especially children, she said. Everyone around us was wearing sandals and shorts, like us.
US Central Command chief General Joseph Votel urged feuding Gulf Arab states on Wednesday to put aside their differences and unite against Iranian efforts to "destabilise" the region.

"Two of our enduring security threats are present in this region -- the destabilising actions of Iran and violent extremist organisations," said Votel, who heads US forces in the Middle East, ahead of a military conference in Kuwait on Wednesday which is to be attended by Saudi Arabia and its allies, and their bitter rival Qatar.

Votel said it was "imperative" to "enhance and integrate our capabilities for our mutual national security interests" and "rise above all the other aspects".

In June 2017, Saudi Arabia and its allies cut all ties with Qatar, demanding that their erstwhile ally cut longstanding ties with the Muslim Brotherhood and take a stronger line with Saudi arch-rival Iran.

The rift has proved a strategic headache for Washington as Qatar provides the main headquarters in the region for CENTCOM while rival Bahrain is home to the US Fifth Fleet.Kuwait, which along with Washington has led mediation efforts in the crisis, has said it is considering US proposals for a regional alliance to counter Iranian influence.

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Near the end of One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression Is Destroying Our Democracy, Carol Anderson reminds us that voting is neither an obstacle course nor a privilege. Its a right. Anderson offers this statement after demonstrating how, over the course of 120 years, the Mississippi Plan of 1890 has been cloaked, refitted and disseminated throughout the South and into Western and Midwestern states in an effort to stall or halt black, Latino, young and poor citizens from participating freely in American elections.

Made to be intentionally racially discriminatory, the Mississippi Plan was the umbrella phrase for a dizzying array of poll taxes, literacy tests, understanding clauses, newfangled voter registration rules, and good character clauses arranged to erase the social, political and economic gains that African Americans had made during Reconstruction. Although the plan was announced as an attempt to return  integrity to the voting booth following the late 19th century rise of Southern black political power, it actually delivered Jim Crow in full feather. Anderson calls the Mississippi Plan legislative evil genius.

One Person, No Vote is Andersons follow-up to White Rage (2016), her live wire case study of white Americas violent, retributive resistance to African Americans fighting for, acquiring and enacting citizenship in full. The Charles Howard Candler professor of African American Studies at Emory University, Anderson has a gift for illustrating how specific historical injustices have repercussive, detrimental influence on contemporary American life.

Alabama state troopers beat voting rights marchers, including John Lewis, front right, in Selma on March 7, 1965. (AP)

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In One Person, Not Votes introductory chapter, she scribes a condensed but potent history of disfranchisement in American democracy from Reconstructions ending in 1877 to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) to the Supreme Court of the United States decision in Shelby County, Alabama v. Eric Holder, Jr. Attorney General from 2013.

Andersons historical survey undergirds her close study of voter ID laws, gerrymandering and voter roll purges in the subsequent chapters. All three policy concepts are actually tactics from the Mississippi Plan transposed into the key of 21st century American politics. The VRA was established to ensure access to the ballot for all American citizens by targeting systemic corruptions like the Mississippi Plan and its offshoot elements as unconstitutional.

After the VRA was signed into law in 1965, states and municipalities across the country (but especially in the South) attempted procedural changes that wound up obstructing African Americans or Latinos access to the ballot or the impact of their voting. The Department of Justice used two parts of the VRA to protect voters and promote fuller participation: Section 4, which established a formula for determining the areas of the country where racial discrimination at the ballot box was most prevalent and where policy changes are intentionally racist, providing strict remedies for such illegalities when appropriate; and Section 5, the preclearance clause which freezes changes in election practices or procedures in covered jurisdictions until newly designed ones have been either reviewed by the U.S. attorney general or after a lawsuit has been filed before the district court of Washington, D.C.

Since the VRAs passage, Section 5 has been the Justice Departments strongest tool in defense of the voting franchise. However, Jim Crow-era impediments have begun appearing again in reconfigured forms because states no longer worry about Sections 4 or 5. In Shelby v. Holder, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, arguing for the majority, held that VRA Section 4 is unconstitutional because: (1) States cannot maintain their sovereignty or their 10th Amendment right to regulate their own elections if they must preclear their laws with the federal government and (2) blatantly discriminatory evasions of federal decrees are rare.

Because the VRA had 45 years of hard-won successes, the SCOTUS majority agreed that racist structures and intentions had been dispatched from the voting process and states need not beseech the federal government for preclearance any longer. And yet, as Anderson points out in One Person, after the Shelby decision, Republican-controlled states legislatures began making it harder for people of color and poor people to vote. Once Alabama was freed from the oversight of the VRA and preclearance, writes Anderson, every twist and turn of the assault on voting rights was mobilized to go after black and poor folk, which the state had in abundance.

A sign reminding Wisconsin voters that ID is required for the Aug. 14, 2018, primary. (Scott Olson / Getty Images)

Through voter ID laws in Wisconsin, Indiana and Texas, Anderson explains, the GOP has tried to reduce significantly the demographic and political impact of a growing share of the American electorate. To diminish the ability of blacks, Latinos, and Asians, as well as the poor and students to choose government representatives and the types of policies they support. Unfortunately, its working. She argues that because Republicans have acquired power through voter suppression rather than high-quality, effective policies for working people, citizens are denied both their rights and the  talisman of humanity that voting represents. These policies arise from a Republican vision of democracy that views most citizens as unwashed, uninformed, and, therefore, unworthy of that talisman. Anderson cites folks like Ann Coulter, Florida Gov. Rick Scott and Iowa congressman Steve King, the last of whom has wished nostalgically for a time in American history when you had to be a male property owner in order to vote.

Following the 2010 midterm elections, the GOP controlled more than half the state legislatures in the nation, and policymakers instituted systemic obstacles to keep young, poor and minority voters from maintaining the political force that charged Barack Obamas election to the presidency in 2008. Although Obama won election again in 2012, that same year, in 41 states 180 bills to restrict who could vote and how appeared, Anderson notes, citing Nancy McLeans book Democracy in Chains.

Ohio Secretary of State Joe Husted and his predecessor Kenneth Blackwell limited the number of polling stations for early voting in urban areas, thus creating untenable four-to-five-hour wait times in cities and threw out thousands of absentee ballots because they were cast on incorrect paper stock or had a spelling error. Husteds enforcement activities were targeted at the cities but not rural areas populated mostly by white Ohioans. Essentially, Husteds office set up the equivalence of the old literacy tests, in which those Jim Crow states ensured that many of their citizens could not get a decent education and then turned around and required literacy to vote.

From Florida to Kansas, claims of voter fraud have led to roll purges that force out poor, young and minority voters to a disproportionate effect. Although African Americans make up 16% of Floridas population, nearly one-third of those who have lost the right to vote for life are black, according to Erika L. Wood of New York Law School, quoted by Anderson. In 2012, in the 10 Florida precincts with the longest delays  almost 70 percent of voters were Latino and black, Anderson notes from a Mother Jones report. The Sunshine state is actually an electorally dark place for 1.7 million citizens, Anderson writes.

A polling station at Miami Beach City Hall open for early voting on Aug. 13, 2018. Florida is an electorally dark place for 1.7 million citizens, Anderson writes. (Wilfredo Lee / AP)

In 2016, Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach (now the GOP gubernatorial candidate) rejected more ballots than even Florida did. Fearing a brown wave had arrived in Kansas to steal elections, Kobach turned Kansas upside down, wrangling prosecutorial power from the legislature, but found only a Peruvian immigrant who was actually in the process of naturalizing and erroneously thought he could cast a ballot. Although unable to find evidence for a conspiracy to defraud the Kansan election process, Kobach said this sole immigrant represented the tip of the iceberg. As Anderson points out, rigging the rules to suppress or dilute the vote of millions of citizens to affect the outcome of an election has come almost naturally to many of these politicians and public officials.

After weighing all the case evidence about our voting processes and measuring the pulse of the country, Anderson offers a damning diagnosis: In short, were in trouble. If White Rage is history as even-tempered cultural criticism  it was awarded the 2017 National Book Critics Circle citation in criticism  then One Person, No Vote is history as old-fashioned, coldblooded jeremiad: a lamentation about American democracy in crisis.

Throughout One Person, Andersons tone, at turns urgent and indignant, seems to arise from the ease with which she can document abundantly  via investigative journalism, popular history and historical scholarship  the GOPs determined efforts to purge American citizens and cull and homogenize the electorate. The books final chapter is called The Resistance and that is likely our only recourse: To sustain American democracy, we must collectively resist state-run purges of legal voters. Anderson knows this, hammering her overarching claim through quotation of Abraham Lincoln: I believe this government cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free.

Walton Muyumba, a professor at Indiana University Bloomington, is the author of The Shadow and the Act: Black Intellectual Practice, Jazz Improvisation, and Philosophical Pragmatism.

One Person, No Vote by Carol Anderson (Bloomsbury)

One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression Is Destroying Our Democracy

Carol Anderson

Bloomsbury: 288 pp., $27
Congressional Republicans are launching another tax-cut push this week, but its more about your November election ballot than your 1040 form.

And in California and other high-tax states, it could further inflame debate about the controversial new $10,000 limit on deductions for state and local tax payments that hits many residents hard.

Analysts said the legislation, which would make individual tax cuts and the deduction limit permanent, has no chance of passing the Senate this year. Republicans are pushing ahead anyway to force House Democrats  who unanimously opposed last years tax-cut bill  to take another tax vote ahead of the midterm elections.

You could get Democrats in moderate districts on record as opposing another tax cut and maybe that could help their Republican opponents, explained Gregory Valliere, chief global strategist at Horizon Investments, an investment management firm.

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But Republicans who are scrambling to hold their House majority also will be making some of their own vulnerable lawmakers in California and elsewhere take a difficult vote on a tax overhaul that hasnt proved to be as popular with voters as party strategists had expected.

Only about a quarter of Americans have reported increases in their take-home pay, and a Fox News poll last month showed 40% of registered voters approved of the tax reform law, while 41% disapproved.

Read more California midterms coverage 

Rep. Steve Knight (R-Palmdale), who voted for last years tax bill, is one of those endangered incumbents. A spokesman said Knights not committed yet on the new tax legislation.

Knights Democratic opponent, Katie Hill, said shes happy hes going to have to take another tax vote in the weeks before the election to permanently limit the state-and-local tax deduction used by many residents in the Antelope Valley district.

If he doesnt vote for it this time, then hes being hypocritical, said Hill, who opposed the tax cuts because of the deduction limit and large benefits for the wealthy and corporations. If he does vote for it, its a fresh reminder of whose side hes on.

Dubbed tax reform 2.0, the new House legislation centers on permanently extending the temporary tax cuts for individuals and so-called pass-through businesses that took effect Jan. 1. Those across-the-board cuts, including lowering the top marginal tax rate to 37% from 39.6%, and the cap on state and local tax deductions, expire after 2025.

Republicans had to sunset the changes to the individual side of the tax code in order to make permanent a big reduction in corporate tax rates  to 21% from 35%  while also keeping to a legislative commitment that last years tax bill wouldnt add more than $1.5 trillion to the federal budget deficit over 10 years.

No House or Senate Democrats voted for that bill. One of their complaints was that the individual tax cuts were temporary while corporate tax cuts were permanent. Republicans said the new legislation would fix that and Democrats should get on board.

Now that theyre seeing that those hardworking families across the country are benefiting, I challenge them to switch their vote and now vote yes to make those tax cuts permanent, Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) told reporters last week.

The tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee will begin considering the legislation on Thursday. The tax reform 2.0 package also includes bills to promote retirement savings and spur entrepreneurship by allowing businesses to deduct start-up costs.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce supports making last years individual tax cuts permanent because those apply to pass-through businesses, which are taxed at individual rates and include mom-and-pop operations, privately held manufacturers and large partnerships such as law firms and hedge funds.

Businesses want certainty. We have certainty on the corporate side, said Caroline Harris, the groups vice president for tax policy and economic development.

We very strongly believe in the need to have the most pro-growth [tax] code, and that means having the permanency of lower rates for all small businesses, she said.

But making the individual tax cuts permanent would produce another large hit to federal tax revenues. Congress nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation estimated this week that the new tax legislation would increase the federal budget deficit by an additional $631 billion over the next decade.

Democrats said thats a big concern given that corporations and the wealthy are already getting a large chunk of the tax savings.

The new tax bill can pass the House with no Democratic support but cant get through the Senate without it.

Last years tax bill was able to pass the Republican-controlled Senate with a simple majority vote using an arcane process called budget reconciliation. That mechanism is not available to the Republicans this fall, meaning theyd need 60 votes  and the support of nine Democrats  to pass this time.

Valliere called the Republican effort quixotic, particularly given the short amount of legislative time remaining this fall.

Republicans have another problem, particularly in the House.

Some of their own members oppose the new tax legislation because it would make permanent the new $10,000 limit on state and local taxes. The limit hits hard in California, New York, New Jersey and other high tax states.

Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa), who is in a tough reelection fight, was among a dozen House Republicans nationwide who opposed last years tax bill because of that provision.

Tax reform 2.0 would make the existing code permanent, so he will vote no, said his spokesman, Andrew Eisenberger.

Knight is on the fence about the new tax bill although he was a strong supporter of last years tax cuts.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has brought more money in each paycheck to the overwhelming majority of middle-class American families and our economy is booming, he said. It is important that we allow this growth to continue.

But the latest bill puts him and some other House Republicans in states like California in a difficult position, said Jennifer Duffy, senior editor of the Cook Political Report.

If Im a Republican in a tough race, I dont want to take that vote, she said. I probably would go to the leadership and say, Have you lost your mind? 

jim.puzzanghera@latimes.com

Twitter: @JimPuzzanghera
Apple Inc. took the wraps off a renewed iPhone strategy Wednesday, unveiling a trio of phones that aim to spread the companys latest technology to a broader audience.

The iPhone Xs, starting at $999, succeeds last years flagship model with a faster A12 processor and updated cameras. The iPhone Xs Max is a higher-end version with a 6.5-inch OLED screen, making it one of the biggest on the market  and one of the most expensive, at $1,099 and up. For the first time there are 512-gigabyte storage options.

The third model, called the Xr, is Apples biggest hardware bet of 2018. It retains the key advances of the first iPhone X  facial recognition and an edge-to-edge display  but is cheaper while being noticeably larger, at 6.1 inches. The price starts at $749, roughly in line with most analysts expectations. Apple used older LCD screen technology and aluminum, rather than stainless steel, edges.

We want to reach as many customers as we can with this incredible technology, Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller said Wednesday during an event at Apples Cupertino, Calif., headquarters. The companys stock slipped $2.78, or 1.2%, to $221.07.

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When Apple introduced the iPhone X last year at a starting price of $999, some analysts doubted that people would pay so much. But it has been the companys bestselling smartphone. Now Apple is making the core features available on a range of devices that appeal to different budgets.

The iPhone Xs and Xs Max will be available to pre-order Friday and hit shelves Sept. 21, Apple said. Pre-orders for the iPhone Xr start Oct. 19, and the phone will be in stores Oct. 26.

The variety of models shows how the company is adjusting its strategy. Rather than attracting millions of new iPhone users, Apples goal these days is to steadily raise average prices while expanding the total number of active devices to support sales of accessories and digital services such as iCloud storage, streaming music and video.

At Wednesdays event, Apple also unveiled a new Apple Watch with a larger screen and new health capabilities. This week, it signed two deals for movies to stream via an upcoming online video service.

Wall Street has embraced Apples evolution from a consumer hardware company into a more diversified technology giant with an installed base of 1.3 billion devices supporting a growing roster of digital services. The stock has jumped more than 30% this year, making Apple the first public company worth $1 trillion. On Tuesday, UBS raised its price target to $250, saying that a growing stream of recurring revenue from services and other offerings deserves a higher valuation than the more cyclical hardware business.

The iPhone is still Apples most important product, generating about two-thirds of its revenue. Although global smartphone market growth has stalled, Apple has kept revenue rising by lifting average selling prices. The three new iPhones have an average starting price of $949. The iPhone average starting price was $724 in the most recent quarter.

Worldwide smartphone sales grew just 2% in the April-through-June quarter compared with a year earlier, according to research firm Gartner Inc. During the second quarter, which is typically slow for Apple, Chinas Huawei Technologies surpassed Apple as the second-largest seller of smartphones, based on Gartners calculations. Samsung remained in the lead.

Apple Watch Series 4

The Apple Watch upgrades announced Wednesday are the most significant since the device first went on sale in 2015, turning the product into more of a health-monitoring device.

The new version, called Apple Watch Series 4, has larger screens that fit into the same overall watch sizes, and new health sensors and apps such as an electrocardiogram, or ECG, monitor. It also includes a faster dual-core processor called the S4, Apple said.

Apple Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams described the latest Watch as an intelligent guardian of your health, noting that Apple got clearance for the ECG app from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the first of its kind.

The Watch has more-powerful sensors so it can spot when someone has a hard fall. It delivers an alert and calls emergency services if the user doesnt move for one minute after a fall, Williams said. The ECG capability, available later this year, helps the device sense atrial fibrillation, an irregular heart rate that can increase the risk of stroke, heart failure and other heart-related complications.

The FDA worked closely with the company as they developed and tested these software products, which may help millions of users identify health concerns more quickly, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said in a statement. Healthcare products on ubiquitous devices, such as smartwatches, may help users seek treatment earlier and empower them with more information about their health, he said.

The new Watch line starts at $399, Apple said, compared with the $329 starting price of last years model. The device has 50% louder speakers, improving interaction with the Siri digital assistant. The back of the Watch lets more cellular signals through, making calls clearer. Battery life remains the same. Pre-orders start Friday, and the device hits stores Sept. 21.

Shares of Fitbit Inc., the maker of popular fitness devices, fell nearly 7% after Apple began unveiling its Watch plans.

The Apple Watch hasnt been a monster hit like the iPhone, but its the worlds bestselling smartwatch and is helping Apple expand healthcare-related services. The Watch is part of the companys Other Products segment, whose revenue jumped 37% to $3.74 billion in the fiscal third quarter. Apple shipped 4.7 million watches in that period, beating rivals such as Xiaomi Corp. and Fitbit, according to IDC.

The announcement of the new Watch line comes just days after Apple said in a letter to the U.S. government that proposed tariffs on goods imported from China could raise the price of Apple Watches and other Apple products.

Gurman writes for Bloomberg. The Associated Press was used in compiling this report.

UPDATES:

2:35 p.m.: This article was updated with Apple shares closing price, pre-order and release dates for the iPhones and Apple Watch, and additional information about the Apple Watch.

1:15 p.m.: This article was updated throughout with pricing and other information about the iPhones.

11:35 a.m.: This article was updated throughout with product announcements and context.

This article was originally published at 10:05 a.m.
From pumping iron at the gym to the superhero adventures of Iron Man, the symbolic use of iron in American culture today is pretty much limited to a single theme. Brute strength, perhaps reflecting our unceasing militaristic swagger, is brusquely signified.

In Africa, by contrast, iron  the most common element on Earth  has for centuries been a more nuanced emblem. At the Fowler Museum at UCLA, the engrossing exhibition Striking Iron: The Art of African Blacksmiths shows how.

Power is certainly at issue in the abundance of weaponry forged from the material, both functionally and metaphorically. Watch out for this specific weapon, the weighty, elemental material says. Whether straightforward spears and daggers or elaborately decorated shields, axes and throwing knives, iron armaments possess physical strength.

Yet, a very different kind of muscle is represented when a gifted craftsman has the talent and expertise to forge iron into something that is dazzling to look at. Watch out for the sharp and clever people who made it, a deft design declares. They are powerful too.

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Installation view of power figures in Striking Iron: The Art of African Blacksmiths (Joshua White/Fowler Museum at UCLA)

Strength and intensity can assume subtle interpretations. Take a small apron, called a cache-sexe.

Worn to cover a womans pubic region, one example is composed of a fringe of gently curved iron pods suspended from a leather belt. Crude iron, dug from the earth, has been elegantly transformed through the difficult, time-consuming process of smelting and forging. A cache-sexe links that process to another transformative power  a womans human metamorphosis in fertility. Creation is signified and embodied.

Striking Iron is a large and absorbing exhibition, apparently the first of its kind to survey the importance of the material and the sophistication in its uses on the continent, mostly in regions south of the Sahara Desert. Objects both utilitarian and ceremonial are included  more than 225 in all  mostly from the 19th and early 20th centuries.

A few date from earlier periods. Iron has been an essential material in Africa for more than 2,500 years, with a wide variety of artistic manifestations. The elegantly curved, oversize fingers on a small, 17th or 18th century wrought-iron figure from the Kuba/Bushoong peoples of todays Democratic Republic of the Congo slyly celebrate the primacy of the human hand. The grinning, gnome-like little figure, whose purpose is not known for sure, seems to pantomime welcoming gestures.

Attributed to Myeel (Kuba/Bushoong peoples, Democratic Republic of the Congo), Figurine, 17th-18th century; wrought-iron, traces of red pigment (Michel Wuyts/Museum aan de Stroom, Antwerpen)

Artist unknown (Gaanda peoples, Nigeria); ritual sickle, mid-20th century; iron (Fowler Museum at UCLA)

The organizing team for Striking Iron was led by Tom Joyce, a master blacksmith based in Santa Fe, N.M., who was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2003. (Several short, explanatory videos featuring Joyce are on view.) Marla C. Berns, director of the Fowler Museum, worked with three other scholars of African art and culture at American universities, who contributed deep expertise.

A catalog is unfortunately not yet available. The Fowler expects to publish one before the show travels to Washingtons National Museum of African Art in February and to the Musee du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac in Paris in November 2019.

Individual objects are accompanied by helpful labels. The exhibition is also well laid-out, conceived as a sequence of eight chapters that consider iron for both its material and metaphorical properties.

One technical section explains the smelting and forging process, in which the artisans equipment is itself often ornamented. (The bellows used for pumping air into a fire is likened to human lungs, which explains why carved heads adorn two sets of bellows.) Archaeology traces the historical origins of the forging process, as well as some of the stories told about irons place in the cosmologies of multiple African societies. Spiritual implements, tools (especially for agriculture), armaments and percussion instruments each get separate sections.

Among the most fascinating is Blades of Value. Currency tokens  a type of monetary exchange voucher that, unlike coins, are not issued by a government or central authority  are forged in sometimes elaborate iron shapes.

One hefty bundle of about a dozen large, knife-like blades, each nearly two feet long, is bound together with cord at the tips. The composition looks like a ceremonial bouquet of lethal weaponry. Used by the Budja peoples in the late 19th century as payment made by a groom to ratify a marriage, the unnerving bunch of stiletto forms suggests that the spousal transaction should not be taken lightly.

Or else.

Artist unknown (Ndengese peoples, Democratic Republic of the Congo), throwing knifeshaped currency, 19th century; iron (Fowler Museum at UCLA)

Another 19th century currency token, this one from the Ndengese people of Central Africa, is uncommonly elegant. Nearly 3 feet tall, it features a hefty central iron post spouting three big, thin blades whose curvilinear flourishes might best be described as calligraphic.

Looking like a fluid stroke of ink on paper rendered from a brush more than white-hot iron hammered on a resistant anvil, the silhouettes taper at the ends to impossibly delicate finials. These flared shapes derive from throwing knives used in combat or hunting  another example of the objects social gravity.

Artist unknown (Yoruba peoples, Nigeria) herbalists staff, 19th century; iron (Fowler Museum at UCLA)

Blades of Value also harbors the seeds of ruin. Beginning in the 15th century, European incursions steadily upended local African economies.

Iron is hardly unique to Africa, and the mass import from abroad of foreign replicas of currency tokens undermined homegrown values. Colonial powers even went so far as to forbid indigenous production, forcing numerous sub-Saharan societies to acquire European iron. Primal artistic traditions were crudely interrupted.

The exhibition roams far and wide in the kinds of metal objects being surveyed.

Scarified markings decorating one staff and a fluttering flock of birds that rises from another signify the holders as herbalists. Portable, umbrella-shaped altars showcase sculptural genre scenes of daily life. (Likewise, a wood mask is crowned by carved blacksmiths at work around a forge.) A fierce, anthropomorphic power figure  one of the famous minkisi nkondi from the region now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo  is ritualistically bound with strips of multicolored cloth and hammered with hundreds of nails and ceremonial iron shards.

The array gets steadily more elaborate as you move through the show. By the end, youre unlikely ever again to regard iron as just a mute, brute material. In that, Striking Iron strikes gold.

Fowler Museum at UCLA, 308 Charles E. Young Dr. North, (310) 825-4361, through Dec. 30. Closed Mon. and Tue. www.fowler.ucla.edu

christopher.knight@latimes.com

Twitter: @KnightLAT

christopher.knight@latimes.com

@KnightLAT
Mika Brzezinski apologizes for homophobic insult of Pompeo By Tracy Brown Morning Joe co-hosts Mika Brzezinski, left, and Joe Scarborough. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski has apologized for referring to Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo as wannabe dictator President Trumps butt boy. During a segment discussing the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi on the MSNBC show Wednesday morning, Brzezinski questioned whether Pompeos comments were the words of a patriot. I understand that Donald Trump doesnt care.  He doesnt care, said Brzezinski. But why doesnt Mike Pompeo care right now? Are the pathetic deflections that we just heard when he appeared on Fox & Friends, is that a patriot speaking? Or a wannabe dictators butt boy? Critics were quick to point out the homophobic nature of the insult, and Brzezinski promptly apologized on Twitter for her super bad choice of words. (While sometimes referring to a person eager to please for personal gain, a butt boy is also understood as a derogatory term for gay men.) I should have said water boy like for football teams or something like that, tweeted Brzezinski. So Sorry! And its not the first time Trumps critics have been called out for relying on homophobic jokes in their efforts to mock the president. Totally agree with you -SUPER BAD choice of words .. I should have said water boy... like for football teams or something like that.. apologize to @SenatorDurbin too! SO SORRY! https://t.co/zIqsGdK3Tk  Mika Brzezinski (@morningmika) December 12, 2018 Facebook

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Baby, Its Cold Outside bites back as fans embrace embattled holiday song Fans are pushing back against the Baby, Its Cold Outside backlash, driving the song to surge in both sales and streaming. (Eric Risberg / Associated Press) Baby, Its Cold Outside got a chilly reception on some airwaves earlier this year, but the seasonal favorite is heating up the charts, thanks to loyal fans who are pushing back against, well, the backlash. The tune has grown controversial in recent years, due to a changing cultural climate and conversations cropping up in the wake of #MeToo, prompting some radio stations to remove the song from airplay. But the tide appears to be turning for Baby, Its Cold Outside. On Monday, San Francisco-area radio station KOIT-FM (96.5) announced that it had returned the song to its rotation after a vast majority of listeners in an online poll voted to have it reinstated. KOITs listeners have spoken, and the overwhelming message is they do want to hear Baby, Its Cold Outside on our station, as they have throughout the years, KOIT program director Brian Figula said in Mondays statement. The radio station was one of several that had excised the song from their playlists, is now among those that reversed their original decision after fan outrage. And its not just on the radio where Baby is gaining ground. Billboards Holiday Digital Song Sales chart for the week of Dec. 15 feature three different versions of the song, with Dean Martins 1959 rendition at No. 2, Idina Menzel and Michael Bubles 2014 duet reentering the chart at No. 29, and Leon Redbone and Zooey Deschanels 2003 duet from the Elf soundtrack debuting at No. 41. As for radio stations, they remain dedicated to giving the audience what it wants. More than seven out of every ten listeners who responded said although some lyrics of the song may reflect a different era and a different sensibility than today, still they love the tradition and history of the song, and want to hear it as part of their holiday season, Figulas statement added. At KOIT, we always listen carefully when our listeners take time to comment. In this case, it was very obvious what they wanted us to do. Facebook

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Selena series based on the life of the Tejano singer ordered at Netflix By Los Angeles Times Staff The late Tejano singer Selena was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2021 Grammys. (Photo by Rick Corrales) Netflix is ready to Bidi Bidi Bom Bom. The streaming platform has ordered a new scripted series about the life of famed Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla. Selena: The Series will follow the coming-of-age of a young Selena as her dreams of becoming a professional singer come to fruition, forcing her and her family to make life-changing personal and professional choices. The family of the late singer is involved with the project and will serve as executive producers. Moises Zamora (Star, American Crime) is attached to write and executive-produce the series, which hails from Campanario Entertainment. Selena will always have a lasting place in music history and we feel great responsibility to do justice to her memory. With this series, viewers will finally get the full history of Selena, our family, and the impact she has had on all of our lives, Suzette Quintanilla, Selenas sister, said in a statement. We are excited to partner with Campanario and Netflix to give fans a never-before-seen glimpse at our story and highlight why Selena will remain a legend for generations to come. Selena rose to fame in the late 80s and early 90s with hits like Bidi Bidi Bom Bom and Como La Flor. She was shot and killed in 1995 at the age of 25 by her former fan club manager. Her death came months before she was slated to release her first crossover English-language album, which featured the hit singles I Could Fall in Love and Dreaming of You. Jennifer Lopez famously played the singer in a 1997 biopic, which marked one of Lopezs early breakout roles. More recently, Selena served as the inspiration for a posthumous makeup line for MAC cosmetics that launched in 2016. There is no premiere date yet for the series. Facebook

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Heres how to watch the SAG Award nominations on Wednesday By Nardine Saad Hump day might be a lot more enjoyable this week thanks to Awkwafina, Laverne Cox and the Screen Actors Guild. Cox (Orange Is the New Black and Bad Hair) and Awkwafina (Oceans 8 and Crazy Rich Asians) are teaming up to announce the nominations for the 25th SAG Awards on Wednesday and will hopefully enliven the typical awards-show announcements with their sass and comedic chops. The acting nominees will be revealed at 7 a.m. Pacific time at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood. The announcement  being made on TNT, TBS and truTV  will also be carried live on each outlets website and social media pages, as well as the SAG Awards site. Heres when and how to watch: Live on TNT, TBS and TruTV and their websites and social media pages

tntdrama.com/sag-awards

truTV.comsagawards.org

TNTs Facebook, Twitter @TNTdrama and YouTube channel

TBS Facebook, Twitter @tbsnetwork and YouTube channel

The SAG Awards homepage Actresses Awkwafina, left, and Laverne Cox will announce the Screen Actors Guild Award nominees on Wednesday. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris will introduce Awkwafina and Cox. Before that  at 6:50 a.m. Pacific  nominees in the the stunt ensemble categories will be announced by SAG Awards Committee chair JoBeth Williams and committee member Elizabeth McLaughlin during a live webcast on TNT and the SAG Awards websites. The 25th SAG Awards ceremony will be simulcast live on Jan. 27 at 5 p.m. Pacific on TNT and TBS and on the networks mobile and smart TV apps. Facebook

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Hoda Kotb in tears after Kathie Lee Gifford announces Today exit By Nardine Saad Hoda Kotb, left, and Kathie Lee Gifford have co-anchored the Today show since 2008. (Nathan Congleton / NBC) Kathie Lee Giffords announcement that shes leaving NBCs Today show reduced her on-air BFF Hoda Kotb to a sea of tears on Tuesday, and their life preserver was the box of tissues that a prop master dropped from the ceiling. Kotb, who knew about Giffords departure before the live announcement, was still emotional afterward, telling her longtime co-host that she had changed her life. The minute you stepped into my life with both feet, everything changed, Kotb said through tears, prompting the tissue-box drop. You chose me and thats how it started, she added. I was thinking about everything good thats happened in my life has happened since you came. "Its bittersweet, as these things always are@kathielgifford announces she will be leaving TODAY on her 11th anniversary in April 2019. pic.twitter.com/YsHIq6c9ev  TODAY (@TODAYshow) December 11, 2018 Kotb, who has become a fan favorite since co-hosting the freewheeling 10 a.m. hour of the program with Gifford since 2008, said Gifford hiring her enabled her to meet husband Joel Schiffman and adopt their daughter, Haley Joy Kotb. Gifford also invited Kotb to meet her family when she first joined the Today team. Everything happened.  How does one person step in your life and change it like that? And you did that for me, Kotb said. Gifford, who will officially sign off the show in April, referred to Kotb as a beautiful Egyptian goddess and thanked their viewers for sticking with them from their disastrous early days as a nothing burger outside on the plaza. You start sharing life, and your friendship shows up on the air, Gifford said. We werent colleagues very long. We became friends and now were going to be friends for the rest of our lives. Im grateful to God for you, Gifford added. Gods used you in my life every bit as much as hes used me in yours, sweetie. Thats the way it goes. No crumbs on his table. Gifford has co-anchored Todays fourth hour with Kotb for the last decade and is retiring from the program to pursue other creative endeavors. I had a chance to work with a legend... not something many people get to say in their lifetime.. but thanks to you @KathieLGifford .... I get to xxxx https://t.co/sXGdwmq7vm  Hoda Kotb (@hodakotb) December 11, 2018 Facebook

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Times Person of the Year? Four journalists and a newspaper, guardians in the war on truth By Associated Press (Time magazine) Times Person of the Year recognition for 2018 is shining a collective spotlight on guardians in what the magazine calls the war on truth. The group is made up of four journalists and a newspaper that Time says are representatives of a broader fight by countless others around the world. Read More Facebook

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Carol Burnett to receive inaugural Golden Globe award for TV achievement Carol Burnett will need to clear some space on her crowded mantel: At next months Golden Globes ceremony, she will pick up yet another award honoring her long and distinguished career in television. The Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. announced Tuesday morning that Burnett will receive the inaugural Carol Burnett Award, a new prize honoring lifetime achievement in television. The award was teased at last weeks nominations announcement for the Globes; its meant to be a bookend prize to the HFPAs Cecil B. DeMille Award for film achievement. A five-time Golden Globe winner, Burnett is also the most decorated honoree of all time in the TV category, according to the organization. For more than 50 years, comedy trailblazer Carol Burnett has been breaking barriers while making us laugh, HFPA President Meher Tatna said in a statement Tuesday. She was the first woman to host a variety sketch show, The Carol Burnett Show. She was also the first woman to win both the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and Kennedy Center Honors. And now we add another first to her running list: the first recipient  and namesake  of the new Golden Globe top honor for achievement in television, the Carol Burnett Award. Burnett, 85, will receive the award at the Golden Globes ceremony, which NBC will broadcast live from coast to coast on Jan. 6 from the Beverly Hilton hotel. Facebook

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Andy Serkis revives Gollum as a Brexit-obsessed Theresa May By Tracy Brown As if British Prime Minister Theresa May werent in enough of a Brexit bind, now she has to deal with a biting Andy Serkis impersonation thats making the digital rounds. Literally biting because its Serkis via his immortal rendition of Gollum. The Lord of the Rings actor reprised a version of the One Ring-obsessed character in a new video posted by We Wants It. Much like the Gollum of the film series, Serkis May has her own fixation: the Brexit withdrawal agreement. Oh, Precious, our agreement, says a blue-suit clad Serkis. This is it. Our deal  We takes back control: Money, borders, laws, blue passportses. But another May personality quickly rebuts: No. It hurts the people. Makes them poorer. The parody features the two sides of May arguing with herself and its somehow both hilarious and terrifying. One personality only cares about how much she wants the juicy and sweet deal, while the other recognizes that there are plenty of people opposed to the idea. They hates the deal, all of them hates it. They wants a peoples vote, Gollum/May says to herself. The Peoples Vote refers to the efforts of those in the U.K. calling for a public vote on whether Britain will leave or remain in the EU based on the terms of the final exit agreement. On Monday, the real May delayed the parliamentary vote for the Brexit plan because she feared it did not have enough support to pass. The vote had been scheduled for Tuesday. While May has defended the deal (that EU leaders have said is the only one on the table), it has been slammed by both Brexit-backers and remainers who oppose leaving the 28-nation bloc. As of now Britain is scheduled to leave the EU on March 29, 2019. Facebook

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Sarah Hyland of Modern Family opens up about second kidney transplant By Nardine Saad Sarah Hyland (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) After her body rejected her first kidney transplant, Modern Family star Sarah Hyland underwent dialysis last year and had to have a second transplant, she revealed Monday in an interview. Recovery from that surgery has been relatively smooth, but the 28-year-old has contended with a spate of other medical issues that resulted in additional procedures. After the second transplant, she had surgery to mitigate her endometriosis and another to repair a hernia. The chronic illnesses have resulted in six surgeries in the past 16 months, she told Self magazine, where she opened up about her tumultuous medical journey. Im stable. Im thriving. Im super happy with life, the 28-year-old actress said. .@sarah_hyland was born with kidney dysplasia. She went into kidney failure, and needed a transplant. In 2012, her dad gave her one of his. What Hyland hasnt been ready to share until now is that in 2016, her body began to reject the donated kidney. https://t.co/iAw8rdXJ1z pic.twitter.com/rR0xqZPiGy  SELF (@SELFmagazine) December 10, 2018 Hyland was born with kidney dysplasia, which causes the organs to grow debilitating cysts. She had a kidney transplant in 2012, with her father giving one of his kidneys to his daughter. But in October 2016, her body began rejecting the transplant and  under the scrutiny of social media and the public eye  Hylands weight dropped, her face swelled due to immunosuppressant drugs and fluid retention and her blood pressure spiked, damaging her vision, the mag said. The candid star said she began dialysis in February 2017 to filter her blood because her kidneys couldnt. However, the treatment fell short and the transplanted kidney had to come out. Doctors removed it that May, then in September of that year transplanted a kidney donated by her younger brother, Ian. I was very depressed, she told the magazine. When a family member gives you a second chance at life, and it fails, it almost feels like its your fault. Its not. But it does. Hyland felt completely helpless, she said, and for a long time contemplated suicide. I didnt want to fail my little brother like I failed my dad, she said. I had gone through [my whole life] of always being a burden, of always having to be looked after, having to be cared for. The thoughts subsided after she reached out to a friend, and she encouraged others to do the same. Its not shameful, she said. For anybody that wants to reach out to somebody but doesnt really know how because theyre too proud or they think that theyll be looked upon as weak, its not a shameful thing to say. Its not a shameful thing to share. Hyland said on Instagram on Monday that she shared her story so others might feel like theyre not alone. Hopefully those that are lucky enough not to experience this will learn about something new and take a moment to appreciate their health, she wrote. Facebook

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New Godzilla: King of the Monsters trailer features the titan fights youre craving When the first trailer for Godzilla: King of the Monsters was released in July, it delved deep into the lives of its human characters  which was fine  and was accompanied by Debussys Clair de Lune  which was awesome  and everyone seemed happy to see that the titular titan seemed to be doing OK for himself. It was arty and magnificent. But there wasnt any fighting. And there was barely any destruction. And if youre coming in here to sell me a Godzilla film, then by gosh, it had better be apocalyptic. Luckily, most of that appears to be rectified in the second trailer for Godzilla: King of the Monsters, which was released Monday morning. While the humans are still hanging out in the background, wringing their hands and staring in mute disbelief, far more of the footage is given over to the wrath of the titans. Heck, Godzilla even takes on King Ghidorah head-to-head(-to-head-to-head) and it looks amazing. See what it looks like when the world burns, but this time the old gods are to blame. Godzilla: King of the Monsters is scheduled to stomp its way into theaters May 31. Facebook

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New Stranger Things teaser reveals totally 80s episode titles By Nardine Saad Its summer 1985 and things are still pretty strange in Hawkins, Ind. Netflix on Sunday unveiled a teaser for Season 3 of Stranger Things, giving fans a list of eight episode titles to mine for clues about the sci-fi series new season. The new season will reunite viewers with Chief Hopper (David Harbour), Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), Mike (Finn Wolfhard) and their gang of middle-school outcasts, who find themselves at the center of the peculiar happenings in their small town. The streaming giant also confirmed a 2019 release for the new season, which will center on the already announced arrival of the Starcourt shopping mall, which makes the finale episode title all the more foreboding. (Check out that earlier teaser below.) Heres the title list: Suzie, Do you Copy?

The Mall Rats

The Case of the Missing Lifeguard

The Sauna Test

The Source

The Birthday

The Bite

The Battle of Starcourt In March, Netflix announced that Priah Ferguson would return as Lucas Sinclairs (Caleb McLaughlin) younger sister Erica, and Maya Hawke was cast in the new role of Robin. Last week, the Emmy-winning show earned a Golden Globe nomination for dramatic television series and a supporting actor nod for Harbour, who in addition to playing the town sheriff is now Elevens adoptive father. Facebook

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Americans, Gianni Versace and Dannemora lead Critics Choice TV nominees By Libby Hill The Broadcast Film Critics Assn. clearly has a thing for crime, with Mondays announcement of the TV nominees for the 24th annual Critics Choice Awards revealing lots of love for shows about skirting the law. The Americans, famous for its super sneaky Russian spies; The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story and its depiction of the murder and aftermath; and Escape at Dannemora, with its tale of a real life jailbreak, lead all television nominees with five mentions apiece. Gianni Versace and Dannemora are competing in limited series, with Americans in drama, but all four projects were buoyed by their performances, which got four nominations each. Read More Facebook

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The Favourite and Black Panther lead film nominees for Critics Choice Awards By Libby Hill The Broadcast Film Critics Assn. announced its film nominees for the 24th Critics Choice Awards on Monday, with period black comedy The Favourite earning 14 nominations, just ahead of box office blockbuster Black Panther, which scored 12. Olivia Colman, Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz all garnered nominations for their performances in The Favourite, with Yorgos Lanthimos also nominated for direction and editing. Nipping at the heels of the two front runners are Damien Chazelles First Man with 10, Mary Poppins Returns, A Star is Born and Vice all nabbing nine nominations each and Roma with eight notices. Read More Facebook

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Times Person of the Year shortlist includes Meghan Markle, director Ryan Coogler, President Trump and separated families By Nardine Saad Actress-turned-duchess Meghan Markle is on Time magazines short list for 2018 Person of the Year. (Gareth Fuller / Associated Press) Actress-turned-duchess Meghan Markle and Black Panther director Ryan Coogler joined Donald Trump, separated families, Robert S. Mueller III and Christine Blasey Ford on Time magazines shortlist for the 2018 Person of the Year. Selected by the magazines editors since 1927, the title is bestowed on a person  or people  who most influenced the news and the world, for better or for worse, during the last year. On Monday, the magazine revealed the top 10 candidates on NBCs Today show, which will also name the titleholder on Tuesdays show. Markle and Coogler were the only entertainment figures represented during another contentious news year. Last year, the Silence Breakers who spoke out against sexual assault and misconduct earned the magazines cover spot. Heres the shortlist for @TIMEs Person of the Year #TIMEPOY pic.twitter.com/kHAmF8A3ut  TODAY (@TODAYshow) December 10, 2018 Heres who made the shortlist this year: Donald Trump: The tweet-happy U.S. president was named the 2016 Person of the Year when he was president-elect. Last year, when he also made the shortlist, Trump tweeted he had passed on the nominal title, though Time disagreed Separated families: Despite weathering the fallout of putting a crying Honduran child who had not been separated from her family on its magazine cover earlier this year, Time still selected migrant families at the U.S.-Mexico border as candidates for its Person of the Year, again highlighting the battle over immigration in the U.S. Vladimir Putin: The Russian president was named Person of the Year in 2007 and has continued to make headlines due to Russias alleged interference in the 2016 presidential election, and his relationship with Trump. Which brings us to ... Robert Mueller: The special counsel appointed by the Justice Department, who has been investigating allegations of Russian meddling in the election and Trumps ties to Russia, has become a foil to the bombastic leader. Though the investigation has ensnared Trumps former personal attorney Michael Cohen, his former campaign Chairman Paul Manafort and several others, Trump has repeatedly decried it as a witch hunt for evidence of collusion with Russia. Ryan Coogler: The Black Panther director and screenwriter turned a lesser-known superhero into a cultural phenomenon with his groundbreaking film, which became a critical darling and broke a bevy of box-office records while boasting a predominantly black cast. Christine Blasey Ford: The university professor who accused U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were teenagers brought the nation to a standstill with her emotional testimony in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee in September, throwing Kavanaughs shoo-in appointment into question for weeks. Jamal Khashoggi: The Saudi journalist was killed soon after he entered the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, and his disappearance led to widespread criticism of the Arab nation, particularly Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is believed to have ordered Khashoggis murder. March for Our Lives activists: The teenagers who survived the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Fla., assembled to take on gun control and march on Washington, D.C., to speak out against gun violence. Moon Jae-in: The South Korean president, who helped host the Olympic Games this year, mounted a historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, officially bringing about an end to the war between the two countries. Meghan Markle: The Suits actress who hails from California became the Duchess of Sussex when she married Britains Prince Harry in May, offering a fairy-tale reprieve from pressing conflicts around the world. In October, the couple announced that they were expecting their first child, who would be seventh in line to the British throne. Facebook

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Saturday Night Live finds DeNiros Robert Mueller in Eric Trumps closet Robert De Niro and Alex Moffat on Saturday Night Live this week. (NBC) After a week full of new revelations from the Robert Mueller investigation, it was probably no surprise that Robert De Niro got the call to reprise his role as the special counsel for this weeks Saturday Night Live, which was hosted by Jason Mamoa with the musical guest Mumford and Sons. With the always-on news cycle of 2018, the cold open is typically a feast-or-famine affair that benefits from standout, vaguely surreal moments  Kanye West in the White House, for example. With so much news this week surrounding the legal affairs of the presidents inner circle, SNL imagined the FBIs special counsel as the boogeyman in Eric Trumps closet. Dont be scared, its just me, De Niro assured him, your dads friend from work. Alex Moffat as a clueless Eric and Mikey Day as Don Jr. has been a solid pairing on Weekend Update, and they were natural choices given the news cycle. Still, the segment lacked the sort of standout snap that makes the cold open the usual talking point for the episode, apart from its closing exchange. People say youre the worst thing that happened to my dad, Moffats Eric Trump told De Niro. No, getting elected president was the worst thing to happen to your dad, he countered. Watch a clip below. "Its just me, Robert Mueller. Your dads friend from work." #SNL pic.twitter.com/xsLhnSg1oe  Saturday Night Live (@nbcsnl) December 9, 2018 Facebook

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Times Up congratulates Crazy Rich Asians star Constance Wu on Golden Globes nomination Constance Wu is nominated for her first Golden Globe award for Crazy Rich Asians (Warner Bros. ) Approaching the one-year anniversary of the movements birth, Times Up congratulated the women who earned 2019 Golden Globe nominations, including Crazy Rich Asians star and activist Constance Wu. We celebrate all of our sisters who were nominated for Golden Globe awards this year, including Constance Wu who became the first Asian woman to be nominated for best actress in more than 40 years, the organization said in a statement to The Times. (While few women of Asian descent been nominated for best actress in the awards 75-year history, Hailee Steinfeld, who is part Filipino, was nominated in 2017 for Edge of Seventeen.) As far as Asian Americans go, not Asian-Asians, there have been two others [in the comedy/musical category], Wu told The Times on Thursday morning, reacting to her nomination for Crazy Rich Asians, the first contemporary-set all-Asian studio film in 25 years. It is especially meaningful to receive a nomination for a leading role in an Asian American-centered story, Wu added. In its Globes nominations kudos, Times Up also called out the lack of female filmmakers among this years all-male directing nominees. We are thrilled to see some progress in the diversity of artists recognized, but, once again, the best director category lacks a single woman nominee, the statement read. The body of work directed by women this year deserves acknowledgement. The Times Up movement was first announced Jan. 1, unveiling an initiative to battle sexual harassment in industries including Hollywood, which included a legal defense fund to help underprivileged women. The movement called for supporters to wear all black to the glitzy 2018 Globes ceremony and speak out against harassment and gender inequality. As of Thursday, Wu was not yet sure if there will be a repeat of last years red carpet call to action or similar coordinated show of solidarity. I dont know if its going to be a clothing statement, but the solidarity and the sisterhood that we have is always there and is growing every day  so it will 100% be there at the Golden Globes, she said. Maybe not in terms of wardrobe, but in terms of passion? For sure. Read the full Times Up statement below: Statement from TIMES UP on the 2019 Golden Globe Nominations We celebrate all of our sisters who were nominated for Golden Globe awards this year, including Constance Wu who became the first Asian woman to be nominated for best actress in more than 40 years. We are thrilled to see some progress in the diversity of artists recognized, but once again the best director category lacks a single woman nominee. The body of work directed by women this year deserves acknowledgement. While we greatly admire the excellent work honored yesterday, we are also reminded of the vast imbalances that still exist across our industry and many other industries, and remain committed to our collective work. Facebook

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Kevin Hart shouldnt have stepped down from Oscars gig, GLAAD chief says: He should have stepped up By Christie DZurilla Comedian Kevin Hart decided not to host Februarys Academy Awards. (Willy Sanjuan / Associated Press) GLAAD would rather Kevin Hart hadnt quit as Oscars host, with its leader expressing disappointment Friday morning on social media and on CNN. Kevin Hart shouldnt have stepped down; he should have stepped up, tweeted Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of the LGBTQ advocacy group. Harts apology to LGBTQ people is an important step forward, but he missed a real opportunity to use his platform and the Oscars stage to build unity and awareness. Ellis said the group would still welcome that conversation with the 39-year-old comic. Hart, who got the job only Tuesday, walked away Thursday night rather than cave to internet trolls for old anti-gay tweets that had resurfaced after he deleted them. He later did an about-face and offered an apology to those he had hurt, saying he was stepping down because he didnt want to distract from the awards themselves. We were hoping that this was going to turn into a teachable moment, Ellis told CNN on Friday morning. GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis on why she was hoping Kevin Hart wouldnt step down as Oscars host:



We were hoping that this was going to turn into a teachable moment  [and] to use the Oscar stage ... to help build unity and awareness. https://t.co/Kt5qT05hAA pic.twitter.com/PNijmSM2Vv  New Day (@NewDay) December 7, 2018 Ellis said Hart could have become an ally of the community if he had faced it, explained he had evolved and was willing to lead moving forward. It wasnt the conclusion that I think everybody would have liked, Ellis said. The academy has yet to respond to Harts public exit or announce a replacement host. (But we have some ideas about who should get the gig.) We would still welcome that conversation with him. The Academy has recently made significant strides in featuring diverse talent onstage and they should now double down on that commitment as they look for a new host.  Sarah Kate Ellis (@sarahkateellis) December 7, 2018 Facebook

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Marvel drops Avengers 4' trailer, reveals title By Los Angeles Times Staff Chris Evans as Captain America. (Marvel Studios) The end is near. Or more precisely, the endgame. On Friday, Marvel Studios unveiled the official first trailer for the latest Avengers film. The clip also confirmed the title for the project, Avengers: Endgame, and an April 26 release. Endgame picks up where the events of Avengers: Infinity War, released in April, left off. The beginning of the trailer focuses largely on Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) in solitude before moving the focus to Captain America (Chris Evans) and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson). The new footage also shows the return of Jeremy Renners Hawkeye, who did not appear in Infinity War. He was last seen in Captain America: Civil War. Watch the trailer below. Facebook

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Justin Timberlake postpones Man of the Woods tour, citing bruised vocal cords By Nardine Saad Justin Timberlake. (Amy Harris / Invision/Associated Press) Justin Timberlake is sorry that the remainder of his Man of the Woods tour has now been postponed to next year while the singer recovers from bruised vocal cords, a problem that has dogged him since October. My vocal cords are healing but they are not all the way back to normal yet, so my doctors want me to continue to rest my voice, the 37-year-old wrote on Instagram Wednesday night. That means hell hold off on singing until next month. Im really sorry, Timberlake wrote. I want to be back on the stage and I am doing all I can to get there quickly. Live Nation, the producer of the tour, confirmed on Thursday that the tour would resume in January, and tickets for the originally scheduled shows will be honored at the 2019 events. Timberlake, whose tour accompanies his folksy fifth studio album, Man of the Woods, first canceled his Madison Square Garden show in New York in late October and had since postponed a slew of dates. (Though that didnt derail his silent interview on The Tonight Show to promote his memoir Hindsight shortly after.) The North American tour will now resume in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 4, according to Live Nation. Timberlakes Los Angeles stop at the Staples Center  originally set for Nov. 27  is now slated for March 10, Live Nation said. Hes also been rescheduled to play the Honda Center in Anaheim on Feb. 22. Additional appearances in Phoenix, Las Vegas, Fresno and Oakland have also been pushed back to March, and tickets for the previously scheduled concerts are valid at the respective new dates in each city. Refunds are also available at point of purchase. (A full list of the rescheduled shows can be seen here.) Facebook

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Faye Dunaway returning to Broadway to play Katharine Hepburn in Tea at Five By Nardine Saad (Lionel Cironneau / Associated Press) Oscar winner Faye Dunaway is returning to Broadway to play four-time Oscar winner Katharine Hepburn. The Bonnie and Clyde star will embody the legendary actress with a devil-may-care personality in Matthew Lombardos Tea at Five, marking the shows Broadway debut and Dunaways return to the Great White Way after 35 years, producer Ben Feldman said in a statement on Thursday. Lombardo has created a new version of the one-woman-show, which took audiences to 1938 as Hepburn awaited word on the final casting for the role of Scarlett OHara to 1983, where they witness the sunset of her health and career. The new show will be directed by Tony Award nominee John Tillinger and will have a limited engagement in summer 2019. Additional information, including the complete creative team, dates and theater, will be announced early next year. Dunaway made her Broadway debut in 1961 with A Man for All Seasons and followed it up with appearances in After the Fall and The Changeling. However, her breakthrough happened off-Broadway when she appeared in Hogans Goat, which led to her casting in 1967s Bonnie and Clyde. (She later earned her Academy Award for the 1976 drama Network.) The 77-year-old actress last appeared on Broadway in 1982 in the original play The Curse of an Aching Heart. Facebook

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Father John Misty rallies musician friends for wildfire benefit concert Father John Misty announced that he will host a benefit concert for victims of Californias recent wildfires. (Suzanne Cordeiro / AFP/Getty Images) Father John Misty, the singer, songwriter and occasional Chateau Marmont pianist, announced Thursday morning the California Wildfire Benefit Concert, an evening of music to benefit victims of the recent fires. Misty, the stage name of Josh Tillman, is teaming up with Los Angeles-based concert promoter Goldenvoice and has scrolled through his contacts for a coterie of special guests, including Haim, Mac DeMarco, Lucius, Tim Heidecker, Rostam, Jonathan Wilson, Rivers Cuomo and Weyes Blood, among others. Set for Dec. 18 at the Theatre at Ace Hotel in L.A., the night promises to be an intimate affair: an all-acoustic session of songs from some of the areas most accomplished songwriters, with a Steinway & Sons-donated piano to add some class. The benefit is the latest to raise money for those affected by the devastating fires. Over the weekend, Katy Perry, Gwen Stefani and Robin Thicke raised a reported $1 million as part of the One Love Malibu Benefit Concert. Last week, garage rocker Ty Segall and friends took over Zebulon in Frogtown to make money for those in need. Proceeds from Tillman & Co.s event will go to the Southern California Disaster Relief Fund, created by the United Way of Greater Los Angeles in partnership with United Way of Ventura County. In a statement Thursday morning, organizers explained that the fund is directed at low-income families whose lives and livelihoods are affected by the current wildfires in Southern California. Specifically, the fund focuses on longer-term support to help individuals and families in need to rebuild their lives. Bonus opportunity: Fans will be able to bid on front-row tickets to the concert through CharityBuzz. The high-bidder will also get a commemorative poster signed by participating artists and a room at the Ace Hotel. Tickets for the all-ages concert range from $59.50-$199.50 and go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. Pacific. Facebook

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A Star Is Born: Peter Buck turns 62 today By Los Angeles Times Staff (Joe Pugliese / Los Angeles Times) Everyone I know has enough bad times and struggles in their lives to draw upon for a lifetime. Peter Buck, 1996 FROM THE ARCHIVES: The Lowdown on Hi-Fi Facebook

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Sandra Oh and Andy Samberg to co-host 2019 Golden Globes By Nardine Saad Andy Samberg, left, and Sandra Oh will co-host the 2019 Golden Globes. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times; Micha Theiner / Los Angeles Times) Killing Eve will meet Brooklyn Nine-Nine at the 76th Golden Globe Awards next month now that Sandra Oh and Andy Samberg have been announced as co-hosts of the annual show. They bring wit, charm and style to a room filled with the very best of film and television. Its sure to be another unforgettable fun-filled night, said NBC co-chairmen Paul Telegdy and George Cheeks in a statement on Wednesday. The party-like ceremony, hosted by the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. at the Beverly Hilton hotel, will honor the best in film and television and marks the official kickoff of the 2019 awards-show season. The three-hour telecast will air live, coast to coast, on NBC on Jan. 6 at 5 p.m. Pacific time. Golden Globes nominations preview: 5 things to watch for, including Mary Poppins Returns vs. Roma  The nominees will be announced early Thursday across 25 categories  14 in film and 11 in television  and the winners are voted on by members of the HFPA. Were excited to welcome Sandra Oh and Andy Samberg as co-hosts of Hollywoods Party of the Year, said HFPA President Meher Tatna in a statement. Both Golden Globe Award recipients have continually showcased their talents in film and television, and we cant wait see what their undeniable chemistry will bring to the Golden Globes stage. Oh, who famously starred as Dr. Cristina Yang on ABCs Greys Anatomy, won a 2006 Golden Globe for performance by an actress in a supporting role in a series, limited series or motion picture made for television; a Screen Actors Guild Award for the role and five Emmy nominations for supporting actress in a drama. Her role as an MI5 officer hunting down a female assassin on BBC Americas Killing Eve earned her another Emmy nomination earlier this year. As for Samberg, the Saturday Night Live alum won two Golden Globes in 2014 for his work on the cop comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which recently landed at NBC after being canceled on Fox. It wont be the first time for him to host a major awards show either: The comedian previously emceed the Primetime Emmy Awards as well as the Film Independent Spirit Awards. The duo take over hosting duties from recent hosts Seth Meyers, Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, and Ricky Gervais. Facebook

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Natalie Portman apologizes to Jessica Simpson for bikini-shaming her By Nardine Saad Actress Natalie Portman, left, in a recent interview alluded to a bikini photo of Jessica Simpson. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times, left; Evan Agostini / Invision/Associated Press, right)) Oscar winner Natalie Portman hears you, Jessica Simpson, and agrees that women should dress and behave however they like without judgment. Thats a different tune than the one Portman appeared to sing in a USA Today profile published on Tuesday  one that prompted a lengthy statement from Simpson calling out Portman for shaming her, particularly amid the Times Up era that Portman helped usher in. Portman plays a pop star in the upcoming film Vox Lux, which explores the underbelly of the music industry, and in discussing the topic, she lauded Madonna but appeared to throw shade at Simpson and the industry that touted the virgin/vixen paradigms around the millennium. I remember being a teenager, and there was Jessica Simpson on the cover of a magazine saying Im a virgin while wearing a bikini, and I was confused. Like, I dont know what this is trying to tell me as a woman, as a girl, Portman, 37, told the publication. Simpson. 38, read those words Wednesday morning and, in a missive posted on Instagram and Twitter, said she was disappointed, but did not indicate what magazine cover Portman was referring to. As public figures, we both know our image is not totally in our control at all times, and that the industry we work in often tries to define us and box us in, the fashion designer wrote. However, I was taught to be myself and honor the different ways all women express themselves, which is why I believed then  and I believe now  that being sexy in a bikini and being proud of my body are not synonymous with having sex, Simpson added. Simpson, who made no secret of losing her virginity after she wed 98 Degrees singer Nick Lachey in 2002, had said that shes always embraced being a role model to women by letting them know they can look and wear whatever they want and choose to have or not have sex whenever they want. The power lies within us as individuals, Simpson wrote. Addressing Simpson directly (and publicly) in the comments section of the post, Portman thanked her and said she she completely agrees with her. I only meant to say I was confused  as a girl coming of age in the public eye around the same time  by the medias mixed messages about how girls and women were supposed to behave, Portman wrote. The actress said she didnt mean to shame Simpson and is sorry for any hurt her words might have caused. I have nothing but respect for your talent and your voice that you use to encourage and empower women all over the globe, Portman said. UPDATE 2:21 p.m.: This story was updated with Portmans apology. This story was originally published at 11:52 a.m. pic.twitter.com/zBLuyF3a8p  Jessica Simpson (@JessicaSimpson) December 5, 2018 Facebook

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Surviving R. Kelly screening evacuated after anonymous threats By Christie DZurilla Singer R. Kelly. (Noam Galai / Getty Images) Phoned-in threats cleared the house at a screening of the Surviving R. Kelly documentary Tuesday night in New York City, leaving the singers ex-wife Drea Kelly more fired up than deterred. [S]everal anonymous threats were called in, Lifetime said in a statement to The Times. As a precaution, the network elected to evacuate the building. The incident was investigated and concern about a gunman in the house was determined to be unfounded, a New York Police Department spokeswoman told The Times. The R&B singer has been accused of abusive and controlling behavior toward women, especially younger ones, allegations R. Kelly has denied. Those allegations are detailed in the three-part documentary series. Tuesdays screening was attended by alleged victims Jerhonda Pace, Kitti Jones, Assante McGee, Lisa Van Allen and Lizzette Martinez, in addition to Drea Kelly. Also there were #MeToo activist Tarana Burke, radio host Angela Yee and former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson. Burke and Yee were to have been part of a panel with Lifetime executive producer Brie Miranda Bryant. They thought they were putting us out; they just put gasoline on a fire and now were just gonna burn longer and stronger. You actually helped us when it was meant to harm us [because] this did nothing but unite us even more, Drea Kelly told Rolling Stone. The incident lets me know were on the right track. Were causing people to listen. Were getting peoples attention and were getting attention from the one who thought that he was invincible and untouchable, she said. Surviving R. Kelly airs Jan. 3-5 on Lifetime. Facebook

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Cardi B announces split from Offset a year after they wed By Nardine Saad Offset, left, and Cardi B arrive at the American Music Awards in October. (Jordan Strauss / Invision / Associated Press) A little more than a year after they secretly wed, rappers Cardi B and Offset have split, according to Cardi B, who announced the break-up in an Instagram video on Tuesday night. Things just havent been working out between us for a long time. And its nobodys fault, its just like I guess, we grew out of love, the Okurr-trilling, I Like It rapper said. Were not together anymore. It might take time to get a divorce, but Im always gonna have a lot of love for him because he is my daughters father, she added. Cardi and Offset, a member of the rap trio Migos, secretly wed in Georgia in September 2017 before the arrival of their daughter, Kulture, whos now nearly 5 months old. Cardi, 26, real name Belcalis Marlenis Almanzar, said that they remain good friends and business partners who got a lot of love for each other. Offset, also 26, real name Kiari Kendrall Cephus, very publicly proposed to the Bodak Yellow MC in October and the two often discussed their plans for a blowout celebration. Then news of their actual marriage  and marriage certificate  leaked in June and the two welcomed their baby girl in July. Reps for Cardi and Offset did not immediately respond to additional requests for comment. Facebook

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Kevin Hart to host the 2019 Academy Awards Kevin Hart will be hosting the Oscars next year. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times) Stepping into what is often considered one of the most difficult  and at times thankless  gigs in Hollywood, Kevin Hart is set to host the 91st Academy Awards. The stand-up comedian and actor made the announcement himself Tuesday on Instagram, promising, I will be sure to make this years Oscars a special one. For years I have been asked if I would ever Host the Oscars and my answer was always the same, Hart wrote. I said that it would be the opportunity of a lifetime for me as a comedian and that it will happen when its suppose to. In tapping Hart, who has starred in box-office hits like Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and Central Intelligence and who boasts a massive social media following and large base of young fans, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is hoping to stem a steady decline in ratings for the telecast. In each of the past two years, under host Jimmy Kimmel, the ratings dipped, with Marchs show reaching a record-low audience of 26.5 million viewers. Facing perennial criticism over what many have decried as the sometimes tedious length of the Oscars, the academy has vowed that this coming years show, which is being produced by Donna Gigliotti and Glenn Weiss, will not run over three hours. To trim the proceedings down, some awards will be given out during commercial breaks rather than live on air. In an ultimately fizzled gambit to bring in a wider audience for the all-important telecast, the academy earlier this year announced the creation of a new award recognizing outstanding achievement in popular film. But after weeks of blowback, the academys board of governors reversed itself and decided to shelve the idea, at least for the time being. Hart has previously served as emcee of the MTV Movie Awards along with his Central Intelligence co-star Dwayne Johnson. The Oscars will air on ABC on Sunday, Feb. 24. Facebook

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2018 AFI Awards honorees include Black Panther, Atlanta, Roma and The Americans By Sonaiya Kelley Viggo Mortensen, left, and Mahershala Ali star in Green Book, which is among the AFIs top 10 films of the year. (Universal Pictures / Asssociated Press) The American Film Institute announced 10 films and 10 television shows as honorees of the 2018 AFI Awards this morning. BlacKkKlansman, Black Panther, Eighth Grade, If Beale Street Could Talk, The Favorite, First Reformed, Green Book, Mary Poppins Returns, A Quiet Place, and A Star Is Born were recognized as culturally and artistically significant films by the institute. Netflixs Roma, a Spanish-language film not eligible for the main list, was also recognized with an AFI Special Award which honors films outside the Institutes criteria for American film. On the television side, FXs The Americans, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, Atlanta and Pose, HBOs Barry and Succession, AMCs Better Call Saul, Netflixs The Kominsky Method, Amazon Primes The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and NBCs This Is Us were all recognized. The AFI Awards will be presented at an annual private luncheon on Jan. 4, 2019, in Los Angeles. Facebook

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Terry Crews, Danai Gurira, Leslie Mann and Christian Slater to announce Golden Globe nominees Terry Crews, left, Danai Gurira, Leslie Mann and Christian Slater will announce the Golden Globe nominees on Thursday morning. (Ricardo DeAratanha, left, Carolyn Cole, Michael Nagle, Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times) There are four Hollywood stars who are guaranteed to be awake bright and early for this years Golden Globe Awards announcement, regardless of whether they have a nomination in the offing. Terry Crews, Danai Gurira, Leslie Mann and Christian Slater have been tasked with presenting the Golden Globe nominees at Thursdays annual news conference, the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. announced Tuesday. The HFPA also said a major announcement regarding the Golden Globes schedule would be made prior to this years nominees. Joining Crews, Gurira, Mann and Slater will be newly minted Golden Globe Ambassador Isan Elba (also the daughter of actor Idris Elba), HFPA President Meher Tetna and Golden Globe executive producer Barry Adelman. The Golden Globe nominations announcement will take place on Thursday at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills. Live-stream coverage of the event begins at 5:05 a.m., with the first categories announced at 5:15 a.m. and a second and final group of categories revealed shortly thereafter. Facebook

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SNL star Pete Davidson says he wont give in to online bullying; Ariana Grande chimes in By Christie DZurilla Pete Davidson (Angela Weiss / AFP/Getty Images) Pete Davidson says no matter what you do to him, hes not going to kill himself. Wait, what? Yes, exactly what you just read. Online trolls cant bully him to death, he says. And he wonders why theyre getting away with such abusive behavior. Ive been getting online bullied and in public by people for 9 months. Ive spoken about BPD and being suicidal publicly only in the hopes that it will help bring awareness and help kids like myself who dont want to be on this earth, the Saturday Night Live actor said bluntly Monday on Instagram. I just want you guys to know. No matter how hard the internet or anyone tries to make me kill myself. I wont. The Saturday Night Live actor, who has been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, was presumably referring to his break from pop star Ariana Grande. The two met in March and became an item toward the end of May, got engaged just weeks into the relationship and then split up in October. She has got around 137 million Instagram followers, some of whom have apparently been talking to  or at  Davidson online. He has no verified Twitter or Facebook accounts. He said he has kept his mouth shut about the online bullying to this point and hasnt mentioned any names  nor does he drop any names in the post. Im trying to understand how when something happens to a guy the whole entire world just trashes him without any facts or frame of reference, Davidson wrote. Especially in todays climate where everyone loves to be offended and upset it truly is mind boggling. Pete Davidson just posted a touching note about mental health to his Instagram pic.twitter.com/nAudS7NdmU  Alexis Benveniste (@apbenven) December 3, 2018 Davidsons missive comes on the heels of the new video for Grandes hit song thank u, next, whose title echoes a Twitter comment involving the actor. The singer put Davidsons statement and a comment of her own on her Instagram story around midnight, urging her many fans to change their behavior. [I] really dont endorse anything but forgiveness and positivity. i care deeply about pete and his health. im asking you to please be gentler with others, even on the internet, Grande said, in part. Later in the statement, she got a bit more specific. [P]lease let whatever point youre trying to make go. I will always have irrevocable love for him and if youve gotten any other impression from my recent work, you might have missed the point, she said. Heres Grandes statement in full: i know u already know this but i feel i need to remind my fans to please be gentler with others. i really dont endorse anything but forgiveness and positivity. i care deeply about pete and his health. im asking you to please be gentler with others, even on the internet. ive learned thru my own mistakes not to be reactive on socials so i do understand. but you truly dont know what anybody is experiencing ever. regardless of what they choose to display on social media or how they may appear in public. i can promise u that. so please let whatever point youre trying to make go. I will always have irrevocable love for him and if youve gotten any other impression from my recent work, you might have missed the point. Borderline personality disorder is marked by an ongoing pattern of varying moods, self-image and behavior, according to the National Institute of Mental Health website. Symptoms can often result in impulsive actions and relationship problems, with people experiencing intense episodes of anger, depression and anxiety that last for hours or days. People with BPD tend to experience things as all good or all bad, and according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the risk of self-harming behavior or suicide is an extreme risk. UPDATE Dec. 4, 10:18 a.m.: This post was updated with the statement from Grande. This post was originally published on Dec. 3 at 12:37 p.m. Facebook

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Kanye West apologizes after being called out for his behavior at The Cher Show By Christie DZurilla Kanye West and Kim Kardashian West at the opening night of The Cher Show on Monday. (Evan Agostini / Associated Press) Kanye West really, really liked The Cher Shows opening night on Broadway. But at least one performer couldnt tell, cause Ye apparently was messing with his phone the whole time. Hey @kanyewest so cool that youre here at @TheCherShow!, cast member Jarrod Spector tweeted at the rapper shortly after things got rolling on Monday night. If you look up from your cell phone youll see were doing a show up here. Its opening night. Kind of a big deal for us. Thanks so much. West might as well have taken a flash photograph  he was so busted. Hey @kanyewest so cool that youre here at @TheCherShow! If you look up from your cell phone youll see were doing a show up here. Its opening night. Kind of a big deal for us. Thanks so much.  Jarrod Spector (@jarrodspector) December 4, 2018 West must actually read his mentions  at least the ones that blow up  because he replied with an apology a few hours later. And he apparently really did dig the show. The dynamics of Cher and Sonnys relationship made Kim and I grab each others hand and sing I got you babe, he wrote. Please pardon my lack of etiquette. We have so much appreciation for the energy you guys put into making this master piece. the dynamics of Cher and Sonnys relationship made Kim and I grab each others hand and sing I got you babe

please pardon my lack of etiquette. We have so much appreciation for the energy you guys put into making this master piece.  ye (@kanyewest) December 4, 2018 But West might not have behaved as awful as all that. A Kanye source told TMZ that the rapper loved the show so much he was actually taking notes on his phone. Still rude, but at least he didnt tweet that apology halfway through the show. Facebook

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Red Bull Music Festival sets 2019 lineup, including Red Dead Redemption 2' live gig Swae Lee of Rae Sremmurd in October. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times ) Liquid adrenaline manufacturer Red Bull has announced the lineup for the 2019 Red Bull Music Festival Los Angeles, which will focus nearly as much on sight as on sound. Most notably, the multi-event program will feature the first live performance of music from the blockbuster action-adventure game Red Dead Redemption 2. It will be the centerpiece of a festival that aims to explore how music intersects with gaming, film and photography. Attendees will experience live Red Dead Redemption 2 performances by composer Woody Jackson, Indonesian duo Senyawa and others featured in the game in whats billed as a reimagining of the score as a unique auditory installation. The festival, happening at various locations across multiple February dates, will also present the first U.S. stops on Swedish pop powerhouse Robyns upcoming North American tour. Hitting the States to promote her new album, Honey, Robyn will perform her first Los Angeles shows in eight years on Feb. 22 and 23 at the Hollywood Palladium. The festivals Feb. 7 opening event will aim a much-deserved spotlight on the performer San Cha. Shell be introducing a new original piece, according the notes, based around the telenovela programs of her childhood, and will feature artists from a range of L.A.s creative disciplines. On Valentines Day, the Tupelo, Miss., rap team Rae Sremmurd will host an event described in release notes as an eclectic show inspired by the golden age of Hollywood. Along with surprise guests, hosts Slim Jxmmi and Swae Lee will marry their hits with covers of iconic love songs of past and present, putting a contemporary slant on classic silver screen romance. The party will take place at the Reserve, which is in a historic bank vault in downtown Los Angeles. On Feb. 16, the skate, film and art collective Illegal Civilization will take over the Pink Motel in Sun Valley  most visible these days as a setting in the Netflix show GLOW  for a daylong installment called Illegal Civ Movie Motel. The group is headed by Mikey Alfred, best known for his work with Jonah Hill on Mid90s, and Alfred and his peers will entangle skating, film screenings and a swap meet with music performances by affiliates including Show Me the Body, Tierra Whack and Tommy Genesis. Throughout February the festival will take over the Ukrainian Cultural Center in Koreatown to present Center Channel, a film series with a mission to explore the most compelling intersections of sound and film. In conjunction with Los Angeles curators and tastemakers, programmers have scheduled not-yet-announced premieres, screenings, panels and live performances. Tickets for all events go on sale Wednesday at noon. Facebook

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New Captain Marvel trailer teases Carol Danvers backstory and cosmic fights By Tracy Brown The new trailer for Captain Marvel features a little something for everyone: additional details about the story, fight scenes in outer space and a cute cat. The second trailer for the Marvel Studios film debuted Monday night, and it sends a clear message that Carol Danvers, a.k.a. Captain Marvel, is the hero everyone has been waiting for. At least according to Disney. While the first trailer hinted that Carol (played by Brie Larson) is trying to piece together what seems to be her forgotten past on Earth, this new promo provides more information about who she has become. Carol explains to Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) that she is Kree, an alien race of noble warrior heroes. But then the trailer immediately reveals that wasnt always the case. It turns out that after somehow stumbling upon an injured and memory-less Carol, the Kree turned her into one of them. This gave her enhanced strength, a prolonged lifespan and various other superpowers. And these powers appear to be no joke. The trailer shows Captain Marvel handle everything from hand-to-hand combat against what appears to be an elderly woman (but is likely an enemy in disguise) to flying around in space while taking out spaceships with energy blasts she shoots from her hands. Looks like there is definitely hope for the remaining Avengers to save the universe following the events of Avengers: Infinity War after all. Captain Marvel is scheduled to hit theaters March 8, 2019. Check out the new poster and tune-in to @ESPNs Monday Night Football to see the brand new trailer for Marvel Studios #CaptainMarvel. pic.twitter.com/43EPkcTBET  Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) December 3, 2018 Facebook

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Queen announces Rhapsody Tour with Adam Lambert By Christie DZurilla Brian May, left, and Adam Lambert perform at the Forum in 2014. (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times) Bolstered by the success of the new biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, Queen is going back on tour in North America next summer. And Adam Lambert will take the mic once again in place of the late Freddie Mercury, the band announced Monday. The Rhapsody Tour will take place from mid-July to late August 2019 and feature (in the bands words) 23 giant shows. Theyll play the Forum in Inglewood on July 19. Tickets go on sale Friday, with pre-sale codes sent to fan club members and QueenOnline.com subscribers on Tuesday. The soaring success of Bohemian Rhapsody  the Freddie Mercury/Queen movie that is set to become the biggest-grossing music biopic of all time  has proven that the publics love for Queen remains as strong as ever, the band said in a release. We are ready for America and raring to get back in the saddle, drummer Roger Taylor said in the statement, with lead guitarist Brian May adding: This is a great opportunity. Our last tour featured our most ambitious production ever and got us our best notices ever. So we decided to rip it apart and get even more ambitious! Lambert has been touring with the band since 2012 after sharing the stage with them during the 2009 American Idol finale. Completing the tour lineup are longtime collaborator Spike Edney on keyboards, Neil Fairclough on bass and Tyler Warren on percussion. See the full list of dates here. Were excited to announce Queen + @adamlambert will be debuting the brand new Rhapsody touring show across 23 North America dates July-August 2019. Read all the details here:https://t.co/rBI0jbxQRb



Photographer: Bojan Hohnjec

 Miracle Productions LLP pic.twitter.com/s0LTa128Ey  Queen (@QueenWillRock) December 3, 2018 Facebook

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Halsey calls out Victorias Secret Fashion Show over trans exclusion By Christie DZurilla Halsey, left, performed at the 2018 Victorias Secret Fashion Show, recorded last month. (Timothy A. Clary / AFP/Getty Images) Halsey, who performed at the 2018 Victorias Secret Fashion Show that aired Sunday night on ABC, posted a lengthy note on social media at the same time regarding the shows perceived lack of trans inclusivity. I have adored the Victorias Secret Fashion Show since I was young. Performing this year alongside other amazing artists, and hardworking models/friends was supposed to be the best night of my year. However, after I filmed the performance some comments were made regarding the show that I simply cannot ignore, she wrote. As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I have no tolerance for a lack of inclusivity. Especially not one motivated by stereotype, continued the 24-year-old singer, who is out as bisexual. She then directed followers to the GLSEN website and said she had made a big donation to the organization, which champions LGBTQ issues in K-12 education. The show featured 49 female models of various races and skin colors from at least 14 countries and six continents. However, a comment from a Victorias Secret executive in a Nov. 8 Vogue article  which ran the same day the show was taped  upset some transgender people and their allies, and appears to have sparked Halseys post. There was also discussion in the article about the absence of plus-size models on the VS catwalk. Its like, why doesnt your show do this? Shouldnt you have transsexuals in the show? No. No, I dont think we should, Ed Razek, chief marketing officer for Victorias Secret owner, L Brands, told the magazine. Well, why not? Because the show is a fantasy. Its a 42-minute entertainment special. Thats what it is. It is the only one of its kind in the world, and any other fashion brand in the world would take it in a minute, including the competitors that are carping at us. And they carp at us because were the leader.  @GLSEN - https://t.co/XdQMPro0KC pic.twitter.com/agOzSYREkX  h (@halsey) December 3, 2018 Victorias Secret did not respond immediately to a request for comment. The quote was in the context of a larger discussion about criticism of the show on social media, which had ramped up ahead of the show. Halsey, for one, wasnt having it. If you are a trans person reading this, and these comments have made you feel alienated or invalidated please know that you have allies. We stand in solidarity, and complete and total acceptance is the only fantasy that I support, she said in her Sunday post. Also performing at the fashion show were Shawn Mendes, Rita Ora, the Chainsmokers, Bebe Rexha, Leela James, Kelsea Ballerini, and the Struts, most of whom posted generic social-media reminders to watch the show. None of them talked about trans exclusion. Rexha, however, had a bit more to say, and added a video of her performance Monday on Twitter so followers could see it  in some cases, again. It has always been a big dream of mine to perform at @victoriassecret Fashion Show and its finally happening tomorrow!! So dont you miss it!!!, she posted Saturday on Instagram. Watch me strutting my curvy ass body unapologetically down that runway.  I cant believe this happened. Dream come true. https://t.co/lHJMfI7OhM  Bebe Rexha (@BebeRexha) December 3, 2018 Facebook

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Kennedy Center Honors celebrate Cher, Wayne Shorter, Reba McEntire and Philip Glass  plus the creators of Hamilton By Christie DZurilla Wayne Shorter, front left, Cher, Reba McEntire, Philip Glass; back, Thomas Kail, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Andy Blankenbuehler, Alex Lacamoire. (Greg Allen / Associated Press) The Kennedy Center Honors, which once again were not attended by President Trump, included tributes Sunday night to the late former President George H.W. Bush, who died Friday at age 94. I think its appropriate to recognize the passing of a wonderful man who dedicated his life to service and who graciously attended this event many times during his administration, laughing, applauding, singing along and even shedding a tear from right up there in the presidential box, host Gloria Estefan said to kick off the evening at the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington. She recalled being invited to the White House and how Bush literally spent 45 minutes patiently talking to my 8-year-old son about how government worked. Estefan was recognized last year; this year, the lifetime artistic-achievement honors went to jazz great Wayne Shorter, pop diva Cher, country star Reba McEntire and composer Philip Glass, with a unique award of distinction going to the team behind Hamilton: Andrew Blankenbuehler, Thomas Kail, Alex Lacamoire and star Lin-Manuel Miranda. Their names, like the other nominees, were first announced this summer. In recognizing Hamilton and its co-creators, Kennedy Center President Deborah F. Rutter said in a statement at the time, the Kennedy Center is making an unprecedented statement about an unprecedented work  a work that transcends cultural boundaries and tells Americas story in a powerful and contemporary way. On Sunday, comic Whoopi Goldberg introduced Cher and friend Cyndi Lauper sang If I Could Turn Back Time. Kelly Clarkson paid tribute to McEntire with a version of Fancy, the Bobbie Gentry song McEntire turned into a hit in 1990. Jason Moran, the Kennedy Centers artistic director for jazz, said Shorters sound over a six-decade career holds a special place in the galaxy, adding that he could safely say that somewhere in the galaxy right now, a band is playing one of his pieces. And previous award winner Paul Simon did the honors for Glass, whom he praised for never settling into one particular style, always developing and exploring. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump, who also missed last years event after several honorees threatened a boycott, returned in the wee hours Sunday from the G-20 summit in Buenos Aires. Though Bush attended most years and continued to do so after his presidency, he  like other heads of state, including Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton  missed a year due to major events. Trump is the first president to decline an invitation twice. You can watch the Kennedy Center Honors when they are broadcast on CBS on Dec. 26. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Facebook

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Grammy Awards nominations delayed over Bushs memorial services By Christie DZurilla (Julio Cortez / Associated Press) The Recording Academy said Monday morning it would delay its announcement of the 61st Grammy Award nominees to avoid competing with memorial services and public viewings for former President George H. W. Bush, who died Friday. The organization had planned to announce nominees early Wednesday morning but will now share nominees in select categories on Friday at 5:30 a.m. PST via CBS This Morning and Apple Music. A full nominations list across 84 categories will follow at 5:45 a.m. PST on Friday at Grammy.com  the academys website  as well as all of its social-media platforms. Nominations cover recordings released between Oct. 1, 2017, and Sept. 30, 2018. Facebook

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A Star Is Born: Lucy Liu turns 50 today By Los Angeles Times Staff (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) For me, I want to be the best person for the job  not the best color for the job. That to me would be the most ideal thing. Lucy Liu, 2006 FROM THE ARCHIVES: Versatility in action Facebook

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Alec Baldwin, Ben Stiller open a Saturday Night Live that features a Kendrick cameo and a Robert Mueller holiday jingle Alec Baldwin and Ben Stiller open the Dec. 1 episode of Saturday Night Live. (NBC) After a few weeks off for some legal trouble involving a parking dispute, Alec Baldwin was back in the pursed-lip saddle as President Donald Trump this week on Saturday Night Live. Playing off the G20 summit in Argentina and recent revelations surrounding the Russia investigation, SNL found Baldwins Trump isolated and calling his Mikey Coco Puffs in attorney Michael Cohen, who was again played by Ben Stiller. Nostalgic for the late-night talks with Cohen and vacations to Moscow, the sketch found Trump sad to see his lawyer going to prison, and told him he was like a son to me. Then whyd you make me do such much illegal stuff? Stillers Cohen asked. Thats cause you were like a son to me, Baldwins Trump countered. The sketch went on to nod toward Baldwins troubles as Trump hung up and Baldwin said he hadnt been so mad since he flipped out over that parking space. Fred Armisen also appeared in the sketch as Saudi Arabias Mohammed bin Salman, Cecily Strong as Melania Trump and Kate McKinnon as a wild-eyed Rudy Giuliani. The Russia investigation received another callback at the end of the episode with McKinnon and Strong joined by Aidy Bryant, Leslie Jones, Melissa Villasenor, Heidi Gardner, and newest cast member Ego Nwodim for a performance of All I Want for Christmas Is You dedicated to Robert Mueller in the hopes of an indictment for the president. All they want for Christmas is you, Mueller  #SNL pic.twitter.com/bYtpwM0moN  Saturday Night Live (@nbcsnl) December 2, 2018 Still, thats unlikely to be the nights most talked about musical moment. Those honors likely go to Oxnard native Anderson .Paak, whose third album (which is named after his hometown) was released in November. .Paak performed Who R U along with his single Tints, which featured an assist from Kendrick Lamar, who performed a few verses next to .Paaks drum riser. It wasnt a recast of a Christmas song, but it made a strong impression nonetheless. Facebook

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Miley Cyrus and Mark Ronson make beautiful music together on Nothing Breaks Like a Heart Miley Cyrus brings the bling in the video for Nothing Breaks Like a Heart, a new collaboration with Mark Ronson. (Vevo) Its been a minute since Miley Cyrus released new music, but much like Los Angeles, the drought is over. Cyrus, in collaboration with British DJ and producer Mark Ronson, released Nothing Breaks Like a Heart on Thursday, the first single from Ronsons upcoming album, his first solo effort since 2015. Its the first new music from Cyrus in more than a year. Cyrus brings her huskiest growl to the tale of love gone wrong, singing, This world can hurt you, it cuts you deep and leaves a scar / Things fall apart, but nothing breaks like a heart. The accompanying video features Cyrus in a low-speed chase with a bevy of cop cars, smashing through walls as if she were a wrecking ball  or the Kool-Aid Man. In the world outside, cultural references play out in disconnected fashion, as football players kneel and children visit a gun range, all while Cyrus looks on. Also, she goes to a strip club, so watch the video at your own risk. However, the video does end with a stunning sequence of a car wreck that features Cyrus still inside the vehicle singing, as gold and glass float through the air around her, in what appears to be an obvious homage to Julie Taymors gold dust bus crash in 2002s Frida. The video is worth watching for those stylish seconds alone. Facebook

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Hugh Jackman is hitting the road  and the Hollywood Bowl  with 2019 world tour Hugh Jackman starred in The Greatest Showman last year and is now taking to the stage to see if he can match the hype. The Logan actor appeared on Today on Thursday to announce his 2019 world tour, The Man. The Music. The Show. The tour will feature Jackman performing hits from The Greatest Showman, Les Miserables and other stage and screen roles. Im on the back nine of my life right now, Jackman said on Today, explaining the impetus for the show, and this is about the best parts of the front nine. The tour launches with a 12-date European leg in May, beginning in Hamburg, Germany, and concluding with two shows in London. The U.S. tour begins June 18 in Houston and wraps up with two shows at the Hollywood Bowl on July 19 and 20. Fans of comic-book culture will notice that those Los Angeles dates coincide with San Diego Comic-Con, leaving Jackman either plenty of time for a jaunt south for a guest appearance at SDCC or a built-in excuse for the Wolverine actor to skip out altogether. Tickets for a handful of Jackmans tour dates go on sale Dec. 7 at 9 a.m. PST on HughJackmanTheShow.com. Tickets for the Hollywood Bowl appearances do not yet have an announced sale date. pic.twitter.com/iO5NLSDE8G  Hugh Jackman (@RealHughJackman) November 29, 2018 Facebook

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Quentin Tarantino marries singer-model Daniella Pick in L.A. By Christie DZurilla Quentin Tarantino and Daniella Pick in 2016. (Jean-Philippe Ksiazek / AFP/Getty Images) Once upon a time in Hollywood, Quentin Tarantino married Daniella Pick, the Israeli singer-model hes been engaged to since last year. The two tied the knot in Los Angeles in an intimate ceremony, People reported exclusively Wednesday, ahead of a larger gathering that was planned for that night. Tarantino, 55, and Pick, 35, met in 2009 when he visited Israel to promote Inglourious Basterds, but they had been dating steadily only for about a year when he popped the question in summer 2017. Theyd been on and off before that. Its a first marriage for the director, who explained his take on marriage to GQ in 2009. When Im doing a movie, Im not doing anything else. Its all about the movie, he said. I dont have a wife. I dont have a kid. Nothing can get in my way.  Im not saying that Ill never get married or have a kid before Im 60. But Ive made a choice, so far, to go on this road alone. Because this is my time. This is my time to make movies. Tarantino said at a conference in 2016 that he was going to retire after he had directed 10 movies. His Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is in post-production now, while an untitled Star Trek project looms. That latter one would be his 10th full-length effort. Just Married! Congrats Quentin Tarantino & Daniela Pick!

 Curtis Dahl / @people pic.twitter.com/uFBk94kvyS  Quentin Tarantino Fan Club (@TarantinoFC) November 29, 2018 Facebook

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SpongeBob fan lobbies for Empire State Building to glow yellow to honor Stephen Hillenburg By Christie DZurilla A SpongeBob SquarePants balloon floats over Central Park West last week during the Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade. (Eduardo Munoz Alvarez / Associated Press) A fan of the Nickelodeon show SpongeBob SquarePants has started an online petition asking that the Empire State Building be lit up in yellow to remember series creator Stephen Hillenburg, who died Monday of ALS at age 57. As Nickelodeon Studios is based in New York, I felt it fitting to ask the Big Apple to show its love for Stephen by embracing SpongeBobs classic yellow glow, fan Alison P. said in her petition on the Care2 website. She said she started the petition as a way to honor Hillenburg and also to drive awareness of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a degenerative neurological condition also known as Lou Gehrigs disease. The petition had closed in on its 3,000-signature goal by early Wednesday afternoon. Stephen Hillenburg at the world premiere of The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water in 2015. (Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images) SpongeBob SquarePants has taught his audience not only about friendship but helped to drive awareness around the importance of ocean conservation, Alison P. said. It was Stephens genius that was able to invent a character who could connect with kids and adults to deliver such an important message in a fun and charming way. Though Hillenburg left the series in 2002 after about 60 episodes, it has continued on through 12 seasons so far and amassed a loyal fan base that includes both young and old. There have been two SpongeBob movies, with one more on tap for 2020. Hillenburg went public with his ALS diagnosis in March 2017. READ MORE: Stephen Hillenburg, creator of SpongeBob SquarePants, dies at 57 Facebook

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Bobby Brown sues Whitney: Can I Be Me distributors, including Showtime and the BBC By Christie DZurilla Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown in 1997. (Rene Macura / Associated Press) Bobby Brown and the estate of Bobbi Kristina Brown are suing Showtime and other distributors of the unauthorized 2017 biopic Whitney: Can I Be Me, alleging the defendants used more than half an hour of old footage of both Browns, plus his other children, without permission. The suit, which seeks at least $2 million in damages, was filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York, where defendants Showtime, the BBC and Passion Pictures all have offices. The named defendants  which also include Tracey Baker-Simmons, Wanda Shelley, B2 Entertainment and Simmons Shelley Entertainment, based in Atlanta  are accused of distributing footage including some shot for the 2005 reality show Being Bobby Brown, thereby violating the Browns privacy rights in pursuit of financial gain. Though Brown was contacted by the filmmakers, the suit says, to be interviewed for Can I Be Me, he declined. A mention in the films credits suggests Browns production company OKd the use of the Being Bobby Brown footage, including footage of Bobbi Kristina Brown, but the complaint says no such permission was given. The footage was actually recorded prior to the divorce in 2007 between Brown and Houston. Brown never signed or executed a release for the material that appears in the film, the lawsuit says. The footage of Brown is approximately fifteen (15) years old. The Los Angeles Times review of Can I Be Me noted that some voices were absent from the film, which was co-directed by Nick Broomfield and Rudi Dolezal. (Neither director is named as a defendant in the lawsuit.) Broomfield, for his part, was hampered by the fact that he was not able to interview key people in Houstons life, including ex-husband Bobby Brown, her closest friend Robyn Crawford, and Clive Davis, the Svengali who began her career, Times critic Kenneth Turan wrote. Showtime and the BBC declined to comment on Wednesday. And an email sent to Tracey Baker-Simmons was not immediately returned. Bobbi Kristina Brown died in July 2015 from undetermined causes. Facebook

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Sundance 2019: Get an inside look at the feature film lineup and the festivals early trends By Los Angeles Times Staff People walk past the Egyptian Theatre, a landmark venue showing films during the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) Mindy Kaling. Alec Baldwin. Naomi Watts. Pete Davidson. Awkwafina. Emma Thompson. Shia LaBeouf . Those are just a few of the many names headed to Park City, Utah, in January for the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. On Wednesday, the Sundance Institute unveiled the full lineup of feature films from all over the world set to premiere at the annual festival. To mark the official lineup reveal, festival director John Cooper and programming director Kim Yutani visited the Times video studio for a livestream discussion. Joined by Times film reporter and The Reel host Mark Olsen, the two offered their instant analysis on the lineup and what trends to watch for come January. Read our full report on the titles selected, and press play on the video below to watch a replay of the livestream. The 2019 Sundance Film Festival runs Jan. 24 to Feb. 3. For full coverage, make sure to bookmark latimes.com/entertainment and follow @latimesent on Twitter, @latimesent on Facebook and @latimes_entertainment on Instagram. Facebook

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Mac Miller singles released posthumously on Spotify By Christie DZurilla Rapper Mac Miller died Sept. 7 of an accidental overdose. (Owen Sweeney / Associated Press) Spotify has released a couple of new tunes from the late rapper Mac Miller. A recording of his song Dunno and a cover of Billy Prestons 1974 hit Nothing From Nothing are part of a Spotify Singles playlist that came out Tuesday on the streaming platform. They were recorded live in New York City before Millers death on Sept. 7. Miller appears to get emotional about an ex-girlfriend  perhaps Ariana Grande?  in the wistful Dunno, from his 2018 album Swimming. And he puts a smoky, introspective spin on Nothing From Nothing. Listen to songs below. Miller, who was 26, died from an accidental overdose of alcohol, cocaine and fentanyl, the Los Angeles County coroners office concluded. The unexpected nature of his death left many strings untied, including a Halloween concert date at the Greek Theatre that became the peer-loaded tribute concert Mac Miller: A Celebration of Life. Facebook

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Margaret Atwood announces Handmaids Tale sequel to be released in 2019 Margaret Atwood announced Wednesday that a sequel to her iconic 1985 novel, The Handmaids Tale, is coming next year. (Patrick T. Fallon / Los Angeles Times) In the surest sign yet that we are living in the age of reboots, revivals and sequels, Margaret Atwood announced Wednesday that a sequel to The Handmaids Tale, her prescient 1985 novel, is in the works. Titled The Testaments, the new novel is set 15 years after the protagonists final scene in The Handmaids Tale, and is narrated by three female characters. Atwood revealed the news in a tweet Wednesday morning and said the book is set to be published next year. The Handmaids Tale and its dystopian tale of life in Gilead, a patriarchal society overseen by fundamentalist zealots with a singular obsession with womens reproductive rights has seen renewed cultural significance in recent days. The books continued relevance is thanks in part to the high-profile Hulu adaptation, along with plenty of other contributing factors. Dear Readers: Everything youve ever asked me about Gilead and its inner workings is the inspiration for this book. Well, almost everything! Atwood wrote in her tweet. The other inspiration is the world weve been living in. Yes indeed to those who asked: Im writing a sequel to The #HandmaidsTale. #TheTestaments is set 15 years after Offreds final scene and is narrated by three female characters. It will be published in Sept 2019. More details: https://t.co/e1umh5FwpX pic.twitter.com/pePp0zpuif  Margaret E. Atwood (@MargaretAtwood) November 28, 2018 I have published Margaret Atwoods work since 1976  her poetry, fiction and nonfiction, publisher Nan A. Talese said in a statement Wednesday. A manuscript from her is always a reason for joy. She writes wonderfully and has a mind like a steel trap. This new book is no exception. Beyond the timeline and the narrators, little else has been revealed about the sequel. The book is not, however, in any way connected to Hulus current adaptation. The Testaments is scheduled for release on Sept. 10, 2019, by Nan A. Talese/Doubleday with a first printing of 500,000 copies. Facebook

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A Star Is Born: Alfonso Cuaron turns 57 today By Los Angeles Times Staff (Anacleto Rapping / Los Angeles Times) I think it is vital for filmmakers to have their feet firmly planted in their countrys cultures. ... But the theme must be universal. Alfonso Cuaron, 2002 FROM THE ARCHIVES: A New Mexican Revolution Facebook

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Amanda Bynes makes triumphant return on cover of Paper magazine Actress Amanda Bynes, pictured in 2013, battled several problems that played out in public for a few years. (Neilson Barnard / Getty Images) Former child star turned cautionary tale Amanda Bynes has resurfaced on the cover of Paper magazine looking happy, healthy and ready for a comeback. Bynes broke through on Nickelodeons sketch comedy show All That before scoring a series of her own at age 13 with The Amanda Show. Her star continued to rise through the early 2000s with movie roles aplenty, including What a Girl Wants, Shes the Man and Hairspray. But eventually, Bynes said in a new sit-down interview with Paper, self-image issues fueled her burgeoning drug habit and led to her abandoning acting altogether. The actress recounted a moment on the set of Hall Pass, when, after seeing herself on a monitor, literally tripping out and thinking my arm looked so fat because it was in the foreground or whatever and I remember rushing off set and thinking, Oh, my god, I look so bad. According to Bynes, it was a combination of image issues and Adderall abuse that resulted in her eventually leaving Hall Pass. Shortly thereafter, she found herself in a similar situation while watching her performance in Easy A. Amanda Bynes on the cover of Paper magazines Break the Internet issue. (Danielle Levitt / Paper) I literally couldnt stand my appearance in that movie, and I didnt like my performance, she said. I was absolutely convinced I needed to stop acting after seeing it. Bynes is clear that any bad behavior in previous years was spurred by drug use and not by psychological issues, saying that once she quit acting, her days were filled with little beyond getting high and self-destructing online. Im really ashamed and embarrassed with the things I said. I cant turn back time, but if I could, I would, Bynes said. And Im so sorry to whoever I hurt and whoever I lied about because it truly eats away at me. It makes me feel so horrible and sick to my stomach and sad. Everything I worked my whole life to achieve, I kind of ruined it all through Twitter, she said. In the interview, Bynes also discusses her four years of sobriety and educational pursuit at Los Angeles Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, as well as her potential return to acting. Facebook

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Aubrey Plaza to host 2019 Spirit Awards By Sonaiya Kelley Aubrey Plaza, a Spirit Award winner herself, will host the 2019 Spirit Awards ceremony. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times) Film Independent announced on Tuesday that Aubrey Plaza will host the 2019 Spirit Awards. The search for a great Spirit Awards host is never easy, Film Independents president, Josh Welsh, said in a release. This year we said, Lets find someone funny, smart, a cinephile  being a great actor wouldnt hurt and it would be an added bonus if theyve previously won a Spirit Award. Then we realized, Oh wait, thats Aubrey Plaza! I am truly honored and delighted to host the Spirit Awards this year, said Plaza in the release. It is a dream come true to host a show that celebrates my greatest loves: independent film, the people that make them possible and live television. Plaza starred opposite Elizabeth Olsen in last years Ingrid Goes West, which she also produced. As a producer, she received a Spirit Award for best first feature for that film. She currently stars in FXs Legion series, which is based on a Marvel comic of the same name. Season 3 of the show will premiere in 2019. She is also well known for her role on the Emmy-nominated series Parks and Recreation and will next appear in Lars Klevbergs Childs Play remake with Brian Tyree Henry, scheduled for release on June 21, 2019. The Spirit Awards are the primary fundraiser for Film Independents year-round programs. Nominees were announced on Nov. 16. Among this years best feature nominees are Eighth Grade, First Reformed, If Beale Street Could Talk, Leave No Trace and You Were Never Really Here. The 34th Independent Spirit Awards will broadcast live on IFC on Feb. 23, 2019. The ceremony will be held on the beach in Santa Monica. Facebook

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Bruce Springsteen teases Netflixs Springsteen on Broadway with a new trailer By Christie DZurilla One step up and two steps back? More like one door closing and another one opening. So it is with Bruce Springsteen, whos bringing Springsteen on Broadway to small screens the day after his autobiographical show closes following more than a year at New York Citys Walter Kerr Theatre. This is what Ive presented to you all these years as my long and noisy prayer, as my magic trick, Springsteen says to kick off the trailer released by Netflix on Tuesday, not quite three weeks ahead of the specials debut on the streaming service. Think of it as a two-hour reward for resisting the urge to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on a ticket to the gig, which opened in October 2017. Heavy on serious theatricality, the trailer offers a low-key taste of the nearly solo show  staged in a theater that seats fewer than a thousand  which on most nights has included Springsteens wife, Patti Scialfa, on a couple of songs. Its a hybrid, but clearly not a Bruce concert. Far from it. Unlike his raucous arena shows, there are no massive singalongs by the crowd. It doesnt stretch to 3 or four hours, though its apparently grown longer with time. Its a coming-of-age story, and I want to show how this  ones coming of age  has to be earned, Springsteen told E
It probably wont come as much of a surprise when I confess that, like a lot of food-minded folks, I own every single one of Yotam Ottolenghis six cookbooks. Theyre on bookshelves, also underneath bowls of fruit, between jars of tea and heritage beans, stacked among cookie sheets and cutting boards. And now theres another to add to the pile: The British Israeli chefs seventh book, Ottolenghi Simple, comes out in October from Ten Speed Press.

This latest cookbook, which Ottolenghi wrote with Tara Wigley and Esme Howarth, with photographs by Jonathan Lovekin, presents 130 recipes that are focused on simplicity. Ottolenghis cooking has always been more accessible than aspirational, but some of his cookbooks (Nopi, Sweet) do require a fair bit of technical expertise, so its comforting to have an undemanding volume to add to the stack. The celebrated chef began his cooking career as a pastry chef and currently has a number of restaurants in London, where hes long been based (he grew up in Jerusalem, where his father was a chemistry professor at Hebrew University).

To help simplify, so to speak, just what Ottolenghi means by simple, theres a helpful color-coded outline in the introduction of the book. The six letters of the word simple stand for, in order: short on time, 10 ingredients or less, make ahead, pantry, lazy and easier than you think. Theres some elaboration of these terms, and each of the recipes is marked with the relevant letters in handy color bubbles. Its a cute trick, although it doesnt do much to simplify the book.

I guess from Ottolenghis standpoint these are simple recipes. There are many that are fairly quickly assembled, often in one dish or pot; lots of soups and stews and salads; and a happy surfeit of dishes that are composed of things roasted on sheet pans. If youve already been cooking Ottolenghis food, then the staple ingredients (sumac, tahini, zaatar) are likely already in your cupboard.

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Hot, charred cherry tomatoes with cold yogurt from the book Ottolenghi Simple: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi. (Jonathan Lovekin / Ten Speed Press)

Recipe: Hot, charred cherry tomatoes with cold yogurt 

Whats particularly noticeable about this cookbook is the emphasis on what could be called modern comfort food. These are dishes loaded with flavor, heavy on vegetables and herbs, spices and sauces, and reliant on texture, color and juxtaposition.

One of the best dishes in the book is one of cherry tomatoes, charred under the broiler with herbs and spices, then loaded while hot into the center of a mound of chilled thick yogurt and spiked with Urfa chile flakes. The ingredients are familiar to Ottolenghi devotees, but the combination is surprising  and utterly delicious. Other dishes display a similar inventiveness, taking stuff most of us have on hand these days but switching around either a component or a technique so that theres something simultaneously comforting and compelling.

Cover of the cookbook of the week Ottolenghi Simple: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi. (Jonathan Lovekin / Ten Speed Press)

The chapters are divvied up into basic categories (raw veg, cooked veg, meat, dessert) and at the conclusion of the book there are menu suggestions, from brunch to feasts, as well as a list of descriptions of Ottolenghi ingredients  the now-familiar pomegranate molasses, tahini, barberries, etc.

Its a useful and engaging book, filled with the kind of dishes that have made Ottolenghis broad and well-deserved reputation  and, yes, the recipes are simple enough, although its a conceit that seems both unnecessary and rather contrived. Its not like the chef made his name with hopelessly complicated dishes; rather, his cooking has always been as approachable as its been addictive. But regardless of the effort required, this is food thats worth putting on the plate, and another cookbook thats very much worth adding to the collection.

Cookbook of the week: Ottolenghi Simple by Yotam Ottolenghi (Ten Speed Press, $35)

amy.scattergood@latimes.com

@ascattergood
A Los Angeles judge has dismissed criminal charges against UCLA chemistry professor Patrick Harran, nearly 10 years after a staff research assistant suffered fatal burns in a laboratory he supervised.

In what was thought to be the first U.S. criminal case arising from an academic lab accident, Harran was charged with four felony counts of willfully violating state occupational health and safety standards in the death of Sheharbano Sheri Sangji, who died 18 days after the Dec. 29, 2008 fire.

In June 2014, Harran struck a deferred-prosecution agreement in which he would avoid the charges if he met certain conditions for five years. He agreed to teach organic chemistry courses for college-bound inner-city students in the summers, perform 800 hours of community service in the UCLA Hospital system and pay $10,000 to the Grossman Burn Center.

Last week at a regularly scheduled status hearing on the case, Harrans attorney Thomas OBrien asked Los Angeles Superior Court Judge George Lomeli to shorten the term of the agreement, which was to have run until June 2019. Lomeli, who had approved the original deal, granted the request.

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Dr. Harran completed all of the conditions he was supposed to complete, so the court dismissed the matter, OBrien said Wednesday.

Prosecutors objected to the dismissal.

Sangjis sister, Naveen Sangji, said in an email to The Times that that the family was not informed that this was even a possibility and should have been given an opportunity to raise its own objection. She said she learned of the decision on Tuesday, five days after Lomeli rendered it.

Our family had planned to be present and to speak, as is our right, at the final hearing which was to be nine months from now, she said. The family has long contended that the deferred-prosecution agreement was little more than a slap on the wrist for Harran.

Sheri Sangji, 23, was not wearing a protective lab coat when a plastic syringe she was using to transfer t-butyl lithium from one sealed container to another came apart, spewing a chemical compound that ignites when exposed to air. She suffered extensive burns and died 18 days later.

Harran and UCLA contended that Sangji  who had earned a bachelors degree in chemistry seven months before her death  was a seasoned chemist who chose not to wear protective gear and had been trained in the experiment she was performing.

Harran, now 49, was accused of failing to provide proper hazardous-chemical safety training, failing to require body protection for employees exposed to hazardous substances and failing to have an effective illness- and injury-prevention program.

Three felony counts against the University of California were dropped in July 2012 when the Board of Regents agreed to follow comprehensive safety measures and endow a $500,000 scholarship in Sangjis name.

kim.christensen@latimes.com

https://twitter.com/kchristensenLAT
Were launching our own damn satellite  Gov. Jerry Brown says California will go to space to fight climate change

California Gov. Jerry Brown is shown at the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco on Thursday. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Gov. Moonbeam is finally sending California into space.

Jerry Brown closed his climate summit in San Francisco on Friday with a dramatic announcement: California will launch its own satellite into orbit to track and monitor the formation of pollutants that cause climate change.

With science still under attack and the climate threat growing, were launching our own damn satellite, Brown said in prepared remarks. This groundbreaking initiative will help governments, businesses and landowners pinpoint  and stop  destructive emissions with unprecedented precision, on a scale thats never been done before.

After decades of being unable to shake the moniker Gov. Moonbeam  which columnist Mike Royko branded Brown in 1976  the governor has come to embrace it in a big way. Brown suggested around that time that California should launch its own satellite for emergency communications. At the time, the governor was in his 30s and full of ideas for the state that critics dismissed as flaky. Some were put into law and established California as a pioneer on various policy fronts, others were put on the shelf.

The governors Global Climate Action Summit  and the Trump administrations reluctance to pursue robust climate research  opened the door wide open for the governor to pull the satellite vision out of the archives.

The state will develop the satellite with the San Francisco-based Earth-imaging firm Planet Labs, a company founded by former NASA scientists in 2010. The state may ultimately launch multiple satellites into space, according to the governors office. The California Air Resources Board is in the process of developing the monitoring technology used by the satellite. No date has been set for the launch; the process is expected to take several years.

Officials at the air board discussed the possibility of the satellite at their meeting in July, when they expressed concern that the Trump administration had mothballed its plans to use the innovative technology to monitor pollutants from above. The state officials said at the time that they hoped to launch within a few years.

Robbie Schingler, co-founder of Planet Labs, said the project will inform how advanced satellite technology can enhance our ability to measure, monitor, and ultimately, mitigate the impacts of climate change.

The state hopes to put the satellite to use in pinpointing the sources of climate pollutants, which could enable it to refine its regulatory approach and better understand how to mitigate warming. Data from the satellite would be made available to the public through a partnership with the Environmental Defense Fund.

Browns announcement came in quickly delivered remarks at the close of the three-day gathering and received a standing ovation from many in the audience. Two activists who stood up on their seats saying Brown is not a climate leader were carried out of the auditorium by security.

Los Angeles Times staff writer Tony Barboza contributed to this report.
The leaders of Sweden's centre-right opposition Alliance on Wednesday urged the incumbent Social Democrat-led bloc to step aside and help them form a viable government to break a post-election deadlock.

The rise of the far-right Sweden Democrats, shunned by both centre-right and centre-left, left both big mainstream blocs neck-and-neck, and short of a majority, in Sunday's election.

The Alliance has already rejected an informal invitation from the current prime minister, Stefan Lofven, to support a Social Democrat-led government.

"We want to build an Alliance government with support from across the political divide," the leaders of the Moderate, Centre, Christian Democrat and Liberal parties said in a signed article in the daily Dagens Nyheter.

"Sweden needs stable economic policies and major long-term political reforms that will need broad parliamentary support to achieve."

The Social Democrats, who have dominated Swedish politics for 100 years, declined to comment, but analysts said there was no indication that Lofven would do anything other than rebuff the offer.

Preliminary election results, likely to be updated on Wednesday, show the centre-left with 40.6 percent against 40.3 percent for the Alliance, whose candidate for the premiership is Ulf Kristersson of the right-wing Moderates.

That would give the Social Democrats and Greens, together with the Left Party, which supports Lofven in parliament, 144 of the Riksdag's 349 seats, two more than the Alliance.

The Sweden Democrats, who polled 17.6 percent, have 63 seats, meaning they could give either side a majority.

But all the mainstream parties have ruled out negotiating with a party that was founded in part by activists with white supremacist and neo-Nazi links, and so far there has been no sign of compromise on any side.

Sweden Democrat leader Jimmie Akesson, who has sought to weed out overt racism and tone down some of the party's most controversial demands to broaden its appeal, has pledged to bring down any government that does not give it influence over policy, particularly immigration.

Thrashing out a deal could take weeks or months, failing which a new election - which may still not produce a majority for either side - would be necessary.

Lofven is head of the biggest party and the biggest bloc. But the Alliance argues that it has the best chance of forming a viable coalition as the centre-left bloc includes the Left Party, which would almost certainly be excluded from any future administration.

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Wheres Oliver Hardy when you need him?

If Laurels partner were still around, and paying attention to the long-running California coastal corruption case, hed have the perfect line at the ready.

This is another nice mess youve gotten us into.

The mess just keeps getting messier, too. For that, we can thank the state attorney general, whose handling of the case suggests Keystone Kops as much as Laurel and Hardy.

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And we can thank three former and two current members of the California Coastal Commission. They were found guilty recently of violating rules regarding private meetings with individuals who have business before the all-powerful commission, which votes to approve or reject coastal development and land use applications.

Former Commissioner Steve Kinsey was fined $30,300.

Former Commissioner Wendy Mitchell was fined $7,100.

Former Commissioner Martha McClure was fined $2,600.

Commissioner Mark Vargas was fined $13,600.

Commissioner Erik Howell was fined $3,500.

But the tab runs way higher than that, because the judge in the case ruled that the commissioners must also pay $959,000 in attorneys fees to the party that brought the suit against them.

And its not yet clear whos going to pay that money. Will it be the guilty commissioners, or are they going to try to stick taxpayers with the tab, drawing it from the state general fund or the Coastal Commission budget?

The attorney general has filed an appeal, by the way, so get ready for Round 2, and more costs to taxpayers.

The $959,000 award will go to lawyer Cory Briggs and Spotlight on Coastal Corruption. The nonprofit sued the five commissioners, alleging hundreds of violations of transparency rules. The point of the lawsuit wasnt just to hold the five accountable but to sanitize what had become a cesspool in which lobbyists swam too close to commissioners, sometimes attaching themselves like barnacles.

One day, early in the trial, former Commissioner Mitchell hissed at me on her way out of court. I cant blame her, because I once wrote that her gift to California was her resignation from the commission. But she and the commissioners got a pretty good deal on their legal defense.

The lawsuit was filed against them individually, not against the Coastal Commission. The attorney generals office argued that it represents the agency and had to represent the accused commissioners because the allegations concern conduct within the scope of their responsibilities as commissioners.

Excuse me, but repeatedly failing to report private meetings, failing to report them on time, and letting lobbyists write the accounts of those private meetings is not conduct within the scope.

Its arrogant, reckless disregard.

In defending the accused, the attorney generals office knew it was stepping into a minefield. In a Sept. 26, 2016, letter to the Coastal Commission, the attorney general said that if the commissioners lost the case and someone had to be held responsible for paying the assessed penalties and rewards, that would present a conflict of interest for us in determining whether that money should be paid by the commissioners or the agency (translation: taxpayers).

Then dont take the case.

But of course the attorney generals office did take the case, and what was the central component of its defense strategy?

To blame the Coastal Commission for the misdeeds of the accused commissioners.

Talk about conflicts of interest.

In court, the deputy attorney general argued that the agencys system of filing reports on private meetings was screwed up, and that commissioners didnt get proper training on rules governing those private meetings.

Please.

There might have been a few administrative problems, but if the agency staff was so disorganized and the rules so unclear, why were the majority of commissioners able to easily comply?

When the verdict came in, the bulk of the allegations were rejected by the judge, but enough of them stuck to give Spotlight on Coastal Corruption a victory that was cheered by coastal stewards up and down the state.

So why was the attorney general taking bows?

Related: Coastal Commissions preposterous antics go to court, and taxpayers foot the bill 

Because if the damages against the commissioners had been worse, they could have been assessed millions in penalties. And so the attorney generals office argued that because of this partial victory, its own legal costs of roughly $650,000 should be paid by Spotlight on Coastal Corruption.

It was like arguing that you may have lost the World Series, but you did well enough to deserve a piece of the trophy.

Briggs and Spotlight argued that the attorney generals office, as a public agency, had no right to any such compensation. And youre not going to believe the response from the office of Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra.

It argued in a court filing that if it had been representing the people of the state of California in this lawsuit, it would not have been eligible to receive fee awards. But Here, the Attorney Generals office was representing private individuals sued in their personal capacity...

A few questions, counselor.

Why is the state attorney general defending private individuals?

Has it done so before?

And if thats how the commissioners are now being described, why did the attorney generals office agree to represent them on appeal? Shouldnt private individuals get private attorneys already?

This is the same attorney generals office that recently decided in private, along with the Coastal Commission, to stop fighting for public access to Hollister Ranch. So in that case, they stiffed the public and bowed to wealthy private landowners who have thrown up roadblocks to anyone trying to enjoy those central coast beaches.

And in the Spotlight case, theyre sticking up for private individuals who broke the rules and abandoned their duty to the public.

Is anyone representing us?

By most standards this is a gift of public funds, said Mary Shallenberger, a former coastal commissioner. Private citizens cannot get free legal advice or free legal representation from the state, and that is what is happening here.

Kathryn Burton, president of Spotlight on Coastal Corruption, was still steaming over the suggestion that her group should pay for the misdeeds of the commissioners.

I dont understand how you can argue on one hand that theyre private citizens and then try to have them reimbursed, she said. What makes them so special?

She also disputed the attorney generals claim that penalties and fees levied against the five commissioners would deter other people from wanting to become coastal commissioners.

You dont have any problems if you follow the rules, and this wasnt a case where there were a few mistakes, Burton said. It was a pattern.

I had lots of questions for the attorney generals office, but got a brief response that failed to answer most of them and reasserted that the commissioners were sued regarding conduct within the scope of their employment with the Commission.

Its like a riff on the famous scene in Chinatown.

Theyre public. Theyre private. Theyre public. Theyre private.

As I said, its unclear whos going to end up writing the checks for all of this nonsense, but Id like to see the commissioners at the front of that line.

Stay tuned for the answers.

Until then, dont forget that there is no compelling need for the private meetings  known as ex-parte communications  that prompted the Spotlight lawsuit. And yet although the current set of commissioners seems to run a cleaner operation than the last crew did, eight out of 12 of them still take ex-partes. To find out who they are, go to the agency website at coastal.ca.gov, click on commissioners, and shoot them an email if you like.

In a more transparent system, anyone who wants to present his or her perspective to a commissioner on any coastal issue can do so in writing. Those communications would then be posted on the commission website for all to see, with hired-gun lobbyists enjoying no advantage over average folks. Those who still want to speak up could do so at the meetings, in public, rather than in private.

If thats the way things were done, thered be no fine mess, and no need for Spotlight on Coastal Corruption.

Get more of Steve Lopezs work and follow him on Twitter @LATstevelopez
When it comes to fighting the Trump administrations immigration policies, California has two resistances. Theres the official one, conducted by politicians, that includes the states landmark sanctuary law.

Then theres the unofficial resistance, which includes people like Ann and Kent Moriarty.

In July, the couple got a call from an immigrant advocacy group about an asylum seeker who had spent seven months at an Irvine detention facility. The woman had just been granted a $15,000 bond and needed a place to stay. The Moriartys took in Veronica Aguilar, from El Salvador, and showed her around their Bay Area neighborhood.

They taught her how to navigate public transportation, where to get healthcare and how to sign up for English classes.

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Ann Moriarty said her religious faith compels her to welcome strangers. But she said President Trumps policies made it easier to do what she considered the right thing.

Veronica Aguilar now lives with sponsor family Kent Moriarty, left and wife Ann (not pictured) in Pinole, Calif, (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

We are responding to this elevation of hatred and meanness that feels like it is allowed now in this administration, she said. It is unacceptable.

Since June, nearly 800 people around the country have pledged to offer housing through California-based Freedom for Immigrants. The organization has raised more than $100,000 this year to bond 50 immigrants, including Aguilar, out of detention. Immigrants eligible for release from detention must provide the address of a sponsor to immigration authorities.

Other organizations, including those associated with the sanctuary church movement, are also opening their doors to detained migrants in need of transitional housing.

When the crisis of family separation hit the media and there was an outpouring of people who wanted to help  thats when we realized that we had an opportunity to really ask people to pledge more than monetary support, said cofounder Christina Mansfield. The goal for us is to show that, if given the power, communities are willing and capable of being part of the solution of ending immigration detention and providing more-humane alternatives.

The Moriartys are registered with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as Aguilars legal sponsors. Kent, who speaks fluent Spanish, works as a mechanical engineer, and Ann writes science curriculum at UC Berkeley. In the past, the couple has housed young unaccompanied minors as they aged out of foster care.

Aguilars journey to California started when she fled her home just north of San Salvador.

Veronica Aguilar shares her story on the news program Flashpoints on Radio KPFA in Berkeley. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

At age 20, she said, six months into her relationship with a man from her community, he shot and killed someone. She said she hadnt known he was a gang member or that she was pregnant with his child.

While the man remained in prison, Aguilar said, members of his gang pressured her to maintain the relationship. She refused and assumed that was the end of it. Then two years ago, some of those gang members were released from prison and threatened to kill her.

Aguilar fled to her mothers house two hours northeast, but the gang members found her a year later. In October, she bought a bus ticket to the Guatemalan border with Mexico, leaving behind an 18-year-old daughter and her now 15-year-old son. From there, she joined a caravan of 300 migrants who sought U.S. asylum a month later at the border in San Ysidro.

In early May, an immigration judge denied Aguilars application for asylum and ordered her deported, according to court documents. Judge Nathan Aina said she had failed to provide sufficient proof that she would likely be persecuted or tortured if returned to El Salvador.

While she awaits her appeal, Aguilar said, she knows she can count on the American family that embraced her.

To me, they are family, Aguilar said. This feels like my home.

Veronica Aguilar, of El Salvador, waits to board a BART train in Pinole. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

In nearby Concord, Joe Schellenberg and Mieke VanHout got a call in early August from the lawyer of a detained Guinean man they had been preparing to host, saying that he couldnt be released. Within three days, the couple had 70 letters and signatures from members of their Unitarian church in support of the young man, who is seeking asylum.

The man, who asked that most details about his situation be kept confidential out of fear for his safety, was released on a $5,000 bond a couple of weeks later.

Schellenberg and VanHout  retired and empty-nesters  have volunteered for years serving detainees and farmworkers. After Trump took office, they decided to get more involved with Freedom for Immigrants.

For VanHout, a former nurse, the idea of allowing a stranger to live with her stems from her youth.

I really thought I could change the world, she said.

Her husband sees it more simply: I miss my kids, he said. The Guinean man, a native French speaker, calls them mom and dad  a sign of respect common in his culture.

Joe Schellenberg, left, and wife Mieke VanHout, of Concord, Calif., sponsor refugees seeking asylum. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

My whole life has pretty much been white privilege, said Schellenberg, a former financial manager. But his own children exposed him to different cultures. One son married a Chinese woman, another a Venezuelan woman and another a Serbian woman, and his daughters boyfriend is from Poland.

Immigrant advocates say there is a huge need for sponsors.

Earlier this year, Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice started getting calls from lawyers with detained clients who were eligible for release but didnt have sponsors.

The Los Angeles-based advocacy organization, known as CLUE, has long been involved in the sanctuary movement, in which religious institutions shield immigrants in the country illegally from deportation by offering them refuge. ICE historically has avoided conducting enforcement at sensitive locations, including churches.

Now congregations that had already established themselves as places of sanctuary are opening their doors to asylum seekers and other migrants being released from detention.

One of those congregations is Pastor Maria Elena Montalvos of Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bell. But since the building lacks a shower, she is hosting a Salvadoran couple and their 2-year-old daughter in her Compton home.

Lourdes, 20, her 24-year-old husband, Raul, and their daughter, Nicolle, arrived at the border near Tijuana in March and requested asylum. The Times is not using their last name because they fear persecution. Lourdes and Nicolle were detained for a day and then released, while Raul spent four months at the Adelanto Detention Facility near Victorville.

Lourdes said she was raped by three gang members at age 11. Her mother had helped police prosecute the men and fled to Mexico in 2016 after they repeatedly threatened her and demanded money. Last year, one of the men was released from prison and wanted revenge, Lourdes said.

The day after his release, the gang member stopped Raul in the street and demanded to know where his mother-in-law had gone. He threatened to take Lourdes and disappear him and their daughter.

The family joined Lourdes mother in Guadalajara within days.

But after less than a year, Lourdes mother started receiving calls from the gang members telling her they knew where she was. The family fled again.

CLUE raised the $3,000 to bond Raul out of detention and connected the family with Montalvo. Now they go to church with her every Sunday.

The pastor said its not the first time shes taken in a family, and it wont be the last.

I always say Im not going to get involved anymore, she said. But its impossible to say no, because otherwise, what purpose am I serving?

Lourdes cleans the dishes at the home of a pastor who is helping her seek asylum. (Maria Alejandra Cardona / Los Angeles Times)

andrea.castillo@latimes.com | Twitter: @andreamcastillo
Structural engineers and seismic experts can drive along a street and quickly identify at least some buildings most vulnerable to collapse in a major earthquake. There are some telltale signs: parking spots under apartments, brick walls that have not been reinforced, first floors held up by flimsy poles.

But its harder for the average person to do this analysis, and some have long argued that the public should know the potential risks.

Now the Legislature has sent to Gov. Jerry Brown a bill that would require cities and counties in the states most seismically vulnerable areas to create lists of buildings that could be at higher risk of major damage or collapse.

This could mark a major advance in efforts over the last decade to identify seismically vulnerable buildings in California. Los Angeles and other cities have generated lists of buildings that face the greatest risk of collapse. Some cities have ordered owners to retrofit those buildings to make them more secure.

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But the regulations are far from even across the state, and there are many areas where little has been done to assess the risks.

Such an undertaking could be controversial. It would also raise a basic question: What should be done with the buildings that make the list? The Times earlier this year reported that many Inland Empire cities identified old brick buildings that faced a risk of collapse but ended up not doing anything to make them safer, or even letting the public know.

Theres a big limitation to the bill  it does not provide funding. The law would take effect only if state officials can find a source of funding for the project. But backers of the bill say creating a list of possibly vulnerable buildings would represent a major step in alerting Californians whether the buildings in which they live and work should receive more study to determine whether theyre at risk in an earthquake.

California contains thousands of buildings that are known to present an unacceptably high earthquake risk of death, injury and damage, says the proposed legislation, Assembly Bill 2681, which was written by Assemblyman Adrin Nazarian (D-North Hollywood). Protecting our states economy, affordable-housing stock and social fabric from the long-lasting turmoil of earthquakes is of utmost importance.

After the powerful 1985 Mexico City earthquake, California passed a law in 1986 instructing cities to identify one of the most hazardous types of buildings  unreinforced brick buildings. But the state has not done so for other building types that have proved to be deadly in past earthquakes, such as wood-frame apartment buildings with a flimsy ground story that often houses cars, known as soft-story buildings, as well as brittle concrete buildings built with inadequate steel reinforcement.

In recent years, a number of California cities, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Berkeley, Alameda, West Hollywood and Santa Monica have created their own lists of some of these potentially vulnerable buildings.

Los Angeles has tallied up about 13,500 possibly vulnerable wood-frame buildings and 1,500 suspected brittle concrete buildings; San Francisco has counted nearly 5,000 potentially vulnerable wood-frame apartment buildings. Both of those cities have mandatory laws in place to require retrofits for those building types; San Francisco has retrofitted 45% of its wood-frame buildings covered under a mandatory strengthening law, and Los Angeles, 5%.

But many others have not begun to compile lists, and some experts like David Khorram, Long Beachs superintendent of building and safety, say its time for Californians to be able to know whether the buildings they live or work in should be studied more to find out if they are particularly vulnerable when shaken.

If you dont know how sick you are, or how vulnerable you are, to me, its a sign of ignorance, Khorram said. A mandate like this will help and encourage smaller cities to accomplish what the bigger cities are doing.

The bill would require the state to maintain an inventory of these potentially vulnerable buildings.

Among those supporting the legislation are Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, the West Hollywood City Council, the Fair Housing Council of Riverside County, the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments, the State Building and Construction Trades Council, the Structural Engineers Assn. of California, the U.S. Green Building Council and the U.S. Resiliency Council.

Creating an inventory of possibly vulnerable buildings is an essential first step in developing longer-term solutions to mitigate the seismic vulnerability that we live with every day, Garcetti wrote in a letter to lawmakers.

Some others representing local governments, however, are voicing opposition to the bill. The League of California Cities, as well as California Building Officials  an association of local building officials  say the mandate will be burdensome to small building departments.

If local government is to be the conduit to recognizing where these vulnerable buildings are, we have to figure out how to pay for that, said Matthew Wheeler, executive director of the building officials group.

Rony Berdugo, a League of California Cities lobbysist, wrote to lawmakers: This bill does not require any actual improvements to the seismic resiliency of the buildings that are inventoried and falls short of actually making cities safer.

Its unclear what an inventory would cost. Rough estimates published by legislative staffers say that while amounts are uncertain, costs that might need reimbursement by the state could be in the tens of millions of dollars to create an inventory by 2021, with a total possibly exceeding $100 million. Advocates for the bill, however, say recent inventories conducted by local governments suggest a far lower cost, which could be $15 million to $20 million, to create an inventory statewide.

While some vulnerable buildings such as soft-story apartments are fairly easy to identify, potentially risky buildings such as those with brittle concrete or steel moment frames require more extensive assessment.

The bill passed the state Senate on a 28-10 vote and the Assembly on a 55-23 vote. The bill exempts single-family homes and other residential buildings with four or fewer units, buildings owned by the state or federal government, and structures generally not intended to be occupied by humans. Hospitals and public schools, which are regulated by other state agencies, are also not subject to the bill.

A separate bill on earthquake safety, AB 1857, which passed the Senate 38 to 0 and the Assembly 77 to 0, is also being considered by the governor.

The bill would create a committee to consider whether a tougher building standard for new construction should be created  one that enables a building to be usable after a major earthquake. Currently, the minimum building standard allows buildings to be so damaged they must be torn down after an earthquake.

The panel would also be asked to determine whether that tougher building standard should be made mandatory or voluntary.

ron.lin@latimes.com

@ronlin

UPDATES:

Midnight, Sept. 13: This article was updated with more information about types of buildings that are exempted from the legislation.

11:10 a.m.: This article was updated with more context.

8:30 a.m.: This article has been updated with more context about the proposed law.

The story was originally published at 4 a.m. on Sept. 12, 2018.
More than 60 people who were living illegally in a vacant building without electricity on Hollywood Boulevard were removed by police early Wednesday morning.

Los Angeles Police Department investigators and SWAT officers in tactical gear arrived at the four-story building on the corner of Cosmo Street and Hollywood Boulevard about 3 a.m. Armed with a search warrant and supported by at least one armored vehicle, police ordered the buildings occupants to leave at once. Eight people walked out of the building on their own, but dozens more left only when officers began combing through the building, room by room, over the course of several hours.

By the end of the search, 62 adults, four teens and three large dogs were removed from the building. Most of the occupants were released after being cited for trespassing. Those who had warrants for their arrest remained in custody, said Det. Meghan Aguilar.

Police seized drugs and two firearms  a shotgun and a rifle  during the raid.

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It was immediately clear to authorities on Wednesday that the occupants had taken up residence in a building that was supposed to be vacant. Its most recent tenant, the iO West improvisational comedy theater, left the building in February.

Jasmine Acosta stands outside a vacant commercial building in Hollywood, where more than 60 occupants were removed as the LAPD searched the building. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

The building was not supposed to have electric service, but Aguilar said residents had tapped wires to draw their own power, which could have led to a potentially hazardous situation.

It could have been an absolute disaster. It could have been a fatal situation for these people, Aguilar said. Its not like were trying to put people out on the street, but buildings like this one are havens for all kinds of criminal activity. We cant have buildings like this in Los Angeles.

The stench of human waste overwhelmed the space, according to police, and more than a dozen makeshift rooms had been constructed in the basement area. Air mattresses, blankets and pillows were scattered on the floor of apartments upstairs. Some rooms had microwaves and coffee makers. Trash was piled on the floor.

Some residents said they paid rent  roughly $400 a month  for a room above the former comedy club. Aguilar said detectives have not confirmed whether people were giving money to the landlord or someone who had designated themselves  legally or not  as a property manager of the space.

Los Angeles City Atty. Mike Feuer filed 25 criminal charges against the buildings owner, Mehdi Boulour, last week, according to Rob Wilcox, a spokesman for the City Attorneys office. The chargers were for various building and fire code violations. In a statement, Feuer evoked the memory of a fire at an Oakland artists collective which claimed 36 lives in 2016 after a blaze broke out in a warehouse that had been illegally converted into an artists collective.

Our office continues to work to prevent a tragedy like the Oakland Ghost Ship fire from happening here, the statement read. Our actions at this location are just part of our sustained effort to target properties we allege pose a public safety threat.

More than 60 occupants were removed from the Hollywood building. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

Andre Bergerren, a former resident of the building who moved to Los Angeles from Houston in 2016, said some residents had begun staying at the property after being evicted from a nearby artists collective. Many of the residents feared the LAPD would lose or destroy their possessions after the raid, while others expressed concern about where they would sleep for the night.

These people are gonna be on the street, Bergerren said.

The space had been on the LAPDs radar since the beginning of summer, when authorities say community members began complaining about increased drug use along that stretch of Hollywood Boulevard. In June, police focused on the building and removed 20 people who had been living there. Authorities also told the property owner to secure his business.

It wasnt long before people started moving back in, however.

Investigators said they gathered information about drugs and guns being sold from the building and used those details to secure a search warrant.

At about 9 a.m. Wednesday, several residents of the building could be seen arguing with police about getting access to their belongings or pets still inside.

Jasmine Acosta, 25, said officers entered the building around 4:30 a.m., rousting those who live in the structure. Some residents said they heard a helicopter buzzing overhead.

Acosta, who was pleading with officers to be allowed to get her three pit bulls out of the building after the raid, said the space had been turned into an artists community.

Its just like a safe home that we made on the boulevard, she said, adding that many of the people inside had moved to Los Angeles to follow their creative pursuits.

Acosta said she had been living in the space on and off for several months and that some of the residents had been trying to put up lights and repaint walls.

Several residents could be heard desperately asking police for access to the building so they could get their wallets or identification. Acosta said she believed that authorities could have warned residents before forcing them into the streets.

Even if we are squatters, there should be an eviction notice, she said.

The four-story building is on the corner of Cosmo Street and Hollywood Boulevard. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

hannah.fry@latimes.com

Twitter: @Hannahnfry

UPDATES:

5:05 p.m.: This article was updated with information from the Los Angeles city attorneys office.

1:10 p.m.: This article was updated with comments from police.

10:25 a.m.: This article was updated with comments from building resident Jasmine Acosta and former resident Andre Bergerren.

7:50 a.m.: This article was updated with the number of people detained.

This article was originally published at 6:20 a.m.
A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that two conservative charitable groups, including one tied to the billionaire Koch brothers, must turn over a list of their top donors to the California attorney general.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court ruling that the Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity Foundation and the Thomas More Law Center do not need to disclose the information to the state.

The groups were challenging a California law that allows the attorney general to collect the same donor list they are required to provide to the Internal Revenue Service  a form that includes the names and addresses of their largest contributors.

Attorneys for the nonprofits had argued that the rule violates the 1st Amendment because it deters people from donating and could expose contributors to threats, business boycotts or other repercussions should their identities be revealed.

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But state officials, who are required to keep the information confidential unless ordered by a court, had argued that they need the names to make sure the organizations are not involved in fraud.

The judicial panel sided with the state, saying that the disclosures are related to an important state interest in policing charitable fraud, Judge Raymond C. Fisher wrote in the 41-page opinion. The panel held that plaintiffs had not shown a significant First Amendment burden on the theory that complying with the attorney generals Schedule B nonpublic disclosure requirement would chill contributions.

He wrote that the rule would have at most a modest impact on contributions and added that neither nonprofit identified anyone whose willingness to donate hinged on whether the persons name would be disclosed to the attorney general. And the risk that the disclosures would be made public inadvertently, Fisher wrote, is slight.

Bill Riggs, a spokesman for the foundation, said the group is disappointed by a decision that imperils peoples 1st Amendment right to freedom of speech and of association and intends to continue doing all it can to champion and protect the important constitutional rights at stake.

The Americans for Prosperity Foundation, co-founded in part by brothers David and Charles Koch, is a sister group of the Koch networks political arm Americans for Prosperity. The billionaire executives have spent extensively to promote conservative economic causes. The group has described itself as devoted to the promotion of limited government and free markets and has held conferences, issued policy papers and run educational programs to promote those views.

A representative of the Michigan-based Thomas More Law Center, which provides free legal services with a mission to preserve Americas Judeo-Christian heritage, could not be reached for comment.

Its unclear whether the groups plan to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In a statement Tuesday, Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra said the reason for the disclosure requirement is simple: Our mission is to protect Californians who donate their hard-earned dollars to charity. Charities operating in California must not engage in fraud or unfair business practices.

The state had argued that in the past, officials had used the forms to trace charity money used improperly after Hurricane Katrina, identify self-dealing within a charity, track a for-profit corporations improper use of a nonprofit organization and to investigate a cancer charitys in-kind gift fraud.

In sum, the record demonstrates that the state has a strong interest in the collection of Schedule B information from regulated charities, Fisher wrote.

alene.tchekmedyian@latimes.com

Twitter: @AleneTchek
Riverside Countys top social services official has left her job amid allegations that social workers in her department failed to report and adequately investigate child abuse and neglect claims.

Susan von Zabern, director of the Department of Public Social Services, left county employment Monday morning, a county spokesman said Wednesday.

Von Zaberns departure, first reported in the Press-Enterprise, follows the posting of an agenda item by the county Board of Supervisors late last month about two lawsuits alleging botched child-abuse investigations.

In one case, a 2-year-old girl was found to have been living with a deceased infant for nearly a month, according to a lawsuit. The other suit alleges that an adolescent girl was repeatedly sexually abused by her mothers boyfriend and impregnated by him at age 13.

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The county, represented by an outside law firm, has denied all allegations in both suits in court filings.

Riverside County spokesman Ray Smith declined to comment about the circumstances of Von Zaberns departure and whether it was related to the two cases, citing personnel privacy issues and pending litigation.

A woman who answered the phone at a number for Von Zaberns home hung up after a Times reporter identified himself.

In separate civil lawsuits filed in November 2017 and March 2018, attorney Roger Booth alleged that county workers failed to protect the children despite multiple opportunities to intervene. The suits say several county social workers violated the state Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act and breached their mandatory duties, including by failing to report abuse to law enforcement.

In the first suit, a minor plaintiff alleges that her mothers boyfriend repeatedly sexually assaulted her. Even after police and social services officials substantiated her allegations in 2014 and the mother obtained a restraining order against the man, the investigation was closed, the suit alleges.

The man later returned to the home and continued raping and sexually abusing the child, who became pregnant in 2016 and gave birth, the lawsuit alleges.

The boyfriend is identified in the lawsuit as Deon Welch. A 29-year-old with that name was arrested by the Hemet Police Department in March 2017 and has been charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child, according to the Riverside County Sheriffs Department and court records. He is being held at the Riverside County jail on $2-million bail.

Faced with overwhelming evidence of ongoing severe neglect and sexual abuse and an unsuitable home, defendants did nothing to try to remove Welch from the home, to dissuade him from staying there, to alert the Hemet PD of his whereabouts or to protect the girl, the lawsuit says.

In fact, defendants sanctioned Welchs continued presence in the home by asking him to sign  a safety plan that they drafted because he was one of the girls caregivers, the lawsuit says.

The other suit alleges that a girl, now 4, suffered physical, mental and emotional abuse when she was allowed to remain at home with her mentally ill mother despite regular contact with child protection and the countys own assessment that the child was at high risk of abuse and neglect.

In April 2016, after a neighbor complained of a foul odor coming from the apartment where the girl lived with her mother, police entered the home and found the girl hugging the desiccated and decaying corpse of her infant sibling, the complaint says. Her mother insisted the infant was not dead but was faking it and would soon wake up, the lawsuit says.

Ten social workers are named as defendants in the two suits.

In the sexual abuse case, Riverside County filed its own action in July against the girls mother and Welch, alleging that the pair were actively negligent and primarily responsible for the abuse. As such, the pair should be liable for any financial damages resulting from the original lawsuit, the county argued.

The county claimed that the girls mother was negligent in her supervision of plaintiff and failed to protect her from sexual abuse and rape. Further, the county alleged, the mother concealed knowledge of the abuse and of the location of her boyfriend.

The mother pleaded guilty this year to three felony charges of willful child cruelty, perjury and assisting a felony perpetrator to escape arrest or trial, according to court records. She was sentenced to one year in jail and four years probation.

Von Zaberns departure from Riverside Countys social services department follows the shocking discovery this year that a Perris couple had held their 13 children captive in their home and tortured and abused them for years, according to prosecutors.

David and Louise Turpin were each charged with multiple felony counts of torture, child abuse, abuse of dependent adults and false imprisonment after one of their children escaped and reported her parents to the police in January. The children had been starved, deprived of medical care and in some cases shackled to their beds, prosecutors said.

Von Zabern said at the time that the 911 call from the child who escaped, which was relayed to social workers, was the first opportunity we had to intervene.

Von Zabern began her career with the county in 1991 in its administrative office. She joined the social services department in 1999 and worked her way up to director in 2007, according to county records. Her base salary as director was $257,400, Smith said.

County social workers have complained for years that high attrition and staff shortages presented a danger to child safety, said Coral Itzcalli, spokeswoman for SEIU Local 721, which represents them.

On average they are paid 22% below other comparable counties and this has resulted in an embarrassing 21% attrition rate that ultimately puts the most vulnerable at further risk, Itzcalli said in an email.

None of the five members of the Board of Supervisors agreed to discuss the cases or Von Zaberns departure.

Times staff writer Alene Tchekmedyian contributed to this report.

nina.agrawal@latimes.com

laura.newberry@latimes.com

UPDATES:

7:20 p.m.: This article was updated with a comment from the union that represents the social workers.

5:35 p.m. This article was updated with additional details about the lawsuits and Susan von Zabern.

This article was originally published at 1:40 p.m.
An alternative weekly newspaper in Montana was abruptly shut down Tuesday, the latest casualty in the troubled newspaper industry.

The closure of the Missoula Independent follows the shuttering of another alternative weekly, New Yorks legendary Village Voice, which ceased operations Aug. 31 after publishing for 63 years. The Village Voice had been online for the last year after ending its print run in August 2017.

The Missoula Independent was shut down by Lee Enterprises 18 months after Lee purchased it and while the company was in the midst of negotiations with a fledgling union formed by the staff about six months ago. It was a free publication and, as of 2015, had a reported circulation of about 20,000, according to the Assn. of Alternative Newsmedia.

Some employees reportedly showed up to the office in Missoula and discovered theyd been locked out of the building. An email sent out by the human resources department to staff early Tuesday informed staffers to make an appointment to pick up their belongings and said that they would be paid with benefits through Oct. 10.

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Derek Brouwer, a reporter for the paper, said he got a phone call at 7:50 a.m. and then saw the email with the letter.

It wasnt entirely surprising, he said. But it was extremely disappointing.

The Missoula Independent had been a staple in the community for 27 years  a free publication that branched out into coverage areas not usually explored by daily and mainstream publications. Last year, the weekly took two of three awards from the Assn. of Alternative Newsmedia with features on construction workers losing out on earned wages and the use of poetry in Missoulas juvenile detention center as a rehabilitation effort.

Matt Gibson, general manager for the Missoula Independent and two other newspapers  the Missoulian and the Ravalli Republic  said the alternative weekly had continued to lose money and was no longer financially sustainable. Lee Enterprises bought the Independent from Gibson in April 2017. The Iowa-based publishing house owned all of the newspapers.

I had hoped that by selling it to Lee Enterprises we would be able to create collaborative approaches and find new efficiencies to turn it into a profitable business, Gibson told the Missoulian. Unfortunately, our efforts were unsuccessful and the Indy continued to lose money.

A notice on the door of the Missoula Independent office announces the papers demise. (Eli Imadali / Montana Kaimin)

Staffers voted to unionize in April, but the owners counter-proposals indicated they were willing to cut staff and budgets deeply. On Aug. 30, the Missoula Independent Union Guild rejected a proposal by Lee Enterprises to cut up to three-fourths of the staff. According to the union, two days of talks had been scheduled, but the negotiations lasted just an hour.

The Missoula Independent had a staff of a dozen, and Brouwer said many of them had gathered at the Le Petit Outre coffee shop to talk about the bombshell.

Theres sadness and frustration, he said. There is a particular worry about what will happen to the papers archives.

After the announcement, the papers Twitter and Facebook pages had been deleted and the website address directed traffic to the Missoulians page.

According to the Lee Enterprises website, the company publishes 46 daily newspapers and has a joint interest in two others. The site says the companys newspapers have a combined circulation of just under 1 million daily and 1.4 million on Sunday.

Lee Enterprises has seen staffs at some of its newspapers vote to unionize.

In February, staff at the Casper Star-Tribune voted to unionize. Subsequently, unions were formed at the Southern Illinoisan as well as the Missoula Independent. The moves reflected a broader trend nationwide as newspaper staffs have voted to unionize  including shops established at the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, the Florida Times-Union and the New Yorker magazine.

Protesters gather outside the offices of the Missoulian, another paper owned by Lee Enterprises, to denounce the closure of the Independent. (Eli Imadali / Montana Kaimin)

Dennis Swibold, professor of journalism at the University of Montana, said the union efforts at the Independent and in Casper seemed focused primarily on giving staff more of a say in the direction of the publications rather than simply being focused on wage hikes.

He said he wasnt completely surprised by the closure, noting that the states small population of about 1 million had always made it a challenge for the alternative weekly to stick around.

But he said Montana would be poorer for its absence.

The Independent would tackle different kinds of stories and had the luxury of doing long takeouts the dailies dont have, he said. It wasnt the paper of record in that way, but they could cherry-pick and dive deep into issues.

Lee Enterprises has expanded its portfolio responsibilities in other publication areas this year.

Warren Buffett, the head of Berkshire Hathaway, hired Lee Enterprises to manage its 30 daily and 47 weekly publications as part of a $5-million-a-year deal over the next five years. That deal began in July.

david.montero@latimes.com | Twitter: @davemontero
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. Its Wednesday, Sept. 12, and heres whats happening across California:

TOP STORIES

The political leaders coming from around the world for Gov. Jerry Browns climate action summit this week will grapple with a lot of urgent deadlines to drive down emissions, but one date is especially exasperating. It is 2035  the year advocates aim to kill off production of gasoline and diesel powered vehicles. Does the success of the Prius show California has a chance to meet these goals? Los Angeles Times

 If ever California could prove it can set policy for the nation, and the world, it is now. At Browns climate summit, the state will play a role no state ever has, creating a shadow federal government of sorts on climate policy that has buy-in from leaders worldwide  except in Washington. Los Angeles Times

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 For all of Californias talk of climate change, oil refineries remain a big problem. Los Angeles Times

 The moment of truth. New York Times

 The elder statesman of climate. Washington Post

Wild story

A certain trail has long been a shortcut used by hikers and equestrians traveling between the wealthy ranches of Hidden Valley and the miles of dirt paths that traverse the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. In recent years, it has become a battleground between neighbors in an escalating spat pitting public access against private property rights. Then a dead deer showed up on the trail. Los Angeles Times

Get the Essential California newsletter 

L.A. STORIES

Not satisfied: Porter Ranch residents dont like a huge settlement over the Aliso Canyon gas leak. Los Angeles Daily News

Big: A new mural in downtown L.A. could set a world record. LAist

Let Elon be Elon? The mania over Elon Musks antics is getting out of hand, according to the second highest-ranking executive at his rocket company, Space Exploration Technologies Corp. Bloomberg

 Columnist Michael Hiltzik is less than convinced. Los Angeles Times

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Bonkers: The constellation of personalities orbiting Donald Trump is unlike any known to previous presidents. A porn star. A pair of Playboy Playmates. A lawyer and fixer with a New York swagger and wiseguy vernacular suggesting hes seen a few too many Martin Scorsese films. Los Angeles Times

Drat: The end of the line for more than 200,000 solo California drivers using stickers for carpool lanes. Mercury News

On the shore: The California Coastal Commission has scored a big legal victory in the battle over its right to require low-cost lodging in connection with a proposal to develop new hotels on San Diegos Harbor Island. San Diego Union-Tribune

Back story: The court case that forced O.C. to stop ignoring its homeless. LAist

CRIME AND COURTS

Under arrest A suspect is in custody after police responded to reports of an active shooter at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center, authorities said. Police learned that Kaiser security officers had approached a man causing the disturbance and the man threw a chair through a window and pulled out a handgun. Los Angeles Times

Police vehicles fill the intersection of Bellflower Boulevard and Imperial Highway in Downey, where a suspect was taken into custody after reports of an active shooter at a Kaiser Permanente medical center. (KTLA)

On video: Los Angeles police released video of a gang member shooting an officer at point-blank range during a July traffic stop in the San Fernando Valley, and her partner subsequently fatally wounding the gunman. Los Angeles Times

In Contra Costa County: The incredible story of a public defender official accused in a bizarre murder. East Bay Times

THE ENVIRONMENT

Firmly planted: How the desert became a palm-tree oasis. And how that has changed the ecosystem. Desert Sun

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

Fascinating: How Taco Tuesday became such a fast-food phenomenon  and the center of a long-running legal battle. Thrillist

Brick and mortar: Mall operators are trying out virtual reality and other non-retail concepts, including luxury health and fitness offerings and haute cuisine, to combat rising vacancy rates brought about by the success of Amazon.com and other e-tailers. The effect has been compounded by the millennial generations buying habits, which lean toward spending on restaurants and activities rather than in stores. Los Angeles Times

Much ado about an entryway: An architectural battle for the soul of La Jolla. Los Angeles Times

Small world: One of Disneylands original designers has some blunt words about whats become of the park. Los Angeles Times

Plus: Why no rival has ever come close to topping Disneyland. Orange County Register

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

Los Angeles area: sunny, 79, Wednesday; sunny, 80, Thursday. San Diego: sunny, 76, Wednesday; sunny, 79, Thursday. San Francisco area: cloudy, 64, Wednesday; sunny, 62, Thursday. San Jose: mostly sunny, 71, Wednesday and Thursday. Sacramento: partly cloudy, 79, Wednesday; partly cloudy, 78, Thursday. More weather is here.

AND FINALLY

Todays California memory comes from Paula Trudeau:

I have fond, if not confused, memories of visiting Yosemite National Park as a child with my grandparents in the very early 60s. At dusk, campers would gather at the park garbage dump to watch the bears get into the trash cans. The rangers would watch that people wouldnt get too close to the bears. This form of entertainment ended later in the 60s.

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.
About 72,000 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2017. Thats nearly 200 people per day  more than the number of people killed in car accidents. Fatal overdoses have been on the rise in recent years, due in large part to the proliferation of tremendously dangerous synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, and its a safe bet that the daily death rate will be higher again by the end of this year.

This escalating crisis has forced state and local governments to think about new approaches to the problem, including harm-reduction strategies that will help keep people alive and expand treatment options. That has included equipping police officers and emergency medical staff with naloxone, a medication that can reverse opioid overdoses. And thank heaven for that, or the overdose rate would have likely been higher.

Another promising way to reduce fatal drug overdoses is by opening so-called safe injection facilities, where addicts can self-administer illicitly obtained drugs, including heroin and fentanyl, under medical supervision. Dozens of safe injection sites, also known as drug consumption sites, have been operating successfully for years in Europe and Canada, and authorities in a handful of U.S. cities  San Francisco, Seattle and New York, among them  are either considering or planning to open facilities.

We should be doing everything possible to help addicts stay alive.

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Last month, the Legislature gave its blessing to a proposal under which San Francisco would be allowed to open one safe injection facility on a three-year trial basis. It was a scaled-back version of a controversial bill that gave the same permission to seven other counties, including Los Angeles. That bill stalled a year earlier after a contentious legislative battle.

The narrower bill is now on the desk of Gov. Jerry Brown. He should sign it, despite the threat leveled by Deputy U.S. Atty. Gen. Rod Rosenstein in an op-ed in the New York Times in August, the day after the Legislature approved the bill.

Because federal law clearly prohibits injection sites, cities and counties should expect the Department of Justice to meet the opening of any injection site with swift and aggressive action, Rosenstein wrote.

What a waste of taxpayer money that would be. Sure, its a bit strange for government to be in the business of helping people consume drugs. Some people think that its immoral to normalize drug use that way; others fear that government-sanctioned drug use will merely encourage the problem.

But surely, given the breadth of the problem, its worth a try to see if it reduces deaths.

Despite Rosensteins assertions to the contrary (which he bases on one persons observations and the treatment rate at a year-old safe injection site), there are data showing that the facilities reduce overdoses and direct addicts into treatment. These arent dirty drug dens but sterile health facilities staffed with medical professionals who can recognize and reverse deadly overdoses, provide clean needles to reduce infection and help addicts connect with treatment providers. One study of Canadas first safe injection facility, which has been open since 2003 in Vancouver, found that drug overdoses decreased by 35% in the surrounding community, prompting the Canadian government to develop more such facilities across the country.

Why wouldnt we at least try out a program with such promise?

Of course, the ideal way to lower fatal drug overdoses is for people to stop using dangerous drugs. But helping people kick opioid addictions requires public investment in treatment options, and often time for treatment to work. Meanwhile, we should be doing everything possible to help addicts stay alive. Thats where harm-reduction strategies such as naloxone, needle exchanges and safe injection facilities can help.

Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion 

We hope that Rosensteins threat was an empty one, not an indication that the Department of Justice is planning to waste its crime-fighting resources prosecuting social workers and nurses trying to help addicts. Instead, the federal government should be supporting desperate cities and counties as they work to develop strategies to cope with the effects of the overdose crisis.

Happily, Gov. Brown isnt one to be cowed by federal government bullies when it comes to doing whats best for Californians.

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Rampant wildfires in the West, record high temperatures in the Arctic Circle, severe hurricanes in the Atlantic and the Pacific: Unless we reduce greenhouse gases now, these kinds of destructive natural disasters will only get worse.

It would be easy to be despondent about humanitys chances for success. The Trump administration has announced its intention to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement, moved to weaken Californias fuel-efficiency standards for automobiles, sought to repeal stricter limits on methane, and attempted to prop up coal-fired plants. But its important to keep in mind: None of those attempts has yet succeeded.

The United States cannot legally withdraw from the Paris agreement until November 2020. California and other states have filed a lawsuit challenging the EPAs assault on fuel efficiency. States attorneys general have also gone to court to uphold limits on methane leaks. And market forces continue to drive coal plants out of business because American consumers in red and blue states want cleaner and cheaper energy  and the private sector is delivering. The cost of renewable energy is now lower than coal in much of the country.

The American people are not waiting on Washington to take action because the benefits are clear.

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In fact, since the White House announced its intention to withdraw from the Paris agreement, more than 3,000 U.S. cities, states, businesses and other groups have declared their commitment to the Paris agreement. We are tracking their progress through an initiative called Americas Pledge. Together, these groups form the third-largest economy in the world, and they represent more than half the total U.S. population. They have been ramping up actions to cut carbon pollution and move toward the goals in the Paris agreement, just as the rest of the world is doing.

In red states and blue states, goals have been set and are being met. Orlando, Fla., is aiming to get 100% of its energy from clean sources and is on track to hit 20% by 2020. Los Angeles has cut emissions by 26% and counting. By next year, Texas will get more energy from solar and wind than from coal. Pennsylvania enacted tougher rules to prevent methane leaks from its gas wells. Colorados largest power utility announced plans to accelerate retirement of one-third of its coal plants and replace them with clean energy. And Walmart aims to shift 20% of its truck fleet to electric vehicles within five years.

Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion 

Americas Pledge will report this collective progress to the Global Climate Action Summit that starts Wednesday in San Francisco. The effort, by our calculations, will put the country within striking distance of the 26% reduction in greenhouse gases, by 2025, that the United States promised to hit in Paris. The report outlines 10 areas where U.S. cities, towns and organizations can focus their attention to cut emissions even more quickly, even without support from the federal government. Our message to the world is simple: The United States is taking bold steps to uphold our end of the deal. And we have market forces and public opinion on our side.

What happens in Washington still matters, of course, and we need to vote out of office those who refuse to recognize reality. But the American people are not waiting on Washington to take action because the benefits are clear: Businesses are saving money by investing in clean energy and efficiency upgrades. Technology companies are making money by driving down the cost of wind and solar. And cities and states are improving public health by cleaning their air and strengthening their economies by modernizing their infrastructure. All recognize that improving energy efficiency and reducing pollution is in their own economic interest.

That kind of bottom-up leadership will continue driving progress on climate change, no matter what obstacles Washington throws in our way.

Jerry Brown is the longest serving governor of California. Michael Bloomberg is the founder of Bloomberg LP and United Nations special envoy for climate action. They are two of the six co-chairs of the Global Climate Action Summit.

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Europe must become a "global player" with a muscular foreign policy to match its economic strength, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker urged Wednesday, in his annual address to the bloc's parliament.

Juncker used his State of the EU speech to the Strasbourg body to call for Europe to stand up for the international order in the face of "trade and currency wars", in a swipe at US President Donald Trump's "America First" approach.

Europe's ability to take strong diplomatic action is often hampered by the need to get agreement from all 28 member countries so, in a bid to simplify the process, Juncker announced plans to abolish the need for unanimity on some foreign policy issues.

With Brussels and Washington at loggerheads on a host of major issues from trade tariffs to the Paris climate agreement and the Iran nuclear deal, Juncker said it was time for Europe to play a more influential role on the world stage.

"We must become a greater global actor," the head of the EU executive told lawmakers in French, before switching to English to add: "Yes we are global payers, but we have to be global players too."

The EU must do more to push the euro as a world currency, Juncker said, questioning why Europe pays 80 percent of its energy bills in dollars when only two percent of energy imports come from the United States.

Boosting the role of the euro as a reserve currency would also boost Brussels' diplomatic power by creating a means of skirting US sanctions that it disagrees with, such as those slapped back on Tehran by Trump when he pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal earlier this year in the face of bitter European opposition.

A European diplomat said in advance of the speech that Juncker knows it is a "critical" moment to prepare Europe for a world in which Trump's United States is an unpredictable foreign policy friend and a protectionist trade rival.

Juncker urge the EU to strike a "new alliance" with Africa that would create millions of jobs and include a free trade deal -- a move Brussels hopes would both showcase its international influence and help to stem the flow of migrants across the Mediterranean.

Juncker's showpiece speech is his last before May elections that will pit Europe's rising populist forces against his centrist supporters, and he issued a rallying cry to maintain a "continent of tolerance and openness".

Populist, nationalist and eurosceptic forces have gained ground in many countries, and the polls for the European parliament could well bring in more of Juncker's opponents to rock the boat just as he tries to consolidate what he sees as real successes in restoring forward momentum to the European project.

As part of efforts to tackle the issue of illegal immigration, which has done much to fuel populist sentiment since the height of Europe's migrant crisis in 2015, Juncker confirmed plans to revamp the bloc's border protection.

"The European Commission is today proposing to strengthen the European Border and Coast Guard to better protect our external borders with an additional 10,000 European border guards by 2020," Juncker said.

The set-piece speech was Juncker's fourth such state of the union. He leaves office on October 31 next year after a term marked by crisis after crisis: a refugee influx, soaring debt and Brexit.

Juncker said he respected Britain's choice to leave, but undermined a key part of Prime Minister Theresa May's plan to quit the bloc, warning London it cannot expect to selectively remain in parts of the single market.

"We... ask the British government to understand that someone who leaves the union can not be in the same privileged position as a member state," he said, while welcoming May's proposal for an "ambitious new partnership" based on a future free trade agreement.

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Can an elected secretary of state unilaterally change the ballot in a way that benefits her political party, contradicts previous legislation and blunts the campaign of the most serious third-party candidate running for U.S. Senate in 40 years? Thats what the New Mexico Supreme Court is set to hear about Wednesday.

Last month, the Land of Enchantments Maggie Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat, decided to reimplement one-punch voting just 69 days before the election. One-punch ballots  also called straight-ticket ballots  enable voters to choose an entire slate of candidates from a political party by filling in a single bubble, rather than a bubble for each candidate.

New Mexico was, in fact, one of several states to get rid of the straight-ticket ballot option this century. The Legislature voted it out in 2001 (the law signed, as irony would have it, by then-Gov. Gary Johnson in 2001). Despite this, Democratic secretaries of state kept claiming the prerogative to leave this option on the ballot, until a GOP secretary of state was elected in 2012.

One-punch voting is a time-saving tool for partisans but not for those of us who select candidates on a case-by-case basis.

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Johnson, a two-time presidential candidate from the Libertarian Party, is making an insurgent bid for the Senate. In the only survey conducted since he entered the race, Johnson is polling at 21% to Democratic incumbent Martin Heinrichs 39%. (Republican nominee Mick Rich attracted 11%.) Registered Democrats in New Mexico outnumber Republicans 3 to 2, and only 1% of voters are registered as Libertarians.

One-punch voting is a time-saving tool for partisans but not for those of us who select candidates on a case-by-case basis. Unsurprisingly, having this option on the ballot alters election outcomes. Where its available, citizens are more likely to vote a straight-party ticket. They are also considerably more likely to cast a vote in down-ballot partisan races, but considerably less likely to vote in nonpartisan races or for ballot initiatives.

Toulouse Oliver contends that straight-party voting provides an option for voters that allows their voices to be heard while cutting in half the time it takes them to cast their ballot. But even some members of her own state party reject that.

Its not a matter of voter convenience; its a matter of partisan advantage in low-information elections, state Sen. Jacob Candelaria tweeted right after Toulouse Olivers decision.

Its not just independents and third-party pols who feel the one-punch effect straight in the kisser. In solidly red or blue districts, it gives opposite-party candidates an even steeper hill to climb. If 2018 Democratic heartthrob Beto ORourke falls just short of unseating Sen. Ted Cruz, you can give partial thanks to the Lone Star States straight-ticket voting (which will be eliminated by 2020).

Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion 

Candidates and political parties change their behavior in straight-ticket states, in large part by declining to go independent or simply not competing. In Texas, for example, 90% of county offices were uncontested on the November [2016] ballot, Texas Election Source Publisher Jeff Blaylock told the San Antonio Express-News, and that is largely because were in a cycle where straight-party, one-punch voting continues to fuel the self-reinforcing cycle that drives down the number of choices that voters ultimately have.

Elected officials who have grown sour on the two major parties  think Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), who on Sunday told CNNs Jake Tapper that he thinks about leaving the GOP every morning  are heavily disincentivized to bolt where one-punch still remains.

Straight-ticket voting makes it prohibitive to run outside of the major parties, Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) told me late last month. Amash, an independent-minded cuss and self-described libertarian, has run his entire political career as a Republican in a one-punch state. Maybe that can change. Just last week, the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals blocked a federal judges decision to uphold the states straight-ticket ballot practice  even though Michigan legislated the practice away in 2016.

From a legal standpoint, it seems hard to justify letting judges or bureaucrats defy the will of legislatures regarding ballot laws. The Republican and Libertarian parties are also arguing in New Mexico that straight-ticket violates the equal-protection clause of the Constitution, although that interpretation has not previously won the day. States are still free to experiment with how they conduct democracy, which seems right.

But that doesnt mean the practice of one-punch voting is right. Yes, we live in politically polarized times, increasingly viewing the other major team as an implacable enemy. Yet the long-term trendlines for both party registration and political self-identification are clear: The only growth categories are ones not named Democrat or Republican.

Businesses dont get to write their own regulations, and yet we constantly cede decisions about ballot access, electioneering and even candidate debate-inclusion to the two fatigued major parties. If Democrats and Republicans are so attractive, they shouldnt need the extra boost at the ballot box. Its time to kick one-punch straight to the curb.

Matt Welch is editor at large of Reason magazine and a contributing writer to Opinion.

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To the editor: So Republican gubernatorial candidate John Cox, who joked about wait times at the Department of Motor Vehicles being akin to surviving German concentration camps, is proud not to be a silver-throated politician.

I must say, Im getting awfully tired of oral incompetency being held up as a positive trait when it comes to candidates running for elected office. Being able to communicate effectively and accurately with ones constituency is a fundamental requirement for public office holders.

Would the Dodgers sign a young hitter who espouses a refreshing disregard for home runs and batting average? You know, all of that statistical correctness?

Despite the lowering of the bar in Washington, lets not forget the basic requirements of the job of California governor.

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R.C. Price, San Clemente

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To the editor: Having recently endured three hours at the DMV to renew my drivers license, and having visted as a teenager what was left of Dachau concentration camp outside Munich, Germany, I can say that sitting in a hard chair for a few hours does not come close the atrocities committed by the Nazis during World War II.

Years from now, my DMV renewal will be a forgotten memory, but Holocaust survivors will endure nightmares for the rest of their lives.

Andy Sydney, North Hills

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To the editor: Its bad enough that the 2018 California gubernatorial election presents voters with a contest that is nearly a mirror image of what national voters faced in the presidential election of 2016. Now we know, according to the Los Angeles Times, that members of Californias 1% in San Francisco see themselves as the foundation of Democratic candidate Gavin Newsoms career-long ambition of being the states chief executive.

What will that portend for the future of Californias 99%? Will Newsom be able to carry out Gov. Jerry Browns rational political and economic agendas while discarding his more irrational projects (for example, the bullet train circus)? Or will he cater to the elites of San Francisco while ignoring the problems that come with a steadily increasing population and our year-round fire season?

Is Republican candidate John Cox any better? Was Clinton any better? Voters of California, beware!

Lawrence Martin Kates, Los Angeles

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To the editor: Im not sure exactly what you intend to convey in your report on Newsoms decades-long ties to San Franciscos elite. Perhaps that Newsom appears to be the recipient of not-outlandish contributions by a host of good civic-minded San Francisco families?

These people, unlike the Koch brothers and other conservative donors, dont seem to be in it for the money. The contributions are really just chump change compared to what right-wing groups give.

The San Francisco folks have plenty, and theyre willing to spend it on a candidate who espouses liberal positions with which they  and I  largely agree. I would love to see a similar dissection of Coxs contributors.

Robert Helfman, Los Angeles

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To the editor: Your Sunday newspaper should go in a time capsule labeled, Financial life in 2018.

First, I read about poor people trying to dig their way out of poverty through education, but L.A. is so rough and so expensive they still have to share a room with their parents and siblings.

Then I read about Newsom and his rich friends, and I was appalled. These few rich donors can exert great influence on our government because they have lots of money to spread around.

Do so many people have to suffer and be at the bottom just so a few rich people can hang on to their superiority and power?

Cheryl Clark-OBrien, Long Beach

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To the editor: One letter writer doubts President Trump has committed any impeachable offenses and wonders what they could possibly be. A partial list:

Abuse of power: Trump has sought to use the Justice Department to punish his political foes and pressured the department to go easy on candidates he favors.

Obstruction of justice: He admitted that the Russia inquiry was on his mind when he fired FBI Director James Comey. He has dangled the possibility of pardons to squelch potential witness testimony and tampered with the jury in the Paul Manafort trial by speaking out.

Violated his oath of office: The Constitution requires presidents to see that the laws be faithfully executed. Trump has delighted in undermining not only immigration statutes but also Obamacare.

Impeachable offenses neednt rise to the level of federal crimes. It is necessary only to show that Trump used his office in ways that are inconsistent with his constitutional duties.

Brad Bonhall, Reno

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To the editor: One letter writer made a misleading statement about something President Obama said back in 2012. Her assertion was that that Obamas you didnt build that line implied that the efforts of American entrepreneurs were not important.

I watched that campaign speech, and the former president was at the site of a bridge built with tax dollars. He was clearly telling Americans that we needed public works to help businesses bring their products to the market. The line you didnt build that referred to the fact that we all, through our tax dollars, built the bridge.

Scott Hamre, Cherry Valley, Calif.

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Newsoms budget proposes $3 million for Alzheimers research, brain task force By Melody Gutierrez Amyloid plaques, shown here in human brains, are a hallmark of Alzheimers disease. (UCLA School of Medicine) Gov. Gavin Newsom will call for the creation of a brain health task force and dedicate $3 million annually from the states general fund to Alzheimers disease research in the budget proposal he will release Thursday, a source close to the administration said. The money for Alzheimers research would target the new grants at understanding why the disease is more prevalent in women and people of color. Former California first lady and Alzheimers activist Maria Shriver pushed for the funding to be included in the state budget. Shriver said in a statement Wednesday that the funding would make California the first state to make understanding our brains a priority. The states former first lady, whose late father Sargent Shriver was diagnosed with Alzheimers, founded the Womens Alzheimers Movement, an advocacy group raising awareness about womens increased risk for developing the disease. In 2011, she wrote a comprehensive assessment on the disease, to which Newsom  then mayor of San Francisco  contributed a portion called What one city is doing. This is personal to me, just like it is to millions of California families, Shriver said. Alzheimers is one of the largest medical, social and economic crises in our state, and of our time. I am so proud that, once again, California is leading the way. Wiping out Alzheimers is going to require bold thinking, and there is no doubt in my mind that California is home to bold thinkers who can make this happen. Facebook

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Gov. Gavin Newsom orders reinvention of troubled California DMV By Patrick McGreevy A line of people stretches around the South L.A. location of a California Department of Motor Vehicles Office on Aug. 7. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday ordered an overhaul of the California Department of Motor Vehicles, which has been plagued by hours-long wait times at field offices, computer crashes and voter registration errors involving tens of thousands of customers. Just a few days after taking office, Newsom appointed a top advisor to a new DMV Reinvention Strike Team to revamp the beleaguered agency over the next six months. By any metric, California DMV has been chronically mismanaged and failed in its fundamental mission to the state customers it serves and the state workers it employs, Newsom said in a statement, adding Its time for a reinvention. The governor appointed state Government Operations Agency Secretary Marybel Batjer to lead the strike team with a goal of modernizing the agency and enacting changes that improve customer satisfaction, employee performance and transparency. Newsom also ordered an accelerated review of initial findings of an ongoing audit ordered last year by Gov. Jerry Brown. The action was welcomed by lawmakers who have been critical of the DMV, including Assemblyman Vince Fong (R-Bakersfield). The egregious management failures of the DMV have been self-evident, which is why I have been calling for new leadership and a comprehensive independent audit of this troubled state agency over and over again as the problems grew significantly worse, Fong said. Last summer, Californians seeking new driver licenses complained of wait times of four to six hours at DMV offices, which the agency blamed partly on snafus caused by a rush of people trying to get Real IDs, a new identification card design required for airline passengers starting in late 2020. Delays were also blamed on computer crashes at DMV offices as the agency struggled to update its aging automation systems. The DMV also admitted that there were an estimated 23,000 errors as people either were unknowingly registered to vote or mistakes were made in their registration status as part of the states new motor voter program. The agency registered to vote as many as 1,500 people with legal U.S. residency but no citizenship. Last month, DMV Director Jean Shiomoto retired from the agency. Legislators were angered earlier this week when the DMV said it needed an additional $40 million to prevent the return of long lines at its field offices. In addition, the agency has been under fire for issuing driver licenses in the last year that do not comply with the federal Real ID standards requiring two forms of identification by applicants. Facebook

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California police unions are preparing to battle new transparency law in the courtroom By Maya Lau Just as a landmark police transparency law is going into effect, some California police agencies are shredding internal affairs documents and law enforcement unions are rushing to block the information from being released. The new law, which begins to unwind Californias strictest-in-the-nation protections over the secrecy of law enforcement records, opens to the public internal investigations of officer shootings and other major uses of force, along with confirmed cases of sexual assault and lying while on duty. But the lawsuits and records destruction, which began even before the law took effect Jan. 1, could tie up the release of information for months or years, and in some instances, prevent it from ever being disclosed. The fact that police unions are challenging this law is on some level not surprising, said Peter Bibring, director of police practices at the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, one of the principal supporters of the new law. They have a long history of fighting tooth and nail against transparency. Read More Facebook

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Secretary of State Alex Padilla begins second term with challenge to ensure every Californian is counted By Jazmine Ulloa Secretary of State Alex Padilla takes the oath of office as his family stands by his side on Monday in Sacramento. (Jazmine Ulloa / Los Angeles Times) Secretary of State Alex Padilla was sworn in for a second term on Monday, saying he would continue the battle to protect the right to vote at a time when voter suppression efforts, online disinformation campaigns and interference from foreign adversaries have polarized the public and threatened to undermine trust in U.S. elections. I am doubling down on our fight here in Sacramento and in Washington, D.C., to defend our democracy, he said. Working on the front lines with so many of you, I know that our collective resolve has never been stronger. But the loudest applause came when Padilla promised to fight back against the Trump administrations changes to the U.S. census, saying he will ensure every Californian gets counted. Padilla, a former state senator and Los Angeles City Council member from the San Fernando Valley, led the cause for a new motor voter registration law in 2015, and a new system for online business registrations. But the programs have had experienced problems: More than 23,000 Californians were registered to vote incorrectly by the state DMV, the agency reported last year. On Monday, Padilla said he would continue to push back against false claims of voter fraud in California and pointed to the states voter turnout as proof that his office was involving more people in the democratic process, a promise he made when he was first sworn in four years ago. More than 12.7 million voters cast ballots in the Nov. 6 midterm election, representing roughly 65% of the states registered voters, the highest number of any midterm election since 1982, according to state certified results. I made that promise based on a shared belief that we are a stronger democracy and a better California when we hear all voices from all corners of California, and when those voices are not just heard but counted, Padilla said. Facebook

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Ricardo Lara, Californias first statewide officeholder to come out as gay, sworn in as insurance commissioner Ricardo Lara on the floor of the state Senate in 2016. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) Ricardo Lara took the oath of office as California insurance commissioner on Monday, pledging action to boost healthcare coverage and combat climate change. Lara, a Democrat from Bell Gardens, is the first elected statewide officeholder in California who has come out as gay. He began his speech in downtown Sacramento by thanking LGBTQ leaders who came before him and celebrated the occasion. Today, because of you, weve shattered the pink ceiling, Lara said. In his inaugural speech, Lara announced the creation of an executive position in his office to address climate change. There is no other industry that has the necessary expertise to ensure that California is prepared to mitigate and reduce risk to our communities and our environment, Lara said. Our planet cant wait. Im ready, and I hope you are too. Lara served as a state legislator and in 2017 introduced a bill to create a single-payer healthcare system in the state. He promised to work with new Gov. Gavin Newsom to expand coverage across California. Lara was sworn in by retired U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker, who declared unconstitutional Californias Proposition 8 gay marriage ban. State Sen. President Pro Tem Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) was on hand for the ceremony along with multiple other state lawmakers. Facebook

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New California Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis says she will help expand access to universities in the state New Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, center, is shown in June talking with attendees at the Power to the Polls rally in Sacramento. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) More Californians should be given access to public universities, Eleni Kounalakis said as she took the oath of office Monday to become the states first woman elected lieutenant governor. Kounalakis was given the oath of office by Gov. Gavin Newsom, her predecessor in the job, who pledged they would work together. As lieutenant governor, Kounalakis serves on the University of California Board of Regents and the California State University Board of Trustees, she noted in a speech at her swearing-in ceremony at the main Sacramento Library. In that role, she said, she will be committed to expanding access to affordable public higher education here in our state. Its wise, its smart and it is the best way to address our rapidly changing digital economy. Kounalakis is former president of a development company founded by her father, Angelo Tsakopoulos, and served during the Obama administration as the U.S. ambassador to Hungary. In November, she won her first run for statewide office. Also attending the ceremony were House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Facebook

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California meets Dutch Newsom, who steals the show at his fathers inauguration By Taryn Luna Gov. Gavin Newsom gives his inaugural address while holding his youngest son, Dutch. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) In the California political world, all eyes were on Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday until his 2-year-old son stole the show. Dutch, the youngest of four children in the Newsom brood, climbed onstage in the middle of his fathers inaugural address in a tent outside the Capitol on Monday. The unplanned moment saw the 51-year-old governors big day interrupted by the toddler, bringing levity to the ceremony. Newsom was recounting Gov. Jerry Browns last inaugural speech and reference to the Sermon on the Mount, a biblical story about two men who built separate homes on sand and rock, when Dutch approached his father, a pacifier in his mouth and blanket in hand. Now more than ever we Californians know how much a house matters and children matter, Newsom said, improvising as he scooped the boy into his arms. The governor kissed Dutch on the cheek and held him for several minutes as he continued with the speech. This is exactly how it was scripted, Newsom joked. Newsom eventually put his child down and Dutch walked to the edge of the stage before retreating behind the podium to hide from his mother, First Lady Jennifer Siebel Newsom. The crowd roared. Siebel Newsom was able to briefly divert her son only for him to return to the stage minutes later. She grabbed him again and this time, the crying toddler did not reemerge. When fires strikes, when kids cry and the earth shakes, well be there for each other, Newsom said. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who said the moment humanized Newsom, threw cold water on any theories that Dutchs cameo was planned. No, I know it was not, Garcetti said with a laugh after Newsoms speech concluded. I could see that look of absolute abject terror [on Newsoms face]. Weve all been there. Kids always think its about themselves and theyve proved it. California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) agreed. I worked in early childhood education for 20 years and theres no way you can ever get a child to do anything when you want them to do it, Rendon said. Facebook

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Fiona Ma takes oath as Californias new treasurer By Liam Dillon State Treasurer Fiona Ma. Fiona Ma took the oath of office in Sacramento on Monday as the states 34th treasurer, promising to boost Californias economy. Ma previously served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, in the state Assembly and on the California Board of Equalization. I want to thank everyone for entrusting me with this important job. I understand my role here as your state treasurer is to build that financial wall around California so that we will remain the fifth-largest economy, Ma said in brief remarks. That is my promise to you. California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye administered the oath to Ma. Following the ceremony, Ma held an ice cream social for guests. On Wednesday, she will host a public event in San Francisco to celebrate her swearing-in. State Treasurer Fiona Ma takes the oath of office. (Liam Dillon / Los Angeles Times) Facebook

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Expectations are high for newly sworn-in state schools chief Tony Thurmond Tony Thurmond shakes hands with retired Alameda County Superior Court Judge Gordon Baranco after taking the oath of office. (Melody Gutierrez / Los Angeles Times) Tony Thurmond took the oath of office as Californias state superintendent of public schools on Monday, promising a labor-friendly agenda before the teachers, students and Democratic officials who filled an auditorium at McClatchy High School in Sacramento to watch him being sworn in. We cant close the achievement gap without a great teacher at the head of every class, Thurmond said Monday to applause. We have to make sure we provide quality compensation and support to our teachers and our classified staff and all the educators who support our kids. Thurmond, a Bay Area Democrat who served in the state Assembly, won a hotly contested and expensive race with the help of labor leaders against charter school executive Marshall Tuck. The race took several days to sort out after Tuck held an initial lead in early returns on election night before falling behind thereafter. Thurmond was sworn in Monday by retired Alameda County Superior Court Judge Gordon Baranco. He was joined on stage by labor rights leader Dolores Huerta and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount). Thurmonds former colleagues in the state Assembly took turns praising him and promising to be an ally in improving schools. Many said they expected Thurmond would be a strong leader focused on improving student outcomes. We know we are going to work hard to give you the money you need and the budget you need to fully fund education and our schools so we can put our money where our mouth is and make sure our children have everything they need, Assemblywoman Connie Leyva (D-Chino Hills) said. As state superintendent, Thurmond will oversee the education of 6.2 million students at 10,000 schools. Thurmond was a member of the West Contra Costa County School Board and a Richmond city councilman before he was elected to the state Assembly. Tony is the right man at the right time to fight the federal, Donald Trump, Betsy DeVos anti-child, anti-education, anti-civil and -human rights agenda, U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) said. Tony is going to do that for us. Facebook

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State Controller Betty Yee takes oath of office with call for more affordable housing and healthcare State Controller Betty Yee California Controller Betty Yee took the oath of office Monday for a second term, saying she still has work to do addressing problems that include a lack of affordability in housing, healthcare and higher education. A San Francisco native, Yee is the chief financial officer of California  the fifth-largest economy in the world  having first won election to the post in 2014 before winning reelection in November. No region is spared from the widening inequality and increased poverty that plague our state, fueled by the lack of affordable, stable housing, the cost of healthcare and transportation, limited educational opportunities, student loan debt, displacement caused by disasters and more, she said. Yee was administered the oath of office by California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento before an overflow crowd that included state Senate leader Toni Atkins (D-San Diego), state Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra and San Francisco Mayor London Breed. As a public official it is about governance that delivers results and stays accountable while upholding the underlying value of dignity for all, Yee said. Facebook

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California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra begins new term promising to fight Trump policies California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra ( (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)) California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra on Monday took the oath of office for a new term, saying he would continue his role as a leading challenger to Trump administration actions that he believes are counter to the states interests. Becerra, a former 12-term congressman, has become a national opposition figure to Trump, having sued the federal government 45 times since he was appointed as the states first Latino attorney general in 2017. Weve been a little busy stopping the dysfunction and insanity in Washington, D.C., from infecting California, Becerra told an audience during a swearing-in ceremony at the California Museum in Sacramento. Whether its the criminals on our streets or the conman in the boardrooms or highest office of the land, Becerra said, the California Department of Justice, well, weve got your back. Becerra won his first statewide election as the states top cop in November, two years after he filled the post vacated when predecessor Kamala Harris was elected to the U.S. Senate. He has peppered the Trump administration with lawsuits challenging federal policies on healthcare, the U.S. census, the environment and immigration. Our state builds dreams, not walls, he said in a direct criticism of Trumps proposal to build a wall at the U.S.-Mexico border. Just last week, Becerra led a coalition of 17 Democratic attorneys general in announcing an appeal of a federal judge in Texas that ruled the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional. The ACA has been the law for nearly a decade and is the backbone of our healthcare system, Becerra said last week. This case impacts nearly every American  workers covered by employers, families, women, children, young adults and seniors  so we will lead the ACAs defense as long and far as it takes. Facebook

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California Democratic Party Vice Chairman Daraka Larimore-Hall announces bid to lead group By Christine Mai-Duc Daraka Larimore-Hall. (Dominic Parisi / Courtesy of Daraka Larimore-Hall) Daraka Larimore-Hall, a top official at the California Democratic Party, said Monday hes running to replace former chairman Eric Bauman, who resigned abruptly in November after being confronted with allegations of sexual misconduct. Larimore-Hall, a longtime state party activist and former chairman of the Democratic Party of Santa Barbara County, was one of the party leaders who urged Bauman to resign following the allegations. In an email to supporters announcing his bid, he urged both structural and cultural change at every level of our Party. He also repeated his call for a top-to-bottom investigation of the allegations, the party and its culture. In a Times investigation, 10 party activists and staff members said Bauman made crude sexual comments and engaged in unwanted touching and physical intimidation in professional settings. In order to be where we need to be for 2020, we have to confront the culture of abuse and fear that allowed someone to behave in such a vile way for so long, Larimore-Hall said in an interview. We cant brush it aside or think that our activists or our candidates or our donors are going to forget about this overnight. Larimore-Hall said his first priority would be to fully investigate the allegations and restore rank-and-file confidence in the partys leadership. The second would be to refocus the party on political priorities as the 2020 presidential election nears. The Bauman episode, Larimore-Hall said, threatens to derail the Democrats plans to help defeat President Trump and keep the seven congressional seats gained in the midterm elections. Its definitely a crisis, Larimore-Hall said. But the component parts  the energy, the enthusiasm, the volunteers, the infrastructure  its still there. We just need to direct it toward something. Larimore-Hall was elected vice chairman of the state party in February following Baumans razor-thin victory over Bay Area activist Kimberly Ellis. Ellis has announced another bid for the chairmanship and former state Senate leader Kevin de Leon is also mulling a run. The vote will take place at the partys May convention in San Francisco. Facebook

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Newsom will vow to seize this moment, and swipe at Trump in Monday inaugural address By Melanie Mason Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom and his family attend an Inauguration Family Event at the California Railroad Museum in Sacramento on Jan. 6. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) Building on the theme of California exceptionalism that defined his campaign, Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom will depict the state as a guardian of progressive values and a counterweight to President Trump in his inaugural address Monday, according to excerpts of his prepared remarks. What we do today is even more consequential, because of whats happening in our country, read the excerpts obtained by The Times. Peoples lives, freedom, security, the water we drink, the air we breathe  they all hang in the balance. The country is watching us. The world is waiting on us. The future depends on us. And we will seize this moment. The speech casts Californias political stakes in a decidedly national scope, promising an agenda that will unify and be an example to the rest of the country. It contrasts the governing goals of Newsom, a Democrat, with that of Trump, the incoming governors perennial foil. We will offer an alternative to the corruption and incompetence in the White House, the excerpts say. Our government will be progressive, principled, and always on the side of the people. Newsom campaigned on an ambitious and wide-ranging platform, promising sweeping solutions on housing, healthcare, education and other issues that rank among Californians top concerns. In the weeks after his election, he struck a more muted tone, taking pains to emphasize his fiscal caution and need for patience in achieving those goals. The inaugural excerpts indicate a return to lofty pledges. While Newsom will vow to prepare for uncertain times ahead by building budgetary reserves and paying down debt, the prepared remarks quickly turn to a vow to be bold. Newsom has already floated several proposals for his first budget that carry significant price tags, including a nearly $2-billion plan to boost early childhood development for low-income families and a dramatic expansion of paid family leave from six weeks to six months. When asked for a preview of his inauguration speech during a news conference Sunday evening, Newsom predicted pundits would criticize his address as short on specifics. Well, of course, Im at an inaugural, Newsom said. But Ill be very detailed in the budget, a few days later. And then we will architect, in much more nuance and detail, in state of the state. I really see this as three opportunities  to communicate over the next few weeks our agenda, our vision for the state. Times staff writer Taryn Luna contributed to this report. Read More Facebook

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Newsom-hosted benefit concert raises nearly $5 million for wildfire victims By Taryn Luna Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom speaks at a concert to benefit wildfire victims at the Golden 1 Arena in Sacramento on Jan. 6. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) On the eve of the gubernatorial inauguration, Californias political class rubbed elbows in Sacramento for a benefit concert hosted by Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom and headlined by the rapper Pitbull. Newsom told the crowd gathered at the Golden 1 Center on Sunday evening that the fundraiser brought in nearly $5 million for the California Wildfire Foundation, a 501(c)(3) that supports the families of fallen firefighters and communities affected by wildfires. You know, a lot of folks feel anxious about not just politics, but government, Newsom said on stage before introducing the rapper and activist Common. But those firefighters, they are the antidote to the fear and cynicism; they are the manifestation of why government matters and why you should care. Top sponsors, including Salesforce, Kaiser Permanente and other interest groups, paid up to $1 million each to support the cause and curry favor with the new administration. Nathan Click, a spokesman for Newsom, said organizers sold more than 7,000 tickets. Several state lawmakers attended the concert alongside Capitol staff, lobbyists and business types, who mingled on the floor of the arena and offstage in private VIP areas. The rock band X Ambassadors and a duo called the Cold Weather Sons from the town of Paradise, which was destroyed by fire in November, were among several performers who entertained the crowd during the four-hour event. The California Rises concert is the final in a series of festivities held Sunday to celebrate the inauguration of Californias 40th governor. Earlier in the day, Newsom attended a private brunch at Sacramentos Crocker Art Museum and his inaugural committee hosted a free party for families at the California State Railroad Museum at the Old Sacramento Waterfront. Newsoms inauguration is set to begin at 11 a.m. Monday on the steps of the Capitol. Facebook

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Inauguration fever hits Sacramento as Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom prepares to take office By Phil Willon Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom holds his son, Dutch, as he and his family attend an inaugural event at the at the state Railroad Museum Sunday. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) Incoming Gov. Gavin Newsom doesnt officially take the oath of office until Monday, but the parties celebrating his inauguration were in full swing all day Sunday. Newsom and his family were mobbed by well-wishers at the California State Railroad Museum at the Old Sacramento Waterfront in the afternoon, where his inaugural committee hosted a free party for families. He just has charisma. Hes able to really connect with people, said Rosielyn Pulmano, an attorney from Elk Grove who came to see Newsom with her husband, two sons and her niece. I think he cares about working Californians and a lot of their issues. Newsom arrived with his wife, documentary filmmaker Jennifer Siebel Newsom, and their four young children, and the governor-elect spent a good deal of his time wading through crowds, taking selfies with supporters and signing autographs as music boomed in the background. As the family toured the inside of the museums locomotives and the bevy of exhibits, Newsoms two-year-old son, Dutch, was wide-eyed, impressed by all the train cars and seemingly a little overwhelmed by the crowd. Newsom said that for his son, all that was missing from the museum was Thomas the Train, popular fictional locomotive in childrens books and cartoons . If theres one thing I can contribute to Sacramento maybe its getting a Thomas the Train exhibit for the two years olds, Newsom joked when talking with reporters afterward. Newsom said he wanted to include such an event in his inaugural festivities to highlight families and children, whose wellbeing will be among the top priorities of his administration. Youll see that not only as a preamble to the inaugural and the budget that well be submitting next week, but I think itll be a big part of the administration, Newsom said. The museum event followed a private, high-dollar brunch at Sacramentos Crocker Art Museum. A steady rain failed to dissuade as many as 200 guests who sipped wine and dined on chicken and salmon while waiting for a photo with Californias new first couple. Seen at the event were representatives of some of the states most powerful political interests, among them organized labor, healthcare companies and tribal gaming interests. A few other high-profile guests attended, too, including Larry Baer, CEO of the San Francisco Giants, and Erika Jayne, a singer and cast member of the reality TV show The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Im excited to see someone like Gavin  young, vibrant  taking over the state and leading us into the future, Jayne said after attending the brunch with her husband, attorney Tom Girardi. Hes got a lot of great plans. Attendees said the event, which was closed to reporters and held under a tent in the museums outdoor atrium, did not include prepared remarks by Newsom. Among those seen leaving the event were representatives of AT&T, the California Medical Assn., Uber, Kaiser Permanente and the State Building and Construction Trades Council. A fundraising invitation obtained by The Times offered bundled tickets to all of the inauguration events, including those on Sunday and the Monday ceremony, ranging in price from $25,000 to $200,000. The money will be collected by a committee specifically organized to pay for Newsoms inaugural weekend. Sundays festivities are scheduled to end with a benefit concert headlined by Pitbull at the Golden 1 Center, home of the NBAs Sacramento Kings, to raise money for the victims of Californias recent deadly wildfires. Among the attendees at @GavinNewsoms pre-inaugural leadership brunch: Real Housewife of

Bev Hills @erikajayne. Im excited to see someone like Gavinyoung, vibranttaking over the state and leading us into the future. Hes got a lot of great plans. pic.twitter.com/561NHiy2XQ  Melanie Mason (@melmason) January 6, 2019 Facebook

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As Newsom inaugural events begin, he unveils more state budget promises on education and paid family leave Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom, seen here last April, will propose new state budget efforts on paid family leave and education subsidies. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) Californias incoming governor, who must send his first state budget plan to the Legislature this week, has already signaled a significant new focus on programs to help families and children from infancy to college. Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom campaigned on a platform that included a number of child-focused efforts specifically aimed at helping lower-income families. The price tag for the initial efforts is expected to approach $2 billion  a cost paid out of an unrestricted tax revenue windfall that could be one of the largest in state history. Newsom may also seek help for families through new subsidies paid by California employers. The governor-elect is expected to propose a dramatic expansion of paid parental leave  from six weeks to six months  according to an internal document provided by a source close to the Newsom transition team, first reported on Sunday by the New York Times. The document doesnt offer a full explanation for how the program will be funded, saying instead that the budget will set a goal of ensuring that all newborns and newly adopted babies can be cared for by a parent or a close family member for the first six months. Employers across the state are currently assessed a payroll tax that helps offer a subsidy to parents who temporarily leave their job to care for a newborn. Newsoms plan, according to the document, would pay for some of the new costs by shrinking the mandated cash reserve of the state fund that administers the program, allowing more of the money to be paid in benefits. The increase in paid leave would not all happen at once but instead be phased in over a multi-year period. A task force to help implement the expanded care plan is also envisioned, according to the document. It would determine whether two parents could split the six months of paid leave and whether an extended family member could be enlisted to help care for the child of a single parent over the six-month period. The incoming administrations focus on young children will also include $1.8 billion in new spending on early childhood education programs, with a particular focus on training childcare workers and pushing for more California schools to offer full-day kindergarten. Those costs, according to an overview memo obtained by the Los Angeles Times, are considered to be a one-time expense while leaving the long-term costs of the effort to be determined later. More community college students would get free tuition under a third initiative expected in the new governors budget plan. Newsom will propose spending $40 million to offer a second year of tuition-free college to California students, according to an outline provided by a transition official, first reported by Politico. Students are already eligible for a single year of paid tuition under a plan agreed to by Gov. Jerry Brown and lawmakers in 2017. The incoming governor embraced the idea of free community college during the 2018 campaign as part of a broader focus on additional investments in higher education. Education is an economic development strategy, Newsom said at a higher education forum last spring. We need to significantly increase the investment from the general fund of this state on higher education. Theres no greater higher return on investment. Whether the proposal would be targeted to students based on a familys financial need is unclear. Many low-income students are already eligible for fee waivers at community colleges. The new governor must submit his full state budget plan to lawmakers no later than Thursday. Facebook

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Gavin Newsom and his family decide Sacramento is the place to be The Old Governors Mansion State Historic Park in Sacramento. Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom will move his family into the mansion. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom and his family will give up the Marin County life and move to the Victorian-style governors mansion in Sacramento after he takes the oath of office Monday. Newsom and his wife, documentary filmmaker Jennifer Siebel Newsom, had debated whether or when to relocate to the state capital since his election in November. The couple have four young children and expressed reservations about moving in the middle of a school year. To best serve the people of California while also maximizing family time together, the Newsoms have therefore decided to move to Sacramento, said Newsoms spokesman, Nathan Click. On Monday, they will move into the Governors Mansion  along with their four children, their two family dogs, and their family bunny rabbit  and reside there for the immediate future. The Newsoms currently live in Marin County. Gov. Jerry Brown and his wife, Ann Gust Brown, moved into the grand house in 2015 after it underwent $4.1 million in renovations to update electrical and plumbing systems, as well as to remove lead-based paint and install a fire sprinkler system and other security features. The mansion was built in 1877 and has been home to 14 governors, but before Brown it had not housed a California governor for nearly half a century. The state bought the mansion from a wealthy Sacramento hardware merchant, Albert Gallatin, in 1903 for $32,500. It was one of the few California homes at that time to have indoor plumbing. Facebook

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Newsom announces top labor, business liaisons as he prepares to take office Julie Su will be secretary of the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency for Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom. (Katie Falkenberg / Los Angeles Times) Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom on Friday named two advisors on issues related to the California economy, each recognized for their expertise on business and labor. The incoming governor will appoint Julie Su as secretary of the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency and Lenny Mendonca as chief economic and business advisor and director of the Governors Office of Business and Economic Development. Su, 49, has served as state labor commissioner under Gov. Jerry Brown since 2011 and has led an office tasked with the enforcement of Californias labor laws. She won a MacArthur Foundation genius grant in 2001 and previously worked as a civil rights attorney representing low-wage workers. In her new position, Su will be tasked with coordinating the work of several workforce departments in state government, including those that administer unemployment benefits and oversee the relationship between agriculture workers and employers. Mendonca, 57, has been a longtime advocate for rethinking government operations as co-chairman of the nonprofit organization California Forward. Previously, he was partner at McKinsey & Co., a global management consulting firm. While he will be a key advisor to Newsom on the states economy, Mendonca will also lead the office often referred to as Go-Biz, designated as a high-level way to encourage job growth and economic development. In his new role, Mendonca will help ensure that California is rolling out the welcome mat to current and future California businesses and growing a sustainable economy for every Californian, said a statement from the Newsom transition team. Newsom will take the oath of office as governor Monday. He has previously selected key advisors on the state budget, legislative affairs and the executive branchs wide array of agencies and departments. Facebook

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Joshua Groban, aide to Gov. Jerry Brown, sworn in to California Supreme Court By Taryn Luna California Supreme Court Justice Joshua Groban gives remarks after he is sworn into the court by Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday. (Taryn Luna) California Supreme Court Justice Joshua Groban, a lawyer and longtime aide to Gov. Jerry Brown, was sworn into the states highest court Thursday in Sacramento. The ceremony marked Browns fourth appointment to the state Supreme Court and gave the seven-member bench a Democratic majority. We live in a highly chaotic, ever-changing and ever-confusing world, Groban said in prepared remarks at the Stanley Mosk Library and Courts Building. But Im happy to report that Im joining an institution whose fundamental purpose, at core, is to provide stability and consistency amidst this chaotic place we live. I look forward to doing that with a sense of reflection, respect, fidelity to the law and compassion. None of Browns appointees, Groban included, have judicial experience. Groban served as legal counsel to Browns 2010 gubernatorial campaign and joined the administration as a senior advisor to the governor, overseeing the appointments of some 600 judges over the last eight years. Prior to working with Brown, Groban, 45, practiced law for more than a decade. In perhaps his final public appearance before his successor, Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom, takes office next week, Brown pushed back on notions that he stacked the court. I dont want this to be known as a Brown court, the governor said before administering the judicial oath of office. First of all, the so-called Brown appointments do not agree with themselves and nor should they. They are individuals. They will differ. Its not anybodys court. The governor called the court a high calling and said Groban possesses the values for the job. Probably, next to my wife, Ive talked to no person as much as Ive talked to Josh Groban, Brown said. I think youve talked to him more, Californias First Lady Anne Gust Brown interjected. I cant tell you what the hell hes going to do, Brown later quipped. I warned him, dont screw up, at least not at first. Facebook

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California campaign watchdog agency seeks law barring use of campaign funds to fight harassment claims Former state Sen. Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia). ( (Steve Yeater / Associated Press)) Elected officials accused of harassment or discrimination would be barred from using political contributions to cover their legal defense costs under legislation proposed by Californias campaign watchdog agency. The state Fair Political Practices Commission has agreed to pursue a law change to clear up confusion after an attorney for one former state lawmaker argued political funds could be used in such legal defenses. Commission Chairwoman Alice Germond said putting a prohibition into the law would provide some much needed clarity. As chair, I would like to show the public their lawmakers are held to a standard that is above reproach, Germond said in a statement. People dont give money to campaigns for lawmakers to use it to defend their own bad behavior, so lawmakers shouldnt be able to use it in that manner. The issue came up a year ago when an attorney for former Sen. Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia) sought a formal opinion from the FPPC after the Senate launched an investigation that later concluded Mendoza likely engaged in a pattern of harassment against female aides. Mendoza resigned in February under threat of expulsion by the Senate. In a Jan. 10, 2018, letter, Cassandra Ferrannini, an attorney for Mendoza, wrote to the FPPC that she believed Mendoza should be allowed to establish a legal defense fund able to defray his legal expenses in defending himself against the allegations. The use of campaign funds for attorneys fees under these circumstances would fall squarely within the scope of legislative matters, since it involves the alleged conduct of a legislator with regard to legislative staff that he supervised, Ferrannini wrote. The commission staff originally issued an advice letter that said Mendoza may use campaign and legal defense funds to defend himself from claims of sexual harassment that arose directly out of his activities or status as a candidate or elected officer. But the panel later rescinded the letter after some members questioned using campaign funds to fight sexual harassment claims. That left uncertainty about what was allowed, which Germond said could be cleared up by a new law. The FPPC is still looking for a legislator to carry the bill, a spokesman said. Facebook

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Californias landmark police transparency law takes effect after court denies police union effort to block it California Supreme Court building (Eric Risberg / Associated Press) A new state law allowing the public disclosure of internal police shooting investigations has gone into effect after the California Supreme Court on Wednesday denied a bid by a police union to block it. The law opens to the public for the first time internal investigations of officer shootings and other major uses of force, along with confirmed cases of sexual assault and lying while on duty. The San Bernardino County Sheriffs Employees Benefit Assn. challenged the law last month, asking state Supreme Court justices to decide that the law only apply to incidents that occur in 2019 or later. The court rejected that request Wednesday, allowing members of the public to seek all applicable records held by police departments. Union president Grant Ward said in a statement that his organization was disappointed with the decision and is now seeking other legal options. We feel this is a statewide issue and should be considered accordingly, Ward said. Last month, the city of Inglewood authorized the destruction of more than 100 police shooting investigations and other records in advance of Jan. 1, when the disclosure law was scheduled to take effect. California law requires police departments to keep such records for five years, and Inglewood City Council voted to destroy records older than that. Mayor James T. Butts has said the decision had nothing to do with the new law. In Los Angeles, Police Chief Michel Moore has said that complying with the new disclosure rules could take hundreds of thousands of hours of work. State Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley), the author of the transparency law, has said she has no immediate plans to propose changes to it. Facebook

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Few complaints of racial profiling are sustained by police agencies in California, state panel finds CHP Officer J. Nelson stands outside the office of Gov. Jerry Brown as activists in 2015 support requiring the tracking of police stops. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Law enforcement agencies in California sustain few citizen complaints of racial or identity profiling, according to a report Wednesday by a state panel set up to help reduce bias in policing. The states Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board recommended in its annual report that law enforcement agencies improve training and adopt clear guidelines for tracking and reporting data on who is stopped by officers. The panel said that 453 law enforcement agencies in the state received 9,459 civilian complaints in 2017, including 865 complaints alleging racial or identity profiling. Of the racial and identity complaints that reached a disposition that year, 1.5% were sustained, 14.6% resulted in officers being exonerated and 83.9% of complaints were not sustained or were determined to be unfounded, the report said. A clearer picture of the issue is expected from a 2015 law that requires police agencies to report demographic data on all detentions and searches. The first reports by the eight largest agencies, including the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department, are due to be submitted in April. California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra, whose office oversees the board, said tracking of all detentions and searches will be helpful to understand the scope of the issue. The Boards recommendations will help make our law enforcement agencies more transparent and promote critical steps to enhance, and in some cases, repair the public trust, Becerra said in a statement Wednesday. Facebook

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California housing crisis podcast: What Minneapolis decision to end single-family zoning might mean for California A view of downtown Minneapolis in 2014 (Stephen Maturen / Getty Images) Theres a national movement brewing to roll back zoning rules in cities that only allow one house on a plot of land. The epicenter of that movement is Minneapolis, which passed a plan last month to eliminate single-family zoning citywide and let landowners build duplexes and triplexes on residential property. On this episode of Gimme Shelter: The California Housing Crisis Podcast, we talk about the reasons why Minneapolis leaders took this action, including their desire to combat a history of racial exclusion and spur more housing density to fight climate change. We also debate how Minneapolis decision might affect housing politics in California. Our guest is Minneapolis City Council President Lisa Bender, who helped shepherd the new zoning rules to passage and a former San Francisco city planner. The episode also crowns 2018s Avocado of the Year  the most ridiculous story exemplifying Californias housing woes  and includes our predictions for the most under-the-radar important themes in housing politics in 2019. Gimme Shelter, a biweekly podcast that looks at why its so expensive to live in California and what the state can do about it, features Liam Dillon, who covers housing affordability issues for the Los Angeles Times Sacramento bureau, and Matt Levin, data and housing reporter for CALmatters. You can subscribe to Gimme Shelter on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud, Google Play and Overcast. Facebook

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How young immigrant Dreamers made flipping control of the House a personal quest By Jazmine Ulloa Gabriela Cruz, who was brought to the U.S. illegally when she was 1, couldnt vote, but in the final hours before the Nov. 6 election, she was making one last run to get people to the polls. The sun was setting in Modesto when she found Ronald Silva, 41, smoking a cigarette on a tattered old couch behind a group home. He politely tried to wave her off until she reminded him he had a right that she as an immigrant without citizenship didnt have. It could really make a change for us, said Cruz, 29. Read More Facebook

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Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom will propose almost $2 billion for early childhood programs (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) Seeking to frame his new administration as one with a firm focus on closing the gap between children from affluent and poor families, Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom will propose spending some $1.8 billion on an array of programs designed to boost Californias enrollment in early education and child-care programs. Newsoms plan, which he hinted at in a Fresno event last month, will be a key element in the state budget proposal he will submit to the Legislature shortly after taking office Monday, a source close to the governor-elects transition team said. The spending would boost programs designed to ensure children enter kindergarten prepared to learn, closing what some researchers have called the readiness gap that exists based on a familys income. It would also phase in an expansion of prekindergarten and offer money to help school districts that dont have facilities for full-day kindergarten. The fact that hes making significant investments with his opening budget is really exciting, Ted Lempert, president of the Bay Area-based nonprofit Children Now, said Tuesday. Whats exciting is the comprehensiveness of it, because its saying were going to focus on prenatal through age 5. A broad overview document reviewed by The Times on Tuesday shows that most of the outlay under the plan  $1.5 billion  would be a one-time expense in the budget year that begins July 1. Those dollars would be a single infusion of cash, an approach favored by Gov. Jerry Brown in recent years. Most of the money would be spent on efforts to expand child-care services and kindergarten classes. By law, a governor must submit a full budget to the Legislature no later than Jan. 10. Lawmakers will spend the winter and spring reviewing the proposal and must send a final budget plan to Newsom by June 15. Though legislative Democrats have pushed for additional early childhood funding in recent years  a key demand of the Legislative Womens Caucus  those actions have typically come late in the budget-writing season in Sacramento. Quite frankly, to start out with a January proposal that includes that investment in Californias children reflects a new day, state Sen. Holly J. Mitchell (D-Los Angeles) said. The governor-elect will propose a $750-million boost to kindergarten funding, aimed at expanding facilities to allow full-day programs. A number of school districts offer only partial-day programs, leaving many low-income families to skip enrolling their children because kindergarten classes end in the middle of the workday. Because the money would not count toward meeting Californias three-decades-old education spending guarantee under Proposition 98, which sets a minimum annual funding level for K-12 schools and community colleges, it will not reduce planned spending on other education services. Close behind in total cost is a budget proposal by Newsom to help train child-care workers and expand local facilities already subsidized by the state, as well as those serving parents who attend state colleges and universities. Together, those efforts could cost $747 million, according to the budget overview document. An expansion of prekindergarten programs would be phased in over three years at a cost of $125 million in the first year. The multiyear rollout would, according to the budget overview, ensure the system can plan for the increase in capacity. Lempert said the Newsom proposal is notable for trying to avoid the kinds of battles that in recent years pitted prekindergarten and expanded child care against each other for additional taxpayer dollars. The reality is we need to expand both simultaneously, he said. Another $200 million of the proposal would be earmarked for programs that provide home visits to expectant parents from limited-income families and programs that provide healthcare screenings for young children. Some of the money would come from the states Medi-Cal program, and other money from federal matching dollars. Funding for the home visits program was provided in the budget Brown signed last summer; the Newsom effort would build on that. Emphasizing a policy area with broad appeal in his first state budget could reflect Newsoms political sensibility about the challenges ahead. Democratic lawmakers and interest groups will be especially eager to see how Newsom addresses the demand for an overhaul of healthcare coverage in California  especially after a 2017 effort to create a single-payer, universal system fizzled. The path forward on healthcare is complex and costly, making early childhood education a more achievable goal in the governor-elects early tenure. Newsom is likely to face considerable demands for other additional spending. In November, the Legislatures independent analysts projected that continued strength in tax revenues could produce a cash reserve of some $29 billion over the next 18 months. Almost $15 billion of that could be in unrestricted reserves, the kind that can be spent on any number of government programs. Kim Belshe, executive director of the child advocacy organization First 5 LA and a former state health and human services secretary, said the initial Newsom budget proposal suggests the next governor will focus on a comprehensive approach to improving outcomes for children from low-income families. School-ready kids deserve quality early learning, strong and well-supported families, and access to early screening services, Belshe said. Newsom understands the whole child, multifaceted needs of our kids and is clearly ready to lead. Mitchell, the chair of the Senate budget committee, said shes eager to see the details of the governor-elects proposal to determine whether it might signal the beginning of an even broader expansion of early education efforts. Similar efforts have been hindered by a lack of money and ongoing debate over which services to help children 5 and younger need state funding the most. Universal preschool, in particular, has been debated for more than a decade. California voters rejected a ballot measure to fund a full prekindergarten system in 2006. Its clear theres a new movement afoot trying to engage on investment for universal preschool, Mitchell said. How we invest, and how we prioritize that investment, is going to be a great conversation for the coming months. Facebook

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California Politics Podcast: A final conversation with Gov. Jerry Brown No Californian has served longer as governor, signed more laws, granted clemency to more felons or waged more high-profile campaigns than Gov. Jerry Brown. Brown will leave behind a unique legacy when he packs his last belongings for the trip from the governors mansion in Sacramento to his Northern California ranch. His final two terms in office could be his most consequential. The governor reviewed some of the more notable moments from the past eight years in a far-reaching interview with The Times on Dec. 22. This weeks podcast episode includes extended portions of that conversation. Facebook

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A sagging economy could doom a 2020 ballot measure to raise commercial property taxes, Gov. Jerry Brown says Gov. Jerry Brown, at his Colusa County home on Saturday, said a ballot measure to raise commercial property taxes could struggle in 2020. (Randall Benton/For The Times) An effort to remove commercial property in California from the tax limits imposed by the landmark Proposition 13 could be felled by an economic slowdown, Gov. Jerry Brown said. In a Saturday interview with The Times at his Northern California ranch, Brown said liberal activist groups that have successfully placed the proposal on the November 2020 statewide ballot shouldnt read too much into early poll numbers showing support for the plan. That isnt as easy as you think, Brown said. Because youre going to be in a downturn of the business cycle. And youre talking many kinds of business. And the cost of doing business in California is already high. The ballot measure would allow counties to more frequently assess the market value of commercial property in California than allowed under Proposition 13, a 1978 ballot initiative that amended the state constitution to place strict limits on assessing property values and taxation for both homeowners and businesses. An analysis of the new measure, which qualified in October for the 2020 ballot, estimates it could bring in some $10.5 billion a year in new tax revenue. The business community will fight it, Brown said. And the minimum wage, the family leave, the environmental rules  business[es] have left California, thats going to be the big argument. And I think thats something you really have to think a lot about. The governor, who leaves office early next month due to term limits, declined to either endorse or oppose the ballot measure. He said Californias economic health in two years time could be a key factor in how voters weigh the proposal. Well be in a recession by then, Brown said. So its anybodys guess. Facebook

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Inglewood to destroy more than 100 police shooting records that could otherwise become public under new California law By Jack Dolan Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts (Maria Alejandra Cardona / Los Angeles Times) The city of Inglewood has authorized the shredding of more than 100 police shooting and other internal investigation records weeks before a new state law could allow the public to access them for the first time. The decision, made at a City Council meeting earlier this month, has troubled civil liberties advocates who were behind the state legislation, Senate Bill 1421, which takes effect Jan. 1. The law opens to the public internal investigations of officer shootings and other major uses of force, along with confirmed cases of sexual assault and lying while on duty. The legislature passed SB 1421 because communities demanded an end to the secrecy cloaking police misconduct and use of force, Marcus Benigno, a spokesman for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, said in a statement. Inglewood PDs decision to purge records undermines police accountability and transparency against the will of Californians. California law says police departments must retain records of officer shootings and internal misconduct investigations for five years. The city of Inglewood, however, had kept records longer than that, including case files of police shootings dating to 1991. State Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley), the author of SB 1421, intended for her bill to allow public access to all qualifying records held by a department, no matter the date of the incident. Inglewood City Council approved the destruction of records that have been in the police departments possession  more than 100 cases  longer than required by law. The city staff report and council resolution describing the action makes no mention of the new police transparency law. Instead it says the affected records are obsolete, occupy valuable space, and are of no further use to the police department. It added the traditional method of destroying such records is to shred them. It is unclear whether the records have since been destroyed. A spokesman for the Inglewood Police Department along with Inglewoods city manager, attorney, clerk, four council members and Mayor James T. Butts, a former Santa Monica police chief, did not respond to requests for comment. Inglewoods City Hall is closed the last two weeks of December. The Inglewood Police Department has a reputation for secrecy and using excessive force. In 2008, the departments officers fatally shot four men in as many months, three of whom turned out to be unarmed. The U.S. Department of Justice launched a civil rights probe and found significant flaws in the way the department oversaw use-of-force cases and investigated complaints against officers. Civil rights advocates still question why Inglewood police opened fire on a couple found sleeping in a car in 2016, killing them both. California police have a long history of shredding records to avoid scrutiny of their actions. In the 1970s, the LAPD famously destroyed more than four tons of personnel records after defense attorneys began requesting them as part of criminal cases against their clients. The move resulted in the dismissal of more than a hundred criminal complaints. In response, the Legislature demanded that records be preserved but then took other measures, supported by police unions, to ensure the public had very little access to them, making California the most secretive state in the nation when it comes to police misconduct. Skinners legislation begins to unwind those laws, which have been on the books since 1978. No video or audio of the Dec. 11 council action is available on the citys website and neither are meeting minutes or any record of the decision. A city spokeswoman, Courtney Torres, confirmed that the council had voted in favor of the police records purge, and said all the relevant reasons for the decision were included in the city staff report. The Jan. 1 implementation for SB 1421 has prompted other police officials to act. A police union in San Bernardino is asking the state Supreme Court to determine that Skinners bill only applies to incidents that occur in 2019 or later. Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore sent a letter to Skinner earlier this month warning that complying with the law in regard to older records in the departments possession could take hundreds of thousands of work hours. Facebook

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Federal officials question California DMVs process for issuing Real IDs (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has notified the California Department of Motor Vehicles that its process for providing residents with federally recognized identification cards is not adequate. DMV spokesman Armando Botello said Friday that 2.3 million residents who received Real IDs under the current process will have to submit additional documentation when their cards are renewed in five years but will be able to use them in the meantime. The DMV is developing a way for residents to submit more documentation online or via email to comply with the stricter federal requirement, he said. But some state legislators are upset about delays in notifying them of the problem and say Homeland Security could eventually require additional documentation provided by current holders. The DMV has known for a month that millions of Real IDs theyve been dolling out are potentially invalid, Assemblyman Jim Patterson (R-Fresno) said. The DMVs only hope is that the Department of Homeland Security takes pity on California and gives the DMV more time to fix this mess. Real IDs are a new kind of driver license and identification card that federal law will require legal residents to present when boarding domestic flights or visiting military bases and other federal facilities starting Oct. 1, 2020. The DMV has only been requiring one form of documentation, including a current lease or utility bill, to verify the residence of a card applicant. But the federal government said in a Nov. 21 letter to the agency that two such documents are needed. On Friday, DMV Director Jean Shiomoto released a letter defending the current process but said her agency will start requiring a second document to prove residency in April. In order to minimize confusion among our customers, the CADMV will work to inform individuals who have been issued a Real ID under the current process that their card will be accepted for official federal purposes, even if their renewal occurs after the October 1, 2020, final enforcement date for Real ID, Shiomoto wrote to the federal agency. Legislative officials worry there is still a possibility that those issued Real IDs in the past might be required to present a second document to have their cards designated as compliant. The more complex process for obtaining Real IDs has led to hours-long waits for customers at DMV field offices this year, although wait times have been reduced recently by an increase in staffing. Shiomoto last month announced that she is retiring amid problems with the motor voter registration system and after the governor ordered an audit of her agency in response to the long wait times. On Friday, Assembly Republican Leader Marie Waldron of Escondido blasted the DMV for waiting a month to tell legislators of the problem. This is unacceptable and flies in the face of security for our citizens, which is what Real ID was created for in the first place, she said in a statement. Facebook

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Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom taps Keely Bosler to be his finance director Keely Bosler, the director of the California Department of Finance, will continue in that role under Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom. (California Department of Finance) Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom on Friday appointed Keely Martin Bosler as director of the California Department of Finance, continuing the role she has served under Gov. Jerry Brown since August. Bosler will become Newsoms chief fiscal advisor, and will play a pivotal role in shaping Newsoms spending plan for the state that will lay the foundation for his top policy priorities. Newsom must roll out his first budget plan within days of taking office on Jan. 7. Californias brighter future depends on a strong, stable fiscal foundation, Newsom said in a statement released Friday afternoon. Keely is an accomplished public servant of sound fiscal judgment. She understands that state budgets are more than numbers on a page  they are value statements affecting the fate and future of millions of families reaching for the California Dream. We are fortunate to have her on our team. Prior to being appointed finance director, Bosler served as Browns cabinet secretary for two years and, before that, as the chief deputy director for budget in the Finance Department for three years. Earlier this year, Brown picked Bosler to lead an audit of the Department of Motor Vehicles, which had come under fire for long wait times at DMV field offices and numerous computer problems, including errors in the new motor voter program that registered Californians to vote. As we have discussed, long wait times at the Department of Motor Vehicles do not reflect the high standards of service that Californians expect from their state government, Bosler wrote in a letter in September to DMV Director Jean Shiomoto. The audit is still ongoing, but Shiomoto has since announced she will retire at the end of the year. Facebook

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Californias legislative analyst, after decades of nonpartisan research for lawmakers, calls it a career Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor, who has led the state research unit since 2008, will retire on Dec. 31. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Only five people have led the independent research office of the California Legislature since its creation in 1941. And each of them has had a pretty simple mantra to live by in reviewing public policy proposals and government programs: Call it like you see it. The job of any analyst, to me, is you maintain that nonpartisanship, Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor said. Taylor, 65, will retire from the post at the end of December after a four-decade career with the research team that began, as he likes to tell it, just after the passage of the landmark property tax rollback, Proposition 13, in 1978. He became the leader of the office, with the title of legislative analyst, in October 2008. Two months later, state government found itself in arguably the worst fiscal crisis in its history  a projected shortfall that ultimately grew to $42 billion by the following winter. There were forces beyond our control, Taylor said of that time. But dont underestimate the policy changes that were made afterward. Those changes, most notably a boost in taxes paid by high-income earners and a robust state budget cash reserve fund, have helped lead to successive years of fully funded government services. The state is projected to have some $24 billion in reserves by the end of the current fiscal year. Taylor announced his intention earlier to step down this year. Leaders from both houses of the Legislature select the analyst, who leads a staff of almost five dozen researchers. The office provides in-depth reports on pending legislation, as well as on broader policy topics like education and healthcare, and produces an independent analysis for every proposed ballot measure. A succession of lawmakers and governors alike have praised or panned the work of the Legislative Analysts Office based on their own political worldview. Taylor said his staff is mindful that they work for legislators, but try to ignore the rhetoric that follows the release of a major report. People are going to do what theyre going to do with our information, he said. They dont always like it, but they appreciate that we give them our best advice. Taylor oversaw a transformation in the way the Legislative Analysts Office distributes its information, embracing the release of research reports through social media instead of relying on traditional printed copies and journalist roundtable events. But he said the work of the researchers has remained largely unchanged through the decades. Having an independent take on things, I think, is good for the Legislature, he said. No replacement for Taylor has been announced, which means a short transition for his eventual successor before Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom sends his first budget proposal to lawmakers in early January. Taylor, who lives in the Sacramento suburbs, said he will honor the tradition of his predecessors in stepping away from public policy debates in order to give the new analyst space to lead the team as he or she sees fit. He said he hopes to travel in the coming years and spend time with his children who have moved to the East Coast. Forty years in state government, Taylor said in why he was stepping aside now. Isnt that enough? Facebook

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Gov. Jerry Brown sues to save California sentencing laws By Don Thompson, Associated Press (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) Outgoing Gov. Jerry Brown sued Thursday to protect one of his signature actions in office, a voter-approved measure that allows most prison inmates to seek earlier release and participate in rehabilitation programs. His administration filed a lawsuit challenging a pending 2020 initiative that seeks to toughen criminal penalties as part of an effort to roll back reforms adopted by voters within the last decade. Browns lawsuit in Sacramento County Superior Court contends the measure lacked enough valid signatures to overturn a previously approved constitutional amendment. County officials and California Secretary of State Alex Padilla certified the signatures in July but said they were submitted too late to qualify for last months election. The lawsuit names Padilla and the ballot measures official proponent, Nina Salarno Besselman, president of the advocacy group Crime Victims United. Padilla said the measure exceeded the required roughly 366,000 valid signatures, equal to 5% of votes cast for governor in 2014. Browns lawsuit says he used the wrong threshold. It says changing the state Constitution requires 8%, or more than 585,400 signatures. That makes the pending initiative more than 150,000 signatures short, the lawsuit says. Hes wrong, said Jeff Flint, a spokesman for the campaign backing the measure. He predicted a judge will be reluctant to reject a measure that already has qualified for the ballot. The secretary of state told us how many signatures are required, and thats how many we collected, Flint said. Padillas office did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The measure would reverse reforms adopted by voters through Proposition 47 in 2014 and Proposition 57 in 2016. Proposition 57 allows most inmates to seek earlier paroles, and Proposition 47 reduced some drug and property crimes from felonies to misdemeanors. The combination has helped keep Californias inmate population below a population cap set by federal judges. Corrections department spokeswoman Vicky Waters said the measure gives corrections and parole officials broad discretion to protect our communities and fashion a rational system of rehabilitation and punishment. This new initiative unlawfully seeks to supplant the departments constitutional authority to implement these critical reforms to our criminal justice system. The pending initiative would shorten the list of crimes that qualify for earlier parole and change some theft crimes from misdemeanors back to felonies. It would also increase the number of crimes for which DNA is collected, a list that was limited when some crimes went from felonies to misdemeanors. Those supporting the tougher penalties say easing criminal penalties has increased the number of dangerous criminals on the streets, but those backing the changes say they have helped reduce mass incarceration and rehabilitate convicted criminals. Facebook

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California Supreme Court orders records unsealed in pardon of ex-state Sen. Roderick Wright Former state Sen. Roderick Wright (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times) The California Supreme Court has granted a request to unseal court records involving Gov. Jerry Browns decision last month to pardon former state Sen. Roderick Wright for felony convictions involving lying about living in his legislative district, officials said Thursday. The court order was in response to a request by the nonpartisan First Amendment Coalition, which argued that the public has a right to know what information went into the governors decision to grant clemency to Wright. This is an important victory for public access to court files involving the exercise of executive clemency, said coalition spokesman Glen A. Smith. We are gratified the court has recognized that these decisions should be subject to the same public access rules that apply to other judicial records under California law. The court gave Browns office until Jan. 2 to redact confidential material before giving the court documents that can be released to the public. The court files submitted by the governors office include letters of support for a pardon and an internal review of Wrights case. The court denied a motion to unseal the records of all clemency cases but left open consideration of requests on other individual cases. Browns office is currently evaluating the courts decision, said spokesman Brian Ferguson. The governor argued against unsealing records in a recent court filing that said confidentiality is consistent with historical practice and is supported by state law. In pardoning Wright on Nov. 22, the governor wrote: He has shown that since his release from custody, he has lived an honest and upright life, exhibited good moral character, and conducted himself as a law abiding citizen. Facebook

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California political watchdog agency fines BART, urges prosecution over using public funds for campaign A Bay Area Rapid Transit train leaves the station in Oakland in this 2013 file photo. (Ben Margot / AP) Californias state political watchdog agency on Thursday imposed a $7,500 fine against the Bay Area Rapid Transit District and called for a possible criminal or civil prosecution over allegations the district used public resources to campaign for a 2016 bond measure. The state Fair Political Practices Commission levied an administrative fine against BART for its failure to disclose spending on YouTube videos, social media posts and text messages to promote Measure RR, which authorized $3.5 billion in general obligation bonds. Though the panel lacks authority to seek criminal charges over the misuse of public funds, it also urged county district attorneys in the BART service area and the state attorney general to pursue possible criminal or civil charges over the spending of taxpayer dollars for campaign purposes, Commission Chairwoman Alice Germond said. It is the concept of misusing public funds that I think we all here are very disturbed about, and we want to send a warning and not create a precedent that is a minor, little slap on the wrist, Germond said, adding that the referral to criminal prosecutors would further send a message that this is wrong. Commissioner Brian Hatch also called for the state Legislature to consider granting the FPPC power to go after public agencies that spend taxpayer money on campaigns. Sen. Steve Glazer (D-Orinda) called on the agency to increase the fine to the maximum level of $33,375. The proposed $7,500 fine represents a slap on the wrist for a very serious violation of the law and the publics trust, Glazer said in a letter to the panel. In supporting the fine recommended by the staff, Germond said BART has agreed to pay the penalty. Somebody did something wrong and they have admitted it, she said. A staff report said there were factors in favor of a fine below the maximum. Although the Commission considers BARTs violations to be serious, the absence of any evidence of an intention to conceal, deceive, or mislead; the voluntary filing of the delinquent campaign statement; and the absence of a prior record are mitigating, the report said. Facebook

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California police union seeks state Supreme Court review of new law disclosing internal investigation records Los Angeles Police Department officers. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) A police union is asking the California Supreme Court to block the release of internal officer investigations before a new state law takes effect next year. The San Bernardino County Sheriffs Employees Benefit Assn. filed a petition Tuesday asking justices to rule that only investigations of incidents that occur after Jan. 1 would be available under the law  and not those the department has on file from years prior. The litigation comes after this years passage of Senate Bill 1421, which opens to the public for the first time internal investigations of officer shootings and other major uses of force, along with confirmed cases of sexual assault and lying while on duty. The law goes into effect Jan. 1, and the San Bernardino County Sheriffs Department has told the union it intends to make available in response to public records requests all the information it has. The union is very concerned about any plans to retroactively apply Senate Bill 1421, Grant Ward, the unions president, said in a statement. We believe retroactive application violates our members rights and we hope the California Supreme Court will consider the serious issues raised by our legal challenge. The bills author, Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley), does not agree with the unions interpretation. She has said her legislation should apply to all the records in a police departments possession because the law simply declared that affected records were no longer confidential. If the record exists, its disclosable, Skinner said. A decision on what records will be available under the law is key to how far-reaching it will be. If the court restricts access to incidents that occurred prior to 2019, those cases will not be subject to public scrutiny. The police union in San Bernardino County is not the only one raising concerns about the law. Earlier this month, Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore sent a letter to Skinner expressing concern that his agency would be overwhelmed if the law required the department to disclose older incidents. Even if the law only applied to the previous five years, Moore wrote, it could take nearly 300,000 hours of work to comply with its provisions. The LAPD operates with a guiding principle of Reverence for the Law; as such, we will diligently comply with SB 1421, Moore wrote. We maintain, however, that a retroactive implementation of SB 1421 will be exceptionally burdensome and would require significant reallocation of front-line investigative personnel. Skinner said if complying with the law becomes untenable for law enforcement agencies that maintain records for a long time, she would consider modifications. But she said agencies did not raise this concern during discussion over the bill. SB 1421 went through multiple committee hearings, multiple floor debates, extensive opportunity for all parties to weigh in on concerns with its structure, she said. That was not an issue that was raised by law enforcement at the time. Facebook

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Gov. Brown warns of backlash for Republicans in 2020 if Obamacare repeal is upheld Gov. Jerry Brown at the National Press Club in April. (Alex Wong / Getty Images) Gov. Jerry Brown warned Republicans on Tuesday that repeal of the Affordable Care Act would devastate the partys political chances in the 2020 election. Brown, speaking at a Sacramento Press Club event moderated by Los Angeles Times columnist George Skelton and Brown family historian Miriam Pawel, said a federal judges ruling last week to strike down the 2010 law  if upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court  will build such a backlash that the Democrats will not only take over the Senate, theyll win the presidency and will win with the kind of momentum, particularly on the issue of healthcare, that [the law] will be replaced probably with something even better. The governor, who leaves office in less than three weeks, said he did not believe the ruling by a Texas judge would ultimately prevail. I think the decision will probably be overturned, Brown said. Few states have embraced the law championed by former President Obama more than California, both through its healthcare exchange, Covered California, and by expanding access to government-funded services under Medi-Cal. Some 12 million Californians now receive healthcare through Medi-Cal, and Brown said a final ruling affecting the federal dollars that subsidize that care would be a serious blow. California would not be able to afford it without the subsidy, the governor said. Facebook

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Bars in Los Angeles, San Francisco could stay open until 4 a.m. under new bill A bar in Sherman Oaks (acuna-hansen) For the third year in a row, a California lawmaker is trying to keep bars open until 4 a.m. State Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) is reintroducing legislation that would allow Los Angeles, San Francisco and seven other cities to extend the sales of alcohol in bars, clubs and restaurants by an additional two hours. Nightlife brings people together, fosters creativity and innovation, supports small businesses, and creates middle-class jobs, Wiener said in a statement. Its time to embrace our nighttime economy and give our cities the tools they need to foster the best nightlife possible. Last year, Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed a similar bill by Wiener, writing: I believe we have enough mischief from midnight to 2 without adding two more hours of mayhem. Should this years measure, Senate Bill 58, advance through the Legislature, Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom would decide whether to sign it into law. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has endorsed SB 58, saying the city should have more flexibility than it does now. Every community has its own needs, and cities should be able to make informed decisions about what nightlife hours make sense for residents, visitors, and neighborhoods, Garcetti said in a statement. The bill would create a five-year pilot program where Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oakland, Sacramento, West Hollywood, Long Beach, Coachella, Cathedral City and Palm Springs could decide to allow restaurants and bars within their cities to serve alcohol until 4 a.m. with the approval of the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Facebook

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Bars in Los Angeles and San Francisco could stay open until 4 a.m. under new bill A bar in Sherman Oaks. (Acuna-Hansen) For the third year in a row, a California lawmaker is trying to keep bars open until 4 a.m. State Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) is reintroducing legislation that would allow Los Angeles, San Francisco and seven other cities to extend the sales of alcohol in bars, clubs and restaurants by an additional two hours. Nightlife brings people together, fosters creativity and innovation, supports small businesses and creates middle-class jobs, Wiener said in a statement. Its time to embrace our nighttime economy and give our cities the tools they need to foster the best nightlife possible. Last year, Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed a similar bill by Wiener, writing: I believe we have enough mischief from midnight to 2 without adding two more hours of mayhem. Should this years measure, Senate Bill 58, advance through the Legislature, Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom would decide whether to sign it into law. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has endorsed SB 58, saying the city should have more flexibility than it does now. Every community has its own needs, and cities should be able to make informed decisions about what nightlife hours make sense for residents, visitors and neighborhoods, Garcetti said in a statement. The bill would create a five-year pilot program where Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oakland, Sacramento, West Hollywood, Long Beach, Coachella, Cathedral City and Palm Springs could decide to allow restaurants and bars within their cities to serve alcohol until 4 a.m. with the approval of the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Facebook

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Californias DMV director announces retirement amid problems with motor voter program (Kent Nishamura/Los Angeles Times) The director of the California Department of Motor Vehicles will retire at years end with a number of questions unanswered about the implementation of a major voter registration system and long wait times experienced by customers for much of the past summer. Jean Shiomoto will not continue in her current role as Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom takes office, and announced to staff several weeks ago her intent to retire at the end of the year after 38 years in state service, spokesman Armando Botello said in an email to The Times on Friday. Newsoms transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment on who might lead the department in 2019. Shiomoto was appointed DMV director by Gov. Jerry Brown in the fall of 2013, having served in prior leadership roles with the department. DMV officials have been sharply criticized by lawmakers in recent months for delays in serving customers at its field offices across the state. Last week, DMV officials revealed errors in registering California voters for the November election  mistakes that followed a series of problems in the rollout of the states new motor voter registration system. Secretary of State Alex Padilla last week said he had lost confidence in Shiomotos leadership as a result of the voting registration problems. Facebook

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New law could break the stalemate over housing on the site of a near-vacant Cupertino mall By Liam Dillon For more than a decade, developers have tried to build new housing on the site of an all-but-empty mall in Cupertino, a city in the heart of Silicon Valley and home to Apple headquarters. A well-organized group of neighbors, upset about traffic, building heights and the potential loss of the communitys suburban lifestyle, turned away every plan. Now, for the first time, the stalemate might be broken  thanks to a decision made in the state Capitol. In an effort to address Californias housing affordability problem, legislators passed a law last year that requires cities and counties to approve housing projects if they comply with local zoning rules and other standards, forcing some resistant communities to agree to new homebuilding. In September, the city of Cupertino, citing the state law, approved developer Sand Hill Property Co.s proposal to build an office park and more than 2,400 homes where the Vallco Shopping Mall sits. Read More Facebook

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Local government was a last bastion for struggling California Republicans. Not anymore By Mark Z. Barabak Theres no shortage of watery metaphors to describe the disaster that befell California Republicans this midterm election. A blue wave. A Democratic tsunami. But the most apt may be a flood, with the casualties steadily rising as the vote count climbed in the days and weeks following Nov. 6. Eventually half the GOP congressional delegation was washed away, along with the entire slate of statewide Republican candidates. In Sacramento, Democrats claimed 29 of 40 state Senate seats and seized three-quarters of the 80-member Assembly  the largest number since 1883, when Chester A. Arthur was serving in the White House. Read More Facebook

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For the Republicans left in Californias Legislature, fewer lawmakers will have to do more work By John Myers From January to late summer every year, the California Legislature is a perpetual motion machine. And in the new year, the people most likely to struggle in keeping up will be Republicans, vastly outnumbered but still responsible for representing millions of the states residents. There are 22 standing committees in the state Senate, plus at least a dozen more subcommittees or special committees. And after Novembers election, only 11 Republican senators will be left to divvy up the work. To the victors go the spoils. To the vanquished go the extra assignments. Read More Facebook

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Californias DMV failed to finish registering 329 new voters before November election (Los Angeles Times) Officials at the California Department of Motor Vehicles said Friday that the agency failed to send information for 329 new voters to state elections officers in time for the November election, the latest revelation in a string of mishaps regarding voter registration. Secretary of State Alex Padilla responded with a blistering letter, calling on Gov. Jerry Brown or Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom to replace Jean Shiomoto, the DMV director. The Director of DMV has lost my confidence and trust, Padilla wrote. In all, the agency revealed that 589 mailed voter registration records that should have been processed under election deadlines werent sent to Californias secretary of state until late November, including forms from 260 drivers who had intended to update their address on existing voter registration records. The DMV had been instructed to not send registration forms that came in after Oct. 22, but the voters in question had forms that were postmarked before the deadline. In some cases, when the postmark wasnt legible, the agency said, documents inside indicated the voter had intended to finish their registration in time for the Nov. 6 election. The DMV recognizes the pause in transmittals was an error and affected the timing of the registration of the 589 individuals referenced above relative to the November election, Shiomoto wrote in a letter to Padilla on Friday. The pause was due to a misunderstanding on the part of the department, for which we take responsibility. Those who were trying to update their address for voter registration would not have been blocked from casting ballots. But officials said its unclear whether any of the 329 new voters were able to participate in the election. Shiomoto said in her letter that DMV will work with elections officials. The errors were not related to previous DMV mistakes about registering voters, problems associated with the rollout of the states new motor voter law. In those cases, multiple registration forms were sent to local elections offices for some voters, some people were assigned the wrong political party preference and others who are noncitizens were incorrectly placed on the list of registered voters. DMV officials have yet to respond to questions posed by The Times over the last several weeks about who knew of those mistakes and when. Facebook

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Newsom appoints a labor advocate and a former staffer as his chief deputy Cabinet secretaries By Taryn Luna A labor advocate and a San Francisco political operative have accepted positions in Gov.-elect Gavin Newsoms new administration. Angie Wei, a Capitol insider with deep ties to organized labor in California, will serve as a chief deputy Cabinet secretary with a focus on policy development. As a legislative director and chief of staff at the California Labor Federation, Wei has represented more than 1,200 unions and 2.1 million workers in Capitol fights over a host of policy issues, including drug-pricing transparency and paid family leave. The governor-elect also tapped Jason Elliott, a policy advisor to Newsom during his time as mayor of San Francisco and a chief of staff to San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee, as another chief deputy Cabinet secretary overseeing executive branch operations. Elliott and Wei will serve under Ana Matosantos, Newsoms previously
Even as California forged its own path for years to battle global warming, pressing forward whether Washington agreed or not, skeptics have persistently scolded that it is just a state  it cant set policy for the nation, much less the world.

If California ever had a moment to prove them wrong, it is now. At the international climate summit Gov. Jerry Brown will kick off Wednesday in San Francisco, the state is playing a role none ever has, pushing the rest of the country to join other nations in enforcing a landmark agreement on climate change that President Trump has quit.

Put simply, the three-day environmental summit will test whether California can bring the country to a place Congress and the White House wont.

This is a very odd challenge we have, Brown said in an interview in his office. It is coming at us from all over the planet. Everyone is contributing and everyone has got to do something to combat it. It is a totally unique world challenge, never before faced. There is nothing like this.

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Indeed, as the Trump administration prepared this week to ease regulations on methane, one of the most potent greenhouse gases, many states are looking to follow California and Colorado in pursuing policies that require energy firms to capture the methane their drilling operations release and convert it into electricity.

In other sectors, more ambitious commitments may be made. Californias new law  signed Monday  putting the state on a path to 100% renewable energy could motivate others to make similar pledges this week.

MORE: California to rely on 100% clean electricity by 2045 under bill signed by Gov. Jerry Brown 

Brown had not planned the summit as an act of defiance. The idea emerged soon after the Paris climate change accord was signed in 2015, with strong support from President Obama, and the world assumed the United States would take a lead role in cutting carbon emissions in an effort to ease global warming.

It made perfect sense then that California  Americas leader in clean tech innovation and climate action  would host a high-stakes gathering of political leaders to cement the Paris benchmarks, assess progress and form new partnerships. The state already has demonstrated how aggressive climate action can boost a large economy.

In the Trump era, however, the event morphed into something else. The president has made clear his administration does not agree with mainstream climate science, and sees no need to cut emissions at the pace the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warns will be crucial to dodge catastrophic warming.

Yet roughly half of Americans live in states that are racing to meet goals in the Paris agreement. Half of Americas largest cities have made commitments to go beyond state action. And according to a Quinnipiac poll last month, 64% of U.S. voters believe the nation should do more to combat global warming. With Congress up for grabs in November, candidates are being grilled about Trumps decision to disavow the Paris accord.

The Trump administration is visibly dismantling Obama-era climate programs, and doing it loudly in a way people see and can understand, and it is attacking science more generally in very visible ways, said Ann Carlson, an environmental law professor at UCLA. California is big enough and splashy enough, and Jerry Brown is famous enough, that people are paying attention to what California is doing about it.

Even without the Trump administration, the U.S. is upholding its commitment to the Paris climate agreement  Jerry Brown and Michael Bloomberg op-ed 

Brown said the state has been preparing since President Nixon signed the Clean Air Act, one of the nations first and most important environmental laws, in 1970.

After that, we developed the institutional capacity and the bureaucratic understanding to combat pollution and carbon emissions, Brown said. We are positioned well to deal with the problem. Not to take advantage of this would be a tragedy.

During the summit, San Francisco will be swarmed with climate thinkers, crusading celebrities and political leaders racing to and from events that range from cerebral to spectacle. Conferees attending a deep dive in methane reductions in the morning can groove to the Grateful Deads Bob Weir at an evening concert.

But much of the summit will be a grind. Inching toward the Paris goals involves government officials collaborating on and finding new paths for often mundane tasks, from using more sustainable cement to procuring electric buses.

Even before the opening ceremony, summit leaders announced a breakthrough on garbage. Cities involved pledged to find alternatives to landfills and incineration for at least 70% of their trash by 2030.

Local efforts to zero out coal emissions will also be on display, along with plans to advance technologies that capture industrial emissions and store them underground.

The point is to get people to think about doing more, and then to join with others who have gone through that process and, through that encounter with others, to up the general commitment of the world, Brown said.

It adds up. A recent study published by Yale University found that all the subnational actions around the world  and most acutely in the United States  are on target to bring the planet halfway to meeting the Paris goals.

That still leaves a long way to go. The summit will test how much cities, states and the private sector can do to fill the gap.

There are many cities that can do more, said Niklas Hoehne, one of the studys authors. And there are many more companies that want to do more.

Although many summit attendees may view Trump as a villain, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said climate change should not be seen as a partisan issue. More than a few Republicans will attend. And he notes that the largest American city running on 100% renewable power now is Georgetown, Texas, a conservative community of 67,000 people with a Republican mayor.

This is not just a California, blue state thing, Garcetti said. Across party lines, people are taking action. I think most people see Trump as an aberration.

Mayors are particularly motivated to act, Garcetti said. Many already battle the fallout of a warming planet: raging forest fires, devastating floods, more destructive hurricanes and heat emergencies.

We know this is happening, he said. In the past, these summits were about information. Now it is about action. Some of us already know how to do this technical work, how to measure emissions and commit [to cutting them]. Now, we are bringing it to other cities.

The challenge for summit organizers is building a system to track and monitor all the pledges made by the thousands of states, cities and businesses determined to do their part to meet the Paris goals.

We have the wisdom, the commitment, the experience and the collaborative spirit to work in ways that may not exist anywhere on the planet, Brown said. Weve got to take advantage of it.

Still, he said, the task is daunting.

This is like rolling a gigantic boulder up Mt. Everest, Brown said. And we are at the bottom.

The latest look at the Trump administration and the rest of Washington 

More stories from Evan Halper 

evan.halper@latimes.com | Twitter: @evanhalper

Times staff writer John Myers in Sacramento contributed to this report.
Congress is scrambling to fund much of the federal government before the fiscal year ends, anxious to avoid an unpopular government shutdown or a bitter battle over President Trumps demands for a border wall less than two months before the midterm election.

Republicans and Democrats hope to complete legislation that would appropriate $1.24 trillion before the government runs out of money on Oct. 1, potentially forcing all but vital services and agencies to shut down or trim operations.

Lawmakers are expected to pass many but not all of the 12 funding bills by the end of September. The Senate and House overwhelmingly approved three appropriations bills late Wednesday and on Thursday.

The fact that Congress is doing its job shouldnt be amazing, but it is, said Emily Holubowich, who tracks the appropriations process as a senior vice president at CRD Associates, a lobbying firm.

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Funding the government is one of Congress most basic responsibilities. But lawmakers have not passed all their funding bills on time since 1997. And they havent passed more than one of their 12 funding bills on time since 2007.

More often than not, Congress votes on a temporary stopgap measure to keep funds flowing at the same level as the year prior. The process has regularly broken down since 1977, when the current budget appropriations process began, leading to funding gaps. The government has shut down for longer than one day  often leading to the furlough of government workers  eight times since 1981.

This year, Trump has said he would not sign another stopgap funding measure. That left Congress little choice but to appropriate the money or risk a politically toxic shutdown before the Nov. 6 election. Republicans face an uphill battle to keep control of the House but appear likely to hold the Senate.

In addition, lawmakers this year agreed to add $153 billion to the total funding level, preventing the typical battles over how to spend resources.

It is really easy to agree on stuff when you give yourself an extra $153 billion, said Marc Goldwein, senior policy director at the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington. People who have money dont fight about money.

Congress still faces obstacles, however. The House plans to be in session only four more days this month so members can go home to campaign for reelection. And partisan battles could erupt over funding of contentious issues such as the border wall or abortion services.

The first of four sets of spending bills  for the Energy Department and Veterans Affairs, among other programs  easily passed the Senate by a vote of 92-5 on Wednesday.

The second cluster  for health, labor and defense programs  is largely agreed upon and expected to pass before Sept. 30. Lawmakers and their staffs are still working on a third group of bills to fund the Interior Department and Environmental Protection Agency.

The fourth group  which deals with immigration and Homeland Security, including border security  is not expected to be done in time.

Lawmakers plan to pass a stopgap measure to keep those agencies and operations funded through mid-December, although the date is in flux. If Democrats win control of the House in November, outgoing Republican lawmakers would have to vote before their replacements are seated in January.

The biggest wildcard is Trump, who wants $5 billion for the border wall, a proposal Democrats would certainly block. Last week, the president appeared to endorse a shutdown over the wall, saying it would be a great political issue.

An agreement on the first round of spending bills  even though they are the least controversial  has given lawmakers hope they can pass other bills in time to avoid a shutdown.

The first package has bipartisan support [and] is free of poison-pill riders that could jeopardize support, said Sen. Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Other Democrats are skeptical of grouping diverse funding bills together, particularly combining the health provisions, a favorite issue of Democrats, with defense, a favorite of the GOP. The strategy assumes enough lawmakers care about those issues that the bill is bound to pass.

I dont think this is the way the appropriations process is supposed to work, said Rep. Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland, the No. 2 Democrat in the House.

In the 42 years since the current budgeting and appropriations process was enacted, Congress has passed all its spending bills on time only four times: 1977, 1989, 1995 and 1997, according to Pew Research.

Bills to fund the Labor Department and the Department of Health and Human Services have proved the most problematic over the years. Lawmakers regularly insert provisions seeking to block abortion or the 2010 Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare.

Between 2011 and 2016, not a single spending bill was passed by Oct. 1, according to Pew.

The government shut down for 17 days in 2013 over a protest of Obamacare led by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Under Trump, the government shut for a few hours in February after Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) prevented a vote on a spending bill in what he called a protest over the total amount.

The latest from Washington 

jennifer.haberkorn@latimes.com

@jenhab

UPDATES:

3:35 p.m.: This story was updated after the Senate passed the first package of spending bills.

This story was originally posted at 1:45 p.m.
President Trump issued a new order Wednesday authorizing additional sanctions against countries or individuals for interfering in upcoming U.S. elections, but lawmakers of both parties immediately said the effort does not go far enough.

The order would allow Trump to sanction foreigners who interfere in the midterm elections to be held in less than two months. It covers overt efforts to meddle in election infrastructure, such as vote counts, as well as propaganda and other attempts to influence voting from abroad, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats told reporters.

The harshest sanctions outlined in the order would be up to the presidents discretion.

This is intended to be a very broad effort to prevent foreign manipulation of the political process, national security advisor John Bolton said during a briefing Wednesday.

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As the Washington Post first reported in August, the order appears to be an effort to stave off bipartisan legislation that would mandate tough federal action.

Bolton said criticism that Trump had been too deferential to Russia or blinkered in his view of Russian election interference played zero role in the new action.

Trump has repeatedly said he wants to combat foreign interference, Bolton said, and the United States has already sanctioned Russian individuals and entities.

I think his actions speak for themselves, Bolton said.

Trumps first midterm pits a booming economy against one of historys most unpopular presidents 

Trump has repeatedly called the special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election a witch hunt, and alleged without evidence that the inquiry is rigged against him. He has appeared to take Russian President Vladimir Putins word that Russia did not interfere on Trumps behalf in the election, most recently when he and the Russian leader met for a widely criticized summit in Helsinki, Finland, in July.

Trump has also said he accepts the strong consensus view of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia did interfere, including through propaganda and falsehoods spread on social media.

But aides have said that Trumps anger at what he views as a questioning of his surprise election victory over Democrat Hillary Clinton colors his view of the threat to future elections and slowed down the administrations planning for this years congressional election.

It has been a touchy subject, one White House official said last month, when the Post reported on a draft of the executive order.

Congressional pressure for tougher federal defenses against foreign election interference grew following Trumps July 16 summit and news conference with Putin, when Trump avoided publicly confronting the Russian leader about Moscows efforts to influence the election.

Trump instead renewed a demand for an investigation of Clintons email practices as secretary of State and noted that Putin had issued an extremely strong and powerful denial.

Bolton said Wednesday that the White House is open to ideas and proposals from lawmakers, but said new legislation might be slow in coming. He cast the White House action as a way to strengthen U.S. defenses immediately.

We felt it was important to demonstrate the president has taken command of this issue, that its something he cares deeply about, Bolton said. The integrity of our elections and our constitutional process are a high priority to him.

Online trolls are using immigration as a wedge issue for 2018 midterm election 

Sens. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) immediately issued a joint statement calling the White House effort insufficient and calling on Congress to pass tougher legislation now.

Todays announcement by the Administration recognizes the threat, but does not go far enough to address it, they wrote. The United States can and must do more, such as the mandatory sanctions attached to legislation they proposed, the senators wrote. We must make sure Vladimir Putins Russia, or any other foreign actor, understands that we will respond decisively and impose punishing consequences against those who interfere in our democracy.

Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.), the vice-chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, also criticized the executive order, which he said puts too much power in the hands of a president who has previously failed to demand accountability from Russia on the issue.

Unfortunately, President Trump demonstrated in Helsinki and elsewhere that he simply cannot be counted upon to stand up to Putin when it matters, Warner said. He added that an executive order that inevitably leaves the President broad discretion to decide whether to impose tough sanctions against those who attack our democracy is insufficient.

The executive order was also panned by some lawmakers at a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Russian interference Tuesday afternoon. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) said the move wont substitute for mandatory sanctions required by law and shouldnt be used to blunt congressional momentum on the issue.

Coats warned last month that Russian efforts to undermine U.S. elections continue. U.S. officials have also identified China, Iran and North Korea as potential threats.

In regards to Russian involvement in the midterm elections, we continue to see a pervasive messaging campaign by Russia to try to weaken and divide the United States, Coats said in August.

He described the White House response as broad, including assessments by intelligence, law enforcement and diplomatic arms of the government.

We are doing everything we possibly can, first of all to prevent any interference with our election, and then to do a full assessment after the election, Coats said Wednesday.

Lawmakers and independent analysts say that federal and state action has already made U.S. voting systems more secure against foreign hackers. Russian entities have not targeted those systems to the degree they did in 2016, Coats said Wednesday.

At the same time, outside experts have warned for more than a year that Russian efforts to manipulate U.S. voters through misleading social media postings are likely to have grown more sophisticated and harder to detect.

The White House has deflected much of that criticism while pointing to the tough sanctions imposed on Russian individuals and the expulsion of Russian diplomats in response to the 2016 election interference.
Responding to an epidemic of nicotine addiction among American youths, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday announced a comprehensive crackdown on e-cigarette manufacturers, directing the industrys giants to draw up detailed plans for halting sales to minors and threatening to pull a wide range of products, including flavorings that appeal to underage buyers.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb called the agencys steps the largest coordinated enforcement effort in his agencys history and said it was prompted by alarming new evidence that electronic cigarette use by minors has risen to levels he called simply not tolerable.

In response to a nationwide undercover investigation of brick-and-mortar and online stores over the summer, the FDA levied civil fines ranging from $279 to $11,182 on e-cigarette retailers found to have sold their products to minors and issued more than 1,300 warning letters.

Whats more, Gottlieb said the vaping industry appears to have turned a blind eye to the online practice of straw purchasing by retailers and individuals intent on buying vaping products and reselling them to minors.

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The agency also ordered 12 online retailers to halt their continued marketing of e-liquids resembling kid-friendly products like candy and cookies. Although the FDA had acted in May to limit the sale of such products, they were still being offered, with the offending labeling and advertising, by the 12 online retailers, several of whom were also cited for sales to minors.

The new enforcement actions mark the start of a sustained campaign to monitor, penalize and prevent e-cigarette sales in convenience stores and other retail sites to minors, Gottlieb said. He promised, too, that the FDA would be keeping close tabs on manufacturers own internet storefronts and distribution practices to detect sales to minors.

The FDA has at its disposal both civil and criminal remedies to address demonstrated violations of the law, he said.

The actions were greeted with defiance and derision from the vaping industry.

Thousands of small-business vape shops across America do not engage in irresponsible marketing practices and dont even sell the products being targeted by the FDA with threatening letters, said Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping Assn., a nonprofit organization that advocates for what it calls sensible regulation.

Despite this, Commissioner Gottlieb is threatening to shut down all these businesses unless larger manufacturers unilaterally choose to change their marketing practices, Conley added. It is absolutely absurd and a perversion of how regulatory agencies are supposed to approach their work.

Conley called Gottliebs initiative nothing more than a gift to the tobacco industry, whose stock prices jumped on news of the FDAs vaping crackdown.

Public health groups, on the other hand, said lax regulation was the reason teen vaping became such a problem in the first place.

The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network called Wednesdays actions a necessary first step but said officials could do much more.

FDA for years has repeatedly missed opportunities to keep tobacco products out of the hands of our children, said Chris Hansen, the organizations president. Clearly the FDA knows who the industry culprits are in this epidemic and as such should exercise its full regulatory authority over these products rather than allow the industry to voluntarily self-correct.

The American Academy of Pediatrics also scolded the FDA for giving e-cigarette manufacturers more time to flout rules against selling their products to kids. The academy said Gottlieb has the authority to intervene in the market to protect minors, and any further delay runs the risk that a generation of young people will become addicted to these dangerous products.

The FDA has given makers of e-cigarettes until 2022 to seek its approval for products that were on the market by August 2016. On Wednesday, Gottlieb threatened to revisit that deadline and urged manufacturers to voluntarily improve their practices. But he stopped short of requiring any such changes.

E-cigarettes have become the tobacco product most commonly used by American adolescents. Their popularity is rising very sharply, Gottlieb said: In 2017, more than 2 million middle and high school students acknowledged they were current users of vaping products, according to the Monitoring the Future survey.

(Los Angeles Times)

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that e-cigarettes have become the tobacco product of choice among middle and high school students.

In 2017, 11.7% of high schoolers who participated in the CDCs National Youth Tobacco Survey said they had vaped a tobacco product within the last month, up from 1.5% in 2011. In addition, 3.3% of middle school students called themselves current users of e-cigarettes, up from 0.6% in 2011.

The U.S. market for vaping products has exploded as well. Analysts at Wells Fargo estimated that Americans bought more than $2.3 billion worth of e-cigarettes between August 2017 and last month, and they expect annual sales to reach nearly $4 billion this year.

Add in other vaping products  including vapor cartridges and related items sold at specialty shops  and analysts say the entire market could be worth $6.6 billion this year.

A sampling of e-liquid products that the FDA says are aimed at minors. (Food and Drug Administration)

In a speech at the agencys headquarters in Silver Spring, Md., Gottlieb acknowledged that e-cigarettes present a public health conundrum.

In its bid to wean adult smokers from traditional cigarettes, the agency has sought to make a wider range of reduced risk tobacco products available to consumers. Those products include e-cigarettes.

At the same time, the FDA has sought to avoid creating a new generation of Americans addicted to those products, or to the nicotine that has served as a powerful hook.

On Wednesday, Gottlieb put manufacturers on notice that the agencys balancing act will lean more heavily on preventing youth addiction.

This may create some obstacles for adults who want to enjoy e-cigarettes, Gottlieb said. But in closing the on-ramp for kids, were going to have to narrow the on-ramp for adults.

Gottlieb also signaled that his agency is prepared to take more sweeping steps. He gave five e-cigarette manufacturers  the makers of Vuse, Blu, Juul, MarkTen XL, and Logic vaping products  two months to submit plans to immediately and substantially reverse these trends.

Failure to comply might prompt the agency to reconsider an earlier decision that gave manufacturers of tobacco products not on the market by August 2016 more time to submit new products to the FDA for pre-market review. He also said the agency is considering the immediate removal  from the market of e-cigarette flavorings that cater to underage users.

Let me be clear: Everythings on the table, said Gottlieb.

(Los Angeles Times)

Juul is the clear leader among e-cigarette brands, with $454 million in sales over the 12 months ending in February, according to the Wells Fargo report, which cited market data from the research firm Nielsen. Other big players are owned by big tobacco conglomerates; Camel parent British American Tobacco makes Vuse e-cigarettes, and Marlboro parent Altria makes MarkTen e-cigarettes.

Collectively, the five industry leaders command more than 97% of the U.S. market for e-cigarettes, and Gottlieb took them to task for their response to concerns expressed earlier by the FDA about underage marketing and sales.

They treated them as a public relations challenge, Gottlieb said. Theyre now on notice.

As part of its effort to turn the tide, the agency launched a new campaign to educate children and teens about the dangers of e-cigarettes. A primary concern for health experts is that kids will become addicted to nicotine and graduate to traditional cigarettes, putting them at risk for lung cancer. A report in the Journal of the American Medical Assn. found that 20% of high schoolers who vaped frequently at the start of the study were smoking cigarettes frequently six months later, and an additional 12% were smoking occasionally. Meanwhile, among students who never vaped, only 2% started smoking during the same period of time.

There are other concerns as well. The aerosol that e-cigarette users inhale contains volatile organic compounds, heavy metals and other chemicals that may cause cancer, according to the CDC. Some flavorings contain diacetyl, a compound that can damage airways if inhaled and may cause lung disease. And a 2016 report from the Office of the Surgeon General warned that nicotine could interfere with healthy brain development during adolescence, especially in regions related to attention, learning and impulse control.

The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids said the steps announced by Gottlieb have the potential to make a fundamental difference. But, the group added, that will only be the case if the FDA acts quickly to ban e-cigarettes that have not yet been reviewed by the agency, requires all e-cigarettes to submit to immediate FDA review, and forces the manufacturers that have fueled this epidemic to change their marketing and sales practices.

Gottlieb said the FDA will continue to monitor underage trends and promised to release new data on e-cigarette use by minors in the coming months. Further evidence of rising rates of use would bring stiffer actions, he vowed.

Industry must step up to this problem, he said. They must demonstrate theyre truly committed to keeping their products out of the hands of kids.

Staff writer James Rufus Koren contributed to this report.

melissa.healy@latimes.com

@LATMelissaHealy

MORE IN SCIENCE

UPDATES:

3:40 p.m.: This story has been updated with additional information about the fines levied on retailers as well as reaction from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

12:35 p.m.: This story has been updated with additional information about the popularity of e-cigarettes among teens, estimates of e-cigarette sales, the health effects of vaping and reaction from public health groups.

This story was originally published at 10:30 a.m.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi issued a decree to amend some customs categories and add new ones, raising tariffs on a group of imports for the second time since January 2016, while reducing fees on some other commodities.

The official state gazette published the new decree on Wednesday, that was written on 9 September, and which will come into effect on 13 September.

"The decision on Wednesday included 5791 international and domestic items, of which 3495 items of raw materials, capital goods and strategic goods have not been changed, accounting for about 60 percent of the total items," Egyptian customs chief Kamal Negm told Reuters.

"The resolution also didn't change 994 items of intermediate goods used in industrial processes, which account for 17 percent of the total items. The rest of the items, which account for about 23 percent of the total, have a tariff range from 20 to 60 percent", Negm said.

The decision included imposing a 20 percent tariff fee on machinery and equipment imported by touristic institutions, except for passenger cars, and applying a fee of 10 percent of the value of repaired goods exported abroad when they were temporarily imported.

The amendments also included the imposition of a two percent tariff fee on the imports of infant formula factories that are similar to mother's milk and infant formula.

The decision also included a five percent fee on imports from Arab Organization for Industrialization (AAS) companies on spare parts and accessories needed for repairing railway trains' engines.

Egypt adjusted its custom tariffs on a wide range of imports on the back of a currency crisis that it faced in 2013, and they were amended in January 2016.

As a way to encourage local industry, Egypt has decided to reduce tariffs on companies working in the assembly industry, particularly the ones working on complex goods.

"The amendments come in the context of encouraging the local industry and urging citizens to reduce the consumption of non-essential goods," said the head of research at investment bank Pharos, Radwa Suweifi, to Reuters.

Egypt has added new items to the list of tariff fees such as fish products, fruits, agricultural pesticides products and insecticide disinfectants, the official state gazette said on Wednesday.

Charges levied on some imported household products such as refrigerators and air conditioners are 60 percent and tariffs on fruits ranges from 10 to 60 percent.

Negm noted that "275 new international items were added, including food commodities such as fish products and fruits in order to strengthen food security control, which is in line with the international standards of Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations."

"New varieties of wood and manufactures such as tableware and chopsticks have been added with 40 percent tariff fees in addition to the introduction of an item for LED lamps."

Egypt exempted electric-powered cars from custom duties to be only required to pay the value added tax, and reduced tariffs on dual-engine vehicles of electricity and gasoline.

The tariffs imposed on vehicles working on natural gas, up to 1,600cc, have been reduced to 26 percent, down from 40 percent previously.

Egypt imposed restrictions in December 2015 to reduce the chaos of excess imports in light of its hard currency scarcity at that time, with the aim of eliminating the gaps that some importers used to avoid paying the fees in order to preserve the resources of the public treasury from customs.

Local producers in Egypt usually complain about their inability to compete with imported goods' prices because of customs evasion and manipulation of import bills.

The official newspaper added that a higher tariff council will be set up under the supervision of the finance minister to "discuss and propose appropriate amendments to the custom tariffs and develop their systems in accordance with economic changes."

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The Laguna Beach Village Entrance has been on the citys agenda for decades. On Tuesday, the city welcomed the public to the official groundbreaking ceremony, where city officials literally dug shovels into the construction site to begin the $11.1-million project.

Its been a collaborative project, a lot of give and take, discussions and public hearings, said Lou Kneip, project director for Laguna Beach.

[The groundbreaking is] a big accomplishment. Theres a lot of people who came before me and did the heavy lifting, said Kneip, who has been in his position for about two years.

Im kind of coming in on the tail end. A lot of work and a lot of effort has gone into this.

The ceremony Tuesday afternoon was held at the initial construction area between parking lots 10 and 11 near 725 Laguna Canyon Road (where Laguna Canyon becomes Broadway at Forest Avenue).

The event came about a month after the City Council approved an $8.4-million construction contract with Chino-based C.S. Legacy Construction.

The Village Entrance plan envisions a more inviting gateway to Laguna Beach along its primary inland thoroughfare.

As a city, we finally have the opportunity to come together and build a beautiful, welcoming entrance to Laguna Beach that we can all be proud of, Mayor Kelly Boyd said. The path to this groundbreaking today has been a journey, but worth the wait.

Parking Lot 10, which typically isnt open outside the summer festival season, has been temporarily closed for the first phase of the project. Kneip said the city is working to open more spaces for residents to park in the employee lot behind City Hall, which they will share with city government vehicles.

Some buildings have been removed to create additional parking spaces, Kneip said. It wasnt clear how many parking spots would open up.

The city says the Village Entrance project will enhance the areas safety and beauty and create a pedestrian-friendly environment by developing paths for walkers and bicyclists.

City officials also hope to tackle downtown congestion by creating new bridges, access roads and parking areas with improved circulation.

The entire project, to be done in four stages, is expected to be completed by summer 2020, with year-round work except for a construction break next summer.

Village Entrance renderings are displayed at the projects groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday. (Scott Smeltzer / Staff Photographer)

This month, the area between Lots 10 and 11 will be prepared for landscaping improvements and pathway construction. One of the two exits in Lot 11 will be temporarily closed to provide construction access for the creation of a new bridge.

The 1930s-era sewer digester building on a city parking lot at the Village Entrance site was included in the construction contract to repaint the building and patch up small holes, but City Council members are looking at doing more than that.

Currently, the building is used as police storage.

miranda.ceja@latimes.com

Twitter: @newsmirand
Orange County supervisors Tuesday ordered options for canceling the countys contract with a jail phones vendor that potentially jeopardized criminal cases by improperly recording phone calls between attorneys and their clients.

In a unanimous 5-0 vote, the Board of Supervisors directed the Sheriffs Department to present them with choices by November that include keeping Global Tel-Link as the vendor or switching to a different company.

Tuesdays vote came two weeks after supervisors unanimously ordered the countys Office of Independent Review to investigate the issue and report back within 90 days.

It was utter negligence, said Supervisor Todd Spitzer, who proposed switching the contract to a different vendor.

About 1,300 phone numbers were registered in the do-not-record list, but the restricted list dropped to only 72, Spitzer noted. Who in the world isnt checking the system to ensure its integrity?

Supervisor Shawn Nelson, speaking to Undersheriff Don Barnes, said if the system improperly records attorney-client calls in a criminal case, the charges can get thrown out.

And all your hard work, all the D.A.s hard work goes down the drain because of total negligence, Nelson said.

This shouldnt be difficult. And it frightens me that we got to this point, Nelson added. Some [sheriffs] command staff person needed to oversee this contract.

After an ongoing murder case revealed that protected calls were recorded, GTL disclosed it improperly recorded 1,079 private inmate calls between 2015 and 2018.

At least 58 calls were accessed by Sheriffs Department employees, according to the company.

GTL has cited a human error during a software upgrade where the company failed to upload a database of 1,300 phone numbers that should have been automatically blocked from recording.

During a court hearing last month, company officials disclosed that the same issue had happened twice before, in Pinellas and Charlotte counties in Florida.

Among the communications recorded by law enforcement was at least one jailhouse phone call in 2016 between Joshua Waring  the son of former Real Housewives of Orange County cast member Lauri Peterson  and his defense attorney at the time.

Waring, 29, is facing three counts of attempted murder and other felony and misdemeanor charges in connection with a June 2016 shooting at a former Costa Mesa sober-living home.

His current defense attorney, Joel Garson, has been looking into allegations that law enforcement monitored and shared Warings phone calls in Orange County Jail while he was representing himself in his criminal case and is trying to have the case dismissed on grounds of outrageous governmental conduct.

Sheriff officials, including Barnes, pushed back Tuesday against moving the contract to a different vendor, saying the recording problems have been fixed and GTL has taken steps to prevent it from happening again.

The system, as designed, is currently working with G Tel, Barnes told supervisors.

Barnes, the second-in-command of the Sheriffs Department, is running in the November election for the top sheriff job.

I, too share your concern with the breach  We were tremendously disappointed with G Tel, Barnes added. But that doesnt change where we are today and where we need to move forward from. Our working with GTL since then has been positive.

Instead of switching vendors, Barnes proposed the supervisors hire a company to monitor GTL and ensure theyre not improperly recording protected calls. And he suggested a competitive bidding process over the next 18 to 24 months to replace the current jail phones contract.

If supervisors do want to switch the phone vendor, sheriff officials said the service could shift four to six months from Tuesdays meeting.

Barnes suggested there might not be any companies that would want to do the shorter-term work, and that the countys costs for it could be high.

Supervisor Lisa Bartlett noted that GTL has purchased one of the prior bidders for the OC jail phones contract and agreed with Barnes suggestion to keep GTL as the contractor until the longer-time bidding process is done.

We dont want to make any rash decisions here. We want to make prudent decisions, Bartlett said.

A representative of GTL told supervisors the company fixed the recording problems as soon as they came up.

Upon notification and understanding of what the situation was with the sheriffs office, we took immediate action. We fixed it. We resolved it, said Darren Wallace, GTLs executive vice president of operations.

Spitzer had proposed canceling the GTL contract within 30 days for breaching its contract, but he has not gained any public support from the other supervisors to do so.

Nelson and Spitzer raised serious concerns about GTLs contract in 2014, saying the prices charged to inmates were excessive. Over the next few months, they received maxed-out contributions from the contractor, and when the contract came up for a vote, Nelson and Spitzer both dropped their concerns and voted for the contract.

Nick Gerda writes for Voice of OC. He can be reached at ngerda@voiceofoc.org. Daily Pilot staff writer Luke Money contributed to this report.

luke.money@latimes.com

Twitter @LukeMMoney
A dispute between a political candidate and the Glendale Unified School District over free speech and security protocols found a resolution Monday.

Republican congressional candidate Johnny Nalbandian, who is running against powerful Democratic incumbent Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) to represent the 28th District, spoke at Glendale High School nearly two weeks after the former seafood tycoon was denied access at another district school, Clark Magnet High.

We were respected, [and] I didnt want to leave, Nalbandian texted Tuesday about his visit to Glendale High. It made me want to be back in high school.

Nalbandian said he spoke to four classes. He hit on topics such as his parents emigration from Eastern Europe to New Jersey during World War II, his time as high school student-body president and the food services industry.

In a video from Nalbandians Facebook page, the former Donald Trump campaigner encouraged Glendale students to resist the medias alleged manipulations.

Dont be brainwashed by the news media, Nalbandian said in the video. You all have beautiful minds, better than the news media. You have young, fresh, beautiful minds. Get out there and look.

On Wednesday, Aug. 29 Nalbandian and his campaign manager, Clark Magnet 2016 graduate Tristan Mouradian, say they were stopped in a hallway at Clark Magnet after being invited by an instructor to speak with students in a government class.

After a short wait, the pair said they were told to leave.

We were invited, Mouradian said, And we were going to speak about volunteer opportunities as well as what its like to run a campaign from the grass roots.

Mouradian said Clark administrators responded, First, we were told their bosses said that were not allowed to speak. Then we were told we couldnt speak because it was political soliciting. Again, we werent there to talk about politics.

Nalbandian offered another reason.

Im sorry to say, I really believe they turned me away because Im a constitutional conservative, Nalbandian said. You see this happening everywhere. Its a violation of free speech.

Mouradian said he was incensed because that same day Schiff spoke to Daily High students at First United Methodist Church of Glendale.

The biggest concern that we had was this wasnt because of some type of rule, Mouradian said. They didnt agree with Johnny on political issues.

District communications director Kristine Nam said Schiff was invited to speak by Daily officials because he is the current congressman.

As for the anticipated visit at Clark, Nam said that Schiff and Nalbandian were both invited and, so far, only Nalbandian accepted an invitation. Nalbandian was turned away because of two issues.

Clark has a policy that teachers must notify school administration of any planned classroom visitors for security reasons, she said. The teacher failed to notify administration prior to Nalbandians visit, which was a mistake on the teachers part. Clark administration has since issued a reminder to all teachers and staff about their policy.

Nam added, The second part was [Nalbandian] was invited to speak to the class about civic engagement, not to campaign. He showed up to campus in an election mobile with campaign materials and, when asked the reason for his visit, he said Im here to recruit volunteers for my campaign. This violates California Education Code.

Nalbandian confirmed he arrived at Clark in his Victory Red Chevy Suburban with campaign posters placed on five of eight windows.

Nalbandian contends that just because he drove a campaign vehicle doesnt equate that he was campaigning.

Those complaints fizzled Monday as Nalbandian was invited to Glendale High and addressed what he hopes are his future constituents.

After Im elected, I will come to this school, trust me, at least two to three times a year, Nalbandian told students in one class. And well have a town-hall type meeting with you kids because I love young minds.

andrew.campa@latimes.com

Twitter @campadresports
A spate of events geared toward supporting and connecting entrepreneurs in the tech industry is coming to Glendales so-called silicon mountains later this week.

The citys third annual Tech Week, which will run from Saturday until Sept. 21, will include popular returning events, including a job fair and a Shark Tank-style event called Pitchfest, as well as new additions, such as a business-pitching contest for young people 14 years old and younger.

Were really looking to foster an environment for start-ups to thrive in Glendale, said Tamar Sadd, Glendales economic development coordinator, who helped launch the event.

This year has more kid-focused offerings  including a family-friendly screening of a Scooby Doo prequel titled Daphne and Velma  because [those young people] are the next wave of entrepreneurs and thinkers, Sadd said.

A tech study conducted in 2017 showed there were 1,029 high-tech firms in the city, with 41,168 employees and total sales of roughly $5.6 billion .

That study brought to light just how many tech companies were in Glendale, but we realized that that they werent really interacting with each other, Sadd said. And that was the impetus for Tech Week.

The weeklong event will begin at 3 p.m. on Saturday with an immersive tech experience in the Alex Theatres forecourt, coinciding with Glendale Arts annual Open Arts and Music Festival. Activities will include the Microsoft Gadget Bar, virtual reality and augmented reality experiences, and Glendale Community College robotics program. The Alex is located at 216 N. Brand Blvd.

The following day will see the inaugural kid edition of the Startup Showcase running from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Glendale Downtown Central Library. Toddlers through teens will present their product pitches in an interactive experience that will let audience members invest in their favorites. The library is located at 222 E. Harvard St.

On Monday, attendees will have the opportunity to network with angel investors, venture capitalists and lenders at a Meet the Funders event from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Glen Arden Club. The event will feature an address by Nina Achadjian, founder of a seed fund focusing on Armenian entrepreneurs. The club is located at 357 Arden Ave.

Prospective employees can drop by the Tech Career Fair running from 9 a.m. to noon next Wednesday at the Glendale Downtown Central Library, where around 300 jobs will be up for grabs, according to organizers. Hosted by the Verdugo Jobs Center, employers on hand will include Service Titan, Age of Learning, LegalZoom and CalTech.

Later that day, there will be an event dedicated to supporting emerging female entrepreneurs. From 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Antaeus Theatre Co., women can practice their two- to-three-minute pitches in front of a panel of female founders, funders and entrepreneurs, who will offer guidance and pick a winner. The theater is located at 110 E. Broadway.

Brian MacMahon, founder of startup accelerator Expert DOJO, will deliver the weeks keynote speech on Sept. 20 at CBRE on 234 S. Brand Boulevard. Pitchfest will follow, with representatives from preselected start-ups presenting their ideas to a live audience and panel of judges. The winner will take home a $60,000 prize package.

A closing party is set for 6 to 9 p.m., also on Sept. 20, at the Green at the Americana at Brand, giving attendees the opportunity to meet and mingle in a casual setting over refreshments. The Americana is located at 889 Americana Way.

For more information, visit glendaletechweek.com.

lila.seidman@latimes.com

Twitter: @lila_seidman
Efforts over the past two years to boost the size of its group  particularly in the area of family membership  paid off over Labor Day weekend for St. Bede Branch 374 of the Italian Catholic Federation, which won two awards at the ICF National Convention held at the Town and Country Resort in San Diego.

We have established an ambitious family membership goal for 2019 focused on encouragement and recruitment of families with children as we continue to grow our youth group and family participation, stated Jack DeZell, president of Branch 374.

DeZell and Diane Restivo, second vice president and membership chairperson, accepted the national third-place award for increased membership in 2017-18 and took second place honors in the category of family membership growth.

Our organization is focused on evangelization, charity, spiritual aims and camaraderie. We invite all local Catholics regardless of ethnic origins to join, DeZell said.

To learn more about ICF Branch 374 at St. Bede the Venerable Catholic Church in La Canada Flintridge, call (818) 952-1969.

carol.cormaci@latimes.com

Twitter: @CarolCormaci
With Hurricane Florence grabbing headlines, its hard to remember that other hurricanes and tropical storms are also churning through the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and disrupting ship itineraries, including Tropical Storm Olivia, now striking Hawaii.

Most disruptions are taking place because of Florence, currently set to bear down on the Carolinas. Nearly 2 million people have evacuated the coastline as the storm takes aim with 140-mph winds and heavy rains.

Florence is expected to blow ashore late Thursday or early Friday, then slow down and unload 1 to 2 feet of rain that could cause flooding inland.

This storm is a monster, North Carolinas Gov. Roy Cooper said at a press conference. Its big and its vicious. It is an extremely dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane.

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Out at sea, cruise ships were taking no chances, with at least seven ships altering their courses, according to CruiseCritic.com, including:

--Norwegian Dawn, which departed from Boston on Sept. 7.

--Norwegian Escape, which left New York City on Sept. 9.

--Oceanias Sirena, now nearing the end of a repositioning cruise from Europe to Miami.

--Oceanias Insignia, which rerouted north and sailed to Saint John in New Brunswick, Canada, followed by two days in Portland, Maine.

--Royal Caribbeans Grandeur of the Seas, which departed from Baltimore on Sept. 8, is now being held in Floridas Port Canaveral (Orlando) until the storm passes and its safe to return to Baltimore.

--Carnival Pride, which left Baltimore on Sept. 9, has replaced its Bermuda itinerary with a Bahamas and Caribbean itinerary.

--Carnival Ecstasys return to Charleston, S.C., on Sunday may be delayed.

--Carnival Horizon, which sailed from New York on Sept. 5, has been rerouted.

The National Hurricane Center has also issued advisories for Hurricane Helene, Tropical Storm Isaac and Subtropical Storm Joyce, all storms in the Atlantic. Two ships were affected by Isaac: Princess Cruises Caribbean Princess and Carnivals Vista.

In the Pacific, Tropical Storm Olivia is causing trouble in the Hawaiian Islands.

According to the National Hurricane Center, Olivia is predicted to bring strong winds, heavy rainfall and high surf to much of the state of Hawaii into Wednesday night, with the potential for additional heavy rainfall continuing through Thursday night.

The tropical storm warning has been cancelled for much of Hawaii Island, but remains in effect for Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Lanai and Molokai.

Two ships have been affected by the storm: Norwegians Pride of America and Royal Caribbeans Radiance of the Seas.

ALSO

Hurricane Florence and tropical storms Isaac and Olivia prompt airlines to suspend ticket change fees

Oahu resorts $3,500 high-intensity hula class will leave you breathless

Christmas market cruises to Germany and Austria on sale, but not for long

travel@latimes.com

@latimestravel
Forget what you think you know about hula. An Oahu resort offers a two-day hula workout that has nothing to do with women in grass skirts swaying their hips to the sound of ukuleles. High Intensity Hula Training focuses on rigorous activities that challenge participants to channel their inner ancient Hawaiian warrior.

The class, open only to guests at the Four Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina, is taught by Kumu Hula (or master hula teacher) Laakea Perry, from the award-winning, all-male Ke Kai O Kahiki dance troupe. Its open only to resort guests.

For the record: The High Intensity Hula Training class, the subject of this story, has been canceled.

Members of an all-male hula dance troupe teach the techniques practiced by ancient warriors during a class at the Four Seasons resort on Oahu. (IJfke Ridgley)

Perry puts his students through rugged paces as he trains them in the ways of the warriors of centuries past. Stamina-building activities include rock running underwater, swimming in the ocean and tree climbing.

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The course is open to men and women. Perrys goal, according to a news release, is for participants to emerge as better people, with the forbearance, grace and strength of generations past.

Male hula dancers pay tribute to the end of the day during a beachside, sunset ritual. (Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina)

The class costs $3,500 per person, and participants must be guests at the Four Seasons. The resort is located in West Oahu, roughly 30 miles from the resorts along Waikiki Beach.

The price includes special meals featuring indigenous ingredients intended to provide energy and hydration. A welcoming 80-minute massage is also included in the price. Hotel rooms cost extra.

Women practice their hula skills on the grounds of the Four Seasons resort. (Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina)

Info and reservations: Four Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina (808) 679-0079

ALSO

On Kauai, where to eat for cheap: 20 places to chow down for $20

In Georgia, wine is a centuries-old tradition that has brought new appeal to the republic

After three months of quakes and spewing lava, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park prepares to reopen

travel@latimes.com

@latimestravel
A suicide bomber targeted a protest rally in eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday, killing more than 30 civilians, officials said, in the latest wave of spiraling violence in the country.

The strike intensified questions about the ability of the government and the efficiency of U.S.-led troops who have been stationed in Afghanistan in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, which were carried out by Al Qaeda, the terrorist network then based in the country.

Nearly 130 other civilians were hurt in Tuesdays strike, which occurred outside Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, near the border with Pakistan.

The provincial public health chief, Najibullah Kamawal, said 32 dead and 128 wounded were transported to hospitals in Nangarhar.

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In addition, some people at the scene immediately recovered the bodies of their relatives, he said, so the fatalities may go up.

Ahmed Ali Hazrat, who heads the Nangarhar provincial council, also said the death toll may rise, as some of the wounded were in critical condition.

Hazrat said the protesters moved on to their rally even after the attack. Officials said several hundred people gathered to complain about a local police commander by blocking the main highway between Jalalabad and the Torkham crossing on the border with Pakistan.

We are fed up with insecurity, he said. Attacks occur every day. And the government doesnt pay attention.

Hours earlier, several small explosions occurred near schools in various parts of Jalalabad, which has been the focus of deadly strikes by affiliates of the militant group Islamic State in recent months. A 14-year-old student was killed, and at least four people were wounded in the first attack, officials said.

The Taliban, the main insurgent group fighting the Afghan government and foreign troops, distanced itself from the blasts.

No other group asserted responsibility for any of Tuesdays bombings.

In a statement, embattled President Ashraf Ghani condemned Tuesdays suicide bombing.

The enemies of Afghanistan through such savagery cannot weaken the will of our people for a bright future and a stable country, he said.

On Sunday, Islamic State said one of its suicide bombers struck a convoy of gunmen who took to the streets in Kabul, the Afghan capital, for hours to commemorate the anniversary of the death of legendary anti-Taliban commander Ahmed Shah Massoud. The gunmen fired indiscriminately, mostly into the air, during the tribute to Massoud, disrupting the lives of tens of thousands of people. Seven people in the convoy were killed and more than 20 wounded in the Islamic State attack, officials said. Massoud was assassinated by Al Qaeda operatives posing as journalists on Sept. 9, 2001, in a resistance stronghold in northern Afghanistan.

Islamic State also claimed to have been behind two apparently coordinated attacks in which more than 20 people, including two Afghan journalists, were killed last week in a largely Shiite Muslim part of the capital.

The Islamic State attacks have deepened concern about already poor security as the resurgent Taliban makes inroads in some areas of northern Afghanistan. The group had no influence in those areas even when it was in power from 1996 to 2001, when it was ousted by Afghan resistance forces and U.S. airstrikes.

More than 150 government security personnel have died in attacks by Taliban militants in northern areas since Sunday, according to local officials.

The Taliban advances and the surge in attacks have also raised more skepticism about the governments ability to hold long-delayed parliamentary elections scheduled for next month, followed by a presidential vote in April.

In general, the violence has drawn relatively little attention in the West, in part because it hardly affects U.S. or NATO troops in Afghanistan.

But Afghans routinely ask why the United States, 17 years after it intervened in their country, has not managed to secure Afghanistan.

Salahuddin writes for the Washington Post. The Posts Sharif Hassan contributed to this report.
Warning against the danger of intensifying nationalism across Europe, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said in separate appearances Wednesday that the rise of populism and the far-right represents an existential threat to the European Unions future.

In their respective speeches at the German Reichstag in Berlin and the European Parliament building in Strasbourg, France, the two powerful leaders raised alarm over burgeoning right wing movements in several member countries amid the arrival of large numbers of refugees and migrants. They also lamented waning cohesion in the EU, which grew out of efforts to unite European nations in the decades following the devastation of World War II.

In that vein, European lawmakers in Strasbourg voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to sanction Hungary for flouting EU rules on democracy and civil rights in a first step that could eventually strip the country of any voting rights in the EU.

The EU has been critical of Hungarian leader Viktor Orban since he came to power in 2010 and began cracking down on press freedoms and placed pressure on courts in ways opponents said violate EU rules. Orbans firm opposition to allowing any refugees into his country precipitated the crisis in 2015 that led to the flood of refugees pouring into Germany, Austria and Sweden.

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President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker delivers the annual state of the European Union speech in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on Wednesday. (Patrick Seeger/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

The European Parliament voted 448 to 197 to start proceedings against Hungarys government for a clear risk of serious breach of European values. There is, however, little chance that Hungary will ultimately be suspended from voting in the EU because it has at least one ally, neighboring Poland, that would likely veto such a measure.

Merkel, in her address in Berlin, condemned right-wing mob attacks that erupted two weeks ago against foreigners in the eastern city of Chemnitz. Protests turned violent after two refugees were arrested in connection with the fatal knife attack on a German man, a crime that reignited a national debate on Merkels decision to let in more than 1.5 million foreigners since 2015.

Merkel, in office since 2005, said illegal migration has become the defining issue across the continent. Her own country, Germany, at first welcomed the flood of refugees from Syria and the Middle East with open arms but has now become divided by fears that the nation is losing its cultural identity. Even though the numbers of refugees and migrants has declined sharply this year, her own popularity and that of her conservative party have dwindled over the decision to bring in so many outsiders.

There is no excuse or justification for hunting people down, the use of violence and Nazi propaganda. German Chancellor Angela Merkel

A far-right party, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) has been gaining strength from month to month with strident opposition to Merkels pro-refugee policies, which President Trump has also criticized.

The fundamental dispute is also taking place across Europe, said Merkel, currently Europes longest serving leader, noting that European parliamentary elections next year would be a battleground over the issue of migration.

This challenge seems to me to be a bigger question for the cohesion of the EU than the euro-zone crisis was, she added, referring to Europes single currency, the euro, and Greeces sovereign debt crisis that caused enormous tensions across the EU in 2015.

Calling the lack of EU solidarity on migration the Achilles heel of Europe, Merkel, 64, used her speech to members of parliament to take aim at the mobs in Chemnitz as well as deputies of the AfD  now the largest opposition party in the Bundestag, running neck and neck in opinion polls with her own conservative party for supremacy in the state of Saxony. Video of groups of Germans chasing after people in Chemnitz has shocked the country that has long struggled to come to terms with its Nazi past.

There is no excuse or justification for hunting people down, the use of violence and Nazi propaganda, or showing hostility for people who appear to be [foreign], or who own a Jewish restaurant or for attacking police, said Merkel, referring to a kosher restaurant in Chemnitz that also came under attack by the rightists.

In Strasbourg, Juncker took aim at far-right nationalism and growing intolerance that has caused tensions in EU countries, none of which has taken in as many refugees as Germany. In his state-of-the-union address, the former Luxembourg prime minister, who will retire next year, recalled how Europe was caught off guard a little more than a century ago with tensions that led to the outbreak of World War I.

I am not suggesting that we are on the verge of a similar catastrophe in Europe, said Juncker. The EU is a guarantor of peace. Lets be happy that we live on a continent that enjoys peace thanks to the EU. Let us show more respect to the EU. Lets not sully its image. Let us defend our life, our way of being. Lets embrace the kind of patriotism that is not directed against others and look for solutions that allow us to coexist better.

Kirschbaum is a special correspondent.
Alarmed by sexual abuse scandals across the globe, Pope Francis has summoned the heads of every bishops conference in the world to a February summit to discuss abuse by Roman Catholic clerics and the protection of children.

The planned summit marks the first significant step the pope has taken in response to abuse cases in the United States and elsewhere that have thrown his papacy into crisis.

This is the first meeting of its kind in recent memory, said Vatican spokeswoman Paloma Garcia Ovejero on Wednesday after Francis top cardinal advisors announced the conference would be held at the Vatican between Feb. 21 and 24.

The summit, which Garcia Ovejero said would bring about 130 bishops to Rome, follows a wave of new allegations of priestly abuse and coverups, just as many within the church thought the sexual abuse scandals that had beset the church were abating.

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Last month a grand jury report in Pennsylvania revealed that more than 300 priests had been accused of abusing 1,000 children in the state since 1947, while a church-commissioned report in Germany has alleged 3,677 people were abused there between 1946 and 2014.

That report, leaked to German media on Wednesday, claims that more than half the victims were 13 or younger, that 1 in 6 cases involved rape and that at least 1,670 priests were involved.

Pope Francis castigated Chilean bishops in May over coverups of abuse in Chile and apologized to Chilean victims whom he earlier dismissed as lefties  left-wing agitators.

Francis about-turn on Chile convinced some Vatican watchers that he finally understood the gravity of coverups by bishops who shunt sexually abusive priests to new dioceses where they sometimes became repeat offenders.

Francis was challenged on his record again last month by a former U.S. nuncio, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, who published an open letter claiming he had informed the pope in 2013 about sexual abuse committed by Theodore McCarrick, the former archbishop of Washington.

McCarrick continued to lead an active life in the church until Francis removed him from the College of Cardinals in July after claims emerged that he abused an altar boy in the 1970s.

McCarricks checkered record, as well as reports that his penchant for sleeping with seminarians had been covered up by senior clerics, helped prompt a meeting planned for Thursday between the pope and a delegation of U.S. prelates led by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, president of the conference of U.S. bishops, who will be joined by his vice president, Jose Horacio Gomez, archbishop of Los Angeles.

It will be the first such meeting since 2002, when Pope John Paul II summoned U.S. cardinals to the Vatican to discuss the first wave of sex abuse revelations in the church.

Cardinal Donald Wuerl, who succeeded McCarrick as archbishop of Washington, meanwhile said this week that he was also heading to Rome to meet with the pope. He has been accused by Vigano of knowing about McCarricks sexual activity but keeping silent, a charge he denies.

The Vatican gave no indication of what Francis hopes to achieve at the February summit. In 2011, the Vatican asked bishops conferences to draw up guidelines for dealing with abuse, which many  though not all  have done.

If he wanted, Francis could issue a law tomorrow making it a church-wide obligation to report all accusations to the police, but he hasnt, said Emiliano Fittipaldi, author of Lussuria, or Lust, a book about sex abuse in the church.

To date Francis is anything but credible on tackling abuse, he said. Three of the cardinals he picked for his advisory commission  have been linked to coverups, his commission on abuse has achieved nothing and he scrapped plans for a tribunal to punish bishops caught covering up.

Kington is a special correspondent.

UPDATES:

2:10 p.m.: This article has been updated with staff reporting.

This article was originally published at 5 a.m.
Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry Amr Nassar had talks on Wednesday with a delegation from the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) on current projects carried out by the bank in Egypt.

The talks also discussed future projects to be implemented by the bank in Egypt and ways of enhancing joint cooperation in trade and industry across Africa.

The Chairman of the African Export-Import Bank, Benidet Urama, said that they have allocated $2 billion to Egypt's financing programs this year, of which $500 million is earmarked for small and medium-sized enterprises.

He added that the volume of Egypt's portfolio reached 18% of the bank's funding programs last year, amounting to $1.5 billion, of which $500 million was directed to the promotion of Egyptian-African trade, a program launched by the bank in 2015 aimed at supporting Egyptian trade and investment projects across the continent.

In a press statement, Nassar said that the file of joint cooperation between Egypt and other African countries is a top of priority of the ministry.

The ministry is seeking to boost trade and investment cooperation with other African countries, he added.

The meeting took up preparations for Egypts hosting of an African trade exhibition that will be held on December 11-17, the minister added.

Urama stressed that the financing of intra-African trade projects is the top priority of the bank during the current stage, pointing out that Egypt is one of the pivotal countries of the African trade system.

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With the Catholic Church again in crisis, Pope Francis will meet Thursday at the Vatican with a delegation of U.S. bishops who are demanding tough measures be taken in response to a new wave of clerical sex abuse allegations.

The Vatican said Tuesday that the delegation will be led by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, president of the conference of U.S. bishops, who requested the meeting last month after a Pennsylvania grand jury report revealed that more than 300 priests had been accused of abusing 1,000 children in the state since 1947.

DiNardo also wants an apostolic visitation, or Vatican investigation, into Theodore McCarrick, the former archbishop of Washington, who was removed from the college of cardinals in July after claims he abused a teenage altar boy in the 1970s.

In a statement released Tuesday, the Vatican said DiNardo would be joined at the Vatican at noon on Thursday by his vice president, Jose Horacio Gomez, archbishop of Los Angeles, and Cardinal Sean OMalley, the archbishop of Boston and head of the popes commission on priestly abuse.

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Father Brian Bransfield, the conferences secretary general, will also be present.

The scandal over McCarricks alleged abuse intensified Aug. 26 when Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, a former U.S. papal ambassador, released an 11-page letter claiming numerous top church officials had covered up McCarricks penchant for sleeping with seminarians, while Pope Francis had lifted sanctions placed on the prelate by his predecessor Pope Benedict.

Vigano demanded Francis resignation, turning him into a champion for conservative Catholics already at odds with the pontiff.

The pope so far has refused to comment, while his defenders have countered that if Benedict did order McCarrick to retreat from public life, as Vigano has claimed, McCarrick blatantly ignored the order, making Benedict as blameworthy as Francis.

On Monday, the so-called G-9 group of cardinals advising the pope on Vatican reform said in a statement that the Vatican was working on making necessary clarifications to the letter, suggesting a response was finally in the works.

As the G-9 meets in Rome this week, Francis is expected to drop from its ranks Chilean Cardinal Francisco Javier Errazuriz, who has been accused of ignoring evidence of abuse in Chile.

DiNardo has said he will present the Vatican with proposals to deal with the moral catastrophe of abuse in the U.S., including the increased involvement of lay people in following up on complaints.

The meeting on Thursday has been likened to the April 2002 meeting between U.S. cardinals and Pope John Paul II to discuss the first wave of sex abuse revelations in the U.S. Among them was the now disgraced McCarrick.

On Tuesday, a senior church official said the ongoing crisis was the churchs own 9/11, a reference to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the US.

Archbishop Georg Gaenswein, the prefect of the papal household and personal secretary to Pope Benedict, said the latest allegations showed how many souls have been wounded irrevocably and mortally by priests from the Catholic Church.

He added, Today, even the Catholic Church looks full of confusion at its own 9/11, at its own Sept. 11, even though this catastrophe isnt associated with a single date but rather as so many days and years, and innumerable victims.

Kington is a special correspondent.
President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Russian authorities know the identities of the two men accused by Britain of carrying out a nerve agent attack on a former spy, but he added that they are civilians and there is nothing criminal about them.

The statement by Putin marked an abrupt shift from Russias earlier position on the poisoning case that has damaged relations between Moscow and the West. Initially, Russian officials said they had no idea who the men were and questioned the authenticity of some of the security-camera photos and video released by Scotland Yard showing them in London and Salisbury, where the poisoning took place.

Britain last week charged two men in absentia, identifying them as Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov. Authorities alleged they were agents of Russias military intelligence agency known as the GRU and accused them of poisoning former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury on March 4.

Britain blamed the Russian government for the attack, an allegation that Moscow has vehemently denied.

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Putin on Wednesday did not try to dispute the British evidence, but he insisted the men were innocent.

We know who these people are, we have found them, Putin said in response to a question at a panel for an economic conference in Vladivostok in Russias Far East. There is nothing special or criminal about it, I can assure you.

Asked by the panels moderator if the men work for the military, Putin replied that they are civilians and called on the men to come forward and speak to the media.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov later told reporters that Putin never met the suspects in the poisoning and that Russia did not investigate them but merely checked the reports.

The Skripals poisoning by the deadly nerve agent Novichok triggered a tense diplomatic showdown. Britain and more than two dozen other countries expelled a total of 150 Russian diplomats, and Russia kicked out a similar number of those countries envoys.

The attack left the Skripals hospitalized for weeks, and two other residents of the area became seriously ill months later. One of them, a 44-year-old woman, later died.

British Prime Minister Theresa May said the attack was carried out by officers of the GRU and almost certainly approved at a senior level of the Russian state.

Her spokesman, James Slack, rejected the claim the men were civilians, saying they were GRU officers who used a devastatingly toxic illegal chemical weapon on the streets of our country.

We have repeatedly asked Russia to account for what happened in Salisbury in March and they have replied with obfuscation and lies, Slack said. I have seen nothing to suggest that has changed.

Putins abrupt shift from earlier official statements on the case fits a pattern by the Russian leader.

When troops in uniforms without insignia first appeared on the streets of Ukraines Crimean Peninsula in 2014 prior to its annexation, Putin insisted that they were not members of the Russian military, but merely local volunteers. Weeks later, Putin said there were Russian troops present there under a treaty with Ukraine that allowed Russia to leave a naval base in Crimea.

Similarly, Putin initially dismissed accusations of Russian state-sponsored hacking in the U.S. election system, but he later admitted the possibility that it was the work of some patriotic-minded Russians, although he denied that any of them had been directed by the Kremlin.

Ever since British authorities made their initial accusations of Russian government involvement in the poisoning, Russian officials and media sought to discredit them, either deriding their statements or offering alternative explanations.

After British authorities released photos and video of the men, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova alleged that two of the photos in a London airport had been doctored. She later walked back that statement, expressing frustration that British authorities had not shared the files with their Russian counterparts, leaving Moscow guessing about what really happened in Salisbury.

Moscow also questioned the origins of the nerve agent involved in the attack, saying it was not proven that the substance was developed by Russia and arguing that other countries, including Britain, had the capacity. Although Novichok is said to be extremely lethal, the Skripals survived, and Russian authorities even questioned why British officials put down the Skripals pets.

UPDATES:

2:45 p.m.: This article was updated with reporting from the Associated Press that includes new details.

This article was originally published at 5:20 a.m.
It was the most powerful earthquake Mexico City had experienced in decades: Magnitude 7.1. Dozens of buildings collapsed in a matter of seconds, leaving occupants little time to flee.

A new report has concluded that it wasnt the earthquake alone that killed 228 people nearly a year ago in the capital.

An investigation published Tuesday by the nonprofit Mexicans Against Corruption and Impunity found that dozens of buildings that collapsed in the quake had been shoddily constructed and wrongly deemed safe by building inspectors.

Salvador Camarena, a researcher with the group that published the report, said there was a human explanation for why some buildings fell while others stood.

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Earthquakes dont kill people, Camarena said. Corruption does.

The findings were all the more startling because Mexico is considered a world leader in earthquake safety, its strict building codes often held up as models for other seismically active regions.

The regulations, which required contractors to use higher quantities of steel, among other things, were developed after a massive quake in 1985 killed thousands of people and toppled hundreds of buildings.

But in this country where corruption touches every level of society  from local police stations to governors mansions  the new regulations have been unevenly enforced.

Over the last year, journalists, academics and a trade group representing architects have independently highlighted gaps in the permitting and inspection system that have allowed unsafe construction to flourish.

Chief among them is the outsourcing of building inspections to private engineers who are hired and paid by developers, an arrangement that gives engineers an incentive to declare buildings safe, even when they arent.

In 2016, researchers at the National Autonomous University of Mexico published a study that warned about such conflicts of interest. It found that many of the citys buildings did not meet the minimum safety requirements and would have an inadequate performance during an intense earthquake.

Volunteers and Mexican soldiers remove rubble in Jojutla on Sept. 23, 2017. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

Those predictions came true Sept. 19, when the earth started shaking violently shortly after 1 p.m., bringing down 38 buildings in the capital, including a textile factory, part of a university campus and an elementary school packed with children.

The study released Tuesday found that in the cases of at least 28 buildings, there was evidence of corruption in the safety inspection process, with developers cutting corners to increase profits and on occasion falsifying documents while inspectors looked the other way. More than 5,000 other buildings in the capital suffered serious damage.

The researchers uncovered multiple examples of an engineer signing off on construction that appeared to be faulty.

One case involved a brand new six-story apartment building in the rapidly developing neighborhood of Portales. The investigation found that the developer had ignored recommendations that it build a steel reinforcement cage in the foundation of the building, opting instead to build a cheaper concrete slab. The building also lacked sturdy support columns and had been constructed with rebar not recommended for buildings taller than three stories.

Despite those alleged deficiencies, an engineer signed off on the safety of the building less than a month before the earthquake sent it crashing down, killing two housekeepers  a mother and her daughter  who were working inside the building. Local officials gave their stamp of approval for the building in 2017 as well, even though the final construction did not match the building plans that had been submitted to the government three years before, the report said.

In many cases, neighbors lodged official complaints about the safety or legality of construction but were ignored, according to the report, one of the most detailed investigations into the factors that contributed to the damage in Mexico City.

City officials did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday.

After the quake, then-Mexico City Mayor Miguel Angel Mancera suggested that noncompliance with the new regulations was not a major factor in the damage toll, because most of the buildings that fell were built before 1985, before the new regulations were in place. But the new regulations also applied to any new construction on old buildings  and the tally of destruction included several of those.

One of the owners of the Enrique Rebsamen school, a private academy on the south of the city, had recently built a home for herself on top of the school, according to investigations by local journalists. Engineers said it was the weight of that poorly constructed addition that brought down the building, killing 19 students and seven adults. But just three months before the earthquake, an inspector had deemed the building safe.

The scandal became an issue in this summers mayoral campaign because one of the candidates, Claudia Sheinbaum, served as the head of the council district where the school was located.

Sheinbaum, who won in a landslide, told reporters that the school was cited twice for construction without a permit  in 2010 and 2014. Both times, the school paid a fine, applied for a permit after the fact and was allowed to resume construction.

The report also told the story of a large office building in the Condesa neighborhood.

Workers continue the search for victims buried under the rubble of a fallen office building in the Condesa neighborhood of Mexico City on Sept. 24, 2017. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

The seven-story building survived the 1985 earthquake, but apparently suffered damage that was never properly repaired. The researchers uncovered an inspection from 20 years ago that said the building was unsafe and shouldnt be rented. Yet the owners continued renting the space, even removing some support columns to make room for more office space, according to the report.

The building was packed with workers when the earthquake struck. Forty-eight people died, including Noemi Manuel Garcia, a recent college graduate who had just shown up for her first day of work.

Her family camped out for days outside the building as sirens wailed throughout the city and rescuers combed the rubble for survivors.

Her uncle, Juan Pedro Filomeno Manuel, appeared at a news conference where Tuesdays report was presented and implored authorities to do more to prevent similar tragedies.

There are acts of God, acts of nature that we cant do anything about, he said. But in this case we know this building was in a very bad state.

Columnist Hector de Mauleon, who also spoke at the news conference, said he was disappointed that the government doesnt appear to be adapting in the face of the earthquake. Many damaged buildings are in the process of reconstruction, but the city still relies on privately contracted engineers to sign off on building inspections.

This is going to keep happening, he said. Nothing has changed.

He criticized officials for prioritizing economic development over safety, noting that much of the citys recent explosion in building has occurred in areas, such as the Condesa neighborhood, that are widely known to sit on tectonic rifts.

Authorities, he said, allowed a shameless real estate boom in areas where there were known fault lines.

kate.linthicum@latimes.com

Twitter: @katelinthicum

Cecilia Sanchez in The Times Mexico City bureau contributed to this report.
The community is invited to attend a Laugh for a Cause Comedy Show this month at Fountain Crest Retirement Community to help Lehigh Community Services.

Fountain Crest Retirement Community Development Director Denise Talt said they are holding a Laugh for a Cause Comedy Show at 1:30 p.m. Sept. 21 with all proceeds going towards Lehigh Community Services.

We have real comedians coming from Laugh In Comedy Club. There are two or three comedians coming, she said. We are asking everyone to come. There is no cost for tickets. We are just asking for donations for Lehigh Community Services.

Those interested in attending are asked to RSVP by calling Talt at (239) 303-1230.

We are also giving refreshments. The should RSVP, so we make sure we have enough. They can call me anytime before the event, she said.

Fountain Crest Retirement Community recently held a Rock-A-Thon where people pledged $1 a minute. The event raised $250.

The money raised from both of the events will be given to Lehigh Community Services on Thursday, Sept. 27.

We want to help our community, Talt said of why they are holding the fundraisers. We are just starting up doing more charity events. We will be doing it annually.

The Fountain Crest Retirement Community is at 1230 Taylor Lane.
Due to the support of Lee County Commissioner Cecil Pendergrass, the Lehigh Acres Senior Center will keep its doors open.

Lehigh Acres Senior Center Director Melissa Barry said the Senior Center was built in 1983 using funds from the State of Florida, as well as private donors. It was given to Lee County as a private program.

That changed a few years later when Lee County wanted to privatize the Lehigh Acres Senior Center. There was a three way contract among the Lehigh Acres Senior Center, Lee County and Lehigh Regional Medical Center.

Approximately four years ago the Lehigh Regional Medical Center approached the Senior Center and said it could no longer provide between $70,000 and $120,000 a year.

Contributions dropped from $100,000 to $12,000 to $2,400 this year.

When that happened my role as the director changed. I had to go from just having funds to marketing and getting the Senior Center out there, Barry said. I had to step it up. I had to figure out a way to keep this place open.

Pendergrass changed the fate of the Lehigh Acres Senior Center about a year ago.

He said Mike Welch, with the Lehigh Acres Municipal Services Improvement District, told him about the Lehigh Acres Senior Center and the great things it did for the community.

I went out there and saw how much energy there was in the building. They dont have a thousand different country clubs, they have this one facility, he said, adding that more than a thousand seniors use the Senior Center.

When Pendergrass visited the Senior Center, Barry shared that she wanted new flooring and was struggling financially with about 1,200 members. Pendergrass provided his business card and extended an invitation to give him a call.

When Pendergrass heard that later this year, by Jan. 1, they were going to have to close because they could not operate anymore, he took action. He said he went back to the county and brought the Senior Center before the Lee County Board of County Commissioners.

Questions stemmed around what the county could do to help the Senior Center and keep it open, so older residents had a place to go.

I didnt want seniors to sit in front of Family Dollar and play checkers, Pendergrass said if the Senior Center closed.

A meeting was arranged and discussions began of what to do. The county wrote a proposal, which the Senior Center received about two weeks ago. Numbers and figures were discussed at length.

Seniors here like their independence and like to know they have a say of what is going on, Barry said, adding that she took the proposal back to their board. They listened and asked questions. It was passed by our board of directors.

With the agreement, Lee County will take over the financial aspect of the Senior Center. In addition, Barry will become a Lee county employee as of Oct. 1.

Pendergrass said the Lehigh Acres Senior Center will now work under county policy under Parks & Recreation. He said the only physical difference with the county taking over is the Senior Center does not have to worry about how they are going to pay the light bill anymore.

The Senior Center has a budget of about $250,000 now under Lee County Parks & Recreation, which includes the salary of Barry and a maintenance employee. Pendergrass said maintenance will be on the grounds at all times.

Pendergrass said they have plans of updating the building. For instance, they are looking to expand the parking on the backside of the Senior Center. The project would have been costly for the Senior Center, but now it can be done through the county.

When something broke at the center, they may not have had the means to fix it. Now, the county will provide the financial means.

We are here for good, Barry said. This isnt a one-, two-year thing. Twenty to 30 years down the road, it is still going to be here.

Pendergrass said volunteers, as of Oct. 1, will receive volunteer hour credits for the work they put in at the Lehigh Acres Senior Center.

We save millions of dollars a year in manpower because of volunteers every year, he said of efforts throughout the county.

Although the Lehigh Acres Senior Center no longer has to worry about its funding, they will continue to hold fundraisers.

It has been very stressful the last few years of trying to figure out how to keep this place open, Barry said. I applied for grants. We went to businesses. There is nothing in Lehigh to be able to afford $100,000. We didnt fit in the scope we need to fit into.

Barry said they will continue to fundraise because it is something they have planned, it gives members something to do, it helps the Senior Center and it helps local businesses of Lehigh.

What better way to be able to help support our seniors and community than to have fundraisers here? she said. The best way we can show we are grateful is to make sure we are using the facility, volunteering and helping the community grow, she said.

The Senior Center is now financially stable, thanks to Lee County, she said.

The beauty of the partnership, is if they decide they want to hold night classes for seniors, they can open the building and offer those.

We can open up the building to do that here for the people in Lehigh. We open up an opportunity for no smoking and no drinking. They dont have to worry about going into Fort Myers and fighting traffic. Its a good place for people to be able to go and have fun and not drive home too far. The possibilities are there because of Cecil Pendergrass, she said.

This new arrangement will not affect any of the activities taking place at the Senior Center, or the boutique, which will remain open, Barry said.

They want us to grow just as much as we want to grow. They might be able to get a county employee to stay at night. When I cant be here, there will be a county employee here, she said. I want this to grow. We want it to be open to the members and open to the community. The more we do to help our community grow the better off we are going to be.

The Senior Center remaining open would not have happened if Pendergrass did not take the initiative, Barry said.

He was very humble about it. I am here to tell you that guy was amazing with what he did. He stepped it up and did exactly what a county commissioner should be doing. He took an initiative to help people, Barry said.
It is common for companies to organize various informal events where workers can come with their partners. One of those...
KarmSolar, Egypts fastest growing solar energy solutions company, signed an agreement with Attijari Finances to act as KarmSolars global advisor and coordinator for the companys equity fundraising process, a press release by the company said on Wednesday.

This move comes as part of the augmentation of KarmSolars fundraising mechanism as it races to deliver its pipeline of private solar Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). During the first phase of the agreement, KarmSolar aims to raise approximately EGP 500 million of equity to operate the first batch of its solar powered stations.

KarmSolar currently has a pipeline of committed projects with a total capacity of 65 MWs through its subsidiary KarmPower that will be financed through the first phase of the fundraiser. These projects include a 23.5 MW project for Dakahlia Group, and a 20 MW power generation and distribution project for El-Badr for Investment and Commercial Spaces (Arkan Plaza).

Once operational, these stations will join KarmPowers existing portfolio of clients, which include Juhayna, Fridal, EFG Hermes, and Orion Food Industries.

Attijari Finances scope in the agreement includes acting as a global advisor and coordinator for KarmSolars equity fundraising mission, where the investment bank will assist KarmSolar in the due diligence, valuation, marketing material preparation, and the identification and selection of equity partners.

Yasmine Nassar, KarmSolars Investment Manager said, this move is key in our plan to ramp up our fundraising process. The main motivation behind choosing Attijari Finances is their deep understanding of the power markets and renewable energy financing through their experience in Morocco, and we are looking forward for finalizing this round and the future ones with Attijari Finances.

Ahmed Zahran, KarmSolars CEO said that in less than a year, KarmSolars pipeline of committed projects grew in the private PPA market we created from 0.6 MW to 65 MW.

Since then, weve already delivered Egypts first two grid-connected PPAs - financed by Attijariwafa - and before the end of this year we will have delivered a third project and reached midway in constructing the fourth. This rapid growth, and our future expansion plans entail that move another step ahead of the market to create a sustainable mechanism for financing private solar PPAs in Egypt, he continued.

Idriss Berrada, Attijari Finances General Manager said, in view of the important funding requirements of the renewable energy sector in Africa and the Middle East, Attijari Finances role is to align the interests of project sponsors and relevant investors to develop attractive investment opportunities in both regions. We are honored to collaborate with KarmSolar and we look forward to building a long-lasting working relationship to help this company fulfill its development plan.

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On Sept 10, 2017 Hurricane Irma made landfall over Florida, taking with it the lives of 84 people statewide, leaving millions without power and hundreds of thousands with property damage.

A Category 5 hurricane at its peak, Irma was the fifth costliest U.S. Atlantic Hurricane in history, with damages totaling $53.4 billion.

Lee County was hit hard by 100-plus mph winds and massive rainfall that lead to flooding and power outages across the region.

County officials have learned a lot in the calendar year, trying to absorb as much information as they can and implementing what theyve learned into future seasons.

Every hurricane, every storm, every disaster we always learn something new. If we dont learn, then we are not really doing our job, said Lee County Emergency Management Director Lee Mayfield. So taking all those components and lessons learned from Irma  some are really able to be applied really quickly. A lot weve already done.

County spokesperson Betsy Clayton provided numbers attesting to the staggering costs from last years historic storm.

Countywide, commercial loss due to Irma totaled $102.4 million, residential loss totaled $725.9 million, as well as an additional $4.4 million in other loss.

Irma left behind 2,704,829.76 cubic yards of debris in her wake in unincorporated Lee County and the Village of Estero, costing $39,038,906.50 in removal costs.

Nearly 10,000 traffic signs and sign supports have been repaired, as well as 303 traffic signals.

Countless businesses were affected, many closing their doors for some time to deal with roof issues and lack of power.

All told, 2,996 Small Business Administration Loans were approved, totaling $117.7 million, with 75 Emergency Bridge Loans approved, totaling $3.1 million.

Southwest Florida homes were hit hard by Irmas intense winds, deteriorating roofs and spewing shingles about.

A total of 12,175 roofing permits were issued from Sept. 11, 2017 to Aug. 23 of this year.

Flooding was another issue for Lee County residents, with some roadways deemed unusable for people looking to leave their house post-storm and retrieve additional supplies.

More than 36 miles of major drainage canals were cleared of debris after Irma.

Lee County has allocated $3 million in its 2018-2019 budget for flood remediation.

Lee County has also been working hard on making sure its residents, as well as its employees, are more prepared this time around.

They county has also bolstered its shelter operations.

Whatever the disaster may be, were broadening our reports. We always want to do better, whether its short, medium or long-term changes, Mayfield said.

He added that the county is boosting its preparedness for staffing of first responders, making sure they and their families are safe and can get where they need to if a disaster occurs.

Many first responders have no choice to evacuate, as their duties require them to stay and be of service.

Last year, around 300,000 people evacuated while 14 shelters housed 35,000 Lee County residents, including 3,500 pets. There were two special needs shelters.

From the first shelter opening to the last shelter closing, they operated for six weeks and two days.

We are paying special attention to our shelter operations and those who help us get them together, Mayfield said.

Our shelter decisions are based on the storm. We feel confident in our shelter locations no matter how many we need to open. Were working on staffing, food, investing in generators, impact glass, square-footage and capacity, Mayfield said.

Mayfield advises residents to have a plan to stay with a friend of family member, even a hotel, outside of an evacuation zone if you can.

Shelter opening information can be found at www.Leeeoc.com, as well as social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.

The more you prepare, the better your outcome, Mayfield added.

He says to develop and talk through a family disaster plan and to build a disaster supply kit.

You can print out our family emergency plan, where it has questions to help shape what your family should do if a disaster scenario was to occur on our website.

Keeping records, making sure food and water is available for humans and pets alike, as well as getting any medicines in order are some things to add to your disaster supply kit according to Mayfield.

Staying up-to-date on the latest information is key as well.

Knowledge is power in these situations.

For hurricane preparedness tips, visit www.leegov.com/publicsafety or visit the hurricane guide posted to the Citizen website at lehighacrescitizen.com

-Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad_cj
A popular Korean drums troupe is scheduled to give a concert while food festivals will be organised in Luxor on 31 October and on 28 November in Aswan

The director of the Korean Cultural Centre in Cairo, Yang Sang Keun, met with a group of journalists this week at the centre in Dokki to discuss the centres cultural programme.

The Scent of Korea performance by YI-DO or E-DO ensemble took place this week. They are composed of six talented musicians, led by Kyung-Hwa, Yu, who is credited with reviving the chulhyungeum, an ancient instrument from Korea that was almost on the verge of extinction.

The ensemble gave a concert on Sunday 9 September at the Alexandria Opera House and on Tuesday 11 September at the Cairo Opera House Main Hall.

In October, a popular Korean drums troupe is scheduled to give a concert; Korean cultural days including musical performances, film screenings, and Korean food festivals will be organised in Luxor on 31 October and on 28 November in Aswan, said Yang.

He added that the centre has a special interest in reaching Egypts remote governorates, to introduce Korean culture and arts there.

At the end of the year, a Korean food festival will be held at one of the five-star hotels in Cairo, introducing the traditional Korean cuisine to the Egyptian public he said.

Yang also said that many Egyptian troupes had put on shows in Seoul and other Korean cities in past years but we are looking for more.

He affirmed that he will discuss future cultural cooperation in different art field with the head of the Academy of Arts and of the Artists Syndicate, Ashraf Zaki, in the coming days.

There are also plans for an art exhibition featuring a group of Korean contemporary visual artists in 2019.

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Work Study Positions Available



The Malahat Review is hiring for two work study positions at the University of Victoria. All eligible UVic students are encouraged to apply. Please note that to be eligible you must meet financial need criteria as outlined by the Student Awards and Financial Aid office.

How to apply: Visit UVic's Work Study webpage for details and forms, apply for Work Study status, and when approved, send us a cover letter and resume (see below).

Deadline: ongoing until suitable applicants are found!

Marketing and Promotions Assistant

DUTIES:

Assist the Malahats staff with marketing and promoting the magazine, including:

Recruit, place, and track paid and exchange print advertising for each of the four annual issues

Recruit, place, and track paid and exchange advertising for the website and virtual newsletter

Maintain relationships with existing print and web advertisers

Contact publishers of the books reviewed in each issue to recruit paid advertising

Help with the organization of public events including:

creating content for our website



distributing posters on campus and around Victoria



contacting publishers to request author books for door prizes and ads for program



working at public events, helping with set-up and take-down

Other related duties, as time permits, including help with proofreading and other editorial tasks

QUALIFICATIONS:

The successful candidate will have a broad knowledge of current social media tools and will be conversant with Windows-based Word, Excel and WordPress. Outreach skills, including proper email and social media etiquette, are an asset. A thorough command of English is required. An undergraduate or graduate Writing or English student (especially a student from either department whos taken Professional Writing courses) is preferred.

JOB LOCATION ON-CAMPUS: Clearihue Building Room D262

WORK STUDY WAGE: $13.50 per hour, including 4% vacation pay

HOURS AVAILABLE: 120 (from September 2018 until April 2019)

HOW TO APPLY: Cover letter and resume to malahat@uvic.ca (to the attention of assistant editor Rhonda Batchelor)



Editorial Assistant

DUTIES:

Assist the Malahats staff with a variety of tasks, including:

Screen submissions received on Submittable in three genres (poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction) prior to their being assigned to editorial board members

Log and process contest entries

Help with proofreading and other editorial tasks

Maintain the magazines index

Contribute issue summaries to Our Back Pages project

Assist with public events

Other related duties, as time permits

QUALIFICATIONS:

The successful candidate must be able to critically assess poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction; have excellent computer skills; be familiar with Word and Excel, and have a strong interest in and/or knowledge of contemporary writing, especially Canadian literature. An excellent command of English is required. An undergraduate or graduate Writing student is preferred.

JOB LOCATION ON-CAMPUS: Clearihue Building Room D262

WORK STUDY WAGE: $13.50 per hour, including 4% vacation pay

HOURS AVAILABLE: 120 (from September 2018 until April 2019)

HOW TO APPLY: Cover letter and resume to malahat@uvic.ca (to the attention of assistant editor Rhonda Batchelor)


The third periodic meeting of Egypt Embassy in Belgrade with the Egyptian community in Serbia focuses on media relations between the two countries

The Egyptian Embassy in Serbia held this week the third meeting in a series of periodic meetings with the Egyptian community in Belgrade since the beginning of 2018 to discuss specific ideas for presenting Egyptian cultural material to the media.

In his opening remarks, Ambassador of Egypt in Belgrade Amr Aljowaily stressed that the aim of these periodic meetings is to establish a continuous dialogue open to all without prior invitation, and to listen to the suggestions of the members of the community, to promote bilateral relations in various fields.

He called on the audience to focus on the prospects of boosting cooperation between Egypt and Serbia in the field of media, since the first two meetings addressed economic and cultural issues, respectively.

Representatives of the Egyptian Serbian community, who came from varied specializations in tourism, stock exchange, education, and entrepreneurship, proposed their ideas, including the importance of increasing media coverage of Egypt in the Serbian media by encouraging tourism companies and others to include promotional material on Egypt. They also asked popular Egyptian films and TV serials to be broadcast in Serbian translation or dubbing.

A member of the community also revealed his intentions to establish a kindergarten or primary school for the second generation of Serbs of Egyptian or Arab origin.

Aljowaily told the audience that the Embassy had already started a series of communications activities, citing that a delegation of leading media organizations in Serbia is already in Egypt to further explore the enormous tourism potential in the Red Sea Governorate.

The ambassador concluded by stressing the importance of the continuation of these meetings as an opportunity to increase the links between the embassy and the members of the community, stressing that the most important ideas are transmitted to the competent authorities through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to study them, calling on members of the community to follow the social media channels of the Embassy, which provides an interactive medium to communicate.

The Embassy has the same handle for its page on Facebook and account on Twitter (@EgyptInSerbia), thus offering a platform for direct communication with the Serbian community directly, with content in Serbian gradually increasing.

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Last Monday, I noted that perhaps the time has come for the Philippines to have its own stress test to gauge the state of our countrys economic affairs and the impact of all the turbulence, contrived or otherwise, in and out of the country on the life of ordinary citizens. I suggested that the test protocol be patterned after the one used by non-government organization The Campaign for Americas Future, which successfully assessed the state of the economy in each of the US 50 states, checked on the problems affecting families and their communities, and proposed solutions moving forward. To better appreciate CAFs work and its possible use in the Philippine setting, I am excerpting the main body of the research in this column. It is my hope that we will find this useful to help us make responsive and responsible answers to the conundrum we are all in, the measures needed to ease the pain and, yes, the apprehensions and the fears which will definitely slow down our efforts to lift us from out of the cycle of poverty and underdevelopment. Here goes: The Campaign for Americas Future Stress Test: A summary The Stress Test shows trouble across the board. It shows flat wages and rising costs. It shows more people without health insurance and the neglect of such established public responsibilities as state support for college education. It demonstrates overall economic mismanagement and it quantifies the general level of stress in this historically optimistic country. What The Stress Test MeasuresUnemployment rates and changes in unemployment rates Changes in the number of goods-producing and service-providing jobs Changes in available construction jobs Changes in available manufacturing jobs Changes in average weekly wage Costs and quality of life People without health insurance, per 1,000 residents; rate and change over time; overall and employer-based Population spending 25 percent of pre-tax income on health care; rate and change Public college tuition as a percentage of income; rate and change over time Bankruptcy, per capita; rate and change over timeForeclosures, per capita Average price of gas, change over timeTo relieve this economic stress, this report shows, we need a new economic strategy. We need to stop using tax dollars to bail out Wall Street bankers and start using public money to benefit the struggling middle class. This means the creation of new, good jobs here at home and a strategy for retaining knowledge and technology in America. We need to expand public investment in infrastructure as well as human capital in order to ensure the safety and well-being of all Americans. This includes investment in roads, bridges, education and health care. These reforms are the foundation for a new economy in which all Americans benefit. The elements of the new direction include:We should launch a concerted drive for energy independence, and put people to work building a green economy.We need a clear strategy for our nation in the global economy. The first step out of the hole we are in is to stop digging. No more NAFTAs, no more trade accords written by and for multinational corporations and banks.We need to ensure our children have access to the best education in the world: universal pre-kindergarten, smaller classes in earlier grades, challenging after-school programs, and affordable college or advanced training. Invest in repairing roads and bridges, sewage systems and school buildings, ensuring that the jobs created are good jobs.We need to revive the American Dream and help working families with the basics. We should start with health care reform, providing for all a guaranteed choice of health care, just as members of Congress have. Provide every business and individual with the option of either keeping their current private plan, if they like it, or the ability to buy into a high-quality public plan.We need to correct the imbalance between the top floor and the shop floor to ensure that profits and productivity are widely shared. Raise the floorincrease the minimum wage, guarantee workers paid sick days and family leave. Empower workers to organize, pass the Employee Free Choice Act, turn the National Labor Relations Board back into a watchdog for workers. Pass comprehensive immigration reform, gain control of our borders and enforce fair labor standards so employers cant exploit undocumented workers. Americans have a right to know how we can build a sustainable economy. Presidential candidates need to address the issues that are relevant to working Americans, refocusing national attention from the wants of Wall Street to the needs of Main Street. We can begin to relieve Americans economic stress by challenging candidates and elected officials to support and promote real solutions to real economic problems.
How Bitcoin Will Make You Big Money Again

If you are a Bitcoin fan or looking for the next opportunity for a Bitcoin rally, you may not have long to wait before a price breakout takes place. Our research team, at www.TheTechnicalTraders.com , believes a price breakout may occur before the end of 2018  the only question is will it be a breakout rally or a breakdown crash before the next mega rally?

Cryptos and, in particular, Bitcoin has increased in popularity and adoption over the past 24 months across the globe. Recently, Citigroup has announced new technology making Crypto transactions more secure and reducing the risk of such transactions. Additionally, Circle recently announced a US Dollar based Crypto-currency that is backed by Goldman-Sachs. News from Europe is that the EU has been urged to adopt common Crypto-Currency rules that will fuel more attention and enterprise on developing suitable Crypto solutions for the European markets.

All of this plays into our research that a breakout/breakdown is inevitable and it is just a matter of time before this coiling price consolidation apexes and expands.

This chart shows massive breakdown washout below $6000 taking it back to prices before crypto became popular in early 2017.

This next chart below shows our cycle analysis and how much bitcoin moved from our cycle bottoms to tops. We are now at NEARING a critical juncture of a $6000 breakdown which is clearly a support level, and a potential major cycle bottom or continuation down cycle. Huge money can be made from this extreme volatility that is about to unfold and savvy technical traders can see the profit potential unfolding.

We urge all traders to keep Cryptos in focus over the next few weeks and months. Our research team shares our proprietary analysis and research with our paid members regarding the Crypto-currency trends and trades.

If you want to learn what we believe will be the next big move in the Crypto markets, then visit www.TheTechnicalTraders.com to learn more. Our proprietary modeling systems are clearly showing us what we should expect over the next few weeks and months. As a member, you will have access to this research and benefit from our Daily Research Videos.

Chris Vermeulen

www.TheTechnicalTraders.com

Chris Vermeulen has been involved in the markets since 1997 and is the founder of Technical Traders Ltd. He is an internationally recognized technical analyst, trader, and is the author of the book: 7 Steps to Win With Logic



Through years of research, trading and helping individual traders around the world. He learned that many traders have great trading ideas, but they lack one thing, they struggle to execute trades in a systematic way for consistent results. Chris helps educate traders with a three-hour video course that can change your trading results for the better.



His mission is to help his clients boost their trading performance while reducing market exposure and portfolio volatility.



He is a regular speaker on HoweStreet.com, and the FinancialSurvivorNetwork radio shows. Chris was also featured on the cover of AmalgaTrader Magazine, and contributes articles to several leading financial hubs like MarketOracle.co.uk

Disclaimer: Nothing in this report should be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any securities mentioned. Technical Traders Ltd., its owners and the author of this report are not registered broker-dealers or financial advisors. Before investing in any securities, you should consult with your financial advisor and a registered broker-dealer. Never make an investment based solely on what you read in an online or printed report, including this report, especially if the investment involves a small, thinly-traded company that isnt well known. Technical Traders Ltd. and the author of this report has been paid by Cardiff Energy Corp. In addition, the author owns shares of Cardiff Energy Corp. and would also benefit from volume and price appreciation of its stock. The information provided here within should not be construed as a financial analysis but rather as an advertisement. The authors views and opinions regarding the companies featured in reports are his own views and are based on information that he has researched independently and has received, which the author assumes to be reliable. Technical Traders Ltd. and the author of this report do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any content of this report, nor its fitness for any particular purpose. Lastly, the author does not guarantee that any of the companies mentioned in the reports will perform as expected, and any comparisons made to other companies may not be valid or come into effect.

Chris Vermeulen Archive

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




This Will Be the Mother of All Minsky Moments

We have all had the fun as kids of going to the beach and playing in the sand. Remember taking your plastic bucket and making sandpiles? Slowly pouring the sand into ever bigger piles, until one side of the pile starts to collapse?



In his very important book Ubiquity, Why Catastrophes Happen, Mark Buchamane wrote about an experiment with sand that three physicists named Per Bak, Chao Tang, and Kurt Wiesenfeld conducted in 1987.



In their lab at Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York, they started building sandpiles, piling up one grain of sand at a time. Its a slow process, so they wrote a computer program to do it. Not as much fun but a whole lot faster.





John Mauldin Archive

During this experiment, they learned some interesting things that can help us understand how all sorts of calamities, including market crashes, unfold.What is the typical size of an avalanche? After a huge number of tests with millions of grains of sand, they found out there is no typical number:Some involved a single grain; others, ten, a hundred, or a thousand. Still others were pile-wide cataclysms involving millions that brought nearly the whole mountain down. At any time, literally anything, it seemed, might be just about to occur.The pile was completely chaotic in its unpredictability.Now, lets read this next paragraph. It is important, as it creates a mental image that helps us understand the organization of the financial markets and the world economy. (emphasis mine)To find out why [such unpredictability] should show up in their sandpile game, Bak and colleagues next played a trick with their computer. Imagine peering down on the pile from above and coloring it in according to its steepness. Where it is relatively flat and stable, color it green; where steep and, in avalanche terms, ready to go, color it red. What do you see? They found that at the outset, the pile looked mostly green, but that, as the pile grew, the green became infiltrated with ever more red. With more grains, the scattering of red danger spots grew until a dense skeleton of instability ran through the pile.If the red network was sparse, and all trouble spots were well isolated one from the other, then a single grain could have only limited repercussions. But when the red spots come to riddle the pile, the consequences of the next grain become fiendishly unpredictable. It might trigger only a few tumblings, or it might instead set off a cataclysmic chain reaction involving millions. The sandpile seemed to have configured itself into a hypersensitive and peculiarly unstable condition in which the next falling grain could trigger a response of any size whatsoever.Scientists refer to this as a critical state. The term critical state can mean the point at which water would go to ice or steam, or the moment that critical mass induces a nuclear reaction, etc.But to physicists, [the critical state] has always been seen as a kind of theoretical freak and sideshow, a devilishly unstable and unusual condition that arises only under the most exceptional circumstances [in highly controlled experiments].... In the sandpile game, however, a critical state seemed to arise naturally through the mindless sprinkling of grains.So, they asked themselves, could this phenomenon show up elsewhere? In the earths crust, triggering earthquakes in wholesale changes in an ecosystem or in a stock market crash?The scientists found that the size and timing of an avalanche depend on what they refer to as fingers of instability:[A]fter the pile evolves into a critical state, many grains rest just on the verge of tumbling, and these grains link up into fingers of instability of all possible lengths. While many are short, others slice through the pile from one end to the other. So, the chain reaction triggered by a single grain might lead to an avalanche of any size whatsoever, depending on whether that grain fell on a short, intermediate, or long finger of instability.Now we come to a critical point in our discussion. Read this next excerpt with the markets in mind (again, emphasis mine, and this is critical to our understanding of markets and change. Maybe you should read it two or three times.):In this simplified setting of the sandpile, the power law also points to something else: the surprising conclusion that even the greatest of events have no special or exceptional causes.What makes one avalanche much larger than another has nothing to do with its original cause, and nothing to do with some special situation in the pile just before it starts.Now, lets couple this idea with a few other concepts.First, economist Dr. Hyman Minsky points out that stability leads to instability. The more comfortable we get with a given condition or trend, the longer it will persist. And then when the trend fails, the more dramatic the correction.Long-term stability produces unstable financial arrangements. If we believe that tomorrow will be the same as last week, we are more willing to add debt or postpone savings in favor of current consumption.Thus, says Minsky, the longer the period of stability, the higher the potential risk for even greater instability when market participants must change their behavior.Relating this to our sandpile, the longer a critical state builds up in an economy, the greater the potential for a serious avalanche.As I wrote in my Train Wreck series, ( recap here ). We are adding sand to not just one inevitably collapsing sandpile, but dozens and maybe hundreds of them. They will not keep growing forever.I explained in Part 1 of that series,  Credit-Driven Train Wreck , how a liquidity crisis will probably set off the chain of events that end in the Great Reset.Which particular sandpile will fall first? It could be many, but I think high-yield corporate debt is the most likely. Millions of investors think they can collect those juicy yields and then be able to sell when trouble appears.I think the mother of all Minsky moments is building. It will not be an instant sandpile collapse, but instead take years because we have $500 trillion of debt to work through.Remember, that debt just cant be pooped away. It is both money somebody owes and an asset on somebody elses balance sheet. We cant just take that away without huge consequences to culture and society.But the fingers of instability, the total credit system, are seemingly growing with more red sand dots every month. All are inextricably linked. One day, another Thailand or Russia or something else (it makes no difference which) will start the cascade.Sharp macroeconomic analysis, big market calls, and shrewd predictions are all in a weeks work for visionary thinker and acclaimed financial expert John Mauldin. Since 2001, investors have turned to histo be informed about whats really going on in the economy. Join hundreds of thousands of readers, and get it free in your inbox every week.

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




Stock Market Final Probe Higher ... Then the PANIC!

SPX closed above Short-term support at 2887.58, but SPX futures are challenging it this morning. Despite the cross-currents, there is room for yet another probe higher that may last until early afternoon (near 1:00 pm). That will be the 60th hour and 8.6 days from the top.

Looking at todays economic calendar, the most intriguing item at 1:00 pm is the 10-Year T-Note Auction.

ZeroHedge reports, Summary:

Asian stocks slumped for the 10th consecutive day, the longest losing streak since 2002.

European and US stocks reversed Asian losses, trading modestly in the green

Oil extended previous sessions gains post APIs as Hurricane Florence approaches the Carolinas

CAD extends overnight gains NAFTA nears a perfect storm on dairy access

Dark clouds clearing for UK PM May as ERG downplays overthrow but presents an alternate Brexit deal

Looking ahead, highlights include, DoEs, Feds Brainard & Bullard and supply from the US

The "alligator jaws" chart presented by Jeff Gundlach during his Double Line conference call on Tuesday, which showed the unprecedented divergence between the US stocks and the rest of the world...

NDX futures have challenged Short-term resistance at 7536.01 this morning. NDX may reach its peak sooner than SPX, so keep an eye on it as the day progresses. It appears that NDX may do a 50% retracement near 7546.00 this morning.

CNN reports, The great bull run for the FAANG stocks and the rest of the tech sector is showing signs that it might be coming to an end.

Since Amazon (AMZN) briefly topped the trillion dollar market valuation level a week ago, shares have fallen nearly 3%.

Shares of Facebook (FB) are also down about 3% in the past week, following COO Sheryl Sandberg's testimony in front of the Senate about Russia's use of social media to try and interfere with the 2016 presidential election.

(Twitter (TWTR) CEO Jack Dorsey also went to Washington -- and Twitter shares have since plunged 10%.)

But the other FAANG stocks have taken their lumps lately, too. Netflix (NFLX), Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOGL) owner Alphabet -- which didn't send a high ranking official to last week's Capitol Hill hearings -- are all down about 3% to 5% in the past week.

VIX futures are flat after testing the 12-handle and 67% retracement this morning. I wouldnt be surprised to see the VIX and equities rising simultaneously as an indication of turmoil at the trading desks. The Cycles Model suggests a doubly indicated period of strength over the next week. This may be a warning of a panic Cycle about to begin.

TNX has pulled back from yesterdays high. However, the anticipated impulse higher isnt yet complete. This afternoons Treasury auction may do the job of jolting the markets out of their stupor. The Cycles Model suggests that the current strength may end tomorrow, so this could be a rather short probe higher followed by a reversal tomorrow.

The Commitment of Traders shows that Large Commercial traders are long the 10-year Note by 738,907 contracts while the large and small speculators have the opposite position.

USD futures are flat this morning, but anticipate a period of strength through the weekend. There is the possibility that the retracement may hit the 61.8% value at 95.90 during that period. The threat of a higher USD may set the world markets on another decline that may compound the already huge losses overseas.



Regards,

Tony

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As a State Registered Investment Advisor, The Practical Investor (TPI) manages private client investment portfolios using a proprietary investment strategy created by Chief Investment Officer Tony Cherniawski. Throughout 2000-01, when many investors felt the pain of double digit market losses, TPI successfully navigated the choppy investment waters, creating a profit for our private investment clients. With a focus on preserving assets and capitalizing on opportunities, TPI clients benefited greatly from the TPI strategies, allowing them to stay on track with their life goals.

Disclaimer: The content in this article is written for educational and informational purposes only. There is no offer or recommendation to buy or sell any security and no information contained here should be interpreted or construed as investment advice. Do you own due diligence as the information in this article is the opinion of Anthony M. Cherniawski and subject to change without notice.

Anthony M. Cherniawski Archive

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AUD/NZD in an Uptrend

The Aussie dollar is under pressure versus the New Zealand dollar as AUD/NZD remains in a decent uptrend above 1.0850.

Key Points

AUD/NZD is in a decent uptrend above the 1.0850 support area.

There is a major ascending channel in place with support at 1.0870 on the daily chart.

AUD/NZD Technical Analysis

The Aussie dollar also struggled against the New Zealand dollar during the past few weeks. Recently, the AUD/NZD pair traded above the 1.1150 resistance and formed a high at 1.1175.

Later, the pair declined sharply and broke the 1.1000 and 1.0900 support levels. There was even a break below the 50-day simple moving average and 1.0880. However, losses were protected near a major ascending channel with current support at 1.0870 on the daily chart.





The pair is currently moving higher towards the 50-day SMA and the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the last decline from the 1.1175 high to 1.0856 low. Above this, the next resistance for buyers is near the 1.0980 level.

Should the pair break the 1.1000 resistance zone and the 50% Fib retracement level of the last decline from the 1.1175 high to 1.0856 low at 1.1015, there could be a push back towards the 1.1150 level in the near term.

On the other hand, if the pair breaks the channel support and settles below 1.0850, there could be a major downward move back towards the 1.0740 and 1.0700 support levels.

Overall, AUD/NZD remains in an uptrend and it could move above 1.1000 as long as the 1.0850 support is intact.

The market outlook is provided by FXOpen broker.

FXOpen - true ECN/STP Forex and cryptocurrency broker.

 2018 Copyright FXOpen - All Rights Reserved Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors.

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




A Field Guide to the Street Names of Central Cairo, by: Humphrey Davies and Lesley Lababidi, (Cairo: AUC Press), 2018. 252pp.

The American University in Cairo Press has released a new book titled "A Field Guide to the Street Names of Central Cairo" by the renowned translator Humphrey Davies and blogger and author Lesley Lababidi.

The book offers a richly intriguing map of Cairo's enthralling history through its street names.

The book tires to answer questions like, who were Abd el-Khaleq Sarwat Basha or Yusef el-Gindi and why they should have streets named after them in Cairo? Who was Nubar Basha and why did his street move from the north of the city to its center in 1933? Why do older maps show two squares called Bab el-Luq, while modern maps show none?

His book focuses on the part of the city created in the wake of Khedive Ismails command, given in 1867, to create a Paris on the Nile on the muddy lands between medieval Cairo and the river. A Field Guide to the Street Names of Cairo lists more than five hundred current and three hundred former appellations. Current street names are listed in alphabetical order, with an explanation of what each commemorates and when it was first recorded, followed by the same for its predecessors. An index allows the reader to trace streets whose names have disappeared or that have never achieved a popular status.

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The Missoula Economic Partnership (MEP) http://www.missoulapartnership.com is pleased to introduce Grant Kier as MEPs new Executive Director beginning October 1, 2018.

Grant brings a balance of mission focus, analytical depth, and executive leadership to MEP. Most recently, he led Five Valleys Land Trust in Missoula from 2007-2017. His experience working with diverse entities and establishing Five Valleys Land Trust as one of the most respected and successful conservation organizations in the state helped families expand their businesses and helped communities around Missoula County tap into the growing recreation and tourism economy. Grant left Five Valleys in the fall of 2017 to run in the Democratic primary for Montanas US House seat.

"If I learned anything in the past year, its how important good paying jobs are to Montana families, how important outstanding skilled workers are for successful businesses, and how much people in Montana want to expand economic opportunity here while protecting our quality of lifeat MEP Im excited get to work with a great team, in all of these areas, and build a stronger community for the future," said Grant.

Grant demonstrated his commitment and passion to economic development in his service on the Missoula Economic Partnership Board, included serving as the Treasurer, which lends institutional knowledge and organizational drive to his skill set.

Scott Burke, MEP Board Chair, commented on the search process, saying, "We were lucky to have a wonderful pool of candidates, which made this an extremely difficult decision, and were thankful for all those who applied. Were confident that weve found a candidate who demonstrates dedication to Missoulas unique opportunities and challenges in the economic development ecosystem. Collaboration is one of MEPs primary objectives, and Grant is a team player with a proven ability to bring key stakeholders together to work towards agreed upon goals."

Prior to arriving at Five Valleys Grant worked as Executive Director of Bitter Root Land Trust in Hamilton, MT, as a project manager for a geotechnical company in Cambridge, England, and as a consulting geologist in Pinedale, Wyoming. He has a Masters degree in Geology from the University of Colorado.

Missoula Economic Partnership works to grow a sustainable, vibrant, and diversified regional economy. For more information on the Partnership, visit http://www.missoulapartnership.com

***

Untapped potential: As new director, Grant Kier outlines vision for Missoula Economic Partnership http://www.matr.net/article-84678.html
Casper Star-Tribune union leaders say theyre skeptical of Lee Enterprises commitment to journalism.

As such, the journalists see forthcoming negotiations with Lee Enterprises, the publicly-traded corporation that owns the states largest newspaper, as an exchange that pits reporting in Wyoming publics interest against out-of-state profit motives. And theyre taking their case directly to the community.

Speaking ahead of a new round of contract negotiations beginning Sept. 17, Casper News Guild leaders Heather Richards and Seth Klamann said they believe the company is negotiating in good faith but that questions of salary and health insurance have yet to be resolved and could be difficult to answer. Guild members seek more financial security so that they can commit to journalism in the state and treat writing for Wyomings paper of record as more than just a stepping stone or economic sacrifice, they said.

https://www.wyofile.com/wyomings-largest-newspaper-comes-to-a-crossroads/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=SocialWarfare

***

Without notice, Lee Enterprises shutters Missoula Indy, locks staff out of office http://www.matr.net/article-84664.html
Her Excellency Mrs. K. Nandini Singla, High Commissioner of India paid a courtesy call to the Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sports and Recreation, The honorable Stephan Toussaint on the 08th March 2021.

During the consultation, the High Commissioner uttered her appreciation for the cordial and mutual relations between Mauritius and India. She also expressed great interest in increased collaboration between the high commission of India in Mauritius and the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Sports, and Recreation.

The discussions focused on the avenues of cooperation that can be further developed in the sports sector, youth development, and recreational activities.

In this context, 10 Mauritian youngsters will be invited to participate in next years national day celebration of India.

The cost and accommodation will be borne by the government of India.

Finally, both sides have also expressed the willingness to review the existing MoU between the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Sports and Recreation and the High Commission of India signed in 2012.

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While US positions have somewhat firmed up on its engagement in Syria, the question of Bashar Al-Assad still lacks a last word

For the last seven years, American positions regarding the war in Syria, as well as its political outcome in terms of the nature of the political regime that would ensue, have been hard to pin down save the insistence during the early years of the conflict on the departure of President Bashar Al-Assad from power.

The administration of former US president Barack Obama financed, trained and assisted various rebel groups within Syria, most of them manned by terrorists whose allegiance has been either to Al-Qaeda or other rebel groups that have carried the banner of militant Islam, including the Islamic State organisation before it had taken over Mosul in Iraq in June 2014.

The Obama administration had been encouraged to get involved in the Syrian quagmire by some Gulf countries and Western powers that have had their own interests and calculations in the Middle East.

France of former president Nicholas Sarkozy (centre-right) and his Socialist successor, Francois Hollande, is a case in point.

The two French presidents had been uncompromising on the necessary departure of President Al-Assad from power, a position that was shared by some Gulf countries and Erdogans Turkey.

By the time the Obama administration was nearing its second term, it had voted with other permanent members of the UN Security Council for Resolution 2254 of December 2015, that was adopted unanimously by the council and has been considered ever since the roadmap for the transition of Syria to a democratic system of government.

The adoption of the resolution came three months after the military intervention of Russia in Syria, an intervention credited, and rightly so, for preventing the fall of the Syrian government.

From then onwards, both the United States and Russia have been working closely on a shared set of objectives in Syria, with each power drawing certain red lines for the other not to cross.

With the coming of President Trump to the White House in January 2017, the level of coordination between Washington and Moscow has gone beyond de-conflicting and has come to cover regional concerns, among which one shared objective is of utmost priority  namely, that the security of Israel should be guaranteed now and in the future.

The Helsinki summit of 16 July 2018 between President Donald Trump and Russias President Vladimir Putin made clear that the two superpowers would work to achieve three goals in Syria.

The first is the implementation of UNSC Resolution 2254 without any reference to the future status of President Al-Assad.

The second is to fight terrorism, in particular, the Islamic State group.

The third is the containment of the Iranian presence in Syria, once the transition to democracy is assured according to the steps enumerated in Resolution 2254.

It is worth noting that neither this resolution nor the 30 June 2012 Geneva Declaration mentioned anything regarding the future of the Syrian president.

This could be the reason why various American officials have either skirted the question or admitted, in official statements, that President Al-Assad could continue in office till the end of the transitional period, that is set for 18 months by Resolution 2254.

It is difficult, at this stage, to predict what the United States under President Trump is up to in Syria, assuming that the United Nations will succeed, through its Geneva process, to get the Syrian government and the opposition to start carrying out Resolution 2254.

Last March, President Trump made a surprising statement that was at odds with known American positions regarding Syria.

He said that he would order the pull out of American forces from Syria whereas the official American position had been till this startling and sudden shift that the United States would remain engaged militarily in Syria till the complete defeat of the Islamic State group, and till the success of stabilisation programmes in areas liberated from Islamic State group control.

Needless to say, the US Defence Department clarified later on that US forces in Syria would complete their mission, and the American president himself said afterwards that American troops would stay, although some reports have indicated that he gave the Pentagon a period of six months to defeat the Islamic State group.

So, it came as a surprise what Ambassador James Jeffrey, the American special envoy for Syrian engagement, said Thursday, 5 September, that the United States is no longer pulling out of Syria by the end of the year.

Not only this, but US Central Command Spokesman Navy Captain Bill Urban had made a statement Friday, 6 September, in which he announced military exercises in the areas held by US troops in eastern Syria.

According to Central Command, the exercises would demonstrate the capabilities to deploy rapidly and assault a target with integrated air and ground forces, and conduct a rapid exfiltration anywhere in the combined joint operations area [of Operation Inherent Resolve].

It is probable that the United States is no longer interested in withdrawing from Syria anytime soon. It is doubtful that this decision is only targeted towards the Islamic State group.

It goes beyond that, and should be seen in the context of a competition between the United States and Russia centring around which superpower would call the shots in the months and years to come in Syria, Iraq and the Levant.

On the other hand, the American military presence could be seen as a counterweight to the Iranian military presence in Syria in the future, especially after the signing of a joint defence agreement between Syria and Iran lately.

As to the future role of President Al-Assad, the US position is still hesitant and keeps changing. On Tuesday, 28 August, US Secretary of Defence General James Mattis said in a press conference that the United States does not see any place for the Syrian president in the future of Syria.

Is this the final word from Washington? And does it reflect the thinking of the Oval Office? It is too early to tell.

However, the American position concerning this particular question would be dependent, to a large extent, on the thinking in Israel.

* The writer is former assistant foreign minister.

* A version of this article appears in print in the 13 September 2018 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly under the headline: American policies in Syria

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Mohamed Shoirs analysis and retelling of the context and reception of Naguib Mahfouzs The Children of Gebelawi is sure to leave a lasting mark on Egyptian and Arab literary criticism

Of the many books and articles that appeared to mark the 12th anniversary of Naguib Mahfouzs death, no doubt Mohamed Shoairs outstanding work, The Children of Gebelawi: The Story of a Banned Novel (Al-Ain Publishing House) is the most important and enduring.

The eminent literary editors study of one of the most important Arabic novels ever follows the history of that great literary work from its conception, as it appeared in serialised form in Al-Ahram in 1959, through four decades of the battles surrounding it until the assassination attempt in 1994, and then the subsequent 12 years up to the time of Mahfouzs death. It is a profound and thorough investigation that packs elements of suspense.

The Children of Gebelawi and the controversy it precipitated at diverse political, cultural and religious levels interweaves with the conditions of the times in ways that may have been different had the novel appeared in another, earlier or later era.

Shoair, in his account of that novel, reviews the political conditions that prevailed in the 1960s and explores how Mahfouz stood with respect to them, as well as how they stood with respect to Mahfouz. He also looks at the cultural milieu of the times and the divergent attitudes of some intellectuals and writers towards Mahfouz and his novel.

One of the ironies that emerges in this context is that the circles that were the most outspoken and frank in their attitudes towards the novel were the sheikhs of Al-Azhar.

Their positions, if ill-founded, were unequivocal. By contrast, quite a few intellectuals were evasive and their criticisms were veiled.

The regime, at the time, according to Shoairs book, was opposed to Mahfouzs novel but, rather than say this explicitly, it hid behind sheikhs rejection of it.

Therefore, Sabri Al-Khoulis initiative is portrayed as an attempt on the part of the political authorities to prevent the publication of the novel.

This is not an uncommon view and those that propound it argue that Al-Khouli was the Egyptian presidents personal representative.

In fact, at the time, Al-Khouli was head of the General Information Service and he hoped that his mediating effort would help clear the air between Mahfouz and the religious officials who objected to the novel. Moreover, Al-Khoulis intervention came about by accident: he happened to encounter Mahfouz one day in the lift in Al-Ahram building where they had offices located on the same floor.

He made his proposal to Mahfouz to arrange a meeting with Al-Azhar officials on the spur of the moment, not in accordance with some pre-conceived plan.

Mahfouz agreed to meet the sheikhs and arrived in Al-Khoulis office at the appointed time. However, none of the sheikhs had the courage to attend the meeting.

Al-Khouli suggested that Mahfouz has the novel published abroad so as not to exacerbate the tensions and Mahfouz agreed. More than 30 years later, I arranged a meeting between Mahfouz, in his home, and the publisher Ibrahim Al-Moallem, Kamal Abul-Magd and Selim Al-Awa.

It was in that meeting that it was agreed to have The Children of Gebelawi published for the first time in Egypt with an introduction by the two Islamist writers, Abul-Magd and Al-Awa.

Shoairs study, like any human creation, is not without defects, which I hope he will address in future editions which I am sure are forthcoming.

One is that it does not corroborate some important information with primary sources. For example, it relates that Mahfouzs body was screened for explosives before taking its place in front of the president in the military funeral procession.

If the author had cited the source of that information, which is myself who was present at that event, it would have acquired greater force and credibility. As for the claim that the coffin over which prayers were recited in Al-Hussein Mosque was empty, that is not true.

The son of the director, Tawfik Saleh, and I were together in the room in which the body was washed. It was placed in the coffin before my own eyes and I escorted it to Al-Hussein.

After the prayer ceremony, I helped carry the coffin to the vehicle that we would follow to Al-Rashdan Mosque where the military funeral procession was held. I believe that Shoair should have cited the first-hand source (myself) from whom he had heard this information and let readers judge for themselves.

If evidence somehow came to light that the information was false, at least the author will have been credited for taking the pains to corroborate it as best he could while the source itself would have to sustain the blame for the falsehood. In academic work, in general, such significant details should not be left unsourced as occurs in some journalistic reports that are more intent on producing a sensationalist effect.

I also felt that the chapter on the novel The Thief and the Dogs was extraneous, regardless of how well the author handled his material. There was no justification for introducing this chapter, which discusses the ideological connections between this novel and The Children of Gebelawi, into the account of the latter novel.

After all, there is an intrinsic linkage between the ideas in all Mahfouzs works, as is the case with every writer.

I should stress that the abovementioned criticisms do not detract in any way from the value of Shoairs study which has inspired me with the confidence that an older generation of giants in literary criticism has bequeathed to us new, earnest and robust scholars equipped with the skills to analyse and contextualise our literacy masterpieces, as Mohamed Shoair has done so superbly with The Children of Gebelawi.

We still lack literary critics of the calibre of that older generation. But Shoair is one of those who has begun to fill the gap and, at the same time, who has pioneered a new critical approach in The Children of Gebelawi.

Perhaps the biography of works of fiction will become a new specialisation in the field of literary criticism.

* A version of this article appears in print in the 13 September 2018 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly under the headline: Mahfouzs banned novel

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Ohio Supreme Court Justice visits Morgan County Audio Article Ohio Supreme Court Justice Sharon Kennedy visited Morgan County on Thursday, speaking at a Womens Republicans Luncheon at Deanos Pizza. She spoke about her recent decision to run for Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court, the state of politics in the state and country as a whole, and more....

Veterans Day Parade plans announced Audio Article This years Veterans Day Parade will be on Thursday, Nov. 11. The parade will form at the Commons in McConnelsville at 9:30 a.m. and set out at 10 a.m. The American Legion Post 24 will render honors at the monuments at the Commons, the Riecker Building, the Square, at the...

HINDSIGHT 2021 Audio Article 10 Years Ago (2011)  The Morgan Metropolitan Housing Authority earned an Auditor of State Award from the Ohio Auditors Office. The award was presented to the county organization after receiving a clean audit report with no findings for recovery, material citations or weaknesses, significant deficiencies or questioned costs. Kelly...

Stockport Council solidifies hiring policies Audio Article The Stockport Village Council met at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 18, at the HECK Harkins Community Center, and opened with an invocation led by Councilman John Koch. Mayor Donna Dixon led the Pledge of Allegiance and called the meeting to order. Councilman Roger McBride and Councilwoman Lynne Myers were absent...

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...
JEDDAH  Deputy Foreign Minister for Management and Resources, Dr. Nasir Ahmad Andisha who had traveled to Saudi Arabia to attend the OIC Special Session on Afghanistan, met with the Secretary General of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation, Dr. Yousef bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen.

Welcoming the Afghan delegation, the Secretary General expressed that the OIC shall not spare any efforts in helping attain peace and security in Afghanistan. He also added that the holding of International Ulema Conference was an important and valuable step towards national unity, peace and security in Afghanistan. At the Conference, not only from Afghanistan, but also from the entire Islamic World, the Ulema came together and condemned violence, terrorism and the current war in Afghanistan and called it an illegitimate war. The gathering of the Ulema of the Islamic world in Mecca was of high significance from various dimensions.

Afterwards, conveying the message of the leadership of National Unity Government to Secretary General of OIC, Dr. Andisha stated that the people and government of Afghanistan appreciate the contribution made by this organization aimed at peace and stability in Afghanistan. He also expressed his gratitude towards the OIC and the friendly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for hosting International Ulema Conference as well as for holding the Special Session of OIC on Afghanistan. Dr. Andisha also mentioned that since the beginning of the year 2018, the OIC has had special focus on Afghanistans issues. As one of the founding members of OIC, Afghanistan has had a deep and effective link to the organization for a long time and expects this organization to have a distinguished regard on Afghanistan.
KABUL  Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan H.E. Salahuddin Rabbani met with the British Special Representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Mr. Gareth Bayley.

Mr. Bayley expressed hope that with the new government in place in Pakistan, the relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan will improve.

Mr. Rabbani appreciated the UKs cooperation in different areas such as political, security, economic and the Peace Process in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, the British Special Representative called for Afghanistans support of UKs nomination for the Assistance Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union. He also asked the Foreign Minister to co-host the Women, Peace and Security meeting, to be held by the United Kingdom and Norway at the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
KABUL  Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, H.E Salahuddin Rabbani met with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Dr. Sayed Abbas Araghchi.

Dr. Araghchi stated that the progress made in the negotiations of the five committees between Afghanistan and Iran were significant and stressed Islamic Republic of Iran's support to the Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process. Dr. Araghchi hinted that peace, stability and security in Afghanistan meant tranquility in Iran.

Foreign Minister Rabbani also expressed his gratitude for Iran's hosting of Afghan refugees and for their support of the peace process in Afghanistan.

Both sides discussed bilateral relations, regional cooperation, economic cooperation and the Chabahar port.
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Hi there, Folks!

I saw five films today, and Im slated for five tomorrow. (Well see if that happens.)

THE LIE, directed by Veena Sud, was my first film of the day. The premise intrigued me, and then I heard a few people talk it up at a party a couple nights ago. Heres the brief TIFF synopsis: In this thriller from Toronto-born writer-director Veena Sud, two parents wrestle with the consequences of their teenage daughters lethal mistake, proving just how far any parent would go to protect their child. This film has won my most eye rolls per scene award. Idiot dialog. Over-the-top moments complete with lots of furrowed brows and indicating. Its a turkey. This film (ultimately about white privilege) had me wanting to leave within the first half hour. But because all other screenings were in progress, I decided to stick it out. I also stayed for smug reasons. 20 minutes into the film, I wrote down my suspicion as to how the film would end. I wanted to know if I was rightand I hit the nail on the head 100%. I really hate it when a bad film happens to an actor I like (Peter Sarsgaard).

TELL IT TO THE BEES, directed by Annabel Jankel, was my next film of the day. Academy Award winner Anna Paquin and Holliday Grainger star in this wrenching drama of a shunned small-town doctor and beekeeper in postwar Britain who befriends a struggling mother and son, helping them discover that love can be found in many forms. This film is full of lovely period details and lush cinematography, but its the central performances that shine (while many other characters arent fleshed out). Its a slower-paced film that works on some levels, but there are plot points and character attitudes that shift and change without much notice. In addition, there are special effects regarding swarming bees that are too over-the-top. Theres a line that comes toward the end of the film via voiceover that says what I saw and what I thought I saw  and that would have been helpful at the beginning (but maybe it was there and I really didnt contextualize it). Ultimately, the message is great  but its not a film that will find great commercial success.

THE PUBLIC, directed by Emilio Estevez, was shot and set in downtown Cincinnati. A sit-in by patrons at a public library escalates into a police standoff and a media sideshow, in Emilio Estevezs arresting drama that explores issues surrounding homelessness, mental health, and community. Featuring Estevez, Alec Baldwin, Taylor Schilling, Jeffrey Wright, Jena Malone, Gabrielle Union, Christian Slater, and Michael K. Williams. This film has some powerful moments and great messages (regarding homelessness, mental health, substance abuse and public libraries as a democratic pillar), but it attempts to tackle too many storylines in a short amount of time. The film has clearly been condensed for time, and though the narrative holes can easily be filled in by savvy viewers  it seems too choppy. This film has a lot of heart, but it still needs some editing help to truly make it sing.

COLETTE, directed by Wash Westmoreland, was my next film. Heres the brief TIFF synopsis: Keira Knightley stars in this historical drama about the eponymous French novelist, whose provocative debut  falsely credited to her husband  becomes the toast of Paris, triggering a battle for identity, equality, and self-determination at the dawn of the feminist age. Heres my brief response: LOVED IT. From the performances to the production design to the smart dialog, I really loved this film. Im happy to report that we have it booked to open at THE NEON on Oct. 19. The heartfelt Q&A with this screening was spectacularparticularly Wash Westmoreland (STILL ALICE) talking about dedicating the film to his recently deceased co-director and husband. Knightley is superb, and the history lesson has me wanting to read even more of Colettes work (I have only read some short stories and CHERI  now I want more). From the tone and look of the trailer, I suspected I would like this filmbut it delivered so much more.

BOY ERASED, directed by Joel Edgerton, was my last film of the day. The teenaged son of a Baptist pastor is forced into a gay-conversion program by his parents, in actor-director Joel Edgertons emotive drama starring Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe, and Lucas Hedges. This film is meant for mass consumption  and for that reason, I give it a bit of a pass. The cast does a fine job with the material, and certain scenes even elicited rounds of applause from the audiencebut theres something a little too sterile for me to put the film on the top of the list. Its as though the filmmaker was scared to get too close. And I get it on some level. At some point, a filmmaker (or distributor) has to ask who do we want to see this movie? If the film pushed the envelope too much, then it would only preach to the choir. In this instance, perhaps the film can actually be seen by more than the queer communityand possibly save some lives  and for that, I give it my blessing (plus the fact that Kidman is pretty awesome here). The Q&A with Kidman, Edgerton, and the author of the source material (as well as his mother) was pretty spectacular.

Thanks for checking in,

Jonathan
By Kate Blackman

Drug overdose deaths appear to have reached a record high in 2017, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The data is provisional as some deaths are still being investigated and may indicate an underreporting, but the prediction estimates around 72,000 deaths involving prescription and illicit opioids as well as other drugsan increase of roughly 6 percent from 2017.

Nearly every state legislature across the country is considering approaches to address the persistent crisis. Following on the heels of active 2016 and 2017 legislative sessions, state lawmakers in 2018 continued along their determined path.

Legislatures in 45 states considered more than 480 bills in 2018 related to health policies to prevent and intervene in opioid misuse and overdose, according to NCSLs tracking.

This tracking does not include treatment or recovery strategies, or criminal justice or child welfare issues, which are also areas of significant legislative interest and activity. The total includes new legislation as well as a number of bills from 2017 that were still active in state legislatures that meet throughout the year and those that carry legislation over from the odd-numbered to the even-numbered year.

So far, around 70 bills have been enacted or adopted. NCSL rounds up the trends and highlights from our 2018 legislative tracking in six categories of opioid-related health policy.

Prescription drug monitoring programs. Prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) were the most active area of legislation again in 2018, with nearly 100 bills introduced and more than 20 enacted. Nearly all states operate PDMPselectronic databases that track prescriptionsand current legislative efforts largely adjust different aspects of the PDMP. Lawmakers most commonly changed provisions to require prescribers and/or dispensers to access the PDMP before prescribing and/or dispensing certain controlled substances. Other issues included data sharing and confidentiality, PDMP prescribing reports or report cards for providers and veterinarian use of the PDMP.

Naloxone access. Legislative activity around access to the overdose reversal drug naloxone ranks just behind PDMPs. Policymakers largely continue to expand the types of individuals who can carry and administer naloxone, as well as allowing greater access through standing orders, i.e., prescriptions for large groups, such as an entire state, or allowing pharmacists to prescribe and dispense the opioid antagonist. Some statessuch as Arizona and Rhode Islandpassed provisions related to co-prescribing naloxone when prescribing opioids. In addition to these bills, many states also adjusted laws providing limited immunity for assisting in the event of an overdose.

Prescription limits or guidelines. Limits on days of supply or dosage for opioid prescriptions emerged as a trend in 2016 and immediately surgedjumping from eight states in 2016 to at least 33 states in summer 2018. Nine statesArizona, Colorado, Florida, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginiaenacted these laws in 2018. While some states direct or authorize specific entities, e.g., department of health, to set limits, the majority of these provisions limit initial prescriptions for acute pain and allow exceptions for chronic pain, hospice care and cancer care, among others. Relatedly, a number of states have considered and enacted requirements for practitioners to discuss the risks related to opioid use when issuing prescriptions.

Provider education. Legislatures in 12 states enacted policies related to health care provider continuing education. Policymakers largely continued along similar paths to prior years, passing provisions requiring continuing education for health care providers related to substance use disorder or addiction, and opioids and prescribing controlled substances.

Pain clinics/pain management. Laws related to pain clinicsfacilities that specialize in treating chronic paincontinue to garner less attention, and activity is similar to a year ago with less than five bills enacted this year. State legislators largely continued to adjust registration and licensure requirements for pain management clinics.

Other topics. This category includes a wide variety of policies. Some of the more novel approaches include Rhode Islands law allowing for fentanyl test strips to check drugs for the powerful synthetic opioid that can be mixed with other drugs without a users knowledge and is causing an increasing number of deaths. Rhode Island and West Virginia also joined the handful of other states recently providing for voluntary non-opioid directives for patients. Other laws enacted so far this year cover topics ranging from disposal of unused opioids and warning labels or red caps on opioid prescriptions, to opioid education in schools and the creation of opioid committees or task forces.

We anticipate that these issues will remain at the forefront of state legislatures, as policymakers continue to adjust existing policies and develop innovative new solutions. Keep track of these and other developments this year through NCSLs legislative tracking and opioid policy deep dive webpage.

Kate Blackman is a program director in NCSLs Health Program. Amber Bellazaire and Charlie Severance-Medaris contributed to this blog post.

Email Kate
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Central Information Commission has directed the Reserve Bank of India to disclose the amount deposited in Jan Dhan accounts of various banks in the form of demonetised currency.

Launched in August 2014, Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana is a national mission for financial inclusion to ensure access to financial services banking or savings and deposit accounts, remittance, credit, insurance, pension in banks.

Jan Dhan accounts had come into focus after demonetisation on November 8, 2016, when the deposits witnessed a meteoric rise, touching an approximate Rs 80,000 crore in April this year.

Information Commissioner Sudhir Bhargava ordered the RBI to disclose details of demonetised currency deposited in Jan Dhan accounts to activist Subhash Agrawal, who has also demanded some other details related to demonetisation.

The Union government demonetised Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes on November 8, 2016.

Bhargava directed the RBI that in case the information was not available with it, the bankers' bank will file "an affidavit with the commission" disposing that no record related to the information sought were available with it.

The commission also directed the respondent to provide information on the total amount of demonetised currency notes exchanged with new notes.

Besides Jan Dhan accounts, the CIC directed the RBI to disclose the total amount deposited in the form of demonetised notes in savings and current accounts of banks.

ALSO READ: Polls round the corner, Jan Dhan Yojana repackaged to draw rural voters

Agrawal had filed an RTI application with the RBI, seeking to know details related to the demonetisation exercise, complaints against bank officers, money deposited in various accounts, and the total quantum of demonetised currency exchanged by people.

Not getting any information from the RBI, Agrawal approached the commission with his appeal seeking disclosure of the information.

The CIC also ordered disclosure of information on public and private banks and their officers against whom action was initiated for not following RBI guidelines post demonetisation and records related to seizure of bundles of cash of new Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes introduced post-demonetisation.
By Express News Service

MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: After losing nearly 1,000 points during the last two sessions on weak economic sentiments, Sensex staged a smart recovery on Wednesday, followed by the dramatic course correction of rupee, as reports emerged about Prime Minister Narendra Modi gearing up to hold a review meeting to discuss urgent economic issues this weekend.

On September 8, The New Indian Express had reported that the Prime Minister will hold a meeting of his economic advisory council members, ministers from the Centres core committee and key officials from the Finance Ministry and NITI Aayog to discuss issues of urgent economic interest, including the falling rupee, increasing petrol and diesel prices and a larger current account deficit.

Sources in the Finance Ministry admitted that a lack of proper communication from the government and fragmented views from ministers have fuelled rumours regarding the economy and further dampened investors sentiments. In this context, a strong communication from the PM will help to allay investors fears, they said. The government and the RBI will do everything to ensure that rupee does not slide to unreasonable levels. Todays correction seems to reflect that realisation, tweeted Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg.

There was no fundamental rationale for the rupee to depreciate to levels seen till Tuesday, he said, adding, It reflected overreaction of market operators.The Indian rupee recovered from the depths of despair as it inched near 73-level against one US dollar and lifted market sentiments, which had turned bearish over weak economic sentiments. This, coupled with assurance from the government to address the market concerns, pulled out benchmark indices from a sea of red during early trade to greener shores. While the Sensex closed higher by 304.83 points at 37,717.96, Nifty 50 rose 82.40 points to close at 11,369.90.

The domestic unit collapsed to a lifetime low of 72.91 in the early trade, as crude oil prices surged towards $80 a barrel, coupled with foreign fund outflows. However, rupee soon found its footing with the government sending out much-needed signals. The Indian currency ended the session at 72.19, up 0.7 per cent from its previous close of 72.70, for its biggest single-day rise since May 25. After crashing to a lifetime low in early trade, leading to a massive buying, rupee rebounded by 69 paise to trade at 72.00 on suspected central bank intervention.

Till date, rupee weakened more than 11 per cent and continues to be Asias worst performing currency. Worse, its future remains fragile considering the volatility in oil prices, an emerging markets sell-off, widening current account deficit and threat of worsening balance of payments situation.

10-year bond yields down 5 points

The 10-year bond yields closed at 8.13 per cent, down 5 bps from the days high of 8.23 per cent. BSE MidCap gained 0.52 per cent, whereas SmallCap fell 0.27 per cent. Power Grid, ITC, Sun Pharma and Adani Ports were among the top gainers, whereas Axis Bank, Tata Motors, HPCL and ICICI Bank were among the major losers.
By Express News Service

MUMBAI: There has been no communication so far from the government to absorb part of the fuel prices to cushion customers from the rising petrol and diesel prices to Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL), one of the public sector refining and marketing companies, chairman D Rajkumar told reporters in Mumbai.

We are passing on the price  No plans to absorb fuel prices, Rajkumar said, explaining the high component of taxes on the transportation fuels in a city like Mumbai. BPCL that currently operates a 12 million metric tonnes per year refinery in Mumbai plans to move some of its marketing and LPG facilities out of the present refinery complex to decongest the complex and also improve safety measures following a fire accident last month.

Some of the non-refinery assets like LPG and some of the tankages we plan to move to Rasayani, said R Ramachandran, director, refineries. It is also replacing its two FCCU (Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit) to orient it more towards its focus on production of petrochemicals, he said. BPCL had earlier this year bought 500 acres of land from Hindustan Organic Chemicals Ltd at Rasayani near Mumbai and plans to build a $3 billion (Rs 2,100 crore) petrochemical plant.

The petrochemical plant would use the feedstock from Mumbai refinery. BPCL is also in talks with the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation for stake sale in its joint venture (with Oman Oil Co) refinery at Bina in Madhya Pradesh that has just completed a creeping expansion of its refinery from 6 to 7.8 million metric tonnes per year. It is looking for funds to draw a blueprint for further expansion of the Bina refinery. It is also developing an oil block in Brazil through a 50:50 joint venture with Videocon.
Nirupama Viswanathan By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The City Corporation is looking to add a mini amphibian and six desilting equipment to its fleet to help expedite clearing of floating vegetation like water hyacinth, after its existing machinery proved inadequate, said Corporation officials. The mini amphibian is to be procured at an estimated cost of `1.7 crore.

The amphibian that is already in operation was imported from Finland and is mainly used for removing water hyacinth. It has been put to work in the Buckingham canal, Captain Cotton canal and the Adyar river.

The civic body already has three robotic excavators, procured at a cost of `4.5 crore each from Switzerland. These machines were procured in 2017 and were aimed to help the Corporation desilt narrow canals.

However, Corporation officials said, the new additions would come into operation only after two or three months. This means it may not be available in time for the monsoon this year.

The move to procure additional desilting machines comes after the CAG report in July this year pulled up the City Corporation for attributing the ban on manual scavenging to the slow desilting works carried out in storm water drains (SWDs)

The report had stated that SWDs were not cleaned in 163 of 614 streets with drains in Kodambakkam zone during 2013-2016. Similarly, cleaning was not done in any of the 898 streets in Perungudi zone during 2015-16, the report stated, observing that non cleaning of SWDs contributed to inundation of these areas.

Meanwhile, Corporation officials are mulling options to effectively use the water hyacinth cleared.

The clearing and transportation of the water hyacinth is an expensive affair. We are considering options to put it into good use instead, said a Corporation official.

Amphibians at work

The amphibian that is already in operation was imported from Finland and has been put to work in the Buckingham canal, Captain Cotton canal and the Adyar river.
B Anbuselvan By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: After 13 months since withdrawal, the Railway department has reinstated the facility to book tickets for circular journey recently. However, it has also extended the five per cent GST for sleeper class circular tickets as well.

Until June 30 last year, the circular journey ticket enabled passengers to avail long-distance travels to multiple destinations at lesser ticket fares, without any inconvenience of booking the tickets at each station. Eight break journeys are allowed in a circular ticket.

The passengers were charged a single fare for the entire trip, rather than separate fares for each journey.

The travel length was divided into two single journeys, each having half of the length of the total travel. Then, telescopic fare was charged for each single journey, thereby benefiting thousands of pilgrims and tourists.

From July 1, citing technical constraints in assessing the five per cent GST for AC class tickets as a result of the implementation of GST, the Railways discontinued circular journey tickets.

Recently, the Railway Board, apex body of the Railways, issued directions clarifying the methodology to be adopted for calculating the GST for circular tickets. All circular journey ticket passengers shall be treated as unregistered customers as far as applicability of GST is concerned, reads the board order.

The order further stated that five percent GST would be imposed on the total fare of the ticket regardless of the classes. Earlier, 5 per cent GST was imposed for the AC and first-class tickets.

To eliminate shortcomings in assessing the fares, sleeper class tickets are also brought under the GST ambit only for circular journey, explained a senior railway official, quoting the railway board directive.

The zonal railways have been directed to issue circular from the first week of September.

The move is expected to provide huge relief to passengers who go on pilgrimage between October and December. Particularly, passengers travelling to Rameswaram, Kasi, Varanasi and Rishikesh can book tickets comfortably at one leg instead of booking the tickets at each locations.

Rail passengers can take a maximum of eight breaks during the a single circular journey for a travel distance of minimum 1,500 km and maximum up to 10,000 km.

The validity period for journey is roughly fixed for a minimum travel distance by 125 km to 135 km per day. This means circular ticket of a passenger travelling for 8,000 km will get a validity for 60 to 64 days.

There is no restriction for passengers on maximum number of days spent at each stopover and a halt for less than 24 hours to board connecting train will not be considered as break.

T. Mohammed Mubeen, former member of the Divisional Rail Users Consultative Committee (DRUCC), Chennai division, welcomed the decision and said the move would promote domestic tourism. He demanded that the Railways withdraw the GST for sleeper class tickets.
Aihik Sur By

Express News Service

HYDERABAD: We dont know if Nizam VII Osman Ali Khan Bahadur ate from his diamond-studded golden tiffin box, but two thieves from the city actually did! City police were shocked to find that the duo, who had stolen the tiffin box that is worth over Rs 100 crore and a few other valuables from the Nizam Museum, were eating from it. Indeed, they wanted to lead a king size life.

Luck, however, didnt favour them for long as they were nabbed on Monday. The jewel thieves -- Mohammed Ghouse Pasha (23) and Mohammed Mubeen (24) -- are childhood buddies and distant relatives. They grew up at Rajendranagar on the outskirts of Hyderabad. Mubeen, police say, worked in Saudi Arabia for a while and is suspected to have made contacts in the international black market there.

After returning to Hyderabad, Mubeen happened to visit the museum, as a tourist. Impressed by the valuables he had seen, he devised a plan to steal them. Though the duo managed to steal the tiffin box, a gold cup and saucer set, and gold tea spoons, they had also set their eyes on the gold-cased Quran exhibited at the museum. Just before they could set their hands on it, they heard the aazan from a nearby mosque. They considered it a divine warning and left without it.

City police commissioner Anjani Kumar was beaming on Tuesday, relieved of having solved the case that had put his department in the dock. Flanked by his team, including Additional Commissioner Shikha Goel, he held a press conference to explain how the crime was executed.



The duo, he said, had conducted several dry runs before the actual heist.

On the intervening night of September 3 and 4, they reached the museum through the Mata-ki-khidki side. They went to the terrace of the adjacent residential building and from there reached the roof of the museum. Mubeen volunteered to slide in to the gallery through the 2x4 feet ventilator while Ghouse stood guard. After the heist, they fled through the same route.

To avoid being tracked by CCTV cameras, the duo travelled haphazardly through bylanes instead of main roads. They felt insecure about carrying the 2kg tiffin box with them, so they buried it in a pit in an open area near the Rajendra Nagar dairy farm, Anjani Kumar said. They then proceeded towards Zaheerabad, where their bike broke down.

They ditched the bike there and took a bus to Mumbai and holed up in a hotel. They went to Mumbai to scout for potential buyers. However, they could not find any takers there. They were nabbed on their return to the city, said police. The stolen valuables have been recovered.
A skydiving performer takes part in a rehearsal before a public show at the Aviation University of Air Force in early September in Changchun. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Military aviation fans now have the chance to visit air force barracks of the People's Liberation Army in Changchun, the capital of Northeast China's Jilin province, to see air shows and equipment during major festivals. The air force will showcase skydiving, aerobatic flights, model planes and real combat simulations for visitors.

The barracks at the Aviation University of Air Force offers visitors an insider's look into students' lives. Visitors can get free tickets by answering questionnaires or submitting photos.

The general office of China's Central Military Commission issued a guideline on opening PLA barracks in 2017, and China this July announced plans to open 600-odd barracks to the public during major festivals and days of commemoration.

Barracks of the army, navy, air and rocket forces and armed police at the division, brigade, regiment, battalion and company levels will be open for public visits, and this plan covers 31 provincial-level regions across the country.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kazhakuttom police have solved the case related to the attack on the BMS office at Njandoorkonam on September 4 as they managed to arrest four people in connection with the crime. The office attack had created fear of a political turf war as the BJP leadership had expressed doubts about the involvement of CPM workers in the incident.

The police said the arrested espoused a grudge towards the BJP and wanted to ignite a face-off between the saffron party and the CPM in the area. The first accused Akhil of Njandoorkonam had harboured a strong dislike for the BJP as he was attacked by the members of that party when he was associated with the CPM. He was later expelled from the CPM and thus he bore hatred towards both the parties.

To execute his scheme, Akhil connived with Unni, a resident of Mukkampalamoodu near Vattappara and a fifth accused in the case, and prepared a country bomb at the latters house. The bomb was prepared at the house of Unni with the help of Shiyas of Poolanthara, who is the third accused, and Amal Das of Kallara, the fourth accused.

A special team was formed to probe incidents of violence in Powdikonam, Njandoorkonam, Chenkottukonam and nearby areas where the posters, flex boards and flag posts of both the parties were destroyed regularly that led to tense face-off between the two outfits. During the probe, the CCTV visuals were obtained from Njandoorkonam which cleared doubts of the probe team. Based on specific inputs and after observing people involved in similar crimes before, the probe team finally managed to unmask the identity of the attackers.

On questioning, it was revealed the arrested had executed similar operations in various other places. The attack on the house of Ajish A S, an engineer, at Mukkampalamoodu using crude bombs was done by the gang. Ajish was at loggerheads with the local CPM leader, who was also the ward member. Unni also had a grudge towards the CPM leader and used the tiff between the latter and Ajish to his advantage. The gang was also responsible for attacking the house of a BJP ward member Anitha Kumary of Plamoodu.

Whats in the files

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By Express News Service

VIJAYAWADA: Sleuths of Commissioners Task Force (CTF) police conducted surprise raid on a godown at Kothapet in One Town on Tuesday and arrested one person. The police also seized gutkha and imported cigarettes worth Rs 6.22 lakh stored in the godown. ACP(CTF) said the accused, D Srinivasa Rao (52), took a rented a house in Kothapet with the aim to carry on the illegal activity.
By Online Desk

Actor Parvathy Thiruvoth has joined the online campaign, slamming Kerala independent MLA P C George for his derogatory comments against the nun in the controversial church scandal which has rocked Kerala.

The MLA had called the nun who had alleged that she had been "raped" by a bishop of the Roman Catholic Church, "a prostitute".

The 'VaayaMoodalCampaign' tells George to 'shut his mouth' and has people sending duct tapes to help him do so.

Parvathy has written that she is proud of the campaign and goes on to write "enough of this man's disgusting word vomit. Saluting our sister and her bravery".

Another Twitter user has written, along with the picture of a tape, "This tape is for you, you motormouth #PCGeorge".

Parvathy's tweet.

Bollywood actor Swara Bhasker had written "What a fantastic way call out this odious scumbag who abused the nun who reported alleged rape by a priest! Creative non violent protest! Solidarity and more power to you!! #vaayamoodalcampaign #VaayaMoodedaPC #kerala Quite literally Shut your mouth campaign".

What a fantastic way call out this odious scumbag who abused the nun who reported alleged rape by a priest! Creative non violent protest! Solidarity and more power to you!! #vaayamoodalcampaign #VaayaMoodedaPC #kerala Quite literally Shut your mouth campaign https://t.co/ccxEyUVLx5  Swara Bhasker (@ReallySwara) September 11, 2018

Actor Sajitha Madathil too had posted a similar response. Madathil had posted the photo of a letter and duct tape, addressed to MLA PC George. She captioned the image as "I will be happy if 'this' can reduce the stench from that pottymouth."

Sajitha Madathil's Facebook post.

In July, the nun had lodged a rape and sexual assault complaint against a bishop based in Jalandhar. The bishop reportedly used to often visit Kerala for official work, during which he allegedly raped her on several occasions.

Please join this campaign to send a message to the MLA who called a nun #rape survivor a "prostitute". I feel so proud of my fellow Malayalis when they come up with hashtags like this. #VayaMoodalCampaign BTW means #ShutYourMouthCampaign. Spread the word. https://t.co/uS7XJcfpEr  Anna MM Vetticad (@annavetticad) September 11, 2018

The case gained traction after media reported the matter and an investigation was launched under public pressure.

The Kerala Janapaksham leader and MLA from Poonjar constituency, PC George has received a barrage of criticism for his derogatory comment against the nun who filed a rape complaint against Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mulakkal.

Nuns of the Missionaries of Jesus at their dharna at the High Court junction

demanding the arrest of Jalandhar bishop Franco. The dharna entered

the fourth day on Tuesday, 11 September 2018. | EPS/Albin Mathew

The National Commission for Women (NCW) on Monday had taken action against the MLA.

George has refused to apologize and has instead demanded for the "vigilant intervention of the legal system and the public to prevent the misuse of various laws for the protection of women".

The Poonjar MLA claimed there were many complaints that such laws were being misused to shatter the lives and employment of innocent people.
Krupa Ge By

Express News Service

C/o Kancherapalem is a small film set in a small place. But it has a large heart and is, at its core, simply a love story. However, it is not just the core, the reveal or its a-ha moment that makes this film. It is how it draws the audience in, slowly, patiently, one laugh at a time, one tug of the heart at a time, one aww-inducing smile and look at a time. It is deceptively charming and there are sudden curveballs. Life does not give us two weeks notice before throwing us in the deep end either.

CoK has a string of love stories that are all seemingly only tied together by the place it is set in. It is the story of young boy Sundarams (Kesava K) first love, Sunitha (Nithya Sree); of late teens Joseph with a wild mop of adorable hair (Karthik Ratnam) and fiery Bhargavis (Praneetha Patnaik) encounters; of thirty something Gaddam (Mohan Bhagath) and Saleemas (Praveena Paruchuri) untainted, beautiful romance; and 49 year old Rajus (Subba Rao) mature, sweet as honey, relationship with his colleague and superior 42-year-old Radha (Radha Bessy) with diabetes.

READ OUR REVIEW OF THE FILM HERE

It has all the cutesy elements to make you fall with a thud  Sundaram is charmed by Sunitha and so are we, her little smile and the knowing look, uff my heart And Sundaram is so lost in this first love, waiting for her with makeshift palm leaf umbrellas even as it rains, buying lyric books, wearing a jatang Rani pink shirt because she likes it even if others think its a girl colour. Joseph goes from thug to heartthrob is no time, as Bhargavi makes the moves on him, takes the bold lead, and there is no way to escape the charms of Saleema, neither for Gaddam nor us, and finally, the long-widowed Radha shows us at 42, with a 20-year-old daughter, the importance of companionship.

In its treatment, visually, the film reminded me of the Kannada film Tithi, though in terms of content, particularly as the national anthem played out at a rather inconvenient time, it reminded me of Nagraj Manjules Fandry. When little Sundarams prayers to a 30-foot Ganesha goes unheard, when Joseph looks up to Jesus on a cross with disappointment, high up in the altar at the church, when Raju climbs up a hill, literally, before saying he does not believe in God, it is also the films rejection of religion.

At its core however, the film is a meditation on caste and masculinities, the pressures on women to stay pure and showcase their purity at all ages, and that on men to be men  to showcase their potency. Without saying as much in as many terms, we are made to understand caste and religious dynamics in this area in Vizag, and how they invisibilise people.

Even at that tiny primary school level, Sunitha cannot sing film songs because her father thinks it will pollute her. When shes taken away from the school as she finishes singing, Sundaram watches unable to do anything even as his friend berates him for not doing something. He cannot, he is a little boy up against a man and she is his little daughter.

Bhargavi is very aware of caste and its implications, and refers to herself as a white belt while tugging at an imaginary janeu; its funny because women arent made to wear them, even if they are Brahmin, because of notions of purity and pollution that so concerns caste and brahminism. Bhargavi rejects the differences of caste and religion and takes that leap like women tend to, fearless as they are in love. Joseph is far away, nowhere near the scene when it is revealed that Bhargavi has submitted herself to the will of her father, who threatens to kill himself were she to go with Joseph.

Saleema drinks Mansion House Brandy. Thats a weird introduction, but thats all Gaddam knows of her. That and her eyes as she covers her face while buying alcohol. The covering of her face is a wily trick, because of Saleemas profession, that which they refer to as the oldest in the world for a woman. The men from her neighbourhood wear the garb of religion to question her purity, even as Gaddam who wants to marry her rejects the societys idea of purity. Gaddam too is incapable of stopping harm coming her way, because he too is not around. He is again invisible.

Finally, Radha rejects the caste system at work  both in the real as well as workplace sense  and wants Raju to sit next to her and the other officers and not across the table in the wall to eat lunch. Radha is widowed and has a daughter up for marriage according to her brother and must not harbour dreams of another man. Even widows have codes for purity. And the entire town, even as Raju rejects their taunts, has concerned itself with his potency. When the film ends, one realises that it is a small step for Raju, and a giant leap for Telugu cinema.
By ANI

WASHINGTON: Here is a solid reason to be nice to your subordinates, turns out, showing compassion to your employees might actually lead to better productivity.

According to the latest research compassion to subordinates almost always pays off, especially when combined with the enforcement of clear goals and benchmarks.

Chou-Yu Tsai, one of the researchers said, "Being benevolent is important because it can change the perception your followers have of you. If you feel that your leader or boss actually cares about you, you may feel more serious about the work you do for them."

To find out how both the presence and lack of benevolence affects the job performance of followers, the team of researchers surveyed nearly 1,000 members of the Taiwanese military and almost 200 adults working full-time in the United States, and looked at the subordinate performance that resulted from three different leadership styles:

Authoritarianism-dominant leadership: Leaders who assert absolute authority and control, focused mostly on completing tasks at all costs with little consideration of the well-being of subordinates.

Benevolence-dominant leadership: Leaders whose primary concern is the personal or familial well-being of subordinates. These leaders want followers to feel supported and have strong social ties.

Classical paternalistic leadership: A leadership style that combines both authoritarianism and benevolence, with a strong focus on both task completion and the well-being of subordinates.

The researchers found that authoritarianism-dominant leadership almost always had negative results on job performance, while benevolence-dominant leadership almost always had a positive impact on job performance. In other words, showing no compassion for your employees doesn't bode well for their job performance, while showing compassion motivated them to be better workers.

They also found that classical paternalistic leadership, which combines both benevolence and authoritarianism, had just as strong an effect on subordinate performance as benevolent-dominant leadership. Tsai said the reason for this phenomenon may extend all the way back to childhood.

"The parent and child relationship is the first leader-follower relationship that people experience. It can become a bit of a prototype of what we expect out of leadership going forward, and the paternalistic leadership style kind of resembles that of a parent," Tsai said.

"The findings imply that showing personal and familial support for employees is a critical part of the leader-follower relationship. While the importance of establishing structure and setting expectations is important for leaders, and arguably parents, help, and guidance from the leader in developing social ties and support networks for a follower can be a powerful factor in their job performance," another researcher said.

Considering the difference in work cultures between US employees and members of the Taiwanese military, researchers were surprised that the results were consistent across both groups.

"The consistency in the results suggest that the effectiveness of paternalistic leadership may be more broad-based than previously thought, and it may be all about how people respond to leaders and not about where they live or the type of work they do," said Yammarino, another researcher.

Tsai said his main takeaway for managers is to put just as much or even more of an emphasis on the well-being of your employees as you do on hitting targets and goals.

"Subordinates and employees are not tools or machines that you can just use. They are human beings and deserve to be treated with respect," said Tsai.

"Make sure you are focusing on their well-being and helping them find the support they need, while also being clear about what your expectations and priorities are. This is a work-based version of 'tough love' often seen in parent-child relationships." Tsai added.

The full findings are present in the Journal of The Leadership Quarterly.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa Wednesday stoutly defended the government's decision to procure only two squadrons of Rafale jets against the original proposal of 126 aircraft, saying there have been similar "emergency" acquisitions in the past.

The IAF is reeling under a severe shortage of jets at a time India faces security challenges from two nuclear-powered neighbours, he said at a seminar, adding that the purchase of 36 Rafale jets (two squadrons) will help the force deal with the situation.

Air Officer Commanding (AOC) in Chief of Central Command SBP Sinha gave a detailed presentation at the seminar, explaining why the deal negotiated by the UPA government for procurement of 126 Rafale jets did not fructify and why the contract finalised by the NDA government for 36 jets was "better".

He said the NDA government managed to get better price for the aircraft, better maintenance terms and the planes will have best in class weapons, most modern sensors and avionics.

Sinha was part of the cost negotiation committee when the UPA government negotiated the deal for 126 Rafale jets.

In his address, the IAF Chief said the 36 Rafale will add teeth to India's fire power, suggesting that the political slugfest surrounding the Rafale deal was unfortunate.

Justifying the decision to go for only two Rafale squadrons, Dhanoa said India procured two squadrons of MiG 23 MF jets after Pakistan received first lot of F-16 aircraft in 1983.

The Congress has been alleging massive irregularities in the deal and attacking the government for procuring just 36 jets when IAF required 126 jets.

The IAF chief said, in 1985, two squadrons of Mirage 2000 were procured from France, and later two squadrons of MiG 29 were purchased from the then Soviet Union.

"Whenever the government felt the airpower element of the defence forces is likely to be in a disadvantageous position, it has gone in for emergency purchases of the aircraft under the umbrella of the inter-governmental agreement," Dhanoa said.

"The history is that the government had undertaken emergency purchase of fighter aircraft on several occasions in the past," he said.

The IAF chief said, "By providing the Rafale and S-400, the government is strengthening the IAF to counter the shortfalls of our depleting numbers."

Asked at the seminar whether IAF has a plan to procure two more squadrons of Rafale jets, Deputy Chief of Air Staff R Nambiar said the force wanted 126 Rafale jets.

He said IAF is in the process of 114 fighter jets and Rafale would be one of the contenders for it.

Sources said Nambiar is flying to France on Sunday to review various technical tests on the Rafale jets being readied for supply to India.

The previous UPA government was negotiating a deal with French aerospace giant Dassault Aviation, the makers of Rafale, for procurement of 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA).

However the deal could not be sealed.

According to the proposal, Dassault Aviation was to supply 18 Rafale jets in fly-away condition while 108 aircraft was to be manufactured in India by the company along with Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL).

Sinha said the deal under the UPA could not go through because of "irresolvable differences" between HAL and Dassault Aviation on transfer of technology and who will be responsible for manufacturing of 108 aircraft in India.

He said the cost of 18 "fly-away" Rafale was "firmly" known while the cost of 108 Rafale, which was to be manufactured in India, was not known.

The Modi government signed a government-to-government deal with France for purchase of 36 Rafale jets at a cost of Rs 58,000 crore on September 23, 2016.

The delivery of the aircraft will start from September 2019.

Air Chief Marshal Dhanoa said the acquisitions under inter-governmental agreement is "faster" and quickest means of achieving operational capability of the IAF.

The government is also procuring a batch of S-400 air defence missile system from Russia.

The IAF chief said IAF currently has 31 squadrons of fighter jets against the sanctioned strength of 42.

Asked whether the political slugfest relating to Rafale has affected morale of the IAF personnel, he said "no".
By Online Desk

When Madhya Pradesh police nabbed this "innocent-looking" tailor from Bhopal last week, what he revealed left all of them aghast. Aadesh Khambra, 48, who stitched clothes for a living, disclosed that he had murdered at least 33 truck drivers in the past eight years.

Khambra also claimed he had carried out contract killings too and had worked with at least six inter-state gangs.

When grilled by the police, Khambra revealed his 'simple' modus operandi. He would befriend drivers in roadside restaurants and drug their food so they would fall asleep. He would then drive their trucks to isolated areas, strangle them and their helpers, and dump the bodies in jungle.

Later, he along with his accomplices would sell the trucks and the booty.

On August 12, a truck carrying 50 tonnes of iron rods left for Bhopal but it was reported missing. A private company lodged a complaint in this regard. Later, police found the body of the truck driver Makhan Singh in Bilkhiriya area and also recovered the empty truck from Ayodhya Nagar in Bhopal on August 15. Police arrested seven people, who sold and purchased the iron rods. The arrested persons told the police about one Jaikaran Prajapati who in turn named Khambra as the brain behind the crime.

We arrested Khambra from Mandideep, said police officer Rahul Kumar Lodha.

Police said Khambra used to get Rs 50000 for every murder. When he joined the gang, his motive was to make money but a few years ago his son met with an accident and he had to take loans for his treatment. He got involved in more crimes to repay the debt.

Initially, SP Lodha said, police did not suspect him due to his calm and composed nature. But he and other officers had the shock of their lives when an unrepentant Khambra revealed his murders.

The police said they are now interrogating him with the help of a psychologist to dig more into the case.
Anand ST Das By

Express News Service

PATNA: Rattled by the rising crime graph in Bihar in recent months, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday gave an earful to the police brass during a high-level review meeting and asked the cops to act tough on criminals and tone up the crime prevention mechanism.

Kumar, who has been targeted by the Opposition parties over the surge in criminal incidents, was particularly worried about the recent incidents of lynching and the rising cases of rapes and molestation. Six people accused of criminal acts were killed by mobs in four lynching incidents over five days this month.

The CM was apprised of the law and order situation in the state by DGP KS Dwivedi in presence of chief secretary Deepak Kumar, principal secretary (home) Amir Subhani and all top officials of the police headquarters. The SPs and district magistrates of all the 38 districts of the state were linked to the meeting through video-conferencing.

Describing the rising crime scene in the state as an unfortunate situation, the CM gave several instructions to the DGP and other top brass in the police department. He asked them to show personal and proactive interest to ensure that crime remains under check, said a senior police official who attended the meeting.

Expressing concern over recent attacks on police teams by antisocial elements during raids, the CM asked the police force to act tough on such people and conduct raids after thorough preparations. He stressed the need for identifying trouble-prone areas under various police stations and keep special attention to those areas.

Asking the cops to analyse incidents of communal flare-ups, the CM wondered why such incidents have declined in places infamous for them and new places are being added to the list. The DMs and SPs must visit sensitive areas and hold peace committee meetings there regularly. No communal flare-up should take place in the state during the upcoming festive season of Dushera and Muharram, the CM was quoted as saying.

Chief secretary Deepak Kumar asked the police department to ensure that every police station has a landline telephone and that at least two four-wheelers are available at every police station. He also asked senior police officials to monitor investigations in serious crimes and ensure conviction in courts.

This meeting to review law and order situation in Bihar was scheduled to be held on September 4, but it was postponed due to the CMs sickness.

The soaring crime rate in Bihar is the direct result of the Nitish Kumar-led governments neglect and inherent weaknesses. Only prompt, tough and impartial action against criminals and their influential patrons can improve the situation, not these review meetings, said RJSs Tejashwi Yadav, leader of the Opposition in the Assembly.
By Express News Service

KOLKATA: Three months after her visit to Chicago to attend the 125th anniversary of Swami Vivekanandas historic speech at Parliament of Worlds Religions was cancelled by the Vivekananda Vedanta Society citing unforeseen difficulties, Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday blamed an unholy conspiracy for the move.

Speaking at the Ramakrishna Mission headquarters at Belur Math in Howrah district on the anniversary of Swami Vivekanandas Chicago speech, Mamata said: I know that Ramakrishna Mission was threatened to cancel my visit to Chicago. I dont blame Ramakrishna Mission, who cannot say it on the face, but I can. Some people think that they have become very powerful by exerting pressure. These tactics wont stop me.

I wanted to visit Chicago but it was cancelled due to an unholy conspiracy as some people did not want me to visit there. I was very hurt by the incident. We will learn Hinduism from Swami Vivekananda and Ramakrishna Paramhamsa and not any import-export version, she added.

The TMC supremo also urged Ramakrishna Mission to begin a campaign to take on hardline Hindutva. You have to spread the tolerant strain of Hinduism to defeat the extremists who are trying to take over everything. They have already taken over Swamijis Kanyakumari, next they may take over Belur Math as well. Hinduism is the mother of all religions and has taught the world tolerance and acceptance. We dont need to learn Hinduism from anyone else, she added.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Congress on Tuesday hit back at Union Minister Smriti Irani saying she is levelling allegations against party chief Rahul Gandhi in the Associated Journals Limited case to regain her "lost" political relevance.

The Congress also claimed that Irani is "misinformed" as the party gave a loan to AJL to retain Jawaharlal Nehru's legacy, the National Herald, which played a role in the freedom struggle, and said that the Enforcement Directorate under Prime Minister Narendra Modi had closed the National Herald case in 2015 as they found no evidence of wrongdoing.

Taking a swipe at the BJP leader, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala alleged that Irani has been "out of favour" with the present prime minister for too long and she is levelling charges against Gandhi to become relevant.

"She is trying to seek lost political relevance as she has become quite irrelevant and is about to go and be relegated to the annals of history. So by abusing Congress leadership she is trying to find relevance. We saw yesterday and today as to how an unnerved PM is scared of the impending defeat in the four election-going states of Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram and almost certain of his decimated fate in the 2019 general election is now hiding behind authorities like Income Tax, ED, CBI etc. to seek personal vendetta and revenge against the Congress leadership," he told reporters.

The Congress leader said the manner in which "stupid and foolish" allegations are being hurled makes a mockery of the thought process of Modi Government.

He said over a period of ten years in the 1990s, the Congress gave National Herald Rs.90 crore so that National Herald and Navjivan could pay salary of employees "for these are symbols of our national freedom with which BJP has no connection".

"They are saying we are going to reopen after eight years the 2010 Income Tax return which was duly scrutinized in the year 2018. This itself proves your mala-fide Mr Prime Minister. is a preposterous, stupid and foolish assertion that how a bad loan can become income of shareholder of a company?," he asked.

"People who do not have a graduation degree because they say that their qualifications are three different qualifications should at least take an opinion from very learned people of BJP before levelling preposterous, stupid and foolish allegation," he alleged.

The Congress also said on its Twitter handle that Irani is "obviously misinformed" and stated that the party wanted to retain Pandit Nehru's legacy, the National Herald, by relieving the debt held by AJL.

"There is no restriction in law preventing political parties from giving loans. In fact the Election Commission issued a clear order in this regard in November 2012. Young Indian is a Section 25 not-for-profit company. This prevents directors and shareholders of Young Indian from deriving any benefit whatsoever. Majority of AJL's properties are on lease from the government and cannot be sold," it said.

The party said Congress President Rahul Gandhi sought a direction from the court to media houses to prevent them from misrepresenting the facts.

Attacking Congress president Rahul Gandhi for challenging the IT department's decision to reopen his 2011-12 tax assessments, Irani said Tuesday he was quick to hug Prime Minister Narendra Modi but would run a mile from an income tax officer.

Rahul Gandhi needs to answer many questions, the minister said after the Delhi High Court dismissed the pleas filed by him and his mother, UPA chief Sonia Gandhi, against the decision to reopen their tax assessments in connection with a case related to the National Herald newspaper.

"Why is it that Mr Rahul Gandhi, who is too quick to hug the prime minister, would run a mile when it comes to an Income Tax officer," Irani asked, referring to the Congress president hugging Modi in the Lok Sabha during the no-confidence debate in July.

She accused Rahul Gandhi of setting up a not-for-profit company, Young Indians, which then bought a commercial company, Associated Journals Ltd, and its debts worth Rs 90 crore for Rs 50 lakh.
Chinas Anhui sends new recruits to military camps

EditorChen Zhuo Time2018-09-12



New recruits, wearing new military uniforms and red flowers on their chests, walk into the Fuyang Railway Station during the departure ceremony at the Fuyang Railway Station Square in East Chinas Anhui Province on September 10, 2018. Photo: VCG

Highlights: More than 970 new recruits, wearing new military uniforms and red flowers on their chests, attended a departure ceremony at the Fuyang Railway Station Square in East Chinas Anhui Province on September 10, 2018. They will be sent to the military camps in Chinas Guangdong Province, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and Fujian Province. There are more than 3,000 qualified new recruits joining the Army this year after finishing the registration and physical and political examinations. (Photos: VCG)


Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: Mysterious killings are once again haunting the people of strife-torn Kashmir. Four people have been shot dead by unknown gunmen in last four days in the Valley. A 35-year-old painter was found in a pool of blood, with his throat slit, in his rented room at Arampora area of Sopore in Baramulla district in the afternoon.

The painter, identified as Haroon Rashid, was from Bihar. He was taken to a nearby hospital by the locals, where he was referred to Srinagar. Haroon succumbed to injuries at a Srinagar hospital.

Earlier, unknown gunmen shot dead a youth travelling in his car at Brari Nambal in Babdam area of Khanyar in downtown Srinagar late Monday night.

The youth, Abdul Ahad Ganie, who was a resident of Kupwara, was shot dead from point blank range, police said. He was pursing PhD from Aligarh Muslim University and was staying at his in-laws houses in Srinagar.

The two killings took place three days after two youths, including a separatist activist and a militant affiliated with Zakir Musa-led Ansar Ghazwatul Hind, were shot dead by unknown gunmen.

AGH militant Asif Nazir Dar was shot dead at Naseembagh Park in Hazratbal area on the outskirts of Srinagar last Saturday. The same day, Hurriyat activist, Hakim-ul-Rehman Sultani, was shot dead in his car outside his home in Sopore.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The government must explain how and why Vijay Mallya was allowed to leave India, the Congress said and demanded a thorough inquiry, after the embattled business claimed in London on Wednesday that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country.

The government, the Congress said, was fully complicit in the flight of people such as Mallya and Punjab National Bank fraud accused Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi from the country.

After Jaitley refuted Mallya's claim as "factually false,", the liquor baron, facing charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore, appeared to tone down the seriousness of his comments, saying it was not a "formal meeting" and he only "happened to meet" the finance minister.

"Everybody was complacent and everybody was aware. Whether it was a casual meeting or a structured meeting. We need proper disclosures, full inquiries on this," Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said.

He said the moot question remains why was no action taken at that time in view of the knowledge of such situations in terms of allowing him to leave.

He said Mallya's claim is the vindication of the party's stand and assertion that the government was always in the know about Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and others who have fled the country.

Singhvi said the country wants to know what transpired during the meetings between Mallya and Jaitley.

"Today we have a categorical assertion by Mallya in UK about the number of times he met the finance minister to have some resolution of his dues with banks. The government should now explain how and why he was allowed to leave and what transpired at those meetings. The nation wants to know," he said.

Singhvi said the Congress has repeatedly asserted for the past over 18 months that not only Vijay Mallya, but also Nirav Modi, Choksi and many others have been allowed to leave the country with impunity.

He said the phrase used by Mallya that 'I met the finance minister' does not suggest a passing and casual meeting inside Rajya Sabha.

"I think more categorical and detailed response must be had. Question remains how could he have left after everyone knew of debts and NPAs," he said.

The Congress also tweeted on its official handle, saying, "Vijay Mallya met FM Arun Jaitley several times before escaping the country to discuss a settlement plan, in spite of this the BJP government allowed him to flee with thousands of crores debt. Do we need anymore proof that this govt. is in the pocket of crony capitalists.

" Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said that with Mallya's revelation one thing is clear that the BJP is running "a travel, tour and immigration agency for looters to settle abroad".

"After Mallya reveals his 'consultation meetings' before his smooth escape. One thing is clear. BJP is running tour, travels and immigration agency for loot, scoot and settle abroad brigade," Surjewala said.

In a swipe at the government's 'sabka saath, sabka vikas' slogan, the Congress leader said the BJP's sole aim now was 'Bhagode ka saath, Lootero ka vikas' (helping absconders and enriching looters).

"Vijay Mallya left India with the country's money after a farewell from Arun Jaitley. Chowkidaar nahin, Bhagidaar hai (Not a watchman, but a partner)," he tweeted in Hindi.

Another Congress leader Anand Sharma said, "Vijay Mallya has run away after looting money from banks. Government had this information. So, when Finance Minister gave statements in Parliament on Vijay Mallya issue, he should have mentioned about this meeting with Mallya. Only FM can tell why he didn't tell about it?" Earlier, the 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss told reporters in London that he met the minister and offered to settle with the banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the finance minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks)," Mallya said, without naming the minister.

He is facing court proceedings in London where India's plea for his extradition is being heard.
By IANS

SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir government is likely to defer the municipal elections scheduled in October to January 2019, sources said.

This comes after two major political parties, the National Conference (NC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) announced they were boycotting the polls.

A decision announcing deferment of the municipal polls is likely to be taken at the State Administrative Council (SAC) meeting chaired by Governor Satya Pal Malik on Wednesday.

READ| Parties opposing polls in Jammu and Kashmir are anti-people, anti-development: BJP

The panchayat polls were scheduled for November-December. "The schedule already announced for the panchayat polls will remain unchanged," an official in the know of things said.

After the NC announced boycott of the municipal and panchayat polls, the PDP made a similar announcement on Monday.

The Congress will announce its decision on participation in these elections at a press conference here later.
By Express News Service

RANCHI: Marking the beginning of e-mobility in the state, Chief Minister Raghubar Das on Wednesday flagged off electric vehicles at Jharkhand Secretariat in the presence of senior government officials. Initially, 20 vehicles were handed over to Jharkhand Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited (JBVNL), with the remaining 30 to be given in the next two weeks.

Twelve charging stations have been set up at four offices of JBVNL, including its corporate office in Ranchi, for creating a supporting infrastructure, which is crucial for the promotion of e-mobility.

"Electric mobility is an attractive, sustainable and profitable solution to mitigate climate change and the threat to public health caused by vehicular emissions. Today's event is an important milestone for ushering in an era of clean, green and future-oriented technologies in Jharkhand. We are glad to join the Government of India's mission of rapid adoption of e-mobility in the country and we would like to see our state at the forefront of this revolution," said the chief minister. This initiative is expected to help JBVNL save more than 1.20 lakh litres of fuel every year and reduce CO2 emissions by over 1,400 tonnes annually. In addition, the JBVNL will make monetary savings in maintenance as the operating cost of the electric vehicles is one-fourth of that of vehicles with an internal combustion engine.

The electric vehicles were provided to JBVNL following an agreement with Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), under the Ministry of Power, Government of India, for the deployment of 50 electric vehicles at various JBVNL offices in Ranchi.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: After Nepal decided to skip the first ever BIMSTEC military exercise in India, its newly appointed Army Chief Purna Chandra Thapa has declined an invite by the Indian Army to attend a conclave of army chiefs of the grouping on September 16, official sources said.

The militaries of BIMSTEC member nations, barring Nepal and Thailand, began a week-long anti-terror exercise at Aundh near Pune on Monday to enhance cooperation in dealing with the challenge of terrorism in the region.

Each participating country has sent its troops as well as a three-member team as observers.

Though Nepal and Thailand are not participating in the exercise, both the countries sent observers for it.

The Indian Army has organised a conclave of army chiefs of the participating countries on September 16, and barring Nepal, all the countries have accepted the invitation.

They said Nepal's Gen.Thapa conveyed to the Indian Army his inability to attend the conclave as he has prior engagements including ceremonial events to attend in his country, the sources said.

Gen.Thapa was sworn in as Nepal's Army Chief on Sunday.

The development comes in the backdrop of China's growing overtures towards Nepal for deeper economic and security cooperation.

Last month, Nepal had announced that it would participate in a military exercise with China.

The sources said hat Thailand conveyed to India that it will send a senior military official to attend the conclave.

The BIMSTEC is a regional grouping comprising Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal.

The grouping accounts for 22 per cent of the global population, and has a combined gross domestic product of USD 2.8 trillion.

Indian Army officials said the exercise is focused on boosting inter-operability among the forces and exchanging best practices to contain terror-related activities.

They said the long-term goal of the initiative is to explore possibility of creating a viable regional security architecture to deal with the challenge of terrorism and transnational crimes.

The exercise is taking place nearly two weeks after leaders of the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) countries, in their summit talks in Kathmandu, resolved to join hands to combat the scourge of terrorism effectively.

India has been pushing for making the BIMSTEC a vibrant form for regional collaboration as cooperation under the SAARC (South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation) framework was not moving forward.

Citing continuing support to cross-border terrorism from Pakistan, India has been maintaining that it was difficult to proceed with SAARC initiative under current circumstances.

BIMSTEC excludes Pakistan.

During the Kathmandu summit, the leaders deliberated on a range of issues including ways to effectively deal with terrorism and radicalisation.
By ANI

NEW DELHI: Former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie along with advocate-activist Prashant Bhushan on Tuesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of violating the Defence Procurement Procedures (DPP) while finalising the high-profile Rafale deal.

Alleging Prime Narendra Modi's "personal culpability" in the Rafale jet purchases, the trio asserted that the former bypassed every rule of defence procurement and "compromised national security".

"National security has been compromised by the Prime Minister and every rule of the defence procurement was flouted to unilaterally reduce the number of planes from 126 to 36. As per DPP, only the service headquarters can decide on the numbers," said Shourie, while addressing a press conference here.

Shourie said that in just two days Prime Minister Modi "completely overturned" a process that was in progress for years, while adding that the latter had "absolutely no authority to do so."

He further alleged that the Central government had "spun a web of lies to protect Prime Minister's culpability in the connection".

Senior advocate Prashant Bhushan, Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shouri before a press conference to expose the lies of Arun Jaitley, Ambani & AF Vice Chief on the Rafale Deal in New Delhi. (Photo| Sekhar Yadav/ EPS)

Echoing similar sentiments, Bhushan further underscored that the government is also forcing the serving officials of the Indian Air Force to defend the purchase of Rafale fighter jets.

The leaders even questioned the decision of choosing Reliance Defence Ltd, which has "no experience" in manufacturing aircraft over Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

Initially in 2012, during the United Progressive Alliance's (UPA) tenure, India planned to buy 18 off-the-shelf jets from France, with 108 others to be assembled in the country by the state-run aerospace and defence company HAL.

The BJP-led government scrapped the UPA's plan in 2015 and announced that it would buy 36 "ready-to-fly" Rafale jets instead of seeking a technology transfer from France's Dassault Aviation and making the aircraft in India.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Taking a dig at fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi, Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said the government was serious about taking strict action against economic offenders who flee the country.

Our government has formed lawsFugitive Economic Offenders Billto take action against fugitive economic offenders. I assure you that our government will take action against the fugitives. That process is under way, Singh said in Kanpur.

Singhs statement came hours after Mehul Choski, in a video statement issued to a news agency, claimed that all allegations against him in connection with the alleged scam at the Punjab National Bank (PNB) were false and baseless.

The allegations levelled by the Enforcement Directorate are false and baseless. They have attacked my properties illegally without there being any basis of the same, Choksi said.

The passport authorities revoked my passport altogether in view of which I was immobilised. On February 16, I received an email from the passport office which said that my passport has been suspended due to reasons of security threat to India. On February 20, I sent an email to the regional passport office, Mumbai, requesting them to revoke the suspension of my passport. However, I did not receive any reply from the regional passport office, Choski added.

Meanwhile, attacking the government over the issue, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, Facts point at the PM and his offices complicity in the escape of PNB fraud accused Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi, who looted public banks to the tune of 24,000 crore.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed a magistrate in Uttar Pradesh to pass appropriate orders in accordance with law in a rioting case allegedly involving Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud disposed of a petition challenging the Allahabad High Court order dismissing a plea filed by one Rasheed Khan in the case.

"We only direct the Magistrate (in Gorakhpur), as the High Court has remitted the matter to him, to pass appropriate orders keeping in view the law laid down. The Special Leave Petition stands disposed of accordingly," the bench said.

The case, according to the police, pertains to a 2007 incident in the Gorakhpur district in Uttar Pradesh when Adityanath was a Member of Parliament.

The FIR said that on January 27, 2007, on the occassion of Satvi Moharram, on a call was given by Adityanath, following which members of right-wing outfit Hindu Vahini, traders and businessman started assembling and raising slogans.

It said that at about 10 am that day, the agitators set several properties ablaze, damaged religious books and indulged in destructive activities at the Imam Chowk in Gorakhpur.

To disperse the agitating mob, the police fired several rounds in the air.

The FIR was lodged on charges of rioting, outraging religious feelings, tresspassing on burial places and promoting enmity between groups.

On completion of the investigation, a chargesheet was filed on June 14, 2007 against all the accused and the cognizance of final report was taken by the Chief Juidicial Magistrate.

The order of cognizance was challenged before the Sessions Judge, Gorakhpur.

The Sessions Judge, by its order of January 28, 2017, allowed criminal revision and set aside the cognizance order of Chief Judicial Magistrate.

The court, however, remitted back the matter to the trial court with a direction to the magistrate to pass a fresh order in accordance with law on the issue of taking cognizance.

The order of Sessions Judge was challenged before the Allahabad High Court which upheld it, saying no interference is warranted.

The high court had said "by way of abundant caution, CJM, Gorakhpur, is directed to decide the matter afresh, pursuant to the impugned order of remand strictly in accordance with law and in the exercise of his unfettered independent discretion, without being influenced by observations, if any, made by the revisional court in the impugned order."
By PTI

PATNA: A man accused of trying to snatch cash from a railway employee outside a bank was brutally beaten to death by a mob in Bihars Sasaram in the fourth incident of lynching in the state in the past five days.

As the Opposition parties targeted the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government over the death of six people in the four lynching incidents, the ruling JD(U) accused the main Opposition party RJD of having a hand in these incidents with the aim of maligning the chief ministers image.

Police said Pankaj Kumar was beaten to death by a mob outside a State Bank of India branch in Sasaram when he and two of his accomplices allegedly tried to snatch a bag containing Rs 30 lakh from a railway supervisor. The trio failed in the loot bid as the people present there intervened and chased them.

A woman was badly injured when one of the three accused fired from a gun while trying to escape. The crowd managed to catch hold of Pankaj Kumar and beat him black and blue with belts and sticks. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, but doctors declared him brought dead.

Nobody was arrested for the incident. Rohtas Additional SP Rajesh Kumar said police were trying to get CCTV footage of the incident to identify the people who beat Pankaj Kumar to death.

A 24-year-old man, Rupesh Jha, was beaten to death by a mob at Ramnagra in Sitamarhi district on Sunday after the driver of a pick-up van alleged that Jha had stolen money from him. A profusely beaten Jha was rushed to Patna Medical College and Hospital, where he died. Police later registered an FIR against one named accused, who is absconding, and 150 unknown people.

A woman, Mala Devi, was beaten to death near her house at Ambedkar Chowk in Sasaram on Saturday by fellow villagers allegedly because they suspected her of practising witchcraft. Three of the four accused were arrested, said police.

In Begusarai, three men who allegedly tried to abduct a five-year-old girl from her school were beaten to death with bamboo poles by local villagers on Friday. The three victims  Mukesh Mahto, Hira Singh and Shyam Singh  were known in the area for their involvement in criminal activities. No arrest has been made in the case so far.

These incidents of lynching show there is no law and order in Bihar. While criminals have no fear of the law, ordinary people are taking the law into their own hands as they have no faith in police, said senior RJD leader Bhai Birendra, seeking CM Nitish Kumars resignation for failing to check lawlessness.

JD(U) spokesperson Sanjay Singh said: An analysis of several recent incidents involving mobs has made it clear that RJD has had a hand in all these incidents. They are doing this to malign CM Nitish Kumars image and to paint Bihar in a poor light. But their evil design will not succeed.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court Wednesday extended the house arrest of five rights activists who were arrested in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence case till September 17.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud adjourned the hearing on the plea filed by historian Romila Thapar and four others to September 17 after it was submitted that senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who is representing the petitioners, was busy in another court.

Earlier, Singhvi appeared before the bench and submitted that the hearing on Thapar's plea be conducted after 12 pm as he has to appear in another matter.

The court was hearing the plea filed against the arrest of the rights activists -- Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha -- in the case.

The Maharashtra police had arrested the five activists on August 28 in connection with an FIR lodged following a conclave -- 'Elgaar Parishad' -- held on December 31 last year that had later triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village.

On August 29, the apex court ordered the house arrest of the activists, saying "dissent is the safety valve of democracy".
PRAGUE, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Czech Republic held on Tuesday its largest ever anti-terrorist exercise in the Congress Centre of Prague, the capital city, with the participation of police rapid reaction unit, firefighters and rescuers.

The Demon 2018 anti-terrorist exercise was attended by a total of 400 police officers, while some 2,000 people play hostages taken by terrorists, said police headquarters spokeswoman Ivana Nguyenova.

According to Nguyenova, the simulated terrorist attack started in early morning hours on Tuesday. Under the scenario, a group of 40 masked gunmen attacked the building of Congress Center during a musical performance and took the audience hostage. The gunmen demanded their fellows be released from prison, otherwise they refuse to negotiate with the police.

Czech rapid reaction unit launched a raid with the aim to set the hostages free around 10:00 in the morning, and helicopters circled around the building. The Congress Centre and its nearby surroundings were closed roughly until 13:00.

Czech Police President Tomas Tuhy said the preparation of the training lasted for half a year, adding that generally the police wanted to simulate a real situation with the exercise. This was an exceptional exercise, it is the biggest with its size.

He said the exercise will result in proposals for the police and an integrated rescue system for the needs of modernisation. The police will assess the exercise very thoroughly so that they can be prepared for the dangerous threats that the Czech Republic may expect.

Czech Interior Minister Jan Hamacek who watched the action said such exercises were vital, noting there is a real risk of attack on soft targets such as a musical performance. Czech government is trying to respond to such threats.

"We have a concept of protection of soft targets, but along with a conceptual work, there is a need of testing the use of the units in practice," Hamacek was quoted as saying.

The Emergency Service representatives said about 40 healthcare professionals participated in the exercise together with dozens of firefighters.
Anand ST Das By

Express News Service

PATNA: Just over a year after returning to power in Bihar following its poor performance in the 2015 Assembly polls, BJP is confident that NDA will win all the 40 Lok Sabha seats in the state in next years polls and that sharing of seats would be amicably resolved among the allies soon.

At BJPs two-day state executive meeting at Bodhgaya that concluded on Wednesday, senior BJP leaders waxed eloquent about NDAs very high prospects in Bihar. The RJD-led Opposition grand alliance, they said, stood little chance before the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the performance of the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government.

BJP is fully prepared for the elections next year. Our partys workers and leaders will devote their full energy and enthusiasm to make sure that NDA wins all the 40 seats, said BJP national general secretary and Bihar in-charge Bhupendra Yadav.

Dismissing UPA and the grand alliance as opportunist, family-oriented outfits, he said the historical welfare schemes executed by the NDA governments at the Centre and the state have raised faith and hope among the people towards the BJP-led alliance. Yadav said the sharing of seats among the five parties in Bihar NDA would be finalised amicably and soon.

In the 2014 polls, Ram Vilas Paswan and Upendra Kushwaha were with us (BJP). Nitish Kumar is also with us this time. So NDA is going to win all the 40 seats in Bihar in 2019, said senior BJP leader and Bihar deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi.

Claiming that 65 per cent of Bihars voters are already with NDA, Modi said the LS poll battle in the state will be a 65-35 battle between NDA and the grand alliance. We will go to the polls on the basis of our ideology of constructive nationalism, the leadership of Narendra Modi, the organisational skills of Amit Shah, and the superlative, pro-people performance of NDA governments at the Centre and in Bihar, he added.

BJPs Bihar state president and MP Nityanand Rai said the Opposition RJD and Congress are left with no issues to take on the NDA. He targeted Congress president Rahul Gandhi and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, dubbing them as leaders with little concern for nation building.
By PTI

KOTTAYAM/KOCHI/KANNUR: A nun who has accused a Roman Catholic Bishop of raping her has petitioned the Vatican representative in India alleging that the clergyman was using "political and money power" to bury the case even as the Kerala government Tuesday assured "justice will be done".

Making a fervent plea for urgent intervention, the nun in a scathing letter also sought to explain her silence before coming out against the bishop and said she had "tremendous fear and shame" and wondered why the church was "closing its eyes towards the truth".

As the issue snowballed with continuing protests seeking action against Bishop Franco Mulakkal of Jalandhar diocese in Punjab, senior minister E P Jayarajan rejected allegations of attempts to sabotage the case and asserted that the probe was proceeding in the "right direction."

"A very strong investigation is being carried out in the case. It is proceeding in the right direction. No accused would be allowed to escape the clutches of the law," he told reporters in Kannur.

The Minister also said there was no pressure on the government in acting against the bishop.

The day also saw "Missionaries of Jesus", a congregation to which the nun belongs, coming out against the nun and five fellow nuns, who are protesting in Kochi seeking justice, accusing them of "spreading blatant lies" against the Bishop.

The protesting nuns rejected the charge and said they will continue their agitation till justice was delivered.

In the lengthy letter to Giambattista Diquattro, Vatican's Apostolic Nuncio (a diplomatic mission), the nun, who has accused Bishop Franco rape and having unnatural sex with her multiple times between 2014 and 2016, said she has turned to the Church authorities for justice.

She demanded removal of the Jalandhar Bishop from the post, alleging that by continuing in the position, Franco and his close associates "are using the wealth of the diocese to divert" the course of the police investigation.

"Seeking your urgent intervention in this case as the representative of the Holy See in India," the nun said, knocking at the Vatican.

In the September 8 letter, a copy of which is available with the media Tuesday, she alleged that the Bishop and his associates were luring people to take a stand supportive of them by assuring them properties and other forms of wealth.

"They are arranging people to attack us and Bishop Franco is using his political power and money to get higher authorities of the investigation and the government to bury legal proceedings that I have filed against him," she charged.

Noting that she had filed the complaint against the bishop two months ago, the nun claimed even though the Special Investigation Team probing it was convinced of the proofs, they were not able to arrest him because of his political and economic power.

"I beg the Church authorities to kindly make a speedy enquiry about this case and remove Bishop Franco from his responsibilities as the spiritual leader of the diocese," the nun said.

Noting that she felt the Catholic church was still doubting her over the argument as to why she allowed him to sexually abuse her multiple times, the nun said she had tremendous fear and shame to bring this out into the open.

She also feared 'threats' to her family members.

The nun wondered why the Church was closing its eyes to the "truth when I have mustered courage..." "Your highness, I would like to ask: Will the Church authority - who stand to protect Bishop Franco and safeguard the dignity of the Church by hiding his wickedness - be able to give back what I have lost?" she asked in the letter.

Copies of the letter were sent to 21 others, including the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) President Cardinal Oswald Gracias and Delhi Metropolitan Archbishop, Anil Couto.

The letter surfaced as the protest by various Catholic Reform organisations in Kochi seeking justice for the nun entered fourth day Tuesday.

Workers of various organisations continued to visit the protest venue extending their support.

The protesters, including five fellow nuns of the rape survivor, said they would continue their agitation till action was taken against the Bishop.

They have alleged that top police officials were trying to sabotage the probe.

The Missionaries of Jesus congregation Tuesday said it was planning to implead itself in the Kerala High Court which is hearing a related matter.

In a statement, the congregation questioned the character of the nun and alleged she had illicit relationship with one of her relatives.

It said bringing the real truth in the case was their "moral and divine" responsibility.

The agitation by the nuns was part of an agenda to destroy the Church and the congregation, it charged.

With the police facing heat, a senior official has Monday said the bishop may be summoned to Kerala for interrogation.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: Keeping his Mission 120+ firmly in sight, national BJP president Amit Shah will visit the State on September 24 to attend the national convention of partys Mahila Morcha at Puri.

Announcing Shahs visit here on Tuesday, State BJP Mahila Morcha president Pravati Parida said a three-day national executive committee meeting of the Morcha beginning September 23 will be held at Puri.

While a meeting of the national functionaries of Mahila Morcha will be held on September 23, a women convention will be held on September 24. The womens rally will be addressed by Shah and national president of Mahila Morcha Vijaya Rahatkar.

Apart from national office-bearers of the Morcha, Parida said all Union women ministers, MPs, State Mahila Morcha presidents and Secretaries will attend the executive committee meeting. Atrocities and violence against women will be the major agenda of the national convention, she added.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Every woman who was honoured with The New Indian Express Devi award is an epitome of hard work, will power and the fight against adversity, said Kiran Bedi, Lt Governor of Puducherry, distributing the awards presented by Federal Bank here on Tuesday.

The recipients were actor Aishwarya Rajesh, entrepreneur Kalavathy Sridharan, educationist Rajalakshmi Y G Parthasarathy, Collector of Salem B Rohini, poet Salma, art curator Sharan Apparao, rice historian Sheela Balaji, lyricist Uma Devi, mental health activist Vandana Gopikumar and folk artist Vijayalakshmi Navaneethakrishnan. Each awardee is so unique and each one is a role model. They should be put on a pedestal in their fields, said Bedi, appreciating the diversity in the choice of the Devis.

Educationist Rajalakshmi YG Parthasarathy

receiving the award from Puducherry L-G Kiran

Bedi as TNIE editorial director looks on.

The Devi awards constituted by the TNIE group recognise the dynamism and the never-say-die spirit of women. We as a newspaper believe that strong, independent women are the backbone of the country. Over 150 such women have received the Devi award so far, said G S Vasu, the editor of The New Indian Express group, speaking at the event. TNIE editorial director Prabhu Chawla was also present.

Asking awardees if they were achievers by nature or were nurtured to be that way, Bedi said nurturing happens primarily between ages 5-13. Parents role is critical at this stage. That is what we need to pay greater attention to, she said. Harsh Dugar, Head of Corporate and Institutional Banking at Federal Bank said women are valuable assets to the country and must be given equal opportunity to be empowered.

The most powerful women arent always the ones who seem overtly bold or the ones who are the loudest in the gang. The most powerful are those whom you dont see coming. The perfect testimony of this could be seen in each awardee at the TNIE Devi Awards 2018 ceremony, presented by Federal Bank. From an actor, entrepreneur to a rice historian, all of the 10 awardees from Tamil Nadu had two things in common  an iron will and lot of success.

It was one of Periyars books, Pen Yen Adimai Aanal that brought me here. I wanted to break my shell and prove to the world of alpha males that women are something, said Salma on receiving the award. She is both a poet and a writer, who was barred from completing her high school, yet was driven to change the society and its misconceptions about women through her poems.

Among the crowd cheering for her was Uma Devi, also an awardee, whose lyrics are informed by her feminism. Kannamma in Rajinikanths Kaala was the lyricists recent chartbuster. It is the victory of BR Ambedkar who fought for the Hindu code bill which has led to the Devi award. This award recognising literature is a recognition of political thought. She said that his works should be translated and made available in all languages and his birthday celebrated as the National Secularism Day.

One of the first gallerist-curators to dedicate herself exclusively to contemporary Indian art, Sharan Apparao wondered if she ought to have received the award as her journey wasnt difficult at all, but enjoyable.

She said its high time that we started selling India to Indians by introducing them to fabulous art. Instead of buying antiques, we better buy our heritage, the woman gallerist remarked.

Entrepreneur Kalavadaniki Sridharan spoke about the challenges that women face as entrepreneurs. From being told that a dusky, Tamil-speaking woman cannot become an actor to proving to be one, the journey of Aishwarya Rajesh has been far from being easy. They say a hero can guarantee an opening. Well, if a heroine can guarantee an opening, they should pay her equally, she said. Folk artiste Vijayalakshmi Navaneethakrishnan said Kummi, Kulavi and Taalattu were three forms of folk art that were womens wealth.
By Express News Service

COIMBATORE: An accused in the 1998 serial bomb blast case, who was absconding for two decades, was arrested by the Special Investigation Division (SID) of the CBCID and lodged in Coimbatore Central Prison on Tuesday.

Sources privy to the investigating officials said N P Noohu alias Rasheed alias Mankavu Rasheed (44) of Kozhikode in Kerala was taken into custody on Monday when he returned to his native from Qatar after about 20 years.

Serial bomb blasts ripped various parts of Coimbatore on February 14, 1998, killing 58 people and leaving over 250 injured. The case was handed over to the SID that arrested 168 persons and launched a hunt for five more accused - Sadiq alias Tailor Raja alias Valantha Raja, Mujibur Rahman alias Mujibur, Noohu and two others.

An investigating official said on coming to know that the police were searching for him, Noohu escaped to Qatar using his passport. He settled there after a marrying a Qatar woman and did not return. He was working there as sales staff in an electronics company, he said.

When he returned to Kerala on Monday, the SID sleuths arrested him. He is facing charges under sections

120 B, 302, 307, 449, 465, 468, 471, 212, 153 A, 148, 149, 201, 109, 114, 353 of Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 3, 4 (b) and 6 of the

Explosive Substances Act, 1908, section 25 (1-B) (a) of the Arms Act, 1959 and section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Public Property (Prevention of Damage and Loss) Act, 1992.

Noohu had been produced before the Coimbatore Judicial Magistrate on Tuesday and was remanded to judicial custody. A custodial interrogation will help reveal more details, the official added.
By Express News Service

SALEM: Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami announced that the Tamil Nadu government was firm on the decision to not allow Mekedatu dam on the Cauvery and there was no change in that position. He also pointed out that the Supreme Court too had emphasised on Tamil Nadu governments consent on any dam project for the river.

Recalling that the Karnataka refused to provide water to Tamil Nadu at a time when were reeling under drought, he said that construction of Mekedatu would make things worse for us. If the neighbouring government were to go forward with the plans, we will face it legally, the CM assured.

When asked about the alleged involvement of his cabinet ministers in the gutka scam, he dismissed the claims and blamed the opposition parties for trying to disrupt the AIADMK-led government. After many obstacles, the government was implementing various welfare schemes for the people and garnering more and more support from them. Hence, the opposition was levelling charges against the ministers.

While there was no charge against any government department, we will face the charges against the ministers legally, he said . He added that the charges against the previous DMK regime would come out soon.

About deputy speaker Thambidurais comment on the CBI raids carried out in the residences of Health minister C Vijayabaskar, he said that it was Thambidurais personnel statement.

Commenting on the partys chances of victory in the upcoming Parliament elections, he said that the AIADMK would win the number of seats it managed to secure last time -- 37 seats. We are implementing schemes initiated by the MGR and J Jayalalithaa; there are many more schemes yet to be implemented. For successful implementation of these schemes, we need the Centres fund and help. We will support people who help the State government. If we win more seats in Parliament election, it would help us solve many issues -- including the Cauvery dispute, he explained.

Speaking about allegations about the party distributing cash to voters in the Thiruparankundram constituency, he said that AIADMK would never indulge in such activities and reiterated that giving or receiving cash for votes was a crime.

When asked about reduction of value-added tax (VAT) on petrol and diesel, he said it could be done only if the Union government reduced fuel price. It was because of the hike in fuel price that the transport corporations were incurring a loss every day. Given its financial status, it was the duty of the government to better its standing; only then can its many scheme be implemented. Hence, the difficulty in decreasing VAT on fuel, he said but offered to consider the request.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Its official. Telangana Telugu Desam Party (TTDP) and Communist Party of India (CPI) have joined hands in an attempt to fight the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi, that has almost become a political juggernaut in the State. The two parties, whose parties couldnt have more different ideologies  one which banks on Telugu pride and the other on communism  came together to remove TRS from power.

Speaking to media persons at NTR Bhavan in Hyderabad, CPI - Telangana General Secretary Chada Venkatreddy said that their grand alliance was the need of the hour as Telangana could no longer allow K Chandrasekhar Rao to be Chief Minister again. If KCR becomes CM again, it will be an injustice to the people of this State. We felt that there was a need for an alliance, said Venkatreddy.

READ HERE: Congress, TDP join hands to take on KCR's TRS in Telangana; put end to 36-year-long enmity

TTDPs uphill battle for relevance

After TRS supremo KCR dissolved the elections on September 6, paving the road for early elections, the TTDP began looking at possible alliance partners. It may be noted that the party managed to win only 15 seats in the 2014 Assembly elections. Most of these MLAs later defected to other parties  one of its most popular leaders, Kodangal MLA Revanth Reddy, joined the Congress. The party, which is trying to battle many tags such as party for settlers and Andhra party, finally decided to go with CPI as its first ally, possibly with more to follow.

K Chandrasekhar Rao has no ethical or moral values. He won 63 seats in the 2014 elections but later increased his partys strength to 91. Not just our members, he seduced members of CPI, BSP, YSRCP, and Congress. With such a person at the helm, we have no option but to form alliances, TTDP President L Ramana said. The meeting was held hours after TTDP leadership announced election coordination and manifesto committees.

TTDPs immediate goals will be to regain its stronghold among the Andhra Pradesh settlers in the State. As a revenge of sorts, the party hopes to defeat the twelve former MLAs that defected from the party, most of whom that had won in areas like Qutubullahpur, Sanathnagar and Kukatpally, which they have historically had a good base. As for Revanth Reddys Kondangal might not work out for the party as his current party, the Congress, might also be a possible alliance partner.

It is learnt that, as part of the seat-sharing agreement, the CPI is likely to contest from Khammam, Bhadradri Kothagudem and Nalgonda, where it is said to have a strong presence. We are not particular about contesting the most number of seats. We only want to contest in constituencies where we have a sure shot of winning, said Venkatreddy.

TJS to be part of alliance?

The founder of TJS and Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC) chairman Professor M Kodandaram is also set to ally with the two parties. Presiding over the TTDPs election coordination committee, L Ramana along with Devender Goud is set to meet Kodandaram on Monday for talks on a likely alliance. Talks are on with TJS president M Kodandaram, said Chada Venkatreddy, General Secretary, CPI - Telangana. Interestingly, though the TTDP has been vocal on allying with like-minded parties, whenever asked about the Congress, Venkat Reddy said, Alliances with the Congress as of now are speculative. We have not spoken to them yet, he said.
By PTI

HYDERABAD: A team of officials from the Election Commission, which is here to assess the preparedness for assembly polls, Wednesday said it will submit a report to the EC which would take a call on conduct of the elections.

The team, led by senior deputy Election Commissioner Umesh Sinha, had earlier held discussions with the state administration and various political parties.

"It (satisfaction to conduct polls) is a call which the election commission will take. As I told you, we have assessed the basic preparation and that is all in right lines," Sinha told reporters.

"The Election Commission only sent this team to assess the level of preparedness. So at this moment, it is not possible to give any comments. We will give our inputs to the Election Commission and after that EC will take a call," he said.

Replying to a query on voters of four mandals in Bhadrachalam which were merged into Andhra Pradesh, he said the issue would be taken to the notice of the EC.

According to him, the team has given certain guidelines to district officials on poll preparedness.

The team held discussions with senior police officials including district SPs on the law and order situation.

They also held talks with collectors and other senior government officials on issues ranging from availability of EVMs to manpower.

The EC team also met chief secretary SK Joshi and DGP Mahendar Reddy, Sinha said.

On the electoral list, he said instructions have been give to officials to check and address every complaint that they receive from political parties.

"We have directed that all booth level officers to visit and verify each voter. People should get opportunity (to vote), we will review the progress of electoral revision every day," the official said.

The team held formal consultations with representatives of various political parties here Tuesday.

Some parties complained that many names in the voters list were missing and sought the EC's intervention.

The party-wise strength in the 120-member Telangana Legislative Assembly before its dissolution last week was TRS-82, Congress-17, AIMIM-7, BJP-5, TDP-3, Vacant-2, the CPI, CPI(M), independent and nominated member (one each).

The TRS had bagged 63 seats in the 2014 polls but its strength rose over time with 19 MLAs from the opposition, including 12 from the TDP, three of the YSR Congress and two of the Bahujan Samaj Party joining it.
Naveen Kumar Tallam By

Express News Service

JAGTIAL: IT was a heart wrenching scene at the Jagtial area hospital on Tuesday. Family members of 57 people killed in the bus accident were seen running helter-skelter trying to identify their loved ones. There are 29 others at the hospital, who were injured in the accident, undergoing treatment. The tragedy and their woes were made worse by the space crunch at the hospital.

The bodies were placed under a tin shed outside the hospital and police were trying to identify the victims with the help of family members. Paper slips were placed on the identified bodies. Later in the afternoon, the mortal remains were handed over to relatives and family members.

Bangari Narayana from Rampalli village of Peddapalli mandal is still in a state of shock. Inside the X-ray room, where doctors were attending to him, he was inquiring about his family members. Narayana, along with eight others from his family, were returning from Komuravelli Temple in Vemulawada. They wanted to catch a darshan at the Hanuman temple in Kondagattu before heading back home. Though Narayana is one of the lucky few who managed to escape, he is anxious about the safety of the rest of his family.

Another passenger Vijaya spoke to Express in a semi-conscious state. She said the bus was full but the conductor kept overloading the vehicle. Hundreds of anxious villagers who had gathered at the hospital held a protest demanding the ex-gratia to be increased from `5 lakh to `20 lakh. Consequently, Jagtial and Karimangar police were deployed at the hospital.

IT Minister KT Rama Rao, Transport Minister P Mahender Reddy, Finance Minister Eatela Rajender, government chief whip Koppula Easwar, Nizamabad MP K Kavitha and opposition leaders visited the hospital and offered condolences. KT Rama Rao expressed shock over the incident.

Pained by the loss: Guv

In a message on Tuesday, the Governor said that he was pained by the loss of precious lives. The Governor spoke to the district collector and asked for immediate relief measures be taken up to provide necessary medical treatment to those injured in the bus accident. The Governor offered his heartfelt condolences to the members of the bereaved families, who lost their loved ones

KCR expresses shock

Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao expressed shock over the ghastly road accident at Kondagattu ghat road. In a message, Rao expressed deep condolences on the loss of lives and injuries to others. Rao directed the officials to provide immediate medical assistance to the injured

Hike ex-gratia: Uttam

Expressing shock over the bus accident, Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president N Uttam Kumar Reddy demanded that the State government should announce an ex-gratia of `10 lakh each to the kin of those who died in the accident

Not again, ever: Laxman

BJP state president K Laxman demanded that the State government to ensure that safety measures are initiated and undertaken at Kondagattu so that such ghastly accidents do not happen anymore. The measures, he said, need to be extended across the State
By AFP

BERLIN: More than 3,600 children were sexually assaulted by Catholic priests in Germany over nearly seven decades, local media reported Wednesday, citing a study commissioned by the German Bishops Conference.

The damning report, which Cardinal Reinhard Marx is to present officially on September 25, deals another blow to the Church after clerical child abuse has been uncovered worldwide.

According to the study, 1,670 clergymen in Germany committed some form of sexual attack against 3,677 minors between 1946 and 2014, Spiegel Online reported. Most of the victims were boys.

ALSO READ | US priest sex victims urge Vatican to publish list of accused

More than half were 13 years old or younger at the time of the abuse, the study concluded after examining 38,000 documents from 27 German dioceses.

The study also noted that some records had been "destroyed or manipulated", warning therefore that the scale of the abuse may be even greater.

Predator priests were often transferred to another location, with information on their criminal history not provided to the new site.

Only one in three (566 out of 1,670 accused) were subject to disciplinary hearings by the Church, and most got away with minimal punishment, said Die Zeit weekly, also citing the report.

Of these, 154 cases ended with no penalty, while 103 closed with a warning.

ALSO READ | Priests molested 1,000 children in Pennsylvania: Report

Only 38 per cent of the accused were prosecuted by civil courts -- on complaints lodged by victims themselves or their families.

Over the last decade, several German Catholic institutions have revealed cases of child sexual abuse, including an elite Jesuit school in Berlin which admitted to systematic sexual abuse of pupils by two priests in the 1970s and 1980s.

Last year, a world-famous Catholic choir school in Germany, the Regensburger Domspatzen school, revealed that more than 500 boys there suffered sexual or physical abuse in what victims have likened to "prison, hell or a concentration camp".
September 9, 2018 is the 70th anniversary of the founding of Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Let's take a close look at DPRK's military parades today.



Soldiers march with the portrait of DPRK's founder Kim Il-sung during a military parade marking the 70th anniversary of the country's foundation in Pyongyang, Sept 9, 2018. [Photo/VCG]

Pyongyang -- A massive parade was held in Kim Il-sung Square in central Pyongyang on Sunday morning to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

The DPRK's top leader Kim Jong-un and other senior officials attended the celebration, together with hundreds of foreign guests, ambassadors and representatives of DPRK nationals living abroad.

Kim Yong-nam, president of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, said under the leadership of Kim Jong-un, the DPRK has made great achievements in economic construction. He urged citizens to carry out the strategic line of economic construction put forward at the Third Plenary Meeting of the Seventh Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea and to contribute to world peace and the unification of the Korean Peninsula.
By PTI

WASHINGTON: The "highly successful" first 2+2 Dialogue between India and the United States was a "defining moment" and the defence co-operation between the two countries is on the right track, US Defence Secretary James Mattis said here Tuesday.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held the crucial talks with Mattis and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New Delhi on September 6.

ALSO READ | India, US hold inaugural edition of 2+2 strategic talks, discuss range of issues

"Last week I did go to India for what could only be considered highly successful consultations between the world's two largest democracies.

There was no difficulties that we uncovered there in moving forward on a number of pragmatic steps to draw ourselves closer together in terms of security," Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon here.

"It was a very heartening trip, historic I'd even say, as you look at where we've been over so many years as we've grown closer and closer together," Mattis said.

He specifically pointed to the COMCASA agreement, the communications compatibility and security agreement, which he said opens a lot of doors in "terms of defense cooperation".

"Probably we will look back on the 2+2, where Secretary Pompeo led the two of us in there as our senior diplomat.

Probably a defining moment for the relationship between the US and India, and one that we think is absolutely on the right track in terms of defense cooperation, Mattis said.

Mattis was echoed by the US State Department later in the day.

"Last week's 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue was a historic milestone in the US-India relationship and an indication of the deepening strategic partnership between the United States and India, and India's emergence as a global power and net security provider in the region," a State Department spokesperson told PTI.

ALSO READ | 2+2 dialogue: Delhi braces for biggest diplomatic engagement of the year

Asserting that the two countries want to grow their trade relationship in a fair and reciprocal manner, the spokesperson said at the 2+2 dialogue, both sides acknowledged that expanding fair and reciprocal trade was in their shared interests and would contribute to the prosperity of both "of our peoples".

"Both sides committed to further expanding and balancing the trade and economic partnership consistent with their leaders' 2017 joint statement, including by facilitating trade, improving market access, and addressing issues of interest to both sides," the spokesperson said.
By AFP

HANOI: Laos' premier on Wednesday said the Communist country will press on with its ambitious hydropower strategy after a dam collapse killed dozens, but vowed to intenisfy scrutiny on the lucrative mega projects.

The rare public comments from prime minister Thongloun Sisoulith came during a World Economic Forum panel in Hanoi, weeks after July's dam disaster in Attapeu province.

An official tally given by Laos' secretive government said 35 people died in the collapse of the Xe Pian Xe Namnoy saddle dam, a Korean-built structure which had not yet been completed.

This Feb. 28, 2018, photo provided by DigitalGlobe shows the Vang Ngao River and Ban Hinlat village before the July 24 flooding due to the collapse of a hydroelectric dam in southeastern Laos. (Photo | AP)

But testimony from locals suggests the toll may be much higher with several villages swept away and buried under thick mud.

Since the disaster Laos has suspended all new dam projects, while ongoing hydropower projects will be inspected, premier Thongloun Sisoulith said.

"Building hydropower projects is a good way to generate income," he said. "The impact of the incident in July is something we will continue to take into account when moving forward in terms of our hydropower production."

All dams should be "based on careful planning and good design," he added.

For the past decade, Laos has been on a dam-building spree in an effort to provide electricity to its people and sell power to its Thai, Cambodian and Vietnamese neighbours.

ALSO READ | 26 bodies found after Laos dam collapse, hundreds still missing

Sitting beside Thongloun Sisoulith was Cambodia's premier Hun Sen, who called for more cross-border disaster management.

The Attapeu dam collapse in July sent floods of water downstream to northeastern Cambodia that left villages inundated.

One Korean firm involved in the project, SK Engineering & Construction, said it was investigating the cause of the dam break and would donate $10 million in relief aid.

Thongloun Sisoulith said Wednesday experts are still investigating the cause of the fatal collapse
By AFP

WILMINGTON: Highways clogged with people fleeing North and South Carolina early Wednesday as monstrous Category 4 Hurricane Florence rumbled toward the eastern US as the biggest storm there in decades.

While many coastal residents heeded mandatory evacuation orders, others boarded up homes and businesses and chose to brave the storm, which is forecast to trigger severe flash flooding as it dumps as many as three feet (almost a meter) of rain in some areas. Life-threatening storm surges of up to a staggering 13 feet in some places were also forecast.

Donald Trump Tweeted:

Hurricane Florence is looking even bigger than anticipated. It will be arriving soon. FEMA, First Responders and Law Enforcement are supplied and ready. Be safe!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 12, 2018

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper warned that staying put would be a grave mistake and said people in evacuation zones "need to get out now."

"This is not a storm that people need to ride out," Cooper told reporters. "This is a storm that is historic, maybe once in a lifetime."

President Donald Trump looks at a chart showing potential rainfall totals from Hurricane Florence during a briefing in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. (Photo | AP)

Up to 1.7 million people in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia have been given voluntary or mandatory evacuation orders, according to emergency management officials, as the storm churned across the Atlantic Ocean towards the coast.

The eastbound lanes of several major highways have been shut down to allow for a smooth flow of traffic inland.

"We are already experiencing heavily impacted traffic on some of the evacuation routes," said Jeff Byard, the associate administrator for response and recovery at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Forecasters are predicting that Florence will make landfall in the Carolinas late Thursday or early Friday as a still powerful Category 3 hurricane.

As of 5:00 am (1100 GMT), Florence was a dangerous Category 4 hurricane packing sustained winds of 130 miles per hour (220 kilometers per hour), the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

ALSO READ | East Coast military bases braces for Hurricane Florence

It was located 575 miles (925 kms) east-southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, and moving at 17 mph (28 kph) in a west-northwest direction.

Briefing from the Oval Office, President Donald Trump urged people to heed orders to evacuate, saying "if you are asked to leave, get out."

"This will be a storm that's going to be far larger than we have seen in perhaps decades," Trump said.

Direct hit

Speaking in the Oval Office alongside Trump, FEMA administrator Brock Long said Florence may be a "very devastating storm."

"The power will be off for weeks," Long said. "You're going to be displaced from your home in coastal areas. There will be flooding in inland areas as well."

Byard, the FEMA official, said "this storm is not going to be a glancing blow."

"This storm is going to be a direct hit."

This image provided by NOAA shows Hurricane Florence, third from right, on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018, as it threatens the U.S. East Coast. At right is Hurricane Helene, and second from right is Tropical Storm Isaac. (Photo | AP)

"Hurricane Florence is the strongest storm to target the Carolinas and this part of our country in decades," Byard said.

The NHC said Florence is expected to be an "extremely dangerous major hurricane" when it makes landfall in the Carolinas late Thursday or early Friday, bringing life-threatening storm surge to coastal areas.

A state of emergency has been declared in Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington amid concern over potential torrential rain and flooding.

ALSO READ | 1.5 million people to evacuate as Hurricane Florence approaches US

The last time the US capital declared a state of emergency was in January 2016 when a winter storm dubbed "Snowzilla" blanketed the capital region in knee-deep snow.

In Charleston, South Carolina, some residents were making preparations to leave Tuesday while others planned to ride out the storm.

Streets were quiet with schools and many offices and businesses closed.

Michael Kennedy, an engineer at Boeing, said he planned to leave on Tuesday for his parents' home in Atlanta, Georgia.

But his partner, Emily Whisler, said she will remain behind at the university where she is a resident in the psychiatry program.

"They told me to bring a pillow and blanket," Whisler said. "I'll be living there for a few days."

Charleston, resident William Belli said he would not be among those joining the exodus.

An auto parts store has wood paneling installed over the windows, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018, in New Bern, N.C., as a precaution against storm damage from Hurricane Florence.

(Photo | AP)

"Been through it!" Belli said, referring to Hurricane Hugo, which caused widespread damage in South Carolina in 1989. "Not worried in the least."

Walking his dog along empty streets, Belli said he's well stocked with food and water.

"I will enjoy the quiet," he said.

Potential for 'catastrophic damage

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster on Monday ordered the mandatory evacuation of one million coastal residents. Schools in 26 of the state's 46 counties were ordered closed from Tuesday.

Cooper, the governor of neighboring North Carolina, ordered an evacuation of the Outer Banks, barrier islands that are a popular tourist destination, and parts of coastal Dare County.

In Virginia, 245,000 coastal residents were ordered to evacuate including from the Eastern Shore, another popular beachfront destination.

The safety of American people is my absolute highest priority. Heed the directions of your State and Local Officials. Please be prepared, be careful and be SAFE! https://t.co/YP7ssITwW9 pic.twitter.com/LZIUCgdPTH

 Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 11, 2018

In neighboring Maryland, Governor Larry Hogan said his state was readying for potentially "historic and catastrophic rainfall, life-threatening flooding, and high winds."

On the five-level Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale Florence is a Category 4, meaning it is capable of causing "catastrophic damage."

By Saturday, total rainfall could accumulate to 20 inches (51 centimeters) -- or even 30 inches in places -- in parts of the Carolinas and Virginia, the NHC said.

Fort AP Hill and Fort Bragg were selected as FEMA Incident Support and Federal Staging Area to assist in the response, the army said.

The Virginia National Guard is planning to initially bring up to 1,500 soldiers and airmen to offer help in the state's response operations.

Some 7,000 guard members are ready to mobilize in North Carolina, while 1,100 will be activated in South Carolina.

At this height of the Atlantic hurricane season, Florence was being trailed on east-to-west paths by two other storms, Hurricane Helene and Tropical Storm Isaac, but neither packs the deadly punch of Florence.
By PTI

LAHORE: Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Capt (Retd) Muhammad Safdar reached Lahore in early hours of Wednesday after they were released from Adiala Jail Rawalpindi on a 12-hour parole to attend the funeral of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz.

Kulsoom, the wife of Sharif, died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68. Her body will be brought back here and buried in Jati Umra Lahore residence of the Sharif family.

Sharif and two others were transported to Jati Umra in a special plane from Nur Khan Airbase Rawalpindi in early hours of Wednesday after the Punjab government home department issued their release order for a 12-hour parole.

ALSO READ | Nawaz Sharif, his daughter and son-in-law to be granted parole to attend wife's funeral

The trio arrived at Lahore at 3.15 am Wednesday.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Maryam Aurangzeb told PTI that Shahbaz Sharif had filed an application with the Punjab government requesting to release his elder brother Nawaz, niece Maryam and Safdar for five days on parole so that they could attend the last rituals of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz who died of cancer in London on Tuesday.

She said the Punjab government did not entertain Shahbaz's request for five days and only granted their release for 12 hours.

"We are hopeful that the government will extend the parole till the funeral of Begum Kulsoom to be held on Friday in Lahore," Aurangzeb said, adding Shahbaz Sharif will leave for London on Wednesday to bring Kulsoom's body back.

A senior official of the Punjab government also confirmed to PTI that the parole period would be extended till the last rituals of Kulsoom are performed in Lahore.

"Since Kulsoom' body is scheduled to arrive here on Friday there is no point of not extending the parole period.

The government has allowed Nawaz Sharif to attend the funeral prayer of his wife purely on humanitarian grounds," the official said.

According to a notification of the home department, "In pursuance of rule 545-B of Pakistan Prison Rules 1978, permission granted to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar, confined at central prison Rawalpindi, to attend the funeral prayer of Kulsoom Nawaz.

The duration of permission granted shall not exceed 12 hours. Police will be responsible for their security and safety.

They will not leave the place (Jati Umra) specified in the permission order.

Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered to facilitate the Sharif family regarding bringing back the body of Kulsoom and matters related to their parole.

Heavy contingent of police has been deployed at the Jati Umra to provide security to the Sharif family.

Kulsoom, who had been battling with lymphoma (throat cancer) for over a year, breathed her last at the London's Harley Street Clinic.

"Begum Kulsoom's condition deteriorated early in the morning on Tuesday. Doctors tried their best but couldn't save her life," Marriyum Aurangzeb said.

To a question whether her sons -- Hasan and Hussain -- would return to Lahore to attend her funeral prayer, she said: "No decision has been taken as yet.

" It is likely that both sons may not return to Pakistan as they have been declared absconders by an accountability court in the off-shore properties case.

The former first lady was diagnosed with lymphoma (throat) cancer in August last and had been in London since, where she underwent multiple surgeries and at least five chemotherapy sessions.

She was placed on a ventilator in June following a cardiac arrest.

Her family reported a slight improvement in her condition on July 12, a day before her husband Sharif and Maryam were set to return to Pakistan after the accountability court sentenced them to jail.

She served as the first lady of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms from 1990-1993, 1997-1999 and 2013-2017.

She also served as the president of the PML-N from 1999 to 2002, after her husband's government was toppled by former military dictator Gen.Pervez Musharraf in a bloodless coup.

She was also placed under house arrest following Sharif's ouster by Musharraf in 1999. She led defiant, lonely protests against the Musharraf regime to get her husband freed from prison.

Kulsoom was elected to Lahore's NA-120 constituency in a by-poll after her husband was disqualified from the seat by the Supreme Court last year.

ALSO RAED | Nawaz Sharif's wife Kulsoom Nawaz dies at 68 in London

Due to her illness, she was unable to return and formally take oath for the seat. She was born in 1950 in Lahore to a Kashmiri family.

She graduated from the Forman Christian College in Lahore and received a Master's degree in Urdu from Punjab University in 1970.

From her maternal side, she was the granddaughter of famous wrestler of the sub-continent Gama Pehlwan.

Kulsoom married Sharif in April 1971 and they have four children - Hassan, Hussain, Maryam and Asma.
By AFP

VATICAN: Pope Francis will host a meeting next February of senior bishops from around the globe to discuss "the protection of minors", the Vatican announced on Wednesday.

The Church has been hit by a series of child abuse scandals in recent years, with widespread allegations of coverups, including against the pope himself.

The meeting of Episcopal Conference presidents will be held at the Vatican from February 21 to 24, the C9 cardinals' conference that advises the pope on reform said in a statement.

ALSO READ | Pope Francis refuses to comment on claim he personally ignored archbishop sexual abuse

Three cardinals were absent from the latest C9 meeting, including Francisco Javier Errazuriz, who is accused of ignoring reports of abuse in Chile, and George Pell who faces prosecution in Australia for child sexual offences.

ope Francis poses for a photo with nuns at the end of his general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018. (Photo | AP)

The C9 said on Monday it was considering changing its structure and composition.

Conservative US Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano sparked a firestorm last month when he claimed Francis had personally ignored abuse allegations against prominent US cardinal Theodore McCarrick for five years.

The affair exposed a rift in the Church between some ultra-conservative Catholics and a pope they see as a dangerous progressive interested in social issues to the detriment of Church doctrine.

The church was also rocked in August by a devastating US report on child sex abuse which accused more than 300 "predator" priests of abusing more than 1,000 minors over seven decades in the state of Pennsylvania.

A Vatican commission on child protection set up by Francis said on Sunday that the fight against abuse must be a Church priority and emphasised the importance of listening to victims.
By AFP

BAGHDAD: Jihadists attacked a restaurant north of the Iraqi capital with a car bomb on Wednesday, killing five people and wounding more than 30, medical and police sources said.

Suspected Islamic State group members planted the bomb in a pickup left outside the restaurant by an important highway in Hajjaj, a police officer told AFP on condition of anonymity.

"Five people were killed and 32 wounded," in the bombing near Tikrit city, 175 kilometres (108 miles) north of Baghdad, the officer said.

The attack took place during lunchtime and targeted "a restaurant where there were travellers returning from Baghdad to Dahuk" in Iraqi Kurdistan to the north, the police officer said.

Medical sources said women and children were among those wounded, while confirming five people were killed.

ALSO READ | Suicide car bomber kills 11 in western Iraq

The restaurant had already been attacked by two suicide bombers in the spring, the police officer said.

On Monday, security forces said they had killed 13 jihadists north of Tikrit as part of a large-scale land and air operation against extremists in Iraq's desert and mountainous areas.

Although Baghdad declared victory over IS in December, members of the jihadist group continue to carry out deadly attacks.

On Tuesday a suicide bomber killed a member of the security forces and injured four others in Anbar province, a western desert area, a security official said.

That attack came a day after jihadists killed four people in Khanaqin north-east of Baghdad, including two Kurdish fighters who were on leave, according to a Kurdish political official in the area.

"IS jihadists kidnapped six people. Two were freed and four others were beheaded," the official said on condition of anonymity.
Source: Kazinform

ASTANA. KAZINFORM - The First Deputy Defense Minister and the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Lieutenant General Murat Maikeyev, has held today a meeting with the General of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of China and the Commanding Officer of the Western Theater Command, Zhao Zongqi, Kazinform cites the Kazakh Defense Ministry's press service.

During the talks, the sides discussed issues of bilateral military cooperation including training of Kazakh servicemen in China's military universities, joint exercises, and exchanged views on the security situation in the region.

After the meeting, the hosting side arranged for foreign guests a tour of the Military History Museum of the National Military Patriotic Center of the Armed Forces of Kazakhstan in Astana. In addition, as part of the visit, China's military delegation will visit the military units of the Almaty Garrison.
By Zhang Jie and Liu Yang

Russia's largest military exercise "Vostok-2018" officially kicked off on September 11. According to the consensus reached by China and Russia, the exercise consists of 4 steps, namely, strategic cross-border delivery, drills for commanding organization, operations by real troops, and military parade.

From Sept. 11 to 13, both sides will finish the second and third steps. After the exercise with real troops and live ammunition on Sept. 13, a military parade will be held.

The exercise is widely regarded as a show of force and the profound friendship between China and Russia. However, some Western media manipulate news as an attempt to sow discord between China and Russia. Chinese experts said that the Western media underestimated the political wisdom of both countries.

1/3 of Russian troops participate in the exercise.

The reason why this exercise has attracted so much attention is that it is the largest military exercise since the 'Exercise Zapad-1981' of the Soviet era".

Nearly 300,000 Russian troops, 36,000 tanks and combat vehicles, 1,000 fighter jets, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), as well as 80 warships will participate in the "Vostok-2018", Voice of America (VOA) reported on Sept. 9.

Russia's "Today's Economy" network referred on Saturday to an Israeli analyst that 300,000 troops account for nearly one third of the total Russian armed forces; and the exercise will involve a variety of strategic weapons and various armed services. The Russian military aims to build combat preparedness through this exercise.

Participation of Chinese military attracts attention.

In addition to the large number of participants and the advanced equipment lineup, the debut of Chinese soldiers and their equipment has also attracted a lot of attention.

According to the Chinese Ministry of National Defense, about 3,200 officers and soldiers, more than 900 pieces of weaponry and equipment, and 30 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters of China will participate in the exercise.

The US media reported on Sept. 9 that the joint military exercise does not target any third country according to the briefing held by Russia and China in Moscow on Sept. 6. Igor Korotchenko, the editor-in-chief of the National Defense magazine in Russia, said "This exercise is purely defensive and there is no question of aggression or war preparation. Military observers from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member states are invited to attend the exercise. Although we are not obliged to do so, we still invite them to ensure the openness of the exercise. This exercise aims to ensure defense capability, so we can deal with any challenge and threat at any time." Russian military expert Vasily Kashin said that Chinas participation means a higher level of military cooperation between Russia and China than those ordinary joint military exercises which only require specific actions. The joint strategic planning capability of Russian and Chinese troops will be improved through "Vostok-2018".

An anonymous Chinese military expert said in an interview that the exercise reflects a high level of political and military mutual trust. It is indeed a very good learning and exchange opportunity for the Chinese military as this will give us an opportunity to compare the actual ourselves with the required ones, identify gaps, and learn from the advanced approaches of military powers, said that expert.

Western provocations are not worth refuting.

Chinas participation in this super-large-scale Russian exercise has made Western media very unhappy. Some American media even reported that under the framework of "Vostok-2018" military exercise, other Russian military exercises held simultaneously mainly target China, followed by Japan and the US.

Russian Military-Industrial Complex News Network quoted Leonid Ivashov, director of the Russian Academy of Geopolitical Problems that the major threats faced by Russia are in the West. Although the exercise is held in the East, Western strategists must understand that all these military forces can be transferred to other directions at the same time, including the West. This will also have a deterrent effect to NATOs growing activities.

Chinese military experts said that everyone knows who poses security threat to Russia and who is going to be shocked by Russias exercise. In recent years, the US and NATO have been frequently engaging in targeted battlefield construction and equipment pre-positioning in Russia's backyard while frequently confronting Russia in Syria. This has increasingly squeezed Russia's strategic space. Based on all the facts, the provocations of Western media are deemed futile.

Disclaimer: The authors are Zhang Jie and Liu Yang, reporters with the Global Times. The article is translated and edited from Chinese into English by the China Military online. The information, ideas or opinions appearing in this article are those of the author from the Global Times and do not reflect the views of eng.chinamil.com.cn. Chinamil.com.cn does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same. If the article carries photographs or images, we do not vouch for their authenticity.
Our County Editor

Dave Hinton is editor of The News-Gazette's Our County section and former editor of the Rantoul Press. He can be reached at dhinton@news-gazette.com.
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Noelle McGee is a Danville-based reporter at The News-Gazette. Her email is nmcgee@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@n_mcgee).
By Liu Jimei and Chen Ling

BEIJING, Sept. 12 (ChinaMil)  Bugle calls are musical signals used by the armed forces around the world as a traditional way for communications, signaling, management, and boosting soldiers' morale.

The bugle calls system of the Chinese military started from scratch, but has grown into a precious spiritual treasure of the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army (PLA).

Since the day when the PLA was established, it has had a bugle calls system. The National Revolutionary Army that participated in the Nanchang Uprising on August 1, 1927 already had buglers and a bugler detachment.

In November 1931, the Music Scores of Military Bugle Calls of the Chinese Workers and Peasants Red Army was formulated and issued, and the Chinese military had its own bugle calls scores and regulations for the first time.

The music scores include over 300 bugle calls in four categories: combat calls, daily calls, nominal calls, and ceremonial calls. In the time of China's revolutionary wars, the bugle calls played a crucial role in securing victory in battles.

After the founding of the Peoples Republic of China in 1949, the PLA formed a complete bugle calls system. Each company was equipped with a bugler, each battalion with a bugler squad, and each regiment with a bugler platoon. The bugler became one of the basic and essential personnel in the PLA grassroots units.

In 1951, the Chinese Peoples Volunteer Army marched to the Korean battlefield. Military bugle calls were widely used by the Chinese Peoples Volunteer Army, playing an important role in creating psychological shock on the so-called United Nations Army and dwarfing their morale.

In June 1962, based on opinions and suggestions from the army, the Music Scores of Bugle Calls of the PLA was revised and reprinted. This edition included 109 bugle calls in four categories: daily calls, nominal calls, combat calls, and ceremonial calls.

Since the 1980s, alongside the evolution of modern wars and the modernization of the Chinese PLA, the commanding and signaling functions of military bugle calls increasingly weakened, and their application became less and less frequent. Some military barracks even didnt use bugle calls any longer.

This time, the PLA restores the bugle calls system with an aim to continue and give full play to the bugle calls important roles in strengthening the troops' consciousness in listening to orders, inheriting the good traditions of army, regulating the army order and enhancing the militarys combat readiness capacity.

It is reported that the previous 109 kinds of bugle calls in the four categories of nominal, daily, combat, and ceremonial bugle calls will be reduced to 21 bugle calls in three categories: scheduled calls, action signaling calls, and ceremonial calls. They will be played by buglers or be broadcast in recorded form.
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Lyndsay Jones is a reporter covering education at The News-Gazette. Her email is ljones@news-gazette, and you can follow her on Twitter (@__lyndsayjones).
Reporter/Columnist

Julie Wurth is a reporter covering the University of Illinois at The News-Gazette. Her email is jwurth@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@jawurth).
Cobb makes W-W history On Friday October 29, during the gritty game against the Commerce Tigers, Washington-Wilkes football quarterback Dalen Cobb made Wilkes County football history as the first player to ever have 1,000...

Anderson achieves sweeping win; Cullars and Hill retain seats Despite a relatively low voter turnout for this years city council election, Colonel Andy Anderson managed to sweep District Two, winning by a large margin. Larry Hill and Nathaniel Cullars...

Monument unveiled at Smyrna Methodist Church honoring past Wilkes County patriots On October 30, after many delays, the Sons of the American Revolution and company unveiled a monument at Smyrna Methodist Church cemetary honoring four men who served in the American...
Secretary for the Civil Service Joshua Law (centre) meets Faculty Chair of Master in Public Administration Programs Prof Kessely Hong (left), and Faculty Chair of Master in Public Policy Program Prof John Donohue at Harvard Universitys John F Kennedy School of Government.

Secretary for the Civil Service Joshua Law has started a four-day visit to the US and Canada to learn more about their civil service management and training.

Mr Law began his trip by visiting the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in Boston, to gain a better understanding of the school's training for civil servants and its public administration and policy programmes.

He also toured the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to learn about its experience in promoting innovation and the use of technology.

Mr Law will also visit the School of International & Public Affairs at Columbia University in New York which runs executive courses for civil servants from all over the world, and meet New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services government officials to exchange views on civil service management and training.

The civil service chief will travel to Ottawa and Toronto later this week.

He will visit the training facilities at the University of Ottawa's Centre on Public Management & Policy to find out about its training courses for public officers, and tour the Canada School of Public Service to view its operations and civil service training courses.

Mr Law will meet Privy Council for Canada government officials to discuss the management of the civil service.

He will also meet Ontario Treasury Board in Toronto representatives on matters relating to human resources policy and management in government.
The file photo shows that Chinese and Russian soldiers look through the sights of their rifles during the Peace Mission 2018 Joint anti-terrorism military exercise. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/Photo by Luo Shunyu)

By Fan Yongqiang

TSUGOL, Russia, Sept. 12 (ChinaMil) -- Since the "Peace Mission" joint exercise in 2005, the Chinese and Russian armed forces have participated in a number of joint exercises under the bilateral and multilateral frameworks. These joint military exercises witnessed the continuous development of the pragmatic and friendly cooperation between the two militaries.

From August 18 to 25, 2005, the China-Russia "Peace Mission-2005" joint military exercise was held in Vladivostok in Russia's Far East and east China's Shandong Peninsula and nearby waters. China and Russia sent nearly 10,000 soldiers from the army, navy, air force, airborne troops, Marine Corps, and the logistic support forces to the exercise.

From August 9 to 17, 2007, the "Peace Mission-2007" joint anti-terrorism military exercise of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states was held in Urumqi, capital of west Chinas Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Russias Chelyabinsk. The number of participants from Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and other countries reached 4,000. Among them, about 1,600 were from China and about 2,000 were from Russia.

From July 22 to 26, 2009, China-Russia "Peace Mission-2009" joint anti-terrorism exercise was held in Russia's Khabarovsk and China's Taonan Tactical Training Base. China and Russia sent 1,300 troops respectively to the joint exercise.

From April 22 to 27, 2012, the China-Russia "Joint Sea-2012" military exercise was held in waters near the east Chinas port city of Qingdao. China and Russia sent 25 warships, 13 aircraft, and 9 helicopters as well as 2 special operations detachments to the joint exercise.

From July 5 to 12, 2013, the China-Russia "Joint Sea-2013" military exercise was held in the Peter the Great Bay of Russia. Eighteen surface ships of various types, one submarine, three fixed-wing aircraft, five ship-borne helicopters, and special operations forces from China and Russia participated in the exercise.

From July 27 to August 15, 2013, the China-Russia "Peace Mission-2013" joint anti-terrorism military exercise was held at the Chebarkul Training Range in Chelyabinsk of Russia. 646 troops from China and 600 troops from Russia participated in the exercise.

From May 20 to 26, 2014, the China-Russia "Joint Sea-2014" military exercise was held in waters and airspace of the northern part of the East China Sea. A total of 14 surface ships of various types, 2 submarines, 9 fixed-wing aircraft, ship-borne helicopters, and special operations detachments took part in the exercise.

From August 24 to 29, 2014, the "Peace Mission-2014" joint anti-terrorism military exercise of the SCO member states was held in the Zhurihe Training Base in China. China and Russia sent nearly 10,000 troops to the exercise.

In mid-May and late August 2015, the China-Russia "Joint Sea-2015" military exercise was carried out for the first time in different phases in the Mediterranean Sea, the Peter the Great Bay in Russia, waters off the Clerk Cape, and the Sea of Japan. China and Russia sent a variety of surface ships, ship-borne helicopters, special operations detachments, and amphibious equipment to the exercise.

From September 12 to 19, 2016, the China-Russia "Joint Sea-2016" military exercise was held in waters and airspace east of Zhanjiang City, south China's Guangdong Province. China sent 8 surface ships, 19 planes, some amphibious equipment, and marine corps. The Russian side sent 5 vessels, 2 ship-borne helicopters, marine corps, and some amphibious armored equipment to the exercise.

From September 15 to 21, 2016, the "Peace Mission-2016" joint anti-terrorism military exercise of the SCO member states was held in Kyrgyzstan. China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan sent a total of 1,100 troops from the army and air force to participate in the exercise.

From July 21 to 28, 2017, the China-Russia "Joint Sea-2017" military exercise was held in southeastern waters of the Baltic Sea. Surface ships, aircraft, and marine corps from China and Russia participated in the exercise.

From August 24 to 29, 2018, the "Peace Mission-2018" joint anti-terrorism military exercise of the SCO member states was held at the Chebarkul Training Range in Chelyabinsk of Russia. More than 3,000 people and 500 pieces of weaponry and equipment from China, Russia, and other SCO member states took part in the exercise.
The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority has suspended its commissioner responsible for investigations, Charles Jaure, with immediate effect after he was implicated in a bribery case in which he allegedly demanded a bribe from a whistleblower who had exposed improper financial dealings at NetOne.



The suspension follows indications by Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (Zacc) on Monday that it was investigating Jaure over the allegations.



Zimra Commissioner General, Ms Faith Mazani, yesterday confirmed in a statement that Jaure had been suspended to pave way for investigations.



She indicated that they had learnt from media reports that a report on bribery allegations involving Jaure had been made to Zacc.







Zimra is doing its own investigations on the matter. The official in question has been asked to proceed on leave of absence to allow investigations to be carried out. Zimra will give Zacc any support they require as they carry out investigations into the matter, she said.





Meanwhile in an interview yesterday, Zacc Investigations Committee head, Commissioner Goodson Nguni said investigations were still continuing. We are still looking into the issue, he said.





The report against Jaure states that in 2017 he allegedly demanded a bribe from the whistleblower to expedite his payments after he reported NetOne for tax evasion of non-resident tax, withholding tax, value added tax, income tax, special exercise due on airtime and pay as your earn in 2015.





The whistleblowing resulted in Zimra allegedly recovering about $18 million. A Zimra investigations team that was looking into the issue then sought to reduce the figure to $8 million, which the whistleblower who was entitled to 10 percent of the amount recovered, challenged resulting in the suspension of another top Zimra official before the matter was handed over to Jaure, who alledgedly asked for a bribe from the whistleblower to facilitate payment of the $1,8 million that was due to him.





The whistle blower was then paid $73 000 out of the $1,8 million.

I refused to accede to his demand for a bribe or any form or any undue consideration and this was the beginning of my problems with Mr Jaure.





However, in a concerted effort to avoid confrontation I requested Mr Jaure to recuse himself from all my cases as he was conflicted but he vehemently refused, read part of a statement by the whistle blower.





After he refused to pay Jaure, the whistleblower claimed the Zimra official pulled out evidence from his file and attempted to lie on amounts due to him in a bid to fix him for refusing to pay the bribe. Jaure also allegedly started delaying payment due to the whistle blower to further fix him.





In a letter dated January 11 by the whistle blowers lawyers, Manase and Manase, Mr Jaure asked our client to pay a financial consideration in the form of a bribe. This caused our client to write a letter to the board chair expressing his frustration and reservations at the conduct of Mr Jaure.

But in a letter dated January 8, 2018, Jaure claimed he was only aware of $751 438 43 million and had authorised payment of $73 000 and only $2 000 was outstanding. Herald
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Australian film director Anna Broinowski has deliberately subjected herself to stringent restrictions for a documentary in an experiment that must be unique in Western film.

She told a press event in Seoul on Monday she wanted to make a propaganda film North Korean style based on a textbook written by film fan Kim Jong-il.

The result was her 2013 documentary "Aim High in Creation," for which she picked up an old book called "The Cinema and Directing" ostensibly written by the former North Korean leader in 1987. It was given to her by a friend who had found it on a visit to Pyongyang.

Broinowski herself visited Pyongyang in September 2012 for three weeks, capturing people involved in the local film industry. Her stated aim was to make an anti-fracking movie in the style of a North Korea propaganda film in a bid to stop attempts to extract gas from shale deposits in Sydney.


(Newser)  Authorities say a dead hiker whose body was recovered this week was likely killed by a cougar, marking the first fatal attack by a wild cougar in Oregon and the second in the Pacific Northwest this year. Search and rescue teams found the body of Diana Bober, 55, on Monday off a trail in the Mount Hood National Forest in Welches, about 40 miles southeast of Portland. Her body was several miles from where searchers found her car last week near a ranger station. Bober, an avid hiker who often trekked in the Mount Hood and Columbia River Gorge area, was last heard from by family and friends on Aug. 29, the AP reports. She was reported missing on Friday and it's still unclear when she started her hike, said Sgt. Brian Jensen of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office.

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Her body had injuries consistent with a cougar attack and a medical examiner ruled out the possibility that she was mauled after she died of another cause, Jensen said. DNA samples collected at the scene were being flown by the Oregon State Police to a US Fish and Wildlife Service laboratory for further analysis, he said. Authorities warned a local school district of the attack and advised other hikers to stay out of the area. Oregon wildlife officials are attempting to find and kill the animal. "This is an unprecedented event in Oregon," said Brian Wolfer, watershed manager for the Department of Fish and Wildlife. "We don't know what risk it poses to the public." In May, a mountain biker in Washington state was killed by a cougaralso commonly called mountain lions or pumason a trail east of Seattle, the first fatal attack in that state in 94 years.

(Read more cougar stories.)
(Newser)  A group calling President Trump a liar, fraudster, and racist say he shouldn't be allowed to serve booze at his hotel in Washington, DC. Two judges and five religious leaders are challenging the liquor license held by the Trump Hotel, as city law requires anyone selling wine, beer, or spirits to be "of good character." Based on racist statements, alleged misstatements of net worth, a payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, fraud claims against Trump University, and allegations of sexual assault by 16 women, the owner of license holder Trump Old Post Office LLC is not, the complainants said in a June filing, per Politico and HuffPost. In fact, the evidence of Trump's "amorality" builds daily, they wrote in a filing last week, mentioning Michael Cohen's admission of campaign finance violations and a New York Times op-ed describing a West Wing underground resistance to Trump.

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Though the Alcohol Beverage Control Board has denied liquor licenses to individuals on the basis of character, including those who misrepresented their finances, it's "unusual" to review an existing license on the same basis, per Politico. Complainants, however, say Trump's "egregious conduct" warrants such a move. "The list is almost too long to name  from the complaint that his own lawyer has confessed to, to the sleeping around with so many women, to his racist actions," says one complainant, Rev. Timothy Tee Boddie, whose effort is funded by Arizona Republican Jerry Hirsch. The board meets Wednesday to decide whether to forward the complaint to DC Attorney General Karl Racine, who is suing Trump on allegations that he profits from foreign governments via the hotel. Should the case proceed, the board would hear arguments before issuing a decision. (Read more Washington DC stories.)
(Newser)  Activists trying to block Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh are threatening to make a hefty donation to Sen. Susan Collins' opponents if she votes for himbut the plan could backfire. So far, a group of liberal activists including the Maine People's Alliance and dying ALS patient Ady Barkan have crowdfunded more than $1.1 million for the "Be a Hero" campaign on CrowdPac, and they say it will go to the Republican senator's 2020 opponent if she votes yes on Kavanaugh. If she votes no, people can keep their pledges. Ethics expert Adav Noti at the Campaign Legal Center, however, tells the Washington Post that the campaign appears to be an attempt to do an end-run around federal bribery laws.

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They "have structured the campaign in a way that the action they will do if she does what she wants is that they will refund the money but that seems to be a fictional distinction," Noti says. Collins, who has expressed concerns about abortion rights, is seen as a key swing vote on Kavanaugh, but a spokeswoman says anybody who "thinks these tactics would work" on the senator "obviously doesn't know her." "Bribery will not work on Senator Collins. Extortion will not work on Senator Collins," Annie Clark says. "Senator Collins will make up her mind based on the merits of the nomination." NBC reports that Collins' office has also been receiving abusive calls and letters from Kavanaugh opponents. (Read more Susan Collins stories.)
(Newser)  Bernie Sanders declined to endorse his only son in his run for Congress, saying he doesn't believe in "dynastic politics"and it appears voters in New Hampshire don't, either. Levi Sanders fell a long way short in his bid to replace retiring Rep. Carol Shea-Porter in the state's 1st Congressional District, finishing seventh out of 11 candidates in the Democratic primary, Politico reports. The younger Sanders campaigned on a platform very similar to his father's, including a "Medicare for All" pledge, but only raised $38,000, compared to $1.8 million for former Obama administration official Maura Sullivan, and $800,000 for the winner, restaurateur and councilman Chris Pappas, the Washington Post reports.

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Pappas was seen as the establishment favorite and Sanders, 49, was considered the underdog despite his father's popularity, the Hill reports. In November, Pappas, who would be the state's first openly gay member of Congress, will face Eddie Edwards, an African-American former police chief who won the GOP primary with the support of the Trump administration, the AP reports. Former state Sen. Molly Kelly won the Democratic primary for governor and will face Gov. Chris Sununu in the general election. In the race for New Hampshire's other House seat, state Rep. Steven Negron won a hard-fought seven-way GOP primary and will seek to unseat Democratic Rep. Ann Kuster this fall. (Read more Levi Sanders stories.)
(Newser)  If medical science someday gains the ability to bring frozen dead people back to life, scientist Laurence Pilgeram is in for a nasty surprise. According to a lawsuit filed by his son, Kurt Pilgeram, cryogenics company Alcor froze only the elder Pilgeram's head after his death, when he had signed a contract to have his entire body preserved. The lawsuit states that Kurt Pilgeram was "shocked, horrified, and extremely distressed" when Alcor sent him a package purportedly containing the cremated remains of his father's body after the scientist's death in 2015 at age 90, the Telegraph reports. Pilgeram, who studied the effects of aging, signed a contract with the Arizona company in 1990.

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The lawsuit states that Pilgeram's contract was for "Whole Body Preservation," and the company "committed fraud against Kurt when they promised him that his fathers whole body would be preserved and then cut off his head." The son, who is seeking $1 million in damages, says Alcor told him the body was "medically unable to be preserved." He accuses the company of preying on the elderly and says it is unlikely its customers "can ever be resurrected." Alcorbelieved to charge around $200,000 for preserving a body and $80,000 for just the headwould not comment on the specifics of the case to Gizmodo, but said it "generally is confident that the legal system will properly run its course, as it has in the past." (This dying teen won the right to have her body frozen.)
(Newser)  Vladimir Putin says Russia has located the men named by the UK as the suspects in the poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter. "We know who they are, we have found them," he said. "I hope they will turn up themselves and tell everything. This would be best for everyone. There is nothing special there, nothing criminal, I assure you. We'll see in the near future." The BBC reports he described the men on Wednesday as civilians, not criminals; the UK has given the men's nameslikely aliasesas Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov and alleged they were part of Russia's military intelligence service, the GRU.

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The BBC's Moscow correspondent sees Putin's comments as a "tantalizing hint" that the men will publicly speak out soon. The Guardian reports it's noteworthy that the comments were made at all, noting they "marked a departure from his countrys earlier position, which was to disregard the evidence released by Scotland Yard as a fabrication." (Read more Sergei Skripal stories.)
(Newser)  Since last month's grand jury report describing how the former archbishop of Pittsburgh reassigned priests accused of abusing children, Cardinal Donald Wuerl has had his name scrubbed from a school, been the subject of protests by Catholic schoolteachers, and faced calls from priests and parishioners to resign. Resignation is now on the table, the 77-year-old archbishop of Washington wrote in a Tuesday letter to priests, laying out a plan to discuss the subject with Pope Francis in Rome. Wuerl submitted his resignation at age 75 as is required of Catholic bishops, but the pope kept him on as one of his top US advisers, per the New York Times and CNN. During a meeting two weeks ago, the pope told Wuerl to consult with priests about the best way forward, reports the Wall Street Journal.

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Amid questions over whether he knew about molestation claims against his predecessor, former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, he heard calls for him both to stay and resign. That showed the need for "some decision, sooner rather than later, on my part," Wuerl writes. Noting abuse survivors "have personally suffered so much," his letter adds non-victims "have also been wounded by the shame of these terrible actions and have questions about their bishop's ability to provide the necessary leadership." The letter doesn't say whether Wuerl will ask the pope to accept his resignation, however. (Carlo Maria Vigano, the Vatican's former ambassador to the US, said Wuerl was complicit in a coverup.)
(Newser)  The disappearance of an Australian mother more than 35 years ago is getting renewed attention thanks to the case being featured on a popular true crime podcast. Police in New South Wales on Wednesday began what they say will be a five-day forensic search of the former home of Lynette and Chris Dawson, the BBC reports. Lynette disappeared in 1982 when she was 33 years old, leaving behind two young daughters, per CNN. Her husband has long been suspected in her disappearance. In August, the Australian newspaper released "Teacher's Pet: The Unsolved Murder of Lyn Dawson," a 14-episode podcast that takes a deep dive into the case.

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Right before Lynette Dawson disappeared, her husband, a former rugby player and teacher, moved one of his 16-year-old students into the family home. He was reportedly in a sexual relationship with the girl (they later married but are now separated). Two coronial inquests found that he had killed his wife; however, prosecutors at the time said there was not enough evidence to implicate him, 9News reports. Chris Dawson denied having anything to do with his wife's disappearance, saying that she left of her own volition, possibly for a religious group. In recent months, authorities have "found a lot more evidence," police official Scott Cook told reporters Wednesday, per Stuff. And, while police have investigated the couple's former home before, this time will be more extensive and involve newer technologies, Cook says, adding that investigators will dig "until we hit rock." (Read more podcast stories.)
(Newser)  Alexia Truax married her best friend last spring before giving birth to the couple's son in September. A year later, her world has been turned upside down. "Speechless" is how the 20-year-old Texas resident describes feeling after learning her husband, Marine Corps Sgt. Christopher Truax Jr., was fatally shot in the head in California early Friday, per Fox News. A native of Horseheads, NY, and a food service specialist with the Marine Wing Support Squadron 373 based out of Marine Corps Air Station in Miramar, the 21-year-old was found with a gunshot wound to the head in a car parked in the middle of a street in the San Diego suburb of Lemon Grove just after midnight Friday and pronounced dead half an hour later, reports KFMB.

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No bullet holes or shell casings were found in the car, per NBC San Diego. Offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to an arrest, the San Diego County Sheriff's Department has released little other information except to note that a woman in the driver's seat of the blue Chrysler 200 is considered a witness to the homicide; her relationship to the victim wasn't disclosed. Truax says she doesn't know the woman, per ABC News. She adds her husband, who joined the Marine Corps in 2014 and was later deployed, had been taking classes at the station 15 miles from Lemon Grove and dreamed of becoming a drill instructor. "It kills me to know I will never be able to hear [his] voice again," she tells Fox. Of her son, she adds to KGTV, "I don't know how to tell him  that his father isn't here." (Read more homicide stories.)
Amid a worsening tariff battle, China is putting off accepting license applications from American companies in financial services and other industries until Washington makes progress toward a settlement, an official of a business group said Tuesday.

The disclosure is the first public confirmation of U.S. companies' fears that their operations in China or access to its markets might be disrupted by the battle over Beijing's technology policy. China is running out of American imports for penalties in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff hikes, which has prompted worries that Chinese regulators might target operations of U.S. companies.

The license delay applies to industries Beijing has promised to open to foreign competitors, according to Jacob Parker, vice president for China operations of the U.S.-China Business Council. The group represents some 200 American companies that do business with China.

In meetings over the past three weeks, Cabinet-level officials told USCBC representatives they are putting off accepting applications "until the trajectory of the U.S.-China relationship improves and stabilizes," Parker said.

Chinese authorities have promised to increase foreign access to areas including banking, securities, insurance and asset management. "There seem to be domestic political pressures that are working against the perception of U.S. companies receiving benefits" during the dispute, Parker said.

As for what improvement might entail, Parker said Chinese officials want an end to Trump's tariff hikes and a negotiated settlement. He declined to identify the officials but, in a sign Beijing wants foreign companies to help lobby Washington, said the meetings represented "unprecedented access" for his group.

Beijing matched Trump's earlier tariff increase on $50 billion of imports but is running out of American goods for retaliation due to their lopsided trade balance. China bought American goods worth about $1 for every $3 of goods it exported to the United States.

Trump is poised to decide whether to raise duties on $200 billion of Chinese goods. Beijing has issued a $60 billion list of goods for retaliation. A foreign ministry spokesman, Geng Shuang, said Monday that China will "definitely take countermeasures" if the tariff hike goes ahead.


(Newser)  Egyptian authorities say E.coli is to blame in the deaths of two British tourists who stayed at a five-star hotel on the Red Sea last month, but the couple's daughter says that idea is "absolute rubbish." John and Susan Cooper of Lancashire died Aug. 21 after they were found seriously ill in their room at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in Hurghada. After she found John "extremely ill," paramedics "tried basically to save his life and they couldn't," daughter Kelly Ormerod tells Sky News, adding her mother died later at a hospital. Ormerod demanded an inquiry after Egypt's tourism ministry initially cited "respiratory failure," per the Express. On Wednesday, Egyptian general prosecutor Nabil Sadek said 69-year-old John died of acute intestinal dysentery caused by E.coli, the same bacteria likely responsible for his 63-year-old wife's deadly infection, per the BBC.

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Sadek also said tests showed nothing unusual in the hotel's air or water and no toxic or harmful gas emissions or leaks in the couple's room. However, specialists commissioned by Thomas Cook, a travel company associated with the hotel, "identified a high level of E.coli and staphylococcus bacteria" related to food and hygiene standards, per Sky. That should've come as no surprise, according to a 29-year-old British woman. Elizabeth Austin tells the Sun she was compensated by Thomas Cook after contracting E.coli at the same hotel in January. But Ormerod says it's "unheard of that someone dies of E.coli in such a short space of time," and describes a strange smell in her parents' room at the all-inclusive resort. Per the Times, the room next door had been fumigated hours earlier with a farm-strength insecticide. The head of the firm responsible for the work has denied any wrongdoing, reports the BBC. (Read more Egypt stories.)
(Newser)  President Trump signed an executive order Wednesday authorizing sanctions against foreigners who meddle in US elections, a move that counters critics who claim he has not taken election security seriously enough. The executive order covers not just interference with campaign infrastructure, but it also covers the distribution of disinformation and propaganda, national security adviser John Bolton told reporters. The order requires the Office of the National Intelligence Director to conduct regular assessments about potential foreign interference in the elections and asks for reports by the Homeland Security and Justice departments in the case of meddling in campaign-related infrastructure, he said.

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It also describes a process for the Treasury and State departments to recommend appropriate, automatic sanctions, reports the AP. "We felt it was important to demonstrate the president has taken command of this issue, that it's something he cares deeply aboutthat the integrity of our elections and our constitutional process are a high priority to him," Bolton said. With the midterm elections now two months away, National Intelligence Director Dan Coats said the US is not currently seeing the intensity of Russian intervention that was experienced in 2016, but didn't rule it out. He said the US is also worried about the cyber activities of China, North Korea, and Iran.

(Read more President Trump stories.)
New Delhi:

Roman Catholic Bishop from Jalandhar Franco Mullakal, who is facing rape charges by a nun in Kerala, has been summoned by the Kerala Police on , a senior official said .



On , the Kerala Police had said that the Bishop could be summoned for questioning this week.

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Further action would be taken after clearing doubts as there were a lot of contradictions in the statements given by the nun, witnesses and the accused, the police said.

The complainant had accused that Mullakal had raped her and had unnatural sex with her multiple times between 2014 and 2016.

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According to preliminary investigations, the Bishop abused his position and repeatedly raped the nun.



The police, however, rejected the allegations that the police were helping the accused Bishop.



(With inputs from agencies)
New Delhi:

Mitron is Nitin Kakkars upcoming directorial flick starring Jackky Bhagnani and Kritika Kamra in lead roles. Set in the backdrop of Gujarats Ahmedabad city, the team of Mitron is completely mesmerised and in awe of the beautiful city. While director Nitin couldnt get over the architectural beauty, Jackky fell in love with the Gujarati delicacies. In an exclusive interview with NewsNation, Nitin affirms that Gujarat is the only option left with him for Mitron.

Filmistan director said that he wanted a new flavour and a different experience for the movie. There are many upcoming movies which are already being shot in the small towns of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. A lot has been done in Delhi and I never wanted to shoot the film in Mumbai.

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"While the original Telugu film Pelli Choopulu is already a South based movie, there were not many options left with me. So I thought of filming it in the unexplored town of Ahmedabad, Nitin says.

The filmmaker then paints a beautiful picture of Ahmedabad.

Ahmedabad has a unique flavour of its own. On one side of river Sabarmati, you will find the luxuries of a developed city, while on the other side, the beauty of traditional old city of Ahmedabad is breath-taking.

A difficult journey becomes fun

Jackky Bhagnani, who led a combat battle to get into the shoes of Jai, became a fan of Gujarati food and people. Jackky reveals to NewsNation that adapting to the role of Jai was very difficult and took a month of rehearsals and grooming to reach the final the epitome.

Even a difficult journey becomes fun when people surrounding are wonderful, remarks the actor.

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Hailing from Bandra and having spent my childhood in South Delhi, it was bewildering to mask the Gujarati flavour. I had to gain six to seven kilos so that my character looks lazy, paradoxical to my own personality, the FALTU actor narrates his own transformation.

Jackky retrospect the salivating food of Gujarat. If I were to name two things that I was fond of in Gujarat, it will be food and people, asserts Jackky.

The director of the film bantered how Ahmedabads Manek Chowk was a sleeping pill for him. Whenever I visited Manek Chowk, I felt like I was returning with a sleeping pill. The food was so yummy that we couldnt resist eating it, he says.

Kritika Kamra shares a different experience

The leading lady, Kritika Kamra, exclaims that it was a very different experience but Mitron was the best thing that ever happened to her.

Mitron stars Jackky Bhagnani, Kritika Kamra, Pratik Gandhi, Neeraj Sood, and Shivam Parekh. The film, produced by Vikram Malhotra, is riding high on the promotions. While the film is set for September 14 release, the makers plan to hold multiple screenings of the film ahead of the release across big cities.
South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia on Tuesday.

In a one-on-one meeting, Abe said Tokyo is keen to normalize relations with Pyongyang if the two sides can resolve issues in their unhappy past like the North's bizarre campaign of abducting Japanese citizens and the North's buildup of ballistic missiles.

Abe also called for close cooperation among neighboring countries in the pursuit of regional peace and stability through complete denuclearization of North Korea.

Lee said improvements in Tokyo's ties with Pyongyang will contribute to establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia as a whole.
New Delhi:

Chinese People's Liberation Army troops transgressed the Line of Actual Control (LAC) three times in August and intruded four kilometres into the Indian territory in Uttarakhands Barahoti, according to news agency ANI.

As per ITBP sources, the incidents of incursion into the Indian borders by Chinese Army troops occurred on August 6, August 14 and August 15, respectively. The transgressions were as deep as nearly 4 km.

Also Read | Rahul Gandhi lambasts PM Modi for not discussing Doklam issue during his China visit

This was not the first time the Chinese Army intruded into the Indian borders. Earlier on August 14, the PLA troops had entered 400 meters deep inside the Demchok sector of eastern Ladakh and set up five tents there.

The People's Liberation Army(Chinese Army) transgressed the Line of Actual Control (LAC) three times in August towards the central sector, Uttarakhand in Barahoti where the transgression was 4 kms deep: Sources pic.twitter.com/HMa2It5yS2  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

This came amid the reports of Chinese troops quietly resuming their construction activities in Doklam plateau  a triangular territory in Sikkim sector  that had become the unlikely scene of the India-China imbroglio last year.

Also Read | Rahul Gandhi slams Sushma Swaraj on Doklam issue, says she prostrated before China

Although the Indian government had claimed to have resolved the Doklam issue with diplomatic maturity without losing any ground, a top US official had claimed that China had quietly resumed its activities in the region and neither Bhutan no India sought to dissuade it.

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New Delhi:

The Supreme Court on Wednesday extended the house arrest of five left-leaning activists till September 17 when it will hear a plea challenging the Maharashtra polices action and seeking their release.

Hearing the petition filed by historian Romila Thapar and four others, a bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra adjourned the matter till Monday after it was submitted the defence counsel was busy in another court.

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Earlier in August, five left-leaning activists  Varavara Rao, Vernon Gonzalves and Arun Ferreira, Sudha Bhardwaj and Gautam Navalakha  were taken into custody by Pune Police after multi-city raids.

The police had claimed that the activists were linked with banned Maoist groups and one of them was also involved in the alleged plot to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Also Read | Chinese PLA troops intrude 3.5 km into Indian territory in Uttarakhand

Last week, citing evidence from the computer and mobile phones of the activists, the Maharashtra Police had told the Supreme Court that they were taken into custody for "serious criminal offences" and not because of their political ideologies.

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New Delhi:

Amid the Rafale deal controversy, Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa on said no country in the world is facing the kind of grave threat that India is confronted with, and the Centres decision to procure the French fighter jets will help in filling gap of combat capabilities of Indian Air Force.



Addressing a seminar in New Delhi, Dhanoa said "the intentions of adversaries can change overnight", and India needs to be prepared for such an eventuality.

#WATCH What we do not have are the numbers, against a sanctioned strength of 42 squadrons, we are down to 31. Even when we do have 42 squadrons, we will be below the combined numbers of two of our regional adversaries:Air Force Chief Birender Singh Dhanoa in Delhi pic.twitter.com/DKa6sQHDva  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018



"The Government's decision to procure French Rafale fighter jets and Russian air defence missile system will help in filling gap of combat capabilities of Indian Air Force," he said.

Also Read | Rahul Gandhi lambasts PM Modi for not discussing Doklam issue during his China visit



The air chief also warned that India's neighbours, including China, are modernising their air force significantly.



He was speaking at the seminar on 'IAF's force structure, 2035'.

Also Read | Chinese PLA troops intrude 3.5 km into Indian territory in Uttarakhand



He also justified procurement of only two Rafale jet squadrons, saying there were example of similar purchases.



The opposition party has alleged that Reliance Defence was chosen as the local partner for offset contracts worth crores, as per the 2016 annual report of Dassault Aviation and a press statement of Reliance Defence. Reliance Defence and Aerospace, in a statement, said that it or any other Reliance group company has not received any contract from the defence ministry till date, relating to the 36 Rafale aircraft. This is absolutely unfounded and incorrect, the company said.



The opposition also claimed that there is no violation of any rule or preferential treatment to Dassault Reliance Aviation Ltd (DRAL), the joint venture company formed to fulfil the offset contracts in the Rafale deal. The Congress, however, accused the prime minister of making the announcement of off-the-shelf purchase of 36 fighter jets in Paris at a much higher rate than that negotiated by the UPA government.



(With inputs from PTI)

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New Delhi:

The alacrity shown by a BJP Minister from Yogi Adityanaths team in UP by claiming that the Supreme Court is ours while talking about the possibility of Ram Temple construction at Ayodhya is indeed symptomatic of not only the impossibility of justice for Muslims but also end of impartiality under the present regime. So much so that this may well cast its shadow on others and affect people at large.



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The Minister Mukut Bihari Verma gave some of his bizarre takes on the Supreme Court and the Ram Janambhoomi temple before television cameras in his home district Bahraich on Sunday, or September 9. It was a day when his partys national executive was meeting in New Delhi and

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was about to address the partys crucial forum.



Significantly, the Mandir issue remained off the deliberations held in the Delhi conclave of the ruling party. Yet, the Ministers observations were never reflected upon, or discussed, by the BJP higher ups who briefed the media after Modis concluding speech. Their silence over the issue raised by their state satrap and which involved independence of the highest judicial body was not only conspicuous but can also amount to a tacit and veiled agreement or at least a way to build pressures on judiciary vis-a-vis the temple.



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As none was either pleased or displeased by not so well known a minister of UP, at least in Delhis political circles, when he spoke to reporters on his home turf the question that arises is whether his is a lone voice on the contentious issue or there is more to it. The BJP generally says that it is committed to build a grand temple at Ayodhya. And off and on, its one or the other leaders or functionaries voice their entreaties or fulminations over the issue of temple.



Sometime ago, it was UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya who had exhorted for a law to be passed through legislature (presumably that of the Centre) to pave the way for the construction of Ram temple in case the Supreme Court either goes against this or delays the matter by keeping it pending. Taken together Minister Vermas latest loud thinking over the temple issue with his other party cohorts, what is palpably clear is that by and large there is a broad consensus in the BJP vis-a-vis the issue of building the temple and what remains to be decided is only as to how the way for this is to be cleared.



The fact that the temple issue is mostly raked up whenever elections are near points to its being used somewhat blatantly for bringing a possibly monolith system in the country where not only an affected party like Muslims since a mosque was demolished to clear space for the temple in Ayodhya but also dissenters of myriad kinds and Opposition parties could be silenced and nullified. This is how the fervent desire to build the temple is not meant to browbeat Muslims alone but it is finally aimed at creating scope for a single party rule in the country as has mostly been the case with some of the Communist states that crumbled only under the weight of their single party rule through the decades in the past.



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Hence, the BJP that has of late been castigating what it calls to be urban Maoists, as was also the case during its national executive, has strangely been showing signs of following the footsteps of yesteryears Chinese dictator Mao Zedong after whom the urban Maoists are actually known. So as against them the new and virtual saffron Maoists draw their strength for a single party rule like that of erstwhile Soviet Russia or may be Maos China from their leaders like Modi and Amit Shahs repeated refrains like Congress Mukta Bharat, or India shorn of Congress. At the two-day BJP national executive that concluded in the Capital on Sunday evening Shah vowed to keep the BJP in power for no less than 50 years after possibly winning next years general elections; and Modi pointed to what he called to be an unjustified comparison between his 48-month rule with that of 48 years by the Congress which was led by a family.



And as against the rule of the Nehru-Gandhi family led by Congress, the BJPs top echelons take pride in coming from the large ideological family built for over nine decades or so from now by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), where often frenzy and stridency have been the preconditions for climbing the ladder of power and position. So much so that BJPs tryst with power at the Centre began when the late Atal Behari Vajpayee, often described as a moderate among hawks, became the prime minister. Yet, on the other rungs of the ladder of power created in his lifetime were none-too-moderates like LK Advani, Modi and Yogi Adityanath. How Modi surpassed Advani so soon to become Hindu Hirday Samrat, or virtual ruler of Hindu hearts, is now an old story.



So, when a minister from Yogis bandwagon ended in flaunting what he called to be the Sanghs sway over Supreme Court besides other organs of the country like executive and legislature, he was only toeing the line set by his partys top bosses. Thus, playing the Mandir tune may well be a strategically profound move for him and his party comrades but this also reminds and signifies a race for power both within the BJP and outside the confines of the Sangh Parivar to possibly have an absolute and exclusive sway over power in the times to come. The peril with this is that not only Muslims but also all those who can ever try to differ with the saffron ideology and politics could easily get vanquished, tamed, or silenced.
New Delhi:

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday called upon Russia and Japan to sign a peace treaty this year and end the World War II hostilities "without any preconditions", saying that the territorial dispute has led to decades of deadlock.

However, a Japanese Government spokesman said, before signing a peace deal, the two countries should first resolve the dispute.

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The Russia-Japan dispute centres on four islands in the strategically-located Kuril chain. The region was occupied by Soviet Union at the end of war in 1945, but is claimed by Japan.

"We have been trying to solve the territorial dispute for 70 years. We've been holding talks for 70 years," Putin said at an economic forum in the far eastern Russian city of Vladivostok.

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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese leader Xi Jinping were also present at the event.

"Shinzo said: 'let's change our approaches.' Let's! Let's conclude a peace agreement, not now but by year's end without any preconditions," Putin said, prompting the audience to break into applause.

(With inputs from AFP)

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paraklisi

Saint Athanasius of Serpukhov was born at Obonezh Pyatina with the name Andrew into the family of the priest Auxentius and his wife Maria. He was, from youth, inclined towards prayer and renunciation of the world, and he sought a worthy guide in monastic labors.Sts. Athanasius the Elder and Athanasius the Younger(Feast Day - September 12)At this time, news of Saint Sergius of Radonezh had already spread throughout the whole of Rus. The Monastery of the Life-Creating Trinity at Makovets had become for everyone a luminous model of monastic organization. Here in the monastery, the cenobitic life transformed the hateful discord of this world, creating a oneness of spirit in a unity of love based on the example of the Divine Trinity. The youth Andrew went from the outskirts of Novgorod to Abba Sergius at Makovets, following in his footsteps in search of spiritual perfection.At tonsure he was named Athanasius, in honor of Saint Athanasius the Great. Saint Athanasius in turn became a worthy disciple of the great Sergius, the father and teacher of Russian monasticism.The disciples of Saint Sergius, in addition to the usual monastic obediences, received the holy abbas blessing for special church services: copying books, painting icons, building churches. This added a genuine ecclesiastical quality to life, imparting ecclesiastical beauty and hymnology, a liturgical transfiguration of Gods world.The favorite obedience of Abba Athanasius, which he imposed upon himself, was copying books. The holy books were regarded by the fathers as on the same level as the holy icons, the most important way to impart ecclesiastical ideas, those of theological and liturgical creativity.The school of Saint Sergius, revealing to the Russian and to the Universal Church the whole extent of theological experiential knowledge of the Holy Trinity, is closely connected with the flourishing of ecclesiastical literature, with the necessity of interactive enrichment of the Russian Church by the literary works of the Byzantine Church and its theologians, and by the deep spiritual experience of the Russian ascetics.In the year 1374, the Serpukhov prince Vladimir Andreevich the Brave, a colleague of Demetrius of the Don, turned to Saint Sergius with a request to found a monastery on his lands. Abba Sergius came to Serpukhov with his beloved disciple Athanasius, and having established the monastery of the Conception of the Most Holy Theotokos, he blessed Saint Athanasius to organize it, and then to be its abbot.The monastery of Saint Athanasius was built near the city of Serpukhov, on the high bank of the River Nara. They therefore called it Vysotsky [of the heights]. Hence also its title, with which entered into Russian Church history its founder and first abbot, Saint Athanasius of Vysotsky.Abba Athanasius zealously set about the organization of the monastery entrusted to him. Many Russian ascetics arrived here, on the heights, for a heightened schooling in monasticism.According to the teaching of Abba Athanasius, preserved for us by Epiphanius the Wise, to be a monk was no easy thing. The duty of the monk consists in this, that he be vigilant in prayer and in divine precepts until midnight, and sometimes for the whole night. He should eat nothing but bread and water, oil even and wine would be altogether improper. Through the words of the Saint of God, many came to him at the monastery on the heights, but then they slackened, and, unable to endure the work of ascetic struggle, they fled.Those ascetics of higher monastic worth remained with the holy abba. Therefore, it was to this monastery, to his disciple and fellow-ascetic Athanasius, that the God-bearing Abba Sergius of Radonezh sent his future successor, Saint Nikon (Nov. 17) for tonsure and guidance in monastic endeavors. Saint Athanasius taught him: Monks are called voluntary martyrs. Many holy martyrs suffered for a single hour and then died, but each day monks endure sufferings not from torturers, but from within, from the properties of the flesh and from noetic enemies. There are struggles, and they suffer until their last breath.Vysotsky MonasteryIn 1478, after the death of Saint Alexis, Metropolitan of Moscow, the new Metropolitan, Saint Cyprian (Sept. 16) arrived in Moscow. But Great Prince Demetrius of the Don wanted to establish his own priest and colleague Michael [Mitaya] as metropolitan, and he would not accept Metropolitan Cyprian. Instead, he expelled him from Moscow.Saint Cyprian was in a difficult position. But he found support and sympathy among the pillars of Russian monasticism, Saints Sergius of Radonezh and Athanasius of Vysotsky. From the very beginning, they saw the canonical legitimacy of the Metropolitan in his dispute with the Great Prince and they supported him in the prolonged struggle (1478-1490) for the restoration of canonical order and unity in the Russian Church. Saint Cyprian had to journey several times during these years to Constantinople to participate in synodal deliberations concerning the governace of the Russian Church. On one of these journeys, with the blessing of holy Abba Sergius, Saint Athanasius of Vysotsky went to Constantinople with his friend the Metropolitan, leaving his own disciple, Saint Athanasius the Younger as the abbot of the Vysotsky Monastery.St. Athanasius the YoungerAt Constantinople Saint Athanasius settled into the Monastery of the Holy Forerunner and Baptist John (known as Studion), where he found a cell for himself and for several disciples who had come with him. Saint Athanasius occupied himself with prayer and salvific theological books. The monk spent about twenty years in the Queen City, working to translate books from the Greek language and copying Church books, which he then sent off to Rus. Thereby, he transmitted to the Russian Church not only a legacy of great Orthodox thought, but also the traditions of Constantinoples masters of manuscript illumination, with their elegant penmanship and artistry of textual miniatures, achieving a harmony of content and form. A continuing creative connection was established between Saint Athanasiuss skillful copying of books at Constantinople and the calligraphic and iconographic school of the Vysotsky Monastery at Serpukhov.It was not by chance that it was especially at the Vysotsky Monastery that the holy abbot Nikon guided the future iconographer Saint Andrew Rublev (July 4), as once previously the God-bearing Abba Sergius had guided Nikon himself in this monastery to spiritual maturity and an understanding of the rejuvenating and transformative spirit of pure ecclesiastical beauty.In this sacred service of ecclesiastical beauty, in constant liturgical activity for the glory of the Life-Originating Trinity, the life-bearing genius of Saint Andrew matured. God destined him for the great visual rendering of the theological and liturgical legacy of Saint Sergius, with the immortal wonderworking icon of the Most Holy Trinity for the iconostasis of the Trinity Cathedral. In the iconographic creativity of Saint Andrew Rublev, just as in the temple-building activity of Saint Nikon, and in the hagiographic works of Epiphanius the Wise, we find embodiment and synthesis of the finest traditions of Byzantine and Russian art.This creative synthesis was served also by Saint Athanasius of Vysotsky all his life. Living at Constantinople, he continued to work for the Russian Church, and for his native land. To give but one example, he sent to the Vysotsky Monastery ten icons of the finest Greek style. He and his disciples translated into the Slavonic language the Four Hundred Chapters of Saint Maximus the Confessor, the Chapters of Mark about church services, and the Discourses of Saint Symeon the New Theologian.Tomb of St. Athanasius the ElderIn the year 1401, just before his death, the venerable elder copied, and possibly translated himself, a Church Rule, distributed within the Russian Church under the title, The Eye of the Church.Saint Athanasius spent his life in constant work with books. He died at Constantinople in old age in the year 1401 (or perhaps a bit later). Russian chroniclers note him as an elder virtuous, learned, knowing the Holy Scriptures, to which at present his writings give witness. His Life was written in the year 1697 by the hieromonk Karion [Istomin] of the Moscow Chudov Monastery.Tomb of St. Athanasius the YoungerSaint Athanasiuss successor and disciple, Saint Athanasius the Younger, successfully directed the spiritual life of the brethren and gave an example by his own God-pleasing life. Saint Athanasius the Younger reposed after a long illness on September 12, 1395. In the ancient manuscripts of the saints it says of him: Saint Athanasius, abbot of Vysotsky Conception Monastery at Serpukhov, a new wonderworker who reposed in the year 6904 (1395) on the twelfth day of September, a disciple of Saint Athanasius, wondrous disciple of Saint Sergius, who later was at Constantinople and reposed there.
His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa yesterday hailed the visit of the heads of states and Nobel Peace Prize laureates to the Kingdom.

HRH the Premier described the landmark visit as being historic and memorable, bringing together on the land of peace, three heads of states and peace laureates, whose achievements are recognized all over the world.

The Premier expressed deepest thanks and appreciation to the heads of states and organizations, recipients of the Nobel Prize, for accepting the invitation to visit the Kingdom, hailing their strenuous efforts to promote and bolster peace all over the world. This landmark visit will remain engraved in the memory for its high significance and crucial timing, he said, describing the visit of the Men of Peace as an international recognition of Bahrains role in advocating global peace.

HRH the Premier delivered the keynote address as he hosted a dinner banquet at the Ritz Carlton in honor of the heads of states and organizations as well as recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize.

The delegation comprised former President of South Africa Frederick William de Klerk, former President of Poland Lech Walesa, former President of East Timor Jose Ramos-Horta and Under-Secretary-General and former Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme Anna Tibajuka, and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate for 2014 Kailash Satyarthi.

HRH the Premier said that the current challenges unfolding in many regions necessitate more international concerted action to create the required conditions for peace which will bolster the strenuous efforts exerted by countries and societies to achieve sustainable development and build a more prosperous future.

The Premier expressed thanks to the members of the delegation for their press statements in which they hailed Bahrains development strides. He reiterated Bahrains keenness on pursuing this cooperation for the sake of peace, security and peace in the world, which emanates from its firm belief in the noble message of peace, the cornerstone of countries security, stability and development.
A delegation of former Presidents and Heads of organisations who won the Nobel Peace Prize, currently on a visit to the kingdom, yesterday paid visits to a number of heritage sites, landmarks and vital development projects in the kingdom.

Cabinet Affairs Minister, Mohammed Al Mutawa, and Shaikh Hussam bin Isa Al Khalifa accompanied the delegation during the tour. Members of the delegation toured the Khalifa Town housing project in the Southern Governorate, and were informed about its facilities, modern services and construction design combining Bahraini heritage and modern architectural styles.

They were also briefed about the projects importance in supporting the kingdoms policies and the governments plans to meet the citizens housing needs. They voiced admiration for the Khalifa Town, noting that the tour provided them with an opportunity to be informed closely about the tremendous efforts being exerted by the Kingdom of Bahrain to achieve a housing and urban boom, commensurate with the advanced status the country enjoys at the international level in the field of human development. They stressed that the government, under the leadership of His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, has achieved many success stories in the field of sustainable development which earned the admiration and appreciation of international organizations.

They added that the civilisational, urban and housing boom currently witnessed by the kingdom is a living proof of its landmark achievements in various fields. Members of the delegation then visited the Gravity Indoor Skydiving building in Zallaq, and were informed by its General Manager, Khawla Al Hammadi, about the Gravity Villages outstanding facilities and services.
The Jewish community, which once flourished in the Kingdom bears testimony to the greatness of the land of tolerance. Two centuries ago, Jews were an integral part of the Bahraini society contributing immensely towards its economy, trade and banking sector. Out of 500 Bahraini Jews, only 37 now live in the Kingdom, but the community has a significant presence in the social scene. Houda Nonoo, a prominent member of the community was the former Kingdoms envoy to the US, while Nancy Khedouri, another Bahraini Jew is a member of the Shura Council.

Speaking to Tribune, Moses Sweiry, a Bahraini Jew now residing in the UK, said the Kingdom has always remained a land of religious coexistence and tolerance. My father was a well-known businessman in the Kingdom. We migrated to the UK after his health worsened. I was the only Jew at school but never suffered any discrimination at the hands of my friends or classmates. Everyone in the Kingdom I know accepted our religion and we were very much part of the Bahraini society. I continue to visit the Kingdom as I have a large number of friends there.

Sweiry family is one of the Bahraini Jewish families which migrated to the West before the emergence of the Zionist state in Palestine. Dr Youssef Al Mutairi, author of The Jews in the Gulf asserts that there were no Jews in the region after the First World War, except in Bahrain. Manama was one of the most sought-after places for the members of the Jewish community in the region, which contributed to the creation of intellectual and cultural affinity between the Islamic and Jewish religions.

There is a common cultural and linguistic background, and that is why the Jews did not live in their own neighbourhoods. The American Mission schools in the Gulf, i.e. the missionary centers, accepted students from all religions, thus contributing to the integration of Jews into the Gulf society, Dr Youssef had observed.

Ms Khedouri, a member of the Shura Council, stressed that the Jewish community is very well integrated into the Bahraini society. Throughout my life in Bahrain, I have never had any bad situations. On the contrary, I have grown up and dealt with my Bahraini friends from all religions. We still have friendly relations. We join together in joys and sorrows, and I thank God for this blessing. As a Bahraini Jew, I am proud of my identity and feel fortunate to have freedom of worship and my ability to preserve my tradition and culture amid Bahrains religious diversity. Despite religious differences, we stand united in the name of Bahrain.

These days not many Bahrainis know about the presence of Jews in the Kingdom. But decades before, this was not the case.
To help workers cope with the end of the summer work ban and to help them beat the heat a charity initiative is being run until the end of summer.

The work ban may have ended but volunteers in Bahrain hope to provide relief through other means. The initiative by Discover Islam was launched on August 31 just as the summer work ban ended. Sayed Haneef, a representative of Discover Islam said that the initiative is being held to ease the difficulty experienced by the workers during the summer heat.

He said that hundreds of boxes containing food and water have been distributed across Manama and Muharraq. The temperatures are still high, and so this initiative is aimed at helping workers cope with the heat. We cover various areas across Bahrain and we provide food and water.

We have set up a makeshift table at bus stops where we base ourselves during the drive. We provide the aid to those at the bus stop, those who are waiting for the buses, workers who are passing by or even the bus drivers who also appreciate such help. The packets we distribute include a bottle of water, a banana, an orange an apple and a cap. We have distributed it to cleaners, construction workers or anyone we think needs the help. We have covered areas in Manama as well as Muharraq. Hundreds of packets have been distributed so far, we plan to continue this until the end of summer.
South Korea is finally ready to open a liaison office in the North Korean border city of Kaesong on Friday, according to a Unification Ministry spokesman on Tuesday.

The opening of the liaison office, set up in the shuttered Kaesong Industrial Complex, has been delayed under pressure from the U.S., which warned it could violate international sanctions since it requires shipments of materials and electricity supply from South Korea.

It will be headed by Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung. About 100 South Korean and some 50 North Korean officials are expected to attend the opening ceremony on Friday.

The government did not say whether it discussed the opening with the U.S. and got the green light.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and other officials on Tuesday met with Stephen Biegun, the U.S. special representative for North Korea policy who is visiting Seoul.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Noh Kyu-duk told reporters that the meetings were a good opportunity to deepen Washington's "understanding" of the liaison office.


The High Criminal Court will hear today the case of a Bahraini man who is accused of molesting female colleagues at his office. The defendant is accused of harassing two women during their first 30 days of joining the company.

The first woman reported to police officers that the defendant shocked her by kissing at their office after he summoned her to do some tasks. I got the job in the company through a friend. And after one month of starting my work, he called me to his cabin to complete some tasks on the computer. He locked the door and kissed me, the first victim said.

After a few hours, he called me to apologize. However, he flirted with me and I disconnected the line and never answered his phone calls, she added. Meanwhile, her co-victim reported a similar incident. After 10 days of beginning my work, I was in his office to discuss which companies I can contact. After the meeting, he shook my hand and he tried to molest me.
The High Criminal Court has adjourned the case of two maids accused of attacking police officers until October 3, 2018, to assign a lawyer for them.

The accused are an Ethiopian woman, aged 35, and a 21-year-old Indonesian woman. According to court files, the Ethiopian domestic servant broke the hand of a woman police officer out of her fear of handcuffs.

The 35-year-old maid was detained at the Public Prosecution premises for an unpermitted stay in Bahrain and her victim was assigned to accompany her. The Ethiopian woman is said to have caused a chaotic scene when police officers, including the victim, attempted to handcuff her.
Rome : More than 50 of the 144 migrants recently allowed into Italy after being stranded for days on a coastguard vessel have disappeared without trace from reception centres, the countrys far-right Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said Wednesday. These migrants were so in need of protection, a roof and a blanket that they decided to leave and disappear, Salvini said on Facebook. This is the umpteenth confirmation that those who arrive in Italy are not skeletons fleeing war and famine, he added.

The migrants were picked up by the Diciotti coastguard ship on the night of August 15 and were left stranded at sea for 10 days as Salvini refused to allow the vessel to dock in an Italian port. Salvini, head of the far-right League party, finally relented after Ireland, Albania and the Italian Catholic church agreed to lake most of them in. Reacting to the disappearance of 50 of those taken in, Giorgia Meloni -- leader of the far-right Brothers of Italy party -- asked on Twitter who would be responsible if one of them committed a crime in Italy, calling for an end to uncontrolled immigration and an immediate naval blockade.

Since the start of the year, 3,000 migrants from the former Italian colony of Eritrea have arrived in Italy but less than a thousand have applied for asylum, according to interior ministry figures. Many Eritreans prefer to continue by land to Germany, Sweden or Britain, despite the heavy controls encountered at the French, Swiss and Austrian borders as well as the EUs Dublin regulation under which a migrant can only make an asylum claim in the first European country the reach. Meanwhile in Spain the bodies of five migrants were recovered off the southern coast, according to emergency services who also rescued around 500 others on Wednesday .

A spokesman told AFP that the bodies of four men and a woman were picked up during an operation to save a vessel in difficulty in the Mediterranean between Spain and Morocco. According to the International Organization for Migration more than 28,500 migrants have arrived by sea in Spain this year, while another 313 have perished attempting to make the crossing.
Islamabad : Kulsoom Nawaz, the wife of former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif, died of cancer in London yesterday as her husband remains locked up in jail in his home country following his fall from power. Nawaz, 68, who was first lady of Pakistan three times, was diagnosed with lymphoma in August last year and had been receiving treatment at a private hospital in London for months.

Yes, the death of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz is confirmed, Maryam Aurangzeb, a spokesperson of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Sharifs party, told AFP. Pakistani media reported that she had been put on life support and a ventilator earlier in the day. Sharif was ousted from the premiership a month before his wifes diagnosis. He and the couples daughter Maryam Nawaz had left her in London and returned to Pakistan on July 13 this year in a bid to motivate support for the PML-N days before a general election. They were immediately jailed for corruption, with the party losing the July 25 vote to Imran Khans Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.

Sharif had been banned from running and his return was seen as a failed gamble to save his political legacy. Conspiracy theories claiming that Nawaz was actually healthy, and that the Sharifs were faking her illness to gain sympathy, swirled in the final weeks of the acrimonious campaign. Nawaz had been at her husbands side throughout his decades-long political career, which saw him become prime minister of Pakistan three times while facing military coups, prison and exile. She was a brave lady, Siddiq-ul-Farouq, a stalwart party loyalist, said, describing her as well-educated and dignified.
Stephen Biegun, the new U.S. special representative for North Korea, on Tuesday met with President Moon Jae-in and Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha in Seoul.

Moon expressed hopes to Biegun that Washington will make progress in denuclearization talks with North Korea amid an upbeat atmosphere boosted by last week's trip to Pyongyang by five South Korean officials.

Biegun pledged to do his best to work for denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula. "We also have a tremendous opportunity," he told Seoul's chief nuclear negotiator Lee Do-hoon. "We need to do everything we can to make the most of this moment of opportunity."
Governors elected on the platform of The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors under the aegis of PDP Governors Forum yesterday disagreed with the call by the partys Board of Trustees (BoT)for a consensus candidate, it was learnt late Tuesday night.The governors also resolved that the national convention of the party where the presidential candidate would emerged would hold in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital.Recall that the governors had in their communique on Monday resolved to have an all-inclusive meeting with all the PDP Presidential aspirants, with the National Chairman, two national officers of the party, as well as leaders of the party in both chambers of the National Assembly in attendance.A source at the meeting yesterday told journalists that the governors resolved that all the aspirants should head for primaries, in the spirit of fairness and equity.The governors disagreed with the issue of consensus. They said that all the aspirants should go for the primaries to avoid unforeseen development. They want a contest among the aspirant so that the best can emerge, he said.On the issue of convention, the source said that Enugu, Akwa Ibom and Rivers states were suggested, but the first two were dismissed due to what he called accommodation logistics.He added, The issue of where to hold the convention came up. Enugu, Akwa Ibom and Rivers states were suggested, but Rivers state was selected. Enugu and Akwa Ibom were discarded because there are no enough hotels to accommodate the people that will come for the convention. Rivers States has enough accommodation, that was why it was selected.
A Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), presidential aspirant, Dr. Attahiru Bafarawa has said that presidential aspirants under the aegis of the party were united in the removal of the ruling All Progressives Congress-led Federal government out of power in 2019.Bafarawa, who spoke during his consultation with the Edo State chapter of the party in Benin ahead of the October 2018 National Convention of the party, also described consensus an anti-democracy.He said that the people should be allowed to choose who governs and represent them at all level of political position just as he also warned against vote-buying during the convention.He added that the large number of the partys presidential aspirants was a demonstration that the party was growing big even as he disclosed that the aspirants have all agreed to support whoever gets the presidential ticket.He said, I believe we all have already agreed that however get the ticket we are going to work together with him.Forget the number of aspirants. The number of aspirants showed that the party is growing big and the only party in the country. Forget limited and liability party but ours is Public limited company (Plc). So, you expect the shareholders to be many.The number of aspirants is not something to fear and worry about. We are together. We are united and our main common objective is to get APC out of power because it is a disaster.If we allow the party to remain in power in the next four years I believe there will be no Nigeria. We want to unite our country, and therefore, we the aspirants have already united ourselves for a common goal.On the issue of consensus, the presidential candidate hopeful, opined that since all the aspirants have collected forms, there should be no moral justification for the party not to go for indirect primary.He said, we are not going to change our constitution. Consensus is for APC but ours is indirect primary. Since the party has sold forms to all the aspirants because we are all qualified, and there is nobody the party can say is not qualified. It is now left for the partys delegates to decide. Once delegates decide there is nothing anybody can do.He, however, promised to initiate programmes to rerun the country to enviable position of African economic hub and global player in international relations and diplomacy, overhaul education, health, economy, agriculture, infrastructure, defence and security among others if he emerges the president of the country.Responding, the State Chairman of the party, Chief Dan Orbih, commended the presidential aspirant for his good governance while serving as governor of Sokoto state.He said, the states delegates will join comity of states that will ensure that the best aspirant emerged as the partys presidential flag bearer.
President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday said that those who defected from the All Progressives Congress, APC, to other political parties were the selfish, corrupt and weakest members who could not align with the vision of his administration.President Buhari stated this while accepting the Expression of Interest and Nomination Form to contest the 2019 Presidential election on the platform of the APC from a political group known as Nigerian Consolidation Ambassadors Network, NCAN, at the Presidential Villa Abuja.President Buhari who expressed pleasure for being honoured by the group made up of youths from different parts of the country said that the vision to rescue the country started in 2002, adding that the country reached a hopeless state in 2006, hence he decided to contest for the Presidential position in 2007.He said he was moved by the state of hopeless in the country where selfish interest of elected leaders superceded national interest, stressing that the 2007 election in the country was a disgrace.He said, Our political journey started as far back as 2002, when the country was still recovering from the Military rule.Although the country was united to protect its democracy, majority of Nigerians in the government did focus on addressing the challenges of the average Nigerian man and woman.I recall some of you in this hall visiting me in Kaduna, to demand that l come out of my second retirement to participate in politics. At that time, resources were being looted, the future of our children and their children was bleak. I was a bit reluctant, to be honest.So, naturally in 2002, l was reluctant to come out of my second retirement to participate in the election.However, the arguments being put forward then was very compelling. So, we worked hard and formed a credible opposition. Nigerians voted and by the time the results came out, we had lost by 12 million votes. We fought in the courts for over two years, finally, the Supreme Court ruling did not support us.In 2006; many, including some of you met again in Kaduna. This time, it was clear for all to see. The country was getting worse. We came out again. When the 2007 results came out, we were told that we lost by 18 million votes. This election was nothing but a disgrace . It was called a charade. Again, we decided to do the right thing, we went to court.In the 2011 election, things got a bit better. We only lost by 10 million votes. However, many Nigerians had lost hope. By 2014; Nigeria, regarded as the largest economy in Africa by the GDP could not protect itself nor feed itself. It got to a state where government was borrowing to pay salaries, despite the record breaking oil revenue.Whether it was by design or through divine intervention, the Permanent Voter Card, PVC, was deployed to conduct that election. The PVC became the savior of Nigerians. Finally the peoples voices could be heard through the ballot box and the journey that started in 2002, became a reality.SecurityWe are decisively addressing the security challenges in the north east.On infrastructure development, we are completing work on the railways and building new ones, we are reviving power projects. We developing affordable housing projects across the country.Our fight against corruption is also yielding results. Corruption has been fighting back both from within and outside but we held our ground.We now have a party of strong and patriotic individuals who are ready , willing and able to continue on this journey to building a strong, secure and corruption free Nigeria.He expressed happiness that the youths could appreciate the efforts of his administration, describing them as patriotic Nigerians comprising of three million members.He also said that his achievements over the past three years had not been easy.The corrupt, selfish have left APCToday, I am pleased to say the weakest amongst us those whose selfish expectations did not align with our patriotic zeal had exited our party.We are now a party of strong and patriotic individuals who are ready, willing and able to continue on this journey of building, secured, self- sufficient and corruption-free Nigeria.I am honoured today to receive this nomination form which your members from all over the country contributed to buy.It is a gesture from an association of patriotic Nigerians which I was made to believe comprises of over three million members which believed in our principle of bringing positive things to Nigeria.He listed his achievements in office to include completed rail project and new ones under construction, government support for farmers, including the rehabilitation of fertilizer plants, introduction of the Treasury Single Account, TSA, which he said has reduce stealing in public service as well as provision of jobs and cash for the most vulnerable NigeriansDeputy Chairman of NCAN, Chuckwuemeka Nwajiuba, in his opening remarks, said the group that purchased the Expression of Interest Form for President was made up of three million Nigerians, some he said contributed as little as N68 to purchase the form after a triple A assessment of the performance of the President.Nwajiuba said NCAN was a network of young Nigerians in various fields of endeavor who following the assumption of office of the Buharis administration, got together to make a conscious effort to keep tab of the policies, programs and projects of this administration, with a view to making an informed contribution towards the growth of a virile and stable country, that we all can be proud of.He said that the group consists of mainly young persons in different and varying professions and occupation and that they have seen the dogged seriousness and focus with which despite all the challenges, the administration has delivered and continues to deliver on its promises, and other matters arising in the course of governance.He said, From the massive reestablishment of security of life and property by reclaiming the territorial integrity of our country even in the face of threat from within, to the redirection and strengthening of our economy, by increased productive capacity in agriculture and financial prudence even in the face of an almost negaive balance sheet in 2015, and massive infrastructural development, whilst growing our reserves.He has also reined in systemic corruption by firmly enforcing even erstwhile policies, which no one had the courage or the strength of character to enforce, be it the TSA, the IPPSA, the EGP, the operating freedom of law enforcement, in dutiful compliance with the laws of our land. The list is endless.Nigerians for the first time in many years could see a leader who painstakingly took decisions solely on the bases of national interest, above his or anyone elses. A leader who belongs to all and behooving to our country and to God only, who in HIS infinite mercy brought our president back from the brink of death and restored him to strength and vigor.These Ambassadors whose network seeks to consolidate these gains and engrain this focus, then decided to contribute their intellect, and little earnings towards ensuring that our president is encouraged to continue this service, being as is now apparent the real beneficiaries of all the toil and tenacity of purpose that now radiates from this leader, in spite of the hue and cry from a vociferous few whose strangle hold on our commonwealth has become somewhat dislodged.It is on account of the resolve of these ambassadors that they proceeded to obtain the nomination form for the president from the All Progressives Congress, to encourage Mr. President to seek to be re-elected for another term to help consolidate the work he is doing.Please let us re-dedicate ourselves to the service of this beautiful nation of ours and bring all our heart, intellect and character to impact its governance and people.
Mr Olukoya Ogungbeje, lawyer to the alleged billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, aka, Evans has been arrested by the Nigerian Police on Wednesday morning.According to reports, the officer who was reportedly from the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, accosted the lawyer as he parked his car at the Federal High Court in Ikoyi.
Details of the meeting between the National Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Uche Secondus, governors of the party and presidentia...

Details of the meeting between the National Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Uche Secondus, governors of the party and presidential aspirants, which held Tuesday night have emerged.





The meeting took place at the residence of the Governor of Ekiti State who doubles as Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, Ayodele Fayose in Abuja.





In attendance were former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar; President of the Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki; Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, and a former President of the Senate, Senator David Mark.





Also at the meeting were: a former Governor of Plateau State, Senator Jona Jang; a former Governor of Kaduna State, Senator Ahmed Makarfi; a former Governor of Kano State, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso and Dr Datti Baba-Ahmed.





Others were former Governor of Jigawa State, Alhaji Sule Lamido; a former Governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa, and a former Minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations, Alhaji Tanimu Turaki (SAN).





Speaking, Fayose, who presided over the meeting, was said to have told the aspirants to remain united ahead of the primary scheduled for October 5 and 6.





He appealed that aspirants should accept the outcome of the primary in good faith and support whoever eventually emerges.





He noted that it would have been better if the aspirants could produce a consensus presidential candidate, Fayose said the governors would respect their decision if they all wanted primary.





In his remarks, Secondus, assured the governors and the aspirants that the members of the National Working Committee of the party had no favourite contender.





Commenting after the meeting, Saraki told reporters that: We just concluded a successful meeting of PDP presidential aspirants with the party leadership and state governors.





I am proud of the level of collaboration, commitment and camaraderie amongst all those in attendance.





There was a general determination and commitment to ensure that the party holds successful, credible and transparent presidential primaries that Nigeria will be proud of.




A by the failure of the Edo State Government to meet its demands, the state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, has said tha...

A by the failure of the Edo State Government to meet its demands, the state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, has said that it will commence an indefinite strike on Friday.NUT in a communique issued in Benin by Pius Okhueleigbe and Moni Itua, said: The State Wing Executive, SWEC, of the NUT, notes with dissatisfaction, the non- resolution by Edo State government of any of the issues that gave rise to the 21-day ultimatum.
A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos Monday, rejected an application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, for the revocation of the bail granted a former Abia State Governor, Dr. Orji Kalu.Trial judge in the matter is Justice Mohammed Idris.EFCCs counsel, Mr Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, had prayed the court to revoke the bail granted to the former governor while responding to a request by Kalus lawyer, Chief Gordy Uche, SAN, for an adjournment of the alleged fraud case against his client due to his absence.Explaining the reason behind the unavailability of Kalu in court, Monday, Chief Uche told the court that he (Kalu) had travelled out of the country for a surgical operation in Germany.He said: My lord, at the last hearing of this matter on July 31, 2018, we did inform the court that the first defendant (Dr. Kalu) had an appointment for a surgical operation which was scheduled for the 2nd of August, 2018, in Germany.Incidentally, the first defendant was unable to get a flight out to meet up with the appointment. The Consultant Surgeon, Dr. Mario, thereafter, went for his summer vacation. However, from the communications we have, the only available date for the surgery is today (Monday). We have already made out a letter attached to which are the correspondences fixing the appointment since last week Friday.It is very unfortunate that we found ourselves in this circumstance and we shall be applying for an adjournment for the first time in this case. This is the first time the first defendant will be absent in court. We plead for a short adjournment to enable him take this surgery, recover and stand his trial.Other defence lawyers, Chief Solo Akuma, SAN and Mr. K. C. Nwofor, SAN, were not opposed to the request for adjournment.However, in his response, EFCCs counsel argued that the time given to Dr. Kalu by the court to travel for medical treatment had elapsed and he cannot by himself extended it.In a short ruling, the court expressed its displeasure over the absence of the former governor, but however, declined the request to revoke his bail and adjourned further hearing in the matter till September 20.
Razak Jaiyeola, president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), says the achievements of Akinwunmi Ambode, governor...

Razak Jaiyeola, president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), says the achievements of Akinwunmi Ambode, governor of Lagos state, are visible.





members of their governing councils on a courtesy visit to the governor on Tuesday. Jaiyeola said this when he and Rufai Mohammed, president of the Institute of Directors (IoD), ledmembers of their governing councils on a courtesy visit to the governor on Tuesday.





He said since Ambode assumed office in 2015, he has embarked on developmental projects.





Jaiyeola congratulated the governor for picking the nomination form to re-contest the governorship election in 2019, saying the institute was proud of his outstanding performance in office, and would support him.





We appreciate the good works of the governor; you are doing excellently well. You are not only a touch bearer of our institute, but also a beaming light of our profession, he said.





We appreciate your good works and I note that they have been very very outstanding and so on behalf of the governing council, I want to appreciate the governor.

Ambode and members of the institute





I want also to congratulate you on picking the nomination form to contest for the governor of Lagos state. I want to assure you that as we have always done because you are a performer and it is glaring to even a blind person of feeling the impact of your administration. we would support you as we have always done.





Mohammed said the governor had changed the state in the areas of good governance and development of infrastructure.





Your Excellency, the Institute of Directors of Nigeria commends your administration for the great achievements you have made so far in the State in many facets and most especially in the areas of good governance and the development of human capital and infrastructure, he said.





Under your able leadership, Lagos State has been able to distinguish itself in this country in the areas of security of lives and property of the citizens, improved ease of doing business, attraction of direct investment, self-sustenance and good ethical conduct in the implementation of government works and services.




Zina Saro-Wiwa says she was unable to mourn her father, Ken Saro-Wiwa, a playwright and Ogoni activist, until 10 years after his execution...

Zina Saro-Wiwa says she was unable to mourn her father, Ken Saro-Wiwa, a playwright and Ogoni activist, until 10 years after his execution.





The New York-based artist disclosed this in an interview with Frieze, a UK magazine.





Saro-Wiwa was hanged in 1995 for his alleged involvement in the murder of four Ogoni chiefs under the regime of Sani Abachi, late military dictator.





According to Zina, her fathers death came as a rude shock, forcing her to cut off all ties with anything that reminded her of him.





The former journalist said her decision to produce a documentary about her fathers legacy sent her on a journey of recovery, which helped her to come to terms with his death.





I didnt move into art consciously. It proved to be the only strategy that allowed me to deal with what had happened to me and my family and Nigeria, she told the magazine.





For 10 years after my fathers execution, I hadnt really mourned him and chose to cut myself off from anything that surrounded his legacy, as there seemed to be no real space for me within it. He became an international symbol, rather than my father.





When I was ready to deal with it I thought that making a documentary about him would be the way for me to reclaim some of his memory and to forge a connection with Nigeria.





But every time I went to a pitching meeting at a production company I would break down sobbing. I eventually made a video that dealt directly with my inability to mourn my fathers death: Sarogua Morning (2011).





It was a video performance where I shaved my head and forced myself to cry and mourn in front of the camera. That was the film I needed to make. Not a documentary. This work gave me agency, resilience. It made me research mourning cultures around the world and in Ogoniland.





It made me think about the relationship between performance and catharsis; it commented on the gap between the public and private sphere when it came to mourning his death. It was also painful and very hard work.




As of the end of August this year, Naver owns around W1.4 trillion in cash and assets, and its investment to Line amounts to half of that. Line also secured W1.5 trillion including capital from private investors to be spent on bolstering financial technology services like Line Pay.

Naver is investing W751.7 billion in its Line mobile messenger business in Japan later this month (US$1=W1,128). It will be the biggest investment ever for the portal giant since it was established in 1999.

Big Korean companies are taking their business abroad, be it to escape red tape at home or because the infrastructure there is more forward-looking.

A Naver staffer said, "After pioneering the financial technology market in Japan, we plan to take the business to Indonesia, Taiwan and Thailand."

Line has been a Japanese operation from the start, but it is striking that Naver is prepared to spend so much money abroad and so little at home.

Early this month, Kakao opened a subsidiary specializing in blockchain technology called Ground X in Japan and hired some 100 staff over a couple of months. The subsidiary will serve as Kakao's overseas base for the burgeoning business.

Hyundai, meanwhile, is investing in various ride apps overseas. In January, it invested in taxi app service Grab in Southeast Asia and in July it put money into Australia's Car Next Door car-sharing app. Last month, it branched out into Indian car-sharing company Revv and in November it plans to invest in the U.S.' Migo. It has not put a penny into similar services in Korea, which have been stifled by powerful and belligerent taxi lobbies.

Hyundai did invest W5 billion in a domestic carpooling company called Luxi in August of 2017 but sold off its stake in February this year due to vehement protest from taxi companies amid a maze of red tape surrounding carpooling.

"In Korea, there are strict regulations allowing carpooling only in the rush hour, which makes it technically impossible to expand the business," a Hyundai executive said.

Korean companies worry that they might lose crucial business opportunities if they wait until the bureaucratic mills at home grind into gear. For instance, a bill easing regulations to allow private businesses to run banks, which has been touted as President Moon Jae-in's top priority in promoting innovative growth, is collecting dust in the National Assembly as lawmakers bicker.

Japan, by contrast, eased regulations back in 2005 allowing private businesses to own banks, resulting in the emergence of eight online-only banks with total assets of around W200 trillion. And China is also spearheading innovation in the financial industry with Internet giants like Alibaba and Tencent.

That means Korean companies have no choice but to take their money overseas if they want to benefit from emerging industries, even in areas like biotechnology which the government designated as a future growth engine.

Biotechnology company Macrogen plans to start offering testing services overseas at the end of this year for cancer, diabetes and other illnesses. In Korea, only hospitals are allowed to offer such services.

Blockchain and cryptocurrency companies are also treated with suspicion in Korea. After the Bitcoin frenzy, they will be no longer considered venture companies eligible for government support with incentives and other benefits. That is why Naver established a cryptocurrency exchange in Singapore called BITBOX in July and invested W5 billion in French blockchain company Ledger early this year.
The Buhari Campaign Organisation, BCO, Wednesday, justified the acceptance by President Muhammadu Buhari of the N45 million expression of interest and nomination forms purchased for him, saying the president violated no law in accepting the offer.BCO, which took a swipe at those criticising President Muhammadu Buhari for accepting the forms, particularly asked Nigerians to ignore the outburst by the APC aspirants, describing it as the ranting of anti-democratic elements in the countrys political space.Recall the presidential aspirants of the All Progressives Congress, APC, under the aegis of Coalition of 2019 APC Aspirants had on Tuesday asked President Buhari to reject the nomination forms purchased for him by the Nigeria Consolidation Ambassador Network, NCAN.They argued the purchase of the forms at the cost of N45 million on the ground that it fundamentally contravenes Section 91(9) of the Electoral Act.But reacting in a statement by its Director of Communications and Strategy, Mallam Gidado Ibrahim, BCO said it was appalled by the statement issued on behalf of APC presidential aspirants on Wednesday by Dr SKC Ogbonnia, Chief Charles Udeogaranya and Alhaji Mumakai Unagha criticising the presidents for accepting the forms bought for him.Ibrahim stated: The Buhari Campaign Organisation (BCO) wishes to ask Nigerians and indeed, the teaming supporters of President Buhari not to be distracted by the purported group of the APC presidential aspirants.The President Buhari we know and who Nigerians know further and better is highly law-abiding and always wishes to act according to the provisions of the extant laws of the country. He is not known to be going zigzag or undercutting corners in any matter. Rather, he is highly straightforward and upright in his private or official conduct.Section 91 (9) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) states that an individual or other entity shall not donate more than N1m to any candidate, whereas, President Buhari is yet a candidate but an aspirant. He was however offered presidential nomination form and not any cash worth over N1 million.The BCO also chided advocates of restructuring, just as it urged Nigerians not to be gullible to politicians who had the opportunity to improve the fortunes of the country but decided to squander it instead.He said further, The Buhari Campaign Organisation, BCO, has noted equally the much touted restructuring mantra by those that had all the opportunities to put the country in good economic, socio-political pedestal but were rather concerned with what amass for themselves and what their 5th generation (yet unborn) would not be able to consume.President Buhari is already restructuring by halting unnecessary stealing of the nations patrimony, preparing to re-issue oil blocs to indigent and capable developers, especially to people from the region suffering from environmental degredation. The President is irked by the wide gap between the rich and the poor and he is determined to narrow that gap at all cost.The BCO further assured Nigerians that Buhari will ensure the right thing is done irrespective of its consequences to his aspirations, adding that by that, the president has vowed to conduct the 2019 general election according to the rule of law.Ibrahim noted: It is noteworthy that President Muhammadu Buhari is going into the 2019 elections as an incumbent enjoying the support of a lot more governors, Senators, House of Representative members, House of Assembly members and Local Government Chairmen than he ever had.Equally the odds are no more stacked up against the President as he will see to a truly free and fair elections as witnessed in elections conducted in the last three years. We expect the soaring popularity of the President to be reflected in the 2019 elections.Turning to the opposition PDP, BCO said where the major opposition party failed, President Buhari has been tested and trusted in the last three years as demonstrated by the wide acceptance Nigeria enjoys in the international communities, which can be seen by the recent visit of two world leader, Prime Ministers Theresa May of Britain and Angela Merkel of Germany.Ibrahim continued: In the last three years, what has been more exposed and Nigerians have seen is the extent of damage inflicted on the country in the last sixteen years by PDP, damage the President and his team are working tirelessly to fix. No matter the impatience some Nigerians have shown with Buhari, they just dont want to GO BACK to PDP.That is why PDP has lost all the critical electoral contests since 2015 (Kogi, Edo, Anambra, Ekiti and Ondo States). In the final analysis, despite all the noise from our noisy neighbours, they will be shocked by the landslide victory for the president in 2019.
Jide Sanwoolu, a governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos state, says people are yet to know the kind of pers...

Jide Sanwoolu, a governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos state, says people are yet to know the kind of person that he is.





Sanwoolu said this while addressing reporters at the headquarters of the APC in Abuja when he submitted his nomination form on Wednesday.





Sanwolou, who is challenging Akinwunmi Ambode, governor of the state, is believed to have the backing of Bola Tinubu, estranged godfather of the governor.





But the APC aspirant denied the reports, though he acknowledged the role of Tinubu in the ruling party.





I have just submitted my expression of interest and nomination forms to contest 2019 election under our great party. Just to formally let you know that, the exercise has been concluded and I will be taken formal declaration speech when I get back to Lagos state, he said.





Like I said, I am 53 years myself. There is no doubt that things would be said here and there. A man that is standing in front of you, fully grown-man with several years of experience People have been asking questions, people are yet to know the kind of person I am.





Like I said, it is about the Lagos of our dream, it is about the Lagos we want to take to the next level.





I think it has nothing to do with our leader and there is no denial that hes our national leader. And he takes back position not only in the state but in the national and you know he has interest in the well-being and improvement in Nigerias dream.





So, by extension, Lagos is a dream that he is pertinent about and we will continue to refer to him as our leader but most important thing is I am in front of you, this is who I am, this is what I have come to express to you and Lagos, certainly will be a better place to live for all us 





He added that with his vast experience in private and public sector he has what it take to take Lagos to the next level.





But why especially is to give my number of years experience, the pedigree from the private sector and from the public sector and I think it is appropriate for me now when people of Not-too-young are with us and put that aspiration in place, he said.





I am in the wide range of experience as I have a dream to obviously contribute a lot more as a Lagosian and son of the soil, I will just be able to let our people get to where they know that governance is all about people, it is about what we expect, it is about what will go back to them, improve the cause of life, course of security and there are lot of other things we are going to be rolling out.





He said he is part of the policies and initiatives which has transformed the face of the state.





A whole lot of us have to redefine the Lagos project and it is not before where I will begin to rate you debate many first that people think we are done with some other individuals, there are real people behind them that have offered those initiatives and I discovered those initiatives, that have brought out those policies, that have brought out those implementations of various plans, he said.





When asked to confirm the report that he has been endorsed by 57 local government chairmen in the state, Sanwo-Olu said endorsement is a work in progress.





He also said he is in the same family with the Mandate Movement, the pro-Tinubu group coordinating his campaign.





In terms of endorsement, it is a work in progress. Soon, whoever emerges is the best, it will be very preemptive of me to stand before you and say I have been supported by 57 people, that means I am going to sleep. Mandate Group is my people, we are in the same family and we will continue to work together, he said.




Billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, also known as Evans, on Wednesday denied ever making any confessional statement to the po...

Billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, also known as Evans, on Wednesday denied ever making any confessional statement to the police that he was a kidnapper.





Evans spoke through his counsel, Chino Obiagu during the resumed hearing of his trial at the Ikeja High Court, Lagos.





He made the remark, following an attempt by the State Prosecuting Counsel, Adebayo Haroun, to tender documents containing the statement of the 1st defendant (Evans) as exhibits before the trial judge, Justice Hakeem Oshodi.









The five suspected members of his gang namely: Uchenna Amadi, Okwuchukwu Nwachukwu, Ogechi Uchechukwu (the only female among the gang) and two Ex-Army officers, Chilaka Ifeanyi and Victor Chukwunonso Aduba, who are also standing trial with him, denied ever making any statement to the police.





Obiagu contended that the statement sort to be tendered by the prosecutor was written by a policeman, Inspector Idowu Haruna attached to Inspector General of Police Intelligence Response Team.





The counsel also objected to the tendering of a video clip, during trial, showing Evans confessing to the crime at the police station on the grounds that it does not corroborate with Section 84 of the Evidence Act.









Obiagu said, I object to the admissibility of this document because the 1st defendant didnt make them voluntarily and I am also yet to be served with a copy of the video or the Certified true copy.





While been led in evidence, Inspector Haruna told the court that he wrote the statement on behalf of Evans, after he was arrested on June 2017, because the suspect claimed he didnt complete Secondary school and could not write in English language.





Haruna, while being led in evidence, said that Evans and his gang members all volunteered their statements under caution after being charged with the offence of Criminal conspiracy and kidnapping.





He said, I got to know the defendants when they were arrested for the kidnap of one Mr Donatus Dunu- the Managing Director of Maydon pharmaceutical company, who escaped from their custody at Igando area, Lagos. When the matter was referred to my department at the IGP Response Team, we immediately visited the scene where the abductors had held him and discovered it was a well fenced and furnished bungalow with two flats; just like any normal building.





Having noticed that their victim had escaped, they gang abandoned the house before we got there. We conducted a search and discovered several Ak47 rifles (military version) and pistols which they left behind. it was through our investigation and items recovered from the building that we arrested Uchenna Amadi, who had ran to seek refuge at Port-Harcourt. Amadi, during interrogation, confessed that Evans was the mastermind and leader of their gang. This information led to the arrest of Evans at Igando area when he was about to run out of the country to Ghana. During Evans testimony, he mentioned other members of his gang like Ifeanyi and Aduba, who are former Army officers; Nwachukwu aka Congo-who is the agent and informant that sold information of victims to kidnap; Uchenna Amadi and his wife Ogechi. My team also made a video recording of Evans confession and narration of all his kidnapping activities before and after he came to Lagos in 2013.





After volunteering their statements, it was read to them and they signed. I, however, signed as the recorder. Some of the suspects recorded their statements by themselves but I personally recorded the statement of Evans and Victor Aduba. Their statement was further read to them again by a superior police officer, CSP Philip (former DSP) and they all agreed to have volunteered without duress. Evans, however, told us that he never imagined he could ever be caught because he has no other means of livelihood apart from crime-kidnapping and armed robbery.




The Federal Government, yesterday, described as immoral and daylight robbery, the actions of some countries who are custodians of stolen funds from Nigeria, stating that most of these countries were putting in place hurdles to frustrate the recovery of the funds.This was even as the Federal Government also stated that it was following the rule of law in the sanction of MTN over alleged illegal importation of funds from Nigeria.Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Geoffrey Onyema, stated this in Abuja at International Conference on combating illicit financial flows, IFF, and enhancing asset recovery for sustainable development organised by Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, PACAC.Onyema also lamented the hurdles faced mainly by developing countries in the repatriation of stolen funds from some western countries.Specifically, he stated that in its attempt to recover stolen funds from Switzerland, the country was confronted with harrowing experiences, which saw some percentages of the looted fund paid to companies and individuals in Switzerland.He said: We got some money back from Switzerland, but my God, when you look at the details, I was shocked and extremely angry at the process of recovery. If you should see the percentage of the money that eventually came back to us; that was paid out to all kinds of institutions in Switzerland  to lawyers, to this, to that, percentages of huge sums of money. I said this is daylight robbery that these countries are perpetrating and of course playing on the fact that we are not United States.This is something that we would keep harping on and mentioning wherever we have the opportunity that these countries would have to do a lot more, because at the end of the day, if not, they are condoning huge theft and accessories after the fact of crime.They say Nigeria is fantastically corrupt, but look at what those other countries are doing in encouraging corruption, keeping those assets for their own benefits.
The Fort Myers Police Department has released the identity of the shooting victim discovered Monday morning at approximately 3:16 a.m. at 2210 Cuba St. The deceased has been identified as Aaron Lumar Johnson, 27, of Cape Coral Next of kin have been notified of Johnsons death.

The FMPD is continuing to investigate the incident and has asked anyone who may have information regarding this crime to come forward and contact Det. Maalisa Langton at 239-321-8015 or email mlangton@fmpolice.com. Citizens can also contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-780-TIPS (8477). All callers can remain anonymous and be eligible for a reward of up to $3,000. Tips may also be made online at www.southwestfloridacrimestoppers.com or by submitting a tip on the P3Tips mobile app.
Ground was broken on Gulf Star Marina at 708 Fishermans Wharf, a boat storage facility on Fort Myers Beach welcomed by area boaters.

Todd Carroll, owner of Carroll Properties, said the event was to celebrate something that has been a long time coming.

I think we broke a record in Lee County for having an application in more than a decade ago. The last economic cycle brought us down and one thing after another happened, Carroll said.

The Board of County Commissioners finally approved the project last year.

The facility promises to be what proponents say will be Southwest Floridas first smart marina and the first to feature automated storage and retrieval (ASAR) technology that replaces the forklift.

The $10 million, 29,000-square-foot facility will be built with concrete walls to offer superior hurricane and fire protection, and its futuristic, state-of-the-art technology system offers rack-to-water vessel delivery in just seven minutes.

The A.S.A.R. system is similar to technology used by Mercedes, Ikea and other corporations to optimize storage space and reduce the risk for property damage, offiicals said.

Robert Brown, founder and president of GCM Contracting, said the technology will involve a stacker crane, which is used in automated warehouses.

It looks more like a four-poster bed. It moves up and down at the same time. Its much faster than the traditional forklift, Brown said. We can also stack boats two or three deep. We would have to leave some open spaces but we would have higher density.

Once completed in June 2019, Gulf Star Marina will provide secure, dry storage for around 100 boats up to 40 feet in length. The facility will hold around 150, with new docks, a parking lot and, of course, Doc Fords Rum Bar & Grille.

The marina will offer concierge services that include indoor valet parking, boat fueling, open spaces, a ship store, cleaning and maybe even a bait shop in the future.

Carroll announced they would officially begin to accept reservations for the barn, which he said has generated interest from dozens of people. He also said the facility would likely employ around a dozen people.

The marina storage industry is a multi-billion-dollar business so to have this has a huge impact on the business community, said Amy McQuagge, senior marketing manager for the Lee County Economic Development Office. There are 87 million Americans who participate in recreational boating. There is clearly a need for this here in Lee County.

Monthly rental prices for the boats will start at $20 per foot for smaller boats and go up to $26 per foot on those 40 feet and larger, according to the marina brochure.

Area boaters came to witness the event and saw themselves fascinated by the possibilities.

Annie Swartz had a boat where the Diversified Building now stands before bringing in to the old barn that was torn down for this project.

I cant wait to see what it looks like. I would consider putting my boat here because I love it and the people who work here, Swartz said.
For nearly a year, Lee County has been waiting for a qualified recipient for its $2 million pilot program to help revitalize North Fort Myers.

On Tuesday, the Lee Board of County Commissioners approved a $75,000 grant application for a new facade project for Merchants Crossing shopping center as part of the North Fort Myers Revitalization Incentives program.

The owner of the center, RD Management LLC, plans a $300,000 capital investment in the facade at center, 15201 N. Cleveland Ave., to accent new entry elements, create visual interest in the tenant spaces and in the plaza itself by incorporating the Key West palette, adjust parapets to create a more varied roofline and better proportions for the building.

The work on the facade is expected to begin before the end of 2018.

Lee County Commissioner Brian Hamman said he was thrilled RD Management came forward to become the first recipient of the grant. He said many other land owners have tried to learn more about the grant before decided whether to step in, which is why it took so long for the first one to be awarded.

Theyre looking at their properties and seeing if they could apply for renovations. Merchants Crossing approached us to go through that process, Hamman said. I expected it to take this long because people had to understand the grant process, what would be available and what would be required if they were to apply.

RD Management has already done some significant work on the plaza. Shortly after Hurricane Irma hit, they cut down nearly all the trees that lined the streets and parking lot to give the center more curb appeal.

Planet Fitness moved in at the end of April, with a long-awaited new Rosss department store scheduled to come soon.

When I started thinking about revitalizing the area, Merchants Crossing was one of the two big plazas that I knew we had to get on board (Hancock Bridge Square was the other), Hamman said. Im thrilled the owners saw the vision we had and are taking positive steps forward.

The Lee Board of County Commissioners approved the North Fort Myers Revitalization Incentives program in January. This is the first submitted grant application.

The program is intended to encourage private investment in sites and buildings to encourage business retention, attraction, and expansion. The work must be completed and verified by the county before the funds are awarded.

RD Management could not be reached for comment.
It will be a very busy next few weeks at the VFW Post 10127 at 996 Pondella Road as two events that are open to the public will run the gamut of emotions.

On Friday, Sept. 21 at 6 p.m., the VFW will hold a ceremony to remember those Missing in Action or were held as prisoners of war.

The event will feature the North Fort Myers High School JROTC as they perform a ritual of setting the dinner table in memory of fallen, missing or imprisoned military servicemembers.

The Missing Man Table is symbolic and serves as the focal point of ceremonial remembrance. The table, set for one, is small, symbolizing the frailty of one isolated prisoner. The table is round to represent everlasting concern on the part of the survivors for their missing loved ones. The seat is empty, as the missing and fallen arent present.

The tablecloth is white, symbolic of the purity of their intentions, and a single red rose in the vase, signifies the blood that many have shed in sacrifice to ensure our freedom.

The red ribbon represents the love of our country, a slice of lemon on the bread plate: represents the bitter fate of the missing, and the salt on the bread plate represents the tears shed by families.

The inverted glass: represents the fact that the missing and fallen cannot partake. The Bible represents the spiritual strength and faith to sustain those lost from our country. The lit candle represents the light of hope which lives in our hearts to illuminate their way home.

Everything on the table represents something. The cadets will be in full uniform and will help us prepare the ceremony. The commander and president of the auxiliary do the ceremony as well as the chaplains, said Carol Ainsco, Senior Vice President of the Post.

The VFW has held the event, which is observed nationally on the third Friday of September, since 2010. Because of Hurricane Irma, the event was cancelled last year.

On Saturday, Oct. 13, Post 10127 will celebrate 50 years in an all-day event with the help of the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association.

Well have hot dogs and special things inside. Were still in the planning stages but we have some of it together, Ainsco said.

VFW Post 10127 has about 400 members and 243 auxiliary, which unlike other service organizations has both men and women as both mens and womens auxiliary merged at the beginning of the year.

For more information on these events call. (239) 995-0230
Top executives of conglomerates are in a dilemma since presidential chief of staff Im Jong-seok asked them on Monday to accompany President Moon Jae-in to Pyongyang for his third summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Sept. 18-20.

They worry that they could be put on a U.S. watchlist if they go along or fall foul of the Moon administration if they do not.

Many apparently do not want to be included in Moon's entourage. "Companies that do business with the U.S. are naturally nervous because of the North Korea sanctions," a top executive of a conglomerate said. "Once you're on Washington's watchlist, you'll suffer a lot of inconvenience even if you haven't actually invested in or done business with the North."


The Cabinet on Tuesday approved a motion for parliamentary ratification of the joint declaration, which was signed at the inter-Korean summit in the border truce village of Panmunjomon April 27.

The government estimates the cost of implementing the declaration at W471.2 billion for 2019, up from W172.6 billion for this year (US$1=W1,128). The money is to be spent to reconnect railways between the two Koreas and implement a joint forestry project.

Moon urged the opposition to cooperate in ratifying the declaration, saying, "I ask the parliament to stop pursuing partisan interests for the greater cause for the entire nation." But the opposition accused the government of trying to sneak the budget past lawmakers by only tabling the cost for one year.

Normally, the government lays out the potential effect of an agreement on tax revenues over the next five to 10 years when it submits a motion for parliamentary ratification of it.
Wuxi rolls out the red carpet for global talents

From:ChinaDaily | 2018-09-11 15:10

Wuxi is set to step up recruitment of premium talents, as it looks to bolster innovation in high-tech sectors and ensure sustained high-quality economic development.

The city will implement an upgraded recruitment initiative, the Taihu Lake Talent Plan 2.0, that will provide greater support for wooing talents with a global vision, according to a government press conference held on Thursday.

Foreign entrepreneurs who bring in expertise, funds and projects to the city and overseas students that choose to seek local employment will be provided with more incentives.

Improved benefits will be granted to high-caliber foreign professionals who carry on academic exchanges with Wuxi-based businesses, according to Zhou Ying, director of the Wuxi municipal department of organization.

To underpin industrial growth, a key driver for local economic development, the city will prioritize recruiting urgently needed professionals in such sectors as information technology, intelligent manufacturing and modern services while beefing up its support for university graduates seeking to start new businesses.

Meanwhile, Wuxi is also considering bringing in a number of experts in such fields as education and medical care to meet increasing demands for improvement in people's livelihoods, according to Zhou. It plans to recruit top educators, principals, teachers, clinicians, and general practitioners and establish five to ten high-end international cooperative bases for medical talent cultivation.

The city also aims to create a number of innovation and entrepreneurship platforms, and further optimize the business climate and services for talents from home and abroad who study, live and work in the city.

Wuxi has seen outstanding results in expanding its talent pool in recent years, which has helped fuel its vibrant economic growth.

Wuxi's GDP exceeded 1 trillion yuan ($159 billion) for the first time in 2017, rising to 1.05 trillion yuan. The city's GDP growth rate was 7.4 percent, outpacing the average 7.2 percent of Jiangsu province.

The city is currently home to 1.65 million talents in myriad fields, including 117,000 high-profile professionals and 310,000 highly skilled workers.

The Taihu Lake Talent Plan, a recruitment initiative launched by the Wuxi government in 2016, has been updated twice thus far.
Chinese storytelling master Shan Tianfang dies at 84

From:ChinaDaily | 2018-09-12 07:50

One of China's top pingshumasters, Shan Tianfang, died at the age of 84 in Beijing on Tuesday.

The traditional Chinese art form, pingshu, or storytelling, was born in the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and has been popular with audiences mostly in northern China.

With a simple backdropusually a pair of screen doors, a table, a folding fan and a block of wood (known as xingmu)Shan won a large base of enthusiastic fans for his solid techniques and improvisation describing the scenes in the book in vivid and captivating ways, like movie clips.

Shan told stories with witty, humorous comments and expressive body language that appealed to audiences of all ages.

Most of the pingshu stories are adapted from ancient Chinese literature. One of Shan's most famous pingshu works is The Romance of Sui and Tang Dynasties, based on the historical novel of the same title by Chu Renhuo (1635-82), which tells stories of historical events leading to the fall of the Sui Dynasty (581-618) and the rise of Tang Dynasty (618-907).

Born as Shan Chuanzhong in Yingkou, Liaoning province, Shan was influenced by his family, most of whom were local folk artists, including his father Shan Yongkui, who played the sanxiana three-stringed plucked instrumentand his uncle, Shan Yonghuai, who was a pingshu performer.

Shan Tianfang launched his career as a pingshu performer in 1953 at age 19. He made his stage debut when he was 24 and soon rose to fame by performing classic pingshu works, including Romance of the Three Kingdoms, based on a 14th-century historical novel of the same title by Luo Guanzhong.

Traditional pingshu artists usually perform in teahouses or small theaters. Thanks to radio and television, the old art form has reached a wide audience. Since the 1980s, Shan had recorded many pingshu works at radio and TV stations across the country.

In 2007, he announced his retirement after performing the 80-episode contemporary pingshu work Lao Dian Feng Yun, which chronicles the history of the Chinese company Hengyuanxiang, an old Shanghai wool brand founded by Shanghai merchant Shen Laizhou in 1927.

In 2012, Shan Tianfang won the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 7th Peony Awards for China Quyia general term for traditional folk art forms, including ballad singing, storytelling and crosstalk.
Home  Just In  China is preparing to resume trade activities via Tatopani, claims Speaker Mahara

Kathmandu, September 12

Speaker of the House of Representative Krishna Bahadur Mahara has claimed the Chinese government is preparing to resume trade activities via Tatopani border point, which remains shut since the 2015 earthquake.

Mahara claims he has learned about preparations being made to resume the trade via Tatopani during his recent visit to Lhasa, the capital city of Chinas Tibet Autonomous Region.

After returning home from the trip today, Mahara said in front of journalists at the Tribhuvan International Airport that his visit was fruitful and full of achievements.

During the visit, Mahara had held a meeting with the chief of Tibet government among others to discuss bilateral issues.

Leading a team of lawmakers and parliamentary staff, Mahara had flied to Lhasa last Friday.
Nepal and India have cordial bilateral relations and they share common cultural elements, traditions, and religion. The two countries established diplomatic relations on June 17, 1947. In principles of peaceful coexistence, sovereign equality, and understanding of each others aspiration and sensitivities, Nepal and India not only have relations through treaties and agreements between the two countries, but also have people-to-people contact and free movements of people between the countries. At the political level, Nepal and India have good relations, with frequent high-level visits by the leaders of both the countries. Recently, for example, Prime Ministers exchanged visits within a short period of time. This illustrates the importance of India-Nepal relations at the political level.

Almost all Nepali Prime Ministers visited India after they assumed office. Reciprocally, an invitation from Nepals then Prime Minister, Sushil Koirala, led to an official visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Nepal in August 2014. This was a historic visit by a prime minister of India to Nepal, after 17 years, which reflected the commitment of the newly formed Indian government to enhance Indias relations with neighbouring countries. This indicates the importance of Nepals relations to India after the change of leadership in India in response to Chinas increasing development assistance and engagement in this region.

An analysis of more frequent Indian engagements in Nepali affairs, an example of which is the third visit of Indian Prime Minister Modi in a span of three years, indicates that its diplomatic course and policy are shifting towards Nepal. A review of ongoing engagements of Nepals friends in Nepals development reflects that China-Nepal-India trilateral relations are becoming more viable than before.

Currently, governments of Nepal and India are led by parties with different political ideologies. But, Nepal and China have communist governments. A basic assumption is that Nepal faces challenges in maintaining balanced relations with both the neighbours in this condition. Due to the presence of communist government, some scholars predict that Nepal will incline more towards China, which India would perceive as a security threat. But irrespective of the ideology of ruling parties here, China always supports Nepal government as well as its decisions.

Instead, Indias diplomacy is now slightly changed and has a political tone. But still, cultural factors and open borders definitely are strong influences. Therefore, it is likely that the relations among three countries will grow stronger than before in the upcoming days.

For Nepal, India has been a key development partner. India had been supporting Nepal not only in development projects, but also in political affairs during the insurgency and various mass movements. India has been providing economic assistance to Nepal in different sectors, such as infrastructure development, capacity development of human resources, and initiation of large and intermediate projects. Nepal does not have direct contact to seaports, so its trade depends mostly on the Indian market. India and Nepal have a bilateral treaty on trade and transit, and agreements of cooperation to control unauthorised trade.

Due to geographical structure and complication, there are not many options or routes for trade and transit between Nepal and China. Only the Rasuwagadhi-Kerung border point has been upgraded to the international standard after the 2015 earthquake, which damaged Tatopani transit point and border link roads.

Since the earthquake and the Indian border blockade in September 2015, Nepal has become closer to China as it has tried to find alternatives to the trade and transit activities with India, allowing China to step into the Nepali market that was, in past, Indias monopoly. Further, it is believed that Beijing is looking into the possibility of connecting Kathmandu to Lhasa in Tibet via railways at an estimated cost of $8 billion through the One Belt, One Road initiative. Chinas activities have been steadily expanding in Nepal after Kathmandus support for OBOR materialised. This happened despite Indias stiff resistance to OBOR. So, for both the neighbours, Nepal is an important friend for not only their economic interests, but also in multilateral and regional forums.

Chinas engagement in South Asia and Nepal contribute to more assertive diplomacy and friendship between Nepal and India. Meanwhile, Nepals government aims at a balanced foreign policy towards its neighbours. According to the Constitution of Nepal, foreign policy of Nepal is guided by abiding faith in the United Nations and the policy of nonalignment. On the other hand, Nepals ties with India are incomparable to any other relations given their historic background. Therefore, any major change in the trilateral relations is unlikely.

Karki is post-doctoral research fellow at Institute of Global Studies in Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Japan.

[email protected]
There is a Possibility that Michael B. Jordan Will Be the Next Superman Dimas Sanfiorenzo Dimas Sanfiorenzo is the Managing Editor for Okayplayer. He specializes

Is a black Superman on the way?

Henry Cavill, who has played Superman in Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Justice League, will not be reprising his role as the iconic superhero. Deadline reported the news on Wednesday, September 12th.

WATCH: Michael B. Jordan Confirms What We Already Knew, Chadwick Boseman is Sick of Your Wakanda Forever Salutes

The site is reporting that they are in the hunt for a new actor to play Superman. One of the actors executives have discussed is Michael B Jordan, who, amazingly enough, has already appeared in two superhero movies. (He played the Human Torch in the 2015 mess FANT4STIC; and he was Killmonger in Black Panther.)

READ: Five Life Lessons I Learned From Marvels Black Panther [Spoilers]

However, any news of a new Superman seems premature. According to Deadline, DC is focusing on a Supergirl movie. The script for that is being written by Oren Uziel.

Source: Deadline
Major Nepali and English broadsheet dailies published from Kathmandu on Wednesday have given the top priority to the release of three suspects of Nirmala Pant murder for last of evidence. Newspapers have analysed that the police action of arresting and releasing people one after another without critically studying the evidence suggests lack of seriousness in the investigation process.

Meanwhile, a parliamentary committee has endorsed amendments to the bill on right to privacy after the media fraternity protested some provisions of the bill. This issue has also been highlighted on the front page of major newspapers.

Some other political, sociocultural and economic issues have been featured on the front pages of the Kathmandu newspapers today.

Important

Key suspects of Pant murder released for lack of evidence

Police on Tuesday released Dilip Singh Bista, a mentally unstable man along with Babita Bam and Roshani Bam, the newspaper reports say. Earlier, Bista was supposed to be the mastermind behind rape and murder of Nirmala Pant whereas the Bam sisters accomplices.

Police during the investigation had carried out a DNA test of Bista, but the results did not match the victims postmortem DNA profile, according to media reports.

House panel corrects provision of privacy bill

Gorkhapatra and The Himalayan Times have claimed that State Affairs and Good Governance Committee in the Federal Parliament on Tuesday approved amendments to the controversial Right to Privacy Bill, enabling media to disseminate personal information of people holding public posts.

Meanwhile, the amendment makes it mandatory for public officials to make their citizenship certificates, academic certificates and property details public.

Ignored

Govt prepares to let Kathmandu National Medical College run hospital

After failing to get an affiliation to run a medical college for the lack of required facilities, the Kathmandu National Medical College in Ghattekulo of Kathmandu has launched an effort to get an approval to run a hospital. Though the institute still lacks minimum infrastructures required to run the hospital, key officials of the Ministry of Health including its Secretary Pushpa Chaudhary are planning to give the approval, according to a brief story in Naya Patrika.

Chief Minister for declaring red light zone

Gandaki Chief Minister Prithvi Subba Gurung has proposed declaring some places of touristic cities as red light areas to legalise prostitution as the making it illegal could not stop people from joining this, according to the anchor story in Nagarik.

Gurung has proposed distributing identity cards to workers involved in the business so that they can come under the jurisdiction of the law.

Meanwhile, Kantipur has also reported the statement in a snippet.

Ministers PA thrashed at Singhadarbar

Some cadres of the Nepal Communist Party have thrashed the personal secretary of Supplies Minister Matrika Yadav, Santosh Bista, at the office of the Minister in Singhadarbar, accusing the secretary of blocking them from meeting their leaders, reports Nepal Samacharpatra.

Meanwhile, police arrested five persons in connection with the case.

New Delhi unhappy with Nepals withdrawal from BIMSTEC military drill

The Kathmandu Post reports in a four column story that India has unofficially expressed its unhappiness over Nepal governments decision to withdraw from the first ever joint military exercise among member states of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation. Nepali officials, however, have claimed that the none of the Indian officials have communicated such message to Kathmandu.

Two injured in Tarakeshwar leopard attack

Republica reports in a three column story that two youth have sustained critical injuries when a leopard attacked them as they tried to save their dog from the wild animal in Tarakeshwor Municipality of Kathmandu in the wee hours on Tuesday.

The injured are Raju Tamang, 22, and his brother Nema Tamang, 18. They are undergoing treatment at the Shukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital.

Interesting

UAE proposes investment in Nepali hydropower

The government of United Arab Emirates has expressed its interest in investing in Nepali hydropower projects, Abhiyan reports in a brief story.

During a meeting with Nepals Energy Minister Barsha Man Pun, the UAE Ambassador Saeed Hamdan Al Naqei said his government was open about discussing the issue further as Nepal wants to produce 15,000 megawatt electricity in next 0 years, according to the report.
Home  Just In  Nepal is not a landlocked country anymore, says PM

Kathmandu, September 12

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli says Nepal is not a landlocked country anymore.

Speaking at a function that discussed Chinas Belt and Road Initiative in Kathmandu on Wednesday, the Prime Minister said Nepal would have an easy access to other countries of the world now as Nepal and China have agreed to let Nepal use all of the ports there to access seas.

He was of the view that it was a great opportunity for Nepal as it would be instrumental in the countrys economic development.

In another context, the Prime Minister reiterated that Nepal was holding discussions with both the neighboursIndia and Chinaabout extending their railway lines to Nepal.

Oli said cooperation with both the countries was a must to ensure Nepals smooth economic development.
Kathmandu, September 12

The Teej festival, also called Haritalika, is being observed by Nepali women, Hindus in particular, throughout the country on Wednesday.

Women fast and wish for a prosperous life of their spouses on this festival, which falls on the third day of the waxing moon in the lunar month of Bhadra. Women rejoice with various delicious dishes known as dar a day before Teej and fast on the next day as per the tradition.

Women on this day take ritual baths in the morning and offer worships in the afternoon and evening. They pay homage to Lord Shiva, light lamps and spend the night awake.

The festivity comes to an end on the fifth day of fortnight after worshiping the legendary Saptarshi (seven sages).

This unique festival of Nepali women is also a celebration of sisterhood as sisters gather at parents houses and indulge in jubilant dancing and singing.

The legend has it that Parvati, the daughter of Himalaya, was on her maiden fast, wishing for the health and the well being of her spouse, Lord Shiva. Since then, the same day has been recognised as the Haritalika Teej.

Married women put on bangles, pote (a necklace made of glass beads), jewellery and sindur (crimson powder), considered the symbols of good luck, and dress themselves up in red saris or other red outfits and adorn themselves with different kinds of ornaments.

Both married and unmarried women perform various pujas and observe fasting, praying for fulfillment of their wish for a happy and prosperous conjugal life.

The Pashupatinath Temple in the capital sees overwhelming number of women devotees this day.

RSS
Kathmandu, September 12

Nepals national flag carrier, Nepal Airlines Corporation, says it is sending a delegation to Japan to seek approval from the Tokyo government to operate direct flights between the two countries.

The Corporation has recently brought two wide body aircraft and wants to deploy them for international flights.

In the first phase, three destinations have been selected: Narita of Japan, Incheon of South Korea and Riyadh of Saudi Arabia. For the want of approval from preferred destinations, the aircraft are operating flights to some other cities now.

The team will inform Japans aviation regulatory body about the Corporations business plan and capacity, its preparations to conduct flights to Japan and overall situations of the aviation safety here, according to the Corporations joint spokesperson Shailesh Kansakar.

Meanwhile, a South Korean team is coming to Nepal soon to discuss operating direct flights, the spokesperson informs.
Home  Just In  Snow leopard census concludes in Shey-Phoksundo

Jajarkot, September 12

The counting of endangered snow leopard has been concluded in Shey-Phoksundo National Park in Dolpa.

The census was conducted with the financial support provided by the World Wildlife Fund. A team of 33 persons associated with the WWF, Shey-Phoksundo National Park and the Snow Leopard Protection Committee had started the census on April 26.

Parks assistant conservation officer Prakash Upreti said the census was carried out using the camera trapping and double counting methods.

The counting of the Himalayan blue sheep (nawar) was also done along with that of the snow leopard, it is stated.

The blue sheep is the snow leopards prey.

A technical team comprising Sheren Shrestha, Samundra Limbu and Chhiring Lama conducted the census by pacing cameras at places where the snow leopard and the blue sheep are found.

The team would prepare a report to launch in Kathmandu within the second week of January 2019, said Chhiring Lama, a member of the technical team.

According to the Parks report, there are 130 snow leopards in Shey-Phoksundo National Park.

The Park is home to 32 species of mammals, more than 200 species of birds, 28 species of butterflies, six species of reptiles and 417 species of plants.

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No one can take human depravity and turn it into something beautiful and sad and hilarious like Spring Breakers-director Harmony Korine.

The trailer for Korine's highly-awaited hazy-neon, beach-set stoner comedy The Beach Bum has been revealed and it looks delicious. It also promises to give Matthew McConaughey the platform to coalesce ultimate McConaughey character  the character that's inside his soul and that he's been circling around for years, with Magic Mike's Dallas, The Wolf Of Wall Street's Mark Hanna etc.

McConaughey barely appears to be acting in the role of Moondog: a lovable but bedraggled stoner-enigma-loser-poet who's up to every kind of debauchery, running around with Snoop Dogg (his character's name is Lingerie) and penning his poems on a typewriter in unbuttoned Hawaiian shirts and pink feat bathrobes. It's a pure McConaughey character, oozing both simultaneous eccentric, transcendent wisdom and egomaniacal pathetic-ness. Presumably, he'll get wasted and talk about the meaning of life with the film's which also includes Jonah Hill, Isla Fisher, Zac Efron, Martin Lawrence and Jimmy Buffett.

The trailer offers a sneak-peak into Moondog's philosophy: "Life's a fuckin' rodeo. I'm gonna suck the nectar out of it and fuck it raw dog till the wheels come off." Indie Wire reported that Snoop Dogg kept switching the prop weed for real weed on set, so we know some revelations are in store.
Cumulative shipments for iPhone X reached 63 Million units by end of Aug 2018 which is lower than the iPhone 6 for similar period since launch but on track to be the most successful revenue and profit generating iPhone ever.

Apple's iPhone X has helped Apple to achieve a revenue super-cycle instead of a volume super-cycle. As shown in the chart below, cumulative shipments of iPhone X reached 63 million units within ten months of its launch ending August 2018. By comparison, during the iPhone 6 Super Cycle, Apple took only six months to achieve similar volume, post 2014 launch.





However, iPhone X which drove a completely radical new design language helped Apple to command a significantly higher Average Selling Price (ASP) at a point when the overall smartphone market was beginning to saturate.

So, while the fabled volume super-cycle has not materialized, Apple has actually delivered a revenue super-cycle, posting record iPhone revenues and Average Selling Prices (ASPs) since the iPhone X launch. Both iPhone 6 and iPhone X generated almost similar revenues of USD 62 Billion across a similar period (first 10 months). iPhone X is therefore also a factor in Apple becoming the first trillion-dollar company.





The iPhone X has been well received in the US market with demand reaching an all-time high during the initial months of launch. It was even the #1 best selling model in many developed markets for the initial couple of quarters.

However, demand in China only picked-up later, after the New Year, thanks to promotions and offers. Demand for the expensive iPhone X was modest in most of the emerging markets where older-generation iPhones remain popular. iPhone X shipments have been skewed towards traditionally stronger iPhone markets like USA, Japan, China, which contributed to almost two-thirds of the total iPhone X shipments.





However, in markets outside China, iPhone X did well despite the high price-tag, remaining popular across developed markets like the USA, Japan and parts of Western Europe. So while iPhone X didn't help Apple to substantially grow its user base, it handsomely contributed to both the top and bottom line, and Apple's market cap. It is therefore hard to deem iPhone X a failure.

Summary

It took iPhone X ten months to cross 60 million shipments but iPhone 6 was the fastest model so far to achieve the same feat in six months from launch.

For Apple, iPhone X contributed to almost one third of the total iPhone shipments and half of total iPhone revenues since launch.

USA and China alone contributed to more than half of the total iPhone X shipments.

Revenue of iPhone X alone was higher than each of the top five smartphone brands (Huawei, OPPO, Vivo and Xiaomi) except Samsung in the past ten months.

Expectation is that Apple will command even higher average selling price (ASP) with the rumoured three new iPhone launches this time.

With the introduction of a cheaper LCD model and higher-priced OLED models, the iPhone mix for Apple is likely to drive even more revenue as it enters a refreshed product cycle.

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MLex, the leading source of insight on regulatory risk (and by now a Bloomberg subsidiary), yesterday reported that the European Commission's Directorate-General for Competition has asked Qualcomm questions about an antitrust complaint Apple had filed earlier this year.

The complaint relates to Qualcomm's patent enforcement against Apple in Germany. In January, the EU's competition authority slammed Qualcomm with a $1.2 billion fine for its exclusionary conduct in the years 2011-2016 when Apple was contractually precluded from sourcing baseband chipsets from Qualcomm's competitors such as Intel. As Commissioner Vestager explained at the time, Qualcomm had "taken measures to avoid competition on the merits" in its quest for total market dominance.

Over the next while the Qualcomm vs. Apple trials will take place in Mannheim and Munich, with one in each city scheduled for next week targeting iPhones that incorporate Intel baseband chips.

Foss Patent's Florian Mueller will be covering these trials so as to keep us all up to date on one of the most important legal cases for Apple in decades. We'll make sure we pass on the news as soon as it's available. For now you could check out more of the details behind this report from Foss Patents here.

Patently Apple covered the initial flurry of lawsuits filed by Apple and Qualcomm in 2017 along with related reports as noted below.

Apple  Qualcomm Battle History

The battle between Apple and Qualcomm has been raging on since 2017 began as our list of reports below proves out.

Jan 17, 2017: The U.S. Fair Trade Commission Sues Qualcomm for Forcing Apple to use its Chips in iDevices

Jan 20, 2017 - Apple Sues Qualcomm for $1 Billion Claiming Unfair Exclusionary Tactics and Charging Excessive Royalties

Jan 22, 2017: Apple's Full lawsuit against Qualcomm Comes to Light Revealing Secret Licensing Agreements and more

Jan 25, 2017: Apple takes their War against Qualcomm to Beijing China

Jan 25, 2017: While Qualcomm is Guilty of Gouging Asian Smartphone OEMs, the Chip Maker Believes that Apple is the Problem

March 02, 2017: Apple has launched a new Lawsuit against Qualcomm in the U.K.

April 11, 2017: Qualcomm Fires Back at Apple with Counterclaims Lawsuit Claiming Breach of Contract and more

April 28, 2017: Qualcomm Lowers Q3 Fiscal 2017 Guidance due to Apple Holding back Royalty Payments

May 03, 2017: Qualcomm Plans Retaliation against Apple and ask the International Trade Commission to Stop iPhone Sales

May 12, 2017 - The FTC Responds to Qualcomm's Motion to dismiss their case about Monopoly Power, Samsung & Intel File Amicus Briefs

May 17, 2017: New Court Filing Details Qualcomm Suing Apple's iPhone Suppliers for withholding Royalty Payments

July 06, 2017: Qualcomm Files another Patent Infringement Complaint against Apple with International Trade Commission

June 20, 2017: Apple has asked the Court to Stop Qualcomm's Double Dipping 'No License, No Chips' Market Tactic

July 19, 2017: Apple joins in new Lawsuit against Qualcomm filed by Suppliers Hon Hai, Pegatron, Wistron and Compal

July 21, 2017: Intel Files Statement with ITC claiming Qualcomm is trying to Force them out of the Modem Business with Apple

Aug 09, 2017: U.S. International Trade Commission to Investigate Apple's Alleged Unfair Trade Practice within 45 Days

Aug 14, 2017: U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has Requested Qualcomm provide more info on Dispute with Apple

Sept 08, 2017: U.S. Federal Judge Rules that Apple's Multiple Foreign Lawsuits against Qualcomm can Proceed

Oct 11, 2017: Taiwan's FTC Hits Qualcomm with a Record $773 Million Fine for Abusing their Monopoly Power

Oct 13, 2017: Qualcomm, as Expected, Seeks to Stop iPhone Sales in China with new Patent Infringement Case Filed

Nov 02, 2017: Qualcomm Sues Apple for Providing Intel with Qualcomm source code to Assist Intel's Future modems for iDevices

Nov 29, 2017: Apple Sues Qualcomm over Two Snapdragon Processors that Infringe on their Intellectual Property

Nov 30, 2017: Qualcomm Wastes no Time in Retaliating against Apple with another Patent Infringement Lawsuit filed in California





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News and commentary on organized crime, street crime, white collar crime, cyber crime, sex crime, crime fiction, crime prevention, espionage and terrorism.
From Evin Prison, Attorney Nasrin Sotoudeh Condemns Iran's Execution of Three Kurdish Prisoners

09/12/18

Source: Center for Human Rights in Iran

In a letter from Iran's Evin Prison, prominent human rights attorney Nasrin Sotoudeh has condemned the judiciary's execution of three Kurdish prisoners on September 8, 2018, despite serious concerns regarding the use of torture, forced confessions and denials of access to counsel in all their cases.



Nasrin Sotoudeh with her husband Reza Khandan

(file photo)

Sotoudeh said the executions of Ramin Hossein Panahi (22), Zanyar Moradi (29) and Loghman Moradi (31) are a reminder of Iran's mass executions of political prisoners in the summer of 1988 without due process.

"On the anniversary of the 1988 massacre, Iran's judiciary has executed three Kurdish compatriots -compatriots who have been under decades of oppression and faced many miseries," said Sotoudeh's letter sent to the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI).

"The sentences, issued by the Revolutionary Court in a blatantly unlawful judicial process, were unfair and in violation of human rights principles as well as the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran," she wrote.



The executed Kurdish prisoners

Sotoudeh, who has been detained on trumped-up national security charges since June 3, added that the three prisoners had gone on hunger strike prior to their executions to bring attention to the denial of due process in their cases.

"Zanyar and Loghman Moradi, as well as Ramin Hossein Panahi, were on hunger strike for many days when they were taken to the gallows-further evidence of the violence inherent in the Iranian judicial system which is supposed to avoid any kind of violence," Sotoudeh wrote.

She continued: "I express my condolences to our dear Kurdish compatriots, who have always played an important role in enriching Iranian culture, as well as to all our compatriots, and especially the honorable families of Moradi and Panahi, and I hope that paying sufficient attention to different aspects of judicial violence would lay the necessary ground to reject all types of violence."

Sotoudeh has also been on hunger strike since August 26 in protest against the harassment of her family and friends, and the judiciary's refusal to allow her a full and fair defense against the various charges she is facing.

Her husband, Reza Khandan, has been detained since September 4 for speaking publicly about his wife's case.
Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) has indicated that based on its 2017 population projections, 6.8 million poor Ghanaians (23.4 percent) could not afford to spend GH4.82 per day in 2016/17 (i.e. GH1,760.80 per year in 2016/17).



It also said 8.2 percent of Ghanaians were extremely poor and this was based on its 2017 population projections which put the number of extremely poor Ghanaians at 2.4 million.



These came to light on Friday when the GSS launched a new report, Ghanas poverty profile in Accra.



It said putting all their expenditure together, 2.4 million Ghanaians could not afford to spend GH2.69 per day in 2016/17 on food (summing up to GH982.1 per year).



Poverty reduction between 2013 and 2017 was marginal (0.8 percentage points).



Richer regions experienced poverty reduction over a four-year period, while poorer regions did not. Greater Accra recorded the lowest poverty rate.



The report said that the three northern regions recorded higher and rising poverty rates, adding that poorer regions also had experience rising inequality.



Generally economic growth in Ghana has become less pro-poor, even though growth drives poverty reduction in Ghana.



According to the survey, four poorest regions (Upper West, Northern, Upper East and Volta) also did not experience consumption growth while worsened inequality contributed to increased poverty in Northern and Upper East Regions.



It, however, noted that access to services (toilet facilities and electricity) and ownership of assets generally had increased across all regions.



Meanwhile, it mentioned that rural savannah still ranked high in poverty rates among the ecological zones, and it was the only zone that experienced increases in poverty rates in 2016/17.



Poverty declined 0.8 percentage points in 2016/17, a relatively marginal decline.



Noting that five regions experienced poverty declines, it said Northern and Upper East experienced significant increases in poverty rates.



Greater Accra had the least poverty rate, while Upper West remained the region with highest poverty rate.



Regions with rates above 30 percent in 2013 became poorer.



26% of all poor persons in Ghana are in the Northern Region. The Northern Region has over the period contributed to poverty more than any other region.



The three northern regions contributed more than 40% to national poverty.



Poorer regions recorded higher and widening inequalities. Richer regions experienced decline in inequality.



The report stated that Ghana has consistently been experiencing poverty reduction since the 1990s and that it achieved the MDG One of halving its poverty level in 2013.

Source: Daily Guide









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Dr Gideon Boako, who speaks for Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia on economic issues, has said Ghanaians should not be ungrateful to the Akufo-Addo government as far as the depreciation of the cedi is concerned, since the current government has done a lot to reduce the rate of fall of the local currency from 31% to 6%  a far better record, in his view, than the Mahama administration achieved.



The cedi is nearing the 5 to $1 mark, a situation that has set businesspeople on edge.



What is important is that; whatever the depreciation was at the time is not the same as today, Dr Boako told Accra-based Citi TV, adding: That is why if someone has been able to reduce the rate of depreciation from a point of 31 per cent to 6 per cent, you do not just be ungrateful to that person and say he has not done well.



It means, he said, That given the chance that person has what it takes to take you to a point where you have zero depreciation and you can think of how to grow up; that is the most important.



If you do not situate the argument within that context, you will just be comparing the nominal figures, Dr. Boako argued.



In his view, It is important to also note that insofar as we dont run a fixed exchange rate regime, depreciation is something that will be difficult to say you wont see it at all.



You try as much as possible to contain it and make sure you appreciate, but given the structure of our economy right from Guggisbergs time to Nkrumah to today, the structure of the economy is such that we are mostly net importers, and, so, the trade accounts issued will affect our local currency at all times.



We also have huge exposures to foreign investors in the country  those who are doing retail businesses and the likes, so they repatriate money outside and all of these will have effect on us, he explained.



VIDEO-





Source: classfmonline.com









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We write for and on behalf of the general trading public and all stakeholders in respect of the implementation of the above subject and also for and on behalf of all tax payers whose sweat is being LOOTED by some individual Ghanaians.



We moreover, wish to use your media to formally inform the general public that we have officially petitioned the Minister of Public Procurement, Office of The President, Hon. Sarah Adwoa Safo, over the above subject and are looking forward to a stiff punishment to the perpetrators of the act of blatantly abusing or breaching the PUBLIC PROCUREMENT ACT 2003.



We acknowledge that the issue is a public interest one and so we are keenly following, researching into them and are being abreast with the chronology from day one of the concerns.



We are by this release also cautioning the government of Ghana against any attempt to make any payment from the accounts of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to any entity for the implementation of the Advanced Shipment Information / Cargo Tracking Notes system since same would amount to STEALING.





We know that per the contract signed by the legitimate institution, GHANA SHIPPERS AUTHORITY, whose mandate is to ensure the implementation of Advanced Shipment Information / Cargo Tracking Notes system at Ghanas seaports, it is FREE OF CHARGE.



We hereby notify the general public that SERVICE FEES ARE PAID BY SHIPPERS FROM EXPORTING COUNTRIES and not in IMPORTING COUNTRIES. This means that monies are paid from the countries where goods are being shipped to Ghana and not the other way round.



The same shippers that ship to Togo, Benin, Cote Divoire, etc. are same that ships to Ghana. FEES are rather paid to Government to INCREASE REVENUE by the company that has a contract.



We vehemently want to caution the government of Ghana against attempts to use the taxpayers money to make any payments for this system because the system is FREE to the TAXPAYER and the general trading public in Ghana.



We will ensure accountability and transparency until our last blood drops since any money paid shall amount to MISAPPROPRIATION, EMBESSELMENT and LOOTING OF SCANTY



14 Blohum Street, Dzorwulu - Accra. P. O. Box CT 9493, Cantonment-Accra. Tel: (+233) 050 271 4206



PUBLIC FUNDS.



We are aware of the revenue shortfalls in Ghana ports due to false declarations, hidden commercial value of imported cargoes, and thus, the difficulty of the collection of correct import duties.



We after having gone through the process of understanding the Advanced Shipment Information / Cargo Tracking Notes system can assure the managers



of the economy that the system would cure all the lapses there are at the ports as the system;



 Provides real-time monitoring of security plan of vessels;



 Allows real time generation of advanced information on cargo, including type, origin, quantity and other shipment information.



 Generates automatic information alert for the port of destination.



 Enhances security and safety of ports and cargo.



 Prevents under-declaration of Gross Registered Tonnage (GRT) of ship.



 Prevents under-declaration and concealment of cargo.



 Improves revenue accruable to government.



 Hastens Vessel Reception and Cargo Clearance Procedures.



 Reduces cargo dwell time and ultimately reduction of costs of doing business.



We are much aware of how some top officials in government are behind the scene pushing civil and public servants to do an illegality devising ways and means to LOOT Ghana Government and TAXPAYERS money.



We assure them that this is just to caution them as failure to be warned shall arm as to name and shame them.





JUDGEMENT DEBT SAGA



We are much attentive also that a company has undergone the procurement process, and has signed contracts for the execution and implementation of Advanced Shipment Information (ASHI) / Cargo Tracking Notes (CTN) system for FREE.



We are warning Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to desist from their action since it is illegal. Ghana Revenue Authority as per the laws of Ghana especially LI 2190 has no mandate to implement the Advanced Shipment Information (ASHI) / Cargo Tracking Notes (CTN) system. All Ghana Revenue Authority needs from the GHANA SHIPPERS AUTHORITY, the legitimate body, is DATA of the SYSTEM.



THE QUESTION IS WHY DO YOU SIGN A CONTRACT TO WHAT IS NOT IN YOUR MANDATE TO IMPLIMENT?



We want to highlight that the impulsiveness with which some staff of the Ghana Revenue Authority engaged a Husband and Wife (whose name we shall soon mention) to form a company by name CTN GHANA LIMITED and subsequently signed an illegally back door, SOLE SOURCING contract without recourse to the PUBLIC PROCUREMENT ACT leaves much to be suspicious about.

Ghana Revenue Authority should be mindful of the LAWS of Ghana and be heedful to these cautions.



We shall not sit and watch GHANA REVENUE AUTHORITY (GRA) cause a judgement debt to the tune of over THREE HUNDRED MILLION USD (USD 300m) to be slapped on the already overburdened government and Taxpayers when LI 2190 gives GHANA SHPPERS AUTHORITY (GSA) the sole Mandate to implement the system and further existing contract signed already to implement this system.



We count on your considerable attention.



FOR GOD AND GHANA, OUR MOTHERLAND







Thank you.



Signed



Yours faithfully,



Nana Kusi-Poku Listowell



Executive Director



GOOD GOVERNACE ADVOCACY GROUG GHANA















Source: Nana Kusi-Poku Listowell









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Ghana was today cast in red and black as scores of dignitaries, including staff of the United Nations and other prominent individuals, thronged the Accra International Conference Centre to file past the mortal remains of and pay their final respects to the global icon, Kofi Annan.



Kofi Annan, the seventh (7th) Secretary-General of the United Nations, passed away at Switzerland and the body was transported to Ghana on Monday, September 10, 2018 for his funeral and burial service to be held in his home country.



On Tuesday, September 11, the nation's hero was laid in state in a closed casket enveloped with Ghana's flag for the general public to pay their last respects to the man who placed Ghana and Africa on the world map.



But most of these mourners were disappointed they could not catch a glimpse of the remains of the former UN Secretary-General.



According to some of them, the closure of the casket was not in sync with the Ghanaian way of honouring the dead.



Three days have been set aside to mark his funeral and burial service beginning from today through to Wednesday which will see Members of Parliament, Ministers of State and several world leaders among others.



The late Kofi Annan will be buried on Thursday, September 13 at the new Military cemetery with full Military and a 17-gun salute.



Video below:





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









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Professor Atukwei Okai, a Former Secretary-General of the Pan African Writers Association (PAWA), will be given a state-assisted funeral on Friday, September 14, in Accra.



The funeral will be under the auspices of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.



A release signed by Joseph Emmanuel Allotey-Pappoe, the PAWA Public Affairs Advisor, and copied to the Ghana News Agency, said the pre-burial service would commence at 0900 hours after a file-past between 0600 hours and 0830 hours at the Accra International Conference Centre.



The burial will take place at the new Military Cemetery, Burma Camp and will be followed by the final funeral rites at the Forecourt of the State House. The prescribed dress code is all white.



Prof. Atukwei Okai was a renowned Ghanaian poet, cultural activist and academic.



His early work was published under the name John Okai.



With his poems rooted in the oral tradition, he is generally acknowledged to have been the first real performance poet to emerge from Africa.



His performances on radio and television include an acclaimed 1975 appearance at poetry international at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London where he shared the stage with US poets Stanley Kunitz and Robert Lowell, and Nicolas Guillen of Cuba.



Prof. Okai died at age 77 and was survived by a wife and five daughters.

Source: GNA









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The Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong is blaming officials at the Bank of Ghana (BoG) for the recent collapse of five indigenous banks.



He said all officials at Bank of Ghana should be arrested first before any stiffer punishment is meted out to the managers of these collapsed banks for the actions.



He is of the firm conviction that, officials of bank of Ghana failed to supervise before granting license to these collapsed banks.



If government wants to take action on these collapsed banks, they should arrest all those officials at bank of Ghana before attacking the managers of the banks. Those who used the money to build mansions should all be arrested.



They connived with the MDs to dupe the country. They need to be dealt with he said on Adom TV Tuesday.



The collapse of the banks  Unibank, Biege Bank, Royal Bank, Construction Bank and Sovereign Bank  has resulted in the loss of thousands of jobs in the banking sector.



But the outspoken MP expressed concern about the development and called for a probe into what went wrong after similar fate had befallen two other banks, UT Bank and First Capital Bank, within a year in order to help prevent future occurrences.





Source: adomonline.com









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The spotted lanternfly has attacked vineyards, apple orchards, peach farms, and other agricultural products in Southeastern Pennsylvania with a frightening rapidity.

Now, the federal government is pitching in $17.5 million to help the state fight the pest.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said the invasive insect has spread from 174 square miles when it was first spotted in 2014 to 3,000 square miles in 2017.

"We've seen a dramatic expansion in the range of this pest over the last year, and we need to take decisive action to prevent the spotted lanternfly from spreading throughout Pennsylvania and into neighboring states," Sonny Perdue, secretary of the Agriculture Department, said in a statement. "We have the tools to fight this invasive insect and  together with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA)  we have developed an area-wide approach that will begin before the pest starts to re-emerge in the spring."

The colorful insect feeds on 70 types of plants and deposits a sticky residue on leaves that lead to a fungus. The spotted lanternfly, or Lycorma delicatula, is an insect native to Asia and first arrived in the United States in Berks County in 2014. Its spread to neighboring counties poses a threat to the state's $13.1 billion annual production of apples, grapes, and other crops, as well as $16 billion in timber and wood products, according to the PDA.

The bug thrives on another invasive species, the Tree of Heaven, that's taken root in Pennsylvania forests, crowding out native trees and damaging urban infrastructure  all the while hosting the spotted lanternfly. Farmers tell of seeing thousands of the insects on each Tree of Heaven, with the potential to mature in a week or two.

So far, damage from the inch-long, black, red, and white lanternflies  now in Berks, Chester, Montgomery, Bucks, Lehigh, and Northampton Counties  has been small enough that it's given farmers and officials time to mount a defense.

The USDA says $8.7 million of the grant will go toward a survey and control program for infested areas; $7.5 million will go toward insecticides and herbicides. The remainder will pay for public education.

The spotted lanternfly lays its eggs in trees from fall to the start of winter. Officials hope to make progress before the eggs hatch in the spring.
The Greater Pine Island Civic Association invited Calusa Waterkeeper John Cassani to its meeting last week to discuss the water quality issues Southwest Florida has recently been facing. Beaches in Charlotte, Lee and Collier counties have seen record levels of dead sea life for the last several months due to red tide and blue-green algae blooms.

Cassani is a career scientist and director/officer committee chair of the Calusa Waterkeeper. The group was previously known as CRCA-Riverwatch.

The Calusa River Watch was started in 1997 and after getting our full licensing in 2016 became the Calusa Waterkeeper, Inc., Cassani said. A lot of what I do is policy development and the Waterkeepers in Florida are trying to get the Harmful Algae Bloom (HAB) task force reinstated.

The state Legislature created the HAB task force for the purpose of determining research, monitoring, control, and mitigation strategies for red tide and other harmful algal blooms in Florida waters.

In 2018, Southwest Florida has been faced with the worst cyanobacteria and red tide exposures in many years.

When we talk about a bloom, were talking about a population explosion, Cassani said. I did a flyover on June 22 and flew about 40 miles of river and Ill never forget what I saw  it was staggering.

The extent and intensity of this cyanobacteria bloom is unbelievable thats why cyanobacteria is called the cells from hell, Cassani said. These are harmful algae blooms that can have severe impacts on human health, and aquatic life.

These blooms are not to be taken lightly, Cassani said. There are many scientists that now think that harmful algae blooms are the greatest threat to the water quality.

Both the cyanobacteria and the red tide produce toxins.

These are some of the most toxic compounds on the planet, Cassani said. Unfortunately, they are unregulated and can affect liver function. Were seeing communities in Florida where these toxins are in the public water supply and were seeing statistically higher incidence of liver cancer.

Public notification is another big problem in Florida, Cassani said. The one-day recreational exposure guideline is 4 mg/l thats 4 parts per billion. We did some sampling on June 25 and we were getting levels at 40,000 parts per billion. Thats how toxic this can be.

Florida Fish and Wildlife recommends: The best way to prevent exposure to blue-green algae toxins is to avoid water where scum, foam or algae mats are present or where water is a greenish color.

The Florida Department of Health offers these additional precautions:

 Do not drink, cook or shower with untreated water from lakes, ponds or streams.

 Do not allow pets or livestock to swim in or drink scummy water.

 If you or your animals accidentally get into a blue-green algae bloom, wash with fresh water and soap after skin contact, and avoid swallowing or inhaling water. Wash animals fur thoroughly before they start to groom themselves.

 Avoid exposure to irrigation water drawn from untreated sources.

 Notify your local water quality officials if you notice unusual changes in the taste or smell of your tap water.

You dont want to get it on you, you dont want to inhale it, and you dont want to ingest it, Cassani said. Calusa Waterkeepers is all about drinkable, fishable, swimmable water.

Cassani doesnt recommend eating fish from local waters.

The $64,000 question becomes: Is it here? Is it in our fish, is it in our water? It absolutely is!

Cassani believes the economic effects Southwest Florida is experiencing today wont reach full impact until some time next year.

Calusa Waterkeepers is having an Economic Town Hall meeting at the Royal Palms Dinner Theater Monday, Oct. 15, starting at 6:30 p.m. The public is invited. For additional information, visit the Calusa Waterkeeper website: www.calusawaterkeeper.org/

Woodstock airstrip update

In other GPICA business, Woodstock Road resident Ndakhte Ndiaye provided an update on the pending appeal of the lawsuit filed by residents of the neighborhood surrounding Woodstock airstrip. Residents have filed the lawsuit to stop the sale of the airstrip from Frank and Ila Valcarcel to Lee County Mosquito Control.

The appeal is in process so we asked the upper courts for a 30-day extension to amend the dismissal so that it would have finality that was granted, which is very good, Ndiaye said. A date has not been set for the hearing.

A memo was also circulated by GPICA that made several claims against LCMCD. Eric Jackson, public information officer for Lee County Mosquito Control, replied in a statement to the allegations.

Jackson wrote: Recently a memo was distributed to members of the Greater Pine Island Civic Association that provided misleading and, in some cases, blatantly false statements and accusations against the Lee County Mosquito Control District (LCMCD). The following are direct responses from LCMCD to these accusations.

In the memo, GPICA stated that At the present time the LCMCD is flying helicopters so loaded down with granular insecticides that they can not take off vertically, but rather have to use the entire length of the proposed runway to take off.

Jackson replied: The District has been using helicopters to deploy granular insecticides for years from existing heliports throughout the county. The memo falsely states that the helicopters need to use the entire Woodstock runway to barely take off.

The GPICA memo also stated, We do not know if the LCMCD pilots have completed the FAA required pilot training on the new aircraft.

Jacksons reply: The memo claims that there is FAA required pilot training for the new helicopters. There is no such thing. All of the District pilots are certified to fly rotor-winged and fixed wing aircraft, and received extensive training from Airbus, the manufacturers of the new helicopters, prior to operating the aircraft.

The co-owner of the airstrip, Ila Valcarcel, attempted to respond to some of those claims during the meeting but was told she was out of order.

During the past 2 years there have been many false and misleading statements regarding our family and property, Valcarcel said. There have been numerous calls and complaints against us personally to code enforcement, claims of un-permitted buildings and even claims that the airport is illegal although its been in existence and established since 1975 and is licensed by the state of Florida and permitted by Lee County.

I am grateful to my neighbors, some of whom have lived here since the airport was founded, whove supported us through this but are afraid to raise their voices because of the vicious personal attacks on anyone who disagrees with the anti-airport group, she continued.

The behavior exhibited at the GPICA meeting was unequivocal proof of the personal attacks against us and is unacceptable in any forum, she said. We ask that these groups that are opposing the purchase by LCMCD keep their fight respectful and out of our personal space.

Eric Jackson suggested anyone who has any questions about LCMCDs operations call Mosquito Control at 694-2174.

The next Lee County Mosquito Control District an Lee County Hyacinth Control District boards monthly meeting is today, Wednesday, Sept. 12, at 4:45 p.m., at 15191 Homestead Road, Lehigh Acres.

For those who would like to attend the meeting, a carpool is available leaving from Winn-Dixie at 3:15 p.m., Ndiaye said. Please contact Lisa Steen at: steen_lisa@yahoo.com or Ndakhte Ndiaye at sharingafrica@yahoo.com
On Sept 10, 2017, Hurricane Irma made landfall over Florida, taking with it the lives of 84 people statewide, leaving millions without power and hundreds of thousands with property damage.

A Category 5 hurricane at its peak, Irma was the fifth costliest U.S. Atlantic Hurricane in history, with damages totaling $53.4 billion.

Lee County was hit hard by 100-plus mph winds and massive rainfall that lead to flooding and power outages across the region.

County officials have learned a lot in the calendar year, trying to absorb as much information as they can and implementing what theyve learned into future seasons.

Every hurricane, every storm, every disaster we always learn something new. If we dont learn, then we are not really doing our job, said Lee County Emergency Management Director Lee Mayfield. So taking all those components and lessons learned from Irma  some are really able to be applied really quickly. A lot weve already done.

County spokesperson Betsy Clayton provided numbers attesting to the staggering costs from last years historic storm.

Countywide, commercial loss due to Irma totaled $102.4 million, residential loss totaled $725.9 million, as well as an additional $4.4 million in other loss.

Irma left behind 2,704,829.76 cubic yards of debris in her wake in unincorporated Lee County and the Village of Estero, costing $39,038,906.50 in removal costs.

Nearly 10,000 traffic signs and sign supports have been repaired, as well as 303 traffic signals.

Countless businesses were affected, many closing their doors for some time to deal with roof issues and lack of power.

All told, 2,996 Small Business Administration Loans were approved, totaling $117.7 million, with 75 Emergency Bridge Loans approved, totaling $3.1 million.

Southwest Florida homes were hit hard by Irmas intense winds, deteriorating roofs and spewing shingles about.

A total of 12,175 roofing permits were issued from Sept. 11, 2017 to Aug. 23 of this year.

Flooding was another issue for Lee County residents, with some roadways deemed unusable for people looking to leave their house post-storm and retrieve additional supplies.

More than 36 miles of major drainage canals were cleared of debris after Irma.

Lee County has allocated $3 million in its 2018-2019 budget for flood remediation.

The county has also been working hard on making sure its residents, as well as its employees, are more prepared this time around.

They county has also bolstered its shelter operations.

Whatever the disaster may be, were broadening our reports. We always want to do better, whether its short, medium or long-term changes, Mayfield said.

He added that the county is boosting its preparedness for staffing of first responders, making sure they and their families are safe and can get where they need to if a disaster occurs.

Many first responders have no choice to evacuate, as their duties require them to stay and be of service.

Last year, around 300,000 people evacuated while 14 shelters housed 35,000 Lee County residents, including 3,500 pets. There were two special needs shelters.

From the first shelter opening to the last shelter closing, they operated for six weeks and two days.

We are paying special attention to our shelter operations and those who help us get them together, Mayfield said.

Our shelter decisions are based on the storm. We feel confident in our shelter locations no matter how many we need to open. Were working on staffing, food, investing in generators, impact glass, square-footage and capacity, Mayfield said.

Mayfield advises residents to have a plan to stay with a friend of family member, even a hotel, outside of an evacuation zone if you can.

Shelter opening information can be found at www.Leeeoc.com, as well as social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.

The more you prepare, the better your outcome, Mayfield added.

He says to develop and talk through a family disaster plan and to build a disaster supply kit.

You can print out our family emergency plan, where it has questions to help shape what your family should do if a disaster scenario was to occur on our website.

Keeping records, making sure food and water is available for humans and pets alike, as well as getting any medicines in order are some things to add to your disaster supply kit according to Mayfield.

Staying up-to-date on the latest information is key as well.

Knowledge is power in these situations.

For hurricane preparedness tips, visit www.leegov.com/publicsafety or visit the hurricane guide posted to the Breeze website at cape-coral-daily-breeze.com

-Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad_cj
Water quality and fishing both improved around the islands over the past week. Our area appeared to have benefited from Tropical Storm Gordon as the winds helped break up the red tide and push it further into Gulf waters.Over the past week, fishing reports were on the rise and more boats were on the water from previous weeks.

Schooling redfish were reported on the southeastern side of the Pine Island Sound and around Charlotte Harbor. Most fish were running between 27 and 31 inches. Several snook up to 32 inches were also caught around the schooling reds in the Sound.

Sea trout, mangrove snapper, Spanish mackerel and bluefish were caught in areas in Pine Island Sound near the fish shacks and Captiva Pass. The best bet was drifting in 4 to 8-foot depths with live shrimp under a bobber or casting small spoons. Small blacktip sharks were also caught in the area.

Boats fishing around Charlotte Harbor found good action with sea trout, ladyfish and Spanish mackerel. Most of the trout were running on the small side from 11 to 13 inches, but the numbers caught were impressive. The Harbor is holding a lot of bait schools with the action coming while fishing around the schools.

Live shrimp, small pilchards or thread herring, and spoons or small shiny lures were the best baits. Sharks from 2 to 4 feet were also hooked around the Harbor. Anglers fishing the Bokeelia Fishing Pier, at the southern end of the Harbor, scored with black drum, mangrove snapper and Spanish mackerel, plus a few catch-and-release snook.

In Matlacha Pass, redfish were caught and released over the early stages of the incoming tide in the Smokehouse Bay area and Buzzard Bay. Cut bait, including mullet and ladyfish, were top baits. A few snook were also caught along with small sharks. Drifting grass flats west of marker 72 yielded sea trout, ladyfish and a few pompano on the morning incoming tide. Mangrove snapper up to 13 inches were also hooked along shorelines throughout Matlacha Pass and along the eastern shore of Charlotte Harbor. Mangrove snapper were also caught from Boca Grande Pass.

Lets hope the trend continues, as anglers and boaters noted that the water, especially around the barrier islands and Pine Island Sound looked better every day. Bait schools are around, fishing has improved, and it just felt good to be on the water for a change. Plus, the weather has been great, get out there and have some fun!

If you have a fishing report or for charter information, please contact us at 239-283-7960, via the Website www.fishpine-island.com or email gcl2fish@live.com

Have a safe week and good fishin.

As a native of Pine Island, Capt. Bill Russell has spent his entire life fishing and learning the waters surrounding Pine Island and as a professional fishing guide for the past 18 years.
In 2002, Florida voters approved what sounded like a great thing for children.

Reducing class sizes to prescribed caps, advocates said, would increase student achievement and create more manageable classrooms for teachers. By many measures, the class size amendment has been a resounding success as Florida climbed in academic rankings and school classrooms were no longer packed wall-to-wall with students.

However, the class size reduction initiative created a financial problem  Florida school districts didnt have the cash on-hand to build thousands of new classrooms.

Through the 2007-08 school year, the Florida Legislature covered operating and facilities costs to keep school districts in line with the class size amendment. Then in 2008, facilities funding stopped, and it has remained at zero for the past decade. That amounts to billions of dollars that school districts have paid from their own pockets to be compliant with a state law.

Unfortunately, Lee Countys pockets are empty. According to the school districts tentative budget, Lee is heading into the 2018-19 school year with $412 million in outstanding debt. Borrowing money to build new schools helped Lee comply with class size requirements, but now the district is bogged down with debt. Lees problem is much more severe than other counties because of the districts steady enrollment growth, about 2 percent annually for the past decade. The district forecasts enrollment this fall to eclipse 94,000 students.

District leadership will continue finding ways to build new schools, and the new Bonita Springs High School is a shining example of that commitment to a strong educational environment for students. But there is only so much money to go around, and if the district is devoting its limited capital dollars toward new school construction, thats leaving less money for renovations, routine maintenance, school security and technology.

The proposal to increase the sales tax from 6 percent to 6.5 percent would ensure its not an either-or proposition. Lee County could build new schools AND maintain the facilities it currently has. Vehicle owners recognize that regularly scheduled maintenance like changing oil, replacing air filters and checking fluids will help extend the life of a car. The same holds true for a school building, and even your house. Regular maintenance is critical in maximizing a facilitys use and preventing roof leaks, equipment breakdowns and malfunctions to air conditioning systems. The extra sales tax also would provide funding for technology upgrades, furniture replacement and security features, including new camera systems, lockdown panels and hardened doors that are critically important in ensuring school safety.

I encourage all voters to educate themselves about the proposed sales tax increase by visiting leeschools.net/change-for-change. We are on the path to providing a high-quality education system for the children and taxpayers or Lee County, and we need facilities to match.

Bill Tubb is principal at Tubb & Associates in Cape Coral, and previously served as executive director of financial services for the School District of Lee County.
To the editor:

The Army Corp of Engineers killed the river of grass when they built the dike at the south end of Lake O. They killed Lake O when they straightened the Kissimmee River. They have been messing with the Mississippi River and who knows what else.

They are a big powerful bloated bureaucracy, always messing with Mother Nature. And the politicians are suggesting that we put it back the way it was. Lets stop blaming ourselves and put the blame where it belongs: Army Corp of Engineers and elected officials.

My solution to the problem is to demand that Congress defund the Army Corp of Engineers. Of course that will never happen, so say goodbye to our quality of life.

Dot Birmingham

St. James City
To the editor:

Some real facts: There has been a Republican federal Congress for eight years.

There has been a Republican Florida Legislature for eight years and a Republican governor for eight years.

Then why is Gov. Rick Scott blaming a Democrat, Bill Nelson, for the dike not being repaired and the algae bloom? Huh? I just dont get the reasoning here.

Didnt Scott and the Legislature cut the funding to have the water diverted south and deregulate agriculture run off and septic tank regulations?

Isnt that the cause of the toxic blooms causing health problems for people and killing marine life?

As a nurse Im appalled by this entire situation.

Is this alternate news?

Alice Mack, R.N., BSN.

former Air Force nurse, captain.

Fort Myers Beach
According to KABC-TV, officers from the Montclair (CA) Police Department were called to respond to reports that a man was throwing rocks at passing cars.

Officers arrived at the scene and the man threw at least one rock at their patrol vehicle.

The officers opened fire, striking the suspect, who was later transported to a hospital for treatment, officials said.

The manwho was suspected of assaulting an individual in their home earlier in the dayhas not yet been identified. His condition was not immediately known.
Kentucky State Police say that a Scott County sheriff's deputy was shot late Tuesday night while assisting Federal Agents in searching for a fugitive from Florida.

Scott County Sheriff Tony Hampton identified the critically wounded deputy as 28-year-old Jaime Morales, who has been with the sheriff's office for about two and a half years.

According to WKYT-TV, deputies found 57-year-old Edward Reynolds at a highway rest stop. The FBI says Reynolds was believed to be a serial Florida bank robber who was wanted out of Sarasota.

A Special Response Team was deployed and attempted to make contact with the subject, who then opened fire on the deputies.

Deputies returned fire, killing the gunman.

The wounded deputy was transported to a nearby hospital where he underwent surgery and is listed in critical condition.
VIDEO: Indiana Officer Collapses and Dies Following Pursuit of Suspected Car Thief

Officer David Tinsley of the Fort Wayne (IN) Police Department reportedly died from Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease according to an autopsy report issued Wednesday morning from the Allen County Coroner's Office.

According to WANE-TV, Tinsleya 16-year veteran of the departmentwas with his officer in training and a K-9 partner when they had been in a vehicle pursuit of 49-year-old Patrick Anthony Faiers.

Faiers reportedly jumped a curb, left the roadway, drove down an embankment, and eventually crashed into a wooded area.

Tinsley, the officer in training, and the K-9 then pursued the subject on foot and arrested him.

Tinsley was walking back to his cruiser when he collapsed.

During a press conference Fort Wayne Police Chief Steve Reed called Tinsley "a cop's cop."

Faiers has been charged with Habitual Traffic Violator, Resisting Law Enforcement, Burglary, Auto Theft, Criminal Mischief, and Criminal Trespass.
Deputies with the Fort Bend County (TX) Sheriffs Office confiscated 6.5 pounds of marijuana, 198 THC vapes, Xanax and a more than $7,000 cash in a raid on Friday. Image courtesy of Fort Bend County (TX) Sheriffs Office / Facebook.

Deputies with the Fort Bend County (TX) Sheriffs Office confiscated 6.5 pounds of marijuana, 198 THC vapes, Xanax, and more than $7,000 cash in a raid on Friday, according to CW39-TV.

Deputies arrested 20-year-old Faraz Shaikh, who is now charged with felony possession of marijuana and money laundering. All charges were committed in a Drug Free Zone, deputies said.

"Our Narcotics Task Force continues to show great results against the war on drugs," Sheriff Troy Nehls said.
Embed from Getty Images

Diane Piagentiniwidow of Officer Joseph Piagentini, who was assassinated along with Officer Waverly Jones in a 1971 ambushis angry that Governor Andrew Cuomo will allow three-time cop-killer Herman Bell to vote in Thursdays Democratic primary.

"My husband was assassinated! Cuomo gave him the right to vote. He gave three-time cop-killer Herman Bell the right to vote," Piagentini told the New York Post.

Bell, a former member of the Black Liberation Army and the Black Panthers, is among the 24,000 convicts on parole who Cuomo granted the right to vote in May.

Bell also pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the BLA-orchestrated death of San Francisco Police Sergeant John Young.
NEW YORK, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

Richmond Global Compass Capital, LP, the first-ever sustainability focused global multi-asset fund employing machine learning to extract material metrics in Environment, Social, and Governance, is now officially open to outside investment. Compass' general partners have invested over $20 million as part of the fund's seed capital and seek to raise $500 million.

Founded in June 2016, the firm is led by Peter Kellner and a team of experts in international sustainability, global macro investing, data science and risk management with proven track records at firms such as 3G Capital, Verde Fund, Richmond Global Ventures, Endeavor and Goldman Sachs. Advisors to the firm are: Professor Dan Esty, Yale Law School; Dr. Erik Allen, MIT & Rho A.I.; Bill Drayton, Founder & CEO, Ashoka; and Professor George Serafeim, Harvard Business School.

"As a society, we are creating a world where more positive impact means better economics," said George Serafeim, Harvard Business School Professor and RGC Advisor.



"Understanding sustainability as a critical megatrend has become a corporate and national imperative - and investors increasingly want to know which companies and nations are leading the charge to bring ESG (environmental, social, and governance) factors into their business and sovereign strategies," observes Yale Professor and RGC Advisor Dan Esty.

"In the last decade, sustainable investing has come a long way. Over the next 30 years, $30 trillion will be passed down from baby boomers to Generation X to Millennials with 84% of Millennials interested in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Investments. Unfortunately, existing investment opportunities have not adapted to demand and existing ESG products leave alpha on the table. Compass is dedicated to the positive impact of ESG investments on performance and profitability," said Founder Peter Kellner.

While most existing ESG strategies are private and single-asset focused or long-only equity funds, Compass seeks to achieve its investment objective by assessing investment and trading opportunities across global asset classes such as equities, credit, currencies, rates and commodities and allocating capital to strategies believed to offer the most attractive risk-adjusted returns. Artificial intelligence identifies material ESG datasets to integrate into fundamental analyses of a given corporate or sovereign asset class.

The Compass Fund Founders' Shares ended its first year of trading in May 2018, returning 12.95% net against the HFRX HF Index benchmark of 2.88%. Its second fiscal year to date returned 2.78% v. 0.11% for the HFRX HF Index. It also outperformed the longest equities bull run in history, as well as bonds. It is now officially open to outside investment as a global multi-asset ESG Fund aiming to deliver a new level of return and sustainability benefits.

As further evidence of Compass' passion for sustainability, Chairman & CEO Peter Kellner recently published a paper on capitalism's critical role in fighting climate change highlighting the dire social, environmental, and economic consequences of inaction as well as the abundant rewards if great investors with trillions in assets behind them lead a capitalistic course correction. Chief Investment Officer Decio Nascimento is in the first cohort of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board Fundamentals of Sustainability Accounting (FSA) Credential and all members of the firm's Investment Team hold the FSA Credential. As signatories of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investing (UN PRI), Compass is committed to responsible investments with the goal of enhancing returns, managing risks, and ultimately benefitting the environment and society as a whole.

For further information, visit https://rgcompass.com or call +1-212-350-0222.



Media Contact:

Charlotte Luer

+1-239-404-6785

[email protected]



SOURCE Richmond Global Compass Capital, LP
BANGALORE, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

TripFactory, a customized holiday platform, is in talks to raise $100 million in Series-B or second round of institutional funding, a senior executive of the company told Mint India, a leading financial newspaper. TripFactory was co-founded by Vinay Gupta, Amit Aggarwal and Varun Gupta in 2015. Vinay Gupta and Amit Aggarwal had earlier co-found and sold Via.com to Ebix.

"We are looking to raise a $100 million or even more, depending on the kind of investors we can attract," said Vinay Gupta, co-founder of the online holiday company. Vinay Gupta added that TripFactory is in talks with various funds based out of the Silicon Valley, China and Japan. The online travel marketplace founders will also be engaging with investors who backed their previous startup Via.com.

"We will obviously go back to engage with investors that had shown confidence in us as founders, when we were fundraising for our previous venture via.com, namely Kaalari, Sequoia, Expedia, Priceline, Naspers, Temasek, Premji and new ones like Google, Microsoft, and others," said Vinay Gupta.

In 2015, the company had raised around $10 million in a Series A Funding from Aarin Capital Partners led by former Infosys Ltd board member T.V. Mohandas Pai and Manipal Group chairman Dr. Ranjan Pai.

"It's ironic. Travel is an information industry with Zero-IT, it's just oceans of people everywhere, misinformation in short. All it has seen is a little bit of software automation, more like old car rental companies using software, before Uber came," said Vinay Gupta.

"We questioned why there is no large holiday company globally. You have to go a few 100 years back and say where did it all start, and then we can innovate. You cannot try making the frying pan better, like the rest, to come up with a microwave. It meant redefining everything; building the world's First Full stack holiday company. The tech platform we built, like AWS, to sell holidays world over creating the first truly integrated global holiday company with network effects worth 100's of billions of dollars," said Vinay Gupta.

TripFactory is looking to scale up using an omni-channel; goal is to sell 60k-100k holidays a day.

"You cannot reach India without building scale offline. At present, 1,000-offline travel businesses in 143 cities have done non-refundable registrations, plan is to reach 25,000 partners across 1000 towns/cities," said Vinay Gupta.

Vinay Gupta added the company is looking to hire around 400 people and set up offices in various cities across the globe. New offices in Dubai, Singapore, Manila, Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Hong Kong later this year as part of its global expansion plans.

TripFactory is official partners with Jet Airways, Go Air and key partners with Indigo, Cathay and other carriers to cash in on the customized holiday packages platform, Vinay Gupta added.

Companies like TripFactory are looking to cash in on the Indian tourist travel boom, as more and more Indians are increasingly spending a larger share of their income on travel.

Management consulting firm Praxis Global, in a report in April, said that the online travel market in the country, India, is expected to touch $13.6 billion by 2021 and will account for almost 43% of the total travel category in the country, led by flight and hotel aggregators. India's online travel market stood at $5.71 billion in 2015, according to the firm. The report said most of the growth in the Indian travel market would come from the increasing penetration of international flight and hotel bookings offered by online portals.

Indian consumers are expected to devote almost 4% of their wallet spends on travel, Praxis said in the report.

About TripFactory

TripFactory is the largest holiday store online where consumers can buy their holidays the way they want either by customizing online themselves or seek assistance by talking to experts who can plan for them. TripFactory was established to solve the problem of selling Holidays. Holidays is a complex industry, with many possibilities and complexities, and the Holiday Industry in India is growing like wild-fire and everyone today is planning a Holiday. We believe consumers should get the largest choice and best prices with the best of find and discovery tools so that finding and booking the perfect holiday becomes very easy. For more information, visit http://www.tripfactory.com/ .

Media Contact:

Sachin Keni

[email protected]

ORN Trip Factory Pvt. Ltd.

SOURCE ORN Trip Factory Pvt. Ltd.
MELBOURNE, Australia, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The United Kingdom sets the benchmark among first world Commonwealth countries when it comes to workplace safety, with the chances of an Australian being fatally injured in the workplace three times higher than a counterpart in Britain.

This was the finding of research conducted by Australian Accident Helpline, a national compensation firm from Down Under that specialises in workers compensation claims.

Australian Accident Helpline compared work fatalities among the following peer group Commonwealth countries; Australia, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Singapore. Due to the incomplete figures or a total absence of WHS (workplace health and safety) records, it was not possible to extend the study to Commonwealth countries outside of this group.

The results were conclusive: Britannia may no longer rule the waves, but it does reign over its former Empire as the flagbearer of workplace safety - with 0.45 deaths per 100,000 workers arising from 144 fatalities during the period April 2017 to March 2018 setting the standard for others to follow.

Singapore, with a rate of 1.2 fatalities per 100,000 workers, is the next safest. The Asia-Pacific island country recorded its lowest worker death toll in 14 years during calendar year 2017, reducing the number of workers killed by 36 per cent from 66 in 2016 to 42.

Australia follows with its latest Safe Work figures for 2016 reflecting a rate of 1.6 fatalities per 100,000 workers during a 12-month period in which 191 workers were killed.

In the same window, Canada's fatality figures released by the Centre for Occupational Health and Safety revealed that 905 workplace deaths occurred in 2016 at a rate of 2.56 per 100,000.

Worksafe New Zealand has recorded a mortality rate of 2.89 per 100,000 over the past three years up until August 2017, marginally better than the United States, which is not a member of the Commonwealth and tallied 2.9 deaths per 100,000 workers in 2016.

This was in stark contrast to the United Kingdom, where the Health and Safety Executive said in statistical terms fatalities had remained broadly constant, with the number of workers killed in the past five years averaging 141.

HSE said: "In 2015 the standardised rate, at 0.51 per 100,000 employees, was one of the lowest of all European countries and compares favourably with other large economies such as France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Poland. Similarly, the UK three-year average rate for 2012-2014 (0.50 per 100,000 employees) was the lowest of all EU member states."

The 191 worker fatalities recorded in Australia in 2016 were, according to Safe Work, the lowest since 2003. To date 83 workers have lost their lives in the workplace in Australia this year.

Australian Accident Helpline managing director, Liam Millner, said that Britain had achieved WHS success due to the consistently high standards enforced on all worksites, which Australia would battle to match until it had applied similar safeguards across the board.

"The problem in Australia is the huge contrast between work environments. On the one hand we have union led workplaces that subscribe to excellent standards of safety, but on the other, workplaces with no union presence have in some cases, a complete absence of WHS protocol and safety standards drop off the cliff," Mr Millner said.

SOURCE Australian Accident Helpline
If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this





Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here
Armenia Its our hope that by sharing insights we can raise the level of care for those living with dementia in Armenia.

Silverado, a national leader and innovator in the care of people living with dementia, is using its experience and clinical skills to help people facing the disease worldwide. On Friday, October 26, 2018, memory care professionals will gather at Yerevan State Medical University to discuss the future of dementia care in Armenia. The Armenia Alzheimer's Disease 2018 conference was conceived by Armenian leaders in dementia care to help build the knowledge and awareness necessary to meet this rising challenge. A range of experts will share their insight into how the unique challenges faced by those affected by dementia in Armenia can be overcome.

Alzheimer's disease and other dementias are prevalent and on the rise in Armenia, but a lack of knowledge regarding diagnosis, care and treatment creates many challenges for those living with the disease and their loved ones. In Armenia, dementia is still often treated as a mental illness, comments Dr. Jane Mahakian, Ph.D., Founder of Alzheimers Care Armenia, one of the experts behind the conference. This is just one of the many obstacles were working to overcome by making a concerted, organized effort toward education and communication, she added.

Joining Mahakian at the conference are Professor Mikhayil Aghajanov, MD, Chairman of Biochemistry, Yerevan State Medical University; Professor Hovhannes M. Manvelyan, MD, PhD, Chairman of Neurology Department, Yerevan State Medical University; Vic Mazmanian, Dementia Caregiving Expert and Silverado Senior Director of Faith Outreach; as well as other treatment and care professionals.

Each presenter at the conference is attending out of a deep love and connection with Armenia and its people, says Mazmanian. Its our hope that by sharing insights we can raise the level of care for those living with dementia in Armenia.

For more information:

Silverado.com/Armenia

AlzheimersCareArmenia.org

About Silverado

Silverado is Great Place to Work-certified. Founded in 1996, our goal is to enrich the lives of those with memory loss by changing how the world cares for people with cognitive decline, patients on palliative and hospice care, as well as those choosing to receive home care. This foundation allows Silverado  and its associates  to leave behind previous misconceptions and operate in a way that provides clients, residents and patients with utmost dignity, freedom, respect and quality of life. Silverado has grown to become a nationally recognized provider of home care, memory care assisted living and palliative and hospice services. With more than 54 locations across Arizona, California, Illinois, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Utah and Wisconsin  the company strives to deliver world-class care and unmatched service. To learn more, visit silverado.com or call (866) 522-8125.
Mount Sinai Queens Opening New Infusion Center The last week of October was marked by an expansion of health care capacity in the borough, as Mount Sinai Queens celebrated the opening of...

The Unofficial Election Results The unofficial election results from the general election on November 2, 2021, with well over 90% of scanners reported: MAYOR: Eric Adams (D) decisively...

Batty Over Halloween Celebration Was A Treat! The Central Astoria LDCs 6th annual Batty Over Halloween Celebration held on Sunday, October 24 was a real treat for everyone who came out. Excited...
Ukrainian journalists sentence for espionage takes effect

 RIA Novosti, Kirill Kallinikov

11:47 12/09/2018

MOSCOW, September 12 (RAPSI)  The Supreme Court of Russia on Wednesday upheld a 12-year prison sentence passed on Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko for espionage, RAPSI reported from the courtroom.

His appeals were dismissed, the sentence therefore became effective.

The Moscow City Court convicted and sentenced Sushchenko in June. In May, a prosecutor demanded a 14-year prison sentence for Sushchenko.

The case was heard behind closed doors as it was highly classified.

According to Russias Federal Security Service (FSB), the Ukrainian citizen has "purposively collected classified information about the Armed Forces and National Guard of Russia." Leak of data abroad could cause damage to the national defense capability, the FSB officials claimed earlier.

Charges were brought against Sushchenko in October 2016. He could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

The journalist pleaded not guilty to espionage.

Ukrinform news agency earlier confirmed that Sushchenko had been acting as its reporter since 2002. Since 2010, he has been working as Ukrinforms personal correspondent in France. According to the agency, Sushchenko arrived in Moscow on private business during his vacation and was arrested immediately upon his arrival.

Ukrinform repelled accusations against Sushchenko calling him "a journalist with years of unblemished professional reputation.
Sentence reduced for defendant in Kazan Cathedral terror plot case

 RIA Novosti, B. Manushin

12:59 12/09/2018

MOSCOW, September 12 (RAPSI)  The St. Petersburg City Court has mitigated a 2.5-year prison sentence of a Dagestan native Shamil Omargadzhiyev involved in a criminal case over attempted terror attack in the Kazan Cathedral in St. Petersburg by 6 months, the Unified press service of St. Petersburg courts has told RAPSI.

The court has also reduced a fine imposed on the defendant from 50,000 ($720) to 30,000 rubles ($430).

The man was found guilty of failure to report a planned terror attack and illegal possession of the Kalashnikov assault rifle in late June.

According to prosecutors, Russian citizen Yevgeny Yefimov decided to commit a terror attack on November 8, 2017. Investigators claimed that he planned bombing to happen on December 16 but failed to actualize his plan as he was arrested on December 14. He repeatedly discussed the crimes details with Omargadzhiyev and two other defendants Aliskhan Esmurziyev and Firuz Kalavurov.

On June 27, Esmurziyev received 2 years in penal colony settlement and a 50,000-ruble fine as part of the case. The defendant pleaded guilty to failure to report a crime.

Yefimov was sentenced to 5 years in a high security penal colony on August 9.
Ex-Russian MP sentenced to 3 years in absentia for beating police officers

 RIA Novosti, Vladimir Fedorenko

15:59 12/09/2018

MOSCOW, September 12 (RAPSI)  The Kirovsky District Court of Rostov-on-Don on Wednesday sentenced a former lawmaker with Russia's Communist Party Vladimir Bessonov to 3 years in prison in absentia for beating police officers, the courts press service told RAPSI.

According to investigators, Bessonov organized an unauthorized rally in Rostov-on-Don on December 2, 2011. After the police demanded to end the rally Bessonov and his colleagues refused and began fighting with the officers. Two police officers were recognized as victims in the case.

Bessonov pleaded not guilty and said he was determined to bring the Rostov police officers to responsibility, who, he believed, abused their power. Furthermore, Bessonov said that the vote to strip him of his immunity was held with violations.

The State Duma deprived Bessonov of his political immunity in July 2012.
Russian police may be granted power to receive geolocation data of missing people

 RIA Novosti, Sergey Pyatakov

13:10 12/09/2018

MOSCOW, September 12 (RAPSI)  Russian senators have submitted a bill to the State Duma, granting police a power to request geolocation data of missing people from cellphone operators without requiring court rulings, the statement of the Federation Council reads.

The bill reads that police may request this data only for search purposes preventing potential abuse of the granted power.

Senator Lyudmila Bokova noted that, according to information provided by the Interior Ministry, each year about 120,000 people go missing with about 45,000 of those being children, while only 60,000 people are being searched for. Each year about 20,000 people go missing in remote and hard-to-reach places.

At the same time, 90% of missing people are in possession of a cellphone at the moment when they go missing, keeping it on in the first 2-3 days after the search begins, yet are unable to call for help because of absence of mobile connection. Early response is crucial for rescue operations with elderly and children being especially vulnerable.

According to the bill, police will also receive a right to share the received information with third parties, including relatives and search forces.

In July, the State Duma Deputy Chair Irina Yarovaya introduced into the lower house of parliament a bill to create supplementary conditions for effective search of missing children. The initiative envisages the use of geolocation for identification of possible location of missing children upon the application of parents. If a SIM card of a minors phone is registered in the name of other persons, their letter of consent would be required as well.

According to the statistics presented by Yarovaya, around 8,000 minors were searched in 2017 and about 2,500 children including 805 of tender age in the first quarter of 2018. On the average, about 10% criminal cases are launched annually over childrens disappearance.
Russian officials must be punished for failure to follow orders of ombudsmen  Titov

 RIA Novosti, Mikhail Klimentyev

10:53 12/09/2018

MOSCOW, September 12 (RAPSI)  An emergent problem with demolition of the so-called non-stationary trade objects (NTO) in several Russian regions may be a reason for criminal prosecution of officials, who fail to follow lawful orders of the business ombudsman, Russias business ombudsman Boris Titov has stated.

According to Titov, imperfection of legislation leads to numerous violations by municipal authorities around the country. For example, city administrations of Magnitogorsk and Krasnoyarsk are demolishing non-stationary trade objects despite, although the owners of NTOs have all the necessary legal rights and signed rent contracts until 2020 and further. In Krasnoyarsk NTOs are being demolished despite an order to halt the works before a court passes its judgement.

During his speech at the Far East Economic Forum, the ombudsman noted that this problem is not so pressing in the regions of Russias Far East, yet several problems require the attention of a special group for protection of investors interests.
Experts suggest that it's best to go for the bundled product that has only one-year own damage cover, reports Tinesh Bhasin.

If you are buying a car or two-wheeler now, you will need to buy long-term insurance compulsorily.

After the recommendations of a Supreme Court panel, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India had directed insurers to offer three- and five-year third party liability covers for new cars and bikes, respectively.

While most insurance companies are still in the process of launching products that comply with the new rules, some have already hit the market.

Two- and four-wheeler buyers will now get three options to choose from. They can go for a third-party cover for three years, which will not cover the vehicle if its damaged.

If you want to go for own damage, you can choose a bundled product, which has one-year own damage cover and three-year third-party, or can go for a comprehensive cover for three years that covers third-party liability as well as own damage for that period.

Based on the current developments, experts suggest that among the options offered, it's best to go for the bundled product that has only one-year own damage cover.

"Regulations are still evolving around long-term auto insurance. The regulator, for example, has not yet talked about how the no-claim bonus will be passed on to the customers," says Sajja Praveen Chowdary, head-motor insurance, Policybazaar.com.

"Most insurance companies are not considering the NCBs for now," he adds. "Until there's clarity, the bundled product offering would be a better option."

If the individual does not get a no-claim bonus, the longer term comprehensive cover can turn out to be more expensive.

Bundled products make sense: When insurance policies are offered on an annual renewal, the cost of premiums would come down if the individual had no claims during the policy year.

Even when a person changes vehicles, s/he can get an NCB certificate from the insurance company and use the accumulated bonus to bring down the premiums on the new car insurance.

Since insurers had limited time to comply with the Irdai guidelines, some are not considering the NCB from the earlier policy currently. Some others are building it based on their claims experience.

"We have taken average claims that we receive in the first three years. Based on this, we have priced the NCB discounts," says Sanjay Saxena, head-motor insurance underwriting and motor claims, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance.

The NCB that a person gathers in the long-term three-year comprehensive policy will be passed to the customer on renewal depending on the year in which the claim has been made.

If the individual has a claim in the first or the second year but no claims in the third, he will be eligible for NCB only for one-year.

But if even if there is a claim in the third year, he will miss out on the NCB.

While it is a comprehensive policy, the insurers would look at claims in each year.

The claim in the third year would mean, he won't get NCB discount for the fourth year.

Another reason why bundled product makes sense is it gives the individual freedom to choose another insurer from the second year.

Chowdary points out that the insurance sold at the dealer is usually expensive. Many times dealers either lure or arm-twist buyers into taking insurance from them by offering discounts on items.

"The same policy that you buy from a dealer could be 30 to 40 per cent cheaper elsewhere," says Chowdary.

If you buy a bundled product with one-year own damage and three-year third-party liability, you will have the option to change the insurance company later.

Though there are no standalone (policy without third-party) own damage products at present, most insurance experts feel that the regulator is soon going to allow such standalone products.

A person would be able to continue the third-party cover purchased when buying the vehicle while s/he can go for own damage cover from another insurer.

A long tenure comprehensive product will also have a high upfront cost.

If you are buying a Maruti Suzuki, for example, one-year own damage with three-year third-party will cost up to Rs 24,349 or 5 per cent of the insurance declared value.

For a comprehensive three-year product, the premiums would be around Rs 50,000 or 11 per cent of the IDV.

According to law, banks cannot offer loan for insurance premiums.
The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss' defence team, led by Clare Montgomery, opened the day by branding the government of India's evidence presented in the case as "utterly unfounded".

A UK court on Wednesday fixed December 10 as the date to deliver its verdict on whether beleaguered liquor baron Vijay Mallya can be extradited to India to face charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore.

Marking the conclusion of the trial, Westminster Magistrates' Court Judge Emma Arbuthnot fixed December 10 as the date on which she expects to deliver her verdict.

"There is an awful lot to go over The most important point is the prima facie case," the judge said, indicating that other issues relating to prison conditions would be secondary.

Mallya has now been bailed to appear before the court on December 10, marking the conclusion of the year-long extradition trial which opened on December 4 last year.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss' defence team, led by Clare Montgomery, opened the day by branding the government of India's evidence presented in the case as "utterly unfounded".

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, countered this with arguments that Mallya had intended, from the outset, never to repay the loans he sought for his struggling airline and misrepresented its profitability.

"The government of India case that there was some secret pocket of knowledge about losses within Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) which were not revealed to the banks is utterly unfounded, said Montgomery.

"That this was a carefully thought out dishonest strategy knowing KFA was bound to fail is just nonsense. It was a financial disaster, not as result of dishonesty but the result of a failing airline failing to recover," she said, reiterating her earlier submissions that KFA was the victim of a wider financial crisis that hit the aviation industry.

She dismissed the CPS argument that there was stark disjoint between what Mallya knew and what the banks knew and also repeatedly accused the Indian authorities of leaving documents out of the bundle that prove that KFA was the victim of the economic climate and not any deliberate fault.

Mallya's defence team also rubbished the video of Barrack 12 at Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai, where the businessman is to be held if he was to be extradited to India, as having been freshly painted to give the perception of brightness that did not exist.

The video, submitted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Judge Arbuthnot's direction at the last hearing in July, was not played in open court as the judge said she had already reviewed it three times.

The video clearly shows the gloom that settles on this building, which is encased in what is effectively a steel oven, Montgomery said, as part of the defence arguments in favour of a court-led independent inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets UK's human rights obligations.

It is impossible to be satisfied about humane lighting and ventilation, she said, adding that it had been clearly tidied up for the purposes of the video as it did not match up with the photographs previously provided by the Indian authorities.

The judge, however, made it clear to the CPS that she did not require any further information in reference to the prison conditions awaiting Mallya in India.

As part of the closing submissions, Mallya's defence team effectively undertook a recap of the entire defence case, also repeating its claim that the case brought against the businessman was politically motivated.

It was alleged that the CBI had been forced to file charges and once again referred to a newspaper report against CBI chief Rakesh Asthana, which had claimed that he influenced the heads of the state-run banks and threatened them with reprisals if action was not taken against Mallya.

Mr Asthana has been solemnly sitting in court. If this were fake news, it could have been dealt with, Montgomery said.

The day-long hearing, which marks the effective end of the trial until the verdict in December, also heard the closing submissions by the CPS, which focussed on highlighting that the judge should rule in favour of extradition based on the weight of the evidence.

"The evidence is capable of sustaining an inference of dishonesty, said CPS barrister Mark Summers, adding that the Government of India has proved that Mallya has a case to answer before the Indian courts.

Earlier on Wednesday morning, Mallya responded to the swarm of reporters gathered outside the court in his characteristic manner, saying the courts will decide.

As far as I am concerned, I have made a comprehensive settlement offer before the Karnataka high court. I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess that's the primary objective, said Mallya, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year and is fighting extradition to India.

He said the media should question the banks why they are not supporting him in his efforts to repay.

"I am certainly a scapegoat, I feel like a scapegoat. Both political parties don't like me," he said.

He sarcastically described the video of Barrack 12 at Mumbai's Arthur Road Jail, which has been prepared for him, as very impressive.

Mallya's defence team has presented a series of expert witnesses in an attempt to prove that he had no fraudulent intentions when he took out the loans for erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines.

The CPS, on behalf of the Indian authorities, have sought to establish that he had no intentions to pay back those loans in the event of the airline's collapse.

Photograph: Simon Dawson/Reuters
The CBDT has begun the process of matching the deposits in accounts opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), or Jan-Dhan accounts, with the profile of the depositors.

Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com

The government has found suspicious over 60 per cent of the money deposited in 37 million Jan-Dhan accounts in the weeks following the note ban announcement in 2016.

Documents reviewed by Business Standard showed that cash totalling Rs 42,200 crore was deposited in 37.4 million of such accounts between November 8, 2016, and December 30, 2016.

The deposits in Jan-Dhan accounts stood at over Rs 70,000 crore by January 4, 2017, implying that about 60 per cent of the money was part of suspicious transactions.

Aimed at curbing the flow of black money, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the withdrawal of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes on November 8, 2016, and had given a 50-day window to citizens to deposits these notes in their bank accounts by December 30, 2016.

Finance secretary Hasmukh Adhia confirmed that the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) had received 30 one-time reports from 187 reporting entities (mostly the branches of various banks), and that investigations were going on.

Prime facie, these deposits cannot be said to be illicit. The information has been received by the CBDT for necessary investigations and consequential actions, Adhia said in an e-mailed response to queries by Business Standard.

The CBDT has begun the process of matching the deposits in accounts opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), or Jan-Dhan accounts, with the profile of the depositors.

In cases where the deposits do not match the profile, necessary investigations are done, the response of the depositor is taken and assessment is finalised on the basis of the evidence gathered, Adhia said.

The deposits will be termed illicit only after the findings of the investigations are validated by the courts.

This is a time-taking process, Adhia said, adding these bank accounts could not be frozen without following the due process of inquiry.

Till November 9, 2016, a day after demonetisation was announced, the total deposits in the Jan-Dhan accounts stood at Rs 45,600 crore.

Within a week, the deposits rose sharply by 41 per cent to Rs 64,200 crore, eventually peaking to Rs 74,600 crore by December 7, 2017 - marking a 63 per cent jump from the day after demonetisation was announced.

On November 12, 2016, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said, We are getting some complaints that suddenly monies have popped up in the Jan-Dhan accounts, so there is a misuse.

A few days later, the Union government had said that it has put a limit of Rs 50,000 on deposits in Jan-Dhan accounts, slowing down the growth in deposits in such accounts.

The PMJDY was launched in August 2014 in a bid to increase banking penetration in the country.

Bank accounts under PMJDY do not require maintaining a minimum balance, and there is no restriction on depositing money in such accounts, which are opened with full know-your-customer (KYC) documents, Minister of State for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla told the Lok Sabha last month.

Till August 29 this year, Rs 82,100 crore were deposited in 326 million bank accounts under the PMJDY.

According to the official data, depositors started withdrawing money from their Jan-Dhan accounts from the first week of December 2016.

The total deposits in Jan-Dhan accounts kept reducing and fell by 15 per cent to around Rs 63,000 crore by the end of March 2017 against the December 2016-levels, before the declining trend was reversed in April 2017.

On November 29, 2016, the Reserve Bank of India had placed a limit of Rs 10,000 on monthly withdrawals from Jan-Dhan bank accounts with a view to protect the innocent farmers and rural account holder of the PMJDY from activity of money launders.
'India has jackboot laws legislated by all parties, a State prepared to stomp all over you, and citizens who don't often realise how easily they can be crushed under both,' says T N Ninan.

IMAGE: Social activist-lawyer Arun Ferreira is brought back to his home and placed under house arrest in Thane. Photograph: PTI Photo

Back in 2014, a noted author and commentator had put forward the position that he was willing to make a trade-off between society and the economy, and support Narendra Damodardas Modi because he would do good things for the economy, even if his party might provoke or preside over negative trends in society.

In the event, it has not proved much of a trade-off because the promised economic pay-off (remember the talk of double-digit growth) has not materialised, while shockwaves reverberate across the country following the arrests of people who look more like middle-class sympathisers of the marginalised than violent revolutionaries bent on overthrowing the State.

The arrests mark a disturbing step in the establishing of a 'security State' that has an openly partisan view of law and order.

This, even as the air has been fouled by a new ugliness: Abusive trolls, pressure on the media, hateful references to minorities (Muslims can go to Pakistan, or ramzade and haramzade) and the rest.

Vigilantes can roam the highways lynching people or making a business out of cow protection, and go scot-free; indeed, a minister recently garlanded those arraigned on a lynching charge.

Meanwhile, fundamental freedoms are trampled upon in the name of love jihad.

What is notable is the transformation of a political party whose leaders were jailed during Indira Gandhi's Emergency rule into one where today it is hard to hear any voice arguing for civil liberties, for tolerance of differences, and for restraints on the State.

Mr Govindacharya, ideologically no advocate of individual freedoms, is an unexpected exception in the wake of the arrests.

Meanwhile, what of the economy that was supposed to provide us with compensatory benefits?

The promise of 'good days' (achche din) implied faster economic growth, but any hope of that was vaporised by demonetisation, which unsettled so much and so many in return for precious little.

Farmers and small businessmen are unhappy, and possibly traders, too, while 'Make in India' and exports have gone nowhere.

Those who thought the rupee would climb during Mr Modi's rule from Rs 60 to Rs 40 as a mark of economic strength, see it has moved the other way to Rs 70 (though that is no bad thing).

The arrests themselves show up Maharashtra's once competent police as malignant variants of the bumbling Keystone cops.

An arrest warrant can't be produced when demanded.

First Information Reports don't have the name of the person being arrested.

Reputed citizens who are to witness a raid, to make sure the cops don't plant evidence, turn out to be people brought in by the cops themselves.

It's not just the police.

A public prosecutor arguing for custody puts forward outlandish arguments that are not related to the documents produced.

And a magistrate who can't read the language of the documents placed before him passes orders regardless.

The media is implicated, too, for television channels hammer out conspiracy theories based on police leaks that sound like fiction.

In an environment of general intolerance, a case involving an actress who winked during a song had to go all the way to the Supreme Court. Rahul Gandhi had better be careful.

Of a piece with current trends is the tendency to criminalise civil action. Any trader caught buying grain at lower than the official procurement price can go to jail if the Maharashtra government has its way.

Ditto for anyone who divorces using triple talaq though how that would help the injured wife is a mystery.

Punjab under Congress rule wants to imitate Pakistan's blasphemy laws, and terrorist tax laws still exist, while disruptions of the Internet are far more in India than in any other country.

The truth is that India has jackboot laws legislated by all parties, a State prepared to stomp all over you, and citizens who don't often realise how easily they can be crushed under both.

Only if awareness grows, and we get some homegrown Thomas Paines, can there be hope of some reverse swing.
'As the weeks passed, we saw our group changing.'

'It was becoming a microcosm of the world outside -- a world we had hoped would never intrude into this space,' says Veenu Sandhu.

Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com

It was the September of 2014, and a Sunday, when my phone was struck by a blast from the past.

A long-lost classmate from school I hadn't communicated with in over 20 years had added me to a newly created WhatsApp group of other such classmates.

"Welcome to the Batch of 1990," he announced, opening the door to nostalgia.

Sunday went by, with my smiling foolishly and typing furiously into the phone. So did Monday. And a good part of Tuesday, too.

By Wednesday, things started cooling a bit as we slipped back into life in the present.

As the days went by, I put the group on mute mode but would return to it every now and then to send a birthday message or to see who was up to what, who had shared a picture or had wasted everyone's time posting a joke.

It was a nice, warm place to visit. Born nearly a quarter of a century since school and four months after the new government in India was sworn in, the group was by and large untouched by the world outside.

Some other places, both virtual and actual, were, however, beginning to get toxic. Twitter was one of them. Facebook was still holding out, though the divisive undercurrents had started creeping into it as well and the trend of 'unfriending' people had started.

Our group, we thought, would remain insulated from these goings on. One fine day, the group's administrator (let's call him 'A') started posting videos, pictures, Web links and messages about the occurrences in the country.

Faith was one of the subjects that would be raked up now and then. There would be rude comments about Muslims and those from Pakistan.

Initially, we avoided reacting to these remarks. People's faiths or religions were personal matters in school, never discussed nor criticised.

Sometimes, when it became unbearable, someone would say, "Oh god, A! Let's not get into these things." The response would invariably be a laughing-face emoji.

As the weeks passed, we saw our group changing. It was becoming a microcosm of the world outside -- a world we had hoped would never intrude into this space.

The group was now divided into four kinds of people: Those who mocked and despised Muslims; those who countered these views and pushed for the idea of live and let live; those who watched with dismay as the first two engaged with each other, and hoped the group would go back to being what it was when it was created; and those who simply stayed out of the conversations.

The first two also started posting all kinds of fake news to buttress their views. Some of us then took it upon ourselves to call out such news from either side.

By now the group had transformed into something completely unrecognisable. It was four years old. So was the government.

The kind of passion that divided us -- and the country -- was, however, missing from the government which showed no eagerness to curb such emotions.

Around this time, a little nomadic girl was gang-raped and murdered in Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir. As a population rose in support of the rapists, a debate about who was right and who was wrong broke out on the group as well. The child victim became incidental.

In the midst of all this ugliness, A forwarded this message that had been circulating on WhatsApp: 'Congratulations girls, good news for you all. Finally, a new law passed by Modi govt today. As per Indian Penal Code-233, if a girl is suspected to be raped or getting raped, then she has the supreme right to kill the man, or harm that person as dangerously and girl won't be blamed for murder. Tell as many as you can. It's your power (sic).' (Thumbs-up emoji)

Someone told him to stop the "bull***t" and that IPC Section 233 concerned counterfeit currency, not rape.

Besides, the Right to Private Defence (Section 96 to 106 of IPC) already gives this power to every individual to defend one's (and another's) body or property.

A replied: Everyone is passing bull***t! So why not me (emojis with tears of laughter)?

With that all hell broke loose. All kinds of charges were traded, women got name-called, the one person who desperately asked everyone to stop and posted a video about "unconditional love" got ignored.

In the end, three people (yours truly included) got thrown out of the group. Some others exited in solidarity and formed a new group of like-minded people. Other like-minded people stayed on in the initial group.

Now we exist in two echo chambers. In these silos, we talk only to those who share our views. We do not engage with the Other.

Life -- at least on WhatsApp -- is harmonious, peaceful even. It is a perfect world.
'The problem is not lack of evidence, but the unholy alliance between political parties and church authorities.'

'If you are raising a voice against the priest, you and your family will suffer.'

IMAGE: Nuns join a protest against Bishop Franco Mulakkal in Kochi. Photograph: PTI Photo

On June 29, a nun from the Missionaries of Jesus order in Kerala filed a first information report alleging that Bishop Franco Mulakkal of the Roman Catholic diocese in Jalandhar had raped her a dozen times over a period of two years from May 2014, sending shockwaves through the Catholic community.

Following the nun's complaint, the Kottayam police registered a case and questioned the bishop.

Suspecting inaction in the matter, the nun petitioned the papal nuncio -- the Vatican's envoy -- in India to remove the bishop from his post, and charging him with using political and money power to bury the case, as he has not been arrested.

Bishop Mulakkal dismissed the case against him and charged a group with conspiracy against the church.

'The nun is lying, made up the case against me because I had ordered action against her. The police have no evidence against me that's why they have not arrested me,' he told the media.

While instructing the state government to file a progress report about the investigation into the rape, the Kerala high court on Monday, September 10, said no one is above the law. Meanwhile, Bishop Mulakkal has refused to step down from his post.

Even as the controversy snowballed over the police's perceived inaction in the matter, many nuns protested against the bishop for the first time.

That opinion within the Catholic community stands sharply divided over the nun's complaint came to the fore when P C George, an Independent legislator in Kerala, kicked off a furore by his shocking comment about the nun.

"With the help of financial power these people are destroying the entire administration of Kerala," advocate Indulekha Joseph -- vice chairperson, Church Act Action Council and one of those spearheading the protests against the bishop -- tells Rediff.com's Syed Firdaus Ashraf.

What is the reason for your protest?

It is almost 75 days since the complaint was lodged with the police and the accused has still not been taken into custody.

The accused was questioned only once, whereas the victim was questioned five times. Moreover, there was no (medical) examination of the accused.

Going by the Code of Criminal Procedure Section 41, it is at the discretion of the investigating officer to decide whether a person has to be arrested or not.

In this case, the investigating officer is not permitted to arrest, as superior officers are calling official meetings with respect to this crime.

Special treatment is being given to Bishop Franco Mulakkal. Another aspect is that the witnesses are influenced or threatened.

A priest offered huge money and land (to the victim) to withdraw the case.

The police claim there are discrepancies in the victim's statement, and therefore they have not taken action against the bishop.

Social activists filed a case in this matter and in that, the investigating officer has admitted an affidavit that he has got ample evidence to show that victim was raped continuously by the accused person.

If such an affidavit was filed, you cannot say there are discrepancies in the victim's statement.

As far as the rape case is concerned, the central issue lies with the statement of the victim.

For rape, we cannot have direct witnesses. Further, her statement is corroborated by other men who were part of the convent.

In rape cases, you cannot have a direct witness and it is with the help of circumstantial evidences that you have to prove such (a crime).

Hari Sankar, the superintendent of police, Kottayam, said there is no scientific evidence to substantiate the rape charges and there has been a two-year delay in filing the case.

As far criminal law is concerned, there is no limitation in initiating a criminal case.

There is ample evidence. The problem is not lack of evidence, but the unholy alliance between political parties and church authorities.

That is the central issue.

Political parties -- and that includes the Opposition -- are being manipulated because of vote bank politics.

Secondly, churches have an enormous amount of money without any accountability. They are using this money against the (victim).

Bishop Mulakkal must be removed from his position subject to the outcome of this case.

There has also been controversy over the nun inviting Bishop Mulakkal for a family function after alleging rape by him.

I will give you an example. A CEO's private secretary has to do what the former says.

Just like that, the bishop is the CEO of the church and this nun is working under him as a subordinate.

She has to go by the bishop's decision. Just because she attended the ceremony with the bishop does not mean that she was not raped.

Why did she file a case more than two years after the alleged incident?

What I understood is that the situation inside the congregation can be entirely different from our lives.

For orthodox Christians, the priest is equal to god.

And whatever I have learnt about Catholicism classes personally is that if you are raising a voice against the priest, you and your family will suffer.

And here she was a nun. She was shocked and not able to retaliate.

She did complain within the church establishment, but her complaint was not heeded.

It was only when she went to a retreat where another priest told her she should complain that she lodged a complaint.

What about the National Commission for Women? What does the NCW say?

The ruling and Opposition parties are all on one side because of vote bank politics. They are not interfering because of the financial power of the church.

These politicians want help all the time (for votes) and these churches have influence on the social system.

According to me, it is a part of a minority inducement policy.

IMAGE: Bishop Franco Mulakkal has said, 'The nun is lying, she made up the case against me because I had ordered action against her.' Photograph: ANI

The bishop's spokesman, Father Peter Kavumpuram, said the diocese and the bishop are fully cooperating with the probe as the bishop has not yet taken anticipatory bail and he is not running away.

That is another plot by them. Any person who is accused in such a case applies for anticipatory bail, but here, the bishop is damn sure that the state government is not going to arrest him.

Such an assurance has been given to the bishop.

According to my experience, I can tell you that if the bishop applies for anticipatory bail, he will be told to surrender to the police first.

A counter case was filed by the bishop against the nun under Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code for 'outraging religious feelings'.

In this case, the nun did not complain to the police (about the rape) first, but to the authorities of the church.

At that time the bishop realised the nun could go to the police against him and, in anticipation, he filed a case against the nun.

It seems as if very few are raising questions about the bishop's action; most do not believe the victim.

The basic issue is about money power.

As far as the churches are concerned, there is no authority to regulate their finances.

Technically speaking, the bishop is the owner of the church and there is no mechanism to control him.

They use the money as they like. There is no transparency, no accountability and they are never questioned about the money.

Once a person donates money to the church, his job is done and, after that, he can only go to church and pray. He has no right to ask questions about the donated money.

And with the help of financial power these people are destroying the entire administration of Kerala.
'When the Americans are talking about colonising Mars by 2030, India cannot be lagging behind.'

IMAGE: Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to travel to space, spent eight days on board the Soviet rocket Soyuz T-11 in April 1984.

In this photograph, then squadron leader Sharma, centre, is flanked by ship Commander Yury Malyshev to the right, and flight engineer Gennady Strekalov to the left.

The cosmonauts were launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in present day Kazakhstan.

Two other Indians have since traveled to space: Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian woman in space, who sadly perished in the Columbia disaster in February 2003.

And Sunita Williams, who once set the records for total spacewalks by a woman (7) and most spacewalk time for a woman (50 hours, 40 minutes). Photograph: Kind courtesy Spacefacts.de

Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi in his Independence Day address to the nation last month, declared that India's first manned space mission, Gaganyaan, would be launched by 2022, marking India's 75th Independence Day.

Will this be a reality? Are we prepared for Gaganyaan?

"In the field of space technology, we are on par with the developed countries and to keep up with that, a human space mission is absolutely necessary," former ISRO chairman G Madhavan Nair tells Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier.

On August 15, the prime minister spoke about sending a man to the space by 2022. Is it too ambitious? Is it achievable?

It has been a dream of ISRO for a decade, and many of the critical technology development has already taken place. So, you can say, a small beginning has been made in the programme.

The prime minister has given an ambitious goal of 2022 for an Indian astronaut to be flying, and this announcement comes as a big boost to the whole programme.

It is really a challenging task with such a tight schedule, but looking at ISRO's track record, I am sure they will be able to achieve this.

The only thing is, they may have to depend on some friendly countries to train our astronauts in the initial phase.

India is described as a top country in space research. How far behind are we from, say, Russia or America?

I would say the only missing element in our space mission was man to space.

India's space research was started with the goal of achieving self-reliance in space technology and application of this technology for the benefit of humankind.

When Dr Vikram Sarabhai started the space programme, a manned mission was not on the agenda.

But we perfected launch technology, satellite technology, etc.

We used space technology to solve many problems affecting the common man like television channels or communication or information about weather, earth observation for resource management etc.

So, we can say we have fulfilled Dr Sarabhai's dream.

The next logical step is to develop human space flight.

You mean, it's not because we were behind in technology but because our priorities were different that we didn't try to send a man to space earlier.

Our priority was to use the money effectively to achieve self-reliance in space technology and also apply the technology for the benefit of the common man.

What can we achieve by sending a man to space?

Right now, we depend on remote monitoring of most of the space experiments, whether it is observing the planet Earth, galaxies or the stars. These certainly have limitations.

If one has to make a real time decision while observing such phenomenon, the presence of man will certainly make a difference.

It will give a big boost to the scientific pursuit of the study of the planetary system and earth sciences.

Even for military needs, if you want to have a close look at some specific areas, when a man is there on space, he can make real time decisions on which direction to look or where to concentrate.

It is not that simple to send a man to space.

It is not that we need only a life support system, we need to understand the human body in a much better way.

So, we will have to do a lot of advanced research in medical science. This will enhance our knowledge of the human body which in turn will help us find better health care solutions. This will have a lot of spin-off effects in the medical field.

Then comes the technology itself, the basic technology of making a compact capsule with oxygen, water, food supply and waste management, an environment where a human being can survive for months together, can be used to handle hazardous situations too if the need arises.

Then, of course, man has this ambition to explore Moon and Mars.

What we need is the scientific basis and also the knowledge to exploit the resources; maybe an alternate habitat for planet Earth!

All these are long term goals for which we have to invest now.

When the Americans are talking about colonising Mars by 2030, an advanced nation like India cannot be lagging behind.

In the field of space technology, we are on par with the developed countries and to keep up with that, a human space mission is absolutely necessary.

Is this the only area we are lagging behind compared to the countries that are advanced in space technology?

When you talk about new technology, the cost of the launch will come down if you have a recoverable and reusable launch system.

There are R&D efforts going on in this area at ISRO, but we have to do a lot more.

Then comes the advance propulsion system like semi cryogenic rockets. We have started research using iron propulsion.

But when you are talking about inter-planetary travel, we may have to use even nuclear propulsion. We have to make some beginning in these areas.

Today, the reliability of the launch is around 95% to 98%, but when you want to send a man into orbit, it has to be better than 99.9%.

Then, there is a challenge in developing a communication system using high speed data transmission through satellites and all-weather earth observation capability.

If you want to achieve these goals, we have to invest in advanced technologies.

When you achieve all these, the spin-off that will benefit society will also be tremendous.

The ISRO chairman said ISRO had already done development of a crew module, crew escape, environment control, life support system, space suit and also the GSLV-Mark 111. Do you feel we are prepared for a 2022 man-mission?

So far, we were gradually inching forward. Now that the PM has given a boost, it will pick up momentum and the 2022 goal will be achieved.

When we spoke earlier, you had said that India is among the top five nations in space technology.

How much have moved ahead in space technology in the last one decade or so?

There was a lull of 4 or 5 years in the last decade when UPA-2 was in power. It affected our advancement to some extent. Otherwise, we would have been sending a man to space by this time.

I am glad Prime Minister Modiji has given top priority to space technology.

We can confidently say we are one among the top five nations in space technology.

We are there along with the US, Russia, Europe and China. We are on par with these nations as far as technology is concerned.

Once we send a manned mission to space, we will bridge the gap and be competing with them in the emerging arena.

A manned mission will be the main driver for ISRO's future technology development programmes.
Opposition parties on Wednesday latched on to Vijay Mallya's statement that he had met Arun Jaitley before leaving India, and demanded a probe into the fugitive liquor baron's claim, which was rubbished by the finance minister as "factually false".

Congress chief Rahul Gandhi tweeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi should immediately order an independent probe into Mallya's "extremely serious allegations" and Jaitley should step down while the investigation is underway.

The claim made by Mallya, facing charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to Rs 9,000 crore, has triggered a political storm, with the Congress saying the government must explain how and why Mallya was allowed to leave India.

Jaitley, however, said he never gave Mallya an appointment after becoming a minister in 2014, but the liquor baron misused his position as an MP to accost him once in Parliament.

Soon after Jaitley's rebuttal, Mallya appeared to tone down the seriousness of his claim, saying it was not a "formal meeting" and he only "happened to meet" the minister, when he told him he was going to London.

Mallya also said he was not "tipped off" by anyone to flee the country.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, too, described as "absolutely shocking" the revelation by Mallya and asked, "Why did the finance minister hide this information till now?"

"Absolutely shocking. PM Modi meets Neerav (sic) Modi before he flees the country. FM meets Vijay Mallya before he flees India. What transpired in these meetings? People want to know," Kejriwal said on Twitter.

Former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yashwant Sinha, a former Union finance minister who has been critical of Jaitley and his handling of the ministry, said the entire BJP leadership, not just the finance minister, must come clean on its ties with Mallya.

Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi said the government was "fully complicit" in the flight of Mallya and Punjab National Bank fraud accused Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi from India.

"Everybody was complacent and everybody was aware... Whether it was - a casual meeting or a structured meeting. We need proper disclosures, full inquiries on this," he said.

Singhvi said the moot question remains why was no action taken before Mallya fled the country.

He said Mallya's claim is a vindication of the Congress's stand that the government always knew about the fleeing defaulters. He said India wants to know what transpired during the meeting between Mallya and Jaitley.

Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Sitaram Yechury said Mallya's escape reconfirmed how Modi government "enables big defaulters to loot public money and scoot".

"The fundamental point is how he got away despite 'lookout notices'?" Yechury tweeted while mocking Prime Minister Narendra Modi by tagging a picture of him performing yoga by resting on a stone and facing the sky.

Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav said the entire NDA government was "hand in glove" with scamsters and absconders.

"They hatched a plot to loot hundreds of thousands of crores. PM and FM must respond on this," Yadav said in a tweet.

Terming Mallya's offer to settle overdue loans of more than Rs 9,000 crore to his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines as "bluff offers", Jaitley said he did not even take the papers the liquor baron was carrying during that brief encounter.

Mallya, 62, is fighting numerous lawsuits in the UK and back home over fraud and money-laundering allegations as well as an extradition to India.

"I left because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks. That is the truth," he told reporters outside a London court hearing a case for his extradition.

The verdict in the extradition case will be announced on December 10.

The Congress also said on its official Twitter handle that Mallya met Jaitley "several times" before escaping the country to discuss a settlement plan.

"In spite of this, the BJP government allowed him to flee with thousands of crores debt. Do we need anymore proof that this govt. is in the pocket of crony capitalists."

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said Mallya's revelation shows that the BJP is running "a travel, tour and immigration agency for looters to settle abroad".

"Vijay Mallya left India with the country's money after a farewell from Arun Jaitley. Chowkidaar nahin, Bhagidaar hai (Not a watchman, but a partner)," he tweeted in Hindi.
Amid mounting pressure on the police to initiate action against a Roman Catholic Bishop accused of raping a nun, a meeting was held on Wednesday to review the progress made in the case even as a clergyman of an influential Kerala diocese slammed the public trial in the matter.

IMAGE: Nuns at a protest against the delay in action against a Roman Catholic Church Bishop who is accused of sexually exploiting a nun, in Kochi. Photograph: PTI Photo

Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar, Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash, who is heading the special investigation team, and other officials attended the review meeting chaired by Ernakulam Range Inspector General Vijay Sakhare in Kochi.

Before the meeting, being held amid allegations of attempts to sabotage the case, Subhash told reporters that a notice may be issued to Bishop Franco Mulakkal of Jalandhar diocese to appear before the investigating team.

Harisankar, however, said the meeting was held to finalise the affidavit to be filed before the high court in this connection tomorrow.

On Monday, the Kerala high court had directed the state government to inform it of the steps taken by the special investigation team probing the case of alleged rape of the nun by the Bishop.

While considering a plea filed by George Joseph K of the Kerala Catholic Church Reformation Movement seeking a court-monitored probe into the case, the court had said, Law is above all other things and it will take its own course.

Slamming the public outcry over the alleged delay in action against Jalandhar Bishop, Auxilary Bishop of Changanassery Archdiocese, Thomas Tharayil sought to know whether declaring a person guilty without an investigation and trial was also a new Kerala model.

Tharayil said he had learnt that one should be treated as innocent till his crime was proved before the Court of law.

If an accused is a priest or a Catholic Bishop, he will be treated as a guilty till his innocence is proved, he added.

Meanwhile, agitation of various Catholic reformation organisations in Kochi seeking justice for the nun entered the fifth day on Wednesday.

Many cultural icons in Kerala including noted poet Balachandran Chullikkad have supported the protest.

Leaders of the Mahila Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party and various rights organisations expressed solidarity with the protesters.

The nun had on Tuesday shot off a letter to the Vatican representative in India to sack the Bishop, claiming he was using political and money power to bury the case.

Making a fervent plea for urgent intervention, the nun, in a scathing letter, also sought to explain her silence before coming out against the bishop, saying she had tremendous fear and shame and wondered why the church was closing its eyes towards the truth.

Speaking to reporters in Jalandhar, the Bishop had said, If I am found guilty, which I am not, I am likely to be punished... I will appear before police if I am summoned. I am a law abiding citizen.

Senior Kerala minister E P Jayarajan has rejected allegations of attempts to sabotage the case and asserted that the probe was proceeding in the right direction.
Pakistans jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Captain Muhammad Safdar (retired) reached Lahore early Wednesday from Rawalpindi after they were released from Adiala Jail on a 12-hour parole to attend the funeral of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz.

Kulsoom, the wife of Sharif, died on Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68. Her body will be brought back and buried in the Jati Umra Lahore residence of the Sharif family.

Sharif and two others were transported to Jati Umra in a special plane from Nur Khan Airbase Rawalpindi in the early hours of Wednesday after the Punjab governments home department issued their release order for a 12-hour parole. The trio arrived in Lahore at 3.15 am on Wednesday.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Maryam Aurangzeb said that Shahbaz Sharif, had filed an application with the Punjab government requesting the release of his elder brother Nawaz, niece Maryam and Safdar for five days on parole so that they could attend the last rituals of Kulsoom who died of cancer in London.

The Punjab government did not entertain Shahbazs request for five days and only granted their release for 12 hours, she said.

We are hopeful that the government will extend the parole till the funeral of Begum Kulsoom to be held on Friday in Lahore, Aurangzeb said, adding Shahbaz will leave for London on Wednesday to bring Kulsooms body back.

A senior official of the Punjab government also confirmed that the parole period would be extended till the last rituals of Kulsoom are performed in Lahore.

Since Kulsoom body is scheduled to arrive here on Friday there is no point of not extending the parole period. The government has allowed Mr Sharif to attend the funeral prayer of his wife purely on humanitarian grounds, the official said.

According to a notification of the home department, In pursuance of rule 545-B of Pakistan Prison Rules 1978, permission granted to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar, confined at central prison Rawalpindi, to attend the funeral prayer of Kulsoom Nawaz. The duration of permission granted shall not exceed 12 hours. Police will be responsible for their security and safety. They will not leave the place (Jati Umra) specified in the permission order.

Earlier, Pakistans Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered to facilitate the Sharif family regarding the bringing back of body of Kulsoom and matters related to their parole.

Heavy contingent of police has been deployed at the Jati Umra to provide security to the Sharif family.

Kulsoom, who had been battling with lymphoma (throat cancer) for over a year, breathed her last at the Londons Harley Street Clinic.

Begum Kulsooms condition deteriorated early in the morning on Tuesday. Doctors tried their best but couldnt save her life, Aurangzeb said.

To a question whether her sons -- Hasan and Hussain -- would return to Lahore to attend her funeral prayer, she said, No decision has been taken as yet.

It is likely that both sons may not return to Pakistan as they have been declared absconders by an accountability court in the off-shore properties case.

The former first lady was diagnosed with lymphoma (throat) cancer in August last and had been in London since, where she underwent multiple surgeries and at least five chemotherapy sessions.

She was placed on a ventilator in June following a cardiac arrest. Her family reported a slight improvement in her condition on July 12, a day before her husband Sharif and Maryam were set to return to Pakistan after the accountability court sentenced them to jail.

She served as the first lady of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms from 1990-1993, 1997-1999 and 2013-2017.

She also served as the president of the PML-N from 1999 to 2002, after her husbands government was toppled by former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf in a bloodless coup. She was also placed under house arrest following Sharifs ouster by Musharraf in 1999.

She led defiant, lonely protests against the Musharraf regime to get her husband freed from prison.

Kulsoom was elected to Lahores NA-120 constituency in a by-poll after her husband was disqualified from the seat by the Supreme Court last year. Due to her illness, she was unable to return and formally take oath for the seat.

She was born in 1950 in Lahore to a Kashmiri family. She graduated from the Forman Christian College in Lahore and received a Masters degree in Urdu from Punjab University in 1970.

From her maternal side, she was granddaughter of famous wrestler of the sub-continent Gama Pehlwan.

Kulsoom married Sharif in April 1971 and they have four children - Hassan, Hussain, Maryam and Asma.
Is the Yemen Peace Process Coming Back to Life?

Publisher International Crisis Group (ICG) Publication Date 7 September 2018 Cite as International Crisis Group (ICG), Is the Yemen Peace Process Coming Back to Life?, 7 September 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b99167b4.html [accessed 6 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.

The UN special envoy to Yemen has invited the principal parties in the country's civil war to Geneva for "consultations". With the war rapidly approaching its fifth year, Crisis Group Consultant Peter Salisbury explains why any such Geneva talks are important and what should happen next.

After two years of political inertia, we should be cautious about what can be achieved. Given the lack of diplomatic progress since 2016, and an intensification of the fighting over the past eight months, bringing the two parties together would be an accomplishment in itself. But any discussions are essentially "pre-talk" talks. If peace is to come to Yemen through negotiations, both the government of Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and the Huthi rebels need to sign up to a formal process. Martin Griffiths, the UN Secretary-General's special envoy to Yemen, is taking a first stab at getting them to do so in his still young tenure.

What is the war in Yemen about?

The conflict in Yemen started when the Huthis seized the capital, Sanaa, in September 2014 before deposing the Hadi government in February 2015. Hadi escaped to Aden, a port city in the south, pursued by the Huthis and loyalists of their then-ally Ali Abdullah Saleh, the former president. This sequence of events triggered a military intervention by a coalition led by Saudi Arabia aimed at restoring Hadi to power. Assisted by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a coalition member, local forces managed to drive the Huthis out of Aden and much of southern Yemen, but the group continues to hold most of the northern highlands, including the capital, and big chunks of the western Red Sea coast. These are Yemen's main population centres.

Finding a way to end the conflict has become an increasingly urgent task. The war has caused what the UN says is the world's largest humanitarian crisis. Conservative UN estimates are that around 6,600 civilians have been killed during fighting and airstrikes and more than 10,000 injured; the real figure is likely to be far higher. Many more have died from hunger and preventable diseases like cholera, an outbreak of which is thought to have infected more than one million people in 2017 and 2018. In excess of eighteen million people are food-insecure, and eight million are on the verge of starvation.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE have come under mounting scrutiny for their conduct during the conflict, while the U.S. government is weathering escalating criticism for the intelligence, logistical and refuelling support it is providing to the coalition and the arms it is selling to Saudi Arabia and others. A number of European countries have halted arms sales to Riyadh because of the way it is seen to be waging war in Yemen. Saudi airstrikes far from the frontlines have killed dozens of civilians in recent weeks, including a school bus full of children. The Huthis have also indiscriminately targeted civilians along with combatants and placed civilians in harm's way. In late August, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights issued a report, researched and written by a group of experts, arguing that all parties to the conflict are likely to have committed war crimes.

What's the difference between peace talks and consultations?

Given the gap between the positions of the Huthis and the Hadi government, and the lack of meaningful dialogue over the past two years, Griffiths thinks that moving directly to peace talks could do more harm than good, especially if either the Huthis or the Hadi government were to walk out early. He wants to get the two parties to agree to a framework peace plan before announcing talks. The consultations are aimed primarily at getting them in the same place to iron out details of the framework without having to resort to constant shuttle diplomacy, which is what Griffiths has been doing until now.

The envoy also hopes to broker an agreement on much-needed confidence-building measures that both demonstrate that compromise is possible and improve the lot of the millions of Yemenis caught in the middle of the war. A joint statement at the end of any meeting in Geneva or elsewhere detailing what has been agreed upon - hopefully commitments on improving humanitarian access, protecting civilians and some kind of prisoner swap - would be a sign that Griffiths' approach is gaining traction. We have already seen that the sides can agree to humanitarian arrangements: in Hodeida, the western port city held by the Huthis and under a UAE-led siege, the UN has been able to carry out cholera vaccinations in the past month thanks to the cooperation of both the Huthis and the UAE.

Both the Huthis and Hadi government have a long history of claiming to be ready to negotiate an end to the war and of accusing each other of intransigence and unreliability. The current moment is therefore an opportunity to put their commitment to peace to the test and to form a realistic picture of where the major barriers lie.

It's also an opportunity to encourage more intensive use of back channels between the Saudis and the Huthis. Riyadh and Abu Dhabi are the main backers of the anti-Huthi war effort, and the Huthis see the Saudis and the UAE as their real adversaries in the conflict. Diplomats largely agree that the war can't be ended through negotiations unless Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman endorses the terms of the final peace deal.

The Saudis won't approve a deal that leaves the Huthis with a degree of power - as an agreement is likely to do - without key assurances regarding border security, the Huthis' ballistic missile capabilities and the rebels' relationship with Iran. In turn, the Huthis need to be confident that they will have a guaranteed place at the political table in the long term, won't have to give up all their weapons and will have access to international trade through a seaport. Most importantly, they need to be assured that the Saudis will stick to their side of the deal before signing off. Bridging this confidence gap is a crucial part of Griffiths' job.

What are the main sticking points?

From the Hadi government's perspective, it shouldn't have to make any concessions at all, but should simply be promptly restored to power in Sanaa. UN Security Council Resolution 2216, issued in April 2015, calls for the Huthis to lay down their arms and for Hadi - described in the preamble to the resolution as the "legitimate president" of Yemen, without caveats - to be allowed to return to the capital and oversee the completion of the transitional process that ran from 2012 until the Huthis arrived in Sanaa in September 2014. The fact that this resolution continues to structure the mainstream debate allows the government to approach negotiations as if it were deciding the terms of a Huthi surrender. While the Hadi government has said it will allow the Huthis to participate in future governments, it wants to make clear as part of any deal who are "the legitimacy" and who "the coupists".

The Huthis, meanwhile, describe their coup as a people's revolution, and argue that the war they are fighting is not against the Hadi government but against the Saudis and Emiratis (and al-Qaeda and ISIS for good measure). For this reason, they argue that the war began in March 2015 when the Saudi-led coalition entered the fray, not the preceding September when they took the capital by force. They frame the negotiations as an opportunity to stop "the aggression" led by the Saudis and argue that talks should be held between them and the Saudi government.

That's a pretty big gap. The problem is that the Hadi government in reality is in a relatively weak position. Nominally, it is in charge of a large array of groups, generally described as the National Army and National Resistance; in reality, the groups fighting the Houthis on the ground are deeply divided and often mutually antagonistic. Hadi doesn't spend much time in Aden, the city that he named temporary capital in 2015, because many districts are controlled by UAE-backed southern secessionist militias, the so-called Security Belt forces, formed by the Emiratis to stabilise Aden in 2016 and now one of the most powerful forces in the south, who have developed a deep rivalry with forces loyal to Hadi. In January, Security Belt units and allied forces came close to overrunning the presidential palace, where Hadi's government is based.

Most of the fighters on the Red Sea coast frontline, where the most gains have been made in the campaign against the Huthis since 2016, are drawn from the same pool of UAE-backed southern secessionist forces. At other frontlines - Mareb to Sanaa's east in northern Yemen, the Saudi-Yemeni border and Taiz, Yemen's biggest industrial city - the fighters are affiliates of a Sunni Islamist grouping called Islah. The UAE sees Islah as an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, which it reviles, and is widely seen as working against the Islamists, even though they are ostensibly part of the same coalition. The forces that the UAE backs in Taiz have regularly clashed with their Islah counterparts there. It is not clear how much command-and-control authority Hadi has over any of the forces he nominally leads. His government does little to provide services in areas under its nominal control, and many Yemenis see his internationally touted legitimacy as a largely symbolic affair.

The Huthis meanwhile quickly consolidated their control over Yemen's north-western provinces after Saleh announced he was splitting from his odd-couple alliance with the rebels in December of 2017. (The Huthis promptly killed him.) They are being squeezed economically and are gradually losing territory, but have repeatedly demonstrated their ability to sustain the destructive grind of what has become a nasty war of attrition. They know that any future military gains by coalition-backed groups are likely to come at a high human cost that they can pin on the coalition and the Hadi government, and plan on maintaining pressure on the coalition by using drones and ballistic missiles to attack urban centres in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Without the Saudi-Emirati intervention the Huthi-Saleh alliance of 2015 might well have been able to seize the entire country. The Saudis' outsize role in the conflict gives them veto power over any deal, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in particular - whose name has become deeply intertwined with the Yemen war - is likely to accept only a peace deal that he can present as a win domestically, after three years of massive military spending, lost lives, attacks on southern towns and cities, and ballistic missiles launched at the kingdom.

Should anyone else be invited to the talks?

A big criticism of all UN-led processes since the war began is that they oversimplify what is in reality a deeply complex conflict, and thus do not actually lay the groundwork for lasting peace. In fact, the number of groups invited to Geneva has shrunk compared to past rounds. Before Saleh's death, his General People's Congress (GPC) was invited to the talks along with the Huthis. But Griffiths has chosen not to invite the GPC, Yemen's biggest parliamentary force, to Geneva at this point - although some GPC members from Sanaa are likely to be included in the Huthi negotiating party.

Griffiths argues that he needs to get a deal to stop the war between the Huthis, the Hadi government and the coalition first, and then initiate a peace process between the many other groups in Yemen, like the secessionist Southern Transitional Council (STC), whom he met in late September. He realises that to represent all the warring parties at peace talks would be unfathomably complicated. But it remains unclear whether the STC and others, such as Islah and the numerous tribal forces at play in Mareb, will buy in to this approach.

Griffiths has not formally included the Saudis and Emiratis in the talks either, despite the important role they play in the conflict. Neither Gulf state wants to participate - they both insist that they are merely "assisting" the Hadi government, and that they are not parties to the conflict - but their absence means they will have to rely on the Hadi government and back-channelling with the Huthis to get what they want. Iran is regularly accused of playing a destabilising role in Yemen, and of being the Huthis' main external backer; yet it, too, is being excluded from the formal process.

For a full peace process to succeed, the talks will need to be broadened sooner rather than later, either by expanding the number of participants in the main talks or running parallel Track 1.5 talks, which would shape whatever agreement is reached. Planning for this process needs to start now if other parties are going to signal support for the framework, giving it much-needed traction at the national level.

What are the chances of success?

"Success" is a relative term. It is possible - though not entirely likely - that Griffiths will be able to fulfil his limited aim of getting the Houthis and Hadi to sign up for the broader framework, with some tweaks, and to schedule substantive peace talks in the near future. It is also possible - and unfortunately more likely - that the consultations will break down acrimoniously amid a great deal of finger-pointing, as has happened during all previous rounds.

The coalition and the Hadi government in particular think that the tide has turned against the Huthis on the ground, and are willing to fight on to improve their position. Events on the ground could also play a role in derailing the talks, particularly if the UAE-backed forces on the Red Sea coast make a serious play for Hodeida, Yemen's biggest port. International focus on Hodeida has relaxed since the pace of the military campaign to seize it from the Huthis slowed in July, but Crisis Group contacts are clear in saying the coalition still plans on taking the city if the Huthis do not withdraw. (Paradoxically, the coalition believes that military pressure will force the Huthis into greater compromise, but it could also blow the talks up entirely.)

What is important is that Griffiths be able to use any meeting to build momentum behind his peace plan, to forestall an offensive on Hodeida, and line up talks for later in 2018. If he can get the parties to at least agree to confidence-building measures - and follow up on them in the weeks and months after the talks - then he will be able to credibly claim that the UN-led process has new relevance.

What should the U.S. and others do?

With mounting scrutiny of the way the Saudi-led coalition is waging war - the UN human rights report is just the latest in a series to accuse them of indifference to civilian casualties - and the U.S. Congress questioning continued military support for the Saudis, the Trump administration finds itself in a tricky spot. The administration has made its relationship with the Saudis a pillar of its economic and foreign policy in the Middle East, along with efforts to push back against Iranian influence. That strategy is undermined, not supported, by its involvement in Yemen.

If the Saudis proceed unchecked, they may continue to make serious errors, as they did with the funeral hall bombing of December 2016 or the recent school bus attack. In that case, an increasingly incensed Congress may act to halt arms sales to the Saudis. But Mohammed bin Salman has proven notably resistant to pressure to adjust course on his aggressive domestic and regional policies, and is unlikely to take such a move well. The Trump administration will want to avoid a confrontation.

So instead the U.S. has set certain limits: in June, U.S. officials intervened with the coalition to prevent or at least delay a UAE-led assault on Hodeida that aid organisations (and Crisis Group) warned could badly worsen an already catastrophic humanitarian situation. Senior U.S. military leaders also urged Saudi Arabia to get to the bottom of the tragic bus incident and sent military advisers to Saudi Arabia to assist the investigation. In early September, a Saudi investigative body conceded that the strike may have been unlawful, even though it argued that the bus itself was a legitimate military target.

Ultimately, the Trump administration should make use of Congressional pressure to nudge the Saudis and the Hadi government toward displaying flexibility during upcoming talks while reining in the coalition's worst military excesses. Since public and private pressure notably has not worked, doing so may require expending political capital, for example by threatening to severely limit or suspend in-air refuelling on offer to the coalition while putting in place much more stringent monitoring procedures of its own.

The question is: is the Trump administration willing to take these steps? And will its Gulf allies understand the risk of stalling movement toward a negotiated outcome? The fact is that Griffiths won't be able to broker a deal through persuasion alone. He will need backup from the U.S. and other international heavyweights (and arms exporters) such as the UK and France that goes beyond words of support that all too often do not translate into action. If he doesn't get it, the cycle of bad faith, resumption of brutal fighting and resulting human suffering that have characterised the war to date is bound to continue.

This Q&A was corrected on 8 August 2018 to reflect a delay in the start of planned Geneva talks due to differences over the travel arrangements of the Huthi delegation from Sanaa.
Shaping a New Peace in Pakistan's Tribal Areas

Publisher International Crisis Group (ICG) Publication Date 20 August 2018 Cite as International Crisis Group (ICG), Shaping a New Peace in Pakistan's Tribal Areas, 20 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b9920614.html [accessed 6 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.

Why does it matter? Locals resent being in the crossfire of Islamabad's war on FATA-based militants. Millions have been displaced. FATA's civil society is more assertive than ever in demanding an end to these abuses and to militancy in the tribal belt. If Islamabad baulks, militants could exploit the ensuing popular estrangement.

What should be done? Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's legislature should repeal FATA's interim regulations and lift restrictions on freedom of movement. In consultation with locals, both the federal and provincial governments should urgently establish an administrative and judicial system that respects civil liberties, provides professional policing and delivers needed services in the territories.

I. Overview

On 24 May, Pakistan's National Assembly passed the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) Reforms Bill, merging FATA, a mountainous belt along the Afghan border, with adjacent Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Previously, the federal government had directly administered FATA through colonial-era laws that deprived locals of rights and subjected them to harsh punishment. Inept and repressive governance, together with the Pakistani military's use of FATA as a haven for jihadist proxies, have long made those areas vulnerable to militancy and conflict. By formally incorporating FATA into Pakistan's constitutional mainstream, the Reforms Bill took a major step forward. But more must be done to stabilise the tribal borderlands. In particular, the newly elected governments in Islamabad and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, led by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, should establish a legal and administrative system that delivers justice and services. The military should lift arbitrary restrictions on movement within, and outside access to, FATA so that elected representatives, civil society groups and the media can monitor progress.

Under the 1901 Frontier Crimes Regulations, the political agent, the senior-most federal bureaucrat in each of FATA's seven tribal agencies, wielded unchecked executive, judicial and revenue authority. Article 247 of the constitution gave the president discretion to "make regulations" with respect to FATA's "peace and good governance", which denied the judiciary jurisdiction and circumscribed the national legislature's authority. The FATA Reforms Bill, in essence the 31st amendment to the constitution, abolished this provision, and in his final executive decision under the article, President Mamnoon Hussain repealed the 19o1 regulations.

FATA's merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa followed years of military operations against Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP, Taliban Movement of Pakistan) militants. Those operations broke TTP's hold over most of the tribal belt but also displaced millions of residents, destroyed homes and ruined livelihoods. Security in those areas has improved but remains fragile. Afghan insurgents, including Afghan Taliban factions and allied militants, maintain sanctuaries in FATA from which they conduct operations in Afghanistan. Human rights abuses, particularly enforced disappearances, continue, and the military still controls virtually every aspect of public life.

FATA's civil society, having long chafed at Islamabad's and local elites' misrule and at the military's repression, has increasingly found its voice. The youth-led Pashtun Tahafuz (Protection) Movement flowered in early 2018, gaining strong civic support and demanding an end to militancy in FATA and to the military's abuse of power, including enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, as well as curfews and other restrictions on fundamental freedoms. These demands now shape public discourse in the tribal belt, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and among Pashtuns countrywide. They played a major role in pressuring the civil and military leadership toward reform, culminating in the passage of the 31st amendment.

The territorial merger, the abolition of Article 247 and the extension of judicial oversight create new opportunities to make FATA truly part of Pakistan, ending its status as a no-man's land. Yet the military's desire to use this strategic territory as a haven for militant proxies and the civil bureaucracy's reluctance to relinquish the power it enjoys from the status quo remain obstacles to reform. So, too, do the economic and political prerogatives of the bureaucracies' local clientele, FATA's self-serving tribal elite. Moreover, former President Hussain, when repealing the 1901 regulations, simultaneously promulgated the FATA Interim Governance Regulation 2018, which resembles the cancelled regulations in all but name, empowering unaccountable civil and military bureaucracies and denying residents civil liberties and protections.

Tehreek-i-Insaf, which under Imran Khan's leadership came to power in July 2018 elections and will form both the national and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial governments, has long been a strong advocate of FATA's mainstreaming. It can now carry out that agenda, and by doing so reduce militancy and conflict risks and win local hearts and minds. The provincial government, in its very first sitting, should repeal the interim governance framework. It and the federal parliament should set up special bipartisan committees that consult local stakeholders in prioritising rehabilitation and reconstruction needs. These committees should also hold public hearings, including on human rights violations and other abuses of power.

Both federal and provincial governments should demand  and the superior judiciary should ensure  unimpeded access to the tribal belt, including to internment centres, for parliamentarians, civil society groups, human rights defenders and media outlets. The military authorities should lift all restrictions on residents' movements in and out of FATA. The federal government should give the judiciary the finances it requires to establish the necessary infrastructure in FATA. Since Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's 2017 police act applies to the tribal belt, the provincial government should ensure that it has the resources it needs to exercise its additional responsibilities, while disbanding the tribal levies, the official tribal militias under the FATA's administration's control, and incorporating their personnel into the regular police force.

II. Peace in FATA: Real or Imagined?

A week after an 8 June 2014 jihadist attack on Karachi's Jinnah International Airport, the Pakistan military launched an operation called Zarb-e-Azb (Quick Strike) in North Waziristan. Following earlier operations that ostensibly had cleared other parts of the tribal belt, Zarb-e-Azb's purpose was to eradicate the last vestiges of militant activity in FATA.Given continuing restrictions on travel to the tribal agencies, this briefing, which analyses the process and current state of FATA reform, is based on interviews with FATA and Pashtun political and civil society stakeholders mainly in the federal capital Islamabad and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's capital Peshawar, the two cities where these actors engage most actively with the government, donors and each other. The interviews were conducted in the period January-June 2018. For earlier analysis of FATA's security and governance challenges, see Crisis Group Asia Reports N178, Pakistan: Countering Militancy in FATA, 21 October 2009; 164, Pakistan: The Militant Jihadi Challenge, 13 March 2009;In principle, it would not distinguish between "good" militants (those backed by the Pakistani military establishment, including Afghan Taliban factions and other groups fighting U.S. and Afghan government troops across the border) and "bad" (those, like the TTP, that had turned against the Pakistani state itself). These distinctions are discussed further in Crisis Group Reports, Countering Militancy in FATA, op. cit., and Asia Report N125, Pakistan's Tribal Areas: Appeasing the Militants, 11 December 2006.

Even critics of the military operations recognise that they have disrupted TTP networks in FATA. Crisis Group interviews, opposition politicians, activists, Peshawar, April 2018.The tribal areas are no longer the hub for transnational jihadists that they were some years ago, when militants from across the world rubbed shoulders with their Pakistani counterparts in training camps. Crisis Group Asia Report N262, Resetting Pakistan's Relations with Afghanistan, 28 October 2014.Yet the military has neither killed nor captured all major TTP leaders. Some relocated to Afghanistan. Others moved to nearby Khyber Pakhtunkhwa districts, such as Tank and Dera Ismail Khan, and revived their networks there. These areas have seen increased extortion of local businesses, killing of leaders seen as anti-TTP and other perceived opponents, and kidnapping for ransom. "Taliban reemerge in Tank and Dera Ismail Khan", The Friday Times, 3 April 2015.Other TTP factions with close ties to the Afghan Taliban, such as those led by Gul Bahadur and Sadiq Noor, appear to have moved their militias from North to South Waziristan. Crisis Group interviews, FATA activists, Islamabad, Peshawar and Karachi, March-April 2018.

Well-informed sources contend that Afghan militants, too, first relocated to other parts of the tribal belt, such as Kurram, whence they had easy access to Afghanistan's Khost province, and have now returned to sanctuaries in North Waziristan. Crisis Group interviews, Ghulam Qadir Khan, former FATA political agent, Peshawar, April 2018; FATA activists and NGO workers, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa politicians, Islamabad, Peshawar and Karachi, March-May 2018."The Haqqani network [an Afghan Taliban faction long based in FATA] owns property worth billions of rupees in North Waziristan", said Latif Afridi, a senior lawyer and Awami National Party leader from Khyber. "They started there and are still there. They only temporarily relocated to FATA's Kurram and Hangu [an adjoining Khyber Pakhtunkhwa district]". Afridi is vice chair of the Pakistan Bar Council, the highest elected body of lawyers. The Awami National Party is a Pashtun nationalist party based primarily in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan's Pashtun belt. Crisis Group interview, Peshawar, April 2018.

To consolidate control, the military has relied on "peace committees". In reality, these are pro-state militias, comprising what many FATA activists refer to as "local thugs", that have fuelled conflict (as discussed below). While the military disbanded some of these militias due to local opposition, those that remain continue to target opponents and indulge in criminal activity, including drug and arms smuggling, with few restrictions. Smuggling is a major source of funding for these militias. Crisis Group interviews, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and FATA-based NGO workers, journalists, politicians and activists, Islamabad, Peshawar and Karachi, March-May 2018. See also "Tribesman gunned down in South Waziristan", Dawn, 25 May 2018.

That militant networks have revived is evident in the higher rates of violence and casualties in the past year. A FATA-focused NGO noted a 16 per cent rise in militant attacks and a 37 per cent rise in the number of casualties in 2017, compared to the year before. Many such attacks have taken place in tribal agencies that the military had supposedly rid of militants, such as Mohmand and Bajaur. Kurram, with its large Shiite population, was particularly volatile, with at least 115 people killed in three attacks in the first six months of 2017  two of them targeting Shiites. "3,904 killed in FATA suicide bombings in four years", The Express Tribune, 16 February 2018; "FATA witnesses 16 pc surge in terror incidents: report", Daily Times, 16 January 2018; "Army launches Operation Khyber-4 in Rajgal Valley", Dawn, 16 July 2017; "Anger grows in Parachinar after three attacks in six months", Agence France-Presse, 26 June 2017.Attacks have continued this year: in January, five civilians were killed in a bombing in Kurram; in February, a military convoy was attacked in North Waziristan; the same month in Bajaur, an anti-Taliban leader was killed. Militants have also resumed targeting girls' schools and threatening families who send their daughters to school. Locals claimed that ten persons died in targeted killings in North Waziristan in April 2018. "Tribal elder killed in Bajaur blast", The Nation, 8 February 2018; "Tribal leader killed in Bajaur Agency IED blast", The Nation, 16 February 2018; "Grenade attacks kills four, injures 32 in North Waziristan", Express Tribune, 27 April 2018; "HRCP wants inquiry into attack on FATA girls school", The Nation, 12 May 2018; "Tribal youth to have representation in jirgas", The News, 20 May 2018.

This increase in militant activity is no justification for stalling reform. In fact, the opposite is true: the best means of countering militancy would be for the newly empowered judiciary to enforce the law and the newly authorised Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police to replace blunt military operations with targeted, intelligence-based counter-insurgency efforts. Until the judiciary and police can fully exercise the prerogatives the 31st amendment grants them, the military should heed the concerns of a public deeply alienated by years of heavy-handed military operations.

For FATA inhabitants, what peace there is as the result of those operations has come at considerable cost. Many in FATA are angered by curfews, fences that hinder freedom of movement and a proliferation of checkposts. Long waits at checkposts even allegedly contributed to the death of a child in need of urgent medical care. Afrasiab Khattak, "The volcano of Pashtun unrest", The Nation, 25 February 2018.Attacks by TTP factions based in Afghanistan on targets in Pakistan have raised tensions with Kabul and been used by the military to justify the repeated closure of key border crossings. These closures impede the cross-border trade that accounts for most of FATA's economic activity. "An already impoverished people, ravaged by years of war, instead of getting support and relief are further trounced into extinction without any remedial measures", wrote a former North Waziristan political agent and author of a book on FATA. "Without alternate economic activity, the government is pushing an already desperate FATA into an inconsolable situation". Ghulam Qadir Khan, "Fencing the tribal areas", Dawn, 4 December 2017. The fencing and border closures also violate easement rights under the Durand Line Agreement, which allow divided tribes the right to cross the border without formal permission. For more on the Durand Line Agreement, see Crisis Group Report, Resetting Pakistan's Relations with Afghanistan, op. cit.In Operation Zarb-e-Azb's aftermath, residents were even prevented from travelling freely to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. "They were blocked on both sides, north to Afghanistan and down country", said the former North Waziristan political agent. Crisis Group interview, Ghulam Qadir Khan, Peshawar, April 2018.

Military operations had displaced hundreds of thousands in the tribal belt. Within ten days of Operation Zarb-e-Azb's launch in June 2014, some 450,000 people were displaced, a large majority of them women and children, to the main IDP camp in Bannu's Frontier Region and to homes of host families, mostly in neighbouring Khyber Pakhtunkhwa districts. By mid-July, around one million had fled the tribal agency. Overall, as many as 1.5 million people were displaced, according to the UN and Pakistan's National Disaster Management Authority figures. "Pakistan: North Waziristan displacements", situation report no. 7, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), as of 16 July 2014; "Pakistan: North Waziristan displacements", situation report no. 1, UN OCHA, as of 24 June 2014; "IDP crisis  post-operation Zarb-e-Azb", climate change division, National Disaster Management Authority, government of Pakistan, 23 June 2014. On numbers of FATA returnees, see map, "Pakistan: KP and FATA  Areas of Displacement, Hosting and Returns as of 30 May 2018", UN OCHA. For the backdrop to FATA's IDP crisis, see Crisis Group Asia Briefing N93, Pakistan's IDP Crisis: Challenges and Opportunities, 3 June 2009; Asia Report N265, Women, Violence and Conflict in Pakistan, 8 April 2015.

Most have returned, but to destroyed homes and livelihoods. In South Waziristan, for example, the army removed the roofs of all houses in many areas to make it easier to spot militants. Most houses in North Waziristan's administrative headquarters, Miranshah, were demolished. "How to spot a militant: Pakistani army removes roofs in Waziristan", Agence France-Presse, 2 June 2018.Although Islamabad announced the establishment of funds for cash assistance to returning internally displaced persons (IDPs) as compensation for damaged homes, reconstruction and rehabilitation, little has been spent on the ground. "Centre to blame for tribals' misery post militancy", Dawn, 4 January 2018.Marketplaces resemble ghost towns, their infrastructure destroyed and inventories looted, allegedly by soldiers as well as militants. Crisis Group interviews, FATA residents and senior Pakhtunkhwa politician, Peshawar, March 2018.The lack of drinking water, shelter, electricity, education and health care has often prompted IDPs to again relocate to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and elsewhere. Crisis Group interviews, FATA residents and civil society representatives, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa politicians, Islamabad, Peshawar, March-May 2018. "IDPs unwilling to return will be deregistered", Dawn, 6 January 2017.Soldiers continue to occupy homes and schools across the tribal belt, even in relatively safe areas such as Khyber Agency's Tirah valley. Crisis Group interviews, FATA residents and civil society activists, Peshawar, April 2018.

Rights abuses, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and custodial deaths continue, as does collective punishment. For example, after a December 2017 killing of two soldiers, the military imposed a curfew in North Waziristan's Hamzoni town, preventing access to hospitals and forcing women and children out of their homes during search operations. These and other heavy-handed measures sparked local protests. "Curfew remains imposed in Hamzoni for second consecutive day", Tribal News Network, 13 December 2017; Ghulam Qadir Khan, "Mazar-i-Miramshah", Dawn, 14 February 2018.A North Waziristan resident said, "they beat men, women and children and ask, 'Who does this?'" Crisis Group interview, protester, Pashtun Tahafuz Movement rally, Karachi, May 2018.

The 2011 Actions (in Aid of Civil Power) Regulation, which remains in force in FATA, provides for internment centres to hold a suspect "in order to incapacitate him from committing any offence or further offences", or if internment is "expedient for peace in the defined area". For analysis of the Actions (in Aid of Civil Power) Regulation (2011), which also applies to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA), see Crisis Group Asia Report N242, Pakistan: Countering Militancy in PATA, 15 January 2013.There are at least seventeen known internment centres in FATA and other designed tribal areas, the Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Crisis Group interview, former senator and Awami National Party leader Afrasiab Khattak, Islamabad, March 2018.The military has rebuffed parliamentary committees' efforts to gain access. The Peshawar high court maintained a list of some 2,000 missing persons on its website, but removed it in early 2018, possibly under military pressure since civil society mobilisation on the issue (discussed below) was increasing. Crisis Group interviews, Peshawar high court bar association lawyers, Peshawar, April 2018.Activists believe the number is significantly higher. Crisis Group interviews, Islamabad, Peshawar, April-May 2018.According to a well-informed senior Pashtun journalist, locals say, "knowing that your son is dead at least gives you closure. When your son is missing, it's as if he is dying every day". Crisis Group interview, Islamabad, May 2018.

III. Mobilising FATA's Civil Society

Given the constraints on freedoms of expression and association, lack of legal recourse, widespread insecurity and the military's intrusive monitoring, FATA's civil society has long struggled to articulate public demands. Crisis Group interview, NGO representatives, Islamabad, Peshawar, March-April 2018.Maliks, or tribal elders, also obstruct political and social mobilisation. Appointed by the federal bureaucracy, and often enjoying only limited local support, they are a main beneficiary of FATA's status quo, including from the flourishing black economy. Emphasising that resistance to reform did not come from FATA's residents, a well-informed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa politician commented: "The political agents [federal bureaucrats] and military commanders based in FATA and ruling it in collaboration with a small local elite" that has "a strong vested interest in the huge black economy have obviously resisted reforms under one pretext or other". Afrasiab Khattak, "Pantomime of FATA reforms", The Nation, 26 May 2018.But FATA's old guard  the civil and military bureaucracies and the maliks  now face their biggest challenge from a new generation that wants change and can mobilise society, as demonstrated by growing support for the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement.

This group has its origins in the Mehsud Tahafuz Movement, set up in 2016 by a student leader, Manzoor Ahmed, from South Waziristan. In an opinion piece about the movement's birth, Ahmed wrote, "there was a policy to sacrifice us at the altar of strategic interests via terrorist groups allowed to operate in our homeland. Our villages were then bombed and our people forced to leave their homes in the name of counter-terrorism operations. Thousands of our youth were detained unlawfully or became the victims of enforced disappearances". Yet, he continued, "the fear is that these counter-terrorism operations failed to cause lasting damage to terrorism networks: instead, locals allege that these operations have collectively punished and humiliated the Pashtun public in these areas". Manzoor Ahmed, "The protest of the Pashtun", The News, 3 March 2018.That movement initially protested against both the persecution of Ahmed's Mehsud tribe, which had borne the brunt of collective punishment (top TTP leaders were Mehsuds), and against discrimination suffered by Pashtuns more broadly, particularly those from FATA, at the hands of state institutions and businesses. Crisis Group interviews, FATA activists, Mehsud tribals, Peshawar, April 2018. See also Ghulam Dastageer, "The making of a new nationalist movement", Herald, May 2018.Ethnic profiling of Pashtuns extends beyond FATA. In February 2018, for example, the Punjab government issued a notification "asking the population to keep an eye on suspicious individuals who look like Pashtuns or are from [FATA], and to report any suspicious activity by them". "Listen to Pakistan's marginalised Pashtuns", Human Rights Watch, 13 March 2018.

A turning point for FATA's youth activism was the Karachi police's 13 January 2018 extrajudicial killing of Naqeebullah Mehsud, a North Waziristan resident and aspiring model on social media with no links to terrorism. "'Naqeebullah Mehsud was innocent, killed in a fake encounter', says inquiry team", Dawn, 23 January 2018.The killing sparked national outrage. Thousands of Pashtuns participated in an Islamabad sit-in led by the Mehsud Tahafuz Movement, demanding accountability for Naqeebullah's murder, and a halt to extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, curfews, locals' humiliation at checkposts and restrictions on freedoms, as well as an end to militancy in FATA. They highlighted the destruction of civilian properties during and after military operations, the hardships faced by returning IDPs, and deaths caused by unexploded ordnance and mines. "On the streets for justice", Dawn, 4 February 2018; "Naqeebullah protest moves to Islamabad, demands end to Pashtun 'genocide'", Dawn, 2 February 2018.Given the fervent response among Pashtuns nationwide, the movement changed its name to the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement, with Ahmed adopting the moniker "Pashteen". According to Pashteen, the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement has a list of 4,000 missing persons. "The protest of the Pashtun", op. cit. Pashtun activists claim that more than 35 persons have been killed in landmine explosions since 2009 in South Waziristan; the military claims that militants laid the mines. Dastageer, op. cit. See also "Govt mulling lodging case against PTM leadership", The News, 11 April 2018; Ishtiaq Ahmed, "Emergence of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement", Daily Times, 14 April 2018"; "In Pakistan, long-suffering Pashtuns find their voice", The New York Times, 6 February 2018.Since then, it has held massive rallies, despite police raids and arrests of activists, in all four provincial capitals and in hard-hit Pashtun-majority areas such as Swat. "Public meeting in Mir Ali: Pashtun Tahafuz Movement demands removal of checkposts in NWA", The News, 3 March 2018; "Pashtun protest leaders booked in Balochistan", Dawn, 13 April 2018; "PTM rally in Lahore", The News, 23 April 2018.



The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement does not focus directly on FATA reform. "There are other organisations and forums for FATA reforms, but what the movement is raising no one was discussing", said Mohsin Dawar, then a top movement leader and Peshawar high court lawyer. After deciding to contest the July 2015 elections, Dawar stepped down from the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement leadership. He was elected to the National Assembly from North Waziristan, and vowed to continue raising the concerns of residents in parliament; another former movement leader, Muhammad Ali Wazir, won a National Assembly seat from South Waziristan. "Dawar, Wazir to remain independent in NA", Dawn, 4 August 2018."Enforced disappearances are not just a FATA issue, they are also an issue in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and people are getting picked up in Swat and Bannu". Crisis Group interview, Peshawar, April 2018.Yet by highlighting the military's role in the tribal belt and demanding an end to its use of jihadist proxies, the movement is pointing to the major impediments to stabilising those areas. As a common slogan at the movement's demonstrations goes: "Yeh kesi dehshatgardi hai, gis key pechey wardi hai (roughly translated, "What kind of terrorism is this, that has the man in uniform behind it?"). Crisis Group observations, 2018."All this generation has seen is war", said Pashteen. "Unlike the maliks, it is not afraid to confront military officials". Crisis Group interview, Peshawar, April 2018. In an interview with the media, Pashteen said: "FATA has been used by the military as a safe haven and breeding ground for terrorists. Pashtuns have suffered immensely as a result". "Caught between the military and militants, Pashtuns fight for rights", Pakistan Today, 8 April 2018.

The movement's leadership comprises educated urban youth from across the country and young professionals from FATA and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement's top tier includes representatives of four major Waziristan tribes, Mehsud, Dawar, Wazir and Bhittani.Even before it gathered steam, FATA's youth groups, including women, were demanding the region's merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with full political and constitutional rights, and challenging the authority and legitimacy of maliks perceived to be "pro-Frontier Crimes Regulation". "FATA youth jirga to launch a series of protest till merger with KP", Daily Times, 13 January 2018; "FATA's youth steps up to fill the void", The Express Tribune, 4 December 2017.Conflict-induced displacement has played a role in mobilising FATA civil society. Some displaced FATA youth formed or joined community-based organisations. Women IDPs participated more in the socio-economic mainstream, obtaining national identity cards and opening bank accounts for the first time to benefit from assistance packages. Many now demand access to health care, skills training and credit so that they can earn independent livelihoods and participate in local public life. Crisis Group interviews, women activists, FATA, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Islamabad, April 2018. Crisis Group discussions, Pashtun Tahafuz Movement rally, Karachi, 13 May 2018. See also Crisis Group Report, Women, Violence and Conflict, op. cit.

The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement's core leadership of around twenty is all men, but Pashtun women participate in its rallies in large numbers. A Pashtun woman activist said, "when the elders said that the movement is dishonouring the [Pashtun] culture by having women at the rallies, we said, 'what about the dishonour to the culture by the [Pakistani] Taliban and the military?'" Another prominent (male) activist said, "what about women who are humiliated at checkposts and thrown out of their homes  was that not dishonourable?" Crisis Group interviews, Islamabad, March 2018.A movement rally in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Swat district was well attended by women because, according to Sana Ejaz, an activist who canvassed women to participate, "so many of them have sons and husbands missing. [There are many] conflict-affected households, and that had a big impact on women". Crisis Group interview, Sana Ejaz, Pashtun Tahafuz Movement rally, Karachi, May 2018.In a widely circulated speech during a March rally in Balochistan, a woman activist implored women to demand their rights and "and rise shoulder to shoulder with the men. Only then will this national movement go forward". The speech can be viewed on PTM's Facebook's page, at https://www.facebook.com/justiceforpashtuns.

Technology, too, plays an important role. "In the old days, a person would write about a convention and activists would photocopy it and pass it around", said movement leader Dawar. "Now, everyone is connected. Without social media, the movement would have been nothing". Crisis Group interview, Peshawar, April 2018.With videos of speeches circulating on social media, amid a military-imposed media blackout of movement coverage, one affiliated activist described the rallies as "alternative reporting, from the stage". Crisis Group interview, Islamabad, March 2018. The editorial of a major daily said: "The Pashtun protest has been essentially blacked out in the mainstream media. But the perseverance and social media savvy of the organisers meant that ignoring them was not an option". "The Pashtun protests", The News, 15 February 2018. See also, "PTM's continued media blackout", Daily Times, 9 April 2018.

The military has responded with a mix of coercion and attempts at compromise, including allowing use of the national identity card for travel to and within FATA, as opposed to the Watan card (identification cards for IDP compensation), as was previously required; closing some checkposts, removing some unexploded ordnance and demining some areas; releasing around 300 detainees from internment centres; and engaging in dialogue with the protesters. "Watan cards to be replaced by CNICs in FATA", The News, 16 February 2018; "Pashteen not among PTM men proposed for jirga", Dawn, 27 May 2018; "The Pashteen question", op. cit.The movement's leaders and activists believe that the military expected that the release of a few hundred detainees would placate it. But accounts of mistreatment of those released have fuelled demands for an end to enforced disappearances. Crisis Group interviews, Pashtun Tahafuz Movement leaders, activists, Islamabad, Peshawar, March-April 2018.

With the movement gaining strength, military leaders have accused it of being backed by anti-Pakistan countries and forces, an implicit reference to India. In April, army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa said the military would not allow "engineered protests" to reverse the gains of its counter-terrorism operations in FATA and cautioned the nation not to forget the sacrifices of "real heroes". Bajwa said, "it has only been a short period of time that peace has returned to FATA, and some people have already started a movement. There are people, both on the inside and outside, who are bent on hurting the integrity of Pakistan". "Some people are bent on hurting Pakistan's integrity", The News, 13 April 2018; "'Engineered protests' won't be allowed, says army chief", Dawn, 13 April 2018.A Peshawar rally the same month, widely believed to be state-backed, condemned the movement and praised the armed forces for protecting the country, amid chants of "Pakistan Zindabad" (long live Pakistan). Similar rallies were held in Lahore. The Pakistan Tahafuz Movement was accused of receiving Indian funding and trying to tarnish the army's image. "Pakistan Zindabad Movement stages rally in Peshawar", The News, 4 April 2018; "Pashtuns stage 'Pakistan Zindabad' rally in Lahore", The News, 22 April 2018; "Pakistan Zindabad movement stages rallies in KP, Fata", The News, 23 April 2018.

One Pashtun political party, the Balochistan-based Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, has strongly backed Pashteen's movement. But the movement has created a dilemma for it and other nationalist Pashtun parties, including the Awami National Party. Large numbers of grassroots party cadres are also Pashtun Tahafuz Movement activists. "Political parties have gone into the background, and [non-party] people taken the lead", said a senior Awami National Party leader and former senator. Crisis Group interview, Islamabad, February 2018.Yet all major political parties, Pashtun or otherwise, and even the military, have had to respond to a galvanised civil society's demands for constitutional protections and freedoms in FATA.

IV. Reforming FATA

FATA reform was part of the National Action Plan against terrorism formulated after the December 2014 Peshawar Army Public School attack, an implicit recognition that FATA's tenuous governance had contributed in large part to the spread of militancy. This effort built on an existing consensus among almost all major parties on the importance of extending the state's reach and dispelling local grievances in FATA. Earlier reform efforts by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) governments included extending the adult franchise to FATA in 1996-1997 and allowing political parties to operate there while also removing some of the Frontier Crimes Regulations' more egregious elements in 2011. Crisis Group Report, Countering Militancy in FATA, op. cit.; "Far-reaching FATA reforms unveiled", Dawn, 14 August 2011.

In November 2015, then-prime minister Nawaz Sharif established a committee on FATA reforms, chaired by his foreign affairs adviser Sartaj Aziz. The committee produced a report in August 2016, recommending "a gradual and phased approach", including abolishing the Frontier Crimes Regulations and merging FATA with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The five-year transitional period foresaw the return of IDPs, reconstruction, socio-economic development and local elections as precursors to legal and constitutional reforms, while retaining Article 247 of the constitution. As with past reforms, the military resisted even this modest proposal, refusing to cede control over this strategic territory. Article 247 of Pakistan's constitution said, "no act of parliament shall apply to any Federally Administered Tribal Area or to any part thereof, unless the President so directs".

Pressure from FATA's civil society, in large part propelled by the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement's grassroots mobilisation, produced momentum for more comprehensive reform, persuading even the military that it would have to loosen its hold on the tribal areas. According to a senior Pashtun nationalist, "without any doubt the movement's pressure has been the most decisive factor in forcing all players to stop blocking reforms  the security establishment, which was initially hesitant about the merger of FATA in Pakhtunkhwa, reconsidered in view of the ever-deepening alienation among the Pashtun youth of FATA. It was afraid of the backlash to the flawed state policies". Khattak, "Pantomime of FATA reforms", op. cit. Crisis Group interviews, lawyer activists, FATA, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Islamabad, Peshawar, May-June 2018. Fahad Ikram Ghani, "A step towards progress", The News on Sunday, 10 June 2018.

In late May 2018, the week they were ending their five-year term, the national and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies passed the 31st amendment that repealed Article 247 of the constitution and merged FATA with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Constitution (Thirty-first Amendment) Act, 2018 at www.na.gov.pk. "KP-Fata bill sails through Senate", The News, 26 May 2018; "KP assembly approves landmark bill merging Fata with province", Dawn, 27 May 2018. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA) were also merged with the province. Until the passage of the 31st amendment, laws in PATA only applied if specified by the governor  the federation's representative  and consented to by the president. See Crisis Group Report, Countering Militancy in PATA, op. cit.Article 247's repeal allows those assemblies to legislate for FATA and extends the jurisdiction of the higher judiciary to the tribal areas, with any new government action, law or regulation reviewable by the Peshawar high court and Supreme Court. On 13 April 2018, the Senate had approved the National Assembly's 12 January bill extending the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and Peshawar High Court to FATA. Yet, until the repeal of Article 247, this jurisdiction could only be extended to those areas notified by the federal government. "Bill extending PHC, SC jurisdiction to Fata passed by National Assembly", Dawn, 12 January 2018; "Senate approves bill extending SC, PHC powers to Fata", The News, 14 April 2018.Elections in the tribal agencies (renamed "districts") for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa legislature are to be held within a year of the 25 July general elections. Local polls are planned for October this year. National Assembly members elected from FATA in July 2018 are to serve until the next general elections in 2023, when 23 legislators are to be elected from the tribal districts. FATA senators will continue to serve until the end of their terms. Senators serve for six years but by law half of them must retire every three years. A ballot is held to determine which will retire and which will serve their full terms.

FATA's merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa appears now to be irreversible; no party is likely to propose an amendment to turn back the clock because of the broad-based support the reform enjoys. But the region's incorporation into the political, legal and constitutional mainstream has been adversely affected by the final presidential ordinance promulgated under Article 247, replacing the Frontier Crimes Regulations with an equally draconian FATA Interim Governance Regulation. The differences between the two are cosmetic. The senior-most federal bureaucrat in a tribal district (formerly tribal agency) is now called a deputy commissioner, rather than a political agent, but retains many of the same powers, including the authority to arrest men between the ages of sixteen and 65 who "are acting in a hostile, subversive or offensive manner towards the State or any person residing within the settled area of Pakistan". FATA Interim Governance Regulation, 2018. Text provided to Crisis Group.

Political parties, backed by civil society, had thwarted an earlier bid in parliament (proposed by the Aziz-led FATA Reforms Committee) to replace the Frontier Crimes Regulations with a Rewaj Act. Ismail Khan, "The final frontier", in "The Fata merger: Towards a brave new world", Dawn, 12 December 2017.Mohammad Ali Wazir, a Pashtun Tahafuz Movement leader whose immediate family members were killed for opposing the TTP, said: "There are so many different power centres  maliks, political agents, militants, army, Frontier Corps, FCR, rewaj, each with a different set of rules  and all we get is chaos. Give us one system. Don't have us running around like wild cats". Crisis Group interview, Islamabad, March 2018.The onus of repealing the Interim Governance Regulation is now on the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assembly since the president, after signing the 31st amendment, no longer has jurisdiction over FATA. FATA Interim Governance Regulation, 2018, op. cit.

Since Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's 2017 police act now applies to the tribal belt, the federal government should disband the tribal levies. Tehreek-i-Insaf's provincial government should incorporate their personnel into the provincial police force, and also provide the police with the resources it needs for its additional responsibilities in the tribal belt. FATA residents, who will now vote for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assembly, will hold the provincial government accountable if they do not see improvements in the security of the tribal areas. Indeed, delaying FATA's full political, administrative and legal integration into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will further estrange many inhabitants of the tribal areas, who have little patience left after decades of living as second-class citizens in Pakistan. Failing to respond to FATA's civil society demands for full citizenship rights and protections will erode the authority of the national and provincial governments and could allow militants to profit from the resultant alienation.

V. Moving Forward

The 31st amendment is a welcome step forward. In the words of one major daily newspaper's editorial: "History has been made. FATA is no more  the people of the region now have formal access to the constitutional and political rights that are legally available to all citizens of Pakistan". Editorial, "Fata's historical transition", Dawn, 29 May 2018.Yet much more needs to be done to end FATA's political and economic isolation, reverse policies that have eroded rights and livelihoods, and prevent militants from taking advantage of disaffection. A member of FATA's youth forum said, "at least if we're now asked where we are from, we can say Pakhtunkhwa and not a region that lay beyond the pale in Pakistan". Crisis Group interview, Islamabad, June 2018.So long as the military maintains arbitrary restrictions on movement, elected representatives, journalists and civil society activists will be unable to assess the implementation of reforms.

The military and civil bureaucracies still seem unwilling to allow such access or even to let locals assemble freely, and instead appear bent on suppressing peaceful dissent. In early June, Pashtun Tahafuz Movement leader Mohsin Dawar was banned from visiting his hometown in North Waziristan for three months on the grounds that he was "acting in a manner prejudicial to public peace and tranquillity". But the protesters at his rally had been peaceful, unlike the pro-state militia that attacked movement activists in South Waziristan's administrative headquarters, Wana, killing two and injuring 25. Rather than discipline the militiamen, the state temporarily banned peaceful protests. The militia reportedly belongs to Maulvi Nazir's "good" Taliban faction. The South Waziristan notification said, "reports have been received that certain elements are resorting to objectionable, prejudicial hate speeches against state institutions". Cited in "One-month ban on public gatherings, rallies in South Waziristan following 'anti-state' speeches", Dawn, 10 June 2018. See also "2 PTM activists killed in firing by local Taliban", The News, 4 June 2018; "PTM activist Mohsin Dawar banned in North Waziristan", The Express Tribune, 8 June 2018; "PTM leader banished from N. Waziristan for three months", The News, 9 June 2018.

Superior court jurisdiction will likely check FATA's unaccountable civil bureaucracy, whose actions can now be challenged before independent judges rather than executive tribunals. But the judiciary will have to prove it is capable of upholding the constitutional rights and protections now extended to FATA's residents, including freedoms of movement, speech and association.

Moreover, the federal and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments should take urgent steps to develop the region, which has the worst socio-economic indicators in the country, and has been devastated by conflict. There is a major plan for multi-year funding of FATA's development but no guarantee that the money will arrive. The incoming National Financial Commission should quickly reach agreement on such funding. In its last meeting in May, the National Economic Council agreed on a ten-year, multi-billion-rupee development plan (based on a 3 per cent share of the National Finance Commission award for FATA), to be implemented in three phases. The federal government would provide 43 per cent of finances and the provinces would provide the rest through their share of the Commission's award. Thirty per cent would be spent through elected local bodies. As yet there are no legal or written guarantees of such funds. Ghani Ghazan Jamal, "Developing FATA: Where are the funds?", Dawn, 10 June 2018; Rahimullah Yusufzai, "Is the euphoria of the historic merger over?", The News, 10 June 2018.Islamabad and Peshawar should also consult FATA stakeholders on reconstruction, rehabilitation and development, and ensure the availability of fiscal resources.

VI. Conclusion

The previous federal and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments fulfilled a major commitment to ending FATA's constitutional limbo. Their successors cannot blame insecurity or seek other justifications for delaying FATA's integration into the mainstream. To be sure, the task will require resources, further reforms and, above all, stamina in the face of bureaucratic resistance. Though the principle of integration is now firmly established, the civil and military bureaucracies and the tribal elite will likely seek only partial reforms that retain the current governing structure. Yet, as the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement's popularity demonstrates, those bureaucracies' authority in FATA has waned. With public expectations raised by the merger and the repeal of Article 247, stalling would likely provoke significant backlash.

If the civil bureaucracy is averse to losing the benefits of the status quo, the military is averse to loosening its grip upon a territory that it still uses to promote what it perceives as Pakistan's national security interests, including through support for the Afghan Taliban and local militant proxies. But opportunities for breaking its hold are greater today than at any time before, given the 31st amendment, and civil society's demands for an end to conflict in the tribal belt, which have broad backing in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and indeed countrywide. Addressing a rally, Pashteen said, "since 2014, due to terror and in the name of terror, the common people have suffered in our land [FATA]. The constitution and the law of this country needs to be respected". "Young activists, fed up with alleged abuses, challenge Pakistan's military", Wall Street Journal, 11 May 2018.If the Tehreek-i-Insaf government prevaricates, it will squander a critical opportunity to strengthen its own standing in FATA and to stabilise the conflict-prone region.

Brussels, 20 August 2018
Lexington, MO -- (ReleaseWire) -- 09/12/2018 --The Lafayette-Lexington Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Chapter will be hosting a rededication at 10am on September 17th, 2018 to mark the 90th year anniversary of the Missouri Madonna of the Trail monument in Lexington, Missouri. The Missouri "Madonna" is one of twelve monuments to the pioneer mothers along the National Old Trails Roads which ran through Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and California.



The Madonna of the Trail is a pioneer woman clasping her baby with her young son clinging to her skirts. The face of the mother, strong in character, beauty and gentleness, is the face of a mother who realized her responsibilities and trusts in God. It has a feeling of solidity - a monument which will stand through the ages. The figure of the mother is of heroic proportions, standing18 feet tall in totality and made primarily of Missouri granite.



The organizing chairman, LaVeda Cross, has been the MSSDAR State Chairman of the Madonna of the Trail monument in Lexington, MO since 2002. She was the organizing chairman of the 75th, 80th and present time the 90th rededication. She oversaw the planning and dedication ceremony in 2006 of an historical marker for "The Madonna." Cross reflects, "Each dedication has made it's own history."



"It's exciting for me to be have been a part of all of the rededications," Cross said. "I have grown to love the monument, as you can imagine. Having reached the grand old age of 85, I am not sure I will be the one planning the 100th!"



Originally, the monument was dedicated on September 17th, 1928 by Judge Harry Truman, who later became 33rd President of the United States of America. The monument faces ever Westward, almost midpoint on the Old Jack's Ferry Road leading down to the Missouri River in Lexington, where U.S. Highway 24 and State Highway 13 meet.



In 1909, a group of women joined together with an idea to locate the Old Santa Fe Trail in Missouri and mark the trail with monuments. The idea further developed into plans for an Ocean-to-Ocean Highway as a memorial to the Old Trails and our Nation's covered wagon days. In 1912, the National Old Trails Road Association came into being to assist the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) with the plan.



In 1924, the plan for the proposed monument was changed from a small cast iron marker on the Trails to a new plan which involved the erection of 12 large markers. In 1927, "The Madonna of the Trail" was accepted by the DAR's 36th Continental Congress as the monument that would connect each of the 12 states through which the National Old Trails Road passes. The Association, under the guidance of its president Judge Harry S. Truman, guaranteed the expense of erecting the monuments.



A Lexington woman, Ms. Mary B. China Chiles, who was Regent of the Lafayette-Lexington Chapter DAR at the time, diligently devised a creative pamphlet listing twenty three reasons for placing Missouri's DAR monument "The Pioneer Mother" at Lexington. The pamphlet was submitted to Mrs. John Trigg Moss, General Chairman of the National Old Trails Committee DAR in August of 1927. Among the reasons given was Lexington's location on the original Old Trails Road, laid out in 1821 by the first court of Lafayette County. Also, Lexington had led the fight for the first cross-state highway designated in 1911, and the Santa Fe Trail and Boone Slick Road Association, formed in Lexington, was the precursor of the National Old Trails Road Association.



Missouri's Madonna of the Trail was the fourth monument to be dedicated. The final monument was dedicated at Bethesda, Maryland in the week of April 19th, 1929. This completed the memorialization of the trail of a young nation as they traveled across the Allegheny Mountains to make their homes in the great western wilderness.



About Lexington, Missouri

Meticulously preserved on the river bluff, Lexington offers a chance to experience the vast treasures of our shared national heritage. Small-town charm permeates the streets of Lexington, and our visitors feel a belonging with our community as we graciously open our doors to share the ways of the past. Our community cherishes our history and brings it to life through high-quality, intimate living history events. We hope you'll join us to share in the stories that are deeply woven into the tapestry of our nation. Lexington is your gateway to Lafayette County. Contact us for information on Civil War events, attractions, lodging, dining, events, group tour itineraries, step-on guides and tour arrangements.
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Australia will on Wednesday see September results for the consumer confidence index from Westpac, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.

In August, the index sank a seasonally adjusted 2.3 percent to a score of 103.6.

Japan will release Q3 numbers for the all industry and large manufacturing indexes from BSI; in the three months prior, both indexes fell 3.2 percent on quarter.

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Australia will on Thursday release unemployment figures for August, highlighting a busy day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.

The jobless rate is expected to hold steady at 5.3 percent, with the addition of 18,000 jobs following the loss of 3,900 jobs in July. The participation rate is called at 65.6 percent, up from 65.5 percent.

Japan will provide July numbers for core machine orders and August data for producer prices.

Machine orders are tipped to gain 5.5 percent on month and 4.3 percent on year after tumbling 8.8 percent on month and adding 0.3 percent on year in June.

Producer prices are called steady on year at 3.1 percent, and to advance 1.0 percent on month after gaining 0.5 percent in July.

Hong Kong will release Q2 figures for industrial production; in the three months prior, industrial production was up 1.3 percent on quarter and 1.1 percent on year.

New Zealand will see food price numbers for August; in July, prices were up 0.7 percent on month.

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Sempra Energy (SRE) announced that its Mexican subsidiary, Infraestructura Energetica Nova, S.A.B. de C.V., has signed a long-term contract with British Petroleum (BP) for the remaining 50 percent of the initial capacity of the proposed Baja Refinados liquid fuels marine terminal in Baja California, Mexico.

Under the agreement, BP will have storage capacity of 500,000 barrels of liquid fuels to supply its growing network of service stations in northern Mexico. In addition, subject to the execution of certain agreements, BP will have the option to acquire up to 25 percent of the terminal's equity after commercial operations begin in the second half of 2020.

In April, IEnova announced it signed a long-term contract with Chevron Combustibles de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V for approximately 50 percent of the facility's initial storage capacity to supply Chevron service stations and other commercial and industrial consumers.

IEnova will be responsible for the development of the liquid fuels terminal project, including financing, obtaining permits, engineering, procurement and construction, as well as maintenance and operations. The project will be located at the La Jovita Energy Hub in Ensenada and have an initial capacity of 1 million barrels of liquid fuels, with the potential for future expansion.

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Business News
French stocks rose sharply on Wednesday as investors shrugged off trade worries and looked ahead to meetings from the European Central Bank and Bank of England on Thursday for directional cues.

Global financial system is now better prepared to face another crisis, if and when it occurs, Chair of the Supervisory Board of the European Central Bank Daniele Nouy told the French newspaper Les Echos during an interview, the text of which was published today on the ECB website.

The benchmark CAC 40 was up 48 points or 0.91 percent at 5,331 in opening deals after rising 0.3 percent on Tuesday.

Handbag maker Hermes International advanced 1.5 percent after posting record first-half earnings.

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Oil held steady near its highest level this year on Wednesday as investors weighed the impact of the Iran sanctions. A report showing declining U.S. crude inventories also supported prices.

Benchmark Brent crude was marginally higher at $79.08 a barrel after touching as high as $79.66 earlier in the day, the highest since late May, when the price broke above $80 a barrel. U.S. crude futures were up 53 cents at $69.78 a barrel.

U.S. crude supplies dropped by 8.6 million barrels in the week to Sept. 7 to 395.9 million, the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported on Tuesday. Supply data from the Energy Information Administration will be released later today.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Tuesday cut its forecast for U.S. crude output growth in 2019, while leaving 2018 production and demand growth forecasts unchanged.

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Market Analysis
Developments in China are a source of one of the bigger risks for the global , Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said.

"China is a great source of growth for the global economy, it is an absolute economic miracle, lots of positives," Carney said in an interview to BBC to mark the 10th anniversary of the global financial crisis.

"At the same time, their financial sector has developed very rapidly and it has made many of the same assumptions that were made in the run-up to the last financial crisis."

The level of debt in China is "enormous relative to the size of the economy", Carney pointed out.

The central banker cautioned that a global financial crisis could be repeated if the financial community turned complacent.

Chancellor Philip Hammond announced on Tuesday that Carney will stay at the helm of the central bank until the end of January 2020 to support a smooth Brexit and transition.



The UK is set to exit the European Union in March 2019.

Since the global financial crisis 10 year ago, British households have worked very hard to pay off debt and have put themselves and the economy in a better position, Carney noted.



Even then, "the level of debt is still relatively high" and "there are pockets where there is quite significant debt", causing concern for the central bank, the BoE Chief added.

Compared to the situation before the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the financial sector is aware and better equipped to deal with risks, especially those that could arise from Brexit, Carney said.

"We have stressed tested our banks against those risks to make sure they have enough of a safety net both in terms of their own funds and liquid funds and in case we have a no-deal Brexit," he added.

The BoE Governor has not ruled out a no-deal Brexit and has warned earlier that the economy would suffer a shock if that is the case.

Carney acknowledged that cyber attacks on banks were a new class of risk that evolved over the past decade and banks must have plans to deal with one.

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Business News
The Canadian stock market is likely to open on a cautious note, with investors tracking the developments with regard to U.S.-China trade disputes, and the trend in commodity prices.

After six successive days of losses, the market saw edged higher on bargain hunting at a few counters on Tuesday. More gains are likely for some shares which were hammered down heavily last week. However, buying interest is likely to remain subdued at higher levels due to trade war concerns.

According to media reports, China is putting off accepting license applications from American businesses hoping to operate in the country, as the Trump administration prepares to impose tariffs on all $500 billion-plus imports from China.

Already, China said on Tuesday that it would seek permission from the World Trade Organization next week to impose sanctions on U.S. goods in retaliation for Washington's non-compliance with a ruling in a dispute over dumping duties.

Meanwhile, with regards to NAFTA, reports indicate that Ottawa may offer the United States limited access to the Canadian dairy market as a concession in negotiations to remake the trade agreement.

On the economic front, a report on capacity utilization rate in the second quarter, will be out before trading hours, at 8:30 AM ET.

On Tuesday, the benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended up 37.16 points, or 0.23%, at 16,094.25, snapping a six-day losing streak. The index scaled a low of 15,975.75 and a high of 16,111.65 intraday.

In company news, TD Bank Group has entered into a commercial licensing agreement with The Hydrogen Technology Corporation to use Hydrogen's to offer clients who invest with TD a complete, end-to-end digital investing experience.

Roots (ROOT.TO) reported adjusted EBITDA of $32,000 for the second quarter, compared to $1.3 million in the year-ago quarter. Net Loss per share was $0.06 in the second quarter, compared to $0.03 per share last year.

New Gold Inc. (NGD.TO) announced that it has appointed Renaud Adams as the new President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, effective September 12, 2018.

Canada Goose (GOOS.TO) on Tuesday opened its third manufacturing facility in Winnipeg, the company's largest to date, which will employ more than 700 new employees over the next three years.

Asian ended on a muted note on Wednesday.

European markets were slightly higher, with investors shrugging off trade worries and looking ahead to European Central Bank and Bank of England's policy meetings, scheduled for Thursday.

Global financial system is now better prepared to face another crisis, if and when it occurs, Chair of the Supervisory Board of the European Central Bank Daniele Nouy told the French newspaper Les Echos during an interview, the text of which was published today on the ECB website.

In economic news from Europe, a report from Eurostat said Eurozone industrial production decreased for the second straight month in July, declining by 0.8% month-on-month, the same pace of decline as seen a month earlier. Economists had forecast a moderate drop of 0.5%.

In U.S. economic news, data on Producer Prices for the month of August is due for release at 8:30 AM ET.

In commodities, crude oil futures for October delivery were moving up $0.70, or 1.01%, at $69.95 a barrel.

Natural Gas futures for October were up $0.012, or 0.42%, at $2.840 per million btu.

Gold futures for December were down $2.80, or 0.23%. at $1,199.40 an ounce.

Silver futures for December were down marginally at $14.150 an ounce, while Copper futures were edging up $0.013, or 0.51%, to $2.635 per pound.

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Business News
PacWest Bancorp (PACW) has agreed to acquire El Dorado Savings Bank, F.S.B. in a transaction valued at about $466.7 million, the two companies said Wednesday.

Under terms of the deal, El Dorado stockholders will receive 58.2209 shares of PacWest common stock and $427.92 in cash for each share of El Dorado, subject to adjustment in certain circumstances.

Based on PacWest's September 11, 2018 closing price of $50.04, the total value of the merger consideration is $3,341.29 per El Dorado share. The consideration mix would result in a total of about $59.8 million in cash and $406.9 million in PacWest shares.

The companies noted that the transaction is intended to qualify as a tax-free reorganization for U.S. federal income tax purposes and El Dorado stockholders are not expected to recognize gain or loss to the extent of the stock consideration received.

El Dorado, headquartered in Placerville, CA, is a federally chartered savings bank founded in 1958, with about $2.2 billion in assets and 35 branches located primarily in eight Northern California counties and two Northern Nevada counties.

In connection with the transaction, El Dorado will be merged into Pacific Western Bank, the principal operating subsidiary of PacWest Bancorp.

The transaction, which was approved by the PacWest and El Dorado boards of directors, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2019. It is subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by El Dorado's stockholders.

As of June 30, 2018 on a pro forma consolidated basis, the combined company would have about $26.7 billion in assets and 110 branches. No El Dorado branches are expected to be consolidated as a result of the agreement.

PacWest also said it does not expect any El Dorado branches will be closed as a result of the merger.

John Cook, President of El Dorado, will assume the position of Regional President of the Central Valley-Sierra Region of Pacific Western Bank's Community Bank Division upon closing of the merger.

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Business News
Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by market capitalization, has extended its partnership with the Malta Stock Exchange (MSE) to launch a new security token exchange in support of Malta's "Blockchain Island" initiative.

MSE's investment vehicle MSX was created in July to seek such partnerships with leading crypto exchanges to create joint ventures in the country.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to create the new platform was signed by MSE Chairman Joseph Portelli and Binance CFO Wei Zhou in Valletta, Malta.

The new exchange will leverage Binance's digital asset operations and security expertise, along with the MSE's extensive experience in regulatory compliance and client due diligence.

Hong Kong-based Binance set up an operational base in crypto-friendly Malta in late March after it fell out of favor with the Japanese financial regulator for failing to get a license to operate in the country.

Later in June, the two parties joined forces to create the MSX FinTech Accelerator Programme, a startup accelerator to focus primarily on fintech and blockchain projects.

Binance also announced plans to expand further after Malta by agreeing to develop a compliance base and open a cryptocurrency exchange in Channel Islands Jersey.

In mid-July, Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange OKEx also had partnered with MSX to launch a new institutional grade security-tokens trading platform. The new OKMSX platform will be launched by the first quarter of 2019 to service its global clients from Malta.

Malta is welcoming cryptocurrency and blockchain businesses as the small Mediterranean island nation plans to transform itself into a fintech hub and a crypto-friendly "Blockchain island."

Malta is actively building a supportive regulatory and technical infrastructure for Distributed Ledger Technology (DLTs), ICOs and virtual currencies to become the world's first blockchain-regulated state.

On July 4, the Maltese parliament passed three bills to set a regulatory framework and drive innovation in blockchain-like technologies. The government hopes these laws will attract foreign fintech companies to establish themselves in the country.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
President Donald Trump has named 23 countries, including India and Pakistan, as major drug transit or illicit drug producing countries.

Other countries in the list are Afghanistan, The Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Myanmar, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela.

Trump designated Bolivia and Venezuela as countries that have failed demonstrably during the previous 12 months to adhere to their obligations under international counternarcotics agreements and to take the measures required by the Foreign Relations Authorization Act.

The President expressed deep concern that illicit drug crops have expanded over successive years in Colombia, Mexico, and Afghanistan, and are now at record levels.

He noted that heroin originating from Mexico and cocaine from Colombia are claiming thousands of lives annually in the United States. Afghanistan's illicit opium promotes corruption, funds the Taliban, and undermines that country's security, which thousands of United States service men and women help defend.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
Crude oil prices climbed higher on Wednesday, aided by data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration that showed a notable drop in crude inventories last week.

Concerns about the likely impact of hurricane Florence, that is moving towards the east coast of the United States, and U.S. sanctions on Iran also contributed to oil's rise.

Crude oil futures for October delivery ended up $1.12, or 1.6%, at $70.37 a barrel, the best settlement price in about eight weeks.

On Tuesday, crude oil futures ended up $1.70, or 2.5%, at $69.25 a barrel, snapping a four-day losing streak.

According to the weekly report released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, crude oil inventories dropped by 5.296 million barrels in the week ended September 7, much more than what analysts had expected. Meanwhile, supplies at Cushing, Oklahoma, were down by 1.242 million barrels last week, the EIA report revealed.

The report said that the total U.S. crude oil inventories as of last week, at 396.2 million barrels, was about 3% below the five year average for this time of the year.

Gasoline inventories were up by 1.250 million barrels last week, as compared to expectations for a build of 1.321 million barrels. Distillate stockpiles were up by 6.163 million barrels, more than four times the anticipated rise.

On Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute had reported that crude supplies decreased by 8.636 million barrels last week.

It is feared that hurricane Florence, which is headed towards South and North Carolina may cause flooding and power interruptions and result in the shutting down of Colonial Pipeline. With people looking to stock up gasoline ahead of the storm, demand for crude has shot up.

To make up for the shortfall in supply due to sanctions against Iranian oil, U.S. President Donald Trump has been encouraging Russia and Saudi Arabia to increase crude output.

According to reports, U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry met with Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih on Monday in Washington and discussed the state of world oil . Perry is scheduled to meet the Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak, on Thursday in Moscow, to discuss proposals for sharing technologies and boost output, the report said.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Market Analysis
After snapping a six-day losing streak and ending modestly higher on Tuesday, the Canadian stock market faltered on Wednesday, as investors chose to stay away on the sidelines due to persistent worries about trade war.

Materials stocks saw some brisk buying as gold futures edged higher after the U.S. dollar weakened against some major currencies. Healthcare stocks were the other notable gainers. A few stocks from consumer discretionary sectors also edged higher. Financials, industrial and telecom stocks were weak, while energy and consumer staples stocks turned in a mixed performance.

According to media reports, China is putting off accepting license applications from American businesses hoping to operate in the country, as the Trump administration prepares to impose tariffs on all $500 billion-plus imports from China.

Already, China said on Tuesday that it would seek permission from the World Trade Organization next week to impose sanctions on U.S. goods in retaliation for Washington's non-compliance with a ruling in a dispute over dumping duties.

Meanwhile, with regards to NAFTA, reports indicate that Ottawa may offer the United States limited access to the Canadian dairy market as a concession in negotiations to remake the trade agreement.

On the economic front, a report from Statistics Canada this morning showed that Canadian industrial capacity utilization rose to 85.5% in the second quarter. Economists had expected a rate of 86.9%.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 45.23 points, or 0.28%, at 16,049.02, after scaling a low of 15,993.58 and a high of 16,096.09 intraday. On Tuesday, the index ended up 37.16 points, or 0.23%, at 16,094.25, snapping a six-day losing streak.

The Capped Materials Index gained 1.86%. Barrick Gold Corporation (ABX.TO) advanced by 2.6%, Teck Resources (TECK.B.TO) gained about 3%, Franco-Nevada Corporation (FNV.TO) jumped 5.2%, Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. (WPM.TO) climbed up 2.7%, Goldcorp Inc. (G.TO) added 1.3%, Kinross Gold (K.TO) gained 3%, First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) gained 3.8%, Lundin Mining Corporation (LUN.TO) moved up nearly 4% and Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM.TO) advanced by 2.5%.

Energy stocks Encana Corporation (ECA.TO), Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ.TO), Suncor Energy (SU.TO) declined by 0.7% to 1%, while Crescent Point Energy (CP.TO) gained 0.8%.

The Capped Healthcare Index gained 1.15%. Bausch Health Companies Inc. (BHC.TO) shot up by 12.8%. The company announced on Tuesday that it has paid down an additional $57 million of its senior secured term loans and $50 million of its revolver borrowings, using cash on hand.

The stock's rise was also due to Bausch and Salix's licensors Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Alfasigma SpA agreeing to resolve the outstanding intellectual property litigation with Actavis Laboratories FL, Inc., regarding

Rrifaximin 550 mg tablets.

Aphria Inc. (APH.TO) declined by 3.6%, Knight Therapeutics Inc. (GUD.TO) ended lower by about 2% and Extendicare Inc. (EXE.TO) edged down by 1.2%.

Among bank stocks, Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO), Toronto Dominion Bank (TD.TO), Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO), Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM.TO) and Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) declined by 0.5% - 1%. while National Bank of Canada (NA.TO) edged down marginally.

Among other , Wall Street showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading session before ending the day roughly flat.

Markets in Europe moved sideways on Wednesday, but the majority managed to end the day with modest gains. The mood was largely cautious ahead of policy decisions from both the European Central Bank and the Bank of England on Thursday.

Asian stocks ended on a muted note on Wednesday after China said it would seek permission from the World Trade Organization next week to impose sanctions on U.S. goods in retaliation for Washington's non-compliance with a ruling in a dispute over dumping duties.

In economic news from U.S., data released by the Labor Department said producer prices unexpectedly saw a modest decrease in the month of August. The Labor Department's producer price index for final demand edged down by 0.1% in August after coming in unchanged in July. Economists had expected prices to rise by 0.2%,

Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve's Beige Book said the U.S. expanded at a moderate pace through the end of August. The Fed's Beige Book is a compilation of anecdotal evidence on economic conditions in the twelve Fed

districts released shortly before the central bank makes its decision on monetary policy.

In news from Eurozone, industrial production decreased for the second straight month in July, Eurostat reported.

Industrial output slid 0.8% month-on-month in July, the same pace of decline as seen in June. Economists had forecast a moderate drop of 0.5%.

In commodities, crude oil futures for October delivery delivery ended up $1.12, or 1.6%, at $70.37 a barrel, the best settlement price in about eight weeks, after data from EIA showed a notable drop in inventories.

Natural gas for October was down marginally at $2.825 per million btu.

Gold futures for December gained $8.70, or 0.7%, a they settled at $1,210.90 an ounce, the best settlement price in two weeks.

Silver futures for December edged up by $0.140 to $14.293 an ounce, while Copper futures for December settled at $2.6760 per pound, gaining $0.0545 for the session.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Market Analysis


Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa Rafale jets will power the Indian Air Force (IAF) to fight "grave threats" India faces from Pakistan and China, Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa said on Wednesday, strongly batting for the French-made fourth generation aircraft whose purchase has triggered allegations of financial irregularities. The IAF chief said that by acquiring the French fighters, the IAF would also be able strengthen its depleting fleet of fighters at a time when India's neighbours were "not sitting idle" and continuously modernizing their air warfare capabilities.



Speaking at a seminar here, Air Chief Marshal Dhanoa said the Russian-made S-400 Triumf advanced air defence systems to be bought from Moscow would also enhance the capability of the air force.



"By providing the Rafale and the S-400 (anti-missile system), the government is strengthening the IAF to counter the shortfall of our depleting numbers of aircraft," he said.



"The hi-tech fighters like Rafale are needed because medium-tech fighters like Tejas alone cannot do."



He said the IAF was already down with only 31 squadrons from the sanctioned strength of 42. "Even when we do have 42 (squadrons), we will be below the combined strength of our two adversaries," he said, adding that the gap was being "partially fulfilled by getting the hi-tech aircraft.



"The question that is asked very often in public domain is why 42 squadrons when older aircraft like MiG-21s are being replaced by more capable aircraft.



"There are reasons (for that) because our neighbours are not sitting idle. Pakistan has upgraded F-16s and made them 4.5 generation as far as avionic electronics goes and is inducting JF-17 (from China) in large numbers.



"China is rapidly replacing its 2nd and 3rd generation fighters with 4th generation fighters and is developing 5th generation fighter which is likely to be deployed very soon."



He said very few countries were facing challenges like India, which is surrounded by "two nuclear-armed neighbours".



"We have to match neighbours Pakistan and China to tackle a two-front war. Intentions of our adversaries can change overnight. We need to match force level of our adversaries," he said.



The IAF chief's comments come a day after former Bharatiya Janata Party ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie alleged Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "personal culpability" in the Rafale deal which they dubbed as the country's "biggest defence scam".



The procurement of 36 Rafale fighters from France's Dassault Aviation has come under fire from the Congress, alleging that the Modi government had compromised national security and bought the bombers at a higher price than what the UPA had negotiated with the French government.



Earlier this month, IAF Vice Chief Air Marshal S.B. Deo too endorsed the Rafale, saying the aircraft will give India "unprecedented combat capabilities".




Hours after fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya said he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday demanded Jaitley's resignation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi should order an "independent probe" into the matter, he said.



"Given Vijay Mallya's extremely serious allegations in London, the PM should immediately order an independent probe into the matter. Jaitley should step down as Finance Minister while this probe is underway," said Gandhi in Twitter.



The fugitive liquor baron, wanted in India for his alleged role in a multi-crore bank loan fraud case, claimed that he had met the Finance Minister before leaving India in 2016 and made an offer of settlement.





"I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the Finance Minister before I left...repeated my offer to settle with the banks. That is the truth," he told reporters outside a Westminster court where he is contesting an extradition case filed by Indian authorities.



However, Jaitley rejected the Mallya's claim as factually false.



"My attention has been drawn to a statement made to the media by Vijay Mallya on having met me with an offer of settlement. The statement is factually false inasmuch as it does not reflect truth," he said in a Facebook post.
Re: About creation

Youre such a hypocrite. You insult my faith, then you say I insult you.

I answered every charge you made, then you become disingenuous and repeat the same argument, typical of you heathens when your arguments start to fall apart.

By the way, coffee has more caffeine then coke, not good for your heart. Also, coffee has carcinogens, which is why in America, Starbucks and other businesses are required to warn consumers of the risk of consuming coffee and other coffee containing products.

Its against church teachings to drink coffee, and what Ive stated above about the risks may very well be the reason for our abstinence from drinking coffee.

After all, it was Joseph Smith who said it was revealed to him through revelation that coffee is not for the body. Wow, how did an uneducated farm boy in the American frontier know carcinogens in coffee is not for you?

Scientists found this out more than a century after Smiths death. Smith beat the experts by more than a century.

Lastly, your Mormon friend is not ignorant, you are. The church says to use wisdom; otherwise, its not against church teachings to drink coke.

Like I said, genius, its up to the individual to drink coke or not. See why it seems Im insulting you? Because I keep repeating myself when you become disingenuous.

Cybornetic
Dear Editor

Re: Samoa must decide what faasamoa means, together

Modernity and the traditional faasamoa cultural settings have their contextual relevance from either a historical perspective which maybe considered best preserved in our past, from that of our traditional cultural settings, as likened to the contemporaries whom lived through those times.

We all progress throughout time, we do not have dial phones, nor have phone booths in most western societies, the chair was invented for a specific functional purpose, Japanese cultural traditions would not accept anyone sitting in a chair in a traditional Japanese traditional house.

However, in a Corporate Japanese Zaibatsu system, a suit and tie and corporate settings will dispense of the traditional attire, garbs, and tea ceremonies of the Bushido cultural rituals of the Samuri Japanese traditions.

In Samoan society, the clash of cultural traditions must be considered in a similar vein, as the comparable Japanese cultural settings.

We are well aware of modernity and all the modcons associated with this quality of life. We are also aware of our traditional cultural settings as well which is not particularly a conflicting juxtaposition with the traditional faasamoa ways and traditions.

There is no conflict at all, there is an acknowledgement of both Faasamoa and modern day living that we will simply assimilate into the Samoan lifestyle, whilst we should never shun nor forget our cultural traditions we do need to accept the modernity and simply integrate modernity to the Faasamoa way.

It;s a no brainer moot here.

As a side note, I was studying Samoan history in Samoa with Ioane Lafoai and Professor Aiono Fanaafi back in 1988-89, unfortunately, for myself, I was not privileged to ever make the acquaintance of Tagaloatele Professor Dunlop.

It would be remiss of me to not acknowledge a highly valued Samoan academic, but, I am a bygone era as well and have lived very much under a rock for all this time.

Ia soifua, ma ia manuia le faasoa i luga o le Samoa Observer.

Timoteo Tufuga
Businessman Kalapu Matiu was at a loss to explain how a landslide claimed the lives of three people including that of his brother-in-law at Tafua on Monday.

His company, Tausala Matiu Company, at Satupa'itea has interests in retail, taxis and brickmaking. It was their brickmaking venture that led to five men working at Tafua to mine soil on Monday when a landslide in the afternoon claimed the lives of three, injuring another two.

Deputy Police Commissioner Papalii Monalisa Keti, said they are investigating the deaths.

The Samoa Observer yesterday visited the residences of the men who passed away in Tafua and Satupaitea. Their families declined to comment.

One of the injured workers, who was released from hospital, could not be located. The second employee, who is currently under observation at Tuasivi hospital, refused to comment.

Speaking to the Samoa Observer during an interview at his residence in Satupaitea, Matiu was emotional and finding it difficult to come to terms with the loss of lives.

The five men who were on the site, three worked for me, one was my brother-in-law and the other one is the landowner. The extent of the landslide led to the death of my brother-in-law and one of the employees who passed away, he said, while fighting back tears.

Matiu said he found it difficult to tell his sister of her husbands death.

I want to express my deepest condolences to the grieving families of the men who passed away."

"I cannot find the words to soothe their pain and sorrow, but I can only pray for comfort for the families, he said.

I had to break the news to my sister that her husband will no longer come home to her and their child and because of this, I have opted not to get involved in the brick business. It is just too much to handle and I have made up my mind about it.

The landslide on Monday afternoon occurred minutes after he left the scene, he added, and was alerted to the disaster by a worker, who dug himself out of the dirt.

To be honest, I would have been under the pile of dirt as well, if I had stayed any longer, Matiu said.

I left and prior to reaching the house, I received a call from one of my employees  who managed to get out from under the pile  about what happened. I got in my truck and rushed back to scene to find the men were stuck, so we called the village for assistance.

The matter is now the subject of a Police investigation with the businessman indicating that he will wait to see the outcome of its findings.
Her fifth visit to Samoa didnt disappoint Sina Muavae of Auckland, New Zealand.

Its her first time to fly into Samoa with her husband and three months old baby for a vacation since her first visit six years.

Sina couldnt help but highlight the changes Samoa has undergone over the years, which she said is pleasant because Samoa still maintained its authenticity.

In her opinion, the way locals approach tourists has also changed.

The people behave differently because you are tourist, they are a bit shy but this is how they are.

Sina noted the increased number of new vegetarian cafes around town.

Here you have pretty much everything in terms of food, you can have local or European so its appropriate for everyone, she said.

They stay at the Taumeasina Island Resort and to them it is a little westernised.

This is great, it is very different, it is quite westernised, so it is changing quite a lot, it depends I guess what sort of feel you are going for when you come here for a holiday. If you want this or a resort experience or travelling outside around the island, she told the Dear Tourist team.

Regarding westernisation, she said: You dont want it to be too much like Fiji or Rarotonga that is the reason I always come to Samoa, which still gets this Pacific feeling.

But at the same time I think it is really good for the economy and people to have jobs etc. I guess it changes the appearance of Samoa, but I wouldnt say it is bad, its just different.

Sina said the changes to the tourism industry do not stop tourists from experiencing the real Samoa.

She praised the location of the Taumeasina Resort saying it is good because it is still in town and is not like other resorts that are situated far from where the locals are. For Sina, experiencing authenticity is important.

She said the village life hasnt changed slightly from what she recalls in her last visit.

People are still looking after their land and growing their own stuff, which is amazing. All these organic stuff are pretty much fresh from the land. The food here is amazing, seafood and fruits, taros, coconuts, she said.

This is Samoa no one wants it to disappear as long as there is a local balance and Samoas culture is maintained, it will be good. I will definitely come back, she said.
Prime Minister Tuilaepa Dr. Sailele Malielegaoi has lamented the sad state of family violence in Samoa, calling on the nation to acknowledge the suffering it has caused many generations past.

Tuilaepa issued the rallying call at the T.A.T.T.E. Building yesterday where he launched the Report of the National Public Inquiry into Family Violence. The findings in the report are alarming.

For instance, it shows that family violence affects almost all families in Samoa, with extremely high numbers of people experiencing extreme violence in their lifetime.

The report found that 9 in 10 women consulted during the Inquiry said they had experienced physical or emotional violence in the hands of family members. Six out of 10 women experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime.

But thats not all.

The rates of family violence in Samoa are higher than the global average, according to the report. The Inquiry survey of 1,500 found 86 percent of respondents have experienced physical violence in a family setting, and nearly one in ten Samoan women have been raped by a family member in their lifetime.

A study by the Ministry of Women in 2017 found that only 11 percent of victims report their experiences of family violence.

Now, the time for talking has to be over. After reading this Report, I hope and urge that we together take action to address this issue head on at last, Tuilaepa said.

As the leader of Samoa, I call upon everyone  our political leaders, traditional and religious leaders, fathers, and families to acknowledge the widespread pain and suffering in which we are all complicit.

Blame does not fall on the perpetrators alone. We all are party to a degree. Unknowingly, the seeds for this sad state of affairs have been sowing for many generations past.

Now, for the sake of the future, it is up to us and especially those in positions of power to stand up and be counted  to demonstrate our dedication to the faa-Samoa and Christian values upon which this country is founded. Enough is enough! It is time for us all to stand together for the sake of our future generations and say: I will not hide in the shadow of the tree.

Prime Minister Tuilaepa said the veil of silence hiding the realities of family violence is a menace to Samoans.

It violates the core principles and values of faaaloalo, va taupia, and alofa among others, which are the essence of our Faasamoa and Faith.

The relationship between the faasamoa and family violence is one explored in depth by the Inquiry, which found the faasamoa is simultaneously used to justify family violence and fails to protect people from violence.

This situation needs to be reversed  the justification of family violence using Faasamoa eradicated and the protection mechanisms re-established.

Neither of these goals are easy nor will they happen overnight, but they are possible.

Ombudsman and the Chairman of the Inquiry, Maiava Iulai Toma, said for Samoa to end the cycle of violence, everyone will need to undergo a process of self-education and self-discovery.

I too am new to this, but I have come to realise we cannot continue to ignore inequalities, he said.

One of the key themes that emerged from testimonies is that family violence thrives because it is kept behind closed doors, where perpetrators are allowed to continue under no threat of having to face up to their responsibility. It is about time that we openly talk about these issues, front up and allow the right thing to be done.

He further adds, the Government, the Village Fono, churches, parents, may see the findings and recommendations of the report as ceding authority, but this is not the case. In embracing the proposed societal, political and religious reforms, everybody in Samoa will further be empowered.

Research towards the report began in December 2016, and has been a process of consultations, village meetings, data driven research written submissions and more.

The Inquiry focuses on identifying who is most vulnerable to family violence and why, goes on to explore the impact of family violence, and possible solutions going forward and was conducted through a cultural and religious lens with an aim to find Samoan solutions to the problem of family violence.

Among many recommendations, the report suggests a centralised coordinated approach is needed to address such a multifaceted problem, with an Office for Family Violence under the Ministry for Women, Community and Social Development to link up existing programs and coordinate a future strategy towards making Samoa free of violence.

The only solution is for a complete rejection of family violence and the key message of the Office of Family Violence Prevention should be one of zero tolerance, the report states.

During the Inquiry, the Commissioners outlined the ways the Village Fono (Council) play a role in enabling family violence, and suggested they could actually do the opposite.

The report suggests a Violence Free Village Programme where the village council would develop zero tolerance policies and be rated by a scorecard for their compliance with prevention guidelines based on the inquiry.

Compilation of the report was supported by UN Women, United Nations Development Programme (U.N.D.P.), Asia Pacific Forum for National Human Rights Institutions (A.P.F.) and the Commonwealth Secretariat.

We thank our partners, without whom the Inquiry and Report would not have been made possible. Their support and technical assistance throughout this project further reaffirms their commitment to the protection of women, girls and children of Samoa from family violence and promotion of their human rights, said Maiava .

In a statement, Loukinikini Vili, Director of Human Rights at the Office of the Ombudsman/N.H.R.I., said that throughout the Inquiry it became increasingly apparent that family violence in some form has become an accepted part of life in Samoa.

It is something which is inevitable, tolerated or simply goes unnoticed. This in itself is a significant barrier to both reporting family violence and contributes to an ever worsening cycle of violence at a societal level, said Ms. Vili.

The Inquiry therefore provided a platform to inquire into reasons why this is the case and also identify existing structures and institutions (e.g. church and Fono a Alii ma Faipule) with potential to contribute to identifying solutions and effective actions to curb family violence.

The Report acknowledges greatly that changes to existing attitudes of our people and established practices will have to be made but in a society which values the collective above all else, this should be welcomed with open arms.

During the National Inquiry, which was open to the public, testimonies from stakeholders and survivors of violence against women and girls were heard over a three-weeks.

I want you to know that you are not broken, you are not worthless, and you are not to blame, said a survivor of child abuse during her powerful testimony at the Inquiry.

The Reports findings amplify to the broader public many of the existing  and some new - challenges ahead for Samoa to reduce its levels of violence against women and girls, said Ms. Vili.

Family violence impacts so many women and their families in Samoa, so it is positive the Inquiry has contributed to making this a national public health issue calling upon each and every one us to take an active role to help end this violation of human rights.

Copies of the National Inquiry into Family Violence Report are available at the Samoa Office of the Ombudsman/National Human Rights Institute (NHRI) and online [www.ombudsman.gov.ws]
The Ministry of Police have released the bodies of the three men who died in a landslide on Monday back to their families.

A coronial enquiry to investigate the cause of deaths is now set for mention on October 24, the Ministry advised in a statement yesterday.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, Papalii Monalisa Keti, told Samoa Observer that the police investigation will check whether there is criminal liability on the part of the business, which ran a brick-making company at Tafua and employed the three men.

The Ministry of Police identified the deceased as: 34-year-old Meki Matau of Tafua and Puipaa, 37-year-old Fogalefatu Tiatia of Gataivai and 42-year-old David Laloata from Tafua.

A preliminary police investigation indicated that a businessman from Satupaitea and seven of his workers went to mine soil from Tafua-tai, which the police believed may have caused the nearby embankment to cave in and bury the workers at around 2.00 pm on Monday. The seven were all taken to the Tuasivi hospital where three of them were declared dead on arrival.

In relation to the police sealing off the scene of the disaster, Papalii said it is unclear when that will be lifted.

The main reason behind the ban is for the safety of the public and the deaths thats occurred from this area.

Papalii said on the other environment issues that have been associated with the incident, the police will talk to the relevant ministries.

However for other environmental issues we will talk to the relevant ministries whose expertise falls specifically in this area.
Commercial farms became sites of intrigue and education recently as participants of the inaugural Farmers Forum toured selected farms in the country.

Nearly 80 farmers from Samoa and around the Pacific visited Farmer Joes produce farm, the Malua Theological College plantation, and Malaefono Plantations to see how commercial farming can be done.

At the first site visit to Farmer Joes, Samoas biggest commercial farm, the farmers had many questions for their guide and farm manager Johanna Coyle.

Amongst the banana plantations, and alongside hundreds of rows of pineapples, they wanted to know which fertilisers were being used, the irrigation, and staffing levels.

Alongside members of the Samoa Farmers Association (S.F.A) was a visiting group of farmers from the Pacific, who are in Samoa to exchange skills and ideas with local farmers.

The farmers came from Tonga, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Timor Leste, who are all members of the Pacific Island Farmers Organisation Network.

Many commented that while the scale was not relatable to their farms at home, the production skills could be transferrable.

At the Malua Theological College plantation, the group learned about using covered tunnels to grow their food under and shelter their crops.

S.F.A chairperson Afamasaga Toleafoa said farmers have a hard time when their livelihood is subject to the climate and the weather.

With some shelter, farmers can achieve some stability and reliability, he said.

Organic plantations were the focus of the trip to Malaefono Plantations to see how, when used right, the crops can provide their own mulch and fertiliser with no need for chemical intervention.

Beneath every tree was a heap of its own fallen branches and leaves, as well as coconut husks and other organic matter, providing nutrients to the base of the tree.

These site visits were the second day of the inaugural farmers forum. Tomorrow they continue with intimate workshops with the guests from across the Pacific to share their experiences in more detail.
Inspired by a close friend who lost his sight, UC San Diego alumnus Suman Kanuganti built technology that taps cameras on smartphones and smart glasses to help vision impaired people navigate their way through unfamiliar places.

That technology became Aira, a 50 employee local startup thats akin to OnStar for the blind.

This month UC San Diego became the first university in the U.S. to offer Aira service to low vision and blind students, as well as visitors to campus, free of charge.

Its part of a campus wide push to encourage diversity and provide more opportunity for individuals (with disabilities) here, whether they are enrolled students or members of the community on campus for a play or event, said as Joanna Boval, director of UC San Diegos Office for Students with Disabilities.

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UC San Diego is the inaugural member of the Aira Campus Network, a program that the company aims to expand to other college campuses nationwide, particularly as more schools roll out campus-wide Wi-Fi service.

Aira developed an app that links cameras from smartphones or smart glasses to a live agent, who delivers assistance as needed.

The agent sees not only what the camera displays but also has access to a users location, Google Maps for directions, Yelp reviews for nearby businesses and other information.

An acronym for Artificial Intelligence Remote Access, Aira has a few thousand blind or near-blind people nationwide subscribing to the service. For subscribers, monthly plans run from $90 to $330 depending on number of minutes. A pair of smart glasses is included.

But Aira is working to create a string of Aira networks, where college campuses, airports, hotels, restaurants and other venues become Aira hot spots  paying Aira and offering the service to their visually impaired customers/students at no charge.

More than 20 airports have signed up, said Amy Bernal, vice president of Aira, including San Diego International Airport.

In addition, more than 5,300 AT&T retail and authorized retail stores are now Aira Access Locations, which means blind and low-vision people with a smartphone can become an Aira guest and can get free use of Airas services.

Balboa Park, the downtown library, Convention Center and the Civic Center are additional local Aira hot spots. As part of the UC San Diego campus roll out, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Hillcrest campuses are also offering Aira now at no charge.

In daily life on campus, finding your way to the library or the Price Center or to a classroom is not easy for a sighted person, said Amy Bernal, a vice president at Aira. So you can imagine the help this is for a person with low vision.

UC San Diego has purchased a few pairs of smart glasses and is providing them to low vision students to receive feedback. Otherwise, students can use their smartphone cameras to link up with Aira.

Bernal said Aira benefits low vision students not only in finding their way around campus but also in class, allowing them to get real time descriptions of graphics or instructions without additional assistance.

We are proud to showcase innovation developed by UC San Diego alumni, said Chancellor Pradeep Khosla in a statement. Offering Airas groundbreaking technology to blind and low vision students, staff and faculty underscores our campus commitment to creating a more inclusive community.

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mike.freeman@sduniontribune.com;

Twitter:@TechDiego

760-529-4973
It has the looks of a classic 1968 Jaguar E-Type, but under its long bonnet is an electric motor that delivers more performance than the six-cylinder iron lump with which it was born.

You might have seen the first completed E-Type Zero during the Royal wedding, in which Prince Harry and Meghan Markle drove to the ceremony at Windsor Castle. It was a brief showing of the car and Jaguar has been mum on how it occurred, nor did the loyal British brand seek publicity for the exposure.

What began as a one-off project to see if there was a future in electrifying its classic models has since become a new business model of Jaguar Classic. Completely restored electric E-Types, officially called the Jaguar E-Type Zero, will be available by summer 2020, hand-assembled at a 75,000 square-foot facility in Coventry, England.

The 295-hp electric motor is mated with a 40kWh lithium battery, which can be recharged in six to seven hours, depending on power source. The driving range is 170-200. (Jaguar Classic)

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There were two major areas of concern for even considering electric powertrains for its classics, said Tim Hannig, 40, director of Jaguar Classic. No. 1, he said, was that more metropolitan areas of England and Europe are considering a ban of the combustion engine. And No. 2 was concern for owners of vintage Jags, What do people who love their cars do in that situation?

The classics market has changed, Hannig said, in an interview at the recent Quail Motorsports Classic in Monterey, Calif.

What was once a segment dominated by older white males has evolved to multi-generations, multi-ethnicities and enthusiasts with near-luxury budgets not just the wealthy, he said. The majority who get into it [the classics market] now want to use their car as a convenience, a daily driver. The E-Type was not made for that. But now, we can make something that is a completely different animal.

The seats, key-start ignition, steering wheel and hand-brake lever retain the classics design. The center console and dashboard (with modern toggle switches) are bespoke to the car (Jaguar Classic)

And that animal can now be purchased in a variety of stages and prices.

Jaguar Classic can find a good and solid, numbers-matching 1968 E-Type and restore it to as-new factory specs with the modern electric powertrain.

An owner can have the electric powertrain installed in his or her car and the original powertrain crated up to be saved.

Or, if you own a wreck, it can be built into a full electric.

It is not an inexpensive undertaking, but neither is restoring an E-Type. The electric powertrain alone is $75,000 and the completely electrified and restored Jaguar Classics E-Type will range from $300,000-$400,000.

The conversion is a labor-intensive process, Hannig said. Considering that a quality restoration of an E-Type can cost $250,000 (above the cost of the car) there is some value in buying a restored Jaguar Classic.

Its all on us when we source a car because any problems are ours to fix, he said.

Buying the factory-restored car, with matching numbers for engine and transmission, is expensive, Hannig said, But you know exactly what you are getting. And collectors know that every phone call from the restoration shop is $10,000, Hannig said, and there will be five to eight of those. But weve turned around the bad moment.

The battery can be recharged in six to seven hours, depending on power source. (Jaguar Classic)

Project Marmite

Jaguar knows the E-Type is a precious collectible and treats it as such for all its restorations including the electric conversion. But not everyone in the company was on board with the electric idea.

It was so disputed, Hannig said, that the project was codenamed Marmite, for the British version of the yeasty sandwich spread (repurposed from brewing beer) that is loved or hated.

But after driving it, it feels exactly as an E-Type, he said. You feel every movement of the car and you dont have engine noise. Its a bit surreal.

Hannig started with a convertible because it is a fair-weather car and ideal for EV-driving conditions (no freezing temperatures), but coupes also will be offered.

The electric powertrain is a bespoke Jaguar system with an amalgam of parts from the new Jaguar iPace EV and other plug-in elements from Jaguar Land Rover. (David Shepherd)

The project goals were many:

Above all, to cut no metal or alter the bodywork so the electric powertrain could be returned to a combustion engine.

The finished car had to have the same performance and driving characteristics.

And it could not be heavier and have the same weight distribution. The electrics weight distribution is an ideal 51/49 front to rear, Hannig said.

The XK engine is bloody heavy, said Hannig, referencing the old 4.2-liter inline six-cylinder. Removing it took out 360kg [about 794 pounds], he said.

The original cars curb weight was around 2,756 pounds and the electrified E-Type weighs about 100 pounds less, depending on how the owner equips the car. Performance, however, is throttled back to match the combustion model.

The transformation

The electrification process begins by removing the engine and transmission followed by complete body work and paint and then the installation of the electric powertrain. The interior is the last bit to be spruced up, Hannig said.

The cabin retains much of the classic style, including the seats, key-start ignition, steering wheel and hand-brake lever. The center console and dashboard (with modern toggle switches) are bespoke to the car, Hannig said, but the original style gauge pods can be used.

There are no cup holders, but there is no power steering, either, so you wont have a free hand to drink coffee, Hannig said. And there is no air conditioning, either, but there is an option for it, he said.

The electric powertrain is a bespoke Jaguar system with an amalgam of parts from the new Jaguar iPace EV and other plug-in elements from Jaguar Land Rover.

The 295 horsepower electric motor is mated with a 40kWh lithium battery, which can be recharged in six to seven hours, depending on power source. The driving range is 170-200 miles on a charge. The top speed has been limited to 110 mph, in line with the original, Hannig said.

The battery pack has the same dimensions, and similar weight to the combustion engine and is in the same location. The motor is sandwiched between the battery pack and the single-speed reduction gear transmission. A new propshaft sends power to a carry-over differential and final drive.

Jaguar is proceeding full speed with its Reborn Program (for Land Rovers, too) with a just-opened center in Essen, Germany, and a U.S. center in Savannah, Ga., is expected to open by summer 2019.

Electrifying the classic E-Type is a way to future-proof enjoyment of car ownership, Hannig said, to make it fit for another 50 years.

Info: www.jaguarlandroverclassic.com/workslegends
Mayoral candidate John Paul Elliott opposes the citys proposed overhaul of Coast Highway 101 in Leucadia and advocates solving the citys low-income housing troubles by putting city-subsidized housing on the former Pacific View School site.

Catherine Blakespear, the citys incumbent mayor, backs the Streetscape plan and endorses Measure U, a city-sponsored housing plan on the Nov. 6 ballot that would up-zone various privately owned parcels in town so they could contain higher-density housing.

Their contrasting viewpoints on housing and Streetscape were far from the only differences between the two candidates during a Tuesday night debate hosted by the Cardiff Town Council and moderated by the League of Women Voters North County chapter.

The two candidates political experience, their length of residency in Encinitas and even what they wore to the event were starkly different.

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A real estate broker who said he has never before run for political office, Elliott sported a Hawaiian shirt, shorts and flipflops. During the debate, his unofficial running mate -- his tiny dog Coco -- cavorted about on top of the table that the two candidates sat behind. Elliott, 71, is a recent returnee to Encinitas. He moved back into town a few months ago, and previously lived in Encinitas in the 1980s for about a decade before he and his wife divorced, he told a reporter after the debate ended.

Blakespear, 42, is seeking her second term as mayor, and previously served as a City Council member and a city Traffic & Public Safety Commissioner. An attorney who graduated from Torrey Pines High School, then moved away to attend college and later returned with her family in 2009, she wore business attire to Tuesdays event.

Many of the audience-submitted questions focused on low-income housing issues and traffic concerns, including issues related to the Streetscape project. That estimated $30 million project would overhaul a 2.5-mile stretch of Coast Highway from La Costa Avenue to A Street, giving the roadway six traffic circle roundabouts, as well as bike lanes and sidewalks. The plan, which has been appealed to the state Coastal Commission, has been controversial because it would eliminate one vehicle lane in each direction.

Stressing that its been 70 years since the roadway has been reworked, Blakespear said the time has come to make some much-needed changes.

My experience is that any reconfigeration of public space is controversial, she said, later adding that she expects much of the price tag will be funded by grants similar to what the city is experiencing with the El Portal undercrossing project.

Elliott said the city should leave the Leucadia area mostly as it is and spend the Streetscape money on housing for city workers, so firefighters and police officers dont have to drive an hour from where they live to where they work each day. He repeatedly said throughout the debate that the city ought to go its own way when it came to housing issues, saying the citys ongoing conflict with state officials over its lack of a certified housing plan shouldnt be handled in the way favored by the state or development interests.

We need to step out of the box that theyve given us and create a new environment, he said, later mentioning that the nations communities used to provide housing for their school teachers.

Encinitas has been out of compliance with state housing law for years because it lacks a current, state-certified housing plan spelling out how it proposes to handle its future low-income housing needs. The November ballot measure, the citys latest attempt to resolve the situation, would up-zone 15 properties in town, allowing them to contain 25 to 30 housing units an acre.

Blakespear said it isnt the perfect plan, but its a compromise plan and time is running out. If voters dont approve it, the judge overseeing several pending lawsuits against the city will likely force Encinitas officials to adopt a plan without voter approval, she said.
The family-owned company that has operated the gun shows at the Del Mar Fairgrounds for nearly 30 years failed to overcome growing public concern about gun violence nationwide and questions about its owners legal troubles.

The board that oversees activities at the state-owned venue voted 8-1 Tuesday to suspend the shows after Dec. 31 until a policy is developed that could include a complete ban on the possession of any firearms or ammunition.

It may be the first agency in the state to take such action, a remarkable turnaround for a hugely popular event that for decades drew little scrutiny from the board. The directors routinely approved its contracts allowing the exhibition and sale of the latest in high-tech weaponry, accessories, clothing and gear.

Yet, increasingly, they have become a target for gun-safety advocates who have attended board meetings and stood outside the events with signs demanding an end to the shows.

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Members of the board said they hoped the decision would serve as a model for other communities struggling with whether to continue the shows and possibly herald a sea change in the publics appetite for gun shows, especially at state-owned fairgrounds.

We are not doing our kids any service if we continue this, said Director Lisa Barkett, before voting for the suspension. If we come together as a community, maybe we can set the standard for California.

After Dec. 31, only education events would be allowed.

Essentially, its a ban of the gun show, said Wendy Hauffen, executive administrator of the San Diego County Gun Owners, after the decision. You cant have a gun show with no guns.

Several of the directors cited concerns about wagon loads of ammunition that they saw being sold at the fairgrounds, do-it-yourself kits available to make illegal automatic weapons, and recent revelations about the past felony convictions of family members involved with the event.

Director Russ Penniman, a retired Navy officer, cast the only vote against the suspension, saying that while we do have some issues, he thought those points could be addressed while continuing the show.

Crossroads of the West stages the two-day gun show at the Del Mar fairgrounds five times annually.

Well fight it, Crossroads Vice President Tracy Olcott said.

None of the companys shows at other venues have been cancelled, she said, and theres legal precedent for holding the shows on state property.

We are not going to just walk away, she said. We have invested a lot of years there, and we have a lot of support.

Board President Steven Shewmaker and Vice President Richard Valdez served on the contracts oversight committee that recommended the boards action.

No other issue has required more consideration since hes been on the board, said Valdez, who was appointed by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2014. People throughout the county have strong opinions about the gun show, Valdez said, and the committee struggled for months to reach a compromise.

Shewmaker, first appointed to the board by Brown in 2012, said that initially he was ambivalent about the gun shows, and the board routinely renewed the contracts without question.

I drank the Kool-Aid, he said. Then I went to a gun show  and what I found was very different from the Kool-Aid.

In addition to the automatic weapons kits and crates of ammunition being sold, he saw hollow-point and armor-piercing bullets for sale.

I dont know if thats illegal, but its wrong, he said. Hollow-point bullets are designed to expand rapidly when they hit flesh, causing more serious wounds, and armor-piercing rounds will penetrate a police officers vest.

Nearly 100 people submitted requests to speak on the issue at the 22nd District Agricultural Associations meeting Tuesday, which was moved to the Surfside Race Place off-track betting facility to accommodate the crowd. Some who submitted requests left before their turn came to speak as the meeting lasted nearly four hours, split by a 90-minute lunch break.

A larger crowd attended the boards meeting in April, where the issue first surfaced after the mass shooting that killed 17 high school students and faculty members in Parkland, Fla., early this year.

A large percentage of the speakers in April said they support the show, and many of them were members of the county gun owners group.

An internet poll of 500 adults across San Diego County by SurveyUSA taken over the weekend for the Union-Tribune and 10News showed that a majority of the respondents supported new limits on the gun show.

Members of the Del Mar-based group NeverAgainCa, led by resident Rose Ann Sharp, have consistently pushed for a ban on the gun show since April, demonstrating outside each of the gun shows. and speaking during public comment sessions at each of the monthly fair board meetings.

Sharp said Tuesday she was pleased with the boards decision.

We think the board has taken a very wise approach, she said.

The recommendation approved Tuesday allows the two shows scheduled for Sept. 29 and 30 and Dec. 8 and 9 to continue as planned.

After that, no new gun-show contracts will be approved until the board decides whether to adopt a proposed new policy that allows the events only for only education and training safety purposes and bans the possession of guns and ammunition on state property.

Also to be included in the policy are an alignment with recent changes in state and federal law, an enhanced security plan, a new safety plan, consideration of age appropriateness, and an audit to ensure compliance with state law.

This is a direction to our staff to look at a policy based on these parameters, said Director David Watson. So far, there is no ban on guns or ammunition.

The fair board staff has until the directors meet in December 2019 to develop the policy and present it to the board.

Crossroads also operates the gun shows at numerous other large venues in Arizona, California, Nevada and Utah.

Crossroads owner Bob Templeton and his son, Jeff Templeton, both have past felony convictions for federal firearms violations that prevent them from operating the shows. To avoid that, Bob Templeton has ceded control of the show to his daughter, Tracy Olcott, who has no record.

Earlier this year, the Orange County Fair Board delayed approval of its Crossroads contract to look into questions raised by opponents about the show, then agreed in June to proceed with three events as planned through the end of this year.

State lawmakers approved a bill in August that, if signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, would bar the sales of guns and ammunition at the Cow Palace near San Francisco, which also holds a Crossroads Show five times annually.

Three previous attempts by lawmakers failed to end the Cow Palace shows, most recently in 2013.

philip.diehl@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @phildiehl
The La Jolla Music Society on Wednesday announced that Susan T. Danis, officially named as its CEO and president on July 23, will not be taking the job and will instead return to her position as executive director of Florida Grand Opera.

The surprising decision follows Danis being defamed in a since-retracted letter from a disgruntled former Florida Grand Opera employee, according to a joint statement by the La Jolla Music Society and the opera, which is based in Miami.

She was set to assume her new position in La Jolla on Oct. 1.

The announcement comes barely seven months before the scheduled opening of the societys new $78.5 million Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center, which Danis was hired in large part to guide. The centers opening coincides with the societys 50th anniversary, which will feature performances by some of the worlds leading chamber music, dance and jazz artists.

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Danis was selected to replace Kristin Lancino, who abruptly resigned in January as the societys president and artistic director after two years.

On Wednesday afternoon, the society and Florida Grand Opera released a joint statement that the two arts organizations have mutually agreed that Danis would rescind her acceptance of an offer to serve as President and CEO of LJMS. Danis will remain in her position as General Director and CEO of FGO. LJMS will resume its search for its next President and CEO.

The reasons being cited in the joint statement for this sudden reversal seem to raise more questions than they answer.

This decision was reached following the disclosure that a letter defaming (Danis) and FGO had been sent to LJMS board chair and members of the staff by a disgruntled exemployee of FGO, Graham Fandrei, the statement said. Fandrei sent the letter under an assumed name. He has since retracted the letter, acknowledged that it was based on false information, was sent with malicious intent, and has apologized to FGO, LJMS and Danis.

The statement released Wednesday did not go into details about the nature of the defamatory information.

It is unclear why a defamatory letter based on false information that has since been retracted would prompt Danis to remain with Florida Grand Opera, especially given the palpable excitement she displayed in a Union-Tribune interview announcing her new role in La Jolla.

Fandrei left his position as Florida Grand Operas Young Artists program director about two years ago, according to a Florida Grand Opera spokesman. He did so of his own accord and was not in contention to replace Danis there, the spokesman said.

Reached by phone, society board chair Katherine Chapin said she could not discuss the matter and did not know when she could.

Danis did not respond to multiple phone and email interview requests.

Neither did David Kitto, the societys former interim president. He will now continue in that position while the societys search for a president and CEO begins anew.

In the joint statement issued by the society and Florida Grand Opera, Danis said: I am appreciative of the support I received from FGO as I responded to, and discredited, the information contained in the Fandrei letter. This action by Mr. Fandrei has been deeply affecting me. Given the support I received during this time from FGO, I have withdrawn my application for the position of President and CEO of the La Jolla Music Society.

Concluding her statement, Danis said: With the recent changes in (Florida Grand Operas) Studio Artist Program and in the midst of important projects and transactions, I believe after six years of service, I owe it to the loyal board, patrons, and staff of FGO to see these through to completion.

The statement continues by noting that Florida Grand Operas chairman of the board, Linda Balent, has announced a unanimous vote by the organizations board to reinstate Danis to her previous position.

We are very happy to welcome Susan back and have her continue producing great opera, community engagement programs, and overseeing the management of FGO, Balent said in the statement.

Danis return to her position in Florida comes on the heels of the Aug. 1 announcement that Florida Grand Opera director Bernard Uzan was leaving the organization, following a Washington Post expose in which he was accused of sexually harassing and assaulting four women.

In an email, a spokesman for Florida Grand Opera said that Uzans resignation and Danis return are completely separate and have nothing to do with each other.

george.varga@sduniontribune.com

Twitter @georgevarga
The number of plays Alan Ayckbourn has published match the number of years the man has been alive  pretty impressive when you consider that the prolific British dramatist turned 79 this year.

Communicating Doors, which premiered in 1994, touches on some of the playwrights most abiding themes  including a fascination with the narrative possibilities of messing with time.

And Doors further shares DNA with a pair of Ayckbourns most enduring works  Absurd Person Singular and the trilogy The Norman Conquests  in the way it uses rooms almost like characters.

Scripps Ranch Theatre, which staged Singular winningly a few years back, now puts up Doors; Jacquelyn Ritz directs the piece (which almost could be called farce noir) about a decade-leaping murder mystery in one very odd hotel room.

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Ritzs cast for the piece, which had its last big local production 11 years ago at Cygnet Theatre, includes Paul Morgavo, Sibongile Ngako, Charles Peters, Kate Rose Reynolds, Wendy Waddell & John W. Wells III.

And by the way: The show opens a milestone 40th season for SRT.

Communicating Doors

When: 8 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. Through Oct. 7.

Where: Scripps Ranch Theatre at the Legler Benbough Theatre, 9783 Avenue of Nations (on campus of Alliant International University).

Tickets: $37 (discounts available).

Phone: (858) 578-7728

Online: scrippsranchtheatre.org

jim.hebert@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @jimhebert
Salvador Dali is a highly recognizable figure in the art world and beyond, known for his revolutionary 1931 painting The Persistence of Memory  with its melting clocks and biomorphic face  his whimsical mustache, and his eccentric behavior in front of the camera.

A new exhibit, featuring some rarely seen pieces, is coming to San Diego and will offer a behind-the-scenes look at Dalis life  all courtesy of Madame Christine Argillet, daughter of Pierre Argillet, Salvador Dalis publisher and friend for more than 50 years.

Christine Argillet, who spent much of her childhood with Dali, will accompany a collection of works to Meyer Fine Art in Little Italy. Dali: The Argillet Collection, on display Saturday through Oct. 7, has already toured in Singapore, Washington, D.C., Chicago, New York, Dallas and Los Angeles. It includes etchings, drawings, tapestries and sculptures.

Ahead of the collections arrival in San Diego, we spoke to Argillet. Speaking from Paris, she talked about this exclusive exhibition and shared behind-the-scenes details about one of the most famous artists in history.

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Argillet, speaking from Paris ahead of the collections arrival in San Diego, talked about this exclusive exhibition and shared behind-the-scenes details about one of the most famous artists in history.

A new exhibit coming to Little Italy features dozens of Salvador Dali works, including 90 etchings, one sculpture and numerous tapestries. (Courtesy photo)

Q: What will fans of Dali see thats unexpected in the exhibition?

A: His paintings are well known, but what we have here is totally different. There are 90 etchings, one sculpture from 1973, tapestries hand-woven under direction of Dali, five watercolors, and a series of seven dinnerware dishes made to create a Dali environment.

Q: Its been said that Dali created over 1,500 works in his lifetime. Is that about right?

A: I think he did much more than that. He made thousands of sketches alone. To this day, I still discover works I didnt know about  pieces of furniture, designs for his wifes house. He even painted radiators!

Q: What was your fathers relationship with Dali?

A: There were connections in the way they would see things; he was both publisher and friend. They would go to happenings and theater together and share books. My father had to be very flexible; sometimes Dali would do 24 etchings on a topic, sometimes one. At times my father would return home frustrated, and other times so enthusiastic he couldnt sleep.

Q: What is your first memory of Salvador Dali?

A: I remember when I was 5, around 1960, my father published a book about great artists of the time, and organized a reception in Paris. Everyone was there  Max Ernst, Giorgio de Chirico, Dali and others. Gala (Dalis wife) told me, Why dont you play with me? and she and I were playing under the table, and I was enchanted. Max Ernst went to my father and told him not to ever do another dinner like this  that all of these artists hate each other, and its just too much.

Q: Did Dali ever speak of artists who inspired him?

A: Dali would always refer to the Renaissance, the Golden Ratio that he used in his own paintings, Leonardo, Botticelli, also El Greco and Goya. He would admire the old masters for the composition and technique. During the 20th century, Picasso was like his mentor for drawings and etching, and Dali was bitter not to have kept the friendship of Picasso. He was sad about it because he had a huge admiration for him, but they were two very opposite characters.  A few of the etchings in the exhibition are tributes to Picasso.

Q: Dali appeared to love the camera, and it loved him. Was he as charismatic and eccentric without a camera around?

A: Absolutely not in a daily attitude. You would see someone working a lot, very humble, just a shirt and flip-flops. He spoke naturally, then when someone entered he didnt know, he would go on show (mode), explaining complex ideas, and he would change radically in two seconds. My fathers opinion was he was very shy, and I believe that. My father believed it was Gala who pushed him to be eccentric and the center of attention, and it was not his nature.

Q: What is your most memorable moment with Dali?

A: Dali was always surprising. One time in 1968, my father was asking him to illustrate the book of Faust. Dali was going to leave the next day, and the last two etchings for the book were not finished. My father was perspiring. What are we going to do? He was running behind Dali with the tools, saying, We are lost if you dont finish! Suddenly, Dali took the copper plates and started dry etching on his knees, while answering journalists. He was incredible and elegant. He could do many things at once.

Meet Madame Christine Argillet

When: 6-8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 22; 1-4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 23

Where: Meyer Fine Art, 2400 Kettner Blvd., Suite 104, Little Italy

Admission: Free

RSVP: (619) 358-9512 or meyerfineartinc@gmail.com

Delk writes for Pacific San Diego.
The San Diego Union-Tribune will mark its 150th anniversary in 2018 by presenting a significant front page from the archives each day throughout the year.

Monday, September 12, 1938

In 1938, thousands of San Diegans turned out to greet Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan following his accidental transatlantic flight.

Corrigan had became an instant folk hero when he ostensibly set off on a flight from New York to Los Angeles, but wound up in Dublin, Ireland, 28 hours and 13 minutes later.

Corrigan, who'd helped build Charles Lindbergh's "Spirit of St. Louis" while working at the Ryan factory in San Diego, had been denied a permit by U.S. aviation officials to fly his 10-year-old Curtiss Robin monoplane across the Atlantic.

Here are the first few paragraphs of the story:

Let em Come, Cries Corrigan As Mob Pushes

Transatlantic Flier Delights Throng on Welcome to City

By Howard Morin

Tense drama and scintillating Irish wit marked the homecoming yesterday morning of Douglas Corrigan.

Greeted by 10,000 cheering San Diegans when he landed his transatlantic plane at Lindbergh field at 11:01 a.m., he received another ovation from the record-breaking crowd attending the Post 6 American Legion ball game at Lane field later in the day.

His final act before attending a civic dinner at El Cortez hotel was to visit Mrs. Elizabeth Le Clair, 3056 India st., and receive from her hands a juicy lemon pie, the kind she used to bake for Corrigan when he was a mechanic at the airport.

Corrigan admitted he was thrilled by two events, both occurring within a few seconds. The first was when he flew over the old fish cannery in which he worked as a mechanic on Lindberghs Spirit of St. Louis and where he conceived 11 years ago, in emulation of Lindbergh, the flight across the Atlantic. The second dramatic incident occurred when Corrigan faced Douglas Kelley and J.J. Harrigan, the two instructors who taught him how to fly.

TAUGHT RIGHT WAY

We never taught you to fly the way you claim you did to Dublin, Kelley and Harrigan asserted in unison.

Thats your alibi, retorted Corrigan.

Can you imagine a guy getting away with such stuff as that, was Harrigans reply. Incidentally Harrigan was test pilot for Lindberghs plane.

Corrigan went into action so swiftly after he landed that he virtually floored Mayor Percy J. Benbough. It strikingly illustrates the change in the youthful flier since his promotion from a work bench to a cockpit.

Glad to see you back, said the mayor as Corrigan jumped from his plane.

Im glad to get back, you can bet on that, Corrigan said. He confided that navigation was easy on the flight from Long Beach to San Diego. Once I got the smell of the canneries in my nose it was better than a radio beam, he said.

View anniversary front pages online at sandiegouniontribune.com/150-years. For more from the Union-Tribune digital archives, go to newslibrary.com/sites/sdub. Searching is free, with registration. A fee is required to view full stories.
It has been 3,009 days since Esperanza Ramos two teenage sons were kidnapped in Tijuana.

On the morning of June 16, 2010 her boys  aged 18 and 17  were dragged out of their Jetta while driving to school. Kidnappers demanded the family pay a $500,000 ransom. The Ramoses desperately tried to find the cash but it was futile.

The boys are presumed dead, the kidnappers have not been arrested for the crime, and the family still waits for answers.

The last eight years have been a constant battle to get local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to investigate the case, Ramos said. The authorities here are completely apathetic, she said.

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To add insult to injury, the local police kept her sons Jetta during the investigation.

They didnt even want to give us the car back, Ramos said.

So when Ramos heard that federal officials from Mexico City responsible for reforming the countrys criminal justice system were visiting Tijuana Tuesday morning, she was joined by more than 200 crime victims throughout Baja California. She sat in the front row of the forum holding pictures of her missing sons, Jose and Edgar. Others filled the first two rows with their own pictures and signs demanding answers about the desaparecidos, or disappeared.

They attended what the Mexican government is calling a peace forum, an outreach campaign designed to connect crime victims to policy makers to address the countrys rising crime rates and shrinking confidence in the countrys legal system.

Those in attendance included relatives of those murdered by drug cartels, retired teachers accusing corrupt officials of spending their savings, LGBTQ activists demanding protection for Mexicos transgender population, and dozens of relatives of people who have been kidnapped in Tijuana.

Tuesdays headliner in Tijuana was the man responsible for the reforms: Alfonso Durazo, a Mexican Senator who was recently appointed by President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to oversee public security. Lopez Obrador takes office Dec. 1.

The idea of all of the forums is to listen to you and design policies to prevent future tragedies like the ones you are living, Durazo told the crowd at Universidad Iberoamericana in Tijuana.

Information collected during the forum will lay the foundation for new criminal justice policies the Lopez Obrador administration will implement to reduce crime and increase the quality of life in Mexico, Durazo said.

Some of the proposed policies from previous forums include reforming municipal police departments by increasing minimum salaries and improving training.

The president-elects team has also proposed legalizing marijuana and limiting amnesty to non-violent criminals connected to the drug trade.

The incoming administration also plans to change Mexicos approach to fighting the flow of narcotics by going after cartels finances instead of arresting senior cartel members, Durazo added.

In the first forum, held in Juarez on August 7, Lopez Obrador personally asked attendees to embrace forgiveness. Other forums have been held Morelia, Torreon, Curenavaca, and Acapulco.

But the people of Tijuana were more interested in justice.

No forgiveness without justice, members of the crowd chanted during parts of the forum.

Others shouted, Where are our children, and No more false promises.

The city is among the most violent in Mexico. There were 960 homicides in 2016 and 1,744 last year. This years numbers are on pace to surpass last years total, according to data from the Baja California Attorney Generals Office.

Durazo took notes and listened as speakers discussed different issues facing Tijuana.

They asked Durazo to prioritize prosecution of violence against women, migrants and the gay community. Others suggested the government stop using the military to combat local crime.

Durazo conceded that Mexicos crime problem is a long and complicated one with no simple solution. But he vowed immediate change to how law enforcement responds to crime.

This problem did not happen overnight and it would be irresponsible for me to say that it will be resolved overnight, he said. What will be immediate, is the quality of response from the government to the victims and the effort of the government to start working on those cases.

Officials hope to have a recap of Tuesdays forum ready later this week and plan to have a detailed list of proposals ready within two weeks.

Ramos has already waited eight years. She remains cautiously optimistic.

I hope something comes out of this, she said. At least Id like to know what happened to them.

Contact Gustavo Solis via Email or Twitter
Pasadena police arrested a 66-year-old man suspected of fatally stabbing a man and injuring another early Wednesday morning.

Police responded to a call about a stabbing that occurred on a sidewalk of the 2600 block of East Colorado Boulevard, according to a statement from the Pasadena Police Department. Police found a man in his 40s who had stab wounds on his torso and was unresponsive. He was taken to a hospital, where he died of his injuries. A second man in his 30s was found with his leg impaled by a large knife. He remains in critical condition.

Investigators believe the three men were arguing before the stabbings occurred. The suspect left but returned a short time later with a knife. The motive for the stabbing is unknown.

The Pasadena Police Department continues to investigate the incident.

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alejandra.reyesvelarde@latimes.com

Twitter: @r_valejandra
In an effort to relieve pressure on L.A. County renters, the Board of Supervisors approved a temporary measure Tuesday that would limit rent increases in unincorporated areas to 3% annually and allow landlords to evict tenants only with justification.

The board voted 4 to 1 in favor of an interim ordinance that has been championed by Supervisor Sheila Kuehl.

Rent stabilization does help prevent evictions ... and homelessness, Kuehl said at a hearing on the item.

Preempting arguments that such a measure would deter construction of new rental housing or put mom-and-pop landlords out of business, Kuehl said, the facts dont back you up.

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She said private equity firms are buying apartments in Los Angeles  firms that frankly dont care about their tenants. And because they dont, we will.

The measure directs the countys attorneys to draft an interim rent stabilization ordinance in 60 days. The ordinance will last for six months while the county considers a permanent alternative.

Ahead of the hearing, tenants and community advocates marched from Plaza Olvera downtown to the Hall of Administration carrying signs that read, L.A. County demands fair rent now.

At a rally outside the Hall of Administration, Beverly Roberts, a homeowner and landlord in an unincorporated area near South L.A., said, Im seeing my community being ripped apart by rent increases that people simply cant pay.  Landlords dont need to gouge tenants to get a fair return.

Dozens of people spoke at the hearing, most in support of the measure.

We see every week tenants who face large rent increases, of 40 to 80%, said Tyler Anderson, an attorney with the Los Angeles Center for Community Law and Action.

Brandi Orton, of the Los Angeles Aging Advocacy Coalition, said her groups senior center is seeing five seniors fall into homelessness each month. As people are being evicted because of higher rents or new owners, there is simply nowhere that is affordable at their rate, she said.

Landlords, real estate lawyers and apartment associations spoke against the measure.

I agree rents are too high, said Jill Furtado, who owns one rental property in the Antelope Valley. But she urged the supervisors to oppose the measure. I have taxes, insurance, utilities that are going up every year. Sometimes I choose to absorb that cost and sometimes I cant.  This is my retirement.

A number of speakers specifically called on Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas to support the measure. Their arguments appeared to convince him.

Crises warrant intervention, Ridley-Thomas said. Imperfect though it may be, that [measure] which is before us is temporary. It is tailored.  The safety net is important in a variety of ways to me.

Ridley-Thomas proposed that Tuesdays motion be amended to include a report back on other issues, including improving building code enforcement and resolving landlord-tenant disputes. All of his amendments were approved.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger also offered to support the measure with some amendments, including one to allow rent banking, a practice whereby landlords who dont increase rents by the maximum allowed amount one year can make up the difference the following year.

Kuehl said she appreciated Bargers effort to compromise but rejected her amendments, saying they would leave tenants in the same vulnerable situation they face today. Barger cast the lone dissenting vote.

The motion for an interim ordinance stabilizing rents on apartment units follows a similar one last week limiting rent increases in mobile home parks.

It also comes ahead of a proposition on the November ballot to repeal Californias Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, which limits municipalities ability to impose rent control.

nina.agrawal@latimes.com

Twitter: @AgrawalNina
An El Cajon jury on Wednesday convicted a Navy corpsman of murder for shaking and beating his girlfriends toddler to death at their Alpine home.

The nine women and three men on the jury took just two hours to deliberate and find Brett Brown guilty of murder and assault on a child causing death.

Brown faces up to 25 years to life in prison when he is sentenced on Nov. 28.

In her closing argument, a prosecutor told jurors that Brown, 32, lied to his girlfriend, first responders and jurors in varying accounts of how the child became fatally injured in 2016.

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Lucas Orlando, age 20 months, suffered severe brain, eye and neck hemorrhages, deep skull fractures and a shattered leg, Deputy District Attorney Chantal de Mauregne said.

She said five doctors testified during the week-long trial in Superior Court that the injuries could have been inflicted only by violent shaking and by deliberately striking the childs head against a hard surface.

Brown testified that he was carrying the boy and a plate of food when he slipped and fell, landing on the child, de Mauregne said.

However, she said Brown gave others two different versions of events: that Lucas rolled off the couch and that he fell while jumping on the couch and hit his head on the fireplace hearth.

His lawyer, Stephen Cline, told jurors the prosecution case against Brown was based on speculation, and there was no proof that he intentionally acted in a way that caused the boys death.

Intent is the issue here, Cline said. It is easy to inflame emotions and lose sight of the presumption of innocence.

Brown is charged with murder and assault on a child under age 8 causing injuries leading to death.

His girlfriend and Lucass mother, Renee Fournier, 31, has pleaded guilty to felony child endangerment. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 9.

De Mauregne said that on Jan. 11, 2016, Fournier was at work and Brown was at their Arnold Way home caring for all four of their children, from different relationships.

Brown, who was on leave from the Navy at the time, was hung over and needed to get his homework done while Lucas was fussy, refusing to eat or take a nap, de Mauregne said.

She said Brown became angry and frustrated.

He put tape over (Lucas) mouth to keep him quiet and when that didnt work, he smashed his head on a hard surface, the prosecutor said.

Brown called Fournier and 911 at 1:45 p.m. to report the childs injuries. Lucas died in a hospital two days later.

De Mauregne said sheriffs investigators found the piece of duct tape in the fireplace, where it had been burned. Browns fingerprints and the boys DNA were on the tape.

The prosecutor ran down a list of dates at the end of 2015 and early 2016 when Lucas suffered other injuries including large bruises on his backside and a broken leg, causing the boy to crawl to get around.

Cline said it was appalling that Brown would tape the childs mouth shut, but it was just a sad, pathetic attempt to stop a child from crying.

He said it was reasonable to believe that the catastrophic injuries Lucas suffered were caused when Brown fell on him.

pauline.repard@sduniontribune

Twitter: @pdrepard
Identifying only as Wendy B., the teenage girl described escaping a childhood of sexual and physical abuse at the hands of caretakers in her homeland of El Salvador, only to enter a complicated legal system in the U.S. that she could not comprehend.

At first, she was like most in the U.S. immigration system: She could not afford legal representation, so she had none.

I remember how scared I was when I first arrived in the United States. I remember not understanding anything, the girl said. I remember being given documents and papers in English. People asked me to sign things, but I had no idea what they were.

I had experienced so many terrible things already and then I was being put into a situation that was so complicated that I felt hopeless.

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She described what happened next as luck. The Immigrant Defenders Law Center took on her asylum case, which is still pending. Now she is attending high school in Southern California, with dreams of becoming a neurologist. Her hope has been restored.

There is no way I could have fought my case without a lawyer, she said. Its impossible.

As Wendy recounted her experience with the immigration system on the steps of downtown San Diegos Civic Center Plaza Wednesday, she had some high-profile support behind her  actress and activist Alyssa Milano.

The two were joined by local immigrant advocates to draw national attention to the reality that few migrants undergoing immigration proceedings are represented by attorneys.

Unlike the criminal legal system, which provides defense no matter the ability to pay, the immigration legal system is based on civil law and does not afford that right.

That concept was recently challenged in court by a teenage boy from Honduras who was seeking asylum. In January, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals held that minor immigrants in the country without legal authorization are not entitled to legal representation if they cannot pay. Mandating free court-appointed counsel could further strain an already overextended immigration system, wrote Judge Consuelo Callahan.

Numerous nonprofit organizations and pro-bono efforts fill that gap  an amount that has expanded recently to respond to the Trump administrations zero tolerance policy and separation of families  but nowhere near enough to provide representation for everyone.

Of the migrants detained at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, 70 to 80 percent have no legal representation, said Monika Langarica, senior staff attorney at the American Bar Associations Immigration Justice Project.

At the news conference Wednesday, Milano announced the launch of a new fund that will expand such efforts. The SAFE Families Fund will bolster the Vera Institute of Justices program to provide legal services to immigrants facing deportation who cant otherwise afford attorneys.

To truly keep families together, safe and protected, we need to guarantee due process and a fair day in court for these families and families in our communities who are facing the life-or-death stakes that come with deportation, Milano said. Access to legal counsel is a bedrock American value, and is considered a fundamental right for American citizens, but is not currently guaranteed by law for everyone living in this country.

Milano spent the previous morning observing cases in immigration court in San Diego, she said.

Milano, who first gained fame in the 1980s as a child on the TV sitcom Whos the Boss?, has been an outspoken voice on several social causes, from abortion rights to gun control to sexual harassment. It was her tweet that sparked the #MeToo movement, encouraging women to come forward with their own experiences of being harassed.

She said has seen firsthand the violence and poverty forcing families to seek asylum in the U.S. She has served as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for 15 years.

I have seen the tragic violence and appalling conditions that often make remaining in ones home country impossible, Milano said. I have seen how a mother will do anything she can to keep her family safe, even if it means fleeing the only life she has ever known to face an administration that jeers at her arrival and seeks to detain and rapidly deport her without due process of law.

She placed blame on the presidential administrations of both Republicans and Democrats.

The Trump administration has been in the process of reshaping its asylum policies, saying that it must fight against rampant fraud and abuse.

Andrew Nietor, a San Diego immigration attorney, said migrants with legal representation are 10 times more likely to win their case and be allowed to remain in the U.S.

He said many migrants have legal recourse to the stay in the U.S. without knowing it, as was the case with one of his clients who had three U.S. citizen children and a U.S. citizen wife. Others suffer from mental health issues that further complicate understanding, he said.

Since 2003, the Department of Justice has funded a legal orientation program in detention centers that provides basic guidance on how the system works. About 53,000 people participated in its orientation sessions last year  more than 3,500 of them at the Otay Mesa facility.

The goal was to improve efficiency in the immigration courts, which is currently dealing with a backlog of some 746,000 cases nationwide.

Experience has shown that the LOP has had positive effects on the immigration court process, the DOJ website says about the program, which costs $8 million annual and is run by the New York-based Vera Institute of Justice. Detained individuals make wiser, more informed decisions and are more likely to obtain representation; non-profit organizations reach a wider audience of people with minimal resources; and, cases are more likely to be completed faster, resulting in fewer court hearings and less time spent in detention.

The Trump administration threatened in April to suspend the program while the agency investigated its effectiveness. An official for the Executive Office for Immigration Review said that the duty of informing people of their rights, how the system works and how to contact a free lawyer belongs to immigration judges.

But the decision received pushback from Congress, and the program has been allowed to continue for now.

The first phase of the DOJs study of the program, released last week, found that the legal orientations resulted in longer court proceedings and longer detention for participants. Those in the program were also more likely to be allowed to remain in the U.S.

kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @kristinadavis
Apple unveiled a slew of updates and upgrades at its Keynote event Wednesday, including the highly anticipated iPhone XS, an FDA-approved heart scanner and the aluminum iPhone XR.

The tech giant revealed the new iPhone XS upgrade will come in two display sizes, 5.8 and 6.5, with the latter dubbed the iPhoneXS Max.

Compared to the iPhone X, the new model will have a longer battery life by 30 minutes, while the Max will give users up to an hour and a half longer. Itll also be more waterproof than before, as tested in water, wine, orange juice and beer, said Senior Vice President Phil Schiller.

The iPhone XR, with its Liquid Retina Display, also got its big debut. The aluminum phone, which comes in a variety of colors like red and yellow, is 6.1 and features an advanced LCD screen.

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Apple also revealed that the phones will allow users to use two SIM cards at once for the first time, which will be helpful for international travelers who want to use data abroad, and for people who want to combine their work and home numbers into one device.

Meanwhile, the Apple Watch Series 4, which will be 30% larger than its predecessor, is taking a major step forward in that its now able to perform an electrocardiogram (ECG) and can potentially detect atrial fibrillation (AFib).

The new feature is FDA-approved, and, according to Apple, is the very first ECG product to be offered directly over the counter to consumers.

The watch will also be able to alert users to low heart rates, and will be able to detect AFib by noting irregular rhythm detection.

Itll also automatically call emergency services should a user fall and not move for a minute.

American Heart Association President Ivor Benjamin was on hand to praise the feature, noting that itll be able to pick up symptoms that patients tend not to report to doctors.

Pricing for the watch starts at $399 for the GPS version and $499 for the cellular version, and users can order it starting Friday for shipment Sept. 21.
A Missouri boy miraculously survived after having a metal meat skewer impale his face.

Xavier Cunningham, 10, was playing with friends Saturday afternoon when he fell from a tree house after being attacked by yellow jackets.

The boy fell off the tree houses ladder and plunged face first into a skewer  which punctured his skull from his face to the back of his head.

Gabrielle Miller, Xaviers mother, rushed her son to a local hospital with the skewer sticking out of his face.

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This X-ray provided by the Medical News Network shows a meat skewer impaled in the skull of Xavier Cunningham after an accident at his home on Saturday. (AP)

Im dying, mom, the boy said as they rushed to the hospital.

Koji Ebersole  an endovascular neurosurgery director at the University of Kansas Hospital, where Xavier was transferred  called the occurrence miraculous, according to The Kansas City Star.

Before Xavier arrived, Ebersole was told the skewer was sticking out half a foot from his face and substantially lodged in the tissues and he knew a high-risk procedure would be needed.

The skewer somehow missed major blood vessels.

It missed his brain. It missed his brain stem. It missed the nerves, everything that`s valuable in your head. It missed everything, Xaviers father Shannon Miller told WDAF-TV.

The skewer, which was square and had sharp edges, was successfully removed by a medical team on Sunday.

You couldnt draw it up any better, Ebersole said. It was one in a million for it to pass 5 or 6 inches through the front of the face to the back and not have hit these things.

Ebersole recalled never seeing anything passed to that depth in a situation that was survivable.

With News Wire Services
The Food and Drug Administration is cracking down on an epidemic of e-cigarette use among young people.

More than 1,300 warning letters and fines were dished out to shops, gas stations and online stores across the country that illegally sold vaping products to minors during an undercover blitz this summer. In addition, the FDA fired off letters to manufacturers of the five best-selling vaping brands  JUUL, Vuse, MarkTen XL, blu e-cigs, and Logic  giving them 60 days to submit plans on how theyll address the issue of teens using their products.

The FDA Wednesday called these historic enforcement actions the largest coordinated enforcement effort in the federal agencys history.

I use the word epidemic with great care, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said in a statement. E-cigs have become an almost ubiquitous  and dangerous  trend among teens. The disturbing and accelerating trajectory of use were seeing in youth, and the resulting path to addiction, must end. Its simply not tolerable. Ill be clear. The FDA wont tolerate a whole generation of young people becoming addicted to nicotine as a tradeoff for enabling adults to have unfettered access to these same products.

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E-cigs have been the most commonly used tobacco product by youth in recent years, with more than 2 million middle and high school kids using them last year. The FDA requires that e-cigs and similar products only be sold to those 18 and up, while New York Citys Smoke-Free Air Act prohibits retailers from selling tobacco and electronic cigarettes to anyone under 21.

The undercover inspections were carried out by trained minors who attempted to purchase the products while working alongside FDA inspectors. Stores with first-time violations for selling e-cigarette products to minors were given warning letters, while those with multiple violations were hit with fines.

Among the New York-area stores issued a warning was US Petroleum/US Mart in East Northport on Long Island. A phone number listed for the spot was not in service Wednesday.

Another Long Island store given a warning  Village Chemists of Setauket  viewed the caution as a reminder to check everyones identification for proof of age.

It was a good letter to get and the person who did [sell a vaping product to an underage buyer] was talked to and told to proof every single person for cigarettes and tobacco products so we can avoid this is in the future , Justine Justiniano, manager of Village Chemists of Setauket, told the Daily News. Because I do think its important not to sell these products to minors.

Justiniano said the warning letter informed her that the violation occurred a couple of months ago.

Im very upset that it happened, but people are human, she added. Im making sure everyone is proofed for every single tobacco product whether theyre 90 or you think theyre 21.

Meanwhile, the five e-cigarette manufacturers who were given notice to submit plans make up more than 97-percent of the market for the product.

Given the magnitude of the problem, were requesting that the manufacturers of these brands and products come back to the FDA in 60 days with robust plans on how theyll convincingly address the widespread use of their products by minors, or well revisit the FDAs exercise of enforcement discretion for products currently on the market, Gottlieb said.

This may require these brands to revise their sales and marketing practices, including online sales; to stop distributing their products to retailers who sell to kids; and to remove some or all of their flavored e-cig products from the market until they receive premarket authorization and otherwise meet applicable requirements, the FDA Commissioner added.
Carlos Manso Blanco wont spend a single day in jail for mowing down four Spanish tourists in the Florida Keys in a horrific March accident.

Instead, his punishment includes the suspension of his drivers license for six months and a stint in traffic school, reported the Miami Herald.

Monroe County Assistant State Attorney Gail Connolly deemed the accident horrific but not charge-worthy.

We have to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt, said Connolly. We have to have evidence, not just speculation.

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Investigators deemed Mansos driving careless during the March 5 accident on the Tea Table Bridge in Islamorada, but found no sign of alcohol or drugs in blood tests. He was driving at a 60-mph rate  five miles per hour higher than the bridges speed limit.

The four victims, all friends from Spain who happened to be female lawyers vacationing in southern Florida, were driving a rented car when Mansos truck, which was carrying portable toilets, smashed into the womens car, which was sent skidding into the path of a large motor home.

The tremendous impact sent the ladies vehicle careening into a tree. The bloody accident scene was so gruesome that emergency personnel initially assumed there were only three victims.

While the dead womens kin are suing Manso and the Florida company he is employed by for negligence, attorneys for Manso and his boss are pinning the blame on dead driver Margarita Cortes-Pardo, who, according to court documents, negligently operated or maintained the motor vehicle in which she was riding so that it collided with Defendants motor vehicle.

It will likely take about two years until a court date is set for the civil case.
An Arizona man who had pleaded for his missing girlfriends return is now facing a first-degree murder charge in connection with her death.

Kiera Bergmans body was found Sept. 3 near a state highway, one month after she was last seen alive at her Phoenix home.

Phoenix cops say Jon Christopher Clark should be charged with murder, improper removal of a body and evidence tampering.

Jon Christopher Clark faces a first-degree murder charge. (Handout)

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Clark remains in the custody of the Maricopa County Sheriffs Office after being arrested last month on unrelated charges. He told the Arizona Republic in an interview published Aug. 16 that he had nothing to do with anything thats going on.

I love Kiera with all my heart, I want Kiera to come home, he told the newspaper at the time.

The 23-year-old Clark was asked not to attend a vigil held for Kiera last month. Her parents told the Republic that they suspected he was involved in their 19-year-old daughters disappearance.

We believed from the beginning he was involved, but without any information we didnt want to put him out there as a bad person without knowing some facts, Kieras father Chris Bragg told ABC 15.

Clark had been questioned last month about Kiera when police found other peoples identification in his vehicle. Investigators have not said how Bergman died.

A bond of $1 million was set during a court appearance by Clark on Tuesday night.

We hope if Jon is guilty he is convicted and he rots in hell, Chris Bragg said in written statement to the Republic.

A GoFundMe page has raised more than $23,000 for her family.

With News Wire Services
It was a chilling scene, with the shadow of 9/11 hovering, when over 400 hospital guests and employees were forced to evacuate a Los Angeles area hospital after an active shooter was reported to be in the vicinity.

As cops spent over an hour scouring each room of the medical centers every floor, a man was reportedly taken into custody after gunshots reportedly were fired.

Police reported there were no injuries and the building was safe.

Cops and deputies sporting riot gear were witnessed cautiously entering Kaiser Permanente Medical Center Tuesday afternoon in Downey, Calif.

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Right around (noon), police just started rushing inside, said Ernie Martinez, one of the evacuees.

While Martinez claimed to not have heard any gunshots, he told TV station KNBC the commotion of police was overwhelming.

The suspect, only identified as being a 34-year-old male from Lynwood, Calif., threw a chair through a window before whipping out a handgun, said a police spokesperson.

Witnesses told KABC the dramatic incident commenced when a patient in the mental health unit began breaking windows and kicking at walls. After learning that the man was armed, many fled the building while others hunkered down trying to find a safe place.

One witness said a late doctors appointment apparently set off the angry man.

He started pounding on the door, saying, I had an appointment at 11 oclock! I deserve my appointment.  Make her let me in! recalled Amber Boughner to KABC. And he just kept pounding, pounding and pounding.

A security guard then told her to flee, shouting, Hes got a gun, run!

When the suspect observed police approaching, he surrendered, and gave himself up without incident, said Downey Police Department Chief Carl Charles.
A missing hiker in Oregons Mt. Hood National Forest was found dead in an apparent cougar attack.

The body of Diana Bober, 55, was found off the Hunchback Trail on Monday  in what is seemingly the first fatal cougar attack in Oregon.

Bober embarked on a hike alone on Aug. 29. and was reported missing by out-of-state family to Gresham police after they hadnt heard from her.

Search teams found Bobers car at the ZigZag Ranger Station a few days before her body was found about two miles away.

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It was determined she died of an apparent animal attack, Craig Roberts, Clackamas County sheriff, said at a press conference Tuesday. Were waiting for final confirmation of what type of animal was responsible for this attack.

The state is home to an estimated 6,600 cougars.

The Oregon Dept. of Fish and Wildlifes Brian Wolfer informed the public the attack has every indication that this is the first fatal attack of a human by a cougar in Oregon.

The animal is being located and the public is advised to avoid the area of the trail.

We cant quantify the threat this animal may pose the public, Wolfer said.

Bobers sister, Allison Bober, told The Oregonian her sister would hike about several times a week and always felt very safe on the trails.

This attack is the second fatal cougar attack in the Northwest this year. In May, a mountain biker was killed by a cougar in Washington.
Life has apparently imitated art for one romance writer.

In a twist of irony so devious it would have turned Agatha Christie green with envy, Oregon chef Daniel Brophy was found shot to death nearly seven years after his wife of 27 years penned an essay titled How to Murder Your Husband.

The Wrong Husband by Nancy Crampton-Brophy (Amazon.com)

Nancy Crampton-Brophy, the writer of sensuous mysteries such as Hell on the Heart and The Wrong Husband, was arrested for murder on Sept. 5  more than three months after the death of her spouse.

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Dan was one of the very few people Ive known that knew exactly what he wanted in life and loved doing it, she said at a candlelight vigil two days after Daniels demise.

Oregon cops were mum on arrest details such as why Crampton-Brophy, 68, was taken into custody only last week for the June 2 shooting.

Detectives believe Nancy L. Crampton-Brophy is the suspect in Daniel C. Brophys murder, said Portland police, who refused to discuss motive or evidence.

Daniel Brophy, 63, who was found dead in the Oregon Culinary Institute in Portland, had worked there as a chef for over 10 years.

Relatives were stunned by the news, and the authors sister is convinced Nancy is innocent.

None of us believe it, said Holly Crampton. Its craziness and its just not true, she stated to ABC News.

A neighbor of the Brophys from Beaverton, Ore., recalled the writer saying she might move to escape her old life.

She said that his side of the bedroom was haunting her, Heidi Hutchinson told People.

Crampton-Brophy remains jailed for unlawful use of a weapon and murder.
A straight-A student in Michigan was stabbed to death during a fight with a 17-year-old classmate in a room full of students at Fitzgerald High School Wednesday morning.

A school resource officer already stationed at the school responded to the scene within seconds and administered CPR until first responders arrived. The 16-year-old victim was stabbed twice in the chest and rushed to St. John Oakland Hospital, where she was pronounced dead around 9:20 a.m.

A kitchen-style steak knife was recovered on the scene, according to Warren Police. How and when the knife was brought onto school property is still under investigation.

This is the first type of situation weve had in the school district in the past 50 years, Police Commissioner Bill Dwyer said during a late morning press conference. Officers cant recall a case where a student was actually murdered at a high school in Warren.

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The fight unfolded just as classes were beginning Wednesday around 8:20 a.m. Authorities suspect the altercation was rooted in the girls involvement with a third, male student, who is cooperating with the investigation. Both the victim and suspect are believed to have had a relationship of some sort with him.

Dwyer said its possible the male student was romantically linked to both girls, but emphasized they are still investigating the incident and would not confirm that it was the cause of the fight.

The suspect is currently in police custody and authorities intend to seek homicide charges. She was also a straight-A student with no prior behavioral issue. The victim meanwhile, was a member of the schools cross country team, robotics club, color guard, marching band an the National Honors Society.

The pair knew each other, Dwyer said, adding at one point they appeared to be friends.

The school was placed on lock down following the altercation. It was lifted around 10:20 and students have been dismissed for the day. The high school off Ryan Road will also be closed tomorrow.

Fitzgerald Public Schools Superintendent Laurie Fouriner said in a statement posted to the districts website that student and staff safety is number one priority.

We are working very closely with the police department on this matter as well as conducting an internal school review of the incident, which will review all our current safety procedures and protocols, she said. This is a time of mourning for the Fitzgerald Community and we ask for you to respect the privacy of the victims families.

Dwyer, during the press briefing called for airport-level security at schools.

Fitzgerald High School is part of the Fitzgerald School District in Warren, one of the largest cities in Michigan and Metro Detroits largest suburb.

Neither the victim nor the suspect have been identified.
The city of San Diego agreed on Tuesday to nearly $1 million in payouts to settle two injury lawsuits, one from a woman hit by a falling tree branch in Mission Bay Park and another from a woman who tripped and fell on Beech Street downtown.

The City Council approved a $750,000 payout to Lorin Toeppe, who was walking with her boyfriend near the De Anza Cove boat launch in July 2013 when a falling tree crushed her leg, fractured her spine and lacerated her face.

The council also approved a $230,000 payout to Frances Ezella Morales, who was injured in June 2015 when she tripped over a 3-inch crack in the sidewalk on Beech Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues.

In the Toeppe case, the settlement comes five years after the incident partly because her suit was dismissed by a lower court in 2015 and then revived by a state appeals court last year.

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The lower court had ruled that state law protects public agencies from lawsuits over the conditions on trails and pathways.

The Fourth District Court of Appeal, however, ruled that the city could be required to pay damages because the citys maintenance of the Eucalyptus tree may have been a factor, noting that the 10-foot-long branch fell on Toeppe.

A physical therapist who was age 32 at the time of the incident, Toeppe underwent multiple surgeries and needs ongoing rehabilitation. She initially sought $25 million from the city.

This is a positive outcome for our client who can now focus on her recovery, Daniel Balaban, one of Toeppes attorneys, said in a news release.

Balaban, whose firm also got a $7.6 million payout in 2012 for a Mission Hills man paralyzed in 2010 when a palm tree fell on him, said on Tuesday that city officials need to take tree maintenance more seriously.

We believe there are many more city trees that need help, he said. This is an important public safety issue, people need to know about this danger.

In the Morales case, attorneys for the city argued that she didnt take reasonable precautions to avoid the sidewalk crack, which they said had not been previously brought to the attention of city officials.

Her lawsuit, however, contends the city does not properly maintain and repair its sidewalks, subjecting city residents to potential injuries.

She sued for medical expenses, lost wages and diminished earning capacity.

The Morales payout comes 16 months after San Diego paid nearly $5 million to a bicyclist who suffered severe head injuries after being launched several feet by a damaged sidewalk in Del Cerro.

And last March, the city paid $1 million to settle a lawsuit over injuries caused by a damaged sidewalk in University Heights.

The payouts highlight the fact that sidewalks in many city neighborhoods are crumbling, partly because city officials neglected infrastructure for many years before reviving it as a high priority in 2014.

Some council members lobbied last year for a 90-day deadline to fix reported sidewalk damage, and for a policy change eliminating the responsibility of homeowners to share the cost of fixing damaged sidewalks next to their property.

Supporters say shifting all costs to the city  and away from homeowners  would simplify a confusing policy and avoid the inaction that often comes when homeowners cant afford their portion of the repair bill.

City Attorney Mara Elliott, however, issued a memo in October saying the proposed changes might actually put the city at higher risk of large injury payouts.

Elliott wrote that such a specific requirement as the 90-day deadline would make the city vulnerable to lawsuits when its not met, with plaintiffs pointing out that the city violated its own policy.

She also criticized the proposal to relieve property owners of repair costs, saying it would be a windfall for their insurance companies at taxpayer expense. Other cities have done exactly the opposite in recent years, she wrote.

david.garrick@sduniontribune.com (619) 269-8906 Twitter:@UTDavidGarrick
Border Patrol agents apprehended more than two dozen people suspected of entering the U.S. illegally on two boats found off the coast of San Diego on Sunday and Monday, officials said.

In the first case, the U.S. Coast Guard spotted a panga-style vessel about one mile west of Mission Bay around 6:30 p.m. on Sunday. Coast Guard personnel detained the boat and its 19 occupants and contacted Border Patrol agents, who took custody of the individuals.

Agents determined the 15 men, three women and 15-year-old boy found on the boat were all Mexican nationals in the country without documentation. The panga operator is facing human smuggling charges, officials said.

The second incident occurred early Monday morning when federal officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protections Air and Marine Operation intercepted a pleasure craft with seven men on board about a mile off the coast of Pacific Beach, west of Crystal Pier, said Border Patrol Agent Tekae Michael.

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Two of them were Chinese nationals and five were Mexican nationals, officials said. They were taken to a U.S. Border Patrol station for processing. One of the Mexican men is facing human smuggling charges.

Twitter: @karenkucher

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A man wearing sunglasses and a visor used a demand note to rob a bank Tuesday evening in a Clairemont Mesa East shopping center, the FBI said.

The suspect handed a teller the demand note at 5:08 p.m. at the Wells Fargo branch at 5522 Balboa Avenue, FBI San Diego spokeswoman Davene Butler said. The teller handed over an undisclosed amount of cash and the suspect left the bank.

Based on witness statements, investigators described the bandit as a 6-foot tall white man in his 60s with gray hair. He did not display a weapon or threaten to use one.

Surveillance photos show he wore a long-sleeve gray shirt, jeans, dark sunglasses with a neck strap or retainer and a white visor that appeared to have Tahoe written across the front.

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The FBI and San Diego Violent Crimes Task Force were investigating the heist. Authorities urged anyone with information about the suspects identity to call the FBIs San Diego field office at (858) 320-1800 or San Diego County Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at (888) 580-8477.

Twitter: @Alex_Riggins

(619) 293-1710

alex.riggins@sduniontribune.com
A suspected hit-and-run driver was behind bars Tuesday for allegedly backing over and fatally injuring his sometimes-girlfriend after she got out of the SUV he was driving during an argument earlier this summer in Jamul, authorities said.

Rontarieo Deshand Brown, 36, was arrested about 1:15 p.m. Monday at a Coronado hotel roughly a month after a warrant was issued for his arrest, CHP spokesman Officer Travis Garrow said.

Detectives believe Brown was behind the wheel of a 2018 Ford Edge SUV around 3:25 a.m. on July 27 near Campo Road and Steele Canyon Road when he ran over 46-year-old Bernadette Castillo, with whom hed had an on-again, off-again relationship for years, Garrow said.

Investigators believe Castillo was in the SUV with Brown before she got out during an argument and tried to walk away, Garrow said.

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He was trying to use the vehicle to prevent her from walking away, Garrow said Tuesday. We believe at one point, she was behind the vehicle and he was rapidly accelerating toward her (in reverse). She tripped and fell, and he ran her over.

Brown allegedly got out of the SUV, checked on Castillo for several minutes, saw how badly she was injured and drove away, Garrow said. Castillo was treated at the scene and taken to a trauma center, but did not survive.

Investigators found the Ford Edge, which was not registered to Brown, abandoned in El Cajon two days after the fatal crash, Garrow said. Detectives found evidence in the SUV and elsewhere, including surveillance videos, that allegedly linked him to the crime.

A warrant for Browns arrest was issued within the first two weeks of August, but he was initially able to elude capture, Garrow said. But a CHP officer on the countys fugitive task force helped investigators track Brown to the Coronado hotel, where he was arrested Monday without incident.

Brown was booked into San Diego Central Jail on Monday evening on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, hit-and-run causing injury or death and assault with a deadly weapon. He remained in custody Tuesday in lieu of $750,000 bail.

Twitter: @Alex_Riggins

(619) 293-1710

alex.riggins@sduniontribune.com
A feud between two neighbors in Encanto erupted in violence Tuesday afternoon when one man stabbed another man in the head, police said.

The victim was expected to survive the attack, while the suspect was still at-large Tuesday evening, according to San Diego police.

One of the neighbors, the victim, was working on his vehicle around 12:30 p.m. in front of his home on Bethany Street, south of Skyline Drive, when the neighbor from across the street approached, Officer Sarah Foster said.

The suspect stabbed the victim in the left side of his head, Foster said in a statement.

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Medics took the victim to a hospital with a substantial injury, but it was not expected to be life-threatening, Lt. Benjamin Kelso told OnScene TV.

From what we understand, theres been several disputes between these two individuals, Kelso told OnScene TV.

The suspect fled south, police said, though there were conflicting reports whether he fled on foot or a bicycle.

Detectives from the SDPDs southwest division, who were handling the investigation, know the identity of the suspect theyre searching for, Officer Billy Hernandez said.

Twitter: @Alex_Riggins

(619) 293-1710

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Days before in-person jury selection is set to begin in his second trial, President Trumps former campaign chairman Paul Manafort is in talks with the special counsels office about a possible plea deal, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions.

The people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the conversations, cautioned that the negotiations may not result in a deal with special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, who is prosecuting Manafort for alleged money laundering and lobbying violations.

But the discussions indicate a possible shift in strategy for Manafort, who earlier this year chose to go to trial in Virginia, only to be convicted last month in Alexandria, Va., federal court on eight counts of bank and tax fraud. He had derided his former business partner, Rick Gates, for striking a deal with prosecutors that provided him leniency in exchange for testimony against Manafort.

I had hoped and expected my business colleague would have had the strength to continue the battle to prove our innocence, Manafort said in February.

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The specifics of Manaforts current negotiations with prosecutors were unclear, including whether he would provide any information about the president.

However, Manaforts willingness to engage in talks could be a setback for Trump, who in the past has praised his former campaign chairman for his unwillingness to cooperate with the special counsel.

Prosecutors applied tremendous pressure on him and ... he refused to break  make up stories in order to get a deal,  the president tweeted last month. Such respect for a brave man!

Manafort spokesman Jason Maloni and Mueller spokesman Peter Carr declined to comment. Manaforts attorneys, Kevin Downing and Thomas Zehnle, did not immediately return calls for comment.

Jury selection for Manaforts second trial is set to begin Monday, with opening statements scheduled for Sept. 24.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson pushed back a scheduled pretrial hearing in the case from Wednesday to Friday. Court filings did not indicate the reason for the delay.

Manafort, 69, a longtime lobbyist and consultant with deep roots in the GOP, served as Trumps campaign chairman for about six months, resigning in August 2016 amid increasing scrutiny of his work on behalf of a Russia-friendly political party in Ukraine.

Both cases brought against Manafort stem from his work in Ukraine. The jury in Virginia found that Manafort hid the money he made in Ukraine to avoid paying taxes and then lied to get loans when the political party collapsed and his funding dried up. In Washington, he faced charges of conspiring against the United States, money laundering, failing to register as a lobbyist, making false statements and witness tampering.

Manafort had the choice to consolidate both cases into one but declined. He had been jailed since June as a result of the witness tampering charges.

He has yet to be sentenced in Virginia, where he faces up to 10 years in prison under federal guidelines on the eight of 18 counts on which he was convicted. A mistrial was declared on the remaining charges after jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict.

Trump has sought advice from his lawyers on the possibility of pardoning Manafort and other aides accused of crimes, his attorney Rudolph W. Giuliani previously told the Washington Post, and was counseled against pardoning anyone involved in the ongoing probe. The president agreed to wait at least until the investigation concludes, Giuliani has said.

Several defendants have cooperated or pleaded guilty in connection with the special counsel probe, including Gates; former national security advisor Michael Flynn; Alex van der Zwaan, a lawyer who worked with Gates and Manafort; W. Samuel Patten, who admitted arranging for a Ukrainian businessman to illegally donate to Trumps inauguration; and former Trump foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos, who was sentenced to 14 days in jail last week after pleading guilty to lying to the FBI.

The decision by Trumps onetime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, to plead guilty last month in a federal investigation in Manhattan particularly angered the president, who denounced him as a flipper.
Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello took aim at President Trump Tuesday after he insisted his administrations response to Hurricane Maria was a sweeping success  even though Rossello recently announced the devastating storm killed nearly 3,000 people.

Rossello has typically avoided confrontations with Trump, but couldnt sit back after the President went on a fact-challenged tirade about Maria.

No relationship between a colony and the federal government can ever be called successful because Puerto Ricans lack certain inalienable rights enjoyed by our fellow Americans in the states, Rossello said in a statement. The historical relationship between Puerto Rico and Washington is unfair and unAmerican. It is certainly not a successful relationship.

Trump had earlier in the day proclaimed his administrations response to Maria one of the best jobs that has ever been done while discussing preparedness for Hurricane Florence, which is expected to hit the Carolinas and Virginia in the coming days.

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I think Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

The President also doubled down on his inaccurate claim that the aftermath of Maria was particularly difficult because Puerto Ricos power grid was dead before the storm even hit.

It was in very bad shape, it was in bankruptcy, it had no money, Trump said. When the storm hit they had no electricity.

Despite Trumps assertion, the islands electrical grid was fully functional before Maria made landfall, although it remains more than $9 billion in debt.

A White House spokeswoman did not respond to a request for clarification.

The President made similar boasts about Maria shortly after Rossello on Aug. 28 raised the hurricane death toll from 64 to 2,975.

I think we did a fantastic job in Puerto Rico, Trump said hours after Rossello announced the new figure.

Rossellos Trump rebuke came as he also announced that he will campaign for political candidates who support statehood for Puerto Rico, including Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.) and Gov. Cuomo.

Cuomo, who has been butting heads with Trump at an increasing rate in recent weeks, also excoriated the President after his latest remarks and brought attention to the hundreds of Puerto Ricans who are still without power or even homeless as a result of Maria.

Instead of patting himself on the back over this utter failure, Cuomo said, President Trump should do something useful and push his fellow Washington Republicans to deliver the aid package Puerto Rico still desperately needs to recover and rebuild.

San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz was stunned by Trumps choice of words.

Success? she tweeted. If he thinks the death of 3,000 people is a success God help us all.
WASHINGTON  Trump administration officials pushed back Wednesday against a Democratic senators claim that nearly $10 million from the governments disaster relief agency was transferred to immigration enforcement.

Sen. Jeff Merkleys claim, which came as a monster hurricane barreled toward the Carolinas, was quickly branded by Homeland Security as a sorry attempt to push a false agenda.

The Oregon senator said the administration took $9.8 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agencys response and recovery and put it in the coffers of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

He based his claim on a 39-page Department of Homeland Security transfer and reprogramming report dated Aug. 31.

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The report shows that funds came from FEMAs operations and support budget and went to fund ICE functions including detention beds and transportation and removals. DHS officials said the account supports FEMA headquarters operational expenses and cannot be used for disaster response. It came in under budget for expenses including travel, training and office supplies and money was moved.

The claim sparked an emphatic denial from Homeland Security Department, which said the impact on FEMAs response and recovery efforts was zero. The agencys budget is more than $15 billion.

Under no circumstances was any disaster relief funding transferred from FEMA to immigration enforcement efforts, DHS spokesman Tyler Houlton said. This is a sorry attempt to push a false agenda at a time when the administration is focused on assisting millions on the East Coast facing a catastrophic disaster.

Homeland Security has the authority to move money around between its components, which include immigration agencies, disaster management, the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Secret Service. Other agencies had money moved around.

According to Sen. Patrick Leahys office, Homeland Security notified Congress on June 30 that it would transfer $200 million from other agencies to ICE, including the funds from FEMA. Leahy, a Democrat who is the Senate Appropriations Committee vice chairman, said the transfer was approved by the subcommittee chairs and no Democrats signed off on it.

Merkleys office said he found the reallocation concerning given last seasons hurricane response, when the agency was criticized for its handling of Hurricane Maria. Merkley spoke about the document Tuesday on MSNBCs The Rachel Maddow Show and on CNN Wednesday.

This is a scandal, Merkley said in a statement. At the start of hurricane season  when American citizens in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are still suffering from FEMAs inadequate recovery efforts  the administration transferred millions of dollars away from FEMA.

Merkley has been a leading critic of the Trump administrations immigration policies, including the zero tolerance policy at the border that resulted in nearly 3,000 children separated from their families.

Other Democratic lawmakers called the reallocation shameful.

This is yet another example of the Trump Administrations outrageously misplaced homeland security priorities, said Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, ranking member of the Committee on Homeland Security.

But Homeland Security officials said the funds were in savings and would have been lost had they not been transferred before the fiscal year ended Sept. 30. FEMA spokeswoman Jenny Burke said on Twitter that she tried to explain the nuance of the document to Merkleys staff before he went on air but they were told: Its a TV hit, you take it where you can.

Merkleys office blasted the comment. Its not surprising to see a defensive and completely fallacious response from the Trump administration to their irresponsible and dangerous decision to move money from FEMA, said Martina McLennan, a spokeswoman.

At a news conference at FEMAs Washington headquarters about the impending hurricane, officials said the agency was properly funded and prepared, and it was most important to focus on the upcoming storm, which could do catastrophic damage.

We have plenty of resources both monetary, staff and commodities to respond to the dangerous storm that is Hurricane Florence, said administrator Jeff Byard. Right now we want to focus on those impacts from Florence and what can our citizens do today, which is the last good day to evacuate.
Re Del Mar board votes to suspend fairgrounds gun show up to a year (Sept. 11): I come from a family of hunters and I fully support the Second Amendment.

However, I also support sensible gun legislation, in particular, a reinstatement of the ban on assault weapons. Readers may recall that, shortly after the Sandy Hook shooting, Sen. Dianne Feinstein proposed a bill to ban private citizens from owning assault weapons.

Had the bill passed, it could have saved countless lives  in a Texas church, a Las Vegas music festival, an Orlando nightclub, an Aurora movie theater, a San Bernardino county meeting, and most recently of course, in the Stoneman Douglas high school. I, for one, applaud the backbone of the Del Mar Fair Board.

Perhaps if the United States Congress, led by Republicans beholden to their NRA donors, had shown an equivalent level of courage, more innocent citizens (176 more) would be alive today, and 176 families would be spared a lifetime of grief.

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Denise Beckfield

Pacific Beach

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Glad to see Obamas media record raised

I was pleasantly surprised at the editorial titled Dont forget Obamas assault on the press (Sept. 11). While your local and state editorials are factual, fair and unbiased, your national ones have largely been typical media Trump bashing and ignore his accomplishments.

I sincerely hope that the editorial signals a more unbiased national approach, both in the editorials and news articles, focused on results and facts, not so much on perception or the often-tumultuous process to achieve these results.

Peter Williamson

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La Jolla

Kudos to the San Diego Union-Tribune for balanced reporting.

Donald Trump has many detractors, for good reasons. Barack Obama had many detractors, for good reason. Bush II, Clinton, Bush I ... same thing.

And they all have their merits. Thank you, editors, for keeping historical perspective alive.

Paul Jester

Poway

Your last sentence stated, Weve never heard rhetoric like Trumps and thats partly because of the legacy of Obama.

Trump excusers have tried to explain Trumps lying by blaming Clinton and now his assault on the press by saying Obama started it.

Really, you cant be serious? This, what about the other presidents, argument is just silly. It is not silly because you are trying to compare apples to oranges. Youre trying to compare apples to some alien fruit the likes of which no Earthling has seen before.

The Trump pack will never see reality but that doesnt mean the majority of Americans have given up on common sense.

Roger Howard

San Diego

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The U-T welcomes and encourages community dialogue on important public matters. Please visit this page for more details on our letters and commentaries policy. You can email letters@sduniontribune.com or leave a comment below.

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Rancho Bernardos eighth annual safety fair in a few weeks will be expanded this year to include an appreciation barbecue so residents can thank the firefighters and police officers who serve the community.

Tickets to the 12:30 to 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 29 First Responders Appreciation Barbecue at Rancho Bernardo Community Park are $8 for adults and $5 for children 12 and younger. They can be purchased in advance at RBCommunityCouncil.com or at the event. However, organizers are requesting those planning to attend to purchase tickets by Thursday, Sept. 20 so enough food is available. The meal will include a main dish, two sides, dessert and beverage.

The inaugural barbecue is being held to help recognize all the wonderful firefighters and police who serve and protect our community, according to Rancho Bernardo Community Council President Robin Kaufman. People will have an opportunity to sit and chat with the first responders while enjoying a wonderful (barbecue), play some games, enjoy music by Evolved Music Productions and watch a San Diego Police K-9 unit demonstration.

Barbecue proceeds will go toward purchasing training devices requested by SDPDs K-9 unit, she said.

The Rancho Bernardo Community Council is organizing both the barbecue and safety fair that will precede it in the park at 18448 W. Bernardo Drive.

The admission-free safety fair, with activities for children and adults, will be held from 10 a.m. to noon on Sept. 29. Kaufman said there will be around 25 vendors, free child fingerprinting provided by the Rancho Bernardo Retired Senior Volunteer Patrol, free CPR training (but not certification) and a display of San Diego Police Department and San Diego Fire-Rescue vehicles.

The fair will also include K-9 demonstrations, opportunity drawings, a silent auction and free face painting. Children will also be able to explore the San Diego Fire-Rescues inflatable safety house.

Those with an American flag needing proper disposal can give the flag to veterans at the safety fair.

For questions, send an email to Admin@RBCommunityCouncil.com.

Email: rbnews@pomeradonews.com


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Winds are currently 65 mph/105 km/h, and shower bands are spreading across the main Hawaiian Islands.

Kauai today and the Big Island later

Norwegian Cruise Line's Honolulu-based Pride of America has changed the order of port calls on its current cruise to avoid the worst of the weather.

The ship is visiting Nawiliwili, Kauai, today, and added a sea day on Wednesday, while its calls at Hilo and Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii were put back to Thursday and Friday.

Pride of America is still expected to turn around Sept. 15 in Honolulu, as scheduled.
ANGARA WANTS DISASTER PREPAREDNESS TAUGHT IN ALL ELEMENTARY, HIGH SCHOOLS

As the country braces for a possible "supertyphoon", Senator Sonny Angara reiterated his proposal to incorporate disaster awareness and mitigation in the school curriculum in a bid to minimize the impact of natural disasters.

"The Philippines is perhaps one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world. Every year, about 20 typhoons enter the Philippines with their strong winds, storm surges and floods--damaging many properties and lives of our kababayans," Angara said.

Angara has filed Senate Bill 1944 which seeks to require the teaching of disaster awareness and mitigation as part of the curriculum in all primary and secondary schools in the country.

The lawmaker said such measure is a must for the Philippines, which is prone to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, typhoons, tsunami, floods and droughts because of its geologic and geographical conditions.

"Bilang isang ama, ramdam ko ang takot ng mga magulang sa tuwing hindi nila kasama ang kanilang mga anak sa oras ng mga sakuna. This is why it is important to equip students with knowledge on mitigating and managing hazards and risks brought by natural disasters like typhoons and earthquakes," Angara said.

He further explained that the proposed measure is in response to the need to minimize loss of life, property damage and socioeconomic impact caused by natural disasters.

Once enacted, the Department of Education shall adopt the necessary rules and regulations to implement the law's provisions.
Press Release

September 12, 2018 'I'm not surprised': De Lima says of Sebastian's guilty plea for fear for his life Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima is not surprised at all that drug convict Jaybee Sebastian has pleaded guilty to one count of illegal drug trade in her bogus cases pending before the Muntinlupa City Regional Trial Court (RTC). De Lima said she believes that Sebastian, her co-accused in the trumped-up drug charge lodged before Muntinlupa City RTC Branch 206, has been pressured by Duterte's operators to falsely testify against her in exchange for his and his family's safety. "Not surprisingly, Jaybee Sebastian pleaded guilty due to threats to his life and that of his family. Let's not forget that Sebastian's life was previously placed in danger because he initially refused to testify against me. Kailangan niyang gawin 'yan dahil buhay niya mismo ang nakasalalay diyan," she said. Sebastian is accused alongside De Lima in Criminal Case No. 17-167 being handled by Muntinlupa City RTC Branch 206. The case originated from the complaint filed by two disgruntled National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Officers who were not re-appointed to their desired positions during the term of the Senator as justice secretary. Under the case, De Lima is accused of conspiring with Sebastian, former Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief Jesus Bucayu, Bucayu's former staff Wilfredo Elli, De Lima's former security aides Ronnie Dayan and Joenel Sanchez, and a certain Jad de Vera - to trade drugs inside the New Bilibid Prison to allegedly raise funds for her 2016 senatorial bid. Last Sept. 4, Sebastian, who is an alleged government asset during the time of De Lima as Justice Secretary and the only drug convict retained in the charges, entered a guilty plea after he was arraigned for his case before Muntinlupa RTC Branch 206. The arraignment took place inside the National Bilibid Prison. Sebastian alleged he conspired with De Lima and five others to trade drugs inside the NBP. Previously, in Sept. 28, 2016, however, Sebastian sustained multiple puncture wounds in a riot at the New Bilibid Prison, in Muntinlupa City. Incidentally, the violent incident happened days after then Justice Secretary Aguirre said that Sebastian was suddenly unwilling to testify about De Lima's alleged ties to the so-called Bilibid drug trade. Aside from Sebastian, two others were left wounded while drug convict Tony Co was killed during the said stabbing incident at the national penitentiary. De Lima said Sebastian has nothing to lose with his admission of guilt, noting that "since he is already convicted of another crime, Sebastian's admission of his guilt in relation to the drug charge will have no effect in him. The fear now is if he will live - if he recants." De Lima's legal counsel, Atty. Filibon Tacardon, said while there was an admission of guilt, the prosecutors still need to provide evidence of Sebastian's guilt under the rules of Court. "The crime alleged involves the penalty of Reclusion Perpetua (40 years) and the Prosecution is yet to--and is required to-- provide the pieces of evidence needed to prove Sebastian's guilt," he said. De Lima, who has always maintained her innocence from all the politically-motivated trumped-up illegal drug trading charges levelled against her, is the first prominent political prisoner under the Duterte regime. In both Muntinlupa City RTC Branches 205 and 206 where she is facing charges, the respective Courts have entered a "not guilty" plea for the former justice secretary, pursuant to the Rules of Court, after she defied the court's jurisdiction over her, and refused to acknowledge the legitimacy or validity of the charges as averred in the Information.
The New Zealand dollar was trading higher after investor risk appetite was stoked by news that US officials are looking to re-open trade talks with China.

The kiwi traded at 65.62 US cents at 8am in Wellington versus 65.10 US cents at 5pm yesterday. The trade-weighted index was at 71.31 from 71.13 yesterday.

Global risk appetite got a lift after the Wall Street Journal reported that senior US officials led by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin sent invitations to their counterparts in Beijing proposing another round of bilateral trade talks. CNBC also reported that the US plans to delay the announcement of another round of tariffs on Chinese goods due to a hurricane approaching the Carolina coast.

Markets have been watching closely, with the US ready to go on another $200 billion in tariffs and President Donald Trump making additional threats last week. Jitters about the US-China trade war had weighed heavily on currencies like the New Zealand dollar, given the country's dependence on exports.

The greenback also came under some pressure when the US producer-price index for August was below expectations. The Federal Reserve's Beige Book also noted that concerns over trade tensions have led some businesses to postpone investment, with input prices reportedly on the rise due to tariffs.

"Soft US PPI data and reports that the US has reached out to China to resume trade talks saw the USD weaken and boosted cyclical currencies. If the trade reports are legit, then this move could extend. Otherwise, we will quickly head back towards support," said ANZ Bank senior macro strategist Philip Borkin. The kiwi has support at 64.70 US cents and resistance at 66.40 US cents, he said.

Domestically, Borkin said the market will be watching for housing market data and food price data this morning, followed by Australia's labour market statistics.

The kiwi traded at 4.4998 Chinese yuan from 4.4795 yuan yesterday.

The kiwi traded at 91.46 Australian cents from 91.62 cents and at 72.98 yen from 72.71 yen yesterday. It was at 56.43 euro cents from 56.25 cents and at 50.27 British pence from 50.06 pence yesterday.

(BusinessDesk)

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The Serious Fraud Office wont say why it took so long to bring a case against an accountant who admitted taking client money and was thrown out of the industry body in 2016.

Christopher George Wright was suspended by the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants in May 2016 and kicked out in December that year, after pleading guilty to the tribunal to stealing funds from clients over an eight-year period.

Now the SFO has brought charges against Wright, alleging the 62-year-old filed tax returns on behalf of his clients and misappropriated refunds of about $1.01 million. The SFO alleges Wright defrauded 245 clients over a six-year period from January 2010 to April 2016.

Spokesman Henry Acland says the SFO wont comment on the case until after any sentencing. But the office is asking any of Wrights clients who think they might have been defrauded to make contact with it.

In December 2016, the Institute of Chartered Accountants disciplinary tribunal said Wright acknowledged he had been taking client monies for approximately eight years.

"The tribunal finds that the member's conduct - the misappropriation of at least $280,000 over approximately 18 months and his admission that he had been taking client monies over approximately eight years - constitutes misconduct in a professional capacity," the decision said.

This week Wright appeared in the Auckland District Court charged by the SFO with "theft by a person in a special relationship". He didnt enter a plea and was remanded on bail until Oct. 4.

(BusinessDesk)

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Radius Residential Care Limited (NZX: RAD) Settles Acquisition of 23rd Facility


Australia's National Veterinary Care will pay up to A$27 million for Pet Doctors NZ to fast-track its expansion on this side of the Tasman.

The Queensland-based company will pay A$22.7 million upfront for the 23 clinics and two training centres with earn-outs of up to A$4.3 million. National Veterinary Care (NVL) already has 10 clinics with a database of 28,000 pet patients and 130 staff in New Zealand. Adding the larger Pet Doctors, with its 300 staff and 55,000 pet patients database, makes it the biggest vet chain in New Zealand and diversifies the group's revenue outside Australia.

"The Pet Doctors acquisition will be our largest acquisition since listing on the ASX in 2015 and is an excellent strategic fit with NVL's existing business, in particular expanding its New Zealand footprint," managing director Tomas Steenackers said in a statement. "The compatibility of systems between NVL and Pet Doctors will streamline the integration of the Pet Doctors clinics."

NVL is the latest Australian firm extending its reach into New Zealand, with Animates joint owner Greencross opening new outlets on this side of the Tasman during the past year.

Pet Doctors, which counts private equity firm Pioneer Capital as a cornerstone investor, has been buying rival clinics for the past decade and advertises itself as an exit for vets looking to sell up.

NVL will immediately seek to cut back-office costs in the enlarged New Zealand operation to A$1.5 million a year from A$3.2 million. It may shut clinics it deems inefficient.

Pet Doctors will add annualised revenue of NZ$31.2 million, earnings before interest and tax of NZ$4.5 million, and deliver earnings per share growth of mid-single digits, NVL said.

NVL plans to raise A$18 million in a placement to institutional investors at A$2.25 a share to fund the acquisition. It will also draw on A$6.2 million of debt.

The ASX-listed shares rose 0.9 percent to A$2.37.

(BusinessDesk)

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Radius Residential Care Limited (NZX: RAD) Settles Acquisition of 23rd Facility


Another leader of the BSP claimed that the victim, Sardar Singh Jatav, 45, was targeted for 'wearing a turban'.

: The skin of the head of a Scheduled Caste leader of the Bahujan Samaj Party was peeled off allegedly by some villagers in Madhya Pradesh's Shivpuri district, police said Tuesday.

Police registered a case against three persons on Tuesday and are investigating the matter.

The trio allegedly called Jatav to the residence of one of the accused, Surendra Gurjar, in Mahoba village, around 50 kilometres from Shivpuri, on September 3 under some pretext and abused him there and then peeled off the skin of his head using a knife, a police official said.

"Jatav alleged in his statement that Gurjar and two others removed the skin of his head with a knife," said Narwar police station in-charge Badam Singh Yadav.

No arrests have been made so far and efforts are on to trace the accused, he said.

A case of attempt to murder was registered against the accused trio under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, he said.

Jatav, who was seriously injured in the attack, is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Gwalior, Yadav said.

Shivpuri district BSP president Dayashankar Gautam claimed Monday that Jatav was attacked for 'wearing a turban'.

He claimed the accused tied up Jatav after he reached Gurjar's residence and beat him up.

They took objection to Jatav wearing the turban, Gautam said, adding that he used to wear a blue-coloured headgear.

Gautam claimed that the accused allowed Jatav to go after a while.

He alleged that police initially refused to accept Jatav's complaint against the Gurjars.

A delegation of the BSP Monday submitted a memorandum to Shivpuri superintendent of police.
China warns of protectionism as US trade row simmers



Hanoi, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



China warned Wednesday that protectionism threatens global growth and cautioned "individual countries" against isolationism, in a veiled reference to the deepening trade spat between Washington and Beijing that is being closely watched across Asia.

The comments from China's vice premier come as the world's top two economic powers edged closer to an all-out trade war after imposing tit-for-tat tariffs on billions of dollars of imports.

Tensions between the UN and China were heightened last week when US President Donald Trump threatened to hit all China's exports to the US worth more than $500 billion as he doubles down on the "America First" agenda he says aims to protect jobs and industries from overseas competition.

But without directly naming Trump or the United States, Vice Premier Hu Chunhua warned against countries going it alone and upending the globalised trading system.

"Some individual countries' protectionist and unilateral measures are gravely undermining the rules-based multilateral trading regime, posing a most serious hazard to the world economy," Hu said at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Hanoi.

"Self-isolation will lead nowhere and only openness for all represents the right way forward," he added.

The trade row has dominated discussions at the WEF where Southeast Asian leaders have made the case for fewer trade barriers as America retreats from the region under Trump, who has decried trade deficits in the region.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) "is working with like-minded partners to strengthen the rules-based international system," Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said.

"It underpins growth and stability, but is under pressure."

The trade tussle between Washington and Beijing is being closely watched across Southeast Asia where some export-focused economies may be set to gain from the fallout.

Rising labour costs in China have already precipitated a push into countries such as Vietnam and Cambodia, where Adidas shoes, H&M T-shirts and Samsung phones are made on the cheap.

But the trade rumble has accelerated that process, with several Chinese firms turning to the region to produce items from bike parts to mattresses in a bid to avoid US tariffs.

"ASEAN countries don't want to count their chickens before they hatch," Fred Burke, managing partner at Baker McKenzie in Vietnam, told AFP.

"But I think they see it on a net basis as a gain for them because it means shifting manufacturing into Southeast Asia that was... (earlier) in China."



- Protectionist woes -



Although there could be a short-term boon to Southeast Asia, some analysts warn the long-term may be less rosy.

The region is "very export-driven... so any shift toward more trade barriers... is not good", Rajiv Biswas, Asia-Pacific chief economist at IHS Markit, told AFP.

ASEAN trade increased by a value of nearly $1 trillion between 2007 and 2014 and the bloc had a collective GDP of $2.76 trillion last year after an enthusiastic embrace of trade liberalisation -- a marked contrast to Trump's policies.

In one of his first post-election moves, the US president pulled out of the sprawling 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), calling the trade pact a job killer.

The current edition of the WEF, which closes Thursday, is officially focused on how economies should adapt to so-called "disruptive technologies" such as automation and artificial intelligence that threaten to cull jobs in emerging economies.

Several regional leaders have joined the forum, including Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Cambodia's newly re-elected strongman Prime Minister Hun Sen and Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Suu Kyi is under intense global scrutiny over the Rohingya crisis and is scheduled to speak at the forum Thursday.

Last week's the International Criminal Court ruled it has jurisdiction to investigate the forced deportation of 700,000 Rohingya Muslims by Myanmar's military as a possible crime against humanity.

Myanmar has also faced international censure over the decision to jail two Reuters journalists for seven years under a draconian state secrets law for their coverage of a Rohingya massacre.
9 dead, dozens hurt as driver rams into crowd in China



Beijing, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



A driver ploughed into a crowded public square in China, killing nine and injuring 46, local officials said Wednesday.

The incident occurred at 7:35 pm (1135 GMT), according to a statement on the official social media account of Hengdong city in central Hunan province.

Police have taken the driver -- a man in his mid-40s -- into custody, according to a report published by the state-funded news website The Paper, which added that a person matching the description of the alleged assailant had previously been jailed on drug charges.

Authorities said they were investigating the incident, but did not elaborate further.

Pictures reportedly from the scene and shared on social media showed a red SUV with a crushed bumper.

Videos of the incident circulated briefly on social media, but were quickly removed.

Violent crime has risen in China in recent decades as the country's economic boom has widened the gap between the rich and the poor. Police have also previously blamed such attacks on militant separatists.

In 2013, two tourists were killed when a car rammed into bystanders on Beijing's iconic Tiananmen Square before bursting into flames.

Three attackers also died in the incident, which Beijing blamed on separatists from the restive western region of Xinjiang.
Page Content

Prime Minister Address at the COM Press Briefing on Wednesday, September 12th 2018.





As Chairlady of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), I convened an EOC meeting on Wednesday morning at 9 am to assess the weather situation based on Tropical Storm Isaac that will be passing through the Southern Leeward Islands on Thursday.





Even though a Tropical Storm Watch for Sint Maarten was not issued for the country, in its decision-making process the EOC continues to take a cautious approach in this post Irma environment.





The decision has been taken to close schools on Thursday, September 13 out of safety for the schoolchildren. Our Meteorological Services has indicated that the country could experience some gale force winds of up to 35 miles per hour.





Seeing that we still have loose debris around the country; certain school buildings still have challenges; and based on these vulnerabilities due to the aftermath of Irma, and for the comfort and safety of our schoolchildren, it has been advised to close schools for that day as Isaac passes through the Lesser Antilles.





Businesses should give some consideration to those employees who cannot secure childcare services for Thursday.





A decision with respect to school on Friday will be made on Thursday after an assessment of weather conditions. Government services will remain open on Thursday. Business operations can continue as normal on Thursday. Shelters will not open as planned on Wednesday due to a review of the latest information related to Tropical Storm Isaac.





The Police Force of Sint Maarten will continue with their operational plan with respect to checkpoints along the public road network between Wednesday and Friday as Tropical Storm Isaac passes the Southern Leeward Islands. This measure has been taken with respect to safety and security.





The Meteorological Department of Sint Maarten along with the EOC will continue to monitor Tropical Storm Isaac as it passes the Southern Leeward Islands into the Caribbean Sea thereby clearing the area south of the country.





I would like to thank the public for their diligence in monitoring the storm during the pass days. Continue to monitor the situation closely as the system is still east of the Southern Leeward Islands.





Continue to monitor official local weather and Government related information by visiting (www.meteosxm.com); the Government of Sint Maarten website (www.sintmaartengov.org) or the Government of Sint Maarten social media Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/SXMGOV), or tune into Government Radio 107.9 FM.




Page Content

Stakeholders in the hospitality industry on French and Dutch St. Maarten have united for one common goal of sustainably rebuilding the tourism destination. The group recently held their sixth meeting on the anniversary of Hurricane Irma which devastated the island one year ago on September 6.





Six months ago, the group of Tourism, Destination Promotion and Marketing experts formed a workgroup consisting of industry experts in various areas of hospitality on both sides of the island, under the initiative of the Princess Juliana International Airport, PJIA. They have since then been able to use the once monthly meeting as a means of sharing information on best practices and challenges with the aim of collectively moving St. Maarten back into its leading role as an economically stable tourism destination.





On Friday the group was hosted by Port St. Maarten which is one of the participants. The meetings are routinely chaired by PJIA Chief Financial Officer/Acting Chief Executive Officer Ravi Daryanani with significant participation from French Tourism Bureau Director and First Vice President of the Collectivite de Saint Martin Valerie Damaseau. Other meetings have also been chaired by Chief Operations Officer for PJIA Mr. Michel Hyman.





In attendance for the sixth meeting was Senior Policy Advisor for the Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Traffic & Transportation TEATT Ms Regina Labega and Interim Head of the St. Maarten Tourist Bureau May-Ling Chun, along with representatives of the Grand Case Airport and Dutch and French St. Maarten hoteliers.





Chun said, These type of initiatives amongst stakeholders results in productive cooperation in various areas not only marketing but also helps us to better focus on the common vision of rebuilding our tourism model bigger and better. She commended the PJIA for the initiative of brining the group together and said when there is synergy between all partners on both the Northern and Southern part of the island, it shows unison, productivity, and it has positive effect.





Pic: A group of stakeholders in the hospitality industry on French and Dutch St. Maarten pause for a photo during one of their monthly meetings held on September 6th at the Port St. Maartens Conference Room. Meeting chaired by PJIA Chief Financial Officer and Acting Chief Executive Officer Ravi Daryanani (seventh from the left) and First Vice President of the Collectivite de Saint Martin Valerie Damaseau (sixth from the left).




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Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd806e158)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd802e740)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd806e158)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd802e740)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd800de38)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd802e740)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd802e740)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd775fda8)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd8119178)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd8119178)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
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context: ... 21: </%method> 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: </%perl> 28: <table width="90%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> 29: <tr> ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25

/usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951

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Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd7f0e340)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd877e100)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd7f0e340)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd877e100)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd8183970)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd877e100)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd877e100)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd77601f8)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd820e0a0)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fd820e0a0)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
System error

error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.

context: ... 21: </%method> 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: </%perl> 28: <table width="90%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> 29: <tr> ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25

/usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951

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Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 129 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 160 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd7c58798)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 951 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fe5b815b0)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/1784076917/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd7c58798)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1305 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 958 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fe5b815b0)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 138 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x7f3fd80bca68)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1303 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1295 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 484 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 436 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fe5b815b0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fe5b815b0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x7f3fd77908f8)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fdf98bcd0)') called at (eval 487) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x7f3fdf98bcd0)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
System error

error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.

context: ... 21: </%method> 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: </%perl> 28: <table width="90%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> 29: <tr> ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25

/usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:951

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The majority of international students in Canada want permanent residency, a new survey has found.

Inside Higher Ed reported on the survey by the Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE), which found that 60 percent from this years cohort want to be future citizens, an increase from 51 percent who said the same in 2015. Another 30 percent said they were unsure.

These participants have further study and work plans for the immediate years after graduating from the course.

The number of international students in Canada reached a total of 494,525 by the end of 2017.

This number represents a 20 percent jump over 2016 and surpasses the Government of Canadas International Education Strategy goal of 450,000 international students in Canada by 2022.

Almost half of the students indicated their intention to remain in Canada in order to obtain further education. Students who wished to remain in Canada to study were most likely to pursue further education in a different institution (25 percent) while 21 percent indicated they would remain at their current institution, the report wrote.

Over two-thirds (70 percent) of all students indicated their intention to find work in Canada following their studies.

The CBIE survey had 14,228 post-secondary international student respondents, representing four percent of the total for this cohort. More than one-third (35 percent) are pursuing a bachelors degree, while the rest comprise of students pursuing diploma studies (13 percent), Masters (22 percent) and doctoral programs (17 percent). East Asian students form the largest regional group (23 percent), followed by South Asia (22 percent) and Africa (14 percent).

These students intention to remain in Canada should come as no surprise. For many years, the country maintained a reputation as a tolerant, open society with friendly immigration policies, even as its neighbour down south grew increasingly hostile towards international students.

One female business student from India said: Canada is welcoming, friendly, and cheerful and that makes me feel good in spite of being thousands of miles away from home.

Another student from Trinidad and Tobago said: The startup community and faculty members are incredibly kind, empathetic and supportive peopleProfessionals both inside and outside the university whom I have had the pleasure to interact with continue to encourage me and help me where they can to pursue my goals and improve every day and that means the world to me.

According to CBIEs latest survey, Canada maintains very high levels of satisfaction among the international student cohort, with a 94 percent approval rate.

Ninety-four percent of respondents indicated they were very satisfied or satisfied with their Canadian education experience. The survey gathered information about the students' academic experiences, their participation in extracurricular activities, their housing and familial situations, their friendship circles and level of social integration, and their experiences working or looking for work in Canada, among other topics.

Slightly more than a third (35 percent) of the survey respondents were enrolled in programs at the bachelors level, 22 percent at the masters level and 17 percent at the doctoral level, while most of the rest studied in certificate or diploma programs or English-language programs.

Its resulted in a boom in the number of international students in recent years. Last November, Universities Canada reported a 10.7 percent increase in international student enrollment compared to last fall. British Columbia saw the largest increase, with a hike of 15.6 percent. Around the same time, American universities experienced a seven percent decline in new international enrollments.

Meanwhile, the C.D. Howe Institute reports that former international students are doing quite well in Canadas job market compared to internationally educated immigrants but still fall behind their Canadian-born-and-educated counterparts.

In Comparing Outcomes: The Relative Job-Market Performance of Former International Students, authors Mikal Skuterud and Zong Jia Chen compared the performance of former international students (who studied within the first decade of the 2000s) in todays job market with that of foreign-born-and-educated graduates as well as Canadian-born and educated people, combining data from Canadas National Graduate Survey and Labour Force Survey.

The results indicate that former international students clearly outperform their foreign-educated counterparts by substantial margins, but they are not too far behind those born and educated in Canada.

Infographic - http://www.asianpacificpost.com/media/graphics/Infographic-inbound-EN_18-0913.pdf
Guest Commentary

By Jock Finlayson

The arrival of another Labour Day provided an opportunity to reflect on the place of trade unions in our economy.

The unionization rate  sometimes called union density  measures the share of employees in the workforce who belong to a union.

In B.C., the rate has dropped significantly in recent decades. The trend has persisted through multiple business cycles and provincial governments of different political stripes. Today, about 30 percent of workers in the province are union members, down from more than 40 percent in the early 1980s.

Unionization is most common in the public sector. Approximately 77 percent of public sector employees in British Columbia are covered by collective agreements.

The picture is different in the private sector: union coverage there sits at 17 percent, down from 24 percent 20 years ago.

In most industries, union coverage in B.C. is now similar to the national rate. There are a few exceptions: coverage rates in B.C. are higher in the forestry, mining and oil and gas industries, as well as in the transportation and warehousing sector. On the other hand, union density in B.C.s construction industry is lower than the Canadian average. That partly reflects the sustained growth and large size of the residential construction industry  unions have a smaller market share in residential construction than in other parts of the sector.

Labour leaders often claim that government policy is the key factor influencing union density. But that seems unlikely. The steady growth of employment in service industries and in the high-technology sector goes a long way toward explaining the gradual downward trend in private sector union density.

The fact that small businesses  defined as those with fewer than 50 employees  now account for more than half of private-sector jobs in B.C. also contributes to lower unionization.

Nor should we overlook shifting preferences and attitudes among workers, with many younger ones seeming less interested in joining a union.

Job creation in the B.C. private sector has been strongly driven by self-employment, smaller businesses and service industries that traditionally are hard for unions to organize.

The professional, scientific and technical services industry, for example, has a unionization rate of just five percent, yet the total number of employees in this fast-growing sector has jumped by 90 percent since 1997. Similarly, the number of employees in the business, building and support services industry has risen by 73 percent since 1997; this sector, too, has a comparatively low unionization rate (around 16 percent).

Other service industries characterized by below-average union density include retail and wholesale trade (14.5 percent), financial services (11 percent) and accommodation and food services (six percent). These industries have proven to be difficult terrain for unions.

The process of industrial change has also impacted unionization.

Manufacturing provides the starkest example: total manufacturing employment in B.C. has dwindled by 20,000 since 1997, amid the spread of automation and the substitution of capital equipment for labour by manufacturing firms. While overall manufacturing employment decreased by 11 percent in the last two decades, the number of manufacturing employees who belong to a union slumped by nearly half.

The unionized manufacturing workforce has contracted more quickly than total employment in the sector because jobs have been disappearing in large processing facilities that have invested heavily in capital equipment and automation. At the same time, the number of people employed in smaller non-resource manufacturing businesses has expanded. This segment of the manufacturing sector is harder for unions to organize.

Add it all up and the evidence suggests that structural forces  the process of industrial change, technological innovation, and the increased role of self-employment and small businesses in the labour market  largely account for declining union density in the provinces private sector.

Jock Finlayson is executive vice-president of the Business Council of British Columbia.
Russia denies suspecting US astronauts of drilling hole on space station



Moscow, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



Russia on Wednesday reacted angrily to a report that it suspects US astronauts of deliberately drilling a hole on the International Space Station, one of the few remaining areas of cooperation between the countries.

The hole was detected on the ISS last month and quickly sealed up, but Russia has suggested that it was drilled deliberately.

Russian daily Kommersant reported Wednesday that a Russian space agency investigation is probing the possibility US astronauts deliberately drilled the hole in order to get a sick colleague sent back home.

Kommersant reported that this scenario was being looked into "as a priority," quoting a source participating in the investigation.

But deputy prime minister Yury Borisov rejected Kommersant's report, saying that "it is absolutely unacceptable to cast a shadow either on our cosmonauts or on American astronauts," RIA Novosti state news agency reported.

The deputy prime minister said it was "shortsighted and dangerous" to speculate until the findings of the investigation were released.

He also stressed the ISS was "a unified group where there are no political disagreements."

Russian space agency Roscosmos told AFP it would make no official comment until the findings are released, which is expected to happen this month.

Astronauts located the hole on August 30 in a Russian-made spacecraft docked to the ISS after an air leak was detected onboard, and closed it up with sealant.

Space agency chief Dmitry Rogozin told journalists last week that the hole could have been a deliberate act of sabotage and suggested this could have happened in space as well as back on Earth.

On Wednesday Rogozin wrote on Facebook that "spreading speculation and rumours about the incident on the ISS doesn't help the experts at Roscosmos and is aimed at undermining relations between comrades in the space station crew."

He told journalists Tuesday that initial findings showed "the situation is much more complicated than it seemed before."

The ISS crews are ferried to and from the space station in Russian Soyuz spacecraft. The hole was drilled in a section of a Soyuz that will not be used for the return journey to Earth.

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Armstrong out at Verizon's Oath after integrating AOL, Yahoo



Washington, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



Tim Armstrong, head of the Verizon unit that included faded internet stars AOL and Yahoo, is leaving the company at the end of the year, the telecom and media giant announced Wednesday.

Armstrong was the first chief executive at Oath, the name chosen when Verizon acquired Yahoo and incorporated the internet pioneer into a new division that had promised to innovate in online media.

Verizon said in a statement that Armstrong "will help guide the Verizon subsidiary's management transition efforts as a strategic advisor before leaving the company at the end of 2018."

He will be replaced by Guru Gowrappan, who has served as Oath's president and COO since April.

Gowrappan, a former Alibaba executive, "has proven experience in scaling businesses globally," said Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg.

"I'm thrilled he will lead Oath in an exciting new phase of growth, building on the foundation Tim and his team have created by delivering brands our customers love."

Armstrong served as CEO at AOL from 2009 until it was acquired by Verizon in 2015. He steered the group into online media, acquiring properties including the Huffington Post and TechCrunch.

Combining AOL and Yahoo was seen as a way for Verizon to move deeper into online media and digital advertising.

At the time of the acquisition of Yahoo, Armstrong tweeted: "Billion+ Consumers, 20+ Brands, Unstoppable Team. #TakeTheOath. Summer 2017."

But the rebranding was mocked on social media, with one Twitter user writing: "Q: Is "Oath" Yahoo or AOL? A: Boath."
Hungary's Orban denounces 'blackmail' over EU censure move



Strasbourg, France, Sept 11 (AFP) Sep 11, 2018



Prime Minister Viktor Orban vowed Tuesday that Hungary would resist any attempt to "blackmail" it into softening its anti-migrant stance, on the eve of an EU parliament vote to censure his populist government.

Orban denounced as insulting to Hungary's honour a report presented to the Strasbourg assembly that accuses his government of posing a "systemic threat" to the democratic values on which the European Union was founded.

MEPs will vote Wednesday on whether to launch a procedure that could lead to unprecedented political sanctions against EU member Hungary and deepen the continental divide between centrist pro-European parties and populist anti-migrant forces.

Underlining this division, the centre-right EPP parliamentary group -- which includes Orban's own Fidesz party -- has given its members a free vote on whether to back the possible investigation of his government for non-compliance with EU law.

"Whatever your decision will be, Hungary will not accede to this blackmail," an angry Orban told lawmakers, whom he alleged had already made up their minds to activate Article 7 of the EU treaty and seek measures to restrict his government's voting rights.

"Hungary will protect its borders, stop illegal migration and defend its rights," Orban said, accusing EU elites of wanting to punish Budapest for its anti-migrant stance.

Budapest argues it is acting in defence of sovereign rights, and in tune with the mood of European voters who will elect a new parliament in Strasbourg next May.

But Judith Sargentini, who is spearheading the vote on possible action against Hungary, told fellow MEPs the time had come for them to make an "important choice".

"Will you let it happen that a government... violates the values on which this union was built without consequences?" the Green MEP from the Netherlands asked colleagues.

Her report voiced concerns about the judicial independence, corruption, freedom of expression, academic freedom, religious freedom, and the rights of minorities and refugees under eight years of Orban rule.



- 'Duty to stand side by side' -



Addressing parliament ahead of Orban, Greek leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said: "Pro-European forces have a duty to stand side by side. We should not let Europe slide back to the past."

Opposition to Orban's vision does not just come from the left, with disquiet also in the main centre-right parliamentary group, the European People's Party (EPP).

The EPP's leader, Manfred Weber, said he would vote in favour of the motion targeting Hungary, but a party spokesman said the group was divided about 50-50.

If the motion passes, it would be the first time the European Parliament votes to take steps under Article 7, which could ultimately deny Hungary its EU voting rights.

Last year the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, launched similar steps against Poland over alleged threats to the independence of its courts.

Poland's ally Hungary has pledged to veto any move to impose penalties on Warsaw, which would effectively block any such measure.

Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans told the parliament that his colleagues shared concerns about Hungary, but did not indicate whether he thought Budapest had crossed the threshold for invoking Article 7.

It is also not clear whether Sargentini's push would win the necessary two-thirds support of the assembly.

While Orban's actions have provoked opposition, they have been applauded by populists in the EU, with prominent far-right figures floating the idea of forging a pan-European alliance ahead of next year's bloc elections.



- Report 'insults Hungary' -



The Commission, headed by Jean-Claude Juncker, an EPP member, has repeatedly clashed with Orban's government, especially since Budapest refused to admit asylum seekers under an EU scheme launched at the height of the migration crisis in 2015.

In July, the EU executive body warned it could take Budapest to the European Court of Justice over laws under which anyone assisting an undocumented migrant could be jailed for a year.

The top EU court could impose fines, which would be less drastic for Hungary than losing its voting rights.

Orban said his government had sent all MEPs an 108-plus page rebuttal of Sargentini's "false" charges.

"The report in front of you insults Hungary and insults the honour of the Hungarian nation," he said, adding his country was a proud Christian nation that had stood up to the former Soviet Union.
US vows to respond 'decisively' to attacks in Iraq by Tehran allies



Washington, Sept 11 (AFP) Sep 11, 2018



The White House on Tuesday warned it would hold Iran accountable for any violence attributed to Tehran-allied militias in Iraq that results in damage to US facilities or injures American personnel.

"Over the past few days, we have seen life-threatening attacks in Iraq, including on the United States consulate in Basra and against the American embassy compound in Baghdad," the White House said in a statement.

"Iran did not act to stop these attacks by its proxies in Iraq, which it has supported with funding, training, and weapons."

Three mortar shells hit late Friday the ultra-secure green zone in Baghdad, which houses Iraqi authorities and the US Embassy.

The rare attack -- whose perpetrators remain unidentified -- did not cause casualties or damage, according to Iraqi officials.

"The United States will hold the regime in Tehran accountable for any attack that results in injury to our personnel or damage to United States Government facilities," the White House statement said.

"America will respond swiftly and decisively in defense of American lives."

Since Donald Trump took over the White House in early 2017, Washington has set Iran in its sights, accusing it of seeking to destabilize the Middle East.

The Republican president in May announced that Washington would withdraw unilaterally from the landmark nuclear pact signed in 2015 between Tehran and major global powers.

Iraq has been an initial victim of the US sanctions re-imposed on neighboring Iran, which it relies on for cheap imports.
Juncker urges EU to assume stronger world role



Strasbourg, France, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



Europe must become a "global player" with a muscular foreign policy to match its economic strength, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker urged Wednesday, in his annual address to the bloc's parliament.

Juncker used his State of the EU speech to the Strasbourg body to call for Europe to stand up for the international order in the face of "trade and currency wars", in a swipe at US President Donald Trump's "America First" approach.

Europe's ability to take strong diplomatic action is often hampered by the need to get agreement from all 28 member countries so, in a bid to simplify the process, Juncker announced plans to abolish the need for unanimity on some foreign policy issues.

With Brussels and Washington at loggerheads on a host of major issues from trade tariffs to the Paris climate agreement and the Iran nuclear deal, Juncker said it was time for Europe to play a more influential role on the world stage.

"We must become a greater global actor," the head of the EU executive told lawmakers in French, before switching to English to add: "Yes we are global payers, but we have to be global players too."

The EU must do more to push the euro as a world currency, Juncker said, questioning why Europe pays 80 percent of its energy bills in dollars when only two percent of energy imports come from the United States.

Boosting the role of the euro as a reserve currency would also boost Brussels' diplomatic power by creating a means of skirting US sanctions that it disagrees with, such as those slapped back on Tehran by Trump when he pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal earlier this year in the face of bitter European opposition.

A European diplomat said in advance of the speech that Juncker knows it is a "critical" moment to prepare Europe for a world in which Trump's United States is an unpredictable foreign policy friend and a protectionist trade rival.

Juncker urge the EU to strike a "new alliance" with Africa that would create millions of jobs and include a free trade deal -- a move Brussels hopes would both showcase its international influence and help to stem the flow of migrants across the Mediterranean.



- 10,000 border guards -



Juncker's showpiece speech is his last before May elections that will pit Europe's rising populist forces against his centrist supporters, and he issued a rallying cry to maintain a "continent of tolerance and openness".

Populist, nationalist and eurosceptic forces have gained ground in many countries, and the polls for the European parliament could well bring in more of Juncker's opponents to rock the boat just as he tries to consolidate what he sees as real successes in restoring forward momentum to the European project.

As part of efforts to tackle the issue of illegal immigration, which has done much to fuel populist sentiment since the height of Europe's migrant crisis in 2015, Juncker confirmed plans to revamp the bloc's border protection.

"The European Commission is today proposing to strengthen the European Border and Coast Guard to better protect our external borders with an additional 10,000 European border guards by 2020," Juncker said.



- Belonging together -



The set-piece speech was Juncker's fourth such state of the union. He leaves office on October 31 next year after a term marked by crisis after crisis: a refugee influx, soaring debt and Brexit.

Juncker said he respected Britain's choice to leave, but undermined a key part of Prime Minister Theresa May's plan to quit the bloc, warning London it cannot expect to selectively remain in parts of the single market.

"We... ask the British government to understand that someone who leaves the union can not be in the same privileged position as a member state," he said, while welcoming May's proposal for an "ambitious new partnership" based on a future free trade agreement.
US general urges Gulf Arab unity to counter Iran



Kuwait City, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



US Central Command chief General Joseph Votel urged feuding Gulf Arab states on Wednesday to put aside their differences and unite against Iranian efforts to "destabilise" the region.

"Two of our enduring security threats are present in this region -- the destabilising actions of Iran and violent extremist organisations," said Votel, who heads US forces in the Middle East, ahead of a military conference in Kuwait on Wednesday which is to be attended by Saudi Arabia and its allies, and their bitter rival Qatar.

Votel said it was "imperative" to "enhance and integrate our capabilities for our mutual national security interests" and "rise above all the other aspects".

In June 2017, Saudi Arabia and its allies cut all ties with Qatar, demanding that their erstwhile ally cut longstanding ties with the Muslim Brotherhood and take a stronger line with Saudi arch-rival Iran.

The rift has proved a strategic headache for Washington as Qatar provides the main headquarters in the region for CENTCOM while rival Bahrain is home to the US Fifth Fleet.

Kuwait, which along with Washington has led mediation efforts in the crisis, has said it is considering US proposals for a regional alliance to counter Iranian influence.
EU parliament votes to stop Hungary's 'threat' to democracy



Strasbourg, France, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



The European Parliament on Wednesday launched an action that could unleash unprecedented political sanctions against Viktor Orban's populist Hungarian government for posing a "systemic threat" to the EU's founding values.

The vote amounts to a stunning political blow for Prime Minister Orban, who had told the parliament on Tuesday that a scathing report leading to the vote was an insult to Hungary's honour and people.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wasted little time in slamming the vote as "nothing less than the petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians".

With elections for a new parliament in May 2019, the vote reflects growing pushback among traditional parties in Europe against the rise of populists, who oppose migration and are accused of undermining the rule of law.

Adopted by 448 votes for to 197 against and with 48 abstentions, the motion marked the first time the parliament has itself initiated steps under Article Seven of the European Union's treaty. An earlier action against Poland was initiated by the EU executive.

Dutch Greens MEP Judith Sargentini, who spearheaded the vote, smiled broadly and breathed a sigh of relief before embracing her supporters in parliament in the French city of Strasbourg.

"It is a positive sign of this parliament taking responsibility and wanting action," Sargentini told a press conference afterward.

She had urged colleagues not to let Hungary off the hook, declaring that Orban's rule "violates the values on which this union was built."

The vote was based on a report that voiced concerns about judicial independence, corruption, freedom of expression, academic freedom, religious freedom, and the rights of minorities and refugees under eight years of Orban rule.

The vote takes the first steps under Article 7 of the EU Treaty, known by some in Brussels as the "nuclear option", which could ultimately strip Hungary of its EU voting rights.

Other EU governments could halt any further action, however, and Poland has warned it would do so.



- 'Historic vote' -



In a brief speech to parliament on Tuesday, Orban vowed that Hungary would resist any attempt to "blackmail" it into softening its anti-migrant stance, which he charged was the motive behind the vote.

Though defiant, he was resigned to the outcome, saying the parliament seemed to have already made up its mind.

"Hungary will protect its borders, stop illegal migration and defend its rights," said Orban, who embraces a vision of a Christian Europe and opposes an influx of Muslims and others.

Opposition to Orban's vision does not just come from the left, with disquiet also in the main centre-right parliamentary group, the European People's Party (EPP).

The EPP's leader, Manfred Weber, said he would vote in favour of the motion targeting Orban's government, whose Fidesz party belongs to his grouping.

But a party spokesman said the group was divided about 50-50.

While Orban's actions have provoked opposition, they have been applauded by populists in the EU, with prominent far-right figures floating the idea of forging a pan-European alliance ahead of next year's elections.

The Commission, headed by EPP member Jean-Claude Juncker, has repeatedly clashed with Orban's government, especially since Budapest refused to admit asylum seekers under an EU scheme launched at the height of the migration crisis in 2015.

In July, the EU executive body warned it could take Budapest to the European Court of Justice over laws under which anyone assisting an undocumented migrant could be jailed for a year.

The top EU court could impose fines, which would be less drastic for Hungary than losing its voting rights.

The vote was hailed as "historic" by Berber Biala-Hettinga, Amnesty International's expert on human rights in the EU.

"The European Parliament rightly stood up for the Hungarian people and for the EU. They made it clear that human rights, the rule of law and democratic values are not up for negotiation," she said.
DR Congo accuses Uganda of killing 4 fishermen on shared lake



Goma, DR Congo, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



DR Congo's navy on Wednesday accused Ugandan troops of killing four Congolese fishermen, whose bound and bullet-riddled bodies surfaced on Lake Edward, which is shared by the two neighbouring countries.

It is latest sign of escalating tensions between Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda over the lake, the smallest of eastern Africa's Great Lakes, where the two sides engaged in deadly clashes earlier this year.

"The fishermen had been on the lake since Friday and had not returned. Yesterday (Tuesday) we saw their burnt and tied up bodies floating in the lake," said Jonas Kataliko, head of the fishermen's association in the lakeside village of Kyavinyonge.

Major Jean Tsongo, who heads Congolese naval forces in the area, blamed the Ugandan navy.

"It was Ugandan soldiers who killed these Congolese fisherman," he said.

"They burned their canoes and the bodies arrived here tied up, burnt and with bullet holes."

There was no immediate comment from the Ugandan navy.

Strains between the two countries, who disagree over the sharing of energy resources, worsened in July, when 16 Congolese fishermen, four Ugandan military personnel and three civilians were killed in clashes between the Ugandan navy and DRC forces.
Russia deploys most advanced air defences at army drills



Telemba, Russia, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



Russia showcased its most sophisticated air defence system on Wednesday, using it to repel a mock attack from the sky as part of what it describes as its largest-ever military drills.

The wargames involved its state-of-the-art S-400, Russia's latest generation surface-to-air defence system, which is considered by NATO countries to pose a threat to their aircraft.

The exercise on the Telemba military training ground -- about 130 kilometres (81 miles) north of the city of Chita in Siberia -- involved over 1,000 troops and over 500 pieces of military equipment.

Russia's defence ministry hailed the drills as successful.

"The troops have completed their mission with total efficiency," a high-ranking officer in the Russian Aerospace Forces Sergei Kuryshkin told journalists.

The exercise simulated a "massive missile attack" by an "unnamed enemy," another military official Sergei Tikhonov said.

Last year Moscow signed a contract to sell the systems to Turkey, raising criticism from Ankara's NATO allies, notably Washington, which has threatened to block delivery of its F-35 stealth aircraft to Turkey.

Negotiations to sell the S-400 to Qatar and India are ongoing. In late August a senior Pentagon official said that sanctions against India would come under consideration if its purchase goes through.

Russia has said the Vostok-2018 manoeuvres are the largest in its history and involve nearly 300,000 men and all types of military equipment.

The exercises involve Chinese and Mongolian armies and will continue until September 17.
DR Congo accuses Uganda of killing 4 fishermen on shared lake



Goma, DR Congo, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



DR Congo's navy on Wednesday accused Ugandan troops of killing four Congolese fishermen, whose bound and bullet-riddled bodies surfaced on Lake Edward, which is shared by the two neighbouring countries.

Uganda denied the accusation, which is the latest sign of escalating tensions between the countries over the lake, the smallest of eastern Africa's Great Lakes, where the two sides engaged in deadly clashes earlier this year.

"The fishermen had been on the lake since Friday and had not returned. Yesterday (Tuesday) we saw their burnt and tied up bodies floating in the lake," said Jonas Kataliko, head of the fishermen's association in the lakeside village of Kyavinyonge.

Major Jean Tsongo, who heads Congolese naval forces in the area, blamed the Ugandan navy.

"It was Ugandan soldiers who killed these Congolese fisherman," he said.

"They burned their canoes and the bodies arrived here tied up, burnt and with bullet holes."

A Ugandan official confirmed that bodies had been seen floating in the lake but denied the country's troops were involved.

"We are not involving ourselves in DRC problems," the head of Uganda's fisheries protection force, Lieutenant Colonel James Nuwagaba, told AFP.

"That (killing) could be a cover-up for DRC fishermen to continue crossing to our side of the water to steal our fish," he added.

"We suspect the fishermen could have died as a result of fishermen fighting amongst themselves or some wrong elements operating from DRC killing the fishermen."

Strains between the two countries, who disagree over the sharing of energy resources, worsened in July, when 16 Congolese fishermen, four Ugandan military personnel and three civilians were killed in clashes between the Ugandan navy and DRC forces.
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If a fifth face were added to Mount Rushmore, which president would you choose?

Franklin D. Roosevelt

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John F. Kennedy

Someone in the Civil Rights or Women's Rights movement would be more appropriate. View Results
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The Kenyan government has a problem keeping secrets, especially those involving military or police operations against Islamic terrorists. Most of the Islamic terrorists in Kenya are Somali and these Islamic terrorists, especially those belonging to al Shabaab, have long enjoyed access to the information about government plans for fighting Islamic terrorism and large-scale criminal activities in general. One thing Kenyan counter-intelligence operatives (those who seek out spies) knew was that al Shabaab has long used a network of paid informants among various criminal groups, especially those dominated by Somalis. It is known that criminal gangs, in general, will pay for useful information and the Somali minority has always been overrepresented in Kenyan criminal organizations. Somalis are noted for their resourcefulness and Somali Islamic terrorist groups like al Shabaab are no exception. So it was not a big shock when the Kenyan counter-intel people realized that a major source of al Shabaab intel was from prostitutes.

In part, this was made possible by the fact that older Somali women run much of the prostitution operations along the coast (where prostitution has long thrived because of all those foreign sailors and tourists). The Kenyan capital, Nairobi, is way inland but because of all the wealthy politicians, businessmen and foreigners in the capital, a lot of prostitutes (especially foreign ones) operate in the capital. This has long been a social and police problem and while prostitution is legal in Kenya, it was banned in Nairobi in 2017. Actually, its always been illegal for anyone to profit from the work of prostitutes (as in pimps or those running brothels) but the pimps and brothels exist anyway and many of them are run by women, often Somali women, because Somalis are so prominent in organized crime. One thing the women running brothels or networks of prostitutes have always done is develop working relationships with criminal gangs and corrupt police. With the police, its mainly a matter of paying bribes to be left alone. But with criminal gangs, there is also valuable information to be sold. High-end prostitutes often have politicians, military and police commanders and wealthy businessmen as clients. These men will also want someone to listen to them to complain about their problems, as well as provide sex. The prostitutes know that if they hear any potentially useful (to criminals) information, they should pass it on to their female boss who has a list of groups that will pay for information useful to them. The prostitute will get a portion of the payment for the information. While Kenyan prostitutes are unlikely to pass on anything of use to al Shabaab (because of al Shabaab terror attacks inside Kenya, usually directed at non-Moslems) the many foreign and Somali prostitutes have no such qualms. Kenyan counter-intelligence analysts are debating whether some of many of the most damaging leaks got out via a senior Kenyan official casually complaining about work and revealing some details of counter-terror operations. Captured al Shabaab men and documents indicate that a lot of useful information seems to come, often in fragments, from sources inside Kenya. Long dismissed as a myth, the attentive prostitutes being the source of so many important leaks appears to be more likely than not. The key is in the ability of the middlemen (usually women) assembling the various bits of information and selling it to al Shabaab operatives who are known to pay well for useful stuff.

In Somalia, the Islamic terror group al Shabaab survives despite major losses since 2012. One reason for al Shabaab surviving, particularly in the south, along the Kenyan border, is the fact that al Shabaab has come to dominate many areas of non-terrorist criminal activity. This includes smuggling and various criminal activities in Kenyan refugee camps and large Moslem communities in coastal cities and communities. When it comes to raising money and doing business in general, especially outside of Somalia, al Shabaab is practical and puts it Islamic ideology aside. Al Shabaab takes advantage of the police corruption in Kenya, where the largely Christian police are particularly brutal towards Kenyans who are ethnic Somalis as well as the Somali refugees.

About 76 percent of the Moslems (four million people) in Kenya are ethnic Somalis who are citizens. Kenya is largely (80 percent) Christian with a Moslem minority (12 percent of the population) that has been known to harbor Islamic terrorists. Most Kenyan Moslems live in coastal cities like Mombasa (where about a third of the 1.1 million population is Moslem).

A lot of ethnic Somalis and Moslems live in northeastern Kenya. The area around Mandera is near the Somali border and has long been the scene of fighting between the Kenyan Murule (ethnic Somali Moslems) and the Marhan from across the border in Somalia. Armed Marhans cross the border and raid Murule territory and despite Kenya sending more soldiers and police to Mandera the violence continues. The Marhan have long been accused of supporting al Shabaab while the Murule oppose Islamic terrorism and al Shabaab efforts to chase Christians from the Mandera region.

Since 2014 Kenya has been trying to force all Somali refugees living outside refugee camps to move to a refugee camp. That has not been very successful. While the UN criticized this measure the government is under tremendous public pressure to reduce the Somali terrorist threat and many Somali refugees have been caught supporting or carrying out terrorist activities. Despite resistance, refugees continue to be sought and forced to go to the camps. For years there have been at least 500,000 Somali refugees, most of them in two Kenyan camps near the Somali border. The UN runs the camps but has no control over some 50,000 Somali refugees living mostly in the Somali neighborhoods of Nairobi and Mombasa. Kenya also hosts several hundred thousand other refugees from Ethiopia, Sudan, Burundi and Congo. Many Kenyans feel that the rest of the world does not appreciate what a heavy burden this places on Kenya.
In Syria, even the sudden arrival of Iranian mercenaries to reinforce Syrian forces in the northwest is not enough to start the final battle of the civil war; to take back Idlib province from the rebels. Turkey had insisted on no Iranian involvement but was eventually overruled by Russia and Iran. Syria preferred to keep the Iranian mercenaries out of this but were dependent on Iran for so much military and economic support that whatever Iran wanted, Syria complied. The presidents of Iran, Russia and Turkey met on the 7th in Iran to decide what their common strategy would be in Syria, At that point, Syrian troops had already assembled in the northwest and Syrian commanders carried out some preliminary attacks. Russian aerial reconnaissance confirmed what the Syrian troops reported; the rebels were preparing to resist and a lot more of the pro-rebel civilians in Idlib were being armed or were building fortifications. Iranian officers agreed with the Syrians that victory via a quick offensive was not going to work, even with maximum Russian air support (including cruise missiles launched from ships and aircraft). Idlib would have to be taken the hard way, with numerous small battles to take individual villages and towns. That would keep Syrian/Iranian casualties down, which was essential since there were not enough experienced troops for a lot of these battles being fought at the same time.

The results of the September 7th discussions were that the attack would go forward but in coordination with the Turks who faced a very real refugee problem as the only place the rebels and their civilian supporters could flee to was Turkey. Russia said it would deal with American threats to intervene (if Syria used chemical weapons again). The Russians were not going to fight the Americans. Not just because the Americans appeared to be a formidable threat but also because the Israelis might get involved and Russia does not want to destroy its ties with Israel over this. Meanwhile, Russian warplanes have been hitting targets in Idlib with increasing frequency over the last few days. In effect, the offensive has already begun, as a slow roll rather than a major assault.

Discussions continue on how Russia, Iran and Turkey will operate in Syria once the civil war is officially over. That will happen even before Idlib is back under Syrian government control. Because there are over 50,000 armed rebels in Idlib and fewer than 100,000 Syrian troops and Iranian mercenaries available for Idlib operations. Morale is not high among the attackers, especially the Syrian troops. Syria is negotiating peace deals with Kurds (who control the northeast), Druze (who occupy much of the Israeli-Jordan border) and Sunni groups (tribal leaders and local leaders who have not been hostile). Syria wants to attract a lot of foreign aid for reconstruction but that is complicated by Iranian plans to establish a permanent military presence and continue threatening Israel. Several members of the Assad clan are facing war crimes charges and Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan want to send back several million Sunni Arab refugees (which the Assads do not want). The war will not end quickly or in a tidy fashion.

Russia and the U.S. are still arguing over the chemical weapons issue in Syria. The UN agrees with the Americans that Syria has used chemical weapons against rebels and Syrians admit that they are ready to use chlorine gas against rebels. Russia still insists that the rebels are preparing to use chemical weapons despite available evidence indicating that the Syrian forces are more likely to use chemical weapons. The Americans threaten swift retribution if Syria uses chemical weapons again.

Russia is backing away from Iran in general because Iran is becoming more of a liability than an asset. Working closely with Iran in Syria was mainly about the 2015 treaty that lifted most sanctions on Iran and enabled Russia to do a lot more business in Iran. That did not work out as the corruption inside Iran delayed a lot of the expected new business and the Arab oil states pointed out that anyone who was really close to Iran would be getting a lot less business from the Arab states in general and the Arab oil states (which controlled more oil than Iran) in particular. Then the Americans pulled out of the 2015 treaty earlier this year and are restoring many of the sanctions. European nations are finding that the U.S. revival of sanctions makes it impossible for many European firms to do business in Iran. Then there is the continued Iranian threats to attack Israel, especially from newly established bases in Syria. Israel has made it clear it will not allow those bases to remain and has warned Russia to stand aside when Israeli airstrikes hit the Iranians in Syria. Now Russia, the Americans and Israel have agreed to cooperate in getting Iran out of Syria. Turkey and Iraq would also prefer this. Until recently there were few press releases or other official announcements about this but you can see the plan unfolding as Iran finds itself abandoned in Syria and under growing attack. Russia has long-term interests in the Middle East and opportunities in Syria because of deals already made with the Assad government. Russia has been on good terms with Israel for a long time and sees that as more important than anything Iran has to offer.

Russia has been consistent in its support for Israel when it comes to Syria and a long-term peace deal. Despite that Israel has concluded that Russian pressure will not persuade Iran to back off on their efforts to increase Iranian controlled military forces in Syria and then launch attacks on Israel. But Russia will cooperate with Israel and has an open channel with Iranian military leaders. This means the Russians can explain, in terms the Iranians might better understand and accept, what their military position is versus Israel. That explains the recent Iranian withdrawal of its mercenary and special operations forces from the Israeli border. As a practical matter, this means Iran withdrew the easily identifiable troops and resolved to work on new techniques to better disguise its forces so they can get near the Israeli border. Iran takes advantage of the fact that Russian aircraft handle most of the aerial and electronic reconnaissance for the pro-government forces. The Russians can show what their high-res and multispectral photos of Iranian troops revealed and add what their electronic eavesdropping picked. All the Russians will say about the Israelis is that the Israelis are even better at this stuff. How much better the Russians wont say. In part thats because they are not sure and Russia does not want to anger Israel, which has been on good terms with Russia far longer than Iran.

September 10, 2018: Poland admitted that it had dismissed hundreds of Foreign Ministry personnel over the last two years for security reasons. Actually, the main reason for suspicion was either close contacts with Russians (for older personnel who were hired before the Soviet Union fell apart in 1991), or had graduated from the Diplomatic School in Moscow, where Russia trained its own diplomats as some students from East Europe (especially before 1991). Poland has had a lot of problems with Russian espionage efforts and Polish Foreign Ministry personnel were often the source of leaks or deliberate espionage.

September 9, 2018: In northwest Syria, Iranian mercenaries are being moved up to join the many Syrian troops already there. Syria had offered to carry out the attack on Idlib without the help of Iranian mercenaries (often led by Iranian officers) in order to placate Turkey. Russia was also in favor of leaving the Iranian mercenaries out of it because Russian Military Police (many of them Chechen Moslems) have had problems with Iranian mercenaries as the Russians supervised surrender deals that had rebels and civilians being allowed safe passage to Idlib rather than live under Syrian rule again.

Turkey has ordered more troops to the Idlib border and moved thousands of Turkish backed Syrian FSA rebels to the eastern border of Idlib, to keep Syrians from trying to flee to Turkey via the Turkish controlled areas east of Idlib. The Turks tried to get Syria and Iran to try negotiating with the rebels in Idlib but was unsuccessful. Even Russia sided with Syria on the need for an attack on Idlib to eliminate the Islamic terrorist threat there (most of the Idlib rebels belong to Islamic terrorist groups). Turkey plans to use its FSA allies to help deal with the aftermath of the coming Idlib battle and by making life easier for the civilians there, discourage them from trying to get across the Turkish border.

More Protests Back Home

Russia is facing more widespread (nationwide) protests than ever before and the cause is not corruption or the revival of police state rule but something as mundane as pensions. After three years of warning, Russia is increasing the age at which Russians qualify for an old age pension. The financial problems with low oil prices and sanctions were compounded for years by the government determination to continue high spending on security and retirement benefits. Each of these are major expenses and consume two-thirds of the government budget. While Russia can afford to cut defense spending (at the cost of lost jobs in Russian defense industries), pensions are another matter. Russia allows women to retire at 55 and men at 60. A low birth rate since the end of the Cold War in 1991 means fewer new workers to replace those retiring. The low birth rate also means the population is getting older and a higher percentage of Russian adults are living on a pension that the government knew it would not be able to afford much longer. So now retirement ages have been increased five years (to 60 and 65) and that triggered larger and more widespread demonstrations than ever before. Some large crowds shouted; down with Putin or down with the Czar. The protesters contained men and women of all ages and the police were reluctant to be as forceful as usual in trying to halt movement or shut down the protests.

The current mess began back in 2012 when Vladimir Putin, who has been in power since 2000 (as president, prime minister and now president again) was seeking to deal with several years of declining popularity. Yet despite that, his approval ratings remained quite high (as in 80 percent) until quite recently. This is mainly because one of the first things Putin did when he came to power in 1999 was to fix the pensions for elderly Russians so they could survive. This made a positive impression on the majority of Russians. That plus Putins PR skills enabled him to maintain high personal approval. Yet more and more Russians were upset about the continued corruption and sluggish economic performance. This was especially true with the youngest Russians (those born after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991). Meanwhile, the drop in oil income after 2013 forced Putin to try something drastic and he decided to employ an ancient trick; blame all the problems on evil foreigners. It worked, even though in 2012 opposition was growing among the urban middle class and many rural groups were turning hostile as well. The government had tried taking more action against corruption and more repression of public protests. But what seemed to work best was more propaganda against "foreign threats" (like the NATO anti-missile system and eastern neighbors joining NATO for protection from Russian aggression). In the end, it was all about money. Those higher pensions that got Putins political career going proved unsustainable and messing with the age of retirement turned out to be more politically dangerous than anything else.

September 8, 2018: Russia resumed its airstrikes in northwest Syria (Idlib province). Actually, the Russians had never completely stopped airstrikes against Idlib targets because some Islamic terrorists (mainly al Qaeda affiliated ones like HTS ) in Idlib regularly try to attack the nearby (Latakia province) Russian Hmeimim (or Khmeimim) airbase. There were several damaging attacks in 2017 but so far this year the rebels have made many attempts but none got through. The Hmeimim airbase was built by Russia in 2015 near the port city of Latakia, which is 85 kilometers north of Tartus and 50 kilometers from the Turkish border. Part of the Tartus port has become a long-term foreign base for Russia, along with Hmeimim. Russia does not consider these defensive airstrikes part of preparations for retaking Idlib but if those airstrikes are increased and Syrian troops are nearby it is offensive because the Syrians or Iranian mercenaries will advance.

September 7, 2018: The presidents of Iran, Russia and Turkey met in Iran to decide what their common strategy will be in Syria and Syrian troops assemble in the northwest to retake Idlib province from the last major force of rebels left in Syria. Turkey asked for a truce in Idlib so that Turkey could try and negotiate a peaceful surrender. Russia and Iran rejected that at first but the final agreement was all about everyone coordinating their efforts in Syria and that means Turkey has an opportunity to negotiate and carry out as many deals with Idlib rebels as it can manage. Turkey intends to indefinitely maintain a buffer zone on the Syrian side of the border and this would include Idlib province. This would give Turkey the opportunity to offer somewhere for former rebels can live that is in Syria but not subject to retribution by Syrian or Iranian troops or secret police.

In eastern Syria, near the American base at Tanf, a company of U.S. Marines conducted a live fire training exercise involving an aerial assault. This was done for the benefit of Syria and Russia, who have indicated they might deal with the Tanf base (which is near the Iran and Jordan borders). The United States has already attacked Iranian mercenaries and Syrian troops who got inside the 35 kilometer security zone the United States has established around the Tanf base. The only way a ground assault could work would be if the attackers had air support and only Russia has modern warplanes in Syria that have a chance of dealing with American fighters and air defenses in general. Yesterday Russia said its aircraft might enter the 35 kilometer (from the base) zone in pursuit of Islamic terrorists. The U.S. responded that American forces could take care of any intrusion and Russian aircraft should stay out.

September 5, 2018: Britain identified two Russian GRU (military intelligence) agents and described how the two used Novichok nerve gas to carry out a March 2018 assassination attempt in Britain. The Americans were already convinced the Russians were responsible and in August imposed the first round of new sanctions on Russia for its use of nerve gas in Britain. The details of this incident have been confirmed and today were revealed and described. Months ago British investigators identified the Russians who were involved with the use of nerve gas to try and murder Sergei Skripal on March 4th. Skripal was a former Soviet intelligence officer, who worked for Britain as a double agent. He was found unconscious on March 4th, with his adult daughter, on a park bench near a British pub they had visited. The two were hospitalized and survived what turned out to be an assassination attempt using a form of nerve gas (novichok) developed in Russia and, as far as anyone knows, not possessed by anyone but Russia. Three of the police officers who responded to the call about the unconscious people on the park bench also fell ill, one of them seriously. Everyone recovered and provided information on what happened. Four months later the container (a small perfume bottle) the Russian assassin carried the liquid novichok in was found. This was because a local couple had found the discarded novichok bottle nine days after the March attack and kept it. The assassins had tossed the bottle away in a park as they left the area to catch their flight back to Russia. Eventually, the couple opened the bottle and both ended up in the hospital, where the woman died. When her companion regained consciousness he provided information leading to the novichok container and further analysis of it. Worldwide, four different labs analyzed the samples and all agreed it was novichok, a chemical weapon never manufactured outside Russia. In response to the March incident, Britain expelled 23 Russian diplomats suspected of being intelligence agents and Russia responded by expelling 23 British diplomats. More nations said they would expel Russian diplomats and after the June confirmation that it was Russian novichok, the U.S. ordered a series of additional sanctions on Russia into effect. These could be limited if Russia admitted it used novichok and provided assurances it would never do so again (with any banned weapons). Russia has said it will do neither and denied any involvement. This assassination effort was nothing new for Russia. Skripal was still working for British intelligence when he was arrested in Russia at the end of 2004 and prosecuted for espionage. He was sent to prison in 2006 but got out in 2010 when Russia agreed to use him as one of the three imprisoned spies to get back several Russian illegals who were caught in the United States. Russia was reluctant to part with Skripal, who had apparently done enormous damage to Russian overseas spying efforts. But they wanted their imprisoned agents in the U.S. back. This was not the first time Russia had gone after people like Skripal in Britain. This sort of thing has happened elsewhere in Europe before and after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Russia insists that it does not do this and have been saying that since the Soviets started hunting down and killing traitors overseas back in the 1930s. Russia denied they were involved in the Skripal incident.

September 4, 2018: Russia has moved 26 warships to the Syrian coast, apparently in support of the Syrian offensive against Idlib, the last rebel held province. The naval force includes submarines, destroyers, frigates, smaller warships and several support ships. This is the largest number of warships Russia has ever deployed to the Syrian coast and this is officially an effort to deter the U.S. Navy from attacking the Syrian forces (which the U.S. said it would do if the Syrians used chemical weapons in Idlib). Russia has also moved more warplanes to Syria and has some heavy bombers ready to fly from southern Russia to launch cruise missiles at targets in Idlib.

In northwest Syria (Latakia province) Russian air defenses shot down two UAVs headed for the Russian air base at Hmeimim. At the end of July there was a similar incident. Russian forces shot those down as well and examining the wreckage determined that Islamic terror groups in the area (especially nearby Idlib province) are the main suspects. Russia launched some airstrikes at neighboring Idlib province in response to Islamic terrorists from Idlib attacking Syrian forces in Latakia. The airstrikes today were the first in 21 days as the Russians had been holding off on more air attacks in Idlib until they could convince Turkey to halt it opposition to a military solution in Idlib.

September 3, 2018: The United States warned Russia, Syria and Iran not to attack Idlib province. This warning was mainly meant for Syria and its use of chemical weapons. Russia is mainly there to provide air support for the Syrians' attack. Russia is also trying to intimidate the Americans. France also protested the offensive and also threatened to retaliate militarily. In the last two years, the U.S. has twice bombed Syrian forces in retaliation for Syrians using chemical weapons and threatens to do so again if the Syrians use chemical weapons in Idlib. Syria apparently plans to do so in order to reduce casualties among their own troops.

September 2, 2018: Ukraine declared that it had the military means to defeat Russian efforts to take control of the Sea of Azov. It was pointed out that Ukraine has a large supply of modern anti-ship missiles and naval mines and could deploy them to quickly cripple any Russian naval forces in the area. This dispute went critical back in April 2018 when Russia declared the Sea Of Azov, reached from the Black Sea via the 4.5 kilometer wide Kerch Strait, under Russian control. The Crimean Peninsula, when it was part of Ukraine, was separated from Russia by the Kerch Strait. Maximum depth of the strait is 18 meters (59 feet) and there had long been talk of building a bridge between Crimea and the Kerch Peninsula (now and always part of Russia). Once Russia seized Crimea in 2014 proposals that a bridge be built actually turned into the construction of that bridge. The Kerch Bridge opened in March 2018 (at least the highway part, the sturdier railroad section is still under construction). With that Russia declared the Sea of Azov under Russian control and no foreign ship could enter without Russian permission. So far the Russians have seized over a hundred ships trying to reach the Ukrainian ports of Berdiansk and Mariupol that are on the shore of the Sea of Azov. Russia is putting these two ports out of business. The EU and U.S. protested the Russian blockade but have not done anything to get that changed, like sending American warships to conduct a FONOP (freedom of navigation operation) in the Sea of Azov.

September 1, 2018: Off the Syrian coast 26 Russian Navy ships (most of them warships the rest support) and 30 aircraft held training exercises. This included heavy bombers and long-range surveillance aircraft flying in from Russian bases to participate.

August 31, 2018: In eastern Ukraine, military officials estimate that the rebels have lost about 70 dead a month this year in the low-level Donbas fighting. Rebel wounded number more than a hundred a month. The Ukrainians search the Russian Internet for death notices and also rely on aerial reconnaissance and monitoring rebel radio traffic (which is largely Russian). The Ukrainians are quite good at electronic warfare, especially when it comes to dealing with new Russian equipment. Sometimes the Ukrainians beat the Russians at their own game of electronic wizardry.

August 28, 2018: Russia, Turkey and Syria agreed on a plan to attack and destroy the Islamic terrorist groups in Idlib province, particularly HTS/al Nusra. Idlib is the last Islamic terrorist stronghold and is in the northwest, on the Turkish border. Idlib is currently controlled by various rebel groups. Over half of Idlib is controlled by the HTS (Hayat Tahrir al Sham) coalition. This is the main al Qaeda organization which evolved from al Nusra by absorbing (willingly or otherwise) many other like-minded groups over the years. About a third of the province is controlled by several other Islamic terrorist groups. Last week the largest six of these factions merged to form the NLF (National Liberation Front). This merger was arranged by Ahrar al Sham, a longtime rival of HTS. About ten percent of the province is controlled by Turkey (in the north along the hundred kilometer long border with Turkey) and Assad forces (several towns and villages in the southeast).

August 27, 2018: In eastern Ukraine (Donbas) a bomb left in a cafe killed Alexander Zakharchenko, prime minister of Donetsk, one of the two provinces the rebels partially occupy. Zakharchenko was the most prominent Ukrainian rebel leader in Donbas and he will probably be replaced by someone more willing to do whatever the Russians order them to do. For two years now Russia has been killing uncooperative rebel leaders and replacing them with Russians. They are also replacing many of the departed (for Russia or Ukraine) civilians with Russians enticed (with free home and monthly payments) to settle in Donbas for a while. Meanwhile, the fighting is low level and not moving the front lines much at all.

August 26, 2018: Russia announced it has signed the contract to buy fifteen of its Su-57 stealth fighter, with the first ones arriving in 2019 and those that follow will probably be somewhat different as developers continue to refine the Su-57 design. This is a change from the June announcement that production of the Su-57 was going to happen and the contract for 12 of them was ready to sign. In early July it became obvious that this contract would not be signed, given that the factory that was to do the work was not hiring the workers or ordering the Su-57 components. When pressed, defense ministry officials admitted that mass production of the Su-57 was not going to happen as planned. Thats a common phrase for defense projects that are facing termination or long-term delays. In this case, it is not an outright cancellation but another chance to make Su-57 work well enough to attract export customers. In February India withdrew from the Su-57 joint development and manufacturing agreement because the Indians concluded (accurately) that there was no there-there. That agreement committed India to eventually contribute over $8 billion to developing and building Su-57s. India said they might still purchase the Su-57 once it is ready for sale and might even rejoin joint development efforts. But for now India is writing off nearly $300 million it has already invested but is no longer obligated to spend over $8 billion to develop and manufacture an aircraft they have lost confidence in. That loss of confidence was confirmed about the same time when two Su-57 stealth fighters sent to Syria conducted two days of testing their sensors and countermeasures over Syria and returned to Russia by the end of February. The reality was that all the Su-57s could do was land and take off. There were no sensors and countermeasures to test.

The Su-57 design was flawed and fixes were not available. This project was way behind schedule while the Chinese already have one stealth fighter in service and others about to be. The American F-35 is getting good reviews and Russia is getting a close-up view because Israel recently put its first F-35 squadron into service. That included flights into Lebanon and Syria. The American F-22 stealth fighter had been operating over Syria for years and Russia got a good idea of what they were up against and why the Su-57 was no match for the two American stealth aircraft and that Russia did not have the resources (technical and financial) to make the Su-57 competitive. But that is a subject that is not discussed out loud in Russia.

August 25, 2018: Russia is trying to work out a way to get paid for military equipment sold to India. Because of new American sanctions India has not been able to pay Russia since April. Like most international trade, most goods are paid for in dollars. India and Russia are certain they will work something out. In the meantime, these sanctions have made it more difficult for Russia to sell India new weapons systems. From 2007 to 2015 Russia was the largest customer for Russian weapons exports. Now India is just paying Russia for previous sales (spare parts, upgrades and the line). India has made no new weapons purchases from Russia since 2012 and is unlikely to change that in the near future. There was some interest in buying the Russian S-400 air defense system, but this would have been a five billion dollar purchase and with the banking sanctions and bad experiences with the reliability and effectiveness of Russian tech, India has been looking elsewhere (mainly Israel and the West.) In effect, Russia has lost its largest weapons customer.

August 22, 2018: Russia revealed that their air force had launched about 39,000 sorties against enemy (rebels and Islamic terrorists) forces in Syria since September 2015. Some 121,000 targets were hit, killing 86,000 hostile personnel. The last major effort by Russian warplanes in Syria will soon take place in the northwestern province of Idlib.

August 21, 2018: CAR (Central African Republic) 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 19, 2018: An American official confirmed that the United States, Israel and Russia agreed that Iran must not be allowed to establish a permanent military presence in Syria. Apparently, the Syrian government agrees with this as there have been some recent clashes between Assad forces and Iranian mercenaries.

August 15, 2018: In Syria Russian military police are expanding the number of outposts on Golan Heights from four to eight. The Russian military police are there to keep rebels and Iranian forces out of the areas so the UN can resume outpost and patrol duty to the satisfaction of the of the Israelis. Syria is offering amnesty to most local rebels but the Russians are not interfering with Syrian police arresting or raiding the homes of locals suspected of still being rebels.

The United States imposed sanctions on three shipping companies (in China, Singapore and Russia) for taking part in smuggling oil and other items to North Korea. A recent UN audit found that North Korea was maintaining many illegal joint ventures with China (215) and Russia (30). Not all these joint ventures are with companies as some are with individuals.

August 11, 2018: Russia offered to replace the training programs the United States recently denied to Pakistani officers in American military schools (alongside American and other foreign officers). Russia will replace the American training with equivalent Russian training. This is a major loss for Pakistan as their officers gained more useful instruction and more useful contacts (with American and other foreign officers) at the American senior schools.

Pakistan already has a number of defense relationships with Russia. For example, in 2015 India and Pakistan joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and became full members in 2017. India and Pakistan recently sent troops to Russia to take part in SCO joint training exercises. This is the first time Indian and Pakistani troops have jointly participated in counter-terrorism training. These SCO joint training exercises take place every two years. SCO is a regional security forum founded in Shanghai in 2001 by Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Russia, and China. The main purpose of the SCO was originally fighting Islamic terrorism. Russia, however, hoped to build the SCO into a counterbalance against NATO. That has not happened as no one has joined since India and Pakistan did. SCO members conduct joint military exercises, mostly for show. They also share intel on terrorists, which is often useful. Iran, India, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Mongolia, and Turkey were all favorably disposed towards joining the SCO. These nations were allowed to send observers to meetings.

SCO is now dominated by China, whose growing economic and military power have made it the dominant nation in most of Eurasia. Russia resents this but there is little they can do about their subordinate position other than make the best of it. Russia chose to renew the Cold War with the West and that has not turned out well, with sanctions and lower oil prices crippling the economy and making Russia more dependent on, and subservient to, China. Unlike the Soviet Union, China has put more emphasis on economic cooperation because greater Chinese economic power means that China is replacing Russia as the principal investor and trading partner throughout the region. Russia does not like to dwell on this, because it means China is expanding its economic and political power. This is particularly true in Pakistan and throughout Central Asia. On paper, China is now the dominant military power in Eurasia, a fact that Russia likes to downplay. Many Russians fear that the aggression China is demonstrating towards India and everyone bordering the South China Sea will eventually be turned towards Russia. As the old saying goes; hold your friends close, and your enemies closer. Russia has no choice as long as they see themselves at war with Western aggression.
In 2017 U.S. SOCOM (Special Operations Command) received several EZ RAIDER HD lightweight (95 kg/209 pounds) electric powered ATVs (all-terrain vehicles), These have a range of 80 kilometers and ability to carry 168 kg (370 pounds). What makes EZ RAIDER work is heavy use of computer controlled components. This is nothing new, the EZ RAIDER design owes a lot to the two Segway PT, a battery powered two (side by side) wheel Personal Transporter that hit the market in 2001. The second generation Segway x2, an off-road model, was introduced in 2006.

Think of EZ RAIDER as a four-wheeled all-terrain version of the original Segway concept. Each of the four wheels operates separately for horizontal and vertical movement. The operator stands half a meter (20 inches) off the ground giving EZ RAIDER enough clearance to handle most rough terrain and move at speeds of up to 30 kilometers an hour (depending on the terrain). An EZ RAIDER can transport two lightly equipped troops with several EZ RAIDERs doing that while one of them has a two wheeled self-propelled trailer version of EZ RAIDER (capacity 250 kg/550 pounds) hauling additional gear. When not in use EZ RAIDER folds up to a compact 680mm (27 inch) wide package.

The Israeli made EZ RAIDER also contains a GPS based navigation system that makes use of the 3-D terrain models which are often created before these missions for planning. Since the late 1990s, this rapid 3-D terrain model tech has been heavily used, getting data from sensors carried by aircraft or UAVs. These days most special operations troops employ this for detailed information on what kind of terrain they will have to move over. The EZ RAIDER manufacturer takes this one step farther and creates 3-D models based on what the EZ RAIDER is capable of. These suggested routes have proved very reliable. For Special Operations troops EZ RAIDER enables a raiding party to be landed by helicopter far enough from the target to avoid being heard or seen. Then, using their EZ RAIDERs, the troops can silently approach the target, carry out the raid and travel on their EZ RAIDERs for pickup by helicopter.

The Israelis have been using EZ RAIDER for stealthy border patrol, to catch infiltrators who believe they have not been spotted (until it is too late). EZ RAIDER can also be used for outer security at high value facilities. SOCOM will only say that it has purchased several EZ RAIDERs for field testing and is so far satisfied with their performance. While it is true that something like EZ RAIDER is a specialized item, even for SOCOM, thats why SOCOM can buy whatever they think they can use to accomplish missions. SOCOM evaluates and even field tests a lot of new stuff and has a record of being able to weed out the useless stuff and putting some odd (at the time) new gear to work where it proves critical in the success of one or more missions. While some of this specialized gear never gets farther than the relatively small special operations market, and a lot of these odd ducks become mainstream once a lot of imaginative users gain regular access and create new applications.

The U.S. Department of Defense has been buying ATVs (as well as motorcycles) for American troops operating in areas like Afghanistan since 2004. SOCOM was initially the main user but soon many non-SOCOM infantry came to depend on these lightweight vehicles. Regular army units got the ATVs mostly for hauling gear around remote outposts. ATVs could be flown in slung under a helicopter. The ATVs were often used to collect airdropped supplies that, because of the often unpredictable winds, fell far from the base. The ATVs have been so popular that many troops have bought them when they get back home and use them for cross-country trips (for camping, hunting, or just sightseeing). The army has bought some of these ATVs for use by troops just returned from Iraq or Afghanistan. It's the kind of high-excitement recreation that has been found to help the troops decompress after returning from a combat tour. One type of ATV that SOCOM sought, a lightweight silent vehicle for the final approach (the last 20 kilometers) to the target of a raid, had long seemed impossible to find.

SOCOM, however, had the money and special needs to continually find, or develop, new types of non-standard vehicles. Thus in 2014 SOCOM began testing SilentHawk a hybrid-electric motorcycle for troops to use in places like Afghanistan and Iraq where roads may be risky because of roadside bombs and mines. These tests went well, but not to the complete satisfaction of the commandos. SOCOM kept trying and found another stealthy (small and very quiet) motorcycle called Nightmare that is similar to SilentHawk. SOCOM has used plenty of motorcycles in the past, but never one that was quiet, real quiet or quiet enough to use on a mission.

For nearly a century several troops in many countries have used conventional motorcycles with some success but found that the noise a conventional motor generates was sometimes a problem. Thus there was always a market for a quieter motorcycle. What makes SilentHawk and Nightmare work is that they are designed so the gasoline motor can be easily removed providing a shorter (and a bit lighter) range all-electric bike. For combat in general and SOCOM type operations in particular speed and silence are essential. The SilentHawk is not only quiet but also has a max range of 370 kilometers (170 miles) and can run silent (on just batteries) for up to 80 kilometers. Weighing 149 kg (350 pounds) SilentHawk can also carry 34 kg (75 pounds) of cargo. While based on a commercial bike (RedShift), SOCOM tested it to see if the militarized version is rugged and reliable for battlefield use. SOCOM has tested all-electric bikes before but those did not have the range required for combat use. SilentHawk did not get the job done as well as EZ RAIDER which is why SOCOM is planning to use EZ RAIDER in combat operations that SilentHawk was considered unable to handle. One insurmountable problem with motorcycles is that they require more skill to operate reliably, especially when moving cross country at night.

Motorized stealth in modern combat has been a long sought, but rarely achieved goal. The basic problem was that the best all-terrain vehicles used track laying (like tanks) movement which was inherently noisier than wheels. But as wheeled, all terrain combat vehicles began receiving computer controlled engine management and quieter components in general something unexpected happened. Back in 2005 SOCOM noted how well silence worked for Stryker wheeled armored vehicles as they first entered combat in Iraq. Being a wheeled vehicle, the Stryker could run down cars and trucks, something even a fast tracked armored vehicle, like the M-2 Bradley, could not do. In Iraq, where many of the bad guys rolled around in SUVs, the Stryker could keep up. Not only that, but the fast moving Stryker could get to places more quickly, and, in effect, make more "appointments" with the enemy in a day. It's what they call a "force multiplier."Stealthiness was another thing that was a lifesaver in combat. In Iraq, the quiet Stryker could, literally, sneak up on the enemy, especially since so many of the raids are conducted at night. American troops quickly adapted their tactics to take advantage of it, and these stealthy Strykers quickly put fear in the hearts of the enemy. SOCOM is expected stealthy (silent) motorcycles to do the same. While the stealthy motorcycles were capable of such stealth EZ RAIDER was better, better enough to use in night raids where moving quickly and quietly over difficult terrain was a key advantage.
China isnt the only communist threat the Philippines has to deal with. The NPA (the illegal armed wing of the local Communist Party) depends on extortion, theft and other criminal activity to survive. This is causing much anger and protest in areas where the NPA still operates for the good of the people. Yet the NPA can no longer do much political work when their very survival is at risk. The government is trying, without much success, to negotiate a peace deal with the NPA. The leadership, as well as the commanders of various armed factions, are split on a peace agreement and most are continuing to operate (fighting and stealing). The NPA, to most Filipinos, have become bandits with a veneer of communist ideology to justify their crimes. The banditry option is not working well enough to assure long-term survival of the organization. This can also be seen when factions run short of money. Those actions begin to suffer from desertions. The army will grant amnesty to NPA members who surrender, especially if they bring their weapons and some useful information with them. Information on where NPA camps or weapons storage sites are considered useful and the fact that more NPA camps are being attacked and weapons storage sites seized indicates that NPA is losing secrets as well as people and popular support. Some NPA leaders feel this is all a temporary setback and that a peace deal would enable a revitalized Philippines Communist Party to become a major political power. These delusions make negotiating a peace deal more difficult. Meanwhile, the NPA has become a major source of criminal (as opposed to Islamic terrorist) activity in the country. Most of the NPA senior leadership live in Europe and are considered somewhat out of touch with the reality of what the NPA has become in the Philippines.

A Win For China

The government is negotiating a treaty that will allow China to share, with the Philippines oil and natural gas revenue from portions of the South China Sea where China claims control of areas that are Filipino according to current international agreements. This deal is unpopular with a lot of Filipinos as well as with neighboring countries also being pressured by China. Malaysian leaders warn that Chinese offers of massive investments come with too many strings and have proved to be more about enriching China and not the country receiving these investments. Any agreement with China on who gets what in Filipino parts of the South China Sea will have to be approved by the Filipino legislature and that is where the Chinese will probably encounter the most opposition.

Chinese claims on Filipino territory are asserted relatively discreetly but relentlessly and many Filipinos are persuaded to submit rather than fight. At the same time, a growing number of prominent Filipinos have become more outspoken in their protests and warnings of the damage Chinese domination could inflict. This now occasionally includes the generally pro-China Filipino president. This wavering caused a public rebuke from China and that enraged even more Filipinos. At the same time China keeps offering economic deals that seem favorable, but in fact, give China more access to Filipino assets or territory in return for not much. In the South China Sea China is slowly asserting its possession over traditionally Filipino areas. China does this by building bases on artificial islands (by dredging up sand). China offers the Philippines a seemingly attractive joint exploration deals to look for oil, gas and other resources in offshore areas where, by international law, Filipinos should be in charge. Yet China acts like it is already a partner and has the military power to back that up. China offers small gifts (usually of military equipment) and promises of large investments (that often do not appear) and makes loud protests at anything it objects to; like Filipinos displaying banners saying; "Welcome to the Philippines, Province of China." Displaying such banners is legal in the Philippines but not in China. This is the point for Filipinos that Chinese officials dont quite comprehend.

Many nations in the region blame the United States for the Filipino inability to deal with the Chinese aggression. The United States has always been considered a reliable and powerful ally of the Philippines. But that support began to fade in the 1990s. For nearly a decade, until 2017, the United States refused to pressure China to back off on its claims, even though a UN backed tribunal ruled that China had violated international law and a treaty China itself had signed, by seizing Filipino maritime territory. China ignored that ruling (set it aside) and continued to build new bases (seven so far) and coerce other nations to recognize these claims. Now the United States is challenging the Chinese claims but so far China is ignoring those challenges (American warships and aircraft passing through waters and airspace China insists is now part of China.) Because of the more forceful attitude by the Americans (and British, Australians and others) Filipinos are unsure which is best; resist or submit. Either way, China is going to hurt the Philippines. If there is resistance China will seek to impose economic damage. If there is submission the Philippines loses valuable territory forever.

Bangsamoro Reality

President Duterte approved the long-awaited BOL (Bangsamoro Organic Law) in late July. By doing this he kept a promise to do so if the Moslem separatist organizations MILF and MNLF cooperated in eliminating ISIL activity in the Moslem south. The elimination is still a work in progress but major progress was made in 2017. Earlier this year Congress agreed that it was now willing to pass the controversial BOL in 2018 and after two weeks of frantic activity during early July the BOL got congressional approval and was ready for the president to sign. It wasnt just the Moslem willingness to suppress ISIL but also the cooperation between the two former rival organizations. For example, in early 2017 MILF agreed to combine its 2014 peace deal with the government with the 1996 peace agreement rival MNLF signed with the government. This settled several disagreements the two major Moslem organizations had to deal with. The two groups had originally disagreed over who would have what powers under the new autonomy deal.

BOL creates Bangsamoro which is an autonomous Moslem area in the southwest. It was not surprising that this new law would be difficult to get through the national legislature. The main problem is that too many Christians do not trust the Moslems to remain at peace and curb violence against Christians in the south. While Moslems are the majority in some parts of the south (mainly the areas in the southwest that will become Bangsamoro) Christians are the majority in the southern islands that radical Moslems insist should be under Moslem control with all Christians expelled. Even in Bangsamoro Christians are a large minority. Bangsamoro includes Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, Basilan, Maguindanao, and Lanao del Sur, as well as portions of Lanao del Norte and Cotabato provinces. These areas must reaffirm their willingness to belong to Bangsamoro by voting on it. It will take until to 2022 to get that done. At that point over 30,000 armed members of Moslem militias (mainly MILF and MNLF) will have been disarmed or incorporated into government sponsored local defense groups. Ideally, by 2022 BIFF and Abu Sayyaf will be destroyed or reduced to a few diehards.

BIFF Battered But Not Yet Beaten

BIFF (Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters) has survived a three month effort to eliminate their presence in Mindanao (where most BIFF members are). Over a hundred BIFF men were known dead and it is not yet known how many died of wounds or deserted. The army has found several BIFF camps including one with a bomb workshop. Also found were ammo and weapons supplies as well as military equipment and documents. When the army planned this offensive they believed there were as many as 400 BIFF members in the area of operations and have set no end date on the current campaign. The 6th Infantry Division, which is supplying most of the troops, can rotate units in and out of the area for months. The object is to destroy BIFF presence on Mindanao Island and captured documents and prisoner interrogations indicate that this is a possibility. But the reality is the BIFF are hardcore and consider themselves a branch of ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant). BIFF has become a magnet for many Filipino Moslems who are unhappy with the Bangsamoro agreement and believe it does not go far enough (ISIL believes that all Filipinos should be Moslems).

September 11, 2018: President Duterte justified his arrest of a senator last week by revealing that the government had received information from a friendly country detailing a coup being planned by Communist Party, opposition politicians and former members of the military. There have been a lot of coups and coup attempts since the Philippines became a nation in 1945, so this revelation had some heft to it.

September 10, 2018: Police have identified 18 suspects in the July 31 incident sown south (in Basilan) where ISIL took credit for a vehicle suicide bombing at an army checkpoint that left 11 dead including six soldiers and four civilians. Suicide bombing are rare in the Philippines and a survivor of this attack noted that the driver of the van with the bomb appeared to have a foreign accent. Police have arrested eight of the 18 suspects so far.

September 8, 2018: President Dutertes approval rating has declined again, to 57 percent. It was 79 percent when he took office two years ago. While Duterte has been more popular than his predecessors he has made some unpopular decisions. That includes a willingness to do business with China when it appeared the Philippines had no way of resisting military threats. Then there was the war on drugs which was generally popular but offended many foreigners and eventually some Filipinos as well. Duterte was also criticized for getting the BOL deal done. Duterte believes this has been key to reducing Islamic terrorist activity, which has happened. Duterte is also grinding away at corruption, especially crooked police and government officials. This is making Duterte a lot of enemies in the government.

September 7, 2018: In the south (Sultan Kudarat province) soldiers killed three members of BIFF, who were firing on nearby civilians (and had already killed one).

September 5, 2018: In the south (Cebu Province) a town mayor with links to drug gangs was shot dead by four gunmen who disarmed two guards and then killed the mayor who was asleep in his office (which was considered safer than sleeping at home.) There was not enough evidence to prosecute this mayor but enough to remove any authority he had over local police. It was unclear who the killers were. They could have represented political rivals, drug gangs or rogue police. In many parts of the country being a small town mayor is a dangerous job.

September 3, 2018: In the central Philippines (Masbate province) a bomb went off near a Coast Guard base, destroying one small boat and damaging another. The explosion was in a small motorboat seen a hundred meters from the base. NPA took credit for this attack, which was meant to get closer and destroy several of the small boats the army and coast guard used to search for NPA activity.

September 2, 2018: In the south (Sultan Kudarat province) a bomb went off in an Internet cafe, killing two and wounding 15. This was the latest of several BIFF attacks in the area and the National Police immediately fired three senior police commanders responsible for Sultan Kudarat province for failing to shut down BIFF violence in the area. After today the army and police became even more active in seeking out BIFF members and doing what they can to prevent any more attacks.

In the south (Maguindanao province) BIFF kidnapped two farmers from a remote village, apparently in an effort to coerce cooperation from locals.

In the north (Aurora province) two NPA rebels were killed during a clash with soldiers.

In the south (Cebu Province) the entire police force (69 personnel) were relieved of duty for involvement in the drug trade. Eight are being prosecuted and the rest transferred with some still under investigation.

September 1, 2018: President Duterte canceled the peace talks with the NPA because they were going nowhere and the NPA continued to operate as gangsters in a few provinces by extorting or attempting to extort money from local businesses. Duterte also wants the talks moved from Norway (many NPA leaders live in Europe as refugees) to the Philippines.

August 29, 2018: In the south (off Palawan Island) a Filipino frigate ran aground at Hasa-Hasa shoal in the West Philippine Sea. The ship did not suffer serious damage was free by the 31st. China claims this area as part of the South China Sea but did not interfere in this situation and praised itself for that.

August 28, 2018: In the south (Sultan Kudarat province) a bomb went off at a street festival killing two and wounding 37.

August 20, 2018: In the south (Maguindanao province) seven BIFF Islamic terrorists were killed when the army, acting on tips from locals, located the remote BIFF base and hit it with artillery fire. This base was used for building bombs and was destroyed.

August 18, 2018: In the south (Basilan) two Abu Sayyaf men were arrested when they encounter an army patrol.

August 15, 2018: In the south (Sulu province) a senior Abu Sayyaf leader was killed during a clash with an army patrol. Elsewhere in Sulu an Abu Sayyaf commander and four of his followers (one of them a known bomb builder) surrendered and applied for amnesty. That makes 81 Abu Sayyaf men who have accepted amnesty so far this year. Those who get amnesty also provide useful information on Abu Sayyaf operations and that led to the recent discovery that Abu Sayyaf leaders were trying to organize a major kidnapping and bombing campaign but were hampered by losses from military operations and members leaving and accepting amnesty.

In the central Philippines (Antique province) seven NPA rebels were killed when they attacked police who had come to arrest some of them. The location was an NPA hideout and weapons, equipment and documents were seized. Information gathered from all this showed this group was planning a raid on a local police station.

August 14, 2018: In the south (North Cotabato province) BIFF ambushed several civilians and killed two members of a local defense militia and wounded another. An unarmed woman was also killed. Troops encountered another group of Abu Sayyaf in the area but that one got away.

August 10, 2018: In the south (Maguindanao province) six BIFF gunmen were killed when they attacked some soldiers dismantling a BIFF roadside bomb. Three BIFF men were wounded as well as six soldiers.
Mohammed Nabeel

WHEN Stratford police saw a known drug-user sitting in the passenger seat of a car parked at the towns railway station, they correctly suspected he was buying drugs.

And after they had arrested driver Mohammed Nabeel, they discovered huge stashes of street deals of heroin and crack cocaine destined for sale in the town.

Despite the obvious evidence against him, including 117 deals concealed inside his boxer shorts, he denied charges of possessing the drugs with intent to supply them.

But Nabeel, 22, of Stratford Road, Sparkhill, Birmingham, changed his pleas to guilty on the day of his trial at Warwick Crown Court, and has been jailed for two years and eight months.

Judge Sally Hancox also ordered a total of 844.68 in cash which was seized from him following his arrest to be confiscated under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

Prosecutor Marion Smullen said that in April last year the police became suspicious about a Ford Focus they saw on the car park of Stratford College, with a known drug-user close to it.

The next day they saw the same car on the car park at Stratford railway station, where an exchange took place between the driver and a known drug-user sitting in the passenger seat. Both men were arrested, with the buyer dropping four 10 wraps of drugs on the floor as he got out of the car.

When the driver, Nabeel, was searched at the scene, he had 40 on him, as well as a further 775 in notes in his wallet and 29.69 in coins. A further search was carried out at the police station where he was found to have three small plastic bags inside his boxer shorts, containing a total of 36 wraps of heroin and 81 of crack cocaine.

The car was then searched, and in a pouch on the back of the drivers seat were a further 142 10 wraps of heroin  taking to total value of the drugs to 2,590.

Miss Smullen said a phone seized from Nabeel, who had a conviction as a juvenile for robbery five years ago, had various marketing messages for drugs on it.

Babir Adris, defending, said: There is no evidence Mr Nabeel was in the car on the first day. It was seen, but theres no evidence he was in it.

He said the car and the drugs had only been given to Nabeel that day, after he had got into debt to his own dealer after losing his job.

He was playing a limited role under direction, argued Mr Adris. Hes the sort of person who, once on drugs, could be put under pressure. He was told if you sell these directly, youll pay off your debt.

Jailing Nabeel, Judge Sally Hancox told him: You were located by police officers in Stratford in a car selling drugs to another person.

When your car and you were searched, the totality of what was located was not a mere few wraps, but heroin and crack cocaine worth 2,590  81 wraps of crack and close to 150 wraps of heroin.

Its said you were acting to a degree under duress from somebody who sold you drugs to go to Stratford and deal drugs for them. Youre someone who has occupied a significant role, selling directly to users; that is, street dealing.
Photo: Mark Williamson

Sparks flew at Ragley Hall on 1st September as firework teams from across the country battled to put on the best display.

Three professional teams took part in the Firework Champions event, the third of its kind to take place a Ragley Hall.

Around 5,000 people turned up to watch a ten minute display by each team, before voting via text for the winner.

This year Cambridge Fireworks were crowned champions.

Tamara Lawrence, from organisers MLE Pyrotechnics, said: Ragley Hall is a fantastic venue for us, its beautiful and its central, we had a large attendance, it seems to go up every year.

Each display is fully choreographed to music, which makes them very special. People were invited to turn up from 4pm, bring a picnic and relax before the fireworks started at 9pm.

The standard of displays was brilliant, its a very prestigious competition in the UK and were looking forward to coming back to Ragley Hall next year.

For more information visit www.fireworkchampions.co.uk
ADDISON, Texas , Sept. 11, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mike McConnell, former Director of the United States National Security Agency (NSA), former Director of National Intelligence for the United States, and current member of the Securonix Board of Directors, will present the opening keynote at GovWare 2018 in Singapore. McConnells presentation, The Cancer Within Insider Based Cyber Attacks, will draw on his extensive government security experience to discuss cybersecurity defense against insider threats.



In his keynote, McConnell will address why the greatest threat to corporate organizations and government agencies is not from hackers attacking digital assets from beyond the network perimeter, but from those already inside the network. The talk will discuss increasing efforts placed on cybersecurity network defenses; insiders as unwitting accomplices to cyber-attacks; how hackers gain access to user accounts through social engineering, phishing, and user-based attacks; why these attacks go undetected for weeks or even months; and the emergence of new tools in behavior analysis and artificial intelligence (AI) to help mitigate these threats.

Mike McConnell has a lifetime of experience in addressing some of the largest and most complex security threats the United States has faced. McConnell served as director of the United States National Security Agency from 1992 to 1996, providing global intelligence and information security services to the White House, Cabinet officials, and Congress. In 1996, Booz Allen Hamilton recruited McConnell to create its first information security business  a ten-million-dollar cyber security division that eventually grew into a one-billion-dollar business. McConnell joined the Intelligence and National Security Alliance (INSA) as its initial chairman of the board in 2005, where he led efforts to increase collaboration within the intelligence and national security communities. In 2007, McConnell was appointed director of national intelligence for the United States by President George W. Bush. In 2016, McConnell joined Securonix in an official capacity as a strategic advisory board member and now serves on the companys board of directors.

The GovWare 2018 keynote will be held at Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre on Wednesday, September 19, 2018 from 0900 to 0930 hours in the Auditorium, Hall 406, Level 4.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kaneh Bosm BioTechnolgy Inc. (CSE:KBB)(FWB:8K51)(OTC:KNHBF)(Kaneh Bosm or the Company) is pleased to announce that it has engaged Volare, a leading Lesotho based infrastructure and development consultancy firm. Volare will assist the Company with local development support, as well as the acquisition of land earmarked for Cannabis cultivation, storage and manufacturing facilities. Volare has identified a portfolio of key land parcels that are well suited for agriculture and manufacturing development. The identified parcels are equipped with the necessary onsite utility resources and are located in close proximity to transportation hubs.



Kaneh Bosms portfolio company CanAfrica, holds licenses for medical Cannabis cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, transport, research and import/export in the Kingdom of Lesotho (see Kaneh Bosms news release dated June 20, 2018). In 2017, Lesotho became the first African Nation to issue licenses for medical Cannabis operations. Lesotho is a favourable jurisdiction for Cannabis cultivation due to its rich soils, ideal climate, skilled agricultural workforce, low cost labour, and access to key infrastructure. Lesotho has also signed numerous international trade agreements. These trade agreements permit the unencumbered export of Lesothos Cannabis products to various jurisdictions worldwide. It is anticipated that Lesotho will act as a staging ground for access to larger African markets that may yield greater demand potential.

Kaneh Bosms Chief Executive Officer, Eugene Beukman, states, "Kaneh Bosms African developments mirror industry peers such as Canopy Growth Corporation, Supreme Cannabis Company Inc. and Aphria Inc. Earlier this year Canopy acquired Daddy Cann Lesotho PTY Ltd. for $28.8 million. Daddy Cann and Kaneh Bosms CanAfrica have been awarded identical medical cannabis licences by the Kingdom of Lesotho. In March of 2018, Supreme Cannabis invested $10 million for a 10 percent stake in Lesothos MediGrow Holdings PTY Ltd. Kaneh Bosm would like to also mention Aphria Inc.s recently announced Joint Venture with Lesotho based Verve Dynamics. The Company believes that it is well positioned to capitalize on its flagship African asset while maximizing shareholder value.

Kaneh Bosm also pleased to announce that Company representatives have visited the Kingdom of Lesotho to initiate development efforts and advance regional relationships. The Company continues to complement its existing African cultivation and distribution footprint. Most recently the Company acquired South African based Aricannabis BioTech Corp (see Kaneh Bosm news release dated August 26, 2018). Aricannabis works on an exclusive basis with NuCare Health to provide Cannabis products to over 2,800 independent and corporate pharmacies across South Africa. South Africa has a population of 55 million people and have announced plans through the Medicines Control Counsel for medical Cannabis distribution to South African patients.

The Company looks forward to providing additional updates on its Lesotho initiatives in the coming months.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Kaneh Bosm Biotechnology Inc.

Michael Martinz

Michael Martinz

President, Director

mmartinz@kanehbosmbiotech.com

THE CSE HAS NOT REVIEWED AND DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ACCURACY OR ADEQUACY OF THIS RELEASE.

This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed forward-looking statements. The use of any of the words anticipate, continue, estimate, expect, may, will, would, project, should, believe and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. These statements speak only as of the date of this News Release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks including various risk factors discussed in the Companys disclosure documents which can be found under the Companys profile on www.sedar.com
The Cheyenne County Historical Association is holding its annual meeting 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept., 23, at the Cheyenne County Visitor Center.

The board invites anyone  past, present or prospective member  or anyone interest in preserving state and Cheyenne County history, to attend this year's annual meeting.

The program will include visitor statistics by Duane Nightingale, and tourism director Kevin Howard as the guest speaker.

In addition to reviewing the annual report, four board members will be elected. Board members serving expiring three year terms include Ladonna Jung, Audrey Tremain and Stephanie Disney.

Doug Hays seat with two years remaining will also need to be filled.

Nominations from the floor will be accepted.

Cost of membership is $10.

RSVP to Roger Jorgensen (308-254-2959) or Audrey Tremain (308-254-4427) by Sept. 15 if you plan to attend.
SCOTTSBLUFF -- Western Nebraska Community College is hosting three workshops for all home school parents and their children covering the benefits of WNCCs CollegeNOW! program.

Workshops will be held on the WNCC Sidney Campus on Tuesday, September 18, the Scottsbluff Campus on Wednesday, September 19, and the Alliance Campus on Tuesday, September 25. Each workshop is free and will be held from 3 to 5 p.m.

We encourage all home school parents and their children to attend a CollegeNOW! workshop to gain an understanding of the educational opportunities available through WNCC, said Juila Newman, CollegeNOW! director. WNCC is excited to provide resources and assistance to complement a home school curriculum, and serve as a steppingstone to the next phase of your childs education.

Topics covered will include WNCCs programs of study, achievement and placement testing, scholarships, and advising. There will also be time to ask questions regarding the CollegeNOW! program or any additional questions about WNCC.

For more information on any of the available sessions, please contact Newman at [email protected] or 308-635-6715, or WNCC Admissions Director Gretchen Foster at g[email protected] or 308-635-6183.
Violet V. (Jacobson) Noonan, 96, of Broadwater, passed away on Sunday, September 9, 2018 at Morrill County Community Hospital in Bridgeport. Per her wishes, cremation will take place and a Memorial Service will be held at 11 AM on Thursday, September 13, 2018 at the First Presbyterian Church in Bridgeport with The Reverend Jonathan Berosek officiating. A private family burial will take place at the Oregon Trail Memorial Cemetery at Bridgeport. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given the church. Online condolences may be left at http://www.bridgeportmemorialchapel.com

Violet was born February 14, 1922 on a farm near Bridgeport, Nebraska to Tom and Dina (Thorson) Jacobson. Her early education was in a one room school house. She graduated from Bridgeport High School with the Class of 1939. She worked in the Morrill County Office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture for some time. On October 5, 1942 Vi was united in marriage to Harry Noonan. They lived in Oklahoma and California during World War II before returning to the Broadwater area where they farmed and ranched.

Vi was a member of the Presbyterian Church. She was active in the Senior Citizens Center and Nebraska Extension Service.

Vi is survived by her daughter and son-in-law Peg and Tom Claspell of Broomfield, CO; son and daughter-in-law Bob and Margaret Noonan of Broadwater; grandchildren: Brad and Hayley Noonan, Dan Noonan, and Melisa Noonan all of Bridgeport; great-grandsons Logan, Evan, and Ryan; and several nieces, nephews, and very loving friends.

Vi was preceded in death by her husband Harry in 1977, daughter Karen Louise Whitney in 2018, her parents, two sisters, brother, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law.
The heart of the Cyclades, Mykonos is a dynamic destination that draws an eclectic and pleasure-seeking crowd. Striking that quintessentially Greek balance between breathtaking modernity and alluring antiquity, the island is a place where crumbling Mediterranean seascapes meet the gleam of 30 superyachts docked in a state of the art marina; Tourlos, or New Port is the islands latest project.

According to myth, Mykonos was built upon the bodies of giants killed by Hercules. The folkloric intrigue of the island strikes a peculiar balance with its reputation as a mecca for party goers ranging from celebs to students. It is a one-of-a-kind destination where high-rollers and culture enthusiasts converge during the sumptuous Greek summer.

Mykonos capital, Hora, is a spellbinding example of Cycladic architecture, consisting of labyrinthine marble streets flanked by whitewashed buildings, magnificently offset by colourful shutters, tumbling bougainvillea and the azure sea. Docking here allows you to explore hidden churches and crumbling castles such as Panayia Paraportiani and the old Town Hall, as well as charming, boutique-lined streets and the glamourous boulevard of Matoyanni. The lively waterfront is a central hub, where a technicolour host of boats bob up and down on glinting waters frequented by the islands official mascot: the pelican.

The rest of the island is a breathtaking Mediterranean vision, revealing acres of sunbaked terrain, maquis shrublands and brightly coloured flora. Here you will find compact fishing houses with pastel coloured balconies, miniature waterfront cafes and striking Venetian windmills, as well as historical curiosities ranging from Neolithic settlements to Mycenaean tombs.

Not to be forgotten, Mykonos beautiful beaches are where platinum sands meet perfectly blue waters; the aptly named Paradise and Super Paradise are two of the best. Here, you can languish on a sunlounger by day and unlock the meaning of party island by night. The golden beaches, rustic tavernas and picture-postcard architecture of Mykonos truly showcase the true romance of a Greek yacht charter, and luxury resorts such as Mykonos Grand Hotel and Santa Marina provide the perfect stay should you choose to linger.
Local painter Santiago Fernandez Araguez has donated 36 artworks, between them paintings and sculptures, to the provincial branch of the Spanish cancer association (AECC) for an auction that will take place on Thursday.

The money raised will go towards maintaining the programmes and services run by the AECC to help alleviate the pain on oncology patients and to investigate potential cures of the disease.

The works of Fernandez Araguez can be visited as part of the exhibition 'La vision imaginada' at the Sala Perez Estrada in the Ateneo de Malaga, from 6pm until 28 September. The auction will also take place there on 13 September, at 8.30pm.

In a press conference to launch the exhibition, Santiago Fernandez Araguez said: "It gives me enormous satisfaction to be able to do this exhibition/donation for the AECC in Malaga. I understand that getting involved is all part of being a good citizen, especially when it is to combat a disease that does no good for anyone."

Provincial president of the AECC, Francisco Aguilar, thanked Fernandez Araguez for his generosity and the collaboration of the Ateneo.

"I would like to invite everyone to come and see 'La Vision Imaginada' and participate in the auction on the 13th. I'm sure that the colour in Fernandez Araguez's works will touch the hearts of many people and continue to give colour to the lives of many cancer patients."
The CLC World Foundation has recently handed over five computers and other office material to the Mijas and Fuengirola branch of the Spanish cancer association AECC.

The donation is part of the wider collaboration plans that the cancer charity and the foundation, along with Mijas town hall, discussed at a meeting at the end of August. During the presentation the local councillor responsible for volunteer activities, Laura Moreno, recalled that at the meeting the AECC expressed the need to increase and renew its computer equipment.

"Local residents and public administrations must be aware of the needs of associations such as this which give so much support to families in Mijas and Fuengirola. We have to maintain public and private sector collaboration to be able to help these groups with their work," said the councillor.
ASKER, NORWAY (12 September 2018) - TGS CEO, Kristian Johansen and CFO, Sven Brre Larsen are today attending the Pareto Securities' 25th Oil and Offshore Conference in Oslo, Norway.

Kristian Johansen is scheduled to present Wednesday, 12 September at 11:45 CEST. The presentation slides are attached to this press release and available on TGS.com.

Company Summary

TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Company (TGS) provides multi-client geoscience data to oil and gas Exploration and Production companies worldwide. In addition to extensive global geophysical and geological data libraries that include multi-client seismic data, magnetic and gravity data, digital well logs, production data and directional surveys, TGS also offers advanced processing and imaging services, interpretation products, and data integration solutions.

For more information visit TGS online at www.tgs.com.

Forward-looking statements and contact information

All statements in this press release other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, which are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict, and are based upon assumptions as to future events that may not prove accurate. These factors include TGS' reliance on a cyclical industry and principle customers, TGS' ability to continue to expand markets for licensing of data, and TGS' ability to acquire and process data products at costs commensurate with profitability.

Actual results may differ materially from those expected or projected in the forward-looking statements. TGS undertakes no responsibility or obligation to update or alter forward-looking statements for any reason.

TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Company ASA is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange (OSLO:TGS). TGS sponsored American Depositary Shares trade on the U.S. over-the-counter market under the symbol "TGSGY".

For additional information about this press release please contact:

Sven Brre Larsen

Chief Financial Officer

Tel: +47 90 94 36 73

Email: sven.larsen@tgs.com

Will Ashby

SVP Investor Relations, HR & Communication

Tel: +1 713 860 2184

Email: will.ashby@tgs.com

This information is subject of the disclosure requirements acc. to 5-12 vphl (Norwegian Securities Trading Act)
The Salon Varietes Theatre in Fuengirola is to host two stand-up comedy nights this weekend. The shows will present Dave Thompson, Alan Francis and Kevin McCarthy, all of whom have received considerable fame on stage and screen in the UK.

Former lorry driver Kevin McCarthy began his career as a stand-up after an impromptu stint at the notorious Tunnel Palladium Club in London. He has since performed all over the world to audiences of between ten and 45,000 people. He also writes for television, recently participating in the BAFTA awarding winning ITV comedy, The Sketch Show. He has also worked as a warm up for shows like The Lottery and Later, with Jools Holland.

SUR in English caught up with the comedian prior to his arrival on the Costa del Sol and he revealed that he is amazed that people are "daft enough" to work as a stand-up.

Are you politically correct?

I like to think I am correct, but not political. I certainly do not condone racism and homophobia but I tend to keep it very real, which can mean sailing close to the wind on occasions.

Are you superstitious?

Not superstitious, no, but I am one of the few comics I know who have to eat before I go on. Most like to eat afterwards, but if I am not Jim to the Brim I feel there is something missing.

Where do you get your ideas for material from: real life situations, or from an inventive mind - or both?

Everywhere, comedy is right in front of you; my job is to point it out.

You apparently have the ability to find humour in any subject: is there any particular field that appeals to you more than others?

I hate to say it, but bodily functions amuse me greatly. The human body is a very funny thing.

Is there any particular comedian, or anyone, that has influenced your style of stand-up?

No, I am amazed at anyone who is daft enough to stand up in front of people to make them laugh, however Spike Milligan, Tommy Cooper and Monty Python enthral me.

I understand you organised courses in Winchester Prison: were you ever an inmate or prison warden?

I did not actually organise them, but I did tutor them. It was organised by Jongleurs Comedy, the now defunct Comedy Club chain. I have never been to prison, more by luck than judgement!

How would you describe Jools Holland?

A genius, a down-to-earth loyal friend and musical genius.

You have apparently appeared on TV as a 'straight actor'; can you explain what this means?

Yes, it means a non-comedy part, nothing to do with being gay or straight, but then that could be fun too.

I understand that you have a home in Spain; what do you like about Spain?

The weather, the coast, the people and particularly the food and the fact that a cafe con leche does not taste as good anywhere else in the world.

What can the audience expect at the Salon Varietes in Fuengirola?

An absolutely cracking night from three time-served comics, all with different styles: the other two are not as good looking as me though.

Your friend and colleague, Dave Thompson, describes you as a man "with enchanting charisma who combines intelligence with a common touch". How would you describe him and his comedy?

A wonderful judge of character to start with: zany, off-the-wall and downright funny. I am really looking forward to a wonderful show with him and Alan.
Take A Mulligan: The Big 7-0

Here is the $64,000 question. Just exactly how old is old? In my teens, I figured it was about 35 but when I was getting close to that age, it ...
English French

2018 HALF-YEAR RESULTS

HERMES

Excellent sales performance and results over the first half of the year

Recurring operating profitability reaches an all-time high of 34.5% of sales

Net profit increases by 17% to reach 708 million

Paris, 12 September 2018

The Group's consolidated revenue amounted to 2,853 million in the first half of 2018, up +11% at constant exchange rates and +5% at current exchange rates. Recurring operating income increased by 6% to reach 985 million (34.5% of sales). After inclusion of 53 million in capital gains on disposal of property, operating income amounted to 1,037 million (36.3% of sales) and net profit increased by 17% to 708 million.

Axel Dumas, Executive Chairman of Hermes, said: "Hermes achieved an exceptional performance in the first half of the year. Our commitment to the quality of know-how, the spirit of innovation as well as the creativity, always renewed, and the dedication of the women and men of Hermes, base the singularity and the integrity of our economic model; a strong model in a worldwide context that remains uncertain and unstable."

Sales by geographical area at the end of June

(at comparable exchange rates, unless otherwise indicated)

In the first half of 2018, revenue increased in all geographical areas worldwide:

Asia excluding Japan (+15%) continued its outstanding performance, with positive momentum in continental China and the whole region. The group also benefitted from the January opening of the Landmark Prince's store in Hong Kong. The Changsha store in China opened in May.

Japan (+7%) confirmed its robust growth with no price effect.

America (+12%) progressed well with high demand. In May, the group opened its 34th store in the USA, at Palo Alto in the heart of Silicon Valley. The Cancun store opened in Mexico at the end of March.

Europe excluding France (+7%) and France (+8%) achieved good performances despite the strengthening of the Euro. The Monaco and Nice stores reopened in June, and the third store in Istanbul, in Emaar Square, opened in May. The new website hermes.com was successfully deployed in Europe at the end of March, offering a one-stop address for both editorial content and products, reflecting the diversity of the Maison's creations.





Sales by business line at the end of June

(at comparable exchange rates, unless otherwise indicated)

The performance in the first half was driven by solid growth across all business lines.

Growth in Leather Goods and Saddlery (+8%) was sustained over the first half of the year, based on collections combining style, know-how, diversity of materials and functionality. Demand remains high, both for the Maison's classics and other models, such as the Roulis, Lindy and Cinhetic bags. Production capacities continued to increase, with the opening of the Manufacture de l'Allan in April, completing the craftsmanship production capacities in Franche-Comte around the Seloncourt and Hericourt sites, and the start of the Guyenne and Montereau production site projects, scheduled for completion in 2020.

The Ready-to-Wear and Accessories division (+17%) pursued its growth, thanks to the pertinence and boldness of our men's and women's ready-to-wear collections and the success of fashion accessories and footwear. A men's universe event was staged in Shanghai in April.

The Silk and Textiles business line (+7%) confirmed its favourable momentum with sustained demand, thanks to the diversity of materials and wealth of creations, particularly around silk twill and cashmere.

Driven by the successes of Terre d'Hermes and of Twilly d'Hermes, Perfumes (+15%) recorded a sharp increase.

The Watches business line (+9%) posted a good sales performance in the group's stores.

Other Hermes business lines (+24%), which encompass Jewellery, Art of Living and Hermes Table Arts, recorded strong growth over the period.

Results reach an all-time high

Recurring operating income increased by +6% to 985 million compared to 931 million in the first half 2017. Thanks to a particularly sound growth and the accretive impact of foreign exchange over the first six months, the recurring operating margin gained 0.2 point to reach 34.5% of sales.

After inclusion of 53 million in capital gains resulting from the sale of the former Galleria store premises in Hong Kong, operating income amounts to 1,037 million, up +11%, reaching 36.3% of sales.

Consolidated net profit (Group share) increased by +17% to 708 million, representing 24.8% of sales.

Operating cash flows reached 849 million, up 7%, enabling the Group to finance all capital expenditure (120 million), the change in working capital requirements (37 million) and the ordinary dividend distribution (428 million). After payment of the extraordinary dividend (521 million), the net cash position was 2,713 million as at 30 June 2018, compared to 2,912 million as at 31 December 2017.

During the first six months, Hermes International redeemed 88,039 shares for 51 million, excluding transactions completed within the framework of the liquidity contract.

Growth in workforce

The Hermes Group is pursuing its recruitment process and increased its workforce by almost 280 people over the first six months. At the end of June 2018, the Group employed 13,764 people, including 8,476 in France.

Outlook

In the medium-term, despite growing economic, geopolitical and monetary uncertainties around the world, the group confirms an ambitious goal for revenue growth at constant exchange rates.

In 2018, Hermes is celebrating the theme "Let's Play!" Beyond mere recreation, this guiding vision reminds us of the importance of enjoyment as a driver of creativity, innovation and agility.

Thanks to its unique business model, Hermes is pursuing its long-term development strategy based on creativity, maintaining control over know-how and singular communication.

KEY FIGURES - 2018 FIRST HALF RESULT

Main consolidated data In millions of euros H1 2018 FY 2017 H1 2017 Revenue 2,853 5,549 2,713 Growth at current exchange rates vs. n-1 5.2% 6.7% 11.2% Growth at constant exchange rates vs. n-1 (1) 11.2% 8.6% 9.7% Recurring operating income 985 1,922 931 As a % of revenue 34.5% 34.6% 34.3% Operating income 1,037 1,922 931 As a % of revenue 36.3% 34.6% 34.3% Net profit - Group share 708 1,221 605 As a % of revenue 24.8% 22.0% 22.3% Operating cash flows 849 1,598 794 Investments (excluding financial investments) 128 270 105 Equity - Group share 4,789 5,039 4,564 Net cash position 2,713 2,912 2,434 Restated net cash position (2) 2,798 3,050 2,530 Workforce (number of employees) 13,764 13,483 13,059

(1) Growth at constant exchange rates is calculated by applying the average exchange rates of the previous period to the current period's revenue, for each currency.

(2) The restated net cash position includes short-term investments that do not meet IFRS cash equivalents criteria mainly because their original maturity exceeds three months

Limited review procedures have been carried out on the condensed interim consolidated financial statements by the Statutory Auditors in accordance with applicable regulations.

The half-year financial report, the press release and the presentation of the 2018 Half Year Results are available on the Group's website: http://finance.hermes.com.

Coming events:

7 November 2018: publication of Q3 2018 Revenue

8 February 2019: publication of 2018 Revenue

20 March 2019: publication of 2018 Results

REMINDER OF PREVIOUS PUBLICATIONS

INFORMATION BY GEOGRAPHICAL AREA (1)

First Half Evolutions In millions of Euros 2018 2017 Published At constant exchange rates France 390.3 360.7 8.2% 8.2% Europe (excl. France) 500.7 475.5 5.3% 7.4% Total Europe 891.1 836.2 6.6% 7.8% Japan 344.8 348.7 (1.1)% 6.8% Asia Pacific (excl. Japan) 1,072.8 998.5 7.4% 14.9% Total Asia 1,417.6 1,347.2 5.2% 12.8% Americas 489.9 482.4 1.5% 12.4% Other 54.8 47.2 16.1% 16.2% TOTAL 2,853.4 2,713.1 5.2% 11.2%

2nd quarter Evolutions In millions of Euros 2018 2017 Published At constant exchange rates France 208.1 189.4 9.9% 9.9% Europe (excl. France) 261.5 246.5 6.1% 8.2% Total Europe 469.6 435.8 7.7% 8.9% Japan 169.8 169.9 (0.0)% 6.1% Asia Pacific (excl. Japan) 533.1 490.7 8.6% 13.4% Total Asia 702.9 660.6 6.4% 11.6% Americas 259.7 242.1 7.3% 15.9% Other 27.4 22.8 20.2% 20.2% TOTAL 1,459.6 1,361.3 7.2% 11.6%

(1) Sales by destination.

INFORMATION BY SECTOR

First Half Evolutions In millions of Euros 2018 2017 Published At constant exchange rates Leather Goods and Saddlery (1) 1,425.1 1,404.0 1.5% 8.0% Ready-to-wear and Accessories (2) 637.3 579.2 10.0% 16.7% Silk and Textiles 249.4 246.3 1.3% 7.1% Other Hermes sectors (3) 201.7 172.3 17.0% 24.1% Perfumes 153.2 134.4 14.0% 14.9% Watches 77.0 75.0 2.7% 9.0% Other products (4) 109.8 101.9 7.8% 10.3% TOTAL 2,853.4 2,713.1 5.2% 11.2%

2nd quarter Evolutions In millions of Euros 2018 2017 Published At constant exchange rates Leather Goods and Saddlery (1) 733.7 708.1 3.6% 8.4% Ready-to-wear and Accessories (2) 330.7 296.3 11.6% 16.4% Silk and Textiles 117.0 112.5 4.0% 7.8% Other Hermes sectors (3) 106.1 88.5 19.8% 25.2% Perfumes 71.3 63.3 12.6% 13.5% Watches 42.7 41.7 2.5% 7.3% Other products (4) 58.0 50.9 14.0% 15.8% TOTAL 1,459.6 1,361.3 7.2% 11.6%

(1) The "Leather Goods and Saddlery" business line includes bags, riding, diaries and small leather goods.

(2) The "Ready-to-wear and Accessories" business line includes Hermes Ready-to-wear for men and women, belts, costume jewellery, gloves, hats and shoes.

(3) The "Other Hermes sectors" include Jewellery and Hermes home products (Art of Living and Hermes Tableware).

(4) The "Other products" include the production activities carried out on behalf of non-group brands (textile printing, tanning.), as well as the John Lobb, Saint-Louis, Puiforcat and Shang Xia products.
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Brussels, Wednesday September 12, 2018, 08h30 CEST --- According to Belgian transparency legislation (Law of May 2, 2007), BlackRock Inc. (55 East 52nd Street, New York, NY, 10055, U.S.A.) has notified Solvay S.A. that:

On September 7, 2018 BlackRock Inc. crossed downwards the 3% statutory threshold for direct voting rights, holding 2.94%. Including equivalent financial instruments, the total voting rights stood at 3.18%.

Declarations by BlackRock Inc. are published in the Investor Relations Section of Solvay's website.

For the complete press release, please read the enclosed PDF.

Follow us on twitter @SolvayGroup
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MGX Minerals Inc. (MGX or the Company) ( CSE: XMG / OTCQB: MGXMF / FSE: 1MG ) announces the joint-venture partner Belmont Resources (TSX.V: BEA) (Belmont) has reported assay samples up to 580 ppm lithium in the first layer of 125 samples taken to 1,270 feet at the Kibby Basin lithium brine project (Kibby) in Nevada. The highest concentration of lithium occurred between 960 and 1270 feet, including 1110 to 1210 feet where overall average was 415ppm lithium.



The borehole targeted the southern portion of a large robust MT conductor, which may represent saturated sediments containing lithium-rich brines. The hole drilled through lacustrine playa sediments- dominantly calcareous clays and silts grading to lithified claystones and siltstones at depth. Sand and gravel zones, which may represent brine-bearing aquifers, were encountered at depths of 150-170 feet, 210-230 feet, 260-300 feet, and 900-920 feet, where a potentially major aquifer in a cobble gravel was intersected. Analysis suggests that a hard chert-cobble layer at a depth of 90-915 feet separates soft red-brown coloured oxidized mud-silt-(minor gravel) playa sediments from underlying grey-green reduced clay-silt-(minor sand) sediments and minor volcanic ash layers. The reducing-oxidizing boundary is well-defined by a chert-cobble layer and Li values increase significantly in the reduced layer below it.

Table 1. Kibby Basin Drill Hole #3

From To Width Notes 900 915 15 Chert-Cobble layer 970 1210 240 Dark grey-green clay-silt average 390 ppm Li (reference ALS certificate RE18197540) 1270 1800 530 Numerous sections of grey-green reduced clay-silt and intercalated ash tuff layers - geochemical analysis pending

At deeper layers, thin intervals of altered rhyolite ash and possible hot-spring sinter were encountered at 1411-1412 feet, 1488-1490 feet and 1589.5-1590 feet. Operation of a paleo-geothermal system is evidenced by the silicified intervals and fronts of pyrite alteration increasing below a depth of 1500 feet.

Hole KB-3 was drilled by mud rotary methods to a depth of 1270 feet. The hole was completed as a core tail to a total depth of 1798 feet. The hole diameter was reduced to 3-5/8 inches to drill HQ (2.5-inch diameter) core. 25 samples of representative core were selected for assay from this lower part of the drilling and were delivered to ALS Labs in Reno, Nevada on August 31, 2018 for 41-element ICP analysis (including Li). Samples were of ash layers, silicified sediments, and high pyrite and magnetite zones. 10 water samples were collected at various levels from 370 feet through to 1745 feet. Additionally, one sample of well water and one surface water sample were collected and delivered to ALS Labs on August 31st for ICP analysis and physical properties. Assay results from these drill core and water samples are expected by later this month.

Final compilation, upon receipt of further assays, and scheduling for the second 2018 drill hole (KB-4) at Kibby are being prepared. Drills will be mobilized to the second site as soon as possible.

The Kibby Basin shares many characteristics with Clayton Valley, where lithium brines are being exploited, including: closed structural basin, large conductor at depth, lithium anomalies at surface and depth, evidence of a geothermal system, and potential aquifers in porous ash and gravel zones.

About the Kibby Basin Lithium Brine Partnership

MGX is partnered with Belmont Resources (TSX-V: BEA) on the Property and currently earning a 50% interest with the goal of forming a 50/50 Joint Venture (the Joint Venture) to utilize MGXs rapid lithium extraction technology. Kibby Basin is located in the western portion of the Great Basin in Nevada. The property covers 2,560 acres located in Esmeralda County, Nevada. Geologic research of the Kibby Basin has indicated that proximal rhyolitic flows and tuffs surrounding the basin could be a potential source of Li brine in the Kibby Basis Playa. In addition, the Kibby Basin is located within a geothermal cluster at a basin low setting. Regional geophysical signatures in the area reflect similar anomalies comparative to that of Clayton Valley, approximately 50km to the South, location of Abermarles Silver Peak Mine, the only North American lithium producer.

Rapid Lithium Brine Extraction Technology

MGX has developed a rapid lithium extraction technology eliminating or greatly reducing the physical footprint and investment in large, multi-phase, lake sized, lined evaporation ponds, as well as enhancing the quality of extraction and recovery across a complex range of brines as compared with traditional solar evaporation. This technology is applicable to petrolithium (oil and gas wastewater), natural brine, and other brine sources such as lithium-rich mine and industrial plant wastewater. The technology was recently chosen as winner of the Base and Specialty Metals Industry Leadership Award at the 2018 S&P Global Platts Global Metals Awards, held in London in May ( see press release dated May 18, 2018 ).

Qualified Person

Andris Kikauka (P. Geo.), Vice President of Exploration for MGX Minerals, has prepared, reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information in this press release. Mr. Kikauka is a non-independent Qualified Person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 Standards.

About MGX Minerals

MGX Minerals is a diversified Canadian resource company with interests in advanced material and energy assets throughout North America. Learn more at www.mgxminerals.com .

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Superindie Tinopolis is funding a BAFTA scholarship, supporting three scholars for one year each until 2021, in conjunction with BAFTAs wider UK scholarship programme.

The BAFTA scheme supports people at all stages of their career  working across television, film and games  and successful candidates receive financial assistance as well as mentoring throughout their postgraduate studies. The eleven new scholarship recipients, including the BAFTA Tinopolis scholar, will be welcomed at a reception at BAFTAs headquarters on Monday 17 September, attended by industry supporters.

The BAFTA Tinopolis Scholarship sits alongside the existing BAFTA scholarships with a particular focus on television, and for the first year of the scholarship, Tinopolis will support Jon Hague throughout the 2018/2019 academic year.

Jon, aged 50, is from Malborough in South Devon and has been is awarded 10,000 to study the MA Screenwriting a London College of Communication. Jon trained as a nurse and went on to serve as a military nurse in Afghanistan, Iraq and Northern Ireland, before leaving to pursue his career as a writer.

As well as supporting Jons studies financially, Tinopolis drama producers Daybreak (The Politicians Husband, A Very Social Secretary) and Fiction Factory (Hinterland) will be on hand to offer additional support and practical screenwriting advice, as well as mentoring Jon throughout the scholarship.

Tinopolis Chief Executive, Arwel Rees, said: We are incredibly proud to team up with BAFTA to nurture a diverse range of talent and people who may otherwise not be able to succeed in this competitive industry, where the financial and mentoring support offered by this scheme can make all the difference. Were delighted to welcome Jon as our first BAFTA Tinopolis Scholar.

Amanda Berry OBE, Chief Executive of BAFTA, said: Over the years we have seen the BAFTA Scholarships programme evolve into a truly global initiative. Becoming a BAFTA scholar offers incredible opportunities for cross-cultural collaboration as well as giving this talented group of people every possible chance to succeed in the film, games and television industries.

Jon Hague said: Self-belief and the support of valued friends and peers has brought me this far, but having BAFTA and Tinopolis behind me for my ongoing development as a writer is the difference between rowing across an ocean and sailing it in a small dinghy, with BAFTA giving the power to my sail. In times of inevitable self-doubt, I will always be able to draw on the endorsement my scholarship represents. It will hold as a persistent reminder that without heed to background and past constraints, my creative potential is real, and that I am not alone during my journey to thrive as the best writer that I can be.

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Residents told to 'get out now' as Florence takes aim at Carolinas



Wrightsville Beach, United States, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



Streams of cars clogged roads leading away from the coast of North and South Carolina on Tuesday as residents began fleeing ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Florence, a powerful Category 4 storm barreling towards the eastern US states.

While many coastal residents heeded mandatory evacuation orders, others were boarding up homes and businesses and choosing to brave the storm.

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper warned that this would be a grave mistake and said people in evacuation zones "need to get out now."

"This is not a storm that people need to ride out," Cooper told reporters. "This is a storm that is historic, maybe once in a lifetime."

Up to 1.7 million people in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia have been given voluntary or mandatory evacuation orders, according to emergency management officials, as the storm churns across the Atlantic Ocean towards the coast.

The eastbound lanes of several major highways have been shut down to allow for a smooth flow of traffic inland.

"We are already experiencing heavily impacted traffic on some of the evacuation routes," said Jeff Byard, the associate administrator for response and recovery at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Forecasters are predicting that Florence will make landfall in the Carolinas late Thursday or early Friday as a still powerful Category 3 hurricane.

At 8:00 pm (0001 GMT Wed), Florence was a Category 4 hurricane packing sustained winds of 140 miles per hour (220 kilometers per hour), the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

It was located 725 miles (1,165 kms) east-southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, and moving at 17 mph (28 kph) in a west-northwest direction.

Briefing from the Oval Office, President Donald Trump urged people to heed orders to evacuate, saying "if you are asked to leave, get out."

"This will be a storm that's going to be far larger than we have seen in perhaps decades," Trump said.

"We're as ready as anybody has ever been," the president added. "We are sparing no expense."



- 'Direct hit' -



Speaking in the Oval Office alongside Trump, FEMA administrator Brock Long said Florence may be a "very devastating storm."

"The power will be off for weeks," Long said. "You're going to be displaced from your home in coastal areas. There will be flooding in inland areas as well."

Byard, the FEMA official, said "this storm is not going to be a glancing blow."

"This storm is going to be a direct hit."

The NHC said Florence is expected to be an "extremely dangerous major hurricane" when it makes landfall in the Carolinas late Thursday or early Friday, bringing life-threatening storm surge to coastal areas.

A state of emergency has been declared in Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington amid concern over potential torrential rain and flooding.

The last time the US capital declared a state of emergency was in January 2016 when a winter storm dubbed "Snowzilla" blanketed the capital region in knee-deep snow.

In Charleston, South Carolina, some residents were making preparations to leave Tuesday while others planned to ride out the storm.

Streets were quiet with schools and many offices and businesses closed.

Michael Kennedy, an engineer at Boeing, said he planned to leave on Tuesday for his parents' home in Atlanta, Georgia.

But his partner, Emily Whisler, said she will remain behind at the university where she is a resident in the psychiatry program.

"They told me to bring a pillow and blanket," Whisler said. "I'll be living there for a few days."

Charleston, resident William Belli said he would not be among those joining the exodus.

"Been through it!" Belli said, referring to Hurricane Hugo, which caused widespread damage in South Carolina in 1989. "Not worried in the least."

Walking his dog along empty streets, Belli said he's well stocked with food and water.

"I will enjoy the quiet," he said.



- Potential for 'catastrophic damage' -



South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster on Monday ordered the mandatory evacuation of one million coastal residents. Schools in 26 of the state's 46 counties were ordered closed from Tuesday.

Cooper, the governor of neighboring North Carolina, ordered an evacuation of the Outer Banks, barrier islands that are a popular tourist destination, and parts of coastal Dare County.

In Virginia, 245,000 coastal residents were ordered to evacuate including from the Eastern Shore, another popular beachfront destination.

In neighboring Maryland, Governor Larry Hogan said his state was readying for potentially "historic and catastrophic rainfall, life-threatening flooding, and high winds."

On the five-level Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale Florence is a Category 4, meaning it is capable of causing "catastrophic damage."

By Saturday, total rainfall could accumulate to 20 inches (51 centimeters) -- or even 30 inches in places -- in parts of the Carolinas and Virginia, the NHC said.

Fort AP Hill and Fort Bragg were selected as FEMA Incident Support and Federal Staging Area to assist in the response, the army said.

The Virginia National Guard is planning to initially bring up to 1,500 soldiers and airmen to offer help in the state's response operations.

Some 7,000 guard members are ready to mobilize in North Carolina, while 1,100 will be activated in South Carolina.

At this height of the Atlantic hurricane season, Florence was being trailed on east-to-west paths by two other storms, Hurricane Helene and Tropical Storm Isaac, but neither packs the deadly punch of Florence.
As hurricane bears down, Trump... makes it about Trump



Washington, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



As Hurricane Florence churned towards the US East Coast on Wednesday, Donald Trump assured Americans the government stood ready -- and slipped in some bragging about his handling of monster storms in the past.

In his first tweet on the topic early, Trump urged residents in Florence's path to "be safe," assuring them federal emergency workers were "ready for the big one that's coming" -- so far so normal for a US president addressing the population as a disaster looms.

Less conventionally, he also took the chance to talk up his past performance in the field -- and take a swipe at those who question it.

"We got A Pluses for our recent hurricane work in Texas and Florida," the president tweeted, complaining his administration had done "an unappreciated great job in Puerto Rico" -- which he called "an inaccessible island with very poor electricity and a totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan."

Trump's shot at Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz came after she derided his claim that the response to last year's devastating Hurricane Maria had been an "incredible unsung success."

"Shame on you," the mayor fired back Tuesday in response to Trump's boasts, calling the operation a "despicable act of neglect."

Hurricane Maria is now considered to have killed 2,975 people in Puerto Rico, according to a recently revised government toll. The longstanding official toll had been just 64.

As the United States braced for the impact of a potentially catastrophic new storm, the president's comments -- and tone of voice -- sparked outrage in opposition ranks.

"The gleeful excitement about the power of the hurricane is gross," tweeted Jen Psaki, a former advisor to Barack Obama.

"Lives and livelihoods are at risk. Stop tweeting," she urged. "Bunker down in the situation room, make sure resources are deployed and present the calm and sober voice Americans need during crises."

Currently a Category 4 hurricane, Florence is forecast to slam into the East Coast later this week, with up to 1.7 million people in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia under voluntary or mandatory evacuation orders.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FinCanna Capital Corp. (FinCanna) (CSE: CALI) (OTCQB: FNNZF) a royalty company for the U.S. licensed medical cannabis industry, is pleased to provide the following Letter to its Shareholders:



Its been an exciting year for FinCanna. We started trading just over nine months ago, have raised C$24 million and invested in three top-tier businesses. I believe weve reached an inflection point in our development as our investee companies move toward commercialization, so I thought I would take this opportunity to share my thoughts with you as we move into the final few months of 2018.

As most of you may know, FinCanna is a Royalty Company for the licensed medical cannabis sector with a focus on California, which is the most populous state in the U.S., the fifth largest economy in the world and the largest cannabis market in North America. Its an enormously rich market. It was also the first state to legalize cannabis for medical use back in 1996 and earlier this year attained full legalization providing additional momentum to what has become known as the California Green Rush.

Although 30 U.S. states and Washington, DC have legalized medical cannabis, including 10 of which also legalized for adult-use, cannabis is still illegal at the U.S. federal level. This federal prohibition has caused a drastic shortfall in the amount of traditional funding sources participating in the sector. Consequently, there is a lack of available capital across the entire industry and a great number of best-in-class businesses are starved for the liquid cash they need to rapidly grow.

This combination of circumstances has created an exceptional opportunity for FinCannas Royalty Model approach to funding scalable, best-in-class licensed U.S. cannabis businesses, particularly in California.

Its a simple but powerful model - we provide capital to businesses in exchange for a percentage of their revenue going forward. It's a model that is highly attractive for entrepreneurs seeking funding. It provides them with an infusion of cash on terms that are less restrictive than debt and without the unpalatable prospect of having to surrender a large equity stake. Since royalty payments are made before tax, the investment can be structured to be tax-efficient for the operating companies.

Our royalty model also works exceptionally well for FinCanna investors because:

We receive a percentage of top line revenue in perpetuity (subject to certain buyback provisions). Unlike owning equity, we carry zero equity/dilution risk in our investees;

Our royalty investments are secured by the assets of our investee companies, providing us with downside protection; and

We diversify our upside by investing in multiple sectors to generate multiple income streams in various industry verticals.

FinCannas growth trajectory can be segmented into three developmental phases for success:

Phase 1: Go Public, Raise Capital and Secure First Royalty Investments - Complete

The first half of 2018 saw FinCanna go public, secure royalty agreements with three top-tier companies and raise capital to fund its first three investments. We have built a strong foundation of investee companies, a large shareholder base and an excellent network for future opportunities.

Phase 2: Finance our First Investments as they Mature and Grow  Current Phase

Our first three investee companies are early stage businesses that need both capital and time to mature. They are all moving towards commercialization and profitability, and we are financing them in tranches as they achieve the milestones required to deliver the financial results we anticipate. We maintain close relationships with our investee companies as we see them as partners where our mutual financial interests are highly aligned.

Phase 3: Receive Royalty Payments and Expand Our Royalty Portfolio  Near Future

This is the phase that our shareholders are patiently waiting for and the most exciting phase for FinCanna. Weve invested in companies which we believe have strong business models, excellent management and outstanding revenue producing potential. We expect these businesses to scale and produce increasing royalty income. This income would also position us to expand our investment portfolio. Weve also established a strong network of industry insiders that are assisting us in building out a pipeline of top-tier companies seeking growth capital.

Market Opportunity

The U.S. market place is approximately 10 times that of Canada. As weve seen in Canada, the market has been primarily driven by a move towards full legalization, and a multi billion-dollar cannabis industry has been created in a matter of a few years. However, we believe that the Canadian cannabis market has become saturated.

We believe that the same forces that drove Canadian valuations to unprecedented highs are at play in the U.S., and it is just beginning as evidenced by the 30 states that have legalized medical cannabis. As an early entrant into the U.S. cannabis space we also believe that FinCanna is very well positioned to participate in any large-scale market appreciation that may occur.

The next 12 months

Our vision is to have capital deployed in category leading businesses across a number of industry verticals in the United States licensed medical cannabis space. We will continue to build a diversified portfolio of royalty investments across the width and breadth of the industry as we exit 2018 and into 2019. We are highly selective and look to invest in companies which we believe will offer the potential for long-term value creation. We also understand there is a maturing process for entrepreneurial businesses to attain their goals and we work in close alignment with our investee companies to assist them in reaching their full potential.

This is a race, and its called the green rush for a reason. Businesses in the sector are looking to grow, and to grow rapidly and for that to occur they need capital. We believe our Royalty Model is an ideal solution for best in class companies looking for either start-up or expansion capital as we continue to build out our diversified portfolio.

As you may expect we have a bullish outlook on the industry. Weve seen very high valuations in publicly listed Canadian cannabis companies and believe the U.S. market is in its infancy with the big gains still to come.

Our share price performance to date has been disappointing and in our view does not reflect the tremendous value being created in our royalty portfolio. We currently have three investments that we believe will begin producing a rewarding royalty income stream for FinCanna beginning in 2019. As this multi-stream income flow comes on line, we anticipate it will generate positive cashflows that will continue to grow as our investees grow. This positive cash flow would also support the expansion of our royalty portfolio. The blueprint has been established and we believe we are well positioned for price appreciation as our investee companies continue to mature.

We are also committed to maintaining a quality investor communication program to ensure our shareholders are well informed as we move forward. We believe we represent great value for investors looking for diversified exposure to the U.S. licensed medical cannabis sector and will continue to work diligently to deliver superior value to our very deserving shareholders.

For more information about FinCanna and to view our statement regarding risk, visit www.fincannacapital.com , and please take a moment to join our investor update list on our website.

Sincerely,

Andriyko Herchak

President and CEO

FinCanna Capital Corp.

Investor Relations:

Arlen Hansen

Kin Communications

1-866-684-6730

CALI@kincommunications.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this letter involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that relate to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", and "intend", statements that an action or event "may", "might", "could", "should", or "will" be taken or occur, or other similar expressions. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements about how the developing U.S. legal regime will impact the cannabis industry, and statements regarding future revenues of FinCannas investee companies and FinCannas expectation to have a royalty income stream by 2019 and positive cash flows thereafter, by their nature, are forward-looking statements which involve risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the risks identified in the Companys CSE listing statement and other reports and filings on the SEDAR website. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made, and the respective companies undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as required by applicable securities laws. Shareholders are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise forward-looking information to reflect new events or circumstances unless required by applicable law.
Georgia declares emergency as coast braces for Hurricane Florence



Wilmington, United States, Sept 12 (AFP) Sep 12, 2018



Georgia declared a state of emergency on Wednesday as forecasters warned of torrential rain in the southern state after Hurricane Florence slams into the Carolinas with what an emergency management official called the force of a "Mike Tyson punch."

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said meanwhile that Florence's maximum sustained winds had eased slightly and it had been downgraded to a Category 3 storm from a Category 4 on the five-level Saffir-Simpson wind scale.

The NHC stressed, however, that while a slow weakening is expected over the next 24 hours "Florence is still forecast to be an extremely dangerous major hurricane when it nears the US coast late Thursday and Friday."

As Florence churned across the Atlantic packing winds of 125 miles per hour (205 kph), President Donald Trump and state officials stepped up appeals to residents in the path of the monster storm to evacuate before it is too late.

"Get out of its way, don't play games with it, it's a big one, maybe as big as they've seen," Trump said. "We'll handle it. We're ready, we're able.

"But despite that, bad things can happen when you are talking about a storm this size," he added.

Up to 1.7 million people are under voluntary or mandatory evacuation orders, and coastal residents were frantically boarding up homes and businesses and hitting the road on Wednesday as the storm approached.

Florence is forecast to dump up to three feet (almost a meter) of rain in some areas after it makes landfall in North and South Carolina.

"This rainfall would produce catastrophic flash flooding and significant river flooding," the NHC said.

Life-threatening storm surges of up to 13 feet (3.9 meters) were also forecast in some areas of North Carolina along with the possibility of tornadoes.

"This is going to be a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolina coast," said Jeff Byard, the associate administrator for response and recovery at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

"This is not going to be a glancing blow," Byard said, warning of power outages, road closures, infrastructure damage and potential loss of life.



- Riding out the storm -



At 2:00 pm (1800 GMT), the eye of the storm was 435 miles (700 kms) southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina, moving northwest at 16 mph (26 kph).

The storm was heading for the coast of North and South Carolina but heavy rain was also expected in Virginia to the north and Georgia to the south.

Georgia Governor Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency "in light of the storm's forecasted southward track after making landfall."

"The state is mobilizing all available resources to ensure public safety," Deal said. "I encourage Georgians to be prepared for the inland effects of the storm as well as the ensuing storm surge in coastal areas."

A state of emergency has also been declared in Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington.

People fleeing coastal North and South Carolina clogged highways Wednesday as Florence bore down on the coast for a direct hit in a low-lying region dense with beachfront vacation homes.

The eastbound lanes of several major highways have been shut to allow traffic to flow inland, but the exodus was slow along roads jammed with outward-bound vehicles.

In Columbia, South Carolina, Barry Sparks, a 66-year-old retiree, was thinking of getting out after the path of the storm shifted to the south.

"If I need to evacuate I can go to my son's house" in North Carolina, Sparks said as he carted a load of water bottles to his car.

"He was thinking of coming here until this morning, and now he asked me if I wanted to come up there," he said.

Kevin Miller, a 50-year-old electrician, said he planned to ride out the storm at his home near Charleston.

"I rode out Hugo," Miller said of a 1989 hurricane that caused widespread damage. "The water level will get a little high but we'll be fine.

"Hugo was a direct hit," he said. "I was in the same house and it stood fine."



- 'Disaster is at the doorstep' -



In a trailer park outside Wilmington, Alondra Espinoza was preparing to leave with her two young children.

"Everything is packed," Espinoza said. "I want to get them as far away as possible.

"I've been through hurricanes before but never with kids," she said. "If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't have minded staying here."

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper warned residents that time was running out to seek safety from what he called a "once in a lifetime" storm.

"Disaster is at the doorstep and is coming in," Cooper said. "If you are on the coast, there is still time to get out safely."

South Carolina ordered the mandatory evacuation of one million coastal residents while North Carolina ordered an evacuation of the Outer Banks, barrier islands that are a popular tourist destination.

In Virginia, 245,000 coastal residents were ordered to evacuate.

Florence is being trailed in the Atlantic by two other storms -- Hurricane Helene and Tropical Storm Isaac.

Helene was weakening, however, and posed no danger to land, the NHC said, while Isaac could bring heavy rain to Martinique, Dominica and Guadeloupe.
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Victoria, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Despite significant signs of stress in some southern sub-watersheds, the Pacific Coastal basin  stretching from Vancouver Island to Yukon Territory  has been found to be currently in good health overall based on new monitoring results from 33,074 monitoring sites reporting on water quality, water flow, fish and benthic invertebrates.



The finding provides an important baseline for a region ravaged by wildfires, and already enduring stress from pollution, climate change and, in some sub-watersheds, habitat fragmentation.



Until now, an overall health score for the Pacific Coastal watershed couldnt be tabulated for World Wildlife Fund Canadas Watershed Reports due to a lack of data for water quality and benthic invertebrates (including flies, beetles, aquatic worms, snails and leeches). While nearly two-thirds of Canadas watersheds are data-deficient for health indicators, the lack of data in this region was especially worrisome since southern sub-watersheds in B.C. experience a high level of stress.



Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) published new water quality data last year, and WWF-Canada worked in partnership with both Living Lakes Canada and ECCC, with the support of Loblaw Company Ltd., to collect benthic samples that were then analyzed and assessed alongside previously collected data using WWF-Canadas Watershed Reports methodology.



Elizabeth Hendriks, WWF-Canadas vice-president of freshwater conservation, says:

Given the growing stress of climate change, its essential for wildlife  like salmon and other fish that move between freshwater and ocean ecosystems  and for communities that depend on access to fresh water that we maintain the health of these rivers and streams. While overall this finding is good news for B.C., when we look at the level of stress in southern sub-watersheds, we know we cant expect continued good health overall without a strong commitment to freshwater conservation. Were on borrowed time now.



Kat Hartwig, executive director of Living Lakes Canada, says:

Thanks to a growing network of community-based monitoring groups across the country we are now beginning to build a robust baseline of data, which will allow us to better track how events like this summers wildfires are changing conditions in our watersheds. With data baselines and trends, we will be better positioned to make science-based decisions and take the appropriate and necessary actions to safeguard the freshwater ecosystems.



About the Pacific Coastal basin:

This area is home to important freshwater-dependent wildlife including chinook and sockeye salmon (many populations of which are at-risk), grizzly and spirit bears, river otters, the coastal tailed frog (special concern), white sturgeon (endangered), western painted turtle Pacific Coast population (endangered).

The overall health has been assessed as Good with many of the sub-watersheds scoring Very Good.

Climate change is adding a high level of stress to the region, while pollution is adding a moderate level of stress.



Why community-based monitoring?

Canadas geographic diversity and low density makes comprehensive monitoring networks a challenge to maintain. Community-based monitoring programs are far more nimble, with the potential for more comprehensive reach.

WWF-Canada is championing community-based water monitoring (CBWM) as an efficient approach to fill national data gaps for watershed health indicators, and is calling for the Government of Canada to support CBWM by increasing resources and incorporating its data into national databases.



About World Wildlife Fund Canada

WWF-Canada creates solutions to the environmental challenges that matter most for Canadians. We work in places that are unique and ecologically important, so that nature, wildlife and people thrive together. Because we are all wildlife. For more information, visit wwf.ca.

Attachment
Rathbone Brothers Plc (the Company)

Director retirement and changes to director responsibilities

In accordance with Listing Rule 9.6.11, Kathryn Matthews, a non-executive director of the Company, will today step down from the board and, subject to regulatory approval, Terri Duhon will, in accordance with Rathbones succession plan, succeed Kathryn as Chair of the Group Risk Committee.

Mark Nicholls, Chairman of Rathbones said Kathryn has been a member of the board since January 2010 and as such was nearing the end of her nine year tenure as an independent director. She has been a delightful colleague and the board is very grateful for the hugely valuable contribution she has made over the years. We wish her well for the future.

Enquires:

Ali Johnson,

Company Secretary
"What family doesn't have its ups and downs?" -- Eleanor of Aquitaine, The Lion in Winter The 2018 United States Conference on AIDS (USCA), the HIV advocacy, education and networking behemoth produced by the National Minority AIDS Council (NMAC), is the benevolent and wealthy grandfather of the HIV conference scene. We adore him sincerely, we marvel at his station in the world and the fortitude that got him there, and we tread carefully. And sometimes, to our delight or to our chagrin, Grandpa does the damnedest things. The recent USCA in Orlando was no exception. Thousands of community HIV advocates converged in Orlando on September 6th-9th for a highly professional event rich with corporate sponsors -- and a conference that is also careful to keep one foot firmly planted in the grassroots arena it has served since its early days as the annual "Skills Building Conference" for AIDS service organizations. It is a perilous balancing act that NMAC has honed through the last twenty years. No report about the weekend's many events and hero sightings and educational revelations can sufficiently encapsulate the conference, so allow me to offer five of my personal takeaways from the conference. The U=U Bandwagon Plays On -- and Allows Space for Thoughtful Dissent The U=U ("undetectable equals untransmittable") rallying cry continued growing in volume and among diverse communities at USCA, getting name-checked by one speaker or another at nearly every plenary. It was satisfying, too, that the Prevention Access Campaign chose to devote two hours of its U=U pathway at USCA to explore whether or not the movement it has created might somehow be leaving those who are detectable behind -- and feeling like failures.

Mark with Charles Stephens at the U=U workshop, "Are We Shaming Those Who Are Detectable?" Mark S. King

It was my privilege to lead the workshop, "Are We Shaming Those Who Are Detectable?" with the formidable Charles Stephens of The Counter Narrative Project -- a two hour interactive process in which we countered the prevailing narrative ourselves. A packed room of engaged attendees explored contemporary AIDS deaths and whether or not we are creating space for those who are detectable to be open about it. It was fascinating. (Special thanks to break-out group leaders Dazon Dixon Diallo, Charles Sanchez, and Manuel Rodriguez.) The one remark during the workshop that remains with me: "I'm detectable," said one attendee. The room was quiet with unsure responses. How have we come to a place where someone who is detectable -- and half of those living with HIV in the United States are -- is met with confused reactions even from the most informed advocates in the country? The workshop left me convinced that the U=U message isn't the problem, per se, but we must also sensitize ourselves to the plight of those who may feel isolated and silenced for not having achieved this clinical goal. Past Slights Were Corrected There's practically a tradition at USCA that, at some point during a plenary, trans activists will mount a protest to call for better recognition and support from the conference. It's literally been scheduled into the agenda in past years. This year, that slight was corrected with a major plenary devoted to trans issues, including a woman speaking as the first trans community relations person representing pharma. Meanwhile, it might surprise you to know that USCA has never devoted a plenary to long-term survivors of HIV before. That was also rectified this year, with a plenary on trauma-informed care that featured "The Survivor Monologues," six long-term survivors, myself included, offering glimpses of our lives, challenges, and personal victories. Here's a video of the monologues (thanks to Derrick Mapp for taping it!). It was terrific to see NMAC so willing to soothe past wounds. Alas, sadly, the conference stumbled right into a brand new one. Nobody Puts Larry in a Corner Consider my eyebrow raised when I heard that NMAC had invited the iconic activist and ACT UP founder Larry Kramer to be a plenary speaker. I loved the gesture, of course, and it was clever for NMAC to roll the dice on a volcanic speaker who kicks ass and takes names. But, as the saying goes, the best laid plans ... When Larry was unable to attend in person for health reasons, NMAC videotaped his address. The video ran long, as it was explained during the plenary, so they showed an edited version for the crowd -- a version that conveniently deleted Larry's excoriation of pharma greed, and of Gilead in particular. You know the one. The pharma that is a major sponsor of USCA.

Larry Kramer's video address at USCA Mark S. King
12 September 2018

Acron (Veliky Novgorod) Announces Extraordinary General Meeting





Acrons Board of Directors resolved to convene an extraordinary general meeting in the form of absentee voting on 19 October 2018.

In accordance with the approved agenda, the general meeting is to consider distribution of Acrons retained earnings for previous years (including payment (declaration) of dividends).

The recommendations of the Board of Directors on dividend amount and record date will be considered and disclosed on or before 27 September 2018.

The record date for the list of persons entitled to attend the extraordinary general meeting is end of day 24 September 2018.





Media contacts:

Sergey Dorofeev

Anastasiya Gromova

Tatiana Smirnova

Public Relations

Phone: +7 (495) 777-08-65 (ext. 5196)

Investor contacts:

Ilya Popov

Investor Relations

Phone: +7 (495) 745-77-45 (ext. 5252)





Background Information

Acron Group is a leading vertically integrated mineral fertiliser producer in Russia and globally, with chemical production facilities in Veliky Novgorod (Acron) and Smolensk region (Dorogobuzh). The Group owns and operates a phosphate mine in Murmansk region (North-Western Phosphorous Company, NWPC) and is implementing a potash development project in Perm Krai (Verkhnekamsk Potash Company, VPC). It has a wholly owned transportation and logistics infrastructure, including three Baltic port terminals and distribution networks in Russia and China. Acrons subsidiary, North Atlantic Potash Inc. (NAP), holds mining licenses for 13 parcels of the potassium salt deposit at Prairie Evaporite, Saskatchewan, Canada. Acron also holds a minority stake (19.8%) in Polish Grupa Azoty S.A., one of the largest chemical producers in Europe.

In 2017, the Group sold 7.3 million tonnes of various products to 65 countries, with Russia, Brazil, Europe and the United States as key markets.

In 2017, the Group posted consolidated IFRS revenue of RUB 94,342 million (USD 1,617 million) and net profit of RUB 14,260 million (USD 244 million). Acrons shares are on the Level 1 quotation list of the Moscow Exchange and its global depositary receipts are traded at the London Stock Exchange (ticker AKRN). Acron employs approximately 11,000 people.

For more information about Acron Group, please visit www.acron.ru/en.




TORONTO, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) and the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) have come together to shed light on voters priorities in the upcoming municipal elections. Together, BILD and TREB represent all facets of the real estate industry.

Residents of the GTA are concerned about housing affordability and availability, said Dave Wilkes, President and CEO, BILD GTA. People are concerned about where young families and first-time home buyers will live, or if they will be able to afford to live in the GTA at all.

Some of the key results from the poll are as follows:

When considering the issues in the upcoming municipal elections, 4 in 10 Greater Toronto Area (GTA) residents say that the cost of housing and infrastructure are just as important as addressing crime. Almost 40 per cent say that the cost of housing is among their top-three election issues, statistically tied with crime and infrastructure. Notably, GTA residents across all areas express this to be a priority of theirs, including those living in York (42 per cent), Toronto (39 per cent), Peel (39 per cent), Durham (31 per cent), and Halton (29 per cent).





The cost of housing is an especially important issue among certain groups of GTA residents, including: Millennials (48 per cent of millennials vs 42 per cent of those aged 35-54 and 25 per cent of those aged 55 and over); Renters (62 per cent of renters vs 26 per cent of home owners), those living with relatives or parents (50 per cent) and; Women (43 per cent of women vs 32 per cent of men).



68 per cent of GTA voters say the cost of housing has impacted them directly in some way. 40 per cent say it has affected their ability to save enough for retirement; 34 per cent say it has affected their ability to afford a major purchase or a vacation; 24 per cent say it has affected their ability to buy a home; 20 per cent say it has affected their ability to make upgrades to their home 12 per cent say it has impacted their ability to save for their childrens education and 11 per cent say they have put off having a child or another child.



It is estimated that 115,000 new residents call the GTA home every year. By 2041 the population of the GTA is expected to swell to 9.7 million putting increased pressure on the housing supply in the region. Only 33 per cent of respondents feel that the GTA is prepared to provide housing for this influx of people over the next 23 years, while the balance feel that the GTA is ill prepared. Furthermore, 67 per cent of those polled feel that their children will be unable to afford a home in the community they grew up in.

If we want to build more houses, faster, to increase affordability and availability, we should look at what can be done at the municipal level. It is important that housing affordability is part of every municipal candidates platform. Voters and candidates can learn more about this at www.buildforgrowth.com, said Wilkes.

"One of the key issues facing home buyers and renters in the GTA is inadequate housing supply and choice, and one of the main reasons for this is municipal policy that unnecessarily locks up housing options. We are encouraging home buyers and renters to let municipal election candidates know their views through TREBs new election campaign web site: UnLockMyHousingOptions.ca; it is easy as the website does all the work for you," said Garry Bhaura, TREB President.

It is noteworthy that the Home Building Industry and REALTORS have joined forces on this issue.

TREB is excited to be working with BILD to ensure that important housing issues receive the attention that they deserve, from both candidates and voters, during this municipal election campaign. As the poll shows, housing issues are top of mind for the electorate, said John DiMichele, Chief Executive Officer for TREB.

About the GTA Municipal Elections Poll

For this survey, a sample of 1,503 GTA residents from the Ipsos I-Say panel was interviewed from August 20 to 23, 2018. Quotas and weighting were employed to ensure that the samples composition reflects the overall population according to census information. The precision of online polls is measured using credibility interval. In this case, the results are accurate to within +/- 2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what the results would have been had all Canadian adults been polled. Credibility intervals are wider among subsets of the population.

About the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB)

TREB is Canadas largest real estate board. Over 50,000 residential and commercial TREB Members serve consumers in the Greater Toronto Area. Greater Toronto REALTORS are passionate about their work. They are governed by a strict Code of Ethics and share a state-of-the-art Multiple Listing Service.

About the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD)

With 1,500 members, BILD is the voice of the home building, land development and professional renovation industry in the Greater Toronto Area. BILD is proudly affiliated with the Ontario and Canadian Home Builders' Associations.

TREB Media Inquiries:

Mary Gallagher, Senior Manager Public Affairs

maryg@trebnet.com; 416-443-8158

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IRVINE, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TRI Pointe Group, Inc. (NYSE: TPH) announced today that it will release financial results for the third quarter of 2018 before the market opens on Wednesday, October 24, 2018. The Company will host a call on the same day to discuss the results at 7:00 AM Pacific (10:00 AM Eastern). The call will be hosted by Doug Bauer, Chief Executive Officer, Tom Mitchell, Chief Operating Officer and Mike Grubbs, Chief Financial Officer.



Those interested in participating in the call can dial-in toll free at (877) 407-3982, or (201) 493-6780 for international participants. A webcast of the event will also be available under the Events & Presentations heading in the Investors section of the Companys website at www.TriPointeGroup.com.

A replay of the event will be available for two weeks following the call toll free at (844) 512-2921 or (412) 317-6671 using the reference #13683227. An archive of the webcast will also be available on the Companys website for a limited time.

About TRI Pointe Group, Inc.

Headquartered in Irvine, California, TRI Pointe Group, Inc. (NYSE: TPH) is one of the top ten largest public homebuilders by equity market capitalization in the United States. The Company designs, constructs and sells premium single-family homes through its portfolio of six quality brands across eight states, including Maracay Homes in Arizona; Pardee Homes in California and Nevada; Quadrant Homes in Washington; Trendmaker Homes in Texas; TRI Pointe Homes in California and Colorado; and Winchester Homes in Maryland and Virginia. Additional information is available at www.TriPointeGroup.com.

Investor Relations Contacts:

Chris Martin, TRI Pointe Group

Drew Mackintosh, Mackintosh Investor Relations

InvestorRelations@TriPointeGroup.com, 949-478-8696
Evolve or die

Rowena Curlewis, CEO of Denomination explains how even the most iconic of alcoholic drinks brands must evolve, or die

Rowena Curlewis Denomination

Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future, said US President John F. Kennedy, one of the most iconic figures of the twentieth century, and someone who clearly understood how vital it is to move with the times.

The importance of embracing change applies even to those brands that transcend the products or services theyre associated with to achieve something altogether more profound  moving beyond the realm of commerce to become popular culture icons.

Mega-brands such as Coca-Cola and Google are worth billions and theyre the envy of brand owners everywhere, so you would think the last thing anyone would want to do is interfere with them. But even iconic brands will wither and die if they dont evolve.

Doing nothing is not an option

Marketing communications service WPP found that iconic brands enjoyed far higher top-of-mind awareness: 58 per cent versus 36 percent. And Nielsen research showed that 59 per cent of global consumers prefer to buy new products from brands familiar to them, with 21 per cent saying they purchased a new product because it was from a brand they like.

Meddling with the winning formula of an iconic brand feels like a risk and the appeal of leaving alone something so valuable can be understandably strong, but inactivity is a recipe for disaster. History is littered with examples of brands that took their eye off the ball and suffered the consequences  brands such as Piat dOr, Rosemount and Preece.

With its disruptive and unique tiny circular label, Preece was, during the late 80s/early 90s, the coolest of wine brands. And then around 20 years ago, under new ownership, its presence began to fade and successive radical label changes failed to revive the brand. Finally, in 2011, owners Lion shelved the brand.

As the number one selling Chardonnay in the US and Australia in the 1990s, Rosemount was a world leader, with an interesting, contemporary brand positioning and design. With its unusual flange-topped bottle, highly recognisable diamond label shape and easy drinking style, Rosemount was a juggernaut. But since those heydays, Rosemount has lost relevance.

Similarly, Piat DOr was the must have wine of choice in the 1980s. With the iconic advertising strapline Les Francais adorent le Piat DOr, Piat DOr was Britains biggest-selling branded wine. However perhaps with its giant success came a reluctance to change and stay relevant to consumers. It went from being the must-have brand to a social embarrassment. All attempts to revive it failed; the magic had gone. Today, the brand remains a shadow of its former self.

Flexing with confidence

It can be hard to feel confident that youre not just flexing an iconic brand for the sake of it  but if the decision to change is a tough one, getting that change right is tougher still.

Your first move should be a careful analysis of your brands distinctive assets. What are they? How should you protect them? Can they be refreshed, or should they be left alone? Somehow, you must strike a balance between retaining elements that are important to consumers and remaining too attached to your brands illustrious history. So how do you achieve it?

Design for the future

Johnnie Walker is a great example of a brand that achieved this balance through a redesign, with its subtle evolution of the iconic striding man and angled label. And Dom Perignons introduction of the glow in the dark outline of its distinctive label made this venerable brand relevant for modern clubs and bars the world over  managing to authentically embrace progressiveness and heritage.

Forge creative partnerships

Penfolds, one of Australias most iconic wine brands, found another way to stay relevant and prevent itself from falling into the realms of something my parents drank.

Penfolds The Ampoule Project in 2011 was a very limited edition of ten wine-in-a-glass sculptures that were sold to collectors for 100,000 each. In Russia, the launch of The Ampoule Project made prime-time television news.

Most importantly, The Ampoule Project made consumers think afresh about the brand. Penfolds has since established other innovative partnerships, including creative collaborations with Viscount Linley in 2014, and Boeing in 2016, to keep the brand vital and relevant.

Create a new sub-brand

Another brand that has successfully evolved is leading Australian winery Wolf Blass. Already famous globally for its strong eagle brand mark and masculine persona, Wolf Blass wanted to extend its appeal to other new and younger audiences. In 2014, BLASS was launched as a slicker, sexier offshoot of the parent brand.

With its black and silver colour palette, simplified silver eagle and dominant BLASS branding, the packaging is clearly differentiated from the core Wolf Blass ranges. Yet by retaining its parents typographic approach and eagle shape, BLASS clearly belongs in the Wolf Blass family. Its success in new and established markets has been outstanding, as Angus Lilley, Deputy CMO says: BLASS has encouraged both trade and consumers to think differently about the Wolf Blass brand, and we believe that this successful extension has demonstrated the strength of the Wolf Blass masterbrand in terms of its ability to stretch.

Getting it right

The examples of Piat dOr, Rosemount and Preece teaches us that the cost of inactivity can be high so its important not to be frightened to evolve both your packaging design and your brand positioning. And if you have a clear understanding of what your distinctive brand assets are, and can evolve your brand identity, positioning and brand, you will continue to breathe life into your brand, maintain the loyalty of long-standing consumers and attract brand new ones.

11 September 2018
Jameson reveals coffee and whiskey Cold Brew

Irish Distillers' Jameson Irish Whiskey has launched Jameson Cold Brew. Trialled in limited quantities, Cold Brew hopes to tap into the enthusiasm for Irish whiskey and coffee.

Jameson Cold Brew is a combination of triple-distilled Jameson Irish Whiskey and cold brew coffee extract from 100 per cent Fairtrade arabica beans from Columbia and Brazil.

Bottled at 35% ABV, the new release will debut in the Jameson Distillery Bow St, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Dublin Airport from September 2018 at an RRP 28.50.

Brendan Buckley, Strategy, Innovation and Prestige Director at Irish Distillers, comments: Over the past ten years, we have seen the continued rise in popularity of both Irish whiskey and craft coffee culture, and while the two are no strangers in the glass we wanted to modernise this iconic duo. Jameson Cold Brew combines the best of both worlds in a new and refreshing way and we are confident that Irish whiskey and coffee fans alike will enjoy the taste experience it offers."

10 September 2018 - Sam Coyne The Drinks Report, news editor
Together we are recruiting new customers and changing preconceptions. It showcases the versatility of Patron and mixability of Fever-Tree Tonic.

Richard Cuthbert, international marketing director, Fever-Tree, says: Simple, long mixed drinks are seeing a huge resurgence in popularity with both bartenders and consumers at home  and Fever-Tree, like Patron Tequila, is incredibly versatile. Its made to pair with more than just gin  of course, Fever-Tree has been showing this side for a while now  our premium mixers are enjoyed with a wide range of spirits  but this bespoke collaboration is something brand new.

Fever-Tree Citrus Tonic Water will be seeded into and available to try in selected UKs bars and restaurants from 12 September, which will include, London based Dandelyan, Quo Vadis and Sketch as well as Hedonist, Leeds, HMSS Bristol and the The Edgbaston, Birmingham.

Daniel Garnell, senior bartender at Dandelyan says: The new Fever-Tree Citrus Tonic is a really interesting innovation and will be a new lease of life for the tequila and tonic serve. A seamless pairing of the two products results in a perfect combination of vegetal agave flavour combined with the delicate citrus notes in the tonic. We will be serving it as a Tequila and Tonic but have also created some further serves to best showcase why these two brands work perfectly together.

Director of international marketing at Patron, Matthew Sykes, says: The Patron Perfectionists Cocktail Competition represents a wonderful opportunity, allowing us to maximise global talent. It features bartenders from some of the best bars in the world, all huge advocates for the brand. They understand the lengths we go to in creating a simply perfect tequila, which can now be matched with the bespoke Fever-Tree Citrus Tonic Water.
Salcombe Gin has released the second gin from its Voyage Series, developed in collaboration with Mark Hix MBE, the celebrated restaurateur and food writer.

The release, Mischief, is named after one of the famous Salcombe Fruit Schooners built in 1856.

This Salcombe Gin Voyager Series release is the second of a collection of limited-edition gins  the first of the series created in partnership with Michael Caines MBE and named Arabella after another of the 18th century Salcombe Fruit Schooners. Limited to 1,200 bottles, Mischief is presented in an elegant white ceramic bottle featuring an embossed outline of the iconic gin pennant and a bespoke debossed copper stopper commissioned for this series.

Mark comments: I chose to work with Salcombe Gin to create a handcrafted traditional London Dry gin to commemorate our 10th anniversary, because I believe that they create truly world class gins, well-balanced in flavour and exceptional in taste. Having grown up in West Bay, Bridport, a seaside town on the Dorset coast, I also feel a connection with the brand and their love of refreshing coastal flavours and use of foraged ingredients. Together we have used the finest local and regional produce to create a gin to be enjoyed at HIX restaurants, at home or even on the water.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. , Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TRI Pointe Group (NYSE:TPH), one of the top ten largest public homebuilders in the United States based on equity market capitalization, has named Phil Bodem president of TRI Pointe Homes Sacramento. Bodem brings more than 16 years of divisional president experience to his new position, with many of those years spent focused on all aspects of development in the Sacramento and Central Valley regions.



Phil has had a successful career as a divisional president for national builders, such as Taylor Morrison and Meritage Homes and has demonstrated a talent for leading both start up and existing operations with proven success in growing revenues, improving the customer experience and fostering a team-oriented, collaborative culture with his teams, said Tom Mitchell, president and chief operating officer of TRI Pointe Group. He has a comprehensive knowledge of all aspects of the homebuilding business and an alignment with the business philosophy, culture, and values at TRI Pointe Group, making him the ideal choice to lead our Sacramento division.

Bodem has joined a growing division, which anticipates opening its first community of 102 homes within the Twelve Bridges master planned community in Lincoln, CA in the summer of 2019. Two additional communities, both under development within the Folsom Ranch master planned community in Folsom, CA and slated to open in 2020, will offer a total of 222 homes. The division also has three other communities with more than 200 homesites in feasibility in the South Placer submarket.

While remaining consistent and disciplined in the land it chooses to acquire, TRI Pointe Homes Sacramento will continue to look for opportunities to develop communities for multiple market segments ranging from entry-level to move-up to high-end locations near new employment centers, desirable schools and convenient services.

As it continues its steady growth, the Sacramento divisional team will have the advantage of leveraging TRI Pointes national resources and leadership, while utilizing Phil and his teams regional expertise and experience to act with the agility of a local builder brand, said Mitchell.

About TRI Pointe Group

Headquartered in Irvine, Calif., TRI Pointe Group, Inc. (NYSE:TPH) is a family of premium, regional homebuilders that designs, builds, and sells homes in major U.S. markets. As one of the top 10 largest public homebuilding companies by market capitalization in the United States, TRI Pointe Group combines the resources, operational sophistication, and leadership of a national organization with the regional insights, community ties, and agility of local homebuilders. The TRI Pointe Group family includes Maracay in Arizona, Pardee Homes in California and Nevada, Quadrant Homes in Washington, Trendmaker Homes in Texas, TRI Pointe Homes in California and Colorado, and Winchester Homes* in the Washington, D.C. area. TRI Pointe Group was recognized in Fortune magazines 2017 100 Fastest-Growing Companies list, named 2015 Builder of the Year by Builder magazine, and 2014 Developer of the Year by Builder and Developer magazine. The company was also named one of the Best Places to Work in Orange County by the Orange County Business Journal in 2016, 2017, and 2018. For more information, please visit www.TriPointeGroup.com .

*Winchester is a registered trademark and is used with permission.

About TRI Pointe Homes

TRI Pointe Homes designs, constructs, and sells innovative, single-family homes and condominiums. Founded on more than a century of real estate industry experience, the company is dedicated to building quality master-planned and urban infill communities throughout core growth markets in California and Colorado. Committed to insightful design and superior craftsmanship, the company is setting a new standard in home building and customer experience. TRI Pointe Homes was recognized as 2016 Builder of the Year by Builder and Developer magazine. TRI Pointe Homes is a member of TRI Pointe Group (NYSE:TPH), a family of premium regional homebuilders. For more information about TRI Pointe Homes, please visit www.TriPointeHomes.com .



A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/005fc0c6-fad2-4ab6-80a9-2abdbdf009dc
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Linkedin Editorial Board (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 08:37 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877282d3a 4 Editorial #Editorial,tax-evasion,taxation,tax-avoidance,tax-collection,tax-haven,wealth Free

Indonesia is set to join the global treaty on the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) on tax matters this month, and will then have virtually all the high-caliber weapons it needs to hunt down tax evaders  not just within the country but anywhere in the world, including tax-haven countries.



Law No. 9/2017 authorizes tax officials to access the financial accounts all of taxpayers. Officials also have a set of other government regulations that require companies, foundations and trusts to disclose their beneficial ownership. Yet, most important to increasing tax revenues within a short time is Government Regulation No. 36/2017, which imposes a maximum penalty of 90 percent income tax on assets discovered since March 2017, when the tax amnesty ended.



Under the AEOI framework tax auditors will soon be able to check with tax authorities in Singapore, Hong Kong and other countries whether Indonesian taxpayers are paying income tax on the US$74 billion in overseas assets that they declared under the tax amnesty, because only $11 billion of this total was eventually repatriated into the country.



The Finance Ministry, which also gathers financial intelligence data, suspects that many high net worth Indonesians have not come clean or have refused to benefit from the tax amnesty and that they still have a large amount of assets overseas. Consulting company McKinsey, for example, reportedly estimated the real amount of assets rich Indonesians park overseas at $250 billion.



The Taxation Directorate General needs to strengthen its intelligence unit to cross-check information with other state ministries and agencies and the tax authorities in those countries suspected of being popular tax havens for Indonesians.



Immediate measures under the AEOI initiative to track down taxpayers still hiding or refusing to declare their overseas assets must be launched, because the regulation authorizing a maximum penalty of 90 percent on undeclared assets will expire by the end of June 2019.



It is now most imperative for tax authorities to step up collection of personal income tax, which is one of the lowest among mid-income countries because of massive tax evasion. The public perceives that high-salaried professionals and high net worth individuals in the country  or the richest Indonesians  have not fully paid their income taxes, and that this massive tax evasion has been possible because of an acute lack of tax audits.



The Center for Indonesia Taxation Analysis (CITA) has estimated that last years tax audit coverage was a mere 0.39 percent of the 1.9 million registered individual taxpayers, excluding employees whose income taxes are withheld by their employers. This ratio is far below the 3 to 5 percent the International Monetary Fund has set as the minimum tax audit coverage necessary to enhance voluntary tax compliance and discourage tax evasion.



Catching tax evaders and recovering lost tax revenues will not only deter potential evaders and boost voluntary compliance in the future, but also restore justice for millions of compliant taxpayers.
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Linkedin Isabella Veronica Silalahi (The Jakarta Post) Washington D.C.  Wed, September 12, 2018 16:12 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877296afc 3 Opinion Myanmar,Youth,civil-society,social-media,civil-military-relations,urban,rural-area Free

Todays generation of youth is the largest ever to exist globally. Young people often form the largest demographic in countries affected by armed conflict.

Myanmar has been ruled by a military regime for more than half a century and has recently been in the international spotlight.

In 2010, a new quasi-civilian government took power and initiated developments by establishing political, economic, and administrative reforms. Deep-rooted challenges were inherited leading to intensified fighting between armed forces and ethnic armed groups in several regions, which often resulted in abuses against civilians. The United Nations termed operations against the Rohingya minority living in the Rakhine state as a textbook ethnic cleansing.

In March 2018, I traveled to the former capital city, Yangon, for a graduate research thesis project focusing on youth civic participation in the country. Little spotlight has been shed on the young people who make up more than 55 percent of the country.

In Myanmars history, youth have been involved in politics through social groups working to sustain peace. However they often face obstacles in participating in development and peacebuilding processes. There are three main barriers faced by the youth movement in Myanmar:

First is the transitional democracy. As Myanmar moves towards democracy, the increasingly complex environment has led to the stalling of reforms, as well as that of the peace process. While youth in Myanmar are increasingly involved in community and national efforts to sustain peace, they continue to face challenges in participating in peace and development processes at local, regional and national levels.

Young people may be less likely to organize due to general mistrust in authorities or fear of a political and legal system that has yet to provide full political and civil rights. As late as in 2014, student protesters demanding a say in education reform were met with police repression and arrests. Finding a platform on which to operate within already limited space for civil society can be challenging for young people just starting to become active in advocacy.

Second is the urban-rural divide. Local civil society organizations focus attention and efforts where there is the least amount of accessibility, thereby focusing most on Myanmars rural youth.

However, efforts to actively mobilize and engage urban youth remain limited. This gap must be addressed to foster communication and the understanding among youth in urban and rural areas. The urban youth must be informed and educated, to understand that no matter where the issues are taking place in the country, this is their problem as well.

The total youth population in Indonesia is also unevenly distributed across the nation. Data shows youth are more concentrated in urban areas. Big cities like Jakarta, Bandung and Yogyakarta have higher shares of youth as reflected in the higher activism and civic participation involving youth in these areas. This shows how mostly migration of information relies heavily on location as well.

Third is the misinformation. Given how malleable the youth are, the rise of social media as the only credible source of information is also an added challenge in youth civic engagement. With a plethora of information is suddenly available and more easily accessible in a country, the problem of identifying real information versus propaganda or hate speech becomes an important issue.

This makes it easier for youth to be influenced in the negative direction when they go back to their communities. With about 25 percent of the population in Myanmar having access to phones, 95 percent of them use Facebook as their source of information.

There is, however, an increasing trend of verification groups on social media platforms such as Facebook, with people not just from Myanmar, but from all over the world, as an effort to filter information through various channels. There have also been efforts to use mobile phone technology, through the creation of apps as tools to better inform people, such as the Open Parliament App which provides people a direct way of engaging with representatives. However, the extent of use and its impact remains to be seen.

Research by Pew stated Indonesia is the top five countries in which citizens aged 18-24 are more likely to use the internet and own a smartphone compared with people ages 35 and older. However, nefarious actors use social media to spread hate speech in the hopes of gaining politicians attention.

So how can both Indonesia and Myanmar which despite many differences share similarities of their youth, move towards better civic participation, a more evenly distributed opportunity for the youth, and information filters that are both credible and accountable?

Stronger measures are needed to effectively harness the youth in the countries and actively engage them in the development of their own communities.

This means moving from fixing problems to building on strengths; from reacting to risky behavior to proactively building on positive outcomes; from targeting marginalized youth to engaging all youth; and from regarding youth as a recipient of a certain service to treating youth as resources and active partners.

***

Isabella Veronica Silalahi is a recent graduate in the Master of International Affairs at the George Washington University. She is now working as a Partnerships Analyst in the United Nations Office of Project Services in Washington DC. Bella is also active in youth development, digital activism and occasional traveler.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
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Linkedin Mugiyanto (The Jakarta Post) Santiago  Wed, September 12, 2018

It took me around 35 hours to reach this country. It is almost on the opposite side of the globe in the southern hemisphere. But I was excited to undertake this journey. It was my dream destination for several reasons.



In 1994, I read a book on then-president of Chile, Salvador Allende, titled Jalan Demokratis ke Sosialisme: Pengalaman Chile di Bawah Allende (The Democratic Path to Socialism: Chiles Experience under Allende), by my favorite sociologist and activist, Arief Budiman. As a student activist, I was inspired and dreamed of seeing la via Chilena, the Chilean way, replacing authoritarianism in Indonesia at the time.



After the fall of the Soeharto regime in 1998, the human rights community started talking about the importance of resolving human rights violations as a precondition for building a democratic future for Indonesia; then another la via Chilena appeared again on my horizon.



This time was about the way the post-Pinochet regime, particularly that of Patricio Aylwin, dealt with massive human rights violations committed by his predecessor.



Just six weeks after his inauguration as president in March 1990, Aylwin issued a presidential decree to create a national commission on truth and reconciliation. After working for nine months, the commission of eight members and 60 staffers completed the report of 1,800 pages on 3,400 cases of disappearances after arrests, executions and torture leading to death committed by government agents, as cited by the researcher Priscilla B. Hayner.



What is inspiring from this Chilean experience is that Aylwin then made a public statement that on behalf of the state, he begged forgiveness for what had happened to the victims and asked the armed forces to make gestures of recognition of the pain caused.



As a follow-up of the report, in 1992 the government issued a law on the creation of a national corporation for reparation and reconciliation to provide reparation for the victims.



We can see a common historical destiny between Chile and Indonesia  unfortunately a bitter one. Both beautiful countries had been the field of experiments of the United States economic and political greed. There is abundant evidence of US involvement in Indonesias darkest history in 1965 and 1966, when the leftists were eliminated, which led to the fall of left-leaning president Sukarno and the rise of Soehartos New Order regime.



Less than a decade later on Sept. 11, 1973, Gen. Augusto Pinochet staged a coup detat against democratically elected president Allende. In Santiago, I asked a senior civil society leader about the slogan Operacion Yakarta (Operation Jakarta) during the 1973 bloodshed. He said the slogans, sprawled as graffiti in the streets of Santiago, was a form of terror and intimidation by the coup leader against leftists in Chile. We learned about the horrifying witch hunt of communists in Jakarta in 1965. So the word Jakarta created an emotional effect of horror among the leftists.



Several of my Chilean friends have been working for the desaparecidos(disappeared persons) in Chile. They have been fighting for decades for their disappeared loved ones  husbands, wives, daughters, sons or other relatives.



During my brief visit, I dropped by the office of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, where demonstrations during Pinochets era drew global attention to human rights violations.



The most emotional visit was to the Museum of Memory and Human Rights, where I trembled and was teary-eyed at the sight of the objects presented and the narratives told.



They brought me to memories of repression under Indonesias authoritarian government.



This museum is packed with memorial objects related to repression and despair. But visitors would also come away with a sense of hope, for the Museum aimed both at informing the public on the widespread and intense oppression under the Pinochet junta (1973 to 1990) and also how to prevent the dark past from ever happening again, as expressed in their iconic words nunca mas (never again).



Like Chile, with our similar past, I still harbor hope that the Indonesian government will be daring and determined to take steps to resolve past human rights violation, as President Joko Jokowi Widodo has reiterated.



It is never too late. And because of the magnitude of the challenges, people will understand if the government starts from a small step, for as the proverb says, A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

***

The writer is a senior program officer for human rights and democracy at the International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development (INFID). The cofounder of the Indonesian Association of Families of Missing Persons (Ikohi) was among the abducted activists.

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Linkedin Jusuf Wanandi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 09:49 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877288c4e 3 Opinion Asia-Pacific,ASEAN,ASEAN-China,security,East-Asia,Indo-Pacific,Trade,trade-war,Donald-Trump,Xi-Jinping Free

The new normal for security developments in East Asia, the Asia Pacific and the Indo-Pacific is uncertainty. Actually, relative power adjustment was initiated during the Obama administration in its attempt to respond to the challenge from China by rebalancing the strategic presence of the United States in the Asia Pacific region, but it was unsuccessful. Chinas rise constitutes a strategic rivalry in the US eyes, and Washingtons strategic response thereto is a new idea, named Indo-Pacific cooperation.



Initially the US considered this as a security cooperation starting with the Quad or Quadrilateral Security Cooperation among the US, Japan, India and Australia since 2007, renewed in 2017, according to the US 2017 National Security Strategy. However, the Indo-Pacific idea has many interpretations and garners many different supporters.



President Xi Jinping is driving Chinas rise for longer-term purposes and extending his attention to foreign affairs, to some extent departing from former leader Deng Xiaopings advice for China not to show off as a great power.



A case in point was when China pushed hard to prevent the results of the case brought by the Philippines to the international tribunal in 2015-2016, which favored Manilas claim to part of the South China Sea, from having any legally binding effect.



This effort showed Chinas lack of experience in dealing with international affairs. Historically, China was used to playing solo during the imperial period, dubbed its Middle Kingdom syndrome, until it experienced dealing with dominant Western colonial powers. Meanwhile, domestic pressure has been growing for China to show off its extraordinary achievements, especially in the economy.



Recently, China changed course, especially in its relations with neighboring countries, including ASEAN members. Beijing has become less assertive in dealing with South China Sea matters, and agreed with ASEAN to move the Code of Conduct (COC) process toward a possible conclusion. It has accepted the principles or pillars of the agreement in the Preamble of the prospective document and is willing to put further efforts on the articles in order to conclude the process in a respectable timeframe.



With Japan and South Korea, the trilateral cooperation of the Northeast Asian countries will hopefully bring about a modus vivendi for future cooperation. China is expected to better understand that its strong reactions and policies toward the region are not working, but creating apprehension just because of its size.



I, for one, have found that China is willing to listen, and to follow a diplomatic or political path to achieve its objectives and policies when its representatives understand the issues better. Meanwhile, we in the region should also understand that, with the changing power relations in the region, not everything China would like to do is a mistake or overreach, and not everything the US would like to do is alright and should be followed.



If ASEAN ever wants to act as an interlocutor, as its centrality policy implies, it has to be fair to both and trusted by both. This requires much restraint and patience on ASEANs side; more importantly, ASEAN should promote its intellectual and institutional capacities, to show it is up to the task of playing its role.



ASEAN, which has achieved peace and development in Southeast Asia for the last 50 years, should be able to change itself to become a regional organization that can play the central role it aspires to. ASEAN has to achieve that for its own interest in the region.



When it comes to the Indo-Pacific constructs, it should be clear that ASEAN is not dealing with the Quad, which is a security cooperation arrangement possibly meant to encircle China.



For ASEAN, Indo-Pacific cooperation should include many fields of cooperation with a wide membership base including Indian Ocean countries, particularly India, since it is facing the China-US competition.



Ideally, this regional organization should be open, inclusive and based on ASEANs centrality as contained in the East Asian Summit (EAS).



The EAS is becoming a more effective cooperation platform, as the main countries in the region beside ASEAN are present: the US, China, Russia, Japan, South Korea and India plus Australia and New Zealand. East Asia should be assured of its recognition as an important part of the Indo-Pacific cooperation. Consequently, ASEAN will be more credible when the East Asian region is included.



On security matters, US President Donald Trump appears keen to keep the US presence in East Asia through the Indo-Pacific concept, which also includes countries around the Indian Ocean.



Although he generally does not believe in multilateral cooperation, he still recognized the Indo-Pacific concept, as shown in the US 2017 National Security Strategy, but first in the context of the Quad between the US, Japan, India and Australia. Later on the Quads membership could be added, and its concerns could include economic and cultural issues.



This is also the case with trade, which Trump intends to completely overhaul until US interest becomes the paramount factor. That is why he tends to deal with each country on a one-on-one basis, so that the US can impose total control over the deal for its interest.



That is also how Trump will deal with the European Union. Trump pays special attention to China in trade issues, and meanwhile strikes a deal with the EU to negotiate bilateral non-tariff trade and to initiate reforms of the World Trade Organization to push China to change.

***

The writer is the vice chair of the Board of Trustees at the CSIS (Centre for Strategic and International Studies) Foundation in Jakarta.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
Its got all the elements of a blockbuster Hollywood thriller. A huge amount of missing money. A prime minister and his wife. An intrepid team of politicians and reporters out to find the truth. And a young, playboy businessman with a fondness for cavorting with celebrities on yachts.

For the past few years, the 1MDB (1Malaysia Development Berhad) financial scandal has captured the imagination of Malaysians. The scandal contributed to the fall of a government and changed local history forever, and will continue to have major repercussions as time goes on.

The full story of 1MDB, from its beginnings to its cover-up, is painstakingly detailed in 1MDB: The Scandal That Brought Down A Government, a book written by veteran journalist and analyst P. Gunasegaram.

The book, released at the end of last month by the Strategic Information and Research Development Centre (an imprint of independent local publisher Gerakbudaya), is reportedly the first to be published anywhere on 1MDB.

It contains all the information you need to understand 1MDB at this point in time, says Gunasegaram, 66.

'Audacious, downright foolish'  author of first book on 1MDB scandal https://t.co/nS5Ml8bOTi pic.twitter.com/wXyNRN03rc  malaysiakini.com (@malaysiakini) August 28, 2018

The book puts together many things to give you a better idea of what has been going on. It also covers things that have been under-reported by the press, such as the issue of bond mispricing.

It also touches on the 1MDB cover-up, the attempts to fill up the holes. Although a lot of the information has been in the public domain, it has not received much attention from the media, although it should.

According to him, the 300-page book delves into the backstory behind the scandal in detail, explaining how about RM40bil came to be lost through 1MDB, through pilfering of borrowed funds through mispriced bonds, overpaying advisers, and the setting up of sham companies and illegal transfers.

The book also contains a section featuring reports previously published by business news portal KiniBiz on the matter (Guna-segaram founded the portal in 2013 and was its editor until it shut down in February 2016).

At the end of the day, 1MDB represents unprecedented levels of domestic corruption for Malaysia. There was widespread international complicity, as large amounts of funds were transferred across international borders with complete impunity, one of the books chapters reads.

Read also: Singapore to return $11 million of 1MDB money to Malaysia

This book, Gunasegaram says, directly identifies those involved in the scandal, and marks several financial institutions and centres as among those that conspired to launder billions in stolen money.

One thing that strikes me in this is the audacity of these people. There is no way they could have got away with a crime like this. If you steal 30 billion, you will get caught, theres no way you can hide that, the author says, obviously still fired up about the book.

Gunasegaram has worked as an analyst and columnist for more than 30 years. He has been a business and sociopolitical commentator since 1978, and has worked as managing editor and group executive editor at many local major publications, including The Star, The Edge, Malaysian Business and Business Times.

In 2013, he set up KiniBiz, a business news portal launched as a joint venture with local news website Malaysiakini. Gunasegaram and his KiniBiz team were the first anywhere in the world to write a detailed investigative piece on 1MDB, in March 2013.

Putting the book together from all the information available was a challenge, the author says, but being aware of the issues since their genesis helped a lot.

The book is a record of something terrible that happened to a country. And how the country was saved, in the nick of time, by the election.

My own belief is that 1MDB was more responsible for toppling the previous government than any other matter, including GST (the goods and services tax), Guna-segaram says.

This was outright robbery, on a scale on which the world had never seen before.

Gunasegaram says he hopes the book will serve as a caution to readers about the misuses of power.

Greed and power can cause an immense amount of damage to the country. We need to remember that we have to have checks and balances so these things will never happen in Malaysia again.

Thats means not putting too much prerogative on one person, even if he is the prime minister, Gunasegaram says.
The mid-autumn festival, which is also called the moon festival or mooncake festival, is celebrated in China and other Asian countries to celebrate the harvest season.

The festival takes place on the 15th day of the eighth month of the Chinese lunar calendar, which falls on Sep. 24 this year.

China Highlights writes that the celebration takes place when the moon is full, which is believed to be a symbol of reunion, harmony and happiness.

Festival activities include extended family dinners, offering sacrifices to the moon and lantern shows. People also take the opportunity to send mooncakes to friends and colleagues.

Below is a list of hotels in Jakarta that offer mooncakes for the mid-autumn festival:

Gran Melia Jakarta

Mooncakes at Gran Melia can be enjoyed for afternoon tea in the lobby lounge, or eaten as a dessert at the Tien Chao restaurant. Four different flavors are available, from the traditional lotus with double yolks to the specialty sweet red bean, pandan and durian ones. Diners can also enjoy seasonal main courses such as double boiled seafood dumpling soup, braised sea cucumber and mushroom with spinach bean curd and green vegetables.

Hotel Mulia Senayan

The hotels Chinese restaurant, Table8, provides a selection of mooncakes with various filling, including red or white lotus seed paste with a choice of one or two egg yolks, mini white lotus mooncakes with chocolate and champagne snow skin, pandan green tea and durian. The mooncakes are packed in a special box to make the ideal gift.

Mooncakes from Hotel Mulia Senayan. (JP/Handout/Hotel Mulia Senayan)

Mandarin Oriental Jakarta

Li Feng at the Mandarin Oriental offers black sesame with salted egg yolk-flavored mooncake as their signature dessert. Apart from that, the restaurant also provides the all-time classic white lotus with salted egg yolk, red lotus and red bean. Golden custard and pandan are also available. Packed in an oriental-themed box, each hamper contains two to eight mooncakes.

Mooncakes created by Li Feng at the Mandarin Oriental Jakarta. (JP/Handout/Hotel Mulia Senayan)

Read also: Jakpost guide to Pluit

JW Marriott Jakarta

Pearl Chinese restaurant at the JW Marriott Jakarta is celebrating the mid-autumn festival by providing seven different types of mooncakes. There are several traditional favorites and innovative fillings for you to choose from, including bamboo charcoal with pandan and coconut. Mooncakes in mini sizes are also available. Ask for the Jade Box that contains six small mooncakes.

Shangri-La Jakarta

You can always count on the Shangri-La for mooncakes. The hotels newly revamped Chinese restaurant, Jia, offers an array of traditional flavors such as white lotus with single or double yolk, red lotus and red bean.

The Shangri-La also has some unique flavors, which include five grain, bamboo charcoal pandan and green tea lotus with red bean flavors. (mut)
A tribute concert to Guns N Roses and its incoming show in Jakarta will be held on Thursday at Hard Rock Cafe Jakarta, Pacific Place, Central Jakarta. Admission is free for guests arriving before 7 p.m.

The lineup includes Iga Massardi of Barasuara, Kikan, Candil, Stella Gareth of Scaller and Aria Baron.



Guns N Roses will play at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Nov. 8 with key members Axl Roses, Slash and Duff McKagan. Presale tickets were sold out within three hours in June, while regular tickets are still available.

The band last performed in Jakarta in 2012, with only Rose as one of the original members in the lineup at the time.

Read also: Guns N' Roses to play Gelora Bung Karno Stadium

Formed in 1985, Guns N Roses has released six albums and sold more than 100 million records worldwide. Its debut album, Appetite for Destruction (1987), introduced the distinct vocals of Rose and hard rock music with a penchant for melody.

Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II (1991) are among the bands most successful albums, featuring hits such as November Rain and Dont Cry. Slash and McKagan left the band in 1996 and 1997, respectively, and rejoined in 2016 for the Not in This LifetimeTour in 21 North American cities.

After continuing to Latin America and Asia in 2017, the ongoing tour took the band to Europe in summer 2018. In Asia, Guns Roses will perform in the Philippines on Nov. 11, Malaysia on Nov. 14, Taiwan on Nov. 17 and Hong Kong on Nov. 20 and 21. (wng)
TORONTO, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Generation Mining Limited (CSE:GENM, the Company) is pleased to announce preliminary results from the summer Magnetotelluric (MT) program at its property near Paulatuk, Northwest Territories. The program has had the dual result of imaging the deep source of the Darnley Bay Anomaly and outlining a number of large discrete exploration targets nearer to the surface. The Darnley Bay property hosts the strongest known land-based gravity anomaly in the world, and is coincident with a similar-sized magnetic anomaly.



A total of 116 Magnetotelluric, deep searching geophysical soundings, were collected on the Darnley Bay property, over a 40 x 50 kilometre area, and blanketing the Darnley Bay geophysical anomaly. The program was completed by Quantec Geoscience Ltd., Toronto, with technical support provided by Stevens Geophysics Inc., Sudbury, Ontario.

It is very exciting to finally image the source of this famous anomaly, remarks Mr. Stevens. What we are seeing at Darnley Bay are very similar geophysical characteristics to that of many of the great mineral deposit systems around the world.

Figure 1 shows the colour contoured residual gravity data defining the Darnley Bay anomaly, and the location of the 116 MT soundings. The MT data was used to estimate the electrical resistivity structure of the Earth beneath each data station. Twenty-one of the MT soundings have been used to reconstruct the subsurface estimate of the resistivity structure to great depths. Figure 2 shows the MT resistivity/depth section recovered from these 21 sites. The image in Figure 2 is an estimate of the subsurface resistivity structure to 15 km depth, from the 2-dimensional (2D) MT model along a 35 km SW-NE profile and across the center of the Darnley Bay gravity anomaly (Figure 1). The results of this MT program confirm that the main source of the gravity and magnetic anomalies are coincident with a very large MT source at a 10 km to 13 km depth. The gravity signature is consistent with the response of a spatially large, 15 km x 15 km, and thick, >4 km, deep source body, that starts at depth of ~10 km. The magnetic signature is consistent with the presence of a large, 16 km x 16 km, >4 km thick source, that begins at a depth of ~13 km. The estimated region of dense and magnetic materials, estimated from the simple sill like model shown in Figure 2, has comparable amplitudes and source wavelengths to the observed data. The deep MT source is coincident with both of these signatures and has similar size and depth.

In addition, three low-resistivity pathways (B1, B2, B3) extend from the deep MT source A1 to the bottom of the shallow basin structure (Figure 2). The geological interpretation of the resistivity structure is that it shows a deep seated, single, large, conductive, intrusive body possibly extending to shallower depths along pathways B1, B2 and B3 and encountering the layered sedimentary basin rocks and the structures within it. This is the classic signature of a magmatic mineral system, similar to deep crustal resistivity structures that have been observed at other large scale intrusive systems (i.e. IOCG-Olympic Dam, see Heinson, G., Didana, Y., Soeffky, P., Thiel, S., & Wise, T. (2018). The crustal geophysical signature of a world-class magmatic mineral system. Scientific Reports, 8, 10608 http://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-29016-2).

Of greater importance to Generation Mining are a number of strong MT anomalies within 800-1200 metres of surface. These may reflect mineralized sources in the overlying sedimentary basin with origins related to the deep intrusion and connected through the pathways. Drilling is needed to confirm the nature of these MT anomalies.

Figure 1 accompanying this announcement is available at: http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0adf82cc-66ea-439a-9c2f-f53c06182c81

Figure 2 accompanying this announcement is available at: http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ba03b0c0-77f9-41b1-ad2b-07b049ed9901

Magnetotellurics is a natural source, low environmental impact, geophysical method of imaging the earth's subsurface by measuring at the earths surface natural variations of electrical and magnetic fields generated by the passage of the magnetic and electromagnetic energy from cosmic radiation, sunspot activity and terrestrial thunderstorm activity. The method allows for the deep imaging of the structure and composition of the earths subsurface to depths greater than conventional airborne and ground geophysical exploration surveys. Since the 1990s, MT has been successfully used to locate deep conductive mineral deposits at depths exceeding 1500 metres in the Sudbury nickel camp; base metal deposits in South America, the western cordillera of North America and in Precambrian Shield areas around the world. In the last 10 years, this technique has seen a number of improvements, particularly with the development of modern 2-D/3-D modelling. It is now routinely used in the oil industry to better define deep drilling targets, and to supplement or replace seismic in areas where seismic is not permitted for environmental reasons and/or provides poor resolution due to volcanic cover.

The property is held by Generation Mining under option from the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, which holds certain back-in and other rights. The gravity anomaly on the property has been favorably compared by the Geological Survey of Canada ("GSC") with other prominent gravity anomalies such as those at the prolific mining camps of Noril'sk in Russia and Sudbury Basin in Ontario. It is located near Paulatuk, Northwest Territories, on the Arctic coast. The Darnley Bay anomaly is larger and stronger than any of these comparatives by a wide margin, measuring 100 kilometres long north to south and about 60 kilometres wide. The GSC discovered the anomaly in 1969 and its source has never been explained before now.

Qualified Person

Kevin M. Stevens, P. Geo, is a "qualified person" for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Properties and the Company's Professional Consulting Geophysicist. He has prepared or supervised the preparation of the information contained in this news release.

About Generation Mining Limited

Generation Mining Limited is a base and precious metals exploration and development company with various property interests throughout Canada. Its primary business objective is to explore and further develop the Davidson Molybdenum project in British Columbia and its other mineral properties, and to continue to increase its portfolio of base and precious metal property assets through acquisitions.

For further information please contact:

Jamie Levy

President and Chief Executive Officer

(416) 640-2934

(416) 567-2440

jlevy@genmining.com

Forward-Looking Information

This release includes certain statements that may be deemed forward-looking statements. All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address future production, reserve potential, exploration drilling, exploitation activities and events or developments that the Company expects are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the statements. There are certain factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. These include market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on the Company, investors are encouraged to review the Companys public filings at www.sedar.com . The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward- looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law.
Residents of Wonogiri in Central Java observed the Islamic New Year with a Javanese ceremony conducted on Sembukan Beach on Monday.

A Javanese tradition, the labuhan ageng ceremony, is a ritual of prayer that ends with sea offerings. It symbolizes balance in life, as what has been given to human beings is given back to nature.

Sembukan Beach is located in Paranggupito, a district at the foot of Mount Sewu, around 65 kilometers from Wonogiris town center. It is considered sacred by the residents, as a myth says this is where Raden Mas Said, the first king of Mangkunegaran, would go for spiritual meditation. His descendent, Mangkunegara the VII (19161944), followed in his footsteps by visiting Sembukan Beach every malam satu Suro, or the eve of the first day of the Javanese month of Sura. The ritual is now carried out by residents around the beach.

The ceremony began with the traditional kethek ogleng dance of Wonogiri, which depicts the lively nature of a monkey. It was inspired by the story of Endang Rara Tompe in the Panji tales, ancient Indonesian literature, where the daughter of the Jenggala Kingdom went in disguise into the forest and made friends with a monkey. Residents gathered on the beach enjoyed the frisky acts of the monkey, presented by a dancer who performed acrobatic acts and impersonated a monkeys behavior.

The ceremony peaked with a parade from Paranggupito to Sembukan Beach, with residents carrying offerings and gunungan, mountain-shaped piles of agricultural produce, fruit and vegetables. Relatives of the Mangkunegaran Palace and local administration officials walked alongside Paranggupito residents. They were welcomed by gamelan music and the scent of incense upon entering Sembukan Beach.

The parade participants then prayed on the beach, in gratitude and in the hope of a better life, while several others brought offerings. During sunset, ceremony participants lighted up torches upon the Sembukan cliff as a sign of entering the new year. In the Javanese calendar, a new day begins when the sun sets in the west.

Read also: Javanese New Year parade in Malang village celebrates religious diversity

The ceremony also attracted hundreds of participants from neighboring towns, such as Pacitan, Surakarta and Sukoharjo.

Sabdo Gustiono, who came from Pati, said this was his sixth time observing the ceremony. Labuhan ageng holds special meaning for the Javanese, as a means to preserve culture and to remind ourselves of our ancestors wisdom, he said. In Javanese culture, the wisdom comes in symbols, such as the ones featured in this ceremony. So, more than just a ritual, this is where the younger generation can learn about their heritage.

Afterward, there was a show of fireworks and a shadow puppet performance, which lasted until the wee hour of the morning. The commemoration of Sura in Wonogiri will commence with a soul-cleansing ritual and the cleansing of sacred items and ancient weapons in the Gajah Mungkur dam. (wng)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 07:20 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087727f3a8 1 Business South-Korea,Indonesia,Moon-Jae-In,Jokowi,Seoul,investment Free

Indonesia and South Korea have set a target of increasing bilateral trade to US$30 million by 2020, President Joko Jokowi Widodo said in Seoul on Monday.

The target is expected to bolster bilateral ties with South Korea in honor of the 45th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Amid [financial] uncertainties around the world, Indonesia and South Korea manage to maintain a strong [diplomatic] relationship. Our trade in 2017 increased by 20 percent, Jokowi said during his third state visit to Seoul on Monday.

Jokowi said he was optimistic about achieving the goal since investors and businesspeople in South Korea responded positively to the prospect of increased bilateral trade.

Read also: Korean investors promise to hire more Indonesian workers

The Indonesian leader has engaged in talks with businesspeople in Seoul in his bid to improve South Korean investment in Indonesia.

In the meetings, they [the businesspeople] expressed appreciation for Indonesia, which has improved the investment climate for foreign investors, said Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi, who accompanied Jokowi in the meetings.

The business leaders also reiterated their commitment to help Indonesia improve its domestic industries and catch up with foreign players. (rfa)
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Linkedin Adisti Sukma Sawitri (The Jakarta Post) San Francisco  Wed, September 12, 2018 07:09 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087727ec7a 1 National indigenous-people,indigenous-people-bill,forest-conservation,hutan-adat,AMAN,forestry Free

Indonesia has been slow in granting forest tenure to indigenous peoples and local communities after an historic court ruling five years ago mandated that the government recognize their tenure rights.

A study released by the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI) on Monday revealed that the total amount of land designated for indigenous peoples and local communities only grew from 0.22 million hectares in 2002 to 0.79 million in 2017. The total areas owned by local peoples only reached 0.01 million ha last year.

In the past 15 years, China made the most progress in forest-tenure recognition out of 13 Asian countries observed in the report, as it increased the area owned by indigenous peoples and local communities by about 21 million ha, reaching 124.3 million ha last year.

Legislative rollbacks and stalled reform processes threaten to undermine the progress observed at the global level. Once-promising reforms [in Indonesia] have failed to deliver expected gains, said the report, which was released ahead of the Global Climate Action Summit.

President Joko Jokowi" Widodo granted hutan adat (customary forest) ownership certificates in December 2016 and October 2017, resulting in the recognition of ownership of over 8,801 ha of customary forests. The action marked the first implementation of a Constitutional Court ruling in 2013 that removed customary forests from state control as well as formalizing local peoples ownership.

The total area delivered to the people, however, is still very small compared with a total of 12.7 million ha targeted by the president. A draft law on indigenous people has been stalled as the executive and legislative branches of the government have not made it a priority.

Read also: AMAN reminds Jokowi about pledge to forest people

Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous People, said the Indonesian government still lacked commitment to indigenous peoples.

In several arenas, [government officials] are the ones who have spoken against indigenous people, like at a high-level political forum on SDGs [sustainable development goals], she said.

Tauli-Corpus also said the government should accelerate the process of the indigenous peoples law and establish a special body that ensured the delivery of the rights of indigenous people.

Read also: After the customary forest recognition

Titled At a Crossroads: Consequential Trends in Recognition of the Community-based Forest Tenure from 2002-2017, the RRI report monitored 48 low- and middle-income countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Indigenous peoples and local communities owned at least 418 million ha, or 15.2 percent, of the forestland in the regions and at least 70 million ha, or 2.5 percent, of the forest areas designated for them.

More than two-thirds of the forests in the countries, representing at least 1.9 billion ha, are administered by governments, and at least 140 million ha, or 5.1 percent, are privately owned by individuals and firms.

The RRI is a global coalition of more than 150 collaborating international, regional, and community organizations, which aims to advance the forestland and resource rights of indigenous peoples and local communities.
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Linkedin Rizal Harahap (The Jakarta Post) Pekanbaru  Wed, September 12, 2018 08:10 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877281611 1 National police,Water-Police,Riau,North-Sumatra,shooting,death Free

Rokan Hilir Water Police in Riau have shot three clam fisherman the police claim were catching clams using dredging equipment without a permit in Riau waters on the border of North Sumatra.

Three fishermen were shot. One person died of a gunshot wound to the chest. Two others suffered injuries to the right side of the head and to the right hip, respectively, Riau Police water police director Sr. Com. Hery Wiyanto said during a press briefing on Monday.

The two surviving fishermen, Agus Salim, 30, and Irwansyah, 31, are from Tanjung Balai in the neighboring province of North Sumatra and are currently receiving intensive care at the Bhayangkara Police Hospital in North Sumatra. The body of the deceased, Suharsono Tumanggor, 38, has been sent to a funeral home in Tanjung Balai.

Hery said the police's decision to open fire was in accordance with standard operating procedure, as he claimed the fishermen were uncooperative during the raid.

The seven boats transporting 11 fishermen from Pematang Pasir village in Tanjung Balai are owned by Omsi, a businessman in Tanjung Balai. The police seized a total of 50 sacks of clams weighing 1.25 tons and three dredging units as evidence.

Hery said three water policemen had received information from locals about alleged clam fishing using dredging equipment, which can endanger marine biota.

The water police found the fishermen and fired a warning shot into the sky to get them to stop. The fishermen reportedly turned off all lights on the vessels instead and tried to escape toward Panipahan, Riau.

In fact, one vessel even tried to ram the polices boat, Hery said. (sau)
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Linkedin Rizal Harahap (The Jakarta Post) Pekanbaru  Wed, September 12, 2018 15:26 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087729352a 1 National communism,red-scare,Riau,PKI,hammer-and-sickle Free

A 13-year-old girl in Riaus Rokan Hilir regency was taken to the police by a youth organization for wearing a T-shirt displaying a communist symbol.

The junior-high-school student, identified only as SIN, was approached by members of youth organization Pemuda Pancasila (PP) in Ujung Batu after footage featuring the girl wearing a grey T-shirt bearing the hammer-and-sickle logo went viral on social media.

The incident started when a road user posted a video on Facebook recording SIN riding a motorcycle from her house in Pematang Tebih Village to Ujung Batu. The back of her T-shirt featured the symbol, which is closely associated with the defunct Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).

After seeing the footage, members of PP tracked down the girl's whereabouts. Three PP members later went to SIN's house and took her to Ujung Batu Police.

"[The girl] claimed she did not know that wearing a T-shirt bearing the hammer-and-sickle logo is prohibited," said Ujung Batu Police chief Comr. Arvin Hariyadi after a questioning on Wednesday.

SIN said to the police that her parents had bought the T-shirt for her during a sale at Ujung Batu Market, Arvin said, adding that the girl had been immediately released, since she was still underage and did not understand the meaning of the T-shirt.

"There was no intentional motive, and the T-shirt bearing the hammer-and-sickle logo that she wore in the viral video has been confiscated," Arvin added.

Indonesian law still bans communism, and authorities often criminalize people for discussing the ideology or wearing paraphernalia related to communism. (afr/ahw)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 15:01 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087729262d 1 City Go-Jek,demonstration,protest,ojek-service Free

Some 300 police officers have been deployed to secure a rally by drivers working with ride-hailing app providers outside the Go-Jek headquarters in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta.

Around 60 of the officers are the negotiation team from the police's women corps, South Jakarta Police deputy chief Adj. Comr. Budi Sartono said on Wednesday.

The drivers, united under the Attack Deceitful App Companies Movement (Gerhana), were rallying on Wednesday to demand better working conditions.

Gerhana had staged a similar protest in front of the Grab headquarters in Kuningan, South Jakarta, on Monday. There was tension during that protest, as Grab upper management refused to meet the demonstrators.

Gerhana is specifically demanding that the companies uphold their promises to increase the base rates and is protesting what it calls driver exploitation and industry monopolization. Go-Jek and rival company Grab are the only two players in the Indonesian app-based ride-hailing industry. (nor)
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Washington, United States  Wed, September 12, 2018 22:30 1150 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b308772a6dc0 2 World #DonaldTrump,#hurricane,DonaldTrump,Hurricane-Florence Free

As Hurricane Florence churned towards the US East Coast on Wednesday, Donald Trump assured Americans the government stood ready -- and slipped in some bragging about his handling of monster storms in the past.

In his first tweet on the topic early, Trump urged residents in Florence's path to "be safe," assuring them federal emergency workers were "ready for the big one that's coming" -- so far so normal for a US president addressing the population as a disaster looms.

Less conventionally, he also took the chance to talk up his past performance in the field -- and take a swipe at those who question it.

"We got A Pluses for our recent hurricane work in Texas and Florida," the president tweeted, complaining his administration had done "an unappreciated great job in Puerto Rico" -- which he called "an inaccessible island with very poor electricity and a totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan."

Trump's shot at Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz came after she derided his claim that the response to last year's devastating Hurricane Maria had been an "incredible unsung success."

"Shame on you," the mayor fired back Tuesday in response to Trump's boasts, calling the operation a "despicable act of neglect."

Hurricane Maria is now considered to have killed 2,975 people in Puerto Rico, according to a recently revised government toll. The longstanding official toll had been just 64.

As the United States braced for the impact of a potentially catastrophic new storm, the president's comments -- and tone of voice -- sparked outrage in opposition ranks.

"The gleeful excitement about the power of the hurricane is gross," tweeted Jen Psaki, a former advisor to Barack Obama.

"Lives and livelihoods are at risk. Stop tweeting," she urged. "Bunker down in the situation room, make sure resources are deployed and present the calm and sober voice Americans need during crises."

Currently a Category 4 hurricane, Florence is forecast to slam into the East Coast later this week, with up to 1.7 million people in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia under voluntary or mandatory evacuation orders.
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Linkedin Paul Handley (Agence France-Presse) Washington, United States  Wed, September 12, 2018 08:28 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877282410 2 World #DonaldTrump,#Woodward,#Watergate,Woodward,Book,Watergate,DonaldTrump,scandal Free

Bob Woodward began his career by bringing down a president, Richard Nixon.

Forty-four years later, the premier chronicler of life in the White House could be foreshadowing the demise of another, Donald Trump.

In "Fear: Trump in the White House," which hit stores on Tuesday, Woodward paints a devastating picture of a US president in crisis -- an angry, paranoid leader whose staff battles to rein in his worst impulses.

It is his most blistering work since he and colleague Carl Bernstein drove Nixon to resign with their Watergate reporting for The Washington Post -- the foundation for their landmark book "All the President's Men."

"Fear", Woodward's 19th book, immediately rocketed to number one on Amazon's best-seller list, driven by excerpts reported last week depicting the White House in a perpetual "nervous breakdown."

It quotes Trump's own chief of staff, John Kelly, calling his boss "unhinged" and the White House "Crazytown."

Trump's former lawyer, John Dowd, depicts the president as a congenital liar.

While it is hardly the first book to paint Trump's 20-month-old administration in an unflattering light, "Fear" comes with something different: the Woodward stamp of quality, honed since the 1970s.

- Unparalleled access -

Woodward, 75, studied at Yale University and did a five-year tour in the US Navy, before turning to journalism. When he first applied at The Washington Post, he was rejected due to a lack of experience.

After a stint at a local paper in the Washington suburbs, he got his shot at the Post in 1971.

He had barely a year of reporting under his belt when he and Bernstein stumbled into the story of a lifetime -- the 1972 break-in at Democratic Party offices in Washington's Watergate compound.

Their classic gumshoe investigation of the scandal prompted several formal investigations. In 1974, Nixon resigned.

"All The President's Men" was a smash hit that was turned into an Oscar-winning film. The man chosen to play Woodward? Robert Redford.

Since then, whenever Woodward calls, Washington's politerati answer without hesitation.

He has put out a book about every two years, including authoritative, real-time tomes on Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama.

Woodward has also offered deep insights into the Supreme Court, the Central Intelligence Agency, and former Federal Reserve czar Alan Greenspan -- all while remaining at the Post, now as an associate editor.

The steady stream of books has allowed him to keep the channels of communication open with the fading titans of Washington, while also opening the doors of newcomers.

His brand as a reliable reporter about the corridors of power is virtually unmatched, and his dogged ability to back up whatever insider tales he hears has earned him grudging respect in the US capital.

"We always felt it was important for the president and others to participate in interviews with him," Scott McClellan, a spokesman for president George W. Bush in the 200s, told AFP.

"We wanted to make sure he had access to the president and others in order to have a more full and accurate account of what happened and the thinking behind the decisions."

- 'Not my job to judge '-

In all of his books, Woodward lays out meticulous details of meetings, discussions and policy issues in a wooden, no-drama-added style, and avoids stepping back and putting what he reports into any perspective.

"These are books in which measurable cerebral activity is virtually absent," author Joan Didion criticized in a 1996 essay on six of his works.

But his defenders say the just-the-facts approach is the bedrock of his credibility.

"In an age of 'alternative facts' and corrosive tweets about 'fake news,' Woodward is truth's gold standard," veteran journalist Jill Abramson wrote in The Washington Post about "Fear."

"It's not my job to provide judgment," Woodward told the website Vox earlier this year, saying his job "is to tell exactly what people have done, what it might mean, what drives them, and who they are."

- 'I've done the work' -

His signature approach is evident in "Fear," which is more damning than his other White House tell-alls.

It opens with Trump's economic advisor Gary Cohn stealing a document from the president's desk to keep him from signing it, to prevent damage to US security.

Woodward details meetings in which Trump appears not to understand crucial issues. Mortified aides plot to block his most dangerous orders and mollify his temper tantrums.

Woodward devastatingly quotes Defense Secretary Jim Mattis as saying Trump has the understanding of "a fifth- or sixth-grader" -- an 11-year-old child.

Trump predictably blasted the book as "a work of fiction" and labelled Woodward an "idiot."

Numerous Trump aides, including Mattis and Kelly, denied quotes attributed to them and said they did not provide information to Woodward.

But the author says many sources warn him ahead of time that they will deny everything.

"I'm not" lying, Woodward said Monday on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert."

"What is the contest in America other than the political contest? It's a contest for the truth," he said.

"I've done the work. This is the best reporting you can do, or that I can do."
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 13:34 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087728f012 1 City explosion,LPG,apartment,South-Jakarta Free

The Jakarta Polices Gegana bomb squad was deployed to investigate a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) canister explosion that damaged an apartment at the Essence Darmawangsa in South Jakarta, leaving a Korean citizen and her housemaid seriously injured on Tuesday afternoon.

The Gegana bomb squad did not find evidence of a bomb explosion at the scene of the incident, South Jakarta Police, Sr. Comr. Indra Jafar said as quoted by tempo.coon Tuesday.

The explosion left the apartment heavily damaged, with a collapsed ceiling and broken balcony glass, while two other apartments beside it were lightly damaged, South Jakarta Police crime unit head Adj. Sr. Comr. Stefanus Tamuntuan said.

Stefanus also said the injured victims had been rushed to the nearby Brawijaya Hospital for treatment following the explosion.

The incident was reportedly caused by the explosion of a 12-kilogram LPG canister's gas regulator located inside the Korean citizens apartment on the 17th floor. (gis)
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Linkedin Riham Alkousaa (Reuters) Berlin, Germany  Wed, September 12, 2018 23:11 1150 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b308772a826d 2 World #religion,#CatholicChurch,#Germany,German,CatholicChurch,sexual-abuse-scandal Free

The Catholic Church in Germany acknowledged a "depressing and shameful" legacy of sexual abuse on Wednesday after a leaked study said clerics had abused thousands of children over a 70-year period.

The document, commissioned by the German Bishops' Conference, revealed that 1,670 clerics and priests had sexually abused 3,677 minors, mostly males, in the country between 1946 and 2014, Der Spiegel said.

The news magazine quoted a leaked copy of the study, which was compiled by three German universities.

Bishop of Trier Stephan Ackermann said the Church was aware of the extent of abuse demonstrated by the study's results.

"It is depressing and shameful for us," he said in a statement on Wednesday.

The leaked study was published on the day that Pope Francis, who has made several attempts to tackle a spreading sexual abuse crisis that has badly tarnished the Church's image, summoned senior bishops from around the world to the Vatican to discuss the protection of minors.

The Vatican had no immediate comment on the Spiegel report.

The magazine said the study, which examined more than 38,000 files from 27 dioceses, showed more than half of the victims were aged 13 years or under when they were abused.

About one in six of cases documented involved rape and three quarters of the victims were abused in a church or through a pastoral relationship with the abuser. In many cases, evidence was destroyed or manipulated, it cited the study as saying.

The Bishops' Conference was expected to present the "strictly confidential" study's findings later this month, Spiegel said.

Speaking on behalf of the Conference, Bishop Ackermann said that, while he regretted that the study had been leaked, he was convinced its survey were comprehensive and thorough.

"The study is a course of action which we owe not only to the Church, but above all and foremost to those affected," Ackermann said.

The Church had often transferred clerics accused of sexual abuse without providing the new host community with "appropriate information" about them, the study found.

Only one third of those accused had to face proceedings under canon law and sanctions imposed were at most minimal, with 4 percent of those found to have committed abuse still working.

The study called on the Catholic Church to rethink its refusal to consecrate homosexual men and to view the celibacy obligation imposed on its clergy as "a potential risk factor", Der Spiegel reported.

Last month, a US grand jury released study findings showing 301 Catholic priests in Pennsylvania had sexually abused minors over 70 years.
Indianapolis, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The first leases have been signed and construction is underway for the first set of Hopebridge centers in Georgia  opening first in Suwanee and Roswell. As the largest Autism therapy provider in the Midwest, Hopebridge is committed to helping children touched by Autism Spectrum Disorders and other developmental delays by providing quality Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), Occupational, Speech, Feeding and Physical Therapies.

We are committed to enhancing the lives of as many children with autism as possible. I am proud to extend our therapy services into Georgia, so we can bring a safe, fun, interdisciplinary learning environment into new neighborhoods closer to home for thousands of families, said Hopebridge CEO Dennis May. We are also excited to further strengthen our team of superhero therapists who are passionate about working in collaboration to help kids achieve their goals.

Hopebridge360: our multi-disciplinary therapy model

Our unique multi-disciplinary approach, Hopebridge360, is an innovative and effective way to receive services to ensure that we are treating the whole child, not simply a diagnosis. Through the coordinated effort of our team of diverse specialists, we canoffer a wide range of benefits in our center-based therapy centers, like:

State-of-the-art facilities designed specifically for pediatric therapy

Insurance-recognized behavioral diagnostic evaluations

Interdisciplinary consulting and collaboration between ABA, Occupational, Physical, and Speech therapists

Rooms designed to reduce distractions and enhance therapy sessions; including specific rooms to focus on gross motor skill development, pretend play, and reintegration into a school environment

Socialization with childs peers to target specific social/pragmatic goals

Hopebridge is one of the leading applied behavior analysis centers. Their interdisciplinary therapy model enhances the overall success of each patient by taking into consideration the whole child; treating challenges across many different areas, said Dr. Michael Cameron, PhD, BCBA-D and Chief Scientific Officer for The Cedar Group and Hopebridge affiliate.





Creating new jobs to serve more children with autism and other developmental delays

Hopebridge continues to experience tremendous growth with these additional centers and will ultimately staff over 800 full and part-time team members in Georgia. Working in collaboration with pediatricians, schools and insurance companies, Hopebridge is a trusted partner and extension of their team to meet each childs specific needs.

For a complete listing of Hopebridge centers, please visit www.hopebridge.com/centers.

About Hopebridge

Hopebridge was founded in 2005 to serve the growing need for autism treatment services and to improve the lives of affected children and families. Hopebridge is committed to providing diagnostic services, personalized outpatient ABA, Occupational, Physical, Feeding and Speech Therapies for children touched by Autism Spectrum Disorder, behavioral, physical, social, communication and sensory challenges. Hopebridge provides a trusted place where they can receive the care, support, and hope they deserve.

More than a decade later, Hopebridge continues to open state-of-the-art autism therapy centers in new communities to reach patients and families who need our services. Headquartered in Indianapolis, Hopebridge now operates in four states; Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and Georgia.
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Washington, United States  Wed, September 12, 2018 07:47 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877280375 2 World #DonaldTrump,#Russia,DonaldTrump,Russia-medlling,investigation,scandal Free

US President Donald Trump's eldest son said he was not worried that he could be jailed over his role in the Russia probe, but suggested investigators might try to "create" legal difficulties for him.

In an interview with ABC that aired Tuesday, he also attacked as "disgusting" the senior administration official who wrote a recent anonymous op-ed detailing a chaotic White House, and acknowledged the president's trusted inner circle has shrunk since the piece's publication.

Trump Jr has been under scrutiny for his role in apparent efforts to get dirt on Hillary Clinton from Russian sources during the presidential campaign, including when he met with a Kremlin-connected Russian lawyer and other Trump campaign officials in June 2016 in Trump Tower.

Asked on ABC's "Good Morning America" whether he was scared he was in legal jeopardy and could go to jail, Trump Jr replied: "I'm not, because I know what I did and I'm not worried about any of that.

"That doesn't mean they won't try to create something," he added. "We've seen that happen with everything. But again, I'm not."

Trump Jr last year released a series of emails that included a 2016 message from an intermediary offering information that would "incriminate Hillary" and help the elder Trump in his campaign.

"If it's what you say I love it," Trump Jr wrote back.

Trump's son was questioned at length by the Senate Judiciary Committee, one of the congressional panels examining whether any of Trump's campaign associates colluded with Russian officials to interfere in the 2016 US election.

Several of Trump's former associates have been questioned or indicted by special counsel Robert Mueller, or have pleaded guilty to crimes including campaign-finance violations.

"I understand that they are trying to get my father and they'll do anything they can to get that," Trump Jr said.

Last week the White House was rocked by an explosive op-ed in the New York Times in which an anonymous official wrote that White House aides were so alarmed by the president's "erratic" and amoral behavior that they were actively working to undermine him.

"I imagine this is a very low-level person," Trump Jr said, adding that the piece's publication has made his father more wary.

"I think there are people in there he can trust," he said. "It's just a much smaller group than I would like it to be."
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12 2018

National flag carrier Garuda Indonesia will add more international flight routes to anticipate a growing number of airline passengers, particularly those heading to Bali for the International Monetary Fund (IMF)-World Bank (WB) Annual Meetings, from Oct. 12 to 14 on the resort island.

We will add 14 international flight routes per day, from Oct. 6 to 11, said Garuda Indonesia president director Pahala N Mansury in Tangerang on Monday.

He said the flag carrier would provide a total of 27,000 seats in anticipation of the arrival of around 21,000 participants to the IMF-WB Annual Meetings.
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Linkedin Stefanno Reinard Sulaiman (The Jakarta Post) Hanoi  Wed, September 12, 2018 17:16 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877297b72 1 Business Go-Viet,Go-Jek,operation,Vietnam,Hanoi Free

Go-Jek, the Indonesian ride-hailing app, kicked off its maiden operation in Vietnam on Wednesday, the first step of the companys plan to expand into Southeast Asia.

In Vietnam, Go-Jek is collaborating with a local team led by digital entrepreneur Nguyen Vu Duc under the brand Go-Viet.

We are very impressed with Go-Jeks influence and we share the same vision, Go-Viet CEO Vu Duc told journalists on Wednesday. He said Go-Jek was Go-Viets strategic partner in terms of technological and financial matters.

Go-Jek corporate affairs chief Nila Marita said it decided to collaborate with a local partner because local knowledge of the market was key to win the hearts of customers.

Vu Duc said the company was expected to have four services -- Go-Bike, Go-Car, Go-Food and e-wallet  early next year.

Go-Viet launched a pilot operation on Aug. 1 in Ho Chi Minh City, which is home to around 3 million people. Since then, around 1.5 million have downloaded its application. As of Tuesday, Go-Viet has employed 25,000 drivers in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.

The Indonesian startup unicorn said it was ready to invest US$500 million to operate in Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines. (bbn)
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Linkedin Rachmadea Aisyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12 2018

The government has called on the public and investors to stay calm amid the rupiahs volatility, as a worried public, it argues, would lead to negative sentiment that, in turn, would cause the currency to weaken further.

Public anxiety would undermine efforts by the government and the central bank to curb rupiah depreciation against the United States dollar, said Iskandar Simorangkir, the deputy for macroeconomics and finance at the Office of the Coordinating Economic Minister.

He emphasized that, even though the rupiah had fallen to its weakest position since the 1998 financial crisis at Rp 15,000 before bouncing back to Rp 14,800, other economic aspects were not as bad as they were during the previous economic crisis.
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Tangerang  Wed, September 12 2018

An 18-year-old student has been sentenced to four years imprisonment over a student brawl that left one person dead in Serpong, South Tangerang, in July.

At a hearing at the Tangerang District Court on Monday, Judge Tuty Haryati said the student, FF, had committed the serious crime of murder and spread fear among members of society.

However, the judge also said, as FF was underage at the time, it was expected that he could be guided to a better life.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 10:58 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087728ae2a 1 Business Jokowi,Vietnam,visit,trade-aggreement-talk Free

The government aims to increase trade with Vietnam to US$10 billion annually from $6.8 billion, last year, with President Joko Jokowi Widodo on a visit to the country.

Jokowi arrived in Hanoi on Tuesday after concluding his visit to South Korea.

In the last three years, our trade with Vietnam had seen an increase to $6.8 billion. We hope that in 2020, our trade will reach $10 billion, said Jokowi in a statement on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, during Jokowis visit to South Korea, Indonesia signed agreements worth 5.76 billion. The President targeted $30 billion trade with the country by 2020.

While meeting with Vietnamese President Vietnam Tran ai Quang in Hanoi on Tuesday, Jokowi said he had called on the Vietnamese government to eliminate trade barriers.

I have asked President Tran ai Quang to eliminate trade barriers, including those for automotive products from Indonesia, Jokowi said, adding that during the meeting, he had also expressed the wish of Indonesian investors to develop their businesses in Vietnam.

During Jokowis visit, Indonesia and Vietnam signed a joint communique on fighting illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. The two leaders also agreed to intensify negotiations on an exclusive economic zone. (bbn)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 16:20 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877296b14 1 World Sri-Lanka,Indonesia,bilateral-cooperation,infrastructure Free

Indonesia is set to assist Sri Lanka in infrastructure development, as the two countries look forward to bolstering bilateral cooperation and beyond, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has said.

On the sidelines of his two-day state visit to Vietnam, Jokowi met with Sri Lanka Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe at Melia Hotel in Hanoi on Wednesday, during which they discussed ways to improve cooperation and trade relations between the two nations.

Jokowi said during the meeting that Indonesia was committed to supporting railway development in Sri Lanka, which has expressed interests in importing 60 trains from Indonesia.

"Indonesia also offers the complete package of cooperation, including the purchase of train facilities and infrastructure, such as railways, stations, depots and the signaling system," Jokowi said on Wednesday.

Indonesia's state-owned construction company PT Wijaya Karya (Wika) is also interested in participating in the construction of a steel bridge in Sri Lanka, Jokowi went on to say.

During the occasion, Jokowi and Wickremesinghe also followed up on plans made during the former's visit to Colombo in January, including the two countries' joint efforts to export textile products to European countries.

"Our joint efforts to propose the export of garments to the European Commission will open market access to the European Union. We must continue our intensive approach so that the European Union will receive our proposal," Jokowi said.

The President also called for the establishment of a joint working group in trade and investment to ease bilateral cooperation and push for the start of joint feasible studies on efforts to draft an Indonesia-Sri Lanka free trade agreement. (afr/ahw)
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Jerusalem  Wed, September 12, 2018 08:08 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877280b71 2 World #Israel,Palestine,#USA,Israel,hail,closure,#Palestine,USA Free

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday hailed the US decision to shut the Washington mission of the Palestinians, whose actions against the Jewish state he said do nothing for peace.

The US decision to close the mission of the Palestine Liberation Organisation came on Monday as the Palestinians announced a fresh push against Israel at the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The PLO said it was being blackmailed by a White House blatantly biased in favour of Israel and called the move a "dangerous escalation" of tensions in the region.

"The US made the correct decision regarding the PLO mission in Washington," Netanyahu said in a statement posted on his Twitter account.

"Israel supports American actions that are designed to make it clear to the Palestinians that refusing to negotiate and attempts to attack Israel in international forums will not advance peace," Netanyahu added.

The PLO mission in Washington served as the de facto Palestinian embassy in the United States.

Explaining the US decision to shutter the mission, the State Department accused Palestinian leaders of refusing to engage with the United States and Israel.

It cited their moves to have Israeli officials prosecuted at the ICC in The Hague as one of the reasons for closing the mission, saying such actions violated conditions set for the delegation in Washington.

Relations have nosedived in recent months between the United States and the Palestinian leadership, which cut off contact with President Donald Trump's administration in December after he recognised the disputed city of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

- Palestinians 'collectively punished' -

The United States has accused Palestinian leaders of rejecting outright a still unseen US peace plan, while in turn the Trump administration is viewed by the Palestinians as being biased in favour of Israel.

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the mission had been allowed to remain open on a special waiver since November in order to foster work on achieving "a lasting, comprehensive peace between Israelis and the Palestinians."

"However, the PLO has not taken steps to advance the start of direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel," she added.

In recent weeks, the United States cut more than $200 million in bilateral aid to the Palestinians and cancelled its support for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA.

The Palestinian leadership condemned the latest US move.

"This is yet another affirmation of the Trump administration's policy to collectively punish the Palestinian people, including by cutting financial support for humanitarian services including health and education," said PLO secretary-general Saeb Erekat.

Husam Zomlot, head of the PLO mission in Washington, called the closure of the office "bullying and blackmailing" and said the US government was "blindly executing Israel's 'wish list.'"

"The main part of it is just going ahead and implementing the grocery list that was submitted to them by Netanyahu," he added.

Both Erekat and Zomlot pledged to push forward with Palestinian efforts at the ICC, where the chief prosecutor has already opened a preliminary probe into the allegations of rights abuses by the Israelis.

The Palestinians have asked the ICC to investigate Israel on a range of issues including settlement building in the occupied West Bank and civilian casualties in the 2014 Gaza war.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 16:05 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b308772955ea 1 City shooting,couple,North-Jakarta,conflict Free

A man reportedly shot his wife with an airsoft gun in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, on Sunday, as the two were engaged in an argument.

The brother of the victim, Muhamad Samin, said he would never have expected the man, identified only as D, to shoot his wife, Y.

"They argued a lot, but that was it, Samin said on Wednesday. It never crossed my mind that he could shoot his wife with an airsoft gun.

The alleged incident reportedly occurred after Y had called her husband to pick her up from work as she was sick. D refused, saying he was also sick.

Y then reportedly decided to go home on her own. On the way, she visited a place where her husband would often hang out with friends and found her husband there.

Y apparently scolded D in front of his friends, Tanjung Priok Police chief Comr. Supriyanto said. "At home, D shot his wife with an airsoft gun, Supriyanto said, as quoted by kompas.com.

The wife suffered a wound in her chest and was later brought to the Koja Regional General Hospital (RSUD) in North Jakarta for surgery to remove the metal pellet.

Her husband has fled and remains at large. (stu)
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Linkedin Vladimir Soldatkin (Reuters) Vladivostok, Russia  Wed, September 12, 2018 23:33 1150 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b308772a8541 2 World #Russia,#UK,Putin,poisoning,civilians,espionage Free

President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday Russia had found the two men accused by British prosecutors of trying to murder ex- Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Britain, but that there was nothing criminal about them.

British prosecutors last week identified two Russians they said were operating under aliases - Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov - whom they accused of trying to murder the Skripals with a military-grade nerve agent in England.

The duo had entered Britain on genuine passports, prosecutors said, while British Prime Minister Theresa May described them as military intelligence officers almost certainly acting on orders from high up in the Russian state.

Putin, speaking at an economic forum in the Russian Pacific port city of Vladivostok, said Russia had located the two men, but that there was nothing special or criminal about them.

"We of course checked who these people are. We know who they are, we found them. Well, I hope they will come out themselves and speak about themselves. It will be better for everyone," said Putin, responding to a question about the case.

"There's nothing special and criminal about it, I assure you. We'll see soon... They are civilians of course. I would like to appeal to them so that they hear us today. They will come somewhere, to you, the mass media..."

Hours after Putin spoke, Russian state TV said one of the two men, Petrov, had told it by phone that he might comment on the case next week.

Asked about Putin's remarks, Prime Minister Theresa May's spokesman said Britain's attempts to get an explanation from Russia over the poisoning of the Skripals had always been met with obfuscation and lies and that had not changed.

"These men are officers of the Russian military intelligence service, the GRU ... The government has exposed the role of the GRU, its operatives and its methods, this position is supported by our international allies," the spokesman told reporters.

"We have repeatedly asked Russia to account for what happened in Salisbury in March and they have replied with obfuscation and lies. I can see nothing to suggest that has changed."

"SIMPLE PEOPLE"

Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement in the poisoning, casting it as part of a Western plot to smear Russia to justify more sanctions against it.

The Kremlin said on Wednesday that Putin had not spoken to the two accused men and refused to say how and by whom they had been found.

Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the Russian leader had merely voiced a hope that they would appear publicly in the future. Lets wait for that moment, Peskov told reporters.

Viktoria Skripal, the niece of Sergei Skripal, said last week she did not know anything about the two men. She told the Interfax news agency on Wednesday she now knew through sources she did not name that they were "simple people".

"I knew from day one that this story about the involvement of Petrov and Boshirov was fake," she said.

While one of the two accused, Boshirov, looked like a photograph released by Britain, the other, Petrov, looked nothing like the other photograph and had not been in Britain at the time of the attempted poisoning incident, she added.

Skripal - a former GRU colonel who betrayed dozens of agents to Britain's MI6 foreign intelligence service - and his daughter were found slumped unconscious on a bench in the English city of Salisbury in March. They spent weeks in hospital before being discharged.

Britain and dozens of other countries kicked out scores of Russian diplomats over the poisoning of the Skripals, and Moscow responded tit-for-tat with an identical number of expulsions. The affair worsened Russian relations with the West, already under strain over Ukraine, Syria and other issues.

The affair returned to the headlines in July when a woman near Salisbury, Dawn Sturgess, died and her partner Charlie Rowley fell ill after Rowley found a counterfeit bottle of Nina Ricci perfume containing the Novichok nerve agent and brought it home.
Arizona Providing Support Through Regulatory Relief and Economic Incentives

Goal is Over 2 Million Customer Accounts from ACEx Members by Opening Bell

PHOENIX, ARIZONA, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NEWMEDIAWIRE -- EF Hutton Inc. (EF Hutton), a unit of HUTN Inc., (OTC: HUTN) is leading a group of financial service firms to establish the American Cryptocurrency Exchange (ACEx), a first of its kind membership exchange in North America at acex.us . The ACEx is expected to commence trading of digital assets based on blockchain technology, such as tokens and virtual currencies similar to Bitcoin by January 2019.

The market for digital assets, including coins and tokens, has grown substantially. Trading volume in crypto currencies is more than 12 times higher than it was in 2016. Over $13 billion was raised through initial coin offerings (ICOs) globally in the first half of 2018, according to PriceWaterHouse, with the largest amount raised equal to $4 billion and an average raise amount of $25.5 million. The capital raised in ICOs in the first half was more than 40% of the entire amount raised by companies through traditional common stock IPOs and more than 30% of the capital raised from venture capital, according to Forbes Magazine. The United States has lost crypto market share offshore marketplaces and ACEx is designed to attract customers who want security of dealing with a trusted financial provider.

Only 2% of investors in the U.S. currently hold Bitcoin, the most widely-held a digital asset in their portfolio, according to a recent Bloomberg survey. Investors seek security and better understanding before committing. ACEx is designed to alleviate concerns and, thereby, expand the market. All members must be registered financial services companies, brokers and/or advisors.

ACEx is sponsored by EF Hutton, a financial firm with an iconic brand and a 114 year legacy, and is extensively engaged in Fintech initiatives, including products and services utilizing blockchain technology. EF Hutton recently launched specialty research on Digital Assets including Coins and Tokens that is available to the public via subscription, see efhutton.com/crypto-research



ACEx is unique in that it provides up to $5 million of equity in ACEx, LLC to each of the first 250 members that join the exchange. Issuance to members is to be exempt from registration under Rule 506(c). The ACEx is expected to have significant value when it commences trading. For reference, an exchange was funded last year by private equity investors at an $800 million valuation. Membership is open to any broker-dealer or investment advisor registered to do business in the United States. Existing Cryptocurrency exchanges seek to cut-out brokers and advisors. Small and midsized brokers . ACEx will be the only exchange that seeks to incorporate regulated firms as members and provide them with a share of the exchange economics. Dozens of firms are in the process of becoming members of ACEx. ACEx is accepting membership applications at acex.us /membership-register/.

ACEx will be issuing 80 million ACE Tokens (ACEs) that members can distribute to their clients. Each Token will give a 20% discount on their trades executed on ACEx. Tokens will expire in three years. Clients will be able to buy or sell ACEs on ACEx. ACE Tokens will never expire. By January 2019, over 2 million investors are to be linked to ACEx through 250 brokers and advisors that are expected to be Members by the opening bell. We anticipate that ACEx Members will, in aggregate, have over 1,000 offices located throughout the U.S. and many foreign countries and their client accounts will amount to over $45 billion. The Member client orderflow is expected to be a significant source of proprietary liquidity.

ACExs headquarters will be located north of Scottsdale at Paradise Valley in Arizona. It is expected that more than ninety people will be directly employed by ACEx by 2020 and thousands of professionals could be employed in exchange-related activities by all its exchange members by 2022. EF Hutton is also establishing an office near the exchange. Arizona Commerce, a State agency, is providing a multi-million dollar economic incentives for ACEx sponsor and the State has revised regulations that are crucial to ACEx operation, such as relief from registration as a money transmitter.

EF Hutton CEO, Christopher Daniels commented, We are building a unique fintech infrastructure in Arizona that encompasses a large number of brokers and advisors. ACEx membership structure benefits every Member firm  all of whom benefit directly from the growth of ACEx. EF Huttons CEO, a fintech leader, will be a featured speaker at Block World in Silicon Valley on September 14. Block World is the largest conference in the world focused on blockchain technology and its applications.

ACEx intends to become the preferred digital asset marketplace for U.S. retail and institutional investors. ACEx exchange will use a combination of software developed internally and externally. The software is state of the art and will provide a highly-secured platform that is the technology backbone with a processing capacity of nearly one million transactions per second. Furthermore, the technology will enable each ACEx members customers to use a mobile App that will be co-branded with ACEx and the members name.

At the start, ACEx expects traders will be able to trade a total of ten coin pairs - Bitcoin (BTC), Litecoin (LTC), Ethereum (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Bitcoin Gold (BTG), Ethereum classic (ETC), OmiseGo (OMG), EOS (EOS), DASH (DASH), Tron (TRX), Monero (XMR), VeChain (VEN), IOTA (MIOTA), ZCash (ZEC), and stable-coin TrueUSD (TUSD), with plans to add Neo (NEO), Cardano (ADA), and more pairs in the coming months. Additionally, ACEx will offer access to all ten coins listed in the Bloomberg Galaxy Crypto Index (BGCI).

ACEx will offer:

ICOs: ACEx plans to list ICOs in 2019 and is accepting listing applications. The unique exchange structure will provide issues and sponsors a single-point for both capital and liquidity.

ACEx plans to list ICOs in 2019 and is accepting listing applications. The unique exchange structure will provide issues and sponsors a single-point for both capital and liquidity. Faster execution times with lower latency: As a U.S. based marketplace built for speed, the ACEx platform will allow for a very rapid transaction volume with a network designed to facilitate up to one million transactions per second. Additionally, transactions will typically settle in under four seconds, allowing for faster multi-exchange strategies and providing a speed advantage over other money movement options.

As a U.S. based marketplace built for speed, the ACEx platform will allow for a very rapid transaction volume with a network designed to facilitate up to one million transactions per second. Additionally, transactions will typically settle in under four seconds, allowing for faster multi-exchange strategies and providing a speed advantage over other money movement options. Custom crypto trading: Members will connect thru APIs to facilitate order executions  whether single trade or blocks  as well as auto-execution of crypto trading strategies.

Members will connect thru APIs to facilitate order executions  whether single trade or blocks  as well as auto-execution of crypto trading strategies. Increase of overall liquidity in cryptocurrency space: This exchange will expand the overall market due to the structure and research provided by this exchange and its members.

This exchange will expand the overall market due to the structure and research provided by this exchange and its members. Liquidity: Members will direct trades to ACEx and the volume will enable ACEx to provide the deepest and most liquid market in the Americas.

About Arizona

Arizona is focused on the future. The State is the sixth largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states with a population of nearly seven million. Arizonas government seeks to promote good quality business, including technologies and related services. Arizona was recently ranked among the best in the nation for entrepreneurship and job growth by US News & World Report.

About ACEx

ACEx is an Arizona based digital currency marketplace operated by a team consisting of experienced financial professionals from across the securities industry. ACEx seeks to revolutionize the digital asset space while incorporating best practices from the broader financial industry. ACEx is registering with FINCEN and is taking initial steps towards compliance and plans to become a registered, fully regulated and compliant operation under the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other regulatory agencies, as applicable. For more information, please visit acex.us or email us at info@acex.us.

About EF Hutton

EF Hutton is a legendary financial services brand with a 114 year legacy of innovation. The firm is independent and there is no longer any connection with American Express or Citigroup  two companies that once operated subsidiaries under the EF Hutton name.

About HUTN, Inc.

HUTN, Inc. is a holding company whose subsidiaries provide B2C internet services. HUTN Group Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of HUTN, Inc. is the parent company of: (i) EF Hutton, Inc., a provider of digital finance and investment services, and a legendary brand that has been known for innovation for over 113 years; (ii) Vibrant Mobility, Inc., a mobile communications services provider; and, (iii) Megga, Inc., an integrated social network and online services provider. HUTN, Inc.'s subsidiaries offer innovative financial products designed to work for everyday people. HUTN, Inc. stock is traded under the symbol HUTN. Learn more at www.efhutton.com . EF Hutton, Inc., Vibrant Mobility, Inc., and Megga, Inc. are subsidiaries of HUTN, Inc.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements. Certain statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts may constitute "forward-looking statements" as defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and are intended to be covered by the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. EF Hutton, Inc., Vibrant Mobility, Inc., and Megga, Inc. are subsidiaries of HUTN, Inc.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 14:33 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877291b64 1 City FBR,Pemuda-Pancasila,attack,mass-organizations,South-Jakarta Free

The Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) and Pancasila Youth (PP) have agreed to resolve their differences following brawls between their members at several locations on Tuesday evening, apparently sparked by an attack on an FBR post in South Jakarta.

Pamulang Police chief Comr. Endang Sukma Wijaya said on Wednesday that police had begun to mediate between the long-time rivals just hours after the brawls had broken out. We called the leaders of each organization to resolve the conflict amicably, Endang said. Some agreements were made. [The mediation] didnt take long, only about 15 to 20 minutes, he said, as quoted by kompas.com.

At 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, FBRs Semut Item post in Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta, had been attacked with bottles and stones by some 20 plain-clothed motorcyclists, allegedly members of PP, South Jakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Indra Jafar said.

In retaliation, about eight members of the FBR took on the motorcyclists in Kebayoran Baru and Pesanggrahan in South Jakarta; Ciledug in Tangerang; and Pamulang in South Tangerang in Banten.

No casualties have been reported. (stu)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 11:55 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087728be2b 1 National #Jokowi,#SouthKorea,#SuperJunior,Jokowi,meeting,super-junior,South-Korea,dance Free

President Joko Jokowi Widodo and First Lady Iriana Widodo took some time during their state visit to South Korea on Monday to teach boyband Super Junior his signature rowing dance.

In a video uploaded by Super Juniors Yesung to his Instagram page, the members of the boyband are seen wearing full suits. They later introduce themselves in English and Korean to Jokowi and Iriana.

During the meeting at Lotte Hotel in Junggu, Seoul, Jokowi handed the band members a repackaged version of SuJus second album, Replay, and asked them to sign it. Lucky for him, they had already prepared a signed copy of their album for the President.

Read also: Jokowi, Moon to hold bilateral talks in Seoul

We heard [the Indonesians] like your rowing dance, so our member went on stage and did it. They really liked it, Lee Teuk said in Korean, referring to Donghaes rowing dance during their performance at the 2018 Asian Games closing ceremony on Sep. 2.

Jokowi then taught them the proper way to do the dance, which had been the talk of the town after he presented it spontaneously during Via Vallens performance of Meraih Bintang (reaching the star) at the Asian Games opening ceremony.

Not only did the dance go viral in Indonesia, his dance even reached Korea, when Eunhyuk and Donghae tried to imitate it in an interview with KBS World Indonesia Radio and promised they would include the dance in the closing ceremony. (ris)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Wed, September 12, 2018 11:58 1151 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087728cad2 4 Business e-commerce,transaction,BTN,bank-mandiri Free

State-owned lenders are seeking to outdo one another in providing e-commerce transactions, because such transactions have shown significant growth in recent years.

Bank Mandiri senior vice president of transaction banking and retail sales Thomas Wahyudi said the value of e-commerce transactions facilitated by the bank had reached Rp 12 trillion (US$620 million) up to July.

The transactions were made at merchant marketplaces, retail stores and online travel agencies cooperating with Bank Mandiri," Thomas said in Jakarta recently. He did not divulge details on the growth in transactions but asserted it had been always positive in the last several years.

According to kontan.co.id, the bank is partnering with more than 2,000 e-commerce merchants as a payment service provider.

Thomas explained that the lender now had several e-commerce payment systems, including credit cards, debit online, e-cash and transfer through virtual accounts of Bank Mandiri.

He said Bank Mandiri did not have any specific target, but he expected continued growth in e-commerce transactions.

Meanwhile, Bank Tabungan Negara (BTN) has similar efforts in place to boost e-commerce transactions. BTN business card division head Budi Santoso said the bank had pushed the growth of e-commerce transactions since 2014.

With regard to the implementation of such systems, the bank stressed it was paying special attention to security aspects. That means we use one-time passwords (OTP) send to registered handphones to minimize misuse, he added.

According to data from Visa, BTNs e-commerce transactions were up 35 percent year-on-year in the first half of 2018. (bbn)
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, September 13 2018

The Jakarta Polices Gegana bomb squad was deployed to investigate a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) canister explosion that damaged an apartment at the Essence Darmawangsa in South Jakarta, leaving a Korean citizen and her housemaid seriously injured on Tuesday afternoon.

The Gegana bomb squad did not find evidence of a bomb explosion at the scene of the incident, South Jakarta Police, Sr. Comr. Indra Jafar said as quoted by tempo.co on Tuesday.

The explosion left the apartment heavily damaged, with a collapsed ceiling and broken balcony glass, while two other apartments beside it were lightly damaged, South Jakarta Police crime unit head Adj. Sr. Comr. Stefanus Tamuntuan said.
Yayasan Pelayanan Kasih A&A Rachmat Foundation founder T.P. Rachmat (left), also a tycoon, joins hands with Indonesias former vice president Boediono during an event titled Scholar Conference 2018 in Jakarta on Wednesday. The event, held by T.P. Rachmats foundation, was attended by leaders of 61 colleges and universities as well as scholarship grantees in Greater Jakarta and West Java to discuss human resources quality in the workplace. (JP/Charisa Vanessa G.)(left), also a tycoon, joins hands with Indonesias former vice president Boediono during an event titled Scholar Conference 2018 in Jakarta on Wednesday. The event, held by T.P. Rachmats foundation, was attended by leaders of 61 colleges and universities as well as scholarship grantees in Greater Jakarta and West Java to discuss human resources quality in the workplace. (JP/Charisa Vanessa G.)
North Sulawesi is a popular destination among divers. In addition to its marine life, the province has a rich history as well.

Those planning to visit the province may want to include the North Sulawesi Public Museum on the itinerary.

Located at Jl. W. R. Supratman No. 72 in Wenang, Manado, the museum offers an exciting journey to the past, featuring the prehistoric period, the spread of Christianity in the area, trade routes as well as various cultural information.

Kompas.com reported that the three-story building is divided into rooms based on themes, such as prehistory, postcolonialism and culture.

The prehistory room is located on the first floor, and it showcases the province's past glory, including early human migration.

Read also: North Sulawesi to propose 'kolintang' as world cultural heritage

The first floor also displays various information related to the spread of Christianity, Islam and other beliefs brought by Chinese, Arab and European traders, as well as the areas role in the spice trade.

Those wanting to learn about North Sulawesi culture can head down to the culture room, which displays information about local tribes, including the Minahasa, Bolaang Mongondow, Talau and Siau.

On the third floor, visitors can see cultural relics, traditional attire and statues of North Sulawesis heroes, such as Maria Walanda Maramis, Sam Ratulangi, AA Maramis, Daan Mogot and Piere Tendean.

The museum is open for the public and free of charge. (jes/wng)
Cruise lines have been charting new courses for their ships as Hurricane Florence bears down on North Carolina.

Carnival Corp., the largest cruise-line operator, altered the itineraries for three ships -- with some stops in Puerto Rico and Bermuda getting canceled. Passengers have been getting storm updates in text messages sent to their phones.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.s Sept. 8 sailing of the Grandeur of the Seas was diverted to Floridas Port Canaveral from Bermuda for two days before a scheduled return to Baltimore on Sunday. Passengers are receiving daily weather updates from the companys chief meteorologist.

Not everyone is happy about the cruise lines efforts to avoid the storm. Michelle Younique Bernier, who identified herself on Facebook as a passenger on Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.s Norwegian Dawn, said its trip to Bermuda was diverted to Canada. She said the cruise line was doing nothing to compensate guests or entertain her 6-year-old son.

Read also: Major US tourist sites in path of Hurricane Florence

This is such a downgrade, said Bernier, who added that she would have never paid this much to go to Canada.

Norwegian, which changed schedules for two of its ships, said the safety of its guests is a top priority and our on board teams are prepared to ensure the best vacation experience possible given these weather-related necessary changes.

Florence is scheduled to cut across the Atlantic north of the Caribbean and south of Bermuda, making landfall in North Carolina Thursday night.
The operation must be ruthless, thorough and silent. Without alerting the watchful enemy, a unit of highly trained Japanese agents will throw up a ring of steel to block any escape from the vast battleground.

Despite being vastly outnumbered, the unit's chief commander is confident of total victory against the enemy army -- tens of thousands of rats expected to scurry loose when the world-famous Tsukiji fish market closes next month.

The 23-hectare (57-acre) market near Tokyo's swanky Ginza district is home to "not thousands but tens of thousands" of rats, attracted by fish offcuts and the market's maze of sewers, according to Tatsuo Yabe, a rat expert.

After a fabled 83-year history, the world's biggest fish market, which is also a huge tourist magnet for its pre-dawn tuna auctions, will move to a brand-new facility in Toyosu, about 2.3 kilometres (1.4 miles) away on the waterfront.

The moving operation is unprecedented. Some 900 businesses handling 480 kinds of seafood worth $14 million daily -- as well as 270 types of fruits and vegetables -- will relocate over a period of five days.

Thousands of trucks and forklifts will take part in the move, with tons of waste produced in the process -- manna from heaven for the furry denizens of the sewers.

"They will likely start moving en masse once they notice something unusual... The week after the market closes on October 10 will be the major battle," a Tokyo government official who commands the Tsukiji anti-rat operation told AFP.

To prevent a mass exodus from Tsukiji, Tokyo officials -- helped by veteran rat exterminators -- are busy blocking pipe and sewer exits and plugging holes in fences with corrugated sheets.

Before the market is torn down, they will erect an impregnable three-metre (10-foot) steel wall around the site and slowly move in through the perimeter to "corner and catch" the rodents, said the operation's commander, who asked not to be named.

In addition, they will instal 40,000 sticky sheets to catch rodents, along with traps and use 300 kilograms (660 pounds) of rat poison.

'It's frightening'

Restaurants and bar managers in the area surrounding the market are on red alert for a possible influx of unwelcome rodent visitors.

"It's frightening," said the owner of one restaurant in Ginza, one of Tokyo's most fancy wining and dining districts just a stone's throw from the market.

Read also: Japan's Tsukiji fish market to stop tourist tuna viewings

"We heard rats scrabbling around when an old theatre building was torn down in this neighbourhood," said the 56-year-old restaurateur, who wished to remain anonymous.

"Some of our neighbors are even feeding stray cats now. That is how defensive we are getting."

The Ginza Street Association, which brings together local businesses, even created a special anti-rat taskforce last year.

Tokyo exterminator GP Corporation is telling clients in the area to keep their eyes peeled.

"We are calling on them to stay vigilant and not even keep the doors open because sewer rats may come right in once the moving starts," said Kazuya Takahashi from the company.

Hardly any food poisoning

Hiroyasu Ito, a veteran fish trader as old as the Tsukiji market itself, has known Tsukiji since the days when buyers and sellers communicated via telegram.

Now chairman of the Seafood Wholesalers' Association, Ito is aware of the venerable market's issues.

"We have many problems. Birds fly in, and many things like rats come in and out freely," he said about the open-air facility.

But he stresses that the market has an impressive food hygiene record. In recent decades, market players have made the utmost sanitary efforts, with special inspectors in white jackets checking on food safety every day.

"We've hardly had any food poisoning incidents in this market. We are proud of it," Ito told AFP.

Nevertheless, he has high expectations for the new Toyosu facility, equipped with state-of-art refrigeration.

The gigantic complex stands on reclaimed land nearly twice as large as Tsukiji, and it is fully air-conditioned and prepared to welcome its new tenants.

"The biggest difference is that Toyosu is an enclosed market, so all buying and selling will be done in this building," said Masataka Miyake, a Tokyo official preparing for the new facility.

Originally planned in 2016, Tsukiji's relocation has been postponed several times, held up by revelations of heavy soil contamination at Toyosu, a former gas plant.

"I hope the new Toyosu brand will soon become a global household name," Miyake said, describing Tsukiji as "very popular and lively".

Doors and shutters at the new facility are sensor-controlled, and when they are open, air is blasted down from the ceiling -- like an invisible screen.

"The air curtain prevents the cool air from escaping outside," said Miyake, as well as fending off unwanted intruders like dust and bugs -- and rats.
Visitors to Little India during this year's Deepavali celebrations will get to learn the story behind the Hindu festival and take part in traditional Indian street games.

A free 40-minute storytelling session with local actors performing the symbolic triumph of light over darkness and good over evil on a miniature village set will take place at a field on Clive Street on Oct 20, at 7pm.

Meanwhile, the pedestrianised Campbell Lane will play host to a Little India Playstreet, where visitors will be able to play folk games - like the marble game Goli and board game Pachisi - between 4pm and 6pm on the third Saturday of September to November.

The new activities were announced yesterday as Serangoon Road prepares to celebrate its 30th anniversary of the traditional Deepavali light-up.

The annual celebrations will commence with a light-up ceremony on Sept 22.

Serangoon Road and Race Course Road will be illuminated by about 2 million light bulbs in different colours for the light-up, which will last till Nov 25.

Mr Rajakumar Chandra, chairman of the Little India Shopkeepers and Heritage Association, which is organising the celebrations, said: "We wanted to make things interactive and fun for everyone."

Two main archways will be erected on Serangoon Road.

Deepavali or Diwali, which falls on Nov 6 this year, is an ancient Hindu festival and major cultural event in Singapore.

Celebrated by Hindus worldwide, the festival of lights signifies the victory of light over darkness.

Read also: The hidden charms of Singapore's Little India

Those looking to buy Indian ethnic wear, jewellery, decorations and traditional snacks can visit the festival bazaar, which will be held from Sept 29 to Nov 6 along Campbell Lane and Hastings Road.

Other activities in Little India include a culinary workshop on Oct 13 where participants will get to learn how to make Deepavali snacks, and a movie screening on Nov 10.

Both of these activities are free and will be held at the Indian Heritage Centre in Campbell Lane.

Visitors to Little India can also catch public dance performances.

Four dance troupes will perform different cultural Indian dances at separate locations in the area including Campbell Lane and Kinta Road on Oct 27, from 4pm to 6pm.

Financial adviser Ryan Tan, 37, said he was looking forward to this year's Little India light-up.

"I take my two kids to check out the lights every year and they love it," he said.

"If we can catch the performances this year too, I think it's something that will be educational for them."
Stockholm, September 12th, 2018 - Today ContextVision held a company presentation in Oslo, Norway. The arrangement was held at Norne Securities AS premises at Roald Amundsens gt. 6, Oslo.

CEO Anita Tollstadius gave an update of the company's development and shared the company's future direction. Please find a PDF-version of the presentation attached. The presentation will also be published on the company's website.

For further information, please contact ContextVision's CEO, Anita Tollstadius, at +46 70 337 30 26 or visit www.contextvision.com.

###



About ContextVision

ContextVision is a medical technology software company that specializes in image analysis and artificial intelligence. ContextVision is the global market leader within image enhancement and is a software partner to leading medical imaging manufacturers all over the world. Its cutting-edge technology helps doctors accurately interpret medical images, a crucial foundation for better diagnosis and treatment.

As an industry pioneer for more than 30 years, ContextVision is significantly investing in R&D to develop new applications of the latest artificial intelligence technologies and expanding into the growing digital pathology market. The release of its first product, supporting the diagnosis of prostate cancer, is planned in the near future.

The company is based in Sweden, with local representation in the U.S., Russia, Japan, China and Korea. ContextVision is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker COV. For more information please visit www.contextvision.com.




MIAMI, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Progressive Care Inc. ( OTCQB: RXMD ), a personalized healthcare services and technology company, today announced that it has garnered notable international media coverage in top pharmacy industry publication World Pharma Today around the companys efforts to combat the nationwide opioid epidemic.



In a contributed article published August 20, 2018, in World Pharma Today, Mars explores the history of the opioid crisis and shares her perspective on what more can be done to provide patients with better access to pain management alternatives in lieu of prescription opioid medications. The article, titled Risking Addiction for Relief: Is There a Better Alternative to Opioids? , also appears in the publications August print issue.

In the piece, Mars writes: Opioids may still be necessary in some cases but should generally be avoided whenever possible. Through communication, outreach and education about alternatives for pain management, pharmacists can move toward a healthcare industry that is less dependent on opioid medications.

We are honored to have Progressive Cares efforts around the opioid crisis highlighted in these industry publications, said S. Parikh Mars, CEO of Progressive Care Inc. The opioid epidemic continues to be a serious issue causing incredible damage to patients and communities across the U.S. We hope that this media coverage brings more light to the rising problem, as well as increases awareness of the help people can get through PharmCos customized opioid alternative solutions for patients.

Progressive Care has remained committed to making efforts to battle the opioid epidemic plaguing the nation. In June of 2018, the company launched a new program designed to educate patients and providers on treatment alternatives to opioids available through the company. PharmCo continues to offer its network the most current pharmacological information, a team of pharmacists and technicians highly trained in pain management and compounding, and provides physician in-services, educational seminars, patient consultation and customized medicinal pain management solutions.

The recent media coverage comes after the companys efforts to provide its network with more healthcare informational resources through PharmCo Pharmacy . Additional commentary from Progressive Cares CEO about the company and industry as a whole can be found on the Progressive Care blog and PharmCo blog .

For more immediate updates on the companys media coverage, connect with Progressive Care and PharmCo on social media:

Progressive Care Inc.

https://www.facebook.com/ProgressiveCareUS/

https://twitter.com/ProgressCareUS

PharmCo, LLC

https://www.facebook.com/pharmcorx/

https://twitter.com/PharmCoRx

About Progressive Care Inc.

Progressive Care Inc. (OTCQB: RXMD), through its PharmCo, LLC, is a South Florida health services organization and provider of prescription pharmaceuticals, compounded medications, provider of tele-pharmacy services, the sale of anti-retroviral medications, medication therapy management (MTM), the supply of prescription medications to long term care facilities, and health practice risk management.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Statements

Statements contained herein that are not based upon current or historical fact are forward-looking in nature and constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements reflect the Companys expectations about its future operating results, performance and opportunities that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. These statements include but are not limited to statements regarding the intended terms of the offering, closing of the offering and use of any proceeds from the offering. When used herein, the words anticipate, believe, estimate, upcoming, plan, target, intend and expect and similar expressions, as they relate to Progressive Care Inc., its subsidiaries, or its management, are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on information currently available to the Company and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause the Company's actual results, performance, prospects, and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements.

Investor Relations Contact:

Armen Karapetyan, Progressive Care

Senior Advisor Business Development

Armen@progressivecareus.com

www.progressivecareus.com

www.pharmcopharmacy.com

Public Relations Contact:

Tory Patterson, CMW Media

Tory@cmwmedia.com

www.cmwmedia.com

Web and Application Development Contact:

Marcello Jaspan, Mass Ventures Corp

Marcello@massventurescorp.com

www.massventurescorp.com
The programme is part of The Year of Young People 2018 in Scotland and recently released its first graphic anthology. Nyla Ahmad sat down with The National Student to discuss Full Colour, mentoring the next generation of comic creators and how the industry must and can involve POC/BAME individuals at all levels of the comic-making process.Image: Full ColourIm Nyla Ahmad. I work for BHP comics and Im the co-lead on Full Colour, a mentoring programme for young (14  26 year olds) from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds. The works thus far have been collected into a publication which was released at Glasgow Comic Con. The original date of the 26th that the CCA for the accompanying art exhibition was interrupted by the GSA fire that made that impossible. We were looking forward to showing the kids next to their art ,but had no access to the CCA or our BHP offices. I think its important it was at Comic Con, I wanted them to feel submerged in the comic scene.Full Colour was started by Sha Nazir, who founded Glasgow Comic Con, the Scottish Independent Comic Book Alliance Awards (or SICBAs for short) and BHP comics. He is also art director of BHP. Both Sha Nazir and I noticed at comic and even publishing/arts events that were often the only people of colour in the room. It was born out of a need for true inclusive representation all the way through. We wanted to use our positions as professionals in industry to help uplift others.Mentorship was always something I wanted to do. Before publishing, I wanted to be a lecturer, but I found academia difficult to navigate. I really enjoyed being a graduate teaching assistant though. I wanted to teach and to talk to people and get them enthusiastic about the things I really care about. I couldnt say no to the opportunity to take my love of teaching and use it to encourage people who dont normally see themselves represented in the arts. When being a GTA, youre normally already talking to people who are engaged and interested, who have been accepted into a uni. Id talk to loads of people who never went to uni and didnt feel engaged in the arts or culture but so many of them were wicked intelligent with really interesting takes  the only thing that seperated them from the people in my classes was opportunity, circumstance and encouragement, so doing mentorship that uplifted people was my absolute dream job.BHP really does important work and Im not just saying that because I work there. BHP are really focused on being socially responsible. We recently co-published We Shall Fight Until We Win with 404 Ink, which charts 100 years of pioneering political women. Full Colour is part of this ethos. A person on a panel saying diversity is a problem, acknowledging it, is not the same as tackling it. People of Colour are needed in this industry. BHP recognises that. We support innovation and social change and were happy to be a people of colour led organisation that will take steps to help others.My favourite moments were when participants realised they could do it and said Wait a minuteI just made a comic!. I felt like a lot of the participants were hesitant or didnt feel like they were good enough to make comics. It was ludicrous to me as they were all amazing. When I showed Nicole, whose work features on the back of the book, the published work she had a great reaction. Its those moments that really made it for me.Oh gosh, all of the comics were awesome. One of my favourite ideas? They were all fantastic. Laeticia Eve Danicas With Great Power had amazing Indonesian cultural references. She has a wicked sense of humour and did a story about a super hero getting diarrhoea after every fight. Another was Brown Privilege about the first time you realise your parents are just human beings and you accept your own culture. It made me really emotional when I read it. In the office both of us were working on it reading. We both sat in the office and went Omg. Ny Ali did a graphic story based on the Brother Grimm stories called 7 Ravens. All of it though was outstanding.I really do hope so! Being serious though, yes definitely. Were the first UK-based comics anthology led completely by people of colour. There has been Elements:Fire in the US, but we dont get a huge representation over here. I think theres still this sense, sometimes, that there just arent people of colour who want to make art? Thats ridiculous. You just arent engaging them well. To steal a sentiment I have fully adopted from Glasgow Womens Library, people arent hard to reach, your organisation is.I know Ive just mentioned them so you can probably see this coming! Ive been hugely inspired by Glasgow Womens Library. They have such strong morals and dedication to inclusion. They get people involved and they put the work in to make sure people feel included and represented. They have always respected and supported my work and really nurtured my equalities based practice. They had a huge influence in how I conduct myself professionally and how I work to uplift others. As an intersectional feminist, they taught me so much good practice.When these stories come from those communities you know its going to be authentic and representational  thats not to say you can only write what you know, but there is a responsibility to make sure the representation is genuine and considered. When making work, ask yourself who pays for this, if I get it wrong? If I contribute to stereotypes?. Sometimes its just not your risk to take. I know representation is a bit of a hot topic issue at the moment, but it shouldnt be a tokenistic gesture. It should be treated with respect as there are so many nuances to each individual representation. Make sure the communities you are representing are being heard, not being viewed.I want people to have fun! Sometimes I feel people treat representation as an exercise, but this book isnt hard reading at all. Its just great stories by creators completely brimming with potential. We read to connect to others, to see new and fresh perspectives, and this book will hopefully open a few minds and hearts.The mentorship is still running to the end of the year and giving people experience in industry. Get in touch of you want to be involved at: nyla at bhp comics.com. As for phase two of the project, were hoping well secure funding to keep it running.
Whilst a critical success upon its release, Burn After Reading

was never warmly received by general audiences and, as such, has slipped through the cracks of the Coens vast filmography. Viewing it ten years later though, the film has in fact proven to be more relevant as time has gone on and is arguably one of the renowned directors most accomplished pieces.

The film tells a complicated tale following many characters, all of whom act with selfish motives but have no full understanding of what exactly it is theyre caught up in. The general plot follows Hardbodies Gym employees Lynda Litzke, played here by recent Oscar winner Frances McDormand, and Chad Feldheimer (Brad Pitt) as they try to capitalise on finding what they believe to be CIA secrets belonging to former agency analyst, and part-time alcoholic, Osborne Cox.

Whilst this is the through-line of the film, the plot also follows the charming yet needy, sex-addict Harry Pfarrer (George Clooney), as he deals with his crumbling marriage; Katie Cox (Tilda Swinton), Osbournes cold and calculating wife who is sleeping with Harry; and hopeless romantic Ted (Richard Jenkins), who is love-stricken for fellow gym employee Lynda. Though it may seem overwhelming, the way these plot threads all string together is nothing short of genius, leading to a wholly satisfying conclusion that stays consistent with the movies themes.

The film had the seemingly impossible task of following up from the Coens Oscar-winning masterpiece No Country for Old Men, a dark and gritty film that thrived on violence and tension. Audiences were hence left disappointed when the Coens next film took on a completely different tone and had a far less clear-cut message.

Burn After Reading however, is in fact more in line with the directors previous works, with its quirky characters and dialogue as well as the dark comedic tone making it comparable to the likes of The Big Lebowski and Fargo. In a way, this film is likely the most Coen-esque. There are memorable and unique characters, all brought together through coincidence and misinformation into extreme circumstances that spiral out of control.

The film is made up of a truly all-star cast, with modern giants such as J.K. Simmons and Frances McDormand being accompanied by the likes of Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Richard Jenkins, John Malkovich and Tilda Swinton. Malkovich is a scene stealer from the off with his foul-mouthed character, Cox, bringing many of the films laughs despite his despicable nature.

He is matched pound for pound by McDormands Linda, who is obsessed with having transformative plastic surgery and willing to go to extreme lengths to get it. The entire cast revel in the caricatures they play and each member brings something to their role that helps make their performance memorable. For Brad Pitt, it is a cheerful goofiness that makes Chad a loveable character despite his sheer idiocy, and for George Clooney, it is his frantic motor mouth that perfectly expresses Harrys insecurity and paranoia.

Despite all the humour though, Burn After Reading has some clear themes that, some would argue, are more relevant today than they were ten years ago. The films entire plot, as well as all of its characters motivations, are built upon misinformation and misunderstanding, something that has become prominent in the era of rampant social media and fake news.

Jeet Heer of The New Republic commented that the film resembles every day in Trumps Washington, where the line between blundering idiocy and malevolent conspiracy is increasingly blurred. This much is shown through the sheer incompetence of the CIA throughout the movie, who, by the end, know even less than the audience in regards to the events that have transpired. As J.K. Simmons character, credited as CIA Superior, aptly concludes so, we dont really know what anyone is after.

Burn After Reading of course had a lot to say for its own time as well, being released into a climate of growing fear regarding state security in the U.S. and with invasive public surveillance being at the forefront of many peoples minds; as much is demonstrated by the opening and closing shots from the perspective of a satellite spying on Washington. The film also comments on the transition of politics in Washington, with the decline of Osbourne Cox, a bow-tie-wearing admirer of Cold War diplomat George Kennan, representing the CIA shedding its old ways and transitioning into the 21st century. These messages, like so many others in the Coen Brothers films, are subtly placed in amongst the darkest of humour and the occasional flurry of violence.

Burn After Reading remains a wonderfully executed Coen satire in which misinformation is cause for chaos. Its a sorely underrated member of the Coens filmography and, like some of the best films, is only proving to be more relevant with age. Although not a perfect movie, Burn After Reading is certainly one worth re-visiting in 2018.
Religion is an oft returned to theme in cinema, yet 2018 has seen a proportionately huge number of films tackling questions of faith, specifically in relation to Christianity.

The Da Vinci Code (2006) which draw from Christianity, these films address religion in a contemporary way, leading the audience to examine the place of faith in their own lives. Rather than Biblical epics like Mary Magdalene (2017), or genre films like(2006) which draw from Christianity, these films address religion in a contemporary way, leading the audience to examine the place of faith in their own lives.

This contemplative character study follows Ethan Hawke as a troubled priest, grappling with guilt, health problems, tragedy, all while counselling a depressed environmentalist. The crisis of faith which occurs results in an explosive climax, but it's the quitet introspection leading up to it that asks the real questions about religion and morality.

Faith and family are at odds in this emotionally complex drama following a family of Jehovah's Witnesses who are instructed to cast out a daughter who falls pregnant. The all encompassing nature of the lifestyle is conveyed through claustrophobic camera work, and writer/director Dan Kokotajlo is unafraid to tackle the hard-hitting issues plaguing this community.

3.

l'Apparition

This French film follows a journalist (Vincent Lindon) sent by the Vatican to investigate a young girl (Galatea Bellugi) claiming to be visited by the Virgin Mary. A clash of cynicism and faith characterises this film, brought to life so brilliantly by the talented cast.

Another story about the Jehovah's Witness community - Emma Thompson plays a judge who must make a ruling on whether a 17 year old boy should be forced to accept the lifesaving blood transfusion that his religion forbids. The interaction between the two of them opens up a whole new world for them both - with interesting and unexpected consequences.

5. The Nun

Rather than the reportedly disappointing 2018 horror movie, we are instead referring to the 1966 award-winning and controversially banned French film by Jacques Rivette, which is getting a restored re-release this month. The film follows Suzanne (Anna Karina), forced into life as a nun due to the circumstances of her birth, and facing countless abuses at the hands of the religious institution.

The Nun will be available for the first time in the UK on DVD and Blu-ray on September 17th, released by StudioCanal.


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ST. GEORGE, Utah, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wilson Electronics, the industry leader in cellular boosting technology, launched the WilsonPro Pro 1000C cloud-enabled cell signal booster system with remote monitoring capabilities today. It is designed to provide enhanced in-building cellular coverage for all large commercial spaces and large homes, including hospitals, hotels, warehouses, offices and more. With the integration of WilsonPro Cloud service, the Pro 1000C is the first WilsonPro cell signal booster to include remote monitoring and notification capabilities.



The Pro 1000C sends status updates to the WilsonPro Cloud every five minutes, resulting in continual monitoring of performance and ability to instantly detect issues for end users. Previously, installers, integrators and end users had to wait until they were on-site to diagnose any cell booster issues. Now users can remotely troubleshoot problems by logging into the WilsonPro Cloud database to instantly view the signal strength of the various boosters theyve installed, as well as how signal strength varies over time. The WilsonPro Cloud also gives users the option to remotely reset the Pro 1000C and turn bands on and off. Users can also set up personalized alerts via email and text message for issues including system failure, change in signal strength, oscillation and more.

The Pro 1000C connects to the WilsonPro Cloud via a secure LTE connection through the outside donor antenna or through a traditional RJ-45 hardwired Ethernet connection. The WilsonPro Cloud comes with an annual subscription plan, which covers the wireless LTE connection and database charges. An internet connection is not required to use the WilsonPro Cloud, ensuring end users personal internet connections stay completely separate and secure.

The WilsonPro Clouds innovative capabilities allow users to remotely monitor the status of the Pro 1000C and troubleshoot any issues that arise, ensuring that their cell signal boosters are performing optimally, even when the users are off-site, said Bruce Lancaster, CEO of Wilson Electronics. Harnessing the power of the cloud, this industry-first solution will revolutionize the way that cell signal boosters are monitored and managed.

Amplifying weak cellular signals, the Pro 1000C provides reliable voice and data coverage, including 4G LTE, to inside spaces where cell signals may not penetrate. It is compatible with all North American cell phone networks, simultaneously boosting all carrier signals at the same time.

The Pro 1000C features a full-color display which indicates the gain and power levels of each band for easy antenna setup. With eXtended Dynamic Range (XDR) technology built in, the amplifier will never overload or shut down due to changes in outdoor signals. Like all WilsonPro cellular signal boosters, the Pro 1000C also has cell site protections that auto-detect and prevent any cell tower interference, as well as a best-in-class warranty that protects the product for three years.

We are an integrator in the Midwest with wireless network systems deployed across a large geographical area. The WilsonPro Pro 1000C with remote access provides both us and our clients the peace of mind knowing we can easily access devices in the field for monitoring, notification, and attaining active control of the repeaters, said Vince Zagarri, Owner of Zagarri Engineering. We are very pleased that Wilson Electronics continues to lead the market by investing in the product line and getting feedback from the integrator community when deciding paths to take in product development.

The WilsonPro Pro 1000C is available for purchase through WilsonPro distributors and dealers at wilsonpro.com .

About weBoost and Wilson Electronics, LLC

Wilson Electronics, LLC, home of WilsonPro, weBoost, and zBoost, is a leader in wireless communications infrastructure, dedicated to delivering access to communications for everyone, everywhere. The company has designed and manufactured cell phone signal boosters, antennas and related components for more than 20 years. Each booster is designed to boost signal from carrier networks, significantly improving cellular coverage in homes, workplaces and vehicles. The booster designs also come equipped with patented technology to protect carrier networks from antenna oscillation, or feedback, and signal overload. All Wilson Electronics products are designed, assembled and tested in the U.S.A. For more information, visit https://www.wilsonelectronics.com/ .

Contacts

CommStrat

Jessica Cheney, CommStrat for Wilson Electronics

T. 419.350.4614

jessica@commstrat.com
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IRVINE, CA, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NEWMEDIAWIRE  Cannabis Science, Inc. (OTC: CBIS ), a U.S. company specializing in the development of cannabinoid-based medicines, is pleased to announce the launch of the Companys new corporate advisory structure and appoints new leadership for its Scientific Advisory and International Government Affairs Advisory Boards. Dr. Julius Garvey, a renowned vascular surgeon, has been named President of CBIS Scientific Advisory Board, and Mr. Jacques Walker, an experienced entrepreneur, has been named President of the Companys International Government Affairs Advisory Board. Members of the two Corporate Advisory Boards will be announced shortly.



Dr. Garvey will lead the Scientific Advisory Boards efforts to provide CBIS with guidance on the Companys research and development activities, clinical trials, and technical collaborations in the markets where CBIS operates. Mr. Walker and members of the International Government Affairs Board will primarily focus on advising CBIS on its initiatives and collaborations with government entities, the general public and private-sector stakeholders worldwide.

This is an exciting time for Cannabis Science, stated Mr. Raymond C. Dabney, CBIS President, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and Co-Founder. Our research and development initiatives are well underway and are showing tremendous potential, and we also have a number of opportunities for growth through acquisitions and strategic partnerships. Its time for the Company to better align our advisory boards in support of our corporate objectives and take advantage of the many talented people we have access to. Dr. Garvey has been involved with CBIS since 2015 and Mr. Walker since 2016. They both understand our business and should provide the leadership our advisory boards need as we move forward.

Dr. Garvey joined Cannabis Sciences Scientific Advisory Board in 2015, and worked closely with the Companys former Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Allen Herman. Tragically, Dr. Herman died after a brief illness in August. Over the last three years, Dr. Garvey has played an important role in support of the Companys activities. Dr. Garvey has championed the Companys initiatives and has provided CBIS with access to his extensive medical network in the U.S., Jamaica, and Africa. Dr. Garvey was a member of the CBIS delegation that visited Namibia and South Africa in 2016 to explore new business opportunities, and has subsequently visited CBIS project sites and collaborators in South Africa where CBIS is currently developing an initiative to cultivate, manufacture, and produce medical marijuana products. He also has participated in  and presented  at conferences on behalf of CBIS at Harvard Medical School and at the Constituency for Africas (CFA) annual Ronald H. Brown African Affairs Series in Washington, DC. CFA is one of the premier education and advocacy organizations focused on building support for Africa in the United States and throughout the African Diaspora. CBIS President, CEO, and Co-founder, Mr. Dabney, serves as a Member of CFAs Board of Directors and Co-Chair of CFAs African Healthcare Infrastructure Committee.

Julius Garvey, M.D., F.A.C.S, F.R.C.S.(C), F.I.C.S., F.A.C.Ph., F.A.C.C.W.S. is a Board-Certified surgeon specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of vascular diseases. Dr. Garvey is the son of the late Marcus Garvey, founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League, and an early proponent for civil rights and Pan-Africanism.

As the founder and Medical Director of Garvey Vascular Specialists, Dr. Garvey brings a wealth of experience and knowledge into his practice. His skill and proficiency provide his patients with an extensive range of expertise in the areas of arterial and venous diseases. Dr. Garvey, a highly trained and credentialed surgeon, has held extensive academic appointments. He has worked as an Associate and Assistant Professor of Surgery at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx NY, Assistant Professor of Surgery, State University of NY at Stony Brook, NY, as well as Instructor in Surgery at both Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, NY and Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons, NY. Additionally, his hospital appointments are expansive. He has been an Attending Cardiothoracic Surgeon at Harlem Hospital Center in NY, NY and Montefiore Hospital in Bronx, NY, Associate Attending Head of Thoracic Surgery at the Montefiore Morrisania Affiliate in Bronx, NY, and Acting Program Director in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park, NY. He was also Chief of Vascular & Thoracic Surgery at Queens Hospital Center and is presently an attending surgeon on staff of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center.

Dr. Garvey is both nationally and internationally recognized for his contributions to medicine and speaks, teaches and presents clinical research at conferences across the country. He is a Member of the International College of Angiology, the Phlebology Society of America, the NY Academy of Sciences, the American Heart Association, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, the Association for Academic Surgery, the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care, and the NY Society of Thoracic Surgery.

Dr. Garvey is a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons (Canada), the American College of Surgeons, The American College of Phlebology, the International College of Surgeons, and the American College of Chest Physicians. In addition, he is a Diplomate of the Board of Cardiothoracic & Vascular Surgery, the American Board of Surgery, and the American Academy of Wound Management.

Mr. Jacques Walker joined Cannabis Sciences International Government Affairs Board in 2016. In that year, Mr. Walker helped organize and coordinate the Companys visit to Namibia and South Africa, working closely with other Advisory Board Members, including Mr. Melvin Foote, President & CEO of CFA. Mr. Walker, Mr. Foote, and Dr. Herman assisted the Company with high-level meetings with government and private-sector leaders, and established a framework for the Companys drug-development initiative in Africa which includes research, development, education, and training activities. More recently, Mr. Walker has supported the efforts of the Company and its partners in engaging government regulators in South Africa, as well as in working with research collaborators in the U.S. and Africa.

As an entrepreneur, Mr. Jacques Walker has over 20 years of experience successfully developing, managing, and executing commercial initiatives in the United States and countries worldwide. During his professional career, Mr. Walker has focused his international work in emerging markets, with particular experience in over 15 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. As an entrepreneur and management consultant, Mr. Walker has founded companies, as well as provided his clients with market analysis, economic analysis, risk analysis, and business development services. His clients have included the worlds largest oil & gas engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor, one of the worlds largest project management/infrastructure development firms, and CFA.

Mr. Walker has extensive experience managing companies with commercial and government contract portfolios, and has a deep understanding of the public and private sectors. In addition to work in the pharmaceutical, technology, and other sectors, Mr. Walker previously co-founded an international energy company that provides its clients with operational energy solutions in three primary areas  Oil & Gas, Power & Utilities, and Energy Security. In this role, Mr. Walker helped shape overall company strategy, managed operations, and led the Companys Oil & Gas and Power & Utilities Business Units. For the Companys Power & Utilities Business Unit, he led the firms efforts to win two major Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracts with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as part of a major, $4.1 billion program. This energy company was one of only a handful of Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB) and minorityowned enterprises to be awarded more than one prime contract by the Corps of Engineers.

Cannabis Sciences primary objective is to research and develop U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved, cannabinoid-based medicine to fight a number of targeted critical ailments, including various Cancers, Neurological Conditions, PTSD, Sleep Deprivation, Chronic Pain, HIV/AIDS, Autism, Parkinsons Disease, Epilepsy, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), and others. CBIS and its collaborators are well underway on a number of research projects targeting Lung Cancer, Pancreatic Cancer, Chronic Pelvic Pain, and Oro-bucco-lingual Dyskinesias.

To help accomplish this, Cannabis Science recently launched the Cannabis Science Global Consortium as a framework and platform to cooperate and collaborate with stakeholders worldwide. The Cannabis Science Global Consortium links universities, foundations, corporations, and individuals to share research, ideas, and other relevant information, as well as to implement a cutting-edge research program to develop medicines and delivery mechanisms from bench-to-bedside.

About Cannabis Science, Inc.



Cannabis Science, Inc. takes advantage of its unique understanding of metabolic processes to provide novel treatment approaches to a number of illnesses for which current treatments and understanding remain unsatisfactory. Cannabinoids have an extensive history dating back thousands of years, and currently, there are a growing number of peer-reviewed scientific publications that document the underlying biochemical pathways that cannabinoids modulate. The Company works with leading experts in drug development, the characterization of medicines, and clinical research to develop, produce, and commercialize novel therapeutic approaches for the treatment for illnesses caused by infections as well as for age-related illness. Our initial focus is on cancers, HIV/AIDS, and neurological conditions. The Company is proceeding with the research and development of its proprietary drugs as a part of this initial focus: CS-S/BCC-1, CS-TATI-1, and CS-NEURO-1, respectively.

Forward-Looking Statements



This Press Release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934. A statement containing words such as "anticipate," "seek," intend," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "project," "plan," or similar phrases may be deemed "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Some or all of the events or results anticipated by these forward-looking statements may not occur. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include the future U.S. and global economies, the impact of competition, and the Company's reliance on existing regulations regarding the use and development of cannabis-based drugs. Cannabis Science, Inc., does not undertake any duty nor does it intend to update the results of these forward-looking statements. Safe Harbor Statement. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a 'safe harbor' for forward looking statements. Certain of the statements contained herein, which are not historical facts are forward looking statements with respect to events, the occurrence of which involved risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements may be impacted, either positively or negatively, by various factors. Information concerning potential factors that could affect the company is detailed from time to time in the company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.




MONTREAL, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Auxico Resources Canada Inc. (CSE: AUAG) is pleased to announce sampling results from a recent campaign carried out over some selected areas on Auxicos 100% owned Zamora Silver-Gold Property (Zamora) in Mexico, which confirm the high-grade nature of the silver and gold mineralization.



Sample number 842 was channeled in the volcanic breccia over a width of 80cm and returned a very high-grade result of 4.027 kg/t Silver and 29.2 g/t Gold. This sample is located in the La Franca title, which is an area of 12 hectares in the northeast part of the Zamora Silver-Gold Property, and within the Campanillas claim. Zamora has a surface expression of 3,376.63 hectares. Auxico does not hold title to La Franca, however, La Franca is located 600 metres south-west of the Campanillas mine, form which samples assayed as high as 14.6 kg/t Silver and 15 g/t Gold. The structure can be followed for some 600m along strike with the Campanillas Mine which is indicated by numerous workings between the two historic mines, La Franca and Campanillas.

Sample Number

Claim Area of Interest Sample Type Width (m) Gold (g/t) Silver (g/t) 842 La Franca Stope, 80m from property boundary channel 0.80 29.20 4027.00 852 Zamora Chico Pico channel 1.60 0.06 164.90 853 Zamora Chico Pico channel 2.20 0.07 85.70 858 Zamora Aguamas channel 0.65 6.38 23.40 859 Zamora Aguamas channel 0.70 14.70 34.30 861 Zamora Aguamas channel 0.50 3.55 108.70 862 Zamora Aguamas channel 1.60 6.64 220.00 sample 842 was taken on the La Franca Claim which is not part of the Zamora Silver-Gold Property



The breccia, which was sampled at La Franca, is characterized by stockwork veins containing galena, sphalerite, possible silver sulphosalts, malachite, and chalcopyrite. Sample no. 842, as provided in the table above was selected at the end of stope, which appears to be located only 80m from the boundary with the Campanillas claim, which is part of Zamora. Previous sampling of La Franca returned 1.717 kg/t Silver and 12.96 g/t Gold from a grab sample in the same location at La Franca. Of five samples taken over various widths at Aguamas, four returned very good gold grades, the best of which was taken over a width of 70cm outside the Aguamas 1 portal, which returned 14.70 g/t Gold and 34.30 g/t Silver. The Aguamas samples were all taken from two areas. Chico Pico, a showing in the extreme northeast part of the property, returned some interesting silver grades. Of the 24 samples taken, only the best results are provided in the above table.



Resignation of Salvador Brouwer from the Board of Directors



Auxico would also like to inform shareholders that Salvador Brouwer has resigned from the board of directors, for personal reasons. The board and management of Auxico would like to thank Salvador for his contributions as a director and wish him well in his future endeavours.

Additional information on Auxico can be found on the Companys website ( www.auxicoresources.com ) or on SEDAR ( www.sedar.com ) under Auxico Resources Canada Inc.

Technical information on the Zamora Property can be found in the Companys Technical Report, dated August 16, 2017 (amended) and written by Joel Scodnick, P.Geo., QP, and independent consultant to the Company.

Qualified Person

This news release was reviewed and approved by Joel Scodnick, P.Geo., an independent consultant to Auxico, in his capacity as a Qualified Person, as defined by National Instrument 43-101.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

 signed 

Mark Billings

President, Auxico Resources Canada Inc.

mb@auxicoresources.com

Cell: +1 514 296 1641

About Auxico Resources Canada Inc.

Auxico Resources Canada Inc. (Auxico) is a Canadian company that was founded in 2014 and based in Montreal. Auxico is engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of mineral properties in Mexico. The Company has a 100% interest in the Zamora Silver-Gold Property in Sinaloa, Mexico. Auxico will continue to identify and potentially acquire additional property interests and conduct exploration and evaluation of these properties to assess their potential.

The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or the accuracy of the contents of this release.

To view the map associated with this press release, please visit the following link: http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/61c6b276-154d-46b5-b81b-8d319c3bd145
City_news

featured

Suburban exclusive: Quebec in process of changing French-only highway signs to pictograms: Fortin

Joel Goldenberg / Photo courtesy Harold Staviss From left, DArcy McGee MNA David Birnbaum, Hampstead lawyer Harold Staviss, CSL councillor Ruth Kovac and Transport Minister Andre Fortin at a recent meeting.

Transports Quebec is in the process of changing French-only directive highway signs to pictograms, and will gradually also do so on electronic message boards, provincial Transport Minister Andre Fortin told The Suburban Saturday.

The changeover is coming about following a 7,000-name National Assembly petition, created by Hampstead lawyer Harold Staviss and Cote St. Luc councillor Ruth Kovac and sponsored by DArcy McGee MNA David Birnbaum, which sought bilingual traffic signage dealing with health and public safety. Last year, we reported that Transports Quebec committed to more and better pictograms.

Fortin praised the petition, and pointed out that he recently met with Staviss and Kovac along with Birnbaum.

In terms of using more pictograms and to make sure highway signs are understood by everybody who uses the roads, theres a couple of things we have developed, Fortin said. Its important to know that we already use more pictograms on Quebec roads than anywhere else in Canada, but obviously we can go further.

Some examples already addressed include signs indicating thaw following the winter season, and uneven pavement.

And there are others that are in the course of being replaced, Fortin said, including some addressed in the petition such as incident voie droite bloquee (right lane blocked because of incident) and risque daquaplanage (risk of hydroplaning). So to make our roads safer and make sure everyone understands the warnings, we are moving to using more pictograms.

Another aspect of the petition was electronic message boards warning of accidents and incidents, and providing directives.

A lot of them are first-generation message boards and they dont necessarily allow for the use of pictograms, Fortin explained. With the newer boards, the technology is better and it enables us to use less words and more pictograms. Were changing a lot of these message boards right now to use more pictograms.

The Minister also pointed out that, as the petition addressed, sometimes there are too many words on the message boards, and we agree with that.

We certainly dont want our message boards to be an added distraction to drivers, so weve already given a directive to the various regional sections of the ministry to leave the boards blank if theres no particular information of value.

Staviss and Kovac were very happy.

We are ecstatic with the news that the traffic signage and message boards on Quebec roads dealing with health and public safety are in the midst of being replaced by symbols or pictographs, they said in an e-mail to The Suburban. It is welcoming to know that such public safety signage as Degel shall be replaced by pictographs, which most certainly will be more clearly understood by motorists using our Quebec roads.

As we have said since the launching of our petition in early December 2016, the change has nothing to do with language, it has all to do with everyones health and safety, they added. Kudos and many thanks to David Birnbaum, the MNA for the riding of DArcy McGee who deposited our petition in the Quebec National Assembly on March 14, 2017, to Andre Fortin, our Minister of Transport and the MNA for the riding of Pontiac for considering and implementing our petition and someone who gets it, as well as to Elisabeth Prass (Bureau Chief and Political Attache to Birnbaum) and Caroline Des Rosiers (Press Secretary/Attache responsible for the file and Political Advisor) for their input. It goes without saying that we are excited and overjoyed that our petition really made a difference. It sometimes pays to stand up for what one truly believes will make a positive change.

Birnbaum praised Staviss and Kovac, and those who signed the petition, which I was pleased to present in the National Assembly. And, frankly, I commend The Suburban for having kept this issue in the news.

Im really encouraged that my colleague, Minister Fortin, has taken concrete and prompt action to respond. Were talking safety and security, for all Quebecers and for all visitors to the province. Andre has spelled out specific measures to replace unilingual wording with easily understandable pictograms on key road and traffic signs and on electronic billboards. Furthermore, hes given instructions to have those changes implemented promptly.
Laval_news

featured

Laval Council erupts!

Joel Ceausu / By Joel Ceausu The Suburban Davis Decotis and dissident councillors: When we left in June, the message was lets negotiate...he went out of his way tonight to declare war.

Tempers flared more than at anytime in recent memory at Laval city council , as deputy mayor David De Cotis called Mayor Marc Demers a habitual liar. Youre a liar! he roared from across the chamber as speaker Christiane Yoakim threatened De Cotis with being escorted out of the room. Youre a despicable liar.

De Cotis was reacting to Demers contention that he mismanaged the STL as justification for removing the renegade city council faction leader from his presidency of the board of the Societe de transport de Laval.

De Cotis led dissident Mouvement Lavallois councillors away from Mayor Demers in June, citing anti-democratic gestures and control by the mayors political staff over council decisions. Demers convinced three of them to return, giving the mayor back the majority and ability to undo the first move made by the dissident group, namely appointing De Cotis back to the top spot of the STL where he reigned for the first mandate, and the naming of Vimont councillor Michel Poissant to the chair of the audit committee.

Both were divested tonight and replaced by first-time councillors Eric Morasse at the helm of the STL and Yannick Langlois as chair of the audit committee. Demers said the move was necessary because naming the audit chair in Laval was the mayors role, not the council which happened in June when De Cotis and his faction took temporary control. Then he accused De Cotis of irresponsibly cancelling a contract and not adding new board members in a swift manner as evidence he could not competently continue as chair of the transit corporation.

An enraged De Cotis said he was asked by the mayors chief of staff earlier in the day if he would make a scene about being removed from the post. I told him I wouldnt, but what you are now saying is untrue. He lambasted Demers, explaining that the contract in question would have cost Laval citizens millions of dollars unnecessarily and that the decision to cancel rests with the entire board. Its undignified of a mayor to accuse me of such things he said, defending his record managing millions in transport projects for Bombardier and Via Rail. To accuse me with falsities? Shame on you!

De Cotis then raised his voice again: Mr. Mayor you are a habitual lair, a despicable liar! he shouted as speaker Christiane Yoakim slammed her gavel on the table. I wont stop he yelled defiantly. Mr. Mayor youre a liar. How dare you!

The vote was tied, owing to Aline Dib, recently returned to the mayors caucus from the De Cotis faction, leaving the room, and another returning member Sandra El-Helou voting against Demers, to the visible shock of some colleagues. I wasnt convinced that the explanation Mr. Demers gave council or in caucus were worthy of replacing Mr. De Cotis she told The Suburban. For the four years he was president the STL evolved in an excellent fashion.

The vote was broken by Yoakim who voted along side her party. Demers now holds a majority of 13 councillors including Yoakim, who shed impartiality this summer with her absence from a meeting following the caucus split, denying dissident members quorum and the ability to progress on any matters. The opposition now counts the seven-member De Cotis faction, one independent and one official opposition councillor.

Chomedey councillor Aglaia Revelakis called the mayors move musical chairs that were undignified and unworthy of a mayor. Official opposition councillor Claude Larochelle called the move to replace Poissant, a seasoned and experienced accountant and institutional manager with Langlois, a first-time councillor and small business operator as head of Lavals audit committee, a foolish one.

This has nothing to do with Mr. Langlois ability, he said. But in every city in Quebec that is governed by the Cities and Towns Act, council names members of the audit committee; here in Laval, power remains in the hands of the mayor and the executive committee. Its a bad decision and bad management. Once again the mayor of Laval has been very poorly advised particularly with this slandering of Mr. De Cotis.

When I learned they were going to vote to replace me I wasnt bitter, De Cotis told The Suburban. Thats politics; he has his majority, its payback, Im a big boy and I accept it. But then it went too far said the founder of Mouvement Lavallois. He is just full of lies trying to make this look like anything but revenge. To attack my integrity and competence? Thats where he crossed the line.

When we left in June the message was lets negotiate but he went out of his way tonight to declare war.
What to Expect From The Leaders In The First Debate


remaining of

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HOUSTON, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- We are happy to announce that today Era Group and Bel Air Aviation have entered into a teaming agreement.



This new agreement means that the helicopter services offered by both companies will be further strengthened through a close cooperation. As the biggest commercial operator of AgustaWestland helicopters worldwide, Era will add fleet and support to the cooperation while Bel Air Aviation will contribute with operational and technical services for customers in Europe and particularly within the North Sea area. With the combined strengths and expertise of the two companies, we will be able to offer even better helicopter services to our customers with high flexibility, a very strong helicopter capacity and a reinforced base ensuring high expertise and knowhow within the helicopter industry.

Chris Bradshaw, President and Chief Executive Officer at Era Group

We are excited to announce this new commercial partnership with Bel Air Aviation, a company that shares Eras core focus on safety and quality. We look forward to working together with Susanne and her team to deliver flexible helicopter fleet solutions to customers in Europe.

Susanne Hessellund, Owner and Managing Director at Bel Air Aviation:

We are really happy and excited that this teaming agreement has been made possible and we are convinced that this collaboration with Chris and the entire Era team will result in even more opportunities and higher flexibility to our customers since both our companies share the same fundamental values and prioritize safety, flexibility and reliability to ensure dedicated and customized service.

About ERA Group

With 70 years of experience, Era is one of the largest helicopter operators in the world and the longest serving helicopter transport provider in the U.S. Eras helicopters are primarily used to transport personnel to, from and between offshore oil and gas production platforms, drilling rigs and other installations. In addition, Eras helicopters are used to perform emergency response services, firefighting, utility, VIP transport and other services.

About Bel Air Aviation:

Bel Air Aviation A/S was established in 1994 and is the only Danish owned offshore helicopter company servicing Oil & Gas and Wind. Bel Air has its main base at Esbjerg Airport and operates offshore flights to oil and gas installations as well as vessels and wind farms in the North Sea, Black sea and Baltic sea.

Bel Air is also AW189 fleet leader and the official Leonardo Helicopters Service Centre for AW139 and AW189 helicopters. Apart from inhouse service of helicopters, our highly skilled Maintenance team can also travel to assist our customers.
From the well-trodden Historic Route and rock-hewn churches of Lalibela to the jawdropping landscapes of the Danakil Depression and Simien Mountains northern Ethiopia packs in some of Africas most incredible sights and experiences. Factor in the rich culture and gastronomy and this under-visited gem, which has been labelled the cradle of humanity, delivers a might wallop of experiential travel opportunities. Heres our look at the regions ten best experiences:

Lalibelas rock churches

Best known for its complex of rock-hewn Mediaeval churches the town of Lalibela is one of the undisputed highlights of Ethiopias northern Historic Circuit.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BXKxZy9hxep/

Most of the complexs 11 rock-hewn churches date from the 12th-century rule of King Lalibela, who sought to build a New Jerusalem there. While entrance costs a weighty US$50pp its a must-see, with highlights including the remarkable Bete Giyorgis, its cruciform-shaped design carved down into the bedrock. You can also hike to historic churches outside the complex such as Yemrehanna Kristos.

Cap the day with a scenic sundowner or meal at the quirky Ben Abeba, overlooking the valley then head to Torpedo Tejbet to sip Ethiopian honey wine, Tej, while enjoying the resident masinko-playing Azmari as he wanders the room conjuring comical songs about the patrons. Great fun.

Aksums Ark

This fascinating city was once centre of the powerful Aksumite Kingdom (circa 100-940 AD), the monumental carved granite monoliths of its Stellae Park a reminder of past glories.

Locals say Aksum was home to the fabled Queen of Sheba and her son, King Menelik I, brought the biblical Ark of the Covenant here from Jerusalem. To this day its said to reside at St. Mary of Zion Church.

While the Ark is kept firmly out of sight you can experience a candlelit procession called Mihla, or Mehelela, where priests carry a replica of the Ark through the streets accompanied by thousands of chanting, white robed devotees. Occuring on the first seven days of each month, according to the Ethiopian calendar, its an incredibly moving experience. Be sure to arrive at Daro Eila square in good time before the procession leaves at around 5am.

Glorious Gondar

Back in the 17th century Emperor Fasil centred his Empire on Gondar and his Fasil Ghebbi, or Royal Enclosure, remains one of the citys key attractions (entrance costs Birr 200pp).

Wandering the enclosure and exploring the buildings makes for a pleasant morning or afternoon while January 19 sees Fasils Pool, a sunken bath in the grounds, become the focal point for Gondars spectacular celebrations for Timkat, the Ethiopian Orthodox equivalent to Epiphany.

Gondar also boasts some impressively frescoed churches such as Debre Birhan Selassie and its a good place to get a feel for the rich culture of the north, from the traditional dress to the music and dance. Try the cultural performances at the Four Sisters restaurant.

Hike the Simiens

Ethiopia is home to around 70 per cent of Africas mountains and the Simien range is one of the most spectacular.

This lofty plateau peppered by peaks, deep gorges and sweeping valleys offers up epic scenery and excellent hiking, whether on multi-day treks with a tour company or short guided hikes from lodges such as the excellent, recently opened Limalimo.

More than 180 bird species call this area home, along with a staggering array of animals, including endemics such as the Gelada baboon, Walia Ibex and Ethiopian wolves  the Worlds most endangered canid. Aim to visit outside the main rainy months of June to August.

Also read Trekking the Bale Mountains

Gheralta Churches

Of the 30 chiselled-out cave churches secreted amongst Gheraltas reddish rocky outcrops and tabletop mountains Abuna Yemata is my clear favourite.

The scramble up to the unassuming entrance of this still functioning church, hidden in a rock pillar some distance above the ground, culminates in a sketchy rope climb up a seven-metre rockface and some precarious shuffling along narrow ledges while local guides offer some well-needed encouragement.

Once inside the exertions are soon forgotten however as the obliging priest hands out candles to better observe the impressive frescoes. Exiting the church the sweeping views over the parched plains bring further reward  until you realise you have to repeat the earlier journey, this time in reverse.

More accessible Gheralta churches include nearby Maryam Korkor.

The Gateway to Hell

From the northern town of Mekele multi-day guided tours strike out for the Danakil Depression, an impressively infernal slice of volcanic badlands.

Much of the Danakils striking landscape lies more than 100 metres below sea level and the region regularly records some of the Worlds hottest temperatures.

With its baked saltscapes, sulphur lakes and volcanos such as Erta Ale, whose crater nurtures a constant lake of lava, locals have dubbed the region the gateway to Hell. Conditions on tours are less than luxurious too but dont let that put you off as the experience is unparalleled.

Fall for Lake Tana

Laidback Lake Tana, Ethiopias largest lake and source of the Blue Nile, makes for a relaxing extension to an Historic Circuit tour.

Fishermen in traditional papyrus boats ply Tanas waters while boat tours take in the many islands with their hidden thatched monasteries, known for their elaborate paintings and murals. As elsewhere in the country, however, many monasteries will not admit female visitors.

The surrounding Tana Basin is perfect for exploring on foot, tour or by hire bike. If aiming to visit the nearby Blue Nile Falls set your alarm for August and September when their cascades truly come into their own, swollen by the rainy season.

Harar: poets, qat & hyenas

Out east towards Somalia the fascinating walled Muslim settlement of Harar makes a nice counterpoint to the Orthodox north.

Many call Harars insanely Instragrammable old town, established more than a thousand years ago, a living museum although its inner tangle of streets, courtyard houses and mosques pulsates with life, the colourful vibrancy of the walls and spice market surpassed only by the striking outfits of the local female vendors.

Theres an interesting museum dedicated to the life of the French poet Arthur Rimbaud, a former resident (entrance Birr 50), while nightfall sees many visitors take a tour, taxi or tuk tuk to watch the nightly feeding of the local hyena. You can also help the hyena man feed the skittish beasts by proffering chunks of fresh meat draped on a short stick, although opting to clench said stick betwixt your teeth, as he sometimes does, wont be for everyone.

Eat injera

Want to eat like a local? Then get your mitts on some injera. The spongy, slightly sour tasting flatbread, made of teff flour, makes a showing at most meals accompanied by one or more type of wat such as shiro wat (a stew of chickpeas, beans or lentils).

Hearty specials see injera served with a selection of both wat and tibs  small piles of sauteed meat or veg  with the diner tearing off sections of injera to scoop up the goodies. Injera even does a star turn at breakfast in fir fir where chopped up rolls of the stuff are added to stew and then served on (you guessed it) another injera.

Classic Ethiopian ingredients include clarified butter (niter kibbeh) and berbere, a mix of chilli and spices, while other popular dishes include kitfo. This dish of raw or slightly warmed minced beef with spices and clarified butter is typically served with injera or the thicker flatbread, kocho, accompanied by ayib cheese.

Drink local

The coffee ceremony forms one of the pillars of Ethiopian culture. Seated sellers roast the beans over a fire or stove before brewing up in jebanna clay pots and serving in teeny cups, typically accompanied by a tasty side snack of kollo grains or popcorn.

Trying Tej  a fermented sweet or dry honey wine served up at Tejbet (Tej houses) and the cultural nights held by establishments such as Yod Abyssinia in Addis Ababa  is a popular option. Then there are the great beers such as Habesha and local wines made by Awash and French firm Castel, with its Rift Valley and Acacia brands.

More acquired tastes worth a try include Araqe, the clear local firewater, and Tella, an unrefined beer-like homebrew made from millet or sorghum served in makeshift bars called Tellabet.

Fact File

FLY: Ethiopian Airlines domestic network links Historic Route centres such as Gondar (or Gonder), Lalibela and Aksum with the capital Addis Ababa. The Simien Mountains National Park is a 70-mile drive from Gondar Airport while Mekele Airport is the jumping off point for both the cave churches of Gheralta and tours of the Danakil Depression.

For Lake Tana fly to Bahir Dar while Harar is a 90-minute drive from Dire Dawa, which has an airport and is a stop on the new Chinese-built railway linking Addis Ababas Furi-Lebu station to Djibouti.
Hurricanes Florence and Isaac are blighting the US and the Caribbean. Hurricane Isaac is expected to hit several islands in the Caribbean shortly and British Airways is allowing customers due to travel to Antigua, the Dominican Republic, Providenciales, St Kitts, St Lucia or the Port of Spain up to Friday the chance to postpone their trips up to Monday September 17.

The storm is also likely to bring torrential rain and high winds to Barbados, St Vincent, the Grenadines and Dominica.

At the same time the fearsome Hurricane Florence, already at Category 4 strength is heading to the US east coast, and a million people are to be evacuated from Carolina, Georiga and Virgina.

BA is allowing passengers due to travel to Washington Dulles or Baltimore up until Sunday to change their booking and travel on a later date up to and including Wednesday September 19.

Virgin Atlantic said flights in the US operated by its partner airline Delta might be affected by the storm and suggested passengers should contact the airline to check the status of their flights.

The airline is also giving customers due to travel to a number of airports along the US east coast up to September 16 the option to re-book flights for departures up to September 20.

American Airlines is allowing passengers to reschedule flights to more than 30 airports, although it said it had not cancelled any services at this stage.

The American Integrated Operations Center (IOC) in Fort Worth, Texas, continues to closely monitor the track of these storms, and is closely coordinating with the National Weather Service, Federal Aviation Administration and local airports.

The Foreign Office said Dominica has issued a Hurricane Watch and Antigua and Barbuda have issued a Tropical Storm Watch, meaning that the islands could be hit within the next 48 hours. It said:
English Lithuanian

On 12 September 2018 Lithuanias natural gas transmission system operator, AB Amber Grid (hereinafter referred to as the Company), concluded an agreement with the subsidiary company, UAB GET Baltic, company code 302861178, address Savanoriu av. 28, LT-03116, Vilnius, company data stored at the Register of Legal Entities of the Republic of Lithuania (hereinafter referred to as the Amendment on the amendment of 30 March 2017 loan agreement (hereinafter referred to as the "Agreement") .

The Amendment changes amount of the loan stipulated in the Agreement  increasing it by 500 000 EUR up to 700 000 EUR. This transaction will not affect the Company's bottom line.

UAB EPSO-G audit committee, acting as audit committee of the Company, issued and opinion whereby the transaction is in compliance with the market conditions and is fair and justified in respect of all of the shareholders of the Company.

On 21 August 2018 Board of the Company approved conclusion of the Amendment with UAB GET Baltic.

The individual authorised by AB Amber Grid (the issuer) to provide additional information on the material event:

Dovile Jukneviciute

Lawyer

tel. +370 5 236 0314

fax +370 5 236 0850

e-mail: d.jukneviciute@ambergrid.lt
PIGGS PEAK  Over 800 teachers under the Piggs Peak SNAT branch failed to attend classes yesterday.

SNAT is the Swaziland National Association of Teachers. The Piggs Peak branch comprises schools under Mayiwane, Piggs Peak and Ntfonjeni constituencies. Throngs of the teachers from various schools gathered at Ngonini, where the meeting was held, to discuss a way forward about the Cost of Living Adjustment (CoLA), which was being discussed countrywide. The hall at Ngonini could not accommodate all the teachers as a result most of them remained outside listening through the Public Address (PA) system, which had been set up. According to Gcebile Dlamini, who is the National Coordinator for SNAT, between 800 to 1 000 teachers attended the meeting. He said the aim of the meeting was to remind the teachers about the voting session, which is supposed to take place tomorrow.

Dlamini said the aim of the voting was to decide whether the strike scheduled for September 19, 2018 should go ahead or not. The teachers were from surrounding schools such as Mhlatane High, Peak Central High, Mlumati Primary, Mayiwane High, Ntfonjeni, Maguga and many other schools. Also among the teachers was Celucolo Dino Dlamini, who has been the chairperson of the Piggs Peak SNAT branch since 2010 until 2018. Dlamini was elected as the Deputy President for the teachers association. He commended the teachers for supporting him throughout his tenure as the chairperson. Meanwhile, as much as they wanted to attend the meeting and join thousands of fellow educators, teachers at Piggs Peak Central Primary School could not make it. Sive Nkambule, the head teacher at the school, revealed that the teachers had not attended the meeting due to lack of funds.

Nkambule said for this reason, lessons continued as normal. However, about eight of teachers of Peak Central High School managed to attend the meeting. Head teacher at the school Swebhu Mncina revealed that about eight teachers attended. When asked if lessons were disrupted, he responded to the negative.
SIPHOCOSINI  The Siphocosini electorate could not believe their ears when told that one of them would win a Toyota Rav4 should they elect Mduduzi Matsebula as MP.

There were deafening screams when Matsebula, a Senior Customs Officer at the Swaziland Revenue Authority (SRA), told Siphocosini residents that one of them would walk away with the vehicle valued at E85 000. The vehicle was parked near the gate where the campaign rally was held at Siphocosini High School and he encouraged all present to go and view it.

Interviewed after the organised campaign which was hosted by the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) Matsebula encouraged the Siphocosini electorate to keep their voter cards after the Secondary Elections. Should I win, then we will hold a raffle draw, and therefore they should keep their cards, said Matsebula. He promised that as soon as he was sworn in as an MP, then the raffle draw would be conducted.

Meanwhile, when wooing the voters, Matsebula, who is from Luhlendlweni Chiefdom, said his vision was driven by Section 59 of the Eswatini Constitution, which calls for economic stability for all. He stated that the section also spoke of the State taking appropriate measures to promote the development of the agriculture industry. In this regard, he said as a farmer, if elected, he would propose a law which called on zero rated tax on farm inputs. Matsebula said in that manner, the country would have food security which was in line with Vision 2022 of having food stability. He said as a farmer, he knew of the pain of waiting for a tractor which had been paid for to plough fields, only for it to arrive in December when the farming season had passed. However, one of the voters wanted to know what guarantee they would have that he could tackle some of the tax issues when he was failing to do it from within SRA.

I am not here as the Commissioner General Dumisani Masilela, but here in my own capacity, said Matsebula. He said it was clear that some of the voters needed to be educated on tax laws. These laws were passed by Parliament and as an officer, I am just one of those implementing the laws, he said. Matsebula said it was all the more reason for him to be elected MP, because he knew how the tax laws worked after having worked as a customs officer for about 17 years. Reading from a tablet, Matsebula further informed the electorate that he wanted to help women who were involved in schemes to buy in bulk.


MADISON, CONN., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ad watchdog truthinadvertising.org (TINA.org) has filed a deceptive advertising complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Texas Attorney General against Stream Gas & Electric, Ltd., a Texas-based energy reseller and multi-level marketing company. TINA.org investigated Stream and found that the company and its distributors are engaged in a deceptive marketing campaign, using a plethora of deceptive, atypical, and unsubstantiated income claims to market the Stream business opportunity.



TINA.org collected more than 120 deceptive income claims made by the company and its distributors including claims of participants quitting their jobs, becoming stay-at-home parents, paying for their kids college tuitions without incurring debt, traveling the world, and driving luxury vehicles, among other things.



However, the vast majority of Stream distributors do not earn anywhere close to the amount of money that would support such lifestyles or allow them to get out of debt and onto the path toward financial freedom as many testimonials claim. In fact, according to Streams own 2017 Income Disclosure Statement, the average distributor lost money last year by enrolling in Stream's business opportunity.



Streams use of exaggerated income claims to promote its business opportunity results in real harm for consumers, said TINA.org Executive Director Bonnie Patten. TINA.org calls on regulators to put an end to Streams deceptive marketing practices once and for all.



In its Business Guidance Concerning Multi-Level Marketing published in January, the FTC specifically warns MLM companies about the use of deceptive income representations to recruit participants. Just one month later, the FTC took action against the MLM Digital Altitude for employing deceptive income claims to lure consumers to the business.



TINA.org initially collected a sampling of inappropriate income claims by the company and its distributors as part of a larger investigation in 2017 into the deceptive recruitment practices of the MLM industry as a whole. This investigation found that more than 97 percent of member companies of the industrys trade group, the Direct Selling Association (DSA), engaged in misleading marketing schemes that peddled false and unsubstantiated earnings claims trying to convince prospective distributors to join their MLM network.



To read more about TINA.orgs investigation of Stream Energys deceptive income claims, see: www.truthinadvertising.org/tina-org-complaint-throws-water-on-streams-income-claims/
MANZINI  A well-known male member of the royal family and his friend are accused of allegedly kidnapping, drugging and raping a teenage UNESWA student.

The prince in question is a son to one of the late senior princes and his alleged accomplice is a classmate of the complainant. The prince and his friend will not be named for now as they have not made a court appearance. According to a source close to the matter, the 19-year-old University of Eswatini (UNISWA) student was allegedly kidnapped by the duo while she was enjoying proceedings of an opening bash which was held at Kwaluseni Campus from Friday night to Saturday morning. The source alleged that while the student was enjoying herself at round 3am on Saturday, one of her male classmates allegedly told her that there was umntfwanenkhosi (a prince) outside who wanted to get to know her. Without any suspicions, the source alleged that the teenage girl went with her classmate to where the prince was within the university campus.

When she got to the princes vehicle, her classmate asked her to get into the front passenger seat. Her classmate was quick to say they all had to rush somewhere as he had to pick someone from a certain location. The prince introduced himself to the teenage girl and within a short period of time, her classmate vanished and when he returned, he further begged that they leave the university and head to the unknown destination. He assured her that they would return soon, the source alleged. It was also gathered that before the teenage girl could even agree to the unplanned trip, the prince allegedly locked his vehicle and drove off while the teenager made unsuccessful attempts to open the door. Along the way, they offered her an energy drink which she refused to take. However, after they had persuaded her to at least take one sip of the drink, she eventually agreed.

After drinking the energiser, the teenage girl started feeling disoriented. Even though she could not remember events leading to the incident, she recalled being assisted by the prince and her classmate to alight from the car and get into a room in one of the guest houses situated in the outskirts of the city of Manzini, the source alleged. When questioned after the alleged rape incident, the university student is said to have told the police that she remembered being allegedly raped by both the prince and her classmate at the guest house. The prince first had sexual intercourse with me and my classmate was next. I was a bit sedated and could not even stop them or defend myself.


SEATTLE, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Coinme , a venture-backed crypto financial services and blockchain technology company, today announced the appointment of Chris Roling, a leader in the global financial services industry and a veteran Fortune 500 executive, as the companys new Chief Financial Officer.



With more than thirty years of executive-level experience at public and private companies around the globe, Roling is poised to help Coinme continue its mission to help the world gain access to virtual currency.

"Chris brings wide-ranging experience through his work in a variety of roles with both Fortune 500 companies and high-growth businesses like ours," said Coinme co-founder and CEO Neil Bergquist. "His expertise in global expansion and financial management will be invaluable as Coinme continues to expand its presence and cryptocurrency services throughout the U.S. and Asia.

Roling was most recently a partner at Ernst & Young (EY) in Hong Kong, where he was responsible for mergers & acquisitions advisory services and private equity value creation initiatives across the Asia-Pacific region. Prior to joining EY, Chris has held many executive positions including Partner and Managing Director with Sailing Capital, one of the largest and most influential Chinese venture capital and private equity funds in Hong Kong, CFO of Getty Images, CFO of Aventail, and a regional CFO at the Kellogg Company and PepsiCo.

Cryptocurrency has the ability to transform the way we conduct business and bring new benefits to both the corporate world and the global mainstream public, commented Roling. Coinme is in an ideal position to provide the necessary financial infrastructure to make this a reality, and I look forward to applying my experience to the companys mission and its continued success.

Roling has a BA in International Studies from the University of Washington and an MBA in International Business from the University of South Carolina. He also holds a graduate degree in Middle Eastern Studies from The American University in Cairo.

Roling will succeed Steve Olson, who served as Coinmes CFO since 2014.

About Coinme

Coinme is a crypto financial services and blockchain technology company that is dedicated to helping the world gain access to virtual currency. Four years ago, Coinme became the first licensed Bitcoin ATM company in the U.S. and now processes millions of dollars (USD) each month. The companys vertically integrated network of crypto ATMs, digital wallet, exchange, crypto IRA, and 401k services provide customers the opportunity to join this financial revolution. As a licensed money services business, Coinme is well-positioned to lead the way.

To learn more, visit https://www.coinme.com .
By Azernews





By Kamila Aliyeva

Russia increased imports of tomatoes from Uzbekistan in the first half of this year.

This year Russia has significantly increased imports of tomatoes to about 410,000 tons, which is 17 percent more than in the same period of 2017.

At the same time, Uzbekistan distinguished itself as one of the most significant contributions to the growth of supplies. The country increased the export of fresh tomatoes to Russia by three times during the reporting period.

For the first six months of 2018, as many as 14,500 tons of Uzbek tomatoes reached the Russian market. This amount accounts for about 3.5 percent of total imports of these products to the country. A year earlier, Uzbekistan's share in the supply of tomatoes to the Russian market in the first half of the year was 1.3 percent.

According to East-Fruit analysts, the main advantage of Uzbekistan is the opportunity to supply inexpensive tomatoes from unheated greenhouses covered with film already in May, when the prices for tomato in Russia are still very high. At this time, there is a local tomato from heated greenhouses, as well as greenhouse products from Turkey, Iran, Morocco and Armenia in the Russian market.

It should be noted that, on an equal basis with Uzbekistan, Iran is actively expanding its presence in the Russian market of fresh tomatoes, as the Islamic Republic increased shipments 4.6 times in the reporting period and delivered about 32,200 tons of greenhouse tomatoes to Russia. In fact, according to market participants, the volume of supply of greenhouse tomatoes from Iran is much higher, as part of this product passes the re-export phase through Azerbaijan and already appears in Russia as products from Azerbaijan.

In addition to Azerbaijan and Iran, such countries as China, Morocco, Turkey, Belarus were among the leaders in the export of fresh greenhouse tomatoes to Russia in the first half of 2018. Moreover, the growth of supplies to the Russian market of greenhouse tomatoes from Turkmenistan should also be noted.
I will be going to Frankfurt soon and I am looking into buying a vr headset whilst I am there.



I want to know where I can buy one for a good price and if it is even worth it. I'd prefer to go with windows mixed reality.



Import tax and shipping cost is way too high in my country.
The Cyprus Department of Antiquities, Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works, announces the completion of the 2018 University of Edinburgh archaeological investigations at the multi-period site of Prastio-Mesorotsos in the Pafos district. Excavations were conducted from 27 June to 8 August 2018 under the direction of Dr. Andrew McCarthy, Fellow of the School of History, Classics and Archaeology at the University of Edinburgh. The project involves the cooperation of an international team of specialists and field school students. The site is situated around a prominent rocky outcrop in the Dhiarizos Valley, and commands dramatic views to both the mountains and the sea. Its location in the valley and easy access to abundant natural resources probably had a great deal to do with the sites extraordinary longevity. In the tenth excavation season at the site, the team excavated in four areas, exposing prehistoric remains from the Neolithic, Chalcolithic and the Early and Middle Bronze Ages, as well as the remains of a 19th century house.

In Area V an impressive upstanding structure was uncovered in contexts dating to the Aceramic Neolithic period (c. 6000 BC), representing a very rare find of a built structure from this period. The feature is still enigmatic because of the keyhole exposure, but it appears to be a circular stone structure topped with plaster, resembling circular platforms from Kritou Marottou-Ais Yiorkis, although it could also be a wall of a small building similar to those found at Khirokitia. Above this circular structure were Late (Ceramic) Neolithic deposits that continued in use for several phases. This appears to be an unbroken sequence from the Aceramic into the Ceramic Neolithic period, potentially shedding light on a poorly understood period of Cypriot prehistory.

In Area IV evidence for Early Bronze Age (c. 2000 BC) occupation was located in an extension of a previously excavated roundhouse where excavations revealed a large open bowl with an unusual knobbed interior base sitting directly on the floor. The bowl had been placed into a special setting surrounded by stones within the larger arc of the roundhouse, indicating a place of special significance. The size of the bowl also suggests something other than everyday eating and could indicate feasting activities. This buildings use would have been contemporary with the construction of the famous Vounous Bowl with its complex depiction of a building model and humans and animals within it. In the Bronze Age rectilinear architecture was common, but the fact that this building from Prasteio and the Vounous Bowl are both curvilinear and feature areas of special communal significance provide tantalizing clues as to the nature of each.

Area IV occupational deposit dating to the Early Cypriot Bronze Age, with large bowl found on the floor





The settlement, its architecture and probably lifestyle in general, was significantly reconfigured in the Middle Cypriot period (c.1900 BC). This reconfiguration is accompanied by a massive series of terraces seen in several areas of the site, a new style of rectilinear architecture and new elements of material culture. These changes represent a new trajectory for the village which moved toward growing social stratification and architectural sophistication, culminating eventually in the abandonment of the site towards the end of the period. The final prehistoric activities on the site were investigated in Area XI where the remains are extremely well preserved, in some cases more than 2m in height. This is probably due to the deliberate infilling of the internal spaces during the terracing event. The interior spaces in the well-preserved rooms were excavated this season and on the first terrace a plaster floor with an animal (bull) protome figurine resting on the surface was found. This gives further evidence for the types of activities that took place in this space and for the type of society in the Middle Cypriot period at the site.

Because this site is reported to have been the hideout of the infamous Hassanpoulia gang from the 19th century, the team felt it was important to recover any information that might assist understand the more recent periods of occupation on the site too. A previously identified standing building that was believed to be a 19th or 20th century AD farmhouse was investigated this season and materials were recovered that will help to shed light on the British Colonial period at the site and its unique place in the folk history of the island.
ELMSFORD, N.Y., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Party City Holdco Inc. (NYSE:PRTY), the leading vertically integrated party goods company in North America, announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire a master franchise group representing 21 franchise stores in the Minnesota, North Dakota and Texas markets.



The purchase price of approximately $22.9 million represents a fully synergized multiple of EBITDA of approximately four times. In 2017, this franchise operator reported sales of approximately $33.5 million. Prior to the acquisition, the Companys retail operations included 839 company-owned Party City stores and approximately 118 franchise stores.

Acquiring franchisee locations remains an excellent use of capital and a core component of our retail growth strategy, said James M. Harrison, Chief Executive Officer. Were excited to expand our retail footprint and strengthen our presence in these attractive markets ahead of the important Halloween season.

About Party City

Party City Holdco Inc. is the leading party goods company by revenue in North America and, it believes, the largest vertically integrated supplier of decorated party goods globally by revenue. The Company is a popular one-stop shopping destination for party supplies, balloons, and costumes. In addition to being a great retail brand, the Company is a global, world-class organization that combines state-of-the-art manufacturing and sourcing operations, and sophisticated wholesale operations complemented by a multi-channel retailing strategy and e-commerce retail operations. The Company is the leading player in its category, vertically integrated and unique in its breadth and depth. The Company designs, manufactures, sources and distributes party goods, including paper and plastic tableware, metallic and latex balloons, Halloween and other costumes, accessories, novelties, gifts and stationery throughout the world. The Companys retail operations include approximately 950 specialty retail party supply stores (including franchise stores) throughout North America operating under the names Party City and Halloween City, and e-commerce websites, principally through the domain name PartyCity.com.

Contacts



Investor Relations

ICR

Farah Soi and Rachel Schacter

203-682-8200

InvestorRelations@partycity.com
Set in the context of a black Pentecostal service, Gospel at Colonus is an exuberant re-telling of Ancient Greek Sophocles classic Oedipus at Colonus

The Gospel at Colonus, one of the most powerful, soul-stirring performances in theater history, made a triumphant return to New York, lighting up the Delacorte Theater from September 4 to September 9.

Set in the context of a black Pentecostal service, Gospel at Colonus is an exuberant re-telling of Ancient Greek Sophocles classic Oedipus at Colonus.

The New York Times called it An exhilarating musical celebration.

With the ground-shaking thunder of a gospel revival meeting, this Obie-winning adaptation marked the 2400-year-old myth of Oedipus redemption with a rousing gospel and blues score.

Conceived, adapted and directed by MacArthur Genius Grant winner Lee Breuer, with music composed, arranged and directed by Academy Award nominee Bob Telson, Gospel at Colonus was a special show featuring more than 40 powerhouse voices including gospel legends the Blind Boys of Alabama and the Original Soul Stirrers.

The Gospel at Colonus is the masterpiece of the populist side of Lees work, a brilliant merging of Greek tragedy and biblical traditions and an astonishing meditation on death and life, noted Oskar Eustis, The Publics artistic director.

Gospel at Colonus is made possible by JKW Foundation, the Howard Gilman Foundation, and the American Express Foundation.

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: Lazy Bastards License: CC-BY-SA
Greece is one of the top destinations in the world for Norwegian tourists

Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias met on Monday with his peer in Norway Ine Eriksen S'reide where they the discussed the broadening of ties between the two countries, ANA reports.

According to media sources, the two also talked about developments in the western Balkans, a region which Norway has shown considerable interest in the past, financing initiatives in areas such as justice reforms and strengthening the rule of law.

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
The participation of the USA as the country of honor at the Thessaloniki international fair, underlines the great importance of the relations between our two countries

US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross arrived in the Greek northern city of Thessaloniki on Friday, where he was received by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. Ross will represent the United States at the 83rd Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF), where the USA is the honored nation this year.

In later referring to the meeting, Tsipras' verified international Twitter account said Ross' visit for the trade event "... conveys a strong message, both symbolically but also economically throughout the region. As Greece leaves the crisis behind, it turns more and more, into an anchor of stability development and security in the region... The participation of the USA as the country of honor at the Thessaloniki international fair, underlines the great importance of the relations between our two countries."

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: Rennett Stowe License: CC-BY-SA
Swift will introduce a pre-validation service that will allow customers to detect and resolve errors that delay payment messages before they are dispatched and enable banks to give upfront fee transparency to their end customers.

More than 50% of SWIFT global payments innovation (SWIFT gpi) payments are credited to the beneficiary in less than 30 minutes and many arrive in just a few seconds. A significant part of the remaining messages are delayed due to errors in the payment data such as incorrect or missing beneficiary information, and insufficient regulatory data.

Using secure APIs, predictive analysis and AI, the new gpi capability will pre-validate messages, identifying and flagging potential issues ahead of time, thereby reducing delays, rejections and the return of incorrect payment messages. Customers will be given greater assurance and a hassle free experience from start to finish with the payment originator verifying with the beneficiary bank, ahead of time, that the beneficiary account will be able to receive the funds.

Initial discussions have begun with a range of banks to deliver the pre-validation service which will also provide upfront transparency on fees, based on the exact routing of the payment message. This will give payment originators and beneficiaries complete transparency and predictability on costs, routes and expected delivery of their funds.

Announcing the concept, Swift CEO Gottfried Leibbrandt said: Within the fast-growing gpi community there is strong demand for further transparency and the ability to address issues before payments are made so that they are as predictable and as efficient as possible. This exciting new feature will help address those needs and provide our customers with peace of mind when they send their payment messages.

Harry Newman, head of banking at Swift, said: While currency controls and regulatory approval processes will always cause some delays in the payment process, many payment flows can be sped up by ensuring the correct information is provided upfront  invalid beneficiary information is the first cause of returned or rejected payments. Eliminating these detectable and preventable errors and omissions will make international payments much more efficient.

Onur Ozan, head of Middle East, North Africa and Turkey at Swift, said: The new gpi pre-validation feature is a great addition to our services. This will further support the gpi community in the region and offer customers greater assurance that their payments will go through without any delays. Both payment originators and beneficiaries will experience complete transparency when it comes to predicting fees and expected fund delivery. All in all, the efficiency of the new service will enable Middle Eastern banks to provide a superior service to their customers.

To date, over 220 financial institutions around the world are signed up to Swift gpi, with over $100 billion in Swift gpi payments being sent daily across 600+ international payment corridors  representing over a third of all Swift payments. There are seven banks live on the service in the Middle East including Mashreq Bank, the Commercial Bank of Kuwait, National Commercial Bank, Garanti Bank, Bank al Etihad, Al Baraka Bank and the National Bank of Kuwait, the statement said.  TradeArabia News Service
Dubai Land Department (DLD) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Reed Midem SAS, a France-based provider of international B2B events and exhibitions, to promote the services offered by DLD.



The agreement aims to enhance the trust in Dubais real estate sector through a cooperation between the two parties. The company will use its expertise to promote DLDs services across investors.



Sultan Butti bin Mejren, director general of DLD, commented: We are keen to establish cooperative relations with companies specialised in real estate promotion in major markets around the world. We look forward to attracting more investors to our real estate market, especially as we are witnessing an increasing number of investors in recent years. The French Reed Midem SAS will help highlight the many advantages of Dubai's investment opportunities, allowing us to emphasise Dubai's competitiveness as a world-class environment capable of attracting investments.



Majida Ali Rashid, assistant director general, Head of the Real Estate Investment Management and Promotion Centre, said: We are happy to sign this MoU with Reed Midem SAS, the leading French company in real estate promotion services. With its longstanding experience in this field, it will contribute to increasing the number of French and international investors looking to explore real estate opportunities in Dubai. The Emirate is on the list of options for European investors to buy holiday homes and for long-term investments due to the high return on investments compared to global markets and the sustained rise in real estate prices.



Reed Midem SAS will promote DLDs services and Dubais properties in France through MIPIM, in conjunction with the participation of DLD and its partners from major development companies. In addition, joint workshops and activities will be held with Reed Midem SAS through real estate exhibitions and conferences.  TradeArabia News Service
UAE-based Grandweld Shipyard and Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) recently celebrated the launching of the first crew boat as per an agreement signed last March to build six pilot boats and four crew Boats for KOC.



The remaining nine boats will be delivered in June 2019.



The boat, that has been specially designed to meet the requirements of KOC, has been launched prior to the deadline in accordance to Lloyd's Registers classification rules in order to provide high operational efficiency and safety.



During the launching ceremony of the first boat BAHRA, Jamal Abki, general manager of Grandweld Shipyards said: We are proud to launch the first boat two weeks ahead of schedule, as any delay in providing KOC with the boats needed to meet their customers requirements may significantly affect our leading position and our customers confidence in the quality of our services.



We are now successfully launching the boat, assuring KOC and all our customers that we are committed to execute and deliver our projects as planned and in adherence to the delivery date without compromising the manufacturing quality and the welding power. Our facility has the largest covered shipbuilding area which ensures the power and durability of our vessels as they are protected from exposure to wind during manufacturing, which greatly affects the vessels strength and operational life.



Our Company has developed to become one of the most reputable and specialized companies in the services we offer to the marine sector locally and internationally. We promise our customers to maintain high quality of services. Innovation and creativity are the key pillars that have distinguished us in the market. Accordingly, we constantly develop the designs of our vessels to be multitasking taking into consideration fuel consumption, efficiency and capacity, Abki added.



Sami Al-Sawagh, marine operations manager at KOC commented: KOCs decision to build 10 Pilot and Crew Boats came at the right time, as global markets are witnessing an improvement in oil prices, therefore our fleet expansion will help the company benefit from the next recovery in order to achieve revenues and cope with the increasing demand for energy.



Accordingly, this fleet expansion comes in line with the companys strategic plans to produce 3.65 million barrels of oil per day by 2020. We believe that it will add significant value to the strategic needs of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) plan to cover all maritime operations in Kuwait's oil ports and to ensure that necessary preparations occurred to fight marine oil pollution. Moreover, we are satisfied to deal with Grandweld as they have already built for us four boats over the past few years that are working efficiently with high quality, he added.  TradeArabia News Service
AccorHotels, a world-leading travel & lifestyle group, has appointed Mark Willis as chief executive officer, AccorHotels Middle East and Africa.



Based in Dubai, Willis will be responsible for overseeing a combined network of close to 400 hotels in operation and pipeline across the Middle East and Africa.



A venerated leader with over 30 years of hospitality experience, Willis will be tasked with driving operational excellence through top line performance, quality and guest satisfaction as well as fuelling the regions growth by nurturing a talent pool to reach 50,000 employees by 2021.



Mark has demonstrated exceptional leadership in operational, commercial and strategic areas and understands the travel and hospitality industry intuitively. His guest centric approach combined with a deep understanding of the Middle East and Africa will be invaluable as we continue delivering cherished experiences for our guests and demonstrable returns for our valued partners, said Chris Cahill, deputy chief executive officer, AccorHotels.



Previous to this role, Willis was the President for the Asia region with Movenpick Hotels & Resorts, a very dynamic area with a robust expansion strategy to open 30 properties in by 2020.



Over the span of 20 years, his career has also taken him on a journey into a number of senior leadership roles within the Radisson Hotel Group (formerly Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group), including regional director for the UK, area vice president, Middle East & Sub Sahara Africa and senior vice president Middle East, Africa & Turkey.



It was in this last role with the Radisson Hotel Group, that Willis oversaw all brands within a portfolio of 85 hotels with over 80 hotels in the development pipeline.



Willis has completed a number of senior management programs at Cornell University, New York and holds an MBA in International Business from Oxford University in the UK. He has also held active Board Member positions within the Hospitality industry in both the UK and the Middle East.  TradeArabia News Service
Jamaica Stock Exchange Exploring Cryptocurrency Trading

The Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) has selected Toronto-based fintech company Blockstation to explore the possibility of offering cryptocurrency trading on the local platform.

In a report in the Jamaica Gleaner, the JSE based in Kingston has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Canadian company, paving the way for further collaboration.

JSE Managing Director Marlene Street Forrest says the service would satisfy considerable investor interest in digital assets.

"We are also proud to be at the forefront of bringing innovation to capital markets," said Street Forrest in a joint statement with Blockstation. "We are very comfortable moving forward based on the training and support provided by Blockstation, and because their trading platform incorporates familiar compliance rules to ensure a fair marketplace," she said.

A live workshop on cryptocurrency trading was completed with an initial group of five JSE broker members and representatives of local regulators, according to Blockstation.

Through this agreement, JSE could become one of the first international stock exchanges to deploy an online digital currency and token trading platform. Blockstation said it would include trading, quotes, execution and settlement services in a format that aligns with current regulatory and compliance standards.

Blockstation provides international stock exchanges and brokers with turnkey solutions for trading, clearing and settlement of Bitcoin and other digital assets. The Canadian company's main software is called Smart ECN (electronic communication network) but it also offers a suite of technology products designed to meet the security, liquidity and regulatory requirements of financial institutions.

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Deutsche Borse Establishes DLT Team

Deutsche Borse has set up a team of 24 people to co-ordinate its initiatives on distributed ledger technology, digital assets and possible new market structures across the whole group as technology innovation could potentially disrupt capital markets infrastructure.

Jens Hachmeister is leading the newly established DLT, crypto assets and new market structures unit. Hachmeister said in an article on the exchanges website that Deutsche Borse views DLT/blockchain technology as an opportunity to create new market structures as the digital economy will be more decentralised. The new team has 24 members including Hachmeister and his deputy Eric Leupold.

[caption id="attachment_76273" align="alignleft" width="255"] Jens Hachmeister, Deutsche Borse[/caption]

Its potential cuts across our entire value chain  pre-IPO/listing, trading and clearing, settlement and custody, and even the data and analytics business, he added. In future, there will be more peer-to-peer governed marketplaces and less intermediaries.

He gave examples of new technology already challenging traditional market infrastructure providers including initial coin offerings, decentralised secondary market platforms and blockchain-based custody.

Hachmeister said: Deutsche Borse has been active with the technology in a first phase of ideation and exploration. However, these explorative steps have not been coordinated on a group-wide level.

His team will centrally operate all DLT/blockchain initiatives for the group, co-ordinating with business segments, IT, legal and regulatory strategy.

Looking at the pace of technological progress and the transformational potential that lies in Blockchain, we probably stand at the beginning of a new era that could be disruptive for the whole industry, added Hachmeister. The challenge is that we dont exactly know where this will lead to.

European rivals

Another German exchange operator, Boerse Stuttgart Group, launched a digital ventures company in September last year to work on innovative products in equities, cryptocurrencies and blockchain. Boerse Stuttgart Digital Ventures can also invest in startups and enter into partnerships with selected partners to implement its digitisation strategy.

Last month Boerse Stuttgart said it is aiming to create an end-to-end infrastructure for digital assets. Boerse Stuttgart is a floor-based exchange where retail investors can trade equities, securitised derivatives, bonds, exchange-traded funds and investment funds. The Stuttgart exchange is going to allow cryptocurrency trading via its app BISON, as well as launching a platform for initial coin offerings, a multilateral trading venue for cryptocurrencies and a custody product for digital assets.

BISON is being developed by Sowa Labs, part of Boerse Stuttgart Digital Ventures.

Ulli Spankowski, chief executive of Sowa Labs, told Markets Media last month: BISON is aimed at retail investors but also has a complete API structure so that it can be used by institutions. Institutions will not be excluded and it will be a mixture of both worlds.

In addition to looking for a regulated and reliable environment for trading with cryptocurrencies, investors are also looking for safe custody of digital assets. Boerse Stuttgart Group will offer custody services for the start of BISON and then extend the offering along the entire value chain for digital assets. Spankowski said: We will provide an internal custody solution through working with trusted partners.

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Fidelity International ETFs Now Available via SIX

As of today, 5 smart beta ETF issued by Fidelity International trade on SIX. This takes the number of ETF providers available via SIX to a new high of 25, and the number of ETFs to a record of 1394. Fidelity International is already the third new ETF issuer joining the Swiss stock exchange, after J.P. Morgan and Franklin Templeton.

Fidelity International offers world class investment solutions and retirement expertise. As a privately owned, independent company, the company invest GBP 235.1 bn globally on behalf of clients in 26 countries across Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and South America. The clients range from central banks, sovereign wealth funds, large corporates, financial institutions, insurers and wealth managers, to private individuals. In addition to asset management, Fidelity offers investment administration and guidance for employer benefit schemes, advisers and individuals in several countries and is responsible for GBP 80.5 bn in assets under administration.

Product name Trading currency ISIN Market maker Fidelity US Quality Income UCITS ETF Capitalisation USD USD IE00BYXVGY31 Commerzbank AG Fidelity US Quality Income UCITS ETF Capitalisation USD CHF IE00BYXVGY31 Commerzbank AG Fidelity US Quality Income UCITS ETF Distribution USD USD IE00BYXVGX24 Commerzbank AG Fidelity US Quality Income UCITS ETF Capitalisation Couverte en GBP GBP IE00BYV03C98 Commerzbank AG Fidelity US Quality Income UCITS ETF Capitalisation Couverte en EUR EUR IE00BYV1Y969 Commerzbank AG

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TORONTO, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reformulary Group, Canadas leading independent drug plan management company, today announced it has signed Licensed Producer (LP) Starseed Medicinal Inc. as its third provider of medical cannabis within its Cannabis Standard formulary.



The addition of Starseed will provide Canadians and employers that subscribe to Reformularys Cannabis Standard with preferred pricing options for Starseed products. It will also help Canadian employers navigate the process of covering medical cannabis in their benefit plans and support the development of a database that captures real-world, patient-reported outcomes based on established survey tools.

This agreement is the latest in a series of announcements from Reformulary Group, which now has signed partnership agreements with three preferred LPs. To date, MedReleaf, Aphria and Starseed have all signed master service agreements (MSAs) with the company.

Starseeds reputation as a leading premium producer of high-quality medical cannabis products expands our network of LP partnerships and cannabis products for Cannabis Standard, said Helen Stevenson, Reformulary Group founder and CEO. This partnership will support our commitment to providing expert guidance to employers, clinicians and medical cannabis patients.

Cannabis Standard will provide guidelines for Canadians and physicians based on the best available evidence and expert advice. These guidelines include lines of therapy, formulation and recommended/available strains. The guidelines were developed by Reformulary Groups medical cannabis expert committee which includes several renowned clinicians.

As the first LP to partner with a large plan sponsor (Laborers International Union of North America), this agreement with Reformulary further strengthens our commitment to deliver medical cannabis as a paid benefit, said Angelo Tsebelis, President of Starseed Medicinal Inc.



About Reformulary Group

Reformulary Group is a healthcare company, founded in Toronto in 2011. The companys most notable innovation is its proprietary formulary  the Reformulary  which it sells on a subscription basis to Canadian employers. For more information, visit www.reformulary.com .

About Starseed Holdings

Starseed Holdings through its wholly-owned subsidiary Starseed Medicinal Inc., is a Health Canada licensed producer of medicinal cannabis products with a unique customer-centric approach to medical cannabis. Starseed was the first licensed cannabis producers to on-board medical cannabis to a multi-employer benefit plan. For more information, visit www.starseedholdingsinc.com .

Media Contact:

Alex Cerelli, MAVERICK

O: 416.640.5525 x 238

M: 905-864-5530

E: alexc@wearemaverick.com
WASHINGTON, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BroCon 2018 , the most important community event for users, developers, incident responders, threat hunters and architects who rely on the open-source Bro network security monitor, today announced that security innovator Marcus J. Ranum will serve as the events keynote speaker. A world-renowned expert on security system design and implementation, Ranum is a pioneer in security technology and one of the early innovators in firewall, VPN and intrusion detection systems. During his presentation, Ranum will address emerging trends in the use of open-source security software.



The addition of Marcus Ranum to our speaker lineup solidifies the high-value content we will provide attendees during this years program, said Keith Lehigh, principal security engineer at Indiana University and Bro Board member. As a technology, Bro is a powerful network analysis framework that focuses on network security monitoring. Bro users include major universities, government agencies, research labs, supercomputing centers and open-science communities, many of whom will attend BroCon to share new developments and best practices. We are looking forward to October in our nations capital.

BroCon, hosted by the Bro open-source community and Corelight , is an annual Bro user conference featuring technical talks, demonstrations and discussions about the project, its many applications, and its future. Content is focused on the ever-evolving cybersecurity landscape and how Bro is helping organizations across the public and private sectors by providing better data and network traffic analytics.

A selection of additional scheduled speakers includes:

Johanna Amann, staff scientist, ICSI

Alan Commike, Reservoir Labs



Seth Hall, chief evangelist and co-founder, Corelight



Joe Johnson, software engineer, ICEBRG (recently acquired by Gigamon)



Adam Pumphrey, Bricata



Ed Sealing, president and CEO, Sealing Technologies, Inc.



Aashish Sharma, cybersecurity staff, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab



Fatema Bannat Wala, security engineer, University of Delaware



Barry Weymes, security engineer, Aramco Overseas Company



BroCon is the most important event of the year for the community of developers, users and companies that use it, said Robin Sommer, lead developer on the Bro open source project. Its an opportunity to reconnect with colleagues, learn about new uses and implementations, and hear from the community about their ideas for the future of Bro.

BroCon 2018 will take place at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City in Arlington, VA from October 10-12. For additional information, or to register, visit www.brocon2018.com . The event is sponsored by: Humio , BluVector , Reservoir Labs , Perched , Garland Technology , Ixia , Amazon , Elastic , Salesforce and TachTech .

About Bro

Bro is a powerful open-source network analysis framework that is much different from the typical IDS you may know. While focusing on network security monitoring, Bro provides a comprehensive platform for more general network traffic analysis as well. For more information, visit www.bro.org .

Contact:

A.J. Guenther

ConnellyWorks

571-323-2585 ext. 2130

aj@connellyworks.com
THIS NOTICE RELATES TO THE DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION THAT QUALIFIED OR MAY HAVE QUALIFIED AS INSIDE INFORMATION WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 7(1) OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (EU) 596/2014.

BCP FINANCE COMPANY

(the Issuer)

(Incorporated in the Cayman Islands under the Companies Law

with registered number CR-63276)

NOTICE

to the holders of those of the

500,000,000 Series D Perpetual Non-cumulative Guaranteed

Non-voting Step-Up Preference Shares of the Issuer

presently outstanding

(ISIN XS0231958520 / Common Code 023195852)

(the Holders and the Series D Preference Shares respectively)

Date: 12 September 2018

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN to the holders of the above Series D Preference Shares, as described in paragraph 5(a) of the Description of the Series D Preference Shares in the offering circular dated 12 October 2005 (the Offering Circular) and in accordance with the Issuers Memorandum and Articles of Association, the resolution of the Board of Directors of the Issuer dated 11 October 2005 and the agency agreement dated 13 October 2005 relating to the Series D Preference Shares, as amended and/or supplemented from time to time, of the redemption of all of the Series D Preference Shares as follows:

(A) Optional Redemption Date: Dividend Date falling on 13 October 2018, subject to adjustment in accordance with paragraph 2(a)(ii) of the Description of the Series D Preference Shares in the Offering Circular. Accordingly, the Optional Redemption Price is expected to be paid on 15 October 2018.

(B) Optional Redemption Price: EUR 50,000.00 per Series D Preference Share plus accrued and unpaid Dividends (whether or not declared) for the then current Dividend Period to the Redemption Date and any Additional Amounts.

The Issuer has requested or will request that the UK Listing Authority cancel the listing of the Series D Preference Shares on the Official List on or around the Optional Redemption Date.

Unless expressly indicated otherwise, the terms and expressions used herein have the same meaning as given to them in the Offering Circular.

This Notice is released by the Issuer and contains information that qualified or may have qualified as inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) 596/2014 (MAR). For the purposes of MAR and Article 2 of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/1055, this announcement is made by Nuno Ribeiro de Almeida, General Manager at the Issuer.

DISCLAIMER No offer or invitation to acquire or sell any securities is being made pursuant to this Notice.

This Notice is given to the Holders by:

BCP Finance Company

3rd Floor

Strathvale House

90 North Church Street

George Town

P.O. Box 30124

Grand Cayman

KY1-1201 Cayman Islands

Attachment
The Government of Egypt offers healthcare services to refugees and asylum-seekers on equal footing as Egyptians. UNHCR Egypt/Scott Nelson.

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency in Egypt, has successfully concluded the donation of USD 1.4 million worth of medical equipment to 19 public hospitals in Egypt under the auspices of the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP).

The equipment, including intensive care and burn units necessities, such as beds, monitors and ventilators, as well as surgical supplies were delivered to 19 hospitals in refugee dense areas in Greater Cairo, Alexandria, Ismailia, Kafr El Sheikh, Behira, Monofeya, Dakahleya and Sharkeya. The support aims at enhancing the capacity of these health institutions to provide adequate secondary and emergency medical care, specifically for victims of burns and patients in needs of intensive care.

The donation is part of UNHCRs efforts to support the Government of Egypt in addressing the health needs of refugees and asylum-seekers, as well as members of the host community. At the moment, all refugees in Egypt have access to primary and secondary public health services at a similar cost to Egyptian citizens following the signature of a memorandum of understanding between MoHP and UNHCR in 2016, granting all refugees and asylum-seekers of all nationalities access to public health care.

Throughout the past five years, UNHCR Egypt has supported the MoHP with equipment worth USD 4.5 million, as well as capacity building programmes for more than 250 healthcare professionals.

UNHCRs support to the MoHP was made possible through the generous funding of UNHCR Egypts donors: Canada, Denmark, European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States of America, in addition to private donors from Australia, Korea, Germany, Spain, Japan, Italy and Sweden.

As of 31 August 2018, Egypt hosts more than 235,000 registered refugees and asylum-seekers of 58 different nationalities mainly concentrated in Greater Cairo, Alexandria and the North Coast.

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Andreas Hollstein, mayor of Altena, has worked tirelessly to welcome refugees to his town of Altena.  UNHCR/Gordon Welters

Mayor Andreas Hollstein sees refugees as a benefit for his community and when unprecedented numbers arrived in Europe seeking safety, he volunteered to take more than his towns fair share.

Since then, he has worked tirelessly to make sure the newcomers are welcome in his town of Altena in western Germany and to create an atmosphere conducive to integration, an achievement for which he has been nominated for the UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award.

The annual prize honours those who have gone to extraordinary lengths to support refugees and displaced people.

Its about taking small steps and sending out small signals, says Hollstein, whose town of 17,000 people has accepted 450 asylum-seekers since 2013.

We cant solve all the problems of all the millions of refugees in the world, adds Hollstein, 55. But we can do our bit to improve things to the best of our ability. I think weve done that and it didnt overwhelm us.

The town has struggled in recent years. Factories have closed and the population has dwindled. Now the mayor has managed to turn things around, promoting a vision of a community thriving once again, essential to the long-term wellbeing of the refugees and the people hosting them.

He has highlighted the positive effects of the refugee influx, stressing the potential and skills brought individually by the newcomers.

The advantages of improving refugees self-reliance and enabling them to have access to the labour market are recognised by the mayor, volunteers and refugees alike. It boosts the local economy and benefits the host population, while providing long-term opportunities for newcomers.

The goal Im fighting for is the right one.

The mayor and his community were previously singled out by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the German government for their successful approaches to integrating newcomers.

They have now been chosen as the regional finalist for Europe by the Nansen Refugee Award. The as-yet-undisclosed winner of the award will be announced on 25 September and it will be presented by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, at a ceremony in Geneva later this year.

The award is named in honour of Norwegian explorer and humanitarian Fridtjof Nansen, the first High Commissioner for Refugees, who was appointed by the League of Nations in 1921. It aims to showcase his values of perseverance and commitment in the face of adversity.

Andreas Hollstein, Europe region finalist for the 2018 Nansen Refugee Award (Kathryn Porteous, producer / Shi Han Liu, editor / Adam Wakeling, camera)

Hollstein has shown perseverance in the face of the hate mail he has received on a regular basis as well as an injury he suffered in a knife attack last year by a resident believed to be opposed to his policy of welcoming refugees.

The goal Im fighting for is the right one, he says. I went into politics because I wanted to achieve goals and take stances. Thats not always comfortable, but I still believe its right.

With a dedicated community of volunteers and a range of innovative approaches, Hollstein aims to turn Altenas newest arrivals from strangers into neighbours. He says improving communication is at the core of his strategy.

We wanted the new arrivals and locals to talk to each other, he says. Even if it has to be using only gestures at first, its still better than if people dont communicate. It means we can turn people from an anonymous number or unknown name and create a relationship with them.

To encourage this, Hollstein ensures newcomers are housed in apartments in various parts of the town, rather than in a separate, central shelter. When they move in, they are introduced to their new neighbours by volunteers.

The newcomers are a gain for German society.

The administration supported the development of an internet portal to match refugees skills with jobs.

This approach has enabled many quickly to establish contacts with members of the local population, learn the language and find employment or education opportunities.

For Zarifa Brmaja, a mother of two from the Syrian city of Aleppo, the policy has proved a lifeline. Nearly every day, she has a visit from an elderly neighbour who is helping her learn German.

Its good here in Altena because people want to help, says Zarifa, 25, who is also enrolled in a volunteer-run language course at Stellwerk, a coordination centre for volunteers. While she studies, volunteers look after her two young children in a room next door.

The people here are very welcoming, agrees Zarifas husband, Shahin, 33, an engineer who found work with Altenas municipal utility after also completing German classes. Maybe in other places theres not so much contact between people. But we know that were lucky here.

Altenas welcome strategy goes beyond chance friendships with neighbours. Hollstein wanted to make sure that all newcomers had someone to look out for them.

Mayor Andreas Hollstein chats to 17-year-old refugees Hani (left) and Mohamad.  UNHCR/Gordon Welters

The town of Altena has struggled in recent years but Mayor Hollstein has turned things around, promoting a vision of a community thriving once again.  UNHCR/Gordon Welters

Altena resident Ludger Leweke mentors around 20 young refugees, helping them apply for work and traineeships.  UNHCR/Gordon Welters

Mayor Hollstein in his office. "With small steps you can do something good for people in need."  UNHCR/Gordon Welters

Volunteers act as so-called carers to help asylum-seekers deal with officialdom and support them in other aspects of daily life in Germany.

The newcomers are a gain for German society, says Ludger Leweke, 68, a life-long Altena resident and volunteer who mentors about 20 young refugees, helping them apply for work and traineeships. Thats why I want to help them into careers.

With small steps you can do something good for people in need.

One of them is Muhannad Alsaour, 23, from Damascus, who arrived in Altena in 2015. He quickly learned German and has secured a traineeship as an electrician.

Ludger explained to me how to have a good life here in Germany, he says. Im very thankful to him. Hes helped me a lot.

Stories like Muhannads and Ludgers can be found all over town and, according to Hollstein, are the secret behind Altenas success.

Volunteers are the backbone of our work  nothing would happen without them, he says. Whats special in Altena is the comprehensive approach. We arent doing anything that isnt happening elsewhere, but were doing things to a high standard in a number of different directions.

He hopes Altenas success will send a strong message to other communities that even the smallest contributions can make a difference, whatever their size, in Germany and beyond.

With small steps you can do something good for people in need, says Hollstein. Its not the big words of top politicians that are important. Its the people out there showing the humanitarian face of Europe  and thats us.

Rights campaigner fights for Thailands stateless people

Nansen Award finalist gives girls in Jordan a sporting chance
Brazak, qurabiya, khafeh, baklava  these are only some of the treats on the menu at Ali Baba, a restaurant specializing in Syrian and Mediterranean food and pastries that recently opened in Tallinn, Estonia.

The woman behind the operation, Nermiin from Syria, is thrilled. In fact, her love for cooking goes back to her youth. Ive liked cooking since I was a little girl; I always used to help my mother in the kitchen, she says. Im so glad that we did this, were all happy about it, she adds, referring to her husband, Mohamand, and their friend and business partner Amer, who is also from Syria.

Nermiin joined Mohamad in Estonia three years ago. Not long after they arrived, they started to look for a place to start a cafe. It wasnt easy: nobody wanted to rent to them. Maybe its because Im not Estonian  Im a refugee here  or maybe because of the language barrier. Im different color too, Mohamad says.

Nermiin adds that it was also difficult getting used to living in one of the most secular countries in the world: It was hard in the beginning, people would look at me and just see the hijab  that Im a muslim. But at some point you just have to get used to it.

As Palestinians, Mohamad and Nermiin saw no life for them in war-torn Syria: Theres no work or future for my children there. My son Ahmad wants to become a doctor, but he wouldnt be able to open his own medical cabinet there  hed only be allowed to work in a hospital. But here, its okay for him. He can study. I didnt come here for me, I came for my children.

Mohamad came to Estonia through Russia, by swimming across the bordering river. I followed the GPS with my friends, he recounts. When I arrived in Estonia, I was moved to Harku detention centre for two months and then to Vao refugee centre for a year, before Nermiin arrived with the children. Then we found an apartment in Tallinn.

For more than two years, Nermiin was taking catering orders and cooking from her own kitchen: It was really difficult for me. But people liked our food and encouraged us to open a restaurant.

Finally, they found a place tucked in a local shopping mall in Tallinns biggest suburb. Business is shaping up nicely, but every day proves to be a challengesome days the restaurant has 30 customers, and sometimes only a few. During the summer, they often cater at street food festivals all over Estonia and their cooking seems to be gaining popularity.

Despite the challenges, Mohamad and Nermiin are hopeful  mainly about their childrens futures. Their oldest son, Ahmad, 13, already speaks fluent Estonian, and is proud of his accomplishments at school. I finished with honors. Id really like to study to become a doctor, but Id also like to become a translator  I speak four languages, he says.

Amer, their 27 year-old business partner, applied for asylum in Estonia when he arrived, though he would have preferred to live in Sweden where his uncle is. After staying there for two months, he was sent back to Estonia. I was disappointed at first, but now its ok. I can visit my parents and two brothers, who live in Denmark, and my father has visited me here too.

With Nermiin, Mohamed and their family, Amer has now started to find his place in Estonia. He thinks of the many refugees who have fled the war in Syria. Many people have lost everything, he says. They dont have anything anymore. But here in Estonia, we have work. We have our own business!

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Pune, India, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Global Medical Implants Market continues to draw ample commercial interest as the number of medical implant procedures increases across the globe. The latest data released by Market Research Future (MRFR) reveals that the global medical implants market will witness a compound annual growth rate of 7.07% between 2017 and 2023. Implants are viewed as a revolutionary medical product having tremendous application potentials. They are being increasingly used as artificial replacements for several internal parts of the human body.

Implant procedures are also gaining a quick acceptance owing to the introduction of safer and minimally invasive surgical procedures. The broad spectrum of advanced surgical tools and technologies that is currently available makes a radical difference between how surgeries are performed today and in the past. The focus remains on further improvement in the outcome of implant procedures, which continues to induce R&D efforts. At the same time, collaboration projects and partnership programs are being initiated by market players to drive innovation and develop new products.

Request a Premium Sample Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample_request/2806

Increased level of awareness among consumers is one of the major reason behind the growing demand for medical implants. In this regard, emerging markets are playing an important role as countries such as China and India are being pursued by global healthcare companies for growth. A massive patient pool along with a rapidly improving healthcare system in these countries is expected to favour the prospects of the market in the forthcoming years. Nonetheless, high-cost of procedures and the fragmented regulatory structure is undermining the market potentials.

Medical Implants Market Segmentation: Insights

MRFRs data include a descriptive segmental analysis of the global medical implants market on the basis of types, type of material, and end user. Based on type, the market has been segmented into cardiac implants, dental implants, cosmetic implants, orthopaedic implants, ophthalmic implants, spinal implants and others. The cardiac implant segment is likely to remain highly attractive in the coming years. The segment is projected to surge at a healthy CAGR of 7.63% during the assessment period (2017-2023). Based on type of material, the market has been segmented into polymers material, ceramic material, metallic material and others. Based on end users, the market has been segmented into research laboratories, hospitals & clinics and others.

Industry News

3D printing technology expert - Optomec is set to introduce its latest version of LENS 860 Hybrid Controlled Atmosphere (CA) System, which is a laser deposition system with finishing machining operations. The machine is used for making dissolvable metal component for medical applications.

Prominent Italy-based orthopedics and traumatology specialist LimaCorporate has reportedly acquired TechMah Medical, a medical device software developer. The acquisition will help LimaCorporate to gain a greater foothold in digital orthopedics. LimaCorporate is known for developing advanced 3D printed orthopedic implants, which include primary implants and joint revision. Techmahs acquisition will allow the company to develop smart instrument and software that integrated with its implants.

Global Medical Implants Market : Competition Tracking

Medtronic (Ireland), 3M (U.S.), Stryker Corporation (U.S.), Smith & Nephew (U.K), Boston Scientific Corporation (U.S.), Institut Straumann AG (Switzerland), Johnson & Johnson Services, Inc. (U.S.), Dentsply Sirona (U.S.) and Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc. (U.S.) are listed as top market players in MRFRs data sheet.

Americas to Spearhead the Medical Implants Market Over 2023

The medical implant market in Americas currently accounts for a significant market share and is projected to witness a healthy growth during the forecast period. North America, in particular, presents lucrative opportunities for market players. Availability of a highly advanced healthcare infrastructure in the region acts a positive element for the regions market. Moreover, factors such as high healthcare expenditure and presence of leading market players as also supporting the growth of the medical implants market in North America. As per Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, healthcare spending in the US reached to USD 3.2 trillion in 2015.

By the year 2023, the Americas Medical Implant Market is estimated to surpass a valuation of USS 77,700 Mn. Meanwhile, Europe is the second largest market for medical implants, counties such as Germany, France and the UK accounts for considerable shares of medical implant market in Europe. Asia Pacific (APAC) is third in the pecking order, the market in the region is expected to witness a relatively higher CAGR during the forecast period. This can be attributed to the ongoing economic boom in countries such as China and India. In the Middle East & Africa, the market is currently growing at a moderate pace but is expected pick up steam in the near future owing to several policy reforms in the healthcare sector and increasing efforts towards economic diversification.

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Related Reports:

1] Cosmetic Implant Market Research Report- Global Forecast To 2022

Cosmetic Implant Market Information, by type (dental implant, brest implant, facial implant, buttock implant) by material (polymers, metals, ceramics, biologicals) by end users (hospitals, dental clinics, academics) - Forecast to 2022.

https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/cosmetic-implant-market-2018

2] Medical Bionic Implant/Artificial Organs Market Research Report  Forecast to 2023

Medical Bionic Implant/Artificial Organs Market Research Report: By Technology (Mechanical, Electronic Bionics), by Product (Vision, Ear, Orthopedic, Heart, Neural/Brain), by Fixation (Implantable, Externally Worn), by End-User  Global Forecast Till 2023.

https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/medical-bionic-implant-artificial-organs-market-6051

About US:

Market Research Future (MRFR), enable customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.




Two people from Marquette are part of American Red Cross relief efforts as Hurricane Florence nears the East Coast.

The Northern Michigan Red Cross says Sarah Hemminger, the disaster program manager for the Upper Peninsula, and another Marquette resident are going to be in the Carolinas as Florence makes landfall late Thursday or early Friday.

The Red Cross is welcoming more volunteers. It's best that volunteers sign up ahead of time, as a large amount of sign-ups are expected after the storm hits.

The Red Cross says it is preparing to help as many as 100,000 people in the affected areas and is working with state and local officials to identify and prepare evacuation shelters. More than 700 disaster workers from across the country are in route to the regions to help. The Red Cross is also deploying vehicles, equipment and relief supplies and will continue to do so until it is no longer safe to travel.

The Red Cross depends on financial donations to be able to provide disaster relief immediately. Help people affected by Hurricane Florence by visiting redcross.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS or texting the word FLORENCE to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

Checks can be mailed to:

American Red Cross of Northern Michigan

735 South Garfield Ave., Ste. B100

Traverse City, MI 49686

Donations enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from this disaster.
ATLANTA, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WestRock Company (NYSE: WRK), a leading provider of differentiated paper and packaging solutions, today announced that due to the expected landfall of Hurricane Florence, it is cancelling its participation in the Credit Suisse 31st Basic Materials Conference. WestRock was scheduled to present on Sept. 13, 2018. Management believes it is in the companys best interest to focus its efforts on its employees safety and minimizing the potential impact of the hurricane on its business and operations.



About WestRock

WestRock (NYSE: WRK) partners with our customers to provide differentiated paper and packaging solutions that help them win in the marketplace. WestRocks 45,000 team members support customers around the world from more than 300 operating and business locations spanning North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Learn more at www.westrock.com .
Published: September 11, 2018

UT to Host Premier Clinic for Entrepreneurship Faculty, Experiential Classroom, Sept. 2023

The University of Tampas Lowth Entrepreneurship Center in the Sykes College of Business has been chosen to host Experiential Classroom, the premier clinic for faculty who are relatively new to the teaching of entrepreneurship and the building of entrepreneurship programs. This four-day event will be held from 1 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 20, to noon on Sunday, Sept. 23, and media are welcome to attend.



We share the best practices in entrepreneurship education from some of the thought leaders and master educators in the field, said Rebecca White, director of the John P. Lowth Entrepreneurship Center. More than 1,100 faculty members have attended this intense, four-day clinic over the years.



Objectives of Experiential Classroom are to:

Help those who are new to the teaching of entrepreneurship, including both faculty and practitioners, to learn best classroom practices.

Capture the experiences of those who came to teaching of entrepreneurship from diverse backgrounds and share lessons learned in making the transition.

Introduce a number of highly creative and effective experiential approaches, ranging from cases, business plans and the use of entrepreneurs in the classroom, to having students conduct entrepreneurial audits, the concept of marketing inventions and consulting engagements.

Apply a simple but powerful framework for organizing the content within an entrepreneurship course.

Demonstrate effective teaching approaches by observing master teachers.

Share ideas on specialty topics in entrepreneurship education, such as how to kick off a class, creative mentoring programs, whats new in entrepreneurship internships and more.

Expose delegates to a rich resource base and help them join a network of faculty who share similar experiences.

Give delegates an opportunity to actually teach live in front of students, with helpful critiques from entrepreneurship faculty.

Share insights on how to build world class entrepreneurship programs.

The experience is also personalized with the opportunity to interact with the presenters both inside and outside the classroom. Attendance is limited to 75 delegates each year, and delegates must attend all three days of the clinic.



For more information, contact ecenter@ut.edu.
UW Astronomer Awarded NSF Grant to Study Quasars

UW astronomy Professor Mike Brotherton is conducting research on quasars on one of the biggest telescopes in the world. (John Gilbey Photo)

Mike Brotherton hopes to shed some light on distant quasars by, in simplest terms, looking at some light.

The University of Wyoming astronomy professor and his collaborator at the University of North Texas recently were awarded a five-year National Science Foundation (NSF) grant for $800,000 to continue research being done by them at the Gemini North Observatory on Mauna Kea in Hawaii. The 8-meter telescope is one of the largest in the world, and Brotherton currently has about 350 hours of access to the multimillion-dollar facility spread out over three years.

With that time, Brotherton is observing around 400 distant quasars using near-infrared spectroscopy. A quasar is a supermassive black hole (SMBH), the center of a distant galaxy that is consuming gas. Through this process, a hot, swirling disk forms that feeds the SMBH. One of these disks can outshine the entire galaxy the SMBH exists within and is called a quasar.

Quasars not only are the most massive individual objects in existence, but they are among the most luminous objects to have ever existed in the universe.

Scientists have identified about a million quasars throughout the universe and have studied hundreds of thousands of those with optical spectra. Because of the expansion of the university and Hubble law, light from the most distant objects gets red-shifted, though. That means the optical part of the spectrum shifts toward the infrared, making the observations more difficult. The infrared technology is not as advanced, and Brothertons project is one of the most ambitious yet in terms of scope.

Weve gotten vast quantities of data using one technique, and we know almost nothing about quasar properties using this other technique, he says. This is a step in remedying that. Nobody has systematically been gathering infrared spectra for large numbers of these objects. What were really doing is jumping ahead to get a large sample with uniform data and selection.

Those data are valuable because quasars are an integral part of the evolution of galaxies as a whole. How they grew, how they influence galaxies and how they continue in present day are all topics Brotherton hopes to gain a greater understanding of with his research.

Today, quasars barely exist, he says. The supermassive black holes are still around, but they are not being fed or fueled the way they used to be. When these quasars were really around and common and having a huge influence on the universe, was a long time ago.

Now, with the NSF grant, Brotherton will be able to finish his allotted time on the Gemini telescope and have funding for several years of data analysis and paper writing with graduate student help.
Signs agreement with compliant securities platform, Token IQ, to

advance digital framework of real estate investment contracts

Phoenix, AZ, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Real estate investment and hotel management company, Oxygen Hospitality Group, Inc. , today announced it has entered into a technology agreement with Token IQ, Inc . Under the agreement, Oxygen Hospitality will utilize Token IQs securities compliant, patent-pending and token development platform to implement multiple phased smart contract and token offerings, beginning with popular short-term investment notes.

Utilizing Token IQ, Oxygen Hospitality will be one of the first in the hotel and commercial real estate (CRE) investment industries, to offer smart contract logic to tokenize its short-term note offerings. Short-term notes are common agreements in real estate. With Token IQ, this common strategy will become innovative by integrating blockchain security and Know Your Customer (KYC) compliance to these offerings.

Compliance is everything, said Peter Anadranistakis, president and co-founder of Oxygen Hospitality. Regulatory compliance with Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs) and their accredited investors now becomes even more appealing as an investment opportunity in alternative funding mechanisms. This is a game changer for sure.

Extremely secure, blockchain is described as an append only, encrypted transaction ledger, where new information can be added to the ledger, but previous information, stored in blocks, cannot be edited or changed.

Anadranistakis says, There are many applications where blockchain compliance and security will benefit the hotel industry such as improving guest experiences, loyalty programs and operations. Hoteliers who are technology forward-thinking will help differentiate themselves in the marketplace.

Hotel franchisors or brands that work with Oxygen Hospitality in the future will benefit from Token IQs blockchain-powered tokenization platform. This technology, combined with Oxygen Hospitalitys vision, has the potential to advance the overall hospitality industrys adoption of digitized solutions on the blockchain.

According to Aleksander Dyo, president and co-founder of Token IQ, Oxygen Hospitality Group is setting a new standard for tech innovation in the hospitality industry that will help to redefine the future of guest experience, hotel management, and ownership structures. He added, With Token IQs help, Oxygen Hospitality is bringing the same advanced thinking to real estate investing. The legal, technical and compliance framework for digital forms of investment contracts is being refined. Were excited to be part of building that future with innovative companies like Oxygen Hospitality.

The alignment of Token IQ and Oxygen Hospitality exhibits the power, precision, and possibilities that blockchain has in solving complex business challenges and revolutionizing how corporations will maintain and leverage accredited investor and alternative investment engagement.

About Oxygen Hospitality Group

Oxygen Hospitality Group, Inc., is a real estate investment and hotel management company focused on acquiring, redeveloping and managing a portfolio of tech-infused branded and independent hotel assets in the Sun Belt and other advantageous U.S. destinations. The Company works with registered investment advisors (RIAs) and accredited investors seeking direct investment opportunities in hotels requiring redevelopment, active asset management or operational repositioning for a return to profitability and guest experience excellence. Founded in 2017, Oxygen Hospitality is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. For more information, please visit: http://www.oxygenhospitality.com and follow us on Facebook , Twitter and LinkedIn .

About Token IQ

Founded in 2017, Token IQ is a leading SaaS blockchain technology company focusing on delivering a turnkey solution for the tokenization of securities and asset backed investment contracts. The companys technology enables issuers to convert rights to an asset into smart and fully compliant digital tokens on a blockchain with the goal of eliminating middlemen, reducing fees, and creating a frictionless environment. Token IQs solution makes capital formation more efficient while unlocking liquidity for traditionally non-liquid asset classes. Companies of any size and industry can now launch a digitized offering and seek investments with confidence. For more information, visit www.tokeniq.io .

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Onlookers and rescuers gather around a bus that crashed in Jagtial district in India's southern Telangana state on Sep 11, 2018. (Photo: AFP)

The bus carrying 80 people was returning from the famous Hindu temple of Kondagattu Anjaneya Swamy in the hilly southern state of Telangana when it skidded off the road.

"We have pulled out the bodies and we are taking them to the hospital for autopsy," B Rajesham, a senior administrative official, told AFP.

Another local official G Narendhar added: "More than half of those killed were women, and there were at least three children."

Passengers who survived the accident in Jagtial district of Telangana state were being treated for injuries. An investigation has been ordered.

Broken glass, slippers and luggage lay scattered next to lifeless bodies that were lined up at the scene, as locals pulled out survivors from the mangled vehicle.

Television footage showed local residents carrying the injured up a hill after pulling them out from the mangled bus.

Some rescuers climbed onto the bus and others tried to reach the injured through the front portion which was completely smashed.

NDTV quoted witnesses as saying the driver was speeding and lost control of the vehicle. The Hindu daily said it careened off the road on a sharp corner.

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao expressed shock and announced 500,000 rupees (US$7,000) each for the families of the deceased.

Accidents on India's notorious roads claim the lives of more than 150,000 people each year.

Most accidents are blamed on poor roads, badly-maintained vehicles and reckless driving.

On Jul 28 a bus carrying university workers plunged off a mountain road into a valley in western India, killing 33 people.

That vehicle was taking staff from the Dapoli Agriculture University to a popular hill station in the state of Maharashtra for a picnic.

The same month 48 people were killed and many others badly injured in the north of the country when an overcrowded bus hurtled into a gorge in the Himalayan foothills.
Illustrative image (Source: Jetstar Pacific)

A representative of the low-cost airline said Terminal 2 of Kansai International Airport has remained shut, while Terminal 1 is now able to cater for a few flights as a small section of it has been restored.

Relevant Japanese agencies are making all-out efforts to deal with the consequences of the typhoon, yet the exact completion date for the restoration work has not yet been identified. Airlines across the world are waiting for updated information to resume flights for the coming days.

Previously, Jetstar Pacific had said that it would cancel its Hanoi-Osaka flight BL620 on September 4 and Osaka-Da Nang flight BL165 on September 5. The carrier has to suspend a total of 38 flights between Vietnam and Osaka from September 4-20.

Typhoon Jebi, the strongest to hit Japan in 25 years, made landfall in western Japan on September 4. It flooded one runway and a terminal building at Kansai airport. Whats more, the only bridge connecting the facility, which is located on a manmade island, with Japans main island was damaged after a tanker crashed into it amid strong wind and high waves, according to Japans Kyodo News.

Hundreds of flights to and from Kansai International Airport have been cancelled so far. Japans Nippon Airways announced that it will cancel 247 domestic flights and eight international flights, while Japan Airlines will also cancel 176 domestic flights.
This photo taken on Jul 26, 2012 shows a vendor selling dog meat on a street in Hanoi. (Photo: AFP/HOANG DINH NAM)

Roasted, boiled or steamed, dog meat can be found in markets and food shops across the capital city famed for its tasty street food, and the meat is traditionally eaten with rice wine or beer.

But Hanoi People's Committee on Tuesday warned residents to lay off canine meat to prevent the spread of rabies and other animal-borne diseases.

It also urged them to stop eating cat meat, often dubbed "little tiger" on Vietnamese menus, which is less popular than dog but still readily available in rural areas.

The practice of killing the animals is often cruel and the city government hopes it can be gradually phased out, it said in a statement.

It said it was a matter of preserving Hanoi's reputation as a "civilised and modern capital" among foreigners, many of whom consider eating the meat of animals commonly kept as pets taboo.

"The trading, killing and use of dog and cat meat has brought on a negative reaction from tourists and expatriates living in Hanoi," the statement said.

There are about 493,000 dogs and cats in the city, the vast majority of which are kept as domesticated pets, and about 1,000 shops open for selling the animal meat.

Three people have died from rabies in Hanoi since the beginning of this year, and two others were confirmed infected with the disease, according to official figures.

Vietnam's capital city is renowned globally for its street food, and its culinary staples such as pho noodle soup and pate banh mi sandwiches have reached menus around the world from Paris to Pittsburgh.

Hanoi city is also a playground for more adventurous diners who can sample fried frog meat, fertilised duck embryo or hotpot turtle meat.
Oil rigs of Vietsovpetro, a joint venture between PetroVietnam and a Russian group, at Bach Ho oil field.-VNA/VNS Photo Huy Hung

General Director of Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PVN) Nguyen Vu Truong Son warned of this possibility at a seminar held by the National Assemblys Economic Commission and PVN in Ha Noi on Monday, titled Vietnam Petroleum Industry in the Fourth Industrial Revolution - Development and Integration.

Son said PVNs crude oil output was up to 25 million tonnes in 2017, but that exploration had only yielded new sites containing four million tonnes.

The exploration activity in the first eight months of this year reached only two million tonnes because PVN does not have the resources to sustain such a high risk activity, said Son.

If the imbalance between exploration and exploitation continues to increase, the industry will only be able to sustain its petroleum output for a few more years before it will drop by roughly two thirds, he said.

Meanwhile, Son said the current mechanism of attracting foreign investment in exploration activities was no longer effective.

PVN Chairman Tran Sy Thanh, who is also deputy chairman of the Central Party Committees Economic Commission, said no new projects were started by State economic groups in the past three years.

The coal, oil and gas sectors did not start new projects in the last ten years. This means in the future, Viet Nam will have no new energy projects, Thanh said. At the moment, we are relying on what the previous generation did.

Thanh said the Public Investment Law restricted the money available for exploration activities that would increase oil reserves.

In fact, foreign investors have spent $45 billion on exploration but they have brought just $21 billion back to their countries, said Thanh.

Son said in order to convince foreign investors to take a risk on exploration, the National Assembly (NA) should revise the Law on Petroleum. A new law should be passed that allows PVN to use 50 per cent of post-tax profits to continue operations and contribute to the State budget through exploration.

The mechanism for attracting foreign investment must be revised to bring the production sharing contract (PSC) in line with Viet Nams priorities, said Son.

Chairman of Viet Nam Petroleum Association Ngo Thuong San proposed modernising the 2008 petroleum law to stimulate foreign investment, get more out of mining sites and invest in the development of offshore oil fields.

While the industry waits on new permanent regulations, the Government and the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) are expected to release provisional regulations. These will focus on shortening the approval process for oil and gas fields to ensure that exploration keeps up with demand.

Procedures must be simplified, and incentives must be introduced to give foreign and domestic investors a reason to develop smaller fields. Progress could also be aided by investing in technology to increase oil output from each site.

Deputy Director of the MoITs Oil and Gas Department Tran Thanh Tung proposed a financial support mechanism for exploration, especially in deep water areas. This measure is designed to lure greater investment from domestic and foreign oil and gas corporations.

Speaking at the seminar, deputy head of NA Financial and Budgetary Committee Nguyen Huu Quang said exploration of oil and gas fields was a key national security issue, and would help secure Viet Nams sovereignty over the East Sea.

Quang said the exploration activities were a great financial risk, so PVN would be unable to pursue them without supportive regulations.

If this problem is not resolved soon, it will affect national energy security, he said.

Deputy Chairman of the NA Economic Committee Nguyen Duc Kien said because the oil industry was considered an important piece of the economy, there must be policies that help with its development.

Kien said the legal issue was proposed by PVN during its recent ownership change, which came at a time when oil prices were low and exploration activities were in decline.

After this talk, representatives of the NA Economic and Financial and Budgetary committees agreed to propose the Petroleum Law revision to the NA Standing Committee for consideration during its 2019-2020 period on the 14th.
Investors follow stock movements on FPT Securities Company (FPT)s trading floor in Ha Noi. - VNS Photo Truong Vi

The benchmark VN-Index on the HCM Stock Exchange inched up 1.52 per cent to close at 985.06 points. It had gained 0.15 per cent to close at 970.34 points on Monday.

The VN-Index increased sharply in the morning with strong performance from real estate developer Vingroup (VIC), Vinamilk (VNM) and Petro Vietnam Gas JSC (GAS).

Following a sharp rally in the morning session, the index continued to surge in the afternoon session.

The HNX Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange was up 0.66 per cent to end at 111.43 points. It had dropped 0.91 per cent to close at 110.69 points on Monday.

More than 236 million shares were traded on the two local exchanges on Tuesday, worth nearly VND5 trillion (US$214 million).

Foreign investors strongly supported the market today when they net bought over VND181 billion in the morning session and raised their net buying to over VND483 billion in the afternoon session.

The large-cap VN30 Index gained 1.65 per cent to stand at 958.91 points.

Among gainers were real estate developer Vingroup (VIC), dairy firm Vinamilk (VNM), Vincom Retail (VRE) and insurer Bao Viet Holdings (BVH).

Oil stocks drove the market up, with gainers being PetroVietnam Gas JSC (GAS), PetroVietnam Technical Services Corporation (PVS) and PetroVietnam Drilling & Well Services Corporation (PVD).

On a sector basis, real estate, mining, banking, securities and insurance companies were the main driving factors for the stock market on Tuesday.

The five industry indices were up 1.9 per cent, 2.5 per cent, 2.1 per cent, 2.1 per cent and 5.8 per cent, respectively.

Other sectors that also performed well included retail, construction materials and food and beverages.

Securities stocks jumped 2.21 per cent, driven by VNDirect Securities Corporation (VND), Saigon Securities Incorporation (SSI) and Viet Capital Securities Joint Stock Company (VCI), which respectively climbed 6.3 per cent, 2.9 per cent and 2.3 per cent.

Bank stocks rallied across the board as Joint Stock Bank for Investment and Development (BID), Vietinbank (CTG), Vietcombank (VCB) successively rose by 3.8 per cent, 2.9 per cent and 1.6 per cent.

Oil-gas stocks also increased as PetroVietnam Gas JSC (GAS), PetroVietnam Technical Services Corporation (PVS) and PetroVietnam Drilling & Well Services Corporation (PVD) all soared.

According to Bao Viet Securities Company, in the coming sessions, the VN-Index is forecast to stay on the uptrend. However, the market may experience some volatility while moving up.

BIDV Securities Company said the market surged after the positive psychology of investors which was strengthened from the previous cumulative sessions, the index continues in the trend towards the 1,000-point level.

Investors should monitor the stocks which are attracting strong cash flows in banking, real estate and petroleum groups, it said.

The UPCOM Index on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM) extended by 0.81 per cent from its 0.07 per cent rally, closing at 51.45 points.
Rockville, MD, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The aerospace landscape is witnessing a paradigm shift towards additive manufacturing using innovative composite materials, on account of a greater emphasis on manufacturing more integrated aircraft structures and components. Growing demand for permanent autopilot and electrification continues to provide impetus to lightweight construction of aircrafts components. The buoyancy in the aerospace floor panel market can also be attributed to increasing focus on reducing overall weight to fulfill the broader goal of improving fuel efficiency. Moreover, innovations to improve structural strength and rigidity, thereby, replacing solid metals, will significantly influence the growth of aerospace floor panel market .

Recently, a leading advanced composites manufacturer established a testing lab in Shanghai, China. The testing lab has been set up in joint collaboration with a a Chinese aerospace parts manufacturer. The testing lab will offer services in the wake of increasing consumer demands in the commercial aerospace landscape in APAC. More such accredited testing labs have been established to conduct R&D in composite materials.- Lead Analyst, Automotive Industry, Fact.MR

Request For Sample Report- https://www.factmr.com/connectus/sample?flag=S&rep_id=32

Additionally, to reduce the risk of losing valuable market share and potential contracts, key manufacturers are adopting quickly changing technology in the form RFID tags. With support from Air Transport Association (ATA) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to use passive RFID tags for aircraft parts, the adoption of RFID will gain momentum in the coming years. RFID solutions, for manufacturers could mean efficient identification, tracking, and managing critical aircraft components and for operators, it would improve overall maintenance efficiency and performance. Determining replacement history for essential cabin components such as the aerospace floor panel through RFID is projected to reduce lead time and hazardous waste removal, by removing only what is required.

Fact.MRs report on the global aerospace floor panel market anticipates significant growth for aerospace floor panel market for the forecast period 2017-2022.-The report also indicates that since flooring units determine the overall weight of the aircraft, increasing components costs could restrict the market growth to a certain extent considering high fragmentation and intense competition among key players.

Sales of aerospace floor panel is projected to remain the highest in North America owing to the presence of key aircraft manufacturers including Bombardier and Airbus Group, Inc. However, an in-depth analysis by Fact.MR indicates that India, China, Russia will emerge as significant players in aircraft manufacturing, presenting a fair competition to the todays incumbent. In the coming years, the overall aircraft manufacturing landscape is likely to head towards consolidation, with a cost advantage on the side of emerging markets. The growing investments in their respective aviation sectors by China, Russia, and India are also likely to create significant growth opportunities for aerospace floor panel manufacturers during the assessment period.

To Get latest insights on Aerospace Floor Panel Market, Visit - https://www.factmr.com/report/32/aerospace-floor-panel-market

The report also suggests significant sales of aerospace floor panel through OEMs compared to aftermarket till 2022. Strategic partnerships and alliances between manufactures and OEMs will further strengthen the supply chain, in turn, improving sales of aerospace floor panel in the coming years. Moreover, sales of aerospace floor panel is expected to remain high considering fleet expansion of commercial and regional airlines, which would further call for increased aftermarket activities including retrofit and refurbishment tasks. According to the report, narrow-body aircrafts continue to account for the highest demand for aerospace floor panels. However, the status quo in the market is likely to change on account of growing proliferation of wide-body aircrafts.

Fact.MRs comprehensive report on aerospace floor panel market delivers critical insights on key companies operating the market along with their winning strategies and key company developments. A leading name in the aviation components manufacturing, Triumph Group, in 2017, signed an agreement with Boeing to provide them with environmental control systems (ECS) ducting and floor panels. Strategic partnerships, M&A, and new product innovations are likely to be key forward market strategies adopted by other players in the aerospace floor panel market. The research study also offers comprehensive analysis and insights on the product strategies employed by other key players in the market including Rockwell Collins, Inc., Avcorp Industries, Inc., and Zodiac Aerospace ECE.

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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.
WEF on ASEAN co-chairs share views of forum (Photo: Lam Khanh/ VNA)

We work with young female people to give them skills and opportunities to set up enterprises, so we want to talk with participants here about lack of finance for young female entrepreneurs, said Anne Birgitte Albrectsen, Chief Executive Officer of Plan International, a development and humanitarian organization that advances childrens rights and equality for girls.

Anne Birgitte Albrectsen is one of the co-chairs of the WEF on ASEAN who shared their view of the forum, which is taking place in Hanoi from September 11-13.

According to Albrectsen, the digital economy is expanding the gender gap. Women have less access to mobile phones. Young girls have less opportunities to enter technology sector and account for only 10 percent of the employees in the sector. They also lack opportunities to become leaders.

Other co-chairs of the WEF on ASEAN include Sri Mulyani Indrawati, Minister of Finance of Indonesia; Kang Kyung-Wha, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea; Nazir Razak, Chairman of the CIMB Group Holdings, Malaysia; Nguyen Manh Hung, Vietnamese Acting Minister of Information and Communications; and Kevin Sneader, Global Managing Partner, McKinsey and Company, Hong Kong China.

Nguyen Manh Hung, Vietnamese Acting Minister of Information and Communication (Middle) at press conference (Photo: Lam Khanh/ VNA)

The WEF on ASEAN provides a platform for government and business leaders to share policy ideas and initiatives for the regions key issues.

The forum is a chance for participants to share their stories, case studies, experience and initiatives for ASEAN, said Nguyen Manh Hung, Vietnamese Acting Minister of Information and Communications, other co-chair of the event.

I want to share the idea of developing one ASEAN, meaning a flat ASEAN, where all people have equal opportunities, Hung said.

He suggested establishing an ASEAN University of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), saying ICT is the key sector in the fourth industrial revolution (4IR).

The Acting Minister also put forward an initiative to set up a regional cyber security information centre and expressed his hope that the initiatives will be discussed during the forum.

Our life depends very much on the internet. Our prosperity also depends on the internet. Therefore, cyber security is the most important for us in the 4IR, he said.

According to Hung developing nations, including Vietnam, have more chances to take the advantages of the fourth industrial revolution. He explained that developing countries have less facility of the previous revolutions, meaning they have less burdens and can move faster. They have not so much solid legal framework, therefore they are more flexible to develop new policies to adapt and accept changes.

WEF on ASEAN co-chairs share views of forum (Photo: Lam Khanh/ VNA)

During a press conference, held in Hanoi on September 12 as part of activities in the ongoing WEF on ASEAN, other co-chairs also shared their topics of interest in infrastructure building, labour force development, taxation, among others.

The WEF ASEAN 2018, themed ASEAN 4.0: Entrepreneurship and the Fourth Industrial Revolution attracted the participation of more than 1,000 delegates from 43 countries and region.

Among the delegates are the prime ministers of Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, and Sri Lanka, the president of Indonesia and Myanmar's State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi.

In 2010, Vietnam hosted the World Economic Forum on East Asia for the first time.

The WEF was established in 1971 as a non-profit foundation and is headquartered in Geneva. The forum engages political, business, and other leaders to shape global, regional, and industry agendas.

Founded in 1967, ASEAN groups together Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
SLUCare transplant surgeon Dr. Chintalapati Varma physically grabs the kidney from the body of a living organ donor during surgery at SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital.
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Worthington Industries (NYSE: WOR) today announced organizational changes, promoting three Company veterans to new and expanded roles, supporting the Companys corporate structure and strategic goals. Cathy Lyttle has been named senior vice president and chief human resources officer. Sonya Higginbotham has been named vice president of corporate communications and brand management. Marcus Rogier has been named investor relations officer in addition to his role as the Companys treasurer.



Lyttle will lead the strategic direction for the design, development and execution of Worthingtons human resources initiatives. She will help advance the Companys strong culture, deepening employee engagement with a focus on workforce development and recruitment. She joined Worthington in 1999 as vice president of corporate communications and added the role of investor relations officer in 2009. Lyttle succeeds Terry Dyer who served as vice president of human resources for five years.

As vice president of corporate communications and brand management, Higginbotham is charged with directing internal and external communications, brand strategy, marketing and the Companys philanthropic activities. She joined Worthington in 1997 and has served as director of corporate communications for the past 12 years.

Rogier joined Worthington in 2002 and has served as treasurer since 2014, directing the Companys money management strategies and banking relationships, real estate and enterprise risk management. He will now also lead investor relations for the Company.

About Worthington Industries

Worthington Industries is a leading global diversified metals manufacturing company with 2018 fiscal year net sales of $3.6 billion. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Worthington is North Americas premier value-added steel processor providing customers with wide ranging capabilities, products and services for a variety of markets including automotive, construction and agriculture; a global leader in manufacturing pressure cylinders for propane, refrigerant and industrial gasses and cryogenic applications, water well tanks for commercial and residential uses, CNG and LNG storage, transportation and alternative fuel tanks, oil & gas equipment, and consumer products for camping, grilling, hand torch solutions and helium balloon kits; and a manufacturer of operator cabs for heavy mobile industrial equipment; laser welded blanks for light weighting applications; automotive racking solutions; and through joint ventures, complete ceiling grid solutions; automotive tooling and stampings; and steel framing for commercial construction. Worthington employs approximately 12,000 people and operates 84 facilities in 11 countries.

Founded in 1955, the Company operates under a long-standing corporate philosophy rooted in the golden rule. Earning money for its shareholders is the first corporate goal. This philosophy serves as the basis for an unwavering commitment to the customer, supplier, and shareholder, and as the Companys foundation for one of the strongest employee-employer partnerships in American industry.

Safe Harbor Statement

The Company wishes to take advantage of the Safe Harbor provisions included in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 ("the Act"). Statements by the company which are not historical information constitute "forward looking statements" within the meaning of the Act. All forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ from those projected. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include risks described from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Contacts:

CATHY M. LYTTLE

VP, CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS

AND INVESTOR RELATIONS

614.438.3077 | cathy.lyttle@WorthingtonIndustries.com



SONYA L. HIGGINBOTHAM

DIRECTOR, CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS

614.438.7391 | sonya.higginbotham@worthingtonindustries.com

200 Old Wilson Bridge Rd. | Columbus, Ohio 43085

WorthingtonIndustries.com
On 8 August, the Liberty Passion docked at the port of Livorno, and on 2 September, the Liberty Promise. On 9 October, they will be followed by the Liberty Pride. The three ships will then return to Livorno, successively, on 10 November, 15 December and 12 January.

These are enormous Ro/Ro ships (Roll-On/Roll-Off  vehicle transporters), 200 metres long. They have 12 decks, each one capable of housing 6,500 automobiles. However, they are not in fact carrying vehicles, but tanks. They are part of a US fleet of 63 ships belonging to private companies who, on behalf of the Pentagon, are constantly transporting weapons in a global circuit between ports in the United States, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Asia.

The main Mediterranean stop is Livorno, because its port is connected to the neighbouring US base of Camp Darby. During a recent visit to the Florence daily La Nazione, Colonel Erik Berdy, Commander of the US Army garrison in Italy, emphasized the importance of this base.

The logistics base, situated between Pisa and Livorno, constitutes the largest US arsenal outside of the home country. The Colonel did not specify what the content of the 125 bunkers of Camp Darby may be. However, it may be estimated at more than a million artillery projectiles, airborne bombs and missiles, to which should be added thousands of tanks, vehicles and other military material. It can not be excluded that in the base there may have been, there are, or there may be nuclear weapons in the near future.

Camp Darby, claimed the Colonel, plays a key role by supplying US land and air forces much faster than if they were supplied directly from the USA. The base supplied most of the weapons used for the wars against Iraq, Yugoslavia, Libya and Afghanistan. Since March 2017, with huge ships that make monthly stops at Livorno, the weapons from Camp Darby are continually transported to the ports of Aqaba in Jordan, Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern ports in order to be used by US and allied forces in the wars in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

On its maiden voyage, in April 2017, the Liberty Passion off-loaded 250 military vehicles and other material in Aqaba. Among the weapons which are transported monthly by sea from Camp Darby to Jeddah, there are also, without any doubt, US airborne bombs that are used by the Saudi air force to massacre civilians in Yemen (as proven by photographic evidence). There are also serious indications that in the monthly link between Livorno and Jeddah, these huge ships also transport airborne bombs, supplied by Rwm Italia in Domusnovas (Sardinia), to Saudi Arabia for the war in Yemen.

With the increased transit of weapons from Camp Darby, the canal and land routes from the base to the port of Livorno and the airport at Pisa are no longer sufficient. Consequently a massive reorganisation of the infrastructures has been decided (and confirmed by Colonel Berdy), including a new railway. The plan calls for the felling of 1,000 trees within a protected zone, which has already been approved by the Italian authorities. But thats not all.

When Eugenio Giani (Pd), the president of the Tuscan Regional Council, received Colonel Berdy, he agreed to develop  the integration of the US military base of Camp Darby into the neighbouring community . This is a position substantially shared by the mayor of Pise Conti (Lega) and also by the mayor of Livorno (Movimento 5 Stelle). The latter, in order to welcome Colonel Berdy, and then US ambassador Lewis M. Eisenberg, raised the star-spangled banner on the Town Hall.
Suspiria Photo: Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock

The heyday of the Italian cinema subgenre known as giallo didnt last a very long time, and most of the entries falling under its highly specific umbrella didnt make it to American theaters. But a self-selecting set of in-the-know filmmakers nonetheless fell in love with this lurid breed of slasher flick, and have kept its legacy alive up to the present. Known quantities with adventurous tastes (Alfred Hitchcock, Eli Roth) and underground sensations (Britains Peter Strickland, Belgian husband-and-wife duo Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani) alike have found inspiration in the movements near-pornographic emphasis on visual splendor over bothersome little things like logic or reality. The latest addition to their self-selecting ranks is Luca Guadagnino, who will soon follow up the near universally acclaimed Call Me by Your Name with an adaptation of a gnarlier sort, tackling the supernatural ballet freak-out Suspiria.

Though it doesnt fall within the bounds of giallo, the film ranks as the most widely known of its director, Dario Argento, the subgenres poster boy and the subject of a new 12-film retrospective at New Yorks Metrograph theater. Argento codified, refined, and arguably perfected the signature tropes of the form: a haywire plotting structure, jags of psychedelia rendered in eye-popping color, the black leather glove as an all-encompassing symbol of danger and desire. If his movies can be said to be about anything in a thematic sense, it would be sex and death, and he never strayed far from his pet obsessions. Still, put style far enough over substance, and as it turns out, style becomes a substance all its own.

The Suspiria release and accompanying salutes such as Metrographs are sure to give Argentos profile a bump, so those proud know-it-alls who want to look authoritative come November should start boning up now. To that end, Vulture has compiled this cursory overview of Argentos best work. A hot tip for those intrigued by his methods: Google Sergio Martino. Then Google Mario Bava. Then Google Lucio Fulci. You can probably take it from there.

The Animal Trilogy (19701971)

After getting his feet wet in the world of screenwriting (most notably, he assisted Sergio Leone and Bernardo Bertolucci with the script for Once Upon a Time in the West), Argento started strong in his directorial career with a trio of films grouped by word-salad titles name-checking the kingdom animalia. He saved the best for first with The Bird With the Crystal Plumage, kept his hot streak going with The Cat O Nine Tails in 1971, and finished strong that same year with Four Flies on Grey Velvet. Each film follows a similar schematic: a cool customer with creative inclinations (a vacationing American novelist, a sharply attired reporter, a rock-and-roll drummer) gets an eyeful of murder, and sets out on an independent investigation to clear his name and/or save his hide. Everywhere he goes, corpses crop up like dandelions to the tune of Ennio Morricones far-out lounge compositions, leading to a bloody confrontation exposing the killers identity.

The plotting is repetitive when not actively maddening  Cat was so named as a reference to the surfeit of dead ends pursued by its amateur detective  but duly serves its purpose as scaffolding for Argento to mount his twisted objets dart. The close-ups of eyeballs, forcing the viewer into voyeurism and exhibitionism in one; the chilling Dutch Boy mask whose lifeless smile haunts the whole of Flies; the expressionistic POV shots inviting us to join the killer through surrogacy. (Argento notoriously insisted that his own hands be used when shooting the first-person stranglings on multiple films, the sick puppy.) He enlivened the usual killer-on-the-loose beats with bizarre flights of fancy, trapping his prey beneath a massive abstract metal sculpture in the climax of Bird in a cheeky visual pun. Aesthetics is pain.

Deep Red (1975)

Argento didnt reinvent the wheel when he returned to the giallo school following a zany send-up of revolutionary politics titled The Five Days of Milan in 1973. Rather, this critic considers Deep Red to be Argentos finest film specifically because he challenged himself to get away with more under the same parameters he had already set, elevating all the same favored elements to new heights of unhinged artistry. He followed through on the promise of the title and then some, flooding his frames with blood in a hue not naturally found in a human body. Argentos camera had never been so freely mobile, slithering up stairways and careening off of walls during the frenzied arias of murder. His ongoing interest in pop psychology spawned his most salacious plot yet, a Freudian stew of creepy killer dolls, repressed trauma, and triggering musical cues. (Summoning the same cooler-than-cool energy he brought to Londons fashion scene in Blow-Up one decade earlier, star David Hemmings fit perfectly into Argentos world of swingers and post-beatnik hipsters.)

Attention must be paid to Goblin, the Italian prog-rock outfit responsible for the brooding, sinuous, haunting score. It was a blessing in disguise that Pink Floyd said no when Argento first approached them, sending him back to Italy and into the arms of composer Giorgio Gaslini, who enlisted the help of the gangly, morose 20-somethings that had bowled him over at a live show earlier that year. Disputes with the director eventually led to Gaslini exiting the project, a case of addition by subtraction if ever there was one, in that it let Goblin run wild in the studio with minimal supervision. In their epileptic fits of free jazz, whirligig sax solos, and berserk synthesizer twiddling, they laid the path for John Carpenters Halloween theme and inspired metalheads and Tyler the Creator alike. Good luck purging the infant-babble lullaby mocking the audiences terror from your nightmares.

Suspiria (1977)

Scholars have long quibbled over whether this phantasmagoria technically qualifies as a giallo, the film having severed its tethers to Earth and drifted into a new plane of pure fantasy. For those of us unconcerned with taxonomy, its still a hallucinatory trip into hell rich with pleasure and torment, however you might label it. Jessica Harper, doing the same ingenue bit that made her an instant cult sensation in Brian De Palmas Phantom of the Paradise three years earlier, portrays an American ballerina enrolling at an elite dance academy in Freiburg, Germany. Something seems a little off, though; maybe its the maggots falling from the ceiling, maybe its the drugs in the food, or maybe its the fact that her instructors are witches bound to an ancient ritual that demands regular sacrifice in flesh.

This is Argentos most sumptuous stew of influences, mixing 19th-century occult mythology about religious sorrows with the dark, violent fairy tales popularized by Hans Christian Andersen and then setting it all at a high boil. Digging deep for his reference points resulted in an eerie atmosphere augmented by an unorthodox array of kills; the usual garroting and stabbing is mostly excised, replaced by a dancers fall into an instantaneously materialized pile of barbed wire, to name one example. While Argento includes only a scant few scenes of dance, the feverish emotionality of performance informs the fabric of the film, which continues building in intensity until the mirror-smashing finale breaks through directly to the subconscious. A warning for the uninitiated: Youll never look at a glowing peacock talisman the same way again.

Tenebrae (1982)

After his dalliances with the mystical in Suspiria and its follow-up Inferno, Argento returned to the giallo with a vengeance. I mean that literally: To show that he was unintimidated by the crazed fan who kept calling him with death threats, Argento wrote a movie about a horror novelist targeted by a night stalker reenacting the grisly slayings from his written works. For added saltiness, he also includes a scene in which his avatar basically tells his critics exactly where they can shove their objections to his passions for female skin and carnage. The denouement dives even deeper into the meta-textual, gleefully implicating Argento himself in his crimes against sensitive tastes. Its rather telling that Argentos most personal film involves sexual humiliation and temporary dissociation.

While shouting out his haters, Argento continued to forge onward in his innovation behind the camera and in the editing suite. His conveyance of visual information had never been so intricate or precise; multiple viewings reveal hints as to the killers identity encoded in purposeful pans across a room or conspicuous cuts. He continued to locate the uncanny by rendering everyday objects hostile and alien, getting his most arresting shot from a filament burning out in a smashed light bulb. But Argentos secret weapon was always the mundane. In his chaotic universe, evil often lurks where the victims feel at ease and off guard, in the daytime and in public spaces. He wants his viewers to spend the rest of their lives steeling themselves before entering any empty room, aware that it may very well contain a killing in progress.

Trauma (1993)

The later years of Argentos career have been marred by a string of misfires (please, love yourself and refrain from seeing his Dracula 3D) and controversies revolving around his daughter Asia. Prior to all that, however, he pulled off a family affair on American soil. Asia plays an anorexic patient at a stay in a Minneapolis mental hospital, where the orderlies have a bad habit of getting suffocated by a fiendish contraption known to fans as the Noose-O-Matic. As the title makes abundantly clear, Argentos back on his Psych 101 grind, ginning up the most demented backstory in a filmography full of them. And the neuroses extend to darker crannies of Argento and his collaborator/lover Daria Nicolodis subconscious than usual  Asias role is based in part on her real-life half-sister Anna, who battled eating disorders right up to her untimely, accidental death shortly following the films release.

Posterity has identified Trauma as a departure for Argento on several fronts. Its the rare instance of a female protagonist surviving to see the end credits roll, the beginning of a protracted creative partnership with his daughter, and an early sign of his later compulsion to cast a wider net of appeal with U.S. audiences. And yet all of Dario Argentos films (even the bad ones!) are so immutably his, all but embossed with his proprietary stamp in blood. The mark of a great filmmaker is the ability to create a sui generis visual language setting his or her work apart from the rest of the era, genre, or nation. Put a random frame of Argentos in front of someone who has a functional understanding of his corpus, and theyll immediately be able to identify its point of origin. He laid full claim to the vivid, oneiric strain of horror that the franchise mainstream doesnt dare touch. His legacy lives on today in the cult circuit and the art house, in the bedroom and the asylum, or anywhere someone zips up a black leather glove.
Deception. Photo: ABC

If youre not plugged into reality TV spoilers, Tuesday nights Bachelor in Paradise finale went by with a pretty normal, if not dramatic after-show. Some couples got back together, others did not, and both of the engaged couples  Krystal and Chris, Jenna and Jordan  remained betrothed after leaving those sticky Mexican shores for the real world. Cue the requisite awwwws! Or maybe dont  because one of those people doesnt deserve our cute mouth-sounds. Allow us to recount the past 24 hours of Jenna Cooper: Prolific Scammer, and how her bottle-blonde charms caught Bachelor Nation completely by shock, awe, and disgust.

Wait, what are you talking about? The after-show reunion didnt have any Jenna drama at all.

Youre right, reader! So its important we clarify the timelines before moving forward. Unlike the After the Final Rose Bachelor and Bachelorette specials that air live, Bachelor in Paradises reunion was pre-recorded earlier in the month. Because of this, it did not incorporate the new information that was gleaned on Tuesday afternoon.

Okay, so whats that new info?

Were just gonna rip off the band-aid. According to a report first circulated by Reality Steve  a consistently reliable source for reality TV industry intel  Jenna has been faking her relationship with Jordan the entire time, and only went on Paradise to get exposure for her business. This comes from incriminating text-message screenshots sent by a man who claims he and Jenna had been dating before and after her Paradise experience, and were dating up until just a few days ago. (Steve Carbone, the founder of Reality Steve, said he independently verified the messages and confirmed the number they were sent from was indeed Jennas.)

Some of the messages are normal mushy musings between lovebirds, but others, like this one, speak to a far more manipulative personality:

I told you yesterday and I keep telling you that this is all for my business. You know how much I need the money. Me and Jordan arent together for real. I dont even like him let alone love him. Im better than him and once Im able to break it off for good Ill make up some story to make him look bad if itll make you feel better. He means nothing to me and never has.

Reality Steve also reported multiple sources have come to him over the past few months to divulge that Jenna had been galavanting around her current city  Raleigh, North Carolina  with various men, and wasnt trying to hide her contempt for the franchise.

How did this evolve into a full-blown scandal?

Nobody in the Bachelor Nation dared to comment on the report in the hours leading up to the Paradise finale  and then, as the saying goes, the shit hit the fan at around midnight.

What did Jenna say?

In a statement to People, she denied the messages veracity, referred to the screenshots as mere allegations, and said she wouldnt be commenting further. I am choosing to focus on my relationship right now, she said. Thank you for respecting my privacy at this time.

And what about Jordan?

Oh honey, break out those ultra-soft tissues. In the same People story, Jordan somehow found the courage to get on the phone and open up about all of these feelings of betrayal. It felt like a body drop. I got taken down. Im weak in the knees and I feel like I have rocks in my stomach, he said, believing that Jennas infidelity is legit. I know my Jenna, and I read those texts and in my heart, I know its her. She was saying she didnt do it, but hinting towards the fact that theres a possibility that it happened. In all reality, I dont expect her to own it. I would never have expected this. I feel sick about it. I just dont understand why someone would say that theyre better than me and have ill intentions.

Jordan also revealed they were in the midst of planning their engagement party in North Carolina before this bombshell dropped, and a wedding date had already been set for next June (with none other than Chris Harrison officiating). Hours after his interview, though, Jennas presence from Jordans Instagram was completely wiped.

This isnt a twisted attempt at publicity, is it?

While Jenna has remained radio-silent on all of her social-media platforms  her Jordan photos still remain, though  Jordan posted a photo on Instagram to confirm that he has, indeed, dumped her. Being careless with someone that you give your heart to and reach milestones with isnt sensible no matter what the terms may be. I have not had an easy life and having struggles allows me to grab onto tough times and discard them from my path, he wrote, in part. I deal with unreasonable circumstances reasonably and have come to terms with a decision to remove myself from the relationship, it breaks my heart to think, feel and fall for this. Its dropped me. Fumbling emotions and being understanding is not easy. Ill be taking time to pursue my inner peace and she will always have me to talk to, if youve reached out to me, allow me time. Thank you to those that have.

Were sad.

Us, too. But on Wednesday evening, Jenna responded on social media, so theres more of this madness to unpack.

What did she say?

She still asserts that the messages were completely fabricated and were, simply, never sent by her. Shell also be potentially pursuing legal action. I did not cheat on Jordan, and I have nothing to hide. I have been extremely open and vulnerable throughout this whole process. I was looking for love, and I found it, she wrote. I was excited to share this journey with all of you. I am hurt by these fake texts, and that anyone would believe this story so quickly without proof. I have an attorney helping me investigate this hurtful and fraudulent attack on my character. We are evaluating all legal remedies available to punish those responsible.

Were still sad.

Same.
Photo: Paul Hebert/ABC

A congratulations are in order for Bachelor in Paradise, we suppose! After all of those margaritas, dancing crabs, date cards, and rectangle-covered buttocks, three couples have emerged on solid ground after the finale, while some other pairings may have had the word paradise forever tainted for them  and that sucks, because its such a nice noun! Since we know youre (secretly) dying to know which Paradise couples are still smooching in sun-kissed harmony, heres the lowdown on all of the duos who decided to show up to the after-show finale. If only they were all success stories. But where would be the drama in that?

John and Olivia

Status: Parted ways, not too amicably.

Despite frequent calls, video chats, and a trip together, the couple broke up a few weeks after Paradise ended, citing distance as the main factor. Well, John did, anyway  because as Olivia says, John chose to publicize a relationship with fellow Paradise-er Chelsea on social media over her. Twist! For me, I felt like our different lifestyles couldnt make that work right now, John explained. But then, when I saw you were publicizing other relationships  you were FaceTiming her, when you couldve been FaceTiming me, Olivia responded. And that was a slap in my face.

Colton and Tia

Status: Theyre friends, and they really want us to know it.

Our long national nightmare is over  or rather, just beginning  with Colton being anointed as the next Bachelor. (We personally love our proud, messy virgin!) It should come as no surprise that Colton and his on-again-off-again-on-again-off-some-more-maybe-back-again-okay-officially-over gal, Tia, are putting on a unified friendship front to America, saying theyre happy to be pals and that the romance is definitely, absolutely fizzled. We were never on the same page, and despite all of the crying and everything that happened, I think it was all worth it to get to this point, Tia said with a laugh. To know that we tried and it didnt work. Colton echoed the sentiment: Shes an incredible woman and someone Ill always be friends with and Ill consider a friend for a very long time. Its nice to say finally were on the same page and were good friends. Dont worry. Tia wont actually be showing up on The Bachelor. Lord bless!

Astrid and Kevin

Status: Back together. Thank God!

Paradises most popular couple did a relationship 180 and reconciled in front of the studio audience  even though they continued to talk via text message when they returned home from Mexico. (With Bibiana as their meditator, no less.) It didnt really become clear to me until I went home. I spoke to my family, I went back to therapy, and I realized it was my own fault and it was my own baggage, Kevin explained, noting that the pressure to go to the fantasy suite triggered him from his previous experience with Ashley I. I brought baggage to Paradise, and she got blamed for it. I feel terrible about it and it was definitely hard to watch. As for Astrid, she forgave Kevins apology. They exchanged I love yous in front of everyone, and the future is looking bright for these two.

Kendall and Joe

Status: Also back together. Thank God!

Kendall, just a few days after breaking up with Joe and leaving Paradise, decided to hightail it to Chicago in the hopes of winning back her man and expressing how much she regretted her decision. Despite some initial pushback from Joe about if his feelings were still there  I felt in my heart that she felt she made a mistake, he put it  Kendalls emotional breakthrough helped ease his pain and encourage him to give her another chance. I couldnt help but feel a bunch of regret. I was projecting how I actually was, she said during their Chicago meet-up. I was the one actually holding back  I know it doesnt justify it, but the reason why I had fear and the reason why I was pulling my back so much was that I am in love with you. The duo have since visited each other multiple times and are in a stable relationship.

Kamil and Anneliese

Status: Oh, honey, we all knew this wasnt going to last.

Kamil decided to breakup with Anneliese during the after-show  hasnt he learned anything from Arie?  setting her off into a spiral of despair and tears, and wailing about how they wont be able to share their Airbnb in Los Angeles anymore. I just dont really know what to say still, she said, after he was banished from the stage. I really tried. Kamil just said the post-Paradise bubble made him realize they werent meant to be together: I dont want to string you along. I think it would be best for us to slowly part ways.

Chris and Krystal

Status: Still engaged, and super cute.

These two! The former franchise villains are going incredibly strong with their engagement, and plan on moving in with each other as soon as possible. (Yes, he met her dogs, and yes, they love him. Also yes, one of them will serve as a dog ring-bearer.) Were so excited. Weve been waiting a long time to be here and be a couple, Krystal said, with Chris the Goose adding through tears: Im crying not only that Im happy, but Im so thankful that I have such an incredible woman who saw potential in me and helped transform me in Paradise. Their moms have also become the best of friends, like sisters, and are looking forward to a flock of baby geese. Redemption cycle, complete.

Jordan and Jenna

Status: ??????

By all indication, these crazy blondes continued to be livin la vida loca with their engagement, even setting a date for a televised wedding at those Paradise Mexican shores on June 9, with ordained minister Chris Harrison officiating. He broke down all of my walls and made me fall so hard, Jenna explained of Jordan during the after-show. But also terrible, because he realized I dont ever want to live without him. There was a fun montage video of them scrapbooking, for goodness sake!

However, a bombshell report from Reality Steve emerged on Tuesday afternoon, claiming, among other things, that Jenna is a prolific cheater who was only using Jordan to get publicity for her business. (You can read the report here.) In it, allegedly verified screenshots show Jenna texting a man shes been recently dating  yes, while engaged to Jordan  and she writes how their relationship is all for my business and nothing more. You know how much I need the money  he means nothing to me and never has, she put it bluntly. Jenna has since denied the allegations as simply untrue to People, while Jordan, sadly, stated hes inclined to believe theyre true in the same People piece. Well see how this evolves over the next few days.
Cosby. Photo: Mark Makela/Getty Images

As Bill Cosby awaits sentencing on his conviction of three counts of felony sexual assault in suburban Philadelphia this month, the comedians wife issued a statement asking that the case be thrown out, and at the very least that the judge step down.

According to Andrew Wyatt, Cosbys longtime publicist, Mrs. Cosby is asking for a motion of dismissal, accusing Judge Steven ONeill of withholding pertinent information about a so-called ongoing feud between the judge and former Montgomery County D.A. Bruce Castor.

Mrs. Cosby stated this week, Bill Cosby was not afforded an impartial judge and he did not receive a fair trial. Instead, my husband was forced to go to trial before a judge, Steven T. ONeill, who had a bitter, longstanding feud with one of the key witnesses in the case, Bruce Castor, the former District Attorney for Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Mr. Castor testified under oath that when he was D.A. in 2006, he made a binding decision that because the evidence was weak, Mr. Cosby would never be prosecuted in this case, and that as a result of that decision, Mr. Cosby no longer had the right to remain silent and would be required to give a deposition in a civil lawsuit. Though Castor was not the D.A. who brought the case against Cosby; it was D.A. Kevin Steele, who unsuccessfully tried the case in 2017 that resulted in a hung jury.

Cosby has been under house arrest since his conviction while his new (and third) defense teams been busy interviewing witnesses they say prove Judge ONeill failed to disclose his feud with the former D.A., something Mrs. Cosby now says damaged her husbands right to a fair trial. Since being convicted in April, Cosby fired his superstar defense team and hired attorney Joseph P. Green Jr. to take over the case. Thus far, every defense motion to overturn Cosbys conviction has been dismissed by the judge.

But according to Wyatt, the revelations Green has recently uncovered are juicy. In fact, one witness alleges that former D.A. Castor was aware of an affair Judge ONeill was supposedly having with a female attorney on the D.A.s staff while he was separated from his wife. Wyatt claims that Castor used the relationship to his advantage to retaliate against the judge during an election. The defense claims they have sources that will attest that the whole situation humiliated the judge and may have caused him to lose a bid for judgeship back in 1999.

In whats being seen by many as a last-ditch effort to free her 81-year-old husband from the possibility of serving any actual mandatory prison time, Mrs. Cosby now says that since ONeill had bias toward the former D.A., and it created bias in the sex case against her husband. The public, and Mr. Cosby, were entitled to know about Judge ONeills bias before the judge made these rulings, she said in a statement.

Its unclear whether the motion will be accepted since it was D.A. Steele who brought charges against Cosby, and not the judge. Its also highly unusual for a call for dismissal to come just two weeks before sentencing thats certain to make headlines as more famous Hollywood men (like former CBS honcho Les Moonves) are being accused of sexual misconduct.

D.A. Steele has already said that he plans to give accusers the opportunity to confront Cosby in the courtroom when the comedians formally sentenced starting September 24. Its a decision thats already being compared to the Larry Nassar sentencing in which dozens of gymnasts confronted the sexual felon.

Cosby could face up to 30 years in prison.
Photo: Getty Images

As co-stars in Hulus Castle Rock, Melanie Lynskey and Jane Levy seem like they were destined to be acting partners. But for the accident of timing, Levy would have fit right in among the 90s alt-sorority of Lynskey, Chloe Sevigny, Clea DuVall, Natasha Lyonne, and the like, making queer indies and carving out their own definitions of cool. Lynskey came of age in a cinematic era of dark quirk, but from Heavenly Creatures to Ever After to Sweet Home Alabama to Togetherness to, yes, even Two and a Half Men, shes an actress for all seasons, and as you track Levys career, she seems bound for a similarly dynamic future.

For the time being, these two actresses are residents of Maines most blighted fictional town, Castle Rock, where Lynskey plays Molly Strand, a clairvoyant real-estate agent with a pill habit, and Levy is Jackie Torrance, a local cab driver obsessed with her homes macabre reputation. Now that Molly has been unmasked as actually dead  well, in one timeline at least  and Jackie has achieved her true potential by joining Castle Rocks pantheon of murderers, Vulture sat down with both of them to talk about why they love each other, why Hollywood can be such a pain in the ass for women, and how TV is helping the industry raise its freak flag high.

You first worked together on I Dont Feel at Home in This World Anymore, right?

Jane Levy: Do you want to know a funny piece of trivia? The first job I ever got, Melanie and I were going to work together. I was 20 years old and Melanie was going to play my mom, which is very Hollywood, because you would have to be 10 when you had me.

Melanie Lynskey: Well, 13.

JL: This was before Shameless, and I actually got the show while we were in pre-production for this movie. I dropped out of it to be in Shameless, and I remember calling my agent crying and being like, What do you mean I can drop out of a project I signed up for? And they were like, Jane, this is Hollywood. Its business. If they got Shameless, they would have dropped out of their movie, too. And I was like, Okay, I guess Ill do it!

So I Dont Feel at Home was your fated reunion.

JL: While you were even saying that I was like, How did I get to be sitting here with Melanie? I just feel so lucky that I get to be friends with and work with her. I know its embarrassing, but I really mean it. Shes one of my favorite actors of all time. So we worked together on I Dont Feel at Home in This World Anymore and had the best time. I loved being a part of that movie. I love watching that movie.

ML: It was probably the greatest working experience of my life, that movie.

Whys that?

ML: I loved everybody so much, and [writer-director] Macon [Blair] is such a great collaborator. At first he was very specific with direction, which is not something that works with me. I really started to freeze up, and I just got brave and told him, I feel so hemmed if I get this sort of feedback. And he was like, Dude, I dont know what Im doing. I read a book. It said actors like it if you tell them what to do. I dont know. What do you want?

JL: Hes one of my favorite people ever.

ML: Some male directors get very defensive if youre like, Can I just do my thing and then you can come in and help me? Its very difficult, that conversation.

JL: I think that Macon is one of the most feminist directors. His roles are written for people, men or women. The part I play in that movie, I dont think typically is a role that a woman would play. And you know that he wrote the part for Melanie.

No, I did not.

ML: Yeah. It was lovely. We had a Skype and he was like, I really want you to do it, but you know how these things are. I was like, I know youre going to have to offer it to famous people. I know how it works.

JL: I have a friend whos a producer who showed me a list of the finance-able stars, and its shocking. At each age range, theres like actually five people, and Im like, Oh, this is why those people get cast in everything, because they are the five people that are finance-able to the foreign markets. Its a really strange system.

Both of you are respected for your independent sensibilities, but does it ever feel exhausting to be paid in admiration when these tiny lists of finance-able actresses exist?

ML: I mean, sometimes it works out and thats amazing. Macon eventually took his script to Netflix and they were like, Whos your dream cast? He said me and Elijah, and they were like, Done. He came out of the meeting and called my agent and was like, I didnt know it could be so easy! So sometimes its wonderful. That it works out ever feels miraculous.

JL: Same, but I do spend a lot of time upset. The job of being an actor is being told no all the time and being disappointed a lot. At the same time, I am also extremely grateful that I get to work as an actor. Even when you do get a job, I never feel like its actually going to happen until the first day Im on set, because so many times it falls apart. Even after you did all the crazy hard work to get the job. Its kind of a miracle that I even got two jobs, and then three.

Especially for women in creative industries, its so hard to reach that place where you arent just as good as your last job. Like, your body of work can stand on its own and you can trust more work will come.

JL: A hundred percent, but I say no to some things sometimes.

ML: Its still hard to say no. Its really hard.

JL: I have to say, though, it sounds like I have a lot of control over my career, but I feel like I have very little. Im always struggling with myself where Im like, Give yourself some credit, you did make some of this stuff happen, but at the same time I think these are the roles that come to me for a reason. Why did these creators think of me for this part? What is it in me that I can bring to this person? And through that, Ive learned a lot about myself as a person and as a performer.

As actors, do you feel like you have access to better material than you did earlier in your careers?

JL: Ive only been a working actor for eight years. I feel like I dont have enough history to be able to say whether its changed anything for me.

ML: Ive been doing it for 25 years. Thats a depressing sentence. But yeah, I do think it is different. I started out in the 90s and there was such a prescribed look for women. There were ingenues and character actresses and everybody was very concerned with what box you are going to fit into, and it really freaked me out and upset me. I was always like, Im a character actress, I guess. It sounds like the most interesting of all the options. And then people were like, Well, dont say that! Then you wont get to play the lead! It was so bizarre, and now it does feel different.

Do you feel like those prescriptions have loosened a bit?

ML: Definitely. I also had a very old-school agent when I started out, who had been around for a long time and really believed in telling it like it was. So I believed it was going to be difficult for me for my whole life, because of what I look like. She was nice about it. Shed just seen a lot.

That just makes me so mad!

ML: I know. It pisses me off, too, but I also was like, Fuck that! I just decided I was never going to take a part if somebody said something derogatory about my body or my face or anything like that. It was very important to me to never play the fat friend or whatever, which is a role that kept coming to me over and over  even when I was anorexic, basically. I just was like, How do I sidestep this thing that people are trying to put me in?

Jane, it seems like you didnt arrive in Hollywood trying to walk that ingenue path. Was that a deliberate choice?

JL: I feel really blessed to have grown up with a mother who never, ever taught me that any part of my value had to do with what I looked like. This is obviously a career thats in a visual medium. Its all about the human face, but I am not interested in roles that are going to necessarily make me look good. I also have a kind of a perverted sensibility, so thats why Ive veered towards horror films and comedies and things that push boundaries.

I read an old interview where you said, Im also a little bit obsessed with morbidity and darker stories and fantasy and the underworld. Im into secrets. Im into gossip, and Im in the dark side.

ML: [Laughs.] You are my favorite!

JL: I mean, those things are true!

What was it about Castle Rock that grabbed you guys by the guts?

JL: I did do this really dorky intention-setting thing at the beginning of last year when I was feeling dejected and didnt feel like I was playing the parts that I wanted to. Someone was like, Why dont you write down your dream roles? I am a huge fan of Alexander Payne, and Citizen Ruth and Election are two of my favorite movies of all time. So I was like, I want to play Tracy Flick. When they sent me the Castle Rock script, it said that my character was Tracy Flick meets Ed Gein.

As in the serial killer?

JL: Yes. Its such a funny combo, and I was like, This is exactly my sensibility. If only Jackie was, like, fucking her teacher in the TV show. It would be that much better.

This interview was edited and condensed for clarity.
Fan Bingbing. Photo: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images

Chinese actress Fan Bingbing is set to co-star in the upcoming thriller 355 alongside Jessica Chastain, Penelope Cruz, and Lupita Nyongo, but thats assuming theyre able to locate her. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fan, who was recently Chinas highest-paid actress, became embroiled in a scandal earlier this summer over leaked documents suggesting she had misled the government about her income to avoid the countrys heavy taxes on highly paid actors. The scandal has resulted in a lot of bad press and a major crackdown on celebrity pay in China. Meanwhile Fan, who played Blink in X-Men: Days of Future Past, has not been seen in public, or posted on social media, since July.

Speculation on where the actress is and what she is up to has since run rampant, with one viral rumor claiming Fan was under the control of Chinese authorities, although this story was later retracted. Others claim shes been spotted in Los Angeles, and has fled to the U.S. to seek asylum at the instruction of Jackie Chan himself, although he has denied this story. So, if you see her, at least let us know shes okay?
Photo: Courtesy of Sundance Institute.

This review originally ran during the Sundance Film Festival.

Lizzie Borden might have had her reasons for giving her mother 40 whacks and her father 41, but its only now, in the austere arthouse treatment of her life premiering at the Sundance Film Festival, that we discover the storys hitherto-unknown vein of female empowerment and the Love That Dares Not Speak Its Name.

Craig William Macneills Lizzie features two protagonists, the title character (Chloe Sevigny), daughter of Fall River, Massachusettss wealthiest family, and the Irish maid, Bridget Sullivan (Kristen Stewart), the only person known to be at home (besides the victims, natch) at the time of the August 1892 murders. Bridget was always a key figure in the Borden saga. She almost certainly lied about Lizzies comings and goings, and her hasty departure for points unknown (possibly Ireland) the day after the murders was odd, to say the least. (There was no indication that she was about to lose her cleaning job  I can think of at least two rooms in the house that needed a good scrubbing.) But Lizzie puts Bridget at the center of the action, where an ax-blow to the head signals a blow against sexual assault and patriarchal oppression.

Lizzie reportedly began life as a projected four-hour HBO mini-series (initiated by Sevigny), but Macneills feature has barely enough incident to fill its 105 minutes. Taking their cues from the idea that Andrew Borden (Jamey Sheridan) was a repressive, parsimonious figure who married his drab second wife (Lizzies stepmother) for money, Macneill and screenwriter Bryce Kass pare down the talk, and Macneill puts a slight reverberance around the dialogue to suggest a house of bare floors, spare furnishings, and awkward communication. Everything is drained of color. Although Lizzie is often headstrong (Sevignys specialty is the insolent mouth and upraised chin), shes also given to seizures at moments of passion, as if the universe itself is fighting her self-expression. Stewarts Bridget, meanwhile, is an ostentatiously mousy thing whose eyes are so often fixed on the floorboards its a wonder she doesnt collide with the furniture.

The womens ultimate tryst suggests a hunger for connection in a world in which, despite their social status, theyre more alike in their subjugation than not  and theres nothing objectionable about that slant. (Its certainly timely.) The problem is the enervated pacing and ludicrous depiction  after much fancy skipping back and forth in time  of the murders themselves. And while the filmmakers have no obligation to get the facts right (its a movie, not a historical reenactment), one change is telling. In life, Lizzie and her older sister (a barely seen Kim Dickens in the movie) were too lazily entitled to remember the names of the help and insisted on calling Bridget Maggie. In the film, its Borden Sr. and his wife (Fiona Shaw) who call Bridget Maggie, while only Lizzie sees her as a real human being.

Sheridan is convincingly saturnine, and Denis OHare has a few good moments as the slimy brother-in-law who arrives to help Borden revise his will, leaving Lizzie and her sister with much less. The sound designers had a good time with the increasingly squishy ax blows. But I wanted more blood, in all senses.
An alley way in Athens will soon get a new look thanks to students from Athens Renaissance School.

WAAY 31 caught up with the students to learn their plans.

The alley located next to UG White Merchantile on Jefferson and Market Street is a bit of an eye sore. The students at Athens Renaissance School decided to give it a makeover and turn it into a place where people can hangout while waiting to eat at the restaurant next door. They are turning the space into a "Pocket Park". The students are making some of the woodwork for the park with their own hands.

"We're gonna give it a fall theme with scarecrows and pumpkins and stuff. Put some, like, fake grass down. Just make it look attractive to people," said student Cameron Palvik.

The pop up park is temporary and will only be here for a month so you'll want to stop by and visit before it's gone.
With Virginia College's pending closure, some students are faced with the option to have their tuition refunded or to transfer their credits elsewhere. School officials told WAAY31 that 14 students will not be able to graduate by the June 2019 closure.

Calhoun Community College will be holding information sessions for any Virginia College students interested in transferring their credits. The sessions will be held Tuesday, September 18, 2018 from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Aerospace Training Center on the Decatur Campus and the Multifunction Room in the Math, Science and Computer Science building at the Huntsville Campus.

Students will be able to meet with school representatives from various academic departments as well as the admissions and financial aid services.

Registration remains open for Calhoun's Delayed Start classes, which begin October 15.
MIAMI, FL, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NEWMEDIAWIRE -- Amazonas Florestal, Ltd.  ( the Company) (www.azflus.com) (OTC Pink: AZFL), a natural resources company dedicated to innovative, sustainable forest management, Industrial High CBD Hemp and CBD Products and the certification and sales of carbon credits, today announced that the Company has hired Mr. Carlos Martinez as its new Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Martinez will also be a new Board Member and head the new Financial Committee for the Company working out of the Company headquarters in Miami. The Company announced that more officer and director appointments are imminent once the screening and interview process for a new CEO and COO have been completed.



The Company also announced that it will be renewing its wood products production business in Manaus and in the state of Rondonia, Brazil, with operators there in the process of closing new purchase orders with top of the line lumber companies that purchase these products in the USA and the EU. The Company further announced that it has completed its new Business Plans for a Colorado Industrial High CBD Hemp Plantation and products laboratory that will be presented to qualified investors that have already been pre-selected and have shown interest in participating in funding this new lab project.

Ricardo Cortez, Company Chairman of Amazonas Florestal, Ltd., said, Company management is very pleased to have included the services of CFO Carlos Martinez this week. Carlos comes with a vast experience directing large projects such as those that the Company is now lining up for future business and has been officer and director at several large well-known banking institutions as a top financial officer for more than 30 years. We are screening applicants for other officer positions that will be announced in the coming weeks. This new team will evaluate all of the business and funding opportunities available to the company and direct our operatives to renew the wood business in Brazil and to present qualified investors with the new business plan for Colorado.

In other company news, Mr. Cortez said, The Company invites any interested investors willing to participate at ground zero in the Hemp and CBD business in Colorado to communicate your interest to us at by email at: azflorestal@outlook.com. This is a very exciting project and a unique investment opportunity that begins with property and greenhouses for plant development in proven certified genetics and growth methods and culminates with a products lab and the formulation and marketing of a wide assortment of new products. We feel confident that Cannabis, Hemp and CBD inclusive, is one of if not the fastest growing agricultural industry in the world today and that being a part of it now is essential to have a good piece of the market in the future. We have seen the legalization process take off around Latin America, where we have many connections and speak the language, that make for an interesting combination when placing new CBD products on those markets. Uruguay and Chile have already opened up and Brazil, Peru and Mexico appear to be primed for legalization soon. An assortment of financial analysts agree in predicting that this industry will grow 6- or 7-fold in the next decade.

Also, the Company announced that it will continue the market development of Balance CBD as its spearhead brand for placing its CBD products on the market in preparation for the increased amounts that should become available for market next year. The Company remains in final negotiations for the purchase of another brand that already has made further advances in its customer base and market development. The Company will develop both brands in different niche markets.

In other Company news, the website www.azflusa.com has been hacked presumably by its developers and the company has had to take the site down. New management is of the opinion that the site was already old and misdirected, mostly focused on forest preservation, an activity in which the company is only unofficially active as it does protect the rainforest properties in its asset base but receives no compensation for that activity as of yet. Plans to place the properties in a UN Program known as REDD+ for their preservation and to qualify for carbon offset credits are underway and will form part of the new site : www.azflus.com, however, the main focus will be the High CBD Hemp Industry, CBD products that will be sold through the site and the Forest Products Industry. The Company expects to launch the site in the coming weeks and will announce it promptly to press.

About Amazonas Florestal Ltd.

Amazonas Florestal Ltd. is a natural resources company dedicated to innovative, sustainable management of large tracts of land in the rainforests of Amazonas, Brazil, that include the certification and sale of carbon credits and the growth, harvesting, research and development of Industrial Hemp and related high CBD products in the U.S. and internationally.

Headquartered in Miami, FL, Amazonas's goal is to become a leader in sustainable forest management and preservation, creating revenue while protecting the biodiversity of the rainforest ecosystem and enhancing the lives of the people who live in it. Through a strategy of selective harvesting, certification and sale of carbon, biomass and biofuel production, and conservation incentives, Amazonas Florestal Ltd. intends to help protect one of the world's greatest natural resources and show how its preservation can be a profitable activity. Visit the Company at: www.azflus.com

Forward Looking Statements

Forward-looking statements in this release regarding Amazonas Florestal Ltd. are made pursuant to the "Safe Harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, continued acceptance of the Company's products, increased levels of competition, new products and technological changes, the Company's dependence upon third-party suppliers, intellectual property rights, and other risks detailed from time to time in the company's periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.




The City of Huntsville is applying for a 4 million dollar grant to help fund an overpass that would remove a railroad intersection next to the future Mazda-Toyota plant. The railroad intersection located on Old Highway 20 in Limestone County needs to also have a direct line to the Mazda-Toyota plant as part of the agreement with the city. Some people who travel the road everyday don't want to see any more changes.

"Well I think the City of Huntsville has already done enough to us out here in this country without you know, messing up the roads," Carolyn Brown said.

Brown has lived her entire life in Limestone County and doesn't like to see much change.

"To be perfectly honest, I'm not in favor of any changes," Brown said.

But as North Alabama continues to develop, change is inevitable. The City of Huntsville is seeking $4 million dollars in a federal grant to help pay for an $8.2 million dollar project that will remove the railroad crossing and build an overpass above it. The Mazda-Toyota plant needs direct access to the rail line and this plan would do just that.

Alabama Congressman Mo Brooks announced his support of the Huntsville grant application, saying it will help address safety and potential traffic congestion at the crossing. As Mazda-Toyota is expected to bring over 4,000 jobs to the area, the overpass will help traffic flow. Brown can live with that as long as the railroad isn't changed.

"If they want to build an overpass over that railroad... Fine... But that railroad has been here ever since my great grandfather," Brown said.

On Thursday, the Huntsville City Council will look to approve the submission of the grant application.
MOSCOW (AP)  President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that the two Russians named by Britain as suspects in the spy poisoning case do not work for the military and that there is nothing criminal about them.

Britain last week charged two alleged agents of Russias military intelligence agency in absentia with the nerve agent poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in the English city of Salisbury. Britain blames the Russian government for the March attack, a claim that Moscow has vehemently denied.

We know who these people are, we have found them, Putin said at a panel at an economic conference in Vladivostok. There is nothing special or criminal about it, I can assure you.

Asked by the panels moderator if the men work for the military, Putin replied that they are civilians and called on the men to come forward.

Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov at Salisbury train station on March 3, 2018. (Metropolitan Police via AP)

I would like to call on them so that they can hear us today: They should go to some media outlet. I hope they will come forward and tell about themselves.

Skripals niece Viktoria, who lives in Russia and often voices pro-Kremlin arguments on Russian television talk shows, told the Interfax news agency later on Wednesday that she knows through her own sources that the men identified as Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov are ordinary men who are shocked by the accusations.

She claimed that Petrov was not in Britain around the time of the poisoning, but did not elaborate on how she obtained that information.

The Skripals poisoning by the deadly nerve agent Novichok on March 4 triggered a tense diplomatic show down between Russia and the West. Britain and more than two dozen other countries expelled a total of 150 Russian spies working under diplomatic cover, and Russia kicked out a similar number of those countries envoys.

The attack left the Skripals hospitalized for weeks, and two other local residents were seriously sickened months later. One of them, a 44-year-old woman, later died.

British Prime Minister Theresa May said the attack was carried out by officers of the GRU intelligence service and almost certainly approved at a senior level of the Russian state.
CHANGES to the junction between New Street and Barrack Street have backfired, becoming yet another source of traffic chaos in the heart of the...
PLANO, Texas, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NetworkWire  Sharing Services, Inc. (OTCQB: SHRV) is pleased to announce it has been approved and is now trading on the OTCQB Venture Market. This up-listing from the OTC Pink Open Market tier follows another milestone in the companys progress, where Sharing Services reported just over $4 million in gross sales for May 2018, marking the best month since launching its new health and wellness product line Elevacity Global last December.



Up-listing to the OTCQB is a great step for Sharing Services as we continue to grow our business, states CEO John JT Thatch. Increased transparency and credibility will help broaden our shareholder base and provide additional exposure to the institutional investor community, ultimately contributing to shareholder value.

Mays record sales marked a milestone for Sharing Services in 2018. In March, the Company achieved $2.4 million in gross sales, doubling its volume for February. In April, Sharing Services set another record, reporting revenue of more than $3.5 million. The Company attributes this continuing trend of record sales to its quality products, satisfied customers and the ability of its independent sales representatives, known as Elepreneurs, to effectively execute its Blue Ocean Strategy.

OTC Markets Group Inc., operator of financial markets for 10,000 U.S. and global securities, announced the approval of SHRV for trading on the OTCQB Venture Market in a recent news release ( http://nnw.fm/tMEC9 ). U.S. investors can find current financial disclosure and real-time Level 2 quotes for SHRV on http://www.otcmarkets.com .

About Sharing Services, Inc.

Sharing Services, Inc. (OTCQB: SHRV) is a diversified holding company specializing in the direct selling industry. SHRV owns, operates, or controls an interest in a variety of companies that either sell products to the consumer directly through independent representatives or offers services that range from health and wellness, energy, technology, insurance services, training, media and travel benefits.

For more information, visit the companys website at www.SharingServicesInc.com , call 714.203.6717, or email Info@SharingServicesInc.com

About OTC Markets Group Inc.

OTC Markets Group Inc. operates the OTCQX Best Market, the OTCQB Venture Market and the Pink Open Market for 10,000 U.S. and global securities. Through OTC Link ATS and OTC Link ECN, the company connects a diverse network of broker-dealers that provide liquidity and execution services. OTC Markets Group enables investors to easily trade through the broker of their choice and empower companies to improve the quality of information available for investors.

Forward-Looking Statements

The statements contained in this press release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 31E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including statements regarding the Company's expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions, or strategies regarding the future, including the Company's operating margin and rolling average annual growth in tangible book value per share, constitute forward-looking statements. Prospective investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. All forward-looking statements included in this document are based on information available to the Company on the date hereof and the Company assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statement. Prospective investors should also consult the risks described from time to time in the Company's Reports on Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K and Annual Reports to Shareholders.

Company Contact:

Sharing Services, Inc.

Investor Relations

(714) 203-6717

Info@SharingSevicesInc.com
LANSING, Mich., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Michigan Retailers Association Board of Directors is endorsing Republican Bill Schuette for Governor of Michigan.

Bill Schuette has shown throughout the years that he supports retailers in their quest to build successful businesses and add jobs to Michigans economy, said James P. Hallan, MRA President and Chief Executive Officer.

As Attorney General, Schuette supported ending the onerous item-pricing law and he joined other attorneys general in putting the South Dakota-Wayfair decision before the U.S. Supreme Court. The court recently ruled to require remote sellers to collect state sales taxes, creating an even playing field with brick and mortar retailers.

He has had an open door to retail concerns, and his varied experience means he understands the issues facing our wide-ranging membership, Hallan said.

Schuettes stint as Department of Agriculture director in the 1990s, for example, aids him in understanding the many regulations that MRAs grocer membership must follow.

Schuette also has served as a U.S. congressman, Michigan state senator and Michigan Court of Appeals judge. He was elected Attorney General in 2010 and re-elected in 2014. He is the only Attorney General in Michigan history to have served in the executive, legislative and judicial branches of state government.

Hallan also praised Schuettes choice for lieutenant governor, Lisa Posthumus Lyons, Kent County clerk. As a state representative from 2011-2016, Lyons sponsored the bill that ended item pricing in 2011. For years, retailers struggled to meet requirements to tag every item with a price, especially in todays world where pricing can quickly fluctuate as stores compete with online sellers.

Both Bill Schuette and Lisa Lyons have been effective and responsive leaders, and their experience sets them apart, Hallan said.

Michigan Retailers Association represents 5,000 businesses with 15,000 outlets.
Dublin, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Electronic Lab Notebook Market (ELN Market) By Type, License, Mode Of Delivery, & End User - Global Forecast To 2023" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The global Electronic Lab Notebook (ELN) market is expected to reach USD 557.9 million by 2023 from USD 401.3 million in 2018, at a CAGR of 6.8% during the forecast period (2018-2023).



With growing focus on innovation and research and development in pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, there is rising need to electronically maintain records. Electronic lab notebooks (ELNs) are rapidly replacing laboratory paper notebooks as it enable researchers and scientists in better data management, regulatory compliance, avoid data loses, eliminate work forgery, and ease searching and data mining.



Automation and informatics is becoming increasingly essential for the life sciences and other industrial laboratories due to the growing demand for productivity in speed, accuracy, throughput and efficiency. These factors along with growing adoption of cloud-based ELN and enterprise-wide ELN provide immense growth opportunities for players operating in the electronic lab notebook market. However, data integration and security concerns may challenge the market growth to some extent.



Cross-disciplinary or multi-disciplinary ELNs are widely preferred as they meet broad range of scientific needs with their ability to provide a suitable environment that is easy to use across multiple disciplines. In addition, reduced costs of IT overheads, ability to view data across an organization, data standardization, secure storage of an organization's knowledge and IP in one central location, improved workflow management across disciplines, and better collaboration across research areas further propels the growth of enterprise-wide ELN market.



In addition, the report further gives an extensive outlook on various end user industries served by the ELN market. These end users include pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, CROs & CMOs, academic research institutes, food & beverage industries and other. Apart from end users, the report provides insights on adoption of proprietary and open source licenses of electronic lab notebooks. Moreover, the study offers a comprehensive analysis of electronic lab notebook market with respect to deployment models.



Web and cloud-based solutions dominate the global ELN market and are also expected to witness fastest CAGR during the forecast period due to real-time-analysis, cost-effectiveness, integration with other systems & software, easy anywhere access to data, sharing of data internally and externally, flexibility & scalability, and rapidly gaining popularity over paper notebooks in various laboratory practices.

The geographical analysis provides detailed insights on the key trends of the industry in the listed regions & countries, identifying the economic impact, government & private investments, and regulatory scenario. The report identifies North America to be the largest market followed by Europe, Asia Pacific, and Rest of World. The geographical analysis section also comments on the key market players shaping the growth of the industry in the respective countries.



Key Topics Covered:



1. Introduction



2. Research Methodology



3. Executive Summary



4. Market insights



4.1. Introduction

4.2. Drivers

4.2.1. Increasing R&D Activities

4.2.2. Growing Automation in Laboratories

4.2.3. Technological Advancements

4.2.4. Rising Need for Regulatory Compliance

4.3. Restraints

4.3.1. Price and Limited Budgets

4.3.2. Reluctance to Change

4.4. Opportunities

4.4.1. Cloud-Based ELN

4.4.2. Emerging Economies

4.5. Challenges

4.5.1. Interfacing & Integration

4.5.2. Data Security & Privacy Protection Concerns



5. Electronic Lab Notebook Market, by Product Type



5.1. Introduction

5.2. Cross-Disciplinary ELN

5.3. Specific ELN



6. Electronic Lab Notebook Market, by License Type



6.1. Introduction

6.2. Proprietary ELN

6.3. Open-Source ELN



7. Electronic Lab Notebook Market, by Mode of Delivery



7.1. Introduction

7.2. Web & Cloud-Based ELN

7.3. On-Premise ELN



8. Electronic Lab Notebook Market, by End User



8.1. Introduction

8.2. Pharmaceutical Companies

8.3. Biotechnology Companies

8.4. CROs & CMOs

8.5. Academic Research Institutes

8.6. Food & Beverage Companies

8.7. Others



9. Electronic Lab Notebook Market, by Geography



10. Competitive Landscape



10.1. Introduction

10.1.1. New Product & Service Launches, Upgradations & Enhancements

10.1.2. Partnerships, Agreements & Collaborations

10.1.3. Mergers & Acquisitions

10.1.4. Expansion



11. Company Profiles



11.1. Abbott Laboratories

11.2. Agilent Technologies, Inc.

11.3. Arxspan, LLC

11.4. Benchling, Inc.

11.5. Bio-ITech BV (elabJournal)

11.6. Dassault Systemes SE

11.7. ID Business Solutions (IDBS) Ltd. (Danaher Corporation)

11.8. KineMatik Inc.

11.9. Lab-Ally, LLC

11.10. Labfolder GmbH

11.11. Labii Inc.

11.12. LabArchives, LLC.

11.13. LabLynx, Inc.

11.14. LABTrack, LLC

11.15. LabVantage Solutions, Inc.

11.16. LabWare, Inc.

11.17. Mestrelab Research, S.L.

11.18. PerkinElmer, Inc.

11.19. RURO, Inc.

11.20. SciNote, LLC

11.21. SEQOME Limited

11.22. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.

11.23. Waters Corporation



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/7nm8vt/557_million?w=12
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Tim Nolting, Kimball County Commissioner, was elected secretary of the Nebraska Association of County Officials (NACO) in 2017-18 and was selected to attend the National Association of County Officials Convention in Nashville, Tenn. in July.

It was a privilege and an honor to attend, he said. He added that he did not travel and attend the convention on tax payer money, instead, the for-profit division of NACO paid for his attendance.

I picked sessions that mostly involved community development, economic, social and artistic , he said. There is a big push these days that art is a huge contributing factor to the desirability of a community.

Additionally, he attended a session on immigration reform and subsequently requested to be a part of that committee.

In early July NACO received notice that the current White House administration wished to speak with elected county officials across the nation. August was the month set aside for discussions with elected county officials from Kansas and Nebraska.

To that end, on Aug. 16 Nolting attended the White House Conference at our nations capital following a private tour of the White House. He and 35  40 others from Nebraska, including Banner Countys Bob Post, listened to and spoke with several officials throughout the day.

They indicated that we would have time for dialog, but we really didnt, he said. But it was very informative.

Presentations came from the Assistant Secretary of the Department of Education, Frank Brogan, Under Secretaries Gil Kaplan and Gregory Ibach as well as Chris Mitton, Government Affairs Officer for the US Department of Transportation.

Preston Cory, with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, who spoke about the Waters of the US issue and Kellyanne Conway, Assistant to the President, spoke about the opioid epidemic and what is being done to combat the national crisis.

As she spoke the moderator came out and whispered to her. She stopped and said, Vice President Pence is here and would like to speak, Nolting said. He came out, visited with us briefly, came down and shook a few hands. He was very inviting, welcoming and voiced his appreciation for what he knew the counties did.

Ben Carson, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, spoke as well, Nolting said. He is working with Health and Human Services and HUD on social programs.

The group also received a visit from Nebraska Senator Deb Fischer, who talked about the Ag bill, including the USDA programs under that bill.

Though it was a whirlwind day, Nolting was able to tour the Mall of America and visit the Viet Nam Memorial.

I had never been to Washington, but I would definitely go back, Nolting said. I did not get to see everything I wanted to see.
A former Kimball man arrested in Cheyenne County following a seven hour stand-off with law enforcement.

A string of burglaries in eastern Cheyenne County lead Cheyenne County law enforcement to Potter resident Jarred Neuhalfen, with sightings of a suspicious vehicle making its way to farmsteads throughout western Kimball County and eastern Cheyenne County.

Thursday morning, August 30, law enforcement out of Cheyenne County were granted a search warrant to search the residence of Jarred Neuhalfen, 26, at his 3080 County Road 83 home, in Potter.

According to the arrest affidavit from Cheyenne County, law enforcement observed Neuhalfen outside the residence, as officers approached Neuhalfen ran inside the residence and grabbed what appeared to be a semi automatic rifle, ran through the garage and into the house.

The affidavit further stated that as Neuhalfen ran into the house a female ran outside.

According to the affidavit, while Neuhalfen was still in the home he informed law enforcement that he was "coming out in a body bag."

As law enforcement personnel followed Neuhalfen through the garage and into the house they observed two gun cases holding five different firearms including a sawed off shotgun, according to arrest documents.

Those firearms were seized and it was confirmed that the firearms appeared to be operable. Law enforcement ran the serial number from two of the firearms and further confirmed that they were stolen.

According to the affidavit, law enforcement surrounded the perimeter of the home and began negotiating with Neuhalfen while an arrest warrant was obtained for possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, possession of a short shotgun and possession of a stolen firearm.

Nearly seven hours after attempting to execute the search warrant, Neuhalfen agreed to leave the residence and was placed under arrest and taken into custody.

Neuhalfen was arrested on charges of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, a class ID felony, two counts of possession of a stolen firearm, a class IIA felony and possession of a shotgun, a class IV felony.

Neuhalfen was previously convicted on terroristic threats and a probation violation in February of 2015. The previous probation violation involved a stolen rifles case from 2013.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff Sep. 12, 2018 | 11:04 AM | PADUCAH

A local church is serving up some authentic Italian cuisine this week to raise money for a church member in need of a kidney transplant.

The Men's Club at St. Paul Lutheran Church of Paducah is hosting a fundraiser Italian dinner Thursday from 4:30 to 7:00 pm at the church, located at the corner of 21st Street and Kentucky Avenue. Proceeds will fund a kidney transplant for Tyson Asher, a member of the church and a senior at McCracken County High School.

Men's Club member Mike Legendre says Tyson has kidney disease and the high cost of the transplant exceeds his family's insurance coverage.

We found out recently that Tyson's mom, Jenny, is a match and they're gonna do the surgery in early October, Legendre said.

Thursday night's menu includes spaghetti, home-made meatballs and sauce, garlic bread, salad, choice of desert and beverage. Dinners are $9 per person. Children under age 9 eat free when accompanied by a ticketed adult. Guests may eat in or take out orders.

To RSVP for large groups or for more information, call the church at (270) 442-8343.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Sep. 11, 2018 | PADUCAH

By West Kentucky Star Staff Sep. 11, 2018 | 04:15 PM | PADUCAH

A McCracken County woman has been arrested and charged with writing checks, knowing those checks would not clear the bank.



An employee of Paducah Bank called police on August 6th and said the bank had received several insufficient funds checks that had been deposited into a clients account.



The following day, Paducah Police began an investigation. It showed 39-year-old Stephanie Clayton-Smith had told an acquaintance that she was having difficulties with her bank, and asked the acquaintance to cash several checks for her at her bank, which was Paducah Bank.



The woman did so, cashing checks for Clayton-Smith totaling $17,900 over a two-day period.



Police arrested Clayton-Smith Tuesday morning on a charge of theft by deception, (cold checks, $10,000 or more). During an interview, she admitted she knew there was not enough money in her account to cover the checks she wrote.



She was taken to the McCracken County Regional Jail.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Sep. 12, 2018 | PADUCAH

By West Kentucky Star Staff Sep. 12, 2018 | 04:08 PM | PADUCAH

A routine traffic stop late Tuesday night, led to the arrest early today of a McCracken County man on gun, drug, and traffic charges.



According to Paducah Police, they stopped a vehicle shortly before midnight Tuesday on Jackson Street because of no tail lights. The driver, 35-year-old Jeffery R. Payton, told officers he did not have an operators license. He also admitted that there was marijuana and a firearm in the vehicle.



A search revealed five to six grams of suspected marijuana and rolling papers in his front pants pocket and a semi-automatic handgun under the front passenger seat. A computer check confirmed that Payton is a convicted felon. He told officers that he was transporting the gun for someone else.



Payton was arrested on charges of having no tail lights, driving with a suspended or revoked operators license, possession of marijuana, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, and carrying a concealed deadly weapon.



He was taken to the McCracken County Regional Jail.
CHICAGO, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BrandMuscle, the leader in brand-to-one marketing and innovator of the BrandMuscle Marketing Platform, has announced that Duck Donuts, known for serving Warm, Delicious and Made To Order! donuts, has signed a multi-year agreement to improve its franchisee marketing experience.



We are passionate about helping our franchisees grow their businesses, says Betsy Hamm, Chief Operating Officer for Duck Donuts Franchising Company. By investing in BrandMuscle, were able to provide the marketing tools and support our partners need to effectively grow top line revenue, while further integrating themselves into their local community.

Duck Donuts and its franchise partners can access the BrandMuscle Marketing Platform via the Internet to easily customize professional-quality print ads, brochures, online display ads, door hangers, inserts and more to grow their businesses, all with a few clicks of the mouse. Materials created on the site are stored in a personal work center, allowing for quick retrieval and editing. After a piece is customized, it can be downloaded to desktop as a high-resolution (PDF) file, sent via a direct link to BrandMuscles print center or sent directly to a publication. The site also provides direct links allowing franchisees to order TV and radio spots and Duck Donuts approved artwork and logos. The platforms capabilities reduce the need for one-off, custom requests, saving Duck Donuts time and money.

BrandMuscle provides simple solutions that will improve the franchisee turn-around time on their marketing requests, says Hamm. This both greatly reduces time our team will spend creating custom marketing content for franchisees and improves speed-to-market.

Hamm also says with the BrandMuscle Marketing Platform, the Duck Donuts corporate marketing team now has more time to focus on strategy and growth opportunities and franchisees have fresh approaches to drive traffic to their stores. With BrandMuscle, Duck Donuts franchisees have the tools they need to quickly and seamlessly execute their local marketing strategies.

Our needs are growing quickly, and we realized that we required a best-in-class approach to support our franchisees, says Hamm. BrandMuscles marketing platform is built for the scale of national brands, so we dont have to worry about outgrowing their services. BrandMuscle is simply the partner who can do it all.

To learn more about Duck Donuts, visit www.duckdonuts.com .

About Duck Donuts



Duck Donuts was founded in 2006 by Russ DiGilio in Duck, North Carolina. His intention? To solve a family vacation problem: Our family wanted a place to buy warm, delicious, made-to-order donuts, and when we couldnt find one, we decided to start our own. By 2011, Duck Donuts had expanded to four Outer Banks locations and the donut business was so successful that DiGilio was continuously approached about franchise opportunities by fans who begged for a Duck Donuts in their community. The first franchise opened in Williamsburg, Virginia, in 2013, and there are now 70 open franchise locations and more than 140 additional contracts in 24 states and two countries.

About BrandMuscle
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Sep. 12, 2018 | CALLOWAY COUNTY

By West Kentucky Star Staff Sep. 12, 2018 | 05:23 AM | CALLOWAY COUNTY

A Murray man faces charges after a weekend police pursuit in Calloway County.



According to the Calloway County Sheriff's Office, on Saturday at approximately 2:40 pm deputies spotted a suspicious vehicle on Valentine Road in New Concord and attempted to make a traffic stop. The vehicle failed to yield and led deputies on a pursuit down several back roads. Due to the weather and road conditions, deputies lost sight of the vehicle. A short time later the vehicle was found abandoned near a lake.



Deputies searched the area but did not find the driver. A check of the registration of the vehicle showed the tag did not belong on that vehicle and the VIN showed the vehicle to be stolen out of Tennessee. The vehicle was impounded and the investigation is ongoing.



On Sunday at approximately 2:00 am, the sheriff's office received a report of a stolen vehicle from Courtney Lane. While responding to the scene deputies met the vehicle on KY 80 West and attempted to stop it. The vehicle failed to yield and led deputies on a pursuit on several different roads. The vehicle then went through a yard and into several bean fields before returning to the area from where it was taken.



The vehicle was stopped on Courtney Lane after a collision with a cruiser. The driver, 19-year-old Steven C. Lyons of Murray, was taken into custody and charged with theft by unlawful taking of auto, fleeing or evading police, wanton endangerment, reckless driving, speeding, criminal mischief, no registration plates, disregarding a stop sign, and operating on a suspended or revoked license.
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By The Associated Press

Sep. 12, 2018 | LEXINGTON

By The Associated Press Sep. 12, 2018 | 11:16 AM | LEXINGTON

The father of Kentucky Secretary State Alison Lundergan Grimes has pleaded not guilty in federal court to making illegal contributions to his daughter's 2014 U.S. Senate campaign against Republican Mitch McConnell.



Jerry Lundergan spoke little during a brief hearing in Lexington. His co-defendant, veteran Democratic political consultant Dale Emmons, also pleaded not guilty.



A trial is set for Nov. 13, but Lundergan's attorney said he would likely ask for a delay.



Lundergan is not allowed to leave Kentucky without permission. His attorney said Lundergan will need to leave the state for several weeks for his job. He owns a company that coordinates disaster relief efforts and needs to oversee the setup of emergency shelters because of Hurricane Florence.



Emmons' travel is restricted to the eastern district of Kentucky.
By The Associated Press Sep. 11, 2018 | 08:52 PM | LOUISVILLE

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is referencing hurricanes to describe the "challenging election" that Senate Republicans are facing.

The Kentucky Republican says the "wind's going to be in our face, we don't know if it's going to be Category 3, 4 or 5." He named nine states, including Tennessee and Indiana, as places where Senate races are "dead even."

"Every one of them like a knife fight in an alley, just a brawl in every one of those places," McConnell told reporters Tuesday in Louisville. He says he hopes "when the smoke clears we'll still have a majority in the Senate."

Republicans have a slim 51-49 Senate majority, but they have one big advantage in the election. They are defending only nine incumbent seats, while Democrats are defending 26.
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Sep. 12, 2018 | LOUISVILLE

By West Kentucky Star Staff Sep. 12, 2018 | 12:31 PM | LOUISVILLE

Paducah Bank will open an office in Louisville on Thursday.



This is the first time a Paducah Bank location has been opened outside of McCracken County since the bank began doing business 70 years ago. According to a press release, a grand opening will be held at Hurstbourne Park from 4 to 6 p.m. with a ribbon cutting at 5:30. Christy Jarboe, Louisville Metro Government Economic Development Manager, will present a welcome proclamation at the ceremony.



Diana Quesada will serve as the Louisville office Senior Commercial Relationship Manager. Paducah Bank President Mardie Herndon said she is pleased to have a physical presence in Louisville, and is excited to serve one of Kentuckys most progressive business communities.



Quesada has worked in the banking industry for more than 30 years. Her experience includes non-traditional lending, problem loan administration, credit analysis, and a variety of other financial management roles.



Jim Heider is Vice President, Senior Commercial Relationship Manager. Heider previously served as Regional Market Manager for Treasury Management Services and Corporate/Institutional Banking Manager for PNC. Heider is a Permanent Certified Cash Manager and holds a BBA in Finance from Florida International University.



Felisha Dowdy is Paducah Banks Assistant Vice President, Senior Community Banking & Treasury Management Relationship Manager. Dowdy has more than 20 years of banking experience in the areas of retail, commercial, treasury management, and private Banking. Dowdy is chair elect of the Gildas Night event for Gildas Club of Louisville and served on the Planning Committee of the American Heart Association Heart Ball. Dowdy is past Vice President of the Highland Commerce Guild and a past board member of the St. Matthews Business Association and the North East Louisville Business Association.



The new office is located on the ground floor of Hurstbourne Park at 9200 Shelbyville Road, Suite 101.
Wetzel and Tyler County schools dismissed early Monday, Sept. 10 as area residents dealt with five to six inches of rain in a matter of 48 hours. Despite water clearing the roadways and floodwaters receding back into creeks and streams by evening, area residents then had to turn attentions to the Ohio River, which was expected to crest right below flood stage at Hannibal Lock and Dam by Tuesday afternoon.

There were several other cancellations as a result of the threat of river flooding. New Martinsville City Council postponed its regular council meeting. Instead, council members planned to aid residents and area businesses with flood preparation.

For the first time in more than a decade, the West Virginia Oil & Gas Festival had to cancel all of its Sistersville Park-related events. Festival organizer Barbara Vincent said the event hadnt been affected by flooding since 2004.

The Wetzel County Chamber of Commerces Entrepreneur Pitch was postponed until Sept. 24, due to the threat of river flooding, while Wetzel County Grand Jury was postponed until Sept. 19, due to the same.

Wetzel and Tyler County Schools held classes on a regular schedule to begin Monday; however, Tyler County Schools then announced a dismissal for the elementary schools at 10 a.m., while Tyler Consolidated dismissed at 10:30 a.m. due to ongoing rainfall and subsequent rising waters.

Wetzel County Schools dismissed two hours early.

By 3 p.m. Monday, 562 First Energy customers were still without electricity in Tyler County, while 31 were still without electricity in Wetzel County.

Tyler County Office of Emergency Management Director Tom Cooper said there were no major calls as a result of Mondays flooding. He said the intake on the Sistersville water plant is not working, so town officials are currently providing water customers with water from the tanks. He asked that Sistersville residents conserve water.

Wetzel OEM Director Steven Yoho noted no major issues in Wetzel County. He said there had been no slips or individuals stranded. He said there were a few areas with minor flooding in the roadways from backed up culverts.

As to preparations for river flooding, Yoho stated the OEM is in the process of receiving clean-up supplies from the state. He said there are already supplies at the OEM office, and it should take around 72 hours to get what is ordered from the state.
NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Statistics released by the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) for inbound tourism for the first half of 2018 would certainly support the idea that Malta is the new hotspot for North Americans in the Mediterranean. This sunny archipelago recorded 20,956 tourists, a 28.2% increase from the US market alone over the same January-June period last year, and 7,488 tourists, a 23.5% increase over the same period from Canada.

Why is Malta trending in the North American Market? Michelle Buttigieg, MTA representative for North America, stated that it can be attributed to several factors. An important part of Maltas appeal to the North American traveler is that English is an official language. It is a safe, peaceful and stable EU democracy, with better vacation value than in other more expensive European countries.

Another compelling factor for the increase this year is due to the heavy promotion in the media of the year-round calendar of festivals and cultural events celebrating the fact that Maltas Capital, Valletta, was named a European Capital of Culture 2018. In fact, Malta was listed on more than 22 Places to Go 2018 lists. The Valletta 2018 festivities encompass a yearlong celebration of the culture and history of the island nation of Malta, from the Malta International Food Festival to the Isle of MTV Malta to the Valletta Film Festival and so much more.

Buttigieg further stated, The increase is also due to the MTAs continued promotional campaigns targeting niche markets that reflect the diversity of Malta and Gozos tourism product. MTA has also garnered major publicity in the US and Canada because it is proactive in working with prominent journalists and social media influencers.

-ENDS-

About Malta

The sunny islands of Malta, in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, are home to a most remarkable concentration of intact built heritage, including the highest density of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in any nation-state anywhere. Valletta built by the proud Knights of St. John is one of the UNESCO sights and the European Capital of Culture for 2018. Malta's patrimony in stone ranges from the oldest free-standing stone architecture in the world, to one of the British Empire's most formidable defensive systems, and includes a rich mix of domestic, religious and military architecture from the ancient, medieval and early modern periods. With superbly sunny weather, attractive beaches, a thriving nightlife and 7,000 years of intriguing history, there is a great deal to see and do. www.visitmalta.com

For Further Information and Photography:

Malta Tourism Authority:

Michelle Buttigieg

Tel: (212) 213-0944

Fax: (212) 213-0938

E-mail: michelle-margaret.buttigieg@visitmalta.com



MTA US Editorial Contact:

The Bradford Group

Karen Hoffman/ Bianca Pappas

Tel: (212) 447-0027

Fax: (212) 725 8253

E-mail: info@bradfordglobalmarketing.com





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By: Paige Cline Sometimes I am asked to reprint a column from the past. Here[Read More]
San Francisco, CA, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Furnished Quarters, the largest independently owned and operated provider of temporary furnished apartments, is further expanding its inventory in the San Francisco Bay Area since entering the market in January 2018. In addition to acquiring apartments in three new residential buildings, the company has grown its on-site team working out of the San Francisco office.



Joining Furnished Quarters Bay Area inventory are NEMA, an ultra-luxury building in San Franciscos South of Market (SoMa) neighborhood, Sharon Green in Menlo Park and Domus on the Boulevard in Mountain View. NEMA is one of the most luxurious properties in not just Furnished Quarters Bay Area portfolio but in all of San Francisco. With these additions, the New York-based provider has already exceeded its goal of establishing 100 apartments in California and plans to reach 150 by years end.



Our growth in the area has been unprecedented, and shows no signs of slowing down, said Steve Brown, CEO of Furnished Quarters. We feel well-positioned and established in the market, but with much room for expansion. As demand keeps rising, we anticipate adding even more apartment inventory.



Forward-thinking and lifestyle-driven, the staggeringly amenity-rich NEMA building is the most demanded of its kind in the city. Features include a 1,500-square-foot multipurpose sunroom, three landscaped terraces, an indoor-outdoor fitness center with its own 24-hour staff, a 60-foot lap pool and onsite car and scooter rentals. NEMA is also ideally located at the intersection of four coveted neighborhoods: SoMa, Civic Center, Hayes Valley and the Mission District.



Sharon Green, situated in Menlo Park near Palo Alto, also boasts several indoor-outdoor amenities. Each apartment offered by Furnished Quarters has undergone a complete renovation. The lush residential community is centrally located in the heart of Silicon Valley, with easy access to Stanford University, major tech companies and leading venture capital firms. Domus on the Boulevard, found in Mountain View near major employers like Google, Microsoft and Samsung, features modern, minimalist apartments and ample amenities.



To fulfill the need for more on-the-ground sales and operations staff, the company now has an eight-person team working in its San Francisco office, located at 1162 Folsom Street in the SoMa district. The team will continue to grow as client needs escalate.



Its quickly become apparent that the Bay Area is one of our most popular markets, and I couldnt be more thrilled with how well its been received, said Tyler Smittle, General Manager of the San Francisco office. We surpassed our occupancy expectations in July and August, which is a strong indicator that we are providing the right product in the best locations.



About Furnished Quarters

Furnished Quarters is the largest independently owned and operated supplier of global temporary housing, offering over 100,000 fully furnished apartments in more than 800 cities around the world. The company, established in 1998 in New York City by brothers Steven and Gary Brown, currently serves more than 5,500 clients, ranging from top Fortune 500 corporations to small businesses. In late 2015, Furnished Quarters opened Q&A Residential Hotel in Lower Manhattan to offer nightly and weekly stays in full-sized apartments. To learn more about Furnished Quarters, visit furnishedquarters.com.



Connect with us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/furnishedquarters

Connect with us on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/furnished-quarters

Connect with us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/furnishedq

Connect with us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/furnishedquarters

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H1 2018 : Turnover = M 75.6 / EBITDA = M 4,5*

Acceleration of Simulation

Strenghtening Management

SOGECLAIR, the designer of innovative high added-value solutions and products for the aerospace and transport sectors, reports its financial results for the first half of 2018, ending on June 30th 2018.

The growth of the activity is +1.75% (+5.1% at constant exchange rate).

(In M) H1 2017 H1 2018 Variation Turnover 74.34 75.64 +1.75% International 39.62 41.11 +3.78% EBITDA (1) 4.77 4.54 - 4.80% As % of turnover 6.40% 6.00% Operating result 2.64 1.16 -55.98% As % of turnover 3.50% 1.53% Net result 1.22 0.34 -72.29% Including group share 1.02 0.28

(1) operating result - other operating income and charges + amortization expenses and operating provisions

*SOGECLAIR presents its accounts for the 1st time, by applying, in anticipation of the effective obligation on 2019/01/01, the IFRS 16 standard (accouting as fixed assets the leases). Thus EBITDA amounted at M 4.5 (including M 1 under the IFRS 16 effect).

Publication of the results was authorised by a board meeting held on 6 September 2018. Any apparent differences regarding the figures are due to rounding-off.

The first half shows an acceleration of investments:

Strong  M&A  activity with the purchase of minority interests in Canada and then an acquisition in Pacific Asia on the 1st of August 2018, The recruitment of 3 Top managers and the strengthening of teams (+122 people in 1 year - 93 people in the last 6 months), Strong growth of the business aviation activity which counterbalances the decline of new developments activities for commercial aviation.

The sectorial contribution of activities in terms of turnover and results is summarized below :

In k AEROSPACE VEHICULE SIMULATION HOLDING GROUP H1 2017 H1 2018 H1 2017 H1 2018 H1 2017 H1 2018 H1 2017 H1 2018 H1 2017 H1 2018 Turnover 64.534 65.080 1.546 1.376 8.260 9.184 74.340 75.641 Operating Result 1.132 -71 60 199 1.002 594 443 440 2.637 1.161

Perspectives

SOGECLAIR accelerates its investments and recruitments for:

Entering new markets,

Improve its competitiveness.

With its products and engineering offer, its international footprint, its sectoral and technological specialization, its high level partnerships, SOGECLAIR is configured to address its growth levers. Balancing activity and increasing geographic coverage through the acquisition of SYDAC on 2018/08/01, will intensify the growth forecast for 2018.

As a reminder, on the 1st of August 2018, SOGECLAIR acquired SYDAC Company - based in Adelaide (Australia), Pune (India), and Derby (UK) - specialized in railway simulation and road transports (buses and trucks). SYDAC counts a hundred employees and achieved a turnover of A$ 5.4 million ( 3.4 million) over the first six months of 2018.

Next annoucement : turnover for Q3 2018, on November 07th 2018 after closing of the Stock Market.

About SOGECLAIR

Designer of innovative, high added-value solutions and products, SOGECLAIR brings its skills in high-quality engineering and production to cutting-edge sectors: aeronautics, space and transport. Supporting its customers and partners from the design and simulation stages through to the end of the product's lifetime, all along the production chain and for entry into service, the Group counts more than 1,500 staff working worldwide to offer a high-quality, proximity service to all its customers.

SOGECLAIR is listed on Euronext Paris - Compartment C - Euronext Family Business index - Code ISIN: FR0000065864 - PEA PME 150

(Reuters SCLR.PA - Bloomberg SOG.FP)

Contacts:

Philippe ROBARDEY, Chairman & CEO of SOGECLAIR

Marc DAROLLES, Executive Vice-President of SOGECLAIR +33(0)5 61 71 71 71

www.sogeclair.com
Explorer Research uses Behavioral Science to guide marketing decision-making, emphasizing in-situation

environments for its shopper research  including its Shopper Labs and Virtual Reality technology.

LOMBARD, Ill., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Explorer Research, experts in behavior-based research, announced the appointment of Jonathan Asher as Executive Vice President, based in Minneapolis, MN.

Asher brings 30 years of research and brand design experience to his new leadership role. He will work closely with Chris Whitaker, Explorer partner who heads the Chicago office, to expand the firms reach. We are very pleased to have Jonathan on the Explorer team, said Whitaker. His experience and expertise in packaging and shopper research and brand design will help accelerate our already rapid expansion.

Explorer Research has an impressive range of conscious and nonconscious research techniques that are used to understand, predict and help clients influence behavior. I am excited to be part of this growing firm and apply these methods to packaging and shopper research, said Asher.

In addition to his 10 years with PRS IN VIVO (previously Perception Research Services), Asher held management positions at various Brand Design agencies and began his career in marketing research in corporate and supplier positions.

Jonathan is joining us at a very exciting time, said President Marc Inkol. As a privately held company, were investing in our people, product and processes to best serve our clients needs. This includes making high caliber hires such as Jonathan, enhancing our state of the art Shopper Labs, and investing in new technology such as Virtual Reality environments.

Press Kit with photos at http://bit.ly/JAsherPressKit

Explorer Research was founded in 2003 and is North Americas leading privately held research firm specializing in shopper and packaging research. Known for its commitment to accurately assessing behavior, the firm advises a broad range of clients in CPG, QSR, Media, Financial Services and Retail.

For more information, contact info@explorerresearch.com or P 855 251-5434

www.explorerresearch.com

Anne Stephenson, Partner

astephenson@explorerresearch.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4b5fd59f-99a8-4723-8e0e-9afa656bcd59
Palo Alto, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Benetech , the leading software for social good nonprofit, today announced the results of its first annual Benetech Back-to-School Survey. The survey data represents input from 744 teachers across the United States who serve students with reading barriers including dyslexia, low vision, blindness, or a physical disability that interferes with reading.

The Benetech Back-to-School Survey takes the pulse of the dedicated teachers who serve students with reading barriers, said Brad Turner, VP of Global Literacy, Benetech. While numerous factors contribute to teachers feeling they and their students are prepared, the survey data shows that three factors pull significant weight with students and teachers: support from school administration, access to books in various formats, and access to technology resources. Other potential factors such as types of reading barriers, school location, and number of students did not demonstrate a large impact on feelings of student preparedness.



For detailed analysis of the data including an interactive data visualization, visit: https://benetech.org/benetech-survey-back-school-reading-barriers .

Teachers of students with reading barriers feel prepared for the 2018-2019 school year but are less confident about student preparedness:

Sixty-eight percent of teachers feel prepared for the 2018-2019 school year while 40 percent of teachers feel their students are prepared.

Support from school administration contributes to student preparedness:

When teachers do not feel they have support of their school administration, 18 percent feel their students are prepared.

When teachers feel they have support of the school administration, 49 percent feel their students are prepared.

Access to books in the formats students need contributes to student preparedness:

When teachers do not feel they have access to books in the formats students needincluding audio, audio with highlighted text, braille, and large print22 percent feel their students are prepared.

When teachers feel they have access to books in the formats students needincluding audio, audio with highlighted text, braille, and large print60 percent feel their students are prepared.

Access to technology resources to read and learn contributes to student preparedness:

When teachers do not feel their students have the technology resources their students need to read and learn, only 23 percent feel their students are prepared.

When teachers feel their students have the technology resources their students need to read and learn, 48 percent feel their students are prepared.

As the operator of Bookshare , the largest online library of books for students with reading barriers, Benetech understands the importance of working with teachers and school administrations to ensure students with reading barriers have the technology and books they need to succeed, said Turner. Thats why Benetech is proud to work with more than 25,000 schools and school districts that use Bookshare to provide students with reading barriers access to books in formats that work for them.

Types of reading barriers, school location, and the number of students a teacher supports do not demonstrate as great an influence on student preparedness.

Types of reading barriers students possessdyslexia, low vision, blindness, or a physical disability that interferes with readingdo not demonstrate as great an influence on student preparedness; neither does location of schoolrural, suburban, urbannor the number of students a teacher supports, ranging from one to more than 30.

About Benetech

Benetech is a nonprofit that empowers communities with software for social good. Our work transforms how people with disabilities read and learn, makes it safer for human rights defenders to pursue truth and justice, and connects people to the services they need to live and prosper. Were constantly pursuing the next big social impact. Visit www.benetech.org.
Watershed: Place, policy and environmental crisis

Global water crises, and drought, desertification, water shortage and pollution, in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent, are not new.

However, intermittent extended local droughts, extreme flooding and heatwaves, changes in temperature and precipitation, and consequent changes in water reserves, have all impacted human settlement, agriculture and food production, and human health. This will continue to be the case as global warming presents challenges to governments at national, local and regional levels.

Water is a shared resource, but volatile political and environmental landscapes complicate its availability. National and provincial governments, in association with neighbouring countries and local water authorities, need to address water access and its governance to ensure sufficient water to sustain life. Water is a human right, and its precariousness, in association with climate change, is one of the most pressing issues of our time.

From 10-21 September, the University of the Witwatersrand is hosting a university-wide programme, open to the public, entitled Watershed: Art, Science and Elemental Politics. The programme is designed to highlight contributions to and ways of understanding earth systems and elements, and to stimulate conversations and identify opportunities for collaborations across the natural and social sciences, humanities and the arts. It is a celebration of the work done across the University, and through the participation of others within South Africa and beyond, of global efforts to address climate change and mitigate environmental damage.

As the title suggests, the particular focus is on water. The title derives from the fact that Wits sits on a watershed, at the high point of the hill on Yale Road, as pedestrians cross from the east campus to the west. Water flows from one side, through river systems, into the Indian Ocean; on the other side, the water flows to the South Atlantic. The term references both topography and hydrology.

But watershed is also a common metaphor to speak of a critical moment of decision-making or action. We have that kind of moment now; a turning point when we must take seriously the local and global implications of climate change, population density, and economic wellbeing and sustainability. Watershed at Wits is an opportunity to reflect on place and to explore how art and science  across a wide array of disciplines and practices  help illuminate the challenges we face now.

Water is everywhere, and yet it is visible only through its impurities, refractions of light and reflections of solid images, and, perversely, in its absence. Waters absence threatens all life forms. Life on Earth is vulnerable precisely because water is increasingly unstable and unpredictable. Changes in the quantity and quality of water threaten human and animal populations, plant life, health and wellbeing. This was clear in 2017-18 as Cape Towns water scarcity devolved into questions of policy and politics around desalination plants, private boreholes, and equity.

But the precarious supply of and access to water is even more critical in smaller towns, townships and rural areas, where the lack of a regular, reliable access to water and poor sanitation is endemic. In these places, people must routinely manage with limited, sometimes dangerously polluted, water. People  usually women  often need to walk long distances to ensure the minimum amount water for their households daily needs.

Watershed at Wits brings together a variety of approaches to water, offers insight into how industrial and human action influence water quantity and quality, and raises questions around legal rights to water, the governance of water resources, and the innovations needed to sustain life. In one panel, to take place in the Chamber of Mines Building on West Campus on Friday, 14 September, South African artists, academics, and climatologists who have played lead roles internationally, discuss how mining has dominated Johannesburgs history. The panellists will discuss how mining has affected the environment, including groundwater and run-off, and ask how the management of resources has changed  or might need to change in the 21st Century. What challenges do we face, as scientists, policy makers, consumers and members of the public?

Watershed highlights our understanding of earth systems and the elements, environmental change, knowledge and communication, and national and local policies  hence the idea of elemental politics. The programme offers a rich variety of ways to think about water: scholarly posters and lectures; guided walks; installations and performance art; the formal presentation of papers; and lively roundtable discussions. These approaches are intended to encourage dialogue among policy makers, artists, scientists, people from NGOs and civil society. The aim is to support critical thinking to address one of the most complex problems of our time in innovative, engaging and inclusive ways.

Lenore Manderson is the Director of Watershed. She is Distinguished Professor of Public Health and Medical Anthropology, School of Public Health and Medical Anthropology, at Wits University, and at the Institute at Brown for Environment and Society, Brown University, Providence. This article was first published inn Voices 360.
The students advocate

Social justice, advocacy and transformation are words that resonate with Dean of Student Affairs, Jerome September.

September was appointed as Wits Universitys new Dean of Student Affairs in May 2018. He joined Wits in February this year as Deputy Dean of Student Affairs and quickly rose up the ranks to Dean, taking the reins from Professor Puleng LenkaBula.

Prior to joining Wits, September was Head of Student Affairs at Sol Plaatje University, where he was responsible for promoting global excellence and stature by providing strategic and operational leadership for the Student Affairs Division. He brings with him a wealth of experience in this area, where he has served in for more than a decade at his alma mater, the University of Cape Town (UCT).

A warm-hearted individual, who hails from Malmesbury in the Western Cape, September wants his division to contribute in making Wits a caring, student-centered University that is in tune with who its students are and building support services structure that speak to who our students are.

His focus is to create an inclusive Wits community, which adequately supports postgraduate disabled students, international students, and is non-sexist, non-racist and one that can support students from different walks of lives.

What is important for me is to make sure that our students realise that they too are part of the institution and a representation of it. We need to ask ourselves what role do students play in building an inclusive, caring University? Often one hears Wits must do this or that, but inclusivity also means we must all be active and involved, working towards a common purpose.

He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Business Administration at the University of Bath in the UK, which focuses on creating an inclusive University. With a Masters degree in human rights from UCT, September wants to uphold the basic right to education enshrined in the South African Constitution and advocate for students rights at Wits University.

Like many Wits students, September is the first generation University graduate in his family and is therefore a stalwart for advancing the academic and social development of students to ensure that they too become University graduates.

A student leader during his University days, September served on UCTs Council and Senate. He was co-chair of the first Institutional forum at UCT and was actively involved in the transformation process of the institution.As a former student activist who was hungry for success, he understands the challenges and dynamics that students grapple with, one being accommodation. Accommodation is one of the biggest challenges across institutions of higher learning in South Africa and Wits University experiences the same challenges.

In the last six months, September, alongside other University officials was able to arrange emergency accommodation for students who did not have accommodation. This intervention, he says, improved his relationships with the Student Representative Council (SRC). We have had positive engagements with the SRC. This is very gratifying.

Lending a helping hand

When it comes to executing his duties, it is the principle of Ubuntu that always guides him. Having grown up in a warm family that always extended a helping hand to everyone, September understood the concept of humanity from a young age.

His career in student affairs and youth development has always been centered on social justice. He is passionate about serving people and contributing to their wellbeing. He believes in servant leadership, an approach he will adapt to serve students at the University.

Growing up in small town, his mother always pushed him beyond the edge and encouraged him to be more involved in school activities. By the time he got to University, there was certainly no question on what he would be involved in. It was not whether I would be involved, but what I would be involved in, he says.

While he wanted to excel in his various spheres, making a positive contribution to the world is what drives him.

My upbringing has been about taking personal responsibility for my journey and striving to become the best that I can be for the world and not just in the world. Wherever I go, I need to leave a mark and make that place better than what I found it because my focus is to contribute to the world beyond my self-interest.

Civic Education and Engagement

With student elections coming up, he is currently rolling out a civic education campaign to encourage students to be active citizens in the Wits community by having their voices heard.

The former SRC President urges students to participate in the student election by casting their votes for students they believe will represent them best.

Part of being a citizen is choosing people who represent them properly. You vote for the SRC to lend support to other people. Students need to vote for people who will make Wits the kind of University they aspire to, he says.

Voting is way of students shaping their own experiences. Most importantly, as citizens of Wits University, civic engagement is a way of developing their skills.

Innovative mental health strategies

Issues around mental health at universities are constantly surfacing. Student success and academic excellence does not only depend on dedication and intelligence, but on good mental health. September wants to ensure the holistic wellness of students, including mental health.

In addressing mental health issues and creating awareness around those issues, he believes the Universitys mental health strategy needs to be innovative. He is currently investigating alternative practices to enhance the current mental health strategy at Wits.

Counsellors and psychologist are important in assisting our students with mental health problems or those who are having a difficult time in University. However, we need to supplement their skills and expertise with other alternatives. We need to look at more inclusive practices such as the use of group therapy, traditional healers and religious leaders to assist our students.

Fighting gender-based violence on campus

Gender-based violence on campus is also an important issue for September. The scourge of gender-based violence in the country is surging with many cases emerging on daily basis. Together with the Gender Equity Office at Wits, he is committed in tackling gender-based violence on campus. He believes that there needs to be an institutional commitment towards gender-based violence on campus.

How do we buy into a way that says no to violence? We need to make it the business of everyone at the University where everyone is standing together against violence and supporting victims of violence. It has to be an institutional commitment and therefore partnership are important.
New York, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Paley Center for Media today announced that it will present the second program in the James P. Jimirro Media Impact Series: The Midterm Elections 2018: Media and Politics in a Polarized Country, on September 25 at the Paley Centers New York location. This second program of this annual series will tackle the upcoming midterm elections, which promises to be unlike any Congressional contest in American history.

The Paley Center for Media provides the perfect setting for this informative program that will feature a balanced discussion with voices from both sides of the political aisle, said James P. Jimirro. Im thrilled to present this program, and look forward to an entertaining and educational conversation the evening is certain to inspire.

The 2018 midterm elections will be one of the most significant and historical elections in our nations history, said Maureen J. Reidy, the Paley Centers President & CEO. Were honored to present this important and timely program, and we are grateful for Mr. Jimirros continued commitment to promoting the important role media plays in our society.

The country remains deadlocked in ideological differences, but unlike recent midterms, citizen engagement continues to be high with members of both parties, as noted in a recent Pew Center study. The Paley Center will gather the top names in journalism and politics including S.E. Cupp, host of S.E. Cupp: Unfiltered; Amy Holmes, host of In Principle; Scott Jennings, Former Special Assistant to President George W. Bush, CNN political contributor, and conservative columnist; Seema Nanda, CEO, Democratic National Committee; Tom Llamas, anchor of World News Tonight Weekend and ABC News Chief National Affairs Correspondent; Lydia Polgreen, Editor-in-Chief of The Huffington Post; and Dr. Erika Fowler, Professor, Wesleyan University, to discuss the many forces that will be impacting the pivotal 2018 midterm elections including generational and gender divisions. Our participants will particularly assess how the political parties use various forms of media to connect with a diversity of voters and assess what this election foretells for the countrys future. They will also consider how the media represents the candidates of both parties and the publics desire for change.

This years election is the most consequential of our lifetime, said Seema Nanda, CEO, Democratic National Committee. I couldnt be more excited to join the Paley Center and my distinguished fellow panelists for a fruitful, substantive and wide-ranging discussion about the midterms and Democrats strategy of organizing everywhere in order to take our democracy back.

I am looking forward to discussing the upcoming midterms, and offering perspective on messages that Republicans should use to fend off a tough environment, said Scott Jennings, former Special Assistant to President George W. Bush, CNN political contributor, and conservative columnist.

The James P. Jimirro Media Impact Series casts light on the role of media in influencing public thought and behavior. Designed to reach media professionals, students, and the public at large, the series encourages careful consideration of medias impact on society and, accordingly, fosters more critical viewers and readers.

The evening is by invitations only and open to Paley Members. To learn more about the benefits of Paley Membership including the ability to attend this program, please visit paleycenter.org/join-us.

The event can also be viewed live on the Paley Centers Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/PaleyCenter/

Media Contact: Teresa Brady, The Paley Center for Media, tbrady@paleycenter.org, 212-621-6697

# # #

About The Paley Center for Media

The Paley Center for Media, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with locations in New York and Los Angeles, leads the discussion about the cultural, creative, and social significance of television, radio, and emerging platforms. Drawing upon its curatorial expertise, an international collection, and close relationships with the leaders of the media community, the Paley Center examines the intersections between media and society. The general public can access the Paley Centers permanent media collection, which contains over 160,000 television and radio programs and advertisements, and participate in programs that explore and celebrate the creativity, the innovations, the personalities, and the leaders who are shaping media. Through the global programs of its Media Council and International Council, the Paley Center also serves as a neutral setting where media professionals can engage in discussion and debate about the evolving media landscape. Previously known as The Museum of Television & Radio, the Paley Center was founded in 1975 by William S. Paley, a pioneering innovator in the industry. For more information, please visit paleycenter.org.
ROME  The Oneida County Sheriffs Office is asking for the publics help identifying two individuals.

Deputies say theyre attempting to identify the male and female in the surveillance image above regarding an incident that occurred at the Walmart in Rome on Sept. 5.

If youre able to identify either of the two people, youre asked to call Deputy B. Grabeldinger at 315-765-2750 or email orbagrabeldinger@oneidacountysheriff.us.
(CNN) -- Hurricane Florence is now forecast to pause late this week just off North Carolina's coast and turn left -- a development that would still smash the Tar Heel State with life-threatening storm surge, catastrophic winds and inundating rain while putting more of South Carolina in greater danger.

"More people are involved in this now, especially even Myrtle Beach, because the storm was not (previously) forecast to turn left toward you," CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said Wednesday morning.

Florence is a Category 4 hurricane with winds of 130 mph. It is predicted to deliver tropical-storm-force winds by noon Thursday to North Carolina's coast, and hurricane-force winds and dangerous storm surges by late Thursday or early Friday.

TRACK THE STORM

Forecast models predict a pause and a southward turn of the storm's center late Friday, and it may not make landfall until roughly Saturday.

Florence is one of the strongest hurricanes on the Eastern Seaboard in decades, and the Carolinas and Mid-Atlantic states are bracing for damage that could last a long time.

"This storm is ... nothing like you've ever seen," North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said Tuesday. "Even if you've ridden out storms before, this one is different. Don't bet your life on riding out a monster."

Latest developments

- Location: By 8 a.m. Wednesday, the storm was 530 miles southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph.

- Some big dangers: The storm's circulation could bring huge storm surges to the front-right quadrant of storm -- covering much of North Carolina's coast -- and those effects also could extend to South Carolina if the storm stalls and turns left as predicted.

FOLLOW LIVE UPDATES

- Don't stare at the eye: "We can't focus on the eye on this thing, because (Florence is) 150 miles wide from one side to the other," and tropical-storm-force winds extend up to 175 miles from center, Myers said.

- Rain and storm surges: Life-threatening storm surges -- up to 13 feet -- are expected along parts of the Carolina coasts. Up to 40 inches of rain could fall -- bringing possible catastrophic flash flooding -- to parts of the Carolinas through early next week, with heavy rain also likely in the Appalachians and Mid-Atlantic states, the National Hurricane Center said.

- 'Storm of a lifetime': Florence is expected to weaken Thursday, but it's still forecast to be a dangerous hurricane as it reaches the coast. "This will likely be the storm of a lifetime for portions of the Carolina coast, and that's saying a lot given the impacts we've seen from Hurricanes Diana, Hugo, Fran, Bonnie, Floyd and Matthew," the National Weather Service in Wilmington, North Carolina, said late Tuesday.

Residents flee as storm gets closer

More than 1 million people are under mandatory evacuations in the Carolinas and Virginia.

Hurricane and storm surge warnings are in place from South Santee River, South Carolina, to Duck, North Carolina. Hurricane warnings are issued 36 hours before tropical-storm-force winds hit the areas. Storm surge warnings indicate a danger of life-threatening inundation from rising water moving inland from the coastline during the coming 36 hours.

As Florence closed in, some residents weighed whether to ride it out.

In Wilmington, Richard King, 64, said Wednesday morning that he, his wife and perhaps 60 of their neighbors planned to stay. His home, built 1 mile inland in 2016, is raised 25 feet off the ground and is built to withstand 140-mph winds, he said.

"We're a good community up there. We're going to stay tight and check on everybody," he said.

By contrast, Allison Jones said she's not taking any chances.

Her home in Hillsborough, North Carolina, is at risk for flooding, and her family and nearby relatives will ride out the storm in Chattanooga, Tennessee, she said. The five adults, six children, plus a dog and a cat planned to leave their homes Wednesday.

The adults packed irreplaceable items, such as photo albums and heirlooms, while the kids stuffed their favorite toys, blankets and books into bags.

"Honestly, it tears me up thinking that, What if in the end of this, this is all we have left?" Jones said. "I wish I had more time to sort through and grab more of the sentimental items."

No rescues for people who stay, mayor warns

Just south of Wilmington, the coastal town of Carolina Beach is under a mandatory evacuation -- but officials there think about 100 people will try to ride out the storm there. And those leaders aren't happy about it.

Those who stay will be on their own once water starts to rise and wind speeds reach 50 mph -- long before hurricane-force winds reach the coast, Town Manager Michael Cramer said.

"Many of our emergency personnel vehicles are high-top vehicles. They have potential for rollover. We have high water here," Cramer told CNN Wednesday morning. "I won't send people out to risk their lives for people who didn't heed the warnings. ... They'll be there basically all alone until that threshold is met again and we have winds under that speed."

'My home is all my wife and I have'

Tim Terman's house in Southport, North Carolina, is about 20 feet above sea level, he said. He's staying put -- for now.

"Once you leave, (it's) hard to get back in to check on damage," he said. "My home is all my wife and I have, materially speaking, a lifetime of stuff."

Meantime, residents along the coast boarded up their homes, lined up at gas stations and emptied supermarket shelves.

In South Carolina, Myrtle Beach Mayor Brenda Bethune took note of the forecasts' shift toward her state Wednesday and urged people to evacuate.

"We have urged our public safety, police and fire (personnel) to get some rest," she said. "We will be asking a lot of them, I'm sure."

Emergencies declared in several states

The Federal Emergency Management Agency warned that storm surge watches and warnings are in effect Wednesday for the entire North Carolina coast and parts of South Carolina. It urged residents to heed evacuation orders.

Officials in several states have declared states of emergency, including Virginia and Maryland, where coastal areas are still recovering from summer storms.

"We are hoping for the best and preparing for the worst," Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said, noting that Florence could cause catastrophic flooding in his state.

Traffic redirected away from the coast

In South Carolina, traffic in all lanes of Interstate 26 from Charleston to Columbia has been directed away from the coast, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said.

Residents in hurricane evacuation zones had until noon Tuesday to evacuate. McMaster ordered the closure of schools and state government offices for nonessential personnel in affected areas.

Some schools in inland counties will be used as shelters, and officials urged families with pets to board them with veterinarians, kennels or other facilities in nonvulnerable areas.

"Pets are not allowed inside Red Cross evacuation shelters," McMaster said.

North Carolina officials evacuated long-term care facilities and hundreds of prisoners in vulnerable areas, and also closed state parks, museums and other attractions.

"Residents in central North Carolina should be prepared to feel the impact of the storm from Thursday night through at least Monday due to threat of flooding and widespread and prolonged power outages," Gov. Cooper said.

In Virginia, mandatory evacuations began Tuesday for about 245,000 residents in a portion of the Eastern Shore area.

Florence could have devastating impacts in Virginia, including storm surges, inland flooding, downed trees and power outages, Gov. Ralph Northam said.
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Dozens of airmen are assembling at a New York Air National Guard base on Long Island to prepare for deployment to southern states in the path of Hurricane Florence.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo says Wednesday that 50 members of the 106th Rescue Wing based at Gabreski Air National Guard Base in Westhampton Beach are preparing to travel to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. The Democrat says elements of the unit will depart as early as Wednesday afternoon to offer assistance along coastal areas of North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.

The New York Army National Guard is ready to deploy four helicopters - two CH-47 Chinooks and two UH-60 Blackhawks - to help storm response efforts. The aircraft are based at the Army Aviation Support Facility at Rochester International Airport.
WEST WINFIELD, NY  Tuesday marked the 17th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks on the United States.

About 100 people gathered in the auditorium of the Mount Markham High School for the 11th annual Mt. Markham Remembrance Day.

The crowd heard speeches from political dignitaries, some of whom were in New York City on that day, and listened to patriotic music.

The world has changed since then, says 101st District Assemblyman Brian Miller.

I have a 14-year-old and I explain to him what happened on 9-11, and then we tell him how the world has changed from 2001 to 2018. Going to a sporting event now, you get wanded down. If you travel by air, its a whole series of checkpoints to get through. Before it wasnt like that.

Gold Star families, first responders, and military personnel were also recognized at the ceremony.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - Two fitness fanatics at Club Newtone in Lafayette geared up to raise money for fallen firefighters.

Jarissa Gillaspy and Sandy Morrow borrowed fire gear from Lafayette and Frankfort fire departments and hit the stair steppers.Climbing flights of stairs like many of our fallen firefighters did at the Twin Towers on 9 - 11.

Their goal was to raise $500 for the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.. but they've almost doubled that amount and the goal just keeps getting higher. "I feel like once we hit it there's no reason not to just raise it. And so if we can keep going I don't want people to think that just because we hit the goal that means that it's enough because there's never going to be enough," said Gillespy.

After three hours of climbing stairs.. the two got a good perspective of what firefighters haul on a daily basis. "I really thought the boots would be what hung us up you because they're two sizes too big for us and bigger than the stairs, BUT these tanks. These tanks weigh 20, 30 pounds and they are just weighing us down," said Morrow.

Gillespy and Morrow climbed for three hours this afternoon. If you didn't see them at Club Newtone they say you can still donate for the next five days. You can donate by clicking here.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI)  As many on the East Coast brace for Hurricane Florence, one Lafayette firefighter is offering his skills. LFD Captain Toby Frost was deployed east with Indiana Task Force 1 Tuesday morning.

Frost is part of the group of emergency responders from across the state. Indiana Task Force 1 is comprised of emergency responders that specialize in disciplines like technical rescue, search and hazardous materials.

Frost is a hazmat specialist for the Lafayette Fire Department. He will lend that same skill set to during the recovery efforts.

States of emergency have been declared for North and South Carolina and Virginia. On the East Coast, 1.7 million people were warned to evacuate in preparation for the Category 4 storm.
After the coolest morning since May 9 over much of the area, the afternoon was picture perfect!

Disturbed weather in the southern Gulf could develop into Kirk or Joyce & head for Texas. That is actually the one I am looking to have direct impacts on our area, rather than Florence. As one or two strong cold front(s) move(s) through our area next week, the remnants will be pulled into our area along & ahead of the front, resulting in enhanced rainfall over our area.

Florence will hit either North or South Carolina. It will likely wobble off the coast for a while & then wobble inland, resulting in a long-duration wind & major flooding event from rain & historic coastal storm surge. Historic flooding could occur inland, especially in the Appalachians & Piedmont areas as clouds/rain are force upslope, enhancing rainfall.

There is still some question as to what happens after that.

Whether it moves back over Georgia & then out or (most likely) into West Virginia & Virginia to parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland to Delaware & then out. However, this process will take more than a week resulting in a multi-billion dollar disaster from South Carolina to West Virginia & Virginia & Maryland.

There is some outlying data that brings the remnants right over the Appalachians & in an odd, very rare track right up to our area. I continue to have a hard time believing that. Only one hurricane has had a path remotely like that since 1842 & that was October 1886.

Note the drier regime here & the approach of Florence with the hurricane nearing the coast by late Thursday night.

After areas of fog & 50-55 tonight, tomorrow (with fair weather cumulus & sun) will see highs of 77-82 (with a light east-northeast, then east to southeast wind 5-9 mph). Thursday will feature cumulus & sun after patchy fog & 50s in the morning. Highs will reach 78-83.

It is incredible that Florence does not move much Thursday night to Sunday night. With still the eye potential meandering over water, significant hurricane conditions & storm surge will continue. Massive flooding will be underway.

Here, looks dry with cumulus-filled skies during the days of Friday, Saturday & Sunday with some patches of fog at night. Daily winds will be east to northeasterly with increasing heat & humidity. Highs will rise well into the 80s with lows in the 60s. Dew points will rise into the upper 60s to lower 70s range.

Note how the bands of higher humidity (dark pine green & purple) coming in from the east & northeast in tropical flow around Florence, even with some downsloping from the Appalachians. Lack of drying air is a testament to the incredibly wet summer the mid-Atlantic, Northeast & Appalachians have had. Wet soils are keeping those dew points high even as the air comes in from the northeast & east.

Ridging in the Midwest/Corn Belt will make for some heat with that humidity.

Note the latest data suggests Florence being pulled to Virginia & out, which I absolutely agree with.

However, note the incredible projection of Florence moving back over ocean waters & then riding the South & North Carolina coasts by September 22-24 as a tropical storm or weak hurricane. This has happened with storms before, but this is very rare. We will monitor.

This models does not handle tropical activity moving into Texas, but I think it could. Strong cold front would then pull it north & bring rainfall late next week. Much cooler weather will follow.

A potent shot of chilly air will follow in late September with lows in the 30s & 40s over the region for several nights. Some flakes could fall as far south as northeastern Minnesota, northern Wisconsin & the UP of Michigan!

A stretch of below normal temperatures will settle in. Note how this model brings Florence to Florida with a second landfall! That is a long shot. I am not on-board with that yet.

Above normal temperatures will return as we get into October with some very nice, warm stretches.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI/AP)  One of the top-ranking Republicans in the Indiana Statehouse was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident in northern Michigan.

House Speaker Brian C. Bosma released a statement Wednesday regarding House Ways and Means Chairman State Rep. Tim Brown s involvement in a motorcycle crash in Michigan. According to the statement, Brown and State Rep. Mike Speedy were riding their motorcycles when an SUV pulled out in front of the riders. Speedy was able to avoid the vehicle.

House Speaker Brian Bosma said in a message to lawmakers that Brown was taken to a hospital in Petoskey, Michigan.

The full statement is as follows:

State Rep. Tim Brown was involved in a serious motorcycle accident in northern Michigan late this morning. He was traveling on his motorcycle with State Rep. Mike Speedy when he struck an SUV that pulled out in front of them. Rep. Speedy was able to avoid the vehicle and was not injured. Out of respect for Tims family, we cannot confirm any details about his condition at this time. Tim is an invaluable member of our leadership team, a dedicated public servant and one of my most cherished friends. Our prayers are with him, his family and Rep. Speedy.

Brown, a recently retired emergency room physician, has served in the Legislature since 1994.

He has long been a motorcycle enthusiast and often posts photos of his bug-splattered Harley Davidson from scenic locations during long rides. He is married and also has four daughters.

State Rep. Tim Brown is the state legislator for House District 41, which includes portions of Montgomery, Boone, and Tippecanoe counties. As chairman of the House Ways and Means committee, he has had a considerable degree of influence in Republicans' legislative accomplishments, including last year's massive road funding plan. He was previously chairman of the Public Health Committee and the Statutory Committee on Ethics.

Senator Ron Alting has worked with Brown for many years and is saddened by the news.

"We're very lucky to have Representative Brown as part of the Tippecanoe County legislative team," said Alting. "He's in the Alting family prayers. These are difficult times, very difficult times."

Gov. Eric Holcomb said in a statement that he was praying for Brown.

"In addition to being a public servant and an extraordinary leader, Dr. Tim Brown is a fighter," Holcomb said. "Janet and I are praying for his recovery and ask Hoosiers across the state to join us."




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HELENA, Ala., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mspark, a leading national shared mail company, has hired Stacey Sedbrook as Vice President, Brand Sales.



In her new role, Stacey will lead the Mspark National Sales Team that specializes in growing business with major brand companies. Through her leadership, her team will focus on working with these brand clients to understand their unique needs and provide insight on how to produce needle-moving results using direct mail as a key component of the marketing mix.

I am thrilled about the addition of Stacey to the leadership of our National Sales Team, commented Greg Bogich, Senior Vice President, National Accounts at Mspark. She has a wealth of experience that will help successfully lead this team while providing valuable insights and partnership to our clients.

Stacey brings more than 18 years of experience working with sales, marketing and business development. Prior to joining Mspark, she held Senior and Vice President level roles with McClatchy, BIA/Kelsey and GateHouse Media. Stacey holds a Master of Science from University of Denver and a Bachelor of Arts degree from University of Colorado.

About Mspark

Mspark, a privately held, national media distribution company, has partnered with clients to deliver reliable advertising solutions since 1988. The Company's business success stems from a simple premise  to provide measurable results and a solid return on the customer's marketing investment. Mspark reaches over 27.4 million U.S. households in 31 states and 620+ markets each month, and its household penetration in the markets it serves is unsurpassed by competitors. The Mspark portfolio of more than 3,000 clients includes consumer packaged goods manufacturers, retailers, restaurants and service providers across the United States. For additional information, visit mspark.com.

Contact:

Mspark

5901 Highway 52 East,

Helena, AL 35080

Phone: 205.620.6259

Email: contactus@mspark.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8273278c-9c08-4571-b578-2bf26d8b14e5.
San Antonio, Texas, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On Saturday Sept. 15, San Antonio will be the site of the largest coordinated World Marrow Donor Day registry drive in the world. World Marrow Donor Day is an international effort to thank donors worldwide and educate and encourage the public to join the global registry and become stem cell donors. Volunteer donors who are a match will donate stem cells or bone marrow to aid patients with leukemia, lymphoma, and other blood cancers.

GenCure, a subsidiary of nonprofit BioBridge Global, is partnering with H-E-B and Be The Match to host marrow donor registration drives at 16 H-E-B locations for World Marrow Donor Day. The drives will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Donors, patients and patient families will share their stories about how the registry affected their lives.

We are honored to have such a committed partner like H-E-B join us to help register donors and help find lifesaving treatments for blood cancers, said Becky Cap, GenCure chief operating officer. Our community has always come together in times of need, and right now, with hundreds of Texans searching for a marrow donor, Im hopeful that our friends and neighbors will respond and join the registry.

Since patients are more likely to find a match from their own ethnic or racial background, San Antonio plays an important role in registering Hispanic and multi-ethnic donors. The local registry has more than 250,000 people from 60 counties in the region 80 percent of whom come from ethnically diverse backgrounds.

San Antonio is also home to the first Hispanic donor in the nation, Ralph Morales. This year marks the 25th anniversary of his donation.

In the early 1990s, Morales was inspired to join the registry by the story of a young patient who lived several years longer, thanks to a bone marrow transplant. He was called to donate to a 22-year-old leukemia patient in 1993, when only 7.3 percent of donors on the registry were Hispanic.

While prepping for the donation, he recalls the doctor saying, You have no idea the impact of what youre doing, do you?

Morales would not truly understand that impact until several years later, when he had the opportunity to meet his recipient and his family. During the emotional visit, the recipients parents expressed how appreciative they were that Morales saved their sons life.

It has been several years since Morales last spoke to his recipient. The last time they were in contact, he received a photo of the recipient with his wife and child.

Take that opportunity and be the match, Morales said. The rewards are bigger than what you go through.

Approximately 14,000 patients need marrow or stem cell transplants every year. The Be The Match registry matches potential donors to patients requiring life-changing treatments for leukemia, lymphoma and other blood diseases. As more people join the registry, the chances a patient will find a lifesaving match increases.

If a donor is a match, he or she will be contacted to schedule an information session. Those interested in joining the registry are asked to do so only if they intend to follow through with the donation. Half of the donors contacted will decline to donate, which devastates the patients and families waiting for that one match.

Signing up for the marrow donor registry is the first step to be the cure for someone in need. Text Cure44 to 61474 to start the registration process. Volunteer donors must be between the ages of 18-44, in general good health and have no history of or current serious illnesses.

In addition to the marrow donor registry drives, South Texas Blood & Tissue Center will be hosting blood drives at H-E-B stores at 23635 Wilderness Oak and 2130 Culebra Road from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

___

About GenCure: GenCure, a subsidiary of BioBridge Global, is a nonprofit organization focused on enabling the development of cell- and tissue-based therapies by providing access to source materials, cGMP biomanufacturing experience and clinical research support. GenCure focuses on regenerative medicine, oncology, orthopedics and dental support through the Texas Cord Blood Bank, a national marrow donor program, apheresis center and a deceased donor tissue bank. Learn more at GenCure.org.

About H-E-B: H-E-B, with sales of $25 billion, operates 400 stores in Texas and Mexico. Known for its innovation and community service, H-E-B celebrates its 113th anniversary this year. Recognized for its fresh food, quality products, convenient services, and a commitment to environmental responsibility and sustainability, H-E-B strives to provide the best customer experience and lowest prices. Based in San Antonio, H-E-B employs over 110,000 partners in Texas and Mexico and serves millions of customers in more than 300 communities. For more information, visit HEB.com.
Funding boost for initiatives aimed at offering support and supplies to Wrexhams homeless

This article is old - Published: Wednesday, Sep 12th, 2018

Two initiatives aimed at helping those sleeping rough in Wrexham and providing them with food and supplies, have received a financial boost.

It is estimated that there are around 70 individuals either living on the streets or in temporary accommodation such as hostels or night shelters.

In a bid to offer support to homeless individuals in Wrexham, North Wales Police and Community Trust (PACT) funding has been awarded to two new initiatives being carried out by local PCSOs; who are working alongside Wrexham Council and other agencies to provide supplies.

One such initiative is being carried out by PCSO Jessica Nunn, who is working alongside AVOW (Association of Voluntary Organisations in Wrexham) and Wrexham Homeless, who support individuals who are experiencing homelessness enabling them to live safer and more independent lives.

AVOW has showering facilities which can be accessed by homeless individuals. The funding from PACT will be used to provide toiletries including shower gel, deodorants, shampoo and sun cream as well as underwear, socks and towels to allow this service to continue.

PCSO Jessica Nunn said: By supplying toiletries to the homeless community the hope is that it will assist in reducing crime, specifically shop lifting, in the area of Wrexham Town.

In addition it will enhance the quality of life and wellbeing of homeless individuals.

PCSO Stacy Hughes is also working with Rough Sleeper Intervention Team outreach workers from Wrexham County Borough Council and The Wallich (Welsh homeless charity).

PACT funding will go towards a supply of hot and cold drinks, breakfast items and chocolate bars as well as small sundry items including underwear that will be given to homeless individuals by the outreach workers in the morning to ensure that they have food, drink and essential supplies for the day.

PCSO Stacy Hughes said: This is an effective way of engaging and communicating with the homeless community in order to assist their needs.

The outreach workers build relationships with these individuals, providing a support system as well as gaining an understanding of where they may be sleeping so that needle pick-ups can be carried out to ensure the safety of individuals and others around the area.

North Wales Police and Community Trust (PACT) is the community safety charity that supports community-led projects that encourage a safer North Wales. Now celebrating its 20th anniversary, PACT continues to champion neighbourhood projects that support the policing and community safety priorities and strive to deliver positive outcomes for all concerned.
Major upgrades and investment on the way for three local train stations

This article is old - Published: Wednesday, Sep 12th, 2018

Three train stations in Wrexham County Borough are set to undergo a series of significant improvements in the coming years as a new rail franchise prepares to take over services in Wales.

Among the investment is 2.4m which is set to be pumped into Wrexham General to enable the acceleration of the North East Wales Metro.

Stations at Chirk and Ruabon will also undergo a series of significant improvements as part of a multi-million pound scheme.

Earlier this month as part of Welsh Labours National Rail Campaign Day, Clywd South AM Ken Skates spoke to passengers at Ruabon Station about the new Wales rail franchise.

KeolisAmey has been contracted to operate the Wales and Borders rail service for the next 15 years, taking over from Arriva Trains Wales in October.

French company Keolis and Spanish-owned Amey already runs the Docklands Light Railway and Manchester Metrolink its bid beat Hong Kongs MTR commuter railways.

The company will work with Transport for Wales, the not-for-profit company set up to drive the Welsh Labour Governments vision of a world-class, safe, integrated and affordable transport network.

In the coming years, the Welsh Labour Government will deliver a ground-breaking transformation of transport across Wales, said Mr Skates.

Its extremely exciting and we had a great response from passengers at Ruabon Station, which will undergo a significant upgrade  along with Wrexham General and Chirk.

Local improvements and investment will include:

 2.4m investment at Wrexham General to enable the acceleration of the North East Wales Metro

 Significant upgrades of Chirk and Ruabon stations as part of a 200m modernisation programme

 Increasing the frequency on the Wrexham-Bidston line to two trains per hour from Dec 2021  with fully refurbished metro trains

 A new hourly Liverpool to Llandudno/ Shrewsbury service and a new Liverpool-Cardiff train stopping at Wrexham

 Half-price concessionary fares being extended to 16-18 year-olds

 Refunds for delays over 15 minutes and penalties for the operator if passengers have to stand for longer than 20 minutes

Clwyd South MP Susan Elan Jones also continues to lobby the UK Government at Westminster to improve disabled access at Ruabon Station.

She said: Improving infrastructure and access at our railway stations is the responsibility of the Tory Government at Westminster, which is why I have repeatedly stood up in the House of Commons and called for investment locally.

Last year I presented a petition collected by the wonderful Friends of Ruabon calling on the UK Government to act and support our cause.

Im delighted that the Welsh Labour Government is taking action and has set aside 15m to improve disability access at our stations.

The Welsh Government has also promised to continue to lobby Westminster and put Ruabon forward for the funding it deserves.
SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco has awarded $1.5 million in grants through its 2018 Access to Housing and Economic Assistance for Development (AHEAD) Program. The grants, which are made through the Banks member financial institutions, will be used by nonprofit organizations in Arizona, California, and Nevada to advance innovative economic development initiatives and foster community stability and self-sufficiency.



The AHEAD Program enables Bank members to give a critical boost to local programs and projects that target pressing community development needs by creating or preserving jobs, supporting a nonprofits organizational and capacity-building activities, or delivering social services, training and education, and other vital services and programs.

Our AHEAD Program is a way to facilitate and strengthen relationships between Bank members and nonprofits that are working to spur economic development and create opportunity in low- and moderate-income communities, said Greg Seibly, president and chief executive officer of FHLBank San Francisco. This years grant winners bring both expertise and creativity to addressing pressing local needs, and we are pleased to provide resources for these important initiatives.

This year, the Bank reviewed 192 applications before selecting 54 AHEAD grant winners. The grants will be made through 31 participating Bank members, including 9 that are first-time AHEAD grant recipients. Grant amounts range from $10,000 to $50,000.

The AHEAD Program supports a wide variety of innovative economic and community development initiatives each year. Among this years 54 winners are:

EARN will receive a $50,000 grant, through member City National Bank, to expand its successful SaverLife incentivized savings program to low-income working families in Nevada.

Hack the Hood will receive a $30,000 grant, through member First Republic Bank, to train at-risk youth in Oakland to design and build professional websites for local small businesses at no charge.

Petaluma People Services will receive a $30,000 grant, through member Bank of Marin, to create an employment program in the North Bay for low-income women who are aged 50 and over.

Red Feather Development will receive a $35,000 grant, through member Mohave State Bank, to help members of the Navajo Nation and the Hopi Tribe in Arizona identify and remediate health and safety risks in their homes.

Sierra Business Council will receive a $40,000 grant, through member Northern California Community Loan Fund, to support the Council in its efforts to provide technical assistance and alternative capital to microbusinesses in the rural Sierra Nevada region of Northern California.

Society for disABILITIES will receive a $35,000 grant, through member Farmers & Merchants Bank of Central California, to create a durable medical equipment repair training program in conjunction with a free medical equipment closet that serves people with physical disabilities in Modesto.

Womens Economic Ventures will receive a $20,000 grant, through member Rabobank, to help small businesses in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties that were damaged or adversely affected by devastating wildfires and mudslides during the last year.

Its inspiring to see the multiple ways that our members connect with nonprofit organizations to create jobs, promote entrepreneurship, and help build wealth, said Marietta Nunez, vice president and community investment officer at FHLBank San Francisco. We are pleased that a number of this years grants will support initiatives that are designed to do these three things in creatively sustainable ways, such as by establishing social enterprises that will generate significant revenue to support the valuable and sustainable job training and workforce development programs they are providing for their communities.

Funding for AHEAD is determined annually by the Banks Board of Directors. Since the program began in 2004, the Bank has awarded over $13 million in AHEAD grants to support 459 nonprofit projects and programs in Arizona, California, and Nevada.

FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK OF SAN FRANCISCO

The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco delivers low-cost funding and other services that help member financial institutions make home mortgages to people of all income levels and provide credit that supports neighborhoods and communities. The Bank also funds community programs that help members create affordable housing and promote community economic development. The Banks members are headquartered in Arizona, California, and Nevada and include commercial banks, credit unions, industrial loan companies, savings institutions, insurance companies, and community development financial institutions.
On Tuesday, September 11, Brazils Workers Party (Partido dos TrabalhadoresPT) formally withdrew the presidential candidacy of jailed former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silvaknown universally as Lulasubstituting in his place the former right-wing mayor of Sao Paulo, Fernando Haddad.

The move was a recognition by the PT that it would be impossible to place Lulas name on the ballot in next months presidential election, given his conviction on money laundering and passive corruption charges stemming from the Lava Jato investigation into the vast bribery and kickback operation centered on the state-run energy conglomerate Petrobras. Lula is now serving a 12-year sentence.

On August 31, Brazils Electoral Court (TSE) ruled that the former president, who governed Brazil from 2003 to 2010, was ineligible to run under the so-called Ficha Limpa (clean slate) law that Lula himself signed while in power and the PT supported. The statute prohibits politicians with criminal convictions upheld by an appeals court to run in elections. The TSE had set Tuesday as the deadline for the PT selecting another candidate.

The replacement of Lulawho had been placed first in the polls when listed as a potential candidateby Haddad, who until this week registered just 4 percent support, is the latest shakeup in a crisis-ridden run-up to the October 7 vote in the country of over 207 million people.

The replacement of the PT candidate follows on the heels of the assassination attempt against the current front-runner, the fascistic army reserve captain and federal legislator Jair Bolsonaro who was stabbed during a campaign rally in Minas Gerais last Thursday by a man who told police he had been told by God to carry out the attack. Bolsonaro, who remains in intensive care after the attack, has seen a slight sympathy bump in the polls, with one showing his support increasing from 26 to 30 percent.

While the barring of Lulas candidacy had been viewed as a foregone conclusion in Brazilian ruling circles, a brief controversy erupted over an August 17 statement by the United Nations Human Rights Committee calling upon Brazil to take all necessary measures to ensure that Lula can enjoy and exercise his political rights while in prison, as candidate in the 2018 presidential elections.

Although the note clearly stated that this request does not mean that the Committee has found a violation yet in his trial, it generated anxiety for suggesting that the Ficha Limpa law could be in violation of international law.

Predominant factions within the ruling elite had already been incensed by the highly ambiguous case of the rosary brought to Lula in prison in early June by Vatican official Juan Grabois, which the PT praised as a gesture of political support from Pope Francis, and the support for Lulas candidacy, as well as his claim of being a political prisoner, by various imperialist officials. Since his arrest order in April, these have included, most prominently, former French President Francois Hollande, former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero and, most recently, the former leader of German Social Democracy, Martin Schulz, who declared to Deutsche Welle in Curitiba, where Lula is serving his sentence, that he had come at request of the Party leader Andreas Nahles after having discussed the matter with Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.

The right-wing reaction to these events highlights the sharp turn to the right take by Brazils entire political system. Newspaper editorials and opinion pages have become increasingly reminiscent of the rants against international interference made by Brazils 1964-1985 military junta and similar regimes across Latin America over human rights reports. The countrys oldest newspaper, O Estado de S. Paulo, charged the New York Times with inexplicably aiding Lulas international campaign to defame Brazilian institutions by publishing his open letter of August 14, while the UN human rights panels statement prompted Bolsonaro to deliver a Trump-like rant vowing that he would withdraw Brazil from the United Nations.

On September 3, in an interview with the financial daily Valor Economico, Brazilian Foreign Minister Aloysio Nunes charged the main media of the US and Europe with spreading PT propaganda. And an O Estado de S. Paulo editorial from September 4 furiously called the PTs decision to renew its appeal of the TSE ruling to the UN an assault on Brazilian sovereignty.

Most ominous of all, however, was O Estado de S. Paulos interview with the chief of the Brazilian armed forces, Gen. Eduardo Villas Boas, who declared that Lulas candidacy would be unacceptable to the military and denounced the UN Human Rights Committee statement as an attempted invasion of Brazilian sovereignty.

General Villas Boas told the newspaper that Lulas succeeding in overcoming the Ficha Limpa law and winning the election could threaten the stability and governability of Brazil, increasing the division of Brazilian society, and directly implying our action, as in the case of the truckers strike.

Under these conditions, the PTs Free Lula campaign has been the main vehicle for the partys overtures to business circles the world over to recognize the usefulness of Lula in maintaining class peace in Brazil. It has appealed to the reactionary forces of democratic imperialism, such as the Democratic Party in the United States, the Socialist Party in France and the German Social Democracy, which are engaged in relentless militarism abroad and censorship and the normalization of the far-right at home, in order to violently confront increasing working class militancy.

Recent developments have only accelerated this drive, raising the most serious issues are for the working class. What is required is a conscious and relentless exposure of the fraudulent Free Lula campaign by the PT and the pseudo-left organizations surrounding it.

The Ficha Limpa law itself was the opening shot of a sharp turn to the right by the PT that alienated decisive sections of the working class in major PT power bases in the industrial regions of the country. This prompted the ruling class to desert the PT and bring down President Dilma Rousseff in the 2016 impeachment, which was met with indifference by workers after her government had conceded to the right wing on every major issue, from austerity measures to the privatization of the state-run oil giant Petrobras.

The PT reacted to the 2016 impeachment of Rousseff by blocking, through the collaboration of the CUT trade union federation, any attempt by workers to fight against the acceleration of austerity measures, as this would send the ruling class the wrong signal about the PTs willingness to return to power and continue the war on workers living standards.

Despite its populist phraseology, the Free Lula campaign is saturated with contempt toward and, in the case of its most sycophantic leaders, hatred for, the working class, which they see as responsible for the rise of the far right.

A bourgeois party, the PT looks not to the masses of Brazilian workers, but rather to the imperialist powers as a base of support for its return to power. Thus, the partys sycophantic mouthpiece, Brasil247, carried a leading article titled German association warns multinational corporations: dont invest in a fascist Brazila reference to a possible victory by Bolsonaro.

On August 22, 2017, Brasil247 celebrated the nervousness within Brazilian ruling circles over the exclusion of Brazil from US Vice President Mike Pences first Latin American tour with the headline [financial daily] Valor: With Temer Brazil has become a global pariah. From the impeachment on, the party has seized upon pieces in Le Monde, the Financial Times and the New York Times warning the Brazilian ruling class that Lula is a precious political asset as a vindication of its policies.

On September 1, after the barring of Lulas candidacy, Brasil247 interviewed Gilberto Maringoni, a former PT member and leader of the PSOL (the Socialism and Liberty Party, within which the Morenoites and Pabloites operate). He put the issues at stake for the PT in the clearest class terms, saying that the foreign policy of the current government of Michel Temer represented a 100-year regression from the successful plan envisioned by the monarchist founder of Brazilian diplomacy in the early twentieth century in which US dictates to Latin America would have to be mediated by Brazil as the leading regional power.

In face of these right-wing professions of faith by innumerable self-proclaimed socialists, one must ask: What would be the reaction of a new PT government to an explosion of working class struggle that challenged the interests of imperialism? Only one answer is conceivable: the most ferocious repression.

These forces, whose social base is the bourgeoisie and the upper middle classes, blame the working class for the loss of an international position never before reached by Brazil, in Maringonis words. They are abandoning their left-opposition pretensions adopted in relation to the Lula administration after the founding of PSOL in July 2004.

Their frustration with the working class is giving way to the most naked class hatred, as expressed in the writings of El Paiss Eliane Brum on the last major eruption of working class struggle in Brazil, the May truckers strike. Brum had written that Lula was intolerable for the ruling class because the social programs and affirmative action of the PT ended up threatening class conciliation in Brazil (Lula, the irreconcilable, April 11).

On May 4, she wrote that right-wing demands for a military intervention seen among some of the truckers had predictably channeled resentments over masculinity threatened by growing LGBT and women protagonism. She concluded that there was nothing more symbolic of these supposed sentiments than the aggressive image of trucks in a world that needs to reduce carbon emissions and that the most underestimated effect of the strike was the decrease in pollution in the city of Sao Paulo.

This neo-Malthusian rhetoric is the language of class hatred of the promoters of the free Lula campaign, for whom the biggest threat is posed not by the far right, but by the working class.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced Monday that he will use the notwithstanding clause to override a court ruling that his governments hurriedly-enacted Better Local Government Act (Bill 5) violates rights guaranteed under the Canadian constitutions Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Fords actionsincluding a vow he will not shy away from abrogating democratic rights in the future to push through his reactionary big business agendarepresent a further step toward authoritarian forms of rule, and must serve as a warning to the working class.

By invoking the almost never used and highly controversial notwithstanding clause (Section 33 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms), Ford and his newly-elected Progressive Conservative government are demonstrating that they will answer any challenge to what Ford calls his mandate to govern with repression.

Fords announcement that he was calling the legislature into session today to enact the notwithstanding clause came in response to an Ontario Superior Court ruling earlier Monday. Ruling on a challenge to the constitutionality of the Better Local Government Act brought by Torontos municipal government, Justice Edward Belobaba found that the Ontario governments decision to slash the Toronto City Council from 47 to 25 elected members in the midst of an election campaign violated both voters and candidates Charter guarantee of freedom of expression. He ordered that the municipal elections, scheduled for October 22, proceed as planned when the campaign officially began earlier this summer, with 47 constituencies rather than 25.

Ford responded swiftly. Rather than focusing on a court appeal, he announced that his government will become only the third ever Canadian jurisdiction to make use of the anti-democratic notwithstanding clause. Introduced along with the Charter, in 1982, Section 33 permits the federal, provincial and territorial governments to set aside, i.e. violate, the rights and freedoms guaranteed in the Charter. The federal government has never invoked it. Quebecwhose political elite, both pro-independence and federalist, refused to support the 1982 repatriation and reform of the constitutionhas invoked it more than a dozen times, including in limiting minority-language rights; Saskatchewan twice.

Everything suggests that far from being reluctant to break with precedent, Ford seized on Justice Belobabas ruling to break the political taboo on using the notwithstanding clause.

At Mondays press conference the premier acted in a manner reminiscent of US President Donald Trump, casting himself as the voice of the people and sole legitimate constitutional authority against an unelected and unaccountable judiciary. I was elected. The judge was appointed. He was appointed by one person, declared Ford. He went on to warn that his government will use every tool at our disposal to implement its agenda. I also want to make it clear, said Ford, that we are prepared to use Section 33 again in the future. Were taking a stand.

Fords class war agenda is inseparable from his governments attack on democratic rights. Neither can be successfully opposed by the working class by appealing to, or aligning with, any section of the bourgeois establishment and their institutions, be they the courts, the Liberal and NDP opposition parties, or the pro-capitalist trade unions.

The courts have upheld numerous anti-strike laws in recent decades, while giving their stamp of approval to a vast expansion of state powers of surveillance and the curtailing of democratic rights in the name of the war on terror.

As for the NDP and Liberal representatives at Toronto City Hall and the Ontario Legislature, they have helped implement devastating public spending cuts, while rewarding big business and the rich with handouts and tax cuts.

Fords readiness to violate constitutional rights to overcome opposition within the bourgeoisie underscores that he leads a hard-right government that is viciously hostile to the working class. If Ford is willing to go to such lengths in dealing with a judicial ruling and opposition to his plans to reorganize Toronto City Council from municipal politicians, including those aligned with his own Progressive Conservative Party, it is not hard to imagine how he will respond when confronted with mass working-class opposition.

In the less than three months since Ford took office, his Progressive Conservatives have adopted a flurry of right-wing measures, including cuts to welfare, a provincial hiring freeze, the appointment of a commission charged with laying the groundwork for billions in spending cuts, and legislation outlawing a strike by graduate teaching and research assistants at York University.

At the same time his government has sought to cultivate an ultra-right constituency, by pandering to the police and seeking to scapegoat refugees for the social crisis produced by decades of social-housing and other cuts by all three major parties.

Ford knows full well that he has no mandate for this deeply unpopular agenda and is therefore mobilizing all the tools of state power at his disposal to put down an emerging working-class movement. His declaration that he is ready to resort to the notwithstanding clause in the future is aimed precisely at such an eventuality. By invoking Section 33, the government can legally suspend fundamental rights, criminalizing protests and strikes. Significantly, one of the few occasions on which the notwithstanding clause was previously invoked was in 1986, when the Saskatchewan government invoked it to prevent a court challenge by provincial government workers to strikebreaking legislation.

Far from being the result of Fords personal proclivities, as is largely being claimed in the bourgeois press, the Ontario premiers embrace of anti-democratic methods of rule is part of an international process rooted in the deepening global capitalist crisis. From the Trump administration in the US to Emmanuel Macrons government, which has normalized emergency provisions in France, and the German governments embrace of the anti-immigrant chauvinism of the Alternative for Germany, ruling elites the world over are dispensing with traditional bourgeois-democratic norms to enforce the interests of the corporate elite and super-rich in the face of mounting working-class opposition.

Canada is by no means apart from this process. In addition to Fords election victory in June, a significant shift to the right in Quebec politics is imminent with the right-wing populist CAQ leading in polls ahead of the October 1 provincial election. And the federal Liberal government, which last year announced a 70 percent increase in defence spending by 2026, is now promising big business that its fall fiscal update will be devoted to boosting corporate competitiveness.

The ruling elites shift to the right is bound up with the deepening crisis confronting Canadian imperialism, which has been expressed most sharply in recent months in the bitter differences over trade that have erupted between Ottawa and Washington, Canadas closest military-strategic partner for over three-quarters of a century. The Trudeau government responded to Trumps imposition of import tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum by adopting $16 billion in retaliatory tariffstariffs which were endorsed by Ford and all of Canadas parliamentary parties.

It was Ford who made clear that, notwithstanding the bogus propaganda about Canadians uniting in opposition to Trump, the rise of trade war and economic protectionism will be bound up with a vast expansion of the assault on the working class. Ford stated in June, Make no mistake about it, were going to go after them full tilton reducing our taxes, making ourselves more competitive. ... We will go down to the street at the border and put up that big sign Ive been talking about and tell our neighbour, Ontario is open for business.

To carry out the wholesale deregulation, corporate tax cuts, and evisceration of what remains of public services that Ford is talking about, the ruling elite requires strong, authoritarian state structures to suppress popular opposition. Fords invocation of the notwithstanding clause to allow his government to press ahead with the restructuring of Torontos municipal government, together with his declaration that his government will use every tool to enforce its agenda, must therefore be understood as a warning of the dictatorial methods the ruling elite will resort to in the class battles immediately ahead.
Behind the backs of the German people, the grand coalition of Christian Democrats and Social Democrats is preparing a massive combat mission against the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad. According to a report in the Bild newspaper published on Monday, Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen (Christian Democratic UnionCDU) is examining possible reprisals by the Luftwaffe (Air Force) against Syrian government troops should chemical weapons be used against rebel-held areas in Idlib province.

The Bild, which has close connections to military and intelligence circles, describes a simulation game being conducted: If Assad were to attack his own people with poison gas, then, besides the US being joined again by Britain and France (and possibly other new allies), armed Luftwaffe tornadoes could fly missions against military infrastructure (barracks, air bases, command posts, ammunition depots, weapon depots, factories, research centres).

The newspaper reports that the preparations by the Ministry of Defence are in response to a request from the US government to the federal Chancellery. The Bild writes that two weeks ago, at high-level talks, various options were discussed in the ministry.

In subsequent talks, options discussed included reconnaissance flights and damage analysis following a possible attack (Battle Damage Assessment), as well as possible participation in combat missions in which German tornadoes would drop bombs for the first time since the Balkan War.

To carry out the mission, parliamentary oversight powers laid down in the Constitution are to be effectively abrogated. Parliament would be consulted only retrospectively in the event of a rapid intervention, due to time pressure, the newspaper reports.

In response to questions from the newspaper, the government all but confirmed the plans. The Bild cites a joint statement of the defence ministry and the Social Democratic Party-led foreign ministry declaring that The situation in Syria gives rise to the highest concerns.

The statement continues: Of course, we are in close contact with our American ally and European partners during these times. We constantly exchange information at all levels about the current situational view, possible further crisis scenarios and common options for action. The aim is for the parties to the conflict to avoid an escalation of the already terrible situation for the affected people. This is particularly true in regard to the use of banned chemical weapons, which have previously been used by the Assad regime.

At a press conference, government spokesman Steffen Seibert hinted at the possibility of German air strikes against Syria. He said: The situation in Syria, the situation in Idlib in particular, is such that you really have to worry that horrific events in other Syrian battlefields could be repeated, under conditions where hundreds of thousands of people are in grave danger. Seibert added that the situation was being discussed with allies and partners.

The Christian Democratic parliamentary defence spokesman, Henning Otte, was even clearer, stating: The pictures and reports reaching us are difficult to bear. Countless people in Idlib are suffering from the terror of Assads bombing of his own people. It is therefore important that we examine all options for action. We must, of course, also consider military action. We are in constant contact with all our partners so as to exchange situational information. There is no question that the use of chemical weapons in Syria must be prevented at all costs.

In the Tagesspiegel, former Defence Minister Volker Ruhe (CDU) threatened: If the Syrian dictator uses poison gas again, the Bundeswehr (armed forces) should participate in attacks on Syrian ammunition depots. This is the point of a common European security policy with France.

The assertion of Social Democratic Party (SPD) leader Andrea Nahles that her party would not agree to German participation in the war in Syria is pure hypocrisy and has nothing to do with pacifism. In fact, while in government, the SPD pushed Germanys entry into the Syrian war at the end of 2015 and, since the 2014 Munich Security Conference, has been the driving force behind the return of German militarism.

For the SPD, the issue is how to enforce Germanys own interestsif necessary against the United Statesin a possible military offensive against Syria. It is in our own interests to strengthen the European pillar of the North Atlantic alliancebecause we cannot leave things to Washington to the same extent as in the past, wrote Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD) recently in Handelsblatt .

The so-called opposition parties are participating in the war propaganda and have signalled to the ruling class on which side they stand in the event of an attack on Syria. The Green Party leader in the parliamentary defence committee, Tobias Linder, limited himself to demanding: If the government plans such a commitment, it must first ask the Bundestag for consent and also explain how, in its view, this is compatible with international law. He added that Germany had to make use of all avenues provided by the United Nations to prevent a chemical weapons attack by the Syrian regime.

Stefan Liebich, the Left Party parliamentary foreign policy spokesman, who has long beaten the drum for a more aggressive intervention by German imperialism in the Middle East, wrote on Twitter: Using poison gas would be a terrible war crime. But according to the Constitution, Bundeswehr combat missions are still decided by parliament and not the government!

In other words, the leaderships of the Left Party and the Greens are not opposed to military intervention in Syria in principle. They merely want to be included in the war planning!

The Sozialistische Gleichheitspartei (Socialist Equality PartySGP) is the only party that has resolutely condemned military intervention in Syria and opposed the return of German militarism, basing its opposition on an international socialist programme.

When the German Air Force entered the Syrian war in late 2015, under the guise of fighting the Islamic State, the SGP warned: The deployment of reconnaissance aircraft is just the beginning. If the Bundeswehr is once again involved in war, demands for an increased engagement, including the use of ground troops, will soon follow. Germany is getting involved in a war that, like the Balkan conflicts before the First World War, has become the focal point of irreconcilable international conflicts.

And this past April, when the German government backed the illegal air strikes by the United States, France and Britain against Damascus, we wrote: The attack of the imperialist powers on Syria must be condemned in the strongest terms. The military strikes that were carried out by the US, French and British forces on Friday night with the support of the German federal government are a violation of international law that threatens to trigger a conflict with Russia, the worlds second-greatest nuclear power.

If the imperialist powers are now planning new air strikes against Syria, it is with the aim of saving the rebels, led by at least 10,000 Al Qaeda fighters, whom they and their regional allies have built up and financed since the Syrian proxy war began seven years ago. Washington, Paris, London and Berlin are not concerned with human rights, but with enforcing their geo-strategic and economic interests in the Middle East, in alliance with the most reactionary forces, and rolling back the influence of Iran and Russia in Syria and throughout the region.

As for the warnings about a chemical weapons attack in Idlib, these amount to an invitation to Al Qaeda fighters to stage an incident to provide a pretext for air strikes by the imperialist powers. The Syrian government has denied responsibility for alleged poison gas attacks, such as in Douma this year and in Khan Shaykhun in April 2017. Nevertheless, both were used as justification for illegal missile and air strikes. The German government is now enlisting to participate in a new round of such attacks.
Last Friday, thousands of bartenders, doormen, cooks, servers, bellhops, housekeepers and other service staff at 25 hotels in Chicago went on strike for better healthcare insurance, wages, staffing and job security. Yesterday, workers at the Cambria Chicago Magnificent Mile hotel joined the thousands of other hotel workers on strike in Chicago, making it the 26th hotel on strike.

Other hotels may join the strike. The website, chicagohotelstrike.com, operated by UNITE HERE Local 1, reports the Park Hyatt Chicago hotel is one of the four hotels where there could be a strike at any time. The union called the strike one week after the previous contract, covering nearly 6,000 workers, expired August 31. In August, hotel workers voted by 97 percent to authorize a strike.

World Socialist Web Site reporters visited the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place hotel, one of three Hyatt operations owned by the Chicago-based Pritzker family. One of the billionaire heirs of the hotel chain, JB Pritzker is running as the Democratic Party candidate for Illinois governor with the backing of most of the unions.

Workers expressed their frustration and anger over the cost cutting measures enacted by Hyatt, which has led to cutting of hours and increased workloads for workers. WSWS reporters spoke to striking workers Renee, Miguel and Maximal on the picket line outside of the hotel.

Renee, a lobby porter, said, Me and my wife work here. We have seven kids. We have a mortgage. We have car notes. Im taking on this cause for me and my kids futures. Theyre trying to take our pension. Theyre trying to take our insurance benefits. They want to make us pay for it.

Im sacrificing a lot right now, but its worth it. My kids were out here yesterday. I not making any money right now except for the $300 a week from the strike fund. If I was working, Id probably make $1,000. But this is important to us.

Gas goes up, rent goes up, milk goes up and were still making the same type of money, were actually losing money in the end from these increased expenses. When I bought my home four years ago, I was paying $1,200 a month. It just jumped to $1,600 because of increased property taxes.

Maximilian, a Hyatt bartender for three years who moved to Chicago from France five years ago, added, We want respect! Were striking for better healthcare, all year round, and for a livable wage. Living in Chicago is expensive as hell! Were still making the same thing as prices for everything are going up and up. We dont get treated equally with the higher ups of Hyatt. But then they expect us to work 16-hour days!

Renee added, The people at the bottom with the lowest seniority always get laid off every year during the slow periods. So, when they get laid off, they get no health insurance. When they come back, they make you pay for the cost of the health insurance for the months you werent working!

You apply for Medicaid, but you cant even get it because youre going to be hired back on in a few months. The government says youre stealing!

Maximilian spoke about Hyatts ongoing cost-cutting measures. Theyre shutting departments down so were doing two jobs at once. They got rid of the room service department and merged it with another department. They only gave people thirty days notice that they were going to get laid off. About seventeen people were laid off or transferred to other departments.

Miguel, our co-worker was affected by this. He worked here for twenty years and was number two seniority and now hes at the bottom of seniority, which means he gets laid off during the slow season in the winter.

I worked in room service for twenty years at Hyatt, Miguel said. They gave us thirty days to decide what to do. They tried to find other positions in the hotel. But now I only work two days a week if Im lucky. I went from working full-time to only getting a few days a week. Its completely unpredictable.

Maximilian added, They lay people off and force other workers to pick up slack. Ive been at Hyatt for three years and now I have more seniority than Miguel because hes been transferred.

A WSWS reporter raised the fact that JB Pritzker, a billionaire running for Illinois governor as a Democrat, inherited his wealth from his family, which owns Hyatt. The Democrats are just as bad as the Republicans, Maximilian replied. I will not be voting for him. We make the wealth for people like him!

WSWS reporters also spoke with Elynn, a server for four years at Hyatt, who expressed her anger at the working conditions. All summer long weve been working six days a week consistently. The lower seniority you are the more that you have to work six days a week. They only have to pay us time-and-a-half if we work the seventh day.

Speaking about the experience Miguel and other workers who have been laid off or transferred confront, she said, His department was gotten rid of to save money because the service wasnt making enough money to justify it. Now in-room dining [i.e. room service] has been taken over by our coffee shop. They still make the same amount of money, but they do more work. They take market-to-go orders, which they deliver to the room, but they do not walk in with the tray. They get a $2 delivery fee, which is not a tip, which is then split with everyone in the department. This way, they got rid of room service people who were getting raises every six months.

WSWS reporters explained that UNITE HERE and other city unions were isolating the strikers and looking to force workers to end the strike and accept a contract that did not meet their demands. Ellyn responded, When the whispers of strike started three months ago, I was told the union would be trying to raise everyones pay to twenty dollars an hour, because thats what some of the highest paid workers here make. Then they were like well, maybe were going to ask for sixteen. Because they were acting realistically, which means that we wouldnt get what we wanted if were asking for extra sick days, better overtime, etc.

So, then my union rep comes to me a week before the strike and I tell her, I want to hear you say it: how much are you fighting for me to make? She said, well, its probably going to be about thirteen dollars. Plus, after six months youll get a raise and then those raises will continue.

So every time I talk to them it goes down. And I think its because theres some corruption between unions and big corporations, a relationship of if I help you out, you help me out.
Shouting for justice in English and Spanish, several hundred protesters converged Monday evening at the Jack Evans Police Headquarters in Dallas to speak out against separate fatal shootings of two men.

Local activists organized the rally to protest the killing of 26-year-old Botham Shem Jean, who is African American, by off-duty officer Amber Guyger, while he was unarmed and inside his own apartment on September 6. Guyger, who is white, was arrested and charged with manslaughter on Sunday evening, three days after the shooting.

Other protesters also came to denounce the shooting of 38-year-old Jorge Olguin, who was killed September 1 by a security guard after an argument broke out at a family party in Red Bird.

A group of protesters broke off from the initial demonstration and marched through downtown chanting Jeans name and demanding justice. Members of the group of more than 100 people said they were opposed to the fact that Guyger was being charged with manslaughter, rather than murder. They said the lesser charge, together with the fact that Guyger was left free for 72 hours after the shooting, were due to preferential treatment of an officer.

Dallas police closed off streets and blocked traffic as protesters marched toward the Dallas Police Association (DPA) office, about half a mile away. There the protesters were met with police repression.

Officers mounted on horseback stopped the group as it neared DPA. At least one officer then fired a pepper ball gun into the crowd. After a video of the incident was posted online, Dallas police chief Renee Hall sought to limit public opposition by announcing an internal review.

According to the Dallas Morning News, Jean worked at the Dallas office of the accounting firm Pricewaterhousecoopers, and had graduated from Harding University in Arkansas. He was a native of the Caribbean island nation St. Lucia.

The affidavit for Guygers arrest released by the Texas Rangers on Monday provides a narrative of the incident based on Guygers own account. Attorneys for Jeans family have stated that the affidavit contradicts accounts of the shooting from neighbors. Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Jeans family, called the affidavit very self-serving.

Guyger, who is 30, lives in the apartment directly above Jean. According to the affidavit, Guyger was returning home from her shift, still dressed in her police uniform, when she accidentally entered Jeans apartment instead of her own, not realizing that she was on the wrong floor. Guyger claims that the door was ajar, which is why she was able to enter without the right key, and that the room was dark when she entered.

The affidavit states that after seeing a large silhouette, Guyger withdrew her firearm, gave verbal commands that were ignored, and then fired her handgun two times.

This account was contradicted by Lee Merritt, an attorney for Jeans family, who told a press conference Monday evening that two independent witnesses said they heard knocking on the door in the hallway before the shooting. A witness reported hearing a womans voice saying, Let me in! Let me in! The witnesses said they heard a mans voice say, Oh my God! Why did you do that? Merritt said he believed these were Jeans last words.

The family has questioned why it took three days for Guyger to be charged, after admitting to entering Jeans apartment and shooting him. They also questioned why, based on news reports of what happened, Guyger was so quick to use deadly force. Guyger has since been released on bail of $300,000 and placed on paid administrative leave.

Botham Shem Jeans mother, Alison Jean, said officers still havent given her an accurate account of what transpired in her sons apartment. At a news conference on Monday evening, she said: The number one answer that I want is what happened. I have asked too many questions and I have been told there are no answers yet.

Alison told NBC News on Friday, I couldnt believe it when we got that call. It just feels like a nightmare. I wish I could wake up. He impacted the lives of many. Im getting calls from all over the world. My country St. Lucia is impacted.

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Dallas police officer charged with manslaughter 72 hours after shooting neighbor in his own apartment [11 September 2019]
Seventeen years after the September 11, 2001 terror attackswhich became the official pretense for the war on terror and a series of bloody conflicts that cost the lives of at least one million peopleWashington is on the verge of launching a massive new military offensive in Syria in defense of Al Qaeda-linked forces.

On Monday, US National Security Advisor John Bolton, one of the architects of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, said the US has been actively preparing to launch a military strike against the Syrian government, using the pretext of a chemical weapons attack by the Syrian government that the Pentagon claims will take place sometime in the imminent future.

Weve been in consultation with the British and the French, who joined us in the second strike [against the Syrian government in April], and they also agree that another use of chemical weapons will result in a much stronger response, Bolton warned.

Washington is making clear that it is responding not to what it claims the Syrian government has done, but what it claims it will do in the future. A chemical weapons attack will, in other words, be made to order.

The accusations being cooked up against the Syrian government are more brazen and shameless versions of the US claims of chemical weapons attacks in Khan Shaykhun in 2017 and in Douma earlier this year, which leading investigative journalists have asserted were likely staged by the CIAs Islamist proxy forces.

The trumped-up pretexts under which Washington has sought to escalate US involvement go unquestioned and unchallenged in the US print and broadcast media, as though the Bush administrations lies about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq never happened.

The real motivation for the fabricated justifications is clear. The Syrian government, aided by its allies Russia and Iran, is on the verge of a major new offensive to recapture the Syrian province of Idlib, which is expected to succeed, barring US intervention. It would effectively place the whole country under the control of the Syrian government and mark the decisive failure of the seven-year regime-change effort by the United States in alliance with Islamist militias.

This would be a major debacle for US imperialism, and Washington is not prepared to accept such an outcome, even if it means a shooting war with Syrias Russian and Iranian allies.

On Saturday, a force of 100 Marines was sent to reinforce a US base in Syria after Russian military forces requested permission to attack ISIS positions nearby.

The Pentagon made clear that US forces are fully prepared to engage Russian troops. The United States does not seek to fight the Russians a Pentagon spokesman said. However, the United States will not hesitate to use necessary and proportionate force to defend US, coalition or partner forces.

Since the beginning of the US regime-change operation in 2011, the CIA and Pentagon have armed and trained Islamist militias linked with Al Qaeda and the Islamic State, which it used as its shock troops in an effort to overthrow the Syrian government.

Now, 17 years after September 11, 2001, Washington is preparing a major new war to protect fighters aligned with the very organization charged with carrying out the attack on the World Trade Center.

This seemingly bewildering about-face expresses the real nature of the so-called "war on terror." Leaving aside the unexplained circumstances surrounding the 9/11 attacks themselves, from its outset it was meant to dragoon public opinion behind wars of aggression long planned by Washington.

The day after the 9/11 attacks, the World Socialist Web Site explained that From the standpoint of the American government, the crusade against terrorism has been far more a campaign of propaganda to justify US military violence around the world than a conscientious effort to protect the American people.

Subsequent events have thoroughly vindicated this analysis. This war on terror was the pretext for a renewal of imperialist neocolonialism on a massive scale, including the launching of the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan, the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the wars for regime-change in Libya and Syria, and the US clandestine murder and torture operations in dozens of countries throughout the world.

The aim of this offensive was summed up in a secret neoconservative strategy document quoted by journalist Seymour Hersh in his latest book. It stated that the Iraq war will start making the US the hegemon of the Middle East. The correlative reason is to make the region feel in its bones, as it were, the seriousness of American intent and determination. All those who would oppose American aims in the Middle East would be fighting for their life: Pax Americana is on its way, which implies their annihilation.

The ultimate target of the wars in the Middle East launched in the name of the war on terror were the great powers of Russia and China, as well as Americas erstwhile allies in the European Union. By controlling the heart of Eurasia, with its vital energy and transit links, the United States could regain its geopolitical hegemony by military means, even as its dominance over the global economy waned.

But as the United States came increasingly to rely on Al Qaeda-linked Islamist militias, first in Libya, then in Syria, the veneer of the war on terror wore increasingly thin. The pretense was effectively discarded in this years Pentagon National Defense Strategy document, which stated that Inter-state strategic competition, not terrorism, is now the primary concern in US national security.

Echoing this theme, former CIA Deputy Director Michael Morell commemorated yesterdays anniversary of 9/11 with a Washington Post column titled, We responded with urgency to 9/11. Now we need to respond as urgently to China.

Morell argues that the US must prevent China from seeking to become the most powerful and influential country in the world. Throughout the article, Morell never explains what, if anything, the September 11, 2001 terror attacks have to do with China.

The column makes sense only if one sees the entire war on terror as a pretext for a series of neocolonial wars of aggression in the Middle East that have placed the US on a collision course with China and Russia.

Beijing and Moscow, for their part, see the American threats as deadly serious. Russia, which has worked to rapidly expand its nuclear arsenal, is in the midst of staging its largest military exercises in 37 years, involving some 300,000 troops, for the first time with substantial Chinese participation.

The efforts of the US to shore up its global position by military means through a series of ever-expanding wars have led to one bloody catastrophe after another. But Washington, the cockpit of global imperialism, has responded to every disaster by upping the ante. If this course brings it to the brink of war with a nuclear-armed power, Washington has made clear it is prepared to accept the consequences.

This eruption of American militarism is driven in large measure by domestic considerations. Amid the growth of working class struggles and a growing audience for socialism among workers and young people, the US ruling elite sees in war a means of enforcing national unity through internet censorship, attacks on the press and other dictatorial methods. As Morell notes, National unity is essential as the United States responds to myriad threats, including Russias attempts to weaken us at home and abroad.

The crisis-ridden Trump administration, for its part, sees war as a means of placating its domestic critics in the Democratic Party and the intelligence agencies, whose bitter faction fight with the administration revolves around demands that Trump take a more aggressive stance against Russia in Syria.

As the United States stands on the precipice of an offensive that could lead to a shooting war with a nuclear-armed power, the entire US political establishment has lined up in favor of military escalation. This includes the middle-class left periphery of the Democratic Party, such as the International Socialist Organization, which has consistently demanded a more aggressive US pursuit of regime-change in Syria.

No movement against war will come from any faction of this decrepit and reactionary political establishment. Rather, it must and will come from the working class. Throughout the United States and the world, workers are engaged in a series of bitter class battles, from teachers in Washington state to UPS workers nationwide, to airline workers in Europe. As they mobilize in struggle, workers must take up the fight against war as a central component of the struggle for a socialist future.
The strike by over 5,000 Chicago hotel workers spread to 26 locations Tuesday, as hundreds of workers walked off the job at the Cambria Chicago Magnificent Mile hotel, just north of downtown. Thousands of housekeepers, bellhops, servers, cooks and other hospitality workers walked out across the city last Friday to demand increased wages, year-round health benefits and reduced workloads.

Labor agreements covering 6,000 members of the UNITE HERE in Chicago expired on August 31, along with thousands of others at major hotels across the country. On Tuesday, hotel workers in Hawaii voted by 95 percent to approve strike action at six Marriott-operated hotels in Honolulu and on Maui. Hospitality workers at Marriott, which became the worlds largest hotel chain after its $13 billion acquisition of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, will take strike votes today in Boston, September 13 in San Francisco and San Jose, and September 14 in Seattle.

The strikes pit some of the most exploited sections of the working class, including large numbers of Latin American and Asian immigrant workers earning near poverty wages, against some of the most powerful and politically connected multinational businesses. This includes Marriottwhich owns 30 brands and more than 5,800 properties in more than 110 countriesand Hyatt Hotels Corporation, which has 777 properties in 54 countries.

Chicago hotels raked in more than $2 billion in revenue in 2017, with more than 55 million tourists visiting the city. Occupancy at the downtown hotelswhere a stay in a five-star room can go for anywhere between $440 and $1,500 a nightreached 90 percent.

In addition to Marriott properties, the strikers are picketing two out of three of the hotels owned by Hyatt. This is particularly significant since the hotel chain is owned by the Chicago-based Pritzker family, ranked by Forbes as Americas seventh richest family, with a net worth of $29 billion. In addition to their vast wealth and business empire, the Pritzkers exert major influence in the Democratic Party, from the machine politics in Chicago and Illinois, all the way up to defense and national security strategy.

Hyatt Chairman and CEO Thomas Pritzker, whose net worth is $4.2 billion, is the former chairman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a major think tank for US imperialism, and Northwest America Western Asia Holdings. The latter is an investment firm Pritzker founded with a former Pentagon official in 2011 to exploit profit opportunities in Iraqs oil and shipping industries under the US occupation.

Penny Pritzker, one of the heirs to the Hyatt fortune with a net worth of $2.5 billion, was picked by President Obama as US Secretary of Commerce. Another heir, JB Pritzker, a venture capitalist with a net worth of $3.3 billion, was the national co-chair of the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign in 2008. He is the Democratic Partys candidate for governor of Illinois in the November elections.

Given the candidates family connections to Hyatt, a local ABC reporter asked the Pritzker for Governor campaign for its comments on the ongoing strike. JB stands with the labor movement across Illinois in the fight for better wages, benefits, and working conditions, the campaign cynically declared.

The 1995 retirement of Jay Pritzker, co-founder and president of Hyatt, led to a nasty feud over the companys assets, leading several family members, including JB, to reportedly stay away from management control. Nevertheless, all the Pritzkers, including the Democratic candidate for Illinois, have large holdings in the company and profit handsomely from the exploitation of hotel workers in Chicago and around the world.

While restaurant and cocktail servers at the Chicago Hyatt Regency can make as little as $9 an hour and a housekeeper as little as $14 an hour, the company spent nearly $600 million in July on a stock buyback program to drive up the value of its shares for Hyatts richest investors, including the Pritzker clan. According to its second quarter financial statement, The Company expects to return approximately $800 million to shareholders, compared to a previous expectation of at least $700 million, through a combination of share repurchases and cash dividends on its common stock.

The Pritzker family has waged a long and bitter war against hotel workers. During repeated strikes between 2009 and 2015, hotel workers were subjected to harassment and intimidation.

The company has been found repeatedly in violation of restrictions on contracting out for cheaper labor. In January, the National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint because Hyatt refused to respond to multiple accusations that it was using facial recognition technology, in violation of state law, to spy on hotel workers at the Chicago Hyatt Regency.

In the summer of 2013, Hyatt turned heat lamps, usually used to warm guests in the winter time, on striking workers to break up a picket line. They put the heat lamps on us, like we were nothing, Linda Long, a worker at the Hyatt kitchen, told the local media. If the heat didnt kill us, the heat lamps would.

Nearly 30 unions have backed Pritzkers election campaign, including the Chicago Federation of Labor, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and the Illinois Federation of Teachers. If the UNITE HERE union has not officially endorsed the billionaire candidates campaign bid, its only because this would further discredit the union in the eyes of workers.

UNITE HERE is deeply embedded in the Democratic Party and in 2015 endorsed the reelection campaign of the widely hated Mayor Rahm Emanuel, known among workers as Mayor 1 Percent for defending the citys corporate and financial elite while shutting public schools, overseeing the decay of neighborhoods and social services and covering up the brutality of the notorious Chicago Police Department.

There is little doubt that behind the scenes UNITE HERE and the unions are working diligently with the Democrats to reach a rotten deal and rapidly shut down the strike. This is what happened in 2015, when, after nearly six-years of impotent strikes, protests and boycotts, UNITE HERE signed an agreement with Hyatt that maintained poverty level wages and dangerous working conditions but made it easier for the union to gain access to workers in non-union locations and collect union dues.

In the run up to the November mid-term elections, the working class is coming into increasingly direct conflict with the Democratic Party, as well as the Trump administration. Earlier this year, teachers rebelled against the unions and waged a series of statewide walkouts in West Virginia, Oklahoma and Arizona, where the grip of the Democratic Party and the unions is weak.

As school began this month, teachers in the state of Washingtonwhich is run by a Democratic governor and Democratic controlled state legislaturehave waged as series of strikes after years in which teacher salaries and public education have been undermined by Democratic-backed tax cuts to corporations like Boeing and Amazon. Teachers in Democratic-controlled Los Angeles have voted by 98 percent to strike.

After decades of deindustrialization and wage-cutting, aided and abetted by the unions, popular anger over social inequality in Chicago and around the country is reaching a boiling point. The walkout by hotel workers and the growing number of strikes in the US, which itself is part of the escalation of class conflict around the world, points to the mood of militancy and anti-capitalist sentiment that is growing among workers and youth.

Workers cannot allow their struggles to be strangled by the unions, which are falsely claiming the election of Democrats in November will improve conditions. Instead hotel workers in Chicago should form independent rank-and-file strike committees to organize mass picketing against the hotel corporations strikebreaking operations and appeal for common action from broader sections of workers engaged in similar struggles, including teachers, steelworkers at US Steel and ArcelorMittal, UPS, US Postal Service and Amazon workers.

In every factory and workplace, similar committees, independent of the unions and both big business parties, should be elected to prepare and organize a general strike, which will bring workers into conflict with the Democratic and Republican parties and the entire capitalist system.
On September 12, 2001, the World Socialist Web Site published this political analysis of the 9/11 terror attacks that killed over 3,000 people and became the pretext for launching the War on Terror. The WSWSs warning that the American governments crusade against terrorism is a campaign of propaganda to justify US military violence around the world has been tragically confirmed by subsequent events, including the 2003 invasion of Iraq that led to the deaths of over a million people.

The World Socialist Web Site unequivocally condemns the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Those responsible for the hijacking of four commercial passenger aircraft and their conversion into flying bombs are guilty of mass murder. Nothing of a socially progressive character will be achieved on the basis of such an indiscriminate and callous destruction of human life.

These acts of homicidal terrorism manifest a toxic combination of demoralized pessimism, religious and ultra-nationalist obscurantism, and, it must be added, political opportunism of the vilest character. Terrorist organizationsnotwithstanding their anti-American rhetoricbase their tactics on the illusion that random acts of horrific violence will compel the US ruling class to shift its policies. Thus, in the final analysis, they hope to make a deal with Washington.

However it seeks to justify itself, the terrorist method is fundamentally reactionary. Far from dealing a powerful blow against imperialist militarism, terrorism plays into the hands of those elements within the US establishment who seize on such events to justify and legitimize the resort to war in pursuit of the geopolitical and economic interests of the ruling elite. The murder of innocent civilians enrages, disorients and confuses the public. It undermines the struggle for the international unity of the working class, and counteracts all efforts to educate the American people on the history and politics that form the background to contemporary events in the Middle East.

Nevertheless, our condemnation of Tuesdays terrorist outrages does not in the slightest imply any lessening of our principled and irreconcilable opposition to the policies of the US government. Anyone who wishes to understand the why and wherefore of yesterdays events must study the historical and political record of the US in the Middle East, especially over the last thirty years. The unrelenting efforts of American imperialism to secure its domination over the oil resources of the region, which has entailed, among other things, unstinting support for the Israeli states oppression of the Palestinian people, has placed the United States in violent opposition to the legitimate and irrepressible democratic, national and social aspirations of the Arab masses.

In the immediate aftermath of Tuesdays events, politicians, editorialists and media pundits have declared over and over that Americans must recognize that the destruction of the World Trade Center means the United States is at war and must act accordingly. But the fact of the matter is that the US government has been engaged in direct warfare in the Middle East, in one form or another, for the better part of two decades.

Putting aside the massive material aid that it provides for Israeli military operations, the United States has been bombing one or another Middle Eastern country almost continuously since 1983. US bombers and/or battleships have attacked Lebanon, Libya, Iraq, Iran, Sudan and Afghanistan. Without actually declaring war, the United States has conducted military operations against Iraq for nearly eleven years. The ongoing daily bombings of Iraq are barely mentioned in the American media, which has made no attempt to ascertain the total number of Iraqis killed by US bombs since 1991.

Given this bloody record, why should anyone be surprised that those who have been targeted by the United States have sought to strike back?

The same media that is now screaming for blood has routinely applauded the use of violence against whatever country or people are deemed to be obstacles to US interests. Let us recall the words of New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, who had this to say to the Serbian people during the US bombing campaign in 1999: It should be lights out in Belgrade: every power grid, water pipe, bridge, road and war-related factory has to be targeted. . . . [W]e will set your country back by pulverizing you. You want 1950? We can do 1950. You want 1389? We can do 1389 too.[1]

The foreign policy of the US is a mixture of cynicism, brutality and irresponsibility. Washington has pursued a course that has inflamed the hatred of large sections of the worlds population, creating an environment in which recruits can be found for bloody terrorist operations. In rare moments of candor, foreign policy specialists have acknowledged that the actions of the United States provoke hatred and the desire for retribution. During the Balkan War, former Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger stated: Weve presented to the rest of the world a vision of the bully on the block who pushes a button, people out there die, we dont pay anything except the cost of a missile  thats going to haunt us in terms of trying to deal with the rest of the world in the years ahead.

This insight has not prevented the same Eagleburger from declaring Tuesday night that the United States should respond to the destruction of the World Trade Center by dropping bombs immediately on any country that might have been involved.

George W. Bushs address to the nation Tuesday evening epitomized the arrogance and blindness of the American ruling class. Far from America being the brightest beacon for freedom and opportunity in the world, the US is seen by tens of millions as the main enemy of their human and democratic rights, and the main source of their oppression. The American ruling elite, in its insolence and cynicism, acts as if it can carry out its violent enterprises around the world without creating the political conditions for violent acts of retribution.

In the immediate aftermath of Tuesdays attacks, US authorities and the media are once again declaring that Osama bin Laden is responsible. This is possible, although, as always, they present no evidence to back up their claim.

But the charge that bin Laden is the culprit raises a host of troubling questions. Given the fact that the US has declared this individual to be the worlds most deadly terrorist, whose every move is tracked with the aid of the most technologically sophisticated and massive intelligence apparatus, how could bin Laden organize such an elaborate attack without being detected? An attack, moreover, against the same New York skyscraper that was hit in 1993?

The devastating success of his assault would indicate that, from the standpoint of the American government, the crusade against terrorism has been far more a campaign of propaganda to justify US military violence around the world than a conscientious effort to protect the American people.

Moreover, both bin Laden and the Taliban mullahs, whom the US accuses of harboring him, were financed and armed by the Reagan-Bush administration to fight pro-Soviet regimes in Afghanistan in the 1980s. If they are involved in Tuesdays operations, then the American CIA and political establishment are guilty of having nurtured the very forces that carried out the bloodiest attack on American civilians in US history.

The escalation of US militarism abroad will inevitably be accompanied by intensified attacks on democratic rights at home. The first victims of the war fever being whipped up are Arab-Americans, who are already being subjected to death threats and other forms of harassment as a result of the media hysteria.

The calls from both Republican and Democratic politicians for a declaration of war foreshadow a more general crackdown on opponents of American foreign policy. General Norman Schwarzkopf, who commanded American troops in the 1991 invasion of Iraq, spoke for much of the political and military elite when he declared on television that the war on alleged terrorist supporters should be conducted inside as well as outside the borders of the US.

It is the policies pursued by the United States, driven by the strategic and financial interests of the ruling elite, which laid the foundations for the nightmare that unfolded on Tuesday. The actions now being contemplated by the Bush administrationindicated by the presidents threat to make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor themwill only set the stage for further catastrophes.

Notes:

[1] Thomas L. Friedman, Stop the Music, New York Times, April 23, 1999.
ST. LOUIS, Mo., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Terramera, the leader in plant intelligence, has been in stealth mode until today, unveiling their game-changing Actigate Targeted Performance technology at the 2018 Ag Innovation Showcase in St. Louis, Missouri.



Pioneering a sustainable future, Terramera has developed technology that makes organic inputs up to ten times more effective, meaning that for the first time, plant-based active ingredients can outperform their synthetic chemical counterparts.

Terramera can change the way the world thinks about pest and disease control in agriculture. Our Actigate Targeted Performance technology gives farmers a natural solution that is not only better for our food but is also more efficient and cost effective, said Terramera Founder and CEO, Karn Manhas. For the first time ever, with Terrameras Actigate technology, natural, plant-derived compounds can outperform synthetic chemical pesticides, which finally gives farmers the option to produce food the way they want to  as clean as possible.

Agriculture is responsible for feeding the world, making it the most essential and significant economic sector. Today, much of the pesticides and fertilizers applied are not taken up by crops and are washed away, accumulating in our waterways and environment. Although more consumers are demanding Organic produce today, less than one percent of U.S. agricultural acres are Organic. Terrameras technology has the potential to shift this paradigm and eventually replace the most harmful agricultural chemicals with safer, plant-based alternatives that perform more effectively.

As a farmer and farm educator, Im always striving to help my fellow farmers to improve their productivity, profitability, and environmental performance, said Gary Zimmer, Organic Farmer of the Year 2008 and Co-Founder of Midwestern BioAg. New technology, like Terrameras Actigate, can significantly improve the performance of natural product-derived pesticides, providing new tools for both organic and conventional farms.

About Terramera

Terramera is the leader in plant intelligence with a mission of doubling food production without using synthetic chemical pesticides or fertilizers. Terramera uses technology to unlock the power in nature, so we can live healthier, make clean food affordable and feed the world. We are committed to cultivating safe, healthy homes and environments, and developing highly-effective natural products for consumers and farmers.

Media Contact:

Jessica Wolford | Director, Corporate Priorities

Jessica.Wolford@terramera.com

1-604-409-8070

BACKGROUNDER

Actigate Targeted Performance Technology Proof Points

Terrameras Actigate Targeted Performance technology makes organic inputs up to ten times more effective by:

Pesticide Load (Dose)  Farmers will be able to use 90% less product when Actigate technology is integrated with plant-based active ingredients. This means substantial cost savings for farmers and significantly less waste.

Performance  Terrameras field trials have shown up to a 70% increase in crop quality and marketable yield.

Consistency  Actigate technology significantly reduces the risk of crop loss or damage when using plant-based active ingredients, allowing for organic parity to synthetic pesticides.

Agriculture & Pesticide Industry Overview

Agriculture is responsible for feeding the world, making it the most essential and significant economic sector that exists today.

Plant pests and diseases affect food crops, causing significant losses to farmers and threatening food security globally. The spread of transboundary plant pests and diseases has increased dramatically in recent years due to globalization, trade and climate change.

Over 1 billion pounds of pesticides are used in the United States each year and approximately 5.6 billion pounds are used worldwide.

It is estimated that pest pressure accounts for a 38% loss in economic value to farmers in the U.S.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has estimated that 50 million people in the United States obtain their drinking water from groundwater that is potentially contaminated by pesticides and other agricultural chemicals.

It has been estimated that as many as 25 million agricultural workers worldwide experience unintentional pesticide poisonings each year.

Although more consumers are demanding Organics today, out of the 915 million agricultural acres in the U.S., only 5 million acres are Organic.

Sources:
At the height of the vicious, right-wing coup plot against Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, the trade union bureaucrats gathered at the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in Manchester said not a word about it.

For more than two years, the Blairite rightworking in league with billionaire oligarch Rupert Murdoch, the Tory Party and the military-intelligence apparatushave sought by every means to remove Corbyn. They are so hostile to his professed opposition to austerity and war, fearing that it will embolden working class resistance, that they are slandering him and his supporters as anti-Semites and even Nazis.

Yet even as the TUC crowed that this years congress marked the 150th anniversary of its founding, not a single platform speaker even referred to the attack on the leader of the party established by the trade unions to represent their voice in parliament.

Their veil of silence is even more striking considering that many of the 5.5 million members in the TUCs affiliated unions are members of the Labour Party and pay a political levy through the unions.

Speaking from the platform, TUC leader Frances OGrady made her usual token criticisms of the Conservative government and called on Prime Minister Theresa May to stand down. But who would replace her was conspicuously avoided, with OGrady refusing to even name Corbyn and only saying that if May did not deliver a Brexit to the satisfaction of the TUC, it would do everything in our power to elect a new prime minister who will.

The sole reference to the coup plot was at a fringe meeting addressed by Unite union leader Len McCluskey. But even here there was no attempt to alert workers to the dangers involved in these moves, much less mobilise against it.

Rather than demanding the expulsion of the Labour right, McCluskey pleaded for unity, requesting they turn your attacks away from our leader and turn them on to the government who are attacking our communities.  Those people who dont want to unite in this great cause that goes ahead of us should leave and go elsewhere and let the rest of us fight on.

What the TUC did make clear is that they are ready to fall into line with the dominant sections of big business who are demanding continued access to the European Unions Single Market after Brexit, even if it means reversing the 2016 referendum result to exit the EU.

To this end, the TUC endorsed the demand for a second referendum on whatever terms the Conservative government reaches with the EU. Central to this agenda is pushing the Labour Party to commit to a second referendumdressed up as the Peoples Votethat Corbyn has so far failed to endorse.

OGrady offered up a paean to the EU, casting it as some sort of bastion of opposition to neo-liberalism. One would never know from her remarks that the EU has been in the forefront of the vicious austerity programmes over the last decade that has reduced workers in many countries, such as Greece, to penury. Nor that it is imposing anti-migrant measures that have caused the deaths of thousands, while forcing tens of thousands more into prison camps.

The real basis for OGradys support for the EU was made clear in her insistence that continued access to the trade bloc was essential for British capitalism. Now, countries dont have to belong to the European Union to be in the single market, she said. But if they want to trade inside the market, every worker must get these rights. They are the rock that national laws and union agreements build on.

Warning that now we face Brexit  in exactly 200 days, she added, The risk of crashing out is real.

OGrady said the TUC was demanding that May reach an agreement with the EU for an extension of the Article 50 legislation that allows two years of negotiations on the UKs terms of EU exit. If its demands were not met, Well throw our full weight behind a campaign  and demand that the terms of the deal are put to a popular vote.

Prior to the TUC Congress, the GMB became the first of the main unions to formally commit to a second vote to overturn Brexit. The largest public sector union, Unison, is also committed to a second vote, with its leader Dave Prentis stating on Monday, When and if an agreement is reached, asking the public for their views is definitely one option  The UKs largest union, Unite, has also made statements in favour of a second referendum, depending on political circumstances.

Among another five of the larger unions to endorse a second referendum in recent weeks is the TSSA. Its leader Manuel Cortes is currently speaking, along with former Communications Workers Union leader Billy Hayes, at a series of meetings of the Left against Brexit to demand a Peoples Vote. Backed by the pro-EU Another Europe is Possible group, it is an amalgam of Labour and Green Party MPs and Members of the European Parliament, in alliance with sections of the pro-Corbyn Momentum group and Guardian newspaper columnists.

Significantly, Corbyn was not invited to address the TUC this year. Despite leading Labours official Remain campaign in 2016, his previous opposition to the EU and unacceptability to the right-wing makes him untrustworthy regarding the strategic requirement of the corporate and military elite to overturn the referendum result.

Invited instead was Corbyns closest ally, Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell, who was also silent on the coup plot in his address to congress. Prior to mounting the podium, and fresh from meeting Goldman Sachs on Monday as part of Labours overtures to big business, he issued yet another plea for unity with the right. I keep saying to people: dont mistake democracy for division, because thats what democracy is all about, people get up and say: this is what I feel.

The unmistakable message is the TUC do not want, and will do everything to prevent, a fight against the right wing. This is not merely because they are political cowards. It is because the mobilisation of workers and youth against the representatives of the financial oligarchy threatens their own highly privileged positions.

For decades now, the TUC has not organised a single significant struggle against the drastic decline in workers living standards. Their hostility to any fight back has become even more marked in the wake of the 2008 financial crash, as they have played the key political role in enabling Tory austerity.

This was made apparent by the opening remarks by TUC president and leader of the University and College Union, Sally Hunt.

In a speech that would have the early pioneers of the labour movement turning in their graves, Hunt name-checked virtually all of the major strike struggles of the past 150 years. This from a union leader whose members, only in March, protested en masse at the unions headquarters to denounce her dirty deal with university chiefs to sabotage their struggle in defence of pensions. It was to avoid any accountability to her members that in May, at the UCUs own annual congress, Hunt led a series of walkouts by fellow bureaucrats to prevent a debate on her conduct during the strike, eventually forcing the event to close early.
Election Day 2018 is only a month away!

While the battle for the House majority looks to be moving Democrats' way, the fight for the Senate remains less predictable -- largely due to the clash between a national political environment that favors Democrats and a national map that is clearly tilted toward Republicans.

Government and public administration Government organizations - US Political organizations Politics US Congress US political parties US Republican Party US Senate Continents and regions Midwestern United States North America North Dakota The Americas United States US Democratic Party Arizona Donald Trump Elections and campaigns Florida Heidi Heitkamp Nevada Political Figures - US Southeastern United States Southwestern United States Tennessee Texas

Yes, President Donald Trump was at 36% job approval in the last CNN-SSRS poll. But 10 Democratic senators are up in states that Trump carried in 2016 -- including five in which he won by double digits. It's a clash between an unstoppable force (the political climate tends to always rule) and an immovable object (the electorates in the key Senate battlegrounds are naturally inclined to support Republicans).

One will crush the other. But at the moment, it's very, very hard to tell which one.

As we approach the home stretch before voters make their choices, will the "blue wave" sweep through states Trump won in 2016? Or will the bitter partisan battle over Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court nomination fire up the GOP base enough to hold it off?

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell explained the stakes for his party clearly last month: "On the Senate side, I'll just list you a bunch of races that are just dead even: Arizona, Nevada, Tennessee, Montana, North Dakota, Missouri, Indiana, West Virginia, Florida. All of them too close to call and every one of them like a knife fight in an alley. I mean, just a brawl in every one of those places. I hope when the smoke clears, we'll still have a majority in the Senate."

Below, I've laid out five plausible scenarios for how the Senate map could look on November 7, 2018.

Scenario #1: Republican best case (R+3 seats)

Republicans lose a GOP seat in Nevada but hold Tennessee, Texas and Arizona. Republicans win Democratic seats in Florida, Indiana, Missouri and North Dakota.

Nevada has always been the most glaring problem for Republicans in this election cycle. Sen. Dean Heller (R) is in his first term and polling suggests he hasn't made much of an impression on voters. Plus, he's the only Republican running in a state Hillary Clinton carried in 2016.Given all that, Republicans would be absolutely overjoyed to lose only Nevada from their side of the ledger on election night.

As the election cycle has worn on, the cone of true Republican pickup opportunities has narrowed. At the moment, North Dakota looks to be their best bet, with Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D) struggling to overcome the state's strong conservative tilt. Missouri and Indiana, two states Trump won by double digits, look to be margin-of-error races at the moment. And in Florida, Gov. Rick Scott's (R) heavy personal spending has made Sen. Bill Nelson's (D) political life very uncertain.

Scenario #2: Democratic best case (D+3)

Democrats lose only one incumbent -- Heitkamp (D) -- and clean sweep their four GOP pickup opportunities, with Texas and Tennessee looking like the tougher two wins.

There's a case to be made that on the absolute best night for Democrats even Heitkamp could hold on -- given that she's shown an ability to win close before. But make no mistake: This map -- even with a loss in North Dakota -- would be something close to Democrats' wildest dreams. Arizona and Nevada are both toss-ups that could go either way. In Tennessee, Democrats recruited the only candidate that could possibly win the seat in former Gov. Phil Bredesen. In Texas, Rep. Beto O'Rourke's massive fundraising and the grassroots energy stirred by enthusiasm for his candidacy/hatred for Sen. Ted Cruz within the Democratic base has put the state in play. The underlying partisanship of both states, however, means that Democrats would have to be having a VERY good night to sweep both.

Scenario #3: A great night for Democrats (D+2)

Democrats lose Heitkamp but win GOP seats in Arizona, Nevada and Tennessee.

Again, Heitkamp feels like a goner (or close to it). And it would be somewhat tough to imagine Tennessee and Texas falling to Democrats. Tennessee -- because of Bredesen --feels like the more likely Democratic pickup to me if you forced me into choosing between it and Texas.

STILL, this scenario would put Democrats in control of the Senate, which they need a pickup of two seats to win back. Which was unthinkable at the start of the 2018 election.

Scenario #4: A wash (No net gain or loss)

Republicans lose their two most vulnerable seats in Arizona and Nevada. Democrats lose their two most vulnerable seats in North Dakota and Florida.

Of all the scenarios, this one feels like the most likely to me. (I could also see Republicans holding onto Arizona narrowly for a net one-seat gain.) Nevada isn't a done deal for Democrats but the state's demographics and Trump's unpopularity make it a tough hold. Ditto North Dakota on the other side. Scott feels like a slight favorite to me in Florida and the splits within the GOP in Arizona play in Rep. Kyrsten Sinema's favor.

Scenario #5: Tie! (D+1)

Republicans lose in Arizona, Nevada and Tennessee but win Democratic-held seats in Florida and North Dakota.

This outcome -- which is totally plausible -- would make the Senate divided 50-50 between Republicans and Democrats (and independents who caucus with Democrats). Republicans would still hold the upper hand in the chamber because Vice President Mike Pence would be available to break ties. But it would set off an furious attempt to recruit party-switchers (Joe Manchin! Susan Collins!) as both parties jockeyed for the seat they would need to seize control.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo certified to Congress Wednesday that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are making demonstrable actions to reduce harm to civilians in Yemen, averting a move by lawmakers to scale back US support for the Gulf countries' participation in the war there.

Pompeo said in a statement that "the governments of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments."

Continents and regions Middle East Middle East and North Africa Saudi Arabia Yemen Unrest, conflicts and war Civilian casualties Mike Pompeo Political Figures - US War casualties International relations and national security National security Defense departments Government and public administration Government bodies and offices Government departments and authorities Government organizations - Intl International relations North America State departments and diplomatic services The Americas United Arab Emirates United Nations United States

Lawmakers had added a provision to this year's defense spending bill that set a Sept. 12 deadline for Pompeo to certify that Saudi Arabia and the UAE were taking steps to limit civilian deaths, end the conflict and ease what the UN calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

If the administration wasn't able to certify that Saudi Arabia and the UAE were taking these steps, the National Defense Authorization Act cut off funding for US military refueling of Saudi warplanes.

President Donald Trump signed the defense bill into law just days after the Saudi-led coalition dropped a US-made bomb on a Yemeni school bus driving through a busy market. It killed 40 children and 11 adults, according to the Houthi-run Health Ministry.

Pompeo said in his statement that ending the conflict in Yemen is a national security priority for the Trump administration.

"We will continue to work closely with the Saudi-led coalition to ensure Saudi Arabia and the UAE maintain support for UN-led efforts to end the civil war in Yemen, allow unimpeded access for the delivery of commercial and humanitarian support through as many avenues as possible, and undertake actions that mitigate the impact of the conflict on civilians and civilian infrastructure," Pompeo said.

Yemen's civil war began in early 2015 and has escalated into a multi-sided battle. According to the UN Human Rights Office, 6,660 civilians have been killed in the conflict and more than 10,500 were injured since March 2015.

Defense Secretary James Mattis praised Pompeo's move in a statement Wednesday:

"The Saudi-led coalition's commitment is reflected in their support for these UN-led efforts," Mattis said. "Alongside the Department of State, we are actively engaged with Mr. Martin Griffiths, the UN Special Envoy, to achieve a negotiated end to this fighting."

A senior State Department official said they realized the certification was a controversial decision, but said it was made for US national security interests, particularly because of Iranian involvement in Yemen. The official said that while the Saudi-led coalition obviously has a lot of work to do, they are making efforts at improving their targeting.

"The Administration recognizes that civilian casualties have occurred at rates that are far too high in the Saudi-led Coalition's campaign in Yemen," the official said, adding that the US believes "civilian casualties must be mitigated and reduced as much as possible for both strategic and moral reasons."

Efforts observed

A State Department spokesperson told CNN that Department of Defense advisers and embassy personnel on the ground said they have observed efforts by Saudi Arabia and UAE to reduce civilian casualties. The spokesperson also said that the administration believes both countries are complying with applicable agreements and laws regulating defense equipment purchased or transferred from the US.

The spokesperson also said the administration has found that both nations are making efforts to end the conflict and reduce the humanitarian toll of the crisis.

"We are engaging the Saudi-led coalition to urge them to strengthen measures that reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure," the spokesperson said. "The Department of State and the Department of Defense will continue to press Saudi Arabia and the UAE on this issue at the highest levels."
Tanzania's President John Magufuli has told women in the East African nation to stop taking birth control pills because the country needs more people, according to local media reports.

"Women can now give up contraceptive methods," Magufuli said.

Africa Continents and regions Contraception Demographic groups Eastern Africa Females (demographic group) Health and medical John Magufuli Political Figures - Intl Population and demographics Sexual and reproductive health Society Tanzania

"Those going for family planning are lazy ... they are afraid they will not be able to feed their children. They do not want to work hard to feed a large family and that is why they opt for birth controls and end up with one or two children only," he said at a public rally on Sunday.

He was quoted in a local newspaper, The Citizen, as saying that those advocating for birth control were foreign and had sinister motives.

Magufuli urged citizens to keep reproducing as the government was investing in maternal health and opening new district hospitals.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) representative for Tanzania, Jacqueline Mahon, was present when Magufuli made his comments, reports said.

CNN has reached out to the UNFPA for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

"I have traveled to Europe and I have seen the effects of birth control. In some countries they are now struggling with declining population. They have no labor force," the Citizen newspaper quoted him as saying.

Tanzania's population is around 53 million people, and 70% of them living on less than $2 a day, according to a 2015 World Bank report.

"You have cattle. You are big farmers. You can feed your children. Why then resort to birth control?" he asked. "This is my opinion, I see no reason to control births in Tanzania," Magufuli, who has two children, said.

Opposition MP Cecil Mwambe criticized the President's comments, saying they were against the country's health policy.

President Magufuli is known as 'The Bulldozer' for his tough stance against corruption and his hardline policies, which include denying education to schoolgirls who become pregnant.

In another development, the speaker of the Tanzanian parliament banned female lawmakers from wearing fake nails and eyelashes in parliament.

"With the powers vested in me by the Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania, I now ban all MPs with false eyelashes and false finger nails from stepping into Parliament," Job Ndugai said, a day after Magufuli's comments.

The new rules also ban women MPs from wearing short dresses and jeans. Female visitors to parliament are also expected to adhere to the dress code.
(WTVA) - The former vice-president of a Saltillo bank has been indicted on allegations he wrote false loans and used the money for his personal use.

An eight-count federal indictment has been handed down against Max Miller.

The indictment says Miller, 53, wrote business loans to James R. Nichols of Baldwyn knowing Nichols was using the money for personal reasons.

Court records say he wrote loans totaling nearly $723,000 under other people's names to purchase wreckers, land, buildings and for working capital.

The indictment says the scheme ran from 2012 to 2014 and unraveled when Nichols failed to pay back the loans.

Miller, who worked for Renasant Bank in Saltillo, also is accused of writing loans under other names for his personal use.

The indictment says the total amount of those loans was $146,000.

Miller pleaded not guilty to the charges Monday in U. S. District Court in Oxford and was released on a $10,000 bond.

Nichols made an initial appearance in court and is currently free on a $10,000 bond.

His arraignment is set for Thursday in Oxford.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Hurricane Florence, a powerful Category 4 storm, is moving closer to North and South Carolina and is expected to bring strong wind and waves.

This Wednesday morning millions of people are evacuating, clearing the path of Florence.

Locally, the Red Cross here in the Capital City is getting ready to send aid.

Those helpers will be taking off soon, but WXTL ABC's Jada Williams was with them just before they set out on their journey.

Volunteers and Staff with the Capital Area Chapter of the American Red Cross will be going to the Carolinas to assist with Hurricane Florence Disaster Relief efforts.

Two volunteers and the Emergency Response Vehicle will be leaving soon to go to South Carolina to await assignment.
TALLHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Roaches, fleas, mold and many other issues: Two FAMU students say that's what they're living with at The Commons Apartment Complex.

Living in The Commons has been anything but enjoyable for roommates Jessica Thomas and Kristian Barnard.

According to Thomas, she and her roommates noticed dead roaches, fleas and several other issues before they moved into their apartment in August.

The complex promised to fix the issues but Thomas says they've reached out to management multiple times since then and nothing has changed.

"Me and my roommates have had several mental breakdowns," said Thomas who found roaches in her apartment. "Just getting ready in the morning and finding roaches in your book bag."

"It's hard to stay focused when you are in the living room and you want to do your homework and you're just looking around on the walls just to see if there is a roach," said Barnard.

The Commons apartment complex have offered to move Kristian and Jessica to different apartments but after weeks of constant issues they believe that enough is enough and they want to break their lease.

"Just let us out of our lease so we can move into somewhere else where we'll be comfortable living in our own home," said Thomas.

The students say pest control is included in their rent. They say the facility is supposed to be sprayed every Tuesday.

We reached out to The Commons Apartment Complex. Management did not provide a statement for this story. We spoke with workers in the office who say pest control has been to the complex.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - A Tallahassee church is hosting a diaper drive, all to benefit single moms.

Christian Heritage Church is gathering diapers and wipes all to support the soon-to-be moms in Royal Homes Ministries.

Royal Home Ministries welcomes pregnant teens with nowhere to go, offering aid varying from counseling and education to even shelter. The ministry is located in North Carolina, but partners with other churches across the entire country.

Last year, donations from Diaper Run lasted a whole year.

The diaper run was started by the founder of mission M25, known as a motorcycle ministry. The team will drive coast to coast on their motorcycles picking up donations.

While the drive ends on Sept. 16, M25 will ride into the Capital City to pick up donations.

You can drop off your donations at Christian Heritage Church. For more information on how to donate, click here.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - As Hurricane Florence strengthens and moves closer to the Carolina coast, its threat to Florida has gone down.

But the Tallahassee Salvation Army says it's still ready to help storm victims.

Salvation Army deployed mobile feeding units, staff, and volunteers from across Florida, to help the Carolinas, where the storm is expected to make landfall.

The Tallahassee Disaster Team left for Charlotte, North Carolina around 10 a.m. Tuesday morning.

"The great thing about the Salvation Army is we serve every zip code in this nation, so that means our canteen and 20 others from our state will be converging there in the Carolinas," said Ryan Meo, a corps officer at the Salvation Army. "People expect us to be there, people expect the Salvation Army to serve during times like this."

Other Florida teams headed to the Carolinas, include Jacksonville, Orlando and Vero Beach.
TORONTO, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Crosswinds Holdings Inc. (Crosswinds or the Company) (TSX: CWI) is pleased to announce the results of its special meeting of holders of common shares of Crosswinds (the Shareholders) held earlier today. At the meeting, Shareholders passed a resolution to approve the Companys previously announced plan of arrangement (the Arrangement) to effectively distribute all of its available capital (less a reasonable reserve for liabilities and contingencies) to Shareholders and dissolve the Company with 99.93% of the votes cast at the special meeting in favour of the Arrangement.



The Company will be applying on September 17, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. (Calgary time) to the Court of Queens Bench of Alberta (the Court) for a final order approving the Arrangement.

As previously announced, the Arrangement involves, among other things, a 20-for-1 share split, an initial redemption of 95% of the Companys common shares, followed by the dissolution of the Company (subject to the occurrence of an intervening event such as a sale of the Company). The estimated per share redemption price for the initial redemption is estimated to be $0.09573 ($1.8189 on a pre-split basis), based on the Companys estimation of its assets net of its outstanding liabilities and a reserve in the amount of $850,000. A further news release will be issued prior to the initial redemption which is anticipated to occur prior to October 31, 2018.

The dissolution of the Company will occur subsequently at a time determined by the Companys board of directors, subject to the occurrence of an intervening transaction. Upon dissolution, any remaining net cash in the Company, comprised of reductions (if any) achieved in settling the Companys outstanding liabilities and any unexpended portions of the reserve amount retained, would be distributed to shareholders. The Company expects to be able to settle its outstanding liabilities for less than the outstanding amount, in the aggregate, though there can be no assurance of any such savings or that additional liabilities will not arise.

Crosswinds Holdings Inc.

Crosswinds is a publicly traded private equity firm and asset manager that has been targeting strategic and opportunistic investments in the financial services sector with a particular focus on the insurance industry.

More information

J. Roy Pottle

Tel: 1-508-344-2640

info@crosswindsinc.com

www.crosswindsinc.com

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This release includes certain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as may, will, expect, intend, estimate, anticipate, believe, should, plans or continue or the negative thereof or variations thereon or similar terminology. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements. Reference should be made to the risk factors in the Companys most recent Annual Information Form, in the Managements Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2017 and in our other filings with Canadian securities regulators. Additional important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations include, among other things, receipt of shareholder approval, receipt of final order approving the plan of arrangement, timing and ability to maintain continued listing on the TSX or an alternate exchange, timing for implementing the arrangement or any component thereof, actual amount of liabilities and the redemption amount, unforeseen circumstances that could condition or delay the implementation of elements of the arrangement, outcome of assessment of any new alternatives available to the Company, general economic and market factors, tax related matters, loss of personnel, reliance on key personnel, the ability of the Company to execute its strategies from time to time; the receipt of any regulatory approvals or consents required from time to time.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 00:36:39|Editor: yan

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BERLIN, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has announced on Tuesday that it is exploring options to prevent the political group from being monitored by German intelligence agencies for its alleged links to right-wing extremists.

AfD parliamentary faction leader Alice Weidel told press in Berlin that the party was considering "legal and organizational" counter strategies, as well as measures on a "public communicative" level towards that end. Weidel also accused other parties of using all means available to undermine the AfD.

Weidel noted that aside from preparing a lawsuit against the AfD's prospective monitoring by the German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), the party was also considering appointing an internal "special investigator" to give its leadership a clearer picture of the situation at regional branches. Weidel said that she would formally propose the creation of a commission in charges of this internal investigation at a special AfD party leadership conference on Wednesday night.

In spite of the unusual intervention, AfD deputy leader Alexander Gauland insisted that his party remained committed to Germany's constitutional order. "I do not perceive any lurch of the AfD to the right at all", Gauland told press.

Thomas Opperman (SPD), deputy president of the federal parliament (Bundestag) has publicly urged intelligence services to begin monitoring the AfD in light of widely-publicized far-right marches in Chemnitz. AfD politicians helped to organize several demonstrations inspired by the alleged murder of a German by two foreigners in the East German city. Following clashes with police, anti-Nazi protestors, and civilians, the party leadership defended what it described as understandable outbursts of anger.

Opperman argued that partially violent demonstrations had hereby showcased how the AfD cooperated with Neonazis and other far-right activists who were plotting to overthrow Germany's constitutional order. The two groups appeared to have agreed on a "division of labor" which needed to be scrutinized by the BfV.

Opperman's intervention has so far been met with mixed reactions. However, the regional offices of the BfV in the states of Lower Saxony and Bremen have already launched independent investigations into the youth organization of the AfD in the meanwhile.

"The AfD youth organization represents a worldview in which minorities like immigrants, asylum seekers, Muslims, political adversaries and homosexuals are sweepingly denigrated and defamed", Lower Saxony interior minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) commented on the move in his respective state.

"One can no longer avert ones' eyes and downplay (the behavior in question). The time has come to act", Pistorius added. Earlier, Lars Steinicke, the leader of the AfD youth organization in Lower Saxony, was stripped of his role after he described the Nazi resistance fighter Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg as a "traitor."
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 02:22:08|Editor: ZX

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Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (L), Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz (R), and Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu attend a press conference in Bucharest, Romania, on Sept. 11, 2018. Visiting Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz on Tuesday accused some European officials of using "double standards" in their statements. (Xinhua/Cristian Cristel)

BUCHAREST, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz on Tuesday accused some European officials of using "double standards" in their statements.

"We believe that sometimes double standards are used, and so something that is accepted in some countries or may not be so when happening in Romania, Hungary or Poland," Czaputowicz told a joint press conference with his Romanian counterpart Teodor Melescanu at the end of a Romania-Poland-Turkey trilateral meeting.

According to him, Poland has a right to reaffirm its judiciary in line with European standards, and the rule of law or other provisions implemented in Poland are those existing in Western European countries.

The official said that there is no breach of the rule of law or instances in his country in which the values of the European Union (EU) are not respected.

"We disagree with such statements," he said, stressing that "They do not reflect reality."

Czaputowicz stated himself against what he called the attempt to punish some countries on the grounds of non-observance of the rule of law, classifying the "accusations" as "a political tool used by some leaders."

"We will be against the attempts to combine the rule of law with this attempt to punish a region or certain countries," he said, asking rhetorically how one can assess whether the rule of law has been respected when there are actually no objective evaluation mechanisms.

"We believe that the accusation of our countries is a political tool used by some (European) leaders," he stressed again, firmly pointing out that "we will be against the punishment of Hungary or Romania for using this mechanism because it is not justified."

The European project is in "mortal danger" because a number of nations want to destroy it, budget Commissioner Gunther Oettinger claimed a week ago in Brussels, picking out four countries within the EU, namely Poland, Hungary, Romania and Italy, want to "weaken or even destroy" it.

In response, the Romanian foreign minister wrote on his social media page last Wednesday that the statements "are promoting discourse lines which contradict the constructive attitude of a European Commissioner" and "they don't have a coverage based on reality."
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 03:22:22|Editor: yan

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RIYADH, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Saudi-led coalition involved in a war in Yemen accused on Tuesday the Houthi militias of targeting international navigation in the Red Sea with booby-trapped boats.

The coalition spokesperson, Col. Turki Al Maliki, assured at a press conference of taking all measures to stop the Houthi threat on international navigation, according to Al Arabiya news.

Saudi border guards foiled in August a terrorist attack by intercepting remotely controlled boat filled with explosives heading from Yemen regional waters.

Besides the threats in the Red Sea, Houthis have been targeting Saudi lands, mainly borders cities, with missiles that most of them were intercepted, said Maliki.

"There must be international pressure on the Houthi militias to participate in efforts towards a political solution," Maliki urged.

Saudi Arabia has been leading the war in Yemen in support of the exiled Yemeni government against Houthi rebels since 2015.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 04:02:27|Editor: yan

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CAIRO, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Comissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) Pierre Krahenbuhl on Tuesday urged Arab states to provide further funding after the U.S. decision to halt its financial aid.

Krahenbuhl's remarks came during a meeting of Arab foreign ministers held at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo to discuss the repercussions of Washington's decision on the conditions of some 5.3 million Palestinian refugees.

The UNRWA chief hailed the donations of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait to the UN agency.

"I humbly appeal to all of you to ensure that the pledges that were made are indeed transferred. Please do also consider opportunities for further donations at this critical time," he said.

Krahenbuhl pointed out that the support of oil-rich Gulf states and other donors enabled his agency to open the school year on time for 526,000 Palestinian students.

"This was the best possible response to give to the challenges we faced," he said, adding that UNRWA still needs 186 million U.S. dollars to ensure that the schools and clinics stay open and emergency services remain operational.

He also expressed his "deep regret and disappointment" at the decision to cut funding by the U.S., which used to be UNRWA's "historically most generous and consistent donor."

The Palestinian-Israeli conflict has been going on for decades, since the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories and the Western-backed creation of Israel in 1948.

The U.S. has taken several measures to support to Israel, including recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital last December and relocating the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to the disputed holy city later in May.

The Palestinians seek to establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital in light of the UN-proposed two-state solution based on the pre-1967 borders.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 04:12:31|Editor: yan

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WASHINGTON, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump has cancelled a rally planned for Thursday in the mid-west state of Missouri ahead of Category 4 Hurricane Florence threatening to wreak havoc across U.S. East Coast later this week, his campaign announced on Tuesday.

One day earlier, the president also cancelled a similar rally set for Friday in southern state Mississippi.

"With Hurricane Florence on its way, we determined that this is the safest decision," Trump campaign chief operating officer Michael Glassner said in a statement on Tuesday.

Also on the day, Trump said his administration is "absolutely totally prepared" to respond to Hurricane Florence,

"We are absolutely totally prepared," the president said after returning to Washington D.C. from a 9/11 memorial service in Pennsylvania.

"My people just informed me that this is one of the worst storms to hit the East Coast in many years. Also, looking like a direct hit on North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. Please be prepared, be careful and be SAFE!" the president tweeted on Monday.

More than 1.5 million Americans living along U.S. East Coast were currently under mandatory evacuations as Hurricane Florence, seen as the strongest storm to take aim at the region in decades is approaching, the authorities said Tuesday.

The Trump administration has been widely criticized for its response to Hurricane Maria which killed nearly 3,000 people last year in Puerto Rico and knocked out power for months on most areas of the island.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 05:02:46|Editor: yan

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CHICAGO, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Researchers at Northwestern University (NU) are using a blood test called TimeSignature that requires only two blood draws to tell the precise internal time clock of humans as compared to the time in the external world.

The test measures 40 different gene expression markers in the blood and can be taken any time of day, regardless of whether the patient had a good night's sleep or was up all night with a baby.

"Timing is everything," said study co-author Ravi Allada, a professor of neurobiology at Northwestern's Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. "We know if you have disruption of your internal clock, it can predispose you to a range of diseases. Virtually every tissue and organ system are governed by circadian rhythm.

"Now we can see if a disrupted clock correlates with various diseases and, more importantly, if it can predict who is going to get sick," added Allada.

A preclinical research has identified a link between circadian misalignment and diabetes, obesity, depression, heart disease and asthma.

The researchers are envisioning improving health and treating disease by aligning people's circadian clocks that are out of sync with external time in the next step.

"Circadian timing is a modifiable risk factor for improving cognitive health, but if we can't measure it, it's difficult to know if we've made the right diagnosis," said co-author Phyllis Zee, chief of sleep medicine in neurology at NU Feinberg and a NU Medicine neurologist. "Now we can measure it just like a lipid level."

"This is really an integral part of personalized medicine," said Zee.

The test for the first time offers researchers the opportunity to easily examine the impact of misaligned circadian clocks in a range of diseases from heart disease to diabetes and Alzheimer's disease. When the blood test eventually becomes clinically available, it also will provide doctors with a measurement of an individual's internal biological clock to guide medication dosing at the most effective time for his or her body.

The university has filed for a patent for the blood test.

The study was published on Sept. 10 in the journal PNAS.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 07:28:10|Editor: ZX

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U.S. Vice President Mike Pence (C) speaks during a ceremony marking the 17th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, the United States, on Sept. 11, 2018. Memorials were held across the United States on Tuesday to mark the 17th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. (Xinhua/Ting Shen)

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Americans commemorated Sept. 11 attacks on Tuesday with solemn memorials in major cities, and a presidential tribute to the victims 17 years after the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil.

In New York City, a traditional commemoration ceremony was held at the site where the World Trade Center's twin towers collapsed, with a moment of silence observed at 8:46 a.m., the exact time the first hijacked airplane struck the North Tower.

The reading of victims' names proceeded with six pauses of silence, each marking a time when the planes hit the two towers and the Pentagon, when another crashed in the state of Pennsylvania, and when the towers crashed.

At the U.S. Department of Defense near Washington D.C., a ceremony featuring U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Defense Secretary James Mattis began at sunrise with a U.S. flag unfurling on one side of the Pentagon building.

Pence assured family members of the 184 people killed at that site that the nation still grieves with them.

U.S. President Donald Trump visited Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the fourth airplane hijacked that day crashed after its 40 passengers and crew learned about attacks in New York and Washington and tried to storm the cockpit.

Hundreds of people turned out for the event despite cloudy and chilly weather with a light drizzle, to hear the names of those 40 called along with bell tolls.

Trump hailed the heroism the passengers on United Flight 93 demonstrated when they fought for control of the aircraft after learning the hijackers' intentions, telling their relatives "America will never forget what your loved ones did for all of us."

On the U.S. West Coast, memorial tributes were held across Southern California to commemorate the 17th anniversary of 9/11.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti attended an annual remembrance ceremony at the Frank Hotchkin Memorial Training Center of Los Angeles Fire Department along with visiting Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo and hundreds of people.

A piece of metal from the World Trade Center was on display at the Frank Hotchkin Memorial Training Center in a tribute to the 343 New York firefighters who gave their lives 17 years ago.

Garcetti said during the ceremony that the attacks "shook the world" but the terrorists "did not stop us."

In other cities across Southern California, memorial services were held featuring a moment of silence and lowering of flags.

Nearly 4,000 students and staff from Arcadia High School gathered in the morning for a memorial tribute. They are joined by representatives from the U.S. Marine Corps, Army, Arcadia Fire Department, and Arcadia Police Department.

"We have held this tribute for the past several years, and it's a very powerful, emotional history lesson and reminder for our students, many of whom weren't even born when this tragedy happened," said Ryan Foran, Chief Communications Officer of Arcadia Unified School District.

Moreover, Mayor of Houston Sylvester Turner marked the Sept. 11 attacks in a statement.

He said that "it is a day to reflect on the extraordinary bravery of first responders, the unimaginable grief of the victims' families, the fragility of our democracy and the miracle of life itself."

The United Nations Security Council on Tuesday observed a moment of silence for the victims of the 9/11 attacks prior to a meeting on Syria, at the UN headquarters in New York.

The United States came under multiple terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, after four civilian aircraft were hijacked and steered toward prominent U.S. buildings.

Three of the planes hit their targets in New York and Washington D.C., while the fourth crashed en route to Washington as its passengers battled for control of the aircraft with the hijackers.

The attacks left nearly 3,000 killed or missing and were the largest terrorist attacks on U.S. soil in history.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 07:48:13|Editor: ZX

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United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a press encounter at the UN headquarters in New York, Sept. 11, 2018. Antonio Guterres said Tuesday that it is "absolutely essential" to avoid a full-scale attack on Syria's Idlib, the last major rebel stronghold in the country. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Tuesday that it is "absolutely essential" to avoid a full-scale attack on Syria's Idlib, the last major rebel stronghold in the country.

"This (A full-scale attack) would unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict," said the UN chief in a press encounter at UN Headquarters in New York.

Almost half of Idlib's population of 2.9 million people had gone there to seek refuge from conflict elsewhere in Syria, including nearly 1 million children. Their lives have been upended and they have nowhere to go, he said.

"Idlib is the last so-called 'de-escalation zone' in Syria. It must not be transformed into a blood bath."

Guterres reminded parties to the conflict of their obligations under international law to protect civilians.

"I understand that the present situation in Idlib is not sustainable and the presence of terrorist groups cannot be tolerated. But fighting terrorism does not absolve warring parties of their core obligations under international law," he said. "I make a clear appeal to all parties directly and indirectly involved -- and in particular the three guarantors of the de-escalation zone, namely Iran, Russia and Turkey: Spare no effort to find solutions that protect civilians. Preserve basic services such as hospitals. Ensure full respect for international humanitarian law."

It is important that the parties -- especially the three guarantors of the Astana process -- find a way in which it is possible to isolate terrorist groups and it is possible to create a situation in which civilians will not be the price paid to solve the problem of Idlib, he said.

The three guarantors bear a particular responsibility since they have their own posts around the situation in Idlib and they have negotiated for a long time the de-escalation zones and different other forms and arrangements, said the UN chief.

It also goes without saying that in the 21st century any use of chemical weapons is totally unacceptable, said Guterres. "Beyond the immediate human toll, such use would lead to a situation spiraling out of control," he warned.

He asked for peace-making efforts, particularly within the framework of the UN-led Geneva process.

There is an urgent need to make greater progress in the Geneva process, and in particular the creation of a constitutional committee as part of the overall political package, he said. "There is no military solution to the conflict. The solution must be political."

"We have a collective responsibility to protect people who have already suffered too much," he said.

Guterres made the appeal after the Security Council remained divided over Idlib on Tuesday.

U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley issued a stern warning on the Syrian government, Russia and Iran over military operations in Idlib.

"We consider any assault on Idlib to be a reckless escalation of the conflict. If (Syrian President Bashar) Assad, Russia, and Iran continue down the path they are on, the consequences will be dire. The world will hold them responsible," she told the Security Council.

Russian and Syrian government air forces have launched over 100 airstrikes in Idlib this month, she noted.

Russian ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia argued at the same Security Council meeting that there is a need to fight terrorists in Idlib.

"We cannot allow terrorists to hold hostage and use hundreds of thousands of people as human shields," he told the Security Council. "It is unacceptable to spare terrorists."

Feridun Sinirlioglu, the Turkish ambassador to the United Nations, made it clear that his country is opposed to an assault on Idlib.

"The Syrian regime seeks to legitimize its operation on counter-terrorism grounds. Let us make no mistake: such an operation would not achieve the stated goal," he told the Security Council.

"In a complex place like Idlib, traditional counter-terrorism methods would not yield the desired results. On the contrary, they would create further suffering, alienate and radicalize more Syrians. In this sense, a military operation in Idlib would only play into the hands of terrorists," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 08:58:21|Editor: ZX

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SYDNEY, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- A global effort involving researchers from Australia's University of Queensland (UQ) has scored a victory in the fight against superbugs, by tweaking the use of existing antibiotics to dramatically reduce fatality rates.

By adjusting the antibiotic used to treat resistant strains of the superbugs Klebsiella and E. coli, a team including UQ researchers was able to reduce patient mortality rates from 12.3 percent to 3.7 percent.

"There is an urgent need to consider appropriate antibiotic use in the face of rising antibiotic resistance," UQ's Centre for Clinical Research director, Professor David Paterson said.

"Superbugs, Klebsiella and E. coli, are regarded as a critical threat by the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention as they become increasingly resistant to most commonly used antibiotics."

The trial involved treating 400 patients stricken with life threatening superbugs at the Royal Brisbane Women's Hospital, as well as patients at 25 other hospitals worldwide.

Doctor's used the inexpensive and already common antibiotic meropenem, meaning that treatment practices can be updated immediately rather than waiting for a new drug to pass approval, which can take years.

"We found that prescribing the common antibiotic meropenem was more effective against the superbug than other antibiotic treatments, and drastically increased the rate of survival," Paterson said.

The international research effort will continue with trials into the problem of resistance to cephalosporin antibiotics, which is especially prevalent in South East Asia.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Canadian Web Hosting, Canada's leading provider of web hosting, cloud hosting, and infrastructure services, has released a Secure Communications to its customers. This service is brought to Canadian Web Hosting customers by Evizone Ltd. , a revolutionary secure communications, encryption, and compliance software and service provider based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.



Customers can ensure system-wide security by having employees send electronic messages and documents through Evizones secure communications platform. Its view-on-demand architecture means only one copy of each message or document exists on a central server so users never take possession of the data and there is nothing to find on a lost or compromised device.

All too often we hear of business emails being targeted and sensitive information being compromised. We are very excited to now offer our customers security and compliance in their online communications, said Chloe Tottem, VP of Sales at Canadian Web Hosting. This is a significant and relevant addition to our Managed Security Services.

The Secure Communications service also includes copy prevention, visibility control, large file transfers, workgroup efficiency, and a complete audit trail. Users will never have to worry again about someone getting unauthorized access to important data by enforcing comprehensive confidentiality policies.

Users can also meet the challenge of GDPR with this security offering. This service provides the strongest commercially available system for the secure exchange and compliance archiving of electronic communications.

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About Canadian Web Hosting
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 09:38:25|Editor: ZX

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BRASILIA, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Tuesday dropped out of the presidential race and called on his supporters to vote for his substitute, Fernando Haddad.

Earlier in the day Haddad, the former mayor of Sao Paulo, was designated the new candidate of the left-leaning Workers' Party (PT) in the upcoming elections scheduled for Oct. 7.

Lula, who was at the end of August barred from running due to his conviction on corruption charges, is serving a 12-year jail sentence at a federal police-held facility in Curitiba, capital of the southern Parana state.

The PT held a rally outside the facility to formally launch Haddad's candidacy, and one of Lula's lawyers read a message from the jailed leader to his followers.

"I want to ask, from the heart, all those who would vote for me to vote for Fernando Haddad for president," said Lula, who has denied any wrongdoing, saying the charges were politically motivated to prevent his party from returning to power.

Lula remains highly popular and polls consistently showed he led the field of 13 candidates by a wide margin, despite his legal troubles.

"Fernando Haddad will be Lula for millions of Brazilians," he added.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 09:48:27|Editor: ZX

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YANGON, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- An unknown fatal disease, which has claimed the lives of seven children in Nanyun township, Myanmar's Naga Self-Administered Zone, is assumed as acute pneumonia related with seasonal flu, Myanmar News Agency reported Wednesday, quoting an announcement of the Ministry of Health and Sports.

The unidentified disease recently broke out in Kwelan village in the township, which is a small village with a population of only over 600 and then spread to Shanhepawkun and other nearby villages.

The ministry attributed the acute pneumonia attack on the children to having not received a pentavalent vaccine following a seasonal flu.

The ministry also put the blame on an uneasy access to the areas, the lack of timely treatment, malnutrition, the lack of general knowledge on health and air pollution caused by cooking on fire at homes for the death of children.

Local health department has sent medical teams to the affected area to provide health care services.

Naga Self-Administered Zone, which lies in Myanmar's northwestern Sagaing region, consists of three townships including Nanyun Township.

In August 2016, an outbreak of measles in the zone caused the deaths of 44 children.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 09:53:28|Editor: ZX

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MEXICO CITY, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Stricter rules of origin imposed on the automotive industry by the new North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) will hamper the sector's competitiveness, Mexico's second-largest bank warned on Tuesday.

"There is no way to sugarcoat it: the changes outlined in the agreement between the United States and Mexico will affect the competitiveness of the regional automobile industry," Citibanamex said in a special report on the renegotiated trade deal.

The automobile sector accounted for 20 percent of the trade between NAFTA partners of Mexico, Canada and the United States in 2017, the bank stressed.

The former rules allowed a greater percentage of cheaper foreign-made parts to be used in vehicles manufactured in North America, which are subject to preferential tariffs under NAFTA.

"Substituting them with stricter rules of origin ... entails additional costs in competitivity and/or prices for consumers in the region," the bank said.

On Aug. 27, Mexico and the United States announced they reached an "agreement in principle" on new NAFTA rules, after a year of negotiations. Canada joined the talks at the start, but then stepped aside as the United States and Mexico hashed out their differences.

The two countries agreed to raise the required regional content of vehicles from the previous 62.5 percent to 75 percent.

They additionally agreed to a new regulation that calls for 40 percent to 45 percent of vehicles made regionally to be manufactured by workers earning a minimum of 15 U.S. dollars per hour, much more than an average Mexican worker gets paid.

The "high wage" rule, according to Citibanamex, will slightly transfer some of Mexico's competitive advantages over to the United States.

"This apparent benefit will negatively impact Mexico and possibly foreign manufacturers operating in the country," said the bank.

"There is also a cost to limiting Mexico's role as a platform from which North America exports to the rest of the world, a strategy used extensively by automobile makers," the bank added.

However, the changes are not expected to affect Mexico's macroeconomic outlook, the bank said, forecasting a gross domestic product growth of 2.3 percent for 2018 and a slowdown to 1.9 percent in 2019.

The modified NAFTA agreement still needs to be approved by Canada.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 10:18:35|Editor: Liangyu

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BEIJING, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has generated great enthusiasm among Middle Eastern youth to learn the Chinese language and understand more about Chinese culture.

There is also a growing trend among students in Middle Eastern countries to pursue an education in China, so as to become more competitive in the job market and help them realize their future dreams.

OPPORTUNITIES BECKON ON SILK ROAD

Nowadays, it is common for citizens of Middle Eastern countries to go to China to pursue short- or long-term education opportunities, as the BRI has strengthened personnel exchanges.

According to the Chinese Embassy in Jordan, in 2017, about 305 Jordanian citizens enjoyed training opportunities in China, a year-on-year increase of about 23 percent. At present, enrollment for 39 education programs with academic degrees in 2018 is underway.

Hamideh Fard, an Iranian teen born and raised in Kuwait, decided to study in China in August 2011 when she turned 18. She said that it was the right decision, because studying in China has provided her with a very memorable experience.

She knew little about China at first, but managed to complete her studies at Huazhong University of Science and Technology in central China's Wuhan city. She also persuaded her brother to attend college in China.

After studying abroad for six years, Fard was totally obsessed with China. She not only adapted to the Chinese food and climate, but also visited more than 20 Chinese cities.

Fard returned to her parents in Kuwait in January 2018. She managed to find a job in less than 20 days after returning home because of her Chinese language skills.

She sent out her resume via WeChat, a communication app that is popular in China, and attracted many companies' attention. She eventually chose China's Huawei, a global provider of information and communications technology infrastructure and smart devices. Now Fard works as a product delivery coordinator in charge of promoting business with local distributors.

While bringing development opportunities to more people in the Middle East, the BRI also provides an opportunity for them to know and understand China. Fard said that her work gives her the opportunity to introduce not only Chinese products, but also Chinese culture and concepts to local people, which makes her an "unofficial ambassador."

SKILLS TO BUILD DREAMS

According to ancient books, Oman was one of the starting points for Middle Eastern merchant ships bound for China in ancient times. Now, Chinese companies are helping Oman forge a new starting point along the old silk road.

Established by Wanfang Investment Management (Ningxia) Co. Ltd, the China-Oman (Duqm) industrial park covers an area of about 12 square km. It is considered as the largest industrial park invested by a single country in Oman and also the largest one invested by China in Arab countries to strengthen production capacity cooperation.

Sha Yanju, the park's director, said that in cooperation with the Omani government, the park selects a group of high school graduates every year and sends them to study in China with funding from the park. They are planning to train 1,000 students for Oman in the next eight to 10 years.

In June 2018, the first batch of 39 Omani international students returned to Oman after completing vocational training at Ningxia Polytechnic. They will finish their internships during the rest of the semester, and then work for the industrial park.

Saeed Ali, an overseas student, said that China is a country with an ancient civilization, a complete industrial system and advanced technologies. He has learned about China's profound cultural heritage and the technical skills necessary for the development of modern society.

In the Middle East, the BRI has also sparked "Chinese fever" and "China fever" on some campuses. Ahmed Foda, a Chinese language major at Ain Shams University in Egypt, was involved in the trend which changed his life.

The 23-year-old has a Chinese name, Dawei. Since learning Chinese, he has traveled to China. Before hosting a TV program in Tianjin for three months, he taught high school students English as a volunteer.

In August 2016, Dawei was the global runner-up and African regional champion in the final round of "Chinese Bridge," a Chinese proficiency competition for foreign college students. He has joined a Chinese media branch in Egypt and plans to study for a master's degree in China.

Dawei said he learned steadfastness and perseverance from his Chinese friends during his years of learning Chinese.

"I had failure. I had frustration. I had confusion. But I have finally understood the truth that there is no limit to learning, so I'm still adhering to my Chinese dream bravely and persistently," he said, adding that there are many China fans like him in Arab countries, and an increasing number of Arabs who love China.

PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE EXCHANGES

Interest in the Chinese language and the Chinese culture has grown notably in the past few years as the BRI is gaining more cooperation partners.

Hassan Ragab, director of the Confucius Institute at Suez Canal University, has been witnessing this enthusiasm first hand.

Ragab, among Egypt's first batch of college graduates majoring in Chinese, said that he had only six classmates and three teachers when he was learning the language at Ain Shams University, a higher education institute with a strong faculty for China studies.

Ragab pursued further studies in China and obtained his Ph.D. in Chinese literature in 1995. He taught Chinese at Ain Shams University before joining the Confucius Institute at Suez Canal University.

In 2018, more than 300 students applied for the Chinese Department in the Language Faculty of Suez Canal University, which planned to enroll only 30 students, Ragab said, adding that across the country, some 600 others joined the Confucius Institute in 2017.

But the Confucius Institute is not only about language, Ragab said, adding that many Chinese companies in Egypt turn to it for hiring Chinese-speaking employees.

These companies have created a lot of job opportunities for Egyptians, and those who speak Chinese obviously have advantages over others in securing a job.

When a country grows strong and plays a bigger role on the international stage, its language will obviously also become more popular, said Ragab, adding that the so-called "China fever" in the Middle East is also a result of China's policy of promoting harmony and peace in the region.

As its friends increase day by day, China will "win the hearts and the minds of the Arab people," Ragab said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 10:53:40|Editor: ZX

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SYDNEY, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Australia launched the world's first short course in augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) on Wednesday, prompted by a surge in industry interest.

The course will utilize a U.S.-based company, Amazon's Sumerian platform, which doesn't require any specialized programming or 3D graphics expertise, for making it widely accessible.

It is hoped that the course will provide future expertise for enterprises to draw on, leading towards what is expected to be a 13 billion U.S. dollar global industry by 2023.

"There is a lot of industry interest in this trend and a clear lack of skills inside an organization to use the technology effectively," RMIT Online Chief Executive Helen Souness said.

"On top of that it's hard to find people with the combination of mobile application and 3D graphic skills needed to develop AR/VR apps from scratch."

The launch came in the same week as consultancy firm Capgemini released a report showing that half of all large businesses not already using AR or VR, expect it to be commonplace in their organization within three years.

Capgemini Australia digital strategy and transformation director Peter Meliniotis said that AR was already being used for safety goggles in mines as well as for activities like inspecting utility boxes, where instructions can be overlaid on top what operators are seeing in real life.

"It's really interesting that enterprises are actually embracing AR and VR ahead of consumers," Mr Meliniotis said.

Souness said that students taking on the new course would be supported by mentors from leading technology companies and supported in applying their knowledge practically.

"These courses are delivering a community-driven, industry mentored experience that not only teach up to the minute skills but also connects students to future work opportunities in cutting-edge industries," Souness said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 11:03:41|Editor: ZX

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Turkey's Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN) Feridun Sinirlioglu attends a Security Council meeting at the UN headquarters in New York, Sept. 11, 2018. Sinirlioglu on Tuesday voiced opposition to the looming offensive on Idlib, Syria, the last rebel-held stronghold in the war-torn country. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Turkey's Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN) Feridun Sinirlioglu on Tuesday voiced opposition to the looming offensive on Idlib, Syria, the last rebel-held stronghold in the war-torn country.

Whether to launch an offensive on Idlib was a major point of divergence at a summit last week involving Russia, Iran and Turkey. Russia and Iran proposed the military option while Turkey, which backs some of the opposition groups in Idlib, opposed it.

"At the summit, President (Recep Tayyip) Erdogan underlined the need to preserve the de-escalation area and called for an immediate and complete ceasefire in Idlib," Sinirlioglu told the Security Council meeting. "Our calls for an immediate ceasefire include all military operations and Turkey will continue to work on this basis."

Idlib is the only remaining one of the four de-escalation areas created by the Astana process initiated by the three countries last year in Kazakhstan's capital city Astana.

"In a complex place like Idlib, traditional counter-terrorism methods would not yield the desired results. On the contrary, they would create further suffering, alienate and radicalize more Syrians," Sinirlioglu said.

He also said a military assault on Idlib "would trigger a massive wave of refugees and tremendous security risks for Turkey, the rest of Europe and beyond."

The UN has warned that a military operation in Idlib is likely to put the lives of some 3 million people, including 1 million children, in jeopardy.

"Only a viable ceasefire would allow the creation of an environment to effectively fight terrorism," Sinirlioglu said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 11:48:51|Editor: ZD

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VIENTIANE, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Laos' attempts to strengthen food security are facing major challenges after almost 600 irrigation projects were affected by heavy flooding during tropical storms Son-tinh and Bebinca in August, local daily Vientiane Times reported on Wednesday.

The Lao Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry reported that storms flooded low-lying areas in six northern provinces, three central provinces including Vientiane, and two southern provinces, damaging or destroying more than 1 million hectares of crops and fisheries.

Officials said the extent of the floods would have a long-term impact on food security projects as well as hinder efforts to boost agricultural production.

In particular, the storms will have a bearing on the ministry's targets for 2016-2020 which were set to ensure food security, greater commercial production, and sustainable forestry management.

Under these targets, the ministry is pursuing annual production of 2.5 million tons of paddy rice through government-introduced food security projects. Of this, between 200,000 and 400,000 tons was to be stockpiled as a national reserve.

In the wake of the floods, the ministry's Department of Irrigation is cooperating with provincial authorities to provide financial support in combination with funding to repair damaged irrigation systems.

The ministry will also support farmers with planting vegetables, clean agricultural production, and planting rice in the dry season from November to April.

The ministry had set a target to increase agricultural production in 2018-2019 from 177,000 hectares to 185,000 hectares.

The ministry will store 986 tons of series three rice seeds as well as harvest 500 tons of series one and series two seeds, which are expected to be ready at the end of this year. The rice seeds will be distributed to farmers for planting in the dry season.

Lao Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Lien Thikeo said recently that so far in this rainy season farmers had planted crops on 234,000 hectares, equal to 31 percent of the target.

Lien said he was anticipating losses incurred in the rainy season to reach around 527 billion kip (around 62 million U.S. dollars).

Environmental experts predict that climate change is expected to bring increasingly severe drought and flood conditions to Laos, with crop yields possibly falling 10 percent by 2020 and 30 percent by the year 2050.

This could further affect food security improvement measures which the government is continuing to work on with its agencies and non-governmental organizations, said the daily report.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 12:43:59|Editor: ZX

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China's permanent representative to the United Nations (UN) Ma Zhaoxu (C) speaks at a Security Council meeting on the situation in Syria's Idlib province at the UN headquarters in New York, on Sept. 11, 2018. Ma Zhaoxu on Tuesday called on the international community to form synergy to continue to fight terrorism in Syria. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- China's permanent representative to the United Nations Ma Zhaoxu on Tuesday called on the international community to form synergy to continue to fight terrorism in Syria.

At a Security Council meeting on the situation in Syria following the Tehran summit of Russian, Iranian and Turkish leaders within the Astana process, Ma said China welcomed the outcome of the Tehran summit and commended the three countries for their efforts to push for a diplomatic solution to the Syrian issue.

"There is no alternative to a political settlement if Syria were to achieve peace and stability," he told the Security Council.

Ma said Syria's sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity must be respected and that the international community should form synergy to continue to fight terrorism in the war-torn country.

He also asked the international community to leverage the role of the United Nations as the principal mediator and support the UN-led Geneva talks and the Astana process.

He asked for efforts to spare civilians of any harm.

He also asked the international community to increase humanitarian assistance to Syria.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 13:04:01|Editor: zh

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WASHINGTON, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis revealed on Tuesday that the United States has identified two sets of Korean War remains among those that had been returned by Pyongyang over a month ago.

Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon that experts chose to focus on these two sets of remains as they thought "they had a better chance," considering reasons including where the remains had been found and the background Washington had.

"So there's been, already, some closure for a couple of families that have waited many, many years for this," added the Pentagon chief.

Mattis did not publicly identify the remains. He also said that consultations are going on about the repatriation of more Korean War remains.

Fifty-five boxes of human remains from the 1950-53 Korean War were handed over by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in late July, seen as a sign of progress after the historic Singapore meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and the DPRK's top leader Kim Jong Un.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 13:39:05|Editor: ZD

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WASHINGTON, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has kicked off the final phase of its campaign against the Islamic State (IS) militants, said the Pentagon on Tuesday.

The SDF, with the help of the U.S.-led coalition, initiated ground operations for Phase Three of Operation Roundup on Monday, aiming to clear the remaining IS forces in Iraq and Syria from northeastern Syria, said the Pentagon in a statement.

The U.S.-led military actions started in September 2014 were condemned by the Syrian government as an intervention to the country's internal affairs. The Bashar Assad administration has for long blamed Washington and its Mid-East allies for the deaths of Syrian civilians during unauthorized operations.

The operations were widely seen as part of the U.S. attempts to secure its influence and benefits in the oil-rich region.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Tuesday, the SDF is advancing in the last IS-held pocket on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River in the eastern countryside of Deir al-Zour, following 24 hours of the beginning of the wide-scale assault in that area.
TORONTO, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Effective immediately Hydro66 Holdings Corp. will be reinstated for trading.



The Company has rectified the default situation that gave rise to the suspension.

__________________________

A compter d'aujourd'hui, Hydro66 Holdings Corp. sera retablie pour la negociation.

La Societe a rectifie la situation par defaut qui a donne lieu a la suspension.

Effective Date/Date Effective: Le 12 septembre/September 2018 Symbol/symbole: SIX

If you have any questions or require further information please contact Listings at (416) 367-7340 or E-mail: Listings@thecse.com
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 13:39:05|Editor: ZD

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CANBERRA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Seven out of 10 Australians have experienced sexual harassment at some point in their lives, a major survey found.

The study, released by Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins on Wednesday, revealed that 71 percent of Australians over the age of 15 have experienced sexual harassment, with 85 percent of women and 56 percent of men being subjected to the behaviour.

The rate of sexual harassment was highest among those aged between 18 and 29 years, with 75 percent of people in that group having experienced sexual harassment in their lifetime.

Workplaces were the most common place for sexual harassment to take place with 39 percent of females and 26 percent of males saying they experienced the behaviour at work in the last five years.

"One in three workers in Australia said that they had been sexually harassed at work over the last five years, compared with one in five from our 2012 survey and one in ten in 2003," Jenkins told the National Press Club on Wednesday.

"What is clear is that this conduct begins the moment people enter the workplace, and that harassers prey on those less powerful than them."

The survey of 10,000 Australians was undertaken by Roy Morgan Research and commissioned by the nation's Human Rights Commission.

It found that 79 percent of workplace sexual harassers were male and in 64 percent of cases there was only one perpetrator; usually a co-worker at the same level as the victim.

In 56 percent of cases, the harassment was ongoing for more than six months.

Only 17 percent of victims made a formal complaint at work and of those people, 45 percent said no change occurred as a result of the complaint.

Of those who made a complaint, 53 percent said they were labelled as a troublemaker, ostracized or ignored by colleagues or quit their jobs.

The most common outcome of complaints was a formal warning for the perpetrator, issued in 30 percent of cases.

The Human Rights Commission will launch an inquiry into sexual harassment in Australian workplaces in late September. It will accept submissions until Jan. 31, 2019.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 13:44:06|Editor: Li Xia

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Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) meets with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Vladivostok, Russia, Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met here Wednesday on further improving bilateral ties and shouldering joint responsibility in promoting global and regional peace and stability, as well as development and prosperity.

The two leaders met on the sidelines of the fourth Eastern Economic Forum held in Russia's Far Eastern port city of Vladivostok.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 13:54:08|Editor: Yang Yi

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TIRIN KOT, Afghanistan, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- At least 58 Taliban militants were killed and several others wounded following separate air and ground operations in two key southern Afghan provinces, officials said Wednesday.

More than 100 Taliban attacked two security posts on Uruzgan province's main roadway on Tuesday evening, but they faced harsh response by the security forces and fled the area after leaving 40 fighters dead, Abdul Qawi Omari, provincial police chief, told Xinhua.

In Talayee area of the provincial capital Tirin Kot, at least seven armed Taliban fighters were killed when Afghan army forces shelled artillery on the outfits' hideouts, said Omari.

Elsewhere in the neighboring Kandahar province, late on Tuesday, according to Gen. Abdul Razeq, the provincial police chief, a joint Afghan and U.S.-led NATO coalition air operation killed 11 militants and injured 11 others.

The sources did not give details if Afghan security forces or civilians suffered casualties.

Afghan security forces, backed by the coalition troops, have increased ground and air offensives against militants in the past few months as the country is preparing for parliamentary and district council elections slated for Oct. 20.

The Taliban were not immediately available for comment on the report.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 14:14:13|Editor: ZX

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RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Brazilian right-wing presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro currently has enough support to win the first round of general elections on Oct. 7, according to a poll released on Tuesday.

Bolsonaro, federal deputy and candidate of the Social Liberal Party, is leading the field of 13 presidential hopefuls with 26 percent support among registered voters, according to the Brazilian Institute of Public Opinion and Statistics.

As an outspoken conservative who publicly yearned for the days of Brazil's military regime, Bolsonaro is convalescing in a hospital after he was stabbed in the abdomen at a campaign event last week.

His leading position came after Brazil's popular ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was barred from running for a third term, due to his conviction on corruption charges. Lula had some 38 percent support among voters.

With Lula out of the race, Bolsonaro tops the list of hopefuls, followed by former minister Ciro Gomes of the Democratic Labor Party, with 11 percent of the votes.

In the runoff, Bolsonaro is likely to lose to Gomes, due to the strong aversion many voters have expressed for his ideas, according to the poll.

Some 19 percent of the respondents said they would abstain from voting, while 7 percent said they have not decided.

The poll queried 2,002 registered voters on Sept. 8-10. It has a 95 percent accuracy rate and a two-point margin of error.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 15:04:20|Editor: Li Xia

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SHANGHAI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Shanghai Museum has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Sri Lanka Central Cultural Fund on a five-year archeological cooperation program.

Yang Zhigang, the curator of Shanghai Museum, said on Wednesday that the MOU was a comprehensive cultural exchange program ranging from joint excavation, relic protection and museum exhibition to educational cooperation.

The MOU was signed after the museum's archeological team went to Sri Lanka to join a 40-day site excavation at the ruins of Allaippidy in the port city of Jaffna in August.

The archeologists found some porcelain fragments dating back to the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), which were transported from China.

"Sri Lanka is an important stop on the Maritime Silk Road. Chinese explorer Zheng He visited Sri Lanka in 1405 for the first time," Yang said, explaining why the museum made Sri Lanka the first station in its overseas joint archeological research on the Maritime Silk Road.

He said Zheng He is the key figure for Shanghai Museum's overseas archeological excavation. A stone tablet exhibited in the National Museum of Sri Lanka was proved to be left by Zheng He. Archaeologists from the museum hoped to find more evidence of Zheng He's fleet to Sri Lanka.

Yang said that the joint excavation in Jaffna will focus on the trade route and mode study of the Maritime Silk Road. "The two sides will hold joint exhibitions on archeological findings and publish research papers in both Chinese and English," said the curator.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 15:14:22|Editor: Li Xia

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ULAN BATOR, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia's central bank issued a silver coin on Wednesday commemorating the friendship between Mongolia and China.

The commemorative coin is rectangular in shape and features two Mongolian and two Chinese children holding hands against a background of the countries' most famous landmarks. The front side of the coin reads, "Friendship Between Mongolia and China."

"The Bank of Mongolia issued the silver coin to mark the upcoming 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Mongolia and China next year," the bank's spokesperson Ariun Dagva told Xinhua.

The 20,000 tugriks (8 U.S. dollars) coin is available at the Treasury Fund of the central bank at a cost of 500,000 tugriks (201 U.S. dollars) per piece.

Since 1972, the Bank of Mongolia has been issuing gold, silver and bronze coins depicting the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, endangered animals, Olympic athletes and other well known figures as well as historical events or anniversaries.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 15:39:26|Editor: Li Xia

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Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) meets with Mongolian President Khaltmaa Battulga in Vladivostok, Russia, Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Mongolian President Khaltmaa Battulga here on Wednesday on the sidelines of the fourth Eastern Economic Forum.

Noting that China always attaches great importance to its ties with Mongolia, Xi said China will enhance exchanges and cooperation with Mongolia and constantly advance the China-Mongolia comprehensive strategic partnership guided by the principle of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness, and building friendship and partnership with its neighbors.

The two sides should strengthen the political guidance on bilateral ties and follow the correct direction of the development of bilateral ties from a strategic height and long-term perspective, Xi said.

Noting that the two sides should understand and respect each other's core interests and deepen mutual trust, Xi said China respects Mongolia's independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the development path chosen by the Mongolian people themselves.

The two sides should continue to vigorously promote the alignment of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative and Mongolia's Development Road program, ensure a leading and guiding role for major projects in bilateral pragmatic cooperation, and vigorously support border regions in expanding exchanges and cooperation, Xi added.

The Chinese president said Mongolia is welcome to "board China's express train of development" and share China's reform and opening-up achievements, so as to realize its own high-quality development, adding that China supports Mongolia in developing animal husbandry and processing industry and will import more high-quality farm and pasture products from Mongolia.

The two sides should also promote cultural and people-to-people exchanges, so as to consolidate public support for bilateral ties, Xi said, urging the two sides to strengthen communication and coordination in international and regional affairs and jointly promote regional cooperation.

For his part, Battulga said that it is Mongolia's unswerving principle to develop stable and friendly ties and mutually beneficial cooperation with China.

Mongolia is committed to deepening the ties with China under the principle of mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, he said, adding that Mongolia adheres to the one-China policy and recognizes that Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang are inseparable parts of China.

Mongolia is willing to actively participate in the building of the Belt and Road, strengthen cooperation with China in such areas as trade, electricity, farm and pasture, infrastructure construction, and advance the construction of the economic corridor linking Mongolia, China and Russia, so as to promote the common development of the countries in the region, said Battulga.

Xi arrived in Vladivostok Tuesday for the forum at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 16:44:49|Editor: Li Xia

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KUALA LUMPUR, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- A Malaysian member of parliament announced resignation on Wednesday, triggering a by-election which will pave the way for former deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to return to parliament.

Danyal Balagopal Abdullah, a member of Anwar's People's Justice Party (PKR), announced his resignation as the member of lower house of parliament for Port Dickson, a coastal town.

Anwar has accepted his offer to vacant the seat and chose Port Dickson as the constituency where he would like to stand as a candidate, Danyal told a press conference, adding that he believes Anwar will win the by-election "hands down."

The election commission will decide the date for the by-election.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 16:44:50|Editor: Li Xia

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NEW DELHI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- A firefighter was injured when dousing a massive fire at an industrial unit in India's financial capital Mumbai on Wednesday, officials said.

The blaze occurred in Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) industrial area at Marol in Andheri area of Mumbai.

"Only one firefighter sustained injuries while dousing the flames, while those inside were evacuated on time," a fire official said.

The injured firefighter has been hospitalized, he added.

"A probe has been ordered into the incident. We will book the owner of the industrial unit if any negligence is found on his part," the official said.

Fires are common in Indian residential buildings and industrial houses due to the lack of regards for basic fire safety norms and absence of proper firefighting equipment.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 16:59:52|Editor: Li Xia

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VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Russia says that the two men accused of poisoning an ex-spy in Britain have done nothing criminal, President Vladimir Putin said here Wednesday.

At a plenary session of the fourth Eastern Economic Forum here, Putin said he hoped the two civilian men will explain everything to the media.

British Prime Minister Theresa May said last week that the British police and intelligence agencies identified two Russian nationals they believe were responsible for a nerve agent attack against former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in March in the British city of Salisbury.

Traces of the deadly nerve agent Novichok used in the attack were found in a London hotel, she told MPs in the House of Commons.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said the accusation was groundless and "absolutely unacceptable."

The poisoning case triggered a diplomatic row in which Russia and some Western countries expelled a large number of each other's diplomats. The United States has also imposed massive economic sanctions against Russia over the incident.
Blooming Prairie MN, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Minimizer Bandit Big Rig Series would like to race at Anderson Motor Speedway Saturday, September 15th, but Hurricane Florence has other ideas.

The Category 4 storm, nearing Category 5 strength, is approaching the Carolinas and packing winds of up to 140 mph. It is expected to make landfall Wednesday night into Thursday morning.

We hate to cancel any event, but in this case, its a no-brainer, Bandit General Manager Jason Johnson said. We want everyone to stay safe, and our thoughts and prayers are with those in the Carolinas and Virginia.

Florence has already forced the relocation of more than a million residents in Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

Its hard to predict the weather, but when a hurricane is approaching, we arent going to take any chances, Johnson said.

Fans can contact Johnson or Drew Hull for refunds, which will be processed within a few business days.

We will also honor any Anderson tickets at our Myrtle Beach event on Sept. 29th, Johnson said. Thats our season finale, so hopefully, many of our Anderson fans can make it to Myrtle Beach.

The Minimizer Fan Series Truck Show, initially set for Saturday, September 29th, as well, has also been canceled.

About Bandit Big Rig Series

The Bandit Big Rig Series returns big rig tractor truck racing to the short track in the United States. The series was designed to be affordable and accessible for anyone wishing to put together a race team.

For additional information, please contact Jason Johnson at (507) 676-1987, or email jason@banditseries.com.

About Minimizer

Leveraging more than 30 years of manufacturing expertise at its state-of-the-art facility in Blooming Prairie, Minnesota, Minimizer is not only the leader in poly semi truck fenders - we invented the category. Minimizer poly fenders and integrated bracket kits are nearly indestructible and are guaranteed for life.

Our research and development team constantly tests and tortures each of our products to make sure what goes on, in or is used to fix the truck meets the rigors of our tough industry.

We also manufacture industry-leading light kits, mud flaps, tool boxes, work benches and other accessories. Our most recent innovations include the worlds ONLY custom molded floor mats for semi trucks, as well as the revolutionary whole body health Minimizer Truck Seat System.

Minimizer has been family owned and operated for three generations. The company manufactures its products in the USA and makes everything tough enough to please tough people in a tough industry.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 17:29:56|Editor: xuxin

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BEIJING, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- China's new yuan-denominated loans stood at 1.28 trillion yuan (about 186.4 billion U.S. dollars) in August, down from 1.45 trillion yuan in July, central bank data showed Wednesday.

The M2, a broad measure of money supply that covers cash in circulation and all deposits, rose 8.2 percent year on year to 178.87 trillion yuan at the end of August, the People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, said in a statement on its website.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 18:10:02|Editor: Li Xia

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Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) meets with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Vladivostok, Russia, Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met here Wednesday on further improving bilateral ties and shouldering joint responsibility in promoting global and regional peace and stability, as well as development and prosperity.

The two leaders met on the sidelines of the fourth Eastern Economic Forum held in Russia's Far Eastern port city of Vladivostok.

Xi expressed his sympathy for the heavy casualties and property losses in Japan's Kansai area and Hokkaido, which were hit not long ago by a powerful typhoon and an earthquake respectively.

The international situation is undergoing profound and complicated changes with increasing instability and uncertainties, Xi said.

Both as major economies in the world and important regional countries, China and Japan should assume joint responsibility to play a constructive role in safeguarding global and regional peace and stability, as well as development and prosperity, he said.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the signing of the China-Japan Treaty of Peace and Friendship. Prime Minister Abe and the Japanese government have recently made a positive gesture toward the ties with China, said the Chinese president.

With efforts from both sides, the China-Japan relations have entered the right track and are facing an important opportunity for improvement, Xi said, calling on the two countries to meet each other halfway, maintain good momentum, steadily carry forward bilateral ties and achieve greater development under new circumstances.

China and Japan should always adhere to the four political documents signed by the two sides, consolidate political foundation, follow the right direction, and manage and control their differences in a constructive way, Xi said.

The Japanese side in particular needs to properly address sensitive issues such as issues relating to history and Taiwan, actively create a good atmosphere and continue to expand common interests, he added.

China welcomes Japan's active participation in its reform and opening up process in order to realize common development and prosperity, Xi told Abe.

The Belt and Road Initiative has provided a new platform and experimental field for China and Japan to deepen their mutually beneficial cooperation, Xi said, adding that China is willing to work with Japan to focus on the new circumstances, explore new paths and create new highlights for the two countries' practical cooperation.

China and Japan should jointly push forward regional integration and build a peaceful, stable and prosperous Asia, Xi said.

The two sides also need to steadfastly safeguard multilateralism, the free trade system and the rules of the World Trade Organization, and promote the building of an open global economy, he said.

On bilateral ties, the Chinese president called on both sides to carry forward the friendly tradition between the two peoples, further enrich it in the new era, and cement the social and public opinion foundation for China-Japan ties.

For his part, Abe appreciated Xi for his sympathy for Japan's losses caused by the natural disasters.

Japan has been committed to participating in China's reform and opening up process, while China's development has also exerted a positive and important influence on Japan, said Abe.

Noting that the Japan-China relations are returning to the right track, with increasing space for bilateral cooperation, Abe said Japan hopes to establish a closer relationship with China so as to achieve common development and prosperity.

Japan is willing to make positive efforts to boost high-level exchanges with China, strive for more fruits in cooperation and fast-forward the improvement of the Japan-China ties, Abe said.

To that end, Japan will work to promote friendship between the two peoples and properly handle sensitive issues, he said, adding that on history and Taiwan issues, Japan has not changed its stance confirmed in bilateral political documents.

Japan attaches great importance to China's important role in international and regional affairs, and would like to enhance communication and coordination with the Chinese side on major issues concerning regional peace and stability, Abe said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 18:20:04|Editor: Li Xia

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Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan (R) meets with Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez in Beijing, capital of China, on Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/Gao Jie)

BEIJING, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan said Wednesday that China stood ready to work with Venezuela to safeguard the interest of developing countries.

Wang made the remarks during a meeting with Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez.

Noting that China and Venezuela have maintained long-term friendly relations with mutual benefits and treated each other as equals, Wang said the bilateral relationship should be at the forefront of building a community of shared future for humanity.

Under the leadership of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, the two countries steadily advanced their cooperation in various fields and achieved fruitful results, he said.

Wang said China appreciated Latin American countries including Venezuela in their support of the Belt and Road Initiative and stood ready to work with Venezuela to safeguard the interest of developing countries.

For her part, Rodriguez said Venezuela attached great importance to the relations with China and supported the Belt and Road Initiative as well as the building of a community of shared future for humanity.

She said Venezuela was willing to enhance cooperation with China and promote bilateral ties to a new high.
Photo shows winners of Zimbabwean presidential scholarships and their families at a farewell ceremony organized for them before they embark on trips to China to pursue studies. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuliang)

by Gretinah Machingura

HARARE, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwe, which is targeting to become a middle-income economy by 2030, is seeking to boost educational cooperation with China in order to achieve its economic development goals.

In recent years, an increasing number of Zimbabwean students have been going to China to further their education at various universities in the Asian country.

While some are paying for their studies, a number of them are studying through scholarships granted by the Chinese government and firms.

In 2016, Chinese firm Hengshun Zhongsheng Group started awarding scholarships to academically gifted but poor Zimbabwean students to study in China.

The company has been sending 50 students each year to study in China under the Zimbabwean presidential scholarship program, and has to date awarded scholarships to 150 Zimbabwean students to study in various disciplines.

The 50 students for 2018 are set to leave for China soon, after a farewell ceremony was held for them by the Zimbabwe government and the Chinese Embassy on Friday.

In a farewell message, Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa last week urged the students to go and harness their education potential in China for the benefit of the nation.

"Go and acquire knowledge and skills that we do need so much. Work hard, be disciplined and represent us well. We want you to come back home when you finish your studies and join us in the economic revolution which the new dispensation is unraveling," the president said in a message read on his behalf by a government minister.

Minister for national and presidential scholarships Christopher Mushowe speaks on behalf of Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa at the farewell ceremony organized for the scholarship winners before they embark on trips to China to pursue studies.(Xinhua/Zhang Yuliang)

Minister for national and presidential scholarships Christopher Mushowe said the main thrust of the new government was on specialization, skills and manpower development to enable the country to attain its 2030 economic vision.

"In the new government we will make sure that research and development, innovation and technology development are given priority. We have yawning skills gaps in the critical areas of science, technology and engineering and we want to fill those gaps with a deliberate focus on those areas," Mushowe said.

Director of political affairs at the Chinese embassy in Zimbabwe Guo Jing said the sending of yet again 50 students this year to study at various universities in China was one of the many good examples of the successful China-Zimbabwe educational cooperation.

"Our cooperation in educational exchange is a win-win job as this cooperation not only benefits the next generation of Zimbabwe and jump-starts the development of Zimbabwe, but also cultivates the young champions for China-Zimbabwe people-to-people and cultural exchanges," Guo said.

She said Zimbabwe was at the dawn of a new chapter of development which requires a huge pool of critical skills to enable the country to push forward with its development agenda.

"The knowledge acquired in China will serve as guidance for your work in Zimbabwe and toward the target of making Zimbabwe a middle income country by 2030," she said.

She also urged the students to be practitioners of Zimbabwe-China cooperation that delivers fruitful win-win outcomes for the two sides.

Hengshun Zhongsheng Group managing director Liu Baixue urged the students to work hard in their studies.

"Do your very best in your studies so that you serve your nation with the knowledge you have acquired," she said.

Nineteen-year-old Shalom Muguwe who will study a degree program in computer science and information technology at Ocean University of China said he was grateful to China for the study opportunity.

"I am very happy to have been awarded this scholarship. I want to acquire knowledge in China that will help in building a better Zimbabwe and advance our country in terms of technology and development," he said.

"I hope the Chinese government and other firms will increase the number of scholarships so that many bright but poor students benefit," he added.

To Kudakwashe Meki, a 26-year-old university graduate who will pursue a Master's Degree in Environmental Science, said the study opportunity will help boost his chances to secure employment and contribute to the development of Zimbabwe.

"I am happy that I will acquire practical education from China and I hope to come back and use those skills to develop my country," said Meki.

The study opportunity came in handy for 19-year-old Heidrun Mvere whose dream of acquiring university education had been shattered following the death of her father and breadwinner last year.

"Thanks to this scholarship I am now able to fulfill my dream of getting university education. On her own, my mother would not have managed to send me to university," she said.

Twenty five-year-old Margeret Muskwe said she hoped not only to secure employment but to set up her company after completing her Master's Degree in Genetics in China.

"I believe I should also do my own thing after university rather than simply look for a job. So I hope to improve the agriculture sector in Zimbabwe through animal and plant breeding," she said.

The exponential growth of Chinese universities as world class institutions has resulted in the Asian country emerging as a popular overseas study destination among many Zimbabwean students.

An official from Obepa Education and Scholarship Center said the dramatic increase in Zimbabweans seeking higher education in China can be explained in part by the Chinese government's commitment to higher education and China's technological advancements.

"Technology in China is far much advanced, and students prefer to go where technology is more dynamic. Engineering programs are the ones that attract most students," said Pamhidzai Matambanadzo from Obepa Center.

She said lower tuition fees and scholarships by Chinese universities also attract many students.

In a keynote speech delivered at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation held on Sept. 3-4, Chinese President Xi Jinping said China will train 1,000 high-caliber Africans, provide Africa with 50,000 government scholarships, sponsor seminar and workshop opportunities for 50,000 Africans, and invite 2,000 African youths to visit China for exchanges over the next three years and beyond.

This is part of the eight major initiatives announced by Xi which China and African countries will implement in the next three years and beyond. The initiatives also cover fields such as industrial promotion, infrastructure connectivity, trade facilitation, and green development.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 19:30:20|Editor: xuxin

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BEIRUT, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Beirut airport's manager and general director of civil aviation must be suspended from their jobs for failing to fulfill their responsibilities and duties, Lebanese anti-corruption official said Wednesday.

A software error at Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport (RHIA) led to flights delays, causing great chaos and congestion in the airport's departure halls on Sept. 6 and 7.

"The chaos that happened at the airport last week is unacceptable and should not be repeated," Wadih Akl, advisor to the State Ministry for Combating Corruption, was quoted by Elnashra, an online independent newspaper, as saying.

Akl said that Beirut airport's manager and director of civil aviation are currently under investigation.

"Corruption must stop in all public departments and every corrupted employee must be suspended from work," Akl said.

He added that there are a lot of other highly skilled people who are willing to work in such positions and do a very good job if they are given the chance.

Congestion at RHIA has been a hot topic in Lebanon lately.

Officials have on many occasions called for the expansion of the airport in Beirut for the increasing number of passengers in addition to replacing old equipment.

Earlier this year, Lebanese Finance Ministry approved 18 million U.S. dollars in funding for the expansion.

Renovation work at the airport is expected to start in November.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 19:35:24|Editor: xuxin

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TRIPOLI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Libya's state-owned General Electricity Company on Wednesday announced that power circuit in south of the capital Tripoli was damaged by renewed clashes, a few days after the fighting parties signed a UN-brokered peace agreement.

"Al-Hadba district's southern circuit No. 1 was hit due to armed clashes that took place in the capital Tripoli last night, after great effort to maintain some circuits by the company in order to stabilize the power network," the company said in a statement.

The company warned against complete collapse of the public power network if the violence continues in the city.

Libya's Ministry of Transport's Airport Department announced earlier on Wednesday that Tripoli's M'etiga International Airport was closed due to indiscriminate shelling.

Tripoli recently witnessed violent clashes between government forces and the so-called seventh brigade militia from the nearby city of Tarhuna, some 80 km southeast of Tripoli, killing 78 people and injuring 210 others.

The UN Support Mission in Libya brokered a peace agreement between the fighting parties last week that ended the violence. However, the seventh brigade threatened to break the truce and resume fighting to "eliminate crime and gangs in Tripoli."

The UN-backed government rejected on late Tuesday the threat of the seventh brigade, confirming keenness to maintain security and stability in the capital.

The UN Mission also called on the parties of the peace agreement to "refrain from issuing provocative statements."
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 19:40:27|Editor: Li Xia

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URUMQI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- After two hours of hectic work in the morning, Guzalnur Samat adeptly switched off the machine by the assembly line, and quickly walked into the Moslem canteen.

"I am learning new techniques every day, and the job is perfect for me," said Guzalnur, a 27-year-old blue collar worker who has worked for four years at SAIC Volkswagen's factory in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

She is one of the 700 employees at factory. Opening in 2013, this factory was the first passenger vehicle production base established in Xinjiang.

"If it weren't for this job, I would have gone back to my small hometown to teach Mandarin to ethnic minority groups, which would not be half bad," she said. "But I would still yearn for an opportunity like this."

Guzalnur who is of the Uygur ethnic group said her income was much more competitive than the average pay in her hometown of Janbulak, a scenic spot known for the spectacular sight of wheat fields. She recently bought a house in the city of Urumqi, planning to settle down there.

"I also met the love of my life in the factory," Guzalnur said with a blush. "Everything now is on the right track."

AUTO INDUSTRY TAKING SHAPE

"We came to Xinjiang to nurture and break into a booming market," said Fu Xuejun, director of SAIC Volkswagen's Xinjiang factory.

The annual output of the factory has now reached 20,000 vehicles. The vehicles manufactured here are either sold locally or shipped to other provinces and regions in west China.

Despite favorable government policies on taxes and land procurement, building a vehicle factory in China's westernmost region was not without its difficulties and challenges.

"The lack of supporting industries was our biggest challenge here," Fu said. "Long-distance transportation of machinery parts from the Yangtze River Delta inevitably eats up a large part of our profit margin."

The factory saw its first car come off the assembly line in 2013, when China put forward the Belt and Road Initiative for international cooperation and co-development. The proximity to countries along the Silk Road Economic Belt has brought Xinjiang a broader vision.

"We saw a new path through the Initiative," Fu said. "This factory in Xinjiang will be our westward bridge on the Silk Road."

The factory's export permit to Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and five Central Asian countries is expected to be issued later this year.

Fu said the new market would likely boost the factory's manufacturing capacity. To further adapt to the new customer base, the factory decided to put forward a new model of SUV next year.

Last year, another passenger vehicle company GAC Motors also opened a factory in Urumqi, also hoping to tap into the growing market.

"The magnifying effect of the prospective demand along the Belt and Road is showing," said Liu Dianbin, senior technology manager of SAIC Volkswagen's Xinjiang factory. "It is only a matter of time for a full-fledged vehicle industry to take shape in Xinjiang."

Liu Dianbin said he and other senior staff could have been transferred to the Shanghai headquarters after three years, but none of them intended to go back. "We know we are building something big here," he said.

REGIONAL CENTER FOR INDUSTRIES

Xinjiang's position as China's key passageway to Central and West Asia has been pronounced during the five years since the Belt and Road Initiative was proposed.

The region is one of the three outlets of China-Europe freight trains, which just reached 10,000 since the first was launched in 2011. Up to 3,600 tonnes of cargo are handled every day in Urumqi, now one of the largest logistics hubs along the Silk Road Economic Belt.

But Xinjiang is posed to be more than just a doorway to the west. Benefiting from the geographical location, the once remote border region is shaping into a regional center of industries.

"Some of the countries along the Belt and Road still lack the infrastructure for electricity, industry, and transportation," said Liu Qianjin, chief technology officer of ABB (China) Ltd., whose business fields range from electrical equipment to automation technology. "We therefore highly value our company's development in and around Xinjiang, the core region of the Silk Road Economic Belt."

Liu said the company established its first service center in Xinjiang in 2015, looking for more partnership with Chinese enterprises on overseas ventures.

"The five Central Asian countries are the largest market for Xinjiang's clothing industry," said Zhang Xi'an, vice chairman of China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Textile and Apparel.

In 2017, China's export of clothing to the five Central Asian countries reached 7.2 billion U.S. dollars, and Xinjiang alone accounted for 80 percent of the total value. Among the countries along the Belt and Road, Eastern Europe became the second largest market for Xinjiang's clothing industry.

From 2014 to June of 2018, the number of clothing enterprises in Xinjiang increased by 2,200 with more than 540,000 people employed in the industry. Many clothing companies from east China chose Xinjiang as their new bases.

"Xinjiang and the Central Asian countries are complementary in the clothing business," Zhang said. "We are looking at giant potential for industry development and commerce cooperation."
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 19:45:29|Editor: xuxin

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by Nathan Morley

BRUSSELS, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- With less than 200 days to go before the official departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union, Conservative European parliamentarian Charles Tannock says many uncertainties still remain around Brexit.

Tannock, who campaigned for Britain to remain in the European Union, is most concerned about the vexed issue in Northern Ireland, where the possibility of a physical border between the UK and the Republic of Ireland - an EU member - might become an inevitable, if an amicable divorce cannot be agreed between London and Brussels.

"I'm still not clear in my mind how the Irish border question will be solved if they can't agree on the long-term trading relationship," Tannock, who represents London in the European Parliament, told Xinhua in an interview.

"There are still a lot of 'ifs' and 'buts' but maybe the British government can pull the so-called white rabbit out of the hat and surprise us all."

The term 'Brexit' refers to the UK's decision in a 2016 referendum to leave the European Union, which it joined in 1973.

It's now two years on since the vote, and as negotiators continue to grapple over the terms of the separation, the EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier said on Monday that a Brexit deal was possible within six to eight weeks.

TRADE

Brexiteers - the term used for those supporting Britain leaving the European Union - insist that a key benefit of leaving the EU is the prospect for new trade deals with Commonwealth countries like India, and emerging economies in Africa. As it stands, the EU is the UK's biggest trading partner.

Tannock doubts Britain's trading relationship with rich nations like France, Germany, and Italy can be replaced by deals with 'far-flung countries' on the other side of the world.

"One of the big deceits which was perpetrated and inflicted on the British electorate was the promise of a 'global Britain,' unshackled from the rotting corpse of the European Union and the eurozone - where, as actually, Britain has been growing less than the rest of the European Union, the pound has even devalued by 15 percent since the result of the Brexit referendum," he said.

"Those that wanted to leave were counting on (U.S. President) Donald Trump, who has become increasingly protectionist, slapping tariffs on exports, including potentially British steel."

Tannock, an MEP of 19 years, laments the 'great irony' of trade issue being that as Britain departs from the EU, Brussels is working on over 60 large free trade agreements with countries including Canada and Japan.

CITIZENS

By contrast, he believes the rights of British expatriates and workers based in Europe have been covered adequately in the ongoing talks.

"As I understand it, the basic right for all the British - 1.1 million of them - scattered across the European Union, particularly in Spain and countries like Cyprus - many of the retired and some working - if they are self-sufficient by being in a full-time job or being a pensioner, or having independent means or being self-employed, their status will be that they will be allowed to stay in the country in which they reside for the rest of their lives."

As it stands, almost 250,000 British pensioners have chosen to make mainland Europe their home, where, just like the locals, they currently enjoy the full benefits of the health care system.

SECOND VOTE

For Tannock, calls from a leading campaign group for a second Brexit referendum should be heeded by the British government if negations end with a no-deal. That scenario would mean the United Kingdom quitting the EU without any agreement on key issues like the movement of people, money, and goods.

"Let's face it, this huge change to Britain's constitutional and economic arrangement has been carried on only a very small majority. And added to which, a lot of false promises and lies were made about the money that would come to the National Health Service, and a lot of evidence is now emerging of possible foreign interference in the funding of one of the groups which campaigned to leave," he said.

"Given all the uncertainties, there is a very strong case to submit the final deal or no deal for a final say confirmation in a second referendum to the electorate. And I think the electorate now are much more informed - one of the great ironies and tragedies is that the British public knows much more about what the European Union is, and does, after the referendum."

Britain is slated to officially leave the European Union on March 29, 2019.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 19:50:30|Editor: xuxin

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by Keren Setton, Chen Wenxian

JERUSALEM, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) unveiled the construction of a wall along the country's border with Lebanon in earlier September, as part of the preparations Israel is making ahead of a possible conflict.

The new fence is set to replace a standard border fence that has been in place for years. The new barrier is being contested by Lebanon who says Israel is dipping into its territory.

Officials in Israel have denied the claims.

According to the IDF, the construction will be completed in two years at the cost of hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars.

The border with Lebanon is volatile. Israel invaded southern Lebanon in 1982 in an attempt to thwart attacks coming from the territory. In 1985, Hezbollah, an Islamic militant organization, was formed as a guerilla force aimed at ousting Israeli forces.

Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon in 2000, a result of public outcry within the country in light of hundreds of soldiers who were killed throughout the years. For Hezbollah, this was a victory, but still, it vowed to continue resistance to Israel.

In 2006, a war between the two sides erupted after Hezbollah abducted two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid. The new barrier is supposed to prevent similar incidents.

The war was a game changer for both sides. Israeli forces all but obliterated Hezbollah-controlled territories in southern Lebanon and Israel was exposed to intense Hezbollah fire power in areas which were previously thought to be out of range for the guerilla organization.

The premise is that a new conflict between the sides is only a matter of time and it will be much deadlier than the last one.

Currently, Hezbollah is heavily involved in the Syrian civil war but once that subsides, it will invest more in conflict with Israel. The organization is believed to have sent thousands of militants to help stabilize the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Israeli military officials have been quoted in the media as saying they are carefully studying Hezbollah's involvement in Syria. The lessons Hezbollah learned there will most likely be implemented in future warfare with Israel.

"It is about capabilities that we know Hezbollah has as well as the spoken intentions to do so and the desire to infiltrate into Israel and to kill Israeli civilians and terrorize Israeli communities," said Jonathan Conricus, the foreign media spokesman for the IDF.

"This is why we are adding the layer of defense for our communities," he added.

Since the end of the month-long war in 2006, there has been relative calm between Israel and Hezbollah, with isolated border incidents. But there is a lot of tough talk between the sides.

Israel is also believed to be behind hundreds of airstrikes against Hezbollah arms convoys in both Lebanon and Syria. While there have been casualties in these strikes, they have not sparked a broader conflict yet.

For the most part, Israel has remained silent about its role in the attacks, neither confirming nor denying participation.

But last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opened his weekly cabinet meeting by referring to threats from Syria, Lebanon and Iran with a strong hint directed at his neighbors.

"Israel is determined to prevent Iran and its proxies from establishing a military presence in Syria," said Netanyahu. "We are taking strong actions against these attempts and against attempts to produce precision weaponry, in all arenas, near and far."

Iran, Israel's arch enemy which has called for the destruction of the Jewish state repeatedly, is one of Hezbollah's main backers, not only ideologically, but also by significant funding and arms supplies.

Israeli intelligence officials believe that Hezbollah's capabilities have grown exponentially since 2006. The barrier is just one of the steps Israel is taking in preparation for a future, apparently inevitable, conflict.

The building of the new barrier is not without controversy. With Lebanon saying Israel is infringing on its sovereignty, Israel has had to defend itself.

Tomer Gilad, IDF Liaison Officer to UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon), denied the claims when speaking to journalists touring the barrier construction site.

"The blue line is the only recognized line dividing between Israel and Lebanon and we are working in accordance with that," he said. "So there's no real basis for any claim."

The UNIFIL force has been in place since 1978, manning a demilitarized zone between the two countries. There are over 10,000 UN troops on the ground.

Spokespeople for UNIFIL have backed Israel's position, saying there has been no violation of Lebanese sovereignty due to the construction.

In the end of August, when the UN Security Council (UNSC) extended the mandate of the peacekeeping force, it warned of renewed conflict in the area if tensions were to boil over.

Israel has not always been happy with the UN presence on the border. Despite the backing it received on the sovereignty matter, differences remain.

"UNIFIL and the UN in general provide a very important role here on the border. However, we believe that UNIFIL could do more," Gilad told reporters.

For now, both sides are preparing for a future war, with uncertainty only looming about its timing.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 19:55:33|Editor: xuxin

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TANA RIVER, Kenya, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has donated agricultural inputs valued about 150,000 U.S. dollars to internally displaced people in Tana River County hit by floods in the coastal Kenya.

Gabriel Rugalema, FAO Representative in Kenya, said during the field visit that the inputs will help some 8,000 households that lost their crops during the effects of floods early this year.

"The inputs will help the beneficiaries get back to their feet and re-engage in productive farming," Rugalema said on Tuesday while distributing the inputs in the affected eight villages in the county.

He said that the green grams, maize, kale, cowpea and paddy will enable farmers improve their efficiency of crop production during the October short rainy season.

The official noted that despite predictions of normal to below normal rainfall for March, April and May, parts of Kenya witnessed rains well in excess of seasonal norms, with many parts of the country receiving more rains in the first three months of the year than they did in the whole of 2017.

Rugalema noted that the high rains have led to unprecedented flooding around the county causing wide-scale death, displacement and disruption of agricultural activities that affected 48,000 people who derive their livelihoods directly from farming.

He said that unlike other occasions, this year's floods have also been accompanied by active outbreaks of cholera and chikungunya (a mosquito born virus).

"We hope that the assistance will go a long way in improving food security for the affected families since majority of the affected population had lost their stock of seeds and some farming implements." he added.
WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bonify, Manitobas largest licensed producer of quality-assured medical cannabis, is pleased to announce it has signed a binding Supply Agreement with ADREXpharma, a leading Germany-based distributor of medical cannabis products.



Under the terms of the agreement, Bonify will provide ADREXpharma with monthly exports of its premium cannabis solutions to meet the needs of Germanys medical cannabis patients. Deliveries to Germany will begin immediately following Bonifys anticipated receipt of European Medical Agency Good Manufacturing Practices ("GMP") certification and export permit from Health Canada.

Germany is fast becoming the largest federally regulated medical cannabis market in the world, with a population of over 82 million, approximately 89% of whom are covered by the public health insurance program and the remainder covered by private insurance plans. Domestic demand for medical cannabis product in Germany is expected to far outstrip domestic supply for years to come. Additionally, the German market is well positioned as a potential gateway to supplying other European markets.

Dalbir Bains, Bonifys President and CEO states, We are thrilled to be working with ADREXpharma to extend our reach across the globe and add to the number of patients we are helping live better lives. Reinforcing the sentiment, Mario Eimuth, CEO of ADREXpharma states, Bonify, who shares our patient-centric focus, is an ideal partner for us to work with to serve German patients in need.

About Bonify

Bonify is a Canadian-owned leading provider of quality medical Cannabis. By maximizing research findings and strictly adhering to best in class practices, quality standards and procedures, Bonify produces Cannabis solutions to help individuals get the most out of life each and every day.

To learn more, please visit www.bonify.com

About ADREXpharma GmbH

ADREXpharma GmbH is an independent German pharmaceutical company with a strong focus on Controlled Drugs and Medical Cannabis distribution. Committed to quality, authenticity and innovation, as well as to contributing to the growing body of evidence-based research regarding the benefits and efficacy of cannabis to validate new therapy options for patients, ADREXpharmas aim is to provide the best possible treatment for medical cannabis patients - today and always.

Forward Looking Statements:

The statements contained herein may include prospects, statements of future expectations and other forward-looking statements that are based on management's current views and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results, performance or events may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements.

Category:

Business News
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 20:05:36|Editor: xuxin

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ANKARA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Turkey's National Intelligence Agency (MIT) has captured a key suspect linked with the 2013 bombing that killed 53 people in southern Turkey, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on Wednesday.

The suspect, who was listed in the blue category of the Turkish Interior Ministry's wanted terrorists list, was nabbed from Syria's Latakia province with an operation and brought back to Turkey for questioning.

Yusuf Nazik, 34, born in Turkish southern Hatay province, was wanted for allegedly planning and organizing two car bombs that left 53 people dead in the town of Reyhanli, near the border with Syria.

In his initial questioning, Nazik confessed that he played a role in Reyhanli bombing, being the coordinator between the bombers and the Syrian intelligence organization, which he said masterminded the attack.

He admitted that he had staked out possible target, helped for smuggling explosives from Syria to Turkey, provided two vehicles and organized the car bombs.

Turkey sided with rebels in Syria for toppling Syrian President Bashar Assad, sheltering Syrian refugees who fled the conflict.

Local media released a video from his interrogation at which Nazik called on his friends in Syria to surrender. "I am also addressing the Syrian state: the state of Turkey is big and it will surely bring you to account," he said.

Turkish courts had ruled to jail nine arrested suspects for life in February, while eight more suspects, including Nazik, remained as fugitives.

The Reyhanli bombing on May 11, 2013 left 53 people dead and dozens of others injured, as a bomb-laden vehicle was detonated in the town center. A total of 912 buildings, 891 workplaces and 148 vehicles were heavily damaged as well.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 20:15:37|Editor: xuxin

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STRASBOURG, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The European Parliament on Wednesday backed a resolution calling on European Union (EU) member states to trigger Article 7 procedures against Hungary in order to prevent the risk of a "serious breach of European values".

This is the first time the European Parliament has taken the initiative on Article 7, which was only triggered once against Poland by the European Commission in December 2017.

Adopted by 448 votes in favor and 197 against, with 48 abstentions, the legislative resolution received the necessary absolute majority of 397 votes for adoption, and just succeeded in reaching a second requirement of 2/3 of the total votes cast.

Article 7 of the EU treaty is a mechanism for the EU to steer wayward members back towards the values on which the EU was founded, including respect for freedom, democracy and the rule of law.

If a member state is seen as being at risk of breaching these values, EU institutions, including the European Parliament, can recommend triggering a process that can ultimately end with the suspension of a government's voting rights.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 20:20:38|Editor: xuxin

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STRASBOURG, France, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, spoke warmly of the future relationship between the European Union(EU) and Britain post-Brexit in his State of the Union Address in Strasbourg on Wednesday.

"After 29 March 2019, the United Kingdom will never be an ordinary third country for us," Juncker reassured the members of the European Parliament, who are meeting in Strasbourg for a plenary session. "The United Kingdom will always be a very close neighbour and partner, in political, economic and security terms."

"In the past months, whenever we needed unity in the Union, Britain was at our side, driven by the same values and principles as all other Europeans," the European Commission President said. The EU and Britain notably shared the same stance regarding recent tensions with the United States over protective trade tariffs imposed by Washington.

"This is why I welcome Prime Minister May's proposal to develop an ambitious new partnership for the future, after Brexit," Juncker told MEPs.

"We agree... that the starting point for such a partnership should be a free trade area between the United Kingdom and the European Union," he added.

The European Commission President's positive tone was counter-balanced, however, by reminders of critical negotiating points, such as access to the single market, and the Northern Irish border issue.

He warned that the EU would be "very outspoken" if ever the British government neglected its obligations under the Good Friday Agreement, which has established peace in Northern Ireland since 1998.

"It is not the European Union, it is Brexit that risks making the border more visible in Northern Ireland," he said.

Reiterating that a third country could not enjoy the benefits of an EU member state, Juncker reaffirmed that Britain would not have access to the single market, and would not be able to cherry-pick parts it wanted.

The State of the Union Address was Juncker's last as he enters into the last 12 months of his presidency, leading up to 2019 European elections.

Brexit, approved by a referendum in June 2016, will see Britain leave the EU and become a third country on March 29, 2019.
The picture shows Israel is constructing a high wall along its border with Lebanon on Sept. 5, 2018. (Xinhua)

by Keren Setton, Chen Wenxian

JERUSALEM, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) unveiled the construction of a wall along the country's border with Lebanon in earlier September, as part of the preparations Israel is making ahead of a possible conflict.

The new fence is set to replace a standard border fence that has been in place for years. The new barrier is being contested by Lebanon who says Israel is dipping into its territory.

Officials in Israel have denied the claims.

According to the IDF, the construction will be completed in two years at the cost of hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars.

The border with Lebanon is volatile. Israel invaded southern Lebanon in 1982 in an attempt to thwart attacks coming from the territory. In 1985, Hezbollah, an Islamic militant organization, was formed as a guerilla force aimed at ousting Israeli forces.

The picture shows Israel is constructing a high wall along its border with Lebanon on Sept. 5, 2018. (Xinhua)

Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon in 2000, a result of public outcry within the country in light of hundreds of soldiers who were killed throughout the years. For Hezbollah, this was a victory, but still, it vowed to continue resistance to Israel.

In 2006, a war between the two sides erupted after Hezbollah abducted two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid. The new barrier is supposed to prevent similar incidents.

The war was a game changer for both sides. Israeli forces all but obliterated Hezbollah-controlled territories in southern Lebanon and Israel was exposed to intense Hezbollah fire power in areas which were previously thought to be out of range for the guerilla organization.

The premise is that a new conflict between the sides is only a matter of time and it will be much deadlier than the last one.

Currently, Hezbollah is heavily involved in the Syrian civil war but once that subsides, it will invest more in conflict with Israel. The organization is believed to have sent thousands of militants to help stabilize the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Israeli military officials have been quoted in the media as saying they are carefully studying Hezbollah's involvement in Syria. The lessons Hezbollah learned there will most likely be implemented in future warfare with Israel.

"It is about capabilities that we know Hezbollah has as well as the spoken intentions to do so and the desire to infiltrate into Israel and to kill Israeli civilians and terrorize Israeli communities," said Jonathan Conricus, the foreign media spokesman for the IDF.

"This is why we are adding the layer of defense for our communities," he added.

Since the end of the month-long war in 2006, there has been relative calm between Israel and Hezbollah, with isolated border incidents. But there is a lot of tough talk between the sides.

Israel is also believed to be behind hundreds of airstrikes against Hezbollah arms convoys in both Lebanon and Syria. While there have been casualties in these strikes, they have not sparked a broader conflict yet.

For the most part, Israel has remained silent about its role in the attacks, neither confirming nor denying participation.

But last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opened his weekly cabinet meeting by referring to threats from Syria, Lebanon and Iran with a strong hint directed at his neighbors.

"Israel is determined to prevent Iran and its proxies from establishing a military presence in Syria," said Netanyahu. "We are taking strong actions against these attempts and against attempts to produce precision weaponry, in all arenas, near and far."

Iran, Israel's arch enemy which has called for the destruction of the Jewish state repeatedly, is one of Hezbollah's main backers, not only ideologically, but also by significant funding and arms supplies.

Israeli intelligence officials believe that Hezbollah's capabilities have grown exponentially since 2006. The barrier is just one of the steps Israel is taking in preparation for a future, apparently inevitable, conflict.

The building of the new barrier is not without controversy. With Lebanon saying Israel is infringing on its sovereignty, Israel has had to defend itself.

Tomer Gilad, IDF Liaison Officer to UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon), denied the claims when speaking to journalists touring the barrier construction site.

"The blue line is the only recognized line dividing between Israel and Lebanon and we are working in accordance with that," he said. "So there's no real basis for any claim."

The UNIFIL force has been in place since 1978, manning a demilitarized zone between the two countries. There are over 10,000 UN troops on the ground.

Spokespeople for UNIFIL have backed Israel's position, saying there has been no violation of Lebanese sovereignty due to the construction.

In the end of August, when the UN Security Council (UNSC) extended the mandate of the peacekeeping force, it warned of renewed conflict in the area if tensions were to boil over.

Israel has not always been happy with the UN presence on the border. Despite the backing it received on the sovereignty matter, differences remain.

"UNIFIL and the UN in general provide a very important role here on the border. However, we believe that UNIFIL could do more," Gilad told reporters.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 20:35:42|Editor: xuxin

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BAGHDAD, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Seven people were killed and 30 others wounded Wednesday in a car bomb explosion on a main road in Iraq's central province of Salahudin, a provincial police source said.

The blast occurred around noon when a booby-trapped car parked in front of a restaurant, where passengers used to have a rest while travelling on the main road in north of the provincial capital city of Tikrit, some 170 km north of Baghdad, Mohammed al-Bazi told Xinhua.

The huge blast set seven nearby civilian cars ablaze and badly damaged the others, as well as destroying large part of the restaurant, Bazi said.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Islamic State (IS) militant group, in most cases, has been responsible for such attacks, targeting areas where crowds of people gather, including markets, cafes and mosques across Iraq, said Bazi.

Many of Iraqi cities, including the capital Baghdad, have been witnessing tangible improvement in security after the Iraqi security forces managed to regain control of IS strongholds across the country late in 2017.

However, small groups and individuals of IS militants melted in urban areas or regrouped in deserts and rugged areas in many areas in Iraq looking for safe havens.

They are still capable of carrying out attacks from time to time against the security forces and civilians despite operations to hunt them down.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 20:50:50|Editor: xuxin

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BERLIN, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) has condemned violent and racist incidents witnessed during recent demonstrations in East Germany in a closely watched speech in the German federal parliament on Wednesday.

"There is no excuse or justification for inciting hatred, resorting to violence, chanting Nazi slogans, hostility towards people who look different or own a Jewish restaurant and attacks against police officers", Merkel said. She hereby referred to far-right marches in the German towns Chemnitz and Koethen after two alleged cases of murders of Germans by asylum seekers.

Chancellor Merkel's comments were addressed to delegates during a traditional general debate at the federal parliament (Bundestag) which takes places following the presentation of the government's draft budget for the coming year.

Merkel emphasized that she understood the outrage of citizens over the "severe crimes" in which the alleged suspect were asylum seekers and vowed that her government would work to respond to "grievances" in this context.

At the same time, however, Merkel told delegates that she would not allow the "silent spread of discrimination against entire groups in our society" as a response. "Jews and Muslims are as much a part of our society as Christians and Atheists", she added.

Merkel drew attention to the first article of the German constitution which states that "human dignity is inviolable." Whoever acted in breach of this article stood in opposition to Germany's founding principles and the rule of law which was based upon them. "Rules cannot be replaced with emotions. This is the nature of the rule of law", the chancellor argued.

Merkel's plenary session was after an opening speech by Alternative for Germany (AfD) co-leader Alexander Gauland in which he attacked Merkel for being "stubborn" and "bossy" on the subject of immigration and Chemnitz.

Gauland admitted that there had been "a few aggressive idiots" amongst the protestors in Chemnitz who had chanted "distasteful" slogans like "Kick foreigners out" or made use of the Nazi-era Hitler salute. Nevertheless, the AfD leader defended what he described as the "spontaneous use" of citizens' right to assemble freely.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:00:54|Editor: xuxin

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JAKARTA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Sustainable development, responsible energy consumption, women's role and sustainable energy, among other topics, took the center stage of the 2nd World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development, which kicked off Wednesday in Indonesia's resort island of Bali.

Members of parliaments from over 40 nations and representatives of international organizations took part in the two-day meeting, a statement from Indonesian House of Representatives said.

"One of the themes is sustainable energies for all. As we know, for now the use of the fossil fuel is worrying. Accordingly, the parliament raises this theme," head of Indonesian inter-parliamentary cooperation committee Nour Hayati said.

Hayati noted that the use of fossil fuel has been dominant in the past decades and it should be terminated by shifting to the sustainable energies.

Hayati said the meeting will raise people's awareness on the sustainable development goals.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:05:55|Editor: xuxin

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BERLIN, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Germany faces a severe potato shortage as a consequence of unusually hot and dry weather this summer, the German Farming Society (DLG) warned on Wednesday.

"We are expecting one of the smallest potato harvests of all times in Germany", Martin Umhau, a member of the DLG supervisory board, told the German press agency (dpa).

According to Umhau, an anticipated fall in potato yields from 11.7 million tons in 2017 to 8.5 million tons in 2018 could hereby lead to an increase in consumer prices for the popular crop by up to 30 percent.

Umhau was speaking ahead of the start of the "PotatoEurope 2018" agricultural trade fair, the largest of its kind in Europe, which opened at Bockerode castle in Lower Saxony on Wednesday. A focus of this year's event will be placed on the implications of a recent drought experienced in many European countries between June and August.

Potato farmers are only one of several agricultural producers in Germany who have highlighted that they face the prospect of widespread crop failures due to the hot and dry summer weather. Responding to such industry concerns, federal and state-level governments announced that they would set aside 340 million euros (394 million U.S. dollars) in financial aid for farmers who suffered particularly heavy losses.

In order for German farmers to receive the state assistance in question, they must demonstrate that more than a 30 percent threshold of their average annual crop yield has been destroyed this year. State governments previously estimated that around 10,000 agricultural producers across Germany currently face a high risk of bankruptcy because of the heatwave.

Earlier, the German Farmers Association (DBV) downgraded its annual forecast for grain yield for a second time in 2018 from 41 million tons to 36 million tons. DBV vice-secretary general Udo Hemmerling described the development of German crop output in the current year as the "worst harvest of the century." Aside from grain crop failures, farmers have pointed to a shortage of animal feed in particular as posing a risk to their financial solvency.

The ministry for agriculture has noted that natural catastrophes and extreme weather patterns are historically well-known phenomena to mankind and that Germany remains a relatively safe country for agricultural production in international comparison. Nevertheless, it warned that domestic weather risks were set to increase in coming years as a consequence of climate change.

"Extremer weather patterns like snap freezes, heat, floods and storms can cause significant and long-lasting damage to the German agricultural sector within short periods of time. (These events) destroy cultivated plants and lead to crop failures", the ministry wrote on its website.

Commenting on the latest shortfalls in agricultural output, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) also emphasized that temperatures which were still considered unusual for July could become normal in Europe within the coming decades.

"In Germany, average temperatures have already risen by 1.4 degrees since the industrial revolution", PIK researcher Fred Hattermann told press. Higher average temperatures caused by greenhouse gas emissions were hereby likely to lead to more extreme heatwaves in the future.

Potatoes first reached Germany from South America in the early modern period following the arrivals of Amerigo Vespucci and Christopher Columbus in the "new world." The nutritious and robust nightshade plant quickly became one of the most popular staple foods in the country, with each German consuming 58 kg thereof on average in 2017 according to a Ministry for Agriculture estimate.

Lower Saxony is Germany's largest regional potato producer and accounts for around 40 percent of nationwide output. Internationally, Germany is the sixth largest potato producer behind the United States, Ukraine, Russia, India and China.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:05:55|Editor: Liangyu

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Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua addresses the opening ceremony of the World Economic Forum (WEF) on ASEAN in Hanoi, Vietnam, Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

HANOI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- China stands ready to work with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and other countries across the world to help develop an innovative, open, interconnected and inclusive global economy, Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua said on Wednesday.

Hu made the remarks here at the opening ceremony of the World Economic Forum (WEF) on ASEAN 2018 themed "ASEAN 4.0: Entrepreneurship and the Fourth Industrial Revolution."

Now the world economy is picking up, but uncertainties and destabilizing factors are on the rise, posing challenges to economic globalization and multilateral trading regime, Hu said.

In such a complex environment, he said, China stands ready to work with ASEAN and other countries across the world to seize the opportunity of the new industrial revolution, uphold opening up and win-win outcomes, promote innovation-driven development, pursue inclusive growth and interconnected development, so as to help develop an innovative, open, interconnected and inclusive global economy.

Hu stressed that ASEAN is China's good neighbor, and a good partner for Belt and Road cooperation; China is willing to work with ASEAN countries to boost development programs synergy, expand economic and trade ties, deepen cooperation in innovation and advance regional economic integration, so as to build an even closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future.

He pointed out that China's economy has maintained steady and sound growth in recent years and this year marks the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up.

The Chinese vice premier said that China's resolve to open its doors still wider will not change, even when the external situation changes, adding that China will consistently pursue opening-up at its own pace.

Foreign enterprises are welcome to work with Chinese businesses to seize opportunities, tap potentials, and broaden and deepen cooperation for win-win outcomes, Hu added.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:10:57|Editor: Li Xia

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Li Xi (R), a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the secretary of the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee, meets with Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand Prime Minister and leader of the Labor Party, in Wellington, New Zealand, on Sept. 10, 2018. (Xinhua/Guo Lei)

WELLINGTON, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- A delegation of the Communist Party of China (CPC) led by Guangdong CPC chief Li Xi concluded its three-day visit to New Zealand on Wednesday, and both sides pledged to boost cooperation in various fields.

Li, secretary of the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee and a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, met with New Zealand Prime Minister and Leader of the Labor Party Jacinda Ardern on Monday.

Li said China is ready to work with New Zealand to enhance political mutual trust, expand economic cooperation, keep closer party-to-party exchanges, and strengthen coordination and communication in international and regional affairs.

Pragmatic cooperation between south China's Guangdong Province and New Zealand will also be enhanced, Li added.

Li also briefed Ardern on the development of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Ardern said New Zealand and China have something in common in improving people's wellbeing, protecting the environment, and enhancing coordinated development, adding that the development strategies of both sides are highly compatible, with broad room for cooperation.

New Zealand is ready to deepen bilateral cooperation with China in economics and trade, tourism and innovation, strengthen party-to-party exchanges and boost pragmatic cooperation between New Zealand and Guangdong Province, so as to jointly push for new progress in bilateral relations.

During his visit, Li also met with New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Auckland Mayor Phil Goff, and visited local innovative technology companies.
Gulf Breeze, Florida, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Florence. Helene. Isaac. These are just three of the named storms swirling around in the Atlantic  with the possibility of more to come.



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First made available in 2005, DDPS is designed to prevent businesses from losing email in the event of an email server outage. It is offered at no charge to organizations facing imminent natural disasters such as a hurricane or flooding.



When it comes to hurricanes, weve been there. The danger, the preparation, the stress we get it because weve been through it many times, said Michael Murdoch, AppRiver CEO and president. It doesnt get easier with experience, but you do learn how to better prepare. Our Digital Disaster Preparedness Service was created to keep your business email flowing during a disaster. That way, you can focus on taking care of the business that really matters in times like these  the safety of your family and employees.

DDPS is a special offering for businesses that find themselves within the cone of uncertainty in advance of a hurricane or other natural disaster. The cloud-based service averts email loss and bounced messages by redirecting an organizations email to one of AppRivers secure data centers, while also blocking any unwanted messages  including those that contain phishing and malware attacks. Once the danger passes and connectivity is restored, AppRiver forwards all outage-period email back to the companys servers.

Registration is simple and typically takes less than 10 minutes to complete. Businesses only need to contact AppRiver to receive step-by-step instructions for redirecting their email. Almost immediately, AppRiver will begin monitoring the companys server activity. When AppRiver detects a loss in connectivity with the email server, its service will begin queuing the business's incoming messages in one of its safely located, hardened data centers until the businesss servers are able to receive email again. Businesses also can choose a setup configuration that allows them to access and respond to email, again free of charge, until their servers are up and running.

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AppRiver is a channel-first provider of cloud-based cybersecurity and productivity services, with a 4,500-strong reseller community that serves more than 67,000 companies worldwide. Launched in 2002, with spam and virus filtering as its flagship service, AppRiver has since added web protection, email encryption, secure archiving, and email continuity solutions to its suite of cloud-based security services. The company has also established itself among the worlds top providers of Office 365 and Secure Hosted Exchange solutions. All services are offered on a pay-as-you-go basis and backed by award-winning 24/7 white-glove Phenomenal Care customer service. AppRiver
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:10:58|Editor: xuxin

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KIEV, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Ukraine's government will increase spending on road modernization next year to improve road safety and promote the overall development of the country's transport infrastructure, Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman said Wednesday.

While speaking at a cabinet meeting, Groysman said that Ukraine's road modernization budget will grow by 19.1 percent year-on-year in 2019 to about 2 billion U.S. dollars, the government's press service said in a statement.

Out of the total sum, some 605 million dollars will be used for the modernization of regional roads, while the rest will go to upgrade state highways, Groysman said.

Ukraine plans to invest about 11.4 billion dollars in road infrastructure by 2023 to modernize some 9,100 km of highways and build or completely renovate about 1,000 km of other roads.

According to the Ukrainian traffic authorities, the East European country has about 170,000 km of roads, with more than half of them in need of major repairs.

Last year, two Chinese companies, the private Xinjiang Communications Construction Group Co., Ltd and the state-owned Sinohydro Corporation Ltd, won tenders to modernize three key highways in western, northern and central Ukraine.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:26:01|Editor: xuxin

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HANOI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong on Wednesday agreed to speed up trade liberalization and strengthen regional economic links.

During their meeting in Hanoi on the sidelines of the 2018 World Economic Forum on ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), the two sides also agreed to coordinate with other countries to complete the negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) at an early date, Vietnam News Agency reported.

Phuc said he hoped Singapore will help Vietnam grasp the opportunities brought by the fourth industrial revolution, apply digital technology in governance and urbanization process, transfer technologies, and develop software park and startup centers.

Lee welcomed the participation of Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City in the ASEAN Smart Cities Network.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:41:03|Editor: xuxin

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NAIROBI, Sept . 12 (Xinhua) -- The Kenyan police on Wednesday launched a mobile application that would boost access to information on key operations such as patrols, recording of criminal offences and forensic investigations.

Fred Matiang'i, the Cabinet Secretary for interior and coordination of national government, said the launch of Service Standing Orders (SSO) mobile application is embedded in the ongoing police reforms to help cope with rising security threats.

"We have fast-tracked migration of police operations to the digital platform to help deal effectively with sophisticated crimes like importation of contraband goods, human trafficking, terrorism and poaching," Matiang'i said.

He revealed that a public-private partnership was behind development of an online portal to help police officers execute their mandate of securing lives and property without hitches.

"The government has encouraged partnership with private sector and foreign donors to speed up modernization of the police service through training, technology adoption," said Matiang'i.

"Every serving police officer will now be able to access operational guidelines on their smartphone on real time basis and we expect better outcomes," he added.

Matiang'i noted that new technology is required to boost the war against crimes like online fraud that has spiked in recent times.

Kenya intends to create a techno savvy and highly trained police force that is responsive to the evolving security challenges facing the country.

Joseph Boinnet, the Inspector General of Police said that digitizing the administrative, investigative and prosecutorial functions of the police force will boost the fight against domestic and transnational crimes.

"Our goal as a national police force is to improve skills and competence of our officers through regular trainings and digitization of key operations," said Boinnet.

He noted that cutting edge technology has enabled police officers detect and nab criminal elements involved in money laundering, car jacking and bank robberies.
Children try improvised gas masks in their home in Binnish in Syria's rebel-held northern Idlib province as part of preparations for any upcoming raids on Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/ AFP)

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- As a seemingly imminent full-scale offensive on Syria's Idlib province looms, the United Nations (UN) Security Council on Tuesday remained deeply divided, prompting a no-escalation plea from Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

At a council meeting on the situation in Idlib, the last major rebel stronghold in Syria, U.S. ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley issued a stern warning on the Syrian government, Russia and Iran over military operations in the northwestern province.

"We consider any assault on Idlib to be a reckless escalation of the conflict. If (Syrian President Bashar) Assad, Russia, and Iran continue down the path they are on, the consequences will be dire. The world will hold them responsible," she told the council.

Russian and Syrian government air forces have launched over 100 airstrikes in Idlib this month, she noted.

Haley said last week's trilateral summit in Tehran involving Russia, Iran and Turkey "has failed to stop the violence or to promote a political solution" to the Syrian conflict.

Russia's UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia argued at the same meeting that there is a need to fight terrorism in Idlib.

"We cannot allow terrorists to hold hostage and use hundreds of thousands of people as human shields," he said. "It is unacceptable to spare terrorists."

He warned against Western military intervention in Syria under what he said was the "pretext" of chemical weapons use.

"The use of chemical weapons by Damascus, from a military point of view, cannot be justified ... because doing this will be an invitation to the Western troika (of the United States, France and Britain) to strike Syria -- and that is exactly what they are threatening, using the pretext of chemical weapons use," Nebenzia said.

Iran's UN ambassador Gholamali Khoshroo said a "clear and strong message" of the Tehran summit is that the presidents of the three countries are determined to "continue cooperation to eliminate all terrorists."

Feridun Sinirlioglu, Turkish ambassador to the UN, however, made it clear that his country is opposed to an assault on Idlib.

"The Syrian regime seeks to legitimize its operation on counter-terrorism grounds. Let us make no mistake: such an operation would not achieve the stated goal," he said.

Whether to launch an offensive on Idlib was a major point of divergence at the Tehran summit, with Russia and Iran urging the military operation while Turkey, which backs some of the opposition groups in Idlib, opposing it.

"In a complex place like Idlib, traditional counter-terrorism methods would not yield the desired results. On the contrary, they would create further suffering, alienate and radicalize more Syrians. In this sense, a military operation in Idlib would only play into the hands of terrorists," he said.

British ambassador to the UN Karen Pierce said her country strongly agrees with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who claims in an op-ed in Tuesday's Wall Street Journal that Assad's solution to countering terrorism is a false one.

She said the international community faced a choice between letting go of an assault by Russia and Assad's government -- which may result in "thousands" of civilian deaths and "the barbarian use of chemical weapons" -- and providing support for Turkey and the opposition to let them "separate out the terrorists."

Chinese ambassador to the UN Ma Zhaoxu said China welcomed the outcome of the Tehran summit and commended Russia, Iran and Turkey for their efforts to push for a diplomatic solution to the Syrian issue.

"There is no alternative to a political settlement if Syria were to achieve peace and stability," he said.

Ma said Syria's sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity must be respected and that the international community should form synergy to continue to fight terrorism in Syria.

He also asked the international community to leverage the role of the UN as the principal mediator and support the UN-led Geneva talks and the Astana process in the auspices of Russia, Iran and Turkey.

UN Secretary-General Guterres said after the Security Council meeting that it is "absolutely essential" to avoid a full-scale attack on Idlib.

A full-scale attack would unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict, he told reporters.

Idlib is home to some 1.4 million Syrian refugees fleeing conflicts elsewhere in the country, constituting nearly half of the province's population and including nearly 1 million children.

Their lives have been upended and they have nowhere to go, Guterres said. "Idlib is the last so-called 'de-escalation zone' in Syria. It must not be transformed into a blood bath."

"I understand that the present situation in Idlib is not sustainable and the presence of terrorist groups cannot be tolerated. But fighting terrorism does not absolve warring parties of their core obligations under international law," he added.

The secretary-general said Russia, Iran and Turkey "bear a particular responsibility" for finding a way to isolate terrorist groups and protect civilians. He also warned against the use of chemical weapons, saying it is totally unacceptable and "would lead to a situation spiraling out of control."

Meanwhile, he urged greater progress in the UN-led Geneva peace process, particularly the creation of a constitutional committee as part of the overall political package.

"There is no military solution to the conflict. The solution must be political," Guterres said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:46:04|Editor: Li Xia

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LUSAKA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Zambian government said on Wednesday that the country has no distress with its loans it has obtained from China.

Chief Government Spokesperson Dora Siliya said the government will not be distracted by reports from people trying to create a fiction with China as the cooperation has brought mutual benefit.

"There is a smear campaign both locally and internationally by people trying to create a wedge in our relation with China," she told reporters during a press briefing.

According to her, there were a lot of unsubstantiated stories circulating in the media about the country's debt which critics claim has reached distress levels, adding that the finance minister will soon issue a comprehensive statement on the debts the country has with China and other creditors.

"I want to clearly state that there is no debt distress with Chinese loans. All the stories circulating are just malicious and we will not be distracted," she added.

The Zambian government spokesperson said people criticizing China do not know what China's assistance has done to the southern African nation, adding that the loans have been transforming people's lives.

She singled out the launch of the village television project which she said has given an opportunity to people in remote parts of the country to watch television as well as the massive infrastructure projects such as roads which have opened areas which were impassable.

Zambia, she said, will not be distracted by what people were saying about its relation with China as the fruits of the relationship were visible for all to see.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:51:07|Editor: xuxin

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BERLIN, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Federation of German Consumer Organizations (vzbv) and the General German Automobile Club (ADAC) announced on Wednesday that they will file a joint lawsuit against Volkswagen demanding compensation for vehicle owners affected by the "dieselgate" scandal.

The two organizations told press in Berlin that they would file a so-called "template lawsuit" at the Braunschweig Higher Regional Court by Nov. 1. Vzbv and ADAC are hereby making use of a new type of German class-action lawsuit, created recently by the federal government in response to diesel emissions-cheating practices, which enables plaintiffs to press charges collectively and resolve key legal questions, to set a precedent.

A first such template lawsuit trial opened at the Braunschweig Higher Regional Court this week which centers on allegations by investors that Volkswagen failed to inform them about the installation of illicit defeat devices to understate nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from diesel vehicles in an adequate and timely fashion. In total, the group of, mainly institutional, investors pressing charges against Volkswagen together is demanding the repayment of 9 billion euros in compensation from the carmaker for losses suffered from declines in its share price.

Vzbv and ADAC explained on Wednesday that their lawsuit was specifically concerned with vehicles of the Volkswagen group brands VW, Audi, Skoda and Seat with the diesel motor type EA 189. The plaintiffs hope to establish before the court that the Wolfsburg-based carmaker damaged customers intentionally and unethically by selling cars that had been tampered with.

The initiation of further legal action against Volkswagen in Germany was revealed on the same day as the DAX-listed automotive giant announced a significant fall in sales for its flagship brand VW in September. The weak monthly performance was attributed by Juergen Stackmann, head of sales, to operational difficulties stemming from a transition to the new Worldwide harmonized Light vehicles Test Procedure (WLPT).

As of Sept. 1, the WLTP regulatory regime for exhaust systems testing has become legally-binding in the European Union (EU). Technological changes required to fulfill the standards have been associated with delays in production at several German carmakers and even led the Volkswagen Group to issue a profit warning to investors earlier.

In spite of current legal and logistical difficulties, Stackmann expressed confidence that Volkswagen sales would rise again strongly in November and December. The automotive group delivered a total of 513,300 vehicles in August to customers globally, marking a 3.7 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 21:51:08|Editor: xuxin

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ATHENS, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos presented on Wednesday to lenders' envoys in Athens Greece's arguments that there was no fiscal reason to implement the pension cuts that are due to kick off in January 2019, Greek government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said.

Representatives of EU and the International Monetary Fund creditors returned to Athens this week for the first assessment of Greece's finances and reforms after the end on Aug. 20 of the third of the bailout programs which helped to avert a Greek default and Grexit since 2010.

One of the thorniest issues on the agenda of discussions which will wrap up on Friday is the forthcoming pension cuts.

Greece has already voted in 2016 for the implementation of the measure following negotiations with lenders on the post-bailout course, but now the Greek government argues that it is unnecessary, because the economy will anyway meet the primary surplus target of 3.5 percent of GDP in 2019.

Athens has committed to meet this target until 2022 as required by lenders, but requests more freedom in deciding on her own the policy mix to achieve the goal.

Tzanakopoulos appeared confident on Wednesday that Athens will not have to implement the pension cuts after all, speaking to local Real FM radio.

Greek retirees have seen the pensions slashed a dozen times under bailouts.

After the exit from the painful programs Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has pledged lately relief measures.

In an interview with local financial news portal "capital-gr" European Stability Mechanism head Klaus Regling argued that the cuts are part of the agreed social security system reform and the wider deal based on which lenders unlocked the last bailout funds and committed to a Greek debt relief this summer.

The suspension of the pension cuts may send a wrong message to international capital markets, as Greece plans its full return to them, Regling warned.

No decision on the issue is expected before November, when the EU envoys will submit their report to Euro group.

Another three such reports will follow in February, May and November 2019, while IMF envoys will also be monitoring Greece's post-bailout performance.

On the agenda of discussions in Athens this week are also the reduction of the bad loans and e-auctions of foreclosed homes among others, according to Greek national news agency AMNA.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 22:01:10|Editor: Li Xia

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JUBA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- A group of 165 Chinese peacekeepers arrived in the South Sudanese capital, Juba, on Wednesday from Zhengzhou, the capital city of central China's Henan Province.

The peacekeepers are to serve on a one-year mission replacing former Chinese troops that departed the East African country which has been embroiled in conflict in the past four years.

The peacekeepers, consisting of a sapper team of 133 and a medical unit of 32, are part of the 331-strong battalion being sent by China for the mission. The remaining personnel of the battalion are expected to arrive in the country later this month.

The team will be tasked with repairing roads, bridges, and airports, constructing and maintaining barracks and shelters, building facilities for water, power and heating supplies, and providing engineering support in mission areas.

The medical unit will carry out tasks including treating common and infectious diseases and performing operations and vaccinations.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 22:16:14|Editor: yan

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People visit the 15th China-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Expo in Nanning, capital of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/Cai Yang)

NANNING, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Beerlao may not be a household name in China when it comes to alcoholic drinks, but over just a few years, the beer brand from Laos has gained a strong following for its distinct flavor.

"China has become the largest overseas market for Lao Brewery Company, accounting for about 70 percent of the market share," said Phengrattanavong Khomsone, manager of the brewery which produces Beerlao using hand picked indigenous rice varieties and spring water originating from the foothills of the Himalayas.

The beer's rise from obscurity to popularity in China started in 2012, when it entered the Chinese market after being showcased at that year's China-ASEAN Expo, a major platform where trade deals are signed between China and member states of the regional bloc -- the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

On Wednesday, the 15th edition of the annual event opened in the south China city of Nanning, putting fresh impetus into regional trade at a time when the anti-globalization sentiment in many parts of the world has imposed threats to regional economic integration.

Over the past 14 years, the expo has boosted China-ASEAN trade. China has expanded its exports of electronic products, construction materials, power equipment, construction machines, as well as technology in new energy, high-speed trains, and agriculture, to ASEAN member states. The bloc's food, daily goods, and bulk commodities are favored by Chinese buyers.

At this year's expo, officials, executives, and businesspeople from China and Southeast Asia voiced their steadfast commitment to safeguarding the multilateral trade regime as well as opposition to unilateral protectionist measures taken by some countries.

EXPANDING TRADE

"Relations between China and ASEAN have stood the test of time and become the most successful and dynamic example of Asia-Pacific regional cooperation," Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng said at the opening ceremony of the expo.

China has been the largest trading partner of ASEAN for nine consecutive years and ASEAN has been the third largest trade partner of China for seven consecutive years, according to Han.

Han said China is willing to make full use of platforms such as the upcoming China International Import Expo and China-ASEAN Expo to expand imports from ASEAN member states and encourage bilateral investment.

"China is willing to promote the implementation of the upgraded China-ASEAN FTA and accelerate the negotiation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) on the basis of mutual benefit and win-win outcomes," Han said.

Han's proposal to promote trade and investment was echoed by senior officials from the ASEAN member states.

"Due to protectionist policies of some countries, the world economy is facing pressing challenges and trade frictions have arisen," said Lao Deputy Prime Minister Somdy Duangdy.

"It is time we made efforts to maximize the benefits of the China-ASEAN FTA, by lowering or abolishing tariffs, and strengthening cooperation, in a bid to create new opportunities for trade and investment between the two sides," said Somdy.

"Cooperation between China and ASEAN continues to prosper despite the uncertainties, challenges, and risks in the global economy," said Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue.

"Such cooperation is not only mutually beneficial, it is also the highlight and positive driving force of the growth of global economy, trade, and investment," he said.

BOOSTING INNOVATION, CONNECTIVITY

Themed "Jointly Building the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, Forging the China-ASEAN Community of Innovation," this year's expo features a host of exhibitions, forums, and exchange programs, aiming to lift friendly cooperation between China and ASEAN to a new level.

Chinese and foreign exhibitors have shown enthusiasm for the four-day event. More than 2,700 firms, including a number of Fortune 500 companies, have showcased their products at the event, up 2.6 percent from the previous event.

Innovation is a highlight of this year's expo. China and ASEAN countries are displaying their latest progress in upgrading the manufacturing sector and better integrating industrial and value chains.

"Technology and innovation have become an important boost for accelerating regional integration, promoting people-to-people exchanges and raising working efficiency in various sectors," said Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen.

Besides innovation, connectivity will also play an important role in facilitating trade.

Every week, three freight trains run from southwest China's Chongqing Municipality to Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in the south, carrying cars, car parts, and electronics, among other goods.

From Qinzhou, on the coast of Guangxi, the containers are further shipped to Singapore and other ports in Southeast Asia. Since it opened last September, the route has been an encouraging success. To most destinations, the new route is about two weeks faster than the traditional route through Shanghai.

The new sea-rail transit route is part of China's efforts to build the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, a key component of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Southeast Asian countries have welcomed China's contribution towards furthering ASEAN connectivity and integration through the various transport and other infrastructure projects.

Somdy hailed China's Belt and Road Initiative, especially infrastructural projects under its framework, as a boost for regional connectivity and trade relations between China and Southeast Asian countries.

"I hope ASEAN and China can continue cooperation under the guideline of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity 2025, to achieve connectivity and facilitate trade and investment," Somdy said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 22:21:16|Editor: Li Xia

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BEIJING, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- China has reached an important consensus on anti-graft law enforcement cooperation with 11 Caribbean countries, according to the Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and the National Supervisory Commission on Wednesday.

Representatives from Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and other nine Caribbean countries attended a conference on anti-graft law enforcement cooperation with China on Sept. 10 and 11 in St. George's, the capital of Grenada.

China and the 11 countries reiterated their willingness to implement the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and safeguard the social and economical development from the impact of corruption, according to a joint statement of the conference.

The statement vowed to show no tolerance in the fight against corruption and fulfill the obligations of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption and other anti-graft promises.

The statement also stressed enhancing coordination between anti-graft departments, promoting cooperation in terms of extradition and judicial assistance, and cracking down on bribery and the transfer of illicit assets.

All parties should make contributions to building a new anti-graft order and a community with a shared future for humanity, said Xu Lingyi, deputy head of the CCDI and the National Supervisory Commission, at the conference.

Speaking highly of China's achievements in fighting corruption, Grenadian Prime Minister Keith Mitchell said Caribbean countries will not become a safe haven for corrupt officials and their illicit assets.
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Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 22:26:17|Editor: xuxin

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STRASBOURG, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Taking the lead for the first time to launch a disciplinary procedure against a European Union (EU) member state, the European Parliament voted Wednesday in Strasbourg to trigger Article 7 of the European treaties against Hungary, which could lead to the suspension of Hungary's voting rights.

The European Parliament launched the action, citing the concern of a "serious breach of European values".

Requiring an absolute majority and 2/3 of votes cast, the legislative resolution was adopted with 448 in favor, 197 against and 48 abstaining.

The disciplinary procedure known as Article 7 has only been triggered once before, in December 2017, against Poland.

In the case of Hungary, MEPs were concerned about a variety of issues, including the independence of Hungarian courts, the control of higher education institutions, news media issues, fundamental rights, and especially policies regarding refugees and asylum seekers.

DELICATE ISSUE

When European Parliament President Antonio Tajani began the voting procedure on Wednesday, he said he would go slowly, checking the tally on all amendment votes, and verifying counts because "this is a very delicate issue".

Tajani's caution had good founding in the tumultuous Tuesday debate that preceded the vote, when Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban addressed the European Parliament and claimed the resolution, still in draft form at that time, was an offense to Hungary.

"The report in front of you insults Hungary and insults the honor of the Hungarian nation," Orban said during the debate to MEPs, meeting for a plenary session in Strasbourg.

The Hungarian prime minister received harsh criticism, even within his own political family.

Manfred Weber, leader of the European People's Party, the largest of the European Parliament's political groups, and the one which includes Orban's Fidesz party, was clear during Tuesday's debate that he would support the Article 7 resolution.

"Without a readiness of the Hungarian government to solve the current issues, the legal concerns that are on the table, the start of a dialogue based on Article 7.1 could be needed," Weber told the chamber.

In a Wednesday afternoon press conference following the resolution's adoption, rapporteur Judith Sargentini (Greens, Netherlands) told reporters that she had personally thanked Weber for making his position clear, and for showing that the European Parliament wants action and accountability.

A rare voice in support of Orban was Nigel Farage, the Chair of the Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy Group, and a well-known euroskeptic for his role in the Brexit campaign. Farage said it was good to finally see a European leader "stand up for his principles". Farage also encouraged Orban to "join the Brexit club".

ORBAN DEFIANT

Despite the possibility of sanctions, Orban vowed to defy the European Parliament, saying "Hungary will not accede to this blackmailing ... and if needed we will stand up to you".

This would not be the first time the Hungarian PM has gone against a EU institution. Hungary has repeatedly defied Brussels regarding the migrant crisis, refusing to resettle refugees in a scheme agreed upon by EU institutions, and shutting down NGOs and activists from helping migrants, even when functioning with EU funds.

The strategy has apparently been to Orban's benefit, helping him reelection in April 2018 by a landslide. His Fidesz party gained a 2/3 majority in the Hungarian parliament after voters backed his anti-immigration platform, and Orban himself won his third consecutive term as prime minister.

Hungarian MEPs from Fidezs, also emboldened, questioned the final count on the resolution Wednesday. The European Parliament's legal services will verify the count, but is not expected to overturn it.

POSSIBLE SANCTIONS

In a press conference following the successful vote for the legislative resolution, rapporteur Judith Sargentini indicated that the next steps to be taken were currently unclear.

With only one precedent of Article 7 being triggered in the past, and at the behest of a different institution, the European Commission, Sargentini was not able to give a definitive schedule to reporters.

"As of now there is no timeline" for the European Council to act, she said. She expected, however, that she would be invited to a European Council summit to present her report.

According to European Commission documents, the first set of procedures, Article 7 (1), are intended to help prevent "a serious breach of European values".

If launched by the European Council, these procedures will put in place a series of mechanisms designed to protect against the breach in terms agreed to by the member state when they joined the European Union.

If preventative measures do not work, or the breach has already occurred, Article 7 (2) can put sanctions in place, including the stripping of voting rights in the European Council and other EU bodies.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 22:31:19|Editor: yan

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PUL-E-KHUMRI, Afghanistan, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- At least eight militants were killed after the fighting aircraft targeted Taliban hideouts in Khalazai area of Baghlan-e-Markazi district in Afghanistan's northern Baghlan province on Wednesday, army spokesman in the northern region Ghulam Hazrat Karimi said.

Six more militants sustained injuries in the sorties, the official said.

Taliban militants who have inflicted casualties on security forces in Baghlan-e-Markazi district and gained ground over the past couple of weeks, are yet to make comments.
China's permanent representative to the United Nations (UN) Ma Zhaoxu (C) speaks at a Security Council meeting on the situation in Syria's Idlib province at the UN headquarters in New York, on Sept. 11, 2018. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- China's permanent representative to the United Nations Ma Zhaoxu on Tuesday called on the international community to form synergy to continue to fight terrorism in Syria.

At a Security Council meeting on the situation in Syria following the Tehran summit of Russian, Iranian and Turkish leaders within the Astana process, Ma said China welcomed the outcome of the Tehran summit and commended the three countries for their efforts to push for a diplomatic solution to the Syrian issue.

"There is no alternative to a political settlement if Syria were to achieve peace and stability," he told the Security Council.

Ma said Syria's sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity must be respected and that the international community should form synergy to continue to fight terrorism in the war-torn country.

He also asked the international community to leverage the role of the United Nations as the principal mediator and support the UN-led Geneva talks and the Astana process.

He asked for efforts to spare civilians of any harm.

He also asked the international community to increase humanitarian assistance to Syria.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 22:36:21|Editor: yan

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COLOMBO, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's Tourism Ministry has launched a new travel campaign to promote the island as a "year round" tourist destination in order to boost arrivals during the lean months, local media reported on Wednesday.

Tourism Minister John Amaratunga said the campaign titled "Island Escapes" was launched with an investment of Rs. 65 million (400,000 U.S. dollars) and with the active participation of 33 industry stakeholders.

The campaign will be operational from September to November and April to June in order to increase arrivals.

Citing countries that had initiated such a campaign with fruitful outcomes, Amaratunga expressed confidence that "Island Escapes" would also be successful.

"We have seen countries like Singapore and Dubai do these kind of programs very successfully and based on the success of the campaign, we will fine-tune it next year," the minister said.

Over 1.5 million tourists have arrived in Sri Lanka between January to August this year.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 22:36:22|Editor: yan

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TOKYO, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Japanese machinery maker Kubota Corp. admitted Wednesday that it had falsified inspection data on a component used in equipment for making steel plates.

"I sincerely apologize for causing concern and inconvenience to all our customers and concerned parties," Kubota President Masatoshi Kimata told a press conference in Osaka.

According to the company, data such as strength of the machinery component in inspection reports had been revised in order to meet specifications the company had previously agreed on with its customers.

Products with falsified data, produced in Kubota's plant in Hyogo Prefecture between October 2013 and July 2018, had been shipped to 85 of the company's 99 customers in Japan and abroad, said the company.

The company did not disclose names of the customers but said there had been no impact found on the equipment that used the components or the quality of the steel plates produced by the equipment.

The misconduct was brought to light by internal whistle-blowing and is currently under investigation by lawyers from outside the company.

The revelation followed a series of data falsification scandals since last year involving major manufacturers such as Kobe Steel Ltd. and Mitsubishi Materials Corp. which dealt a heavy blow to Japanese manufacturing industry.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 22:41:23|Editor: Liangyu

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Photo taken on Sept. 5, 2018 shows European Commission Vice President for Euro and Social Dialogue Valdis Dombrovskis during an exclusive interview with Xinhua outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Dombrovskis has called for close cooperation between the European Union (EU) and China in financial services, urging both sides to work together to make international financial system "safe, stable and efficient." (Xinhua/Ye Pingfan)

BRUSSELS, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis has called for close cooperation between the European Union (EU) and China in financial services, urging both sides to work together to make international financial system "safe, stable and efficient."

The Commission Vice President for Euro and Social Diologue, who is also in charge of EU's Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union, made the remarks during an exclusive interview with Xinhua.

Dombrovskis has planned to go to China for an official visit on financial market matters in Beijing and also for the World Economic Forum in Tianjin, a northern Chinese port city, later this month.

STRATEGIC COOPERATION ON FINANCIAL SERVICE

"China is a strategic partner for the EU. We have many economic and other common interests, which call for close cooperation. My visit is intended to contribute to feeding our strategic cooperation, with a particular emphasis on financial services," said Dombrovskis.

The Vice president said that two-way investment between China and the EU has risen over the last few years, including in the financial sector and urged both sides to keep the momentum

"This is a very dynamic sector, which evolves rapidly. Because of its international nature, it is key that regulators and supervisors keep each other informed of developments within their respective jurisdictions and work together to identify and resolve issues," said the former Prime Minister of Latvia from 2009 to 2014.

He said the EU welcomes the reforms introduced by the Chinese government to facilitate further investment. And the EU also welcomes the progress that was made in the negotiations on the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment at the EU-China Summit of July 2018. "We should keep the momentum it created," he said, adding that he intended to explore with Chinese authorities possibilities of cooperation in an international context.

"Both China and the EU are global players in the area of financial services and should take responsibility to make the international financial system safe, stable and efficient," said the EU senior official.

To reach that goal, the EU and China need to work together in international forums like the G20 and the Financial Stability Board.

"It is important that we don't consider finance as an economic sector that operates in a vacuum. On the contrary, it is essential in the smooth running and shaping of an economy," he said.

SUSTAINABLE FINANCE

Meanwhile, Dombrovskis noted that financial services can play a role in promoting sustainable growth. Sustainable finance is a priority for the EU, he said, expressing hope "China will help us with promoting it at international level."

He said that the European Commission has already adopted in March the Action Plan on Financing Sustainable Growth and then in May three legislative proposals to deliver it to encourage the EU financial sector to invest in a greener and cleaner economy.

Banks can play a key role in financing the decarbonisation of the European economy and the main challenges for European banks now are to readjust their business models to become more sustainable, and to ensure that environmental risks are fully integrated in financial decision making and risk strategies, he told Xinhua.

"Sustainable finance is a cross-border issue and therefore China-EU cooperation in sustainable finance is indispensable," the vice president said, adding that a stronger partnership on sustainable finance could be further pursued although a bilateral exchange of views has already taken place.

He said in the context of the post-crisis revamp of financial regulation at the global level, the EU has done a lot to strengthen the resilience of its banks, including those with a global reach. "Yet some vulnerabilities remain, of course, and the EU has completely focused on addressing them, e.g. via its efforts to advance Banking and Capital Market Unions. "

As for China's financial markets, Dombrovskis said though there are vulnerabilities, governance and transparency have improved markedly in recent years, in parallel with the increased access granted to foreign investors. some of the risks are moving outside of the regulated perimeter and into the "shadow" banking sector. What bears close monitoring is that some of the risks are moving outside of the regulated perimeter and into the "shadow" banking sector as supervision tightened.

The EU and China both believe in the importance of preserving the effectiveness of the multilateral economic governance system. "We do have a good cooperation with the Chinese supervisory authorities, both on a bilateral basis, and within global," said the senior official.

"I am confident this will continue, including in newly topical areas such sustainable finance," he added.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 22:51:24|Editor: ZX

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STRASBOURG, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The members of European Parliament regret the United States "America first" policy, which has led to withdrawal from international agreements and launched trade wars, they said in a resolution adopted Wednesday.

Approved by 490 votes to 148, with 51 abstentions, the resolution affirms that the EU-U.S. relationship is a key guarantor of global stability, but that the choice of a one-sided "America first" policy has eroded relations between the two powers, and harmed the interests of both parties.

"Unilateral moves only weaken the transatlantic partnership," the resolution states.

The recent U.S. decision to pull out of key international agreements, such as the Iran nuclear deal and the Paris Climate agreement, has put common values between the partners at risk.

The European preference for multilateral solutions was expressed by MEPs' insistence that the World Trade Organization (WTO) remained the best forum for the settling of trade disputes. MEPs regretted, in particular, the effect on global trade caused by high tariff duties that Washington has imposed on aluminum and steel imports, casting into doubt the claim that the import duties were justified on reasons of national security.

"The EU constitutes a fair U.S. trading partner, which has a surplus in goods, but if you look at the services and profit transfer to the U.S., then it is almost equal. We are in favor of a rules-based, multilateral approach and of settling the differences through the WTO, therefore the rule of law has to be accepted, and not the right of might," said International trade committee rapporteur Bernd Lange (Socialists & Democrats, Germany).

Despite their reservations, MEPs urged continued cooperation with the United States in global matters. They also suggested enhanced EU-U.S. cooperation on cybersecurity, counter-terrorism, energy issues, culture and migration, among other areas.

The resolution suggests establishing a Transatlantic Political Council, to be led by the head of EU diplomacy and the United States Secretary of State, in order to allow the powers to consult regularly on foreign and security policy.

"We need more common ground, more European strength, to bring the European Union and the United States closer to each other again," said Elmar Brok (European People's Party, Germany), rapporteur for the European Parliament's International Affairs Committee. He added, "Despite Trump's policy, the U.S. is a democratic country under the rule of law. Therefore we call again for partnership in setting up a global order under such values."
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 23:01:26|Editor: yan

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BEIJING, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Measures to inhibit the fabrication of news as well as making and spreading rumors were discussed at a workshop hosted by the national journalistic ethics committee of All-China Journalists Association Wednesday.

A campaign to eliminate unethical or dishonest behavior has been launched in response to the lack of integrity in various economic and social areas of public concern, according to a statement from the Central Commission for Guiding Ethics and Cultural Progress in August.

Participants of the workshop introduced the progress in the campaign, as well as the practices and experiences in dispelling rumors of major internet portals such as Sina and Baidu.

Truth is the heart of news, participants said. The actions of some media outlets in loosening editorial standards, failing to verify facts, spreading or creating false news have misled the public and damaged the credibility of the media industry, they added.

The media should apply a Marxist view of journalism to grasp the authenticity of news, keep in mind their social responsibility, as well as enhance the media literacy of the public and foster a positive cyberculture, the participants said.

They also called on media outlets to solidify their integrity and to strengthen education to promote integrity across the society.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 23:06:28|Editor: Liangyu

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Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua (L) shakes hands with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong during their meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

HANOI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- China and Vietnam pledged here on Wednesday to further develop the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries in the new era.

While meeting with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong, Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua said the leaders of the two countries have made the top-level design and strategic plans for the further development of bilateral ties in the new era.

China is willing to work together with Vietnam to implement the important consensus reached between the the leaders of the two countries so as to further develop the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries.

China and Vietnam have the same political systems and similar development paths, and unity, friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation conform to the common interests of both sides, Hu said.

The two sides should conduct closer high-level exchanges, promote consensus on cooperation, actively press for the dovetail of China's Belt and Road Initiative and Vietnam's "Two Corridors and One Economic Circle" plan, deepen the pragmatic cooperation in the fields including infrastructure, economy and trade, investment, and develop border trade in a bid to lift their economic cooperation level, the Chinese vice premier said.

The two sides should also promote science and technology, people-to-people and regional exchanges, especially exchanges between the youth of the two countries so as to consolidate social and public opinion foundation for the friendly ties between the two countries.

Trong, for his part, thanked China for its support to Vietnam hosting the World Economic Forum (WEF) on ASEAN.

Noting that Vietnam cherishes brotherly traditional friendship between the two parties and two countries, Trong said Vietnam will continue to consolidate political mutual trust and seek closer synergy of development strategies between the two countries.

Vietnam will also enhance trade and economic cooperation with China, encourage exchanges between the youth and at the sub-national levels so as to consolidate and develop the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

When meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Tuesday, Hu exchanged views with him on further promoting practical cooperation between the two countries and reached extensive consensus.

Hu is in Hanoi to attend the WEF on ASEAN from Tuesday to Thursday.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 23:46:38|Editor: yan

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MINSK, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) is ready for talks with Belarus on visa facilitation and readmission, head of the EU Delegation to Belarus Andrea Wiktorin said here on Wednesday.

The exact date of the fifth round of talks on visa facilitation and readmission agreements between Belarus and the EU has not yet been determined, Wiktorin told local media.

"The date is not known yet, we are waiting for the decision of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry," Wiktorin said, adding that the EU is ready for the talks.

The talks on visa facilitation and readmission officially started in January 2014.

The agreement can simplify and reduce the cost of issuing short-term visas to the Belarusians by the EU.

The document can also allow Belarus to better ensure the readmission of its citizens who do not have the right to be on the territory of the EU.
New York, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility released a report demonstrating the impact of investor engagement with energy companies in advancing improved management of methane leaks during oil and gas production. Download the report here: https://bit.ly/2OgTTFH





The report tracks the significant gains made with energy companies, including EOG Resources ($EOG), EQT Resources ($EQT) and Southwestern Energy ($SWN), that are part of a focused methane campaign with the goal of improving disclosure, reducing emissions and reporting critical information on methane management efforts, such as leak detection and repair (LDAR).

Methane has been identified as a super greenhouse gas due to its extreme potency in the short term: While the second largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States behind CO, methane has a significantly more intense warming effect than CO 2 . Over 100 years, methane's warming impact is estimated to be 30 times that of carbon dioxide.

ICCRs investor network has engaged the private sector on climate challenges and opportunities since 2002 and has been active in advocating for a transition to a more sustainable and equitable economy. Resolutions requesting greater disclosure of methane risks from fracking operations were filed by ICCR members as early as 2008.

Investors are increasingly concerned about the impacts of unnecessary methane leaks, which not only damage the environment, but represent valuable lost product that can be captured with the right practices. Many of the companies engaged by ICCR investor members acknowledge as much, said Jeffery W. Perkins, Executive Director, Friends Fiduciary Corporation.

This report evaluates twenty-three upstream and midstream oil and gas companies on thirteen methane-specific metrics considered material by ICCRs investor network. Many of the metrics were adapted from The Environmental Defense Funds 2018 report Disclosure Divide: Revisiting Rising Risk and Methane Reporting in the U.S. Oil &Gas Industry.

The ongoing investor campaign has been effective in highlighting the need for energy companies to adopt intensity and absolute targets for methane emissions, and to address the problem of super-emitters -- large, unexpected and unpredictable methane leaks -- that are associated with high pressure fracking equipment. Methane regulations requiring more frequent monitoring of well sites and management of high-pressure equipment, such as that adopted with the cooperation of companies in Colorado, has been proven successful and cost-effective in reducing leaks. Investor engagements seek to underscore this success.

"Companies acknowledge the need for regulations on methane emissions. Regulations can level the playing field for companies adopting best practices plus protect the reputation of natural gas that some tout as a 'clean fossil fuel,' said Steven Heim of Boston Common Asset Management. "If the total methane leak rate from well-head to burner tip is 3% or more, natural gas can be just as bad as coal for the climate when burned for power generation. Forward-looking companies understand this presents not only a climate risk, but a significant business risk from slashed demand."

In June of 2016, the Environmental Protection Agency issued rules requiring oil and gas companies on new and modified infrastructure to find and repair leaks on all significant sources, and to use cost-effective technologies and practices to limit methane emissions from hydraulically fractured oil wells, pneumatic controllers and pumps, and compressors.

But according to a report in the NY Times, this week the EPA announced that it would follow-through with long-threatened plans to rollback these regulations, weakening requirements that companies monitor and repair methane leaks, and repealing a restriction on the intentional venting and flaring, or burning, of methane from drilling operations. As thousands gather this week in San Francisco for the Global Action Summit to share their experiences of effective action to mitigate climate change, investors will be looking carefully at where pro-climate investments can be made.

This Administration is not doing the oil and gas industry any favors by walking back the sensible and cost-effective regulations supported by trillions of investment dollars in 2016. We need less pollution, not more, said Christina Herman, ICCRs Program Director for Climate Change and the Environment. And as our report demonstrates, regardless of backsliding by this administration, companies are continuing to move forward on methane management.

About the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR)

Celebrating its 47th year, ICCR is the pioneer coalition of shareholder advocates who view the management of their investments as a catalyst for social change. Its 300 member organizations comprise faith communities, socially responsible asset managers, unions, pensions, NGOs and other socially responsible investors with combined assets of over $400 billion. ICCR members engage hundreds of corporations annually in an effort to foster greater corporate accountability. www.iccr.org




Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-12 23:56:43|Editor: ZX

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LUSAKA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The China-Africa relationship, founded on mutual respect and a shared future, is going to continue to grow, a veteran Zambian diplomat and politician said Wednesday.

Vernon Mwaanga has served as Zambia's first representative to the United Nations (UN) as well as the foreign affairs minister under the governments of former Presidents Kenneth Kaunda and Frederick Chiluba.

"So, whether Western countries like it or not, it is going to be a long and enduring relationship which will be mutually beneficial not only to the people of Africa, but also to the people of China," he told Xinhua in an interview following the conclusion of the 2018 Beijing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

Africa values its relationship with China, judging by the number of leaders from the continent who attended the FOCAC summit, he said.

"This is a relationship which we value as Africa and which we must nurse, which we must protect, and which we must guard jealously going forward so that we can build on it and learn from China's way of how they have developed their country so that we can lift our countries out of poverty into prosperity," he added.

He said China's approach of not interfering in the internal affairs of African countries and not imposing conditions was what has endeared the Asian nation to the continent, adding that the approach of Western countries to impose conditions on Africa had brought untold hardships to the continent.

He said Western countries had missed an opportunity to build solid mutual cooperation with the African continent because of their insistence on making demands on Africa.

Mwaanga, who has visited China 19 times during his career in government, said there was a need to ensure that the two parties work on the development of people-to-people relations so that the peoples of the two countries could know each other better.

On the need of having a shared vision, the veteran politician said it was gratifying that both China and Africa strongly emphasize the importance of having a shared vision, saying there could be no meaningful cooperation if there was no shared vision.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:11:52|Editor: yan

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HANOI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Innovations in artificial intelligence (AI) technology, coupled with its increased adoption, will have a big impact on the workforce across the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) over the next decade, according to a new study launched here on Wednesday by two global firms.

Cisco and Oxford Economics launched the study titled "Technology and the Future of ASEAN Jobs" in Vietnam's Hanoi city which is hosting the World Economic Forum on ASEAN.

According to the study, the more widespread adoption of existing technologies, coupled with advances in the use of AI through software, hardware, and robotics, will help bring down costs of goods and services, driving up demand and creating millions of new jobs.

The study predicts that the sectors that will see the greatest rise in demand for new workers are wholesale and retail (1.8 million new jobs), manufacturing (0.9 million), construction (0.9 million), and transport (0.7 million).

However, there will be a marked shift in the region's labor market as lower-skilled jobs are displaced. According to the study, given the productivity gains from adoption of AI-enabled technologies, ASEAN's six largest economies will require 28 million fewer workers by 2028, more than 10 percent of the current workforce, to achieve the same level of output as today.

Lower-skilled workers in the service and agriculture sectors will be the most susceptible to displacement, the latter especially as new developments, for example, in global positioning systems, telematics and smart sensors, are deployed to greater effect.

Singapore could see the biggest relative impact, with up to 21 percent of its workforce being affected. The country's strong environment for cutting edge digital transformation allows businesses to take advantage of new innovations as they become available.

Vietnam and Thailand are next in line, with 14 percent and 12 percent of jobs displaced, respectively. In these countries, many less productive, more monotonous jobs are projected to be eliminated, leaving Vietnamese and Thai workers free to pursue jobs in more fulfilling and productive sectors, according to the report.

On Wednesday, delegates to two technology-themed sessions of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN centered their discussions on opportunities and challenges posed by AI technology, and how leaders in the region can prepare for a future of further interconnectedness, automation and complexity.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:16:54|Editor: yan

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DAMASCUS, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian government forces on Wednesday shelled rebel-held areas in the northwestern province of Idlib and the central province of Hama, a monitor group reported.

The targeted areas are located in the southern and southeastern countryside of Idlib and the nearby northern countryside of Hama, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

No airstrikes, however, were reported in Idlib over the past 50 hours, the London-based watchdog said.

The Observatory had reported that Russian airstrikes were heavily targeting Idlib, possibly as a prelude to the anticipated military offensive in the province, the last major rebel stronghold in Syria.

The Western powers and Turkey, which holds sway over the rebels in Idlib, have warned against the potential military offensive in the Syrian province where more than 3 million people live.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:16:54|Editor: yan

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BEIJING, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping returned to Beijing Wednesday evening after attending the Fourth Eastern Economic Forum held in the city of Vladivostok, Russia.

Before leaving Vladivostok, Xi also visited a photo exhibition of trade and economic cooperation between China and Russia with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Xi's entourage returned to Beijing with him, including Ding Xuexiang, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, and director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee; Yang Jiechi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee; State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi; and He Lifeng, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and head of the National Development and Reform Commission.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:21:55|Editor: yan

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WASHINGTON, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Wednesday that he had certified to Congress that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are undertaking actions to protect civilians in Yemen where the ongoing war has led to deaths of over 10,000 people.

Pompeo told Congress on Tuesday that "the governments of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments," according to a statement released by the U.S. State Department on Wednesday.

U.S. Congress has required Pompeo to certify before Wednesday if Saudis and UAE are making moves to mitigate civilian casualties and maintain humanitarian aid amid concerns over the escalating humanitarian crisis in the war-torn country.

The top U.S. diplomat's certification was seen as clearing the way for Washington to continue supporting its Riyadh ally.

U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis backed Pompeo's conclusion, according to a statement released by the Pentagon on Wednesday.

Washington's decision, possibly to be seriously scolded by human rights groups, came after the Saudi-led coalition acknowledging that their air strikes killed dozens of civilians including children in August.

Saudi Arabia leads an Arab military coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 to support the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi after Iran-backed Houthi rebels forced him into exile.

The war has since killed more than 10,000 people, mostly civilians, and displaced around three million, triggering the world's most humanitarian crisis in the poor Arab country.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:31:59|Editor: ZX

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HANOI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Leaders of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) members gathered here on Wednesday for the 2018 World Economic Forum on ASEAN, stressing the importance of fully tapping the Fourth Industrial Revolution for socioeconomic development.

"Digitalization has become a new growth catalyst," Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen said, adding that the technological frontier will create many positive changes.

To tap great potential of the Fourth industrial revolution and minimize its potential negative impact, the Cambodian prime minister proposed ASEAN countries enhance quality of education and training, sharpen skills of laborers and entrepreneurs, seek innovations, introduce new business models, and improve hard and soft infrastructure, especially their regional connectivity capabilities.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo said people should not be afraid of having smaller incomes or losing jobs due to automation, because the revolution will help increase productivity and efficiency, lower production cost of goods and services, and utilize both natural and human resources more effectively.

"As our economies develop, they are driven increasingly not by natural resources, which are limited, but human talent, which is unlimited," Widodo said.

Meanwhile, Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith proposed developing the ASEAN into a region of innovation with high competitiveness, better information and communication technology infrastructure, quicker trade and investment facilitation, and narrower science and technology gaps among members.

The ASEAN should also give stronger empowerment to private sector and entrepreneurs, Sisoulith said.

Highlighting recent technological achievements which have led to practical results in Myanmar such as sharp decline in prices of mobile phones and rapid growth of banking services, Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi said the revolution should be tapped to benefit people of all age and from all areas.

"Our approach to the Fourth Industrial Revolution is based on our belief in the creativity, empathy and stewardship qualities of our people, especially the young," she said.

Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said individual countries' approaches to the Fourth Industrial Revolution can be linked with the construction and development of the ASEAN Community.

Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Prajin Juntong agreed that the ASEAN should be connected physically and digitally amid the revolution which helps fuel economic growth.

Thailand has implemented a "Thailand 4.0" policy to shift its economic focus towards an innovation-driven economy, he noted.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc also spoke highly of digital economy and new technology, proposing countries to intensify application of new technologies to share innovations and new values as well as to forge connectivity for sustainable development.

Also on Wednesday, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Prajin Juntong, Aung San Suu Kyi, Thongloun Sisoulith and Hun Sen attended another plenary session themed "A New Vision for the Mekong Region," sharing their visions for the region in association with the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

The five leaders agreed that ASEAN members in general and Mekong countries in particular can no longer depend just on natural resources. They should embrace innovation, reform, creativity to connect the Mekong countries in a more dynamic way for sustainable development.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:32:00|Editor: yan

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HANOI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua delivered here on Wednesday a speech at the opening ceremony of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN.

The following is the full text of the speech:

Remarks at the opening ceremony of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN

Hu Chunhua

12 September 2018

Your Excellency General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong,

Your Excellency Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc,

Your Excellency Executive Chairman, Professor Klaus Schwab,

Your Excellencies Heads of State, Government and Delegation,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Friends,

Good morning.

I am delighted to come to the beautiful city of Hanoi to join you at the World Economic Forum on ASEAN. On behalf of the Chinese government, I wish to extend warm congratulations on the opening of the forum.

Ten years after the outbreak of the international financial crisis, we are meeting here under the theme "ASEAN 4.0: Entrepreneurship and the Fourth Industrial Revolution". This forum is of special importance to our efforts to deepen practical cooperation among nations and consolidate new growth drivers in the ASEAN region, and will lend new impetus to the world economy.

Now the world economy is picking up, but uncertainties and destabilizing factors are on the rise, particularly as some individual country's protectionist and unilateral measures are gravely undermining the rules-based multilateral trading regime, posing a most serious hazard to the world economy. In such a complex environment, China stands ready to work with ASEAN and other countries across the world to seize the opportunity of the new industrial revolution, meet the challenges together and help develop an innovative, open, interconnected and inclusive global economy.

First, we need to uphold openness and mutual benefits. What we could learn from the history is that self-isolation will lead nowhere and only openness for all represents the right way forward. In an increasingly "smaller" world, the interests and future of all countries are closely intertwined. We must categorically reject protectionism and unilateralism, firmly support multilateralism, uphold the open world economy and multilateral trading regime, and promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation.

Second, we need to promote innovation-driven development. Innovation is the first and foremost driving force for development. Only with a strong commitment to innovation-driven development can countries become front-runners in the new industrial revolution and achieve lasting economic prosperity. We need to accelerate structural reform, make innovative improvement on development visions, policy measures and growth models, advance the replacement of old growth drivers, and unlock the potential of world economic growth in the long run.

Third, we need to pursue inclusive growth. We need to build synergy between our own development and the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. We need to strengthen macro policy coordination. We need to increase input in education, health care and job creation to deliver the benefits of economic growth and technological advance to more countries and more groups of people and continuously enable our people to enjoy a happier life.

Fourth, we need to pursue interconnected development. This year marks the fifth anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative put forward by President Xi Jinping. For the past five years, China's trade in goods has totaled more than US$5 trillion with countries relevant to the Belt and Road Initiative. China has invested more than US$60 billion in these countries in cumulative terms, creating hundreds of thousands of local jobs. China stands ready to explore new areas and foster new highlights for cooperation with all countries under the Belt and Road Initiative with a view to achieving common prosperity.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

ASEAN is China's good neighbor, and a good partner for Belt and Road cooperation. Strengthening partnership with ASEAN is always a top priority in China's foreign policy. As China and ASEAN celebrate the 15th anniversary of strategic partnership this year, our relations are entering a new era of improvement and upgrading at a quicker pace. To build an even closer community with a shared future, China will further advance mutually beneficial cooperation with ASEAN countries in the following aspects:

First, building synergy between our development programs. With a view to promoting the long-term growth of China-ASEAN relations, China will work with ASEAN to formulate the China-ASEAN Strategic Partnership Vision 2030, build greater synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and ASEAN's development programs, and advance a number of flagship and key projects to deepen regional cooperation.

Second, expanding economic and trade ties. China will join hands with ASEAN countries to tap new areas of trade growth and expand investment and industrial cooperation. We welcome the participation of ASEAN countries in the first China International Import Expo to be held in Shanghai this November where competitive ASEAN products will be promoted.

Third, deepening cooperation in innovation. This year is the China-ASEAN Innovation Year. China's innovation-driven development strategy and ASEAN's "Innovation-led Growth" share the same vision. China will support and participate in the ASEAN Smart Cities Network and enhance our cooperation in digital economy, artificial intelligence and modern supply chain.

Fourth, advancing regional economic integration. China is ready to work with ASEAN to deliver the outcomes of the upgraded China-ASEAN Free Trade Area on the ground as early as possible and conclude negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) at an early date. We will strengthen Lancang-Mekong Cooperation and upgrade cooperation with BIMP-EAGA, which will help ASEAN countries narrow the development gap and lend fresh impetus to regional economic integration and sustainable development.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

China's economy has maintained steady and sound growth in recent years. In the first half of this year, China's GDP grew by 6.8 percent year-on-year, registering a growth rate between 6.7 percent and 6.9 percent for 12 quarters in a row. In the first six months, final consumption expenditure and the service sector contributed 78.5 percent and 60.5 percent of economic growth respectively, indicating an improved economic structure; new growth drivers contributed over one third of economic growth. With ever-stronger new growth drivers and more market potential unleashed, China's economy is embracing an even brighter future.

This year China marks the 40th anniversary of reform and opening-up. As Chinese President Xi Jinping pointed out at the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), China will not close its door to the world; we will only become more and more open. At the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2018 last April, he announced a number of major measures for further opening-up. These measures are now being implemented, and some of them have already paid off. China's resolve to open its doors still wider will not change, even when the external situation changes. China will consistently pursue opening-up at its own pace. This will offer important opportunities for ASEAN countries and beyond. Foreign enterprises are most welcome to work with Chinese businesses to seize opportunities, tap potentials, and broaden and deepen cooperation for win-win outcomes.

The World Economic Forum is an important platform for the discussion of global issues. For many years, China has enjoyed sound cooperation with the forum. In six days, the 12th Summer Davos session will open in Tianjin, China. I believe this meeting here and the session in Tianjin will reinforce each other and contribute to the sustained growth of the world economy.

In conclusion, I wish the World Economic Forum on ASEAN a full success!

Thank you.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:37:02|Editor: yan

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UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix on Wednesday urged member states to contribute more troops and police to UN peacekeeping.

"I would also like to take this opportunity to call on all member states, particularly those with the most advanced military capabilities, to contribute more troops and police to UN peacekeeping," Lacroix said at a UN Security Council open debate on peacekeeping operations.

"We still have an ongoing need for critical capabilities, including helicopters, counter-IED capacities, rapid reaction forces, situational awareness, and medical support," he said, noting that "we welcome all contributions in these areas."

Speaking on the importance of women in UN peacekeeping operations, Lacroix noted that "the engagement of member states is also key to increasing the number of women who are part of peacekeeping."

"More women in peacekeeping simply makes peacekeeping more effective. We need to significantly enhance the number of female peacekeepers at all levels and within uniformed as well as civilian components. We must also ensure that they are able to meaningfully participate in our work," said the UN peacekeeping chief.

"Women are only 21 percent of our personnel. We must do better," Lacroix noted, adding that "we have seen some improvements" with hard work.

"Gender strategies for DPKO (Department of Peacekeeping Operations) and DFS (Department of Field Support) as well as within each of our missions, and the Uniformed Gender Parity Strategy, are starting to yield results. At headquarters, women officers now represent 18 percent of all officers in the Office of Military Affairs, and we are committed to raising this proportion further. In the field, women police officers represent 21 percent of our Individual Police Officers, and 7 percent of our Formed Police Units," he said.

"We intend to continue our efforts to increase the number of female peacekeepers in headquarters and in the field, in line with Security Council Resolution 2242, " Lacroix said.

"The policies that we have promoted can only be achieved through the active involvement of members states. I therefore welcome the efforts undertaken by a number of member states, and I call on all of you to further these initiatives and significantly increase your contributions of women peacekeepers," he said.

UN Resolution 2378, which was adopted on Sept. 20, 2017, requested the secretary-general to deliver a comprehensive annual briefing on the reform of UN peacekeeping to begin within one year of the adoption of the resolution, followed by a debate.

Lacroix's briefing at the debate, which was mostly about peacekeeping reform, provided an opportunity to discuss some of the reform efforts undertaken in the past year by the secretary-general, including on management and the peace and security architecture, as well as an initial assessment of several independent reviews of peacekeeping operations carried out at the initiative of the Council or the Secretariat.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:42:02|Editor: yan

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BERLIN, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The federal government in Germany has denied on Wednesday that it is planning to create a new state fund to ward off foreign take-overs of domestic firms.

A spokesperson for the ministry of the economy said that Berlin was not considering any legislative changes which would enable it to acquire a stake in companies deemed to be of strategic interest to national security or prosperity. "Germany is open for international investors and supports the freedom of international capital flows," the spokesperson said.

Earlier, the newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" (FAZ) had reported that senior officials in the ministry led by Peter Altmaier (CDU) were openly mulling such a move. While criticizing the United States for pursuing a protectionist agenda under the mantle of national security, German policymakers have repeatedly highlighted purportedly adverse long-run consequences of foreign takeovers in the country's own industrial manufacturing sector.

The ministerial spokesperson emphasized on Wednesday that although a "state fund" as cited by FAZ was not on the cards in this context, the federal government remained "obliged to protect the security policy interests of Germany."

According to the ministry, the German government was currently assessing lowering the investment threshold for foreign acquisitions which require special regulatory approval. A concrete proposal under review was to lower the threshold from a current 25 percent stake in the firm in question to 15 percent for sensitive industries such as Information Technology (IT) and energy.
File Photo: Children injured in an airstrike receive medical treatment in a hospital in Saada, Yemen, on Aug. 12, 2018. Warplanes of the Saudi-led coalition targeted passenger buses in the Dhahyan popular market in northern Yemen province of Saada, killing at least 43 people, mostly pupils under 10, and injuring 64 others. (Xinhua/Mohammed Mohammed)

WASHINGTON, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Wednesday that he had certified to Congress that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are undertaking actions to protect civilians in Yemen where the ongoing war has led to deaths of over 10,000 people.

Pompeo told Congress on Tuesday that "the governments of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments," according to a statement released by the U.S. State Department on Wednesday.

U.S. Congress has required Pompeo to certify before Wednesday if Saudis and UAE are making moves to mitigate civilian casualties and maintain humanitarian aid amid concerns over the escalating humanitarian crisis in the war-torn country.

The top U.S. diplomat's certification was seen as clearing the way for Washington to continue supporting its Riyadh ally.

U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis backed Pompeo's conclusion, according to a statement released by the Pentagon on Wednesday.

Washington's decision, possibly to be seriously scolded by human rights groups, came after the Saudi-led coalition acknowledging that their air strikes killed dozens of civilians including children in August.

Saudi Arabia leads an Arab military coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 to support the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi after Iran-backed Houthi rebels forced him into exile.

The war has since killed more than 10,000 people, mostly civilians, and displaced around three million, triggering the world's most humanitarian crisis in the poor Arab country.
Salt Lake City, Utah, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- August 12, 2018 (Salt Lake City, UT)  Lice Clinics of America, the worlds largest network of professional lice treatment centers and the exclusive provider of the one and done heated-air lice treatment, announces the launch of its Pure Repel lice prevention line and Dont Bug Me Freshening Spray, now available on Amazon, and at a clinic near you.

The best head lice prevention is to avoid head to head contact, but this can be tough for children who are playing together in school and at home, said Dr. Krista Lauer, medical director, Lice Clinics of America. This line of products acts as an extra line of defense against head lice for parents and caregivers, which is crucial during an outbreak close to home.

The Pure Repel product line includes a Lice Prevention Household Spray for backpacks, clothing and other items that come in contact with hair; a Daily Lice Prevention Shampoo and Conditioner; and a Daily Lice Prevention Conditioning Spray. The Dont Bug Me Lice Prevention Freshening Spray can be used throughout the day for a quick dose of extra protection, whether at home or on-the-go. This new line of prevention products is pesticide-free, non-toxic and safe for daily use. These products all contain essential oils, which act as repellant to keep lice away.

Our experience helping hundreds of thousands of families in our urgent care lice clinics taught us what families value in lice prevention products and allowed us to develop a complete line that parents, caregivers, and children will love, said Claire Roberts, CEO, Lice Clinics of America.

Click here for more information on Lice Clinics of Americas head lice prevention line of products.

About Lice Clinics of America

With more than 350 clinics worldwide in 36 countries, Lice Clinics of America (www.LiceClinicsOfAmerica.com) is the largest network of professional head lice treatment centers in the world. Its patented heated-air device, AirAlle, has effectively performed more than 400,000 head lice treatments. Lice Clinics of America and AirAlle (www.airalle.com) are brands owned by Larada Sciences, Inc., which is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Attachment
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:52:07|Editor: yan

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UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed Nicholas Haysom of South Africa as his special representative for Somalia and head of the UN peacekeeping mission in the country, Guterres' press office said Wednesday.

Haysom will succeed Michael Keating of Britain.

Haysom, born in 1952, is a lawyer with a long international career with a focus on democratic governance, constitutional and electoral reforms, reconciliation and peace processes, said the press office.

He is currently the secretary-general's special envoy for Sudan and South Sudan, a position he has held since 2016. Prior to this, he served as the UN chief's special representative for Afghanistan and head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.

In his earlier career, Haysom served in the government of South Africa. He was involved in the Burundian peace process from 1999 to 2002, and in the Sudan peace process from 2002 to 2005.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 00:52:09|Editor: yan

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COPENHAGEN, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Danish economy has moved further into the upswing without considerable imbalances building up, the country's central bank said on Wednesday.

"During 2018, the economy has moved further into the upswing, and this is expected to continue in the coming years," Danmark's Nationalbank said in a quarterly review.

It added that the employment growth has been healthier and more balanced during the current upswing than during the upswing in the mid-2000s, which ultimately led to the economy being overheated.

The central bank also pointed out that the Danish krone has been stable, and it is the longest period without interventions in the currency market since the adoption of the fixed exchange rate regime in 1982.

It however warned of overheating, adding that "it is wise to use the good times to prepare for a reversal at some point as upswings do not last forever."

"The overall objective of economic policy must be to steer safely through the upswing and contribute to a subsequent soft landing," the bank's governor Lars Rohde said in a statement.

"Although we are in the middle of an economic boom with positive developments in the labour market, it is worth recalling that every upswing must come to an end. When growth begins to slow down, fiscal policy should not actively try to counteract this," he added.

Growth in gross domestic product (GDP) is forecast at 1.7 percent in 2018 as against a previous projection of 1.9 percent, if a large one-off patent-related payment that increases GDP by 0.4 percent in 2017 is excluded.

The figures forecast for 2019 and 2020 remain unchanged at 1.8 percent and 1.7 percent respectively.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 01:02:10|Editor: ZX

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STRASBOURG, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- In his State of the Union Address, Wednesday in Strasbourg, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called on the European Council Presidency to take action on meaningful migration policy reform, and to put an end to improvised solutions.

"We cannot continue to squabble to find ad-hoc solutions each time a new ship arrives," the European Commission president told Members of European Parliament, stressing that, "Temporary solidarity is not good enough. We need lasting solidarity -- today and forever more."

"Leadership and a spirit of compromise are of course very much needed when it comes to migration," Juncker said.

Calling on the European Council presidency, currently held by Austria, Juncker appealed for a "decisive step to broker a sustainable solution on a balanced migration reform," in his last State of the Union Address before European elections in 2019.

In the speech which may impact his legacy, as the European Commission president enters into his last 12 months in office, Juncker emphasized that his administration had made better progress on the migration issue than is often noted.

"Five of the seven Commission's proposals to reform our Common European Asylum System have been agreed," he said. He also celebrated that "arrivals have been drastically reduced -- down 97 percent in the Eastern Mediterranean and 80 percent in the Central Mediterranean," and that "EU operations have helped rescue over 690,000 people at sea since 2015."

Juncker argued in his address, however, that member states had "not yet found the right balance between the responsibility each must assume on its own territory; and the solidarity all must show if we are to get back to a Schengen area without internal borders."

He voiced his strict opposition to internal borders, and called for all borders reinstated within the Schengen zone to be taken down: "Failure to do so would amount to an unacceptable step back for the Europe of today and tomorrow."

In a look to the future, the European Commission president proposed strengthening Europe's external borders in part by reinforcing the European Boarder and Coast Guard. The Commission will propose deploying an additional 10,000 European border guards by 2020.

The Commission will also propose further development of the European Asylum Agency, to ensure EU member states have European support in processing asylum requests in manners that meet with Geneva Convention guidelines.

Juncker also proposed an acceleration of returns for irregular migrants, and providing European Commission support to member states.

Finally, he also reminded member states of the need to provide legal means to migrate to the EU, so that member states will still have access to skilled migrants. The European Commission has already made proposals on the matter that have yet to be acted on fully by other European institutions.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 01:12:11|Editor: yan

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DAR ES SALAAM, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania's anti-corruption watchdog in the northwest region of Mara on Wednesday detained and questioned a local investor after he had failed to develop a hotel he acquired 10 years ago from the state.

The Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) was questioning Mauza Nyakirang'anyi even after returning the property to the government, said Adam Malima, Mara Regional Commissioner.

"Nyakirang'anyi has surrendered the hotel documents to my office but authorities still want him for questioning over the condition of the facility and violation of investment conditions," said Malima.

Malima said another local investor he identified as Otieno Igogo was also wanted by PCCB after he had acquired 10 hectares of a dairy farm at Utegi located in Rorya district and abandoned the farm which became idle and derelict.

"Igogo also returned legal documents for the farm to my office on Wednesday but authorities still want him for questioning over failure to make investments as agreed during the takeover," added Malima.

"We gave him a hotel and he returned it in ruins. We gave the other investor a farm with equipment but he returned it in ruins," Malima said, explaining that these were the reasons the two investors were summoned to appear at the anti-graft agency.

Malima, who is the chairman of the regional defence and security committee, said the decision to question them followed directives given by President John Magufuli during his tour of Mara region last week.

Magufuli accused the Tanzanian investor who had acquired the hotel of a litany of malpractices, including bribing government officials.

"He is holding all security organs here in Mara. He is holding them in his pocket," the president said.

Magufuli, who spoke after passing nearby the hotel and having a close look at the once-glittering facility located on the shores of Lake Victoria, ordered relevant state organs to repossess the hotel.

Last week, President Magufuli appointed a new Director General of the PCCB.

A statement issued by the Directorate of Presidential Communication at State House in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam said President Magufuli appointed Commissioner of Police Diwani Athumani as the chief of the anti-corruption watchdog.

Shortly after he came to power in November 2015, Magufuli vowed to fight corruption, including establishing a special court to deal with corrupt public officials.

"I will sack any public servant who is implicated in corrupt deals before being prosecuted in the special court," warned President Magufuli.

Magufuli also mentioned other measures aimed at enhancing efficiency and boosting collection of government revenue for improving provision of social services such as education and health.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 01:17:12|Editor: yan

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DAR ES SALAAM, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- A gold miner was killed on Tuesday and three others seriously injured after a mine collapsed in Tanzania's northwest district of Kahama in Shinyanga region, authorities said on Wednesday.

Anamlingi Macha, Kahama District Commissioner, said the three injured miners were in critical conditions.

"The mine collapsed and buried them. One victim came out unscathed," she said, adding that one of the three miners was rushed to Bugando Referral Hospital in Mwanza for specialized treatment.

Macha said the accident occurred on Tuesday night, after walls of the hole they were working in collapsed, burying them in the process.

Macha suspended all mining activities in the area pending investigations from the Minerals Department in the Ministry of Minerals.

Sengerema Yahululuka, an eyewitness, said when the incident occurred they immediately embarked on trying to rescue the victims but only managed to remove three of them.

"We are not sure whether there were other miners inside," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 01:17:12|Editor: yan

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NAIROBI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's Central Bank on Wednesday penalized five banks in the East African nation for facilitating the transfer of money looted from the National Youth Service (NYS).

The banks have been fined between 200,000 U.S. dollars and 1.5 million dollars for their role in the scandal, Central Bank Governor Patrick Njoroge said in a statement on Wednesday.

The five banks are Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB), Standard Chartered Bank (SCB), Cooperative Bank, Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) and Equity Bank.

"The investigations prioritized the banks that handled largest volumes of cash following serious concerns that came to light in May related to the channelling of the NYS funds," said Njoroge, noting others that handled smaller volumes are still under probe.

According to the apex bank, the five institutions committed several violations namely failure to report large cash transactions, failure to undertake adequate customer due diligence, lack of supporting documentation for large transactions and lapse in reporting suspicious transactions to the financial reporting centre.

Kenya reportedly lost 90 million dollars through the NYS scandal, one of the biggest frauds in a government institution, and several suspects have been charged in court for the crime.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 01:22:12|Editor: yan

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GAZA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Militants from various Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip said on Wednesday that they are ready to confront any Israeli military assault on the coastal enclave.

Masked militants, holding arms and representing several armed wings including Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, made the announcement at a joint news briefing in Gaza City.

The news briefing was held to mark the 13th anniversary of the Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip with 21 Jewish settlements dismantled.

"The Palestinian armed resistance is ready to defend the Gaza Strip and confront any Israeli military aggression on our people," said one of the masked militants.

"We will do so by all means in our hands until the liberation of our holy lands," he added.

The militant groups also called on the Palestinian Authority "to immediately stop all kinds of security cooperation with Israel after all peace efforts had completely failed."

After withdrawing from Gaza in September 2005, Israel maintains a tight blockade on the Palestinian territory under the pretext of preventing potential military attacks against it.

Two years after the Israeli withdrawal, the Islamic Hamas movement violently seized control of the Gaza Strip after weeks of fighting with security forces of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 01:37:16|Editor: yan

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TIRANA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- A German sailing ship with reported steering system problems was towed and sent to the Port of Durres by the "Briza" ship of the Albanian Naval Force, Albanian ministry of defense said on Wednesday.

The "Foxtrot" tourist ship with four people on board allegedly asked for help after it suffered a problem in the steering system.

The Albanian Naval forces with "Briza" ship successfully performed the towing of the German ship and the four citizens on board did not pose any problems, according to the ministry.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 01:52:20|Editor: yan

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KIEV, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Kiev Court of Appeal has ruled to arrest the shares of the Ukrainian subsidiaries of three Russian state-owned banks, local media reported on Wednesday.

The Interfax-Ukraine news agency said that the shares of Ukrainian branches of Sberbank, Prominvestbank and VTB Bank were arrested at the request of a group of Ukrainian companies and following the decision of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague.

Earlier this year, the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that Moscow should pay off compensation of about 130.5 million U.S. dollars to the group of about 20 Ukrainian companies for assets they lost when Crimea joined Russia.

Besides, the Dutch court ordered Russia to cover the legal expenses of 9.2 million dollars and pay interest for late payment.

The Russian Justice Ministry said it does not recognize the decision of the Permanent Court of Arbitration due to the "lack of arbitration jurisdiction" to consider the case.

Crimea was absorbed into Russia in March 2014 following a local referendum, which was rejected by Ukraine.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 01:57:21|Editor: yan

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VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin visited All-Russian Children's Center "Ocean" here on Wednesday to promote friendship between the two countries' youths.

The two leaders attended commemoration events marking the 10-year anniversary of the center's hosting of hundreds of Chinese children from regions hit by a deadly earthquake in 2008.

Calling China and Russia good neighbors and good partners that are linked by mountains and rivers and pull together in times of trouble, Xi said the peoples of China and Russia have helped each other and shared weal and woe, leaving many touching stories to tell.

After a massive earthquake hit China's southwest Wenchuan County, which left nearly 70,000 people dead and about 18,000 others missing in 2008, Russia immediately sent its rescue team to the disaster-striken area, Xi recalled.

At the invitation of the Russian government, 996 children from China's quake-hit area came to "Ocean" for rehabilitation and the experience will be etched in their memories, the Chinese president said while addressing the children and teachers at the center.

Young people are the future of a country, the future of China-Russia friendship and the future of the world, Xi said, calling on the two countries' youths to enhance communication and mutual learning, and make joint efforts to carry forward the great cause of China-Russia friendship.

Putin, in his speech, said Russia and China have forged a friendly relationship with mutual trust and cooperation.

The friendly exchanges between the two countries' youths will further consolidate the foundation of bilateral ties and are crucial to the future of Russia-China relations, he said.

Noting that Russia and China have a tradition of hosting children from each other for recuperation, Putin said he hopes the young generations of the two countries will carry forward the profound traditional friendship between the two peoples.

Xi arrived in Russia's Far Eastern port city of Vladivostok on Tuesday for the fourth Eastern Economic Forum at the invitation of Putin.
Philadelphia, PA, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Behind the teams of emergency responders preparing the public for the expected catastrophic impact of Hurricane Florence is a group of American mathematicians working to save lives with what it calls the best defense  numbers.



The team  a group of researchers at several institutions across the U.S., including Clint Dawson, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin and Fellow of Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM)  has developed a unique automated computer model, results of which can be found in real-time at https://cera.coastalrisk.live/, to provide the public with up-to-date information about the potential impact of Hurricane Florence.



Tomorrow at 8:45 a.m. EDT, Dawson  who has been working with the team to perfect this model for the last 20 years  will present his key learnings to fellow number crunchers at the SIAM Conference on Mathematics of Planet Earth, which takes place September 13 to 15 in Philadelphia.



Media are invited to schedule interviews with Dawson, who can speak on such topics as:

How mathematical modelling provides FEMA, the National Hurricane Center and other emergency response teams  including the North Carolina Division of Emergency Management  with the information they need to save lives in advance of Hurricane Florences landfall.

Behind-the-scenes insight into the extensive network of computer models being run across the U.S. and how its being used to protect citizens against the impact of rain, windfall and storm surge.

How mathematicians can be sure their hurricane path predictions are correct.

The future of weather forecasting as computers evolve in sophistication and power.

About SIAM

The Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM), headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is an international society of more than 14,500 individual, academic and corporate members from 85 countries. SIAM helps build cooperation between mathematics and the worlds of science and technology to solve real-world problems through publications, conferences, and communities like chapters, sections and activity groups. Learn more at siam.org.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 02:02:22|Editor: ZX

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The UN envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame (Rear) addresses a press conference in Tripoli, capital of Libya, on Sept. 12, 2018. The UN envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame on Wednesday announced readiness to deal with violations of the cease-fire agreement in Tripoli. (Xinhua)

TRIPOLI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The UN envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame on Wednesday announced readiness to deal with violations of the cease-fire agreement in the Libyan capital Tripoli.

Salame made the remarks during a special security meeting in Tripoli with Libyan prime minister and military officials.

"There is readiness by the international community to deal firmly with those who manipulate or violate the cease-fire," he said during the meeting.

Salame also revealed that he will meet with foreign ambassadors to Libya to "discuss the latest cease-fire violations and those behind them."

Libya's capital Tripoli recently witnessed violent clashes between government forces and the "7th Brigade" militia from the city of Tarhuna, some 80 km southeast Tripoli, killing at least 78 and injuring 210 others.

The UN Mission in Libya last week brokered a cease-fire between the fighting parties in the capital. However, the 7th Brigade threatened to break the truce and resume fighting to "eliminate crime and gangs in Tripoli."

On Tuesday, the UN-backed Libyan government rejected such threat by confirming keenness to maintain security and stability in the capital.

Libya has been suffering insecurity and escalating violence since the fall of former leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime in 2011.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 02:12:25|Editor: yan

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KIGALI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Rwanda on Wednesday announced plans for sustainable green investments aimed at improving environmental and climate change management in order to reduce the country's vulnerability to natural hazards.

Speaking at a national forum on re-greening Rwanda, Francine Tumushime, minister of lands and forestry, said that green investments such as forest cover restoration, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and reduction of the use of charcoal and fuel wood will help the country to mitigate natural disaster risk.

"From January to June this year, Rwanda was severely affected by natural disasters caused by heavy rain which claimed at least 222 people. We are putting in much effort to invest in green economy to mitigate this catastrophe in future," she noted.

The one day meeting focused on discussing sustainable ways to boost green economy and reduce environmental risks while improving human well-being and social equity.

According to De bonheur Jeanne d'Arc, Rwandan minister disaster management and refugee affairs, strengthening risk management through re-greening Rwanda is essential for advancing green growth in light of climatic change.

"Working together, coordinating our efforts towards greening Rwanda is one of the mitigation measures to reduce disaster risks," she added.

She encouraged all key stakeholders to support the recovery and rebuilding efforts in all the areas affected by natural disasters across the country.

As part of the efforts to improve green growth in the country, Vincent Biruta, Rwandan minister of environment, said that the government of Rwanda aims to carry out environmental management initiatives that will help permanently address disasters related to climate change.

"With more natural disasters looming as we enter the rainy season, it is important that all stakeholders do what they can to help protect the environment and mitigate natural disasters," he added.

The meeting brought together government officials, representatives from the private sector, civil society organizations, non-governmental organizations and development partners among others.

The forum tackled the country's major environmental issues, such as climate change, pollution, land and forest degradation and renewable energy among others.

According to the ministry of disaster management and refugee Affairs, at least 222 people lost their lives and 14,491 houses were destroyed in natural disasters caused by heavy rains across Rwanda between January and June this year.

The heavy down pour also destroyed 8,978 hectares of crops, 49 bridges, and 754 livestock lost their lives in the same period.

Rwanda spent more than 911,915 U.S dollars as relief aid packages to the affected population, according to the ministry.

Rwanda targets to have a forest cover of 30 percent by 2018, a goal that is likely to be achieved earlier given that, presently, forest cover is at 29.6 percent of the nation, according to the ministry of lands and forestry.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 02:17:27|Editor: yan

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TRIPOLI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The UN special envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame on Wednesday announced the launch of new security arrangements in the Libyan capital Tripoli.

"The Government of National Accord has officially started forming the security arrangements committee. The new tasks of the committee and its new structure were agreed upon," Salame said at a press conference held at the government headquarters in Tripoli.

He also called on parties which have not signed the cease-fire agreement to do so, saying significant progress has been made in strengthening the truce.

On Wednesday morning, Mitiga International Airport in Tripoli was closed again after being hit by indiscriminate shelling.

Libya's capital Tripoli recently witnessed violent clashes between government forces and the "7th Brigade" militia from the city of Tarhuna, some 80 km southeast Tripoli, killing at least 78 and injuring 210 others.

The UN Mission in Libya last week brokered a cease-fire between the fighting parties in the capital. However, the 7th Brigade threatened to break the truce and resume fighting to "eliminate crime and gangs in Tripoli."

On Tuesday, the UN-backed Libyan government rejected such threat by confirming keenness to maintain security and stability in the capital.

Libya has been suffering insecurity and escalating violence since the fall of former leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime in 2011.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 02:32:31|Editor: yan

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HELSINKI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Officials of Iraq's Interior Ministry are going to Finland to distribute passports to Iraqi asylum applicants in the country, reported Finnish national broadcaster Yle on Wednesday.

According to information obtained by Yle, Iraq announced that it will set up a passport center in Helsinki to issue passports to its citizens in the asylum process in Finland without official identity documents.

Finnish Interior Minister Kai Mykkanen told Yle that the passport center will be opened at the end of next week and will start operation in a couple of weeks.

Currently there are about 7,000 Iraqi citizens living in Finland, and up to 500 of them have no legitimate identity documents to apply for work-related residence permits in Finland, said the Finnish minister.

"In cases that people do not have passports, their identities will be examined from other documents. This will be determined by Iraqi officials. They will also make security background checks," Mykkanen was quoted by Yle as saying.

He added that the goal of the move is to enable eligible migrants to work in Finland legally.

The Iraqi project is coordinated with the Finnish Immigration Service, said Yle.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 02:42:34|Editor: ZX

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Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias (L) meets with his Cypriot counterpart Nikos Christodoulides in Athens, Greece, on Sept. 12, 2018. Nikos Kotzias had talks with his Cypriot counterpart Nikos Christodoulides here on Wednesday ahead of a trilateral meeting with Israel on Thursday. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos)

ATHENS, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Greek Foreign Affairs Minister Nikos Kotzias had talks with his Cypriot counterpart Nikos Christodoulidis here on Wednesday ahead of a trilateral meeting with Israel on Thursday.

The two ministers who will depart together for Israel did not make statements, but they "coordinated to promote regional cooperation", Greek national news agency AMNA reported, citing diplomatic sources.

The Greek minister briefed his counterpart on the meetings he had on Tuesday in Athens with the UN special envoy on the Cyprus dispute Jane Holl Lute as well as last week in Turkey with Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlut Cavusoglu.

Negotiations on the Cyprus issue under the UN Secretary General should restart "only after the other side displays a sincere intention to look for resolution," Kotzias commented after his meeting with Holl Lute, according to a Greek Foreign Ministry press statement.

The UN Special Envoy did not make any statements.

The latest round of negotiations to resolve the Cyprus issue, which have been going on for decades, ended in disagreement last year.

The Mediterranean Sea island has been divided since 1974 after Turkish troops occupied the North following a coup by the military rulers of Greece at the time.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 02:42:35|Editor: Liangyu

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Chinese President Xi Jinping (C, rear) attends an award ceremony for the first race of the SCF Far East Tall Ships Regatta 2018 with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Mongolian President Khaltmaa Battulga, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon after the plenary session of the fourth Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) held in Vladivostok in Russia's Far East, on Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen)

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's just-concluded trip to this Russian Far East city was of far-reaching significance as it cemented mutual trust and friendship and promoted win-win regional cooperation, said Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday.

During his tightly scheduled 30-hour stay in Vladivostok, the Chinese president attended the fourth Eastern Economic Forum (EEF), held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and met with leaders of other countries in the region, among other activities.

The visit has infused new dynamism into China-Russia ties, opened new prospects for regional cooperation, and brought new vitality to international relations, Wang said.

STRENGTHEN TOP-LEVEL CONTACT

The strategic guidance by and close contact between the heads of state of China and Russia serve as powerful engines for the development of bilateral relations, Wang said.

Noting that this was Xi's seventh visit to Russia as president and first attendance at the EEF, Wang said the trip carried on the tradition that China and Russia support each other in holding major events.

Xi and Putin had their third meeting in four months, charting the future course of the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination and exchanging views on major international and regional issues, Wang said.

That has highlighted the height and uniqueness of the China-Russia relationship, he added.

The two sides agreed to tighten strategic coordination, firmly support each other, and safeguard their own interests as well as the common interests of the international community, he said.

The close relationship between China and Russia, Wang said, is playing an increasingly important role in maintaining strategic stability in the world and has set a good example for major-countries relations and neighborhood interaction.

CEMENT CHINA-RUSSIA FRIENDSHIP

Xi and Putin, in a show of the great importance they attach to the traditional friendship between the two peoples, made time to attend bilateral people-to-people exchange activities, Wang said.

The two leaders met representatives of the Chinese and Russian youngsters who forged a deep friendship 10 years ago when more than 900 Chinese children from the affected areas in the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake in southwestern China went to All-Russian Children's Center "Ocean" in Vladivostok to recuperate.

Xi thanked the Russian staff at the center for helping Chinese children recuperate and encouraged the young people of the two countries to serve as the pillars of their countries and envoys of bilateral friendship and carry forward China-Russia friendship from generation to generation.

Xi invited the teachers and students of the "Ocean" center to visit China to write a new chapter in bilateral friendship, Wang said.

Xi also called for joint efforts to push forward local-level exchanges between the two countries and deepen the understanding of each other's culture and traditions.

TAP SUB-NATIONAL COOPERATION POTENTIAL

As each other's largest neighbor, China and Russia have strong internal impetus for cooperation in various fields, Wang said.

During Xi's visit, Xi and Putin charted the course for bilateral pragmatic cooperation in the next phase -- strengthening the synergy of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Eurasian Economic Union, expanding cooperation in such fields as energy, agriculture, scientific and technological innovation and finance, promoting the steady implementation of major projects, and boosting joint research and development of cutting-edge science and technology.

The two leaders also made concrete efforts to promote bilateral sub-national cooperation. They attended a roundtable meeting on regional cooperation and visited "The Far East Street" exhibition showcasing the rich local cultural exchanges between the two countries and investment opportunities in Russia's Far East regions.

Both countries should take advantage of the Year of China-Russia Local Cooperation and Exchange program to strengthen planning and coordination, innovate thoughts on cooperation, and tap into their complimentary advantages, so as to usher in a new era of bilateral sub-national cooperation, Xi stressed.

Xi's visit, Wang said, has vigorously expanded the landscape of China-Russia sub-national cooperation and further deepened the integration of the two countries' interests.

LEAD REGIONAL COOPERATION

The EEF offers an important platform for international cooperation in the Russian Far East and a significant opportunity for Northeast Asian nations to pool wisdom and pursue cooperation, Wang said.

Xi proposed that countries in Northeast Asia should build up mutual trust to safeguard regional peace and tranquility, deepen cooperation to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes, learn from each other to consolidate their traditional friendship, and take a long-term perspective to realize integrated and coordinated development.

As a key member in Northeast Asia, China has presented a responsible and constructive image of a major country to the rest of the world by consistently participating in regional cooperation, promoting communication and dialogue among nations in the region, and creating a harmonious and friendly environment, Wang said.

Xi's Vladivostok trip is pragmatic and efficient, and conducive to promoting benign interactions between major countries, he said, adding that it was also an important move in the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 02:57:40|Editor: yan

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JERUSALEM, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Israeli cybersecurity company Check Point on Wednesday claimed in a report that it uncovered an Iranian espionage operation against Kurdish minorities and supporters of Islamic State (IS) group in Iran.

According to Check Point's cyber investigators, some 240 mobile phone users, mainly android, belonging to the Kurdish minority in Iran and supporters of IS were tempted to install applications or access the links.

The monitoring includes geographical location of users, contacts and messages on the device, search history, voice recordings, photos and videos.

In the case of IS, the application downloaded background of the organization's supporters. In the case of the Kurds, there was a fake website that simulated the Kurdish news agency "ANF NEWS."

The cyber investigators noted that the Kurdish fake website is very similar to a Hebrew-language news website which was set by Iran.

According to Check Point, these Iran's capabilities have existed since 2016, and the motivation for such operation reflects the involvement of officials, including the Revolutionary Guards and the Iranian Intelligence Ministry.

The company said these espionage programs are used by the Iranian regime to act not only against minorities but against Iranian citizens, which could pose a threat to the stability of the regime.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 03:07:42|Editor: Liangyu

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NAIROBI, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese digital TV firm StarTimes pledges continued efforts to contribute to China-Africa cooperation alongside the continent's transformation in diverse areas like health and education, the company said on Wednesday.

"StarTimes has been in the frontline of China-Africa cooperation playing active roles in African digital migration progress, the project of Access to Satellite TV for 10,000 African villages and African HIV/AIDS prevention campaign," the Chinese TV firm said in a statement issued n Nairobi.

StarTimes noted the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) had reaffirmed the flourishing and mutually beneficial ties between China and African countries.

"The success of the FOCAC Beijing Summit has once again fully demonstrated that the traditional friendship between China and Africa enjoys a solid foundation and that China-Africa practical cooperation is full of vitality," said StarTimes.

"It has set new grand goals for upgrading the relations between China and Africa, and China and Africa have always been close partners sharing weal and woe and the same destiny," the company added.

StarTimes said that 18 African leaders who visited its headquarters in Beijing during the FOCAC summit, lauded its support for skills upgrade and career advancement in the continent.

The African leaders specifically hailed StarTimes' "Access to Satellite TV for 10,000 African Villages" that aims to ensure rural households have access to digital signal with high-quality images and rich TV programs, said the statement.

According to StarTimes, about 10,112 villages in more than 20 African countries will benefit from this project to expand access to digital broadcasting signals.

"Public institutions will be installed with StarTimes projector TVs or one 32 inch Digital TV while 20 households in each village will receive satellite TV decoders and dish," said StarTimes, adding that it has been involved in successful digital transformation in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and Zambia.

Currently, StarTimes has established its presence in more than 30 African countries where it has partnered with governments to fast-track a transition from analogue to digital broadcasting, it added.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 03:22:46|Editor: Yamei

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U.S. President Donald Trump (Xinhua file photo)

WASHINGTON, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order on Wednesday to punish any foreign interference in U.S. elections, a latest attempt by the administration to show its resolution to fight against elections meddling, said U.S. officials.

The order will direct the intelligence community to assess if any foreign individual, entity or country has interfered in a U.S. election, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats told reporters at a conference call held at Wednesday noon.

After an up-to-45-day assessing period, the gathered information will be passed to the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security, who also have 45 days to decide if they should go forward with the sanctions, explained National Security Advisor John Bolton who jointed the call.

The sanctions will be automatically triggered if any foreign interference has been found, said Coats, adding that the U.S. State and Treasury departments, sharing the intelligence information, could impose additional sanctions "if the automatic sanctions we deem is not enough."

The sanctions could include blocking the assets of the individuals and entities within the U.S. jurisdiction, prohibiting U.S. individuals and entities from engaging in transactions with or investing in the entities involved.

Bolton, describing the order as a mandate that "goes to any action that's taken with the intent of interfering in the election," also said it was not "country-specific."

The order came weeks ahead of the U.S. midterm elections which will be held in November.

Robert Mueller, a special counsel, has been looking into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and any potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Moscow, a claim that has been denied both by Moscow and Trump himself.

Trump has repeatedly denounced Muller's investigating as a "witch hunt." Meanwhile, the Trump administration has been attacked by U.S. lawmakers for not being tough enough against Russia after the U.S. intelligence community concluded that Moscow has influenced the 2016 elections.

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio and Chris Van Hollen said in a joint statement on Wednesday that the newly-signed order "recognizes the threat, but does not go far enough to address it."

"The United States can and must do more," they said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 03:22:47|Editor: Liangyu

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Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin pose for photos with youths from China and Russia and faculty representatives as they visit the All-Russian Children's Center "Ocean" in Vladivostok, Russia, Sept. 12, 2018. (Xinhua/Ju Peng)

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin visited All-Russian Children's Center "Ocean" here on Wednesday to promote friendship between the two countries' youths.

The two leaders attended commemoration events marking the 10-year anniversary of the center's hosting of hundreds of Chinese children from regions hit by a deadly earthquake in 2008.

Calling China and Russia good neighbors and good partners that are linked by mountains and rivers and pull together in times of trouble, Xi said the peoples of China and Russia have helped each other and shared weal and woe, leaving many touching stories to tell.

After a massive earthquake hit China's southwest Wenchuan County, which left nearly 70,000 people dead and about 18,000 others missing in 2008, Russia immediately sent its rescue team to the disaster-striken area, Xi recalled.

At the invitation of the Russian government, 996 children from China's quake-hit area came to "Ocean" for rehabilitation and the experience will be etched in their memories, the Chinese president said while addressing the children and teachers at the center.

The history of China-Russia relations is also the history of close exchanges between the two countries' young people, Xi said, adding that the increasingly frequent exchanges between Chinese and Russian youths in recent years have promoted mutual understanding and friendship.

Young people are the future of a country, the future of China-Russia friendship and the future of the world, Xi said, calling on the two countries' youths to enhance communication and mutual learning, and make joint efforts to carry forward the great cause of China-Russia friendship.

Xi urged the two countries' youths to strive to be the pillars of their nations, and participate in the dialogue among different civilizations to contribute their wisdom and strength to building a community with a shared future for mankind.

The Chinese president also invited the teachers and students at the "Ocean" to visit China.

Putin, in his speech, said Russia and China have forged a friendly relationship with mutual trust and cooperation.

The friendly exchanges between the two countries' youths will further consolidate the foundation of bilateral ties and are crucial to the future of Russia-China relations, he said.

Noting that Russia and China have a tradition of hosting children from each other for recuperation, Putin said he hopes the young generations of the two countries will carry forward the profound traditional friendship between the two peoples.

Xi and Putin, among others, watched a video of the days when the Chinese boys and girls lived in the care center 10 years ago.

Some of the boys and girls, who are grown-ups now, came back to the center on Wednesday and expressed their feelings with a song "A Grateful Heart."

Xi Junfei, a boy taken care of at the center after the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008, recounted his magical experience with the Ocean center: a drift bottle thrown by him, with a note that carried his wish to study in Russia in the future, came back into the hands of a staff member of the center after a four-month sea voyage.

And now as a senior student at the Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok, Xi Junfei's dream has come true.

The youth representatives from China and Russia, together with teachers of the center, read a declaration of permanent friendship, vowing to unite and coordinate with each other to safeguard world peace and development, join hands to carry forward the friendship between the two countries, and work for a more beautiful future of the world.

Xi and Putin also saw an exhibition of handicrafts made by children from quake-hit areas when they rehabilitated in the center.

The two leaders had a cordial talk with the youth representatives from quake-hit areas who rehabilitated at "Ocean" 10 years ago and representatives of the care center's staff who took care of the Chinese children at the time.

The two leaders spoke highly of the profound friendship between Chinese and Russian peoples and encouraged all the people at present to be friendship envoys of the two peoples.

Following the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, a total of nearly 2,000 children from the affected areas in Sichuan and Gansu provinces came to the Russian center for rehabilitation at the invitation of the Russian government. Another 299 children came for rehabilitation after a quake jolted Sichuan's Ya'an city in 2013.

Xi arrived in Russia's Far Eastern port city of Vladivostok on Tuesday for the fourth Eastern Economic Forum at the invitation of Putin.
CUPERTINO, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mist , a pioneer in self-learning networks powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI), today announced the addition of several new enhancements to the companys Wi-Fi Assurance and Marvis Virtual Network Assistant (VNA) services that bring unprecedented insight and automation to wireless networks. New features include an expanded conversational UI leveraging Natural Language Processing (NLP) for enhanced queries and insight, anomaly detection using deep learning to proactively identify and fix problems without false positives, AI-driven Radio Resource Management (RRM) for automated self-healing and new Wired and Wide Area Network (WAN) classifiers that augment the extensive range of service levels available via the Mist platform. With the Mist Learning Wireless LAN (WLAN), Wi-Fi is more predictable, reliable and measurable than ever, with proactive automation and insight that saves IT time and money.



According to Gartner, The intricacy of access layer network decisions and the aggravation of end-user downtime are more than IT organizations can handle. Infrastructure and operations leaders must implement automation and artificial intelligence solutions to reduce mundane tasks and lost productivity.1

While other vendors are trying to bolt AI on top of legacy platforms, Mist built an AI engine from scratch on top of a real-time microservices cloud platform, said Sudheer Matta, vice president of products at Mist. This eliminates the need for expensive overlay hardware and software, it saves time and money with elastic scale and it provides unprecedented feature agility. Only Mist is able to roll out groundbreaking new features with relability and stability in weeks instead of months or years, bringing incredible value to Mist customers.

Mist uses various techniques like Natural Language Processing, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, and Data Science to deliver the best Wi-Fi experience to end users, IT administrators and Managed Service Providers (MSPs), putting ever increasing business-critical services on top of their wireless networks. The latest enhancements expand upon Mists extensive leadership in this space by bringing the following unique capabilities to customers:

Expanded Natural Language Processing (NLP). Mist is the only vendor to offer an AI-driven virtual network assistant (Marvis), which provides unsurpassed insight into WLAN behavior and expert guidance for rapid Wi-Fi troubleshooting. Marvis uses NLP to provide IT administrators with detailed answers to complex questions without having to hunt through endless dashboards or Command Line Interfaces (CLI).



Marvis has been continuously learning since first launched in February 2018, and can now understand and answer hundreds of requests with incredible success rates, such as What is wrong with Jons iPhone?, How is the Access Point in the conference room doing? and How many devices are having throughput issues?. With tens of thousands of Access Points already feeding the Mist AI engine (and growing), Mist has a big lead on the competition with the best knowledge graphs for Wi-Fi.

Anomaly detection with deep learning. The latest version of Marvis uses deep learning to identify and correlate items, events or other observations that do not conform to expected patterns and predict future events based on the sequence of past states. By leveraging the industrys most advanced data science algorithms, Mist detects and reports anomalies with almost zero false positives.



The Mist Learning WLAN is 100% API driven, enabling workflows (e.g. help desk tickets and notifications) to be automatically kicked off when anomaly thresholds are triggered. This helps IT staff get ahead of problems and fix them before users even know they exist.

AI-driven Radio Resource Management (RRM). Innovation in RRM, which is the system level management of radio resources, has been stagnant in WLANs for the past fifteen years. It is constrained by incomplete data and lacks insight into the user experience  i.e. did the RRM change make things better or worse for the Wi-Fi user? This all changes with Mist, who is the first and only vendor to use AI to create self-healing WLANs with quantifiable RRM benefits.



The Mist Wi-Fi Assurance Service is constantly collecting RF information like coverage, capacity, throughput and performance on a per user basis, then using deep learning to understand the data and make automated changes based on real-time requirements. Customizable Wi-Fi service levels measure the impact of these changes so that the user experience is always optimized. For the first time ever, the wireless network can detect RF issues, learn from them, automatically make the changes using AI and then measure the results as quantifiable end user benefits.

WAN Service Level Expectations (SLEs). Mist is the only vendor with customizable Wi-Fi service levels. These SLEs, which are part of the Mist Wi-Fi Assurance service, have traditionally covered key metrics like Capacity, Coverage, Throughout, Latency, AP uptime and Roaming. Now the Mist platform also lets IT administrators set, monitor, and enforce SLEs for Wide Area Network (WAN) performance. With this new SLE, customers can easily determine if WAN latency, jitter and/or packet loss are having an adverse impact on the user experience, when these problems are occurring, if they are likely to happen in the future and how best to address them for an optimal user experience.



Mist recently announced that it is working with leading vendors like VMware and Juniper to create a seamless experience from the WLAN to the WAN. Now Mist customers looking for more insight into how WAN performance relates to the Wi-Fi user experience can leverage the joint solutions for end-to-end visibility and automation.

Availability

The above features are available today and come standard with the appropriate Mist subscription service(s) for new and existing customers.

Helpful Links:

About Mist

Mist built the first AI-driven wireless platform with the worlds first virtual IT assistant. The Mist Learning Wireless LAN makes Wi-Fi predictable, reliable and measurable by providing unprecedented visibility into the user experience and by replacing time consuming manual IT tasks with proactive automation. In addition, Mist is the first vendor to bring enterprise-grade Wi-Fi, BLE and IoT together to deliver personalized, location-based wireless services without requiring battery-powered beacons. All operations are managed via Mists modern cloud architecture for maximum scalability, agility and performance.

The Mist team consists of leading experts in wireless, data science and cloud, who are responsible for building the largest and most advanced networks in the world. Founded in 2014, the company is based in Cupertino, CA and funded by top investors, including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Norwest Venture Partners, GV (formerly Google Ventures), and Kleiner Perkins. For more information, visit www.mist.com .

Media Contact

Tanaya Lukaszewski

Offleash for Mist

(916) 712 - 3791

olmist@offleashpr.com

1 Gartner Automation and AI Will Slash Access Layer Downtime and the Reliance on Network Administrators, by Tim Zimmerman, Vivek Bhalla, November 30, 2017
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 03:47:54|Editor: yan

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KAMPALA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Uganda has warned that the country is likely to experience landslides and floods as the rain season starts in the last three months of this year.

Mary Kitutu, minister of state for environment told reporters on Wednesday that floods and landslides are expected in southern, northern, western and eastern regions of the country.

"We ask Ugandans to be ready and avoid loss of lives. Cases of flooding and landslides may be experienced in the mountain areas such as Buduada, Bulambuli, Bundibudyo, Kasese, Kabale, Rubanda and Kisoro districts," the minister said.

In an earlier communication by the Office of the Prime Minister, people living in mountainous areas were told to be cautious.

The most fatal landslides in Uganda occurred in March 2010 in the eastern district of Bududa where more than 200 people were killed while thousands were left homeless.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 03:53:00|Editor: yan

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UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- UN peacekeeping operations must follow the principles and purposes of the UN Charter and the basic principles governing such operations, a Chinese envoy said Wednesday.

At a Security Council debate on UN peacekeeping, Wu Haitao, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, stressed the need to uphold the principles and purposes of the UN Charter and the basic principles of peacekeeping: consent of the parties, impartiality, non-use of force except in self-defense and defense of the mandate.

He also asked to fully respect the sovereignty of host countries, strengthen communication with them and help them develop their own capacity in the areas of peace and security.

Wu emphasized the need to maintain the primacy of the political track. "The purpose of peacekeeping operations is to help host countries establish and maintain a sustainable peaceful environment and create enabling conditions for ending conflicts politically," he told the council.

A realistic, achievable mandate with well-defined objectives and highlighted priorities should be developed for each mission, he added.

There is a need to build peacekeeping partnerships, said Wu. It is necessary to motivate all stakeholders, including host countries, troop-contributing countries, financial contributors and the UN Secretariat, he said.

There is also a need to strengthen cooperation with regional organizations, said Wu. The United Nations should fully leverage the advantages of the African Union in peacekeeping operations in Africa, assist the union in forming a standing army and rapid response force of its own as soon as possible.

He asked to take an integrated approach to improve peacekeeping performance.

Better peacekeeping performance requires the Secretariat and the military, police and civilian components of a peacekeeping mission to work together, he said.

China has been an active player and contributor to UN peacekeeping, said Wu. China will continue to work with other countries to further improve the UN peacekeeping system in the interests of international peace and security, he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 04:43:15|Editor: yan

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MANAGUA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Nicaraguan government called for calm and asked citizens to take "necessary measures" following a 5.9-magnitude earthquake that struck early Wednesday.

Nicaragua's vice president and government spokeswoman Rosario Murillo recommended that families keep all exit routes in the homes clear in the event of more tremblors.

The Nicaraguan Institute of Territorial Studies (Ineter) said the quake struck at 12:29 a.m. local time Wednesday with a depth of 76 kilometers just off the coast of Puerto Sandino in the Pacific Ocean. No deaths or damage has been reported.

In her comments, Murillo also mentioned the upcoming Exercise of Life Protection Provisions.

The country's National System for Prevention, Mitigation and Attention to Disasters (Sinapred) has invited citizens to take part in the exercise on Sept. 21.

Murillo, who is also the country's first lady, said the exercise will help citizens better learn how to react to natural disasters.

"We have the experience, but you always have to practice and be prepared," she said, adding it is also important to be vigilant, serene and calm in the face of earthquakes.

Wednesday's earthquake was felt in the provinces of Managua, Leon, Chinandega and Carazo. Sinapred codirector Guillermo Gonzalez said the earthquake caused alarm among local residents.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 05:18:27|Editor: xuxin

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A Saudi visitor takes pictures of the Terra-Cotta Warriors at the exhibition "Treasures of China" in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Sept. 12, 2018. An exhibition featuring Chinese civilization opened on Wednesday at the National Museum in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh. (Xinhua/Tu Yifan)

RIYADH, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- An exhibition featuring Chinese civilization opened on Wednesday at the National Museum in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh, marking one of the largest cultural relic exhibitions hosted by China in the kingdom.

The exhibition "Treasures of China" includes 264 items provided by 13 museums and cultural institutions, such as the Palace Museum, among which 173 are Chinese cultural relics, including the globally known Terra-Cotta Warriors. Close to half the items have never been showcased outside China before.

Jointly hosted by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of China (SACH) and Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage, the exhibition also displayed the objects from Chinese-Saudi joint archaeological excavations at the ruins of al Sereen site.

The joint project has provided valuable physical references for archaeological research involved with the Maritime Silk Road and testified close encounters between China and the Red Sea area in ancient times, according to Hu Bing, deputy administrator of SACH.

The display consists of five sections in chronological order, starting with "Beginning of Civilization, Establishments of Etiquette," "the Unification, Consolidation and Development," "Prosperities and Diversified Communication," "Start-up of Business and Marine Trade," and "Palace and Royal Art."

The exhibition, which lasts until Nov. 23, aims to introduce the development of Chinese civilization, as well as showcase social life, culture and the arts of the country over thousands of years.

"We hope the exhibition can be a beautiful experience and memory of Saudi viewers and inspire them to come to the distant nation of China," Hu said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 05:23:28|Editor: yan

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DURBAN, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- There is a need to address the risks of associated with the digital economy, including cybercrime, said an official of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) on Wednesday.

The director of ITU's Telecommunication Development Bureau, Brahima Sanou, was speaking at the ministerial roundtable on addressing the risks of a smarter world during the ITU Telecom World Conference 2018 in Durban.

"The security, confidence and perception of end users is very important," Sanou said. "We must mediate the potential risks of ICT users in order to enable us to tap into its full potential for development."

He encouraged governments to address the risk without scaring their citizens.

The Minister of Posts, Telecommunications and the Digital Economy in Guinea, Moustapha Mamy Diaby, said cyberspace is unavoidable and critical to the development of the new economy.

Diaby pointed out that like medicine, cyberspace has risks.

"We must work smarter and educate our children, taking action upstream to mitigate the risk of malware and harmful actions, whilst continuing to focus on developing the digital ecosystem and its meaningful use," Diaby said, adding that there is a need for regulations and legislation to guide the cyberspace.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 05:33:29|Editor: ZX

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ADDIS ABABA, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Foreign Ministers of the African Union (AU) member states on Tuesday met at the headquarters of the pan-African bloc in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa to discuss the progress made on the reform of the 55-member union.

During the two-day meeting, the ministers are expected to consider the key reform issues and challenges to agree on the specific outcomes that the ongoing reform process should deliver.

The retreat of the AU Executive Council is expected to prepare for the upcoming summit on the AU reform billed for November 2018 here in Addis Ababa.

Since the launch of the institutional reform process of the Union, significant progress has been made in its implementation, said the Chairperson of the AU Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat.

The rationalization of the working methods of the AU assembly of heads of states, improvement in the quality of its deliberations, the strengthening of the interaction between AU and regional economic communities (RECs) towards a better synergy and efficiency in the implementation of continental agenda, are among the achievements, according to the Chairperson of the AU Commission.

In the reform process, AU heads of states adopted a financing proposal for the Union in 2016, and it directs all member states to implement a 0.2 percent levy on eligible imports to finance the African Union in its drive to be self-dependent.

"There is obviously a greater awareness of the imperative of achieving the financial autonomy of our Union," he underlined.

Mahamat further stated that the internal procedures and working methods of the Union are being revised to allow effective implementation of the decisions.

He also noted that restructuring the AU Commission is one of the most fundamental issues that concern the pan-African bloc.

In her opening remarks, the Chair of the AU Executive Council and Rwandan Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo reiterated that the reform of the Commission is a central element of the overall AU reform process.

"Agenda 2063 is in place and provides our overall vision. Against this vision, we have developed a set of ambitious continental priorities and targets," she said.

"We need a strong and effective AU Commission to drive our continental agenda. We have a key opportunity over the next two days to do some collective thinking on how best we can achieve this," she said.

Stating that the heart of the reform of the AU Commission is about people, systems and processes, Mushikiwabo said, "We must be able to attract and retain the best that Africa has to offer to deliver for this continent."

She underlined the need to have motivated staffs driven by pan-African values, and strong ethics, who are delivering within an accountable and rules-based administrative framework.

"Alongside this, the Commission must be able to avoid duplication and overlap, manage its resources prudently, observe the highest fiduciary standards and ensure value for money while delivering results," she said.

"This is what will give member states the confidence to meet their financial obligations regularly and on time," she noted.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 05:38:31|Editor: ZX

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WASHINGTON, Sept.12 (Xinhua) -- The number of migrant families apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border hit new high last month, up 40 percent from July to a total of 12,774, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).

A total of 37,544 individuals were apprehended at the border in August, a hike from the 31,299 in July and 34,091 in June, the data showed.

As of August, there were still more than 500 children who were separated from their families that remained in U.S. custody, despite a July 26 deadline set by a federal judge for the reunification of all those separated at the border, a TheHill News Daily report said.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a statement on Wednesday that the rising number of families apprehended indicates a "broken" immigration system.

"Through the third quarter of FY 2018, only 1.4 percent of family units have been repatriated to their home country from noncontiguous countries such as El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras." the DHS said.

U.S. President Donald Trump signed in June an executive order ending highly controversial "zero tolerance" policy leading to the forced separation of more than 2,500 children from their parents at the U.S. southern border.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 05:58:43|Editor: yan

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JERUSALEM, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday urged the international community to stop "appeasing Iran" and unite against the Islamic republic.

Speaking at the start of his weekly cabinet meeting, the hawkish leader called on world leaders to "unite in the fight against terrorist organizations."

"What we are seeing is that while Iran is sending terrorist cells to Europe, European leaders are appeasing - and reconciling with - Iran, in the same week that the terrorist cells were due to carry out their operations, which we helped thwart," he said.

"This is unacceptable," he added.

The Israeli leader said that the time has come for Western governments to join "the strong and clear effort" against Iran by the U.S. administration led by President Donald Trump.

Israel sees Iran as its top threat and has carried out dozens of airstrikes against Iranian targets in Syria over the past years.

Netanyahu is a vocal opponent of the 2015 landmark nuclear deal signed by six major world powers with Iran, which aims at curbing Iran's nuclear program. But Trump pulled the U.S. out of the deal in May, while reimposing economic sanctions against Iran.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 06:03:45|Editor: yan

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WARSAW, Sep. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Polish defense minister Mariusz Blaszczak has empowered the Polish Armed Forces General Commander to allow the stationing of NATO and NATO-allied forces on Polish territory, local media reported Wednesday.

According to Polish Press Agency (PAP), the decision is mainly addressed to NATO and NATO-aligned forces and forces from countries participating in NATO's Partnership for Peace program. Foreign units stationed in Poland will not be able to exceed 500 people.

Issued on Sept. 7 and in force since Sept. 11, the ministerial decision follows a Sept. 23, 1999 act regulating the stationing and movements of foreign military forces in Poland.

It also empowers the Armed Forces General Commander to allow foreign army units into Poland in the event of natural disasters, for humanitarian reasons and for maneuvers.

The Polish Defense Ministry has not commented to PAP on the decision.

MPs from the Sejm (Polish lower house) Defense Committee told PAP that the decision was a new development, but stressed that it was right and will help regulate the residence of foreign forces in Poland.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 06:08:48|Editor: ZX

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UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix (Front) briefs the Security Council during an open debate on peacekeeping operations at the UN headquarters in New York, on Sept. 12, 2018. UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix on Wednesday urged member states to contribute more troops and police to UN peacekeeping. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix on Wednesday urged member states to contribute more troops and police to UN peacekeeping.

"I would also like to take this opportunity to call on all member states, particularly those with the most advanced military capabilities, to contribute more troops and police to UN peacekeeping," Lacroix said at a UN Security Council open debate on peacekeeping operations.

"We still have an ongoing need for critical capabilities, including helicopters, counter-IED capacities, rapid reaction forces, situational awareness, and medical support," he said, noting that "we welcome all contributions in these areas."

Speaking of the importance of women in UN peacekeeping operations, Lacroix noted that "the engagement of member states is also key to increase the number of women who are part of peacekeeping."

"More women in peacekeeping simply makes peacekeeping more effective. We need to significantly enhance the number of female peacekeepers at all levels and within uniformed as well as civilian components. We must also ensure that they are able to meaningfully participate in our work," said the UN peacekeeping chief.

"Women are only 21 percent of our personnel. We must do better," Lacroix noted.

However, he said, with hard work, "we have seen some improvements."

"Gender strategies for DPKO (Department of Peacekeeping Operations) and DFS (Department of Field Support) as well as within each of our missions, and the Uniformed Gender Parity Strategy, are starting to yield results," he said.

"At headquarters, women officers now represent 18 percent of all officers in the Office of Military Affairs, and we are committed to raising this proportion further. In the field, women police officers represent 21 percent of our Individual Police Officers, and 7 percent of our Formed Police Units."

"We intend to continue our efforts to increase the number of female peacekeepers in headquarters and in the field, in line with Security Council Resolution 2242," Lacroix noted.

"The policies that we have promoted can only be achieved through the active involvement of members states. I therefore welcome the efforts undertaken by a number of member states, and I call on all of you to further these initiatives and significantly increase your contributions of women peacekeepers," he noted.

In his briefing, Lacroix outlined steps taken by the UN and the results yielded. One of the key areas includes assessing peacekeepers' performance.

"We are putting in place the policies and evaluation systems that will enable all of us, collectively, to better tailor our efforts to strengthen peacekeeping and better support all peacekeepers, whether uniformed or civilian," he informed the 15-member Council.

The engagement and the mobilization of all stakeholders, and, especially member states, is vital for achieving success, underscored the UN peacekeeping chief.

In particular, he called on all member states "to assess the evolution of the performance of UN peacekeeping operations," including through visiting them on the ground and sharing their findings with the UN.

Concluding his briefing, he highlighted the importance of strong partnership with civil society groups, particularly in the on-going effort to prevent sexual exploitation and abuse by UN personnel, as well as ensuring accountability and victim support.

In that context, he also urged troop contributing countries to complete investigations into allegations of wrongdoing within six months, the timeframe for UN investors to complete their work.

"Only by working together will the UN, member states and civil society end this behavior which irreparably harms victims and tarnishes the reputation of thousands of UN personnel who serve with honor," he said.

Speaking alongside Lacroix, Sarah Blakemore, CEO of the non-governmental organization Keeping Children Safe, called for strong protection systems to stop abuse from happening and, should it occur, to ensure that victims are protected and supported, and bring perpetrators to justice.

"Too often victims have no way of reporting the abuse, no medical or psychosocial care and no access to justice," she said.

"We call on world leaders to champion the safety of children at the highest levels by requiring that all organizations involved in peacekeeping implement robust international child safeguarding standards, including having advocates for victims' rights."

In March, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres launched the Action for Peacekeeping (A4P), to strengthen global political commitment to peacekeeping operations.

He also called on member states to join him in developing a set of mutually-agreed principles and commitments to create peacekeeping operations fit for the future, with the goal of reaching a formal agreement by the end of the year.

Specific efforts include the Declaration of Shared Commitments, which has been endorsed by 55 nations as of Sept. 11 as well as thematic consultations on peacebuilding, performance, protection of civilians, partnerships, and political dimensions, such as peace operation mandate and resources, role of the Security Council.

UN Resolution 2378, which was adopted on Sept. 20, 2017, requested the secretary-general to deliver a comprehensive annual briefing on the reform of UN peacekeeping to begin within one year of the adoption of the resolution, followed by a debate.

Lacroix's briefing at the debate, which was mostly about peacekeeping reform, provided an opportunity to discuss some of the reform efforts undertaken in the past year by the secretary-general, including on management and the peace and security architecture, as well as an initial assessment of several independent reviews of peacekeeping operations carried out at the initiative of the Council or the Secretariat.
TUCSON, Ariz., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TuSimple , a global self-driving truck solutions company, today announced plans for further expansion in Tucson, Arizona. The company has been testing its Level 4 Class 8 autonomous trucks in the state of Arizona for over a year and recently began generating revenue hauling freight for commercial carriers in the state.



Earlier this year, TuSimple expanded its testing facilities at 9538 E Old Vail Road from 6,800 to 50,000 square feet, and in 2019 the company plans to further expand their footprint. To support its growing development program, TuSimple projects it will create 500 new jobs across a variety of fields ranging from engineering and autonomous truck driving to office management. The company will also expand its autonomous fleet to 200 trucks in the U.S. by 2019. With 500 trucks worldwide in 2019, TuSimple will be the worlds largest autonomous truck fleet. The expansion has a projected total economic impact of $1.1 billion over the next five years.

TuSimple is on a mission to create the worlds safest self-driving semi-truck perception system. TuSimples camera-centric system has a vision range of 1,000 metersfarther than any other perception system todayand can see 360 degrees around for a pixel-level interpretation of the visible environment, enabling the vehicle to locate itself within four inches of the road at all times.

In 2017, TuSimple secured $23 million in a Series B funding round, and the company raised an additional $55 million of Series C funding in November of 2017.

Arizona has actively supported the research and development of autonomous vehicles, and we are pleased to be expanding our footprint in the state, said Xiaodi Hou, CTO and Co-Founder of TuSimple. We thank Governor Ducey and our community partners for their generous support.

In Arizona, were committed to encouraging new technologies, said Arizona Governor Doug Ducey. TuSimples original expansion into our state, and this announcement to expand even more are testament to the environment weve created here, one that is business-friendly, where innovators do what they do best: innovate.

Under Governor Duceys leadership, Arizonas focused on disruptive technology trends, and autonomous driving is undoubtedly one of those trends, said Sandra Watson, president & CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority. Its exciting to have a forward-thinking company developing cutting-edge technology here in our state, the best place to launch, test and scale new ideas.

Pima County District 3 Supervisor Sharon Bronson said, This is an exciting announcement and we wish TuSimple continued success. The companys decision to expand its operations in Pima County is a testament to the strength of the regions technology sector momentum and the growing role this region will play in designing and manufacturing components for autonomous-driving systems. It also adds to our regional reputation as an important center for logistics. TuSimple pays well above the regional median wage, adding significantly to the regions highly-educated, high-paid workforce, which is exactly the type of workforce we're working to expand in the county.

Tucson welcomes the 500 new jobs TuSimple is bringing to the community, said Mayor Jonathan Rothschild. New technologies continue to evolve and it's important that Tucson be a city that can attract and retain the jobs of the future. TuSimple's decision to locate and expand here is just the latest demonstration that our city is on the right track.

TuSimples autonomous truck technology will be a game changer in the transportation world, said David G. Hutchens, chair of Sun Corridor Inc. and president & CEO, UNS Energy Corp, Tucson Electric Power & UniSource Energy Services. We want to be known as the location where technology companies like TuSimple can grow and thrive.

Just a year ago, TuSimple chose Tucson for a new testing location, adding 100 new high-wage jobs, said Joe Snell, president & CEO, Sun Corridor Inc. Since then, they have moved to larger facilities and now are dramatically expanding their workforce. This is a great testament to the confidence in our region and the ability of innovative businesses to operate on a large scale in Tucson and Southern Arizona.

Media Contacts:

Robert Brown, TuSimple, 520-392-2172, robert.brown@tusimple.ai

Connie Weber, Arizona Commerce Authority, 480-650-4047, conniew@azcommerce.com

Laura Shaw, Sun Corridor Inc., 520-609-5972, laura.shaw@suncorridorinc.com

About TuSimple

Founded in 2015, TuSimple is developing commercial-ready Level 4 (SAE) autonomous driving solutions for the logistics industry. In 2016, TuSimple broke 10 world records in autonomous driving and ranked No. 1 in KITTI and Cityscapes, the most influential public leaderboard in autonomous driving globally. For more information, please visit www.tusimple.ai .

About the Arizona Commerce Authority

The Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) is the state's leading economic development organization with a streamlined mission to grow and strengthen Arizona's economy. The ACA uses a three-pronged approach to advance the overall economy: attract, expand, create - attract out-of-state companies to establish operations in Arizona; work with existing companies to expand their business in Arizona and beyond; and help entrepreneurs create new Arizona businesses in targeted industries. For more information, please visit www.azcommerce.com or on Twitter: @azcommerce.

About Sun Corridor Inc.



Sun Corridor Inc.'s role is to coordinate all economic development activities and programs within the Southern Arizona megaregion under one umbrella. The focus of the organization is to facilitate primary (non-retail) job and investment growth in the region. Our work also includes creating a competitive environment that allows primary employers to flourish and succeed. For more information, visit www.suncorridorinc.com or on Twitter: @suncorridorinc.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 06:08:49|Editor: ZX

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Zhang Jianqiu, Executive President of Yili Group, speaks at the ceremony to rebrand its Europe R&D Center on Wageningen campus as Europe Innovation Center, at Wageningen University in Wageningen, The Netherlands, Sept. 12, 2018. Top Chinese dairy company Yili Group announced that its innovation center based in Wageningen University will connect more European partners to boost innovation for better food. (Xinhua/Chen Jialiang)

WAGENINGEN, The Netherlands, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Top Chinese dairy company Yili Group announced on Thursday that its innovation center based in Wageningen University will connect more European partners to boost innovation for better food.

With its Europe R&D Center on Wageningen campus rebranded as Europe Innovation Center, Yili wants to work with a wider range of research institutes and industrial partners, said Zhang Jianqiu, Executive President of the Chinese largest dairy group.

"We started out with linking only to the university. Nowadays we work with all kinds of institutes, dairy companies, suppliers, etc.," explained Gerrit Smit, managing director of Yili Innovation Center Europe. "Because we want to create a win-win situation. If a new product is successful, everybody wins."

Set up in February 2014, the center fully owned by Yili Group has been collaborating with European partners on fundamental and applied research and knowledge transfer in the areas of processing technology, new product development, food safety and farm management.

Louise Fresco, President of the Wageningen University & Research Executive Board, hailed Yili's decision to boost its European research facility in the Dutch Food Valley area.

"We feel it is very important to look towards doing things together," she said. "The Belt and Road Initiative and interest in Africa very much match with the way that we can also bring things of goodness to Africa to Asia. We can do part of that work together."

Representatives from some 60 European research institutes, companies of food and dairy sector attended the ceremony.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 06:23:53|Editor: Liangyu

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Image provided by Chile's Presidency shows Chilean President Sebastian Pinera delivering a speech during the announcement of the expansion of Google's Chilean data center, in Quilicura, north of Santiago, Chile, on Sept. 12, 2018. Chilean President Sebastian Pinera on Wednesday celebrated the expansion of Google's Chilean data center, the only one of its kind in Latin America. (Xinhua/Marcelo Segura/Chilean Presidency)

SANTIAGO, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chilean President Sebastian Pinera on Wednesday celebrated the expansion of Google's Chilean data center, the only one of its kind in Latin America.

"We want Chile to be the leading figure, a pioneer and, I hope, a capital for the processing, storage and transmission of data," said the president, during a visit to Google's data center.

"We have many reasons to want to be a pioneer and we have the foundations to become one. The fourth industrial revolution is knocking at our door," he added.

According to the Chilean government, the expansion is intended to improve the performance of computational services and the internet after an increase in demand on the country's "public cloud."

The investment of 140 million U.S. dollars will finance works to triple the center's size to 11.2 hectares, which when finished, will employ 200 people.

Google's commitment will also help the government's push to develop infrastructure, tools and services necessary to enter the digital economy.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-13 06:23:53|Editor: yan

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LOS ANGELES, Sept. 12 (Xinhua) -- Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell signed a proclamation of emergency Wednesday morning to allow all of the resources to be at immediate disposal as Tropical Storm Olivia approaching U.S. Pacific island state of Hawaii.

"We continue to track Tropical Storm Olivia, and we are starting to see the first effects of the storm on Oahu today," said Mayor Caldwell in a statement after leading a briefing on the Tropical Storm.

"We encourage our residents and visitors to keep a close eye on the storm as it approaches. If you feel unsafe heading out today, please stay home and stay tuned. We'll continue to monitor this situation carefully from our Emergency Operations Center to make sure we can react at a moment's notice," he added.

"All of our first responders are standing by," the Mayor noted.

The proclamation was signed in conjunction with the emergency proclamation signed by Hawaii Governor David Ige on Sunday.

According to the statement, Honolulu's Emergency Operations Center has been fully activated Wednesday morning, requiring 24/7 until a decision is made to deactivate. The Department of Emergency Management continues to operate eight storm shelters at various locations around Oahu which is home to the state capital Honolulu in coordination with the American Red Cross.

The center of Tropical Storm Olivia made landfall this morning with fierce winds and torrential rain near Kahakuloa on the windward coast of the island of Maui and made a second landfall on the northeast coast of Lanai later, according to NWS Central Pacific Hurricane Center. Local officials say the storm caused power outages and road closures in some areas.
More than 40 think tank scholars and former officials from China and the U.S. gathered in Washington and New York this week to discuss proper ways to solve current trade disputes and other issues concerning China-U.S. bilateral ties in a constructive manner.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban, in a European parliamentary debate in Strasbourg on Tuesday, said: The problem with Hungarians who vote against their own country is that they hate me more than they love their country.

Reacting to liberal EP group leader Guy Verhofstadts address in a debate on a report criticising the state of the rule of law in Hungary and calling for the launch of the Article 7 procedure which suspends a member states rights, Orban said the MEP hates conservative Christians more than he loves Europe.

Verhofstadt had said that Hungary would not be accepted into the European Union today and that the criticisms laid out in the report prepared by the EPs civil liberties committee were directed exclusively at Hungarys government.

Anyone who says that the report doesnt condemn Hungary should read its title, Orban said. Its not about condemning the Hungarian government but Hungary.

Orban also issued a rebuttal to Manfred Weber, group leader of the European Peoples Party, who had said launching the Article 7 procedure could be warranted if Hungary refuses to address the EUs concerns in ongoing disputes. Weber brought up the issue of Budapests Central European University (CEU) and Hungarys amended higher education law, underlining the importance of academic freedom.

Orban said Weber was wrong concerning the CEU issue, arguing that Bavaria had stricter higher education laws than Hungary. Youre applying double standards, despite the fact that we belong to the same political family, Orban told Weber.

The prime minister encouraged MEPs to check the CEUs website, which he said declares that the universitys future was secure and that all students enrolled there will be able to complete their studies in Budapest.

Orban also said that the issue of migration was not a partisan one, adding that he was ready to cooperate with all governments that are committed to protecting the EUs borders.

As regards the issue of anti-Semitism, Orban said it was on the decline in central Europe but rising in western Europe. In fact, the centre of modern anti-Semitism is in Brussels, because thats where theyre supporting anti- Israel organisations from, the prime minister argued. It wasnt us, but you who laid a wreath at the statue of [Karl] Marx, the father of modern anti-market anti-Semitism, he told MEPs.

Addressing allegations of corruption, Orban said all tenders in Hungary were public and any European company was free to bid for them.



MTI Photo: PMs Press Office Szecsodi Balazs


Though the status of the United Kingdom will change in the near future, it will go on building tight bilateral relations with its European counterparts, Prince Andrew, Duke of York, told a conference at Budapests Public Administration University.

Referring to British experience in public service, Prince Andrew said that involving local communities in a dialogue with authorities could greatly contribute to the success of those services.

The royal is on a three-day visit in Budapest.



Tuesdays conference was organised in cooperation between the Budapest university and the University of Birmingham.



MTI Photo: Mathe Zoltan
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES. FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THIS RESTRICTION MAY CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF UNITED STATES SECURITIES LAW.

MONTREAL, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pediapharm Inc. ("Pediapharm") (TSXV:PDP) (OTCQX:PDDPF) announces that, further to its press release issued on September 6, 2018, it has filed a corporate presentation on its website setting out further information about the proposed acquisition of Medac Pharma, Inc. and the proposed acquisition of Medexus Inc. The corporate presentation can be viewed at http://www.pedia-pharm.com .



About Pediapharm

Pediapharm is the only Canadian specialty pharmaceutical company dedicated to serving the needs of the pediatric community. Its mission is to bring to the Canadian market the latest innovative pediatric products with the objective to improve the health and the well-being of children in Canada. Since its debut in 2008, Pediapharm has entered into numerous commercial agreements with partners from Canada and other countries around the world. Pediapharms innovative product portfolio includes NYDA, a breakthrough treatment for head lice; Relaxa, an osmotic laxative used to treat constipation; EpiCeram, a non-steroid emulsion for eczema; naproxen suspension, indicated to treat pain and inflammation due to various conditions, including Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis; Rupall, an innovative new allergy medication with a unique mode of action; Otixal, the first and only antibiotic and steroid combination ear drop available in single, sterile, preservative-free and unit-dose packaging; and Cuvposa, for chronic severe drooling, a condition affecting a significant proportion of cerebral palsy patients.

For more information, please contact:

Sylvain Chretien, President and Chief Executive Officer

Pediapharm Inc.

Tel.: 514-762-2626 ext. 201

E-mail: sylvain.chretien@pedia-pharm.com

Roland Boivin, Chief Financial Officer

Pediapharm Inc.

Tel.: 514-762-2626 ext. 202

E-mail: roland.boivin@pedia-pharm.com

Frank Candido

Direct Financial Strategies and Communication Inc.

Tel. 514-969-5530

E-mail: directmtl@gmail.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release is not an offer of the securities for sale in the United States. The securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration. The securities will not be publicly offered in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act, or any state securities laws.

READER ADVISORIES

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to Pediapharms future business operations and the opinions or beliefs of management and future business goals. All statements, other than of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments that Pediapharm believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future (including, without limitation, statements regarding potential acquisitions and financings) are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are generally identifiable by use of the words may, will, should, continue, expect, anticipate, estimate, believe, intend, plan or project or the negative of these words or other variations on these words or comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Pediapharm's ability to control or predict, that may cause the actual results of Pediapharm to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things, without limitation, risks disclosed in Pediapharm's public disclosure record on file with the relevant securities regulatory authorities. Although Pediapharm believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking information is based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because Pediapharm can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking information addresses future events and conditions, by its very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Pediapharms actual results, performance or achievement could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, the forward-looking information and, accordingly, no assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking information will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so, what benefits that Pediapharm will derive therefrom. Management has included the above summary of assumptions and risks related to forward-looking information provided in this press release in order to provide securityholders with a more complete perspective on Pediapharm's future operations and such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing lists of factors are not exhaustive. Additional information on these and other factors that could affect Pediapharm's operations or financial results are included in reports on file with applicable securities regulatory authorities and may be accessed through the SEDAR website (www.sedar.com). The forward-looking statements included in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and Pediapharm does not undertake an obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, subsequent events or otherwise unless required by applicable securities legislation.
HURLEY  Despite having some of the highest concentration of sugar maple forests in the country, northern Wisconsin and the western Upper Peninsula lack a strong commercial maple syrup industry. A forum in Iron County planned for later this fall will look at whether there is interest in changing that.

The intent is to gauge interest in the community (for) developing commercial enterprises here based around maple syrup and its products, said Darrin Kimbler, one of the University of Wisconsin-Extension educators organizing the forum. This is geared for people who are looking to do it commercially, not just to do it in their backyards.

The commercial maple syrup forum is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 20 at Whitecap Mountains Ski Resort in Upson, Wis. There is a small registration fee to attend, which will include lunch.

Those participating in the event will have the chance to interact with a panel of professionals in commercial syrup production, value added syrup products and cooperative business development.

There will also be an opportunity to network and meet with other residents interested in developing commercial opportunities locally. Vendors that support the industry will also be on hand to demonstrate their products and services.

Kimbler said the event will include a call to action, leaving people with some possible steps forward to develop commercial production and events around Wisconsin those interested in starting their own businesses can also attend.

Along with Kimbler and Amy Nosal  the other UW-Extension educator organizing the forum  the event is being put on in partnership with the Iron County Economic Development Zone.

To register and for more information, visit the extensions website iron.uwex.edu or call 715-561-2695.

Richard Jenkins
The Ironwood Public Safety Department displayed a firefighter's gear in front of its facility on McLeod Avenue Tuesday on the 17th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Tuesday was the 17th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks when two airliners crashed into the World's Trade Center, a third plane crashed into the Pentagon and a fourth plane crashed in a field near Shanksville, Pa.

Nineteen militants associated with the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda carried out the attacks, with almost 3,000 people killed.

The attack began at 8:45 a.m., when the first plane hit the north tower of the World Trade Center. Immediately news coverage was telling and showing American citizens the tragedy. People gathered around their television sets confused as to how it happened,...
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...
Hamilton, Bermuda, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. (Teekay Offshore or the Partnership) (NYSE:TOO) announced today the following changes to the Board of Directors of Teekay Offshore GP LLC (TOO GP), the general partner of the Partnership:



Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (Brookfield Business Partners) (NYSE:BBU) (TSX:BBU.UN), together with its institutional partners (collectively Brookfield), nominated two individuals, Craig Laurie and Denis Turcotte, who were appointed as members of the Board of Directors, replacing David Levenson and Bradley Weismiller, who were appointed by Brookfield in September 2017.

On behalf of our board and leadership team, I want to thank David and Bradley for their significant contributions in developing our business and financial strategies since Brookfield completed its strategic investment in the Partnership last year and welcome Craig and Denis to the TOO GP Board, commented Bill Utt, TOO GPs Chairman.

Craig Laurie is a Managing Partner in Brookfields Private Equity Group, overseeing Capital Markets, Finance and Planning. Mr. Laurie joined Brookfield in 1997 and has held a number of senior finance positions across the organization, including Chief Financial Officer of Brookfield Business Partners. Prior to joining Brookfield, Mr. Laurie worked in restructuring and advisory services at Deloitte. Mr. Laurie is a Chartered Professional Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Queens University.

Denis Turcotte is a Managing Partner in Brookfields Private Equity Group, responsible for business operations. Mr. Turcotte joined Brookfields Private Equity Group in 2017, prior to which he served as a member of the Brookfield Private Equity Advisory Board for 10 years and as a member of the Brookfield Business Partners Board of Directors from 2016 until 2017. Prior to joining Brookfield, Mr. Turcotte held several roles, including Principal with North Channel Management and Capital Partners, CEO of Algoma Steel, President of the Paper Group and EVP Corporate Development and Planning with Tembec. Mr. Turcotte holds a Bachelor of Engineering from Lakehead University and an MBA from the University of Western Ontario.

About Teekay Offshore

Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. is a leading international midstream services provider to the offshore oil production industry, focused on the ownership and operation of critical infrastructure assets in offshore oil regions of the North Sea, Brazil and the East Coast of Canada. Teekay Offshore is structured as a publicly-traded master limited partnership with consolidated assets of approximately $5.4 billion, comprised of 63 offshore assets, including floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) units, shuttle tankers, floating storage and offtake (FSO) units, long distance towing and offshore installation vessels, a floating accommodation unit (FAU), and conventional tankers. The majority of Teekay Offshores fleet is employed on medium-term, stable contracts.

Teekay Offshore's common units and preferred units trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbols "TOO", "TOO PR A", "TOO PR B" and TOO PR E, respectively.

For Investor Relations

enquiries contact:
East Market, one of the major new developments in Center City, steps into the spotlight this week with the debut of an Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant. Also this week, amid a slew of openings, I check out a new brunch at an old favorite in Rittenhouse, a new Hunan specialist in Chinatown, and an old pal in Bucks County. If you need food news, click here and follow me on Twitter and Instagram. Email tips, suggestions, and questions here. If someone forwarded you this free newsletter and you like what you're reading, sign up here to get it every week.

 Michael Klein

East Market heating up

Market Street east of 12th Street has been a construction zone for four years. And now, finally, East Market  as the redevelopment of a square block of prime real estate is called  is about to make a bold showing.

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant (the 15th in the Delaware-based chain) opens Thursday at 1150 Market St., directly across from the Hard Rock Cafe, adding 270 inside seats and 50 outside seats to Center City's restaurant capacity. Iron Hill joins neighbor Little Baby's Ice Cream, which last weekend opened a scoop shop around the corner on 12th Street, opposite the Loews Hotel.

MOM's Organic Market opened last year on the 11th Street side, across from a Luke's Lobster and Honeygrow. Work proceeds on a Wawa at 12th and Market and a District Taco midblock on Market between 11th and 12th.

The neighborhood also includes Brickwall Tavern and Porta, which share a building on the 1200 block of Chestnut and Sansom. The 1300 block of Chestnut is home to U-Bahn, Bru, Tradesman's, the brand-new Kontrol, and the farther-off Warehouse Bar + Kitchen. A late-2018 opening is expected for Shake Shack at 12th and Chestnut.

Across Market, the former Gallery is being developed as Fashion District Philadelphia for a 2019 opening. The biggest-name food tenant is City Winery, whose live-music lineup in its other American cities is first-rate (on the order of World Cafe Live). Also signed are BurgerFi, Chick-fil-A, Chickie's & Pete's, Dallas BBQ, Freshii, La Madeleine, Oath Pizza, and Pei Wei.

Chains, in other words.

To find independent businesses, head east to Fifth Street, where the Bourse Food Hall  which has 30 vendors on the way  is in the softest of soft-opening modes. Menagerie Coffee opened last week, and word is that two or three more will join Thursday. Among those ready to go are Bronze Table by Vera Pasta (made-to-order-pasta); Lalo (a Filipino comfort-fooder); Mighty Melt (grilled cheese); Penzeys Spices; and Takorean (a Korean/Latin hybrid).

This weeks openings

Bai Wei | Chinatown

See below.

Buk Chon | Old City

Simple Korean comfort food at 132 Chestnut St. from Chris and Alicia Chung; it's BYOB.

The Farmacy | Palmyra

The West Philly BYOB has added a second location, in a former luncheonette at 307 W. Broad St.

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant | Center City

See above.

Nannie Franco's | Italian Market

The owners of Nina's Trattoria have switched to pizza from a corner storefront at 910 S. Ninth St.

Northbound | Souderton

The owners of the Butcher & Barkeep in Harleysville and Boardroom Spirits in Lansdale are affiliated in a bar-restaurant at the old Souderton train station (2 W. Broad St.).

Pho Now | Downingtown

Vietnamese BYOB at 3911 W. Lincoln Highway has hit the ground running with $8.95 weekday lunch specials.

Vientiane Cafe | Kensington

The West Philadelphia Laotian/Thai destination adds a second BYOB spot, at 2537 Kensington Ave. Opens Thursday.

Workhorse Brewing Co. | King of Prussia

Snacks and suds at this family-friendly tasting room, set up at 250 King Manor Drive on the Bridgeport side of KOP.

This weeks closings

blueplate | Mullica Hill

The well-regarded Gloucester County BYOB had a fire. Owner Jim Malaby says repairs should take at least several more weeks.

Crisp Kitchen | Marlton

The salad/stir-fry specialist has shut down in The View at Marlton.

Where were enjoying happy hour

Talk

2121 Walnut St., 4-6 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday

Andrew Kochan and Tim Lanza's sexy Art Deco newcomer in Rittenhouse boasts a gorgeous white marble bar, where it features one of the cleverest, most addictive bar snacks around: 3 mini-eclairs ($7) filled with chicken liver mousse and topped with a sour cherry glaze studded with a few grains of kosher salt. Sweet, salty, and creamy in one flavor bomb. Also offered are crudites and a half-dozen oysters, and a house red or white ($7), an aperitivo spritz, and a daily cocktail.

Where were eating: Audrey Claire, Bai Wei, Temperance House

More than two decades ago, Audrey Taichman started brunch at Audrey Claire, her groundbreaking BYOB at 20th and Spruce Streets. But she quickly got tired of getting up early on Sundays and she dropped it. New owner Rob Wasserman (also of Rouge and Twenty Manning Grill) has reinstated it, and on Saturdays and Sundays. Chef Michael Yeamans' Middle Eastern menu includes shakshuka, toasts, and mezze. It's cash-only; reservations are accepted.

Jack Chen thought his popular Chinese/Japanese Sakura Mandarin at 11th and Race Streets was getting stale. A trip to Asia convinced him that Chinatown's Hunan and Szechuan cooking needed a boost. Bai Wei, with sleek atmospherics, retained some Sakura Mandarin favorites while adding such dishes as clam with bean paste, live tilapia in spicy peppercorn sauce, and hot and sour gizzards. Desserts, including salt-foam teas, are provided by A La Mousse, wife Anna Chen's nearby bakery.

The tavern at the Temperance House (5 S. State St., Newtown, Bucks County) has a Cheers vibe: cozy airs, friendly staff, nighttime activities, 33 beers on tap, and  something uncharacteristic of this slice of suburbia  late hours. You can eat till 1 a.m. nightly. Menu covers the pub basics and tosses in a few interesting ideas. The pork board ($16) is one of those  a sampler of thick-cut pork belly, baby back ribs, slices of smoked Andouille, bacon marmalade, spicy pickles, and sliced toast.

Dining Notes

Tastykake pie enthusiasts, your complaints have been heard. Hoping to appease its most hardcore fans, the company has relaunched its baked pies with a classic recipe that also includes more fruit.

More Than Just Ice Cream's run in Washington Square West  which has spanned at least 43 years and countless calories  will end Sept. 27.

At Xfinity Live!, you get all the stadium traffic, parking headaches, rowdy crowds and $10 Crabby Fries without the hassle of actually attending an Eagles game. You also can't help but get in the spirit.

Craig LaBan is on assignment. His Q&As will resume upon his return.
In this June 16, 2014, file photo, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos walks onstage for the launch of the new Amazon Fire Phone, in Seattle. Read more

Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos and the company's board of directors are arriving in Washington, D.C., in advance of a series of high-profile appearances for Bezos, amid intense anticipation among local officials and executives about when the Internet giant might announce the location of its second headquarters.

The company says no announcement will be forthcoming on this trip. But four people close to the company's board of directors say the board members are coming to Washington. It is unclear whether the board is holding a formal meeting; Amazon has booked the Renwick Gallery for a 40-person dinner Tuesday night, according to a museum spokesman. The museum did not provide details about the event or who would be attending. Amazon declined to comment.

"You could see it as a tea leaf, that he wants the board to see Washington," said one local business leader who had heard of the board's plans but spoke on the condition of anonymity because the discussions were private. "It's a little bit of a positive sign that it [the meeting] is here and not in Boston," which is another contender for the new headquarters.

On Thursday evening, Bezos, who owns The Washington Post, will sit for an interview hosted by the Economic Club of Washington, prompting 1,550 people  more than twice the club's typical crowd  to register to attend.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, D, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, R, and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, D, all of whom have locations in the running for the 50,000 headquarters jobs, are expected to attend, according to the group.

An Amazon spokesman said the location of the second headquarters, dubbed HQ2, will still be decided this year.

On Sept. 19, Bezos will be the keynote speaker at an Air Force conference at National Harbor. Bezos' space company, Blue Origin, is developing a rocket capable of flying satellites to orbit, and it has said it intends to compete for lucrative Pentagon launch contracts.

Bezos is also expected to visit The Washington Post on Friday. Post spokeswoman Kris Coratti declined to provide details and an Amazon spokesman told Post reporters that Bezos would not be available to answer questions about HQ2 or Blue Origin.

Amazon launched its search for a headquarters outside of its current home in Seattle last September, prompting a flurry of interest from elected officials across North America and 238 proposals from locations looking to land the project. Some analysts expect the company to narrow the field to a handful of finalists, but the company has not made any announcements since narrowing the field to 20 locations in January.

That has not dampened the frenzy surrounding Bezos' arrival in Washington. The Economic Club regularly invites high-profile business executives to be interviewed by the group's president, billionaire David Rubenstein, often drawing crowds between 400 and 650. Attendance at the Bezos event is expected to the largest since the group's 25th-anniversary event in 2012, when Warren Buffett spoke, a club spokesman said.

The top sponsor of the event is a new nonprofit group, the Washington Housing Initiative, dedicated to addressing the area's shortage of affordable housing, a problem some local experts say that Amazon's arrival could exacerbate. The sponsorship was paid for by local developer JBG Smith, a key backer of the housing initiative that is also pushing to lure the HQ2 project to Crystal City, where it is a major landowner.

"It's a tremendous opportunity to emphasize the need for more affordable and workforce housing in the city and to promote philanthropy and our partners," said Kevin Clinton of the Federal City Council, a business group that is supporting the housing initiative.

At the Air Force event, hosted by the Air Force Association at National Harbor, Bezos is to be joined by Air Force Gen. John Raymond, the commander of the Air Force Space Command.

Another of Bezos' companies, Amazon Web Services, holds a $600 million contract to provide cloud computing services to the CIA. Now, it is eyeing a much larger contract, a Pentagon effort to move to the cloud that could be worth as much as $10 billion over 10 years. Blue Origin has also pitched NASA on building a lunar lander.

The Washington Post's Christian Davenport and Peggy McGlone contributed to this report.
Joseph Brennan was named global chief risk officer at Vanguard, a new position at the $5.1 trillion investment firm. Read more

Joseph P. Brennan has been named Vanguard's global chief risk officer, a newly created position at the $5.1 trillion investment firm, Vanguard said Wednesday.

In his new position, Brennan, 49, will oversee the firm's current enterprise risk management, enterprise security, and investment risk management. He will also be a member of senior management.

"We believe centralizing our risk management functions under a single senior leader will benefit both our clients and Vanguard. Joe's vast and varied investment management and leadership experience both in the U.S. and abroad make him the ideal candidate to integrate and enhance our capable and strong global risk management teams," said Vanguard CEO Tim Buckley in a news release.

Brennan, currently head of Vanguard's Equity Index Group, which oversees $3.1 trillion in 319 mutual funds and ETFs, will be succeeded by C. Rodney Comegys, principal and head of the Risk Management Group within Vanguard Investment Management Group.

Brennan joined Vanguard in 1991 and worked as an analyst and trader in Vanguard's Fixed Income Group. He then moved to Vanguard's Portfolio Review Department, primarily responsible for investment manager search and oversight, eventually leading the group for five years. In 2009, he was named chief investment officer of the Asia Pacific region and served on the senior leadership team of Vanguard Australia. In 2013, he assumed responsibility for Vanguard's Equity Index Group.

Brennan earned a B.A. in economics from Fairfield University and an M.S. in finance from Drexel University. He is a CFA charter-holder and is a member of the CFA Society of Philadelphia.

Comegys, 49, was head of investments, Asia Pacific, and head of Equity Index Group, Asia Pacific. His prior roles include leading Vanguard's Index Analysis and ETF Trading teams, and heading the Global Broker Relations team. Before joining Vanguard in 1999, he was a U.S. Navy nuclear submarine officer, earned a B.S. from the University of Pennsylvania, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Mimi Yang and Moon Yang at the counter of their new Market Street steak shop. Mimi still cries for their old shop at the Bourse. Read more

At the mere mention of the Bourse building, Mimi Yang cries.

She's not crying out of joy for the shiny new renovations, the polished food court with its promised oysters and champagne and fancy marble finishings, set to open soon. She's crying because there's no room in it for her.

For 16 years, she and her husband, Moon, ran their Asian-salad-breakfast-cheesesteaks buffet in the Bourse food court, a prime location along Fifth Street where the tour buses pulled up, with a view of Independence Mall. When she and Moon looked at the place in 2002, recently arrived from South Korea, the old owner offered a particularly Philadelphian sales pitch: "It's the only restaurant in the world in front of the Liberty Bell," the sign read. At the time, it was. And Mimi liked that.

In time, Mimi became as much a fixture of the Bourse as the cheesy, charming souvenir shops and the heat lamps at the pizza joint and the old neon signs. The buffet they opened in front of the Liberty Bell, the Philadelphia Gourmet Cafe, fed more than just the courthouse and office crowds, the students and tourists piling off the buses. It nourished her family.

Back in Seoul, Mimi and Moon, both 55, had been accomplished journalists. Moon worked as a magazine editor and art director. Mimi was a reporter at a daily newspaper. They came to the United States for one reason: "Education," Mimi said, for their two young kids.

They landed in D.C., where Mimi went to apply for a job at the Washington Post but walked away because she felt her English wasn't strong enough. The Yangs spent a few years working in a shop with friends, then decided they wanted a business of their own.

They snatched up a struggling chain deli at the Bourse. Philadelphia it was.

The first few years, the food grew stale under the heat lamps. And then, as the family lore goes, one day, Mimi had a revelation: If the customers weren't going to come in, she was going to go out. She stood on the curb and waved to the bus drivers carrying precious cargo: hungry tourists. "Please help us," she'd say. "We have good food. Just try it."

And they did. Mimi even let the drivers eat for free. And in that way, in 18-hour shifts, with Mimi  not much over 5 feet tall  waving and pointing to her Benjamin Franklin-themed specials board, the Yangs built an American life.

"They became business owners through sheer will  they worked their butts off, man," said Mimi's son, Jay, 22. The restaurant put him and his sister through Cornell University. Sally is now studying to be a dentist at Thomas Jefferson University. Jay is in a graduate program in American literature at Cornell and wants to be a writer. A storyteller, like his parents.

READ MORE: Change comes to the Bourse, Philly's last chapel of chintz

Last year, the Bourse's new owners arrived, with their own vision for the place. Eviction notices came for nearly everyone. There was a lawsuit. The Yangs lost.

And in October of last year, they turned the heat lamps off for good. They walked Market Street, searching for a place to start over. They gambled on an Irish bar near Front Street, just about as far as you can get down Market Street without landing in the Delaware.

And Mimi and Moon and Jay, who's taking some time off school to help with the restaurant, went about polishing the place up  with a nod to the changing neighborhood. Craft beer on tap, wine for sale. Patio seating, and an upstairs dining room decorated with Philly tourist T-shirts.

They opened in March without Boursian fanfare. There's no space for Mimi to wave customers in, although regulars have found their way back. All things considered, the Yangs landed on their feet. Philly's Gourmet Steaks, they called the place. It's lovely.

But, still, Mimi cries.

Not just for the weird old Bourse, but for the life she and Moon built there.

And then she gets back to work, hoping the crowds will follow.
Owen Gowans III walks through a playground while visiting Girard Campus on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. Gowans was one of the first four students to integrate Girard College, the Philadelphia boarding school. He returned to Girard College for a 50th anniversary celebration of the integration. Read more

What Owen Gowans III remembers most about his first day of second grade are the cameras: the click and flash of dozens of cameras as he and three other black boys made history.

The day was Sept. 11, 1968, and the boys integrated Girard College, the stately boarding school in the heart of North Philadelphia that was previously closed to African Americans. It took months of round-the-clock protests, a Philadelphia speech by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and years of court fights to open the gates to children of color.

On Tuesday, Gowans and others involved in the fight returned to Girard College, to mark the 50th anniversary of that historic day.

Girard College, with its white-columned buildings and pristine campus, was founded through a bequest from the financier Stephen Girard, who wanted his estate to fund a boarding school for orphaned white boys. By the 1960s, Philadelphia NAACP president Cecil B. Moore was looking for black boys to be part of a lawsuit to force desegregation at Girard College, and Alan L. Bond fit the bill, a bright boy with his single, hardworking mother hungry for a top-notch education for her son.

He was just a child, but the turmoil is fresh in Bond's mind.

"I'll never forget it," said Bond, 59, who was admitted to Girard College a few months after Gowans. "People used to call our house and threaten us, call us terrible names."

One day in court, U.S. District Judge Joseph Lord asked Bond, who was 8, why he wanted to go to Girard College.

"I said, 'I want to play with the other kids,' " said Bond, who had been ostracized and targeted by gangs.

Gowans, now 57, wasn't part of the lawsuit, but his mother had prepared him a little for the first day of his new school, dressing him in a suit and telling him he would walk in with the other boys.

Once the media went away, the furor died down some, Gowans and Bond said. The staff did all they could to cocoon the kids of color, including two Asian students. But there were bumps.

Early on, a staffer approached Bond's mother, telling her that her son would never make it at Girard College. (On his graduation day, in 1979, the woman apologized.)

"Some of the students were OK, but some alienated us. They'd say, 'You don't touch my stuff, or you can't play with us,' " said Bond, who went on to study art at the school now known as the University of the Arts.

Both boys remember looking incredulously at the comb that was issued to them: a short, stubby thing, the same as the white kids got. It was the 1960s, the era of Afros, and that comb was useless in their hair, they said.

Gowans brought an Afro pick to use, but "they thought it was a weapon," he said, chuckling. "They took it from me."

Still, both men agreed  they look back on their Girard College time with fondness.

Gowans said that college was a foregone conclusion for him, that "we were the generation people fought for."

Some of the freedom fighters came to Girard on Tuesday, too, reflecting with pride on the stand they took.

Karen Asper-Jordan was a 16-year-old student at Gratz High School when the call came from Moore to protest at Girard College. She spent 7 months and 17 days on the picket line.

That first day, in 1965, "all you saw was police barricades and officers shoulder-to-shoulder," said Asper-Jordan. Officers sometimes turned their cars around to blow exhaust into protesters' faces. One day, a commander sent police, with dogs and horses, to disperse the crowd.

Bernyce Mills-DeVaughn's sister, who was 14, tried to run home. She slipped on a cobblestone, then got trampled by dogs, who bit her. An officer put his foot in her chest and the girl got arrested for disorderly conduct and obstruction of justice.

The protesters sang, chanted, and marched. They held signs and listened to King, who stood outside the gates on Aug. 3, 1965, pronouncing that: "This wall, this school, is symbolic of a cancer in the body politic that must be removed before there will be freedom and democracy in this country."

They were just kids, the freedom fighters said.

"We didn't see the big picture at the time," said Jibril Abdul-Jaleel, 20 at the time. "We saw something that was wrong. We thought, 'How dare you tell us that we can't?' "

To the current students who listened, raptly, to the stories of the freedom fighters and the first Girard students of color, it was a day to remember.

"These men went through all this  all that racial tension," said Najiyah Sanders, a Girard junior who is black, like most of the student body of about 300. "They came through, and now I can be here."
Girard College, the storied Philadelphia boarding school, has a new president.

Heather Deneen Wathington, CEO of a Washington nonprofit that operates charter schools for struggling teens, will begin running Girard  which offers a free college prep education to poor children from single-parent homes  on Aug. 1.

Wathington, 48, succeeds Clarence "Clay" Armbrister, who served as Girard's president for five years before leaving in December to become president of Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, N.C.

The Board of Directors of City Trusts announced Wathington's hiring Thursday.

Bernard W. Smalley, vice president of the board and chair of the search committee, said Wathington stood out in a crowded applicant pool.

"She hits all of the right bases that we need," Smalley said. "She's a Ph.D., she's a teacher, she's a researcher."

Girard College, centered on an imposing structure and set on 43 acres in North Philadelphia, educates about 300 students in first through 12th grades. They live on campus during the week. Every member of its most recent graduating class has enrolled in a four-year college, Smalley said.

It was founded in 1848, years after Stephen Girard, the banker and merchant, left money in his will to begin a boarding school. Through the years, courts have intervened to change the nature of the school, which Girard intended to "educate poor, white, male orphans."

The U.S. Supreme Court ordered the school integrated in 1965. A lawsuit later opened it to girls. And the mission has been amended to include "functional orphans" from single-parent homes.

For the past five years, Wathington has led the See Forever Foundation and the Maya Angelou Schools, both aimed at helping helping young people who have encountered difficulties succeed in college and careers.

Prior to that, she was an assistant professor at the University of Virginia's Curry School of Education, where her research focused on barriers to success in post-secondary education and the factors that lead to success in college.

In an interview, Wathington said she has always been interested in helping students who have been "traditionally underserved" by education. "There are so many challenges that we have  How do we teach a generation of learners to be flexible thinkers, to be open and have a nimbleness of mind?" she said.

Wathington holds a bachelor's degree from Wellesley College, a master's from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, and a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. She grew up in Monmouth County, N.J., where she attended public schools.

She comes to campus as Girard regains its footing after a struggling stretch. In recent years, the board that runs it had sought court permission to temporarily end the boarding and high school programs to cut costs. A judge denied that petition, ruling both were crucial to Stephen Girard's vision. The school's finances are now in better shape, officials said.

"We are moving from a period of sustainability to a period of vitality," Smalley said. "Taking us to the next level, increasing our student body, increasing diversity within our student body  it is clear that Dr. Wathington is the person to next lead Girard College."
The federal education department reopens probe of allegations that Rutgers University discriminates against Jewish students. Read more

As reports of anti-Semitic incidents on college campuses rise, the U.S. Department of Education's office of civil rights has reopened a probe, previously closed under President Barack Obama's administration, of 2011 allegations that Rutgers University discriminated against Jewish students, the New York Times reported.

Rutgers said in a statement Wednesday morning that it hadn't been notified of the revived investigation, but pledged full cooperation.

"There is no place for anti-Semitism or any form of religious intolerance at Rutgers," the school said.

News of the probe comes amid reports of rising anti-Semitism on college campuses in recent years and increased tensions between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli groups on campus, and as the Trump administration increasingly has signaled more support for Israel.

A bill was introduced in Congress earlier this year targeting anti-Semitism, given the increasing incidents on college campuses, and encouraging the Education Department's office of civil rights to consider when anti-Zionism becomes anti-Semitism  a step that some have blasted as treading on free-speech rights.

Nationally, from 2016 to 2017, anti-Semitic incidents on college campuses increased 89 percent to 204, said Nancy Baron-Baer, regional director of the Anti-Defamation League's Philadelphia office. There also has been a spike in white supremacist activity; locally over the last two years, the league has noted white supremacist recruitment at Rutgers, Temple, the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania State University, Drexel, Stockton, and Princeton, she said.

"There's no question on the white supremacist aspect that they have felt empowered over the last 18 months," she said. "Our government has not adequately called out the behavior of haters within our country, and when people see that kind of behavior being normalized, then the thoughts they may have had in private become actions they feel they can take in public."

Anti-Semitism, she said, has been around for a long time and is "the canary in the coal mine."

"It is the first place that people go when we enter a period of increased bias and prejudice," she said.

Jonathan Greenblatt, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, said he was pleased that the Education Department was acting to protect Jewish students  and all students  on campus.

He also gave Rutgers a nod for taking steps to create a more hospitable environment and said the actions that the university took following the 2011 incident were deemed adequate by his New York office at that time.

The Rutgers case stems from a 2011 complaint filed by the Zionist Organization of America alleging that a pro-Palestinian group holding an event on campus charged Jewish students and pro-Israel supporters an admission fee. The group maintained that it charged fees to cover "university imposed" security costs, which arose after Jewish students staged protests of the event, according to Palestine Legal, a Palestinian rights group.

The Education Department's office of civil rights, in dismissing the complaint in 2014, said it found no indication that Jewish students or others were selectively charged fees.

"OCR determined that the university promptly investigated the event after it occurred," the office said. "OCR further determined that the evidence failed to substantiate any specific incidents in which the fee requirement was imposed unequally on Jewish or non-Jewish attendees, based on national origin."

Neither the Education Department nor the Zionist Organization of America returned calls seeking comment Wednesday.

The new probe was reopened under Kenneth L. Marcus, who became assistant secretary of education for civil rights in the Education Department in June. Marcus, who previously worked for the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, has written about anti-Semitism and Jewish identity.

The decision didn't sit well with David Hughes, a Rutgers anthropology professor and vice president of the faculty union.

"We're feeling that this is a very unfair way to treat our institution," he said. "We're also feeling that it doesn't make sense."

He referred to the Times report that said the federal government appears to be including opposition to Zionism as anti-Semitic. Criticism of a state is legitimate, he said.

In 2016, the union backed Jasbir Puar, an associate professor of women's and gender studies, after she faced death threats and calls for her firing for a speech at Vassar College in which she said the Israeli Defense Forces used cruel tactics against Palestinian civilians, according to an account in the student newspaper.

"We cannot operate as scholars and teachers, and students can't learn, in a political environment wherein criticism of one state is considered illegitimate," Hughes said.

Alyza Lewin, president of the Brandeis Center, which supports the federal legislation and use of the State Department's definition of anti-Semitism, countered that criticism of Israel at times does constitute discrimination and noted that pro-Israel groups on the nation's campuses have been singled out and excluded.

"You can criticize specific policies," said Lewin, who applauded the Education Department's decision to reopen the Rutgers case. "That's legitimate. If you are going to suggest that Israel has no right to exist, that Israel in its creation is a racist endeavor, that Israel has no right to a Jewish state, that is anti-Semitic."

Hughes, who noted that he is Jewish, acknowledged that anti-Semitism is increasing, but said it's not coming from college campuses or professors.

"It's coming from the people who marched on the campus in Charlottesville," he said, referring to the white supremacist march at the University of Virginia last year that erupted in violence.

Meanwhile, the Philadelphia-based nonprofit civil-liberties group Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) issued a statement expressing disappointment with the Education Department's decision to reopen the Rutgers investigation "utilizing a definition of anti-Semitism that threatens speech protected by the First Amendment."

The organization's statement said the definition's "inherent vagueness allows for the investigation and punishment of core political speech. This is an unacceptable result."
Book sales zip healthily along, and autumn rolls in with a harvest of delicious, engrossing stories, themes, and characters, real and made up.

In nonfiction, there's a leaf-storm of biography and memoir this fall, with biographies of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Joe Namath, and Benjamin Rush (see below), plus memoirs by Tina Turner, Joe Namath, Flea, Eric Idle, Sally Fields, Roger Daltrey, Reese Witherspoon, and so on and so on.

>> READ MORE: Bradley Cooper, Drake, Vikings and festivals: Here's what's happening in Philly this fall

In fiction, if not a blockbuster fall, it's a deep, satisfying season of great books by authors familiar and brand-new.

Nonfiction

Contempt: A Memoir of the Clinton Investigation by Kenneth Starr (Sentinel, September). The contempt of the title is that of Bill and Hillary Clinton for the laws of this country  in the eyes of Starr, who, 20 years after the Starr Report, now tells his side. Sex, impeachment, the death of Vince Foster, presidential power, and urban legends run rampant.

Eliza Hamilton: The Extraordinary Life and Times of the Wife of Alexander Hamilton, by Tilar J. Mazzeo (Gallery, September). By any measure, she was a remarkable person: soldier's wife, society light, witness to the first years of the country, philanthropist, woman who loved and lost much, and guardian of her husband's legacy. Mazzeo gives her a voice.

Fear: Trump in the White House by Bob Woodward (Simon & Schuster, September). The Pulitzer-winning Washington Post journalist unloads this thoroughly reported bombshell, on how the Trump administration works, or doesn't, with a leader who governs by fear, a staff that goes in fear, and the resulting, fearful back-biting and chaos.

On the Other Side of Freedom: The Case for Hope by DeRay Mckesson (Viking, September). Drawing on Mckesson's civil rights work from Minneapolis to Baltimore to the streets of Ferguson, Mo., this book is part memoir and part exhortation, urging the country to leave the legacy of racism behind  and he believes we can do it.

The Real Lolita by Sarah Weinman (HarperCollins, September). Local true-crime and literary mystery. Florence Sally Horner, 11, was kidnapped in Camden in 1948 and driven around the country by a man who abused her repeatedly. Horner's story became a basis of the modernist classic novel Lolita, though Vladimir Nabokov may have played down the fact.

Rush by Stephen Fried (Penguin Random House, September). The investigative journalist and Penn professor reminds us eloquently, abundantly, what a brilliant, original man Benjamin Rush was, and how his contributions to Philadelphia and the United States continue to bless us all.

All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung (Catapult, October). She was born prematurely to a Korean couple after they moved to Oregon. They put her up for adoption, and after a lifetime of battling prejudice, she decided to find out the truth of her origin.

Beastie Boys Book by Michael Diamond and Adam Horowitz (Spiegel and Grau, October). The two surviving Beasties tell of their unlikely, often uproarious career arc from punk rock to global rap stardom. With contributions from Amy Poehler, Colson Whitehead, Spike Jonze, and Wes Anderson.

The Big Fella: Babe Ruth and the World He Created by Jane Leavy (Harper, October). He could be the first communications-age celeb, certainly one of the most enthusiastic stars who ever lived. Drawing on new documentary sources, Leavy argues he helped make our present celebrity age  and she gives us the barnstormin' Babe in three dimensions.

Gmorning, Gnight!: Little Pep Talks for Me & You by Lin Manuel Miranda (Random House, October). Even before Hamilton hit, Miranda was a Twitter star, morning and night, with little aphorisms and encouragements for his followers  who number in the millions by now. He collects some of the best here, illustrated by fellow Twitter star Jomny Sun.

Heavy: An American Memoir, by Kiese Laymon (Scribner, October). Novelist, essayist, academic, Laymon writes a shocking, terrific memoir that begins with his relationship with his mother and takes us through American society, racism, sexual violence, the deceptions and lies at the heart of our lives together, and he asks: Do we really know how to love?

Help! The Beatles, Duke Ellington, and the Magic of Collaboration by Thomas Brothers (W.W. Norton, October). Duke musicologist Brothers studies how working with others prompted some of the greatest pop musicians in history to create some of their greatest work.

The Library Book by Susan Orlean (Simon & Schuster, October). Why did someone set fire to the Los Angeles Public Library in 1986? Why would someone do a thing like that when books are so beautiful? Orlean (The Orchid Thief) weaves in the history of books and libraries; her love of books is on every page.

Becoming by Michelle Obama (Crown, November). The former first spouse writes of growing up in Chicago and of her ensuing life of accomplishment, cultural stardom, disappointment, and constant becoming. Needless to say, one of the biggest books of the fall.

Fiction

The Hazards of Good Fortune by Seth Greenland (Europa, August). One of the year's sleeper blockbusters. Greenland, a natural-born storyteller, unleashes a Balzackian tale that ranges top to bottom through U.S. society, addressing the racial divide, the income gap, and political polarization.

Boomer1 by Daniel Torday (St. Martin, September). Marc has been everything from a bluegrass musician to an English Ph.D., and he's reached his millennial 30s without much to show. So he starts a video blog to attack baby boomers for their hold on the job market. Things go wonderfully nuts from there. Torday is director of creative writing at Bryn Mawr.

Lake Success by Gary Shteyngart (Random House, September). Critical darling and popular success Shteyngart gives us something different: the tale of a self-appointed master of the universe who crashes, so he hits the road in search of greatness, redemption, or  what, exactly? The book is also unexpectedly moving on the plight of parents caring for differently abled children.

She Would Be King by Wayetu Moore (Graywolf, September). In the early days of Liberia, three people with supernatural gifts find themselves in a position to influence the course of the young nation. Wide-ranging, this magical-realist novel is the debut of a promising Liberian American writer.

Transcription by Kate Atkinson (Little, Brown; September). It's 1940. Juliet, 18, is recruited by Britain's MI5 to monitor fascist sympathizers. Her activities as a domestic spy in wartime will have consequences and force Kate to make choices in the years to come. Atkinson strikes again!

Elevation by Stephen King (Scribner, October). King published The Outsider in May, and he's back with this shortie about Scott, a man who is, strangely, losing weight while battling the ladies next door, whose dog keeps relieving itself on his lawn. Scott has the power to bring Castle Rock, Maine, his little town, together  can he do it?

Friday Black by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah (Mariner, October). Satirical, edgy, fresh, hard-hitting stories about consumerism, life at the mall, sports, and the challenges of blackness. Big advance notices for this one.

In Your Hands by Ines Pedrosa (Amazon Crossing, October). Three generations of women in Portugal struggle to define themselves amid authoritarian government, sexual prejudice, and social turbulence. A granddaughter learns of the ties that bind her to mother and grandmother. This passionate, resonant novel is now in English for the first time.

Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami (Knopf, October). An ode to The Great Gatsby in a lot of ways, seen through the transforming lens of Murakami's imagination. Love, loneliness, war  and art.

The Reckoning by John Grisham (Penguin Random House, October). War veteran Pete Bannon kills beloved minister Dexter Bell in 1946, and the trial rocks the town of Clanton, Miss. As he so often does, Grisham renders the trial just as fascinating as the killing.

Riddance: Or: The Sybil Joines Vocational School for Ghost Speakers & Hearing-Mouth Children by Shelley Jackson (Black Balloon, October). Little Jane has been sent to the Sybil Joines School to cure her stutter  but the school is using children's speech impediments for quite another purpose.

A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult (Ballantine, October). A gunman takes hostages inside a women's reproductive health clinic. When a police hostage negotiator arrives, he learns that his 15-year-old daughter is inside. Once again, Picoult shows her best-selling knack for lacing her page-turning tales with topical themes.

The Witch Elm by Tana French (Viking, October). A man surprises burglars in his home and is beaten and left for dead. Possibly brain damaged, he goes to care for a sick uncle  and that's when the mystery and suspense really start accelerating.

Poetry

Walking Backwards: Poems 19662016 by John Koethe (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, October). A half-century of poetry by this musical, lyrical philosopher-poet, whose work always brings us closer to "the irreducible / Self waiting there at the center of its world." A great moment to consider his career.

Monument: Poems New and Selected by Natasha Trethewey (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, November). The Pulitzer-winner and former U.S. poet laureate is one of our best. In the title poem, she writes of an anthill on her mother's grave: "Even now, / the mound is a blister on my heart, / a red and humming swarm."
It's been more than 30 years since audiences were first introduced to the universe's deadliest hunter in 1987's Predator, a testosterone-fueled action flick that helped define the over-the-top tone of the era. Since then, sequels and crossover films have failed to capture the interstellar reptilian magic of the original. Now, we can add the latest addition to the series, The Predator, to the attempts list.

Directed and cowritten by Shane Black, who played squad member Hawkins in the original film, The Predator follows Army sniper Quinn McKenna (Boyd Holbrook), who has a close encounter with a predator when its ship crash-lands nearby during a mission. The alien hunter kills McKenna's squad, but McKenna escapes, and is interrogated about the incident by a shadowy government group that has worked to keep the predators' existence a secret.

Dr. Casey Brackett (Olivia Munn), a biologist with a penchant for aliens, is summoned by the group to investigate a captured predator, which is believed to have human DNA. Known as the Fugitive, that predator is actually on the run from a larger, more advanced predator, or Yautja, known as the Upgrade  a hulking, 11-foot-tall monster with bulletproof skin and plenty of aggression. Ever the warrior, McKenna joins another squad known as The Loonies  a group of downtrodden military veterans  to stop the Upgrade and save the world.

For an action movie, that's pretty complicated. As a result, The Predator suffers from serious tone and pacing issues. Instead, it feels more on par with Black's other movies  think Kiss Kiss Bang Bang or Lethal Weapon. It doesn't much feel like a Predator movie; the horror elements that permeated the original and made it so compelling are gone. If the rule in the 1987 film was to show the monster as little as possible, the order here is to show the monster early and often. Black makes up for that lack of suspense with plenty of gore, making it feel like Rambo IV with space aliens.

Mostly, The Predator isn't sure if it wants to be a comedy or not. The characters  a suicidal ex-corporal (Trevante Rhodes), a military veteran with Tourette syndrome (Thomas Jane), and another who copes with PTSD through humor (Keegan-Michael Key)  spew endless quips. While Predator had a sense of humor, it wasn't front-and-center like it is with Black's version.

And good luck caring for any of The Predator's primary squad. The film moves at such a quick pace that any character development is impossible, and despite inklings of deconstructing the machismo of The Loonies  like Predator did with its original group  The Predator jumps to gunplay too quickly for any real growth to occur. Many characters are killed off so nonchalantly, you might have to go back and check to make sure they died. The guys learn that they are at their best with weapons in hand  an odd message for a film that hints at the idea that war has very real consequences for the people who fight it.

This is far from the only idea shoehorned into an overly complicated story: McKenna's son, Rory (Room Oscar-nominee Jacob Tremblay) is on the spectrum, and has Rain Man-like mental prowess when it comes to alien technology. As a result, the big, bad Upgrade considers him to be the "next step in human evolution," and the predator plans to capture Rory and harvest his spinal fluid. That's too big of an idea to be executed in such a ham-fisted, passing way.

Munn's character, the film's token female lead, is thankfully not boiled down to a romantic conquest for the rest of the cast, and begins The Predator as a wholly-formed character. However, as the film marches on, she becomes just another person capable of firing a weapon. But in 2018, after the likes of Annihilation, Mad Max: Fury Road, and even 2010's Predators, which featured actress Alice Braga as an Israeli Defense Forces sniper, backing off the development of a strong female star like that stands out as a blatant half measure.

That is to say nothing of the new predator. A monster movie at its core, The Predator mostly will be judged on how intriguing its main creature is, and the Upgrade is a scary version of reptilian hominid we have come to know and fear  initially. Sure, he's huge, and angry, and pretty much impervious to bullets. But, then, so were all the other predators before him. This one is just a little bigger and angrier, and while it's neat to see another addition to the Predator universe, the payoff here doesn't exactly feel like it was worth the decade-long wait.

The Predator is far from the worst of the series  that honor, after all, belongs to 2007's Alien vs. Predator: Requiem. Callbacks to previous films, like Munn's take on Arnold Schwarznegger's "ugly mother-" line or Rhodes' use of the classic "Get to the chopper," aren't in short supply, and lovingly recall the series' past successes, if a little too often. As a fan, it's hard not to be at least a little enamored by a new predator creature.

For fans of the series, maybe that is enough to make the film a success. After all, it's not often that a new predator comes around. Eventually, they'll have to get it right.

MOVIES

The Predator
BOISE, Idaho, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Albertsons Companies announced today that Jim Donald, currently the companys President and Chief Operating Officer, has been appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Albertsons Companies, effective immediately. Robert Miller, currently the companys Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, will continue as the Chairman of the Board.



Miller and Donald are two of grocery retails preeminent leaders. Millers 57-year retail career began as a high school job in Southern California in the backroom of a neighborhood supermarket. He took on roles of increasing responsibility, culminating in his serving as Executive Vice President of Operations for Albertsons, Inc. Miller left Albertsons in 1991 and went on to serve as Chief Executive officer of Fred Meyer, Inc.; Chief Operating Officer and Vice Chairman of Kroger; and Chief Executive Officer of Rite Aid. In 2006, Miller returned to lead Albertsons LLC as CEO following the divestiture of Albertsons, Inc.s assets.



Donalds 47-year retail career began as a trainee in Florida with Publix Supermarkets. He joined Albertsons in 1976, which culminated in his being appointed Vice President of Operations in Arizona. In 1991, he was recruited personally by Sam Walton to join Walmart to lead the development of their grocery business and Superstore concept. Donald subsequently left for Safeway in 1994 to be the Senior Vice President of their 130-store Eastern region, a position he held for two years. His first Chief Executive Officer role was at Pathmark Stores from 1996 through 2002, followed by his most well-known appointment as President and Chief Executive Officer at Starbucks, where he notably led the company through record growth, including five straight years of 20%+ annual earnings increases. Post Starbucks, Donald served as Chief Executive Officer of two other companies, Haggen and Extended Stay America, Inc. Named one of the Top 25 CEOs in the World by The Best Practice Institute and one of Business Travel News 25 Most Influential Business Travel Executives in 2013 for his leadership of Extended Stay America where he led its successful $565 million IPO, Donald joined Albertsons Companies in March 2018 as President and Chief Operating Officer.



Jim is an exceptional retailer. In the seven months since he joined Albertsons Companies, hes flown tens of thousands of miles and met personally with thousands of employees in hundreds of our stores, distribution centers, manufacturing plants, and offices around the country, Miller said. His expertise in listening to front line employees and customers, facilitating employee engagement and generating sales is unmatched, and there is no better leader for Albertsons Companies at this state in our evolution.



Albertsons Companies is uniquely positioned to operate in both a four walls traditional environment and the no walls world of technology, Donald said. We serve 34 million customers each week across our 2,300-plus stores and serve 5.5 million patients in our 1,700-plus pharmacies. Thats a significant food, health, and wellness footprint. Were well positioned to serve the evolving needs of todays customer, wherever and whenever they choose to shop with us. I am looking forward to leading this dynamic company as we focus on innovation and customer-centric retailing in all its forms.



About Albertsons CompaniesAlbertsons Companies, Inc. is one of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, with both a strong local presence and national scale. Albertsons Cos. operates stores across 35 states and the District of Columbia under 20 well-known banners including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Shaws, Acme, Tom Thumb, Randalls, United Supermarkets, Pavilions, Star Market, Haggen and Carrs, as well as meal kit company Plated based in New York City. Albertsons Cos. is committed to helping people across the country live better lives by making a meaningful difference, neighborhood by neighborhood. In 2017 alone, along with the Albertsons Companies Foundation, the Company gave nearly $300 million in food and financial support. These efforts helped millions of people in the areas of hunger relief, education, cancer research and treatment, programs for people with disabilities and veterans outreach.



Important Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This release may include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements contain information about future operating or financial performance. Forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current expectations and assumptions about market conditions and its future operating performance which we believe to be reasonable at this time. The words expect, believe, estimate, intend, plan and similar expressions indicate forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to various risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions (including assumptions about general economic, market, industry and operational factors), known or unknown, which could cause the actual results to vary materially from those indicated or anticipated. A further list and description of risks and uncertainties can be found in the Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended February 24, 2018 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) and other documents that the Company may file or furnish with the SEC, which you are encouraged to read. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated or anticipated by such forward-looking statements. Accordingly, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements relate only to the date they were made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made except as required by law or applicable regulation.

Attachments
Jose Benitez, executive director of Prevention Point, poses in his office. Prevention Point is in a former church on Kensington Avenue near Cambria Street in Philadelphia, PA on June 27, 2017. Read more

More Pennsylvanians were admitted to a hospital for a heroin overdose in 2017, and the increases were especially pronounced among Hispanics, those 55 and older, and lower-income residents, according to new data released by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council. At the same time, hospital admissions for those overdosing on prescription opioids declined.

The data represent some of the most serious overdose cases, as they include only those who had to spend at least one night in a hospital after overdosing on heroin, fentanyl, or prescription opioids. Many overdose victims are administered Narcan on the street, or revived in an emergency department, and don't require hospital admission. Others die before medical help arrives.

"This is a tiny sliver of the problem," said Tom Farley, Philadelphia's health commissioner. (State officials said they were working to better track overdoses across the state; last month, state Health Secretary Rachel Levine said, Pennsylvania launched a new data tool that tracks overdoses in emergency rooms across the state in real time. In Philadelphia, officials also track emergency-room visits and Narcan revivals by police and paramedics.)

Of the 1,753 Pennsylvania patients hospitalized for heroin overdoses in 2017, 9.6 percent died  up from 9.3 percent the year before. Pain-medication overdose victims admitted to the hospital died at a rate of 5 percent in 2017  up from 2.9 percent in 2016.

Still, state officials said they were encouraged by decreases in hospital admissions for pain-medication overdoses, which dropped 2.4 percent between 2016 and 2017 even as admissions for heroin overdoses spiked 12.5 percent.

"We've decreased opioid prescriptions 20 percent in two years," Levine said. "We are really working with the medical community to use these carefully and judiciously."

Farley said the increases in heroin-overdose cases were "reflective of how the entire problem has shifted."

"It started out as a prescription problem, but people are switching to heroin because it's cheaper," Farley said. He said doctors need to continue reducing opioid prescriptions "to stop people from getting addicted in the first place." But, he said, those reductions must be coupled with more accessible treatment, so that people already dependent on pills don't turn to heroin if a doctor reduces their prescription.

In Philadelphia, advocates said the statewide data dovetailed with what they have been seeing on the ground. At Prevention Point, the city's only needle exchange, which also provides medical care and access to treatment, executive director Jose Benitez said his staff had been serving more Hispanic patients.

In 2016, white non-Hispanic residents had the highest hospitalization rate for heroin overdoses in the state. But by 2017, Hispanic Pennsylvanians were being admitted to hospitals for heroin overdoses more often than white or black residents, at a rate of 19.3 patients per 100,000 residents, the PHC4 report found. That's a 48.8 percent increase over 2016.

Hispanic residents were also the only ethnic group in the state to see an increase in hospital admissions for pain-medication overdoses  a spike of 31.1 percent.

Benitez said there's a dearth of Spanish-language resources for people in addiction. "It can sometimes be difficult for people to get into drug and alcohol treatment  and then add a language barrier to that," he said. And seeking treatment is even more difficult when you're undocumented: "People who don't have the proper paperwork to be in the country  their treatment gets hugely complicated because they're more likely to wait for an urgent, urgent issue before they go in for treatment," he said.

He said the statistics released this week show providers aren't doing enough to reach Hispanic patients.

Analysts at PHC4 also highlighted stark jumps in hospital admissions among other groups.

Among black residents, there was a 34.7 percent increase in hospitalization rates for heroin overdoses. And though this group's hospitalization rates for pain medication decreased, it still had the highest rate in the state in 2017.

Hospitalization rates for heroin overdoses increased across all age groups, including among those ages 55 and up. Older residents are still the least likely in the state to be hospitalized for a heroin overdose, but their rate of hospitalization nonetheless increased by more than a third between 2016 and 2017. They also had the highest rate of hospitalization for pain-medication overdoses. Rates of heroin-overdose hospitalization among 15- to 34-year-olds remained the highest in the state, but increased by just 8.5 percent between 2016 and 2017.

Lower-income residents were more likely than the more affluent to be admitted to the hospital for heroin and for pain-medication overdoses in 2017. They also saw the largest spike in heroin-overdose admissions  a 40.8 percent jump.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Wednesday it is escalating its fight against what Commissioner Scott Gottlieb is calling an epidemic in the use of e-cigarettes or vaping by children, demanding that manufacturers show how they will restrict sales to minors.

Just this summer, the agency embarked on what it called the "largest coordinated enforcement effort in the FDA's history" when it issued 1,300 warning letters and fines to retailers  both traditional and online  that illegally sold the nicotine-delivering gadgets to minors.

"We cannot allow a whole new generation to become addicted to nicotine," said Gottlieb in a news release.

The agency plans to revisit a policy that gave manufacturers of e-cigarettes  which come in youth-friendly fruit and candy flavors  more time to apply for pre-market authorization. The policy allowed those products already on the market as of August 2016 to continue to be sold until at least 2022, without filing new applications and undergoing a public health review by the FDA.

It also demanded that manufacturers provide plans within 60 days showing how they will keep their products out of kids' hands. The five top-selling national brands  Vuse, Blu, Juul, MarkTen XL, and Logic  make up 97 percent of the U.S. market for e-cigarettes.

If the companies fail to provide a plan, the FDA may start removing products from the market, Gottlieb said.

In 2017, more than two million middle and high school students were found to have been using e-cigarettes, according to a National Youth Tobacco Survey. Though many students think vaping is harmless  or at least a lot healthier than traditional cigarettes  scientists have found the developing adolescent brain is particularly vulnerable to nicotine addiction.

"Let me be clear that nicotine isn't a benign substance," said Gottlieb. "That's why we need a strong regulatory process that puts these new products through an appropriate series of regulatory gates."

The announcement won approval by anti-smoking advocates, many of whom wondered what took so long.

"The e-cigarette companies have been marketing to teenagers for years. We're pleased to see this change, but the FDA should have been using its regulatory power to stop it long before now, " said Thomas Farley, Philadelphia's health commissioner.

The FDA's plan has the potential to make a major impact but only if there is quick follow-up, said Matthew L. Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

"Today's announcement will represent a fundamental turning point if, but only if, the FDA formally requires all manufacturers to comply with these requirements" said Myers. He added that the FDA should reverse its policy and require e-cigarettes to undergo agency review now.

Barbara L. McAneny, president of the American Medical Association, called for the FDA to prohibit the use of flavors that enhance the appeal of the products to youth.

"Increasing the awareness of the harmful nature of these products and their addictive power is the only way to prevent another generation of Americans from developing nicotine dependence," she said.

Gottlieb said the FDA will support the potential of e-cigarettes to help adults stop using traditional cigarettes, but not at the expense of children.

Kevin Burns, Juul Labs' chief executive officer, said it was committed to preventing kids from using its products.

"Juul Labs will work proactively with FDA in response to its request," Burns said. "Our mission is to improve the lives of adult smokers by providing them with a true alternative to combustible cigarettes." To make that point, the company has been running advertisements, including in the Inquirer, promoting the product for adults.

But Burns defended the flavors, saying, "Appropriate flavors play an important role in helping adult smokers switch."

The company was founded in 2007 by two Stanford University design students and has seen the use of its product skyrocket. Juul has captured about 68 percent of the U.S. e-cigarette market and is valued at $15 billion, Bloomberg reported in June.

The dramatic increase in use of Juuls by teens has left school officials scrambling to educate parents and kids on the potential health risks. The trendy devices can be purchased at gas stations, convenience stores, and smoke shops.

Designed to look like USB thumb drives, Juuls can be charged on laptop computers. The devices, which contain flavored nicotine fluid, can be easily hidden in a teen's sleeve. Yet teens are often unaware that Juuls, and similar brands such as Myblu and KandyPens, contain nicotine and that it is addictive.

In a recent study by the American Academy of Pediatrics, teens who smoke cigarettes or e-cigarettes are more likely to use marijuana than peers who shun the nicotine products.

The FDA announcement comes at a time when the e-cigarette industry is facing recent court challenges and bans.

In July, Israel decided to ban Juuls because of the high concentration of nicotine and the threat to public health.

A class-action complaint was filed last month in Philadelphia federal court on behalf of four plaintiffs and others in Pennsylvania and New Jersey by users who claim the company has violated consumer-protection laws, engaged in deceptive marketing, and failed to include warnings about the level of nicotine the product delivers. A similar lawsuit was filed in New York in July.
The uninsured rate in New Jersey and Pennsylvania remained steady in 2017, according to new Census data released Sept. 12, 2017. Read more

The portion of New Jersey and Pennsylvania residents without health insurance remained low in 2017, as insurance markets stabilized following sweeping changes by the federal Affordable Care Act to expand access to coverage.

About 5.5 percent of Pennsylvania residents were uninsured in 2017, as were 7.7 percent of New Jersey residents, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey released Wednesday. Uninsured rates decreased by one-tenth of a percent in Pennsylvania and two-tenths of a percent in New Jersey between 2017 and 2016.

The national uninsured rate was unchanged in 2017, compared with the previous year, at 8.7 percent.

"It reflects a few offsetting trends," Katherine Hempstead, a senior policy adviser with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, said of the low, stable uninsured rates.

Premium increases in the individual market, including the health insurance exchanges established by the ACA, may have proven too steep for some people, who went without coverage in 2017.

At the same time, steep competition for workers amid a strong labor market has pushed some companies to expand their health insurance offerings, including coverage for part-time employees, who typically do not qualify for such benefits, Hempstead said.

Medicaid expansion has also had a significant effect on uninsured rates.

Between 2013, the year before states began expanding Medicaid eligibility, and 2017, the uninsured rate declined 4.2 percent in Pennsylvania and 5.5 percent in New Jersey.

"This size change is something that's really associated with states that expanded Medicaid. You see a real closing in income disparities in insurance coverage," Hempstead said.

Nationally, about 19 percent of people were covered by Medicaid in 2017.

Private insurance, either from an employer or bought independently, was the most common kind of insurance, covering 67 percent of Americans.

It's unclear whether the trend will continue in the years ahead.

Republican efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, such as eliminating the penalty for people who do not buy health insurance and expanding access to lower-quality health plans, as well as work requirement rules for Medicaid could lead to more people going without health insurance.

At the same time, premium rates stabilized in many states in 2018 and insurers spooked by the ACA are returning to the marketplace. In New Jersey individual insurance rates for 2019 will decline by an average of 9.3 percent.

New Jersey, in particular, has taken several steps to protect its insurance marketplace from potential national disruptors.

It is one of only three states and the District of Columbia to establish its own individual mandate, requiring most residents to buy health insurance or pay a tax penalty. The state attributed its uncommon decline in insurance premiums to its new reinsurance program, which will reimburse 60 percent of individual claims between $40,000 and $215,000.

"The next sort of big challenge for us is to see if, as a nation, we can go lower," Hempstead said.

Many of the people who remain uninsured are eligible for Medicaid, subsidies in the Obamacare marketplaces, or are passing up employer-sponsored health benefits, she said.

"Pretty much everyone who isn't covered, the reason is, on some level, that they don't think they can pay for it. The biggest barrier for coverage remains the cost of health care."
The tiny bug with black and gray spots crawled up the side of a Center City office building unnoticed by everyone  except Josh Palley, who recognized it as a spotted lanternfly, a dreaded recent plague in Pennsylvania farming country.

"I was leaving work and spotted it on the sidewalk directly outside of the Graham building at 15th and Ranstead Streets," said Palley, a senior director at EPAM global, who read about the lanternfly's spread when he came across a leaflet distributed at the Philadelphia Folk Festival.

"We were all asked to kill any that we see because each one you kill prevents 100 eggs in the next generation," Palley said.

But he was surprised to see one across from City Hall. He squished it.

"It's a shame they're so terrible," Palley said. "They really are beautiful."

The loathed spotted lanternfly, an invasive pest from Asia, is invading Philadelphia.

Lycorma delicatula was first discovered in the United States in Berks County in 2014. It's a major pest for agriculture as it can damage fruit trees, ornamental trees, woody trees, vegetables, herbs, and vines  though it does not bite or sting humans.

The spotted lanternfly feeds on plants by piercing them to get at sap. In the process, they excrete liquids that cause wounds on the plants and facilitate mold growth.

The pest has spread so fast in Pennsylvania that the federal government pitched in $17.5 million this year to help the state fight it. The pest is now in 13 counties. Most of Southeastern Pennsylvania is under quarantine.

Alain Joinville, a spokesperson for the Philadelphia Parks & Recreation Department, confirmed the insect has been found at the Fairmount Park Horticulture Center, Wissahickon Valley Park near Northwestern Avenue and East Falls. A single spotted lanternfly was seen along Valley Green Drive early last week in the Wissahickon. The Wissahickon Environmental Center reported that the bugs appeared in Roxborough last fall but were quickly destroyed.

The insect is attracted to Philadelphia for a key reason: It loves the tree of heaven, or Ailanthus altissima, also an invasive species, that has been in Philadelphia since the 1800s. It prospers in places other trees don't: sidewalk cracks, building foundations, and along roadsides.

Humans have had a big role in the spread of the lanternfly, which hitches rides on cars and trucks traveling from rural areas to suburban communities, and now the city. It lays eggs on vehicles, especially in wheel wells.

Jamie Caughey, who lives with her family in suburban Chester Springs, said she's seen entire trees infested with the critters in the parking lot of a Target store in West Pottsgrove and covering pumps at nearby gas stations.

"It was shocking to see that many," Caughey said. "They were all over the ground, all over the pumps, just flying around because this tree of heaven goes up and down the routes."

Dana Dentice, urban forestry program manager for the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, said the insect begins laying its eggs in the fall and continues into winter. Residents who spot eggs are urged to scrape them into bags filled with rubbing alcohol or hand sanitizer to kill them.

Eggs may also be found on patio furniture, trailers and other hard surfaces. They've been known to attack birch, poplar, willow, and a lot of other tree species common to the city.

Theyre going to be really challenging to contain, Dentice said.
THE PARENTS: Katie Ottinger-Ovens, 32, and Jason Ovens, 33, of Manayunk

THE KIDS: Jayson Ralph, 2; Hudson Charles, born March 26, 2018

WHAT KATIE DIDN'T KNOW BEFORE HAVING CHILDREN: "I thought the hospital was going to be like a stay in a hotel. But I found out they come and check on you every hour."

Katie had never broken a bone or gotten a tattoo. She'd never been a patient overnight. She sobbed in the car on the way to Abington Hospital, begging Jason to drive faster as he was trying to navigate gently around bumps in the road.

And when a triage nurse asked Katie to rate her pain on a scale of one to 10, she said, "I feel like I'm dying!

"I thought it was the worst pain I'd ever experienced," she said. The only thing that helped  besides a well-timed epidural  was having Jason press a small jar of lotion against her lower back, using it as a massage device.

"All the stuff we'd learned in childbirth class totally went out the window," she says. "I took yoga for years and embraced meditation, but I felt like it did not prepare me for any of that [pain]."

Law & Order was on television when she began pushing. At 12:34  she'll always remember the time, 1, 2, 3, 4  their first son, Jayson Ralph, called "Roo" because his initials are JROO, entered the world.

Jason and Katie remember their relief, their joy, their tears.

They wanted children  maybe four, Katie used to say  but they weren't that far from childhood themselves when they met; Katie was about to enter Girls High School, and Jason was starting 10th grade at Roxborough. A date back then consisted of talking on the phone while watching The X-Files until both fell asleep.

Jason was impressed by Katie's ambition  she knew as a teen that she wanted to be a school psychologist  and she loved his social ease, a counterpoint to her shyness.

She was 19 when he proposed, at a surprise birthday party complete with jalapeno cheddar poppers and a cadre of enthusiastic friends. Jason had borrowed dress clothes for the occasion  slacks and shirt, shoes and tie  and he wrote his proposal in a card.

But they weren't ready to marry. Jason worked in local restaurants before deciding to start trade school and become a mechanic; Katie started at Community College of Philadelphia before transferring to Temple University, pursuing graduate work in school psychology.

The night before their September 2012 wedding, they rode around Philadelphia on a trolley, stopping for photographs in LOVE Park, in front of City Hall, and at Penn's Landing. At the ceremony, their officiant was 90 minutes late; by the time he arrived, they'd forgotten to tell him they planned to use their own vows.

"We always say we'll have a 10-year anniversary party and say those vows then," Katie says.

Age 30  at least, for her  seemed like a good target for parenthood. After two months of trying to conceive, Katie felt impatient. They got a Rottweiler puppy. Then she landed a job. Then, naturally, she was pregnant.

"We were at the Mummers Mardi Gras in Manayunk with friends. I went to order a drink and thought, 'This doesn't taste good,' " Katie says. Once the test stick confirmed her hunch with a clear positive reading, Jason wanted to shout their news to the world, but she preferred to keep it quiet at least until the end of the first trimester.

They downloaded an app that tracked the growth of the fetus; each Sunday morning, when the app updated, they'd lie in bed, staring in amazement at their phones. Katie read extensively about breastfeeding  she didn't have any family members who had nursed babies, so she felt she was educating them as well as herself  and compared notes with a close friend who was due around the same time.

Once Jayson  named for his father, but with a spelling variation all his own  was born, Katie revised her "family of four" aspiration. "I was thinking, 'One's plenty. We can still travel. One would be easy.' Then they get to the two-year mark, and you think: I do want another."

The second pregnancy was more uncomfortable, but also more familiar. The baby was breech, and though Katie tried everything to flip him  yoga, acupuncture, moxibustion, chiropractic  he remained resolutely in place.

She scheduled a C-section. But a week before that date, her contractions began. Jason was out with buddies; Katie summoned him home, called her mom to watch Jayson, then drove herself and her not-quite-sober husband to the hospital. They arrived at midnight. Hudson was born, in the operating room, at 4:46. "It was painless. I felt like I'd cheated," Katie says. "This isn't the way you're supposed to give birth."

The first time Jayson met his infant sibling, he pushed the bassinet and announced, "Baby back!" Katie began to worry: What if they don't get along? What if Jayson is overwhelmed with jealousy? She talked with other moms and tried to recall what she'd learned in school about sibling rivalry and toddler development.

She's aware, all the time, of the gap between that theory and the messy, hands-on practice of parenthood. "I studied psychology; I felt like I had a good grasp on things. But it's so different when you're actually in the moment."

Now that they're parents, she and Jason note the sweet spots  and the limitations  of their own childhoods. Both grew up fishing, and now they do that with the kids. But Katie was raised by a single mom who gave birth at 15; she was 21 before she traveled on an airplane. For Jayson and Hudson, she wants a wider world.

"Parenthood teaches you more responsibility, more courage," Jason says. "More worries, too. I think you probably never learn it all. You're a parent until you die."

So far, Jayson mirrors Katie's temperament  quiet, reserved  while Hudson is a smiley, social baby. And as the books promised, they have made filial peace. Katie recalls a turning point: "We were sitting on the couch. Jayson said, 'Mommy, hold Hud-Hud.' He was holding him, and he kissed his head."
South Carolina state troopers work with D.O.T. employees at an access ramp to I-26 as evacuations from coastal areas get underway in advance of Hurricane Florence. Read more

Hurricane Florence remains a life-threatening Category 3 storm churning in the Atlantic but it is expected to slow on its path to the coasts of North and South Carolina. Here's the latest of what we know:

 Florence is a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 120 mph. The hurricane is about 485 miles southeast of Wilmington, N.C., and is moving at a speed of 15 mph. The projected path of the storm has shifted slightly south, diminishing any possible impacts for the Philadelphia region, though there's the potential for rough surf and rip currents at the Shore.

 The National Hurricane Center says Florence is expected to slow down Thursday night when it runs into a high-pressure system that is forecast to begin building over the east-central United States. That means the storm will linger off the coast, battering coastal areas with winds and storm surges, before the eye of the storm makes landfall early Saturday, likely as a Category 2 with winds of about 100 mph. A state of emergency has been declared in neighboring Georgia, due to possible impacts there after the storm's landfall.

>> READ MORE: What do you want to know about Hurricane Florence in Philadelphia and South Jersey?

 The National Weather Service says wave heights of up to 83 feet were measured in Florence's northeast quadrant by satellite altimeter.

 Officials are urging residents to evacuate coastal areas in the hurricane's path no later than Wednesday. President Trump urged people in the path to leave, saying: "Get out of its way. Don't play games with it. It's a big one We love you all, we want you safe, get out of the storm's way."

 While Florence will drench the South with heavy rains, the forecast for the Philadelphia region from the weather service's office in Mount Holly calls for a mostly dry weekend, with partly sunny skies Saturday and mostly sunny skies Sunday. Florence's remnants could eventually bring rain to the our region next week, but that part of the forecast remains uncertain.

 Task forces from New Jersey and Pennsylvania, including a contingent of Philadelphia firefighters, have been dispatched to the Carolinas with boats and other equipment to assist in rescues and other recovery efforts.
Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele announces the names of the four doctors arrested on suspicion of recklessly prescribing opioids at a press conference Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018. Read more

Four Montgomery County doctors have been arrested over the last seven months on charges of illegally prescribing opioid medications to drug users and dealers, authorities said Wednesday, linking one of the physicians to nine overdose deaths.

Lawrence I. Miller, a family medicine practitioner who worked out of a Walnut Street office in Lansdale, was arrested Wednesday morning, said Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele at a news conference. Joseph F. Cipriano, 56, of Norristown, was arrested in July; Brian C. Keeley, 61, of Ambler, was arrested in May; and Joseph M. Rybicki, 59, of Haddonfield, was arrested with his wife, Anne, 57, in February.

All were charged with multiple counts of unlawful prescribing. Miller, Cipriano, and Keeley were charged with running a corrupt organization and related offenses.

The investigation is ongoing. The doctors' licenses have either been suspended or are under investigation, officials said.

"I anticipate, unfortunately, that there will be more [arrests]," Steele said. "We are actively investigating other physicians that come to our attention." Steele said tipsters had alerted police to potential suspicious activity at local doctors' offices. He skirted answering if pharmacists were part of the tipster pool, citing confidentiality.

Miller, of Warminster, saw some patients only for a short time or never saw them at all, but nevertheless wrote single prescriptions for more than 500 opioid painkiller pills for certain people, Steele said.

Nine of Miller's patients died of drug overdoses shortly after they received a script from him, Steele said, but the physician has not been charged in those deaths.

"They're wearing white coats. They're doctors.  Make no mistake  they were peddling poison," Steele said.

Cipriano, who worked out of his own Dekalb Street office in Norristown, took advantage of women addicted to drugs by enticing them with the possibility of medications like Oxycodone, Adderall, benzodiazepines, and cough syrup in exchange for nude pictures, videos, and other sexual favors, Steele said.

Cipriano's female patients would then contact him over social media  often Snapchat  to ask for prescriptions, Steele said, and Cipriano would issue electronic pharmaceutical scripts or leave them in his mailbox. Cipriano also fraudulently billed Medicaid for a female patient who was in jail, authorities said.

Keeley, a family medicine practitioner with an office at Ambler Family Practice, on Cavalier Drive, would provide prescriptions for Xanax, Adderall, Ambien, and Percocet as requested by his patients, Steele said. Keeley allegedly charged $180 for writing a prescription for a one-month supply.

Rybicki, who practiced family medicine out of a Grasshopper Road office in Lower Moreland, enlisted his wife's help to mail opioids and other medications to patients, Steele said, all without having ever seen them for a doctor's appointment. Rybicki took monthly fees in exchange for the medications, authorities said.

Rybicki also wrote opioid prescriptions for himself several times with the purpose of abusing them, according to the District Attorney's Office, but he wrote the prescriptions in his daughter's name.

"These investigations are just the tip of the iceberg," said LaVerne J. Hibbert, assistant special agent in charge for the Drug Enforcement Agency's Philadelphia Field Division. " There's a small number [of doctors] who are just rogue and are out prescribing opioids."
Authorities work to extinguish a stubborn junkyard fire in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia, Wednesday, July 11, 2018. The fire was reported around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday and spewed thick smoke and flames that could be seen for miles. Authorities say the burning materials consisted mainly of metal, wood, and paper. Read more

Two months have passed since firefighters extinguished a massive junkyard fire in Kensington, but the battle between its operators and the city rages on.

On Thursday, lawyers for both sides are scheduled to clash again before a municipal court judge, with city solicitors seeking a $2.7 million fine for code infractions that they say stretch back years and may have contributed to the July 10 fire.

The attorney for David Feinberg, the owner of Philadelphia Metal & Resource Recovery, says it's an unusually large and unfair sanction  and a veiled attempt to oust the junkyard and further gentrify another neighborhood.

"They want to redevelop that area, and take out industrial use, and put in residential use," said the lawyer, Darlene Threatt. "And nobody wants to live near a scrap yard."

City officials declined to comment on her claims, but one community advocate called them "laughable."

"From our perspective, we think the city is doing an admirable job in taking a stand in this effort for health safety and welfare in all of our neighborhoods regardless of income, race or walk of life of the residents who live there," said Andrew Goodman, of the New Kensington Community Development Corporation.

 READ MORE: >> READ MORE: Philadelphias junkyards are a dumpster fire

The blaze in the 2200 block of East Somerset Street burned out of control for nearly three hours, spewing dense black smoke across the sky. It helped spark a review of the dozens of junkyards across Philadelphia, too many for the city to effectively regulate.

Citing a raft of violations, Licenses & Inspections officials ordered Feinberg's site closed, but he was able to reopen it weeks later.

 READ MORE: >> READ MORE: Kensington junkyard reopens, again, after major fire

While the junkyard has cleared 100 percent of the nuisance violations cited by Licenses & Inspections, the city is seeking compensation for code infractions that date back to 2014.

Feinberg contends he didn't own the property until 2016, so he doesn't feel responsible for the missives of a previous owner.

Members of the city's Scrap Yard Task Force visited the yard in April 2017, and did not find any particularly egregious violations.

According to city guidelines, statutory fines can be requested by the city for a minimum of $150 and a maximum of $300 for each day per past-due fine.

In most cases, the owner receives a violation from the city, clears the violation, and does not have to go to court. If the city does file a case against the owner, generally, the goal is to clear the violations before the case goes to court.

Depending on whether the owner cured the violations and the seriousness of them, the judge will calculate a fine.

At a hearing Aug. 30, city attorney William Fernandez said Licenses & Inspections justified the fine request by noting the city cited the facility multiple times for fire code infractions in the last 10 years. He called Feinberg a "neglectful" property owner.

"And something did happen as a result," he said that day. "There was a massive, four-alarm fire at the premises that required, unfortunately, a large response from the fire department."

The hearing Thursday is scheduled for 10 a.m. before Common Pleas Court Judge Paula A. Patrick.
More than 100 photographs and artworks bring memories of the terror and struggles that the people of Chile lived during Pinochet's dictatorship. Read more

Photos of soldiers taking over La Moneda Palace. Pop art posters ridiculing the military. Paintings with lightning bolts destroying bodies. Drawings of doves as pledges for peace.

The University of Pennsylvania's Latin America and Latino Studies program is hosting "The Other 9/11," more than 100 artworks that commemorate the 45th anniversary of the Chilean military coup that overthrew President Salvador Allende on Sept. 11, 1973.

"This tells younger generations that this was the past, and that it can easily come back," said Gustavo Gac-Artigas, the award-winning Chilean writer, playwright, and theater director who acquired the collection together with his wife, Priscilla Gac-Artigas, during 10 years of political exile in France.

After General Augusto Pinochet led the coup to overthrow the first leftist president to be democratically elected in Latin America, the people of Chile were plunged into a 17-year regime marked by human-rights violations.

Intellectual leaders, including Gustavo, were kidnapped and tortured for months within detention camps. They were banned from Chile for life. Some found relief as refugees or political exiles in countries such as Spain and France. Officials say more than 3,000 were killed during the dictatorship, some of the bodies never recovered.

"If we don't expose and reconnect our students in the U.S. with its historical links to Latin America, we can't break the American bubble," said Priscilla Gac-Artigas, cocurator for the exhibit, and professor of Latin American Literature at Monmouth University.

The exhibit showcases original works by Chilean painters Jose Balmes, Gracia Barrios, and Guillermo Nunez, who created their work during their time as exiles in France. Tulia Falleti, director for Penn's Latin America and Latino studies program, said that the exhibit is "vital in reminding us to never forget the widespread terror perpetuated against civilians during the military coups  most of which had U.S. backing."

Daniela Johannes, 35, attended the exhibit's opening Tuesday night.

"I look at this and think of how I, a Chilean millennial, am still today a political migrant, about how much influence these times of dictatorship had in our decisions to make us leave," she said. "My feeling is that this is an ongoing migration."

"The Other 9/11  Memories: Geography of a Decade, Chile 1973-1983," at Penn's Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, is open until Oct. 18.
Norwalk, Conn., Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Engage121, Inc., a software and services technology leader, reveals that more than 50,000 small businesses now subscribe to HOT!Content. This service includes a suite of services: a daily email with curated content by vertical; reputation monitoring; and digital advertising for busy entrepreneurs so they can engage, build and retain a local community of customers and prospects.

We are excited to have reached this milestone, said Kurt Strumpf, COO of Engage121, Inc., but were even more excited about the recent explosive growth of our subscribers. In the past year alone, our base has doubled  a trend that we expect will continue.

HOT!Content subscribers experience how to build a loyal community and how to leverage that goodwill to grow their customer base by utilizing informative and engaging content solutions; reputation monitoring and advertising. Small business owners were hearing a lot about the potential of digital, but they didnt really understand how to use it and learning how wasnt high on their priority list, said Strumpf. We knew we had to offer them something that they could use out of the box, that would deliver immediate results. Andy Anderson, President of FASTSIGNS in Rochester, Minnesota sums up the enthusiasm subscribers have for the service: Engage121 solutions keeps my business active and current with engaging posts. And a lot of people are reached. It is definitely working. I love it!

As our users confidence grows utilizing HOT!Content, so does their willingness to explore our paid digital marketing management and advertising subscription services, like our Digital Marketing Assistant solution, says Strumpf. Its a mutually beneficial approach that helps keep both our clients and our company on the leading edge of this ever-evolving technology.

Engage121s digital marketing solutions are designed specifically for the more than 25 million small businesses in the U.S. and Canada. This includes both franchised and independent local businesses in the real estate, financial and professional services, early education, direct selling, retail, restaurant, fitness, beauty sales, and home services industries, among others. Their services now seamlessly integrate with social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, LinkedIn, Google+ and YouTube, as well as consumer review sites like Facebook, Google, Yelp and Zillow.

For more information about Engage121, or to schedule a demo of our local digital marketing solutions, please contact Debbie Ernst at dernst@engage121.com or visit www.engage121.com.
Days before in-person jury selection is set to begin in his second trial, President Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort is in talks with the special counsel's office about a possible plea deal, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions.

The people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the conversations, cautioned that the negotiations may not result in a deal with special counsel Robert Mueller, who is prosecuting Manafort for alleged money laundering and lobbying violations.

But the discussions indicate a possible shift in strategy for Manafort, who earlier this year chose to go to trial in Virginia, only to be convicted last month in Alexandria, Va., federal court on eight counts of bank and tax fraud. He had derided his former business partner, Rick Gates, for striking a deal with prosecutors that provided him leniency in exchange for testimony against Manafort.

"I had hoped and expected my business colleague would have had the strength to continue the battle to prove our innocence," Manafort said in February.

The specifics of Manafort's current negotiations with prosecutors were unclear, including whether he would provide any information about the president.

However, Manafort's willingness to engage in talks could be a setback for Trump, who in the past has praised his former campaign chairman for his unwillingness to cooperate with the special counsel.

Prosecutors "applied tremendous pressure on him and . . . he refused to 'break'  make up stories in order to get a 'deal,' " the president tweeted last month. "Such respect for a brave man!"

Manafort spokesman Jason Maloni and Mueller spokesman Peter Carr declined to comment. Manafort's attorneys, Kevin Downing and Thomas Zehnle, did not immediately return calls for comment.

Jury selection for Manafort's second trial is set to begin Monday, with opening statements scheduled for Sept. 24.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson pushed back a scheduled pretrial hearing in the case from Wednesday to Friday. Court filings did not indicate the reason for the delay.

Manafort, 69, a longtime lobbyist and consultant with deep roots in the GOP, served as Trump's campaign chairman for about six months, resigning in August 2016 amid increasing scrutiny of his work on behalf of a Russia-friendly political party in Ukraine.

Both cases brought against Manafort stem from his work in Ukraine. The jury in Virginia found that Manafort hid the money he made in Ukraine to avoid paying taxes and then lied to get loans when the political party collapsed and his funding dried up. In Washington, he faced charges of conspiring against the United States, money laundering, failing to register as a lobbyist, making false statements, and witness tampering.

Manafort had the choice to consolidate both cases into one but declined. He had been jailed since June as a result of the witness tampering charges.

He has yet to be sentenced in Virginia, where he faces up to 10 years in prison under federal guidelines on the eight of 18 counts on which he was convicted. A mistrial was declared on the remaining charges after jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict.

Trump has sought advice from his lawyers on the possibility of pardoning Manafort and other aides accused of crimes, his attorney Rudy Giuliani previously told the Washington Post, and was counseled against pardoning anyone involved in the ongoing probe. The president agreed to wait at least until the investigation concludes, Giuliani has said.

Several defendants have cooperated or pleaded guilty in connection with the special counsel probe, including Gates; former national security adviser Michael Flynn; Alex van der Zwaan, a lawyer who worked with Gates and Manafort; W. Samuel Patten, who admitted arranging for a Ukrainian businessman to illegally donate to Trump's inauguration; and former Trump foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos, who was sentenced to 14 days in jail last week after pleading guilty to lying to the FBI.

The decision by Trump's onetime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, to plead guilty last month in a federal investigation in Manhattan particularly angered the president, who denounced him as a "flipper."

The Washington Post's Rachel Weiner contributed to this article.
DNSE1SANCTUARY23.Mayor Kenney hired two law firms to do research and analysis on Sanctuary City policies The DOJ send the Kenney admin a letter asking for proof that it is cooperating with immigration officials and warned that if it's not, the city could face loss of federal grants. We get letter and response from admin. AVI STEINHARDT / FILE PHOTO Read more

With one day left for Mayor Kenney to decide whether to veto a controversial new tax intended to pay for affordable housing, he is trying to reach a compromise with City Council.

Instead of imposing a 1 percent tax on new construction, Kenney wants to redirect real-estate tax proceeds from properties that have recently received the city's 10-year tax abatement.

In the first year those buildings come onto the tax rolls, Kenney would send money from them to the Housing Trust Fund.

That would raise between $52 million and $56 million for affordable housing over the next five years, according to an administration official.

Kenney is facing opposition from some council members over his alternative plan.

Councilwoman Maria Quinones-Sanchez, who cosponsored the construction-tax legislation, said it would be "irresponsible" to spend anything less than $125 million over five years on affordable housing.

"It should be a really bold, high-number investment," she said. "This tale of two cities, we're watching it happen. Policy dictates what's going on. Gentrification and displacement is all about policy."

It is unclear whether City Council President Darrell Clarke, another cosponsor of the bill, would support Kenney's idea. A spokesperson for him did not respond to a request for comment late Tuesday.

Councilwoman Cindy Bass, who voted against the construction tax, said she has "a lot of questions about the proposal we've been talking to the administration about  because many elements of it, the dots don't connect."

Mike Dunn, a spokesperson for Kenney, said "discussions continue on a number of proposals, and it would be inappropriate to comment publicly while we are literally at the table with council members discussing this."

In June, lawmakers narrowly passed the construction tax in a 9-8 vote that pitted Clarke and housing-affordability activists against the city's powerful building trade unions. John Dougherty, a Kenney ally who leads the trades, said the tax "would have the net effect of ending the recent prosperous run of new construction that is transforming neglected sections of the city."

Under the city charter, a mayor has 10 days to veto a bill from its passage until the next meeting of council. Because the construction tax was passed on the last voting session before the summer break, the deadline is Thursday, when lawmakers meet for the first time since adjourning.

Kenney said earlier this year that he is "committed to increasing Philadelphia's affordable housing stock and to promoting equitable growth, but I have concerns about this particular piece of legislation," adding that "Philadelphia is already considered by many to have a pretty onerous tax system."

Regardless of whether Kenney wins support for his plan, it seems all but guaranteed that he will not sign the construction tax into law, several council sources said.

"The 1 percent [construction tax] is D.O.A., regardless," said one council source.
Aaron and Emily Sparks spent the last several days trying to decide whether to leave their home in Durham, N.C., for Lancaster, Pa, to avoid Hurricane Florence.

Millions of people are facing uncertainty as forecasters try to predict the storm's path. But the couple have another factor to weigh: When Emily will go into labor.

The Sparks are expecting their second child on Thursday  the day before Category 4 Hurricane Florence is projected to make landfall somewhere on the Carolina coast. By Wednesday morning, they decided they could wait no longer, and hit the road with their 3-year-old.

People across the southeastern U.S. coast, including Philadelphia natives on vacation, are fleeing for safety from the storm's expected catastrophic conditions. Many are heading west  Airbnb, for instance, is encouraging hosts in cities that are inland in Georgia, Virginia and the Carolinas to offer their places at no charge to refugees. Others, though, are headed farther north to family or just to a place that has a better chance of avoiding heavy rain.

>> READ MORE: What do you want to know about Hurricane Florence in Philadelphia and South Jersey?

Wednesday morning, the Sparkses were driving to Emily's parents' home in central Pennsylvania, after Aaron posted their dilemma on Twitter to get some crowd-sourced advice.

"If she goes into labor on the way up there, that would be a problem, especially with the potential for traffic," said Aaron Sparks, a political science professor at Elon University.

People like Stephanie Ward, who lives in a mobile home in Jacksonville, N.C, faced a different kind of decision: What do you bring when everything you leave behind might be destroyed?

Ward packed the family's sole car Tuesday night and began driving to Johnstown, Pa., where she was born and raised, with her three young children, husband, and two pets. Some of her neighbors in the coastal North Carolina town decided to wait out the storm, or didn't have the financial means to go far away. Ward decided to bring family photos and any other irreplaceable items she could fit into the crowded vehicle.

"I don't know if it's my anxiety or it's a gut instinct something's telling me that I'm going to come back and my home is not going to be there," Ward said. "All I could think in my mind are the pictures of Harvey, Katrina, Irma. I don't want to be the person that says they survived instead of [evacuating]."

Then there are those that are taking a slower route to hoped-for safety.

Mike Connor, 37, will be staying in North Carolina for the storm. The Sharswood native started what is supposed to be a round-trip bicycle adventure from Philadelphia to California just 12 days ago. He's hoping to ride his bike as many miles west in North Carolina as he can, using Couchsurfing.com to find places to sleep. Flying back to Philadelphia, he said, was not an option.

"When you do something as stupid as setting off to bike across the country, you don't want to quit after a week," said Connor, who plans to give free comedy and team-building sessions to nonprofits along the way.

"Something as little as a Category [4] hurricane isn't going to stop me," he joked.

Other Philadelphia natives were very happy to head home.

Lindsey Hinkle, 32, said she and her husband started their journey back to Pennsylvania from their Emerald Isle, N.C. annual vacation spot on Tuesday, though their vacation had just begun on Saturday. They'll spend the rest of it in the Poconos instead.

"We were sad," Hinkle said of having to leave Emerald Isle. "We're trying to make the best of the circumstances."
As Hurricane Florence continues its churn toward the East Coast, some are looking toward a popular Georgia-based restaurant chain as a disaster indicator.

Both before and after storms, emergency responders and residents have used the status of Waffle House operations as a gauge of just how bad the damage has been or might be.

The "Waffle House Index," or test, is a term coined by former FEMA administrator Craig Fugate in 2004 to determine a disaster's impact based on how the recovery is going.

South Carolina's Post and Courier, in the meantime, gave the index a prophetic aspect in its "what you need to know" guide ahead of Florence's expected landfall.

"If the Coburg Cow is taken down and Waffle House locks its doors as a hurricane looms, people say things are 'about to get real,' " said the guide. "Well, the cow came down Monday. But Waffle House was still cranking out hash browns."

>> READ MORE: What do you want to know about Hurricane Florence in Philadelphia and South Jersey?

While a FEMA spokesperson told USA Today ahead of Hurricane Irma last year that the measure is an "unofficial metric," it's referenced on FEMA's official website and by Fugate himself in a 2016 episode of NPR's Wait Wait  Don't Tell Me!

"If the Waffle House is open, everything's good," Fugate said on the episode.

"They are open most of the time. And that was the index. If a Waffle House is closed because there's a disaster, it's bad. We call it red. If they're open but have a limited menu, that's yellow" he continued. "If they're green, we're good, keep going. You haven't found the bad stuff yet."

Hurricane Florence's expected path has moved further south, but is expected to batter parts of North and South Carolina as well as Virginia when its eye makes landfall Saturday. Millions have been ordered to evacuate, with President Trump urging residents in the storm's path to stay safe and listen to local officials. The National Weather Service is calling Florence "very large and incredibly dangerous."

The "index" isn't intended to make light of a disaster's potential effects, but ahead of Florence, the 24-hour restaurant was generating light-hearted buzz on social media.

"I'm waiting on Waffle House's official statement on this hurricane. it's not serious unless they close," wrote one Twitter user. "Is Waffle House closed yet? I need to know if I should panic yet," said another.

Waffle House responded to messages, remarking that safety is its "No. 1 concern" and clarifying that the company looks to "local and state governments for guidance on evacuations." Waffle House also shared a photo from its corporate offices in Norcross, Ga., with a caption that said, "The @WaffleHouse Storm Center is activated and monitoring #Florence. Plan ahead and be safe."

But the unofficial test has much to do with bouncing back.

"The index itself isn't just about whether or not you can get pralines on your waffles or if you can get waffles at all, but rather about the damage in a neighborhood," FEMA wrote on its blog in 2017. "If a Waffle House can serve a full menu, they've likely got power (or are running on a generator). A limited menu means an area may not have running water or electricity, but there's gas for the stove to make bacon, eggs, and coffee: exactly what hungry, weary people need."

Pat Warner, a Waffle House spokesperson, told the Atlanta-Journal Constitution in 2011 that the company was "flattered" to gain such a reputation.

"It kind of goes back to our culture," he told the publication. "The faster we can get open, the faster the community can get back to normal. Our people need to get back to work, and our customers need a place to eat."
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-07 21:31:06|Editor: xuxin

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A Malaysian staff member (R) of China's CRRC Kuala Lumpur Maintenance Company works with a Chinese colleague in a maintenance facility in Seremban, Malaysia on Aug. 27, 2018. CRRC Kuala Lumpur Maintenance Company or CKM, provides Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) for local train services including Electric Multiple Units trains and light rail transit (LRT) vehicles. (Xinhua/Lin Hao)

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- When Mohd Mahizan Bin Mohd Nor joined a Chinese train maintenance company in 2011, he knew little about trains, let alone repairing them. The company, a wholly owned subsidiary of China's CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive, was also new to Malaysia.

Seven-and-a-half years later, the 33-year-old Mahizan has long been a train expert. His company, now named CRRC Kuala Lumpur Maintenance Company or CKM, has become a major player in the field, providing Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) for local train services including Electric Multiple Units trains and light rail transit (LRT) vehicles.

Mahizan works on the LRT line that travels through Kuala Lumpur. For him, CKM not only creates jobs for the locals, but also provides opportunities for Malaysians to learn the technology and know-how about trains.

"I have gained a lot from the company, the main example is through the transfer of technology," said Mahizan. "In Malaysia, the locomotive industry is very limited. So when the Chinese company came here, it was very impactful and Malaysians could learn more about locomotives."

Mahizan's feeling is not unique among CKM's staff.

In a maintenance facility in Seremban, some 70 km from Kuala Lumpur, 25-year-old Wan Azhim Syammel Bin Wan Mohd Lutpi is trying hard to pick up knowledge and skills about trains.

He has worked for the company for over a year after graduating from a local university and is now an assistant engineer. He has received training during the first months on the job, but he hopes to learn more from his Chinese colleagues.

"The environment for working here is good. The specialists and workers from China are friendly and can transfer their technology to the locals," he said.

The local staff and their growth are central to the company's strategy, explained Luo Wei, the business director. "We focus a lot on our local staff, on their wellbeing, on their skills, on their channel for promotion."

The company provides on-the-job training, invites Chinese railway experts to Malaysia for training sessions, while sending company staff and even the staff of its customers to pursue higher degrees in China's renowned universities like Tongji University to further improve their skills, said Luo.

The company attaches great importance to localization for long-term development, he added. CKM gave priority to the locals when recruiting, some 80 percent of its staff of around 115 people are local.

"Many of our management including the chief operating officer are Malaysians," said Luo. "They have a better understanding on the law and the culture of Malaysia. Our company will be more efficient and competitive by bringing them into management."

Luo said the company hopes to build a sense of belonging among its staff. "We hope that they would think this is not only a Chinese company but also a Malaysian company."

Mahizan admitted that communication posed a challenge when he first started working with his Chinese colleagues, "but as time went by, chemistry emerged between our Chinese and local staff," he said.

It's easier for Wan Azhim to get along with his colleagues, as many of them speak good English. "We also use online translation applications or simply show pictures on phones to communicate," he said.

Apart from the maintenance company, CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive has a rolling stock center in Malaysia's Batu Gajah as its manufacturing base in Southeast Asia. Becoming fully operational in 2015, CRRC rolling stock center can now manufacture up to 200 carriages a year and conduct major overhauls.

CRRC is eyeing further investment to expand the capacity of the rolling stock center, Luo said.

The Malaysian government led by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has repeatedly said that it welcomed foreign investment, including those from China, that could create jobs for the locals and transfer the knowledge of technology.

"The increasing demand for railways in Southeast Asia including Malaysia, as well as the growth of the population and the economy will have a positive impact on the market and for our company," said Luo, "We are optimistic about the future of this market."
BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh Police last week arrested a tailor from Bhopal in what looked like a routine police action but little did they know that they have actually arrested a hardened criminal, a serial killer, who had murdered at least 33 people in cold blood.

According to reports, the 48-year-old Aadesh Khambra, a tailor by profession, was arrested by the authorities from Bhopal last week. During his interrogation, Khambra reportedly confessed to having killed at least 30 truck drivers and their helpers on the highways to loot goods transported by them and sell the truck.

This tailor-turned-petty criminal committed the crime over the past eight years in his quest to make more money.

Not only this, the ordinary looking tailor also told police that he was a contract killer and had close links with more than half a dozen inter-state gangs.

Not only this man's story is shocking, the way he was nabbed by the police is also thrilling.

Sharing details about his arrest, MP Police officer Rahul Kumar Lodha told reporters on Wednesday that on August 12, a truck laden with 50 tonnes of iron rods left the Mandideep Industrial Area for Bhopal, but it went missing.

A private company then lodged a complaint in this regard and the police, during the course of their investigation, found the body of the truck driver Makhan Singh in Bilkhiriya area.

Three days later, the authorities also recovered the empty truck from Ayodhya Nagar in Bhopal.

After further investigation into the matter, the police arrested seven people, who sold and purchased the iron rods. When grilled by the police, the arrested persons told the authorities about Jaikaran Prajapati who in turn named Khambra as the brain behind the crime.

Based on the inputs provided by the arrested persons, the police nabbed Khambra from Mandideep.

During his interrogation, Khambra revealed to the police how he would befriend drivers in roadside eateries and slip drugs into their food so they would fall asleep. He and his accomplices then drove their trucks to isolated areas, strangle them and their helpers, and dump the bodies in forests.

They would then sell the trucks and their goods through their contacts. The authorities also took the help of a psychologist while interrogating him.

After the sensational revelations made by the tailor, the Bhopal Police swung into action and alerted its counterparts in the other three states - Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and other parts of MP. Several teams were sent to these states to get more information about unresolved murder cases of truck drivers and cleaners and to verify claims made by Khambra.

According to police, Khambra started out as a tailor in the Mandideep Industrial area, 25 km from Bhopal. In 2010, he came in contact with a gang from Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, and joined them for earning more money. Initially, his work was just to befriend truck drivers and invite them to a roadside liquor party. Later, he started killing the drivers and cleaners by giving them sedatives. He was arrested by the Nagpur Police in 2014 but was released on bail, police said.

Khambra told police that he used to get Rs 50,000 for every case. When he joined the gang, his motive was to earn money but a few years ago his son met with an accident and he had to take loans for his treatment. He got involved in more crimes to repay the debt, as per his confession, said Lodha.

Other than truck drivers and cleaners, Khambra also killed a man from Hoshangabad at the behest of a contractor who paid him Rs 25,000.

Addressing a press briefing, Madhya Pradesh DGP RK Shukla said, "Its a major achievement for the Bhopal police. The gang's connections have been found in neighbouring states. Primary investigation reveals that the gang has a pan-India network".

Khambras family had not visited him since his arrest.
PATNA: Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan's son-in-law and RJD leader Anil Kumar Sadhu on Wednesday said he'd contest against his wife's family if RJD gives a ticket.

If RJD will give tickets to me and my wife (Asha Paswan) we'll definitely fight against the Paswans, said Sadhu.

They have not only insulted me, they have even insulted the STs/SCs. Dalits are not their bonded labourers, added the Dalit leader.

Earlier this year, Sandhu quit Lok Janshakti Party and joined Opposition RJD.

Directly attacking his father-in-law and LJP chief Paswan, Sadhu claimed that he compromised with the party's principles and policies and surrendered to the RSS for personal gains.

The LJP is an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

"Violence against Dalits in Bihar and across the country have increased in the last few months but Paswan and his son Chirag Paswan, who is Working President of LIP, are silent over the issue. Why both have not spoken so far if they are Dalit leaders?" Sadhu had said at the time.

Sadhu unsuccessfully contested the 2015 Bihar Assembly polls.
New Delhi: Salman Khan recently revealed that Priyanka Chopra dialled his sister Arpita Khan Sharma at least 1000 times to bag a role in his upcoming film 'Bharat'. In fact, as per Salman, Priyanka even called film's director Ali Abbas Zafar to cast her in the lead role in the film.

Now, a TOI report has claimed apart from dialling everyone's number who were connected to the film, PeeCee even met Salman in Dubai to convince him to cast her as his heroine in the film. If the report is to be believed, Priyanka especially flew down to Dubai to ask him to sign her as the female lead of 'Bharat'.

After the makers finally decided to cast Priyanka as the lead actress in the film, Salman took to social media to welcome Priyanka on the board, but with a wit. #Bharat .. welcomes u back home @priyankachopra . See u soon .. By the way humari film Hindi hai ;) . @atulreellife @aliabbaszafar #Eid2019," he tweeted.

However, just after two days of the start of the film's shoot, the actress backed out of the project. While director Ali Abbas Zafar dropped a major hint on Twitter that it was due to her engagement with American pop singer Nick Jonas, several reports claimed that her 'pay cheque' was the reason for her ouster from the project. Priyanka was reportedly offered Rs 6.5 crore for her role in the film, which apparently did not appeal her much.

Moreover, the additions to the cast of 'Bharat' with likes of Disha Patani, Nora Fatehi and Tabu was also cited as one of the primary reasons for Priyankas exit.

After Priyanka's ouster from the film, Katrina Kaif was taken on board. Recently, the team of 'Bharat' completed the Malta schedule of the film and will soon begin their Dubai schedule. The film is slated to release on Eid 2019.
New Delhi/London: Absconding liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who is facing money laundering charges in multi-crore fraud case in India, on Wednesday said that he had met with finance minster to settle matters before he left the country.

I met the finance minster to settle matters before I left. The banks had filed objections to my settlement letters, Mallya told reporters outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court. I obviously don't agree with what the prosecution is alleging. let the court decide, he added.

#WATCH "I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks", says Vijay Mallya outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court pic.twitter.com/5wvLYItPQf  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Mallya, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year, responded to the swarm of reporters gathered outside the court in his characteristic manner.

"As far as I am concerned, I have made a comprehensive settlement offer before the Karnataka High Court. I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess that's the primary objective, said Mallya, who is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.

At the previous hearing in July in the Westminster Magistrates' Court in, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, had agreed to the request and the video has since been submitted to the court.

Mallya's defence team had demanded an inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets the UK's human rights obligations related to extradition proceedings.

The CPS stressed that the Indian government had provided adequate material which rendered the need for an inspection unnecessary, leading to the demand for a video recording to be reviewed by the court.

The judge is also expected to hear the final closing arguments in the case, after which a timeline for her ruling is likely to become clearer.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4 last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya.

With PTI Inputs
New Delhi: The arrival of Lord Ganesha, son of Shiva and Parvati is celebrated in the form of Ganesh Chaturthi wherein people welcome him in the form of an idol to their homes and offer prayers. The festival goes on for ten days and is celebrated across the country and majorly in Maharashtra.

Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati have two sons namely Kartikeya, Ganesha and a daughter Ashok Sundari. Lord Ganpati is hailed as the remover of all obstacles and the god of new beginnings. Lord Ganesha is worshipped as the 'Lord of the Lords' and before every important work, people seek his blessings.

There are different beliefs and legends behind the god having the head of an elephant. Here are some of the popular ones:

The legend from the Shiva Purana

It is believed that Parvati also known as Gaura, wife of Lord Shiva wanted to take a bath without any disturbance but there was no one present at that time to guard the door. Unwilling to wait for someone to come, Goddess Parvati created a boy out of the turmeric paste that was applied to her body. She instructed the boy to keep a check on the door from outside and not to allow anyone to enter. While he was guarding the door, Lord Shiva came and demanded to meet his wife, telling the boy that she is her wife. The boy, reluctant to allow anyone to invade his Maa Parvati's space and personal time refused to let Shiva in.

Angered by the boy, Lord Shiva ended up beheading him which took his life instantly and he fell flat. When Parvati came to know about the death of the boy she created, she threatened Shiva to destroy the mankind. Lord Vishnu tried to convince her not to do so and in order to convince her he fulfilled the two conditions kept by her which were to bring the boy back to life and that he must be worshipped by the people like other gods. It was then that an elephant face was brought in by the Lord as the animal was the first creature to have appeared on the path.

Therefore, the elephant head was joined with the lifeless body of the boy, bringing him back to life. This is how Lord Ganesha got the head of an elephant.

The legend of the gaze of Lord Shani

It is believed that Goddess Parvati fasted for a year to please Lord Vishnu so that she must be blessed with a son. After a year of sacrifice, Lord Vishnu incarnated himself as her son. Everyone had come to congratulate and bless the child. Lord Shani (The Saturn god) the son of Surya (Sun God) was reluctant to look at the child because his gaze is believed to be destructive. However, he was convinced by Goddess Parvati to bless the child. As soon as Shani put his eyes on the child, his head fell off leaving the parents grief-stricken.

Lord Vishnu sent Garuda, the eagle to bring back the head, who got an elephant head which was then mounted by the lord on the body of the lifeless child, bringing him back to life. This is how according to the Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Ganesha acquired the head of an elephant.

Here's wishing our readers a Happy Ganesh Chaturthi!
SASKATOON, Saskatchewan, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GFG Resources Inc. (TSXV: GFG) (OTCQB: GFGSF) (GFG or the Company), at the request of IIROC, is providing additional disclosure relating to its September 11, 2018 news release titled GFG Signs Option and Earn-In Agreement with Newcrest to Advance the Rattlesnake Hills Gold Project.



The Rattlesnake Hills Gold Project:

The Rattlesnake Hills Gold Project is a district scale gold exploration project located in central Wyoming approximately 100 kilometres southwest of Casper. The Project is comprised of 1,573 unpatented lode mining claims as well as eight Wyoming State mining leases covering an area of approximately 30,400 acres. The Project is centrally located within a roughly 1,500-kilometre-long belt of alkalic intrusive complexes that occur along the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains from Montana to New Mexico.

As disclosed by the Company on September 11, 2018, the Company has signed an option and earn-in agreement with Newcrest Resources Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX: NCM) (Newcrest), pursuant to which Newcrest has the right to acquire, in multiple stages, up to 75% of the Project by completing a series of exploration and development expenditures and making staged option cash payments totaling US$1.25 million to GFG.

The Project has approximately 90,000 metres of historic drilling which has outlined four significant zones of alteration and precious metal mineralization that are associated with Eocene age alkalic intrusions at North Stock, Antelope Basin, South Stock and Blackjack. The majority of the historic drilling was completed by Evolving Gold Corp. focused on near surface, open pit targets in the North Stock and Antelope Basin areas with highlights that include intercepts(1) of 1.85 grams of gold per tonne (g/t Au) over 236.2 metres (m) hole length; 4.20 g/t Au over 77.7 m hole length; 2.08 g/t Au over 150.9 m hole length and 0.82 g/t Au over 99.1 m hole length.

Qualified Person

Brian Skanderbeg, P.Geo. and M.Sc., serves as President and CEO of GFG, and is a qualified person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101  Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mr. Skanderbeg has reviewed the respective core intervals, sampling and QA/QC procedures and results thereof as verification of the historical drilling data disclosed above and has approved the information contained in this news release.

Quality Analysis and Quality Control

The quality analysis and quality control measures utilized by Evolving Gold Corp. in respect of the historical drilling data disclosed above included the following: drill hole intervals were weighted averages with each assay interval weighted according to the core length. Rigorous quality assurance and quality control procedures were implemented including routine insertion of internal standard reference materials, certified reference materials, blank material and duplicate samples from both crush and pulp material. Gold assays were completed by SGS Canada Inc. in Toronto, using a 30-gram charge, fire assay, with an ICP finish. SGS Canada laboratory in Toronto is ISO accredited.

(1) Gold intervals reported are based on a 0.20 g/t or 0.50 g/t Au cutoff. Weighted averaging has been used to calculate all reported intervals. True widths are estimated at 60-100% of drilled thicknesses.

For further information, please contact:

Brian Skanderbeg, President & CEO

Phone: (306) 931-0930

or

Marc Lepage, Vice President, Business Development

Phone: (306) 931-0930

Email: info@gfgresources.com

Website: www.gfgresources.com

Twitter: @gfgresources

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/gfgresources/

About GFG Resources Inc.

GFG Resources is a North American precious metals exploration company headquartered in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, whose shares trade on the TSX Venture Exchange (GFG) and on the OTCQB (GFGSF). The Company owns 100% of two large and highly prospective gold properties west of the prolific gold district of Timmins, Ontario, Canada. The Ontario properties are comprised of the 47,500-hectare Pen Gold Project and the 20,000-hectare Dore Gold Project. The consolidated land packages have the same geological setting that hosts most of the gold deposits found in the Timmins Gold Camp which has produced over 70 million ounces of gold. The Company also controls 100% of the Rattlesnake Hills Gold Project, a district scale gold exploration project located approximately 100 kilometres southwest of Casper, Wyoming, U.S. The geologic setting, alteration and mineralization seen in the Rattlesnake Hills are similar to other gold deposits of the Rocky Mountain alkaline province which, collectively, have produced over 50 million ounces of gold.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
New Delhi: The auspicious occasion of Hartalika Teej is here and it is the time when womenfolk pray to Lord Shiva and his consort Mata Parvati for their blessings. 'Teej' basically refers to monsoon festivals celebrated in various parts of the country.

Teej refers to the third day which falls each month after the new moon or the Amavasya, and the third day after the full moon night of every month. There are various types of Teej celebrated in the country. The monsoon festival of Teej includesHaryali Teej, Kajri Teej and Hartalika Teej respectively.

Date and Time:

This year, Hartalika Teej is celebrated on September 12. According to Drikpanchang.com, here are the Hartalika Puja Timings:

Pratahkal Hartalika Puja Muhurat = 06:08 to 08:35

Duration = 2 Hours 27 Mins

Tritiya Tithi Begins = 18:04 on 11/Sep/2018

Tritiya Tithi Ends = 16:07 on 12/Sep/2018



Legend and significance:

As per Hindu mythology, the legend behind celebrating Hartalika Teej has it that Mata Parvati, the daughter of Himalaya was incarnated as Goddess Shailaputri. Her father has promised to marry her with Lord Vishnu after Narada Muni suggested it. When Goddess Parvati got to know of this, she immediately went to her friend and told her about King Himalaya's plan. Then, it is believed that Goddess Parvati's friend to her to the forest so that she stays away and the marriage plan which was against her wish never happens.

Then, Goddess Parvati on the third day of the Bhadrapada made Shiva Lingam out of her hair and prayed to the Lord. Shiva was mighty impressed by her dedicated and tapasya, finally agreeing to marry Goddess Parvati.

Soon, Goddess Parvati's family too got to know of her preference and after some convincing, the union between Lord Shiva and Parvati happened. Their wedding was a huge affair where the gods were part of the marriage ceremony. The goddess's mother and father blessed the divinity.

Meanwhile, the Goddess had made Lord Vishnu her brother, as per popular belief.

Since then, the day is referred to as Hartalika Teej. Because Goddess Parvati's female (aalika) friend sort of abducted her (harit) to the forest so that Mata can marry Lord Shiva.

The festival of Hartalika Teej is celebrated on the third day of the bright half of the North Indian Lunar month of Bhadrapada.

On this day, women dressed in bright new clothes pray to Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva. They observe a fast (also known as nishivasar nirjala vrat) which commences during the evening of Hartalika Teej and is broken the next day after a full day's observance which involves women not even drinking water.

The devotees pray to Mata Parvati who prayed to get married to Lord Shiva. The goddess is worshipped under the name of Hartalika or Maa Hartalika.

Hartalika Teej is celebrated with much grandeur chiefly in the states of Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.

Here's wishing our readers a happy Hartalika Teej!
New Delhi: Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan is not in favour of having an RBI nominee on the boards of public sector banks, saying it creates an "illusion that the regulator is in control".

"The RBI is primarily a referee, not a player in the process of commercial lending. Its nominees on bank boards have no commercial lending experience and can only try and make sure that processes are followed," he said in a note to Chairman of Estimates Committee Murli Manohar Joshi.

"They (RBI nominee) offer an illusion that the regulator is in control, which is why nearly every RBI Governor has asked the government for permission to withdraw them from bank boards," he said.

The Parliamentary Committee on Estimates had invited Rajan to brief it on the matter after former Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) Arvind Subramanian praised him for identifying the NPA crisis and trying to resolve it.

Even Rajan's successor and present RBI Governor Urjit Patel had suggested withdrawal of nominee directors from the boards of public sector banks (PSBs) to avoid any conflict of interest.

The central bank is discussing the matter of RBI nominee director with the Finance Ministry, Patel had informed Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance.

Rajan also said bankers, promoters, or their backers in government sometimes turn around and accuse regulators of creating the bad loan problem but the truth is bankers, promoters, and circumstances create the bad loan problem.

"The regulator cannot substitute for the banker's commercial decisions or micromanage them or even investigate them when they are being made. Instead, in most situations, the regulator can at best warn about poor lending practices when they are being undertaken, and demand banks hold adequate risk buffers," he said.

The important duty of the regulator is to force timely recognition of NPAs and their disclosure when they happen, followed by requiring adequate bank capitalization, he said, adding, this is done through the RBI's regular supervision of banks.
Former Air Force Chief SP Tyagi and his brothers were granted bail on Wednesday by Delhi's Patiala House Court in the Agusta Westland Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) case. Several other accused, who did not appear before the court, including Carlo Gerosa and GR Heshke have not been granted bail.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had filed a chargesheet in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal against 34 individuals and foreign and Indian companies including former IAF chief SP Tyagi, his two cousins, advocate Gautam Khaitan and Italians Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke in July.

While filing the chargesheet under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the ED informed the magistrate that money was laundered through "multiple foreign companies". The court was told that "foreign companies were used as fronts to park alleged kickbacks".

The ED chargesheet named the former IAF chief's cousins Sanjeev Tyagi and Rajiv Tyagi along with Bruno Spagnolini, former CEO of AgustaWestland, and Giuseppe Orsi, the former chief of Italian defence and aerospace major Finmeccanica.

Others named in the chargesheet are Rajeev Saxena, Director of Dubia-based firm Matrix Holdings, his wife Shivani Saxena and advocate Gautam Khaitan's wife Ritu Khaitan.

The chargesheet also names some Indian and foreign companies like Aeromatrix Info Solution Ltd, Windsor Group Holdings, Ismax International Ltd, Cricklewood Ltd, Long Lasting Ltd, Matrix Holding Pvt Ltd, UHY Saxena, Dubai Interstellar Technologies Ltd, OP Khaitan and Co International Mediterranean Consulting, Tunisia Infotech Design Systems, Gordian Services, Finmeccanica SPA and AgustaWestland.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) -- the prime investigating agency -- has already filed a chargesheet in the case.

On January 1, 2014, India cancelled the contract with Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF, over alleged breach of contractual obligations and on charges of paying kickbacks amounting to Rs 423 crore.

The CBI, which registered an FIR on March 12, 2013, alleged that SP Tyagi, who was the IAF chief from 2004 to 2007, and the other accused received kickbacks from AgustaWestland to help it win the contract.

The FIR mentioned charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, and offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

According to the CBI, SP Tyagi allegedly took bribes of several crores from AgustaWestland through the middlemen -- and a complex set of companies in several countries -- to change the specifications of the contract.

The operational flight ceiling of the choppers was reduced from 6,000 metres, as originally proposed, to 4,500 metres and the cabin height was brought down to 1.8 metres.

The twin modifications were allegedly meant to rig the deal in favour of AgustaWestland, which eventually walked away with the order to supply the 12 choppers for the Communication Squadron of the IAF to ferry the President, the Prime Minister and other VVIPs.

The CBI probe revealed that several payments were made to SP Tyagi by middlemen Haschke, Gerosa and Christian Michel James, whose name was not mentioned in the ED chargesheet.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday extended the house arrest of five rights activists  Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha  arrested in connection with the Koregaon-Bhima violence case till September 17.

The house arrest was extended after senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who is representing the petitioners, failed to turn up in court.

Earlier, Singhvi appeared before the bench and submitted that the hearing on Thapar's plea be conducted after 12 pm as he has to appear in another matter.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud was told that Singhvi was busy in another court.

The top court was hearing a plea filed by historian Romila Thapar and four others in the Bhima-Koregaon violence case.

The Maharashtra police on August 28 had arrested the five activists in connection with an FIR lodged following a conclave -- 'Elgaar Parishad' -- held on December 31 last year that had later triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village.

On August 29, the apex court ordered the house arrest of the activists, saying "dissent is the safety valve of democracy".
Weeks after keeping the five rights activists under house arrest in connection with the Bhima-Koregaon violence in Maharashtra, the Supreme Court on Wednesday will resume the hearing in the case. The activists were held by Pune police in August for their alleged role in the Bhima-Koregaon violence.

On September 6, the apex court had extended the house arrest of prominent Left-wing activists who were arrested after Pune police conducted raids across several states as part of a probe into anti-Dalit violence at Koregaon-Bhima village near Pune after the Elgar Parishad conclave on December 31, 2017.

The Supreme Court on September 6 had slammed the Maharashtra government over state police addressing the media on Bhima-Koregaon raids. Keep your police officer in line. He is talking to the press, insinuating the Supreme Court is wrong. We don't want your police officer to tell us we are wrong. You are ruining people's reputations, casting aspersions on the court, Justice Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud told the Maharashtra government, asking to direct its police to be more responsible when the matter is heard by the SC.

Earlier the apex court on August 29 had ordered the house arrest till September 6 observing that dissent was the safety valve of democracy.

The Maharashtra police on August 28 had conducted raids and arrested prominent Telugu poet Varavara Rao from Hyderabad, activists Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira from Mumbai, trade union activist Sudha Bharadwaj from Faridabad and civil liberties activist Gautam Navlakha from Delhi. The raids were carried out as part of a probe into an event called Elgar Parishad, or conclave, on December 31 in 2017, which had later triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village in Pune district of Maharashtra.

The state police filed an affidavit in response to a plea of historian Romila Thapar and four others -- economists Prabhat Patnaik and Devaki Jain, sociology professor Satish Deshpandey and human rights lawyer Maja Daruwala -- challenging the arrest of the five activists in connection with the case, claiming they were planning to carry out violence in the country and ambush the security forces. The police said the activists were arrested as there was cogent evidence linking them with the banned CPI(Maoist) and not because of their dissenting views.

The top court did not consider the vehement opposition of Maharashtra government challenging the locus of the petitioners seeking relief on their behalf, and calling them strangers. The plea, by Thapar, has sought an independent probe into the arrests and their immediate release. "The petitioners, who are strangers to the offence under investigation, are also praying for bail on behalf of the persons arrested during an ongoing investigation, strictly in accordance with the Code of Criminal Procedure after the investigating agencies having gathered requisite incriminating material against the said individuals," the affidavit said.

The police also told the court that the activists were part of the criminal conspiracy and active members of the banned CPI (Maoist), who had arranged public meetings under the banner of 'Elgaar Parishad'. The affidavit said the state was committed to protecting fundamental rights of every citizen and a mere dissenting view, difference in ideology or vehement objections to political thinking, cannot only not be prohibited but should always be welcomed in any democratic country.

"Five accused persons for whose benefit the present petition is filed are not arrested based upon any dissenting views expressed by them or difference in their political or other ideologies...During the course of an intense investigation since January 8, 2018 (the date on which the FIR is registered), serious criminal offences are made out and incriminating material has emerged against them," it said.

"This Court is dealing with persons against whom cogent evidence has so far come on record showing that they are active members of the banned terrorist organisation namely, CPI (Maoist), and they are involved in not only planning and preparing for violence but were in the process of creating large-scale violence, destruction of property resulting into chaos (sic) in the society as per the agenda prepared by the CPI (Maoist), which was banned as a terrorist organisation in 2009," it said.
The police affidavit in the Kerala nun rape case has revealed that the victim was repeatedly raped by the Bishop of Jalandhar, Franco Mulakkal.

The affidavit, dated August 10, 2018, was filed in the Kerala High Court. It stated, "During the course of the investigation so far conducted and the available evidence collected so far, it is revealed that the accused Bishop Franco committed an unnatural offence and committed rape repeatedly on different dates from September 23, 2016, to May 5, 2018. This comes to light just a day after the accused Bishop cried foul over the rape allegations against himself. He had accused the `anti-church elements` of falsely implicating him. I think some internal forces are using these nuns for some advantage. The antis in the church are pushing these nuns forward to raise their own issues. There is a conspiracy behind this. Few people are taking advantage of this. I will cooperate to all legal measures," Bishop Mulackal had told ANI.

The nun from Kerala had accused the 54-year-old priest of raping her on several occasions between 2014 and 2016. On Tuesday, the nun appealed to the Vatican seeking justice.
PATNA/KOLKATA: An earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale hits parts of Assam. Strong tremors were felt across the north-east belt including certain parts of Bihar, West Bengal and other Northeast states.

The epicentre was in Kokrajhar, Assam, informed India Meteorological Department (IMD). The quake had a latitude of 26.4 N, 90.1 E longitude and a depth of 13 km.

In Bihar, the earthquake tremors were felt in Patna, Kisanganj, Sahebjang, Khagaria and Hazaribag.

In West Bengal, the tremors were felt in Kolkata, 24 Paraganas etc. Several people took to Twitter to report about the quake.

Details of the epicentre of the quake are not yet clear.

Two separate earthquakes were reported from Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir in the early morning hours on Wednesday.

The first earthquake hit Jammu and Kashmir at 5:15 am. The quake measured 4.6 on the Richter scale. According to India Meteorological Department, the quake had a latitude of 35.6 N, longitude of 76.3 E and a depth of 174 kilometers. Another earthquake of magnitude 3.1 on the Richter scale, epicentered at Haryana's Jhajjar, occurred at 5:43 am.
New Delhi: In no mood to spare the Narendra Modi government over absconding industrialist Vijay Mallya, the Congress party on Wednesday asked the ruling party to explain how and why the former Kingfisher Airlines boss was allowed to leave the country.

''The government must explain how and why Vijay Mallya was allowed to leave India,'' the Congress said shortly after the liquor baron claimed in London that he had met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country in 2014.

Attacking the Centre, the Congress party said, ''The Modi government was fully complicit in the flight of people such as Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi from the country.''

Speaking on the issue, senior Congress leader Anand Sharma said, ''Vijay Mallya has run away after looting money from banks. The government had this info. So, when the Finance Minister gave statements in Parliament on Vijay Mallya issue, he should have mentioned about this meeting with Mallya. Only FM can tell why he didn't tell about it?.''

Vijay Mallya has run away after looting money from banks. Govt had this info. So,when Finance Minister gave statements in Parliament on Vijay Mallya issue,he should have mentioned about this meeting with Mallya.Only FM can tell why he didn't tell about it?: Anand Sharma, Congress pic.twitter.com/hVBGasEv1U  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Later making a similar statement, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said Mallya's claim is a vindication of the party's stand and assertion that the government was always in the know about Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and others who have fled the country.

Singhvi said the country wants to know what transpired during the meetings between Mallya and Jaitley.



"Today we have a categorical assertion by Mallya in the UK about the number of times he met the finance minister to have some resolution of his dues with banks. The government should now explain how and why he was allowed to leave and what transpired at those meetings. The nation wants to know," he said.

Congress has been repeatedly asserting for last over 18 months that not only Vijay Mallya but Nirav Modi, Choksi & many others have been allowed with impunity: Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Congress on Vijay Mallya's claim that he met the finance minister Arun Jaitley before he left. pic.twitter.com/g8Wzqg5Qbj  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Singhvi said the Congress has repeatedly asserted for the past over 18 months that not only Vijay Mallya, but also Nirav Modi, Choksi and many others have been allowed to leave the country with impunity.

He said the phrase used by Mallya that 'I met the finance minister' does not suggest a passing and casual meeting inside Rajya Sabha.

The Congress also tweeted on its official handle, saying, "Vijay Mallya met FM Arun Jaitley several times before escaping the country to discuss a settlement plan, in spite of this the BJP government allowed him to flee with thousands of crores debt. Do we need any more proof that this government. Is in the pocket of crony capitalists."

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said that with Mallya's revelation one thing is clear that the BJP is running "a travel, tour and immigration agency for looters to settle abroad".

"After Mallya reveals his 'consultation meetings' before his smooth escape...One thing is clear...BJP is running tour, travels and immigration agency for loot, scoot and settle abroad brigade," Surjewala said.

The Congress leader also said the BJP's sole aim now was 'Bhagode ka saath, Lootero ka vikas' (helping absconders and enriching looters), in a swipe at the government's 'sabka saath, sabka vikas' slogan.

"Vijay Mallya left India with the country's money after a farewell from Arun Jaitley. Chowkidaar nahin, Bhagidaar hai (Not a watchman, but a partner)," he tweeted in Hindi.

The renewed attack from Congress came shortly after the 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss told reporters in London that he met Arun Jaitley and offered to settle the loan issue with the banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the finance minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks), Mallya said, without naming the minister.

However, shortly after that, FM Jaitley issued a statement refuting Mallya's claim that the fugitive business tycoon met him.

#WATCH Finance Minister Arun Jaitley says, "I never gave him an appointment" on Vijay Mallya's claim that he met the Finance Minister before he left. pic.twitter.com/aGxlD69NHY  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Refuting the charges made by Mallya as "factually false," Jaitley claimed, ''The statement is factually false in as much as it does not reflect the truth. Since 2014, I've never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise.''

FM Jaitley also accused Mallya of ''misusing'' his stature as the Rajya Sabha MP.

''Vijay Mallya "misused" privilege of being Rajya Sabha MP to catch me in the corridors of Parliament on one occasion while he was walking out of the House to go to his room, '' the Finance Minister said.

FM Jaitley also issued a denial in a Facebook post on the issue titled ''The Factual Situation''.

Mallya is currently an absconder after he fled the country with dues with banks to the extent of over Rs 9,000 crore. He is facing court proceedings in London where India's plea for his extradition is being heard.

(With Agency inputs)
A joint military training exercise between Indian Army and Kazakhstan Army commenced on Tuesday in Otar Military Area, Kazakhstan.

The exercise, KAZIND-2018, is the third edition of a joint military training exercise between the two countries. It is a 14-day-long joint exercise and will continue till September 23.

The opening ceremony started with a briefing on Army organisation and country presentation by both countries including display of weapons and equipment used by the Kazakhstan Army at sub-unit level.

During the opening ceremony, the Kazakhstan and Indian soldiers stood side by side and gave a ceremonial salute to General Major Dzhumakeev Almaz, Deputy Commander for Battle Training, Kazakhstan Army reviewing the ceremony.

The Kazakh contingent is represented by Military Base 85395 while the Indian side is represented by 5 Ladakh Scouts Regiment. General Major Dzhumakeev Almaz, welcomed the Indian contingent and in his inaugural remarks highlighted the commonly shared beliefs of freedom, equality, and justice that are precious to both the nations.

The aim of the joint training is to build and promote army to army relations and exchange skills and experiences between Indian Army and the Kazakhstan Army. Due emphasis will be laid on increasing interoperability between forces from both countries which is crucial for the success of any joint operation.

Both sides will jointly train, plan and execute a series of well developed tactical drills for neutralisation of likely threats that may be encountered in urban warfare scenario. The exercise will contribute immensely in developing mutual understanding and respect for each others military.
Weeks after accusing a Roman Catholic Bishop of raping her, a nun has turned towards the Vatican for urgent intervention asking for justice and demanded his removal as the head of the Jalandhar diocese. She questioned why the Church was "closing its eyes to the truth" when she had marshaled the courage to bring her sufferings in front of the world.

In a searing letter to the Vatican that was made available to the media Tuesday, the nun also asked will the Church be able to give back what she has lost. She alleged that Bishop Franco Mulakkal was using "political and money power" to bury the case against him.

Noting that she felt the Catholic Church was still doubting her over the argument as to why she allowed the bishop to sexually abuse her multiple times, the nun said she had tremendous fear and shame to bring this out into the open. She also feared 'threats' to her family members.

Bishop Mulakkal on his part rejected the charges against him as "baseless and concocted" and said he was open for a probe. The bishop also accused the nun of "blackmailing" him.

With the protest by various Catholic Reform organisations in Kochi seeking justice for the nun entering the fourth day, the Kerala government said "justice will be done" amid reports that Cardinal Gracias, the President of Catholic Bishops Conference of India, will be raising the alleged rape of the nun with the Holy Pope.

As the nun shot off the lengthy letter to Giambattista Diquattro, the Vatican representative in India, the "Missionaries of Jesus", a congregation to which she belongs, came out against her and five other nuns, who are staging a protest seeking justice, accusing them of "spreading blatant lies" against the Bishop. But the protesting nuns rejected the charge and said they will continue their agitation till justice was delivered.

In her lengthy letter, the nun also sought to explain her silence before coming out against the bishop and said she had "tremendous fear and shame" and wondered why the church was "closing its eyes to the truth". Senior Kerala minister E P Jayarajan rejected allegations of attempts to sabotage the case and asserted that the probe was proceeding in the "right direction."

"A very strong investigation is being carried out in the case. It is proceeding in the right direction. No accused would be allowed to escape the clutches of the law," he told reporters in Kannur. The minister also said there was no pressure on the government in acting against the bishop.

In her letter dated September 8, the nun, who has accused the Bishop of rape and having unnatural sex with her multiple times between 2014 and 2016, said she has turned to the Church authorities for justice.

She demanded removal of the Jalandhar Bishop from the post, alleging that by continuing in the position, Franco and his close associates "are using the wealth of the diocese to divert" the course of the police investigation. "Seeking your urgent intervention in this case as the representative of the Holy See in India," the nun said.

She also alleged that the Bishop and his associates were luring people to take a stand supportive of them by assuring them of properties and other forms of wealth. "They are arranging people to attack us and Bishop Franco is using his political power and money to get higher authorities of the investigation and the government to bury legal proceedings that I have filed against him," she charged.

Noting she had filed the complaint against the bishop two months ago, the nun claimed even though the Special Investigation Team probing it was convinced of the proofs, they were not able to arrest him because of his political and economic power. "I beg the Church authorities to kindly make a speedy enquiry about this case and remove Bishop Franco from his responsibilities as the spiritual leader of the diocese," the nun said. The nun wondered why the Church was closing its eyes to the "truth when I have mustered courage...."

"Your Highness, I would like to ask: Will the Church authority -who stand to protect Bishop Franco and safeguard the dignity of the Church by hiding his wickedness- be able to give back what I have lost?" she asked in the letter. Copies of the letter were sent to 21 others, including Cardinal Oswald Gracias and Delhi Metropolitan Archbishop, Anil Couto.

In a statement, the Missionaries of Jesus congregation questioned the character of the nun and alleged she had an illicit relationship with one of her relatives. It said bringing the real truth in the case was their "moral and divine" responsibility.

The agitation by the nuns was part of an agenda to destroy the Church and the congregation, it charged. "If I am found guilty, which I am not, I am likely to be punished...I will appear before police if I am summoned. I am a law-abiding citizen," the Bishop told television channels in Jalandhar.

The Kerala priest said he like everybody else had the right to take legal recourse. Terming the allegations against him as "serious", the bishop said only three persons knew the truth. "The complainant's sister, myself and God (know the truth)," he said.

The priest also hit out at those protesting against him. "At this moment, whatever is going on is not justifiable. I suffered it silently. This is a time of crisis...I am going through painful agony...I tell everyone to pray to God...Let the truth prevail," he said.
HOUSTON, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Epsilon Energy Ltd. (Epsilon or the Company) (TSX:EPS) announced today that the annual general shareholders meeting (the Meeting) will be held on October 3, 2018 in Houston, Texas. The notice of meeting, management information circular and proxy are now available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com . Each Epsilon shareholder who is entitled to attend shareholder meetings is encouraged to participate in the Meeting and shareholders are urged to vote in person or by proxy on the matters to be considered. The Company held a special meeting on June 28, 2018 to consider the domestication of the Company from Alberta, Canada to Delaware, USA. However, as the domestication has not yet occurred, the Company determined to proceed with its 2018 annual meeting in accordance with Alberta law. This is the reason for the delay in holding the annual meeting later than six months from its year end.

About Epsilon

Epsilon Energy Ltd. is a North American onshore natural gas production and midstream company with a current focus on the Marcellus Shale of Pennsylvania and the Anadarko Basin in Oklahoma.

Contact Information:

281-670-0002
NEW DELHI: Under attack from several quarters over rising fuel prices, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to chair a Union Cabinet meeting on the issue on Thursday.

According to reports, during the meeting, the Union Cabinet is expected to deliberate on issues like fuel price hike, devaluation of Rupee, Minimum Support Price for farmers, electrification of railway tracks under which 18000-km of tracks are to be electrified in a time-bound manner etc.

The Union Cabinet is also likely to announce a new crop procurement policy on Thursday.

Thursday's Union Cabinet meet assumes significance since there has been no relief in sight from the rising petrol, diesel and gas prices which are burning a hole in the consumers' pockets.

The government on Wednesday eluded questions on the subject at an official media briefing here, with Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan asserting that he would not answer questions outside of the day's Cabinet decisions.

"We will confine ourselves to the Cabinet decisions only," Pradhan said when asked if a relief was in the offing from soaring oil prices.

The Minister also chose to keep mum when asked if the Union Cabinet discussed the issue on Wednesday.

On Monday, Pradhan had an hour-long meeting with BJP president Amit Shah after the Opposition organised a Bharat Bandh on the issue.

Speaking to reporters, the Petroleum Minister had recently said that Rupee was strong as ever and the surge in fuel prices was due to external factors.

In a related development, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to interfere in a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the sale of petrol and diesel at reasonable prices instead of letting oil companies increase the rates exorbitantly.

Refusing to issue an order to the Centre on the issue, a bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice VK Raohe said daily change in fuel prices was an "economic policy decision" of the central government and the courts must remain away from it.

The bench made it clear it was not inclined to interfere with the government's decision, saying "there are larger economic issues" involved.

"It is an economic policy matter of the government. There are larger economic issues. The courts must remain away from it. The government may do it (fix a fair price). We cannot issue a mandamus (direction) to them to do it," the court said.

The bench was hearing a PIL by Delhi-based designer, Puja Mahajan, challenging the daily rise in fuel rates and seeking a direction to the Centre to fix a fair price for petrol and diesel by treating them as essential commodities.

The petition, filed through advocate A Maitri, also claimed that Mahajan''s representation to the central government on the issue has not yet been decided.

The court, thereafter, directed the central government to decide the representation within four weeks and listed the matter for hearing on November 16.

The petition has alleged that the government had "indirectly given implied consent" to oil marketing companies (OMCs) to hike petrol and diesel prices at their own "whims and fancies".

It has claimed that the implied consent was evident from the lack of revision in fuel prices for around 22 days in the run-up to the Karnataka Assembly polls.

The petition has also alleged that the government was spreading "misleading information" by connecting the rising fuel prices here with the global increase in the rate of crude oil as the cost of petrol and diesel did not go down when crude was cheaper.

The petitioner has also said that in July, she had moved a similar plea, which the court had disposed of by asking the Centre to treat it as a representation and take a decision.

However, since the government had not taken a decision till date on her representation, she filed the present petition, the plea has said.

(With Agency Inputs)
In a major setback for cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, the Supreme Court on Wednesday decided to review the previous order in a 1988 road rage case against him. The top court will take a decision on whether Sidhu should be sent to jail or not.

Accepting a review petition in this regard, the apex court has issued a notice to the Congress leader and sought his response on the issue. The notice was issued by a bench comprising Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul.

In May, Sidhu was found guilty of voluntarily causing hurt in the 1988 road rage case. The Congress leader was, however, spared the jail term with the top court acquitting him 'for culpable homicide not amounting to murder'.

Sidhu was acquitted under section 304 (II) - culpable homicide not amounting to murder - and convicted under section 323 - punishment for voluntarily causing hurt - in 1998 road rage case by Supreme Court.

The road rage incident dates back to December 27, 1988, when Sidhu had allegedly punched 65-year-old Gurnam Singh in Patiala resulting in the latter`s death. The Sessions Court Judge of Patiala on September 22, 1999, had acquitted Sidhu and his associate, Rupinder Singh Sandhu, due to lack of evidence in the case.

The Punjab and Haryana High Court later reversed his acquittal, convicting him under Section 304 Part II, Indian Penal Code (IPC), for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

The victim's family had appealed to the Supreme Court that earlier imprisonment sentence of three years given by the Punjab and Haryana High Court should be enhanced. However, the Punjab government had appealed to the top court to uphold three-year imprisonment.
NEW DELHI: As part of the ongoing Indo-US defence cooperation, a joint military training Exercise  Yudh Abhyas 2018  will be held from September 16 to 29 at Chaubattia in Uttarakhand's Almora district.

Yudh Abhyas is one of the longest running joint military training exercises and a major bilateral defence cooperation endeavour between India and the US, said the Ministry of Defence. This will be the 14th edition of the joint military exercise hosted alternately by both countries.

The joint exercise Yudh Abhyas 2018 will simulate a scenario where both nations will work together in counter insurgency and counter terrorism environment in mountainous terrain under United Nation charter, said the Defence Ministry.

A two-week exercise, Yudh Abhyas will witness participation of about nearly 700 personnel of US and Indian Armies.

The exercise curriculum is progressively planned where the participants are initially made to get familiar with each others organizational structure, weapons, equipment, confidence training and tactical drills. Subsequently, the training advances to joint tactical exercises wherein the battle drills of both the armies are coherently unleashed. The training will culminate with a final validation exercise in which troops of both countries will jointly carry out an operation against terrorists in a fictitious but realistic setting, said the ministry.



This year, the joint military drill will witness a Division Headquarter based Command Post Exercise, an Infantry Battalion carrying out Field Training Exercise and discussions on issues of mutual interest by experts of both countries.
Kochi: Bishop Franco Mullakal of Jalandhar diocese, who is accused of raping a nun, has been summoned by the Kerala Police for questioning in connection with the case.

According to ANI, the bishop has been asked to appear before the Kerala Police investigating team on September 19.

''Bishop Franco has been asked to appear on 19th Sept. There are a lot of contradictions in the case. This is an old case based primarily on oral evidence. We have verified a lot of contradictions. It's our duty to protect the victim and the witnesses,'' IG Vijay Sakhre told reporters.

Bishop Franco has been asked to appear on 19th Sept. There are a lot contradictions in the case. This is an old case based primarily on oral evidence. We have verified a lot of contradictions. It's our duty to protect the victim&witnesses: IG Vijay Sakre on Kerala nun rape case pic.twitter.com/v71K0GOFFQ  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

The decision to summon the Jalandhar diocese was taken after a meeting chaired by Vijay Sakhare, Inspector General of Police (Ernakulam range), which was also attended by Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar and Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash.

The Kerala Police is reportedly under mounting pressure to initiate action against the rape-accused Mullakal.

The 'raped' nun had recently written a letter to The Vatican for justice and demanded that the bishop be removed as the head of the Jalandhar diocese. In her letter, she also questioned why the church was "closing its eyes to the truth" when she mustered the courage to make public her sufferings.

In the scathing letter, the nun urged The Vatican for its urgent intervention in the mater. The nun also asked will the Church be able to give back what she has lost? She alleged that the bishop was using "political and money power" to influence the case against him.

She had accused the clergyman of sexually assaulting her repeatedly between 2014 and 2016.

The bishop had, however, dismissed the allegations as "baseless and concocted", insisting she levelled those as the Catholic order had rejected her demand for favours.
MUMBAI: Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam, who has been very vocal of the NDA government at the Centre, has now called Prime Minister Narendra Modi 'anpadh-gawar' (illiterate and uncivilised).

Nirupam, who heads the Mumbai unit of the Congress, has also objected to the screening of a documentary film on PM Narendra Modi in the schools across the city.

''What will college and school students gain by knowing about an illiterate and unsophisticated person like Modi,'' Sanjay Nirupam said on Wednesday.

''Our children shouldnt watch such films because they are unaware of the PMs educational qualification,'' he added.

There is some film on Modi which is being forcibly screened. This is absolutely wrong. Our children must be kept away from politics. It is shameful that our people, our children still dont know how many degrees our PM has. the Congress leader said in Mumbai.

Jo bachhe school, college mein padh rahe hain woh Modi jaise unpadh-gawaar ke baare mein jaan kar unko kya milne wala hai? Yeh bahut sharmnaak baat hai ki aaj tak humare desh ke nagrik aur bacchhon ko pata hi nahi hai ki PM ki degree kitni hai? Sanjay Nirupam, Congress in Mumbai pic.twitter.com/ugUHHvukm8  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Nirupam had earlier called for booking PM Modi for murder, holding him responsible for at least 70 deaths across the country due to the NDA government's sudden and shocking decision of demonetising the old currency notes of high denomination in 2016.

"One and only person is responsible for all these deaths - Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I demand he should be held responsible and booked under Section 302 (of IPC) for murder," Nirupam had then said.

Attacking the PM, Nirupam had said, ''These people have been standing in long queues for so many days, waiting to deposit and withdraw their own money which is now stuck in the banks. So far, more than 70 persons have died, who is to be blamed for that  PM Modi, Nirupam said.

In one such occasion in past, Nirupam had called the entire Modi cabinet as 'fake' and even raised doubts over the surgical strikes by the Army along the Line of Control to dismantle terror launch pads in PoK.

Expressing doubts over the Maoists' plot to assassinate PM Modi, Nirupam said, it has been PM Modis old tactic.

I am not saying this is completely untrue but it has been PM Modis old tactic, since he was Chief Minister. Whenever his popularity declines, news of an assassination plot is planted, he had said.

He is not the only one to have made objectionable comments on the PM. Nirupam's party colleague Mani Shankar Aiyar had earlier called PM Modi a neech aadmi (low level person) and chaiwala (tea seller) in 2014.

Though Aiyar was suspended from the Congress after he used derogatory words against PM Modi ahead of the first phase of Gujarat Assembly elections, his suspension was later revoked.

Aiyar had said, Mujhko lagta hai ki ye aadmi bahut neech kisam ka aadmi hai, isme koi sabhyata nahi hai, or aise mauke par is kisam ki gandi rajniti karne ki kya avashyakta hai? (This man is a low-life person. He has no culture, standard. What was the need to practise such dirty politics?)

Similarly, in September 2017, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh had posted an image on Twitter containing unparliamentary language to criticise PM Modi.
Mumbai: A fire broke out at a building in Andheri in the early morning hours on Wednesday. Rescue operations are currently underway.

Five fire engines and three water tankers have been pressed into action.

Mumbai: Fire broke out at a building in Andheri at 3 am today. 5 fire engines and 3 water tankers present at the spot. Firefighting operations underway. More details awaited. pic.twitter.com/QKboaf2OKd  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Spot image: ANI

The blaze started around at 3 am. More are details awaited.

The incident comes barely a day after another fire broke out Tuesday on the second floor of a seven-storey commercial building situated in Madhur Industrial Estate in suburban Andheri. Eight firefighting engines, a water tanker and five ambulances were rushed to the spot.

Station officer from Goregaon fire station, Y P Shelar, received burn injuries on both his hands in the incident and was admitted to Cooper Hospital, a fire brigade official said.

"The injured officer was then shifted to Airoli Burns Centre and is now undergoing treatment there," the official said.

With agency inputs
New Delhi: The beautiful Disha Patani sets Instagram on fire each time she uploads a picture. The actress is quite active on social media and has massive fan-following. Disha keeps her fanbse updated and happy by regularly sharing details of her life. Whether it's posing in a black monokini or uploading a mirror selfie, her pics go viral in no time!

Disha took to Instagram stories on Tuesday and flaunted her washboard abs, giving us major fitness goals.

Check out the screenshot here:

The actress also shared a boomerang video in which she looks absolutely stunning.

Check it out:

On the workfront, Disha will be seen in 'Bharat' along with Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif. The film also stars actor-comedian Sunil Grover and popular television actor Aasif Sheikh among others.

'Bharat' is slated for an Eid 2019 release and is helmed by Ali Abbas Zafar. The movie took the internet by storm ever since it was announced.

'Bharat' will be set in the backdrop of India in 1947 and will take us through the events during the countrys partition. Not just that, the film will showcase significant events over a period of 70 years since partition.

Earlier, Priyanka Chopra was a part of the film but the actress backed out in the 'Nick' of time. To replace Pee Cee, Katrina was roped in.

Nothing has been revealed about Disha's character in the film but reports suggest that the actress will play the role of Salman Khan's sister.
New Delhi: Trolls and haters have found a new hobby on the internetto ridicule or shame a celebritythinking this makes them look cool. But it's high time that they get a dose of their own medicine and Bollywood actor Arjun Kapoor just did that.

The actor will next be seen in 'Namaste England' co-starring Parineeti Chopra. The lead actress recently shared the new song 'Tere Liye' from the movie on Twitter with a movie still. And guess what? A Twitter user made an insensitive remark about Arjun writing: Is it only me or arjun kapoor looks like a molester in the pic.

Is it only me or arjun kapoor looks like a molester in the pic.  Social_layman (@Social_layman) September 11, 2018

Well, the actor was in no mood to get this unnoticed and made sure she shots back in the most epic way.

Arjun wrote: When terms like this are used lightly it signifies lack of basic human understanding of the how big a deal it is to make sure we dont take women s safety lightly or as a joke

When terms like this are used lightly it signifies lack of basic human understanding of the how big a deal it is to make sure we dont take women s safety lightly or as a joke https://t.co/yazPhM7gBS  Arjun Kapoor (@arjunk26) September 11, 2018

Rightly said, Arjun!

Social media can be good for a healthy interaction with your favourite star or getting celeb reactions but loosely using terms such as these can have a serious implication. Social media users should shoulder the responsibility of drawing a line somewhere.

The romantic comedy-drama is directed and co-produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah. It happens to be the sequel of 2007 blockbuster hit 'Namastey London' featuring Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif in the lead roles.

'Namaste England' features Arjun Kapoor, Parineeti Chopra and Aditya Seal in lead roles. It is scheduled for a worldwide release on October 19, 2018.
HYDERABAD: In a major development on Tuesday night, three Opposition parties in Telangana  the Congress, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the Communist Party of India (CPI)  joined hands to form a grand alliance to take on the ruling the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) in the upcoming state Assembly elections.

Showing a united front, the parties demanded President`s rule in the state until the Assembly polls.

A group of senior political leaders from four Opposition parties  the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the Congress, the Telangana Jana Samithi (TJS) and the Communist Party of India (CPI)  met Governor ESL Narasimhan on Tuesday.

According to a senior Congress leader, the alliance will be in line for a United Opposition ahead of 2019 general elections.

The front is also reportedly trying to unite with Kodandaram (of TJS) and seek support of all people`s organisations, employees, unemployed and women`s groups.

"This is only the preliminary stage. We have not discussed seat sharing. But we are formulating a broad-based alliance, including the TDP also, on the basis of the Common Minimum Programme," said R C Khuntia, AICC-in-charge of Congress affairs in Telangana.

This is the first time in TDP's 35-year-old history that it is joining hands with the Congress in a state.

Justifying the alliance, Khunti said the Congress does not harbour any bitter feelings towards the TDP.

Accusing the caretaker government of misusing power and arresting two senior Congress leaders on false charges, former TDP legislator R Chandrasekar Reddy said, "Our delegation met the governor today and said the present caretaker government is violating both constitution and the democratic norms. The caretaker chief minister has also superimposed his authority over the election commission of India and announced the schedule of the elections, which is unheard of. So we requested the governor to impose the president rule and take over the administration of the state to ensure free and fair polls in the state".

On September 6, Governor Narasimhan dissolved the state assembly following a recommendation from the K Chandrashekhar Rao-led cabinet. The Governor, however, asked Rao to continue as caretaker Chief Minister until the new government was formed.

A team of the Election Commission of India (EC) on Tuesday met top officials and leaders of political parties in Telangana as part of its exercise to assess the preparedness for the conduct of Assembly elections in the state.

The team led by Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Umesh Sinha held separate meetings with the officials and representatives of recognised political parties. It will submit its report to the Commission and based on this a decision will be taken on poll dates.

With agency inputs
London: A group of about 50 lawmakers in British Prime Minister Theresa May`s government who oppose her proposals for a post-Brexit deal with the European Union have met to discuss how and when they could force her out of her job, the BBC reported on Wednesday.

The lawmakers, part of the European Research Group (ERG), an anti-EU grouping in May`s Conservative party, met on Tuesday night and openly discussed May`s future as leader, the BBC said citing an unnamed source.

A number at the meeting said they had already submitted letters of no confidence in May, the source told the BBC. Under Conservative rules, a leadership election is triggered if 15 percent of Conservative lawmakers, currently 48 out of its 315 members of parliament (MPs), demand a vote of no confidence.

The ERG has condemned May`s plans for Britain to remain in a free trade zone for goods with the EU after it leaves the bloc in March next year but has faced criticism itself for failing to suggest a detailed alternative.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the ERG leader, said on Tuesday his group would unveil its proposal on Wednesday for how Britain could leave the EU without constructing a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, one of the main sticking points in securing a Brexit deal.

The BBC said those at the Tuesday night meeting which did not include all the ERG`s senior figures had discussed possible scenarios depending on whether May was able to secure a deal with the EU based on her proposals.

Comments at the meeting were said to have included "everyone I know says she has to go" and "she`s a disaster", the BBC reported. However, the BBC report said the ERG was unlikely to force a leadership election unless they were sure they had a candidate that could win.

The rift in May`s party deepened this week, with her former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who quit the cabinet over the Chequers proposal, comparing May`s plan in a newspaper column to putting a "suicide vest" on Britain`s constitution.

The eurosceptics complain that accepting the free trade on goods with the EU would mean Britain had to sign up to EU regulations even after it leaves the bloc.

May`s spokesman said her so-called Chequers proposal is the only serious, credible and negotiable plan available.

However, the Sun newspaper reported on Wednesday that May`s office was drawing up secret plans to ditch her Chequers blueprint if EU leaders reject it at a summit next week.


LOS ANGELES, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Matian Firm is proud to announce the hiring of Attorney Flavio Carvalho as an associate attorney in their immigration department. Mr. Carvalho will be leading the immigration efforts of The Matian Firm in the San Jose and San Francisco Bay Area. California State Bar licensed since 2012, Mr. Carvalho has always fought for immigrant rights and his passion for the cause links back to his childhood, when his family immigrated to the USA from Brazil.



Mr. Carvalho marks The Matian Firm's tenth immigration associate attorney and the twenty-first overall associate attorney in the growing firm. Mr. Carvalhos diverse knowledge and background will serve to expand The Matian Firms scope of legal work and provide clients with an additional layer of legal expertise.

Shawn F. Matian is quoted as saying: Flavio Carvalho is a hardworking, caring lawyer with a passion for immigration law. Were eager to expand our services of immigration defense throughout California.

The Matian Firm | La Liga Defensora has helped thousands of clients with their immigration and criminal cases by providing excellent legal services. This consistent track record of outstanding work has been notably recognized by the legal community as evidenced by the many awards that have been bestowed upon the firm including: Super Lawyers | Rising Stars; The National Top 100 Trial Lawyers; Lawyers of Distinction Award; Nationally Ranked Top 10 Attorney Award; 10 Best Law Firms Client Satisfaction; and Avvos Client Choice Award, amongst other accolades.

The Matian Firm | La Liga Defensora is staffed with experienced, aggressive, and zealous attorneys who are prepared to protect the rights of all immigrants as well as those who stand accused of committing a crime. Associate attorneys include former federal prosecutors, former special task force lawyers, former district attorneys, former public defenders, former asylum officers, former LAFLA (Legal Aid Foundation Of Los Angeles) attorneys, and many other lawyers who strive to make a difference in the fields of immigration law and criminal defense law.

The Matian Firm | La Liga Defensora provides legal services in all immigration and criminal matters including, but not limited to: deportation defense, family petitions, U-Visas, DACA, FOIA, Asylum, and VAWA. The firm also handles all criminal felony and misdemeanor matters including cases related to: Driving Under the Influence (DUI/DWI), drug offenses, domestic violence matters, theft/robbery cases, sex crimes, violent crimes, fraud, arrest warrants, and cases falling under federal jurisdiction.

The Matian Firm is located at 3701 Wilshire Blvd Suite 210, Los Angeles, California 90010. This year also welcomes a new location to serve the Bay Area / Northern California at 111 N. Market Street Suite 888 in San Jose, California 95113.

More information on the firm, its attorneys, and its casework can be found on the web: www.LaLigaDefensora.com

MEDIA CONTACT:

Lou Petracci

711 Media

909-904-3708

87 E Green Street Suite 301

Pasadena, CA 91105



A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0fb298cd-dd78-41ec-ac60-bb94bbf8425e
VLADIVOSTOK: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, speaking in Vladivostok after meeting Chinese leader Xi Jinping, said on Wednesday they had agreed to work towards an October visit by him to China, the latest sign of warming ties between the Asian rivals.

Abe also said he and Xi shared the view that Japan and China bore responsibility for world peace and prosperity, as well as the goal of achieving North Korea`s denuclearization.

His comments, made on the sidelines of a regional forum in the east Russian city, were aired on Japan`s NHK public broadcaster.

Abe returned to office for a rare second term in December 2012, promising a hard line towards China in a territorial row over tiny islands in the East China Sea.

But although the dispute simmers, relations have stabilised recently amid intensifying U.S. trade pressure on both China and Japan.

"In response to Chinas gracious invitation, I intend to visit China this year, the year in which we commemorate the 40th anniversary of the conclusion of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and China," Abe told the forum later.

"After that, I very much wish to invite President Xi to Japan. Through this exchange of visits at the leaders` level, I hope to raise Japan-China relations to a new stage."

Japanese media have floated Oct. 23, the date on which the treaty took effect, as the likely timing of Abe`s visit.

Xi told Abe that Sino-Japanese ties "face an important opportunity for improvement. Under the new circumstances, we should continue to meet each other halfway, maintain the positive momentum and promote the stable development of China-Japan relations to attain even greater expansion (of ties), according to a statement by the Chinese foreign ministry.

Japanese and Chinese officials have been discussing private sector cooperation in third countries, with China believed eager for Japanese firms to take part in its Belt and Road Initiative of infrastructure and trade links between China and Eurasia.

Abe also told the regional forum he hoped North Korea would seize the opportunity to improve ties with the international community but it was "an absolute imperative that we achieve the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula".

The White House is looking at scheduling a second meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un following their first summit in Singapore in June.

Abe reiterated his desire to meet Kim himself to resolve the matter of Japanese citizens kidnapped by Pyongyang`s agents decades ago, but said nothing had been decided yet.
TRIPOLI: Rockets were fired late on Tuesday in the direction of the airport in Libya`s capital, residents said, forcing flights to be diverted, less than a week after the United Nations brokered a fragile truce between rival armed groups in Tripoli.

A spokesman for a faction controlling Matiga airport, the only one functioning in the capital, said there were no casualties or damage. Libyan channels reported that several people had been wounded by the rockets, one of which landed in the Mediterranean sea.

Rival groups have been fighting in Tripoli for several days but clashes had been focussed on the south of the city. Matiga airport lies in an eastern suburb.

A Libyan Airlines flight bound for Tripoli from Alexandria, Egypt, was diverted to Misrata, the airport said on its Facebook page. Misrata lies about 190 km (120 miles) east of Tripoli. A spokesman for Misrata airport said that all flights bound for Tripoli would be diverted to Misrata.

Separately, Islamic State claimed responsibility for a shooting attack on the headquarters of Libyan state oil company NOC in Tripoli, the jihadist group`s news agency said on Tuesday. The attack on Monday killed two NOC staff and wounded 10, said officials, who had described the three shooters who were also killed as "Africans."

It targeted the "economic interests of oppressing governments funding crusaders," a statement carried on the militants` Amaq news agency said.

It was the first attack of its kind against the leadership of Libya`s state oil industry.

Libya has been divided into rival administrations but NOC has continued to function relatively normally across the country, which relies on oil exports for most of its income. Militants loyal to Islamic State have previously carried out attacks in Tripoli and other towns, despite having lost their stronghold in the central city of Sirte late in 2016.

In May, Islamic State claimed a deadly attack on the national election commission offices in Tripoli.
Lahore: Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar would be released on parole for a day to attend the funeral of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz, sources said Tuesday.

Kulsoom, the wife of Sharif, died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68. Her body will be brought back here and buried in Jati Umra Lahore residence of the Sharif family.

Sources told PTI that Sharif, Maryam and Safdar are being released on parole to attend the funeral. "Prime Minister Imran Khan has ordered to facilitate the Sharif family regarding bringing back the body of Kulsoom and other matters," they said, adding that the government may free the father and the daughter for a day.

"The Sharif family has sought at least a three-day parole," they said. A request is necessary for parole to be granted.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Maryam Aurangzeb told PTI that the party president Shehbaz Sharif had gone to meet his elder brother Nawaz Sharif and niece Maryam at the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi to take instructions from them regarding the burial of Kulsoom.

"Her body will be brought back and buried at the Sharif's Jati Umra residence," she said. She said Shehbaz would leave for London to bring the body to Lahore.

To a question whether her sons -- Hasan and Hussain -- would return to Lahore to attend her funeral prayer, she said: "No decision has been taken as yet." It is likely that both sons may not return to Pakistan as they have been declared absconders by an accountability court in the off-shore properties case.
Days, after Britain charged two Russians in absentia with the attempted murder of a former Russian spy and his daughter, Russian President Vladimir Putin, said on Wednesday that the two accused were civilians and there was nothing special or criminal about them.

British prosecutors last week identified two Russians who they said were operating under aliases - Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov - who they said had tried to murder former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with a military-grade nerve agent, Novichok agent, in England.

Putin, speaking at an economic forum in the Russian port city of Vladivostok, said Russia had found the two men, that they were civilians, and there was nothing special or criminal about them and that he hoped they would come forward and tell the world their own story.

"We, of course, checked who these people are. We know who they are, we found them. Well, I hope they will come out themselves and speak about themselves. It will be better for everyone," he said. "There`s nothing particularly even criminal about it, I assure you. We`ll see soon...They are civilians of course. I would like to appeal to them so that they hear us today. They will come somewhere, to you, the mass media..."

Britain has said the two suspects were Russian military intelligence officers almost certainly acting on orders from high up in the Russian state. Russia has repeatedly denied any involvement in the incidents.

Skripal - a former colonel in Russian military intelligence who betrayed dozens of agents to Britain`s MI6 foreign intelligence service - and his daughter were found slumped unconscious on a bench in the English city of Salisbury in March. They spent weeks in the hospital before being discharged.

A woman near Salisbury, Dawn Sturgess, died in July and her partner Charlie Rowley fell ill after Rowley found a counterfeit bottle of Nina Ricci perfume containing Novichok and brought it home.
"Samopomich" in the Kyiv City Council declared self-dissolution because of the corruption schemes of its members

There is no longer "Samopomich" faction in Kyiv City Council. Today's announcement was an interim result of the scandal that has lasted for several days.

"The deputies had a choice: either to condemn the corruption scam of their colleague, revealed by the inner-party investigation or to choose a mutual guarantee. Unfortunately, such self-dissolution is probably the only way out," the partys press-service claimed. This is about the former head of the city council faction, Serhiy Husovsky, and three other deputies who were expelled from the party the day before.

"Samopomich" is a political party registered on December 29, 2012. The leader of the party is Lviv mayor Andriy Sadovy. It identifies with the ideology of "Christian morality and common sense."

"Samopomich" faction has 22 deputies in the Kyiv City Council.

Serhiy Husovsky is a deputy of the city council, a famous entrepreneur-restaurateur. Was a candidate for the post of mayor of Kyiv in the 2015 elections.

Start

The exclusion of Husovsky, Rudenko, Kharsuk, and Vasylchuk

Who is Roman Marchenko?

Information on the expulsion from the party of four members of "Samopomich" faction in the Kyiv City Council appeared on September 7. The official formulation of the party was as follows:

"These deputies supported the decision of the Kyiv City Council to allocate to the relatives of their counterpart Roman Marchenko land plots in the city of Kyiv, which had previously been illegally seized by them. The total area of all the seized sites is more than 1.4 hectares. Despite numerous comments from society and the party, Roman Marchenko has used his deputy mandate to implement probably corrupt schemes with land plots in Kyiv."

That is, we are talking about specific votes regarding a single party member. By the way, about a one-party man. Roman Marchenko is a lawyer and co-founder of the well-known law firm "Ilyashev & Partners".

Roman Marchenko

"Samopomich" published the results of the internal investigation regarding Marchenko and his likely corrupt schemes, promising to transfer all the materials to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and other law enforcement agencies.

According to the investigation, Marchenko and his family allegedly seized 12 land plots in Kyiv with a total area of about 1.4 hectares (including on the shoreline of Vytovets Lake). In addition, some areas are in the use of the Marchenko family without any legal basis, and the income from real estate transactions is missing in the declaration.

"Samopomich" notes that the law firm "Ilyashev and Partners" is actively working in occupied Crimea and the territory of Russia.

The investigation has revealed that a group of deputies headed by Husovsky were allegedly familiar with the situation since 2017 but had not taken any action.

Serhiy Husovsky called the party's decision a reprisal "with an unwanted Kyiv team."

Serhiy Husovsky

"In recent months, we have repeatedly discussed with the leader of the party the principles of our work, devotion to transparent democratic approaches, but party dictates have won common sense," he wrote on Facebook. Husovsky promised, "to prove the absurdity of accusations towards team members in public and in court."

He also announced, "a new force without populists."

Roman Marchenko on Facebook:

"This excuse, which was elected in the inner-party struggle with Husovsky, is a manipulation. The land plot has been in use since the 80s when plots were allocated from the lands of the Bortnychi plant. The privatization procedure began in 2006 and lasts for already 12 years old. Over the years the buildings on the site have been updated and completed several times. We have passed all the stages of the privatization process."

The end

Dissolution of the faction and some results

The disposition is as follows:

"Samopomich" has decided on everything. The investigation contains a large number of words a-la "these data can testify" and "probably", but in general the general information is clear. Now the party is going to hand over the investigation materials to the law enforcement.

Husovsky calls the incident a reprisal and promises to prove his case, including in court.

Roman Marchenko calls the accusations "manipulation" for the sake of the struggle against Husovsky. By the way, he wrote a statement about the addition of the mandate even more than a year ago. So far, it was not satisfied. Deputy from "Samopomoch" Olha Balytska, said in comments for "Ukrainian Truth" that "He (Marchenko, - Ed.) has written this statement voluntarily."

"Samopomich" faction in Kyiv City Council has announced a self-dissolution. Serhiy Husovsky announced the creation of a new political force.

Instead of "Samopomich" faction, a deputy group will be created.

Read the original text at 112.ua.
From the beginning of the day, the militants in Donbas violated ceasefire regime 14 times. The press office of the Joint Forces Operation reported this on Facebook.

In the afternoon, the enemy was opening aimed fire from armed IFV, grenade launchers of different systems, heavy machine guns and small arms at the positions of the Joint Forces in the areas of the settlements Krymske, Novotoshkivske, Zolote, Novoluhanske, Chermalyk, Hruntove, and Lebedynske. Moreover, in the morning, the Russian-occupation forces shelled the positions of the Joint Forces in the area of the settlement Chermalyk from 82mm mortars, reads the message.

Also, a 20-year-old warrior from 58th mechanized infantry brigade Yaroslav Buhaievskyi from Shostka city died in the Joint Forces Operation zone. Mykola Noha, Head of Shostka city claimed this on Facebook.

The resident of Shostka died the heros death in the ATO zone, warrior of the 58th separate mechanized infantry brigade Yaroslav Buhaievskyi. He was only 20-year-old. The young man attended school  12, then successfully passed the exams in Shostka Chemistry and Technology College. Havent graduated his education, Yaroslav joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine, headed to the east to defend the country, he said.

He also claimed that a mourning was declared in Shostka for the next 3 days.

As it was reported earlier, one Ukrainian military died from severe injuries received during shelling the previous day on September 11.
No mortar or artillery fire was observed in the combat area

Over the past 24 hours, Russian occupant forces in Donbas have breached the ceasefire nine times. That resulted in combat injuries for two Ukrainian servicemen, the HQ of the Joint Forces Operation reported.

The enemy opened fire in the areas of Krymske, Zolote, Katerynivka, Novoluhanske, Shumy, Hnutove and Vodyane.

No mortar or artillery fire was observed in the combat area.

On September 10, the militants performed 24 attacks at the Ukrainian positions. One soldier died and one got injured as a result, as the press office of the Joint Forces Operation HQ reported on Facebook. It was noted that the enemy used Minsk-banned weapons three times. The enemy conducted adjusted fire from 120mm and 82mm mortars, infantry fighting vehicles, grenade launchers of various systems, heavy machine guns and small arms. Russian occupation troops performed attacks near Krymske, Zolote, Luhanske, Mayorske, Shumy, Pivdenne, Pavlopil, Hnutove, Vodyane, Lebedynske and Shyrokyne, the message says.
Arsen Dzhepparov, one of six Ukrainian political prisoners held in a Russian SIZO [remand prison] is being refused medical treatment despite alarming symptoms which could have fatal consequences. His lawyer Aider Azamatov has lodged several complaints with the relevant authorities, and also appealed to Russias Human Rights Ombudsman to intervene.

Dzhepparov has been complaining for some time of severe headaches. His blood pressure is too high, and that, together with numbness on the right side of his head and arm could indicate that a stroke is imminent. He is clearly in urgent need of qualified medical care and a proper examination, yet his condition is being ignored in the Rostov SIZO. Any request for help is reacted to with huge delays, and he is generally simply given a painkiller.

There are very strong grounds for believing that Dzhepparov was arrested on 18 April 2016 because of his refusal to act as an FSB informer.

Zarina Dzhepparova has recounted how three FSB officers turned up at her husbands work around two weeks before his arrest. One of the three was Alexander Kompaneitsev, a former SBU [Ukrainian security service] turncoat who was involved both in an aborted attempt to abduct Kuku, who had long faced harassment for his human rights activities under the occupation regime. Kompaneitsev was also present during the arrests of Kuku; Aliev; Bekirov and Siruk, and later openly threatened Bekirov that he would arrest his nephew, Refat Alimov, if Bekirov refused to give false testimony against the other men. He is also known to have threatened a friend of Kuku what he should expect if he didnt collaborate with the FSB.

During that first encounter with Dzhepparov, Kompaneitsev warned him that if he didnt testify against the first four men arrested, he would lose his job. A week later, there was an even more ominous incident where the car Dzhepparov was driving was forced off the road near a traffic police checkpoint, and then subjected to a search by FSB men, one of them with a machine gun. Dzhepparov was asked if hed thought about what was demanded of him. He repeated his refusal to collaborate and the traffic police officer, who had already erased the CCTV footage showing what had happened, then drew up the required protocol, stating that Dzhepparov was drunk with this resulting in a fine and loss of his licence.

It was a week later that the FSB arrived at their home, and began breaking down the door. As with the previous armed searches, the FSB brought their own official witnesses, one of whom stunk of alcohol and the other was obviously drunk. All the men were also gratuitously rough and boorish in their behaviour and threatened to shut the mouth of Dzhepparovs mother, who had become hysterical from panic. Arsen and Zarina had said nothing to his mother about the threats. She has high blood-pressure, and a blood sugar problem and they hadnt wanted to frighten here.

There were enough members of the family present to be able to follow what the men were doing, Zarina Dzhepparova says, and in the end they left with only her husbands mobile phone and two sim-cards.

Zarina is quite clear that she and her husband knew what was coming, but there was nothing they could do. It was too late to leave Crimea, she says, they wouldnt have let Dzhepparov go.

There was no question of agreeing to their offer. He told me: They also have children, families. How would I later explain what conscience and honour are to my daughter if I did something like that?

Bekirovs nephew Alimov was taken prisoner that same day.

All six Crimeans from the Yalta region: Muslim Aliev; Refat Alimov; Enver Bekirov; Arsen Dzhepparov; human rights activist Emir-Usein Kuku and Vadim Siruk have been recognized as political prisoners by the authoritative Memorial Human Rights Centre.

Russia began persecuting people for alleged involvement in Hizb ut-Tahrir soon after the Russian Supreme Court in 2003 declared this peaceful pan-Islamist movement terrorist. Hizb ut-Tahrir is not known to have committed an act of terrorism anywhere in the world and is legal in Ukraine and most countries. The Supreme Court kept the ruling secret until it was too late for Hizb ut-Tahrir or rights organizations to challenge it, and never provided a good reason for its decision.

This is the second Hizb ut-Tahrir case against Ukrainian Muslims since Russias annexation of Crimea. The trial has, up till recently, been as flawed as the first, however on 21 August, there was a new twist with the panel of judges - presiding judge Nikolai Yurevich Vasilchuk, Valery Sergeevich Opanasenko and Stanislav Vladimirovich Zhidkov sending the case back to the prosecutor. There had been a huge number of flagrant irregularities, including intervention by the FSB after one of the prosecution witnesses giving quite different testimony in court, however none of these had disturbed the judges. Instead they decided that there were grounds for saying that Bekirov had organized meetings in the school where he was janitor, and should therefore face more serious charges of organizing a Hizb ut-Tahrir group under Article 205.5  1 of Russias criminal code. The other men are charged with involvement under Article 205.5  2 with the sentence up to 20 years imprisonment.

These monstrous sentences, it should be stressed, are for unproven involvement in an organization which is legal in Ukraine, with the charges brought under the legislation of the occupying state, in grave breach of international law (for example, the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.

In declaring the Yalta Six political prisoners, the Memorial Human Rights Centre referred to their prosecution on charges of supposed involvement in the Hizb ut-Tahrir movement as among the so-called serial cases in which the FSB obtains high results (dozens of convictions) for minimum effort, practising mass persecution without any grounds.

Read the original text at Human Rights in Ukraine.

Related video:
Open source

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine prepared the project of appeal to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons because of the chemical emission in Crimea and would send it after gathering evidence. Minister of Foreign Affairs Pavlo Klimkin claimed this, as Ukrainian News report.

We have a prepared draft but we will refer it when we get all evidence. As of today, we dont have clear evidence regarding the chemical weapon. No doubt, if we dont provide any evidence, then Russia will use it against us and will try to represent it as a deliberate provocation. Nevertheless, we contacted the secretariat, as soon as we get the evidence  will use them, Klimkin noted.

He added that in the absence of adequate evidence, Russia justifies the current situation in Armyansk by the absence of water supply to Crimea.

As we reported, an unknown substance was discharged in the air in Armyansk, North Crimea. A greasy mud with a yellow shade appeared on metallic objects, roofs, and leaves on the trees.

Later, Sergey Aksyonov, head of the annexed Crimea claimed that the situation with the discharge of the unknown substance in the air goes beyond the norms.

Moreover, toxic chemicals were detected in the air in the Kherson region, southern Ukraine.

Refat Chubarov, Chairman of the Crimean Tatars Mejlis claimed that the evacuation of the children due to the emission of the unknown substance has begun in Armyansk.

Earlier it was reported that the hit of the shells at the technological tanks during the training of the detachments of the Armed Forces of Russia became the reason for the chemical emission at the plant Crimean Tytan.

On September 6, it was reported that the plant on the production of the titanium dioxide, the subsidiary of Titanium investments in Crimean Armyansk will completely stop to work on Sunday, September 9.

Reportedly, 61 Ukrainian border guards were affected by the emission of chemicals. Five of them have been hospitalized. They are in Odessa Clinical Hospital of State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (SBGS), the results of their tests will be known today.
The European Union accuses Budapest of the violation of the principles of the rule of law

Open source

European Parliament for the first time in the history of the EU endorsed the introduction of sanctions procedures against Hungary, DW reports.

Two-thirds of all MPs voted positively for the sanctions against Budapest on the voting in Strasburg.

The EU accuses Budapest of the violation of the principles of the rule of law, in particular, oppression non-governmental organizations.

Under the provisions of the article of the Lisbon Treaty, Budapest may be deprived of a right to vote in the EU Council because of the possible flagrant violation of fundamental democratic values of the EU.

Article 7 of the Treaty on European Union is introduced in case of violation of such principles as democracy, rule of law and respect for human rights by EU member.

Reportedly, European Commissioner for Budget and Humanitarian resources Gunther Oettinger claimed that the authorities of Hungary, Italy, Poland, and Romania want to destroy the EU.
San Francisco, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The United Religions Initiative and like-minded organizations worldwide are coordinating programs and celebrations of peace throughout the month of September, in observance of and alignment with the International Day of Peace on September 21, 11 Days of Global Unity on September 11-21, the UN High Level Forum on The Culture of Peace, and the Global Unity Games.



This emerging international movement consists of more than 3,500 civil society organizations in nearly every country that are presenting concerts, conferences, festivals, forums, broadcasts and other programs in September to address social, political, economic and environmental challenges on both a local and a global scale.



Throughout September 2018, URIs grassroots interfaith groups (called Cooperation Circles) will be promoting peace across 107 countries with events such as school programs, community marches, film showings, interfaith meals, silence walks, shared prayers, candle lightings, musical performances, and more.



The worldwide URI community celebrates The International Day of Peace ("Peace Day") every September 21. This occasion was established in 1981 by a unanimous United Nations resolution providing a globally shared date for all humanity to commit to peace above all differences, and to contribute to building a culture of peace. This year's #PeaceDay celebrates the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: "The Right to Peace." You can see a listing of last years URIs Peace Day 2017 celebrations here.



This year, the International Day of Peace will open at the United Nations Headquarters with the Peace Bell Ceremony. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will address the audience, including the 200 students who are invited to hold flags and send a message of peace to their respective countries, the Earth, and to the United Nations. They will hold the flags high during the ringing of the Peace Bell.



The Department of Public Information, along with NGO partners (United Religions Initiative, World Peace Prayer Society, Pathways to Peace, Philly Peace Day and the Jane Goodall Institute) organizes the annual student observance. Over 800 students will participate over the course of the day. The morning includes presentations from UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Messengers of Peace - Dr. Jane Goodall and Michael Douglas - and a message from the South Sudan Peacekeeping Mission. Special youth presentations will feature Emma Gonzalez and David Hogg, student survivors of the 2018 Parkland, FL high school shooting; John Papanier, a student leader from "March For Our Lives in NYC," and selected student peace projects.



URI Executive Director the Rev. Victor H. Kazanjian, Jr. will join the URI delegation at the UN to observe the day.



###



ABOUT THE UNITED RELIGIONS INITIATIVE



The United Religions Initiative is the largest grassroots interfaith peacebuilding network in the world. It cultivates peace and justice by engaging people to bridge religious and cultural differences and work together for the good of their communities. We implement our mission in 107 countries through local and global initiatives that build the capacity of more than 900 member groups and organizations, called Cooperation Circles, to engage in community action such as conflict resolution and reconciliation, environmental sustainability, education, womens and youth programs, and advocacy for human rights.



URI holds the prestigious distinction of being a non-governmental organization (NGO) with consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council, and has long-standing partnerships with several other UN agencies.



Get involved at URI.org.

Attachment
The Swedish furniture industry leader has been negotiating with Ukraine for more than 10 years

IKEA, the famous Swedish enterprise enters the Ukrainian market. Petro Poroshenko, the Ukrainian leader posted that on Facebook.

'Ukraine has been waiting for this news for a while, and lately, there has been a lot of changes, which made the opening of IKEA in this country possible. It's a good signal for other world-known brands; it's necessary to do business with Ukraine', he wrote.

Poroshenko marked that on Wednesday, he is to meet with Stefan Vanoverbeke, the CEO of IKEA's SouthEast Europe.

According to LIGABiznesInform news agency, the first IKEA shop may appear at Ocean Mall in Kyiv next year; at first, it is supposed to appear in the capital city, and then in the other regions.
The office will realize projects agreed by the leaders of countries at the April summit

Open source

A governmental office of South Korea will open in DPRK. The purpose of the office is to organize joint projects of both Koreas and the development of relations. The Times report.

The opening is scheduled for Friday, September 14, 218. Such called office of communications will situate on the territory of North Korea. For the first time since the Korean War in 1950-1953, South Korean officials will be permanently placed on the south of the peninsula.

The staff of the office will consist of 20 South Korean civil servants, and North Korean with a little less number. They will work on the organization of joint projects, which were agreed by Leader of DPRK Kim Jong-un and President of South Korea Moon Jae-in at the April summit.

The communication office will be a 24-hour consulting and communication channel for promoting inter-Korean relations, to lower military tensions and peace on the Korean Peninsula and establish peace on the Korean Peninsula, the Ministry of Unification claims.

Earlier the leaders of two Koreas had a historic meeting in Panmunjom, South Korea. After the talks, the leaders of the states announced the signing of a treaty of peace at the end of 2018, which will end the war between the states which officially lasts since 1953.

The leaders of the states have signed the Panmunjom Declaration for peace, prosperity and unity in the Korean Peninsula.

Later, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea canceled the new meeting with South Korea authorities. The reason he did so was the fact that North Korea was displeased with military training conducted by the U.S. and South Korea. Later, Kim Jong-Un assembled the partys military commission or the first time in two years.
The defense of the Ukrainian claimed that he is ready to write an appeal for pardon

Sentence for Ukrainian journalists Roman Sushchenko opens a way to the beginning of the procedure of his pardon and return back on the territory of Ukraine, Iryna Gerashchenko, First Vice-Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament claimed this on Facebook.

Ukraine will never admit this worthless sentence and will make every effort to take out Roman, Oleg, other prisoners of the Kremlin from Russian prisons. Theoretically, the final sentence opens a way to the pardon procedure and Romans transfer. In practice, everything depends solely on Putin, Gerashchenko.

In his turn, Sushchenkos lawyer Mark Feygin claimed to one of the Ukrainian TV channels that the journalist is ready to ask the Russian president for a pardon.

Roman is ready to write this miserable piece of paper asking for pardon. No matter what you write, the main thing is to be in Kyiv. He hasnt pleaded guilty though, the request for pardon does not absolutely mean that you plead guilty.

Feygin claimed that today's decision will be appealed, also the defend will prepare an appeal to the ECHR.

Today, Russian Supreme Court declined the complaint against Sushchenko's sentence of 12 years imprisonment.

Ukrainian Roman Sushchenko, the reporter of Ukrinfiorm news agency, was detained in Moscow in September 2016 and accused by the FSB of espionage. For this, he faced 20 years in prison. Ukraine has appealed to Russia with a demand to release the Ukrainian journalist multiple times. Moscow City Court of Russia has sentenced Roman Sushchenko, the citizen of Ukraine to 12 years in the hard labor colony for the espionage. Russias FSB believes that Sushchenko came from Paris to Moscow to visit his cousin in September 2016 to collect information on Mariupol attack. The court session against Sushchenko took place in the closed regime and the court announced only introductory and resume parts of the decision.
The units of Ground Forces and army aviation reinforced the defense lines in the Azov sector of Donbas combat zone

The Ukrainian military boosted the number of its units in the Azov region. Serhiy Popko, the Commander of Ukraine's Ground Forces posted this on Facebook.

'In return to the aggressive actions of the Russian Federation in the Sea of Azov, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine decided to reinforce the group of the Armed Forces, including the Ground Forces, in the Azov region', Popko wrote.

He added that the Ukrainian side takes steps to provide full control over the situation in the region, to support the Navy vessels, and to duly protect the coastline.

'We provide permanent presence and control of the area with the units of army brigades and territorial defense units, the missile troops and artillery, and the army aviation', Popko wrote.

As is known, over the past three months the Russian activity in the Sea of Azov has increased. Russians do not allow trade vessels, which enter and exit the Ukrainian ports, to freely cross the Kerch Strait.

Moreover, in July, Russia detained 148 ships for inspection in the Sea of Azov. Due to this, Petro Poroshenko, the President of Ukraine, entrusted the Defence Minister, the Head of the General Staff and Command of Ukraines Naval Forces to take measures to stop Russian provocations concerning the blockade of Ukrainian ships in the Sea of Azov.

Ukraine also supports the imposition of sanctions against Russian Black Sea ports due to the blockade of the Sea of Azov.
Irreparable harm caused to the health: it is difficult for Sentsov to get out of bed

Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Lyudmyla Denisova held the conversation with her Russian colleague Tatiana Moskalkova during which it was promised to provide the medical reports on the health state of Ukrainian political prisoners Oleg Sentsov and Volodymyr Balukh as Denisova reported on Facebook.

The documents will be signed by the independent experts in the healthcare system after the full examination of guys who are starving for 121 and 177 days respectively, Denisova wrote.

Moreover, the information appeared that the prisoners of Rostov remand center can be transferred to Crimea. As that cannot happen, Denisova asked Russian ombudswoman to check this information and confirm or refute it as soon as possible.

Server Zekiriaev, Seiran Saliev and Timur Ibragimov. They are detained in Simferopol remand center. The parents have not seen their sons, the wives their husbands for a year. So, I asked Russias ombudswoman to promote these meetings, Denisova wrote.

Recently, Sentsovs lawyer stated on the deterioration of his condition. He has a very low hemoglobin, which led to anemia, as well as a very low pulse. Oleg has a bad heart, he was asked twice to be taken to a hospital. Ukrainian becomes weaker, its hard to get up out of bed for him, though the warders are feeding him with nutrient mixtures.

Also, it was reported that the state of health of Ukrainian political prisoner Volodymyr Balukh detained in occupied Crimea is really bad and he takes painkillers.

Related video:
Due to this, James Mattis, the Head of Pentagon, will visit Macedonia this week

Open source

James Mattis, the Head of Pentagon, stated that he would visit Macedonia before the referendum on the changing of the countrys name. The visit is scheduled for the end of this week, as DW reported.

At the same time, Mattis noted that Russian was trying to interfere in the voting in Macedonia.

I am worried about that. Those malicious actions which Russia performed from Estonia to the U.S., from Ukraine and to Macedonia now, - they always adapted their tactic to a particular situation and always did it regardless of any moral principles, he said.

The referendum on renaming Macedonia is scheduled for September 30.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg stated that Macedonia would be invited to the negotiations on joining NATO right after the issue of renaming is solved. Stoltenberg stated that the recent agreement of the country with Greece on the renaming of the country into Northern Macedonia and the end of a long-term conflict wasa historic agreement, which provides a historic opportunity for Skopje to join NATO.

Earlier, on June 17, the treaty on the renaming of the former Yugoslavian republic Macedonia was signed in Greek Prespes.

Related video:
The penal colony administration seizes the letters, which come twice a month

Stanislav Klykh, the Ukrainian political prisoner in Russia, does not have the access to his mother's letters, which she sends on a regular basis. Lyudmyla Denisova, the Ukrainian parliamentary ombudswoman posted this on her Facebook page.

'On September 3, as he was speaking to his son, he complained, saying that the letters never reached him. He gets the money mom sends him (...) but he can't get the letters. Although mon sends the letters twice a month, on a regular basis, Stanislav received only one piece of information from home,' she wrote.

Denisova said she intended to turn to her Russian counterpart and find out why Klykh's rights are violated, and why he wouldn't get the letters.

'Besides, Tamara Ivanivna (Klykh's mother, - 112 International) plans to bisit her son in the Verkhneuralskaya colony on September 20. We'll be organizing her visit, jointly with the Foreign Ministry', Denisova concluded.

Stanislav Klykh was at Magnitogorsk hospital since late June till August 7. He said he never agreed on taking him to the hospital.

Klykh was detained in Russia in September 2014, when he came to Russia to visit his pregnant girlfriend.

The Russian jury said Klykh and another Ukrainian political activist, Mykola Karpyuk both allegedly joined the Viking unit, which fought on the side of Chechen nationalists as they sought independence from Russia in the 1990s. The jury accused Karpyuk and Klykh of killing and wounding dozens of Russian servicemen. Klykh was sentenced to 20 years in prison
U.S. investigates the health issues the diplomats of the American Embassy in Cuba have

U.S. intelligence considers Russia the main suspect in commission mysterious attacks at the American diplomats in Cuba, as NBC News reports.

The suspicion that Russia is likely behind the alleged attacks is backed up by evidence from communications intercepts, known in the spy world as signals intelligence, amassed during a lengthy and ongoing investigation involving the FBI, the CIA and other U.S. agencies. The officials declined to elaborate on the nature of the intelligence, the news agency reads.

However, Moscow can not be accused officially due to the lack of the gathered evidence.

This fact means that Cubas Government is no longer under suspicion.

Earlier, the U.S. State Department informed about the mysterious attacks targeted at the American diplomats in Cuba since November 2016. According to the preliminary data, at least 26 people were affected. They had brain injuries, hearing loops and issues with coordination and vision. The officers noted that they heard weird sounds, which might be a sonic weapon.

Related video:
Ukrainian consuls provide necessary help to the victims

Open source

Five Ukrainians suffered in the car accident not far from Tomaszow Lubelski, Poland were hospitalized. Ukrainians consuls provide necessary help to the victims as spokesperson of Foreign Ministry of Ukraine Mariana Betsa reported on Twitter.

In the car accident in Poland, one citizen of Ukraine died and five suffered and then were hospitalized. We express condolences to the relatives. The consuls provide necessary help, Betsa wrote.

On September 11, two Ukrainian cars collided, a 19-year-old woman died, six persons were injured.

On September 3, a motorbike crashed into a Ukrainian tourist bus in Romanian Suceava at night. According to the outlet, 67 Ukrainians were on the bus, including 20 children. According to the preliminary information, no one requested a medical aid.

Also, a Ukrainian bus with tourists had an accident in Podkarpackie Voivodeship in Poland. As a result of the accident, three people deceased, and 51 are injured. The Ukrainian Consul urgently headed out to the scene.

Moreover, a minibus got in the car accident not far from Nowogrodek Pomorski in West Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland. As a result, one Ukrainian died.

Related video:
Therefore, the verdict came into force. Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko was sentenced to 12 years in the hard labor colony for the espionage

Open source

On September 12, Russian Supreme Court overruled the appeal against the verdict for Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko, as Interfax reported.

The judgment of the Appeals Board says that the verdict of Moscow City Court as of June 4, 2018, must remain without changes, and the appeals  overruled.

Therefore, the verdict came into force and must be enforced.

Ukrainian Roman Sushchenko, the reporter of Ukrinfiorm news agency, was detained in Moscow in September 2016 and accused by the FSB of espionage. For this, he faced 20 years in prison. Ukraine has appealed to Russia with a demand to release the Ukrainian journalist multiple times. Moscow City Court of Russia has sentenced Roman Sushchenko, the citizen of Ukraine to 12 years in the hard labor colony for the espionage. Russias FSB believes that Sushchenko came from Paris to Moscow to visit his cousin in September 2016 to collect information on Mariupol attack. The court session against Sushchenko took place in the closed regime and the court announced only introductory and resume parts of the decision.
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This is a threat Egypt takes seriously. A week after the Fars report was published, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi condemned Irans involvement in the attack, even if he refrained from referring to it explicitly: We categorically reject that Yemen would become a foothold for the influence of non-Arab forces, or a platform for security and stability threats against the brotherly Arab countries or freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait. Its no coincidence that he issued the statement during a state visit by Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, the president of what Saudi Arabia claims is the legitimate government in Yemen.

Statements such as these are often as meaningless as they are perfunctory. But in this case, el-Sissi has sent a clear message by drawing a red line through the Red Sea, which is vitally important to the Egyptian economy. Right now, tolls from the Suez Canal generate about $5 billion in annual revenue, accounting for just about 2 percent of Egypts gross domestic product. But Cairo has grand plans for its future. In 2015, it completed an $8 billion expansion of the canal that opened a second passageway, allowing for two-way traffic and representing the first step toward Cairos eventual goal of making Egypt a regional industrial and logistics hub. Egypt hopes that canal revenue will more than double by 2023. Its investment minister even expressed the hope that the canal and its associated economic activities  specifically, a special economic zone featuring industrial parks and ports on the Mediterranean and Red seas  will eventually comprise as much as 30 percent of the Egyptian economy.

The canal, moreover, is the source of a consistent and substantial inflow of foreign currency. For a country that has recently had to float its currency per the terms of a loan from the International Monetary Fund, more foreign currency reserves mean more protection in the event the Egyptian pound weakens. Given the ongoing currency crises in Turkey and Iran , this is no small consideration. Egypt itself avoided a foreign currency crisis four years ago only by taking the aforementioned IMF loan.

Keeping the Red Sea free of an aggressive Iranian presence, and keeping the Suez Canal full of traffic, is therefore in Egypts interest. Saudi Arabias suspension of oil exports spooked Egypt, which was worried that shipping companies might take it as a sign that the Red Sea was no longer safe to use. An anonymous official from the Suez Canal Authority went so far as to claim that Egypt strongly but privately encouraged Saudi Arabia to resume exports accordingly.

Its too early to say whether anyone has yet crossed Egypts red line. But if American actions force Iran to adopt a more hostile posture in the Red Sea, Egypt may have no choice but to intervene more heavily in Yemen. It cant afford to let Iran block these vital waterways. But, importantly, neither can the worlds trading powers. Its in their interest to keep global trade humming too, so if worse comes to worst, the burden wouldnt fall on Egypt alone.
According to the decision of a court, these bans are banned from liquidation or reorganization of the legal person

The Appeal Court of Kyiv arrested the stock of Kyiv Prominvestbank, Sberbank and VTB Bank on September 5. It is stated in the courts order #796/165/18 as Ukrainian News reported.

According to the decision of the court, these bans are banned from liquidation or reorganization of the legal person and hold any actions aiming for sale of the owned property.

The arrest of the stocks of the mentioned banks took place on the lawsuit of a number of companies, including Aerobud, Privatofis, Privatlend, Everest Istate, Teleradiocompania Zhysa, Krym Development, Finansovy Kapital, Finansovy Vektor.

The companies filed the proper lawsuit to fulfill the decision of Permanent Court of Arbitration dated May 2 on the recovery of compensation from Russia for real estate annexed in Crimea. Thus, Russia violated the agreement between the Cabinet of Ministers and Russias government on promotion and mutual defense of investments dated November 27, 1998, it was decided in the benefit of claimants to collect $130 million from Russia.

According to the decision, there is property owned by Russia in Ukraine and it can be collected.

There are five Russian banks in Ukraine: Sberbank, VTB, BM Bank, Prominvestbank and VS Bank that are under the sanction. The government banned them from the holding of the financial operations for the benefit of the connection to them establishments and persons, including the parent structures.

Earlier Swiss bank Credit Suisse, one of the largest in the State has frozen the accounts of $5 billion associated with Russia due to the USA sanctions. The bank doesnt reveal the owners name of the frozen accounts.

Related video:
Open source

Kherson city court on September 12 chose a preventive measure for Oleh Kyzymenko, the so-called "deputy chairman of Sevastopol city state administration" for a period of 15 days in custody. 112 Ukraine TV channel correspondent reported this.

According to him, Kyzymenko will remain in custody until September 27. "The so-called "deputy chairman of the Sevastopol city state administration" can file to the Kherson Court of Appeals within 5 days, if he does not agree with the court decision," the journalist said.

As it was reported earlier, on September 11, the Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko wrote on his Facebook page that law enforcers detained a citizen who, after the Crimeas occupation, claimed his was "deputy chairman of the Sevastopol city state administration". According to the investigation, in this "post" he contributed to the creation of occupation authorities, the transfer of documentation to occupiers, and also contributed to Russias subversion activitiies against Ukraine.
Open source

In annexed Crimea, two units of the naval aircraft of the Black Sea Fleet of Russia were put on alert within the military exercises as Crimea.Realities reported cited Head of Press Service of South Military District of Russia Vadim Astafiev.

Surveillance aircraft Su-24MR, multirole fighters Su-30SM, tactic from bombers Su-24M as well as anti-submarine aircraft Be-12 and military helicopters Kamov Ka-27 were flown from two airfields, the message said.

It is noted that by design of the drills, pilots have to detect and destroy a number of the objects at both, land and waters of the Black Sea.

Earlier we reported that the military drills "East  2018", which are the biggest one in the last four decades, has started. It is noted that the drills will take place from September 11 until September 17.

It is reported that 300,000 soldiers, more than 1,000 airplanes, helicopters and drones, up to 36,000 tanks, armoured personnel carriers and other hardware, up to 80 vessels attracted to the maneuvers.

Related video:
Courtesy of Patricio Tlacaelel Trujillo y Fuentes

And now the trumpet sounds,/ The music of the people stirs the Revolution, begins Rodolfo Corky Gonzalez' epic poem Yo Soy Joaquin , a poem that became a touchstone of the Chicano movement of the '60s. A cry for equality, the poem also spoke to fears of assimilation and the search for identity. It spoke to many 50 years ago, and when artist Patricio Tlacaelel Trujillo y Fuentes first accessed the work as a child, his experience was no different.

Yo Soy Joaquin sang to me, it played on my heart strings and it spoke the words a 9-year-old boy didn't have, Trujillo y Fuentes explained. So I love it. Trujillo y Fuentes has gained greater intimacy with the work by adapting it for the stage, a performance he will return to Albuquerque with on Sept. 13, 14 and 15, at the South Broadway Cultural Center (1025 Broadway Blvd. SE) with guest performers Jessica Helen Lopez and Mae Spotted Bear. Ahead of the event, Trujillo y Fuentes described his relationship with the singular poem, and the evolution of how he has engaged with it.

Alibi: What was your first experience of the poem?

Trujillo y Fuentes: My first experience with the poem was when I was about 9-years-old. Hearing it was cathartic because by the time I was 9 I had already experienced many of the situations the poem speaks of.  By 9 I had already experienced three years of working in the fields, picking corn, green beans, onions and other crops. It was a terrible feeling to see the farmers' kids going to piano lessons, the swimming pool or coming home with ice cream, in an air conditioned car. There I was, a child, standing under the hot sonno shade, no bathroomsand not a glance from the farmers' kids. So hearing the poem gave me a great sense of crying out.  I have had that poem in every cell in my body, in my cell memory for about 54 years.

Courtesy of Patricio Tlacaelel Trujillo y Fuentes

When did you decide you wanted to adapt and perform it?

In 1981 I met Andres Valdez, a well-known political activist, and [when I] visited his office I saw a copy of  the poem laying on his desk. I picked the book up and once again my heart began beating, I almost wept as I looked at the photos that illustrated the words, all those memories came welling up and I knew that the poem needed to be revived. Shortly after that I met Rhonda Stanfield who was a high school teacher, and she invited me to do a summer youth workshop with students at Los Lunas High School. Her intent was to bring the Chicano and Mexican youth together to work on a project, as there was a divide between them. Rhonda wanted to bridge the gap and show the kids their similarities instead of their differences[mainly] that the Mexican kids had origins in Mexico and the Chicano kids had origins on the north side of the border.  I decided to do the poem [again] in 2016 at the National Hispanic Cultural Center as a one-man show.  Little did I know, I was actually preparing to do a bigger and better show this September [and] was getting ready to make a big statement to the current administration.  While some people are marching in the streets  I, as an artist, decided to take my protest to the stage, to protest in a loving, gentle and aesthetic way.

Do you feel like you have a deeper understanding of the poem now?

Like any work that one reads or studies there will always be little nuggets of information to be discovered. Each time I rehearse and learn the words I find nuances in the delivery and I contextualize the love and the hate of the poem, the bittersweet and the joy. I love finding the emotional undercurrents and the moments of exclamation.

Did you see a need to share this work with others?

We need to re-establish a brown cultural narrative. We arent taught about our other forefathersEmiliano Zapata, Pancho Villa (his real name, and I wish it would be used, is Jose Doroteo Arango Arambula). We arent taught about that narrative in school; we arent taught that there were times when the Mexicans and the Natives sent the calvary fleeing for their lives, because it doesnt fit the white narrative. I claim two languages, I claim two flags and I claim two political origins. Most young people and even the veteranosthe older, wiser onesdont know about the concept of Aztlan.  So yes, I see a desperate need to share this poem.

What do you hope people might walk away with?

I see that people will come away with a renewed appreciation and love for who they are and their roots.
PLEASE NOTE!

Due to the March 23, 2020 NM DOH Public Health Order, These Event Listings Are Not Accurate!

All non-essential businesses are closed, public gatherings are prohibited!

(One day some of these events will be rescheduled or will resume, but they are not happening now!)
America currently sits in the sweet spot between the Oscar-nominated release of The Martian, which made NASA cool again, and the creation of Donald Trumps vaunted Space Force, which will send Americas finest young men and women out into space to defend our valuable asteroids from  I dont know, ISIS, I guess. Now seems as good a time as any for our country to re-ignite the debate about space travel. Is the future of our race out there amid the stars?

Hulu weighs in on the issue with its forward-leaning sci-fi series The First, a co-production between the American streaming service and British television network Channel 4. The show springs from the mind of Beau Willimon, who created a little Netflix series called House of Cards. That gives you some indication of the tone The First takes. Less interested in science or fiction, The First goes in for glum, self-serious and slow-building interpersonal drama.

Set in the near future (people talk to their electronics a bit more), The First takes us directly to the launch of the first manned mission to Mars. The project is spearheaded by private aerospace tech guru Laz Ingram (Natascha McElhone), a sort of gender-swapped Elon Musk with dreams of shepherding humanity into the future. Sitting on the sidelines is Col. Tom Hagerty (Sean Penn), who handpicked and trained the astronauts rocketing off to Mars but was jettisoned from the team at the last minute. (Perhaps someone saw the danger in sending a 58-year-old pilot on a 25-year mission.) Where the moment should be inspirational and uplifting, its fraught with tension. Laz frets over every technical glitch, and Tom sulks that he wasnt invited to the party.

The tension proves justified, however, when things go very wrong for the mission. This threatens Laz reputation and gives Tom his second chance at outer space glory. As if that werent enough drama for one show, Toms estranged teenage daughter (whos also a junkie) shows up on his doorstep. Basically, dont hold your breath waiting for anyone to walk on the surface of Mars anytime soon.

The pace picks up a tad in future episodes. Laz travels to Washington to testify in front of Congress. The family of an astronaut files a lawsuit. The tech team labors to correct problems with the Mars Ascent Vehicle. Like House of Cards, it all involves a lot of talking.

The shows overall goals are lofty and admirable. We should spend a lot more time looking to science (rather than politicians) for help in solving many of our planets problems. But The First mostly favors slow camera push-ins to Penns face as it seethes in quiet anger or quiet pain or quiet whatever. Its an occasionally stirring character drama thanks to its solid cast, but the whole thing remains resolutely earthbound when it should soar.
They say that, behind every great man there is a great woman. That axiom gets taken apart like a Swiss watch and examined under the loupe in the high-class literary drama/handcrafted Oscar bait The Wife.

They also say (they talk a lot, they do) you should always lead with your strengths. And The Wifes strengths are front-loaded, right there above the title on the poster: the cast, starting with six-time Academy Award nominee Glenn Close. Close plays Joan Castleman, the patient and well-composed spouse to celebrated literary icon Joe Castleman (Jonathan Pryce). One morning, bright and early, the longtime couple are woken up by a phone call from Sweden. Seems that Joe has won this years Nobel Prize for literature, a testament to all that hes done over his career to evolve the novelistic form.

Joan and Joe prepare for the long plane flight to Stockholm to attend the ceremony. Making the trip with them is their son David (Max Irons, son of Jeremy Ironswho, oddly enough, was not cast as his father here). David is an aspiring writer in his own stead, but finds himself withering under the bright light of his fathers success. He tags along, sulking in the background and hoping for a crumb of praise from his father concerning his latest short story. Joan, for her part, seems distracted on the journey. Everyones proud of Joe, but seems to be harboring some deep and complicated emotions about the whole affair. Cant they just be happy for the guy? I mean, it is the Nobel Prize.

On the flight over to Europe, the family bumps into up-and-coming writer Nathaniel Bone (Christian Slater). Bone has been jockeying for years to pen a definitive biography of the illustrious Mr. Castleman. Hes now secured a contract from a publisher and is doing his best to sidle up to the Castlemans on the eve of their big night. Joan is clearly uninterested in Bone, and Joe rebuffs him with some less than kind words.

As the ceremony in Stockholm looms, Joan begins to question some of the decisions she has made over the course of her life. The film drifts back to the couples early years. In the late 50s, Joan was a ponytailed coed dreaming of becoming a writer (played by Annie Starke, who is Closes daughter). Joe was an attractive young creative writing professor (played by Harry Lloyd), his classes stuffedIndiana Jones-stylewith dreamy-eyed female admirers. Despite the fact that Joe was married at the time, he began an affair with the smart and attractive Joan. This more or less laid out the roadmap for their future relationship. Joan gave up her dreams to become the stay-at-home wife of a literary superstar, and Joe indulged his adulterous urges with whatever young student came along. As Nathanial Bone puts it, its a cliche story. And its not the story hes interested in writing. Hes digging for something deeper, hinting that its not just a string of affairs that has got the Castleman family so on edge these days.

The Wife hews closely to its source material, Meg Wolitzers novel of the same name. There arent a lot of layers to the narrative, beyond the big secret it keeps relatively close to its vest. Its not a terribly hard to decipher secret and is more or less spilled about halfway through the film, leaving the characters to deal with its repercussions in their various ways. The majority of this burden falls, of course, to Close and Pryce, who are opposite one another in nearly every scene. Close is, expectedly, rock solid. She gives her characters role of the beleaguered yet supportive wife a great deal of emotional depth. Love, hate, jealousy and disappointment flash across her face in near-equal measure. This isnt simply the story of a woman summoning up the courage to leave her philandering husband. Its more complex than that. After 40 years of marriage the things you love about your spouse and the things you hate about them are more or less intertwined. Pryce also does his character justice, even though Joe is a bit more unrepentant about his own failings. Their back-and-forth banter feels realistic and lived-in, building to some more explosive, actor-intensive exchanges later on in the film. Slater acquits himself well too, situated between powerhouses Close and Pryce, although his role amounts to little more than a plus-sized cameo.

Make no mistake about it, The Wife is Closes film from start to finish, an Oscar-eyeing actors showcase for the much-loved performer (who has yet to actually secure one of those gold statues). Everyone else on screen is basically just a prop for her to play with. And though this results in a sometimes thin scenarioa couple good laughs, some simmering tensions, an occasionally impudent skewing of literary and academic society, wrapped up by a solid screaming match at the endtheres no denying Closes command of the screen and of her craft.
PRINT | EMAIL | PERMALINK Reel World Gallup Gets Going The Gallup Film Festival opens its curtains this Thursday, Sept. 13, and runs through Saturday, Sept. 15. It all begins at 5:30pm with doors opening at the historic El Morro Theater (207 W. Coal Ave.). At 6:30pm organizers show off the opening night film, Defending the Firea documentary examination of the history, lore and myth of the Native American warrior figure. Tickets are $5. Scheduled at 7:30pm is a special guest Q&A with noted Native actor Wes Studi (The Last of the Mohicans, Mystery Men, Heat, Avatar, Skinwalkers, Penny Dreadful). Thats followed by a meet-and-greet party with the actor at Gallups Downtown Conference Center (204 W. Coal Ave.) starting at 8pm. Tickets for this opening night meet-and-greet are $25. Films continue on Friday at 4pm with a weekend-long collection of shorts, documentaries, music videos and features. All programming blocks are $5 each. For a complete schedule of films and times, go to gallupfilmfestival. com.

Cinema al Fresco Movies on the Plaza continues at Albuquerques Civic Plaza in Downtown with a free screening of the Oscar-nominated film Hidden Figures on Friday, Sept. 14. The 2016 biographical drama is based on Margot Lee Shetterlys nonfiction book about the black female mathematicians who worked at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and were crucial in launching the Space Race of the 50s. Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Butler and Janelle Monae are among the cast. The film is rated PG and will show at the Civic Plaza main stage starting at dusk (around 8pm). Prior to the film, starting at 6pm, ABQ Food Fridays offers delicious dinner options and a selection of micro-bew beers for sale at Civic Plazas own mobile kitchen. Family friendly bands will play until just before the movie.

An Offer You Cant Refuse The Great American Read, a PBS-led celebration of Americas all-time favorite books, continues at Albuquerques Main Library (501 Copper Ave. NW) with a screening of the classic 1972 gangster film The Godfather. Frankly, Francis Ford Coppolas Oscar-winnning film is a lot better than Mario Puzos best-selling but occasionally skeezy novel of the same name. Still, youre welcome to see the movie, read the book and decide for yourself. The film screening is free and open to the public. It starts at 1pm on Saturday, Sept. 15. View in Alibi calendar
Dateline: California

A California State Senator has vowed to discontinue his practice of giving noogies to members of the public. The Sacramento Bee reports a formal complaint was lodged against State Sen. John Moorlach, accusing him of putting a woman in a headlock and giving her a noogie during a photo op at a Republican caucus reception. The Senate Rules Committee reportedly investigated the matter and found the claim was not only true, but similar instances with others seemed to have frequently taken place. The complainant said she'd never met the state senator before the reception and was unaware of his noogie practice before the incident. Investigators cocluded that her complaints were valid. Although the noogies were not deemed sexual in nature, the committee sent Moorlach a letter recommending he discontinue the practice. Moorlach told investigators that he often gives people noogies during photo sessions for fun, and that the photos almost always go viral. He agreed to stop, however. In a statement given by Moorlach, the state senator apologized for having made someone feel uncomfortable. I am a fun-loving individual who is guilty of occasional playfulness, he said.

Dateline: Minnesota

A pair of sequined ruby slippers used in the film The Wizard of Oz were recovered after being stolen 13 years ago. According to CNN, investigators with the FBI found the slippers in near-perfect condition during an undercover operation in Minneapolis. The priceless shoes were one of four known pairs worn by Judy Garland in her role as Dorothy. They were on display at the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota until they were mysteriously stolen in 2005, when a thief was able to break into the museum through a back door and smash the shoes' display case without setting off any alarms or leaving any fingerprints. Only a single sequin was reportedly left at the scene. Some theories about the slippers have persisted over the last 13 years, including one that the theft was carried out by museum staff. At one point, authorities reportedly sent divers to the bottom of Tioga Mine Pit lake after it was suggested that the thief might have thrown the slippers into the lake during the 40th annual Wizard of Oz Festival. The FBI said a person approached the company who had insured the shoes claiming they had information as to their whereabouts. Investigators say the man was involved in the theft and was attempting to extort money. The FBI did not explain how the slippers were recovered. The investigation into the theft is ongoing.

Dateline: Florida

A man was arrested after allegedly giving his girlfriend a wet willy. Fox News reports police were called to the home of Joseph Sireci last month where they arrested him on a battery charge. According to his girlfriend, he'd been behaving belligerently since she'd returned home from work and found him intoxicated on the living room floor. According to Sireci's girlfriend's testimony, the couple went to visit friends and brought her daughter along with them. At their friends' house, Sireci allegedly continued to drink and become more aggressive. The woman claims that as they drove home, Sireci began to pull on her arm and grab her hand. He then gave her what is referred to as a wet willya practice whereby one licks one's own finger and inserts it into another person's ear canal. The woman's daughter, who was in the car at the time, corroborated her story. Sireci claims that he wasn't intoxicated at the time of his arrest.

Dateline: China

A kindergarten principal was fired for starting the new school year with a pole dancing performance. According to CNN, a kindergarten's opening day ceremony included a performance by a young pole dancer utilizing a flagpole bearing the Chinese flag. The performance was seen by some students' parents as sexually suggestive, including journalist Michael Standaert, whose children attend the school. Standaert took to social media to criticize school principal Lai Rong, tweeting a photo of the event with the caption: 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. Standaert would later comment that he had seen advertisements for a pole dancing school, suggesting that the principal had been paid to host the performance. He also posted a video of some of the performance. It was captioned: The principal hung up on my wife when she called after saying it was 'international and good exercise.'  The incident was investigated by the local education bureau, who promptly fired the principal and issued a social media post warning other schools against similar practices.


Lula da Silvas vision of Brazil is a damaging fiction



My successor as president falsely casts himself as the victim of an elite conspiracy



Fernando Henrique Cardoso





Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva portrays Brazil as a democracy in ruins, in which the rule of law has given way to arbitrary measures designed to undermine him and his party. This is not true  EPA





Former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has every right to defend his point of view in the country and abroad regarding the legal proceedings that weigh on him. These led to his imprisonment after a federal court of appeals in January upheld his conviction for corruption and money laundering.



The manner in which Lula da Silva has chosen to defend himself to the world, however, needs to be challenged. In a recent article he presented a version of recent Brazilian history that bears no relation to reality. This would be a problem for historians were he not the influential political leader that he is.



The former president portrays Brazil as a democracy in ruins, in which the rule of law has given way to arbitrary measures designed to undermine him and his party. This is not true.



It is also not true, as Lula da Silva claims, that Brazil was directionless before he assumed the presidency in 2003. One only needs to remember the successful stabilisation of the economy after years of hyperinflation, which began with the Real Plan launched by former president Itamar Franco and continued during my government. This was also a period marked by the establishment of social welfare programmes that Lula da Silva would subsequently expand.



His is a peculiar version of the past few decades of Brazilian history in which he sometimes appears as the peoples saviour and sometimes as the victim of an elite conspiracy. It lends itself, inadvertently, to the delegitimisation of the collective effort that is the foundation of Brazilian democracy.



President Dilma Rousseffs impeachment and removal from office in 2016 was not, contrary to what Lula da Silva claims, a coup detat. It was the result of, among other things, her governments violation of Brazils fiscal responsibility law in the run-up to the 2014 election.



The impeachment process followed all the constitutional proprieties under the supervision of the Brazilian supreme court, in which the majority of justices were nominated by Lula da Silva and Ms Rousseff.



My criticism is not motivated by personal antagonism. Lula da Silva and I fought together against the authoritarian regime that ruled Brazil between 1964 and 1985. When, subsequently, we ran against each other in democratic elections, I maintained a constructive relationship with him.



I am sorry that the former president faces additional charges of corruption and money laundering. But the fact is that the legal proceedings in which he has been involved followed due process and have been carried out in accordance with the constitution and the rule of law.



Lula da Silvas case is not an isolated one. In Brazil there are politicians from every party in prison, many of whose convictions were upheld by an appeals court. They include members of my own party, the PSDB.



The precedent for imprisonment after a conviction is upheld in a federal appeals court stems from a judgment by the supreme court that long precedes Lula da Silvas conviction. Convicted persons begin serving their sentence without this affecting their right to appeal to higher courts.



Moreover, Lula da Silvas ineligibility to run for president in the forthcoming election is the consequence of a popular initiative that received more than 1m signatures, was then approved by Congress and signed into law by the former president himself in 2010. The so-called clean slate law (lei da ficha limpa), the result of a civil society campaign against corruption, prohibits anyone convicted at the appeals court level from running for office.



The popular initiative that resulted in the law was a direct response to the Mensalao scandal, a votes-for-cash scam uncovered in 2005. The dismantling of this corruption scheme did not prevent another, even larger one from being perpetrated in some of the largest state-owned companies, notably Petrobras. The investigation into this scandal, known as Lava Jato or Car Wash, uncovered a scheme to divert billions of dollars to Lula da Silvas Workers party.



Brazil is going through a painful but necessary process of re-moralising its public life, and the actions of the Federal prosecutors office and the judicial branch are part of this.



I am not always comfortable with the length of the sentences imposed or with the expansion of preventive pre-trial detention, in which the accused is imprisoned before even his or her first trial in a lower court.



It is a grave distortion of reality, however, to say that there is a targeted campaign in Brazil to persecute specific individuals. My country deserves more respect.



The writer was president of Brazil from 1995-2002
Vanessa Valdivia

Well, I finally got back to the New Mexico State Fair after a 15 year absence.

You see, this time when I went to the State Fair, it was to meet US Senator Martin Heinrich, an outstanding, upstanding fellow whom N.M. citizens entrusted as more than just a baggage handler on their collective train ride into the future.

Heinrich has always symbolized optimism and his no nonsense attitude towards making this state and the nation a better place can be demonstrated in the years of progressive legislation hes seen through the murky channels of American democracy. With exactly that attitude in mind, I sat on a bench at the State Fair and awaited his arrival.

Senator Heinrich met me at the west gate and after comparing notes for a few minutes we began to wander the grounds. The folks, the citizens whom he reps, glanced up brightly as he strode through the main street of the fair, shaking hands and offering service and support.

As we sat under a tarped eating area, rock band bellowing next door at the main pavilion, an elderly Hispanic couple strolled by and said hello. The woman shyly touched the senators sleeve and bravely intoned, Mijo, I pray for you every night. Her husband, obviously delighted, added, She really does, senator, she really does.

We talked about Albuquerque, Talin Market, the International District, the new municipal administration. Then the topic turned to national politics. Here is a transcript of that, recorded, as it were, under the influence of corndogs and lemonade, as summer in Burque faded and election day drew near.

Weekly Alibi: What I really want to talk to you about is whats going on in Washington right now? I feel above all, people need hope right now.

Senator Martin Heinrich: Absolutely. Its an odd place to be right now. We have this chaos emanating from the White House, all of the time, and at the same time, there are opportunities to advance legislation and get things done. [This situation] kinda falls into multiple categories: If the president is in the middle of an issue, theres probably not going to be any resolution at all, things will blow up and people will go to their corners. But if its not an issue thats on the presidents radar, you can get big things done. We just arent going to get a lot of credit for our successes in this chaotic environment.

I know youve been working on projects involving affordable college tuition and renewable energy infrastructure, hows that going?

One outcome is that Pell Grants are now available year-round. Even with Mitch McConnell in charge of the Senate, we were able to extend the wind and solar tax credit for multiple years.

Those two items really benefit New Mexico.

Theyre huge. If you look at the scale of projects on the wind [energy] side of things, theyre now measured in terms of hundreds of millions of dollars. These projects are taking place in small rural communities that have been shrinking due to lack of economic opportunity. For every five or six wind turbines, a technician is required. That job pays a living wage. That wind tech is living in the community served by the turbines, they have kids going to school there. This will begin to allow small communities to start growing instead of shrinking.

Theres some debate in New Mexico these days and its related to the economics of energy production. One of the gubernatorial candidates, Steve Pearce, is bringing back oil and gas jobs and believes that fossil fuels are key to our states economy. The state Legislative Finance Committee says all of the money so far generated comes from a very volatile source. Whats your take?

Volatility is the key issue here. I grew up in a family where my father worked for Anaconda Copper, my grandfather worked a whole bunch of those mines, too. When you have commodities that go through such wide swings in terms of value and availability, its just a great golden goose, and its fine when oil is $100 per barrel. Of course its not so good when oil is $26 per barrel. So we really have to create a tax structure thats more diversified. I dont think our current governor gets that. Shes been very hard on the states finances and consequently, on the states education system.

How should such revenue really be managed?

Well, we are going to see more new revenue coming in, as a state. But if it is all from resources thatonce you use them up their gone foreverthen thats not sustainable. Further, sustainable income [from the states natural resources] should go into the general fund, so we can put it work on things like education.

Can the state achieve economic stability through investment in new clean energy technologies like wind and solar?

Absolutely. Fortunately, we got the solar incentives extended when we did, because had we not, the tariffs planned by the Trump administration on solar panelsand you overlay that with steel tariffs and aluminum tariffscould have been a huge hit to New Mexico. Because we were able to build some stability into the system, before he took office, its mitigated the worst of what the tariffs mean to consumers. But we could be growing a lot faster, if we werent fighting an administration thats hostile at almost every encounter.

Why arent we hearing about these progressive successes?

Too much of the conversation right now is being determined by the morning Twitter feed out of the White House, which gets driven by whatevers popular on Fox News in the AM.

Thats pretty crazy, que no?

I think theres going to be a correction this fall. Its going to be a real desire to invest in the republic again, to invest in infrastructure, to make sure we hang onto the healthcare gains we all made under President Obama. I think that if we had lost that vote on the Affordable Healthcare Act, in New Mexico, one of the things you would have seen would have been rural hospitals closing. So much of their income is dependent on Medicaid, the rollback to Medicaid would have just been devastating.

Right now, as the summer recess ends, a Supreme Court nomination is in the making. What are your thoughts on that process?

Ive been deeply frustrated with that. In order to get their way on the supreme court nomination, theyve [Republicans] changed the rules. As far as advice and consent goesthe roll that the Senate has always playedin this case that has become a rubber stamp, a charade. Republicans decided  Kavanaughs views will radically change the lay of the land in this country, Im afraid. Weve never had a situation before where so much of the documentation related to the nominee is held back from the main body arbitrarily, as committee-sensitive. You have to have access to the documents, to the facts to have a real conversation about Kavanaugh.

Youve described a process that, on first glance, might seem disheartening to many New Mexicans. Why are hope and action through voting our best strategies?

When you have an administration that is as obviously out of touch, that is taking the kind of extreme immigration that this administration hasand it has been willing to break up families and use enforcement as a political toolI think that creates a lot of fear. At the same time, I think the backlash to that creates a lot of optimism. If you really want to see the levers of government on one side of the ledger, vote! The oversight that can be done if Democrats had the majority in the House or in the Senate or both would be unbelievable. Think about the hearing either chamber could hold on Scott Pruitt, for example. Right now the Republicans refuse to hold such hearings. Its very frustrating, but I do think thats going to change, come November. If this president thinks this week has been hard, wait until his administration has to answer for some of his moves.

Why havent Republicans been real leaders here and questioned Trump and his administrators about their failures of governance?

I think there are two kinds of Republicans these days. There are the ones who have kept their self-respect; theyre headed to the exits because they know they cant be re-elected. And then there are folks that are scared to death of this president and his core supporters. That type is unable to step up, to say, I may agree with the president on several issues, but this is out of line. I believe we need to take care of the republic first and the Republican party second.

Why should New Mexicans get involved in that political process, in the process of taking care of the republic?

If you are as deeply disturbed by what is emanating from the White House right now as I am, thats what happens when we dont engage, when not enough Democrats and progressives show up on election day. It doesnt have to be that way. We have an opportunity in November to change the course of things, to put some checks on the most egregious extremes that weve seen. More importantly, that sets us up for the year 2020, when real progressive leadership can emerge and we can become proactivenot just stop bad things from happening, but invest in real, long-term solutions. We can be leaders again, on climate change, we can find a way to provide universal healthcare, were the richest nation on Earth. Thats only going to happen if we make a commitment to the long-term. We are going to have to win in 2018 and in 2020. Then well all get to work and do the hard part, the part Trump cantgoverning.
Eric Williams Photography

If one listened carefully at the Sept. 5 Albuquerque City Council meeting you might have heard the buzz of about $5.2 million flying towards a new police department helicopter.

Say What?

At a presser before the meeting, Councilors Trudy Jones and Ken Sanchez announced they were co-sponsoring a resolution to fund a new $5.2 million helicopter to take a bite out of crime. The new whirlybird would replace the police departments 17-year old Eurocopter EC120B, as the aircraft is nearing the end of its useful service life. The resolution was introduced at this meeting and will be voted on at a future meeting.

The money, politicos say, will come from last years surplus revenue. They say the helicopter will have state of the art everything and will be connected to the Real-Time Crime Center to track suspects running from police from the air, versus speeding through the streets. Even though the old helicopter has been down for much of 2018, its handlers say it has racked up about 35 felony arrests, 12 felony assists, 27 stolen vehicle recoveries and helped recover about $326,500 in stolen properties. There was no mention of how many citizens and neighborhoods were disturbed for how many hours by the noise in exchange for those numbers, but the new one is said to be super quiet. Mayor Tim Keller is excited about the proposed tricked-out chopper and says he hopes the Council takes quick action and the chopper is flying against crime in six to eight months.

A Month of Proclamations

Through official declarations of one sort or another, Councilors recognized a handful of important issues and upcoming events for Burquenos to take part in

The Center for Peace and Justice along with other organizations will form a giant human peace sign at 4pm on Sept. 21, when 200 plus people will gather at the University of New Mexicos Johnson Field to form the iconic symbol with their bodies. A peace party will follow the peace sign formation at the Center for Peace and Justice at Harvard and Silver by UNM. This year happens to be the 70th anniversary of the United Nations recognition of universal peace, equality, compassion and equal protection as global goals. A moment of silence will be held around the globe at noon on Sept. 21 as well. There will be other events during the week of Sept. 16 through 22. Check the schedule at abqpeaceandjustice. org.

Raising awareness for childhood cancer received some attention in memory of every Albuquerque child to die of any sort of pediatric cancer. Councilors declared September as childhood cancer awareness month. Several childhood cancer doctors were on hand as well as a sweet little girl by the name of Auranna Martin, whose mother was brought to tears by the proclamation. Check out what this means and what you can do at facebook.com/CCFNM/.

September is also National Suicide Prevention Month. New Mexico has some heartbreaking and staggering numbersone person dies by suicide every 19 hours in New Mexico, ranking the state fourth in the nation; suicide is also the second leading cause of death for 10-year olds here in the Land of Enchantment, according to Ane Romero from the Yellow Ribbon youth suicide prevention organization. She said the events are to break the silence surrounding suicide and to promote awareness of the warning signs along with pointing to access to resources. She invited people out to the Johnny Tapia Community Center in Wells Park for a free mental health training on Sept. 25. Check out more about this event at yellowribbon. org/ who- we- are/ chapters. html/ title/ new- mexico. Bea Chavez, the chair of the New Mexico Board of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, invited the Councilors and everyone to be at Hoffmantown Church by 10am on Sept. 29 for their Out of the Darkness Walk. The walk is not only for raising awareness but support for those left behind by their loved one. More information is available at afsp. donordrive. com/ index. cfm?fuseaction=donordrive. event& eventID=5252.

As an appropriate pairing, it is also National Recovery Month to honor and acknowledge those who are in recovery of any kind, and to raise awareness that substance abuse and mental health treatment can enable those with these disorders to lead a normal fulfilling life. People can and do recover, Councilor Diane Gibson read from the proclamation. There will be a public celebration at Civic Plaza on Sept. 27 from 10am to 2pm. More information about recovery month is at recoverymonth.gov.

It is also National Hispanic Heritage Month from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, a designation that recognizes Hispanic and Latino Americans as one of the leading sources of history and culture in our state. We live in a state where about 60 percent of the population are people of color. All of us New Mexicans can get into this celebration and tout having such a culturally diverse state, where luckily for white people, no one built a wall during the 1800s and 1900s to keep immigrants out. Check out the National Hispanic Cultural Centers website for events at nhccnm.org.

Connect the Blue Dots

Councilors finally got some police department stats. As of Aug. 31, there were 854 sworn officers, with just under 100 more in the wings at the departments academies. Tucked in the consent agenda was an approximate $5.6 million in various funding to go towards the police department for more lateral academy training and incentives to keep experienced officers on the force.

Brief Business

Councilors also worked on the following items of civic interest:

 Approved appointee recommendations to the International Energy Conservation Code Committee.

 Created a task force to take a look at options to register and regulate short term rentals

 Adopted the Cutler Avenue Report as city policy and established The @Midtown District

 Amended then approved the Rio Grande Complete Streets plan for Rio Grande Boulevard from San Pasquale to I-40

 Appropriated $45,000 to complete a traffic study along Broadway Boulevard between Lead Ave. and Lomas Boulevard;

 Most importantly, urged Congress to permanently reauthorize and fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund which has been in place for 53 years and has helped set up some of our beloved local open spaces such as Cibola National Forest, Valle Del Oro National Wildlife Refuge, Petroglyph National Monument and Chaco Culture National Park.
Last week, a New Jersey couple who raised over $400,000 for a homeless vet were unable to turn over the remaining money to the man despite a judge's orders, because their lawyer said all the money was gone. Now, their lawyer says he expects the couple will be indicted for misusing the donations this week.

Ernest Badway, who has been representing Mark D'Amico and Katelyn McClure in the civil case brought by homeless vet Johnny Bobbitt Jr., also said that he and his firm would no longer represent the couple in the lawsuit. "[Since] it is expected that one or both of the defendants will likely be indicted, my firm and I will no longer be able to continue our representation of them in this matter," Badway wrote while petitioning the court to pause the civil case, which has now been postponed until December 7th.

Bobbit first encountered McClure in Philadelphia last October. Bobbitt, who at the time was living under an I-95 ramp in Kensington, gave his last $20 to her when she ran out of gas. McClure and DAmico were so moved by the gesture, they set up a GoFundMe so that "his life can get back to being normal...Truly believe that all Johnny needs is one little break. Hopefully with your help I can be the one to give it to him." Although it was set at $10,000, they ended up raising over $400K thanks to donations from over 14,000 people.

But Bobbitt, who is still panhandling, recently filed a lawsuit in New Jersey stating he never saw most of that money and that the couple kept it for themselves to "enjoy a lifestyle they could not afford." One of his attorneys told CNN, "From what I can see, the GoFundMe account raised $402,000 and GoFundMe charged a fee of approximately $30,000. Mark D'Amico and Kate McClure gave Johnny about $75,000. There should be close to another $300,000 available to Johnny."

While defending themselves on Megyn Kelly's show, the couple noted that only around $150,000 of the money was left. The judge ordered the couple to hand over the remaining funds by September 3rd so it could be placed in a trust for Bobbitt, but the weekend came and went with no money. Then Bobbitt's lawyer heard that there was no money to be had: "It completely shocked me when I heard, he told the Philadelphia Inquirer.

They started to spend money right after depositing the online donations, said lawyer Jacqueline Promislo. "They went on shopping sprees. [Bobbitt] tells me they had a Louis Vuitton bag and Chanel sunglasses, a new iPhone 10...I know they spent a lot of money," she said, adding that Bobbitt told her the pair also amassed a collection of pricey Nike shoes. "Until we have a forensic accountant go through it, I cant say that they spent his money. But now that they say there is no money, where did it go?"

McClure, a receptionist, and DAmico, a carpenter, did buy Bobbitt a trailer and a used truck, Promislo added, but they never gave him the key to the truck, which she claims they ended up driving until it broke down. Both the trailer and truck, which were bought in their names, have since been sold by the couple.

Bobbitt believes the couple spent the money on vacations (to Florida, California and Las Vegas), gambling and a new BMW which police confiscated last week during a search of their home. Badway said in his letter that all the couple's personal and business financial statements, along with jewelry and cash, were also seized in the raid last week.

Tow truck removes BMW from the Bordentown, NJ property of Katie McClure & Mark DAmico, where @BurlcoPros is serving a search warrant. The couple is being investigated over funds missing from a $400,000 GoFundMe account they started for homeless veteran Johnny Bobbitt @CBSPhilly pic.twitter.com/cxPcFBrw9P  Trang Do (@TrangDoCBS3) September 6, 2018

Bobbitt, who has admitted to struggling with drug addiction and has been in and out of rehab since his encounter with McClure, entered an inpatient rehab program on Friday. Promislo, who called Bobbitt sweet," also said he spoke highly of McClure: "I said, 'You were also given very little money when you were living in a trailer in her driveway,'" she said. "But he likes her! He wasnt actually going to pursue this  its just not in his nature."
On Saturday, just before the start of of the Jewish High Holidays, some 7,000 New Yorkers received an official mailer from the State Democratic Party falsely implying that Cynthia Nixon is anti-Semitic, that she supports a boycott of Israel, and that she'd defund ultra-Orthodox schools. Democrats swiftly denounced the inaccurate smear, and the state party apologized, promising to fix the "mistake" by sending out a clarifying mailer before Thursday's primary.

Governor Andrew Cuomo, who controls the state party, has insisted that he has nothing to do with itdespite the fact that one of his top aides had shopped around a story about Nixon's Israeli settlement views just a day before the mailer went out. It is unusual that such a mailer would go out without approval from top officials within the campaign, according to several "high-level" political operatives who spoke with Politico.

Meanwhile, the executive director of the state Democratic Party, George Berman, appears to have reneged on his pledge to let the "Nixon campaign to send out a mailing of their choosing to the same universe of people." According to Nixon's campaign manager, Rebecca Katz, "there's been no formal offer" made by the party, and no response to their request for a robocall denouncing the misleading claims made in the first flyer.

Worse, says Nixon, Cuomo has refused to personally apologize for the mailer, and to follow through on a host of recommendations made by the New York Times editorial board, which called the mailer "dirty politics, nearly as sleazy as it gets." Councilmembers Brad Lander and Mark Levine joined rabbis in City Hall Park this morning to denounce the mailer and to demand that the Times rescind its endorsement of Cuomo.

Other elected officials have also called for increased transparency, including state Senator Liz Krueger, who told us, "Speaking as a Democratic elected official and a voter, I believe we all deserve a clear explanation from the State Party and the Cuomo campaign of how this was approved and what is being changed to prevent it from happening in the future."

While Cuomo maintains that he, personally, had nothing to do with the flyer, his campaign said on Tuesday that the person responsible was "an individual helping the [Cuomo] campaign on constituency outreach." That admission came after the New York Post reported that one of Cuomo's top campaign aides had attempted to plant a story about Nixon's opposition to Israeli settlements.

So their defense is "Yes, I did the horrible thing, and, yes, I tried to hide that I did it, but it was wrong of the journalist to expose that I was manipulating Jewish fears of rising anti-semitism" https://t.co/Ni8ITpQtHS  Lauren Hitt (@LaurenHitt) September 12, 2018

"Nixon has supported insidious BDS campaign, signing onto letter boycotting Israel," read an email sent to the tabloid on Friday. "Obviously something you guys have reported on a lot and right before the jewish high holidays! Can get you folks on the record slamming her as well."

Later that day, a top Cuomo campaign official sent a text to a Post reporter, "Hey I got something for you on nixon.I'm going to email to you. But not from me."

A spokesperson for Governor Cuomo's campaign did not immediately respond to Gothamist's questions about who was behind the seemingly coordinated attack, and whether they'll face discipline. The State Democratic Party also would not comment on the issue.

The campaign told the Post that the correspondences "have nothing to do with the wrong and inappropriate mail piece that went out and shouldnt have."

During an interview on Tuesday, Nixon told Gothamist, "What we've seen, both in the debate and with this recent mailer spreading lies and fear-mongering, is that neither the New York State Democratic Party nor Governor Cuomo...seem to have any compunction about lying. So that's one of the challenges as well: they will do or say anything to win in a way that I will not."




Ask a Reporter is an occasional series about civic engagement in and around the city. Do you have a question about how you can make a difference in your neighborhood, city or state? What about voting, the elections or navigating civic life in New York? Ask us! We want to help you get involved by answering your questions.



Q: How do I find out more information about the judges on the ballot?

A: Trying to be an informed voter when it comes to choosing judges is well... Im just going to quote Susan Lerner, the executive director of Common Cause New York: Its torture.

I feel your pain, responsible citizens. You want to know at least something about who you are voting for. Otherwise, you may abstain from voting for these candidates at all. Im the same way.

Before I give you a bit of background about why New Yorks system for choosing judges is so messed up, here are some practical steps you can take to find out more about judicial candidates:

First, check out this list of Primary Day candidates, posted by the New York City Board of Elections. There, you will see the candidates running for either county or district civil court judgeships. Find the judicial candidates in your district and county, if any (there may not be).

Next, Google the candidates! Many of them do have a website, media clips or at least a Facebook page. I realize this may seem like obvious advice but it did not occur to me to do it until I spoke with Denise Kronstadt, Deputy Director of the Fund for Modern Courts. (Thank you, Denise.)

For instance, in the contest in Manhattans 2nd Municipal Court District, you can find more than a few things about candidates Wendy Li and Robert Rosenthal. They have campaign websites and Twitter feeds, plus some local news coverage about them. According to the The Villager, there is an honest-to-goodness race going on between them.

Which brings me to the next point: when looking for some media coverage about these candidates, look around on your local rags. For instance, that Villager piece, mentioned above. Or the write-up of a town hall with judicial candidates in Brooklyn covered by the Brooklyn Eagle.

Another source for some information about the candidates is the New York City Bar Association. They have evaluated the candidates and deemed them as either qualified or not (noted as approved or not approved). You can also read more about the Bar Associations method of evaluation.

Finally, you should know that there are a lot of advocates pushing to reform the New York court system, including the method of selecting judges. Whats particularly frustrating is that many of the judicial candidates you see on the ballot have already been selected by the local political parties.

Check out this WNYC story from 2016 on the problem with selecting judges for civil court. Kat Aaron, who reported the piece, noted that the judicial candidates are selected for voters by people called judicial delegates. They are generally party insiders, and they pick judicial candidates for the ballot at judicial conventions usually held in September.

The Brennan Center for Justice, in a candid post on their website, called these conventions strictly for show. And depending on your voting district, you may also be called upon to choose these delegates from a list of names on your ballot. But who are these potential delegates? The only way to prepare for this is to review a sample ballot, which you can find by looking up your polling site through the Board of Elections website, and start Googling. Its a sign of how dysfunctional this system is that this is your best bet.

New Yorks system for choosing judges was challenged in court but ultimately found constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. In his opinion, Justice John Paul Stevens quoted Thurgood Marshall and wrote, The Constitution does not prohibit legislatures from enacting stupid laws.

What questions do you have about civic participation in New York City that youd like us to answer? Share them in the prompt below and we'll work to answer as many as we can.




A Long Island man was arrested on Monday after police busted him with a car full of venomous lizards (assorted), and all I can think to say about that is HOLY HELL and also why, though?

According to Nassau County Police, officers busted 27-year-old Anthony Cammarata after they watched him back his 2002 Lincoln into a driveway in Seaford, Long Island, and spotted a Gila Monster inside the car.

The NY Post reports that the Gilas (yes, plural) "were in the middle of escaping" at the time. Officers sprung into action, and extracted a total of "three (3) Gila Monsters, one (1) alligator, two (2) Caiman, and five (5) Beaded lizards" from Cammarata's vehicle.

For the uninitiated, Gila Monsters are "one of only a handful of venomous lizards in the world," per National Geographic, and transmit their venom by "latch[ing] onto victims and chew[ing] to allow neurotoxins to move through grooves in their teeth and into the open wound." Although Nat Geo maintains that Gila venom has never translated to any human deaths that we know of, the monsters nonetheless remain illegal in New York State.

According to the Post, the Caimans in the car were of the dwarf variety"the smallest of all crocodilians" per Cobras.org, sure why notand occupied the trunk along with the 2.5 foot alligator. Which means this guy had allegedly been driving around with a trunk full of loose alligators and crocodiles: The Nassau County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals told Gothamist that these were free-range monsters who roamed around the car's interior during their ride.

Police also allege that Cammarata had a firearm and what appeared to be steroids packed away in his car. All things considered, I think this makes sense.

Cammarata appeared to be delivering his writhing haul to Doug Dellecave, owner of a Levittown pet shop called "Reptile Rage." There, authorities had already encountered a 5.5-foot water monitorreportedly the third longest lizard in the world, everything is fine!in an unlocked enclosure. According to the Post, the beast's nimble krampus hands, tipped with four-inch nails, equipped it to "easily manipulate" the enclosure's door.

The NCSPCA says it took two monitorsan Asian water monitor and a black-throated monitorfrom the shop. Unlike the vehicular reptiles, which the NCSPCA said were "all listed on the state DEC register as dangerous illegal to possess, own, or harbor" without a license, monitors can be kept with a permit. Dellecave's had allegedly expired.

Their raid of "Reptile Rage" led authorities to Dellecave's house, with a warrant and a police helicopter on standby, in case anyone incurred lizard bites during the confrontation. That's where they snared Cammarata, who has since been charged with one count of criminal possession of a weapon in the 2nd degree, two counts of unlawful possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device, protection of the public from attack by wild animals and reptiles, five counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree, and four counts of possession of dangerous animals.

According to Newsday, Cammarata's attorney argued that his client had merely agreed to pick up the Lincoln for a family member, blissfully unaware of the venomous reptiles crawling around insidea fairly thin defense, considering the NCSPCA's allegation that the lizards had not been caged for their commute.

The lizards, meanwhile, are currently being held at a sanctuary where they will remain throughout the trial process, the NCSPCA said. There, they'll receive any medical care they might require, and after the case is adjudicated, will be transferred to a zoo or a research center if they don't just stay at the sanctuary.

"Nassau county will not stand for the possession of dangerous or illegal animals without a permit, we will do what we need to combat this," NCSPCA Officer Matthew Roper said. The illegal animal trade is "a huge, multi-million dollar industry," he added, vowing that authorities "will do what we need to to take a bite out of crime."


More than 3,000 people with outstanding warrants in Manhattan for low-level marijuana offenses are having their cases dropped. Judge Kevin McGrath on Wednesday approved a motion filed by the Manhattan District Attorneys Office to vacate those warrants and dismiss the underlying misdemeanors and violations.

This is the latest move in a widespread effort to increase leniency in New York Citys marijuana enforcement. In August, the Manhattan District Attorneys Office stopped prosecuting low-level marijuana offenses related to possession and smoking. At the beginning of September, the NYPD also changed its policy related to arresting people for marijuana offenses. With some exceptions, officers are now instructed to issue summonses for public smoking or marijuana possession, rather than making arrests.

Here's WNYC's Mara Silvers report on D.A. Vance's decision:

In his statement before the judge, District Attorney Cyrus Vance said this motion reflected a change in policy from his office, and common sense reevaluation of marijuana enforcement.

Vance said his office searched through all relevant cases available dating back to 1978, pulling ones where the only remaining charge was misdemeanor marijuana possession or pot smoking.

Outstanding warrants for these low-level cases drive law enforcement and communities apart, Vance said, adding that warrants create difficulties related to employment, housing, and immigration status.

By dismissing these cases, were removing all of the collateral consequences associated with an open Criminal Court case, Vance said.

Dismissing the warrants also helps address decades of racial disparity in marijuana enforcement, said Vance. Nearly 80 percent of the New Yorkers who will have their warrants waived are people of color, according to the DAs office. Almost half of the people whose cases have been dismissed were 25 or younger at the time of their arrest.

Vances motion does not, however, make any strides toward expunging the records of people who have been convicted of the low-level marijuana crimes.

When you dont have an expungement to be able to clear these matters, these are the next best things that can happen, Anthony Posada, an attorney with the Legal Aid Society, told Gothamist. At the same time, what is really important to us is to have a true fix where we have full legalization.

Vance told reporters his office was considering ways to toss out low-level marijuana convictions, but that such a mass expungement would be most easily done through a change of state law.

And certainly we will be communicating with the governor and the legislature about how that can be accomplished, and I think it should be accomplished, Vance said.

Last week, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced his office would begin dismissing the low-level marijuana convictions of more than 20,000 people. The DAs office said it would grant the request for dismissal of past cases, as long as an individual has not been charged with certain violent felonies and sex offenses.

DA Gonzalez said a criminal record holds too many people back from finding a job, pursuing their education, or having housing.

It is only fair to relieve these individuals of that burden and allow them to turn over a new leaf and move on with their lives, he said.

Some of the warrants that fall under Vance's motion date back to 1978, and could have become a seemingly ingrained part of daily life for some residents.

I think they will breathe a sigh of relief that this has been resolved, Vance said.

Mara Silvers is an assistant producer at WNYC. You can follow her on Twitter at @mara_silvers.
This is the second time today Sarah ONeill is sitting down to write postcards.

Basically Im gonna write, Please mark your calendar

The flip side of the one shes filling out has a picture of Min, her fleecy, sweet-looking pet schnoodle (thats half Schnauzer/half poodle), with a speech bubble barking, Please vote!

Shes been speaking in quick, excited bursts to her fellow postcard writers10 people gathered around a volunteers dining table somewhere in the East Village. Her family says she speaks at hyperdrive speeds when she doesnt get enough sleep.

In these final days before the state primary, hundreds of New Yorkers will be getting a similar handwritten postcard in the mail. Theyve been sent by volunteers for Postcards to Voters, a now nation-wide effort to encourage Democrats to vote.

Listen to WNYC's Shumita Basu talk to these volunteers about the personal touch they are giving the campaign season:

Get-out-the-vote mailers are not a ground-breaking idea. But the key to Postcards to Voters is twofold: one is those personalized cards, in all of their handwritten and sometimes-sloppy glory. And the second is a list of addresses belonging to prospective Democratic voters across the nation. That list is painstakingly put together by a guy they call Tony the Democrat.



Tony the Democrat (Jennifer Hsu / WNYC)

His real name is Tony McMullin.

I am, I think its safe to say, the first first-generation Cuban-American, born in Nebraska, grew up in Kentucky, went to college in Miami, then moved to Dallas he told WNYC, rattling off the list. He now lives in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia.

Tony has a real day job, but over the past 15 years hes held a combination of paid and unpaid positions working for political campaigns.

He says he kinda accidentally started this postcarding thing in March of 2017, when Jon Ossoff was running for Congress in a special election where he lives, Georgias 6th district. Some out-of-staters had posted words of support on Ossoffs Facebook page, saying they wish they could do more than just write a check.

So I told them they were in luck because I happen to have, as a volunteer here locally, a list of terrific Democratic voters in the district that have an awesome record of voting, but they would need to be reminded that there was a special election in April, Tony told WNYC.

It was a spontaneous suggestion. And more and more people took him up on it.

By the end of four weeks, we had over 1200 volunteers and we had sent over 51,000 postcards, Tony said.

Ossoff ultimately lost that race. But the postcard writers reached out to Tony and said: So, who are we writing for next? Thats when he decided to take his efforts nationwide, writing to Democrats all over the country to remind them about special elections and primaries.

This is not a postcard to persuade somebody to switch parties and vote for a Democrat. Thats not what we do, Tony said. "We only write to Democratic voters to remind them of an upcoming election where there's only one Democrat on the ballot.

This particular group is writing to New Yorkers whose state senators used to be part of the now-defunct Independent Democratic Conference, or the IDC. Thats the group of renegade Democrats who were cooperating with Republicans in the State Senate. The postcards say  Hey, just so you know, your incumbent has a Democratic challenger that you should vote for.



This postcard specific mentions the IDC (Jennifer Hsu / WNYC)

But how do you make sure youre only writing to Democratic voters? Well, one of the skills Tony picked up in his campaign work is sifting through voter files. These are big, unwieldy digital files that you can request from a state, with names of voters, their addresses, which elections theyve voted in.

Ive lost track of the number of voter files Ive worked with over the years, Tony told WNYC. It really does not take me more than 30 minutes to slice and dice a voter file.

But you have to slice carefully, says Tony. Political party affiliations are sometimes not included in these voter files, so he has to make inferences by studying which elections people turned out for over the years.

You really want to make sure that the addresses are the right voters. The last thing we want to do is remind any voters of the other party about a special election, he said with a chuckle. Thats someone elses job.

Tony now has a team of volunteers. Eighteen thousand people have signed up to write Postcards to Voters across the country. They work for free, and they buy their own supplies, including the stamps. Theyve sent about 2.7 million pieces of mail for 106 campaigns in the last year and a half. One of the volunteers even built Tony a bot that sends new addresses to his writers when they ask for more.

It seems like the appeal of postcarding is that it can be done anytime, with or without a group. Someone on Twitter described it as resistance for introverts. And the Facebook page and hashtags that have sprung up around Postcards to Voters are overwhelmingly positive spaces. Which maybe comes from a cardinal rule of the cards: never go negative.

We never use the word Trump or Republican, explained Tony. We never call out the opposition candidate in any of our talking points. I will actually reject talking points that are negative in any way because this is supposed to be a fun, friendly election reminder.



Volunteers writing postcards (Jennifer Hsu / WNYC)

Its one thing to feel good about writing these postcards. Its another thing to understand if they actually work.

David Nickerson, a political science professor at Temple University, has conducted experiments to put numbers behind efforts like door-knocking and phone-banking. Hes worked on campaigns for the past two decades. When it comes to direct mail, he says the most effective strategy is shame.

Usually what works best is a very plain boring government-looking letter that says, You didnt vote in the last election, please vote in this election, said Nickerson.

He says for standard campaign fliersthose glossy, full-color missives from campaigns - theres actually a formula: you can expect one piece of printed mail to boost voter turnout by about half a percentage point. So thats 5 votes for every 1,000 mailers sent.

A 2007 study showed handwritten notes are about three times as effective.

Nickerson says thats because of the novelty of a person in upstate New York getting a letter from Oregon. The more personal the method is, the better it is at getting voters to participate.

Like, how often do people get handwritten letters nowadays? Its pretty rare, he said.

Over 283,000 postcards have gone out to New Yorkers ahead of tomorrows state primary. A few weeks ago, a woman in District 38  thats Rockland County  got one in the mail. She spoke to WNYC, but did not want to be identified by her real name because shes worried that publicizing her political views could have an impact on her job. Well call her Tara.

So the postcard starts out, Hi from Susan from Oregon, said Tara. And then goes on to inform me of a candidate Julie Goldberg, who is running against my current NY State Senator David Carlucci.



The postcard that Tara received (Jennifer Hsu / WNYC)

Tara says she voted for Carlucci in the past without thinking twice. But the postcard mentioned that Carlucci was an IDC member. Shed never heard that term before, so she looked up his voting record.

You get the mailers from your candidate once a year talking about all the great stuff theyve been doing or co-sponsoring, and they never mention they let it die in committee because of their buddy-buddy relationship with the Republicans, said Tara. You know, its alarming.

Carlucci has been asked about the IDC often on the campaign trail, including during a September 1st debate with Goldberg broadcast on NewsBreakers on Fios1News.

Look, Im a Democrat. I believe in Democratic principles, and Ive never once put those Democratic principles aside, said Carlucci. What Ive said is, hey, Ive got a job to do. I dont care if youre a Democrat, Republican, Independent, Libertarian, vegetarian...

Tony the Democrat says he doesnt usually take sides in Democratic primaries, but he made an exception to oppose New Yorks IDC incumbents. He says the best feeling comes from watching candidates his volunteers have supported win really close races, where a couple hundred votes made the difference.

Ive received so many responses from people telling me that they didnt know about the special election, thank goodness for the postcard, said Tony. They show candidates when they come knocking on the door. That means they saved the postcard! They kept it! They put it on their kitchen counter and have been looking at it multiple times a day! Thats direct marketing gold.

The deadline to mail postcards to New York was last Thursday for out-of-state senders, Friday for in-staters, so the letters would reach people before Thursdays primary. Theyll take a little break, then start writing for candidates in the November elections, starting with Texas, very soon.

Keep up with WNYC & Gothamist's midterms coverage with our elections hub. You can stay informed by subscribing to our new midterms newsletter and getting text reminders about important election dates.

Shumita Basu is a host, producer and reporter in the newsroom. You can follow her on Twitter @shubasu.
Rebel is Rebecca Carroll's regular conversation on race and pop culture. You can hear Rebecca talk about these issues with guests on Wednesday mornings on WNYC.

Every year when awards season rolls around, conversations about the industry's diversity and inclusion efforts start by counting the nominees of color and then trying to gauge whether or not that number indicates progress.

At the Creative Emmys over the weekend, John Legend won an Emmy for co-producing the live televised version of Jesus Christ Superstar, making him the first black man EGOT, and black actors swept the guest actor categories. But is that alone a real marker of inclusion? And what does the Primetime Emmys lineup look like?

For this week's Rebel conversation, I talked with Christina Coleman, News & Culture Director at Glamour magazine. Also, Christina and I are firmly rooting for everybody black. And If you don't know that reference, Google it.

Listen to Rebecca Carroll talk about the Emmy Awards on WNYC with Christina Coleman, below.

Rebecca Carroll is a cultural critic and Editor of Special Projects at WNYC, where she develops, produces and hosts a broad array of multi-platform content, including podcasts, live events and on-air broadcasts. Rebecca is also a critic at large for the Los Angeles Times, and a regular columnist at Shondaland in addition to Gothamist. She is the author of several interview-based books about race and blackness in America, including the award-winning Sugar in the Raw, and her personal essays, cultural commentary and opinion pieces have been published widely.
La condena a la cupula de Sendero Luminoso por el atentado en #Tarata, trae justicia a las victimas y deudos de este crimen. Los enemigos del Peru deben permanecer en la carcel y el Estado en su conjunto debe combatirlos con las armas que otorga la Ley. #TerrorismoNuncaMas
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The parliament session has kicked off.

Lawmakers are set to hold a confirmation vote to elect a new president of the court of cassation.

A Q&A with Cabinet members is also expected during the session.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian government recommends the introduction of a new tool  the minimal pension size  in the state pension system with the purpose to overcome extreme poverty among pensioners, the online platform of legal acts reported.

This tool will enable to make the ongoing policy more targeted, by targeting low pensions, the draft says.

The minimal pension size from January 1, 2019 is envisaged as 25,500 drams, according to the draft.

The bill is set to come into force from January 1, 2019.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The investigative committee has launched criminal proceedings on a September 9 shooting in Yerevan.

The investigative committee said in a statement that a citizen had called 911 in the afternoon of September 9 to report gunfire sounds near the Hrazdan stadium in Yerevan.

One hour after the call, a hospital contacted police and said that a 26 year old citizen was admitted with gunshot wounds.

Officers found out that the victims suffered the injuries during an altercation near the stadium. Crime scene investigation also discovered 2 bullets and 1 case, and blood.

The criminal case was launched on intentionally inflicting grave bodily injuries.

The investigative committee did not disclose other details.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. Chinese leader Xi Jinping was challenged to show his cooking skills by host Vladimir Putin, when the Russian president invited his guest to try a traditional dish: pancake with caviar chased down with a shot of vodka, RT reports.

Xi is visiting Russias far eastern city of Vladivostok, where an international economic forum is taking place.

Taking a break from talks, the Russian president and his Chinese counterpart put on aprons and each cooked a Russian-style pancake called blin.

Xi noticeably proved to be a more careful food craftsman, making a rounder piece of pastry. The two leaders then consumed their creations the Russian way: wrapping some caviar in them and eating them with a shot of vodka.
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani military has opened cross-border gunfire at the Armenian town of Baghanis in the Tavush province on September 11, local official Karen Abazyan told ARMENPRESS.

He said that Azerbaijani forces opened sporadic small-arms fire. They fired few days ago too, and yesterday evening they again fired few times, he said.

No one was injured in the shooting.

According to him, the Azerbaijani military has opened fire at the town twice in the past six days. He claims that previously the shootings werent this frequent.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian parliament adopted the bill on ratifying the agreement between the Armenian government and the government of Tajikistan on mutual recognition of educational qualifications and academic degrees.

The bill was adopted during todays sitting with 89 MPs voting in favor. No one voted against.

Education and Science minister Arayik Harutyunyan briefed lawmakers yesterday on the bill to ratify the agreement on mutual-recognition of diplomas, educational qualifications and academic degrees between the Armenian government and the Tajikistani government.

Graduation certificates and diplomas of all levels are acknowledged under this, he said.

He said that the signing of individual agreements of this kind with Central Asian countries is very important, because it enables to solve one of the governments priorities: the internationalization of higher education in the education field.

Currently there are six students from Tajikistan studying in the higher education system of Armenia.

The minister said that they are working to have similar agreements with other countries also.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The domestic political situation and the recent developments in Armenia have been discussed in the sitting of the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Arpine Hovhannisyan  Head of the Armenian delegation to the assembly said on Facebook. Hovhannisyan also serves as Deputy Speaker of Parliament of Armenia.

She said that the discussion also included the criminal cases against former President Robert Kocharyan and other former officials.

I have presented facts, videos and [reports]. The content of the [audio] recording between the NSS director and the SIS chief was also discussed, she said, referring to the leaked audio recording of a wiretapped phone conversation between National Security Service director Arthur Vanetsyan and Special Investigative Service director Sasun Khachatryan.

She said that as result of the discussion, the committee decided to address a letter on behalf of the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy to the Monitoring Committee, recommending to carry out monitoring in Armenia for ensuring the rule of law in Armenia and the independence of the executive and judicial branches of the government.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The agenda of the upcoming meeting of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and French President Emmanuel Macron is rather broad, foreign ministry spokesperson Tigran Balayan told a press conference today.

He said that this fact symbolizes the level of relations between the two countries.

We are engaged in cooperation with France in both political, economic, cultural and social fields. All these issues will be on the agenda, he said.

The Armenian PM will be on a working visit to Paris September 14-15. PM Nikol Pashinyan is expected to meet President of France Emmanuel Macron, and the local Armenian community.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian government, as well as entire Armenia has mobilized its powers in order to host the participants of the 17th La Francophonie summit with the very best traditions of hospitality, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said today during the inauguration of the 11th forum of Francophone NGOs in Yerevan.

Pashinyan welcomed representatives of all NGOs which are taking part in the forum and added that the latest developments in Armenia have characterized the power of civil movement. The participation of the youth, women and men in these events showed how important civil society is, how important the values of democracy and solidarity are in our country, which we have in our country and which we share with all our friends of La Francophonie. I am proud to say that our country is assuming an important work and is reaching an important milestone by hosting the La Francophonie summit. I would like to reassure that our government, as well as the entire Armenia has mobilized its powers in order to host participants of the summit with the very best traditions of hospitality. I am hopeful that this summit will contribute to the development of Francophonie worldwide and that Armenia will become the diplomatic center of Francophonie: the participation of delegations from 84 countries and organizations in the summit will give a new force, and also the participants will be able to discover Armenia and its cultural values, which constitute a part of the Francophone area. I am certain that the summit will be unforgettable and that we will have great success, the PM said.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. Police and the National Security Service currently refuse to disclose any information about the process of implementing Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyans orders on disarming high-level officials and their bodyguards.

The press service of the national police told ARMENPRESS that the process of implementation of the task will be reported to the Prime Minister personally.

We will officially notify in case we have any information in this regard, the department said.

The National Security Service said that currently they dont have any information for public disclosure.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. On August 28, in accordance with the arrangement reached with the authorities of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh Republic), the OSCE Mission conducted a planned monitoring of the ceasefire regime on the Line of Contact between the armed forces of Artsakh and Azerbaijan, at the Omar pass, the foreign ministry of Artsakh said.



From the positions of the Defense Army of the Republic of Artsakh, the monitoring was conducted by Field Assistant to the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office (CiO) Ghenadie Petrica (Moldova) and staff member of the Office of the CiO Personal Representative Martin Schuster (Germany).



From the opposite side of the Line of Contact, the monitoring was conducted by Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, his Field Assistant Mihail Olaru (Moldova) and Personal Assistant Simon Tiller (Great Britain).



The monitoring passed in accordance with the agreed schedule.



From the Artsakh side, the monitoring mission was accompanied by representatives of the Republic of Artsakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense.
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian military personnel who will depart for Syria includes humanitarian experts, defense minister David Tonoyan said at a press conference today.

They are experts of the humanitarian field of the armed forces: doctors, humanitarian de-miners, a security personnel will also be involved to ensure their activities. Nearly 100 people. Participation in these humanitarian actions is in our national interests, Tonoyan said.

He said that preparation works are currently underway.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. Acquiring multifunctional military aviation is a priority for the Armenian Armed Forces, defense minister David Tonoyan said at a press conference today.

We attach importance to acquiring and introducing multifunctional aviation in the armed forces. This is a priority, he said.

According to him, negotiations are currently underway over the matter.

He also mentioned that currently the process of signing the 100 million dollar military loan agreement with Russia is underway. He emphasized that cooperation with Russia in the military field is developing rather successfully.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. In accordance to the scenario of the SHANT 2018 drills, Armenia has reclaimed all territories which were lost in the simulation, Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces Artak Davtyan said at a press conference.

According to the scenario, all lost territories have been returned. The adversary has movements in the neutral zone, which has been obstructed. However, according to the scenario, all our border settlements have been bombarded by artillery, we have casualties and injured. The armed forces are carrying out suppression of firing positions. Martial law hasnt yet been declared, however the situation is leading to such a decision being made by the government, Davtyan said.

He said that all local self-governing bodies are being prepared to carry out timely mobilization in case of a martial law being declared.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The army wasnt ordered to open gunfire in the March 1 events, claims Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces Artak Davtyan.

Davtyan served as head of the tactical department of the defense ministry during the events in 2008.

The army wasnt given an order to shoot on March 1. The army did not shoot, if shots were fired then it was fired by individual servicemen. They havent been ordered to shoot, he said.

He also said that the border activities of the armed forces during those days proceeded normally.

The frontline wasnt depleted. Combat work was ordinary. The border wasnt weakened during the March 1 days, he said.

Earlier the head of the Special Investigative Service Sasun Khachatryan said that the probe into the case has revealed that not only has the army taken part in the March 1 events, but it has also opened fire in the direction of civilians.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. At the invitation of the Chess Federation of Armenia, Arkady Dvorkovich  the candidate for president of FIDE, will arrive to Armenia on September 13.

During the visit Dvorkovich will get acquainted with the achievements of Armenian chess. The federation will present the experience in introducing chess in public education and upcoming steps, the chess federation of Armenia said.

Dvorkovich will visit public schools, the Chess scientific-research center which was opened this year in the Armenian Pedagogical University, and the Chess Academy of Armenia.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces Artak Davtyan has presented the scenario of the SHANT 2018 ongoing military drills on September 12.

He said that under the scenario the situation has escalated and Azerbaijan, with active support of Turkey, is trying to solve the NK conflict militarily. Along with infiltration attempts of enemy recon groups and combat operations, Azerbaijan is bombarding settlements, there are casualties and injured. Armenian Armed Forces are suppressing enemy firing positions by tactical actions, according to the scenario.

According to the scenario, 400 refugees have crossed into Armenia from Turkish territory.

He said that the scenario also envisages a Cabinet meeting soon.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan says he attaches great importance to the necessity of involving a representative of the people of Artsakh in the NK conflict settlement negotiations. The Armenian PM also reiterated his readiness to be fully involved in the negotiations process.

The PM was speaking at the parliament session today in response to a question from Republican faction MP Tajat Vardapetyan.

Vardapetyan mentioned that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has commented on Pashinyans statement on making Artsakh a negotiations party, and said that the responsibility of obstructing the talks in this case falls on Armenia.

Certainly, I have numerously expressed readiness to be fully involved in the negotiations process. I have said that I consider myself to be authorized to negotiate on behalf of Armenia, because I am the Prime Minister of Armenia, but I am not authorized to negotiate on behalf of Artsakh. The people of Artsakh do not participate in the government formation in Armenia, since they have their own government, president, which is capable of negotiating on behalf of Artsakh, Pashinyan said.

We very clearly put a simple question  are we negotiating simply for negotiations, or to solve the issue? If we are negotiating to solve the issue, how do we imagine the solution of the issue without the party of the conflict? If we are negotiating for negotiations, we are ready for this format also. However, as long as the necessity of involvement of a representative of the people of Artsakh hasnt been recorded, it means that we havent gotten close to the settlement of the issue at all, he said.

According to the PM, the belligerent atmosphere which is established as result of the destructive actions of the Azerbaijani leadership is obstructing the negotiations process the most. I reaffirm my readiness to be fully involved in the negotiations process. There is no single case when it was proposed to negotiate and Armenia has refused, he said.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The September 13 Cabinet meeting will not take place due to the Shant-2018 drills, ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the Government of Armenia.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
YEREVAN, 12 SEPTEMBER, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 12 September, USD exchange rate is down by 0.04 drams to 485.37 drams. EUR exchange rate is down by 0.14 drams to 562.69 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate is up by 0.07 drams to 6.99 drams. GBP exchange rate is down by 0.29 drams to 632.44 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price is down by 106.87 drams to 18567.62 drams. Silver price is down by 1.42 drams to 220.42 drams. Platinum price is down by 196.08 drams to 12242.13 drams.
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian received the delegation of the France-Armenia Friendship Group of the French Senate led by chairman of the group Gilbert-Luc Devinaz.

As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the Presidents Office, Armen Sarkissian highly appreciated the works of the French-Armenia friendship group and noted this happens with true friends.

The President said that in October Armenia will host Francophonies 17th summit and this great event will once again symbolize the firm relations between Armenia and France.

Noting with satisfaction the dynamically developing Armenian-French cooperation in a number of spheres, the interlocutors highlighted further expansion of economic relations.

Armen Sarkissian and Gilbert-Luc Devinaz also spoke about the recent changes in Armenia. The President said that there is no alternative but democracy for Armenia. Armenia is in a transitional period and has numerous issues to solve. President Sarkissian expressed confidence that Armenia will pass this path in an atmosphere of tolerance and in the sidelines of the Constitution and laws.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who gained presidents post from his father as a heritage and during whose years of rule various international institutions condemned the leadership of that country for gross violations of human rights and crackdown and persecution against their political opponents and journalists, has expressed concern over the emerging dictatorship in Armenia.

ARMENPRESS reports, citing Azerbaijani media, during a meeting with OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger Aliyev urged him not to be indifferent towards the political process in Armenia, drawing his attention on mass violations of human rights, arrests of political opponents and the establishment of a new dictatorial regime in Armenia.

Ridiculously, Armenia is blamed for establishing dictatorship by someone during whose presidency human rights violations have become regular in Azerbaijan and political persecutions and censorship have become normal for that country, whereas all the international democratic institutions, including the OSCE, have welcomed the peaceful change of power in Armenia and have expressed readiness to assist in further democratic reforms.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
A growing number of North American architects and developers are supporting mass timber construction. Tall timber can sequester carbon, it's more resistant to fire than concrete, and it's often cheaper than using steel or concrete. Timber structures use large, prefabricated wood pieces.

But the process of building mass timber structures remains tough, because most cities place height restrictions on wooden structures.

In August, Oregon became the first US state to legalise mass timber high-rises, allowing wooden structures to rise above the previous six-story limit without special consideration.

With mass timber projects in many other cities pushing for approval and funding, take a look at some of the most prominent timber buildings in North America.

Google's parent company wants to build a high-tech neighbourhood made using mass timber on Toronto's waterfront.

Footpath Labs - the urban innovation subsidiary of Alphabet, Google's parent company - is planning on building a high-tech neighbourhood in Toronto, Canada.

The waterfront neighbourhood, called Quayside, could become the largest mass timber development in the world. It is expected to cost about $US1 billion, and it will also feature heated roadways and other innovations.

Quayside's buildings have been designed to include green roofs for improving sustainability. Footpath Labs wants the buildings to be modular, saying this would cost as much or less than conventional buildings.

Some Toronto residents worry that Quayside will raise housing prices and worsen income inequality.

Quayside, which covers about 3 million square feet, is one of the largest areas of underdeveloped urban land in North America. Zoning laws allow 90% of the neighbourhood to be residential space - about 3,000 units - but Footpath Labs has not yet announced how many units it will build.

Plans to build the high-tech neighbourhood have generated criticism among residents, who say Quayside could lead to gentrification, higher housing prices, and greater income inequality.

Story continues

In addition, the proposal comes with some complications. The construction code covering Toronto puts a six-story limit to tall-timber buildings - meaning an exception would need to be made for Quayside - and timber supply chains need to grow before they can support such a large project.

In Portland, Oregon, a mass timber high-rise was suspended indefinitely this summer.

In 2017, the first all-wood high-rise in the US was approved to be built in Portland, Oregon.

At the time, state officials said they hoped the construction would help rural areas in Oregon to revive a shrinking timber industry. Plans for the 11-story building called for cross-laminated timber, which has been shown to withstand big earthquakes.

As of July 2018, however, the project has been suspended indefinitely.

The mixed-use tower in Portland would have included retail space, offices, and apartments.

Lever Architecture initially said the building, called Framework, would be complete in late 2018. The project was reportedly halted due to a rise in cost, with construction in Portland becoming more expensive.

Framework would have included retail space on the ground floor, five stories of offices, and five stories of apartments.

Architects in Chicago have proposed an 80-story skyscraper made from wood.

The River Beech Tower would be located along the Chicago River, according to architecture firm Perkins+Will.

If built, the tower will include office space and 300 residential apartments. Residents and visitors will be able to access green spaces throughout the tower.

River Beech Tower is just one of the architects' goals for the Chicago Loop.

River Beech Tower could rise amid Perkins+Will's master plan for the Riverline community in Chicago's South Loop.

The Riverline project is set to include 10 buildings, a green space, and a river walk. Construction crews began working on the 10-year project in 2016.

A 10-story condo building in New York was axed when the project was no longer feasible.

When it received a Tall Wood Building Prize from the US Department of Agriculture in 2015, SHoP Architects intended to show the potential of mass timber technology with a new project in Manhattan's Chelsea neighbourhood.

The design called for a 10-story condo building with retail space on the ground floor. But in 2017, the developer called off the project, telling The Real Deal that construction was no longer feasible due to a downturn in the market.

New York's building code may have played a part in the project's cancellation.

New York City's laws may have impacted the decision as well,Curbed reported, as wooden structures are only allowed to reach six stories without special consideration.

SHoP Architects still plans on using tall timber technology for future construction projects.

Brooklyn, however, is getting two mass timber office buildings.

Though the Chelsea tower was ultimately not built, smaller timber construction projects are having more luck in New York.

The architecture and development firm Flank is building two brick-and-beam buildings in Brooklyn's Williamsburg neighbourhood. The buildings, 320 and 360 Wythe, will feature two floors of office space and more than 15,000 square feet of rentable retail space.

320 and 360 Wythe did not need special approval for construction because both buildings are within New York City's height limit for timber structures.

The Williamsburg project is using the same Canadian timber as Footpath Labs' Quayside development.

The raw timber used for the Wythe buildings comes from Canadian forests, the same source of wood in Footpath Labs' Toronto project.

According to Flank, wood production emits far less carbon dioxide than equivalent designs with concrete or steel. Growing trees sequester carbon dioxide in their fibres, which makes mass timber structures "carbon negative," Flank said.

A 12-story condo building in Quebec, Canada, is primarily made of cross-laminated timber.

In Quebec, Canada, the 12-story Origine building sits on top of a one-story concrete podium.

The condo building, which was completed in 2017, is primarily made of cross-laminated timber. Origine has thermal insulation and a smart waste chute on each floor. The building includes a charging station for electric cars, and the structure is LEED certified.

Origine required special approval, but Quebec officials have since rewritten the code to permit tall-timber structures.

An architect at Nordic Structures told Business Insider that Quebec's building codes did not allow for a structure as tall as Origine to made built of wood.

After tests and demonstrations, however, local authorities approved the project, and a guide for tall-timber structures has since been written. Now, tall-timber structures in Quebec need to be covered by drywall.

A student residence at the University of British Columbia is also made from mass timber.

Brock Commons Tallwood House is a student residence at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.

The 18-story building, which opened in July 2017, was part of Natural Resource Canada's Tall Wood Building Demonstration Project Initiative.

British Columbia's provincial government issued a site-specific regulation to let developers use mass timber for Brock Commons, making the building more resistant to fire than a steel or concrete tower.

Brock Commons Tallwood House was created in just 66 days.

Brock Commons - which consists of glue laminated timber, cross laminated timber, and prefabricated facade - was created in just 66 days.

The timber used to make it stores about 1,753 metric tons of carbon dioxide, and it cost about as much as a concrete building of similar size.

A seven-story high-rise in Minneapolis opened in late 2016.

T3 - short for Timber, Technology, Transit - is a 220,000 square-foot office building made from mass timber.

Its lightness helps reduce the foundation size and seismic loads associated with building a concrete structure of similar size, which would weigh fives times as much.

The timber stores thousands of metric tons of carbon dioxide, reducing emissions.

According to the building's website, T3 will store more than 3,600 metric tons of carbon dioxide in its timber. Building T3 out of mass timber instead of steel or concrete is equivalent to taking nearly 1,000 cars off the road.

In addition, T3 features a first-floor space for meetings and collaboration, a rooftop deck with seating, and a fitness center.
Sri Lanka is using a $US1.4 billion Chinese investment to start building a new metropolis.

The full project, scheduled for completion in 2041, could end up costing about $US15 billion.

At 665 acres, the Port City development could double the size of the nation's capital.

Sri Lanka's $US1.4 billion Port City development has elicited parallels to numerous major urban centres. At 665 acres, the project is about the same size as central London, but its design resembles that of cities like Hong Kong, Singapore, and Dubai.

A decade ago, the idea of a Sri Lankan city that rivaled the world's leading financial hubs seemed implausible. From 1983 to 2009, the nation was ravaged by a brutal civil war between its military and an insurgent group called the Tamil Tigers. By the end of the conflict, hundreds of thousands of civilians had been killed and the city had spent more than $US200 billion on war costs.

Less than 10 years later, the nation has devised a plan for bringing jobs and economic opportunity to its capital city, Colombo. The most populous city in Sri Lanka, Colombo has about 750,000 residents in its urban core. Through the development of a new metropolis inside the capital, officials estimate that Colombo could eventually double in size.

Though the concept of Port City originated in 2004, its plans were delayed by the war. Sri Lanka went on to see an influx of Chinese investment, which the country put toward major infrastructure improvements. The partnership ran into trouble when Sri Lanka had difficulty repaying its debt, however, while China was accused of using its investments to wield political influence.

In 2014, Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe suspended the Port City project, citing concerns about damage to the coastline. This angered the project's investor, China Communications Construction Company, which claimed to be losing $US380,000 a day while the development was in limbo. By 2016, the plan was back in motion with a new set of environmental protections.

Story continues

According to the site's developer, China Harbour Engineering Company, the project is still on track to complete its reclamation efforts and the first phase of infrastructure by 2020. Port City is set to be finished in 2041, at which point its costs could reach $US15 billion.

Here's what it might look like in the future.

To build the city, developers are using dredgers to gather up sand from the bottom of the ocean.

China Harbour Engineering Company plans to add 65 million cubic meters (about 17 billion gallons) of sand along the shore.

Environmental groups have raised concerns about the destruction of aquatic life, which could damage the livelihood of local fishermen. But developers contend that dredging won't pose a threat.

China Harbour Engineering Company recently obtained a permit allowing it to dredge 5 kilometers from the coastline and only at depths at or below 15 meters. The organisation is also prohibited from dredging in areas near reef habitats or fishing grounds.

To account for the economic cost to local fishermen, the company has set aside nearly $US7 million to be distributed among fishing associations over three years.

Developers have completed more than 90% of their reclamation efforts, putting them on track to finish by June 2019.

The project has received a $US1.4 billion investment, but the sand alone could cost more than double that amount.

Colombo's Centre for Environmental Justice estimates that the development will require about 100 million cubic meters of sand, worth about $US3.2 billion.

The financial district features high-quality office space, a shopping plaza, and a cultural park.

A "central park" borders the main canal, providing space for outdoor recreation and events.

The development calls for 110 acres of public parks and 300 acres for recreation and water sports.

Building heights decrease in the direction of prevailing winds and waterfronts, allowing for increased air circulation within the city.

The city is designed specifically for residential and commercial use  no industrial activities are allowed.

Development officials say other planned projects in Sri Lanka will satisfy the need for industrial space.

Transit developments and walkways are meant to connect residents to local landmarks like Galle Face Beach, Beira Lake, and Viharamahadevi Park.

The new city is expected to host about 80,000 residents and 250,000 daily commuters.

It could be also be governed by its own legal system.

The system is still being discussed and will require approval from Sri Lanka's parliament and council of ministers.
Lawmakers in Chile on Wednesday passed legislation allowing people as young as 14 to legally change their name and gender identity. The Chamber of Deputies passed the Gender Identity Law by a vote of 95-46. It allows people aged 18 and above to change their name and legal gender, while those aged over 14 can do so with the permission of a parent or legal guardian. The Senate had passed the bill last month, so Wednesday's vote brought an end to a five-year battle in the deeply conservative South American country. The hotly debated legislation had come close to passing several times, but the issue came to a head earlier this year in the final months of former president Michelle Bachelet's term. "We are witnessing a historic event which we celebrate with great emotion and joy," said Alvaro Troncoso, head of the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation (Movilh). "It will improve the quality of life of thousands of people whose dignity and rights have been denigrated simply by the prejudices that exist against their gender identification." Activists had argued that not allowing people to register legally under the gender they most strongly identified with was a form of discrimination and had caused a variety of social, psychological and legal problems. "Right now, for the Chilean state, I do not exist," transgender activist Alessia Injoque told AFP shortly before the law was passed. "Right now there is someone called Alejandro who is not me." She said the new law would "grant me legal recognition of my existence: recognizing my identity is recognizing a segment of the population that has been ignored and whose identity has been denied." A survey conducted by Movilh in August of 326 people who identified as transgender revealed that 76 percent of respondents reported having been discriminated against because of their gender identification, limiting their options to find work. When the new law comes into effect, single people aged 18 or over will be able to legally change their name and gender by filling out a form at the civil registry office, while married people can do so at a family court. Young adults aged 14 to 18 will need the consent of at least one parent or guardian to change their gender identity at a family court. If they do not have that, they can ask a judge to intervene. Attempts to apply the law to those under the age of 14 ran afoul of opposition from conservative lawmakers Deputies from Chile's Broad Front party celebrate passage of the Gender Identity Law with a giant fake ID card reading "My identity, my right" Chilean transgender activist Alessia Injoque applies make-up before an interview with AFP at her home -- she says the new law will give her "legal recognition" that she exists
China warned Wednesday that protectionism threatens global growth and cautioned "individual countries" against isolationism, in a veiled reference to the deepening trade spat between Washington and Beijing that is being closely watched across Asia. The comments from China's vice premier come as the world's top two economic powers edged closer to an all-out trade war after imposing tit-for-tat tariffs on billions of dollars of imports. Tensions between the UN and China were heightened last week when US President Donald Trump threatened to hit all China's exports to the US worth more than $500 billion as he doubles down on the "America First" agenda he says aims to protect jobs and industries from overseas competition. But without directly naming Trump or the United States, Vice Premier Hu Chunhua warned against countries going it alone and upending the globalised trading system. "Some individual countries' protectionist and unilateral measures are gravely undermining the rules-based multilateral trading regime, posing a most serious hazard to the world economy," Hu said at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Hanoi. "Self-isolation will lead nowhere and only openness for all represents the right way forward," he added. The trade row has dominated discussions at the WEF where Southeast Asian leaders have made the case for fewer trade barriers as America retreats from the region under Trump, who has decried trade deficits in the region. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) "is working with like-minded partners to strengthen the rules-based international system," Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said. "It underpins growth and stability, but is under pressure." The trade tussle between Washington and Beijing is being closely watched across Southeast Asia where some export-focused economies may be set to gain from the fallout. Rising labour costs in China have already precipitated a push into countries such as Vietnam and Cambodia, where Adidas shoes, H&M T-shirts and Samsung phones are made on the cheap. But the trade rumble has accelerated that process, with several Chinese firms turning to the region to produce items from bike parts to mattresses in a bid to avoid US tariffs. "ASEAN countries don't want to count their chickens before they hatch," Fred Burke, managing partner at Baker McKenzie in Vietnam, told AFP. "But I think they see it on a net basis as a gain for them because it means shifting manufacturing into Southeast Asia that was... (earlier) in China." - Protectionist woes - Although there could be a short-term boon to Southeast Asia, some analysts warn the long-term may be less rosy. The region is "very export-driven... so any shift toward more trade barriers... is not good", Rajiv Biswas, Asia-Pacific chief economist at IHS Markit, told AFP. ASEAN trade increased by a value of nearly $1 trillion between 2007 and 2014 and the bloc had a collective GDP of $2.76 trillion last year after an enthusiastic embrace of trade liberalisation -- a marked contrast to Trump's policies. In one of his first post-election moves, the US president pulled out of the sprawling 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), calling the trade pact a job killer. The current edition of the WEF, which closes Thursday, is officially focused on how economies should adapt to so-called "disruptive technologies" such as automation and artificial intelligence that threaten to cull jobs in emerging economies. Several regional leaders have joined the forum, including Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Cambodia's newly re-elected strongman Prime Minister Hun Sen and Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi is under intense global scrutiny over the Rohingya crisis and is scheduled to speak at the forum Thursday. Last week the International Criminal Court ruled it has jurisdiction to investigate the forced deportation of 700,000 Rohingya Muslims by Myanmar's military as a possible crime against humanity. Myanmar has also faced international censure over the decision to jail two Reuters journalists for seven years under a draconian state secrets law for their coverage of a Rohingya massacre. The trade row looms over a regional World Economic Forum (WEF) kicking off in the Vietnamese capital Wednesday morning
A UN commission on Wednesday called on rebel groups in Syria's Idlib province to leave urban areas to protect civilians from any looming regime assault. The proposal comes after the United Nations' peace envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, last week suggested a deadline be set for fighters in Idlib to pull back from its cities. UN agencies and relief organisations have warned repeatedly that any major assault on the province of Idlib, which borders Turkey, could spark one of the worst humanitarian disasters of Syria's seven-year war. On Wednesday, the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria called for jihadists and opposition fighters to leave the most densely populated areas in the region where some three million people live. "Most of those terrorist groups and other armed groups, they are in the cities. Perhaps one wonderful scenario is: leave the cities," commission chief Paulo Pinheiro said. Hany Magally, a fellow panel member, said: "Shouldn't the armed groups move out and spare the civilian population?" Idlib and adjacent areas are largely controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an alliance led by Al-Qaeda's former Syrian affiliate, as well as rival rebels. HTS controls the provincial capital Idlib city. The northwestern region has seen its population almost double with the arrival of Syrians displaced from other parts of the country, many of whom already depend on aid. "All the other disasters would be minor events compared to what can happen in Idlib," Pinheiro said. - 'We've come back home' - On Wednesday, intermittent artillery fire hit southern districts of Idlib province and adjacent rebel-held areas of Hama province, a Britain-based monitor said. But for the second day in a row there were no air raids, after deadly strikes and barrel bombing at the weekend, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. In the south of Idlib, a man told AFP he and his family had returned to their home after fleeing for their lives on Monday. "I fled two days ago after the regime targeted us with air strikes and barrel bombs," Abu Ammar said in the southern district of Hobait. "But with warplanes on hold since yesterday, we've come back home." Since September 4, shelling and air strikes by the regime and Russia have killed at least 15 civilians in the rebel-held zone, the Observatory says. On Friday, rebel backer Turkey and regime allies Russian and Iran failed to reach an agreement in Tehran to avoid a regime assault on Idlib. On Tuesday, UN chief Antonio Guterres warned a full-scale battle on Idlib "would unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict". More than 350,000 people have been killed and millions more displaced in Syria's war since it started in 2011. - IS hostages - In the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, US-backed fighters were battling to oust IS from the town of Hajin on the east bank of the Euphrates, the most significant remnant of the jihadists' "caliphate" which once spanned Syria and Iraq. The operation "will clear remnants of (IS) from northeastern Syria along the Middle Euphrates River Valley toward the Syria-Iraq border," the US-led coalition said. Since Monday, the battle for Hajin has killed 36 jihadists and 11 fighters from the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, the Observatory said. Despite a number of military campaigns against them, IS fighters are still present in Deir Ezzor, as well as in the vast desert that stretches from Damascus to the Iraqi border. Regime forces have been battling IS for weeks in the southern province of Sweida, ever since the jihadists killed more than 250 people in attacks on its provincial capital and nearby villages in late July. During their rampage, IS fighters also kidnapped around 30 people, most of them women and their children from the Druze religious minority. IS has since announced the death of an elderly woman and the execution of a 19-year-old male student. According to a local source, families of a number of hostages received a video on Wednesday showing around 30 people. In the footage, which was seen by AFP but could not be independently verified, a woman says she is speaking on Tuesday and that the group is being held by IS. She accuses the Damascus regime and its Russian ally of inaction over the kidnapping and appeals for help to secure the group's release. Late Monday, 21 regime fighters were killed in an IS ambush in Sweida's volcanic plateau of Tulul al-Safa. A rebel fighter from the Turkish-backed National Liberation Front takes part in combat training in Syria's last major rebel bastion Idlib on September 11, 2018 Map locating weekend air raids and territorial control in Idlib province, Syria, with data on the risk of a humanitarian crisis Syrian children squeeze in among family belongings in the back of a pick-up on September 11, 2018 as they flee an anticipated government offensive on Idlib Syrians who fled regime raids ride in a truck near the border with Turkey in northern Idlib province on September 9, 2018
The death toll from a suicide attack on Afghan protesters has soared to 68, officials said Wednesday, as violence flares across the country ahead of elections and a key Islamic holy day. The bombing on Tuesday in the eastern province of Nangarhar was the latest in a wave of deadly insurgent attacks which has claimed the lives of hundreds of civilians and security forces across Afghanistan. The blast wounded another 165 people, provincial governor spokesman Ataullah Khogyani said. There has been no claim of responsibility for the massacre, but the Islamic State group, which has carried out most of the recent suicide bombings in Afghanistan, is active in the province. The Nangarhar health department confirmed the toll. Scores of demonstrators had blocked the highway between the provincial capital of Jalalabad and a major Pakistan border crossing in protest over the appointment of a local police chief when the suicide bomber blew himself up. The dead and wounded were rushed to several hospitals in the back of pickup trucks and ambulances, overwhelming doctors and nurses as they struggled to cope with the huge number of casualties. Zar Khan, one of the injured, told AFP he saw a young man get out of a car and run towards the protesters shouting "Allahu akbar" (God is greatest). "Then the explosion happened and I found myself surrounded by blood and flesh," Khan said from his hospital bed. It was the deadliest attack since an ambulance packed with explosives detonated in a crowded street in the heart of Kabul in January, killing more than 100 people, mostly civilians. That bombing was claimed by the Taliban. Violence across the country has intensified in recent weeks as the Taliban make gains on the battlefield and IS launches deadly urban attacks. It comes as Afghanistan enters a typically violent period of the year -- the holy month of Muharram, which began on Tuesday. Ashura, the most important Shiite observance, falls on the 10th day of Muharram and is often marred by deadly attacks. - Peace hopes fading - The fighting has tempered optimism that had been tentatively growing as Afghan and international players ratchet up efforts to convince the Taliban to negotiate an end to the 17-year conflict. An unprecedented ceasefire in June followed by talks between US officials and Taliban representatives in Qatar in July raised hopes that peace negotiations could bring an end to the fighting. There has been speculation the two sides will meet again this month. The Taliban have long insisted on direct talks with Washington and refused to negotiate with the Afghan government, which they see as illegitimate. The intensified fighting has also fuelled speculation over whether Afghanistan's long-delayed parliamentary elections will go ahead on October 20. The country's stretched security forces will be tasked with protecting thousands of polling stations around the country at a time when they are already struggling to beat back insurgents. Delivering ballot papers and monitoring the vote, which is seen as a test run for next year's presidential election, will be challenging, officials have warned. There are already concerns about widespread fraud. In recent days, Taliban fighters killed nearly 60 members of the security forces in a spate of attacks in the country's north, and threatened a provincial capital for the second time in as many months. Afghanistan's security forces are stretched as insurgents step up attacks across the country
The European Parliament on Wednesday launched an action that could unleash unprecedented political sanctions against Viktor Orban's populist Hungarian government for posing a "systemic threat" to the EU's founding values. The move dealt a stunning political blow to Prime Minister Orban, who had told the parliament a day earlier that a scathing report leading to the vote was an insult to Hungary's honour and people. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wasted little time in slamming the vote as "nothing less than the petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians". With elections for a new parliament in May 2019, the vote reflects growing pushback among traditional parties in Europe against the rise of populists, who oppose migration and are accused of undermining the rule of law. Adopted by 448 votes for to 197 against and with 48 abstentions, the motion marked the first time the parliament has initiated steps under Article Seven of the European Union's treaty. An earlier action against Poland was initiated by the EU executive. Dutch Greens MEP Judith Sargentini, who spearheaded the vote, smiled broadly and breathed a sigh of relief before embracing parliament supporters in the French city of Strasbourg. "It is a positive sign of this parliament taking responsibility and wanting action," Sargentini told a press conference afterwards. She had urged colleagues not to let Hungary off the hook, declaring that Orban's eight-year rule "violates the values on which this union was built." The parliament issued a statement calling on EU countries to now "act against a member state to prevent a systemic threat" to such founding values as respect for democracy, the rule of law and human rights. The vote was based on a report that voiced concerns about judicial independence, corruption, freedom of expression, academic freedom, religious freedom, and the rights of minorities and refugees. The vote takes the first steps under Article Seven of the EU Treaty, known by some in Brussels as the "nuclear option", which could ultimately strip Hungary of its EU voting rights. Other EU governments could halt any further action, however, and Poland has warned it would do so. A spokeswoman for Poland's Law and Justice (PiS) government told AFP Warsaw was "very worried by the decision," because it "threatens" EU unity. - 'Historic vote' - In a brief speech to parliament on Tuesday, Orban vowed that Hungary would resist any attempt to "blackmail" it into softening its anti-migrant stance, which he charged was the motive behind the vote. Though defiant, he was resigned to the outcome, saying the parliament seemed to have already made up its mind. "Hungary will protect its borders, stop illegal migration and defend its rights," said Orban, who embraces a vision of a Christian Europe and opposes an influx of Muslim and other migrants. Opposition to Orban's vision does not just come from the left, with disquiet also in the main centre-right parliamentary group, the European People's Party (EPP). The EPP's leader, Manfred Weber, said he would vote in favour of the motion against Orban's government, whose Fidesz party belongs to his grouping. Weber, a candidate to succeed fellow EPP member Jean-Claude Juncker as head of the commission next year, saw his bloc vote 115 for, 57 against with 28 abstentions. But Hungarian government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs claimed in a tweet that the motion had failed because the overall vote did not receive the support of two-thirds present. It was not immediately clear if Budapest will launch a legal challenge. Juncker, who is not a parliament member, told Belgian daily Le Soir he would have voted for the motion. "I am in complete agreement with the result," Juncker said. The Commission has repeatedly clashed with Orban's government, especially since Budapest refused to admit asylum seekers under an EU scheme launched at the height of the migration crisis in 2015. Wednesday's vote was hailed as "historic" by Berber Biala-Hettinga, Amnesty International?s expert on human rights in the EU. "The European Parliament rightly stood up for the Hungarian people and for the EU. They made it clear that human rights, the rule of law and democratic values are not up for negotiation," she said. "It is a positive sign of this parliament taking responsibility and wanting action," said Dutch MEP Judith Sargentini, who spearheaded the vote Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban vowed Tuesday he would resist and attempt to "blackmail" it into softening its anti-migrant stance European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker voiced support for the parliament's action
Thousands of Ryanair passengers faced travel disruption Wednesday as German pilots and cabin crew walked off the job, in the latest flare-up of a bitter Europe-wide battle for better pay and conditions. The Irish budget carrier said it was cancelling 150 out of 400 scheduled flights to and from Germany because of the walkout, which it slammed as "unacceptable" and "unnecessary". It also said it may have to close some bases and slash jobs if the stoppages drag on. Germany's Cockpit pilots' federation and the Verdi service workers' union called the 24-hour strike, which started at 03:00 am (0100 GMT), after they said talks with Ryanair management were deadlocked. The strike comes as Ryanair is already bracing for a mass coordinated walkout by cabin crew in Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain. Union leaders are expected to announce details of the stoppage in Brussels on Thursday. They have vowed to stage "the biggest strike action the company has ever seen". Ryanair has been clashing with worker representatives ever since it took the unprecedented step last year to start recognising trade unions in a bid to avert widespread Christmas strikes. Last month, Ryanair pilots in five European countries including Germany held their first-ever simultaneous walkout, causing some 400 flight cancellations and travel chaos for 55,000 passengers. - Job threats - Ryanair has however made some progress in clinching collective labour agreements since then. The 33-year-old company managed to strike a deal with Italian pilots over working conditions in late August, its first-ever union agreement. In Ireland, pilots voted to accept an agreement on improved working conditions last week. The breakthrough prompted Ryanair to back down from an earlier threat that it would move several aircraft and 300 jobs from Ireland to Poland. Germany's Cockpit and Verdi unions, which represent some 400 Germany-based Ryanair pilots and 1,000 flight personnel, condemned the airline's attempt to squeeze them with a similar threat. "This is how Ryanair deals with its employees: putting pressure on them, scaring them and threatening job losses," Cockpit's vice president Markus Wahl told AFP. Ryanair's chief marketing officer Kenny Jacobs said on Tuesday that further strikes would damage Ryanair's business in Germany and "lead to base cuts and job cuts". "We are not making a threat," he told a Frankfurt press conference. "If you have ongoing strikes, that's the economic impact." - '190,000 euros a year' - The no-frills airline boasts lower costs per passenger than its competitors and is eyeing profits of around 1.25 billion euros ($1.45 billion) this year. But staff have long complained that they earn less than counterparts at rival airlines. Another key gripe of workers based in countries other than Ireland is the fact that Ryanair employs them under Irish legislation. They say this creates huge insecurity for them, blocking their access to state benefits in their country. Unions also want the airline to give contractors the same work conditions as staff employees. Ryanair counters that it has already offered significant pay increases and steadier contracts. It said German pilots can make "up to 190,000 euros a year". But Cockpit's Wahl said that only applies to "a handful" of people. The basic starting salary for Ryanair pilots is closer to 39,000 euros a year, he said, while the most experienced pilots can take home around 110,000 euros a year in fixed pay. That can then be topped up depending on flight hours. Wahl said pilots were fighting for more pay overall, and specifically a higher fixed-rate salary. The Verdi union said Ryanair cabin crew earn a basic gross salary of 800 to 1,200 euros a month on average, far below what rival EasyJet pays. "The wages are so low that they are insufficient to ensure a decent living standard," Verdi board member Christine Behle said. Ryanair pilots walked off the job last month to obtain better pay and working conditions from the no-frills Irish airline Ryanair has reached deals with unions representing pilots based in Ireland and Italy, but has yet to reach agreements with its other employees
The fight against epidemics such as AIDS and tuberculosis needs greater funding and cooperation in order to wipe out the diseases, a leading aid group said Wednesday. Launching its annual report in Paris, The Global Fund said countries where it invests had seen 17.5 million people receive antiretroviral treatment against HIV and five million people tested and treated for tuberculosis. But it warned that a historic opportunity to eradicate killer diseases including malaria was at risk of being missed. "We have in our sights, but not yet firmly in our grasp, the prospect of freeing communities from the burden of HIV, TB and malaria," said the fund's executive director, Peter Sands. "Together, we can end these epidemics, but achieving this goal will require change -- increased investment, accelerated innovation, even more effective partnerships and a relentless focus on impact." Having declined strongly since the peak of the global crisis that has killed at least 35.4 million people since the early 1980s, HIV rates in recent years have dropped more slowly. The UN says 1.8 million people were newly infected last year with HIV, and there were 940,000 AIDS-related deaths. "Global HIV infection rates are now declining frustratingly slowly, and are actually rising in some regions and among some populations," Sands wrote in the report. The fund said HIV infections remained troublingly high among adolescent girls and young women. In some African countries, young women aged 15-24 are up to eight times more likely to be HIV positive than young men, it said. The Global Fund, which says it has saved 27 million lives since its creation in 2002, suggested the goal of reducing new infections to 500,000 by 2020 was likely to be missed. Last year, the World Health Organization sounded the alarm when it said tuberculosis had surpassed HIV/AIDS as the world's number one infectious killer and was the ninth cause of death worldwide. About 1.7 million people died from TB in 2016 out of 10.4 million worldwide who became ill from the severe lung infection, according to the WHO. Wednesday's report also warned that cases of malaria were on the rise, with five million more infections registered in 2016 compared with a year earlier. The Global Fund groups together states, NGOs and private sector firms in investing nearly $4 billion (3.4 billion euros) each year to support public health programmes around the world. Its main contributors are the US, Britain, France, Germany and Japan. Donors pledged $12.9 billion to the fund for the current period, which ends next year. Reacting to Wednesday's report, a collection of aid agencies said that billions more than that would be needed between 2020-2022 to maintain the fund's work. "The direct and indirect costs of these epidemics are and will be much higher than the estimated costs of putting an end to them," the group said in a statement. The Global Fund says countries where it invests, such as Kenya (pictured in 2015 as a patient gets screened for HIV), have seen 17.5 million people receive antiretroviral treatment against HIV and five million people tested and treated for TB
Fearing the worst in the looming battle for Syria's last rebel stronghold, one desperate father is doing everything to protect his kids -- fashioning gas masks from paper party cups and plastic bags. Hudhayfa al-Shahhad, who lives in the northwestern province of Idlib, is determined he and his family will be ready as best as possible for any chemical weapons attack, and has even dug a cave under his home to sit out any bombings. "I learnt how to make them on YouTube," says the 27-year-old policeman demonstrating the rudimentary homemade masks, which he hopes may spare his three young children from the potentially deadly effects of any gas attack. Sitting cross-legged on a cushion in his home in the southern village of Maar Shurin, he pricks the bottom of a brightly coloured paper cup with a pin. As his daughter peers over his shoulder, he pushes medical gauze down into each cup gaily decorated with pictures of mangoes, bananas and other fruit. Next he heaps in several spoonfuls of charcoal, some cotton wool, and then another layer of gauze so the wearer does not breathe in any of the black dust. Shahhad uses sellotape to seal it all in, snips a dent into the top of the cup where the wearer can place their nose and then tries breathing through it. As he inhales, tiny arms clad in gold bangles wrap themselves around his neck, and his two-year-old daughter tries to clamber onto his back. When she sits down, he passes her the makeshift carbon filter. "Here, put it on your mouth," he tells the green-eyed, curly haired toddler, sporting a bright pink T-shirt. "Breathe in," he says. - 'Just in case' - He, like his neighbours, has been increasingly concerned by reports that Russia-backed regime forces have massed around Idlib in recent weeks, sparking fears of an imminent air and ground attack to retake the last major opposition bastion. "We've been hearing the regime and Russia threaten to bomb us with chemical weapons," says Shahhad. "We had to make these masks to protect our women and children just in case," he says. For a final touch, Shahhad places the cup-shaped filter into the snipped corner of a large translucent plastic bag. He helps his three-year-old son don the mask. He clutches the cup with his small hand, while the plastic bag covers his whole face and shoulders. On Tuesday, Moscow claimed that the rebels, who have been fighting to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad since 2011, had begun working on staged film footage to try to claim to the world that an alleged chemical attack has taken place. Throughout the seven-year war which has claimed more than 350,000 lives, the Syrian regime forces have repeatedly been accused of carrying out chemical attacks, mostly with chlorine but also with deadly sarin nerve gas, on rebel-held areas. The regime and Russia have consistently denied the accusations, blaming opposition fighters instead. But international investigators have found that on at least three occasions the regime unleashed chemical weapons on civilians, while the so-called Islamic State group was also blamed for using mustard gas. The homemade DIY masks are catching on. In the town of Binnish, in Idlib, Um Majid has also used soft drinks cans and bottles to make her own devices for her family. In April last year, more than 80 people were killed in Idlib's town of Khan Sheikhun after toxic gases hit the town. This year in April, an alleged chemical attack on the then rebel-held town of Douma outside Damascus took the lives of more than 40 people, medics said. After the gas assault, the regime swiftly took back the surrounding area under a Russia-brokered surrender deal. - Underground cave - Shahhad is also making sure he and his family can take shelter underground from any air strikes. Carrying a torch, he leads the way down steps from his basement and into a cavernous shelter dug out of the grey rock. Large jars of pickled cucumbers have been lined up in the gloom, beside a mattress on a wide seat made of bricks. "We've been digging this shelter since 2012 because of the bombardment, but we started working again on it after the threats," he says, clutching his one-year-old daughter on his lap. "The houses above can't withstand the bombing," he says. Syrian Hudhayfa al-Shahadh, 27, tries an improvised homemade gas mask as part of preparations for any upcoming raids in the rebel-held Idlib province's village of Maar Shurin, on September 11, 2018. Syrian Hudhayfa al-Shahadh, 27, makes improvised gas masks as part of preparations for any upcoming raids in the rebel-held Idlib province's village of Maar Shurin, on September 11, 2018. A child of Syrian Hudhayfa al-Shahadh, 27, tries an improvised gas mask he made himself as part of preparations for any upcoming raids in the rebel-held Idlib province's village of Maar Shurin, on September 11, 2018. A Syrian child tries an improvised gas mask made by his father as part of preparations for any upcoming raids in the rebel-held Idlib province's village of Maar Shurin, on September 11, 2018. Um Majid (L) tries an improvised gas mask on familiy members in her home in Binnish in Syria's rebel-held northern Idlib province as part of preparations for any upcoming raids on September 12, 2018. Syrian Hudhayfa al-Shahadh, 27, sits with his children in a cave he dug below his house to shelter him and his family as part of preparations for any upcoming raids in the rebel-held Idlib province's village of Maar Shurin, on September 11, 2018.
In an age of trade wars, terrorism and rising nationalism, Europe must become a global player with a muscular foreign policy to match its economic strength, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker declared Wednesday. Juncker used his annual speech to the European Parliament to call for the bloc to stand up for the international order in the face of "trade and currency wars", in a swipe at US President Donald Trump's "America First" approach. Europe's ability to take strong diplomatic action is often hampered by the need to get agreement from all 28 member countries, so in a bid to simplify the process, Juncker announced plans to abolish the need for unanimity on some foreign policy issues. With Brussels and Washington at loggerheads on a host of major issues from trade tariffs to the Paris climate agreement and the Iran nuclear deal, Juncker said it was time for Europe to play a more influential role on the world stage. "We must become a greater global actor," the head of the EU executive told lawmakers in French, before switching to English to add: "Yes we are global payers, but we have to be global players too." The EU must do more to push the euro as a world currency, Juncker said, questioning why Europe pays 80 percent of its energy bills in dollars when only two percent of its energy imports come from the United States. Boosting the role of the euro as a reserve currency would also create a means of skirting US sanctions that it disagrees with, such as those slapped back on Tehran by Trump when he pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal earlier this year in the face of bitter European opposition. A European diplomat said in advance of the speech that Juncker knows it is a "critical" moment to prepare Europe for a world in which Trump's United States is an unpredictable foreign policy friend and a protectionist trade rival. Juncker urged the EU to strike a "new alliance" with Africa that would create millions of jobs and include a free trade deal -- a move Brussels hopes would both showcase its international influence and help to stem the flow of migrants across the Mediterranean. But despite his impassioned call for greater assertiveness, Juncker made no mention of Russia -- accused of meddling in numerous elections across Europe and launching a chemical attack in Britain -- or of the war still rumbling in the EU's eastern neighbour Ukraine. - 10,000 border guards - Juncker's showpiece speech is his last before the May elections that will pit Europe's rising populist movements against his centrist supporters, and he issued a rallying cry to maintain a "continent of tolerance and openness". Populist, nationalist and eurosceptic forces have gained ground in many countries, and the polls for the European parliament could well bring in more of Juncker's opponents to rock the boat just as he tries to consolidate what he sees as real successes in restoring forward momentum to the European project. As part of efforts to tackle the issue of illegal immigration, which has done much to fuel populist sentiment since the height of Europe's migrant crisis in 2015, Juncker confirmed plans to revamp the bloc's border protection. "The European Commission is today proposing to strengthen the European Border and Coast Guard to better protect our external borders with an additional 10,000 European border guards by 2020," Juncker said. Germany's powerful Chancellor Angela Merkel has been a Juncker supporter but warned that the European elections marked a crucial turning point, and that immigration would be a major issue. "The migration question is an even bigger challenge for EU cohesion than the euro crisis," Merkel told lawmakers in Berlin. "Will Europe succeed in the face of those who want to destroy it and fragment it, those who want to withdraw in on themselves?" Juncker leaves office on October 31 next year after a term marked by crisis after crisis: a refugee influx, soaring debt and Brexit. He said he respected Britain's choice to leave, but undermined a key part of Prime Minister Theresa May's plan to quit the bloc, warning London it cannot expect to selectively remain in parts of the single market. "Someone who leaves the union can not be in the same privileged position as a member state," he said, while welcoming May's proposal for an "ambitious new partnership" based on a future free trade agreement. Juncker used his annual speech to the European Parliament to call for the bloc to stand up for the international order, in a swipe at US President Donald Trump's "America First" approach Juncker's speech was his last before he faces a populist challenge in May polls to elect new members of the European Parliament
Greek debt. A refugee influx. Brexit deadlock. Jean-Claude Juncker has not had an easy term as head of the European Commission, the EU executive branch. But what if his toughest year is yet to come? On Wednesday, the 63-year-old former Luxembourg premier plans to lay out an ambitious reform programme for his last 12 months in charge. His supporters point to a track record as a calm builder of compromise to suggest he can still get the European project back on track. His detractors say his reliance on consensus only underlines Europe's weakness in the face of rising populist and eurosceptic forces. During Juncker's final months, the politicians he is so practised at herding will be keeping an eye on May's EU parliamentary vote and what it means for their own futures. Nevertheless, he plans to address them Wednesday on plans to build a robust EU border force, respond to cyber-crime and reform the reception of migrants. The challenge will test his cheery demeanour and facetious sense of humour, much mocked on social media but deployed to mask a complex personality. Born in 1954 in the heart of a Europe still recovering from war, Juncker sees himself as an heir of the European project's founding fathers. The revival of euroscepticism and outright nationalism in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis has forced him to tone down his federalist instincts. But he remains true to his credo: "Europe is capable of great things when it combines its strengths and energies." His background helps. His native Luxembourg is the smallest of the union's founding members, sandwiched between the might of France and Germany. He has been attentive to the concerns of other small countries, but as Luxembourg's leader between 1995 and 2013 he also rubbed elbows with a generation of greats. Juncker knew France's president Francois Mitterrand and called Germany's late chancellor Helmut Kohl a mentor, friend, and "the very essence of Europe." - 'A political rainbow' - Juncker hails from Europe's centre-right Christian Democrat bloc but his ideological colours have proved so supple that one EU source dubbed him a "political rainbow". His father was a steel worker and Franco-German leftist Daniel Cohn-Bendit once called him "the most socialist Christian Democrat that ever lived". In office at home he governed largely in coalition with social-democrats and in Brussels he has proved adept at negotiating alliances to push compromise measures. Dogged by reports -- strongly denied -- of excessive drinking, he is often underestimated as a negotiator. But in July, to general surprise, he hit it off with the author of The Art of the Deal himself, US President Donald Trump, and halted or delayed a threatened trade war. In Brussels, Juncker may well be known for his wicked humour, but he has blue periods, and doubts, especially about the relative decline of his beloved Europe. "By the end of the century we will represent four percent of the world's population," he has mused. When he came to office in November 2014, Juncker hoped to boost the standing of European institutions in the eyes of an often sceptical public. But the coming months of his tenure will be thoroughly overshadowed by negotiations on the "Brexit" divorce of one of the bloc's biggest members: Britain. - 'King of the slackers' - Many in European politics like and respect Juncker. "He's the right man in the right job," said his successor as Luxembourg premier, Xavier Bettel. "Everyone knows Jean-Claude. He's an emotional person, who speaks his mind and has strong personal relationships. A whole person, who doesn't say things by half." But others are much more sceptical. Green MEP Eva Joly wrote a polemical pamphlet denouncing Juncker as both "the wolf in the hen-house" and "king of the slackers", in hock to elite vested interests. His public profile was certainly tarnished by the LuxLeaks whistleblower document dump, which showed him negotiating cosy tax breaks for multinationals in Luxembourg. He can also be stubborn -- and vengeful. He has defended the opaque promotion of his chief of staff Martin Selmayr to the EU Commission's top administrative post despite a stern ombudsman's report. Eurosceptic media have also found him a rich source of anecdotes. A heavy smoker and reputed bon viveur, he has sometimes appeared inebriated in public. Juncker's office insists he has sometimes been unsteady on his feet because of sciatica, a lower back affliction, but images of him cheerfully slapping and kissing colleagues have gone viral. He is determined this will not be his legacy. Wednesday's speech, aides say, will not be a swansong, but the start of a new stage of an activist presidency. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker is known as a straight shooter Juncker will address politicians on he plans to address them Wednesday on plans to build a robust EU border force, respond to cyber-crime and reform the reception of migrants In July, to general surprise, Juncker hit it off with US President Donald Trump Images of Juncker cheerfully slapping and kissing colleagues have gone viral
Kurdish authorities in Syria's diverse northeast are facing swelling anger from the area's Syriac Christians after shutting down more than a dozen schools run by the ancient minority. At the heart of the dispute is a debate over whether to use the new school curriculum championed by the Kurdish-led autonomous administration or stick to the accredited system used by Damascus. The schism reflects the broader fissures in the northeast between those supporting formal state institutions and those defending parallel bodies developed by the Kurds. After regime forces withdrew from swathes of Syria's northeast early on in the seven-year war, Kurds began building up their own institutions in the area, including police forces and schools. They put an emphasis on minority rights, with Kurdish schools teaching all subjects in their own language and Syriac schools doing the same in their ancient tongue. But now, some Syriac Christians in Hasakeh province are insisting on using the accredited state curriculum over worries Kurdish diplomas will be considered invalid elsewhere. "Learning in your mother tongue is something all peoples have a right to in this region," says Danny Saliba, who teaches science in Syriac in the northeastern city of Qamishli. "But the problem is the recognition of this language. "No universities -- whether Syrian or foreign -- recognise this curriculum or the diploma issued by the autonomous administration's education commission," he tells AFP. The dispute prompted Kurdish authorities last week to shut down 14 schools in the cities of Qamishli, Hasakeh, and Al-Malikiyeh that were supportive of teaching the state curriculum. Dozens of people took to Qamishli's streets in protest, waving the two-star Syrian government flag and chanting in support of President Bashar al-Assad. But their demonstrations were in vain. On Monday, as students headed back to class across Kurdish-held territory, the schools remained shuttered. - Legitimacy of Syrian state - Syria's Christian community made up about 10 percent of the country's pre-war population of 22 million people. Tens of thousands hail from the Syriac Orthodox and Syriac Catholic traditions. Their liturgies are in the ancient Aramaic language, which Jesus is thought to have spoken, and some even use it in their daily lives. Syrian Christians are broadly seen as having sided with Assad's regime, although some of the opposition's most prominent figureheads are Christian too. Ties are complicated in the northeast, where Syriacs make up the largest Christian community. Syriac churches have typically stuck by the government, and the pro-regime Syriac Defence Forces -- or Sotoro -- have fought alongside regime troops. But other factions back the Kurdish-led autonomous administration, including the Syriac Union and the Syriac Military Council, which helped US-backed forces oust the Islamic State jihadist group from parts of the north. They have enjoyed the relative autonomy afforded in the Kurdish-governed northeast, but that may not last long. Damascus has never recognised the autonomous zone, rejecting the federal system championed by the Kurds and repeatedly pledging it would recapture all of Syrian territory. Now, regime officials and Kurdish representatives are in talks to hash out some kind of deal for the northeast. Negotiations are also ongoing between the Kurdish administration on one side and supporters of the state curriculum, chiefly Syriac Orthodox church leaders, on another. - 'Very exclusive' - In the Church of the Virgin Mary in Qamishli, Father Saliba Abdallah says he is sceptical about the Kurdish education system. "Who recognises this curriculum internationally? Is there a state that actually recognises the reality of this region?" asks Abdallah. While Syria's state diplomas are accredited and recognised elsewhere, Kurdish degrees likely wouldn't be. "The legitimacy of our schools comes from the legitimacy of the government of the Syrian Arab Republic," Abdallah says. But others say the school dispute, at its core, is about self-determination. "The Syrian state's curriculum was very exclusive and distorted history and the Syriac language," says Elizabeth Koriya, head of the Syriac Cultural Association, which is tied to the autonomous administration. "Syriac was taught only as a liturgical language... It was limited only to prayer." Teaching all subjects in Syriac, however, would push children to take pride in their identity and community, says Koriya. In the Al-Wusta neighbourhood of Qamishli, young Syriac-speaking men and women gathered in traditional clothing for a course in the ancient language. "In the past at state schools, we used to take all our classes in Arabic and never learned Syriac, except in religious classes where there were hymns," says their instructor Samira Hanna, 47. "But now, we're taking math in Syriac -- history, geography, and social studies too," she says proudly. "I've very happy because I've become a language teacher and can teach Syriac to my kids and people of all ages." Students from the Syriac Christian minority attend a class in Qamishli A student from the Syriac Christian minority shows a textbook in her language Teacher Samira Hanna writes on a board in Syriac at a school in the northeastern Syrian city of Qamishli
Laos' premier on Wednesday said the Communist country will press on with its ambitious hydropower strategy after a dam collapse killed dozens, but vowed to intenisfy scrutiny on the lucrative mega projects. The rare public comments from prime minister Thongloun Sisoulith came during a World Economic Forum panel in Hanoi, weeks after July's dam disaster in Attapeu province. An official tally given by Laos' secretive government said 35 people died in the collapse of the Xe Pian Xe Namnoy saddle dam, a Korean-built structure which had not yet been completed. But testimony from locals suggests the toll may be much higher with several villages swept away and buried under thick mud. Since the disaster Laos has suspended all new dam projects, while ongoing hydropower projects will be inspected, premier Thongloun Sisoulith said. "Building hydropower projects is a good way to generate income," he said. "The impact of the incident in July is something we will continue to take into account when moving forward in terms of our hydropower production." All dams should be "based on careful planning and good design," he added. For the past decade, Laos has been on a dam-building spree in an effort to provide electricity to its people and sell power to its Thai, Cambodian and Vietnamese neighbours. Sitting beside Thongloun Sisoulith was Cambodia's premier Hun Sen, who called for more cross-border disaster management. The Attapeu dam collapse in July sent floods of water downstream to northeastern Cambodia that left villages inundated. One Korean firm involved in the project, SK Engineering & Construction, said it was investigating the cause of the dam break and would donate $10 million in relief aid. Thongloun Sisoulith said Wednesday experts are still investigating the cause of the fatal collapse. burs-dhc/apj/amz An official tally given by Laos' secretive government said 35 people died in the collapse of the Xe Pian Xe Namnoy saddle dam, a Korean-built structure which had not yet been completed
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday accused European leaders of "appeasing" Iran instead of confronting its militant activity. Netanyahu's remarks, made in a cabinet meeting, feed into his ongoing efforts to sway world leaders to join the United States in upping pressure on Israel's arch foe through sanctions. "The time has come for the world to unite in the fight against terrorist organisations. It is doing so to a certain extent against the Islamic State group, but it is not doing so against Iran," Netanyahu said. He accused European leaders of "appeasing" and "reconciling" with Iran. In May, US President Donald Trump withdrew from a nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, before re-imposing a first major round of unilateral sanctions on Tehran in August. Netanyahu had consistently called for the landmark 2015 accord to be altered or scrapped, saying it was too limited in scope and time-frame, and did nothing to stop Iran financing militant activities in the region. European powers are seeking to save the nuclear deal and have vowed to keep providing Iran with the economic benefits it received from the accord. Germany, France and Britain -- and other signatories Russia and China -- argue that the agreement has worked as intended in keeping Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons for now. "The appeasement of Iran abets the relentless assault on the values and security of the free societies, and the time has come for Western governments to join the strong and clear effort by the Trump administration against the terror regime in Tehran," Netanyahu said on Wednesday. Washington has sought to build up multilateral pressure on Iran and has set a November 5 deadline for halting its oil exports. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives ahead of the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem on September 12, 2018
Pope Francis announced on Wednesday he intends to visit Japan in 2019, becoming the first pontiff to do so since John Paul II nearly 40 years ago. "I would like to communicate my intention to visit Japan next year," the pope told a group of Japanese visitors at the Vatican. "I hope to be able to fulfil this wish." The pope had received the delegates from the charitable Tensho Kenoho Shisetsu Kenshokai Association in audience, commemorating a visit in 1585 of four young Japanese men accompanied by Jesuit missionaries. The Argentine pontiff has repeatedly voiced a desire to visit Japan, home to some 450,000 Roman Catholics. Another 510,000 Protestants live in the largely Shinto Buddhist country, according to Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs. Francis had wanted to work as a missionary there in his youth but abandoned the plan after a lung operation. The pontiff noted that the 1585 journey to visit pope Gregory XIII was the first Japanese diplomatic mission to Europe and took more than eight years. "Yours is shorter and less tiring," the pope joked. "But I hope you feel welcomed by the pope as they were." The pope hailed the association's work to fund training for the young and orphans. "You wish to show that religion, culture and the economy can work together peacefully to create a more humane world marked by an integral ecology." The pope has made two trips to Asia since his election five years ago, visiting the Philippines and Sri Lanka in 2014, followed by Myanmar and Bangladesh last year. In January, Francis issued a harrowing photograph taken in 1945 showing a young Japanese boy carrying his dead brother. The child, carried on the boy's back, was killed when the United States dropped a nuclear bomb on Nagasaki. Francis, who has often spoken of the dangers of nuclear weapons, had written on the back of the image just four words: "The fruit of war". Pope John Paul II visited Japan in 1981. Pope Francis has repeatedly said he wants to visit Japan
Just back from the hunt with a choice selection of plants, Ebona feels at home in the endless forest where many Gabonese fear to tread. "Townsfolk paid me to find these leaves," the Pygmy says, setting the heap down outside his wooden hut, 500 metres (yards) from the rest of Doumassi village in north Gabon. Ebona's people, the Baka, are held in folklore to be Africa's oldest inhabitants, living today in forests stretching from Gabon and Cameroon inland to the Congos and the Central African Republic. The dense woods where national borders cease to exist hold no mysteries for the Baka. "This is our first home," says another villager, who introduces himself as Jean, declining, like the other Pygmies, to divulge their Baka names, used only within the community. "We sleep in it, we hunt in it, we live in it," he adds. The ethnic Baka Pygmies often have a difficult relationship with their Fang neighbours, the main ethnic group in the area, who tend to treat them like children, leading to complaints by the Baka. They also struggle to have a legal existence in Gabon, as they find themselves without identity cards, which complicates their lives. "I am Gabonese, 100 percent, but I don't have an identity card. They promised us that we would have it, but we're still waiting...," says villager Christian, who, like other Baka, wants the same rights as other Gabonese citizens. "How will I send my children to school?" he asks, in frustration. "How will I vote? How do I get medical care?" - Dilemma - Just weeks before parliamentary elections, the first round of which is planned for October 6 with a second round later next month, electoral officials have made little effort to put Baka adults on the voters' roll. But many Baka steer well clear of national politics. They say they just want to "survive". Jean-Baptiste Ondzagha-Ewak works for the Association for Family Mediation (AMF) that seeks to bring mutual understanding to the communities. The NGO records Baka births to make them official so the children can go to school and receive health care. For lack of access to health facilities, villager Norbert saw five of his seven children die prematurely, but he joyfully announces that his wife is pregnant once more. For a long time, the ways of "city people" had a limited impact on communities of hunter-gatherers. The Baka are still reluctant to go where "cars make a noise", except to buy goods such as "tobacco, soap, alcohol and petrol", according to Christian. But the need for money has raised problems for Pygmies whose profound knowledge of the forest is their sole source of income. Seen as one way to help their children go to school, the Baka hire themselves out like "integrated GPS" devices, ready to guide outsiders hundreds of kilometres (miles) into the wild to find game. - 'They never miss' - Despite their poor relations, the Baka are nevertheless prepared to hunt for their Fang neighbours, too. While they tend to treat the Pygmies as "subhuman" purely on account of their short stature, the Fang acknowledge that there is no equal to a Baka hunter's skills. "At close range, they never miss their shot," said Rigobert, a Fang who sent two Baka off to hunt for him. He gave them a dozen shells and an ancient gun and they returned in the morning with three prey. Jean was one of the huntsmen. "The army offered to enlist me, but I said 'no'. I have my family, I'm a hunter. That's inside me, why should it change?" "The only animal I fear is the gorilla, because he reacts like man," Jean added. "He's unpredictable." - 'Always eaten elephant' - International wildlife NGOs hire Baka guides, while urban residents pay them to fetch bushmeat and valued plants. But the Baka are also employed by ivory poachers to track elephants. "With one cartridge, I can kill him (an elephant). If I hit here, behind the ear, I kill him," boasts Jean, who said he often goes into the forest with poachers from Cameroon. "The gun and the shells belong to poachers," Jean says, well aware that their activity is outlawed in Gabon. At the same time, he is the official tracker for an NGO dedicated to protecting the endangered beasts, but Jean has no love of the law. "I've always eaten elephant, this is our home and that is our meat," he says. Furthermore, helping poachers is lucrative. He says a single kill can earn him "200,000 or even 300,000 (CFA) francs (300 or 450 euros, $348 or $522), depending on the size of the tusks." None of the Baka interviewed by AFP approved of the "law of the city" banning elephant hunting, despite the risk the animals may die out if nothing is done to stem the ivory trade. In a single decade, 80 percent of the elephants have been slaughtered in the Minkebe National Park in northeast Gabon, the country's main forest sanctuary for elephants, according to park officials. Melvin, one of Doumassi's most respected hunters, objects to what he terms "a bad law", but adds "we're obliged to respect it, we don't want to go to prison". Ebona is one of the ethnic Baka Pygmies in Gabon whose profound knowledge of the forest is their sole source of income The Baka Pygmy people struggle to have a legal existence in Gabon, without identity cards, and want the same rights as other citizens


More details have been revealed about a Perth mothers final hours before she was allegedly murdered by her fiance along with their three young children.

Police will allege Mara Quinn, 41, was killed not long after returning from work to her home in Bedford.

They say she returned home to her family about 11pm on September 3 after finishing a shift as a Coles shelf-stacker in the inner-city suburb of Inglewood.

Thats when police allege she was murdered by her partner Anthony Robert Harvey, 24.

Mother Mara Quinn, 47, was found dead alongside her three daughters and their grandmother on Sunday. Source: Facebook/ Mara Quinn

Beverley Quinn, centre, and (from left to right) Charlotte, Beatrix and Alice. Source: WA Police

He is also accused of killing their three children, three-year-old Charlotte and two-year-old twins Alice and Beatrix, late at night at the Coode Street house.

The following day, police allege he killed Maras mother Beverley Quinn, 73, before staying in the house for several days.

The bodies werent discovered by police until Sunday, after Mr Harvey presented to a police station in Pannawonica, approximately 1400km north of Perth.

Police have now left the crime scene, but the floral tributes at the site of an unthinkable tragedy have continued to grow.
The Libyan capital's only working airport has come under rocket fire just days after reopening following a UN-backed ceasefire between rival armed groups vying for influence in the oil-rich country. The attack on Tuesday night underscored the fragility of the latest peace push in the North African nation, which has been beset by turmoil since the fall of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011. Several rockets hit the perimeter of Mitiga International Airport on the eastern outskirts of Tripoli without causing any casualties. Flights were diverted to Misrata, some 200 kilometres (120 miles) east of the capital, the civil aviation authority said. Mitiga airport had only reopened on Friday after it was forced to close for a week because of deadly clashes between rival militias in and around Tripoli. The fighting has killed at least 63 people and wounded 159 others -- mostly civilians -- since August 27, dousing hopes of elections being held this year. UN envoy Ghassan Salame sought to downplay the latest breach of a UN-brokered ceasefire announced on September 4. "Despite a minor setback last night, the ceasefire was generally respected in the past nine days," said Salame, who reported 14 truce violations observed by the UN. The envoy said the UN knew who fired the rockets at the airport, without naming them. "The next time (if they reoffend), I will name them," he told a news conference. Salame said the Government of National Accord (GNA) had formed a commission to implement security measures in Tripoli, in line with the ceasefire deal that includes the withdrawal of heavy weapons and militias from the capital. "Some of these measures have begun to be implemented and others will be implemented in the coming days," he said, without providing further details. - Battle for influence - A UN-brokered agreement signed in Morocco in December 2015 establishing the GNA brought hopes of an easing of the chaos that followed Libya's 2011 revolution. But divisions remain between the GNA and rivals including military strongman Khalifa Haftar, who is based in the east and refuses to recognise the administration's authority. Thousands of families have fled the violence to nearby towns or have had to seek shelter in other districts of Tripoli, authorities have said. Several rockets had already struck near the airport last month, forcing authorities to divert all flights to Misrata on that occasion too. Tripoli has been at the centre of a battle for influence between armed groups with shifting allegiances since Kadhafi was overthrown and killed. The UN Panel of Experts on Libya said in a letter to the Security Council on September 5 that armed groups have "increased their influence over Libyan state institutions, promoting their own political and economic interests". "The use of violence to take control of state infrastructure and institutions -- and threats and attacks against public servants -- are widespread across the country and are particularly noticeable in Tripoli", it said. "The violent competition to capture the Libyan state is hampering the political transition in the country," the panel said. Mitiga airport, a former military air base, has been a civilian airport since Tripoli's main international airport was badly damaged in fighting between rival militias in 2014. Since then only Libyan airlines have operated in the country, running internal flights and regular connections to a handful of nations, including Tunisia and Turkey. Libyan airlines are banned from European Union airspace for "security reasons". - Infrastructure hit by fighting - The electricity network has been damaged by the recent fighting, exacerbating power cuts around Tripoli, that have lasted up to 24 hours. Militias in the east have prevented rationing in their zones, worsening the shortages in the capital and southern Libya, the national electricity company said this week. Internet and phone networks have also been interrupted, while the water supply has been cut for a week. On Wednesday, France's ambassador to the UN Francois Delattre said his country believes it "essential" that presidential and legislative elections take place in Libya on December 10, in line with a timetable agreed in May. Jihadist groups and people traffickers have taken advantage of the chaos to gain a foothold in Libya. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility on Tuesday for a suicide attack a day earlier against the headquarters of Libya's National Oil Corporation which killed two employees. Mitiga airport has been used for civilian flights since Tripoli's main international airport was damaged in fighting in 2014 Ghassan Salame, UN special envoy for Libya and head of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), speaks during a press conference at the Prime Minister's office in the capital Tripoli, on September 12, 2018 Map showing areas of control in Libya on September 4. Firefighters and rescuers gather in front of the headquarters of Libya's National Oil Company in the capital Tripoli on September 10, 2018, responding to an attack claimed by the Islamic State group
Russia showcased its most sophisticated air defence system on Wednesday, using it to repel a mock attack from the sky as part of what it describes as its largest-ever military drills. The wargames involved its state-of-the-art S-400, Russia's latest generation surface-to-air defence system, which is considered by NATO countries to pose a threat to their aircraft. The exercise on the Telemba military training ground -- about 130 kilometres (81 miles) north of the city of Chita in Siberia -- involved over 1,000 troops and over 500 pieces of military equipment. Russia's defence ministry hailed the drills as successful. "The troops have completed their mission with total efficiency," a high-ranking officer in the Russian Aerospace Forces Sergei Kuryshkin told journalists. The exercise simulated a "massive missile attack" by an "unnamed enemy," another military official Sergei Tikhonov said. Last year Moscow signed a contract to sell the systems to Turkey, raising criticism from Ankara's NATO allies, notably Washington, which has threatened to block delivery of its F-35 stealth aircraft to Turkey. Negotiations to sell the S-400 to Qatar and India are ongoing. In late August a senior Pentagon official said that sanctions against India would come under consideration if its purchase goes through. Russia has said the Vostok-2018 manoeuvres are the largest in its history and involve nearly 300,000 men and all types of military equipment. The exercises involve Chinese and Mongolian armies and will continue until September 17. The exercise on the Telemba military training ground -- about 130 kilometres (81 miles) north of the city of Chita in Siberia -- involved over 1,000 troops and over 500 pieces of military equipment
A Sydney boy, in hospital fighting for life after an alleged schoolyard attack, was assaulted while playing a game with other students, police have told.

Emergency crews were called to Wattawa Heights Public School in Bankstown about midday on Tuesday following reports of a fight.

A 10-year-old boy was involved in a game with a group of other students when he was allegedly assaulted and fell backwards, police have been told.

Emergency crews were called to Wattawa Heights Public School in Bankstown about midday on Tuesday following reports of a fight. Source: 7 News

Seven News reported a fight broke out at a school toilet block yesterday. One of the students told his mother he saw one of the children punch the boy in the back before falling over and hitting his head on the ground.

The boy reportedly stopped breathing and paramedics were called to revive him. The student was taken to The Childrens Hospital at Westmead where he remains in a critical but stable condition.

It is understood the boy has a pre-existing medical condition and will undergo a full medical examination on Wednesday.

A devastated family friend of the young student has spoken out this morning, describing the victim as an adorable sweet little boy.

Very humble little boy. Very sweet, very friendly. For someone to bully him like that is really upsetting, Fatima Matar told 7 News.

Detectives investigate near a school toilet block where the boy was allegedly assaulted and fell backwards. Source: 7 News

Officers have spoken with Wattawa Heights Public School students but no further police action is expected.

The NSW education department said the school was working with police to determine how the boy was injured. The family of the injured student have been offered support.

When accurate information about what occurred is available the school will share that with parents and carers, a department spokesman said.

It is not appropriate for the school to provide detailed comment about this matter before police finish their investigation.

Story continues

An investigation into the alleged attack at Wattawa Heights Public School is ongoing. Source: Google Maps

The age of criminal responsibility in NSW is 10. The Australian Institute of Criminology says the presumption a child is incapable of crime exists under common law for those aged 10 to 13.

Wattawa Heights Public School is offering support to the family of the student injured at school yesterday and is working with police to determine the circumstances around the injury, the school said in a statement.

A school spokesperson said parents and carers would be notified when updated information becomes available.
The European Union on Wednesday proposed steps to force social networks and websites to remove terrorist propaganda within an hour of receiving the order from authorities, or companies like Facebook and Twitter could face massive fines. The legislation proposed by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker marks a toughening approach after Brussels had relied on internet firms to voluntarily remove such content. The internet has become a major tool for extremists carrying out attacks that have killed hundreds of people in European cities in recent years. "Europeans rightly expect their Union to keep them safe," Juncker told the European Parliament in his annual state of the union speech. "This is why the Commission is today proposing new rules to get terrorist content off the web within one hour ?- the critical window in which the greatest damage is done." The EU's executive arm said that in January alone, nearly 7,000 new pieces of propaganda disseminated online from the Islamic State group, even as it has been driven out of most of its strongholds in Iraq and Syria. The commission proposal calls for a "legally binding one-hour deadline" for firms to remove terrorist content once national authorities order them to do so. - Voluntary efforts 'not enough' - It defines the content as that which incites or advocates committing terror offences, promotes a terror group's activities or offers instructions for attacks. But it also provides for means of judicial redress in the event a content provider disagrees with an order. "Member States will have to put in place effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties for not complying with orders to remove online terrorist content," the commission said. "In the event of systematic failures to remove such content following removal orders, a service provider could face financial penalties of up to four percent of its global turnover for the last business year." The EU joined forces with US-based tech firms in 2016 to combat online extremism. Until now, Brussels had pushed for the industry to regulate itself, but EU officials have for more than a year given mixed reviews to firms like Facebook, Twitter, Microsoft and Google's YouTube. "While we have made progress on removing terrorist content online through voluntary efforts, it has not been enough," EU Security Commissioner Julian King said in a statement. "We need to prevent it from being uploaded and, where it does appear, ensure it is taken down as quickly as possible ?- before it can do serious damage." IS has been forced out of most of its strongholds in Iraq and Syria, but it remains active online
A Spanish actor accused of ridiculing "god and the Virgin Mary" was detained Wednesday to be questioned by a judge, police said, in the latest high profile case to raise free speech fears in the country. Willy Toledo, a cinema and television actor who is facing a complaint over a social media post last year slamming the blasphemy prosecution of three women, has twice failed to show up for questioning, police said. He will be questioned by a judge on Thursday, a police spokeswoman told AFP, adding they acted on the orders of a Madrid court. Spain's Oscar-winner Javier Bardem has spoken out in support of Toledo, 48, warning that the country risked a return to the repressive era of dictator Francisco Franco. The case stems from a July 2017 Facebook message, in which Toledo defended three women charged with blasphemy after they paraded in the southern city of Sevilla with a giant vagina, simulating a religious procession, dubbing it the "Cono Insumiso" or "Insubordinate Pussy". In his post Toledo said: "I shit on god, and I have enough shit left over to shit on the dogma of 'the sanctity and virginity of the Virgin Mary. This country is unbearably shameful. I'm disgusted." He was denounced by the Spanish Association of Christian Lawyers for "covering god and the Virgin Mary with ridicule". Toledo did not answer a first summons for questioning on April 18, arguing he had not "committed any offence and so there is no need to appear before a judge". The Madrid court ordered he be detained after he again ignored a summons to appear for questioning on June 28. The affair is one of a string of cases of artists being probed or jailed for voicing their opinions in Spain which has raised concerns about freedom of expression. Several Twitter users and rappers have also been judged for glorifying terrorism or insulting the king for comments or lyrics, a "repression" of freedom of expression according to Amnesty International. Earlier this year rapper Valtonyc fled to Belgium to avoid a three-and-a-half-year jail sentence for glorifying terror, insulting the king and issuing threats in his lyrics. A Belgian court is due to decide whether or not to extradite the 24-year-old on September 17. Spanish actor Javier Bardem (L) has spoken out in support of Willy Toledo (R) warning that the country risked a return to the repressive era of dictator Francisco Franco
Thousands of Guatemalan farmers marched peacefully in the capital Wednesday demanding that President Jimmy Morales quit and that a UN-backed anti-corruption office get a new lease on life. The protesters filed through Guatemala City to the central square in front of the Palace of Culture, the former seat of the government. Morales, a former television comedian, said in late August that he would not ask the United Nations to renew the mandate of its anti-corruption office, known as the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala, or CICIG. The office, which works with Guatemalan state prosecutors, has twice asked for Morales' presidential impunity to be lifted so that it can investigate corruption allegations surrounding his 2015 election campaign. Just days after he cancelled the anti-graft investigators' mandate, Morales banned the head of the commission, Colombian Ivan Velasquez, from entering the country. Demonstrators on Wednesday carried placards reading "Ivan Velasquez, the people need you," "We demand the resignation of Jimmy Morales and 158 lawmakers," and "No more corruption, CICIG stays." The march coincided with a ceremony presided by Morales in the nearby congress building marking 197 years since the country's independence from Spain. Dozens of police officers and soldiers lined the streets near congress to prevent the marchers from trying to enter the building. CICIG and state prosecutors have presented evidence that Morales' FCN-Nacion party failed to report nearly one million dollars in financing to electoral authorities during his successful 2015 presidential campaign. Set up in 2006, the mission is an independent body with investigative and prosecutorial powers. Its success in tackling corruption has inspired calls for similar bodies to be set up in other Central American countries. Morales came to power on an anti-corruption pledges after his predecessor, Otto Perez Molina, was forced to step down and face corruption charges in 2015. Guatemalan farmers march through the capital city demanding the resignation of President Jimmy Morales and the renewal of the mandate of a UN-backed anti-corruption office
The Turkish secret service staged an operation deep in the heartland of the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad to capture and bring back to Turkey the prime suspect in a 2013 bombing, officials said Wednesday. Turkish citizen Yusuf Nazik, who is accused of planning the May 2013 Reyhanli bombing, was apprehended in an operation carried out by the National Intelligence Organisation (MIT). He was captured in the Syrian city of Latakia -- a stronghold of support for Assad that has never slipped from his control -- and then brought to Turkey, the Anadolu news agency said. Over 50 people were killed in the bombing -- one of the deadliest in Turkey's modern history -- in Reyhanli, on the border with Syria in the southern Turkish province of Hatay. Ankara at the time blamed the attack on the regime of Assad and allied groups. The Syrian government rejected the charges. Anadolu also published a video of Nazik, dressed in a tracksuit top and jeans and standing by a Turkish flag, giving what it described as a "confession", saying he was behind the attack and it had been ordered by the Syrian regime. He said a man "working for Syrian intelligence" had given the order for the bombing and called on others in Syria to "return before it is too late", saying Turkey will "look after us". Nazik, 34, from the Turkish southern city of Antakya, said he had been responsible for making contact with Syrian intelligence, bringing the explosives inside Turkey and obtaining the vehicles used. - 'Assad's bastion' - A senior Turkish official, who asked not to be named, confirmed Anadolu's report and said the testimony of Nazik "confirmed long-standing rumours about the Assad regime's active role in the bombing". Turkey has been an implacable foe of Assad throughout the over seven-year Syrian conflict and has repeatedly called for his ouster. Yet Ankara has also been working in recent months more intensely with its main allies Russia and Iran on ending the conflict. Attention is now focused on Turkey's reaction should the regime go ahead with a planned assault on the last rebel stronghold of Idlib, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warning such a move could lead to a humanitarian disaster. That the operation to capture Nazik took place in Latakia is significant as the city has been a regime stronghold throughout the civil war and not an area where Turkey would usually have any influence. There were no further details on whether the operation had been carried out with or without the knowledge of the Syrian authorities or Russian forces who are present in the area. But Anadolu said no logistical or intelligence support had come from "any foreign state" and the "detection, monitoring, operation and transfer" had been carried out entirely by MIT units. "A giant operation in Assad's bastion," said the pro-government Hurriyet daily. No date was given for Nazik's capture. Pictures published by Anadolu showed the apparent moment of capture with an MIT operative with his forearm around the suspect's neck. - 'Never stop hunting' - The operation is the latest in a series of high-profile swoops by the MIT which is led by Hakan Fidan, a shadowy figure regarded as hugely loyal to Erdogan. It has brought back to Turkey in recent weeks suspects accused of links to preacher Fethullah Gulen, the accused mastermind of the 2016 failed coup seeking to topple Erdogan, from several countries including Kosovo, Gabon, Moldova and Ukraine. "Nazik's capture and repatriation should serve as a reminder to all other criminals that we will never stop hunting them," said the senior Turkish official. "We will spare no effort to find you, catch you, and bring you to justice," added the official. Ankara is keenly aware of the boost to public morale of successful secret service operations after the audacious 1999 nabbing in Kenya of Kurdish militant leader Abdullah Ocalan gave a huge boost to the government of the time. Nazik was captured in the Syrian city of Latakia -- a stronghold of support for Assad that has never slipped from his control Ankara at the time blamed the bombing on the regime of Assad and allied groups Over 50 people were killed in the Reyhanli bombing, one of the deadliest in Turkey's modern history
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has "certified" that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are working to reduce risks to civilian life in Yemen -- a key step to ensuring continued US support to the coalition. Pompeo's assessment, announced Wednesday, came even as he admitted that the US believes civilian death rates at the hands of the coalition are "far too high." Under new rules, Congress requires the certification to continue allowing US air tankers to refuel Saudi and UAE warplanes. The measure comes amid a string of high-profile coalition strikes that have killed scores of civilians, many of them children. In a statement, Pompeo noted that both Saudi Arabia and UAE "are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments." On September 1, the coalition admitted that "mistakes" had been made in an August air strike that killed 40 children. The bombing on a crowded market in part of northern Yemen held by Huthi rebels killed a total of 51 people, according to the Red Cross. In an unclassified report, obtained by AFP, that accompanied Pompeo's certification, he acknowledged that the US "recognizes that civilian casualties have occurred at rates that are far too high in the Saudi-led coalition's campaign in Yemen." The Yemen conflict has triggered the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with the UN estimating that as many as 10,000 people have died, most of them civilians, since the coalition launched military operations in 2015. Twin strikes south of the rebel-held Red Sea port of Hodeida on August 23 killed 26 children, the United Nations has said. The United States has drawn sharp criticism for its ongoing support to the coalition, which also includes intelligence sharing and targeting information. In the report, Pompeo said civilian casualties must be reduced "for both strategic and moral reasons." The document points to multiple ways the coalition is trying to do this, including by avoiding hitting civilian infrastructure, keeping a "no-strike" list, and by updating rules of engagement. The Royal Saudi Air Force has also pledged to fund $750 million in US-provided training. The report notes the coalition is engaged in an "urgent and good-faith effort" to support diplomatic efforts to end the war. - 'Farce' - But aid groups slammed Pompeo's certification, saying it would ensure further civilian bloodshed. "With Secretary Pompeo's certification, the State Department demonstrated that it is blindly supporting military operations in Yemen without any allegiance to facts, moral code or humanitarian law," Oxfam America said in a statement. Brookings Institution fellow Scott Anderson said Congress must push for more information on the basis of the certification, and challenge Pompeo if this is deemed inadequate. And Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna called the certification a "farce." "The Saudis deliberately bombed a bus full of children. There is only one moral answer, and that is to end our support for their intervention in Yemen," Khanna said on Twitter. The coalition supports the internationally recognized government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, which is fighting Iran-backed Huthi rebels who seized control of Sanaa in 2014. US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis issued a separate statement endorsing the certification, saying the UAE and Saudis are making "every effort" to reduce the risk of civilian casualties and collateral damage. Mattis last month warned that US support for the coalition was "not unconditional," noting that the coalition must do "everything humanly possible to avoid any innocent loss of life." Pompeo said Washington would work closely with the coalition to ensure Saudi and UAE support for UN peace efforts and to allow unimpeded access for commercial and humanitarian relief supplies to reach Yemenis. "The Trump administration has been clear that ending the conflict in Yemen is a national security priority," Pompeo said. Long-awaited, UN-brokered peace talks between the Saudi-backed government and the Huthi rebels failed to take place as planned last week in Geneva. The Huthis said the UN had failed to guarantee the safe return of their delegation from Geneva to Sanaa and to secure the evacuation of wounded rebels to Oman. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has "certfied" that US coalition partners Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are acting to reduce risks to civilians in war-torn Yemen The graves of Yemeni children who were killed while on a bus that was hit by a Saudi-led coalition air strike on the Dahyan market in August
The United States has presented a draft Security Council resolution aimed at toughening the UN response to failures by peacekeepers in their mission to protect civilians, US Ambassador Nikki Haley said Wednesday. UN peacekeeping missions are facing a damaging wave of allegations of sex abuse and of failing to come to the aid of civilians caught up in violence, notably in the Central African Republic and South Sudan. The draft text, seen by AFP, would reinforce measures such as repatriating peacekeepers, replacing units and withholding UN payments for soldiers involved in misconduct -- penalties that have irked troop-contributing countries. "We hear far too many stories of civilians who are vulnerable, who put their trust in peacekeepers, and our peacekeepers fail to protect them," Haley told a council debate on peacekeeping. The draft resolution will "accelerate progress on improving peacekeeping performance," she said. The United States, which is the number one financial contributor to the UN's peacekeeping budget of $6.9 billion, has moved to cut funding amid concerns over misconduct and poor performance of some missions. But Russia and China cautioned that the views of troop-contributing countries must be taken into account and called for improved training of peacekeepers, instead of penalties. Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said the council should not become involved in "micro-management" of missions and suggested that the council could show support for improved performance through a statement instead of a binding resolution. Pakistan, one of the top three troop contributors to peacekeeping, spoke out against a public "name-and-shame" approach and pointed that a lack of resources was undermining peacekeepers in their missions. Negotiations on the draft were continuing and a vote has not been scheduled. The United Nations has 96,000 peacekeepers serving in 14 missions worldwide. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has vowed to toughen the UN response to allegations of misconduct against the blue helmets and has appointed a victims' advocate to oversee the handling of cases of sexual abuse. His predecessor Ban Ki-moon took the unprecedented step of firing the commander of the mission in the Central African Republic over his handling of dozens of cases of sex abuse and misconduct by the peacekeepers. Ban also sacked the head of the mission in South Sudan following a report that showed peacekeepers did not respond to appeals for help from aid workers who came under attack at a nearby hotel compound. The United States wants tougher action against UN peacekeepers who fail to protect civilians
Thousands of governors, mayors, CEOs and experts gathered Wednesday at a problem-solving summit to tackle global warming as a monster hurricane bearing the fingerprint of climate change threatens the US eastern seaboard. While deadlocked UN-led talks sputter towards a December summit of national leaders, the three day conference spread across San Francisco will unveil scores of initiatives supporting the transition to a global economy fueled by clean energy rather than planet-warming fossil fuels. Dozens of cities, provinces, states and multinational companies, for example, will pledge to run on clean energy -- mostly solar or wind -- within a few decades. Leading the way, outgoing California governor Jerry Brown signed legislation Monday committing the state to purging greenhouse gases from its electricity grid by 2045. "We all have the opportunity and the obligation to do our part to combat climate change," he told AFP after signing the bill into law. Megacities will report greenhouse gas emissions trending downward, and nearly 1,000 institutional investors overseeing trillions in assets have, at least in part, turned their backs on planet-warming fossil fuels. Pension funds in Europe, the United States and Japan announced shifts in their portfolios from brown to green energy. Thirty-four governors from nine mostly tropical nations, meanwhile, unveiled partnerships supporting indigenous efforts to sustainably manage tropical, carbon-rich forests. A consortium of nine philanthropies, including the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations, ponied up nearly half-a-billion dollars towards the same goal. "This summit is going to be a showcase for the whole world in terms of climate action," said Ethan Elkind, head of the climate program at the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment at the University of California, Berkeley. - 'Dark and dangerous future' - Such efforts, however, have not been enough to salvage US commitments under the Paris climate treaty to reduce greenhouse gases, undermined by President Donald Trump's decision to scrap his predecessor's climate policies and promote the use of fossil fuels. "Current federal and real economy commitments, combined with market forces, will drive US emissions to 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2025 -- roughly two-thirds of the way to the original US target," according to a report released Wednesday. Under the Paris deal, the United States committed to cutting its carbon pollution 26-28 percent by 2025. "The Obama target was always going to be a stretch," co-author Paul Bodnar, managing director of the Rocky Mountain Institute, told journalists. "This work shows definitively that states, cities and businesses have the power to bring the nation to the brink of that ambitious target through their own authorities." But the groundswell of climate action cannot obscure the fact that global warming continues to outpace efforts to tame it, in the US and across the globe. After remaining stable for three years, raising hopes that they had peaked, carbon dioxide emissions from human sources rose in 2017 to historic levels. "If we do not change course by 2020, we risk missing the point where we can avoid runaway climate change," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said earlier this week, warning of a "dark and dangerous future." The 196-nation Paris Agreement calls for capping global warming at "well below" two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and vows to strive for a 1.5 C limit if possible. - 'We Are Still In' - But even if all nations honor voluntary carbon-cutting vows submitted in an annex, we are trending toward a world at least 3 C warmer than the preindustrial era, a scenario scientists say would tug at the fabric of civilization. "Earth hasn't seen 3 C in three million years," said Lord Nicholas Stern, the first economist to seriously calculate the costs and benefits of taking action to halt climate change. "With only one degree Celsius of warming so far, we are experiencing very severe effect," including deadly heatwaves, flooding, and storm surges engorged by rising seas, he told AFP. Taking bold action now, he added, could deliver trillions of dollars in benefits, ranging from avoided costs to millions of jobs in low-carbon economies. Trump opted out of the Paris Agreement shortly after gaining office, and has hammered away at the domestic and international climate policies of his predecessor, Barack Obama. His administration has sought to relax pollution rules for coal-fired power plants and roll back car-mileage standards, the twin pillars of Obama's Clean Energy Plan. US mayors, governors and business leaders -- under the banner "We Are Still In" -- have pushed back by adopting more ambitious targets at the local level. Taken together, these jurisdictions represent about half of the US economy, the equivalent of the third-largest country in the world, according to the report. A woman wears a sign on her head at Civic Center Plaza after marching in the 'Rise For Climate' global action in downtown San Francisco Significant climate events in 2017 After remaining stable for three years, raising hopes that they had peaked, carbon dioxide emissions from human sources rose in 2017 to historic levels New record global carbon emissions in 2017
A young couple who were travelling across outback Western Australia are believed to be missing, days after making a call for help with the 4WD they were driving.

WA Police say they have welfare concerns for a man and woman, aged in their early 20s, who were last spotted driving across the northern eastern Pilbara in a silver 80s series Toyota LandCruiser.

The couple were experiencing vehicle troubles as they drove from the Kunawarritji Community in the Gibson Desert North, en route to Port Hedland.

A young couple who were travelling across outback Western Australia in a Toyota LandCruiser are believed to be missing, days after making a call for help. Source: Getty, file

They are believed to have made telephone contact with a vehicle repairer requesting parts in Port Hedland on Saturday, but they never showed up and have yet to make further contact.

The couple were seen by other travellers driving the Canning Stock Route, towing a green box trailer packed with personal property items, police say.

It is believed they may have been driving only at night or in the cool of the day.

Anyone with information that could help confirm the welfare, whereabouts and identities of the couple are asked to call 131 444, or Karratha Police Station on (08) 9143 7200.
As Hurricane Florence takes aim at the Southeast, Gov. Andrew Cuomo is deploying New York resources to assist with the storm response.

Fifty airmen from the New York Air National Guard's 106th Rescue Wing on Long Island will head to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, Cuomo announced Wednesday. The team will provide support to response efforts after the storm makes landfall.

The hurricane is a Category 4 storm with winds of 130 mph. It is expected to impact the Carolinas and Virginia early Thursday. Several inches of rainfall is in the forecast and winds could cause serious damage, especially along the coastline.

Cuomo said the airmen from the 106th Rescue Wing will leave Wednesday afternoon. The New York Army National Guard has equipment, including two CH-47 Chinook heavy lift helicopters and two UH-60 Blackhawk medical evacuation helicopters, ready to deploy.

The helicopters would depart from the Army Aviation Support Facility based at the Rochester International Airport. The helicopters are on standby, according to the governor's office.

"New Yorkers always help their neighbors in their time of need and just as we have stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Puerto Rico, Texas and Florida after last year's destructive storms, we will once again stand ready to lend a hand to our fellow Americans," Cuomo said.

State personnel and resources could be deployed to assist with the response to Hurricane Florence. The state's Urban Search and Rescue, NY Task Force 2 and incident management teams may be sent to the Southeast to assist with rescues and recovery.

New York has equipment ready to assist affected states. The stockpile includes more than 1.8 million sandbags, over 438,000 bottles and cans of water and more than 28,500 ready-to-eat meals.

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John Mannion received the support of a prominent women's organization and he has sent his first mailer to voters in the 50th Senate District.

The New York chapter of the National Organization for Women endorsed Mannion, D-Westvale, and other state legislative candidates Wednesday. The candidates receiving the group's support include Cayuga County Legislator Keith Batman, who announced last month that he won NOW's backing.

The National Organization for Women reviews a candidate's position on certain issues before making an endorsement. The main issues for the group include ending discrimination and violence against women and girls, income inequality and reproductive rights.

Mannion is one of eight state Senate candidates endorsed by the National Organization for Women. The group also supports state Senate Democratic Conference Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who could become majority leader in 2019 if Democrats win control of the chamber.

"The ballot box is where our power lies to defend our democracy and civil rights and to win new critical victories for women," said Sonia Ossorio, president of the National Organization for Women in New York. "NOW-NY is proud to get behind some of our experienced stalwart defenders of women's rights as well as a significant number of tenacious new candidates who we trust to stand up for our values."

The endorsement is the latest for Mannion in the 50th district race. He is vying to succeed retiring state Sen. John DeFrancisco, a Republican who has been in office for more than 25 years.

The Republican candidate in the race is Onondaga County Comptroller Bob Antonacci. The contest is considered a top priority for both parties.

"I am proud to be endorsed by the National Organization for Women, and I thank this incredible group for supporting my campaign," Mannion said. "Women's rights are under attack nationally, and we need to take action here in New York state. I am proud to support women's rights, and I will work tirelessly to see real progress in Albany."

Mannion releases first mailer

Mannion's campaign is distributing its first mailer this week.

The literature features some biographical information about Mannion  he's a third-generation central New Yorker and a teacher. It also notes that he's "not a politician"  an acknowledgment that this is his first run for political office.

In the mailer, Mannion pledges to be an independent voice for central New York and highlights some of his positions on key issues, including support for term limits, preventing gun violence, making health care more accessible and improving education.

According to a copy of the mailer obtained by The Citizen, it was paid for by the New York State Democratic Committee.

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PORT BYRON  Dana L. West Jr.-Sr. High School students wore smiles and relaxed shoulders as they spoke to law enforcement in the cafeteria Sept. 6.

New York State Police Trooper David Worden and Port Byron School Resource Officer Frank Ryan traded jokes with students in an effort to introduce Worden to the school population. Ryan prompted one particular student, Charles Ford, to get up from his seat and walk over to meet the officer. Ford said he had been in trouble in the past, and Ryan said he was proud of him for making life changes.

Ford said afterward that he enjoyed speaking with Worden.

"He's pretty cool. He was funny, he made a couple jokes," Ford said, adding that he was fine with law enforcement in the school's halls. "It's what a school needs."

Worden was at the school as a part of a state police initiative to have troopers be more present in schools in Cayuga County and across the state.

State police Public Information Officer Mark O'Donnell said troopers recently began approaching school officials around the Finger Lakes about speaking to classrooms. If the idea is well-received, O'Donnell said, troopers will occasionally pop in at the school when they have spare time, hopefully fostering relationships along the way. Troopers will contact more facilities as the school year continues.

O'Donnell believes this approach allows children to see officers as fully-formed human beings, and not a stern, walking uniform and Stetson hat.

"We want to bridge the community and law enforcement," O'Donnell said.

Port Byron Superintendent Neil O'Brien said troopers are welcome during school days, at the beginning of the day or during dismissal. He noted state police at the Auburn barracks were given a schedule of school events so troopers could be seen at those as well. The district will give police 10 electronic keys so different troopers can come into the schools. O'Brien said he feels children should see police in more than crisis situations. He also said that if parents see a state police car at a district parking lot this year, it won't necessarily mean a situation is unfolding.

Worden and Ryan said they felt good about their time in the cafeteria. Ryan, a retired state trooper currently with the Port Byron Police Department, said it's critical to build rapport with students to get them to open up in case they ever become the perpetrator or victim of a situation of any magnitude.

Worden said he believes parents, teachers and school officials are happy when police are around schools. He said speaking to students on a personal level can help prevent situations before they happen, or potentially steer children in the right direction.

"Because school's not in session all year, we deal with these guys outside of school on the weekend, on vacation, and when you know them, it just makes everything a lot better," he said. "They know you, they know your name, (they) know you're a chill guy, they know you can get on their level with them."

Staff writer Kelly Rocheleau can be reached at (315) 282-2243 or kelly.rocheleau@lee.net. Follow him on Twitter @KellyRocheleau.

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AUBURN  Cayuga County's public power agency is working to develop a strategic plan that would provide the structure and rules to broker electricity throughout the county.

The Cayuga County Public Utility Service Agency Tuesday began reviewing a draft request for proposal seeking consultants to ultimately develop a plan for aspects like budgeting and staffing along with mechanisms for setting and adjusting utility rates for power the agency may eventually sell.

Developing the draft RFP is the first of many requirements of a contract for a New York State Energy Research and Development Authority grant, which Cayuga County is the applicant for, that will pay for such a consultant.

Most of the $250,000 Clean Energy Community grant will pay for capital improvements within the county, including energy-efficient lighting upgrades at the Cayuga County Jail, purchasing hybrid electric SUVs for the county fleet and two electric charging stations.

Up to $80,000 of the grant is set aside for CCPUSA to hire a consultant. With that funding comes specific requirements for what any strategic plan developed must include.

According to an outline of NYSERDA's requirements presented by county economic development director Steve Lynch, a plan would have to include, among other things, goals and objectives, strategic priorities, an implementation plan and an annual staffing plan and operational budget.

CCPUSA Vice Chair John Montone already had a strategic priority in mind, saying it was the one the agency was re-created in 2005 by referendum for.

"The priority of CCPUSA is to provide low cost, economic power," Montone said.

Any contract with a consultant selected by CCPUSA and approved by NYSERDA would need an authorizing resolution from the Cayuga County Legislature before the plan could be developed.

CCPUSA Chair and District 5 Legislator Paul Pinckney, R-Aurelius, said, in response to Lynch's suggestion to do so, that it would make sense to begin reaching out to other legislators to get them on board.

"By bringing them aboard now, we'll have a change of two or three, but the majority will be on board," Pinckney said, referring to the possibility of leadership change by the plan's required 2020 completion.

CCPUSA was re-created by referendum in 2005 after going mostly inactive following its 1984 formation. The 2005 referendum authorized the agency to own, acquire, use and operate gas utility service and/or alternative energy service.

CCPUSA Treasurer and District 13 Legislator Timothy Lattimore, R-Auburn said the plan would give CCPUSA "teeth" to be able to ensure power projects in the county go forward properly and for the agency to promote economic development through lower utility costs.

The agency has scheduled a workshop to review the draft for next week, after which the RFP will be submitted to NYSERDA.

Staff writer Ryan Franklin can be reached at (315) 282-2252 or ryan.franklin@lee.net. Follow him on Twitter @RyanNYFranklin

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A Sennett business is in the preliminary stages of exploring adding a gas station to its property.

The project first came before the town of Sennett's board in July when Joseph Durand, of Camillus-based TDK Engineering, presented it to the board on behalf of Ken and Diana Sroka.

Durand said the Srokas own the All Ways Concrete Pumping and Repair Plus at 2682 Turnpike Road in Sennett, at the intersection of Turnpike Road and Route 34. Back in 2011, he added, the Srokas created a Planned Development District with an "overall rezoning package to allow them to operate more than one business on that property."

Now, he said, the Srokas' are seeking a modification in the allowable uses in their PDD to add uses that would allow them to build a convenience store with gas pumps for retail gasoline at their property.

Although the original Commercial PDD application sought 17 uses, it was scaled down to include the allowable uses of construction vehicle sales and service; concrete pumping equipment service; fabrication and sales of trucking equipment and truck repair, sales and rental.

"So, as part of their master plan, they really wanted to put a lot of opportunity into that corner. They did set aside about a little over 2 acres, 2.25 acres, right on the very corner that would allow for future development," Durand said in July. "Since that time, the town has updated their comprehensive plan (and zoning) ... basically everything along route 34 now has a commercial overlay district to it that allows for convenience stores and retail gasoline gas stations."

Durand said that everywhere along Route 34, west to the town of Throop, in Sennett "is allowed to have convenience store set-ups and retail fueling, except the Srokas because it wasn't granted before. ... We're proposing to amend the allowable uses on their PDD to allow for that to happen."

Durand said, while the Sroka's hadn't gone to market with the idea yet, they have already done some master planing, septic and stormwater evaluations and a traffic study.

The project is slotted to be at the Oct. 4 planning board meeting in Sennett.

On Tuesday, Ken Sroka said that the project is still in the beginning stages of conversation and getting the Planned Development District permit changed is the main focus. He indicated that while the option is being explored, it is preliminary right now, pending what the planning board has to say.

Staff writer Megan Ehrhart can be reached at (315) 282-2244 or megan.ehrhart@lee.net. Follow her on Twitter @MeganEhrhart.

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Monster Hurricane Florence aims to drench Carolinas as millions flee, and 9 more things to know for Wednesday
" " Oregon is one of the strictest states when it comes to speeding and reckless driving. Matt Mills McKnight/Getty Images

Even though every state across the United States writes and enforces its own rules of the road, the onus is on you, the driver, to be aware of the code of conduct whenever you cross state lines. And that can be a big deal, because in some states, they're cracking down big time when it comes speeding. But it doesn't have to be complicated. Just stay within the posted speed limits and you should be OK. Everyone does, right?

Of course, there's a reason states are getting serious about those who break the law. According to WalletHub, in 2016, speed was a factor in 27 percent of deaths resulting from vehicle crashes. And speeding is also expensive. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimated that speed-related crashes add up to about $40.4 billion annually. It hits your own wallet, too, since the faster you go, the less efficient your car is.

Which brings us back to knowing the laws of the state you're in. If the reasons we've already mentioned aren't enough to keep you from speeding, consider that writing tickets is a cash cow for some states and counties, and it brings in a lot of revenue in the form of fines and fees. So if you don't want to dish out a bunch of cash, or risk losing your license, be aware of the driving laws in these states, which are among the strictest in the nation.

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1. Georgia

Getting hit with a Super Speeder ticket in Georgia might sound cool, until you get the fine. The Super Speeder Law went into effect Jan. 1, 2010 and defines "a driver convicted of speeding at 75 mph (120 kph) or more on a two-lane road or at 85 mph (136 kph) and above on any road or highway in the State of Georgia." If you get a Super Speeder ticket, you'll have to pay any fines and fees that apply based on where you were speeding, PLUS a $200 flat fee to the state of Georgia. If you fail to pay the $200 fine within 120 days of the ticket, your license will be suspended until you pay another $50 to the state (plus all your fines) to have it reinstated.

2. Delaware

Delaware could be the strictest state in the country when it comes to reckless driving enforcement, according to WalletHub, at least, and the state comes in at No. 8 when it comes to enforcing speed limits. Delaware defines reckless driving as "any person driving any vehicle with willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property." If you are convicted of reckless driving in Delaware, the first offense carries a fine between $100 to $300, between 10 and 30 days in jail  or both. For every subsequent offense that occurs within three years of a prior offense, the fine increases to between $300 to $1,000, and between 30 and 60 days in jail.

3. New Jersey

Watch your speed when you cross into New Jersey. If you get caught exceeding a posted speed limit by 10 mph (16 kph), you could be charged with "racing on public highways." That seems like a pretty loose interpretation of the term "racing," because the police don't have to prove you were actually racing anyone. But the law taps into the state's disdain of street racing culture. The law in question, NJSA 39:4-52, actually states, "no person shall operate a motor vehicle upon a public highway for a wager or in a race or for the purpose of making a speed record," and a lot is left up to the judge's discretion. But if you're found guilty, you'll have to pay fines based on how fast you were going, you could lose your license for up to 30 days and your car insurance rates will probably go up, too.

4. Virginia

In Virginia, the law isn't so loose. You can get charged with reckless driving for simply exceeding 80 mph (128 kph) anywhere in the state, or for exceeding the posted speed limit by 20 mph (32 kph). That is, even if you weren't driving as fast as the reckless driving law states, (meaning you weren't driving aggressive, being inattentive or disregarding safe driving expectations). The ticketing officer can cite you for reckless driving based solely on his observations and slap you with the penalty, well, just because. A reckless driving ticket in Virginia will cost you up to $2,500, plus up to a year in jail, and you could also lose your license for up to six months.

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5. Oregon

One state you definitely don't want to get a ticket for reckless driving is Oregon. The state has the highest maximum fine for first and second time offenders. In Oregon, reckless driving is considered when "a person is aware of and consciously disregards a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the result will occur or that the circumstance exists." In other words, like in Delaware, there is a lot of leeway in how the law is applied and can be applied to speeders. Get convicted for reckless driving in Oregon, though, and you could face maximum penalties of $6,250, a year in jail, and five years of probation. Ouch!

Now That's Interesting If you're prone to being one of those "lead-foot" drivers, you might want to consider moving to Texas. It's one of the most lenient of the lower 49 states when it comes to penalizing speeders.
A plot-driven drama with standout acting performances.

Mona Wales leans against a wall, delivering a monologue about cheap motels while on the other side of the screen she disports herself in a bed with Ryan Driller. The monologue continues in tight close-up, Wales talking about her insomnia and musing, "A year ago, my life disappeared. I don't have a home anymore ... but I can show up in any town, any time, and find a place like this not to sleep in ... and when I'm lucky, somebody to have sex with. Because that's the only surefire way to get some sleep."

We return to Wales in bed with Driller, but there's a remoteness between them through the scene and when Wales finally falls asleep, it doesn't last. She looks directly into camera and says maybe love would be the answer to her problem. "I even thought I had it," she says, before detailing her downfall: Cheating husband, mismanaged startup, lost house, now a motel nomad.

The next morning Driller asks Wales to breakfast and instead of giving him the heave-ho like her other transient lovers, she accepts. "Please be a regular guy," she muses into the mirror. The "regular guy," it turns out, is a second-generation grifter, and he gets her to join him in his scams. "He threw out some quality charm bait, and I bit. Actually, a home run for me. I havent slept more than a few hours in a couple of days. And he was cute."

When Driller sends Wales to pick up a package, she goes to a remote place and gets a smallish envelope from Eden Sin and Tyler Nixon, staying longer than expected because Driller's truck wont start. Musing, Wales flashes back to when her startup failed and she caught her husband cheating by watching him online.

Morning comes, and so do Driller and confederate Chanel Preston. "Did you fuck them after they fucked us?" Preston demands. Driller hands Wales a wad of cash and says, "Take this, buy a new car. Walk away, don't look back. Let this be one of your fucked-up dreams." Driller and Preston drive off. Yelling. Gunshots. Wales runs away, hides in a drainage pipe, saying, "Let this be a dream!"

Cut to Wales in bed with Jay Smooth, as Wales, nearby, smilingmuch like in the beginningtells the viewer, "It's not as bad as it looked before. At least I'm not running from myself." Wales beams at herself on the bed. The sex scene with Smooth that follows has an intimacy and one-on-one connection that was deliberately absent in the opening zipless let's-fuck-I-need-to-sleep Wales/Driller scene. Happy ending.

Mona Wales gives a tour-de-force performance in service of Hank Hoffman's dynamite script, delivering letter-perfect Shakespearean asides that punch holes in the fourth wall. Perfect for couples and anybody who laments that there are no stories in porn movies anymore.
Veteran director Robby D. delivers a glossy package of high-voltage sex scenes, all hung on a thread of a story about a dancerMia Malkovawhos about to lose her family-inherited ballet school. What can she do to make her mortgage payments? Adriana Chechik, her BFF, proudly has sex for money and she recommends Mia try it too.

We see Adriana with Charles Dera, the wealthy client she has picked out for Mia. They have a highly erotic encounter, a good half of which takes place in one position, standing at a stripper pole. At one point Charles puts her in a headlock with his legs while shes blowing him. Doesnt faze Adriana one bit. Long, hot scene topped off with a cream pie.

Pretty, petite Bella Rose, as Mias kid sister, tries to help her out by acting as a go-between with her ex-boyfriend Chad White. But instead of helping Mia, she seduces Chad, who gives her a good hard fucking in several positions.

Adriana finally gets Mia to hook up with client Charles. He is very authoritative, completely dominating her. She loves it as he rubs her clit. Its a long, slow, intensely sexual seduction. She sits on the dick with her perfect round ass. Finally he fucks her in piledriver and shoots on her butt.

Mia saves the money he gives her and rejoices at her new source of income. Client James Deen comes to her studio and makes love to her at the ballet barre, slapping her tits and eating her pussy through her leotard. He licks her feet and sucks her toes and makes a meal out of her pussy. He invents a new use for the barre, as a perch for Mia while he fucks her. Its all strikingly shot in the mirrored studio and, it should go without saying, very hot.

Only thing puzzling about this release is the title: Theres really nothing sorrowful about all this good sex.
At yesterdays press conference, where National Security Service (NSS) Chief Artur Vanetsyan and Special Investigative Service (SIS) Chief Sasun Khachatryan offered their take regarding a secretly taped phone conversation during which the two are heard discussing the detention of former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan and the ongoing investigation of the events of March 1, 2008, Khachatryan made the following pronouncements regarding the post-election violence that claimed the lives of eight civilians, one policeman and one soldier.

Starting on February 23, 2008, the army intervened in the events taking place on the ground in Yerevan.

Khachatryan said that there was a clause in Secret Order 0038 that read Certain individuals and organizations are not accepting the results of the election after having been freely and fairly evaluated and are fomenting disturbances.

Please take note that this order was issued on February 23, one day before the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) published the results of the presidential election. Thus, one day before, Robert Kocharyan and Mikayel Harutyunyan knew that the CEC would declare Serzh Sargsyan the winner and that the international community would have to regard the election as free and fair. It was in this context that the army was put on alert to prevent any peaceful protests, Khachatryan said at the press conference. (Kocharyan was the outgoing president at the time, and Harutyunyan was the defense minister.)

The army not only opened fire, soldiers fired on peoples homes.

We have concrete evidence that Armenian military personnel fired automatic weapons in the direction of houses on Leo Street after someone tossed a Molotov cocktail from a balcony. In other words, the army fully participated in those events, Khachatryan said.

Tigran Abgaryan, a member of the Interior Forces, was deliberately killed by Special Unit personnel.

We have definitive proof of this, Khachatryan said, and stressed that Tigran Abgaryan was killed after Kocharyan had declared a state of emergency and when no soldier had received a gunshot wound.

The preliminary examination backs our contention that Abgaryan was shot in order to substantiate Kocharyans claim that we have suffered losses, Khachatryan said.

Seyran Ohanyan will testify as a witness.

In the taped phone conversation, Sasun Khachatryan describes the actions of Seyran Ohanyan (Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces in March 2008) as obscene.

You know whats at the core of Seyrans sin? He got up that night and said that if the citizens did something he, the army, would fully respond, very roughly, said Khachatryan, who, despite believing that Ohanyans actions are sufficient to be prosecuted, hell only be called as a witness in the March 2008 investigation.

Top photo (from left): NSS Chief Artur Vanetsyan, SIS Chief Sasun Khachatryan
Do Your Homework Before Applying: The vast amount of information available to prospective students, the complex set of options for financing higher education, and the increased diversity of those considering higher education make it more important than ever that prospective students do their homework.

The partnership between America and its colleges and universities is broken. Americans are disappointed with higher education. A majority of Americans (57 percent) now say higher education fails to provide students with good value for the money they and their families spend, according to the Pew Research Center . Universities are equally disappointed with the students they serve. According to the same Pew survey, a majority of college presidents (58 percent) say public high school students arrive at college less prepared than their counterparts of a decade ago.In a new book, Holden Thorp and Buck Goldstein propose solutions to mend this divide and restore the compact between colleges and universities and the public that supports them.seeks to renew what the authors callThorp and Goldstein are both higher education veterans. Thorp is a provost and professor of chemistry and medicine at Washington University in St. Louis. Goldstein is a professor of the practice and university entrepreneur in residence in the department of economics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where Thorp once served as chancellor.To save that compact, restoring goodwill between higher education and the public will require a frank talk about the challenges that colleges and universities face.The "compact," they explain is,They are careful to mention that the idea is not new. It goes back at least to the founding of Harvard College in 1636 and has been revisited and better defined, they say, many times since then.Thorp and Goldstein assert thatcolleges and universities have held up their end of the bargain. The problem is one of perception, not a broken promise, they say. In order to restore the partnership, colleges and universities must tackle a growing number of misconceptions about contributions to society and to graduates' success.The authors spend the book's very short first chapter defending that point, calling American universities "the best in the world." Among the selling points of American higher ed that they highlight are that the curriculum is anchored in the liberal arts and that research is curiosity-driven, both sound assertions.Nonetheless, this chapter is the book's weakest point. It is unlikely to convince skeptics that universities offer the same value they did even a generation ago. It fails to address Americans' concerns that the relative value of a degree is eroding or that too many graduates are underemployed . Nor does it address the elephant in the room: that many universities have become echo chambers that are either dismissive or outright intolerant of viewpoint diversity. (And that's just to name a few of the many criticisms that have been leveled against higher ed lately, both on this website and elsewhere.)Despite this shortcoming, the book succinctly catalogs many of the most important challenges on the horizon and how colleges and universities can respond to them. Thorp and Goldstein rightly point out that the young, wealthy, residential student is no longer the norm on campus; "In fact," they say, "28 percent of college students have children, 60 percent live off campus, 62 percent work full- or part-time, and 38 percent attend school part-time." They also acknowledge that many universities have a range of financial problems that put them on unsustainable paths and that universities have failed to meaningfully use technology to improve quality or efficiency in teaching. These new realities are a significant challenge for universities.Adapting to these new student populations, shoring up funding sources, and using new technology will be essential, they say, to "effectively deliver on public expectations in a way that builds trust and a stronger partnership." Overall, the authors' prescriptions for universities to meet these challenges and reaffirm their commitment to the public they serve are wide-ranging and well-considered.Chief among those prescriptions is to improve governance. Thorp and Goldstein tackle the topic across several chapters, focusing on strategy, faculty, and university leadership. They recognize that universities' shared governance structure-which operates on consensus-makes it difficult for universities to make hard choices or even decide on the most important priorities. They defend tenure as a necessary bulwark against administrative overreach and reveal why so many of today's university chancellors behave more like politicians than CEOs.Universities, they say, must not fall prey to "the curse of execution," i.e., the urge to "put your head down and continue to do what you have done in the past." Instead, institutions must adopt a clear strategy:The choice all academic institutions must face is either to develop strategy based on their unique qualities or to allow another external institution define strategy instead. Taking the first approach and developing an internally generated strategy is worth the effort. Instead of simply working harder to keep up with peer institutions and a rapidly changing external environment, a good strategy functions as a road map that outlines activities that fit and those that should not be followed.At the end of the book, they offer short directives to all members of the university community- trustees, policymakers, administrators, faculty, faculty, and even students-on how they can contribute to rebuilding the partnership between higher education and the general public. These directives range from "Do Not Micromanage" (to trustees) to "Do Not Ask for New Administration" (to faculty members). Each of these is a useful starting point for specific, actionable solutions to make universities work better. They aim several pieces of advice at students, one of which the Martin Center has advocated for many years:Critics of higher education should read the book in the spirit it was written, that of building bridges and beginning a conversation about the best way forward for higher education. It is an invitation to participate in an open, democratic, evolutionary process-despite our differences of opinion on how change should be accomplished and what it might look like. Many higher education reformers will probably find the book too optimistic and its vision of higher education too broad or impractical. This is precisely why they should answer the invitation: so that all ideas are included at the table.
I work for the president but like-minded colleagues and I have vowed to thwart parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations.

We want the administration to succeed and think that many of its policies have already made America safer and more prosperous.

But we believe our first duty is to this country, and the president continues to act in a manner that is detrimental to the health of our republic. ... Although he was elected as a Republican, the president shows little affinity for ideals long espoused by conservatives: free minds, free markets and free people. At best, he has invoked these ideals in scripted settings. At worst, he has attacked them outright.

In addition to his mass-marketing of the notion that the press is the "enemy of the people," President Trump's impulses are generally anti-trade and anti-democratic.

Self-Glorification Of The Author. We'll certainly find out who wrote this sooner rather than later - and when the person is outed, he or she will be in a position of Strange New Respect from the Trump-despising media. A book contract will shower down on this person like manna from heaven. The Left will expunge the supposed stench of Trump-association from the author, and he or she will be held up as the model of the Republican all other Republicans should follow. Up until the point the person is outed as an actual conservative, at which point the media will label him or her a racist, sexist, bigot homophobe again. Creation Of A Mole Hunt. What if the purpose of this op-ed was to lead to a mole hunt in the White House, in which all those who were not loyal enough were purged? Perhaps the author is well-embedded enough in the administration to know that others will be blamed.

On Wednesday, The New York Times printed an anonymous op-ed by a senior member of the Trump administration supposedly revealing that members of the administration are hemming in Trump's worst instincts. The piece, titled, "I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration," explained:The piece explains that Trump is ignorant and "amoral," and that loyal Americans must do everything from within to curb his worst excesses:Here's the question: what's the point of this op-ed?It's clearly not to help the administration - it makes Trump look like a nincompoop, an out-of-control toddler handled by his more adult keepers. It's also not designed to put the administration on better footing - by allegedly revealing the inner workings of the White House, this staffer has launched a molehunt that will tear apart Trump's inner staff. Any sign of disagreement with Trump will be seen now as a sign of disloyalty, which is why Trump is tweeting in full Captain Queeg mode, in search of the strawberries.The Wall Street Journal is already reporting on the attempts to ferret out the op-ed's author at the White House.So, what was the real point? There are two going theories:The first theory is most plausible. But suffice it to say that Trump fulminating is not at his level-headed best. The author had to know that, above all.
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".
This November, North Carolina voters will decide on a constitutional amendment to lower the state's income tax cap from 10 percent to 7 percent.Left-leaning groups claim the lower cap would threaten the state's financial health. This is an unfounded concern . If you're still not convinced that lowering the tax cap is a good idea , let's take a look at Georgia, North Carolina's neighboring state that adopted a similar measure four years ago.In 2014, Georgia voters approved a constitutional amendment that capped their income tax at 6 percent. The measure passed with 74 percent voter approval . Georgia's cap did not actually lower taxes; it simply forbade future General Assemblies from raising the income tax. The amendment effectively capped the rate at 6 percent. Similarly, North Carolina's amendment would not lower taxes, since the individual and corporate income tax rates are already well below the proposed 7 percent cap at 5.5 and 3 percent, respectively.How has Georgia fared under their income tax cap? They seem to be doing well.Every state is different, but North Carolina is similar to Georgia in significant ways. Both states are within the Southeastern region of the United States. They share cultural, demographic, and industrial commonalities. They both enjoy robust financial health and low unemployment rates. The states also have similar-sized economies. Georgia's GDP for 2017 was $554 billion while North Carolina was only slightly behind at $538 billion. Because of these similarities, Georgia's experience can provide insight into what lowering the tax cap could hold for North Carolina.Opponents of North Carolina's tax cap amendment claim the amendment will produce three major adverse consequences: 1) Education and other state spending will be harmed; 2) the state will not be financially prepared for another recession; and 3) the state's bond rating will suffer. Using Georgia as an example, let's examine these claims.Georgia has steadily increased its K-12 Education state spending since 2011. The 2014 tax cap had no negative impact on that upward trajectory.Georgia's state contribution to per pupil spending is less than North Carolina's due to differences in funding mechanisms. Still, the per pupil figures are still useful for comparison because the two states have been on a similar upward trajectory (see figure below).Since 2014, Georgia's education expenditures have continued to increase, indicating that their income tax cap had no negative effect on the state's education spending. In fact, Georgia fully funded its education formula for the first time this year and the state has increased education spending by $2.5 billion from fiscal years 2014 to 2019.In North Carolina, the opponents of the tax cap amendment have made extreme allegations regarding the catastrophic effects of lowering the tax cap on education funding . Georgia's experience reveals the claims to be unfounded hyperbole intended to block needed limits on government spending.Although Georgia has only had its 6 percent tax cap since 2014, the income tax rate in the state has actually been at 6 percent since 1969.Georgia policymakers had the fiscal discipline to avoid tax increases during the last recession. This stability in the rate provides an opportunity to examine the effects that the cap would have during another recession.One of the reasons that Georgia was able to weather the 2008 recession without raising taxes is because of the presence of a rainy day fund. The cyclical nature of the economy allows state policymakers the opportunity to prepare for downturns by putting money aside during periods of growth. By contrast, North Carolina has historically relied on tax increases to sustain high spending levels.The potential for tax increases disincentivizes savings. Lowering the income tax cap forces lawmakers to think more critically about their spending priorities.In fiscal year 2017, Georgia's rainy day fund constituted a larger share of its general fund budget than North Carolina's did. Georgia's fund had savings equal to 10 percent of its annual General Fund spending, while North Carolina's rainy day savings was equal to 8.3 percent of annual General Fund spending.1Emboldened no doubt by their sizeable savings, Georgia lowered its tax rates in 2018 for the first time in almost fifty years.The tax cap, if anything, seems to stabilize or promote economic growth as businesses and residents are reassured that locating in Georgia will not result in higher tax burdens during future recessions.Lastly, critics of the tax cap amendment claim that the state's bond rating would be threatened by adoption of the amendment. This has certainly not been Georgia's experience.Like North Carolina, Georgia also enjoys AAA bond ratings from all major rating agencies. Both states have maintained this status for at least 15 years, including Georgia's implementation of the lower tax cap in 2014. Clearly, Georgia's tax cap implementation did not harm its AAA bond rating.Last month, the rating agencies issued North Carolina's most recent set of across-the-board AAA ratings, fully aware of the upcoming vote on the constitutional amendment to lower the income tax cap. One agency, Standard & Poor's explicitly stated that they did not anticipate the bond rating would be affected by the passage of the tax cap amendment.When we review Georgia's recent experience with adopting a lower tax cap, we find none of the dire predictions made by critics of the amendment came to fruition. If anything, Georgia's economy seems to be thriving as individuals and business enjoy the security of knowing that their income tax rates will not increase in the future. Because of the similarities between the states, such lessons are very helpful for understanding future impacts should North Carolinians vote to adopt a lower tax cap this November.
With Hurricane Florence fast approaching - and parts of the state still recovering from Hurricane Matthew - the governor, for the first time, issued an evacuation order.Local evacuation orders as of Tuesday afternoon were in effect for 12 counties, and 14 counties have issued a state of emergency. Gov. Roy Cooper issued a statewide state of emergency Sept. 7, which triggers anti-price gouging laws and loosens certain regulations on trucks.Cooper said during an state emergency-management briefing The state evacuation order is unprecedented. In North Carolina, evacuation orders typically are issued at the local level. The state isn't taking any chances.Cooper said.Michael Sprayberry, the N.C. Emergency Management director said.Requests for federal aid have already been made.Rep. George Holding, R-2nd District, said in a prepared statement.The declaration is intended to speed federal aid to the state and help with recovery. Federal Emergency Management Agency officials are stationed in the state to assist with rescue efforts.Hurricane Florence threatens to wreak havoc on the eastern part of the state. Forecasts show the storm potentially stalling over areas and dumping rain for days. As with 2016's Hurricane Matthew, flooding is a major concern.Bobby Outten, the county manager for Dare County, said residents are preparing for the worst but hoping for the best.Outten said.Dare county has already issued evacuation orders in anticipation of Hurricane Florence hitting the coast hard.Outten said.Hurricane Matthew surprised people when, rather than heading into the ocean, traveled up the coast farther than anticipated.Outten said.Outten said Hurricane Matthew dumped a huge amount of rain over Nags Head and Kill Devil Hills that created hazardous conditions and flooding. Typically that amount of flooding comes from storm surges or from ocean surges.Outten said.Hurricane Florence is a bit different. Meteorologists are telling people to prepare for major rainfall and strong winds. Outten said the county has put the emergency operation plan into effect, which includes stocking up on generators and gas.Outten said.The North Carolina Department of Transportation has also stocked up on supplies in anticipation of Hurricane Florence. More than 2,000 NCDOT employees are equipped with 284 trucks, 1,086 chain saws, 147 front loaders, 219 motor graders, and 202 backhoes to tackle the storm and subsequent clean up.Cooper said.
When all transfer payments and taxes are counted, the U.S. redistributes a larger share of its disposable income than any country other than France...The progressive dream of an America with massive income redistribution and highly progressive tax system has already come true.

Many professors cannot resist the temptation to smuggle their personal beliefs into the courses they teach. As long as those beliefs are "progressive," there is little chance that higher-ups in their departments or top administrators will try to rein them in. For example, engineering has been infiltrated by activists who are concerned about social justice concerns, not just how to best design objects for performance and safety, as Michigan State professor Indrek Wichman pointed out A recent article published on Inside Higher Ed, " B-Schools That Don't Boast About Billionaire Alumni ," similarly informs us that some business school professors have decided that they should teach students about their own social justice concerns, not just how to best manage an enterprise.Writer Marjorie Valbrun explains that increasing academic concern about income inequality is justified because, in the words of the leftist Institute for Policy Studies, income inequality "has been growing markedly by every major statistical measure for some 30 years."In fact, there is good reason to doubt that income in the United States is distributed much differently that in other major industrial nations. Former Senator Phil Gramm and John Early (former commissioner in the Bureau of Labor Statistics) explained in this August 9 Wall Street Journal article (subscriber content) that the U.S. only appears to have a high concentration of wealth because the statistics we submit to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development underreport income transfers.The authors write,Nevertheless, if egalitarians believe that the U.S. should further decrease the gap between rich and poor by having businesses act in what they regard as socially responsible ways, they are free to do so. The questions, however, are whether that advocacy is sensible (can business actions really make a net improvement in the lives of poor people?) and whether teaching about this has a place in the business school curriculum.One academic quoted in the article is Selma Botman, provost at Yeshiva University. She says,Toward that end, she extols Yeshiva courses such as "Business as a Human Enterprise" that includes "corporate social responsibility" and a labor economics course focusing on inequalities in human capital and wages.But should Jewish values incline one to the belief that acting with justice and humanity means altering your business decision-making away from profit maximization? One Jewish intellectual who thought otherwise was Milton Friedman. (Friedman was of Jewish ancestry, although he wasn't religiously Jewish.) He took issue with the notion that business executives have either a moral warrant or expertise to pursue social justice objectives in their roles as corporate managers in his 1970 essay, " The Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase its Profits ."On the morality of acting to further supposed "social objectives" through business, Friedman pointed out that executives are employees of the owners of a company and have a primary obligation to fulfill their wishes, which, he wrote,The owners, of course, are free to use their returns however they see fit to advance their goals, which probably differ from those of the people for whom the manager acts.So, when a business executive pursues his own social justice desires-perhaps by paying some employees more than the market rate for their labor, a "just wage"-he is spending other people's money. He's acting as the principal when he is merely an agent. In Friedman's view, the ethical course for individuals who want to advance social objectives is to do so with their own time and money, or work for organizations that are specifically aligned with their goals.On the matter of expertise, Friedman noted that business executives are poorly placed to know whether their "socially responsible" conduct will have the intended good effects or have unintended bad effects. If, e.g., a manager chooses to pay some workers a "living wage" higher than the competitive market wage, that means having less money to devote to other business objectives. Generosity in one area means cutting back in others. Can the manager know if he's doing net good or net harm? Friedman thought not.Another university lauded as having embraced educating for social responsibility is Notre Dame. Its Mendoza College of Business has become an exponent of social justice. The story quotes Charlice Hurst, an assistant professor who incorporates the subject of income inequality into her teachingSaid Hurst,In other words, the students come into Notre Dame thinking that they should first acquire their own resources before acting on their ideas for improving society. Professor Hurst thinks that's sad and wants to convince them that they need not wait. They can begin doing social good right away.Once in the business world, they might push for the payment of "just wages." Hurst, who has never worked in the for-profit sector herself, has been part of Notre Dame's Just Wage Working Group and looks askance at employers "paying poverty wages."But even if a Notre Dame M.B.A. were able to get the business he works for to implement a "just wage" policy, what about the inevitable trade-offs between higher labor expenses and other things the firm might have done, such as product improvement, expansion, or simply hiring more workers? Just as with government policy, good intentions in business can have harmful unintended effects.The University of Pennsylvania's famous Wharton School (from which Donald Trump graduated) has also swooned for social justice. Professor Katherine Klein speaks with pride about the Wharton Social Impact Initiative, a program claiming to advance "the science and practice of social impact" through research, training, and outreach. She told Inside Higher Ed that although more attention is being paid to income inequality than ten years ago, it isn't enough.She might be right about that. I think more work should be done on income equality, especially to show the ways government policy promotes and perpetuates it-but that has nothing to do with teaching how to run efficient business operations.The problem with the spreading of social justice ideas into the business curriculum is two-fold.First, as Friedman argued, it is a fundamentally subversive idea to suggest that businesses can and should be run with "social justice" in mind. To maximize profits in fact is acting for the social good by using limited resources efficiently to produce goods and services desired by consumers. Telling business leaders that they can do more good for society if they pursue other objectives is mistaken and undermines our system of private property and free enterprise.Second, business schools are wasting their students' time when faculty members focus on income inequality and similar personal concerns rather than on the techniques for optimally managing a company. Even if few students come away with a desire to implement social justice activism once they are employed, valuable educational time has been wasted. But for the social justice diversions, they might have learned their profession better.
Norm Macdonald was supposed to appear on the "Tonight Show" Tuesday night, but NBC canceled his appearance after the comedian criticized the #MeToo movement in an interview.Macdonald has a new Netflix show premiering Friday called "Norm Macdonald Has A Show," and was set to discuss his latest project with Jimmy Fallon, but after the former "Saturday Night Live" star's interview with the Hollywood Reporter was published, the network canceled, citing "sensitivity to our audience."In an interview in which Macdonald seemed to criticize and awkwardly defend everything he was asked about (he talked about how the Constitution was designed to survive President Donald Trump, but also said the world was not as bad as he feared it would be with Trump as president), one segment stuck out. It appears as though once a hashtag is deemed saintly, any criticism becomes unacceptable. "Superman" and "Mission Impossible" star Henry Cavill found this out the hard way just a month ago.Now it's Macdonald's turn. He told the Hollywood Reporter that he wasMacdonald said.Naturally, this quote was left out of most media accounts of Macdonald's cancelled appearance.Macdonald was then asked about an accused person admitting to wrongdoing, to which the comedian responded,This, too, is left out of other media accounts of the interview. These are both sensible criticisms, but left-leaning media outlets need to defend #MeToo, so nuanced criticism is not allowed.Macdonald was then asked who he knows that has been taken down due to #MeToo. He said Louis C.K. and Roseanne Barr.Macdonald said.This is the quote being shared in media posts. Following this, Macdonald reiterated how both comedians sawHe also said Barr waswho always wanted more minority representation on her shows. He also said it wasto call her a racist.The tweet that ended Barr's career was one in which she put up a picture of President Barack Obama's senior adviser Valerie Jarrett and a photo of a female ape fromBarr would later say she didn't know Jarrett was black and that her tweet was about the perceived anti-Semitism of the Obama administration, which she believed was evident in the Iran deal.Macdonald seemed to back up this version, as he told the Hollywood Reporter that Barr was left-wing about everything except Israel.Macdonald said.Macdonald didn't say anything else about Louis C.K.For this tepid criticism of #MeToo and defense of his friends, Macdonald had his "Tonight Show" appearance canceled.NBC said in a statement. The New York Times then called Netflix to see if it would cancel Macdonald's show based on this interview.Macdonald tweeted an apology for the interview after the cancellation, saying he did not mean to minimize the pain of victims.
Armenian National Assembly President Ara Babloyan today described yesterdays publication of a secretly taped phone conversation of the heads of the countrys National Security Service and the Special Investigative Service as deeply troubling and unprecedented.

In the phone conversation, National Security Service (NSS) Chief Artur Vanetsyan and Special Investigative Service (SIS) Chief Sasun Khachatryan are heard discussing the detention of former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan and the ongoing investigation of the events of March 1, 2008.

Babloyan told reporters that the situation calls for a special parliamentary hearing and the formation of a committee of inquiry.

When asked what he thought about the revelation that frightened judges are still calling the head of the NSS for instructions in top-level court cases, Babloyan deferred, arguing that such matters need to be addressed within a legal context.
On August 28, in accordance with the arrangement reached with the authorities of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh Republic), the OSCE Mission conducted a planned monitoring of the ceasefire regime on the Line of Contact between the armed forces of Artsakh and Azerbaijan, at the Omar pass.

From the positions of the Defense Army of the Republic of Artsakh, the monitoring was conducted by Field Assistant to the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office (CiO) Ghenadie Petrica (Moldova) and staff member of the Office of the CiO Personal Representative Martin Schuster (Germany).

From the opposite side of the Line of Contact, the monitoring was conducted by Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, his Field Assistant Mihail Olaru (Moldova) and Personal Assistant Simon Tiller (Great Britain).

The monitoring passed in accordance with the agreed schedule.

From the Artsakh side, the monitoring mission was accompanied by representatives of the Republic of Artsakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense.

Artsakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Google+ is growing like crazy. In fact, it is the fastest growing social network ever. Just as with any other social network, marketers have a lot to learn and do. So we thought we would invest some time into making your life easier. In this post, we've compiled the best content about Google+ from all across the web. Use it to learn how to leverage Google+ for both business and personal uses.

Google+ Vocabulary: Quick Reference Glossary

Stream  the list of messages that is displayed on the Google+ home screen and for each Circle of contacts

Hangout  a platform for group video chatting and collaboration that is used by Google+ members

Circle  the method of organizing connections into groups for more targeted sharing and better privacy

Google Profile  your personal home on Google+, which allows you to share interesting, work experiences, personal information, and much more

Sparks  the magazine of Google+, which bring together information on a topic for easy viewing. Enter a keyword, and see public Google+ posts on that topic.

Chat  a method for sending short messages to other Google+ members who are also signed in to Google+

+1 Button  the equivalent of the Facebook Like button for Google+ and Google Search. A user can +1 an item shared on Google+ as well as a search engine result link returned by a Google search.

Comment  a response to a user's Google+ post

Share  allows you to share a message that someone else created with your followers (similar to a retweet on Twitter)

The Basics

Let's start by checking out this awesome cheat sheet that provides some helpful tips for making the most of Google+:





Google+ vs. Facebook

Should Facebook be worried about Google+? Take a look at this awesome infographic and see for yourself.





Who is on Google+?

Ever wonder who is actually using Google+? This infographic (larger version here) show that students are major early users, but it also shows many of the companies represented on Google+.





How to Configure Privacy Settings on Google+

Privacy matters, and it's one of the biggest complaints about Facebook. Here is how to control your privacy on Google+.





Google+ Compared to Twitter and Facebook

As a social network, how does Google+ stack up against Facebook and Twitter?





Google+ According to Google

What does Google want you to know about its new social networking platform? Many things, but some of the most important things are included in the following short videos. Give them a look if you want a better understanding of Google+'s features.

The Google+ Project: A Quick Look





The Google+ Project: Sparks

The Google+ Project: Hangouts





Google+ 101

Get a complete walk-through of Google+ with this presentation, which provides detailed information on how to get started with the new social network.

View more presentations from Supernova Studios

What other awesome Google+ info have you come across on the web that should be included in this post?
Passage of the Dog and Cat Meat Trade Prohibition Act represents an important expression of unity with Thailand, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Philippines and Singapore, which have outlawed the dog meat trade. Photo by Jean Chung/For HSI

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For many years now, Humane Society International has been at the forefront of a hot war against the dog and cat meat trade across Asia. We have taken on many high-profile fights and weve made tremendous progress, from pushing back hard against Chinas Yulin dog meat festival to shuttering dog meat farms in South Korea to getting a commitment from the Indonesian government to ban the dog meat trade. Weve also asked millions of citizens living or traveling in the countries where dog and cat meat is served to just say no when they sit down to dinner.

But even as we ask the people in other countries to stop eating dog and cat meat, and press their legislatures to ban it, we need to send out a loud and clear message here at home. As I explained in a recent op-ed in The Hill, we have to make it clear that in the United States too, where the trade exists, albeit on a much smaller scale, eating companion animals is not okay. Today, the U.S. House did exactly that by passing the Dog and Cat Meat Trade Prohibition Act, H.R. 6720, which makes it illegal to knowingly slaughter, ship, transport, move, deliver, receive, possess, purchase, sell or donate a dog or cat or his or her parts for human consumption, and authorizes a fine of up to $5,000 for each violation. The bill, introduced by Reps. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., and Alcee Hastings, D-Fla, passed by a voice vote following a terrific floor debate by Reps. Ralph Abraham, R-La., Stacey Plaskett, D-V.I., Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., and Hastings.

The House also adopted a resolution urging other nations to end the dog and cat meat trade, following strong floor statements by Reps. Ed Royce, R-Calif., Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., Hastings, and Dina Titus, D-Nev. H. Res. 401, introduced by Reps. Hastings and Buchanan and passed by voice vote, is over the finish line now, as House resolutions dont require action by the Senate or the president. The resolution urges the governments of China, South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, India and other nations to adopt and enforce existing laws banning the dog and cat meat trade.

Ending the consumption of dogs and cats and shuttering thousands of dog meat farms is a top priority for HSI. Passage of the bill represents an important expression of unity with Thailand, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Philippines and Singapore, which outlawed the dog meat trade, and Hong Kong and Taiwan, which banned the cat meat trade. It also helps serve as an example for other countries that could take action to end trade within their borders, including China, South Korea, Vietnam, India and Indonesia.

In another key victory for animals today, the House passed, again by voice vote, a bill that would crack down on global wildlife trafficking. The Rescuing Animals with Rewards (RAWR) Act, H.R. 6197, was introduced by Reps. Dan Donovan, R- N.Y., and Joaquin Castro, D- Tex., and Reps. Royce, Engel, Donovan and Titus all spoke strongly in favor of it during the floor debate. It would authorize the U.S. State Department to make cash awards for information on wildlife trafficking. The RAWR Act is an important step in the defense of wild animals like elephants, rhinos, and pangolins whose numbers are dwindling at an alarming rate because of the illegal wildlife trade.

Trafficking in wildlife is one of the most lucrative illicit activities in the world, involving tens of billions of dollars, and the United States is a big part of the problem, as one of the worlds largest markets for wildlife and wildlife parts and products. The situation is even worse here, because American trophy hunters are active in poaching and illegal trade. We need a bill that says to them and to every potential buyer or seller of such products, dont do it, just dont. The survival of some of the worlds most charismatic wild species is at stake.

The action now moves to the Senate and we hope lawmakers will work swiftly to approve both the Dog and Cat Meat Trade Prohibition Act and RAWR. The dog and cat meat ban mirrors provisions the Senate already passed in July as part of its Farm Bill, and approving it is a no-brainer. More than 30 million dogs and millions of cats are killed for their meat each year across Asia, and it is time we do all we can to stop this ugly trade for good. Please call your Senators and ask them to vote to pass these two important pieces of legislation to stop the cruel trade of our companion animals and preserve wildlife. Its a one-two punch that shouldnt be hard to deliver.
The letter is the latest salvo in the HSUSs Unhappy Meals campaign, calling on McDonalds to improve the treatment of chickens. Photo by Jo-Anne McArthur/We Animals

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Twenty of Hollywoods biggest names, including Alec Baldwin, Susan Sarandon and Joaquin Phoenix, today sent a joint letter to McDonalds CEO Steve Easterbrook, urging the company to institute commonsense animal welfare reforms advocated by the Humane Society of the United States.

The letter, which can be read here, is also signed by Vanessa Hudgens, Daryl Hannah, John C. Reilly, Mary-Louise Parker, Kristen Bell, Tea Leoni, Dr. Oz, Kate Mara, Stephen Fry, Mayim Bialik, Johnny Galecki, Joan Jett, Paul Feig, Weird Al Yankovic, Michael Showalter, Leona Lewis and Marco Antonio Regil.

McDonalds lets its chicken suppliers breed birds to grow so large, so fast itd be like a two-month old human baby weighing over 600 pounds, the letter states, adding: This causes all kinds of problems for these animalslike broken legs, painful injuries, and even heart attacks.

The letter is the latest salvo in the HSUSs Unhappy Meals campaign, calling on McDonalds to improve the treatment of chickens. We launched the campaign earlier this summer, starting with a television advertising campaign in Chicago, where McDonalds is based. The results have been substantial. In addition to capturing the attention of Hollywood, more than 10,000 individual consumers have placed calls to McDonalds urging the company to do better.

Unfortunately, McDonalds has yet to make meaningful progress. As a result, were going to extend our ad campaign, engage more online advertising channels, and we are pursuing other actions calling on McDonalds to do better.

This is more than a campaign for us; its a mission. And we will continue fighting for these chickens until McDonaldsand all other food companiespledge to improve their practices and the welfare situation of the billions of animals concerned.

Take action at UnhappyMeals.com

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Federal Judge Stands Up for Czech Whistleblower in Pollution Case

Jaroslav Hornof, a seaman from the Czech Republic, is like a real-life version of Jason Bourne.

He is not an assassin with long-term memory loss, but he was on a mission to uncover an explosive situation at sea. He secretly filmed a cargo ship pouring toxic oil into the water in violation of international law.

Just as the shipping company was about to cut a deal with authorities, a federal judge in Maine shut it down. She said Hornoff deserved a reward for putting himself at risk.

No Reward, No Deal

U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen said that watching the video was "like watching a Jason Bourne movie. You can tell watching that video that he is taking risks."

Hornof blew the whistle on MST Mineralien Schiffarht Spedition and Transport, a German shipping company that runs the MV Marguerita. Hornof, an engineer, boarded the ship in the Panama Canal in 2017.

He quickly became aware the ship was discharging oily water and falsifying documents to cover it up. Under international treaties, crews are supposed to remove oil before discharging bilge water.

When the crew denied it, Hornof made the video and alerted company representatives. He was detained for almost three months pending an investigation, and ultimately left his job.

$3.2 Million Fine

The company was indicted, then agreed to pay a $3.2 million fine. But the judge rejected the deal when she saw it did not include a reward for the whistle-blower.

"People are not going to take risks that Mr. Hornof took if they're going to be kicked in the shins at the end of the day," she said.

The case is proceeding to trial, although a reward will probably end it. According to reports, shipping companies routinely pay fines rather than go to trial.

Last year, the Department of Justice imposed more than $50 million in fines in such pollution cases. The largest -- $40 million -- was levied against Princess Cruise Lines.

In July, the government fined a Singaporean company $1 million for dumping oil at sea near Hawaii.

Related Resources:
Missouri's School Bullying Problem Is Among the Worst in Nation

It's a startling statistic. In America, every seven minutes, a child is bullied. In 4 percent of the cases, parents intervene; children intervene 11 percent. It's a heartbreaking reality that 85 percent of the time, no one is there to help the victims. In a recently published study on school bullying conducted by Wallethub, Missouri ranked third in the nation for states with the most prevalent bullying. Missouri has been working hard to fix this problem, especially since Megan Meier's death in 2006 after being cyberbullied by fellow students and their parents. Though perhaps Missouri has improved, they still have a long way to go.

The study based its rankings on several factors including percentage of students bullied on school property and online, the rate of truancy due to fear of being bullied, and the stance the state has taken on state anti-bullying laws. The data came from several sources, including the Census Bureau, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data was collected from 2015-2017.

Ineffectiveness of School Policies to Punish Bullies

Bullying is generally referred to as verbal, physical, or other acts committed with the intent to harass, intimidate, or cause harm to another individual. Every state, except Montana, has some law regarding bullying.

In Missouri, up until 2017, the only law was that schools needed to have an anti-bullying policy. There's not a lot of bite behind that bark. Combine that with a culture that doesn't take bullying as a crime, and one can see why the issue is so prevalent in Missouri. According to Ann Jarrett, director of teaching and learning at the Missouri National Education Association, "The thing that works is having to change the culture, working with schools, parents and students so that it becomes not socially acceptable among peers." School policies, alone, will not solve the problem.

Missouri Bullying Laws Now Have Some Bite

Time will tell if Jarrett is right. In 2017, Missouri instituted a new law, making it a felony for students in Missouri to bully others at school under the laws of emotional distress, creating liability for both the school and the student-bully. In theory, this law should deter bullying. However, educators fear that criminalizing bullying could draw police into what has been a school-only matter, leading to greater jail time for students, and strengthening the school-to-prison pipeline. It does beg the question, though, that perhaps schools haven't been doing enough and it's time to take matters out of their hands.

If your child, or someone you know, has been a victim of bullying, don't be part of the 96% of the adults that do nothing. Persistent bullying can lead to severe depression, violent tendencies, and even suicide. If you need help with a bullying matter, contact an education law attorney near you.

Related Resources:


Back in July, MGM Resorts  owner of the Mandalay Bay casino in Las Vegas  sued more than 1,000 survivors of the mass-shooting that took place in October, 2017, trying to secure a judgment that would prevent any of the survivors from suing the company.



As Rob wrote at the time, "A failing of the corporate mindset is that once lawyers are consulted, their advice is doomed to be followed. PR, your marketing people and your customers could be screaming in your face that what you are going to do is the stupidest thing in the history of free enterprise, a disaster on an untellable scale. But you've paid for the legal advice so by goodness you're gonna follow it!"





Now, MGM Resorts is trying to salvage something before they go to court and sue 1,000 traumatized people: they've contacted the survivors and offered to make a $500 charitable contribution to a fund for the slain victims of the shooting for every person who makes a legally binding admission that they are aware that they're being sued, rather than forcing MGM to hire process servers.

This isn't really going to help on the PR front.



As part of the offer, each victim would choose a charity that supports survivors or families of slain victims, and the donation would be made in his or her name. MGM could end up donating close to a $1 million if everyone took its offer. MGM says it would rather make the donations to charities than spend the money to pay people to serve the legal notices.



MGM offers $500 donation to charity for each shooting survivor who waives notice of lawsuit [Regina Garcia Cano/Chicago Tribune]

(Image: Reuters)
Britt Jarvis Inducted Into Tyrus R. Timm Honor Registery

On September 8, 2018, Saturday afternoon, the Department of Agricultural Economics at Texas A&M University inducted Billy Britt Jarvis into the Tyrus R. Timm Honor Registry. The ceremony was held at the AgriLife Center on the Texas A&M University campus in College Station.



Tyrus R. Timm devoted 38 years to teaching, research, extension work and headed the Agricultural Economics Department at Texas A&M for 20 years. In 1977, Dr. Jarvis Miller, A&M President, said Timm exemplified all the qualities that make a man great, humility, dedication, loyalty, and concern for others. His philosophy of administration was always to and recruit people better than he in order to build and look to the future.



Dr. Mark L. Waller, Acting Head of the Department of Agriculture Economics at Texas A&M University, presided over the ceremony. Dr. Robert Edd Whitson, who grew up and was a graduate of Spearman High School, presented the award. Dr. Whitson had a distinguished career which included heading the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. Upon retiring from Texas A&M University, Dr. Whitson held a similar position with the Oklahoma Extension service.



Britt was honored for his service to his community, to his state, and to the United States of America.



Britt and Linda, his wife, have lived in Hutchinson and Hansford Counties all their lives. Britt graduated from Morse High School in 1961, and from Texas A&M University in 1965 with a B. S. Degree in Agricultural Economics. Britt continued his education at Southern Methodist University and received a Juris Doctor Degree in May 1968. Britt was admitted to the Texas State Bar in September 1968. Upon returning to Hansford County, He continued to farm and ranch. In September 1968 he was appointed Hutchinson County Assistant County Attorney, becoming a professional prosecutor. In April 1969, Britt began active duty as a First Lieutenant in the U. S. Army. He served with the 6th of the 61st Arty (HAWK), at Ft. Bliss. Then, he served with the 1st Brigade, 5th Infantry Division (MECH) on the DMZ at Quang Tri, Republic of Vietnam. In March 1971, Britt returned to Spearman and continued his law practice and agricultural operations in Hutchinson, Hansford, Ochiltree, and Hemphill Counties Texas. Later, these operations expanded to Deaf Smith, and Oldham Counties, Texas.



Since returning to Spearman, Britt and Linda have been active in the leadership of the 4-H Clubs and other community organizations. They have also contributed to the education of many Spearman and Gruver high school graduates.



Britt says that his greatest accomplishment is that he and Linda have a 53 year long marriage.



Britt and Linda have three children, Will Jarvis of Spearman, Anne Marie Pearson of Spearman, and Bonnie Woolam of McKinney. They also have a fine daughter in law and two fine son in laws. They have nine grandchildren.




Reader exchange from the Los Angeles Times:

SEP 08, 2018 To the editor [of the Los Angeles Times]: I hear many people say that Trump should be impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors, but where's the list of constitutionally impeachable offenses? Let's see the list, please.

The polarization between the two parties is not because of Trump  it is because of Obama, who acted as though America needed to be brought down a peg or two. With statements like "you didn't build that," he not so subtly told people that their efforts were not that important.

Now we have someone in the White House who encourages people. It is a huge difference.

For the record, I am a woman who has a doctorate, and I support Trump.

Andrea Anderson, Glassell Park

SEP 12, 2018 To the editor: One letter writer doubts President Trump has committed any impeachable offenses and wonders what they could possibly be. A partial list:

Abuse of power: Trump has sought to use the Justice Department to punish his political foes and pressured the department to go easy on candidates he favors.

Obstruction of justice: He admitted that the Russia inquiry was on his mind when he fired FBI Director James Comey. He has dangled the possibility of pardons to squelch potential witness testimony and tampered with the jury in the Paul Manafort trial by speaking out.

Violated his oath of office: The Constitution requires presidents to see that the laws be faithfully executed. Trump has delighted in undermining not only immigration statutes but also Obamacare.

Impeachable offenses needn't rise to the level of federal crimes. It is necessary only to show that Trump used his office in ways that are inconsistent with his constitutional duties.

Brad Bonhall, Reno
- The DA accuses the ANC of caring more about keeping VIPs safe than South African citizens

- DA shadow minister of police, Zakhele Mbhele, stated that every year, R9.1 million is spent on keeping the elite safe and only R1 500 per South African

- The police are admittedly in need of better resources and more able officers

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The Democratic Alliance is not happy with the ANC. MP Dianne Kohler voiced her concern about plans of the government to cut back on police staff in order to save money. She feels it is a worrying plan since violent crime has increased in South Africa.

Furthermore, the DA shadow minister of police, Zakhele Mbhele, stated that the police is spending millions on keeping government VIPs safe and as little as R1 500 per citizen every year.

On average, R9.1 million is spent on protecting the important government officials, according to a report by The Citizen.

This has the DA saying the ANC have their priorities backwards. Mbhele feels the government is losing the battle to keep citizens safe.

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Police Minister Bheki Cele released the crime statistics for 2017/18 and things look grim.

Briefly.co.za reported that Cele revealed 20 336 people were murdered in 2017/18 - an increase of 6.9% over the last year.

Mbhele blames the government's focus on keeping the elite safe for the rise in levels of crime. He added that the police is seriously under-trained, under-equipped and under-staffed and said the government should invest money in addressing this rather than spending so much on VIPs.

Earlier, News24 reported that the police has a shortage of officers - a deficit of 62 000, to be exact. The number of police officers has lessened while South Africa's population has grown.

In 2010, there were 200 000 officers, now there are 190 000. Compared to a population of 54 million in 2010 and 57 million in 2018, it is a worrying statistic.

READ ALSO: SA land reform programme wont lead to international sanctions, says Cyril Ramaphosa

Do you have news that might interest us? Message us on our Facebook page and we could feature your story.

To stay up to date with the latest news, download our news app on Google Play or iTunes today.

Enjoy the silly Cartoon Comedy: When Adam Met Eva and take a look at what else is happening on Briefly South Africa's YouTube channel.

Source: Briefly.co.za
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About Censored News Censored News is published by Brenda Norrell. Since 2006, Censored News has received more than 20 million pageviews. As a collective of writers, photographers and broadcasters, we publish news of Indigenous Peoples and human rights. Contact publisher Brenda Norrell: brendanorrell@gmail.com

From the publisher Censored News is published by Brenda Norrell, a journalist in Indian country for 39 years. Norrell created Censored News after she was censored and terminated as a staff reporter at Indian Country Today in 2006. She began as a reporter at Navajo Times during the 18 years that she lived on the Navajo Nation. She was a stringer for AP and USA Today and later traveled with the Zapatistas through Mexico. She has been blacklisted by all the mainstream media for 14 years. Contact brendanorrell@gmail.com

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News / National

by Staff reporter

THE International Monetary Fund has a new resident representative in Zimbabwe, Patrick Amir Imam. Mr Imam, who prior to his posting to Zimbabwe was IMF representative for Madagascar, takes over from Mr Christian Beddies who has been the IMF's resident representative in Zimbabwe since May 2014."The International Monetary Fund (IMF) takes this opportunity to announce the arrival of its incoming Resident Representative, Mr Patrick Amir Imam," IMF's Zimbabwe office said in a statement yesterday.Mr Imam, a national of Belgium, Egypt and Germany, has served the IMF since 2005 working on monetary, exchange rate and financial stability issues across Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa. IMF Zimbabwe said that Mr Imam will build on the achievements of his predecessor, Mr Beddies.Zimbabwe has been working with the IMF on a staff monitored programme (SMP) since 2014. The SMP is an informal agreement between a government and IMF staff to monitor the implementation of its economic reforms. The SMP programme, which scheduled from October 2014 to December 2015, did not entail resumption of funding, suspended at the turn of the millennium due to arrears, but which Harare has cleared.
News / National

by Staff reporter

NEWLY-appointed Defence and War Veterans Affairs minister Oppah Muchinguri has pleaded with women to celebrate her historic appointment while promising to be equal to the task of managing a key ministry and being the chairperson of Zanu PF at the same time.Muchinguri, who is a member of the Zanu PF presidium by virtue of being party chairperson, made history by becoming the first woman to preside over the Defence ministry.Her appointment to the ministry also comes at a time President Emmerson Mnangagwa is under fire from women's groups for appointing only six women in his 20-member Cabinet."A woman's touch is always different and if you see there are all men at the top and I know women are looking up to me to ensure there is a gender balance across the board," she said in an interview at State House on Monday during the swearing-in ceremony."This is not new to me and I have been at the helm of the women's league and I have also been at the helm of the Women's Affairs ministry which is a task and half. Fifty-two percent of the population is female and I being at the helm is a lot of work."Considering the journey that we have travelled as women, this is really a drop in the ocean. I am a war veteran, militarily-trained and I was a commander, and so this is not new."Muchinguri promised to improve the welfare of war veterans."As the economy grows, that will also open opportunities for war veterans. I am also looking at land redistribution and mining because war veterans really deserve the share," she said.Meanwhile, Primary and Secondary Education minister Paul Mavima said the government was looking at developing school infrastructure and electrifying all schools in the country.He said there was no looking back on the new curriculum and that the government hopes to help schools which are struggling with materials.Mavima said they intended to build 2 000 more schools and the current supply of teachers will not meet the demand, hence the need to tap into the bulk of unemployed teachers.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Analysts yesterday called on Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor John Mangudya and his team to work in tandem with new Finance and Economic Development minister Mthuli Ncube efforts to help arrest economic decline.Zimbabweans hope that the country will turn a page following decades of economic turmoil under former leader Robert Mugabe, with President Emmerson Mnangagwa's election and his appointment of Ncube to drive the key reforms.Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce chief executive Christopher Mugaga said Mangudya and Ncube's complementary efforts could bring positives."These two are professionals and they will understand each other. Look, they all previously worked for big financial institutions. Mangudya was at CBZ Bank and Mthuli was at the AfDB [African Development Bank]," he said."Remember the central bank's role is advisory. The bond note argument should not be used as a proxy to measure the tiff."Economist Clemence Machadu said the combination of the two distinguished individuals could make a great team."Both are bankers who speak the same language. Mangudya is a Keynesian and Ncube has worked for institutions which were founded on the ideals of John Maynard Keynes himself. Their duties are not in conflict, as they are unequivocally spelt out in the Constitution as well as other pieces of legislation," he said."That being said, we should be more worried about political will because these guys are as good as the policy space and political will that will be extended to them by the powers that be. We all know what happens when new wine is put in old wineskins, there won't be any wine to talk about."So the political incumbents should not maintain the same rigidness of yesteryear, but should be accommodative and be prepared to take 'no' for an answer. There should also be deliberate measures in place to urgently reform the central bank with a view to fostering optimal independence, transparency and accountability in line with global trends."
News / Press Release

by MDC Communications

Today MDC president Chamisa visited the cholera affected area of Glen View where he interacted with the affected community members and families. His first port of call was the Glen View Clinic before proceeding to the sewage works where he noted with disgust the appalling state the of the infrastructure.The President got a firsthand witness of the dire situation in Glen View and called on all council authorities across the country to raise their alertness and urgently come up with mitigatory measures to curb the scourge.Among some of the urgent measures proffered by the President were for all councils to establish disaster mitigation committees, rolling out public health education, intensifying refuse collection and repairing of all burst sewer and water pipes in residential areas. He implored local authorities to move swiftly in attending to these issuesHe stressed that local authorities are an essential component of a functional state adding that the MDC will place Zimbabweans at the center of service delivery. The President's call resonated with the MDC SMART policy pledge.The people's President lamented the state of all Zimbabwe's cities and towns which he said were in a state of decay characterized by collapsed infrastructure, overcrowding, slums and other forms of informal settlements. President Chamisa took the opportunity to reiterate the MDC plan on devolution revolution which will be anchored on the development of SMART cities.President Chamisa reminded all the elected representatives in local authorities to represent the interest of the people in their areas of jurisdiction and warned against complacency and dereliction of duty saying MDC will not tolerate incompetence and mediocre by office bearers.Meanwhile the MDC Secretary of local government Mr Sessel Zvidzai convened an urgent meeting of the MDC local government committee at Morgan Tsvangirai House which was attended by all Mayors of the greater Harare comprising Chitungwiza, Norton, Harare and Ruwa and their respective resident associations to urgently craft a roll out programme of health intervention mechanisms for residents to mitigate the spread of cholera. The meeting resolved to activate all civil protection agencies to prevent mitigate and cure the spread of cholera. The Mayors and resident associations were urged to work round the clock at this time of need.MDC Communications
Opinion / Columnist

In actual essence time will never run out, time is always there but its our lives that run out of time. From the beginning of the Second Chimurenga up to its 'logical conclusion' in 1980, we have lost many cadres along the way but very little has been written about ourselves and the war of liberation.The heroics of heroes and freedom fighters in the theatre of our war, their exploits in subduing the settler forces have become hand-me-down borne-fire stories.Most of our history has been written by 'strangers', the likes of Terrence Ranger and some of his kith. Why are our war veterans not writing on this very important piece of our history, our war of liberation? Even those who sold out during the war can tell us why they did it, its all about us. I challenge our gallant fighters to commit pen to paper and tell us how it all happened.The white historian is likely to omit or leave out chronicles of battles where Rhodesians were obliterated, what if he chose to discredit our triumphant cadres? Let's write our history as eye witnesses and participants, telling it as it was. Noone but ourselves can tell our children the truth, not the sugar-coated 'tell-tales' the whites wrote about our war.Our liberation fighters fought a gruelling war from which they emerged victors, does Nero know?Tondo Murisa. Harare.
Opinion / Columnist

The Zimbabwe's national debt is said to be well above $18 billion with the foreign debt contributing $7.5 billion. The foreign debt ($7.5 billion) excludes the private sector foreign debt of $2.5 billion and the $1.5 billion borrowed from Africa Import and Export Bank (Afreximbank). The domestic debt is estimated at a figure above $6 billion and the government's overdraft at the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is now said to be well above $1 billion. The total figure does not include the latest loan given to President ED Mnangagwa by China in August/September 2018. In short, this is how the ZANU PF government has been sodomizing our economy and mortgaging our country. How did ZANU PF government spend this money?I once told the nation that the Zimbabwe's economic burden is too huge for both ZANU PF government and Mthuli to carry without the assistance of MDC - Chamisa. The solutions proposed by finance minister Mthuli Ncube so far are insufficient, irrelevant and off context to the real economic problems in Zimbabwe. Mthuli Ncube should be serious and accept the fact that Zimbabwe is importing everything i.e. toilet papers, toothbrush and even condoms. In an economy where 'oxygen' is also imported, financial polices won't work and planning is a very difficult task. What it means is that, Zimbabwe is not generating foreign currency but spending a lot of it through payment of imports.Mthuli Ncube is saying that he wants to clear the loan arrears of World Bank and African Bank worth $1.8 billion without telling us the source of the money. He is likely to borrow a loan to clear another loan. The salary wage bill is said to be consuming 90% of the country's total budget and Mthuli Ncube is promising to cut government expenditure, a strategy that will not enable to raise even $50 million.What Mthuli Ncube should know is that, our National debt ballooned by more than 2000% since 2000 and is now standing at a figure above $18 billion. However, with such huge borrowings, Zimbabwe's economy never recovered but only improved during the Government of National Unity before collapsing again. What it means is that, even if Zimbabwe is going to get a grant of $50 billion the economy will not be sustainable unless the question of political legitimacy is addressed. When MDC says, 'you can rig votes but you cannot rig the economy' they mean it. This is the problem that should be addressed in order for Mthuli Ncube to be successful.Mthuli Ncube said he is considering three options to jump start the economy before the end of 2018. The first option is to consider adopting USD only (without bond notes). This option is very impossible to implement before sorting out the issue of political legitimacy. Mthuli should know that, ZANU PF introduced bond notes because there was no money (USD) in circulation that led to money shortage because of the huge amounts of imports. In a country where everything including toothbrush is imported, it means all the foreign currency is exported. Bond notes (though not successful) were meant to solve the problem of foreign currency shortage and money circulation. Without addressing the problem of political legitimacy, the opposition members (who are more than 80% of urban dwellers) will not deposit their savings in Zimbabwean banks. When the Zimbabwe dollar was scraped off in 2008, all citizens in Zimbabwe lost their savings in banks and they cannot be cheated again. Mthuli Ncube should work very hard to install confidence among Zimbabweans in order for them to trust the Zimbabwe banks and this can only be done by addressing the legitimacy problem. Scrapping the bond notes will make the economy to be worse than before.The third option is for Mthuli Ncube to reintroduce the Zimbabwe dollar. Time is not yet ripe for Zimbabwe dollar to be reintroduced. There is no difference between Bond notes and Zimbabwean dollar in terms of performance. The issue of imports and exports should be stabilized before thinking of bringing the Zimbabwe dollar back. The political legitimacy should be addressed as well before reintroducing the Zimbabwe dollar. If Mthuli Ncube is planning to bring back the Zimbabwe dollar, he should also consider buying a lot of 'photocopying money machines'.The last option for Mthuli Ncube is to adopt Rand by joining Rand monetary authority. This option is likely to work despite the fact that South Africa's economy is experiencing some kind of recession. Zimbabwe is a neighbor of South Africa and an estimated 3 million Zimbabweans are said to be in South Africa. This strategy is likely to solve the problems of cash shortages and flow but will not solve the legitimacy problem. However, the future of South Africa's economy is bleak, the proposed land reform without appropriation is likely to determine its success. Economists should address this before Mthuli Ncube considers to implement this option.Conclusion"It is possible for a crocodile to pass through the eye of the needle than for Mthuli Ncube to take Zimbabweans to Canaan". The question of political legitimacy should be addressed in order for Mthuli Ncube to move the country forward. From the figures above, I think you should be now appreciating the fact that ZANU PF government sodomized our economy and mortgaged the country to China. Join me in condemning ED's cabinet and call for the Government of National Unity.Congratulations to the Zimbabweans for having two presidents. One president was imposed by ZEC/ConCourt and the other president is the president of the people (I urge you to come to Gwanzura stadium in your thousands) to witness the inauguration of people's president on 16 of September 2018.In my next piece I will address the diasporas' proposal to mobilize all urban dwellers (opposition supporters) to boycott products produced by companies affiliated or owned by ZANU PF members if the GNU push fails.Don Chigumba is a mixed methods research specialist, can be found on twitter @Donchigumba
Morocco Officially Bans Sexual Harassment And Assault

As of today, acts ranging from street harassment to rape are officially criminalized in Morocco. Al Jazeera reports that the decision, dubbed the Hakkaoui law in honor of Minister of Solidarity, Women, Family and Social Development Bassima Hakkaoui, not only provides an official definition of sexual harassment, but outlines fines ranging from $200 to $1,000 and prison sentences up to five years for threatening, coercing, and assaulting women.

Back in early August, France pushed forward a similar law, but Moroccos actually came firstit was approved by parliament in February. Just like Frances, though, Moroccos new law has received some pushback for not taking these problems seriously enough. According to the BBC, the Human Rights Watch said that there are major gaps and flaws that leave women at risk of domestic violence, including a lack of provisions to finance the reforms.

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The legislation does not explicitly outlaw spousal rape and violence, which are major problems worldwideand, according to Al Jazeera, taboo topics in Morocco. The outlet reported that, according to a nationwide survey from 2009, 62.8% of Moroccan women had experienced some kind of psychological, physical, or domestic abuse, and in 2017, Morocco World News reported that an all-time high of 73% of women regularly faced street harassment.

But, according to the Moroccan lawmakers who care about getting rid of violence towards women once and for all, this is just one small step. Samira Raiss, a womens rights activist who campaigned for the legislation, told the BBC that this law is an asset, but it has shortcomings that we have to work on. We will not stop here.

Top photo via Flickr Creative Commons / CucombreLibre

More from BUST

A New French Law Criminalizes Street Harassment

A Personal History Of Sexual Harassment

Men Who Catcall Women Say Women Like Being Sexually Harassed

Lydia Wang is a writer, a Pisces, and one of BUST's digital editors. Find her on Twitter or say hi: lydiaw@bust.com.
This Is How Long Couples Take To Get Comfortable With Each Other

Trending News: Time To Spend The Night? Survey Reveals Average Couple Timelines

At what point do you relax about spending the night with your new significant other? And when is it OK to start wandering around the bedroom naked in front of her? Also, what about using the bathroom  while shes in there doing her make-up?

Online mattress retailer Mattress Adviser wanted to find the answer to these and other couples-based questions, ranging from the pertinent to the frivolous. So, it surveyed 1,000 people about their relationships and how long it took them to feel comfortable spending the entire night with their significant other among many other questions.

Men Vs. Women

The first finding  that will surprise no one  is that everybody is different. Still, there seems to be a clear definition between the sexes in terms of what they find comfortable and when. Addressing the central question  spending the entire night with your significant other  on average, people were comfortable waiting three months before their partner slept over. But, dig into it in detail and the answers for different permutations of the question differ significantly between men and women. For example:

Having their partner sleep at their house: men are comfortable after 2.8 months; women, 3.8 months.

Sleeping at their partners house: men, 3.6 months; women, 4.4 months.

Sleeping at their partners parents house: men, 7 months; women, 8.1 months

Having their partner sleep at their parents house: men, 6.9 months; women, 9.3 months.

The Mattress Adviser findings didnt stop there, digging into the most anxiety-inducing scenarios when sleeping at a partners house. Men are most worried about snoring and farting their way through the night, while women are very, very concerned about morning breath. Interestingly, only 16 percent of gents were worried about waking up with morning wood.

Getting Comfortable With The Uncomfortable

As for chilling out in the long-term, this is where MA really went deep, building charts of the average timelines of different sleepover habits for people in relationships.

Again, the results varied, but its fair to say the dudes are a pretty chilled out bunch, adapting to every listed habit quicker than the women (except for telling your partner they snore too loudly  both men and women are happy breaking this one at 4.7 months). The biggest discrepancy between the sexes was in wearing a retainer to bed  men were willing to bust this out at three and a half months, while for women it was closer to nine.

The habits it took the longest for people to get comfortable unleashing? Going #2 in front of your partner and asking for an extra house key were both at the bottom of the list. But, even then men were more comfortable in the uncomfortable, being willing to sit on the throne in front of their partner at just over seven months, compared to 10.7 for women, and happy to ask for the house key a whole month earlier than the ladies.

The key takeaway for men? Be courteous. While you might be happy wandering around in the nude with horrific morning breath, your new partner might not be so into it.

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Dairy cows are seen on a farm in Saint-Valerien-de-Milton, southeast of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, August 30, 2018. REUTERS/Christinne Muschi

Negotiations are underway to hammer out a new North American trade deal in the United States capitol, nearly 600 kilometres southeast of Philip Armstrongs dairy farm. The tension in Washington is weighing heavily on the 60-year-old sixth-generation farmer from Caledon, Ont.

Theres not a lot we can do. Its like the weather. You cant control it. You can be scared, concerned, all those type of adjectives, he told Yahoo Canada Finance on Tuesday. The weight is constant. Its like a pressure.

Two sources with knowledge of Ottawas negotiating strategy said on Tuesday that Canada is ready to grant limited access to U.S. dairy producers, Reuters reported.

I hope theyre wrong, Armstrong said of the unnamed Canadian sources. I just keep thinking, if you give an inch, Trump is going to take a mile.

Canadas supply-managed dairy industry has been blasted by a chorus of U.S. officials, most notably President Donald Trump. The controversial system limits the supply of dairy that is produced, while setting the price farmers receive and keeping out foreign milk through tariffs, some as high as nearly 300 per cent.

Canadian dairy was thrust into the U.S political limelight during Trumps 2016 campaign, as U.S. dairy farmers in key states sought better access to the tightly-controlled Canadian market. The issue has forced a wedge between the two countries in the North American Free Trade Agreement negotiations, now underway for more than a year.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has vowed to defend the 1960s-era supply management system designed to avoid boom and bust cycles in Canadas dairy market. However, he has not explicitly ruled out expanding access for American producers in Canada.

Dalhousie University food distribution and policy professor Sylvain Charlebois expects U.S. negotiators will ask for an up to 10 per cent foothold in Canadas dairy market, effectively doubling the access they have now.

If we agree to anything we are in deep, deep trouble, he warned. We could lose a lot of farms, and a lot of processors as well.

Story continues

Canada has 10,961 dairy farms, according to a 2017 federal government estimate. Charlebois said allowing U.S. producers to claim 10 per cent of Canadas dairy market would cause a proportional shutdown of Canadian farms.

It literally means that we have 1,100 too many dairy farms in Canada overnight. They would produce milk for nobody. If you allow more milk, cheese and yogurt into the Canadian market, you dont need our milk anymore, he said.

A group representing Canadas dairy industry fears a death by a 1,000 cuts if the U.S. is granted broader access, saying such a move would compound the impact of concessions made under previous international trade agreements.

Enough is enough. This should not become a trend where we are always reaching into the dairy sector to solve (trade) problems, said Dairy Farmers of Canada Vice President David Weins. What Trump wants would be extremely devastating to our dairy farms.

Canada recently gave up dairy market access to Pacific Rim and European trading partners. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) allows European countries three per cent access. The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which does not include the U.S., allows member states access to 3.25 per cent of the Canadian market.

Right now, we are going to be absorbing the shock of both CETA and CPTPP. Weve not gone through that yet. We still havent measured the impact on prices at retail and prices at farm-gate, said Charlebois. Any percentage (of additional foreign market access) would be too much right now.

Our industry employs over 220,000 people, said Weins. Weve made it very clear to our government, and to others, that every time there is access given it further diminishes our industry and impacts farm families across the country.

Armstrongs namesake family farm about 40 kilometres northwest of downtown Toronto dates back to the mid-1800s. The dairy operation explained significantly in the generation governed by supply management.



Dad, when he came in, he was probably milking about 30 cows. Right now, we are at about 380 to 390 cows. Were milking 325 to 345, three times a day, Armstrong said.

Hes far less confident about growth prospects for the next generation if the comparably massive U.S. dairy industry is allowed to push further into Canada.

We are giving up our future growth in Canada. They say they could phase it in (U.S. competition) over 10 years, but that was our growth for those years. Now it goes to a foreign company, Armstrong said. Youre handcuffing the dairy farms here.

COMPETITION ANXIETY

Charlebois has long advocated for Canada to abandon supply management, dismissing the decades-old system as a relic in the modern industrialized world, steeped in Quebec-based political tension. However, he is not convinced that Canadas long-sheltered dairy industry could survive being thrust into the free market.

We need a different system. The quota system should remain in place, but at the same time it needs to open up. Thats what Mr. Trump is telling us, he said. Benchmark the entire industry based on top-performing farms. You either encourage farmers to become more competitive or you encourage them to exit the industry. Thats one thing you need to do. The second thing is to look at how you can provide programs in the sector for farms to become more competitive. Yes, Im talking about subsidies.

Doing this the right way could take 10 to 20 years, Charlebois estimates. Its a timeline that could be a tough sell if Trump pressures his trade officials to score a fast win in order to secure political support in the U.S. dairy belt.

Armstrong, and Weins of Dairy Farmers of Canada, who also runs a family dairy farm an hour south of Winnipeg, have faith that Canadas trade delegation will have their back. Theyre closely monitoring the rumours emerging from the ongoing talks, hoping their industry will not be bargained off in pursuit of compromise on larger wedge issues.

I dont think its fair to ask. Its time to say no, said Armstrong. If we stop feeding ourselves, dairy could certainly be taken over by the states.

Charlebois said dairy farmers, on either side of the border, should not be criticized for the Canadian dairys vulnerability to an incursion from the south.

They are paying the price of Ottawas political hypocrisy over 20, 30 years. No one has ever dared look at the system through a modern lens, he said. I was expecting this to happen a long time ago. We needed the Trump administration to remind us that we need to do some homework.

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By Alex Lawler LONDON (Reuters) - OPEC on Wednesday further trimmed its forecast for 2019 global oil demand growth and said the risk to the economic outlook was skewed to the downside, adding a new challenge to the group's efforts to support the market next year. In a monthly report, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said world oil demand next year would rise by 1.41 million barrels per day (bpd), 20,000 bpd less than last month and the second consecutive reduction in the forecast. The report provides further indication the rapid oil demand that helped OPEC and allies get rid of a supply glut will moderate in 2019. OPEC last month said global growth faced "numerous challenges", although its latest report suggests concern about them has deepened. "Rising challenges in some emerging and developing economies are skewing the current global economic growth risk forecast to the downside," OPEC said in the report. "Rising trade tensions, and the consequences of further potential monetary tightening by G4 central banks, in combination with rising global debt levels, are additional concerns." Crude briefly pared gains after the OPEC report was released but later rallied to trade above $80 a barrel, a level reached earlier this year for the first time since 2014, supported by expectations for a further drop in Iranian exports. OPEC and a group of non-OPEC countries agreed on June 22-23 to return to 100 percent compliance with oil output cuts that began in January 2017, after months of underproduction by Venezuela and others pushed adherence above 160 percent. The economic downside risks will provide a talking point for a group of OPEC and non-OPEC energy ministers meeting on Sept. 23 in Algiers to monitor the market. The meeting could make policy recommendations. OPEC's next meeting to set policy is not until December. OPEC PRODUCTION RISES In the report, OPEC said its oil output rose in August by 278,000 bpd to 32.56 million bpd following the June deal. The biggest rise came from Libya, which is exempt from the agreement. This helped offset declines in Venezuela, where production is declining due to the economic crisis, and Iran, as buyers walked away ahead of the U.S. sanctions. This means compliance with the original supply-cutting deal has increased to 133 percent, according to a Reuters calculation, meaning members are still cutting more than promised. The original figure for July was 126 percent. The August production rate is lower than the average demand for OPEC crude in 2018 and considerably more than will be needed next year as rivals such as the United States expand supplies. OPEC said the world will need 32.05 million bpd from its 15 members in 2019, unchanged from last month. This suggests there will be a 500,000 bpd surplus in the market should OPEC keep pumping the same amount and other things remain equal. The higher prices that have followed the OPEC-led deal are still prompting more growth in rival supply. OPEC said it expects non-OPEC production to expand by 2.15 million bpd next year, 20,000 bpd more than forecast last month. (Editing by David Evans, Mark Potter, Emelia Sithole-Matarise and Jan Harvey)
CBC Edmonton is setting up a pop-up newsroom at the Mill Woods Public Library for the week of Sept. 10-14. We'll be exploring stories and perspectives from one of Edmonton's oldest communities, and will be broadcasting live from the library on Sept. 14. Have a story to pitch? Come say hi!

Ariel Fournier/CBC

Fifty years ago, Mill Woods wasn't much more than sprawling farmland on the southeast edge of Edmonton. But in the early 1970s, as Alberta's capital began to bloom, the City of Edmonton purchased the agricultural area and started to sell plots of land.

Affordable building lots made Mill Woods an attractive place for a new start in a new country for recent arrivals to Canada. This was the case for Jose and Alicia Sanchez, who arrived in Canada 40 years ago from Chile.

"We've always lived in Mill Woods," Alicia Sanchez said.

The couple and their two young daughters came to Canada in 1978, leaving behind their native country that was ruled at the time by dictator Augusto Pinochet. At the time, human rights abuses were rampant in the South American nation.

"It was a really rough time," Jose Sanchez said. "Everybody was a little [bit] scared."

Sept. 11 marked the 45th anniversary of the 1973 military coup that brought Pinochet to power. During his 17-year dictatorship, more than 8,000 Chileans sought refuge in Canada.

"[There was] no safety over there for my family, and I was so happy because I changed our lives totally," Jose said. "That's why when we got on the airplane and it flew, I thought: 'Oh, finally we are free.'"

Many Chilean refugees arrived in Ontario before heading west, settling in Edmonton and other places.

With only about $1,000 to their name, Jose and Alicia Sanchez were ready for a new start for their young family. Alicia found work in the ladies' wear department at Zellers and Jose worked as a machinist in the oil industry.

But after years of working for others, Jose wanted to run his own business, and a bakery that specialized in Latin American pastries and treats seemed like a good idea.

Story continues

"Jose was the one who wanted to have the bakery," Alicia said. "For me, I knew all the work I would have!

"I was devastated at the beginning. To have to quit working over there [Zellers] to come here and make buns and cakes."

Ariel Fournier/CBC

But the couple had never baked. Ever. And diving into their new business venture required some serious entrepreneurial panache.

La Panaderia Latina  the Latin Bakery  opened its doors in October 1993.

"It was a little rough in the beginning," Jose said. "But now we are actually turning a profit."

Located just off 57th Street and 19th Avenue in Mill Woods, the modest business is the only Chilean bakery in Edmonton.

Jose and Alicia have perfected their empanadas, a savoury Latin American pastry traditionally stuffed with meat and cheese. Now, they make upwards of 250 per week, along with Chilean-style buns and other sweets.

The bakery acts as a mini hub for the Latino community in Mill Woods. It's a destination to get more information on what's happening in the community.

A role model for the community

Just across the way, in the same strip mall, is the office of MLA Rod Loyola.

Loyola, also Chilean, was part of the first wave of Latin American arrivals to Edmonton during Pinochet's military rule. His family arrived on Canada Day in 1976. Loyola was two years old.

Ariel Fournier/CBC

"Coming to a country from a military dictatorship, people who are fleeing violence  they are coming with the clothes on their backs," Loyola said, describing the time when his family first arrived in Edmonton.

His family had originally hoped to one day return to Chile, but instead established themselves within the Mill Woods community.

Loyola was elected in 2015 as the NDP MLA for Edmonton-Ellerslie. He's proud to represent the Latin American people who make up two per cent of the population in the diverse riding.

"Mill Woods is the United Nations of Alberta because here in Mill Woods we probably have everyone from all over the world," Loyola said. "You name it and we have it here."

A new generation

Chile is now among the most stable, and prosperous nations in Latin America. It's less common nowadays to find recent arrivals from the country in Edmonton. More recent arrivals from Latin America to the city tend to be Colombians and Mexicans in search of economic opportunity.

Many of these more recent arrivals live in Mill Woods housing co-ops.

Established by the Chilean community in the late 1970s, the Salvador Allende co-op near 85th Street and 24th Avenue is named after the Marxist president overthrown by Pinochet in 1973.

More commonly known as just the Salvador, the co-op was the first of its type for the Latin American community in Edmonton, offering lower rents to help new arrivals find their footing.

Other co-ops then sprung up, like the Las Americas co-op that sits just adjacent to the Latin Bakery.
For years, Damien Reynolds lived the high life: He drove a blue Lamborghini and a red Ferrari, lived in million-dollar homes and was featured in a magazine profile as the CEO of one of B.C.'s fastest-growing companies. He imported art and appeared on The Real Housewives of Vancouver, where his wife was a main cast member.

But all along, the Canada Revenue Agency claims in court records, Reynolds had also been brushing off the taxman and a growing  eventually crippling  bill.

"Reynolds used funds to support his lavish lifestyle rather than to pay income taxes," a CRA investigator says in a sworn, but unproven, statement filed in court.

On Tuesday morning, the 51-year-old's case goes before a Vancouver judge for his preliminary hearing on three counts of tax evasion  making him the first person named in the Panama Papers against whom the CRA has brought criminal charges.

But in a twist, it appears that's just a coincidence: The CRA seems to have had no idea that the globe-trotter they investigated for three years was named in the huge 2016 leak of tax-haven financial records. Experts say that raises questions about the agency's methods of pursuing potential offshore tax cheats.

'Kid Rock'

A serial dealmaker on the West Coast stock markets, Reynolds helped grow and nurture two dozen small, mostly mining companies in the 1990s and mid-2000s.

Canadian Business magazine, profiling him in May 2008, dubbed him "Kid Rock"  the investment exec whose $100-million firm had "captured investor attention and wallets."

The success allowed him to spend on an array of luxuries: The prior year, he had shelled out $1.7 million on cars (a Bentley, a Maserati, a Porsche and two Lamborghinis), $330,000 on art and more than half a million on jewelry, according to sworn but unproven CRA allegations.

But he also owed, and did not pay, $1.6 million in tax for 2007, on a reported income of $3.7 million, the allegations state.

Story continues

'He said one Maserati was a total loss and he wrote it off in an accident while driving intoxicated' - CRA tax collector cited in court filings

That debt grew as, over half a decade, collection agents tried to get him to make good, it is alleged. But they came up against a wall of explanations.

"I asked Damien about his assets," one tax collector wrote in the CRA's internal logs, cited in the court filings. "He said one Maserati was a total loss and he wrote it off in an accident while driving intoxicated, and the other Maserati was sold for $25,000 to keep him going."

The same collector noted, earlier that year: "He said the Mercedes Benz was for his wife and that was written off also after his wife was T-boned and crashed into a pole. I asked about the Ferrari and the Bentley. He said both vehicles were given to his ex-spouse as a part of the divorce settlement."

The tax agency tried to seize Reynolds's stock trading account, according to court filings. Then he was assigned into bankruptcy, just as his second marriage was dissolving. Finally, the CRA launched a criminal investigation into his finances.

Panama Papers

The criminal probe was extensive, court records show. A half-dozen CRA accountants pored over years of bank statements, credit card receipts, liquor bills and corporate filings. They even obtained his customs declarations.

But despite finding evidence Reynolds had assets offshore, CBC News has learned there was a gap in the agents' work: They never searched his name in the Panama Papers.

CBC

If they had, they would have found that he's named in confidential documents as the owner of an offshore company called Winston Corp.  incorporated in 1996 in the Pacific Island territory of Niue. The company had a bank account in the Bahamas, and appears to have been used to hold hundreds of thousands of dollars in equities that Reynolds owned.

It is not illegal to have an offshore account. Any assets over a certain amount and any income must be reported for tax purposes. In recent years, the CRA has devoted considerable effort to ferreting out people who don't report.

Contacted by CBC News, neither Reynolds nor his lawyer would comment on the Panama Papers revelations, or on any aspect of his unrelated criminal case.

None of the Panama Papers material about Reynolds appears to have been on the CRA's radar, however  even though Revenue Minister Diane Lebouthillier vowed to go through the leak "with a fine-tooth comb" after the government obtained all the files.

That was in May 2016. In the ensuing months, as CRA agents obtained a search warrant and eight production orders in their investigation of Reynolds, they made no mention in their sworn affidavits of anything to do with the leak. Such affidavits, by law, have to be "full and frank" disclosures of all the steps investigators have taken.

The CRA said in a statement it examines and cross-references "all available information including all information obtained through domestic and international sources" in its criminal investigations.

But two sources familiar with the Reynolds probe said investigators hadn't known he is in the Panama Papers until it was flagged by CBC's questions to the agency.

'It raises an eyebrow'

In any investigation, the CRA has to use its resources wisely, so it tends to focus its criminal probes on evidence that has the best likelihood of securing a conviction, Toronto tax litigator and former federal prosecutor David Chodikoff said.

In the Reynolds case, Chodikoff said, it may not matter that the Panama Papers angle went unexplored.

"It raises an eyebrow and it begs the question, Why wasn't the investigator or investigators aware of this and what's their explanation?" he said.

"But beyond that, they have this particular individual in their sights, they are pursuing this individual, so it's not like this is somebody who's escaped the scrutiny of the CRA. And at the end of the day, that's what we're all after as a society. We want people to pay their fair share of tax."
Liberal Leader Philippe Couillard has promised to make public transit free for all seniors and full-time students across Quebec, if elected Oct. 1.

Couillard announced the plan in a busy common space at a Laval CEGEP Tuesday morning, leading to spontaneous applause from students who had stopped to listen.

"We want the next generation to develop the habit of using public transit, and to turn away, by choice, from driving solo," Couillard said.

He gave the example of how a family in Laval with two children  one in university and one in CEGEP  could save $2000 a year as a result of the measure, which Couillard said would come into effect within the party's first mandate.

Radio-Canada

He said a senior living in Montreal who uses public transit could save $600 a year.

"There are many seniors who don't leave their homes because the cost of a transit pass is too much," Couillard said, noting his promise could help seniors have more active and less isolated lives.

Couillard said the province would compensate transit service agencies for lost revenue, at a cost of about $200 million a year.

For its part, Quebec Solidaire has promised to reduce public transit fares by 50 per cent across the province within its first mandate. By a second mandate, it would offer free public transit for all Quebecers.

The Coalition Avenir Quebec and the Parti Quebecois haven't made any specific promises about public transit fares so far this election campaign.

'Mobility Passport'

Couillard also promised to simplify transit by introducing what he called a "mobility passport"  a single pass or app, similar to Montreal's OPUS card, that would allow users to access different types of transit services across the province.

That would include buses, metros, trains, taxis, and bike- and car-sharing services.

Radio-Canada

Couillard said that proposal would cost $5 million, and be relatively easy to implement.

"Most of the transport societies already have cards. With today's technology, it's not very difficult to make them talk to one another," Couillard said.

Story continues

It took nearly 10 years and more than $200 million to set up the OPUS card system in the greater Montreal area.

Couillard also said a Liberal government would ask the province's pension fund manager, the Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec, to study the idea of extending its planned, light-rail project (REM) to Mirabel, Que.

Such a move would likely cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
The Alberta government has halted construction on the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital and dismissed the contractor.

The province has been in a bitter and public dispute with Graham Construction over cost overruns and construction delays.

"This was not a decision that was made easily," Infrastructure Minister Sandra Jansen said in a news release Monday.

"I have been clear that this project is a government priority, and that's why we are taking action to construct this hospital as quickly as possible. The actions taken today will provide greater certainty around the completion of the new hospital."

Construction on the site has been suspended until a new company can be found, which the province said should happen by the end of October.

A new schedule will be available after a new construction manager is in place, the news release said.

In July, the province issued a notice of default to Graham Construction, citing construction delays, and gave the company 15 days to come up with a plan to get the project back on schedule.

Graham Construction placed the blame for the delays and cost overruns on the province, saying the government had made changes to the design that required new construction and demolition of completed work.

The new Grande Prairie Hospital has been in either the planning or construction phase since 2011. The hospital, now slated to cost $736 million, was originally expected to be operational by the end of 2018 or in early 2019.
Updates throughout the day at http://calevbenyefuneh.blog spot.com. If you enjoy "Love of the Land", please be a subscriber. Just put your email address in the "Subscribe" box on the upper right-hand corner of the page.Twitter updates at LoveoftheLand as well as our Love of the Land page at Facebook which has additional pieces of interest besides that which is posted on the blog. Also check-out This Ongoing War by Frimet and Arnold Roth. An excellent blog, very important work.

.

..MEF/Middle Eat Quarterly..Fall 2018 Volume 25: Number 4..September '18..One day, imagine, a U.S. president tells an Israeli prime minister: Palestinian extremism damages American security. We need you to end it by achieving victory over the Palestinians. Do what it takes within legal, moral, and practical boundaries. The president continues: Impose your will on them; induce a sense of defeat, so they give up their 70- year-old dream of eliminating Israel. Win your war.How might the prime minister respond? Would he seize the moment and punish the incitement and violence sponsored by the Palestinian Authority (PA)? Would he inform Hamas that every aggression would temporarily stop all shipments of water, food, medicine, and electricity? Or would he decline the offer?The answer? After intense consultations with Israels security services and heated cabinet meetings, the prime minister would reply to the president with, No thanks. We prefer things as they are.Really? Thats not what one expects, given how the PA and Hamas seek to eliminate the Jewish state, the persistent violence against Israelis, and how Palestinian propaganda hurts Israels international standing. But why?
A spate of attacks, in which at least 20 were killed in Nigeria's central Plateau State over the last week of August, has shattered peace efforts by religious and political leaders in its capital, Jos.

Three months ago, heavily armed Fulani militants stormed 15 villages across the same Barkin Ladi Local Government Area, predominantly Christian, killing more than 230 in a "coordinated military style," as described by the local Stefanos Foundation.

More than 11,500 people were forced to seek refuge in 13 locations across the state, while an undetermined number were injured.

The June violence, one of the deadliest episodes in recent years, forced the state governor, Simon Lalong, to impose a dusk to dawn curfew on the three affected LGAs  Riyom, Barkin Ladi and Jos South  in an attempt to curb the violence.

President Buhari, criticized for his perceived 'lukewarm' attitude to the ongoing Fulani violence in the country, visited Jos to announce an unprecedented deployment of security forces in the region.

However, World Watch Monitor learned that more villages were attacked in the following days. Since then the violence has gone unabated.

On Aug. 28, communities including a mining site at Wereh village (Ropp District), Abonong, Ziyat and Bek villages (Foron District), Nafan, Sagas, Rawuru, and Rambuh villages (Fan District), all in Barkin Ladi, came under heavy attack by Fulani militants.

Victims included a pastor and four members of his family. The Rev. Adamu Wurim Gyang, 50, and his three children were set ablaze and burnt beyond recognition. His wife, Jummai, 45, was shot and left to die in a pool of blood. More than 14 were killed in that attack; 95 houses were burned down and 225 farm crops awaiting harvest were destroyed. A youth at the mining site also died.

Joshua Kim, 43, who visited Abonong on Aug. 29 told World Watch Monitor that Fulani came to his village on Tuesday night and started shooting sporadically, provoking panic among people who ran for safety. Two youths on their way to Rev. Gyang's house to charge their phones were shot by the Fulani; one was killed, the other wounded.

Kim also learned that Rev. Gyang, who lived on his church premises, locked himself with his three children in their room during the attack. Jummai Gyang also locked herself into a toilet. But eventually the assailants attacked the pastorium. They shot Jummai and set fire to the room where her family was hiding.

Eldest son, Adamu, 27, a third year student at University of Jos survived: "I was in school when I saw a post on Facebook about the attack. ... I called my father, his phone was switched off. I called my mother but her phone was switched off as well."

Adamu managed to speak to someone else, who told him about his parents and three brothers: "I could not sleep that night."

Early next morning, Adamu got to the village: he was "devastated" when he saw his mother's body and the remains of his father and three brothers burnt beyond recognition.

"My father had always been the strength of our family. Right now, I don't know how my life will be without him."

Rotshak Linus Kamki, who visited hours after the attacks, also told World Watch Monitor: "On Tuesday around 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. I received a call telling me that Fulani were attacking Abonong. The next morning, I and two others from the village set out. On arrival, we saw people mourning and discussing what to do with 12 corpses already found.

"As we were still gathering the bodies, some youths were sent to mount vigilance in the bush. Not long after they left, one group came running from the hills saying they saw Fulani coming. all of a sudden, it was true.

"Before we could do anything, the Fulani started shooting. We didn't know what to do. We were face to face with them as they came to attack us with weapons, while some were still on the hills. We were helpless."

An eyewitness says angry village youths took to the streets in protest at the attacks. Security forces who only arrived that afternoon shot at them, killing six and wounding several others.

Further details from various sources, including Christian Solidarity Worldwide, revealed that the military, who arrived after the perpetrators had gone, reportedly shot and killed a woman who tried to stop them detaining the local youths, asking them to go after the Fulani militias instead.

In a video circulating online as a crowd holds up her body, a visibly distressed clergyman, the Rev. Ezekiel Dochamo, appeals for assistance from the U.S., British parliamentarians and the UN:

"America, please stand for us. We are dying. ... Please, allow us to survive. We have nobody. Only God in heaven can stand for us. Please, I am begging you. United Nations, your silence is getting worse[er]. ... Please, please, I'm begging you stand for the helpless. ... Yesterday, one of my colleagues, the reverend was slaughtered with his wife and his children, and I was right there ... look at the women, immediately they were commiserating, after the Fulani herdsmen have filled boarded-down two villages.

"Then the soldiers came in, trying to cause confusion. And who are these army men that are using machine-motorcycles? And then they get to shoot, and they would go, who would stand for us?

"There is nobody. Everybody ... we are now ready to do [our] last prayers since an Islamic agenda is taking over the nation.

"Now, we're live at the police station in Barkin Ladi. ... Look at those IDPs, we have nobody to stand, we are the survivors, now war IDPs have been added. Where do they want them to go?

"They have already [been] assigned our lands, have been relocated to them, they have [been] assigned, our villages have been relocated to Fulani herdsmen, and nobody is talking. Even my colleague reverends are keeping quiet.

"Women are dying every day, men are dying. What do you want us to do? Please, please, I am begging you, congressmen, [men] of London ... please I am begging you, stand for the helpless. There is nobody [else]!"

"There is no crisis: rather, people are attacked in their homes and killed"

WWM also learned that on Aug. 31, Fulani herdsmen with over 200 cattle invaded the Rakung community in Barkin Ladi LGA, and destroyed maize farms belonging to James Pam, Filibus Choji, Bulus Gyang Shut, Yusufu Boyi and Iliya Bature. Security forces, who eventually intervened, seized over 150 cows from the Fulani.

Following an investigation, the herdsmen agreed to pay about $1,100 (400,000 Naira) compensation to the farmers to get their cows back.

Fulani herdsmen reportedly also invaded farms in Dorowa community, in Mangu LGA, destroying farm crops and forcing villagers to flee.

The Rev. Dachollom Chumang Datiri, president of the Church of Christ in Nations, condemned the 'unacceptable' killing of the pastor, "an innocent man of God, whose focus was to preach salvation of souls. ... There is no crisis in Plateau; rather people are attacked in their homes and killed.

"The government's first responsibility is to provide security to its people. Go to Abonong and see the crops growing there, yet people were attacked and killed. The attackers cannot say they have issues with these innocent people. And even if they do have issues, it is not with the reverend who preaches to turn away from evil practices who is now killed alongside his family."

The violence is often described as communal clashes between predominantly Christian farmers and Fulani herdsmen, mainly Muslims; President Buhari refers to the struggle for natural resources such as water and fertile land.

However, many Christian leaders in the area argue there is a religious dimension, and without acknowledging that, politicians will not be able to properly address the conflict. On Aug. 29, 100 miles away from the attacks, in Jos, a Peace Summit was ending, organized by the Christian Association of Nigeria for the Northern Regions.

It was attended by top officials, including the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Governor Lalong, along with Church, Women and Youth leaders from the 19 States of Northern Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory (Abuja).

"Sustainable Peace and Security in Northern Nigeria as Panacea for Development: The Role of Religious Leaders" aimed to bring lasting solutions to violence which has, in the last few months, amplified the growing wave of insecurity in Central and Northern Nigeria, particularly in Taraba, Adamawa, Benue, Zamfara, Kaduna, Plateau and Nasarawa states.

This report was originally published on World Watch Monitor: https://www.worldwatchmonitor.org/2018/09/nigeria-pastor-and-three-sons-burned-alive-among-at-least-20-killed-in-latest-plateau-massacre/
Two years ago the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby made profound comments about anti-Semitism. In strong language he described it as the insidious evil and perverted and absurd. In an article for the Holocaust Educational Trust Justin Welby placed anti-Semitism at the heart of racism.

He pinpointed early church teaching as erroneous. It is a shameful truth that, through its theological teachings, the Church, which should have offered an antidote, compounded the spread of this virus, he wrote.

The fact that anti-Semitism has infected the body of the Church is something of which we as Christians must be deeply repentant. We live with the consequences of our history of denial and complicity. he emphasized.

Let us look at a brief history of the first four centuries of Christianity, which established a "legacy of hatred" towards the Jewish people, which was against the clear teaching of the New Testament.

In the first century AD, the church was well connected to its Jewish roots, and Jesus did not intend for it to be any other way. After all, Jesus is Jewish and the basis of His teaching is consistent with the Hebrew Scriptures. In Matthew chapter 5, verses 17-18 He states: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished."

Before the First Jewish Revolt in AD 66, Christianity was basically a sect of Judaism, as were the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes.

After the Second Jewish Revolt (AD 133-135) put down by the Roman Emperor Hadrian, theological and political power moved from Jewish Christian leaders to centers of Gentile Christian leadership such as Alexandria, Rome, and Antioch. It is important to understand this change, because it influenced the early Church Fathers to make anti-Jewish statements as Christianity began to disconnect itself from its Jewish roots.

Righting a hideous wrong

As the Church spread far and wide within the Roman Empire, and its membership grew increasingly non-Jewish, Greek and Roman thought began to creep in and completely change the orientation of Biblical interpretation through a Greek mindset, rather than a Jewish or Hebraic mindset. This would later result in many heresies, and the Archbishop of Canterbury has boldly made an effort to right a hideous wrong.

At the end of the 4th century, the Bishop of Antioch, John Chrysostom, the great orator, wrote a series of eight sermons against the Jews. He had seen Christians talking with Jewish people, taking oaths in front of the Ark, and some were keeping the Jewish feasts. He wanted this to stop. In an effort to bring his people back to what he called, "the true faith," the Jews became the whipping boy for his sermon series.

To quote him, "the synagogue is not only a brothel and a theater; it is also a den of robbers and a lodging for wild beasts. No Jew adores God... Jews are inveterate murderers, possessed by the devil, their debauchery and drunkenness gives them the manners of the pig. They kill and maim one another..."

The result of these anti-Jewish teachings continued onwards throughout Church history, manifesting itself in such events and actions as the Crusades, the accusation of communion host desecration and blood libel by the Jews, the forced wearing of distinguishing marks to ostracize them, the Inquisition, the displacement of whole Jewish communities by exile or separate ghettoes, the destruction of synagogues and Jewish books, physical persecution and execution, the Pogroms. Ultimately, the seeds of destruction grew to epic proportions, culminating in the Holocaust, which occurred in "Christian" Europe.

The Gentiles

We Gentile Christians are told that the Jews are "beloved for the sake of the Patriarchs" (Romans chapter 11, verse 28). They are a chosen people who fulfilled their calling and brought the Gospel to the world. They were chosen to:

Be obedient to God's Word and demonstrate to the world as "a light to the nations."

Hear God's Word and record it - the Bible.

Be the human channel for the Messiah.

The Promise

The Jewish people have fulfilled their role. The promise to the world through Abraham was that, "in you will all the nations on the earth be blessed" (Genesis chapter 12, verse 3). They were to be a light unto the nations and, while they made mistakes as we all do, they did demonstrate the power of God on earth, they did hear God's Word and record it so that we have the Bible, and they were the human channel for the Messiah, who was born, ministered, died, rose from the dead, ascended to heaven and will return to Jerusalem, Israel, in a day yet to come.

God made an everlasting covenant between the land of Israel and the Jewish people that must be fulfilled and completed or His Word, the Bible, will be proven a lie, which it is not.

God will never forget or annul His ancient people. If God will not fulfill His promises to Israel, what guarantee do we have that He will fulfill His promises to the Church? (See Jeremiah chapter 31, verses 35-37).

Had the Church understood this very clear message from the beginning, then the sad legacy of anti-Semitic hatred from the Church may have been avoided. Yet, it is not too late to change our ways and rightly relate to the Jewish people and Israel today. Not only do we need to learn and do for ourselves, but we need to teach others so as to counteract the historical error that has been fostered in the Church for 2,000 years.

For more on this topic please visit www.bridgesforpeace.com.

Ron Ross is a Middle East consultant for United Christian Broadcasters (Vision FM). Previously he was radio news editor for Bridges for Peace in Jerusalem, Israel.

His career started at WINTV (Email: ronandyvonne@mac.com)

Ron Ross previous articles may be viewed at http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/ron-ross.html
Agile Cigar Reviews are cigar assessments where we use a lightweight, shorter format. These will never take the place of our comprehensive reviews. They are only used on blends we have previously assessed. This might be a blend we are re-scoring or giving a score for the first time. It might be a blend we are looking at in a different size. Today we look at the Saga Short Tales Tomo I  Tales of High Priming by De Los Reyes Cigars. This is a cigar we previously assessed back in June 2016.

Wrapper: Nicaraguan

Binder: Indonesian

Filler: U.S. Connecticut Broadleaf, Dominican (including Negrito)

Country of Origin: Dominican Republic

Factory: De Los Reyes SA

Short Gordo: 4 x 58

Two years ago, De Los Reyes Cigars launched a new line under its Saga brand known as Saga Short Tales. As the name indicates, Short Tales is a line the focuses on smaller and short-sized cigars. Saga Short Tales is a series of ten unique blends, each in a different size, with a different theme. Each cigars theme pays homage to tobacco and/or cigar making. The first installment is known as Tomo I: Tales of High Priming. Its a cigar that earned a spot on the Cigar Coop Countdown in 2018. Today we take a closer look at this release. This is a cigar that has been aging for over two years in the Cigar Coop humidor.

As the name Tales of High Priming indicates, the cigar incorporates high priming corona leaves from the tobacco plant. The corona leaf grows at the top of a tobacco plant and is subject to getting more sunlight and nutrients. The end result is when these tobaccos are incorporated into the blend, it results in a fuller-strength, fuller-bodied cigar experience.

The blend of the Saga Short Tales of High Priming incorporates high priming Corona tobaccos including U.S. Connecticut Broadleaf and Reyes family-grown Dominican tobaccos (including Dominican Negrito). In addition, the cigar utilizes an Indonesian binder to facilitate combustion of the high priming tobaccos in the filler. The cigar is finished with a Nicaraguan wrapper. The blend comes in one size  a 4 x 58 Short Gordo. The cigar was packaged in ten-count boxes that resemble library books. This packaging design is a staple for the Sage Short Tales line.

When I first assessed Tales of High Priming two years ago, I put this as one of the most powerful cigars ever to come out of the Dominican Republic. At that time I was curious to see what age would do to this cigar. I think its fair to say there was some mellowing, but its also a cigar that I would still put in the powerhouse category. After starting out medium to full in strength and body, it doesnt take long for this cigar to move into full territory for both attributes  where it remains for the duration of the smoking experience.

As mentioned, Tales of High Priming is a full strength, full-bodied cigar that easily is one of the most powerful cigars ever to come out of the Dominican Republic. While the strength level will definitely be felt on this cigar, its not at the expense of the flavor. The cigar delivers notes of cedar, generic wood, natural tobacco, black pepper, and a subtle black cherry note. Many times higher priming tobaccos have burn and combustion issues  no such problems with the Tales of High Priming as it consistently scores well in this area.

The age did some nice things to the flavor profile. The Tales of High Priming smoke delivered a mix of chocolate, cedar, red pepper, earth, and bing cherry. The chocolate note was something I didnt pick up a couple of years ago, but it was not an integral part of the smoke  particularly during the first half. The second half of the cigar is more earthy, but is still balanced nicely from the red pepper, chocolate, cedar, and cherry notes. As for the spice, it has a presence in the flavor profile, but doesnt overpower the other flavors.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

With two-plus years of age, there was a slight downtick in the boldness of the cigar, but in the grand scheme of things, this cigar still is going to be considered a very strong cigar. While this cigar has plenty of firepower, it continues to come up big in the flavor department. I liked what some of the additional age did to some of the flavors  including the emergence of a chocolate note that I didnt notice when I first smoked this. Given this is quite a bold cigar, Id recommend this to a more seasoned cigar enthusiast. As for myself, this is a cigar that I would definitely smoke again. It has a great price and its worthy of a box purchase.

Summary

Key Flavors: Earth, Cocoa, Herb, Pepper, Citrus

Burn: Very Good

Draw: Very Good

Complexity: Medium Plus

Strength: Medium to Full (Initial Stages), Full

Body: Medium to Full (Initial Stages), Full

Finish: Very Good

Rating

Value: Box Purchase

Score: 92

References

Previous Assessment: Saga Short Tales-Tales of High Priming

News: De Los Reyes Launching Saga Short Tales

Price: $8.49

Source: De Los Reyes Cigars

Brand Reference: Saga

Photo Credits: Cigar Coop
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CPJ report finds military pressures media to self-censor

Washington D.C., September 12, 2018Pakistans press is under pressure as the countrys powerful military quietly but effectively encourages self-censorship, the Committee to Protect Journalists found in its report, Acts of Intimidation: In Pakistan, journalists fear and censorship grow even as fatal violence declines. The report will be accompanied by a short documentary film and a panel discussion at the Wilson Center in Washington, D.C.

The report, based on interviews with journalists during a mission to Pakistan this year, found that measures to stomp out terrorism in the country have gone hand-in-hand with increased pressure on the media. The military bars access to certain areas, uses direct and indirect acts of intimidation, and even allegedly instigates violence against reporters to prevent critical reporting. Freelancers and journalists from established media companies said that to avoid retaliation, they often tone down or avoid controversial but newsworthy stories.

CPJ research shows fewer journalists were killed in retaliation for their work in recent years, but impunity remains an issue, with the military, intelligence, or military-linked and political groups the suspected source of fire in half of the 22 journalist murders in the past decade.

While the decline in the killing of journalists is encouraging, the government needs to counteract pressures that have resulted in rampant self-censorship and threats to the media, said CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Steven Butler. Pakistan must address the disturbing trend of impunity and attacks on journalists to shore up this faltering pillar of democracy.

The report, written by Butler, includes recommendations to Pakistans government and news media owners and editors. CPJs multimedia producer Mustafa Hameed contributed research and reporting, and produced the accompanying documentary.

A panel will discuss the findings of the report at the Wilson Center in Washington, D.C., at 2 p.m. EDT on September 12. Hameed will present the documentary. Butler will be joined on the panel by Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Wilson Centers Asia program; Farahnaz Ispahani, a global fellow at the center; Madiha Afzal, adjunct assistant professor of global policy at John Hopkins SAIS and nonresident fellow at the Brookings Institution; and Anwar Iqbal, Washington correspondent for Pakistani paper, Dawn.

Note to Editors:

Acts of Intimidation: In Pakistan, journalists fear and censorship grow even as fatal violence declines is available in English. For questions, or to arrange an interview with CPJ experts in English or Urdu, email press@cpj.org.

###

CPJ is an independent, nonprofit organization that works to safeguard press freedom worldwide.

Media contacts:

Bebe Santa-Wood

Communications Associate

press@cpj.org

212-300-9032
West Bengal: Climate adaptation remains neglected in the Sundarbans

by Dhruba Dasgupta

September 12,2018 | Source: India Climate Dialogue

When researchers involved Gauri Mondal, a woman farmer in the Indian Sundarbans, as a participant in a project to evolve adaptive strategies to counter the impact of climate change in the worlds largest estuarine mangrove forest, she had little idea what it was all about.



By the third year of the study, Mondals income had risen to INR 40,000 (USD 550) a year by rearing poultry and adopting many other farming practices recommended by the researchers. At that time, we used to rear 50 ducks and 50 poultry at a time, besides much else, with project support, the 33-year-old subsistence farmer told indiaclimatedialogue.net.



The good days, however, did not last. Once the project got over, she found that the costs of maintaining the newly taught practices were not sustainable. I had to scale down the work, she recounted. During the project, we received focused training from the experts. But after the project was over, neither the research team nor the Sundarban Development Board came back to us for any follow-up.



Such tales of hope and despair abound in the world heritage site of Sundarbans, which is already reeling under the impacts of climate change in the form of more turbulent seas, increasingly saline soil and violent cyclones. The Sundarbans is the worlds largest contiguous mangrove forest and one of the most highly modified estuaries in the world. It has attracted a steady stream of researchers from home and abroad, but the outcomes and findings have often not been appropriately communicated to the subjects of the research or to policymakers.



Fish production the Sundarbans is a case in point. In 2010-11, the Sundarbans produced nearly 40% of the combined fish catch in the inland sector of the North and South 24 Parganas districts of the state of West Bengal. Freshwater aquaculture, a significant driver of the local economy, is clearly threatened, and experts say the vulnerability of fishery-based livelihoods to climate change has increased over time. In 2013, India ranked third in the Global Climate Risk Index, a ranking of 170 countries that are most vulnerable to climate change, behind the Philippines and Cambodia. Anthropogenic activities, together with climate variability, pose a serious threat to the biotic and abiotic integrity of the Sundarban delta.



Climate-resilient aquaculture



One of many research projects  Development of Climate Resilient Aquaculture Strategies for Sagar and Basanti Blocks of Indian Sundarban  was conducted by the West Bengal University of Animal and Fisheries Sciences (WBUAFS) between 2010-11 and 2014-15. Besides the university, which is an institution affiliated to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), other stakeholders included the Sundarban Development Board, West Bengals Department of Fisheries and Sundarban-based NGOs such as Paribesh Unnayan Parishad and Joygopalpur Gram Bikash Kendra and fish farmers of the surveyed area.



The project aimed to develop climate-resilient aquaculture strategies for freshwater aquaculture against climate change induced salinity intrusion in the Sagar and Basanti administrative blocks, which fall under the high aquatic saline zone and are often exposed to climatic hazards. Both the blocks suffered heavily during Cyclone Aila in 2009. When a survey report was published as the first official output of the project in 2012, S. Ayyappan, Secretary General of ICAR, expressed hope that the benchmark survey could prove useful in making policy and planning for the future aquaculture development programme for the Sundarban region.



After interactions with farmers, the researchers thought it was best to integrate aquaculture with livestock rearing and cropping. They tried out their model in the fields and ponds of farmers such as Mondal. The results were encouraging. The participatory mode research showed increased production and profitability, resulting in a 60% jump in farm cash incomes compared with pre-intervention levels. Better space utilisation, recycle of domestic waste, crop diversification and better manpower utilisation brought this turnaround.



The testing of solutions in the two blocks affected by Cyclone Aila in 2009 and by increasing climatic variability in subsequent years was done by the study team for a three-year period. Interventions in the farmers fields included raising of pond dyke heights and fencing of pond with nets, supply of various species of fish and partial supply of fish feed, supply of improved variety paddy seeds and other costs of paddy farming, supply of ducks, poultry, goats and their feed and building their dwelling places and supply of various salinity tolerant fruit trees and plants such as guava, mango, jackfruit, coconut etc. The research team also evaluated salinity tolerance of 17 freshwater fish species convenient for saline aquaculture in the Sundarbans, which was thought to be useful for integrated climate-adaptive farming.



Disappointing follow-up



The findings were disseminated through stakeholders meetings and reports were made to the Sundarban Development Board (SDB) and other relevant stakeholders. However, the projects recommendations were not widely adopted, and policymaking and planning for a future aquaculture development programme in the Sundarbans never materialised. Unfortunately, things have not moved, Raman Kumar Trivedi, Principal Investigator of the project, told indiaclimatedialogue.net. This was despite the fact that the Sundarban Development Board was a partner in this project.



Our process was elaborate and selection criteria included noticeable levels of vulnerability in the farmer, reasonable level of knowledge of aquaculture, technicalities of the surroundings of the ponds and presence of womenfolk who stood to benefit from the intervention, since women played an equal role in decision-making in the Aila-affected households. The board helped us in all this, giving us logistical support, Trivedi said. However, the next two stages  upscaling the solutions and policy-making interventions  was never in our hands.



The availability of institutional credit is poor in the Sundarbans and the research report had recommended that this be strengthened to facilitate climate-resilient agriculture. During the project period, efforts towards capacity building of affected farmers and joining them up with locally situated government and non-government institutions was undertaken regularly. But it was not enough to ensure continuation of those activities or improvement in the credit scenario after the project period.



Anindya Sundar Ghosh, former Deputy Project Director of SDB who was a key person during the implementation of the project, admitted the lack of follow-up. SDB provided logistics support during the project period, he told indiaclimatedialogue.net. After dissemination meetings were held and results announced to us, no livelihood support programme was evolved by correlating project findings with follow-up action.



Lack of policy intervention



The lack of policy intervention is only too evident in the Sundarbans. Although training has been imparted on climate-resilient aquaculture for the past two years, no other initiative is being carried out, admitted Abdul Gani, Special Secretary at the Sundarban Affairs Department. We have no separate policy on climate-resilient aquaculture, Gani said. Policy formulations with respect to climate change are the responsibility of the climate cell of the Department of Environment.



The states officer-in-charge of climate issues in the Department of Environment admitted the lack of policy communication. With respect to the Sundarbans or aquaculture practiced there, no study findings or policy suggestions have come to us, he said. As a matter of practice, we incorporate any suggestion from any department of the state government into the State Action Plan on Climate Change, which is due to be updated and released soon.



In terms of scaling up such interventions, the responsibility usually rests with institutions that look after fisheries extension work. Normally, Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), which are affiliated to the ICAR, as also Fisheries Extension Officers at the Department of Fisheries are supposed to carry out this task.



For this project, the best-situated institution to carry out this work was KVK Nimpith located in the Sundarbans. However, queries to the Subject Matter Specialist at KVK Nimpith, who was present at the stakeholder meetings during the project period, went unanswered, as he declined to comment on the findings of this study.



In terms of extension work, KVK Nimpith showed a greater emphasis on agriculture and horticulture, and less of an orientation towards fisheries. They also had a limited area of operation, Trivedi said. Therefore, extension work related to the findings of our project has not been effective.



Sourabh Kumar Dubey, who was Senior Research Fellow at the WBUAFS during this project period and is now with the International Water Association, summed up the situation. The ultimate outcome is project findings stay under the carpet. The fish farmer, researcher and policymaker have a clear disconnect, which results in non-implementation of project recommendations. Effective action on the ground to tackle climate change and develop adaptive capacity of the farmers is the final casualty.
Bangladesh: To stop fish exports to Tripura

by Shilajit Kar Bhowmik

September 12,2018 | Source: Dhaka Tribune

According to sources at the Agartala-Akhaura Integrated Check Post, Bangladesh is going to stop exporting fish to Tripura from Satrurday. Bangladesh has decided to stop exporting fish to Tripura. However, it is not their fault. It is the fault of importers in Tripura, who are embroiled in internal disputes, the sources said, on condition of anonymity.



A shipment of fish arrived here last Wednesday. After necessary procedures at the integrated check post, gate-passes were allotted at 9am. However, various quarters have claimed that delivery of the shipment to the markets was delayed due to internal clashes between importers. As a result, the fish began decomposing, they added.



Consequently, Bangladeshi exporters incurred huge losses. Naturally, they demanded compensation from the importers in Tripura, and said they would never export fish to Tripura otherwise, the sources continued. Furthermore, there has been a hike in the prices of fish in Tripura, as the Indian state is heavily dependent on fish imports from Bangladesh. Tripura usually imports 12-15 tons of fish from Bangladesh every day.
Bangladesh: Crab farming in Satkhira: A watershed for the economy

by Asaduzzaman Sarder

September 12,2018 | Source: Dhaka Tribune

Satkhira is well-known for its tiger prawns, referred to as "white gold". Tiger prawn farming started in the southwestern part of Bangladesh, including Satkhira, in the 1980s. Although the tiger prawn business started profitably, the market price slowly dwindled. Instead, farmers who have suffered financial losses due to the spread of viruses among their stock, a lack of sufficient farming land, and an increase of lease prices, have adopted crab farming.



In just a few year, crab farming has become extremely popular with the local farmers of Satkhira. Every year, the number of crab farms increases in the district. The government has started to create a crab-based industry because of increased demand by the international market.



The unemployed youth have achieved a great deal of success by making small capital investments in crab farmingafter receiving the governments free training on the subject. According to an Office of Fisheries official in Satkhira, currently, there are 112 government, and 340 non-government, crab farms in the district. Work to buildmore farms is underway. In the Fiscal Year (FY) 2014-15, 53.39 acres of land were used to farm crabs, which increased to 157.9 acres in FY2015-16, and stood at 208 acres during FY2016-17.



The number of crab enclosures began at 364 in FY2014-15, with the number reaching 380 in FY2015-16. In 2016-17, the number of enclosures increased to 452. Farmers in: Shyamnagar, Debhata, Kaliganj, Ashashuni, and other areas in Satkhira, are using varied techniques to farm crabs. Additionally,crabs are also naturally fished from the Sundarbans and other neighbouring areas.



The produced crabs are exported to: the US, Australia, Malaysia, Thailand, China, and other countries. Although crab farming has been ongoing for the last few years, currently, it is in a position to open a new window of opportunity for the country's economy. Despite lower demand for crab inside the country, because of religious reasons, demand has skyrocketed abroad. The rate at which crab exports is increasing might surpass the export of "white gold" or tiger prawns, according to farmers involved in crab farming. They say that the all the crabs that are caught from the rivers near the Sundarbans grow up naturally, from larvae. The area, due to its salty water, is favourable throughout the year to farm crabs.



At present, there are 12 species of crab in the country. Of them, Maila and Shila are the best quality crabs. The countries that were popular destinations for prawn exports now have a great demand for crabs, including: Hong Kong, Singapore, the US, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, and others.



Munshiganj and Burigoalini unions of Shyamnagar upazila have established several crab- fattening farms with the help of government and private initiatives. Pavel from Burigoalini union said that, after buying them from the markets, crabs are fattened in small cages. As a result, within 20-22 days, all crabs weigh twice their size after shedding their shells. The quicker the shells are shed, the softer the crabs remain. This increases their demand on the export marker.



Due to its profitability and lower risk of contracting diseases, crab-fattening in cages is increasingly popular among farmers. A local women's community leader, Monika Rani, from Norarchak area of Debhata, has trained 55 women, with the help of the government, to fatten crabs in ponds using cages. The government has provided them with 150 cages. Monika talked about her experiences with this correspondent, and shared her satisfaction in crab farming. She hopes for greater successes in the future with this business.



Fisheries Officer of the Satkhira district Fisheries Department Shahidul Alam Sarder said that, due to its profitability, crab farming has started becoming popular all over the country. Most of the exports originate from Satkhira. Other than that, the government is also providing the necessary sponsorship and training to promote this particular sector, Sarder said.
The incident happened last Thursday and the victim, Guru Prashant, succumbed on Monday. (Representional Image)

Bengaluru: A 31-year-old software professional succumbed to stab injuries, caused by a screwdriver, which he sustained following an altercation with a cyber cafe staff in Banashankari.

The incident happened last Thursday and the victim, Guru Prashant, succumbed on Monday. The police have detained the accused, identified as Karthik, for murder.

According to preliminary investigation, Guru, a resident of Banashankari Third stage and a Wipro employee, had gone to a nearby cyber cafe on Thursday night to get printouts of his resume.

A dispute arose regarding the charges. According to Karthik, each print out costs Rs 2, but when Guru printed them, coloured printouts emerged.

When Karthik demanded more money, a heated argument ensued between the two. In a fit of anger Karthik took out a screwdriver and stabbed Guru on his head.

The screwdriver poked the skull near the left ear and Guru experienced severe pain and collapsed outside the centre.

Passersby rushed a profusely bleeding Guru to a nearby private hospital from where he was shifted to BGS Hospital, where he succumbed, police said.
lost and found: The tiffin box that was retrieved from the accused. Right: A video grab from the CCTV footage of the two accused roam scot-free after the theft in the museum.

Hyderabad: A week after the sensational burglary at the H.E.H Nizam Museum, in which two men broke in and decamped with precious artefacts, the Hyderabad police have cracked the case and nabbed the two men on Monday night.

According to the police, Mohd Mubeen, the 24-year- old mastermind, visited the museum 45 days prior to the date of the theft to check it out as CC cameras auto-erase the data every 30 days.

He noticed the poor security and talked his childhood friend and habitual offender, Mohd Ghouse Pasha into helping him to steal the artefacts.

Police Commissioner of Hyderabad Anjani Kumar said, Mohd Mubeen, after returning from Saudi Arabia, happened to visit the Nizam museum and was amused by seeing the precious artefacts gold tiffin box, gold cup and saucer, gold spoon and the gold casing of the Holy Quran. He discussed committing the theft with Ghouse.

He planned to use his international connections to dispose of the stolen objects.

As per their plan, Ghouse went to the museum and observed the location of the gold tiffin box. As the museum spreads over a long corridor, in order to avoid confusion, he fixed the landmark by identifying a dried up tree which is opposite the location of the tiffin box.

After three days, the duo came in the night and did a recce of the entire premises and surroundings and the location of CCTV cameras. On the same day, they put an arrow mark over the ventilator through which they had to enter the museum and over the parapet wall corresponding to the ventilator.

They also analysed which tools would be useful to them in the commission of the offence and on the day of the offence, they carried three screwdrivers, cutting pliers, nail pullers, ten hacksaw blades and rope for removing the ventilator and getting into the museum from the top. They tied about 30 knots all over a rope for a grip and wore hand gloves to avoid fingerprints and masks to avoid identification, said the Additional Commissioner of Task Force Police, Chaitanya Kumar.

They planned to enter the museum through the route devoid of CCTV cameras, but failed to get into the museum. Finally they reached the museum through Mata-ki-khidki side on a bike and this was captured in the CCTV footage.

They reached the roof of the museum from the terrace of a neighbouring house whose wall abutted the wall of the museum.

They carefully removed the ventilator and as Mubeen glided down with the rope, Ghouse tied one end of the rope to the parapet wall and the other end to Mubeens waist and released him slowly inside the museum through the ventilator. While getting down, he damaged the camera inside the museum which is right beneath the ventilator. He then took out the gold tiffin box, gold cup and saucer and gold spoon from the showcase, put them in a bag and climbed up using the rope, which was pulled by Ghouse from the other end. They exited the museum through the same route used for entry, said Mr Kumar.

To avoid being tracked by police on CCTV cameras, they avoided main roads and moved through by-lanes haphazardly and reached Muthangi in Sangareddy district located on the Mumbai highway.

The police commissioner said that at Muthangi ORR, they changed their route and took a service road along the ORR and travelled towards Hyderabad, to show police tracking them on CCTV that they had left the city.

Fearing that they might be caught with the goods they dug a pit in an open area near a dairy farm at Rajendranagar and buried the stolen property there. The police however

tracked it down and retrieved the artefacts. The two were arrested late Monday night and handed over to the Mirchowk police.

Mr Kumar said that the stolen booty will be hand over to the court to be returned to the museum.
Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 18-09-12 Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/> Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 12.09.18 Contents [A] Turkish Cypriot Press [01] Nami says that the "ball" for bringing electricity from Turkey is in Ankara's court [02] They gain millions from occupied Greek Cypriot properties [03] Baybars evaluates her contacts in Ankara [04] Three persons arrested in the occupied area of Cyprus with the accusation of links to FETO [05] Schools begin with shortages in the breakaway regime [06] More protests to come in the occupied area of Cyprus [B] Turkish Press [A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS [01] Turkey, Russia and Iran reach 'agreement in principle' on Syria Constitutional Committee lists [02] Cavusoglu held a phone conversation with his French counterpart over a Syria summit to be held in Istanbul on Friday [03] Turkey signs agriculture, oil exploration deals with Sudan [04] Turkey deploys observers to giant Russian-Chinese military exercise Vostok [05] Turkey's MIT nabs terror suspect in Syria's Latakia with 'pinpoint operation' [A] Turkish Cypriot Press [01] Nami says that the "ball" for bringing electricity from Turkey is in Ankara's court Turkish Cypriot daily KIBRIS (12.09.18) newspaper reports that Ozdil Nami, self-styled minister of economy and energy of the breakaway regime in the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus, has said that they have started working on the issues of brining electricity from Turkey with undersea cables and using renewable energy sources and added that the ball is in Turkey's court on these issues. Speaking to members of the Turkish Cypriot chamber of industry, Nami recalled that they are discussing the issue of interconnecting their electricity networks with Turkey and of making use of solar energy. "The ball is not in our court anymore, it is in Turkey's court", he said. Noting that they are holding contacts with the Turkish Cypriot electricity "authority" (KIB-TEK), Nami argued the following: "Investments will be made in the field of electricity, but things will not be like before. We should have access to cheap electricity". Referring to the devaluation of the Turkish lira, Nami admitted that it caused a decrease in their purchase power, even though the developments do not depend on them. He alleged that during the establishment of the current self-styled government, the occupation regime's economy was at the 114th place among 144 countries, adding that their competitive power decreased and that they should sit with Turkey to discuss the issue of incentives and credits for increasing production. (I/Ts.) [02] They gain millions from occupied Greek Cypriot properties Under the title "Whose property are you selling and to whom?" Turkish Cypriot daily AFRIKA (12.09.18) newspaper reports that a plot of land in occupied Agios Amvrosios area is for sale for two million sterling pounds, according to a sign put in front of this land, which occupies an area of 20 donums [Translator's note: One donum is a land measure of about 1000 square meters]. The paper describes this sign as "the most recent live evidence of looting and plundering" and notes that this sign aroused great interest on the social media and caused broad reactions. The paper writes also the following: "Agios Amvrosios is the favorite area of the plunderers recently. A few years ago, a person from the Black Sea had sold 27 donums of land in Agios Amvrosios for 800 thousand sterling pounds. Now its value has further increased. 20 donums are sold for two million sterling pounds". Referring to the issue, columnist Hasan Hasturer in Turkish Cypriot daily KIBRIS newspaper (12.09.18) reports that he was the one who shared two photos yesterday on social media showing two plots of land which are for sale in occupied Agios Amvrosios adding that he did this because the issue attracted his attention. Under the title "The wound of lack of justice is not healed", Hasturer notes that these plots of land were put up for sale for 600 thousand and two million sterling pounds respectively. Publishing some to the comments made under these pictures, the columnist says: "This article's aim is not to scratch the wound. It is to contribute in the perception of a reality. There is no justice in the sharing of plunder. The immovable properties, which remained from Greek Cypriots, would be utilized. Otherwise economy could not be constructed. However, there have been so unfair practices that the wound continues bleeding, in spite of the fact that 44 years have passed []". (I/Ts.) [03] Baybars evaluates her contacts in Ankara Under the title "Important step in Ankara", Turkish Cypriot daily Star Kibris newspaper (12.09.18) reports that self-styled minister of interior Aysegul Baybars, who carried out yesterday contacts in Ankara with Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu and the Turkish Minister for Justice Abdulhamit Gul, said that important steps have been taken in cooperation with Turkey in the fight against organised crime and judicial assistance. According to illegal Bayrak (12.09.18, http://www.brtk.net/?english posts=baybars-completes-ankara-contacts), Baybars, evaluating her contacts to "BRT", said that "cooperation in the field of justice, the technical aspects of the new prison being constructed and the creation of a forensics institute and a cybercrime unit were amongst the issues discussed during the meetings". She also added that "the creation of an online system to run checks at entries and exits to the country was amongst the issues we discussed on preventing crime". Baybars also said that she had found the opportunity to discuss "the urban security management law, adding that work had already been carried out on the law in line with a protocol signed by her predecessor and Minister Soylu". She explained that she had discussed the technical aspects of the new state prison including the training of the prison staff and equipment for prison officers. "We are planning to complete the new prison by the beginning of 2019" she added. Baybars also pointed out that there is currently a unit dealing with cybercrimes but that a forensics lab which could carry out detailed analysis did not exist and added: "We discussed how we could establish such a lab or a forensics institute". (DPs) [04] Three persons arrested in the occupied area of Cyprus with the accusation of links to FETO Under the title "The arrests have begun", Turkish Cypriot daily Nacak newspaper (12.09.18) reports that the names of some businessmen, bureaucrats and casino owners were revealed during a court testimony at the 8th criminal court in Diyarbakir, Turkey, of a suspect regarding the structure and activities of FETO in the occupied area of Cyprus. After this testimony, the operations to arrest suspects of links to FETO organizations have been launched in the occupied area of Cyprus. According to the paper, "three persons, who were arrested yesterday in Keryneia as part of the operations, were brought before the district court of Keryneia after a police interrogation, where it was decided to remain under police custody for three days, while the police investigations are continuing". Meanwhile, the paper reports that while the structure and the activities of FETO in the occupied area of Cyprus came into the agenda, the "minister of interior" Aysegul Baybars was discussing issues of cooperation on security and judicial assistance with the Turkish Minister of Interior Suleyman Soylu in Ankara. (DPs) [05] Schools begin with shortages in the breakaway regime Turkish Cypriot daily Halkin Sesi newspaper (12.08.18) reports that the new academic year is starting in the breakaway regime with a lot of shortages in many aspects and notes that only 132 teachers' position opened while there is need for 180 in schools. Commenting on the issue, the self-styled minister of education Cemal Ozgiyit stated that the remaining 50 positions will be covered with the system of personal contracts. He also stated that unfortunately the economic crisis, which was the result of the falling of the Turkish Lira, is reflected in education as well. (CS) [06] More protests to come in the occupied area of Cyprus Turkish Cypriot daily AFRIKA (12.09.18) newspaper reports that El-Sen, the trade union of the employees in the breakaway regime's "electricity authority" (KIB-TEK), has decided to go on a strike on Thursday and protest for the 30% increase which is considered to be made to the price of electricity. The trade union will protest to the prolonging of the agreement with private Turkish AKSA company after 2023 and the increase of the guarantee of purchase [paid to the above company]. Moreover, the drivers who are members of Kar-Is trade union stated that they would not carry the students to school on Monday as they could not receive a response by the "government" to their demand of readjusting the fees. Finally, the trade union of the "civil servants" (Kamu-Sen) asked for a salary increase of 30-40% in the end of September for its members. Commenting on the agreement reached between the "government" and the livestock breeders, Kamu-Sen's chairman Metin Atan said: "[] As a result of negotiations held on 10 September the livestock breeders' union and the government reached an agreement. This means that the civil servants should also hold a demonstration to get the upper hand in safeguarding our rights. Of course, we do not want to drag the country into chaos but if everyone who holds a demonstration will get their rights, the civil servants and the private sector employees who are in the most difficult situation should also organize demonstrations []". (I/Ts.) [B] Turkish Press [01] Turkey, Russia and Iran reach 'agreement in principle' on Syria Constitutional Committee lists Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (11.09.18-http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-russia-iran-reach-agreement-in-principle-on-syria-constitutional-committee-lists-136735) reported that Turkey, Russia and Iran have reached an "agreement in principle" on the lists of Syrian regime and opposition lists to form a Constitutional Committee. The representatives of the three guarantor countries met with the UN Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura on Sept. 10-11 in Geneva. "During the meeting, they discussed the formation of a Constitutional Committee and its codes of practice which constitute an important step in the struggle of finding a political solution to the Syrian crisis," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Sept. 11. The Ministry said an agreement in principle, regarding the lists that were proposed by the Syrian regime and opposition, was discussed. Also consultation was held on the formation of a third civil society group. It added that meetings between the Astana guarantor states will continue. Turkey's Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Onal represented Turkey during the meetings. De Mistura will meet officials from Egypt, France, Germany, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the U.K., and the U.S. () [02] Cavusoglu held a phone conversation with his French counterpart over a Syria summit to be held in Istanbul on Friday Turkish daily Sabah (12.09.18) reports that the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu held a phone conversation with his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian over a Syria summit to be held in Istanbul on Friday. The paper reports that high-level officials from Turkey, France, Germany and Russia are expected to arrive in Istanbul on Friday to hold a meeting ahead of a possible quartet summit and discuss a range of regional issues, particularly the Syrian crisis. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan previously announced on Sept. 9 that the representatives would meet and that a leaders' summit might be held soon. According to Foreign Ministry sources, political advisers from the four countries will be attending the meeting Friday, with presidential spokesman Kal?n expected to represent Turkey in the meeting. The current situation in Syria's Idlib will likely top the agenda of the summit [03] Turkey signs agriculture, oil exploration deals with Sudan Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (11.09.18-http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-signs-agriculture-oil-exploration-deals-with-sudan-136715) reported that Turkey and Sudan have signed a $100 million oil exploration deal and an agreement allocating thousands of square miles of Sudanese agricultural land for investment by Turkish companies, Turkey's Agriculture and Forestry Ministry said on Sept. 11. The two countries have strengthened ties and agreed in December, when President Erdogan made the first visit to Khartoum by a Turkish President, to gradually increase trade to $10 billion a year. The Turkish Ministry said that Sudan had designated 780,500 hectares (3,000 square miles) of land for investment by private Turkish companies, saying it would "provide security of food supply for Turkey, Sudan and third countries". The Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) and Sudan's Ministry of Petroleum and Gas also signed an oil field development agreement, which would initially lead to an investment of up to $100 million, Turkey's Agriculture and Forestry Minister Bekir Pakdemirli said in a statement. The Ministry gave no details about the nature or location of the investment, but Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency quoted Pakdemirli as saying it was an exploration agreement. Turkey's Ziraat Participation Bank will also open a branch in Khartoum to strengthen financial ties, and customs procedures for machines and equipment imported from Turkey to Sudan will be facilitated, the Ministry said. A year ago, the United States lifted a trade embargo and other penalties that had cut Sudan off from much of the global financial system, but Khartoum's economy is in crisis, battered by shortages of hard currency and basic food. A decision to reduce bread subsidies, leading to a doubling in prices, led to rare nationwide protests earlier this year. On Sept. 9, President Omar al-Bashir dissolved the government and promised a leaner administration to address the crisis. Turkey, which has strained ties with regional powers Egypt and Saudi Arabia, has boosted investments in Sudan recently. It plans to rebuild a ruined Ottoman port city on Sudan's Red Sea coast and construct a naval dock to maintain civilian and military vessels under an agreement reached between the two sides during Erdogan's visit to Khartoum. The other agreements signed during Erdogan's visit included Turkish investment to build Khartoum's planned new airport and private sector investments in cotton production, electricity generation and building grain silos and meat slaughterhouses. [04] Turkey deploys observers to giant Russian-Chinese military exercise Vostok Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (12.09.18-http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-deploys-observers-to-giant-russian-chinese-military-exercise-136729) reports that Turkey has decided to deploy military observers to a Russian-Chinese massive military exercise taking place in Siberia following Moscow's official invitation as a full and active participant. Russia on Sept. 11 launched the "Vostok-2018" (East-2018), its largest military drill, with hundreds of thousands of Russian troops taking part along with Chinese soldiers in a massive show of force that has rattled the West. The exercise that will observe the participation of around 300,000 troops with dozens of aerial and naval vessels will continue until Sept. 18. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had informed the media last week about an official invitation by the Russian military authorities to the Turkish military's participation to the drill. The invitation was extended to Turkey during the Tehran Summit on Syria with the participation of the leaders of Turkey, Russia and Iran last week. Echoing Erdogan, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar had also stressed the importance of the drill and said they were evaluating Russia's proposal. According to information obtained from reliable sources, as a result of evaluations, Turkey decided to deploy military observers to the exercise instead of active participation. A reason is NATO found the drill a threatening move and against the allied security considerations, prompting Turkey to send senior military personnel from Turkey's military attache of its Embassy in Moscow. [05] Turkey's MIT nabs terror suspect in Syria's Latakia with 'pinpoint operation' Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (12.09.1http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-intelligence-nabs-terror-suspect-in-syrias-latakia-136747) reported that Turkey's National Intelligence Organization (MIT) has brought a terror suspect from Syria's regime-held Latakia province to Turkey, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on Sept. 12. Yusuf Nazik, 34, was sought by Turkish authorities as one of the main suspects of the 2013 bombing in the southern Turkish border town of Reyhanl?, which killed 53 people. He was nabbed in a "pinpoint operation" by MIT, the agency said, adding that he was brought to Turkey "from secure roads." Nazik, born in the southern province of Hatay's Antakya district, confessed that he played a key part in the 2013 bombing as a coordinator between the bombers and the Syrian regime, which he said masterminded the attack. He pointed to a Syrian intelligence officer named Mohammed and codenamed "Hadji." Turkish courts had ruled to jail nine arrested suspects for life in February, while eight more suspects, including Nazik, remained as fugitives. In his interrogation, Nazik told Turkish security forces that on a tip off from Syrian intelligence units, he scouted the crime scene prior to the attack and moved explosives from Syria to Turkey. He added that he procured two vehicles for the operation. Marked in the blue category of the Interior Ministry's wanted terrorists list, Nazik called on his friends in Syria to surrender. "I am also addressing the Syrian state: The state of Turkey is big and it will surely bring you to account," he added in the video released by Turkish authorities on Sept. 12. A senior Turkish official said that they took the information provided by Nazik about the involvement of Syrian intelligence operatives in the 2013 Reyhanl? attack "very seriously." "His testimony corroborates long-standing rumors about the Assad regime's active role in the bombing, which killed 53 innocent people. Nazik's capture and repatriation should serve as a reminder to all other criminals that we will never stop hunting them. We will spare no effort to find you, catch you, and bring you to justice," the official said. TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION (AK/ AM) Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
Indonesian ride-hailing firm Go-Jek on Wednesday launched its services in Vietnams capital of Hanoi under the brand Go-Viet.

The move is part of Go-Jek's $500-million international expansion.

The app-based on-demand service Go-Viet, driven by a Vietnamese founding team, with Go-Jek providing technology, expertise and investment, offers services ranging from transport and logistics to food-delivery and mobile payments.

Go-Viet grabbed a 35 percent share of the market for motorbike ride-hailing services in the economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City just six weeks after launching there on August 1, Go-Jek founder and chief executive Nadiem Makarim said.

We are proud to have seen positive development in Ho Chi Minh City market, and this paves the way for us to expand our services to Hanoi, Go-Viet co-founder and managing director Nguyen Vu Duc said at Wednesdays launch.

The launch followed an announcement by the company in May that it would invest $500 million to enter the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, following Ubers deal to sell its Southeast Asian operations to bigger regional player Grab.

On Tuesday, Grab announced a partnership with Vietnams MOCA Technology and Service company (Moca) for a mobile payment service, as the ride-hailing firm pushes to cement its position.

The launch was attended by Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who is in Hanoi for an official state visit and a meeting of the World Economic Forum.

More Indonesian businesses are seeking to expand their operations in Vietnam, Widodo told reporters on Tuesday, after a meeting in Hanoi with his counterpart Tran Dai Quang.

We expect bilateral trade to reach $10 billion a year by 2020...and I hope president Tran Dai Quang would work to remove trade barriers for Indonesian products, including automobiles, he said.

Trade between the countries rose to $6.5 billion last year from $5.6 billion in 2016, says Vietnam, which exports rice, crude oil, cement and farm produce to Indonesia, and imports fertilizer, oil products, machinery and fabric from it.
Vietnams high-fashion scene is dominated by two firms, Duy Anh Fashion & Cosmetics and the International Company Limited Tam Son.

Founded in 2005, Duy Anh Fashion & Cosmetics (DAFC), part of the retailer IPP Group, started out as the official distributor in the country for Salvatore Ferragamo and Bally. Two years later Burberry was on board, and in 2011 Rolex, Bvlgari, Cartier, and Tudor followed suit.

DAFC is now the distributor of over 40 global fashion and cosmetics brands.

Last year it reported revenues of VND970 billion ($43.3 million), and they are growing at 10 percent a year, according to industry research and consulting firm VIRAC. In 2015 and 2016, DAFCs revenue were VND800 billion ($34.1 million) and VND862 billion ($36.8 million), respectively.

Another big name on Vietnams high-fashion scene is the International Company Limited Tam Son, part of multidisciplinary firm OpenAsia Group. Also founded in 2005, Tam Son also acted as a distributor for major brands like Hermes, Bottega Veneta, Saint Laurent, Hugo Boss, and Kenzo.

It is also a distributor of several Swiss luxury watch brands like Vacheron Constantin, Piaget and Chopard. Last year it even got into the yacht scene by creating yachting firm Tam Son Yachting, and has since tied up with the France-based motor boat manufacturer Beneteau Group.

Last year its revenues topped VND1.337 trillion ($57.8 million) after growing at 18 percent a year. In 2015 and 2016, the firms revenues were VND948 billion ($41 million) and VND1.117 trillion ($48.3 million), respectively.

A survey released in October last year by market research firm Q&Me showed fashion items topping online purchases in Vietnam followed by IT products, cosmetics, food and beverage, and books and stationery.

According to Statista, a database portal of statistics, consumer survey results and industry studies, the apparel market will be worth $2.74 billion this year and is expected to grow at 7.7 percent annually until 2021.

Vietnam is the third fastest growing country in terms of ultra high net worth individuals, with a compounded annual growth rate of 12.7 percent, behind Bangladesh with 17.3 percent and China (13.4 percent), according to the 2018 World Ultra Wealth Report.

Compiled by Wealth-X, a leading global wealth information and insight business, the report defines the UHNW population as people with $30 million or more in net worth.
Tell us whats good and whats not: PM tells corporate honchos

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc meets representatives of 20 global corporations in Hanoi before the opening session of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN on September 12. Photo by VGP

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc has asked 20 major corporations to share their expectations of Vietnam in the coming decade.

The Wednesday meeting was held under the auspices of the ongoing 2018 World Economic Forum on ASEAN in Hanoi before its first session opened.

Attending the meeting were representatives from 20 global corporations including Standard Chatered, Google, Facebook, Apple, Bloomberg, GE, Hitachi, Temasek, ThaiBev and several Vietnamese big corporations.

Phuc said he wants to learn more about the corporations' plans in Vietnam for the next three to five years.

He also wants to know what investors like most about the business environment in Vietnam and what bothers them most.

Tell us your expectations about Vietnams economy in the next ten years so that we can work together to benefit us both. I suggest that we do not distinguish foreign investors from domestic ones, that we talk together freely like members of one big family, the PM said.

The corporate honchos pledged to go along with the Vietnamese governments major policies on building e-government, and developing a digital economy.

Simon Milner, vice president of public policy for Facebook Asia-Pacific, said they were committed to a long-term presence in Vietnam and wanted to be part of the digital growth vision of the Vietnamese government.

He said Facebook will work with four aspects of Vietnams digital growth: digital citizens, digital economy, digital government and digital connections.

Facebook was committed to supporting Vietnamese firms, especially small and medium ones and startups.

A senior executive with Thai Beverage (Thaibev) noted that the company had last year invested $5 billion in Sabeco, Vietnams leading beer brand.

Thaibev will promote the Sabeco brands and Vietnamese culture in global markets, the executive said.

Alex Dimitrief, senior vice president and general counsel of General Electric Company (GE), said their Vietnam investment was one of the most successful stories of the company.

The group has operated in Vietnam for 25 years and has a staff of 2,000 staff now, he said.

Around 55 percent of hospitals in Vietnam are using at least one device or technology supplied by GE; the aircraft engine produced by GE is now used in aircraft owned by Vietnams leading carriers Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air; and GE also owns a plant in Hai Phong producing turbines, Dimitrief said.

Yasuo Tanabe, senior vice president at Hitachi Ltd., told the PM that he felt Vietnam should focus on developing its infrastructure, digital economy and trade in order to maintain its high economic growth rate.

Tanabe also said Hitachi will get more involved in the Internet of Things in Vietnam's manufacturing sector.

He wanted the government to create a more open business environment.

Welcoming the suggestions, PM Phuc said Vietnam has been joining and will join more free trade agreements that will create opportunities for the country to integrate deeper into the global trade network.

He said the Vietnamese government always appreciates foreign investors and has been making efforts to improve the business environment so that investors can operate more effectively in the country.

Themed Southeast Asias priorities in the Fourth Industrial Revolution Era, the WEF on ASEAN summit will close on Thursday.

Among the leaders of ASEAN member nations attending the event are General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Nguyen Phu Trong, Vietnamese PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Singaporean PM Lee Hsien Loong, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Cambodian PM Hun Sen, Lao PM Thongloun Sisoulith, Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, and Thai Deputy PM Prajin Juntong.
Vietnam PM proposes shared ASEAN mobile network

ASEAN members should share a mobile network with the same charges, the Vietnamese Prime Minister has suggested.

At this forum, Vietnam will propose new ideas for a shared mobile network with the same prices across ASEAN, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said Wednesday.

Addressing the opening session of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN 2018, the PM also proposed that bloc members improve digital connectivity and data sharing with emphasis on e-commerce and e-payment.

Data is the basis of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, therefore there should be regulations that facilitate effective data sharing, he said.

ASEAN members also need to build a harmonized business environment and legal framework to improve internal capacities, the PM noted.

Phuc said he believes there will be more collaboration among ASEAN startups in the future.

ASEAN countries need to collaborate and operate innovation hubs and build a system to connect them, he said.

The PM also called for an education system that would promote lifelong learning.

In the context of the fourth industrial revolution, we need to cooperate and promote our internal strengths, aiming toward peace, stability, self-reliance with people at the core. We need to ensure the freedom of movement of goods, he said.

Nguyen Manh Hung, Vietnam's acting Minister of Information and Communication, shared three ideas for a united ASEAN.

He proposed a strong linkage in ASEAN where every member feels that this is their home despite the geographical distance.

The second was the establishment of an ASEAN Information and Communication Technology (ICT) University, where students will learn skills for the Industry 4.0 era.

Hung also suggested the establishment of a network for information sharing on cybersecurity in the region.

"Our lives depend a lot on the Internet. However, the Internet is not a secured place. So, the most important thing for us in the future is network security, Hung said.

Commenting on the impact of the Industry 4.0, Hung said it would be "breakthrough moment and greatly change the path to the future.

"With developing countries, we will be less burdened and will go faster," he said.

Vietnam PM proposes shared ASEAN mobile network Flatten ASEAN with seamless mobile network, Vietnam suggests

Hung noted that the Industry 4.0 was not only a technological revolution but also a policy revolution.

Even though developing countries may not be strong enough and the regulatory framework not solid, they can flexibly change new business models and new policies for integrating new technologies into their business.

"And I think the developing countries will have a lot of change thanks to the Industry 4.0," Hung said.

Leaders, not followers



At the opening session, WEF executive chairman Klaus Schwab said that the WEF on ASEAN 2018 was a high-level summit ever organized, showing the potential of ASEAN with strong political will in a fragmented world.
Several Southeast Asian leaders are attending the 2018 World Economic Forum on ASEAN that opened in Hanoi Wednesday.

The opening event, which has the theme Southeast Asias priorities in the Fourth Industrial Revolution Era, will be an opportunity for leaders of member countries to discuss concerns and options at a time where there are many technological breakthroughs.

The leaders of ASEAN member nations attending the event are General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong, Vietnamese PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Singaporean PM Lee Hsien Loong, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Cambodian PM Hun Sen, Laotian PM Thongloun Sisoulith, Myanmarese State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, and Thai Deputy PM Prajin Juntong.

WEF Executive Chairman Klaus Schwab and Chinese Vice-Premier Hu Chunhua attended the opening session.

This years edition of the WEF ASEAN is organized in the context of the 4.0 era. The theme of the event is the ASEAN 4.0: Entrepreneurship and the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

It has five main topics on the agenda: determining a new vision for ASEAN and regional integration; seeking new economic models and management in the digital era; seeking motivations and new business models for ASEAN countries in the 4.0 era; business and the new approach to global and regional management; developing smart infrastructure, skills and job training, innovative startups in the 4.0 era.

Over 1, 000 representatives from 43 countries are set to take part in 53 sessions and 35 discussions over the two days of the event.
Higher tariffs for Vietnams wind power projects will make investments more commercially viable, experts say.

However, even with the latest feed-in-tariff (FIT) increase approved by the Prime Minister, the rates are lower than in other ASEAN countries, they add.

The Prime Minister approved the amendment and revision of the wind tariffs as per Decision No. 37/2011/QD-TTg issued on September 10 on support mechanisms for the development of wind power projects in Vietnam.

Under the revision, the FIT for wind power projects will be increased from 7.8 US cents/kWh for onshore to 8.5 US cents/ kWh for onshore and 9.8 US cents/kWh for offshore respectively.

"The higher FIT is a significant and especially important signal for all market actors to further invest into the wind power market in Vietnam," German international development agency GIZs Energy Support Programme wrote in a statement sent to VnExpress International.

As of now, Vietnam has just 200 MW of installed wind power capacity and another 100 MW is under construction, according to GIZ.

Due to Vietnams constantly growing need for energy and its "excellent wind power resources," many developers have been eyeing the market for several years now.

But the low FIT published in 2011 and risks arising from the project development process had slowed down wind energy development in Vietnam. Investors and financing entities were concerned about the commercial risks involved.

Tobias Cossen, who directs a project to support upscaling of wind power in Vietnam under the GIZ programme, said that with the higher tariff, many projects are expected to push through and get actually implemented.

Cossen said defining FIT is always a complex and sometimes "emotional" topic.

"The revised tariff will give investors and financial institutions who are providing the long-term debt capital the security they need," he said.

But, he noted, that the tariffs were still lower than in any other Southeast Asian wind market.

GIZ estimates that the technical potential of wind power in Vietnam is huge, at about 27 gigawatts, capable of replacing a large share of thermal (coal and gas) power generation planned for the future.

Under the countrys current Power Development Plan, the government targets 6,000 MW of wind energy and 12,000 MW of solar energy production by 2030.
Barijat, currently heading towards northern Vietnam, could weaken into a tropical depression Friday morning, meteorologists say.

As of Wednesday morning, Barijat was approximately 510 kilometers away from Chinas Hainan Island to the northeast, with a maximum wind speed of 75kph, according to the National Center for Hydrometeorological Forecasting.

Over the next two days, the typhoon will travel towards Vietnams northern coastal provinces from Quang Ninh to Nam Dinh. It is expected to devolve into a tropical depression as it makes landfall Friday morning. Quang Ninh is home to the popular Ha Long Bay and Nam Dinh is two hours south of Hanoi.

The Central Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control has asked relevant authorities to stay in contact with fishing boasts in their jurisdictions as a precaution and ensure safety of residents in storm-prone areas.

Barijat isnt the only storm brewing in Southeast Asia right now. Super Typhoon Mangkhut, also known as Ompong in the Philippines, is heading towards the South China Sea, known in Vietnam as the East Sea, over the next three days.

Latest reports put Mangkhuts current maximum wind speed at 269 kph, putting it in category 5 of the SaffirSimpson hurricane wind scale, and it is expected to get even stronger.

Up to 43.3 million people from Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, the Philippines and China could be affected by the super typhoon, according to the Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System.

Weather forecasters in Vietnam have predicted that four to six typhoons and tropical depressions could develop off the country's east coast from now until the end of the year. Around two to three storms will make landfall in Vietnam and batter the central region, they have said.

Last month, typhoon Bebinca turned into a tropical depression after it made landfall in the northern province of Thanh Hoa, bringing heavy downpours and gusty winds lasting many hours, killing 10 people in the north-central and northern highland regions.

Vietnam was struck by a record-breaking number of 16 tropical storms last year that left 389 people dead or missing and injured 668 others, mostly in northern and central regions. Damrey, one of the most destructive storms last year, hit the country in November and killed at least 106 people.
President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo and President of Vietnam Tran Dai Quang (R) review the Vietnamese People's Army honorary delegation in Hanoi, Vietnam, September 11, 2018. Photo by Nhac Nguyen/Pool via Reuters

Negotiations on exclusive economic zones, fishing, trade, and investment topped the agenda during Indonesian President Joko Widodos two-day visit to Vietnam beginning Tuesday.

"We have agreed that the negotiation on the EEZ between the two countries could be enhanced, and I hope that this negotiation could be concluded soon, " Widodo said at a joint press conference with his Vietnamese counterpart, Tran Dai Quang, following their meeting in Hanoi.

The two countries have so far held 10 rounds of talks on the delimitation of their EEZs.

Also Tuesday the two countries signed a joint statement on their voluntary participation in international cooperation for combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and promoting bilateral sustainable fisheries management.

The statement, based on a memorandum of understanding on fisheries cooperation and maritime affairs they signed in 2010, is a key document "of great importance, " Widodo said.

The two presidents also welcomed the progress made in the ongoing negotiations for a Code of Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (COC), or the East Sea as Vietnam calls it.

This contributes significantly in asserting that the waters continues to be a safe, stable and peaceful area, he noted.

Quang said the two sides have agreed to further strengthen their strategic partnership.

On Tuesday they signed an action plan for the implementation of the Vietnam-Indonesia Strategic Partnership in 2019-2023.

Quang said the two countries share a desire for a peaceful, stable, secure and safe region and pledged to continue promoting defense and security cooperation in response to growing traditional and non-traditional challenges in the region.

"We reaffirm the importance of peace, stability, security, safety, and freedom of navigation and overflight in the East Sea; settlement of disputes by peaceful means in accordance with international laws, especially the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS; full respect for diplomatic and legal procedures; serious and full implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea; and early completion of a realistic and legally-binding COC."

The two leaders agreed to support trade liberalization, enhance regional economic connectivity and prioritize new-generation free trade agreements.

The countries have set a bilateral trade target of $10 billion by 2020.

Last year the value of bilateral trade increased by 8.64 percent year-on-year to $6.8 billion, according to the Indonesian Embassy in Hanoi.
Christopher Axe knew what to do as soon as he saw homeless Vietnamese people. Hed been there before.

The Hanoi Railway Station is one of the hotspots in the capital city for the homeless. They gather there once the city has gone to sleep, taking refuge for the night.

On a Thursday night at around 10pm, groups of homeless people had replaced the crowds of passengers when Axe arrived at the station along with 20 or so volunteers.

They carried with them bags full of neatly organized hot, nutritious meals and other necessities.

Knowing their delivery guys had arrived, the homeless people, elders and children included, rose and stood in line to receive food, drinks, clothes, footwear, and even toothbrushes and toilet paper.

No one pushed anyone or cut the line because everyone knew that Christopher and his team were well organized and would arrive there every Thursday at this hour.

I have been here for almost a month, if it wasnt for this meal, I would have gone to sleep with a roaring belly many nights,  said Bui Thi Thu Hang.

The fifty-year-old woman had come from the northern province of Hoa Binh to Hanoi, to try and make a living by wandering around the train station and seeing if any opportunity came up.

She is one of hundreds of beneficiaries of Help Hanois Homeless (HHH), a charity founded by Axe which has been distributing 100 donation bags once every week at three locations in Hanoi.

At first Axe personally made the meals to ensure enough vegetables and protein were included, and to make sure they were hygienic. After learning about his work, some restaurants decided to chip in, reducing his workload.

Christopher makes sure that his team does the work in a respectful, organized manner.

It is difficult to imagine that Christopher Axe was once homeless. He majored in literature from a prestigious university in Manchester City, UK. In 2014, with no stable income, he could not sustain himself. After maxing out on his savings, he got kicked out of his house.

I used to sleep in parking lots for many years and ate free soups from the vending machine. It was this slimy green liquid that had zero nutrition value. When I came to Vietnam about a year ago and came across the homeless people here, I knew exactly what to do to help them,  Axe said.

Social prejudice

He recalled that when he had no roof over his head, people did not see him as a human being, the common perception being that the homeless are drug addicts, or lazy or stupid, and a threat to society.

In my experience, the homeless people I met were in fact abused women running from domestic violence, orphans, and elders who were too weak to work,  Axe said.

Christopher Axe, once homeless himself, is now an English teacher and aspiring writer. His experience has allowed him to provide genuinely useful assistance to the homeless in Hanoi for a year. Photo courtesy of HelpHanoihomless.

The English teachers commitment to help the homeless has seen him come up with a map that highlights 35 locations in Hanoi where the homeless usually converge so that philanthropies know where to help out.

To fund his project, Axe has contacted different organizations and established a network of rescue boxes to be placed in various streets, which contain instant noodles and sausages.

A rescue box attached to a traffic sign offers food for those in need. Photo courtesy of HelpHanoihomless.

At the Hanoi Railway Station, the distribution of food and other items finished at 1am. Axe returned home to continue writing his novel and prepare English lesson plans for the following day. He teaches at a center in Ngo Quyen Street, Hanoi.

He lives in the comfort of a fully furnished home, but never forgets the nights spent sleeping next to trash bins.

Even to his students, he imparts the values of appreciating life and helping others in need.

This is how he introduces himself to his students: I was a homeless man.
MURPHYSBORO - The Blue Wave Democrats are predicting will sweep Nancy Pelosi back into US House Speaker includes four red congressional districts in Illinois turning blue: the Downstate 12th and 13th CDs, as well as the suburban 6th and 14th CDs.

Congressman Mike Bost of the 12th CD is fighting to keep his seat from Democrat St. Clair State's Attorney Brendan Kelly.

Kelly is calling for "new leadership" and condemns the use of "dark money" in political campaigns. Kelly is a "hypocrite," Bost's campaign says.

The Bost campaign pointed out Wednesday that House Majority PAC, a Super PAC reliant on "dark money" and aligned with Nancy Pelosi, has reserved $381,105 in television advertisements to support Brendan Kelly's campaign, in addition to the $1,634,580 in television advertisements reserved by Nancy Pelosi's campaign arm in Washington, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Conflict and drought have had a severe impact on access to food for women and children in South Sudan. Photo by AFP/Albert Gonzalez Farran

Extreme weather events were a leading cause of global hunger rising last year, with women, babies, and old people particularly vulnerable to the worsening trend.

Increasingly frequent shocks such as extreme rainfall or temperatures, as well as droughts, storms, and floods, helped push the number of undernourished people to 821 million in 2017, a U.N. report said Tuesday.

That figure, equivalent to about one in nine people globally, was up from 804 million in 2016, according to the annual report "The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World."

"The number of people who suffer from hunger has been growing over the past three years, returning to levels that prevailed almost a decade ago. Equally of concern is that 22.2 percent of children under five are affected by stunting in 2017, " said the document.

Low- and middle-income countries, in particular, were harshly impacted by ever-more frequent climate extremes.

"Africa is the region where climate shocks and stressors had the biggest impact on acute food insecurity and malnutrition, affecting 59 million people in 24 countries and requiring urgent humanitarian action, " the report said.

Trends were also worsening in South America.

"If we are to achieve a world without hunger and malnutrition in all its forms by 2030, it is imperative that we accelerate and scale up actions to strengthen the resilience and adaptive capacity of food systems and people's livelihoods in response to climate variability and extremes, " it added.

No let-up for Syria, Yemen

While floods, droughts, and other extreme weather events have always occurred, scientists say global warming is boosting the frequency and severity of such events.

Gender inequality leaves Indian women particularly vulnerable to rising hunger sparked by extreme weather events. Photo by AFP/Pedro Ugarte

In countries where conflict and climate shocks coincide, the impact on food insecurity was even more relentless, the report said. Nearly 66 million people worldwide required urgent humanitarian assistance last year.

Syria, where agriculture is one of the few sectors to have survived the seven-year war, saw its harvest hit by rising temperatures and drought.

Already down 40 percent from pre-conflict levels -- from 4 million tons to around 2.5 million tons, Syria's cereal production "will suffer a new reduction" this year, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's director of emergencies Dominique Burgeon said.

"Syria has seen a problem of seasonality, quantity and distribution of rainfall, and these factors combined have led to the overall weakening of the agricultural sector, " he told AFP by phone.

Yemen has suffered an even worse fate, with 35 percent of the population undernourished, Burgeon said, making the war-torn nation home to the world's "most acute food crisis today."

Boys fed better

The U.N. noted that women worldwide are especially vulnerable to the impact of climate extremes, particularly in countries where even a semblance of gender parity remains a distance dream.

This is because they often lack access to wealth, land, education and healthcare.

Obesity is on the rise in regions around the world. Photo by AFP/Pedro Ugarte

For instance, 90 percent of Lake Chad has dried up because of rising temperatures, forcing women to walk further to collect water for their families.

In India, limited resources coupled with entrenched gender inequalities saw poor families feed their boys better than girls when resources were limited.

Babies and young children were more at risk of long-term problems, and even of dying, from diarrhoea caused by disease following floods that rob people of clean water for drinking and sanitation.

Old and disabled people were also hard hit.

"In Vietnam, the elderly, widows, disabled people, single mothers, and households headed by women with small children were least resilient to floods and storms and slow-onset events such as recurrent droughts, " the report said.

The U.N. also pointed to the global rise of obesity in adults, particularly in North America, but also in Africa and Asia.

Governments around the world have taken steps to combat the overweight epidemic, with the U.K., France, Norway, and Mexico rolling out taxes on sugary soft drinks, for instance.

One in eight adults -- more than 672 million people worldwide -- are classified as obese.
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Money supply in Ukraine grows to almost US$44 bln in August

It has grown by 2% since the year's start.

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Kolomoisky's companies have shares of Russian banks in Ukraine arrested through court

The Kyiv Court of Appeal also banned Prominvestbank, Sberbank, and VTB Bank from liquidating or restructuring legal entities.

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Ukraine official on Crimea disaster: It will take years to revive area

The moves by occupation authorities led to soil salinization and man-made disasters.

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Klimkin: Ukraine will never supply water to occupied Crimea

The top diplomat stressed that following the release of toxic substances at the Crimean Titan plant, Russia is trying to manipulate the situation with the halt of water supplies to the occupied peninsula.

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The same day State Representative Jeanne Ives, R-Wheaton, criticized millions of dollars in legislative initiative pork spending reportedly contained in the FY 19 state budget.

WHEATON - Earlier this week, three Illinois House Republicans distributed announcements of state grants being awarded to projects in their districts. The grants included $153,000 to McHenry County College, $621,000 to Harper Community College and $709,000 to College of DuPage to update the facilities' infrastructures.

UPDATE: Friday, Illinois Review will offer an update on this story. Evidently, the grants the state reps announced were from a different source than the one Rep. Ives was referring to in her press release. The timing of their announcements and her challenge was coincidental. We will attempt to iron out the confusing details tomorrow.

"The Governors Office of Management and Budget acknowledged in August that the new state budget is unbalanced by a staggering $1.2 Billion. Now it is coming to light that untold millions of dollars in spending was hidden in the new state budget for legislators in both parties to designate for pork projects in their districts," Ives said.

"I refuse to participate in this initiative and am calling on my colleagues, Democrat and Republican, to do likewise. Illinois taxpayers deserve to know where every dollar in the budget is being spent. Not one penny should be spent on pork."

Three of Ives' Republican House associates have no intention of accepting her challenge to reject their portions of the $11.3 million in funds released by the Governor's office on Management and Budget for community colleges throughout the state.

The College of DuPage is a world-class institution of higher learning that serves more than 28,000 students each semester, said State Rep. Peter Breen (R-Lombard). Keeping the campus buildings and infrastructure in a state of good repair is costly, and I am pleased to see the State of Illinois making an investment in our local community college.

State Rep. Steve Reick of Woodstock said the money is being used to replace roof-top units and duct work.

The RTUs are over 27 years old and are operating beyond their life cycle, said Reick. They require more and more maintenance to keep operational, have lost some functionality and are inefficient for todays energy standards. In addition, the duct work is over 40 years old and has failed in several locations.

State Rep. Tom Morrison of Palatine said the funds would be used to replace existing steam and condensate piping, valves and supports that are failing. A failure of this system would result in the campus being closed until repairs are completed, said Morrison. With cold weather right around the corner, it is imperative that the repairs take place without delay.

The FY 19 state budget was approved by the Illinois House of Representatives on May 31 by a vote of 97-18. Representative Ives was among those who voted against the budget.
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

Google Ad

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

Google Ad

Ameriabanks Special Offer for New Clients of Hrazdan Branch

"Fall forward": Gurgen Khachatryan, the Co-Founder of the Galaxy Group of Companies, addressed a message to young people in Armenia

UCOM hosted interns of Russian CBOSS corporation for a month

The 20-episode Bloody bet thriller to be broadcast on Ucom's Armenia Premium TV channel

Statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group

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
Naira Zohrabyan: There are no other good revolutionist like me (video)

Naira Zohrabyan, a member of the NA Tsarukyan bloc faction expressed an idea that what happens in the country is about not being protected the country's immunity. Talking about yesterday's events, Naira Zohrabyan refused to give another comment and suggested to wait until it will become clear. "If the society is divided into blacks and whites, then we have to know who the blacks are, so we can clothe orphans and we will fight against them," she says. "There is an impression that we are not participating in Yerevan City Council elections, but are doing another revolutionary mobilization. We must understand that if we turn the elections of the Yerevan Council of Elders into a second revolution, I assure you that there can be found very few intelligent or courageous revolutionaries like me," says Naira Zohrabyan.
Davit Tonoyan: It is a fact that the Armed Forces were involved in the March 1 events (video)

Davit Tonoyan commented on the statement made by the SIS head in connection with the participation of the army in the March 1 events. At a briefing with reporters, the RA Minister of Nature Protection said that he could not give an assessment to the talk between the preliminary investigation body and the prosecutor's office, but stated that the army was really involved in the actions of March 1. "It is a fact that the Armed Forces were involved in the March 1 events, and they have fulfilled their duties within the framework of the state of emergency. The investigation will confirm what has been done," the minister said. Touching upon the departure of Armenian soldiers to Syria, David Tonoyan noted that about 100 Armenian soldiers will go to Syria within the framework of the humanitarian mission. Also, among those who go to Syria are sappers and doctors.
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

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

Google Ad

Ameriabanks Special Offer for New Clients of Hrazdan Branch

"Fall forward": Gurgen Khachatryan, the Co-Founder of the Galaxy Group of Companies, addressed a message to young people in Armenia

UCOM hosted interns of Russian CBOSS corporation for a month

The 20-episode Bloody bet thriller to be broadcast on Ucom's Armenia Premium TV channel

Statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group

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
Happy Labor Day! Thousands of Illinoisans are proud members of labor unions, and today, we honor them. These men and women work tirelessly to not only support their own families, but help our state grow and prosper.

Despite all that union workers have done for Illinois, we have a governor who fights them at every turn. Bruce Rauner supports right to work legislation, and celebrated the Supreme Courts ruling in Janus v. AFSCME, which undermines union members ability to engage in collective bargaining for fair wages, pensions, and other critical benefits.

As governor, I will stand up for a workers right to organize and collectively bargain. I will fight for a $15 living wage. I will stand up for prevailing wage and project labor agreements. And I will always stand up against Right to Work legislation.

I am proud to have the support of unions across Illinois, including AFL-CIO, LIUNA, Illinois Federation of Teachers, Illinois Education Association, SEIU, and AFSCME. As governor, I will work with our unions to bring good jobs back to our state, increase wages, and raise up the middle class.

But it cant be just me. The more pro-union Democrats we have in Springfield, the more good we can do. Thats why I am asking that you support Democrats up and down the ballot this November.
The Health Ministry in 2019 will launch the reform of financing outpatient medical care, Deputy Health Minister Pavlo Kovtonyuk has said.

"We planned two lines of work for the next year: first, this will be the launch a new model of financial relations with outpatient specialists, that is, with specialists who work not in a hospital: these are tests, instrumental examinations - ultrasound, x-rays - and consultations of specialists. Thus, outpatient medical care will start reforming from the second quarter of next year," he said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

Kovtonyuk said that the beginning of the reform of outpatient medical care is coordinated with the development of IT.

"At the outpatient level, it will be somewhat more complicated, but the model, agreements with the National Health Service, payment for services will be the same as at the primary level," he said.

According to the deputy minister, at the outpatient level, the principle of paying for a service "will apply in the classic definition of the word: for a test, a manipulation, a consultation, as it is customary to see in a private clinic."

"The same way as at the primary level, the doors will be opened for all providers - public and private. The referral that the family doctor will give will allow receiving the service free of charge, except for the list of services that will always be paid," he said.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will meet on Wednesday with Stefan Vanoverbeke, CEO of IKEA Southeast Europe, to discuss the opening of a store in Ukraine.

"IKEA is coming to Ukraine! Ukraine has been waiting for this news for a long time, and in the last few years there have been many changes that made the opening of IKEA in our country possible. This is a good signal for other world-known brands. One needs to deal with Ukraine," Poroshenko wrote on his Facebook page early on Wednesday.
Local authorities remain committed to pay for utility services of reorganized healthcare institutions, which obtained a status of municipally owned non-profit enterprises, Deputy Health Minister of Ukraine Pavlo Kovtonyuk has said.

"The reorganized healthcare institutions are municipally owned institutions and local budgets are to pay for heating and other utility services for them. This is outlined in the Budget Code. This does not change and does not depend on the organization form of an institution," he said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

Kovtoniuk said that the Health Ministry constantly delivers this information to local authorities.

"I believe that local officials should know the Budget Code without our reminder  it is their direct work. Fortunately, such cases, when an institution was reorganized and local authorities stopped paying for its utility services and other expenses, are isolated, but they are unpleasant," he said.

According to Kovtoniuk, the cases, when local authorities refused to pay for utility services of reorganized medical institutions, were recorded in Kyiv and Kolomyia (Ivano-Frankivsk region).

He also recalled that the grace period for the reorganization of medical institutions is effective only until the end of 2018. In particular, the point is that starting from 2019, the procedures for property appraisal, liabilities to creditors and a number of others procedures will be mandatory.

"Today, medical institutions are exempted from these problems. For example, if you have debts, you can be reorganized, and then pay them out in accordance with the creditor," he said.
The Saudi Agricultural & Livestock Investment Co. (SALIC), which core business is investment in agriculture, is acquiring the Ukrainian Mriya farming company.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko announced the deal at a meeting with representatives of Saudi Arabia in Kyiv on Wednesday.

"I would like to dwell on the issue that the decision of SALIC to acquire Mriya farming holding is an extremely important event and it shows the readiness of investors to invest money in Ukraine and fundamental changes in the investment climate, as well as the attitude of investors to our state," the president said.

Poroshenko pointed out the uniqueness of the event, as the acquisition contract is the largest in the agricultural sector in the history of Ukraine.

"SALIC belongs to the Sovereign Fund of Saudi Arabia. Today it is one of the largest investors in the agricultural business around the world. The decision to come to Ukraine is a very vivid evidence that our country is ready to accept such investors and has created all the conditions for this," the head of state said.

He also said that the contract involves the purchase of Ukrainian assets, not land. This will help increase the level of investment in the agricultural complex, the level of technology, yields, exports, the foreign exchange income in Ukraine and the creation of high-paying jobs.

"We have agreed that this is the beginning of an unusual process, when the volume of investments to Ukraine, including from SALIC and the Sovereign Fund, will grow," Poroshenko said.

According to him, the decision on the deal was made in the shortest possible term - about one year.

According to a posting on the website of the Mriya company, Mriya Farming Plc (the U.K.) and SALIC UK Ltd. (Saudi Agricultural & Livestock Investment Company, the U.K.) entered into a share purchase agreement for the sale to SALIC of the Mriya group's Ukrainian farming assets, including infrastructure facilities, machinery, and companies owning land lease agreements.

The value and terms of the transaction have not been disclosed. Completion of the transaction is subject to approval from the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine and other customary closing conditions.

"Upon completion of the deal, Mriya will continue its operations in Ukraine alongside SALIC's subsidiary, Continental Farmers Group (CFG)," the company said.

"Our subsidiary, CFG, has successfully operated in Ukraine since 2006, farming 45,000 hectares in Lviv and Ternopil regions... Considering the positive experience of investing in the Ukrainian economy, SALIC UK decided to expand the business and thoroughly studied the Ukrainian agricultural market in search of new opportunities Key to the ethos of SALIC UK is identifying, acquiring and operating long term, profitable and sustainable agribusiness investments Today's acquisition of Mriya fits very well into SALIC UK's investment criteria and much needed post acquisition investment will secure the long-term profitability of this excellent asset," Chairman of SALIC UK Khaled Alaboodi said.

CEO of CFG Mark Laird said that his company the next two years plans to significantly invest into new equipment, infrastructure, agricultural technology and land bank consolidation as well as work closely with the local management to build the combined Mriya and CFG operations into a World Class farming operation.

Mriya's advisors in the deal and creditors in the debt restructuring process were Rothschild & Co (France), ICU, FinPoint (both - Ukraine), as well as the law firm Hogan Lovells (the U.K.).

Mriya Agro Holding is a vertically integrated agro-industrial holding founded in 1992 by Ivan Huta. Today, its land bank is 165,000 hectares. The capacity of its silos and grain storages is estimated at 380,000 tonnes.
The Kyiv Court of Appeals has decided to impose arrest on the shares of the Ukrainian subsidiaries of Russian banks with the state's participation, namely VTB, Prominvestbank and Sberbank (all based in Kyiv), according to a court ruling dated September 5 posted in the court rulings register.

According to the document, the decision was made in connection with the statement on securing the claim of ex-chairman of the board of PrivatBank Oleksandr Dubilet and 17 more companies, that had assets in Crimea, on recognizing and executing the decision of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague dated March 2 on recovery from the Russian Federation.
The Ukrainian businessman, the founder and main shareholder of TAS Group, Sergiy Tigipko, is mulling the purchase of a bank and an insurance company.

"We are considering the purchase of another bank, another insurance company ... We buy something that gives us synergy," Tigipko said at the Kyiv International Economic Forum "Ten Successful Strategies for Attracting Investments" in Kyiv.

Speaking about the process of merger of TAScombank and VS Bank, Tigipko informed that by October 15 these banks will switch to a unified balance.

TAS Group was founded in 1998. It has assets in financial and industrial sectors, agriculture, real estate, pharmaceuticals, and venture projects. The financial sector of the group includes TAScombank, Universal Bank, VS Bank, two insurance companies and several other organizations.

According to the NBU, as of January 1, 2018 the main owner of TAScombank was Sergiy Tigipko, who owned 99.86851% of the securities.
One killed, three injured in 33 attacks on Ukrainian positions over past day

Militants have fired at the positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces 33 times over the past 24 hours, killing one Ukrainian serviceman and wounding three more, the press center of the headquarters of the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) has said.

"Invaders opened fire on the positions of our troops 33 times. The enemy twice used weapons banned by the Minsk agreements. Four servicemen were injured in fighting, one of them died from severe wounds," the JFO HQ said in a report on its Facebook page early on Wednesday.

According to the report, illegal armed formations shelled Ukrainian positions near Stanytsia Luhanska, Krymske, Zolote, Katerynivka, Luhanske, Novoluhanske, Mayorsk, Shumy, Kamianka, Pisky, Maryinka, Starohnativka, Pavlopil, Hnutove, Vodiane, and Shyrokyne.

"Since the beginning of the current day, the enemy has fired at the positions of the Joint Forces five times. Two cases of shelling were recorded in the Luhansk sector near Krymske, and the others in the Mariupol sector near the settlements of Hnutove and Vodiane," the press center said.

According to Ukrainian intelligence, two militants were killed and five more were wounded over the past day.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin has visited Canada where he met with the country's government and the Ukrainian diaspora and discussed economic cooperation and assistance in the fight against Russia's armed aggression, the press service of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has reported.

"As part of a working visit to Canada, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin took part in a solemn ceremony of raising the State Flag of Ukraine in front of the Parliament of Alberta and held working meetings with Minister of Science and Sport of Canada Kirsty Duncan, Lieutenant Governor of the Province Lois Mitchell, Premier of the Province of Alberta Rachel Notley, and Mayor of Edmonton Don Iveson," reads a report posted on the ministry's page on Facebook on Monday, September 10.

The report notes that a priority topic during the meetings was the discussion of prospects for economic cooperation and the revitalization of contacts between Alberta and Ukrainian enterprises, especially in the context of the free trade agreement between Ukraine and Canada.

Klimkin also held a separate meeting with the leader of the United Conservative Party of Alberta, Jason Kenney, who in 2015 served as Canadian defense minister and was responsible for the launch of the Canadian military training mission UNFIER, as well as for the sending of military assistance to Ukraine.

The Ukrainian foreign minister also had a meaningful conversation with the leaders of Ukrainian public organizations in Western Canada (representatives from the Ukrainian Canadian Congress in the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, British Columbia). During the meeting, the sides discussed Canadian support for Ukraine in the fight against Russian armed aggression.

Klimkin also visited one of the largest Ukrainian historical and cultural complexes in North America - the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village.
Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker is visiting Ukraine this week and is scheduled to speak at the Yalta European Strategy (YES) Annual Meeting in Kyiv.

"I'm heading to Kyiv this week for meetings on how to bring peace for Ukraine and [I am] to speak at the YES Ukraine Annual Meeting," he tweeted on September 11.

As reported, the slogan of the 15th YES Annual Meeting this year is "The Next Generation of Everything." The event will take place in Kyiv on September 13-15. Over 600 leading politicians, diplomats, businessmen, civil activists and experts from 28 countries will take part in the conference.

The plenary sessions of the 15th Yalta European Strategy (YES) Annual Meeting will start with a speech by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on September 14. The concluding panel of the first day will feature an in-depth discussion on creating a digital society with President of Estonia Kersti Kaljulaid.

The speakers will include: Alejandro Alvargonzalez, Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy, NATO; Tony Blair, Executive Chairman of the Tony Blair Institute and former UK Prime Minister; Jared Cohen, Founder and CEO, Jigsaw; Valdis Dombrovskis, Vice-President for the Euro and Social Dialogue, also in charge of Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union, European Commission; Niall Ferguson, Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University; Bill Ford, Chief Executive Officer, General Atlantic; Franco Frattini, President of SIOI, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the Transdniestrian Settlement Process, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy (2008-2011); Yasmin Green, Director of research and development, Jigsaw; Pavlo Klimkin, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine; Ray Kurzweil, inventor, author, futurist; Bernard-Henri Levy, Philosopher and Writer; Michael McFaul, U.S. Ambassador to the Russian Federation (2012-2014), Stanford Professor and Hoover Institution Senior Fellow; Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Founder of Rasmussen Global, Secretary General of NATO (2009-2014), Prime Minister of Denmark (2001-2009); Condoleezza Rice, 66th U.S. Secretary of State (2005-2009); Hernando de Soto, President, Institute for Liberty and Democracy; Larry Summers, Charles W. Eliot University Professor, Harvard University; Manuel Valls, Prime Minister of the French Republic (2014  2016).
SPRINGFIELD - Nationwide, small business owners have been experiencing more optimism about the future of the U.S. economyand their own companiesthan they have in years. But in Illinois, the local economic climate has not provided quite as much cause for confidence.

NFIB Illinois continues to go to bat for the states small business owners in Springfield, however. Additionally, as Novembers election approaches, the NFIB Illinois Political Action Committee has also been active in identifying the candidates who understand the issues important to these employers. As such, the PACwhich is comprised exclusively of NFIB membershas recently endorsed candidates in 68 state legislative races16 for state Senate seats, and 52 for state House of Representative seats.

The Illinois Senate consists of 59 members and Illinois House 118 - meaning the NFIB IL found that only 27 percent of the candidates running for seats in Democrat-controlled Senate supported small businesses, and only 44 percent of the 2018 candidates running for the Democrat-controlled House.
Donetsk Water Filtration Station is to be re-launched on Wednesday, September 12, after repairs to a transformer engaged in the station's power supply were completed on Tuesday, September 11, the press service of the State Emergency Situations Service of Ukraine has said.

"The water supply to the town of Avdiyivka (22,000 people) was suspended due to a halt to Donetsk Filtration Station. On September 7, the repair team revealed a broken 110 kV Makiyivska  Avdiyivka Coke Plant No. 2 line and a malfunction of the transformer (in temporarily uncontrolled territory). On September 11, the repairs to the transformer were over. The re-launch of Donetsk Filtration Station is scheduled for September 12," the service's branch in Donetsk region has said on its website on Tuesday, September 11.

The service said it had delivered some 12,000 liters of drinking water to households in Avdiyivka during the station's standstill.
The Russian Supreme Court has upheld the sentence handed down to Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko, who was sentenced to 12 years in a high-security colony for espionage, an Interfax correspondent has reported.

"The sentence handed down by the Moscow City Court on July 4, 2018 is upheld. The appeals are declined," the Supreme Court appellate collegium said in its decision.

Thus, the sentence has taken legal effect and is subject to enforcement.

Sushchenko was arrested in October 2016 on charges of espionage (Article 276 of the Criminal Code of Russia) and was remanded in custody under a ruling by Moscow's Lefortovo district court.

Lawyer Mark Feygin said that Sushchenko, who lived in France for over six years while being a Paris correspondent of the Ukrinform news agency paid numerous visits to Russia and during his detention was on a personal business in Russia, where his relatives live.

On July 4, the Moscow City Court sentenced Sushchenko to 12 years in a high-security penitentiary. The court hearings were held behind closed doors as the case was "classified." Sushchenko did not admit his guilt.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has joined the movement for gender equality and is ready to conduct a gender audit inside the institution, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin has said.

"This is a result of how we see it in the diplomatic service and the situation that we have. Amid Russian aggression we must use all the unity of society, we need everyone," he said at a press conference in Kyiv on Wednesday.

According to him, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry will conduct a gender audit from 2019.

"A few years ago it was impossible to imagine at the Foreign Ministry that a woman went on a business trip to a foreign country, gave birth abroad, without complicating the work of the diplomatic mission [...] We are the first government agency to go this way," Klimkin added.
The Ukrainian Information Policy Ministry strongly condemns the decision by the Russian Supreme Court to uphold the sentence handed down to Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko, who was sentenced to 12 years in a high-security colony for espionage.

"It is hard to expect a fair decision from a higher court in a state that has long ago forgotten what truth, freedom and respect for human rights are. It must be understood that every such decision against Ukrainian political prisoners is another nail in the coffin of a criminal regime that now reigns in the Kremlin," the ministry's press service quoted Information Policy Minister Yuriy Stets as saying on Wednesday.

The minister also said that he very much relies on the support of the international community in the issue of the release of Ukrainian political prisoners.

Sushchenko was arrested in October 2016 on charges of espionage (Article 276 of the Criminal Code of Russia) and was remanded in custody under a ruling by Moscow's Lefortovo district court.

Lawyer Mark Feygin said that Sushchenko, who lived in France for over six years while being a Paris correspondent of the Ukrinform news agency paid numerous visits to Russia and during his detention was on a personal business in Russia, where his relatives live.

On July 4, the Moscow City Court sentenced Sushchenko to 12 years in a high-security penitentiary. The court hearings were held behind closed doors as the case was "classified." Sushchenko did not admit his guilt.

On September 12, the Russian Supreme Court upheld the sentence handed down to Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko, who was sentenced to 12 years in a high-security colony for espionage.

"The sentence handed down by the Moscow City Court on July 4, 2018 is upheld. The appeals are declined," the Supreme Court appellate collegium said in its decision.

Thus, the sentence has taken legal effect and is subject to enforcement.
The health of Ukrainian filmmaker Oleh Sentsov, who is serving his term in the Bely Medved penal colony in Yamal, is under constant supervision, Russian Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova told Interfax during her visit to Kaluga.

Sentsov's health is under supervision, in the same way as [the health of] any other person who goes on hunger strike, she said.

"According to the doctors' conclusion, his health state is now stable, there no aggravations. He is receiving nutritious mixtures intravenously and extra food with his consent," she said.

Moskalkova said she hopes that the filmmaker will change his form of protest as "there are other, more effective methods of protecting human rights."

Responding to a question from Interfax about the will recently written by Sentsov, she said "it is every person's individual business."

"I write wills, too, because we are all constantly at risk and no one knows what will happen to him tomorrow," Moskalkova said.

She said the filmmaker has not made any complaints to her about rude treatment and, on the contrary, said he is satisfied with the procedures and the living conditions.

"I visited him in person in Salekhard. I held two video conferences. I constantly get information on his health state. Moreover, when he wrote to his sister he would not like to be transferred to a different place, although she had insisted, I talked to him in person. He said he has a good ward here and that he is getting the necessary medications and doctors' assistance," Moskalkova said.

In August 2015, the North Caucasus District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Sentsov, who was detained in Crimea in 2014, to 20 years in a high-security penitentiary for plotting a terrorist attack there.

Sentsov went on hunger strike on May 14, 2018 and demanded that all Ukrainians held in Russia for political reasons be freed.

According to the lawyers, Sentsov has no intention of asking the Russian president to pardon him.
Illegal armed formations backed by the Russian Federation mounted 14 attacks on Ukrainian positions in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, from 07:00 to 18:00 Kyiv time on Wednesday, September 12; no Ukrainian casualties have been reported, the press center of the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) headquarters has said.

"From 07:00 to 18:00 today, the Russian occupation forces violated the ceasefire 14 times, using, among others, weapons prohibited by the Minsk Agreements (...). There have been no Joint Forces casualties in the past day," the JFO HQ said on Facebook on Wednesday evening.

During the day, the enemy opened aimed fire from cannons of infantry fighting vehicles, grenade launchers of various systems, heavy machine guns and small arms to attack JFO positions near the villages of Krymske, Novotoshkivske, Novoluhanske, Chermalyk, Hnutove, Lebedynske and the town of Zolote. In addition, Ukrainian positions near Chermalyk came under enemy 82mm mortar fire.

"The situation in the JFO zone remains under control," the press center said.
Israeli security company CheckPoint says it has evidence proving state actors in Iran are using smartphone malware to monitor individuals they consider national security threats.

The company said most of the approximately 240 people that have been targeted by the operation are Iranian nationals, though a handful of citizens of the UK, Afghanistan, and Iraq have also had their mobile phones monitored. The individuals had all either demonstrated support for ISIS or were of Kurdish or Turkish origin, minorities that have an adversarial relationship with the Iranian regime.

According to CheckPoint, the spyware was able to collect contact lists, call records, text and multimedia messages, photos, geographical locations, and even record nearby conversations.

Government hackers were able to infiltrate the devices through fake apps the users downloaded on their mobile phones, including an ISIS themed wallpaper changing app, an app masquerading as providing official updates from the Firat News Agency (ANF), a Kurdish news agency, and a fake version of the Vidogram messaging app.

"This is the first time to our knowledge that a technical analysis technique has highlighted the fact a government has led a cyber-espionage campaign on smartphones," the firm's vice-president for Europe, Thierry Karsenti, told AFP.

Meanwhile, another Israeli cyber security firm, ClearSky, has reported Tehran has expanded its disinformation franchise with a handful of fake news websites targeting citizens of foreign countries, especially Israel.

The company identified three websites, two in Hebrew and one in Arabic, which it says the Iranian regime is using to manipulate Israeli citizens and promote its own agenda.

One of the websites, the Tel Aviv Times, launched in 2013, copies reports from mainstream Israeli media and publishes them after making "crucial changes" to them so that they serve the Iranian agenda.

14 fake Facebook and 11 fake Twitter accounts with thousands of followers are also part of the Iranian disinformation network, ClearSky said.

The U.S. cybersecurity firm FireEye recently announced that Iran has been using a network of fake news websites and fraudulent social media personas spread across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Google Plus, and YouTube to push narratives in line with Tehrans interests. The campaign was aimed at users in the United States, the UK, Latin America, and the Middle East, FireEye said.

With assistance from FireEye, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram have shut down hundreds of accounts with ties to the Iranian regime. Google removed 39 channels on YouTube, as well as 13 accounts on Google Plus and six accounts on its blogging platform, blogger.com.

Weve invested in robust systems to detect phishing and hacking attempts, identify influence operations launched by foreign governments, and protect political campaigns from digital attacks through our Protect Your Election program, wrote Kent Walker, a senior Google manager in an August 23 blog post announcing his companys move.
The head of the Islamic Republics judiciary, Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani, has warned Iranian media not to cover sex tourism unless they want to face prosecution.

The warning was issued September 10 amid increasing reports of Iraqi Shi'ite pilgrims to the holy city of Mashhad hiring sex workers during their stay. Some reports allege sex tourism has become a bigger draw for Iraqis to the holy Shiite city than the religious sites.

Ironically, one of the media outlets reporting on Iraqi sex tourism in Iran, Khabar Online, is closely affiliated with Larijanis elder brother and speaker of the Iranian parliament, Ali Larijani. The brothers were born in Najaf, Iraq.

After forbidding coverage of the issue, Larijani said the United States had fabricated the reports of Iraqi sex tourism in Mashhad, telling the governments official news agency IRNA, The U.S. is attempting to sow the seeds of division between Iranians and Iraqis, adding I have ordered Tehrans Prosecutor-General to charge media outlets that seek to promote animosity between Iranians and Iraqis by highlighting these stories about pilgrims to Mashhad.

Mashhad is home to the mausoleum of one of the Shiite faiths twelve Imams, Ali Ibn Moussa al-Reza. The city is controlled by the most conservative clergy, who also benefit from tens of millions of dollars in annual donations and income of the holy shrine.

Iraqi tourism in Iran has increased along with the decline of Irans national currency, the rial, as visits are now cheaper.

In an August 26 story the daily Shahrvand quoted a tourism industry worker as saying, Some of the Iraqi pilgrims book their rooms in Mashhad provided they come with a woman for sigheh (temporary marriage). Shia Islam permits temporary marriages in addition to the four legal wives a man can have.

Sex services are offered to Iraqi men and other foreign tourists and pilgrims in up to 6,000 private accommodations called travelers houses in Mashhad, Khabar Online, the website affiliated with Ali Larijani, reported.

Iranian law explicitly forbids unmarried men and women from entering a hotel room together.

In 2015 The Guardian reported that a young man named Alireza is known in the local travel industry as a fixer for sex services, and many hoteliers and shop owners give his phone number to inquiring Iraqis.

The women have their own apartments around [middle- and working-class districts of] Qasem Abad and Moallem Boulevard. The exchanges are made there, Alireza told The Guardian then.

According to Shahrvand, the growth of Iraqi sex tourism has angered locals not just in Mashhad, but also in Abadan in the oil rich province of Khuzestan.

However, the Islamic Republics authorities have repeatedly insisted that these allegations are unfounded and designed by imperialist and arrogant powers, code for the U.S.

Responding to a question about moral corruption and perversion in Abadan, Khuzestans representative to the Assembly of Experts, mid-ranking cleric Mohsen Heidari told state-run Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) September 10, Generally and implicitly speaking, I believe that the authorities should study the recent events in a comprehensive way and, then, properly address the problem.

But Heidari also blamed foreign interference for the controversy.

These forces have been hit hard by the unity of Iranian and Iraqi nations, he said. Therefore, one should not forget that creating pessimism and suspicion will be detrimental to Iranians as well as Iraqis.

Footage circulated recently on social media showed hundreds of demonstrators in Abadan chanting Iraqis out! in Persian.

According to ISNA, the Free Trade Zone of Arvand in Khuzestan, where Iraqis can travel without an entry visa, hosts hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, mainly from Basra and other parts of Iraq, every day. ISNA also reported that there are many brothels in the area where trafficked women are held against their will and forced into the sex trade.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have 90 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Sept. 12.

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. 12

Trend:

The OSCE monitoring held in the direction of Azerbaijans Aghdam district at the line of contact between the troops of Azerbaijan and Armenia on Sept. 12 passed without incidents, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Sept. 12.

The monitoring was held under the mandate of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative.

On the Azerbaijani side, the monitoring was held by Ognjen Jovic and Simon Tiller, field assistants of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative.

On the Azerbaijani territories, occupied and controlled by Armenian armed forces, the monitoring was held by Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk and his field assistant Mikhail Olaru.

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.
Nobody quite knows where the line should be from free and protected speech to that deserving of censor. The issue is an emerging one, as those once outside traditional boundaries are now demanding equality. Of concern is where society will draw the line between what is acceptable and what is not, especially as it applies to what our children are being taught K-12 through the college. What we do know is the line seems more flexible today than ever before. Are there no longer any absolutes?

As children head back to school for the 2018-2019 school year, it's up to us to make sure they're educated, not indoctrinated, for the fastest way to destroy our country is through our children. Not enough Americans recognize how the Left uses the classroom as a pulpit to preach its own ideology and beliefs as part of its bigger scheme to wipe out conservatives and fundamentally transform America. The Left is succeeding by going after us with bans and censorship, while continuing to manipulate our children with their radical propaganda.

Fight for Free Speech

The fight for free speech isn't just about you or me. It's about our children and our grandchildren. It's about our country's future. Increasingly, public schools are under pressure to facilitate LGBTQ indoctrination. (He) she is a girl now. (She) is a girl now. They are a girl now. What if parents are against this indoctrination of their children? What about free speech in pushing back the Left's monopoly of our educational system?

The agendas emphasis on mandating the proper use of its prescribed gender pronouns are reportedly a major component creating its new social order, which begins in the schools. Forcing children to use words and pronouns that do not correspond to their biological sex, but of their choosing, destabilizes thought because it totally undermines the entire structure of our language.

Organizations championing LGBTQ in K-12 education

GLSEN, has been championing LGBTQ issues in K-12 education since 1990. It sponsors gay-straight alliance clubs in schools, along with the influential Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the world's largest gay lobbying group, which has successfully convinced state legislatures, state and local school boards, textbook publishers and big teachers' unions that their agenda is on the right side of history

The Human Rights Campaign will be a factor in the November election. It's spending millions on volunteer engagements and other work in six states in support of Democrat candidates ahead of the November midterm elections: Nevada, Arizona, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Its aim is to turn out 10 million LGBTQ voters and millions of their supporters.

"Welcoming Schools," produced by HRC for elementary schools, aims to produce LGBTQ-friendly and "gender inclusive" schools by training elementary educators in its curriculum. According to HRC, the program is being used in schools in Oakland and Berkeley, CA; Madison, WI; Houston; Plantation, Fl., among others. What "Welcoming" Schools offers can be viewed by going to this site. Examples are given of LGBTQ-friendly policies and practices schools should implement to fully welcome and affirm all students and families.

A Chicago based organization, the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) is the worlds leading organization advancing one of the most important fields in education in decades: the practice of promoting integrated academic, social, and emotional learning for all children in preschool through high school CASEL uses various materials and processes to indoctrinate children into its mode of thinking. Activists say it is because [transgender indoctrination] is the only way children will acquire life-skills. Children, who are bound to become self-directed, are crying out for this, noting that data show that approximately 40 percent are chronically disengaged in school. CASEL's curriculum is being implemented in certain places in the U.S., especially in urban areas.

Stella Morabito, senior contributor to The Federalist, speaking at The Family Research Council on Feb. 6, 2018, warned that schools are starting to embrace a propaganda operation designed to squash thought and demand allegiance to political correctness and gender ideology. During her speech, Morabito revealed both the content and processes of a group called CASEL.

Social and emotional learning is becoming all the rage in public education and if left unchecked it will result in a monolithic, nationalized mandate demanding conformity to the politically correct dogma of the day. In other words, it is a massive state-sponsored propaganda operation intended to isolate and control people, including kids, about how to feel and relate to people.

2018 Sex-ed Curriculum forays into Virginia, CA, Texas, and PA

Just outside Washington, D.C. in Fairfax County, VA. public schools are on the leading edge of a strategic and well-funded push to indoctrinate students in the thinking of the 21st century's sex and gender revolution. All issues regarding LGBTQ and gender-bending are welcome and encouraged.

For more than a year in San Diego, parents fought a sex-ed curriculum deemed "pornographic" and "misogynistic" by some, but praised by the state of CA as conforming to recommendations in it, Healthy Youth Act passed in 2015. Expressed anger and frustration over a sex-ed curriculum they allege is completely inappropriate for their young children, resulted in San Diego parents initially pulling their kids from school and rallying outside the districts headquarters in May of this year. San Diego Unified School District first maintained that parents were getting upset over material that should in fact be taught to young students, but later allowed San Diego parents to opt their child out of the sex-ed curriculum program. No substitute curriculum was provided.

Fort Worth schools have also been in a state of unrest after a sex-ed lesson for sixth-graders entailed gender transitions and sexual fluidity. After parents alleged the district was avoiding showing parents the material, per state law, the state attorney general in June requested a copy of the material for his overview, warning the district of state law requiring parental access.

After four months, Emmaus High School in Emmaus, Penn. finally released links to four videos it showed to students this past spring, after a Christian law firm intervened to defend the rights of parents to know what the public school is showing their children. The school defended the videos as anti-bullying, but they promoted a one-sided agenda. The school had refused to make the videos public, arguing they were students' private work. The four videos briefly addressed bullying, but they mostly focused on presenting homosexuality and transgenderism as objects of pride. The first video, "Show your Pride. Share your love. #ProudToLove," started with a montage of teens "coming out" to their parents, leading into many images of people of the same-sex kissing, and even featuring former President Barack Obama celebrating Pride Month.

Drag Queen Story Time in our Libraries and Schools

One of the more outrageous efforts by Leftists and the homosexual community today is a program aimed at our children to embrace a multi-gender philosophy. This can be realized in "Drag Queen Story Time. This outrageous program has unfortunately emerged nationwide. Men dress in full female regalia, loaded with makeup and then they read stories to little pre-school and kindergarten-age children about how being a homosexual is fun, claim that it is a way to express your individuality, and that there is no such thing as boy things and girl things. Children, they say, should feel free and open to choose whichever gender they would like. They go so far as to say it is acceptable if they would like to be a boy one day and a girl the next. Sadly, they are feeding this to gullible four and five-year-old children, often without the full knowledge of their parents.

Drag Queen Story Hour events are not only happening in libraries, but also in schools. As reported on August 3, 2018, K-12 schools are bringing drag queens into the classroom to teach gender ideology. Where is the public outrage? Why have our leading media sources failed to expose the extent of homosexual extremism, which is not to be confused with appropriate information. Most grievous is the efforts to destroy anyone who dares oppose their lifestyle? The public deserves to know the extent schools and specific media programming contribute to, not just accepting homosexuals, but in promoting the homosexual lifestyle.

Curriculum bills pending in Illinois to homosexuality and biological-sex rejection

As addressed by Laurie Higgins of the Illinois Family Institute:

"The noxious Leftist Inclusive Curriculum bill (SB 3249 and HB 5596) created by two Chicago-based homosexual/trans activist organizations (i.e., Equality Illinois and the Illinois Safe Schools Alliance) is moving through the Illinois Senate. The central goal of this costly and ideologically driven mandate that robs schools of local control is to use curricula in government schools to transform the way children think and feel about homosexuality and biological-sex rejection (aka as transgenderism).

If passed, this indoctrination bill will require that any book or book substitute that will be used as a text or text substitute in grades K-12 include the role and contributions of homosexuals and of men and women who adopt opposite-sex personas (also known deceptively as transgender

Why the left is winning

The LGBTQ agenda has been having its way in America's schools and throughout society beyond the school gates

According to Stella Morabito, senior contributor to The Federalist:

"American conservatives are by and large clueless about propaganda methods and tactics. And it shows. There are virtually no conservative social psychologists around. Youd think once a liberal social psychologist hits the public over the head with this fact some on the Right would take notice and at least try to get clued in.

American conservatives are by and large clueless about propaganda methods and tactics. And it shows.

Meanwhile, the Left has been employing social psychology and depth psychology on the masses for decades. President Obamas campaign staff was filled with social psychologists. In this context, those who believe conservatives can subsist on reason and logic alone are kidding themselves. Its no wonder GOP leaders are caving on so many principles and being absorbed so easily into the Lefts machine."

It is up to parents to know what their children are learning in their school's sex education classes and to speak up in front of their school boards if the material is found inappropriate for their child.

Published on Monday, September 9, 2018, at Illinois Review: Thorner: Time for Parents to Teach Their Kids History and Civics
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

Azerbaijan and the OSCE have discussed cooperation programs as Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov met with Secretary General of the OSCE Thomas Greminger.

Minister Elmar Mammadyarov underscored the great significance that Azerbaijan attaches to cooperation with the OSCE as a regional organization.

Noting the fundamental principle of indivisibility of security within the OSCE, Elmar Mammadyarov stated the importance of ensuring that all Member States are committed to their obligations under the Helsinki Final Act. In this regard, Minister Mammadyarov stressed that the Republic of Armenia, grossly violating the commitments undertaken by the Helsinki Final Act as a member of the OSCE, continues to use the force to occupy the Nagorno-Karabakh region and adjacent districts of Azerbaijan. The minister pointing out that the OSCE, since its establishment, was involved in the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, stressed necessity of redoubling the efforts to change the status quo of occupation and to ensure withdrawal of armed forces of Armenia from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

FM Mammadyarov added that the illegal presence of the armed forces of Armenia in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan constitutes the primary threat to regional peace and security.

Recalling that the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the Helsinki Final Act constitute the mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, Minister Mammadyarov stressed that Azerbaijan stands ready for substantive and intensive negotiations to achieve progress in resolving the conflict and ensuring a lasting and just peace in the region.

FM Mammadyarov briefed about the work done by Azerbaijan on furthering economic cooperation and connectivity, and the opportunities for a multi-modal transport infrastructure covering the region and the extended OSCE space. In this regard, he noted the East-West, North-South, South-West projects and the already commissioned Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway route.

He added that these projects implemented with the participation and initiative of Azerbaijan contribute to economic development and prosperity in the OSCE area, as well as to the strengthening of regional peace and security.

At the meeting the role of parliamentary diplomacy as well as the cooperation with the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly was also noted.

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. 12

By Leman Zeynalova - Trend:

OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger is on a visit to Azerbaijan. He's expected to hold meetings with Azerbaijani officials, including those in the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry.

The Secretary General is also expected to visit Alat port.

Today, Greminger will also participate in a meeting at ADA University.

This is Thomas Greminger's first visit to Azerbaijan after being appointed as the OSCE Secretary General in July 2018. He was elected as a result of so-called procedure of silence - after July 12 the OSCE Permanent Council agreed on a single candidature, nominated Greminger for the vacant post and asked the foreign ministers of the OSCE countries to approve the candidate during a five-day procedure.

The appointment came into force, as the foreign ministers did not object to the deadline, which was designated July 18.

Previously, Greminger was Switzerland's permanent representative to the OSCE.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has viewed conditions created at the secondary school No 227 in Keshla settlement, Nizami district, Baku, after major overhaul.

Principal Sevinj Huseynova informed the head of state of the work carried out in the school.

The school was built in 1937. In 2005-2007, two additional blocks were built for the school. The school currently enrolls 1,176 students who are served by 82 teachers.

The school has 38 classrooms, a computer room, a lab, a gym, a conference hall, a military room and a canteen. The classrooms are supplied with all necessary teaching aids.

Landscaping work was carried out, green areas were created in the yard of the school.
Details added (first version posted on 12:08)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received a delegation led by Minister of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic Marta Novakova.

Recalling President of the Czech Republic Milos Zeman's visit to Azerbaijan, President Ilham Aliyev emphasized that bilateral relations between the two countries have been developing successfully since that visit. Describing the development of relations between the two countries in various fields as satisfactory, the head of state underlined an increase in trade turnover and stressed the necessity of defining additional opportunities for enhancing economic cooperation. Emphasizing a broad agenda of the economic partnership and successful operation of a number of Czech companies in Azerbaijan, President Ilham Aliyev noted the importance of expanding trade, investment cooperation between the two countries.

Saying that her delegation also includes Czech businessmen, Marta Novakova stressed the importance of the Azerbaijan-Czech business forum to be held in Baku today. She expressed her confidence that this event will contribute to the expansion of economic cooperation between the two countries.

The issues of cooperation in the fields of industry, infrastructure, automobile industry, agriculture and tourism were discussed during the meeting.
Details added (first version posted on 11:34)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has viewed conditions created at the secondary school No 8 named after General Lieutenant Karim Karimov in Nasimi district, Baku, after major overhaul.

Principal Aytan Bakhshaliyeva informed the head of state about the work carried out in the school.

The head of state viewed the conditions created at the school.

The secondary school No 8 was named The best educational institution in Azerbaijan in the 2010-2011 academic year. The school offers classes in Azerbaijani and Russian languages. 780 pupils will be taught by 70 teachers here. The three-storey school building has been supplied with necessary equipment and modern teaching aids.
Details added (first version posted on 12:07)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received Secretary General of the OSCE Thomas Greminger.

The head of state pointed to a broad agenda of the issues to be discussed during Thomas Gremingers visit, describing the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as one of the topical ones.

In this regard, President Aliyev noted that the contradictory statements on the settlement of the conflict made by the Armenian prime minister from the very beginning of his activity are at least surprising.

Particularly, his thesis that Azerbaijan must negotiate with the so-called Nagorno-Karabakh Republic" is unacceptable, Ilham Aliyev said. This demonstrates that the Armenian leadership wants to break off the negotiations. Azerbaijan resolutely refutes the statements alleging that the occupied Azerbaijani districts are part of the so-called Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, and urges the OSCE to react to these dangerous statements. In general, the Azerbaijani side has come to such a conclusion that Pashinyan is trying to break off the negotiation process by any means. In this case, the Armenian side and especially Pashinyan are fully responsible for this.

President Ilham Aliyev called on the OSCE not to turn a blind eye to massive violations of human rights in Armenia on the pretext of democracy, the Armenian prime ministers instructions on the arrest of his political opponents, and the emergence of a new dictatorship regime in Armenia.

During the conversation, the sides exchanged views on the issues relating to regional security, democratic development, transport and economic cooperation.
Details added (first version posted on 15:46)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received a delegation led by President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Paolo Alli.

The head of state underlined the successful development of cooperation between Azerbaijan and NATO, and stressed the importance of Bakus hosting a meeting of the Economics and Security Committee of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in expanding this cooperation.

President Aliyev recalled his last year's visit to NATO headquarters, and noted that very positive opinions were expressed on Azerbaijan's role in NATO-Azerbaijan cooperation and in the region during the meetings with the NATO Secretary General and at the North Atlantic Council.

Saying that the Azerbaijan-NATO cooperation has been implemented for many years and this cooperation embraces a variety of areas, President Ilham Aliyev pointed out that NATO hails Azerbaijan's participation in the Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan and an increase in the number of its servicemen there.

The head of state expressed his confidence that the visit of the delegation led by President of the NATO PA Paolo Alli to Azerbaijan will contribute to the development of Azerbaijan-NATO ties as well as relations between Azerbaijans Milli Majlis (parliament) and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

Noting that he is pleased to meet with President Ilham Aliyev, Paolo Alli said that they are interested in exchanging views on the regional security and cooperation prospects with the President of Azerbaijan.

Paolo Alli also praised the role of Azerbaijans Milli Majlis and the NATO PA in developing Azerbaijan-NATO relations.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

XIII Belarusian International Media Forum "Partnership for the Future: A Digital Agenda for Media" has opened in Minsk on Sept. 12.

Representatives of Trend have been invited to participate and make speeches at the forum.

Other participants of the event include representatives of ITAR-TASS, Belarus Today, Center for Sociological and Political Studies of Belarus State University, Argumenty i Fakty, Komsomolskaya Pravda, MIR television, Russia Today, Rossiyskaya Gazeta and others.

During panel discussions and roundtables, representatives of the leading media in Europe, the CIS and other countries, as well as experts and representatives of governmental institutions, will hold discussions on topics such as "Television and New Network Technologies: Challenges or New Opportunities", "Internet Resources as an effective tool for shaping public opinion. Sociological studies of internet resources", "Union State in the New Media Age: A Positioning Strategy".

The event is organized by the Ministry of Information of Belarus and the Standing Committee of the Union State. Support for the organization of the media forum is also provided by the Interstate Fund for Humanitarian Cooperation of the CIS member states, the CIS Executive Committee, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, the Minsk City Executive Committee, the Belarusian State University, the EcoMO Analytical Center, the Belarusian Union of Journalists.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

A new print edition of the AZERNEWS online newspaper was released on September 12.

The new edition includes articles about Country able to fully provide itself with food products,

Baku to launch new metro station, Grape harvesting about to end, Cultural samples found during excavation in Goygol etc.

AZERNEWS is an associate member of the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA).

The online newspaper is available at www.azernews.az.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Azad Hasanli - Trend:

Grampet Group, the largest rail freight and logistics operator in Romania and South-Eastern Europe, has joined the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), Romanian media reported.

Gramper Group is the first European company that joined TITR.

The president of the Grampet Group noted that TITR will allow to transform Romania into the logistics platform of Europe and Asia, create 100,000 new work places and contribute to the state budget more than one billion euros.

TITR is a project initiated to improve transit potential and development of the countries of the Caspian region. This route runs from China through Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and further to Europe.

The Deputy Chairman of Kazakhstan Railways Maksat Kabashev had earlier told Trend that the potential growth in trade turnover in the TITR region ranges from $646 billion to $922 billion by 2020, which is equivalent to 300,000 containers.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Anvar Mammadov - Trend:

Trade Facilitation Center at the Sinig Korpu customs checkpoint on Azerbaijans border with Georgia will be commissioned at the end of September, Chairman of the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan Safar Mehdiyev said at a press conference Sept. 12.

He said that the opening of the center will make it possible to significantly reduce the congestion of people that arises when crossing the border, and facilitate the passage of goods and cars through the customs checkpoint.

Trade Facilitation Center is being built as part of the customs checkpoints improvement project with the support of the EU.

In Georgia, in turn, with the support of the EU, a necessary laboratory will be created for the implementation of phytosanitary, veterinary and other types of control.

The total length of the Georgia-Azerbaijan border is 480 kilometers. In addition to Sinig Korpu customs checkpoint, Georgia and Azerbaijan are connected by Gardabani, Mtkvari, Lagodekhi and Samtatskaro customs checkpoints.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Huseyn Valiyev - Trend:

Potato production in Azerbaijan exceeds the countrys needs twice, Azerbaijans Agriculture Minister Inam Karimov told reporters in Baku Sept. 12.

The minister noted that about 900,000 tons of potatoes were produced this year in Azerbaijan.

Karimov also commented on the recent increase in customs duties on potatoes. He noted that this step contributed to the provision of stable prices for local products and serves the protection of the interests of local producers.

In Azerbaijan, the rate of the customs duty on the import of potatoes into the country will be 30 percent of its customs value until October 31, 2018. New tariffs apply to crops harvested from January 1 to June 30. Previously, tariffs on imports of potatoes harvested during this period amounted to 15 percent of its customs value.

Tariffs for potatoes harvested in another period remained unchanged (15 percent).
Details added (first version posted on 13:59)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Anvar Mammadov - Trend:

Azerbaijan and the Czech Republic have great potential for developing relations in many areas, Azerbaijans Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev said at the Azerbaijani-Czech business forum in Baku Sept. 12.

There is great potential between our countries for developing relations in finance, industry, engineering and chemical industry, Mustafayev said.

The minister noted the planned cooperation between Ganja Automobile Plant and the Tatra company, and also emphasized the development of relations in the field of pharmaceuticals.

Last year, the Ganja Automobile Plant signed a memorandum of cooperation with Tatra company, and this memorandum involves the assembly of Tatra trucks, he said. I think that production will be launched within the next two years. I would also like to note the participation of Czech companies in the development of the transport system of Azerbaijan. There are also great opportunities in the field of construction of railway cars, in particular, boxcars, production of railway containers.

Mustafayev stressed that both countries are interested in increasing the value of mutual investments.

So far, the investments of the Czech Republic in Azerbaijan have amounted to $30 million, and Azerbaijans investments in the Czech Republic are slightly higher than this figure, the minister said. There are 25 Czech companies operating in Azerbaijan. Czech companies are contractors in eight projects totaling more than $2 billion. Of course, these indicators are far from our capabilities, and we need to continue to build up mutual investments.

Azerbaijans trade turnover with the Czech Republic amounted to $473 million in January-July, and almost $394.3 million of this volume accounted for the export of Azerbaijani products to the Czech Republic, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Huseyn Veliyev - Trend:

Some 100 cotton harvesters have been imported to Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani Minister of Agriculture Inam Karimov told journalists on Sept. 12.

According to Karimov, approximately 400 harvesters will be used to harvest cotton this season.

"All machine operators have received training and certificates. Machine operators who are not certified will not be allowed to harvest cotton," Karimov said.

In 2018, some 260,000 tons of cotton is expected to be harvested in 22 districts of Azerbaijan.

In 2016, the figure was 90,000 and in 2017 it was 207,000.

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Details added (first version posted on 13:40)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Anvar Mammadov - Trend:

The Czech Republic is interested in establishing joint ventures (JVs) with Azerbaijan, Czech Minister of Industry and Trade Marta Novakova said Sept. 12.

She said pharmaceutics and petrochemical industry are of the greatest interest for Czech entrepreneurs.

In addition, the minister noted the possibility of creating a joint venture for production of rail cars.

The Czech Republic has good experience in the production of trains, the minister said.

Novakova in turn noted that Azerbaijani market is attractive for Czech companies.

Azerbaijan is traditional partner of the Czech Republic, she noted, adding that the two countries have no problems regarding political or economic issues.

Czech Republic is ready to share experience with Azerbaijani partners and offer technologies in the sphere of domestic waste processing, construction, transport, energy and pharmaceuticals, she said.

There are opportunities to create joint ventures in the petrochemical field, Novakova said.

She added that in 2019, Prague will host the next meeting of the Azerbaijani-Czech intergovernmental commission for economic cooperation.

Azerbaijans trade turnover with the Czech Republic amounted to $473 million in January-July, and almost $394.3 million of this volume accounted for the export of Azerbaijani products to the Czech Republic, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan.

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Details added (first version posted on 14:54)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Anvar Mammadov - Trend:

Azerbaijan is the main trade partner of the Czech Republic among the countries of the South Caucasus, Azerbaijans Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev told reporters in Baku Sept. 12.

He said that Azerbaijan's share accounts for 85 percent of the Czech Republics trade with the countries of the South Caucasus.

In the end of 2017, our trade turnover with the Czech Republic more than doubled, compared to the end of 2016, the minister said. It is gratifying that the positive dynamics continue this year as well. Thus, in the first half of this year, trade turnover with the Czech Republic increased again by almost two times compared to the same period last year.

Azerbaijans trade turnover with the Czech Republic amounted to $473 million in January-July, and almost $394.3 million of this volume accounted for the export of Azerbaijani products to the Czech Republic, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan.

In 2017, the trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $664.5 million, and in 2016 - to $316.3 million. Azerbaijans exports to the Czech Republic last year amounted to $556.86 million [a 2.6 times year-on-year increase].

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept.12

By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:

Higher coal prices and carbon prices will continue to support the gas demand in Europe, said Murray Douglas, Research Director, European Gas.

"Europes gas demand has undergone a renaissance in the last years. Gas demand growth has returned since 2014 and has been underpinned by the power sector. Higher coal prices and carbon prices will continue to support the gas demand," he said.

Douglas noted that on the supply side, with Europe's largest gas field set to be shut-in by 2032 and new supply getting more costly as developments become deeper, remoter and more complex, Europe's dependency on imports will grow.

And while the Southern Corridor unlocks a new import source, challenges remain to sustain other pipe supplies from the south, he said.

"National coal phaseout policies are being enacted across Europe and will continue to support gas demand through to mid-2020s. Europes largest gas field Groningen in the Netherlands will be shut-in wiping 18 percent from Europes indigenous production by 2025," he said.

Douglas pointed out that Europes 2010-2017 average import dependency stood at 254 bcma (51 percent). The 2020 import dependency will be 326 bcm (63 percent) and 2025 import dependency is expected to stand at 369 bcm (69 percent).

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

The Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) project does not seek to compete with gas projects in Europe involving Gazprom, all pipelines will be in demand against the background of growing demand for energy, Vitaly Beglyarbekov, Deputy Vice-President for Investments and Marketing of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) said during his visit to Washington.

"We have been cooperating with Gazprom and other Russian companies for many years  the LUKOIL company has been mentioned many times. We have excellent relations with Rosneft company. You [in Russia] have a lot of Azerbaijani oil workers, and not only oil workers. And this is a great and solid basis for good relations", RIA Novosti quoted Beglyarbekov as saying.

The top manager of SOCAR noted that Gazprom is already present in the markets in which the SOCAR operates or intends to operate, adding that "and none of the contracts that we have concluded, has in any way affected the contracts concluded by Gazprom."

Therefore, he noted, "all the comments stating that one project interferes with another is an absolute lie." "Another thing is that it is, of course, the market  it's the business. We must take into account what they [Gazprom] are doing, they must take into account what we are doing. But I do not see anything unnatural in the relations that have developed between our companies and countries," Beglyarbekov added.

He said that in the future it will be possible to talk about the goal of gas supplies in the amount of 25-30 billion cubic meters per year, despite the fact that Gazprom supplies about 200 billion cubic meters of gas per year in the European direction, and the volume is constantly growing.

"Yes, there is no competition. And we are constantly trying to explain to everyone  we have sold our gas. The customers have bought it. The prices have been determined. There is no competition as such. Gazprom has its own niche, we have our own niche. The demand is growing all the time. Only by 2020, the pipeline will supply 25-30 billion cubic meters of gas in different directions, starting with Azerbaijan  Azerbaijan also consumes gas. Georgia consumes gas, Turkey consumes gas... I cannot tell you how this proportion will change by 2020. But the fact is that we did not have any contradictions with Gazprom, and we do not want to have them in the future," Beglyarbekov said.

The Southern Gas Corridor is one of the priority projects for the EU, and it provides for the transportation of 10 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas from the Caspian region through Georgia and Turkey to Europe.

On May 29, Baku hosted the launch ceremony of the first phase of the Southern Gas Corridor project, and on June 12, the opening ceremony of TANAP pipeline was held in the Turkish province of Eskisehir with the participation of the presidents of Azerbaijan - Ilham Aliyev, Turkey - Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Ukraine - Petro Poroshenko and Serbia - Alexander Vucic.

Thus, the first gas from the Azerbaijani Shah Deniz field coming out of the Sangachal terminal expanded for Shah Deniz-2 project and passing through the expanded South Caucasus Gas Pipeline, has already gone through the first segment of the Southern Gas Corridor. The next stage was the commissioning of the TANAP gas pipeline, through which the gas will enter the territory of Turkey and will pass on further to Europe.

The TANAP pipeline has been laid from the Georgian-Turkish border to the Western border of Turkey. The TANAP pipeline together with another  Trans-Adriatic - gas pipeline is part of the "Southern Gas Corridor" project, which provides for the transportation of gas from the Azerbaijani "Shah Deniz" field to Europe.

The initial capacity of the TANAP pipeline is expected to be 16 billion cubic meters of gas per year. About six billion cubic meters of gas will be supplied to Turkey, and the rest - to Europe. After the completion of the TAP pipeline, the gas will reach Europe approximately in the early 2020.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Leman Zeynalova - Trend:

Russias Rosgeo JSC and Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR are in talks regarding carrying out seismic survey, Director General of Rosgeo JSC Roman Panov said in an interview with TASS news agency.

Our colleagues have a need for a 3D seismic survey in Azerbaijan, and we held several rounds of talks on this topic, he said.

Panov noted that various models are being considered, up to the creation of a joint venture, which would implement such work in the interests of the customer.

We believe that by the end of the year already at the level of the companys managers we will agree on a model that would be acceptable both for us and SOCAR, he said.

Presently, SOCAR is the only producer of oil products in Azerbaijan, and operates more than 370 gas (petrol) filling stations in Switzerland, Georgia, Romania and Ukraine. SOCAR is also a co-owner of Petkim, Turkey's biggest petrochemical complex, and other assets in Turkey.

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Oil eased on Wednesday, having neared its highest level this year after a drop in U.S. crude inventories and the prospect of the loss of Iranian supply added to concerns over the delicate balance between consumption and production, Reuters reports.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 were last down 23 cents on the day at $78.83 a barrel by 0923 GMT, having touched a session peak of $79.66, the highest since late May, when the price broke above $80.

U.S. crude futures CLc1 were up 35 cents at $69.60 a barrel.

We think oil market fundamentals are increasingly supportive of crude prices, at least at current levels, said Gordon Gray, HSBCs global head of oil and gas equity research.

While we arent explicitly forecasting Brent to rise to $100 a barrel, we see real risks of this happening. The fact that much higher supply is already needed from the likes of Saudi Arabia - and the low levels of spare capacity remaining - leave the global system highly vulnerable to any further significant outage.

U.S. crude stocks fell by 8.6 million barrels in the week to Sept. 7 to 395.9 million, the American Petroleum Institute (API) said on Tuesday, while the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) cut its forecast for U.S. crude output growth in 2019.

Outside the United States, traders have been focusing on the impact of U.S. sanctions against Iran that will target oil exports from November.

Iran is increasingly becoming the preoccupation of the crude market. The last couple of weeks have seen the expected squeeze on Iranian crude flows taking shape, with overall outflows down markedly, consultant JBC Energy said.
Details added (first version posted on 13:43)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Anvar Mammadov - Trend:

The Czech Republic is interested in increasing oil imports from Azerbaijan, Czech Minister of Industry and Trade Marta Novakova told reporters in Baku Sept. 12.

She said that presently the Czech Republic imports one third of the consumed oil from Azerbaijan.

The bulk of oil in the Czech Republic is processed at the Kralupy refinery, she noted.

The increase in imports directly depends on the increase in refinery capacity, she added.

Unfortunately, the Czech Republic cannot influence this issue, since the refinery is presently managed by a Polish company, however, negotiations regarding this issue are underway, Novakova said.

Azerbaijan is the second biggest oil supplier to the Czech Republic after Russia. Over 80 percent of the trade turnover between Azerbaijan and the Czech Republic accounts for oil and oil products.

At the same time, business relations between Azerbaijan and the Czech Republic are beginning to revive in the non-oil sector as well. Czech Iveco buses and L-39 planes are supplied to Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijans trade turnover with the Czech Republic amounted to $473.02 million in January-July, and almost $394.28 million of this volume accounted for the export of Azerbaijani products to the Czech Republic, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan.

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Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept.12

By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:

According to secondary sources, total OPEC-15 crude oil production averaged 32.56 million barrels per day (mb/d) in August, an increase of 278,000 b/d over the previous month, the cartel said in its Oil Market Report.

Crude oil output increased mostly in Libya, Iraq, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, while production declined in I.R. Iran, Venezuela and Algeria, said the report.

OPEC natural gas liquids (NGLs) and non-conventional liquids production is expected to grow by 0.12 mb/d to average 6.36 mb/d in 2018, and 0.11 mb/d to average 6.47 mb/d in 2019, unchanged from last months assessment, said the cartel.

OPEC said that preliminary production data in July and August shows stagnant output at 6.39 mb/d, 0.07 mb/d higher than Junes level and up by 0.04 mb/d, y-o-y.

In December 2016, at a meeting of oil producers in Vienna, 11 non-OPEC member countries, including Azerbaijan, agreed to cut oil production by a total of 558,000 barrels a day. The agreement was concluded for the first half of 2017 and was extended until the end of the first quarter of 2018 at a meeting on May 25, 2017.

At the last OPEC meeting in Vienna, the agreement was again extended until the end of 2018. Azerbaijan supported the decision.

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Follow the author on Twitter:@Lyaman_Zeyn
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept.12

By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:

Non-OPEC oil supply forecasts for 2018 were revised down by 0.06 million barrels per day (mb/d) to average 59.56 mb/d, OPEC said in its Oil Market Report.

This is mainly due to a downward adjustment in the supply forecast for Brazil, the UK, India, Malaysia and China on lower-than-expected output in 2H18, which was partially offset by an upward revision in US supply.

Y-o-y growth was also revised down by 0.06 mb/d to now stand at 2.02 mb/d. The US, Brazil, Canada, Kazakhstan and the UK are expected to be the main drivers for y-o-y growth, while Mexico and Norway will show the largest declines, the report said.

Non-OPEC oil supply in 2019 was also revised down by 41,000 b/d and is now projected to reach an average of 61.71 mb/d, mainly due to a downward revision to the UKs supply forecast for next year.

However, y-o-y supply growth was revised up by 0.02 mb/d to now stand at 2.15 mb/d. The US, Brazil, Canada, the UK, Kazakhstan, Australia, China and Malaysia are the main growth drivers, while Mexico and Norway are expected to see the largest declines. The 2019 forecast is subject to many uncertainties, said the report.

In December 2016, at a meeting of oil producers in Vienna, 11 non-OPEC member countries, including Azerbaijan, agreed to cut oil production by a total of 558,000 barrels a day. The agreement was concluded for the first half of 2017 and was extended until the end of the first quarter of 2018 at a meeting on May 25, 2017.

At the last OPEC meeting in Vienna, the agreement was again extended until the end of 2018. Azerbaijan supported the decision.

---

Follow the author on Twitter:@Lyaman_Zeyn
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

The Minister of Energy of Kazakhstan Kanat Bozumbayev has confirmed that it is critical for Kazakhstan to start exporting gasoline in October-November in order to prevent overstocking of the market, RIA Novosti reported.

Earlier, Daniyar Tiesov, deputy chairman of the board for oil processing and marketing of KazMunayGas national company, said Kazakhstan intends to start supplying gasoline to Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan this autumn. He noted that it has been planned to export up to 400,000 tons of gasoline until the end of the year, and the volume of gasoline exports can reach 1-1.2 million tons in 2019.

The minister said the launch of gasoline exports requires revision of some agreements with Russia. He reminded that Kazakhstan previously imported gasoline from Russia without customs duties.

"In exchange for this we have made a commitment to the Russian Federation that we will not export gasoline, so that we wouldnt be engaged in re-export," the minister said at a press conference.

The minister of energy noted that today there is a surplus of gasoline in the country, which led to a decrease in prices for it.

"After the modernization of the refineries, which is almost completed, the catalytic cracking unit is being put into operation (I think, this work will be completed until the end of the month, if everything goes well) at the Shymkent refinery... We will increase the production of light oil products. Accordingly, there will be much more gasoline. Therefore, it is critically important to start exporting gasoline in October-November, or we will simply have to stop this catalytic cracking unit again," Bozumbayev said.

He noted that Kazakhstan is working with Russia in this direction.

"The draft new agreement between the Ministry of Energy of Russia and the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan is being considered by the Government of the Russian Federation. As soon as the Government of the Russian Federation authorizes my colleague Alexander Novak to sign the agreement - we hope that this will happen in the next few weeks, I have already been authorized a month and a half ago by the relevant resolution of the Kazakh government - I will go to Moscow, or he will come, or we will meet somewhere and will sign the relevant agreement," the minister said.

Bozumbayev added that Kazakhstan intends to conclude agreements with the countries to which it will supply gasoline, and the joint balances will be specified in those agreements.
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Sept. 12

By Huseyn Hasanov  Trend:

The EU is implementing a project titled Enhancing the Civil Service Potential in Turkmenistan, the "Neutral Turkmenistan" newspaper reported.

The project, which is being implemented jointly with the Civil Service Academy under the President of Turkmenistan, is aimed at raising the professional level of state employees, studying international experience, acquaintance with innovative methods of European higher schools and research centers.

The Civil Service Academy was established September 2008.

The academy has experience of working with international organizations. Thus, with the assistance of the country office of the United Nations Development Program, a joint project titled Support to the Civil Service Academy under the President of Turkmenistan is being implemented.

The academy actively cooperates with the United Nations Population Fund, which provides technical support.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

During the Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko's visit to Uzbekistan, an intergovernmental agreement on social and economic cooperation for 2019-2023 will be concluded between Belarus and Uzbekistan, said the Belarus ambassador to Uzbekistan, Leonid Marinich, BELTA reported.

"The agreement will be signed tomorrow. This is a comprehensive agreement on cooperation between Belarus and Uzbekistan," Marinich said.

The document will deal with the development of cooperation in industry, agriculture, defense, science and technology.

After the talks between the presidents, the countries intend to sign about 15 documents.

In addition, a number of agreements and contracts will be concluded during the Belarus-Uzbekistan forum on business and inter-regional cooperation, which is taking place in Tashkent these days.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

China and Uzbekistan discussed prospects of cooperation in agriculture field.

The issue was on focus during a visit of a Chinese delegation led by Secretary General of Shanghai political and juridical commission Chen Inn to Uzbekistan, Tashkent Administration said on September 12.

In particular, China plans to implement in Uzbekistan several projects covering fishery, nuts growing, and dry fruits production.

The sides voiced an intention to increase goods turnover to $20 billion.

At present over 700 enterprises operate in Uzbekistan with participation of investors from China. There is also Uzbek-Chinese Trade House and the Association of Chinese Industrial and Commercial Enterprises functioning in Tashkent.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

The Minsk Tractor Works OJSC has signed contracts worth $15 million at the Belarusian-Uzbek business forum of business and regional cooperation in Tashkent, the General Director of the company Fedor Domotenko told reporters Sept. 12, BelTA reported.

"The contracts for 2019 worth not less than $15 million have been concluded. These contracts are related to the supply of both finished products and car assembly sets, and simply spare parts," said Fedor Domotenko.

He noted that the representatives of the Minsk Tractor Works will also discuss at the business forum with their Uzbek partners the establishment of factory for assembly of caterpillar vehicles.

The Minsk Automobile Plant JSC is a kind of newcomer to the market of Uzbekistan, which has long been absent there because of high excise taxes. The company has opened its trading house as late as two years ago.

"Thanks to the government of Uzbekistan we have managed to reduce these excise taxes, and we have the opportunity to work here. In addition to direct sales, we are considering the assembly of our vehicles here," the MAP Director General Dmitry Katerinich told reporters at the forum.

For the first half of this year, the plant has supplied to Uzbekistan the products worth $1.4 million. It is expected that the contracts worth another $2.5 million will be concluded during the business-forum - 50 units of vehicles will be delivered in 2018.

"Now we are engaged in certification of our vehicles, this will clear the way for us to present our chassis which will be supplied here later for having superstructure of special, municipal equipment, cranes mounted on it. We will cooperate with local producers in this direction," the general director added.

In addition, the MAP JSC is looking for a partner in Uzbekistan to organize the production of special vehicles. The negotiations have already been scheduled, the staff of the enterprise expects that this problem will be solved.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

An Iranian official says that reports on handing over the operation of the strategic Chabahar port to India are not true.

Hadi Haqshenas, deputy head of Iran's Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO) for Maritime Affairs, told Iran's Young Journalist Club website that the statements of Roads and Urban Development Minister Abbas Akhoundi about the ports operation were distorted in translation.

Last week Indian media outlets quoted Akhoundi as saying that Iran will hand over the port to Indian company within a month for operation as per an interim pact.

The issue raised criticism in Iran and some political groups slammed the Iranian administration on this issue.

Meanwhile, Haqshenas said that Iran has only handed over development of the port to the Indian side, not running it.

However, the official added that loading and unloading operations in the port is handed over to the Indian side.

Iran will never assign ownership of any port or land to another country, he said.

In the meantime, he added that in return for importing equipment and facilitating unloading and loading operations, the right to operate the Chabahar port will be handed over to India for a limited time.

The Chabahar port in the Sistan-Balochistan province in the energy-rich nations southern coast is easily accessible from Indias western coast. The port provides India with an easier land-sea route to Afghanistan. In November, India sent its first cargo of wheat to Afghanistan through Chabahar in what appeared to be a run dry of a multi-modal connectivity route.

A rail link between Chabahar and Zahedan and thereon to Afghanistan is a crucial part of Indias ambitious extra-regional connectivity plans over which Tehran, New Delhi and Kabul have signed a basic agreement.
Tehran, Iran, Sept. 12

Trend:

The Iranian president's Chief of Staff Mahmoud Vaezi arrived in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, for talks with senior officials of the Central Asian country on bilateral and economic issues.

Heading a high-ranking politico-economic delegation, Vaezi was received by the Iranian ambassador to Ashgabat and the countrys officials on Wednesday morning, Tasnim news agency reported.

During his visit, he is scheduled to sit down with senior Turkmen officials, including ministers of oil, foreign affairs, economy, road and urban development, and energy.

Vaezi would also hold talks with the countrys governor of central bank, the report added.
Tehran, Iran, Sept. 12

Trend:



Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Washingtons traditional allies are distancing themselves from the US.



Today, US allies are not siding with it politically and even its traditional allies are keeping their distance and they are proud to do so, Rouhani said on September 12 during a cabinet meeting in Tehran, ISNA reported.



Once they were proud for siding with the US, but not anymore, he stressed.



Today, the US is in the worst global downturn and even international organizations like the UNESCO, UN, IAEA and International Criminal Court are opposed to US policies, the president said.



Saying that the Iranian nation is grappling with an unwanted economic war, Rouhani called on people to remain united and strong in face of plots.



On May 8, the US president pulled his country out of the JCPOA, which was achieved in Vienna in 2015 after years of negotiations among Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany).



Following the US exit, Iran and the remaining parties launched talks to save the accord.



Trump on August 6 signed an executive order re-imposing many sanctions on Iran, three months after pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

Trend:

Irans former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's chief of staff, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, has been sentenced to six and a half years in prison, Gholam Hossein Esmaili, head of Tehran Provinces Justice Department, said.

Mashaei was sentenced to six and a half years in prison for charges of acting against national security, running propaganda against the Islamic Republic and insulting the judicial authorities, Esmaili told reporters in Tehran Sept. 12.

The issued sentence is tentative and can be appealed for a review within 20 days from the date of issuance.

Esmaili further said the case on Mashaeis spying charge is still open in the judiciary and no verdict has been issued on it so far.

Mashaei, a close ally of Ahmadinejad, was arrested earlier in March, two days after he burnt a copy of a court verdict sentencing Hamid Baghaei, another Ahmadinejad ally, who was sentenced to 15 years, outside the British embassy in Tehran.

Baghaei has been pronounced guilty for the misuse of public funds when he was a vice-president under Ahmadinejad.
Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze will leave for US on September 16 as he announced today, Agenda reports.

I will meet with my colleagues, friends. Of course, we will discuss the most painful challenges Georgia is facing currently, Bakhtadze said.

The PM will also deliver speech at the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly.

This is the tribune, where from we can speak about the most challenging issues for Georgia, Bakhtadze said.

He stated that he will also have very important meetings at the UN headquarters and said that he is waiting for important outcomes from the meetings in US, which will further enhance ties between Georgia and US.
China on Wednesday slashed its forecast for 2018/19 soybean imports, due to the Sino-U.S. trade conflict, expectations of low soy content in animal feed and a fall in pig farm profits, increasing the governments supply deficit estimate, Reuters reports.

Imports of soybeans in the crop year that starts on Oct. 1 will be 83.65 million tonnes, down 10.2 million tonnes from last months estimate of 93.85 million tonnes, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said in its monthly crop report.

Imports of the oilseed were also pushed down as Beijing promotes lower-protein animal feed and forecasts larger domestic output, the ministry said.

The changes pushed the 2018/19 soybean deficit forecast to 3.57 million tonnes from 250,000 tonnes in August, according to the report.

The ministry also raised its 2018/19 domestic soybean output forecast to 15.83 million tonnes from 15.37 million tonnes in August.
Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday Germany could not simply look away if chemical attacks took place, two days after the German government said it was in talks with its allies about a possible military deployment in Syria, Reuters reports.

Merkel also said it could not be Germanys answer to such attacks to simply say no from the outset.

It cannot be the German position to simply say no, no matter what happens in the world, she told the Bundestag lower house of parliament.
The European Union should flex its potential strength as a world power as the United States under President Donald Trump pulls back from international engagement, EU chief executive Jean-Claude Juncker said on Wednesday.

In his annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, the European Commission president said that when united, the EU was a force to be reckoned with.

Whenever Europe speaks as one, we can impose our position on others, Juncker said.
The Israeli government on Tuesday announced to allocate 10 million new shekels (about 2.7 million US dollars) to support essential industrial factories to improve defense against cyber attacks, Xinhua reported.

The announcement was made by the Israel National Cyber Directorate of the Prime Minister's Office.

One of the dangers facing sensitive industrial plants is cyber attack that could disrupt their operations. In the case of factories dealing with hazardous materials, such attack could have dangerous environmental and security consequences.

Israel has not yet reported a successful attack directed at its industrial infrastructures, but there are fears of such attacks, mainly by hostile elements, including enemy states.

The focus of the program is to ensure the continuity of economic functioning in times of emergency, as it emphasizes the role of cyber defense as a central element in dealing with emergency scenarios.

An essential enterprise, under Israeli law, is one that operates for the purposes such as state protection, public security, and maintenance of essential services, needs of the economy and supply or services required by the public or for export.

The plan also includes factories that provide existential services to civilians in times of war or mass disaster, such as water supply, food, electricity, hospitalization, health, sanitation, communication and postal services.

These organizations are entitled to financial support, including 50 percent of risk survey costs and 40 percent of the cost of equipping and deploying cyber protection systems and services.

The total assistance for a single organization will reach up to 225,000 new shekels (about 62,800 dollars).

The plan is led by Israel National Cyber Directorate, the Investment Authority at the Ministry of Economy, National Emergency Authority at the Ministry of Defense, and the Budget Department at the Ministry of Finance.
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) can and should play an important role to prevent a provocation with the use of chemical weapons in Syrias Idlib, Russian Permanent Representative to the OPCW Alexander Shulgin told reporters on Wednesday, TASS reports.

He noted that during the OPCW briefing on the Salisbury and Amesbury incidents Russia also drew attention to "a very dangerous situation in Idlib." "Reports received yesterday said a video featuring a fake chemical attack to be blamed on the Syrian authorities was being shot," the diplomat said.

"We called on the delegations to be vigilant," Shulgin stressed. "We urged them to demand more actively that the OPCW Technical Secretariat adhere to a certain stance. After all, this is a specialized agency, and it must have its say to prevent that provocation. Some delegations agreed with that point of view. We stressed that it is necessary to do the best we can to prevent another provocation."

The Russian Defense Ministry reported on August 25 that militants in Idlib enjoying active assistance from British secret services were making preparations for what would become a fake chemical attack against civilians to be blamed on government forces. The provocation is to serve as a pretext for a missile strike by the United States, Britain and France against Syrian government and economic facilities.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

As a result of a special operation carried out by Turkish intelligence in Syria, the organizer of the 2013 terrorist attacks in Reyhanli, Hatay Province, has been arrested and taken to Turkey, the Turkish media reported Sept. 12.

The Reyhanli bombings took place on May 11, 2013, when two car bombs exploded in the Turkish town of Reyhanli, 5 km from the Syrian border, in Hatay Province of Turkey.

It is reported that the organizer of the terrorist attacks, Turkish citizen Yusuf Nazik, has been captured in the Syrian city of Latakia.

The media reported that Nazik has admitted during the investigation that the attack was organized with the support of the Syrian intelligence.

The Revolutionary People's Liberation Party (DHKP-C), a Marxist terrorist organization operating in Turkey since 1978, bears responsibility for the attacks.

Some members of DHKP-C also took an active part in hostilities in Syria, joining militants of the PYD and YPG terrorist organizations.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 12

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev will visit Turkey at the invitation of his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish president's office said in a message on Sept. 12.

The visit is scheduled for September 12-13.

During the visit, the presidents will discuss the development of bilateral relations and regional issues.

"The presidents will also take part in the fourth meeting of the high-level strategic cooperation council between Kazakhstan and Turkey," the message reads.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Are e-cigarettes regulated? Marquette University students respond to the question: Are e-cigarettes regulated? A survey of students found 30% believed they are, even though there is no regulation of the newly popular devices used for vaping. Video by Sarah Hauer.

As electronic cigarettes are pitched as a healthier alternative to tobacco cigarettes, more people are putting down their lighters and picking up vape pens and mods.

A survey of Marquette University students found that electronic cigarettes have eclipsed smoking for first-time users.

Students were more likely to report having tried an electronic cigarette than a conventional tobacco one. About 30% of students had tried an electronic cigarette compared with just more than 20% who tried smoking a tobacco cigarette.

The explosion of e-cigs happened quickly. The devices were first sold in the United States in the late 2000s and are expected to generate $3.5billion in sales in 2015, according to figures from Wells Fargo Securities. More than 60% of students who had tried vaping first used an electronic cigarette within the last year.

The survey, taken earlier this year, included a random sample of 721 students and had an overall margin of error of 3.7 percentage points.

Most students who have tried vaping say they aren't hooked.

Gasping for Action Published October 20, 2015 Lab tests reveal popular e-cigarette liquids contain harmful chemicals

More Marquette University students have tried e-cigs than tobacco cigarettes, survey says

Other harmful chemicals found in smoke juice



Read our previous Its been known for years that diacetyl destroys lungs. Yet the federal government has failed to regulate it. A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel investigation has found the buttery flavor chemical is injuring coffee workers and has seeped into other products such as e-cigarettes.Read our previous Gasping for Action installments on diacetyl and the flavorings industry.

While many students have tried an electronic cigarette, few use them regularly. More than 80% of students who had tried an e-cig reported vaping "hardly ever." More students in the survey identified as a regular smoker than a regular vaper. And the students who haven't tried an e-cig don't plan to. Nearly all students who never vaped before (91%) said they were very unlikely to use an electronic cigarette within the next month.

Students reported thinking conventional tobacco cigarettes cause more adverse health effects than electronic cigarettes.

Survey respondents rated their perception of the effects of smoking and vaping on overall physical health from 1 (extremely good) to 4 (extremely bad). Nearly all students rated smoking of conventional cigarettes as a 3 or 4. When the same question was asked about vaping, responses varied more widely, with most students rating the effects on physical health as a 2 or 3.

Research about the health effects of vaping is limited and inconclusive. Nearly all studies on the topic call for continued research and surveillance of electronic cigarette use. The uncertainty in academic discourse is reflected in student perception of e-cigs.

Students reported feeling considerably more knowledgeable about the health effects of smoking. On a scale of 1 (never heard of them) to 10 (know everything about them), the average of the student responses was 4.51 for e-cigs. In comparison, the average student rated their knowledge of traditional cigarettes at 7.62 on the 10-point scale.

Students' lack of knowledge showed when the survey asked about government regulation and the ingredients in the e-liquids.

About 30% of respondents said they believe e-cigs are regulated. In reality, no government agency oversees the sale or manufacture of the devices and liquids used to vape. Half the respondents said they did not know whether they are regulated.

The survey also found:

 On average, students tended to see e-cigs as somewhat unhealthy, although less dangerous than tobacco cigarettes.

 The more students rated tobacco cigarettes as unhealthy, the more they thought the same about electronic ones.

 Males were significantly more likely to have vaped (42.9%) than females (21.9%). Although, of those who had not vaped, gender did not indicate likelihood of trying an e-cig within the next month.

 Year in school did not predict whether a student had vaped.

About This Project

 Students who had smoked were significantly more likely to vape (52.7%) than those who have not smoked conventional cigarettes (17.4%).

Sarah Hauer and Alyssa Voboril are graduate students in the Diederich College of Communication at Marquette University. They served as research assistants to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Raquel Rutledge, who spent the 2014-'15 academic year working on this project as an O'Brien Fellow in Public Service Journalism. This survey was overseen by Robert Griffin, a professor of journalism and media studies who teaches courses in research methods.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday he had certified to Congress that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are working to avoid harming civilians in Yemen, a determination required by this years defense spending bill, Reuters reports.

Pompeo said in a statement he had advised Congress on Tuesday that the governments of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments.
KYODO NEWS - Sep 12, 2018 - 13:25 | Feature, All

A government probe into alleged abuse of Japan's public health insurance system by foreign residents has sparked controversy, with critics claiming the investigation encourages prejudice against non-Japanese.

In January, the health and justice ministries began looking into alleged cases involving foreigners who fraudulently obtained residential status in order to join Japan's public insurance system as a way to avoid paying costly medical fees. The move followed concerns raised by medical workers that abuse of the system could undermine the whole public insurance scheme.

But in the time since the probe was launched, no confirmed cases linked to fraudulently-obtained residential status have been found, prompting calls for the investigation to be terminated.

"Conducting the probe itself gives the impression that there are many foreigners abusing the system," said Ippei Torii, head of the nonprofit Solidarity Network with Migrants in Japan.

"If the probe leads to foreign residents refraining from visiting hospitals, it will go against the spirit of the public health insurance system to offer medical services that are easily available to all residents," he said.

In the survey, municipal governments investigate whether foreigners who applied for expensive medical treatment soon after they joined the national health insurance program are engaged in activities compatible with their residential status.

Public health insurance coverage in Japan requires a policyholder to shoulder, in principle, 30 percent of the cost incurred at medical institutions, with the remaining amount covered by the policy, in exchange for paying monthly premiums.

If the legitimacy of a foreigner's status is in doubt, the Immigration Bureau will launch a further probe. Foreign nationals could be deprived of their residential status if they are found to have obtained it fraudulently.



(Foreigners receiving their residence cards)

[File photo]

A health ministry official defended the probe, saying, "A reality check is necessary for a cool-headed debate, not as a way to emotionally blame foreigners."

According to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry, cases of illegitimate resident status include foreigners obtaining student visas but not going to school.

As of July 10, five people had been investigated by the Immigration Bureau, of whom two were cleared of any wrongdoing while three are still being probed.

In Japan, all residents including foreigners must enroll in a health insurance plan provided by their employers, which also covers their dependents, or enroll in the national health insurance scheme at their local municipal offices. As of April 2016, about 950,000 foreigners were enrolled in the public insurance system.

By taking advantage of the public health insurance program, which puts a cap on the monthly burden patients pay, many policyholders can bring down the cost of expensive medical treatment to the equivalent of around several hundred dollars a month.

In March last year, the health ministry investigated costly medical bills incurred by foreign nationals. In the year through October 2016, 19 foreign residents received expensive medical treatment, including prescriptions for hepatitis C medication, within six months of joining the national health insurance scheme.

Of the 19, the investigation found that in only two cases was there a possibility that the system had been abused.

Japan had about 2.56 million foreign residents at the end of 2017 and the figure is expected to increase further as the government is planning to rely more on foreign laborers to compensate for the country's shortage of manpower.
By Satoshi Iizuka, KYODO NEWS - Sep 12, 2018 - 19:14 | World

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reiterated Wednesday his determination to resolve a long-standing territorial dispute with Russia over a group of islands off northern Japan and conclude a postwar peace treaty.

During a speech at a plenary session of a regional economic forum in Vladivostok, Abe said, "Over the long stretch of more than 70 years since the end of World War II, Japan and Russia have yet to conclude a peace treaty between them. President Putin and I agree in our belief that this is an abnormal state of affairs."

Abe held his 22nd summit with Vladimir Putin on Monday, but there was little progress in their negotiations over the Russian-held islands claimed by Japan, which are called the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kurils in Russia.

The islands -- Etorofu, Kunashiri, Shikotan and the Habomai islet group -- were seized by the Soviet Union after Japan surrendered in World War II in August 1945.



(The Kunashiri Island)

Abe urged Putin to move forward the negotiations, saying, "If we don't do it now, then when?" and "If we do not do it, then who will?"

The Japanese leader is eager to advance territorial talks as he is widely projected to win the Sept. 20 leadership race of his ruling party and secure another three-year term as its chief and Japan's prime minister. Putin cemented his political power by securing a six-year term in a presidential election in March.

The annual Eastern Economic Forum has been held since 2015 by Putin for the purpose of drawing more investment to the Russian Far East.

Tokyo is seeking to break the impasse in the territorial row by building trust with Moscow through ongoing economic cooperation in the Russian Far East and planned joint economic activities on the disputed islands.

"Through Japan-Russia cooperation, here, Vladivostok, and locations all around Far East Russia will become gateways where human resources, goods, and capital come together," Abe said.

On North Korea, the Japanese prime minister underlined the necessity of realizing the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and expressed his hope that the next round of inter-Korean summit talks scheduled for next week in Pyongyang would lead to the North taking concrete action toward that goal.

Abe also pledged to resolve the issue of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korean agents decades ago, which he has made one of his priorities, saying, "I am determined for us to take steps towards settling the unfortunate past with North Korea and normalizing our relations."

"I too must break the shell of mutual distrust, take a step forward, and ultimately meet with Chairman Kim Jong Un," Abe said, referring to the North Korean leader. But he added that nothing has been decided with regard to a possible Japan-North Korean summit.

Following his talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping earlier in the day on the sidelines of the forum, Abe vowed continued efforts to improve bilateral ties.

"In response to China's gracious invitation, I intend to visit China this year, the year in which we commemorate the 40th anniversary of the conclusion of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and China," he said.

Promising to invite Xi to Japan afterward, the prime minister said he hopes to "raise Japan-China relations to a new stage."

Besides Abe, Putin and Xi, South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak Yon and Mongolian President Khaltmaa Battulga also attended the plenary session of the annual event.
KYODO NEWS - Sep 12, 2018 - 16:01 | All, Feature, Japan

The powerful earthquake that hit Japan's popular tourist destination of Hokkaido, the country's northernmost main island, has highlighted a lack of preparedness to provide information to foreign visitors in a time of a disaster.

With the number of foreign visitors expected to grow ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, the government is introducing multilingual emergency information apps and other tools, but a lot more work is needed to train people who can provide direct assistance to non-Japanese in a crisis, experts say.

Hokkaido gets close to 2.8 million foreign visitors a year.

"The hotel staff only responded in Japanese," complained a South Korean man, who was among many such foreign visitors seeking information following the M6.7 quake that caused a massive blackout and transportation disruptions in Hokkaido on Sept. 6.

A Chinese man said most information posted on signs in stations and in other public areas was in Japanese and English. "I wish there had been information posted in Chinese, too," he said.

Many foreign tourists could be seen wandering aimlessly in parks in central Sapporo, the prefecture's capital city, or stuck at airports, worried and frustrated because they were unable to obtain crucial information due to the language barrier.

The Sapporo government set up a special evacuation center on the afternoon of the quake, dispatching staff there capable of speaking English, among other languages. The Hokkaido prefectural government also started a phone hotline for foreign visitors in English, Chinese and Korean.

But an official in charge admitted, "We were so busy with the response effort at the evacuation center that we were unable to supply information in other languages."



(Signs at a temporary shelter in Sapporo for tourists in English, Chinese and Korean)

Last year, the number of visitors to Japan hit a record 28.69 million and is expected to surpass 30 million this year. The Japanese government, which sees tourism as a pillar of its growth strategy, aims to achieve its target of 40 million by 2020.

The large and growing presence of foreigners, however, means the disaster-prone nation faces an uphill battle as it tries to better serve non-Japanese speakers in emergencies such as those triggered by earthquakes and typhoons.

As a part of this effort, the Japan Tourism Agency has created a guideline on how to deal with foreign visitors in the initial stage of a disaster.

The guideline urges tourist and lodging facilities to respond swiftly and fully to foreign guests to prevent a panic as many of them will be unable to communicate in Japanese and may have no prior experience of coping in a disaster.

An app, called "Safety tips," delivers an earthquake early warning, and other disaster alerts to smartphones and other devices in English, Chinese and Korean. The agency has been calling on foreign visitors to download the app at tourist counters and embassies in Japan.

Other popular tourist destinations have been taking their own measures to assist foreigners in disasters.



(Two tourists from France spend the night at quake-hit New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido)

The city of Kyoto, for example, has set up a 24-hour call center, which provides an interpreting service in five languages for hotels and other facilities that have trouble communicating with their foreign guests. There is also a website that provides foreigners with information on evacuation centers.

The city has also been holding drills involving locals and hotel workers to ensure they know the procedures on how to evacuate foreign visitors to temple grounds and other safe locations in situations when public transportation is not functioning.

In Okinawa, which sees a large number of typhoons approach each year, the Okinawa International Exchange & Human Resources Development Foundation is training local citizens to become "supporters," whose job will be to visit evacuation centers and gather information on foreign tourists during a disaster. So far, 135 people have registered as supporters.

"Even if you cannot communicate by language, it is important to communicate what action people need to take in a simple manner using gestures," said Masanori Negoro of the foundation.

Still, Negoro said he thinks there are nowhere near enough supporters and worries "how things would be if there is a major earthquake or a massive blackout."

In Sapporo, still reeling from the impact of the quake and blackout, an official of the city said, "We need to consider the worst case scenario and act in cooperation with travel agencies and lodging facilities to jointly provide information (to foreign visitors)."

Shizuyo Yoshitomi, a professor at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies, said administrative authorities and hotels must work together to determine the whereabouts of foreigners immediately after a disaster occurs.

"They must keep in mind that they should not exclude anyone and they should strengthen the ties with people who do not understand their language," she said.
KYODO NEWS - Sep 12, 2018 - 23:30 | All, World

Pope Francis said Wednesday he intends to visit Japan next year, in what would be the first papal visit to the country in nearly 40 years, according to the Vatican.

"I would like to communicate my intention to visit Japan next year. I hope to fulfill this wish," Pope Francis said during an audience with representatives of a Japanese religious association.

(Pope Francis in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in December 2017)

The pope -- who was invited to Japan by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe when they met at the Vatican in 2014 -- has previously expressed a desire to visit the country but has never mentioned a possible date.

The late Pope John Paul II became the first pontiff to visit the country in 1981.

Leaders of the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which were devastated by U.S. atomic bombings in 1945 in World War II, have also directly asked the pope during public audiences at the Vatican to visit and send a message toward the abolishment of nuclear weapons.

Pope John Paul II visited the two cities among other places during his stay in Japan.
KYODO NEWS - Sep 12, 2018 - 22:25 | All, World

Russian President Vladimir Putin surprised Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday by proposing that their countries conclude a post-World War II peace treaty "without any preconditions" by the end of the year.

The abrupt proposal would effectively mean shelving bilateral negotiations over the sovereignty of Russia-held, Japan-claimed islands, contrary to Tokyo's position that a peace treaty should come after the settlement of the territorial issue.

"An idea has just come to my mind," Putin said at a regional economic forum in Vladivostok, which was also attended by Abe. "Let's conclude a peace treaty before the end of this year, without any preconditions."

(From left, Shinzo Abe, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Putin)

[Pool photo]

Putin said he wanted to clinch the deal first and then continue to discuss the territorial issue with Abe as "friends," during a question and answer session of the forum's plenary meeting in the Russian Far East port city.

Putin made the remarks after Abe's speech urging him to bring an end to debate over the peace deal, which drew applause from the audience.

While the Russian president said he "was not joking" about his proposal, it is unclear what Putin is driving at and what "without any preconditions" means. Abe, who was on the same stage, did not provide any response during the forum.

The two countries have not signed a peace treaty in the more than 70 years since the end of World War II due to the territorial dispute over a group of islands off Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido.

The two leaders have met 22 times and took up the territorial issue during the latest talks on Monday in Vladivostok.

In Tokyo, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a press conference that Putin did not make any such proposal during Monday's meeting with Abe.

The top government spokesman also said Japan will not change its position of seeking to resolve the issue of the islands' sovereignty before concluding the peace treaty with Russia.

A senior Japanese government official said Tokyo will not lodge a protest with Moscow nor try to confirm Putin's true intention.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov said that Moscow is ready to hold a meeting to promote talks on the treaty, according to Russia's Tass news agency.

"We are ready (to start) immediately. It depends on when our Japanese friends will be ready," Morgulov said, according to the news agency.

The islands -- Etorofu, Kunashiri, Shikotan and the Habomai islet group -- called the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kurils in Russia, were seized by the Soviet Union after Japan surrendered in World War II in August 1945.

Japan and the Soviet Union signed a joint declaration aimed at ending wartime hostilities and restoring diplomatic ties in 1956. In the declaration, Moscow agreed to return Shikotan and the Habomai islets to Tokyo once a formal peace treaty was signed. Tokyo has maintained that all the disputed isles should be returned.

In an attempt to break the impasse, Abe has proposed a new approach since his summit with Putin in 2016. Japan is seeking to build mutual trust through bilateral economic cooperation in the Russian Far East and joint economic activities on the islands to pave the way for settling the territorial issue and eventually signing a peace treaty.

Related Coverage:

Abe, Putin reconfirm readiness for peace treaty, economic cooperation

Abe, Putin agree to promote economic programs on disputed islands
The CPM state secretariat took the action on the former minister after an internal enquiry found that he had cold-shouldered the party's chances in the assembly constituency.
Islamabad [Pakistan], Sep 12 (NT): Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa repeated that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is the economic future of Pakistan on Wednesday. His remark came after a meeting with Chinese Ambassador Yao Jing in Rawalpindi.

An official statement on the Twitter account of Pakistan Government read,"Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa has reiterated that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is economic future of #Pakistan and its security will never be compromised. He was talking to Chinese Ambassador Yao Jing in Rawalpindi."

On Tuesday, There were reports that the Imran Khan-led Pakistan government was considering the agreements under the CPEC project.

A report from UK-based Financial Times cited top officials as saying that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led government would be looking to assess the deals of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and renegotiate the trade deal inked with Beijing a decade ago.

Khan had lately set up a nine-member committee to consider the USD 62 billion project which supposedly offered "undue advantages to Chinese companies," according to the Express Tribune reports.

Pakistan and China, in a four-hour talks on Sunday headed by Minister for Planning Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar and National Development and Reforms Commission (NDRC) of China vice-chairman Ning Jizhe took a decision to put in social sector and regional development schemes to the existing portfolio of CPEC projects. (NT)
Party chief's activities in Hungary

Party leader: Vietnam will always support training cooperation with Hungary









Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong speaks at the second Vietnam  Hungary rectors conference in Budapest on September 11



Vietnam will always support, facilitate and assist universities of the country and Hungary to effectively implement their training cooperation in the time to come, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong stated on September 11.



The affirmation was made when the Party leader attended and delivered a speech at the opening of the second Vietnam  Hungary rectors conference in Budapest, as he was making an official visit to Hungary at the invitation of Prime Minister Viktor Oban.



Describing the conference as an important and very practical cooperation mechanism among universities of the two countries, Party leader Trong also spoke highly of the collaboration between the two countries relevant ministries in organizing the event with an aim of further developing relations between the universities, helping implement cooperation documents signed between the two sides.



Speaking at the event, Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister Mihaly Varga expressed admiration at Vietnams achievements in various fields, especially education and training, stressing that Vietnam is an important gateway for Hungary to advance to Southeast Asia. Hungary is enjoying high development prospects to become a motive of economic growth of Europe, and this will create good chances for Vietnamese firms, the official added.



At the conference, participants focused their discussion on the prospects of bilateral cooperation in training and scientific research, with the core contents being strengthening joint education programmes between the universities of the two countries, boosting the exchange of students and lecturers, and forming joint research groups, among others.



Vietnam  Hungary cooperation in education and training is a prominent point in the bilateral relations. Over the past nearly 70 years, Hungary has helped trained over 3,000 Vietnamese students, many of them have held and are holding important positions in the State management apparatus, science, culture, art and business in Vietnam. Recently, the number of annual scholarships granted by the Hungarian government to Vietnamese cities has seen a sharp increase, to 200 now from only five in 2012 and 100 in 2016. Currently there are nearly 500 Vietnamese students studying in Hungary while a large number of Hungarian students are studying in Vietnam.



The first conference of the rectors was held in Hanoi in November 2014 with the participation of representatives from 50 Vietnamese and 15 Hungarian universities, on the occasion of the Vietnam visit by President Janos Ader. The conference this time was held on the occasion of the official Hungary visit by Party leader Nguyen Phu Trong, drawing the participation of representatives of over 30 Vietnamese and 20 Hungarian universities. The signing of up to 15 agreement documents at this years conference is described as evidence of attention from universities to the utilization of cooperation potential and chances in the field of education and training between the two countries.-VNA

Party chief meets Deputy Speaker of Hungarian National Assembly









CPV General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong (L) and Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary Hende Csaba





General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong met Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary Hende Csaba in Budapest on September 10.The two sides agreed to create favourable conditions for the two legislatures to exchange high-level delegations, as well as enhance exchanges between parliamentary agencies and friendship parliamentarians groups to share experience in law-making, supervision, personnel training.They vowed to step up collaboration between the two countries localities and offer all possible support to their friendship parliamentarians groups to effectively tap their role in developing ties between the two legislatures.Stressing the importance of economic, trade and investment cooperation in boosting bilateral relations, host and guest agreed to step up the cooperation to match with fine political and cultural ties.Csaba affirmed that the Hungarian National Assembly backs Vietnams comprehensive cooperation with the European Union. He vowed to boost the NAs soon ratification of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement after it is signed so as to create a driving force for economic collaboration between Vietnam and Hungary and other EU countries.

Party Chief hosts UK Prince Andrew

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong, during his official visit to Hungary, received in Budapest on September 10 Prince Andrew of the United Kingdom who is also on a trip to the country.



General Secretary Trong congratulated the Prince on the occasion of the 45th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the UK (September 11, 1973 - 2018), expressing his delight at the development of the two countries strategic partnership in recent times.



Vietnam always attaches importance to developing relations with the UK - one of the leading partners of Vietnam, he said, proposing that the two sides should continuously promote the strategic partnership between the two countries in a practical and effective manner, especially in politics, diplomacy, economy, culture, education, and environment.



The General Secretary highly valued the development of economic and trade relations between the two countries in recent years, affirming that Vietnam will create favourable conditions for British businesses to increase and expand their business and long-term investment in Vietnam.



Prince Andrew congratulated the General Secretary on the occasion of the 45th anniversary of the UK-Vietnam diplomatic ties, and expressed the British royal familys friendly feelings toward the country and people of Vietnam.



He affirmed that the UK attaches importance to boosting relations with Vietnam, and stressed that he will continue to contribute to strengthening the strategic partnership between the two countries.













Chairman of the Hungarian Workers Party (Source: 24.hu)





The Hungarian Workers Party always supports Hungarys efforts to intensify its relations with Vietnam, affirmed Chairman Gyula Thurmer at his meeting with visiting General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong in Budapest on September 11.

The Hungarian Workers Party, despite an opposition party, always backs Prime Minister Viktor Orbans policy of tightening cooperation with Vietnam, he stated, stressing that this is his partys consistent policy.

He expressed his hope to learn from the CPVs experience as the party has succeeded in protecting itself and leading the country to gain growth.

Party leader Trong, in turn, said that his visit aims to enhance the two countries time-honoured friendship and lift the comprehensive partnership to a new height.

Vietnam always bears in mind valuable assistance by the Hungarian Workers Party, he stressed.

He also affirmed the CPVs consistent policy in its relationship with the Hungarian Workers Party, hoping that the two sides step up delegation exchanges and experience sharing.

Party chief hails role of Hungary-Vietnam Friendship Association









General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong (R) and Chairman of the Hungary-Vietnam Friendship Association Botz Laszlo





The Hungary-Vietnam Friendship Association has made significant contributions to nurturing and developing the friendship and cooperation between the two countries, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong has said.

Hosting a reception for Chairman Botz Laszlo and members of the association in Budapest on September 10 as part of his official visit to Hungary, the Party chief underlined that both nations have long-lasting relations which have been increasingly fortified over the years, and they are celebrating 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties.

A line-up of activities have been carried out to boost all-round cooperation, he said, adding that Hungary has backed Vietnam during its national development, especially in education and training.

The Vietnamese Party leader said that during talks and meetings, Hungarian leaders expressed their wish to foster sound friendship and cooperation with Vietnam, and agreed to elevate the bilateral relations to a comprehensive partnership.

He took the occasion to thank the friendship association for its efforts in promoting the friendship and collaboration between the two nations.

Being upbeat about the prospects of the Vietnam-Hungary relations, Party General Secretary Trong voiced his hope that the association will continue effective and practical activities to further develop the bilateral ties.

We are always good friends and comrades of each other. Chairman of the association is always a close friend of Vietnam, he stressed.

Botz Laszlo, for his part, briefed the Vietnamese leader on the associations development, saying it has paid due attention to supporting and connecting small and medium enterprises of Hungary with Vietnamese partners, along with accelerating friendship and cooperation between localities of both sides.

The Hungary-Vietnam Friendship Association has good relations with the Vietnamese community in Hungary and the Vietnam-Hungary Friendship Associations chapters in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
Vietnam, Hungary sign seven cooperation documents



General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong holds talks with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.



General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on September 10 witnessed the signing of seven cooperation documents between the two countries.



The signing took place right after talks between the two leaders during the ongoing official visit to Hungary by Vietnamese Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong from September 8-11.



The inked documents include an inter-government agreement on judicial assistance in civil matters, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on defence cooperation between the Defence Ministries of the two countries, another MoU on collaboration between the Vietnamese Ministry of Health and the Hungarian Ministry of Innovation and Technology, and a plan on education cooperation in the 2019-2021 period between the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training and the Hungarian Ministry of Human Resources.



The Hungarian Water Association also signed MoUs with the Peoples Committee of Quang Nam province on the implementation of the Quang Binh II clean water supply project, with the Peoples Committee of Vinh Long province on a water treatment project in the province, and with the Peoples Committee of Thanh Hoa province on a clean water supply project in the locality.




The parasitic disease leishmaniasis is spread to humans through the bites of sandflies, and is endemic in a number of countries, including Brazil. Despite control efforts, the incidence of visceral leishmaniasis -- the most severe form of the disease -- rose in Brazil between 1990 and 2016, researchers have reported in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

Leishmaniasis can be classified into two clinical forms--visceral (VL) and tegumentary, which encompasses both cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmaniasis (CML). The World Health Organization estimates that there are 400,000 new cases of VL and 1 million new cases of CML around the globe each year. In the Americas, 96% of cases occur in Brazil, where the fatality rate of VL is 7.4%.

In the new work, Juliana Bezerra, of the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil, and colleagues analyzed the burden of VL and CML using data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study. Since 1990, GBD has quantified and compared the magnitude of health loss due to diseases around the world. The researchers relied on GBD data for Brazil and all of its 27 federated units.

Overall, the age-standardized rate of leishmaniasis in Brazil decreased 48.5% from 1990 to 2016, and the disability-adjusted life years--a measure of health loss--increased by 83.6%. However, that decrease was mostly due to a drop in the rate of CML; the incidence rate of VL increased by 52.9% during the same time period, and an even higher increase was seen in children under the age of 1. Additionally, different regions of Brazil saw different burdens of disease, with rates increasing the Northeast and Southeast but decreasing in the Northern states.

"Understanding the burden of these diseases and their regional differences is of great relevance for the establishment of adequate and region-specific surveillance and control measures," the authors say. In addition, it can help in the rational use of available resources and in decision making aimed at reducing the transmission of the parasite and the burden of this disabling and potentially lethal disease."

###

Peer-reviewed / Data review

In your coverage please use this URL to provide access to the freely available article in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases: http://journals.plos.org/plosntds/article?id=10.1371/journal.pntd.0006697

Citation: Bezerra JMT, de Araujo VEM, Barbosa DS, Martins-Melo FR, Werneck GL, et al. (2018) Burden of leishmaniasis in Brazil and federated units, 1990-2016: Findings from Global Burden of Disease Study 2016. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases 12(9): e0006697. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0006697

Funding: The GBD 2016 Brazilian database and methods are funded by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and by the Brazilian Ministry of Health through the agreement of the Secretariat of Health Surveillance and the Federal University of Minas Gerais - Health Process n. 25000.479735 / 2017-40 TED 125/2017. Juliana Maria Trindade Bezerra is grateful for PNPD/Capes (Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior)/Post-Graduation Program in Parasitology/Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais for the Postdoctoral fellowship. Francisco Rogerlandio Martins-Melo was funded by a postdoctoral fellowship from the Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES/Brazil). Mariangela Carneiro is grateful to Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico (CNPq-Brazil) for the research fellowships and Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG) for Programa Pesquisador Mineiro (PPM/2016). Guilherme Loureiro Werneck is grateful to Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico (CNPq-Brazil) and the Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ/Brazil) for the grant of the Programa Cientistas do Nosso Estado (CNE-2015). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Sat., Nov. 6, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Illinois State Museum 502 S. Spring St., Springfield Downtown

Free

Nature, Science & Environment

Humans and nature change each other, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. Explore the connection between us and nature with crafts and activities. Learn about the indigenous practice of birch bark harvesting and create a birchbark basket using imitation birchbark. Make an earth-conscious button, look deeper into the Human|Nature exhibit, and create beautiful art inspired by the exhibit.This program is sponsored by Bank of Springfield. All activities will be available during this come-and-go event. Kits will be available on a first-come, first-served basis and can be picked up at the Museum without attending the event. 217-782-6044
Description

Join us for the opening meeting of the League of Women Voters. Our Topic is gun safety. Our guest speakers are Rachael Klein from "Long Islanders for Gun Safety" and Tracy Bacher from "Mom's Demand Action for Gun Sense in American" Participate in this important issue for our community. Wednesday 7:30 Levittown Public Library, 1 Bluegrass Lane, Levittown NY.
MEXICO CITY, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Unionized pilots of Aeromexico, Mexico's largest airline, said on Tuesday that they plan to strike on Oct. 1 over the airline's decision to suspend some benefits after a crash in northern Mexico.

In a preliminary report last week, Mexico's civil aviation agency said bad weather likely caused the crash, adding that there was no evidence of human error or mechanical failures. The agency, however, found that a pilot in training, who was not authorized by the company, briefly served as copilot during the takeoff.

In response, Aeromexico last week said it had fired the three pilots who were in the cabin and announced new rules for crew, including the elimination of a provision that allowed pilots to fly in the cabin for free.

Pilots union ASPA, whose members include Aeromexico, said that the provision is critical for pilots who use it to travel from their homes to the airline's base.

"Aeromexico decided unilaterally to suspend the benefit of Crew Flying in Cabin, among other violations of the collective contract, affecting a critical clause for around 2,400 pilots," the union said in a statement, adding that such benefits are common among other airlines.

In late July, a Mexico City-bound Embraer 190 passenger jet operated by Aeromexico smashed into scrubland near the runway shortly after take-off during what passengers have described as strong winds, hail and rain.

All 103 passengers and crew survived by evacuating from the plane before it was engulfed by flames.

On Tuesday, Aeromexico shares were trading flat at 1920 GMT after slipping by as much as 2 percent earlier in the day.

Aeromexico, a member of the SkyTeam alliance, operates more than 600 flights daily to destinations in Mexico, the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe and Asia. (Reporting by Veronica Gomez; writing by Julia Love Editing by Leslie Adler)
Alibaba (BABA) has dominated the airwaves this week. These recent headlines are the latest in a series of moves that reflect dramatic changes within the storied Chinese e-commerce giant. But what does this all mean for its future? Let's take a closer look.

Alibaba BABA has dominated headlines this week. On Monday, founder and executive chairman Jack Ma announced that he would step down in 2019 to focus on philanthropy and education. Then on Tuesday, the company announced that it is forming a joint venture with Russias sovereign wealth fund (RDIF), telecom firm MegaFon, and internet company Mail.Ru.

These two bombshells are the latest in a string of news that reflect changes within the storied Chinese e-commerce giant. But what does this all mean for Alibabas future? Lets take a closer look.

Global Expansion is Very Much a Priority

Alibaba already serves about 80% of the Chinese e-commerce market, and has taken numerous steps to expand its foothold overseas. The company has charged into Southeast Asia, investing $1 billion for a 51% stake in Lazada in 2016. Alibaba then doubled down on the investment the following year, which brought its stake to 83%, and installed its own CEO, BABA co-founder Lucy Peng.

Alibaba has also either acquired or made a stake in Singapore-based Redmart, Singapore Post, and Indonesia-based Tokopedia, all of which are online marketplaces. Moreover, BABA and its subsidiary Ant Financial have been very busy in the online payment sector, building stakes in Singapores M-Daq, Thai firms TrueMoney and Ascend Nano, Philippines-based Mynt, and Malaysias Touch n Go.

The new focus on Southeast Asia makes sense for Alibaba. The 10 nations that make up the Association of Southeast Asian Nations boast a population of 640 million people. With millions of new users coming online every month, the region represents a massive business opportunity.

Tuesdays news highlights a new piece of the global expansion puzzle for Alibaba. AliExpress, which is the firms global marketplace, opened service in Russia a few years ago. But Tuesdays deal will give it exposure to Mail.Rus 100 million registered users, to which it provides social media, email, and food delivery services. MegaFon and RDIF will also play a key role in maximizing BABAs exposure in Russia.

Story continues

The joint venture is valued at a cool $2 billion, according to TechCrunch. And this figure does not even include other investments into the venture, meaning that it could be even more lucrative. Alibaba has also made moves in India and Europe, where it is expanding its cloud-based services and building brand recognition. Plus, Alipay is slowly gaining presence in the UK, Greece, and other nations in the region, although that process will still take time.

What Does This All Mean?

By now, investors have realized that Alibaba has quite a few pieces in play. But with Ma stepping down and growing domestic and international competition, there are still notable concerns for the tech conglomerate. A majority of the firms exposure is in China, which is in the midst of an economic slowdown and a trade war with the US.

Fellow giant Tencent TCEHY is in the midst of an ongoing battle both in China and Southeast Asia. Moreover, Alibabas expansion to the West has also put it in the crosshairs of Amazon AMZN, eBay EBAY, and Paypal PYPL, to name a few.

But these risks are inevitable for any growing business. Alibabas continued streak of solid earnings beats, coupled with strong strategic acquisitions and investments, leaves the firm well-positioned for long-term growth.

Still, analysts have concerns in the short-term, as reflected by nearly universal negative earnings estimate revisions for the current quarter, next quarter, current fiscal year, and next fiscal year. Alibabas performance, while strong, has underperformed its industry in the last year (-9.8% vs. 35.4% in the E-Commerce Market).

Regardless, Alibabas latest move into Russia is a maneuver that US firms cannot even consider due to various tensions. This strategic advantage is one that Alibaba could continue to build on, giving it a competitive moat against industry peers. While the firm may still have turbulence ahead, it is very much worth keeping on the radar for years to come.

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Barclays PLCs BCS top executives have informed U.K. lawmakers that as part of the companys Brexit plans, it is going to hire 150 people in Europe, per Bloomberg.



Kevin Wall, the CEO of Barclays Irish unit has told members of the U.K. Treasury Select Committee that these new roles are going to be over and above the 150 current U.K. jobs, which are likely to shift to Dublin, post Brexit.



Wall added, Were looking at about another 150 new roles in Europe, that would be created as a result of this. In the context of tens of thousands of colleagues here in the U.K., in the context of over a thousand people in Europe already, those are small numbers.



The Brexit referendum gave rise to an uncertain economic and political environment for banks. Hence, banks started gearing up by moving jobs outside the U.K. According to a survey conducted by Reuters in March, around 5,000 jobs will be moved out of Britain to accommodate any adverse scenarios, resulting from Brexit.



Most of the banks have chosen Paris, Frankfurt, and Dublin to be their preferred locations to move jobs out of London.



Notably, in the last month, Barclays started initiating steps to transfer ownership of European branches from a British-based entity to the banks Ireland unit.



Earlier, in July, it relocated around 40-50 investment banking jobs from the U.K. to Frankfurt.



Recently, Michel Barnier, the chief Brexit negotiator of the EU has notified that there are high chances of an agreement on terms of Britains exit from the EU to be made by early November.



However, on the assumption of a no-deal messy exit, all the big banks, which are likely to be affected, are now putting their plans to action.



HSBC Holdings HSBC recently transferred the London branchs ownership in its Polish and Irish subsidiaries to the unit in France, while Credit Suisse CS chose Frankfurt, Madrid and Luxembourg for shifting its investment banking jobs from Britain.



JPMorgan Chase & Co. JPM has also initiated relocation plans for several dozen of employees at its U.K. offices in a bid to ensure business continuity post Brexit.



While Citigroup C already has majority of its EU employees outside of Britain, the bank still expects nearly 150 jobs to be affected in case of a no-deal Brexit.



Over the past six months, shares of Barclays have lost 21.2% compared with the industrys decline of 15.6%.





Story continues





Currently, Barclays has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).



You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.



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By Collin Eaton

HOUSTON, Sept 10 (Reuters) - Buckeye Partners LP said on Monday it expects to begin full repair work this week on a closed jet fuel pipeline that breached over the weekend, spilling 8,000 gallons of fuel into the St. Marys River in Indiana.

Clean-up efforts are underway but replacing the broken line has been delayed because of recent rain storms that have raised the river's level near Decatur, Indiana, said Buckeye spokesman Marty White.

"We're dealing with the elements," White said. "We're hoping to get the pipeline back up and running this week, but it's too soon to tell."

The Houston-based pipeline operator's line carries jet fuel to connection points in Lima, Ohio, Huntington, Indiana, and into Indianapolis.

Buckeye said workers are removing fuel from the water but the company does not yet have an estimate of its clean-up costs. It is also not clear when the clean-up will be finished or when the pipeline will be brought back online, White said.

The pipeline is buried beneath the channel and it would be impossible to fully repair it before water levels recede to normal levels, he said. (Reporting by Collin Eaton Editing by Paul Simao)
A California bill that would allow investor-owned utilities to pass on wildfires-related costs to ratepayers could be signed as early as this week by Gov. Jerry Brown.

The bill has been criticized by some consumer groups who charge it's a "bailout" for California's largest electric utility PG&E.

Cal Fire has pinned the blame on PG&E for at least 16 of last year's devastating wildfires in Northern California, including some with fatalities.

A California bill that would allow investor-owned utilities to pass on wildfires-related costs to ratepayers could be signed as early as this week by Gov. Jerry Brown .

This comes despite opposition from some consumer groups who charge it's a "bailout" for the state's largest electric utility PG&E PCG .

Senate Bill 901 , approved last month by the state legislature, would direct the California Public Utilities Commission, (CPUC) to conduct a stress test to determine how much utilities can pay for wildfire-related damages. It also would allow PG&E to issue "recovery bonds" that would help it finance costs from last year's devastating fires in the state's North Bay region.

California has a history of power lines or faulty equipment sometimes sparking wildfires, and Cal Fire earlier this year pinned the blame on PG&E for at least 16 of the wildfires in Northern California in October 2017, which included some with fatalities. In July, PG&E announced it took a pretax charge of $2.5 billion in connection with wildfire costs .

"We've sent a letter to the governor asking him to veto the bill, which is a bailout for PG&E and blank check for all three utility companies," said Mindy Spatt, a spokesperson for the Utility Reform Network, a San Francisco-based consumer group. "We believe that PG&E had a hand in negotiating its own bailout and we know that they've spent millions and millions lobbying for this."

Story continues

However, proponents of the bill have contended the "protection bonds" would essentially shield ratepayers from having even higher bills from wildfire-related costs. The legislation also requires California utility companies to take new steps to reduce risk of catastrophic fires and streamlines brush thinning in forests to avoid future wildfires.

Brown's office declined to comment on his position on the bill but said he has until Sept. 30 to take final action on SB 901. The governor currently has more than 600 bills on his desk following the end of the legislative session Aug. 31.

Last month, Brown proposed a plan to reduce utility liability for wildfires caused by equipment, but the proposal also included tougher penalties for violating state safety rules and barred utilities from passing on the costs of penalties to ratepayers. SB 901 contains no such penalty increases.

"Senate Bill 901 is a common-sense solution that 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," said Lynsey Paulo, a spokesperson for San Francisco-based PG&E.

"While the legislation addresses many urgent needs, we must continue to work together to ensure ongoing investment in climate resiliency and clean energy, and to combat the devastating threat that extreme weather and climate change pose to our state's shared energy future," Paulo said.

Utilities in California face liability under what's known as inverse condemnation as well as for negligence claims for wildfire and other damaging incidents caused by such things as power lines or other utility equipment. There are already state regulations requiring strict vegetation management practices by utilities, and they include standards for keeping vegetation clear of power lines.

Fitch Ratings previously estimated PG&E could face upwards of $15 billion in financial exposure from October's wine country or North Bay wildfires given the state liability laws and scale of the disaster, which destroyed or damaged about 10,000 homes and resulted in 44 fatalities. The fires were in Mendocino, Butte, Humboldt, Sonoma, Lake and Napa counties.

That said, Cal Fire continues to investigate the cause of October's Tubbs fire in the wine country. The Tubbs fire was blamed for 22 deaths and the destruction of more than 5,600 structures, including entire neighborhoods in the Santa Rosa area.

A spokesperson for Cal Fire said Tuesday there is no timetable on when the Tubbs report will be issued.

Besides the North Bay fires, SB 901 also could have implications for last December's devastating Thomas fire in Southern California, which contributed to mudslides that devastated the community of Montecito in January. The Thomas fire ranks as the state's second-largest wildfire after the recent Mendocino Complex fire in Northern California, according to Cal Fire.

Electric services company Southern California Edison, a subsidiary of Edison International EIX , is facing more than 40 lawsuits accusing it of negligence in connection with the Thomas blaze. No official cause of the fires has been announced by investigators. CNBC reached out to SCE for comment for this story.

On Monday, SCE filed for approval with the state utility regulator to recover costs in connection with a "grid safety and resiliency program" that it said aims to reduce wildfire risk. The Rosemead, Calif.-based utility, which expects the improvement program to cost nearly $600 million, needs the approval of the CPUC to pass on costs to its ratepayers.

As part of the "grid hardening" plan, SCE wants to replace "exposed electric wires" with "covered" wires that will feature insulation to protect them against contacting foreign objects. The utility also said it wants to install fire resistant, composite poles as part of the infrastructure upgrade.





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Shopping at Costco certainly has its perks. From the bulk food deals to cheap vacations, cars, and even insurance, Costco knows how to treat their members well. Especially when it comes to their dynamite return policy.

Costcos generous return policy

Costco always has the customer in mind and wants to guarantee that the customer feels fully satisfied with the product they are purchasing. So besides a few exceptions (no electronics after 90 days, diamonds needing authenticity after 48 hours, or cigarettes and alcohol), Costcos return policy is extremely generous. If youre not satisfied, theyll take it back.

At Costco, member service is an utmost priority, said one Costco spokesperson to Taste of Home. We strive to ensure members have an easy, efficient and pleasant shopping experience. Our generous return policy and 100% satisfaction guarantee allow us to provide excellent member service.

Again, Costco certainly knows how to treat their customers well through this return policy. But do customers know how to treat Costco with the same respect?

Some customers are abusing it

Its probably safe to say that Costcos customers do treat Costco with the respect it deserves. Costco is all about giving shoppers the best deals and experiences, and people are always proud to show off their Costco receipts with the taunting phrase look how much I saved! But there will always be a few outliers who take a generous return policy like Costcos to their advantage.

After a small dive into a few Reddit threads, I was absolutely shocked to find out what customers have successfully returned to the store. Some people have seen soiled mattresses, decade-old boomboxes, empty bottles of wine (the complaint was how the wine gave her a headache), half-eaten cake, and ten-year-old Kirkland Signature sneakers. One person even tried switching out the barcode of his new laptop and brought his old one back to Costco! Learn the bizarre things you never knew you could find at Costco, too.

Story continues

Costcos workers certainly have seen some crazy returns, and they have a lot of secrets to share.

Its a generous policy, but theres a catch

Although employees accept most returns without batting an eye, some situations do raise eyebrows on Costcos end. Business Insider recently reported on a situation where one person tried returning a printer she bought in 2010. When the return was declined, the manager had to express that this wasnt the first time this particular customer had taken advantage of the return policy. After a bit of back and forth between this customer and Costcos corporate offices, she was able to return the printerbut at the cost of her Costco membership, which was revoked.

Yes, Costco can actually revoke a membership if customers are abusing the return policy. In a statement to Taste of Home, Costco said, memberships may be canceled due to abuse of the Member Privileges and Conditions.

Should this catch stop you from getting a Costco membership? Not in the slightest. If anything, Costcos policy is there to make sure your needs as a customer are fully satisfied. Next, find out the Costco shopping tips frequent shoppers keep to themselves.
In this article:

BRUSSELS, Sept 12 (Reuters) - The following are mergers under review by the European Commission and a brief guide to the EU merger process:

APPROVALS AND WITHDRAWALS

None

NEW LISTINGS

-- French private equity firm PAI Partners to buy board game publisher Asmodee Group (notified Sept. 11/deadline Oct. 16/simplified)

-- Japanese industrial gas supplier Taiyo Nippon Sanso to buy majority of the European business of industrial gas company Praxair (notified Sept. 11/deadline Oct. 16)

EXTENSIONS AND OTHER CHANGES

None

FIRST-STAGE REVIEWS BY DEADLINE

SEPT 19

-- Private equity firm KKR to acquire U.S. business software company BMC Software (notified Aug. 14/deadline Sept. 19/simplified)

-- French carmaker PGA Motors and Fiber to acquire joint control of auto dealer and car parts distributor Bernard Participations (notified July 31/deadline extended to Sept. 19 from Sept. 5 after the French competition authority asked to take over the case)

SEPT 21

-- Norwegian aluminium maker Norsk Hydro to acquire some of Anglo-Australian mining company Rio Tinto's aluminium production assets (notified Aug. 17/deadline Sept. 21)

SEPT 24

-- Private equity firm Advent International to acquire General Electric's distributed power business (notified Aug. 20/deadline Sept. 24/simplified)

-- French energy company Total to acquire gasd turbine power plant operators Pont Sur Sambre Power and Toul Power (notified Aug. 20/deadline Sept. 24/simplified)

-- Real estate investment fund DV4, Dutch pension fund ABP and Canada's Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System Primary Pension Plan to set up a British property joint venture (notified Aug. 20/deadline Sept. 24/simplified)

SEPT 25

-- German alphalt maker Deutsche Asphalt, which is a subsidiary of Austrian construction company Strabag, and German road construction company Bunte to set up a joint venture (notified Aug. 21/deadline Sept. 25/simplified)

Story continues

SEPT 26

-- U.S. private equity fund Charlesbank Partners Group to acquire joint control of contract food maker H-Food Holdings and the Hearthside group of companies (notified Aug. 22/deadline Sept. 26/simplified)

SEPT 27

-- Kuwait's sovereign wealth fund Kuwait Investment Authority to acquire oil and gas pipeline firm North Sea Midstream Partners from private equity firm ArcLight Capital (notified Aug. 23/deadline Sept. 27/simplified)

-- U.S. planemaker Boeing and French aerospace company Safran to set up a joint venture to make and service aircraft auxiliary power units (notified Aug. 23/deadline Sept. 27)

SEPT 28

-- Private equity firm KKR and French telecoms provider Altice to acquire joint control of Altice's French subsidiary SFR Filiale (notified Aug. 24/deadline Sept. 28/simplified)

-- U.S. management company Abry Partners to acquire Norwegian A2P messaging company Link Mobility ASA (notified Aug. 24/deadline Sept. 28/simplified)

OCT 1

-- Canada's Public Sector Pension Investment Board and Canadian institutional investor British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI) to acquire joint control of Canadian forest product company Island Timberlands (notified Aug. 27/deadline Oct. 1/simplified)

-- Private equity firm EQT Fund Management to acquire Luxembourg specialty chemicals and food ingredients distributor Azelis (notified Aug. 27/deadline Oct. 1/simplified)

OCT 3

-- U.S. plane maker Boeing to acquire aerospace parts company KLX (notified Aug. 29/deadline Oct. 3)

-- Goldman Sachs and Japanese financial services group Orix Corp to acquire shares in Japanese pharmaceutical company ILS Inc

OCT 4

-- Private equity fund Lone Star to buy roof tiles business of France's Imerys (notified Aug. 30/deadline Oct. 4/simplified)

-- German project group Steag and German engineering company Siemens take joint control of power plan in Herne, western Germany (notified Aug. 30/deadline Oct. 4)

-- Germany's Vossloh and Austria's Rhomberg Sersa Rail Holding form joint venture in railway technology (notified Aug. 30/deadline Oct. 4/simplified)

OCT 5

-- Boeing and automotive seat maker Adient to form joint venture to make airline seats (notified Aug. 31/deadline Oct. 5)

-- Japanese beverages and pharmaceutical group Kirin Holdings and Japanese trading house Mitsui to acquire joint control of nutritional supplements company Thorne Holding Corp (notified Aug. 31/deadline Oct. 5/simplified)

OCT 8

-- Swedish mobile operato Tele2 to buy Swedish cable TV company Com Hem (notified Sept. 3/deadline Oct. 8)

-- Chinese conglomerate CITIC Group to require a majority stake in Czech holding group European Bridge Travel, which controls travel services companies (notified Sept. 3/deadline Oct. 8/simplified)

OCT 9

-- Alphabet's Verily forms a joint venture with ResMed to study sleep apnea (notified Sept. 4/deadline Oct. 9/simplified)

-- Canadian auto parts maker Magna to acquire Italian lighting products maker Olsa (notified Sept. 4/deadline Oct. 9/simplified)

OCT 11

-- Private investment firm SK Capital Partners to buy U.S. specialty chemical company Schenectady International (notified Sept. 6/deadline Oct. 11)

OCT 12

-- Business process services company Synnex Corp to buy call center operator Convergys Corp (notified Sept. 7/deadline Oct. 12/simplified)

-- Buy-out firm Cinven, through its controlled portfolio company Viridium Holding, to acquire sole control of insurance company Generali Lebensversicherung (notified Sept. 7/deadline Oct. 12/simplified)

-- German gaming and gambling company Gauselmann to take a 33 percent stake and joint control of casino operator Spielbank Mainz (notified Sept. 7/ deadline Oct. 12/simplified)

-- Investment company Bregal to buy travel firm Trendtours Touristik (notified Sept. 7/deadline Oct. 12/simplified)

OCT 15

-- U.S. pet food maker Mars Petcare to buy European veterinary business Anicura (notified Sept. 10/deadline Oct. 15)

-- Qatar Petroleum to acquire a 30 percent stake in two of Exxon Mobil's affiliates in Argentina (notified Sept. 10/deadline Oct. 15/simplified)

OCT 16

-- French equity firm PAI Partners to buy board game publisher Asmodee (notified Sept. 11/deadline Oct. 16/simplified)

-- Japanese industrial gas supplier Taiyo Nippon Sanso to buy European business of industrial gas company Praxair (notified Sept. 11/deadline Oct. 16)

NOV 30

-- Deutsche Telekom to acquire Swedish peer Tele2's Dutch unit and merge it with its Dutch business T-Mobile Nederland (notified May 2/deadline Nov. 30 after deadline suspension ended Aug. 6)

DEC 13

-- Copper company KME, which is part of Intek Group , to acquire German peer MKM Mansfelder Kupfer and Messing GmbH (notified June 4/deadline extended to Dec. 13 from Nov. 29 after the companies asked for more)

DEC 18

-- German company BASF to acquire Belgian chemicals company Solvay's worldwide polyamide business (notified May 22/deadline Dec. 18)

JAN 3

-- German copper products maker Wieland-Werke to acquire German copper smelter Aurubis' flat rolled products unit Products Schwermetall (notified June 13/deadline extended to Jan. 3 from Dec. 10 after the companies asked for more time)

JAN 8

-- French aerospace and defence group Thales to acquire Franco-Dutch chipmaker Gemalto (notified June 18/deadline extended to Jan. 8 from Nov. 29 from July 23 after the companies asked for more time)

JAN 28

-- Siemens and Alstom to merge their railway operations (notified June 8/deadline set at Jan. 28 on Sept. 7)

SUSPENDED DEADLINE

GUIDE TO EU MERGER PROCESS

DEADLINES:

The European Commission has 25 working days after a deal is filed for a first-stage review. It may extend that by 10 working days to 35 working days, to consider either a company's proposed remedies or an EU member state's request to handle the case. Most mergers win approval but occasionally the Commission opens a detailed second-stage investigation for up to 90 additional working days, which it may extend to 105 working days.

SIMPLIFIED:

Under the simplified procedure, the Commission announces the clearance of uncontroversial first-stage mergers without giving any reason for its decision. Cases may be reclassified as non-simplified - that is, ordinary first-stage reviews - until they are approved. (Reporting by Foo Yun Chee)
Oil prices have received a boost and could go up further when Iran sanctions come into effect.

The U.S. East Coast, particularly the Carolinas, is bracing itself for what could be the worst hurricane in nearly three decades. Hurricane Florence, a Category 4 storm, is likely to make landfall by early Friday. With smaller storms like Tropical Storm Isaac likely to follow in its wake, fuel demand is experiencing an increase. These storms could also disrupt production and refining activities significantly.

But the factor providing a firmer basis to oil prices are the sanctions imposed on Iran. It is now clear that when these measures take effect in November, they could end up removing a significant quantum of Irans oil supplies. Some experts believe that this could potentially drive prices to above $100 a barrel. Adding oil stocks to your portfolio makes for a smart choice at this point.

Hurricane Florence Boosts Fuel Purchase

With Hurricane Florence on track to make landfall later this week, fuel purchases have received a boost. A million people are likely to be affected and they have been asked to fill up their fuel tanks and evacuate areas in the path of the storm. This is likely to lead to a considerable increase in pump prices.

Consequently, on Sep 11, WTI crude prices increased by $1.71 or 2.5% to hit $69.25 a barrel, the highest close in a week. Brent crude advanced by $1.69 or 2.2% to touch $79.06 a barrel, the highest close for a forward monthly contract since Jun 29.

Colonial Pipeline, Gulf of Mexico Operations to be Affected

The storm could also lead to flooding and power outages in areas close to the Colonial pipeline, leading to its closure. Though most of North Carolinas refineries are located inland, this is the main line which transports gasoline and diesel from refineries located in the northeast.

Several smaller storms, which are slated to hit U.S. shores in the next few days, are potentially more alarming. Tropical Storm Isaac could disrupt Mexican oil operations in the Yucatan. It could even move north into the Gulf of Mexico, impacting refining and production operations in the region.

Story continues

Iran Sanctions Could Boost Prices Above $100

What provides an even firmer basis for the rise in crude prices are President Trumps impending sanctions on Iran. Market watchers think that they could successfully remove a significant volume of the countrys exports from the market in November, the month during which they are scheduled to take effect.

With Japan and South Korea reducing their Iranian offtake to zero, this could indeed be the case. In fact, both these countries have decided to purchase more U.S. crude. According to Fereidun Fesharaki of FACTS Global Energy, these sanctions have the potential to boost prices to above $100 per barrel.

Currently, Iran is one of the largest exporters of oil on a global basis. Fesharaki feels that other producers would not be able to fill up the void created once Irans oil exports are stopped completely. U.S. shale producers are also operating at maximum capacity and would be unable to boost supplies appropriately.

Our Choices

The arrival of Hurricane Florence has boosted prices at the pump significantly. If this storm and several others slated to follow it move into the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. crude supplies could be drastically affected. What is providing a firmer and more secular basis to price rise are impending sanctions on Iran. Some analysts believe that they could boost oil prices beyond $100 a barrel.

This is why it makes sense to pick up select oil stocks at this time. We have narrowed our search to the following stocks based on a good Zacks Rank and other relevant metrics.

Oasis Midstream Partners LP OMP owns, develops, operates and acquires a diversified portfolio of midstream assets primarily in North America.

Oasis Midstream Partners has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). The companys expected earnings growth for the current year is more than 100%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 2.2% over the last 30 days.

TC PipeLines, LP TCP is a master limited partnership (MLP), with interest in eight pipeline systems.

TC PipeLines expected earnings growth for the current year is 20.4%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 1.5% over the last 30 days. The stock has a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Phillips 66 PSX is a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company with chemicals, midstream, marketing and specialties, and refining businesses.

Phillips 66 has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The companys expected earnings growth for the current year is 80.6%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 4.5% over the last 30 days.

Chaparral Energy, Inc. CHAP engages in oil and natural gas exploration and production.

Chaparral Energy has a Zacks Rank #2. The company has expected earnings growth of 25.8% for the current year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 14.7% over the last 30 days.

Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. NOG is an exploration and production company. Northern Oil's core area of focus is the Williston Basin, specifically the Mountrail County, North Dakota area Bakken Play.

Northern Oil and Gas has a Zacks Rank #2. The companys expected earnings growth for the current year is more than 100%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 5% over the last 30 days.

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Zacks EVP Kevin Matras believes this familiar stock has only just begun its climb to become one of the greatest investments of all time. Its a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in pure genius.

Click for details >>



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Bitcoin India Commitee

While the Supreme Court of India hears the crypto exchange industrys case against the central bank following the latters banking ban, regulators are exploring regulatory policies for the nascent sector.

Businesses and associations in the cryptocurrency and blockchain sector are expected to participate in the hearing alongside the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), to discuss the future of the cryptocurrency market of India.

In its annual report, SEBI revealed that it has sent government officials to Japan, UK, and Switzerland to study cryptocurrency regulations in overseas markets with active digital asset exchanges and communities.

Unexpected Variable

In July, the supreme court of India declined to reverse the ban on cryptocurrency trading imposed by the Central Bank of India, requesting banks to maintain a strict ban on providing any financial services to cryptocurrency-related businesses.

Speaking to Bloomberg, law firm Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co partner Anand Bhushan said that apart from the governments concerns regarding money laundering, there exists risk in allowing digital currencies as a medium of exchange due to a large amount of speculation and volatility.

Nobody is able to price the risk currently. The minute you have clarity on exchanges and whether digital currencies can be used as a medium of exchange or payment, or if it is a commodity, there will be less speculation and much more stability in pricing, Bhushan said.

But, as SFOX head of growth Danny Kim said, the entrance of large-scale investment firms into the cryptocurrency market has led to an increase in stability, as seen in the price movement of Bitcoin throughout August, when it recorded its most stable month since June of 2017.

Before institutional firms were actively trading crypto or heavily involved (before 2018) bitcoin price differences between exchanges varied as high as 4.5%, Kim explained.

The increase in stability, as well as the recognition of cryptocurrency exchanges as regulated financial institutions by major regions such as Japan, South Korea, France, UK, and the US could encourage India to reverse its ban.

Story continues

Analysts expect that the exposure of local government officials to overseas markets that have demonstrated a high level of growth in the cryptocurrency and blockchain space could act as an unforeseen variable that may redirect the long-term strategy of SEBI.

As seen in the 50 percent increase in cryptocurrency and blockchain-related job growth in Asia and the decision of governments to consider the blockchain as one of the three core technologies in the fourth industrial revolution alongside big data and AI, a complete ban on cryptocurrency trading could result in voluntary isolation.

As large the economy of India is, Europe has continued to lag behind Japan and South Korea since 2012 in both trading volume and industry growth due to their initial rejection of the market.

This week, the European Commission, the executive branch that drafts legislation for the EU, acknowledged the cryptocurrency sector as a legitimate industry, given the rapid growth rate of the market despite its volatility.

Valdis Dombrovskis, the vice president of the European Commission, said:

We also had a good exchange of views on crypto-assets. We see that crypto-assets are here to stay. Despite the recent turbulence, this market continues to grow.

Risky Game

The government of India is pursuing a high-risk strategy in isolating itself from the global cryptocurrency and blockchain space. Its current approach assumes that the cryptocurrency market of India could develop into a leading sector at anytime, as soon as a regulatory framework is established.

However, as demonstrated by Europe and the discrepancy in market structure between European nations and leading markets like Japan, it takes time, capital, and resources to build the market.

Featured image from Shutterstock.



The post Is India Ready to Legalize Crypto? Officials Visit Japan & UK to Study Policies appeared first on CCN.


Former Secretary of State John Kerry doesn't rule out another run for president.

The Democratic former senator also says "it's a mistake" to discuss impeachment of Trump during the midterm elections.

Former Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday didn't rule out running for president during the 2020 elections.

"I haven't ruled things out," Kerry said in an interview on CNBC's " Squawk Box " when asked about a possible presidential run.

The 74-year-old Democratic former senator, who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2004 against then-GOP incumbent George W. Bush , also said "it's a mistake" to discuss impeachment of President Donald Trump during the midterm elections.

"In two months, we have an election in the country, and that's the most important course correction moment the American people have right now," he said.

Most Democrats have avoided talking about booting Trump from office ahead of the midterms even after Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen claimed that the president directed him to commit a crime. An impeachment push is risky now, strategists say, as Democrats try to flip at least 23 GOP-held House seats and take control of the chamber.

Kerry also criticized Trump's tariffs on Chinese goods. While Kerry admits the U.S. economy is doing well under the Trump administration, he said any future economic gains will be offset by the trade war.

The Trump administration is attacking what it sees as unfair trade on a number of fronts. A new round of United States tariffs on $16 billion worth of Chinese imports kicked in last month, prompting an equivalent retaliation from Beijing .

"If this next round of tariffs is put in place with respect to China, the Chinese I know are prepared to come back and slam us," Kerry said.

He also said low and middle-income American families probably aren't seeing the benefits of a stronger economy, joining other Democrats who say that tax cuts and deregulation benefit wealthy corporations.

Story continues

Kerry released a memoir last week titled "Every Day Is Extra," which includes details on his five-terms in the senate, his 2004 presidential run, and his four years as secretary of State under former President Barack Obama .





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With Brexit looming, several global banks have started contingency planning to avoid chaos later on. JPMorgan JPM is also taking similar actions. The bank has announced restructuring initiatives that will significantly bolster its wealth management operations in Luxembourg.



As part of this effort, JPMorgan intends to merge its London-based subsidiary, J.P. Morgan International Bank Limited (JPMIB) with J.P. Morgan Bank Luxembourg S.A. (JPMBL). The deal, still subject to regulatory and other approvals, is expected to be completed by early next year.



The merger is expected to substantially enhance capabilities in its Corporate & Investment Bank divisions Treasury Services and Custody & Fund Services units in Luxembourg. Further, this will result in seamless client support for these businesses across the European Economic Area.



Following the closure of the merger, all the assets and liabilities (including client accounts, associated assets and legal agreements) of JPMIB will be transferred to JPMBL, and the former will be dissolved.



Nonetheless, its wealth management operation will continue to have significant presence in London. Further, JPMorgans European investment banking and markets businesses will be based in Frankfurt.



Additionally, Mark Garvin, vice chairman of JPMorgans corporate and investment banking arm, told the Commons Treasury Committee that up to a quarter of its 16,000 staff in Britain will likely be relocated to the European Economic Area eventually. But this is contingent on the type of deal agreed upon by both sides.



Notably, the initial relocation will be modest, with the shifting of hundreds of staff. Further, he added, We are now in full execution mode, we are in the very advanced stages of execution in fact... In many cases weve passed the point of no return.



Shares of JPMorgan have rallied 7.1% so far this year, outperforming the industrys rise of just 0.5%.





Story continues





Currently, JPMorgan carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.



Other than JPMorgan, top executives of Citigroup C and Barclays also stated that their respective employees have begun moving to other locations across the European Economic Area. Specifically, Citigroup plans to relocate 150 to 200 staff, while Barclays plans to shift nearly 150 employees, with majority going to Dublin.



Moreover, HSBC Holdings HSBC is on the course to move around 1,000 jobs to France, while Goldman Sachs GS will likely double its workforce in Frankfurt to 400. Several other global banks and asset managers are also on track to expand their operations in the European Economic Area.



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Zacks EVP Kevin Matras believes this familiar stock has only just begun its climb to become one of the greatest investments of all time. Its a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in pure genius.



Click for details >>



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Zacks Investment Research
Dividends play an important role in compounding returns in the long run and end up forming a sizeable part of investment returns. Historically, Total Gabon (EPA:EC) has paid a dividend to shareholders. It currently yields 3.2%. Should it have a place in your portfolio? Lets take a look at Total Gabon in more detail.

View our latest analysis for Total Gabon

5 checks you should do on a dividend stock

If you are a dividend investor, you should always assess these five key metrics:

Is it paying an annual yield above 75% of dividend payers?

Has its dividend been stable over the past (i.e. no missed payments or significant payout cuts)?

Has it increased its dividend per share amount over the past?

Is is able 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?

ENXTPA:EC Historical Dividend Yield September 12th 18

Does Total Gabon pass our checks?

Total Gabon has a trailing twelve-month payout ratio of 16.4%, which means that the dividend is covered by earnings. Furthermore, analysts have not forecasted a dividends per share for the future, which makes it hard to determine the yield shareholders should expect, and whether the current payout is sustainable, moving forward.

When considering the sustainability of dividends, it is also worth checking the cash flow of a company. A business with strong cash flow can sustain a higher divided payout ratio than a company with weak cash flow.

If dividend is a key criteria in your investment consideration, then you need to make sure the dividend stock youre eyeing out is reliable in its payments. Dividend payments from Total Gabon have been volatile in the past 10 years, with some years experiencing significant drops of over 25%. These characteristics do not bode well for income investors seeking reliable stream of dividends.

Relative to peers, Total Gabon has a yield of 3.2%, which is on the low-side for Oil and Gas stocks.

Next Steps:

Story continues

Now you know to keep in mind the reason why investors should be careful investing in Total Gabon for the dividend. On the other hand, if you are not strictly just a dividend investor, the stock could still be offering some interesting investment opportunities. 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. Ive put together three important factors you should further examine:

Valuation: What is EC 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 EC is currently mispriced by the market. Management Team: An experienced management team on the helm increases our confidence in the business  take a look at who sits on Total Gabons board and the CEOs back ground. 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.
FILE PHOTO: A smartphones with Sprint logo are seen in front of a screen projection of T-mobile logo, in this picture illustration taken April 30, 2018. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Communications Commission, which is reviewing the planned merger of T-Mobile US Inc (TMUS.O) and Sprint Corp (S.N), said on Tuesday it has paused its review clock to give the agency time to analyse new and anticipated submissions from the companies.

The FCC said it was pausing the informal 180-day review clock, now at day 55, because of two new and complicated submissions from the companies and a third submission that the FCC has not yet received.

The $26 billion deal between the two U.S. wireless carriers, which would shrink the wireless market to three big players from four, is also being reviewed by the U.S. Justice Department. The companies announced the proposed deal in April, capping four years of on-and-off talks between the third- and fourth-largest U.S. wireless carriers.

T-Mobile said in a statement that it looked forward to working with the FCC in the review process. "We are confident that this transaction is pro-competitive, good for the country and good for American consumers," it said.

The FCC said it paused the informal "shot clock" because of a large, complex submission on benefits that the proposed merger would create and a separate submission on network expansion. The FCC received both on Sept. 5.

The agency said it would also need time to review additional economic modelling that T-Mobile said it would submit.

"The clock will remain stopped until the applicants have completed the record on which they intend to rely and a reasonable period of time has passed for staff and third-party review," the FCC said in a letter to officials at T-Mobile and Sprint which was posted on the agency's website.

(Reporting by Diane Bartz in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
warp speed

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Verizon will be the first internet service provider to offer a 5G home internet service.

The service, called Verizon 5G Home, will offer customers higher speeds than most are used to.

It'll be available only in four cities to begin with.

Verizon announced on Tuesday evening that it would begin selling the first 5G home internet service starting Thursday at 8 a.m. ET, with the service rolling out to four cities beginning October 1.

5G is the evolution of the wireless 4G LTE technology that most of us use on our smartphones. The major difference with 5G is that it's much faster and can be applied outside of mobile uses.

In Verizon's case, wireless 5G technology is replacing the typical wired home broadband internet service. 5G wireless internet data will be delivered to homes by "small cells"  essentially mini cell towers  as opposed to the current wired infrastructure.

Verizon said customers of the new service, Verizon 5G Home, "should expect typical network speeds around 300 Mbps and, depending on location, peak speeds of nearly 1 Gbps, with no data caps." In short, Verizon 5G Home customers should typically expect extremely fast internet speeds.

One Gbps translates to 1,000 Mbps, which would let you download a 1 GB file in eight seconds, which is incredibly fast. Even the 300 Mbps speeds that customers should typically expect is fast, allowing customers to download a 1 GB file in 28 seconds.

To compare, the average home internet speeds in the US as of May measured in at 92.93 Mbps, according to PCMag. Those speeds would let you download a 1 GB file in 1 minute, 32 seconds.

At the national average of 92.93 Mbps, internet speeds in the US can handle any kind of streaming, even 4K video streaming, without any issues. But Verizon's 5G Home service that offers even higher speeds paves the way for more data-intensive use cases in the future.

Logistics and initial limitations

Story continues

Verizon's 5G Home service will be free for the first three months, after which the service will cost $50 a month for existing Verizon customers and $70 a month for non-Verizon customers.

Customers from any city can sign up for the Verizon 5G Home service on Thursday, but the service will go live on October 1 in only four cities to begin with: Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, and Sacramento, California.

For customers outside those four initial cities, signing up for Verizon's 5G home internet service will grant them early access to Verizon's 5G Home when it becomes available.

Verizon said it would offer free installation of routers and router upgrades that would support its 5G Home service.

As part of the 5G Home deal, you'll get YouTube's TV service free for the first three months, after which it'll cost users $40 a month. Customers will also get a free Apple TV 4K or Google Chromecast Ultra.

NOW WATCH: What would happen if America's Internet went down

See Also:

SEE ALSO: I compared Google's Chrome browser with its No. 1 competitor  the winner was clear
by Chao Mien

A memorial Mass was held for Fr John Baptist Cheng Kwok-Cheung and Fr Peter Ngai Wan-Fai, who were killed on 7 September 1953 in the parish of Wanchai for denouncing communist persecution of the Church in China. Fr Chengs niece wants to keep their memory alive.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews) - A memorial Mass in honour of two Chinese priests, martyred 65 years ago, took place last Friday at the Church of Our Lady of Carmel in Wanchai, Hong Kong.

The two priests, Fr John Baptist Cheng Kwok-Cheung and Fr Peter Ngai Wan-Fai, were killed on 7 September 1953 in the parish of Wanchai. At the time, investigators emphasised that nothing had been stolen from the scene of the crime.

"I wanted this mass because I want my generation to remember my uncle, said Cheng Tak-Mei, Fr Chengs niece. The last celebration in memory of the two consecrated persons was held 25 years ago, and today the niece  one of the few relatives left in Hong Kong  is afraid that the memory of the event will be lost.

Although she was born after her uncle was killed, Cheng remembers how her grandmother always talked to her about Fr Chengs devotion to God and the truth.

It is widely believed that the two clergymen were eliminated by the Chinese Communist Party because they had complained about discrimination and persecution against Catholics in the Peoples Republic China in the early 1950s.

Two months before his death, Fr Cheng  director of Kung Kao Po, Hong Kongs Catholic weekly  received a threatening letter telling him to resign.

According to John Ngau, a Kung Kao Po reader, the British government that ruled the territory at the time, did not conduct a thorough investigation into the priests death to avoid problems and keep out of the fight between the Communist-held mainland and Nationalist-ruled Taiwan.

Fr Thomas Law Kwok-Fai, the parish priest at Our Lady of Carmel in Wanchai, and Fr Timothy Wan Kwok-Kwong, a young diocesan priest, concelebrated the Eucharistic service in memory of the two martyrs.

"We commemorated our dead ancestors, said Fr Law. This is not related to with politics. I can only say that the reports from that time are true. The martyrdom of Fr Cheng and Fr Ngai resembles the sufferings of Jesus under Pontius Pilate."

Ian Ng, a young Catholic, praises the two priests. "They are witnesses of Christ and a role model for Hong Kong Christians. They were prophets who spoke out for the truth and criticised injustice. They make me think that we cannot be indifferent in society, especially in today's Hong Kong."

Fr John Baptist Cheng Kwok-Cheung was born in Hong Kong in 1918 and ordained priest in Macao in 1944. He was devoted to the ministry of evangelisation via writing.

Shortly after his ordination, he was appointed director of the Kung Kao Po and head of the Chinese section of the Catholic Truth Society, a diocesan publication.

He also launched a monthly magazine for Chinese students, whilst serving as the spiritual guide of the Association of Chinese Catholic Students. He was very popular among the latter.

Fr Peter Ngai Wan-Fai was born in 1900 in the province of Guangdong, and ordained priest in 1930. During the Japanese occupation of the area (1941-1945) he cared for the rural population in the Hoi Fung area.

After the war he returned to Hong Kong to work in the parish of Wanchai. He worked with Fr Cheng until both were killed.
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El Paso County is joining a class-action lawsuit, seeking to recover about $5,000 from the federal government for payment it doesnt receive in property taxes on federal land.

County commissioners unanimously voted Tuesday to opt into the 2017 lawsuit, in which Utahs Kane County argued that the United States has underpaid local governments when doling out payments in lieu of taxes.

Local jurisdictions with non-taxable federal lands get the payments to offset the loss of property tax revenues, per a 1976 law.

The lawsuit alleges that from 2015 to 2017, Congress did not adequately compensate local governments.

The U.S. Court of Federal Claims has granted summary judgment in favor of Kane County and other local governments in the class, ruling that the U.S. is obligated to make up for the underpayments, says a notice from the court.

El Paso County is owed more than $7,000, Senior Assistant County Attorney Peter Lichtman wrote in a memo to county commissioners.

About a third of that payout will go to attorney fees and litigation costs, though, county spokesman Dave Rose said.

Most Colorado counties have already or will be joining the class, just as El Paso County did today, because its necessary to receive the amount they were shorted when Congress did not fully appropriate for the PILT (payment in lieu of taxes) legislation during the past couple of budget years, Rose said.
U.S. Rep. Jared Polis said Tuesday that hell be glad to discuss releasing more of his tax returns once Walker Stapleton, his Republican opponent in the Colorado gubernatorial race, matches the seven years of tax records that Polis released a decade ago when he first ran for Congress.

Ive released seven years of taxes, and were waiting for Walker Stapleton to release any of his taxes, Polis told reporters after touring a union training facility in Denver. I hope he releases his  and his trust taxes  and, of course, after he releases some, well be happy to talk about releasing more. But before I ran for office, I was proud to release seven years of taxes.

After Walker Stapleton releases seven years (of his tax returns), Im happy to talk about releasing more.

A spokesman for the Stapleton campaign wouldnt say Tuesday night whether the candidate plans to release any of his tax returns, but Stapleton previously characterized calls to release the documents stupid and dumb, adding that the only people who want to see them are political enemies trying to savage somebody for something.

Said Jerrod Dobkin, Stapletons communications director: When Jared Polis was first elected, his net worth was $160 million. And after serving a decade in Congress, his net worth is now estimated to be $312 million. Its up to Jared Polis and Jared Polis alone to explain why he didnt pay taxes for years.

Polis, serving his fifth term representing the 2nd Congressional District, and Stapleton, elected eight years ago as state treasurer, have been filing financial disclosure forms for years, but neither has made his tax returns available in recent years. Both are wealthy and have poured big bucks into their campaigns  more than $18 million so far for Polis and about $1 million for Stapleton.

The candidates tax records have been in the spotlight since late last week, when the Republican Governors Association began airing an ad that said Polis, who made a fortune launching companies during the dot-com boom, didnt pay income taxes, but he wants to raise yours.

Polis fired back the next day with an ad rejecting the attack and turned his fire on Stapleton. An attorney for his campaign also asked TV stations to stop airing the ad, which he termed intentionally false and misleading.

But an RGA spokesman said the organization stands by its ad.

Jared Polis doesnt want to pay his fair share in taxes, but wants to force Colorado families to shoulder a higher tax burden, RGAs Jon Thompson said in a statement. Jared Polis was caught not paying federal income taxes for five years, was caught using onshore and offshore Cayman Island accounts to avoid paying taxes, and was caught stating that all of it was completely appropriate. 

The attack on Polis taxes first surfaced in 2008, when Polis was locked in a close primary for the Boulder-based congressional seat.

His campaign disputes each of those contentions.

One of the richest members of Congress  the Center for Responsive Politics ranked him as second richest in the House, with an estimated 2015 net worth exceeding $300 million  Polis paid more than $18.4 million in income taxes during the seven years before he was elected, according to returns he made available a decade ago.

When he sold ProFlowers.com, a company hed founded in 2006, for example, he netted $116 million and wound up paying more than $13 million in taxes that year alone.

But Polis reported a net loss in income for the four years leading up to that year, when he said he was nurturing businesses hed started, so he didnt owe any federal income taxes in those years.

As for any offshore accounts to avoid paying taxes, a Polis campaign spokeswoman pointed to reporting from 2008, when Polis acknowledged holdings in a company that also maintained a fund for international investors in the Cayman Islands but said he never had any money in that fund.

The RGA ad ends with a video clip of Polis saying, I think thats completely appropriate, but it omits what he was talking about when he was questioned about his taxes during a primary debate.

Heres the full quote: When you dont make money, you cant pay taxes. And since Ive been in public service, my expenses have been greater than my income, and thats simply the fact, and I think thats completely appropriate.

Polis was elected to a six-year term on the State Board of Education in 2000.

Asked by reporters Tuesday whether he has paid federal income taxes every year since he was elected to Congress, Polis deflected.

No one has ever accused me of not paying my taxes. Ive paid every penny Ive owed in taxes, he said.

Pressed whether that included income taxes, Polis repeated, Ive paid every penny that Ive owed in taxes.
This photo shows an anonymous opinion piece in The New York Times in New York, Thursday, Sept. 6, 2018. President Donald Trump lashed out against the anonymous senior official who wrote it, claiming to be part of a "resistance" working "from within" to thwart the commander-in-chief's most dangerous impulses. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
LETTERS: Time to be responsible; need to take the city back
This is a video of snake wrangler Max Jackson (Max Johnson would have been even sweeter) responding to a call in Mount Coolum, Queensland, Australia from a woman who complained about 'sliding and banging' noises coming from her attic at night. The culprit? GHOSTS. Just kidding, two male carpet pythons doing battle after catching the scent of a female. Hoo-ah! Get it? "Al Pacino from Scent Of A Woman." You're good.

Sure enough when I jumped into the roof cavity I found two male Carpet Pythons (each about 2-2.5m) combating! This is typical behavior during the breeding season, but not always seen. I ended up relocating both snakes out of her roof to some nearby habitat where they could continue the battle.

Ahahahahha, he relocated them so they could continue their battle. As a huge fan of doing battle, I've gotta respect that. The last thing you want as a snake in the heat of a battle is to get bagged up in a pillowcase and dropped off somewhere nowhere near your opponent when you're convinced you were just about to finish him. 'I was so close -- I'd already tore his arms and legs off' I imagine both would-be champions thinking sadly to themselves before emotional eating like a dozen rats.

Keep going for the video.

Thanks to TrixAreForEveryone, who I 100% agree with.
BOONE, Iowa, Aug. 29, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kansas State University and Topcon Agriculture are collaborating to develop tools and systems to advance precision agriculture and support farmers.





By working with the university, Topcon Agriculture aims to develop product concepts through gathering requirements, drafting specifications and conducting market research as well as to test products in the lab, on the university farm, and around the state leveraging K-States unique knowledge in the domain and using K-State Research and Extension and Agricultural Experiment Station facilities.

The strategic advantage of using our combined resources for product development and testing is paramount as Topcon Agriculture is squarely focused on creating value for farmers, dealers and original equipment manufacturers. We encourage farmers to Grow without Limits, said Brian Sorbe, VP Sales and Marketing for Topcon Agriculture.

Topcon is globally taking an increasing tactical interest in university partnerships, similar to this great step with K-State. We believe that the intersection between sensors, data, and action are within our grasp, and progressive universities like K-State are in a unique position to help us achieve this, said Fabio Isaia, CEO of Topcon Agriculture. For example, we see K-State as one of the most important partners of TAP, our Ag Platform, and we look forward to developing together value-added services for our customers.

Our facilities and research strengths are an excellent fit for Topcons business, said Ernie Minton, interim dean of the College of Agriculture and director of K-State Research and Extension.

Minton said researchers are interested in working with the company because of its broad, interdisciplinary approach and involvement in many areas that are highly relevant to Kansas producers.

Partnership with Topcon Agriculture demonstrates our commitment to keeping Kansas producers up-to-date. Precision agriculture offers new tools that will help farmers prosper as they work to feed the worlds growing population, Minton said.

Kansas State University emphasizes industry collaboration and has seen an 80 percent increase in the number of industry-funded projects in the last five years. The university has successfully pursued master research and service agreements with a number of industry partners.

Partnership with Topcon Agriculture aligns with our strategy to engage in collaborative research with industry, said Peter Dorhout, vice president for research. We are committed to strategic, enduring alliances to ensure that some of our applied research results in technology transfer and real-world applications that boost the Kansas economy, he said.

The research collaborations established with Topcon are the beginning of a mutually beneficial partnership, and we look forward to expanding the relationship to advance innovation in precision agriculture in Kansas and beyond, said Rebecca Robinson, director of economic development at the Kansas State University Institute for Commercialization.

About Topcon Agriculture Group

Topcon Agriculture Group is a division of the Topcon Positioning Group, headquartered in Livermore, California, USA (topconpositioning.com). The global Topcon Agriculture Group (topconagriculture.com) headquarters is located in Turin, Italy, with its North American regional headquarters in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin. Topcon Agriculture Group provides advanced IoT connected field and farm management solutions for aftermarket and OEM customers in the agriculture industry, integrating high-precision hardware, software and data to bring efficiency and enhance productivity to every phase of the farming operations. Its brands include Topcon, Digi-Star, RDS Technology, and NORAC. Topcon Corporation (topcon.com), founded in 1932, is traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (7732).

Attachment
DENVER, Colo. and VANCOUVER, B.C., Sept. 11, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sandspring Resources Ltd. (TSX-V: SSP, OTCQX: SSPXF) (the Company) is pleased to provide a corporate update on its current and future activities.



2017  2018 Exploration Program: The Company completed the 2017  2018 Exploration Program in April of 2018. The focus of the program was to obtain further information on the Sona Hill and Wynamu Hill prospects. Initial drilling results were reported in January of 2018. See Press Release dated January 26, 2018. The remainder of the drilling program focused on infill drilling at Sona Hill and a final resource estimate for Sona Hill and the Toroparu Project are in progress.

Toroparu Project Re-scoping:

As previously reported, the Company has been working with its consultant, SRK Consulting (USA) (SRK) on evaluating the best way to integrate the Sona Hill deposit into the operating plan for development of Toroparu.1 While positive drill intercepts from the 2015, 2016 and spring 2017 drilling at Sona Hill and Wynamu Hill indicated the potential for an expansion of the saprolite start-up modeled in the 2013 PFS for Toroparu,2 the final analysis did not support this alternative.

However, the addition of the higher-grade gold mineralization contained in both saprolite and hard rock at Sona Hill into a revised production schedule does provide the basis for a smaller scale project start-up followed by an expansion phase later in the mine life. Sandspring and its Technical Team are evaluating this alternative through re-scoping the project development plan for Toroparu to focus on an initial phase of gold only production at a rate of less than one half that defined in the 2013 PFS. Higher grade gold-only mineralization from near surface mineralization at Sona Hill, the gold-only mineralization from the SE Zone satellite deposit and select areas of gold-only mineralization in the shallow portions of the Toroparu main pit area provide the basis for the smaller scale gold-only start up with a potentially lower initial capital cost. It must be noted that the technical feasibility and economic validity of the smaller scale project start-up are not supported at this time by a Preliminary Econonic Assessment, a Prefeasibility Study or a Feasibility study.

Technical Team Expanded:

As the Company has previously announced, Gran Colombia Gold Corp., has become its single largest shareholder.3 Certain members of Gran Colombias management and technical team designed, built and operated the Choco Mine owned by Bolivar Gold in Venezuela before its sale to Gold Fields Ltd. in 2006. Gran Colombia personnel have been made available to assist the Company and have joined SRK in the analysis of the requirements and associated capital cost reductions for the re-scoping of the project.

Progress Summary:

Rich Munson, CEO stated: The higher grade Sona Hill saprolite and fresh rock mineralized material has opened up a new pathway that may allow a startup of the project in the current gold market that can focus on a smaller production profile offering reasonably attractive economics while still preserving the opportunity to move the Project back to its large scale development potential. While we have not completed a Preliminary Econonic Assessment, a Prefeasibility Study or a Feasibility study at this point the expansion of the Technical Team brings significant additional experience and expertise to this evaluation effort and will greatly facilitate its implementation.

Kurupung Hydroelectric Project

Sandspring is also pleased to announce that the Government of Guyana has completed its review of the Companys work to date on the Kurupung River Hydroelectric Project located at Kumurau Falls, approximately 50 km southwest of the Toroparu Gold Project. Following the review, the Company and Government signed on August 6 2018 an Amended and Restated Memorandum of Understanding granting the Company exclusive rights for the development of the hydroelectric through December 31, 2021.

The run-of-river hydroelectric project at Kumurau Falls is an exciting add-on for the large-scale phase of the development of the Toroparu project, said Rich Munson.

Chicharron Gold/Silver Project, Colombia

The 386-hectare Chicharron Project lies within Gran Colombia Golds Segovia mining title in the Segovia-Remedios Mining District of Colombia. The initial focus of work on the Chicharron Project is the GuiaAntiqua Mine area which is located approximately 4.4 km east of Gran Colombias Segovia operations near the town of Segovia. The Chicharron Project was acquired from Gran Colombia Gold in July 2018 with details press released on July 26, 2018 (available on www.sandspringresources.com and www.sedar.com). A technical report, dated May 24, 2018, and entitled "NI 43-101 Technical Report for the Chicharron Gold-Silver Project, Segovia, Department of Antioquia, Colombia by Dr. Stewart D. Redwood has been posted to the Companys documents on www.sedar.com.

The Guia Antigua Mine produced historically from a NS oriented high-grade vein, with a strike of N100E and ~350W dip. High grade silver and gold mineralization was mined primarily along the contact between a dark aphanitic dyke hanging wall and highly weathered foliated metamorphic footwall. The vein is formed primarily of quartz with some carbonate with varying dip. The vein is over 1-meter-wide in areas and is shallowly dipping. At the northern end of the deposit, the vein changes to 0450E strike and 350NW dip and is truncated by a 3m wide shear zone running parallel to the aphantic dyke (45-500E strike & 30-350NW dip). Deformation of the vein near the shear zone suggests dextral strike-slip movement on the fault. Historical mining conducted over approximately 150m was conducted by artisanal mining methods primarily on a single level. Initial development of a second deeper level along the contact with the shear zone was not completed.

The Guia Antigua vein can be followed for 300-400 meters to the south with the same strike and dip but not north of the faulted shear zone. Several artisanal mines within the Chicharron Project area, including Chicharron 1 and 2, Laguna Azul, Rafa, Chenge, YY and NN, have exploited the vein south of the Guia Antigua historical mine.

The Guia Antigua vein has been mined for many years by artisanal miners. Production by the last group to mine the deposit, Sociedad Guias Gold, from Nov. 2014 to Oct. 2016, was reported to be 157,117 oz silver and 2,347 oz gold from 12,069 tonnes and an average grade of 404.9 g/t silver and 6.05 g/t gold.

In April 2018, the Gran Colombia exploration team carried out systematic check channel sampling of the Guia Antigua mine, collecting 155 samples in 32 representative vertical channels. The results are shown below:

Column # Assays Min

(g/t) Max

(g/t) Mean

(g/t) Median

(g/t) AG 85 0.15 10,381.0 140.9 37.8 AU 115 0.01 133.73 5.46 2.55

SRK has worked extensively on Gran Colombias Segovia Mining District operations including completing the NI 43-101 Technical Prefeasibility Study, dated May 10, 2018, for Gran Colombias Segovia Project. Sandspring has been working with the SRK team in the Companys initial evaluation of the Chicharron Project and engaged them to conduct a geologic study of the Guia Antigua vein after closing the acquisition of the Chicharron Project. SRKs initial recommendations include a 10-20 hole diamond drilling program to an average depth of approximately 100m from surface in areas extending the strike length to the northeast and southwest of the historical underground workings and across the faulted zone to the north. A portion of the net proceeds from the recently completed private placement will be used to complete this drilling program.

The purpose of this drilling campaign is to explore for extensions and/or offsets of the Guia Antigua or adjacent veins, to better understand the geological and structural controls of mineralization, and to provide initial data for development of a mineral inventory and potential small-scale mining operations.4

Rich Munson, CEO, commented: As we noted in our earlier announcement, Chicharron is a very unique opportunity for Sandspring to diversify its project portfolio. The historically mined high-grade mineralization at Guia Antigua, existing operating license under Gran Colombias mining title, and Gran Colombias vested interest as Sandsprings largest shareholder, all combine to make the Chicharron Project a unique opportunity for development for Sandspring.

Toroparu and SE Zone 2018 Mineral Resource Estimate Update  SRK Comments

The Toroparu and SE Zone Mineral Resource was independently estimated by SRK and reported in the NI 43-101 Technical Report Prefeasibility Study Toroparu Gold Project Upper Puruni River Area, Guyana Effective Date: May 8, 2013 Report Date: May 24, 2013.

During 2018, SRK reviewed various aspects of the 2011-2013 resource model construction for the Toroparu Project and subsequently developed refinements for grade modeling and confidence classification. Modeling refinements consist of the utilization of a longer composite length for gold and copper (1.5 m) and a lower estimated nugget (kriging parameter for grade assignment) for gold. Confidence classification refinements consists of smoothing the classifications based on block estimation attributes with broader geological and data considerations within the Northwest portion of the Main zone and modifications to the SE Zone. For gold, the majority of the Main Zone remains as assessed in 2012 and reported in 2013. Gold assays were capped at 15 and 8 g/t for fresh and saprolite rock respectively. For copper, in 2018, a separate model was developed in Leapfrog Geo 3D modeling software utilizing geologic information providing an independent control for grade estimation. The silver resource was estimated as an associated value as in 2015, utilizing all drilling noted in 2013, augmented with 15,314 silver assays with an average length of 2.3 m. Silver assays were capped at 25 g/t and 8 g/t for the Main and SE Zones, respectively, and composited into 2.5 m intervals. Rock type classification and bulk densities, 2.75 and 1.88 for fresh and oxidized saprolite respectively, are unchanged from 2013. The 2018 model, incorporating all refinements and was evaluated against a newly constructed optimized pit shell, provides an incremental 2% increase in contained measured and indicated Au ounces at a 0.3 Au (g/t) cut-off. The 2018 revised model, while similar in aggregate to that constructed in 2012, better represents the local variation of gold for mine planning purposes and is in general a better representation of the copper distribution.

Sona Hill 2018 Mineral Resource Estimate  SRK Comments

The Sona Hill Mineral Resource Estimate and the deposit geology were initially presented by Sandspring in a February 23, 2017 Press Release. Additional targeted in-fill drilling was completed in late 2017 and early 2018, with 75 holes for an additional 9,377 m of drilling, and a 71% increase in the assay database. The Sona Hill drill geologic model was developed in Leapfrog Geo 3D modeling software utilizing geologic information from the 184 drillholes. The 2018 MRE is based on data from 21,963 m of diamond drill core recovered from the 184 deposit specific boreholes drilled to date.

The Sona Hill Mineral Resource Estimate was independently estimated by SRK as a potentially open-pit satellite deposit to Toroparu. The geologic and assay data were used to model a mineralized shell in Leapfrog Geo software. The mineralized shape is based on continuity established with 6 m composites, and incorporated anisotropy from a generalized average trend of mineralized quartz veins as well as local down-hole point-data structural orientations of veins.

The drill core assay average length was 1.5 m and the gold assays were composited to 1.5 m intervals within the mineralized wireframes subsequent to capping at 35 g/t Au. A block model was constructed in Datamine Studio3 mining software package (Datamine), using a 10 m x 10 m x 5 m standard block size and sub-blocking with a variable z value at the fresh rock-saprolite surface.

Variogram analyses on 1.5 m composites was undertaken with reasonable continuity results. An anisotropy model was constructed using the point data of structural vein orientations. The average interpolated orientation is azimuth 248o with a dip of 41oNW. Gold grades were assigned using ordinary kriging constrained within the mineralized shape utilizing the interpolated orientations. Average Bulk Density values based on measurements of Sona Hill core are 1.65 for oxidized saprolite and 2.84 for fresh rock. Validation of model accuracy was based on comparing results from kriging with inverse distance and nearest neighbor grade estimates, which shows very similar results, and visual review on sections.

Confidence classification is based on a minimum of three composites, with a maximum of two composites from any one hole for Measured and Indicated; with search distances of 8 m x 12 m x 6 m for Measured, and 24 m x 36 m x 18 m for Indicated. Inferred classification used a minimum of one composite with a search distance of 80 m x 120 m x 60 m. The classification was post processed so that blocks within 10 m of a sample (essentially intersected) estimated with the second and third search volumes are considered measured and indicated respectively. The confidence classifications were examined, and modifications were made to minimize the existence of spots of, for example, blocks classified mathematically as Inferred that are encompassed by those classified as Indicated, within areas with reasonable geological continuity and sufficient sampling.

The quality, density and distribution of the sample data, subsequent to the targeted in-fill drilling, along with the representative structural vein orientation data has provided a satisfactory basis for resource modeling and mine planning purposes at the feasibility level.

The statistical analysis, geologic modelling and resource estimation were prepared by Frank Daviess, RM SME and Allan Moran, AIPG CPG, SRK Associates, who are Qualified Persons under National Instrument 43-101.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Sandspring Resources Ltd.

Richard A. Munson

Director and Chief Executive Officer

About Sandspring Resources Ltd.

Sandspring Resources Ltd. is a Canadian junior mining company currently moving toward a feasibility study for the multi-million-ounce Toroparu Project in Guyana, South America. A prefeasibility study completed in May 2013 (NI 43-101 Technical Report, Prefeasibility Study, Toroparu Gold Project, Upper Puruni River Area, Guyana, dated May 24, 2013 completed by SRK Consulting (U.S.), Inc., available on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) outlined the design of an open-pit mine producing more than 200,000 ounces of gold annually over an initial 16-year mine life. Sandspring and Wheaton Precious Metals (formerly known as Silver Wheaton) entered into a gold and silver purchase agreement for the Toroparu Project in 2013. Sandspring also holds a 100% interest in the Chicharron Gold Project located near Segovia, Antioquia Department, Colombia. Additional information is available at www.sandspringresources.com or by email at info@sandspringresources.com.

Contact Sandspring Resources Ltd.

Richard A. Munson

Chief Executive Officer

Tel: +1 (303) 991-5683 or via email at sandspringinfo@sandspringresources.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-looking Statements

This news release contains certain forward-looking information and statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. The use of any of the words potential, suggesting, indicating, will, plans and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking information and/or statements. Forward-looking statements and/or information are based on a number of material factors, expectations and/or assumptions that Sandspring has used to develop such statements and/or information, but which may prove to be incorrect. Although Sandspring believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements and/or information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements since Sandspring can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Such information and/or statements, including the assumptions made in respect thereof, involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results and/or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information and/or statements including, without limitation: the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development; risks associated with the uncertainty of exploration results and estimates; results from drilling and exploration activities; the ability of Sandspring to complete the Transaction; Sandsprings future plans; the availability of financing and/or cash flow to fund current and future plans and expenditures; the impact of increasing competition; fluctuating commodity prices; the general stability of applicable economic and political environments; the general continuance of current industry conditions; uncertainty regarding the market price for gold, silver and copper; uncertainty of conducting operations under a foreign regime; uncertainty of obtaining all applicable regulatory approvals and related timing matters; Sandsprings dependence on management personnel; and/or certain other risks detailed from time-to-time in Sandsprings public disclosure documents. Furthermore, the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as at the date of this news release and the Company does not undertake any obligations to publicly update and/or revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of additional information, future events and/or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws.

______________________________________

1 See Press Release dated September 17, 2017

2 Id.

3 See Press Release dated July 26, 2018

4 No exploration drilling has been conducted in the Chicharron project area nor are there any mineral resource estimates that comply with Canadian Institute of Mining standards required under Canadian NI 43-101 Standards for Disclosure of Mining Projects. See the Technical Report dated May 14, 2018, entitled "NI 43-101 Technical Report for the Chicharron Gold-Silver Project, Segovia, Department of Antioquia, Colombia by Dr. Stewart D. Redwood.
SAN JOSE, Calif. and SYDNEY, Australia, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Virtual Instruments, the leader in application-centric infrastructure performance management, today announced a new partnership with NEXTGEN , an enterprise technology distributor specializing in bringing advanced storage and network testing technology from around the globe to enterprises in Australia and New Zealand. NEXTGENs unique distribution model for enterprise solutions allows more customers access to Virtual Instruments award-winning, end-to-end monitoring and analytics platform for private and hybrid cloud infrastructure performance management.



As part of the agreement, NEXTGEN will have full distribution rights for all of Virtual Instruments app-centric IPM solutions, including the VirtualWisdom infrastructure performance monitoring platform and the WorkloadWisdom storage workload performance validation platform. Through the integration of these technologies into NEXTGENs portfolio, customers are provided the opportunity to more easily measure and guarantee performance-based service level agreements (SLAs) and increase the overall value of their infrastructure.

Virtual Instruments delivers the industrys only analytics platform for Infrastructure Performance Management  empowering customers to guarantee the performance and availability of their mission critical applications across physical, virtual and cloud computing environments. This is why its such a great fit for NEXTGEN's advanced enterprise software strategy, said John Walters, Group CEO, NEXTGEN. Weve been acknowledged at a global level for our innovative approach to distribution  what we call Distribution Reinvented  and it depends on strategic partnerships with leading technology partners such as Virtual Instruments. Together, Virtual Instruments and NEXTGEN enable the channel to deliver quantifiable business value to their customers.

There is an ongoing global trend of enterprises seeking ways to make more intelligent decisions about their infrastructure to better control escalating costs and assure performance. By correlating and analyzing full-stack data, Virtual Instruments app-centric IPM solutions holistically monitor, analyse and optimise the performance, utilisation and health of IT infrastructure within the context of the application. This enables enterprises to proactively identify any issues across the infrastructure, and more intelligently deploy and manage infrastructure resources based on performance requirements.

NEXTGEN is passionate about the solutions they deliver to customers, and their inclusive approach to the relationships between vendors, distributors, resellers, and end users closely reflects that of the Virtual Instruments Partner Program, said Sheen Khoury, EVP of Global Sales, Virtual Instruments. By joining NEXTGENs network of industry-leading partners, were ensuring that an even broader set of customers will have access to our award-winning solutions, further enabling IT teams to guarantee their performance-based SLAs and evolve from reactive troubleshooting to proactive performance optimization.

Virtual Instruments offers real-time infrastructure performance monitoring, analytics, and storage validation products that provide breakthrough application workload visibility to Global 2000 enterprise companies, government, and service providers. To learn more about Virtual Instruments application-centric infrastructure performance management offerings, please visit: https://www.virtualinstruments.com/product/

About NEXTGEN

NEXTGEN responded to an evolving ANZ IT ecosystem with an advanced enterprise software strategy, best-in-breed infrastructure, and select services ranging from creative digital marketing to unique payment solutions tailored to the needs of the channel. We proactively work the marketplace seeking out and facilitating opportunities that bring vendors and partners together. Were the connection between the vendors and the channel and well help where we can to move an opportunity through the lifecycle to make it a bigger, better and more robust solution.

About Virtual Instruments

Virtual Instruments is the leader in application-centric infrastructure performance management. It provides comprehensive infrastructure instrumentation and performance analytics for enterprise data centers. The companys solutions give IT teams deep workload visibility and actionable insights into their end-to-end systems across the hybrid data center. Virtual Instruments empowers companies to maximize the performance, availability and utilization of their production IT infrastructure. Virtual Instruments has over 500 customers, including enterprise IT, cloud service providers and storage vendors. The privately held company is headquartered in San Jose, Calif. For more information, visit https://www.virtualinstruments.com.

Contact

For Virtual Instruments:

Anne Stanley

virtualinstruments@10fold.com

+1 415 800 5383
Chances for EWMBA Haas - GMAT 690, GPA 3.6 [ #permalink

All,

This is an awesome forum that I've been following for a while. I just took the GMAT and got a 690 (62 percentile Q, 89 percentile V). This is not a bad score, but also not a stellar one. My main concerns are my IR score of 3 and relatively low quant score. Here's more about me:



Undergrad Major: Electrical Engineering at top public engineering school - GPA 3.67

Masters Major: Electrical Engineering at top private (not Ivy) engineering school - GPA 3.62

GMAT: 690 (62th percentile Q, 89th percentile V), IR 3

Work:

- 4 internships in personal computer, semiconductor, and finally aerospace industries.

- Now have 50 months full-time experience in top aerospace company, starting with highly selective CTO-sponsored engineering leadership development program that allowed me to work across product life cycles via 6 different jobs. I followed this with work in a venture capital R&D organization within the same aero company (job #7).

- 1 US patent grant (sole inventor), 9 more patents pending (mix of sole inventor and up to 2 co-inventors), numerous international patents pending. I love to create novel and impactful technologies, leading teams to build unique proofs of concept, and engaging business organizations in building viable business cases to commercialize these inventions.

- Currently (job #8) leading one out of a number of 7-people teams for the past year in spearheading cost-down effort as part of company-wide initiative to reduce costs. Tasks include facts-based cost knowledge, idea generation, re-design and re-negotiations. This is a very challenging job as we encounter a lot of resistance from employees within the company who have been fully staked in old ways (as is typically the case when introducing anything that changes the fundamental culture of the company). At the same time it is also a very rewarding job when you win over doubters and when you directly deliver stakeholder value. My projects have saved the company double-digit millions of dollars.



Personal:

28 years old Asian male. Family with 1 young kid. Moved around all my life. Born in Asia, grew up in various countries in Europe, went to school in various cities in USA.

Passionate about entrepreneurship, president of entrepreneurship society in undergrad (not sure if this matters, but the work that my club did was cited as a main reason on CNN Money why my school was a great one for aspiring entrepreneurs).

No extracurricular currently unfortunately. My job is challenging, and being an involved parent is not a walk in the park either.



Question:

Should I re-take the GMAT? Do you think my IR score of 3 and Quant percentile of 62% will outweigh my work and leadership experiences, as well as my decent GPA in both engineering degrees?



Thanks in Advance Everyone!
Re: In the United States, of the young adults who move from one state to a [ #permalink

ZLukeZ wrote:

kys123 wrote: The percentage of college student decreased. So if there were more people overall who go to others states for college overall it could mean that there is actually more college students in California rather than less. They might be a smaller fraction of the population, but the total number has increased.



you mean there are more students orginally from Calofirnia than there are students in California?

Therefore, business have enough graduates that are originally from CA to employ?





Edit: I get it now... Business seek college students no matter where they are from. They don't have to be from California. Thus even if there are less students in CA, there are more students over all , and therefore there are still enough people that can be employed..



Correct? you mean there are more students orginallyCalofirnia than there are studentsCalifornia?Therefore, businessEdit: I get it now... Business seek college students no matter where they are from. They don't have to be from California. Thus even if there are less students in CA, there are more students over all , and therefore there are still enough people that can be employed..Correct?

AzWildcat1 wrote:

In the United States, of the young adults who move from one state to another to attend college, the percentage who attend college in California has decreased by five percentage points over the past ten years. Since many local businesses in California cater to college students,these declines are likely to have a noticeably negative economic effect on these businesses and therefore on the economy on California.

Suppose there is no increase in Number of Students ( Population Remains the same )

1,000

950

Let's consider the possibility that the number of students ( Assuming Population Increases )

1,000

1425

Observe there is an actual increase in number of students , from 1000 to 1425 students ( Despite 5% decrease in population )



This suggests that there is an increase in population and there is scope for local business to flourish despite 5% decrease in population.

have enough graduates that are originally from CA to employ?

local businesses in California cater to college students,"

I don't think it is about the employment of College students in Local Business.

PS : Whenever % is given , always consider the factor " Number " in CR...

California - Year 1 ==> Total No of Students is 10,000 , No of students attending college isCalifornia - Year 10 ==>Total No of Students is 10,000 , students attending college is( Considering 5% decrease)California - Year 1 ==> Total No of Students is 10,000 , No of students attending college isCalifornia - Year 10 ==>Total No of Students is 15,000 ( Assuming Population Increases ), students attending college is( Considering 5% decrease)Hope this helps in understanding the issue a bit...- The statement mentions ", if I am correct (Correct me if I am wrong) it means local Business dependent on College students will suffer ( Example People like Book Stores , Cafeterias etc... ) ,- Plz correct me if I am wrong._________________
Thu, 11/04 (10:30am ET): Career Goals Essays of Wharton, Haas, & Yale Applications and How to Write Them?
Freshmanhad a career performance but a tight second-set went to Texas State, as the Bobcats posted a three-set win (22-25, 29-31, 25-22)over UTSA volleyball, in the home opener for the Roadrunners on Tuesday night at the Convocation Center.UTSA (7-3) opened its home schedule in front of a rowdy crowd at the Convocation Center. Texas State (6-5) held off a furious charge from UTSA in the second set to win 31-29 and was able to finish off the Roadrunners for the three-set win.A native of Houston, Rutherford made her first career start and turned in a strong outing. She had 17 total kills, including eight in the first set, which eclipsed her career total. Freshmanhad 11 kills and seven digs, with junioradding eight kills and a block. Sophomorehad five kills, with seniorowning 22 assists andcharting a 22-assist match. Seniorhad a team-best 10 digs.UTSA will return to action on Friday at 12 p.m. CT, playing host to Baylor in the opener of the UTSA Invitational presented by Courtyard Marriot at The Rim.The Bobcats raced out of the gate with the first three points and five of the first six, with Teal getting UTSA on the board. Consecutive points, finishing in a Rutherford kill brought UTSA to within 8-6 and the 19ace of the year from Williams cut the lead to 9-7. Froeschl's kill kept UTSA down 10-8, but the Bobcats notched three straight points to take a 15-11 lead before a kill from Rutherford, her fourth. Down 17-12, UTSA spent its first timeout, withsmashing her first kill out of the break. Froeschl and Lopez earned kills to cut the lead to 19-15 and after the fifth kill of the set from Rutherford, Texas State used a timeout, leading, 20-18. A pair of points from Rutherford saw UTSA cut the lead to 21-19 but TXST took a 24-21 lead to force a UTSA timeout. Texas State finished off the win at 25-22.Texas State opened the second set strong with six of the first seven points before UTSA used its first timeout of the set. After falling behind 10-3, UTSA earned seven of the next nine points, including big kills from Froeschl and Teal to cut the lead to 12-10. Consecutive points allowed the Roadrunners to even up the set at 13-13 and the second Lopez ace of the sequence led to a 14-13 lead, UTSA's first of the match. After a Texas State timeout, UTSA added to its lead behind Lopez, with Teal's kill giving UTSA a 16-13 lead. Three consecutive points from Texas State evened the match at 16-16 and UTSA regained the lead at 17-16. Rutherford and Froeschl had kills as UTSA took a 21-19 lead but Texas State rallied to earn a 22-21 lead. The teams continued to slug it out, trading points with ties at 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28 and 29. Consecutive points for Texas State led to a 31-29 win.After the Roadrunners opened the third set with the first two points, Texas State answered with five consecutive points. UTSA stayed within four at 15-11 and three straight, including a monster kill from McKay, cut the lead to 15-13. A 4-0 Texas State run extended the lead to 19-13 and forced a UTSA timeout. After falling behind 20-15, UTSA earned four straight, including a kill from Lopez, with TXST taking its first timeout of the set.
The Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) officially launched operations today with the goal of promoting the further economic development of the Grand Duchys space industry by attracting businesses, developing human resources, providing innovative financial solutions and supporting educational and research infrastructure.

MECO Etienne Schneider, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of the Economy and Marc Serres, CEO of the Luxembourg Space Agency at the Press conference

Unlike many similar organisations abroad, Luxembourg's space agency will not directly conduct research or launch missions, but foster collaboration between key players in the space industry, with the core mission of accelerating the emergence of innovation-driven businesses.

The newly-created Luxembourg Space Agency builds on the countrys deep understanding of the legal and infrastructure requirements for space entrepreneurs to achieve their commercial ambitions. Under the authority of the Ministry of the Economy, the agency is partnering with leading national academic, research and business organisations and communities as well as other public institutions within Luxembourgs extensive ecosystem of public- and private-sector stakeholders.

For more than three decades, Luxembourg has been at the forefront of commercial and co-operative initiatives that have shaped a vibrant space economy. Its greatest success has been the creation in 1985 of the government-supported SES (Societe Europeenne des Satellites), today the worlds largest commercial satellite operator. Further space-related services and businesses have developed alongside SES, and today commercial space activity accounts for nearly 2% of GDP, among the highest ratios in Europe.

In 2005, Luxembourg joined the European Space Agency (ESA) as a full member, laying the foundation for participation by the Grand Duchys companies in ESA R&D programmes and space exploration projects. The most recent step by the Ministry of the Economy was the launch in 2016 of the SpaceResources.lu initiative, positioning the country as a pioneer in the exploration and utilisation of space resources as a step toward the in-space economy of the future.

Luxembourgs Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy, Etienne Schneider, says: Building on Luxembourgs longstanding support for the space industry through a combination of policy, programmes and funding, the agency will further encourage innovation-driven space entrepreneurship and promote this country as Europes platform for commercial space development and a home for cutting-edge industries. Luxembourg is ready to welcome, support and assist the development of space industry players that can move forward together.

Marc Serres, CEO of the Luxembourg Space Agency, explains: Deepening and expanding Luxembourgs space business sector is a priority for the countrys future. The agency will carry out its mission through a network of national partners that bring the skills, expertise and capabilities for the Luxembourg Space Agency to meet all the needs of commercial space entrepreneurs. This strategy based on multiple-stakeholder partnerships is designed to create an attractive and supportive ecosystem for space companies to grow and thrive.

ESA Director General Jan Worner says: I congratulate Luxembourg on this very important step in its space history. With its wide range of services and expertise, ESA is continuing its strong co-operation with the Grand Duchy. Collaboration between the Luxembourg Space Agency and ESA can be a very good opportunity for Europe by pooling our capabilities in a network of space agencies that embodies the European ideal in space.

SES President and CEO Steve Collar adds: The Grand Duchy has a proud history in space. The Luxembourg Space Agency is an important step for the countrys future as a space leader. Harnessing the countrys investment culture and educational resources is helping to drive our business and put Luxembourg in the forefront as a spacefaring nation.

As a public institution promoting the economic development of the space sector, directing the SpaceResources.lu initiative, managing national space programmes and international relations regarding space industry-related issues, the Luxembourg Space Agency is partnering with (in alphabetical order):

Chamber of Commerce , a professional organisation and public institution encompassing all sectors of the economy apart from agriculture and skilled trades

, a professional organisation and public institution encompassing all sectors of the economy apart from agriculture and skilled trades Employment Development Agency (ADEM) , the countrys public employment agency

, the countrys public employment agency Groupement luxembourgeois de l'aeronautique et de l'espace (GLAE) , an industry group for the aerospace sector

, an industry group for the aerospace sector Institute of Intellectual Property Luxembourg (IPIL) , an organisation bringing together national and international intellectual property expertise

, an organisation bringing together national and international intellectual property expertise Luxembourg Science Center (LSC) , a private non-profit organisation whose goal is to generate enthusiasm for science, technology, engineering and mathematics among young people and promote interest in science and technology among the general public

, a private non-profit organisation whose goal is to generate enthusiasm for science, technology, engineering and mathematics among young people and promote interest in science and technology among the general public Luxembourg Space Tech Angels (LSTA) , a business angels network helping space start-ups to establish themselves in Luxembourg, providing early-stage funding, mentoring and advice

, a business angels network helping space start-ups to establish themselves in Luxembourg, providing early-stage funding, mentoring and advice Luxinnovation , a key partner for companies conducting innovative activities in Luxembourg

, a key partner for companies conducting innovative activities in Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR) , the countrys main provider of research funding

, the countrys main provider of research funding SES , a global leader in commercial satellite operation, launched in Luxembourg in 1985 as a public-private partnership

, a global leader in commercial satellite operation, launched in Luxembourg in 1985 as a public-private partnership Societe Nationale de Credit et dInvestissement (SNCI) , a public-sector financial institution specialising in medium- and long-term financing of investment projects

, a public-sector financial institution specialising in medium- and long-term financing of investment projects Technoport , a technology-oriented business incubator that supports innovative young companies in validating their ideas and turning them into commercial reality

, a technology-oriented business incubator that supports innovative young companies in validating their ideas and turning them into commercial reality University of Luxembourg, the countrys public university

Starting in the 2019 academic year, the University of Luxembourg will offer an inter-disciplinary space masters degree markedly different from programmes at other institutions. It will provide participants from an engineering or scientific background with additional technical expertise in fields needed to support Luxembourgs space industry, along with a strong grounding in business.

To fund space innovation, the Luxembourg Space Agency is establishing with other partners a venture capital vehicle to be established as a reserved alternative investment fund, with financial backing from the public sector as well as private investors. The Luxembourg Space Fund targets an initial 100 million EUR in capital, its goal is to provide equity funding for new space companies with ground-breaking ideas and technology.

Press release by the Ministry of the Economy
Ming Zeng, the chief strategy officer at Alibaba, talks about how the China-based e-commerce company was able to create the biggest online shopping site in the world. He credits Alibabas retail and distribution juggernaut to leveraging automation, algorithms, and networks to better serve customers. And he says in the future, successful digital companies will use technologies such as artificial intelligence, the mobile internet, and cloud computing to redefine how value is created. Zeng is the author of Smart Business: What Alibabas Success Reveals about the Future of Strategy .

CURT NICKISH: Welcome to the HBR IdeaCast from Harvard Business Review. Im Curt Nickisch.

Alibaba grabbed global attention in 2014 with its initial public stock offering. It was the biggest IPO ever  still is. Founded in 1991 by Jack Ma, Alibaba is now worth more than Walmart. 150 million people shop on Taobao, its shopping site, daily. Its popular mobile payments platform Alipay is expanding across Asia. But even though the name Alibaba was designed to give the sense of hidden treasure  a name chosen to be universal  most people outside of Asia dont know a lot about one of the worlds biggest companies.

MING ZENG: The point is theres no direct comparison in the Western world.

CURT NICKISH: Thats Ming Zeng, the chief strategy officer at Alibaba, and our guest today.

MING ZENG: And the challenge for us is because most people in the West has no direct experience with our main service  such as Taobao, or Alipay  they have a hard time to understand the value Alibaba was able to create over all these years.

CURT NICKISH: Zeng was a strategy professor at INSEAD and wrote cases on the company before he joined Alibaba. And he says the company was able to grow quickly by leapfrogging existing technologies, and by leveraging data to better serve its users in fast-emerging economies.

Ming Zeng is the author of Smart Business: What Alibabas Success Reveals about the Future of Strategy. Ming, thanks for coming on the HBR IdeaCast.

MING ZENG: Its my great pleasure to talk to you as well.

CURT NICKISH: You maintain in your book that a Chinese technology company and internet company is a good place to look at where the future is going to be going. And why China specifically?

MING ZENG: First, the Alibaba story is actually a general story. It offers a glimpse into the future of business for everyone, no matter where you are. What it does is right in the middle of the core of any economy: retailing, advertising, logistics, supply chain. Thats all economy is about, right? But also, it shows how the Internet can transform a economy that has been lagging behind for a very long time.

CURT NICKISH: I thought this was very interesting in the book you talk to about how China provided fertile ground for revolutionizing business because the countrys business infrastructure was weak and undeveloped. And because of that, Internet and technology companies and e-commrece companies in China were able to really leapfrog some developments and kind of create a new system that you say is perhaps a better glimpse of where the economy is going digital than in the United States, where so many industries were already very mature.

MING ZENG: Yes. Over the last 40 years after economic reform and open door policy, China has become the largest production center for the whole world. In China, on one hand you have a vast number of customers, but on the other hand you also have the largest network of supply chains of anything produced in the whole world.

And this hasnt happened before. When Japan or Korea emerges, they are not a world production center  they are just strong in a few sectors. But China is a production center of almost everything. And then it becomes also the largest, one of the largest consumer market as well.

CURT NICKISH: You say that in the U.S., leading firms emerged when new technology was applied to new problems like online advertising, auctions and social networks. But in China, new technology was basically applied to old problems that in many ways had never been solved yet or were not as far along, like retailing and finance and logistics, because they were still in development. How did that unfold?

MING ZENG: Oh, because the business environment here in the U.S. is well-developed and in many cases is very advanced, the labor efficiency gains of applying new technology to old problems is relatively low. But in China, there so many areas lagging behind, new technology can show wonders in productivity gains, in the quality gain of service people receive.

Now let me give you example why. When I was on the IPO roadshow in September 2014, this fund manager keep pushing me: Why people dont use credit cards in China? Why do they use Alipay? There was hardly any credit card services in China when we started. And because we leapfrogged into a mobile payment area, nobody used personal check ever in China.

CURT NICKISH: So in your vision of smart business and how business will be done in in the future, you talk about network coordination and data intelligence, having a sort of yin and yang -that each of them drive each others growth. You consider this pretty fundamental. Can you explain that?

MING ZENG: Yeah. Its actually quite difficult to grasp because its so fundamental. A smart business means more and more business decisions, including a lot of daily operational decisions, will be done by machines in the future, rather than by human beings. But for this to happen, you have to move your business online first. Otherwise you will not be able to have your data. The concept that I call the live data feedback. Data is just a direct recording of your business activities and all the data can be put into a algorithm which is like the brain of machine. So they can turn out certain decision output. Business has to move online first, and this pushes coordination among business to become more network-driven, rather than the traditional way of vertical supply chain. So these are the two most important forces driving business transformation in the future.

CURT NICKISH: Alibaba is a good example. It is more networked than most retailers in the United States. Amazon, for instance, owns a lot of stock, even though it sells a lot from third party sellers, it does its own warehousing distribution. Its vertically integrating that way too  for instance, by having its own employees or own contractors deliver packages. But Alibaba is different in the sense that it is working with a lot of partners to do many of the things that Amazon does by itself. First of all, why is that and and how does that help Alibaba be the smart business that you write about?

MING ZENG: One of the most important reasons for this is everything was growing so fast, theres no way we can provide all the service that is necessary to do the retailing business online. Secondly, we actually believe in the power of an open ecosystem  that working with others can be more productive in many, many scenarios. The more we build the open system, the more we benefit, and then the faster the ecosystem grows and we become more inclined to this new approach.

CURT NICKISH: So what is a good example of a success of network coordination and data intelligence had at Alibaba?

MING ZENG: The obvious example is logistics. As early as 2006, packages originating from Taobao was growing exponentially. The old state mail system cannot handle it at all. And when we go talk to the postal service, they just didnt care at all. You know, its not their business. Its extremely hard for us to do logistics because we are just a bunch of engineers. But then business people see great entrepreneurial opportunity in this areas. So people start to build their own delivery companies and they all grow exponentially with Taobao over time. So there are quite a few delivery companies that already went IPO over the last few years and became billion dollar companies.

CURT NICKISH: To do this work, of course you need talent. And you write in your book that one way Alibaba recruits the best talent is by actually having a really good understanding of its vision and its mission and that those are two different, but related things. And I wonder if you can explain that

MING ZENG: Vision is extremely important nowadays, especially when you are trying to build an ecosystem. You have to provide direction for all your partners about where you are going and why it makes sense. However, who will have the vision? Its usually people who have a mission, because when they have a mission, they will think beyond short-term results and they will think beyond just making money. So first day, when Alibaba was set up, Jack Ma and the founding team had a mission to make doing business easier for everyone and anywhere. And their vision is: internet is the most powerful tool to make this happen. And the following this, we have a strategy. How do we build a e-commerce ecosystem that can help everyone grow?

CURT NICKISH: I wanted to ask about your sense of the future for individuals. What do you advise aspiring managers in companies or people who are getting their degrees in business? What do you tell them? How do you tell them to think about how they should position their careers for the future?

MING ZENG: Be more creative. Because more and the more decisions will be taken over by machines. People have to become more creative to work with smart machines in the future, so go for jobs that can make them more creative, and go for organizations that really provide an environment that fosters development of creativity. I even call it creativity revolution following Peter Druckers terminology. He coined the term knowledge revolution, and I think the future is the creativity revolution.

CURT NICKISH: Yeah. Its funny at a time when people are worried about robots taking their jobs, you wrote in your book that the individual is more powerful today than ever before.

MING ZENG: But the individual Im talking about are creative individuals. People who only have knowledge will lose their jobs in the future, because most jobs with just codifiable knowledge will be replaced by machines. But this leaves more room for people who have creativity to play a role. And creativity relies so much on individuals, so organizations have to enable individuals to become more creative. But a traditional company is more about control,  monitor the performance of an employee  so people are much more passive in a traditional organization. But in the future, individuals have become more self-driven and become more creative in the future. So in this sense, they have more power over companies.

CURT NICKISH: But at the same time they should be worried?

MING ZENG: Yes.

CURT NICKISH: What does Alibaba do to help employees be more creative?

MING ZENG: One of the most important things we keep pushing is to make our organization much more flexible. It is focusing more on the successful rate of innovation, rather than the efficiency of operation. So for example, we may have multiple teams competing against each other. So instead of just picking one team over the others, we usually let similar teams run their own work and maybe after half the year, they will realize which one is representing the future and that team will take over the job.

CURT NICKISH: How do you combat this idea that creativity still comes from the United States? You know, the legacy of the Apples, the Amazons, Microsofts  Steve Jobs, folks like that. Do you think thats a misperception?

MING ZENG: Not a big misperception. I think still the U.S. is the most creative country in the whole world, for sure. I have been studying innovation in China over the last 30 years. Now we are moving into the next stage of innovation, but still overall, because of relatively poor education system in China  the orientation over the last century about short-term orientation makes it still today extremely difficult to be truly original in China. So there will be decades before China can create much more original thinkers than today.

CURT NICKISH: Do you see a time when Chinese companies, which rightly or wrongly have been often criticized as copycat companies  do you see a time when that changes?

MING ZENG: It is changing slowly now, but it takes tremendous effort and it would probably take take another decade or more for more Chinese companies to become truly innovators.

CURT NICKISH: What is the biggest challenge that Alibaba faces today?

MING ZENG: I think that we are actually at a very interesting stage. The new technology revolution has brought great productivity gains and great hope, but also it brings a lot of controversial issues and a lot of challenges. Like, a lot of people will be losing jobs in the coming decade. These are very serious global challenges, and I dont think we human race together are well prepared for this. So there is tremendous work that needs to be done to get the whole world ready for the new coming challenges.

CURT NICKISH: So the biggest challenges that Alibaba faces are essentially some of the biggest challenges that any company faces?

MING ZENG: Yes. Yes.

CURT NICKISH: Ming, I want to thank you for talking with the HBR IdeaCast. This was really interesting.

MING ZENG: Thank you for the opportunity.

CURT NICKISH: Thats Ming Zeng. Hes the Chief Strategy Officer of Alibaba. And hes the author of the new book Smart Business:What Alibabas Success Reveals about the Future of Strategy. You can find it at HBR.org.

This episode was produced by Mary Dooe. We got technical and production help from Rob Eckhardt. Adam Buchholz is our audio product manager.

Thanks for listening to the HBR IdeaCast. Im Curt Nickisch.
Its well-known that the average age of farmers is steadily climbing upward. The same could be said about the general population.

The age wave is coming, and we are all part of this, said David Egan-Robertson, a professor with the University of Wisconsins Community and Environmental Sociology Department. He presented at the University of Wisconsin Agronomy/Soils Field Day held in Arlington, Wis.

This shift toward an older population has been inevitable, he explained. The large baby-boom generation, born between 1946 and 1964, is progressing through their lifetimes.

This trend is affecting our farming communities at a faster rate. Ag economies tend to be older, he noted. Looking at the agriculturally-based state of Wisconsin, he pointed out that the oldest counties are in the northern and central parts of the state, while the youngest populations tend to be in the metropolitan counties.

Peering into the future, Egan-Robertson said about a quarter of the population in the state of Wisconsin will be 65 years old or older by the year 2040. Today, that number is at 13 or 14 percent. By 2040, more than half a million people among the states projected 6.5 million residents will be over 80 years old.

Both rural and urban areas face challenges by the inevitable age wave that is coming, affecting not only Wisconsin but the whole country, he said. This means communities must plan for an older population, including residential options, transportation, and health services.

He also spoke about the sandwich generation, those individuals who have both children and aging parents who need care. This can be stressful, particularly for people that have moved away from their hometowns and must provide care at longer distances.

Another aspect of an aging population that directly affects agriculture is the size of our nations labor force. It feels like a pinch now, and its going to get even worse, Egan-Robertson said.

Its no urban legend  people are migrating

Another population trend he addressed is the migration from rural to urban areas.

The shift from a majorly rural population to a majorly urban population has been a long process over time, said Egan-Robertson. Using Wisconsin as an example, he shared that in 1890, two-thirds of the states residents lived in rural areas. By 1930, the population was split in half between rural and urban settings. In 2010, that trend had completely reversed, and two-thirds of Wisconsins population lived in urban areas.

Over the past 10 years, Wisconsin saw about a 3 percent population growth, which was slower than previous decades. Most growth and development occurred in smaller cities and villages adjacent to urban areas.

The 26 counties considered to be metropolitan gained 5 percent of population, which means the remaining counties lost 1.5 percent of their residents. Egan-Robertson shared that most of the population loss happened in far northern counties and in more agricultural counties.

These are also the counties that are losing people in the young adult demographic, which is bad news for agriculture and beyond. An exodus of young people strains a community and the socioeconomic infrastructures that support a community, both economically and in terms of services, Egan-Robertson said.

To comment, email your remarks to intel@hoards.com.

(c) Hoard's Dairyman Intel 2018

September 3, 2018
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The Indiana Department of Transportation will host a public meeting in Martinsville Monday to get feedback on design additions and adjustments to I-69 Section 6.

The section of interstate will run from Martinsville to Indianapolis and will cost up to $1.5 billion.

Over the summer, Martinsville leaders sought public input on design elements like wall barriers, fencing and ornamental lighting. INDOT officials will present an adjusted design plan at Monday's meeting.

"Some of the Martinsville items we'll discuss are significant additions, some are minor tweaks and some have to do with timing," said I-69 Section 6 Project Manager Jim Earl in a statement.

INDOT will publish the revised plan online after the meeting. Public comment will be accepted online through Sept. 28.

Gov. Eric Holcomb (R-Ind.) recently announced the state will invest $600 million to speed up construction on the project. The section is expected to be complete by 2024, shaving three years off of the initial timeline.

Meeting Details

Monday, Sept. 17

Auditorium at Martinsville High School (1360 E. Gray Street)

Doors open at 6 p.m. with a presentation at 6:30 p.m. INDOT officials will be available before and after the presentation.

How to Comment

Comments can be submitted during the meeting, or online using the Section 6 comment form, or emailed to section6pm@indot.in.gov.

Comments will be accepted until Friday, Sept. 28.
One of Indianas top state lawmakers is in critical but stable condition after a serious motorcycle accident Wednesday morning.

House Ways and Means Chair Rep. Tim Brown (R-Crawfordsville) was traveling in northern Michigan with fellow Rep. Mike Speedy (R-Indianapolis) when he struck an SUV that pulled out in front of them.

Speedy was able to avoid the vehicle and was uninjured. Michigan State Police said Brown is in critical condition. The report says neither weather nor alcohol are believed to be involved in the crash. And police say Brown was wearing a helmet.

Speaker Brian Bosma says Brown remains in critical but stable condition. He also calls the next few days very important and says Browns wife and daughters are with him in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Brown, a former emergency room physician, has served in the General Assembly since 1994.

This story has been updated.
Now the Iranian regime and its officials admit to the MEKs power within Iran, and have publicly acknowledged and even warned against the MEKs influence in the popular uprising that continues in Iran.

In recent months, statements about the MEKs role in the ongoing protests have been issued by regime officials, and state-run media describes the MEKs tactics for organizing protests, strikes, and demonstrations.

Recently, Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, the Communications Minister, remarked about the MEK using social media to organize activities and share news about the Iranian Resistance movement, and the regimes inability to prevent them from doing so.

In fact, in reports on the MEK, where the state-run Tehran Press news agency referred to the organization as the enemy, it pointed out the regimes failure to prevent the MEK from using the Internet to operate, and said that the MEK has inflicted severe blows to the Iranian regime through social media.

It cited a social media researcher, who called the Telegram messaging app and Instagram critical threats to Iran.

Telegram is used by more than 40 million Iranians. The MEK and the Iranian opposition also use it to spread news and organize protests quickly. The regime banned Telegram earlier this year, but Resistance supporters continue to use the app.

Tehran News agency cited a social media researcher, It should be noted that on the Internet, especially Telegram, the enemy and especially the [MEK], have gained complete control

The terminology of regime change is gaining complete control in social media networks today. If not 100%, a very significant percentage of the context is influenced by regime change terminology used specifically by the PMOI/MEK These days we see many children of highly devoted individuals linked to the state are completely engulfed in social media platforms completely influenced by the [MEK].

Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei spoke to the way that social media is shaping the youth of Iran, referring to the medium as a killing ground for the countrys younger generation, revealing his fear of the MEKS growing popularity. The massive propaganda operation utilized by the regime has failed to succeed against the resistance group.

Through the grassroots effort on social media, the Iranian people have gained access to information about the democratic alternative to the regime offered by the MEK.

They can now see a future free from repression, poverty, and corruption.
A dozen protesters have been killed during the most recent protests about the water situation. In July, protests erupted because of polluted water and the lack of electricity and they have continued ever since.

A few days ago, the Iranian consulate building was torched by protesters in a clear message that the people of Iraq are fed up with Irans meddling. Hundreds of people in the southern Iraqi city in the oil-rich province have been taken to hospital after drinking the contaminated water.

As well as protesting about the water situation, the Iraqi people have voiced their discontent about the provinces infrastructure that has been so badly neglected that it is at the point of collapse. The employment situation is dire and the peoples lives are becoming more and more difficult.

Iran is a major problem because it has become entangled in the internal politics of Iraq. Where there is a problem, the Iranian regime is lurking in the background. Of course the Iraqi government must take responsibility for its negligence and corruption, but it must also acknowledge that its willingness to let Iran interfere has been detrimental.

Iran, with Iraqi permission, has built dams on the Tigris River  the citys main source of water. And Iran was even permitted to direct waterways away from the locals towards its own interests.

The people of Basra are also concerned about Irans presence because it has been widely reported that the Iranian regime has moved a number of its missiles there. It has also been said that the Iranian regime plans to manufacture weapons in Basra leading to the conclusion that Iran will be using Iraq as a base for attacking neighbouring enemies including Saudi Arabia and Israel.

The political situation in Iraq is very delicate. Prime Minister Haider al Abadi is losing his grip on power, as is Moqtada Sadr, the leader of the Sadrist Movement and one of the most influential politicians in Iraq.

Sadr is conscious of the fact that the Iraqi people want Iran proxies to be completely removed from the country and he is keen to appease them. However, he is also very concerned that he is going to suffer the same fate as his father  Shiite scholar Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr  who he believes was assassinated by the Iranian regime.

He is not the only one that fears the Iranian regime  the Iraqi people do too but they are looking past their fear and turning it into anger.

The United States is putting unprecedented pressure on the Iranian regime and the best move it could make now would be to force Iran out of Iraq. There is no doubt that Iran will try to undermine all efforts made to assist Iraq, but there is no other solution. Now is the time to get Iran evicted from Iraq.
This specific data about Irans nuclear program, carried by the state-run Tasnim news agency, is a rare announcement and came just days after Irans nuclear chief said it had completed a facility to build advanced centrifuges.

Larijani said that the number of active centrifuges was reduced from about 9,000 after the agreement of the nuclear deal, although the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) assessed that Iran had 20,000 centrifuges installed at its Natanz and Fordow nuclear facilities. This somewhat brings into question whether Iran also has more centrifuges now than it is admitting.

Nuclear deal

Iran has already threatened to increase its capacity to enrich uranium if the 2015 nuclear deal collapses, as a result of the US withdrawal from the pact in May.

The 2015 agreement, known also as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), offered sanctions relief to Iran under the proviso that it curbed its nuclear programme, but Donald Trump alleges that the Regime never stopped attempting to build a nuclear weapon, and, from this announcement, it seems he was right. This means that sanctions on Iran are well-deserved.

Russia, China, Germany France and Britain, who are the other signatories to the deal have not followed the USs lead and are trying to save the accord, despite the USs best efforts to convince them to scrap this unfair deal.

The five countries believe that the deal is the best hope to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and starting a nuclear arms race in the Middle East that could lead to World War 3. However, the Iranian Regime as it is poses a massive threat to world peace and should be expelled from the region.

In a separate statement Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi condemned the White House for accusing Iran of failing to stop attacks on US diplomatic buildings in Iraq.

In the past week, there were attacks on the US Consulate in Basra and the US Embassy compound in Baghdad, which were likely in response to anti-Iranian protesters setting fire to Irans consulate in Basra last Friday.

It is important to note that the Iraqi people dislike Iranian interference in their country.
On September 5, Khamenei said that he blamed the Iranian currency crisis that rocked the country this summer on outside forces, but in two follow up addresses he denied any outside influence.

Now, the Regime is under a lot of pressure both domestically (from the ongoing Iranian peoples uprising) and internationally (from the US sanctions and businesses pulling out). This level of pressure is something that the mullahs regime has never faced before; especially given the Wests 40 years appeasement of the Iranian Regime.

The Regime doesnt have many options or much time, especially given the upcoming midterm elections in America and the second round of US sanctions, which are both scheduled for early November.

So what is the Regimes response to this drastic shift in policy? Well it seems that Khamenei is trying to buy time.

Of course, the chances of a major shift in US policy in favour of the Iranian mullahs is incredibly remote.

While the policy against Iran is Republican-led, it enjoys bipartisan support, so even if Democrats sweep the House and the Senate, Iran will lose out.

Its hard to guess what exactly is going through Khameneis mind at this point, but he knows that his Regime is on the edge and its almost like he wants to delay the inevitable until after his death.

He is currently in the late stages of cancer and the potential leadership contest has caused massive infighting amongst the mullahs, ironically weakening the Regime even more.

The most common problem related to Iran and cited by many international governments is its support for terrorism.

In August, two Regime agents were arrested in the US for spying on members of Iranian main opposition the Peoples Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) and its partner, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). While in June, three agents and an Iranian diplomat were arrested in Europe for their role in plotting to bomb an NCRI rally.

Reza Shafiee, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the NCRI, wrote: Many analysts believe that the Iranian regime will not weather its current predicament. Economic failures as the bedrock fueled with four decades of absolute suppression are recipes for disaster.

It is certainly true but it is missing a major component, which should be taken into the consideration and that is the role of an organized resistance. Khamenei and IRGC officials have said all along that MEKs Resistance Units are playing a leading role in turning simple protests into major security threats for the regime.
Reuters reported that Khameneis first remarks to this effect were delivered in the context of a graduation ceremony for army cadets, but were quickly followed by a visit to the city of Nowshahr in which he said, Iran and the Iranian nation have resisted America and proven that, if a nation is not afraid of threats by bullies and relies on its own capabilities, it can force the superpowers to retreat and defeat them.

Reuters also noted that Khamenei spoke by video to an Iranian naval commander in order to praise the presence of the Islamic Republics forces off the coast of Yemen. This move appeared to be at odds with the Iranian governments official position that it is not intervening in the ongoing Yemeni Civil War, although independent experts generally agree that the Shiite Houthi rebels are actively supported by Iran, with direct assistance by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.

This arguably speaks to rising levels of boldness, or perhaps rising levels of recklessness in Tehrans defiance of international calls for a halt to the regimes malign and destabilizing behaviors. This defiance affects Irans relations not only with the US but also with much of Europe and much of the world.

Reuters indicated that France recently called for negotiations with Iran over its ballistic missile program and its role in both Yemen and Syria, but this request was roundly rejected by Iranian officials.

The potential effectiveness of Irans defiant strategy is a matter of some uncertainty, and it depends in large part on the reactions of other nations, apart from leading Western powers. So far, European governments, including that of France, have been standing behind the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, from which US President Donald Trump withdrew in May, prompting a new escalation in the ongoing war of words between Tehran and Washington.

But European disagreement with the US over this issue has not translated to much concrete action in defiance of US strategy, and it seems increasingly unlikely that such defiance would emerge at a time when Iran refuses to listen to European concerns over its regional role.

At the same time, many non-European partners of the US, along with many international businesses based in Europe, have been highly responsive to the return of American sanctions that were suspended under the nuclear deal.

The first round of these sanctions were re-imposed last month, and the second will go into effect in November with the stated intention of cutting Irans oil exports to zero, or as close to it as is feasible. Yet some of those who stand to be affected by the sanctions are not waiting for the grace period to expire.

On Monday, Bloomberg reported that South Korea had just become the first country to fully align itself with Washingtons demands by ending all imports of Iranian oil. The complete absence of such imports in August compares to an average of 194,000 barrels per day imported during July.

This figure underscores the fact that South Korea had been one of Irans largest oil importers during the time that sanctions relief was in place, and thus it underscores the seriousness of the difficulties that Iran may face if it continues defy Western norms while failing to compensate for the large-scale loss of trading partners.

Of course, the Islamic Republic is putting forth considerable effort to compensate, but it is difficult to say whether, or to what extent, this effect will pay off. Various geopolitical circumstances could still alter the amount of influence that Iran and the US each have over countries in Irans immediate vicinity, as well as throughout the world.

One of the primary means by which Iran hopes to undercut US sanctions is by reaching out to those governments that share the Iranian regimes interest in freeing themselves from American dominance of the global financial system and of many areas of global policy.

This speaks to the longstanding concerns among some Western analysts regarding the emergence of an eastern bloc of countries that are aligned in opposition to Western interests  a bloc that would presumably include Iran alongside Russia, China, and North Korea.

There are various recent developments that highlight the mutual pursuit of expanded relations among some of these nations, but there are also complicating factors in most of these areas.

The potential for military coordination among Iran, China, and North Korea was put into the spotlight on Friday when defense officials from each of those three countries met in Beijing, after which Chinese state media quoted General Zhang Youxia as saying, The friendship between China and Iran has stood the test of the complex international situation and the two countries have formed a deep feeling of sharing weal and woe.

In reporting upon this and other recent communications, Newsweek expressly described China as courting both Iran and North Korea in the midst of deteriorating relations and an emerging trade war with the US.

At the same time, Russia continues to hold tight to its alliance with Iran, apparently in the interest of opposing Western interests in Syria and the broader Middle East, as well as compensating for the effects of multilateral sanctions targeting Russias own malign behavior, including incursions into Ukraine and alleged assassination attempts on foreign soil.

Toward this end, the governor of the Russian central bank is reportedly planning to meet with his Iranian counterpart in order to discuss plans to facilitate trade in local currencies instead of the US dollar, in order to evade sanctions.

According to reports the meeting will also involve the Turkish central bank governor, as Istanbul has the preliminary plan also involves participation from Turkey.

However, avoiding the US dollar is easier said than done, and implementing the plan will entail significant logistical costs. This could amplify the effects of any further strain on the relationships among prospective partner nations. And at least where Turkey is concerned, political tensions may already been growing in the wake of the latest meeting among these three nations regarding the future of Syria.

Al Jazeera reported on Friday that Iran and Russia had both rejected Turkeys call for a ceasefire in the area of Idlib, the last stronghold for Syrian rebel groups opposed to the dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad. Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif recently called for the area to be cleaned out, and Russia has signaled willingness to provide air support to an Iranian-led ground operation.

This situation may push Istanbul further away from both Tehran and Moscow, in light of the Turkish governments persistent opposition to Assads Iranian-backed regime. At the same time, it may increase the pressure that all would-be partners of Iran face from Western powers.

While Russian-Iranian relations seem to face none of the strain that surrounds each countrys relationship with Turkey, their willingness to remain in lockstep on Syria policy could also be a source of increased Western pressure.

This is the implication of a recent shift in policy by the Trump administration, which was detailed by Business Insider last week. In contrast to previous statements teasing a withdrawal of the roughly 2,000 US troops in Syria, President Trump himself now says that he is prepared to leave those troops in place indefinitely, until all Iranian personnel and weapons withdraw first.

This is something that Russia has apparently rejected out of hand, leading the White House to address its further commentary on the topic to the Assad regime and all of its backers.

For instance, UN Ambassador Nikki Haley followed up on the presidents own statements by raising the specter of Syrian deployments of chemical weapons, which have prompted two previous missile strikes by the US. According to Fox News, Haley addressed Syria, Russia, and Iran to say, You dont want to bet against the United States responding again.

While some Western observers may worry that such warnings could prompt more, not fewer, regional players to align themselves with Iran in order to strike a blow against American hegemony, there are prominent developments that undermine this narrative and suggest that for certain local players, Irans regional hegemony is considered a greater threat.

On Friday, the Washington Post reported that protesters in the Iraqi port city of Basra stormed and set fire to the Iranian consulate building while chanting Iran, out! It was the latest sign of local opposition to an expanding Iranian presence in Iraqi political and military affairs.

As in Syria, multiple local Shiite militias swear allegiance to Iran, and these have spawned political wings that are now grappling with independent or US-aligned groups in an effort to control the future of the country and the surrounding region.

Naturally, this is an effort that will be fiercely opposed by the US and, perhaps to a lesser extent, Europe.

But the Basra incident calls attention to the fact that Irans relationships even with its immediate neighbors are not so firmly established as to provide the regime with stable allies in an overarching project to defy its Western enemies.
The regime had successfully managed to get the group classed as a terrorist organisation by the United States. It is ironic that the actual terrorist regime was able to get the U.S. to list the opposition group that has been campaigning for freedom, human rights and equality. Of course, the MEK was rightfully removed from the list but it should never have been on it in the first place.

The MEK has been instrumental in revealing the true nature of the regime  the horrifying rate of execution for minor crimes, its blatant human rights violations, its persecution of minorities and its nuclear program.

Over the years, the Iranian regime has tried to stamp out dissent by severely suppressing the people. It has reacted very violently when faced with protests and anyone who voices dissent risks torture, arrest, imprisonment, medieval punishments, and even execution.

This has not dissuaded the people, especially in recent months. The brave people are willing to risk everything to make their voices heard in the widespread protests and demonstrations.

Another opposition group that has been targeted by the Iranian regime is the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI) that is battling for more autonomy for the countrys Kurdish community. The regime launched an attack on a base in northern Iraq leaving dozens injured and more than 11 dead.

This is a strategy that the Iranian regime has used time and time again to attack opponents outside of the country. MEK members have been assassinated in Europe and the dissidents in Camp Liberty in Iraq endured numerous strikes on their camp.

The Iranian regime is in an increasingly desperate situation as it becomes even more isolated. The United States has pulled out of the nuclear deal, sanctions have been re-imposed and numerous countries are already showing compliance to the State Departments call for countries to reduce their imports of Iranian oil to zero by November.

The economic crisis in Iran is getting worse and the Rial, the national currency of Iran, has lost almost three-quarters of its value in the past 12 months.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called on the countrys armed forces to increase their power to deter the enemies. He also praised the regimes naval forces that are currently off the coast of Yemen.

To counter the threat that the Iranian regime is facing, not just from the people at home, but also from the international community, it has resorted to its usual tactics of portraying a strong image. However, it is very difficult to be fooled by such pretences. The regime is weaker than it has ever been and there is no way for it to regain the strength it once had.

The more pressure it puts on the people at home, the more the people are resisting. The opposition is in the strongest position so far and even if the people are relieved of some of the suppression they are faced with, the regime will never again have the trust of the people.
The Russian socialite will arrive September 15.

A resonant Russian TV host and rookie politician Ksenia Sobchak will visit Kyiv to attend the annual Yalta European Strategy Meeting.

Sobchak is expected to arrive September 15, as stated on the YES 2018 website, which describes her as a "public figure."

She will take part in a panel meeting.

In the commentary to Ukrayinska Pravda, press secretary of the State Border Guard Service Oleh Slobodyan said border guards will act within the legal framework when Sobchak will be passing border formalities.

"If she arrives at the border checkpoint, border guards will make decisions within the limits of their powers, taking into account information available about [her] possible violation of the Ukrainian legislation," Slobodyan said.

Read alsoRussian presidential candidate Sobchak calls occupied Crimea "Pandora's box" (Video)

Among others, a Ukrainian rock star Svyatoslav Vakarchuk, U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker, former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul, and leader of the Batkivshchyna Party Yulia Tymoshenko will also attend the 15th annual meeting in Kyiv.

Before the Russian occupation of Crimea, the Forum was held in a Black Sea resort city of Yalta. After the annexation of the peninsula, the YES meetings are held in the capital of Ukraine.

The organizer of the event is the Victor Pinchuk Foundation.

As UNIAN reported earlier, earlier Ksenia Sobchak stated that she was not going to visit Crimea, although she did not rule out a "legal crossing into this territory" in the future.
by Joseph Nguyen Vu

The prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life met the clergy in Xuan Loc, Ho Chi Minh City, Hue and Ha Noi. He expressed gratitude to the 117 martyrs of Vietnam for "the vitality and youthfulness that characterise the local Church". He urged the consecrated to give themselves to Jesus to reach the aim of his love. This is the only reason for the consecrated life.

Ha Noi (AsiaNews)  Card Joao Braz de Aviz (picture 1), prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, made a pastoral visit to Vietnam, centred on evangelisation and the religious ministry.

During the visit (2-7 September), the Brazilian cardinal took part in the Conference of the Association of Asian Convents organised by the Archdiocese of Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City). At the gathering, he met with bishops, priests and religious from across the country.

When he arrived in the Diocese of Xuan Loc (ong Nai province), hundreds of consecrated persons were present to give Card Braz de Aviz a warm welcome.

The following day, in the Bishops Office in Ho Chi Minh City, he met with Card Gioan Baotixita (Jean-Baptiste) Pham Minh Man, archbishop emeritus, and the clergy of the archdiocese.

In the afternoon, the prelate went to the diocesan pastoral centre and led a memorial service for the martyrs of Vietnam, for whom this year the Church celebrates a special Jubilee.

On the morning of 4 September, the Conference of the Association of Asian Convents opened at the pastoral centre.

Addressing the participants, Card Braz de Aviz said: "You and I have received the gift of a Christian life and mission. We are called together to receive the Holy Spirit and to proclaim the Good News to all. For me, it is very important to visit the places where you live and to bring you the blessings of the Holy Father."

The cardinal later visited the Saint Joseph major seminary and the religious of the Community of the Vietnamese Sisters of Saint Paul. "We cannot be naive and think that 'the journey to follow God is easy'. Here I see so much vitality in the vocation.

"In my life, I have never seen so many young people follow God as sisters, he said during the meeting with the nuns. We follow Gods path, he explained. This is a special journey. Let us give ourselves to Jesus to reach the aim of his love. This is the only reason for the consecrated life."

The next day the cardinal travelled to Hue (Thua Thien-Hue province) where he presided over a working session with representatives of the local archdiocese and nine other dioceses before meeting the Association of Religious and celebrating Mass at Phu Cam cathedral.

In Hue the cardinal said that "the Holy Father Francis always has high regards for consecrated persons. They are the treasure of the Church, always faithful and living in the grace of their order or congregation. You do not stop trying to improve yourselves. The training in religious life is rational and conscious, and therefore awareness will transfer into our hearts."

On 6 September, Card Braz de Aviz met Card Phero (Pierre) Nguyen Van Nhon, archbishop of Ha Noi; hundreds of priests and 500 men and women religious were present.

On this occasion, he expressed gratitude to the 117 martyrs of Vietnam for "the vitality and youthfulness that characterise the local Church."

The next day, on the last stop of the visit, the Vatican delegation met with Vu Chien Thang, head of the Government Committee for Religious Affairs (picture 2). Welcoming the cardinal, the official stressed that "in last few years, the relationship between the Catholic Church and the Vietnamese government is more and more close."

"We share and talk to find similarities and common denominators to build the Church and society, and to develop the country. The Vietnamese government highly values many religious orders, and many consecrated persons (men and women) have actively contributed to health care, education, as well as social or charitable activities."
Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts Celebrates Nelson Mandelas 100th Birthday with the Grammy Award-winning Joyous South African Musical Ensemble

Soweto Gospel Choir: Songs of the Free

Sunday, October 7, 2018 at 7:00pm

Soweto Gospel Choir, South Africas quintessential musical ensemble, brings a centenary celebration of the great freedom fighter and icon of reconciliation, Nelson Mandela, to The Soraya for Songs of the Free, a one-night only event on Sunday, October 7 at 7pm.

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The Soweto Gospel Choir is a Grammy Award-winning group that has collaborated with some of the biggest names in music  including U2, John Legend, Peter Gabriel, and Diana Ross  and scored an Academy Award nomination for its work on the soundtrack to Pixars WALL-E. The 43-member choir, drawn from churches in and around Soweto, inspires audiences, sharing the joy of faith.

The Soraya continues to bring some of the most celebrated artists from around the world, which includes the Soweto Gospel Choir and their tribute to Nelson Mandela, Songs of the Free, said Thor Steingraber, The Sorayas Executive Director. Soweto Gospel Choir has millions of fans all around the world because their music is truly universal. Not only is there musicianship impeccable, they bring with them a message of love, unity and hope that adds a beautiful layer to their energetic performances.

About Songs of the Free

Songs of the Free will be an evening of extraordinary music that mixes African gospel with traditional hymns, Jamaican reggae, American pop, and spiritually themed secular songs creating a joyous, explosive performance. Billboard describes the Grammy Award-winning ensemble as absolutely thrilling and The New York Times calls the quintessential South African group, meticulous and unstoppablespirited and spectacular.

Soweto Gospel Choir Music Director Diniloxolo Ndlakuse said, The significance of Nelson Mandelas 100th commemoration to South Africans is, firstly and foremost a reminder of the role played by Nelson Mandela in moving South Africa from a position of being an undemocratic, oppressive society to one of a peaceful co-existence for all racial groups. Mandela represents love, peace, forgiveness and strength to the choir. He is a symbol of inspiration to the Choir.

Nelson Mandela, the legendary, anti-apartheid, revolutionary South African leader, had a history with Soweto Gospel Choir. He was a big fan of the group, who performed for Mandela on several occasions, the last of which being his memorial service in 2013.

Single tickets for Songs of the Free beginning at $30 are now available. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.TheSoraya.org or call 818-677-3000. Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts is located at 18111 Nordhoff Street, Northridge, CA 91330. Ticket prices subject to change.

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About the Soweto Gospel Choir

The Soweto Gospel Choir sings in six of South Africas eleven official languages on their new album, Freedom, (release date: Sep 14) but mostly in Zulu or Sotho, as well as English. The Choirs first single is Umbombela, which means train song, is a composition that speaks of the travails experienced by black South Africans during the apartheid era, when migrant workers were forced to travel long distances away from their families in order to meet the harsh economic and political demands made by the government.

Formed in Soweto in 2002 by choir directors David Mulovhedzi and Beverly Bryer, the group includes 30-some members and the show it produces is a powerful expression of hope and joy full of gorgeous South African vocal harmonies. The choirs debut album, Voices from Heaven, appeared in 2005 from Shanachie Records, followed that same year by Blessed, also on Shanachie. African Spirit was released two years later in 2007 on the same imprint. In December of 2009 the choir lost co-founder and musical director David Mulovhedzi to cancer. In January of 2010 they released Grace, their fifth album on the Shanachie imprint. 2018 will mark the release of their sixth album, Freedom, marking Nelson Mandelas 100th birthday.

About The Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts (The Soraya)

The 2018-19 Season marks the eighth year the award-winning Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts which has quickly become one of the cultural jewels of the Greater Los Angeles region. Under the leadership of Executive Director Thor Steingraber, The Soraya continues to expand its programming and outstanding multidisciplinary performances. The mission of The Soraya is to present a wide variety of performances that not only includes new and original work from the Los Angeles region but also work from around the world that appeal to all of LAs rich and diverse communities.

Located on the campus of California State University, Northridge, The Sorayas season offers a vibrant performance program of nearly 50 classical and popular music, dance, theater, family, and international events that will serve to establish The Soraya as the intellectual and cultural heart of the San Fernando Valley, and further establish itself as one of the top arts companies in Southern California. The award-winning, 1,700-seat theatre was designed by HGA Architects and Engineers and was recently cited by the Los Angeles Times as a growing hub for live music, dance, drama and other cultural events.

Date: Sunday, October 7, 2018 at 7:00pm

Venue: Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts (The Soraya)

18111 Nordhoff Street, Northridge, CA 91330

Tickets:

Prices: Starting at $30. Prices subject to change.

By Phone: (818) 677-3000

Online: TheSoraya.org
From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.

It is back to school time in much of the world. Calm, easy mornings are replaced with busy, hurried ones. Children wake up early and get ready for school. Many parents are also getting ready for work, helping their children and preparing food for lunches.

But, dont forget about breakfast!

When things get wildly busy in the morning, some people skip breakfast to save time. But that may be a big mistake for students.

Whether at home, on the way to school or at school -- eating something healthy for breakfast may help a student get better grades.

Welsh study

That is the finding of a 2015 study from Cardiff University in Wales. Researchers there looked at 5000 9-11 year-olds from more than 100 primary schools in the U.K. They looked at what the students ate for breakfast and then their grades six to 18 months later.

They found that the students who ate a healthy breakfast were twice as likely to perform above average in educational activities. The researchers also found that unhealthy breakfasts  such as potato chips or a donut did not appear helpful to educational performance.

In 2013, an organization in the United States, also looked at possible connections between breakfast and student success in school. The Share Our Strength's campaign, No Kid Hungry, found that on average students who ate breakfast provided by their school attended 1.5 more days of school per year. These students also scored 17.5 percent higher on standardized math tests.

How many children do not eat breakfast?

But, are there really that many children who do not eat breakfast? The answer is yes.

Experts at HealthyChildren.org say that in the United States about 8 to 12 percent of all students in grade school (Kindergarten through 8th grade) do not eat breakfast. By the time students are in high school (grades 9  12), 20 to 30 percent of them ignore the morning meal.

In Canada, researchers at the University of Waterloo looked at the eating habits of 42,000 students during the 2014-15 school year. The students represented 87 grade schools in Alberta and Ontario. The study found that 39 percent of students reported eating breakfast fewer than three days in a usual school week.

What is a healthy breakfast?

Health experts suggest that the best breakfast is a mix of complex carbohydrates, protein and fat. This gives your body the energy it needs to think clearly and to remember what it learns.

This was the 2005 finding of researchers at Tufts University in the U.S. They found that when it comes to giving the brain what it needs to work at its highest level -- not all breakfasts are created equal.

In their report, they explain that the brain needs glucose to work well. The best breakfast should include complex carbohydrates that slowly release energy to the body. Whole rolled oats, whole grain bread or low-sugar granola are examples.

But the report explains, simply eating a breakfast rich in carbohydrates may make a student tired.

So, adding protein helps to prevent that. Having a protein such as milk, yogurt, eggs or meat can help students to feel full longer. Oatmeal, the researchers say, is an example of a breakfast that is rich in fiber and protein. It releases energy slowly because it is a whole grain food. So, students will feel full longer.

Health experts on the website LiveStrong also suggest not eating too much for breakfast. This can also make a person feel tired and unable to think clearly. They say eating between 350 and 500 calories in the morning is a good amount of energy to start the day.

Breakfast is not just good for students

A good breakfast is not just helpful for school-aged children. We all may gain from eating something healthy first thing in the morning.

A study from researchers at the University of Toronto in Canada found that a breakfast rich in protein and complex carbohydrates increased performance on short- and long-term memory. Carbohydrates and protein are especially important because they have a major effect on long-term memory.

And thats the Health & Lifestyle report. Im Anna Matteo.

Anna Matteo wrote this for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

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Words in This Story

skip  v. to pass over or omit an item, space, or step

standardized  adj. in line with a standard

carbohydrate  n. any one of various substances found in certain foods (such as bread, rice, and potatoes) that provide your body with heat and energy and are made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen

glucose  n. a simple sugar that is an important energy source in living organisms and is a component of many carbohydrates. : a type of sugar that is found in plants and fruits

fiber  n. plant material that cannot be digested but that helps you to digest other food

granola  n. a mixture of oats and other ingredients (such as brown sugar, raisins, coconut, or nuts) that is eaten especially for breakfast or as a snack
Weather officials are predicting a powerful storm in the Atlantic Ocean will hit Americas southeastern coast later this week.

Hurricane Florence, a Category 4 storm, is expected to make landfall in North or South Carolina late Thursday or early Friday. Officials have said the hurricane could further strengthen as it continues to move toward land.

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper called it a dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane. National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham added, This one really scares me.

More than a million people living in the storms predicted path have been ordered to leave the area. U.S. President Donald Trump has already signed declarations of emergency for both North Carolina and South Carolina.

States of emergency have also been declared by governors in both Carolinas, as well as Virginia and Maryland.

It is rare for such a powerful storm to hit this part of the U.S. southeast. The last time it happened was when Hurricane Hugo struck South Carolina as a Category 4 storm in 1989. The last storm to hit North Carolina was Hurricane Hazel in 1954.

Several large hurricanes have struck areas further south, including Florida. That state has had at least five hurricanes of Category 4 or stronger during the past 100 years. In 1992, Hurricane Andrew caused widespread damage in Florida as well as neighboring Louisiana.

Hurricane Katrina was a deadly hurricane that hit the U.S. Gulf Coast in 2005, causing widespread damage in Louisiana. The most recent Category 4 in the U.S. was Hurricane Harvey, a deadly storm that struck Houston, Texas.

Harvey was especially severe because of the massive flooding it caused. Weather systems had kept the storm over one area much longer than most hurricanes, resulting in huge amounts of rain.

Weather experts have predicted Hurricane Florence could also produce massive rainfall if it remains over one area for a long time.

Bermuda High effect

Jeff Weber is an atmospheric scientist with the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado. He spoke to VOA about the current storm.

I know the people in the Carolinas are no stranger to tropical storms. But this is certainly going to be one of the larger - if not one of the largest - to make impact along their coastline.

Climate patterns related to high and low pressure systems are what push large storms in certain directions.

Weber says Hurricane Florence is being affected by something called the Bermuda High. This is a high pressure system sitting over the Atlantic territory of Bermuda. It normally keeps storms moving in the direction of Florida or the Gulf Coast.

But this time is different.

Currently the Bermuda High is a little bit farther north and a little bit farther east, allowing the storm to kind of come into the mid-Atlantic or the Carolina coast.

Weber says in addition to the Bermuda High, another high pressure system is expected to keep Florence from quickly heading back out to sea. This is why the storm is predicted to stay in one spot and drop heavy rain, as Hurricane Harvey did.

It's going to be kind of stuck and pinned up against the coast for two to three days. Some of the forecasts have as much as 36 inches of rain falling in parts of North Carolina.

Weber says this kind of stuck storm can stay strong and keep drawing water in from the ocean and dropping it in the form or rain. If this happens, major flooding can affect large areas in several states.

I would have concerns if I was anywhere near North Carolina, southern Virginia or even the Chesapeake Bay. Even Maryland and Delaware will be, I think, strongly impacted.

Some weather experts believe there is a link between such severe storms and climate change. But Weber says there is not enough current evidence to make a clear case.

What we do see is we are into a warmer environment where we have warmer atmospheres and warmer oceans that gives the the potential for these storms to become more powerful, because that's exactly what they use for their fuel.

Weber says Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Florence may be demonstrating that this new kind of storm will happen again and again, causing more severe flooding over much larger areas.

Im Bryan Lynn.

Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from the Associated Press, Reuters and other sources. Hai Do was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

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Words in This Story

Category 4  n. The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is a 1 to 5 rating based on a hurricane's sustained wind speed

forecast  n. prediction about what is expected to happen

stall  v. to stop making progress

impact  n. the effect a person, event, or situation has on someone or something

pinned  adj. held firmly in a certain position so as not to be able to move

pattern  n. particular way that something is often done or repeated

potential  adj. having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future.
Russia is holding its biggest military exercise since the fall of the Soviet Union.

The military exercise is being called Vostok-2018 and includes forces from China and Mongolia. The war games continue in Russias Far East and eastern Siberia through September 17.

Russia and China have held joint exercises before, but nothing of this size.

Before these exercises began, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said they would be even larger than war games held in 1981. Those games involved between 100,000 and 150,000 soldiers from the Soviet Union and its allies.

Vostok-2018 reportedly will involve 300,000 soldiers, 36,000 military vehicles, 1,000 airplanes and 80 warships.

Chinese involvement in the exercises

China has sent only 3,200 soldiers and 900 weapons units, but its decision to take part is unprecedented. Some observers believe it is a warning to the United States and Europe.

Alexander Gabuev is with the Carnegie Moscow Center. He said, "It sends a signal to Washington that if the U.S. continues on its current course by pressuring Russia (it) will fall even more into the firm embrace of China. Gabuev told the Associated Press that China's presence at the exercises means the two countries no longer see each other as military threats.

But other observers disagree. They question both the transparency of Vostok-2018 troop estimates and the political importance of China's presence.

Troop numbers for exercises like these are usually what we might call true lies, said Michael Kofman, a Russia and Eurasia security and defense expert at the Kennan Institute.

(This) means that if a brigade sends one battalion, then they count the whole brigade," he told VOA.

Kofman added that Russian officials usually announce different numbers after the military exercises have ended. In Vostok 2014, officials said they had 100,000 soldiers, but later changed that number to 155,000.

Different ways of counting troop numbers make it hard to know how many soldiers are actually a part of the exercises.

The West is watching

The United States and other NATO member countries say they are watching the situation.

The purpose of the nearly week-long war games is clear. Top NATO officials have called Vostok-2018 an "exercise in large-scale conflict."

The exercise is really to test Russias ability to fight in a large worldwide conflict, and one that may involve nuclear weapons," Kofman told VOA. He said it also is an attempt to test the Russian militarys skill at moving quickly and seeing how civilian-military officials would react to a large-scale war.

While much of the West worries about the risk of conflict across Eastern Europe, the Russians appear to be most worried about China and the Far East.

Kofman notes the Far East is different from other parts of Russia because it is so far from infrastructure and large population centers. He added that Russias military there is almost designed to fight on its own, almost (like a) separate military, which is why is has so many ground-force formations.

Although Russia and China have increased military-to-military contact in recent years, no one really thinks the two sides have formed a formal military alliance.

"Russia has no chance of a formal military alliance with China, and not because Russia doesn't want it," said Aleksander Goltz, a Moscow-based military expert.

China has refused any military alliances or guarantees, he said, adding that the alliance for Vostok-2018 is limited and China set those limits.

Jeffrey Edmonds is a former Russia director for the U.S. National Security Council. He described Vostok-2018 as part of Russia's continuing efforts to modernize its forces.

The actual exercise itself is  standard Russian military activity," Edmonds said, He said that the high numbers of troops may be an attempt to go against the belief in a threat from the West.

I'm Susan Shand.

Danila Galperovich and Victor Beattie reported this story for VOANews. Susan Shand adapted the report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

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The yearly meeting of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN is taking place Vietnam, as a trade dispute between China and America grows. The World Economic Forum is a non-profit organization that seeks to develop cooperation between public and private industry.

The event opened Tuesday. About 1,000 delegates are expected to attend the meeting, including leaders from Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Myanmar.

Vietnam depends on foreign investment to manufacture goods for export. Exports have supported its economic growth rate which is strong at up to seven percent a year.

Experts say that Vietnams 2018 trade position is especially good. Vietnam has shown it can export to China or the United States without facing taxes those sides are placing on some goods.

Frederick Burke is with the legal services company Baker McKenzie in Ho Chi Minh City. He said that international companies are, for the first time, considering Vietnams strengthened position in the international supply chain.

Delegates to the meeting are talking about issues like aging populations, economic activity on the internet, and high-tech agriculture. But international trade is a major subject of discussion at the event.

Some of the nine leaders attending are expected to give speeches at the meeting. Experts, however, say important unofficial discussions also will take place. Businesspeople hope to learn about government plans to bring in export manufacturers.

Vietnamese officials are expected to tell investors that the cost of production in Vietnam is lower than in China.

Carl Thayer is a former professor at the University of New South Wales in Australia. He thinks Vietnam may also seek support for a free trade agreement involving many countries.

Vietnam supports the completion of the 11-member Trans-Pacific Partnership although the U.S. withdrew from the trade deal last year. The agreement reduces import and export taxes among nations that border the Pacific Ocean.

Thayer said the meeting will give Vietnam the chance to find out what other leaders think about issues such as steel exports and business on the internet.

Part of hosting these summits is designed to have everybody see Vietnam as a solid international good citizen thats contributing to the good, and for its own interest as well, said Thayer.

U.S.-China trade dispute affects Vietnams position

The U.S. and China have continued to exchange threats of increasing tariffs on trade between them worth billions of dollars.

However, some experts note this means Vietnam could gain from the dispute. Earlier this year, the business advising agency Dezan Shira & Associates said exporters who ship products to the U.S. from Vietnam could save money.

Electronics companies Intel and Samsung Electronics now send some of their products from Vietnam. Other companies are seeking to do the same.

Observers note that Chinese companies also want to set up factories in Vietnam. However, this has raised concerns among some Southeast Asian nations. They are worried that China may get too much access to special economic areas set up to increase trade.

Im Mario Ritter.

Ralph Jennings reported this story for VOA News. Mario Ritter adapted it for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

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Words in This Story

supply chain n. the connected group of companies and others involved in manufacturing a product and getting it to person who uses it

contribute v. to help cause something to happen

ship v. to send something to a person who bought it or will use it

access n. a way of being able to use or get something

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.
By Paul Craig Roberts on 10 September 2018 for PaulCraigRoberts.org -

Image above: Many in this world inhabit Armageddon already. Damaged buildings are seen at the Yarmouk Palestinian camp in Damascus, Syria. April 28, 2018. Photo by Omar Sanadiki. From ( https://www.thenational.ae/world/mena/syria-regime-and-rebels-agree-evacuation-deal-in-southern-damascus-1.725770 ).

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SUBHEAD: Never before have irrationality and immorality had such a firm hold on the US government.For some time I have pointed out the paradox of the American liberal/progressive/left being allied with the CIA, FBI, military/security complex and deep state. Now leftist Ann Garrison has noticed the paradox of this alliance. She concludes that the Left has lost its mind. https://www.globalresearch.ca/we-love-the-cia-or-how-the-left-lost-its-mind/5653450 Indeed, it has.Out of its hatred of Trump the Left has united with the forces of evil and war that are leading to conflict with Russia. The Lefts hatred of Trump shows that the American Left has totally seperated from the interests of the working class, which elected Trump.The American Left has abandoned the working class for the group victimizations and hatreds of Identity Politics. As Hillary put it, the working class comprises the Trump deplorables. The Democratic Party, like the Republicans, represents the ruling oligarchy.I have explained that the leftwing lost its bearings when the Soviet Union collapsed and socialism gave way to neoliberal privatizations.The moral fury of the leftwing movement had to go somewhere, and it found its home in Identity Politics in which the white heterosexual male takes the place of the capitalist, and his victim groupsblacks, women, homosexuals, illegal immigrantstake the place of the working class.The consequences of the leftwings alliance with warmongers and liars is the leftwings loss of veracity. The Left has endorsed a CIA orchestrationRussiagatefor which there is no known evidence, but which the Left supports as proven truth.The purpose of Russiagate is to prevent President Trump from normalizing relations with Russia. In these times when so many Americans are hard pressed, normal relations could adversely impact the budget and power of the military/security complex by reducing the Russian threat.If there is no real Russian threat, only an orchestrated perceived one, the question arises: why does the military/security complex have a taxpayer-supported annual budget of $1,000 billion dollars?The presstitutes have kept the truth from emerging that the Russiagate investigation has found no sign of a Trump/Putin plot to steal the 2016 presidential election from Hillary.Indeed, it has been proven beyond all questioning that the Hillary emails were not hacked but were downloaded on a thumb drive. This proof collapses the entire premise of Russiagate.Nevertheless, the hoax continues.Mullers indictments are for unrelated matters, such as income tax evasion in the distant past of Republican fund raisers and consultants. These charges have nothing whatsoever to do with Muellers mandate.Indeed, as Andrew C. McCarthy, a former US attorney who led the 1995 terrorism prosecution against Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, has made clear, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosensteins appointment of Mueller to head the Russiagate investigation is not in compliance with the regulations that govern the appointment of a special prosecutor.The appointment of a special prosecutor requires evidence of a specific federal crime that is to be investigated. You only have a special prosecutor when there is factual basis for believing that a federal crime has been committed.What is the federal crime? What is the factual basis? Muellers appointment does not say. Therefore, Muellers appointment is invalid. Rosenstein has violated the process.In my opinion, this is grounds for Rosenstein to be removed from office. https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/09/trump-russia-probe-robert-mueller-investigation/ At one time, Congressboth partieswould have been all over the invalid Mueller appointment.However, after 16 years of Cheney/Bush and Obama regime lawlessness, even Republicans accept that the Constitutions restraints on executive branch power, along with the laws and regulations Congress has established specifying the exercise of these powers, have been rendered meaningless by the war on terror, a hoax designed to further Israels interests in the Middle East and the neoonservative doctrine of US hegemony, while making billions of dollars for the military/security complex.Charlie Savages book, Takeover, and David Ray Griffins book, Bush and Cheney: How They Ruined America and the World, accurately document how 9/11 was used to destroy the Constitutions balance of power within the government and to create unaccountable executive branch powers that over-ride the Constitutions protection of civil liberty.This demand for an unaccountable executive branch, pushed by VPactually President in factDick Cheney and his minions, such as Addington and John Yoo, was the agenda of the Republican Federalist Society.An early book laying out the legally invalid and legally incompetent argument that the president had powers unchecked by Congress or the judiciary was Terry Eastlands book, Energy in the Executive.This collection of nonsense became Cheneys bible as he proceeded in secret to remove constraints on executive branch power. The elevation of the executive branch above the law of the land is documented in Charlie Savages book. Read it and weep for your country destroyed by Dick Cheney.On top of Cheneys coup against accountable government, we have in America today another coup, organized by former CIA director John Brennan, former FBI director Comey, deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein, the Democratic National Committee, the departed Republican senator John McCain, a coup fully supported by the entirety of the US presstitute media.This coup is against the democratically elected President of the United States for the sole reason that he threatens the power and profit of the entrenched military/security complex, about which President Eisenhower warned us 57 years ago, by wanting to normalize relations with Russia, the worlds premier nuclear power.The question is unavoidable: Why do the American people put up with this? Are they so insouciant that they have no realization that, if a president can be driven from office because he wants peace with Russia, the removed presidents successor will have to stand against Russia or also be driven from office. Trust and negotiation between the nuclear powers becomes impossible.Why do Americans support conflict with a nuclear power that can completely destroy America?During the entirety of the Cold War, in which I was a participant, the emphasis was on reducing tensions and creating trust. Today Washingtons interest is piling provocation after provocation on a country that can wipe us off the face of the earth.The liberal/progressive/left, the Democratic National Committee, the CIA and the rest of the covert state, and the media whores all share this same commitment to the reckless and irresponsible provocation of a powerful nuclear power. As the US military itself acknowledges, Russias weapons are far beyond Americas defenses.So what is going on? Is it the liberal/progressive/lefts desire that evil America be destroyed? Is this desired destruction of evil America the reason the Left has allied itself so tightly with the warmongers in Washington?Is this the reason that the Left and the Democrats and a handful of Republicans want to impeach President Trump for attempting to make peace with Russia?How can these crazed immoral people present themselves as some sort of moral arbiter when they are locked on a trajectory that will destroy Earth?This destruction might be closer than anyone thinks. Here is the situation in Syria:Russia and Syria, in cooperation with Iran and Turkey, have begun the assult on Iblid province, the last stronghold of Washingtons proxy army consisting of Al Qaeda, Al Nursra, and ISIS mercenaries hired by Washington.According to reports, which might or might not be true considering the lack of veracity that is the defining characteristic of the Western media, the US and UK have troops among the mercenary forces, hoping apparently that this presence will deter the attack. As the attack has already begun, this is a false hope.The Russians discovered Washingtons plot to explode a chemical weapon in Iblid province and exposed Washingtons plot to the UN. Washington had it set up that once its proxies created the appearance of a chemical weapon explosion, Washington would send Tomahawk missiles upon the Syrian forces, thus protecting its proxy army that it sent to overthrow Assad for Israel.The Russian exposure of Washingtons conspiracy has denied Washington UN support. Moreover, Russia has sent a naval force armed with the new Russian hypersonic missiles to Syria and has announced that its aircraft in the area are also armed with these missiles.As the US Navy and Air Force have no defense whatsoever against these missiles, if the US attacks the Syrian/Russian forces, it will be Putins decision whether any US ship or military aircraft in the area exists as anything but a smoldering ruin.In other words, the entire power in the area lies in Russian hands. If Washington had any senseand it doesnt, Washington has hubris and arrogance in the place of senseWashington would be nowhere close to Syria.The question is this: Will the hotheads in Washington conclude that the Russian announcements and marshalling of forces is just another Putin bluff.So far Putin has been loaded up with never-ending insults and provocation blame for the crash of the Malaysian airliner, blame for poisoning a variety of people in England, blame for invading Ukraine, blame for interfering in US elections, blame for supporting the dictator Assad, a person democratically elected by a large vote who obviously has the support of the Syrian people as he liberates Syria from the forces Washington sent to put the country into the same chaos that exists in Iraq and Libya.Have we reached the situation about which I have been worried, worries shared with my readers, in which Washington makes the miscalculation, based on the incorrect understanding of Russias resolve, to launch an attack on the Syrian/Russian forces that have begun the final liberation of Syria from Washingtons paid mercenaries?Yesterday the Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity sent a letter to President Trump advising him of the war danger that the Trump administration has created by its continued illegal interference in Syrias internal affairs. https://www.globalresearch.ca/moscow-has-upped-the-ante-in-syria/5653571 The Russian government cannot accept Washingtons military intervention in behalf of Al Qaeda, Al Nursa, and ISIS without completely losing all credibility, not only in the world, but inside Russia itself.A realistic alternative to military action would be for Washington to stand aside as Syria reconstitutes itself and use a propaganda war to blame Syria and Russia for civilian deaths and for destroying democratic rebels who rose against a dictator.The fear could be expanded to the Baltics and Ukraine by reviving the propaganda that Putin intends to reconstruct the Soviet Empire.Washington has long used an expertly manufactured fear of Russia to control Europe. Fear can keep Europe in line, whereas military action against Russia could scare Europe into taking refuge in a revival of its sovereignty.Yesterday the Wall Street Journal reported: President Bashar al-Assad of Syria has approved the use of chlorine gas in an offensive against the countrys last major rebel stronghold, U.S. officials said, raising the prospects for another retaliatory U.S. military strike as thousands try to escape what could be a decisive battle in the seven-year-old war.According to the Wall Street Journal, the US strikes could target Russian and Iranian forces as well as Syrian forces.It is difficult to believe that Washington thinks attacks on Russian forces would go unanswered. Such a reckless and irresponsible act could initiate Armageddon.The claim that Assad has approved the use of chlorine gas in the liberation of Iblid is propagandistic nonsense put out by Washington as an excuse for Washingtons effort to protect its proxy army in Syria with military strikes.All Syrian chemical weapons were removed by Russia and turned over to the US during the Obama regime. Moreover, Russia would not permit Assad to use chemical weapons if he had them.Life on earth is faced with a situation in which Washington is so determined to overthrow Assad and to leave Syria in the same chaos as Libya and Iraq that Washington is willing to risk war with Russia.Never before have irrationality and immorality had such a firm hold on a government. The world should be scared to death of the recklessness and irresponsibility of the US government.
Professor Rory Medcalf, head of the National Security College at the Australian National University in Canberra, giving a speech entitled The Great Australian China Debate: Issues and Implications for the United States and the World at George Washington University in Washington on Sept. 10, 2018. (Jennifer Zeng/The Epoch Times)

US Can Learn Much From Great Australian China Debate, Professor Says

WASHINGTONIf Australia can push back against the Chinese Communist Partys interference and influence to defend its national sovereignty, the United States and other countries can do the same, an Australian professor told a seminar at George Washington University on Sept. 10.

Professor Rory Medcalf, head of the National Security College at the Australian National University in Canberra, discussed in detail what he called the Great Australian China Debate, and what the world could learn from it.

The relationship between Australia and China hit a high point some years ago, when a so-called strategic partnership and free-trade agreement were reached, Medcalf said. There was a perception among Australians that China should be thanked for Australias economic well-being and for not being fully impacted by the global financial crisis.

However, alongside this, strategic trust had been lagging in the relationship.

After a reality check in recent years, Australian policymakers started to realize that China wasnt going to liberalize. To the contrary, Chinas assertiveness, coercion, and military organization would begin to threaten the regional balance on which Australias interest depends.

There was also a growing awareness that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) had been taking advantage of the openness of Australian democracy to extend its coercion and control, for instance, through Chinese language media in Australia, community organizations, Confucius Institutes, and so on.

The Australian people, Medcalf said, also realized that pushing back against all these penetrations into their society would get more difficult and more disruptive the longer they waited, and that they should be taking national security seriously.

Medcalf gave a lot of credit to Australias media and intelligence agency for starting the China debate.

On June 5, 2017, a landmark investigative report, Power and Influence: How Chinas Communist Party Is Infiltrating Australia, was broadcast by ABCs Four Corners program. The 47-minute documentary uncovered how the CCP was secretly infiltrating the country. The investigation tracked the activities of Beijing-backed organizations and the efforts made to intimidate critics of the CCP.

The report not only summed up much of the previous China debate, but also had some new revelations and allegations, including how two Chinese billionaires, Mr. Xiangmo Huang and Dr. Chau Chak Wing, were making huge political donations.

It was an important moment in raising new political awareness and consensus, Medcalf said. Both major parties in Australia immediately announced that they would no longer receive donations from the two billionaires.

Medcalf pointed out that a huge part of the problem in Australia was that Australian political parties had become quite dependent on foreign funding. Over the past decade, and as recently as a couple of years ago, the two largest donors by far to the major parties in Australia, the Labor Party and the Liberal Party, were two Chinese-born billionaires, who had been subsequently named by the Australian Security Intelligence Organization.

According to Medcalf, the Australian Security Intelligence Organization, between late 2016 and early 2017, already had provided a classified, cross-agency report about CCP infiltration to the Australian government.

After many months of the Australian China debate, on June 28, 2018, Australias parliament passed sweeping national-security legislation that bans covert foreign interference in domestic politics, and makes industrial espionage for a foreign power a crime. It also serves to offend the nations most important trading partner, China.

In his speech to introduce the bill, National Security Legislation Amendment (Espionage and Foreign Interference) Bill 2017, former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said, Our rejection of covert, coercive or corrupting behavior leads naturally to a counter-foreign-interference strategy that is built upon the four pillars of sunlight, enforcement, deterrence, and capability.

In response to an audience members question regarding whether the current tensions between the United States and China would affect Australia, Medcalf said that while he didnt think that the United States would push hard for Australia to take security measures against China that werent in Australias interest, there would be more conversations. Australia will also work in solidarity with other democracies and wont unilaterally confront China.
A suicide bomber detonated his explosives-filled vest among a group of people protesting a local police commander in eastern Afghanistan yesterday, killing 32 and wounding about 130, a provincial official said.

Attahullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor said the all 32 people killed in the attack were innocent civilians gathered for a protest. A number of wounded people are in critical condition, he said.

Around four hundred people gathered for the protest and the bomber detonated his vest full of explosive among the crowd, said Capt. Qais Saifi, an official at Nangarhar province police headquarters.

Gen. Ghulam Sanayee Stanikzai, police chief of Nangarhar province, said people from Achin district had come to the Momandara district to block the main highway between the capital Jalalabad and the Torkham border with Pakistan.

Stanikzai said locals had gathered to complain about a local police commander and the suicide bomber targeted them. It was unclear whether the attacker knew the nature of the protest.

Also in Nangarhar, at least one person was killed and four others wounded in a series of additional bomb blasts near different schools, said Khogyani.

Khogyani said the first bomb detonated near a school in the provincial capital Jalalabad. That blast was later followed by two others in Behsud district, also near two schools.

A 14-year-old student was killed and four others wounded in the first attack, he said.

Afghan president Ashraf Ghani strongly condemned the suicide attack against the demonstrators as well as the bomb blasts near schools in Nangarhar. A statement released yesterday from Ghanis office quoted him as saying that attacks on civilian facilities, mosques, women, children, are all crimes against humanity.

Taliban insurgents in a statement posted on their website denied any involvement in the attack.

No any other group immediately claimed responsibility for any of the attacks, but both Taliban insurgents and the Islamic State group are active in eastern Afghanistan, especially in Nangarhar province. AP
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is setting up a USD2 billion joint venture with a Kremlin-backed fund and billionaire Alisher Usmanovs Mail.ru Group Ltd. to grow its e-commerce business in Russia.

Asias most valuable company signed an accord yesterday with the Russian Direct Investment Fund and Mail.ru to establish AliExpress Russia, which the local investors will collectively control. Alibaba will fold the domestic operations of its online marketplaces Tmall and AliExpress into the venture, while Usmanovs MegaFon PJSC will sell its 10 percent stake in Mail.ru  worth roughly $486 million at Mondays close  to Alibaba in return for 24 percent of the venture. That deal values the new outfit at roughly $2 billion.

Alibaba, which is steadily expanding its reach beyond China as part of a global expansion, will access Mail.rus large audience through two of the countrys most popular social networks. The Russian company will prove a key ally in a major market: it recently invested in online food-delivery and ride-hailing and rolled out Pandao, a mobile platform for selling Chinese goods.

A big part of what weve been able to develop so far in Russia has been our cross-border business, Alibaba President Mike Evans told reporters. But the future, which will require the presence of our partners at this table, will involve building a much bigger local business.

Pandao will also get folded into the Alibaba venture. The Russian Direct Investment Fund will add an unspecified amount of funding in return for a 13 percent stake, while Mail.ru holds the remaining 15 percent.

The parties inked the deal at a Vladivostok economic forum attended by President Vladimir Putin and Alibaba Chairman Jack Ma.

Ma, who started Alibaba.com in 1999 as a business-to-business marketplace with 17 co-founders, this week announced plans to step back from the Chinese e-commerce titan. His company, which is pushing into overseas markets from Southeast Asia to Russia, last year saw daily package deliveries reach 55 million. MDT/Bloomberg
Lawmaker Au Kam San has once again called on the Macau government to establish a seawater-based flushing system, this time in the new urban zones currently under construction.

The democrat lawmaker made similar calls 10 years ago in October 2008, but with little success.

Then-director of the Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT), Jaime Carion, at the time argued that the project was not realistic because of its high implementation costs and the fact that Macaus surrounding seawater was unstable and would still require preliminary treatment.

Now Au is repeating his call for the establishment of seawater- based flushing in order to preserve precious fresh water.

[When] faced with freshwater shortages, all places around the world cherish fresh water. Macau people are still using precious fresh water for flushing, Au pointed out.

Soon after the handover when Cotai was under construction, the concept of seawater for flushing had not yet been introduced, leaving all big hotels and residences in the Cotai Strip, as well as the entire Cotai city, using fresh water for flushing. This is a major mistake from which it is not easy to recover, he said.

The lawmaker has asked the government to consider the use of seawater flushing for the land reclamation zones. The government has already signaled that it plans to reserve a large part of the new urban zones for residential purposes.

In Aus opinion, all areas of the new urban zones should set up systems using seawater for flushing.

On the same subject, Au praised the government authority for having prepared seawater for flushing systems when it was building the Seac Pai Van public houses, but lamented that the systems have not been put to good use.

It is still a pity that, knowing of the existence of such a system, seawater for flushing is still not realized, he said, further questioning the government on when it will enter into operation. DB/JZ
China and Sao Tome and Principe have signed three cooperation agreements to social housing, setting up a Confucius Institute and granting a donation of USD29 million, the Sao Tome prime minister said.

Patrice Trovoada, taking stock of his trip to Beijing to attend the third summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), said the donation covers 2018 and 2019, that the construction project includes some roads and the Confucius Institute will be established in partnership with the public university of Sao Tome and Principe.

In addition to announcing that the Chinese President has granted support to the Armed Forces of Sao Tome and Principe in infrastructure, training of personnel and equipment, Trovoada said the Chinese authorities have agreed to fund the requalification project of the international airport of Sao Tome and Principe along with construction of a fishing port.

President Xi Jinping at the third FOCAC summit held in Beijing on September 3 and 4, announced support for African countries of $60 billion, including preferential loans, grants and debt pardon. MDT/Macauhub
Chinas private companies have shown growing interest in expanding their businesses in Africa, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported citing entrepreneurs attending a recent Sino-African economic meeting.

The China-Africa Private Sector Cooperation Summit, held last week in Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang Province, was attended by more than 300 representatives of governments, private companies and research institutions from China and Africa.

Xinhua reported that Zhejiang is the base of many of Chinas most successful private companies, including Alibaba and Netease, which accounted for almost two-thirds of the provinces gross domestic product in 2017.

Cooperation between China and Africa presents an opportunity for entrepreneurs, said Jack Ma, president of the Alibaba Group, who said the Internet and e-commerce were areas in which entrepreneurs can play an important role.

Wang Jianyi, chairman of the Hangzhou-based Futong group, predicted that about 150,000 kilometres of optic cables will be installed in Africa over the next 15 to 20 years, a business worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

Futong Group was one of the 500 largest private companies in China in 2017 and is the leader in cable and fiber optic supply in the country. It is already present in Africa, namely in Kenya, Nigeria, Seychelles and Angola.

Statistics from Chinas Ministry of Commerce showed that trade between China and Africa reached USD170 billion by 2017, an annual increase of 14.1 percent.

In that year China sent products to Africa worth $94.74 billion, an annual increase of 2.7 percent, with imports increasing 32.8 percent to $75.26 billion. MDT/Macauhub
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A rout in technology stocks, emerging market contagion, currency weakness, an economy under threat.

Welcome to Hong Kong, where just about every problem afflicting global equity investors has found a foothold.

The Hang Seng Indexs 0.7 percent slide yesterday tipped it into a bear market, extending its loss since a January peak to more than 20 percent. Already reeling from a selloff in Internet and tech firms as well as concerns over Chinas slowing growth, Hong Kong is now caught in an emerging-market exodus first sparked by currency crises in Latin America and Turkey. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is down 21 percent from Jan. 26.

Traders predict more money will bleed out of funds that follow the MSCI EM Index around Sept. 21, when options and futures tied to the gauge expire. That tends to increase volume as global money managers, who use those derivatives to hedge risk or bet on the direction of a large basket of stocks, opt to switch or defend their positions before the next quarter. Firms with a primary listing in Hong Kong make up 23 percent of the emerging market benchmark.

These markets are getting hit hard with the flow, and I wouldnt be surprised to see more switching around the September expiry, said Mark Tinker, head of Framlington Equities Asia at AXA Investment Managers in Hong Kong. Were waiting for this to stabilize first but when it does, people will realize that its foolish to bundle North Asia together with the rest of EM.

Indiscriminate selling across emerging markets has hit Asian stocks particularly hard, thanks in part to the USD2 trillion that follows MSCIs benchmark index. All the bottom 38 performers in the past three months are firms based in Hong Kong, China and Taiwan, which were among the most-owned stocks earlier this year. In March, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. featured in 63 percent of emerging-market portfolios and Tencent Holdings Ltd. was in 53 percent, according to eVestment data.

The rotation around the last index options expiry in June was so aggressive that the largest exchange-traded fund tracking the index lost $5.4 billion that month, the biggest outflows since 2014. The Hang Seng Index is on track for its worst quarter in three years, when Chinas chaotic yuan devaluation roiled markets around the world.

As volatility soars, calls to stay in cash are growing louder. Investors are preferring to ride out the selloff in safety even though valuations across Asia are the cheapest theyve been in years. The Hong Kong gauge trades at just under 10 times projected earnings, the lowest since 2016.

A lot of players are on the sidelines  you dont want to be caught on the wrong side of this one, said Stephen Innes, head of trading for Asia Pacific at Oanda Corp. in Singapore. We were short the EM space but now weve flattened our positions. The flow is very one-directional now. I dont think the outflows are over by any means. Sofia Horta e Costa, Bloomberg
Tens of thousands of North Korean students rallied in Pyongyangs Kim Il Sung Square in the final major event of the countrys 70th anniversary, an elaborate celebration that has showcased the nations aspirations for economic growth and Korean unity.

The rally Monday night featured a sea of university and high school students carrying torches that spelled out giant slogans and words when seen from above the square. Leader Kim Jong Un did not attend.

This years anniversary downplayed the missiles and nuclear weapons that brought the country to the brink of conflict with the United States just one year ago.

It highlighted what has been a series of stunning recent changes for North Korea, beginning with Kims announcement on New Years Day that he would seek better relations with the South and that the North was willing to participate in the Winter Olympics held in South Korea.

He followed that up with an announcement in April that he would stop nuclear tests and long-range missile launches and claimed that, having perfected his nuclear arsenal, he was ready to pursue talks with Washington on easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula. That in turn led to a flurry of summits with Beijing and Seoul and an unprecedented summit with President Donald Trump in Singapore three months ago.

Kims effort to present a more diplomatic and less-belligerent image was reflected throughout this weekends 70th anniversary events.

In a sharp contrast to its previous two parades  in April last year and just before the Olympics began in February this year  North Korea refrained from displaying its long-range missiles at the military parade it held on Sunday.

It also revived its iconic mass games after a five-year hiatus with a spectacular and decidedly peaceful and forward-looking performance. At one point, the show featured giant images of Kim shaking hands with South Korean President Moon Jae-in at their first summit, in April, in the Demilitarized Zone that divides their two countries.

The image of the two Korean leaders was met by loud applause and cheers from the audience at the 150,000-seat May Day Stadium.

Kim himself has kept publicly quiet during the anniversary. He made no speech at the parade or at the mass games opening performance.

Senior North Korean officials, meanwhile, have stressed the countrys confidence in its ability to both maintain a strong military and build up its domestic economy. They have studiously avoided bragging about their nuclear weapons, but at the same time havent referred to any plans for denuclearization.

Kims moves seem to be paying off.

Trump quickly tweeted his satisfaction that no ICBMs were rolled out for the parade, which he called a big and very positive statement from North Korea.

Thank you To Chairman Kim, he added. We will both prove everyone wrong! There is nothing like good dialogue from two people that like each other!

Last year, Trump and Kim were trading insults and threats and Kim was launching his missiles at a record pace. There hasnt been a North Korean launch this year, and Kim unilaterally ordered the destruction of his countrys underground nuclear test site in May.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, who sent the ruling Communist Partys third- highest official to attend as his special envoy, issued a statement saying he is willing to work with Kim to develop healthy relations and promote regional peace and stability. I sincerely hope that the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea will prosper and the people enjoy a happy and healthy life, Xi said.

With the anniversary now behind him, Kim is to host Moon later this month in Pyongyang to further discuss ways to improve North-South relations, including the establishment of a liaison office in the Norths city of Kaesong, and how to move the peace process with Washington forward.

That process has stalled since the Trump summit, with Kim insisting on security guarantees and a formal end to the Korean War as the first steps, while the U.S. wants irreversible moves toward denuclearization before it will agree to ease up its policy of sanctions and maximum pressure.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was to visit Pyongyang just ahead of the anniversary, but Trump nixed that at the last minute because he said the prospect of making any significant agreements was too low.Eric Talmadge, Pyongyang, P
Russias largest war games in recent history have kicked off in the Far East.

The Defense Ministry said in a statement yesterday that the largest military drills since the end of the Cold War will involve about 36,000 tanks and 300,000 troops at sea and on the ground.

China is sending 3,200 troops to take part in the Vostok 2018 exercises later this week.

The war games are held a year after Russia staged major drills in the countrys west last September, unnerving neighboring former Soviet republics.

NATO and European governments are eyeing the exercises closely, watching to see what they reveal about military cooperation between Russia and China, and their mounting military might. AP
Mandatory evacuations were imposed for parts of three East Coast states Tuesday as millions of Americans prepared for what could become one of the most catastrophic hurricanes to hit the Eastern Seaboard in decades.

Hurricane Florences top winds dipped to 215 kph yesterday, but it remains a Category 4 storm and is expected to approach the most-damaging Category 5 status as it slows and strengthens over very warm ocean water off the coast of North and South Carolina.

The center of the massive storm is then forecast to meander Thursday, Friday and Saturday over a stretch of coastline saturated by rising seas, inundating several states with rainfall and triggering life-threatening floods.

The size of Florence is staggering, National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham warned.

We could cover several states easily with the cloud cover alone, Graham said. This is not just a coastal event.

Rainfall will be extremely heavy, dumping up to 10 to 20 inches over the next 7 days over much of North Carolina and Virginia, and even 30 inches in some places. Combined with high tides, the storm surge could reach 12 feet at the center of the storm, forecasters said Tuesday.

The water could overtake some of these barrier islands and keep on going. With time, the wind pushes the water into every nook and cranny you can think of, Graham said. All you have to do is look up at your ceiling, and think about 12 feet (of floodwater). That, folks, is extremely life-threatening.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said his state is in the bullseye and urged people to get ready now.

The very center of that bullseye may be Camp Lejeune, the sprawling Marine Corps training base, where authorities were opening emergency operation centers and staging equipment.

Please be prepared, be careful and be SAFE! tweeted President Donald Trump, adding: WE are here for you.

South Carolinas governor ordered the states entire coastline evacuated starting at noon Tuesday and predicted that 1 million people would flee as highways reverse directions. Virginias governor ordered a mandatory evacuation for some residents of low-lying coastal areas, while some coastal counties in North Carolina have done the same.

Tuesdays 7-day rainfall forecast showed 20 inches or more falling there, part of a wide swath of rainfall that could total ten inches or more over much of Virginia and drench the nations capital. Some isolated areas could get 30 inches, forecasters said.

Florence could hit the Carolinas harder than any hurricane since Hazel packed 209 kph winds in 1954. That Category 4 storm destroyed 15,000 buildings and killed 19 people in North Carolina. In the six decades since then, many thousands of people have moved to the coast.

Ahead of Florences arrival, barrier islands were already seeing dangerous rip currents and seawater flowed over a state highway  the harbinger of a storm surge that could wipe out dunes and submerge entire communities.

Watches were in effect Tuesday for a storm surge that could reach up to 12 feet at high tide on a stretch from Cape Fear to Cape Lookout in North Carolina, forecasters said. A hurricane watch was in effect for Edisto Beach, South Carolina, to Virginias southern border, and the first hurricane-force winds arriving late Thursday.

For many people, the challenge could be finding a safe refuge: If Florence slows to a crawl just off the coast, it could bring torrential rains all the way into the Appalachian mountains and as far away as West Virginia, causing flash floods, mudslides and other dangerous conditions in places that dont usually get much tropical weather.

This is going to produce heavy rainfall, and it may not move very fast. The threat will be inland, so Im afraid, based on my experience at FEMA, that the public is probably not as prepared as everybody would like, said Craig Fugate, former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Florence is expected to linger once onshore, downing trees, knocking out electricity and causing widespread flooding along a path that includes half a dozen nuclear power plants, pits holding coal-ash and other industrial waste, and numerous hog farms that store animal waste in massive open-air lagoons.

A warm ocean is the fuel that powers hurricanes, and this area of the ocean is seeing temperatures peak near 85 degrees (30 Celsius), hurricane specialist Eric Blake wrote. And with little wind shear to pull the storm apart, Florences hurricane-strength winds were expanding, reaching 40 64 kilometers from the eye of the storm.

Unfortunately, the models were right. Florence has rapidly intensified into an extremely dangerous hurricane, Blake wrote Monday evening, predicting that the hurricanes top sustained winds would approach the 253 kph threshold for a wost-case Category 5 scenario. Tuesday mornings forecast still supports this, the National Hurricane Center said.

By 8 a.m. Tuesday, Florence was centered about 1,530 kilometers east-southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, and moving west-northwest at 24 kph. Its center will move between Bermuda and the Bahamas on Tuesday and Wednesday and approach the coast of South Carolina or North Carolina on Thursday.

Two other storms were spinning in the Atlantic as the 2018 hurricane season reaches its peak. Isaac became a tropical storm again approaching the Caribbean, while Hurricane Helene was veering northward, no threat to land.

In the Pacific, Olivia became a tropical storm again on a path to hit the Hawaiian islands early Wednesday.

Airlines, including American, Southwest, Delta and JetBlue, have begun letting affected passengers change travel plans without the usual fees.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said an estimated 1 million people would be fleeing his states coast, with eastbound lanes of Interstate 26 heading into Charleston and U.S. 501 heading into Myrtle Beach reversed to ease the exodus.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northams evacuation order applies to about 245,000 people, including parts of the Hampton Roads area and Eastern Shore.

Liz Browning Fox was planning to ride out the storm nevertheless on the Outer Banks. She said her house, built in 2009 in Buxton, North Carolina, is on a ridge and built to withstand a hurricane. But even the most secure homes could be surrounded by water, or penetrated by wind-launched debris.

You never know, there could be tree missiles coming from any direction, she said. There is no way to be completely safe.

But, she added, shes not sure whether going inland would be much safer: I dont know where to go from here. Jonathan Drew, Raleigh (N.C.), AP
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2 sisters injured in Rautahat acid attack

A group of unidentified persons poured acid on two sisters while they were sleeping in their house at Chandrapur Municipality in Rautahat district on Tuesday night.
Interview with Richard Hlomador, CEO of K-Net

What is your assessment of the sector here in Ghana? Is it a competitive environment? What are the latest trends in the sector itself?

In general, Ghana is becoming very digitally competitive. If one looks at when we started Internet Access as a country, moving towards ICT, which became the hot topic at the time in 1996, we were using dial up Internet access. Today, we are using fiber optics. The journey from dial up Internet access to date is full of impressive achievements. This is largely due to the fact that a lot of the mobile telephone operators are very active in this space, including the private sector, digital service providers like ourselves, and many other Ghanaian companies. Now, every business today needs an app of some sort to run effectively. Ghanaian private companies are developing apps to be utilized by Ghanaians. Mobile operators are running a lot of Internet-based services, including packages to suit apps that will help to develop the country. There are six mobile operators who are providing Internet services at the moment. Before, we had private sector or indigenous Ghanaian Internet service providers -who we typically would call ISPs- but today, the mobile operators have fully taken over that space. The telecom sector continues to grow ambitiously.

Is there space still left for companies to enter and grow, as it is very competitive?

Much of the sector is growing quickly and aggressively. There is still a lot of space left in the digital inclusion agenda of any country and continent even. I would focus on Ghana and Africa, especially on the rural inclusion and rural telecoms. There is a huge infrastructure deficit, which needs to be seriously addressed in order to close the digital inclusion gap. When you look at health, agriculture, education, and farming, there is a lot of room for development of digital infrastructure that will support these communities to help them grow much faster and better. In fact, digital infrastructure will even support self-feeding, which means growing our own agricultural crops locally for consumption. We do a lot of imports in terms of agriculture, and technology can improve that. Technology largely depends on telecoms.

What are your competitive advantages? What do you offer that is different from other companies?

We are back end service providers and we are coming up with a new solution that will allow every rural person in West Africa to be able to be part of the digital inclusion agenda.

We started as an ISP and evolved into a telecom company. We saw into the future that the mobile operators, based on technologies that were evolving, would sooner or later take over the consumer Internet space. So, we specialized ourselves into a niche for providing backbone or back-end services for consumer facing companies. For example, TV companies, mobile phone companies, and banks are the people we work for. We are a corporate service provider. Our niche and focus are for tailoring of services for corporate institutions to be able to deliver services uniquely for their consumers. In the TV sector, for example, as far back as eight or nine years ago, we provided all the key back-end services for all the analog TV operators, and then overtime we evolved them into digital TV operators. We have a digital TV platform that has been responsible for the distribution of the analog TV operators broadcast feed to their relay stations. This platform has evolved and became DTH (direct to home) services for these operators. We have completed the digital TV migration for the country, and have successfully migrated Ghana from analog to digital TV broadcasts.

Regarding mobile phone operators, as far back as eight years ago, residents in the rural areas were denied mobile network connectivity. Most of these GSM operators have been here, but nobody looked after the rural populations because they believed it was not economically viable for them. We were the first to develop a mobile infrastructure platform for this segment that we called MRIID, which essentially delivered mobile connectivity as well as Internet access. We built a platform, of which a prototype is right here (behind me), which is solar powered and is VSAT or satellite backhauled. In a situation like that, you can install this unit anywhere, as long as there is sun and you can see the sky, and it covers 2,000 people per site. It is a 2-tier platform. The first was TV, and now we do mobile operators.

Of course, we provide a lot of Internet and network connectivity for banks within the country for inter-bank operations as well as head office-to-branch operations. We also provide network connectivity solutions for several other key sectors of the economy, including government agencies, mining companies, industrial establishments, educational institutions, and so on.

The company has five key areas of operation. We have our teleport, which is at our Tech center. The Tech center is where we have deployed all the various technologies that we use in the delivery of services to our end-customers. It is a 100 x 100 m center which serves as a data center, as well as a teleport for hosting all our satellite-based services. For instance, we monitor satellites with footprints in Africa for Global Satellite Operators so they can constantly have real-time information on how their satellites are faring in Africa. We provide Satellite uplink services for television broadcasters.

In broadcasting, we operate a Digital Terrestrial TV (DTT) network on behalf of the Government of Ghana, as well as a Direct-to-Home (DTH) TV network for private TV broadcasters within Ghana and neighbouring West African countries.

Rural telephone is another department. We use solar-powered VSAT-backhauled systems for the delivery of GSM and Internet related services in the rural areas.

We started out as an Internet Service Provider, ISP, and it is still our core business. Now, we are also into IOT service provider. IOT is an acronym for Internet of things, because everything is about the Internet today.

We are also involved in e-commerce because if you want to provide rural telephony and reduce the cost of using the network, then you have to reduce the cost of logistics and everything else related to that. There are kiosks in these rural areas where one can go and top up phone credit, or one can do it electronically online.

Among these different projects, one of your major ones you have achieved is the migration you do for digital tools. Can you explain in more detail?

In Ghana, there are a lot of TV companies, so it was important for Ghana to do this migration on time, as per ITU requirements. We participated in a tender which we won, because even eight years before this, we had already been providing digital services on satellite platforms. We built 42 digital locations, or transmitter sites, in Ghana with digital equipment and backup power systems inside shelters. They are all powered and controlled from the Broadcast Head-end. The Head-end is where you have all the broadcasters concentrating their contribution feeds before we send it out for distribution to the transmission stations.

There are also comprehensive systems for monitoring the various transmission sites to ensure they are constantly in optimum operating conditions. There is also a call center for receiving calls from broadcasters who might have issues, and/or require support for the optimization of their broadcast services, etc.

Is that something that can be replicated in other countries?

This is our general agenda at the moment. You can only build a broadcast platform, maintain, and improve per country. As a telecom company and creating a niche for ourselves, we always think about how we can provide services for mass consumer facing companies. So, that led us into the broadcasting. Now we are in many of the West African areas where we are actively participating in digital conferences, digital migration agendas, meetings, etc. But to send this message better, we have entered into a strong relationship with ECOWAS, which is the Economic Community of West African States. We want to provide digital radio and TV platforms for the ECOWAS community. We will provide one TV station and one radio station, which will actually be stationed in Liberia, and will transmit across the 15 ECOWAS member states. Once this is working and it is doing well, ECOWAS will use this to market their agenda, and we on the other hand will get the opportunity to assist individual countries improve their broadcast infrastructure, example migrate from analog to digital TV broadcast.

We call this lighting up of the ECOWAS states and this gives us the opportunity to provide all our other services including rural telephony, Internet access, etc., and replicate what we have done in Ghana in the other member countries.

What stage is this project currently in?

The stage we are at now is that we have met with ministers and cabinet members of various countries. Three key ones are closing up on this deal. A fortnight ago, we met with the ECOWAS parliament where we clearly demonstrated some of the advantages and values of the ECOWAS community having a TV station and a radio station. That went quite well. The next step is to sign contracts and deliver a solution. Before the end of the year, we should be actively involved in three countries providing the solution. We have developed what we call, DTH now, DTT as you go. DTH meaning direct to home TV now for any country that wants it and then digital terrestrial TV as you go along. The cost of implementing the digital terrestrial TV platform is quite expensive. And for developing countries or West African states, it is a challenge to raise huge sums of money. Our strategy is to leverage on what digital dividend provides per country. When you migrate from analog TV to digital TV, you get a spectrum available called a digital dividend. Most countries will sell this to mobile operators so they can provide better services. We migrate the country to a satellite digital platform that allows the analog TVs to migrate away from the spectrum onto digital satellite TV. The spectrum then becomes available for sale. When it is sold, the money is used to build DTT, digital terrestrial platform as you go. So, you raise the money, for example, 100 million dollars, from selling your spectrum. You want to spend 20 million on three key states and 80 million on other parts of the country that you need the money for, for example, infrastructure, health, agriculture, education, etc. Then, you look for the next bit of money and continue. If you have a country that has four, five, ten regions, you can do it slowly, but remember that everybody has TV instantly already so the terrestrial is only when you think it is very important, then you build it along. It is important to develop these technological platforms for developing countries like us in West Africa.

The people in these countries need a lot of varied services and it gives governments the opportunity to focus on the people and their needs. Essentially, health, agriculture, and education are key. One important thing that we have done in Ghana which we would like to replicate in other countries in West Africa is an educational programme, we have christened One Classroom to Many. Here we use our Satellite-based VSAT services to broadcast interactive educational instructions and lessons on behalf of a privately-owned company to various classrooms and schools in rural communities within Ghana. Rural residents have a big screen TV and audio systems in their classrooms for interactive sessions with the instructor based in the city. There is a press of a button to ask a question, and a teacher responds  all these happening onlline in real-time. It is very exciting and is making a lot of difference in rural based schools. One teacher in Accra can serve many rural communities. The teacher is teaching in Accra, and it is broadcasted to the whole of West Africa. Our satellite covers 22 countries, so all these countries can view this lesson, but for now it is tailored towards certain areas in Ghana because of the language barriers, etc. We would like to collaborate more with other companies so we can expand this service to other West African countries.

What are some of your CSR activities?

There are a lot of things we pride ourselves with as things we have done locally that work for the international community: broadcasting, Internet access, school education system, interconnect platforms, etc. Currently, in Ghana, the rural telephony platform is key for us because we built this platform eight years ago and it is still running. It has done a lot of good for the rural residents. For example, they are now able to sell their farm produce at more competitive prices, and can communicate among themselves better. Previously, they had to climb to grounds and mountains to be able to communicate on mobile phones  there is a documentary on YouTube on this called the Rural Telephony. Our social responsibility here is that the Internet access that we give to the rural area residents is free of charge. In rural telephony, you make calls through GSM. We connect these platforms to a GSM platform and the subscribers pay the operators a subscription fee or talk time credit, but the Internet access they use is free of charge. Internet access to the individual is what is going to close the digital gap.

What challenges do you face to develop all these points and to grow?

The challenges we face as a private entity trying to bring about technological advancement to our various countries is two-fold. One factor is an internal one and the other external.

Internally, the challenge a private entity like ours faces, is the availability of the right level of human resource to help drive the companys developmental agenda. Externally, the challenge is with government.

For example, Ghana is developing very quickly in terms of connectivity. Every app that comes out today for use in any kind of business needs some level of connectivity. Big or small, connectivity is important. Operators who are active in that space today only focus on capital and sub capital and very little focus is given to rural. But, the next billion to be made is in the rural area. There are more people in the rural areas that need connectivity who are getting educated by our installation of these rural school programs. They are becoming hungrier for Internet access because they are now educated. Unfortunately, because there is no key infrastructure in these rural areas, the only way to serve these people today is by satellite. The Government regulator has placed a large license fee for VSAT operators. If the capital cities have fiber infrastructure and there is less infrastructure in the rural area, the only way to serve the rural folk is via satellite, using a VSAT Hub. Why would the governmental agency put a huge premium on these services, so we have to pay huge license fees for satellite services before we can deliver to the rural areas, who are already denied infrastructure and do not have as much finances to pay for Internet access? That is a key challenge to our development. We do not want to criticize the government, but if the government can hold some stakeholder meetings and have a clearer understanding of what the Internet can do for this country, especially for the rural areas, some of these unnecessary licenses can be waived off and we can provide much faster and better services to that sector of the economy.

Project yourself into the medium term, two to three years time, what is your vision? What would you like to have achieved by that time if your plans go well?

The focus is still on providing some kind of back end service for customer or consumer facing companies. We are back-end service providers and we are coming up with a new solution that will allow every rural person in West Africa to be able to be part of the digital inclusion agenda. E-commerce, for example, is revolutionizing life everywhere today using apps. We are looking at providing interactive connectivity by satellite at a very competitive, affordable cost, equivalent to and better than the mobile operators in every corner. Very soon, in any corner of West Africa, under the footprint of the 22 countries where we provide service, you can do a mobile commerce transaction with your media gateway -your decoder, your television, or phone- and connect to one of our platforms. Standard TV platforms receive only antennas, modified a little bit at a fraction of the cost to be able to provide interactive connectivity, enough to be able to do simple mobile money and mobile commerce transactions and simple information systems. It is a general app that we will roll out that will allow you to do a lot of things. In two years, we want to dominate the broadcast sector in West Africa and allow enhanced digital services on these platforms.

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Interview with Fares Akl, Managing Director at Qualiplast Ghana

What is your assessment of the plastic products sector in Ghana and the subregion? What are the latest trends and where is the sector in 2018?

The plastic sector in general in West Africa needs to be worked on. There are a lot of innovations to be done and more development is needed. We are still lacking far behind and people are still producing the same products that they were in the 60s and the 70s. We can see the same packaging and the same consumer products being produced since the last 30 or 40 years.

Is this only in Africa or internationally as well? Why is it not evolving?

My experience is mainly here or in the African sub Saharan region where there has been no development. I personally have been a member of the Institute of Packaging, I am the Vice President now, and I was one of the founders of the Institute of Packaging in Ghana. There are a lot of developments still to be processed. For instance, we have a lot of natural resources, like cashew nuts, shea nuts, etc. These are products that need to be packed in better packaging and we are not able to pack it properly. People come from outside the capital and they put the product in bulk in bamboo baskets and just want to send it away. Tomatoes, for example, are being put in wooden boxes and being sent to the capital with about 35% post-harvest losses.

Why is this? It is because they are not aware or that it is too expensive? Is it because you are not present?

We export around 30% of our product today throughout the West African region, including household products and industrial products.

There are policies missing in the system. The government must put policies in place for farmers and traders. In the past, we transported beer, Pepsi, Coke, and soft drinks in wooden half crates. We cut down all our trees and destroyed our forests in the 60s and 70s. Then, there was a policy put into place to stop cutting down our forests and destroying our wood. You could only use the crate two or three times in the system and later ended up burning them. Once they put that policy into place to stop cutting the trees, everyone had to move to plastic full-depth crates. These rigid plastic crates today can be used over 25 years and later on you recycle the same crate and reuse it again. We are saving our nature and our environment. This comes back to the consumer. You can imagine how much we can save in the agriculture sector as well as our sector and our community if we start transporting our agri products in plastic rather than wooden crates.

What is your product range in West Africa?

We produce products for the industrial sector. We are into plastic packaging, injection molding, and blow molding. We do injection molding of products like caps, which is the smallest product such as toothpaste caps, to the largest at the waste garbage bins, as well as basins, buckets, and more. We can go even bigger to produce plastic pallets to replace the wooden pallets. Anything you can imagine in injection molding plastics, we can do. In blow molding, we produce our smallest bottle from  liter to jerry cans of 20 liters, 25 liters, up to 100 liters. These jerry cans we make for oil marketing companies like Total, Shell, etc. We also make ice chests for storing cold goods.

You sell to both the consumer and the industrialist, two sectors. Which do you promote the most? To consumers, you sell through supermarkets or outlets, but you also sell directly to the companies. How do you address these two different markets?

We have a marketing team, part of which sells directly to consumers. We have outlets in Ghana -Accra, Tema, Kumasi, Tamale, Takoradi- that deal directly with the markets. We have about seven of these and they are our own company outlets. There is another team that deals with the industrial sector. This team goes directly to the industrialists like Unilever, Nestle, the breweries, all the bottling companies, pharmaceuticals, all these sectors.

What is your competitive advantage? You are not the only plastic products producer. Are you one of the leading companies? Where are you better than the other companies and what do you bring that is different?

We are the only company that is ISO certified. We are 9001 2015 ISO certified and we have 40001 ISO certification. We also have OHSAS certification. We have certain procedures that take place on an hourly and daily basis, which is checked by each and every one of us inside the operation from operators to technicians to supervisors. We make sure that each product that comes out is checked against a checklist. That is an advantage to our clients, especially in the industrial sector. Another advantage is that we have a professional team that deals with every item and every product. Every product that is not produced or cannot be produced on the market, professionals have visited us here to look for special materials that have been produced in our company. It is a key factor for us. ABS is a special material that not every company can produce in Ghana. Polycarbonate is another product no one else is producing here. Those are special products, so-called technical materials. Any one of the 40 plastics manufacturers in Ghana can produce polyethylene and polypropylene, in the polyolefin family, but they cannot produce these technical materials.

What advantage does this ABS material give you?

If you want to go into car manufacturing today in Ghana, Qualiplast can start at any moment. Polyamide, which is a nylon material, we are ready to start producing in Ghana today. As Ghana is ready to receive investors to start producing or assembling cars and trucks, as our president announced recently during his visit to China and when Counselor Merkel visited Ghana, Qualiplast is ready for this task. Other companies cannot produce these technical products, but our machines are specialized to produce those technical plastics. You need not only the technology but also the expertise, which we have.

You also are active in exporting. How much do you export?

We export around 30% of our product today throughout the West African region, including household products and industrial products. We have a lot of industries in the West African region that rely on our product.

How do you achieve your exporting?

I used to go personally myself, but for the last ten years, we have had a team of marketing experts that travel around and follow up on our markets internationally.

What is your strategy to develop yourself?

Pushing for export in the West African region is very essential for us. We need foreign exchange, but we do not want to forget about the local market. We are focusing on giving priority to the technical products and the special products. The most important is to add value to our product and diversify. We are not going to continue for the same old product. There are over 40 manufacturers in Ghana keeping the same product going for the last 30 years. Ghana has been like that for several years. Somebody comes in as a trader selling baskets and then years later, he is still selling the same basket. The trader becomes an industrialist. Times have changed. Today, the day has come for a professional person to lead the industry knowing what he is doing and understanding the system.

Project yourself into the medium term, two to three years time. What will Qualiplast be if all your strategy and developing goes well?

We are looking at the stable economy ahead. We are definitely going to continue investing and diversifying. We want to increase our export and our capacity. This is very important for us. We will do this through investment, which we have never stopped. We will invest in new equipment and new designs for molds.

Will you still produce here in Ghana and export, or do you have plans to start producing somewhere else?

No, only in Ghana. Personally, I am leaving it up to my children, the second generation, to continue the business. They were here since childhood and they will continue being committed, as I was the last 40 years, to the business and to growing this business from what it is now. Innovation is the way and we are looking into expansion as well.

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Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) is believed to be one of the most contagious pathogens of animals in its acute form; however, there is still controversy over whether it is transmissible from asymptomatic, long-term carriers. Despite the lack of evidence for transmission by direct contact with FMDV carrier cattle, there is demonstrable contagion associated with these animals, according to a new study published in the journal mSphere. The findings impact the way countries manage foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), a viral disease of livestock with substantial impact on agricultural production and subsistence farming on a global scale.

"An outstanding question in the FMD research world is 'do carrier animals ever transmit the virus?' There is this conventional wisdom that they do not matter. We performed this study to see if, under slightly contrived conditions, we can show that carriers will transmit foot-and-mouth disease to naive-unexposed animals, and the answer was 'yes'," said Jonathan Arzt, Veterinary Medical Officer at the Foreign Animal Disease Research Unit, United States Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service (USDA/ARS) Plum Island Animal Disease Center, Orient Pt, New York. "Before this study, we questioned the legitimacy of the concept that there is a threat from these animals, but now we have a better vision that it is true."

Control and eradication of FMD have been complicated by the existence of a persistent, subclinical, phase of infection in ruminants. To prevent the spread of FMD and minimize trade impacts, countries that are FMD-free, such as North America, Europe, and Australia, euthanize these so-called carrier animals, even though the benefit of killing them is unclear.

In the new study, the investigators from USDA/ARS and the Technical University of Denmark (DTU-Vet) exposed susceptible cattle and pigs to oropharyngeal fluid or tissues harvested from persistently infected cattle. These inoculated cattle developed clinical FMD of similar severity as animals that had been infected with a high-titer inoculum. In contrast, pigs exposed via intra-oropharyngeal inoculation of the same fluid, or by ingestion of the infected tissues harvested from the same cohort of persistently infected cattle, did not develop FMD.

The new research demonstrates that countries that are FMD-free need to continue to cull carrier animals until better products are developed to justify "vaccinate-to-live" strategies. "There is this perception by countries that carrier animals have residual contagion, and if we don't go around and euthanize all these animals, the disease is going to spread," said Carolina Stenfeldt, DVM, Ph.D., a visiting scientist at the USDA's Foreign Animal Disease Research Unit, who conceived the new study. "Unfortunately, this study confirms that is at least, in part, true. I would rather be giving the world evidence that we don't have to euthanize those animals, but the reality is right now if we don't, then we are missing FMDV."

The study suggests that FMDV carriers may be relevant to the epidemiology of this disease in FMD-endemic regions, which includes Asia and Africa, despite the prevalent conventional wisdom that carriers do not matter in the field. "This is the first study that unambiguously demonstrates FMDV contagion in carrier cattle," said Dr. Arzt. "Clearly, we need better vaccines and products that are going to prevent the carrier state."

The 2001 FMD outbreak in the United Kingdom and continental Europe affected approximately 10 million animals and cost an estimated $14 billion.

Explore further Scientists discover how foot-and-mouth disease virus begins infection in cattle
Which version of this man looks the most corrupt? Your brain has already decided. Credit: California Institute of Technology

An old joke says if you want to know if a politician is lying, see if their lips are moving. New research shows that people can predict something about a politician's honesty just by looking at them, but it's not the lips they're noticing.

A series of studies conducted by Caltech researchers show that when people are shown photos of politicians they're not familiar with, they can make better-than-chance judgments about whether those politicians have been convicted of corruption. People can make these judgments even without knowing anything about the politicians or their careers. And one thing they seem to be picking up on is how wide the politicians' faces are.

The individual people making these judgments do only very slightly better than if they were making a random guess (although the difference is statistically significant). However, the judgments become much more accurate when they are combined across a group of people.

Face widenesstechnically, the facial width-to-height ratiohas been shown in previous research to be correlated with aggressive behavior in men. That is, men with wider faces have a greater tendency to be aggressive and threatening toward others than do men with thinner faces. Studies have also shown that wide-faced men are perceived by others to be more threatening than men with thinner faces.

The new Caltech study is the first to show that observers have a knack for picking out corrupt politicians based on just a portrait and that observers perceive politicians with wider faces as more corruptible.

"It might be difficult to understand why you can look at others' faces and tell something about them," says Chujun Lin, study co-author and Caltech graduate student. "But there is no doubt that people form first impressions from faces all the time. For example, on dating sites people often reject potential matches based on pictures without reading the profile."

However, it's important to note that the researchers are not claiming that politicians who look corruptible are inherently more corrupt than those who look honest. Their research shows a connection between facial appearance and corruption, but, they say, there could be many explanations. One possibility is that if a face conveys a sense of dishonesty, the politician might be offered bribes more often. Another possibility is that corruptible-looking politicians are not any more corruptible than honest-looking politicians, but because of their looks they are more often suspected of, investigated for, and convicted of corruption.

"If a jury is deciding whether or not a politician is guilty, having a corruptible-looking face might create a negative impression, which might influence the jury's decision," says Lin, who adds that the "clean" politicians used in the study might not actually be clean. "Maybe they just haven't been caught."

The study, which appears in the journal Psychological Science, consisted of four parts.

Part 1: The researchers collected pictures of 72 politicians who held office at the state or federal level. Half had been convicted of corruption and half had clean records. For consistency, all of the politicians included were male and Caucasian. All of the photos were black-and-white; cropped to the same size; and featured a frontal, smiling portrait. The images were presented randomly to 100 volunteers, who were asked to rate each politician on how corruptible, dishonest, selfish, trustworthy, and generous they looked.

An analysis of the data collected showed that the volunteers as a group were able to correctly differentiate the corrupt politicians from the clean politicians nearly 70 percent of the time based on their faces alone.

Part 2: The second part of the study replicated part 1, but used photos of 80 politicians elected to state and local offices in California. Half had violated the California Political Reform Acta law that regulates campaign finance, lobbying, and politicians' conflicts of interestand half had clean records. As before, the data showed that the volunteers could correctly differentiate the corrupt politicians from the clean politicians nearly 70 percent of the time.

Part 3: The third part of the study used the images from part 1, but asked the volunteers to judge the politicians on a new set of criteria: corruptibility, aggressiveness, masculinity, competence, and ambitiousness. The data from this study showed that only corruptibility-related trait inferences (inferences of corruptibility, dishonesty, selfishness, aggressiveness, generosity, and trustworthiness) differentiated corrupt politicians from the clean politicians. Inferences of competence, ambitiousness, or masculinity did not predict the politicians' records.

Part 4a: In the fourth section of the study, the researchers examined which of the politicians' facial structures the volunteers associated with dishonesty and corruption. The faces were characterized by eight measures that described things like distance between the eyes, size of the cheekbones, nose length, and face width. By comparing the data from those measures against the judgments made by the volunteers and the records of corruption convictions, the researchers found that politicians with higher facial-width ratios were more likely to be perceived as corruptible.

Part 4b: To double check that face width was truly the characteristic driving negative perceptions about a given politician, the researchers gathered photos of 150 politicians and digitally manipulated each into a wide-faced version and a narrow-faced version. The 450 resulting photos, including the 150 unaltered originals, were shown to 100 participants who were asked, as in the previous studies, to rate each image according to how corruptible the politician seemed. And again, face width made the difference. The volunteers judged the wide-faced versions of the politicians to be more corruptible than their thin-faced counterparts.

"These findings raise many interesting questions for future research," says Lin. "For example, what is the underlying causal mechanism of the correlation between perceived corruptibility and politicians' records found in our study? Are politicians who look more corruptible more likely to be suspected, investigated, and even convicted?"

The findings might make a person wonder why corrupt politicians get elected in the first place if people can tell they're corrupt just by looking at them. Co-author Ralph Adolphs (Ph.D. '92), Bren Professor of Psychology, Neuroscience, and Biology, and director and Allen V. C. Davis and Lenabelle Davis Leadership Chair of the Caltech Brain Imaging Center, says that a lot more than just a face goes into how you feel about a person.

"In the real world, you're not just seeing a photo of a politician. You're seeing them talk and move," says Adolphs, who is also on the leadership team of the Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute for Neuroscience. "Their face might make a first impression on you, but there are other factors that can come in and override that."

Before conducting this study, Lin researched how politicians' facial characteristics relate to their success in elections across different cultures. She plans to continue her research on the judgments people make based on facial structures. Her next study asks volunteers to judge people from all walks of life on 100 different characteristics such as helpfulness, meanness, and healthiness, based on their faces.

The study, titled "Inferring Whether Officials Are Corruptible From Looking At Their Faces" was published in Psychological Science on September 12. Michael Alvarez, a Caltech political science professor, is also a co-author. Funding for the research was provided by the Caltech Conte Center for Neurosciences and the National Institute of Mental Health.

More information: Chujun Lin et al, Inferring Whether Officials Are Corruptible From Looking At Their Faces, Psychological Science (2018). Journal information: Psychological Science Chujun Lin et al, Inferring Whether Officials Are Corruptible From Looking At Their Faces,(2018). DOI: 10.1177/0956797618788882
This Friday, Aug. 24, 2018 file photo taken from video shows the exterior of the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in Hurghada, Egypt. Egypt's chief prosecutor said Wednesday. Sept. 12, 2018 that tests showed that e.coli bacteria were behind the death of two British tourists in the hotel in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada. Travel company Thomas Cook said last week that there was a "high level of e.coli and staphylococcus bacteria" at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel where John and Susan Cooper, a couple in their 60s, died Aug. 21. (AP Photo, File)

Tests showed that e.coli bacteria were behind the death of two British tourists in a hotel in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Hurghada, the country's chief prosecutor said on Wednesday.

The statement by Prosecutor Nabil Sadek came a week after travel company Thomas Cook said that there was a "high level of e.coli and staphylococcus bacteria" at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel where John and Susan Cooper died Aug. 21 after falling ill in their room in the five-star hotel.

Forensic tests showed that John Cooper, 69, suffered acute intestinal dysentery caused by e.coli, and Susan Cooper, 64, suffered Hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS), likely because of e.coli, Sadek said.

He said that tests also showed no links between the couples' death and the spraying of their neighboring room with lambda-cyhalothrin 5 per cent. The insecticide is safe to use, according to the statement.

The couple's bodies showed "no criminal violence" and other tests showed no toxic or harmful gas emissions or leaks in their room and tests on air and water at the hotel found nothing unusual, the statement said.

There was not an immediate comment from the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel. Thomas Cook meanwhile said they need time for their own experts to review the prosecutor's statement.

Egyptian authorities have in Aug. dismissed criminal motives as being behind the deaths. They said an initial medical examination of John Cooper showed he had suffered acute circulatory collapse and a sudden cardiac arrest. It also said Susan Cooper was later rushed to hospital after fainting and underwent resuscitation attempts for 30 minutes but died.

The Cooper couple's deaths last week prompted tour operator Thomas Cook to evacuate its 301 customers from the hotel as a "precautionary measure."

Egypt's vital tourism industry has been dealt severe blow due to political turmoil that ensued after a 2011 uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. A 2015 Islamic State bombing of a Russian passenger plane over the Sinai Peninsula, which killed all 224 people on board, was among several incidents that led to the decimation of the country's multibillion dollar industry. Russia subsequently imposed a two-year-ban on all flights to Egypt.

Earlier this year, Russian flights to Cairo resumed but flights to resort cities have yet to be decided upon.

Britain, another major source of visitors to Egypt, also suspended flights to Sharm el-Sheikh, the popular Red Sea resort in Sinai from which the doomed Russian airliner took off shortly before it crashed.

The government has gone to great lengths to bolster the sector by launching tourism campaigns, touting new archaeological discoveries, boosting security around historical sites and stepping up security at airports.

Explore further Egypt coroner says E. coli led to deaths of British couple

 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

People who have long-term raised blood pressure have an increased risk of aortic valve disease (AVD) - problems with the valve that controls how blood is pumped from the left ventricle of the heart out into the main artery, the aorta.

In a study of 5.4 million adults in the UK, published in the European Heart Journal today (Thursday), researchers found that above a systolic blood pressure of 115 mmHg, every additional 20 mmHg was associated with a 41% higher risk of aortic stenosis (AS) and a 38% higher risk of aortic regurgitation (AR) later in life. Compared to people who had a systolic blood pressure of 120 mmHg or lower, those with systolic blood pressure of 161 mmHg or higher had more than twice the risk of being diagnosed with AS and were nearly twice as likely to be diagnosed with AR during follow-up.

The findings suggest that controlling blood pressure, even at levels below the threshold currently defined for hypertension of 140/90 mmHg, may be a way to prevent these conditions. "These findings collectively suggest that AS and AR might be partially preventable with potential implications on clinical practice guidelines for prevention of cardiovascular disease in general and valvular heart disease and hypertension in particular," write the authors of the EHJ paper.

AS is a condition in which the valve that opens and closes when blood is pumped out of the left ventricle becomes narrowed and stiff due to calcium building up. When this happens, the valve fails to work effectively, making it harder for the heart to pump blood to the rest of the body. AR occurs when the valve doesn't close properly, allowing some blood to leak back into the left ventricle.

During an average follow-up time of more than nine years, 20,680 (0.38%) of the 5.4 million patients in the study were diagnosed with AS alone and 6440 (0.12%) were diagnosed with AR alone. The average age at the time of diagnosis was 64 years and 57 years for AS and AR respectively.

Researchers, led by Kazem Rahimi, deputy director and associate professor of cardiovascular medicine at The George Institute for Global Health, University of Oxford, UK, analysed data from electronic health records for the UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink from January 1990 to December 2015. The CPRD database contains anonymised patient data from 674 general practices in the UK. The patients included in this analysis were aged between 30 and 90 years, and none had any known heart or blood vessel diseases at the time of their earliest blood pressure measurement.

An average of nearly seven blood pressure measurements per patient were taken during the study period, which helped to estimate the patient's actual blood pressure better. The ability to collect data over a long period of time, combined with the large number of patients, makes this the first study substantial enough to investigate the link between blood pressure and aortic valve disease and how it changes with age and with different blood pressure levels.

Professor Rahimi said: "The study shows that serious valvular heart diseases that are common at old age are not simply due to aging. Long-term exposure to higher blood pressure is a strong and potentially modifiable risk factor for aortic stenosis and regurgitation at every level of typical blood pressure, not only in those who are classified as having hypertension. Blood pressure should be considered as a major risk factor for aortic valve disease, much in the same way as we think of elevated blood pressure as a risk factor for atherosclerotic disease. The study suggests that the associations are causal, but this requires further confirmation."

Previous research has suggested that the mechanism involved in the link between blood pressure and AVD could be that higher blood pressure can cause cell damage leading to a loss of elasticity in the aorta and stiffening of the aortic valve.

Limitations of the study include the possibility that raised blood pressure may be an indication of an underlying problem with arterial stiffness that is caused by something else. To investigate this further, the researchers are carrying out a study that uses genetic indicators for higher blood pressure that are not affected by environmental factors. Another limitation is the use of data from a general practice registry, which might be prone to errors in measuring blood pressure, other factors that might affect the results, and patient outcomes.

In an editorial to accompany the research paper, Dr. Stefano Masi from the Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Universita di Pisa, Italy, and Dr. Alberto Giannoni from the Fondazione Toscana Gabriele Monasterio, Pisa, who were not involved with the research, write that the study "provides the first solid evidence supporting the need for a radical shift in the approach to AVD. Indeed, over the last few years, the research on valvular heart disease has been focused on improving treatment rather than prevention strategies.....Thus, the findings provided by Rahimi et al might be considered the first step towards a change in the management of AVD and likely to influence future clinical trials and guidelines. Current European guidelines for the management of arterial hypertension do not consider AVDs as manifestations of heart damage related to hypertension and, consequently, do not suggest accurate assessment of aortic valve function and structure in patients with arterial hypertension. Also, they might stimulate new lines of research, particularly imaging studies, with the scope of identifying early alterations of the aortic valve in patients with hypertension that might be highly predictive of future AVD".

The proportion of people living with AS is estimated to be around 0.4% of the population in the USA, although the prevalence increases with age; in the US, 0.02% of 18-44-year-olds have AS, but 2.8% of people aged 75 and over are diagnosed with it. For AR the corresponding prevalence in these age groups is estimated to be 0.2% and 2% respectively, and the prevalence for AS and AR is similar in Europe. The number of people diagnosed with severe aortic valve disease has grown steadily in recent years and is expected to continue with the aging of populations.

Explore further How low is too low? Study highlights serious risks for intensive blood pressure control
Dartmouth Institute Assistant Professor Paul Barr, Ph.D., led a first-of-kind study that assesses the attitudes of doctors and the public toward recording clinical visits. The research team also surveyed 49 of the largest health systems in the US to determine whether they currently have in place policies on the sharing of recordings for doctors and patients. Credit: The Dartmouth Institute

With over three-quarters of Americans now owning a smartphone, healthcare researchers have speculated that the number of patients recording visits with their doctor was increasing. However, a new study by researchers from The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice is the first to measure the prevalence of recording of clinical visits in the United States. The first-of-its-kind study, recently published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, also assesses the attitudes of doctors and the public toward recording, and surveys 49 of the largest health systems in the U.S. to determine whether they currently have in place policies on the sharing of recordings for doctors and patients.

"We know that up to 80% of healthcare information is forgotten by patients after their clinic visit," says Dartmouth Institute Assistant Professor Paul Barr, Ph.D., the study's lead investigator. "There's also been significant research that shows access to recordings can improve patient satisfaction and increase understanding of medical information. But, this is the first study, to my knowledge, that surveys doctor and patient attitudes to try to really understand how they feel about recordings and where things might be headed."

The research team used online surveys to assess clinician and patient attitudes about recording. To ensure a diverse representation of specialists, researchers included clinicians from the following eight specialties: emergency medicine, general/family medicine, internal medicine, general surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, orthopedic surgery, physical rehabilitation, and psychiatry. To assess patient attitude toward recording, the research team surveyed over 500 adults from 48 statesin a sample that was representative of U.S. demographics.

Among their findings on clinician attitudes:

28% reported recording a clinical visit for a patient's personal use.

Among those who had not, 50% were willing to do so, while 50% were not.

Analysis found that only clinical specialty (as opposed to factors such as gender or length of time in practice) was associated with recording a visit in the past.

Clinicians in oncology and physical rehabilitation were more likely to have recorded a visit, while clinicians in general/family practice were least likely to have recorded a visit.

Among their findings on public attitudes:

16% of respondents reported recording a clinic visit with permission, while only 3% did so secretly (without asking permission first); 82% had never recorded a clinic visit.

59% said they would consider recording with the permission of the doctor, while only 7% said they would consider recording without a doctor's permission.

Analysis found that individuals who reported having recorded a visit with permission of a doctor were more likely to be male, to be younger, and to speak a language other than English at home.

While 63% of individual respondents were interested in recording a visit in the future.

Only 10% of respondents said their clinic (doctor's office) offered recordings of visits for personal use.

A limitation of the study was that focusing on a sample of the public, rather than a sample of patients, may underrepresent the prevalence of recording occurring in healthcare, as it includes respondents who may have limited experience with health systems.

Of the 49 health systems surveyed, none reported having a dedicated policy or guidance for doctors or patients on the practice of sharing recordings; two said they had an existing policy which would cover patient requests for audio and video recordings of clinical visits.

The researchers conclude that their findings suggest that while patients and individual healthcare providers are taking the lead on sharing recordings of clinical visits, policy makers are lagging behind. They also note that dissemination of innovation in healthcare has a tipping point of between 15-20%, after which it's difficult to stop, and that recording and sharing of clinical visits may have reached this point.

"Recording clinical visits could help us tackle some of the biggest challenges in healthcare. It could help patients with chronic conditions better adhere to their treatment plans, potentially lowering costs. It could help alleviate the documentation burden many healthcare providers currently face," Barr says. "But, we urgently need to have some policy guidelines in place for clinicians and patientswe needed them yesterday."

More information: Paul J Barr et al, Toward Open Recordings: The prevalence of recording clinic visits for patients' personal use in the U.S. (Preprint), Journal of Medical Internet Research (2018). Journal information: Journal of Medical Internet Research Paul J Barr et al, Toward Open Recordings: The prevalence of recording clinic visits for patients' personal use in the U.S. (Preprint),(2018). DOI: 10.2196/11308

Provided by The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

School's back, summer's over, and area pharmacies are enticing customers with low-cost flu vaccinations on every corner.

The Baltimore Sun checked in with Dr. Kathleen M. Neuzil, director of the Center for Vaccine Development at University of Maryland School of Medicine, and area pediatrician Dr. Dan Levy, to pose questions about this year's influenza vaccine.

Q: When should I get a flu shot?

A: Now would be good.

"Flu season in Maryland is usually between October and April," said Levy. "It tends to peak out in colder months when kids are indoors coughing on each other."

To prepare, Neuzil advises getting a flu shot by the end of October. But sooner may be better for some people. "It's more important to get the dose than to wait and not get a dose."

The vaccine takes a week or two to be effective, and those who wait may be out of luck if the flu hits early.

Children getting the flu shot for the first time need two doses, four weeks apart. "Absolutely children need to receive a vaccine as early as possible," Neuzil said.

Q: Who should get a vaccine?

A: Almost everyone. The Center for Disease Control recommends that everyone older than 6 months get a flu vaccine.

Q: I'm healthy. Why do I need a flu shot?

A: It's not all about you.

"There are a lot of young healthy people who feel invincible and don't believe they need the flu shot," said Neuzil. "Also remember that you're getting an influenza vaccine to protect the people around you," such as babies, elderly folks and those with compromised immune systems.

Levy talked about the principle of "herd immunizationmeaning "the more people in a population you get covered with a vaccine the more likely it is that you'll prevent an epidemic," he said. "If children don't get sick themselves, they can't spread the flu."

Q: Is this year's flu going to be bad?

A: Hard to say. Influenza can be a life-threatening illness, but its virulence varies from year to year.

"My favorite line is 'influenza is predictably unpredictable,'" said Neuzil.

Although last year was a severe season in the United States, it was less severe in other parts of the world. Doctors can't say when it will hit, or how virulent it will be.

Q: Can I get a nasal spray?

A: Yes. This year the nasal spray will be widely available in the United States. Neuzil says it's just as effective as a shot for people ages 2 and older. "Traditionally the nasal spray has worked extremely well in children," she said.

In past years, some authorities had been cautious in endorsing the nasal spray, Neuzil said. But it was widely and successfully used in the U.K. last year, and other studies have proven its effectiveness.

This year, "Parents can use either the spray or the shot as long as the child is at least 2 years or older."

The CDC recommends the nasal spray flu vaccine (or live attenuated influenza vaccine) as an option for non-pregnant individuals ages 2 to 49.

Q: Are there any risks associated with the flu shot?

A: No. "I think there is a lot of hesitancy about vaccines in general," Neuzil said. But the flu shot has been around for a long timeand scientists have studied it to prevent side effects. Common side effects include a sore arm from the shot or a runny nose from the nasal spray.

While older versions of the vaccine, perhaps 40 years ago, may have caused some side effects, modern vaccines are well-tolerated, Neuzil said.

Q: Is it possible to get the flu even after being vaccinated?

A: Yes. "The vaccine is never 100 percent effective," Levy said.

Still, even for those who do end up getting the flu, the vaccine will help it be less severe, and it will be less likely that the patient ends up in the hospital.

Levy said about 180 children died in the U.S. from flu last yearhe thinks many of those deaths could have been prevented had the kids been vaccinated.

Q: Can I get sick from the flu shot?

A: No. "You cannot get sick from the flu shot," Neuzil said. "There's no live virus there."

A small portion of people may find that they coincidentally get a headache the following day and may be tempted to blame the vaccine. "It's human nature to correlate the two," she said.

But in reality, she said, the flu shot doesn't make people sick. "Sometimes there are other viruses that are circulating in the community."

Explore further All children should receive flu vaccine ASAP, doctors advise

2018 The Baltimore Sun

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Adventure is out there!

Nepal is a country blessed with beautiful landscapes ranging from awe-inspiring mountains to historical landmarks. Yet for most, to actually see it with their own eyes seem like a far off dream.
(HealthDay)With millions of pain-plagued Americans looking for an alternative to opioids, the solution for some might be no medicine at all.

New research suggests that a good many back pain patients might find relief in a "dummy" sugar pill, eliminating their need for strong medication.

About half the chronic back pain patients in a new study saw the intensity of their pain drop roughly 30 percent after taking a placebo, or dummy pill. That's about as much pain relief as they would get taking standard painkillers, according to Northwestern University researchers in Chicago.

What's more, a patient's brain anatomy and psychological makeup can help doctors predict who will react well to a sugar pill, the researchers said.

"The standard classic idea has been that placebo response is not predictablethat some subjects may respond at one time, but then not respond in a second exposure," explained study author A. Vania Apkarian. "This study rigorously dispels this notion."

Apkarian is a professor of anesthesia, physical medicine and rehabilitation at Northwestern's Feinberg School of Medicine.

The "placebo effect" has fascinated scientists for ages. This new study provides "additional evidence that placebos may play an important role in helping some patients reduce pain and improve function," said Dr. Mark Bicket, a pain management specialist at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore.

"While placebo pills may not be for everyone, certain patients may respond particularly well to this type of treatment," Bicket said. "A 30 percent reduction in a person's pain is a meaningful reduction, based on past studies."

With this level of pain reduction, many patients can be more active and take fewer medications, including opioids, said Bicket, who wasn't involved in the study.

That would be welcome news, given the opioid addiction crisis gripping the United States. And it might also help reduce drug spending, the researchers pointed out.

For the study, investigators randomly divided about 60 chronic back pain patients into two test groups. One group was treated with either a sugar pill or a nonopioid pain medication like Aleve; none knew which treatment they received. A second group saw a physician, but got no treatment.

Over eight weeks, daily pain ratings showed that patients getting placebo pills had stronger pain reduction and a higher response rate compared to those getting no treatment. The study did not compare results between the placebo and medication users.

Brain scans revealed that placebo-receptive patients had similar brain anatomies.

Apkarian said they tended to have asymmetrical "emotional brain" areas in the "subcortical limbic" region. This meant that the area's right side was larger than the left. Scans also showed that placebo responders had a larger so-called "cortical sensory area" than nonresponders.

Psychological testing found the placebo effect much more prevalent among patients "who are more aware of their body and emotions, and how well they can either focus or distract themselves from these sensations," Apkarian said.

The upshot is that some back pain patients appear to be "hard-wired" to respond to a sugar pill or similar type of placebo "treatment" in the absence of any true medicinal intervention, he said.

That means they will reap the placebo benefitwithout any drug-related side effectseven if they are told they are getting nothing but a sugar pill.

It's not known whether this model will work for other types of pain. "We suspect [placebo treatment] may need to be somewhat adjusted for other clinical chronic pain types," Apkarian said.

Bicket added that patients interested in placebo pills should ask their doctor whether this treatment might be appropriate for their particular case.

The findings are in the Sept. 12 issue of Nature Communications.

Explore further Placebo sweet spot for pain relief found in brain

More information: Apkar Vania Apkarian, Ph.D., professor, physiology, anesthesia, physical medicine and rehabilitation, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago; Mark Bicket, M.D., assistant professor and director, pain medicine fellowship program, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore; Sept. 12, 2018, Nature Communications

The U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke has more on Journal information: Nature Communications Apkar Vania Apkarian, Ph.D., professor, physiology, anesthesia, physical medicine and rehabilitation, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago; Mark Bicket, M.D., assistant professor and director, pain medicine fellowship program, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore; Sept. 12, 2018,The U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke has more on back pain

Copyright  2018 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
The sniff test shows: sexual hormones control a womans body odour attractiveness. Credit: Social Neurosciences / University of Bern

Reproductive hormones control a woman's monthly cycle and regulate fertility. Reproductive hormones are also related to how attractive a woman smells a study now shows. Researchers at the University of Bern demonstrate that some women smell better to men than othersnamely those who are "fittest" for reproduction.

We don't just trust our eyes but we also follow our nose: it's not just the visual impression that plays an important part when choosing a partner but also their scent  both in the animal kingdom and in human beings. Previous studies have shown that how attractive a woman smells changes across the menstrual cycle: a woman smells most attractive to the male nose during the most fertile days, during the time when she can actually reproduce. What had remained unanswered until now: Do certain women smell "better" than others?

A team of researchers led by Daria Knoch from the Social Psychology and Social Neuroscience Department at the University of Bern working together with colleagues from the University of Constance, the Thurgauer Institute of Economics and University Hospital, Inselspital Bern have now been able to show that this is actually the case: The scent of certain women is universally more appealing to men than others.

Reproductive hormones make a woman's scent attractive

The researchers also discovered the reason for this: Women are perceived to be more or in fact less attractive by men depending on their hormone levels. "Women with high oestrogen and low progesterone levels are most attractive to men in an olfactory sense," Daria Knoch says. Which undoubtedly makes sense from an evolutionary perspective. These hormone levels, lots of oestrogen and not much progesterone, indicate high female fertility. According to evolution theory, men look for women with whom they can successfully reproduce.

The researchers also investigated other factors that might influence body odour: the stress hormone cortisol and certain genes that have an impact on the immune system. "Several studies postulate that the choice of a partner is based on the man and women having a different immune system so that children are given the best possible defence against pathogens from birth," explains the lead author Janek Lobmaier from the Social Psychology and Social Neuroscience Department at the University of Bern. But the results clearly show that these two factors do not have an influence on how attractive the female scent is.

Strict trial protocol

The researchers conducted their study with 28 women and 57 men. The women who donated their body odour, followed "a strict protocol to minimise any factors that could distort the odour," says Lobmaier. The women were not allowed to use hormonal contraception, refrained from sexual relations during the time of odour collection washed themselves and their bed clothes using neutral detergents and did not drink any alcohol or eat any spicy foods on these days. During the time of peak fertility, they stuck cotton pads in their armpits overnight to "capture" their unique body odour. Their hormone levels were determined using saliva samples. Later, the men sniffed the cotton pads in the laboratory and awarded each smell 0 to 100 points  with the known result.

"Reproductive hormones are indicators of a woman's fertility. And the higher their levels are, the more attractive the woman is to men," says Lobmaier. Oestrogen, for example, also has a positive effect on how visually attractive a woman is, as studies show: high oestrogen levels make a woman's face and body attractive to men. And their scent too, with women who are not using hormonal contraception in any case. The study did not investigate how the pill affects this. "However, it is presumed that hormonal contraception may distort the body's own odour," says Knoch. The study has now been published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B journal.

Explore further Face value: How fertile women spot rivals

More information: Janek S. Lobmaier et al. The scent of attractiveness: levels of reproductive hormones explain individual differences in women's body odour, Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences (2018). Journal information: Proceedings of the Royal Society B Janek S. Lobmaier et al. The scent of attractiveness: levels of reproductive hormones explain individual differences in women's body odour,(2018). DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.1520
Electron micrograph of a negatively stained human papilloma virus (HPV) which occurs in human warts. Credit: public domain

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is widely known to cause nearly all cases of cervical cancer. However, you might not know that HPV also causes 70 percent of oropharyngeal cancer, a subset of head and neck cancers that affect the mouth, tongue, and tonsils. Although vaccines that protect against HPV infection are now available, they are not yet widespread, especially in men, nor do they address the large number of currently infected cancer patients.

Patients with head and neck cancer caused by HPV respond very differently to treatments than those whose cancer is associated with the consumption of tobacco products. The first group generally has better outcomes, with almost 80 percent of patients surviving longer than 5 years after diagnosis, compared to only 45-50 percent for patients with tobacco-related cancers.

To better understand what might cause these differences, a team of scientists led by Nevan J. Krogan, Ph.D., senior investigator at the Gladstone Institutes, is taking a unique approach by focusing on the cancer-causing virus. They recently mapped the interactions between all HPV proteins and human proteins for the first time. Their findings are published today in the journal Cancer Discovery.

"With our study, we identified several new protein interactions that were previously not known to cause cancer, expanding our knowledge of the oncogenic roles of the HPV virus" said Krogan, who is also a professor of cellular and molecular pharmacology at UC San Francisco (UCSF) and the director of the Quantitative Biosciences Institute (QBI) at UCSF. "The human proteins we found interacting with HPV are involved in both virus- and tobacco-related cancers, which means they could be potential targets for the development of new drugs or therapies."

A Complete Picture of Virus-Cancer Connections

Krogan and Manon Eckhardt, Ph.D., a postdoctoral scholar in his laboratory at Gladstone, developed an integrated strategy to identify all the interactions between HPV proteins and human proteins. First, using a method called mass spectrometry, they discovered a total of 137 interactions between HPV and human proteins.

Then, in collaboration with computational biologist Wei Zhang, Ph.D., in the laboratory of Trey Ideker, Ph.D., at UC San Diego School of Medicine, they looked at entire networks of each proteinrather than only individual proteinsto detect the most important players. They also compared their list of proteins with data from HPV-associated cancer samples published by The Cancer Genome Atlas project. This large consortium catalogued genetic mutations in tumors of various cancers.

"We integrated together these two sets of data to get a comprehensive look at potential cancer-causing interactions between HPV and head and neck cancers," said Krogan, who is co-director of the Cancer Cell Map Initiative. "This combined proteomic and genetic approach provided us with a systematic way to study the cellular mechanisms hijacked by virally induced cancers."

Common Pathways in HPV-Induced and Smoking-Related Cancers

By overlaying the protein interaction and genomics data, the scientists discovered that the HPV virus targets the same human proteins that are frequently mutated in smoking-related cancers. Interestingly, those proteins are not mutated in HPV-positive cancers.

For example, their findings reconfirmed a well-established interaction between the human protein p53 and an HPV protein called E6. In HPV-negative cancers (those related to smoking), p53 is mutated in nearly all cases. However, the same protein is rarely ever mutated in HPV-positive cancer patients.

"In both cases, when p53 is inactivated, it leads to cancer," explained Eckhardt, one of the first authors of the paper. "The difference is that the HPV virus finds a different way of attacking the same protein."

In smoking-related cancers, p53 is mutated, which causes the cancer. Instead, in HPV-positive cancers, the viral protein E6 interacts with p53 and inactivates it, resulting in the same cancer, but without the mutation. This suggests the establishment of the viral infection and the development of tumors share common pathways.

"We thought there must be more proteins that can cause cancer either by being mutated or hijacked by HPV, so we developed a new method to detect them," added Eckhardt. "Our study highlighted two interesting instances where the interaction of HPV and human proteins play a role in the development or invasiveness of the cancer."

Eckhardt showed that the HPV protein E1 interacts with the human protein KEAP1, which is often mutated in smoking-related cancers. In HPV-positive cancers, KEAP1 is not mutated. But, through its interaction with the protein E1, KEAP1 is inactivated, which helps cancer cells survive.

The researchers also found that the HPV protein L2, which is part of the virus's packaging, interacts with two human proteins called RNF20 and RNF40. They demonstrated that in HPV-positive cancers, this protein interaction increases the tumor's ability to spread and invade new parts of the body.

These results confirm that the HPV virus causes head and neck cancer by targeting the same proteins that go awry in response to smoking-induced mutations.

Connecting Cancer and Infectious Diseases

Krogan and his collaborators have shown that integrating HPV-human interaction with tumor genome data, and focusing on genes that are mutated in HPV-negative but not HPV-positive tumors, constitutes a powerful approach to identify proteins that serve as both viral targets and genetic drivers of cancer.

The scientists' work should lay the groundwork to find better therapeutic options for both HPV-negative and HPV-positive head and neck cancers. In addition, Krogan's long-term goal is to define a pipeline that will enable the study of many other virally induced cancers, including those linked to Hepatitis B and C, Epstein-Barr virus, and adenoviruses.

"Science can be siloed, and through these unbiased, holistic approaches we can start to find common pathways between different systems," said Krogan, who also leads the Host Pathogen Map Initiative, which aims to compare protein and genetic interactions across many pathogens and identify similarities. "Our work is helping connect the dots between cancer and infectious diseases in ways that have never been considered."

Explore further Scientists identify nearly 200 potential tuberculosis drug targets

More information: Manon Eckhardt et al, Multiple Routes to Oncogenesis are Promoted by the Human Papillomavirus-Host Protein Network, Cancer Discovery (2018). Journal information: Cancer Discovery Manon Eckhardt et al, Multiple Routes to Oncogenesis are Promoted by the Human Papillomavirus-Host Protein Network,(2018). DOI: 10.1158/2159-8290.CD-17-1018
S1 neurons descending from the somatosensory cortex down toward the spinal cord's dorsal horns, where they activate the same neurons that receive tactile sensory information from the body. Credit: Yuanyuan Liu/Boston Children's Hospital

A study led by Boston Children's Hospital and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) may open up new opportunities for treating neuropathic pain, a difficult-to-treat type of chronic pain due to damage to the nervous system that can make the lightest touch intensely painful. In a report today in Nature, scientists led by Zhigang He, Ph.D., and Clifford Woolf, Ph.D., of the F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center at Boston Children's, demonstrate that neurons that originate in the brain's cortex influence sensitivity to touch.

The circuit could help explain why mind-body techniques to control pain seem to help many people.

"We know that mental activities of the higher braincognition, memory, fear, anxietycan cause you to feel more or less pain," says Woolf. "Now we've confirmed a physiological pathway that may be responsible for the extent of the pain. We have identified a volume control in the brain for painnow we need to learn how to switch it off."

A mind-body pathway

Pain sensation was previously believed to originate with neurons in the spinal cord receiving sensory information from the body and relaying it on to the brain. The new study found that a small group of neurons in the cortex can amplify touch sensation, sending projections to the same parts of the spinal cord that receive tactile sensory information from the body (known as the dorsal horns).

"The anatomy of this circuit has been known for some time, but no one actually looked at its function before," says He.

"In normal conditions, the touch and pain layers of the spinal cord are strongly separated by inhibitory neurons," elaborates Alban Latremoliere, Ph.D., one of four co-first authors on the paper. "After nerve injury, this inhibition is lost, leading to touch information activating pain neurons. When the spinal neurons that are supposed to be pain-only send this information to the brain, we feel pain."

A study in Nature finds that corticospinal neurons originating in the brain's somatosensory cortex influence touch sensitivity, and may be responsible for the intense pain some people with nerve injury feel from the lightest touch. In this schematic, nerve fibers bringing touch information from the brush of a feather (A) send the sensory information to the brain (via a relay in the midbrain) but also activate an interneuron (shown in red) in the spinal cord's dorsal horn. The pathway then ascends upward to the brain (B), activating S1 corticospinal neurons in the somatosensory cortex (C). These S1 neurons, shown in green, descend to the spinal cord (D) and communicate with the same interneuron, which amplifies the touch signal. The graph (E) shows the interneuron's electrophysiologic activity when stimulated by the feather (blue line), and amplification of this signal (green line) in response to additional inputs from S1 corticospinal neurons. In people with neuropathic pain, the amplified touch signal is perceived as pain. Credit: Alban Latremoliere/Boston Children's Hospital/Johns Hopkins

He, Woolf and colleagues think the cortical neurons they identified could be a potential target for treating the tactile component of neuropathic pain, via drugs or possibly brain electrical stimulation, breaking a feedback loop that introduces and exaggerates the pain response to normally non-painful touch.

When the team severed these neurons or silenced them genetically in a mouse model of neuropathic pain, the mice stopped recoiling from light, innocuous touches, such as stroking with a soft paintbrush or placement of a bit of tape on the bottom of a foot. But the mice retained their sensitivity to truly painful stimuli, reflexively withdrawing their paws when exposed to heat, cold or pinpricks.

Teasing out nerve circuits

The researchers used recently developed technologies to visualize and target specific groups of neurons in the brain and spinal cord. This enabled them to observe the results when different neurons were activated or silenced in a mouse model, and observe which circuits were activated when mice were exposed to noxious or innocuous stimuli.

He notes that some clinicians have tried using brain stimulation as a way of treating neuropathic pain, not always successfully.

"Our findings might help us target the stimulation to particular areas or groups of neurons," says He. "It might be interesting to look at clinical data and try to replicate the stimulation in animals, and see what kind of stimulation would silence these neurons."

With functional imaging technologies, investigators could probe what kinds of interventions maximally inhibit this circuit, adds Woolf.

"We now have the ability to silence or activate whole groups of neurons and image their patterns of electrical firing with single-neuron resolution," he says. "None of this was possible 10 years ago."

More information: Touch and tactile neuropathic pain sensitivity are set by corticospinal projections, www.nature.com/articles/s41586-018-0515-2 Journal information: Nature Touch and tactile neuropathic pain sensitivity are set by corticospinal projections, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0515-2
Shana Dorsey first saw the purplish wound on her father's lower back as he lay in a suburban Chicago hospital bed a few weeks before his death.

Her father, Willie Jackson, grimaced as nursing aides turned his frail body, exposing the deep skin ulcer, also known as a pressure sore or bedsore.

"That was truly the first time I saw how much pain my dad was in," Dorsey said.

The staff at Lakeview Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, she said, never told her the seriousness of the pressure sore, which led to sepsis, a severe infection that can quickly turn deadly if not cared for properly. While a resident of Lakeview and another area nursing home, Jackson required several trips to hospitals for intravenous antibiotics and other sepsis care, including painful surgeries to cut away dead skin around the wound, court records show.

Dorsey is suing the nursing center for negligence and wrongful death in caring for her father, who died at age 85 in March 2014. Citing medical privacy laws, Lakeview administrator Nichole Lockett declined to comment on Jackson's care. In a court filing, the nursing home denied wrongdoing.

The case, pending in Cook County Circuit Court, is one of thousands across the country alleging that enfeebled nursing home patients endured stressful, sometimes painful, hospital treatments for sepsis that many of the lawsuits claim never should have happened.

Year after year, nursing homes around the country have not prevented bedsores and other infections that can lead to sepsis, an investigation by Kaiser Health News and the Chicago Tribune has found.

No one tracks sepsis cases closely enough to know how many times such infections turn fatal.

However, a federal report has found that care related to sepsis was the most common reason given for transfers of nursing home residents to hospitals and noted that such cases ended in death "much more often" than hospitalizations for other conditions.

An analysis conducted for Kaiser Health News by Definitive Healthcare, a private health care data firm, also suggests that the tollhuman and financialfrom such cases is huge.

Examining data related to nursing home residents who were transferred to hospitals and later died, Definitive found that 25,000 a year suffered from sepsis, among other conditions. Their treatment costs Medicare more than $2 billion annually, according to Medicare billings from 2012 through 2016 analyzed by Definitive Healthcare.

In Illinois, about 6,000 nursing home residents a year who were hospitalized had sepsis, and 1 in 5 didn't survive, according to Definitive's analysis.

"This is an enormous public health problem for the United States," said Dr. Steven Simpson, a professor of medicine at the University of Kansas and a sepsis expert. "People don't go to a nursing home so they can get sepsis and die. That is what is happening a lot."

The costs of all that treatment are enormous. Court records show that Willie Jackson's hospital stays toward the end of his life cost Medicare more than $414,000. Medicare pays Illinois hospitals more than $100 million a year for treatment of nursing home residents for sepsis, mostly from Chicago-area facilities, according to the Medicare claims analysis.

Sepsis is a bloodstream infection that can develop in bedridden patients with pneumonia, urinary tract infections and other conditions, such as pressure sores. Mindful of the dangers, patient safety groups consider late-stage pressure sores to be a "never" event because they largely can be prevented by turning immobile people every two hours and by taking other precautions. Federal regulations also require nursing homes to adopt strict infection-control standards to minimize harm.

Yet the failures that can produce sepsis persist and are widespread in America's nursing homes, according to data on state inspections kept by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Many of the lawsuits allege that bedsores and other common infections have caused serious harm or death. The outcome of these cases is not clear, because most are settled and the terms kept confidential.

Cook County, where the private legal community is known to take an aggressive approach to nursing homes, has more of these suits than any other metropolitan area in the U.S., Kaiser Health News and the Tribune found by reviewing court data.

State inspectors also cite thousands of homes nationally for shortcomings that have the potential to cause harm. Inspections data kept by CMS show that since 2015 94 percent of homes operating in Illinois have had at least one citation for conditions that increase the risk of infection. These citations include care related to bedsores, catheters, feeding tubes and the home's overall infection-control program.

"Little infections turn to big infections and kill people in nursing homes," said William Dean, a Miami lawyer with more than two decades of experience suing nursing homes on behalf of patients and their families.

Much of the blame, regulators and patient advocates say, goes to poor staffing levels. Too few nurses or medical aides raises the risks of a range of safety problems, such as fall, bedsores and infections that may progress to sepsis or an even more serious condition, septic shock, which causes blood pressure to plummet and organs to shut down.

Staffing levels for nurses and aides in Illinois nursing homes are among the lowest in the country. In the six-county Chicago area, 78 percent of the facilities' staffing levels fall below the national average, according to government data analyzed by KHN.

Matt Hartman, executive director of the Illinois Health Care Association, which represents more than 500 nursing homes, acknowledged low staffing is a problem that diminishes the quality of nursing care.

Hartman blamed the state's Medicaid payment rates for nursing homesabout $151 a day per patient on averagewhich he said is lower than most other states. Medicaid makes up about 70 percent of the revenue at many homes, he said.

Last October, CC Care LLC, an Illinois nursing home group that specializes in treating mentally ill patients on Medicaid, filed for bankruptcy, arguing that the state's "financial troubles have been disastrous for all nursing homes."

In a July court filing, CC Care creditors' committee argued that the company couldn't stay afloat relying on Illinois Medicaid payments, which it called "slow, erratic and significantly less than what we are due."

Pat Comstock, executive director of the Health Care Council of Illinois, said nursing homes she represents "are operating in an increasingly difficult environment in Illinois, yet they continue to prioritize delivering the best care possible to residents in a safe and secure setting."

Shana Dorsey remembers her father as a quiet but friendly man. He worked as a uniformed bank security guard and picked up extra cash fixing neighbors' cars in an empty lot adjacent to his West Side apartment building. He was a stickler for detail, who relished teaching his granddaughter the state capitals and was always ready to lend a hand to help his daughter, who now works for a Chicago property management firm.

But age and declining health caught up with the Army veteran, who by his early 80s began to show signs of dementia and moved into an assisted-living apartment.

Dorsey knew her father needed more specialized care when she found him sitting in his favorite recliner in his apartment, unable to get up, and incontinent.

He required more intense medical and personal care as his kidney disease worsened and he became more confused, medical records show. In his last 18 months of life, he cycled in and out of hospitals eight times for treatment of septic bedsores and other infections, according to court records.

The Chicago law firm representing Dorsey, Levin & Perconti, provided Kaiser Health News and the Tribune with medical records and additional court filings that cover Jackson's care.

Jackson had two pressure sores in late November 2012 when he was first admitted to Lakeview nursing center from the Jesse Brown VA Medical Center in Chicago, according to lawyers for his daughter.

These wounds healed, but in late September 2013, Jackson had a fever and an infected sore in his lower back that exposed the bone, causing what Dorsey's lawyers called "significant pain."

The nursing home transferred Jackson to Presence St. Joseph Hospital in Chicago, where surgeons cut away the dead skin and administered antibiotics. At that time, the sore was as wide as a grapefruit and had "copious purulent drainage, foul smell and bleeding," Dorsey's lawyers say. Tests confirmed sepsis, and the wound had grown so deep that it infected the sacral bone in his back, a condition known as osteomyelitis, the lawsuit said.

In November 2013, Dorsey moved her father to another nursing home. He required three more hospital visits before Dorsey made the difficult decision to place him in hospice care. He died March 14, 2014, from "failure to thrive," according to a death certificate.

In her suit, Dorsey, 39, argues that Lakeview nursing staff knew Jackson was at "high risk" for bedsores because of his declining health. Yet the home did not take steps to prevent the injuries, such as turning and repositioning him every two hours, according to the suit. That didn't happen about 140 times in August 2013 alone, Dorsey's lawyers said.

While Lakeview declined to discuss Jackson's treatment, it has denied negligence and argued in court filings that its actions were not to blame for Jackson's death. Lockett, the home's administrator, said the facility "strictly follows" all regulations to minimize the effects of skin breakdowns that can occur naturally with age.

Poor infection control ranks among the most common citations in nursing homes. Since 2015, inspectors have cited 72 percent of homes nationally for not having or following an infection-control program. In Illinois, that figure stands at 88 percent of homes.

Illinois falls below national norms for risks of pressure sores or failure to treat them properly in nursing homes. Inspectors have cited 37 percent of the nation's nursing homes for this deficiency, compared with 60 percent in Illinois, according to CMS records. Only three states were cited more frequently.

Dean, the Miami lawyer, said nursing home staffs often miss early signs of infection, which can start with fever and elevated heart rate, altered mental status or not eating. When those symptoms occur, nurses should call a doctor and arrange to transfer the patient to a hospital, but that often takes too long, he said.

"They don't become septic on the ambulance ride over to the hospital," Dean said.

There is little agreement over how much staff should be required in nursing homes. Federal regulations mandate only that a registered nurse must be on duty eight hours a day, every day. In 2001, a federal government study recommended a daily minimum of 4.1 hours of total nursing time per resident, which includes registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and certified nursing assistants, often referred to as aides. That never became an industry standard or federal regulation, however.

Most states set requirements lower and face industry resistance to raising the bar. A California law requiring 3.5 hours per resident as of July 1 is drawing intense criticism from the industry, for example.

Nursing home staffing can fluctuate, particularly on weekends. A recent Kaiser Health News investigation found that on some days, nursing home aides could be in charge of twice as many residents as normal.

Nationally, each aide is responsible for 10 residents on average; in the six-county Chicago area, the average is 13 residents per aide.

Federal officials have linked inadequate staffing to bedsores and other injuries, such as falls. If left unattended, even a small ulcer or sore can become septic, and once that happens, a patient's life is in imminent danger.

In October 2014, Milwaukee-based Extendicare denied wrongdoing but paid $38 million to settle a federal lawsuit that accused it of not having enough staff on hand in 33 nursing homes in eight states, including Indiana, and not taking steps to prevent bedsores or falls.

In other cases, federal officials have alleged that some nursing homes overmedicate residentswhich can result in injuries such as falls from beds or wheelchairs and bedsoresrather than increase staff to care for them properly.

In May 2015, owners of two nursing homes in Watsonville, Calif., agreed to pay $3.8 million to settle a whistleblower lawsuit alleging that the homes persistently drugged patients, contributing to infections and pressure sores.

The suit alleged that an 86-year-old man who could barely move after receiving a shot of an anti-psychotic medication lost his appetite and spent most of the day in bed, "was not turned or repositioned and developed additional pressure ulcers." He ran a 102-degree fever, but the staff did not notify his doctor for three days, according to the suit.

Hospital doctors later diagnosed the man with sepsis and an infected pressure ulcer. The home did not admit wrongdoing and had no comment.

Personal injury lawyers and medical experts say that poor infection control often sends nursing home residents to hospitals for emergency treatmentand that the stress can hasten death.

Elderly people often "don't have the ability to bounce back from an infection," said Dr. Karin Molander, a California emergency room physician and board member of the Sepsis Alliance advocacy group.

Multiple, stressful trips to the hospital is a common thread in negligence and wrongful death lawsuits involving sepsis or bedsores. Kaiser Health News identified more than 8,000 suits filed nationwide from January 2010 to March of this year that allege injuries from not preventing or treating pressure sores and other serious infections.

Molander said serious bedsores indicate "someone is being ignored for an extended time period."

"When we see patients like that we file (patient neglect) complaints with adult protective services," she said.

Some of these cases led to million-dollar jury verdicts. In 2017, a Kentucky jury awarded $1.1 million to the family of a woman who suffered from bedsores and sepsis in a nursing home. In a second case last year, a jury awarded $1.8 million to a widow who alleged that a Utah nursing home did not turn her husband often enough to prevent bedsores, which led to his death.

In September 2013, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said it was working to reduce avoidable transfers from nursing homes to hospitals. CMS had previously called such trips "expensive, disruptive and disorienting for frail elders and people with disabilities."

The plans came after a 2013 Department of Health and Human Services audit that found Medicare had paid about $14 billion in 2011 for such transfers. Care related to sepsis cost Medicare more than the next three costliest conditions combined, according to the audit.

The auditors have not checked in to see if Medicare has since reduced those costs and have no plans to do so, a spokesman for the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General said.

However, Definitive Healthcare's analysis of billing data, modeled after the audit, shows little change between 2012 and 2016, both in terms of deaths and costs.

Wendy Meltzer, executive director of Illinois Citizens for Better Care, said hospital trips caused by treatment for sepsis can be "emotionally devastating" for confused elderly patients.

"It's not a choice anybody makes. It's horrible for people with dementia," Meltzer said. "Some never recover from that. It's a very real phenomenon and it's cruel."

Explore further Updated staffing data lowers ratings for many nursing homes

2018 Kaiser Health News

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
by Stefano Caprio*

The Moscow Patriarchate has rejected any discussion over the decision-making power in the Church and insists on the untouchability of the principle of "canonical territory" whereby everyone is master in their own home.

Moscow (AsiaNews)  Moscow's resentful reaction to the appointment of two patriarchal exarchs sent by Constantinople to the Ukraine is not just another chapter in a medieval-themed saga. The issue has been building up for months between Constantinople, Moscow and Kyiv. This is a direct and explicit expression of one of the most serious controversies in the history of the Church, that of primacy, or to put it in more secular terms, who gets to decide in the Church.

In the past decade, attempts have been made several times to restart a general reflection on this matter at various international ecumenical meetings. On 13 October 2007, the Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church released a paper on Communion, Conciliarity and Authority, which proposed a triple look at of how authority is exercised in the Church at local, regional, and universal levels. The aim was to avoid focusing the discussion only on the subject of the Roman papacy, which has been a source of schisms and disagreements during the second Christian millennium.

Known as the Ravenna document, the declaration is still in limbo because of the refusal of the Russian delegation to sign it for fear of "extending to the Eastern Church the western principle of papism", as the head of the delegation of Moscow, Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev), put it. The recent controversy over Ukrainian autocephaly is further evidence that the Russian aversion was not based only on matters of principle but also on very concrete factors.

Restarting the discussion over primacy has proved impossible so far, even at the level of the simple review and study of the testimonies and texts of the first millennium of the united Church that Greek members of the Joint Commission had proposed. The Russian Orthodox Church insisted on the untouchability of the notion of "canonical territory" whereby each Church is master in her own house, and on the need to move ecumenical contacts to charity and culture, avoiding dogmatic and ecclesiological questions.

The Russians have always considered Ukraine as part of their "canonical territory", despite the post-communist split, which gave rise to an independent nation that had never existed before. The areas that are part of today's Ukrainian republic have always been indeterminate and disputed since the times of the Mongol invasion (13th century), fought over by the Kingdom of Lithuania-Poland and Muscovite Russia for almost five centuries (15th-18th centuries). The imperial policies of Peter the Great and Catherine II finally subdued the lands on the two banks of the Dnieper, dismembering the Polish state piecemeal.

The dream of an independent Ukraine was reborn in the mid-19th century, inspired by the words of the great Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko, who was confined in Siberia for this reason, visiting his native land only twice. The very nature of the inhabitants of this land, called by its many masters with different names (Volhynia, Galicia, Little Russia are the best known), has been one of an irrepressible thirst for freedom and independence, like that of the Cossacks, the true fathers of modern Ukraine. In the end though, the famous Ataman Bohdan Khmelnytsky, who in the middle of the 17th century created the first movement for Ukrainian autonomy, ended up delivering the land to the tsar in order to free it from the yoke of the Polish king.

Even at the Church level, tensions go back as far as the ancient kingdom of Kyivan Rus', founded in 988 by Prince Vladimir who was baptised according to Byzantine rite. His son Jaroslav the Wise, thirty years later, was the first to appoint a local metropolitan, without waiting for the office holder to be sent from Constantinople. Several times the Ecumenical Patriarchate, even after it came under the Ottoman yoke, had to re-establish its primacy over Kyiv and Moscow. The last Greek to hold a see was Metropolitan Isidore of Kyiv, who in 1439 signed the bull of union with the Pope of Rome at the Council of Florence. When he returned to Moscow, he was immediately thrown in jail and then expelled by the tsar. Since then, Moscow has rejected any subordination to the Greeks.

The Union of Brest of 1596, which brought Orthodox Ukrainians back into communion with Roman, was a response to the proclamation of the Patriarchate of Moscow in 1589, extorted from Constantinople by quite "unorthodox" methods. Eventually, by the end of the 17th century, the jurisdiction of Kyiv was placed under the control of the Muscovite patriarch, and it is to this precedent that Kirill is appealing today in his opposition to Bartholomew.

The "war of the patriarchs" seems to back the Roman doctrine of the absolute primacy of the only pontiff, as the only way to avoid certain divisions. Yet the current pope, Francis, is trying in various ways to enhance the autonomy of local Churches, considering Roman absolutism a legacy of a past that must be in part forsaken. Perhaps the great struggle for Ukraine will lead to a heart-breaking new schism of the Church in the East, something the Russians dread, or it could become the basis for a renewal in the communion of the whole universal Church.

* Professor of History of Russian Philosophy at the Pontifical Oriental Institute
Simkhada is a former permanent representative to the United Nations and ambassador to Switzerland.
When I returned home from a trip, one of the first news that appeared on the displays was that the European Parliament has voted to launch Article 7 against Hungary: 448 for, 197 against, 48 abstained.



It's a nuclear option allowed by the Treaty of Lisbon (a treaty that turned the European Union into a new Soviet Union a decade ago) that starts a process that may end up with the annihilation of Hungary's voting rights within the EU and/or all the financial inflows from the EU, among other sanctions. I hope and I still understand the situation so that Poland will ultimately be capable of vetoing all these plans (Article 7.2 still requires a unanimous vote in the European Council which has folks from all EU member states) but I am no longer sure. The EU could preemptively remove the Polish and Hungarian votes in the European Council and squeeze everyone else.



The same article has been launched against Poland  not by the European Parliament but rather by the European Commission (the "government of Europe"). Hungary considers the vote to be a fraud, a petty revenge for Hungary's asylum and immigration policies, and  as Orban said  an insult to the Hungarian history. A Fidesz MEP called the decision "legally invalid" because voting rules were breached.







"The Mezga [Mr Badluck's] Family", here the theme music with Czech lyrics (orig. here; in Czech, the main characters got native Czech names), is the most famous Hungarian cartoon for my and somewhat older generation. It's a clear counterpart of The Simpsons except that the Hungarian show was 20 years older (1969-1978). The Simpsons were first aired in 1989. I think that (not only) Yankees should watch a couple of cartoons like that to get rid of the incorrect idea that the world would be impossible without the U.S.



The development wasn't quite unexpected but it's still infuriating to see that it has actually taken place. Most Czech voters must have been shocked what sort of unreliable allies in the Visegrad Group Czechia is. Ten Czech MEPs voted against the proposal to harass Hungary, nine MEPs have supported it. So a majority is against the proposal but the majority is infinitesimal. There are 4 deputies for billionaire PM Babis's ANO movement among the 9 traitors  and, thankfully, zero MEPs for the center right ODS. The social democrats were perfectly diverse: 1 yes (the proposed minister of foreign affairs Poche), 1 no, 1 neutral, 1 absent.







Three weeks ago, I discussed the 1968 Soviet-led invasion to Czechoslovakia exactly 50 years earlier. Leonid Brezhnev and his soulmates didn't like the liberalization and democratization processes in Czechoslovakia. Those were stopped by brute force. Two months after the occupation, the "Brezhnev Doctrine" about the limited sovereignty of the socialist countries (in the case when socialism was threatened) was articulated to retroactively rationalize the invasion of Czechoslovakia.



Well, there was a similar event in Hungary in 1956. People were already pied off by the Soviet-dictated communism and the economic misery caused by it that was already self-evident and started a counterrevolution with similarly idealist pro-freedom, pro-independence attitudes  the first shots appeared in front of the sculpture of Jozsef Bem, a Polish and Hungarian hero, where Peter Veresz, the boss of a writer's union, read a manifesto.



Despite the very different languages, Poland and Hungary have been close allies throughout the second millennium, this alliance played the role in 1956 as I just mentioned, and it's crucial today, too. I am ashamed to state this fact but Poland is ultimately the only reliable ally that Hungary may rely upon and vice versa.







Everything in Czechoslovakia  including the defenestrations, the Nazi occupation of the Sudetenland, the Nazi occupation of the rest-Czechia, the Second World War, the communist coup, the Prague Spring, the invasion killing the Prague Spring, the Velvet Revolution, and the Velvet Divorce  has always been based on velvet.



Well, it wasn't quite the case of Hungary. There was real fighting. 30,000 Soviet troops arrived with their 1,000+ tanks and the counterrevolution was crushed, after 2500 Hungarians and 700 Soviets were killed. Twelve years later, in much more peaceful and culturally thriving conditions of Czechoslovakia, the numbers were completely different. Brezhnev wanted to be sure so that total number of invading troops was 500,000 (in three waves, each comparable to 150,000 soldiers), with the peak strength of 6,300 tanks, while the casualties were only 100+100 on the two sides.



These days, Viktor Orban is a political heavyweight in Hungary  with unusually numerous fan groups outside Hungary  who has repeatedly won a huge majority in the democratic elections. He got a clear support that allows him to make mundane everyday decisions but even somewhat deeper decisions. Hungarian voters clearly want the European values to be preserved in Hungary  that includes the individual freedoms, Christianity, the numerical dominance of the white people, the stronger power (over the media, schools etc.) of the free people who aren't corrupt by the likes of George Soros, non-communist control over the judicial system, and other things.



If you're not Hungarian, you may dislike some events in Hungary and I could find some events or changes that I dislike, too (although I wrote the list a minute ago so that I would claim that only a very anti-European person could disagree with those things). But it's not your moral right to blackmail Hungary in this way. And equally importantly, you're just wrong if you think (and you're a liar if you claim) that you're protecting the European values against Hungary. The truth is mostly the inverse of that statement. Hungary is protecting the European values against you, against non-European invaders  and now against the majority of the European parliament, too.



Thank God, none of the EU apparatchiks are real men and tanks sent from Brussels aren't killing thousands of freedom-loving Hungarian patriots these days. Things are apparently done differently, more effeminately (Judith Sargentini wrote a report that was used to justify this gesture against Hungary and today's celebrated as her victory  if the EU weren't ready to do such nasty things, she would be another irrelevant Dutch blonde green bitch, but in this situation, I would have a full understanding for the decision to send the special Hungarian units to take her down just like SEAL did with Osama bin Laden), by constant verbal threats, whining, propaganda, bureaucratic harassment of the inconvenient people, and attempted character assassinations. But even these effeminate attacks against Hungary could be harmful.



Today, another entity has attacked Hungary for slowing down illegal immigration: the U.N. Office for Human Rights led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi or someone like that.



But at the end, my optimism dominates. Even Euractiv informed us that Viktor Orban's Hungary of 2030 will be a paradise, unlike the geographically Western Europe.







A more relevant video  with monologues by Farage and Orban.





Some good news. I have always said nice things about Slovaks but I thought that one of the signs of their political immaturity was not to celebrate the anniversaries of the birth of Czechoslovakia. Thank God, October 30th, 2018, the date when Slovaks joined Czechoslovakia (in 1918), was declared a once-in-a-century national holiday. ;-)
Bill to permit disclosure of public officials property

The State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of Parliament on Tuesday agreed to amend the Bill on Right to Privacy so that public officials disclose their property details and certificates issued by legal entities.
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The Nigerian Attorney Generals office exceeded its powers when it demanded MTN Group Ltd. pay about $2 billion in back taxes, Africas largest wireless operator said.

The South African mobile-phone company has been rocked twice in the past two weeks in its biggest market, with the central bank and the attorney general accusing MTN of illegally repatriating funds and failing to pay the back taxes, making combined claims of $10 billion. MTN denies the allegations and is seeking a court order to halt the process.

The Attorney General ought not to have undertaken an unauthorized process which has caused undue, unwarranted and untold injury to the companys reputation, MTN said in legal documents seen by Bloomberg News Tuesday. The operator is seeking 2 billion naira ($5.5 million) in damages and a further 1 billion naira in legal costs.

MTNs share price has plunged by more than a third since the crisis erupted late last month. The dispute comes just over two years after the Johannesburg-based company settled a separate, $1 billion fine over improperly registered subscribers that was levied by the Nigerian Communications Commission.

The stock dropped 2.8 percent to 72 rand by the close in Johannesburg Tuesday.
Oh the noise!

Id like for you to try a brief exercise.

Please use your smartphone to open Googles homepage and search for short-term gain, long-term pain.

If you can, please remember the number of results that appear at the top of that page.

Next, please search separately for Lehman Brothers failure and Washington Mutual failure and note the number of results that populate on the top of each of those pages.

Finally, please search for Zillow Offers and then Rocket Homes and record the total results found for them too.

Since your cellular network is so fast, Im assuming that didnt take more than a few seconds to get done.

For those of you who didnt want to participate in that exercise, Ill go ahead and share with you the results.

The numbers returned for both Lehman Brothers failure and Washington Mutual failure, when added together, still did not exceed the individual results found from either Zillow Offers or Rocket Homes.

Thats right, the epic failures of Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual, which happened almost exactly 10 years ago, do not excite the organic or even paid Google search pages as much as they should.

Although there are plenty of other ways to measure who is searching for what and where, the noise level is relatively low when it comes to these two search examples despite their respective marks in history. Yet this month, their volume buttons are being pushed a little harder.

Oddly enough, the noise levels are quite different for Zillow Offers and Rocket Homes.

The number of results found for each of these two newbies seem to be trending upward in a very calculated and competitive close range.

Considering that they are significantly newer entities, compared to the other two in this search exercise, the noise levels here are becoming louder by the week.

Okay, youre probably wondering why all the above were selected for this exercise. Well, it has something to do with whats called Fintech.

Please go ahead and search for that now.

As you will see, the number of results found for Fintech currently top Zillow Offers or Rocket Homes in a head-to-head battle at this moment.

Fintech is not new; its been around for a long time. Nevertheless, it has evolved and grown dramatically over the past 10 years. Its safe to say the continued noise level from Fintech is loudly ringing throughout the real estate and mortgage industry.

If you dont want to hear any of this, then please cover your ears. This is not going away anytime soon.

Instead, just picture the number you saw from your short-term gain, long-term pain search results page.

In fact, Ill help you out a bit. The number is larger than Fintech.

However it is narrowly smaller than the combined numbers from Zillow Offers and Rocket Homes.

I dont know where all of this is headed, but it sure is getting noisy. Please be careful what you listen to these days.

Chris Salese can be reached at chris@delsurmortgage.com or 707-363-4439. He is a licensed California mortgage lender (LO NMLS #254469  CA-DBO #254469 Corp NMLS #1169 Equal Housing Lender.
Bista, Bam sisters released

Kanchanpur District Police on Tuesday released three suspects after forensic tests showed no evidence of their complicity in the rape and murder of 13-year-old Nirmala Panta.
The St. Helena Fire Department raised its large Garrison-size American flag on a ladder truck Tuesday morning in memory of the 9/11 terrorist attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people on Sept. 11, 2001. The SHFD has been raising its large American flag, which measures 30 feet by 20 feet, on Sept. 11 for more than 10 years. At the 9/11 memorial plaza in New York City, thousands of people attended services where the names of those people killed in the attacks at the Twin Towers, the Pentagon and aboard Flight 93 were read.
The fate of City Hall, the library and other public facilities is now in the hands of the City Council.
The next six months are shaping up to be a pivotal time for Main Street businesses as the city promises swift action to stimulate commerce.

Faced with 20 recommendations from city staff based on a consultants economic study, the City Council agreed Tuesday that most of them should be implemented or at least initiated within the next six months. A few of the recommendations were given lower priorities, but none of them were rejected outright.

The plans long-term centerpiece is the installation of new, safer sidewalks downtown. The work is scheduled for 2021, but planning is already getting underway due to the complexity of the project, potential complications involving trees and underground utilities, and impact on businesses.

Merchants, who are struggling with declining foot traffic, have praised the recommendations as long overdue. Councilmembers also were supportive, although specific recommendations like exploring a new hotel will probably become more controversial once theyve been fleshed out.

One way or another, if were going to be sustainable we have to generate more foot traffic that stays longer here in St. Helena and helps our shops, Mayor Alan Galbraith said. Im especially pleased with the comments about taking a further look at hotels.

The economic consulting firm Kosmont Companies will study two city-owned sites  the Adams Street property and the Teen Center lot on Railroad Avenue  and report back to the council on each sites potential for generating revenue, including the number of hotel rooms that might be suitable for either location.

The council-appointed SHAPE Committee already considered a possible hotel on one of those properties.

A lot of the community that was initially very opposed to a hotel on Adams  a lot of it had to do with the process, said Councilmember Mary Koberstein. But by going through the SHAPE process, there were several people who came around to the idea that some preservation of public open space over there would be acceptable with a hotel.

Councilmember Geoff Ellsworth said any discussion of a hotel has to consider the additional need for housing that would result. Koberstein said she sees the upcoming Kosmont study as a feasibility and site analysis, with suggested room counts that would inform future talks about impacts.

The council also gave its blessing to a pilot project allowing the Napa Valley Wine Train to temporarily drop off passengers in St. Helena, possibly as part of the Jingle All the Way promotion scheduled for December.

Were hearing from the merchants  or at least I am  that this is something theyd like to see, Ellsworth said. I like the idea that its a pilot program, and were testing to see how it goes.

The council also endorsed the following recommendations, with most of them starting within the next six months:

- Start planning for a new multi-use City Hall on the current property

- Allow for temporary pop-up retail

- Pursue pedestrian alley beautification

- Complete downtown restroom project on Money Way

- Complete parking study to identify possible improvements

- Evaluate potential streetscape improvements to Money Way, Railroad Avenue and Oak Avenue

- Enhance community event programming in partnership with the St. Helena Chamber of Commerce

- Refresh branding and reputation of downtown

- Fund online marketing portal for vacant commercial space and priority investment opportunities

- Provide technical assistance to businesses and landlords on experiential, destination and omni-channel retail strategies

- Develop policies and a permit process for city parklets

- Improve business certainty by identifying community-supported uses permitted by right in the Central Business and Service Commercial zoning districts (12 months)

- Launch downtown facade and tenant improvement program (12 months)

- Develop wayfinding signage program with local history (12 months)

- Streamline the permit process by discontinuing discretionary review for certain permit types (12 months)

- Re-imagine under-utilized properties/promote infill housing (12 months)

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In the weeks leading up to Saturdays 24th Music Festival for Brain Health, Brandon Staglin was understandably busy.

He was finishing his online masters degree in health care administration and professional leadership and was helping his family prepare to host 500 people at Rutherfords Staglin Family Vineyards for the festival. Staglin, both the marketing and communications director for his family winery and the president of the nonprofit One Mind, said he finished his classwork on Aug. 26. The course ends Thursday, Sept. 13.

Life is challenging and I think it is for everyone in different ways, he said, sitting in the shade in the backyard of his parents home on the winery property. I intentionally seek out challenges to grow from and I think my experience with schizophrenia has emboldened me to try things like that.

Staglin was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1990 and recovered with both medical treatment and cognitive training for his brain.

Having recovered from schizophrenia, I feel like I can try things that are demanding, although he said when he began the masters program, he wasnt sure he had what it would take to get through it.

He did, though, studying until midnight many nights a week, after he finished working. After his year-long classes ended, he said he was tired, but my brain health was still good. I was still stable and still feeling hopeful about things and doing fine in the classes. I was very happy to know that for myself. But, Staglin added, I slept for nine hours straight on Monday night, which was refreshing.

In 23 years, the Staglins Music Festival for Brain Health has raised and leveraged almost $300 million for brain health research. The event includes a scientific symposium, featuring updates on the state of brain health research, a cult wine tasting featuring 75 Napa Valley producers, a concert featuring Grammy Award-winning artist Jennifer Hudson, and an exclusive four-course dinner prepared by three Michelin Star Chef Christopher Kostow of The Restaurant at Meadowood and The Charter Oak. All of the events are sold out and the Staglins expect 500 people for the symposium, wine tasting and concert. Kostow will serve dinner to 200 people.

The Staglins started One Mind in 1995 and in the years since, Brandon has reached out and collaborated with many in the scientific community. One Mind and its advisory board of directors, made up of top scientists, provide seed capital for young scientists to determine if their research projects are feasible. If the research data shows promise, its likely that the National Institute of Mental Health will fund further research. This year, One Mind will provide $250,000 in three-year grants to three Rising Star scientists to further their research.

Staglin said, Those Rising Star scientists go on to develop better treatments for conditions like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, traumatic brain injury, compulsive/obsessive disorder, things like that. The grants give their careers a boost and it helps them develop into more effective scientists to help patients down the road, he added.

In 2010, one of the Rising Star scientists was Joshua Gordon, who was an assistant professor at Columbia University. Today, he is the director of the National Institute of Mental Health and one of the leading scientists in the U.S. in the mental health research field.

Mindstrong Health

Speaking at the scientific symposium will be Dr. Thomas Insel, former NIMH director and one of three co-founders of Mindstrong Health, and Dr. Beth Stevens of Harvard Medical School.

Mindstrong Health, a Silicon Valley startup, uses a Smartphone app to monitor a patients brain health to help clinicians understand how they are doing. Say somebody goes to a doctor and has a diagnosis of bipolar disorder and begins treatment, Staglin said. This person could use the Mindstrong Health app on their phone to monitor how they are doing from minute to minute and from day to day.

The patient can track their brain health, a doctor can track it and their family can track it. That helps keep people safer and on a better track to recovery because so often as a person begins to relapse, nobody really notices it for a while, including the patient, Staglin said. If it gets beyond the threshold of safety, the app could give an alert to the patient, to their caregiver or their doctor to let them know.

In research studies, the app has been shown to be a very accurate means of gauging someones brain health for a variety of conditions, he added.

Dr. Beth Stevens will talk about her research in the brain concerning complements, which is a type of brain cell, like an immune cell. Staglin describes the research: When a person is a teenager, they have lots of connections between the nerve cells in the brain called synapses. As a child grows up, they develop more and more synapses, because their brains are learning so many things.

As that person becomes older, having that many synapses is inefficient and your brain needs to pare them down and become more efficient at processing information. Thats where complements come in, because those brain cells attack the synapses. Its a natural process, but if it destroys too many synapses, it can cause conditions like psychosis, schizophrenia or Alzheimers Disease.

Aurora program

One Mind and NIMH are jointly sponsoring the Aurora Program, which is a collaboration between 30 universities across the United States. The purpose of Aurora is to study 3,000 patients to understand and detect what happens to the brain immediately after an adverse emotional traumatic event. It might develop into post-traumatic stress, anxiety or depression. The Mindstrong Health app is a part of that study.

Brain health is a huge area of medical need right now, Staglin said. Were addressing that in the most strategic way we know by forming a large consortium of scientists to work together like the Aurora program. Thats more effective than funding individual universities because if science is done in silos, as unfortunately happens so often, then the results are not going to be replicable, theyre not going to be as useful as when they are done with a large set of people doing one study at a time.

ASPIR progam

At this years Music Festival, Staglin said he will announce the launching of ASPIR (Applications in Serious Psychiatric Illness Recovery), a program that seeks to screen 75 percent of young people for early signs of psychosis and after treatment, to improve the recovery rate to 75 percent. Staglin said these benchmarks will be reached by 2040, although that is a great improvement over the way it is now, he added. Currently, there are 30 programs in California, like SOAR at the Aldea Family Center, that screen young people; and 200 across the nation.

Those 200 programs screen about 8 percent of the young people who start to develop psychosis every year. Staglin said thats not nearly enough.

The outreach component, teaching school counselors and nurses to train teachers to look for early warning signs of psychosis, is crucially important. Those signs include:

- Declining school performance;

- Withdrawing from social activities and hobbies;

- Suspicious thoughts that arent based on anything objective;

- Unusual thought content, like seeing a billboard and thinking there is a message especially for them.

Staglin has lots of plans and enough projects, including three Ken Burns documentaries about brain health in the next 10 years, to keep him busy for a long time. Stay tuned.

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The man in charge of city public works in Napa for a decade is off duty after an unknown complaint lodged by an employee, according to an internal memorandum.

Jacques LaRochelle, who has directed the Public Works department since 2008, is away from the office and his deputy Eric Whan will lead the department for the time being, interim City Manager Steve Potter wrote in an email sent to city workers Friday evening.

Late Tuesday, Potter confirmed LaRochelles absence and said it stems from an allegation (into him) we are looking into, without giving details. His return date is uncertain.

Potters Friday memo also announced the upcoming departure of Peter Pirnejad, whom Napa appointed assistant city manager in February. The newly created position placed him in charge of key city projects including the four-story city hall and police station envisioned for downtown First Street. We have decided that now is a good time for a transition, wrote Potter about the exit, which he said followed a Thursday discussion between the two men about the direction of the City.

After a transition period of one to two months, Pirnejad will remain available as a consultant to the city, Potter said Tuesday.

A message and email left for LaRochelle were not returned by 5:45 p.m. Tuesday.

Reached by telephone Tuesday morning, Pirnejad declined to speak about his job status, calling it a personnel matter.

City Council members Peter Mott, Jim Krider and Doris Gentry declined to speak about the reasons for Pirnejads exit or for LaRochelles leave, although Gentry, speaking earlier Tuesday, described the public works head as simply being on pause and expected him to return.

Calls to Mayor Jill Techel and Councilmember Scott Sedgley were not immediately returned. Sedgley and Gentry were traveling to Long Beach to represent Napa at a conference of the League of California Cities this week.

The Public Works department LaRochelle has directed for the past decade includes a maintenance operations wing whose chief Jefferson Folks retired July 30, after an email under the name Napa Watch Group alleged a pattern of bullying, intimidation, and sexually and racially offensive remarks at the city corporation yard he directed. An outside company hired by Napa has started investigating Folks workplace behavior and is expected to interview city staff members during the inquiry, a representative for Service Employees International Union Local 1021 said in August.

Pirnejad, a land-use specialist and public administrator for two decades, came to Napa to fill a newly created city post with wide oversight of both public works and development matters. His duties included keeping on track major city improvements such as the downtown civic center  which would unify city departments and create a nearby housing-retail-hotel complex at an estimated cost of $121 million  as well as improving the public parking system and guiding the Napa Pipe community south of town.

According to Potters message to staff members, Nancy Weiss, Napas former assistant city manager, will return as a contract worker to direct planning of the civic center, which is scheduled to break ground next year.

The downtown city hall project championed by Pirnejad has aimed at unifying city functions in one location on First Street, while converting Napas existing City Hall and police block on Second Street into a mixed-use development whose tax revenues would help cover the construction bonds. However, opposition has arisen in recent months from those questioning the plans cost and complexity, and some candidates in this Novembers City Council election have called on Napa to suspend planning to look at other possible sites, perhaps for separate police and civic buildings.

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SAN FRANCISCO  An eight-year-old lawsuit filed against PG&E Co. for alleged releases of dioxin from stored utility poles into San Francisco Bay and Humboldt Bay has been settled, according to the environmental group that filed the lawsuit.

The Ecological Rights Foundation, based in Garberville (Humboldt County), alleged in its 2010 lawsuit that dioxin, a chemical that causes cancer and birth defects, was carried by storm water runoff from treated wooden utility poles, sawdust and wood waste into the two bays. The settlement was signed by U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg in San Francisco on Friday and announced by the foundation on Monday.

Under the agreement, which will remain in effect through 2026, PG&E will identify storage yards containing treated poles and will test and implement technologies for reducing dioxin runoff to levels that pose lower risk to human health and wildlife.

The technologies could include storage improvements, such as covering poles or keeping them indoors; improvements in storm water treatment; and possibly the use of different materials, such as cement or steel, for utility poles, according to foundation attorney Fredric Evenson.

Evenson said, Dioxins are among the most toxic chemicals known to science.

This has been a hard-fought legal battle, but in the end PG&E now appears to understand that dioxin has no business in our bay, and will now take meaningful action to benefit San Francisco Bays wildlife and residents who eat locally caught seafood, he said.

The settlement specifies that PG&E does not admit to any wrongdoing.

Because environmental stewardship is a guiding principle at PG&E, we are pleased to have reached an agreement with the Ecological Rights Foundation to perform environmental testing on new storm water treatment methods of PG&Es treated wood pole storage areas, the utility said in a statement.

Northern California waterways may benefit from any enhancements to existing power pole storage practices and storm water treatment technologies PG&E adopts as a result of the testing, PG&E said.

The wooden poles are treated with pentachlorophenol, a preservative that creates dioxin when it is manufactured. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has banned the preservative for all uses except on utility poles, and its website says it is extremely toxic when ingested by humans.

The foundations lawsuit alleged PG&E stored its utility poles in up to 31 locations in the Bay Area and northern coastal California, including two sites each in Oakland, Hayward, and San Jose and one each in Daly City, San Carlos, Milpitas, Cupertino, Concord, Livermore and Vacaville.

The lawsuit also alleged the dioxin pollution ran into rivers and creeks as well as the two bays.

At the time of the settlement, the foundation had been allowed to do preliminary fact gathering at two storage yards in Hayward and Oakland near San Francisco Bay and two Eureka sites near Humboldt Bay and found treated poles at those locations, Evenson said.

Under the agreement, PG&E will identify which of the other sites also contain poles and debris treated with the preservative. The agreement will also apply to any other waterways affected, Evenson said.

Seeborg dismissed the lawsuit in 2015, but it was reinstated in 2017 by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which said the Ecological Rights Foundation had the right to sue under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

The 1976 law allows citizens lawsuits against entities that handle hazardous waste in a way that endangers human health or the environment.
Protests returned over the weekend to the University of North Carolina campus, where last month demonstrators pulled down a generic statue of a Confederate soldier. This was the venerable "Silent Sam," erected in 1913 by the United Daughters of the Confederacy. Now the administration is considering moving the toppled monument to the university's Wilson Library, which houses one of the finest archival collections of Southern historical documents, many relating to African American history.

When I was a graduate student at UNC, I noted the dissonance between this monument - placed with "a clear purpose in erecting a statue to white supremacy when blacks [were] getting rights," a UNC history professor noted - and the memorial to the enslaved people who helped build the university. "Silent Sam," a material ode to the valor of the Southern man, literally stood on a pedestal above passersby in one of the most prominent campus spaces. The "Unsung Founders Memorial," without any mention of slavery, is essentially a low black stone table held up by small statues of African Americans. It is mostly overlooked, except by students who routinely use it as a lunch table. It even has stone stools around it. The contrast could not be starker.

Now, as a historian of the Nazi era, I am drawn to an even starker contrast, this one between how post-World War II Germany and the post-Civil War United States acknowledge their roles in institutions built upon human suffering. Put simply, in coming to terms with its past, Germany eventually elected to memorialize its victims, while the United States, particularly the South, chose to commemorate not the victims but the institution itself and the society that created it. The one society focuses on the victims, the other the defeated. The United States could learn from Germany's example.

This is, of course, not to say that Nazi Germany and the Confederacy were the same, but we can safely claim that both the Nazi regime and the institution of chattel slavery rested upon deep and pervasive human suffering and death. Now consider the similar historical phenomena: Both Germany in World War II and the Confederacy in the Civil War were essentially white supremacist states bent on enslaving millions of other people based on racist ideologies. Both were unconditionally and catastrophically defeated. After the wars, both viewed their militaries as apolitical and not motivated by racist ideologies. Indeed, many in both societies viewed their veterans as having fought to defend their country and its values valiantly, resulting in the myths of Germany's "Clean Wehrmacht" and the South's "Lost Cause." Debates over these myths have often made the physical memorialization of the entities the focus of right-wing extremism. (In Germany, an exposition detailing the crimes of the German Army was bombed in 1999 by neo-Nazis.)

The similarities in historical experience notwithstanding, the countries have approached their troubled histories in fundamentally different ways. In Germany, memorials to war dead are inconspicuous, if they exist at all. In the town where I researched my first book, a sentence about German World War II military dead was simply added onto an existing monument from the First World War. Other memorials convey loss, sadness and grief, none better than the official German memorial in Berlin to the dead of WWII, an enlargement of Kathe Kollwitz's simple sculpture "Mother With Her Dead Son." The piece sits beneath an oculus that exposes the statue to rain and snow. It is located in a former military guard house. Even the inscription indicates the unease with which Germans treat the war, mourning not only the military dead but civilian casualties and victims of Nazi oppression, including Jews.

Conversely, if a stranger ignorant of our own past were to visit the South, he might be forgiven for thinking the Confederates won, given the number and style of the monuments. In North Carolina alone, 72 of the state's 100 counties have at least one Confederate monument, most built long after the war. Indeed, before 1890 only 11 had been constructed, but between 1890 and 1930, 83 were erected, including "Silent Sam." And, like "Silent Sam," the majority were placed on public land. There are over 1,700 such monuments to the Confederacy in the U.S., according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. Much has been written on the timing of these monuments as an attempt to condone and reaffirm white supremacy, particularly during Jim Crow and the civil rights era.

Yet while these monuments abound, there are relatively few memorials to the enslaved people victimized by the Confederacy and the ideals it stood for. This is particularly striking given that the descendants of these individuals are numerous in the United States (compared to, for example, the number of Jews remaining in Germany). The memorials that do exist can be more than a little unsatisfying. The 1929 memorial to enslaved people at Mount Vernon calls them "faithful colored servants," and the supposedly better 1983 memorial is "in memory of the Afro Americans who served as slaves." Neither is eye-catching nor emotive, to say the least. Never mind the monument of a black "mammy" that was approved by the Senate in 1923 and intended to be placed on the Mall in Washington. This monument was to look eerily like the stereotypical "Aunt Jemima" image still used today as a brand logo. (Fortunately, the House allowed the bill to die quietly in committee after decidedly unquiet protests from both African Americans and Union veterans organizations.)

The memorial landscape in Germany, on the other hand, unlike that in the United States, is dominated by the victims. Public Holocaust memorials as well as memorials to those who resisted the regime are numerous and take thoughtful, meaningful forms that emphasize loss and absence. Indeed, in 2007, a memorial was unveiled in Stuttgart remembering those who deserted from the German Army, including 20,000 who were executed as a result. One of the more striking memorials to victims of all kinds in Germany are the "Stolpersteine," or "stumbling blocks," by the artist Gunter Demnig. These are simple bronze-topped cubes set among the cobblestones on the streets, listing the names and fates of Nazi victims. The bronze markers are located in front of the places they lived. Can one imagine what U.S. streets would look like if a similar project was done here, in the North and the South, with stumbling blocks indicating slave-owning households, slave markets and slave jails?

Much ink has already been spilled over the future of Confederate monuments. But, as UNC debates whether to reinstall "Silent Sam," perhaps there are lessons to be learned from the German experience. One of the clearest is that the memorial landscape in Germany fully recognizes the fact that the war was lost and that there is nothing glorious to commemorate, even while remembering those who died fighting for it. Certainly, this did not occur overnight, nor is the process complete, but it also did not take over 150 years. The second is that Germany chose to memorialize the victims of its oppression (Jewish and non-Jewish), and this choice was often driven by non-Jews out of a sense of collective responsibility. Americans could embrace remembrance of slavery with similar conviction. This process is beginning with remembrance of lynching victims and honoring the civil rights movement, but slavery should be highlighted as well. Finally, Germany has also addressed the argument of "erasing the past" that is thrown up so frequently by supporters of keeping monuments.

So while there are no swastikas or statues of Hitler to be found in Germany, one can visit the ruins of the Nazi party grounds in Nurnberg, site of the massive spectacles of Nazi rallies. They remain not as celebrations but as ruined reminder. Likewise, the pedestals upon which Confederate statues stand should remain. But, as the movement to address the memory of both slavery and white supremacy moves onto college campuses, it is important to take physical steps to solidify this new moment in our history. This means both removing divisive monuments to white supremacy and adding new memorials to the victims of that cause. "Silent Sam" is not silent; as long as he stood, he broadcast a very clear message of what values the community and, in this case, the university supported. He need not be destroyed, but rather removed to a location where his voice can be countered by history. His empty pedestal can now send a different message. And we would do well to begin installing our own stumbling blocks so that we never forget why "Silent Sam" stood for so long.

Waitman Wade Beorn is a Holocaust and genocide studies historian and lecturer at the University of Virginia. He is the author of "Marching Into Darkness: The Wehrmacht and the Holocaust in Belarus" and "The Holocaust in Eastern Europe: At the Epicenter of the Final Solution. He wrote this for The Washington Post.
In his Sept. 5 letter (How to Identify Fake News), Don Muelrath confidently offers his formula for comparing news sources, but his bizarre example shows that he has himself been tricked into confusing opinion with news.

Rather than comparing two actual news sources, he compares a Trump media event and a television opinion panel show. Neither one is a good source of unbiased news, as should be obvious.

Most Americans know by now that a photo-op press announcement is presented so as to manipulate public opinion, no matter which party or politician engineers it. There is nothing neutral about a Republican or Democratic event for the media, just as there is nothing neutral about a television commercial.

Staged political announcements and opinion panels often include an occasional fact, but they are not primarily about presenting facts.

We learned no fact when, after Trump returned from Singapore, he said that the North Korean nuclear threat was over, other than the fact that Trump made the statement. The threat is not over, as even Trump's appointees admit. What facts did Mr. Muelrath learn from Trumps post-Helsinki remarks?

Anderson Coopers program does not claim to be news, just opinion. CNN is open about this: Anderson Cooper goes beyond the headlines to tell stories from many points of view, so you can make up your own mind about the news. Mr. Muelraths own example of one episode spending 45 minutes debating Trumps response to the death of Sen. McCain should have made it obvious that this is not a news program.

From what little I have seen, Coopers program is dominated by a liberal point of view, but he always has Trump spokespeople and Trump defenders on his panels. I have been told that Fox is not as open to opposing opinions, but I might be wrong. Still, Coopers guests offer opinions and analyses, not reportage. No one goes there for news, I hope

Presenting actual facts is what newspapers do. I mean real newspapers, not broadcast or internet media outlets that align with one political party. If Mr. Muelrath no longer trusts the countrys best newspapers or non-Fox television, I fear that he has succumbed to the campaign to get Americans to ignore facts.

May I recommend to Mr. Muelrath The Wall Street Journal. While their opinion pages solidly support Republicans and reluctantly tolerate Trump, their news pages often offer deep and nuanced reportage that far better supports the arguments of a Bernie Sanders than of a Charles or David Koch.

Fox TV, The New York Post and The Wall Street Journal are owned by the same company, but the first two are pitched at audiences who want their support for Trump to be affirmed. The Journal is, instead, published for business people who need to know actual facts. There are other good newspapers, of course, but this one is a fine first step for anyone who wants to wean himself or herself from the official channel of one political party.

I humbly recommend that Mr. Muelrath spend a quiet afternoon in the Napa Main Library reading the first sections of various national newspapers to remind himself of where factual reporting happens. No one ever got dumb by turning off the television and picking up a good newspaper.

Stephen Sossaman

Burbank
In order to boost trade relationship with Bhutan, a Border Trade Centre was inaugurated by Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Wednesday at Darranga in Baksa district under BTAD at the Indo-Bhutan border.

The construction of the Indo-Bhutan International Border Trade Centre project was started in 2011 after it was approved in 2010.

Delivering his inaugural speech, Chief Minister Sonowal while stating that the trade centre would mostly benefit the locals said, The trade centre will strengthen the Indo-Bhutan trade relationship.

Sonowal said that the BJP-led Central Government has already decided to construct 264 km road along the Indo-Bhutan border in four BTAD districts in Assam  Udalguri, Chirang, Baksa and Kokrajhar.

The Assam CM also announced that construction work of the Rupsi Airport in Dhubri would be started in October next.

Air services to start from Rupsi Airport to Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sikkim and Bagdgora once the construction of the airport is completed, announced Sonowal.

Bodoland Peoples Party (BPF) MLA of Tamulpur constituency, Emmanuel Mosahary, speaking on the occasion, demanded that colleges be established in Tamulpur Legislative Constituency by the State Government for the benefit of the students of the area.

Sonowal said that the Government would take the demand raised by Emanuel Mosahary seriously.

The Assam CM further said, The trade centre will also give a fillip to the tourism sector in border the area, adding, It would also boost the economic condition of the people of the region.

Lashing out at the previous Government both at Centre and the State, Sonowal said, The previous Congress Government did nothing for the development of Northeast India. But the Naredra Modi-led Government brought the Act East Policy and accordingly has been doing various works for the development of the region.

Sonowal also claimed that the present Government has given importance in good diplomatic relationship with the neighbouring nations.

Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) chief Hagrama Mohilary, who was also present at the programme, demanded that another trade centre be set up at Bhairabkunda in Udalguri district and a district jail in Baksa district by the Government.

Assam Industries and Commerce Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary said, Now, the bilateral diplomatic relation between India and Bhutan will become more strong. The trade centre will bring people of both the nations closer.

The objective of the Border Trade Centre is to promote sustainable growth of trade exchange and trans-border economic enterprises which shall, in turn, promote peace and amity between the two nations which is continuing since time immemorial.

The trade centre, situated at Nonkey village, falls under Tamulpur Revenue Circle, is spread in a land area of 45 bighas.

The project was implemented by the Assam Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (AIIDC), a Corporation of Industries & Commerce Department constituted under AIIDC Act 1990.
The former Chief Minister of Tripura Manik Sarkar said in Agartala on Wednesday that democracy is being murdered in the State.

Accusing the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of destroying democratic rights in the State, Sarkar, who served as the Chief Minister for 20 years since 1998, told a press conference at the CPI (M) State headquarters that individual rights, civil liberties and human rights have been damaged under BJP rule.

Sarkar, who served as Chief Minister for 20 years since 1998, told a press conference at CPI (M) state headquarters that a series of clashes centering forthcoming three-tier panchayat by-polls.

Sarkar also alleged massive political violence on Opposition supporters, especially those from CPI (M), and said ruling BJP activists are trying to silence the voice of the Opposition.

The BJP grabbed power by hatching conspiracies and ploys. People are gradually realizing it now, Manik Sarkar said and added that common people wouldnt stay silent for long.

Elected public representatives were forced to resign from their positions. Over 50 per cent of seats in three-tier Panchayat bodies went vacant within five months of the new Government. By-election was announced but Opposition supporters were barred from submitting nomination papers. Those who collected nomination papers were attacked and their houses ransacked. This is an unnatural by-election, he said.

The four-time Chief Minister appealed to the BJP-IPFT Government in Tripura to restore peace and ensure that people can exercise their democratic rights without fear. He also sought the State Election Commission to reschedule by-election for Panchayat bodies to make sure that all those who want to submit nomination and contest can do so.

There is no work in the villages and the rural people are suffering from severe food crisis. Many of them are crossing the international border into Bangladesh to collect forest products and sell them for a living. The new Government has to take a stand on the issue, Sarkar further said.
Charging ahead

The Nepali market for electric vehicles (EVs) has been growing at a steady pace. With the denizens of Kathmandu becoming more and more concerned about the growing pollution rate in the valley, the sales of EVs has picked up tremendously, say automobile dealers.
US House of Representatives passes $1 trillion infrastructure development bill

Azerbaijan destroys Artsakhs Madatashen village school, house of culture, monument, damages St. Astvatsatsin Church

Deputy PM Papikyan is elected Chairman of Yerevan State University Board of Trustees

Russia, US engaged in dialogue on strategic stability

Economy minister: China on list of main export destinations for Armenia

Turkey court finds word Jew offensive

12 of Million Mask March participants arrested in London

121 new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Armenia MFA: Use of force by Azerbaijan cannot remove Karabakh conflict from international agenda

2,117 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Re-elected Uzbekistan President takes office

Number of hospitalized due to food poisoning at pizzeria chains 2 Yerevan restaurants climbs to 98

Czech Rep. President suffers from liver cirrhosis

Newspaper: Natural gas, electricity bills to rise for those in Armenia not vaccinated against coronavirus

Famous Brazil singer dies in plane crash

US rules out resumption of operations at consulates general in China

Newspaper: Armenia Unified Social Services provincial offices are used for political purposes

Opposition Armenia Faction: November 8 rally will mark beginning of pan-Armenian struggle

Russian MFA: Russia is not inclined to have monopoly in contacts with Armenia and Azerbaijan

Residents of Armenia's Goris say they will shut down roads, if Mayor Arush Arushanyan isn't released

57 Armenia citizens hospitalized after being poisoned at Tashir Pizza

Armenia economy minister: Right strategy for development of winemaking and brandy production is important

Opposition 'Armenia' faction proposes bill to punish those who provide false information to a probe committee

Armenia emergency situations minister, ICRC Delegation head sign new cooperation document

Overchuk to Armenia PM: Roads remain under the jurisdiction of the countries through which they pass

Tashir Pizza temporarily closes its branches in Armenia

24-year-old citizen of Armenia obtains COVID-19 vaccination certificate for AMD 10,000

Erdogan's ex-partisan calls on him to continue treatment and retire

Court rules to transfer money for bail of mayor of Armenia's Goris to state budget

PACE co-rapporteurs to PM Pashinyan: Armenia is a shining star of democracy in the region

Economy minister: Armenia plans to digitize winemaking process

Kazakh Ambassador: Yerevan State University is one of pillars for development of Armenia-Kazakhstan relations

Opposition MP: 'Armenia' Alliance will launch resistance movement with rally on Nov. 8

NEWS.am daily digest: 05.11.21

Armenia defense minister, France Ambassador discuss current situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border

Around $2.4M planned to be allocated to Armenia border communities in 2022

Justice minister announces launch of new constitutional reform process in Armenia

Armenia Finance Ministry: Expenditures for Ministry of Environment will be significantly cut in 2022

Davutoglu: The time has come for Erdogan to go

Armenia finance minister: There will be 34.9% growth of expenditures in agriculture sector in 2022

Karabakh State Minister gifts his walking cane to young Armenian who lost eyesight during Artsakh war

Armenia to allocate large funds to compensate damages caused to soldiers' life and health during homeland defense

Dollar goes down in Armenia

Great potential noted in Armenia-Russia scientific cooperation

Court lifts ban on visits to re-elected but imprisoned mayor of Armenias Goris

Deputy minister: Armenia plans to increase minimum salary to AMD 85,000 by 2026

Merab Turava to Armenia Parliament Speaker: Georgian MPs attend Constitutional Court sessions

Armenia minister: There are currently more than 100,000 Armenians living in Artsakh

Armenia PM receives Georgian Constitutional Court president-led delegation

Former employee of Armenia parliament files claim against staff

PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia visit Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Azerbaijan presidential assistant compares Armenia with Germany, demands signing peace agreement

Armenia embassy in US holds reception in honor of Karabakh state minister

ARARAT Craft & Twist: One Day, One Bar, Four New Cocktails (PHOTOS)

Minister: Armenia is collaborating with Russia to restore industrial capacity

Azerbaijan claims that 1,700 bodies of fallen soldiers were handed over to Armenian side

1 more person dies of coronavirus in Artsakh

Turkey FM finds self in awkward situation after Armenian MP's call in countrys parliament

Opposition Armenia Faction MP: Poverty in country increased by 7 percentage points in 2020

Turkey may resume deal with Russia on increased natural gas supply

Republican senators propose $ 2 billion in military aid to Taiwan

Senate discusses matter of depriving Azerbaijan of US military aid, investigating war crimes

Soldier dies during military exercises in Azerbaijan

Over 40 countries pledge to reduce coal

1,835 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Matter of commuting pretrial detention of re-elected mayor of Armenias Goris to be considered today

Armenia-Russia scientific cooperation roadmap is signed in Yerevan

Armenia finance ministry: About $1.2B will be allocated from 2022 state budget to resolve social issues

Ankara doesn't give up hope of getting F-35 fighters

Iran FM: Tehran-Baku ties continue on positive neighborly course

15, including 2 children, with intestinal infection initial diagnosis hospitalized in Yerevan

Newspaper: Noteworthy situation created in criminal case against Armenia arrested ex-defense minister

Newspaper: PACE co-rapporteurs astonished by Armenia authorities decision on press

Pope Francis appoints woman to Vatican administrative office for first time

Armenia MFA: Yerevan-Minsk trade turnover has grown significantly

Iran FM tests positive for COVID-19

Ukraine's ex-internal affairs minister Arsen Avakov states reasons for resignation

Armenia FM highlights need for repatriation of Armenian POWs during meeting with PACE co-rapporteurs

Armenia opposition 'With Honor' faction members meet with PACE co-rapporteurs

Armenia minister: Yerevan and Moscow considering export of Sputnik Light vaccine and its use in Armenian market

US Senators introduce several amendments on holding Azerbaijan and Turkey liable

Armenia government decides to grant trespassers the right to apply for shelter within 24 hours

Powers of CSTO Secretary General may be terminated early, Armenia has no objections

Armenia justice minister presents facts about Armenian captives' tortures in Azerbaijan to PACE co-rapporteurs

Azerbaijani FM explains why Iranian drivers were 'punished'

Azerbaijan FM says he is 'open' for meeting with Armenian side

Armenia Parliament Speaker discusses with PACE co-rapporteurs the work of journalists in parliament

Hikmet Cetin: Nikol Pashinyan needs to move forward with his statements in the general sense

Armenian MFA: Representatives of Iran and Eurasian Economic Union to discuss new agreement in Armenia

Armenia economy minister: Yerevan and Tehran are considering liberalization of bilateral transit and transportation

Armenia economy minister: There are still problems with export to Iran

Armenia PM attends Requiem Service for father of ruling party MP Davit Danielyan in Kapan

Turkish FM: Turkey doesn't and won't recognize 'unlawful annexation' of Crimea

Armenian Deputy FM: Armenia-Russia relations strictly intensified in 2021, in spite of coronavirus restrictions

Ukrainian MP shows Zelenskyy the middle finger

NEWS.am daily digest: 04.11.21

Armenia opposition: Nationwide resistance is beginning

Jeyhun Bayramov admits that Azerbaijan committed act of aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh

Japan, Germany launch joint military exercises in Pacific Ocean

Saakashvili says he doesn't want high-ranking position in Georgia
Almost 30,000 have been raised for Armenian man Ilabek Avetian, 39, left in a vegetative state after a horrific scrambler crash in Ireland. The money was raised in just one day after people read about his situation in a number of newspapers, The Journal.ie website reported.

Speaking to the Irish Independent, Avetians wife, Anzhela Kotsinian, thanked people for their generosity.

It is very hard for me to put into words how this has helped me today, she said. From the morning when I looked online, I have not been able to stop crying.

To know that so many Irish people wanted to help Ilabek and me has made me very happy. I cannot describe how this feels to know so many Irish people cared for us.

Speaking in the wake of the media coverage, Fianna Fail (The Republican Party) member of the Assembly of Ireland John Curran said legislative action must be taken to curb the illegal use of all-terrain vehicles, including scramblers and quad bikes, in urban areas.

As reported earlier, Ilabek Avetian suffered severe head injuries after a scrambler bike fell on him as he sunbathed in a park in the Irish capital city of Dublin.
Cloth store owner murdered

A cloth store owner was found murdered near Nepal-India border at Gaurigunj Rural Municipality-6 in Jhapa district on Tuesday morning.
Delhi did not protest Kathmandu skipping drill, say Nepali officials

India has unofficially expressed its unhappiness over Nepals decision to withdraw from the first-ever joint military exercise among the member states of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) that began in Pune, India on Monday.
YEREVAN.  The scenario of the Shant 2018 military drills is taken from the situation in the region, the Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces Artak Davtyan told reporters on Wednesday.

According to the scenario, there was an aggravation of the situation in the region, and Azerbaijan, taking advantage of the situation, attacks Artsakh. Everything happens with the Turkish active assistance. Military actions are taking place in Artsakh, while Azerbaijan is trying to drag Armenia into by shelling border areas.

There is a flow of refugees from Turkey. Subversive groups were detected. Armenia appealed to the CSTO, measures were taken within the joint grouping of Russian troops.

The purpose of the exercises is to train public authorities in emergency situations. It is necessary to analyze everything and then reveal the shortcomings. However, the lack of experience of some structures in such situations is already visible, Artak Davtyan said.
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.
Azerbaijan has fired shots at Baghanis border village in Tavush Province, on Tuesday and early hours of Wednesday, spokesperson for the Armenian Defense Ministry Artsrun Hovhannisyan said.

In his words, the shots were fired in the direction of the Armenian combat positions and the village, but the Armenian side has silenced this shooting.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan instructed the National Security Service (NSS), the police, to identify those standing behind the wiretapping of the phone conversation between the head of Armenias National Security Service and the chief of Armenias Special Investigation Service.

From now on, I am instructing the police to carry out the raids, to disarm the bodyguards of high ranking officials and oligarchs, he said, adding that this has to be done in two hours.

The matter of Armenia will be discussed at a special meeting of the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), member of the Armenian delegation to PACE Arpine Hovhannisyan said.

The current domestic political situation and the recent developments () in the RA [Republic of Armenia] were discussed yesterday [Tuesday], at the session of the PACE Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy, she wrote, in particular. I have submitted [respective] facts, videos, disseminations ().

As a result of discussion of the matter, the Committee made a decision to send a letter () to the [PACE] Monitoring Committee, proposing to conduct monitoring in connection with ensuring the rule of law, ensuring the independence of the legislative and judicial authorities, as well as the political persecutions in Armenia.

Artak Davtyan, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Armenia, has dismissed Special Investigation Service Head Sasun Khachatryans announcement with respect to the armys involvement in the events that occurred in capital city Yerevan in March 2008.

If they fired shots, some individual servicemen [did that], said Davtyan, who at the time was serving as chief of the operative department of the armed forces. We cant speak about the whole army. There was no such order.

At the same time, Davtyan assured that the investigators probably have more information than he does, after the ten years since these events in Yerevan.

Armenias Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan will visit New York at the end of September, and he will attend an address at the opening of the session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.

Spokesperson for Armenian Foreign Ministry Tigran Balayan added that several bilateral talks are also scheduled within the framework of Pashinyans trip to New York, but these meetings will be announced at a later date.
YEREVAN.  The content of the wiretapped recording of Armenias National Security Service and Special Investigation Service chiefs points to a crime  pressure on the court, Armenias second president Robert Kocharyan said in an interview with Yerevan Today.

A scandalous wiretapped recording where the heads of Armenias National Security Service and Special Investigation Service are discussing the criminal case against Kocharyan and CSTO Secretary General Yuri Khachaturov appeared on the web on Tuesday.

All our forecasts were confirmed by this recording. All the statements that the case is politically motivated, and this is a political persecution having no relation to the disclosure of the March 1, 2008 events [were confirmed], and the only goal is to arrest me, Kocharyan said.

The second president added that in any country, officials would have to resign after such a scandal and would have to apologize to the people for their crime and to apologize to me, to the second president of Armenia.

However, Kocharyan added, the officials started using the March 1 case instead of justifying their actions.

The second president emphasized that the process is managed by PM, and the director of National Security Service is simply an executor.

I do say: there is a tyrant in Armenia. Was that the essence of the revolution? he wonders.

To the remark that the Prime Minister and his team claim that if there were political persecution the court would not have let him go, Kocharyan replied: Today I am free for one reason, because the judge of the Court of Appeal who considered my case is known as incorruptible judge and a man of principle. This is the only reason. By the way, in this atmosphere, under such pressure, the judge must have strength to resist, and it is difficult to demand such courage from all judges.
YEREVAN.  When I appointed the head of the Special Investigative Service, I came with him to a definite agreement that all issues should be resolved within the law, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in the National Assembly on Wednesday.

His remark came on RPA MP Shushan Sardaryans question whether he had discussed the arrest with the SIS head or not.

According to him, at that time he was in St. Petersburg, but he knew about the upcoming arrest, as he was personally informed by the head of the National Security Service Arthur Vanetsyan.

Upon learning of the upcoming arrest, the Prime Minister noted that there are no political or other obstacles, and if it is necessary to arrest in the interests of the investigation, if the investigating authorities are convinced of the need to implement these actions, then this must be done.

And I confirm this position from the rostrum of the Armenian National Assembly, I confirmed this earlier, and I will do so in the future, Prime Minister concluded.

As reported earlier, a recording of a phone conversation between the director of Armenias National Security Service Arthur Vanetsyan and head of the Special Investigation Service Sasun Khachatryan appeared on the web.

The authenticity of the record was recognized both by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and participants of the conversation.

During the conversation, Vanetsyan highlighted the need to imprison Kocharyan. The sides were discussing the arrest of Khachaturov.

On March 1 and 2, 2008, the then authorities used force against the opposition members who were rallying in downtown Yerevan, and against the results of the recent presidential election. Eight demonstrators as well as two servicemen of the internal troops were killed in the clashes. But no one had been brought to account for these deaths, to this day.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani highlighted the US governments isolation in the international arena and said currently, even Washingtons close allies have distanced themselves from its unilateral measures, Tasnim News Agency reported.

Today, there are a small number of scholars, intellectuals and commentators in the United States who agree with the White House officials, and even some of them explicitly describe them as fools and idiots, and this is rare in American history, Rouhani said during a cabinet session on Wednesday.

Today, the US allies do not side with it politically and even its traditional allies have distanced themselves from this country and are proud of this distance, he said, adding, This is while they once were proud to be with the United States.

Washington is now in its worst global situation, Rouhani said, adding that even international organizations such as the UNESCO, the United Nations, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), are opposed to the US policies.
Justice Mishra vows results

Newly appointed Chief Justice Om Prakash Mishra on Monday took charge as the head of the judiciary almost six months after chief justice Gopal Parajuli was compelled to resign over his age limit issue.
Veterans Small Business Road Show helps veterans start or expand a business

by Christi Mathis

CARBONDALE, Ill.  If youre a veteran, heres your chance to find out how to start or grow a business.

The Small Business Veterans Roadshow is coming to Southern Illinois University Carbondale on Sept. 25 to provide veterans with all of the information they need to decide if it makes sense to start a business, or find out how to help their operation grow and become more successful.

We are excited to have the SBA, the Veterans Business Outreach Center and other resources here at SIU to support our regions entrepreneurial veterans, said Greg Bouhl, director of the Small Business Development Center.

Learn about starting a business, financing and more

A wide variety of topics will be covered in the workshop. Sessions will focus on:

Entrepreneurship for You!  Veterans Edition: highlights the concepts of small business ownership, tailored especially for veterans.

Financing a small business.

Kick-start your business: low- and no-cost ideas to improve the profitability of existing companies.

Learning from experience: Tom Harness, of Harness Digital Marketing, will discuss his own entrepreneurial journey following military service.

Details about state and federal resources for veteran-owned businesses.

Free meals included

The free workshop is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. the Illinois Small Business Development Center/International Trade Center, 1740 Innovation Drive in Carbondale. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m.

The workshop is a collaboration between the Illinois Small Business Development Center at SIU, the Veterans Business Outreach Center and the Small Business Administration.

Breakfast and lunch are provided, courtesy of Country Financial.

All current and former military welcome

All current active duty military personnel, members of the National Guard and reserves, and all veterans of any era, along with military family members who are interested in starting a business or who already own a business are invited to attend.

Sign up now

Though there is no cost to participate, pre-registration is required. Find additional details and registration online. For more information, call 618/536-2424 or email sbdc@siu.edu.
Home | News | General | Breaking: Buhari to lead Nigerias delegation to 73rd UN general assembly, placed on number 20 on list of 193 world leaders

- President Muhammadu Buhari will lead Nigerias delegation to the 73rd United Nations General Assembly

- Buhari has been placed as the number 20 on the list of the speakers out of the 193 world leaders that would address the Assembly

- He will also hold bilateral meetings with the UN secretary-general, some African and other world leaders

The foreign affairs minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, says President Muhammadu Buhari, will lead Nigerias delegation to the 73rd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.

The 73rd UNGA will begin Sept. 18 at the UN Headquarters, New York, while the General Debate will hold from Sept. 25 to Oct. 1.

READ ALSO: Mass defection looms as 23 PDP reps set to dump party for APC

Onyeama, who disclosed this on Tuesday, September 11, in Abuja at a news conference said Mr President would use the opportunity to assert Nigerias position on global issues.

It an opportunity for him to assert Nigerias position globally and to put forward our ideas and our vision going forward as a global community.

The president will address the 73rd Session of the high-level general debate of the UN General assembly at the UN headquarters in New York on Sept. 25.

He will deliver Nigerias national statement on the first day of the general debate of the general assembly high-level events, he said.

He would deliver the address to the assembly on the first day between 8pm. and 9p.m. (between 1am. and 2a.m. local time).rs out of the 193 world leaders that would address the assembly.

He would deliver the address to the Assembly on the first day between 8pm. and 9p.m. (between 1am. and 2a.m. local time).

Onyeama said the theme for this years UNGA is:Making the United Nations relevant to all People: Global Leadership and shared responsibilities for peaceful, equitable and sustainable development .

According to him, as usual Mr president will be leading Nigeria delegation with the numbers of ministers and heads of agencies and permanent secretary to the event.

Of course, this is the global meeting of heads of state in the world.

It is extremely important and it is a rare opportunity for Nigeria as a country to engage with the other countries of the world, he said.

Onyeama said the 73rd UNGA will avail Nigeria and other member states of the UN the opportunity to engage, interface and share best practices toward reaching common understanding and consensus on key issues of global significance.

According to him, Mr President will hold bilateral meetings with the UN Secretary-General, some African and other world leaders, as well as few strategic partners during this period.

Nigerias expected outcome at the 73rd UNGA should be to achieve a well-planned, synchronised and successful participation of Nigeria at the 73rd Session, under the guidance of Mr President.

It will be weighed against the back drop of externalisation of Nigerias foreign policy objectives through effective engagement, he said.

Meanwhile, NAIJ.com had reported that the minister of transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, said on Tuesday, September 11, that the expression of interest and nomination forms presented to President Muhammadu Buhari were purchased by a large number of people who made contributions.

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Amaechi, who is also the director-general, Buhari Campaign Organisation, made this clarification while briefing state house correspondents shortly after the forms were presented to Buhari at the presidential villa.

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Home | News | General | Dr Awele Elumelu joins global health leaders to champion increased vaccine coverage in under-immunised nations

Dr. Awele Elumelu, GAVI Champion for Africa and Founder, Avon Medical Practice, joined other global health leaders at a Photo Exhibition organised by GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, for increased vaccine coverage in under-immunised nations. The event tagged Vaccine Heroes was held on September 10, 2018, in Geneva, Switzerland.

Following the announcement made earlier in January 2018 on the sidelines of the global World Economic Forum in Davos, of Dr. Elumelu as GAVI Champion for Immunisation in Africa, the GAVI Photo Exhibition convened GAVI representatives who reiterated their commitment to saving the lives of children around the world.

L-R: Deputy CEO, Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance, Anuradha Gupta; Director, Division of Administration, United Nations, Clemens Adams; Director General, World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus; GAVI Champion for Africa & Founder, Avon Medical, Dr Awele Elumelu and CEO, GAVI, The Vaccine Alliance, Dr Seth Berkley, at the GAVI Vaccine Heroes Exhibition and conference to champion increased vaccine coverage, targeting underimmunised nations, in Geneva

Speaking at the Gavi event, Dr. Awele Elumelu commended the great efforts and achievements by the Vaccine Heroes, Health Workers and the GAVI team in spreading the message and adoption of immunisation globally. In her words: "Immunisation is one sure way to prevent diseases, save our children and advance our economy. It is an honour to champion the importance of immunisation that saves the lives of children around Africa and the world. I am particularly pleased to be doing so with innovative organisations like the ones that make up the Gavi Alliance," she said.

R-L: GAVI Champion for Africa and Founder, Avon Medical, Dr. Awele Elumelu; CEO, GAVI, The Vaccine Alliance, Dr Seth Berkley; and Director General, World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, at the GAVI Vaccine Heroes Exhibition and conference to champion increased vaccine coverage, targeting underimmunised nations, in Geneva

Dr. Elumelu further advocated the urgent and important need for the health of children and committed to working with the global Vaccine Alliance to expand the coverage of immunisation across Africa and in her native country, Nigeria. 

In our own capacity, at Avon Medical and Avon HMO, we are working to provide quality, effective and accessible healthcare and insurance to most citizens in Africa's most populous country, Nigeria. This is our Groups way of contributing to the work of GAVI. I look forward to doing more work and bringing about more private and public partnerships to promote immunisation and better coverage for children in and out of Africa.

In attendance was Director General, World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus who spoke about the importance of vaccines as the backbone of health systems. According to him: "There is no health for all without vaccines for all.

Organised by GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, the event gathered leaders in the global health sector, including Anuradha Gupta, Deputy CEO, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance; Clemens Adams, Director, United Nations; and Seth Berkley, CEO, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

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Home | News | General | Buhari committed to increasing minimum wage  Presidency

- The presidency said the Buhari administration is committed to new minimum wage

- Senator Ita Enang said this is why a committee was set up to address the issue

- He said the administration was also creating self-employment opportunities

The Presidency has reassured workers of the commitment of President Muhammadu Buharis administration to an increase in the minimum wage.

Sen. Ita Enang, the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), gave the assurance on the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja.

READ ALSO: 2019: Ambode reportedly rallies Abuja for support after rejection by party leaders

Enang spoke at the backdrop of alleged lack of commitment by the Federal Government to an upward review of the minimum wage, which has been N18, 000 for over eight years.

I want to assure you that the Buhari-led administration is very honest and committed to reviewing the salaries of workers.

If he did not, he would not have set up a committee on minimum wage headed by a retired Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.

This is a sign of commitment, and this retired HoS is not an off-the-mill retired Head of the Civil Service of the Federation; the Minister of Labour is part of it.

So, it shows the level of commitment, and it is not a committee of the Federal Executive Council; it is a presidential committee set up and inaugurated by the president.

The tripartite National Minimum Wage Committee, made up of 29 members drawn from organised labour, the federal and state governments, was inaugurated in May, 2017.

Although the committee was given until Sept. 1 to submit its report, it could not meet the deadline due to disagreement over the minimum wage figure.

On Aug. 21, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, blamed the delay on the inability of state governors to come up with an agreed figure.

Ngige, however, stated that the Federal Government through its Economic Management Team, was working with the governors to find a common ground.

Until then, the minister said he could not tell when the new minimum wage would be implemented.

On Monday, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) through its President, Mr Ayuba Wabba, said the government was frustrating the process.

Wabba stated that the congress had summoned a meeting of its organs for next week to report the federal government and decide on the next line of action.

Enang also called on labour leaders to consider unemployed Nigerians in its demand for salary increment.

So, when we are talking about increase in salaries, I agree to it, but I think we should also factor along creating employment for those who are yet to have.

He said that the Federal Government was already working in that direction by encouraging its agencies and parastatals to employ young and qualified Nigerians.

Enang stated that the government was also creating self-employment opportunities for enterprising youths through its social investment programmes.

He added that the government was equally creating enabling environment in the agricultural and technological sectors for young Nigerians.

NAIJ.com had reported that Comrade Ayuba Wabba, the president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has said that the national minimum wage committee was yet to submit its report to the president because it was yet to agree on a figure.

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Wabba also added that the failure of the federal government to come up with a figure to be agreed upon contributed to the delay of the new minimum wage.

NAIJ.com gathered that Wabba in an interview said that while the committee has concluded its deliberation, the minister of labour, Senator Chris Ngige, told the committee that the federal government needed to consult before coming up with its own figure, a position he said negates the earlier agreement to work within its timeline.

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Home | News | General | Oyo deserves the best aspirant, if thats Tegbe then so be it - By Adediwura Adelabu

An article titled "Ajimobi abandons Penkelemesis grandson for God-fearing Tegbe" and dated September 11, 2018, recently appeared online, and there lies no better time to pen a thought about the quite intriguing Oyo 2019 gubernatorial race, judging by the content of the said article.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo state has received a broad beam of focus in the past few months. Top of the reasons for this is the array of options the party has lined up for its 2019 gubernatorial slot to succeed Governor Abiola Ajimobi.

Notably and for the first time, the party, and by extension the state, has an embarrassment of choices made up of more professionals brimming with ideas, and less career politicians from the quite infamous abula school of thought that Oyo was erstwhile known for.

The aspirants themselves, a former CBN deputy governor, a KPMG executive, a secretary to the state government, a couple of business magnates, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, and a couple of ranking cabinet members, in the race to outshine each other, have been engaged in what can be truly regarded as an intriguing war of optics, ideas and consultations around the state.

People have argued that this drift in quality of candidates cannot be unconnected to the quality of governance the incumbent has tried to entrench in his two terms.

For what it's worth, one can argue that Oyo state in the last 7 years, has truly grown to become a 4-star investment friendly state in Nigeria. Governor Ajimobi seems to have brought the state from a valley of misappropriation to becoming one of Nigerias most investment-friendly states according to the Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC).

A free trade zone, an ongoing construction of a 4000-hectare industrial park, and the approval for the establishment of a modern dry port in different parts within the state, have been said to be topmost in the panoply of investments that earned Ajimobi's Oyo this ranking that ticks the box of socioeconomic development to an objective extent.

For a governor who has achieved these, it is an expected outcome that he will be definitely concerned about who succeeds him, as it is predictably so, that his interest should be the continued development of the state, and not covering of tracks.

Like every other human, Governor Ajimobi is not perfect. What is however very clear is that a tone for the development of modern Oyo state has been set and there are no tracks to cover. The desire to have a God-fearing man and brilliant mind to further steer the affairs of the state when he leaves office, is definitely not out of place.

Like a Professor of Management, David Ulrich, once said, Succession planning doesnt start with people; it starts with the requirements of the position.

While Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, the KPMG one, has a long standing relationship with incumbent Governor Ajimobi, he is a globally recognized consultant with an experience that cuts across various sectors of the Nigerian economy, and has provided advisory services to governments at federal and state levels since 1999. He is a man who has been well known for his integrity and commitment to work. He has also done the same outside Nigeria.

It is factually incorrect to sway his gubernatorial interest as one hinged on covering tracks. The facts do not support this claim. The governor's interest in the man, either true or not, is why stakeholders like myself in Oyo state have been endeared to the possibility of having the KPMG partner become the next governor of Oyo state. These are the true facts - that the man, Tegbe, has brewed public love because of his competence.

He is known to have consistently expressed his plan to consolidate on the gains of the Ajimobi government in order to deliver sustainable development in the state. It will be a disservice to the people and the socio-economic improvement Oyo state has enjoined in the last seven years, to support any less qualified candidate whose antecedent remains questionable.

The governorship race in Oyo state has become one to watch closely.

- Adediwura is a blogger and a post graduate student of University of Ibadan.

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Home | News | General | 7 family members killed in house fire in Uganda

Seven people from the same family were killed by a fire when it ravaged their grass thatched hut in the eastern Ugandan district of Bukedea, a police spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Michael Odongo, East Kyoga Regional Police spokesperson, said that the incident happened after a jerrycan containing petrol caught fire at Amutoro village in Bukedea trading centre at around 20:00 local time.

He said the woman, who was cooking from outside their hut carried the charcoal stove inside the house leading to the deadly fire.

The seven died of horrific burns. The family has been dealing in illegal business of selling petrol, said Odongo.

Odongo said the charred bodies were taken to Aturutur Hospital for a postmortem before handing them to the relatives for burial. (Xinhua/NAN)

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Home | News | General | Direct primaries desirable but not practicable in BornoShettima

Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima, says it will be difficult to conduct direct primaries in the state because of its peculiar security situation.

Shettima, in an interview with State House correspondents in Abuja, said that the constitution of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had provisions for direct and indirect primaries.

The National Executive Council (NEC) of APC recently adopted direct primaries for all elective offices.

Shettima opined that every state should adopt the option suitable to it based on its peculiarities.

The governor said that in the U.S from which Nigeria borrowed the presidential system, states of Delaware, Florida, New Mexico, New York, New Jersey and Illinois conducted closed primaries.

According to him, states like Alabama, Arizona and some of others in the southern part of the country conducted open primaries.

So, we are a nation of diversity; and our diversity should be our source of strength.

The constitution of the party provides for direct, indirect and consensus, so there is no cause for alarm; depending on the peculiarities of particular location, they will choose the option that is best for them.

Like in Borno, direct primaries is desirable but is not practicable; we have challenges; so why do we have to go the whole hog of imposing an untenable system on our people and main election is coming.

Speaking on the 19 governorship aspirants in the state, Shettima said that it was the beauty of democracy as the more the merrier.

He said that there would be a level playing field for people to exercise their rights.

According to Shettima, it is when people are suppressed from expressing their fundamental rights of choice that problems erupt.

He said, however, that he was in the Presidential villa for consultation and update on the security situation in his state.

Shettima said that in juxtaposition with what it was four years ago, there was an improvement in security situation.

Being optimists, we believe that things will change for the better in the coming weeks.

Four years ago, 22 Local Government Areas were under the occupation of Boko Haram.

So, whatever anybody might say, I think we have to give some credit to President Muhammadu Buhari administration for securing the lives and property of the citizens.

`No doubt, we have challenges; but then you have to think of the past to judge the present in order to forecast the future.

There has been remarkable improvement and I believe that if tempo is sustained, we shall have an enduring peace in the region very soon, he said.

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Home | News | General | 2019: 39-year old House of Rep member officially joins Imo governorship race

- The race for the Imo state governorship election has begun in earnest

- A member of the House of Representatives, Honourable Tony Nwulu, is one of the leading aspirants in the polls

- Nwulu, a member of the United Progressives Party (UPP), picked up his nomination form on Tuesday, September 11

A member of the House of Representatives and governorship candidate of the UPP on Tuesday, September 11, picked up his nomination form in the party headquarters in Abuja.

Nwulu, 39, is the sponsor of the Not Too Young To Run bill in the green chambers that was subsequently passed by President Muhammadu Buhari, opening up the political space for young politicians in the 2019 elections and beyond.

He promised to liberate Imolites and restore our pride of existence as he begins his quest to govern the south-east state in 2019.

READ ALSO: APC's change has brought hunger, unemployment to Nigerians - Kwankwaso

Addressing supporters during the event, Honourable Nwulu said: I seek your prayers in your daily devotions and support. There shall indeed be showers of blessings; seasons refreshing; precious reviving and sounds of abundance when we assume office.

I bring message of hope to the unemployed youths, the deprived pensioners and the oppressed people of Imo state. I am confident that together we'll emerge victorious. We are one people, one destiny. With eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we shall carry on this great task of rebuilding Imo state and deliver it safely to future generations.

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Similarly, 39-year-old Oluseyi Olowookere has joined the race to be the number one citizen of Ogun state in 2019 under the Alliance for Democracy (AD).

Olowookere, an electrical engineer, announced his decision to succeed Governor Ibikunle Amosun recently, while addressing supporters of the AD in Ogun state.

He stated that he has since realised that all it takes is simple policies that can be sustained and implemented at the grassroots level to make Nigeria, and indeed Ogun state great.

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Home | News | General | Police Inspector caught in camera holding a bottle of beer while in uniform arrested

- Lagos police command has arrested a police Inspector, Emmanuel Egba, caught in camera holding a bottle of beer while in uniform

- The police public relations officer, CSP Chike Oti, said that Egba was identified and arrested

- But Egba said that he recovered the beer bottle with liquid contents from a driver who was drinking right inside his car in traffic

Lagos state police command has arrested a police Inspector who was caught in camera holding a bottle of beer while in uniform.

NAIJ.com reports that the Lagos state police public relations officer, CSP Chike Oti, in a statement on Wednesday, September 12, said that the officer in question, Inspector Emmanuel Egba, was identified and arrested.

READ ALSO: APC's change has brought hunger, unemployment to Nigerians - Kwankwaso

He said he was a police motorcycle rider attached to Area 'M' Command, Idimu and not Rapid Response Squad (RRS ) as erroneously reported.

The statement read: "The attention of the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, CP Edgal Imohimi has been drawn to a publication on page two of the Guardian Newspaper of Wednesday September 12, 2018, in which a police Inspector was caught in camera holding a bottle of beer.

"The officer in question has been identified and arrested. He is Inspector Emmanuel Egba, a police motorcycle rider attached to Area 'M' Command, Idimu and not Rapid Response Squad (RRS ) as erroneously reported.

"When the Inspector was questioned by senior officers, he denied the allegation; stating that he recovered the beer bottle with liquid contents from a driver who was drinking right inside his car in traffic.

"He feared that the driver might get himself intoxicated thereby endangering his life and that of other road users.

"The case is however being investigated at the Command Provost Section and if his claim is found to be false, appropriate disciplinary action will be meted out to him after an Orderly Room Trial.

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Meanwhile, NAIJ.com had previously reported that the police command in Lagos on Monday, August 27, arrested two persons, Folake Falade and Emmanuel Gbenga, suspected to be ritualists in the Mosafejo-Ilogbo area of the state.

Nigeria News 2018: BUSTED Police Arrest One-Chance Tricycle Thieves, Human Traffickers | - on NAIJ.com TV

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Home | News | General | I have the intellectual ability, capacity to lead - Saraki makes case for digital president in 2019

- Dr Bukola Saraki says Nigeria needs a digital president

- The Senate president is of the opinion that the country is desirous of a dynamic leadership that is private sector inclusive

- He says he has the intellectual ability and capacity to rule the country

Senate President Bukola Saraki says Nigeria needs a digital president who is abreast with the new world social order.

He made the comment on Wednesday, September 12, during a visit to the Cross River state governor, Prof Ben Ayade, The Nation reports.

READ ALSO: Okowa receives 5,000 APC decampees from Ughelli ahead of 2019 elections

NAIJ.com gathers that the purpose of the Senate presidents visit was to seek support for his 2019 presidential ambition.

Saraki opined that the country is desirous of a dynamic leadership that is private sector inclusive.

He said: I am in Cross River to solicit delegates support in the forthcoming presidential primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

I have the intellectual ability and capacity to rule Nigeria and that is why I am soliciting the support of all Nigerians, to achieve this aim.

In response, the Cross River governor commended Saraki for coming out to contest for the presidency. He said the Senate president has what it takes to take the country to greater heights.

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Meanwhile, NAIJ.com previously reported that the founder of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele, said Senate President Bukola Saraki would win the 2019 presidential election if he grabs the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The cleric, however, warned that the 2019 election would be tougher than that of 2015.

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Kanchanpur rape-murder: Women wear black dress in protest on Teej festival

Women of Kanchanpur have took to the street by wearing black saris demanding justice to 13-year-old Nirmala Panta who was raped and murdered in a sugarcane farm
Home | News | General | NIMASA wants governors to devote security votes to intelligence gathering

Maj.- Gen. India Garba (rtd), Chairman, Board of Directors, Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency(NIMASA), has challenged state governors to devote part of their monthly security votes to the gathering of information by locals that will aid the work of security agencies.

Garba, in a statement on Monday in Abuja, said he was worried by the growing internal security challenges across the country, especially in the north central states.

According to him, the most effective means of getting on top the recurring security challenges in the states is through intelligence.

NIMASA

He said that it was the information provided by the people on ground that would be processed into actionable intelligence which the security forces would use to nip the crisis in the bud.

Garba commended the security forces especially the military for their unwavering commitment in tackling internal security challenges that assail different parts of the country.

He said that security was everybodys business and therefore the people must play their own part in arresting the unfortunate situation by providing accurate and timely information to the security agents.

The military and security agents cannot be everywhere and will not be able to know when things are going wrong, and in some cases, security agents have limitations due to terrain or cultural barriers and as such require the full cooperation and support of the people to be on top of the situation.

The governors receive statutory allocation and set aside a large chunk as security vote; what do they do with the money?

Are they not supposed to deploy such monies into intelligence gathering, and in so doing assisting the security operatives in their domains to be on top of the evolving security breaches?

Unfortunately, some of these governors divert these monies to other self-serving ventures and some do not even relate with the people in such a way as to generate information from the people, only to heap blames on the Federal government each time there is crisis.

So, it is not enough to make a show of the unfortunate situation in order to curry sympathy when you ignored the basic preventive measures or steps that will nip the crisis in the bud.

The elder statesman who is a key stakeholder in Benue State said that in spite of the machinations of a few ill-intention politicians in Benue State, majority of Benue people were solidly behind President Muhammad Buhari.

He said that many Benue people were more than ever determined to queue behind him and support him in consolidating his landmark achievements.

Garba said that it was regrettable that some leaders in Benue were capitalising on the unfortunate killings in the state to play politics.

The political desperadoes who are orchestrating divisiveness and bitterness in the state should understand that what the people are interested in is peace and security.

Peace is possible only when elites join hands with Federal Government to build bridges of understanding in the state and collapse the wall of mutual distrust and suspicion.

 They should also understand that the masses are solidly behind the president and will still vote for him in the next election to perfect the good job he has started.

The will of the people must triumph over the machinations of hypocrites who are now running from pillar to post and defecting from one party to the other, he said.

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Home | News | General | Osun govt tells PDP candidate to stop rumour mongering

The Osun State government has warned Sen. Ademola Adeleke, the Osun Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate to stop spreading rumours over the use of the N16.6 billion Paris Club refund released to the state by the Federal Government.

Adeleke, at a news conference on Wednesday in Osogbo, accused the government of diverting the fund, which he said was meant for the payment of workers salary arrears and pensions.

The PDP candidate said that any attempt by the state government to divert the fund would be resisted by the party.

But Mr Kunle Oyatomi, the Osun All Progressives Congress (APC) Publicity Secretary, said there was no plan by government to divert any fund.

Oyatomi said that the Rauf Aregbesola-led administration is a responsible and worker-friendly administration, which had set aside substantial amount of money to pay some arrears of workers salaries.

He said the PDP candidate should stop spreading falsehood.

The PDP candidate further warned that any attempt to divert the fund for bogus contractor payments or for any electoral purposes will be resisted by our people.

Every kobo from the refund must go to settlement of outstanding salaries and emoluments of workers.

If anything contrary is done in the handling of the fund, we will ensure full recovery of the last kobo once our government is voted into office.

All those involved in such diversion of the Paris club refund or any other funds meant for the welfare of workers and pensioners will be pursued, arrested and prosecuted.

Adeleke, who also alleged that similar funds running into several billions of naira was released to Osun state government in the past, said it was worrisome that workers were still being owed 34 month salary arrears.

Let me make it abundantly clear that the criminal diversion of this latest release will be resisted.

The government officials who are directly or remotely connected with the application of this new release must ensure workers salaries, pensions and arrears are paid without further delay, Adeleke said.

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Home | World | Africa | Chamisa visits cholera victims

Today MDC president Chamisa visited the cholera affected area of Glen View where he interacted with the affected community members and families. His first port of call was the Glen View Clinic before proceeding to the sewage works where he noted with disgust the appalling state the of the infrastructure.

The President got a firsthand witness of the dire situation in Glen View and called on all council authorities across the country to raise their alertness and urgently come up with mitigatory measures to curb the scourge.

Among some of the urgent measures proffered by the President were for all councils to establish disaster mitigation committees, rolling out public health education, intensifying refuse collection and repairing of all burst sewer and water pipes in residential areas. He implored local authorities to move swiftly in attending to these issues

He stressed that local authorities are an essential component of a functional state adding that the MDC will place Zimbabweans at the center of service delivery. The President's call resonated with the MDC SMART policy pledge.

The people's President lamented the state of all Zimbabwe's cities and towns which he said were in a state of decay characterized by collapsed infrastructure, overcrowding, slums and other forms of informal settlements. President Chamisa took the opportunity to reiterate the MDC plan on devolution revolution which will be anchored on the development of SMART cities.

President Chamisa reminded all the elected representatives in local authorities to represent the interest of the people in their areas of jurisdiction and warned against complacency and dereliction of duty saying MDC will not tolerate incompetence and mediocre by office bearers.

Meanwhile the MDC Secretary of local government Mr Sessel Zvidzai convened an urgent meeting of the MDC local government committee at Morgan Tsvangirai House which was attended by all Mayors of the greater Harare comprising Chitungwiza, Norton, Harare and Ruwa and their respective resident associations to urgently craft a roll out programme of health intervention mechanisms for residents to mitigate the spread of cholera. The meeting resolved to activate all civil protection agencies to prevent mitigate and cure the spread of cholera. The Mayors and resident associations were urged to work round the clock at this time of need.

MDC Communications

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Home | World | Africa | International community should intervene in Zimbabwe Gukurahundi genocide

What do we think of when we hear of which such names as Rohingya, Ndebele, Tutsi, Kazakh, Armenia, and Jew - especially, when they are all in one sentence?

...most likely genocide and the Holocaust.

These are the most outstanding names of groups of people that have been subjected to untold suffering, by other more powerful and savage groups of people, over the course of the past century - as they have been brutalised in a brazen attempt to annihilate them from the face of the planet.

As much as these savage and more powerful groups have tried to eliminate them, they have, nonetheless, stood firm and proud against such heinous attacks.

But, there is one thing that is most disturbing about most of these genocides - besides the Holocaust, in which more than six million Jews were massacred by the Nazis - justice has eluded the rest of these groups.

As much as there have been some half-hearted attempts in bringing to book those - mainly Hutu - who were responsible for the slaughter of nearly a million Tutsis in the Rwanda genocide of 1994, there has truly never been any genuine effort to ensure that all those accused of these satanic acts are answerable.

Take for instance, today countless Rohingya have been killed, raped, beaten up, and had their homes touched by the Myanmar army - most having to flee to neighbouring Bangladesh - yet, the world is taking its sweet time in bringing those responsible to justice.

This is in spite of the United Nations (UN) recently releasing a report to the effect that what has transpired in Myanmar is indeed genocide - and its de facto leader is still regarded as a heroine, as her Noble Peace Prize still stands.

One can strip an athlete like Marion Jones of all her Olympic medals for taking a few banned performance enhancement drugs, but when a once reverred national leader sits back whilst countless of her compatriots are butchered, the world does not even revoke her honors.

Another case in point is Zimbabwe, where over 20,000 innocent and unarmed men, women and children of the Ndebele tribe were mercilessly massacred by the ZANU PF regime in the 1980s, yet the leaders responsible are today still highly regarded by the international community!

What manner of obscenity is this?

How can a person like Zimbabwe president Emmerson Mnangagwa be welcome with open arms in world capitals, yet he was at the forefront of the slaughtering of these poor people.

Mnangagwa - together with his mentor, former president Robert Mugabe - were the architects of the worst butchering of an innocent people in modern Zimbabwe.

Yet, the world sees it fit to look aside!

What would it take for the international community to finally wake up to the fact that tolerating such primitive and savage acts of barbarism has no place in today's society?

Mnangagwa has already shown that he would never seriously institute any real action against all those responsible - as that would be akin to sending a rapist to arrest and prosecute himself!

This calls for the international community to intervene on behalf of the powerless Ndebele people of Zimbabwe, who had their fathers and mothers killed, such that they grew up without an education, as there was no one to pay their school fees.

Some do not have identity particulars, as their parents disappeared without a trace, and there is no death certificate, which is required to obtain these necessary documents - leaving these children as stateless, uneducated, and unemployable.

Who is going to stand up for those victims of Gukurahundi - as the genocide is referred to - who had their limbs cut off by this ZANU PF rogue regime's military?

So many of these mostly Ndebele victims had to flee their country and seek refuge in neighbouring countries, where they are still living as paupers.

What did they do to deserve this?

Does anyone care about their plight, or are they just an inconvenience to those world powers who would want to pretend that none of this took place, so that they can do business with these murderers, in peace?

Mnangagwa is not even interested in issueing an apology, let alone make restitution for all the harm done by him and his cronies in the ZANU PF regime.

What a lucky fellow Mnangagwa is!

Not only has he literally gotten away with murder, but only last year he ousted his erstwhile mentor in a military coup, which the international community saw nothing wrong with!

Are global leaders taking Zimbabweans for fools - erroneously assuming that since we are generally a peace-loving people, we will never rise up against this regime in a manner whose fire would not be easy to extinguish?

We have cried out...and we are still crying out to the global community to come to our aid and ensure that we finally receive justice for all the ills committed against us by this regime.

Mnangagwa is a rogue and illegimate president, whose place is at the International Criminal Court (ICC), not the State House.

This is not about vindictiveness, but about justice.

Why did the world see it fit to arrest and prosecute the Nazis for their Holocaust against the Jews?

Why did they not just 'let bygones be bygones' and just move on, and focus on re-building Europe?

Why is it that in most Western countries, even today, it is a crime for anyone to deny the Holocaust?

This is something that occurred over 73 years ago!

Yet, over 20,000 Zimbabwean Ndebeles were butchered by Mnangagwa and his genocidal buddies only 31 years ago, and we are expected to forget it all!

If the Jews and the international community can forget the Holocaust, then maybe - just maybe - we can also forget Gukurahundi - but, we all know that this would never happen.

The world can not ignore what Mnangagwa, Mugabe and their racist and tribalist regime did to an innocent and unarmed people in the Midlands and Matebeleland provinces of Zimbabwe.

Every drop of blood spilt by these heartless and callous men has to be answerable for - as no amount of wanting to do business with Zimbabwe is worth ignoring the cries of those whose bodies remain undiscovered in mass graves, mine shafts and dissolved in acid throughout the provinces.

Peace Chiwara Marangwanda is a UK based Zimbabwean activist.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: Africa
UNITED NATIONS (AP)  The Security Council gave strong backing Tuesday to the U.N. special envoy for Yemen as he seeks to bring the warring parties together after a failed effort last week.

In a statement following a briefing by Martin Griffiths on his plans, the council urged all sides "to invest in confidence-building measures, engage in future consultations in good faith and seize the opportunity to de-escalate tensions."

A delegation of the internationally recognized government arrived in Geneva for talks scheduled to start last Thursday, but rival Iranian-backed Shiite rebels known as Houthis did not, arguing they didn't have guarantees for their safe return.

Griffiths told the council by video from Amman that the Yemeni political process "will see ups and downs" and "the challenges that we faced are temporary hurdles to be overcome."

"It is not a sign that the political and military situation is not conducive to formal consultations," he said. "We need to stay focused on nurturing the political process particularly in its early stages, and building the needed momentum so that it can deliver tangible benefits to Yemenis throughout Yemen."

Griffiths said he will begin a series of visits in the coming days to secure "a firm commitment" for new talks and build on discussions with the government last week to make progress on confidence-building measures including an exchange of prisoners and the opening of the airport in Sanaa, the rebel-held capital.

He said he will first go to Oman's capital Muscat and Sanaa to engage Houthi leaders, and will also meet Yemen's President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi in the Saudi capital Riyadh. He said he also plans to consult "very soon" with parties in southern Yemen where there were widespread demonstrations in the past 10 days against the country's failing economy and lack of services that also saw renewed calls for secession.

Story continues

The conflict in impoverished Yemen began with the 2014 takeover of the capital of Sanaa by the Houthis, which toppled Hadi's government. A Saudi-led coalition allied with the government has been fighting the Houthis since 2015.

Civilians have borne the brunt of the conflict which has killed over 10,000 people and pushed Yemen to the brink of famine, crippled the country's health system, sparked a cholera epidemic, and created the world's worst humanitarian crisis according to the U.N.

The Security Council expressed regret that the Houthi delegation did not attend the Geneva talks and reiterated that only a political solution can end the conflict and alleviate the humanitarian suffering.

Griffiths stressed that as he attempts to resume talks, it's important that the parties don't become embroiled in large-scale military operations.

He expressed relief that the Red Sea port city of Hodeida  key to deliveries of food, medicine and other needed supplies  hasn't yet suffered "the calamity of military operations."

But he said "the war has been escalating across all fronts" including intensive operations on the outskirts of Hodeida and fierce fighting in other areas including Saada, Hajjah, Marib and Taiz governorates.
Ministry forms media panel to review new code

The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology has formed a 15-member panel that would receive suggestions on the recently enforced contentious Criminal Code 2074.
conservatives are the worst. they put so much stock on their religion and forget the most important part of it about it being a personal thing and instead impose their supposed morally upright standards on everyone



and this is on a more personal note, but coming from a deeply conservative environment, i think ive gotten to the point where im okay with maybe losing touch with people who are openly homophobic christians. but everyone i knew growing up were all exactly that, so im hoping to at least find other more accepting people

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I promise you that making those cuts of toxic people actually feels amazing. You come to realize you kept them in your life out of obligation and not wanting to hurt feelings...even though they dont care whose feelings they hurt. I just ended a 10 year friendship today with a total anti feminist and its a WEIGHT off. We dont owe hateful people that make us unhappy our time.

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I JUST had this revelation this summer. I cut off two people I've had really long friendships with. The first month or so was tough, but now, I feel so much better and wish I had done it earlier. It would've saved me a lot of tears tbh

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the town i grew up in is super conservative. so much so, i straight up have two facebook accounts. because i had no idea how to separate the people i see often from the rest of my life. i've learned whose changed in terms of their political outlook, for the better and who hasn't. i've seen people out themselves as liberals, which where i grew up, super unheard of. i've found out people i thought i knew were just awful fucking people.



it took a few years to start making the cuts, it did. between issues becoming something where yeah, i was going to mouth off about it on that account (where as i always said whatever the fuck i wanted on the other) and then it became something i check like 3-4 times a year. the people i wanted to know, i eventually brought over to the other account.



so i get it, and i get how it can take time to weed certain people out. and while it's always easier said than done, and getting older you start to drop fucks you gave, every year, but sometimes it's not as cut and dried as others see it. the mute button is great as well. but sometimes it takes awhile for us to separate out those who want to keep in our lives, from those we just know and have known forever.

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heard one say ALL GAYS SHOULD BE KILLED.i told them that is the most stupid thing I have ever heard.and I only talk to these people if I have to about work because they are all trash and not worth my time.

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I am pleasantly surprised by her eloquence and passion. You go, gurl!

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This and her saying her movie with Louis C.K. shouldn't be released make me like her a lot

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we stan!

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I really like her.

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love herrrr

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This kid grew up to be inspiring. Good on her.

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https://twitter.com/buzzfeednews/status/1038653726553042944?s=21 there was a piece on buzzfeed about a camp for girls that, among other things, practiced conversion therapy

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I am a white cis woman but I also don't have a problem with Why?I am a white cis woman but I also don't have a problem with #metwo . It's one marginalised group and another marginalised group.

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Because Black Lives Matter is a specific movement addressing a specific issue and Black people are constantly having their things co-opted and appropriated by others.



Why does this always need explaining?

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we love a bisexual woman of diversity!

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Conversion therapy is so awful. Its so inhumane, but so is God so its easy for people to get caught up in this fucked up mentality.

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Well damn sis. :) that's so very cool. Hard to believe that gay conversion therapy have to have to exist in first place. Like shut that shit down immediately. I can't wait for 2020s to get here so damn fast lmao. Would be a sweet Christmas with everything right on the track



Edited at 2018-09-12 12:21 pm (UTC)

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came in here just to say how much i hated this book. it was boring and slow. ive has the book for about 2 years now and i still havent finished it.

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Cool for her. The fact that conversion therapy is still a thing and not only practiced by religious people but by professionals that attended college and studied a career, is so 

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I remember on Love & Hip Hop one of the guys revealed to his mom that the place she sent him to when he was younger was a conversion camp. They would hook him up to an IV and I next him with something they called 'vitamins' and then they also did shock therapy on him. The mom said she didnt know it was that kind of place. But even if she didnt know it was that extreme, she still sent him to a place bc he was effeminate. It was heart breaking.

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"It wasn't just [being injected with] hormones... they used to lock me in a room," he told his sister Jasmine. "They would constrain my body  I would have to be in there for eight hours."



He added that he would then be brutally interrogated about his wardrobe before being physically harmed through what "felt like shocks." Hernandez continued that he was sent to undergo full-on conversion therapy by his mother after she learned he was being bullied at age 10 as he "didn't fit a conventional gender role." He claims she sent him off because she didn't want him to continue to be bullied.



- wow this is messed up

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Yes thats him. You could tell he wanted to say so much more to his mom but he held back. He didnt want to hurt her but like damn.

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Imagine being related to any Trump through marriage for the rest of your life (or for the rest of the marriage)... no thanks

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"nerdy, curious human being"

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Lmfao

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The Special One has a point.

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I'd dump someone immediately after realizing my initials would be KKK.

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Its what she deserves

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Oh my god.

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You have to love it when women (usually white) bring up the "but men don't get the same treatment!" to justify themselves/avoid speaking about their questionable actions.



You do have your own moral compass, that much is clear. A skewed one.

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choice/white feminism at its finest. you're individual choices don't put you beyond reproach because you're a self-professed "feminist", particularly when your choices associate you with racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. ideology. its the height of self-centered, selfishness to think that you, somehow, should be shielded from questioning because you've at one point said you were a feminist. especially, when you're rich, white, het, ablebodied, etc.

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I'm all for calling out double standards but it doesn't even make sense in this context imo. People have definitely called on him to publicly denounce his family and he is by all accounts a man. It's just that she's significantly more famous than he is.

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she's getting on my nerves lately. i don't know why

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I'm sure. orth, $outh, ast, and est, sis.

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you better trademark this before it's the next migos song

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lmao

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amazing

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no. you don't get to play the ~women get~ card when you are marrying into a corrupt family with ties to america's first true dictator. (i will accept arguments for cheney, i just think we've got someone whose actually worse)



i'm not here for this rewriting history thing. if you marry into a family of scumbags, you don't get to claim you've got the good one.

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"America's first true dictator" though? Not to pick up an argument, but I'd think you're using that word way too lightly.

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there have been shitty presidents but their presidency was legitimate. while there are huge questions with shrub's win, he wasn't backing the kremlin who was unrepentant in helping him to win. he just had a brother. he wasn't out there delegitimizing the press daily. he wasn't saying america would riot if he left office. he's a dickhead and i'll be happy as fuck if he faced trial as a war criminal. he wasn't putting kids in cages and screaming all mexicans are rapists. he wasn't cozing up to unrepentant dictators. he fucked up in new orleans hugely, but i can't see him leaving puerto rico in the shape it's in.



america has had several shitty presidents, just in my lifetime and all were republican. but full blow dictator, that's a stretch to me. ymmv.

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Considering the op-ed released last week from a White House Senior official literally stating that Trump loves aurocrats and dictators and calls him a danger to our republic (!!!) and his overuse of excutive orders throughout his presidency, its clear that if we didnt have checks and balances in place in our government to prevent him from going full dictator, he wouldve become one in a heart beat.

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It's not your relationship that people care about tbh it's willingly associating yourself with human garbage but whatevs

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She's in a tough spot. They were dating before the election and it's not her fault who his brother became. It's got to be hard to be so close to...that and all the verbal distancing doesn't add up to much. But obviously she doesn't want to dump him after 5+ years. Tough spot.

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The Kushners were well know pieces of shit before Trump got elected and Josh has always been part of the family business so he's not exempt.

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Don't forget his father is also a garbage person. Idk if Josh is as close to him as Jared is but Jared has made excuses for their father for years and there are rumors that Trump fired Comey because Papa Kush ordered Jared to pressure Trump into it, because Papa Kush was worried Comey would start investigating the Kushner family finances.

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Nah, she's all happily hanging out with Ivanka and her husband. If she had this so-called "moral compass" or if she truly gave a shit, she would cut those ties. It's not impossible and nobody is forcing her to do so.

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Her future father in law paid a sex worker 10,000 dollars to fuck his brother in law because his sister was cooperating against him in a tax evasion and illegal campaign contribution trial. Their shitty real estate company is being investigated for tenant harassment. If I were planning on being with someone for the rest of my life, I wouldn't want to be associated with that kind of grime, but she lives in a different reality than I do.

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Pls don't tell me she's actually going to be Karlie Kloss Kushner...Because omg. She'd be a complete idiot.



Edited at 2018-09-12 04:57 pm (UTC)

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but her sister in law's father would tell you those in the KKK are very fine people, and well, karlie is very fine people!





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Her only model qualification is height

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not with that face

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Her true north is however much money keeps her on yachts and out of Missouri. Like other people have said, the Kushner family was always awful, shes hung out with other scum, and nothing she (and Ivanka and Jared) says contradicts the idea that shes the type of person whos willing to accept children jailed and permanently separated from their parents in exchange for lower taxes.

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Yeah I would have only stayed in this relationship if he had completely severed his relationship with his family idgaf. Right down to professionally going by another name.



Apparently he was going to do an interview with Charlie Rose where he "came out" as opposed to the Trump administration but it got canned after Charlie Rose was exposed as a predator. But I have to wonder why he didn't just regroup and do the interview with someone else if he really cared about making that statement. Or just use one of the many many websites that currently exist where anyone can type a message and hit "post" and boom it is on the internet.

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China concluded the first physical settlement of the Shanghai crude futures contract (SC crude contract) on September 7, 2018, indicating that the newly launched contract has undergone all the trading processes, the Shanghai Futures Exchange said on its official website on September 10.

A total of 601,000 barrels was delivered via the first front-month crude contract on the Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE), a branch of the Shanghai Futures Exchange, at a settlement price of CNY488.2/bbl ($71.57/bbl). The total value reached CNY293 million on a unilateral basis.

SC crude futures will better serve the physical market

The successful delivery indicates that the Chinese crude futures have passed the market test and are well accepted among industrial participants. It provides a reliable reference for the forthcoming contracts to keep liquid and develop, and will attract more industrial participants, ranging from oil companies and refiners to traders, to use the financial tool to lock in prices for their future physical cargoes.

The delivery process, as an important link between futures and spot cargoes, helps realize the convergence of futures prices and spot prices. The smooth process had set a good example to the subsequent contract trading, participants in the delivery commented.

Some state-run oil companies were heard to have signed long-term crude contracts with overseas suppliers, priced against SC crude futures and in renminbi. The SC crude futures have already begun to reflect physical supply and demand fundamentals and are expected to better serve the real economy.

SC crude futures are gaining momentum

The SC crude futures have already showed strong development momentum though it is only five months since the launch.

As of August 31, INE crude contracts had recorded a total trading volume of 11.09 million lots, valued at CNY 5.39 trillion, and an average daily position of 14,800 lots, replacing DME Oman crude futures as the worlds third largest crude futures contract. Related: Tariff Threats Arent Impacting Chinas LNG Demand

While keeping a good correlation with international crude futures, Chinas crude futures can independently mirror supply and demand in the Asia-Pacific market. There was once a whopping spread of $5/bbl between SC crude futures and DME Oman crude futures, opening a modest arbitrage window. Some participants took the chance to apply for approval for cargo delivery into INE-designated storage tanks from the exchange and got ready to deliver physical cargoes via the SC crude contract, which market sources see as the most direct and effective response to SC crude futures.

SC crude futures are attracting more participation

Over 30,000 participants have so far opened an account on the INE platform for crude futures trading. Over ten large domestic and overseas oil companies and traders started their trading on the launch day alone.

Financial institutions including securities, fund management companies and trust companies take up 15% of all the participants, indicating robust demand from the enterprise asset management sector.

Overseas participants are watching closely on the Chinese crude futures, and multiple oil companies, traders, financial institutions alike from Singapore, the UK, the US, etc. have already participated in trading the contract. Currently, about 15 percent of the positions are held by overseas participants, versus 5 percent over the first two trading months.

Moreover, international institutions such as the International Energy Agency and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries have also contributed objective analysis of Chinas crude futures.

While the SC futures contract is making a name for itself in oil markets, there is still a long way to go for Shanghai crude futures to compete with the worlds top two benchmarks, NYMEX WTI and ICE Brent.

By JLC

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Saudi Arabia has the chance to regain Asian market share after at least three North Asian refiners have asked to receive extra supplies of Saudi oil for October as they are concerned that the returning U.S. sanctions on Iran will limit supply just as winter demand begins, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing sources.

Saudi Arabia cut last week its official selling price (OSP) for its flagship Arab Light grade for October to Asia by US$0.10 a barrel to US$1.10 a barrel premium to the Dubai/Oman average.

The Saudi move was aimed at enticing more buyers in the month immediately preceding the return of the sanctions on its arch foe Iran, whose shipments to Asia have started to decline and are expected to further drop.

The Saudi oil is also currently competitive in Asia because of strong Brent Crude prices that are used for the pricing of supply from Europe and Africa to Asia. In addition, the U.S.-China trade war and the potential tariff on U.S. oil imports makes Chinas smaller independent refiners shy away from American crude, according to a monthly survey for August by S&P Global Platts.

While Saudi Arabia is poised to boost supplies to Asia, Irans sales in the worlds fastest-growing oil-importing region have started to drop.

Irans key customers in Asiano.1 China and no.2 Indiaare not expected to cut off their imports of Iranian oil, although India may reduce some of its Iranian intake as it tries to maneuver between cheap Iranian crude and the U.S. pressure to have Irans oil exports down to zero.

Related: OPEC Outages Are Driving Up Oil Prices

China has said that it would not stop buying Iranian oil, but Beijing is also said to have agreed not to increase its oil purchases from Iran.

Major Japanese refiners were said last week to have officially notified Iran that they would halt all imports of Iranian oil for October while they wait for the Japan-U.S. talks on Iranian oil imports to make a permanent decision on how to proceed in November.

U.S. ally South Korea did not import any Iranian oil in August, compared to 194,000 bpd imports from Iran in July, according to tanker-tracking and shipping data compiled by Bloomberg. South Korea says that it continues talks with the United States for a possible waiver.



By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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Gas prices on the U.S. East Coast are expected to surge this week ahead of and during Hurricane Florences landfall, as residents have started to evacuate from the Carolinas and Virginia, for which U.S. President Donald Trump has declared that a state of emergency exists.

A storm like this typically causes an increase in fuel purchases in the market and a slowdown in retail demand. Motorists can expect spikes in pump prices to be brief, but possibly dramatic, Jeanette Casselano, AAA spokesperson, said in a statement on Wednesday.

The governors of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia ordered mandatory evacuation in areas of their states earlier this week.

We face three critical threats from Florence: ocean surge along our coast, strong winds, and inland flooding from heavy rain, North Carolina Governor Cooper said on Monday. Wherever you live in North Carolina, you need to get ready for this storm now and you need to evacuate if asked to.

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency for Virginia over the weekend, and on Monday he requested federal assistance and ordered mandatory evacuations of residents of Zone A, Virginias low-lying coastal areas in Hampton Roads and the Eastern Shore. Gov. Northam urged all Virginians to begin making storm preparations immediately.

Coastal residents have already started leaving the shores and heading west inland, but many are finding empty gas pumps as gasoline stations are sold out of gas.

The waves and the wind this storm may bring is nothing like youve ever seen. Even if youve ridden out storms before, this one is different. Dont bet your life on riding out a monster, North Carolina Gov. Cooper said, as quoted by The Associated Press.

Hurricane Florence, which early on Wednesday was expected to make landfall on Friday near Wilmington, N.C., pushed oil prices higher on Tuesday.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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Iran has started to store oil in its own tankers off its coasts ahead of the U.S. sanctions on its oil exports that are expected to cut Tehrans ability to ship and sell oil to customers around the world.

According to tanker tracking data compiled by Bloomberg, at least five tankers owned by the National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC) have been sitting fully laden with crude oil off the Kharg Island oil terminal in the Persian Gulf over the past two and a half weeks. Another two tankers full of Iranian condensate, the ultra light oil Iran produces from its natural gas fields, have been anchored off Dubai for weeks, according to Bloombergs tanker tracking data.

Under the previous round of sanctions on Iran, OPECs third-largest producer had used this strategykeeping oil in floating storage off its coastswhen the U.S. and European sanctions in 2012-2016 cut its ability to export oil.

Analysts expect Iran to increase the oil volumes held in floating storage in the coming weeks and months, as the impact of the sanctions will rise.

The U.S. sanctions snapping back in early November are expected to remove 1 million bpd and possibly more of Irans oil exports.

Irans key customers in Asiano.1 China and no.2 Indiaare not expected to cut off their imports of Iranian oil, although India may reduce some of its Iranian intake as it tries to maneuver between cheap Iranian crude and the U.S. pressure to have Irans oil exports down to zero.



Related: China Completes First Physical Delivery For Crude Futures

Major Japanese refiners were said last week to have officially notified Iran that they would halt all imports of Iranian oil for October while they wait for the Japan-U.S. talks on Iranian oil importers to make a permanent decision on how to proceed in November.

U.S. ally South Korea did not import any Iranian oil in August, compared to 194,000 bpd imports from Iran in July, according to tanker-tracking and shipping data compiled by Bloomberg. South Korea says that it continues talks with the U.S. for a possible waiver.

Irans September exports are expected to plunge and average as little as 1.5 million barrels a day in September according to the preliminary loading program, compared to around 2.8 million barrels a day of oil exports in April and May, Amrita Sen, chief oil analyst at Energy Aspects, said in a note to clients, carried by Bloomberg.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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French Polynesian President Edouard Fritch, and Australian Foreign Minister, Marise Payne, leave their handprints at the signing of the Boe Declaration (AFP)

NEWSROOM | Radio New Zealand

AUCKLAND - An academic in security studies and Pacific geopolitics says it is disturbing Australia is driving a strong security agenda while undermining the importance of climate change action by Pacific leaders.

Anna Powles from Massey University's Centre for Defence and Security said Australia is demonstrating its lack of regard for Pacific issues.

Pacific Island leaders at the recent forum in Nauru called on the United States to return to the Paris agreement on climate change.

Tuvalu prime minister Enele Sopoaga said Pacific leaders would not tone down their message to the US, implying Australia had wanted a more diluted signal.

"I think it shows that Australia is out of step with the Pacific and Pacific countries and leadership, despite their step up in terms of re-engagement with the Pacific, Dr Powles said.

The number one tension point is obviously on climate change and allegations that they've tried to water down, sought to water down the communique, are deeply disturbing.

She said Australia's intention to set up the Pacific Fusion Centre to boost security of maritime areas and transnational crime was positive but she hopes it is not just a one way arrangement and efforts are made to build Pacific security capabilities as well.
Mother commits suicide after hanging her two sons

A young mother and her five-year-old son died in an apparent murder-suicide at Budhiganga Rural Municipality in Morang district on Tuesday.
Rockets have been fired at the only functioning airport in the Libyan capital of Tripoli, Reuters reports, citing information from local residents and a statement from the political faction that controls the airport. The attack is the latest in a string of events signaling an escalation in the internal fights in Libya.

Earlier this week, armed men stormed the headquarters of the National Oil Corporation, killing two and injuring another ten employees. Three of the gunmen were also killed during the attack. Islamic State claimed responsibility for that, via its news agency. The attack, the statement said, aimed at the economic interests of oppressing governments funding crusaders. Reuters notes it is the first IS attack on the HQ of the Libyan state oil company.

The renewed violence once again threatens Libyas fragile peace and its oil industry that has been struggling to recover from the attack on oil ports in June and a subsequent port blockade that reduced significantly Libyan oil shipments in June and July.

The escalation comes less than a week after a ceasefire was agreed by the factions fighting in Tripoli and just as a meeting between the Government of National Accord, faction leaders, and the UN Support Mission to Libya agreed on Sunday to uphold the ceasefire.

Now, Reuters reports, fights in Tripoli are intensifying, and after the attack on the airport, evidently spreading: Matiga airport is located in eastern Tripoli while fighting so far had been concentrated in the southern parts of the capital.

If fighting spreads to the oil fields, the production recovery will once again be disrupted with the expected impact on international oil prices, which are already supervolatile. As of the end of August, Libya was pumping around 1 million bpda major accomplishment just a month after production slumped to 664,000 bpd following a port blockade in the Oil Crescent.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Declining oil production in some large producers is keeping the global oil market fragile, Russias Energy Minister Alexander Novak said during an industry event this week. Venezuela was one obvious example that Novak mentioned, as quoted by Reuters, but, the official added, geopolitical factors are also contributing to heightened oil market sensitivity.

We observe such situation in Mexico, where the decline more than halved from the forecasts on 2018. In Venezuela production is falling quite strongly, by 50,000 barrels per day. This means that the market is still not balanced in long-term perspective.

On the flip side, according to Novak, OPEC+ managed to restore balance to the market thanks to the 2016 production cut agreement. Current prices, he said, were positive for both producers and consumers, and no producer was willing to tip the market into an overheating. Yet Novak also noted the Iran sanctions as a driver of market uncertainty.

This is huge uncertainty on the market  how the countries, which buy almost 2 million barrels per day of Iranian oil will act. Those are Europe, Asia Pacific region ... There is a lot of uncertainty. The situation should be closely watched, the right decisions should be taken.

Still, S&P Global Platts quoted Novak as also saying that OPEC and its partners, including Russia, could ramp up production to offset lost supply from Iran. "There is a fairly significant combined potential by the countries [participating in the deal] that can increase production and this potential can be used if necessary," Novak said, adding he did not know what deficit reporters were talking about.

According to him, despite the situation with Iran, he did not expect any actual supply shortage, in part thanks to a seasonal decline in demand that will serve as natural regulator of prices and, apparently, thanks to the ability of OPEC+ to deploy spare capacity if needed. Russia alone could add 300,000 bpd to its production within 12 months, Novak noted.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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For a second consecutive month, OPEC revised down its global oil demand growth estimate for this year and next, pointing at a combination of factors that could slow down global economic growth.

In its closely watched Monthly Oil Market Report published on Wednesday, OPEC revised down world oil demand growth for 2018 by around 20,000 bpd, primarily as a result of the slower-than-expected performance by Latin America and the Middle East in the second quarter. Global oil demand growth is now pegged at 1.62 million bpd, with total global consumption at 98.82 million bpd this year.

For 2019, OPEC also trimmed its oil demand growth estimate by 20,000 bpd from the previous months report, mostly due to economic revisions to Latin America and the Middle East. World oil demand growth in 2019 is now anticipated at 1.41 million bpd and total global consumption at around 100.23 million bpd, OPEC said.

In its report last month, OPEC had also revised down its oil demand growth forecast by 20,000 bpd for each of 2018 and 2019. In August, OPEC warned about rising trade tensions that could provide a significant downside risk to the current relatively positive outlook.

In the September report, OPECs warnings have grown and the cartel said that Underlying fragility has recently emerged in several areas and therefore the risk to 2018 and 2019 global economic forecasts is now more skewed to the downside.



Related: How Natural Gas Is Paving The Way To A Cleaner Energy Future

A combination of monetary tightening from G4 central banks, the weakening financial situations in some emerging and developing economies, rising trade tensions and ongoing geopolitical concerns in some parts of the world constitute challenges to the current global economic growth trend, OPEC said.

Referring to the August production, the cartels secondary sources pegged it at an average 32.56 million bpd, up by 278,000 bpd over July, due to higher production in Libya, Iraq, Nigeria, and Saudi Arabia, while production declined in Iran, Venezuela, and Algeria.

Saudi Arabias oil production inched up 38,000 bpd to 10.401 million bpd, according to secondary sources. Production in Iran, on the other hand, plunged by 150,000 bpd to 3.584 million bpd, as the U.S. sanctions start to impact not only Iranian exports, but also its production. Iran saw the largest drop in output, with Venezuela a distant second in declines with a 36,000-bpd fall compared to July, to just 1.235 million bpd in August.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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Commodity giant Trafigura lost a fuel oil-trading contract with the Angolan government after the countrys new president awarded it to French Total, Reuters reports, noting Joao Lourenco has been severing ties between the Angolan state and oil companies that were present in Angola during the rule of his predecessor, Eduardo Dos Santos.

The contractTrafiguras last one in Angolawas for the rights to sell fuel oil. Last year, the contract covered 1.1 million tons of the fuel divided into 18 cargoes and worth a total US$450 million. According to two sources Reuters spoke to, Total will sell a similar amount of Angolan fuel oil for state company Sonangol next year.

Total is shaping up as a big winner in the Angolan oil industry reshuffle: the French company also won a contract to import about 300,000-400,000 tons of bunker fuel (previously held by Trafigura) and another, for the import of 1.2 million tons of gasoline into Angola. That second contract was previously held by Vitol.

Like Trafigura, Total has been present in Angola for a long time and recently has been expanding its footprint in the West African oil producer. The change of government has obviously helped as Lourenco stated his intentions to reform the countrys economy and break down the circle of influence built by Dos Santos and members of his family. As part of the overhaul, the new president removed Dos Ssntos daughter, Isabel, from the top spot at Sonangola place she occupied for only a short time before the elections that removed her father from the helm.

Trafigura was, according to Reuters, the biggest foreign oil player in Angola during the Dos Santos era. It held a lot of big oil and fuel contracts and also lent heavily to Sonangol, which guaranteed the loans with future sales of fuels. According to the Reuters sources, the Angolan state company had repaid what it owed Trafigura in full.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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In a Budapest workshop, a shelf lined with antique glass bottles emblazoned with pre-World War II-era producer labels and topped with metal and porcelain siphon heads testifies to the long history of Hungary's soda-making trade. "Drinking 'froccs' and soda water is part of Hungarians' DNA; they smile when they see a siphon bottle," says Laszlo Kiss, who works side-by-side with his father, also named Laszlo, in the workshop. The small family business is enjoying a revival in demand for soda water as the centuries-old 'froccs' spritzer (pronounced "froetch") -- made of chilled white or rose wine with a dash of carbonated water -- has become a top tipple in trendy bars and restaurants in Budapest. "Froccs wasn't that popular when we started seven years ago, but now most menus in Hungary offer it," says Peter Ondrusek, 44, whose outdoor bar, named after the fizzy drink, teems with young Hungarians as well as tourists. "Foreigners also like froccs once they get to know it, although we have to teach them how it's pronounced," he says. - Centuries-old trade - Kiss bought the workshop on the ground floor of a quiet Budapest courtyard in 1994 but says soda has been made on the premises "for generations". "Soda tastes better than mass-produced mineral water that goes flat soon after you open the cap," said the 69-year-old, during a break from blasting pressurised carbon dioxide into hundreds of bottles each day via a pedal-run machine. The glass siphon bottle that dispenses soda water is a closed system with a trigger pull and a tube so "the last drop is as fizzy as the first," Laszlo junior, 38, explained, his goggles and overalls splattered with water that escapes from the machine between fillings. The tradition originated in 1826 when Hungarian inventor Anyos Jedlik designed a machine that enabled industrial-scale soda-water production. His invention spawned thousands of factories that made up Hungary's third-largest industry during the 19th century. Demand soared as famous writers and artists eulogised the mixing of water and wine. In a nationalistic 19th century poem, Mihaly Vorosmarty used "upward-rising... sparkling pearls" in wine as a metaphor for Hungarian independence ambitions. The 20th-century novelist Sandor Marai wrote that froccs, "thick enough to encourage your imagination and tame enough not to damage your organs", contained "the secret of long life". Until World War II, most Hungarian kitchen and restaurant tables sported siphon bottles, with soda water drunk both straight and mixed with wine. But most of the larger factories were razed by wartime bombing and many plant owners of Jewish background killed during the Holocaust. Nationalisation during the post-war communist era dealt another blow to a drinking tradition scorned as decadent, while globalisation has further hit the business since Hungary ditched communism in 1990. "Most households and firms now only buy international soft drinks and mineral water in disposable plastic bottles," says Istvan Szabo, head of the national soda water trade body. - Froccs combos - But froccs culture is gradually bubbling back, especially in the summer. "A soda straight from the fridge with a slice of lemon or in a froccs goes down well on hot days," said customer Kristof Pap, 27, carrying his refillable bottle into the Kiss factory. The workshop's clients, whose numbers have risen almost 10-fold since the business started, range from hip, new wine-bar terraces to basic cellar bars in poorer districts, as well as customers who pop in from the street. The menu of Ondrusek's froccs bar now has some 20 combinations, including traditional staples like the little ("kis") and large ("nagy") froccs, one or two decilitres of wine with one of soda water. Another classic, the "Krudy" -- one decilitre of water, nine of wine -- recalls a hard-drinking writer, who said that soda "makes wine laugh" when mixed in that ratio. Nearby, on the fringe of Budapest's swanky bar and nightclub district, the Gerloczy pub -- serving up wine ladled from deep tureens and shot with soda since 1972 -- is a rare survivor of the functional neighbourhood bars that served cheap froccs to workers under communism. "It's main job is to refresh, and it doesn't get you too drunk so you can still work afterwards," says office cleaner Istvan Szirtes, 52, after quaffing one of the modern froccs concoctions, a "Sport" -- one decilitre of wine, four of water.
Migratory birds face a variety of changing spring conditions, as demonstrated by spatial trends in the first leaf index within breeding and wintering ('non-breeding') areas for the whooping crane (Grus americana) and the blue-winged warbler (Vermivora cyanoptera). Credit: Waller et al. 2018

Spring is arriving earlier in many parts of North America, but this advance is not happening uniformly across the migration routes of many birds, according to a study by Eric Waller at the US Geological Survey in California and colleagues, publishing September 12 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE.

Climate change has been linked to earlier springs, but not all species respond equally, threatening to put many species out-of-sync with their habitats. To understand how mismatches in the timing of spring events could impact migratory birds, researchers compared published data on the first appearance of leaves and flowers on deciduous trees for 496 US National Wildlife Refuges and four major North American bird migratory routes between 1901 and 2012.

They found that spring is now arriving early in 76% of wildlife refuges across the USA, and extremely early in 49% of refuges, compared to the early 20th Century. For three of the four migration flyways, spring advanced more rapidly at higher latitudes than lower latitudes, but there was no latitudinal pattern across the Pacific flyway, which covers the west coast of North America from Baja California to Alaska.

The team also estimated the rate of spring advance for the breeding and over-wintering grounds of two bird speciesthe Blue-winged Warbler (Vermivora cyanoptera) and Whooping Crane (Grus americana), and found that while the species' breeding sites have shown significant advances in the arrival of spring, wintering sites have not.

The whooping crane (Grus americana). Credit: John Noll, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Flickr

Mismatches in the timing of events across a birds' migration route could mean they struggle to stay in-sync with food availability and other seasonal changes. Taking these differences into account when planning conservation strategies and defining refuges could help protect vulnerable migratory birds from extinction due to climate change.

Waller notes: "We found differential rates of advance in the onset of spring within North American migratory flyways over the past century, with spring generally advancing more quickly at higher latitudes than at lower latitudes. When considering breeding and non-breeding habitats of migratory birdssuch as the whooping crane and the blue-winged warblercontinental-scale shifts in the onset of spring have species- and flyway-specific ramifications."

The blue-winged warbler (Vermivora cyanoptera). Credit: Bettina Arrigoni, Flickr

Explore further Spring is springing earlier in polar regions than across the rest of earth

More information: Waller EK, Crimmins TM, Walker JJ, Posthumus EE, Weltzin JF (2018) Differential changes in the onset of spring across US National Wildlife Refuges and North American migratory bird flyways. PLoS ONE 13(9): e0202495. Journal information: PLoS ONE Waller EK, Crimmins TM, Walker JJ, Posthumus EE, Weltzin JF (2018) Differential changes in the onset of spring across US National Wildlife Refuges and North American migratory bird flyways.13(9): e0202495. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0202495
Disarticulation marks on the base of the tarsometatarsus. These cut marks were made when removing the toes from the foot. Credit: ZSL

Analysis of bones, from what was once the world's largest bird, has revealed that humans arrived on the tropical island of Madagascar more than 6,000 years earlier than previously thoughtaccording to a study published today, 12 September 2018, in the journal Science Advances.

A team of scientists led by international conservation charity ZSL (Zoological Society of London) discovered that ancient bones from the extinct Madagascan elephant birds (Aepyornis and Mullerornis) show cut marks and depression fractures consistent with hunting and butchery by prehistoric humans. Using radiocarbon dating techniques, the team were then able to determine when these giant birds had been killed, reassessing when humans first reached Madagascar.

Previous research on lemur bones and archaeological artefacts suggested that humans first arrived in Madagascar 2,400-4,000 years ago. However, the new study provides evidence of human presence on Madagascar as far back as 10,500 years agomaking these modified elephant bird bones the earliest known evidence of humans on the island.

Lead author Dr. James Hansford from ZSL's Institute of Zoology said: "We already know that Madagascar's megafaunaelephant birds, hippos, giant tortoises and giant lemursbecame extinct less than 1,000 years ago. There are a number of theories about why this occurred, but the extent of human involvement hasn't been clear.

This chop mark would have been made with a large sharp tool. The clear straight line of the cut with no continued cracks indicate the mark was made on fresh bone and chopped into different cuts of meat. Credit: ZSL

"Our research provides evidence of human activity in Madagascar more than 6,000 years earlier than previously suspectedwhich demonstrates that a radically different extinction theory is required to understand the huge biodiversity loss that has occurred on the island. Humans seem to have coexisted with elephant birds and other now-extinct species for over 9,000 years, apparently with limited negative impact on biodiversity for most of this period, which offers new insights for conservation today."

Illustration of a Vorompatra (Elephant bird) skeleton. Credit: Alain Rasolo, Wildlife Artist, Madagascar

Co-author Professor Patricia Wright from Stony Brook University said: "This new discovery turns our idea of the first human arrivals on its head. We know that at the end of the Ice Age, when humans were only using stone tools, there were a group of humans that arrived on Madagascar. We do not know the origin of these people and won't until we find further archaeological evidence, but we know there is no evidence of their genes in modern populations. The question remainswho these people were? And when and why did they disappear?"

The bones of the elephant birds studied by this project were originally found in 2009 in Christmas River in south-central Madagascara fossil 'bone bed' containing a rich concentration of ancient animal remains. This marsh site could have been a major kill site, but further research is required to confirm.

Close up of the disarticulation marks on the base of the tarsometatarsus. Here you can see the v-shaped tool mark and rough edges indicating a stone tool was used. Credit: ZSL

Explore further Elephant bird probably wiped out by nest raiders and habitat loss

More information: J. Hansford el al., "Early Holocene human presence in Madagascar evidenced by exploitation of avian megafauna," Science Advances (2018). Journal information: Science Advances J. Hansford el al., "Early Holocene human presence in Madagascar evidenced by exploitation of avian megafauna,"(2018). advances.sciencemag.org/content/4/9/eaat6925
Tim Armstrong, chief executive officer of Oath, is out at the Verizon unit that included AOL and Yahoo

Tim Armstrong, head of the Verizon unit that included faded internet stars AOL and Yahoo, is leaving the company at the end of the year, the telecom and media giant announced Wednesday.

Armstrong was the first chief executive at Oath, the name chosen when Verizon acquired Yahoo and incorporated the internet pioneer into a new division that had promised to innovate in online media.

Verizon said in a statement that Armstrong "will help guide the Verizon subsidiary's management transition efforts as a strategic advisor before leaving the company at the end of 2018."

He will be replaced by Guru Gowrappan, who has served as Oath's president and COO since April.

Gowrappan, a former Alibaba executive, "has proven experience in scaling businesses globally," said Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg.

"I'm thrilled he will lead Oath in an exciting new phase of growth, building on the foundation Tim and his team have created by delivering brands our customers love."

Armstrong served as CEO at AOL from 2009 until it was acquired by Verizon in 2015. He steered the group into online media, acquiring properties including the Huffington Post and TechCrunch.

Combining AOL and Yahoo was seen as a way for Verizon to move deeper into online media and digital advertising.

At the time of the acquisition of Yahoo, Armstrong tweeted: "Billion+ Consumers, 20+ Brands, Unstoppable Team. #TakeTheOath. Summer 2017."

But the rebranding was mocked on social media, with one Twitter user writing: "Q: Is "Oath" Yahoo or AOL? A: Boath."

 2018 AFP
Color Hubble Space Telescope image of 'self-quenching' galaxies 6 billion light years away. The bright dot in the center is the compact area, and some fuzz around the edges tells researchers it's a merger remnant. Credit: KU

Galaxies like our own Milky Way are factories that use gravity to fashion new stars out of molecular hydrogen gas.

"The Milky Way is turning gas into stars at about an average of the mass of the sun every year," said Gregory Rudnick, professor of physics & astronomy at the University of Kansas. "The galaxy is filled with gas, and we're constantly getting new gas from outside the galaxy. This gas falls into the galaxy under the force of gravity, gets formed into starsand some of the gas gets blown back out of the galaxy."

But some galaxies have stopped this process of star formation, and astronomers have been hard-pressed to explain why.

"We see plenty of galaxies that don't form stars," Rudnick said. "For whatever reason, they don't have much gas in them so they can't make new stars. The big question is why. Why do some galaxies shut off? When they shut off, they're left with the stars they already have, but they don't make new ones."

A key to solving this puzzle may be a strange new class of galaxies about 6 billion light years from Earth that are in the process of violently expelling their own gas. Now, Rudnick has teamed up with scientists from around the U.S. under a new grant from the National Science Foundation to study these galaxies as a means to find out why some galaxies no longer have the gas necessary to form new stars.

Part of the process is to question recent conventional ideas about the cessation of star formation.

"One of the ways people have come up with to shut off star formation in a galaxy is to explosively remove the gas through an active galactic nucleus," Rudnick said. "Every galaxy, including our own, has a supermassive black hole at its center. As gas falls into the black hole, right before it hits the black hole, it gets super-hot, and the energy it gives off can actually blow out the rest of the gas from the galaxy. People like this idea because it's a mechanism that's energetic enough to do the job of expelling all the gas from the galaxy."

However, in 2007 a team of astronomers discovered a set of "self-quenching" galaxies that have shut down star formation by some other mechanism. Rudnick subsequently joined this team, which has led a multiyear investigation of these objects.

"Our research has found this kind of galaxy that has gas being blown out of it at thousands of kilometers per secondthat's over 3,500 times faster than a jet planebut there's absolutely no evidence of any kind of gas falling into a black hole," the KU researcher said. "So, there's a question of whether or not that black-hole process is required or if there are other ways of doing it. You realize, 'Wait a minute, the universe isn't that simple.' This could tell us really new and cool things about how galaxies evolve."

CO J(2  1) maps of the galaxy SDSS J1341?0321 averaged over 333 km s-1channels spanning V =  1500 km s-1 (labels give channel centers) relative to the systemic redshift. Contours start at 2 and are logarithmically spaced at 0.2 dex multiples of . Dashed contours are negative equivalents. The crosshair indicates the peak of the stellar emission in the HST/F814W imaging. Black ellipses show the fwhm of the synthesized beam. Credit: KU

With better images of the galaxies from the Hubble Space Telescope, Rudnick and his collaborators realized gas could be expelled from the galaxies purely by the concentrated light of the stars in the galaxies, with no need for any extra energy from gas falling onto the black hole.

"Using HST, these fuzzy dots we saw before from our telescopes on the ground now showed these features that looked like a collision of galaxiesthey had lots of streams of stars around. Most surprisingly, they were incredibly compact," Rudnick said. "The Milky Way has all its stars and gas spread out over 100,000 light years, meaning it takes light 100,000 years to get from one side to another. These galaxies, which are as massive as the Milky Way, look like they had most of their mass crammed into something like 1,000 light years. So, they're massive, but they're also super-concentrated. The idea we started developing is that maybe these galaxies are so compact that all the starlight from all the stars in these galaxies jammed into this small space is intense enough by itself to drive the gas out of the galaxies."

Rudnick said the idea is that stars emit light particles that would bump into particles of gas and "give them a little push. The sum of many of these little pushes is enough to push all the gas out of the galaxy at incredible speeds."

"When you condense an entire Milky Way into a small spot because of a merger of galaxies, it can cause hundreds of billions of stars to be in a very compact place," he said. "When that happens, you can put enough light into a small enough space, and that can be enough to push all of the gas out of a galaxy, with no extra energy needed from gas falling into a supermassive black hole."

The NSF grant work will enable further observation and study of this class of self-quenching galaxies. Rudnick said he and his colleagues will be studying the galaxies in as many ways as possible, using telescopes such as NASA's CHANDRA X-ray Observatory, the Keck Observatories in Hawaii and the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile.

"How common is it that these galaxies are shutting themselves off this way?" he asked. "Is the galaxy really able to blow out all its gas completelyor are we seeing really fast, small stream? It's like you have a teakettle on the stove and it's hot and a stream of gas is shooting out of the teakettle. You know this gas is shooting out, and we'd like to know if there's enough gas shooting out that it will empty the teakettle completely."

Rudnick has just co-authored a paper appearing in Astrophysical Journal that used the ALMA telescope to look within a self-quenching galaxy at "the densest, coldest gasthe stuff that's actually forming the stars." In that paper, they ask, "What evidence do we have for that gas blowing out?"

The KU researcher and his co-authors found the galaxy to be the compact remains of a violent merger between two galaxies. This "merger remnant" also hosts huge winds of dense molecular gas but without any trace of an active galactic nucleus. They wanted to determine how the fast the dense gas was gas being driven out of the galaxy.

"ALMA uses light with much a longer wavelength than visible lightwith a wavelength of a tenth of a millimeter," Rudnick said. "It turns out carbon monoxide molecules in this gas give off light you can see with a telescope from Earth. Most of the gas is actually hydrogen, but hydrogen is hard to see from Earth, so we pick a trace gas. It's a lot like natural gas, you can't smell it, so they put something in it to make it smell like rotten eggs. Carbon monoxide works like that, in that it tells us where the hard-to-see molecular hydrogen is. We use ALMA to detect carbon monoxide and use that to detect how much total molecular gas. We found this gas, which makes up much of what the galaxy has, is moving from the center of the galaxy at 1,000 kilometers per second. It's really the stuff that forms stars that's being blown out."

Explore further Research reveals the real cause of death for some starburst galaxies

More information: J. E. Geach et al, Violent Quenching: Molecular Gas Blown to 1000 km s1 during a Major Merger, The Astrophysical Journal (2018). Journal information: Astrophysical Journal J. E. Geach et al, Violent Quenching: Molecular Gas Blown to 1000 km s1 during a Major Merger,(2018). DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/aad8b6
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

A forthcoming study of over a hundred new cities being built around the world suggests developers and planning authorities are doing very little to make their projects resilient to climate change. On the contrary, a boom in new city projects in coastal areas  including some on reclaimed land in the sea  appears to fly in the face of the danger of rising sea levels and more frequent extreme weather events.

When McGill geography professor Sarah Moser mapped 120 new cities under construction across Asia, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East, she was struck by how many of them were in vulnerable coastal areas.

"I think this has to do with the fact that a lot of these projects are real estate projects. Everyone wants to live on the coast and new cities are often geared towards the wealthy  they're investment vehicles," Moser says.

But the short-sighted pursuit of profit may be just one of many forces driving the surge in new cities in coastal areas. Ambitious, eye-catching projects often form part of political narratives in which authorities seek to portray themselves as making a break from the past. In some cases, new cities are billed as a utopian solution to overcrowding and congestion.

Deciphering the politics and ideology behind the development of new cities has been a major theme of Moser's work as an urban and cultural geographer. Now, the data she has gathered on the extent of urban development in coastal areas has compelled her to examine the new city phenomenon through the lens of sustainability. Her new study will scrutinize the optimistic claims made by proponents of new cities in coastal areas.

"They just keep saying over and over: 'This will solve all our problems, it's going to be great!'" Moser says. "Those involved in real estate, property or construction are making money, but there's no voice of reason stepping in and saying, 'This is not a good idea.'"

With support from the MSSI Ideas Fund, Moser and her collaborator, Idowu Ajibade of Portland State University, aim to be that voice of reason. Through several case studies, the researchers will examine how climate change and resilience planning are being integrated  if at all  into the design of new cities. Moser's early findings are disheartening.

"I've determined that there are only about eight cities out of 120 that are even talking about climate change. It's really a minimal effort," she says.

Forest City, a futuristic high-rise project being built on reclaimed land in the narrow body of water that separates Malaysia from Singapore, is one example of a vulnerable master-planned city that Moser has studied closely. If completed as planned, the new city will have the highest density of any population centre on the planet, housing 700,000 people on four artificial islands.

The project illustrates the cavalier attitude some new city builders are taking towards climate change. On a visit to the site, Moser recalls asking her guide if those behind the project were worried about rising sea levels.

"Oh no," the guide replied. "The sea is not rising in Malaysia  only in other countries."

Explore further Climate change may soon hit billions of peoplemany cities already taking action
NADA Auto Show kicks off

The 13th iteration of the Nepal Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Auto Show, Nepals biggest automobile exhibition, started at the Exhibition Hall in Bhrikuti Mandap on Tuesday. The six-day expo, jointly organised by NADA and Global Exposition and Management Services, will showcase the latest four-wheeler and two-wheeler models in Nepal.
Under a microscope, Professor Li Liu finds and records starch grains. Credit: L.A. Cicero

Stanford University archaeologists are turning the history of beer on its head.

A research team led by Li Liu, a professor of Chinese archaeology at Stanford, has found evidence of the earliest brewmasters to date, a finding that might stir an old debate: What came first, beer or bread?

In a cave in what is now Israel, the team found beer-brewing innovations that they believe predate the early appearance of cultivated cereals in the Near East by several millennia. Their findings, published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, support a hypothesis proposed by archaeologists more than 60 years ago: Beer may have been a motivating factor for the original domestication of cereals in some areas.

'Oldest record of man-made alcohol'

Evidence suggests that thousands of years ago, the Natufian people, a group of hunter-gatherers in the eastern Mediterranean, were quite the beer connoisseurs.

Liu and her research team analyzed residues from 13,000-year-old stone mortars found in the Raqefet Cave, a Natufian graveyard site located near what is now Haifa, Israel, and discovered evidence of an extensive beer-brewing operation.

"This accounts for the oldest record of man-made alcohol in the world," Liu said.

The researchers believe that the Natufians brewed beer for ritual feasts that venerated the dead.

"This discovery indicates that making alcohol was not necessarily a result of agricultural surplus production, but it was developed for ritual purposes and spiritual needs, at least to some extent, prior to agriculture," Liu said about their findings.

In her lab analysis, Liu said she was surprised to discover evidence of beer brewing in the residue samples they gathered.

"We did not set out to find alcohol in the stone mortars, but just wanted to investigate what plant foods people may have consumed because very little data was available in the archaeological record," said Liu, who is the Sir Robert Ho Tung Professor in Chinese Archaeology at Stanford's School of Humanities and Sciences.

As Liu notes in the paper, the earliest bread remains to date were recently recovered from the Natufian site in east Jordan. Those could be from 11,600 to 14,600 years old. The beer finding she reports here could be from 11,700 to 13,700 years old.

Microscopic traces of ancient starches extracted from the Raqefet Cave (left) are compared to the references Liu and her research replicated in their beer brewing experiments. Credit: Li Liu

Ancient beer brewing

Ancient beer is far from what we drink today. It was most likely a multi-ingredient concoction like porridge or thin gruel, said Jiajing Wang, a doctoral student in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures and a co-author on the paper. Wang has helped Liu research ancient alcohol since 2015 when they first looked at 5,000-year-old brews in China before turning their attention to studying the Natufian culture.

In the Raqefet Cave, Liu and Wang unearthed residual remains of starch and microscopic plant particles known as phytolith, which are typical in the transformation of wheat and barley to booze.

The researchers believe that the Natufians used a three-stage brewing process. First, starch of wheat or barley would be turned into malt. This happens by germinating the grains in water to then be drained, dried and stored. Then, the malt would be mashed and heated. Finally, it would be left to ferment with airborne wild yeast.

All of these steps provided clues to help the researchers make their claim.

To test their hypothesis, the researchers conducted a series of experiments to recreate each step the Natufians would have taken to brew their beer.

These brewing experiments allowed the researchers to study how starch granules changed during the brewing process and make comparisons to what they discovered.

Liu and Wang's brewing experiments showed a clear similarity to what the Natufians concocted.

The researchers also analyzed the artifacts that were excavated. They found that the traces left on the ancient stone mortar closely resembled their own lab experiments of pounding and crushing grain seeds, a process required for beer brewing.

Historical significance

The discovery of ancient brewing shed new light on Natufian rituals and demonstrate the wide range of technological innovations and social organization within their culture, the authors conclude in the paper.

"Beer making was an integral part of rituals and feasting, a social regulatory mechanism in hierarchical societies," Wang said about their findings.

And those rituals were important to the Natufian culture, she said, noting that the discovery of beer-brewing at the graveyard signifies the emotional ties the hunter-gathers had with their ancestors.

Explore further Swedes have been brewing beer since the Iron Age, new evidence confirms

More information: Li Liu et al. Fermented beverage and food storage in 13,000 y-old stone mortars at Raqefet Cave, Israel: Investigating Natufian ritual feasting, Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports (2018). Journal information: Journal of Archaeological Science Li Liu et al. Fermented beverage and food storage in 13,000 y-old stone mortars at Raqefet Cave, Israel: Investigating Natufian ritual feasting,(2018). DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2018.08.008
Credit: NASA

Gearing up for its first flight test, NASA's Adaptable Deployable Entry Placement Technology, or ADEPT, is no ordinary umbrella. ADEPT is a foldable device that opens to make a round, rigid heat shield, called an aeroshell. This game-changing technology could squeeze a heat shield into a rocket with a diameter larger than the rocket itself. The design may someday deliver much larger payloads to planetary surfaces than is currently possible.

Spacecraft typically approach planets at speeds tens of thousands of miles per hour screaming fast. Entering a planet's atmosphere at those speeds compresses atmospheric gas, creating pressure shock and generating intense heat right in front of the spacecraft.

Aeroshells slow spacecraft during entry and shield them from heat. ADEPT could be key to future NASA missions that require extra-large aeroshells to protect spacecraft destined to land on the surface of other planets, all without requiring larger rockets.

ADEPT's first flight test is scheduled for Sept. 12 from Spaceport America in New Mexico aboard an UP Aerospace suborbital SpaceLoft rocket. ADEPT will launch in a stowed configuration, resembling a folded umbrella, and then separate from the rocket in space and unfold 60 miles above Earth.

The test will last about 15 minutes from launch to Earth return. The peak speed during the test is expected to be three times the speed of sound, about 2,300 miles per hour. That is not fast enough to generate significant heat during descent, but the purpose of the test is to observe the initial sequence of ADEPT's deployment and assess aerodynamic stability while the heat shield enters Earth's atmosphere and falls to the recovery site.

Twin ADEPT units include a flight unit for the first flight test on Sept. 12 and a spare. The units are shown fully deployed. The heat shields measure 28 inches in diameter. This test configuration includes a payload that is sized to approximate a 3U, or three unit, CubeSat, about 12 by 4 by 4 inches. This design could be adapted to build larger heat shields to support larger payloads. Credit: NASA Ames Research Center/Dominic Hart

"For a deployable like ADEPT, you can do ground-based testing, but ultimately, a flight test demonstrates end-to-end functionality  surviving launch environments, deploying in zero gravity and the vacuum of space, holding that rigid shape and then entering, in our case, Earth's atmosphere," said Paul Wercinski, ADEPT project manager at NASA's Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley.

This umbrella-like mechanical aeroshell design uses flexible 3-D woven carbon fabric skin stretched over deployable ribs and struts, which become rigid when fully flexed. The carbon fabric skin covers its structural surface, and serves as the primary component of the entry, descent and landing thermal protection system.

"Carbon fabric has been the major recent breakthrough enabling this technology, as it utilizes pure carbon yarns that are woven three-dimensionally to give you a very durable surface," said Wercinski. "Carbon is a wonderful material for high temperature applications."

Brandon Smith, ADEPT principal investigator, and Joseph William, system engineer, in the entry systems and vehicle development lab at Ames perform final checks to the first ADEPT flight unit prior to a deployment test. Credit: NASA Ames Research Center/Dominic Hart

The next steps for ADEPT are to develop and conduct a test for an Earth entry at higher "orbital" speeds, roughly 17,000 miles per hour, to support maturing the technology with an eye towards Venus, Mars or Titan, and also returning lunar samples back to Earth.

The ADEPT aeroshell heat shield technology was developed at Ames. The center leads the agency in the development and innovation of thermal protection system technologies.

Paul Wercinski, ADEPT project manager and Cole Kazemba, ADEPT system engineer, attach the woven carbon fabric skin to the ribs of an early version of ADEPT in the assembly lab at Ames. Credit: NASA Ames Research Center/ Eric James

Credit: NASA Ames Research Center

Explore further NASA technology to be launched from New Mexico spaceport
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

New research has found a way to identify extremists, such as those associated with the terrorist group ISIS, by monitoring their social media accounts, and can identify them even before they post threatening content.

The research, "Finding Extremists in Online Social Networks," which was recently published in the INFORMS journal Operations Research, was conducted by Tauhid Zaman of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Lieutenant Colonel Christopher E. Marks, U.S. Army; and Jytte Klausen of Brandeis University

The number and size of online extremist groups using social networks to harass users, recruit new members, and incite violence is rapidly increasing. While social media platforms are working to combat this (in 2016, Twitter reported it had shut down 360,000 ISIS accounts) they traditionally rely heavily on users' reports to identify these accounts.

In addition, once an account has been suspended, there is little that can be done to prevent a user from opening up a new account, or multiple accounts.

"Social media has become a powerful platform for extremist groups, ranging from ISIS to white nationalist "alt-right" groups," said Zaman. "These groups use social networks to spread hateful propaganda and incite violence and terror attacks, making them a threat to the general public."

Identifying extremists before they pose a threat online

The researchers collected Twitter data from approximately 5,000 "seed" users who were either known ISIS members or who were connected to many known ISIS members as friends or followers. They obtained their names through news stories, blogs, and reports released by law enforcement agencies and think tanks.

In addition to reviewing the content of 4.8 million tweets from these users' timelines (including text, links, hash tags, and mentions), they also tracked account suspensions, as well as any suspensions of their friends and followers accounts.

For the purpose of this study, the researchers focused on the account networks forged by known ISIS and Al Qaeda sympathizers and known foreign fighters and content that had been flagged by Twitter as terrorist in nature.

Using statistical modeling of extremist behavior with optimized search policies and actual ISIS user data, the researchers developed a method to predict new extremist users, identify if more than one account belongs to the same user, as well as predict network connections of suspended extremist users who start a new account.

In addition, by tracking and comparing data on screen names, user name, profile images and banner images, the researchers were also able to identify 70 percent of additional Twitter profiles held by extremist users, with only a 2 percent incidence of misclassifying profiles.

"We created a new set of operational capabilities to deal with the threat posed by online extremists in social networks," said Marks. "We are able to predict who is an extremist before they post any content, and then able to predict where they will re-enter the network after they are suspended. In short, we can automatically figure out who is an extremist and keep them of the social network."

While the study was conducted using data from accounts belonging to ISIS extremists on Twitter, their methodology can be applied to any extremist group and any social network.

"Users that engage in some form of online extremism or harassment will have very similar behavioral characteristics in social networks," said Klausen. "They will connect to a specific set of users which form their extremist group. They will create new accounts which will resemble their old accounts after being suspended, and when the return to the social network following a suspension, there is a high probability they will reconnect with certain former friends."

Explore further Researchers find that social media account suspensions reduce reach of extremist rhetoric

More information: Jytte Klausen et al. Finding Extremists in Online Social Networks, Operations Research (2018). Jytte Klausen et al. Finding Extremists in Online Social Networks,(2018). DOI: 10.1287/opre.2018.1719
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Fake news about the dangers to Serbians from being outside during the 1999 solar eclipse resulted in the government advising the country to stay indoors, according to new research.

Historian Dr. Vladimir Jankovic from the University of Manchester says that virtually all Serbians hid in basements, air raid shelters and darkened rooms, while the rest of Europe celebrated the celestial event.

The fake news was also triggered by the reporting of the dangers of wearing faulty solar eclipse sunglasses.

The media frenzy led to the release of an official health warning, warning the public they might experience severe itching, hypertension, palpitations and the need to urinate frequently if they stayed outside during the eclipse.

According to Dr. Jankovic, one of the reasons for the doom mongering was an article in a small Serbian newspaper, which reported that faulty eclipse viewing sunglasses risked eye damage.

The newspaper discouraged the public from viewing the eclipse. Other newspapers also suggested that the eclipse would be dangerous to the health of Serbians and even political fate of the worn torn country, says Dr. Jankovic.

The reporting led to a Serbian media storm in the days leading up to the eclipse presenting the eclipse as a direct threat to human health. The government-controlled newspaper Politika urged everyone to stay indoors using sensationalist headlines such as "The Eclipse and the Apocalypse."

Dr. Jankovic's paper is published in Social Studies of Science.

He said, "Although it seems absurd that the solar eclipse caused such panic, it's quite understandable that Serbians, who had endured a decade of 'fear,' 'terror' and 'non-normality,' were particularly sensitive to the perception of risk.

"The Milosevic government's decision to release this false warning was, in part, a result of opinions formed by the behavior and beliefs of others, while paying limited or no attention to scientific evidence.

"It's a salutary lesson for us all: the circulation of information today is more complex than ever with the ever-increasing numbers of news outlets and the appearance of social media.

"Fake news created a collective display of risk over-compensation in Serbia 1999, and 'fake news' continues to affect the decisions of people today.

"The circulation of information throughout modern day society is more complex than ever with the ever-increasing bounty of news outlets and the appearance of social media.

"Understanding how information is propagated and received by society is critical to understanding collective decision making and an awareness of the trustworthiness of news sources could lead to a more honest, democratic society."

He added: "The real risk of retinal damage caused by the eclipse was amplified through media hearsay and word of mouth to a point where the government felt compelled to take direct action.

"And that happened because of an atmosphere of fear and the heightened state of cautiousness of the Serbian people and its government at the time."

Explore further Partial eclipse of the sun visible across UK

More information: Vladimir Jankovic. 'The sun without a permit': Serbian solar politics, informational risk cascades, and the Great Disappearing Act of August 1999, Social Studies of Science (2018). Vladimir Jankovic. 'The sun without a permit': Serbian solar politics, informational risk cascades, and the Great Disappearing Act of August 1999,(2018). DOI: 10.1177/0306312718790812
FORS2, an instrument mounted on ESO's Very Large Telescope captured the spiral galaxy NGC 3981 in all its glory. The image, captured during the ESO Cosmic Gems Programme, showcases the beauty of the southern skies when conditions don't allow scientific observations to be made. Credit: ESO

This wonderful image shows the resplendent spiral galaxy NGC 3981 suspended in the inky blackness of space. This galaxy, which lies in the constellation of Crater (the Cup), was imaged in May 2018 using the FOcal Reducer and low dispersion Spectrograph 2 - FORS2) instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope - VLT).

FORS2 is mounted on Unit Telescope 1 (Antu) of the VLT at ESO's Paranal Observatory in Chile. Amongst the host of cutting-edge instruments mounted on the four Unit Telescopes of the VLT, FORS2 stands apart due to its extreme versatility. This "Swiss Army knife" of an instrument is able to study a variety of astronomical objects in many different waysas well as being capable of producing beautiful images like this one.

The sensitive gaze of FORS2 revealed NGC 3981's spiral arms, strewn with vast streams of dust and star-forming regions, and a prominent disc of hot young stars. The galaxy is inclined towards Earth, allowing astronomers to peer right into the heart of this galaxy and observe its bright centre, a highly energetic region containing a supermassive black hole. Also shown is NGC 3981's outlying spiral structure, some of which appears to have been stretched outwards from the galaxy, presumably due to the gravitational influence of a past galactic encounter.

NGC 3981 certainly has many galactic neighbours. Lying approximately 65 million light years from Earth, the galaxy is part of the NGC 4038 group, which also contains the well-known interacting Antennae Galaxies. This group is part of the larger Crater Cloud, which is itself a smaller component of the Virgo Supercluster, the titanic collection of galaxies that hosts our own Milky Way galaxy.

NGC 3981 is not the only interesting feature captured in this image. As well as several foreground stars from our own galaxy, the Milky Way, FORS2 also captured a rogue asteroid streaking across the sky, visible as the faint line towards the top of the image. This particular asteroid has unwittingly illustrated the process used to create astronomical images, with the three different exposures making up this image displayed in the blue, green and red sections of the asteroid's path.

This image was taken as part of ESO's Cosmic Gems programme, an outreach initiative to produce images of interesting, intriguing or visually attractive objects using ESO telescopes, for the purposes of education and public outreach. The programme makes use of telescope time that cannot be used for science observations. In case the data collected could be useful for future scientific purposes, these observations are saved and made available to astronomers through ESO's science archive.

Explore further A galaxy on the edge
Credit: University of Chicago

Marketers everywhere are looking for what will entice consumers to make a purchasenot just once but repeatedlyand new research points to a rather surprising result.

While conventional wisdom says that people don't like uncertain gains or rewards, a study from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business finds that uncertainty can play an important role in motivating repeat behaviors.

"People repeat a task more for an uncertain incentive than for a certain incentive, even when the uncertain incentive is financially worse," say Chicago Booth Professor Christopher Hsee and the Chinese University of Hong Kong's Luxi Shen, a recent Booth graduate, in the study, "The Fun and Function of Uncertainty: Uncertain Incentives Reinforce Repetition Decisions."

One reason uncertain incentives motivate behavior is the psychological boost consumers get in moving from the unpleasantness of uncertainty to the satisfaction of certainty resolution.

The popularity of WeChat Pay, one of the largest mobile payment apps in the world, is one example. After tapping to pay with WeChatPay, a mobile payment user is sometimes awarded a bonus of an uncertain size. This strategy motivates the user to pay with this specific app again.

The same is true of many consumer goods companies. Meal-kit delivery services such as Blue Apron send their subscribers a box of unknown groceries every week. Apple music pushes a list of new music to their subscribers. Birchbox mails out boxes of skincare and makeup samples, and BarkBox gives pet owners a box full of surprise dog treats and toys based on that month's theme.

"These services all share one important feature," says Hsee. "They keep the box mysterious and let their customers have fun opening the packages and discovering the products. The uncertainty keeps the customers coming back."

In the study, published in the Journal of Consumer Research, the researchers performed four experiments in Hong Kong and Chicago and found uncertain rewards consistently motivated consumers more than certain rewards in both lab and field settings, and in both small and large magnitudes.

In one experiment, students at a running club in Hong Kong were told they could earn points by running, jogging, or speed walking on a 400-meter outdoor track during a 15-day event.

Half of the members were randomly assigned to a group certain of its rewardafter each lap, each member would receive five points. The other half were randomly assigned to a group uncertain of its rewardafter each lap, each member would randomly receive either three or five points. At the end, participants could exchange their points for a gift card at a local cafe for the equivalent in Hong Kong dollars.

As the researchers predicted, the running club members who didn't know in advance which reward they would get logged more laps than those in the group guaranteed the five points per lap, even though the uncertain-point condition promised a worse financial outcome.

"In other words, people literally ran 'the extra mile' (precisely, 1.61 more miles) for the uncertain incentive," the study says.

This uncertain reward is particularly beneficial for marketers who want their existing customers to return. "However, for the marketers whose solo goal is to recruit one-time customers, they should be cautious and not just mindlessly add uncertainty into their product design or pricing strategy," Shen adds.

In the study, the researchers show that uncertain rewards are effective only if the uncertainty is resolved immediately, and only after, not before, one has engaged in repetitions.

Marketers have had success already in getting consumers to repeat behaviors. Grocery stores encourage shoppers to bring cloth bags and coffee shops encourage drinkers to bring their own mugs, both for the reward of a small percentage off their purchase. But the study suggests that such efforts may be even more successful if consumers don't know the amount of the reward in advance.

"Our research reveals that human reactions to uncertainty are more complex and nuanced than commonly thought," they say.

Explore further Chance as a motivator? Uncertainty can make people work harder

More information: Luxi Shen et al, The Fun and Function of Uncertainty: Uncertain Incentives Reinforce Repetition Decisions, Journal of Consumer Research (2018). Journal information: Journal of Consumer Research Luxi Shen et al, The Fun and Function of Uncertainty: Uncertain Incentives Reinforce Repetition Decisions,(2018). DOI: 10.1093/jcr/ucy062
Experts from the University of Warwick have contributed to new thinking on tackling inequalities associated with older age in lower and middle income countries.

Research by Professor Ann Stewart of Warwick Law School, supported by Dr Jennifer Lander (now at De Montfort University) into the interaction between gender and ageing in rural Kenya underpins a new discussion paper published jointly by Professor Stewart and Dr Lander in conjunction with HelpAge International as a resource for policymakers, international NGOs, national and local governments, and older people themselves.

Professor Stewart's case study, supported by the Leverhulme Trust, focused on customary systems of support for older women in rural Kenya. Her wider research found that, while increased prosperity leads to longer life expectancy, living longer brings challenges if there is no planning and support for long term care, and no focus on the rights and needs of older citizens. The research identified ageing as an issue of growing importance for international policymakers.

This research informs a discussion paper exploring gender and age-based inequalities in least developed and lower middle income countries, informed by research, consultation, country visits and regional workshops in India, Jordan, Kenya, Tanzania and London.

Professor Stewart said: "Our research for the Help Age International discussion paper found that gender-based inequalities in older age can start from before birth and accumulate over a lifetime. Gender interacts with and exacerbates other sources of inequality, including social, economic and cultural factors. Older people experience the effects of these accumulated inequalities and the additional effects of ageism. They can disadvantage men as well as women but often in different ways."

Dr Lander said: "Based on our fieldwork, we found that there is significant potential for more collaboration and partnerships between gender-focused and age-focused advocacy organisations."

The authors recommend:

Gender relations over people's full lifetimes must be transformed to ensure flourishing in older age

Governments should adopt legal and policy frameworks to ensure gender equality throughout the life course

Data should be collected to inform policy and further research, and this should be disaggregated into 5 (or at least 10 year) cohorts rather than just '60+'

Further research undertaken from the perspective of older people should be carried out to understand the interaction between gender and ageing

Professor Stewart said: "We recommend that policymakers should adopt a 'life course perspective'  they should look at the experience and needs of those who are older now, but also look back over their lives and consider what could have been done earlier to tackle the root causes of inequality.

"For example, care work is very gendered  it is primarily done by girls and women whether informally or formally. This is now recognized in the Sustainable Development Goals which set the international development policy framework  Goal 5 calls for the unpaid care work to be recognized, reduced and redistributed. Any improvement in women's position over their lifetimes will be undermined if the issue of care responsibility is not addressed.

"We highlight in our HelpAge document these gender issues relating to ageing. We focus on the rights of older people to be treated as full citizens and the need to address ageism  a form of discrimination which is very often overlooked but is pervasive in most societies. The fact that people are enjoying longer lives is a source of celebration but ensuring that people are able to enjoy a flourishing older age is now an important issue for development policy makers."

Dr Lander added: "Most gender equality advocacy for women and girls focuses on adolescents and women who are of reproductive age, often overlooking the older generation. We suggest that organisations with expertise on issues facing older people would benefit from adopting a gendered approach to the lifecourse, and gender equality-focused NGOs would equally benefit from adopting a lifecourse approach to include older women and men.

"Partnerships between these two organisations could be very fruitful for both, by sharing their expertise, without losing their core focus on gender issues or ageing. We think that a gendered approach to the lifecourse would offer a useful lens for both."

Dr Prafulla Mishra, Director of HelpAge International's Africa Regional Office and chair of the Global Advisory Group for the gender project, said: "There is very little understanding of the intersecting and gendered inequalities that are faced by older persons, even on the part of organisations and actors that are experts in and promote gender mainstreaming in international development work. In order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of inclusive human development and 'leaving no one behind', we have to adopt a gendered life course approach to focus on people of all ages."

Explore further Gender identities disruptedand reinforced

More information: Transforming gender relations in an ageing world. Transforming gender relations in an ageing world. ageingasia.org/transforming-ge  ations-ageing-world/
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Googlers are supposed to be Googley, but what exactly that means has become a key point of contention as the tech giant seeks to gut an age-discrimination lawsuit against the company.

The search and digital-ads behemoth has been engaged in a pitched legal battle since 2015 over allegations that it denied jobs to hundreds of workers because they were too old. A judge certified the lawsuit, brought by plaintiffs Robert Heath and Cheryl Fillekes, as a class action, but Google for the second time is now trying to get that certification removed.

"Plaintiffs argue that Googleyness or culture fit are euphemisms for youth and Google interviewers use these to intentionally discriminate on the basis of age," Google said in a recent filing in U.S. District Court in San Jose.

To rebut that argument, the firm pointed to an earlier statement by a judge who, according to the filing said, "I'm not seeing any evidence that cultural fit was designed in any way to eliminate older people."

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Google argued that an expert hired by the plaintiffs produced a report that contradicted the allegation that "Googley" means "young."

The expert, according to the filing, "analyzed two dimensions of Googleyness," but those two dimensions were redacted from the company's court document. The expert concluded that those Googley factors did not play a statistically significant role in hiring, Google contended.

The company also claimed the expert reversed an earlier opinion he'd given that suggested differences in hiring between older and younger candidates.

On Monday, the plaintiffs countered that a judge had already rejected the same arguments Google presented as new on Friday.

The Department of Labor, investigating Google, has said the company engaged in "extreme" age discrimination, a charge the company denies.

2018 The Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.)

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Researchers looking to hydrogen as a next-generation clean energy source are developing hydrogen-sensing technologies capable of detecting leaks in hydrogen-powered vehicles and fueling stations before the gas turns into an explosion. The most common type of hydrogen sensors is composed of palladium-based thin films because palladium (Pd), a silvery-white metal resembling platinum, readily absorbs hydrogen gas. However, Pd also readily absorbs other gases, decreasing the overall efficiency of these sensors.

Alexander Gerber's research team at Tel Aviv University recently conducted a systematic study of hydrogen detection using the Extraordinary Hall Effect (EHE) to measure the hydrogen magnetization response in cobalt-palladium (CoPd) thin films. The team reports the findings in the Journal of Applied Physics.

"We found that detection of hydrogen by EHE really works with very high sensitivity," said Alexander Gerber, an author on the paper. "A goal would be to develop a compact EHE device compatible with a standard four-probe resistance measuring method to enhance gas detection through a magnetic type of sensor using the spintronics effect."

The burgeoning field of spintronics exploits an electron's spin and its resulting magnetic properties. In essence, EHE is a spin-dependent phenomenon that generates voltage proportional to magnetization across a current-carrying magnetic film.

Otherwise known as the anomalous Hall effect, EHE occurs in ferromagnetic materials and can be much larger than the ordinary Hall effect. Although palladium has high hydrogen absorption capacity, it's not ferromagnetic by itself. So, the researchers added cobalt, a ferromagnetic material whose magnetic properties are affected by the hydrogen absorption in CoPd alloys to induce EHE.

The researchers prepared four sets of samples with thicknesses of 7, 14, 70 and 100 nanometers with varying cobalt concentrations and tested them in an atmosphere with different levels of hydrogen up to 4 percent. They found that the thinnest films demonstrated the largest absolute response to hydrogen: The signal changes by more than 500 percent per 1 percent of hydrogen.

"In practical terms, we identified the sensitive range of compositions, how the response to hydrogen depends on composition, and what the options are to operate the sensor," Gerber said.

Gerber's research team is now in the process of recording response times and exploring the ability to release hydrogen after exposure so sensors can be reused. The researchers also plan to explore ways to improve selectivity of hydrogen and adapt their technique for selective detection of other gases.

Explore further A hydrogen sensor that works at room temperature

More information: S. S. Das et al, Detection of hydrogen by the extraordinary Hall effect in CoPd alloys, Journal of Applied Physics (2018). Journal information: Journal of Applied Physics S. S. Das et al, Detection of hydrogen by the extraordinary Hall effect in CoPd alloys,(2018). DOI: 10.1063/1.5049647
A humpback whale jumps out of the water in the western Antarctic peninsula

In a rare moment Wednesday, the International Whaling Commission voted overwhelmingly to back whale hunting, but strictly for small subsistence hunts undertaken by some communities, mostly in the Arctic.

The vote confirmed a longstanding commitment to so-called aboriginal subsistence hunting (ASW), for nutritional and cultural reasons, which continues to be an exception to the decades-old ban on commercial whaling.

"This important agreement gives our native communities the much-needed flexibility to operate more safely in dangerous environmental conditions that vary from one year to the next," said Ryan Wulff, US Commissioner to the IWC.

The issue is highly sensitive because Japan, with the backing of Iceland, Norway and some other nations, is using many of the same cultural arguments to call for a return to commercial whaling at the IWC's 67th meeting in Brazil.

The IWC voted by 68 to 7 to set a catch quota of hundreds of minke, fin, humpback and bowhead whales for the next six years for communities in Alaska, Russia, Greenland and Bequia in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Anti-whaling states had raised objections to an original plan for automatic renewal of the quotas after six years, and a carry-over of unused quotas from year to year.

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said a compromise where the IWC scientific committe would oversee the renewal of quotas set a dangerous precedent.

"They basically gave a green light to auto-renewal without establishing how any concerns or questions will be addressed," said Aimee Leslie of the WWF.

"What the consequences are for the return of commercial whaling is extremely concerning," she said.

"The lines just keep getting more blurred between the different types of whaling and that is extremely concerning for the future of whales and how whaling will be managed, especially with a disempowered commission after today."

Iceland, which continues to hunt whales in defiance of a 32-year moratorium, welcomed the general acceptance of the scientific committee's go ahead for hunting of some whale stocks for indigenous communities, saying it was a shift in the IWC's position.

Nicolas Entrup of Swiss-based NGO OceanCare accused Iceland of trying to "instrumentalize indigenous people's rights to go whaling. For us, it's very important that we keep up the differentiation between subsistence whaling, which is for subsistence and cultural needs, and commercial whaling."

Explore further Japan proposes end to commercial whaling ban, faces pushback

 2018 AFP
Nepali peacekeepers in South Sudan awarded

The United Nations has awarded the Nepali peacekeeping mission in South Sudan for its life-saving assistance demonstrated in the war-torn country for around a year.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Legislation giving employees the right to request flexible working has failed to increase take-up, new research shows.

There has been no significant overall increase in the number of employees working flexibly since the legislation came into effect in 2014, a British Sociological Association conference in Belfast heard today. [Wednesday, 12 September 2018]

Joanna Wilson analysed survey data from a sample of up to 24,736 UK employees for her Ph.D. at the University of Manchester.

She found that when comparing the same people in 2010 and 2015, there was little change in the uptake of flexible working  those working flexible start and finish times, fewer hours, or from home. In 2010, 44.1% of all employees worked flexibly, and by 2015 the figure was 44.3%.

While there were small changes in some areas, such as decreases in the use of term- time working and job shares and increases in the use of flexi-time and home working, these changes were not statistically significant, with the one exception of an increase in home working.

Ms Wilson told the 'Work, Employment and Society' conference that the Conservative-LibDem coalition had brought in a statutory right for staff to request flexible working in June 2014.

"The extension of the right to request flexible working to all employees, regardless of caring responsibilities, was aimed at increasing its use in the hope that this would lead to the creation of better paid and better quality flexible jobs, thus helping close the gender pay gap," she said.

"On the whole, the use of flexible working in the UK appears to have changed very little from 2010 to 2015, and there is no early evidence of an increase since the extension of the right to request legislation in 2014."

She said that the findings may reflect a limitation of the legislation that employees must be employed for at least six months before having the right to request and that not all employees may be aware of their right to request flexible working.

"Many employers may remain sceptical about the benefits of flexible working and under the legislation are able to refuse requests providing they have a valid business reason such as a burden of additional costs, an inability to reorganise work amongst existing staff or a detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand," said Ms Wilson.

"Barriers such as negative line manager attitudes and a cultural presumption against flexible working in organisations may also exist to dissuade employees from submitting a flexible working application in the first place, and those employees who have applications approved may experience a stigma associated with working flexibly which has been found to lead to limited career progression."

She also found that:

Part-time flexible work continues to be predominantly used by women, with little sign of change. Women with children under the age of 16 were up to six times more likely than those without dependent children to work part-time. Men with children under 16 were no more likely than those without dependent children to work part-time.

Flexi-time was more likely among employees in the largest firms, those working in a management role, those in the public sector and those educated to degree level.

Homeworking was less likely in the public sector compared to the private sector. It was also up to three times more likely to be used by those educated to degree level.

Explore further Almost a third of fathers lack access to flexible work arrangements
On Sept. 11, 2018 at 11:53 p.m. EDT the GPM core observatory satellite found heaviest rainfall within Isaac was located to the southeast of the center. GPM found rain falling at a rate of over 140 mm (5.5 inches) per hour when it sliced through an isolated storm southwest of Isaac's center. The 3D view showed heavy downpours there. Storm tops were found by GPM's radar to reach heights above 16.2 km (10.0 km) in this area. Credit: NASA/JAXA, Hal Pierce

Tropical Cyclones generate a lot of rainfall and the Global Precipitation Measurement mission or GPM satellite and constellation of satellites gather that data and share it with forecasters. GPM recently passed over Tropical Storm Isaac and analyzed its rainfall.

That rainfall is expected to affect the warning areas. The National Hurricane Center posted A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for Martinique, Dominica and Guadeloupe. A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for Antigua, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Saba and St. Eustatius.

GPM is an example of NASA's partnerships with other agencies around the world. GPM is a joint mission between NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency or JAXA and the GPM core observatory satellite had an excellent view of tropical storm Isaac on Sept. 11, 2018 at 11:53 p.m. EDT (Sept. 12, 2018 at 0353 UTC).

The satellite revealed that, although expected to weaken, Isaac still contained some powerful convective storms. The GPM satellite's Microwave Imager (GMI) and Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) instruments collected data that were used in an analysis of Isaac's rainfall. Those data showed that the heaviest rainfall within the tropical storm was located to the southeast of Isaac's center of circulation. GPM's radar (DPR Ku Band) measured rain falling at a rate of over 140 mm (5.5 inches) per hour when it sliced through an isolated convective burst southwest of Isaac's center.

On Sept. 11, 2018 at 11:53 p.m. EDT the GPM core observatory satellite found heaviest rainfall within Isaac was located to the southeast of the center. GPM found rain falling at a rate of over 140 mm (5.5 inches) per hour when it sliced through an isolated storm southwest of Isaac's center. The 3D view showed heavy downpours there. Storm tops were found by GPM's radar to reach heights above 16.2 km (10.0 km) in this area. Credit: NASA/JAXA, Hal Pierce

GPM's radar (DPR ku Band) data were used in at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. to create a 3-D view from the north-northeast to show the 3-D structure of precipitation within the convective burst southwest of ISAAC's center of circulation. DPR found that heavy downpours there. Storm tops were found by GPM's radar to reach heights above 16.2 km (10.0 km) in this area of convection.

At 11 a.m. (1500 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Isaac was located by a NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft near latitude 15.0 degrees north and longitude 54.7 degrees west. Isaac is moving toward the west near 17 mph (28 kph), and this general motion with some decrease in forward is expected to continue through the weekend. Aircraft data indicate that maximum sustained winds remain near 60 mph (95 kph) with higher gusts. Gradual weakening is forecast during the next 72 hours.

Hurricane Florence, tropical storm Isaac and Hurricane Helene are currently active in the Atlantic Ocean. Tropical storm Isaac is the next tropical cyclone to affect the western Atlantic. It is moving westward toward the Leeward and Windward Islands.

On Sept. 11, 2018 at 11:53 p.m. EDT the GPM core observatory satellite found heaviest rainfall within Isaac was located to the southeast of the center. GPM found rain falling at a rate of over 140 mm (5.5 inches) per hour when it sliced through an isolated storm southwest of Isaac's center. The 3D view showed heavy downpours there. Storm tops were found by GPM's radar to reach heights above 16.2 km (10.0 km) in this area. Credit: NASA/JAXA, Hal Pierce

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) predicts that Isaac will pass through the Leeward and Windward Islands and move into the Caribbean Sea over the next few days. The NHC predicts that Isaac will weaken as it encounters moderate vertical shear and nearby dry air.

Explore further NASA finds wind shear pushing on Tropical Storm Isaac's center
Financed by former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, the "Fulfilling America's Pledge" report kicks off the three-day Global Climate Action Summit

The United States will fall short by a third on its commitment under the Paris climate treaty to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a report released Wednesday in San Francisco.

A crescendo of efforts at the sub-national level by states, cities and business to shrink the country's carbon footprint will not fully compensate for President Donald Trump's decision to scrap his predecessor's climate policies and promote the use of fossil fuels, it found.

"The Obama target was always going to be a stretch," co-author Paul Bodnar, managing director of the Rocky Mountain Institute, told journalists.

"This work shows definitively that states, cities and businesses have the power to bring the nation to the brink of that ambitious target through their own authorities."

Financed by former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, the "Fulfilling America's Pledge" report kicks off the three-day Global Climate Action Summit, a gathering of several thousand governors, mayors, business leaders and climate activists from around the world.

"Current federal and real economy commitments, combined with market forces, will drive US emissions to 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2025roughly two-thirds of the way to the original US target," the report found.

Under the 196-nation Paris Agreement, the United States made a voluntary pledge to cut carbon pollution 26-28 percent by 2025.

The 2015 treaty marked the first time that all countriesincluding emerging giants such as China and Indialaid out specific targets for greening their economies.

The new projections are conservative in so far as they assume no help from the federal government over the next six years.

Filling the 'emissions gap'

But even without a Democrat in the White House in 2020, up to 90 percent of US targets could still be met if non-state actors double down on climate action, they found.

On Monday, outgoing governor Jerry Brown signed legislation committing the state to purging greenhouse gases from its electricity grid by 2045, replaced by energy generated mostly by solar and wind power.

"We all have the opportunity and the obligation to do our part to combat climate change," he told AFP after signing the bill into law.

The fifth largest economy in the world, California has also adopted targets that would see its emissions fall at least 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030.

Trumpwho vowed to pull out of the Paris Agreement months after gaining officewants to relax pollution rules for coal-fired power plants and roll back car-mileage standards, the twin pillars of President Barack Obama's Clean Energy Plan.

He has also challenged the Golden State's right to set it's own vehicle fuel standards.

The transport sector is the single largest source of man-made greenhouse gases in the United States.

US mayors, governors and business leadersunder the banner "We Are Still In"have pushed back by adopting more ambitious targets at the local level.

Taken together, these jurisdictions represent about half of the US economy, the equivalent of the third-largest country in the world, according to the report.

"Businesses, states and local governments have stepped in to fill the leadership gap," said Lou Leonard, senior vice president for climate change and energy, WWF-US.

"But even more is needed to fill the remaining emissions gap and reduce risks from droughts, wildfires and superstorms bearing down on American communities."

As if to illustrate the point, a monster hurricane exhibiting unusual patterns consistent with the influence of global warming is barrelling toward the US eastern seaboard, and projected to make landfall Thursday or Friday in the Carolinas.

Explore further Some US states press ahead on climate change goals, despite Trump

 2018 AFP
This visualisation shows layers of graphene used for membranes. Credit: University of Manchester

A group of scientists from Russia and Austria has demonstrated that the interaction between plasmon oscillations in nanostructured graphene causes a significant shift in the far IR light absorption spectrum. Plasmons, collective excitations of electrons in solids, were demonstrated to change their properties under the influence of the electric field in low-dimensional materials, such as graphene, thus breaking new ground for a plethora of optoelectronic applications, including sensors, detectors, radiation sources and many others. The findings will enable modeling plasmon spectra and using the modeling results in optoelectronics. The results of the study were published in ACS Photonics.

Plasmon spectra in isolated graphene nanostrips is a thoroughly researched area. But for actual optoelectronic devices to operate efficiently, the biggest possible number of nanostrips are required per unit length so that graphene covers as much of the substrate area as possible. Until recently, the optical spectra of such systems were described in approximate manner and regarded as an assembly of non-interacting plasmons within an individual nanostrip  an approach that calculates the dominant oscillation mode frequency in an isolated nanostrip with an error of over 10 percent and is unable to capture subtler effects in graphene, such as radiation broadening of the absorption spectra.

The scientists discovered that the electrical interactions between plasmons result in a substantial shift in the far IR absorption spectrum with reference to the plasmon spectrum in an isolated nanostrip. The study also revealed a significant broadening of the nanostrips' absorption spectra resulting from back re-radiation of the absorbed energy. If properly taken into account, this effect ensures very high accuracy in determining the parameters of the nanostrip graphene, such as the Fermi level and electron collision frequency. The absorption spectrum analysis method put forward by the authors can be used to study the subtle factors that influence the conductivity of graphene and other two-dimensional materials.

The graphene samples used in the study were supplied by Graphenea (Spain).

"Due to the interactions between plasmons, the graphene absorption spectra cover the far IR spectrum (photon energies ranging from 10 meV to 200 meV), which matches the oscillation spectra of most biological molecules. This opens up new vistas for designing and manufacturing graphene-based biosensors," says the study lead and Skoltech employee Vyacheslav Semenenko.

Explore further The photoexcited graphene puzzle solved

More information: Vyacheslav Semenenko et al. PlasmonPlasmon Interactions and Radiative Damping of Graphene Plasmons, ACS Photonics (2018). Journal information: ACS Photonics Vyacheslav Semenenko et al. PlasmonPlasmon Interactions and Radiative Damping of Graphene Plasmons,(2018). DOI: 10.1021/acsphotonics.8b00544
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

A small but impactful shift in the way a group assignment is presented can significantly reduce racial inequality within the group, as well as lead to better work, according to new research by Bianca Manago, assistant professor of sociology at Vanderbilt University. Groups, Inequality and Synergy, co-authored with Jane Sell at Texas A&M University and Carla Goar at Kent State University, appears online in the September 2018 issue of Social Forces.

Previous research has shown that groups often diminish the contributions of minorities, by dismissing their opinions more often, for example, or by being less likely to adopt their ideas. Manago and her colleagues sought to discover whether reframing the parameters of a group task could reduce that inequality, and how that would impact the quality of the group's work.

"Past research shows that people with different skills working together is good for group performance, but relatively little research has been done on how superficial differences that shouldn't matter, like race, affect group performance," Manago said. "We found that when people are more willing to listen to the minority group member, the group does better."

The experiment

For their experiment, the researchers put together groups of three volunteers composed of two white women and one Mexican-American woman to work on a problem-solving task once a week for three weeks. Each week, they were asked to rank the importance of 12-15 of scenario-specific items to survive in one of three dangerous places: the desert, the sea, and the moon.

For each week's scenario, each volunteer was instructed to first create her own ranking, then work with the other two women in her group to develop the ranking they would submit as their collective answer.

The prompt

On the first day of the experiment, the control groups were told that some participants would be better at the task than others, and that the researchers were studying what makes some groups more successful than others.

The experimental groups were told something slightly different: They were told that the task required drawing from a wide variety of skills and that no single person in a group was likely to possess all of the abilities required to succeed. This, the researchers theorized, would shift the volunteers' expectations about their own competence as well as their groupmates'.

Each week, the researchers not only evaluated the quality of the group answer, but compared it to the individual answers to see how well individuals performed against the group, as well as see who changed their minds. This allowed the researchers to measure deferencethe frequency with which an individual changed their minds during a disagreementas well as synergythe ability of a group to outperform any single individual in the group.

Inequality reduced

In the control group, the white participants consistently exhibited the lowest levels of deferencethey were much less likely to change their minds to agree with the Mexican-American group member than the reverse. In the experimental group, however, where the participants were told everyone had something of value to contribute, the white women deferred more frequently to the Mexican-American women than they did in the control group.

Interestingly, the researchers noted, this did not hold true for one of the tasks: the lost-at-sea scenario. Feedback from the volunteers suggested that this was an especially difficult tasklikely because a number of the seafaring items in the list were unfamiliar, such as a sextant, and therefore difficult to rank. "In that case, we believe the presence of uncertainty, unfortunately, caused people to fall back into old habits," Manago said.

Synergy increased

Finally, the researchers found that the experimental groups outperformed the control groups. By the end of the experiment, the experimental group was 40 percent more likely than the control group to achieve some synergy, and 20 percent more likely to achieve a lot.

"That was a really cool finding," Manago said, "because not only does it say that diversity is good for diversity's sake, it says diversity improves us and makes us better as a team."

Explore further Presence of 'mean' robot found to improve human concentration

More information: Bianca Manago et al. Groups, Inequality, and Synergy, Social Forces (2018). Bianca Manago et al. Groups, Inequality, and Synergy,(2018). DOI: 10.1093/sf/soy063
Russia on Wednesday reacted angrily to a report that it suspects US astronauts of deliberately drilling a hole on the International Space Station, one of the few remaining areas of cooperation between the countries.

The hole was detected on the ISS last month and quickly sealed up, but Russia has suggested that it was drilled deliberately.

Russian daily Kommersant reported Wednesday that a Russian space agency investigation is probing the possibility US astronauts deliberately drilled the hole in order to get a sick colleague sent back home.

Kommersant reported that this scenario was being looked into "as a priority," quoting a source participating in the investigation.

But deputy prime minister Yury Borisov rejected Kommersant's report, saying that "it is absolutely unacceptable to cast a shadow either on our cosmonauts or on American astronauts," RIA Novosti state news agency reported.

The deputy prime minister said it was "shortsighted and dangerous" to speculate until the findings of the investigation were released.

He also stressed the ISS was "a unified group where there are no political disagreements."

Russian space agency Roscosmos told AFP it would make no official comment until the findings are released, which is expected to happen this month.

Astronauts located the hole on August 30 in a Russian-made spacecraft docked to the ISS after an air leak was detected onboard, and closed it up with sealant.

Space agency chief Dmitry Rogozin told journalists last week that the hole could have been a deliberate act of sabotage and suggested this could have happened in space as well as back on Earth.

On Wednesday Rogozin wrote on Facebook that "spreading speculation and rumours about the incident on the ISS doesn't help the experts at Roscosmos and is aimed at undermining relations between comrades in the space station crew."

He told journalists Tuesday that initial findings showed "the situation is much more complicated than it seemed before."

The ISS crews are ferried to and from the space station in Russian Soyuz spacecraft. The hole was drilled in a section of a Soyuz that will not be used for the return journey to Earth.

Explore further Cosmonaut shows space station hole to calm public

 2018 AFP
When the Princeton researchers turn an external magnetic field in different directions (indicated with arrows), they change the orientation of the linear electron flow above the kagome (six-fold) magnet, as seen in these electron wave interference patterns on the surface of a topological quantum kagome magnet. Each pattern is created in the lab of Princeton Professor Zahid Hasan by a particular direction of the external magnetic field applied on the sample. Credit: M. Z. Hasan, Jia-Xin Yin, Songtian Sonia Zhang, Princeton University

Quantum particles can be difficult to characterize, and almost impossible to control if they strongly interact with each otheruntil now.

An international team of researchers led by Princeton physicist Zahid Hasan has discovered a quantum state of matter that can be "tuned" at willand it's 10 times more tuneable than existing theories can explain. This level of manipulability opens enormous possibilities for next-generation nanotechnologies and quantum computing.

"We found a new control knob for the quantum topological world," said Hasan, the Eugene Higgins Professor of Physics. "We expect this is tip of the iceberg. There will be a new subfield of materials or physics grown out of this. ... This would be a fantastic playground for nanoscale engineering."

Hasan and his colleagues, whose research appears in the current issue of Nature, are calling their discovery a "novel" quantum state of matter because it is not explained by existing theories of material properties.

Hasan's interest in operating beyond the edges of known physics is what attracted Jiaxin Yin, a postdoctoral research associate and one of three co-first-authors on the paper, to his lab. Other researchers had encouraged him to tackle one of the defined questions in modern physics, Yin said.

"But when I talked to Professor Hasan, he told me something very interesting," Yin said. "He's searching for new phases of matter. The question is undefined. What we need to do is search for the question rather than the answer."

The classical phases of mattersolids, liquids and gasesarise from interactions between atoms or molecules. In a quantum phase of matter, the interactions take place between electrons, and are much more complex.

"This could indeed be evidence of a new quantum phase of matterand that's, for me, exciting," said David Hsieh, a professor of physics at the California Institute of Technology and a 2009 Ph.D. graduate of Princeton, who was not involved in this research. "They've given a few clues that something interesting may be going on, but a lot of follow-up work needs to be done, not to mention some theoretical backing to see what really is causing what they're seeing."

Hasan has been working in the groundbreaking subfield of topological materials, an area of condensed matter physics, where his team discovered topological quantum magnets a few years ago. In the current research, he and his colleagues "found a strange quantum effect on the new type of topological magnet that we can control at the quantum level," Hasan said.

The key was looking not at individual particles but at the ways they interact with each other in the presence of a magnetic field. Some quantum particles, like humans, act differently alone than in a community, Hasan said. "You can study all the details of the fundamentals of the particles, but there's no way to predict the culture, or the art, or the society, that will emerge when you put them together and they start to interact strongly with each other," he said.

To study this quantum "culture," he and his colleagues arranged atoms on the surface of crystals in many different patterns and watched what happened. They used various materials prepared by collaborating groups in China, Taiwan and Princeton. One particular arrangement, a six-fold honeycomb shape called a "kagome lattice" for its resemblance to a Japanese basket-weaving pattern, led to something startlingbut only when examined under a spectromicroscope in the presence of a strong magnetic field, equipment found in Hasan's Laboratory for Topological Quantum Matter and Advanced Spectroscopy, located in the basement of Princeton's Jadwin Hall.

All the known theories of physics predicted that the electrons would adhere to the six-fold underlying pattern, but instead, the electrons hovering above their atoms decided to march to their own drummerin a straight line, with two-fold symmetry.

"The electrons decided to reorient themselves," Hasan said. "They ignored the lattice symmetry. They decided that to hop this way and that way, in one line, is easier than sideways. So this is the new frontier. ... Electrons can ignore the lattice and form their own society."

Princeton physicist Zahid Hasan describes the role of the scanning tunneling spectromicroscope, which has a resolution less than half the size of an atom. The instrument is located in the Laboratory for Topological Quantum Matter and Advanced Spectroscopy in Princeton's Jadwin Hall, where it is cooled to 0.4 Kelvin and decoupled from the floor and ceiling to prevent even atom-sized vibrations. Credit: Nick Barberio, Princeton University Office of Communications

This is a very rare effect, noted Caltech's Hsieh. "I can count on one hand" the number of quantum materials showing this behavior, he said.

The researchers were shocked to discover this two-fold arrangement, said Songtian Sonia Zhang, a graduate student in Hasan's lab and another co-first-author on the paper. "We had expected to find something six-fold, as in other topological materials, but we found something completely unexpected," she said. "We kept investigatingWhy is this happening?and we found more unexpected things. It's interesting because the theorists didn't predict it at all. We just found something new."

The decoupling between the electrons and the arrangement of atoms was surprising enough, but then the researchers applied a magnetic field and discovered that they could turn that one line in any direction they chose. Without moving the crystal lattice, Zhang could rotate the line of electrons just by controlling the magnetic field around them.

"Sonia noticed that when you apply the magnetic field, you can reorient their culture," Hasan said. "With human beings, you cannot change their culture so easily, but here it looks like she can control how to reorient the electrons' many-body culture."

The researchers can't yet explain why.

"It is rare that a magnetic field has such a dramatic effect on electronic properties of a material," said Subir Sachdev, the Herchel Smith Professor of Physics at Harvard University and chair of the physics department, who was not involved in this study.

Even more surprising than this decouplingcalled anisotropyis the scale of the effect, which is 100 times more than what theory predicts. Physicists characterize quantum-level magnetism with a term called the "g factor," which has no units. The g factor of an electron in a vacuum has been precisely calculated as very slightly more than two, but in this novel material, the researchers found an effective g factor of 210, when the electrons strongly interact with each other.

"Nobody predicted that in topological materials," said Hasan.

"There are many things we can calculate based on the existing theory of quantum materials, but this paper is exciting because it's showing an effect that was not known," he said. This has implications for nanotechnology research especially in developing sensors. At the scale of quantum technology, efforts to combine topology, magnetism and superconductivity have been stymied by the low effective g factors of the tiny materials.

"The fact that we found a material with such a large effective g factor, meaning that a modest magnetic field can bring a significant effect in the systemthis is highly desirable," said Hasan. "This gigantic and tunable quantum effect opens up the possibilities for new types of quantum technologies and nanotechnologies."

The discovery was made using a two-story, multi-component instrument known as a scanning tunneling spectromicroscope, operating in conjunction with a rotatable vector magnetic field capability, in the sub-basement of Jadwin Hall. The spectromicroscope has a resolution less than half the size of an atom, allowing it to scan individual atoms and detect details of their electrons while measuring the electrons' energy and spin distribution. The instrument is cooled to near absolute zero and decoupled from the floor and the ceiling to prevent even atom-sized vibrations.

"We're going down to 0.4 Kelvin. It's colder than intergalactic space, which is 2.7 Kelvin," said Hasan. "And not only that, the tube where the sample isinside that tube we create a vacuum condition that's more than a trillion times thinner than Earth's upper atmosphere. It took about five years to achieve these finely tuned operating conditions of the multi-component instrument necessary for the current experiment," he said.

"All of us, when we do physics, we're looking to find how exactly things are working," said Zhang. "This discovery gives us more insight into that because it's so unexpected."

By finding a new type of quantum organization, Zhang and her colleagues are making "a direct contribution to advancing the knowledge frontierand in this case, without any theoretical prediction," said Hasan. "Our experiments are advancing the knowledge frontier."

Explore further The marriage of topology and magnetism in a Weyl system

More information: Jia-Xin Yin et al, Giant and anisotropic many-body spinorbit tunability in a strongly correlated kagome magnet, Nature (2018). Journal information: Nature Jia-Xin Yin et al, Giant and anisotropic many-body spinorbit tunability in a strongly correlated kagome magnet,(2018). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0502-7
No point expressing anger at Nepal: Indian diplomats

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Prithvi Man Shrestha is a political reporter for The Kathmandu Post, covering the governance-related issues including corruption and irregularities in the government machinery. Before joining The Kathmandu Post in 2009, he worked at nepalnews.com and Rising Nepal primarily covering the issues of political and economic affairs for three years.
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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.

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When people think of animals that represent peace and tranquility, beauty and grace, one of the first animals that comes to mind is the sea turtle. They are among the earth's most ancient creatures, having been around for over 110 million years, swimming in the oceans even during the existence of some of the dinosaurs. There are actually seven species of sea turtles that inhabit our waters, each of them having unique features and characteristics, and even unique feeding and behavior. They often nest and feed in vastly different locations with some traveling as far as 1400 miles to lay their eggs on the beach.

These animals are majestic and gentle and have become the most recognizable symbols of the marine world. If you ask people which marine creature they would most like to meet, most will answer that it is the sea turtle. Because they spend so much of their life under water, only coming to the surface for a few quick breaths of air, most people will never have that opportunity. If we are lucky, we will catch a glimpse of a baby that has hatched and is hastily making its way across a beach for the cover and protection of the waves.

Sea turtles are clumsy on land and they are an easy mark for birds, lizards, crabs, and even raccoons and foxes. By far, their biggest threat is man, due to nest depredation and habitat destruction. Less than one in a thousand will reach the sea and then continue to grow to maturity. Those that are fortunate will return to the same beach where they were born to deposit their eggs and repeat the cycle.

They are at their most breath taking while swimming in the ocean, gliding gracefully over the reef or sand as they search for food. They eat sponges, corals, jellyfish, and crabs. Some are vegetarian and will feed exclusively on sea grass and other plants. Scuba divers consider themselves very lucky to catch sight of a sea turtle and they will often plan their excursions around breeding cycles or feeding grounds in an effort to experience the beauty close up that most people will only see in movies or photographs. Moving cautiously and respectfully will sometimes allow a close up encounter that is unforgettable.

This video shows three different sea turtles in their natural habitat. The first is a massive Loggerhead that has come to the reefs of Belize in search of females. He will cruise along, eating large conch shells which he can crush in his massive and powerful jaws, but his true goal is to find a mate. Food is a secondary concern during mating season. This huge turtle weighs over 400lbs and may be as old as 100 years. This means he was swimming through these waters, possibly as early as world war two. In other clips, we can see these brutes approaching divers and looking them over, apparently a common behavior during mating season. One of the divers nervously had to push the Loggerhead away gently as she was unsure of his rapid and close approach.

The second turtle we see is a Green Turtle which is a vegetarian and frequents warm waters around South America and the Caribbean where sea grass is plentiful. Unafraid, he approaches a diver who is carrying a GoPro camera. Something about the camera captures his interest and he ventures close enough to nibble at it curiously. Needless to say, such a close experience with a sea turtle is rare and magical.

We also see Hawksbill Turtles gliding along in the clear, blue waters of the Cayman Islands. Two of these beautiful turtles have found each other and they circle the coral together like they are dancing.

A young diver gets a very close look at a Green as it swims over to her and actually circles her before heading for the bottom to graze. She is fortunate enough on the next dive to have a similar experience with a Hawksbill as it swims along, occasionally closing the distance between them as if it welcomed the companionship briefly.

Sharing a few moments with sea turtles is one of the most beautiful experiences imaginable. Their existence is fragile now though, with the pressures that humans put on them and their habitat, and we must be very careful not to lose them forever.
Jack Ma, the definitive pioneer of Chinas internet industryis stepping down as executive chairman from Alibaba (BABA), the giant e-commerce company he founded, in the middle of a trade war with the U.S. and as Beijing shoots for high-tech global dominance.

So, investors are now asking: What is Alibaba without their billionaire co-founder?

On Monday, with this uncertainty looming, BABA lost 3 percent in morning trading on the news, hitting their lowest level in more than a year, though things calmed on Tuesday.



(Click to enlarge)

Alibaba is one of the biggest companies in the world now, with a market cap of over $405 billion, butas The Street puts it, the company is deeply rooted in the personality of its founder while simultaneously tied to an economy that could be facing its most serious crisis.

While BABA will remain on the board until 2020, his replacement as chairman will be the companys current CEO, Daniel Zhang. The torch will be passed on September 10, 2019Alibabas 20th anniversary.

"I have put a lot of thought and preparation into this succession plan for ten years," Ma wrote in a letter to Alibaba customers and shareholders, as reported by CNBC. "This transition demonstrates that Alibaba has stepped up to the next level of corporate governance." Related: Bear-Market Risks At Highest In Nearly 50 Years

But can Zhang handle whats to come? Hes a relatively unknown figure replacing a legend, and the pressure will be immense because the internet is now definitively one of Chinas strategic industries.

And this is a highly significant classification in China. Its also tied to the ongoing and ever-intensifying trade war between the U.S. and China.

Even if investors are unsure, Ma, is confidentafter all, he mentored Zhang. In his letter, he said Zhangs analytical mind is unparalleled, he holds dear our mission and vision, he embraces responsibility with passion, and he has the guts to innovate and test creative business models.

Twenty years has been enough for Ma, who was quoted by the South China Morning Post as saying hed rather die on the beach than in my office, and the richest man in Chinas happiest moment in life was making just 91 yuan ($13.26) per month as a poor school teacher.

Nor is everyone else shaken.

Speaking on CNBCs Squawk Alley, Jeff Richards, GGV Capital managing partner and an early backer of Alibaba, said he wasnt worried for the company at all.

Still, they are big shoes to fill at a very difficult time for Chinese tech.

Ma created a company that became the very definition of Chinese e-commerce, and today, it accounts for some one-fifth of the massive countrys retail sales. And its not just about Alibaba. Theres also the companys 33-percent stake in payments giant Alipay, which Ma also helped found.

In the meantime, Alibabas also shrugged off the trade war. In the last week of August, it said it wasnt concerned at all, with data suggesting a shift away from U.S. products underway, while Chinese exports to the U.S. remaining steady. But already, there are signs that exports are now slowing, with new data coming in, and its a wait-and-see game as Trump threatens yet another round of tariffs next week.

By Michael Scott for Safehaven.com

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" " 360-degree shot of the AWAKE accelerator at CERN, Europes particle-physics laboratory located near Geneva, Switzerland. Maximilien Brice, Julien Marius Ordan/2018 CERN

For physicists who want to study the subatomic particles that are the basic building blocks of the universe and learn about how they interact, a particle accelerator  a massive device that speeds up and energizes particles and causes them to collide  is a really important tool. Imagine an accelerator as a microscope the size of a mountain, capable of studying the smallest things in existence.

"Accelerators are the ultimate microscopes," Mark J. Hogan, a physicist at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in Menlo Park, California, explains in an email. "Their resolving power is proportional to the energy of the particle beams. Current machines that operate at the energy frontier are monuments to human engineering. These machines are tens of kilometers in extent yet control their beams to fractions of the diameter of a human hair."

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That's why with an accelerator, bigger has always been better. If you're even a casual science buff, you've probably heard of the big daddy accelerator of them all, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, Europe's particle physics laboratory near Geneva, Switzerland. Possibly the most complex machine ever created, the LHC has a massive, 17-mile (27.35-kilometer) track that it uses to accelerate particles. Scientists used the LHC in 2012 to observe the Higgs Boson, a particle that helps to explain why other particles have mass and why things hold together.

Smaller and Less Expensive

One problem with really big particle accelerators, though, is that they're incredibly expensive and consume massive amounts of electricity. The LHC, for example, cost $4.1 billion just to build. So what physicists would really love to have is a way of getting the job done that's not quite as huge and costly.

That's why there's been so much excitement about the news that CERN researchers have successfully tested a new way of accelerating electrons to high energies through proton-driven plasma wakefield acceleration. The method involves using intense clumps of protons to generate waves in plasma, a soup of ionized atoms. The electrons then ride the waves to accelerate, as if they were subatomic-scale surfers.

In a test run with the Advanced Wakefield Experiment (AWAKE) in May, CERN researchers managed to use the method to accelerate electrons to energies of 2 gigaelectronvolts (GeV) over a distance of 10 meters (32.8 feet).

Here's a video in which Edda Gschwendtner, CERN AWAKE's project leader, explains the concept of accelerators, and why a protein-driven plasma wakefield accelerator is such a major breakthrough:

Other researchers hailed the CERN achievement. "This technique could let the facilities at CERN have a new compact way to produce high energy electrons that could be collided with fixed targets or proton beams to make a new tool for particle physicists to understand fundamental particles and the forces that govern their interactions," Hogan says.

"This result is important for the future of high energy physics in that it may open a path to a compact 1 TeV electron accelerator based on plasma wakefield acceleration," explains James Rosenzweig, a professor of accelerator and beam dynamics at UCLA, and director of the university's Particle Beam Physics Lab. "From the viewpoint of introducing physical principles, this experiment is a first  it introduces plasma wakefields excited by proton beams.

"The key advantage found in plasma accelerators is found in the large accelerating electric fields which can be supported  up to 1,000 times larger than in conventional accelerators. The use of protons in principle allows beams with much larger available total energy for acceleration," Rosenzweig says via email.

Hogan's team at SLAC has developed a different plasma wakefield acceleration method, which relies upon bunches of electrons inserted into the plasma to create waves on which other electrons can ride. But whichever method is used, plasma offers a way to get past the constraints of conventional accelerators.

"With all their precision and success, though, these machines are approaching the limits of size and cost that society will afford," Hogan says. "For machines that accelerate electrons, the size is related to the maximum rate that we can add energy to the particles. Using conventional technologies with metal structures, we cannot increase this rate further as the fields become so large that the materials break down under the extreme forces. A plasma, an ionized gas, is already broken down and can support much larger fields and when manipulated properly, can add energy to particle beams at a much larger rate and thus in principle get to the energy frontier in a smaller footprint.

"Many groups have shown we can use plasmas to make energetic bunches of electrons," says Hogan. "Much of the next generation of research is geared towards demonstrating that we can do this while simultaneously making beams with quality and stability that is equivalent to conventional technologies. Other research issues are thinking of how to string many consecutive plasma cells together consecutively to reach very high energies. Additional challenges are understanding how to accelerate positrons, the antimatter equivalent to electrons in a plasma. Looking ahead, many groups, including my colleagues at SLAC hope to develop high energy beams with superior qualities that will open the door to new scientific instruments in the next decade and beyond."

An AWAKE spokesman told Science magazine that the researchers hope to develop the technology over the next five years, to the point where it could be used for particle physics research.

Now That's Interesting As the European Union's Horizon magazine details, scientists also have envisioned building a conventional particle accelerator that's three times the size of the LHC. The device would have the ability to smash particles together by energizing them with the equivalent 10 million lightning strikes.
(Adds APA response, details)

Sept 12 (Reuters) - Australia's competition watchdog said on Wednesday it would not oppose a proposed A$12.98 billion ($9.2 billion) bid for APA Group by a consortium led by Hong Kong's CK Infrastructure Holdings Ltd

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), which began reviewing the deal in June, said it had accepted a court-enforceable undertaking from the CK Consortium to divest significant gas assets in Western Australia.

The undertaking addressed the regulator's concerns about the loss of competition in Western Australia's gas pipeline development market, it said.

APA Group, Australia's biggest gas pipeline company, said in a separate statement that the bid still required approvals from the Foreign Investment Review Board, APA security holders and the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The deal would make CKI - part of an empire founded by Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing - a major gas pipeline player on Australia's east coast, giving it more pricing power in a market where high gas prices have become a political issue.

($1 = 1.4051 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Chandini Monnappa in Bengaluru; Editing by Stephen Coates)
KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Malaysian oil and gas company Sapura Energy Bhd said on Wednesday it would sell a 50 percent stake in its production business to Austria's OMV Aktiengesellschaft (OMV AG) in a deal valued at $1.6 billion.

"The invitation to enter into this strategic partnership with a leading oil and gas player serves our goals and aspirations better while providing certainty in timing and valuation," Shahril Shamsuddin, Sapura Energy president and chief executive officer said in a statement.

(Reporting by Joseph Sipalan; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri)
This is the 8th instalment of our retirement series. In my previous writings, I shared how I used our proprietary tool RetireWell to give our client David (aged 59), a reliable income stream throughout his retiring years.

But retirement planning is beyond just planning the wealth aspect. In holistic retirement planning, it is also about taking care of the retirees health to enjoy his retirement and plan for his estate upon his unfortunate demise (See diagram 1). There is also a need to consider the in-betweens  Insurance, when retirees are not healthy and need money for medical expenses. Mental incapacity, when they are between living and dying and need someone to take care of their daily affairs. And legacy planning, when you are finally called home. But how does one make these delicate decisions? I strongly believe that retirees should make them based on their lifes purpose.





images01

Diagram 1: Holistic Retirement Planning

It was Victor Frankl, a holocaust survivor who once said that ever more people have the means to live, but no meaning to live for. And if I may borrow his phrase, that in retirement, without a lifes purpose, you might have the means to retire but no meaning in retirement.

So, what is a lifes purpose? It is the reason why you exist on this earth or if it is easier to help you understand, it is what you want to exist for, going forward in your life. Putting in another way, it is what you want others to say about you when you die. It is the legacy (and I dont mean financial legacy) you want to leave behind. It is more than just goals. It is your lifes calling. But how can a retiree know or discover his or her lifes purpose? Personally, it took me about 3 months of intense reflection to discover my own purpose in life. And I have taken clients away for a 4-day retreat to help them discover their purpose. And yet, we were just scratching the surface! So, due to space constraints, I will simply say that you can discover your purpose through walking down memory lane, remembering significant life events to distill your values and beliefs, combining them with your passions and motivations in life as well as your strengths, to help you derive your lifes calling.

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But how do you let purpose drive your financial planning in retirement?

Some years ago, I developed a model to help individuals live a purpose-centered life (see Diagram 2).





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Diagram 2: The Finishing Well Model

According to the model, broadly speaking, we live our lives in 5 arenas:

Family Professional (work) Spiritual (faith) Social (friendships) Community

Within each arena of our lives, we have different roles and responsibilities during different seasons of our lives. For example, when we are younger, we may have more roles and responsibilities in say, the family, professional arenas and therefore has lesser time for the rest. But for retirees, in this season of their lives when their children have all grown up, they are needed lesser at home and thus may find that they have more time to live out their roles (that comes with responsibilities) in the spiritual, social and community arenas. To live a purposeful life in retirement, the retiree should see how he can align his roles along with the responsibilities, with his purpose.

As an example, Henrys (a retiree) life purpose statement is: No one should be poor forever. I live to care for and serve the poor by providing them with education and employment so as to break their poverty cycle. As such, in his social arena, he can decide that in his role as a buddy to Peter, James and John, his responsibilities to them is to lead them to have a meaningful retirement by caring and helping the poor together. In this way, Henrys role and responsibilities in his social arena will be aligned to his purpose. While doing his friendship thing, he is also living his calling.

Henry then ensures that he fulfills his role and responsibilities by setting goals and activities to reach those goals. For example, he sets a goal that states: Peter, James and John to enjoy a meaningful retirement in 2017, evidenced by them being actively involved with the poor on a monthly basis. To support those goals, Henry planned several activities with his friends in 2017 such as:

Develop a financial education programme to teach the poor Organize 4 trips to visit the poor in the hill regions in Cambodia Raise funds for the poor in Cambodia

To better achieve these goals, he will need what I termed enablers. According to the model, they are:

Health Personal development Wealth

Enablers are not goal. But when you have them, they enable you to better do your activities. In Henrys case, he planned 3 exercise days (health enabler) to build his core muscles and stamina, in order to be able to cope with the harsh environment in the hill regions in Cambodia. He also planned to sign up for a series of 6 financial education courses, as well as a facilitation course (personal development enabler), to equip himself to develop the financial education programme to teach the poor. And in order to be able to do the above, he needs to budget to ensure that his funds are allocated into the above programmes, as well as a gym membership and paying for a trainer. He also set aside funds to give to the poor on a long-term basis as well as all his expenses traveling to Cambodia. This is the wealth enabler.

For retirees, they are in the last phase of his or her life. Time is short and by being clear with his lifes purpose, retirees are able focus their time on activities that matter the most to him. What this also means is that retirees can best plan how much financial resources they need and how best to allocate them. How they live their retirement life and spend their money will be purpose driven. With such great intentionality, this could be the best time of their life.

When I did this for myself years ago, I had a paradigm shift. Firstly, I can live my purpose by doing the small things in my life on a daily basis. In addition, money no longer becomes a goal. It is an enabler. If we chase money as a goal, it is like leaning the ladder on the wrong wall. When you climbed up, you will be disappointed. When you see money as an enabler, you will use money and love people and not love money and use people. You will not buy things that you dont need, with the money that you dont have to impress people that you dont even know. When you do purpose-driven financial planning, you no longer crave or desire anything you dont already have. You will begin to live a life of contentment. And contentment is not a passive acceptance of your situation. Rather, it is a conscious choice to enjoy, appreciate and accept what you have, while giving up the cravings of the things you do not have. Because you know and accept that you cant have everything and you dont need to have everything.

Many people make financial decisions and let their life follow the financial decisions they make. Life may be disastrous if you do that. Let me encourage all of us to first make a life decision, and let your financial decisions follow it. When you do so, your life, whether in retirement or not, will finish well.

This article is contributed by Christopher Tan, Chief Executive Officer at Providend.

Providend is a licensed financial advisory firm and a registered fund management company with the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Over the last 17 years, we have come to be known as a specialist in retirement planning and the first and probably still the only fee-only independent financial advisory firm in Singapore.

As a family of people driven by passion, we exist to serve our families of clients to fulfil their dreams and achieve their life purpose by providing them with the most honest, independent and competent advice.

(By Christopher Tan, Chief Executive Officer of Providend Ltd)

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- Investment strategies for a successful investment experience | Conversations with Sean Cheng, Portfolio Manager at Providend, Singapores Fee-only Retirement Financial Adviser

- Heres what you should know about Financial Advisers | Conversations with Christopher Tan, Chief Executive Officer of Providend, Singapores Fee-only Retirement Financial Adviser

- What Is Dollar Cost Averaging (DCA) Investment Strategy? | Conversations with Sean Cheng, Portfolio Manager at Providend, Singapores Fee-only Retirement Financial Adviser
(PHOTO: Getty Images)

Thirteen fresh chicken distributors in Singapore have been fined a total of almost $27 million for engaging in price fixing and other anti-competitive behaviour.

In a statement on Wednesday (12 September), the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) issued an infringement decision against the businesses, which include the Lee Say Groups seven companies and Toh Thye San Farm.

They were penalised a total of $26,948,639 for their offences  the highest total financial penalty imposed by the CCCS in a single case to date.

The other companies involved are: Gold Chic Poultry Supply, Hy-fresh Industries, Kee Song Food Corporation, Ng Ai Food Industries and Sinmah Poultry Processing.

CCCS said that the 13 companies had agreed to coordinate the amount and timing of price increases, and not to compete for each others customers. This followed an investigation that commenced in March 2014 after it received information from a whistleblower.

The commissions investigations revealed that, from at least September 2007 to August 2014, the companies engaged in discussions on prices and expressly coordinated the amount and timing of price increases of certain fresh chicken products sold in Singapore.

During these discussions, they also agreed to not compete for each others customers.

(Their) collusion restricted competition in the market and likely contributed to price increases of certain fresh chicken products in Singapore. By agreeing not to compete for each others customers, the Parties restricted the choices available to customers, said the CCCS statement.

The coordinated price increases further reduced customer choice as it limited options for customers to switch to more competitive distributors.

Chicken the most consumed meat in Singapore

Chicken is the most consumed meat in Singapore, with more than 30kg of chicken consumed per person annually. (Infographic by CCCS)

According to CCCS, fresh chicken distributors import live chickens from farms in Malaysia and slaughter them in Singapore. Thereafter, the distributors sell the fresh chicken products to customers such as supermarkets, restaurants, hotels, wet market stalls and hawker stalls.

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Chicken is the most consumed meat in Singapore, with more than 30kg of chicken consumed per person annually. In 2016, approximately 49 million live chickens were slaughtered in the country.

The total turnover of the 13 companies, which collectively supply more than 90 per cent of fresh chicken products in the country, amounts to approximately half a billion dollars annually.

In light of this, their anti-competitive conduct impacted a large number of customers including supermarkets, restaurants, hotels, wet market stalls and hawker stalls, and ultimately, end-consumers of these fresh chicken products.

In levying the financial penalties, CCCS took into account factors such as the relevant turnovers of the companies and the nature, duration and seriousness of the infringement.

(The) large size of the industry, the high market shares of the Parties, the seriousness and the long duration (of about seven years) of the cartel conduct contributed to CCCS imposing the highest total financial penalty in a single case to date, said the CCCS.
LawGeex is a startup company that focuses on building an AI-powered legal contract review system, which speeds up the contract approval process

Israel-based AI startup LawGeex builds tools that harness the power of AI to automatically review legal contracts.

Since its founding in 2014, the firm has raised funding of about US$21 million, and is hiring talents at the speed of a person a week, according to Shmuli Goldberg, the companys vice president of marketing.

Goldberg, who joined LawGeex over two years ago, spoke with Business Next recently during the 2018 Taiwan-Israel Innotech Summit event.

The interview took place at the venue of the summit, the Taipei International Convention Center.

Q: What is LawGeex?

A: LawGeex is a startup company that focuses on building an AI-powered legal contract review system, which speeds up the contract approval process. The firm was founded in 2014. The whole team is about 60 people from all around the world.

Were still growing and were hiring more talents. We have raised just over US$20 million. Weve raised quite a lot of funding [as theres a lot of market demand.] We believe we have a first-mover advantage. Within two years to three years, were going to have competitors. Our goal is to take as much of the market while we still have that advantage. [Our products are already commercially available.]

Also Read: Philippines increasingly likely to legalise cryptocurrency exchanges

Q: What are the markets that youre trying to reach?

A: The main target market is the US. We have quite a lot of customers in Asia as well. Were focusing on English contracts. For the Asian markets, if English isnt your native language, [you would want to have] an AI-tool that can assist you.

We believe that is also a huge market. We started off by developing AI models based on data relating to low-risk, high-value contracts, such as non-disclosure agreements, services agreements, working contracts and purchase orders.

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Over the past three years, we have been working on [building up the AI-powered system] based on 450,000 different versions of contracts.

The AI tools that weve built are capable of reading and understanding legal writing and are able to give you feedback, ultimately assisting you to decide whether to sign the contract or not.

The lawyers get to spend their time where they could have a big impact. Instead of sitting around to spend a lot of time reading another purchase order, or another non-disclosure agreement, they can actually focus on significant risks and the big challenges that the company is facing.

Q: Im curious. How do lawyers reacto to LawGeexs AI tools?

A: Id say its about a 80 per cent-20 per cent split.

Theres 20 per cent of the market that simply doesnt want this to exist. They worry that theyre going to lose their jobs. They worry that its going to make them redundant and that they are going to have to change the way they work. That 20 per cent is the most vocal minority.

The other 80 per cent are very keen to see these technologies succeed because they actually dont want to check contracts all day. Nobody goes to law school to do repetitive, tedious work all day long. They want to do something thats significant, intellectually challenging, and impactful. With LawGeexs AI tools, they are able to focus on what matters to them.

Also Read: Indonesia cracks down on 227 illegal P2P lending companies, most of them originated from China

Q: We have asked our previous interviewees about their views on Israels startup ecosystem. What do you think are reasons for its success?

A: I think Israel and Taiwan are in a similar situation because we are not selling to our own markets. The vast majority of companies based in Israel sell outside of Israel. its very similar to Taiwan. Many companies here sell outside of Taiwan. Our focus is on building a global, multinational company, where it almost doesnt matter where you are in the world.

Israel is not a large country. We have a smaller population and we dont enjoy a lot of resources. But what we do have is the ability to try and fail. Were very happy to take risks, we encourage to try and we encourage to fail.

I think a lot of the startups from Asian countries have an inherent belief that they have to succeed.

This belief stops them from taking risks. And it forces them to do a lot of planning before making decisions. Whereas in Israel, if you build a startup and you fail, you build another one. You move on to the next one very quickly.



The article 2018 Taiwan-Israel Innotech Summit: Interview with LawGeex Marketing VP Shmuli Goldberg first appeared on Business Next.

The post 2018 Taiwan-Israel Innotech Summit: Interview with LawGeex Marketing VP Shmuli Goldberg appeared first on e27.
US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis stressed Tuesday that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has been well warned against any chemical weapons use in an anticipated assault on Idlib province. The Assad regime has twice been targeted by US air and missile strikes after previous alleged chemical attacks, and US officials have in recent days said additional action would follow if Assad were to use the banned weapons in rebel-held Idlib. "In Idlib, we're watching very closely what the Assad regime, aided and abetted by the Iranians and the Russians are up to there," Mattis told Pentagon reporters. Pointing to a US missile strike on a Syrian air base in April 2017 after Assad's jets launched an alleged chemical attack in Idlib, Mattis noted that the Syrian leader suffered massive losses to his air force. "The first time around, he lost 17 percent of his pointy-nosed air force airplanes," Mattis said, referring to the unusual nose cones on Russian-built jets. "He's been warned, and so we'll see if he's wised up," he added. A second strike, in April this year, saw British and French militaries assist the US-led mission. Idlib province and adjacent rural areas form the largest piece of territory still held by Syria's beleaguered rebels, worn down by a succession of government victories in recent months. Assad has now set his sights on Idlib, and his forces have stepped up bombardment of the densely populated province since the beginning of the month.
Australia has deployed special forces to Papua New Guinea as part of a large-scale security operation for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Port Moresby this November. Defence officials told AFP that forces and assets were deployed as part of "Operation APEC Assist", which came at the request of the Papua New Guinea government. Port Moresby is consistently rated one of the world's most dangerous cities, but will play host to leaders including Chinese President Xi Jinping later this year. There have been concerns that with a lack of resources and the threat of gang violence, the Pacific nation's military was not adequately equipped to deal with such a large and high profile gathering. Australia is reportedly contributing Aus$100 million (US$71 million) towards APEC security, ranging from a cutting-edge cyber security to fire engines and new jet skis for Port Moresby police. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation cited an unnamed special forces commander as saying: "We have Australian Army and Australian Special Forces assisting the PNGDF (Papua New Guinea Defence Force), making sure the counter-terrorism provision of services is first class." Elite Australian troops are already on the ground in the capital, ABC reported. The broadcaster also said Australian warships would be used to protect cruise liners that have been hired to provide temporary accommodation for the November 12-19 summit due to a shortage of hotels. An Australian Defence Force spokesperson confirmed Canberra was providing "advisory assistance", but that the final shape of that help would depend on what was requested. Australian and New Zealand police are also in Papua New Guinea to train local officers in areas such as close personal protection and special event planning. - 'Raskols' - The Economist Intelligence Unit ranks Port Moresby 136th out of 140 on its list of the world's most livable cities. Many businesses have armed guards and those that can afford to live in walled compounds protected by razor-wire. There is a constant threat of car jackings and robbery from gangs known as "raskols". The US Coast Guard said last month that it would help with "inshore security" during the summit. Papua New Guinea's APEC Minister Justin Tkatchenko said all 21 nations attending APEC would contribute to the security effort. "Cooperation is even more important for Papua New Guinea, where we do not have the security assets and resources of other countries," he recently told parliament. "We are working with our partners so that we can deploy fighter jets in our skies, enhance maritime security and deliver joint special forces operations." Papuan forces have conducted mock counter-terrorism exercises in the capital, including hostage rescue, as well as practising crowd control and clearance techniques. Tkatchenko said APEC was the biggest logistical challenge ever faced by the country, outlining problems such as finding parking space for visiting leaders' aircraft and the shortage of temporary accommodation. While PNG does not have a domestic terrorism threat, Tkatchenko acknowledged "the threat of crime and terrorism is real in every country" when such a meeting is being held. Prime Minister Peter O'Neill has described APEC as an opportunity for Papua New Guinea to shed its dismal image and showcase "a culturally rich, economically modernising country". APEC represents 21 Pacific Rim economies, the equivalent of 60 percent of global GDP and some 2.9 billion people. US President Donald Trump will not attend the summit but will send Vice President Mike Pence, the White House said earlier this month.
(PHOTO: AVA)

A Chinese restaurant was fined $8,000 on Wednesday (12 September) for selling illegally-imported ducks blood, said the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA).

The authority had acted on a tip-off and conducted checks at the Li Ji Chuan Chuan Xiang restaurant on 31 August 2017, where they found 6.3kg of ducks blood available for sale as a dish to customers.

Investigations showed that the restaurants owner had purchased ducks blood from a man via messaging platform WeChat.

Separately, the man who sold the product has been charged in court for the possession of illegally imported ducks blood and meat products, and the abetment of illegal import of processed food.

The case is ongoing.

Animal blood food products, such as ducks blood, are prohibited in Singapore as blood can easily support the growth of bacteria and harbour diseases, said the AVA. Unhygienic harvesting of blood can also result in the introduction of foodborne pathogens into blood food products.

Meat, eggs, and blood food products can only be imported from accredited sources in approved countries that comply with Singapores food safety standards and requirements, the authority added.

Any person who illegally imports meat products from unapproved sources faces a maximum fine of $50,000 and/or two years in jail or to both upon first conviction.

Other Singapore stories:

Radicalised Singaporean man detained under ISA: MHA

13 Singapore fresh chicken distributors fined $27m for price fixing, anti-competitive behaviour

Woman who lost almost $8,000 to scammer recounts how she fell for him
Colombia's ELN rebels Wednesday freed six people they kidnapped in August, a government precondition for returning to peace talks, the International Committee of the Red Cross said. "Today in Choco, we were with the humanitarian commission that facilitated the release of the six people who had been held by the ELN since August. We are pleased that they will be able to meet with their families soon," the group said on Twitter. Choco is a "department" or province in the country's west. The group -- three policemen, a soldier and two civilian contractors abducted by the guerrillas August 3 -- were handed over to a humanitarian commission made up of the Ombudsman, the ICRC and the Roman Catholic Church. The humanitarian operation took place "amid a strong military operation" said Uriel, commander of the Omar Gomez Western War Front, who had the hostages in his custody. "At all times we gave the detainees the best possible treatment in these conditions," the rebel leader said in a statement. President Ivan Duque said: "I am glad that there are people who are returned to their homes today after having suffered the opprobrious tragedy of being kidnapped." But he maintained that in order to resume the talks that the rebels must free all the people in their power and suspend "all criminal activities." "If we do not start there, what we end up with is validating violence as a measure of access to negotiation with the state. That is a historical mistake that has been made in Colombia," Duque stressed. The government says the ELN kidnapped 18 people between 2012 and September 2018 -- minus these six freed and three more released last week. At least nine remain. Duque, which took office on August 7 with the promise of toughening conditions on the negotiations, also wants the ELN to stop criminal actions to resume peace talks. The ELN is Colombia's last guerrilla force. The larger FARC -- Revolutionary Armed forces of Colombia -- has disarmed and become a political party. "The Colombian government continues to express a desire for peace, but with concrete actions and not rhetoric," Miguel Ceballos, High Commissioner for Peace, said on Monday. The rebels, who have some 1,500 combatants and an extensive support network, oppose the conditions. The talks are aimed at ending half a century of armed conflict. A final peace deal with the ELN would end the last armed conflict in Latin America. It has left more than eight million victims -- either dead, disappeared or displaced.
Czech leaders on Wednesday endorsed moving the country's embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, following a similar move by the US administration earlier this year. In a joint statement, the Czech president, prime minister, parliament speaker and the foreign and defence ministers said the opening of a "Czech House" there in November would be "the first step in the plan to move the Czech embassy to Jerusalem". Jiri Ovcacek, spokesman for the pro-Israeli President Milos Zeman, told AFP that the Czech House would shelter government institutions including the foreign ministry's Czech Centre, the trade agency CzechTrade and tourism agency CzechTourism. "The Czech House in Jerusalem will be ceremonially opened by Mr President during his visit to Israel in November," he said. Zeman, a 73-year-old veteran leftwinger with anti-Muslim views, promoted the embassy move even before US President Donald Trump moved the US embassy to Jerusalem on May 14. Trump's move infuriated Palestinians and intensified protests on the Gaza border, with many dozens killed in clashes with Israeli forces that day. Trump's move also ruptured generations of international consensus that Jerusalem's status should be settled as part of a two-state peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians. In May, the Czech Republic reopened its honorary consulate in Jerusalem following its closure in 2016 due to the death of the honorary consul. The Czech Embassy has been in Tel Aviv since 1949, except during the interruption of diplomatic relations under the former communist regime in Prague between 1967 and 1990.
It will certainly increase US allies concerns about Washington potentially withdrawing its commitment to the region  they may instead try to build relations with China, said Zhang Baohui, a political science professor and director of the Centre for Asian Pacific Studies at Lingnan University in Hong Kong.

And with US President Donald Trump absent from the summit this year  vice-president Mike Pence will go in his place  analysts say Beijing will be trying to position itself to fill the leadership vacuum.

That presence is expected to be more visible in the coming months, with Chinese President Xi Jinping planning a summit for regional leaders in Papua New Guinea in November  just before the APECsummit is to be held there.

HONG KONG - Pacific island countries have become a new diplomatic battleground as China and Western nations vie for influence in the region, and as Beijing ramps up efforts to squeeze Taiwans international space.

The region is close to key US strategic assets in the Pacific Ocean, like Hawaii and Midway Island  although there is no evidence that Beijing has a naval agenda in the region as of now. If China is to pursue a policy of establishing naval bases in the region, the US will have profound concerns, he said.

There are just 2.3 million people living in the Pacific island countries, but the region is important for Americas Indo-Pacific strategy and it also has geopolitical significance for China.

Six of the 11 nations have diplomatic ties with Taipei but Beijing is pushing for them to switch recognition  both sides have been trying to win favour by offering aid and support.

Chinas engagement in the region could also act as a barrier against Americas Indo-Pacific strategy to contain Beijing, according to a report in June by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

If Chinese activities deter the US from carrying out its [military training and exercise] plans for Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, it will contribute to Chinas goal of weakening US military presence in the Indo-Pacific, the report by the US congressional commission said, referring to the US territory near Guam.

Shrinking Taiwans international space and expanding Chinas presence in the region  such development would negatively affect US interests in the Indo-Pacific, it said.

The jockeying for influence in the region, and the diplomatic tussle between Taipei and Beijing, has been on full display last week at a contentious Pacific leaders summit that wrapped up on Thursday.

Speaking at the annual Pacific Islands Forum in Nauru, US Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke said Washington would spend US$7 million on military financing for Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Tonga, with another US$750,000 annually going to international military exercises in the region.

Taipei also pledged to set up a US$2 million medical fund to help Pacific nations at the forum, a day after Beijings delegation stormed out of a meeting on climate change when Naurus President Baron Waqa would not let its special envoy Du Qiwen take the floor.

The tiny island had earlier angered Beijing by refusing to stamp entry visas into its delegates diplomatic passports, saying it would process only their personal travel documents  prompting threats from nations with official ties with Beijing to pull out of the forum.

Meanwhile, the United States is reportedly planning to increase its diplomatic staffing in Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia and potentially Fiji in the next two years. Australia is also expected to name its first high commissioner to Tuvalu within weeks, rushing to fill a post Canberra decided to create just a few months ago, according to Reuters.

In addition, Britain is trying to boost its presence in the region, planning to open new high commissions in Vanuatu, Tonga and Samoa by the end of May next year, while French President Emmanuel Macron is seeking to organise a meeting of Pacific leaders early next year.

Analysts say these moves reflect concern in the West about Chinas push in the Pacific islands, where it has dramatically increased its investment in recent years.

Beijing has spent US$1.3 billion on concessionary loans and gifts to the region since 2011, becoming its second largest donor after Australia, according to Lowy Institute figures, and stoking fears that smaller nations could end up overburdened and unable to repay debts to Beijing  and ultimately forfeiting the region to China.

Graeme Smith, a fellow in the Pacific affairs department at Australian National University in Canberra, said although Beijings influence over the region was somewhat limited, the security implications had some countries worried.

Ralph Cossa, president of the Pacific Forum CSIS in Honolulu, said the jostling for influence in the region was likely to intensify in the future.

To the extent that Washington perceives Chinese actions as trying to undermine its influence, the more the Indo-Pacific strategy will be aimed at countering these Chinese efforts, Cossa said. China claims it is not trying to marginalise the US, but its actions say otherwise.

But he said Beijing was unlikely to change its approach to the Pacific islands, despite growing concerns about its assertiveness.

Smith said Western countries could check Chinas influence in the Pacific by offering help where it was most needed.

New embassies are welcome, but they are often constrained in their ability to engage with the local population and local media by an overly bureaucratic and risk-averse culture within the Western foreign services, Smith said.

The most effective way for Western nations to maintain some level of influence is to take the concerns of Pacific island nations seriously  in particular on climate change, labour mobility and meeting critical infrastructure needs.
Flooded runways, thousands of passengers stranded and a tanker smashing into an access bridge: last week's typhoon in Japan highlighted the vulnerability of Kansai Airport which serves a region with an economy bigger than Belgium's. Because of concerns about engine noise, Kansai -- located in the bay of Osaka -- is the world's first airport entirely situated on a huge man-made island, putting it at risk of flooding, tsunamis and typhoons. Damage to the airport is seen having a dramatic knock-on effect on tourism and trade, as it handles 22 million international passengers per year and 5.3 trillion yen ($47 billion) of Japan's exports -- more than seven percent of the national total. "The Osaka region which was hit by the typhoon is about 10.9 percent of Japan's GDP. It's slightly larger than Belgium and about the same as Sweden," noted Kohei Iwahara, economist at Natixis Japan Securities. "You have the ports affected, Kansai Airport malfunctioning and the question is: how long is it going to last?" asked the expert. One week after Typhoon Jebi ravaged western Japan, the airport is still not fully functional, with power not yet completely restored and access via the damaged bridge still not back to normal. It has operated fewer than 100 flights in total since last Tuesday's typhoon, a far cry from the 400 per day it usually runs in its round-the-clock operation. Kansai airport has been beset by setbacks from the beginning and has spent vast amounts on protection from the elements -- such as high walls and waterproof barriers -- which proved of limited value when the typhoon struck. According to Mizuho Securities, the typhoon and an earthquake in the more rural island of Hokkaido has increased the danger of a cut in Japan's GDP, which came in at 0.7 percent on-quarter in April-June. The disasters cut supply lines and could result in a 0.2-percentage point dip in factory output in the third quarter, Mizuho said. The 6.6-magnitude Hokkaido quake knocked out the main thermal power plant, causing a total blackout for the three million households on the island and havoc for logistics. The plant will not be fully up and running until at least November. Car giant Toyota for example was forced to stop production in the whole country because it was not being supplied with parts from its factory in Hokkaido. - 'The damage is severe' - Yoshihisa Inada, from the Osaka-based Asia Pacific Institute of Research, noted that more than one in three of Japan's 28 million foreign tourists passed through Kansai last year, en route to the popular destinations of Kyoto and Nara. "Companies can choose alternative airports (for exports) but the problem is tourism," he told AFP. "If the situation at the airport continues for one month, the tourists can't come and the value added will disappear, so how do I make money? The damage is severe," he said. Typhoon Jebi was just the latest in a series of natural disasters to afflict western Japan -- after a deadly earthquake in Osaka in June and flooding in July that killed more than 200. These events did spark "some cancellations and a negative impact on demand in the South Korean and Hong Kong market", admitted Ryoko Hasegawa from the Japan National Tourism Organisation. But Iwahara from Natixis said any effect on tourism should not last too long. "Given the past record in Japan, earthquakes and typhoons are part of everyday life. So the impact should be short-lived and overcome in a month or two," he told AFP. Inada agreed, saying that foreign visitors should realise that Japan is "very resilient". "We have many natural disasters and recovery is very fast."
Laos' premier on Wednesday said the Communist country will press on with its ambitious hydropower strategy after a dam collapse killed dozens, but vowed to intenisfy scrutiny on the lucrative mega projects. The rare public comments from prime minister Thongloun Sisoulith came during a World Economic Forum panel in Hanoi, weeks after July's dam disaster in Attapeu province. An official tally given by Laos' secretive government said 35 people died in the collapse of the Xe Pian Xe Namnoy saddle dam, a Korean-built structure which had not yet been completed. But testimony from locals suggests the toll may be much higher with several villages swept away and buried under thick mud. Since the disaster Laos has suspended all new dam projects, while ongoing hydropower projects will be inspected, premier Thongloun Sisoulith said. "Building hydropower projects is a good way to generate income," he said. "The impact of the incident in July is something we will continue to take into account when moving forward in terms of our hydropower production." All dams should be "based on careful planning and good design," he added. For the past decade, Laos has been on a dam-building spree in an effort to provide electricity to its people and sell power to its Thai, Cambodian and Vietnamese neighbours. Sitting beside Thongloun Sisoulith was Cambodia's premier Hun Sen, who called for more cross-border disaster management. The Attapeu dam collapse in July sent floods of water downstream to northeastern Cambodia that left villages inundated. One Korean firm involved in the project, SK Engineering & Construction, said it was investigating the cause of the dam break and would donate $10 million in relief aid. Thongloun Sisoulith said Wednesday experts are still investigating the cause of the fatal collapse. burs-dhc/apj/amz
Most EU countries fail to meet the bloc's air quality standards and more than 1,000 Europeans die prematurely each day, ten times more than in road accidents, a watchdog said Tuesday. The European Court of Auditors (ECA), the European Union body which scrutinises how the bloc spends its budget, said pollution's toll on health in Bulgaria and other eastern European countries was even worse than in Asian giants China and India. It said the failures in the 28-nation bloc were all the more glaring as some EU guidelines were weaker than those suggested by the World Health Organisation. "Air pollution is the biggest environmental risk to health in the European Union," said Janusz Wojciechowski, the member of the Luxembourg-based ECA responsible for the report. - "Considerable impacts" - "In recent decades, EU policies have contributed to emission reductions, but air quality has not improved at the same rate and there are still considerable impacts on public health," he added. The report blamed most of the 400,000 premature annual deaths in the bloc on high levels of particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide and ground level ozone. It presented a chart showing that Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Latvia and Hungary suffer higher numbers of "lost years of healthy life from ambient air pollution" than China and India, which have drawn most of the global attention. The damage to health in Romania was slightly better than China's but worse than India's, the chart showed. Lithuania and Poland were not far behind. The study cited WHO figures for 2012 where Bulgaria had nearly 2.5 lost years of healthy life for every 100 inhabitants and Hungary around 1.8, compared with 1.7 lost years for China and about 1.6 for India. The ECA, which looks for wasteful spending, said direct EU funding can boost air quality, but added that funded projects "were not always sufficiently well targeted." It also warned that air pollution may be worse than estimated because it may not have been monitored in the right places. The ECA said member states "continue to breach air quality limits frequently" despite legal action from the European Commission, the EU executive arm. In May, the commission took Germany, Britain, France, Italy, Hungary and Romania to the bloc's highest court for failing to comply with EU air quality standards. The European Court of Justice, based in Luxembourg, can impose heavy fines. The campaigning group Transport and Environment warned: "The new report is yet another wake-up call for the EU to seriously tackle the air pollution crisis we face every day." The auditors are sending the report to the member states and the European Parliament, recommending updating 20-year-old standards, attaching air quality to other EU policies and boosting public awareness of the problem.
Zimbabwe on Wednesday banned public gatherings in the capital Harare following a cholera outbreak that has claimed at least 21 lives and left hundreds of people ill over the past week. The outbreak, first detected in the township of Glen View outside Harare, has prompted the health ministry to declare an emergency in the city. "In light of the declaration of the state of emergency, the police in Harare will not allow any public gatherings," police spokeswoman Charity Charamba said in a statement. "The Zimbabwe Republic Police is appealing to members of the public to take heed of the warning and cooperate as this will assist in alleviating the continuous spread of cholera." The ban came ahead of a planned rally by the opposition MDC party on Saturday at which it was due to hold a mock presidential inauguration of party leader Nelson Chamisa, who it claims was denied victory in the July 30 election due to fraud. At least 21 people, including two pupils from the same school, have died over the past week in Harare from cholera and at least 3,000 haven fallen ill from cholera and typhoid, according to the health ministry. "We are now at 3,067 cases... The number of deaths has risen to 21," health minister Obadiah Moyo told reporters on Tuesday. One school was closed in Glen View. - Lack of clean water, infrastructure - Chamisa toured a health facility and called on the United Nations to help contain the situation. "It's more than just an emergency it is a national disaster," he said. Britain warned people thinking of visiting Harare about the cholera outbreak and urged travellers to learn to recognise symptoms of the disease. Cholera outbreaks have occurred regularly in the city as authorities struggle to provide potable water and sanitation facilities. Informal housing areas without running water have mushroomed and basic infrastructure has collapsed due to years of neglect. Tests on water samples from some wells and boreholes showed the water was contaminated with cholera and typhoid-causing bacteria. Zimbabwe, which was ruled by Robert Mugabe from independence in 1980 until his ousting last year, suffered its worst cholera outbreak in 2008. A total of 4,000 people died and at least 100,000 people fell ill. President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who succeeded Mugabe, has pledged to revive the economy and improve public services. "To contain the outbreak and mobilise resources we have declared a state of emergency in Harare, and are working closely with our international partners," Mnangagwa said Wednesday on Twitter. Amnesty International castigated the authorities for failing to invest in and manage basic water, sanitation and health care systems even after the 2008 outbreak. "It is appalling that in 2018, people are still dying of such a preventable disease," said Jessica Pwiti, director of Amnesty International Zimbabwe said in a statement. "No lessons were learned from the 2008 epidemic and the outbreak and deaths we're seeing now is symptomatic of a still broken-down sanitation infrastructure and poor sewer management, worsened by shortages of drugs and medical supplies." She urged the Mnangagwa administration to "learn from its predecessor's mistakes" and act urgently before more lives are lost. UNICEF advised Zimbabweans to prevent the spread of cholera by regular hand-washing, drinking only safe water, washing food, cooking it throughly, and avoiding shaking hands.
(Reuters file photo)

A radicalised 33-year-old Singaporean man was detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in August, said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in a media statement on Wednesday (12 September).

Ahmed Hussein Abdul Kadir Sheik Uduman, an information technology engineer, had wanted to undertake armed violence in Syria in support of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group.

Ahmeds path to radicalisation began in 2013 when he turned to the Internet for religious knowledge, said the ministry.

The statement added that had Ahmed followed the lectures of foreign radical ideologues, such as the late Anwar al-Awlaki and several others who have been detained for inciting terrorism or voicing support for terrorism.

He had also maintained regular contact with pro-ISIS individuals on social media, and had tried to influence some of his foreign online contacts to follow the violent teachings of the ideologues he followed  with the aim of getting them to support ISIS.

(Ahmed) grew to believe that the use of violence in the name of religion was justified and by late-2016, he was convinced that he should fight and die as a martyr for ISIS in its self-proclaimed caliphate in Syria and Iraq, said MHA.

Detained woman released on suspension direction

Separately, 39-year-old Munavar Baig Amina Begam was released from detention in July. She had been detained under the ISA in November last year for supporting ISIS and harbouring the intention to make her way to Syria to join the terrorist group.

Her release was granted as she had been found to no longer pose an imminent security threat that required preventive detention.

Now under a Suspension Direction (SD), she must abide by several conditions, including not being permitted to change residence or employment or to travel out of Singapore without the prior approval of the Internal Security Departments director.

Those issued with SDs also cannot issue public statements, address public meetings, print or contribute to any publication, or join any organisation without the ISD directors prior approval.

Story continues

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Barristers will no longer need permission to have a second job under proposed changes by the Hong Kong Bar Association, after a challenge to the long-standing restriction almost went to the citys top court.



The association, the citys top legal professional body, is considering relaxing its rule so that barristers would only be required to tell the Bar Council, its executive committee, that they intend to start a second or part-time job.

However, if there are any concerns about the appropriateness of their non-legal work, they will have to comply with any advice given.

The rule we have has been abolished in most other places, Bar Association chairman Philip Dykes said.

The English Bar, for instance, abolished that 20 years ago and they are seeing no problems there.

The association is looking at changing its Code of Conduct after a lawyer challenged its decision to not allow him to also work as a neuro-beautologist, treating those with misaligned spines and limbs, because it was considered incompatible with practising law.

While the association is prepared to do away with the rule, it still wants to keep an eye on the types of jobs barristers take up on the side.

The bottom line is  whatever you do, that must be compatible with the profession of barrister, Dykes said. Well tell you what our concern is, and if that proves to be right and brings the Bar into disrepute, well take disciplinary action.

The association will decide on the proposal as early as Januarys annual general meeting. Other proposals include introducing a monthly HK$6,000 (US$770) salary to all pupil barristers who are unpaid.

There are about 1,500 practising barristers in Hong Kong, including 150 freshly admitted in the past two years in a very competitive legal market. Young barristers often struggle financially as they do not have a base salary but must pay rent for their chambers.

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Barristers, considered to be self-employed, do not need prior approval for some jobs, such as elected lawmakers, columnists, law school teachers, or non-executive directors of companies.

Some take second jobs to pursue a personal interest, including as private pilots or in the wine business, but for most, especially junior barristers, it is a means to earn more.

Veteran actor Melvin Wong Kam-sang, 72, is prominent among barristers who had two careers.

From the 1980s, Wong starred in television dramas and films and was particularly well known for being in the popular soap A Kindred Spirit. He was in his 50s when he studied for a law degree and was admitted to the Bar in 1997. But he still acted occasionally, including in a TV crime drama made by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC).

I was still a junior barrister at the time, so perhaps thats why the Bar Council granted me permission. And as the ICAC is a government body, playing a part in the drama may have been seen as doing public service, said Wong, freshly retired from the legal profession but producing films.

I played the role of a senior investigator so I just showed up in several episodes without taking up too much time.

Alexander Wong Shing-tak, 38, has degrees in medicine and law and was a doctor for six years before becoming a barrister in 2012. He said during his first two years as a barrister, he still saw patients at his clinic, but promised the Bar Council he would spend only two sessions per week as a doctor.

Wong said money was one reason he continued as a doctor, because he was not yet earning a regular income as a barrister. I also didnt want to waste what I learned in medical school, he said.

The rule on second careers made the news in 2015 when barrister Albert Leung Sze-ho challenged the Bar Councils refusal to allow him to practise neuro-beautology, a form of natural therapy.

Leung, then 45 and a barrister for more than 10 years, won his judicial review in the High Court. The judge ruled the associations Code of Conduct was unconstitutional for restricting Leungs freedom of choice of occupation.

But the Court of Appeal overturned the decision one year later, ruling that the freedom under Article 33 of the Basic Law, Hong Kongs mini-constitution, only meant a resident should not be forced to work against his or her wish, but did not mean he or she had the freedom to work in any occupation.

Leung was granted permission to take his case to the Court of Final Appeal and a hearing date was initially set for January this year. However, he did not pursue the case as he said he could not raise the HK$200,000 needed and his personal financial problems had snowballed over the years.

Maybe if I could have worked concurrently as a neuro-beautologist, I could have survived, Leung, who is taking a break from practising, said.

Having faced a legal bill of at least HK$100,000, Leung believed his sacrifice paid off for a greater good.

I think the proposal is good enough and a great improvement, he said.

Dykes would not say if Leung would be free to take up his second career if the Bar Association changed its rule, or if he would still be advised that neuro-beautology was inappropriate for a lawyer. Each case has to be decided on its own, Dykes said.

Five barristers the Post spoke to felt it was time the association dropped the rule on a second job.

The profession is highly competitive, and junior barristers do not have a lot of business at the beginning of their career, Wong said.

He said his medical background had helped his legal career and he got some cases through it. At least you know how to read the medical report, he said.



This article Restriction on Hong Kong barristers taking second job set to be eased under proposed changes to Bar Association Code of Conduct first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018.
The Libyan capital's only working airport has come under rocket fire just days after reopening following a UN-backed ceasefire between rival armed groups vying for influence in the oil-rich country. The attack on Tuesday night underscored the fragility of the latest peace push in the North African nation, which has been beset by turmoil since the fall of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011. Several rockets hit the perimeter of Mitiga International Airport on the eastern outskirts of Tripoli without causing any casualties. Flights were diverted to Misrata, some 200 kilometres (120 miles) east of the capital, the civil aviation authority said. Mitiga airport had only reopened on Friday after it was forced to close for a week because of deadly clashes between rival militias in and around Tripoli. The fighting has killed at least 63 people and wounded 159 others -- mostly civilians -- since August 27, dousing hopes of elections being held this year. UN envoy Ghassan Salame sought to downplay the latest breach of a UN-brokered ceasefire announced on September 4. "Despite a minor setback last night, the ceasefire was generally respected in the past nine days," said Salame, who reported 14 truce violations observed by the UN. The envoy said the UN knew who fired the rockets at the airport, without naming them. "The next time (if they reoffend), I will name them," he told a news conference. Salame said the Government of National Accord (GNA) had formed a commission to implement security measures in Tripoli, in line with the ceasefire deal that includes the withdrawal of heavy weapons and militias from the capital. "Some of these measures have begun to be implemented and others will be implemented in the coming days," he said, without providing further details. - Battle for influence - A UN-brokered agreement signed in Morocco in December 2015 establishing the GNA brought hopes of an easing of the chaos that followed Libya's 2011 revolution. But divisions remain between the GNA and rivals including military strongman Khalifa Haftar, who is based in the east and refuses to recognise the administration's authority. Thousands of families have fled the violence to nearby towns or have had to seek shelter in other districts of Tripoli, authorities have said. Several rockets had already struck near the airport last month, forcing authorities to divert all flights to Misrata on that occasion too. Tripoli has been at the centre of a battle for influence between armed groups with shifting allegiances since Kadhafi was overthrown and killed. The UN Panel of Experts on Libya said in a letter to the Security Council on September 5 that armed groups have "increased their influence over Libyan state institutions, promoting their own political and economic interests". "The use of violence to take control of state infrastructure and institutions -- and threats and attacks against public servants -- are widespread across the country and are particularly noticeable in Tripoli", it said. "The violent competition to capture the Libyan state is hampering the political transition in the country," the panel said. Mitiga airport, a former military air base, has been a civilian airport since Tripoli's main international airport was badly damaged in fighting between rival militias in 2014. Since then only Libyan airlines have operated in the country, running internal flights and regular connections to a handful of nations, including Tunisia and Turkey. Libyan airlines are banned from European Union airspace for "security reasons". - Infrastructure hit by fighting - The electricity network has been damaged by the recent fighting, exacerbating power cuts around Tripoli, that have lasted up to 24 hours. Militias in the east have prevented rationing in their zones, worsening the shortages in the capital and southern Libya, the national electricity company said this week. Internet and phone networks have also been interrupted, while the water supply has been cut for a week. On Wednesday, France's ambassador to the UN Francois Delattre said his country believes it "essential" that presidential and legislative elections take place in Libya on December 10, in line with a timetable agreed in May. Jihadist groups and people traffickers have taken advantage of the chaos to gain a foothold in Libya. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility on Tuesday for a suicide attack a day earlier against the headquarters of Libya's National Oil Corporation which killed two employees.
Peru's Shining Path leader Abimael Guzman, who is already serving a life sentence, was handed a second life term on Tuesday for a 1992 car bombing that killed 25 people in Lima. Three judges at the National Criminal Court issued life sentences for Guzman, 83, and nine other leaders of the Maoist-inspired insurgency which began in the 1980s. In the attack, a car packed with 500 kilos of explosives blew up in a narrow street in Lima's upscale Miraflores district, killing 25 people and wounding more than 100 others. The blast, which destroyed shops, cars and homes, was the first time Shining Path had attacked a civilian target in the Peruvian capital. The sentences were delivered at a six-hour hearing broadcast live on television at the end of a 20-month trial, which Guzman denounced as a farse, insisting he had nothing to do with the attack. He said it was a mistake committed by followers. When Shining Path began its campaign in the 1980s, its goal was to overthrow the government and install communist rule through a "dictatorship of the proletariat" But when Alberto Fujimori took over as president in 1990, he launched a major crackdown on the Shining Path, and after Guzman's arrest in 1992, the guerrillas' activities declined sharply. That year, Guzman was sentenced to life in prison for treason by a military court but the sentence was overturned by Peru's Constitutional Court in 2003. A retrial began the same year and in 2006, Guzman was sentenced to life for terrorism, murder and other crimes committed during the two-decade insurgency which was responsible for the deaths of some 70,000 people. A 2003 report by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission found that just under half of the victims were killed by the Shining Path while a third died at the hands of government security forces and local militias. The rest were unattributed. Although Fujimori was credited with crushing the Shining Path, he was accused of authorizing a "dirty war" to eradicate them and members of the Tupac Amaru, a rival leftist guerrilla group. In 2009, Fujimori was sentenced to 25 years in jail for corruption and human rights abuses during his time in office. Today, the Shining Path is a largely defunct, renegade group of rebels hiding out in the jungle and working with drug traffickers to fund their operations.
The leaders of China and Japan have pledged to speed up cooperation in the latest sign that the two Asian rivals are mending ties strained by territorial and historical disputes.

On the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in the eastern Russian city of Vladivostok, Chinese President Xi Jinping told Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe that the two countries should firmly defend multilateralism, the free trade system and the rules of the World Trade Organisation to push forward an open global economy, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.

As major economic powers of the region, China and Japan should take the responsibility to play constructive roles in safeguarding peace, stability, development and prosperity of the region and the world.

Relations between China and Japan are getting back on track with great opportunities ahead for further improvement, Xi told Abe.

But the Chinese president urged Japan to properly handle sensitive issues over history and Taiwan to forge a good atmosphere and to continue expanding common interest.

Xi and Abe were in Vladivostok for a three-day summit hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin to promote investment in Russias far east.

Before his meeting with Xi, Abe said the two neighbours had engaged in broad cooperation in all areas, with active communication and dialogue, Japanese news agency Kyodo reported.

Japanese diplomat visits Beijing, says he is arranging Shinzo Abes visit to China

The horizon of cooperation is extending, Abe was quoted as saying.

Beijing and Tokyo have taken a number of steps to improve ties and relations have stabilised in recent months as the US has ramped up trade pressure on both China and Japan.

In May, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visited Tokyo,the first such visit by a Chinese premier over eight years, and high-level Japanese officials, including Toshihiro Nikai, secretary general of Japans ruling Liberal Democratic Party, met Chinese Vice-President Wang Qishan in Beijing late last month.

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There has been speculation that Abe will visit China around October 23, the 40th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and China, which laid the foundations for diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Abe also said the two countries had reaffirmed the commitment to deepen cooperation, and agreed to work together in preparation for his October visit to Beijing, the first visit to Chinas capital by a Japanese prime minister since 2011.

Kyodo quoted Japanese deputy chief cabinet secretary Kotaro Nogami as saying the Chinese president said he would give consideration to Abes invitation to Japan.

Japan claims China is escalating military actions around disputed Diaoyu Islands

Xi also told Abe that the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinas trillion-dollar infrastructure and investment programme across Eurasia and beyond, could open a new platform and a test field to bilateral cooperation. Japan was welcome to continue to take part in Chinas economic reform, he added.

Huang Dahui, a professor of Japanese studies at Renmin University, said the two Asian powers were seeking rapprochement in the face of the hardline trade policy of US President Donald Trump.

China and Japan are two beneficiaries of global free trade, and Trumps [trade] policy has actually pushed China and Japan closer, Huang said.

But with no sign of a quick solution to their decades-old territorial and historic disputes, the reconciliation between the two neighbours would remain fragile and mostly focused on the economic front, Huang said.

There are great uncertainties ahead and we cant rule out any negative impact over China-Japan relations if the US changes its position on East Asia, he said.

In the meantime, officials from Beijing and Tokyo are discussing cooperation on the Bangkok Mass Transit System project in Thailand, according to Japans Asahi newspaper.

China turns to Japan as surprise source of advice for handling Donald Trumps tough and relentless top trade negotiator

If confirmed, this would be the first belt and road project between China and Japan in a third country, and Tokyos Free and Open Indo-Pacific Strategy, a similar grand strategy in which Japan is seeking to improve links between Asia and Africa.

This article Shinzo Abe and Xi Jinping pledge Japan and China will deepen cooperation first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018.
NETS launches new app to let merchants generate their own payments QR code on their phones

The NETS-operated payment terminal will accept 20 different cashless payment options

The Singapore government has appointed the countrys largest cashless payments provider, NETS, as the unified e-payments operator for food centres in the country, including coffee shops, hawker centres and industrial canteens.

The NETS unified terminal will be able to accept 20 cashless payment options, which range from mobile payment applications to EZ-Link transport cards. The merchants will be given a terminal for card payments and an SGQR code to accept and process transactions from the 20 payment schemes.

The first 10 payment schemes will be rolled out by the end of this year. They include American Express, CEPAS concession cards, EZ-Link, Liquid Pay, Mastercard, NETS, NETS FlashPay, UnionPay International, Visa and WeChat Pay.

The next 10 payment schemes will go live by end August 2019. They include Active Wallet, Alipay, Bev Eat, Ezi Wallet, GrabPay, iAPPS, Honestbee, Qixiang Technology, Singtel Dash and Smart Gateway.

Merchants will be given a merchant discount rate (MDR)  the rate charged to a merchant for payment proceesing  of 0.5 per cent for monthly payment transactions, a significantly lower cut than the industry average of between 2 to 5 per cent.

Also Read: After its first ever Singapore batch, startup generator Antler now expands to Europe

The government will provide funding support over three years, bringing down the MDR to 0 per cent. NETS will also waive the terminal rental fee for merchants.

Payment transactions will be credited directly into the merchants bank account within one day after close of business, for transactions made before 11 pm. Transactions made via American Express, Mastercard and Visa will be credited within two days after close of business. Transaction receipts will be consolidated into a single report by the master acquirer.

Food centres who want to integrate the payment terminals will have to operate under the premises of the following government agencies, Enterprise Singapore, Housing and Development Board (HDB), National Environment Agency (NEA) and JTC Corporation (JTC), in order to qualify.



Image Credit: Pablo Hidalgo

The post Singapore govt appoints NETS as unified e-payments operator for food centres appeared first on e27.
Authorities in Taiwan should step up efforts to counter an academic brain drain from the island amid escalating political and economic pressure from Beijing, according to the president-elect of Taiwans most prestigious university.

Speaking in Hong Kong on Tuesday, Kuan Chung-ming said a set of 31 measures introduced by Beijing in March to offer the Taiwanese equal status as mainland residents would push more professionals to leave the island to work on the other side of the strait.

Beijing regards Taiwan as a renegade province that broke away from the mainland when the civil war ended in 1949.

Indeed, principals in Hong Kong universities have started poaching professors from Taiwans universities in recent years, just because of the enlarging salary gap between the two places, said Kuan, whose confirmation as president of National Taiwan University (NTU) has controversially been delayed.

Professors at Taiwanese universities earn only about one-third of what their colleagues in Hong Kong and Singapore make.

Meanwhile, a third of Taiwans professors were expected to reach retirement age in the next five to 10 years, said Kuan, adding that the situation was even worse at NTU.

China-US rivalry is hastening Taiwans marginalisation

To address the situation, the president-elect said shortly after his election in January that he planned to raise about NT$500 million to NT$700 million (US$16 million to $23 million) for the university, an amount he said was enough to make up for the salary gap based on Taiwans living standards.

My economic and management knowledge told me that retaining talent is easier and cheaper than poaching new people because you might need to spend two or three times what you would spend on salary to headhunt replacements for lost talented employees, Kuan said at a forum about Taiwans future economic strategies.

The economics professor has been caught up in controversy since he was chosen by NTUs presidential election committee.

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Taiwans Ministry of Education blocked his appointment in April amid allegations of personal conflicts of interest related to the election, and concerns about his ties to mainland academics.

The disqualification sparked a massive demonstration by NTU teachers and students on the 99th anniversary of the anti-imperialist and pro-democracy May Fourth Movement. Protesters accused the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of violating principles of university autonomy in Taiwan.

The protests have escalated and led to political confrontations between the Beijing-friendly Kuomintang and the independence-leaning DPP, and led to former education minister Wu Maw-kuens resignation in May.

Dropping word national has been official practice for years, serving and former Hong Kong officials confirm

The ministry has chosen an acting president for NTU, but the lack of a new selection process has prompted 14 Taiwanese universities to form an alliance with a stated goal of defending Taiwans academic freedom.

Kuan said he was still awaiting confirmation of his appointment, or a new election.

I am so helpless, he told the forum. Until now, the Ministry of Education hasnt given me any punishment notice, even a call [to explain why I am disqualified]. It seems like I am just an onlooker.

A former minister of Taiwans development council from 2012 to 2015 under former president Ma Ying-jeou, Kuan stressed that low salaries were a key problem dragging down Taiwans economic growth, pushing local industry to hire cheaper labour from developing countries.

He said that of the 700,000 foreign workers in Taiwan, 60.2 per cent were blue-collar workers, 35.4 were domestic helpers and only 4.4 per cent were professionals.

The problem is, among the 4.4 per cent of professionals, half of them are foreign language teachers, he said.

The most urgent strategy for Taiwan authorities is to put aside their political differences and come up with effective measures to attract more talent from overseas, especial those Taiwanese doctoral students now studying overseas.

More than 150 injured as police evict student protesters from Taiwan parliament

Since the outbreak of the US-China trade war, attracting talent from Taiwan, especially veterans from the islands top-tier chip makers, has become a primary effort by mainland authorities. They want to move the industry into overdrive and reduce the dependence on overseas firms for the prized chips that power everything from smartphones to military satellites.

Kuan suggested that Taipei pay for efforts to keep the islands top-tier industries such as semiconductors, and help those enterprises upgrade their capacity in research and development sectors.

This article Taiwan must halt brain drain being encouraged by Beijing, says president-elect of top university first appeared on South China Morning Post

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These are the musings, ramblings, rantings and observations of Houston DWI Attorney Paul B. Kennedy on DWI defense, general criminal defense, philosophy and whatever else tickles his fancy.
Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland announced a breakthrough Tuesday in tense talks with the United States on a revamped continental trade pact, saying a new deal was now "eminently possible." US President Donald Trump also said earlier that the talks, which both countries ramped up in recent weeks, were coming along well. After a year of effort, Washington and Mexico City announced an agreement in late August and Trump's administration has informed Congress it plans to sign a new treaty by November 30, including Canada if possible. "Achieving that deal is going to require good will, good faith and flexibility on both sides, and we think that's eminently possible," Freeland said after the latest set of bilateral meetings in Washington with her American counterpart, US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. "It is very important to inform" Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in person about the latest developments, she added. US President Donald Trump also said the talks, which both countries intensified in recent weeks, were coming along well. After a year of effort, Washington and Mexico City announced an agreement in late August and Trump's administration has informed Congress it plans to sign a new treaty by November 30, including Canada if possible. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau warned, however, that potential US auto tariffs could be "devastating" for industry in both countries. Trump has raised pressure on Ottawa, threatening to impose duties on Canadian auto imports, which Trudeau said would be "devastating" for the Canadian auto sector. "But it would also be devastating to the American auto industry. It would cause a massive disruption and I think lots of layoffs in the United States," Trudeau said on Canadian radio. "I think it's something that we obviously have to be aware the president is contemplating." In reaching a new NAFTA, Canada is protecting its interests but also "looking to be flexible because it's time to update this deal after 25 years," he said. At the White House, Trump told reporters Canada wanted a deal "very much" and that talks were "coming along well." "We have all been dealing in good faith," he said. Freeland returned to Washington on Tuesday to continue meeting with her US counterpart. She pointed to the 17th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks as a reminder of the need for close cooperation between Ottawa and Washington. "I think that remembering today, and what happened today, maybe that helps us all to put into perspective the negotiations that we're having," Freeland told reporters, noting the "importance and significance" of US-Canadian ties. "At the end of the day, we're neighbors," Freeland said. "At the end of the day, neighbors help each other when they need help." - 'Still some distance' - Freeland emerged after meeting with Lighthizer, saying talks were occurring in a "good" atmosphere. "The atmosphere is absolutely professional," she said. Major stumbling blocks for Ottawa and Washington remain: an international system for resolving disputes, Canada's protected dairy industry and Canadian cultural subsidies. "We're negotiating all this at once. These are complicated subjects and there's still some distance" separating the two sides, said one source close to the talks who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe pending negotiations. Still, "with a bit of flexibility, things could move quickly," the source added. After her stop in Washington, Freeland is due to attend this week's meetings of the governing Liberal Party of Canada in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. US Ambassador to Canada Kelly Craft meanwhile delivered an address in Gander, Newfoundland, where dozens of in-bound flights were diverted in the immediate aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks. "Forget what you read about NAFTA negotiations and Twitter wars. That's not who we are," Craft said in prepared remarks. "Sure, it's business and it's important, but Gander is the place that -- in a snapshot -- illustrates the Canada/US relationship." Trudeau, for his part, added that: "we're just going to stay working constructively to get to that win-win-win that we know is there." Yet, he stressed that "if we sign the deal it'll be... for Canada and Canadians. And if we don't sign the deal, it's because no deal is actually better than a bad deal for Canada."
Trying to demonstrate that talks to denuclearise the Korean peninsula are continuing, the US State Department briefed reporters on Tuesday on the travels of the newly appointed US special representative for North Korea.

US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert quoted Stephen Biegun, who was appointed on August 23, as saying that the denuclearisation negotiations would be hard work but remained a tremendous opportunity.

We need to do everything we can to make the most of this moment, Nauert quoted Biegun as saying. The beginning half is done. This is just the beginning, so what we need to do is finish the job.

Biegun made those comments at the outset of talks with South Koreas top nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon in Seoul, according to the South Korean Yonhap news agency.

Beiguns trip was the first official trip to the region by a US representative since US President Donald Trump scrapped a planned journey last month by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to North Korea, reportedly dissatisfied by the lack of progress North Korea had shown in steps towards denuclearisation.

Nauert confirmed that Biegun had left South Korea and was now in Beijing, though she would not identify whom he was meeting with there.

The trip, which runs through Saturday, will also include a stop in Japan this week to have conversations with our partners and allies in the region about this very topic, Nauert said.

Trump blames China for decision to pull Pompeos North Korea trip

Nauert also confirmed that the State Department had received a letter from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un last week and that US President Donald Trump has obviously been briefed on that letter.

Nauert declined to discuss the conversations Trump, Pompeo and the US national security team had about the letter.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said on Monday that Trump had received a very warm, very positive letter from Kim asking for a second meeting and that the White House is looking at scheduling one.

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Sanders told reporters the letter showed a continued commitment to focus on denuclearisation of the peninsula.

Gangster? Me? Pompeo shakes off criticism, says Korea nuclear deal still on

Bieguns trip also comes ahead of a third meeting this year between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in; the meetings, September 18 through 20, will be held for the first time in Pyongyang.

Moon and Trump spoke on September 4 to discuss the agenda of the Moon-Kim meetings.

After Sanders comment on the possibility of a second Trump-Kim summit, Moon on Tuesday urged that Kim and Trump make a bold decision on denuclearisation.

"The complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula is an issue that should fundamentally be resolved between the US and North Korea through negotiation, Moon was quoted by Agence France-Presse as saying at a cabinet meeting.

"But until talks and communication between the North and the US become more active, we cannot but work to mediate between them, he said, adding: "President Trump and Chairman Kim have asked that I play this role.

This article US says special envoys Asia trip shows progress toward revival of North Korea denuclearisation talks first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018.
Thousands of governors, mayors, CEOs and experts gathered Wednesday at a problem-solving summit to tackle global warming as a monster hurricane bearing the fingerprint of climate change threatens the US eastern seaboard. While deadlocked UN-led talks sputter towards a December summit of national leaders, the three day conference spread across San Francisco will unveil scores of initiatives supporting the transition to a global economy fueled by clean energy rather than planet-warming fossil fuels. Dozens of cities, provinces, states and multinational companies, for example, will pledge to run on clean energy -- mostly solar or wind -- within a few decades. Leading the way, outgoing California governor Jerry Brown signed legislation Monday committing the state to purging greenhouse gases from its electricity grid by 2045. "We all have the opportunity and the obligation to do our part to combat climate change," he told AFP after signing the bill into law. Megacities will report greenhouse gas emissions trending downward, and nearly 1,000 institutional investors overseeing trillions in assets have, at least in part, turned their backs on planet-warming fossil fuels. Pension funds in Europe, the United States and Japan announced shifts in their portfolios from brown to green energy. Thirty-four governors from nine mostly tropical nations, meanwhile, unveiled partnerships supporting indigenous efforts to sustainably manage tropical, carbon-rich forests. A consortium of nine philanthropies, including the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations, ponied up nearly half-a-billion dollars towards the same goal. "This summit is going to be a showcase for the whole world in terms of climate action," said Ethan Elkind, head of the climate program at the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment at the University of California, Berkeley. - 'Dark and dangerous future' - Such efforts, however, have not been enough to salvage US commitments under the Paris climate treaty to reduce greenhouse gases, undermined by President Donald Trump's decision to scrap his predecessor's climate policies and promote the use of fossil fuels. "Current federal and real economy commitments, combined with market forces, will drive US emissions to 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2025 -- roughly two-thirds of the way to the original US target," according to a report released Wednesday. Under the Paris deal, the United States committed to cutting its carbon pollution 26-28 percent by 2025. "The Obama target was always going to be a stretch," co-author Paul Bodnar, managing director of the Rocky Mountain Institute, told journalists. "This work shows definitively that states, cities and businesses have the power to bring the nation to the brink of that ambitious target through their own authorities." But the groundswell of climate action cannot obscure the fact that global warming continues to outpace efforts to tame it, in the US and across the globe. After remaining stable for three years, raising hopes that they had peaked, carbon dioxide emissions from human sources rose in 2017 to historic levels. "If we do not change course by 2020, we risk missing the point where we can avoid runaway climate change," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said earlier this week, warning of a "dark and dangerous future." The 196-nation Paris Agreement calls for capping global warming at "well below" two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and vows to strive for a 1.5 C limit if possible. - 'We Are Still In' - But even if all nations honor voluntary carbon-cutting vows submitted in an annex, we are trending toward a world at least 3 C warmer than the preindustrial era, a scenario scientists say would tug at the fabric of civilization. "Earth hasn't seen 3 C in three million years," said Lord Nicholas Stern, the first economist to seriously calculate the costs and benefits of taking action to halt climate change. "With only one degree Celsius of warming so far, we are experiencing very severe effect," including deadly heatwaves, flooding, and storm surges engorged by rising seas, he told AFP. Taking bold action now, he added, could deliver trillions of dollars in benefits, ranging from avoided costs to millions of jobs in low-carbon economies. Trump opted out of the Paris Agreement shortly after gaining office, and has hammered away at the domestic and international climate policies of his predecessor, Barack Obama. His administration has sought to relax pollution rules for coal-fired power plants and roll back car-mileage standards, the twin pillars of Obama's Clean Energy Plan. US mayors, governors and business leaders -- under the banner "We Are Still In" -- have pushed back by adopting more ambitious targets at the local level. Taken together, these jurisdictions represent about half of the US economy, the equivalent of the third-largest country in the world, according to the report.
The Uganda Peoples Defense Forces (UPDF) is questioning a man who was arrested from the home of assassinated Assistant Superintendent of Police Muhammad Kirumira.

The suspect was arrested on Monday night as he attempted to flee after Kirumiras family members became suspicious and asked to know his details, because he kept close tabs on them yet he was a stranger.

He did not have any identification documents apart from a police bond letter, showing that he was released from Kisenyi Police Post on undisclosed crime. The bond document had only one name Kateete.

The deceaseds brother, Mr Mahad Mugenyi Asooka, said Kateete has no connection with their family but since the murder of Kirumira, he has actively participated in various tasks at home.

Mr Asooka said some family members said Kateete alleged to have been sent from State House to help the bereaved family.

Personally, he told me he was a UPDF officer at the rank of Major and had been sent by a General to help in investigations, Mr Asooka said.

It may not be by coincidence that at the time of arrest, Kateete was wearing the same jacket as the unidentified boda boda man who offered me a free ride to Lubaga and Mulago hospital and back home. Security operatives should thoroughly interrogate him, Mr Asooka said.

He also claimed that on searching Kateetes mobile phone, several telephone numbers of Kirumiras family members and police officers were found.

The Gogonya LCI chairperson, Ms Sarah Kalule, yesterday confirmed the incident, saying; He was taken by military but I do not know where he has been detained.

The Defence spokesperson, Brig Richard Karemire, did not answer our repeated calls.

The deputy police spokesperson, Mr Patrick Onyango, referred us to Mr Emilian Kayima, his boss.

But Mr Kayima also promised to give an update later.

Hold your breath. If true we shall communicate accordingly, Mr Kayima said by telephone.

UPDF takes over
On Wednesday morning, Hurricane Florence was spinning toward the Carolinas as a Category 4 storm. Its project to make landfall late Friday, and if it hits anywhere north of Wilmington, it will be the northernmost landfall for a storm of its size on record.

Thats only half of it: Even if it lapses back to a Category 3, the storm is expected to slow down over the Carolina coast, dumping upward of 25 inches of rain in parts of Eastern North Carolina through the weekend, beating the previous 24-inch record set by Hurricane Floyd in 1999.

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Florence is an example of the kind of storm we are likely to see more of as the planet heats up. Warmer-than-average watersurface temperatures in the Western Atlantic are currently at 84 degrees, 3 to 4 degrees higher than normal for this time of yearis lending it power, as increased evaporation fills the air with water vapor that acts like hurricane fuel. More broadly, according to the 2014 National Climate Assessment, the amount of rain falling in very heavy eventsthose at the top 1 percent of all rainstorms, often hurricanes like Florencehas risen by 27 percent in the Southeast between 1958 and 2013.

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Its not completely novel. The coastal Carolinas were walloped by Hurricanes Hazel and Hugo, in 1954 and 1989 respectively. Floyd in 1999 prompted what was then the largest peacetime evacuation in U.S history, and its state-record rainfall was worse than it looks, because it came just days after Dennis dumped 810 inches across the Eastern Coastal Plain.

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But there are two big differences between then and now: First, weve got a few more decades of global warming under our belts. Second, theres been rapid population growth in the U.S. Sun Belt and in coastal counties in particular.

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North Carolinas beloved coastline isnt that well-populated relative to states to the north and south. As of 2008, less than 10 percent of the states population lived in a coastal county, compared to nearly 20 percent in South Carolina and nearly 40 percent in Virginia. Still, particularly in the southern half of the state around Wilmingtonwhere the storm currently looks to hit worstpopulation growth has been rapid. That means there will be a lot of residents who wont even remember Hurricane Hugo (when it hit 30 years ago, it was the costliest hurricane in U.S. history).

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North Carolina has a much stronger tradition of regulating coastal development than, say, Florida. Even so, reckoning with climate change impacts has been a more complicated story, notes Michael Orbach, a professor emeritus of marine science at Duke who has been involved in coastal planning in the state for decades. The single biggest problem in planning with respect to sea level rise is all planning and zoning [in North Carolina] was based on sea level rise staying the same. That was true for 6,000 years, but now its not.

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In 2011, North Carolinas Coastal Resources Commission put out a dire forecast for sea level rise on the Outer Banks. But then real estate interests successfully convinced the Republican-led statehouse to discard those conclusions. You can believe whatever you want about global warming, said state Rep. Pat McElraft, a Republican and real estate agent who sponsored a 2012 law to put a four-year moratorium on state regulations accounting for sea level rise. But when you go to make planning policies here for our residents and protecting their property values and insurance rates, its a very serious thing to us on the coast.

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The moratorium expired in 2016. In the meantime, coastal towns undertook their own measures to prepare, passing freeboard laws that require new construction to rise above the FEMA base flood elevation. A 2015 report showed that local building standards had prompted a big chunk of the states coastal population to add two feet of freeboard. Still, some populous areas were just getting around to freeboard requirements this summersuch as Wilmington, which has grown from 55,000 people in 1990 to approximately 117,000 today.

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Preparing for the rain is another story. The towns of Eastern North Carolina, which are now projected to be just on the edge of Florences worst rainfall bands, are among the most vulnerable places in the United States to inland flooding. In 1999, flooding from Floyd is thought to have caused a spike in gastrointestinal problems after the states proliferating hog farms contaminated neighbors and natural areas with manure-filled water. The state cracked down, for a while, but didnt solve the problem. After Hurricane Matthew, neighbors were inundated with hog water again. Steve Wing, an epidemiologist at the University of North Carolina, flatly told the Washington Post, Storing vast quantities of fecal waste in flood plains is a serious and preventable public health threat.

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That patterntalk big and then forget about itis typical of the states approach, argues Stan Riggs, a coastal marine geologist at East Carolina University in Greenville who has been advising local governments on flooding for half a century. After Floyd, for example, local governments passed new flood plain ordinances and the state drafted a new hydraulic model to account for changing land use. Riggs: Everybody cries crocodile tears, says, Were never going to let this happen again, but within a year after Floyd flooding in Greenville they were building student condominiums where there had been 10 feet of water just a year before. The economics take over and greed takes over. Greenville grew by 53 percent between 1990 and 2015, though the state argues that changes in land use have been minimal.

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In the Carolinas, as along the Gulf Coast, growth has been characterized by a fast-and-loose approach to water management laws. Older developments sit in the flood plain; newer ones sprout unregulated or win exemptions from tax-hungry governments. South Carolinas devastating 2015 flooding was characterized by the failure of little-regulated, privately owned dams, some of which had been built to create artificial lakes for suburban homeowners.

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In coastal North Carolina, population density has more than doubled in the past 50 years as natural land has been transformed from villages, forests, and wetlands to suburban sprawl. The ongoing loss of natural areas that would have once served to dampen the impact of both storm surge and stormwater will change the way those phenomena affect even houses that didnt flood during, say, the rainstorms that ravaged the state in 1999. All told, 430,000 North Carolinians live in the 100-year-flood plain on and off the coast, including much of villages like Princeville, a historic black enclave that flooded during Floyd and again during Matthew.

These villages and the towns built their infrastructure after World War II, and now growth is taking place really fast in big rings around that. All the water runs into that old core and gets backed up, says Riggs. What youre going to see starting tomorrow will be a lot like what you saw in Houston.

This article has been updated with new information since it was published.
On Monday, the night before the release of Fear, his new expose of Trumps White House, Bob Woodward went on The Late Show to discuss his book with Stephen Colbert. Colbert questioned how he could count on the accuracy of his various accounts given that Trump, he joked, may or may not remember what his idea was yesterday.

But Colbert quickly moved on to the already famous last scene of Fear, where John Dowd, Trumps former lawyer, supposedly stages a practice interview to prepare the president to testify in the Mueller investigation. Dowd, of course, suggests Trump could end up in an orange jumpsuit. But Colbert suggests Woodward actually buried the lede in the decidedly profane final line of the book, which he proceeded to read on air.

Woodward shrugged when Colbert asked how he feels when Trump tweets about him. Quoting Ben Bradlee, the Washington Post editor during the Watergate scandal, he said: The truth emerges. And the truth will emerge on this too.
A report that Henry Cavill will no longer play Superman might turn out to be nothing more than a rumor started by Lex Luther. Cavill has played the character in Man of Steel, Batman vs. Superman, and Justice League, but anonymous sources tell the Hollywood Reporter that negotiations to have Cavill make a cameo in Shazam! recently broke down. Now, the actors entire future as Kal-El is said to be in doubt as he may soon be hanging up the red cape.

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Or maybe not. A representative for Cavill, manager Dany Garcia, tweeted that theres still hope for Cavill to return in future D.C. Universe movies:

Be peaceful, the cape is still in his closet. @wbpictures has been and continues to be our partners as they evolve the DC Universe. Anticipate a WB statement later today.  Dany Garcia (@DanyGarciaCo) September 12, 2018

Warner Bros. has since also commented on the Hollywood Reporter story to say that, while no decisions have been made about future Superman films, the company has great respect for and a great relationship with Henry Cavill, and that remains unchanged. One person who has not yet commented on the rumors is the actor who plays Supermans alter ego Clark Kent. Funnily enough, that actor bears a striking resemblance to Cavill, but he wears glasses and is thus, obviously, an entirely different person.
So here we are, at the end of the carnival. The sixth and final book of Karl Ove Knausgaards vast and consuming diaristic novel My Struggle is out in America, and the burden of authorship shifts from him to us. Readers who believe that Knausgaard has done something remarkable now have to answer a question: What remarkable thing did he do?

His technical breakthrough was to give up. Knausgaard describes writing My Struggle at a heedless pace, 10 or 20 pages a day. He wrote the fifth of the six books in just eight weeks. It hasnt anything to do with courage, hes said. Its more that I was so desperate and so frustrated. The only way I could trick myself into writing was by doing it like this. By setting myself the premise that I would write very quickly and not edit, that everything should be in it.

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Whats driven many critics and especially many of Knausgaards fellow writers crazy is that this shouldnt work. Richard Brinsley Sheridan observed that easy writings vile hard reading, Thomas Mann that writers are people for whom writing is harder than others.

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Yet the buzz about Knausgaards novels, as they have appeared in steady succession, each recounting a distinct phase of his life, was how unputdownable they were. I fell into the first two books of My Struggle as if I were falling into a malarial fever, Dwight Garner wrote in the Times. I did little else for four days except devour them, leaving email unanswered, dogs unwalked, dishes piling up in the sink. At the same time, ever since the first book came out in English in 2012, the people whose praise means the most in the world of literary fiction (Zadie Smith, James Wood) have recommended it with almost hieratic vervenot as a potboiler, but as art. In other words, he dissolved the obdurate distinction between reading for pleasure and reading for enlightenment.

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By giving up, yesbut by giving up in a very exact way. The true innovation of My Struggle is that its author intervenes so little in his own memories. Particularly in its most captivating volumes, the first three, Knausgaards narrative consists almost completely of first-person facts and sensations, long descriptions of how Karl Ove and his friends play in the woods, for example, or the mingled boredom, and shame at that boredom, that he feels when he watches his own children.

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This method omits, crucially, two of the novelists most important tools (and vanities): style and insight. Because My Struggle is purely descriptive, the quality of its prose and the quality of its thought become immediately irrelevant. Its impossible to disagree with someone who tells you, I felt embarrassed or, I opened a pack of cigarettes, lit one, and inhaled. Its only possible to listen.

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That it was an innovation doesnt mean it had to work. The sentence is how a writer bulletproofs himself, and insight, analysis, a special or heightened perception is what he would appear to be retailing. Knausgaard declined those protections. Laying himself bare in that way might so easily have failed; what happened instead, as Jeffrey Eugenides marvelingly put it, is that he broke the sound barrier of the autobiographical novel. Like life, his books are both boring and relentlessly interesting; like life, they seem somehow both very long and very fast. In other words, theyre like life. A second life, which the reader briefly lives in Knausgaards stead, prosaic, meaningless, yet of course also replete with the most serious possible meaning, replete with sad vastness, private infinities.

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Theres something primitive and hungry in that experienceand for me, sometimes, something spiritual, close to the experience of grace.

Given all that, it may come as a surprise to some readers that the sixth, longest, and last book of My Struggle is primarily a biography of Adolf Hitler.

Not right away. Book 6 starts near the date of the first books publication, when Knausgaard sends his manuscript to the various people it portrays, including his family and his old friends. Most respond generously, but his uncle, Gunnar, works himself into a furor, threatening legal action over its depiction of his brother, Karl Oves fatherthe enigmatic brute whose spirit dominates My Struggle. Indeed, Gunnars irate letters are like a last childhood beating, somehow delivered decades into adulthood, years after Karl Oves father has died. I felt like I did when I was a little boy and had done something wrong. I was afraid Dad was going to come and be angry with me. There was nothing worse in all the world.

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This is not even good enough to be wrong.

From this representative manner, though, Knausgaard then makes a sharp and truly strange turn (via a confused reading of a poem by Paul Celan) into his maddening, frequently fascinating account of Hitlers early years. Its presuppositionleave aside Knausgaards choice to write it for the momentis that Hitler was a human being. And indeed, perhaps the only human being genuinely inaccessible to us, because he represents too much. But of course there are facts about him. Did you know that Hitlers guardian arranged an apprenticeship for him to be a baker? That his own father beat him, on one occasion, according to his brother, so brutally he thought him to be dead? Did you know Hitlers professors thought he showed a gift for painting architecture but a queer inability to depict humans? How dark and telling that last data point seems, and unsurprisingly the best trait Knausgaard has as a biographer is his feel for detail.

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OtherwiseIm sincerely sorry to sayhes a disaster.

What he has allowed himself is an absolute orgy of interpolation, of style, of insight (insight), as if he has expressly set out to recant the choices that made the prior installments of My Struggle unique. The trouble is that he seemingly hasnt also recanted his freehanded method of compositioninstead, he has turned it loose on the Holocaust, a subject that should demand of a writer heroic rigor, heroic precision.

In 1,200 pages, theres room for an absolutely enormous number of bad ideas, and Knausgaard talks his way into every category of them. Theres the banal Is the world anything more than our conceptions about it? Language has no life of its own, is not itself alive, but invokes life. Theres the random declaration from on high: Peter Handke, perhaps one of the worlds three best living authors   Above all, theres sophistry on nearly every page: Poetry tried to enter into the space between language and the world so as to stand before the world just as it was in itself. Some poetry, sometimes, maybe?

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But wait, theres also pretentious historicizing from thin knowledge: The frequent occurrence of the doppelganger motif in literature during the second half of the nineteenth century   And jargonindustrial quantities of jargon: The boundaries of both the I and the we in respect of the it are fluid and unclear, but nonetheless they are real, for in the it-zones humanity is characterized by sameness.

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Maybe no passage sums up Knausgaards flaws as a theoristhis showiness, his lack of subtlety, his taste for proclamationmore succinctly than this one:

[That] is why Greek Antiquity has been such a point of reference in Western civilizations for more than two thousand years, and continues to be; so many of our conceptions about the world and about humanity were founded in that culture. History, philosophy, politics, natural science; everything comes from there. The only aspects of our own culture that dont come from there are religion, which is Jewish, and the machine, which is our own.

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This is reductive, incomplete, and wrong. Or really, as the physicist Wolfgang Pauli once sadly remarked about a paper, not even good enough to be wrong.

These missteps would be merely obnoxious if Knausgaard were writing about his life. But hes writing about Nazism. When he sticks close to Hitler, he flashes perceptionnoticing, for instance, that Hitler had a strong inner life, nourished by fantasies he goes to great lengths to preserve from any confrontation with reality.

When he stumbles, however, its so bad that you get a sort of sick feeling. Hitler recognized poverty as a major political problem, Knausgaard writes, and he was just as distraught about its inhumanity as Karl Marx and Jack London. Thats a disgrace of a statement. What evidence do we have that Hitler could be distraught at the mental states of others? Isnt it likelier that poverty offended his profoundly coherent will to German strength? And what a conclusion to draw from Mein Kampf, which of course states, 17 years before the Wannsee Conference, that the final aim  must unshakably be the removal of the Jews altogether.

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Elsewhere, Knausgaard writes that Hitler expressed what the average German thought but declined to say. No. Hitler never won a fair election, and what makes this particular slip of understanding especially painful is that, elsewhere, Knausgaard cites the tragic, extraordinary diaries of the Jewish linguist Victor Klemperer, who specifically details how many ordinary Germans risked their lives to show signs of solidarity as he went into the streets of Berlin wearing his yellow star.

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For a long time, readers have wondered why Knausgaard dared to title his book Min Kamp. His stubborn reading of Hitlers life as a life insists in explicit terms upon the implication of the title and of the previous books that appeared under it, which is that we can only experience the world from a single perspective and that all institutions that pretend otherwise, including politics, including fiction, are stained by their denial of that. He understands the instinct to congregate but finds it impossible to place any faith in congregations. Only his personal experience is verifiable.

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The tremendous irony there is how many readers have so completely identified with him, a random Norwegian halfway across the planet. The long and painful middle section of this book tries to make Knausgaards idea overtor worse, perhaps, respectableby departing from it, and moreover by taking a huge chance, by humanizing not just any figure, but Hitler.

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There are traces of the muted humanity of W.G. Sebald in the attempt, but theyre disjoined from the remorseless clarity of Sebalds intellector Roland Barthes, or Claude Levi-Strauss, or Maggie Nelsons, or Claudia Rankines, any of the writers who can distill meaning from a culture without leaving more questions than they answer. For the first time, Knausgaards least sophisticated accusers are right: This is the arrogance, grandiosity, and laziness of a loudmouthed white man who insists hes worth 4,000 pages of your time.

Theres that perfect moment in The Great Gatsby when Tom Buchanan sneeringly tries to call Gatsby out in front of a crowd on his claims of being an Oxford man, only for Gatsby to present a perfectly reasonable explanation. I wanted to get up and slap him on the back, Nick says just afterward. I had one of those renewals of complete faith in him that Id experienced before.

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While it would be hard to write the best novel ever, almost anyone above a certain threshold of basic talent could write the truest one.

I felt the same way about 900 pages into the last segment of My Struggle, when Knausgaard departs Hitler for a sudden, glorious return to the style and tempo of the earlier books in the sequence. The subject matter to which he turns is painful: Karl Oves wife, Linda, has a mental breakdown, leaving him to watch their children alone and at the same time to deal with his jarring new fame (which so directly contravenes the single tonic note of the books, their sense of shame, linked, inexorably, to the authors father).

But his description of this trying period has the purity and irresistible momentum of his finest work. It lies as ever in his willingness to be uninteresting. Theres something both ludicrous and amazing about a novel this long that can say, with 12 pages to go, matter-of-factly, Johns third birthday loomed  

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The whole trick is in those four words. What Knausgaard saw before anyone else, consciously or not, was that while it would be hard, indeed vanishingly unlikely, to write the best novel ever, almost anyone above a certain threshold of basic talent could write the truest one. The whole history of the realist novel has been based on the trick of managing detail to create verisimilitude (solidity of specification, Henry James called it). Knausgaard forces us to admit that this is in fact its own highly polished variant of falseness. For example, most novelists would omitrightly!the fact that their narrator had run the dishwasher. Knausgaard, however, not only says it, he writes, With all the dishes put away, I filled the dishwasher again with what was left, sprinkled some powder in the little compartment, snapped the cover, closed the door, and put it on the sixty-degree program.

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This adherence to the kind of true realism Tristram Shandy satirizes is how we end up with Karl Oves mind-boggling number of GeirsGulliksen, Berdahl, Angell, all before he drops in my oldest friend, Geir Prestbakmoand the great Knausgaardian sub-subpleasure, weird Scandinavian detail, e.g. when he eats two slices of bread with liver paste and pickled beetroot. Art is mostly about choosing not to describe that kind of thing. By removing the pressure of selectionthe artfulness that characterizes artKnausgaard has given us direct access to the part of us, whatever unmodified part lingers in us, thats nature.

It is the same part of us that is strongest in childhood. Maybe no novelist has ever been superior to Knausgaard in describing the difference between the heightened clearness of purpose of childhood, even when its utterly wrong, and the murk of adulthood. As he writes, amid his endless trips to take his three children to get ice cream while Linda is ill, What they had, and what I had lost, was a great and shiningly obvious place in their own lives. If there is a unique magic to his work, it is the restoration of at least a glimmer of the great and shiningly obvious place that we might occupy in our own lives. Read Knausgaard from first word to last and it will change you. That is a promise that art makes, and rarely keeps, but a promise, as he has shown beautifully and bravely in himself over all these volumes, whatever their momentary imperfections, that nature always does.

My Struggle, Book 6 by Karl Ove Knausgaard. Archipelago Books.

See all the pieces in the Slate Book Review.

Slate is an Amazon affiliate and may receive a commission from purchases you make through our links.
Comedian Norm MacDonald, whose new talk show Norm MacDonald Has a Show is coming to Netflix this Friday, probably envisioned his last week of launch publicity a little differently. The runup all went as planned: Netflix picked up his show, he got a thoughtful and fascinating profile in the New York Times, he got a trailer, he got booked for The Tonight Show. And then at 9:45 Eastern this morning, the Hollywood Reporter published an interview with the one-time Weekend Update host under the headline Norm MacDonald Wont Go Pundit on his Netflix Talk Show. That may be trueMacDonald says he decided very early there would be nothing topical on the showbut he definitely went pundit on his Hollywood Reporter interview, offering contentious, topical remarks on Rosanne Barr, Louis C.K., Chris Hardwick, and the #MeToo movement in general. MacDonald says hes glad the movement to eliminate sexual harassment and assault is slowing down, he thinks Hardwick got a raw deal, and he put Louis C.K. in touch with Roseanne so they could commiserate over the loss of their respective bodies of work, which he implied was a worse fate than, say, having Louis C.K. masturbate in front of you and then blackball you from comedy before you had a body of work to begin with. The interview went over so well that by the end of the day, his scheduled appearance on The Tonight Show had been cancelled and he issued an apology for his comments.

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Its easy to understand why MacDonald had a different perspective on Roseanne Barrs downfall than most observers: One of his first jobs was writing on the original Roseanne, and hed written for the reboot before Barrs tweet about Valerie Jarrett brought the show to its abrupt end. So, on the page, its understandable MacDonald would make this plea for forgiveness:

I feel bad that Roseanne got fired. I think that we have to be more forgiving of people. Ive spoken to Roseanne many times, and shes always been in tears. Shes paying a mighty penance for whatever transgression you might think she did.

But the Hollywood Reporter also posted video of his statement, and his delivery and raised eyebrows on whatever transgression you might think she did make a lot of difference:

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Things didnt get better from there. After implying he didnt think Roseanne had done anything wrong, MacDonald offered his thoughts on the #MeToo movement, expressing sympathy for Chris Hardwick, who is back on the air after actress Chloe Dykstra wrote an essay outlining allegations of abuse and mistreatment:

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Im happy the #MeToo movement has slowed down a little bit. It used to be, One hundred women cant be lying. And then it became, One woman cant lie. And that became, I believe all women. And then youre like, What? Like, that Chris Hardwick guy I really thought got the blunt end of the stick there.

But it was the story MacDonald told about putting Louis C.K. and Roseanne Barr in touch with each other that drew the most fire, as MacDonald explicitly said that the people on the other end of Barrs tweets or C.K.s cock couldnt understand the suffering of the people who created the situation to begin with:

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Roseanne was so broken up [after her shows reboot was canceled] that I got Louis to call her, even though Roseanne was very hard on Louis before that. But she was just so broken and just crying constantly. There are very few people that have gone through what they have, losing everything in a day. Of course, people will go, What about the victims? But you know what? The victims didnt have to go through that.  who has ever gone through such a thing? All their work in their entire life being wiped out in a single day, a moment.

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MacDonald also offered his thoughts on Michal Che, Colin Jost, Jimmy Fallon, racism in America (which says he learned about from Sacha Baron Cohens most recent show), and Hannah Gadsbys Nanette. But his comments about the victims of harassment were more than enough for the internet, and by early afternoon, even Dictionary.com was outraged:

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Victim. A person who suffers from a destructive or injurious action. https://t.co/zfO985h4Tf https://t.co/z6VJk2gWJ5  Dictionary.com (@Dictionarycom) September 11, 2018

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MacDonald apologized for his comments on Twitter, saying he would never defend Louis C.K. or Roseanne Barrs actions:

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Roseanne and Louis have both been very good friends of mine for many years. They both made terrible mistakes and I would never defend their actions. If my words sounded like I was minimizing the pain that their victims feel to this day, I am deeply sorry.  Norm Macdonald (@normmacdonald) September 11, 2018

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The apology was apparently too little, too late, and too conditional for MacDonald to appear on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon Tuesday night; the show issued a brief statement announcing theyd canceled his appearance:

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Out of sensitivity to our audience and in light of Norm MacDonalds comments in the press today, The Tonight Show has decided to cancel his appearance in Tuesdays telecast.

Theres one mitigating factor here: MacDonald gave the interview before Louis C.K.s return to the Comedy Cellar made it clear how little hed learned, and also before the second round of Les Moonves revelations exposed another layer of the systemic rot permeating Hollywood. But even a month ago, suggesting that losing a career in comedy was a kind of suffering that victims of sexual harassment couldnt possibly understand would have been nearly as jaw-droppingly clueless as it was today. The underlying message is that losing a standup career in an instant is a kind of suffering Norm MacDonald can imagine and understand, while being on the other end of racial slurs or being slowly pushed out of the industry by a powerful sexual harasser are kinds of suffering MacDonald cant understand and prefers not to imagine. Norm MacDonald has some blind spots.
The parking lot of this Harris Teeter, North Carolinas ubiquitous sort-of-upscale supermarket, overflows with trucks. Silver Toyota pickups and black Chevrolet Suburbans circle for scarce spots, with the occasional Porsche thrown in. Inside the store, the lines snake down the aisles. Someone in the very back, near the frozen foods, holds her phone aloft to take a photo of the mess. Hurricane Florence is currently expected to make landfall around Wilmington, three hours to the southeast, around Thursday afternoon as a Category 3 or 4, and then over the next 24 hours to mangle the eastern two-thirds of the state before heading north toward Richmond.

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Im at a disadvantage. This isnt my local Harris Teeter on the other side of Chapel Hill but the one in Meadowmont, an area of new developments targeted to well-heeled Yankee retirees and professional students, so I dont know where anything is. The cavernous beer and wine aisle is largely undisturbed, as are various specialty areas within the store. In a corner by the deserted juice bar, I find a rack of specialty La Brea Bakery bread and grab a loaf, suspecting it remains available only due to administrative oversight.

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Fresh Juice Squeezed For You: In its specificity, the Harris Teeters signage resembles the legends in large white letters on the sides of the UNC Hospitals buildings in and around this mixed-use development, between which Ive been shuttling since earlier in the afternoon. Therapeutic Infusion. Benign Hematology at Carolina Pointe II. The Carolina Clinic at Meadowmont, which is UNCs executive health and concierge medicine program.

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When I reach it, the water aisle is cleaned out. Plenty of bottled iced tea in jugs, plenty of club soda, no flat water at all. Will we wash our faces with cranberry-flavored seltzer?

You got one of the big peanut butters! marvels a woman in the pet food aisle, looking at the jar in my cart. Any left?

There were a couple.

No water, though!

Yeah, no water. Do you happen to know where the batteries are?

When I get there, the store associates have helpfully distributed packages of AAA batteries across the empty racks where the Cs and Ds used to be. I wheel left into the bread aisle and am immediately glad of my La Brea stash. All the bread is gone except the rye, the existence of which the shoppers have, in true North Carolina fashion, refused to acknowledge. Who says immigrants to a new land cant assimilate?

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Im shopping for hurricane supplies at this particular Harris Teeter because I was already here in Meadowmont, being evaluated at a clinic for an autoimmune condition I was diagnosed with four months ago that causes almost everything I eat to make me sick. Autoimmune disorders generally develop when a pre-existing genetic susceptibility is set off by an environmental exposure: a virus, a bacterium, some other toxin. I raised hell with the county health department about the hapless restaurant I visited about eight hours before I got sick for the first time, back in March, certain theyd given me food poisoningnot just salmonella, but one of the really bad ones, like botulism. The investigation revealed nothing. It was all in me already.

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Im not entirely myself here in the store, not having been allowed to eat solid food for the past 36 hours in preparation for the testing, a fast I broke only a few minutes ago in the parking lot outside a nearby gas station, where I consumed a king-size Rice Krispies Treat while pouring two quarts of oil into my cars engine. I wore gloves to keep the trace oil off my hands. I held the Rice Krispies Treat by its plastic packaging. My mother, who was not a hippie in any other way, shape, or form, sometimes reminisces about the Volkswagen Beetle she drove in the 1970s. Since 2011, when I found out the morphology of my sperm was poor enough to render me infertile, Ive thought a lot about my mother, back in the 1970s, me in utero, standing outside at gas stations where the fumes of gas containing lead and benzene and God knows what else lingered, filling up her Beetle with its flower stickers or some other 1970s car.

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A stroke of luck: There are still plenty of disposable diapers (well go back to cloth after were done fleeing the hurricane). People arent having babies over in this part of town yet, or anymore. I have the baby who requires the diapers and her older sister despite the infertility because in 2012, my wife and I were able to spend nearly our entire life savings on infertility treatments at this very hospital. Its a very good medical system, which is why wealthy retirees keep moving here from New Jersey and Maryland to condos adjacent to the concierge medicine program at Meadowmont.

Ive been in the store so long that the doctor who performed an eye-poppingly invasive test on me two hours ago is now in here shopping after work. I recognize her by the white silicone band of her Apple Watch. I dont say hello. Shes seen enough of me today.

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While Im waiting in the checkout line, my regular specialist, who wasnt available to do the tests on me today, calls my cellphone to discuss my exam findings, which I already know from the Apple Watch doctor are bad. He wants me to start a treatment next week that costs thousands of dollars per dose if you dont have insurance. I do have insurance, through my wifes job. I am beginning to think of my body as a beach house that has begun to be hit every five years or so by storms of increasing severity. One of the more severe potential immune overreactions, in which white blood cells dump inflammatory cytokines into the bloodstream, is even called a cytokine storm. Not that Ive experienced one. Ive been lucky: The two or three times my bodys been hit so far my wife and I have had the resources to patch it up or work around the damage.

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I cant do anything until next week at the earliest. Im leaving town tomorrow, I say.

Oh? Why?

Because of the hurricane  ? One of our neighbors hadnt known Florence was coming until my wife told her earlier in the day.

Oh, right. Well, when will you be back?

I dont know. Our house sits directly under a half-dozen large old trees. With two little kids, we figured better safe than sorry: Put the peanut butter and diapers and children in the car and go.

There are nonzero odds my infertility has some causal connection with environmental pollution. There are nonzero odds my new autoimmune disorder was likewise somehow caused by environmental pollution. Odds are extremely high that Florence has been supercharged by global climate change caused by environmental pollution, as will her successor storms, storms to which those of us with money will continue to respond by filling up exhaust-spewing SUVs with as many plastic bottles of purified water as we can grab before someone else gets them. The bigger the gas tanks and the cargo space in our SUVs, the more gasoline and bottled water and batteries and diapers those of us with the money to buy them will be able to squirrel away, away from the grasping hands of those who dont. Making hotel reservations inland if we dont trust the trees to stand in the sodden ground or the roofs to stay in place atop the condos. Driving in frazzled luxury convoys to relative safety, our hypertension and bad knees and autoimmune disorders kept in check by the doctors of Meadowmont, who may catch up later in their Carreras. We will wish we could have spent the money on something else rather than saving ourselves, something fun.

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And if the environmental impact of the flooding of poverty-stricken eastern North Carolinas thousands of acres of fetid hog waste lagoons and coal ash ponds by this seasons hurricanes isnt too devastating, if the beach towns of the Outer Banks and points south can be rebuiltalong with North Carolina Highway 12, the congested two-lane sand-spit road connecting them that probably shouldnt existthen next Memorial Day, or perhaps the one after that, convoys of trucks like these, packed carefully with boogie boards and cornhole sets, will return just like usual to the beaches of the North Carolina coast, where scientists estimate a sea level rise of 39 to 55 inches by 2100, an estimate that in 2012 members of the North Carolina Legislatures Republican majority attempted to block state and local agencies from using for planning purposes, for fear of inhibiting future development.
Last week, Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein accused Judge Brett Kavanaugh of repeatedly misleading the Senate Judiciary Committee during his confirmation hearings. Brett Kavanaugh used materials stolen from Democratic senators to advance President Bushs judicial nominees, the committees ranking member tweeted. He was asked about this in 2004, 2006 and this week. His answers were not true.

Citing an essay in Slate by Lisa Graves, a former staffer for Sen. Patrick Leahy, Feinstein presented a line of argument thats gaining currency among Democratic senators: that Kavanaughs lack of honesty makes him unfit to serve on the Supreme Court. In this case, Kavanaugh has repeatedly sworn that he never received documents stolen by Republican Senate aide Manny Mirandadocuments that he did, in fact, receive.

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For the most part, Senate Republicans have ignored this line of attack. Since they seem to have the votes to confirm Kavanaugh, there is apparently little reason for them to respond to any criticism of the nominee. One exception is Sen. Orrin Hatch, who called the allegations that Kavanaugh lied a desperate attempt to torpedo his nomination. The Utah Republican cited an editorial by National Review, which described the charges against Kavanaugh as a Democratic smear campaign. The arguments regarding the stolen documents in that editorial, though, are flimsy at best.

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National Review describes the key portions of Kavanaughs testimony correctly:

During Kavanaughs Senate testimony in 2004, Orrin Hatch asked him if he had received any documents that appeared to you to have been drafted or prepared by Democratic staff members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Kavanaugh said no. In 2006, Ted Kennedy asked him about the same documents, and Kavanaugh issued another denial, saying, I dont know what the universe of memos might be, but I do know that I never received any memos, was not aware of any such memos.

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From there, National Reviews case quickly falls apart.

At the same time, however, Kavanaugh was careful to say that he might have unknowingly seen information derived from the memos, the editorial continues. So, to be clear, to demonstrate perjury the Democrats would have to show clearly and unequivocally that Kavanaugh didnt just see information taken from the memos but that he clearly and knowingly viewed the actual memos themselves. The essay then asserts, There is not a single email or document showing that he actually received a stolen memo, much less that he did so knowingly.

National Review both misstates the standard for demonstrating that Kavanaugh lied and misstates the facts of the case. First, Kavanaugh said that he never received any memos or any documents that appeared to him to be prepared by Democrats. He repeated this throughout his testimony in 2004 and 2006. He didnt say, I didnt knowingly receive memos or stolen documents. He didnt say, I may have received memos or stolen documents but only realized this after the fact. Rather, he flatly denied this possibility.

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National Review both misstates the standard for demonstrating that Kavanaugh lied and misstates the facts of the case.

Kavanaugh said to Hatch in 2004 that he didnt receive documents that appeared to [me] to have been drafted or prepared by Democratic staff members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He said to Sen. Chuck Schumer in 2004 that Mr. Miranda never provided these documents and that he had never come across memos from internal files of any Democratic members. And Kavanaugh said to Kennedy in 2006, I do know that I never received any memos.

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The bar for a lie here is to demonstrate that Kavanaugh had received any memos from Democratic staff or documents from Miranda that appeared drafted or prepared by Democratic judiciary staffers. By the plainest meaning of those words, Kavanaugh received both things.

Documents released last week reveal that in early 2003, Miranda sent Kavanaugh an email with the subject line Judiciary Dems obstruct on reorganization. That email contained a draft letter from Democratic Judiciary Committee members to Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle laying out their desired negotiating position over a new process for judicial confirmations. Miranda indicated to Kavanaugh that the document was not public at the time he sent it, saying, I am told that all [Democrats] on the [Judiciary Committee] were signing on to the document.

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Another email released last week included a bullet-pointed memo written by Graves for Democratic staff. The memo contains a laundry list of research Graves put together for Judiciary Committee staff laying out legal arguments Democrats planned to make regarding a controversial Bush judicial nominee. As Graves noted in her Slate piece, it would have made no logical sense for Democrats to surrender their legal research in these highly combative proceedings. But you dont have to take her at her word that the material clearly came from Democratic staff and was clearly confidential. Mirandas email to Kavanaugh describes this memo as confidential information from Dem staffers.

In its editorial, National Review cites legal scholar and Above the Law founder David Lat to bolster its pro-Kavanaugh argument. On Twitter, Lat made a legalistic, Clintonian argument about what the meaning of the word memo is.

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An important point re: claims that Judge Kavanaugh "perjured" himself re: #Memogate. He didn't receive actual memos, and he had no way of knowing he had verbatim content of memos. (Yes, it sounds like a "technicality" - but technicalities matter for perjury.) https://t.co/plFeoGzPRw  David Lat (@DavidLat) September 7, 2018

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Given that Kavanaugh, who worked for Kenneth Starrs independent counsels Office, accused Bill Clinton of perjury because he parse[d] the meaning of the words is and sex and on and on, this would not seem to be an ideal defense.

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Graves, who wrote the stolen memo, noted that there were many ways for Kavanaugh to know he had verbatim content including the common sense that Democrats would never have revealed this confidential information to political rivals and the fact Miranda said the email included confidential information from Dem Staffers. But even if Kavanaugh didnt suspect at the time that this was a stolen memo, it should have been obvious after Mirandas theft became a major news story. And yet he insisted under oath that nothing that Miranda stole ever crossed his desk.

Other former staffers whose material was stolen argue its absurd to contend that Kavanaugh would not have known that this detailed information wasnt ripped off directly from the Democrats themselves. These were the most contentious, contested things that came before the judiciary committee, Seth Bloom, the nominations counsel for Sen. Herb Kohl at the time of the episode, said during a conference call with reporters on Monday. I think Judge Kavanaughs description of how common that was [to receive this information] is completely untrue.

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Judicial nominations were not something that was a bipartisan effort, Bob Schiff, former chief counsel for Sen. Russ Feingold, added. To hear Judge Kavanaugh testify recently that this was kind of common for there to be information shared across the aisle as his way of explaining why key Democratic arguments and plans [were not suspicious to him] does not ring true.

If the documents that have been released in recent weeks had come to light in 2006, they could have easily torpedoed Kavanaughs nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Even without those documents, which clearly demonstrate that Kavanaugh has misled the Senate, his appointment was incredibly controversial. The vote fell just four short of the margin needed for a filibuster, with seven senators abstaining. Mr. Kavanaugh is a political operative, said Kennedy at the time. I can say with confidence that Mr. Kavanaugh would be the youngest, least experienced and most partisan appointee to the court in decades.

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Kristine Lucius, who worked for Leahy on the Senate Judiciary Committee from 2002 through 2017, argued that these revelations would have stopped Kavanaughs judicial career cold. I sincerely believe that if this information had been out at the time of his lower court confirmation hearing, he would not have been confirmed, she argued. Lucius noted that Kavanaughs nomination to the D.C. Circuit occurred just after a sergeant-at-arms report was released detailing Mirandas theft, when feelings on the subject were still quite raw.

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Indeed, even Hatch himself at the time equated Mirandas behavior to stealing documents from a Senate office. None of us would walk into another persons office and take papers from their desk, and this is, in a sense, exactly that, Hatch said after the revelation. I am mortified that this improper, unethical and simply unacceptable breach of confidential files occurred, the Republican from Utah added. There is no excuse to justify these improper actions.

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Kavanaugh has been given chance after chance after chance to tell the truth about what Miranda gave him, and he has continually declined to do so.

Kavanaugh basically used these stolen documents during his time in the White House Counsels office and he repeatedly misled the committee, Lucius said. He didnt just mislead the Judiciary Committee last week, he misled the Judiciary Committee in 2004 and 2006 when he was asked about this very dark chapter, and he did so, I believe, for personal and partisan gain.

There is no indication that Kavanaugh will face any consequences for misleading the committee. Instead, hell get rewarded with a seat on the Supreme Court.
In the wake of the 2016 election, to combat the rampant dissemination of disinformation, Facebook brought on five third-party fact-checkers to referee stories posted to the website. If any one fact-checker contests the accuracy of a story, it is flagged by Facebook as potential false news, and this false rating has a dire chilling effect on readership. This system thus gives a handful of outlets immense power over the articles that show up in your news feed.

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Four of Facebooks chosen fact-checkersthe Associated Press, Factcheck.org, PolitiFact, and Snopesare widely trusted and nonpartisan. The fifth, the Weekly Standard, has generally high-quality editorial content with a conservative ideological bent. This week, the Weekly Standard used its gatekeeping role in an incredibly troubling way, declaring that a story written by Ian Millhiser of ThinkProgress was false, essentially preventing Facebook users from accessing the article.

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ThinkProgress is as liberal as the Weekly Standard is conservative. I read and admire writers at both websites. (By way of disclosure, I am friends with both Millhiser and Rachael Larimore, a former Slate staffer who is now the Weekly Standards online managing editor.) But theres no sound defense of the Weekly Standards effort to suppress Millhisers piece, which is titled Brett Kavanaugh said he would kill Roe v. Wade last week and almost no one noticed. In that story, Millhiser examined Kavanaughs testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding the Constitutions protection of unenumerated rights, such as the right to procure an abortion. Millhiser concluded that Kavanaugh had signaled his hostility to Roe, which protects the right to abortion access.

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Millhisers reasoning is straightforward. During the hearings, Kavanaugh stated that all roads lead to the Glucksberg test. Under that test, only those constitutional rights that are deeply rooted in this Nations history and tradition are deemed to fall under the Constitutions guarantee of liberty. Yet, as Kavanaugh himself noted in a 2017 speech, even a first-year law student could tell you that the Glucksbergs approach to unenumerated rights was not consistent with the approach of the abortion cases, such as Roe. Moreover, the Supreme Court expressly disavowed the Glucksberg test in Obergefell v. Hodges, which invalidated same-sex marriage bans. Thus, it is fair to interpret Kavanaughs remarks as an endorsement of a judicial philosophy that requires the reversal of both Roe and Obergefell.

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My colleague Dahlia Lithwick and I made this exact point in an article published three days before Millhisers. But his piece boasted a more striking headlinethat headline again: Brett Kavanaugh said he would kill Roe v. Wade last week and almost no one noticedwhich is apparently what triggered the Weekly Standards ire. The magazine has decided that the framing of the story is false because Kavanaugh did not explicitly state: I am going to overturn Roe v. Wade. As Larimore put it to me on Tuesday, They change the headline, we change the rating.

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Thats not just appeasement of conservatives, its complete surrender.

Heres the rather obvious problem with the Weekly Standards position: Millhiser is an opinion writer. He is also an attorney who clerked on the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. In his Kavanaugh articleas in most of his workhe is making an argument, attempting to persuade readers of his viewpoint. And in this case his views, as expressed in his headline, are perfectly defensible. Jamal Greene, a professor at Columbia Law School, and Jim Oleske, a professor at Lewis and Clark Law School, made nearly identical points. There is, no doubt, room for disagreement here. But this scholarly support does indicate that Millhisers assertion is, at a minimum, not false news.

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Its easy to flip the tables on the Weekly Standard. Consider a March article with the headline Actually, Palestinians Are Doing Pretty Well Under Israeli Rule. Many Palestinians living in the occupied territories seem to disagree. Or this 2009 piece, which states that the most profound aspect of marriage is protecting and controlling the sexuality of the child-bearing sex. Is that a fact? The answer is surely that it depends on who you ask. And that is the point of the kind of journalism practiced by the Weekly Standard and ThinkProgress (and Slate for that matter): Writers express and defend their opinions, readers draw their own conclusions.

Unfortunately, Facebook has now given the Weekly Standard what appears to be total veto power over ThinkProgress articles. According to a source who spoke to Quartz, Facebook selected the magazine as a fact-checker to appease all sidesthat is, to convince conservatives that the social network isnt beset by liberal bias. As a result, a Weekly Standard editor may compel a ThinkProgress writer to change the headline or risk losing Facebook traffic. Not because ThinkProgress was wrong, but because the Weekly Standard disagreed with its legal analysis. That is not fact-checking. It is censorship. Indeed, it is the kind of censorship that conservatives wrongly accuse Facebook of foisting upon right-wing outlets.

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Facebook launched fact-checking to screen out bona fide fake newsstories about the pope endorsing Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton having Parkinsons disease. Millhisers story plainly falls outside this limited scope. The Weekly Standard may disagree with its headline, but it is simply wrong to call it a verifiable lie when it rests on a nuanced and subjective legal argument. Its also galling that Facebook has refused to adjudicate this dispute, instead telling ThinkProgress that Facebook defers to each independent fact-checkers process and publishers are responsible for reaching out to the fact-checkers directly to request a correction. By deferring to the Weekly Standards judgment, Facebook is picking sides in an ideological debate. Thats not just appeasement of conservatives, its complete surrender.

Im sure the Weekly Standard genuinely believes Millhisers article is misleading. The proper response, however, is to publish an article debunking it, not to quash it on social media. Millhisers headline is exaggerated, but captures the essence of Kavanaughs wordsor at least, the authors own informed interpretation of them. Its a far cry from fake news. And Facebook should not let conservative editors police liberal outlets analysis under the guise of fact-checking.
Missing the story: Barack Obama is finally delivering speeches with a more explicitly partisan message. But, Jamelle Bouie writes, the former president still seems to think that just voting will fix the problem, even as next-generation progressive politicians have figured out how to talk about the reality of voter suppression without discouraging civic involvement.

His fixation: Why did John Bolton choose the International Criminal Court as the topic of his first public address as national security adviser on Monday? Josh Keating, unsurprised, explains why Bolton sees the ICC as such a boogeyman.

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A stunner: Its shocking that Les Moonves actually stepped down, Lili Loofbourow writes. Why are we still so pessimistic that such men will be accountable? We must get over our surprise at his ouster, Loofbourow argues. If we do not demand or expect anything better than the rotten status quo, we are capitulating to it.

This again: That horrible image of Serena Williams at the US Open that flew around the Internet yesterday is just one more-viral-than-usual example of the racism and chauvinism that characterizes the work of Australian cartoonists and pervades Australian culture, Rachel Withers writes.

For fun: Some gross-bagel theories.

She panicked,

Rebecca
Pope Francis has called a meeting of Catholic bishops next year in Rome to address sexual abuse by priests. The greatest crisis of Francis papacy was kicked off by revelations of allegations that the influential Cardinal Theodore McCarrick had abused children. The scandal was escalated further when Carlo Maria Vigano, the former Vatican ambassador to the United States and a conservative opponent of Francis, wrote a letter in which he alleged that Francis still-living predecessor, Benedict XVI, had placed sanctions on McCarrick that Francis then lifted.

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Francis has since been evasive on whether Viagnos charges were true, false, or a mixture of both, never directly addressing the claims and at one point even challenging journalists to find out for themselves. The crisis has continued to expand, with a grand jury report in Pennsylvania detailing more than 1,000 credible accusations of sexual abuse committed by more than 300 priests and a new investigation of New Yorks dioceses by the state attorney general.

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McCarricks predecessor as archbishop of Washington, Cardinal Donald Wuerl, plans to discuss his resignation with Francis, the New York Times reported. Wuerl was archbishop of Pittsburgh when some of the abuse detailed in the grand jury report occurred and had allowed a priest accused of abuse to resign and receive a pension, while also working to push out some accused priests.

The Holy Father, after hearing the Council of Cardinals, convened a meeting with the presidents of the Episcopal Conferences of all the world to speak about the prevention of abuse of minors and vulnerable adults, Paloma Garcia Ovejero, a Vatican press official, said in a briefing Wednesday. The College of Cardinals said the meetings would happen in February and that during their just-concluded meeting with Francis, the council reflected extensively together with the Holy Father on the theme of abuse.
On Jan. 8, 2019, a new governor of Florida will be sworn in. On that same day, three of the Florida Supreme Courts seven justices will complete their final terms. Based on those facts alone, you might assume that the new Florida governor will have the opportunity to select these justices replacements. That, however, is not at all clearbecause current Republican Gov. Rick Scott has declared his intent to replace them hours before his term concludes. He is now moving forward with this plan to pack the court. And the only people who can stop him are the current justices themselves.

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To carry out this scheme, Scott has seized upon language in the Florida Constitution which, he asserts, gives him to power to make midnight appointments (as one Scott ally has described them). Under the state constitution, a new governors term begins on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January. Meanwhile, a retiring justices term ends on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January. Due to mandatory age limits, three justicesall left-leaningface mandatory retirement on this date. The question is when, precisely, their retirement takes effect.

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Scott insists that the justices terms expire at the stroke of midnight on Jan. 8, but that his own term does not end until his successor is sworn in on that day, typically at noon. Thus, he believes he will have about 12 hours to name three new justices, shifting the court to the right for a generation. Scott announced this plan when he appointed his first justice in 2016, declaring: I will appoint three more justices on the morning I finish my term.

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Alarmed by this prospect, Common Cause and the League of Women Voters filed a lawsuit urging the Florida Supreme Court to rule that the next governor, not Scott, is constitutionally authorized to make the appointments. Their arguments are difficult to contest. The suit cites a slew of cases in which Florida courts determined that, when a period of time expires on a date, it expires at the end of that date. On matters ranging from the terms of a contract to the length of a legislative session, the courts have found that the clock runs out at midnight at the end of the final day. For instance, one case found that when a contract requires payment by June 1, there can be no default until the clock strikes midnight on June 2. Applied here, this rule means the retiring justices term runs through Jan. 8 and expires when the clock strikes midnight on Jan. 9.

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Strong as this claim may be, the Florida Supreme Court has refused to entertain it. In December, the court tossed the lawsuit, holding that the issue presented is not ripe for consideration. Then, in a rather cryptic passage, it clarified that it could not resolve the dispute until some action is taken by the Governor to fill the three seats. This caveat left open the possibility that the court might reconsider the matter once Scott takes some concrete action to replace the retiring justices.

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That time is now. On Tuesday, Scott asked Floridas Judicial Nominating Commission to begin accepting and reviewing applications for the court. Under state law, this nine-member body will have 60 days to nominate three to six candidates for each vacancy. This means the names will be finalized shortly after the November election. Scott has stated that he will let the winner of that election interview the finalists, in the hopes that he and the governor can jointly select the justices. Incoming Republican Gov. Jeb Bush and outgoing Democratic Gov. Lawton Chiles did exactly that in 1998. But theres virtually no chance that, if Democratic candidate Andrew Gillum wins, he and Scott will agree on the selections.

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Its easy to see why Scott is so desperate to make these three appointments.

There are three further wrinkles here. First, Scott is running for Senate, and if he wins, he will be sworn in on Jan. 3, 2019, and forced to step down as governor at that time. His Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera would therefore have to make the midnight appointmentslending them an even stronger whiff of illegitimacy, since he would serve as governor for less than five days. Second, the Judicial Nominating Commission is dominated by Scott appointees. Although the board has traditionally put forth candidates across the ideological spectrum, Democrats are worried that Scotts allies will only select conservatives. As a result, even if Gillum won and secured the right to fill the three vacancies, he might have to choose from a right-leaning list.

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Thirdand perhaps most ominously for Floridas democracyScotts plan could lead to a bona fide constitutional crisis in which two people claim to be governor at once. Although Floridas governors are usually sworn in around noon, their terms begin at midnight by the plain language of the state constitution. So, theoretically, if Gillum won, he would become governor at 12 a.m. on Jan. 8. But is a governor really governor until hes sworn in? No one seems to know, and so Gillum could demand a midnight swearing-in ceremony, as past governors have, to avoid appointments chicanery.

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But what if Scott (or Lopez-Cantera) refuses to acknowledge the validity of this swearing-in? What if he insists that he remains governor until noon, and both men attempt to make dueling appointments? The only proper mediator of this dispute would be the Florida Supreme Courtthe very cause of the quarrel. So the three justices in question could be asked to rule on who is governor, and whether or not its their final day in office on their disputed final day in office. This farcical nightmare scenario is not at all far-fetched.

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Its easy to see why Scott is so desperate to make these three appointments. Throughout his nearly eight years as governor, the Florida Supreme Court has been a thorn in his side, blocking abortion restrictions and GOP-drawn gerrymanders. If Scott can flip the court, he will leave Florida susceptible to draconian anti-abortion laws and Republican-friendly partisan districts. Its fundamentally undemocratic for an outgoing governor to install a court on his way out the door that will neuter his successors agenda. Voting rights advocates should take their case back to the court now that Scott has formally triggered the replacement process. As the governor knows as well as anyone, the countdown to a crisis has begun.
On Monday, Sen. Susan Collins accused political opponents of Judge Brett Kavanaugh of attempted bribery. The charge itself is without any legal merit whatsoever. That complaints about the campaign finance effort came from Collins, Republican election lawyer Cleta Mitchell, and an aide to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell make the episode almost too rich to be believed. Their cries of bribery, illegality, and lack of principle lay bare the bankrupt campaign finance system that Mitchell and McConnell helped create and that Collins has contributed to with previous Supreme Court votes and will supersize with her likely vote to confirm Kavanaugh.

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Collins labeled as a bribe a fundraising plan by two progressive Maine groups, aided by the company Crowdpac, to raise funds for Collins eventual opponent in 2020. People are pledging to give money via Crowdpac to that unknown future opponent, but donors will only be charged for the donation if Collins votes yes on Kavanaughs nomination to the Supreme Court. As of Tuesday night, the groups reported pledged donations of more than $1 million, with a $1.3 million goal. There were more than 39,000 individual pledges ranging from $1 to the maximum allowable donation to a candidate of $2,700.

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Now we can argue about whether the political threat to Collins funded by tens of thousands of small donations should be illegal. But claims by Mitchell and others that the fundraising effort is illegal are wrong, in part thanks to the deregulated campaign finance system that Mitchell and others have helped to create through litigation and a sympathetic Supreme Court.

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This behavior does not come close to violating the federal bribery statute.

Mitchell pointed Newsmax to a federal bribery statute, Title 18, Section 201 of the U.S. Code, which makes it a crime when someone directly or indirectly gives, offers, or promises anything of value to any public official  for or because of any official act performed or to be performed by such public official. Mitchell said: These people have conspired to do just thatthey are dangling a fairly substantial thing of valuenamely, $1 million to be given or not given to Sen. Collins opponent, in exchange for her vote on a specific matter before the Congress.

But the Maine groups did not violate section 201. The groups are not promising anything of value to Collins to vote in a particular way; nor are they promising anything to Collins (now unknown) opponent for the opponent to vote in a certain way. This behavior does not come close to violating the federal bribery statute. And its not the first time Mitchell has made wholly unsubstantiated claims of campaign finance violations against political opponents.

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And what about reading this statute or other federal statutes to prevent what might look like extortion of Collins to vote in a particular way? Well, the Supreme Court has told us in cases like 2010s Citizens United that large amounts of money sloshing around the system are just fine so long as they are not given by an individual directly to candidates. So long as there is no direct quid pro quodollars for political favorsall is fine.

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And the behavior of the two Maine progressive groups is not unusual, except for the fact that it is funded by small donors. This is demonstrated easily by looking at the behavior of those shouting bribery the loudest. As Adam Smith noted, although Sen. John Cornyn boosted Collins bribery complaints, back in January he was urging the Koch brothers to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to reward the Republican Party for tax cuts benefiting wealthy donors. This came after big donors threatened to withhold money until Republicans got that tax bill passed. Thats closer to Mitchells claims of bribery than what the Maine groups are doing. Indeed, a 2014 report by Ohio State University law professor Dan Tokaji and then-fellow Renata Strause found that threats by super PACs to spend against incumbents if they dont vote the way the super PAC donors want is an everyday Washington occurrence.*

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Perhaps the chutzpah award, though, should go to Sen. McConnells deputy chief of staff Don Stewart, who urged every Maine Democrat  to refuse to accept this tainted funding as the principled thing to do.

Not only has McConnell been one of the most ardent opponents of campaign finance regulation, arguing that people should be able to give unlimited contributions directly to candidates as a matter of the First Amendment, hes also been the key to keeping the Supreme Court in a position to strike down these laws with his blockade two years ago of Judge Merrick Garland. Garland would have been a key vote to uphold many campaign finance limits, had he been confirmed to the Supreme Court. Thanks to McConnells unprecedented obstruction, the judge didnt even get a hearing.

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Now with the confirmation of Justice Gorsuch last year, and the likely confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh in the coming weeks thanks to Collins key vote, things are going to get much worse. As I explained recently in Slate, Judge Kavanaugh is a self-professed outlier when it comes to the First Amendment, agreeing with McConnell that there are constitutional problems with limiting the amount of money that candidates can directly accept.

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If the Maine story has a silver lining, it is this: So long as the Supreme Court is going to keep the money spigot open for wealthy donors, some of the rest of us appear to be at least trying to pool together resources to attempt to fight back. An arms race between the superrich and everyone else to try to influence legislative outcomes is far from ideal, but it is better than wholly ceding the ground to the plutocrats.
Ten years ago this month, the investment bank Lehman Brothers made the largest bankruptcy filing in American history, badly exacerbating what was already a serious recession and mortgage crisis. The chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, along with the head of the New York Fed, Timothy Geithner, and the Treasury Secretary, Henry Paulson, have all argued that they did not have the legal authority to rescue Lehman Brothers. But for a decade there has been a debate over whether they could or should have done more. In a new book, The Fed and Lehman Brothers: Setting the Record Straight on a Financial Disaster, Johns Hopkins economics professor Laurence M. Ball argues that the Fed had the legal and practical ability to rescue the company, but instead let it fail for political reasons.

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I recently spoke by phone with Ball, who is also a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and a visiting scholar at many central banks, including the Federal Reserve. During the course of our conversation, which has been edited and condensed for clarity, we discussed whether saving Lehman Brothers could really have prevented the crash, how well equipped we are to prevent the next calamity, and why he still doesnt buy the excuses of Geithner, Paulson, and Bernanke.

Isaac Chotiner: Whats the biggest lesson to take away, 10 years later, about the way the government dealt with Lehman?

Laurence M. Ball: One lesson is that a financial crisis, a crisis on Wall Street, can have devastating effects on the whole economy. The other things Ill say are things that economists have known for a long time but might have forgotten a little bit. A central bank can be extremely valuable in containing a crisis by serving as lender of last resort and preventing needless failures of financial institutions. But also, in the case of Lehman, if a central bank is not doing its job as lender of last resort, that can be disastrous.

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Geithner says it would have been illegal for the Fed to do that. Why is the argument he is making wrong?

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Thats a very topical question. Actually, as we speak, theres a conference going on at the Brookings Institution where the three of them were saying the same thing. At the risk of being a little bit catty, I wouldnt say that theyve exactly argued anything. They have claimed something. They have said it was not legal to rescue Lehman because they did not have enough collateral. But theyve almost never even tried to back that up. Its just been a matter of, Were the authorities, we know what were doing. We couldnt rescue them because they didnt have enough collateral.

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My book argues that is just not correct in two related but distinct senses. The first involves their decision-making. Theres a lot of evidence from a couple of investigations of the crisis that had subpoena power and got emails from Fed officials to each other before the bankruptcy. There is a lot of evidence that they were not talking about collateral or legal authority. They were discussing the possible economic risks if Lehman fails, whats the political danger if we rescue Lehman, and politics seems to have won out. The idea about there wasnt enough collateral so it wasnt legal, that was developed sometime after the bankruptcy.

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But then the second point is that, again, with the rich amount of information thats been gathered by the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, and also the bankruptcy handler for the bankruptcy court about what Lehmans liquidity needs were  they had plenty of collateral to borrow the cash they needed. Essentially the Fed couldve done for Lehman exactly what it did for Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, which is use the Primary Dealer Credit Facility to provide cash to deal with the runs they were all facing.

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They have said it was not legal to rescue Lehman because they did not have enough collateral. But theyve almost never even tried to back that up.  Laurence M. Ball

How do you think Geithner, Bernanke, and Paulson dealt with the crisis more generally?

I think they did a lot of good things. I heard Warren Buffett interviewed once, and he said, Sure, they made a mistake with Lehman, but whats really remarkable is how quickly they realized they made a mistake and reversed course and prevented things from getting even much worse than they were.

If the three of them were to say, We tried really hard. Maybe in the night of Sept. 14, in this unprecedented situation, we didnt get it quite right. And thats too bad, but at least we minimized the damage afterwards. I mean, I would be the last person to say that anybody wouldve done better than that. But what irks me is that they have just dug in their heels and insisted. Theyve just said the same thing over and over, more and more insistently. That we knew it was going to be a calamity for Lehman to fail. We absolutely did everything we possibly could do. It was simply illegal and we didnt want to break the law, so with great sorrow, as Bernanke put it at one point, we realized Lehman had to fail. That is what these days is called an alternative fact. And thats just not the way it happened.

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I asked you the question about how you thought they dealt with the crisis generally, and my next question was going to be, How much do you think the crisis wouldve been different if Lehman had been rescued? And so I guess those two questions are actually sort of intertwined, right?

There, of course, were into the realm of counterfactual history, where nobody can know, and different people can make different educated guesses. Having said that, my pretty strong educated guess is that the whole financial crisis would have been less severe. And that consequently, the whole Great Recession wouldve been less great. A lot of the things that happened in the fall of 2008 flowed directly from the Lehman failure, starting with the run on money market funds, after one money market fund lost money on Lehmans commercial paper. And then just generally, the panic that gripped markets was because of this unprecedented event. So well never know, but I think the whole crisis couldve been much more contained if Lehman had been rescued.

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Its an interesting question because we were already in the midst of a mortgage crisis and a recession.

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It wouldve prevented the worst  I mean, the way I look at it, there were some bad decisions about people buying securitized mortgages and investment banks taking on a lot of risk. So people were going to lose money, there were going to be economic effects. The unemployment rate was already creeping up a little bit before the Lehman bankruptcy. But my best guess is if Lehman had been rescued, we could be looking back on it the way we look back at the savings and loan crisis of the 1980s or the bursting of the dot-com bubble in the early 2000s. Those were cases in which people in the financial system made mistakes, quite a few billions of dollars were lost. There was some adverse effect to the overall economy, but there were not big 10-year retrospectives after those events. Those were relatively minor bumps. And I think Lehman couldve been the latest, relatively minor bump.

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Why did Lehman fail, and how do you view the men and women, I assume mostly men, who were running the company?

Actually, Lehman was notable for having a chief financial officer, Erin Callan, who was female, but lets assume thats irrelevant for our purposes. I think, actually, it is quite well understood how Lehman got in trouble. And one thing Id like to emphasize is that its the same way all the investment banks got in trouble. From Bear Stearns to Goldman Sachs to Morgan Stanley. The ultimate outcomes were very different, based primarily on different government and Fed responses. But they all had basically a business model which, with 20/20 hindsight, is quite flawed. And there were three factors.

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They made these risky and, in retrospect, imprudent bets on real estate when there was the real estate bubble, and lost a lot of money. The second factor was that they operated with very high leverage or very thin equity cushion. So when they started losing money on real estate, it didnt take too much until their equity started going away and people started worrying that theyre insolvent, that theyre not going to be viable. And then the third fatal thing was that they relied very heavily on short-term borrowing to operate, hundreds of billions of dollars of short-term, even overnight borrowing.

So once people said, uh-oh, theyve lost money on real estate, they might be insolvent, that led, essentially, to a 21st century version of a bank run. They werent operating based on deposits; it was short-term lending from other financial institutions. But it was cut off very suddenly. And thats what ended up being fatal for Bear Stearns and Lehman, and probably wouldve been fatal for all the others if the Fed hadnt stepped in.

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How do you feel about the tools that the federal government has to deal with this today? Are they better or worse? And how much confidence do you have in the people in charge compared to 10 years ago?

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So the first question is a good question. The rules, of course, have been changed by the Dodd-Frank Act. And at least at the moment, before things are rolled back further  I think I support the conventional wisdom of a lot of people that the Dodd-Frank Act in some dimensions goes in the right direction of higher capital requirements, some efforts to restrict certain risky activities, perhaps making a crisis less likely in the future.

The thing about the Dodd-Frank Act, though, that I think is a big mistake: Even though Im very critical of what Bernanke, Paulson, and Geithner did, I fully support what theyre currently saying about policy, which is that the Dodd-Frank Act restricts the Feds ability to make emergency loans. And the details are somewhat complicated, but long story short, arguably if they were in exactly the same situation in the future, with another Lehman Brothers in the same danger of failing, it might actually be illegal for the Fed to step in. Whereas it was clearly legal in 2008.

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I think its a little bit ironic that the policymakers from back in the day are saying its dangerous that our tools for rescuing financial institutions have been taken away from us, when they didnt actually use the tools as vigorously as they should have during the crisis.

And do you want to weigh in on the people running our country?

[laughs] Well, I dont have anything very reasonable to say. I mean, the Trump administration is horrific in every way we can imagine, including incompetence in economic advisers. So, yeah. Again, whatever failings I can see in Bernanke, Paulson, and Geithner, they certainly look like philosopher kings compared to the people currently running economic policy or other policy. So thats certainly a riskthat if, heaven forbid, there were another big crisis soon, it would really be amateur hour and who knows what would happen.
A year after Hurricane Maria and on the eve of another massive storm hitting the United States, President Trump praised himself and his administrations responsean incredible, unsung successto the storm that left almost 3,000 people dead in Puerto Rico, according to updated estimates from the islands government.

President Trump: "I think Puerto Rico was incredibly successfulI actually think it was one of the best jobs that's ever been done with respect to what this is all about." pic.twitter.com/xYBDHozYZi  CSPAN (@cspan) September 11, 2018

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I think probably the hardest one we had by far was Puerto Rico, because of the island nature, and I actually think it was one of the best jobs that has ever been done with respect to what this is all about, Trump said in the Oval Office.

Trump explained that the storm was particularly difficult to respond to because of obstacles in transporting relief supplies to the island and because the islands electricity grid was already rickety before it was hammered by the storms. The job that FEMA and law enforcement and everyone did working along with the governor was tremendous, he said.

He also said that the government had been given A-pluses for its responses to storms last year in Texas and Florida, but I think the best job we did was Puerto Rico, but nobody would would understand that.

When Trump visited the island following Hurricane Maria, he pointed to the original, low death toll as a sign of the governments success in responding to the storm. Sixteen people versus in the thousands. You can be very proud of all of your people and all of our people working together. Sixteen versus literally thousands of people. You can be very proud. Everybody watching can really be very proud of whats taken place in Puerto Rico.
Ronan Farrows most recent article alleging decades of sexual assault by an extremely powerful Hollywood man feels less than shocking in this #MeToo era. The well-researched chronology of patterned harassment and abuse, the second one on CBS Les Moonves, resulted in the CEO losing his job.

Embedded in the allegations against Moonves was a smaller yet illustrative story. Shortly after Farrows expose was printed, a Vanity Fair piece connected Moonves to a May 2018 article from the Annals of Internal Medicine. In that piece, Dr. Anne L. Peters, now a professor of medicine at the University of Southern California, reflected on her #MeToo experiences, first with an anonymous patient and then with a colleague at a conference. Moonves, it turns out, was the anonymous patient that she described here:

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I am a bit different from the others who have come forward in the #MeToo movement because, as a physician, I am legally unable to name the patient who harassed me. It happened many years ago in an examination room where Id been asked to see a VIP patient early in the morning before regular business hours.  He grabbed me as I stepped forward. He pulled himself against me and tried to force himself on me. He did this twice; when I rebuffed him, he stood beside the examination table and satisfied himself.

Somehow it still needs to be said: Sexual harassment is not about sex. It is about power.

Moonves has confirmed being a patient of Dr. Peters, and he admits to attempting to kiss her, though he denies the other allegations in the article. Dr. Peters also notes that she reported the incident to the administration at the hospital system she worked for at the time, UCLA. Specifically, she hoped that a note [would be] placed in his chart warning other women never to be alone with him. She claims that when she reported it, the person she spoke with warned against bringing the incident forward because the patient had more money for lawyers  than did UCLA and cautioned her to refrain from reporting to the police because I would lose in court.

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The allegation of a patient sexually harassing his doctor seemed shocking to many, but as women in medicine, we were not surprised. A recent National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine report on women working in academic sciences found that sexual harassment is common across scientific fields. Across the STEM fields, harassment of women is most prevalent in medicine, where harassers may be not just colleagues, supervisors, and staff but also patients. As many as 50 percent of female medical students report experiencing sexual harassment. Our recent New England Journal of Medicine article describes the culture of harassment in medicine and the long-term implications for the profession. It does not address the question raised by this particular Moonves anecdote: How can doctors respond when the perpetrator is also the patient?

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Somehow it still needs to be said: Sexual harassment is not about sex. It is about powerspecifically, the power the harasser exerts over the victim. Environments in which individuals have unequal power are fertile ground for harassment, sexual or otherwise. To be a technical expert with authority and decision-making power over a patients physical and, at times, mental condition is a formidable responsibility, and one that nearly every physician appreciates and honors. But some dont; as we saw in the Larry Nassar case at Michigan State University, some physicians can unfortunately and disturbingly abuse that power.

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From the first day of medical school, we are taught to respect and manage the asymmetrical power balance between physicians and patients. Patients come to us hurt and vulnerable. For some, it is the worst day of their lives. It is our job to listen, diagnose, treat, and care for them. If a patient is noncompliant, one of our first instincts is to reflect back on ourselves and ask questions like, Could I have communicated those instructions better? In the end, we often feel fundamentally responsible for our interactions with patients, for their health outcomes, for their ability to be healed.

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But this is not to say that all physicians, especially all female physicians, receive an automatic presumption of authority. Gender-based bias affects females in medicine at all levels of training and often undermines their ability to be authoritative with their patients, colleagues, or staff. This lack of respect is more prevalent for female physicians of color, who are afforded neither the protection of gender (like male physicians of color) nor that of race (like white female physicians).

A patient engaging in sexually inappropriate behavior toward a physician distorts the structure of power and authority that is an essential component of this relationship. This baffling inversion of power often changes how the person who is harassed understands the experience. Does the physician blame herself? How and why did it happen? For many female physicians, there is no context or common vernacular to describe the effects of a patient sexualizing a medical encounter. In a culture where victims of assault or harassment are often second-guessed for their language, their dress, or their actions, is it any wonder that female physicians first instinct would be to doubt themselves? And, in a profession in which physicians are assumed to be in control, how do we admitto anyonethat the clinical situation devolved and the patient crossed a line?

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A 1993 study in the New England Journal of Medicine demonstrated that 77 percent of female physicians had experienced sexual harassment by a patient in their careers, with frequency ranging from less than once a year to more than once a month. As expected, emergency departments had the highest incidence, with grabbing, fondling, requests for genital exams, and breast touching being the most common complaints. Nineteen percent of women who experienced harassment told no one, while 53 percent told a female colleague only, and more than half continued to care for the patient after the incident. Lastly, a recent survey conducted by Medscape found that 40 percent of physicians (and 70 percent of nurses) reported they had been sexually harassed by a patient.

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Given that now over half of matriculating medical students are female, to imagine that half will face some form of harassment in their practice can be a bit overwhelming. How should we respond? Do we commence medical student orientation with noble words about the Hippocratic oath, the sacrifices of years for technical training, the solemnity of the white coat, only to follow with the disclaimer, Beware, many of you will be harassed, threatened, and paid significantly less than your male colleagues, but welcome to the halls of medicine?

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In most health care organizations and academic medical centers, there are safety officers and reporting mechanisms. There are guidelines and policies, though few describe what to do in this particular circumstance. Those who experience it describe a sense of isolation and even self-blame. Many feel resigned to a system that asserts, and at times champions, the idea that its just part of the job. But we, and our institutions, would be wise to improve the care offered to all victims of sexual harassment, including those holding the stethoscope. They need our trust, advocacy, and transparency in a reporting structure and a zero tolerance policyin reality and not just on paper, because in medicine, as in the rest of the world, time is up.
Over the past couple of years, photojournalists have aimed their lenses at Americas most pressing public health emergency: the opioid overdose crisis. The March issue of Time did something the magazine had never done before: dedicate an entire issue to the work of one photographer, pre-eminent war photographer James Nachtwey, shooting one topic, the multitude of devastation wrought by Americas deadliest drug crisis in history, in black and white. Close-ups focus in on public injection and first responders bringing people back to life.

Nachtweys images convey a battle being lost in his own country; the suffering, in this case, is at home.

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As in his war photography, Nachtweys motivation to shoot The Opioid Diaries is genuine, even noble. In a tearful speech about the project at the Newseum in D.C., Nachtwey said its his and Times wish that the photo essay prompt more effective ways of dealing with the crisis among decision-makers. But in their laudable quest to document reality, projects like The Opioid Diaries, the New Yorkers similarly themed Faces of an Epidemic, and even the Pulitzer Prizewinning Seven Days of Heroin from the Cincinnati Enquirer actually fail to capture it.

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Rather, these glossy, often black-and-white images document a reductive slice of what the opioid crisis really is. Yes, there are funerals and overdoses, but theyre not the whole story. Nachtweys Opioid Diaries is described as a visual record of a national emergency, but by zooming in on only the most severe cases, shooting people at their lowest lows, and neglecting to capture even the possibility of recovery, he misses a whole side of the story. In the end, the portrait painted is so stark and dire that not only does it not reflect the current reality, it feels like a representation that could end up being harmful for people living with addiction who want to get better but feel helpless and hopeless.

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Wheres the dignity afforded to other chronic illnesses? The choice to only show the dark side of addiction is like doing a spread on cancer but only showing bald people on their deathbeds, or commissioning a photo essay on HIV/AIDS that only features emaciated gay men. The respect media gives to other chronic illnesses is missing in these depictions of addiction.

And addiction is a chronic illnessone that tells a uniquely human story of psychological entanglement and contradictory motives. There are numerous theories of what causes drug addiction. But it tends to start (obviously) with liking the feelings that drugs produce (warmth, euphoria, belonging) or the erasure of other feelings (trauma, loneliness, anxiety)usually both at once. After continued use, the body comes to depend on the drug to function, as life becomes more and more dysfunctional. Desire for the drug eventually becomes an act of survival. True addiction feels like being trapped in an escapable loop: You need the thing thats destroying you.

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The thing is, it is escapable. More often than not, theres a third act to the story of addiction, one that hinges on personal growth and transformation. The latest national survey estimates that 22.35 million (or 1 in 10) adults in the U.S. have resolved an addiction. But public perception is skewed toward severe cases, thanks to narratives like the ones featured on A&Es Intervention, where the addictions are always intense and require expensive rehab. The lives of millions of people who have recovered, some without any formal help whatsoever, are left out. That third act is largely absent from these projects.

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And people who have overcome their addictions are an important part of the crisis. Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, best explained why in her recent piece for Scientific American: Viewing [addiction] as a treatable medical problem from which people can and do recover is crucial for enabling a public-healthfocused response that ensures access to effective treatments and lessens the stigma surrounding a condition that afflicts nearly 10 percent of Americans at some point in their lives.

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Its also no coincidence that Time and the New Yorker decided to capture overdoses in black and white. In Faces of an Epidemic, text describing the crisis as a mass-casualty event is overlaid on a low-contrast, gray-washed looped video of a suburban Ohio street, producing a feeling of eerie horror. Its a ghosts vantage point. Nachtweys stark images in Time are even more brutal. Black-and-white photos are visceral and evocative, photojournalist Ryan Christopher Jones, whose work frequently appears in the New York Times, told me. Its tied to our cultural memory of how war and devastation have historically been visualized. Jones says that depicting a modern drug crisis in black and white makes us feel like were looking at war. To me, its highly produced disaster porn.

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To be fair, Nachtwey at least attempted to shoot recovery. The third act of The Opioid Diaries is titled Aftermath, Resilience & Recovery. But the first image in this section is of a 29-year-old woman experiencing withdrawal in a jail cell; a heart is etched next to the words I miss my kids!!! on the black concrete wall next to which she is shivering. (Withdrawal from heroin feels like having 24/7 goosebumps.) The next image is of a man, looking worn down, who volunteered for the jails rehabilitation programwhatever that is, if not a cruel redundancy. The third image is of another woman experiencing withdrawal in jail. Next is a man in handcuffs who is going back to jail after relapsing during drug court. I think you see the pattern (there are some photos that dont involve jailbut those mostly show death).

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The thing is, it is escapable. More often than not, theres a third act to the story of addiction, one that hinges on personal growth and transformation.

Yes, its a sad truth that people are jailed rather than given medical help. But despite Nachtweys intention to show this to inspire more effective solutions, it seems likely that images like these instead further entrench the notion that addiction is a sin or crime and that jail is the right place for people with addiction. What the photo essays dont capture is that when people with opioid addiction are released from jail, their risk of overdosing is astronomical thanks to their diminished tolerance. In fact, the prison conditions for people with addiction are so atrocious that they are currently being investigated as a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act, because life-saving medication that reduces the risk of overdose is being withheld. Sure, an argument could be made that showing addiction as a crime may motivate more humane fixes. But why not show what those more effective solutions would look like, too, at least to underscore the vast difference between them and incarceration?

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Last October in Slate, I covered the increasing role that recovery activists are playing in the national dialogue about the overdose crisis. I went back to a few of those activists to ask what they thought about the photo essays. They didnt finish that article! Garrett Hade, of Facing Addiction, told me about Times essay. Theres a part after the criminal justice system. What happened to that person when they were released from probation and dont have to go to court anymore? Did they get support? Are they employed? Recovery activist Cortney Lovell told me that the continued use of glorified drug paraphernalia in media only further stigmatizes an already vulnerable group of people. For contrast, Lovell pointed to the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions Rx Awareness media campaign, which featured her in September 2017. Though not perfect, the CDCs campaign didnt feature disaster porn. Unlike the hopelessly dark, Requiem for a Dreamstyle images featured in major media outlets, the CDC featured the faces of healthy people who have moved beyond their addictions.

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Similarly, Jones, who only shoots in colorbecause, as he put it, we live in colorrecently photographed a number of people who have recovered from opioid addiction, including me, for a new photo essay in the New York Times that attempts to capture the third act of the story that is too often ignored. The project features close-ups taken by Jones next to words from Maia Szalavitz describing our different journeys, showing what our lives look like after addiction ends. Jones and Szalavitz teamed up out of mutual dissatisfaction over the years biggest opioid packages. Unique to their project is showcasing a diversity of pathways, bucking the status quo that prioritizes 12-step-style abstinence. The decision to use close-ups is also important: Theres no room for readers to distance themselves from the subjects; theyre forced to look us in the eye instead of at our scars.

This photo essay is similar to the Times Faces of HIV published in June 2013. Both show a variety of faces from different walks of life, people in suits at work, a black woman kissing her relative, a Native American woman in Minnesota who turned to her familys spiritual tradition for help. The takeaway is powerful: Once thought to have a death sentence, people with HIV today are by and large living fruitful lives. The same is true today with addictionand seeing it could make a world of difference.
It all makes sense once you realize they want to kill us, by Mike Whitney - The Unz Review : 'It is now apparent that these products in ...
The Specialised Court rejected Kotleba charge over 1,488 gift cheques

Only procedural flaws were involved in the extremism display case, which has returned to the prosecutor.

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The Specialised Criminal Court has dismissed the lawsuit against Marian Kotleba, leader of the far-right LSNS party, which concerned publicly displaying sympathy for a movement suppressing fundamental rights and freedoms.

A judge returned the case to the Special Prosecutors Office, after determining that the punishment could be stricter. Moreover, the judge lacked some evidence necessary for the verdict to be issued, the court spokesperson Katarina Kudjakova confirmed for TASR.

In July, prosecutor pressed charges against the LSNS chairman for giving three families a financial gift via cheques, each amounting to 1,488. The number 1488 is notoriously used as a symbol by extremists, as the number 14 signifies 14 words by far-right terrorist David Lane, who claimed: We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children, whereas 88 stands for an abbreviated Nazi salute of "Heil Hitler" (H is the 8th letter in the alphabet).

The prosecutor of the Special Prosecutors Office filed a complaint against the courts decision, and so the case will be dealt with by the Supreme Court, TASR summed up.

12. Sep 2018 at 17:02 | Compiled by Spectator staff
Scientists call for education ministers resignation

Parliament meanwhile adopted the amendment, which in fact returns the transformation to the very beginning.

Slovak scientists are concerned about the current state of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAV), which has been fighting with the Education Ministry over its transformation into a public research institution for about three months.

This state is the result of political pressure and processes that have nothing to do with the efforts to help our science, reads the open letter signed by Vladimir Buzek, Peter Moczo, Michal Novak, Martin Venhart and Jozef Vozar.

The scientists even organised a protest rally on September 11, with about 500 SAV employees demanding the resignation of Education Minister Martina Lubyova (nominee of the Slovak National Party). They also called on the MPs not to adopt the amendment to the law which, in their words, would mar the transformation of SAV and harm the interests of Slovakia.

However, the parliament overrode the veto of the president and passed the amendment later on September 11.

Politicians do not support academics

The dispute started at the beginning of summer, after the Education Ministry refused to register SAV institutes as public research institutions, claiming that they failed to deliver necessary documents. However, the scientists claim that they submitted all documents the ministry has asked for, plus some extra ones.

Due to the stalemate, the proper operation of SAVs institutes is hampered, the scientists added.

Read also:

Read also: Current stalemate paralyses the Slovak Academy of Sciences Read more

Slovakia has a good reputation in many scientific fields, with many of our workplaces collaborating with top universities and institutions in Europe and across the globe, reads the open letter. As a very small country we have, despite all our problems, a good chance of becoming a society of critical thinking, science and significant local economic innovations.

However, the scientists claim that the political environment does not support top academics and young scientists who see prospects in science.

We are of the opinion that since the very beginning the ministry has been pursuing the aims that have nothing to do with the original goals of the law to help Slovak science, the open letter states.

Scientists also called on the Education Ministry to immediately stop all steps aimed against SAV and abstain from the misleading information provided to the public. They also called for Lubyovas resignation since she has lost our trust and does not represent the interests of Slovak science.

Lubyova responded that she was very sorry that such figures of Slovak science like Martin Venhart and Vladimir Buzek, who cooperated with her and the ministry developing all efforts to support them are those who, without previous contact and information, are calling for her dismissal, as reported by the SITA newswire.

Even though the ministry agrees that the current situation has resulted from political pressure and processes that have nothing to do with the efforts to help science, it stressed that the main initiator of this state was SAV, which has failed to complete the transformation.

Disputed law passed

The parliament meanwhile adopted the amendment to the law on universities, which impacts the law on the quality of university education and SAV, vetoed by President Andrej Kiska. In parts concerning SAV, the president pointed to a potential threat to its transformation since the draft would result in chaos and legal uncertainty, SITA reported.

The adoption in fact means that the entire transformation will return to the beginning and SAVs institutes will function in the same manner as before. The amendment also obliged SAV to secure all steps to complete the transformation by December 31, 2018, the TASR newswire reported.

video //www.sme.sk/vp/37015/

I have to digest this and discuss it with lawyers, SAVs head Pavol Sajgalik said, as quoted by the Sme daily.

SAV opines that the law applies only to institutions that failed to meet conditions for being listed in the register of public research institutions. Since they met these conditions, they are not subject to the new provisions, as reported by Sme.

SAV also wants to rely on the recently issued statement of the General Prosecutors Office, which called on the ministry to decide on the registration as soon as possible. The ministry, however, claims that the statement in fact approves its steps in the entire process.

12. Sep 2018 at 13:53 | Compiled by Spectator staff
After watching several in the field take their best shot early, Shesjustadelight N made her move and took control late in progress to winning the $15,000 Fillies and Mares Winners-Over Pace at Plainridge Park on Tuesday (Sept. 11) over a rain-soaked track.

The front was a hot piece of property as the leaders changed hands fast and furiously. Empty Gesture took an early lead before Watts Was I Drinkn grabbed it from her at the quarter. But as soon as she hit the pylons, Show Runner rolled out and made the front as they passed under the wire for the first time. But positions were still up for grabs as this restless group of girls produced another attempting the front past the half.

Shesjustadelight N tipped out into the second turn with Seventimesavirgin following her. Shesjustadelight N got to Show Runners wheels at the five-eighths and stayed there until the three-quarter pole when Show Runner started to tire.

Around the final bend Shesjustadelight N cleared the front and Seventimesavirgin tipped out for the stretch drive. But Shesjustadelight N had a one-length advantage and driver Mitchell Cushing made sure it stayed that way as he rocked her down to the wire to win in 1:51.4, a seasonal mark for the mare.

It was the third win in only 14 starts this year for Shesjustadelight N, who now has $51,600 on her card for owners Kevin Sywyk and Ron Cushing. Heidi Gibbs trains the $3.80 winner.

Cushing had a big day at "The Ridge", winning four races on the card. Besides the already mentioned Shesjustadelight N, Cushing also scored with Zoe Blue Chip (1:54.2, $17.60), Le Gambe (1:55.4, $4.40) and Freetime (1:54.2, $4.40).

Not to be overlooked, Jim Hardy also had a driving hat trick that included two horses that he also trains.

The Wicked Hi-5 Pentafecta in the sixth race that had a carryover of $10,380 today was finally hit. A 20-cent ticket on the straight combination of 6-9-2-5-8 returned $11,892.06.

The $1.3-million (est.) Massachusetts Sire Stakes will once again be contested at Plainridge Park starting in October. There will be three weeks of $25,000 (est.) preliminary legs starting on Monday, Oct. 1 with the $85,000 (est.) finals to be held on Tuesday, Oct. 30. For more information on this state-bred series, log onto www.sominc.net.

Racing resumes at Plainridge Park on Thursday, Sept. 13 with post time at 2 p.m.

(With files from Plainridge Park)
Post Time with Mike and Mike presented by BetAmerica, is excited to announce its line-up for Thursday morning (September 13) at 10:30 a.m.

The duo will be joined by Montrell Teague, driver of Lather Up; Blake MacIntosh, trainer of Courtly Choice; Darin Gagne, the track announcer at Running Aces Casino and Racetrack; and Michelle Crawford, the new owner of Wes Delight.

Teague will discuss the great Ohio Sires Stakes champion that will step up once again to face the top three-year-olds. Teague, who drove 2016 Little Brown Jug winner Wiggle It Jiggleit, will discuss his chances and how he feels Lather Up will be able to handle the heats in Delaware, Ohio.

MacIntosh told the USTA's Ken Weingartner on Tuesday, well head to the Jug next week. MacIntosh will discuss how he feels the colt has been training leading up to the race and how he thinks he will handle the heats next Thursday. Courtly Choice paid a $45,000 supplemental entry fee.

Darin Gagne will return this week to discuss the happenings at the Minnesota track. Gagne will highlight some of the big events coming up and recap last weeks events.

Crawford will talk about her recent purchase (Wes Delight) as they get ready for Delaware, Ohio. The Crawfords had another colt, Winston, staked to the Jug, but werent sure that he was ready to make the lead, so they invested in Wes Delight, who has made over $300,000 in 2018. Crawford will discuss her past Jug experiences and what draws her into the excitement of the race.

Post Time with Mike and Mike presented by BetAmerica can be heard live every Thursday at 10:30 a.m. via posttimewithmikeandmike.com or on the archive at betamerica.com/BARN.

(With files from Post Time)
The University of Sydney and University of Melbourne women's crews on Sydney Harbour during the 2016 Australian Boat Race.

Based on the famed Oxford and Cambridge University Boat Race, the Australian competition is an annual event featuring current and alumni rowers from Australias two oldest universities.

Alexander Sasha Belonogoff, University of Sydney alumnus and member of the Australian men's quadruple sculls who took silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics, will join the mens team.

I always put my hand up for the Australian Boat Race because its rowing in its traditional form  a head race between two boats following the course of a natural waterway, he said.

The rivalry between Sydney University Boat Club and Melbourne University Boat Club is another reason why I love this event. Theres a lot of pride on the line each time we come head to head. Its going to be a tough and tight race.

University of Sydney student Devlin Walsh was part of the Australian Boat Race for the first time last year and said, It was a great experience not only rowing alongside some Olympians but also your best mates.

While Sydney has secured seven wins to Melbournes two in the mens eight, Melbourne have dominated in the womens race, winning eight to Sydneys one.
With this in mind, it is a bit frustrating for me to read that Papua New Guinea supposedly has a longstanding tradition of military-style and heavy-handed policing, and some of my fellow countrymen assert direct links between this behaviour and that of some kiaps under the previous Australian colonial administration.

Tombs exposes how myth, confusion, bias, misunderstanding, misreporting and omission have all contributed to what the English understand to be their collective history.

I have recently read a splendid book called 'The English and Their History' by Robert Tombs, in which the author takes a very different and forensic view of English history to that usually reflected in classical scholarship.

Thus, Geoffrey Blainey and Manning Clark, both eminent historians, wrote very different histories of Australia. To this day, aspects of Australian history emphasised (or de-emphasised) by each of these great scholars are hotly contested in the so called 'history wars'.

This is why there can be so many histories of the same event or time or place in which different authors reach different conclusions about what happened.

History is a notoriously murky subject, capable of being interpreted or reinterpreted because the facts change or new facts emerge or, sometimes, simply because we choose to perceive the facts differently.

ADELAIDE - One of the perennial problems for historians is separating fact from fiction.

It is not that this statement is entirely wrong, simply that it is misleading.

That there were incidents of the heavy handed behaviour by some colonial officers is hardly contestable. The murderous actions of Assistant Magistrate CAW Monckton during his notorious patrol through what is now Oro Province are a prime example of what now would be regarded as criminal behaviour.

Even at the time (around 1900) Moncktons shoot and loot approach to law enforcement excited equally strenuous expressions both of support and condemnation.

Of course, Moncktons actions were not a reflection of the administrations overall policy in relation to law enforcement. Generally speaking, the law was applied with a measured hand.

A great deal of latitude was used in both policing and the courts so as to take into account the cultural and traditional contexts within which criminal behaviour occurred.

Thus, the 32 men eventually brought to trial for the murders in 1953 of Patrol Officers Gerald Szarka and Geoffrey Harris and Constable Buritori, were each sentenced to death but this was commuted to ten years imprisonment with hard labour.

Had they been Australians tried for such a crime in Australia, it is almost certain that at least some of them would have been hanged but the appellant judge evidently took into account the traditional and social context of their actions.

I mention these two examples simply to illustrate the range of behaviours in relation to law enforcement that occurred during PNGs colonial era.

Consequently, characterising law enforcement during that time as heavy handed is both misinformed and misleading and certainly not supportive of any assertion that subsequent behaviour by the RPNGC after independence was or is directly linked to how kiaps went about enforcing the law.

The writing of PNGs history is a work in progress. Historians like Mathias Kin are striving to write histories from the perspective of the colonised rather than the coloniser.

This is important work but future generations of Papua New Guineans will not be well served if actions or motivations attributed to the colonial administration reflect less than a carefully balanced assessment of the available evidence.

Of course, we old kiaps will not be around much longer to defend our legacy. Soon enough we will all have passed into the long night of history, having played our parts and left the stage.

We mostly were and are neither saints nor sinners, just ordinary men who were once called upon to do an extraordinary job in the dying days of European imperialism.

I think that our collective hope is simply that our actions will be judged fairly based upon the available evidence, not through the distorting prism of ideology or post colonial mythology.

I urge PNGs emerging group of historians to heed Oscar Wildes famous aphorism that the truth is seldom pure and never simple.

This is the best way to ensure that your work stands up to forensic examination of the type practiced by Robert Tombs in his review of English history which, even after more than a thousand years of scholarly consideration, still provokes controversy.
Mountain Shadows in Wayanad is just the place for a dreamy vacation
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Russia Deploys Mobile ICBMs To Fail Safe Points As West Begins False Flag At LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 443824

09-12-2018 01:52 AM











Post: #1 Russia Deploys Mobile ICBMs To Fail Safe Points As West Begins False Flag At

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I know it is sorchaa and you will attack it for it, but Russia has moved a lot of artillery to counter attack any US and allies attack on Syria. They made the largest war games today.







According to this report, as the final battle in Syria begins to rid this nation of its Western-backed radical Islamic terrorists, the edge of abyss was reached this past week after the United States and its allies refused to remove from this country its estimated over 40,000 non-Syrian terrorist fighters the West has flooded into there from nearly 100 nations around the worldall of whom are now surrounded in Idlib Province by Russian, Turkish and Syrian government allied forces.



Rather then admit their abject failure in flooding Syria with tens-of-thousands of foreign Islamic terrorist fighters to achieve their own geopolitical goals by war, instead of peace, this report continues, Deep State forces are attempting to use this Obama-Clinton Regime self-made and needless catastrophe called the Syrian War to push President Trump into an apocalyptic war they believe is the only way to protect themselves from his coming wrath due to their attempting to overthrow him in a coupand whose plot to achieve this the MoD discovered, just weeks ago, involved a false flag chemical attack ready to be unleashed by the secretive British defense contractor Olive who has secreted into Syria canisters of chlorine gas and the terrorist actors whom they have trained to deploy it.





Source:

http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/index2653.htm







Let the attacks on sorcha begin. Russia Deploys Mobile ICBMs To Fail Safe Points As West Begins False Flag Attack In Syria"I know it is sorchaa and you will attack it for it, but Russia has moved a lot of artillery to counter attack any US and allies attack on Syria. They made the largest war games today.According to this report, as the final battle in Syria begins to rid this nation of its Western-backed radical Islamic terrorists, the edge of abyss was reached this past week after the United States and its allies refused to remove from this country its estimated over 40,000 non-Syrian terrorist fighters the West has flooded into there from nearly 100 nations around the worldall of whom are now surrounded in Idlib Province by Russian, Turkish and Syrian government allied forces.Rather then admit their abject failure in flooding Syria with tens-of-thousands of foreign Islamic terrorist fighters to achieve their own geopolitical goals by war, instead of peace, this report continues, Deep State forces are attempting to use this Obama-Clinton Regime self-made and needless catastrophe called the Syrian War to push President Trump into an apocalyptic war they believe is the only way to protect themselves from his coming wrath due to their attempting to overthrow him in a coupand whose plot to achieve this the MoD discovered, just weeks ago, involved a false flag chemical attack ready to be unleashed by the secretive British defense contractor Olive who has secreted into Syria canisters of chlorine gas and the terrorist actors whom they have trained to deploy it.Source:Let the attacks on sorcha begin. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 443824

09-12-2018 01:54 AM











Post: #2 RE: Russia Deploys Mobile ICBMs To Fail Safe Points As West Begins False Flag At







British public being prepared for aggressive measures against Russia.



September 11, 2018: The article highlights that the embassy noted that a series of official statements was made lately to the effect that the UK should use its "massive retaliatory capabilities" to counter Russias "aggression"



Recent statements by UK officials, including on the countrys readiness to "retaliate" against Russia, create an impression that the British public is being prepared for aggressive measures against Russia, the Russian embassy in London said on Tuesday (September 11).



"Impression grows that the British public is being prepared for aggressive actions against Russia disguised as "defensive measures", with eventual consequences impossible to predict,"



Russian diplomats said in a statement. "We urge the British authorities to abandon such hostile rhetoric, and be guided by international law and common sense."



The embassy noted that a series of official statements was made lately to the effect that the UK should use its "massive retaliatory capabilities" to counter Russias "aggression".



"Such statements are reckless, provocative and unfounded," the statement reads.



(In the enhanced Silent Revolution Of Truth Compilation Edition, the free PDF book: Download and read about the Russian Double-Agent Spy Sergei Skripal "Novichok" poisoning by the British, pages 1538 and 1543. Note: Use the page number display located at top right to find the correct page.





http://www.battleforworld.com/2018/09/09...icalWeapon This is not sorcha.British public being prepared for aggressive measures against Russia.September 11, 2018: The article highlights that the embassy noted that a series of official statements was made lately to the effect that the UK should use its "massive retaliatory capabilities" to counter Russias "aggression"Recent statements by UK officials, including on the countrys readiness to "retaliate" against Russia, create an impression that the British public is being prepared for aggressive measures against Russia, the Russian embassy in London said on Tuesday (September 11)."Impression grows that the British public is being prepared for aggressive actions against Russia disguised as "defensive measures", with eventual consequences impossible to predict,"Russian diplomats said in a statement. "We urge the British authorities to abandon such hostile rhetoric, and be guided by international law and common sense."The embassy noted that a series of official statements was made lately to the effect that the UK should use its "massive retaliatory capabilities" to counter Russias "aggression"."Such statements are reckless, provocative and unfounded," the statement reads.(In the enhanced Silent Revolution Of Truth Compilation Edition, the free PDF book: Download and read about the Russian Double-Agent Spy Sergei Skripal "Novichok" poisoning by the British, pages 1538 and 1543. Note: Use the page number display located at top right to find the correct page.
















SKY News presenter Alan Jones has lost a high profile defamation case in relation to comments he made on Radio 2GB and 4BC.

Jones and 2GB /4BC have been ordered to pay around $3.75 million in damages (including interest) to Toowoomba-based Wagner family following a series of radio broadcasts between 2014 and 2015.

The Supreme Court in Brisbane found 2GB and Jones published 27 broadcasts which conveyed extremely serious defamatory allegations, including that the Wagner family were responsible for the deaths of 12 people, including two children, in the 2011 Grantham floods when a quarry wall owned by the family collapsed.

The court also found the broadcasts alleged that the brothers had illegally built the Wellcamp Airport and had stolen airspace from the Oakey Army Base.

Jones and 2GB will be required to pay the Wagner family more than $3.3 million. In addition, Brisbane station 4BC and Jones were also ordered to pay the family more than $440,000 surrounding separate broadcasts.

Jones and 2GB tried to argue many of the allegations made by the broadcaster were substantially true and others were a fair report of the Grantham Flood Inquiry.

Speaking outside court Denis Wagner said he and his family had faced vilification by Jones for seven years.

Until we commenced this action, Mr Jones malicious attacks on our character and that of our family were unrelenting, Wagner said.

The comments by Alan Jones have been described by the judge as unjustifiable.

The amount of $3.75 million tops the previous Australian record for defamation, at $2.62 million awarded to Perth barrister Lloyd Rayney last year.

The case was confined to radio broadcast comments by Jones and not directly related to his weekly Jones & Co. show which last night was the second-highest rated STV title of the night.

Source: ABC
A Block apartment is being offered as a contest prize as part of a merchandise partnering with Hasbro-owned board game Monopoly.

At a media event at The Gatwick last night host Scott Cam announced a Block Special Edition game hitting retail stores today with former addresses including South Yarra, Bondi, Elsternwick & Albert Park residences featuring.

Each game includes a golden ticket to enter a contest with a mammoth prize of an apartment at The Gatwick (tipped to be an upcoming Challenge apartment).

Its the best prize I have ever heard of, Cam said. The Blockheads have done a fantastic renovation on the iconic Gatwick, and to think someone will have the chance to win a multi-million-dollar apartment just by buying Monopoly  The Block Special Edition is incredible.

The prize is being touted as TVs biggest-ever prize giveaway.

Attending the event last night were hosts Scott Cam & Shelley Craft, judges Neale Whitaker, Shaynna Blaze & Darren Palmer, foremen Keith Schleiger & Dan Reilly, Nines Head of Content Production and Development Adrian Swift, 2018 contestants, producer Justin Sturzaker and Nines Melbourne Publicity team headed by Michelle Stamper.

The competition is open until December 29, 2018.
Only in America do former Disney stars carry handguns

Former Wizards of Waverly Place actor David Henrie has apologised after being arrested on Monday for bringing a loaded handgun to Los Angeles International Airport.

Henrie, 29, who played Selena Gomezs brother Justin, was arrested at LAX after officials went through his baggage and found the firearm.

Following the incident, Henrie apologized in a statement on Twitter.

I am so sorry for any trouble it caused but I am appreciative of TSAs efforts in implementing the safety laws that are in place to protect our beautiful country, he wrote. More than anything I am humiliated and embarrassed that this even happened.

Henrie has also appeared on House, How I Met Your Mother, and Arrested Development. He is set to direct a movie This Is the Year that he also co-wrote, and filming is expected to begin this week.

A court date is pending.

Source: Variety
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Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 426905

09-12-2018 03:11 AM











Post: #1 Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

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Local police are working with federal authorities in their investigation.

Wyoming Republican Rep. Liz Cheney said in response that the future of our nation depends upon our ability to exchange ideas and viewpoints, to argue and debate, free from violence and intimidation.



http://dailycaller.com/2018/09/06/wyomin...fice-fire/ A Republican Party office in Wyoming was set on fire just two days after opening, and police believe it was intentional.Local police are working with federal authorities in their investigation.Wyoming Republican Rep. Liz Cheney said in response that the future of our nation depends upon our ability to exchange ideas and viewpoints, to argue and debate, free from violence and intimidation. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 460989

09-12-2018 03:14 AM











Post: #2 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

We all know Dems did it.



They are the modern day Nazi movement. Spiddy

Registered User

User ID: 225624

09-12-2018 03:16 AM



Posts: 18,733









Post: #3 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

Don'tcha just yearn for the good old days when only black churches got burnt down?

America was great back then.

As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.





H.L. Mencken 1920. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 461655

09-12-2018 03:18 AM











Post: #4 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

Spiddy Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:16 AM) Don'tcha just yearn for the good old days when only black churches got burnt down?

America was great back then.

The Democrats were very evil back then, weren't they? The Democrats were very evil back then, weren't they? Spiddy

Registered User

User ID: 225624

09-12-2018 03:18 AM



Posts: 18,733









Post: #5 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:14 AM) We all know Dems did it.



They are the modern day Nazi movement.

Yeah!

Trump should ban Nazis, amiright? Yeah!Trump should ban Nazis, amiright?

As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.





H.L. Mencken 1920. Spiddy

Registered User

User ID: 225624

09-12-2018 03:20 AM



Posts: 18,733









Post: #6 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:18 AM) Spiddy Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:16 AM) Don'tcha just yearn for the good old days when only black churches got burnt down?

America was great back then.

The Democrats were very evil back then, weren't they?

The blue dogs are still evil and yet you still keep voting for them.

Y'all should teach them a lesson and tear down those Confederate statues they love so much. The blue dogs are still evil and yet you still keep voting for them.Y'all should teach them a lesson and tear down those Confederate statues they love so much.

As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.





H.L. Mencken 1920. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 460989

09-12-2018 03:22 AM











Post: #7 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

Spiddy Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:16 AM) Don'tcha just yearn for the good old days when only black churches got burnt down?

America was great back then.

Why do you say stuff like that?



Are you mental? Why do you say stuff like that?Are you mental? Spiddy

Registered User

User ID: 225624

09-12-2018 03:24 AM



Posts: 18,733









Post: #8 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:22 AM) Spiddy Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:16 AM) Don'tcha just yearn for the good old days when only black churches got burnt down?

America was great back then.

Why do you say stuff like that?



Are you mental?

Nah, I'm just bored. Nah, I'm just bored.

As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.





H.L. Mencken 1920. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 460989

09-12-2018 03:24 AM











Post: #9 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

Spiddy Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:24 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:22 AM) Why do you say stuff like that?



Are you mental?

Nah, I'm just bored.

right....... right....... Angel Face

~La Princesa~

User ID: 328342

09-12-2018 03:25 AM



Posts: 14,400









Post: #10 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

savages I can feel your paranoia through the screen.

 Uppity Me

Registered User

User ID: 449159

09-12-2018 03:30 AM



Posts: 37,824









Post: #11 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

Quote: Les pauvres n'ont-ils des Euros ?

Alors laissez les pauvres 'sh*t' dans les rues LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 461676

09-12-2018 04:15 AM











Post: #12 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:14 AM) We all know Dems did it.



They are the modern day Nazi movement.





Laramie is the most liberal city in Wyoming and home of the University of Wyoming.



Intolerant, unhinged snowflakes doing what the hateful bit*hes do best. Laramie is the most liberal city in Wyoming and home of the University of Wyoming.Intolerant, unhinged snowflakes doing what the hateful bit*hes do best. sIcKaNdTwIsTeD

Registered User

User ID: 461354

09-12-2018 04:27 AM



Posts: 36









Post: #13 RE: Wyoming GOP Office Set on Fire

Cheney's just wont go the hell away..... 'Politicians are like diapers; they need to be changed often and for the same reason.' - Mark Twain.
















BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP)  Thousands of Argentines are staging a demonstration to protest recent government austerity measures and demand solutions to the country's economic crisis.

Demonstrators led by labor unions gridlocked traffic on some of the main avenues of Argentina's capital Wednesday. Some protesters cooked stews in big pots and offered them to passers-by to dramatize growing poverty levels.

Argentina's consumer prices are soaring, unemployment is high and the Argentine peso has sharply depreciated.

The crisis forced President Mauricio Macri's government to seek a $50 billion credit line the International Monetary Fund this year.

Macri recently announced new taxes on exports and the elimination of several government ministries to calm investor concerns about the country's ability to pay its debts.
BEIJING (AP)  Chinese auto sales fell for a second month in August, adding to signs of economic malaise amid a worsening tariff battle with Washington.

An industry group, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, said Tuesday sales of SUVs, sedans and minivans in the biggest global auto market contracted by 4.6 percent from a year earlier to 1.8 million units. Total vehicle sales, including trucks and buses, sank 2.1 percent to 2 million units.

Auto demand has cooled as economic growth slows after Beijing tightened controls on bank lending to cool surging debt.

Sales of SUVs, usually the industry's brightest spot, shrank 4.7 percent to 737,000 units. Sedan sales were down 3.4 percent at 901,000.

Total auto sales for the first eight months of the year gained 2.6 percent to 15.2 million.

See Also:
Demonstrators gathered outside Australian Capital Territory Magistrates Court on Wednesday, September 12, to protest charges against Australian spy Witness K and his lawyer Bernard Collaery on the day of their first listed court appearance.

The pair were accused for conspiring to breach intelligence laws after Witness K exposed a bugging operation set up by the Australian Secret Intelligence Service to investigate the Timor Leste government in 2004, allegedly in order to help Australia in its dispute with East Timor over ownership of lucrative undersea gas fields.

Independent politician Andrew Wilkie revealed in June that Witness K had been charged for his actions in exposing the bugging operation, despite the operation being illegal. Witness K had enlisted the legal counsel of Collaery who determined the operation had breached the Intelligence Services Act.

According to the court summons, Witness K and Collaery will appear for the first time at 4:15 pm on Wednesday, Canberra Times reported. In this video, Tasmanian Greens senator Nick McKim and protesters outside the courthouse called for criminal charges against the pair to be dropped. McKim said the two should have been congratulated for exposing criminal behaviour instead of being prosecuted. Credit: Nick McKim via Storyful
RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazilian police arrested Beto Richa, the former governor of Parana, as part of an investigation into wrongdoing involving a government program aimed at bolstering policing in rural areas of the state, prosecutors said on Tuesday.

A representative for Richa, who was running for the Senate in this year's elections, said he was still waiting for guidance from Richa's lawyers before commenting on the matter.

Separately, federal police said in a statement they were serving three arrest warrants in the state capital Curitiba in the latest stage of the sweeping Car Wash corruption probe.

Police suspect that engineering conglomerate Odebrecht SA [ODBES.UL] paid millions in bribes to people in the private and public sector in order to acquire a licence to expand, maintain and operate a state roadway in the state of Parana, the statement said.

Police also served 33 search-and-seizure warrants in Parana, Sao Paulo and Bahia as part of the investigation.

(Reporting by Pedro Fonseca; Writing by Bruno Federowski in Brasilia; Editing by Keith Weir)

See Also:
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras delivers a speech during a debate on the Future of Europe at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, September 11, 2018. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler

Thomson Reuters

STRASBOURG (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said on Tuesday he was "confident" the European Union and Britain would eventually reach a deal on Brexit.

Tsipras was asked about Brexit during a news conference on the sidelines of the European Parliament's plenary sitting in Strasbourg.

"We're working hard, closely and together, in order to find the better solution for the European citizens but also for the UK citizens. I am confident that at the end of the day we'll find a constructive way to do that," he said.

(Reporting by Alastair Macdonald in Strasborug and Daphne Psaledakis in Brussels, Writing by Gabriela Baczynska)

See Also:
Broken windows are seen at the headquarters of Libyan state oil firm National Oil Corporation (NOC) after three masked persons attacked it in Tripoli Broken windows are seen at the headquarters of Libyan state oil firm National Oil Corporation (NOC) after three masked persons attacked it in Tripoli, Libya September 10, 2018. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny

TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Islamic State has claimed responsibility for a shooting attack on the headquarters of Libyan state oil firm NOC in Tripoli, the jihadist group's news agency said on Tuesday.

The attack on Monday killed two NOC staff and wounded 10, said officials, who had described the three shooters who were also killed as "Africans".

The attack targeted the "economic interests of oppressing governments funding crusaders," a statement carried on the militants' Amaq news agency said.

It was the first attack of its kind against the leadership of Libya's state oil industry.

The attack happened less than a week after a fragile truce halted fierce clashes between rival armed groups in Tripoli, the latest eruption of violence in Libya, which has been in turmoil

since a 2011 uprising.

Armed groups regularly block oilfields to make demands but the NOC headquarters had so far been spared the violence engulfing the North African country.

Militants loyal to Islamic State have previously carried out attacks in Tripoli and other towns, despite having lost their stronghold in the central city of Sirte late in 2016.

Libya has been divided into rival administrations but the NOC has continued to function relatively normally across Libya, which relies on oil exports for most of its income.

Islamist militants have sleeper cells in northern cities as well as mobile units in Libya's southern desert, according to Libyan and Western officials.

In May, Islamic State claimed a deadly attack on the national election commission offices in Tripoli. The group also claimed an attack in 2015 on the Corinthia hotel, a landmark location in Tripoli.

(Reporting by Ahmed Tolba and Ulf LaessingWriting by Ulf Laessing, Editing by Mark Heinrich, William Maclean)
Governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney will remain in post longer after Brexit to "support continuity" in the economy.

Chancellor Philip Hammond announced the news on Tuesday, saying Mr Carney had agreed to the extension "despite various personal pressures".

The Canadian economist had been due to step down in June 2019, but will now stay on until 31 January 2020.

Mr Hammond said he was "delighted" that Mr Carney would serve seven more months "to support a smooth exit from the EU and provide vital stability for our economy".

In his acceptance letter, the Bank of England governor wrote: "I recognise that during this critical period, it is important that everyone does everything they can to support a smooth and successful Brexit.

"Accordingly, I am willing to do whatever I can in order to promote both a successful Brexit and an effective transition at the Bank of England and I can confirm that I would be honoured to extend my term to January 2020.

"I deeply appreciate your support and that of the Prime Minister.

"It is a privilege to serve as governor at the Bank and I look forward to continuing to work with my exceptional colleagues at the bank as we promote the good of the people of the UK by maintaining monetary and financial stability."

Mr Carney has been attacked by leading Brexiteers for his forecasts and interventions on Brexit.

Last month he warned that the risk of a "no deal" divorce with the EU was "uncomfortably high" and "highly undesirable".

Critics have accused him of contributing to "Project Fear".

More follows...
Eighty firefighters from Montgomery County, Maryland, departed for Columbia, South Carolina, early on September 12 to assist in search and rescue operations that may result from Hurricane Florence.

The firefighters were deployed at the direction of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and departed with boats, rescue supplies and, according to local media, six members of their K9 unit. They were expecting to be in South Carolina for 10 to 14 days, according to a spokesman for Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Pete Piringer. Credit: Montgomery County (MD) Fire and Rescue via Storyful
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The chief executive of Jaguar Land Rover has warned that supply bottlenecks resulting from a "no deal" Brexit could bring to a halt production at the company's UK car plants.

Ralf Speth said that, with JLR producing 3,000 cars daily and relying heavily on "just in time" supply chains where parts are delivered shortly before they are used, he would be "very, very concerned" if there were blockages in the supply of parts.

He told Sky News: "Just one part missing could mean stopping production at a cost of 60m a day. That is a huge risk. We depend on free, frictionless, seamless logistics."

Dr Speth also repeated his warning, made in early July, that a hard Brexit would cost Jaguar Land Rover, the biggest private sector employer in the West Midlands, 1.2bn.

He was speaking at the Zero Emission Vehicle Summit, in Birmingham, which is being attended by the prime minister and other members of the cabinet.

Dr Speth said JLR's Indian owners Tata Motors (BSE: TATAMOTORS.BO - news) , which has invested 50bn in the UK during the last five years, required a good deal more certainty about Britain's trade relationship with Europe before committing more money.

Tata has previously indicated plans to invest 80bn during the next five years.

The company, which makes one in three cars produced in Britain, has three plants that together employ nearly 40,000 people and on which a further 260,000 UK jobs in the supply chain depend.

The largest of its three UK plants, in Solihull, produces 1,500 cars every day using 15 million components.

But Jaguar Land Rover this week reported a quarterly loss of 210m, its first loss for three years, heightening questions about its preparedness to invest further in the UK.

It is in the process of opening a new 1bn plant in Nitra, Slovakia, where its new Land Rover Discovery sport utility vehicle will be built. The Slovakian plant is also expected to be the home of the next generation Land Rover Defender.

Asked whether the new plant was a hedge against a so-called "hard" Brexit, Dr Speth said: "At the end of the day we are British. We are an absolutely British company and we want to stay here."

Story continues

Dr Speth said he had been heartened by comments on Monday from Michel Barnier, the EU's chief Brexit negotiator, that a Brexit deal within "six to eight weeks" was possible.

He said the problem with Conservative critics to the so-called "Chequers proposals" signed off by Theresa May and her cabinet was that they had not proposed any alternatives themselves.

He said he would urge Conservative MPs threatening to vote down the Chequers proposals to think about people working in manufacturing.

He added: "The UK cannot live from financial services and services alone. We need manufacturing in this country."

Some Brexit-supporting Conservative MPs such as Owen Paterson, the former environment secretary, have argued that JLR would be better off under World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules, because it would have access to cheaper parts and components from all over the world.

However, Dr Speth said he was not sure why such an argument was being made, adding: "No one benefits from Brexit, hard or not."

Jaguar Land Rover is one of a number of companies participating at the Zero Emission Vehicle Summit at which Mrs May announced a 106m grant to support research and development in green vehicles, new batteries and low carbon technology.

Dr Speth said electric and autonomous vehicles represented a huge opportunity for Britain but insisted the government needed to collaborate more closely with business to maximise that opportunity.

He said the UK's current infrastructure to charge electric cars was presently not up to scratch and required expansion.

Ministers needed to be passionate about the potential to create a version of Silicon Valley, specialising in electric vehicles, that he called "Midlands Valley".

He added: "We need the government to hold itself to targets just as challenging as those imposed on vehicle manufacturers."
President draws criticism from legislators and womens rights groups for his remarks: AFP/Getty

Tanzanias president has urged women to stop taking birth control and argued they only use contraceptives because they are too lazy to feed a family.

John Magufuli  who has drawn criticism from legislators and womens rights groups for his remarks  told a rally that outsiders who promote birth control are issuing bad advice.

Those going for family planning are lazy ... they are afraid they will not be able to feed their children, he said in Meatu District in the Simiyu Region on Sunday.

They do not want to work hard to feed a large family and that is why they opt for birth controls and end up with one or two children only.

The 58-year-old, who has two children, said women can now give up contraceptive methods and it was important to reproduce.

I have travelled to Europe and elsewhere and have seen the harmful effects of birth control. Some countries are now facing declining population growth. They are short on manpower, he was quoted as saying by The Citizen.

You have cattle. You are big farmers. You can feed your children. Why then resort to birth control? he asked. This is my opinion, I see no reason to control births in Tanzania.

Tanzania, a country in eastern Africa, has a population of around 53 million people. Forty-nine per cent live on less than $2 (1.50) a day.

On average, a woman in Tanzania has more than five children, which is among the highest rates in the world.

On Monday, MPs criticised the president's remarks and said they are not in line with national policy, according to local media.

Cecil Mwambe, an MP, said the country's health insurance system was only able to accommodate a maximum of four children from one family.

Mr Magufuli's speech was fiercely criticised by social media users who argued women have the right to autonomy over their own bodies and choose a method of contraception.

Tanzania has ratified the Maputo Protocol - an African charter of women's rights which states women have the right to control their fertility and chose any method of contraception.

Story continues

Nevertheless, access to services is said to be limited in the country. According to the UN population fund, UNFPA, a third of women in Tanzania use family planning, with access most limited in rural areas.

Mr Magufuli  who has proposed several controversial policies since he was elected in 2015 - made similar remarks in 2016.

After the launch of free primary and secondary education, he said: "Women can now throw away their contraceptives. Education is now free."

Last year he suggested pregnant schoolgirls be barred from carrying on their education after giving birth.

In a separate incident, Tanzania's parliament on Monday banned female legislators from wearing artificial nails and false eyelashes.

Job Ndugai said women wearing either of those items would not be permitted to enter parliament, after a health official said they could give rise to health problems, according to The Citizen.
Detained Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo leave Insein court after listening to the verdict in Yangon FILE PHOTO: Detained Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo leave Insein court after listening to the verdict in Yangon, Myanmar September 3, 2018. REUTERS/Stringer

By Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Eleven Republican and Democratic U.S. senators urged President Donald Trump's administration to "use all tools at your disposal," including imposing more economic sanctions, to ensure "the immediate, unconditional" release of two Reuters journalists imprisoned in Myanmar.

"We write today with great concern regarding the case of two Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who were wrongfully detained and sentenced to seven years in prison in Burma," the senators, led by Republican Marco Rubio and Democrat Jeff Merkley, both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, which was seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

The letter was signed by six Democrats and five Republicans.

The journalists were found guilty on official secrets charges and sentenced earlier this month in a landmark case seen as a test of progress towards democracy in Myanmar. The country, also known as Burma, was ruled by a military junta until 2011.

The government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has come under increasing diplomatic pressure over a security crackdown sparked by attacks by Rohingya Muslim insurgents on security forces in Rakhine State in west Myanmar in August 2017.

The journalists were investigating the killing of Rohingya villagers by security forces at the time of their arrest last December, and had pleaded not guilty.

Their imprisonment has prompted an international outpouring of support, including a call for their release by U.S. Vice President Mike Pence.

The senators said they appreciated Pompeo raising the case in August with Myanmar's foreign minister, Kyaw Tin, and calling for their immediate release, but said there should be further action.

Last month, the United States imposed sanctions on four Myanmar military and police commanders and two army units, accusing them of "ethnic cleansing" against Rohingya Muslims and widespread human rights abuses.

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Mary Milliken and Alistair Bell)




The fuse has been lit today on a potentially explosive row between one of Europe's largest companies and its City shareholders.

Unilever (NYSE: UL - news) , the Anglo-Dutch consumer goods giant behind brands such as Persil, Marmite, Magnum (BSE: MAGNUML.BO - news) and PG Tips, wants to simplify its corporate structure.

It presently has two parent holding companies - Unilever plc, whose shares are listed in London and New York - and Unilever NV, which is based in Rotterdam and whose shares are listed in Amsterdam and New York.

Under the proposals, shares of Unilever plc would be replaced with one new share in Unilever NV, while the two parent holding companies would be replaced simply by Netherlands-based Unilever NV.

Shares (Berlin: DI6.BE - news) of Unilever NV would continue to be traded in London and New York, as well as in Amsterdam, but with a crucial difference to the present arrangement.

For Unilever has conceded that Unilever NV would be "extremely unlikely" to qualify for membership of the FTSE-100 as do the current shares of Unilever plc.

That will force a number of shareholders, mainly the tracker funds who seek to replicate the performance of the FTSE-100, to sell their shares.

As Unilever is one of the largest companies in the Footsie- the combined market capitalisations of Unilever plc and Unilever NV give it a valuation of 124bn, putting it behind only Royal Dutch Shell (LSE: 0LN9.L - news) and HSBC Holdings (Frankfurt: 923893 - news) - there has to be a danger that this will sharply depress the share price, with so many investors heading for the exit at the same time.

Accordingly, this has left a very bad taste in the mouths of many Unilever shareholders, who argue that they are being forced to give up their shares but without any kind of takeover premium - as one would normally expect - being paid.

The alternative to being forced to sell their shares, fund managers point out, is to risk breaking the mandate under which they operate.

Story continues

Unilever stresses that no jobs will be lost as a result of the reorganisation, under which it would no longer be a British company, since its company registration, primary listing and headquarters would be in the Netherlands.

Paul Polman, Unilever's Dutch chief executive, insists the move to one legal entity will give the company greater flexibility, for example, in using its shares as a currency in future acquisitions.

He argues that the reduction of complexity will also strengthen Unilever's corporate governance.

Yet many in the City smell a rat. In February last year, Unilever received an unwanted $143bn takeover approach from Kraft, the US consumer goods giant still notorious on these shores for its 11bn takeover of Cadbury just under a decade ago.

Kraft's interest was easily repelled, but the move gave Unilever's board the shock of its life, immediately sparking big changes in the way the company is run .

Becoming a purely Dutch company will protect Unilever from future bids like Kraft's because Dutch firms enjoy greater protection from takeovers than British ones. That, UK investors suspect, is the real reason for this reorganisation.

Unilever has also argued that there is greater turnover of shares in Unilever NV than there is in Unilever plc - making the Dutch class of share the obvious one in the reorganisation.

That overlooks the fact that the London stock market is substantially bigger than its counterpart in Amsterdam and that the greater number of shares in Unilever NV actually change hands in London.

What makes this decision really interesting is that Relx (Frankfurt: RDEB.F - news) , the Anglo-Dutch business information company, has just carried out a similar simplification of its shares.

The only difference is that Relx, formed in 1992 from the merger of British publisher Reed International and Dutch firm Elsevier (Amsterdam: REN.AS - news) , has opted for Relx plc shares to be the sole class of share going forward.

Meanwhile, Royal Dutch Shell, the other big Anglo-Dutch corporate giant, has its company headquarters in the Netherlands, but the primary listing for its shares is in London.

This issue has attracted far more attention in the Netherlands than it has in the UK - because the Dutch prime minister, Mark Rutte, has eased the way for Unilever by proposing to abolish the country's 15% withholding tax on company dividends.

Ironically, this merely brings the Netherlands into line with the UK's taxation regime, but is widely regarded as having helped influence Unilever's decision.

However, it has also kicked up a political stink in the Netherlands, with many people unhappy at what they see as a generous tax cut to big business. It is possible Mr Rutte may yet fail to get the legislation through the Dutch parliament.

And Unilever may also yet fail to get this measure passed by its investors. Shareholders of Unilever NV will vote on the proposals on 25 October with shareholders of Unilever plc giving their verdict the following day. Unilever requires the support of three-quarters of the latter for the measure to go ahead.

With (Other OTC: WWTH - news) many British investors up in arms at what they see as an effective takeover of their company, without them receiving any compensation, it could be close.
Home safety product developer and supplier FireAngel has signed an exclusive partnering agreement with housing and care support services provider Mears, it announced on Wednesday.

The AIM-traded firm said that under the terms of the agreement, the company would supply Mears with an integrated connected home management system.

It said the system would use FireAngel's Wi-Safe 2 wireless interlink technology to connect its smoke, heat and carbon monoxide alarms to a cloud-based system, for remote monitoring by, and instant notifications delivered to, Mears.

The system would include a touch screen smart panel, and a home automation hub, which would be sold to Mears' clients, that enabled continuous monitoring by Mears of the company's alarms located within Mears' clients' properties, ensuring timely updates and notifications.

Mears also agreed to introduce FireAngel's UK trade team to a number of its clients in the housing sector with immediate effect.

Under the agreement, FireAngel would become the preferred safety product provider for Mears, fitting FireAngel smoke, heat and carbon monoxide alarms across its UK property portfolio.

FireAngel and Mears would jointly develop the bespoke interface required to integrate the system with Mears' management control system, FireAngel explained.

It said it would charge Mears a monthly subscription fee per connection, giving it a recurring revenue stream and increased visibility on its future revenues.

Mears had committed to deliver a minimum number of connections during the term of the minimum three-year agreement.

The system would be accessed via a wall-mounted touchscreen tablet, and would allow the tenants of Mears' clients' properties to review safety information, report service issues to, and schedule maintenance appointments with Mears.

FireAngel also said the system would enable Mears' clients to streamline maintenance management processes by facilitating direct interaction with tenants when seeking to arrange repairs and maintenance visits.

Alongside the Wi-Safe 2 network, the system would utilise Z-Wave1 wireless communication technology, providing the potential for the system in future to connect with other devices and offer additional functionality.

The system would also include FireAngel Predict - FireAngel's patent pending, predictive algorithm technology.

Using a combination of the company's cloud-based technology alongside its predictive algorithm, data from properties would be gathered in real time over the internet, allowing FireAngel Predict to identify those properties with an increased risk of fire.

Once those properties had been identified, appropriate action could be taken ahead of a potential event occurring.

Following significant research and development investment, I am pleased to announce our collaboration with Mears, which takes our smart, connected and existing products into the heart of the UK social housing sector, said FireAngel executive chairman Graham Whitworth.

By integrating our technological expertise in the home safety sector into Mears' solution, we believe that FireAngel can significantly enhance the quality of service and support through a range of connected safety monitoring devices for housing tenants across the UK.

We see the system as the enabling technology that will allow FireAngel to capitalise on the wealth of opportunities in the UK trade sector and generate increased sales of our higher value trade alarms and devices.

David Miles, chief executive of Mears, added that his company was very pleased to have signed the partnership agreement with FireAngel.

There are real safety, commercial and financial benefits to optimising our interaction with tenants and reducing the number of unanswered visits from our maintenance teams, Miles explained.

We are witnessing a transition to integrated technologies and the FireAngel system will enable us to centralise those technologies into one central hub.

We look forward to introducing the FireAngel solution to our clients across the footprint.
Clean water technology company MyCelx Technologies Corporation issued its interim unaudited results for the six months ended 30 June on Wednesday, reporting a 107% increase in revenue year-on-year to $12.2m.

The AIM-traded firm said its EBITDA surged to $2.7m for the period, up from $0.3m at the same time last year, while it swung to a net profit of $1.5m, from a net loss of $0.5m 12 months ago.

Its gross profit margin dropped to 51.4% from 52.2%, however.

On the operational front, MyCelx said its contract awards in the period reflected the renewal of successful long-term installations, the initial results from its targeted business development efforts in the Middle East and North Africa region, and the opening of new markets.

Looking ahead, MyCelx said it was looking to maintain its strong momentum by leveraging business relationships and successful installations in the Middle East to continue to grow its footprint throughout the MENA region.

It said it would also use its successfully-produced water installation in Nigeria as a reference site to secure more projects in that country, and would continue to focus on EOR-produced water trials in Canada and Europe, which lead to equipment and recurring media sales.

The company said it would also continue to work with Schlumberger's global sales and marketing, targeting unconventional markets.

Momentum grew in Saudi Arabia with a series of contract wins adding to our existing installation base within SABIC, the leading petrochemical company, said MyCelx chief executive officer Connie Mixon.

In addition to our SABIC success, the company made its first equipment sale into the LNG market in Australia and our recurring media sales to legacy customers remained robust.

Looking forward, our focus will be on sustaining momentum by converting our pipeline of opportunities in Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and North America which should keep us in line with current market expectations.

Mixon said the firm would also continue its proven strategy of engaging new customers for trials.

We have secured trials at several opportunities in Canada and Europe for our proprietary RE-GEN media as the oil price recovery has led to reinvigoration of Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) opportunities.

Our successful trials, together with strategic partnerships such as Schlumberger, Saudi Waste Management companies and Polymer Flood specialists help to increase industry recognition of our differentiating technology and the superior performance it brings to our customers.
Cell-based therapeutics developer ReNeuron Group updated the market on its trading on Wednesday, as investors gathered for the firms annual general meeting, announcing that following recent co-ordinating ethics committee approval, the first clinical site has now been initiated in the US Phase IIb study with its CTX cell therapy candidate for stroke disability.

The AIM-traded firm said the first patient was expected to be enrolled shortly.

It said the study, designated PISCES III, was a randomised, placebo-controlled clinical trial in 110 patients.

The primary end-point of the PISCES III study was the proportion of patients in the treated and placebo arms showing a clinically important improvement on the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) at six months post-treatment compared with baseline.

The mRS is a global measure of disability or dependence upon others in carrying out activities of daily living and is accepted by regulatory authorities as an appropriate end-point for marketing approval in stroke disability, ReNeurons board said in its statement.

To date, more than half of the planned 40 clinical sites had been approved for participation in the PISCES III study.

Subject to meeting patient recruitment targets, the company said it expected top-line data from the study slightly later than planned, in early 2020.

We expect the PISCES III study to be one of two pivotal studies required to support a marketing authorisation for the therapy in this indication.

The company also noted that on 11 July, it announced the signing of an exclusivity agreement with a US-based specialty pharmaceutical company relating to the potential out-licensing of its hRPC retinal technology and therapeutic programmes.

In exchange for granting a three-month exclusivity period, ReNeuron said it received a non-refundable $2.5m payment from the US-based company, with a further $2.5m due, subject to the completion of certain ongoing due diligence activities during the exclusivity period.

As it had previously reported, ReNeuron said it aimed to sign a definitive agreement with the third party concerned later in the year, subject to agreement of final contractual terms.

As it also announced in July, ReNeuron was in active discussions with a number of third parties relating to its other platform technologies and programmes, with a view to potential collaboration or out-licensing deals in due course.

These potential deals, if successfully concluded, will provide strong third party validation to our technologies and programmes as well as a source of significant non-dilutive funding to the company, the board said.

In its preliminary results announcement in July, the firm stated that it was working on a revised formulation of its hRPC drug product to optimise subretinal injection and subsequent disbursement of the hRPC cells, ahead of dosing of the remaining patients in the ongoing Phase I/II study with its hRPC cell therapy candidate in retinitis pigmentosa (RP).

ReNeuron said the study, which was being undertaken at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston, was an open-label, dose escalation study to evaluate the safety, tolerability and preliminary efficacy of its hRPC stem cell therapy candidate in patients with advanced RP.

We have now successfully developed an optimised formulation of the hRPC drug product for subretinal implantation and we are currently completing final comparability testing of this formulation prior to deploying it the Phase I/II study, ReNeuron confirmed on Wednesday.

As previously reported, we are also extending the study in order to expand the safety database in patients with less impaired vision than those treated thus far.

Based on this, the company expects short term readouts from the Phase I/II study in mid-2019, with a Phase IIb study planned to commence shortly thereafter.

Pre-clinical development work was also continuing with ExoPr0 - its first CTX-derived exosome therapeutic candidate.

The company described exosomes as nanoparticles secreted from cells, including its proprietary CTX stem cell line.

It said exosomes played a key role in cell-to-cell signalling, and early research with ExoPr0 had reportedly demonstrated its potential as both a novel therapeutic candidate and as a drug delivery vehicle.

ReNeuron said it was continuing to build the pre-clinical data package for ExoPr0, and had started discussions with regulatory authorities regarding the potential regulatory pathway to the clinic for ExoPr0.

Subject to continued success with ongoing preclinical development work, it said it hoped to be able to begin clinical development with ExoPr0 during 2019, targeting a solid tumour cancer indication.

Our therapeutic development programmes continue to progress to plan and we are particularly excited to have initiated the first clinical site in the US Phase IIb clinical trial with our CTX cell therapy candidate for stroke disability, said ReNeuron chief executive officer Olav Helleb.

We are also encouraged by the progress we are making in our partnering discussions.

We hope to be able to conclude a definitive and substantial out-licensing agreement for our hRPC retinal stem cell technology later this year.
AIM-listed Solid State said on Wednesday that its distribution division, Solid State Supplies, has been awarded a $3.2m long-term supply agreement with the UKs "leading" international defence, aerospace and security company.

The award follows the recent announcement of a distribution franchise for VPT, a leading global provider of power conversion solutions for the rapid deployment of critical power systems in avionics, military and space applications.

The award is for the supply of military grade power supplies over a period of three years with deliveries expected to commence in the latter part of the current calendar year.

John Macmichael, Managing Director of Solid State Supplies, said: "We were very pleased to win the VPT franchise earlier this year believing that we could further develop its potential in the niche military and aerospace markets.

"This contract with this significant defence, aerospace and security company demonstrates our ability to increase sales for manufacturers wanting to target specialist end user markets."

At 1255 BST, the shares were up 3.8% to 327p.
With Hurricane Florence whipped up to a Category 4 storm as it approaches the US eastern seaboard, analysts and investors saw potential hits incoming for the insurance and tobacco sectors.

The US National Weather Service has issued hurricane warning for more than 300 miles of coastline, with mandatory evacuation orders in coastal areas of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia, with landfall expected to be made on Thursday or Friday.

Were as ready as anybodys ever been, President Trump said at the White House overnighit.

However, with North Carolina the top US tobacco-producing state, crops are in danger of rotting even for the two thirds of crops that have already been harvested, due to power cuts, according to experts, with flooding a major danger for those plants still in the ground.

Matthew Vann, a tobacco specialist at North Carolina State University, told Bloomberg that crop losses could reach as high as $300m, assuming a 100% loss of whats still in the field, Vann said.

Altria, the parent of Marlborough maker Philip Morris, told Reuters the storm could potentially affect tobacco fields, and is exploring its crop-buying options to offset any losses.

Imperial Tobacco and British American Tobacco shares both were looking soggier this week.

Meanwhile, JPMorgan's property and casualty insurance team estimated that reinsurance losses could be in the range of $8-20bn, although UK analysts saw "negligible impact" for European reinsurers.

After JPMorgan Cazenove's US colleagues put out their loss estimate overnight, analysts at UK arm Cazenove said the stocks its covers would be hard hit in the coming third quarter.

Assuming the $20bn high-end estimate, this would be "well below" third-quarter earnings, forecast to represent 51% of pre-tax profit for Munich, 23% of BOP operating profit for Zurich and 10% of operating profit for Allianz.

In terms of book value, Caz estimated estimate 1.2% for Munich, 0.7% for Zurich and 0.4% for Allianz.

"These are relatively modest numbers and we believe would have negligible impact on our dividend and buyback forecasts for these groups, particularly given the absence of Atlantic hurricanes so far."

North Carolina's farmlands are predominantly given over to poultry and livestock farming, including 12% of the US swine herd and large amounts of dairy and poultry.
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Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 348173

09-12-2018 03:44 AM











Post: #1 Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

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One of the machines was found outside the Fairfield apartment complex in Medford, while another was found near a bus stop in Coram. The third was found near the Coram Commons Shopping Center. Two of the machines were already partly destroyed by vandals before the police got to them.



Quote: "Who in their right mind would even do something like that  to enable and to encourage somebody to do this?" Tony Gallo, a Coram resident, recently told Q13 Fox.

"Did they really think they were gonna get away with this?" he added.



Resident Scott Malz took a video of one of the dispensers and shared it on Facebook Saturday.











https://sputniknews.com/society/20180912...rk-county/



https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...oblem.html Police in Suffolk County, New York, are trying to figure out who installed crack pipe vending machines on public property after three such machines, dubbed pen vending machines, were recently found in the area.One of the machines was found outside the Fairfield apartment complex in Medford, while another was found near a bus stop in Coram. The third was found near the Coram Commons Shopping Center. Two of the machines were already partly destroyed by vandals before the police got to them."Did they really think they were gonna get away with this?" he added.Resident Scott Malz took a video of one of the dispensers and shared it on Facebook Saturday. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 408320

09-12-2018 03:45 AM











Post: #2 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

So this is how the Dems are funding their races. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 461655

09-12-2018 03:46 AM











Post: #3 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

With all those cameras around? LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 348173

09-12-2018 03:48 AM











Post: #4 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:46 AM) With all those cameras around?

Crazy aye Crazy aye Angel Face

~La Princesa~

User ID: 328342

09-12-2018 03:48 AM



Posts: 14,400









Post: #5 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:46 AM) With all those cameras around?

that was my thought... we are always being watched that was my thought... we are always being watched I can feel your paranoia through the screen.

 LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 461671

09-12-2018 03:50 AM











Post: #6 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

misery loves company LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 348173

09-12-2018 03:51 AM











Post: #7 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 03:50 AM) misery loves company

Sure does Sure does sIcKaNdTwIsTeD

Registered User

User ID: 461354

09-12-2018 04:31 AM



Posts: 36









Post: #8 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

I vote we legalize crack. 'Politicians are like diapers; they need to be changed often and for the same reason.' - Mark Twain. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 461682

09-12-2018 04:56 AM











Post: #9 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

They put one of those in the mod break room back in 2014.



And it's obviously still there. ABCDEF_Jesus

Dominios Pizza

User ID: 419933

09-12-2018 05:59 AM



Posts: 3,332









Post: #10 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

Some people are too paranoid to buy their little miniature rose vases from the gasstation clerk. Oh that says crack not crank.



People still smoke crack? Well I guess some people are too paranoid to buy their glass pen tubes and choir boy scrubbers from the gasstation clerk.



Dont tell me cops and loppers are too stupid to realize what all that sh*t around the cash register is. (This post was last modified: 09-12-2018 06:03 AM by ABCDEF_Jesus .) LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 456628

09-12-2018 06:08 AM











Post: #11 RE: Crack Pipe Vending Machines Mysteriously Appear in New York County

you all willingly accept your programming .

an unused pipe may be called a "crackpipe" .

it also may be called a "pipe" .

until used and containing residue it is a "pipe" .

the only difference between a test tube and a "crackpipe" is the label .

glass tubes are not illegal in any country .
















Stocks on the Continent finished the session with moderate gains buoyed by news that Washington had extended an olive branch to China in their ongoing trade spat.

Among other things, that helped to offset the drag from political squabbling in Italy over the 2019 budget.

According to the Journal, the US is giving China another opportunity to address outstanding issues between the two countries before it implements new levies on goods made in the Asian giant.

Nevertheless, IG's Josh Mahony cautioned: "Yesterdays move by the Chinese to push the WTO into enacting tariffs on the US are likely to be too slow given the processes involved and thus there is no doubt that the Chinese are seeking some form of retaliation in an ever-intensifying trade war. Should further discussions go ahead, there is likely to be a growing feeling that if the two sides do not progress in a positive manner, then this trade war could play out for a long time yet."

Against that backdrop, by the end of trading the FTSE Mibtel was ahead by 0.52% or 109.16 points to 20,963.00, after having traded sharply lower at on point during the session following an abrupt intra-day spike in longer-term Italian bond yields.

In parallel, the benchmark Stoxx 600 was ahead by 0.47% or 1.77 points at 377.08, alongside an advance of 0.52% or 62.03 points to 12,032.30 for the German Dax and a gain of 0.91% or 48.34 points to 5,332.13 on the Cac-40.

On Tuesday, Italian deputy prime minister, Luigi di Maio, warned the government would run into trouble if his political party's, the 5-Star Movement, proposal for a 'citizenship wage' was not included in the 2019 budget law, ANSA reported.

However, come Wednesday, reports citing the prime minister denied that the 5 Star was calling for the finance minister, Giovanni Tria's head if it did not get its way.

From a sector stand-point, better than expected figures on lending in China referencing the month of August helped to buoy firms in the Basic Resources space, with the corresponding Stoxx 600 sector gauge climbing by 5.53 points or 1.34% to 419.69.

Oil&Gas shares also provided a boost to the main indices, with that Stoxx 600 sector sub-index climbing by 1.60% or 5.46 points to 346.52 as traders reacted to lower-than-expected weekly US inventory figures.

In the background, and amid ongoing allegations of fraud against top League officials, ex-President Sergio Mattarella was giving a speech emphasising that no one was above the law.

Meanwhile, in economic news, and according to Eurostat, Eurozone industrial production was reported at down by 0.8% month-on-month in July (consensus: -0.3%), despite a 0.8% jump in the output of capital goods.
Stocks on the Continent are holding slightly higher for the most part, but Italian shares are lagging their peers after one of the country's deputy prime ministers on Tuesday threatened "troubles" ahead for the coalition government if sufficient funds were not found to finance his party's campaign promise of a basic income for all Italians.

On Tuesday, Italian deputy prime minister, Luigi di Maio, warned the government would run into trouble if his political party's, the 5-Star Movement, proposal for a 'citizenship wage' was not included in the 2019 budget law, ANSA reported.

Come Wednesday, reports citing the prime minister's denied that the 5 Star was calling for the finance minister, Giovanni Tria's head if it did not get its way.

But the damage had been done and as of 1230 BST, the FTSE Mibtel was underwater, dragged down by an abrupt intra-day spike in longer-term Italian bond yields, with that on the 10-year BTP trading up by three basis points to 2.97%, versus a session low of 2.89%.

In parallel, the benchmark Stoxx 600 was ahead by 0.24% or 0.89 points at 376.20, alongside an advance of 0.17% or 21.31 points to 11,991.58 for the German Dax and a gain of 0.45% or 23.57 points to 5,307.36 on the Cac-40.

In the background, and amid ongoing allegations of fraud against top League officials, ex-President Sergio Mattarella was giving a speech emphasising that no one was above the law.

Meanwhile, in economic news, and according to Eurostat, Eurozone industrial production was reported at down by 0.8% month-on-month in July (consensus: -0.3%), despite a 0.8% jump in the output of capital goods.
The FTSE 100 was called to open one point lower at 7,072, with trade relations firmly in focus yet again after it emerged that China will ask the World Trade Organization for permission to impose sanctions on the US next week.

CMC Markets analyst David Madden said: "The Beijing administration are claiming the US didnt comply with a ruling regarding dumping duties in 2013. It has also been reported that the Chinese government have been putting off accepting licence applications from US companies operating in China, and this is seen as another way of getting back at President Trump. Relations between the US and China were strained in advance of this news, and they are likely to deteriorate further.

"Mr Trump has hundreds of billions of dollars worth of tariffs up his sleeve, and dealers are fearful they will be imposed. The US leader doesnt want to be seen as weak, and provocations could get a reaction from him. While the two sides hold their ground, dealers will remain cautious."

In corporate news, SSE warned that first-half profits are likely to have halved compared to last year due to higher costs and lower volumes of energy being consumed.

After five months of its financial year, the FTSE 100 group said full-year adjusted operating profit at its Energy Services arm were likely to be significantly lower than predicted at the start of the year ahead of its spin-off and merger with Npower.

Galliford Try posted a jump in full-year profit and revenue as completions rose and the housebuilder said it was making "excellent" progress towards its strategic objectives across all three businesses.

In the year to 30 June, pre-tax profit surged 145% to 143.7m on revenue of 3.13bn, up 11% on the previous year.

Rare diseases specialist Shire announced that the European Commission has granted marketing authorisation for VEYVONDI for the treatment of bleeding events and the treatment and prevention of surgical bleeding in adults with von Willebrand disease, when desmopressin treatment alone was ineffective or not indicated.

The FTSE 100 drugmaker said VEYVONDI was the first and only recombinant von Willebrand Factor treatment in the EU for von Willebrand disease that specifically addressed the primary deficiency or dysfunction of von Willebrand Factor, while also allowing the body to restore and maintain adequate Factor VIII plasma levels.
Superdry has appointed the former head of global womenswear for Tommy Hilfiger, Brigitte Danielmeyer, to the newly-created role of chief product officer.

The company said the new role will help to "drive the creative innovation capabilities" of the brand. It also announced the launch of Superdry Preview, a series of new disruptive fast-fashion ranges.

The group said Danielmeyer has deep experience of brand, product, design, retail and e-commerce built through a 22-year career in fashion, which has also included senior roles at Esprit and German premium accessories brand Liebeskind Berlin.

She will sit on the Executive Committee and report to chief executive officer Euan Sutherland.

Sutherland said: "We are delighted to have attracted an individual of Brigitte's calibre for this important new role. She combines global design experience with an acute commercial edge. Her experience, particularly at Tommy Hilfiger, will help us as we continue to deliver our successful Global Digital Brand strategy. She joins an experienced and ambitious executive team with some of the most forward thinking leaders in the sector today."

At 0815 BST, the shares were up 0.7% to 1,156p.
Tesco is set to launch its discount chain Jacks next week in a move to take on rivals Aldi and Lidl.

The first of the stores, named after founder Jack Cohen, will be unveiled by CEO Dave Lewis on Wednesday.

Tesco, like many mainstream supermarkets is moving into the growing discount market following the steps of its German rivals Aldi and Lidl.

Lewis already launched low price "farm" brands with names such as Redmere, Woodside and Willow which are also expected to be sold in Jacks.

Shore Capital analyst Clive Black said on Wednesday the new chain could reach 100 stores, including 60 of its small 'Metro' supermarkets: "Tesco has a cohort of problem stores where the traditional Tesco offer is a square peg in a round hole. They have got low footfall and low income hinterlands and Aldi and Lidl are taking everyones legs away."

During the summer months, Tesco started recruiting staff for a "new store format" in Chatteris but most people working there, including suppliers, have been forced to sign non-disclosure agreements.

Tesco previously tried the discount route in the 1980s with Victor Value, but the move failed after four years because of fears it might hurt the main brand.
On Sept. 17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a group of 39 delegates representing 12 states signed a document that they thought optimistically might last a generation and would satisfy the immediate needs of a new nation. This year the U.S. Constitution, which has inspired the creation of democracies around the world, marks 231 years.

To mark the occasion, University of North Georgia (UNG) President Bonita Jacobs proclaimed Sept. 17 as Constitution Day across the university's five campuses.

"It is fitting and proper to officially recognize this document that is the foundation of the U.S. government and represents the ideals of life, liberty and freedom. The University of North Georgia commemorates this historic day through educational activities and by encouraging civic engagement among our students, faculty and staff," Jacobs wrote in the proclamation. "I  ask our faculty, staff and students to reaffirm the ideals the framers of the Constitution had in 1787."

Jeffrey Yaun of Buford, Georgia, president of the Politically Incorrect Club on UNG's Gainesville Campus, said Constitution Day is an important reminder of a document that is the framework for our nation.

"It is not necessarily a visible part of our daily lives and it is easy to forget what it really is, or how it came to be," said the senior who is majoring in psychology. "Constitution Day presents us an opportunity to re-emphasize the importance of our nation's framework and bolster the informed citizenry necessary to maintain a free and democratic society."

Students, professors and organizations in UNGs Department of Political Science and International Affairs are partnering with other groups to hold Constitution Day events.

On Sept. 17, the Gainesville Student Government Association and the History Club, with assistance from the Politically Incorrect Club, will hold a Constitution Day event from noon to 1 p.m. in the Student Center commons and stage area. The groups will hand out U.S. Constitution booklets and voter registration forms. The brochures contain the Constitution, and have the American Declaration of Independence and many quotes from various Founding Fathers.

Yaun also noted the many ways that, even if we don't realize it, the U.S. Constitution affects our daily lives.

"The Commerce Clause gives the federal government the authority to oversee interstate commerce, and Sections 8/10 maintain a national currency rather than individual state currencies," Yaun said. "Imagine trying to purchase something on Amazon.com from Arizona if you had to deal with currency exchange rates and tariffs on its transport. Many people could probably point to an impact on their daily life from the First Amendment, but what about the Fourth? The proscription of warrant-less search and seizure keeps us free from government overreach into our homes and persons and is the source of what is commonly referred to as the 'right to privacy.'"

It's that right to privacy that was the subject of a Sept. 12 Crossfire discussion hosted by the Political Science Student Association on the Dahlonega Campus, which explored the topic "Freedom versus Security." The Sept. 19 Crossfire discussion with guest speaker Dr. Scott Meachum, assistant professor of political science at UNG, will focus on one of the four freedoms outlined in the First Amendment: "Free Speech on Campus." The discussion starts at noon in the second-floor lobby of Young Hall.

On Sept. 17 on the Oconee Campus, the American Democracy Project (ADP) will welcome Superior Court Judge David Sweat at noon in Room 522 to discuss "Should We Rewrite the Constitution?" ADP is a multi-campus initiative focused on higher education's role in preparing the next generation of informed, engaged citizens for the democracy. ADP's goal is to produce graduates who are committed to being active, involved citizens in their communities.

Also on Sept. 17, students on the Cumming Campus can attend a Crossfire discussion from noon to 1 p.m. in Room 125. The Blue Ridge Campus will be holding voter registration drives on Sept. 17 for its students.
A group of activists opposing a controversial casino ballot measure has asked the Arkansas Supreme Court to strike the measure from an upcoming November ballot. A proposed constitutional amendment would give Arkansas the authority to issue four licenses to casinos throughout The Natural State, but a group called Ensuring Arkansas Future has petitioned the state Supreme Court to refrain from voting at all on the pro-casino issue.

For the activist group campaigning against the proposed constitutional amendment, victory would come by convincing the state Supreme Court to refrain from voting on the proposed amendment, and they ultimately seek to keep it off the ballot in the upcoming November elections.

Activists want the issue off the ballot

Pope County, Jefferson County, Crittenden County, and Garland County all have applicants vying to get licensing for what could be a very lucrative casino operation, per the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Activists fighting against the ballot measure claim that its deceptive title will trick Arkansas into voting for it without knowing the consequences. Other pro-casino groups refute that claim and assert that those challenging this are being disingenuous.

"This lawsuit is not only meritless, but disingenuous, Nate Steel, counsel for two pro-casino groups, told the Gazette. We have no doubt that [the ballot initiative] will withstand this legal challenge, he continued.

Those who are resisting efforts to strip the pro-casino measure from the ballot have extensive financial ties to local indigenous groups. According to the Idaho Statesman, the pro-casino measure group Driving Arkansas Forward has already accumulated some $2.2 million from local tribes like the Quapaw and Cherokee.

Discuss this news on Eunomia

Experience needed

The proposed amendment to the states constitution would necessitate that applicants for casino licenses demonstrate legitimate experience in online casino gambling ventures, among other requirements. Applicants would also pay a fee to state authorities and would need to find a county judge willing to submit a letter of support for the license.

Pro-casino groups estimate that the ballot measure, if successfully passed, could raise some $66 million every year for the state. Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson has publicly opposed the amendment, pledging that he intends to vote no on the issue should it persist and show up on the ballot despite the legal challenges.
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Page: 1 2 Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions ! The Ghost Of LOP

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09-12-2018 09:08 AM



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Post: #1 Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

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Russian President Vladimir Putin offered Japanese leader Shinzo Abe a peace treaty between the two countries without preconditions by the end of the year

The two leaders met on Wednesday at the Eastern Economic Forum taking place in Vladivostok in Russias Far East.



Lets conclude a peace treaty  not now but by the end of the year, without any preconditions, Putin said.



DETAILS TO FOLLOW



more:

https://www.rt.com/news/438235-putin-jap...ce-treaty/ I am so confused !!! Russian President Vladimir Putin offered Japanese leader Shinzo Abe a peace treaty between the two countries without preconditions by the end of the yearThe two leaders met on Wednesday at the Eastern Economic Forum taking place in Vladivostok in Russias Far East.Lets conclude a peace treaty  not now but by the end of the year, without any preconditions, Putin said.DETAILS TO FOLLOWmore:I am so confused !!! (This post was last modified: 09-12-2018 09:08 AM by The Ghost Of LOP .) LoP Guest

lop guest

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09-12-2018 09:18 AM











Post: #2 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

Were they foes ? LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 408320

09-12-2018 09:19 AM











Post: #3 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

Not a good sign. The Ghost Of LOP

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09-12-2018 09:19 AM



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Post: #4 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 09:18 AM) Were they foes ?

I think they was some disagreements over some islands I think they was some disagreements over some islands I am so confused !!! TheKeyling

lop guest

User ID: 444579

09-12-2018 09:20 AM











Post: #5 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 09:19 AM) Not a good sign.

No for the USA, no. No for the USA, no. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 408320

09-12-2018 09:20 AM











Post: #6 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

TheKeyling Wrote: (09-12-2018 09:20 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 09:19 AM) Not a good sign.

No for the USA, no.

Nope. Nope. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 408320

09-12-2018 09:24 AM











Post: #7 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !





When he assumed the office of prime minister for a second time in late 2012, Abe was determined to see movement on the territorial dispute, which would allow for a peace treaty to be signed between their two countries at long last. But diplomatic efforts fell victim to the larger geopolitical situation. After the Russian annexation of Crimea and continued military involvement in eastern Ukraine, Japan felt obligated to support U.S. sanctions on Moscow. That, in turn, poisoned the well of what had been promising signs in Japan-Russia relations. After meeting ten times from 2012 to 2014, Abe and Putin didnt hold their eleventh meeting until yesterday."



https://thediplomat.com/2015/09/putin-to...ace-talks/ "Japan and Russia never formally signed a peace treaty to end World War II, thanks to a lingering territorial dispute over what Russia calls the Kuril Islands and Japan calls the Northern Territories. The then-Soviet Union annexed the islands in the final days of World War II.When he assumed the office of prime minister for a second time in late 2012, Abe was determined to see movement on the territorial dispute, which would allow for a peace treaty to be signed between their two countries at long last. But diplomatic efforts fell victim to the larger geopolitical situation. After the Russian annexation of Crimea and continued military involvement in eastern Ukraine, Japan felt obligated to support U.S. sanctions on Moscow. That, in turn, poisoned the well of what had been promising signs in Japan-Russia relations. After meeting ten times from 2012 to 2014, Abe and Putin didnt hold their eleventh meeting until yesterday." LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 460982

09-12-2018 09:25 AM











Post: #8 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

Does that mean that Russia will return the Southern Kurils / Northern Territories seized during the WWII back to Japan?



Without that, Putin's offer is just an empty PR gesture. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 408320

09-12-2018 09:35 AM











Post: #9 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 09:25 AM) Does that mean that Russia will return the Southern Kurils / Northern Territories seized during the WWII back to Japan?



Without that, Putin's offer is just an empty PR gesture.

"The two countries are currently in consultations on issues of joint economic activities in southern Kuril Islands. It is planned to carry out joint activities in five areas, namely aquaculture, greenhouses, tourism, wind energy, and waste recycling. Such activities are seen by the sides as a step towards a peace treaty between Russia and Japan. However, according to the Japanese side, the sides have different approaches to how such projects should to be implemented. Russia thinks it should be done under its laws, while Japan insists on creating a special legal system in the region.



Russia and Japan have been in talks to sign a peace treaty since the mid-20th century. The main stumbling block to achieving this is the ownership of the Southern Kuril Islands. After the end of World War II, the Kuril Islands were incorporated into the Soviet Union. However, the ownership of Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan Islands and the Habomai Islands is being challenged by Japan. The Russian Foreign Ministry has stated on numerous occasions that Russias sovereignty over the islands cannot be challenged."



http://tass.com/economy/1017553 "The two countries are currently in consultations on issues of joint economic activities in southern Kuril Islands. It is planned to carry out joint activities in five areas, namely aquaculture, greenhouses, tourism, wind energy, and waste recycling. Such activities are seen by the sides as a step towards a peace treaty between Russia and Japan. However, according to the Japanese side, the sides have different approaches to how such projects should to be implemented. Russia thinks it should be done under its laws, while Japan insists on creating a special legal system in the region.Russia and Japan have been in talks to sign a peace treaty since the mid-20th century. The main stumbling block to achieving this is the ownership of the Southern Kuril Islands. After the end of World War II, the Kuril Islands were incorporated into the Soviet Union. However, the ownership of Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan Islands and the Habomai Islands is being challenged by Japan. The Russian Foreign Ministry has stated on numerous occasions that Russias sovereignty over the islands cannot be challenged." singing spider

terrarising the 'hood

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09-12-2018 11:28 AM



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Post: #10 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 09:35 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 09:25 AM) Does that mean that Russia will return the Southern Kurils / Northern Territories seized during the WWII back to Japan?



Without that, Putin's offer is just an empty PR gesture.

"The two countries are currently in consultations on issues of joint economic activities in southern Kuril Islands. It is planned to carry out joint activities in five areas, namely aquaculture, greenhouses, tourism, wind energy, and waste recycling. Such activities are seen by the sides as a step towards a peace treaty between Russia and Japan. However, according to the Japanese side, the sides have different approaches to how such projects should to be implemented. Russia thinks it should be done under its laws, while Japan insists on creating a special legal system in the region.



Russia and Japan have been in talks to sign a peace treaty since the mid-20th century. The main stumbling block to achieving this is the ownership of the Southern Kuril Islands. After the end of World War II, the Kuril Islands were incorporated into the Soviet Union. However, the ownership of Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan Islands and the Habomai Islands is being challenged by Japan. The Russian Foreign Ministry has stated on numerous occasions that Russias sovereignty over the islands cannot be challenged."



http://tass.com/economy/1017553

this and the new friendliness towards China is part of Russia's development of the east, Siberia and such

up to now it is mostly uncharted wilderness

but it's packed with natural resources

Russia needs connections to the eastern neighborhood to develop their Asian east this and the new friendliness towards China is part of Russia's development of the east, Siberia and suchup to now it is mostly uncharted wildernessbut it's packed with natural resourcesRussia needs connections to the eastern neighborhood to develop their Asian east

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=92i5m3tV5XY



nobody starts at point zero Archangel

Michael

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09-12-2018 12:18 PM



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Post: #11 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

The Mission Statement of our Group is:



"To create a world living in Peace and working in Mutual Cooperation".



It's pleasing to see each step toward creating a world operating within those parameters.



. Natura Naturans

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09-12-2018 05:01 PM



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Post: #12 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

Archangel Wrote: (09-12-2018 12:18 PM) The Mission Statement of our Group is:



"To create a world living in Peace and working in Mutual Cooperation".



It's pleasing to see each step toward creating a world operating within those parameters.



.

The Russia, Chinese, Brics, push for a "multipolar" world, freedom from coercion by the US. It's happening, as Turkey joins the Brics. It is inevitable that the US empire dissolve without the US petrodollar. The Russia, Chinese, Brics, push for a "multipolar" world, freedom from coercion by the US. It's happening, as Turkey joins the Brics. It is inevitable that the US empire dissolve without the US petrodollar. The highest activity a human being can attain is learning for understanding, because to understand is to be free. --Baruch Spinoza Organicnongmoaware

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Post: #13 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

Hahaha Whatever I post online is for entertainment only Organicnongmoaware

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09-12-2018 05:09 PM



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Post: #14 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

Told ya .... Russia gonna get china Whatever I post online is for entertainment only Roddy's Creed

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Post: #15 RE: Breaking: Putin offers Japan peace treaty with no conditions !

The Ghost Of LOP Wrote: (09-12-2018 09:08 AM)



Russian President Vladimir Putin offered Japanese leader Shinzo Abe a peace treaty between the two countries without preconditions by the end of the year

The two leaders met on Wednesday at the Eastern Economic Forum taking place in Vladivostok in Russias Far East.



Lets conclude a peace treaty  not now but by the end of the year, without any preconditions, Putin said.



DETAILS TO FOLLOW



more:

https://www.rt.com/news/438235-putin-jap...ce-treaty/

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USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara LoP Guest

lop guest

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09-12-2018 06:48 PM











Post: #1 USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara

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In February, U.S. crude oil production exceeded that of Saudi Arabia for the first time in more than two decades. In June and August, the United States surpassed Russia in crude oil production for the first time since February 1999.



Although EIA does not publish crude oil production forecasts for Russia and Saudi Arabia in STEO, EIA expects that U.S. crude oil production will continue to exceed Russian and Saudi Arabian crude oil production for the remaining months of 2018 and through 2019.



U.S. crude oil production, particularly from light sweet crude oil grades, has rapidly increased since 2011. Much of the recent growth has occurred in areas such as the Permian region in eastern Texas and western New Mexico, the Federal Offshore Gulf of Mexico, and the Bakken region in North Dakota and Montana.



Following the oil price decline in mid-2014, U.S. producers reduced their costs by temporarily scaling back crude oil production. However, after crude oil prices increased in early 2016, investment and production began increasing later that year. By comparison, Russia and Saudi Arabia have maintained relatively steady crude oil production growth in recent years.





https://www.climatedepot.com/2018/09/12/...di-arabia/ The United States likely surpassed Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the worlds largest crude oil producer earlier this year, based on preliminary estimates in EIAs Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO).In February, U.S. crude oil production exceeded that of Saudi Arabia for the first time in more than two decades. In June and August, the United States surpassed Russia in crude oil production for the first time since February 1999.Although EIA does not publish crude oil production forecasts for Russia and Saudi Arabia in STEO, EIA expects that U.S. crude oil production will continue to exceed Russian and Saudi Arabian crude oil production for the remaining months of 2018 and through 2019.U.S. crude oil production, particularly from light sweet crude oil grades, has rapidly increased since 2011. Much of the recent growth has occurred in areas such as the Permian region in eastern Texas and western New Mexico, the Federal Offshore Gulf of Mexico, and the Bakken region in North Dakota and Montana.Following the oil price decline in mid-2014, U.S. producers reduced their costs by temporarily scaling back crude oil production. However, after crude oil prices increased in early 2016, investment and production began increasing later that year. By comparison, Russia and Saudi Arabia have maintained relatively steady crude oil production growth in recent years. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 461784

09-12-2018 07:04 PM











Post: #2 RE: USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara

The US sells most of its oil to China at below market prices.



Americans get no benefit from this rigged deal. They actually pay higher than they would if the US imported all its oil.



Billionaires make billions more however. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 461784

09-12-2018 07:09 PM











Post: #3 RE: USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara

Every drop of Alaska oil is sold to China, Japan and South Korea at below market prices. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 461614

09-12-2018 07:18 PM











Post: #4 RE: USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 06:48 PM) The United States likely surpassed Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the worlds largest crude oil producer earlier this year, based on preliminary estimates in EIAs Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO).



In February, U.S. crude oil production exceeded that of Saudi Arabia for the first time in more than two decades. In June and August, the United States surpassed Russia in crude oil production for the first time since February 1999.



Although EIA does not publish crude oil production forecasts for Russia and Saudi Arabia in STEO, EIA expects that U.S. crude oil production will continue to exceed Russian and Saudi Arabian crude oil production for the remaining months of 2018 and through 2019.



U.S. crude oil production, particularly from light sweet crude oil grades, has rapidly increased since 2011. Much of the recent growth has occurred in areas such as the Permian region in eastern Texas and western New Mexico, the Federal Offshore Gulf of Mexico, and the Bakken region in North Dakota and Montana.



Following the oil price decline in mid-2014, U.S. producers reduced their costs by temporarily scaling back crude oil production. However, after crude oil prices increased in early 2016, investment and production began increasing later that year. By comparison, Russia and Saudi Arabia have maintained relatively steady crude oil production growth in recent years.





https://www.climatedepot.com/2018/09/12/...di-arabia/

The US should buy all oil there is

store it underground and only use it domestically

Breed from outside would live in stoneage

again very quick The US should buy all oil there isstore it underground and only use it domesticallyBreed from outside would live in stoneageagain very quick LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 443824

09-12-2018 07:23 PM











Post: #5 RE: USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 07:18 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 06:48 PM) The United States likely surpassed Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the worlds largest crude oil producer earlier this year, based on preliminary estimates in EIAs Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO).



In February, U.S. crude oil production exceeded that of Saudi Arabia for the first time in more than two decades. In June and August, the United States surpassed Russia in crude oil production for the first time since February 1999.



Although EIA does not publish crude oil production forecasts for Russia and Saudi Arabia in STEO, EIA expects that U.S. crude oil production will continue to exceed Russian and Saudi Arabian crude oil production for the remaining months of 2018 and through 2019.



U.S. crude oil production, particularly from light sweet crude oil grades, has rapidly increased since 2011. Much of the recent growth has occurred in areas such as the Permian region in eastern Texas and western New Mexico, the Federal Offshore Gulf of Mexico, and the Bakken region in North Dakota and Montana.



Following the oil price decline in mid-2014, U.S. producers reduced their costs by temporarily scaling back crude oil production. However, after crude oil prices increased in early 2016, investment and production began increasing later that year. By comparison, Russia and Saudi Arabia have maintained relatively steady crude oil production growth in recent years.





https://www.climatedepot.com/2018/09/12/...di-arabia/

The US should buy all oil there is

store it underground and only use it domestically

Breed from outside would live in stoneage

again very quick

The US buys 60% of the crude OIL Venezuela sells and still does. This is why they lowered the prices of OIL per barrel from $140 to less than $40 after Chavez nationalized PDVSA in an effort to bankrupt the country hence the reason why Venezuela is in the current crisis it is now.



What I dont get is why havent prices gone up again to above $40? Why arent gas prices cheap in the US? The US buys 60% of the crude OIL Venezuela sells and still does. This is why they lowered the prices of OIL per barrel from $140 to less than $40 after Chavez nationalized PDVSA in an effort to bankrupt the country hence the reason why Venezuela is in the current crisis it is now.What I dont get is why havent prices gone up again to above $40? Why arent gas prices cheap in the US? LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 448147

09-12-2018 07:25 PM











Post: #6 RE: USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara

It's a game.



it's to control supply and pricing.



It always has been.



The biggest causes of high gasoline products are not the crude oil producers or the refineries



it's the speculators and day traders LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 443824

09-12-2018 07:29 PM











Post: #7 RE: USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 07:23 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 07:18 PM) The US should buy all oil there is

store it underground and only use it domestically

Breed from outside would live in stoneage

again very quick

The US buys 60% of the crude OIL Venezuela sells and still does. This is why they lowered the prices of OIL per barrel from $140 to less than $40 after Chavez nationalized PDVSA in an effort to bankrupt the country hence the reason why Venezuela is in the current crisis it is now.



What I dont get is why havent prices gone up again to above $40? Why arent gas prices cheap in the US?

I meant to above $140 again. I meant to above $140 again. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 433775

09-12-2018 07:30 PM











Post: #8 RE: USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara

The difference here is that America's production will not last nearly as long as Russia and Saudi.. and many others. Fast depletion rates of shale oil wells guarantees it.. so enjoy it while you can. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 443824

09-12-2018 07:31 PM











Post: #9 RE: USA Is Now The Largest Global Crude Oil Producer  Surpasses Russia and Saudi Ara

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 07:30 PM) The difference here is that America's production will not last nearly as long as Russia and Saudi.. and many others. Fast depletion rates of shale oil wells guarantees it.. so enjoy it while you can.

Fat cows cycle. Fat cows cycle.
















Albert Mobilio at Bookforum:

In 1969 the painter Jack Whitten arrived in the town of Agia Galini, on the Greek island of Crete. Shortly before leaving New York hed had a dream in which he was commanded to find a tree and carve it. From the bus window he spied the tree from his dream. He approached the owner, but because Whitten couldnt speak Greek, the man thought he was saying he wanted to cut it down. Whitten came up with a plan to communicate his aim: I went into the surrounding hills, found some wood and set up shop on the harbor beneath some trees. The owner understood immediately and even lent Whitten his tools. The totem he carved still stands in the towna fisherman looks to the sea, an octopus winds around the trunk, and at the very top is a large fish with its tail pointing to the sky. This account, published in Notes from the Woodshed, a volume of the artists reflections on his art and practice, provides a key to understanding the gestural, communicative power of Whittens sculpture. Just as he was able to impart meaning by doing rather than speaking that first day on Crete, his sculpturescurrently exhibited for the first time in a show that has arrived at the Met Breuer (New York)express their strong emotional and spiritual content by foregrounding the physical acts of their creation. Carved, chiseled, polished, and hammered into insinuating, assertive shapes, these pieces make viewers feel the actual work, and sense the very grip of the artists hand on the hammer as it finds the chisels head.

more here.
Courtesy of TIFF

Ben is Back

(director Peter Hedges) Bring three hankies. No thriller is more tense than this story of addict Ben (Lucas Hedges, the directors son), 77 days sober, leaving rehab for Christmas Eve at home with his mom (Julia Roberts, 50) and the skeptical stepdad who footed the bill for his rehab (Courtney B. Vance, 58) and struggling to stay sober for 24 hours more. Julia Roberts radiates maternal concern like a sun darkened by stormy sunspots of doubt about his sobriety  because her son is candid enough to warn her, Dont believe me. She cant let him out of her sight, and seesaws between elation at seeing him apparently healthy, and terror that hes not. Peter Hedges is great at crafting believable scenes of family life, even when he introduces a contrivance  Bens old drug boss kidnaps the family dog, leading to an implausible wild-pooch chase to retrieve it, and to introduce us to the bad guys who fill us in on Ben's bad past. But it still works because the whole family ensemble is totally believable, and Roberts hasnt been this good since Erin Brockovich (and she gets to do a great Erin-esque rant at a pharmacist who wont sell the heroin antidote Narcan). At the world premiere, I bumped into Roberts and asked, Isnt this a terrific movie for grownups? She said, I dont understand that. But I do: Roberts is a grownup now, not just earths most adorable girl but a family authority figure we can relate to. And Oscars may be calling.
Michael Ciaglo/Houston Chronicle via AP

En espanol | Thousands of people rescued from rooftops and plucked from rising water had to leave everything behind when Hurricane Harvey hit Houston last year. For many, prescription drugs were among the items they abandoned. The same may happen to those fleeing the potentially devastating Hurricane Florence, expected to make landfall in the Carolinas and Virginia later this week.



Being without essential medicine for days can pose a health threat and adds to the sense of panic people feel during such emergencies  especially natural disasters.



That's why your hurricane preparation should include making sure that you have enough medication to last for a few weeks. Even if your prescription isn't up for refill yet, many states permit pharmacists to make medically necessary exceptions during an emergency. State laws in North Carolina and South Carolina, both now in official states of emergency due to Florence, allow pharmacists to refill a prescription, as much as a 30-day supply, during a natural disaster without a doctors authorization. (Thats for the majority of medications labeled Schedule III or IV; the law is more rigid for Schedule II drugs, considered to have a high potential for abuse, such as morphine, fentanyl and codeine.) In Virginia, the state of emergency declaration notwithstanding, pharmacists are allowed to dispense only certain medications without a doctor's approval, and only if the medication is due for refill within the next 7 days.



Because you might be evacuated or stuck at home for days after the storm due to flooding, it's important to have at least a two-week supply, says Barbara Young, editor of patient medication information at the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.



If you have had to evacuate, have run out of medication and are no longer near your usual pharmacy, it is easy to transfer the prescription to a different location. Most pharmacies allow you to switch your prescription to a different store by phone or in person; in the case of major drugstore chains such as Walgreens and CVS, you can also change your pickup location online.

And it doesnt have to be to a store within the same company; you can move your prescription from a CVS in Virginia to a Walgreens in Pennsylvania, for instance. Either take your prescription bottles with you or keep on hand a list of your medications, including their names, dosages, how often you take them and the name of the prescribing doctor, Young suggests. "It's useful information for both emergency personnel and pharmacists," she says.



People who are able to gather their medicines before evacuating their homes may be concerned about drugs that require refrigeration. Its important to check with medical experts or a pharmacist for advice. In the case of insulin, one of the most common drugs stored in the refrigerator, Young says that it's better to leave it at room temperature than to put it on ice and risk it freezing. If insulin freezes, it needs to be discarded. The Food and Drug Administration says insulin retains its potency unrefrigerated for as long as 28 days.

Drugs that have been exposed to flood water or unsafe tap water should be discarded, too, as they might be contaminated. If you are facing heavy rains and flooding, put your medications in a resealable plastic baggy.
En espanol | Almost everyone dies owing at least some debt. Sometimes its only last months ordinary bills plus final medical expenses. But there can be shocking surprises for survivors  debts unknown to the children and even to the spouse of the deceased. Heirs might discover large credit card balances, undisclosed home equity loans or gambling debts.

Creditors are entitled to payment, from the money and property (the estate) that your loved one left behind. But what if he or she didnt leave enough to get everyone repaid? Can the creditors come after you?

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. With loans secured by property, such as mortgages, an heir has to keep up the monthly payments or else sell the property to cover the debt. Unsecured loans, such as credit card debt and student loans, are another matter. Your liability depends very much on the nature of the bill, the type of property and your states laws. But heres what I can say, generally.
Pierre shuts down Central in second half to rally for semifinal win

Aberdeen Central led 21-7 in the first half and 21-14 at halftime, but couldn't find the end zone after the break. Pierre picked up a 28-21 victory.
SAN ANTONIO  The former CEO of a Texas fracking sand company must serve 15 years in federal prison over a $6 million Ponzi scheme that also landed an ex-lawmaker behind bars.

Stanley Bates was sentenced Tuesday in San Antonio. The ex-FourWinds Logistics executive pleaded guilty to counts including securities fraud and money laundering in the scam linked to oil production.

State Sen. Carlos Uresti of San Antonio resigned in June before being sentenced to 12 years for his conviction on counts including money laundering and wire securities fraud. Uresti was general counsel for now-defunct FourWinds. A consultant was also convicted and sentenced to more than five years.

Prosecutors say investments were wrongly spent on gifts, travel, luxury vehicles and prostitutes.

The three men must also repay more than $6.3 million.
DALLAS  The Dallas police chief said Tuesday she has called for a full review and plans to meet with protest leaders after learning about reports that police used pepper-spray projectiles at a demonstration over a black mans death.

Chief U. Renee Hall said in a statement that the projectiles, which are called pepper balls and usually contain the chemical in pepper spray, should only be used if there is an immediate threat to the public or if an on-scene commander calls for them to be used. The projectiles irritate the nose and eyes.

Hall said she wants to meet with protest leaders to address their concerns.

Mondays demonstration came a day after a white Dallas police officer, Amber Guyger, was arrested for manslaughter in the off-duty shooting death of her neighbor, 26-year-old Botham Jean. Authorities have said that Guyger said she mistook Jeans apartment for her own when she fatally shot him last week. She was released on bond.

Demonstrators gathered outside Dallas police headquarters, and several dozen blocked traffic as they marched about half a mile. At one point, police used the pepper-spray projectiles to help control the crowd, according to news reports.

Jean grew up in the Caribbean island nation of St. Lucia before attending college in Arkansas. He graduated from Harding University in 2016 and had been working for accounting firm PwC.

Attorneys for Jeans family have criticized the officers account of the shooting, saying it contradicted statements from neighbors.

The officers description of what happened was included in an arrest affidavit prepared by a Texas Ranger and released Monday, shortly after the district attorney announced that the case would be presented to a grand jury, which could decide on more serious charges than manslaughter.

Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Jeans family, said Monday that the affidavit is very self-serving. Lee Merritt, who also represents the family, called it an attempt to condone what happened, give her a break.

Guyger, a four-year veteran of the police force, told investigators that she had just ended a 15-hour shift Thursday when she returned in uniform to the South Side Flats apartment complex. She parked on the fourth floor, instead of the third, where she lived, according to the affidavit, possibly suggesting that she was confused or disoriented.

When she put her key in the apartment door, which was unlocked and slightly ajar, it opened, the affidavit said. Inside, the lights were off, and she saw a figure in the darkness that cast a large silhouette across the room, according to the officers account.

The officer told police that she concluded her apartment was being burglarized and gave verbal commands to the figure, which ignored them. She then drew her weapon and fired twice, the affidavit said.

She called 911 and, when asked where she was, returned to the front door to see she was in the wrong unit, according to the affidavit. Authorities have not released the 911 tapes.

The Dallas County medical examiners office said Jean died of a gunshot wound to the chest. His death was ruled a homicide.

Merritt said Monday that two independent witnesses have told him they heard knocking on the door in the hallway before the shooting. He said one witness reported hearing a womans voice saying, Let me in! Let me in! Then they heard gunshots, after which one witness said she heard a mans voice say, Oh my God! Why did you do that?

Merritt said he believes those were Jeans last words.

Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson emphasized that her office was conducting its own probe, in addition to the investigation by the Texas Rangers. She will have the option of presenting more serious charges to the grand jury.

Its not clear if Guyger has an attorney.

Guygers blood was drawn at the scene to be tested for alcohol and drugs, according to Hall, but authorities have not released results.
SANTA FE  A provision in a major federal budget bill would stall staff cuts at an embattled independent board that provides safety oversight at the nations nuclear weapons labs, including Los Alamos National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories and the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico.

The same bill also requires the U.S. Department of Energy, which runs the labs, to brief Congress on a controversial new DOE rule that restricts on how the labs share information with the independent Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board.

New Mexico U.S. Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, both Democrats, said they had secured measures in the 2019 fiscal year Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill, expected to be approved by Congress soon, to protect the DNFSB and its important safety mission.

A majority of the presidentially appointed board, which was created by Congress, recently approved a staff cut from 117 authorized positions to 79. While the number of DNFSB field inspectors would increase from 10 to 18, critics say that in combination with the DOE rule that the budget bill also addresses, the safety board could be gutted. Bruce Hamilton, the DNFSBs acting chair, has said the organization is merely right-sizing by eliminating overlapping layers of staff in Washington, D.C.

Language in the budget bill bars the DNFSB from using use any appropriated funds to carry out the proposed reorganization, unless such a proposal is later specifically authorized by law. In a letter to Senate budget leaders last week, Udall and Heinrick wrote that any staff reorganization needed to be vetted by Congress.

The new DOE rule on providing information and access to the DNFSB, also targeted by the two senators, requires all information to go through designated DOE liasons, takes formal board oversight away from numerous facilities including WIPP and excludes lab workers from the boards role of protecting public health and safety.

The Udall-Heinrich provision directs DOE to brief Congress within 30 days about the information-sharing order and expresses Congress concerns about its potential impacts. Our provisions will help keep the DNFSB a strong and independent watchdog for the safety of New Mexicans and the long-term health of our DOE facilities, Udall and Heinrich said in a news release.

The DNFSB is also an important source of public information about what goes on at the weapons labs, via regular safety reports that are posted online.
Copyright  2018 Albuquerque Journal

Jurors on Monday found former Bernalillo County jail sergeant Eric Allen not guilty of aggravated battery resulting in great bodily harm, but they could not reach a consensus on a petty misdemeanor battery charge.

Allen was accused of battering handcuffed Metropolitan Detention Center inmate Joe Ray Barela and ordering fellow correctional officers to hurt him during an incident in December 2015.

A spokesman for the 2nd Judicial District Attorneys Office said Tuesday that prosecutors had not determined whether they will retry Allen on the remaining charge.

Allens defense attorney, Sam Bregman, said a second trial would be a waste of taxpayer money.

This is a case that should not even have been prosecuted to begin with, Bregman said. It is a waste of resources on the part of the government, and I sincerely hope that they dont compound that waste of resources by trying this petty misdemeanor again  for a corrections officer who was simply doing his job as hes been trained to do.

Bregman said jurors deliberated for about four hours before acquitting his client of the aggravated battery charge. Eight out of 12 believed he should also be acquitted of the petty misdemeanor battery charge, a lesser included offense of the main count.

Prosecutor David Waymire had argued that Allen both battered Barela and ordered other officers to do so. During the altercation, Barela was knocked into a cabinet and kicked, and a key and pen were pressed into his neck.

Bregman told jurors that his client was using pain compliance on a high-risk inmate who had been failing to obey orders.

Jail reports on the incident described Barela as a disruptive inmate who had been booked into the jail more than 30 times.

Reports by Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office investigators and a private investigator determined that Allens actions were excessive, and an employee working in the infirmary described the altercation as torture.

Allen, who had been a correctional officer for 16 years, was fired by the county in March after collecting more than $90,000 during two years that he was on paid administrative leave. County officials indicated that they planned to discipline him with termination because of his pattern of excessive force and inappropriate conduct.

Allen also came under fire in 2016 after video surfaced in which he is heard telling another officer to put a petite female inmate in a wrist lock and to twist her wrist until she shuts up and stops crying.

Allen is appealing his termination.

Candace Hopkins, a spokeswoman for MDC, said the verdict does not have any effect on Allens job status.
Scraps of paper covering tabletops, glue sticks perched without their lids and paintbrushes bathing in liquid, white glue.

That was part of a bustling scene Tuesday afternoon at Janet Kahn School of Integrated Arts Elementary School in which fourth- and fifth-graders get to craft for about an hour as part of a new learning initiative.

Jeminye Ortega was in the middle of making a gray fox mask, its eyes made of blue, fuzzy pompoms.

Jullien Urvina chose a bobcat because hes fond of cats in general. After all, he explained, Theyre cute and fluffy.

Chris Patterson was busy constructing his fish, telling the Journal  with scissors in hand and an intent stare on some construction paper  that he really enjoyed using different materials in one project.

Each of the 9-year-olds crafts have something in common: theyre animals that live in or near the bosque.

Through the hands-on art being done at Janet Kahn, the kids are learning about the different organisms in the bosque and the geography of the Rio Grande, ultimately being taught on the human impacts on the environment, said teacher and librarian Terri Gaussoin.

We learned a lot of stuff in the bosque is alive, Chris said.

Gaussoin facilitated the Bosque Life project for the Janet Kahn fourth- and fifth-graders through a partnership with the Sierra Club and OffCenter Community Arts Project.

After taking her own child to OffCenters art studio, she knew she wanted to start a partnership and integrate their art-making into Common Core teaching at the elementary school.

With the Sierra Club teaching kids about conservation and OffCenter providing the supplies and artistic direction, the Bosque Life project was a serendipitous fit for the elementary school as fifth-graders are slated to learn about human impact and ecosystems, and fourth-graders are to learn about the Rio Grande and bosque.

We looked at how we can integrate arts to teach the core, Gaussoin said.

From there, Gaussoin, Sierra Club Conservation and Legislative Organizer Brittany Fallon and OffCenter Program Manager Sarah Mandala looked at Common Core standards and built the curriculum for the program.

Mandala said while OffCenter has some after-school initiatives, the work at Janet Kahn is the first during the school day program that the nonprofit has done.

And the kids seem to enjoy it.

Jeminye said her mask has been a lot of work and taken days to make, but she liked using cardboard to make the fox shape.

The Bosque Life project kicked off at the school last month and will wrap up Sept. 30 when the students are invited to don their masks in a puppet parade during the OffCenters Folk Art Festival at Robinson Park.

But Gaussoin said she hopes to partner with the Sierra Club and OffCenter again for similar efforts.
Five adults arrested last month at a Taos County compound will be arraigned Wednesday (Sept. 12) for a second time in Albuquerque federal court. Hearings on whether they should remain behind bars also will take place, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

The office announced that all five were indicted Tuesday by a federal grand jury for the same counts they were charged with when the FBI arrested them on Aug. 31, after legal problems developed with prosecuting the compound residents on state charges in Taos.

Jnay Leveille, 35, a Haitian national, is charged with unlawfully possessing firearms and ammunition as an alien living illegally in the U.S. The other four  Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, 40, Hujrah Wahhaj, 37, Subhanah Wahhaj, 35, and Lucas Morton, 40  are charged with conspiring to provide her with the weaponry.

The indictment alleges that the defendants established a training camp and firing range to prepare for violent attacks on government, military, educational, and financial institutions. Authorities say that some of 11 children taken into custody at the compound told officers they were being trained to attack targets which would be identified by a dead boy whose body was found at the compound. Leveille told the group that the boy  the son of Siraj Ibn Wahhaj  would be resurrected as Jesus, the children said.

Leveille and Siraj Ibn Wahhaj faced state charges of child abuse resulting in death for allegedly withhold medication from the boy, who suffered seizures before his death months before the compound was raided Aug. 3.
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Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 Crown Prince Rudolf's suicide was due to not fulfilled Freemasonic contract he signed FreeFlow

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09-12-2018 10:58 PM











Post: #1 Crown Prince Rudolf's suicide was due to not fulfilled Freemasonic contract he signed

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It's a must read for those who are interested in true history.

Consider it was written in the year 1919:

http://www.wfg-gk.de/verschwoerung49.html



Obviously he was freemason and had signed a contract (while he was made drunk) to usurp the Hungarian Crown and separate from Austria. He lost the courage and therefore the only way out was suicide.

English translation:

https://translate.google.com/translate?s...t=&act=url





The tragedy of Meyerling.

Was Crown Prince Rudolf in the hands of the Freemasons?





On January 30, 1889, Crown Prince Rudolf was found dead in his hunting lodge Meyerling near Baden (Austria), together with his lover, the young, beautiful Baroness Mary Vetsera. By all appearances, there was a love tragedy. But both the deeper motives and the circumstances remained shrouded in impenetrable darkness, especially as the Austrian authorities made every effort to disguise the facts.

To this day, public opinion fluctuates as to whether double suicide or murder and suicide exist, and some still maintain that the original rumor is based on the truth that the crown prince was murdered in the forest and then brought to the castle.



To be clear, it is first necessary to keep in mind a number of specific facts that can not be disputed.

The Crown Prince was, as everyone knows, not happily married. His wife, Princess Stephanie of Belgium (born May 21, 1864), was not the right woman for him; Countless love affairs Rudolf accompanied this marriage and Mary Vetsera was only one of the many. She herself sought Rudolf's acquaintance, and when she had succeeded, threw herself on his neck. Incidentally, she was no longer untouched, so there can be no talk of a seduction by the Crown Prince. It is impossible that she should have murdered the Crown Prince, that she was in conflict with her whole being.

"She was coquettish with instinct, unconsciously immoral in her affections, almost oriental in her sensuality, and so sweet and lovely that she had to love everyone, she was born to love ...." she describes her friend Countess Marie Larisch , born Freiin von Wallersee, the niece and court lady of the Empress (Sissi) Elisabeth. (See "My past" by Baroness Wallersee, Berlin 1913, p. 135)

It is possible that they both committed suicide by mutual agreement, but it is probable that at their request the Crown Prince killed them first and then himself.



But now we are again faced with the same question: what reasonable reason was for the two to die together?

About the fear of a scandal? He was already there. The relationship between the Crown Prince and the Baroness Vetsera was well-known in the city, and the whole of Vienna spoke of the embarrassing incident that had taken place shortly before the sad end in the ballroom of the German Embassy: Mary Vetsera had refused to greet the Crown Princess and both women stood for a few moments like two leaping tigers opposite; Finally Mary Vetsera stomped once, twice with her foot, and threw her head back in a state of deepest contempt until she was dragged out of the hall by her horrified mother. The fear of a scandal can not possibly have driven the two to their deaths. But maybe the humiliation about it? The incident was certainly not commonplace; but at the Viennese court one was used to stronger tobacco, one did not tend to be overly excited about such derailments, and shame and regret were not among Rudolf's salient features.



In 1919, a Viennese newspaper now teased its faithful readers of the old fairy tale that Crown Prince Rudolf and Mary Vetsera had been siblings! The Emperor himself had confessed to the crown prince this "devastating" confession in order to make clear to him the impossibility of marrying Mary. It is true of this nonsensical rumor, which was apparently invented only for the purpose of veiling the truth, but the one thing about which there was a lot of gossip about Mary's father; but this social gossip was never directed against the emperor or one of the archdukes.

In Rudolf's very liberal views, it is also highly improbable that a communication like that of his kinship with Mary would have completely crushed him and driven him to madness and death. If suicide was the order of the day, then the motive must be sought elsewhere, and the love tragedy must have been but an accompaniment.



However, various circumstances speak for a murder committed on the Crown Prince. But the question of perpetration remains completely dark. We know that at that time there was a larger company in the hunting lodge of Meyerling, among them Prince Philip of Coburg, Count Hoyos and several others. Rumor had it that the crown prince fell at the hands of an uncle of Mary Vetsera, who wanted to avenge the shame of his niece. The old Baroness Vetsera was a born Baltazzi and one of her four brothers (Alexander, Hektor, Aristides and Heinrich Baltazzi) was suspected. On the other hand, it can be objected that the Baltazzis were just about avoiding any public scandal. It should also be remembered that old Baroness Vetsera was a very "comfortable" mother who knew everything and closed her eyes. She would not have minded if her daughter Mary had played the role of pompadour or dubarry; Nor was she fundamentally opposed to a "liaison" with the Crown Prince: her only grief was that nowadays, love affairs with princes must be kept so secret! In addition, their financial circumstances were not the best; it consumed capital and only with difficulty preserved the appearance of great wealth. And so she entrusted her friend, the Countess Marie Larisch, with the delicate task of negotiating the affair of her daughter Mary with the Crown Prince; Rudolf was to know that she, Vetsera's mother, was privy to flirting; "then he will feel much freer towards her" . Countess Larisch was, however, as if created for this mediating role; As the daughter of Duke Ludwig of Bavaria from his morganatic marriage with the actress Henriette Wendel, who had received the title of Baroness Wallersee, she was the niece of Empress Elisabeth of Austria and thus the cousin of Crown Prince Rudolf. And Countess Larisch did not reject this intermediary role, which was excellent to her .....

Under such circumstances, and with such views of Mother Vetsera, her brothers, the Baltazzis, can hardly be expected to commit murder; certainly not the Baroness Mary; she was passionate about Rudolf, she loved him passionately, yes, she was even ready to die with him ....



According to another rumor, the crown prince was said to have been killed in the forest by a ranger for jealousy or revenge.

This was mainly due to the fact that the Crown Prince's skull was smashed.

Alone from the testimony Wiederhofers, who has seen the corpse and connected the wounds, shows incontrovertibly that the crown prince committed suicide in his room in Meyerling.

According to Baroness Wallersee's notes, the most important parts of his report are reproduced here: "Everything swam in blood, the pillows were stained, the walls splattered, it trickled down from the bed to the ground in a purple brook, where there was one Rudolf lay on his side, his hand still holding his revolver , his skull almost completely shattered .... The bed billowed a little and Count Hoyos lifted the blankets, Mary Vetsera lay dead - too she had a head shot .... " (from" My past "by Baroness Wallersee, Berlin 1913, p.220 ff.)

From this vivid illustration Prof. dr. Wiederhofers, who makes a very true impression - Dr. med. As we all know, Wiederhofer had refused to officially declare a "stroke" as the cause of death of the Crown Prince - so it is unequivocally clear that Rudolf first killed his lover and then himself. This is moreover confirmed in full by the recorded protocol, from which the essential passages are reproduced here: 1. Crown Prince Rudolph died from the destruction of the skull. 2. This shattering was caused by a close-fired shot at the right front temporal area. 3. The shot from a medium caliber revolver was capable of producing the described injury. 4. The projectile has not been found because it had leaked through the rejection opening detected above the left ear. (As it turns out, the bullet stuck in the bedside cabinet.) 5. It is undoubtedly that the Crown Prince taught himself the shot and death occurred instantly, etc. This report bears the signatures of the professors. Hofmann, dr. Kundrat and dr. Wiederhofer. Finally, the fact that the Crown Prince left several farewell letters addressed to the Emperor, the Empress, the Crown Princess, the Duke of Braganza, and the Section Chief Szoegyenyi speaks at length for suicide. The letters to the latter two were published in the newspapers at the time; they show that the Crown Prince acted under the influence of third persons; From outside, circumstances impacted on him, which put the weapon in his hand:

"I have to leave my life ..." says the letter to the section chief, and "I must die, I could not act otherwise ...." in the short letter to the Duke of Braganza. The Baroness Vetsera also wrote a farewell letter addressed to her mother. It says: "I'm dying with Rudolf, we love each other too much ...."

It is from these few words that the futility of that rumor emerges, according to which she is said to have enthralled the crown prince by means of a razor knife while he slept (!). Allegedly it was put into circulation by Aristides Baltazzi (Cf. the published work: "Emperor Franz Josef I and his court", Vienna 1919, p.57) , which may have special reasons for it.

It is true that the Crown Prince committed suicide, but it is equally true that he did not voluntarily kill himself. (Ernst Edler von der Planitz also comes to this conclusion in his book "The Complete Truth," Berlin 1889, in which he brings countless details, but comes to wrong results , because he judges the characters acting incorrectly and does not know the driving motives.)

(From this circumstance explains also the execution of the ecclesiastical consecration, which was originally denied by the Vatican and was permitted only after an enlightening telegram of the emperor.)



Still open is the question of the reason. The fact that not only a love tragedy existed was emphasized earlier. Rudolf's death has a very political background . He was, to put it briefly, in the hands of the Masons , whose dark plans he fell victim to. It was nothing less than a coup d'etat to help Hungary become fully independent and independent. Franz Josef was to be dethroned and Rudolf King of Hungary. Austria's crown was intended for Archduke Johann of Tuscany .

Without any prejudice, it should be noted here that this prince, the youngest son of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, was also the suitable man for this; He is all the more confident that he was willing to accept the idea of a violent overthrow when he had already applied for the Bulgarian princely throne two years earlier (1887); that was the reason why he was suddenly removed from command of the 3rd Infantry Division (in Linz).

Archduke Johann was a free spirit, who had previously attracted the public's attention with his courageous, sensational writing "Drill or Education". He was close friends with Rudolf, who was six years his junior, but friends with the emperor. After the plan had failed due to Rudolf's suicide, the archduke renounced rank and dignity, adopted the name Johann Orth, went abroad and equipped a merchant ship, the "Margarita". In 1891, this ship was reportedly destroyed on the south coast of South America; since that time Johann Orth has disappeared.



If the claim that Rudolph was in the hands of the Masons is true, the riddle that hovers over the crown prince finds its complete and complete solution. At the same time, however, the mysterious disappearance of Johann Orth is finding an explanation that has not yet been attempted. If the Crown Prince, like the Empress of her niece, the Baroness Wallersee, occasionally once said (see "My past" by Baroness Wallersee, Berlin 1913, p. 242) , was really in the hands of the Freemasons, then he must himself Freemasons have been, because only a Mason can Freemasons give orders and enforce obedience from him. But then all the dark hints and expressions handed down to us by the crown prince find their perfect explanation at once. "You can not imagine the confusion that surrounds me," he says on occasion to his cousin, Countess Larisch; "I am in great danger myself", "... I am on the edge of a precipice", "... at any moment the Emperor can order the search of my papers ...." Such utterances, which are certainly not invented, clearly point to very extraordinary circumstances, which must necessarily be related to political things. Incidentally, the Crown Prince himself says: "The danger that threatens me is political ." If Rudolf now speaks of a "danger" that threatens him and is political in nature, this only allows one conclusion to be drawn that he is involved in a highly political state-transforming enterprise in which he himself is involved, whereby he plays a role which apparently does not suit him. Presumably, he made promises and promises, and now that it's time to act, he lacks courage and inner determination. He recoils from the last, the most extreme; weak-willed as he is, he can not get up to the decisive act and now has on the one hand to fear the wrath and revenge of the co-conspirators, but at the same time the detection of the whole conspiracy .... A Hamlet character at the Austrian imperial court! Countess Larisch, who is deeply disturbed by this, advises him to entrust himself to the empress, or even better, to the emperor himself.

He scolds her for a fool. "If I wanted to entrust myself to the Emperor, I would sign my own death sentence" is his enigmatic answer; but this answer loses its mystery at the moment when one knows that Rudolf is a Mason and must feel the tips of his beloved brothers in the place of his heart. If Rudolf wanted to entrust himself to the Emperor, as his cousin advised, he would most likely be forgiven, but would exchange the blood-revenge of the betrayed brothers; he would just "sign his own death sentence," words which of course Countess Larisch does not understand, and therefore without any attempt to explain.



In support of our view that Crown Prince Rudolf was a tool and a victim of the Freemasons, the mysterious story with the steel cassette was also used.

A few days before his death, the Crown Prince, in the greatest agitation of Countess Larisch, brought a heavy cassette sewn into cloth and demanded that she take it and quickly hide it in a safe place. "Under no circumstances may it be found in my possession, and at any moment the Emperor may order a search of my property." The Countess initially refuses, but Rudolf forces her on with the assurance that the cassette contains nothing compromising for her . "How long should I keep this terrible thing?" she asks him.

"Until I ask them back or someone else asks them back, in case it should happen - he said seriously - I have to give you instructions - only one person knows the secret of this cassette and he alone has the right to demand it back . "

"Who is this?" - "His name does not matter, you can hand it over to the person who calls you four signs, write them down and repeat them." And slowly the Crown Prince spoke the four letters: "RJUO"

That even the most coveted cassette contained the love letters of the crown prince might not be believed by even the most unsuspecting mind. It probably contained the exact plan for the coup d'etat, as well as all the papers Rudolf had received as a Mason from the Grand Lodge. Incidentally, every Mason can affirm that the brothers are under the strictest obligation to keep everything relating to their covenant and to make sure that after their death all letters, papers and other documents are given to a brother of a higher (or equal) degree be handed out.



If we keep all these circumstances in mind, we come to the conclusion that the love story with the baroness Vetsera could not have been the one that so upset him and made him so desperate and even dead. Incidentally, this is expressly mentioned at the same meeting. Rudolf speaks of the "danger" that threatens him and he hopes to escape. The Countess asks him: "Does the 'danger' concern the dispute with Stephanie?" - Rudolf laughs: "Stephanie! - Oh no, that's just a domestic disaster. The danger that threatens me is political ." The countess is appalled because she never believed that the crown prince would engage in dangerous political adventures.



Who is the "only" person who, apart from Rudolf, knows the secret of the steel cassette and, if so, wants it back?

It is a co-conspirator. A few days after Rudolf's terrible end, Countess Larisch receives a letter in which she is invited to appear at a certain place at 10.30 am the same evening, bringing along her "acquaintance". The signature is replaced by four letters: RJUO

She comes and meets a strange, tall man wearing a Styrian coat and felt hat. The stranger's unusually beautiful eyes catch her, as does the interesting face; but she does not recognize him. The stranger speaks to her by name, names the four letters, she wants to hand over the cassette to him, before he asks her some questions of conscience: "Have you ever spoken of this cassette?" - "Never - never."

The stranger breathes in relief at these words. "Did ER tell you about the secret?" - "No, I do not know about it." - "It's better that way, otherwise your life could be at stake ." He takes the cassette and lifts the hat. Only now does the countess recognize the person standing before her: it is Archduke Johann of Tuscany .



As far as the four letters "RJUO" are concerned, there is no explanation in the book of Countess Larisch. Maybe they are chosen quite arbitrarily; but perhaps they are based on a deeper meaning which envisages the purpose of the conspiracy: Rudolf-Johann, Hungary-Austria!



This is at least confirmed by the other content of the nocturnal interview, which is so remarkable that it is reproduced here in its essential points. Archduke Johann continued: "If the Emperor had found these papers (which were in the box) , things would have been much worse for him (Rudolph) : the Crown Prince committed suicide, but if the Emperor had known everything, he would have put him in a court-martial and have to be shot as a traitor. "

The countess cried out. " My God, what has he done? .... Did he think of the crown of Hungary? " - " The Archduke nodded in agreement and suddenly came to me Tante's words (meaning the Empress Elisabeth), with whom she long ago once hinted that Rudolf was in the hands of the Freemasons . "

This is, of course, the only passage in the book of Baroness Wallersee, where the Masons are mentioned. But just this one passage contains the key to understanding the whole tragedy. If a Hungarian conspiracy existed, then it could only emanate from the Masons, who, according to their own admissions, had a hand in all the revolutions and claims of the nineteenth century. Of course, it does not mean the lower three grades, which know nothing of all this, because they are not initiated into the great state actions. This refers to the Scottish high grades, which also exist in Hungary and fight there just as the political power position as in France or Italy, in Portugal, Spain, Belgium, etc. Of course, must also John of Tuscany Freemasons have been, and indeed he should be one ranked higher than Rudolf.



Concerning the end of the crown prince, Johann von Tuscany turned to Countess Larisch as follows: "Can you imagine what the fear of discovery must have meant for Rudolf, for a man with his nervous disposition and undermined health by irritants and spirits? Alone fear alone could have made him commit suicide, it is a pity he was so weak, he broke his word to me , and I trusted him, but a bottle of brandy seems to have turned him into a contemptible coward. .. " From this statement it can be concluded that the day for the execution of the coup has already passed. The crown prince had evidently pledged on a certain date - perhaps December 2, 1888, the day of the 40th anniversary of the reign of Emperor Franz Joseph - to seize possession of the throne of Hungary and make a solemn promise to Archduke Johann. He had not kept that promise, broken his word; and so he lived in double fear of the discovery of the plan by the state police and the revenge of his co-conspirators. Allegations will not be lacking. Archduke Johann calls him a despicable coward, others have scolded him for being a traitor and reminded him of his oaths, and perhaps of those punishments that are forfeited. So Rudolf was in a terrible situation. "Even the fear of discovery alone - said John of Tuscany - could have made him commit suicide" ; If one takes into account the allegations of the co-conspirators, the fear of their revenge, and not least their own remorse, these are truly reasons enough to give him the revolver. But the most important of all motives was probably this : The Crown Prince found no way out of this labyrinth . The seemingly closest thing to confessing to the emperor meant the betrayal of his co-conspirators; and that meant nothing more than - as he himself very rightly said - "to sign his own death sentence" . He could not dare to go to Ofenpest; he feared the reproaches, the wrath and the revenge of the Logengewaltigen who wanted to use him only as a tool of their own lust for power. So what was left for him? Nothing but death. And he wanted to sweeten him if possible. Mary Vetsera was faithful to him. She was to share his last hours with him, she who had been wearing an iron bracelet for weeks, a gift from Rudolf that in his own words symbolized "faithfulness to death".

Therefore, he had Mary, who was kept incarcerated at home, by the mediation of Countess Larisch bring two days before his end on secret ways in the Hofburg and kidnap by the devotee Fiaker Bratfisch to Meyerling. With her, who loved him most of all, who had adored and admired him, he wanted to escape together the hardships of a life he could not master. Thus the death of Rudolf is the act of despair of a weak, halting and helpless man, who did not know one more thing, and love tragedy is only a more or less accidental accompaniment.



Moreover, that this is the correct view is also evident from the statement of a well-known high-grade freemason, Count Julius Andrassy , who is here in attendance; this former important statesman was one of Baroness Wallersee's best friends ever since she first arrived in Austria. She confided in him whenever she found herself in any trouble at Godollo, the Empress' hunting lodge. Andrassy visits Countess Larisch (Baroness Wallersee) immediately after Rudolf Tode. "Tell me, has Rudolf ever talked politics to you?" - he investigates the Countess - "For you must know that the death of the Crown Prince is not merely a love tragedy ."

That's clear enough. But let us return for a moment to John of Tuscany. At the end of his nocturnal talk with Countess Larisch, he gives her to understand that she will never see him again. But he thanked her for his life - because she had given him the cassette unopened and intact - and he would never forget what she had done to him. The countess is concerned and confused. "Imperial Highness - she says - are you leaving Austria?" John of Tuscany smiles. " Yes, I will die without being dead .... " And as a man of word he acted as he spoke. He put down titles and honors, took the simple name of Johann Orth, equipped a ship and disappeared from the horizon of the living. No one can say whether he is still alive or has perished with his ship Margarita in 1891 at the southern tip of South America.



But there can scarcely be any doubt that both he and Crown Prince Rudolf were tools in the hands of the Masons, one of whom expiated the planned coup d'etat with his life, the other with voluntary banishment.





Additive:

That the Crown Prince was a Freemason is now confirmed to me at the right time from a very credible side; It is a lady of Viennese society, by virtue of the position of her husband - he was Austrian. Ambassador in Rome - had many opportunities to look behind the scenes; She made notable remarks to me on this matter, the essentials of which are emphasized in the following:

Crown Prince Rudolf was introduced to Freemasonry after his trip around the world by the Prince of Wales, later King Eduard VII, in the late seventies of the 19th century, whereby his traveling companion, the well-known naturalist Prof. Brehm, worked his way up. Later, Crown Prince Rudolf was also a member of the Hungarian Grand Lodge. On the occasion of a hunting trip to Transylvania, he was the guest of a certain Count Teleki, who was also a Freemason.

There, a larger hunting party had gathered and during a champagne show the Crown Prince was presented with a document in which he was committed to advocate the independence of the Hungarian army and the independence of Hungary. The Crown Prince, who was no longer aware of the significance of his action, signed this document.

Some time later, the member of the Magnate House, Br. Count Pista (Istvan) Karolyi , gave a speech in parliament, in which he made the sensational announcement that in a very short time the Hungarian army would receive full independence. He claimed that he knew this from a reliable source.

The crown prince, however-so put in a tight spot-refused to fulfill the promise made to him in the state of drunkenness. This was the introduction of the political tragedy of Meyerling.





from dr. WF

(written in 1919) Wow, just stumbled upon this:It's a must read for those who are interested in true history.Consider it was written in the year 1919:Obviously he was freemason and had signed a contract (while he was made drunk) to usurp the Hungarian Crown and separate from Austria. He lost the courage and therefore the only way out was suicide.English translation:On January 30, 1889, Crown Prince Rudolf was found dead in his hunting lodge Meyerling near Baden (Austria), together with his lover, the young, beautiful Baroness Mary Vetsera. By all appearances, there was a love tragedy. But both the deeper motives and the circumstances remained shrouded in impenetrable darkness, especially as the Austrian authorities made every effort to disguise the facts.To this day, public opinion fluctuates as to whether double suicide or murder and suicide exist, and some still maintain that the original rumor is based on the truth that the crown prince was murdered in the forest and then brought to the castle.To be clear, it is first necessary to keep in mind a number of specific facts that can not be disputed.The Crown Prince was, as everyone knows, not happily married. His wife, Princess Stephanie of Belgium (born May 21, 1864), was not the right woman for him; Countless love affairs Rudolf accompanied this marriage and Mary Vetsera was only one of the many. She herself sought Rudolf's acquaintance, and when she had succeeded, threw herself on his neck. Incidentally, she was no longer untouched, so there can be no talk of a seduction by the Crown Prince. It is impossible that she should have murdered the Crown Prince, that she was in conflict with her whole being."She was coquettish with instinct, unconsciously immoral in her affections, almost oriental in her sensuality, and so sweet and lovely that she had to love everyone, she was born to love ...." she describes her friend Countess Marie Larisch , born Freiin von Wallersee, the niece and court lady of the Empress (Sissi) Elisabeth. (See "My past" by Baroness Wallersee, Berlin 1913, p. 135)It is possible that they both committed suicide by mutual agreement, but it is probable that at their request the Crown Prince killed them first and then himself.But now we are again faced with the same question: what reasonable reason was for the two to die together?About the fear of a scandal? He was already there. The relationship between the Crown Prince and the Baroness Vetsera was well-known in the city, and the whole of Vienna spoke of the embarrassing incident that had taken place shortly before the sad end in the ballroom of the German Embassy: Mary Vetsera had refused to greet the Crown Princess and both women stood for a few moments like two leaping tigers opposite; Finally Mary Vetsera stomped once, twice with her foot, and threw her head back in a state of deepest contempt until she was dragged out of the hall by her horrified mother. The fear of a scandal can not possibly have driven the two to their deaths. But maybe the humiliation about it? The incident was certainly not commonplace; but at the Viennese court one was used to stronger tobacco, one did not tend to be overly excited about such derailments, and shame and regret were not among Rudolf's salient features.In 1919, a Viennese newspaper now teased its faithful readers of the old fairy tale that Crown Prince Rudolf and Mary Vetsera had been siblings! The Emperor himself had confessed to the crown prince this "devastating" confession in order to make clear to him the impossibility of marrying Mary. It is true of this nonsensical rumor, which was apparently invented only for the purpose of veiling the truth, but the one thing about which there was a lot of gossip about Mary's father; but this social gossip was never directed against the emperor or one of the archdukes.In Rudolf's very liberal views, it is also highly improbable that a communication like that of his kinship with Mary would have completely crushed him and driven him to madness and death. If suicide was the order of the day, then the motive must be sought elsewhere, and the love tragedy must have been but an accompaniment.However, various circumstances speak for a murder committed on the Crown Prince. But the question of perpetration remains completely dark. We know that at that time there was a larger company in the hunting lodge of Meyerling, among them Prince Philip of Coburg, Count Hoyos and several others. Rumor had it that the crown prince fell at the hands of an uncle of Mary Vetsera, who wanted to avenge the shame of his niece. The old Baroness Vetsera was a born Baltazzi and one of her four brothers (Alexander, Hektor, Aristides and Heinrich Baltazzi) was suspected. On the other hand, it can be objected that the Baltazzis were just about avoiding any public scandal. It should also be remembered that old Baroness Vetsera was a very "comfortable" mother who knew everything and closed her eyes. She would not have minded if her daughter Mary had played the role of pompadour or dubarry; Nor was she fundamentally opposed to a "liaison" with the Crown Prince: her only grief was that nowadays, love affairs with princes must be kept so secret! In addition, their financial circumstances were not the best; it consumed capital and only with difficulty preserved the appearance of great wealth. And so she entrusted her friend, the Countess Marie Larisch, with the delicate task of negotiating the affair of her daughter Mary with the Crown Prince; Rudolf was to know that she, Vetsera's mother, was privy to flirting; "then he will feel much freer towards her" . Countess Larisch was, however, as if created for this mediating role; As the daughter of Duke Ludwig of Bavaria from his morganatic marriage with the actress Henriette Wendel, who had received the title of Baroness Wallersee, she was the niece of Empress Elisabeth of Austria and thus the cousin of Crown Prince Rudolf. And Countess Larisch did not reject this intermediary role, which was excellent to her .....Under such circumstances, and with such views of Mother Vetsera, her brothers, the Baltazzis, can hardly be expected to commit murder; certainly not the Baroness Mary; she was passionate about Rudolf, she loved him passionately, yes, she was even ready to die with him ....According to another rumor, the crown prince was said to have been killed in the forest by a ranger for jealousy or revenge.This was mainly due to the fact that the Crown Prince's skull was smashed.Alone from the testimony Wiederhofers, who has seen the corpse and connected the wounds, shows incontrovertibly that the crown prince committed suicide in his room in Meyerling.According to Baroness Wallersee's notes, the most important parts of his report are reproduced here: "Everything swam in blood, the pillows were stained, the walls splattered, it trickled down from the bed to the ground in a purple brook, where there was one Rudolf lay on his side, his hand still holding his revolver , his skull almost completely shattered .... The bed billowed a little and Count Hoyos lifted the blankets, Mary Vetsera lay dead - too she had a head shot .... " (from" My past "by Baroness Wallersee, Berlin 1913, p.220 ff.)From this vivid illustration Prof. dr. Wiederhofers, who makes a very true impression - Dr. med. As we all know, Wiederhofer had refused to officially declare a "stroke" as the cause of death of the Crown Prince - so it is unequivocally clear that Rudolf first killed his lover and then himself. This is moreover confirmed in full by the recorded protocol, from which the essential passages are reproduced here: 1. Crown Prince Rudolph died from the destruction of the skull. 2. This shattering was caused by a close-fired shot at the right front temporal area. 3. The shot from a medium caliber revolver was capable of producing the described injury. 4. The projectile has not been found because it had leaked through the rejection opening detected above the left ear. (As it turns out, the bullet stuck in the bedside cabinet.) 5. It is undoubtedly that the Crown Prince taught himself the shot and death occurred instantly, etc. This report bears the signatures of the professors. Hofmann, dr. Kundrat and dr. Wiederhofer. Finally, the fact that the Crown Prince left several farewell letters addressed to the Emperor, the Empress, the Crown Princess, the Duke of Braganza, and the Section Chief Szoegyenyi speaks at length for suicide. The letters to the latter two were published in the newspapers at the time; they show that the Crown Prince acted under the influence of third persons; From outside, circumstances impacted on him, which put the weapon in his hand:"I have to leave my life ..." says the letter to the section chief, and "I must die, I could not act otherwise ...." in the short letter to the Duke of Braganza. The Baroness Vetsera also wrote a farewell letter addressed to her mother. It says: "I'm dying with Rudolf, we love each other too much ...."It is from these few words that the futility of that rumor emerges, according to which she is said to have enthralled the crown prince by means of a razor knife while he slept (!). Allegedly it was put into circulation by Aristides Baltazzi (Cf. the published work: "Emperor Franz Josef I and his court", Vienna 1919, p.57) , which may have special reasons for it.It is true that the Crown Prince committed suicide, but it is equally true that he did not voluntarily kill himself. (Ernst Edler von der Planitz also comes to this conclusion in his book "The Complete Truth," Berlin 1889, in which he brings countless details, but comes to wrong results , because he judges the characters acting incorrectly and does not know the driving motives.)(From this circumstance explains also the execution of the ecclesiastical consecration, which was originally denied by the Vatican and was permitted only after an enlightening telegram of the emperor.)Still open is the question of the reason. The fact that not only a love tragedy existed was emphasized earlier. Rudolf's death has a very political background . He was, to put it briefly, in the hands of the Masons , whose dark plans he fell victim to. It was nothing less than a coup d'etat to help Hungary become fully independent and independent. Franz Josef was to be dethroned and Rudolf King of Hungary. Austria's crown was intended for Archduke Johann of Tuscany .Without any prejudice, it should be noted here that this prince, the youngest son of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, was also the suitable man for this; He is all the more confident that he was willing to accept the idea of a violent overthrow when he had already applied for the Bulgarian princely throne two years earlier (1887); that was the reason why he was suddenly removed from command of the 3rd Infantry Division (in Linz).Archduke Johann was a free spirit, who had previously attracted the public's attention with his courageous, sensational writing "Drill or Education". He was close friends with Rudolf, who was six years his junior, but friends with the emperor. After the plan had failed due to Rudolf's suicide, the archduke renounced rank and dignity, adopted the name Johann Orth, went abroad and equipped a merchant ship, the "Margarita". In 1891, this ship was reportedly destroyed on the south coast of South America; since that time Johann Orth has disappeared.If the claim that Rudolph was in the hands of the Masons is true, the riddle that hovers over the crown prince finds its complete and complete solution. At the same time, however, the mysterious disappearance of Johann Orth is finding an explanation that has not yet been attempted. If the Crown Prince, like the Empress of her niece, the Baroness Wallersee, occasionally once said (see "My past" by Baroness Wallersee, Berlin 1913, p. 242) , was really in the hands of the Freemasons, then he must himself Freemasons have been, because only a Mason can Freemasons give orders and enforce obedience from him. But then all the dark hints and expressions handed down to us by the crown prince find their perfect explanation at once. "You can not imagine the confusion that surrounds me," he says on occasion to his cousin, Countess Larisch; "I am in great danger myself", "... I am on the edge of a precipice", "... at any moment the Emperor can order the search of my papers ...." Such utterances, which are certainly not invented, clearly point to very extraordinary circumstances, which must necessarily be related to political things. Incidentally, the Crown Prince himself says: "The danger that threatens me is political ." If Rudolf now speaks of a "danger" that threatens him and is political in nature, this only allows one conclusion to be drawn that he is involved in a highly political state-transforming enterprise in which he himself is involved, whereby he plays a role which apparently does not suit him. Presumably, he made promises and promises, and now that it's time to act, he lacks courage and inner determination. He recoils from the last, the most extreme; weak-willed as he is, he can not get up to the decisive act and now has on the one hand to fear the wrath and revenge of the co-conspirators, but at the same time the detection of the whole conspiracy .... A Hamlet character at the Austrian imperial court! Countess Larisch, who is deeply disturbed by this, advises him to entrust himself to the empress, or even better, to the emperor himself.He scolds her for a fool. "If I wanted to entrust myself to the Emperor, I would sign my own death sentence" is his enigmatic answer; but this answer loses its mystery at the moment when one knows that Rudolf is a Mason and must feel the tips of his beloved brothers in the place of his heart. If Rudolf wanted to entrust himself to the Emperor, as his cousin advised, he would most likely be forgiven, but would exchange the blood-revenge of the betrayed brothers; he would just "sign his own death sentence," words which of course Countess Larisch does not understand, and therefore without any attempt to explain.In support of our view that Crown Prince Rudolf was a tool and a victim of the Freemasons, the mysterious story with the steel cassette was also used.A few days before his death, the Crown Prince, in the greatest agitation of Countess Larisch, brought a heavy cassette sewn into cloth and demanded that she take it and quickly hide it in a safe place. "Under no circumstances may it be found in my possession, and at any moment the Emperor may order a search of my property." The Countess initially refuses, but Rudolf forces her on with the assurance that the cassette contains nothing compromising for her . "How long should I keep this terrible thing?" she asks him."Until I ask them back or someone else asks them back, in case it should happen - he said seriously - I have to give you instructions - only one person knows the secret of this cassette and he alone has the right to demand it back . ""Who is this?" - "His name does not matter, you can hand it over to the person who calls you four signs, write them down and repeat them." And slowly the Crown Prince spoke the four letters: "RJUO"That even the most coveted cassette contained the love letters of the crown prince might not be believed by even the most unsuspecting mind. It probably contained the exact plan for the coup d'etat, as well as all the papers Rudolf had received as a Mason from the Grand Lodge. Incidentally, every Mason can affirm that the brothers are under the strictest obligation to keep everything relating to their covenant and to make sure that after their death all letters, papers and other documents are given to a brother of a higher (or equal) degree be handed out.If we keep all these circumstances in mind, we come to the conclusion that the love story with the baroness Vetsera could not have been the one that so upset him and made him so desperate and even dead. Incidentally, this is expressly mentioned at the same meeting. Rudolf speaks of the "danger" that threatens him and he hopes to escape. The Countess asks him: "Does the 'danger' concern the dispute with Stephanie?" - Rudolf laughs: "Stephanie! - Oh no, that's just a domestic disaster. The danger that threatens me is political ." The countess is appalled because she never believed that the crown prince would engage in dangerous political adventures.Who is the "only" person who, apart from Rudolf, knows the secret of the steel cassette and, if so, wants it back?It is a co-conspirator. A few days after Rudolf's terrible end, Countess Larisch receives a letter in which she is invited to appear at a certain place at 10.30 am the same evening, bringing along her "acquaintance". The signature is replaced by four letters: RJUOShe comes and meets a strange, tall man wearing a Styrian coat and felt hat. The stranger's unusually beautiful eyes catch her, as does the interesting face; but she does not recognize him. The stranger speaks to her by name, names the four letters, she wants to hand over the cassette to him, before he asks her some questions of conscience: "Have you ever spoken of this cassette?" - "Never - never."The stranger breathes in relief at these words. "Did ER tell you about the secret?" - "No, I do not know about it." - "It's better that way, otherwise your life could be at stake ." He takes the cassette and lifts the hat. Only now does the countess recognize the person standing before her: it is Archduke Johann of Tuscany .As far as the four letters "RJUO" are concerned, there is no explanation in the book of Countess Larisch. Maybe they are chosen quite arbitrarily; but perhaps they are based on a deeper meaning which envisages the purpose of the conspiracy: Rudolf-Johann, Hungary-Austria!This is at least confirmed by the other content of the nocturnal interview, which is so remarkable that it is reproduced here in its essential points. Archduke Johann continued: "If the Emperor had found these papers (which were in the box) , things would have been much worse for him (Rudolph) : the Crown Prince committed suicide, but if the Emperor had known everything, he would have put him in a court-martial and have to be shot as a traitor. "The countess cried out. " My God, what has he done? .... Did he think of the crown of Hungary? " - " The Archduke nodded in agreement and suddenly came to me Tante's words (meaning the Empress Elisabeth), with whom she long ago once hinted that Rudolf was in the hands of the Freemasons . "This is, of course, the only passage in the book of Baroness Wallersee, where the Masons are mentioned. But just this one passage contains the key to understanding the whole tragedy. If a Hungarian conspiracy existed, then it could only emanate from the Masons, who, according to their own admissions, had a hand in all the revolutions and claims of the nineteenth century. Of course, it does not mean the lower three grades, which know nothing of all this, because they are not initiated into the great state actions. This refers to the Scottish high grades, which also exist in Hungary and fight there just as the political power position as in France or Italy, in Portugal, Spain, Belgium, etc. Of course, must also John of Tuscany Freemasons have been, and indeed he should be one ranked higher than Rudolf.Concerning the end of the crown prince, Johann von Tuscany turned to Countess Larisch as follows: "Can you imagine what the fear of discovery must have meant for Rudolf, for a man with his nervous disposition and undermined health by irritants and spirits? Alone fear alone could have made him commit suicide, it is a pity he was so weak, he broke his word to me , and I trusted him, but a bottle of brandy seems to have turned him into a contemptible coward. .. " From this statement it can be concluded that the day for the execution of the coup has already passed. The crown prince had evidently pledged on a certain date - perhaps December 2, 1888, the day of the 40th anniversary of the reign of Emperor Franz Joseph - to seize possession of the throne of Hungary and make a solemn promise to Archduke Johann. He had not kept that promise, broken his word; and so he lived in double fear of the discovery of the plan by the state police and the revenge of his co-conspirators. Allegations will not be lacking. Archduke Johann calls him a despicable coward, others have scolded him for being a traitor and reminded him of his oaths, and perhaps of those punishments that are forfeited. So Rudolf was in a terrible situation. "Even the fear of discovery alone - said John of Tuscany - could have made him commit suicide" ; If one takes into account the allegations of the co-conspirators, the fear of their revenge, and not least their own remorse, these are truly reasons enough to give him the revolver. But the most important of all motives was probably this : The Crown Prince found no way out of this labyrinth . The seemingly closest thing to confessing to the emperor meant the betrayal of his co-conspirators; and that meant nothing more than - as he himself very rightly said - "to sign his own death sentence" . He could not dare to go to Ofenpest; he feared the reproaches, the wrath and the revenge of the Logengewaltigen who wanted to use him only as a tool of their own lust for power. So what was left for him? Nothing but death. And he wanted to sweeten him if possible. Mary Vetsera was faithful to him. She was to share his last hours with him, she who had been wearing an iron bracelet for weeks, a gift from Rudolf that in his own words symbolized "faithfulness to death".Therefore, he had Mary, who was kept incarcerated at home, by the mediation of Countess Larisch bring two days before his end on secret ways in the Hofburg and kidnap by the devotee Fiaker Bratfisch to Meyerling. With her, who loved him most of all, who had adored and admired him, he wanted to escape together the hardships of a life he could not master. Thus the death of Rudolf is the act of despair of a weak, halting and helpless man, who did not know one more thing, and love tragedy is only a more or less accidental accompaniment.Moreover, that this is the correct view is also evident from the statement of a well-known high-grade freemason, Count Julius Andrassy , who is here in attendance; this former important statesman was one of Baroness Wallersee's best friends ever since she first arrived in Austria. She confided in him whenever she found herself in any trouble at Godollo, the Empress' hunting lodge. Andrassy visits Countess Larisch (Baroness Wallersee) immediately after Rudolf Tode. "Tell me, has Rudolf ever talked politics to you?" - he investigates the Countess - "For you must know that the death of the Crown Prince is not merely a love tragedy ."That's clear enough. But let us return for a moment to John of Tuscany. At the end of his nocturnal talk with Countess Larisch, he gives her to understand that she will never see him again. But he thanked her for his life - because she had given him the cassette unopened and intact - and he would never forget what she had done to him. The countess is concerned and confused. "Imperial Highness - she says - are you leaving Austria?" John of Tuscany smiles. " Yes, I will die without being dead .... " And as a man of word he acted as he spoke. He put down titles and honors, took the simple name of Johann Orth, equipped a ship and disappeared from the horizon of the living. No one can say whether he is still alive or has perished with his ship Margarita in 1891 at the southern tip of South America.But there can scarcely be any doubt that both he and Crown Prince Rudolf were tools in the hands of the Masons, one of whom expiated the planned coup d'etat with his life, the other with voluntary banishment.Additive:That the Crown Prince was a Freemason is now confirmed to me at the right time from a very credible side; It is a lady of Viennese society, by virtue of the position of her husband - he was Austrian. Ambassador in Rome - had many opportunities to look behind the scenes; She made notable remarks to me on this matter, the essentials of which are emphasized in the following:Crown Prince Rudolf was introduced to Freemasonry after his trip around the world by the Prince of Wales, later King Eduard VII, in the late seventies of the 19th century, whereby his traveling companion, the well-known naturalist Prof. Brehm, worked his way up. Later, Crown Prince Rudolf was also a member of the Hungarian Grand Lodge. On the occasion of a hunting trip to Transylvania, he was the guest of a certain Count Teleki, who was also a Freemason.There, a larger hunting party had gathered and during a champagne show the Crown Prince was presented with a document in which he was committed to advocate the independence of the Hungarian army and the independence of Hungary. The Crown Prince, who was no longer aware of the significance of his action, signed this document.Some time later, the member of the Magnate House, Br. Count Pista (Istvan) Karolyi , gave a speech in parliament, in which he made the sensational announcement that in a very short time the Hungarian army would receive full independence. He claimed that he knew this from a reliable source.The crown prince, however-so put in a tight spot-refused to fulfill the promise made to him in the state of drunkenness. This was the introduction of the political tragedy of Meyerling.from dr. WF(written in 1919) FreeFlow

lop guest

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09-12-2018 11:16 PM











Post: #2 RE: The tragedy of Meyerling. Was Crown Prince Rudolf in the hands of the Freemasons?



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Countess_M...n_Moennich So she was only made a scapegoat: FreeFlow

lop guest

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09-12-2018 11:35 PM











Post: #3 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

I know, probably the wrong place to post this ...



Does anyone know an appropriate history forum that might be open foe this ? piequal3because14

Angel of Love from Heaven

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09-12-2018 11:42 PM



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Post: #4 RE: 1919: Quite a revealing article: Crown Prince Rudolf under Freemasonic Pressure

Meh I think that what happened is the following,



they being siblings the Emperor had the intention with the approval of the church and its pressure and others to declare the marriage void.Therefore she could not accept the idea ,giving the family pride for the shame for the family and her reputation as an entirenment she killed him after which she committed suicide.



Of course ,the fact that the family was priven to normal burial could lead to premeditated crime of the two.



Between the two I tend to believe the forced suicide.

Look into my eyes to see a Paradise of Love



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqtHu0XFal0



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo7PY4vbQLE



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTm9ui-26F0 FreeFlow

lop guest

User ID: 5

09-12-2018 11:43 PM











Post: #5 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

piequal3because14 Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:42 PM) Meh I think that what happened is the following,



they being siblings the Emperor had the intention with the approval of the church and its pressure and others to declare the marriage void.Therefore she could not accept the idea ,giving the family pride for the shame for the family and her reputation as an entirenment she killed him after which she committed suicide.



Of course ,the fact that the family was priven to normal burial could lead to premeditated crime of the two.



Between the two I tend to believe the forced suicide.



That was not even a near miss.

It's clear you didn't read the article but thanks for trying That was not even a near miss.It's clear you didn't read the article but thanks for trying piequal3because14

Angel of Love from Heaven

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09-12-2018 11:55 PM



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Post: #6 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

FreeFlow Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:43 PM) piequal3because14 Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:42 PM) Meh I think that what happened is the following,



they being siblings the Emperor had the intention with the approval of the church and its pressure and others to declare the marriage void.Therefore she could not accept the idea ,giving the family pride for the shame for the family and her reputation as an entirenment she killed him after which she committed suicide.



Of course ,the fact that the family was priven to normal burial could lead to premeditated crime of the two.



Between the two I tend to believe the forced suicide.



That was not even a near miss.

It's clear you didn't read the article but thanks for trying I read it,and the official version and the wiki,and that was just my conclusion for the cause of death.



But I can be wrong of course.



It is hard without actual to date clear forensic evidence to find out the truth.







Look into my eyes to see a Paradise of Love



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqtHu0XFal0



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo7PY4vbQLE



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTm9ui-26F0 LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 438276

09-12-2018 11:58 PM











Post: #7 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

FreeFlow Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:35 PM) I know, probably the wrong place to post this ...



Does anyone know an appropriate history forum that might be open foe this ?

i don't think it is the wrong place to post it..would rather have more mysteries/variety on forum like this instead of just politics i don't think it is the wrong place to post it..would rather have more mysteries/variety on forum like this instead of just politics FreeFlow

lop guest

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09-13-2018 12:01 AM











Post: #8 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

piequal3because14 Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:55 PM) FreeFlow Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:43 PM) That was not even a near miss.

It's clear you didn't read the article but thanks for trying I read it,and the official version and the wiki,and that was just my conclusion for the cause of death.



But I can be wrong of course.



It is hard without actual to date clear forensic evidence to find out the truth.









Fair enough, I just don't think that it was the fault of Mary Vetsara.

There are too many known facts piled on the OP article, it is the first time I saw the dots connected.

That Sisi said Rudolph is in the hands of the freemasons is proven in one of her letters and Marie Larisch also conforms that rightly in 'My Past' Fair enough, I just don't think that it was the fault of Mary Vetsara.There are too many known facts piled on the OP article, it is the first time I saw the dots connected.That Sisi said Rudolph is in the hands of the freemasons is proven in one of her letters and Marie Larisch also conforms that rightly in 'My Past' FreeFlow

lop guest

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09-13-2018 12:02 AM











Post: #9 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:58 PM) FreeFlow Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:35 PM) I know, probably the wrong place to post this ...



Does anyone know an appropriate history forum that might be open foe this ?

i don't think it is the wrong place to post it..would rather have more mysteries/variety on forum like this instead of just politics

Thank You Thank You piequal3because14

Angel of Love from Heaven

User ID: 460224

09-13-2018 12:10 AM



Posts: 28,444









Post: #10 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

FreeFlow Wrote: (09-13-2018 12:01 AM) piequal3because14 Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:55 PM) I read it,and the official version and the wiki,and that was just my conclusion for the cause of death.



But I can be wrong of course.



It is hard without actual to date clear forensic evidence to find out the truth.









Fair enough, I just don't think that it was the fault of Mary Vetsara.

There are too many known facts piled on the OP article, it is the first time I saw the dots connected.

That Sisi said Rudolph is in the hands of the freemasons is proven in one of her letters and Marie Larisch also conforms that rightly in 'My Past' Meh it was very easy then to induce suicide by honor especially in the royal families,not only in Osterreich but all over the world.



A dullnote for power.



What I can tell you is that I sensed immense pain and sorrow at her graveyard.



Trust me,it is true.



I don't think not even one second that she wanted to die.



But something else happened and probably will never find out but only when will pass in the other realm where everything is truth.



Of course,me in about 1000 years:)





Look into my eyes to see a Paradise of Love



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqtHu0XFal0



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo7PY4vbQLE



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTm9ui-26F0 (This post was last modified: 09-13-2018 12:11 AM by piequal3because14 .) LoP Guest

lop guest

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09-13-2018 12:12 AM











Post: #11 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

FreeFlow Wrote: (09-13-2018 12:02 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (09-12-2018 11:58 PM) i don't think it is the wrong place to post it..would rather have more mysteries/variety on forum like this instead of just politics

Thank You *YW*



a mystery within a mystery

hmn..



*S* *YW*a mystery within a mysteryhmn..*S* #1 Doomologist

lop guest

User ID: 436526

09-13-2018 12:17 AM











Post: #12 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure



Ive been to his castle in bavaria...

I remember everything was gold, door handles, faucets, it was amazing, neuwinstein and i know the spelling is wrong,,,

they were very extravagant people, the gardens at each castle must have took 100 men to upkeep...

I have some great pics from 1975, bavaria, switzerland, germany, luxembourg, we traveled the rhine in a vw bus... what do you now about king ludwig?Ive been to his castle in bavaria...I remember everything was gold, door handles, faucets, it was amazing, neuwinstein and i know the spelling is wrong,,,they were very extravagant people, the gardens at each castle must have took 100 men to upkeep...I have some great pics from 1975, bavaria, switzerland, germany, luxembourg, we traveled the rhine in a vw bus... FreeFlow

lop guest

User ID: 5

09-13-2018 12:18 AM











Post: #13 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

piequal3because14 Wrote: (09-13-2018 12:10 AM) FreeFlow Wrote: (09-13-2018 12:01 AM) Fair enough, I just don't think that it was the fault of Mary Vetsara.

There are too many known facts piled on the OP article, it is the first time I saw the dots connected.

That Sisi said Rudolph is in the hands of the freemasons is proven in one of her letters and Marie Larisch also conforms that rightly in 'My Past' Meh it was very easy then to induce suicide by honor especially in the royal families,not only in Osterreich but all over the world.



A dullnote for power.



What I can tell you is that I sensed immense pain and sorrow at her graveyard.



Trust me,it is true.



I don't think not even one second that she wanted to die.



But something else happened and probably will never find out but only when will pass in the other realm where everything is truth.



Of course,me in about 1000 years:)







But obviously you ignore the implications of this section:



Crown Prince Rudolf was introduced to Freemasonry after his trip around the world by the Prince of Wales, later King Eduard VII, in the late seventies of the 19th century, whereby his traveling companion, the well-known naturalist Prof. Brehm, worked his way up. Later, Crown Prince Rudolf was also a member of the Hungarian Grand Lodge. On the occasion of a hunting trip to Transylvania, he was the guest of a certain Count Teleki, who was also a Freemason.

There, a larger hunting party had gathered and during a champagne show the Crown Prince was presented with a document in which he was committed to advocate the independence of the Hungarian army and the independence of Hungary. The Crown Prince, who was no longer aware of the significance of his action, signed this document. But obviously you ignore the implications of this section: FreeFlow

lop guest

User ID: 5

09-13-2018 12:22 AM











Post: #14 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

#1 Doomologist Wrote: (09-13-2018 12:17 AM) what do you now about king ludwig?

Ive been to his castle in bavaria...

I remember everything was gold, door handles, faucets, it was amazing, neuwinstein and i know the spelling is wrong,,,

they were very extravagant people, the gardens at each castle must have took 100 men to upkeep...

I have some great pics from 1975, bavaria, switzerland, germany, luxembourg, we traveled the rhine in a vw bus...

Ludwig was the cousin (or uncle of Sisi, I could look it up), a Wittelsbach ... he was of the same spirit as Sisi ...

These places have quite an atmosphere I know.

We have them here in Vienna too Ludwig was the cousin (or uncle of Sisi, I could look it up), a Wittelsbach ... he was of the same spirit as Sisi ...These places have quite an atmosphere I know.We have them here in Vienna too piequal3because14

Angel of Love from Heaven

User ID: 460224

09-13-2018 12:26 AM



Posts: 28,444









Post: #15 RE: An article from 1919 says Crown Prince Rudolf was under Freemasonic Pressure

FreeFlow Wrote: (09-13-2018 12:18 AM) piequal3because14 Wrote: (09-13-2018 12:10 AM) Meh it was very easy then to induce suicide by honor especially in the royal families,not only in Osterreich but all over the world.



A dullnote for power.



What I can tell you is that I sensed immense pain and sorrow at her graveyard.



Trust me,it is true.



I don't think not even one second that she wanted to die.



But something else happened and probably will never find out but only when will pass in the other realm where everything is truth.



Of course,me in about 1000 years:)







Bit obviously you ignore the implications of this section:

Crown Prince Rudolf was introduced to Freemasonry after his trip around the world by the Prince of Wales, later King Eduard VII, in the late seventies of the 19th century, whereby his traveling companion, the well-known naturalist Prof. Brehm, worked his way up. Later, Crown Prince Rudolf was also a member of the Hungarian Grand Lodge. On the occasion of a hunting trip to Transylvania, he was the guest of a certain Count Teleki, who was also a Freemason.

There, a larger hunting party had gathered and during a champagne show the Crown Prince was presented with a document in which he was committed to advocate the independence of the Hungarian army and the independence of Hungary. The Crown Prince, who was no longer aware of the significance of his action, signed this document. I understand what you are saying.



if the document could have had found legal ways to be born to life in action then,yes could be this the reason.



If the document was signed by being unaware of its content as a result of an induced action to force an illegal action above the law of that times ,then the document could have been void of its content if and when transposed into action:)





Look into my eyes to see a Paradise of Love



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqtHu0XFal0



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo7PY4vbQLE



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On Nov. 8, 2016, Crystal Mason, an African-American mother of three, went to the polls and voted. Hers was a provisional ballot, as she hadnt been to her polling place near Fort Worth, Texas, for several years. She had been in prison for tax-related offenses and was under federal supervised release. I went to the local church, where I went before I went to prison, to vote, she said on the Democracy Now! news hour. When they looked on the roster, they realized my name wasnt there  when I got ready to walk away, they stopped me and they told me, Hey, you can fill out a provisional ballot.  If youre at the right location, it will count. And if youre not, it wont. I didnt see any harm with that. So the lady sat me down and helped me out with it.

What Crystal didnt know was that in Texas, you cant vote while on parole or supervised release. What happened next is hard to believe. She was charged with voter fraud, convicted and sentenced to five years. On top of that shock, a federal judge ruled that because she violated the terms of her supervised release  for voting in Texas  she must spend an additional 10 months in federal prison on top of the five-year state sentence she is appealing.

There is absolutely no reason Crystal should have been prosecuted, Kim Cole, Masons attorney, said on Democracy Now! She was not aware that she was not eligible to vote. Provisional ballots exist precisely for people who are uncertain about their eligibility to vote. They allow a person to vote until election officials can check, after Election Day, whether the voter was eligible or not. If not, the ballot is not counted. Its that simple.

Texas state law is clear: A person can only be convicted of voter fraud if he or she intended to commit the offense. Crystal Mason clearly did not. Cole stressed her supervised release officer testified on the stand that he did not tell Crystal that she was not eligible to vote. Tarrant County is very proud to be the largest urban red county in the country. And they (local GOP) want to keep it that way.

According to The Sentencing Project, felony disenfranchisement prevents over 6 million people from voting in the U.S. State laws vary. In Vermont and Maine, convicted felons can vote from jail. Maryland, Connecticut and Rhode Island permit people on probation and/or parole to vote.

Compare Crystal Masons case with that of Terri Lynn Rote, a white woman in Iowa who was convicted of voter fraud for trying to vote for President Donald Trump twice. Rote was sentenced to two years probation and fined $750. Felony disenfranchisement disproportionately impacts communities of color, preventing one in 13 African-Americans in the U.S. from voting, vs. one in 56 for non-African-Americans. Latinos also are disproportionately impacted. 

Theres a growing movement to reconsider these policies, Marc Mauer, executive director of The Sentencing Project, said on Democracy Now! In Florida, over 1.4 million convicted felons have been permanently stripped of their right to vote. Donald Trump won Florida by just 112,000 votes, a mere 1.2 percent of the total vote. Given African-Americans vote Democratic by large margins, it is no surprise Republicans support laws that increasingly restrict African-American turnout. Voters in Florida can change the law this year with a ballot initiative, Amendment 4, driven by returning citizens, as the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition calls formerly incarcerated people. Under it, formerly incarcerated felons, excluding those who committed murder or a felony sexual assault, will regain the right to vote.

Crystal Mason is appealing her voter fraud conviction, for which she got five years in prison. She must turn herself in to federal authorities by Sept. 13 to begin her 10-month sentence, after which she will resume 26 months of supervised release. When asked if she planned to vote again, she replied: I do. I do. And thats what Im encouraging my kids, to get out there so we can make a difference right now.

NM felons can vote

An individual who has served all of his/her felony sentence, including terms of probation or parole, receives a certificate of completion from the corrections department and is entitled to register to vote.
Copyright  2018 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., is calling his shot  saying Democrats will retake control of the U.S. House of Representatives from Republicans in the November general election.

Republicans hold a 237-193 majority in the 435-member chamber  five seats are vacant  but many political pundits believe Democrats are positioned to pick up dozens of House seats in the November midterm election, which would give them control for the first time since 2008.

Democratic control of the U.S. House could also make it more difficult for President Donald Trump to push his agenda through Congress in the final two years of his current four-year term.

Lujan, 46, who is chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said in an interview last week that hes feeling good about Democrats winning control of the House.

Im confident Democrats will take back the House, said Lujan, who said he wouldnt predict how many seats Democrats might pick up in November, but indicated the DCCC has identified 111 competitive congressional districts nationwide.

Due to his current position, the five-term representative from northern New Mexico could also see his national stature rise if Democrats reclaim a majority, but he said hes not thinking about a possible House leadership post  at least for now.

Rather, hes focused on his New Mexico constituents and his DCCC leadership responsibilities, he said.

Thats where my focus is, and thats where its going to continue to be, Lujan said. There will be plenty of time to have other conversations after Nov. 6 when were in the fortunate position to hold the majority in the House of Representatives as Democrats.

Asked what general message Democratic candidates would be espousing on the campaign trail, Lujan said many are using their personal stories to connect with voters. He also said that while the national economy has shown recent improvement, many working-class families are still struggling to make ends meet.

In addition, Lujan cited the legal troubles of several incumbent Republicans as ammunition for Democrats.

Specifically, he cited Rep. Chris Collins of New York, who was recently charged with insider trading; Rep. Duncan Hunter of California, who is facing charges of using campaign funds to pay for an expensive lifestyle; and Rep. Scott Turner of Virginia, whose campaign has been accused of submitting forged voter signatures to get an independent candidate on the ballot.

Republicans are having to explain one scandal after another, Lujan said.

However, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee said Democrats have plenty of their own ethics issues.

The party of Al Franken, Bob Menendez and Harvey Weinstein has no business pointing fingers, NRCC spokesman Jack Pandol said. Those who live in glass houses shouldnt throw stones  particularly after Chairman Lujans organization was made aware of sexual harassment allegations that caused a congressman to resign in disgrace, yet continued spending millions on his behalf.

Thats a reference to U.S. Rep. Ruben Kihuen of Nevada, a Democrat who is not seeking re-election this year after being accused last year by a former staffer of sexual misconduct. The woman reportedly told a DCCC staffer in 2016 she was quitting Kihuens campaign because she was uncomfortable around him. Lujan and other Democrats called for Kihuen to resign after news reports came out last year.

In New Mexico, Lujan is facing opposition in the states 3rd Congressional District from Republican Jerald Steve McFall of Angel Fire and Libertarian Christopher Manning of Kirtland. He has easily won re-election in his most recent bids.

Meanwhile, New Mexicos two other congressional districts are open seats this year because incumbents Steve Pearce, a Republican, and Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, are both giving up their seats to run for governor.

Lujan expressed confidence that Democrat Deb Haaland will defeat Republican Janice Arnold-Jones and Libertarian Lloyd Princeton in the Albuquerque-based 1st Congressional District. He also said Democrats could complete a rare sweep if Xochitl Torres Small emerges victorious against Republican Yvette Herrell, but he said the outcome of the southern New Mexico-based 2nd Congressional District race could hinge on voter turnout levels.
Copyright  2018 Albuquerque Journal

Virtues like love, unity and sacrifice were on the minds of those who gathered Tuesday in Downtown Albuquerque to remember those who died in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Seventeen years ago, jihadist hijackers took control of four commercial airliners, crashing two of them into the World Trade Centers twin towers in New York and a third into the Pentagon in Washington. The fourth jet crashed near Shanksville, Pa., as some of the passengers attempted to retake the aircraft from the hijackers.

Nearly 3,000 people died that day as a result of the attacks, including 343 firefighters, 71 law enforcement officers and 55 military personnel who were first responders.

On Tuesday morning, led by a band of bagpipers performing Scotland the Brave and The Minstrel Boy, more than 100 Albuquerque and Bernalillo County firefighters made their way through the lobby of the Albuquerque Plaza tower to participate in the annual stair climb in remembrance of those first responders.

Wearing full firefighting bunker gear with about 50 pounds of equipment, the firefighters were cheered on by family members and onlookers lining the way to the buildings stairs, where the men and women climbed up and down the 22-story tower five times, the equivalent of 110 stories. Thats the same number of stories in the World Trade Center towers.

Carlos Hernandez, one of four firefighters from the Bernalillo County Fire Department participating in Tuesdays event, said sacrifice is part of the firefighting profession.

They sacrificed their lives for people they didnt know, Hernandez said. To me, thats the ultimate sacrifice.

In todays world with social media, its all about me, me, me. This is a reminder of what those men and women did that day. We dont want another attack, but we have to be ready.

Retired Albuquerque fire department Lt. Charles Cogburn is credited with starting the local climb. He was serving with the military in Afghanistan in 2003 when he saw televised 9/11 remembrance ceremonies taking place in the United States.

The following year, he organized the citys first stairwell climb with members of the stations where he worked, Engine 5 and Engine 2.

After Tuesdays climb, those gathered then assembled at Civic Plaza for a noontime ceremony to hear speakers pay tribute to the 9/11 victims. The names of the victims at the World Trade Center, Pentagon and on the four hijacked airliners appeared on a video screen.

We all remember where we were when we first saw it or heard it and how we reacted, Gov. Susana Martinez said. Waking up on that, what should have been just another Tuesday morning, the day pointed to the reality of the evil that exists in the world and the horror and tragedy that came with it. But on that morning, we also witnessed the love, dedication and spirit of the men and women who put themselves in harms way to protect others.

On that day, said City Council President Ken Sanchez, America and its people did not flinch. Today  we in America reclaim the spirit and unity, the promise and hope that we believe in. Today, we are more resilient as American people.

The number 343 is a sacred number in the fire service, Albuquerque Fire Rescue Chief Paul Dow said.

We remember these 343 firefighters along with nearly 3,000 civilians in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C., Dow said. Were not here to relive the tragedy that occurred 17 years ago, but to remember it and to honor those who fell that day.

The keynote speaker was Chaplain Mindi Russell of Sacramento, Calif., who worked with first responders and victims at Ground Zero for more than two weeks. She said there was nothing at Ground Zero but dust and ash  nothing that resembled the office building that once stood there.

We were ushered to the middle of Ground Zero and we were in the midst of the valley of the shadow of death with dust and ash whirling around us, choking us every step of the way, Russell said. I know it was during the day, but there was not a sound to be made. We walked and talked with the people who were first responders, already exhausted after nine hours of searching, just searching for one person to be alive in that mud and ash and dust, and yet they couldnt find anything, let alone a resemblance of any kind of office.

The ceremonys conclusion included bagpipers playing Amazing Grace and a last alarm presentation of striking the four-fives, five bell strikes repeated four times as a way to signal that a firefighter has responded to his or her last alarm.
FARMINGTON  The Navajo Nation Council approved placing a referendum on the November ballot, asking voters whether to increase the yearly earnings for the tribal president and vice president.

Delegates voted 17-3 in favor on Sept. 7 and the resolution was submitted to the Office of the President and Vice President later that day, according to the Office of the Speaker.

The annual salary for the president is $55,000, and the vice president earns $45,000 each year. Under the proposal, voters would determine to raise the salaries up to $102,000 annually for the president and as high as $87,000 for the vice president.

Navajo Nation President Russell Begaye has 10 calendar days to sign or veto the resolution, which includes proposed language for the ballot.

In a Sept. 7 memorandum to Begaye, Speaker LoRenzo Bates requested the presidents immediate attention to consider the resolution.

In accordance with the Navajo Nation election code and procedures for referendum measures, this particular referendum is bound by a strict timeline to allow the referendum question to be placed on the ballot for the upcoming general election on Nov. 6, Bates wrote.

He added the Navajo Board of Election Supervisors must approve the referendum language, which is contingent on Begayes consideration and approval of the council resolution.

I have been informed that in order to meet the deadlines to have this measure placed on the ballot for the general election, the referendum must have your approval no later than Sept. 12, Bates wrote.

The election board has a regular meeting scheduled for Thursday in Window Rock, Arizona, according to the Navajo Election Administration.

Begaye said in a statement Monday that any proposed salary increase should include everyone, including council delegates, and such action has not been a concern for him.

He wrote that serving as president was not about money, but about serving the Navajo people, and he hopes the next administration does not base its passion for helping the tribe on yearly earnings.

Its about the heart and compassion that you have for the people. I think the councils salary needs to be considered and addressed. However, salary shouldnt dictate productivity or what you do to address the nations needs. For me, I dont have a desire to see an increase, I think its about accountability, Begaye said.

In July, the Commission on Navajo Government Development recommended sending the referendum to voters after research showed the salaries have not been adjusted since both positions were created in 1989.

The referendum proposes the voter, if supporting the measure, determine the adjusted salaries from three options listed on the ballot.

The first option would set the salaries at $85,000 for the president and $70,000 for the vice president.

Option two would provide annual earnings of $95,000 to the president and $80,000 to the vice president.

The third option proposes $102,000 for the president and $87,000 for the vice president.

The referendum would need majority votes in favor to pass, the council resolution states.

If it passes, the amount receiving the highest number of votes would be the one approved.

A separate piece of legislation would have created a second referendum for voters on the November ballot.

That proposal sought to restructure chapter governments, but the legislation was withdrawn by Delegate Leonard Tsosie, the bills sponsor, on Sept. 7.

Noel Lyn Smith covers the Navajo Nation for The Daily Times. She can be reached at 505-564-4636 or by email at nsmith@daily-times.com.



2018 The Daily Times (Farmington, N.M.)

Visit The Daily Times (Farmington, N.M.) at www.daily-times.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Copyright  2018 Albuquerque Journal

LAS CRUCES  A year after his death, Sen. Pete Domenicis legacy loomed large at his namesake public policy conference.

There was no better senator. No better man. And no better friend, said former Georgia Sen. Sam Nunn during opening remarks Wednesday in a crowded hall at the Las Cruces Convention Center.

The men served in Congress together for 24 years, arriving in Washington in the early 1970s during the Watergate era. He noted that from 1973 to 1976 there were three presidents: Richard Nixon, who resigned; Gerald Ford, who replaced him; and Jimmy Carter, who beat Ford in the November 1976 election.

This is not the first time weve gone through a little turmoil in Washington, Nunn said. The Republic will survive.

Nunn, a Democrat, said Domenicis pragmatic bipartisan approach led to significant achievements, including reducing fiscal time bombs, such as the ballooning national deficit, as well as disposing of nuclear weapons before they could get into terrorist hands as the former Soviet Union crumbled.

You never get credit for what doesnt happen or what you prevented, he said.

National security, midterm elections and immigration are the topics for this years two-day conference, which is organized by The Domenici Institute at New Mexico State University.

Regarding national security, Gen. Stephen Wilson, vice chief of staff for the U.S. Air Force, told the audience the accelerated pace of technology development is leading to disruption that requires all of us to think differently.

Wilson said changing threats also have forced America to adapt.

I contend as Americans we thought completely different on Sept. 12, 2001, he said.

Wilson and other speakers took questions from a panel of students from New Mexico universities.

Bowen Perry, a senior at Alamogordo High School in the NMSU early college program, asked about the shortage of fighter pilots.

Were working really hard on our pilot production business. Holloman Air Force Base is a key part of that, Wilson said, referring to an expansion of F-16 fighter pilot training at the base near Alamogordo.

Wilson said the Air Force also has to do a better job of retaining experienced pilots who leave the military when their service abroad takes a toll on family life at home.

On Wednesday afternoon, the discussion shifted to immigration, another important issue for Domenici, who worked for common sense immigration policies, Nunn said.

Several speakers mentioned that a 9-year-old Domenici was separated from his mother, an undocumented immigrant, who was taken away by FBI agents investigating suspected Italian sympathizers during World War II. She was released and later became a U.S. citizen.

Domenici told members of Congress about his experience after a failed effort at immigration reform.

I wasnt trying to impress anybody, Domenici said at the time. I think it just puts a little heart, a little soul into the discussion.

Alan Kraut, a professor of history at American University, recounted the moment during his talk and said Congress and the president might remember to interject a little heart and a little soul into the debate about immigration.

Kraut said fear of foreign-born people is part of Americas history. He said it has, at times, led to the rise of nativist, xenophobic and racist groups.

All of this is a kind of echo of things past that is coming around again, Kraut said of the current backlash by some groups.

Theresa Cardinal Brown, director of immigration and cross-border policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, D.C., said extreme either/or positions prevent lawmakers from reaching a compromise.

Its not mass deportation or abolish ICE, Brown said.

We need to support the middle  those members willing to work across the aisle like Senator Pete  and build from there, Brown said.

Any lasting solution must come from Congress rather than court battles or depend on which president is in office, according to Brown.

The alternative is we continue to limp along with a broken, outdated, antiquated immigration system that nobody likes, she said.

A group of about two dozen demonstrators stood outside the convention center on the first day of the conference holding signs, including one that read: Immigrants make America Great.

Organizers with Justice for All said the goal was to send a message to conference participants about the plight of Dreamers and separated families.

Remember that the Dreamers are in limbo, said Cristen Biad Ismond of Justice For All. Theyre tired. Theyre starting to lose hope.

Jon Barela, CEO of the Borderplex Alliance, in his talk inside the convention center agreed Congress needs to act quickly to protect Dreamers for both humanitarian and economic reasons.

The Domenici Public Policy Conference wraps up today with a focus on the midterm elections and the changing political landscape.
The U.S. economy may be going gangbusters at the moment, but there are signs of a slowdown by 2020.

Everythings on fire through 2019 economist Elliot Eisenberg told a crowd of housing industry professionals Wednesday during the 2018 New Mexico Housing Summit, which was presented by the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority. About 500 people attended Eisenbergs keynote speech at Hotel Albuquerque.

Signs of a booming national economy are strong consumer confidence and spending, small-business optimism and a rising stock market. Unconventional signs include record purchases of RVs, racehorses and trips to Las Vegas, Nev., said Eisenberg, who shared a wide range of economic projections during a highly energetic presentation.

Theres nothing like 3.9 percent unemployment to make the world go round, said Eisenberg.

Eisenberg predicted the tax cut package passed by Congress will provide an economic stimulus through 2019, though the effects will wind down by 2020, shrinking gross domestic product, which hit 4 percent in the last quarter.

Trade tariffs also will hurt GDP growth by 2020 unless some accommodation is reached with China, said Eisenberg.

Another area of concern: with baby boomers retiring in droves, labor force participation and productivity gains have been weaker than the historical norm, said Eisenberg. The upshot: labor shortages could become a more serious problem for future economic growth.

Another indicator dragging down the economy in the coming years: The burdens of student loans have metastasized like mushrooms after a rainstorm, said Eisenberg.

The main problem with the housing market around the country and in New Mexico is the lack of inventory, said Eisenberg. Were chronically underbuilt for a nation of this size, he said.

Because builders face issues such as a contracting pool of construction workers, higher land and permitting costs, the single-family homes that do hit the market are increasingly higher-end products that maximize profits, said Eisenberg, who specializes in real estate and housing.

We built 850,000 single-family homes last year, the economist said during his presentation. Thats a travesty. And while demand is high, theres very little builder activity at the newly built starter-home level.

The Albuquerque area is averaging about 1,700 new homes a year, which is insufficient for a market this size, according to local home builder groups.
Copyright  2018 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  The New Mexico Supreme Court on Wednesday blocked Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver from bringing back straight-party voting for the November general election, ruling that the secretary of state does not have the authority to unilaterally make the policy change.

The unanimous decision, which was handed down after more than an hour of deliberations, makes it clear that only the Legislature can restore straight-party voting, which allows voters to vote for a major partys entire slate of candidates by filling in an oval at the top of the ballot.

This power is theirs alone, and the Legislature has indicated its intent to thoroughly regulate how ballots appear, Chief Justice Judith Nakamura said while handing down the decision.

Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat who is running for re-election this year to serve a full four-year term as secretary of state, had made no secret of her support for straight-party voting and announced late last month  just over two months before Election Day  that she was bringing it back for the Nov. 6 election.

She argued that the option provides more options to voters and makes it easier for them to cast ballots. She also claimed state law gave her the authority to make the change.

But her decision prompted howls of protest from critics who said it was driven by partisan motives in a state in which registered Democrats far outnumber Republicans, a charge that Toulouse Oliver denied.

She told reporters after the Supreme Court hearing Wednesday that she was disappointed by the decision but glad to have clarity on the issue from the states highest court.

This has never been a partisan decision for me, Toulouse Oliver said. Its always been about ease for the voters.

The Supreme Courts decision came after justices heard nearly an hour and a half of oral arguments from attorneys on both sides of the dispute.

Many of the justices questions focused on legislative intent and history on the issue, which was complicated by the fact that several bills were proposed since 2001 that would have either endorsed or banned straight-ticket voting and none of them was signed into law.

This is a tough issue, because it is not clear, Justice Charles Daniels said at one point during Wednesdays hearing.

At another point, Nakamura asked a contract attorney with Attorney General Hector Balderas office, which was defending Toulouse Oliver, whether the secretary of state could in the future add single ballot ovals for bond questions and judicial retention if her move to bring back straight-ticket voting was allowed to stand.

We could reduce the ballot to perhaps four questions, Nakamura said.

Supreme Court Justice Gary Clingman, who was appointed to the states highest court by Martinez earlier this year and is running for election in November, recused himself from the case. District Judge Brett Loveless of Albuquerque was tabbed by the Supreme Court to fill in for Clingman on the five-member court.

New Mexico previously used the straight-party voting option since around 1917, according to court testimony, but then-Secretary of State Dianna Duran, a Republican, eliminated it in 2012, saying the state election code did not specifically allow the practice.

Meanwhile, the court challenge seeking to bar Toulouse Oliver from reinstating straight-ticket voting was filed by a unlikely coalition of allies, including the state Republican and Libertarian parties, which both have major-party status for this years election cycle.

The other petitioners were Unite New Mexico, a nonprofit formed to help independent candidates; Elect Liberty PAC, an independent expenditure group created to assist former Gov. Gary Johnsons U.S. Senate campaign; and Heather Nordquist, a Democratic legislative write-in candidate from Santa Fe.

In addition, a group of 19 GOP state lawmakers, two county commissioners, two county clerks and the Republican and Libertarian candidates for secretary of state filed a legal brief of their own opposing the secretary of states actions.

Gavin Clarkson, the GOP nominee for secretary of state, heralded the Supreme Courts decision as a milestone ruling.

I think it was a total vindication of the rule of law in the state of New Mexico, Clarkson told reporters. The secretary of state should not be making law  the Legislature should be making law.

Other Republicans, including GOP gubernatorial nominee Steve Pearce and outgoing Gov. Susana Martinez, also hailed the ruling on social media.

Nationally, many states have been moving away from straight-ticket voting in recent years. Only nine states currently provide the option to voters, and Texas is scheduled to do away with it in 2020, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

The Secretary of States Office said it did not have immediate access to historical New Mexico data about voter utilization rates of the straight-party option.

However, the Secretary of States Office has pointed out that two Republicans  Duran and outgoing Gov. Susana Martinez  were elected to statewide office in 2010, the last time straight-party voting was on the ballot.

After Wednesdays ruling was announced, Toulouse Oliver was noncommittal about whether she would push next year at the Roundhouse for a bill authorizing straight-party voting if shes re-elected. But she said she will advocate for other policy changes, including same-day voter registration and opening primary elections to independent voters.

I will continue to push for policies that make it easier for voters, Toulouse Oliver said.
The city of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County have approved more than $19 million in annual allocations for Behavioral Health Initiative projects, a county commissioner told the Economic Forum of Albuquerque on Wednesday.

Bernalillo County Commissioner Maggie Hart Stebbins told forum members that behavioral health is a timely topic.

Its been a subject of very intense debate over several years, not just here in Bernalillo County, but across the country, Hart Stebbins said. This is being discussed in Congress, the White House, and state and local governments across the country. Its important to know that we are not alone in recognizing that our system in New Mexico is not working, and we are not alone in trying to find solutions.

Hart Stebbins, who has focused on improving access to mental health and substance abuse treatment services in her nine years on the commission, briefed members on the 13 programs that are part of the joint city-county initiative. It was established after commissioners approved a one-eighth percent gross receipts tax increase in 2015 following voter direction.

This has been a big concern for us in local government, Hart Stebbins said. Bernalillo County has put a lot of thought and effort into our response to what is fairly characterized as a crisis.

Programs established this year alone include mobile crisis teams, community engagement teams and youth transitional living services.

And Bernalillo County commissioners voted this week to appropriate $1 million in one-time funding to purchase and provide housing vouchers to adult county residents who have completed a treatment program of 28 days or longer at the Metropolitan Detention Center or in the community and wish to stay alcohol- and drug-free in sober living housing.

Two programs are in the request for proposal or procurement process, with funding already approved.

An education and training program, at a cost of $3 million over three years, will provide opportunities targeting behavioral health awareness, community training, such as mental health first aid and train-the-trainer programs, to raise awareness, understanding and skills to deal with behavior health issues. The target population includes individuals in direct contact with populations that navigate behavior health needs, individuals who have direct contact due to their professions and the general public.

A peer case management intervention program, at $620,000 annually, is designed to help individuals 14 years or older with a primary diagnosis of mental illness. The proposal draws from strengths-based case management and peer case management. The request for proposal document is expected to be published in October.
Calling it an all hands on deck approach, Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller on Wednesday announced the creation of a new Downtown Public Safety District, which will include a permanent police presence with a substation, along with services from several city departments and community partners.

The Downtown Public Safety District will be housed at a police substation located at the Alvarado Transportation Center at First and Central SW.

Personnel will include eight police officers assigned to Downtown, with an expansion to 12 officers planned. A deputy chief, a lieutenant and a sergeant will oversee the day-to-day operations. Police service aides will also see duties in the district.

Cities rise and fall with their downtown areas, Keller said during a Wednesday news conference, and making Downtown Albuquerque safe to live, work and play is key to the citys and states success.

This is the only place in our state that is truly urban, Keller said. Its the only place that makes sense to have an urban police force. Its the area thats actually policeable exclusively by bike and by foot. And its an area thats still the center of our public transportation system. This is a critical component to a statewide strategy of lifting up New Mexico and it starts with Downtown Albuquerque.

The Albuquerque Police Department will assign officers from the Crisis Outreach and Support Team, and the Crisis Intervention Team to the district to address homelessness and behavioral health needs.

We cant just come in here and do policing like its Las Vegas or San Francisco, said Deputy Chief Roger Banez, who will command the new substation, Downtown Albuquerque is unique. We have to adjust our policing based on the uniqueness of the citizens and the community here in Albuquerque. We want to build a relationship and earn the trust of the communities we promise to serve. With me being here, I guarantee you, that will be one of my top priorities.

Several other departments and community partners will contribute resources to the district, including:

 Albuquerque Fire Rescue will increase its presence near Central Avenue during high-volume call times and by driving a loop around the district after each call for service.

 AFRs new Home Engagement and Alternative Response Team program is also exploring a Downtown home base.

 The Transit and Municipal Development departments will contribute security personnel to the district in coordination with APDs patrol plans.

 The Family and Community Services Department is contributing a social worker to coordinate service providers and implement Project ECHO to train mental health workers in the district.

 The Municipal Development and Solid Waste departments will expand the use of street cleaning machines throughout Downtown, including alleyways, and add collection routes for Downtown businesses to address overflow of trash from Saturday nights.

 Solid Waste will use its Block by Block program to wash sidewalks and its Clean City Graffiti crew to eradicate graffiti as soon as possible.

 The Safe City Strike Force will monitor the district and work closely with Family and Community Services and other service providers.

 The Family and Community Services Department is continuing to work with Heading Homes ABQ Street Connect program to help people with significant behavioral health disability and who are experiencing homelessness.

 Family and Community Services is working with HopeWorks and outreach partners including APDs COAST team, APDs Crisis Intervention Team and ACT teams to do mental health outreach.

 Family and Community Services will work with the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness to help service providers for homeless people.
Publishing and ad tech media company Fork Media has announced a new agreement with digital media company Ziff Davis to operate Mashable India. The expanded partnership builds on Forks existing operation of other Ziff Davis brands  IGN and AskMen  in India.

Mashable, a recognised authority in tech, social and digital culture, became a Ziff Davis brand in 2017. Mashable India will curate and localise the best of Mashables global content, while adding originally created unique content specifically produced for the Indian market.

Commenting on the development, Samar Verma, CEO, Fork Media, said, We are excited to expand our partnership with Ziff Davis. Having developed real traction with IGN and AskMen, we view Mashable as a game changer to our content publishing business. We believe Fork Media can drive Mashable India to its true potential with our integrated content, sales and marketing approach.

Adam Doree, on behalf of Ziff Davis, said, As a new chapter for Mashables international expansion begins, Ziff Davis will be working with the very best media companies in the world as its partner operators  both existing and new to our partner group. In India, our partners at Fork Media are building a world class media company and their values are a perfect match for Mashable India.

Ziff Davis, a subsidiary of j2 Global, Inc., is a leading global digital media company operating in four core verticals: Technology, Gaming, Healthcare and Shopping. Its brands  including PCMag, Mashable, Speedtest, ExtremeTech, Geek, Toolbox, IGN, Humble Bundle, Everyday Health, AskMen, Offers.com, TechBargains, emedia and Salesify  produce and distribute premium content across multiple platforms and devices.

Operation of Ziff Davis PCMag.com in India continues under its separate partnership with Times Internet Ltd.

Launched in March 2013 by entrepreneurs Samar Verma and Upen Rai, Fork Media has emerged as one of the fastest growing companies in the digital media and ad tech space, and is Indias first premium platform leveraging online, mobile and video to create innovative, turnaround solutions for advertisers and publishers.
After successfully partnering Godrej, Jio, Infosys to bring in the cutting-edge global practices of strategic branding to India, worlds leading brand consultancy Interbrand and Britannia celebrated the launch of the much-awaited Britannia positioning and identity this month. The occasion also marks the centenary year of the countrys leading consumer brand as also its orbit shift into being a total foods company.

In second half of 2016, Britannias board of directors, after a rigorous process of evaluating multiple global and local branding firms, tasked Interbrand, worlds leading brand consultancy with the responsibility to contemporize the brand. The brief was to rejuvenate the centenarian to lead the new consumers and market opportunities to reflect the companys future plans and portfolio expansion.

What followed thereafter was an elaborate 2 year long brand engagement involving the right analysts, strategists and design experts from across the Interbrands India, Madrid and London offices, who drew upon the wisdom of Britannia leadership, varied consumer cohorts, chefs and nutritionists. Insights drawn from these formed the basis of the refreshed new positioning for the brand  Exciting Goodness.

The brands new positioning of Exciting Goodness espouses the increasingly relevant idea of balance. The new logo celebrates this beautiful balance between the two fundamental choice drivers - Wellbeing and Excitement as also between accessibility and premium. Remarkably Britannia is uniquely placed to champion this growing philosophy for consumption as well as lifestyle.

Speaking on partnering Britannia on this milestone, Ashish Mishra, Managing Director, Interbrand India, said - When good and fun combine, new possibilities arise. The idea was to dispel the belief that whats good will not be fun and whats fun will never be good. Exciting Goodness not only provides a unique positioning for Britannia portfolio but also informs its purpose and its future innovations framework.

Clarifying the need for the rebrand, Mr. Mishra added: Although the world around the legacy Britannia business including attitudes, drivers and competition had changed, mere design refresh was not the genesis for the rebrand. The compelling reason for the rebrand was judiciously strategic. It was to bring the future business strategy to life through the new brand. For the future Britannia business ambition warranted a stronger connect with the youth and broad basing of the portfolio from biscuits while retaining its premium. Thats what precipitated one of the more challenging rebrands of the decade.

Britannia also works as an exemplary demonstration of how the longstanding master brands need to be treated, added Mr. Mishra. The heritage Mother brands in our market as also in many other parts of the world typically undergo an existential challenge. They all begin with being primary brands for the original product/s and gain substantial equity over time. The same equity provides the strength for extensions and expansions into newer categories through new sub or product brands. Over time the product brands become big and get managed by dedicated teams at Business Unit levels. And begin to have more attention and investments into brand building. Interestingly, in spite of such scenarios persisting for many decades, the mother brands continue to play a decisive influence in the customers choice. This is an empirically proven fact that we have reaffirmed through our analysis and rebranding some of the most valuable Indian brands ranging from Godrej to Britannia, over the decade. The basic job that we thus wanted to deliver was to rejuvenate the mother brand Britannia. We did that by establishing the high role of Britannia vis-a-vis the product brands through analytics that apportioned the sub category choice drivers between the mother and product brands. This provided a strategic basis for portfolio management, brand architecture as well as innovations.

Sharing the design thinking to suit the positioning, Borja Borrero, Executive Creative Director, EMEA, LatAm and India said: Translating into a compelling language everything what Britannia will stand for in the future was quite a challenge. We needed to convey all the heritage of the brand while bringing new visual and verbal codes into the brand expression to communicate a sense of newness. The result is an identity that encapsulates the best of two worlds: excitement and wellbeing. Its not so much about a logo evolution but rather a new storytelling that brings the new brand strategy to life. Britannia opens up and expands towards new horizons; this is the idea behind the new narrative that uses landscapes as a backdrop (wellbeing) while people interact and enjoys life in different ways (excitement). This is clear in all the new key visuals created for the new narrative. Besides this, a new colour palette, bespoke fonts, illustrations, pictograms, tone of voice, etc. was created

Providing the deeper perspectives behind the change, Manjunath Desai, Head - Consumer Insight, Media & Competitive Intelligence, Britannia Industries said - For around a century now, Britannia has transformed itself at strategically chosen junctures in anticipation of changes in the consumer/business ecosystem and to reflect its renewed aspirations. 2018 forms such a cusp, for Britannia marks the completion of its first century of delighting India and prepares for the next by setting an ambitious goal and taking fresh guard. This identity make-over symbolizes its preparedness for the journey to its next stop, Total Foods Company, in a milieu that will be entirely different from its first 100 years.

When one attempts refresh of a century old brand that is blessed with love and respect of a billion+ people, diligence and care become as essential an ingredient as creativity and foresight. Which is why we set the boundary of change to be far enough to notice, near enough to recognize. It is always a challenge to communicate complex messages through visual symbols, made more difficult by the strict definition of boundaries. But team Interbrand navigated the difficult path with aplomb. As is the norm, changed identity was extensively tested with consumers and all of us were delighted by the double thumbs-up they awarded it.

Elaborating further about the design challenges of rebranding a heritage brand, Borja added: Indeed Far enough to notice and near enough to recognize was a mantra that we all finally began to chant. The stakeholders included the board, the leadership, the employees and the customers. And given the high value of the customer as well as the employee brand, the expectation of dramatic change battled the emotion of familiarity all along. A fair share of English-illiterate customers of the popular brand made recognition an added consideration. Reassurances from the global network of Interbrand and a comprehensive study of the rebranding paradigms of heritage brands around the world were employed to navigate the decision-making. The journey was challenging but enjoyable and the rigor was certainly befitting the stature of Britannia.

Speaking on the occasion, Ali Harris, Head of Marketing, Britannia Industries said, We have a 100 year heritage and wanted to be sure that we continued to reach every Indian household - to bring in a newness yet remain uniquely Britannia. We undertook extensive research to help us unlock how consumers viewed Britannia and found that consumers place our brand right in the middle of excitement and goodness. This helped inform our new brand proposition, designed within a framework that balances our heritage and provides a contemporary appeal to the brand. Designed under the premise that our products carry both excitement and goodness, we held on to our heritage red, made green a bit more vibrant and added in a new color yellow. The new logo identity also has great shelf throw, which is critical in our cluttered retail environment. As we look to emerge as a 'Global total foods company, this new logo is crafted to unbox Britannia and open it up to bright new horizons.

Adding to the excitement of rebranding countrys most valuable food brand was also another milestone for Interbrand India. About a decade back we began our first partnership in India and rebranded Godrej. Since then, through the prestigious projects including JIO branding, Infosys repositioning and design, and Mahindras global brand roadmap; we believe we have been privileged to be the partners for the decades top 5 branding jobs. We feel delighted about worlds leading brand consultancy becoming Indias leading too added Mr. Mishra wishing its partner Britannia, 100 more years of growth!
In line with their philosophy of innovation and excellence, KOHLER, a global leader in bath and kitchen design has taken their creative campaign collaboration with Twinkle Khanna on air. Kohlers Colours by Kohler campaign features Twinkle Khanna showcasing the collection that bring vibrancy and personality to your personal bath space. The campaign was shot by leading photographer Suresh Natarajan. Through this association with Twinkle Khanna, Kohler aims to enable consumers to add personality into their bath space.

The Colours by Kohler campaign gives a glimpse of Kohlers artfully created products that offer decorative visual interest to ones bathroom. This collection brings to you an exquisite range of colors and finishes infusing new character to bath spaces. With a combination of vibrant faucet finishes like Rose Gold, French Gold, Brushed Nickel and Brushed Bronze, and Ceramic products in new colors such as Almond, Cashmere and Black, Kohler significantly expands the options for home-owners who are seeking a unique, decorated lavatory.

Commenting on the association and the TVC, Twinkle Khanna said, This campaign really spoke to the designer in me. If you think about it, white and chrome have been synonymous with bathrooms. That doesnt have to be the case. It is absolutely stunning as to what Kohler has done with decorative and colourful sinks and faucets by transforming them into artistic statements. The shoot managed to capture the theme of the campaign quite beautifully. They reflected the central idea of the campaign be it the Moroccan courtyard or an ironsmiths furnace, you could see the inspiration behind the products coming alive

Mr Salil Sadanandan, President, Kitchen and Bath Kohler Brand K&B S. Asia, Middle East & SSA at Kohler Co expressing his excitement about the campaign said, It has been inspirational to work with Ms. Khanna and Mr. Suresh Natarajan, both experts in their creative fields. Moreover, Ms. Khannas experience in the interior design industry makes her a perfect fit for our brand. At Kohler, we have great respect for creativity and art, which is highlighted through our campaign Colours by Kohler. We created some beautiful settings around our products to bring them alive giving our consumers a glimpse of what could be achieved with exciting colours from Kohler in the bath space.

The new Colours by Kohler campaign exhibits some of Kohlers premium products that help add a lot of personality and vibrant colours to your bath space. With a combination of Vibrant Faucet Finishes and Ceramic products in new colours such as Almond, Cashmere and Black your bath spaces could become a true expression of your individuality.

The marketing campaign has been devised to target the relevant audience across TV, OOH and Digital. On TV, 14000+ spots are spread over 45 days across 35+ HSM and regional channels in genres like GEC, Hindi Movies, English News, Lifestyle channels etc. The TV campaign is further complemented by an impactful outdoor plan across Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. Digitally, the mobile first campaign will be promoted across strategic OTT platforms, 75+ Apps and Website, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

With this exquisite range of colours infusing new character to bath spaces, Bathrooms will never have to be just white, chrome or boring again!
At the board meeting of The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) held today, Mr. D. Shivakumar, Group Executive President, Corporate Strategy at Aditya Birla Group was unanimously elected as the Chairman of the Board of ASCI. As the member of the Board of Governors for three years, supporting self-regulation, Mr. Shivakumar is an accomplished business leader having spent over 19 years in sales, marketing and general management positions across consumer products and the luxury industry.

Mr. Rohit Gupta, President - Network Sales & International Business, Sony Pictures Networks India Pvt Ltd, was elected as the Vice-Chairman and Mr. Shashidhar Sinha, CEO, Media Brands Pvt Ltd, was re-appointed as the Honorary Treasurer.

Members of the Board of Governors include; Mr. Harish Bhat (Director, Tata Global Beverages Ltd.), Mr Subhash Kamath (Managing Partner, BBH Communications India Pvt Ltd), Mr. Sandeep Kohli (Executive Director & Vice President for Personal Care Hindustan Unilever Ltd), Prof S.K. Palekar (Adjunct Professor & Advisor  Executive Education Institute of Management Technology), Mr. N.S. Rajan (Managing Director, Ketchum Sampark Pvt Ltd), Mr. K.V. Sridhar (Founder & Chief Creative Ofcer (Director), Hyper Collective Creative Technologies Pvt Ltd), Ms. Abanti Sankaranarayanan (Former Vice Chairperson, CIABC), Mr. Girish Agarwal (Director, Dainik Bhaskar Group), Mr. Madhusudan Gopalan (CEO, Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care Ltd.), Mr. Prasun Basu (President - South Asia Nielsen (India) Pvt. Ltd.), Mr. Sivakumar Sundaram (President- Revenue Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd), Mr. Vikas Agnihotri (Director Sales, Google India Pvt. Ltd.), Mr. Umesh Shrikhande (CEO, Taproot India Comm. P. Ltd.).

Ms. Abanti Sankaranarayanan, the outgoing Chairman, ASCI, said, 2017-18 has been another strong year for ASCI as we have made significant advancements towards building our organizational muscle, external credibility and strong collaborations. Our stringent guidelines, seamless processes and the dedication and hardwork of our Consumer Complaints Council have contributed to restricting the use of misleading advertisements and enhance self regulation. ASCIs momentous achievements for the year include successful completion of three year-long collaboration with Department of Consumer Affairs, renewal of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Food Safety Standards Authority of India, introduction of Guidelines for Celebrities in Advertising and inclusion in AYUSHs Empowered Committee to control misleading ads of AYUSH drugs. As the Chairman for ASCI for the year 2017-18,

I am extremely proud to be a part of this journey and I am confident that under Shivakumars Chairmanship ASCI will continue to grow swiftly and steadily.

The incoming Chairman, Mr. D. Shivakumar, said, I want to thank Abanti for her stewardship. We live in changing times with respect to information, media and trust of society. ASCI has been built on the foundation of self-regulation and the wisdom of the previous chairmen and the board. Its my privilege to do the role now.

The Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) established by ASCI is an independent body (majority of its members drawn from civil society members like consumer activists, lawyers, doctors, educationists), the CCC met 47 times during the year and deliberated on complaints against 2641 advertisements. Complaints against 1177 advertisements were upheld, while for 483 they were not upheld. The significant increase in the number of complaints as compared to 2016-17 numbers (2300) is largely due to ASCIs Suo Moto Monitoring project viz. National Advertisement Monitoring Services (NAMS). The Independent Review Process (IRP) received a very favourable response and 30 IRPs were conducted during this year.
Surviving and thriving amid the presence of large agency networks are the smaller, independent agencies, often referred to as boutique agencies. Quite often created by former employees of larger networks venturing out on their own, and sometimes by people from different professional backgrounds, these independent agencies are being increasingly recognised for their brilliant campaigns and benchmark-setting innovative thinking.

Adgully presents its latest feature offering  The Disrupters  which puts the spotlight on such small independent agencies that have been setting a blazing trail in the advertising industry with their work, their new way of operating and ideation, which have been creating disruption in the way the advertising business is done in India.

Founded in March 2015, AndBeyond.Media is a group that caters to brands, media publications and content creators globally, offering Digital Media Monetisation, Holistic Video Content & New Age Brand Solutions with technology at its epicentre delivered at scale. AndBeyond.Media has offices across the US, UAE and India, working with 500+ premium advertisers and publishers from all around the world.

AndBeyond.Media is a firm believer in the power of technology and scale via programmatic channels. Adding yet another feather to its suite of bespoke technology and video content solutions, the company is focused on driving quality engagement in its offerings of the future that will AndBeyond.Media is a firm believer in the power of technology and scale via programmatic not only compliment other businesses but also help drive growth in new avenues of digital.

The Troika

Karan Gupta: A young digital innovator with over 13 years of experience in the advertising and digital industry, Karan Gupta is CEO, AndBeyond.Media. Since the turn of this century, Gupta has been spearheading strategic efforts in various capacities that have shaped his internet business acumen to cover the spectrum of Innovative Internet Technology, Award-Winning Creative Advertising and Next Generation Online Media consumption.

Pankil Mehta: With over 10 years of experience spanning across digital, Pankil Mehta is Chief Business Officer at AndBeyond.Media. In his role, Mehta is responsible for leading new product initiatives, engage in new business opportunities and help diversify growth for the brand globally.

Dharika Merchant: With her strong management background and extensive leadership experience, Dharika Merchant is President at AndBeyond.Media, where she leads the companys business and help scale AndBeyond.Medias growth to its full potential. In her role, Merchant, a specialist in business development, product strategy and operations, is focused on driving the execution of AndBeyond.Medias strategic plan for expanding the business reach globally and deliver operational excellence.

The AndBeyond.Media Story  How it all began

Truly Above & Beyond, nothing short of a rollercoaster with pure energy and will to grow, especially the last year has seen exploratory decisions into new avenues of the business, allowing us to get exposure in new domains like content and social media. Our strengths together as a team and unique skill sets we bring to the table have allowed us to build our new businesses and operate them with efficiency. Pankil, Dharika and I have been on a rollercoaster journey and the best part of it has just begun, it feels really good for the 3 of us to take this leap of faith and aim to collapse the X & Y axis for us and our business.

The 3 Verticals

Our legacy of native ads and programmatic business, which operates under the parent banner AndBeyond.Media, also has the inclusion of our Header Bidding business along with any evolution in the Programmatic space. We successfully launched VidTent in the second half of 2017, which is a holistic video content solutions business and offers platform and content creation, distribution and monetisation across the board. The ecosystem consists of Brands, Content Creators and Publishers. We were always looking to be present in the Social Media space and now with our new Influencer Marketing business WORD, we have a complete end to end turnkey solution for Brands to reach their audiences via our strong Influencer Network which also leverages the content studio team of VidTent. These 3 verticals of our business are the pillars of our foundation across domains that give us strong presence in the digital media, content and social space.

The WORD Business

WORD is an influencer marketing agency that places us well in a new domain, that is, social media. Our model is that of an integrated platform, with agency services that offer brands to connect with their audiences via influential voices across social media. With this offering to brands and content creators, our business leverages not only our content studio, but also a futuristic channel of influencers on social media to reach consumers for emotional to transactional communication. Offerings like WORD are here to build a mark amongst brands and influencers globally for the next-gen audiences at scale, especially when we bring in automation to the entire value chain through our platform and allow services like this to be delivered with ease and efficiency, from as simple as influencer packages to highly experiential content based solutions, brands can pick and choose how they want their marketing objectives delivered.

The objective & vision

We wish to GO BEYOND traditional digital media solution offerings and create a niche in the products and services that we offer to our clients, right from ad formats to programmatic solutions to content marketing services like Influencer Marketing. All of these had to go beyond the traditional way of how we go about branding, selling and delivering these products and services. Spanning across the media, content & social domains our objective is to deliver at scale and automate as much of the value chain to ensure maximum efficiency in our ecosystem that can be leveraged by our current clients and new ones as well. We have come a long way to achieve most of this under each business, however with every step we take, we face new challenges and learn more to refine our objective and make it more achievable. You will see this right from our pitch to process to clients.

The VidTent offering

VidTent is our holistic video solution to brands, publishers and content creators, where we cater to clients who wish for us to create premium video-based short form content as well as use our DIY platform to not only syndicate, but also deliver the video to their destinations using our platform. The benefit is simple, we handle everything end to end, where the client only gives us a brief or, in case of publishers, a destination where they wish this content is to be showcased.

Creating Disruption

All our offerings are disruptive since they are unique and futuristic, our ethos is to bring method to the madness and with our processes and platforms working together to deliver the same. Right from creative to ad format to marketing campaigns are based on ideas with the clever use of content and media to engage audiences.

Running an Independent Operation

Where we come from, the pros overpower the cons hands down. Advantages like being agile, fluid and dynamic make our company strong to deliver new business ideas and run the operation effectively always geared to adapt with client needs and grow to achieve scale. We look at disadvantages like not being able to always be in the limelight or go after the big accounts because of the lack of our might as compared to the other companies, however this only encourages us to stretch our goal and ensure that we create an advantage out of it and not look at it that way.

Key clients

We have been working with some of the largest media companies globally, namely Yahoo, Hearst Media, Conde Nast, Network 18, The Times of India and many others based out of the US and APAC markets.

The Challenges & Objectives

Relevance and Agility. Any small independent company needs to have these 2 values as a part of their model and thats not only how they stay afloat but are also setup for success and growth no matter what they have to storm. Spend well, recruit smartly and always BELIEVE! The key to face and sail through disruption all around us is to have smart people beside you and believe in them.

Was it worth all the trouble?

Effin Yeah! Ask any entrepreneur and they will tell you the same thing, the feeling of being independent and successful at the same time is Nirvana. I am super proud of the people who have stood by us and how we stand by them. We believe that our decisions and actions are only directed towards making our company have a seat at the table with the giants and not just survive, but ride the wave like a Hawaiian surfer, doing things differently is in our DNA and having a little more insight would have definitely helped us shape the business better, however we will work towards building that process to gather the same.

The 5-year plan

I feel like 5 years is too much to plan for, especially keeping in mind the nature of our industry, but our horizon has a bright light shining at the end of the tunnel, with our plans to build business across media, content and social domains. I always look at every year as the last and try to max what I can within that time so we try to stay ahead of ourselves and keep up with the dynamic business that we are a part of. All in all, the next 3 years look really strong for all 3 of us and everyone at AndBeyond.Media, VidTent and WORD, with new collaborations, new business launches and building even more to GO BEYOND!
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Hot, humid South Carolina weather is the perfect time to enjoy a cold, fresh cone of ice cream. While most people don't have an ice cream maker at home, there are plenty of ice cream parlors and places around Aiken County where you can enjoy a frozen treat.

Aiken Ice Cream is a small, local business owned by Linda Stern.

Stern makes her own ice cream, experimenting with flavors like Lemon-Oreo. She even makes gluten-free ice cream.

Aiken Ice Cream is located on 1031 Richland Ave. in the Feel Good Food commissary, along with a few other food businesses.

Ice cream in Aiken Check out the making of lemon Oreo ice cream at Aiken Ice Cream on Richland Avenue.

Cyndi's Sweet Shoppe on Laurens Street in downtown Aiken features a variety of sugary desserts, including some seasonal flavors of ice cream. With peach season in full swing for the summer, Cyndi's currently has Peachy Peach flavor, which owner Cindy Rudisill claimed has been very popular.

"My personal favorite is the vanilla," Rudisill said. "I can always use it to make a hot fudge sundae."

Another place in downtown Aiken for ice cream is Flanigan's, which recently moved to Barnwell Avenue. Flanigan's receives their ice cream from the Ice Cream Club in Florida, which is not sold in stores. Their flavors rotate every few weeks to give customers a constant variety.

Betsy's on the Corner serves ice cream - and especially ice cream floats - as well in the downtown Aiken.

Also offering ice cream in Aiken is Marble Slab Creamery, which is locally owned and has been in the same location for the past 13 years; Marble Slab even makes its own ice cream.

For North Augusta residents, Pink Dipper ice cream parlor on Georgia Avenue is another great place to visit to cool off during hot summer afternoons. They also make banana splits, ice cream floats, and spun milkshakes.

Editor's note: This article has been edited from its original form to include Marble Slab Creamery in Aiken.
The stock market slumped for the sixth straight day Wednesday on fears the US-China trade dispute may worsen. The Philippine Stock Exchange Index lost 68.81 points, or 0.9 percent, to 7,449.20 on a value turnover of P5.7 billion. Losers beat gainers, 101 to 83, with 56 issues unchanged. BDO Unibank Inc., the biggest lender in terms of assets, fell 3.4 percent to P114, while Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc., which is into power generation and distribution, banking, food shipbuilding and infrastructure, dropped 6.7 percent to P47.60. Universal Robina Corp., the largest snack food maker, tumbled 6 percent to P140, while parent JG Summit Holdings Inc. of industrialist John Gokongwei slumped 5.5 percent to P51.60. The sell-off on the rest of Asian markets, meanwhile, extended into Wednesday with investors fearing an escalation in the US-China trade row after Beijing said it planned to impose anti-dumping sanctions worth billions on Washington. The news adds to a sense of pessimism across trading floors in recent weeks as the worlds top two economic powers stand on the cusp of an all-out trade war that observers fear could batter the global economy. It also comes as dealers struggle to deal with a brewing emerging-market financial crisis and overshadows hopeful noises from Canada that a revised Nafta deal is imminently possible. Hong Kong was again among the worst performers, having fallen into a bear market Tuesdaymarking a 20 percent fall from its record high touched in January. The Hang Seng Index was down 0.4 percent while Shanghai dropped 0.3 percent to finish around levels last seen at the very beginning of 2016. Tokyo ended 0.3 percent lower and Sydney fell 0.1 percent while Wellington and Taipei were each 0.3 percent off.Bangkok was also lower while Seoul and Singapore were flat. We are concerned that trade tensions are adding to the downside risks to growth, Sneha Sanghvi, head of Asian financial markets at Westpac, told Bloomberg TV. We are seeing heightened volatility and risk aversion in financial marketsthat trend is likely to continue for the next few weeks. The losses came despite a positive lead from Wall Street, where energy firms were boosted by a more than two percent rally in oil and technology firms were supported by bargain-buying. However, energy firms were broadly higher as oil prices benefited from a sharp drop in US inventories, looming sanctions on Iran and Hurricane Florences imminent impact on the Carolinas. China said Tuesday it would ask the World Trade Organization next week for permission to impose more than $7 billion in sanctions annually on the United States over anti-dumping practices. The WTO will discuss the issue on September 21. The case dates back to December 2013, when China took issue with the way Washington assesses whether exports have been dumped at unfairly low prices onto the US market. Beijings call comes after Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on all goods coming from China, which he says is using unfair trade practices that are harming American jobs.
The fight against terrorism is a task that should be carried out not only by the security services, but also involve civil society in its call to bring about peace, tolerance and respect for others.This is the message proclaimed by scholars, preachers and imams who traveled from around the Sahel region to take part in the founding congress of the League of Sahel Ulemas based in Algiers.

Scholars, preachers and imams from Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mauritania and Algeria met in the Algerian capital to study the scourge of religious extremism, its causes and ways to effectively put an end to it. It is clear that scholars from the Sahel have always been against fanaticism, just as they have continuously been supporters of peace, love and tolerance, due to its significance in Islam.

The participants, who steadfastly oppose religious extremism and support the Maliki rite, have openly attacked the religious extremists and followers of "destructive thought, which has recently become widespread in the Sahel region and tarnished the image of Islam and Muslims."

The founders of the League of Sahel Ulemas plan to spread a culture of tolerance and peace and the rejection of religious extremism across the Muslim world. The call for religious unity and territorial integrity as well as respect for others goes against jihad for the "cause of Allah," which was decried by the meeting's participants, who are fully devoted to spreading the teachings of Islam in order to counter religious extremism.

The escalation of religious extremism, shown in the profusion of books and sermons of self-appointed jurists, is unanimously denounced by the preachers who have elected the Nigerian imam Abdou Daoud Bourima as the head of the League of Sahel Ulemas.

This body, officially established on Wednesday, Feb. 6 in Algiers, appointed the Algerian imam Youcef Mechri as second in command. Mechri was appointed secretary-general of the league, whose office includes five members  one from each country.

The fight against extremism, which has plagued the Muslim world due to the emergence of fundamentalist movements, has been the main target of this religious and ethical league from the moment of its inception.

All monotheistic religions warn against and prohibit religious fanaticism. The Sahel region, however, has become an ideal setting for the extremists' incendiary preaching.

The cause of Allah is fervently championed by radicals such as the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, who have been increasing calls for jihad against those they perceive to be crusaders. They consider waging war against those crusaders to be halal, or lawful. This dogmatic mindset has become deeply entrenched among young people in the Sahel region.

The leagues preachers are fighting a lack of resources, as well as poverty and political instability. They believe that Islam is based on tolerance and respect for others. In this context, Nigerian preacher Daoud commented on the consequences of these harmful extremist movements, which he believes can only be fought through intellect.

Daoud, who was appointed to the head of the league, called for a religious fight against these "evil" movements.

Only religion can expose these fanatics, Sheikh Daoud said.

In their final statement, the participants of this significant meeting made sure to denounce violence, fanaticism and extremism. They also seek to spread a culture of peace, tolerance and coexistence with other religions and communities.

Kaci Racelma is an Algerian journalist with Inter Press Service news agency and Afrik.com, an online magazine. He covers the North African region.
RAMALLAH, West Bank  Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met with Israeli academics and intellectuals Aug. 28 at the presidential palace in Ramallah in the West Bank, where he made unfamiliar statements about accepting a demilitarized Palestinian state.

Israeli press cited Israeli figures that attended the meeting, confirming that Abbas said, I support a state along the 1967 borders, without an army. I want an unarmed police force with batons, not guns.

According to the Israeli media report, Abbas added, Instead of military aircraft and tanks, I prefer building hospitals and schools and allocating money and resources to social organizations.

Abbas reiterated this stance during his meeting with a delegation from the Israeli Peace Now Movement Sept. 2 and declared that he agrees to NATO forces presence to control the borders.

Abbas declaration is considered an acceptance of one of the main demands that the Israeli government has always called for to ratify a peace agreement with Palestinians.

Abbas statements sparked official Israeli reactions. Israeli Knesset member and former head of the Israeli negotiation team Tzipi Livni tweeted Aug. 28, Abu Mazen has agreed to demilitarizing the Palestinian state in our negotiations with him. Israeli Minister of Intelligence and Transportation Yisrael Katz described Aug. 28 the statements of the president as Arabic propaganda for the Hebrew-speaking interlocutors, meaning that his announcement was addressed to Israelis.

Meanwhile, member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Ahmad Majdalani, who is close to Abbas, told Al-Monitor, Agreeing to a demilitarized state is not new. The presidents words aimed at getting the message through to Israeli society to dissipate its fears regarding a Palestinian state. The national and religious right-wing parties in Israel are pitting against Palestinians and the peace process and describing them as a threat to Israels security and existence, thus stirring these fears.

Majdalani said, There is internal consensus on Abbas statements. We are talking about a state abiding by international agreements and treaties. We will not establish a state with military ambitions. We want to ensure the required level of security for citizens and stable relations with our neighbors in the region. A newly formed Palestinian state will allocate its resources to development.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) established several security bodies armed with light weapons upon its formation as per the 1993 Oslo Accord, and the PA and its security bodies received US and European support. But these bodies collapsed during the second intifada in 2000.

After that, the United States in 2005 started working on rehabilitating and developing the Palestinian security institution in the West Bank and providing it with light arms, training and coordination with the Israeli side. This happened through Gen. Keith Dayton, who is now the director of Marshall Center for Security Studies. He was appointed by the United States as security coordinator between Israel and the PA in Jerusalem and resigned in 2010. However, US support for the Palestinian security service did not stop.

For his part, Fatah leader and head of the political committee of the Palestinian Legislative Council Abdullah Abdullah told Al-Monitor, Palestinians have long accepted a demilitarized state because, in the presence of peace, there would be no need for war. Police forces are enough to ensure order and protect citizens.

Abdullah said that the political messages behind Abbas statements aim at pressuring the Israeli government and getting the message through to Israelis that peace is in the interest of both parties, especially since most of the participants in the meeting with Abbas were Israeli peace activists. Abbas also wanted to underline the Palestinian stance that is committed to the peace cause.

Abdul Majid Sweilem, a political science professor at Al-Quds University in Abu Dis and executive director of the pro-Fatah Awdeh, told Al-Monitor, Abbas statements constitute a message he wanted to get through to Israeli society that we do not want heavy weapons.

Sweilem added, The Palestinian stance is clear because Israel would not possibly concede to us holding heavy weapons under any peace agreement. This might seem like a compromise, but in reality, we cannot own these weapons because the possibility of using them is out of the question if we are to have political relations with Israel.

He said, Weapons do not seem necessary in the Palestinian situation. These statements are an attempt to convince the Israeli people that, when we have an independent state, we will not have any intentions for military acts against Israel. We want real peace based on justice, and building this state is a natural right for Palestinians. We do not care about arms but are preoccupied instead with peaceful coexistence between Palestinians and Israelis.

Sweilem noted that the timing of Abbas statements was key. He said, The Israeli right and the US administration are trying to overstep the two-state solution and work against it. For that reason, Abbas is focusing on this solution as the only one that could ensure real security for both Palestinians and Israelis.

Although the proposition allegedly got unanimous agreement from the Palestinian leadership, it seems only Fatah and some PLO factions approve of it while other major Palestinian factions oppose it. Hamas official spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri tweeted Aug. 29, Abbas statements about his desire to establish a demilitarized Palestinian state are personal and do not reflect the Palestinian people. They reflect the culture of Fatah that is based on coexistence and normalization with Israel.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issued a certification to Congress on Tuesday that allows the United States to continue supporting the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen against the Iran-backed Houthis.

A copy of Pompeos justification, obtained by Al-Monitor, characterizes the US role in the war as limited defensive support for its Gulf allies.

Our support to the Saudi-led coalition promotes US national security priorities, including on counterterrorism and countering Irans destabilizing behavior, Pompeo argued in the justification.

But as Democrats threaten to retake the House and possibly even the Senate in November, that support looks increasingly imperiled.

Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, vowed at a Defense News conference last week to increase oversight of US military intervention abroad, including Yemen, referring to it as a major problem.

I dont think were pursuing the right policy there in the way that we are backing Saudi Arabia and the [United Arab Emirates] in a civil war that is leading to the largest humanitarian crisis on the planet, said Smith.

The next day Smith signed on to legislation that would outright force the Donald Trump administration to end midair refueling support for the Saudi-led coalition, which is essential for Riyadh to continue its sustained aerial assault against the Houthi rebels.

The resolution is a repeat of last years attempt by Reps. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Mark Pocan, D-Wis., to force a floor vote under the War Powers Act, which provides for expedited procedures to remove the United States from military engagements abroad.

And while Republican leadership threatened to avert a floor vote by stripping last years bill of its privileged status, resulting in a nonbinding compromise resolution, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi may face another embarrassing floor vote if Democrats retake the House in November.

Adam Smith is one of the most powerful people in Washington, Khanna, who met with the Saudi ambassador last month, told Al-Monitor. Hes likely going to be chairing the House Armed Services Committee, and the fact that hes on this committee should be very clarifying to the Saudis that when the Democrats are in charge, we are going to stop funding any Saudi assistance if they dont stop the campaign.

Last years resolution primarily garnered traction among members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and three members of the hyper-conservative House Freedom Caucus, but hawkish Democratic leaders critical of Iran for supplying weapons to the Houthis have increasingly voiced their frustration with the Saudi coalition in recent months.

I look forward to reviewing the text of the forthcoming resolution, House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md., told Al-Monitor. Hoyer also thanked Smith and Khanna for their leadership in keeping Congress focused on addressing this horrific humanitarian crisis, which has put millions at risk of starvation."

Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., who is in line to chair the House Foreign Affairs Committee should Democrats win the House in November, also vowed to do more oversight on Yemen.

Im sympathetic to the security needs of important countries like Saudi Arabia, but it doesnt come with a blank check to do whatever you want with American weapons, Engel told Al-Monitor.

Like Hoyer, Engel also indicated that he was open to supporting the Khanna resolution.

Although House leaders stymied Khannas resolution last year, his colleagues in the Senate succeeded in using the same War Powers Act mechanism to secure an expedited floor vote, which ultimately failed 55-44.

But Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., a potential 2020 Democratic candidate who introduced the Senate bill, believes that the Democrats shot at taking both chambers, combined with growing bipartisan backlash to the war, will yield a different outcome this time.

I think there is more and more support in the understanding that the United States of America should not be involved with Saudi Arabia in this terrible, destructive war in Yemen, Sanders told Al-Monitor. It is my strong intention of bringing that privileged [resolution] up again and I think well do better this time.

Sanders efforts in securing a floor vote prompted a broader bipartisan effort to increase oversight on Yemen, resulting in the legislation that forced the Trump administration to issue Tuesday's certification in the first place.

Pompeo was required to certify that the Saudi coalition is taking steps to reduce civilian casualties, ensuring humanitarian aid access through the key port of Hodeidah and engaging in a diplomatic resolution to the conflict.

Pompeos justification acknowledged congressional concerns that the Saudi coalitions civilian casualty rates are far too high but argued that the United States is helping Riyadh take steps to reduce civilian harm. This includes $750 million in US training for the Royal Saudi Air Force to minimize civilian casualties.

With Secretary Pompeos certification, the State Department demonstrated that it is blindly supporting military operations in Yemen without any allegiance to facts, moral code or humanitarian law, said Scott Paul, the humanitarian policy lead at the aid group Oxfam America. August was the bloodiest month so far in 2018 for civilians in Yemen.

A Saudi coalition strike August on a school bus in Saada province that killed 40 children and that involved the use of a US bomb led to further outrage on Capitol Hill. The Saudi air campaign has been responsible for thousands of civilian deaths since it began in 2015 with support from the Barack Obama administration, prompting a sharp escalation in Iranian support for the Houthis.

In turn, Tehran stands accused of providing the Houthis with missiles, which the rebels launch into Saudi territory. The justification says, Several Iranian-backed Houthi missile attacks last year targeted locations in the region where Americans are present. A New York Times report in May revealed that the United States has stationed troops on the Saudi side of the Yemeni border to destroy Houthi missile launch strikes, stoking further condemnation from lawmakers in both parties.

For his part, Khanna called Pompeos certification a farce on Twitter.
Whether Iran's President Hassan Rouhani should travel to New York for this year's UN General Assembly is fueling a war of words between his critics and supporters.

Hard-line daily Kayhan initially sparked the debate. In a Sept. 10 editorial, the paper advised Rouhani to cancel his trip to New York in order to use it as a chance to humiliate his US counterpart, Donald Trump. "Since the United States has spared no opportunity for hostility against Iran, President Rouhani needs to refrain from attending the General Assembly as an official protest over Trump's chairmanship [of an agenda item] at the Security Council," said the editorial.

According to Kayhan, such a decision could be a "tooth-breaking response to Trump's incessant insults against the Islamic Republic and the Iranian nation." Kayhan further downplayed Rouhani's previous trips to New York as bearing no fruit, implying that Iran will lose nothing by refusing to participate.

The paper's argument drew its first reaction from a top Rouhani adviser. In a chain of tweets, Hesamoddin Ashna fired back by describing Kayhan as a representative of a small but powerful camp that keeps saying "no to diplomacy." Ashna insisted that Rouhanis trip to New York could be productive if he pursues a useful diplomatic approach. "He [Rouhani] is not a person who would make trips for the sake of traveling," Ashna said.

In another reaction, Behrouz Nemati, spokesman for the Iranian parliament's presiding board, reminded Rouhani "to act with rationality and disregard baseless and emotional remarks  and attend the UN General Assembly to send the Iranian people's message of peace and friendship to the entire world."

The newsstands on Sept. 12 still bore signs that the debate is far from over. Arman, a pro-Rouhani daily, noted that Trump would prefer that the Iranian president cancel the visit in order for him to become the lone speaker at the Security Council session, which he will address. "There is no doubt that Rouhani's presence and a speech from a position of authority and dignity will be of considerable help to Iran to push its agenda," reported Arman.

Reformist daily Ebtekar took a similar line of support. "Rouhani's failure to attend will be condoned as his refusal to face questions and diplomatic challenges," the daily wrote.

"Whether to go or not to go is not the question," the pro-Reform Etemad's headline read. Launching a diatribe against those who seek to keep Rouhani at home, the paper said, "They should be aware that Rouhani's non-attendance [at the UN General Assembly] will only tarnish Iran's diplomatic image."

Rouhani's visit to New York has already been finalized and officially announced by his chief of staff, Mahmoud Vaezi. But pressure from hard-liners on how Rouhani should proceed will certainly not stop before he takes off for the United States. A clear message was sent to him earlier this month from Ahmad Jannati  the powerful chairman of the Assembly of Experts who also heads the Guardian Council  who warned the president to bear in mind the supreme leader's warning that no one from the Iranian delegation is allowed to negotiate with the United States.
For the past 40 years, it's been a rarity to see the United States and Iran come together over an issue without a confrontation. But the two sides finally forged an agreement in July 2015 and  along with four other world powers  signed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Washington, however, abandoned the accord four months ago, leaving the weary relations between the two nations in tatters.

The US reversal on the nuclear deal and its reimposition of sanctions has prompted Iran to search for any possible tools and means to minimize the impact of the apparent "maximum pressure" campaign to bring Tehran to its knees.

The heightened animosity has led to the resurrection of the 63-year-old Treaty of Amity between the two foes, with Iran turning to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the UNs highest court, to argue for freezing the US sanctions on the basis that they violate that treaty.

The Iranian government, according to the ICJ, filed a case July 17 claiming that the United States has breached its obligations to Iran under numerous articles of the treaty, and therefore should terminate the nuclear-related sanctions without delay and immediately terminate its threats with respect to the announced further sanctions. The Iranian side is also calling on the United States to guarantee it will not circumvent the court's decision or repeat "its violations of the [1955 treaty]" and "fully compensate Iran for the violation of its international legal obligations" with an amount to be determined by the court later.

This is the fifth time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that The Hague-based ICJ has been the venue of a confrontation between the two foes.

The United States first referred to the Treaty of Amity during the hostage crisis at its embassy in Tehran from November 1979 to January 1981. Then, after the United States downed an Iranian passenger plane in 1988, killing 290 people, Tehran referred to the treaty when it filed a complaint with the ICJ. The third time the Treaty of Amity was invoked was in 1992, when Iran turned to the ICJ after a US attack on Iranian oil fields in the Persian Gulf. After the JCPOA was implemented in 2016, Iran also referred to the treaty to complain about the United States freezing $2 billion in Iranian assets to fulfill a claim for damages by families of the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks.

In The Hague, Mohsen Mohebi, Irans presidential adviser for international law, addressed the ICJ on 30 points, urging the court to protect its rights from an irreparable prejudice. Irans counsel included British and French advocates alongside Iranian lawyers, who took to the stage to explain the Islamic Republics requests for provisional measures.

The United States condemns Iranian policies by linking the sanctions to the possibility of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon, a claim the US State Department has described as a serious threat to the United States and the international community. As such, the US strategy at the ICJ aims at unlinking the Iranian complaint and the 1955 treaty, and to argue that the ICJ is not the right venue to pursue the matter. In addition, the United States argues Iran has been violating the 1955 treaty since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

British member of the US team, Sir Daniel Bethlehem, argued that the court should dismiss Irans lawsuit because the chaos in Irans economy was being caused by the country's own mismanagement and not by US sanctions.

Bethlehem referred to an Aug. 23 speech by Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in which he had stated, Economic experts and many officials agree that today's livelihood problems do not emerge from foreign sanctions." He added, Rather, they are tracked down to our internal issues. Many officials have explicitly mentioned this. The experts also  as far as I know  agree on 'internal factors' as the source for the crisis. The sanctions may have played a role in creating the current economic situation, but domestic factors play a stronger role in the matter. If actions are taken more efficiently, more prudently, more swiftly and more firmly, sanctions cannot have much of an effect, and they can be resisted.

However, Davoud Aghaei, a well-known expert on international law in Iran, told Al-Monitor that Irans position in The Hague is strong and that despite US claims to the contrary, Iran is fully entitled to turn to the UN court to pursue its claim.

The US has violated international law on several occasions, not to mention its violation of several United Nations Security Council resolutions," Aghaei said. The US did not respect the nuclear deal; neither did it respect its partners in the JCPOA and decided to get out [of the accord] and moreover violate international law by imposing sanctions on Irans economy, threatening our peoples safety and security. We want a just ruling from the ICJ that gives Iran back its rights.

Iran is appealing to the ICJ to acknowledge its rights and plans to build on that acknowledgement on the diplomatic front. Indeed, Iran's diplomacy is realistic enough to understand that the ICJ ruling could either be in its favor without any means to enforce it, or could simply be against Iran, in which case it would not result in any further loss, as Iran is already under the threat of additional sanctions in November.

Thus, if the court rules in Iran's favor, despite having no means of enforcement, the case will become a new tool for Iran to remind the international community that the United States not only opted out of a multilateral accord, but also defied a ruling by the top UN court. Only time will tell how the battle for moral high ground will pan out.
Following years of hard work and with the help of God, wrote settler and rabbi Aryeh King on Facebook, hailing the historic Sept. 5 decision by Jerusalem planning authorities to license the construction of 75 housing units for Jews in the Palestinian neighborhood of Beit Hanina. The decision, announced with little fanfare, lays the foundation stone for the recently adopted nationality law, which anchors the Jewish nature of the State of Israel. For instance, it encourages Jewish-only communities and codifies the national value of Jewish settlement in the homeland of the Jewish people. After all, what is more of a national value than Jewish settlement in Jerusalem, the city enshrined by the controversial legislation as the capital of Israel?

The move by the citys Planning and Building Committee will allow the construction of 150 apartments in Beit Hanina. Half of these apartment are destined for Jews and half for Palestinians. The housing units for Jews are to be constructed on Palestinian land bought by Jews.

King, a city council member and activist who has been buying up Palestinian land for Jews, pledged that Arab Beit Hanina would begin to Judaize, and hopefully soon become a neighborhood with a firm Jewish majority as befits the capital of the Jewish people. Indeed, implementation of the plan would turn Beit Hanina into one of the largest Jewish settlements in Palestinian neighborhoods.

Nonetheless, the road to Judaizing Beit Hanina is long and winding. Currently, 40,000 Muslims live there and only some 50 Jews. According to a study by the Central Bureau of Statistics published in July 2013 in the right-wing weekly Besheva, only 2,537 Jews lived in the Jerusalem Arab neighborhoods that Israel conquered in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. Jerusalem taxpayers should know that the cost of guarding these Jewish residents in the heart of Arab neighborhoods runs to almost 100 million shekels ($29 million) a year.

Even as the government and planning authorities are promoting construction plans for Jews in the eastern parts of the city, they ignore the dire housing shortage for the Arab residents of these neighborhoods. A 2017 report by non-profits Ir Amim and Bimkom illustrates how demographic considerations  a desire to expand the citys Jewish population and limit the Palestinian one  underpin discriminatory urban planning decisions.

Over the past decade, under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, the authorities have approved detailed master plans (the prerequisite for issuing housing permits) for some 10,000 housing units in Israeli neighborhoods in the eastern part of Jerusalem. At the same time, not a single detailed plan has been approved for the Palestinian neighborhoods, barring several pinpoint plans only providing for the construction of several hundred housing units. The Jerusalem 2000 master plan, the first drawn up for the city as a whole since 1967, was submitted in 2009 but its implementation has since been suspended due to the development options it provided for some of the Palestinian neighborhoods.

Much to the chagrin of the settlement-oriented political right, the Arabs of East Jerusalem are not cooperating with the vision of a Judaized Jerusalem. They already make up 38% of the citys population and do not intend to move out. However, the housing squeeze has led Muslims and Christians from Beit Hanina and other Palestinian neighborhoods to relocate  to adjacent Jewish neighborhoods. According to the CBS data cited by Besheva, 3,378 non-Israeli Arabs were living in the citys Jewish neighborhoods, mainly Pisgat Zeev and Neve Yaakov adjacent to Beit Hanina, by 2013. In other words, the growth in their numbers outpaced that of Jews moving into Arab neighborhoods. More recent figures are not available, but the trend continues. Last year, 238 children were enrolled in the Pisgat Zeev Arabic-language school system.

The significant Arab migration to Jewish neighborhoods began with the construction of separation fence in the previous decade that cut off tens of thousands of Palestinians from their workplaces in Israel. This, in turn, pushed up real estate prices in Arab neighborhoods located on the western side of the barrier, leading hundreds of Palestinian families to move into adjacent and outlying Jewish neighborhoods, where rent was cheaper and services better. King told the Besheva journalist at the time that a local real estate agency in Pisgat Zeev identified the economic potential and understood that it had a good market going. Jewish residents got together to prevent the continued sale of apartments to Arabs and called for a boycott of the real estate agency, arguing that it would only stop selling to Arabs when its business suffered.

The minute an Arab moves into a building, apartment prices plunge 30%, King complained. This leads Jewish residents to sell cheaply  Then the Arabs come to the local community center and demand a Christmas tree and celebration of Muslim holidays. The man who has dedicated his life to promoting the settlement of right-wing Jews in the heart of Arab neighborhoods is concerned that life in mixed neighborhoods encourages commingling. According to King, things are so bad that many Jewish girls find themselves in relationships with Arab boys. One could say that the greater the number of settlers, the louder their complaints; the greater their bigotry, the more they whine.

Even if all the countries in the world move their embassies from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, as the United States did in May, it would not make Jerusalem any more of an Israeli-Jewish city. On the other hand, turning it into a mixed, binational city makes the two-state vision more complex  virtually impossible. The vision of Judaizing Jerusalem and the municipalitys decision to open up a Palestinian neighborhood to Jewish residency are about as conducive to peace as the decision by President Donald Trump to close the PLO mission in the US capital.
I really hope that theres nothing here. I dont know what happened, but I do know one thing: We must investigate it, said Knesset member Yoav Kisch of Likud when the Knessets Interior Committee, which he heads, voted to create a parliamentary committee of inquiry to investigate the Gal Hirsch affair.

Brig. Gen. Hirsch resigned from the military after the Second Lebanon War (2006). He then went on to establish his own security consulting firm and also headed the Israel Leadership Institute. He was nominated to be police commissioner on Aug. 25, 2015, but his appointment was officially withdrawn almost a month later, on Sept. 23, because of a criminal investigation into his affairs.

Twenty-four hours after Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan announced Hirschs appointment, Erdan had learned that Hirsh was the target of a police investigation, including on the suspicion that he and his company had paid bribes to a Georgian minister to advance various arms deals. The investigation is still open three years after the episode made headlines, with recent reports claiming that it is about to be concluded.

The Hirsch case took an interesting turn on Aug. 5, when recordings were released allegedly proving that Assistant Commissioner Manny Yitzhaki, head of the Department of Police Investigations, had been taking steps to push an investigation of Hirsch forward after Hirsch was appointed. The question on everybodys mind three years ago was, if allegedly damaging intelligence collected against Hirsch was already in the system, why did the police open an investigation into Hirsch only after he became the nominee for police commissioner? Everyone now realizes that this should have been recognized as a serious warning signal. Is there any truth to accusations against the police that they are blocking appointments and abusing intelligence? Why are these charges only now being thoroughly investigated?

Kisch did the right thing in convincing his committee to create a parliamentary committee of inquiry, even though the final decision requires the approval of the full Knesset. It is a bold move given that there could be a potential police investigation hovering over him and any other politician as well. This, at least, is what one would conclude based on the Yitzhaki document, created in 2014 on the order of the same Manny Yitzhaki above and containing information about numerous Knesset members serving at that time. The document's existence was first revealed to the public by Channel 10 News in 2016. It has since been learned that incriminating evidence had been collected on some 40 Knesset members, including Erdan.

According to the document, suspicions surrounding these Knesset members involve ethics violations, bribery and fraud. Yet despite the seriousness of the information, which is based on intelligence that had reached the police, most of the allegations have never been investigated and will likely never be investigated. A political and media firestorm erupted when the Yitzhaki document was released. It was argued that the material had been collected to prevent politicians from involving themselves in police affairs, and that in this way the police were acting like the mafia. Various Knesset members demanded an investigation, and the issue was raised by a Knesset committee. The police responded that they had been acting in good faith, and at that point the public debate more or less ended.

There are several dozen current Knesset members, including ministers from all the parties, on whom the police have intelligence that could be pulled out at some time or another and turned into a criminal investigation within a few hours. That is why Kischs decision was a bold move, even if it has been called a populist and politically motivated attempt to weaken the police investigation into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. There is no way of knowing whether the police have intelligence on Kisch, and it stands to reason that he has enemies, as any politician would.

No one  not even those members of Kisch's committee who opposed the creation of a parliamentary committee of inquiry  has challenged the idea of thoroughly investigating the withdrawal of Hirschs appointment and the way the investigation of him has been dragged out. The only debate is over how to do it.

Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Ben Reuven of the Zionist Camp voted against creating a committee, but has called on the police and the State Attorneys Office to end their investigation of Gal Hirsch. He has argued that a parliamentary committee of inquiry would become a political committee and would find it difficult to come up with conclusions for implementation. The problem, however, is that no one has thrown down the gauntlet until now. The issue has never been subject to an appropriate investigation, and calls to the police to complete the investigation will not help here.

Now, when the issue is in the headlines again, I am sure that the police will not finish their investigation, one Knesset member from the governing coalition told Al-Monitor, speaking on the condition of anonymity. They can, in fact, leave the case open for years. They can always claim that it is because of the complexity of the investigation, which is a terrible thing.

When taking a closer look at the series of events in the Hirsch affair  from the rushed opening of the investigation to everything that is now known about the Yitzhaki document  what emerges is a terrifying picture of the uninhibited and unrestrained manner in which the police can operate without being held to account for their actions. That is why the decision by the Interior Committee to call on the Knesset to establish a committee of inquiry is important and necessary. Once established, such a committee would have the power to call witnesses and eventually submit a report.

It is possible that the police as an institution and high-ranking police officers who acted in an unseemly manner will do everything to prove that their actions were legal. It is quite possible that they will hide behind top secret material and claim good faith. They may even succeed. Nevertheless, it is important for the police to know that a committee of inquiry is scrutinizing their actions and that witnesses will be called to answer open questions about the Yitzhaki document and the withdrawal of Hirschs appointment.

Kisch called the attempt to thwart the appointment of a police commissioner a threat to democracy. He was not exaggerating, especially given that it is now the eve of the decision on who will replace the outgoing commissioner, Roni Alsheikh. With the infighting at the highest echelons of the police, there is an overwhelming feeling that nothing has changed. It was reported on Sept. 9 that a polygraph test given to Deputy Commissioner Yoram Halevi, a candidate for commissioner (and Netanyahu's preferred choice), identified a problem with his behavior. That information appears to have been revealed to prevent his appointment, so who leaked the results of the test, which took place several weeks ago? So far, that question has gone unanswered.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  Judges from the Supreme Court of Palestine announced Sept. 5 their collective resignations in protest against amendments to the Judicial Authority Law. The amendments were suggested by the Justice Sector Development Committee, whose members are appointed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Abbas had issued a decree on Sept. 6, 2017, to establish the Justice Sector Development Committee in order for it to discuss ways and mechanisms for the development of the Palestinian judiciary.

The committee consists of nine people: the president of the Supreme Judicial Council, the minister of justice, the attorney general, the legal adviser to the president, the director general of the Independent Commission for Human Rights, the head of the Palestinian Bar Association and the deans of the faculties of law at the universities of Birzeit, An-Najah and Al-Quds.

The resignations were announced in a statement published Sept. 5 by the Palestinian Judges Association on its Facebook page.

The recommendations of the Justice Sector Development Committee and the amendments to the Judicial Authority Law will only result in tightened control over the Palestinian judiciary, the statement said.

The association called on Abbas not to heed the recommendations of the committee as they undermine the independence of the judiciary and the principle of separation of powers and provide an easy tool for the executive authority to tighten its control over the judiciary.

Osama al-Kilani, the chairman of the Palestinian Judges Association, told Al-Monitor that 14 Supreme Court judges had resigned in protest against the committee's recommendations. He said that the judges protested against the proposed amendments to the Judicial Authority Law. Chief among these amendments, he noted, is lowering the retirement age and forming a committee to evaluate the judges.

The Ramallah-based Supreme Court of Palestine is the highest judicial authority and is comprised of 27 judges.

Kilani pointed out that there have been no attempts to have the different points of view converge, and that they had not been contacted by any Palestinian officials to find out the reasons behind the resignations. He said the Palestinian Judges Association is likely to take escalatory measures in the event the mentioned amendments were approved, but expressed hope that this problem will be solved in due course.

We cannot announce such measures before the Justice Sector Development Committees recommendations are officially and finally declared, he added.

The committee's recommendations, published by the Ramallah-based Al-Haq human rights center, included an amendment to the retirement age of Palestinian judges from 70 to 65. According to Kilani, this recommendation has raised the ire of judges, who deemed it a kind of exclusion and an attempt to exclude them from the judiciary in a legal way.

Article 34 of the 2002 Judicial Authority Law No. 1 states that judges over the age of 70 shall retire and those aged over 70 cannot be appointed as judges.

Ammar al-Dweik, the director general of the Independent Commission for Human Rights and a member of the committee, told Al-Monitor that the Palestinian judiciary suffers from very serious problems."

He said, "There is a significant decline in the Palestinian citizens confidence in the judiciary given its ineffectiveness and very slow work.

Dweik said that the committee has completed its work and is in the process of drafting a final report that will be handed over to Abbas at the end of this week.

He pointed out that some judges had protested against some of the recommendations of the committee, especially regarding lowering of the retirement age, because such an amendment would affect the judges of the Supreme Court and would lead to the retirement of a number of them.

He noted that the Supreme Court judges are afraid of the Judicial Purge Commission, whose formation was recommended by the committee, saying, Some of them fear that this committee will control the judiciary. This is a legitimate concern in light of the current political environment and the lack of confidence in Palestinian institutions."

Dweik, however, added that the idea of the committee is good and we must be careful when choosing its members.

Majed Arouri, the executive director of the Civil Commission for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Rule of Law, told Al-Monitor that the judiciary in Palestine is facing a specific problem. According to Palestinian human rights organizations, he said, this judiciary has failed to defend rights and freedoms.

The judiciary has also failed to deal with the crimes that have spread in the West Bank. The executive branch deems this matter as a serious failure of the Palestinian judiciary, and it wants it to play a more effective role in dealing with issues that have a security dimension, he added.

Arouri stressed that due to this failure the Palestinian judiciary needs to be reformed, and he said that there are serious attempts to do so.

He noted that the resignation crisis can be solved by forming an independent and impartial committee capable of freeing the Justice Sector Development Committees recommendations from the amendments that worry the judges.

He added, however, that proposals and recommendations cannot be dealt with as a single package, and called for the gradual implementation of these recommendations in a way that reassures judges that the goal is to rebuild the judiciary, not to get rid of judges.

In the event the amendments to the Judicial Authority Law would be approved, Palestinians of the West Bank would witness a struggle between the judiciary and the executive branch, putting the judicial sector in Palestine at stake and creating yet another crisis for Palestinians.
Jollibee Foods Corp. is set to open its first outlets in three different milestone locationsUK, Manhattan, and Macauas part of the companys expansion plans. The aggressive store expansion overseas aims to even the share of domestic and international sales. The first Jollibee store in UK will have its grand opening on October 20, and a few weeks before, the Macau branch will do its grand opening on September 28. The Manhattan, New York store will open within a few months. Jollibee is bringing the companys well-loved brand to Filipinos abroad to give them a taste of home. On top of serving Filipinos overseas, the fast-food chain has seen the success of Jollibee in catering to local markets. In Vietnam and Brunei, all of its customers are locals. Jollibee is already the fastest growing chain in Vietnam. In Brunei, it is one of the top chains of the country.In Hong Kong and Singapore where it has added more stores, more than half of its customers are locals. Jollibee envisions to continue replicating its success in the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Hong Kong and Singapore in other markets soon. Jollibee in 2013, became the number one restaurant company in Asia in terms of market capitalization and is now the worlds largest Asian restaurant company. The fast-food giant is now aiming to be among the Top 5 largest restaurant companies in the world in terms of market capitalization. JFC is also focusing on the two largest economies in the world, namely China and United States, and expansion in other parts of the world, while sustaining business growth in the Philippines.
Turkey has reportedly increased arms supplies to Syrian opposition rebels to fend off an imminent offensive by regime forces in the province of Idlib, a move that will likely escalate tensions between Ankara and Moscow.

Reuters, which first reported the story, quoted a senior Free Syrian Army commander as claiming that Turkey had pledged complete military support for a long, protracted battle. The weapons allegedly included Russian-made GRAD multiple rocket launchers.

Turkish officials have yet to comment on the claims.

But the consensus among Western sources who closely follow the seven-year Syrian conflict is that Ankaras goal is not to ignite a new rearguard battle from its borders over the last rebel stronghold. It is rather to convince the regime that it is ready to do so, to deter the latter from launching an all-out assault on Idlib. They want to intimidate [the regime], said one of the sources on condition of anonymity.

The report appeared to contradict comments from Russias special envoy, Alexander Lavrientev, who is in Geneva to hold talks with the UNs Syria envoy, Staffan de Mistura. Lavrientev told reporters after the meeting, We are saying the situation in Idlib should be settled, most preferably in a peaceful way. It is possible to abstain from military force. The remarks prompted speculation that Russia had struck a deal with Turkey, allowing Ankara more time to persuade as many militants as possible to defect from the al-Qaeda-linked Hayat Tahrir al Sham, which is the dominant force in Idlib.

Lavrientev confirmed that in Moscows view, the ball is in Turkeys court: Idlib province is  a sort of zone of responsibility of Turkey; it is their responsibility to separate the moderate opposition from the extremists, Jabhat al-Nusra and other groups, other terrorist groups, he said.

Turkey has been trying to woo away as many of the militants and their families as it can to join rebel groups in Afrin and the Euphrates Shield zone that remain under Turkish control. Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly warned of a bloodbath should its appeals for time be ignored. He has also made clear that Turkey, already home to over 3.5 million Syrian refugees, cannot take in hundreds of thousands more Syrians who would likely head for the Turkish border in the event of a regime onslaught.

Erdogan vowed via Twitter, "If the world turns a blind eye to the killing of tens of thousands of innocent people to further the regime's interests, we will neither watch from the sidelines nor participate in such a game."

But Russia, which controls the skies over the area, has grown increasingly impatient as Turkeys efforts to coax and bully the militants into surrender have largely failed thus far. A deal that would give Turkey further respite seems unlikely. Kerim Has, a Moscow-based academic specializing in Russia and Eurasia, told Al-Monitor, "Russia is in a hurry to get Idlib out of the way and to focus on drawing Europe into helping finance the reconstruction of Syria." The lurking suspicion, at least in the regime and Tehrans minds, is that Turkey may be playing a double game to buy time to convince the United States to resume support for the rebels so as to crank up pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down.

As ever, Washington appears to be sending mixed signals to Ankara over Syria. The Donald Trump Administration has said it wants pull out of northeast Syria, where it is in the last stages of its campaign against the Islamic State, by the end of this year. It now says it will stay to finish off the Islamic State and to ensure Irans departure. The shift was confirmed by the administrations newly minted Syria envoy, Jim Jeffrey, who told the Washington Post, We are not in a hurry to withdraw. I am confident the president is on board with this.

This may explain why Turkish officials believe theres a chance to bring the Trump administration around, arguing among other things that renewed support for the rebels would hem in the influence of pro-Iranian militias as well. And it's entirely conceivable that some administration officials may be encouraging such thoughts if only to drive a wedge between Ankara and Moscow, much in the same way Moscow has sown divisions between Ankara and Washington by supporting Turkish moves against US-backed Syrian Kurds in Afrin.

Yet, Washingtons threats of military action against the regime so far remain exclusively linked to the use of chemical weapons in Idlib. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis renewed warnings of a strike on Sept. 11. In Idlib, were watching very closely what the Assad regime, aided and abetted by the Iranians and Russians, are up to there, Mattis told Pentagon reporters. The first time around, he lost 17% of his pointy-nosed air force airplanes, Mattis said in a reference to the Russian-made Syrian air force jets that were destroyed in a US missile strike on a Syrian air base in April 2017.

The attack was carried out in response to an alleged chemical attack by Syrian regime forces in Idlib.

Washington's hawkishness may have less to do with humanitarian concerns, noted Has, given what he called its "silence" over the plight of ordinary Syrians until now. Rather, "The US strategy is to disrupt Russian plans in Syria, and by appearing to side with Turkey [on Idlib] to torpedo Turkish-Russian rapprochement," Has said.
Much of the world focused its attention on the Tehran summit last week between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, in the hope that the three Astana partners could prevent a bloodbath in Idlib, in northwestern Syria.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu issued promising statements before the Sept. 7 summit, expressing his belief that a crisis would be averted in the last opposition stronghold.

The summit not only failed to achieve this, but also highlighted Turkish and Russian differences over Syria.

This comes at a time when Ankara and Moscow are keen to highlight their burgeoning political, economic and military ties, as their relations with the United States and Europe continue to spiral downward.

The Tehran meeting underlined that the two countries are still far from having established the strategic partnership Cavusoglu announced during his visit to Moscow at the end of August to discuss Idlib.

Erdogan was seriously rattled after Putin abruptly rebuffed his proposal  put forward during a live broadcast from the Tehran summit  for a cease-fire by all the sides in Idlib, including jihadi groups such as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

This rejection left Erdogan looking like the weak link in Tehran, and also provided a reality check for Ankara regarding the limits of its cooperation with Russia in Syria.

Failing to come to terms with Washington over US backing for the People's Protection Units (YPG), a Kurdish group Turkey considers a terrorist organization, Ankara veered toward Moscow hoping to strengthen its efforts to curb Syrian Kurdish aspirations.

Although Russia had provided some leeway in the past, enabling Turkey to capture areas adjoining the Turkish border from the YPG, this came at a cost to Ankara.

To start with, its reliance on Moscow forced Ankara to accept  albeit with some insignificant protests  the Syrian regimes Russian-backed operations against opposition forces in other parts of Syria, which produced scores of civilian deaths.

This reliance also forced Ankara to tone down its rhetoric against Bashar al-Assad, despite the loathing Erdogan feels for the Syrian leader.

Annoyed over his embarrassing failure in Tehran, Erdogan has now started to ratchet up his attacks against Assad again, which Moscow is unlikely to welcome.

In an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal, Erdogan said that Assads criminal regime was preparing, "with the help of its allies," to "launch a massive offensive against Idlib." He added, "Our partners in the Astana process, Russia and Iran, are likewise responsible for stopping this humanitarian disaster."

Moscow, however, is giving no indication that it will defer to Ankara, and continues instead to mount airstrikes in Idlib province that have already sent tens of thousands of refugees fleeing toward Turkey, according to UN sources.

Russia also mounted operations in Idlib as the Tehran summit was going on, which enraged Ankara. In an angry tweet immediately after returning from Tehran, Erdogan said, If the world turns a blind eye to the killing of tens of thousands of innocent people to further the regimes interests, we will neither watch from the sidelines nor participate in such a game.

Erdogans warning rings hollow, though.

Turkey is reinforcing its military presence along its border with Idlib. The pro-government media also claim that Turkey deployed 20,000 Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighters in Idlib, sent from Turkish-controlled parts of northern Syria. But there is little Turkey can do to prevent an onslaught against Idlib, since Erdogan is unlikely to take on the Syrian army, given the backing Damascus has from Russia and Iran, and he is equally unlikely to engage Russia in a proxy war by using the FSA.

Many on the Turkish side are beginning to feel that the Astana peace process, initiated by Turkey, Russia, and Iran in January 2017 with a view toward helping to resolve the Syrian crisis, is being used against Turkey. The process has comprised numerous rounds of negotiations held in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Many Turks argue that to date, the process has promoted the interests of Russia and Iran in Syria over those of Turkey.

Turkey set up 12 military observation posts in Idlib, under an accord arrived at in Astana, to monitor the tenuous cease-fire between the regime and the Syrian opposition in so called de-escalation zones.

The accord, however, doesn't cover groups listed by the UN as terrorist organizations  which have also swarmed to Idlib, where they control a large swath of territory.

Russia uses this as its pretext for mounting operations across the province.

Talking to reporters just before the Tehran summit, Cavusoglu also reflected Ankara's concerns about the Astana process.

He stressed that the Syrian regimes intention in Idlib, with support from its Russian and Iranian guarantors of the peace process, was evident: No one should kid anyone. We are agreed that radical groups have to leave, but the aim of [the regimes] attacks is to capture Idlib.

He was merely, and perhaps belatedly, stating the obvious, because Assad has vowed to capture Idlib and has Russian support. Moscow has also called on Turkey to hand over to Assad areas in northern Syria, most notably Afrin, that Turkey captured from the YPG. This elicited an angry response from Erdogan, who said Turkey alone would make that decision.

Despite lingering doubts, Ankara still wants the Astana process to remain active. It needs this process to have some say in efforts to hammer out a final settlement to end the crisis.

Although Erdogan and Cavusoglu are reluctant to accuse Russia directly, preferring to do this by blasting the Assad regime, media outlets close to Erdogan and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) are not holding back.

For instance, Karar newspaper, which is read by relatively liberal AKP supporters, carried an analysis of the Tehran summit under the headline Putins dagger.

Russia has one by one destroyed the de-escalations zones [in other parts of Syria] that it set up with Turkey [at] Astana, by citing the presence of terrorist groups there. Using the same pretext, Putin has now started to strike the last de-escalation zone [Idlib], where 3.5 million people live, the newspaper said.

Some prominent pro-government analysts who were previously enthusiastic about Turkeys developing ties with Russia have also started to question Moscows motives in Syria.

Mehmet Metiner, a former AKP deputy who writes for the pro-government Star daily, argued that by continuing its operations in Idlib, Moscow is showing that it doesnt take Turkey's sensitivities seriously.

The Tehran summits results are not in line with Turkeys expectations. No matter what anyone says, the Astana process has been harmed, Metiner wrote, claiming that this was part of a scenario prepared in Washington.

The widespread belief among AKP supporters is that Washington is ultimately behind all of Turkeys woes in Syria, starting with the US alliance with YPG "terrorists," while refusing to support the Turkey-backed FSA, which is considered part of the legitimate moderate opposition.

Veteran columnist Mehmet Barlas, another staunch Erdogan supporter, also lays the blame for Turkeys difficulties in Syria on the United States, and the CIA in particular. He argued in an editorial for daily Sabah that Ankara must reach out to the Assad regime to extricate itself from this situation.

We have to contribute to the Assad regimes efforts to reform the constitution and hold elections, Barlas wrote. Turkey must avoid a face-off with Russia over Idlib. The way to do this is to pursue a line that supports Syrias unity and the legitimacy of its administration, he added.

Reaching out to Assad, however, would be the ultimate act of defeat for Erdogan in Syria. This is why he remains deaf to calls, not just from Moscow and Tehran, but also from within Turkey, to normalize ties with Damascus.

Turkeys options in Syria are limited, though, which could push Ankara in directions that Erdogan will have no choice but to accept if he wants to have any say in efforts to end this crisis in line with Ankaras expectations.

The bottom line is that the ties Ankara was relying on with Moscow in Syria don't look so secure now. The Tehran summit might be a harbinger of things to come as efforts to hammer out a constitution for Syria gain momentum.
International waters of the eastern Mediterranean Sea are running out of free space and becoming more crowded with elements of the US 6th Fleet, a plethora of naval vessels with the Russian Mediterranean Task Force, UK submarines, French frigates and others. The crisis in Syria and rivalry over hydrocarbon reserves are the main causes of this unprecedented military naval concentration and activity.

Rising tensions and naval movements have rekindled the debate in Turkey on whether to set up a permanent naval base in the Turkish part of Cyprus (the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, or Northern Cyprus). According to reports leaked to Turkish media, the Turkish navy has submitted a report and recommendation to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the urgent need to set up a naval base at an appropriate location there.

The report noted that  in addition to ensuring the sovereign rights of Northern Cyprus  such a naval base would also guard the rights and interests of Northern Cyprus and Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean, prevent violations of maritime energy zones, and equip Northern Cyprus and Turkey with stronger cards in any negotiations that may resume. The recommendation suggests the proposed naval base should be modeled after the sovereign British naval base in Cyprus.

Unidentified security sources in Ankara confirmed discussion of the idea in the upper levels of the government. Also noticed are the more than usual references by Turkish decision-makers to the sovereign rights of Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean. Turkey has actually been carrying out Operation Mediterranean Shield since 2006 to defend its national interests in the eastern Mediterranean.

This particular operation conducted within the context of NATOs Operation Active Endeavour provides constant patrolling by Turkish navy submarines, surface ships and planes in the Iskenderun Bay and south of Cyprus. At the moment, one submarine, one frigate and two patrol boats are carrying out surveillance east of the island. Moreover, a Turkish corvette is operating with UN forces in Lebanon to detect entry of banned weapons and equipment into Lebanese waters.

In order to not give up its initiative in the exclusive economic zone and allow a fait accompli on the continental shelf, Turkey has deployed a significant naval force of two submarines and 14 warships in the eastern Mediterranean for some time now.

This force is currently supported from the Iskenderun and Mersin ports. But the Turkish navy has to share these ports with civilian vessels, thus limiting the resupply, maintenance, repairs and support they can provide to the Turkish navy. The nearest main naval base is at Aksaz, which is on the southeast coast of the Aegean Sea in Marmaris.

Devrim Yaylali, a leading naval expert, believes the Turkish navys recommendation for a permanent naval base in Northern Cyprus is one of the most important geopolitical developments of recent times. Yaylali said, Such a base in Northern Cyprus will provide significant facilities for the Turkish navy. Above all, the time required for travel of Turkish warships to operational zones will be shortened, thus [allowing them to] extend their stays in the zone. That is a major gain. He added, There are no floating maintenance and repair facilities for the Turkish navy in the eastern Mediterranean. To provide such facilities with a permanent base to be established will mean these vessels will not have to go to Aksaz at Marmaris or to shipyards such as Alaybey in Izmir for maintenance and repairs. Guzelyurt and Famagusta in Cyprus appear to be suitable for such a permanent base, as they are closer to operational zones of Turkish ships. They have good communication and transport infrastructure, and there are major cities nearby that can support the base. It is also important that a [permanent] base be protected against threats from land and air. There will definitely be Turkish submarines. We should also expect shorter-range corvettes, patrol, gunboats and a few frigates to be included in the new base.

A notable Turkish naval historian and strategist says Europe and the United States have been striving to isolate Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean, and that the power struggles Turkey has engaged in with Russia on one hand and with Greek Cypriot, Israel, Greece and Egypt bloc on the other hand indicate that Ankara has to learn to survive on its own.

There may be no military rationale to set up a naval base that is only 40 miles from our Iskenderun naval base, but geopolitical realities so require. At the moment, it is not decided whether the proposed base will be an operational or logistics one, or a sophisticated base with anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) facilities. Naturally, the absence of technological and technical infrastructure in Cyprus to implement such a project will skyrocket the costs of setting up such a base, he told Al-Monitor under condition of anonymity.

He continued, "If such a base is to be set up, I believe it will be off Famagusta. I am sure it is almost guaranteed that the Turkish navy to be deployed there will ensure area domination with high-quality G-class frigates with high seaworthiness, anti-aircraft warfare weapons, anti-submarine and anti-surface capabilities, and Ada class corvettes with reduced footprints. I wouldnt be surprised if it will also include conventional submarines with a high level of deterrence."

Naval experts in Ankara believe setting up a naval base outside of Turkish borders will provide serious self-confidence not only to the Turkish navy but also to the entire Turkish Armed Forces.

In addition to the plans for a permanent naval base, Turkey is also considering reactivating a civilian airport currently out of use. The airport, located in Gecitkale, might be used to serve the needs of the Turkish military's activities in the Mediterranean. While this plan is being discussed, no action has been initiated yet.

What is clear is that Ankara  worried about Russian activities and the operations of the Greek, Greek Cypriot, Israeli and Egyptian bloc Russian understanding  will soon take some steps to defend what it deems to be its sovereign rights.

In turn, that will further escalate the current tensions in the eastern Mediterranean.
Palestinian-Americans are at risk of being collateral damage in the escalating diplomatic row between Washington and Ramallah.

The State Department announced Monday that it was ordering the closure of the Palestinians mission in the US capital because of their refusal to participate in a US-backed peace process that favors Israel. Unmentioned, however, is the fact that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) office also provides a bevy of consular services for Palestinians, Palestinian-Americans and others seeking to do business in the West Bank and Gaza.

A source close to the Palestinian Authority called the offices consular services essential in a recent interview with Al-Monitor.

People dont apply for visas to get back into their homeland if we dont have a consulate, said the source.

The State Department has offered few details about its plans for the PLO mission beyond saying it should close, leaving widespread uncertainty about the fate of consular and other non-political services provided by the Washington mission. The PLO envoy to Washington, Husam Zomlot, who has been out of the country since May, told the Associated Press today that remaining Washington staff have been given a month to close up shop but offered few details.

The State Department did not respond to a request about contingency plans for US citizens and others in need of consular services and instead referred Al-Monitor to the Palestinians. The PLO office, however, has not responded to media queries since Mondays announcement.

The Institute for Palestine Studies estimated two decades ago that there were anywhere from 150,000 to 250,000 members of the Palestinian community throughout the United States, although precise statistics are lacking. A government report based on the 2000 federal census found 72,000 people claiming Palestinian ancestry.

We are talking about thousands of people who are regularly in need of these consular services, be it things related to marriage and divorce, doing any kind of business, adding a phone line to a business they already have existing in the Palestinian territories or any of that stuff, Omar Baddar, the deputy director of the pro-Palestinian Arab American Institute, told Al-Monitor.

There is not a day that goes by where they dont do this stuff, added Baddar.

Under current law, the Palestinians may not maintain an office in Washington because they are pursuing complaints against Israel at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. The law only allows an exemption if the Palestinians have entered into direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel.

Congressional efforts to force the executive branch to kick the Palestinians out date back to President Ronald Reagans dialogue with the PLO. The PLO office closed for several months after Congress passed a precursor to the current law in 1987.

The Palestinians 2015 accession to the ICC has rekindled opposition to the PLO from pro-Israel hard-liners on Capitol Hill. The chairwoman of the Houses Middle East panel, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said in a June letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Attorney General Jeff Sessions that the Trump administration was violating the law by keeping the office open.

The Palestinians retain a mission to the United Nations in New York, but it only serves a diplomatic function. That office has previously been deemed as exempt from congressional oversight because of a US treaty with the UN, according to a 1988 district court ruling.

The Trump administration also has recently announced cuts to the Palestinian Authority and the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. Zomlot has ruled out renewed talks with the Trump administration, accusing the United States of bullying and blackmail. He vowed to step up our efforts to hold Israel accountable under international law.

Just today, the Palestinian Authority filed a war crimes claim against Israel at the ICC over the impending demolition of a Bedouin village amid concerns that Israel intends to build a settlement that could threaten Palestinian aspirations to establish a continuous state. The Palestinian Authority previously asked the ICC to investigate Israels West Bank settlements in May.

The Trump administration is taking steps beyond those taken by Congress to defend Israel  and the United States  from ICC investigations. Speaking at the conservative Federalist Society on Monday, national security adviser John Bolton threatened sanctions and criminal prosecutions against ICC judges and prosecutors should the court launch cases against the United States, Israel or other allies.

While the court welcomes the membership of the so-called state of Palestine, Bolton said, it has threatened Israel  a liberal, democratic nation  with investigation into its [Israel's] actions to defend citizens from terrorist attacks in the West Bank and Gaza.

Critics of the administrations hard line argue that it wont change Palestinian government policy while harming ordinary Palestinians both in the United States and abroad.

Part of the problem we find ourselves in today is because of congressional pandering, frankly from both sides of the aisle, said Baddar. They just did what served their domestic political purposes without really giving enough thought to what the real-world implications are on the region.
Church groups in the United States and Europe have begun a worldwide campaign in opposition to the latest last-minute decision by the Donald Trump administration to deny support to six Palestinian hospitals in East Jerusalem. The financial punishment falls within the efforts of the executive branch in the United States to pressure Palestinian negotiators.

Pauliina Parhiala, a representative of the World Lutheran Federation that runs Jerusalems August Victoria Hospital, told Al-Monitor that the decision to stop $25 million in aid  of which the largest parts, $11 million, were earmarked for Makassed and the Augusta Victoria hospitals each  came at the last moment. We had a visit from USAID last week, and they said that a final decision about the release of the money will be made in the White House even though the money was already approved by Congress.

Parhiala, a Finnish citizen, said that friends throughout the United States had worked hard to ensure the funds for the six East Jerusalem hospitals were exempt from the Taylor Force Act that was passed last March by Congress and signed by the president to stop aid for Palestinians. Parhiala told Al-Monitor that the approved funds were due to be released before the end of the current fiscal year, which expires September 30.

The 127-bed referral hospital provided chemotherapy treatment in 2017 to 21,434 patients; it also provided 19,836 dialysis sessions and 22,349 radiation sessions, mostly to patients from Gaza and the West Bank.

Abeer al-Nabulsi, a volunteer working with Gaza and West Bank patients, told Al-Monitor that the US decision will have a huge impact on people. Jerusalem residents have health insurance, but the rest of the Gaza and West Bankers have no support for such complicated medical needs. I have talked to doctors and patients, and they are extremely worried.

Nabulsi said that she and a number of volunteers take turns in helping people get to these hospitals, and many people are waiting in line to get the badly needed cancer treatment that is only available in these hospitals. The biggest problem is child cancer patients who have absolutely nowhere else to get this kind of treatment, she told Al-Monitor.

Parhiala also pointed to the fact that for many, especially children with cancer, this is the only place you get this kind of treatment. She called the decision to stop aid heartbreaking. It is a shame that these innocent children are used as a tool for a political conversation that is not theirs and which they have no control over. This is truly heartbreaking.

Rev. Munther Isaac, a pastor with the Nativity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, told Al-Monitor that the American aid issue reflects a vindictiveness that will not produce any political results. This is clearly part of the Trump vindictive bullying style and is done as an act of revenge that will not produce any results and will raise serious questions about Americas credibility in terms of its adherence to issues of freedom, rights and justice.

Wadie Abunassar, a legal adviser to Catholic Churches in Palestine and Israel, told Al-Monitor that what is happening is a cold war against Palestinians. There is a cold war between the current US administration and the Palestinian leadership in which the Americans are using various tools including financial aid to politically blackmail the leadership.

The Palestinian government has responded to the US decision by vowing to help cover the deficit. Minister of Health Jawwad Awad said to hospital directors that the Palestinian government will cover $20 million toward Jerusalem hospitals, Parhiala confirmed to Al-Monitor.

Audeh Kawas, a medical doctor and member of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches, told Al-Monitor that the actions of the United States are rejected. We totally reject any act that affects human life and human needs. Kawwas, who is also a member of the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs, said that the support to the hospitals in East Jerusalem came from the American people and the president should not stop this gift, which is small compared to what [the recipients face] as a result of the continued occupation. There is no justification to stop the work of these church-owned hospitals that are duly registered in Israel and are providing care to the needy.

The response to the US decision has spread in European and American churches. Al-Monitor received a copy of an email sent to American churches and peace groups in which Karin Brown, the coordinator for the Peace Not Walls Campaign and the program director for young adult ministry for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, called on supporters to call the White House to urge them to ensure there is no interruption of assistance for children and others in need of treatment for cancer and additional life-threatening diseases.

According to sources in Washington, the advocacy for Jerusalem hospitals will continue as Congress appropriates funds for the coming year. Maryland Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen is said to be taking a lead role in ensuring that Jerusalem hospitals get the needed support in the 2018-2019 foreign aid package that will be debated in Congress this fall.
Tyonek Global Services, which has offices in Madison, has been awarded a $21 million U.S. Navy contract.

The contract is for depot level maintenance at several locations, including Fleet Readiness Center Southeast in Jacksonville, Fla., Naval Air Station (NAS) and NAS Cecil Field in Jacksonville, Naval Station (NS) Mayport, Fla., and Fleet Readiness Center Mid-Atlantic (FRCMA) aboard NAS Oceana and NS Norfolk, Va.

Tyonek will employ more than 340 to repair and maintain aircraft, aircraft engines and associated components and materials at the Navy's maintenance depots. Contract work includes the modernization, conversion, in service repairs, disassembly and other services for all types of U.S. Navy aircraft.

In August, Air Force Space Command has awarded a $9.8 million to Tyonek.

The corporation's headquarters is in Anchorage, Alaska, with offices in Madison.
Lilly Ledbetter smiles pretty big these days for someone who famously lost out on $3.3 million.

In Birmingham Tuesday, Ledbetter spoke to the Alabama chapter of the Public Relations Society of America's Ethics Day program. The equal pay advocate recounted the story of her lawsuit against Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. after working more than 19 years at the company's Gadsden plant.

Ledbetter sued the company after an anonymous note informed her that she was making as much as $2,000 a month less than her male counterparts in the same job. A jury later awarded Ledbetter $3.3 million in damages, but that was later struck down.

Ledbetter lost her fight eventually in the U.S. Supreme Court, but the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 was signed into law in 2009.

"I stood up for my money," she said. "I never got what I was entitled to. And I was just the tip of the iceberg."

Though she didn't gain from the law, which made it easier to challenge unfair work environments, Ledbetter said she never really expected to see any money. Instead, she said she enjoys inspiring a new generation of women to seek not only equal pay, but opportunities for public service in governments and on boards.

She donated her honorarium for the speech today to her scholarship foundation at Jacksonville State University, while others are working to set up an endowed scholarship at the school.

Ledbetter lost out last month in her bid to become secretary for the Alabama Democratic Party, at the same time that Peck Fox and a slate of challengers lost out to State Chairwoman Nancy Worley and others.

Ledbetter said she feels the only way the state's Democratic Party leadership will change is through intervention at the national level. "We need strong leadership," she said. "That's why we're not progressing."

In the meantime, Ledbetter said she will continue to crisscross the nation, and travel internationally, putting the spotlight on equal pay.

"We're not unique, but this country is much better than this," she said. "This new generation, they've got a voice. They can make a difference. You always have to have hope. You have to believe."
In 1907, a teenaged Harland Sanders, who had dropped out of school to work full-time at age 13, moved to Alabama and began work with the Southern Railway. He would live in several towns in Alabama, eventually marrying a woman from Jasper and fathering two of his three children while living in the state.

Sanders, who would go on to become the founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken and an honorary colonel, had humble beginnings. Born Sept. 9, 1890, in Henryville, Indiana, Sanders learned early to take care of himself. His father died when he was 5 and his mother had to go to work, leaving him in charge of his siblings, according to Biography.com. He even taught himself to cook by age 7 so he could feed the younger children.

After his mother remarried in 1902 to a man Harland didn't get along with, the teen dropped out of school and left home.

The New Yorker reported in a 1970 interview: "When I started to class that fall, they had algebra in our arithmetic. Well, I couldn't conceive any part of it. The only thing I got out of it was that x equalled the unknown quantity. And I thought, Oh, Lord, if we got to wrestle with this, I'll just leave--I don't care about the unknown quantity. So my school days ended right there near Greenwood, Indiana, and algebra's what drove me off."

He took a job painting horse carriages in Indianapolis at age 13, then moved at age 14 to work as a farmhand in southern Indiana.

In 1906, he moved in with an uncle in New Albany, Ind., according to Biography.com, and his uncle secured a job for him working as a streetcar conductor. That October, at age 16, Sanders lied about his age and enlisted in the U.S. Army. He worked a few months for the Army in Cuba as a wagoner, or teamster, and was honorably discharged in February 1907.

It was then that Sanders moved to Sheffield, Ala., to live with another uncle and work as a blacksmith's helper for the Southern Railway. Two months later, he went to Jasper to work for the Northern Alabama Railroad, emptying ash pans after trains finished their runs. He eventually became a fireman, or stoker, for the railroad.

In 1909, Sanders began work for the Norfolk and Western Railway in Jasper. While working there, Harland met his future wife, Josephine King. They had two children while still in Alabama: Margaret Josephine Sanders, born March 29, 1910, in Jasper, and Harland David Sanders Jr., born April 23, 1912, in Tuscumbia.

Their third child, Mildred Marie Sanders, was born in 1919 after the family went to live in Indiana. Harland Jr. died at the age of 20, on Sept. 15, 1932, of infected tonsils. A post on Harland Jr.'s FindaGrave.com entry shows a telegram written by an unknown man to notify Alabama family members of his death. It was addressed to Harland Jr.'s aunt, Grace King Poole, in Anniston, Ala. It said: "Harland Jr. passed away nine thirty this morning. Confer with me at Mrs. Maggie Sanders in Henryville Ind. after tonight. Too long trip for you I think. Jimmy"

Sanders would go on to work for various railways and move his family around Alabama, Tennessee and Arkansas. In 1929, Sanders moved to Corbin, Ky., to open a gas station. When tourists needed food, he added a dining section, and a legend was born. Today, that cafe is a museum.

Biography.com said: "Sanders' cafe had a homey atmosphere, with no menu, but good food. But when restaurant critic, Duncan Hines, listed Sanders' place in 'Adventures in Good Eating' in the 1930s, its popularity increased. In 1935, the popular cafe so impressed Governor Ruby Laffoon that he made Sanders an honorary Kentucky colonel for his contribution to state cuisine." The honor was bestowed a second time in 1949 by Kentucky Lt. Gov. Lawrence Weatherby.

He would open and close several restaurants before his "secret recipe" for fried chicken made him famous. In the 1970s, Sanders returned to Alabama and met with Gov. George Wallace during his failed bid for president.
I finally got a tour of a real-life tiny house and after I squeezed my way past the combination kitchen table/bed, I understood why tiny houses aren't for Southern girls.

Mandy Mae, from Peachtree City, Georgia, was engaged to be married to Tom from Bangor, Maine. Idealistic and adventurous, they thought it would be swell to live in a tiny house. Once called a "tool shed" or "playhouse," by most people, the miniature dwellings have been popularized by the HGTV television show, "Tiny House" which features people who give up all the essentials of life, like sideboards, pianos and china cabinets to live in a sparsely appointed home no bigger than a bread box. The box-like houses appeal to the free-spirited type and Mandy Mae thought her giant love for Tom would compensate for the itty-bitty house.

"We'll be able to live anywhere" reasoned Tom, who began to grow a beard because his Tiny House wasn't going to have room for both shaving cream and a razor. "Isn't that just the definition of a camper?" his girlfriend wondered.

Having been raised in a traditional Southern home with a front porch larger than three Tiny Houses, Mandy Mae (whose mother still called her Amanda Mabel), fretted about where she would store her Phi Mu scrapbooks, cedar chest, Grandad's Underwood typewriter and her mama's Pyrex casserole dishes.

"Where will we keep the punch bowl?" She inquired. "Punch bowl?" bellowed Tom, "We could drill a hole in the bottom and use it for a sink." "What about Grandpa's manger scene he carved from the magnolia destroyed in hurricane Camille, my childhood Easter baskets and the church cookbooks?" A sinister gurgle emerged from Tom and at that precise moment, Mandy Mae realized that perhaps Tom wasn't her dream man after all.

Gifted at marriage with family crocheted tablecloths, deviled egg plates and handmade dolls, every Southern bride knows how to make room for family treasures even in the smallest apartment, but tiny houses make it impossible.

We aren't materialistic to the point of owning needless things, in fact, Southerners are very practical. It's just that we've been taught to appreciate all the bells and whistles that create memories and traditions. Napkins embroidered with the family monogram, Christmas ornaments, the family Bible and the old rug great aunt Daisy carried back from Istanbul with a long-forgotten beau during her bohemian days -- we have to make room for it all. It's our story.

While thinking the tiny house was a dorm room minus the "hang in there" kitty-cat poster, Mandy Mae overheard three words that finalized her decision -- "low flush toilet."

"That's when I called off the wedding" said the sensible young lady. We realized we wanted different things in life -- like a kitchen." The Georgia Belle was comforted to realize that now, she could inherit her grandparent's metal gliders for a proper screened porch.

Southerners have always reflected God's handiwork by being creators. Plowing, growing, building, sewing, hunting and cooking, we made things to survive and somewhere along the way saw the beauty in our work. The fact we appreciate and cherish good craftsmanship and family connections is no surprise, but we need a place to store it all. And unfortunately, it just won't fit into a tiny house. But for those who love the little homes, bless their tiny sweet hearts. We'll be glad to hold the family treasures for them.

You may contact Leslie Anne at: la@leslieannetarabella.com or read more at her blog: http://leslieannetarabella.com
With monstrous Hurricane Florence approaching the east coast, what can you do except try to get out of its way?

At TVA, the focus has been on rolling out a welcome mat of sorts.

The federal utility with a seven-state footprint across the southeast - including north Alabama - is moving water in anticipation of Florence quickly restoring it.

The strategy, TVA said Wednesday, is to lower lake levels throughout its system to provide a landing spot for the heavy rain expected from the hurricane. That rainwater has got to go somewhere, of course, and TVA is trying to create a home for it.

Water levels at all TVA lakes are now being lowered faster than normal to create flood storage as we anticipate heavy rainfall from #Florence. When the remnants of the storm arrives, the plan is to reduce releases from the tributary reservoirs to minimize downstream impacts. pic.twitter.com/LJmLBzMKNo  Tennessee Valley Authority (@TVAnews) September 12, 2018

James Everett, manager of TVA's River Forecast Center, said water releases began last weekend in anticipation of Florence's impact on the east coast. In particular, water was moved from dams such as Fontana in North Carolina and Douglas and Cherokee in Tennessee to expand capacity.

"These are the ones that are kind of back in the mountains and the ones we can use to store larger volumes of water," he said.

The draw down of water in the TVA river system leads to a ripple effect into the Tennessee River in north Alabama. Everett said there will soon be water releases in Alabama dams such as Guntersville, Wheeler and Wilson.

"Some of those projects will be limited," Everett said. "We're not going to draw them down below the navigation limit for commercial navigation. Some of the pools like Wheeler and Wilson where we're transitioning between summer pool level and winter pool level, we're going to hedge on the lower side, recognizing we're still about 4-5 days out from when this rainfall might come into the Tennessee Valley."

It won't affect everyday operations on the Tennessee River, Everett said, but there will be a noticeable lowering of water.

But there might be an impressive gushing of water through the dams.

"If they are at Guntersville Dam and they see a spill, that's going to be more water than what they usually see in September," he said. "That's because we want to build some extra room in some of these reservoirs before the rain comes."

After all, there's not much else to do but create a place for all the rain to go.

"We don't want folks to be alarmed and think lake levels are going to drop drastically, significantly all at once," Everett said. "It's going to be kind of what they normally see during our draw-down period. We're going to increase the flows and see lake levels ease down toward the lower part of the normal ranges, if not a little lower, than where it might be this time of year."

TVA said Wednesday it is assisting Duke Energy -- the primary utility in North Carolina and South Carolina, among other states -- in bracing for Florence.
Conglomerate San Miguel Corp. said it plans to venture into rice trading, once the proposed Rice Tariffication Law is approved in a bid to help the government achieve food security. San Miguel president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang said in an interview at the sidelines of San Miguel Food and Beverages special stockholders meeting the company was planning to engage in rice importation using the existing grains terminals to handle the shipments. If there is a law allowing us to venture into this business, we can get into that and quickly we can do it, Ang said. Ang said the company could put up an extra silo or storage in existing grains facilities in Bataan and Batangas for rice imports. He said the company could also use its feed mill and other food facilities in Davao, Cebu, Negros Oriental, Pangasinan and Quezon. We can easily help in stabilizing the price of rice in the country, Ang said. Ang said the Rice Tariffication bill could help local farmers, as proceeds from the tariff collection could be plowed back to improve the competitiveness of the sector and raise farmers incomes. The proposed bill aims to amend Republic Act No. 8178, or the Agricultural Tariffication Act of 1996 to replace the quantitative restrictions on rice imports with tariff. Rice importation, which is currently being controlled by state-run National Food Authority, will then be opened up to private traders.Meanwhile, Ang said he was confident SMFB would be able to conduct its P142-billion share sale this year despite current market conditions. Ang said SMFB already started an international roadshow for the planned follow-on offering and the feedback from investors was positive. Investors like companies with stable cash slow with big market share in food and beverage category. So even with the situation in manila, we are confident that we can place out the shares, Ang said. Ang said the final terms of the planned share sale would be revealed in the next few months. Under the plan, SMFB will sell 887 million secondary shares owned by parent company San Miguel Corp. and another 133 million shares to cover over allotment at an offer price of up to P140 per share. Ang said proceeds from the offering would be used to create projects and generate jobs.
Alabama is sending people and equipment to North Carolina to prepare for response to Hurricane Florence, Gov. Kay Ivey's office announced.

One mobile communication site vehicle, one Alabama Emergency Management Agency staff member and one Mobile County responder are on their way to a staging area in North Carolina, the governor's office said.

The state is considering sending additional resources.

Ivey said she had talked with the governors of North and South Carolina.

"Taking the necessary precautions ahead of time and having all hands-on deck to respond is of the utmost importance. Alabama stands ready to help," Ivey said in a press release.

Other resources Alabama could provide include a nurse strike team, emergency operations center personnel, damage assessment teams and debris management personnel, mental health professionals, volunteer services personnel, and electrical line maintenance crews.
Sheriff's deputies seized counterfeit methamphetamine and money when they arrested a Limestone County man at the end of a chase and manhunt today, authorities said.

Benjamin Allen Hill

It all began around 9 a.m. when deputies were called to the Heritage Food Mart to investigate a report of a man paying with fake money. The sheriff's office said Sgt. Jonathan Hardiman chased the suspect, who fled the scene in a van.

The chase led into neighboring Madison County, where the suspect abandoned the van and ran from deputies, said sheriff's spokesman Stephen Young. A K9 crew from the local prison found the suspect hiding in a yard after a three-hour manhunt.

The suspect, 27-year-old Benjamin Allen Hill, is held in the Limestone County jail pending the filing of multiple felony charges, Young said.

Sheriff Mike Blakely praised Hardiman's work on the case.

"I'm also proud of excellent teamwork demonstrated by Madison County Sheriff's deputies, Limestone Correctional Facility officers, and the Limestone County deputies and investigators," Blakely said in a statement. "Their seamless, coordinated efforts combined to effectively make this arrest."

Adam Chambers

Deputies also found a large amount of what appeared to be meth in the abandoned van, Young said.

"...however, like the money, it also turned out to be counterfeit," the sheriff's news release says.

Young said Hill's arrest is connected to the case of Charles Lee Anderson, a man who was arrested Monday on 26 felony charges for using counterfeit money.

A third suspect is still sought in connection with the counterfeit ring. Adam Chambers, 31, is wanted on multiple warrants in Limestone County, Young said. Anyone with information is asked to call 256-232-0111.
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said on Tuesday and again today that she has not seen an invitation to participate in a candidate forum with her opponent before the general election on Nov. 6.

The League of Women Voters of Alabama said it sent out invitations last month for a non-partisan forum with Ivey, the Republican candidate, and the Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox.

"I have not seen that invitation yet," Ivey said Tuesday. "I have not made a decision on that." She repeated that stance today.

Barbara Caddell, president of the League of Women Voters of Alabama, said the invitations were extended Aug. 22 and the group asked candidates to respond by Sept. 7. Maddox responded. Ivey did not.

"I sent that out after she was quoted as saying the only people interested in a forum are her opponent and the Democratic Party," Caddell said. "That's just not so. I sent an invitation to participate by email and the U.S. Postal Service, to each candidate and to the chair of their respective political parties."

Caddell allowed that it's possible the invitation never got to Ivey.

"She's a busy lady," Caddell said. "She's got layers of assistants that help her. She's already announced several times and different ways she wasn't interested in a debate."

The League of Women Voters doesn't use a debate format, she said.

"It's a forum; it's not a debate," Caddell said. "We ask questions. We ask everybody the same questions. They are not released ahead of time. We have a moderator. Each candidate has an opportunity to make an opening or closing statement."

The League of Women Voters has a long history of helping voters be informed, she said.

"We do candidate forums all over the state," Caddell said.

The organization also has an online candidate guide, Vote 411.

"We invite candidates to input their own information and a photo and we ask five questions of the candidates," Caddell said.

Ivey has not filled out information for the voter guide, she said.

"She's not the only candidate that didn't do it," Caddell said. "Candidates get questionnaires all the time. Sometimes they think we're just another ladies' club."

Caddell said that they would still like to hear from Ivey.

"I'd strongly encourage her to participate," she said. "It's the only opportunity for the people of Alabama to compare her face-to-face with her opponent and provide them the information they need to make an informed decision."

A forum could still be held, Caddell said.

"There's still time to put it together," she said. "We need to get hopping."

The League will not put out an empty chair and do a forum with only one gubernatorial candidate, Caddell said.

"We're not - that makes it look like we're supporting Walt," Caddell said. "We don't support or oppose a particular candidate. We try to supply even-handed information so voters can make an informed decision."

If Ivey doesn't participate in discussing issues, voters lose out, Caddell said.

"If she chooses not to do it, it just doesn't get done," she said. "That makes me sadder. All we can do is try, and then we tell the truth."
Gov. Kay Ivey has said only the news media and the Walt Maddox campaign ask about debates.

But the League of Women Voters of Alabama is asking, too, and has announced its plans to set up a candidate forum with Ivey and Maddox before the Nov. 6 election.

Ivey said today her position on the issue is unchanged.

Asked specifically about the League of Women Voters plans for a forum, Ivey said today:

"I have not received their invitation and I have no plans to debate."

Ivey's communications director, Daniel Sparkman, later said that Ivey had not seen the invitation but acknowledged that she was aware of it because she was asked about it on Tuesday.

This morning, Ivey spoke to the Alabama Retired State Employees' Association and the Alabama Public Employees' Advocacy League a day after Maddox spoke to the group at a candidate's forum.

Maddox said Ivey owed the public a debate about key issues facing the state and suggested that Ivey's advisors are afraid to let her face him on a debate stage to talk about what Maddox called crises in health care, corrections, aging infrastructure and low rankings in education scores.

"I have no plans to debate my opponent," Ivey said this morning in response to Maddox's comments. "Alabamians know my record. They know what I stand for. I'm out amongst them every day and they know we're creating jobs and putting folks back to work and working to improve education. So, I don't need a debate."

Ivey, the Republican incumbent, faces Democratic nominee Maddox on Nov. 6.

Chip Hill, campaign spokesman for Maddox, noted today that Gov. Robert Bentley also declined to debate his opponent in 2014 and uncorked a massive tax increase proposal soon after beginning his second term.

Maddox said he would initiate the expansion of Medicaid to improve access to health care and help keep rural hospitals open. The Affordable Care Act allowed states to expand Medicaid cover low-income workers, with the federal government picking up most of the cost. The Republican-led Legislature would also have to approve funding and regulatory changes for expansion.

Thirty-three states have expanded Medicaid, but Ivey said she did not think Alabama could afford to.

"We all want high quality medicine at an affordable cost available to everybody. But you've got to figure out how you're going to pay for it because we've got a bare bones budget for Medicaid now," Ivey said.

Maddox, when asked about how he would propose to pay for Medicaid expansion, said it would make the state's economy grow, saying that's the same justification used to pay incentives to recruit industry.

Maddox said he will propose a lottery to support education, noting that Alabamians play lotteries in bordering states that support their education programs.

Ivey said establishment of a lottery is not her focus, but said she supports people having a chance to decide the issue.

"We've got a robust economy right now and we've got strong budgets," Ivey said. "But if you want to have a lottery, the Legislature first has to address the issue as a constitutional amendment and then the people of Alabama would have to vote on it. And I certainly support the people of Alabama having the right to vote."

Ivey spoke to the retirees' group for about 10 minutes today.

She said state employees are a priority and mentioned bills she signed into law this year giving state employees a 3 percent cost of living raise, their first such raise in a decade, and giving state retirees a one-time bonus.

Ivey told the retirees Alabama's economy has improved during her 17 months on the job. She mentioned the state's historically low unemployment rate and said there are more Alabamians working than ever before.

Ivey said the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency had 313 state troopers when she took office but is on track to have 400 by February. She said adding troopers was important for driver safety.

The governor also talked about her Strong Start Strong Finish education initiative and said it emphasizes pre-kindergarten through 3rd grade, computer science and advanced job training.

"Our students need a seamless system of collaborative education all the way from pre-K to the workforce," Ivey said.

Updated at 3:28 p.m. with comment from Maddox spokesman Chip Hill.
Keith Robinson vacationed on the inaugural Carnival Fantasy cruise that left the Alabama Cruise Terminal nearly two years ago. He traveled again on the same ship in January 2017, and will be returning for another trip in early October.

Robinson looks forward to a "dream" adventure: A 10-day cruise to the Panama Canal. Those trips, which begin leaving from Mobile on Monday, will stop in Cozumel, Mahogany Bay and Limon in Costa Rica.

With 170,000 people leaving Mobile for cruises so far in 2018 aboard the 2,056-passenger Fantasy, it's becoming more of a distant memory that the cruise terminal was once empty for more than five years.

"Now that they are back, we've just forgiven and forgotten that they were gone," said Robison, who lives in Mobile and administers a Facebook page dedicated to cruising from the city. The page has over 6,000 followers.

"We can always support and hope for the best," said Angela Gray, also of Mobile who helps Robinson handle the Facebook page and who sells T-shirts for cruisers. "I honestly feel it's been a good relationship and that Carnival is happy about the outcome."

Mobile potential

Indeed, from public statements by Carnival Cruise Lines officials, the Miami-based company appears to be pleased with its return to Mobile, which occurred amid pomp and celebration inside the riverfront cruise terminal on Nov. 9, 2016.

But Carnival is operating out of the terminal on a year-by-year contract, and there's no guarantee that the Fantasy, part of Carnival Cruise Lines' Fun Ship 2.0, will be sailing out of Mobile beyond 2019.

Vance Gulliksen, spokesman with Carnival Cruise Lines, said the existing contract expires on Nov. 26. He said, "We will be working with the city on an extension of the contract for an additional year very shortly."

Bookings for Carnival cruises out of Mobile extend into 2020, aboard the Fantasy. The vessel is among the smallest in Carnival's fleet, but it's been repurposed with new restaurants and other shiny new features.

It's arrival in 2016 was under a 13-month arrangement for 84 sailings, with a target of 170,000 passengers. The company has opted for one renewal, agreed upon 13 months ago.

Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Lines, told AL.com on Tuesday that cruises have reached the targeted passenger number, and that the company is introducing longer trips, such as to the Panama Canal.

Asked how she felt about Mobile, Duffy said: "We're the only cruise line operator in Mobile with our four to five-day cruises year-round. We did expand the program to include six-day cruises and eight-day and 10-day."

She said Mobile, one of 18 Carnival homeports in the U.S., draws cruisers from throughout the Southeast. "This is part of what we like to say is Carnival's homeport advantage," Duffy said. "Fifty percent of the U.S. can get to a home port within a five-hour drive. We have 18 North American homeports and Mobile is one of them."

Carnival's presence in Mobile will be celebrated on Thursday, when the company's Carnival AirShip - a 128-foot-long red, white and blue blimp - arrives in sometime around noon. The AirShip's stopover is part of a 30-day airborne journey across seven states after departing Memphis on Aug. 29.

Carnival AirShip, a large blimp, will arrive in Mobile, Ala., on Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018. (photo courtesy of Carnival Cruise Lines).

During the promotion, people will have a chance to win free cruises and Carnival swag, VIP event passes and gift cards when they take a picture or video of the AirShip and post it to Facebook, Instagram and Twitter with the hashtag, #ChooseFun. The hashtag, according to Duffy, will trigger a donation to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, which is Carnival's longtime charitable partner.

The AirShip's voyage is helping Carnival showcase new offerings in three of its more popular homeports: Galveston, Texas, and Port Canaveral and Miami, Florida. "We thought it was a good way to highlight that," said Duffy.

Potential

But while these other ports prepare for boosts, some cruisers, travel agents and analysts are wondering what's in store for Alabama.

Mobile's cruise terminal, built in 2004 to accommodate Carnival cruises, was left abandoned in 2011, after the Carnival Elation's final trip. The situation left city taxpayers with big bills to pay on the outstanding debt.

The cruise terminal, according to past records, requires an annual $1.86 million bond payment. For five years, the city was on the hook for almost the entire amount despite receiving a small revenue bump from weddings and other banquets inside the facility.

The bond won't be paid off until 2030, but it's unclear whether the return of Carnival is speeding up the debt payments. According to city spokeswoman Laura Byrne, the annual revenue from the cruise terminal is around $5.8 million.

Mayor Sandy Stimpson's office did not provide additional information, and did not comment for this article.

Even when abandoned, the cruise terminal offered a lifeline for Carnival during the company's times of need. Notably, in February 2013, the terminal welcomed the disabled Carnival Triumph, which had been drifting in the Gulf of Mexico following an engine fire with 4,229 passengers on board amid filthy conditions. The rescue sparked national interest and news attention as frazzled yet joyous passengers arrived into the terminal to the song of "Sweet Home Alabama" blaring on the sound speakers.

Stimpson, who was elected mayor in 2013, made bringing a cruise ship back to Mobile a political priority, even though industry insiders often claim that cruise lines don't base their home-porting decisions on local politics - such as who is the mayor.

Nonetheless, the return of Carnival has been a boon for Mobile. Keeping it in Mobile, while creating a different experience for the repeated customers, looms a challenge.

"You don't like going to the same places all the time," said Gray, a regular cruiser who administers the local cruising community's Facebook page. "People like the longer cruises and Carnival is already putting some of them out to different ports and that is important. It gives us variety."

Steve Cape, a longtime travel agent in Mobile, said Carnival is unlikely to sign up to a long-term, or multi-year contract with Mobile unless demand rises. He said the key for Mobile, meanwhile, is to try and lure some sort of competition to the only cruise terminal in Alabama.

Cape said the popularity of the luxury cruise market, which could include smaller intracoastal cruises popular in other parts of the U.S., could generate more terminal activity. He also said that social impact travel occurring along a cruise liner could also be a potential market for Mobile. Carnival once operated the Fathom which provided social impact voyages from Miami to the Dominican Republic, and included the first U.S. cruise to Cuba in over 50 years in 2016.

"If they operated one of these in Mobile, in the Bible Belt where Baptist missionaries could easily drive to, it could be a tremendous opportunity for Mobile," Cape said. "To me, there is a lot of potential business for the Port of Mobile. It just needs to happen sooner than later. Mobile has so much tourism potential."

Cape also would like to see Mobile attract more "seasonal service," such as what New Orleans regularly receives from other cruising companies like Royal Caribbean.

"We just have to market our destination," said Cape. "If marketed properly there is a tremendous opportunity for Mobile to lure in a luxury liner for a few sailings every year."

Cape and others, including industry expert Stewart Chiron, believe that Carnival could leave Mobile "if they can make more money by putting the ship somewhere else" at any time.

Chiron, who has been critical of the Mobile market in the past, said that while the cruise industry overall is seeking a surge in bookings and "at higher prices," Mobile has not.

"The point is, (Carnival) is getting a higher yield in other ports," he said, referring to past problems Mobile had in trying to keep Carnival from leaving the city.

Mobile remains a mostly drive-to market, which means that most cruisers leaving the city are driving - not flying - for cruises out of the downtown terminal.

And Chiron said that Mobile has a "huge" potential drive-to market that includes major cities like Atlanta and Nashville, as well as Birmingham, Huntsville, Chattanooga, and elsewhere in the Southeast.

"The point is, Mobile is there but based on pricing, it doesn't appear to be drawing too well," said Chiron. "It's in the business right now, but if the music stops and Carnival needs to move a ship, this is one place they would look."

Still, Mobile doesn't have the competition to lure a cruise ship like it once did: Terminals in Corpus Christie and Houston, Texas, no longer are in operation or are attempting to lure a cruise liner, and locations in Florida like Miami are not going to pursuing smaller cruise vessels like the Fantasy.

Jacksonville and Charleston, South Carolina, are not in position to secure a second ship, Chiron said.

"Mobile has some good opportunities if they focus on these markets within a four-hour drive," he said. "There are lot of people looking at four to five-night sailings. Their closest bet is Mobile. I just want to know how many of them know about it."

Spread the word

When Carnival returned to Mobile in 2016, the city agreed to provide $800,000 into a marketing fund that the company oversees. Of that, the city promised to dedicate $200,000 into it each quarter.

Dave Clark, president and CEO of Visit Mobile, said the city recently launched a $50,000 digital campaign to market the Fantasy cruise liner through a partnership with Carnival's marketing team.

He said the campaign aims to target markets outside the Mobile region with a focus on larger metropolitan areas that may have a closer drive-time to Mobile than the other homeport locations for Carnival.

"This addresses Atlanta, Chattanooga, Birmingham, Montgomery and Huntsville and splashes into Kentucky," said Clark. "We're the first port they can get to and we have some of the best accommodations and you drive off the interstate, you're here. This is what the digital campaign addresses to a more than nine hour distance to the North and Northeast."

Clark, meanwhile, boasts on what he says are strong guest satisfaction scores from visitors and a host of quality park-and-stay options promoted by area hotels.

He also said that boarding passes also bring regular discounts into downtown Mobile museums and attractions.

"Mobile is providing a platform for them to be successful here," Clark said.

Carol Hunter, spokeswoman with the Downtown Mobile Alliance, said that her organization is also encouraging more businesses to remain open on Sunday nights, which is often a night when out-of-area cruisers arrive to spend the night before leaving on a Monday morning voyage.

She said that the businesses that have opted to remain open have seen an uptick in out-of-state shoppers.

"It's pretty anecdotal, but I think it's been good for business," Hunter said.

This story was updated at 10:44 a.m. to clarify that the city of Mobile provides $800,000 each year into a marketing fund that is controlled by Carnival Cruise Lines.
Hurricane Florence was a monster Category 4 storm on Tuesday evening on a track that forecasters say will hit the Carolinas in a matter of days.

Alabama isn't in Florence's immediate forecast path as of Tuesday evening, although the Day 4 and 5 potential track area expanded Tuesday night to include the northeast part of the state.

So will Alabama have to deal with any rough weather from the storm at all?

If Florence stays on its current course, not really, according to forecasters.

"Right now the impacts appear to be minimal," said Chris Darden, the meteorologist in charge at the National Weather Service in Birmingham.

Florence is forecast to make landfall anywhere from North to South Carolina by Friday.

Here's the forecast track from the National Hurricane Center as of 10 p.m. CDT Tuesday:

(NHC)

Once it makes landfall its steering currents may collapse and leave the weakening storm essentially stalled somewhere over the Southeast, dropping potentially catastrophic amounts of rain in the process.

"So, is it possible that we may see a few stray bands move into north Georgia? Sure," Darden said Tuesday afternoon.

"The threat may be increasing for more rainfall there in northeast Georgia and north Georgia. But here in Alabama overall it looks like the impacts will be pretty minimal."

Actually, Florence may help bring some nice weather to Alabama.

Darden said that intense hurricanes like Florence can have very low pressures in their cores.

"So what happens is outside that low pressure system you invariably get a high that builds around it," he said. "Around a high pressure system you get what's called subsidence, or sinking air.

"So near a hurricane is obviously active weather, inclement weather. But outside that zone a lot of times you actually get pretty nice weather."

Overall forecasters expect lower rain chances near the end of the week, but rising temperatures.

"It'll be a little bit warm for this time of the year as we get to the end of the week," Darden said.

Highs could climb into the 90s -- even mid-90s in some spots in the state.

The biggest thing concerning Florence for those in Alabama will be to make sure any family or friends on the East Coast are prepared.

" ... just make sure they have multiple ways to get weather information," said Darden, who has family members in eastern North Carolina himself.

"Certainly have multiple ways to get weather information if there's a power outage."

Darden told his own family members to be prepared to be without power for up to two weeks.

"Have a battery powered radio ... your cell phone is not going to work," he said. "The grid is probably going to be down.

"So if you have family in the Carolinas you need to make sure you have multiple ways to get to keep in touch with them."
Update:

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal is declaring a state of emergency for all 159 counties after updated forecast show Hurricane Florence dipping south.

"The state is mobilizing all available resources to ensure public safety ahead of Hurricane Florence," Deal said. "In light of the storm's forecasted southward track after making landfall, I encourage Georgians to be prepared for the inland effects of the storm as well as the ensuing storm surge in coastal areas. GEMA/HS continues to lead our preparedness efforts as we coordinate with federal, state and local officials to provide public shelter and accommodate those evacuating from other states. Finally, I ask all Georgians to join me in praying for the safety of our people and all those in the path of Hurricane Florence."

Georgia joins South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Maryland to declare states of emergencies. Evacuations have been ordered along the Carolina coasts.

Hurricane Florence may now be dipping a bit south and hitting a portion of the Great State of Georgia. Be ready, be prepared!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 12, 2018

Earlier:

More than 1 million people are evacuating from the coasts of North and South Carolina ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Florence.

Mandatory evacuation orders are in place for Horry, Georgetown, Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties and Edisto Beach in South Carolina. Evacuation orders were lifted for the southern most parts of South Carolina as the storm has tracked northward.

Major highway lanes along the evacuation route in the state have been reversed so that all traffic can flow away from the coat. You can see the evacuation routes here.

Emergency shelters in South Carolina are listed here.

Storm preparations are also underway in North Carolina with evacuation orders in place for most coastal counties. Bertie, Brunswick, Currituck, Dare, Hyde, New Hanover and Onslow counties are current under evacuation orders.

Gov. Roy Cooper also activated North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund for donations to support North Carolina's response to Hurricane Florence. To donate, visit rebuild.nc.gov.

With conditions expected to begin to deteriorate Wed. night, preparations should be completed by that time. For more info detailing ways to prepare, reference https://t.co/I4XOG8T7d9 and download the ReadyNC app. You can also call 2-1-1 with any questions. #ncwx #FlorenceNC  NC Emergency Managem (@NCEmergency) September 11, 2018

Virginia is ordering residents leave its coastal areas, including the low-lying areas of Hampton Roads and the Eastern Shore.

"Hurricane Florence has the potential to cause catastrophic flooding, especially in our coastal areas," Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said. "This evacuation is for the safety of thousands of Virginians living in that zone. But the effects of this storm will be felt statewide, and I encourage everyone in Virginia to prepare now."

Hurricane Florence remains a powerful Category 4 hurricane Wednesday morning with winds of 130 mph. Landfall is expected Friday into Saturday morning, bringing flooding rains, strong winds and the possibility of tornadoes. Hurricane watches and warnings and storm surge watches and warnings are in place for a stretch of the coast from South Carolina to Virginia.
Most people who know of Jimmy Buffett likely imagine beaches, beer and margaritas when you mention his name. But what about marijuana?

The beach and margarita-loving musician has made a licensing deal with Surterra Wellness to create a new medical marijuana brand, Coral Reefer.

Buffett licensed his brand, Coral Reefer, to Surterra to develop and market medical and therapeutic cannabis products and wellness lifestyle products. The medical marijuana products include vaporizer pens, tinctures, oral sprays, topical creams and time-released transdermal patches. Softgels will soon be offered.

"That time being the long overdue recognition of the numerous healing properties of cannabis," Buffett said in a statement from Surterra. "I have followed and studied with keen intensity the recent evolvement of the medical marijuana story and the path towards [sic] the simple common-since conclusion that cannabis is good medicine and should be made available to all who need it."

The products will be distributed exclusively through Surterra's medical marijuana stores.

"Our brands are about quality and improving people's lives. We based our decision to work with Surterra in this new industry on the professionalism of its world-class management and commitment to quality and customer service," said Buffett's business partner and Coral Reefer CEO John Cohlan said in a statement. "Surterra shares our vision of creating a cannabis wellness lifestyle brand that improves the health of millions of people around the world."

Buffett already licenses his brand to restaurants, hotels, casinos, retirement communities and Anheuser-Busch InBev's Landsark Lager.

"Obviously, with Beau Wrigley as chairman, Surterra possesses an understanding and capability for developing and honoring iconic brands," Cohlan said. "Medical marijuana is a wonderful, natural product that helps people all over the world improve their health and well-being."

Wrigley, the former chairman and CEO of the family-founded gum and confections company, joined the Georgia-based medical cannabis company as board chairman about one month before the Coral Reefer licensing agreement.

Wychwood Asset Management, Wirgley's investment firm in West Palm Beach, Florida, recently brough Surterra's total capital raised to more than $100 million since 2015.

Surterra Wellness was founded in 2014 and has medical marijuana licenses in Florida and Texas. The company plans to expand to other states.

Buffett primarily owns Coral Reefer, LLC along with the team that manages Margaritaville Holdings.
This is an opinion column.

Words, man. They say some things. Boy do they.

Like when Mike Hubbard, the former speaker of the Alabama House, unveiled the GOP's "Handshake with Alabama" in 2010.

It was an ambitious plan, a much-needed statement and a vow to give teeth and claws to Alabama ethics laws and "end corruption in Montgomery."

"In Alabama, a handshake means something," Hubbard explained then. "When you look someone in the eye, give them your word and shake their hand, you make a bond. This Handshake Agenda is our bond with the voters of Alabama."

Aw man. Gross.

Because Hubbard became the poster child for hypocrisy. He was convicted of breaking his toothy ethics law, and a few weeks ago the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals upheld the convictions on just about all the charges.

And where's that dang handshake? Alabama stuck out its mitt and ...

Psych.

Got us again.

Ethics are things Alabama voters actually agree on. Poll after poll shows it. Republicans. Democrats. It doesn't matter. They dream of ethical government. They see dishonesty and corruption as a big problem, and one of the things that leads to Alabama's poor leadership and poorer image.

They've been burned by both parties, so they know neither one corners the market on scruples. They want accountability, and consequences, and a handshake that's more than a shakedown.

The non-partisan Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama recently published its survey of priorities among Alabama voters, finding little difference of opinion on this issue among Republicans and Democrats, blacks and whites, conservatives and liberals or other groups. Which is amazing.

PARCA found voters are not polarized on the big ones. They worry about education and healthcare and - you guessed it - corruption and ethics. Because they've learned. From governors and lawmakers, judges, mayors, sheriffs.

When AL.com readers were asked about the topics in a more informal poll, the most answered that corruption is the biggest issue of all facing the state.

People want to believe in government. They want basic accountability. They want a handshake with a grip.

Psych.

Because even now, a rewrite of the Alabama Ethics Law is underway, in back rooms in Montgomery, by defense lawyers who represent the big principals who employ lobbyists and fear accountability. Even now, committees are preparing to debate proposed changes to the law that could make it easier for public officials to take tickets, or meals, or claim plausible deniability for taking anything they want. Some discussed changes - they aren't official yet - would make prosecuting corruption a whole lot harder.

Where's the handshake? Or a look in the eye? Or the bond?

When the Alabama Republican Party released its first platform last month it made no mention of ethics at all. Maybe we shouldn't read too much into that. I mean, the platform couldn't speak to everything, right? As party chair Terry Lathan explained, there was a lot to cover.

Like condemning activist judges and coming out in support of standing for the national anthem.

But not ethics. Not the handshake, which left us all hanging.

"Of course it's important to have a strong ethics law," Lathan said. "Unfortunately Alabama ethics laws are subjective. If a group of people are trying to tweak it to make it clearer that's a good thing."

If, if, if.

And if they're trying to tweak it for their own personal protection?

That's no handshake. It's a different gesture entirely.

John Archibald, a Pulitzer Prize winner, is a columnist for Reckon by AL.com. His column appears in The Birmingham News, the Huntsville Times, the Mobile Register and AL.com. Write him at jarchibald@al.com.

alabama ... by on Scribd
This is an opinion column.

Maybe Alabama gets to the bottom of this.

Maybe, after all this time, the truth sets us free. Everybody but Mike Hubbard, I mean.

Former Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Secretary Spencer Collier - the guy who spilled the beans on Gov. Robert Bentley's shenanigans with aide Rebekah Mason - long ago sued Bentley, claiming he improperly fired and sought to destroy him.

In a recent deposition Collier's lawyer, Kenny Mendelsohn, asked Bentley who contributed to ACEgov, the shadowy dark money group used to pay part of the salary of Mason, who served as Bentley's chief political advisor.

Simple. Who paid the bills?

Bentley said contributions came from billionaire Franklin Haney, the guy who bought the Bellefonte nuclear power plant in north Alabama. But he wouldn't say how much or who else gave.

So Mendelsohn followed up with a motion asking the judge to compel Bentley to disclose the donors and amounts. Montgomery County Circuit Judge Greg Griffin set an October hearing on the motion.

Maybe Alabama will find out who has been funding its government.

It's something all Alabama should know. Whose money went into that secret pile to pay for Bentley's bad choices? What did it cost them? And what did it get them?

Haney, after all, would later give Bentley hundreds of thousands of dollars, and Bentley conveniently went to bat to help him buy the power plant.

It would be good to know what rent-to-own government costs in Alabama.

Then again there's a lot of unfinished business in that lawsuit. There's a lot of darkness that could use some Alabama sunshine.

Like the events that unfolded just before Bentley fired Collier, after the governor and Mason urged him not to cooperate with the attorney general's office in the investigation of Hubbard, the speaker of the house.

That's what the whole things was about, you know. Collier, the top cop, was punished, and fired, for cooperating with the state's lawyer, and his top bulldog Matt Hart.

This part of the motion just sums it up for those who didn't follow at the time.

"Unbeknownst to Collier at the time but confirmed by Bentley in his deposition, Bentley and his staff had been meeting with Hubbard's lawyers, legislators who were friends of Hubbard and individuals identified in Hubbard's indictment to discuss Bentley removing Assistant AG Hart from the Hubbard case or appointing a special prosecutor to investigate the AGO (Attorney General's Office).

"Contrary to what we all learned in sixth grade civics class about separation of power, Bentley seriously considered trying to use his office to remove Hart from the Hubbard case. It was only later that someone advised Bentley that he did not have that power."

Hubbard, of course, went on the be convicted of a dozen felonies. That was 825 days ago. And though he was sentenced to four years in prison, he remains free.

The court of criminal appeals upheld 11 of the 12 counts, and prosecutors - Hart's still at it - have filed a motion pushing the court to reconsider the 12th.

What has been clear in Montgomery since Hubbard's conviction has been the lengths to which his allies would go to keep him from being punished, and the keep themselves from the same fate. It helped bring down a governor. It's why a committee is now making a year-long show of "clarifying" the Alabama ethics law.

It all needs sunshine. Because it's about time Alabama saw the light.

Judge Griffin can help us see whose money bought the allegiance of Gov. Bentley and Mason, which would be cleansing.

It's up to us, though, to see why strong ethics laws matter. With them, we have a glimmer of a chance. Without them, there is darkness.

John Archibald, a Pulitzer Prize winner, is a columnist for Reckon by AL.com. His column appears in The Birmingham News, the Huntsville Times, the Mobile Register and AL.com. Write him at jarchibald@al.com.

Mendelsohn Filing by John Archibald on Scribd
The Joint Foreign Chambers on Wednesday asked legislators to exempt the Philippine Economic Zone Authority from the proposed rationalization of fiscal incentives under the second package of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion law. The foreign chambers said in a news briefing during the Arangkada Forum 2018 in Pasay City that the Philippine government should leave Peza alone. Please dont touch Peza, the seven member groups of JFC said in a joint statement. JFC also pushed for the reduction of corporate income tax to 20 percent within five years, instead of 10 to 15 years as proposed under the second package of Train law. The American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines asked the government to expedite the planned rate of tax reduction to compensate for incentives to be lost under Train 2 or the so-called Trabaho bill.The government should lower the CIT sooner. Why? Because were forced to cut incentives in 2019. So why dont they cut it faster, Amcham president Ebb Hinchcliffe said in a separate interview. He said that as the Philippine government wanted to reduce CIT in 10 to 15 years, it would remain the country in Southeast Asia imposing the highest CIT rate even after six years. It is not fast enough to attract investors right now. We need to create jobs now, not later, he said. Hinchcliffe said the JFC recognized that the government needed money to finance the Build, Build, Build program, an initiative that we all support.
Airbus executives offered a glimpse of things to come Wednesday at a groundbreaking for Flight Works Alabama, an educational institution they hope will provide a gateway into aerospace for local students.

While the focus was on Flight Works, Airbus executives also offered a few hints about progress on the second aircraft assembly line they plan to build at the Mobile Aeroplex at Brookley.

Gov. Kay Ivey described Flight Works as "a true partnership between Airbus and the state of Alabama," and said its funding had been one of her first financial commitments after taking office. (According to previously released information, the state will provide $5 million of the project's estimated $6.5 million budget, with Airbus contributing $1.5 million "from AIDT reimbursements for job training.")

The facility has been described as part classroom, part hands-on aerospace discovery museum, part workshop. At Wednesday's ceremony, the audience got to view a simulated walk-through giving an idea how those features will look in real life.

Ivey said that a key function of the facility will be to help Alabama students envision and pursue aerospace careers. "Flight Works Alabama will be a first step in lighting that spark in students from all across Alabama," she said.

"Flight Works Alabama is all about the future," seconded Airbus Americas Chairman Emeritus Allan McArtor, a leading proponent of the project.

"The growth we talk about in Alabama is more than just investment. The growth also encompasses involvement," McArtor said. "We have an opportunity and an obligation to explain the excitement of our aerospace industry to the public and especially to our youth. Flight Works Alabama is going to give us a multi-dimensional way to talk about the history of this area in flight, how we currently build and assemble airplanes and the various technologies that are involved in that, and then the future opportunity of the aerospace industry. It is our obligation to inform, inspire, motivate and capture the youth of Alabama in our industry. And that's what we're going to do at Flight Works Alabama."

Asia Haith, a student at Baker High School, described the way she hopes one day to use the facility. As an example, she said it will allow her to design a wing via computer modeling, build it on a 3D printer and then test it in a laboratory wind tunnel. "That's what I will be able to do at Flight Works Alabama as a high school student," she said.

After the ceremony, McArtor said that while Airbus already has outreach efforts into area schools, the company felt something more was needed.

"We've been talking about this for some time," he said, "about community involvement and the educational system and how to weave it all together. We've already been active with grade schools and high schools here in the area, but it didn't quite have the critical mass that we were looking for. But this provides the mechanism we can use to inspire young people in our industry."

McArtor said he thinks Flight Works programs will provide real advantages for area students via certifications in welding, 3D printing and other skills.

"When you say somebody's an Eagle Scout, you know what that means," he said. "So we want, when somebody says 'I've got three competency certificates from Alabama Flight Works,' they're going to know what that means. They're going to know that you were trained, you committed yourself and you actually created a competency."

"It also positions them to be eligible to apply for one of our jobs," he said. "What we're trying to do is make more of our community youth qualified to be competitive for our jobs."

McArtor even envisioned Flight Works being something of a tourist attraction.

"When you come down I-10, before you get to the battleship, those families are going to pull in here and go to Flight Works Alabama," he said. "Then they'll go on to see the battleship. Then they'll go on to Orange Beach. But they'll come right here to see how airplanes are made."

Flight Works should open sometime in 2019, McArtor said.

Airbus may have another groundbreaking coming up before year's end: As part of a partnership with Canada-based Bombardier, it plans to erect a new assembly line on its Mobile campus. There it will assemble Airbus A220 jets, a smaller sibling to the A320 family it already assembles in Mobile.

McArtor and Jeff Knittel, the chairman and CEO of Airbus Americas, reiterated previous statements that the company hopes to have that assembly line operational about two years from now.

"We would expect that assembly line to open mid-2020," said Knittel. "Our hope is end of this year, early next" for a groundbreaking, he said. Between now and then the company will be busy with "planning, permitting, all the standard things you do as you get a project of this size under way."

McArtor said that while any groundbreaking would be ceremonial, practical work was already in progress.

"In reality we've already begun engineering and architectural studies and we're talking about drainage and soil compaction, all of the necessary things," he said. "You'll probably see bulldozers at the end of the year, but we've already actually begun the enabling works for that assembly line."

Airbus announced the Bombardier partnership, and plans for the new Mobile assembly line, out of the blue in October 2017, without securing any economic development incentives. But Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson, for one, has previously said incentives would be developed to support the project, and Knittel confirmed that negotiations were under way.

"We are working with local and state governments, who have been terrific partners, and we would expect that there will be some incentives as we go forward," he said.

"In essence, we're going to double what we're doing here," McArtor said of the expansion. "We're going to double our investment, we're going to double our employment, we're going to double the deliveries out of here. It's beyond exciting, quite frankly."

Also at Wednesday's ceremony, Stimpson and Mobile County Commission President Connie Hudson unveiled a new historic marker celebrating the historic legacy of Brookley Field.
In an emotional address Tuesday to Coastal Alabama Community College faculty and staff, President Gary Branch announced his retirement after 37 years at the helm, due to serious health concerns.

Branch, 76, noted he has spent half his life leading the college, going back to when it was known as Faulkner State Junior College and consisted of only a campus in Bay Minette. Today, Coastal Alabama counts 10 campuses in the region and delivers classes at another 16 institutional sites.

His retirement, effective Sept. 29, will conclude a career of more than 50 years in higher education.

Dressed in a dark suit and red tie, with a gold Coastal Alabama pin on his lapel, Branch, wiping away tears, downplayed his legacy at the college and thanked the audience members for "doing your job the way it's supposed to be done."

Branch said, "I want my legacy to simply be this: He loved students."

In 1978, Branch became the nation's youngest college president when he took over Brewer State Junior College in Fayette. A few years later, he was on his way to Faulkner State.

With his wife Peggy seated a few feet away Tuesday, Branch remembered his first act as president, in 1981. He removed of a Confederate flag prominently displayed behind the desk in the president's office.

"I wanted this institution to be a place where every student felt welcome," he said.

In those early days, Branch also had the unenviable responsibility to balance the budget for a college in the midst of financial crisis. The result was a "reduction in force" that cost 13 jobs from a total pool of less than 50.

"I've never had another one," he said Tuesday. "And I'm very proud of that."

And, in time, all 13 staffers who lost their jobs got hired back.

In Branch's first year at Faulkner State, enrollment tallied barely 1,100 students, all reporting to the Bay Minette campus. There were many others who wished to register, but the college was just too far a drive from jobs and families.

In 2018, the college boasts thriving campuses in Fairhope and Gulf Shores, as well as Bay Minette, and enrollment is rapidly growing. In fact, throughout its total footprint in the region, the college's enrollment is nearing 8,000, he said.

As it became clear that the time for retirement had come, Branch said, he found himself reflecting on several initiatives that he helped bring about during his tenure. Among them: the annual Student Leadership Retreat, known as the Gatlinburg Getaway; the Black Ministry Dinner, with its accompanying scholarships; the Counselor's Dinner, to welcome and celebrate high school counselors; and the creation of a women's intercollegiate softball league, which later included the construction of one of the most impressive softball stadiums in the state.

Branch also helped launch the school's Scholar's Bowl, which annually welcome s nearly2,000 students from 34 high schools, he said, and is "the best recruiting tool we have."

And significantly, Branch led a task force that created the Statewide Transfer Articulation & Reporting System, which allows two-year college students to more seamlessly transfer to universities across the state, and he shepherded the merger that forged Coastal Alabama from three independently accredited community colleges, Faulkner State, Alabama Southern and Jefferson Davis.

This latter effort, however, coincided with serious health issues that required Branch to undergo three major surgeries, with another possibly looming. "The past two years have been the most difficult of my life," Branch said. "Not because of the merger, but because of the health issues that I've had."

His family, as well as his doctors, implored him to simplify his life, he said. So he penned a letter to Alabama Community College System Chancellor Jimmy Baker, announcing his retirement.

Branch read the letter aloud Tuesday, pausing at times as powerful emotions surfaced. The letter told how a once-broke junior college now enjoys unprecedented financial health and enrollment, with an annual operational budget of $128 million.

"It has been a high privilege and honor to have been a part of thousands of students' lives for all these years," Branch said, reading from the letter.

The letter ended with the following: "Thank you, and I do accept your kind offer to continue serving our system by working with the youth on special projects."

Branch explained that Baker has given him the opportunity to work with educational institutions around the state that are struggling with student-service issues, which are his passion.

Branch next addressed the staffers arrayed before him, likely for the final time en masse. He said he's confident that they will show his successor the same loyalty and dedication that they've shown him.

"I know you will, because I've experienced that," Branch said. "This is considered to be one of the crown jewels in our system because of the things we do together."
A proposal to enlarge the Mobile Ship Channel took another step forward Tuesday with an open meeting providing one of the last chances for the public to shape the details of the project.

Held at the Arthur R. Outlaw Mobile Convention Center, the session wasn't a town hall: It looked and felt more like a small trade show, except that every booth at the show but one was staffed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers personnel ready to explain and discuss a particular aspect of the project. The lone exception was a booth representing the Alabama State Port Authority, the biggest proponent of a larger channel and the entity that asked the Corps to study the possiblity in the first place.

After making the rounds, visitors had the option of filling out comment cards, or of dictating their concerns to a waiting court reporter. The Corps will continue taking written comments until 5 p.m. Monday, Sept. 17.

The session mainly offered a chance to get more details about the "Tentatively Selected Plan" laid out in what is formally known as the draft Mobile Harbor Draft General Reevaluation Report with Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (GRR/SEIS). Public comments will be considered as the Corps prepares a final version of the GRR/SEIS.

Dauphin Island homeowner Stan Graves, right, listens as Corps of Engineers Project Manager David Newell, left, talks about possibilities for the placement of dredge spoil from a project to enlarge the Mobile Ship Channel. (Lawrence Specker/LSpecker@AL.com)

One display provided a view of the steps ahead: After incorporating public comments and responses, district-level Corps officials will pass the GRR to the national level. "Feasibility-level analysis" will produce a final SEIS in summer 2019, final GRR approval could come in Nov. 2019 and a "Record of Decision" could be signed in December 2019.

That would still leave the question of funding the estimated $387.8 million cost of the project, and the time to do the work. Col. Sebastien P. Joly, who took over command of the Mobile District in June, said he anticipates a three- to five-year construction schedule.

Assuming the timetable holds, Joly said, "I do think we're going to start some action to put money in place" for a start in fiscal year 2020.

That was seconded by Pete Taylor, deputy for programs and management for the Mobile District. When the report is approved, he said, that opens the way for a year-long process of preconstruction engineering and design. "We think in the optimal scenario ... construction could start as early as 2020."

Joly and Taylor spoke as if the tentative plan was just that, and public concerns could still have a significant impact in shaping the final version.

One display placard listed "Areas of Public Concern," an acknowledgement that they exist despite the Corps' view that its plan will have few if any negative impacts.

"I'm here tonight to learn what's different than what we saw a year ago," said Stan Graves, a Dauphin Island homeowner with an intense interest in the issue of using dredge spoil to help replenish the island's beaches.

A Corp of Engineers display shows a possible extension of a dredge spoil disposal area off Dauphin Island. The area, cross-hatched in green, could put sand removed from the channel in a place were currents would carry it onto the beaches of the island. (Lawrence Specker/LSpecker@AL.com)

The same issue brought Dauphin Island Mayor Jeff Collier to the session, where he studied a map showing a possible extension of the Sand Island Beneficial Use Area for spoil, one which might put nourishing sand where natural currents could carrying it onto the fragile barrier island.

"I think that's a good start," he said. "Here's the catch. That will be good if we actually implement it." Over the long run, he said, the Corps will have to follow through by putting sand in in the area as it conducts maintenance dredging on the channel.

"We should have been doing that all along, for decades," Collier said. "We need to be better stewards of a valuable resource."

Sand is being dredged out of the channel all the time, he said, and the island needs it. "We should be able to connect those dots," he said. "If not, shame on us."

Avery Bates of the Organized Seafood Association was on hand to share concerns about possible impacts on oysters and other marine resources in the Bay. Robert Pettie, representing the Mobile Bay Oyster Alliance, brought some concern about the impact of wakes from the bigger ships that will traverse an enlarged channel, and skepticism about Corps projections that any difference in wave energy unleashed on the Bay will be negligible.

Because it will keep the Port of Mobile competitive in an era when bigger and bigger container ships have become the norm, the project has considerable business and political support. Virtually no one seems to believe it won't happen in some form.

On Monday, Alabama's congressional delegation filed a letter expressing unanimous support. On Tuesday, Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson filed one saying that his administration was "ready to assist in any way we can to ensure this project is successful."

The full report and supporting documents can be found at the Corps of Engineers website for the project: http://www.sam.usace.army.mil/Missions/Program-and-Project-Management/Civil-Projects/Mobile-Harbor-GRR/

Comments may be submitted by mail, facsimile, or electronic mail to:

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Mobile District

Attention: PD-EC

109 Saint Joseph Street, Mobile, AL 36602

E-mail: MobileGRR@usace.army.mil

Fax: (251) 690-2054
SMC president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang

San Miguel Corp. said it has the financial capacity and track record to build the P735-billion New Manila International Airport project in Bulacan province. We believe our years of experience in building and operating major infrastructure projects are a key advantage when it comes to executing on this vital, ambitious project, San Miguel president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang said.SMC has already undertaken a lot of major projects and have delivered on a number of them so the expertise, know-how and innovativeness are there. We also work with the best experts and contractors, so when the time comes to start construction on the airport, we expect to hit the ground running, he said. Angs statement came after Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez questioned the capacity of San Miguel Holdings Corp., the infrastructure arm of San Miguel, to finance the planned Bulacan airport. SMHC manages the countrys largest infrastructure network. Among the major projects SMC built and made operational are Naia Expressway, Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway and Boracay Airport runway extension project. Ongoing projects include the MRT-7 project, Skyway Stage 3, South East Metro Manila Expressway and SLEx-TR 4 projects. It also operates the Skyway system, the South Luzon Expressway and the Star Tollway. Ang said that in terms of financial capability, the parent company SMC was fully backing SMHC for the airport project. He said the company concurred with the Department of Finances position that both companiesSMC and SMHCshould sign a joint liability agreement.The historical performance of the company reflects that we are more than capable of handling the project: strong balance sheet, consistent profitability and sustained growth and liquidity. All these support our expansion and acquisition activities, Ang said. The project, estimated at $5 billion or P735 billion, will be undertaken over a period of five to seven years to full completion. On average, spending spread is about P100 billion a year, which is at the level of the companys cash from operating activities, on a simple annualized basis. The company said it had a substantial debt space to supplement cash requirements for SMCs priority projects and those of various business units. Its net debt to Ebitda ratio is also below the companys debt covenant of 5.5x. With four parallel runways, expandable up to six, and modern, world-class facilities, this airport will be a game-changer for the Philippines. Its impact to the national economy, even to the local economy of Bulacan and nearby cities and provinces, will be significant, Ang said. It will create some 1 million jobs once construction starts, and by the time its completed, millions more of new tourism jobs will be created. Travel will be much easier and more comfortable for our air passengers, for overseas Filipino workers, and foreign tourists. Access will also be very easy with multiple expressways that will bring the airport within 30 minutes or shorter from anywhere in Metro Manila, Ang said.
Salvadoran youth are abandoning the countryside, leaving behind an increasingly aging population of farmers.

El Milagro, El Salvador  Cecilia Lopez loves breathing the fresh air in the countryside of El Salvador but, like many her age, the 18-year-old doesnt plan on staying in her rural village much longer.

Balancing a heavy sack of fertiliser on her head as she descends the steep path leading to her familys plot of corn, Lopez says she dreams of studying to become an accountant, or if she can get a scholarship, an aircraft engineer.

We always need agriculture, but its not good as a business, she says. The vision of the youth here is to not continue with agriculture. Its not sustainable.

In her community of El Milagro, a tiny hamlet of fewer than 200 people nestled amid lush greenery about 50km northeast of the capital San Salvador, most families grow corn, beans, and other crops to cover their own needs and sell what is left over to make a meagre living.

While weighing her own options, Lopez also encourages her older brother to find an alternative that will help him get ahead without getting trapped in debt to guarantee harvests that might never pay off.

Dont be a farmer, she tells him.

Their story is a familiar one among a generation of rural youth in El Salvador. Years of migration towards cities and the United States in search of work and sometimes to escape gang threats has left the country with an ageing population of farmers and many challenges to revitalising the sector.

According to experts, including the UN Development Program, the situation could affect food security in a country where nearly half of households are already food insecure.

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Maria Santos, a 55-year-old organic grower selling a few baskets of produce at a vibrant market sprawled in the street in Nahuizalco, 70km west of San Salvador, also sees the trend.

Here its rare for youth to want to farm now, she explains, wedged between other subsistence farmers selling mostly similar products. Its worrying because as the elderly are dying, someone needs to be responsible.

Livable rural areas

According to the UN Development Program, the demographics of rural workers in El Salvador are atypically clumped in the 16-25 and over 56 age brackets. Government statistics indicate the average farmer age is 57.

Consultations by the International Fund for Agricultural Development suggest many young people around the world are not averse to rural life per se but want options that offer a quality of life beyond subsistence.

Plants in a greenhouse at an organic agriculture training centre in Suchitoto, Cuscutlan [Heather Gies/Al Jazeera]

Wilfredo Rubio, adviser to the minister of agriculture, argues that the average age data likely does not offer a complete picture of farmer demographics. Nevertheless, he acknowledges that rural youth retention remains an important challenge.

What we have to do is create attractive, livable agriculture that allows youth to feel good, Rubio says. He stresses that the draw to cities isnt just job opportunities, but also better access to basic services such as electricity, water, education, healthcare, recreation facilities, and telecommunications that may not reach the rural poor.

Agriculture doesnt get abandoned because its agriculture, it gets abandoned because of the conditions [in the countryside], and thats what we need to transform, he adds.

Government initiatives to support the sector include a scholarship programme for rural youth to study subjects like agronomy or beekeeping, financing for entrepreneurial initiatives, and efforts to promote agritourism.

Many believe more government support could give small farmers a much-needed boost. Older producers echo long-standing demands for agricultural subsidies, guaranteed land access, and increased technical support, while younger people often highlight the need for innovation.

In the US, where prohibitive farmland costs squeeze out young producers, the average age of farmers has also crept up in recent decades to 58.

Opportunities to experiment

About 30km outside the capital, a cooperative organic agriculture initiative focused on creating opportunities for women and youth is bearing fruit.

The Canasta Campesina cuts out middlemen by selling local fruits, vegetables, eggs and herbs produced by small farmers directly to consumers in San Salvador in a bi-weekly farm basket.

Crates heaped with green onions, plantains, limes, cucumbers, eggplant, and other produce offer a glimpse of the initiatives offerings at the cooperatives headquarters in Comasagua, a town tucked among rolling hills about halfway between the capital and the Pacific coast.

Ever Valles, Canasta Campesina president, explains that the project, launched in 2012 with the help of international NGOs, aims to create a producer-consumer relationship based on fair prices and solidarity.

Ninety-two percent of the vegetable sales goes straight to the campesino, 26-year-old Valles explains, contrasting the projects cooperative model to conventional markets where intermediaries gobble up a hefty portion of farmers profits.

Canasta Campesina President Ever Valles, 26, discusses the organic agriculture cooperative that sells produce grown by small farmers directly to consumers in the capital [Heather Gies/Al Jazeera]

The Canasta Campesina is also looking to leverage technology by developing two new applications: an e-commerce tool to sell the produce baskets online and a virtual library to share agricultural knowledge between producers.

Valles says the technological innovation is not only attractive to youth, but also works towards bridging a digital divide that has traditionally limited small farmers access to technology and information.

Valles never saw a future for himself in his familys subsistence agriculture. He left the community to find work close to the capital, but insecurity and violence soon forced him to return home.

I Cecilia

. Because in the end, even the richest people need agriculture.]

He still didnt know how he would make a living back in his village of El Cortes, a short drive away from Comasagua. His mother, one of Canasta Campesinas 45 associates, encouraged him to get involved. Youth now make up a third of the cooperative.

For Valles, factors limiting youth involvement in agriculture include negative societal perceptions about farming, an education system that doesnt encourage creative thinking, and authorities failure to listen to the needs of rural youth.

Youth arent given opportunities to experiment, he says, standing beside stacks of empty baskets ready to be filled with the next weeks produce.

He argues conditions will be better in the countryside when a farmer isnt seen as a day worker, but as someone who can make proposals.

Necessity not vocation

Rubio, adviser to the minister of agriculture, blames years of trade liberalisation under two decades of right-wing governments for undermining El Salvadors agricultural sector by flooding the market with cheap imports and laying the foundations of an export-oriented model.

He claims the governments hands remain tied by a conservative-dominated Congress. For years, business-friendly politicians have blocked proposed legislation that would boost state support for small-scale agriculture.

Cesar Sanchez, 26, selling at the farmers market outside the Ministry of Agriculture in Santa Tecla, just outside the capital [Heather Gies/Al Jazeera] [Daylife]

Traditionally an agricultural economy, El Salvador has shifted in recent decades to depend much more significantly on the service sector and industry. Agriculture employed 19 percent of the workforce in 2017 compared to 38 percent in 1991, according to World Bank data.

For Brenda Rosales, 30, a facilitator with the ActionAid International-funded initiative Global Platform El Salvador, which focuses on building youth activism networks, structural change is an important piece of the puzzle.

She says many Salvadorans take on family responsibilities at a young age, forcing them to find work not for vocation, but necessity.

If [youth] dont see agriculture as a way to generate income  and fair income  they wont be able to stay, they will always have to look for something else, she says, stressing the need for political will to create favourable conditions for farmers.

Canasta Campesina Vice President Marvin Molina stands in a greenhouse where a member of the cooperative produces vegetables for the farm basket initiative [Heather Gies/Al Jazeera]

Back in El Milagro, Lopez, the 18-year-old aspiring aircraft engineer who has helped cultivate her familys crops as long as she can remember, believes the challenges likely run deeper than a lack of incentive programs or financing.

She says government handouts ultimately wont remedy deteriorated farmlands or mitigate increasingly unpredictable climate factors that affect harvests.

But she also questions what fate youth in her generation are spelling for their communities. What happens tomorrow when these people in agriculture are gone, thanks to us? she ponders.

I hope tomorrow there are people who stay to keep working [the fields]. Because in the end, even the richest people need agriculture.

Reporting for this story was supported by the International Womens Media Foundation as part of its Adelante Latin America Reporting Initiative.
Last week, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) heard oral arguments in the Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965 case. This case emerges from a Request for Advisory Opinion that the UN General Assembly submitted to the Court last year on the dispute between Mauritius and the United Kingdom, with Mauritius arguing that the Chagos Islands, a British colony in the Indian Ocean, was rightfully Mauritian territory and the product of incomplete decolonisation.

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The UN General Assembly resolution passed with an overwhelming victory of 95 to 15 votes. States that supported Mauritius in the referral to the ICJ  including African states, and other states from the Non-Aligned Movement and the Global South such as India, Brazil, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Uruguay  justified their position in the name of decolonisation, the right to self-determination, sovereignty, and international law. On the other hand, the United States, Israel, France, Australia, and New Zealand sided with the UK in their attempt to stop the case from reaching the ICJ, arguing that the matter is better resolved through bilateral negotiations between the two parties.

The long peregrination of the Chagossians

Lying in the middle of the Indian Ocean, the Chagos Archipelago was part of the British colony of Mauritius and home to about 2,000 people in the early 1960s. While the decolonisation process was under way, the US had set its sights on Diego Garcia, the largest island in the Archipelago. Kennedy administration officials, including Robert McNamara, then pressured the UK to excise the islands from Mauritius, thus creating a new colony to remain under British occupation and host a US military base.

Mauritius became independent in 1968 while Britain kept sovereignty over the Chagos Islands, a fact that Mauritius contends it was coerced to agree to. That same year, the deportation of the Chagossians began. Five decades later, the islands remain a British colony in Africa.





For over three decades, Chagossian activists have petitioned and protested for their right to return home and for reparations. They have sued the UK and US governments, former government officials including Robert McNamara and Donald Rumsfeld, and corporations such as Haliburton. While legal battles in US courts have been less successful, they have won some in British courts which have ruled that the deportation of the Chagossians was illegal and they have a right to return home.

The 9/11 attacks, however, changed the dynamics and raised the stakes for the continued use of the US naval base at Diego Garcia. An executive order from the British government overruled the court decision and in a 2016 report, British authorities maintained their stance against the resettlement of Chagossians on the grounds of feasibility, defence and security interests, and cost to the British taxpayer.

Diego Garcia and the footprint of empire

The US operates one of its most strategic naval bases in Diego Garcia, from which B-52 and stealth bombers have been flown to Iraq and Afghanistan. Additionally, the CIA used the island as a black site in its torture programme. The US government is opposed to any resettlement of any of the Chagos islands, as expressed in a 2006 diplomatic cable in which the American ambassador to Great Britain asserted that security around Diego Garcia would be compromised if populations were allowed to resettle the archipelago. Mauritius, however, has argued that the decolonisation of the islands would not compromise the base at Diego Garcia and that the US would be allowed to maintain its military presence on the island.

Diego Garcia is believed to be one of the largest US military bases in the world, home to an estimated 4,000 US troops.





Colonial apologia in the courtroom

In its submission, Mauritius contends that the Chagos Islands were detached under duress and that UK Prime Minister Harold Wilson had rendered Mauritiuss independence contingent on its agreement to cede the archipelago. On the basis of this, Mauritius argues that the decolonisation process of 1968 was not complete, thus in violation of the right to self-determination.

The UK argued that the Court should decline to respond to the request for an advisory opinion because it is a matter of bilateral dispute settlement and that the Chagos Islands were not detached under duress.

The British submission is, in fact, an exercise in adulation for colonialism. It contends that the right to self-determination was not established in international law until the 1970s. On the issue of the associated right to the territorial integrity of pre-independence territory, it notes that the UK abstained from the vote on UN Resolution 1514, which established the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples and has consistently abstained from or voted against resolutions on its implementation. In this way, the UKs imperial history is leveraged as support for continued colonialism.

Moreover, the UK argued that, in contrast to Mauritiuss position which called for the decolonisation to be completed immediately, timing is a policy consideration, effectively suggesting that should it be found to be a colonial power, it should be allowed to continue to be such until the timing is convenient for it.





Adjacent to colonial territorial designs, the UKs submission also liberally privileges overtures at colonial charity in place of genuine justice. The British government went to great lengths to emphasise its investment in a very significant package to improve the livelihood of Chagossians where they now live. In this narration, the violent colonial displacement of the Chagossians is something to be addressed with the balm on the British conscience of aid, which minimizes the horror of colonialism, reducing it to the palatable.

Decolonisation redux

The fact that the case of the separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius has landed on the docket of the ICJ is a major development in international law, with potentially far-reaching implications, regardless of how the Court rules on the issue. Despite its continued insistence that the ICJ should not hear the case, the UK and its western allies have been unable to keep the case outside of the purview of the ICJ.

At the same time, the issue remains a complex one. While a ruling in favour of Mauritius may be a step towards the demise of British colonialism, some Chagossian activists remain unconvinced that either Mauritius or the UK will guarantee resettlement. Some suggest rather that Mauritius is driven more by the potential revenues that would come from leasing Diego Garcia to the US than by the plight of the Chagossians. In a pointed display of both the hubris of international justice and the continued erasure of the Chagossians, a number of Chagossians who went to the ICJ to follow the case were denied entry to the Court and not allowed to view the proceedings.

Still, this case represents decades of a tireless fight for justice and redress, against colonisation and imperial subjugation, perpetuated to this day by racism and denial of the humanity of a population of the Global South in the name of western security interests. It illustrates the vacuousness of arguments, fashionable in both liberal and right-wing contexts, suggesting that colonialism is a thing of the past and draws into sharp relief the failures involved in addressing colonial history and its enduring present.

Coloniality, in the service of whiteness, inculcated the racism which pervades globally and continues to shape inequitable power arrangements. Indeed, scholars such as Nadine El-Enany and Gurminder Bhambra have pointed to the ways in which Brexit is a reflection of imperial nostalgia. In a visceral, literal sense, the case of the Chagos islands is indicative of the ways in which colonialism persists.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
History will judge Israels apologists the way Theresa May is now judged on apartheid South Africa.

The UK Labour Partys adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliances (IHRA) anti-Semitism code in full, including its list of 11 examples, means it now considers calling Israel racist a potentially racist act.

But the reality is that since the foundation of Israel  beginning with David Ben-Gurions Drive them out! order to the Palmach in the 1948 Nakba  racial oppression of Palestinians has been the norm.

As Palestinian freedom fighter Ahed Tamimi has observed, Israel is afraid of this truth being known. And by adopting the full IHRA definition, Labour is helping to stifle it.

But we shouldnt be surprised: UK politicians have a long and inglorious history of protecting states practising apartheid. Notably, they have never been held to account for their support for white rule in South Africa.

We were reminded of this recently when Prime Minister Theresa May visited Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela and many other anti-apartheid activists were imprisoned for decades.

When asked what she had done to hasten Mandelas release and the end of minority rule in South Africa, she squirmed awkwardly, before claiming what was important is what the United Kingdom did.

What the British government  and Mays Conservative Party  did was not only fail to support Mandela and the African National Congress (ANC) but actively support the apartheid South African regime for years.

Following the 1970 UK election, Conservative Prime Minister Ted Heath pledged to end the arms embargo on South Africa and resume military equipment sales to the apartheid government.

In the 1980s, Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher resisted global pressure to impose sanctions on South Africa and labelled the ANC a terror organisation.





In the same era, an aspiring young politician  future Prime Minister David Cameron  went on an all-expenses-paid trip to South Africa courtesy of an anti-sanctions lobbying firm, while members of the Federation of Conservative Students went as far as wearing Hang Nelson Mandela stickers.

The UK is as deeply complicit in Israels apartheid system as it was in South African apartheid, if not more so.

Adoption of the IHRAs definition of anti-Semitism by the Labour Party  and the Conservative government, nine months ago  is just the tip of the iceberg.

From its historical role in smoothing a course for the ethnic cleansing of Palestine by issuing the Balfour Declaration to its contemporary arms sales to Israel, when it comes to Palestine the UK stays true to its colonial past.

Israel is afforded impunity despite its multiple crimes, such as the killing of over 160 Palestinians in Gaza since the Great March of Return began. The UK seeks to protect Israel from accountability in global forums like the United Nations, for example by refusing to vote for an independent investigation into the killing of 60 Palestinians on May 14 this year, a massacre dubbed the Palestinian Sharpeville after the 1960 murder of 69 black protesters by South African apartheid security forces.

Regardless of Israels long-standing disregard for international law and grave human rights violations, Britain even gifted it a royal stamp of approval in June when Prince William made a symbolic visit to the country, contravening seven decades of British policy against official royal visits to Israel.





History is repeating itself. Just as the UK government shielded South African apartheid in the past, it is giving political, economic and military support to Israeli apartheid today. In 2017 alone, the UK government granted more than 289 million British pounds-worth ($375.3m) of licenses for the export of arms and military technology to Israel.

But in the end, British support didnt protect South African apartheid from the reach of justice and equality. Similarly, the IHRA wont protect Israels ethnocracy.

Palestinians and their allies will continue to name the racial oppression they face under Israel for what it is  a system of apartheid. And history is already beginning to repeat itself in another, more positive, sense.

Just as a powerful global boycott movement helped make South Africa a pariah state  in the process making a vital contribution to ending apartheid  the Palestinian BDS campaign is following in its footsteps.

The BDS movement understands that freedom, justice and equality will not be handed down from above by the very same politicians who have tolerated Israeli apartheid for so long. It can only be won by pushing from the grassroots up.

Thirty years from now, British politicians will be asked what they did to end Israeli apartheid. And though the UKs complicity will no doubt be similarly whitewashed, history will judge Israels apologists the way Theresa May is judged now on South Africa.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
Mekong Delta nations can solve their own problems, controversial leader says while defending Myanmars government.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said countries outside Indochina are too critical of politics in the region and Southeast Asian nations should be left to solve their own problems.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Vietnam, Hun Sen pointed to the international condemnation of his countrys recent election, which was seen by many as a farce after the main opposition party was dissolved.

He also cited the international outcry over the violence against the Rohingya in Myanmar.





Countries which are outside of the region always slap our heads and tell us what to do, Hun Sen said at a panel discussion on Wednesday with Myanmars leader, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and leaders from Vietnam, Laos and Thailand.

I raised this issue, not as a message for any particular country, but I would like to say that these Mekong countries are the political victims, so I request outsiders of the region who dont know about the issues to let us solve our problems.

Hun Sen, 66, has been in power for 33 years. His Cambodian Peoples Party won all 125 parliamentary seats in a July general election that the United Nations and some Western countries called flawed because of the lack of a credible opposition, among other factors.

Last week, Cambodias one-party legislature confirmed him for another five-year term, cementing his status as one of the worlds longest-serving leaders.

The opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) was dissolved late last year ahead of the election.

Defending Myanmar

At the forum, Hun Sen also said Myanmar  whose military has been accused by the United Nations of carrying out mass killings and gang rape against its Rohingya minority with genocidal intent  was misunderstood.

Myanmar has denied allegations of atrocities, saying its military carried out justifiable operations against armed groups.

Its accused of genocide, but do you all understand about Myanmar? Do you know about Myanmar? They have to solve a lot of challenging issues in relation with security, Hun Sen said.

The countries that do not know our countries, please leave us to solve our problems for ourselves.
UN chief appeals to all parties to desist from fighting and protect civilians trapped in rebel-held province.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on parties to the conflict in Syria to protect civilians trapped in the last rebel stronghold of Idlib, saying it must not be transformed into a bloodbath.

Guterres said on Tuesday that preventing a full-scale battle in Syrias northern Idlib province was absolutely essential.

This would unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict.





The UN chief said it was especially important for Syrias two main backers, Iran and Russia, to find a way in which it is possible to isolate terrorist group and  create a situation in which civilians will not be the price paid to solve the problem in Idlib.

The government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and its allies has been preparing a large-scale military onslaught to capture Idlib which hosts some three million people.

Air raids and shelling of southern Idlib and northern Hama provinces escalated over the past week after Moscow and Tehran rejected a Turkish ceasefire proposal at a trilateral summit held in the Iranian capital, Tehran, on September 7.

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The renewed bombing campaign led to the flight of more than 30,000 people from the rebel-held areas since the beginning of this month, according to the United Nations.

In a Tuesday article published in the Wall Street Journal, Turkeys president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, echoed the UNs concerns about a potential humanitarian crisis, adding that an attack on the last rebel-held province would affect Turkey, Europe and beyond.

Erdogan, who met his Russian and Iranian counterparts at the Tehran summit last week, also said Russia and Iran had a responsibility to stop a potential humanitarian disaster in Idlib.
Report alleges countries have intimidated or punished people for cooperating with the UN on human rights.

The United Nations has listed 38 countries which it said had carried out shameful practices including harsh reprisals and intimidation against people cooperating with it on human rights.

The annual report from UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres released on Wednesday detailed allegations of killings, torture and arbitrary arrests.

The report also alleged instances of ill-treatment, detention, surveillance, and public stigmatisation targeting victims and human rights defenders.

The world owes it to those brave people standing up for human rights, who have responded to requests to provide information to and engage with the United Nations, to ensure their right to participate is respected, Guterres wrote.

Punishing individuals for cooperating with the United Nations is a shameful practice that everyone must do more to stamp out.

The 38 countries included 29 countries with new cases, and 19 with ongoing or continuing cases.

The new cases were in Bahrain, Cameroon, China, Colombia, Cuba, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Hungary, India, Israel, Kyrgyzstan, Maldives, Mali, Morocco, Myanmar, Philippines, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, South Sudan, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

 UN report: People across the world continue to face reprisals for cooperating with the UN on #HumanRights. This shameful practice deters others from engaging with the @UN and results in self-censorship in all regions. Learn more: https://t.co/WhkX3Hetvj pic.twitter.com/FFTp6LMQVo  UN Human Rights (@UNHumanRights) September 12, 2018

Tip of the iceberg

The report states there is a disturbing trend in the use of national security arguments and counter-terrorism strategies by States as justification for blocking access by communities and civil society organisations to the United Nations.

Women cooperating with the UN have also reported threats of rape and being subject to online smear campaigns.

UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Andrew Gilmour, who will present the report to the Human Rights Council on September 19, said in a statement that the cases in the report were the tip of the iceberg.

We are also increasingly seeing legal, political and administrative hurdles used to intimidate  and silence  civil society, he said.

Some of the countries listed are current members of the Human Rights Council, which adopted a resolution last year reaffirming that everyone  individually or in association with others  had a right to unhindered communication with the UN.
MEPs vote 448 to 197 to start punitive procedures against Hungary for moves against EUs democratic values.

European Union legislators voted overwhelmingly in favour of launching punitive action against the Hungarian government for flouting democratic rules in a stunning political blow for Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

With 448 votes in favour, 197 against and 48 abstentions, the motion passed in the plenary session on Wednesday, the first time ever the European legislature triggered an Article 7 procedure against an EU member state.

The unprecedented vote could allow Hungarys EU voting rights to be stripped.

Dutch Greens MEP Judith Sargentini, who spearheaded the vote, smiled broadly and breathed a sigh of relief before embracing her supporters in parliament in the French city of Strasbourg.

It is a positive sign of this parliament taking responsibility and wanting action, Sargentini told a press conference afterward.

She had urged colleagues not to let Hungary off the hook, declaring that Orbans rule violates the values on which this union was built.

EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said before the vote that the commission will resist all attacks on the rule of law in an annual state-of-the-union speech in the European Parliament.

Juncker went on to say the commission, which proposes EU legislation and oversees implementation of decisions, continues to be very concerned by the developments in some EU member states and promised to employ the rule-of-law procedure against any governments that veer from the EUs democratic principles.

EU blackmail

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wasted little time in slamming the vote as nothing less than the petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians.

This decision condemning Hungary and the Hungarian people was made because we Hungarians have demonstrated that migration in not a necessary process and that migration can be stopped, Szijjarto told reporters in Budapest.





Since sweeping to power in 2010, Orban has pressured courts, media, and non-governmental groups, as well as refusing to take in asylum seekers arriving in Europe.

Though the EU has often protested, it largely failed to stop what his critics decry as Orbans growing authoritarianism.

But a surge in support for nationalist and populist politicians across the bloc galvanised a stronger reaction. Speaking in front of the assembly on Tuesday, Orban said he would not bow to the EUs blackmail and stick to his policies.

Refugee stance

The vote was hailed as historic by Berber Biala-Hettinga, Amnesty Internationals expert on human rights in the EU.

The European Parliament rightly stood up for the Hungarian people and for the EU. They made it clear that human rights, the rule of law and democratic values are not up for negotiation, she said.

In June, Hungarys parliament overwhelmingly passed a law imposing jail terms for anybody seen to be aiding undocumented immigrants.

The law targets rights groups and NGOs and allows banning of organisations.

In addition to the bill, the parliament also passed a constitutional amendment stating an alien population cannot be settled in Hungary.

Szijjarto said Hungary was considering legal options to appeal the result because of the way the vote was tallied.

He also claimed the vote involved massive fraud since abstentions werent counted into the final tally, which made it easier to reach the needed two-thirds majority.





Afraid of foreigners

Uli Brueckner, a professor of European studies at Stanford University in Berlin, told Al Jazeera the vote was made because of Hungarys misfunctioning democracy.

In a populous agenda, it is always useful to play the blame-game, and the blame-game here is we are afraid of foreigners. It is always useful to play a blame-game. It instrumentalises peoples fears, Brueckner said of the governments policies.

Aside from its anti-immigrant stance, Orbans government is also accused of silencing independent media and academia, removing independent judges, cracking down on organisations helping homeless people, migrants or disadvantaged groups, such as Roma, and condoning government corruption.

The vote means the other EU states must now look at what to do with Hungary.

The most severe punishment under the Article 7 procedure is stripping Hungary of its voting rights in the EU. However, that move is highly unlikely as the rest of the EU needs unanimity.

Polands nationalist and anti-immigration government  against which the EU Commission has slowly enacted Article 7 procedures over the last two years over concerns about the independence of its judiciary  is expected to block any tough action against Orban.

Poland is very worried by the decision taken by parliament today, Joanna Kopcinska, spokeswoman for Polands ruling Law and Justice party, told AFP news agency.

Kopcinska said the vote threatens the EUs unity. It is necessary to resolve such disputes through dialogue and not diktat, she said.
Rights group says all aspects of American life are compromised due to lack of proper gun regulation.

Gun violence in the United States has become a human rights crisis, Amnesty International said in a new report that points the finger at the US government.

The sheer volume of people killed or injured each year in the USA by gun violence is staggering, said the report, released on Wednesday. Our government has allowed gun violence to become a human rights crisis.

According to the international human rights organisation, an average of 106 individuals died a day from firearm-related incidents in 2016.

Of the 38,658 firearm-related deaths that year, nearly 23,000 were suicides and more than 14,400 were homicides, Amnesty said. There were another 1,305 deaths that were unintentional, undetermined or from legal interventions.

The report noted that more than 116,000 people suffered from non-fatal firearm injuries.

For many gunshot survivors, the mental, physical, emotional, familial and financial consequences of their injuries shape their lives irrevocably, the report said, adding that the toll gun violence has is a public health crisis of astonishing proportion  with remarkably little government response.

Calls for stricter gun control were again amplified this year after mass shootings in Maryland, Texas and Florida, among other places.

Seventeen people  the majority of whom were students  were killed when 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida in February.

Ten people were killed just three months later when a teenager opened fire at Santa Fe High School outside Houston, Texas.

Since the shootings, students have held marches and rallies throughout the US to call for stricter gun control.

In 2016, more than 1,600 children died from firearm-related violence, according to Amnesty [Nacho Doce/Reuters]

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Last year, the US witnessed the deadliest mass shooting in the countrys modern history after 58 people were killed at a music concert in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Although the report noted the profound emotional and psychological effect on survivors, families and communities public mass shootings have, it said they accounted for less than one percent of the gun deaths in the US.

Disproportionately affects communities of colour

Amnestys report instead focused much of its attention on other types of violence, including urban gun violence and domestic violence, as well as how gun violence affects children.

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The report noted that gun violence disproportionately affects urban communities of colour, particularly young black men.

According to Amnesty, black men aged 15-34 were almost 20 times more likely to die from firearm homicide than a white male in the same age group.

The causes of gun violence in communities of colour are multi-faceted and there are deep-seated issues around poverty, discrimination and economic, social and cultural rights, Amnesty said, noting such issues were beyond the scope of the report.

The report told the story of a Shirley Chambers, who lost all four of her children to gun violence in separate incidents in Chicago.

Background checks

The report made several key recommendations to address gun violence and protect human rights.

Despite the huge number of guns in circulation and the sheer numbers of people killed by guns each year, there is a shocking lack of federal regulations that could save thousands, Margaret Huang, executive director of Amnesty International USA, said in a statement.

According to Amnesty, although more than 100 pieces of legislation relating to gun violence have been introduced since a shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School left 26 people, including 20 school children, dead in 2012, no meaningful federal law regulating firearms has been passed.

It noted that some laws have been passed at the state level, however, including the banning of bump stocks  a modification that increases the rate of fire for semi-automatic rifles  in eight states and laws aimed at improving background checks. The Department of Justice has also submitted a regulation that would ban bump stocks nation-wide.

Among its recommendations, Amnesty called on the federal government to pass legislation requiring background checks on all firearm purchases and transfers, ensuring records are reported accurately and setting a number of minimum conditions that should be met before one is allowed to buy a firearm.

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In the wake of the Parkland, Florida shooting this year, President Donald Trump urged politicians to defy the National Rifle Association, the largest gun-lobby group in the US, suggesting he would back raising the minimum age to buy certain guns and enacting laws for more expansive background checks. But the president, who received more than $30m from the gun lobby group during his 2016 presidential campaign, spoke at the NRAs annual convention just two months later, saying Second Amendment rights are under siege, but they will never, ever be under siege as long as Im your president.

Last month, a US federal judge extended a ban on the online distribution of 3D-printed gun blueprints, blocking a settlement between the Trump administration and Defense Distributed, a group that argues access to online blueprints is guaranteed under the US Constitution.

Amnestys report also comes as the US Senate Judiciary Committee is set to vote on the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh, who has been endorsed by the NRA and who gun control advocates fear could tip the balance in favour of gun owners and manufacturers.
Hurricane Florence threatens millions on US East Coast

Around 5.4 million people were issued storm warnings on the US East coast as Hurricane Florence builds in the Atlantic.
The decision to question Franco Mulakkal came following days of protests in Kerala by womens groups.

Police in the southern Indian state of Kerala have summoned a bishop accused of raping a Catholic nun for questioning, following days of protests by a collective of nuns, womens groups and activists.

The Indian media on Wednesday reported that Franco Mulakkal, head of the Jalandhar diocese in northern Punjab state, has finally been summoned and is likely to be questioned on September 19.

The decision to question Mulakkal came on the fifth day of a sit-in protest in Kerala, demanding action against the bishop accused of sexually assaulting the 46-year-old Catholic nun from the Catholic congregation Missionaries of Jesus.

The nun has alleged that Mulakkal raped her repeatedly between 2014-2016 at a convent in Kerala.

Arrest this man who is a culprit, thats the demand of the nun who was raped. She has given a statement to the police saying she was raped, why is the government hesitating to arrest this rapist? Felix J Pulludan, secretary at the Joint Christian Council, told Al Jazeera.

Arrest this man who is a culprit, that's the demand of the nun who was raped ... Why is the government hesitating to arrest this rapist? Felix J Pulludan, secretary at the Joint Christian Council

Four nuns are sitting in protest near the High Court in Kochi against injustice done to the sister. Our protests will grow stronger in the coming days. The government must act now, Pulludan, protest organiser of Save our Sisters, said from the protest site in front of the High Court in Kochi, Keralas largest city.

Its the latest scandal in the Catholic churchs continuing sexual abuse crisis globally.

The accused denies all allegations against him and said the nun, who had worked with him earlier, was trying to blackmail him after he took disciplinary action against her.

On Tuesday, the nun wrote to the Vaticans envoy to India, Reverend Giambattista Diquattro, alleging the accused Bishop and his close associates are using the wealth of the diocese to divert the probe.

Vatican embassy declines to comment

The Vatican embassy in New Delhi refused to answer queries relating to the case.

The Roman Catholic religious order, the Missionaries of Jesus, said in a statement on Monday that the protesting nuns were trying to crucify an innocent man.

We condemn the act by the sisters of our congregation who are protesting outside the High Court. As far as our congregation is concerned, we are ashamed and saddened by this protest, read the press release put out by the Missionaries of Jesus.

The nun lodged a police complaint on June 27 but the police have yet to arrest the accused priest. A local court will hear the case on Thursday in Kochi.

Protest organisers say they are up against the might and clout of the church, but they will not back down in the face of intimidation.

Inspector General of Police in Kerala state Dinendra Kashyap told Al Jazeera the probe is ongoing, but refused to divulge details.

No doubt he is using the clout of the Roman Catholic Church. The accused is using money and muscle power to influence the probe, Pulludan, the protest organiser, said.

Indian broadcaster NDTV quoted the brother of the nun as saying he was offered a bribe to withdraw the complaint.

Focus on abuse by the clergy

On Sunday, an elected member of the Kerala state assembly, PC George, described the victim as a prostitute, drawing condemnation from womens groups and members of civil society.

This is a woman making the charge of rape against a powerful man. This is an issue that the Church has to take notice of John Dayal, activist

The case in Kerala brings back focus on abuse by the clergy amid calls in the US for Pope Francis to stand down for allegedly covering up for a former US cardinal who was accused of sexually molesting children and adults.

In India, the allegations have shaken up the Christian community, who form 2.3 percent of Indias 1.3 billion population, although this is not the first case of reported sexual abuse.

Earlier this year in June, a 34-year-old woman in Kerala said she was raped by several priests after confessing that she was sexually abused at 16. Three priests allegedly blackmailed her into performing sexual acts in exchange for telling no one about the abuse she had suffered.

There is no available data to document the extent of sexual abuse within the church in India.

This is a woman making the charge of rape against a powerful man. This is an issue that the church has to take notice of, rights activist and former President of the All Indian Catholic Union, John Dayal, told Al Jazeera.

The canon law must include a provision that if there is an allegation of sexual abuse, a bishop has to step down or be suspended after a preliminary inquiry till such time as a complete probe has established his innocence or guilt.

The church has to be united and not a divided house when it comes to allegations like these, he added.
Of the 2,300 establishments in Aklans Boracay Island, only 180 of which or 7.8 percent have fulfilled the requisites of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Undersecretary for Policy, Planning and International Affairs Jonas Leones said based on latest figures, only 180 establishments have complied with the directives. DENR earlier promised to the Senate that 30 percent of the 2,300 commercial establishments in the island would be ready to operate and welcome tourists on Oct. 26. But barely a month before the islands reopening, only 7.8 percent of the businesses have complied. We will be discussing with the Department of Tourism and Department of the Interior and Local Government to finalize the list, Leones said. The department is now validating and processing the compliance requirements of the other 2,120 business establishments. We still have to validate their documents. The 180 establishments have [already] undergone the process, he said. Leones said he hopes to complete the evaluation of the applications of the over 2,000 businesses before the scheduled Oct. 15 dry run. DENR has put up a one-stop shop to assist business operators to comply with all the necessary requirements. Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu, however, said business owners would still need the approval of the Department of Tourism for accreditation. In April, President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the closure of the Boracay Island to address its environmental woes for the next six months. Meanwhile, President Dutertes Cabinet has adopted several recommendations for the capacity assessment of Boracay in time for the islands reopening on October, Malacanang said Wednesday. Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque said the interagency looking at the carrying capacity assessment of Boracay said on Tuesday evening that there is an excess in hotels and available rooms, solid waste generated, and existing non-tourist population in the island. There is, however, sufficient water supply and insufficient wastewater treatment facilities, said Roque. He added that the following are some of the recommendations which were adopted: 1) maintain the tourism carrying capacity of 19,215 persons per day, including 6,405 tourist arrivals per day; 2) evaluate the feasibility of utilizing the extra available rooms; 3) promote wetlands utilization for filtering out waste from both soil and water through plant uptake; 4) maximize open spaces for vegetation and minimize point source pollution; 5) use the Information, Education, and Communications approach especially on both solid waste and liquid waste management and 6) minimize coastal erosion and establish permanent monitoring facilities in designated areas. So, the most important is that they assess, that the carrying capacity for Boracay is 19,215 persons per day, including 6,405 tourist arrivals per day, said Roque. Weeks before its official reopening to the public, the municipal council of Malay in Aklan province passed an ordinance banning the single-use plastics in the entire town. Municipal Ordinance No. 386, authored by Councilor Nenette Aguirre-Graf, prohibits the use of disposable plastic items commonly used by hotels, resorts, and restaurants.Prohibited single-use plastics included non-reusable bottles, cups, bags, Styrofoam packs, shampoo sachets, disposable toothbrush, combs, and plastic utensils. The use of non-plastic dispensers such as shampoo, conditioner, and liquid body soap is also discouraged as these items were the cause for clogged drainage systems and polluted waters. Boracay Island will reopen on October 26 as targeted by the Department of the Interior and Local Government Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III. As this developed, Senator Cynthia Villar has expressed doubts that the DENR 30 percent compliant establishments during the reopening of Boracay after it said that only 180 out of the the 2,300 establishments in the islands have complied with the requirements. During the deliberations of the 2019 proposed budget of the DENR amounting to P24.17 billion, Villar asked Secretary Cimatu of the agency was capable of meeting its projection with only 44 days before Boracay resumes its operation. This 180 is only 7.8 percent of 2,300. You earlier told us that 30 percent of the establishments will be compliant with the requirements. We even found that small and now, youre telling us that today, there are only 180 (establishments) compliant, Villar said. Cimatu said that the 180 establishments have fully complied with the required waste water sewage system as they already have their own treatment plan, drainage system and solid waste management. He said they had also secured their own permits and accreditation for tourism purposes. But after complying with their requirements, he said the business owner still has to go to the DOT for accreditation. He said the DENR has set up a one-stop shop to help the establishments comply with the requirements. Usec Leones, however, clarified that some 2,000 establishments have already submitted their compliance requirements but these are now in the process of evaluation. He said they still have to validate their documents. The 180 are establishments which have undergone the process. He hopes to finish the evaluation of 2,000 applications before the planned dry run on October 15. Based on latest figures, there are 180 compliant establishments but these include only compliance on environment and land requirement. We will be discussing with the DOT (Department of Tourism) and Department of Interior and Local Government) to finalize the list, he said. In an interview after the hearing, Villar also said she doubts if the DENR can meet its projection. She expects it to be only 15 percent or half of its projecrion to meet the requirements. Asked if Boracay is ready for the opening, including the quality of its water, she said this can be tested during the dry run. Of course, the water is already clean because it was close to the public, no people around, she said.
Residents of the occupied West Bank fear increasing violence by settlers, as a result of Israels relaxed gun laws.

West Bank, Palestine  Mahmoud Ahmad Zaal Odeh was shot and killed by an Israeli settler while tending to his 30 dunums (7.5 acres) of farmland in Ras al-Nakleh, next to his home village of Qusra, south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank.

Zaal Odeh was 46-years-old at the time of his death in November last year, and he left behind not only his wife but also seven children  four girls and three boys.

If I was there I would have eaten him with my bare teeth, Manal Shekadeh Abdel Raziq, Zaal Odehs widow told Al Jazeera.

He was murdered on his land, she continued.

The settler came and he was teasing my husband and breaking our vines.

I think my husband was trying to reach something on the ground to hit him with and [the settler] shot him point blank, in his shoulder, and through his back.

Ahmed holds photos of his father Mahmoud who was shot and killed by an Israeli settler last November [Tessa Fox/Al Jazeera]

With the recent weakening of gun laws in Israel, many Palestinians fear that stories such as Mahmouds will become more common, both in the West Bank and in Israel proper.

On August 20, Israels Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan announced that more than half a million Israeli citizens will now be able to own guns without the need for regular training or special permits.

Erdan cited the need for civilians to respond to terror attacks as the reason behind the change.

Qualified citizens carrying firearms in public contribute to the sense of security, are an important line of defence from lone-wolf attacks and thus strengthen public security, Erdan said in a statement.

According to statistics by rights group BTselem, 29 Palestinians were killed by Israeli civilians across Israel and the West Bank in the last 10 years, while 84 Israeli civilians were killed by Palestinians.

The majority of these deaths on either side were from live ammunition.

The Yesha Council  the umbrella organisation for all settlement municipal councils  was contacted to comment on the change in Israels gun laws but refused to speak to Al Jazeera.

Under earlier laws, in order to get a gun Israelis had to prove they needed one, for example, because they lived in an area considered dangerous  illegal settlements in the West Bank are defined as such.

According to the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) National Bureau for Defending Land in Nablus, there are currently 145,000 Israelis in the West Bank who hold permits to carry guns.

With the weakening of the law, it is estimated 200,000 more settlers will now carry arms.

The new laws allow any veteran of the IDF infantry to obtain gun permits as well as police officers.

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Given the mandatory conscription in Israel from the age of 18, these laws could eventually apply to the majority of the population.

On top of this, army personnel ranked first lieutenant or higher and non-commissioned officers ranked first sergeant or higher, will be allowed to keep their guns after service, no longer having to return them.

Fighting terrorism

As a member of the Knesset (MK) for the Joint Arab List, Haneen Zoabi believes the change to Israels gun law is just the latest in a series of measures against Palestinians.

While they have passed their nation-state law, it feels they can do anything without any consideration regarding democratic values [and] regarding equality between the citizens, MK Zoabi told Al Jazeera.

In Israel, its so easy to insist the Palestinian citizen is a terrorist, Zoabi said, referring to the stated reasons behind the new law.

In the context of hatred and demonisation of Palestinians. They say, Ok, I know you dont like the Palestinians so I legalise guns and permit you to have a gun, she said.

While the law will affect numbers inside Israel more greatly, the existing situation in the West Bank can be seen as an example of what is to come, now that all areas of Israel are deemed dangerous.

The political message of this procedure will have psychological and even practical implications, Zoabi explained.

[Israelis] will feel more confident to shoot a Palestinian  and raise the potential to kill.

Zoabi said the weakening of the law would also affect the court system, which already systematically discriminates against Palestinians.

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When you are in front of a judge, where an [Israeli] is shooting a Palestinian, after this [law], the judgement will differ very much, its now more legal to shoot them, Zoabi said.

Now Palestinians are defined legally as terrorists, and the one who has a gun is defined legally as one who has permission to kill.

Abdel Raziq of Qusras experience resonates with this.

As the court case for her husbands death continues even 10 months later, she said the Israeli court is placing the blame on her husband and not the settler, even though the Israeli entered private property.

The court is saying it was self-defence for the settler, Abdel Raziq said.

The family is still waiting on the autopsy report to be released though, according to Abdel Raziq, the Israeli police are withholding the documents.

I feel very oppressed, they walk their own law. I dont think anything in our favour is going to happen with the court.

Israelis already have an army

While the number of civilian deaths is higher on the Israeli side than the Palestinian, MK Zoabi argues there is no comparison to make.

The settlers in the West Bank dont need to shoot the Palestinians, there is an army that does that; they already have someone to do this dirty business for them, she said.

The settlers are attacking and violating Palestinian ownership, they always have the Israeli army to defend the settlers. Its an extra, its for fun and ideology, not for danger.

Zoabi refers back to Israeli settlers violation of international law by residing in occupied territory.

The settlers must not be there, they are endangering themselves.

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No one has the right to come and take [Palestinian] lands, uproot their trees and say dont attack me, I have the right to be protected. No, theyre settlers, according to international law you dont have the right to be protected.

But BTselem spokesperson Amit Gilutz points out that even civilians settling in occupied territory should not be the targets of attacks.

One of international laws main axis is the distinction between combatants and civilians, Gilutz said.

Thus living in an occupied area, which in itself constitutes a violation of international law, does not make you a legitimate target if you are a civilian.

He went on to state that even if Palestinians carry out attacks on Israeli civilians first, the extrajudicial killing of Palestinians by Israelis is often unwarranted.

Lethal force may only be used when facing imminent danger to you or to other people and when there is no other option, Gilutz said.

Israeli security forces have been documented many times using lethal force with no justification, including against Palestinians who have carried out or attempted to carry an attack against them.

Even with the new laws, Abdel Raziq said she and her community do not feel any greater fear.

We dont fear death. People die all the time. The community doesnt care. Either way, Im not leaving my land.
Nawaz Sharif, daughter, and son-in-law, temporarily released on parole to attend the funeral of Kulsoom Nawaz.

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been temporarily released from prison to attend the funeral of his wife Kulsoom Nawaz, who passed away on Tuesday, state media reported.

Sharif, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Muhammad Safdar were released on parole from a prison in the northern city of Rawalpindi, where they are serving 10 and seven-year prison terms respectively for corruption, late on Tuesday.

They have travelled to the eastern city of Lahore, where they will remain under police guard until their return to prison in the coming days.

Former first lady Kulsoom Nawaz died in London on Tuesday after suffering from a prolonged illness. She was 68.

Nawazs funeral prayers will be offered at a London mosque, the party said, after which her body will be transported to Lahore for burial on Friday.





Three-time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam were convicted in July by an anti-corruption court for not being able to prove the source of funds used to purchase a set of upmarket London apartments during Sharifs previous terms in power.

Sharif was also handed a $10.5m fine, while Maryam  who had become the face of the party since her fathers overthrow as prime minister last year  was given a $2.6m fine.

Maryam Nawazs husband, Muhammad Safdar, was also sentenced to a year in prison on related charges.

The Sharifs deny all allegations of wrongdoing and submitted themselves for arrest ahead of the countrys July general elections.

Imran Khans Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), a bitter rival to the Sharifs PML-N party, won that election, defeating the former ruling party.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Khan offered condolences on the passing of the PML-N stalwart, calling her a brave woman.

On social media, politicians from both sides of the aisle offered their condolences, with opposition leaders criticising the PTI government for not allowing the former prime minister more time with his family.

Under Pakistani law, prisoners may be released to attend funerals of close family members, although the law says that the duration may not ordinarily exceed twelve hours.
Prosecutors say Rafik Hariri was killed by Hezbollah in 2005 because he opposed Syrias control over Lebanon.

Lebanons prime minister has demanded justice at the trial of four members of Hezbollah who are suspected of planning and executing the assassination of his father, Rafik Hariri.

Prosecutors say Hariri, a billionaire and former prime minister, was targeted by the armed group in 2005 because he opposed Syrias control over Lebanon.

He was killed along with 21 others on February 14, 2005, when a massive truck bomb hit his convoy in the capital Beirut.

More than 200 people were wounded in the explosion.

Speaking outside the Special Tribunal for Lebanon at The Hague on Tuesday, Hariris son, designate Prime Minister Saad Hariri said while he had no doubt that Syria had a huge problem with his father, he would deal with this issue as a responsible official to maintain his countrys fragile political balance.

From the start, we demanded justice because we believe that justice and the truth protect Lebanon, Hariri told reporters after the first day the closing arguments at the trial.

This is what we always wanted and we never resorted to revenge.

Play with fire

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has refused to hand over the four suspects and has warned the tribunal against play[ing] with fire.

Meanwhile, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has called the trial a tool to pressure Hezbollah.

Syrian security forces and intelligence agents maintained a physical presence in Lebanon for nearly 30 years before Damascus finally withdrew its troops in 2005.





During his second term as prime minister, from 2000-2004, Rafik Hariri allegedly made it clear to Syria that he wanted Lebanon to manage its own affairs.

The tribunal means nothing to us at all and its rulings are of no value, Nasrallah said in an August 27 address.

To those betting on the tribunal creating a new situation that can be capitalised on  I say, Do not play with fire.'

The armed group has refused to turn over the four indicted men  Salim Ayyash, Hussein Oneissi, Assad Sabra and Hassan Habib Merhi  for the trial which began in January 2014.

Ayyash is accused of leading the team that carried out the attack, while Oneissi, Sabra and Merhi are accused of general involvement in the plot.

The alleged mastermind, Mustafa Badreddine, was indicted by the court but is now believed to have died while leading forces fighting with the Syrian government against the opposition.

Darkness and horror

Prosecuting counsel Nigel Povoas has said the huge scale of the attack undoubtedly had a political purpose linked to Hariris opposition to Damascuss long involvement in his country.

The scene was plunged into darkness and horror, cars were eviscerated, incinerated and on fire, people were on fire. Lebanon itself was plunged into darkness and horror, that was exactly what was intended by the attack, he told the court.

Hariri was perceived by those who supported Syrian control as a severe threat to their interests and security, a proxy of the West, he told the court. This is the reason, the non-personal motive, behind the crime.

Al Jazeeras Zeina Khodr, reporting from The Hague, said the courts credibility was at question with the type of evidence it was presenting.

The suspects remain at large. They are being tried in absentia and they are unlikely to appear in court.

The closing arguments from the prosecution claim this was a skilful and sophisticated attack. Theyre also arguing that this attack was politically motivated  but the evidence theyre presenting is circumstantial, its not direct.

But the prosecution says it is compelling.

Prosecutors say their case  which relies on mobile phone records allegedly showing the suspects conducting intense surveillance of Hariri from just after his resignation until minutes before the blast.

The verdict in the trial is expected to be announced early next year.
New bill imposes tougher penalties on various types of sexual violence and harassment, but critics say it falls short.

A new law in Morocco criminalising violence against women goes into effect on Wednesday, in what critics say is merely a first step in the right direction.

Approved by parliament on February 14, the bill imposes tougher penalties on perpetrators of various types of violence committed both in the private and public spheres, including rape, sexual harassment and domestic abuse.

Locally known as the Hakkaoui law after family affairs and womens issues minister Bassima Hakkaoui, the legislation also declares the definition of sexual harassment, including unsolicited acts, statements or signals of a sexual nature, delivered in person, online or via telephone.

Along with harassment, there are also measures stipulating punishment for people who try to force someone into a marriage using violence or the threat of violence.

Those found guilty of violating the law face prison terms ranging from one month to five years and fines from $200 to $1,000.

While welcoming the law, critics say it stops short of addressing the full repertoire of crimes.

More specifically, the legislation does not explicitly outlaw marital rape or spousal violence and does not provide a precise definition of domestic violence, leaving women vulnerable.

The law also fails in providing financial assistance for survivors and does not define the governments role in providing support and services to victims, Human Rights Watch said in a press release.

Gender violence

Violence against Moroccan women remains widespread and a largely taboo subject in the country, according to research data.

In 2009, a national survey reported that 62.8 percent of women had experienced physical, psychological, sexual or economic abuse.

Of the sample interviewed, 55 percent reported conjugal violence and 13.5 percent reported familial violence.

It also became a hot issue last August after a video was posted on the internet showing a young woman on a bus being sexually molested by a group of boys while the driver and passengers ignored her appeals for help.

This sent shockwaves throughout the country and intensified calls for more to be done in the kingdom.

According to AFP news agency, about 1,600 cases of rape were heard by Moroccan courts last year, twice as many as previous years.
Palestinian leadership weighs retaliatory moves against US decision to close down PLO office in Washington, DC.

Palestinians leaders are weighing retaliatory measures against the United Statess decision to shut down the Palestine Liberation Organizations (PLO) diplomatic office in Washington, DC, including ending security cooperation.

Its among possible steps we are thinking about, Hanan Ashrawi, a member of the PLOs executive committee, told reporters in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah on Wednesday.





We are thinking of many things that can be done.

Trumps administration announced on Monday it will close the PLO office over the Palestinian Authoritys refusal to enter into US-brokered negotiations with Israel.

The move is the latest in a series of US measures against the Palestinian leadership, which comes amid deteriorating ties between the two sides in the wake of US President Donald Trumps controversial recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital last year.

Palestinian leaders, who see East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state, said the US had taken itself off the table as a peace mediator.

Washington has given the Palestinian Authoritys security forces some $61m in aid this year, according to the US embassy in Israel.

US-based news site Axios reported a Palestinian security and intelligence delegation was in Washington, DC, earlier this month for talks with the CIA.

Racist Israeli government

In recent weeks Trump has slashed more than $500m in aid for Palestinians to push them to the negotiating table. He is expected to unveil details of what he has long referred to as the deal of the century to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

According to news reports, the deal prohibits the return of more than five million Palestinian refugees and removes the status of Jerusalem from negotiations.





Palestinian leaders say Trumps White House is blatantly biased in favour of Israel and is seeking to blackmail them into accepting its terms.

This American administration has adopted wholesale all the positions of the most extreme, right-wing, hardline, racist Israeli government in the history of Israel, Ashrawi said.

She said the Palestinian leadership would discuss possible responses after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas attends the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York City scheduled later this month.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday welcomed the US decision to shut the Palestinian mission.

The US made the correct decision when it decided to close the PLO offices in Washington, he told members of his cabinet.

The [Palestinians] refusal to enter into negotiations with Israel and the unbridled attacks against Israel will not only not advance peace but will certainly not make things better for the Palestinians.
Palestinian envoy to Washington says US has given his staffers a month to shut PLO office.

The Palestinian envoy to Washington says his staffers have been given a month to pack up after the Trump administration ordered the Palestine Liberation Organization mission closed.

Husam Zomlot told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the closure would not deter Palestinians from seeking a state with East Jerusalem as the capital.

US National Security Adviser John Bolton said Monday that the mission was being shut because the PLO, in his words, had not taken steps towards negotiations with Israel.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas halted ties with the Trump administration in December after the US recognised contested Jerusalem as Israels capital.

Zomlot was called home by Abbas in the spring as part of the crisis.

Zomlot says we lost the US administration but we gained our national rights.

In a statement on Monday, the US State Department said the PLO office has not taken steps to advance the start of direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel.

We have permitted the PLO office to conduct operations that support the objective of achieving a lasting, comprehensive peace between Israelis and the Palestinians since the expiration of a previous waiver in November 2017, the statement said.

It added the PLO leadership has condemned a US peace plan they have not yet seen and refused to engage with the US government with respect to peace efforts and otherwise.

In response, the Palestinian Authority (PA) said the move would allow Israel to continue their policies against the Palestinian people and land.

It is a declaration of war on efforts to bring peace to our country and the region, PA spokesman Yousef al-Mahmoud was quoted as saying by Wafa news agency.

PLO Secretary-General Saeb Erekat said in a statement the decision was yet another affirmation of the Trump administrations policy to collectively punish the Palestinian people, including by cutting financial support for humanitarian services including health and education.
Palestinians hold sit-in over plan to demolish Khan al-Ahmar

Protest comes as European countries made plea to Israel, asking it to not destroy the occupied West Bank village.
No public gatherings allowed as part of an emergency response to the outbreak that has killed 21 people so far.

Authorities in Zimbabwes capital, Harare, banned public gatherings as part of efforts to contain a cholera outbreak that has killed 21 people over the past week.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Zimbabwe Republic Police spokeswoman Charity Charamba asked residents to take heed of the ruling, which came after health officials identified more than 3,000 suspected cases of the waterborne disease.

The government has declared the cholera outbreak in Harare a state of emergency, meaning that it is also a threat to human security, Charamba said.

Outbreaks of cholera occur regularly in Zimbabwe because of dilapidated water and sanitation facilities. Informal housing areas without running water have mushroomed and basic infrastructure has collapsed after years of neglect.

Examination of water samples from some wells and boreholes in Harare, home to swaths of slum-like housing, tested positive for contamination with the disease.

On Tuesday, Health Minister Obadiah Moyo declared a state of emergency in the city. The number of cases are growing by the day, he said, adding the outbreak was caused by blocked sewers.

Preventable disease

Cholera, which can kill within hours if untreated, is caused by the consumption of food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae.

According to the World Health Organization, it is easily treatable and even preventable if there is universal access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation.

More than 4,000 people were killed by the disease during an outbreak in Zimbabwe a decade ago.

Newly installed President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who has pledged to revive Zimbabwes ailing economy and improve public services, said officials were working to contain and overcome the most recent outbreak.

I urge all residents of affected areas to exercise extra care with their hygiene & follow the instructions of the authorities, Mnangagwa said in a Twitter post on Wednesday.

I urge all residents of affected areas to exercise extra care with their hygiene & follow the instructions of the authorities as we seek to contain & overcome this outbreak. We are working tirelessly to control the situation and hope to communicate progress in due course (2/2)  President of Zimbabwe (@edmnangagwa) September 12, 2018

No lessons learned

Under former leader Robert Mugabe, who was in power from Zimbabwes independence in 1980 until being removed from office by the military late last year, corruption and economic mismanagement were endemic.

The United Nations Human Development Index  which measures health, education and economic performance  ranks Zimbabwe 154 out of 188 countries.

Amnesty International said the countrys most recent outbreak of cholera was a consequence of its failure to invest in and manage both its basic water and sanitation infrastructure and its healthcare system.

It is appalling that in 2018 people are still dying of such a preventable disease, Jessia Pwiti, Amnestys executive director for Zimbabwe, said in a statement on Wednesday.

No lessons were learned from the 2008 epidemic and the outbreak and deaths were seeing now is symptomatic of a still broken-down sanitation infrastructure and poor sewer management, worsened by a shortage of drugs and medical supplies, she added.

Last month, 47 African countries committed to ending cholera outbreaks by 2030 at a WHO Regional Committee for Africa summit in Senegals capital, Dakar.

Cholera is a symbol of inequity. Its an ancient disease, which has been eliminated in many parts of the world. Every death from cholera is preventable, Matshidiso Moeti, WHO director for Africa, said.

In 2017, more than 150,000 cholera cases were reported in 17 countries throughout Africa, according to the WHO.
Russian president says Moscow knows identity of the two men accused by UK of attempting to murder former double agent.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that the two men accused by the United Kingdom of attempting to murder a former Russian double agent and his daughter are not criminals and have been identified as civilians.

British prosecutors charged two Russian nationals, identified as Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, last week for allegedly poisoning former spy Sergey Skripal and his daughter Yulia with a military-grade nerve agent in the city of Salisbury in March.

Putin, speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum in the Russian port city of Vladivostok, said that Russia had found the two men, that there was nothing criminal about them and that he hoped they would come forward and tell the world their own story.

We, of course, checked who these people are. We know who they are, we found them I hope they will come out themselves and speak about themselves. It will be better for everyone, he told reporters on the sidelines of the economic summit.

There is nothing special there, nothing criminal, I assure you. Well see in the near future, he added.

Putin urged the two men to speak to the journalists.

I would like to appeal to them so that they hear us today.

Diplomatic crisis

On March 4, Skripal and his daughter were found slumped unconscious on a bench in Salisbury after being exposed to the nerve agent Novichok. They spent weeks in hospital before being discharged.

The failed attack triggered a major diplomatic crisis between the UK and Russia, with the British government alleging Moscow was responsible for their attempted murder. Russia has repeatedly denied any involvement.





British prosecutors issued European arrest warrants last week for Petrov and Boshirov, charging them with conspiracy to murder.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May said the two suspects were Russian military intelligence officers almost certainly acting on orders from high up in the Russian state.

In response to the charges last week, the Russian foreign ministry said that the names and the photographs of the accused mean nothing to us.

Al Jazeeras Rory Challands, reporting from Vladivostok, said Putins remarks contradict the earlier claims made by the Russian foreign ministry.

Thats a change in the script there, he said.

British police said the suspects, both about 40 years old, flew from Moscow to London on Russian passports two days before the Skripals were poisoned.

UK prosecutors said they had sufficient evidence to charge the pair, but did not formally demand their extradition, as Russia does not extradite its citizens.

If we do actually see these two men in front of TV cameras or sitting down with journalists, being quizzed on what this was all about, it would be interesting to see what their explanation is, Challands added.
Voting 23-1, the House of Representatives justice committee on Tuesday dismissed the consolidated impeachment complaint filed against seven justices of the Supreme Court, declaring the allegations insufficient in substance. The committee, led by Oriental Mindoro Rep. Salvador Leachon, decided to strike down the complaint filed by opposition lawmakers led by Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman on the motion of Siquijor Rep. Ramon Rocamora. The 23 committee members who voted against the motion said the complaint should be dismissed as the seven justices, including Chief Justice Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, merely performed their duty when they voted for the quo warranto petition to oust Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno. The justice committee will meet on Sept. 18 to vote on the committee report affirming its decision to dump the impeachment complaint filed against the seven justices. Last week, the Houses justice panel found sufficient in form the consolidated impeachment complaint against De Castro and Associate Justices Diosdado Peralta, Lucas Bersamin, Francis Jardeleza, Noel Tijam, Andres Reyes Jr. and Alexander Gesmundo. Party-list Rep. Alfredo Garbin of Ako-Bicol, a lawyer, said the impeachment complaint failed to meet the standards on sufficiency in substance as the recital in the complaint did not constitute the offenses charged. Garbin, member of the House Minority Bloc, said the allegation on culpable violation of the Constitution had no basis. At the outset, for purposes of impeachment, culpable violation of the Constitution is defined as the deliberate and wrongful breach of the Constitution, Garbin said. Further, violation of the Constitution made unintentionally, in good faith, and mere mistakes in the proper construction of the Constitution do not constitute an impeachable offense. It means willful violation and not violations committed unintentionally or involuntarily or in good faith or through an honest mistake of judgment. Quoting the opinion of Manila Standard columnist Rannie Aquino, dean of the San Beda Graduate School of Law, Garbin said: There is nothing culpable in the actions of the Justices in exercising their constitutionally-mandated responsibility to exercise original jurisdiction over the petitions for quo warranto as stated in Section 5, Article VIII of the Constitution.Cavite Rep. Strike Revilla, another member of the committee, also believed that the complaints filed against the justices should be dismissed. I believe these justices should not be punished for disrespecting a co-equal branch of government, and instead should be lauded for recognizing the system of checks and balances. Revilla said if not, and justices may be impeached based solely on the position they take on the decision collegially reached and promulgated, the court itself will be at the mercy of politics. To my mind, the recital in the complaint does not constitute the offenses charged. If at all, the facts only show how our democratic institutions and systems are designed and working accordingly. Rocamora believed the complaint had a basis to unseat the seven justices. What I am really concerned [about] is the second issue of the propriety of some of these justices, respondent justices, to sit as judges in the quo warranto case, he said. To a certain effect, the judges who testified already prejudged the case in the quo warranto case. Is it true they were impartial when they decided the case? Lagman said the seven justices violated the Constitution because quo warranto could not be used as a subterfuge to oust a Chief Justice. The respondent justices conspired in rendering an unjust, malicious and orchestrated decision to oust Sereno, Lagman said in his opening statement read before the House justice panel. He said De Castro, Peralta, Bersamin, Jardeleza and Tijam committed betrayal of public trust when they refused to inhibit themselves from participating in the adjudication of the quo warranto petition despite their admitted continuing ill will, bias and prejudice against Sereno.
Ruling PSD party calls for probe into alleged external funding and preplanned violence during a rally

Romanias ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD) has called for an investigation into alleged external funding of an anti-government protest that ended in violence on August 10, deepening an ongoing dispute that includes widespread allegations of police brutality.

The PSD also called on authorities to investigate whether demonstrators had planned violence before the rally in Bucharest, which concluded with military police (known as the gendarmerie') firing tear gas and clashing with rally participants, local media reported on Wednesday.

The ruling party cited reports in a pro-PSD media outlet, Luju.ro, which recently published a recording of an alleged protester discussing the demonstrators external funding and planning.

The renewed accusations against demonstrators come on the heels of PSD leader Liviu Dragnea making similar claims while speaking to the local Antena 3 television programme on Monday night.

The August 10 rally was dubbed Diaspora at Home and was attended by Romanians who returned to the country to participate. Thousands took to the streets.

More than 450 people were injured during the scuffles and nearly 300 complaints were filed against the police, forcing the general prosecutors office to launch an investigation into alleged police brutalities.

Among those injured were journalists and bystanders.

Contacted by Al Jazeera, military police spokesperson Mirza Rosca Traian-Emil said: We are confident that the competent authorities will be fair and impartial in the investigation.

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Traian-Emil declined to comment on speculation that there was a link between the polices use of tear gas and the death of a 62-year-old man in late August, explaining that the case is under investigation.

The man, who checked himself into a hospital in southern Romania while suffering from internal bleeding and vomiting, had been treated for injuries during the protest.

Parliamentary motion rejected

The National Liberal Party (PNL) has called for interior minister Carmen Dans resignation, but the parliament rejected on Wednesday a motion accusing Dan of coordinating the police crackdown during the protest.

In a statement provided to Al Jazeera, Dan said that the violent actions of some of the protesters have led to the loss of the peaceful character of the public assembly and to the intervention of the public order forces.

The law applies equally to gendarmes, violent individuals and those who have instigated such actions, Dan said, adding that the investigation will be carried out in a non-discriminatory manner.

Dan has previously claimed that more than 1,000 people attacked military police during the protest, a claim dismissed by protesters.

The August 10 rally in Bucharest was part of a series of protests stretching back to January 2017, when Romanians took to the streets to protest against the newly inaugurated governments plans to decriminalise certain corruption offences and make abuse of power punishable by prison only if the sums involved exceeded $47,500.

Protests continued throughout 2017 and, although declining in scope, have stretched into 2018.

The rallies have gained the backing of President Klaus Iohannis, a member of the PNL, and many opposition politicians.

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PSD leader Dragnea has decried the demonstrations as part of a coup effort, telling Antena 3 last month: I saw an attempted coup to overthrow the government.

Last month, more than a dozen NGOs and civil society groups filed a complaint, alleging abusive behaviour by police during the protests, including disproportionate force and threats.

Platform Romania 100, an NGO in Bucharest, said in a statement at the time that police had violated the constitutional principles of freedom of assembly and freedom of speech.
Aid workers warn camps in northwestern Syria are unable to take in more displaced people as offensive looms.

Syria has witnessed unprecedented levels of internal displacement not seen throughout the seven-year conflict with more than one million forced to flee, a UN report said on Wednesday.

The 24-page report by the UN Commission of Inquiry detailed the ordeal many Syrians have faced in the first six months of 2018.

As pro-government forces moved to recapture large swaths of territory from armed groups and terrorist organisations, over one million Syrian men, women, and children were displaced with most now living in dire conditions, said the report.

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It noted combatants on the ground failed to take any action to protect civilians.

No one is acting according to their responsibilities, human rights wise or otherwise, commissioner Karen Abuzayed told Al Jazeera.

Everyone is to blame and is following their own interests. Its a disaster for the people who have no way to defend themselves.

Compulsory displacement

Civilians were forced to survive in tents or abandoned buildings in the northwest and living on extremely limited humanitarian aid, the report said.

Since 2014, the Syrian government and armed opposition groups have reached a series of reconciliation agreements in a number of besieged areas, mainly aiming to allow fighters to leave government-surrounded towns for opposition-held areas in Idlib province, which borders to the north.

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While the Syrian government positively regards such reconciliation agreements, armed groups and activists, however, view them as compulsory displacement aiming to reshape the demographic structure of the country.

With a Russian-backed Syrian government offensive looming, the three-member UN commission also warned against a major attack on Idlib  the last remaining rebel stronghold  and called on all parties to guarantee the safety of the three million civilians there.

The report warned an attack on Idlib with little regard for civilian life would generate a catastrophic human rights and humanitarian crisis.

The report also detailed the use of chlorine gas three times by Syrian government forces in January and February in the Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta, which at the time was under control of opposition armed groups. The two chemical attacks wounded 21 people.

War crimes in Idlib?

President Bashar al-Assad has vowed to retake Idlib province, backed by his Russian and Iranian allies. Syrian government and Russian warplanes began air raids in Idlib last week.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the escalation in Idlib over the past 10 days has resulted in at least 30,000 people fleeing their homes in rebel-held territories in northwest Syria.





Frances foreign minister said on Wednesday the bombing by Russian, Syrian and Iranian forces could amount to war crimes.

The hypothesis of war crimes cannot be excluded  once one begins to indiscriminately bomb civilian populations and hospitals, Jean-Yves Le Drian told legislators.

The situation is extremely serious. We are on the eve of a considerable humanitarian and security catastrophe, he said.

On September 7, a summit in Tehran failed to produce a clear agreement between Russia, Turkey, and Iran on the fate of Idlib.

A ceasefire suggested by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was rejected and a full-fledged government offensive now appears imminent, in what is expected to be Syrias deadliest battle yet.

Idlib is the last barrier standing between the Syrian government and its military victory against a rebellion that began in March 2011.

Idlib should not become the next massacre, the final massacre in the battles in Syria and common sense now needs to prevail, commissioner Hanny Megally told reporters after the release of the report.

Humanitarian catastrophe

Aid workers in Idlib told Al Jazeera that camps are already overcrowded and undersupplied and are not able to properly address the needs of the newcomers.

Tamam Atour, who works with the Turkish humanitarian organisation IHH in the area of Bab al-Hawa near the border with Turkey, said there is a severe lack of basic supplies.

Of the 200-300 families who made it to camps where he works, only 40 were provided with tents. The rest had to sleep out in the open.

We are suffering from a severe lack of supplies, lack of blankets, food baskets, detergents, kitchen utensils. The large number [of newcomers] is causing us great confusion and we dont know how to deal with them, he said.

Khalid Shalas, manager of one of the camps in the al-Zawf area, said his camp is lacking the means to provide basic needs. He said there is almost no baby formula and little medicine available.

Shalas and his colleagues have sent out an urgent appeal to a number of Western and Arab aid organisations requesting help but have only received negative answers.

If there is an attack now on Idlib it would produce a humanitarian catastrophe. People will prefer staying in their houses and dying in air strikes over sleeping in the street with no shelter, at the mercy of wild beasts and snakes, Shalas said.

The UN has warned an attack would result in at least 800,000 civilians fleeing to the borders with Turkey, resulting in the worst humanitarian catastrophe of the 21st century.

Mariya Petkova contributed to this report from Antakya, Turkey
Long-awaited elections set for May next year at the latest, years after military coup toppled the elected government.

Thailands military government enacted two new laws that set in motion a countdown leading to elections by May 2019 at the latest  five years after a coup detat.

The laws, which received royal endorsement on Wednesday with their publication in the Royal Gazette, cover the selection of members of parliament and senators.

The act covering lower-house legislators becomes effective in 90 days and mandates that elections be held within 150 days after that, effectively setting a legal deadline in May next year.





Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who heads the regime that seized power in the 2014 coup, said last month a general election was likely to be held on February 24 but left open the possibility of a later date.

The ruling generals have previously set dates for elections but then postponed them.

Five hundred legislators will be elected in the lower house, while 250 senators will be appointed. Several senate seats are reserved for the military.

Thailands latest constitution, pushed through by the military government, is designed to limit the power of political parties, with election rules designed to keep any single party from winning a clear majority. It also gives the senate more powers than previous charters.

Shelving the Shinawatras

The rules are mostly meant to curb the political machine of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, whose populist policies won him enormous support and threatened the influence of traditional power holders, including the military.

Thaksin was deposed by a 2006 military coup, but his following remained strong. His sister Yingluck Shinawatra became prime minister in 2011, only to have her government also toppled by the army in 2014.





Prayuth, who led the 2014 military takeover, has been coy about whether he wants to serve as prime minister again after the election but has been making campaign-like appearances around the country, while his backers have lined up support from influential politicians.

Political gatherings of five or more people were banned by the military government after it seized power, effectively forcing all political parties into dormancy while the generals quashed dissent and consolidated their rule.

Late last month, the military government announced it would ease some restrictions on political parties to let them conduct basic functions and prepare for elections, but campaigning will remain prohibited for the time being.

Prayuth said the new rules would allow political parties to hold meetings, appoint managers, and accept new members ahead of the polls.
Turkish and Syrian refugees were among 53 people killed by car-bomb blasts in Reyhanli, near Turkeys border with Syria.

Turkey captured a key suspect in an attack five years ago that killed dozens of people, and he alleged the twin bombings were orchestrated by Syrian intelligence.

Yusuf Nazik confessed his role in the 2013 car bombings in the border town of Reyhanli that killed 53 people. According to media reports, the 34-year-old accused Syrias Mukhabarat spy agency of plotting the attack.

He was seized in the Syrian city of Latakia  the heartland of President Bashar al-Assads support  in a pinpoint operation by Turkeys National Intelligence Organisation, the Anadolu news agency reported.

In a video released on Wednesday by the Turkish government, Nazik appeared in a blue tracksuit top and jeans next to a Turkish flag. He called on other suspects to surrender and warned Turkey would hold the Assad government to account for the attack.





I was not able to escape from the Turkish state, he said in the video.

I am calling out to my friends in Syria, turn back while there still is time. The Turkish state will protect us. I am calling out to the state of Syria, the Turkish state will make you pay eventually.

Intelligence operation?

The attack on May 11, 2013, saw one car bomb detonated outside council offices leave a massive crater in the ground and destroy nearby buildings.

A second vehicle-bomb blew up a few minutes later less than a kilometre away outside a post office.

Most of the casualties were Turks but Syrian refugees were also killed just a couple of kilometres from the Syrian border.

Nazik, a Turkish citizen from nearby Antakya, had been one of several suspects wanted in connection to the attack. Turkeys intelligence agency, known as MIT, reportedly carried out the operation to capture him. No details on when it took place were released.

Nazik admitted scouting targets, transporting the explosives from Syria to Turkey, as well as procuring and loading the vehicles used in the bombing. He identified his Syrian contact as an intelligence officer named Mohammed who went by the codename, Hadji.

We take the information provided by Yusuf Nazik about the involvement of Syrian intelligence operatives in the 2013 Reyhanli attack very seriously, a senior Turkish official told Al Jazeera on condition of anonymity.

His testimony corroborates long-standing rumours about the Assad regimes active role in the bombing, which killed 53 innocent people. Naziks capture and repatriation should serve as a reminder to all other criminals that we will never stop hunting them. We will spare no effort to find you, catch you, and bring you to justice.

Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul praised the operation. Our state will come after every kind of terrorist group and our independent judiciary will deliver fair punishment, wherever the culprit may be, he told reporters.

In February, a court in Ankara handed down life sentences against nine people involved in the Reyhanli attack. Thirteen others received prison terms of up to 15 years.
WEF on ASEAN: Trade, regional disputes supersede agenda

Embracing new technology was supposed to be the theme of the meeting of Asian nations, but the US-China trade war is dominating the agenda as leaders of South East Asian countries meet in Vietnam.
US State Department non-committal in press briefing, but media reports say officials are considering punitive measures.

The Trump administration is considering sanctions against China over its treatment of the predominantly Muslim Uighur minority, according to reports in the US media.

A New York Times story on Monday cited former and current officials who said the White House was considering punitive measures against Beijing for human rights violations.

At a press briefing on Tuesday evening, State Department spokesperson, Heather Nauert, refused to confirm whether sanctions were under consideration.

However, the New York Times report said discussions about how to deal with China over the abuses by White House, Treasury and State Department officials had been under way for months.

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The official said the situation facing the Uighurs was a tremendous concern of the United States Government.

Were deeply troubled by the worsening crackdown, not just on Uighurs, Kazakhs, other Muslims in that region of China, Nauert said, adding: There are credible reports out there that many, many thousands have been detained in detention centres since April 2017, and the numbers are fairly significant from what we can tell so far.

Criticism from UN

China has faced intense criticism in recent months, as reports of its treatment of Uighurs filter out.

The country is accused of running re-education camps, where Uighurs are forced to renounce aspects of their religious beliefs and ostensibly learn about Chinese culture.

State-backed media referred to the camps as counter-extremism training centres, while critics call them concentration camps.

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A recent UN report found a disproportionate mass surveillance programme targeting Uighurs and other Muslim minorities.

A Human Rights Watch (HRW) report released earlier this week said that as many as one million people were being held in camps across Chinas western region.

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The Uighurs are a Muslim ethnic group who speak a Turkic language and are concentrated in the western Xinjiang region, where they formed a majority until migration by members of Chinas dominant Han Chinese group.

The campaign in Xinjiang comes amid a wider crackdown on religion in China, with the countrys Christian minority also targeted.

On Monday, Beijings Zion church was banned and authorities confiscated illegal promotional materials.
Reporter Bob Woodward says Trump made the comments while trying to secure the release of an American-Egyptian activist.

US President Donald Trump reportedly mocked Egypts President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and referred to him as a f***ing killer, according to investigative journalist Bob Woodward.

In an excerpt from Woodwards recently released book, Fear: Trump in the White House, the US leader made the remarks after securing the release of Aya Hijazi, an American Egyptian who was detained by Cairo for three years.

Woodward claimed that Trump was talking to then-White House legal adviser John Dowd about his negotiations with Sisi over Hijazis release.

Trump reportedly told Dowd: Remember who Im talking to. The guys a f***ing killer. This guys a f***ing killer! Im getting it done. Hell make you sweat on the phone.

The book then describes Trump as assuming a deep grovelling voice apparently intending to mimic Sisi  Donald, Im worried about this [Mueller] investigation. Are you going to be around? Suppose I need a favour, Donald?

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According to Woodward, Trump called Sisis comments, which were apparently in reference to Robert Muellers investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 elections, a kick in the nuts.

Hijazi was released from jail in April 2017, after nearly three years of imprisonment on human trafficking charges, which were widely dismissed as bogus by human rights groups.

Weeks earlier, Trump had invited Sisi to the White House, something former President Barack Obama had never done, and described him as a fantastic guy.

Less than a year later, when Sisi won Egypts election with 97 percent of the vote, Trump expressed his sincere congratulations to Sisi in a phone call.

Erratic and uninformed

Woodwards book, which was released on Tuesday after a widely publicised buildup, paints a highly-critical picture of life inside the Oval Office, painting Trumps character as dangerously erratic and uninformed.

It also claimed that Trump wanted to assassinate Syrian President Bashar al-Assad after an alleged chemical attack last April.

The book quoted Trump as saying: Lets f***ing kill him! Lets go in. Lets kill the f***ing lot of them.

On the eve of its release, Trump took to Twitter to denounce Woodwards accounts as works of fiction.

The Woodward book is a Joke  just another assault against me, in a barrage of assaults, using now disproven unnamed and anonymous sources. Many have already come forward to say the quotes by them, like the book, are fiction. Dems cant stand losing. Ill write the real book!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 10, 2018

Cairo and Washington have forged close ties under Trump after years of tension under the Obama administration.

Obama temporarily halted military aid to Egypt after the Sisi-led overthrow of Egypts first freely elected president, Mohamed Morsi, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, in 2013. His administration also repeatedly criticised the Egyptian governments crackdown on political opponents.

Since the July 2013 coup, a police crackdown against the Muslim Brotherhood  which maintains it is peaceful but has been designated by Egypts government as a terrorist group  has left hundreds dead and tens of thousands in jail.

Last year, a UN investigation found that Egypt engages in the continuous persecution of women, human rights activists, and journalists.

Human rights groups estimate that at least 40,000 political prisoners have been detained by Sisis government.
Roads connecting key port city to rebel-held Sanaa have reportedly been taken over by Yemeni government forces.

Yemens army and its allies have seized control of two key roads near the western port city of Hodeidah from Houthi rebels, military sources said.

Abdulrahman Saleh Abou Zaraa, head of an elite military unit known as the Giant Brigades, said on Wednesday his forces took control of the Kilo 16 area, cutting off the Houthis main supply route linking Hodeidah city to the rebel-held capital Sanaa.

The army also captured a second supply route around Hodeidah, known as Kilo 10, the AFP news agency reported.

The Saudi-Emirati-led military coalition resumed air raids on Wednesday in support of Yemeni-allied forces seeking to capture the Red Sea port city from the rebels, residents said.





Al Jazeeras Andrew Simmons, reporting from neighbouring Djibouti, said fighting was ongoing around Kilo 16 with the Houthis shelling the area in a counterattack measure.

There are no reports of any casualties but you would bet they would be high with this intensity of the bombardment, he said.

Fighting near Hodeidah  the main gateway for imports of relief supplies and commercial goods into the country  has escalated since June 13 after the Saudi-UAE alliance launched a wide-ranging operation to retake the strategic seaport.

The offensive is being carried out by a disparate collective of forces including the National Resistance, a group of fighters loyal to Yemens former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Tihama Resistance, a group of fighters loyal to Yemens President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, and the Giant Brigades, a military unit backed by the United Arab Emirates.

Riyadh and Abu Dhabi see Hodeidah port as the main entry point of weapons for the Houthis and have accused their regional rival Iran of sending missiles to the rebels, a charge Tehran has denied.

Lifeline for millions

Aid agencies have warned an assault on the Hodeidah port could shut down one of the last remaining lifelines for millions of hungry civilians.

The citys seaport was responsible for delivering 70 percent of Yemens imports  mostly humanitarian aid, food and fuel  before 2015.

More than eight million Yemenis  a number greater than the entire population of Switzerland  are on the verge of famine.





The war in Yemen, the regions poorest country, started in 2014 when the Houthis overran much of the country, including Sanaa.

The conflict escalated in 2015 when Saudi Arabia and its Sunni Arab allies  who accuse the Shia Houthis of serving as Iranian proxies  launched a massive air campaign in Yemen aimed at rolling back Houthi gains.

According to the UN, at least 10,000 people have been killed since the coalition intervened in Yemen. The death toll has not been updated in years and is likely to be far higher.

Multiple rounds of UN-brokered peace talks have failed to achieve any breakthrough and last week, the Houthis refused to attend talks in Geneva after three of its demands were not met.

The Houthi no-show at the Geneva peace process is further proof that the liberation of Hodeidah is what is needed to bring them to their senses & constructively engage in the political process, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said in Twitter post.

UN envoy Martin Griffiths is travelling to Muscat on Wednesday and later Sanaa and Riyadh to secure a firm commitment from the parties to convene for continued consultations.

Meanwhile, in Washington DC, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that he has certified to Congress that Saudi Arabia and the UAE were working to reduce the risk of harm on Yemeni civilians. With the certification, the US would be able to continue its participation in the war, allowing it to refuel Saudi planes involved in the strikes in Yemen.
President Rodrigo Duterte said on Tuesday that he would unilaterally decide by himself the countrys telecommunications issue if nothing happens on the planned entry of the third company by November or December. Maybe late or early November if there is no decision yet, I will take over. I will put that under the Office of the President, and I will invite all the businessmen. I will decide in front of them, said Duterte as he addressed the nation in a live dialogue with Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo Tuesday afternoon. The President, who vowed to handle the selection process himself, explained how he plans to decide on the third telco player. Give me your position papers. I will read it, give me about 30 minutes then Ill come back and tell them. I will decide. Thats it and the line will be given, he said. The Chief Executive had expressed frustration over the delay of the selection process. You know, Ive been waiting for that critical decision until now theres nothing, the President said. He said that he would rather pick a bidder with the best track record even with its expensive offer, instead of a company which offers the lowest possible price. I dont want to select just on the basis of the lowest bid, Duterte said.In his third State of the Nation Address last July, Duterte said he expects the next major telco to provide the best possible Internet service at a reasonable cost. The President enumerated the characteristics of the next telco player as reliable, inexpensive, and secure. The terms of reference for the entry of a major industry player should be reasonable and comprehensive, Duterte said in his speech. The only condition is that the chosen entity must provide the best possible services at reasonable accessible prices, he added. The President also said in his speech the administration targets to lower interconnection rates so as to ensure that the solution to the telecommunication problems will be both meaningful and lasting. The Department of Information and Communications Technology previously said the third telco may be named before the year ends. It is also expected to provide service in the country by 2019 if the selection process went smoothly. The chosen telco will then be subject to a five-year observation under the said department.
For the last three years I have been developing a theory about the lefts activism culture . But I have failed miserably to come up with a catchy title for the whole thing.

I am here to say that the whole culture of left-wing activism, starting not later than Marx and Engels, is a Spartacus Illusion, the fantasy -- or conceit, or outright lie -- of little lefty rich kids from the ruling class thinking they are slaves taking it to The Man.

When a United States senator, protected by Capitol Hill police, says I am Spartacus he is delusional. When Good Little Liberal Girls get up in Handmaids Tale cosplay outfits they are not sex-slaves of the ruling class: they are the ruling class.

(Hey Handmaid girls! Have you ever thought that the sexual revolution plus abortion plus no-fault divorce plus hook-up culture has made you into sex-slaves? Didnt think you had.)

As Mary McCarthy said of Lillian Hellman: Everything she writes is a lie, including and and the. I know this is true because I once went to a performance of Hellmans  Watch on the Rhine , at the Berkeley Repertory Theater, no less. McCarthy has it exactly right. About and and the.

Everything the left says is a lie, including I am Spartacus.

It started with Marx and Engels declaring that heaven for the workers would be the government owning the means of production. Yeah, right. It led to poverty and starvation every time it was tried. Marxism is not justice, it is neo-slavery.

It continued with the Brit-kid Fabians and their plan for a welfare state. I dont know what you call a state that spends 40-50 percent of GDP on government programs. The welfare state is not freedom from want, it is neo-feudalism.

Then the Frankfurt School rich kids came up with the cool idea to organize women and minorities in fake tribes all the better to divide and conquer the peoples of democratic capitalist states. Identity politics is not emancipation, it is neo-tribalism.

And dont get me started on the Sixties Kidz and the Resistance.

The lefties call this progress. Or bending the arc of history. I call it the Great Reaction .

(By the way, the straight scoop on little rich kids is still War and Peace. Yeah. Poor little rich kid Pierre Besukhov. But at least Besukhov was shy and mild-mannered. And he got the girl.)

While all these rich kids have been acting out with their activism and their I am Spartacus delusions the market economy, unheralded and unplanned, merely increased real per capita income by 30 times in 200 years. I showed a nice liberal lady my Great Enrichment page the other day. She had no idea. How come, NPR and New York Times? How come nice liberal ladies have no idea about the most important fact of our time?

Hey I know! How about a Ken Burns documentary series on PBS featuring Ms. Great Enrichment herself, Deirdre McCloskey, taking the part of Shelby Foote. McCloskey is transgender so we could pile on anyone that criticized her and get xem thrown off social media as transphobic! Whaddya say, ZucknJack?

Let me lay it to you straight, lefties.

When your side figures it can make a mockery of a U.S. Senate hearing, complete with staged protests from the back row and Spartacus moments from an elected senator, it means you are the ruling class. Republicans would never dare do such a thing.

When your side treats the assault on a government office, like ICE in Portlandia, OR, as a minor peccadillo, it means that your side is the ruling class. Imagine the panic if some alt-right tiki-torchers tried that with You Know Who at 8th Avenue and 42nd Street! Anonymous would be the least of it.

When a former President of the United States stands next to the most notorious racists in the USA at a celebrity funeral, it means that those racists are tolerated -- nudge-nudge, wink-wink, know what I mean -- by the ruling class. Imagine any former president ever standing next to David Duke.

When Good Little Girls are showing up all over with cutesy-wootesy protest signs just like they were taught in Activism class, they are not speaking truth to power. The are rich kids strutting the latest fashion.

Real protest is the Captain Swing rioters in Britain in 1820 smashing the threshing machines that were taking away their livelihood. And nobody cared.

Real protest is the protesters you never hear about in Venezuela protesting against starvation. Cos nobody cares.

Here is how to tell real protest from fake protest. The real thing is reactive, far too late, unheralded, the last futile punches of a punch-drunk boxer, And nobody cares.

Kinda like the original Spartacus Rebellion.

As opposed to the fake one, starring Cory Booker as Kirk Douglas.
Student Activism Destabilizes Society

The latest issue of the Harvard Graduate School of Education magazine focuses on student activism. This activism rubric is a euphemism for student disturbance, student malaise, student ingratitude, student impulsivity, distracted student hypermoralism, and acting out of their unconscious death wish and free-floating libidinous unrest. Abusing the constitutional right of freedom of assembly, students step far outside the boundaries of their experience and competencies to demonstrate, threaten, condemn, and sometimes destroy the social order as well as the dreams and property of others. Freedom to disagree and publicly express said disagreement becomes an excuse for screaming, foul language, hysterical episodes, making ugly faces, and feverish gesticulations, and in many ways acting like deranged morons. Moreover, it is increasingly common for conservative speakers not to be allowed on campuses or to be met with raucous demonstrations when they are allowed to appear. The line between freedom of assembly/peaceful protests and campus demonstrations, antifa mayhem, and Ferguson or Baltimore riots and looting is still somewhat intact, but that line is increasingly frayed, tattered, and diluted. The capstone article in the magazine is entitled, Student Activism 2.0. Like Howard Zinns Peoples History of the United States, which is a widely used textbook in college American History courses, or such progressive tomes for high schools as The Americans (1360 pages), published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, this article focuses on activism (sic) as the quintessence of American democracy. Activism to its left-wing supporters reveals the flaws not only of U.S. history but of contemporary patriotism which is deemed by the activists to be too resistant to seeing the massive flaws of American culture, and has mistakenly brought the USA to the point of even thinking of itself as exceptional. Their main thought is that we are so deeply flawed that we barely deserve to exist, let alone consider ourselves to be moral or just.

Further, these student activists, immature, unstable, and easily manipulated, see themselves as advocates for the people. The people for them are all those on the well-known progressive list: homosexuals, people of color but especially blacks and Hispanics as opposed to Asians, workers, the elderly, transgenders, women, students, people who are HIV positive, native Americans, illegal immigrants, high school dropouts, incarcerated felons, and drug addicts. For the progressive activists, these are not only people with needs to be addressed, but these groups are the people who have been dispossessed by our selfish society. They are victimized groups and support for them is a natural extension of the populism that began with the farmers in the 19th century as well as with women in the suffragette movement. To their ahistorical minds nurtured on progressive propaganda, populism extended through progressivism through the New Deal up to the present. Thus, they consider themselves the true populists. For this reason, they are doubly enraged that they are now facing a conservative backlash that claims to be the new populism. They are incensed. They ask: werent we the ones originally against the robber barons, the capitalist moguls of the 19th century who were ripping off Americans and destroying society while claiming to build it? Are we not the ones who, in that same tradition, descry the top 1% or .1% who are the contemporary heirs of the robber barons? However, a new populism is emerging, and it makes their blood boil. It is a populism that realizes that Henry Ford, John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Cornelius Vanderbilt, and other scions -- despite their limitations and biases -- did in fact build this country into the mega-economic superpower it is. The new populism identifies with workers who, despite certain areas of mistreatment, had found a measure of economic security and opportunity in America that they never knew in the entire history of post-industrial growth. But those workers who had risen to new levels of economic security and opportunities have seen themselves over recent decades as increasingly dispossessed in the name of a progressive, elitist globalism. The old populism/progressivism has morphed into a system for dispossessing the workers and telling them to shut up, get into a job retraining program or move to a more prosperous area of the country. The students thus have become pawns in the leftist/globalist challenge to American prosperity. Their rage is being stoked as they are persuaded to think that they are the true voices of the people, but in fact they are against the interests of the people. The workers are now the new populists who do not identify with the ruthless and immature outbursts of student indignation with its leftist/progressive face. Thus, ironically, the socialist New Deal forgotten man referred to by President Franklin D. Roosevelt is now the forgotten man referred to by President Donald Trump in our present political and economic renaissance. Further, there is a vast middle class which, despite the extreme bias of the textbooks often being used in our high schools and colleges, is mainstream. It is composed of small business owners, managers, stockholders, pension fund managers, white collar workers, independent professionals, and creative thinkers and writers who are immersed in a spirit of gratitude for the USA, and not in a spirit of wounded victimization. Real grievances of course must be addressed, but is it constructive or even decent to spend ones life picking at the scabs of so-called injustice and reopening wounds? The author of the Harvard article revels in reviewing the history of student protests. To him, student protests are where the rubber meets the road. Young people are finding a voice to express their concerns about significant social issues, and their voices point the way to a better future for all. He completely avoids any reference to the excessive hostility that has emerged in these protests, especially since the 1960s. He avoids asking the extent to which student protests are manipulated events by political zealots in the Democratic Party or other organizations that have an interest in destabilizing our society. He fails to consider the psychology of these protests and the extent to which they mask inner student helplessness and fear of the future. He fails to consider the sense of individual isolation that is bred by the student generations engrossment in virtual reality leading to collective expression and its attendant excesses. The sense of alienation and anomie described so beautifully by David Riesman, Nathan Glazer, and Reuel Denney in their book The Lonely Crowd published in 1950 is so much deeper and more far-reaching today than it was then. The social isolates of the 1950s would be borderline deranged today. In short, idolization of protests and public expressions of outrage are outrageously devoid of perspective. Perspective is necessary for balanced thinking and balanced living. And balance is necessary for maturity and wisdom to flourish. These in turn produce real problem solving at the highest level. E. Jeffrey Ludwig has taught at Harvard, Penn State, Juniata College, City University of New York, and Boston State College, and was selected numerous times for inclusion in Whos Who Among Americas High School Teachers. He is author of The Catastrophic Decline of Americas Public High Schools, and is a born again Christian.
The Use of Poison in International Politics

The pellet with the poison's in the vessel with the pestle; the chalice from the palace has the brew that is true. This tongue-twisting line, uttered by Danny Kaye in the 1956 film The Court Jester, grounds perhaps the funniest scene in Hollywood movies, but it is also relevant to past and present attempts and actions to commit murder by operatives of the Russian regime. Hamlet's father knew of the vial of poison poured into his ear that moved like quicksilver though the veins and curdled the blood. British officials during World War II were successful in preventing a similar poisoning of the well known writer, artist, gardener, protector of the Barbary Apes in Gibraltar, 1953 Nobel Prize winner for literature, and smoker of 3,000 cigars a year and 250,000 in his lifetime, Winston Churchill.

We now learn from documents recently revealed that the prime minister was protected by the British secret service in extraordinary fashion. All his cigars, bought or given to him by well wishers, were tested on mice to ensure they were not poisoned with cyanide by Nazi spies. The head of MI5's counter-intelligence, Victor Rothschild, believed there might be "tiny explosives" in the cigars, which would detonate when lit. In addition, MI5 tested, and no doubt tasted, a case of 1798 Armagnac given Churchill by a French general he met in Parliament Square, close to the House of Commons. The expensive liquor was tested on a cat, who survived, as did Churchill. None of the cigars was poisoned. They remain valuable. Likewise, various exhibitions have indicated the value of objects associated with Emperor Napoleon. A baton used at his ceremony to become emperor at Notre Dame in 1804 was sold for 100,000 euros and his first wedding certificate for 25,000 euros. Objects of the less majestic Churchill, if not equally valuable, are sought. At an auction in Boston in March 2018, the two-inch butt of a La Corona Habana, said to come from the cigar smoked by Churchill in 1947, was sold for $12,000. The use of poison has claimed the lives of prominent individuals throughout history. Among those murdered or suspected of having been poisoned are Alexander the Great; Emperor Augustus; Emperor Claudius; the victims of the Borgias, Medicis, and Viscontis; and the Venetian Council of Ten. More immediately relevant is the legacy of the Special Office, "The Cell," created in the Soviet Union in 1921, the first poison laboratory of the Soviet secret services that became an institute in the KGB. Among its actions were assassination of critics of the regime: Georgi Markov, the Bulgarian writer working for the BBC in London, killed in 1978 by a poisoned pellet shot from an umbrella, and Alexander Litvinenko, former officer of the KGB and FSB, the Federal Security Service, on November 23, 2006 from a drink poisoned with Polonium-210 after meeting with two Russians in the Millennium London hotel. Litvinenko had accused his superiors of murdering Boris Berezovsky, had held that Vladimir Putin's rise to power was the result of a coup organized by the FSB, and accused Putin of ordering the murder of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya. She, who had criticized Russian military and governmental actions in Chechnya, was murdered on October 7, 2006 in the elevator in her apartment house. It needs no explanation that Garry Kasparov, former world chess champion, now a political activist opposing the policies of Putin, drinks only bottled water, eats food prepared by his bodyguards, and lives in New York City. In 1997, the Chemical Weapons Convention outlawed the production and use of chemical weapons but was disregarded by President Assad in Syria. Now, as a result of murders and attempted murders of Russians in Britain, especially the attack on Sergei Skripal in Salisbury on March 4, 2018, the issue of poison has become an important one, if not the central one, in Western relations with Russia as two announcements show. One by Prime Minister Theresa May is that two Russians, Alexander Petrov and Rusian Boshirov, probably aliases, alleged members of the GRU, were charged with murder in Salisbury. They are unlikely to come to trial and probably were killed in Russia to hide traces of their alleged crime. The second is the announcement by the British home secretary, Sajid Javid, that the government is reopening the investigation of the deaths, said to number 14, of ex-Russians suspected of having been murdered by poison and other methods in the U.K. in recent years. An investigation of this kind will take some time, considering the number of victims. Among them is Nikolai Glushkov, found on March 12, 2018, strangled in his home in New Malden, southwest London. Glushkov, who had been deputy director of the Russian state airline Aeroflot, was accused in Russia of criminal conspiracy and sentenced in 1999 to five years in prison for "money laundering and fraud." He sought asylum in U.K. in 2006. He had previously got no kick from champagne, but in the company of two Russians in a Bristol grand hotel, he drank a glass of the liquid that had been poisoned. His problem was he was a friend of the oligarch Boris Berezovsky, who was found hanged in his bathrobe in his house near Ascot in Berkshire on March 23, 2013, but who, Glushkov said, was murdered by Russians. Those Russians are to be found, but the two involved in the attack on Skripal have been identified as individuals with official passports and alleged to be affiliated with the GRU military agency (Main Intelligence Directorate), linked in the past to the Cheka, the NKVD, and the KGB, and which changed its name in 2010 to the G.U. (Main Division). The stated offense is spraying, through a perfume bottle, the nerve agent Novichok on the front door of the house in Salisbury of the 63-year-old former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his 33-year-old daughter, Yulia. The two Skripals survived, but others died from exposure to the nerve agent. What is important is that the GRU gets orders from the highest level of Russian government, the military, the defense ministry, and the Kremlin, possibly including Putin, but it does not report directly to the president. In the constellation of Russian agencies, the FSB is viewed as the domestic intelligence and counter intelligence body and the SVR as the foreign intelligence service. More attention must be paid to the GRU, the main directorate, formed as the intelligence agency of the armed forces, competing with the KGB security service. Its head, Igor Korobov, reports to the chief of the General Staff and the defense minister. Most recently, the GRU has participated in hacking, using malware called X Agent, and in cyber-warfare aimed at U.S. military facilities. It was active in the seizure of Prague's airport in 1968, leading to the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia; the assassination of the Afghan president in 1979; the end of the Malaysian passenger airline in July 2014, killing all 298 aboard; the attempted coup in Montenegro in 2016; and the Russian invasion of Crimea. It is a highly disciplined organization, essentially more aggressive and more secretive than other Russian institutions, able to strike at British and U.S. facilities. It is a useful start that the U.S. Department of Justice on July 13, 2018 indicted 12 Russians for attempting to hack U.S. emails and computer networks. All responsible were operatives of GRU. It is time that Congress pay more attention to and take action against the GRU menace. Perhaps Special Counsel Robert Mueller might more profitably turn his attention to this rather than to the seemingly endless search for a mole in the 2016 electoral campaign of Donald Trump. More important is an answer to this question: are the actions of the GRU directly linked to the Kremlin and the office of President Putin?
Thus, I assume that the Palestinian narrative that has driven the peace process and world opinion for fifty years will be severely undermined and replaced with reality and history, starting with the Palestine Mandate. Greenblatt is mindful of the fact that this narrative was outlined by the KGB in its consultations with Yasser Arafat in the sixties and afterward. They invented the Palestinian people as a means to cast the Arabs as the oppressed and the Israelis as the oppressors.

In a recent interview , Jason Greenblatt, a special representative of the president, said, "Our plan begins with reality. It recognizes the history of the conflict, of course, but [other plans] were always relying on tired notions of what it should be. Instead, it focuses on what it could be."

The rationale for the plan will start with the signing of the Palestine Mandate in 1922. This mandate split Palestine into two mandates under British rule  namely, the Arab Palestine (Transjordan), which received 78% of the land, and the Jewish Mandate (Israel), which received the remaining 22%. Britain tried to further divide the 22%, most notably in the U.N. Partition Plan of 1947, without success. True, the UNGA passed the resolution, and Israel was created, but the Arabs rejected it, thereby ending their opportunity to create an Arab state on the part allocated to them.

International law recognizes Israel's right to claim sovereignty over the entire 22%. In addition, Israel cemented this right by its victory over the Arabs in the '67 war.

No doubt, this history will inform the design of the plan.

Greenblatt went on to articulate a red line, if you will, saying, "We will not put forth a plan or endorse a plan that doesn't meet all of Israel's security issues because they are of extreme importance to us." Furthermore, "Israel is going to have to be comfortable that what we put forth in the plan does not put Israel at risk." The Palestinians must accept this as fundamental to the plan and be "comfortable" with it.

In explaining why he is putting all this effort into achieving peace when there are bigger problems in the Middle east  namely, Syria and Iran  Greenblatt says:

We think that there are unique circumstances now that warrant an attempt at trying to see whether or not we can do this. President Trump, as devoted and dedicated to the State of Israel and the Jewish people as he is, he's also dedicated to trying to help the Palestinian people, and the way we can marry those two ideas is by trying to reach a comprehensive peace agreement.

Thus, he is guided by two goals. He wants to strengthen Israel, and he wants to help the Palestinian people. As he said, "we do believe that many Palestinians want to live in peace, and they want to see their lives improved."

So how can he marry these goals? He says, "We must abandon all the old formulae and focus on what is doable."

Taking all the foregoing into account, I believe that the plan will recognize the original division of Palestine into Jordan as the Palestinian state and Israel as the Jewish state. These states already have a peace agreement in which the agreed border is the Jordan River.

So far, so good. But what will happen with the two million Palestinians, all of whom have Jordanian citizenship, living west of the Jordan River? Presently, these Palestinians live for the most part in Areas A and B (1.4 million), Area C (100,000), and Jerusalem (350,000).

According to a well informed source, the administration of the A areas, as agreed to in the Oslo Accords, will pass from the P.A. to Jordan. The B areas will be absorbed into the C area in order to remove the Swiss cheese effect. Hebron, on the other hand, will be administered by a joint local council made up of Israelis and Palestinians.

This means that the P.A. will be done away with, because its primary function is to wage war against Israel's legitimacy. All Palestinians living west of the River will be seen as both Jordanian citizens and foreign residents. There will be no need to give them citizenship. Israel will then be free to build without restraint in the expanded Area C and in other ways exercise its sovereignty on all lands west of the Jordan River.

In effect, all Arabs will remain where they are and will continue to work in Israel. The only difference will be that they have to give up their aspirations for a Palestinian state west of the Jordan River and accept that Jordan is the Palestinian state.

Jordan and Israel will negotiate separate agreements dealing with joint economic relations and joint military arrangements.

Job-creating joint ventures will be set up in Jordan. These jobs will be available to all Palestinians who emigrate to Jordan. Expectations are that many Palestinians living west of the river will avail themselves of these jobs.

As for my idea that a new city should be built in Jordan to house a million people, I am informed by the source above that Jordan is a welfare state that guarantees housing to all citizens. Jordan will start with building an extra 500,000 units to accommodate the influx of citizens. This too will induce many Palestinians to emigrate to Jordan.

It should be made clear that Israel will not be party to forced ethnic cleansing.

There is also talk about joint military planning between Israel and Jordan. In effect, Jordan will be an extension of Israel. Jordan may also be the buyer of the 100 F-16s that Israel now wishes to sell.

UNRWA will be scuttled. The Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq will be invited to move to Jordan as full citizens, thereby ending their refugee status.

Many Israelis will not be happy with the fact that the Arabs will remain, but at least there will be no obligation to offer them a path to citizenship. Furthermore, this deal will do away with the Palestinian narrative, which is the cause of so much disloyalty among Arab Israelis.

As Greenblatt said, the Palestinians and the Israelis must decide, "Will we be better off with this plan or continuing without it?" I believe, on balance, that both the Israelis and the Palestinians will accept the plan if it looks like this. The Israelis hunger for an end of conflict agreement, and the Palestinians are sick and tired of living under the P.A. rule and under the king's rule, as the case may be. They are hungry for change and normalization.

As for the Arab world, Greenblatt said, "We're also hopeful that we can count on their support, and I use the word 'support' rather than 'approval.'" Thus, he doesn't expect them to publicly accept the plan, but he does expect them not to undermine its acceptance.

Both Abbas and King Abdullah have publicly rejected any such plan. Assuming no change of heart, they will be replaced. Mudar Zahran is waiting on the sidelines. He most certainly accepts such a plan.

Conventional wisdom has it that Israel would never agree to ousting Abdullah. After all, as the theory goes, the border has been quiet for 30 years. But increasingly, Israel sees Abdullah as an obstructionist just like Abbas. I think Israel is ready for change, especially if change leads to a resolution of the conflict.

Conventional wisdom also suggests that if Mudar Zahran becomes the leader of Jordan, the Muslim Brotherhood, whose world headquarters is in Jordan, will oust him from power within 24 hours. In this, it is wrong also. Within the said 24 hours, Zahran would ban the Muslim brotherhood and designate it a terrorist organization. In this, he would have the support of Israel and the U.S.

I believe that this deal will be accepted and will thus be the Deal of the Century.

Ted Belman is the editor of Israpundit.com, which he started 16 years ago. Together with Mudar Zahran, he spear-headed the plan, in the spring of 2017, to replace King Abdullah, as the leader of Jordan, with Mudar Zahran, the head of the Jordan Opposition Coalition. This plan was dubbed The Jordan Option. Many if not all the principles set out in the plan are reflected in the Deal of the Century.
The national media have not yet even noted the murder attempt, according to a Google search of the intended victim's name at 8:37 AM EDT, three days after the incident.

The extreme hatred for President Trump and Republicans being unceasingly spewed from the left is having its inevitable result, with an attempted murder of a candidate for Congress that was averted only by the faulty equipment employed by the assassin.

In fact, it has taken two days for even the local major media to report, as CBS San Francisco did:

A man was arrested on suspicion of felony assault and other charges after allegedly attempting to stab a Republican congressional candidate with a switchblade over the weekend at in [sic] Castro Valley, according to the Alameda County Sheriff's Office. On Sunday, September 9, at approximately 3:45 p.m., deputies working at the Castro Valley Fall Festival were alerted to a possible knife attack at one of the vendor booths. Deputies arrived at the booth and made contact with the victim, Republican candidate Rudy Peters, who is running against incumbent Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Dublin) for the 15th congressional district seat[.] According to witnesses, 35-year-old Castro Valley resident Farzad Fazeli approached Peters at his booth in an aggressive manner and made disparaging, profanity-laced remarks about the Republican party and President Donald Trump. The Castro Valley News first reported on the attack. During the incident, Fazeli allegedly pulled out a switchblade knife and attempted to stab Peters. The knife malfunctioned and the candidate became involved in a physical struggle with Fazeli, according to sheriff's Sgt. Ray Kelly. The suspect then fled the scene, but was detained a short time later by deputies and was found in possession of a switchblade knife, Kelly said. Fazeli was arrested for felony assault, criminal threats, brandishing a weapon and possession of a switchblade knife and booked into Santa Rita Jail.



Photo credit: Alameda County Sheriff.

Fazeli has a history of political activism on the left discoverable on his social media. Teaparty.org has asssembled some of the evidence:

Remember when Barack Obama piously called for a "new era of civility" following the attempted murder of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords by a deranged man in Tucson? The New York Times gushed:

It was one of the more powerful addresses that Mr. Obama has delivered as president, harnessing the emotion generated by the shock and loss from Saturday's shootings to urge Americans "to expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully" and to "remind ourselves of all the ways that our hopes and dreams are bound together."

Where is he now? His silence, after this display of putative nobility, reveals that it was all for show, for political advantage. A few dead Republicans? Meh?

The opponent of Peters, Eric Swalwell, managed to tweet out his opposition to the attempted murder a mere two days after the incident:

On Sunday, my opponent @PetersCongress was attacked at his campaign booth in Castro Valley. Im glad to hear Mr. Peters is okay. But its NEVER okay to use violence to settle political disagreements (or any disagreement). Fortunately, @ACSOSheriffs arrested the suspect.  Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) September 11, 2018

Imagine for a second that someone had attempted to murder, say, Ammar Campa-Najjar, who is running for Congress against Duncan Hunter, a the Republican incumbent who was just indicted. Do you think the national media would ignore the story for three days?

The failure of the media and Democrats to jump on this story seems to indicate they are not in a hurry to suppress the violence that is being systematically encouraged against Republicans. It is only by the grace of God that a mass slaughter of sitting GOP congressmen was averted last year in Virginia. That story has slipped into the media's memory hole. Quick: Can you name the wannabe assassin who almost changed the makeup of Congress?
At the root of #abortion hysteria is womens unhinged desire for irresponsible sex. Sex is their god. Abortion is their sacrament. Its abhorrent as women have flung themselves from the heights of being the worlds civilizing force to the muck and mire of dehumanizing depravity.

Frequent Fox News guest and cultural commentator D.C. McAllister has been forced into hiding after she posted a tweet denouncing the pro-abortion movement for its "unhinged desire for irresponsible sex."

PJ Media's Tyler O'Neil reports that McCallister received "credible" death and rape threats and, after consultation with her family, has gone into hiding and stopped posting on social media.

As if to prove McAllister's point about depravity, abortion activists jumped on her case, calling her everything from crazy to misogynist to a supporter of "The Handmaid's Tale." But the real danger came from elsewhere. McAllister told PJ Media that she received death and rape threats, over multiple forms of private communication. "They are threats outside of Twitter, stating they know where I live," McAllister said. "Threats of rape and strangling. I spoke to the police. I am on home watch." "My children are very frightened," she added.

You might think that even McAllister's detractors would express some sympathy or outrage. Guess again:

I am facing legit death & rape threats because I have dared to call out women who are hysterical about abortion and to challenge them to be responsible and not to elevate sex to the point that theyre willing to kill human life to avoid their responsibilities. How sick is that?  DC McAllister (@McAllisterDen) September 9, 2018

Some people responded with sympathy ... to the person making the death and rape threats! "People don't react well to your extremism," a user named Monika D. responded. These threats weren't just "bad reactions" to her tweet, however. "These threats arent lame Twitter threats," McAllister explained. "Anyone who says we're not in a culture war is deluded. It's important for us to have each other's backs."

When confronted by internet crazy people, the problem goes beyond any kind of "culture war":

Perhaps during this time you should rethink that wide brush youve used to denigrate disrespect and prejudge so many women with. You can make your point without prejudice. Karma always has a way of putting light on darkness.  Vik (@vjvnam) September 11, 2018

Just who is "unhinged"?

A "pro-choice" activist with 6,500 followers tweeted, "May God have mercy on your soul. I sure would not." Andre Brock, a self-described "writer at large" in Washington state, took it upon himself to tweet, "Too bad your mother didn't have an abortion."

The depravity of these people is beyond belief. It's not a lack of empathy. It's a lack of humanity.

McAllister knows where pro-choice women are coming from:

"I think the hatred for pro-life women is that they expect us to act in solidarity. When we don't, they attack," McAllister told PJ Media. "I also think it goes deeper. Women have the legitimacy to criticize other women in a way men don't. When we speak honestly like I have, they hate it because they know what I'm saying is true." "That's especially true in my own case because I've been in the exact position as many women who want abortions," she added. "I know how I got to that point. The choices I made. I know the fear of an unplanned pregnancy. I also know the irresponsible choices I made to get myself into that situation. I own it." Abortion may involve some perverse form of empowerment for women, but power comes with responsibility. "I want women to own their responsibilities for their freedoms," McAllister explained. "One of those responsibilities is when you choose to have sex, even with birth control, you have the responsibility to be prepared for the possibility of pregnancy." "You can't just end another human life because you didn't want to be responsible  all because you put a higher value on having sex than on human life," she said.

I don't think anyone can articulate a responsible, powerful pro-life position any better than that.

Police are investigating the threats against McAllister. Until they catch the lunatic, she will remain in hiding with her family and off social media.
But when it comes to the government speaking out against anti-Semitism, liberals suddenly feel the chilling effect of government intervention. Jews, treated as a nonexistent minority group under Obama, have suddenly been discovered by the Trump Education Department, which has liberals outraged .

Liberals feel that government intrusion into schools on behalf of blacks, Hispanics, gays, lesbians, women, and men disguised as women can never be a bad thing. Under Obama , the Education Department tried to make it harder to suspend black students who were disruptive (or even violent) in the classroom. It pressured schools to persecute students accused of date rape without traditional standards of evidence afforded in criminal proceedings. It also famously tried to pressure schools to let disguised boys into girls' bathrooms.

The new head of civil rights at the Education Department has reopened a seven-year-old case brought by a Zionist group against Rutgers University, saying the Obama administration, in closing the case, ignored evidence that suggested the school allowed a hostile environment for Jewish students. In so doing, the Education Department embraced Judaism as an ethnicity and adopted a hotly contested definition of anti-Semitism that included "denying the Jewish people the right to self-determination" by, for example, "claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor" and "applying double standards by requiring of" Israel "a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation." In effect, Arab-American activists say, the government is declaring the Palestinian cause anti-Semitic.

That's because the Palestinian cause, predicated on Israel's destruction, is anti-Semitic. Congratulations: The Times has stumbled onto the truth!

Mr. Marcus [the assistant secretary of education for civil rights]'s confirmation was opposed by more than 60 civil rights organizations who expressed concern that his view of civil rights, and whose should take priority, was too narrow.

In other words, he's not with them because he'll also defend Jews, who shouldn't be a "priority." Even worse, he won't stand up for the right of boys to insist on using girls' locker rooms.

Mr. Marcus supports scaled-back protections for transgender students and rejects that policies could have "disparate impact" on racial and other groups, and his organization has filed amicus briefs challenging affirmative action.

Liberals claim to stand for the civil rights of all, but if you're Jewish, or white, or male, they're not interested in any allegations of bias. That's because they are racial supremacists, using "equality" and "diversity" as code words to push their tribalist agenda. (Is it racist to say "tribalist" in this context? Will the P.C. police come after me? I sure hope not!)

Ed Straker is the senior editor of the Newsmachete Twitter Feed.
With all that power, it was also famous for its incompetence and corruption, in that it had a problem obeying rules other people obeyed and always got away with it. Gold King Mine on the very yellow Animas River, anyone? That also applies to the behavior of its Obamaton leaders, who communicated with secret email accounts (remember Richard Windsor ?) and got rewarded with fabulous Silicon Valley social media jobs in the revolving-door aftermath. They were amply augmented in their activities by the Obama State Department and the Obama National Security Council, which conducted business pretty much the same way.

Under President Obama, the Environmental Protection Agency grew to gargantuan proportions, issuing 4,000 regulations, adding more than 33,000 pages to the Federal Register, and dumping $50 billion in compliance costs on business, making itself one of the biggest and most powerful agencies in the U.S. government  quite a feat for an organization without a Cabinet seat.

Now it turns out this same corrupt bunch is at it again, in a new Competitive Enterprise Institute report called "Government for Rent," put on by the respected Christopher C. Horner.

According to the Washington Examiner's Paul Bedard:

A shadow government made up of former Obama climate change aides and funded by wealthy environmental advocates is supplementing liberal governors in an "off-the-books" operation to help them win approval of sweeping global warming changes and defy President Trump, according to a new investigative report. In it's [sic] "Government for Rent" report, the Competitive Enterprise Institute published dozens of emails detailing the scheme and the efforts by governments to have the activists draw up official state climate change agenda paid for by private donations. The report, written by Christopher C. Horner, a senior fellow CEI, focuses on this week's Global Climate Action Summit hosted by California Gov. Jerry Brown and co-chaired by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, United Nations representatives, and others, that is being produced by outside interests. "The summit is part of a larger scheme, in which governors' offices are coordinating with activists and donors, who in turn are underwriting a massive, off-the-books campaign to provide staff and other resources to elected officials," said CEI.

Billionaire lefties are supposed to pay for it, with a spare $50 million they have lying around, but the Deep-Staters involved have gotten themselves free office space and other emoluments based on their political connections, the better to foist their plan onto us unawares.

According to Bedard, Horner warned that it was a shadow Cabinet amounting to another de facto Deep-State bid to Get Trump. As if there weren't enough of those already:

"Public records reveal a sprawling dark money enterprise to underwrite governors' political advocacy for implementing the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement and the climate change agenda more broadly, because as some staffers said, 'it can't always be us staff,'" said Horner. "This unprecedented scheme of activist donors bankrolling governors committed to advancing their climate agenda is very concerning. It raises serious questions about the use of public offices to serve private interests, transparency and the reporting of these dollars, compliance with gift laws applying to elected officials, and restrictions on private financing of official activities."

See, they can't justify their existence without the Paris Climate Agreement, and thus, they are organizing in secret to act as a Deep State that can get it through by other means  by any means necessary, in fact.

This is about par for the Obama environmental crowd, which never got any punishment for its sneaky, off-the-books activities at the Environmental Protection Agency, and the State Department, come to think of it, as well as the unmaskings-happy Obama National Security Council. What it shows is that unpunished activity, and a lefty Alinskyite by-any-means-necessary mentality, has an amazing capacity to morph into something as legally questionable as this effort to undercut President Trump, complete with taxpayer financing.

Back in the George W. Bush days, when I was a journalist, I would occasionally meet with Bush Cabinet officials and would always notice how scrupulous they were about not politicizing those offices, being there to serve all the people, being there to execute Congress's laws faithfully. I never got a partisan word from any of them. That apparently has been thrown out the window in proof of how Obama, like Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, managed to politicize the government. That politicization was not only not sanctioned, but extended, to what we see today in the shadow government. We never heard about shadow governments seeking to undercut an elected president before Obama, did we? It's because they no longer think it necessary to hide their politics.

If this isn't a signal to shut the whole mess down and start busting miscreants, what is?
Julia Salazar began her campaign claiming to be a Colombian immigrant of working-class origins, a Jew who supports abortion rights, a graduate of Columbia University, a pro-choice advocate, and a supporter of a Palestinian state.

A New York state Senate race that features a democratic socialist cut from the same cloth as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has become the most entertaining political race in the country.

The reality is slightly different.

New York Daily News:

Salazar's campaign materials had implied she graduated from Columbia University, but when questioned by the New York Times, she said she had completed her coursework but never graduated. During her time at Columbia, Salazar  now running as a progressive Democrat of Jewish faith who supports abortion rights and the people of Palestine  was a Christian right-to-life activist who supported Israel. While she had campaigned as a Colombian immigrant, she was born in the United States to an American mother and Colombian father. Her statements about a working class upbringing have also been called into question by statements from her brother and mother who said the family did not struggle financially. In fact, the family owned a home next door to Mets legend Keith Hernandez  and Salazar was embroiled in a bizarre legal battle with the ballplayer and his ex-wife that included a claim of an affair, which Salazar has denied, and a libel lawsuit involving accusations of drug use, bank theft and pilfered Pottery Barn vouchers.

One leftist political party has withdrawn its support of Salazar, citing her lying about her academic record. The Citizens Union Party pulled its endorsement:

"Citizens Union is hereby rescinding the preference it expressed for Julia Salazar in the Democratic Primary for New York State Senate District 18," Randy Mastro, the chair of the group, said in a statement. "Salazar recently admitted that the information she originally provided to Citizens Union about her academic credentials was not correct, so Citizens Union has decided to express no preference in this race."

Salazar's response is a classic:

A campaign spokesman called it an "error in her endorsement application." "Julia regrets that an error in her endorsement application led to Citizens Union rescinding its endorsement, but remains committed to working with Citizens Union and others opposed to Albany corruption if elected to take money out of politics and clean up Albany," he said.

I've heard a lot of excuses from politicians for lying, but that one takes the prize.

Salazar is hardly finished. She's attempting to latch on to the #MeToo movement by claiming she was sexually assaulted by an Israeli official.

Jezebel:

New York State Senate candidate Julia Salazar has accused David Keyes, the spokesperson to foreign media for the Prime Minister of Israel, of sexual assault. But her reasons for coming forward now, she tells Jezebel, weren't really on her own terms. Salazar first posted the allegations on Twitter, writing, "I've been informed that a story is about to run which identifies me as a victim of sexual assault. Before this runs, I want to come forward and confirm that I was a victim of sexual assault by David Keyes  the Prime Minister of Israel's spokesperson to foreign media." Salazar continued: "This story appears to be an effort to cast doubt upon my, and other women's, accusations against Keyes." Multiple attempts by Jezebel to contact Keyes were unsuccessful at press time; we will update this post if we hear back. He commented on the allegations to Haaretz, saying, "This false accusation is made by someone who has proven to be repeatedly dishonest about her own life. This is yet another example of her dishonesty."

OK  "he said, she said," right? Not exactly. Apparently, Salazar first posted the accusation on Facebook back in 2016 and then quickly deleted the post after the Times of Israel picked up the story. It gets even more bizarre. The Daily Caller went with the story after some weird reactions from the candidate:

"We asked for confirmation, as reporters from other outlets have in the past, and received confirmation. We never received any request to not print her identity, and indeed did not before she issued a public statement. In past stories on the sensitive issue of sexual assault of both public and private individuals, we have declined to print without permission from the alleged victim." But the email, published by the Daily Caller in a story on its website, paints a contrary account. "I have sources telling me Julia was behind the sexual misconduct accusations lobbied against David Keyes in 2016. She later deleted the social media posts with the accusations," Simonson wrote to Salazar's campaign in his request for comment. "A description of the accuser in a Times of Israel piece also perfectly matches Julia. Why did she delete these accusations? Does she still stand by them? My deadline is in one hour."

Im about to be outed as a survivor of sexual assault. Here is what I have to say about that: pic.twitter.com/WFjNhzBee8  Julia Salazar for State Senate (@SalazarSenate18) September 11, 2018

As Keyes pointed out, the accusation comes from someone "who has proven to be repeatedly dishonest about her own life." Enough said.

This doesn't mean the sexual assault incident by Keyes (described in detail by Jezebel) didn't happen. It means that Salazar has zero credibility and any accusations will have to be backed up by more than just her word.

Salazar is running against a 16-year incumbent whom she accuses of working with Republicans too much in Albany. That may be so, and her campaign has certainly energized the far left in her district. But given the string of lies she has told about her past, can even rabid leftists put aside the serial lies and exaggerations to vote for her?

Don't be surprised if she pulls the upset.
And as Venezuelans grow hungry from the economic mismanagement of socialist policies, whether through the devaluation of their currency, or the price and currency controls that have triggered shortages, losing an average of 19 pounds in the ordeal, sure enough, Venezuela's socialists have found a new way to get rich. According to the BBC:

For socialists, socialism isn't about equality: It's about getting rich.

The US has accused Venezuela's government of stealing from a state-run food programme while its own people go hungry. Marshall Billingslea, a US treasury official, said Venezuelan government officials were over-charging for food. He said corruption by President Nicolas Maduro and his inner circle had "impoverished millions" of Venezuelans. The Venezuelan government blames US sanctions for the food shortages the country is experiencing. Mr Billingslea, who is the Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing at the US treasury department, accused President Maduro of "rapacious corruption" and of operating "a kleptocracy".

I have not found any information about this so-called state food program, but there were some when I visited Venezuela in late 2005. One was called Mercal, which was put in place to provide discount foods to the poor because the small local groceries were supposedly charging too much. The 25% to 50% state-store discount put those mom-and-pops out of business, leaving just the government food programs, run by Venezuela's military. With their monopoly established, the stealing opportunity was there, given that there would be no need to satisfy customers, either through price or availability of goods.

Which would match the U.S. official's description of Chavista socialist elites overcharging for food while the country starves.

Chavista socialist elites have always been famous for their stealing. The U.S. is currently investigating massive amounts of thievery around Miami from Venezuela's state oil company, according to many reports. Like any bank robbers, the greediest ones go where the money is. But downwind, the Chavista elites steal, too, because socialism is essentially about thievery; I mean, 'redistribution.' They do it with votes, too.

What we see here is a particularly horrific example of the rapacious nature of socialism. They steal even the food from the starving people. As President Trump said at the United Nations recently: Venezuela's socialism hasn't failed because it wasn't properly implemented. It failed because it was faithfully implemented.

Obviously, stealing does that. Are you listening, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez?
President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday insisted that a President cannot delegate the power to grant amnesty to a Cabinet official and that the amnesty granted to Senator Antonio Trillanes IV in 2011 was invalid because it was signed by then-Defense secretary Voltaire Gazmin. An act of pardon or amnesty is an act of the State which cannot be done by a mere Cabinet member, said Duterte in a tete-a-tete with Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo. At the time, President Benigno Aquino III designated Gazmin to form a committee to determine if Trillanes and others who had taken part in the 2003 Oakwood mutiny should be granted an amnesty. And that committee came up with the resolution to grant amnesty... The problem is after recommending, Gazmin signed the amnesty itself, Duterte said. Panelo said based on existing jurisprudence, in particular, the decision of former Supreme Court Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban in the case of Constantino vs Cuisia, there are certain powers vested in the President that cannot be delegated to an alter-ego. There are certain presidential powers which arise out of exceptional circumstances, and if exercised, would involve the suspension of fundamental freedoms, or at least call for the supersedence of executive prerogatives over those exercised by co-equal branches of government, Panelo said, quoting Panganibans decision. Duterte said the criminal complaint of rebellion against Trillanes was very serious. So an act of amnesty is always an act of state that cannot be done by a mere Cabinet member. Especially, if that Cabinet member was one of those who investigated and approved the recommendation, Duterte said. While Aquino was within his rights to authorize Gazmin to investigate the case, it was wrong to let him sign the amnesty, he said. To authorize him to investigate, I will concede to that. But the act of granting amnesty with Gazmin and Congress concurring, its just baffling. I dont know how to reconcile it, Duterte said. Trillanes taunted Duterte, saying the President seemed obsessed with him, mentioning his name more than 100 times in his tete-a-tete. To counter the Presidents assertion, he showed reporters a two-page copy of his amnesty bearing President Aquinos signature. Trillanes also hit Duterte for casting aspersions on his mother for alleged deals with the Navy. I cant understand why he would drag my parents in this fight. Stick with me, Mr. Duterte, he said. He denied any impropriety in his mothers dealings. They raised me properly. Maybe if they were corrupt, I would be too, but Im not, he said in Filipino. Trillanes also criticized the President for comparing what he had done for the military as the Chief Executive, as against what he as a senator had done. The Palace earlier hit back at former presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda for defending Gazmins involvement as a lawful act of a government official. In a press briefing, Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque cited the 1939 case of Villena v. Secretary of the Interior, where the court ruled that there are certain constitutional powers and prerogatives that must only be exercised by the Chief Executive of the nation in person. No amount of approval or ratification will validate the exercise of any of those powers by any other person, said Roque. The power to grant amnesty, like the power to grant pardon, must be exercised by the President in person, he said.On Saturday, Lacierda said Gazmins role was purely administrative, and that there was nothing irregular in his signature on Trillanes amnesty. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court denied Trillanes plea for a temporary restraining order to prevent his arrest, saying it was unnecessary. The Court took judicial notice of President Dutertes categorical pronouncement that the senator would not be arrested, unless a warrant of arrest has been issued by a trial court. Nonetheless, the Court ordered respondents from the executive department to file their comment on Trillanes petition within 10 days. Newly designated SC spokesman Gleoresty Guerra said the Court did not see the urgency to act on Trillanes petition as it considered the Presidents categorical pronouncement that Senator Trillanes will not be apprehended, detained or taken into custody unless a warrant of arrest has been issued by the trial court. The order for respondents to comment on Trillanes plea means the Court will still rule on the merits of the case. The Supreme Court ruling also means two Makati courts hearing the coup cases against Trillanes may proceed. Makati regional trial court Branch 148 is set to resolve the motion of Justice Department prosecutors seeking the issuance of an arrest warrant against Trillanes for the continuation of promulgation of the case against him and also issuance of a hold departure order against him. The trial court earlier deferred acting on the motion until the Supreme Court had decided on the plea for a TRO. Branch 150, on the other hand, has already denied the DoJs motions for the issuance of an arrest warrant and an HDO, but still set a hearing to decide whether or not to reopen the rebellion case. Dutertes Proclamation 572 nullified Amnesty Proclamation No. 75 issued by Aquino to absolve Trillanes of criminal liability in staging failed coup detats against former President and now House Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Dutertes proclamation declared void ab initio (from the start) the grant of amnesty to Trillanes for his supposed failure to file the official amnesty application form and expressly admit his guilt for the crimes he committed. Trillanes said the Supreme Court decision enabled Duterte to save face but noted that the justices did not deny his petition outright, and instead asked government lawyers to comment on it. In a media briefing, Trillanes described the carefully worded SC decision as an initial victory. We are grateful that they showed some semblance of independence. They could have outrightly dismissed the petition altogether. But they knew that we presented a strong case and the proclamation is badly flawed, Trillanes said. Trillanes said if he were arrested the moment he left the Senate premises, this would be open defiance of the Supreme Court decision and that those who tried to take him in could be charged with the illegal arrest. Trillanes also accused Solicitor General Jose Calida of resorting to fraud and gross misrepresentation of facts and evidence. Theres really falsification of documents here, said Trillanes. Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, on the other hand, lauded the decision of the Supreme Court to deny Trillanes plea. Guevarra said that the Court en bancs decision showed that the Court recognizes that the issue of the validity of President Dutertes order revoking the amnesty of Trillanes involves factual questions that only the trial courts may properly resolve. In the process, the Supreme Court has also acknowledged the trial courts continuing jurisdiction over the coup detat and rebellion cases, he said.
In ancient times, Greek merchants sailed all around the Mediterranean Sea carrying goods from Spain to Phoenicia and from Carthage to Egypt and Italy. Even when trading between Greek towns traders preferred to travel by sea, because the country is so mountainous that transporting things by ox-driven carts, up and down the mountains was extremely challenging.

These sea-faring merchants had a particularly difficult time reaching Athens, especially from the Gulf of Corinth. Those who are not familiar with the geography of this region, here is a map of Greece and the surrounding seas.

As you can see from the map, a large peninsula called the Peloponnese hangs from the southern end of the Greek mainland by a narrow neck of an isthmus, preventing ships from reaching the all important Port of Piraeus, situated a short distance away from Athens. To reach Athens and other ports in the Saronic Gulf, ships had to take a nearly 700-kilometer-long detour around Peloponnesea journey that was not only long but dangerous as well. Gale-force winds around Cape Matapan and Cape Maleas often troubled sailors. On the other hand, both the Gulf of Corinth and the Saronic Gulf were relatively calm and the narrow strip of landthe Isthmus of Corinthseparating both the water bodies was only 6.4 km wide at its narrowest.

The idea of a shortcut through this narrow neck of land was considered at different times by different rulers. At first a canal was proposed, but when digging became too difficult the Greeks decided that they would rather drag a ship over dry land then sail around the Peloponnese.

And so a limestone trackway called the Diolkos was built. History is silent about its construction, so we dont know when that happened, but by investigating letters and broken pottery excavated from the site, archeologists have arrived at a date in the vicinity of late 7th or early 6th century BC. This was a time when the tyrant Periander ruled over Corinth. So Periander is often attributed to its construction, but the evidence is only circumstantial.

One thing we know for sure is that the Diolkos is really old, for when the Greek historian Thucydides (460 BC395 BC) wrote about the Diolkos, he already described it as something ancient.

The Diolkos ran straight across the narrowest portion of the isthmus, close to where the modern Corinth Canal was dug. It was about 6 meters wide and was paved of hard limestone. Ships were probably loaded unto some sort of a wheeled platform and by using muscle power, of either human or animals or both, was dragged across the isthmus. To reduce the weight of the ship, the cargo was unloaded before the ship was hoisted onto the Diolkos, and the unloaded commodities hauled separately across land. On reaching the trackways terminus the ship was lowered into the sea, the cargo was loaded again, and the ship continued with its journey.

Photo credit: www.corinth-museum.gr

Aside from commerce, the Diolkos played an important role in naval warfare between the 5th and the 1st century BC. In the Peloponnesian War, in 411 BC, the Spartans carted over a squadron, and in 220 BC, Demetrius of Pharos had a fleet of about fifty vessels dragged across the Isthmus to the Bay of Corinth by his men. Three years later, a Macedonian fleet of 38 vessels was sent across by Philip V, while the larger warships sailed around Cape Malea. In 31 BC, during the Battle of Actium, the first Roman Emperor Octavian advanced as fast as possible against the forces of Marc Antony and Cleopatra by ordering part of his 260-strong fleet to be carried over the Isthmus.

The Diolkos remained in regular service until at least the middle of the 1st century AD, after which it suddenly disappeared from written records. Its assumed that when Emperor Nero started digging a canal in 67 AD, the work disrupted the service of the Diolkos and parts of the trackway was possibly damaged. Neros men managed to dig some 700 meters when the sudden death of Nero put the canal project in limbo.

It took another 1,800 years before a canal could be realized. The Corinth Canal was opened in 1893, and was predicted to attract a great volume of marine traffic. Unfortunately, the canal was built too narrow making it unusable for anything but small cruise ships. Today, the canal is a mere tourist attraction.

Photo credit: Dan Diffendale/Flickr

Photo credit: Dan Diffendale/Flickr

The Corinth Canal. Photo credit: John Cook/Flickr
In short: Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich opened an investigation into Googles practice of tracking its Android users in an extensive manner, according to a public filing from late August. The probe is centered on potential violations of the Consumer Fraud Act stemming from the fact that owners of Android devices are often being tracked by Google even after specifically opting out of sharing their location data. The 1967 legislation allows the state of Arizona to fine Google up to $10,000 per individual violation. Acting Division Chief Brunn Roysden and Section Chief O.H. Skinner are leading the probe.

Background: On the date of the newly reported filing, Google was named as a defendant in a civil lawsuit against the very same Android tracking practices. The plaintiff is still seeking class-action status from a state court in San Diego, alleging violations of the California Invasion of Privacy Act and the U.S. Constitution. Both developments came a week after the Associated Press published an investigation suggesting Googles Android tracking practices are misleading and dishonest, with most mobile users being unaware that the firm is keeping tabs on them even if they specifically acted to prevent that behavior. In response to the probe, Google said its user privacy controls are prominently featured and allow users to delete their tracking histories at any time, adding that its only tracking users when other apps override their default privacy controls, e.g. in a scenario wherein user disabled their location tracking but then asked for directions from Google Maps.

The impact: With a population of seven million, Arizona is a home to millions of Android users, meaning the Attorney Generals investigation could theoretically cost Google over a billion dollars, though that outcome is still unlikely even if Alphabets subsidiary was found guilty of violating the Consumer Fraud Act. The larger litigation wave aimed against its Android tracking practices may still prompt a privacy-focused overhaul of the operating system in the near future.
Samsung.com is currently selling its popular Fast Charge Wireless Charging Stand for just $32.44. This is a great price for this charging stand, since you are saving about $28 off of the regular price. This is also a fast charge wireless stand, so its going to work well with Samsungs latest and greatest smartphones like the Galaxy Note 9, Galaxy S8 and others.

This wireless charging stand is a great looking one. It is made of plastic, and that is because plastic works better with wireless charging then glass or metal does. It stands your phone up, so you can use it like a dock next to your bed or even on your desk. With this stand, you can charge your phone in landscape or portrait mode, which is pretty useful, in case you do decide to watch a video on your phone while its charging. Now this stand does use Qi for wireless charging, so that means that it will work with other smartphones out there that also support Qi wireless charging. That includes the LG G7 ThinQ, LG V30, Xiaomi Mi MIX 2S and many other devices. This is a great price for this wireless charging stand, especially if youve been looking to grab one that is a fast charge-compatible, and it wont be available for long.

This is sold by Samsungs official website, so you are getting the real thing here and not a knockoff. Additionally, Samsung does offer the ability to buy a warranty  outside of the manufacturer warranty  for this device. So you can protect your purchase. Samsung also has a slew of accessories that you can pick up and use for this device. Samsungs website also offers free two-day shipping on all items purchased on its website. On top of that, they only collect sales tax in a few states.
In short: Google debuted dual-language support not too long ago, allowing users to use two languages simultaneously on the Google Home. This was a good thing for those that use two languages in their home. However, it appears that support is now broken. According to multiple users on reddit, when talking to the Google Assistant, they are only getting answers in one language. Some are noting that theyll ask questions in another language like German, and Google Assistant will answer in English. Which is a bit strange to say the least.

Background: In August, Google unveiled dual-language support for Google Assistant and Google Home. Allowing users to setup two languages on the device at the same time. So those in Canada could use Canadian French and English at the same time, or a number of other languages as well. It worked well for a little while. But about a week ago, many users started noticing that it was no longer working. This is pretty typical  unfortunately  for Google when it rolls out new features. The new features typically break pretty quickly, and it can sometimes take quite some time before Google is able to fix that feature and get it back up and running. Google has not yet responded to this issue, so its unclear when this might be fixed.

The impact: This isnt going to be a big deal for the majority of Google Assistant users. Seeing as it is a very small percentage that is using this dual-language feature on the Google Home. But it is a bit frustrating that it is no longer working properly for those that do want to use it. For now, users will need to manually switch between different languages, if they do want to use more than one. Which can be an annoyance, but thats the way it needs to be done.
Google had announced a New York event for October 9 last week, during which the company plans to announce new Pixel 3 devices, and the company has just done the same or Europe. The company has started sending out invites for an October 9 event in Paris, during which the company will show off the same phones that are planned for New York, quite probably, though this will be a presentation for Europe, basically.

This is rather interesting, as Google did not host such a conference in Europe in previous years, the company simply announced that its Pixel phones are available in parts of Europe via a press release, and that was it. The fact that Google plans to host a press conference in Paris actually proves that it will put more focus on Europe this time around, that it plans to make a more significant push when it comes to Pixel sales in Europe. Now, the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL are expected to be announced in both New York and Paris, simultaneously, but those two phones will probably not be the only hardware that Google will announce. In addition to that, we may see some new Google Home hardware announced on October 9, and when it comes to Europe, the company may announce wider availability for some of its products.

The Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL have been leaking or weeks now, and so much info leaked, especially when it comes to the Pixel 3 XL, that we pretty much know exactly what to expect. The Google Pixel 3 XL will sport a rather large display notch on the display, while the Pixel 3 will not, but it will have thicker bezels above and below the display. On the back, the two phones will look pretty much identical compared one to the other, both will sport a single camera on the back, and a fingerprint scanner as well. Android 9 Pie will come pre-installed on both devices, while both phones will be fueled by the Snapdragon 845. If youd like to know more about the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL, feel free to check out our preview article for those two phones.
In short: Google announced today that it is shutting down its Inbox email app in about six months, March 2019. The service will stop working in March  though no specific date in March has been announced. Google has already brought many features from Inbox over to Gmail, so one might say that it was inevitable that Google would kill off Inbox. However, there is a pretty big following for Inbox, so Google may face some backlash here.

Background: About four years ago, to the day, the Gmail team announced Inbox. It was an off-shoot email app that was developed by the Gmail team, and would feature a ton of great features that made it easier to get through your email each day. This included better sorting for email, as well as the ability to snooze emails to come back to your inbox tomorrow, next week or even a few months from now. Inbox made it easier to deal with all of the email that we get every single day. What started out as an invite-only service, turned into a pretty popular email app.

The impact: This means that for those that use Inbox for their email, theyll need to look elsewhere to deal with email. Whether that is going back to the Gmail app, or using a third-party app/service. Many will likely go back to using the Gmail app, which did get a nice Material Design makeover a few months ago, and has also incorporated a number of Inboxs features already. So its not the end of the world. These types of things happen with Google quite regularly. Google will unveil a number of services and/or products, but not all of them will remain long-term. Back in 2012, Google announced it was killing off Google Reader in early 2013 as part of its Spring Cleaning and there were all kinds of petitions being signed and so forth, but that didnt keep Google Reader from being killed off.
Xiaomis sub-brand Pocophone clarified in a series of tweets posted yesterday that its Poco F1 Android flagship is not only splash resistant but also supports faster charging speeds with Qualcomm Quick Charge 4.0. While the smartphone has gathered immense popularity within weeks of its existence, the lack of water resistance has been pointed out as a cost-cutting measure to keep its pricing low. It turns out that Pocophone did implement the feature but hadnt revealed any of its details during the launch event, leading everyone to believe in its absence. Nevertheless, the companys Twitter handle clarified that the handset comes covered with a liquid repellent coating provided by P2i, which should ideally keep the phone safe from water splashes and accidental spills, though dunking in water isnt recommended as it can potentially cause severe internal damages.

Another feature of the Poco F1 that the company revealed only yesterday is the support for Quick Charge 4.0, despite the fact that Xiaomi had previously confirmed otherwise stating the maximum charging speed supported by the device is capped up to Quick Charge 3.0. The official Twitter handle of Poco India informed that Quick Charge 4.0 is indeed supported, though the included wall charger is certified only for Quick Charge 3.0 with its maximum output of 18W. The Poco F1 owners who want a faster charging speed for that massive 4,000mAh battery will have to go for aftermarket solutions that are Quick Charge 4.0 enabled. Another thing that Poco F1 users living outside India are complaining about is the missing facial recognition feature. Jani Mani, the Head of Product at Pocophone, confirmed in a tweet that the company is working on an OTA update to enable the said feature for all the regions.

Besides this, Mani also revealed that the phones bottom-firing primary speaker includes a pair of smart power amplifiers to achieve the level of loudness it offers; another feature that wasnt previously announced. The devices earpiece also works together with the primary speaker to offer a stereo effect. Xiaomi made the Poco F1 official late last month with high-end internals like Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset, up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of expandable storage at an astonishing starting price of $300. The handset has been well received in certain markets where it is already on sale and the Chinese company is in the process of making it available in many more global markets.

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https://twitter.com/IndiaPOCO/status/1039491890029256706

Two small things: 1. We're planning to OTA face unlock for other regions, you can enable by setting it to India Advertisement 2. It's more of a "stereo-like" effect. Main audio is the bottom speakerit's crazy loud b/c we have 2x smart power amps. We made a mistake not clarifying at launch.  Jai Mani (@jaimani) September 12, 2018
In short: T-Mobile and Ericsson announced a multi-year $3.5 billion deal to build out T-Mobiles 5G network. As part of this deal, Ericsson would be providing T-Mobile with the latest 5G New Radio hardware, and software compliant with the 3GPP Standards. This is a pretty big deal for both companies, particularly for T-Mobile is it looking to get its 5G network up and running pretty soon.

Background: T-Mobile has already announced that it will have a number of markets lit up with 5G connectivity in 2019. The company has also announced its plans to be among the first to have a nationwide 5G network. And by getting these 5G New Radios from Ericsson, it means that the carrier will be able to light up its network even sooner. Ericsson also noted that the deal with T-Mobile also includes its digital services solutions, including dynamic orchestration, business support systems and Ericsson Cloud Core. This is going to allow T-Mobile to launch innovative and groundbreaking 5G experiences to its customers pretty quickly, without needing to do a ton of tower upgrades.

The impact: 5G is going to be delivering faster speeds with lower latencies than what 4G LTE is able to provide. And by partnering up with Ericsson, T-Mobile is able to show its customers that it is serious about 5G and working hard to launch its 5G network. T-Mobile is also hoping to use this deal to help persuade regulators to approve the deal with Sprint. T-Mobile and Sprint announced its plan to merge back in April, which is a pretty risky decision, considering regulators have been dead set against allowing carriers to combine, as it doesnt want less carriers, in fact it wants more carriers and competition. But this deal should help T-Mobile get the deal approved, which would also help Ericsson.
There are quite a few cloud storage applications available in the Play Store, and the same goes for cloud storage services. Well, we did our best to select the best ones for you, weve hand-picked 10 applications from the Google Play Store, and theyre listed down below. Do keep in mind that these apps are not listed in any particular order, and that the vast majority of them are actually tied to their very own cloud services, as expected. With that in mind, lets get started, and see whats on offer.

Google Drive

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The first app on this list comes from Google, and chances are youve not only heard of it, but used it at some point. You get 15GB of free Google Drive storage with your Google account, and you can store whatever you like on it. You can, of course, buy more storage if you want. If youd like to save some storage for files that are not images and videos, using Google Photos app may be a good choice, as it offers unlimited backup for images and video, and that leaves these 15GB of Google Drive storage for regular files you may want to back up.

Microsoft OneDrive

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Microsoft One Drive, as its name says, comes from Microsoft, and it was formerly known as SkyDrive. Microsofts cloud app had been redesigned a while back, and it now offers a really slick-looking, Material Design UI for you to enjoy. You will need Microsofts account in order to use OneDrive, and much like Google Drive, it allows you to back up pretty much anything you want, while youre also getting an integration with some of Microsofts other services.

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Dropbox

Dropbox is one of the best-known cloud storage services out there, and it offers similar functionality to the first two apps weve talked about. Much like on Google Drive and OneDrive, you can send links to files using Dropbox, even to people who do not have a Dropbox account, so that they can download those files and check them out if necessary. Dropbox comes with 2GB of space, though you can get more by completing some tasks for the company. You can also buy more storage, of course, if you need it.

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Box

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Box is also considered to be one of the most popular cloud backup services, even though its used primarily by enterprises. In any case, Box app is quite capable and well-designed, its UI is flat and easy to use. Box comes with 10GB of free storage, and if youd like to get more, you will need to pay. This app comes with a ton of features built-in, just like the three apps weve mentioned before it.

G Cloud Backup

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G Cloud Backup comes with 7GB of free cloud storage, and a daily 50MB bonus that you can take advantage of. This app is also well-designed, and it has a flat UI, which makes using it easier. This app allows you to backup contacts, messages, photos, videos, call logs, documents and so on. Sharing is built into the app, of course, while passcode protection is also built in.

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Unclouded  Cloud Manager

Unclouded is actually a cloud manager apps. Think of this app as a file manager application for your cloud storage services, as this app supports various cloud storage services, including Google Drive, OneDrive, Box, and MEGA. Dropbox does not work at the moment, in case you were wondering. Unclouded brings a really nice design to the table, while it allows you to manage your cloud storages in one place, so that you dont have a number of apps installed.

Amazon Drive

Amazon Drive is Amazons very own cloud storage application, which also offers a flat UI, and all of your basic cloud storage services. You can upload pretty much anything to Amazon Cloud using this application, no matter if were talking about photos, videos, or documents of some sort. This app allows you to share files via links to people you want to have them, just like a number of other apps from the list.

100 GB Free Cloud Drive from Degoo

Degoo Backup AB company offers its own cloud storage to consumers, and the companys app with a rather odd name is available in the Play Store. This cloud storage is actually quite popular, and the company is offering a whopping 100GB of free cloud storage to its consumers, which may explain its popularity. The app itself is well-designed, and this cloud storage app functions more or less like all the other ones out there.

pCloud: Free Cloud Storage

pCloud is offering 10GB of free cloud storage to its consumers, though you can extend that to 20GB for free, you can find more info regarding that on the companys website (my.pcloud.com). In any case, this app can backup your camera photos and videos automatically, while it support cross-platform sync as well. This app also comes with a built-in music player, and the app is available for Android, iOS, Windows, MacOS, and Linux though you can access its content via pretty much any browser out there.

MEGA

MEGA is a cloud storage which has been out there for quite some time now, and it puts a huge focus on security. This app comes with 50GB of free storage, while your data is encrypted and decrypted by your device only, MEGA does not have access to it and thats a feature that attracted quite a few consumers to this application. MEGA also offers various subscription models if 50GB is not enough or you, you can get 1TB of storage for 9.99 a month, for example.
Taiwan is generally regarded as a First World country and is one of the worlds foremost industrial and trading nations. Yet, not so long agomore precisely, almost 70 years agothat was not the case. In September 1949, Taiwanchristened Formosa by the colonizing Portuguesewas just one of the larger islands off the Chinese mainland. Then in the following month, Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shak and his Nationalist army, beaten by the Communist troops led by Mao Tse-tung, crossed the Formosa Strait and established a government on Taiwan. Thus was the island-state born. The Chiang group came to an island that was relatively small and had minimal natural resources. Taiwan is largely mountainous, and whatever cultivable land it has is found along the islands coastal areas. The total area available for agriculture is just over 200,000 hectaresthat wasnt much land by any standard. Realizing that the first order of business was to provide enough food for his beleaguered army, the Generalissimo decreed that the highest priority, after the strengthening of Taiwans defenses, was the development of the islands agriculture. Whatever land and water existed were to be used in the most efficient manner possible. All the necessary agricultural production inputs besides waterespecially credit, agricultural extension and marketing assistancewere to be made available by the government to ensure the highest possible yield per hectare of land. It was a case of, literally, all hands to the flow, and the government was closely monitoring the progress of the farmers. It is not out of place to mention here that some of Taiwans agricultural officials and technicians were sent to this country to enroll in courses at the University of the Philippines Los Banos (UPLB). It was not long before the single-mindedness and determination of the Nationalist government began to bear fruit. Self-sufficiency in rice, corn, vegetables and other agricultural products was soon attained, and Taiwan no longer needed food aid from friendly countries, particularly the Communists arch-enemy, the US. Not only that. Since it now had enough rice and other agricultural products to feed the Taiwanese people, and because Taiwan badly needed foreign exchange, the island-state embarked on export trade in agricultural products, especially rice. Taiwan became, and remain, an important exporter of rice. That surely is not bad for a country that had very little cultivable land, had limited water resources, had a start-from-scratch administrative infrastructure and was short of foreign exchange. Since it first attained rice self-sufficiency, Taiwan has not had to import a single grain of that.Comparisons are odious, but in view of what is happening in this country todayand of how unstable the rice situation isa comparison between the agricultural experiences of Taiwan and the Philippine is both inevitable and instinctive. This country is one of the worlds biggest importers of ricetotal imports will probably be 500,000 metric tons in 2018despite the 3,000,000 hectares of land devoted to the cultivation of rice and corn, this countrys numerous rivers with large water volume, its centuries-long tradition of rice culture, the existence in the Philippines of two pre-eminent rice research institutions (UPLB and the International Rice Research Institute), a favorable legislative environment, a broad administrative infrastructure and sufficient foreign exchange. If the governmentCongress and the Executive branchapplied to Philippine agriculture the same seriousness and consistency that the authorities of Taiwan, with the islands far more limited resources, did, this country would have become (1) self-sufficient in rice, (2) not needed to import that basic community and (3) quite possible have become an exporter. The job can be done. In the seventies the government, through its Masagana 99 program, demonstrated that an all-out effort pursued with determination could give rise to rice self-sufficiency. There is no reason why a Masagana-type program cannot be replicated at this juncture. If Taiwanese, with far limited resources on their agriculturally inhospitable island, could produce not only rice self-sufficiency but also a rice export trade, so, definitely, can Filipinos.
Part II of the Leila de Limas latest bookis a collection of three keynote messages delivered by Emily Lighau, known for championing press freedom and human rights, Juli Minoves, president of Liberal International, and Leni Robredo, vice president of the Republic of the Philippines, during the awarding ceremony of the Liberal International Prize for Freedom on July 28, 2018. The senator was the principal awardee. Lau, former member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, delivered a message of solidarity. In her message, Lau recalled her conversation with the detained senator when she (Lau) visited her in the detention cell together with two other women of the Women Caucus of the Council of Asian Liberals. There De Lima expressed her fear for her safety. To the listeners, Lau cited the oft-repeated saying: the people get the government that they deserve and challenged the audience to speak out because when everyone is scared then the tyrants will always get the things their way. In his message, Minoves, Liberal International President, said: Twenty-one years later, representatives of the global liberal family are in the Philippines to honor another human rights hero, although circumstances on this occasion do not give us cause to celebrate as we did in 1987. xxx Instead, representatives of our global political family are here today to join hands with millions of Filipinos as we shine a light into what has become a shady political atmosphere and a subject of global consternationsome of the very threats to freedom that we warned of when defining the challenges to liberalism in the 21st century as set out in our Andorra Liberal Manifesto which we adopted in our 70th Anniversary Congress last year. Liberal International, Minoves added, is taking seriously Senator De Limas incarceration, the unfair and the unjust incarceration, who has not just been unjustly detained for 520 days that we (the members of the organization) have traveled to the Philippines from afar to present this award. According to him, Senator De Limas struggle, her sacrifice, is not solely a Filipino matter, nor is it even an Asian matter. Leilas cause transcends petty political rivalries and regional nuances. She personifies humanitys shared aspiration for universal human rights and it is apposite that she is being awarded the Prize for Freedom in this 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. He then reminded the President of the Philippines that Human rights are for all or they are for nothing, that the world is indeed watching, and Leila de Limas unjust detention will not be forgotten. In her keynote speech entitled The Indomitable Spirit of a Freedom Fighter, Robredo said that this recognition, alongside many notable citations and awards that Senator Leila has received in the recent times, is testament to her fearlessness and indomitable spirit as a freedom fighter. It proves that fighting for what you know is right and justno matter where you are and who you are up againstmatters deeply in healing our nations shattered spirits and hopes. And that fighting for human rights has become one of the most important struggles of todays world, affecting with increasing urgency, the everyday lives of our people.Robredo lamented the many deaths in the campaign against drugs, saying: So many lives are on the line in this battlefield. In the past two years, we faced the reality that death and violence have become the preferred means with which to wage the war on illegal drugswith no end in sight. The numbers have been contentious, from 3,000 to 25,000, but the reality is that one death is already far too many. Yet notwithstanding this reality, she expressed her belief in the Filipino people who are naturally empathic people, with a depth of love for freedom and their rights that will not be snuffed out by any tyrant. In Robredos own words: We have had a long history of bloody struggles in very dark times, and I refuse to believe that we suffered them for nothing. We will prevail. We will keep on keeping on. Celebrated writer Khalil Gibran once wrote, and I could not help but share with you this quote: You shall be free indeed when your days are not without a care, nor your nights without a want and a grief, but rather when these things girdle your life and yet you rise above them naked and unbound. For Senator Leila, according to the vice president, the fight has also been clear as day, that even in detention, she has shaken ground and inspired fellow advocates of the law, here and abroad. We all have roles to play, and it is important that we know where we are placed and what we should do to win, she added. With supporters and friends like these, Senator De Lima is assured of respect and admiration. I too think of her in the same way. I know she has faults and excesses, but her heroism in the face of what has been done to her has vindicated her. These testimonies attest to that.
In the wake of the controversy over the revocation of the amnesty granted to Senator Antonio Trillanes IV by former President Benigno Aquino III, now comes the issue linking Special Assistant to the President Christopher Bong Go and his half-brother in the procurement of awards and contracts in public works. I rely on the findings of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism linking Go to the contracts and posing questions on his other involvement in business. The pertinent questions: What role did Bong Go have in the multi-billion public works contract awarded to his father and half-brother? Did Go exert some influence as special assistant to then-mayor and now President Duterte? In the same breath, among the public works officials, who could be held responsible for the approval of these contracts awarded to CLTG (Gos initials) Builders from 2008 to 2017? In fairness to Go and Duterte, however, the contracts did not involve the Davao City government but other areas in the Davao region. In fact, when the PCIJ sought Gos reaction, he denied everything. Trillanes plans to investigate Go. Go meanwhile offered to resign if allegations against him are proven true. Here are some excerpts from the report: In sum, CLTG has been awarded P4.6 billion worth of projects, all from the DPWH, in the past decade. It won more than half of the total only last year. Another portion of the report said: In 2017, CLTG won DPWH contracts worth a total of P399,336,326.72. In the same year, it won, through joint ventures, a total of P2,538,191,443.36 in DPWH contracts. How lucky can some people get? Its like winning the lottery! The PCIJ further said: Two senior government officials and at least four contractors privy to the procurement activities in Davao told PCIJ in separate interviews that backroom deals are happening in order for certain companies to corner contracts even though they do not have the capability to take on projects. My gulay, I believe what the PCIJ reported because when I covered the DPWH at one time when I was still with The Philippines Herald, I knew that the department was rotten to the core. So many projects were left unfinished and yet completely paid for. My former classmate Vicente Jayme was once assigned to the DPWH. He lasted only seven months. I asked him why, and he said he could not stand the corruption there. The real scandal here, PCIJ reports, is that senior officials and some contractors trace the problem to a strange situation in the region. Mostly the same contractors are winning more and more contracts than they could finish within their capacity and within deadline. This is why I believe there should be an investigation, not only into Bong Gos alleged links to DPWH, but the whole anomalous practice in public works. DPWH Secretary Mark Villar has a lot of explaining to do.In the meantime, Trillanes should ask if Go even filed his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth. He is a public official, after all. And didnt President Duterte call Go a billionaire, one time? The probe would be likely because there is talk he would run for the Senate next year. Go should be asked about his academic credentials, qualifications, and program of government if elected. Is loyalty now a ticket to the Senate? * * * The President did not push through with addressing the nation and only spoke with chief legal adviser Salvador Panelo. The main topic was the alleged ouster plot against him. But how can he be ousted when he remains popular? As far as the Magdalo group of Trillanes, I doubt that the Armed Forces would join them. I have been a journalist for so long and I have observed numerous coup attempts. Before any military takeover can succeed, there must be a people power component. While there are the problems of high prices and looming rice crisis, the people do not seem discontented and about to march on the streets. Not yet, anyway. From the opposition, there is no credible leader who would inspire following among the people. Not Vice President Leni Robredo, not Trillanes. So what destabilization is the President talking about? * * * One effect of the revocation of Trillanes amnesty is that the amnesty given to all 59 others may also be null and void. The question is whether the amnesty was really void from the start? Only the courts can rile with finality. But what about the other recipients of the amnesty who are now in government, like MMDAs Danilo Lim and Undersecretary Nicanor Faeldon?
BAE Systems is expanding its presence in The Republic of Korea through the opening of a new office in Sacheon. The office is part of BAE Systems Electronic Systems business and provides in-country services and interface with Korean customers and partners and also support the key products developed by its Electronic Systems business in the US and UK including advanced avionics, flight controls, active sticks, head-up displays and precision guided munitions.



BAE Systems stand during DX Korea 2018



BAE Systems is displaying and demonstrating the BVS10 at DX Korea

It has the following Characteristics:

 Capability. BvS10 family of all-terrain vehicles provides a force multiplier across the full spectrum of defence 24/7 .

 Flexibility. BvS10 is built on a modular concept allowing for greater platform configuration and flexibility to any task.

 Mobility. BvS10 is proven in the extreme mountainous regions of the arctic, Hot and high, arid conditions of the desert and the extreme humidity in Asia.

 Transportability. BvS10 is transportable by a wide range of capabilities, Rail, shipping, train, flatbed truck, Air portable by aircraft or underslung from Helicopters. BvS10 can be fitted into a 40 foot ISO container.

 Reliability. BvS10 is combat proven with high levels of reliability, availability and crew safety.

 Generational Change. BvS10 provides both protected and unprotected bodies, digitised architecture, operating range of 500 / 900km and NBC overpressure.

BAE Systems footprint in Korea extends across the air, sea, land, and security domains. BAE Systems has delivered over 400 BV-206s all-terrain vehicles to Koreas Army and equipped 30 of Koreas naval platforms with our combat systems. We are progressing sustainment opportunities within this installed base, in collaboration with Korean industry.

 BAE supplies advanced EW, communication, IFF, and flight avionics on nearly all fixed wing and helicopter aircraft in-service with ROKAF -- we are partners/suppliers for the ROK-designed/manufactured F/A-50 Light Combat Aircraft..

 As South Korea selects F-35, BAE Systems is proud to serve Korea as a principal partner on the program: the company contributes 15% to each aircraft with aft fuselages manufactured in the UK and Electronic Combat Suite in the U.S
The joint military exercise between Indian and Mongolian armies, the Nomadic Elephant - 2018, started Tuesday 12 September in Mongolia, The Pioneer reports. The Nomadic Elephant is an annual, bilateral exercise designed to strengthen the partnership between Indian and Mongolian armed forces, Kohima-based Defence spokesman Col. Chiranjit Konwer explained.



Openig ceremony of the Nomadic Elephant 2018 exercise (Picture source: The Shillong Times)

The exercise is being held at the Mongolian Armed Forces (MAF) Desert Region Training Centre in the country's Umnugovi province. The exercise aims at enhancing both countries tactical and technical skills in joint counter-insurgency and counter-terrorist operations in rural and urban scenario under UN Mandate.

The Indian contingent is represented by Arunachal Pradesh 17 Punjab Regiment while the Mongolian contingent is represented by Unit 084 of the Mongolian Armed Forces. Welcoming the Indian soldiers, Deputy Chief of Mongolian Armed Forces Maj.Gen. J. Badambazar highlighted the common shared beliefs of freedom, equality and justice that are precious to both nations. The opening ceremony started with briefing on Army organization and country presentation including display of weapons and equipment at sub-unit level.

During the exercise, both sides will jointly train, plan and execute a series of well-developed tactical drills for neutralization of likely threats that may be encountered in urban warfare scenario. Experts from both sides would also hold detailed discussions to share their experience on varied topics for mutual benefits.
Super typhoon Ompong has entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility and the lives and assets of millions of Filipinos in Luzon are under threat.

The storm, internationally known as Mangkhut, is seen to reach an intensity of 220 to 270 kilometers. Moving westward at 20 kph, it is expected to make landfall on Cagayan province on Saturday. Torrential rain, powerful wind and storm surges are forecast. These are not new to Filipinos. Disasters happen several times a year, in different places, forms and intensity. Sometimes the damage is greater than at other times. Sometimes the calamities and their aftermath are handled better. This time around, authorities assure us that they are sufficiently prepared for Ompongs onslaught. They have also given public advisories, advising people what to do and what not to when the typhoon is felt. Rescue and communication equipment are in place, they say.In this case, the threat of damage heightens the looming crisis in food staples, specifically rice. Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Pinol has warned that in a worst-case scenario, Ompong could cause destruction up to P7 billion in palay and another P4 billion in corn. Experience has taught us that local governments, just because of their immediacy, play a crucial role in determining how an area is able to deal with disaster, and recover from it. Notwithstanding the much-vaunted preparations of the national agencies, this will continue to be the case. It is the faces and voices of local officials from who residents will take the cue. There is nothing we can do about the fact that our country is on the warpath of powerful weather disturbances. We can only brace ourselves for Ompongs onslaught this week, and for that of many others to come. What government can influence, however, is the way disaster risk can be mitigated, prepared for, responded to and recovered from. Weve seen enough tragic stories occasioned by natural disasters. We hope that the man-made inadequacies and excesses do not compound the damageat least, not too much.
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.
Now its official. Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez did indeed question the viability of San Miguel Corp.s P750-billion airport in Bulacan, 27 kilometers north of the present Ninoy Aquino International Airport. He raised the issue of viability (and therefore, stymied the new airport project) because Sonny was worried the government would suffer the consequences if it turned out the SMC project would be unprofitable in the long runbecause of government actions. Dominguezs objections are anchored on two issues: One, can San Miguel Holdings Corp., the airport proponent which is wholly owned by San Miguel Corp., afford the P750-billion airport when it has only P60-billion equity (capital put in by owner SMC). Sonny wants the mother company, SMC, to guarantee all the liabilities of subsidiary, SMHC. Done, says SMC president Ramon S. Ang. SMC has P1.4-trillion resources (its food business alone is worth annually P650 billion, power business P270 billion, and Petron P266 billion), P420 billion equity, instant cash of P222.5 billion. Two, exemption for the government from liabilities or compensation for force majeure and material adverse government actions if a good project turns out to be bad because of decisions, policies, and laws made by the government itself. This is like saying San Miguel cannot run after or sue the government if government itself opts to be naughty later on and does all kinds of foolishness when the airport is operational. Sonny thinks SMC is so big and so rich anyway to absorb the consequences if government turns bad. RSAs reaction: What! (expletive deleted). The Finance chief was worried because in Mactan airport, the government made substantial and liberal commitments to its proponents, Megawide and its Indian partners. Those commitments were made by the unlamented administration of President Noynoying Aquino III. Dominguez implied that the past administration made mistakes in making guarantees to the Megawide-Indian group now managing the Mactan Cebu airport. So now, he wants to be meticulous with the SMC airport. Interestingly, Dominguez allowed the superbody National Economic and Development Authority which is headed by President Duterte himself, to approve the SMC airport plan (last April 2018). Four months later, last August, with the XiamenAir accident, the DOF chief raised crucial questions that in effect negated the approval. Dominguez elaborated on government commitments to Megawide when he appeared before the hearing of the combined Senate Committees of Public Services and Economic Affairs. Public Services because an airport is a public service. Economic Affairs because an airport like the size that will soon replace the Naia contributes 9 percent to the economy, about P1.53 billion annually out of total GDP of P17 trillion. Which means that if the Naia, which services 41-million passengers a year, were to shut down and there is no immediate replacement, as what happened when XiamenAir flight MF 8667 crash-landed midnight of August 1, 2018 disabling the Philippine gateway for nearly two days, the damage to the economy would be enormousP5 billion or P2.5 billion per day.Meticulous evaluation is necessary since in several instances, projects that were approved in the past by the Neda Board were more profitable than projections during the appraisal stage, Dominguez explained to the senators. In the Mactan airport project, Sonny pointed out:  The government made the commitment that there will be no other competing airports in Mactan and Cebu. This, despite the fact that the Mactan-Cebu International Airport is actually earning more profits than projected. In 2017, it registered a net income of P1.1 billion. This is 48 percent higher than the P752 million forecast in the financial model of the project. This indicates that the actual returns of the concessionaire will be significantly larger than what was originally estimated, noted Dominguez, himself a former banker and an astute businessman in his own right before joining the Duterte administration. Explained Dominguez: In the Mactan-Cebu International Airport concession agreement, the government committed that if it causes to operate any international or domestic airport in the Mactan and Cebu Islands, it is considered the grantor in defaultthats the governmentmaking us liable for termination payments. Essentially, it will cost us a tremendous amount of money to build a new airport in these areas even if there is an unexpected increase in passenger demand.  Should the government later on want to build a new airport in the area to serve OFWs and other tourists, we would be required to reimburse not just market value of the infrastructure assets, but also all the future profits of the commercial business until the end of the concession. This means that we would have to reimburse the concessionaire in Mactan around P20 billion just to build another airport, Dominguez explained. While P309 billion is an alarming number, what is more worrying to us are the type of commitments we guarantee, he said, talking about other projects.  There are potential claims by water concessionaires (Manila Water and Maynilad Water) against the government, estimated at P80 billion, just because a Performance Undertaking was executed by a former DoF secretary guaranteeing that the government will not interfere or question water utility rates. These examples, said Dominguez, emphasize that the actions we do and documents we sign have ripple effects on the next generations. He added: The burden is upon my office to ensure that future generations do not suffer consequences from poor decisions of previous governments. Book IV, Title II, Chapter 1, Section 2 of the Administrative Code of 1987, and as reiterated in the Department of Justice Opinion Nos. 61 series of 2004 and 13 series of 2013, states that the issuance of the performance undertakings is within the discretionary power of the DoF, it being mandated by law to be primarily responsible for the sound and efficient management of the financial resources of the Government, its subdivisions, agencies and instrumentalities and for the formulation, institutionalization and administration of fiscal policies in coordination with other concerned subdivisions, agencies and instrumentalities of government. Question: Why does San Miguel have to suffer the consequences of bad decisions by previous governments in other projects? [email protected]
HopgoodGanim Lawyers has welcomed a senior lawyer to its construction practice in Brisbane.

The firm has appointed Blake Frost as special counsel, gaining a lawyer with extensive experience in the resources, energy, projects, real estate, and government sectors. He moved from Norton Rose Fulbright, where he was a senior associate. Frost was also previously with Clayton Utz.

He has worked in a wide range of contentious matters that include litigations, mediations, adjudications, and arbitrations. He has also advised clients on general risk considerations of large-scale projects, as well as both contentious and non-contentious issues of current projects.
Immigration look at things apart from the documents. It is the things that are not provided that they try to find. For example: if on Centrelink have they advised Centrelink they are married, is the applicant sending money overseas and if so to whom, did they have a spouse on their ATO tax return, who is the beneficiary of their super. There are lots of other things immigration can look at.



Fingers crossed that they do something. How do you know they haven't done anything? If a person is refused they may apply for AAT so would still be here while waiting for the outcome of that. In the meantime if you find anything extra you can send it to immigration.
No word yet on what prompted such a move on their part, but Global News says that both suspects are now in custody and could be facing serious jail time if theyre found guilty.The bad news (for them) is that prosecutors have the smoking gun, more or less: footage of them taking their mates water bottle from the service area and returning with it minutes later. Presumably, they took it so they could pour engine coolant into it, knowing precisely what it would do to their colleague.The incident actually occurred last week, with the colleague in question being taken ill after just one sip of water from his bottle. He went to the pharmacy and bought an over-the-counter pill that he hoped would help with what he assumed as a bad tummy ache. Some time later, he took himself to the hospital, where investigations revealed he had been poisoned.Rahim Jaffer, 34, was arrested in connection with the incident, and ultimately charged with administration of a noxious substance. His pal, Szilard Czippan, 20, went missing right afterwards but he was eventually captured by police at the end of last week.He was brought in after he was pulled over in Belleville, Ontario, on suspicion of driving under the influence. He has been charged with administration of a noxious substance and attempted murder. Presumably, he came up with the plan to put engine coolant in the water bottle.A spokesperson for BMW Toronto said of the incident that, it is a small dealership, a family environment where there is a certain level of intimacy. A trust was broken. [Employees] are surprised and shocked.
If this thief was hoping to avoid being conspicuous, he should pick a different car next time. This one is a special edition throwback to the Panther Pink Challengers of the 1970s, and it is made to stand out.The Costaldos have recently moved to Mt. Julie, Tennessee, and were shocked to find out that thieves had no qualms about hitting the residential area where they live. They tell News Channel 5 Network that the carjacking probably occurred right after 1 in the morning on Saturday.They dont have surveillance cameras outside, but a neighbors camera caught the sound of a truck backing up their driveway. They believe that the thieves came with a tow truck, backed into their alley and took the car, and then drove away with it.I love the car because it's got that old-fashioned look and the color that drew me to the car. White interior, fuchsia with stripes outside. Beautiful, Mr. Castaldo tells the media outlet. His wife is equally sad about the car, saying she wants it back. She also believes the thief is going to get whats coming to him in the afterlife, so theres that.The day the interview aired, the car was spotted in Mt. Juliet outside a church and police were summoned. Cops engaged the Dodge and a black Subaru, which had also been reported stolen, in a chase. The driver of the Subaru, described by News 4 as a black teen with a hoodie, jumped out of the car while it was still moving and tried to flee in the woods. The car crashed.The Dodge, however, escaped. Then, on Monday morning, a fisherman called in to say he had seen it abandoned at the Cleeces Ferry boat ramp on the Cumberland River. Police recovered the car, which has since been handed back to the Costaldos. The suspect is still out there.
TDI

HP

As the years passed, turbocharged vehicles started providing more and more power, but their delivery has become more linear than ever. Every once in a while, an automaker launched a twin-turbo or a bi-turbo setup. Those vehicles were seen as outstanding achievements when people first heard of them.Some customers had the opportunity to buy a twincharged vehicle , which blended turbocharging with supercharging for optimal throttle response and performance. Eventually, twin-turbo cars became something mundane, and single turbo engines can be found under the hoods of modest vehicles these days.Even the most affordable models in an automakers range can be ordered with a turbocharged power plant, but it is now used as a downsizing solution instead of a way to bring massive amounts of power.Things reached a status quo for a while, and then Bugatti launched a new quad turbo engine on the Veyron. The solution was first implemented on the EB110, but another company has further refined the idea and has replicated it in a new mass produced car, which will be featured below. After the Veyrons launch, BMW surprised the world with a triple turbo setup, which they employed on a diesel engine.With those power plants in mind, we decided to do a roundup of all production cars available today with more than three turbochargers under their hoods.The plan was to make a top five, or only to select the most compelling solutions. Unfortunately for us, the world does not have that many multiple turbo setups in production so that we will review the existing ones in this story.The first multi-turbo setup we review is the one found on Audis 2017 SQ7. It has instantly become the most powerful diesel engine offered on a production automobile, and the solution was interesting enough to be featured by Bentley.The British brand is owned by the same German corporation that controls Audi, so the part sharing is not surprising, but it led to the first diesel offered in a Bentley.We know that the V8units do not have three conventional turbochargers, but the implementation of the units is impressive enough to be featured in this story. The idea is that the power plant features two conventional turbochargers, which are supported by an electric turbo.When reading electric turbo, do not think of those silly kits you can get on eBay. Instead, the electrically assisted turbocharger (compressor is the correct technical term here) has a dedicated electrical system, which operates on 48 V. Audi has eliminated turbo lag entirely lag with the setup, and it provides 900 Nm (663.8 lb-Ft) of torque and an impressive 435Bugatti used to have the only quad turbo setup in a production car in the world. They have been matched by an unlikely challenger, which will be featured below. Before we get into that, it is important to describe the engineering masterpiece that sits behind the passengers of the Chiron.The Chiron has a W16 configuration, which is unique in the world of production automobiles. Several companies have tested the V16 engine configuration , but nobody except Bugatti made a W16.With modern emissions regulations and the unimaginable costs associated with this development, we do not expect anyone to match the French brand owned by the Volkswagen Group on this chapter.As you already know, the Chiron has a quad turbo setup, which is divided into two pairs of turbos that are fed from the two sets of eight cylinders.The solution is named two-stage turbocharging, and is employed in many cars that are more affordable than a Chiron, but none comes close to the level of performance announced by this unit.The top output is rated at 1,500 HP, while peak torque is 1,600 Nm. The eight-liter motor delivers its peak torque between 2,000 and 6,000 rpm. The latter is impressive in itself, but this is expected from a hypercar that is built by Bugatti.BMW surprised the world in 2012 with the introduction of a triple turbocharged engine. The shock was even bigger when the unit turned out to be a diesel engine, instead of a gasoline power plant. Furthermore, BMW put the M letter in front of the model designation of the resulting automobiles.BMW offers the triple-turbo diesel engine in the 5 Series, 7 Series, X5, and X6. The last two get the M50d designation, while the 7 Series was named 750d.The previous generation of the 5 Series was offered with this engine under the M550d name. All shared the ZF eight-speed automatic transmission and the xDrive system.The triple turbo setup is a sequential solution. A small turbocharger provides a boost at low rpm, so that the engine can develop more torque right after idle, and this happens thanks to variable geometry. Shortly after, a big turbo supplies more boost for high torque in the low-to-mid range of revs.The third turbocharger is designed to operate in the upper rev range. Contrary to expectation, it is the small secondary turbocharger, and not an even bigger turbo unit. This helps you accelerate from 2,500 rpm all the way to the red line.All three turbos operate simultaneously. The result is a power plant that delivers 381 HP between 4,000 and 4,400 rpm, while peak torque is 740 Nm. BMWs N57S provides its peak twist between 2,000 and 3,000 rpm.BMW is the only automaker besides Bugatti that offers a production automobile with four turbochargers. Unlike the solution employed by Audi for the SQ7, the quad turbo motor from BMW only uses conventional turbochargers, without any supplementary compressors. Bugatti applies a similar strategy, but on a larger scale and with over three times more power.Regardless, the average mortal might get the chance to experiment the four turbos of BMWs 750d , while the four turbochargers of the Chiron will only spool for the wealthy few. Coming back to the solution chosen by the Bavarian Motor Works, it has two pairs of sequential turbochargers on an inline-six cylinder engine.Instead of a V8 or whatever configuration, BMW implemented the quad turbo setup on its signature inline six unit. Thanks to the group of turbos and high-pressure direct injection, the unit delivers 400 HP between 4,000 and 4,400 rpm. That is not a dramatic increase from the three-turbo predecessor, but it is something.Peak torque is available between 2,000 and 3,000 rpm, and it is rated at 760 Nm (560 lb-Ft). The cool part about BMWs quad turbo setup is the integration of two small turbos into a single housing, while the other two turbochargers are separate. The torque at 1,000 rpm is 450 Nm, half of what Audis SQ7 delivers , but without a 48-Volt electrical system, its associated compressor, and with one liter of displacement less.We do not expect quad turbos to become mainstream, like single turbo engines have been for a few years, and the triple turbo solution from BMW might remain proprietary to the German automaker for a few years. The brand from Munchen might discontinue it to save room for four turbos, while smaller units will have to settle for TwinPower Turbo solutions.
5 Boeing Working on Single-Pilot Planes With Help From Autonomous Technology

United Airlines Captain Removes Uniform, Takes Nap During Flight

When youre flying somewhere, the last person youd expect to stumble across on the plane is the captain of the aircraft, taking a nap in first class after removing his uniform. 5 photos



However, this was a 7-hour flight from Newark, New Jersey to Glasgow. And the captain took a nap in first class, where passengers got to see them and understandably freak out. We should note, though, that the United Airlines aircraft was being operated by a 3-man cockpit crew, so it wasnt like the captain put it on autopilot and went to catch some zs.



Still, the sight of the captain out of his uniform, dozing off, was very unsettling. A former police officer who now works as a security adviser snapped a picture of the captain and is telling the



The captain went to the loo and changed into a T-shirt before going for a sleep in first class. When he woke up, he changed back into his uniform and radioed for access back to the cockpit. Police officers get a hard time when they are photographed sleeping in a patrol car, the man says.



I dont think the captain of a flight packed with hundreds of people should be in such a vulnerable position. He slept for an hour and a half, then the first officer went for a sleep. The flight was about seven hours. Surely if pilots are in need of a rest mid-flight, they should do it away from the passengers, he adds.



Aviation experts agree with him that this was a most unusual sight. First of all, the flight wasnt longer than 11 hours and secondly, the man should have been resting inside the cockpit.



Still, United stands by its captain: in a statement to the same media outlet, the company says that the man was on his rest period and that it posed no risk to the passengers since 2 other pilots were in the cockpit when this happened. Aviation safety procedures recommend that cockpit crew take a flat rest on any flight that is longer than 11 hours. The crew is usually larger on these flights than on shorter ones, allowing time for members to rest  either sitting in first class or napping in the cockpit.However, this was a 7-hour flight from Newark, New Jersey to Glasgow. And the captain took a nap in first class, where passengers got to see them and understandably freak out. We should note, though, that the United Airlines aircraft was being operated by a 3-man cockpit crew, so it wasnt like the captain put it on autopilot and went to catch some zs.Still, the sight of the captain out of his uniform, dozing off, was very unsettling. A former police officer who now works as a security adviser snapped a picture of the captain and is telling the Daily Record that this put passengers in harms way.The captain went to the loo and changed into a T-shirt before going for a sleep in first class. When he woke up, he changed back into his uniform and radioed for access back to the cockpit. Police officers get a hard time when they are photographed sleeping in a patrol car, the man says.I dont think the captain of a flight packed with hundreds of people should be in such a vulnerable position. He slept for an hour and a half, then the first officer went for a sleep. The flight was about seven hours. Surely if pilots are in need of a rest mid-flight, they should do it away from the passengers, he adds.Aviation experts agree with him that this was a most unusual sight. First of all, the flight wasnt longer than 11 hours and secondly, the man should have been resting inside the cockpit.Still, United stands by its captain: in a statement to the same media outlet, the company says that the man was on his rest period and that it posed no risk to the passengers since 2 other pilots were in the cockpit when this happened.
President Rodrigo Duterte will address the nation this afternoon. We greet the announcement with a mix of hope, trepidationand realism.

More than two years ago, the Duterte presidency took off on a promising start. The maverick President painted himself as the opposite of the leaders we had been used to in the past. He was honest, irreverent, single-minded. He appeared resolute and able to get things done. Sixteen million Filipinosa decisive pluralitydecided to take a chance on the mayor from Davao City. The past two years, however, have plunged the nation to divisiveness and discontent. While his trust ratings have remained relatively high according to surveys, Mr. Dutertes words, actions and decisions especially with regard to the war on drugs have invited criticism and even condemnation from some sectors both here and abroad. Promises to stamp out corruption have been marred by a strange habit of reappointing officials whom he has already removed for some irregularity or another. More importantly, the country is grappling with gut issues of high prices and scarce basic commodities. Filipinos will put up with politics but may not be as tolerant once their quality of life is compromised. President Duterte must have sensed these rumblings. After all, his own trust ratings have suffered of late.Palace spokesmen say he will talk about alleged destabilization plots. This is why there is some anxiety over what he would say. Will he, as he is wont to do, curse at and malign his enemies again? Will he blame other people, even God, for our woes? Will he make a declaration about the future of our government, a pronouncement that will confirm what many fear? What wed like to hear, however, are the words of a genuine leader. A good chief executive will acknowledge the problems but will not stop at tough words against his adversaries. Instead, a good leader will outline the steps he would take to solve the nations ills. He will inspire confidence among the people because of his firm grasp of the situation, his sound judgment and calm reasoning. The address comes just before a powerful typhoon that appears headed to Northern Luzona very real threat. May the weather not occasion parallels on what is to come. After all, if there were any destabilization attempts present anywhere, it would be a result of this administrations own unenlightened choices rather than the act of groups with vested interests.
Image: DARPA

A person with a microchip implant cannow pilot a swarm of drones by sending signals directly from their brain, an ability that also should work for full-scale aircraft, according to researchers at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The technology was discussed at a recent symposium held by DARPA, in Maryland. The signals from those aircraft can be delivered directly back to the brain so that the brain of that user [or pilot] can also perceive the environment, said Justin Sanchez, director ofDARPAs biological technology office.

DARPA officials at the symposium also said they have advanced the technology so a user now can steer multiple jets atonce, according to a report from DefenseOne.com. Working with a paralyzed volunteer, the researchers were able to not only send but also receive signals from the aircraft.Its taken a number of years to try and figure thisout, Sanchez said. The work builds on research from 2015, when a paralyzed woman was able to steer a virtual F-35 Joint Strike Fighter by sending signals from her brain using only a small, surgically-implanted microchip.
Britten-Normans BN2T Islander is now type certified by Transport Canada, the company announced this week. The aircraft is powered by two Rolls-Royce B17 turboprops with Hartzell three-bladed props, and the cockpit is equipped with Garmins G600TXi avionics. Other upgrades to the classic model include low-drag fairings and an updated interior with ergonomic leather club seats. Originally designed in the 1960s, more than 750 of the airplanes are in service worldwide, many serving as support for the military and police.

In Canada, the Islander serves in a variety of roles, including cargo and air ambulance, working from remote strips in the Yukon, Quebec and Labrador. The airplane can take off in as little as 620 feet. Its also used as a platform for sport parachuting. Canadian certification of the more powerful Turbine Islander is now underway, and will offer increased payload for operators.The company says it also is making progress toward FAA approval for a militarized version of the aircraft.
I was thinking about taking a pass on my FAA Third Class medical, which was expiring at the end of May. I always dread this process (the paperwork, the physical), as do most pilots who have lived longer than five or six decades. But I decided to take the chance once more, and postpone a transition to Basic Med.

For those of you new to aviation medical questionnaires, there are no trick questions  except one, which has annoyed the hell out of me for years. The trick question asks if you have ever been admitted to a hospital. Ya gotta wonder. What does that mean? If you go to the information desk and ask to visit your aunt who has recently had bunion surgery, and they let you in, are you admitted to that hospital? No, of course not. It means Did you ever stay overnight in a hospital?

But lots of people stay overnight, sitting at the bedside of a beloved aunt. So it doesnt really mean Did you stay overnight, but rather, Did they keep you overnight because an insurance company was paying for it, and lord knows, the only reason theyre forking over the cash is because, hard as they tried, they couldnt figure out how to avoid losing a couple thousand dollars for your saline I.V. and that wonderful hospital food.

If youre about to get your first FAA med-exam, Id recommend that on your very first medical application, you check this box and describe the first time you were admitted to a hospital. In my case, I was taken there involuntarily by a woman I had never met. Things quickly got crazy, and after being dragged out of what I considered my own personal space, I was held by my feet, inverted, and naked. This was all against my will. And someone slapped me. Then I was given a hospital ID bracelet, and hauled away where I was washed  still naked  by another woman I had never met. It was horribly embarrassing, all of me being quite small at the time, but at least I was no longer held captive by the person who soon claimed to be my mother. And I was held overnight, regardless of the fact that there was clearly nothing wrong with me! (A nurse actually told my mother I was perfect.)

So unless you were born in the proverbial barn, Id report that first hospital admission. I didnt. My dilemma is this: Should I report it now? If I do, would that be an admission that I had omitted my initial admission to a hospital? Would that be confessing to a federal offense, in that I should have reported it earlier? I can only hope that this confusing mess will continue to slip through the cracks.

But it gets worse. What if you simply forgot the next time you were admitted to a hospital? When I was eight years old, my uncle was backing down his driveway in his 1957 Ford. I was on my two-wheeler near the end of the driveway. I pushed off the mailbox using my left hand, hoping for a successful U-turn to get out of his way. I slipped on some gravel, and found myself lying flat in the middle of the driveway. As the Ford quickly approached, I pressed my head into the gravel and thought this: Adios. Fortunately, several witnesses saw my death approaching, and were screaming at him to stop the car. He stopped. So now I was underneath a 57 Ford. I crawled out and wiped from my head what I figured was gasoline (hey, I was eight). The screaming peaked as I stood up with a bunch of my scalp covering my right ear.

I did not report this on my first medical. I forgot. Yet subconsciously, I was aware of what happened: Sirens blaring and heavy bleeding during a 20-minute ambulance ride to a hospital; 40 stitches being sewn into my scalp; asking the ER surgeon if I was going to die. I vaguely remember that after he wrapped my head in a turban, my uncle came in and I saw him cry, which made me feel guilty, and the experience eventually became just a slush of emotions, filed in the mysterious, subconscious part of my brain.

But there it was again: another unreported hospital admission during the first decade of my life. Should I report it now? And if I do, must I then check the box that asks whether I have Mental disorders of any sort; depression, anxiety, etc.? What on earth does etc. cover? Suppressed memories maybe? I dont know. Theres no definition of terms on the application.

What, oh what to do? If I report it, will I have my medical yanked retroactively? Rather than being rewarded with two more years of Third-Class flying, could I be sent to the slammer for lies of omission? And if suppressed memories of an eight-year-old kid count as a condition of mental instability, maybe theyd put me in the psych unit.

A simple addition to this application would resolve all of my concerns: There should be an option that says, If this is not your first medical application, do you have anything to add that you may have inadvertently omitted on an earlier application? That would resolve not only the problem of being born in a hospital, but also the problem of forgetting that my uncle ran over me in a 1957 Ford, one of the ugliest cars ever. Im sure I would have remembered it all clearly if it had been a 1957 Chevy Bel Air Sport Coupe with a 283.
The Federal Trade Commission this week kicks off the first broad examination of competition in the technology industry in more than two decades  a sign that the tech giants could be in for stronger public oversight.

Why it matters: The FTC's public hearings, which start Thursday, will provide the first structured conversation about realistic policy tools that federal regulators need to police the internet economy.

The Big Tech backlash has been driven by critics and issue-specific outrage. Over the course of several public hearings this fall, the FTC is taking the first steps toward crafting a basic framework to keep the tech companies from acting like monopolies.

The debate over the past year has focused on using antitrust measures to, for example, clamp down on the treasure troves of data controlled by Google, Facebook and Amazon  and to prevent them from getting any bigger with new acquisitions.

But antitrust law can only go so far in curbing anticompetitive behavior. And under the current administration  and an increasingly conservative Supreme Court  a broader reading of today's antitrust rules is highly unlikely.

By looking at realistic regulatory tools, the hearings will set the stage for how strictly the FTC will enforce its existing rules in the near future, and whether it will ask Congress for new authority.

Joe Simons, the relatively new FTC chairman, is seizing on the chance to say "let's take a deep breath, listen to some valid points, and have a constructive conversation," said a former FTC attorney. But the discussions run the risk of becoming politically charged in the current environment.

A common concern has been that the FTC and other agencies aren't equipped to deal with the unique internet economy. The FTC is likely to say it needs more resources to stay on top of the issues.

has been that the FTC and other agencies aren't equipped to deal with the unique internet economy. The FTC is likely to say it needs more resources to stay on top of the issues. A study of how consumer data impacts competition, price and behavior is another possible outcome, sources say. The FTC's subpoena power allows it to gather confidential information about data use.

impacts competition, price and behavior is another possible outcome, sources say. The FTC's subpoena power allows it to gather confidential information about data use. A year ago, calls for a sector-specific regulator to oversee the internet ecosystem seemed far-fetched. After data scandals and election interference, it's now beginning to look like a more reasonable idea.

calls for a sector-specific regulator to oversee the internet ecosystem seemed far-fetched. After data scandals and election interference, it's now beginning to look like a more reasonable idea. Another topic may be updating vertical merger guidelines, which the Justice Department last updated in the 1980s.

The backstory: The last time the FTC held a series of public hearings on an issue was in 1995, when then-chairman Robert Pitofsky convened experts to discuss competition in still-nascent areas such as "marketing in cyberspace" and "interactive television." Those hearings culminated in a series of reports that recommended ways for the FTC to promote competition.

The bottom line: The ambition of this fall's hearings are to "chart a course forward in the same way," said a former FTC staffer. "I think they have the potential to set the agency on a path for the next decade."
"Billion Dollar Whale," the gripping new book from the WSJ's Bradley Hope and Tom Wright, details the way that Jho Low, grifter and social climber extraordinaire, managed to steal billions of dollars from the people of Malaysia.

Why it matters: He couldn't have done it alone. Foremost among the names listed: Goldman Sachs. The bank, currently under investigation by federal prosecutors, is featured on no fewer than 87 of the book's 379 pages.

The bank facilitated the 1MDB fraud, earning almost $600 million in fees on 3 bond deals from the deeply corrupt Malaysian fund. That's about 200 times more than the normal amount a sovereign issuer would pay. Each time, as soon as Goldman provided the money to 1MDB, Low would steal it.

Goldman executive Tim Leissner has a central role in the book. He has now been barred from the securities industry and is reportedly facing federal criminal charges in the Eastern District of New York.

Leissner became a Goldman partner in 2006. That was a big year for Goldman in Asia: CEO Lloyd Blankfein gave the region more than one-fifth of all new partnerships, in a clear sign that he was looking for aggressive growth there. By 2014, Leissner had been promoted to chairman of Southeast Asia for the bank.

That was a big year for Goldman in Asia: CEO Lloyd Blankfein gave the region more than one-fifth of all new partnerships, in a clear sign that he was looking for aggressive growth there. By 2014, Leissner had been promoted to chairman of Southeast Asia for the bank. He "was prone to go off the reservation," write Hope and Wright. But he kept his coveted position as partner, and, according to the book, "Goldman bosses in the region allowed him a very long leash."

write Hope and Wright. But he kept his coveted position as partner, and, according to the book, "Goldman bosses in the region allowed him a very long leash." Leissner hired the 25-year-old daughter of Malaysia's ambassador to the U.S. as an intern, risking prosecution under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. He also had an affair with her.

of Malaysia's ambassador to the U.S. as an intern, risking prosecution under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. He also had an affair with her. He was working with Low from the very beginning  early 2009, when the two men persuaded the sultan of Terengganu, Mizan Zainal Abidin, to create a new investment fund.

 early 2009, when the two men persuaded the sultan of Terengganu, Mizan Zainal Abidin, to create a new investment fund. Leissner also worked closely in Hong Kong with Andrea Vella , the Goldman banker who previously oversaw the bank's notorious relationship with the Libyan Investment Authority.

, the Goldman banker who previously oversaw the bank's notorious relationship with the Libyan Investment Authority. Between them, Leissner and Vella perfected the art of making outsized profits from seemingly normal bond deals. They made $50 million in profits (about 50x the usual) from a relatively modest $800 million bond deal from the Malaysian state of Sarawak. Then there were three 1MDB bonds, totaling $6.5 billion, on which Goldman made almost $600 million.

perfected the art of making outsized profits from seemingly normal bond deals. They made $50 million in profits (about 50x the usual) from a relatively modest $800 million bond deal from the Malaysian state of Sarawak. Then there were three 1MDB bonds, totaling $6.5 billion, on which Goldman made almost $600 million. Leissner helped to orchestrate what the book calls "the second heist." He and Low persuaded Sheik Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi to guarantee a $3.5 billion bond issue from 1MDB. The guarantee, write Hope and Wright, was "an artificial construct, purely aimed at creating an excuse to divert more than a billion dollars from 1MDB."

He and Low persuaded Sheik Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi to guarantee a $3.5 billion bond issue from 1MDB. The guarantee, write Hope and Wright, was "an artificial construct, purely aimed at creating an excuse to divert more than a billion dollars from 1MDB." Leissner also helped Low by writing a letter of reference  falsely claiming Goldman had conducted due diligence on Low's family wealth for the Malaysian who helped him open a bank account at Banque Havilland in Luxembourg.

The big picture: Goldman's involvement wasn't limited to the Hong Kong office.

Goldman president (and future Trump appointee) Gary Cohn set up a sovereign wealth fund unit known inside the bank as "monetizing the state."

set up a sovereign wealth fund unit known inside the bank as "monetizing the state." " The backing of a domineering and powerful personality like Cohn accorded significant cover to those involved in the 1MDB business," write Hope and Wright.

accorded significant cover to those involved in the 1MDB business," write Hope and Wright. Cohn also fought to keep Goldman's fees at artificially elevated levels on the 1MDB bond issues.

at artificially elevated levels on the 1MDB bond issues. Another Goldman banker, Roger Ng , took part in a dinner where Low tried to use the Goldman imprimatur to help override the concerns of a smaller bank's compliance department.

, took part in a dinner where Low tried to use the Goldman imprimatur to help override the concerns of a smaller bank's compliance department. Goldman's head of investment banking in Dubai, Hazem Shawki , helped to put together a deal that allowed Low to make a profit of $300 million in just a few days.

, helped to put together a deal that allowed Low to make a profit of $300 million in just a few days. A key early conspirator, PetroSaudi's Patrick Mahony, was a Goldman alum.

The other side: Goldman spokesperson Michael Duvally says, "Goldman Sachs had no visibility into whether some of the funds we helped raise for 1MDB may have been subsequently diverted to other purposes."
Hurricane Florence will likely wreak havoc on the health care systems in North and South Carolina when it makes landfall later this week, and preparations are already underway to deal with consequences ranging from stranded patients to disruptions in high-tech pharmaceutical manufacturing.

The big picture: As we all learned from Hurricane Maria, a major storm's impact on health care lasts a long time. The Southeast mainland has better existing infrastructure than Puerto Rico did, but there's still a lot to prepare for.

The latest, according to local news reports:

Some local hospitals are evacuating patients, under an order from South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster.

Hospitals outside South Carolina's evacuation zone are readying backup generators in case they lose power and have also stocked upon extra medical supplies. One hospital recently acquired a large former military vehicle so it can move doctors around its campus even in high waters.

Pfizer said it would temporarily take offline two North Carolina plants where it manufactures drugs that are used in hospitals. A prolonged closure could have ripple effects on the nationwide supply of those products, Bloomberg reports.

In Washington, HHS Secretary Alex Azar yesterday declared public health emergencies in North and South Carolina, which the department said would provide "greater flexibility in meeting emergency health needs."

HHS has also assembled 230 volunteer health professionals who can move in and help address specific health care needs after the storm hits.

Go deeper: Florence to cause "catastrophic" damage in Carolinas.
United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffith told the Security Council on Tuesday that he never expected an easy mission when he convened Intra-Yemeni Consultations in Geneva last week, for which the Houthis delegation failed to show up.

The level of confidence is at its lowest and the human and humanitarian cost is ever rising, said the UNs chief Yemen negotiator, by video link from Jordan. The war has been virtually on all fronts, and the parties locked into a cycle of violence, he noted.

At the same time, he pointed to the Yemeni people, the wars main victims, who yearn for a peaceful political solution to end their suffering, terminate the war and deliver a functioning government to address their basic needs.

This is no longer a race between political and military institutions and solutions, he continued. It is, instead, a race to salvage what is left of state institutions as quickly as possible.

Following months of discussions with the parties after the negotiating process had been stalled for two years, he called on 2 August for formal consultations that could kick-start new peace talks.

While Mr. Griffiths acknowledged that things have not been going as planned, he pointed out that the peace process had been relaunched.

The Yemeni political process, like so many other of its kind, will see ups and downs, he asserted. Calling them temporary hurdles to be overcome, the UN envoy underscored that though dire, the situation can be addressed through formal consultations.

We need to stay focused on nurturing the political process, particularly in this, these fragile early stages, and build the needed momentum so that it can deliver tangible benefits to Yemenis throughout Yemen, Mr. Griffiths stated. Political will, determination and commitment from all actors, including the Council, was required, along with putting the interests of the Yemeni people above all else, he said.

Mr. Griffiths expressed concern over the attacks launched by Houthi forces towards Saudi Arabia and the Red Sea, which he said illustrated the continued threat of this conflict towards regional security.

He said he would continue discussions through various visits, including by engaging with the political leadership of the Yemeni government in Oman, and the Houthis, who still hold the capital, Sanaa, in a bid to shape key confidence-building measures, including on prisoner exchanges and opening the Sanaa airport. He also hopes to secure a commitment from the parties to convene consultations.

The UN envoy underscored that inclusivity is crucial for success and that at different stages, he would engage Yemeni society.

Speaking to reporters afterwards, the President of the Security Council, US Ambassador, Nikki Haley, read out a Press Statement, expressing regret, that the Houthi delegation did not attend the meeting last week in Geneva despite great efforts by the UN and other States, to address their concerns. They welcome the Special Envoys intention to go to Sanaa.

She added that the Members of the Security Council reiterated that only a political solution can end the conflict and alleviate the humanitarian suffering. She said they were urging all sides to get behind the process that Mr. Griffiths is leading.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Congress this week that he believes Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are working to "reduce the risk of harm to civilians" in Yemen. Pompeo's assertion received support from Defense Secretary James Mattis.

Why it matters: Pompeo was under pressure to deliver a response by Wednesday on the issue of the Saudis' and Emiratis' actions in Yemen, in order to continue aerial refueling support for the coalition, per the Washington Post. The U.S. has been providing support for the coalition in Yemen since 2015, despite reports of possible war crimes and mounting civilian casualties.

Pompeo's statement:

"I certified to Congress yesterday that the governments of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments."

Statement from Secretary Mattis:

"I endorse and fully support Secretary Pompeos certification to the Congress that the governments of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are making every effort to reduce the risk of civilian casualties and collateral damage to civilian infrastructure resulting from their military operations to end the civil war in Yemen. The Saudi-led coalitions commitment is reflected in their support for these UN-led efforts."
Dr. Leana Wen, 35, a former emergency room doctor and Baltimore City commissioner of health, was named Planned Parenthood's next president on Wednesday, The New York Times reports.

The big picture: Wen's appointment is set against the debate over whether to confirm Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who critics fear would chip away protections under the landmark abortion case Roe v. Wade. Organization officials expect Wen to "be a powerful advocate for protecting women's freedom," per the NYT. She is the sixth president of Planned Parenthood and the second doctor to lead the organization.

Her background

Wen is a Chinese immigrant who came to America "just before her eighth birthday," after the Tiananmen Square massacre.

Wen has been praised for her work to reduce racial disparity in health care and "sharply reducing infant mortality" in Baltimore.

for her work to reduce racial disparity in health care and "sharply reducing infant mortality" in Baltimore. She told the search committee that she, her sister and her mother "relied on Planned Parenthood for health care" when they came to the U.S., as they were very poor after being granted political asylum.

that she, her sister and her mother "relied on Planned Parenthood for health care" when they came to the U.S., as they were very poor after being granted political asylum. Wen later went on to medical school after graduating college at 18 years old.

What they're saying
The State Department announced last week that it would temporarily recall U.S. ambassadors to the Dominican Republic, El Salvador and Panama for consultations in Washington. The meetings will focus on recent decisions by Latin American countries to no longer recognize Taiwan and ways the U.S. can "support strong, independent, democratic institutions and economies throughout Central America and the Caribbean."

The big picture: Chinas increasing political ties and economic heft in Latin America have been a subject of debate and concern among American analysts and policymakers for more than a decade. This diplomatic recall is the administration's latest attempt to counter Chinese outreach in the hemisphere.

The background: China has recently eclipsed the EU as Latin Americas second-largest trading partner, after the U.S., and is the single largest trading partner of Brazil, Chile and Peru. In 2017, total Chinese trade with Latin America reached $260 billion  up from $10 billion in 2000  and foreign direct investment stock similarly exceeded $200 billion.

Over the past year, China has peeled off several of Taiwans remaining allies in the region, including Panama in 2017, the Dominican Republic in May and El Salvador last month. With more nations following the One China policy the U.S. adopted in 1979, Taiwan has only 17 remaining allies, 9 of which are in the Western hemisphere.

The details: The most recent trouble began on August 21, when El Salvador's president declared that the country of 6 million would sever its 57-year-old diplomatic relationship with Taiwan in favor of establishing ties with mainland China.

Initial statements of concern from the U.S. ambassador to El Salvador and senior U.S. officials in charge of hemispheric policy were followed by a condemnation from the White House of El Salvador's receptiveness to Chinas apparent interference in the domestic politics of a Western Hemisphere country  a warning that the U.S. would be re-evaluating its relationship with El Salvador.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen denounced Chinas increasingly out-of-control behavior, while Chinese officials promised El Salvador warmth and friendship and tangible benefits from its cooperation with China.

The bottom line: The Trump administration's harder line is noteworthy, but unlikely to be coupled with appealing policy proposals. As a result, the trend of the U.S.' Latin American allies dropping recognition of Taiwan in exchange for China's goodwill is likely to continue.

Daniel P. Erikson is managing director at Blue Star Strategies LLC and a senior fellow at the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement.
The army not only participated in quelling post-election protests in Armenia in 2008, but also fired at people and residential buildings, a top Armenian investigator insisted on Tuesday, referring to special army units allegedly formed by former authorities for the purpose.

Sasun Khachatrian, the head of the Special Investigative Service (SSS), held a joint press conference with Director of the National Security Service (NSS) Artur Vanetsian convened at short notice following a wiretapping scandal that broke out on Tuesday.

A secretly recorded audio of telephone conversations of the two concerning the prosecution of ex-President Robert Kocharian and other former officials in connection with the deadly events of March 1-2, 2008 was leaked to the press by an anonymous source in an apparent attempt to show that the administration of recently elected Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian allegedly influenced the judiciary in related cases.

Pashinian, who came to power on the wave of last springs peaceful street protests with an agenda of political reforms and anti-corruption struggle, has brushed aside the accusations, stressing that his government will not yield to blackmail and will press ahead with anti-corruption cases and reopened investigations into alleged crimes committed by former officials.

Kocharian and several other senior former officials are accused of breaching the constitution by ordering the use of the army to quell opposition protests in the wake of a disputed presidential election in 2008. Ten people, including two security officers, were killed in the violence.

The investigation of the events conducted during the 10-year presidency of Serzh Sarkisian, Kocharians longtime ally and hand-picked successor, revealed no one who could be charged in connection with the killings.

After the change of government ex-president Kocharian was taken into custody on July 28, but an appeals court released him on August 13, finding that the Armenian constitution gives him immunity from prosecution. Prosecutors have appealed the decision at a higher judicial instance since. In the meantime, a decision has been made not to allow Kocharian to leave Armenia pending investigation.

At todays press conference SIS head Khachatrian disclosed some details of the investigation, arguing that investigators have proof of the armys involvement in the events.

Our investigation has already established that the army not only participated in the events of March 1-2, 2008, but also fired in the direction of people, apartments, that is, the army fully participated in these actions. Secondly, I want to disclose more details that I frankly did not want to do, but today there is an occasion for that and the public should know it. After the secret order when it was decided to gather servicemen from different military units in Yerevan, soldiers were in service at border posts without shifts, as a result a very dangerous situation was created, and you know that there was an [Azerbaijani commando] raid, Khachatrian said.

According to the top investigator, the most disgraceful thing that happened to the army during those days was that the countrys then leaders turned soldier into mercenaries and used them against the people.

Within the framework of the criminal case it has already been established that in the period after February 23, [2008] and until March 7-8, [2008] oligarchs gave money to soldiers to protect them, their property, their political aspirations, the SIS head said, showing an original register with names and signatures of soldiers and their commanders and sums of payments that were made from [bank] accounts of oligarchs and senior officials.

When asked whether the SIS was going to make those names public, Khachatrian replied: I will give the names later. Why name them now? Only for them to run away?

According to the SIS head, the current investigation has also acquired proof that one of the two servicemen killed in the unrest was killed by the police task force. Tigran Abgarian was killed after Robert Kocharian declared a state of emergency, but before there were any wounded. Our theory is that Abgarian was [fatally] wounded in order to ground the words of Robert Kocharian that there were victims, Khachatrian said.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian urged all his supporters in Yerevan to defeat counterrevolution in an upcoming mayoral election as he addressed a campaign rally in one of the city districts on Tuesday night.

Pashinian dedicated much of his speech to the wiretapping scandal involving the top officials of security and investigation agencies.

Armenian authorities have opened a criminal investigation into the wiretapping of telephone conversations between the chiefs of the National Security Service and the Special Investigation Service in which they discussed an ongoing investigation into the 2008 postelection violence.

The audio of the conversations apparently supposed to compromise the Pashinian government was leaked to the media and posted online by several news websites earlier that day.

Reacting to it, the office of former president Robert Kocharian, a key figure accused in connection with the deadly events that occurred a decade ago, said that the contents of the conversations showed that the case was a classical example of a political vendetta.

Speaking at the rally Prime Minister Pashinian described the wiretapping of the officials as a conspiracy and crime against the statehood of Armenia.

I have instructed the National Security Service, the police to find those who organized the conspiracy within the shortest possible period of time and hold them accountable in the strictest terms, he said.

Pashinian also claimed that some people connected with oligarchs and high-ranking officials have acquired wiretapping equipment and created their own special services working in parallel with the state special services.

All of these so-called special services will be identified and destroyed. All groups possessing weapons illegally will be disarmed. I order the police and the National Security Service to start raids immediately, Pashinian said.

Remarkably, for the first time in the capacity of prime minister, Pashinian directly accused ex-president and ex-prime minister Serzh Sarkisian, whom he unseated as a result of sustained peaceful street protests last April, of being behind the counterrevolution. Also for the first time, he vowed that Sarkisian will appear in court.

Robert Kocharian and Serzh Sarkisian, you have decided to challenge the people of Armenia. Your challenge is accepted, Pashinian said in a stern tone.

Referring to the investigation of the March 1-2, 2008 postelection crackdown in which 10 people were killed, Pashinian accused Kocharian and Sarkisian of usurping power and said they must be tried for their crimes.

Robert Kocharian and Serzh Sarkisian are responsible for the plunder of Armenia and they must be tried, he charged.

Pashinian stressed in that context that voters in the Yerevan municipal elections slated for September 23 must, therefore, support the pro-government My Step bloc to ensure its clear victory and thus send a message to the counterrevolution.

This mayoral election is an election between revolution and counterrevolution Lots of political parties and groups that pretend to be our allies and supporters of the revolution have flirted and continue to flirt with the counterrevolution. Dont give the counterrevolution a single vote, Pashinian said.

In the coming elections we need more than just a victory. We need an unconditional, complete and undisputed majority, we need an unconditional surrender of the counterrevolution in this coming election.

A total of 12 political parties and alliances are running in the September 23 municipal elections in Yerevan. A number of them were coalition partners with the Sarkisian-led Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) in the past. All of them, however, have denied current links with the former ruling party. The HHK itself is not participating in the race that many analysts believe will become an acid test for Pashinian and his political team ahead of early parliamentary elections expected at some time before next summer.
Armenias Police and National Security Service have reported that they immediately executed the order issued by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian in the wake of yesterdays wiretapping scandal to conduct raids to disarm so-called bodyguards of oligarchs and [former] high-ranking officials who illegally possess weapons.

Speaking at a rally in Yerevan Tuesday night Pashinian reacted angrily to the tapping of telephone conversations between the chiefs of the National Security Service and the Special Investigation Service in which they discussed an ongoing investigation into the 2008 postelection violence. The prime minister pointed an accusatory finger at some people connected with oligarchs and high-ranking officials who have acquired wiretapping equipment and created their own special services working in parallel with the special services of the State.

All of these so-called special services will be identified and destroyed. All groups possessing weapons illegally will be disarmed. I order the police and the National Security Service to start raids immediately, Pashinian said.

Police spokesperson Ashot Aharonian told RFE/RLs Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) today that actions were taken immediately after the order. He did not provide details, noting that when there is information subject to publication it will be published.

Samson Galstian, a spokesperson for the National Security Service (NSS), also told RFE/RLs Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) that there is still no information that can be made public.

Armenian authorities have opened a criminal investigation into the wiretapping scandal, with Prime Minister Pashinian describing it as a conspiracy and crime against Armenian statehood.

Pashinian ordered law-enforcement agencies to find the conspirators as soon as possible and hold them accountable in the strictest terms.

Asked by an RFE/RLs Armenian service correspondent today to comment on the results of his orders to the law-enforcement bodies, Pashinian briefly replied: Everything is correct, everything is accurate.

The head of the Armenian government also said that he did not see any external trace in the wiretapping of the heads of the special services of Armenia.

The audio of the conversations leaked to the media yesterday was apparently supposed to compromise the Pashinian government as it purportedly showed that the prime minister and security officials directed the judiciary in the case of former president Robert Kocharian, who is charged with overthrowing the constitutional order in connection with the 2008 unrest in which 10 people were killed.

Kocharians office issued a statement later on Tuesday, claiming that the contents of the conversations showed that the case was a classical example of a political vendetta.

Eduard Sharmazanov, a deputy parliament speaker representing the former ruling Republican Party of Armenia, meanwhile, said that the leaked audio proved that selective justice is being administered in Armenia. He further blamed the authorities for being incapable of securing phone lines even at the level of top security officials.
A forum of the International Organization of the Francophonie (OIF) opened in Yerevan on Wednesday, September 12, one month before the Armenian capital is to play host to the 2018 summit of French-speaking nations.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and OIF Secretary-General Michaelle Jean attended the event.

In his opening remarks delivered in French Pashinian welcomed representatives of all civic organizations taking part in the forum.

I am proud to say that our country assumes an important task and lives through an important period of time by playing host to the Francophone Summit. I want to assure you that our government and the whole of Armenia have mobilized their forces to host the participants of the summit in the best traditions of hospitality. I hope this summit will promote the development of Francophonie all over the world, and Armenia will become one of the centers of diplomatic activity of Francophonie, the head of the Armenian government said.

OIF Secretary-General Jean, in her turn, said that the Armenians are preparing for the 17th Francophonie summit with the hospitality typical of them. It is a great honor for us to hold a summit in a country where a velvet revolution, a peaceful change of power have taken place, said Jean, adding that while in Yerevan she had an opportunity to meet young people who took civil responsibility to advance the achievements of the velvet revolution.

About 200 representatives of civic organizations from Francophonie member countries are attending the Yerevan forum.

The leaders of Francophonie countries, including French President Emmanuel Macron, are due to visit Yerevan for the Francophonie Summit that will be held in the Armenian capital on October 11-12.

Later this week Pashinian will travel to France where in Paris he will meet with Macron as well as representatives of the local sizable Armenian community.

In a Facebook post today Pashinian wrote: I hope I will have fully learned French by the time the summit of Francophonie is held in Yerevan. Learn foreign languages! A citizen of Armenia should speak at least three foreign languages. I prefer French, Russian and English, and I should keep improving my knowledge of all the three languages.
Former Armenian President Robert Kocharian who faces charges of breaching the constitution has again accused the current authorities of carrying out a political persecution against him, claiming that the telephone conversations of two top security officials that were leaked to the media earlier this week provided more evidence of that.

In an interview with the Yerevan. Today website published on Wednesday Kocharian made it clear that he would speak only about the contents of the conversations between National Security Service (SIS) Director Artur Vanetsian and Special Investigation Service (SIS) head Sasun Khachatrian and would not address the fact of the appearance of the wiretapped audio online.

In the conversations, the authenticity of which was confirmed by both officials, Vanetsian and Khachatrian discussed the ongoing investigation into the 2008 postelection violence in which 10 people were killed.

Kocharian and several other former officials are accused of using the army to quell opposition protests, thus overthrowing the constitutional order of Armenia.

The conversations took place on July 27, hours before the court decided to arrest Kocharian. Based on the contents of the dialogues between the chiefs of the two security services who also refer to their consultations with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian on certain circumstances of the case, Kocharian assumes that pressure was put on the court.

All our predictions, all our statements that the case is politically motivated, that this is a case of political persecution are proved in this telephone conversation. [It proves that] this has nothing to do with the investigation of the March 1, 2008 events and has one goal, as they say themselves, to lock me up, the ex-president said.

Kocharian further insisted that after such a scandal the chiefs of the NSS and the SIS should resign and offer their apologies for their crime, as, he argued, it is obvious that there will be no trust in the prosecution conducted or overseen by these people.

At their joint press conference on September 11 both Vanetsian and Khachatrian said they were ready to step down, but only if there were such a demand from the public.

They insisted that their conversations did not reveal anything that could be used to accuse them or Prime Minister Pashinian of guiding the judiciary.

Speaking in parliament today Pashinian, too, insisted that there was nothing about the conversations that could be used to compromise him or Armenias security services. He gave assurances that he remained committed to his earlier pledge not to interfere in the work of courts.

Earlier Pashinian strongly condemned the wiretapping of the countrys officials, describing it as a conspiracy and a crime against Armenian statehood. He ordered a probe to identify the conspirators as soon as possible and hold them accountable in the strictest terms.

In his interview today Kocharian also criticized Pashinian for his public statements. The most surprising thing for me was Nikol Pashinians statement that he is responsible for all politically sensitive arrests. He made that statement at a rally. We are a member of the Council of Europe. This cannot but have consequences for the Republic of Armenia. This is a statement that even dictators do not do so straightforwardly. Now I should congratulate the people of Armenia that weve got a new dictator. Was this the goal of the revolution? the ex-president concluded.
By Trend

Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have 90 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Sept. 12.

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 Christiana Figueres and May Boeve

This year, extreme weather conditions have ravaged our planet, subjecting vulnerable communities around the world to the ever-increasing impacts of climate change. With each passing day, we learn more about  and experience directly  the dangerous consequences of extracting and burning fossil fuels. Floods, droughts, and wildfires are becoming deadlier, and weather patterns more severe.

Later this year, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the United Nations scientific taskforce on the subject, will deliver its first major report in four years. It will outline in detail the devastating consequences that await us if we do not keep average global temperatures within 1.5C of the pre-industrial level. Despite existing government and industry commitments, we have already reached the 1C mark, and the impacts are terrible. We need urgent change.

Fortunately, immediate action to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions confers immediate benefits. When eight coal- and oil-fired power plants were retired in California between 2001 and 2011, the fertility rate in mothers living close to each facility increased within just one year.

To usher in a new era of clean air and better health, communities around the world are speaking out, making it clear to decision-makers that a fossil-fuel-free economy is what the public wants. They will continue to demand action to keep fossil fuels in the ground, and to deploy more just and sustainable forms of energy.

The science on climate change is sound, the technologies for addressing it are already available, and the necessary financing is being mobilized. In addition, a rapidly growing social movement has been inspired by the universal benefits of a clean energy future: people are ready to be the change they want to see in the world.

Rise for Climate, a global mobilization of 250,000 people taking part in over 900 events in 95 countries took place on September 8. It has set the tone for a series of upcoming political events to address climate change, including this months Global Climate Action Summit, the One Planet Summit, and the UN Climate Change Conference in Poland (COP24) this December. In each case, policymakers will be challenged to recognize the unvarnished reality of the climate crisis and step up their actions to tackle it.

What this international mobilization of cities, civil-society groups, businesses, and individuals across five continents shows is that people power works. It has been the driving force behind civil-rights victories from the abolition of chattel slavery to the contemporary movement to secure the rights and dignity of LGBQT people. And it has emerged at key moments in the effort to combat climate change  an effort that is very much a part of that larger struggle for justice.

In 2014, the first Peoples Climate March in New York brought together 400,000 people, and set the stage for escalating interventions around the world in the years to follow. Civil society helped convince world leaders to sign the Paris climate agreement in 2015, and they have brought pressure to bear on the policymakers responsible for meeting national emissions-reduction targets. Meanwhile, individuals and civil-society groups continue to demand that companies, universities, and other institutions divest from fossil fuels and invest in renewable energy. These movements have created the space for forward-thinking politicians to take action.

Nevertheless, the climate crisis continues to grow, demonstrating that we still have a long way to go. This year alone, catastrophic heat waveshave stricken North Africa, Europe, Japan, Pakistan, Australia, and Argentina. Deadly wildfires have taken lives and destroyed billions of dollars worth of property in Greece, Sweden, the United States, and Russia. Droughts have struck in Kenya and Somalia; and Afghanistan and South Africa have suffered major water shortages. Hawaii, India, Oman, and Yemen have been wracked by severe storms and flooding. And ice in the Bering Sea has reached record lows. April marked the 400th consecutive month of global temperatures above the twentieth century average.

All people have a responsibility to step up and demand urgent action. Only by coming together can we build a groundswell of support for climate leadership and create the right momentum to secure a fast transition to a sustainable and equitable world.

Copyright: Project Syndicate: The masses are mobilizing for climate leadership

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Russias Kalashnikov Concern JSC, best known for assault rifles Kalashnikov, will begin selling its electric motorcycles and cars in the UAE as of this year.

The group will supply electric motorcycle UM-1 and electric car UV-4, Olga Boitsova, Deputy CEO of the company told Russian news agency TASS.

The sale will be made possible through Mawarid Holding, the manufacturing and investment company based in the UAE.

Kalashnikov Concern is headquartered in the city of Izhevsk in the Republic of Udmurtia and in capital Moscow. It is Russias largest small arms manufacturer. It designs and produces a wide range of civilian and military weapons including assault rifles, sniper rifles, designated marksman rifles, machine guns, squad automatic weapons, hunting rifles, shotguns

The products are sold in over 27 countries around the world.
By Sara Israfilbayova

Grampet Group, the largest rail and logistics operator in Romania and South-Eastern Europe, joined the International Association Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR).

Romania media outlets reported that this is the first European company that joined TITR.

The president of the Grampet Group noted that TITR will allow to transform Romania into a logistics platform of Europe and Asia, create 100,000 new work places and contribute to the receipt of more than one billion euros in the state budget.

Grampet Group is the largest private rail group in Romania and in South-Eastern Europe. Set up in 1999, Grampet Group includes several companies with activities in all railway sectors, from the transport of goods, rolling stock manufacturing and repairs to logistics management.

In the past years, the group has extended its activity and currently it provides services in Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Germany, Austria, Serbia, Montenegro, Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. Grampet owns the biggest private railway operator in Romania, Grup Feroviar Roman. In Bulgaria the group operates through Bulgarian Railway Company and Train Hungary, thus succeeding in delivering integrated transport and logistics services to its customers.

The agreement on creation of the TITR was signed in April 2016 in Baku by the railway authorities of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Kazakhstan.

TITR is a project initiated to improve transit potential and development of the countries of the Caspian region. This route runs from China through Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and further to Europe.

Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Georgia and Ukraine decided to apply the competitive feed-in tariffs for cargo transportation via the TITR in January, 2016. Single competitive rate was introduced in the framework of the route starting from June 1, 2016 with the view to reduce the costs of international cargo transportation.

About 300,000-400,000 containers are expected to be transported via the Trans-Caspian international transport route by 2020, bringing huge financial profits to Azerbaijan. Growing interest in the transport infrastructures passing through Azerbaijans territory is expected to make the country a major transport hub in the region.

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Sara Israfilbayova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Sara_999Is

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By Sara Israfilbayova

Azerbaijan intends to review the Belarusian experience in regulating waste management and developing a system of specially protected natural areas.

This and other issues were discussed at the meeting of Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of Belarus Andrey Hudyk with Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan Mukhtar Babayev.

Babayev arrived in Belarus on a working visit to review the state administration of environmental activities in Belarus, experience in regulating waste management and developing a system of specially protected natural areas.



At the meeting, Hudyk noted the expediency of developing cooperation between the environmental authorities of the two countries in the field of hydrometeorology, as well as in the field of geology, exploration and development of mineral resources.

As a result of the visit, the parties plan to sign the program for 2018-2019 to implement the agreement between the mentioned ministries of the two states in the field of environmental protection.

Diplomatic relations between the two countries was established in 1993, but cooperation in the economic sphere has been developing dynamically over the past decade.

Belarus mainly exports to Azerbaijan the production of machinery, woodworking, tires, foodstuff, medicine, household appliances, dishes and other goods, meanwhile Azerbaijan exports to Belarus the products made of aluminum, products of petrochemistry, engineering and agriculture.

A store of Belarusian goods is expected to open in Ganja ,the second biggest city of Azerbaijan, while similar sale points are already operational in the capital city Baku.

Moreover, Azerbaijan and Belarus plan to supply tractors to Turkey.

The Minsk Tractor Works (MTW) OJSC signed a new contract with Ganja Automobile Plant in Azerbaijan on September 22 for supply of tractors to Azerbaijan along with an additional protocol on jointly entering the Turkish market.

Azerbaijans first ever Trade House was opened in Belarusian capital Minsk this May 26.

Trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Belarus amounted to $147.7 million in 2017, according to National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Belarus.

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Sara Israfilbayova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Sara_999Is

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By Sara Israfilbayova

The next republican exhibition and sale fair of beekeeping products will be held in Baku on October 5-28.

In accordance with the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan On beekeeping, the exhibition will be held near the Tofiq Bahramov Republican Stadium.

The Ministry of Agriculture of Azerbaijan reported that such factors as the creation of better conditions for farmers to produce beekeeping products, the lack of public transport and parking problems, and the availability of an adequate infrastructure were taken into consideration during the selection of places.

Beekeeping in Azerbaijan is one of the most diverse types of agriculture. There are about 600 species of honey plants in Azerbaijan, almost 200 of which, as a source of nectar and pollen, create even greater natural opportunities for expanding beekeeping.

During the excavation in the Azykh 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.

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.

An apiary organized in Mughan at the Caucasian silkworm station in 1889 became the center of rational beekeeping for the entire Transcaucasia.

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.

The main task nowadays is to increase the production of honey and export it through participation of beekeepers in international markets under the Made in Azerbaijan brand.

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Sara Israfilbayova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Sara_999Is

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By Rashid Shirinov

The U.S. hopes that the change of power in Armenia and the resumption of the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group will lead to progress in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Charge dAffaires of the U.S. in Azerbaijan William R. Gill said at the International Eurasia Press Fund (IEPF) on September 11.

There are certain signs of this, which makes us very happy. The U.S. government is also concerned about the bitter fate of more than a million internally displaced persons of Azerbaijan who left their homes, Gill noted.

He also mentioned that the U.S. supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and is directly involved in the peaceful settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The 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. Until now, Armenia controls fifth part of Azerbaijans territory and rejects implementing four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding regions.

Speaking at the event about the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack in the U.S., Gill said: Today is an important day for all Americans, and also the day that reminds Americans of their friends. On this day, Azerbaijan was one of the countries that expressed condolences to the U.S, and we remember this.

IEPF Chairman Umud Mirzayev, in turn, noted that Azerbaijan remembers the terrorist attack in the U.S. with regret and honors the memory of those killed in that terrible terrorist act.

He further said that bringing people together is the basis for bringing countries and peoples together.

The projects we implement with the support of the U.S. government bring people together, increase knowledge in various fields and thus serve peace, reconciliation and development, the chairman mentioned.

He also added that thanks to the cooperation of the IEPF, the U.S. Embassy and the executive authorities, significant work was carried out to improve the opportunities for vocational education for internally displaced persons, develop household plots, and restore the infrastructure destroyed as a result of the Nagorno-Karabakh war.

Mirzayev further touched upon the opportunities of the IEPF Terter vocational education center and noted the importance of this infrastructure in terms of prospects for future cooperation, as well as in terms of support for local civil society.

IEPF Vice President Ramil Azizov, in turn, spoke about the projects implemented with the financial support of the U.S.

At the end, Gill and Press Secretary N. Jones got acquainted with the work done by IEPF, expressed satisfaction with the cooperation with IEPF and noted the importance of the work done by the organization.

The International Eurasia Press Fund is an independent non-governmental organization registered in 1992. The Fund regularly collaborates with such organizations as UNDP, UNHCR, the U.S. State Department, the Survey Action Center (U.S.), the European Commission, NATO, and many other organizations.

IEPF works in four key areas: Media and Civil Society Development; Community Development; Refugees and IDPs' Issues; and Peacemaking and Conflict Resolution.

The organization has made significant achievements in peacemaking, conflict resolution studies and protection of human rights. Since its first days, IEPF has taken the responsibility to research best methods of study and settlement of ethnic and military conflicts in the region.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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By Trend

The OSCE monitoring held in the direction of Azerbaijans Aghdam district at the line of contact between the troops of Azerbaijan and Armenia on Sept. 12 passed without incidents, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Sept. 12.

The monitoring was held under the mandate of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative.

On the Azerbaijani side, the monitoring was held by Ognjen Jovic and Simon Tiller, field assistants of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative.

On the Azerbaijani territories, occupied and controlled by Armenian armed forces, the monitoring was held by Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk and his field assistant Mikhail Olaru.

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 Rashid Shirinov

Azerbaijan is ready for substantive and intensive negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said at a meeting with the OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger on September 12.

Having welcomed Greminger and the members of the delegation, the foreign minister stressed the importance that Azerbaijan attaches to cooperation with the OSCE as a regional organization.

While noting the fundamental principle of the security indivisibility within the OSCE, Mammadyarov stated the importance of all member states to be committed to their obligations under the Helsinki Final Act.

In this regard, the FM stressed that Armenia, having grossly violated the commitments it had undertaken as an OSCE member state under the Helsinki Final Act, through the use of force continues to occupy the territories of Azerbaijan: the Nagorno-Karabakh region and the surrounding administrative regions.

Pointing out that the OSCE has been involved in the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict since its establishment, Mammadyarov stated the need to intensify efforts to change the status quo based on occupation and to withdraw Armenian troops from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

The FM added that the illegal presence of the Armenian armed forces in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan remains a primary threat to regional peace and security.

Recalling that the mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs was formed on the basis of the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the Helsinki Final Act, Mammadyarov stressed that Azerbaijan is ready for substantive and intensive negotiations to achieve progress in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and ensuring a lasting and just peace in the region.

Armenia and Azerbaijan 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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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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By Trend

OSCE Supports Minsk Group's activities on the settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict, OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger told journalists in Baku Sept. 12.

According to him, the mediators are making efforts to resolve the conflict.

Nevertheless, the parties of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should have political will in order to achieve progress, the secretary general added.

Greminger noted that the purpose of his visit to Baku is to study potential for further development of relations between Azerbaijan and the OSCE.

Azerbaijan as an active OSCE member makes an important contribution to the activities of the institution, including the establishment of dialogue and political, military issues, Greminger said adding that, OSCE highly appreciates this and believes that there is potential for further development of cooperation.

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 Naila Huseynli

From May 15, 2018 to the present, 760,782 visas have been issued to foreigners and stateless persons through ASAN Visa systems at Baku, Ganja and Lankaran international airports.

Elnur Niftaliyev, chief of department of public relations of the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations informed that employees of airports serve foreigners and stateless persons visiting the country in Azerbaijani, English, French, Spanish, German, Turkish, Indian, Arabic, Persian, Hebrew, Urdu, Norwegian and Russian.

Head of the department said that currently, electronic visas are issued for foreigners and stateless persons through the ASAN Visa system at Baku, Ganja, Gabala and Lankaran international airports.

The issuance of visa for foreigners at the airport via ASAN Visa self-service terminals has been started on May 15, 2018. So far, 587,557 have been issued through ASAN Visa portal, 173,225 at airport. Totally 760,782 visas have been issued.

Moreover, ASAN Visa provides direct visas to citizens of 15 countries at airports-Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, South Korea, China, Iran, Israel, Indonesia, Kuwait, Qatar, Malaysia, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Turkey and Japan, well as, those who have valid resident visas in the United Arab Emirates.

ASAN Visa system launched in June 2016, is available to citizens of 95 countries, who are able to benefit from obtaining an e-visa in a short time.

Azerbaijan applied electronic visa in order to make the process of obtaining the entry documents cheaper and quicker. Today foreigners can get e-visas just in three days.

All they need to do is to visit ASAN Visa website to submit an application, fill in the necessary information and pay the state fee online. After that, the e-visa will be sent to the email of the applicant in three days, and in case of urgent need  in three hours.

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By Naila Huseynli

Azerbaijan is the most dynamic nation in the South Caucasus in terms of demographic development. Population growth in Azerbaijan is ensured mainly by the excess of the number of births over the number of deaths. The impact of external migration on the change in the population size in Azerbaijan is insignificant.

The population of Azerbaijan has increased by 45,141 people or by 0.5 percent since the beginning of the year and reached 9,943,226 people as of August 1, 2018.

State Committee of Statistics reports that the population density is 115 per square kilometer. Moreover, the statistical data shows that urban residents comprise 52.9 percent of the total population, 47.1 percent resides in rural areas. In addition, 49.9 percent of the population of the country is men and 50.1 percent are women. At present, there are 1,005 women per 1,000 men.

Statistics of January-July of this year show that 1,458 twins and 57 triplets were born in Azerbaijan. The registration departments of the Ministry of Justice registered 78,673 babies or 371 births per day in the country during this period. Also, 53 percent of the new born babies are boys and 47 percent are girls.

In January-July of the current year, 34,812 deaths were registered in the country and this indicator was 6.1 per 1,000 people. In the seven months of this year, registration offices were recorded 33,009 marriages and 8,538 divorces, and the number of marriages per 1,000 people was 5.8 and the number of divorces was 1.5.

In January-July of this year, 2.109 people arrived in Azerbaijan for granting permanent residence permission from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and relevant bodies of the State Migration Service, while 829 people left the country. The positive balance of migration amounted to 1,280 people.

The country is among leading European countries in terms of natural population growth, which in turn contributes to the development of economy.

The "Azerbaijan 2020: Look into the future" Concept of Development reads that during the period covered by the concept, the country's population will increase by 1.1 percent a year on average and is expected to reach about 10.2 million in 2020.

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By Naila Huseynli

In January-August 2018, Georgia imported 106,800 tons of gasoline and diesel from Azerbaijan, which is 14.6 percent of the Georgian oil imports.

In total, within this time period Georgia imported 733,200 tons of gasoline and diesel fuel. This is 56,100 more than in the same period of 2017.

Georgia's Union of Petroleum Products Importers says that 362,600 tons of imported fuel is gasoline and 370,600 tons of diesel fuel.

During the reporting period, Georgia imported 191,400 tons of Russian oil, 187,000 tons from Romania, 122,900 tons from Turkmenistan, 80,300 tons from Bulgaria and 44,600 tons from Greece.

Georgia mostly imported from Azerbaijan oil and oil products, electricity, cement and gypsum, anhydrite and gypsum binders.

Diplomatic ties between Azerbaijan and Georgia were established in 1992.

The two countries broadly cooperate in regional energy development, transportation and economic partnership projects such as Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline (BTC), Kars-Tbilisi-Baku railway (BTK), the TRACECA, and the BSEC.

Georgian exports to Azerbaijan include cement, locomotives and other railway vehicles, mineral and chemical fertilizers, mineral waters, strong drinks, glass and glass wares, and pharmaceuticals, among other things.

Azerbaijani mainly exports to Georgia oil and petroleum products, natural gas, plastic

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Riyadh-based low budget airline Flynas has announced it will soon start recruiting Saudi women as co-pilots on flights in a move to enable the kingdoms women to have a greater role in supporting the kingdoms economy.

Flynas CEO Bandar Almohanna made the announcement in a statement. The airline seeks to become the first Saudi airline to give the chance to Saudi women.

The plan falls in line with the kingdoms ongoing reforms seeking to delete its image as the most conservative Arab country where women have to seek for male guardians to marry or to travel.

As part of the reforms guided by Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman, the kingdom lifted on June 24 the ban on womens rights to drive. Authorities have also announced the recruitment of women in the security forces and in the judiciary system.

Founded in 2007, Flynas operates domestic as well as international flights to locations including Dubai, Istanbul, Jordan, Kuwait and Abu Dhabi.

The airline operates a fleet of 30 aircraft, all of them Airbus A320 with two configurations, Business and Economy, its website says.
By Trend

Russias Rosgeo JSC and Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR are in talks regarding carrying out seismic survey, Director General of Rosgeo JSC Roman Panov said in an interview with TASS news agency.

Our colleagues have a need for a 3D seismic survey in Azerbaijan, and we held several rounds of talks on this topic, he said.

Panov noted that various models are being considered, up to the creation of a joint venture, which would implement such work in the interests of the customer.

We believe that by the end of the year already at the level of the companys managers we will agree on a model that would be acceptable both for us and SOCAR, he said.

Presently, SOCAR is the only producer of oil products in Azerbaijan, and operates more than 370 gas (petrol) filling stations in Switzerland, Georgia, Romania and Ukraine. SOCAR is also a co-owner of Petkim, Turkey's biggest petrochemical complex, and other assets in Turkey.

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By Trend

Non-OPEC oil supply forecasts for 2018 were revised down by 0.06 million barrels per day (mb/d) to average 59.56 mb/d, OPEC said in its Oil Market Report.

This is mainly due to a downward adjustment in the supply forecast for Brazil, the UK, India, Malaysia and China on lower-than-expected output in 2H18, which was partially offset by an upward revision in US supply.

Y-o-y growth was also revised down by 0.06 mb/d to now stand at 2.02 mb/d. The US, Brazil, Canada, Kazakhstan and the UK are expected to be the main drivers for y-o-y growth, while Mexico and Norway will show the largest declines, the report said.

Non-OPEC oil supply in 2019 was also revised down by 41,000 b/d and is now projected to reach an average of 61.71 mb/d, mainly due to a downward revision to the UKs supply forecast for next year.

However, y-o-y supply growth was revised up by 0.02 mb/d to now stand at 2.15 mb/d. The US, Brazil, Canada, the UK, Kazakhstan, Australia, China and Malaysia are the main growth drivers, while Mexico and Norway are expected to see the largest declines. The 2019 forecast is subject to many uncertainties, said the report.

In December 2016, at a meeting of oil producers in Vienna, 11 non-OPEC member countries, including Azerbaijan, agreed to cut oil production by a total of 558,000 barrels a day. The agreement was concluded for the first half of 2017 and was extended until the end of the first quarter of 2018 at a meeting on May 25, 2017.

At the last OPEC meeting in Vienna, the agreement was again extended until the end of 2018. Azerbaijan supported the decision.

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By Trend

A delegation of the US State Department, led by First Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs Brian McFeeters, will visit Uzbekistan, the Uzbek Foreign Ministry said in a message on Sept. 11.

The visit is scheduled for Sept. 12.

The agenda of the visit includes meetings in the Cabinet of Ministers, the ministries of foreign affairs, foreign trade, economy, development of information technologies and communications. It is planned to discuss prospects for bilateral cooperation in trade, economy and investment.

It was earlier reported that in September 2018, Sam Brownback, the US ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, will also visit Uzbekistan.

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By Trend

Kazakhstan's Aktau sea port has lost its international status.

The Aktau International Sea Trade Port has been renamed as the Aktau Sea Trade Port, reads the Kazakh Prime Minister Bakytzhan Sagintayev's decree, published by Adilet Legal Information System.

The Aktau port is located on the eastern coast of the Caspian Sea at the intersection of several international transport corridors.

Its location allows to transport cargoes, crude oil and oil products from east to west, from north to south - to Iran, Turkey, Russia, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.

The Aktau port is a part of the New Silk Road project and is a participant of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route.

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By Kamila Aliyeva

Russia increased imports of tomatoes from Uzbekistan in the first half of this year.

This year Russia has significantly increased imports of tomatoes to about 410,000 tons, which is 17 percent more than in the same period of 2017.

At the same time, Uzbekistan distinguished itself as one of the most significant contributions to the growth of supplies. The country increased the export of fresh tomatoes to Russia by three times during the reporting period.

For the first six months of 2018, as many as 14,500 tons of Uzbek tomatoes reached the Russian market. This amount accounts for about 3.5 percent of total imports of these products to the country. A year earlier, Uzbekistan's share in the supply of tomatoes to the Russian market in the first half of the year was 1.3 percent.

According to East-Fruit analysts, the main advantage of Uzbekistan is the opportunity to supply inexpensive tomatoes from unheated greenhouses covered with film already in May, when the prices for tomato in Russia are still very high. At this time, there is a local tomato from heated greenhouses, as well as greenhouse products from Turkey, Iran, Morocco and Armenia in the Russian market.

It should be noted that, on an equal basis with Uzbekistan, Iran is actively expanding its presence in the Russian market of fresh tomatoes, as the Islamic Republic increased shipments 4.6 times in the reporting period and delivered about 32,200 tons of greenhouse tomatoes to Russia. In fact, according to market participants, the volume of supply of greenhouse tomatoes from Iran is much higher, as part of this product passes the re-export phase through Azerbaijan and already appears in Russia as products from Azerbaijan.

In addition to Azerbaijan and Iran, such countries as China, Morocco, Turkey, Belarus were among the leaders in the export of fresh greenhouse tomatoes to Russia in the first half of 2018. Moreover, the growth of supplies to the Russian market of greenhouse tomatoes from Turkmenistan should also be noted.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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By Kamila Aliyeva

The Uzbek authorities intend to involve the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in the corporate transformation of Uzbekneftegaz, Podrobno.uz reported.

Tashkent recently hosted a meeting with representatives of ADB was held recently, where the issue of rendering technical assistance from the bank was discussed with the purpose of corporate transformation of the domestic oil and gas holding.

As part of this assistance, it is planned to attract consultants from ADB who will carry out the necessary research and comparative analysis with leading oil and gas companies, followed by the submission of a corresponding report and recommendations, Uzbekneftegaz noted.

During the meeting, the issue of ADB's participation in financing the Technical Upgrading, Modernization and Development of Uzbekistan's Gas Transportation System program was also discussed.

Representatives of the bank were provided with presentation materials on this program, which included the main technical parameters, planned activities and implementation deadlines.

The interest of ADB representatives in financing the project on the modernization of the gas transportation network is expressed in the fact that its implementation will help increase the trade turnover between Asian countries, which is in line with the bank's policy.

In addition, in the course of the meeting preliminary conditions for financing the project were announced.

It should be recalled that to exchange the necessary information on this project, the parties signed the April 5 Confidentiality Agreement.

Uzbekistan joined the ADB in August 1995. Since joining ADB, Uzbekistan has received 65 loans totaling more than $6.3 billion. Since 2001, thanks to ADB projects, more than 4.5 million Uzbeks have gained access to water and sanitation services. Since 2011, the rural housing development program, funded by ADB, has provided affordable housing with modern infrastructure to over 41,000 families in Uzbekistan living in rural areas.

The ADB program in Uzbekistan has provided loans, grants and technical assistance to grow the countrys economy and improve the lives of people, particularly the poor, women, children and other vulnerable groups.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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By Kamila Aliyeva

The foreign trade turnover of Kazakhstan in money terms made $51.9 billion in January-July 2018, that is 20.1 percent more as compared to the same period of 2017, according to the Committee on Statistics of the Kazakh Ministry of National Economy, Kazinform reported.

The country's volume of exports made $35 billion in the reporting period, thus showing an increase of 26 percent compared to the first half of the previous year. Meanwhile, the volume of imports made about $17.9 billion, thus registering a growth of 10.3 percent compared to the last years indicator.

Kazakhstan is the 48th most complex economy according to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI).

The country has an export-oriented economy which is highly dependent on shipments of oil and related products (73 percent of total exports). Other exports include ferrous metals, copper, aluminum, zinc and uranium.

Main imports are electronics, machinery and mechanical appliances (25 percent of total imports), mineral products (15 percent), transport equipment (12 percent) and base metals and related products (10 percent).

Kazakhstan became a World Trade Organization (WTO) member on November 30, 2015.

The country officially entered into a Customs Union with Russia and Belarus on July 1, 2010. Since that time, Kazakhstans trade policy has been heavily influenced by regulations promulgated by the Customs Union and its governing body the Eurasian Economic Commission.

As a condition of membership in the Customs Union, Kazakhstan had to double its average import tariff and introduced annual tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) on trade apoultry, beef, and pork.

However, in accordance with its WTO commitments, Kazakhstan will now gradually lower 3,512 import tariff rates to an average of 6.1 percent by 2020. Starting from January 2016, Kazakhstan has applied a lower-than-Customs Union Tariff rate to food products, automobiles, airplanes, railway wagons, lumber, alcoholic beverages, pharmaceuticals, freezers, and jewelry.

On May 29, 2014 Kazakhstan and its Customs Union partners signed a treaty to create a common economic space known as the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). The EAEU is expected to further integrate their economies, and provide for the free movement of services, capital and labor within their common territory. The government of Kazakhstan has asserted that EAEU agreements comply with WTO standards.

Kazakhstans government is optimistic that further integration within the EAEU will make Kazakhstan more attractive for foreign investment by expanding market access to those countries.

Kazakhstan is a signatory of the Free Trade Agreement with CIS countries. In addition, as a member of the EAEU, Kazakhstan is party to the Free Trade Agreement between the EAEU and Vietnam.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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By Kamila Aliyeva

A meeting with U.S. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Brian McFeeters, who arrived in Tashkent today, was held at the Uzbek Foreign Ministry on September 12, 2018.

An exchange of views on the state and prospects of building up trade, economic and investment ties between the two countries was held in the context of the implementation of the agreements reached during the official visit of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to the U.S. on May 15-17 this year and his talks with President Donald Trump.

The parties noted positive dynamics in bilateral trade. For eight months of 2018 mutual trade reached almost $ 300 million, while for the whole of 2017 it amounted to $ 210.2 million.

At the same time, it was confirmed that there is a significant potential for further building up mutually beneficial cooperation in this area and the sides stressed the mutual interest in this.

The parties also discussed other issues on the Uzbek-American agenda, including preparations for the American Business Week in Uzbekistan.

The Uzbek president, during his visit to New York, held a series of meetings with representatives of American companies and took part in a bilateral business forum. During the visit, over 20 major business deals between Uzbekistan and U.S. companies were signed, which, if fully implemented, will be worth more than $4.8 billion and could sustain more than 10,000 US jobs and open opportunities for billions of dollars in future contracts.

The United States also ranked first among the countries in investing in Uzbekistan's economy in the first quarter of 2018, according to the Central Bank.

In 2017 the volume of trade turnover between Uzbekistan and the United States amounted to 210.2 million dollars. In the structure of Uzbek exports, the main share falls for services - 71.4 percent, mechanical equipment - 15.7 percent, dried pepper - 3.3 percent and fruit and vegetable products - 3.1 percent. In turn, pharmaceutical products, mechanical and electrical equipment, plastic products, optical instruments and devices, rubber, rubber products, vehicles, artificial fibers are imported from the U.S.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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By Kamila Aliyeva

Uzbekistan plans to implement a project to build a new toll highway from Tashkent to Samarkand on the terms of a public-private partnership (PPP), Uzbek media outlets reported on September 12.

Recently, a working meeting to discuss the implementation of this project was held with consortium of Turkish companies Cengiz-Kolin-Kalyon at the State Investment Committee.

The representative of the Turkish contractors noted that the project will allow covering the distance from Tashkent to Samarkand in two hours. The construction of a toll road is tentatively scheduled for 2019-2020.

During the meeting, the parties agreed that when developing a new highway project it is necessary to take into account such requirements as ensuring the passage of the highway away from residential areas, minimal impact on pasture and agricultural areas and the state of the environment.

The investment agreement on the construction of the highway on the principles of public-private partnership in cooperation with the Turkish consortium was included in the portfolio of projects submitted to Turkish investors and was signed during the official visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Uzbekistan, held this spring, the Uzbek State Committee for Investments noted.

The national partner of the project of the first toll highway is the State Committee for Roads.

At present, the law On public-private partnership is being worked out in the republic, which will provide a legislative foundation for projects of this kind. A publicprivate partnership is a cooperative agreement between two or more public and private sectors, typically of a long-term nature. PPP in its various forms is actively gaining popularity in many countries as a tool used to create new infrastructure and provide public services.

The consortium members are the largest companies in Turkey with more than 40 years of history. Cengiz - Kolin - Kalyon implements strategic projects in various industries and play a leading role in the development of Turkey.

In particular, they were engaged in the construction of infrastructure in the framework of the Ankara-Istanbul high-speed railway project, the third airport and the metro line in Istanbul and many others.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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Giant hotel group AccorHotel has appointed Mark Willis to head its Dubai-based office overseeing the Middle East and Africa region.

The appointee will be responsible for overseeing a combined network of hotels in the two regions, around 400 hotels; some already in operation and dozens to emerge in a near future.

Willis is tasked to drive operational excellence through top line performance, quality and guest satisfaction as well as fueling the regions growth by nurturing a talent pool to reach 50,000 employees by 2021,, the group said in a statement.

The new CEO of the region previously oversaw the Asian region with Movenpick Hotels & Resorts. He also worked at top level within Radison Hotel Group.

He is taking over from Olivier Granet who is embarking on a new project to drive sustainable development in Africa with AccorHotels, the group also noted.

AccorHotel group has witnessed a major jump in its growth in the Middle East region. Its portfolio has tripled in recent years.

The group is continuing its expansion in the region and around the globe. It is in talks to acquire Swiss-based Movenpick Hotels & Resort for reportedly $566 million.

Willis schooled at Cornell University, New York. He holds an MBA in International Business from Oxford Brooks University in the UK.
Joseph Luiz can be reached at 395-7368 or by email at jluiz@bakersfield.com. You can also follow him on Twitter @JLuiz_TBC.
Furious his estranged wife had a new man in her life, Rigoberto Sanchez became obsessed over the relationship, a prosecutor said.
When Ike hit Southeast Texas in September 2008, millions of residents were left without power, thousands without homes and 74 Texans died from direct and indirect causes.

The Category 2 hurricane made landfall on Sept. 13, 2008, just after 2 a.m., hitting Galveston first and then moving onto the mainland and blazing a trail of damage.
New United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, on Wednesday, expressed worry over the worsening security situation in Cameroons Anglophone region.

A government crackdown in two regions of Cameroon where English-speaking separatists are campaigning for an independent state has inflamed the crisis in recent months.

The unrest is unfolding in the Northwest and Southwest Regions  English-speaking regions once governed by colonial Britain that joined French-speaking Cameroon after it gained independence from France in 1960.

Bachelet intimated that the situation required urgent attention even though Yaounde had failed to take the lead in ensuring a resolution to the crisis.

Anglophones currently make up roughly 20 percent of the countrys population and are undeniably underrepresented in President Paul Biyas government. Since taking power in 1982, less than 11 percent of the ministers appointed by Biya have been Anglophones.

In her opening statement at the 39th session of the Human Rights Council on 10 September 2018, Bachelet spoke about the economic, social and educational impact of hostilities by government forces and separatists, condemning attacks of teachers and students in the south-west and north-west regions.

According to the International Crisis Group think-tank, at least 120 civilians and 43 security forces have been killed since the end of 2016.

The UN says 160,000 people have been internally displaced and 20,000 sought refuge in neighboring Nigeria.
A Port Arthur man has been indicted on a first-degree murder charge following a fatal stabbing last month.

Leroy Gipson, 53, is accused of stabbing Roderick Wiltz on August 10, according to a probable cause affidavit.
WASHINGTON - A bipartisan group of senators are criticizing the State Department for failing to meet what they say are basic federal cybersecurity standards - even neglecting to equip employees with multi-factor authentication that could protect them from the types of phishing attacks that Russian hackers have used to target political campaigns.

In a letter sent Tuesday to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the lawmakers pointed to recent reports showing the department lagged behind other federal agencies in safeguarding itself from cyberthreats. They specifically called on the State Department to roll out multi-factor authentication, or MFA, across its networks, saying a "password-only approach is no longer sufficient to protect sensitive information from sophisticated phishing attempts and other forms of credential theft."

"Two-factor authentication is cybersecurity 101," Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., one of the letter's authors, told me in an email. "Effective diplomacy depends on being able to keep certain things secret from other governments, especially during sensitive negotiations. If State can't secure their emails from hackers, it will undermine their ability to function as the foreign policy arm of the U.S. government."

The letter was also signed by Sens. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., Rand Paul, R-Ky., ED Markey, D-Mass., and Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.

The State Department's apparent inability to adopt relatively low-hanging security practices highlights the Trump administration's struggles to make good on promises to improve cybersecurity across federal agencies. Wednesday's letter reflects frustration among lawmakers at the lack of progress, even after President Donald Trump himself pledged in his sweeping cybersecurity executive order last year to hold agency heads accountable for boosting their defenses against digital threats.

Multi-factor authentication, in particular, is a basic defense that can have a huge impact as nation states or criminals may be targeting diplomats or other U.S. interests at home and overseas. It adds a layer of security that experts say is essential for guarding against phishing attacks, which involving posing as a trusted source to gain access to private information. Russian hackers used the technique to infiltrate Democratic organizations during the 2016 election and have used it to target several candidates ahead of the November midterms.

The State Department has deployed special security controls such as multi-factor authentication on just 11 percent of required agency devices, according to the lawmakers' letter. This not only puts the department at risk, the senators wrote - it also violates the Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act, a 2015 law that requires agencies to use multi-factor authentication for all accounts with "elevated privileges," meaning accounts used by people who have administrative duties on a computer network.

"While certainly not a silver bullet, MFA is a simple step that makes it significantly harder for foreign governments or criminals to access accounts," the lawmakers wrote. "We are sure you will agree on the need to protect American diplomacy from cyberattacks, which is why we have such a hard time understanding why the Department of State has not followed the lead of many other agencies and complied with federal law requiring agency use of MFA."

And the problems didn't end there, the lawmakers said. The letter noted that the White House recently deemed the State Department's cyber readiness "high risk." The lawmakers also pointed to a report by the department's watchdog from last year that found that a third of diplomatic missions didn't conduct "even the most basic" cyberthreat management practices, such as regular reviews and audits of information systems to check for unusual activity. They called on the department to explain what steps it has taken to address these issues and to turn over three years' worth of statistics detailing cyberattacks against State Department systems outside the United States.

A department spokesperson declined to comment on the specifics of the letter. "All Congressional correspondence to the Department is carefully reviewed before an appropriate response is provided," the spokesperson said.

The State Department isn't the only agency with subpar cybersecurity practices - not by a long shot. Earlier this year, the Office of Management and Budget found that nearly three-quarters of federal agencies are ill equipped to deal with intrusions into their networks. In a government-wide cybersecurity review, OMB concluded that 71 of the 96 agencies it examined were relying on cybersecurity programs that were deemed "at risk or high risk." On top of that, the Government Accountability Office revealed in July that agencies throughout government hadn't implemented hundreds of GAO recommendations to shore up their cyberdefenses. Even the watchdog for the National Security Agency, which is tasked with defending the country's communications systems, recently hammered the agency for failing to protect data stored on its networks.

It's not clear what the Trump administration intends to do to respond to the pressure to bring federal cybersecurity up to speed. There is no obvious person in the White House to shepherd a major overhaul. The likely choice, former cybersecurity coordinator Rob Joyce, returned to the National Security Agency over the summer, and the White House has no plans to replace him.
The joint venture between OCP Group and Jacobs Engineering Group of the United States (JESA), has just signed a contract with the Millennium Challenge Account-Benin II (MCA-Benin II) covering the 2017-2022 period.

Benins second Grant Compact, worth $ 403 million, including $375 million as a grant, will finance an Electricity Power Program. The aim is to increase the productivity and production of enterprises and to generate more economic opportunities, by meeting the needs of the country in terms of electricity generation and distribution infrastructure, including at the level of off-grid electrification of unserved households, says JESA in a statement.

The overall program comprises four projects: policy reform and institutional strengthening; power generation; electricity distribution; and off-grid access to electricity.

The Power Generation project aims to increase Benins total installed capacity by about 46 MW, or 20% of the countrys current peak demand, which will reduce dependence in energy consumption on external sources of supply. The program includes the construction of four solar photovoltaic plants, new transmission lines, new substations, and a dispatch center.

Under this new contract that confirms its development strategy in Africa, as a major continental player in engineering, project management, and consulting, JESA will act as a Program Management Consultant and will be responsible for the overall control and oversight of the program activities, the review and validation of study reports, and the management of construction works.

As part of the execution of its mission, and thanks to the expertise of its teams, JESA will work in close collaboration with various government departments and agencies of Benin, as well as with the Beninese Electric Power Company (SBEE) and the Benin Electric Community (CEB).

Among other projects in Africa, JESA had won a $210 million contract in Senegal in 2016 for the construction of six residential towers and a mall in Dakar.
President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday said there was no reason to believe that any country would impose sanctions on South Africa over land reforms.

The controversy began last month when Trump tweeted that he had asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to closely study the South Africa land and farm seizures and expropriations and the large scale killing of farmers.

The ruling South African National Congress (ANC) plans to change the constitution to allow the expropriation of land without compensation, as whites still own the majority of South Africas land.

According to Ramaphosa who was answering a question from an opposition party in the Parliament on Tuesday, expropriations formed one part of a broader land redistribution and agricultural development program that would only be introduced following public and parliamentary consultation.

The government has no reason to believe that any country would impose sanctions on South Africa for any actions that it takes, actions that are constitutional, that are lawful and consistent with international law, he said.

Ramaphosa added that the government was ready to discuss its land reform plans with any country.

As a reminder, Trump is not the only foreign politician showing interest in South Africas land reform policies.

In her first visit to the continent last month as UK Prime Minister, Theresa May openly supported President Cyril Ramaphosas approach to land reform, deeming it could potentially unlock further investment opportunities in Africa.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP)  Authorities say a dead hiker whose body was recovered this week was likely killed by a cougar, marking the first fatal attack by a wild cougar in Oregon and the second in the Pacific Northwest this year.

Search and rescue teams found the body of Diana Bober, 55, on Monday off a trail in the Mount Hood National Forest in Welches, about 40 miles (65 kilometers) southeast of Portland. Her body was several miles from where searchers found her car last week near a ranger station.

The Oregonian reported Bober attended Trinity University in San Antonio.

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Bober, an avid hiker who often trekked in the Mount Hood and Columbia River Gorge area, was last heard from by family and friends on Aug. 29. She was reported missing on Friday and it's still unclear when she started her hike, said Sgt. Brian Jensen of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office.

Her body had injuries consistent with a cougar attack and a medical examiner ruled out the possibility that she was mauled after she died of another cause, Jensen said. DNA samples collected at the scene were being flown by the Oregon State Police to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service laboratory for further analysis, he said.

Authorities warned a local school district of the attack and advised other hikers to stay out of the area.

Oregon wildlife officials are attempting to find and kill the animal, he said.

"This is an unprecedented event in Oregon," said Brian Wolfer, watershed manager for the Department of Fish and Wildlife. "We don't know what risk it poses to the public."

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Cougar sightings are relatively common in Oregon, particularly in more rural areas, but Bober's death appears to be the first fatal attack.

There are about 6,600 cougars  also called commonly called mountain lions or pumas  throughout Oregon. State wildlife officials get about 400 complaints about the animals each year, according to authorities.

Cougars can be killed by landowners or law enforcement officials when they pose a threat to human safety or cause damage to livestock or agricultural crops. They also can be hunted.

Over the past decade, about 20 cougars have been killed each year in the wildlife management area where Bober's body was found.

In May, a mountain biker in Washington state was killed by a cougar on a trail east of Seattle, the first fatal attack in that state in 94 years.

___

Information from: The Oregonian/OregonLive, http://www.oregonlive.com
Crescent City, Calif.-based Sutter Coast Hospital will terminate its emergency room services provider contract with Nashville, Tenn.-based Envision Healthcare in 90 days, the Del Norte Triplicate reports.

Here's what you should know:

1. Sutter selected Tacoma, Wash.-based Sound Physicians as its new services provider.

2. Envision Healthcare charged about three times as much as its predecessor, Valley Emergency Physicians, according to Del Norte Healthcare District Chairman Greg Duncan, MD. Several local government bodies have urged Sutter to renegotiate its contract with Envision since November 2016.

3. Earlier this year, Envision was embroiled in controversy over alleged balance-billing practices. After Envision sued Minnetonka, Minn.-based UnitedHealthcare alleging contract violations, UnitedHealth took aim at Envision's emergency room billing practices and dropped plans acquire Envision's ambulatory subsidiary, Nashville-based AmSurg.

4. Sound Physicians has been Sutter's inpatient service provider for more than five years and contracts with nearly every local insurer, Sutter CEO Mitch Hanna said. Sutter and Sound Physicians came to an agreement in late August.

"Patients should not be getting out of network billing from the ER physicians," Mr. Hanna said. "The charge structure is considerably less than the current provider."
A cluster of surgery centers and outpatient centers are shutting down operations as Hurricane Florence closes in.

Here's a rundown of centers halting services in anticipation of the storm:

This list will be updated with closures and cancellations.

North Charleston, S.C.-based Charleston Surgery Center, an affiliate of Deerfield, Ill.-based Surgical Care Affiliates, closed Sept. 10 due to the area's mandatory medical evacuation. A statement on the ASC's website said the facility will remain closed until the order is lifted.

Charleston, S.C.-based Physicians' Eye Surgery Center is closed, according to an announcement on its website.

Grand Dunes Surgery Center in Myrtle Beach, S.C., was closed Sept. 8, Sept. 11 and Sept. 12, with tentative plans to reopen Sept. 13 at 6 a.m. The center will be posting updates online.

Summerville, S.C.-based Lowcountry Outpatient Surgery Center closed Sept. 9 until further notice and will provide updates on its Facebook page.

The Charleston-based Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center and its outpatient clinics in Myrtle Beach, North Charleston, Beaufort, S.C., and Goose Creek, S.C., closed noon Sept. 11 and will remain closed for the rest of the week, WMBF News reports.

Conway (S.C.) Medical Center closed all outpatient locations, and they will reopen Sept. 17 if conditions permit. CMC cancelled all non-emergency surgeries and endoscopic procedures for the week.

Myrtle Beach-based Grand Strand Health discontinued elective surgeries and closed its outpatient facilities and physician practice locations Sept. 11. Grand Strand Surgical Care, Grand Strand Spine & Neuro Care and Grand Strand Orthopedic Care, all in Myrtle Beach, are closed.

The Lumberton, N.C.-based Surgery Center at Southeastern Health Park is scheduled to close Sept. 13 and Sept. 14.

The Surgery Center at Southeastern Health Park will be closed Sept. 13 through Sept. 15, according to The Robesonian.

Elective surgical procedures at Beaufort Memorial Surgery Center resumed Sept. 12, after South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster lifted the mandatory medical evacuation for three counties. They were previously cancelled through Sept. 14, The Island Packet reports.

Hilton Head Regional Healthcare also canceled outpatient services when the mandatory evacuation was announced, but normal operations resumed Sept. 12.

Coastal South Carolina closed its offices through Sept. 14. The practice cancelled all remaining appointments for the week and plans to reopen its offices Sept. 17 at 8 a.m.

Patients in evacuation areas may not have access to their home phones. One Medical Passport is giving current clients free use of its patient engagement solution, Passport Engage, to text or email closure notices to patients.
William Wilcox joined Addison, Texas-based United Surgical Partners International in 1998, and served in president and director roles before becoming CEO.

Here are five things to know about Mr. Wilcox:

1. He became the CEO of United Surgical Partners International in 2004. Mr. Wilcox is also a member of the executive committee of USPI's board.

2. Prior to joining United Surgical Partners International, he was the CEO of United Dental Care, president of the surgery group of HCA, as well as president and CEO of HCA's ambulatory surgery division.

3. Mr. Wilcox saw United Surgical Partners through major transitions such its merger with Tenet in 2015. The joining of the two companies created the largest provider of ambulatory surgery in the U.S. at the time.

4. In a Q&A about the merger with the Dallas Business Journal, Mr. Wilcox said the deal was part of USPI's goal of having a strategic presence in the market the company is in.

5. USPI's network includes over 265 short-stay surgical facilities, 90 urgent care facilities and 20 imaging centers across 50 health systems in 28 states. More than 4,000 physicians are affiliated with USPI facilities.
Rockets were fired late on Tuesday in the direction of the airport in Libyas capital Tripoli, Reuters reported.

According to a spokesman for a faction controlling Matiga airport, the only one functioning in the capital, there were no casualties or damage.

A Libyan Airlines flight bound for Tripoli from Alexandria, Egypt, was diverted to Misrata, the airport said on its Facebook page.

A spokesman for Misrata airport quoted by Reuters said that all flights bound for Tripoli would be diverted to Misrata.

In a separate development, the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for a shooting attack on the headquarters of Libyan state oil company NOC in Tripoli.

The attack killed two NOC staff and wounded 10, the jihadist groups news agency said on Tuesday.

Since the 2011 ousting and killing of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has been divided between rival powers with renegade general Khalifa Haftars forces dominating the countrys east. A UN-backed unity government sits in the capital Tripoli, while numerous armed groups and jihadists are active in different parts of Libya.

Tuesdays attack comes less than a week after the United Nations brokered a fragile truce between rival armed groups in Tripoli.
Healthcare is the only industry vertical with more insiders causing data breaches, as opposed to external actors or partners, according to Verizon's 2018 Data Breach Investigations Report.

To compile the report, Verizon reviewed data security incidents across nine industries between Nov. 1, 2016, and Oct. 31, 2017. In the healthcare industry, Verizon identified 750 breach incidents, 536 of which confirmed data disclosure.

Here are four report highlights:

1. In healthcare, the majority of threat actors are internal players (56 percent), followed by external players (43 percent), partners (4 percent) and multiple parties (2 percent).

2. Of the 750 healthcare breaches, here is a breakdown of the primary causes:

Error: 203

Malware: 185 (ransomware accounts for 85 percent of all malware in healthcare)

Hacking: 139

Misuse: 138

Social 105

Physical: 87

3. Medical data (79 percent) is the type of information most often compromised in a healthcare breach, followed by personal data (37 percent) and payment information (4 percent).

4. Actor motives include:

Financial: 75 percent

Fun: 13 percent

Convenience: 5 percent

Espionage: 5 percent

To download the complete report, click here.
The Arc of Erie County, a Buffalo, N.Y.-based nonprofit that serves people with developmental disabilities, agreed to pay a $200,000 penalty to the state of New York to resolve allegations it violated HIPAA in a yearslong data breach.

As part of the settlement, Arc of Erie County is required to conduct a thorough risk analysis of vulnerabilities of all electronic equipment and data systems, as well as review its policies and procedures. It must submit a report on its findings to the Attorney General's Office within 180 days of the settlement.

"The Arc of Erie County's work serves our most vulnerable New Yorkers  and that comes with the responsibility to protect them and their sensitive personal information," New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said in a news release. "This settlement should provide a model to all charities in protecting their communities' personal information online."

In early February 2018, Arc of Erie County learned clients' personal information  including full names, Social Security numbers, gender, race, primary diagnosis codes, IQ scores, insurance information, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth and ages  was exposed on its website.

An investigation determined the information had been publicly accessible in spreadsheets since July 2015 and 3,751 clients were affected. The webpage was intended only for internal use, but the investigation noted several unauthorized third parties accessed the datasets on numerous occasions. Officials said there is no evidence of malware on the system or ongoing communications with outside IP addresses.

The organization notified all affected individuals in March, and it offered them one year of free identity theft protection services.
So far in 2018, nine hospitals and health systems announced or unveiled facility expansions and renovations with price tags of $1 billion or more.

They are listed below, from highest price to lowest:

1. Banner Health has $1.7B worth of construction projects in the works

Phoenix-based Banner Health has 386 active construction projects in its markets, totaling $1.7 billion.

2. Colorado VA hospital to open $1B over budget after 5-year delay

Although it's five years behind schedule and $1 billion over budget, the Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center opened to outpatients July 27 and inpatients Aug. 4. The $1.7 billion, 1.2 million-square-foot medical facility based in Aurora, Colo., will replace an aging VA hospital on a 31-acre campus.

3. Children's Healthcare of Atlanta advances plan for $1.5B campus: 5 things to know

Children's Healthcare of Atlanta filed a letter of intent with the State of Georgia to obtain a certificate of need  the first step toward breaking ground on its proposed $1.5 billion construction project.

4. UC San Francisco to construct $1.5B hospital with support from record $500M donation

UC San Francisco unveiled plans Feb. 8 to construct a $1.5 billion replacement hospital, which will be supported by a record-breaking $500 million commitment.

5. JPS Health Network seeks $800M toward $1.2B in campus upgrades

Fort Worth, Texas-based Tarrant County Hospital District, which does business as JPS Health Network, is seeking voter approval for an $800 million bond proposal that would fund more than $1.2 billion in hospital upgrades.

6. NewYork-Presbyterian unveils $1.1B ambulatory care center

New York City-based NewYork-Presbyterian completed construction on its David H. Koch Center, a $1.1 billion ambulatory care facility in Manhattan that will soon become home to a women and children's hospital.

7. Atrium Health to spend $1B on capital projects: 6 things to know

Charlotte, N.C.-based Atrium Health plans to spend more than $1 billion to upgrade and expand several facilities across its network  representing the largest capital investment in the health system's history.

8. Indiana University Health prepares for $1B transformation

Indianapolis-based Indiana University Health is preparing for a major consolidation project, expected to cost $1 billion.

9. Part of a $1B expansion project: BJC Healthcare unveils 12-story patient tower

As part of a planned $1 billion transformation project, St. Louis-based BJC Healthcare unveiled its 12-story inpatient tower at St. Louis-based Barnes-Jewish Hospital and an expansion of St. Louis Children's Hospital Jan. 19.
Columbia-based University of Missouri Health Care ended fiscal year 2018 with more than $1 billion in revenue and operating income of $104 million, according to recently released financial documents.

MU Health Care's financial results for fiscal year 2018 were an improvement from the year prior, when the health system reported operating income of $98.5 million on revenue of $944.7 million. The most recent fiscal year also marked the first time the health system hit the two major financial milestones of $1 billion in revenue and $100 million in operating income, according to Columbia Daily Tribune.

The health system's strong financial performance was partially attributable to patient volume growth. The system had a higher average daily census and more clinic visits in fiscal 2018 than in the year prior. Surgeons at MU Health Care also performed more surgeries in the most recent fiscal year.

MU Health Care CEO Jonathan Curtright provided details on the health system's growth Sept. 10 during a presentation to the University of Missouri Board of Curators Health Affairs Committee. He said the system's market share in its 25-county service area has grown from 22.4 percent to 28.5 percent since 2013, according to the report.

Mr. Curtright also shared an update on MU Health Care's negotiations to acquire two Missouri hospitals from St. Louis-based SSM Health. The parties signed a letter of intent in August, and they're currently in the due diligence phase, which is "progressing nicely," according to Mr. Curtright.

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Illinois hospital closes: 4 things to know

Nashville General has no documentation for $400K in credit card purchases by leaders, audit finds

Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong failed to turn around Verity Health: 7 things to know about where the system stands now
Former U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, MD, revealed he will be joining Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Sanford Health, the Argus Leader reports.

The system announced Dr. Shulkin's appointment Sept. 11. He will serve as the health system's chief innovation officer and strategic adviser, where he will oversee research and imagenetics, among other initiatives, and advise on the system's growth and public policy efforts. He will also join the Sanford International Board and serve as the health system's ambassador in both "domestic and international projects."

Dr. Shulkin told the Argus Leader he initially got to know the health system and President and CEO Kelby Krabbenhoft while serving as secretary of the VA. He said he was impressed by the organization's work and team-player attitude.

"It was really an exposure to a type of health system that both intrigued me but also, the more I learned about [Sanford], the more excited I was about the work they were doing," he said. "I think they have an opportunity to have a bigger impact on the country than even they've had in the past."

"Secretary Shulkin is one of the most talented healthcare leaders in the country, and he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to Sanford Health," Mr. Krabbenhoft said in the system's Sept. 11 news release. "His unique perspective, clinical expertise and powerful voice will further Sanford Health's continued development and diversification, which is so critical to our ability to bring new treatments and cures to the patients we serve."

Dr. Shulkin previously served as VA secretary and oversaw the nation's veterans healthcare system until March, when he was reportedly fired by President Donald Trump. The White House has maintained Dr. Shulkin resigned from the position.

In a March 28 op-ed for The New York Times, Dr. Shulkin discussed his role at the VA and the criticism he faced while in office.

"I came to government with an understanding that Washington can be ugly, but I assumed that I could avoid all of the ugliness by staying true to my values," he wrote. "I have been falsely accused of things by people who wanted me out of the way.  Despite these politically-based attacks  I am proud of my record and know that I acted with the utmost integrity."
Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, N.Y., recently filed a lawsuit against a patient who allegedly improperly retained $1.5 million in insurance payments that should have been sent to the hospital, according to the Westchester County Business Journal.

Here are seven things to know:

1. In 2011, Barbara Lucena was treated at Westchester Medical Center for 10 days and her baby was treated at the hospital for 109 days.

2. After Ms. Lucena and her baby were discharged, the hospital billed Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield, Ms. Lucena's insurance provider. Empire sent the payments, totaling $1,516,914, directly to Ms. Lucena. She allegedly cashed the checks instead of forwarding the payments to Westchester Medical Center.

3. The hospital sued Ms. Lucena in Westchester Supreme Court to recover the payments. In 2012, the court awarded the hospital a default judgment of $1.55 million. Since the judgment was entered, the hospital has collected $6,731 from Ms. Lucena, which was paid about five years ago, according to the report.

4. In 2016, Ms. Lucena filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Ms. Lucena's debts were discharged, and the bankruptcy case was closed in January 2017. Westchester Medical Center alleges Ms. Lucena intentionally failed to notify the hospital when she filed for bankruptcy in an attempt to keep the hospital from appearing in the proceedings.

5. Although Ms. Lucena named Westchester Medical Center as a creditor in the bankruptcy case, she listed the wrong address, according to the hospital's complaint filed Sept. 9. She also allegedly incorrectly listed her debt to the hospital as less than $2,000.

6. The court reopened Ms. Lucena's bankruptcy case this year at the request of Westchester Medical Center and allowed the hospital to file an adversary proceeding. The hospital claims Ms. Lucena obtained the insurance payments by fraud; therefore, her debt should not have been canceled.

7. Simon Haysom, Ms. Lucena's attorney, said his client regrets retaining the insurance checks. However, he said if Westchester Medical Center decides to litigate for fraud, the hospital "will have to litigate the appalling results of my client's treatment in June 2011," according to the report. Mr. Haysom claims the hospital has avoided liability over the years because his client missed the 90-day deadline for filing a medical malpractice lawsuit against the hospital.

More articles on legal and regulatory issues:

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Orlando Health hit with $100M defamation suit by fired physician
Becker's Healthcare is proud to recognize 72 community hospital CIOs in 2018.

Hospitals and health systems rely on CIOs and IT department leaders to develop long-term technology strategy and oversee EMR implementation, as well as support telehealth, data-gathering and cybersecurity initiatives. Those who lead community hospital and health system IT departments encounter unique challenges in connecting staff members at many locations and providing access to care for rural Americans with limited resources.

The individuals featured on this list hold CIO or senior health IT positions at their institutions. In some instances, leaders at health systems listed provide IT oversight for individual community hospitals within their system.

The following professionals are set apart by outstanding recognition they've earned and exciting new projects they're piloting. Many on this list are members of the Health Information Management Systems Society, and their workplace has earned a spot on Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired list.

Note: The Becker's editorial team solicited nominations and conducted internal research to develop this list. Individuals and organizations represented did not pay and cannot pay for inclusion. Profiles are listed in alphabetical order.

If you have any questions or comments for this list, please contact Laura Dyrda at ldyrda@beckershealthcare.com.

Doug Abel. Vice President and CIO of North Kansas City (Mo.) Hospital. Mr. Abel oversees all information technology services for the 451-bed North Kansas City Hospital. He has more than 30 years of healthcare information systems management experience and previously served as managing director of advisory services for Encore Health Resources. Mr. Abel has served as a board member on the Northland Chamber of Commerce and the First Hand Foundation.

Tracy Donegan. Chief Information and Innovation Officer of Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital (Los Angeles). Ms. Donegan served as assistant vice president of the Cognizant Healthcare Provider Consulting Practice before joining King Community Hospital. She also serves on the executive outreach committee of the American College of Healthcare Executives and Ithaca, N.Y.-based Cornell University's Alumni Admissions Ambassador Network, meeting regularly with applicants to the university.

Nathan Anderson. Director of IT at Brookings (S.D.) Health System. Mr. Anderson joined Brookings Health System in 2012 as information management director before becoming the director of IT. Before that, Mr. Anderson served as the CIO of Link It Software Corp. in Milbank, S.D., where he was responsible for the company's IT infrastructure, long-term technology strategy and IT staff.

Sallie Arnett. Vice President of Information Systems and CIO at Licking Memorial Health Systems (Newark, Ohio). Ms. Arnett joined Licking Memorial Health Systems in 2001. She oversees Licking Memorial Health's information systems, health information and communications departments, and is responsible for the hospital and physician practice EMR systems. Hospitals & Health Networks named Licking Memorial Health Systems among Health Care's Most Wired in 2017.

Harlan Baker. CIO of McDonough District Hospital (Macomb, Ill.). Mr. Baker leads McDonough District Hospital's information systems department. He previously served as director of information systems during the hospital's transition to an integrated EHR system and became CIO in 2016. Hospitals & Health Networks named McDonough District Hospital among Health Care's Most Wired rural and small providers in 2017.

Pam Banchy, RN. CIO and Vice President of Clinical Informatics at Western Reserve Hospital (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio). Prior to joining Western Reserve Hospital, Ms. Banchy served as the director of clinical information systems for Summa Health System in Akron, Ohio. She develops and maintains IT solutions at the physician-owned Western Reserve Hospital. Ms. Banchy has over 35 years of nursing experience and 25 years of experience in health IT.

Larry Barnes. Vice President of IT and CIO at Salina (Kan.) Regional Health Center. Mr. Barnes has more than 31 years of experience in healthcare information services. He joined Salina Regional Health Center in 2004, where he is responsible for all telecommunications and information services. Hospitals & Health Networks named Salina Regional Health Center among Health Care's Most Wired in 2017.

Todd J. Beardman, MD. CMIO of North Kansas City (Mo.) Hospital. Dr. Beardman is a hospitalist and internist who became CMIO of the 451-bed North Kansas City Hospital in 2013. He played a crucial role in integrating the hospital's home health clinical data with the acute EMR system and expanding its health information exchange platform. Hospitals & Health Networks named North Kansas City Hospital among Health Care's Most Wired in 2016.

Joel Benware. Vice President and Chief Information, Innovation and Compliance Officer at Northwestern Medical Center (St. Albans, Vt.). Prior to joining Northwestern Medical Center, Mr. Benware served as CIO of Alice Hyde Medical Center in Malone, N.Y. Under his leadership, Northwestern Medical Center earned the rank of HIMSS Stage 6. Hospitals & Health Networks named Northwestern Medical Center among Health Care's Most Wired in 2017.

Bill Bollinger. CIO of Carroll County Memorial Hospital (Carrollton, Mo.). Mr. Bollinger is responsible for all information technology for the 25-bed Carroll County Memorial Hospital. He joined the hospital as temporary CIO in 2009 before transitioning to his full-time position. Under his leadership, the hospital's technology services grew from 10 computers to more than 600 devices. In 2014, Mr. Bollinger played a critical role in implementing a system to prevent identity theft and provide more efficient patient registration.

Jim Boyer. Vice President of IT and CIO of Rush Memorial Hospital (Rushville, Ind.). Mr. Boyer serves as CIO and vice president of IT at Rush Memorial, and is tasked with using health technology and strategies to improve patient care. During his tenure, Rush Memorial achieved HIMSS Stage 6 status and was named among Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired in 2017 for the fifth year in a row. Mr. Boyer's expertise also includes network security, consumerism technologies and cloud infrastructures.

Ken Buechele. Vice President of IT at Bronson Healthcare (Kalamazoo, Mich.). As vice president of IT, Mr. Buechele is tasked with overseeing clinical information technology across the four-hospital system  three of which earned Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired recognition in 2017. Before accepting his current role, he served as director of IT and was responsible for supporting Bronson Healthcare's Epic EHR implementation. Mr. Buechele previously worked in software development in Illinois and Michigan.

Angela Burgess. CIO of Randolph Health (Asheboro, N.C.). Ms. Burgess has worked for Randolph Health since 1999 and has served in a variety of leadership roles, including director of operations and decision support, senior director of finance and most recently CIO. In her current role, she is responsible for developing and implementing IT initiatives that improve service quality and minimize costs at the 145-bed hospital. Before her work at Randolph Health, Ms. Burgess served as a senior consultant and then manager at Premier Inc. in Charlotte, N.C.

Paul Butler. CIO of Antelope Valley Hospital (Lancaster, Calif.). Mr. Butler joined Antelope Valley Hospital as CIO in February 2017 after a more than 20-year career in healthcare and IT. Before helming health IT infrastructure at the 420-bed hospital, Mr. Butler worked at several notable healthcare organizations, including Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and Los Angeles-based Martin Luther King Community Hospital. Throughout his career, he gained expertise in a variety of health IT areas, such as EMR implementation and developing an effective IT infrastructure.

Bart Butzine. CIO of Community Hospital (Grand Junction, Colo.). Mr. Butzine began his career as IT director of the 60-bed hospital in June 2015. Before that, he spent eight years as IT director of customer relations at Banner Health, a 28-hospital system in Phoenix. Mr. Butzine also previously worked as Banner Health's IT systems administrator for four years.

Phil Campbell. Vice President of Information Services and CIO of Calvert Health System (Prince Frederick, Md.). Mr. Campbell has been CIO and vice president of information services at Calvert Health System, which serves roughly 420 patients per day, and maintains a staff of 1,400 employees and nearly 350 practitioners, since 2016. He has been instrumental in modernizing the health system's technology suite this year, and ensuring all IT is up to date for the system's $51 million expansion. Before joining Calvert Health System, Mr. Campbell served as deputy director for client services in the IT services division of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.

Scott Carlson. Director of Information Systems at Mary Greeley Medical Center (Ames, Iowa). Mr. Carlson serves as director of information systems at the 220-bed hospital, which employs 1,300 workers and 153 physicians. He has worked at the hospital for more than 33 years. During his tenure, Hospitals & Health Networks named the regional hospital among the more than 250 institutions receiving its Health Care's Most Wired designation in 2017.

David Chmura. Director of IT at Copper Queen Community Hospital (Bisbee, Ariz.). Mr. Chmura has worked at Copper Queen Community Hospital for more than 12 years. In his role as IT director, he is responsible for maintaining integrated IT systems for the 14-bed acute care hospital and three rural health clinics. He was also instrumental in the development and use of telemedicine initiatives for a variety of specialties at the hospital.

Joseph Dado. CIO of Conemaugh Health System (Johnstown, Pa.). As CIO of Conemaugh Health System, Mr. Dado is responsible for creating and developing a systemwide strategy for implementing effective health technology. Before coming to Conemaugh Health System, he served as the CIO of Greensburg, Pa.-based Excela Health, CIO of one of the system's hospitals, and vice president of information systems at Butler (Pa.) Health System. He also worked as a manager at consulting firm Accenture.



David Danhauer, MD. Vice President and CMIO of Owensboro (Ky.) Health. Dr. Danhauer, a pediatrician, has served as chief medical information officer of Owensboro Health since 2012, prior to which he served as interim CIO. In 2016, he was named chair of the HIMSS physician committee for a one-year term. He also serves as a member of the Association of Medical Directors of Information Systems' Clinical Advisory Committee.

Jake Dorst. Chief Information and Innovation Officer at Tahoe Forest Health System (Truckee, Calif.). Mr. Dorst joined the Tahoe Forest Health District in 2014 with 20-plus years of healthcare IT experience. In addition to serving as CIO, Mr. Dorst took on the responsibilities of chief innovation officer in 2015. Under his leadership, the health system moved from seven disparate EHRs to a single, unified patient record in November. Previously, Mr. Dorst served as vice president and CIO of Hagerstown, Md.-based Meritus Health and CIO of Petersburg, Va.-based Southside Regional Medical Center.

Craig Doyle. Vice President and CIO of St. Tammany Parish Hospital (Covington, La.). Mr. Doyle assumed his current role as vice president and CIO of St. Tammany Parish Hospital in January 2012. Previously, he was CIO for Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare's Delta Division. Since 2010, he has served as a member of the Louisiana Healthcare Quality Forum's health IT committee. He is a member of HIMSS.

Bill Grimm. CIO and HIPAA Security Officer at Henry County Hospital (Napoleon, Ohio). Mr. Grimm joined Henry County Hospital as CIO and HIPAA security officer in April 2016. He is spearheading the process of selecting a new hospital EHR vendor and will lead implementation of the new system in 2019. Before joining Henry County Hospital, he was director of IT and patient access at Marengo (Iowa) Memorial Hospital. He is a member of HIMSS and Toledo Infragard, an information-sharing and analysis alliance.



John D. Helvey. CIO of Orchard Hospital (Gridley, Calif.). Mr. Helvey began serving as CIO of Orchard Hospital in May 2016, before which he was director of information technology at the hospital. He started his 24-year healthcare career at UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange, Calif., and then worked in behavioral health. Mr. Helvey serves as board secretary for Sac Valley Med Share, a California-based regional health information exchange.

Kathleen Herald. Vice President and CIO of Lexington Medical Center (West Columbia, S.C.). Ms. Herald became vice president and CIO of Lexington Medical Center in 2011. She has led the implementation of the Epic EHR system in the inpatient setting, and under her leadership, Lexington Medical Center was named among Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired hospitals in the nation four years in a row. Before coming to Lexington Medical Center, she was director of information services at MCG Health System in Augusta, Ga. She has received certified healthcare CIO certification from CHIME and is a member of the organization's Opioid Crisis Task Force Charter.

Tricia Herman. Executive Director of Support Operations and CIO of Uniontown (Pa.) Hospital. As executive director of support operations and CIO of Uniontown Hospital, Ms. Herman oversees IT, informatics, facilities, engineering, construction and environmental services as well as nutrition and laundry services for the 160-bed facility. The hospital has achieved meaningful use stage 1 and stage 2. The hospital joined the ClinicalConnect Health Information Exchange, Western Pennsylvania's health information exchange, in 2017.

Ross Hurd. CIO of Lake Chelan (Wash.) Community Hospital. Mr. Hurd became CIO of Lake Chelan Community Hospital in 2006. Hospitals & Health Networks recognized the hospital as one of Health Care's Most Wired from 2010 through 2017. Before joining Lake Chelan, Mr. Hurd was contracted by Community Choice of Wenatchee (Wash.) to build a secure teleradiology network connecting North Central Washington hospitals to larger hospitals in the state.

Charles Fennell. Vice President for Information Management of St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center (Syracuse, N.Y.) and Regional CIO of St. Joseph's and CIO of St. Peter's Health Partners (Albany, N.Y.). Mr. Fennell assumed the vice president and CIO role at St. Joseph's in 2001, and he became CIO of St. Peter's Health Partners in April 2016. Both organizations are a part of Livonia, Mich.-based Trinity Health. Before joining St. Joseph's, he was vice president of health systems at Health Care Data Systems. He has 27 years of experience in health IT.

Stephanie Forbes, RN. VP of Population Health and CHA Clinics at Community Hospital of Anaconda (Mont.). In her role as vice president of population health and CHA clinics, Ms. Forbes has helped deploy the Epic EMR system and focus on improving meaningful use reporting. In 2011, Community Hospital of Anaconda achieved meaningful use stage 1. Mrs. Forbes' efforts have also contributed to CHA's primary care clinics receiving the patient-centered medical home designation.

Michael Jefferies. Vice President and CIO of Boulder (Colo.) Community Health. Mr. Jefferies is tasked with giving the health system's roughly 540 affiliated physicians the IT tools necessary to improve care. Before joining Boulder Community Health in 2016, Mr. Jefferies was Longmont (Colo.) United Hospital's vice president of information systems. He also previously worked at ACS/Xerox and McKesson. The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives designated Mr. Jefferies a certified healthcare CIO, and he has achieved project management professional and certified professional in HIMSS certifications.

Eric Jimenez. Director of IT at Artesia (N.M.) General Hospital. Since Mr. Jimenez was hired as IT director more than four years ago, Artesia General Hospital's IT department has implemented an EHR in 90 days, replaced the hospital's picture archiving and communication system, and installed a new medication system. In that time, Mr. Jimenez watched the department grow from three team members to 17. In 2017, the 49-bed hospital completed a main data center project that involved installing a new, hyper-converged infrastructure, and accomplished Stage 6 of the HIMSS Analytics EMR Adoption Model.

Scott Joslyn, PharmD. Senior Vice President and CIO of MemorialCare Health System (Fountain Valley, Calif.). Dr. Joslyn oversees MemorialCare's IT, networking and telecommunications, which includes a nearly 200-member team, while leveraging technology to improve operations and reduce costs. Under Dr. Joslyn's leadership, the entity successfully carried out the $100 million implementation of an EMR, registration and billing system. A board member of two local health information exchanges, Dr. Joslyn is also the chairperson and co-founder of CHIEF, a healthcare CIO information-sharing group.

Dan Hildebrand. Associate Vice President of IT and Cybersecurity at Logansport (Ind.) Memorial Hospital. Mr. Hildebrand's tenure at the 83-bed Logansport Memorial Hospital began in 2003. As the IT department head, he is tasked with continuously improving the hospital's EMR systems and keeping the organization's data and patient information secure. Mr. Hildebrand previously served as Logansport Memorial's director of information systems.

Kris Keen. CIO of Cameron Memorial Community Hospital (Angola, Ind.). Mr. Keen began his tenure at Cameron Memorial Community Hospital, a 25-bed critical access hospital, in 2011. An alumnus of Macon-based Middle Georgia State University, Blacksburg-based Virginia Tech and University of Alabama at Birmingham, he brings more than 16 years of experience to the CIO role. Mr. Keen's professional memberships include HIMSS and the Association of Computing Machinery.

Aaron Kramer. CIO of Adirondack Health (Saranac Lake, N.Y.). Mr. Kramer joined Adirondack Health's IT team as assistant vice president of information systems in 2015 and stepped into the CIO role in 2016. With Mr. Kramer in charge, Adirondack Health has rolled out a postoperative monitoring system for bariatric patients and streamlined operations by migrating data into a new software platform. He was previously a systems analyst at Newburgh, N.Y.-based St. Luke's Cornwall Hospital, where he advanced to become IT director.

Richard D. Lang. Vice President and CIO of Doylestown (Pa.) Health. Mr. Lang is responsible for managing Doylestown Health's advanced clinical automation initiatives as vice president and CIO. In January, he oversaw the 232-bed Doylestown Hospital's transition to a new cloud-based EHR solution. His accomplishments outside the health system include serving as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Healthcare Information Management since 2001.

Brennan Lehman. CIO of Mosaic Life Care (St. Joseph, Mo.). With an eye on disruptive new reimbursement models and shifting care settings, Mr. Lehman leads Mosaic Life Care's clinical technology solutions. He joined Mosaic Life Care in 2005, bringing more than a decade of experience in health IT. Mr. Lehman oversees a team charged with ensuring Mosaic Life Care's technology structure is reliable, cost-effective and capable of supporting the system's operations.

Gary Light. Vice President and CIO of Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center (Jasper, Ind.). In addition to serving as Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center's vice president and CIO, Mr. Light founded HIT Advisory Group to help healthcare leaders navigate technical and regulatory health IT issues. A CHIME member since 1992, he mentored four members of the organization in 2017 alone. Mr. Light was previously vice president and CIO of the 230-bed Knapp Medical Center in Weslaco, Texas.

Todd MacConnell. County IT Director of Wyoming County Community Health System (Warsaw, N.Y.). In 2011, Mr. MacConnell assumed the role of county IT director at Wyoming County Community Health System, which has more than 500 employees. Mr. MacConnell was named the director of IT for Wyoming County in 1997. He has also served as a board member for the New York State Local Government Information Technology Directors' Association.

Dale E. Moyer. Vice President and CIO of Evangelical Community Hospital (Lewisburg, Pa.). Mr. Moyer was appointed Vice President and CIO at Evangelical Community Hospital in 2011. An employee of Evangelical for over three decades, Mr. Moyer is now responsible for developing technology strategy and growth at the hospital, as well as leading critical technology upgrades and advancements. Under his leadership, his team has brought the hospital cutting-edge technology and information systems resources.

Kyle Marek. CIO of Carteret Health Care (Morehead City, N.C.). Mr. Marek joined 135-bed nonprofit Carter Health Care in January 1998 as a network engineer. He moved up the ranks and became computer operations manager in June 2007 before becoming CIO and chief privacy officer in March 2008. Under his leadership, the hospital updated patient bedsides with computer workstations and specialized bedside carts that can identify the patient and his or her proper medication administration.

John Mangona. Vice President, CIO and Compliance Officer of Saratoga Hospital (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.). Since joining Saratoga Hospital and its 450 physicians and medical professionals in 1995, Mr. Mangona's leadership and innovation efforts landed the hospital on Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired list in 2017. He is certified in healthcare compliance and involved in the Health Care Compliance Association. With his MBA in information systems from Union Graduate College in Schenectady, N.Y., Mr. Mangona is involved in the Medical Users Software Exchange; he also spent nine years on the Saratoga Regional YMCA board.

Denni McColm. CIO of Citizens Memorial Healthcare (Bolivar, Mo.). Ms. McColm joined Citizens Memorial Healthcare in 1988 as director of human resources. She was influential as the hospital expanded from 250 employees to nearly 2,000, transitioning to director of finance and then to CIO in 2003. As CIO, Ms. McColm oversaw the health system's EHR upgrade. Ms. McColm serves on the American Hospital Association IT Network and AHA Interoperability Advisory Group. Her leadership and expertise earned her a spot on the National Advisory Board for the Health Record Banking Alliance.

Nancy McDonnell. CIO of Illinois Valley Community Hospital (Peru). Ms. McDonnell is a veteran at Illinois Valley Community Hospital. She joined the hospital in March 2008 as CIO and today oversees performance and strategic initiatives for the 46-bed acute care hospital. Ms. McDonnell played a vital role when the hospital expanded its EMR to 13 ambulatory surgery centers. She is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional. In addition to her work at the hospital, Ms. McDonnell is an adjunct faculty member at Illinois Valley Community College in Oglesby, where she lectures on cybersecurity and programming.

Michael McKay. CIO of Wickenburg (Ariz.) Community Hospital. At Wickenburg Community Hospital, Mr. McKay most recently deployed an anesthesia EMR in the hospital's surgical and diagnostic center. Before joining the hospital as CIO in 2001, Mr. McKay served in various IT roles at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston for two decades, including operations manager, programmer and application analyst.

Michael Mistretta. Vice President and CIO of Virginia Hospital Center (Arlington). Mr. Mistretta joined Virginia Hospital Center as vice president and CIO in 2015 with nearly 30 years of experience. His background in EHR implementation allowed him to sit in an advisory capacity for different healthcare companies to advocate on the effects of health IT legislation. Mr. Mistretta is certified by the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives as a healthcare CIO and by HIMSS as a health information management professional. Under his leadership, Virginia Hospital Center earned Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired recognition.

Deane Morrison. CIO of Concord (N.H.) Hospital. Mr. Morrison joined Concord Hospital in 1976 and today is equipped with 25 years of IT experience. In 1996, Mr. Morrison became CIO of Concord Hospital and Capital Regional Health Care. On top of his current role, he is a member of HIMSS and CHIME. Mr. Morrison and five other hospital CIOs used their leadership skills and experience to create the HBOC Star Product Users Group, a software to help automate a hospital's revenue cycle that McKesson bought in 1998.

Debbi Muro. CIO of El Camino Hospital (Mountain View, Calif.). After joining El Camino Hospital in 2014, Ms. Muro spearheaded the installation and implementation of an EHR system. She has more than 25 years of nursing, clinical, healthcare and technology experience, making her a leader in healthcare IT management. Before joining El Camino Hospital, Ms. Muro served in executive-level positions at West Des Moines, Iowa-based UnityPoint Health and Minneapolis-based Allina Health. Her skill as a leader has not gone unnoticed; Ms. Muro was nominated as a finalist for the Iowa Technology Association Women of Innovation Award.

Emmanuel Ndow. CIO of Marion (Ind.) General Hospital. Certified by CHIME, Mr. Ndow is a leader in the technology space. Because of his efforts and initiatives, Marion General Hospital earned a spot on Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired list in 2017. Prior to joining Marion General Hospital in 2005 as CIO, Mr. Ndow served as a director at Alverno Information Services, now known as Alliance Information Services, a company that provides computer services to medical facilities and physician offices.

Roger Neal. Vice President and CIO of Duncan (Okla.) Regional Hospital. Before becoming CIO of Duncan Regional Hospital in 2001, Mr. Neal served as director of IT and telecommunications for Cirque Du Soleil. Mr. Neal began his technology career at Jackson County Memorial Hospital in Altus, Okla., serving as director of information systems and telecommunications. Additionally, Mr. Neal has served as the vice president and CIO for Solutions Practice Management. Computerworld magazine noticed Mr. Neal's success and listed him as a 2014 Computerworld Premier 100 IT Leader.

Fredrick Peet. CIO of Yuma (Ariz.) Regional Medical Center. Mr. Peet became CIO of 406-bed Yuma Regional Medical Center in 2015 after serving as the hospital's director of IT and interim CIO. Mr. Peet initiated Yuma Regional's partnership with the Arizona Telemedicine Program and participates in Mayo Clinic-Phoenix's telestroke pilot, which has been incorporated into Yuma Regional's telehealth program. Hospitals & Health Networks named Yuma Regional Medical Center one of Health Care's Most Wired in 2016.

Lee Poe. CIO of Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital (Elkin, N.C.). Mr. Poe has been the CIO of Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital for 13 years. Under his leadership, the hospital has achieved meaningful use status for the past seven years. For the last three years, Hospitals & Health Networks has named Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital among Health Care's Most Wired.

Sheila Puffenberger. Director of IT at Hillsdale (Mich.) Hospital. Ms. Puffenberger has been the director of IT at Hillsdale Hospital since August 2013, overseeing technological systems used by 465 employees. The 47-bed acute care facility serves a rural population of around 47,000 residents.

Timothy Roberts. CIO of Yavapai Regional Medical Center (Prescott, Ariz.). Mr. Roberts has served as CIO of Yavapai Regional Medical Center since July 2015. Under Mr. Roberts' leadership, Yavapai Regional Medical Center received Health Care's Most Wired recognition from Hospitals & Health Networks in 2017 for using health IT to improve overall patient health by reducing wait times.

Carol Roosa. Vice President of Ancillary Services and CIO of Heywood Hospital (Gardner, Mass.). Ms. Roosa continues expanding the 134-bed Heywood Hospital's exceptional patient care through her efforts to implement its EMR system. Ms. Roosa is engaged in a major multiyear collaboration with hospitals throughout the state to further implement a new EMR system.

Christopher Ryan. CIO of Auburn (N.Y.) Community Hospital. Mr. Ryan has been Auburn Community Hospital's CIO since 2009. Under the leadership of Mr. Ryan, 98-bed Auburn Community Hospital achieved HIMSS Analytics Stage 6 and has earned Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired distinction. He previously served as vice president of business development at Pervasive Solutions and IT manager at Syracuse, N.Y.-based St. Joseph's Hospital Health Center.

Derek Sailors. Director of Information Systems at Community Hospital (McCook, Neb.). Mr. Sailors has served at Community Hospital since 2008, starting out as an information systems technical support/help-desk coordinator. He was later promoted to director of information systems in February 2017. Mr. Sailors led the hospital's information systems team to improve efficiencies and outcomes through IT. In 2017, Hospitals & Health Networks named Community Hospital among Health Care's Most Wired.

Richard Schaeffer. Vice President and CIO of St. Clair Hospital (Pittsburgh). Mr. Schaeffer is responsible for implementing strategic IT direction for 328-bed St. Clair Hospital as vice president and CIO. In 2017, Hospitals & Health Networks named St. Clair Hospital among Health Care's Most Wired.

Jody Siltzer. Executive Director of IT at Cheyenne (Wyo.) Regional Medical Center. Mr. Siltzer serves as director of IT at Cheyenne Regional Medical Center, where he led the hospital's EHR implementation. The 222-bed hospital connected its EHR to the federal eHealth Exchange in 2017. Hospitals & Health Networks named Cheyenne Regional Medical Center among Health Care's Most Wired in 2017.

Carl Smith. CIO of King's Daughters Medical Center (Brookhaven, Miss.). Mr. Smith oversees all information systems at King's Daughters Medical Center, including hospital computing, mobility, telecommunications, networking, and infrastructure and information security. Under Mr. Smiths leadership, the hospital underwent a 14-month EHR implementation process, with a go-live date in August 2016. In 2017, Hospitals & Health Networks named King's Daughters Medical Center among Health Care's Most Wired, and as of November, the hospital achieved HIMSS Stage 6 EMR Adoption Model.

LaVonne Smith. Information Systems Director at Tomah (Wis.) Memorial Hospital. Ms. Smith was instrumental in implementing an electronic portal to give patients 24/7 access to their personal health information through the YourCareCommunity Act. Ms. Smith oversees information systems at Tomah Memorial Hospital, which was named among Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired in 2017.

Brian Sterud. CIO of Faith Regional Health Services (Norfolk, Neb.). Before joining Faith Regional in 2012, Mr. Sterud was the director of information management at Brookings (S.D.) Health System. Mr. Sterud was also a network analyst, remote systems engineer and data systems engineer, bringing knowledge of technology initiatives to the 131-bed hospital. He graduated from CHIME's CIO boot camp in 2011.

Brian Tew. Vice President of Professional Services and CIO of Greater Hudson Valley Health System (Middletown, N.Y.). Mr. Tew oversees IT, communications, professional services and ancillary systems for Greater Hudson Valley's three hospitals. Under his leadership, Orange Regional Medical Center became the first New York hospital to achieve both HIMSS Stage 7 and Hospitals & Health Network's Health Care's Most Wired designation. Before joining Greater Hudson Valley, Mr. Tew was vice president of operations and CIO at Manchester, N.H.-based Catholic Medical Center.

Grant Tillett. CIO of Prairie Lakes Healthcare System (Watertown, S.D.). Mr. Tillett became CIO of Prairie Lakes Healthcare System in 2015, providing executive leadership for strategic IT projects and overseeing the system's EHR utilization. He previously worked at TruBridge, a CPSI subsidiary that manages IT services for rural and community health providers. Before TruBridge, Mr. Tillett worked in Prairie Lakes' IT department for nine years.

Keith Van Camp. Vice President of IT at St. Dominic Hospital (Jackson, Miss.). Mr. Van Camp helped launch a new EHR system and expand the emergency room at the 535-bed St. Dominic Hospital, where he oversees the IT department. In 2017, Hospitals & Health Networks named St. Dominic's among Health Care's Most Wired for the seventh time.

Kwi Vollhardt. Vice President of Information Systems at Knox Community Hospital (Mount Vernon, Ohio). Ms. Vollhardt has served as the director of information systems for the 115-bed Knox Community Hospital for 14 years. Ms. Vollhardt and her team launched the hospital's EMR and helped update computer systems.

Mark Waind. CIO of Altru Health System (Grand Forks, N.D.). Mr. Waind is responsible for information services, telecommunications, transcription, health information management and reimbursement coding departments for the two-hospital system. Mr. Waind is president of the North Dakota HIMSS chapter and was previously the president of the Minnesota Epic User Group. He is certified through CHIME.

Shawn Weldin. Director of IT at Sabetha (Kan.) Community Hospital. Mr. Weldin has served as Sabetha Community Hospital's IT director since 2007. He oversees technology strategy for Sabetha's 25-bed hospital, clinic and home health agency. Mr. Weldin is a sponsorship co-chair on the Kansas HIMSS chapter board of directors.

Joanne White. CIO of Wood County Hospital (Bowling Green, Ohio). Ms. White has led Wood County Hospital's IT department as CIO for almost 20 years, having joined the 196-bed hospital in 1999. She serves as treasurer of the Central and Southern Ohio HIMSS chapter and received the organization's first Lifetime Membership award in 2017. Wood County Hospital reached HIMSS Analytics Stage 6 in 2017 and was named among Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired.

John Wilcox. CIO of Morris (Ill.) Hospital & Healthcare Centers. Mr. Wilcox is responsible for the IT department of Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers, a 1,300-employee organization with a medical staff of more than 200 physicians. He is responsible for planning and executing the hospital's IT vision, goals and initiatives to support long-term organizational objectives. Before joining Morris, Mr. Wilcox spent time as the interim CIO of United Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and had a 15-year career with Inosource Technology Corp., where he eventually served as vice president of enterprise infrastructure and managed services.

Jason Yaworsky. Senior Vice President and CIO of Upper Allegheny Health System (Olean, N.Y.). Before starting as senior vice president and CIO of the two-hospital system in 2009, Mr. Yaworsky was director of IT for two years at Olean General Hospital. During Mr. Yaworsky's tenure, Upper Allegheny Health System launched an EHR system and computerized order entry for physicians, updated digital clinical imaging and launched patient portal access. The system was named among Hospitals & Health Networks' Health Care's Most Wired for the second consecutive year in 2017.

Mark Zielazinski. Chief Information and Technology Integration Officer of Marin General Hospital (Greenbrae, Calif.). Mr. Zielazinski joined Marin General Hospital, a nonprofit care facility, in 2012. Before joining Marin General, Mr. Zielazinski served as CIO at Oakland, Calif.-based Alameda County Medical Center, where he was responsible for information systems, telecommunications, health information management and biomedical engineering. He was also the CIO at Mountain View, Calif.-based El Camino Hospital from 2001-06.
As Hurricane Florence, a Category 4 storm, pushes toward the East Coast, hospitals and pharmacies across the Carolinas are prepping for what could be catastrophic damage.

"This will likely be the storm of a lifetime for portions of the Carolina coast, and that's saying a lot given the impacts we've seen from Hurricanes Diana, Hugo, Fran, Bonnie, Floyd and Matthew," said the National Weather Service in Wilmington.

Here are six ways healthcare organizations are preparing for the storm:

1. HHS declares public health emergency. On Sept. 11, HHS Secretary Alex Azar declared public health emergencies in North and South Carolina, which makes it easier to ensure Medicaid and Medicare beneficiaries have access to medical care despite the storm. HHS also positioned about 230 medical personnel in North Carolina and Maryland to help communities that may need extra medical support. In addition, HHS is working to make more ambulances available to help evacuate hospitals and nursing homes.

2. Evacuations. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster issued a medical evacuation order for all healthcare providers in several coastal counties Sept. 10. Hospitals in those mandatory evacuation zone have 72 hours to complete the evacuation. Georgetown, S.C.-based Tidelands Health said it applied for an evacuation waiver but was denied and began evacuating patients Sept. 10. Myrtle Beach, S.C.-based Grand Strand Health discontinued elective surgeries and closed outpatient facilities, effective Sept. 11. Patients evacuated from Myrtle Beach area hospitals have been relocated to sister facilities, including to Doctors Hospital in Augusta, Ga., according to News Channel 6.

3. Disaster plans. Several hospitals outside the mandatory evacuation zones are preparing for the worst. Conway (S.C.) Medical Center has several backup generators, which will allow the hospital to keep power running for at least 93 hours should Hurricane Florence knock out power, according to a WMBF news report.

4. Stocking supplies. The director of emergency management at Conway Medical Center, Daniel Adamczyk, said the hospital is working to stock the hospital with extra supplies in order to prepare for the surge in patients and any delays in shipment that may occur because of the storm, according to

"Were ready for anything. If this storm were to hit anywhere along the Carolinas, we would anticipate a surge on supplies from our vendors, so we have to be ready to stock those supplies," Mr. Adamczyk told WMBF.

Charleston-based Medical University of South Carolina is insuring it keeps enough food, water, vital medications and other supplies to last at least seven days, according to a WCSC news report.

5. Deploying a former military vehicle. The Medical University of South Carolina is using a retired military vehicle, a Light Medium Tactical Vehicle, to ensure the safe transfer of physicians and patients. The vehicle can drive through water as deep as 6 feet.

"One of the things we're really excited about is we have a high-water vehicle that we have been able to acquire in the last year," Matt Wain, COO of the medical university, told WCSC. "It enables us to drive through water as deep as 6 feet, and so we can provide urgent and emergent transportation for patients and physicians and staff between buildings if that need might arise."

6. Pfizer suspends operations. Pfizer, which already is facing pressure for manufacturing delays that led to saline and EpiPen shortages, will suspend operations at its two North Carolina plants Sept. 13, according to Bloomberg. The drugmaker's sterile injectables division, Hospira, is located at one of the facilities in North Carolina. That business supplies drugs to hospitals. Pfizer is working to ensure that pharmaceutical supply won't be affected by the storm.
Over the past few years, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia has rolled out several initiatives to address the growing demand for children's behavioral health services.

About 21 percent of children under age 18 have a behavioral health condition that causes significant impairment, and suicide is the second-leading cause of death for adolescents, according to CHOP CEO Madeline Bell.

At CHOP, emergency department visits for children with behavioral health needs have tripled in the last year. In addition, 60 percent of the children who visit CHOP pediatricians have a behavioral health condition, Ms. Bell told Becker's Hospital Review via phone.

"It's really a crisis, and it's growing," she said. "We are really compelled to ensure we do everything we can to address this."

Here are four ways CHOP is working to address patients' behavioral health needs:

1. CHOP is training primary care physicians to appropriately screen children for any behavioral health issues, including suicide.

"One of the most important things we can do is support physicians in the community, since they see these children more often than they come to the hospital," Ms. Bell said.

2. The hospital is also embedding behavioral health providers, such as counselors, social workers and psychiatrists, in private care offices so children can have immediate access to treatment once diagnosed. CHOP has hired more than 60 behavioral health providers over the last four years to support this effort. The hospital is also placing more of these providers in its ED.

3. CHOP participates in the Telephonic Psychiatric Consultation Service program, launched in conjunction with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, which gives primary care physicians access to telephonic consultations with a behavioral health professional within 30 minutes of requesting the consult.

"We are able to provide telephone support and be a first line of advice for [providers] in more rural areas, or outside the areas we serve," said Ms. Bell.

4. The hospital also opened a 10-bed medical behavioral unit in 2017, which is the first dedicated inpatient unit in the country for kids who have both medical issues requiring hospitalization and behavioral health issues that could interfere with care.

Ms. Bell told Becker's these efforts have helped children with behavioral health needs access appropriate healthcare services in a timely manner. However, there is more work to be done, she noted.

"We've only just begun our investment," Ms. Bell said. "We are in the process of implementing a whole strategic plan to [further address behavioral health needs]."

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The same organ donor transmitted breast cancer to four different transplant recipients at VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam, according to a case study published in the American Journal of Transplantation.



Here are three things to know:

1. The donor had no relevant medical history linked to the outcome of the recipients' transplants. The recipients received the donor's kidneys, lungs, liver and heart. The heart recipient died from sepsis six months after the transplant.

2. The four other recipients developed a similar type of breast cancer 16 months to 6 years after their organ transplants.

3. Three of these recipients died from cancer complications. The fourth is in remission after undergoing chemotherapy.

"This extraordinary case points out the often fatal consequences of donor-derived breast cancer and suggests that removal of the donor organ and restoration of immunity can induce complete remission," the study authors concluded.

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Georgian Policeman Detained for Cultivation and Storage of Cannabis

By Tea Mariamidze

Prosecutors Office of Georgia (POG) reports that a patrol-inspector working in Georgias Western region of Guria has been detained for cultivation and possession of a large amount of cannabis.The person was arrested on September 6, and the police found fourteen plants of cannabis - 3197.95 grams and a large amount - 574.19 grams of dried marijuana.Tbilisi City Court ordered his pre-trial detention on September 8. An investigation is underway under the articles 256 and 2731 of the Criminal Code of Georgia which pertain to illegal possession and storage of a large amount of drugs.The General Inspection of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is investigating the criminal case. The charges filed against the former policeman envisage from 6 to 12 years of imprisonment, the statement of the POG reads.On July 30, 2018, the Constitutional Court of Georgia abolished administrative responsibility for marijuana use when consumption does not create any threat to third parties. The decision does not legalize marijuana but only abolished the administrative punishment for its consumption.The court's decision triggered various positions in the society, part of which, protests the decision and some representatives of the Georgian Patriarchate even demanded the abolition of the Constitutional Court.Under the court decision, possession of dried marijuana up to 70 grams for personal use is not punishable by prison. Also, purchase and storage of raw marijuana up to 100 grams is not punishable by imprisonment either. Cultivation of cannabis up to 151 grams will not be punished with jail, the court will recognize one guilty but without any penalty. However, cultivation, purchase, and storage of marijuana above 151 grams are still punishable by imprisonment.The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) released a statement last week outlining amendments on the use of marijuana to be introduced to Parliament at the next session.The MIA explains that the Court determined on July 30 that marijuana use may be prohibited in certain contexts.The absence of the relevant legislative framework hinders the effective struggle against illegal circulation of drugs and promotes its use, the ministry stated, adding the amendments in this field are necessary.The draft law, elaborated by the MIA, prohibits the use of marijuana in any place of public gathering, on all public transport, in the presence of a minor, in or around educational institutions, their buildings and other facilities for people under the age of 18, at or near public meetings intended for minors, and for people performing official duties (for example, teachers, doctors, civil servants, etc). Driving a car under the influence of marijuana also remains prohibited.Popularization or advertising of any drugs is an administrative offense and will lead to the appropriate response reminds the MIA statement, adding their main aim is to protect juveniles from the harmful effects of marijuana and uphold public safety.The amendments need to be approved by the lawmakers to enter into force.
Apple Watch Series 4 includes an electrocardiogram sensor to alert users if their heart rhythm is irregular, Apple COO Jeff Williams said during the company's Sept. 12 event in Cupertino, Calif.

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicted the iPhone maker would integrate an ECG feature into its newest smartwatch in a Sept. 10 research note. Mr. Kuo is known for his strong track record of predicting new features in Apple products, according to CNBC.

At the time, the prediction raised questions about whether the consumer product would qualify as a medical device, which would require approval from federal regulators. However, at the event, Mr. Williams specified the FDA has already cleared the company's ECG sensor, CNBC's digital health reporter Christina Farr tweeted.

An ECG sensor goes beyond the Apple Watch's existing heart rate monitor by measuring a user's heart rhythm. The new Apple Watch will screen a user's heart health data in the background and deliver a notification when it detects patterns that appear to be atrial fibrillation, a type of irregular heart rhythm.

It's a noteworthy move for Apple, which has demonstrated interest in the cardiology space.

In late 2017, the company opened enrollment for a joint research project with Stanford University School of Medicine in California and telehealth vendor American Well to study whether the Apple Watch's heart rate sensor could detect atrial fibrillation.

The Apple Watch's ECG feature may hold implications for public health. Mr. Williams said Apple is the first company to offer consumers an over-the-counter ECG, which makes the technology available to a large segment of the population that may not be at risk for the condition.

"What are the implications of healthy, young people getting monitored with a heart rate sensor and ECG by a consumer device?" Ms. Farr asked on Twitter. "As far as I can tell, this will be the first time it's been studied."
The following healthcare organizations shared hiring plans since Aug. 20:

1. New Missouri hospital hiring for several positions

CenterPointe Hospital in Columbia, Mo., slated to open in October, will host several job fairs this month to staff vacancies.

2. Banner Health seeks to hire 1,500 workers

Phoenix-based Banner Health will host multiple career open houses to fill 1,300 positions in Arizona and 200 positions in Colorado and other regions.

3. 20 hospitals hiring nurses

Here are 20 hospitals and health systems that recently posted job listings seeking nurses.

4. Florida Hospital seeks 150 nurses

Orlando-based Florida Hospital revealed plans to hire more than 150 nurses to staff seven locations.

5. Augusta Health seeks 10 nurses

Augusta Health, a 255-bed community hospital in Fishersville, Va., will host a recruitment fair Sept. 11 to fill 10 nursing positions.

More articles on workforce:

Medicine is where the money is, Bankrate survey shows

Nurses in TV ads argue pros, cons of mandated staffing ratios in Massachusetts hospitals
Lancaster (Pa.) NeuroScience & Spine Associates sold two of its practices, according to Central Penn Business Journal.

The group sold the two offices to Montecito Medical Real Estate for $13.5 million.

Lancaster NeuroScience & Spine Associates employs five neurosurgeons and two interventional physiatrists. The Lancaster-based office also includes an outpatient surgery center, The NeuroSpine Center.
The former Crumlin Road Courthouse, which could be turned into a hotel

Developers have been granted permission to transform Belfast's former Crumlin Road Courthouse into a new hotel.

Belfast City Council's planning committee signed off on recommendations to grant both planning permission and listed building consent, including a new roof extension, for the historic building.

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The old courthouse will become Liverpool-based developer Lawrence Kenwright's third hotel in the city.

The director of Signature Living is currently transforming the old Scottish Mutual Building, next to Belfast City Hall, into the new George Best Hotel.

Mr Kenwright is also pressing ahead with another hotel in the Cathedral Quarter, on the site of the former war memorial museum on Waring Street.
Drummers take to the streets of Belfast for the annual Culture Night. File image. (Niall Carson/PA)

Tourism Ireland has launched a new promotional campaign to encourage holidaymakers to visit Northern Ireland during the autumn and winter months.

The agency said the September to December period was worth 30% of the province's annual overseas tourism business.

The campaign will include TV presenter Angela Scanlon fronting a new online video, filmed on location in Fermanagh, Londonderry and along the Causeway Coastal Route. It is part of a promotion with The Daily Telegraph newspaper in Britain to promote driving holidays here.

Tourism Ireland's autumn campaign will also highlight a series of festivals and events taking place here over the coming months, including the Belfast International Arts Festival, Londonderry Halloween, Culture Night and Cinemagic Belfast.

It will incorporate a major focus on city breaks, as well as on attracting visitors to more rural areas.

Niall Gibbons, chief executive of Tourism Ireland, which works to attract overseas visitors, said: "Our autumn campaign aims to take advantage of late booking trends, because there is still plenty of business to play for.

"Many people are opting for shorter holiday breaks, and autumn is a really good opportunity, with many world-class festivals and events happening here."
The Lord Mayor of the City of London has said he has gathered a sense of "anxiety" over Brexit during meetings with firms in the province.

Charles Bowman, a senior partner at PwC and Lord Mayor in a year-long appointment, was visiting Belfast and Londonderry as part of his remit to promote the financial services sector around the UK.

The sector employs around 2.3 million people and accounts for 12% of UK GDP, as well as generating 72.1bn in tax - over 50% of the NHS budget.

During his visit, he attended a round-table discussion hosted by IT giant Allstate, as well as a gathering of around 25 firms in the cyber-security sector hosted by accountancy firm Deloitte.

He also met Belfast City Council chief executive Suzanne Wylie and Deputy Mayor Emmet McDonough-Brown to discuss a city deal.

He said the City of London fully backed bids by both Londonderry and Belfast to secure city deals, which he stressed could boost the momentum of the financial services sector.

Both cities are hoping for more detail of city deals to boost their decision-making and funding powers in the Chancellor's Budget in the autumn.

Mr Bowman said the UK financial services sector was a European and global "jewel", as well as a national jewel - and that part of his remit was to prepare the sector for Brexit.

However, he said the provisions of the Chequers deal had not fully met its requirements.

He said the financial services sector in Northern Ireland had grown because of "momentum, collaboration and optimism".

After meeting with companies here, he said: "There is anxiety with regards to Brexit and the desire for a sense of confidence and certainty which is clearly absent at this moment of time.

"We are dealing with quite an important stage over the next two or three months, so that sense of anxiety is present, and I can feel that.

"There is obviously the important issue with regard to the border and safeguarding that relationship on this wonderful island.

"Obviously we are not complacent about it, but we are looking at life beyond Brexit and the opportunities."

The City's Brexit hopes had been built around "transition, talent and trade", Mr Bowman said.

"Financial and professional services would be part of a brave but quite practical and pragmatic free trade agreement built out of mutual market access drawn from regulatory alignment.

"The model that we had asked for has come through in Chequers in a more diluted form.

"It isn't where we had hoped it would be... but we will be working with government to work out how we can develop that into the type of deal that gives financial services the footing that it needs."
Sinn Fein has dismissed as "pure fantasy" a proposal from a group of Conservative hard Brexiteers on the future of the Irish border.

The European Research Group (ERG) of Tory backbenchers  led by Jacob Rees-Mogg  believe the Government has allowed the border question to become a roadblock to achieving a Canada-style Free Trade Agreement with the EU.

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The group outlines a proposal it believes could allow the UK to leave the EUs single market and customs union without the need for a hard border in Ireland.

Leading the criticism of the proposal, Sinn Fein MP for the border constituency of South Down Chris Hazzard, said it showed "again that the Tories do not care about Ireland or the effects that any Brexit deal will have on the Irish people".

"They are not designed to offer a solution but result from the civil war raging internally within the British Conservative Party," he said.

These proposals are a rehash of the unacceptable and already rejected and failed notion that a technological border can be put imposed post Brexit. They are pure fantasy with no attempt to set out how they can actually be achieved.

It is interesting but not surprising to note that there is absolutely no reference to rights, to freedom of movement or to the role of the European Court of Justice in these proposals."

DUP deputy leader Nigel Dodds, whose party backed Brexit, said the paper presented a "positive and timely development".

"The paper makes clear that, in the event of a free trade deal being negotiated with the EU, there are sensible practical measures which can ensure there will be no hard border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic," he said.

"It therefore accurately reflects the fact that the border issue is no impediment to the negotiation by the UK of a comprehensive trade deal with the EU. This a position we have consistently articulated."

He added: "For too long some have used the border issue, and the political process in Northern Ireland more generally, to try to mould Brexit to their way of thinking or to thwart it altogether. That should stop."

Many of the technology-based solutions put forward in Wednesday's paper have previously been rebuked by experts in the field.

In August 2017, the Centre for Irish and European Security said suggestions of a "frictionless" border were "complete nonsense".

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In the new paper, the group propose the Government should agree equivalence of UK and EU regulations and conformity assessment for all agricultural goods on the island of Ireland.

The EU will be able to maintain the integrity of its internal market without erecting a hard border along its border with Northern Ireland.European Research Group

Northern Ireland and the Republic would be maintained as a Common Biosecurity Zone after Brexit, allowing the smooth movement of these products across the border.

Since UK and EU standards are identical and will remain identical at the point of departure, determining equivalence after Brexit should be straightforward, said the document.

For other goods, the ERG said existing simplified customs procedures could continue to be used to avoid the need for checks at the border.

Larger companies would use trusted trader schemes to clear their goods for export and import, and other declarations would be incorporated into the existing system used for VAT returns.

The EU will be able to maintain the integrity of its internal market without erecting a hard border along its border with Northern Ireland, said the ERG paper, launched in Westminster.

At the same time, the United Kingdom will be able to develop a fully independent trade policy rather than remaining a rule-taker.

Expand Close Jacob Rees-Mogg arrives at the Royal United Services Institute in Whitehall to discuss the groups proposals (Stefan Rousseau/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp Jacob Rees-Mogg arrives at the Royal United Services Institute in Whitehall to discuss the groups proposals (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

The one element of alignment necessary is the maintenance of the current Common Biosecurity Zone covering the island of Ireland, and this is not contentious.

The necessary procedures described can all be implemented within the existing legal and operational frameworks of the EU and the UK, based on the mutual trust on which regular trade depends.

Rational, pragmatic approaches can ensure that the vital trade across the border is maintained. At the same time, this allows the United Kingdom to conduct an independent trade policy without threatening the integrity of the EU single market.

The ERG said its proposals could be delivered without the need for any new infrastructure at the border and without weakening North-South co-operation.

There is nothing which would reduce our commitment to the Belfast Agreement, or which might jeopardise peace in Northern Ireland, the group said.

Harnessing the latest developments in international best practice can deliver continued co-operation and prosperity in the best interests of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
Brexiteer proposals to resolve the Irish border issue are boring and nothing new but offer a commons-sense solution to the problem, according to backers.

Former cabinet ministers and an ex-Northern Ireland first minister set out a blueprint they claim would allow the UK to leave the EUs single market and customs union without the need for a hard border in Ireland.

The European Research Group (ERG) of Brexiteer Tories called for the Government to agree equivalence of UK and EU regulations for the safety of agricultural products and allow Brussels inspectors into Northern Ireland to check their implementation.

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Owen Paterson says there is nothing new in the ERG proposals and they are actually quite boring. pic.twitter.com/WqHCnFtclh  Sam Lister (@sam_lister_) September 12, 2018

Former Northern Ireland Secretary Owen Paterson said there is already a border to deal with issues like tax and insisted there was absolutely no need for new physical infrastructure.

The European Commissions proposals would impose a border against the will of a large number of people in Northern Ireland and are a dangerous concept, he said.

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Mr Paterson added: Our paper shows that we can help the European Commission, we can help the Government and with current technical and administrative procedures  there is nothing new in here, its actually quite boring when you get to read it, theres absolutely nothing new in here, its all been worked out elsewhere  we can deliver an ordered border which will not pose any threat to the integrity of the European single market or customs union.

Former Northern Ireland first minister Lord Trimble, who was a key figure in securing the Good Friday Agreement, insisted it was completely wrong to say Brexit undermined the peace deal and would spark violence.

Expand Close David Davis and Lord Trimble during a Royal United Services Institute gathering in Whitehall to discuss Brexit proposals (Stefan Rousseau/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp David Davis and Lord Trimble during a Royal United Services Institute gathering in Whitehall to discuss Brexit proposals (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

He said: Here we have Brussels and (Michel) Barnier suggesting that Northern Ireland should no longer be part of the United Kingdom for the purposes of trade.

That is contrary to the agreement, it is a breach of the agreement. If anything is likely to lead to instability, this is it.

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis said the paper set out a practical way of unlocking the negotiations on the border.

He said: I commend it to you for its common sense, its practicality, its effectiveness in dealing with all of the serious issues while, at the same time, delivering on the promise to the British people to leave the single market, leave the customs union and, therefore, leave the European Union.

Labours Alison McGovern, who supports the Peoples Vote campaign for a fresh referendum, said the plans were profoundly dangerous to the stability and security of Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.

The Democratic Unionist Party, which props up Theresa Mays minority Government, said the proposals were positive and timely.

Good to launch ERG paper helping UK Government and EU to resolve the problem of the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland https://t.co/D32SkylRAU  Owen Paterson (@OwenPaterson) September 12, 2018

Northern Ireland and the Republic would be maintained as a Common Biosecurity Zone after Brexit, allowing the smooth movement of related goods across the border, under the proposals.

For other goods, the ERG said existing simplified customs procedures could continue to be used to avoid the need for checks at the border.

Larger companies would use trusted trader schemes to clear goods for export and import, and other declarations would be incorporated into the existing system used for VAT returns.

The ERG paper said Brussels had made a major error in listening almost solely to the warnings of Leo Varadkars government in Dublin on the potential for the border issue to disrupt the peace process, contrasting his administrations stance with the co-operative and practical approach of predecessor Enda Kenny.

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Warnings that manned checkpoints at the border would become a target for terrorists fail to recognise that checks are already conducted for tax, VAT, currency, excise duties and security without the need for any physical intervention at the border, said the group.

They cited customs chiefs from the UK and the Republic who have said they do not expect new infrastructure to be needed after Brexit.

In response to EU concerns that goods that do not meet its standards  like US genetically modified crops and chlorine-washed chicken  might enter its markets via Northern Ireland, the ERG said such breaches could be handled in the same way police on both sides of the border tackle smuggling of drugs, fuel or alcohol.
A row has broken out after the European Parliament said Northern Ireland should be allowed to keep hundreds of millions of pounds in EU funding after Brexit to keep the peace process on track.

A report drawn up by the parliament's influential committee on regional development recommended that funding for two schemes - the Interreg and Peace programmes - should continue whether "deal or no-deal" because of the invaluable role they have played in reducing community tensions.

The report was overwhelmingly backed by a vote of MEPs in plenary by 565 votes to 51. Notably, Conservatives MEPs abstained.

The programmes, whose total funding is 470 million, are currently 85% funded by the EU and focus on building trust between the two main communities.

However, Sinn Fein and DUP MEPs were immediately at loggerheads over the money, though both welcomed it.

Sinn Fein MEP Martina Anderson said yesterday's vote represented further endorsement of European support for special status for Northern Ireland within the EU.

Speaking from Strasbourg, she added: "Cohesion funding has been essential to many sections of society in the North, from agriculture and SMEs to Peace and Interreg funding, which has helped strengthen communities and promote reconciliation, as well as cross-border projects.

"The overwhelming support for this position in the parliament, with 565 MEPs voting in favour of the proposal, is a further indication of Europe's support for the North to have special status within the EU post Brexit.

"This vote illustrates that the lobbying by Sinn Fein for imaginative and creative solutions to Brexit is paying off across Europe."

However, the DUP's Diane Dodds claimed that "the UK exit has in fact breathed new life into cross-border peace and reconciliation funding".

"This builds on current examples of funding cooperation between the EU and partners from countries throughout the rest of the world," she said.

"Any new Peace or Interreg programmes will be constituted on the basis of Northern Ireland being a region of an independent UK after Brexit.

"This is not, as some try to portray it, any kind of special status for our province inside the EU."

Ulster Unionist MEP Jim Nicholson warned against the use of language that implied peace would be under threat if the funding was not renewed.

He said: "EU support has complemented the increased political, security and diplomatic normalisation of Northern Ireland. That is a major achievement which the EU should be proud of.

"However, I was disappointed with some language in the report that implied the peace process would be at risk if these funds did not continue.

"That, to me, is over-simplistic at best, and at worst risks giving succour to those who seek to justify terrorist acts."

The report recommends that "post-2020, without prejudice to the ongoing EU-UK negotiations, EU support for territorial cooperation, especially regarding cross-border and cross-community projects, should be continued".

It says that there are legitimate "fears that an end to these programmes would endanger cross-border and inter and cross-community trust-building activities and, as a consequence, the peace process".

Derek Vaughan, the committee's rapporteur, told MEPs that while Northern Ireland has seen "huge economic improvement and tensions have been reduced... we do know that those tensions still bubble away". "I hope nobody gets the impression, and they shouldn't get the view from the report, that we're saying that 'no EU funds means a return to the Troubles' - the report isn't saying that, and I wouldn't say that," he added.

"But I am saying, and what the report says, is that EU funds have made a valuable contribution to reducing those tensions and conflict."
What will bring prohibition of wearing hijabs, niqabs, and burqas in Georgia?

By Levan Khutsishvili

On September 7, 2018, Emzar Kvitsiani, member of the Faction "Georgian Patriots," initiated the amendments to the "Code of Administrative Offenses" to penalize wearing hijab, niqab, and burqa.According to the initiation, which will be submitted to the parliament's nearest bureau sitting, wearing hijabs, niqabs, and burqas in parks, public transport, and other public places will be fined by GEL 500 for the first time and in case of the repeated action - by GEL 1 500.The prohibition will not apply to employees of the diplomatic corps accredited in Georgia.The reason for the preparation of the draft law is increased number of tourists in Georgia wearing hijabs, niqabs, and burqas. This garment makes impossible identification of a person, and besides contains threats of terrorism. Prohibitions of wearing hijabs, niqabs, and burqas are already in use in European countries. In particular, it is prohibited to walk with the named clothing: in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Austria, Bulgaria, and Latvia. From July 1 this year, Denmark also joined the number of countries,"  is said in the project explanation card.According to the official statistics from the Georgian National Tourism Administration, the number of visitors from Iran and Arabic countries is increasing rapidly every year. For example, the number of visitors from Iran raised 118,3% in 2017 compared with 2016. If in 2016 there were 147,937 visitors, in 2017 it was 322, 938 visitors and to examine the information from January 2017 and January 2018, in January 2018 visitors were 63, 9% more than in January 2017. As for statistics from Saudi Arabia, in 2017(56 247 visitors) came 164,6% more visitors than in 2016 (21 257 visitors). Turkey is among the top 5 countries from which Georgia receives visitors, and it is allowed in Turkey for women to wear the hijab. The number of tourists coming in Georgia wearing hijab, niqab, and burqa is significantly high and is increasing, so the initiative by Emzar Kvitsiani, in case it is approved by the Government can seriously affect the existing touristic tendencies in Georgia. In Tbilisi airport, on August 7, 2018, on the Tbilisi  Isfahan flight, Security Officers of Airport asked a couple of Iranian passengers to take off Hijab. The fact became the reason for an official protest by the Iranian Ambassador in Georgia.Georgian lawmakers also will need to think about the influences of the decision of touristic business and on the fact that Georgia has a large number of Muslim citizens, and the prohibition can be an act against the Muslim minority.
A Bangor woman who campaigned for access to life-saving cancer drugs cried tears of joy last night after learning of a Department of Health U-turn that will improve access to promising new treatments.

Melanie Kennedy (41) was reacting to the news that changes to the Individual Funding Request (IFR) process will be made - meaning increased access to innovative new medicines for cancer and other conditions.

The IFR system is how doctors apply for new and innovative drugs which are not normally available through the NHS that they believe will give a patient a better quality of life, or even precious extra time with loved ones.

Following pressure from charities and patients such as Melanie, a public consultation into the IFR system was carried out last year.

However, earlier this year the permanent secretary of the Department of Health, Richard Pengelly, said moves to update the system could not go ahead without a Health Minister in post.

But now Mr Pengelly has said the changes to the IFR process will be implemented "as a priority" at a cost of up to 2.5m per year.

An emotional Melanie said last night: "I have shed many tears of joy and relief after learning this news, having put my heart and soul into this campaign while undergoing my own treatment.

"I can't believe that we have actually won the fight. I really didn't think that we would get anywhere with this without a Stormont Assembly.

"Initially we thought there would only be a change to the way drugs are commissioned but now we will be in line with the rest of the UK.

"Every day I have been contacted by patients and their families who aren't getting access to these treatments so this is life-changing for them.

"To know that they and we as campaigners won't have to fight any more is just phenomenal and it means the world to me."

The announcement means that treatments that are made available through the Cancer Drug Fund in England, which have received conditional approval from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), will also be made accessible to patients here.

Mr Pengelly said the move will allow Northern Ireland patients "the same access to cancer drugs as their counterparts in other UK regions".

Just last month, self-styled 'cancer warrior' Melanie announced her own improvement in her condition with the disease doctors said would kill her. In 2014, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and told she had five years to live.

After her earlier treatment stopped working, she became aware of a potentially-effective drug, Kadcyla, which was available on the NHS in Scotland - but could only be accessed privately in Northern Ireland at a cost of 20,000.

Melanie's battle for access to the drug to be extended to women here brought her to prominence as a campaigner, and in July 2017 her efforts led to Kadcyla being made available here.

Melanie had hoped Kadcyla - which is generally only considered life-lengthening, as opposed to a cure - would allow her to spend more time with her two sons, Josh (17) and AJ (6).

On August 14 she announced that liver tests had shown her to be free of the disease.

She now runs the Northern Ireland Cancer Advocacy movement, which provides support for other sufferers and says the department's decision is even better news than she could have ever expected.

Despite no Health Minister being in place, the department says it is satisfied that the planned changes are in the public interest and in line with the policy objectives of previous health ministers.

Alliance health spokeswoman Paula Bradshaw said many patients will be relieved to have their lives extended through access to new treatments.

"I know that there will be many individual campaigners and local cancer charities who will be just as delighted as I am at this news. It would appear that the Department of Health has finally bowed to pressure on this issue and that is to be warmly welcomed," she added.

Sinn Fein health spokesperson Pat Sheehan added: "Today's news is an important development for cancer patients seeking new and innovative treatments. It is important that this is implemented in a timely manner."

SDLP health spokesman Mark H Durkan said that while the announcement is welcome, it is also "long overdue".
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..

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.

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Aerial view of the damage to Primark building following fire [Photos] Close

Traders unable to open their premises in the aftermath of the fire at Primark in Belfast are to have their rates liability reduced to zero.

Fourteen city centre companies are caught inside the safety barrier erected around Bank Buildings in the aftermath of the blaze on August 28.

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In a meeting with dozen of traders and landlords on Monday night, Belfast Chamber of Trade and Commerce issued guidance it obtained from Land and Property Services (LPS) which confirmed that 18 rateable premises, including offices, within the cordon will have their rateable value (NAV) reduced to 1 from the date of the fire.

The guidance from LPS said the zero liability would run until such time as the situation changes, with any overpayment of rates collected in advance, or paid by direct debit, set to be refunded.

Monday evenings meeting at the Europa Hotel also heard of the frustration from businesses on the outskirts of the cordon, with some claiming their trade had been hit by as much as 80% since the fire.

Those traders have been offered two options by LPS.

Firstly, an extended payment arrangement can help businesses defer payments but, crucially, the total amount payable will not be reduced.

Alternatively, hardship rate relief can be offered in exceptional circumstances for businesses where their ability to trade has been seriously impacted. Although it does not represent a reduction in NAV, it would see bills temporarily reduced.

However, businesses have been told that the relief operates in arrears, and they must provide evidence to demonstrate how they have been impacted.

The Belfast Chamber of Trade and Commerce also advised companies to take advice on consequential loss from their insurers and legal advisors.

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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Calls for clarity around the timelines for re-opening access to Royal Avenue, Donegal Place and Castle Street were also voiced at the meeting.

Speaking afterwards, chamber president Rajesh Rana said: Business owners from a wide range of sectors voiced their frustration regarding the continued lost trade, which is affecting not only businesses within the cordon and immediate area but also right across the city.

Mr Rana said the chamber would meet with Secretary of State Karen Bradley today to seek further clarity.

While we are doing everything within our power, we are not the decision-makers, he added.

There has never been more need for the Northern Ireland Executive to get back to power to help these businesses in the crucial run-up to Christmas.
The shooting took place in the Oakland Park area. Credit: Google.

A man was shot multiple times in the legs in Londonderry on Wednesday evening.

Police responded to reports of shots being fired in the Creggan area of Derry around 9:30pm.

The man, who is aged in his 20s, was taken to hospital by the Ambulance Service for treatment.

Foyle SDLP MLA Mark H Durkan said that guns had no place on the streets.

"All violence does is create more violence and more victims," Mr Durkan said.

Local Sinn Fein councillor Kevin Campbell said that the incident had taken place in Oakland Park.

I utterly condemn this attack," he said.

These actions should stop immediately and those responsible should pack up and get off the backs of the community.

Anyone with information on this shooting should bring it forward to the police immediately.
A citizens assembly in Dublin Castle, similar to what will take place in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland's Citizens' Assembly is set to meet next month for the first time.

Modelled on a similar system in the Republic of Ireland, it is hoped the Assembly will provide guidance on a number of key issues and introduce an element of deliberative democracy to the Northern Ireland political system.

The Citizens' Assembly works by bringing together 50 to 100 citizens who are broadly representative of the demographics of Northern Ireland, selected at random from the Electoral Register.

The convening of the Assembly has been in the pipeline since funding was confirmed in January of this year.

Meeting over the course of two weekends, the participants are given the chance to get to grips with an issue and hear from experts before presenting their own conclusions.

Lynn Carvill, Citizens Assembly Advisory Group member said: "This is an incredibly exciting innovation for Northern Ireland. It will give ordinary people a real voice on the future of social care  an issue that impacts us all, but especially those already most vulnerable.

"Its such a complex and emotive topic that the space for careful deliberation on the values we want our social care system to embody is badly needed."

In recent years, the citizens' assembly in the Republic, known as the Constitutional Convention, has made recommendations which acted as a precursor to referendums on changing the Irish Constitution's stance on abortion and same-sex marriage.

Funding for the event is provided by Building Change Trust, which gives backing to voluntary sector organisations in Northern Ireland, with 100,000 given to public-participation charity Involve to run the event.

The Citizens' Assembly will meet over two weekends at a hotel in Belfast on October 26-28 and November 16-18.

In a statement on the official Citizens' Assembly website, it says those taking part will be: "taken through a facilitated process of learning, dialogue and deliberation. The process will be designed to ensure participants receive the evidence they require to make informed recommendations."

Participants will discuss Northern Ireland's social care system, looking at the roles that the health service, communities and individuals play in it.

"The output from this process will be realistic recommendations to bring the social care system into the 21st century, and future-proof it to cope with the needs of the next generations within the context of limited resources," the statement reads.

Although it is hoped the Assembly will be a fresh democratic instrument, any recommendations it makes will be advisory and it has not legislative or statutory decision-making powers.
The chair of the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) Inquiry has said the DUP was run in an "unpleasant way".

Sir Patrick Coghlin was speaking as he heard evidence from former special adviser Timothy Cairns yesterday.

Mr Cairns insisted he had not tried to smear former Department of Trade and Enterprise (Deti) Minister Jonathan Bell over the affair.

But in the exchanges he admitted that politics was "a grubby world".

The former special adviser has accused Mr Bell of bullying and violent behaviour towards himself and other DUP representatives.

He claimed that former DUP leader Peter Robinson was informed of the complaints about the DETI Minister, but ignored them.

Mr Cairns also alleged that Mr Bell got so drunk in a New York bar he was ordered to leave and had to be helped home.

Sir Patrick said the "clear inference" from a document before the inquiry was that Mr Cairns was prepared to modify his comments about Mr Bell's alleged bullying in order to protect Mr Robinson.

In a text message he sent to another DUP special adviser, Richard Bullick, in December 2016, Mr Cairns said he was prepared to "fit my story in with the party narrative and what is best for the party".

Under questioning at the inquiry, he denied he was attempting to smear Mr Bell.

Sir Patrick said: "There are no two ways to look at what is meant by 'a party narrative' in this country.

"It means that the party have a version that may be closer or farther away from the truth, but that is what the party says.

"You were prepared to contribute to whatever the party said?"

Mr Cairns said: "That is correct."

Sir Patrick replied: "That seems a rather unpleasant way to run a party."

The former special adviser answered: "I think that would be a question for the Democratic Unionist Party. I wasn't in the leadership."

But Sir Patrick continued: "Please understand what I am saying.

"If a political party decides to have a particular narrative which you know not to be the whole truth, do you say that's a good thing?"

Mr Cairns replied: "I don't think I (do). I am saying that's a question for the party and the party officers."

In a further exchange, the former DUP special adviser said: "That's politics, I'm afraid. It is a grubby world."

Sir Patrick replied: "That is an understatement, if you don't mind me saying."

Mr Cairns replied: "I think you are correct, Mr Chairman."

Mr Cairns told the inquiry that the current DUP chief executive, Timothy Johnston, delayed the closure of the RHI scheme to allow others to join when he was a special adviser.

He alleged that Arlene Foster knew about Mr Johnston's role in delaying the closure, which she has denied.

Mr Cairns claimed that a day before Mrs Foster told BBC broadcaster Stephen Nolan that Mr Johnston had no role in delaying RHI cost controls, she had been informed that he had been involved.

The former special adviser said that he had told Mrs Foster of Mr Johnston's role in a conference call in which the DUP leader, Mr Johnston and Mr Bullick all took part.

He said he mentioned that Mr Johnston had told him to liaise with Mrs Foster's special adviser, Dr Andrew Crawford, to develop a party position on the introduction of cost controls.

"Mr Johnston clearly became uncomfortable and the conversation was quickly brought to an end," Mr Cairns said.

"Mr Bullick also informed me that Mr Johnston was uncomfortable with my discussion because up until that point he was adamant that he had played no role in RHI. However, my revelation had undermined his position."

Mr Cairns said he did not believe that the DUP leader had in either her BBC interview or in her Assembly statement "fully expressed the view I had stated to her in the speaker phone call that Mr Johnston had given, at least initial, direction in this matter".

The inquiry heard that within the DUP special adviser team there was a hierarchy, with Mr Johnston the most important figure by far.

Mr Cairns said: "There is not one elected representative, not one employee or special adviser, who did not recognise that Mr Johnston was very at the much at the top of the tree within the DUP.

"Mr Johnston had a very powerful role within the party. Mr Johnston's influence was seen from the party top to bottom."

Mr Cairns agreed that Mr Johnston's role went "well beyond" that of a special adviser.

He said that Mr Johnston was second only in power to party leader Mrs Foster.

In his evidence to the inquiry, Mr Johnston has stated that there was no hierarchy among special advisers.

Sir Patrick said: "That is something which operates within the Democratic Unionist Party, certainly not consistent with the code, but it's a practice that they enforce and endorse isn't it?"

Mr Cairns replied: "That is correct, Mr Chairman."

He agreed that Mr Johnston's role could well have been described as that of a chief executive when he was a special adviser.

Mr Cairns said he had "no recollection" of saying "ministers come and go, but Spads remain" as Mr Bell had claimed in his evidence, but he agreed that was the perception within the party.

"Perhaps, yes, it is certainly is an accurate description of the First Minister's office," he added.

Mr Cairns said he was unhappy when he was sent to DETI to work with Mr Bell in 2015. It was not a role the other DUP Spads were keen to do.

"Nobody seemed to want to go with Mr Bell," he said.

When asked why that was the case, he stated: "It is very difficult to function as special adviser if the minister is not absolutely across his brief.

"Every special adviser in OFMDFM (Office for First Minister and Deputy First Minister) experienced that issue with Mr Bell.

"Primarily, that would have been in everybody's mind. It makes things especially difficult when you are meeting outside groups, businesses, international relations. It makes it very difficult when you are constantly going into meetings and your minister is not briefed."

Mr Cairns claimed that Mr Bell did not read his briefing documents.

He described the minister as being "pretty passive" in meetings with civil servants, and it was himself as a Spad who spent most of the time "interrogating" them.

Mr Cairns said there was no opportunity for him to complain to the DUP about being allocated Mr Bell because Mr Robinson "would not have taken well to his authority being challenged".

Mr Cairns said he had no knowledge of RHI when he became the special adviser at DETI.

"I noted last week that Mr Bell said he had a vague knowledge of the RHI scheme," he said.

"I have to go one step backwards from that; I had no knowledge of the RHI scheme on day one in Deti."

In his evidence, Mr Bell alleged that Mr Cairns did not allow RHI to get onto ministerial briefing agendas.

Mr Cairns said: "I am at a loss to answer that. I don't know what to say. I don't recall anything like that.

"It definitely wasn't said on my part. I don't know how to answer that, I am sorry, other than a flat denial.

"No discussion was shut down at any time by me."

Mr Cairns said Mr Bell was told at a meeting on June 8 that the RHI scheme did not have the proper approval, appropriate costs controls and that the budget was not there to fund the scheme. Mr Bell denied this version of events during his oral evidence last week.

Mr Cairns yesterday said that he believed the Deti minister resented how popular Mrs Foster was and this coloured his response to suggestions that he should take advice from her.

Mr Cairns rejected Mr Bell's claim to the inquiry that they continued to positively socialise together after a row in a London hotel when he claims Mr Bell threatened to break his finger.

He said that there was some socialising due to being away on Deti trips with small groups, but not outside of this.

"We weren't making sandcastles with the kids at this point," he added.

"I can state categorically that there was no socialising."

Mr Cairns said working with Mr Bell was so stressful he was signed off work sick by a doctor.

He was invited by Mr Johnston to a clear-the-air meeting with Mr Bell after the London row.

He claimed that during a telephone conversation about it Mr Johnston gave him two options - to reconcile with the Deti minister or lose his job as a special adviser.

Mr Cairns claimed he had been deeply affected by his experience at that time and found it "still upsetting to talk about".

Asked by counsel for the inquiry if he thought about not going returning to his job as Mr Bell's special adviser, he replied: "I guess we've got mortgages to pay and bills to pay and... life."

He said he discussed the situation with his wife and decided that going back to work would be "purgatory", but with a Stormont Assembly election on the horizon the next spring "this too shall pass".

Mr Cairns left his job as a DUP special adviser in May 2016 and has worked in the voluntary sector since then.

Addressing the reasons why he left, he said: "I believe I received a letter some time around the end of May, start of June.

"It said there would not be a role within the party for a special adviser, but by that stage I already understood that would be the case."

He said no one had told him to his face that he didn't have a role in the DUP any more.

His preference at that time would have been to remain in the party's employment, however he added: "That's the nature of politics, people come and people go."

Mr Cairns said he had a conversation with Mr Johnston at a breakfast meeting in October 2016 about why he was let go.

He insisted that he has no ill feeling towards Mr Johnston or Mrs Foster.

Mr Cairns will continue giving evidence today and Dr Crawford will appear before the RHI Inquiry again tomorrow.
Andrew Gillum's release of receipts for trips he took with lobbyists raised more questions than answers last week.

But there's one thing Gillum could do to help clear it up: waive his confidentiality and open up to public scrutiny all the records in the state ethics case against him.

His lawyer, Barry Richard, told the Tallahassee Democrat that Gillum plans to do just that - eventually.

Richard said Gillum released to the press all of the records he gave to the ethics investigator looking into Gillum's 2016 trips to New York City and Costa Rica.

The trips were with Gillum's longtime friend and lobbyist Adam Corey, and the records Gillum's campaign released consisted of a few pages of receipts and bank records that they said showed that he paid for his trips.

News of the trips prompted a Tallahassee businessman to file an ethics complaint against him last year.

Ethics investigations are confidential by default, but Gillum could waive secrecy in his, which would open up the case and its proceedings to the public. Richard told the Democrat that the mayor definitely will do it at some point.

Richard said he's advised Gillum not do it until after the ethics commission takes some action on the case, like issuing a report.

Andrew asks me what I think he should do, Richard told the Democrat. I respond. I think as his lawyer it would not be responsible for me to say, 'Just open it up' when we have no idea who put what in there. Hes certainly not going to do it before the (investigative) report is finished for the commission.
Police are appealing for witnesses to an attempted robbery of a bookmakers on Belfast's Falls Road.

The incident happened after 7:20pm on Tuesday, September 11.

Police received a report that a male had entered the premises with what is believed to have been a knife and approached a staff member. The assailant then made off on foot, empty handed.

No one was reported injured.

The suspect is described as 59 tall, of medium build and was wearing a black puffa-type jacket and a white hat. He was described as being aged in his mid-20s.
Secretary of State Karen Bradley talks with Assistant Chief Fire Officer Michael Graham and Eastern Area Commander Aidan Jennings outside the Primark building. Photo by Simon Graham Photography

Secretary of State Karen Bradley has said that an interview which implied she didn't fully understand the political situation in Northern Ireland was "taken out of context".

In an interview with the Houses of Parliament The House Magazine, she admitted to not knowing unionists would not vote for nationalists and vice versa.

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She also admitted to being "slightly scared" of the place saying it was a "very different world" to what she was used to.

"I freely admit that when I started this job, I didnt understand some of the deep-seated and deep-rooted issues that there are in Northern Ireland," she told the magazine.

I didnt understand things like when elections are fought for example in Northern Ireland, people who are nationalists dont vote for unionist parties and vice-versa.

"So, the parties fight for the election within their own community. Actually, the unionist parties fight the elections against each other in unionist communities and nationalists in nationalist communities. Thats a very different world from the world I came from.

The Secretary of State was in Belfast on Wednesday to meet with business leaders and inspect the damage caused to the historic Primark building in the city centre following a devastating fire last month.

Mrs Bradley thanked representatives from the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service for their work in extinguishing the fire and ensuring there were no injuries.

She said that a number of options were under consideration following the fire, but that she could not commit to any action at this stage.

Asked about the interview she said that her comments had been "taken out of context".

"The whole point is that I am here as the Secretary of State doing the job, here on the ground, meeting people, dealing with people, listening to businesses and individuals living in Northern Ireland and really focusing on getting that devolved government back up and running," she said.
Two men have been charged with conspiracy to supply Class A controlled drugs and conspiracy to supply Class B controlled drugs.

Detectives from the PSNIs Organised Crime Unit arrested the men, aged 27 and 43, in Lisburn and Londonderry on Tuesday.

Police said the arrests were linked to the seizure of a substantial quantity of cocaine and herbal cannabis with an estimated street value of over 750,000 that were seized from a vehicle that was stopped by police in Belfast on February 8 2017.

A house was also searched in the Buncrana Road area of Derry as part of the operation. A number of mobile phones were seized.

The men are due to appear at Londonderry Magistrates Court on Thursday.
DUP leader Arlene Foster and deputy leader Nigel Dodds met the Prime Minister in Westminster on Wednesday. Mrs Foster urged her not to subcontract the British Governments responsbilities. Stefan Rousseau/PA.

The British Government must not subcontract its role in restoring powersharing in Northern Ireland, the Democratic Unionists said.

Leader Arlene Foster said there was a part for independent mediation in helping break the 20-month impasse at Stormont.

She met Prime Minister Theresa May in London on Wednesday as the British Government explores convening fresh political talks.

Expand Close DUP leader Arlene Foster and deputy leader Nigel Dodds in London following a meeting with Prime Minister Theresa May and Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley to discuss the powersharing impasse (PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp DUP leader Arlene Foster and deputy leader Nigel Dodds in London following a meeting with Prime Minister Theresa May and Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley to discuss the powersharing impasse (PA)

Mrs Foster said: We believe theres a role for facilitation but we also believe the British must not subcontract their role, because of course under the Belfast Agreement, until the people of Northern Ireland decided otherwise, the United Kingdom government is in charge of Northern Ireland.

She held a detailed meeting with the Prime Minister about decision-making in Northern Ireland in the absence of a ministerial Executive in Belfast following serious disagreements between former coalition partners the DUP and Sinn Fein.

Powersharing collapsed early last year in a row over the DUPs handling of a botched green energy scheme and the dispute over identity issues like the Irish language has seen repeated rounds of negotiations fail.

Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley met the five main Stormont parties this week as she contemplates another push for agreement and is seeking their views about external facilitation.

Detailed meeting with the Prime Minister today. Discussing the need for decision making in NI. While SF continue to boycott the Assembly, we continue to push for good governance. The people of NI deserve better. pic.twitter.com/NJurSLJUuj  Arlene Foster #WeWillMeetAgain (@ArleneFosterUK) September 12, 2018

Sinn Fein has been intensely critical of the British Government.

Independent mediators helped previous rounds of political progress in Northern Ireland, including brokering the Good Friday Agreement 20 years ago.

Mrs Foster said civil service decision-making should be quickly rolled out amid the political paralysis.

There is a whole range of decisions that need to be taken in Northern Ireland very, very urgently and we want to see that happening quicklyDUP leader Arlene Foster

There is a whole range of decisions that need to be taken in Northern Ireland very, very urgently and we want to see that happening quickly.

Asked about talks, Mrs Foster said the first thing we have to get set in motion was putting in place decision-making.

Deputy leader Nigel Dodds said there must be a full commitment to the continuing delivery of all the money thats coming to Northern Ireland under the confidence and supply arrangements.

Mrs Bradley is planning to cut Assembly members pay and will bring forward legislation giving greater clarity around civil servants powers to make decisions in the absence of a functioning Executive.

Meanwhile, Sinn Fein vice-president Michelle ONeill met Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney in Dublin and said it was disgraceful an Executive was not in place.

She added: The reason we have not had it is because of the British Government and their toxic relationship with the DUP.

She said the British Government had prioritised the survival of the minority Government and its arrangement with the DUP.

We have been fairly firm in the belief that all along their plan was to do nothing and now I am even more concerned because I believe their plan is to prevent the restoration of the Executive.

Sinn Fein negotiator Conor Murphy asked: What does the DUP have to fear from an independent facilitator?

Its clear the DUP is looking only for excuses to avoid meaningful political talks to get the Executive up and running.
Victims of the Republics CervicalCheck scandal have been let down by a litany of systematic failures, a damning report has revealed.

Some 221 women with cervical cancer were not informed that smear test results showing them to be clear were inaccurate, and then revised test results were kept from them.

The report by Dr Gabriel Scally, which will be published in full today, condemns the Irish Health Service Executives (HSE) lack of action.

The Scally Report raises serious concerns about the way CervicalCheck was run, its internal culture and warns of system-wide failings across the health service that impacted on the screening programme.

It also points to a lack of understanding of responsibilities by people overseeing the scheme.

The scathing report is highly critical of governance and structures across the screening programme and within the HSE.

It is also critical of the contradictory nature of HSE policy and its failure to follow patient disclosure rules.

But the 170-page report with 50 recommendations fails to name any individuals involved in the scandal.

However, the report does recommend that the HSE continue to outsource the testing of cervical smears to US and Irish laboratories.

The report was at the centre of controversy yesterday after the leaking of one of Dr Scallys views that a full inquiry may not be needed. Victims want a full public investigation.

Irish Health Minister Simon Harris was widely accused of leaking the report but strongly denied responsibility.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said he was disgusted people who were ill or bereaved heard about the findings this way.

Vicky Phelan, the terminally ill Limerick mother-of-two who revealed the scandal, spoke of her distress and called the situation a whitewash.

Stephen Teap, whose wife Irene died after wrong test results, said he was heartbroken by the disrespect.

As the Irish government grappled with its latest mishandling both Ms Phelan and Mr Teap, along with cancer survivor Lorraine Walsh, received a private viewing of the report in Limerick.

They are understood to have spent several hours looking through its conclusions with Dr Scally.

They declined to give their views last night on its findings, but will give an opinion today when it is published.

Dr Scally was asked to carry out a scoping report in May, and he was due to have it completed in weeks.

But a lack of documents from the HSE delayed his investigation and he was continuing to receive some of the 12,000 records he eventually received in recent weeks. The report is non-statutory and cannot point the finger of blame at any individual.
Prime Minister Theresa May during the Zero Emission Vehicle Summit at the ICC in Birmingham.

Theresa Mays premiership was under fresh pressure after Tory MPs spent nearly an hour war-gaming how to oust her at a private meeting.

Around 50 MPs discussed ways and means of getting rid of the Prime Minister at a gathering of the European Research Group (ERG), the Press Association understands.

A number of MPs told how they had already submitted letters of no confidence to Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee, and others discussed plans to follow suit.

NEW: @ABridgen tells us that Gavin Barwell has promised to give Theresa May a "full appraisal" of what MPs thought of her after tonight's dinner (she hasn't been present). Asked if there'll be a coup, he says "wait and see." pic.twitter.com/IxLJyqYf7y  Paul Brand (@PaulBrandITV) September 11, 2018

If 48 letters are handed over a vote of no confidence would be triggered.

At a dinner with the PMs senior aides, meanwhile, MPs raised leadership issues.

Backbenchers told the Prime Ministers chief of staff, Gavin Barwell, his boss must chuck Chequers over a dinner at No 10.

The flurry of activity came after former foreign secretary Boris Johnson launched a fresh attack on the PMs Brexit plan, claiming it would be substantially worse than the status quo for British businesses.

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Speaking after the No 10 dinner, Tory MP Andrew Bridgen did not deny suggestions the PM would face a coup.

He told ITV News: Ive been told that she will get a full appraisal of comments that were made over the dinner.

Asked if there would be a coup, he replied: I think we will just have to wait and see.

I hope that the Prime Minister will take on board what shes heard and chuck Chequers.

Conservative Brexiteer John Baron told ITV: We were discussing leadership issues.

Downing Street on Tuesday reiterated that Chequers was the only serious, credible and negotiable plan which is on the table which both delivers on the will of the British people and which prevents the imposition of a hard border in Northern Ireland.

We will be exposing UK businesses, manufacturers, entrepreneurs, innovators, to whatsoever rules the EU decides in the future to deviseBoris Johnson

Mr Johnson spoke at an Economists for Free Trade (EFT) event on Tuesday attended by a battalion of Tory Brexit big-hitters including Jacob-Rees Mogg, former Brexit secretary David Davis and his ex-deputy Steve Baker, former party leader Iain Duncan Smith and ex-Defra Secretary Owen Paterson.

The ex-minister declined to answer questions from journalists but used a Q&A session at the end of the report launch to make a statement himself.

He said leaving the EU while continuing to accept the single market legislation would expose businesses to rules that may go against their interests.

That seems to me to be a particular economic risk in Chequers and makes it substantially worse than the status quo, he said.

The ERG will be unveiling its own alternative plan for tackling the Irish border issue on Wednesday.

The group has faced criticism from opponents who say it has attacked the Governments plans without coming up with one of its own on one of the main sticking points in discussions between Brussels and the Government.
Leading Tory Brexiteers have dismissed claims of a plot to oust Theresa May over her controversial Chequers blueprint for leaving the European Union (EU).

Around 50 Conservative MPs are understood to have attended a meeting on Tuesday of the pro-Brexit European Research Group (ERG) where a possible leadership challenge was said to have been discussed.

At the launch on Wednesday of the ERGs plan to avoid the return of a hard border in Northern Ireland, leading figures in the group were at pains to stress they were not questioning the Prime Ministers position.

ERG chairman Jacob Rees-Mogg insisted he was seeking a change of Government policy, not a change in leadership.

Expand Close Jacob Rees-Mogg arriving for the launch of the ERG paper on the Irish border (Stefan Rousseau/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

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I have long said, and repeated again and again, that the policy needs to be changed but I am supporting the person, he said.

His comments were echoed by former Brexit secretary David Davis, who quit the Government over the Chequers plan which would see Britain maintain a common rule book with the EU for trade in goods and agriculture.

I disagree with her on one issue  this issue. She should stay in place because we need stability and we need decent government as the backdrop to what we are doing in the coming six months, he said.

Former Brexit minister Steve Baker, who also resigned over Chequers and warned earlier this week that up to 80 Tory MPs could vote against it, said they were trying to stay off the leadership issue.

I think the grave threat to the security and prosperity in the UK is a Marxist Labour Party in government, he told the Press Association.

I attended the ERG last night.

Reports of @theresa_may's demise are greatly exaggerated.

Of the 40-50 there, only 5-6 people discussed letters to the Chairman of the 1922 and they wrote ages ago.

The rest of us sat in uncomfortable silence.

Though most are unhappy with #Chequers  Michael Fabricant  (@Mike_Fabricant) September 12, 2018

So, we all need to just be cautious in what we do and what we say, and support Theresa May (and) invite her to change the policy.

We really arent getting into the territory now of if she doesnt, because we dont want to be there.

The apparent unwillingness of the Brexiteers to provoke a leadership challenge is likely to embolden Mrs May in her determination to press on with the Chequers plan.

At the ERG meeting on Tuesday a number of MPs were understood to have said they had already handed letters of no confidence to Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee, while others suggested they could follow suit.

Under party rules, if 48 MPs  15% or the parliamentary party  submit letters, a vote of no confidence would be triggered.

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However, Tory backbencher Michael Fabricant  who was at the meeting  played down the prospect of a challenge.

Reports of Theresa Mays demise are greatly exaggerated. Of the 40-50 there, only five to six people discussed letters to the chairman of the 1922 and they wrote ages ago, he wrote on Twitter.

The rest of us sat in uncomfortable silence. Though most are unhappy with Chequers.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove  one of the leaders of the official Leave campaign who ran unsuccessfully against Mrs May  also rallied behind the Prime Minister.

This is loose talk. The critical thing is to ensure that we deliver on that Brexit mandate, he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.

Any diversion or any distraction from that mission means that our ability to ensure that the referendum mandate that we were given is delivered, is undermined.
The paper proposes the Government should agree equivalence of UK and EU regulations (Victoria Jones/PA)

Conservative hard Brexiteers have released proposals which they believe could allow the UK to leave the EUs single market and customs union without the need for a hard border in Ireland.

The European Research Group (ERG) of Tory backbenchers  led by Jacob Rees-Mogg  believe the Government has allowed the border question to become a roadblock to achieving a Canada-style Free Trade Agreement with the EU.

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In a new paper, they propose the Government should agree equivalence of UK and EU regulations for the safety of agricultural products and allow EU inspectors into Northern Ireland to check on their implementation.

The EU will be able to maintain the integrity of its internal market without erecting a hard border along its border with Northern Ireland.European Research Group

Northern Ireland and the Republic would be maintained as a Common Biosecurity Zone after Brexit, allowing the smooth movement of these goods across the border.

Since UK and EU standards are identical and will remain identical at the point of departure, determining equivalence after Brexit should be straightforward, said the document.

For other goods, the ERG said existing simplified customs procedures could continue to be used to avoid the need for checks at the border.

Larger companies would use trusted trader schemes to clear their goods for export and import, and other declarations would be incorporated into the existing system used for VAT returns.

The ERG paper said that Brussels had made a major error in listening almost solely to the warnings of Leo Varadkars government in Dublin on the potential for the border issue to disrupt the peace process, contrasting his administrations stance with the co-operative and practical approach of predecessor Enda Kenny.

Warnings that manned checkpoints at the border would become a target for terrorists fail to recognise that checks are already conducted for tax, VAT, currency, excise duties and security without the need for any physical intervention at the border, said the group.

They cited customs chiefs from the UK and the Republic who have said they do not expect new infrastructure to be needed after Brexit.

They argued the Withdrawal Agreement proposals on the border are themselves a clear breach of the Good Friday Agreement, which requires decisions on the future of the border to remain a matter for the people of Northern Ireland.

The key obstacle in the negotiations is the EUs concern that goods could enter into the Single Market area through the Irish border without being compliant with EU standards or tariffs, said the ERG paper, launched in Westminster.

The question for the EU is whether this risk to the integrity of the Single Market is so serious that it could block a Free Trade Agreement with the UK.

And it added: In the debate over solutions to the Northern Ireland border issue, a proper sense of scale, perspective or proportionality has been lost.

The EUs objections are political not practical. The Government has failed to set out what can be done to provide for customs compliance without physical checks or infrastructure on the Northern Ireland border.

The document said that, under the ERGs proposals, the EU will be able to maintain the integrity of its internal market without erecting a hard border along its border with Northern Ireland.

At the same time, the United Kingdom will be able to develop a fully independent trade policy rather than remaining a rule-taker.

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And it added: This allows the United Kingdom to conduct an independent trade policy without threatening the integrity of the EU single market.

The ERG shrugged off the prospect of an open border in Ireland becoming a route for illegal immigration into the UK.

In practice, immigration is prevented not at the border, but by measures to make it difficult for illegals to obtain work, accommodation and welfare, said the paper.

In response to EU concerns that goods that do not meet its standards  like US genetically-modified crops and chlorine-washed chicken  might enter its markets via Northern Ireland, the ERG said that such breaches could be handled in the same way police on both sides of the border currently tackle smuggling of drugs, fuel or alcohol.

Law-enforcement agencies on both sides of the border co-operate to suppress smuggling without anyone suggesting that border posts and checks would make their efforts more effective, said the ERG.

If they can tackle trade in drugs, fuel, tobacco and alcohol without infrastructure at the border, they can prevent non-compliant goods from the UK reaching Irish retail outlets in the same way.

The ERG said its proposals could be delivered without weakening North-South co-operation.

There is nothing which would reduce our commitment to the Belfast Agreement, or which might jeopardise peace in Northern Ireland, the group said.

Harnessing the latest developments in international best practice can deliver continued co-operation and prosperity in the best interests of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has apologised in person to the mother of Danielle McLaughlin, the young Co Donegal woman murdered in India last year.

Andrea Brannigan had sought a meeting with the Taoiseach to discuss her daughter's killing. However, she was referred by his officials instead to the UK government for assistance.

A staff member in his office wrote to Ms Brannigan saying the meeting was "probably not worthwhile" as Danielle was not an Irish citizen.

But Ms McLaughlin (28) held dual Irish and British nationality. She was travelling in India on a British passport when she was killed in Goa.

A 24-year-old local man, Vikat Bhagat, is currently on trial and is accused of raping and murdering Ms McLaughlin.

Last night, Mr Varadkar said the meeting with Mrs Brannigan and her daughter Jolene had been "very helpful and constructive". He said: "I offered my condolences to them on Danielle's tragic death. I also apologised for the error my department made with respect to her citizenship.

"She gave me several examples of how the Government could better assist her and other families in similarly difficult circumstances, including the appointment of family liaison officers, counselling services and monitoring of overseas trials by our diplomatic staff.

"I agreed to follow up on these matters and a contact person has been assigned to her in the Department of Foreign Affairs."
Via @KirbyWTweets

Two weeks after donating $1 million to Andrew Gillum's political committee, the Democratic Governors Association is doubling down  literally.

The DGA announced Thursday afternoon it is giving another $1 million to Forward Florida, another significant investment in one of the country's most hotly contested governor's races.

"This additional $1 million investment will allow him to communicate his positive message across the state, and build on the momentum he has already created," Elisabeth Pearson, DGA's executive director, said in a release. "Andrew Gillum is focused on increasing access to healthcare, improving Florida's public schools, and growing the state's economy, and that's why he will be Florida's next governor."

Gillum, who struggled to fundraise during the primary, has been raking in cash of late. He pulled in $4 million during the first week of general election campaigning, campaign finance records show. His opponent, former Congressman Ron DeSantis, raised just over $520,000.

But the DGA isn't the only outside group investing heavily in the race. The Republican Governors Association has announced it will pour $10 million into DeSantis' campaign.

This post will be updated.
Thomas Cook said it needed time to review the announcement by the Egyptian prosecutor (Thomas Cook/PA)

The grieving daughter of the British couple who died in a hotel on a Thomas Cook holiday in Egypt has dismissed official reports her parents were killed by e.coli.

Mother-of-three Kelly Ormerod said she had no faith in the authorities in Egypt and did not believe e.coli killed her parents, John and Susan Cooper.

The 40-year-old, from Burnley, Lancashire, said she was still waiting for answers until Home Office post-mortem examinations, scheduled for tomorrow, took place.

Earlier today, Egypts chief prosecutor Nabil Sadek said forensic examinations showed Mr Cooper, 69, suffered acute intestinal dysentery caused by e.coli, and his wife Mrs Cooper, 63, suffered a complication linked to infection, likely to have been caused by e.coli.

He said the bodies of the couple from Burnley, Lancashire, who died on August 21, showed no criminal violence.

I have no faith whatsoever in the Egyptian authorities, especially knowing the way I was treated out thereKelly Ormerod

Other tests of air and water at the hotel found nothing unusual, he added.

Egypts minister of tourism, Rania Al-Mashat, said: The causes of death, e.coli bacteria, were medically determined by a team of internationally accredited pathologists, which I hope for the familys sake will put an end to previous speculative suggestions of what might have happened.

But Mrs Ormerod, who was staying at the same hotel with her children, said: I have not seen evidence or facts of any e.coli.

Thomas Cook put a report out that there were high levels of e.coli at the hotel. Whether the Egyptians have honed in on that, I have no idea.

But anybody can Google what e.coli symptoms are and the progression of e.coli and it does not kill you within a matter of hours.

They are either stuck for answers or dont want to tell the truth.

They are obviously aware this is having a very negative effect on tourism.

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Ms Ormerod said she had not received anything official from the Foreign Office or the British Embassy in Egypt with details about her parents death and had only seen what was in the media.

She added: I dont know what tests they have done. The report I have seen, from the media, not sent to me, was very, very brief. I dont know of any tests they have done.

Have toxicology reports been done? They do take quite a long time to come back. Have they got them?

Exactly what have they tested for?

They have not actually sent a report that I know of to say, We have tested this and ruled it out, we have tested for that and ruled it out.

This is why I have no faith whatsoever in the Egyptian authorities, especially knowing the way I was treated out there.

Theres definitely going to be Home Office post-mortems over here. Thats scheduled for tomorrow, but they cant say a hundred per cent it will be tomorrow.

The Coopers died on August 21 while staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada.

Thomas Cook revealed last week that it had identified a high level of e.coli bacteria at the hotel, which would explain the raised level of illness reported among guests.

But the firm said the independent specialists it commissioned to carry out the tests  and Dr Vanya Gant from University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust  did not believe the results shed any light on the cause of the Coopers deaths.

Thomas Cook moved 300 guests out of the hotel 24 hours after the couple died as a precaution.

A Thomas Cook spokesman said: Thomas Cook notes the announcement today by the Egyptian prosecutor on the results of the autopsies of John and Susan Cooper following their deaths at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic in Hurghada on August 21 2018.

We have not yet seen the full report and we will need time for our own experts to review it.

We are deeply saddened by the tragic deaths of John and Susan Cooper. We will continue to offer every support to their daughter Kelly and the rest of their family.
Downing Street has rejected claims by Russian president Vladimir Putin that there is nothing criminal about the prime suspects in the Salisbury nerve agent attack.

The Government said it stood by its assertion that Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov were officers in Russian military intelligence service the GRU after Mr Putin described them as civilians.

Authorities believe the pair smeared the highly toxic chemical Novichok on a door handle at the Wiltshire home of former GRU officer Sergei Skripal, leaving Mr Skripal and his daughter Yulia critically ill.

Responding to Mr Putins comments on Wednesday the Prime Ministers official spokesman reiterated that the men were GRU officers who used a devastatingly toxic illegal chemical weapon on the streets of our country.

He added: We have repeatedly asked Russia to account for what happened in Salisbury in March and they have replied with obfuscation and lies.

I have seen nothing to suggest that has changed.

The allegations have already been staunchly denied by the Kremlin and on Wednesday Mr Putin said the men had been discounted as members of his security network.

In an address to the Easter Economic Forum in Vladivostok, he said: Of course, we looked who these people are. We know who they are, we have found them already.

He added: There is nothing special and nothing criminal about it, Im telling you.

Questioned on whether the pair were civilians, he replied: Of course they are civilians.

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The Russian president also expressed the hope Mr Petrov and Mr Boshirov would appear in public to dispel doubt about their true identity.

I hope that they will emerge (in public) themselves and tell about themselves. It will be better for everyone, he said on Wednesday.

Television station Russia 24 quoted Mr Petrov as saying he might break his silence next week

Mr Putins intervention risks widening the gulf between Russia and the UK over the attempted assassination, which triggered a wave of diplomatic expulsions by both sides.

His hint that the men could soon break their cover recalls memories of the assassination of former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko on British soil, when suspects Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitry Kovtun publicly rejected the allegations from Russia.

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Detectives believe it is likely the two Salisbury suspects, thought to be aged around 40, travelled under aliases and that Mr Petrov and Mr Boshirov are not their real names.

Prosecutors deem it futile to apply to Russia for the extradition of the two men but a European Arrest Warrant has been obtained and the authorities are also seeking the assistance of Interpol.

Officers formally linked the attack on the Skripals to events in nearby Amesbury when Dawn Sturgess, 44, and her partner Charlie Rowley, 45, were exposed to the same nerve agent.

Ms Sturgess died in hospital in July, just over a week after the pair fell ill.

A police officer who visited the home of the Skripals shortly after the attack, Nick Bailey, was also left critically ill from exposure to the substance.
The interior of the new VandA Dundee has been revealed (Hufton+Crow/VandA Dundee/PA)

The first images of the interior of the new V&A Dundee have been released ahead of its official opening at the weekend.

Described as a living room for the city, the 80.1 million Kengo Kuma-designed building opens to the public on Saturday.

The images show the staircase, main entrance hall and some of the galleries in the new museum, which is the centrepiece of the ongoing 1 billion regeneration of Dundees waterfront.

The Scottish Design Galleries feature 300 exhibits drawn from the V&As rich collections of Scottish design, as well as from museums and private collections across the world.

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One of the highlights is the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Oak Room  the conserved and painstakingly reconstructed interior of Miss Cranstons Ingram Street tearoom which has been unseen for 50 years.

Philip Long, director of V&A Dundee, said: The opening of V&A Dundee is a historic occasion for Dundee, for the V&A, and for the very many people who played a vital part and supported its realisation. This is a very proud moment for all involved.

V&A Dundees aspiration is to enrich lives, helping people to enjoy, be inspired by and find new opportunities through understanding the designed world. After years of planning, we are thrilled at being able to celebrate the realisation of the first V&A museum in the world outside London.

The museums light-filled wooden interior and impressive spaces inside have been designed to provide a warm welcome to visitors, described by architect Kengo Kuma as a living room for the city. We are all very excited indeed that we can now welcome everybody into this remarkable new museum.

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More than 10,000 people are expected to attend an event at the museum on Friday, with thousands more visiting on Saturday for a family-based festival along the waterfront.

Architect Mr Kuma said: The big idea for V&A Dundee was bringing together nature and architecture, to create a new living room for the city.

Im truly in love with the Scottish landscape and nature. I was inspired by the cliffs of north-eastern Scotland  its as if the earth and water had a long conversation and finally created this stunning shape.

It is also fitting that the restored Oak Room by Charles Rennie Mackintosh is at the heart of this building as I have greatly admired his designs since I was a student. In the Oak Room, people will feel his sensibility and respect for nature, and hopefully connect it with our design for V&A Dundee.

I hope the museum can change the city and become its centre of gravity. I am delighted and proud that this is my first building in the UK and that people will visit it from around the world.

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The 80.1 million project was funded by the Scottish Government, the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund and Creative Scotland, Dundee City Council, the UK Government, Scottish Enterprise, University of Dundee, Abertay University and a private fundraising campaign.

Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop said: V&A Dundee is a powerful symbol of Dundees new confidence and a major addition to Scotlands world-class collection of museums and visitor attractions.
Undated handout photo issued by South Wales Police of Naomi Rees, 15, who was missing from her home in Rhydfelin, Pontypridd, since August 15 and believed to be with Tomas Baker, 20, from Tamworth, Staffordshire.

A man has been arrested after a missing teenage girl was found by police.

Naomi Rees, 15, was hunted by officers across the UK after she went missing from her home in South Wales four weeks ago.

The schoolgirl was finally found on Tuesday night in Solihull, West Midlands, and has since been returned to her family in Rhydyfelin, Pontypridd.

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During the search, police named 20-year-old Tomas Baker, from Tamworth, Staffordshire, as the older man Naomi was believed to have been travelling with.

On Wednesday night, police confirmed a 20-year-old man had been arrested in connection with the disappearance.

A spokesman for South Wales Police said: South Wales Police can confirm that missing girl Naomi Rees was located by police in Solihull last night [Tuesday, 11 September] and has since been returned to South Wales.

A 20-year-old man has been arrested in connection with her disappearance and he is currently in police custody.

South Wales Police and Naomis parents would like to thank the public for their tremendous support since Naomi went missing on 15th August, 2018.
Lynn Burns, left, is helping Victim Support Scotland chief executive Kate Wallace, right, to create a support service for bereaved families (PA)

The mother of a murder victim has said she hopes a planned support service will help other families avoid her dreadful experience of the justice system.

Lynn Burns only child Sam Johnston died aged 22 after being stabbed at a party in Saltcoats, Ayrshire in 2013.

Stuart McCulloch was convicted of his murder the following year, aged 18, and sentenced to at least 13 years and five months behind bars, while his friend Allan Carey, then 19, was sentenced to three years after being found guilty of culpable homicide.

Mrs Burns told Justice Minister Humza Yousaf on Tuesday about how the justice system caused her extra distress while she was grieving for her son and he pledged to address gaps.

It's not ok, it's not good enough and we can do betterLynn Burns

She said one of her sons killers, Carey, was released from detention on bail pending appeal days after being convicted, but did not return to custody until February 2016, having assaulted a woman while at liberty.

He served 17 months in jail and when he was released on a home detention curfew back to her hometown of Ardrossan, Ayrshire the family was not told until five hours after he returned.

Thats not acceptable, Mrs Burns said.

She called for families of victims to be treated with compassion, saying her treatment was soul destroying at times.

This included being told her son was evidence and being advised not to see his body due to the damage caused by multiple post mortem examinations.

The murder trial started a day after the first anniversary of her sons death, due to postponements, and when she attended court a police officer told her he could not find the case because he did not recognise her sons name.

Mrs Burns said: Its not ok, its not good enough and we can do better.

She is helping create Victim Support Scotlands new support service for families bereaved by murder and culpable homicide, which she believes will make a difference in future.

The organisation has been given 1.2 million of Scottish Government funding over three years for the new service which is due to start next spring.

It will provide tailored, clear support for people on an ongoing basis, Mrs Burns said.

Hopefully it will help people.

She added: I want to see continuity. Its really important that families have one point of contact.

It would also be good to have clarity in terms of sentencing. Does three years mean three years, because as the moment it seems like it doesnt?

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Mr Yousaf said: Clearly theres some gaps within the system and Im talking about right throughout the process not just up to sentencing but beyond that as well where theres clearly work for use to do.

He thanked Mrs Burns for sharing her experiences and said it is important that voices of victims are heard.

The Justice Secretary said the measures announced recently in the programme for government to enhance victim support would help address many of the issues raised.

He added: The vast majority of what I heard from Lynn doesnt need legislation or parliamentary commissions

Some of it is very much common sense but also ensuring that we have more compassion within the system.

Its about making sure that we are communicating with each other right from the police to the Crown of course, government as well where appropriate.

Victim Support Scotland chief executive Kate Wallace, who set up the meeting, said she envisaged bereaved families having access to a dedicated paid core worker for support.
The woman travelled to Switzerland to give birth amid concerns from social services in London (Andrew Matthews/PA)

An expectant mother travelled to Switzerland to give birth after council social workers raised welfare concerns, a High Court judge has been told.

After giving birth at a hospital in Basel a few weeks ago, the woman left her son with a relative in Switzerland and then returned to her London home, Mr Justice Baker has heard.

Social services staff in London and Switzerland are having discussions about the childs future.

Mr Justice Baker has analysed the case at hearings in the Family Division of the High Court in London this week.

London social workers had raised the alarm after the woman disappeared in August when heavily pregnant.

Police began an investigation and the woman was questioned after returning to London.

Social services bosses at the London council with welfare responsibility for the child also began litigation in the Family Division of the High Court.

Lawyers representing the woman told Mr Justice Baker she had decided to leave the country as she felt social workers were harassing her.

Lawyers representing social workers in London told the judge the boy is healthy and doing well.

They said social workers in Switzerland are overseeing his care.

Mr Justice Baker said Swiss authorities should be provided with all available information about the womans background before decisions about the boys future are made.

He said the case will be re-examined at another hearing in London in the next few weeks.

Lawyers said the woman, who is also in good health, is expected to return to Switzerland to see her son in the near future.

The judge said the baby could not be identified.
Britain has put in place a number of protective measures to guard against Russian cyber activity in the wake of the Salisbury attack, a senior intelligence official has disclosed.

Ciaran Martin, chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre, said Russia poses a serious and sustained threat that pre-dates the nerve agent poisoning earlier this year.

He said: Weve been on heightened alert since the horrors of Salisbury and have put in place various protective measures.

I cant really go into the detail of the day-to-day intelligence picture of what we are spotting, but let me be clear  we remain on high alert.

Russia has been a serious threat to our cyber security interests for a considerable period of time and continues to be so.

Mr Martin noted Russia has tended to target critically important national assets rather than mounting consumer or citizen-facing attacks.

The UKs relationship with Moscow has been in crisis since former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter were left critically ill after being poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok in March.

Our job is to make the UK the hardest target possible and the most resilient target possible  whether thats from a Russian attack, another state attack, or from criminal groups who are going to damage the economyCiaran Martin, National Cyber Security Centre

Last week, police investigating the attack identified two Russian nationals, said to be operatives of the countrys GRU military intelligence service, as suspects.

The revelation sparked suggestions that the UK could mount retaliatory cyber strikes.

Mr Martin told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: Lets not get too hung up on the cyber dimension to the Governments response.

Theres a full range of tools available to the state. And you would never comment on sources and methods that might be used by intelligence services because, naturally, that detail is sensitive.

The NCSC, which is part of intelligence agency GCHQ, was established in October 2016 to spearhead efforts to counter the mounting danger from cyber-criminals and hostile states.

Mr Martin said: Our job is to make the UK the hardest target possible and the most resilient target possible  whether thats from a Russian attack, another state attack, or from criminal groups who are going to damage the economy.

He emphasised that the Russian cyber threat is only one part of a multi-dimensional risk picture.

In its first year, the NCSC registered 590 significant cyber incidents across the UK. Attack targets included key national institutions, businesses and other organisations.

Mr Martin said cases range from deeply covert hostile state acts to criminal attacks that, while not particularly sophisticated, can have huge public impact.

On Wednesday, the centre published new guidance for corporate leaders to equip them with the basic technical details necessary to understand the threats their firms face in cyber space.

The NCSC recommends that boards ask five questions about their companys IT security: How do we defend our organisation against phishing attacks? What do we do to control the use of our privileged IT accounts? How do we ensure that our software and devices are up to date? How do we ensure our partners and suppliers protect the information we share with them? And what authentication methods are used to control access to systems and data?
Jacob Rees-Mogg has brushed off an anarchist protest outside his home (Jonathan Brady/PA)

Tory Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg has brushed off a protest by anarchist demonstrators who harangued him and his young children outside his London home.

Video footage posted online by Class War shows veteran protester Ian Bone telling one of the MPs sons: Your daddys a totally horrible person, lots of people dont like your daddy, do you know that?

Downing Street condemned the protesters actions, describing them as completely unacceptable.

No elected member or their family should be subjected to intimidation or abuse in that way, the Prime Ministers official spokesman said.

However the MP sought to play down the incident, insisting his children were absolutely fine, despite the barracking.

I wouldnt get too excited about it. It was a few anarchists who turned up and it wasnt very well organised. It wasnt terribly serious, he told LBC radio.

We are a free country. They werent violent. They arent admirers of mine. I am in public life and not everybody is going to like me. That is a reality of public life.

Id have preferred it if it hadnt happened but I dont want to get it out of perspective. I think much worse things happen to many other people.

The online footage shows a small group of protesters confronting Mr Rees-Mogg and his wife and four of their six children on the pavement outside their London home, while a policeman looks on.

This is the moment 'class' campaigners ranting at Jacob Rees-Mogg's children, telling his six-year-old "Your daddy is a "horrible person". https://t.co/s5eywMDyq7  LBC (@LBC) September 12, 2018

Mr Bone is seen taunting them, accusing them of failing to pay the familys nanny, Veronica Crook, properly.

Poor Nanny Crook who looks after you and wipes your bottom, she doesnt get enough money every week. Daddy doesnt care, he says.

He then challenges Ms Crook directly to say, how much she is paid. She replies: I dont need to tell that. All I can tell you is Im very happy.

Mr Bone dismissed criticisms of the groups actions, claiming Mr Rees-Mogg had brought his family out after they had confronted him in the street.

They are hardly the most stinging examples of invective are they? He is a feudalist landlord scum of the worst kind, he told the Press Association.

He said the protest had attracted so much publicity, they planned to make it a regular event.

We are going to be back same time every week, he said.
Tom Watson said Jennie Formby had staked her reputation on settling the anti-Semitism row (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

Labour deputy leader Tom Watson has suggested that the partys general secretary should quit if the anti-Semitism row that has engulfed the party over the summer is not over by Christmas.

Jennie Formby, who took up the post in April, has staked her career on dealing with anti-Semitism in our party, he told Good Morning Britain.

Mr Watson admitted that the issue should have been dealt with earlier but defended party leader Jeremy Corbyn, saying he was taking the issue very seriously.

If I come here again at Christmas and she has not dealt with it, then you may be asking me why she is still in postLabour deputy leader Tom Watson

Earlier this week, Mr Corbyn refused to intervene to prevent local activists targeting his internal party critics on subjects including anti-Semitism, with MPs including the chairwoman of Labour Friends of Israel targeted by no confidence votes.

Mr Watson told GMB: We should have dealt with it earlier. We have hired a new general secretary who has staked her career on dealing with anti-Semitism in our party.

She has been in post for three or four months. If I come here again at Christmas and she has not dealt with it, then you may be asking me why she is still in post.

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Mr Formby took over from Iain McNichol, who resigned in February, and is only the second woman to hold the post of general secretary

She vowed to introduce procedures to deal with complaints and disciplinary cases, and said the stain of anti-Semitic attitudes must be completely eradicated within the party.

Mr Watson also called on Momentum leader Jon Lansman to deal with the decision to allow an activist who has been accused of vandalising the Warsaw Ghetto to speak at its Labour conference fringe event.

Ewa Jasiewicz, who reportedly wrote pro-Palestinian messages on the last remaining wall of the ghetto where tens of thousands of people died during the Second World War, is due to address the grassroots movements The World Transformed event.

Mr Corbyn and shadow chancellor John McDonnell are also among the listed speakers on other days.

Mr Watson told GMB: The fringes around the conference we have no control over, but I am pretty certain Jon Lansman, the boss of Momentum, would recognise how controversial a speaker she would be at this event and Im sure he will be dealing with it today.
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National Republicans are hitting Miami Democratic congressional candidate Debbie Mucarsel-Powell's connections to an Eastern European oligarch dogged by allegations of contract killings and embezzlement.

The National Republican Congressional Committee, an organization that seeks to elect Republicans to the House of Representatives, is out with a 30-second TV ad titled "Connection" that seeks to tie Mucarsel-Powell to Ihor Kolomoisky, a Ukrainian oligarch who owned a Miami-based company where Mucarsel-Powell's husband Robert worked as their general counsel. In federal financial disclosures, Mucarsel-Powell reported at least $695,000 in income from a ferroalloys trading corporation associated with Kolomoisky.

The ad began running in the Miami media market today and an NRCC spokesperson said there is $192,000 behind the ad this week and close to $359,000 behind the ad set for next week. Mucarsel-Powell is running against incumbent Republican Rep. Carlos Curbelo for the most Democratic-leaning seat represented by a Republican running for reelection in 2018.

"This is Ihor Kolomoisky a shady Ukrianian militia leader accused of bribery, embezzlement and even murder," the ad's narrator says. "And this is Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, candidate for Congress. What's the connection? Mucarsel-Powell's family got rich working for Kolomoisky's businesses and Mucarsel-Powell's campaign has received thousands in contributions from Kolomoisky's associates. Shady money from a shady foreign syndicate, that's Debbie Mucarsel-Powell."

The term "militia leader" refers to Kolomoisky's private army he paid for to help the Ukrainian government fight against pro-Russian separatists in Eastern Ukraine in 2015, though multiple reports say members of his private army stormed into the headquarters of a state-owned oil company after the company's chairman, an ally of Kolomoisky, was fired. At the time Kolomoisky was the governor of a province in Eastern Ukraine.

Mucarsel-Powell's campaign called the NRCC spot "a complete lie."

"The facts are clear: Carlos Curbelo voted for Donald Trump's health care plan, he voted 10 times to take away health care access from 100,000 families in our district, and he won't stand up to Donald Trump and the NRA to reduce gun violence in our community," Mucarsel-Powell spokesperson Mike Hernandez said in a statement. "Debbie's plan is based on her values as an immigrant who lost her father to gun violence, and who has spent a career in our community expanding access to health care. As a member of Congress, she'll fight to provide quality, affordable health care to every family and stand up to the NRA to end gun violence in our community."

Curbelo ran his first TV ad of the cycle a few weeks ago and maintains a cash on hand advantage over Mucarsel-Powell in an environment where many Democratic challengers nationwide are outraising Republican incumbents. The race is expected to draw millions in advertising from outside groups.

Watch the ad below:
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has unveiled plans to recruit 10,000 staff to the EUs coastguard and asylum agency to improving border policing and speed up the deportation of illegal immigrants.

The proposals come as EU nations argue over who should take responsibility for people rescued in the Mediterranean Sea trying to seek better lives in Europe.

External borders must be protected more effectively, Mr Juncker told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg in a state of the European Union address.

He said the EU Commission is proposing a standing corps for the border and coastguard agency numbering 10,000 staff, including guards and migration experts, to be up and running by 2020.

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Mr Juncker said the corps should be funded by some 2.2 billion euros in EU money from the blocs next long-term budget.

But EU nations still have to endorse his plans. Beyond that, the Commissions idea of what the 2021-2027 budget should look like and what its priorities should be are certain to differ from that of member states.

The border and coastguard staff would be able to check ID papers and stamp travel documents, detain people who are crossing the border without authorisation, and help ensure those not eligible are deported.

Many nations have expressed concern about having their borders policed by staff from other countries, even if they are European partners.

In recent months, Italys new anti-migrant government has refused to allow some ships carrying rescued people to enter its waters, routinely leaving the boats stranded at sea for days while a short-term solution is found. Austria, France and Malta have argued over who should take charge.

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With every new ship we cant be talking about ad-hoc solutions for the people on board, Mr Juncker said. We need a lot more. We need more solidarity, and solidarity must be lasting and organised.

EU leaders meet in Salzburg, Austria, next week to thrash out better ways to manage the arrivals, many reaching Italy from lawless Libya.

Mr Junckers proposals also include a plan to help countries deport people who do not qualify for asylum because they do not face the threat of death or violence in their home countries. Just over one in three people denied international protection are actually sent home.

The border and asylum agencies would help identify those to be returned, obtain travel documents  often a time-consuming business  and prepare the paperwork so countries can send them back.

Mr Juncker noted that one of the jewels in Europes crown  the passport-free Schengen travel area  is under threat due to barriers and tougher border ID checks being imposed by some countries. He branded such obstacles an unacceptable backward step in Europe.
A Russian soldier stands in front of a radar deployed in a forest during the military exercises (Sergei Grits/AP)

Moscow and Beijing plan to conduct regular joint war games similar to massive ones being held this week, Russias defence minister said.

Sergei Shoigu and his Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe have visited the Tsugol firing range in eastern Siberia where nearly 300,000 Russian troops and about 3,200 Chinese troops are participating in joint exercises.

The week-long Vostok (East) 2018 manoeuvres launched on Tuesday span vast expanses of Siberia and the Far East, the Arctic and the Pacific Oceans.

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They involve 1,000 Russian aircraft and 36,000 tanks.

China sent 900 combat vehicles and 30 aircraft to join the drills at Tsugol.

The deployment reflects its shift towards a fully-fledged military alliance with Russia amid tensions with the United States. Mongolia has also sent a military contingent.
Abimael Guzman, founder and leader of the Shining Path guerrilla movement, arrives in court at a military base in Callao, Peru (Martin Mejia/AP)

A Peruvian court has convicted imprisoned Shining Path leader Abimael Guzman and given him a second life sentence for a 1992 car bombing in the capital that killed 25 people and injured 155.

The 83-year-old Guzman is already serving a life sentence for a 1983 massacre in an Andean village.

The Maoist-inspired group began its fight against Perus government in 1980 but was badly weakened by the 1992 capture of Guzman and many of its other leaders.

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In their ruling Tuesday, judges sided with prosecutors claims that Guzman masterminded the deadly car bombing in a middle-class Lima neighbourhood.

A truth commission found that between 1980 and 2000 fighting among rebel groups, the government and self-defence patrols left up to 70,000 dead.
New York firefighters salute in front of a memorial in the city

Spectators wait for President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump (inset) at the September 11th Flight 93 memorial in Shanksville

Donald Trump has remembered the "band of brave patriots" who were on a September 11, 2001 flight that crashed in Pennsylvania.

The US president praised passengers and crew members who resisted hijackers and sent a message that the nation would "never, ever submit to tyranny".

As the nation marked 17 years since the 9/11 terror attacks, Mr Trump honoured those killed in a field where a fourth airliner crashed after those on board realised what was happening and several passengers tried to storm the cockpit.

"A piece of America's heart is buried on these grounds, but in its place has grown a new resolve to live our lives with the same grace and courage as the heroes of Flight 93," he said.

"This field is now a monument to American defiance.

"This memorial is now a message to the world: America will never, ever submit to tyranny."

Mr Trump listened as the names of the 40 victims were read aloud, followed by the tolling of bells.

He was joined by First Lady Melania Trump, Pennsylvania governor Tom Wolf and former governor Mark Schweiker, who was the state's lieutenant governor on 9/11.

Nearly 3,000 people died when planes were flown into New York's World Trade Centre and the Pentagon in an attack planned by Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

Bin Laden was killed in May 2011 during a US military operation ordered by Barack Obama.

Mr Trump, a New York native, made his first visit as president to the Shanksville site and paid tribute to those who died.

He said the site marks the "moment when America fought back", and said the anniversary recalls the day "a band of brave patriots turned the tide on our nation's enemies and joined the immortal ranks of American heroes".

Mr Trump observed the anniversary for the first time as president last year. He and the First Lady led a moment of silence at the White House marking the time that hijackers flew the first of two planes into the World Trade Centre's twin towers.

The president also participated in the Pentagon's September 11 observance last year.

Vice president Mike Pence represented the administration there yesterday.

The president was in his Trump Tower penthouse, four miles from the World Trade Centre, during the attacks.

He has a mixed history with September 11, often using the terrorist strikes to praise the response of New Yorkers to the attack but also making unsubstantiated claims about what he did and saw that day.

He has also accused fellow Republican George W Bush, who was president on September 11, of failing to keep Americans safe.

Mr Trump has said when talking about Muslims that "thousands of people were cheering" in Jersey City, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from lower Manhattan, as the towers collapsed. There is no evidence in news archives of mass celebrations there by Muslims.

He has also said he lost "hundreds of friends" in the attack on New York.

Mr Trump has not provided any names but mentioned knowing a Catholic priest who died while serving as a chaplain to the city's fire department.
One of the most disturbing features of the political impasse at Stormont is the widespread complacency that exists among ordinary citizens.

As long as people's lives are not directly impacted and the buses run and the pensions are paid, people are largely content. It seems people can indefinitely put up with the breakdown in our politics.

But this complacency is a dangerous state of mind and can collude to make the current situation even worse. Political abnormality is now becoming an acceptable normality. That's why we should listen carefully to the warnings that have recently been made by prominent figures in public life, both from here and abroad.

Two weeks ago, Senator George Mitchell visited Belfast to attend an international conference on global conflict, co-hosted by Queen's University Belfast and the University of Chicago.

Mr Mitchell, who is a genuinely good friend of Northern Ireland, is a frequent visitor to Belfast and is remarkably well-informed about our politics and our politicians. He has a selfless interest in what is happening and is anxious that we reap the full potential of the Good Friday Agreement, which he was pivotal in bringing about.

Without his patient efforts as chair of the negotiations, the agreement might never have happened. His interest in helping us has never stopped since he was appointed as President Clinton's envoy in December 1994, much to the chagrin of the then British Government under John Major.

Recent releases of Government papers have embarrassingly disclosed the serious worry among British officials about the appointment of a US envoy by Clinton.

During his visit to the conference, Mitchell crucially said: "Twenty years of relative peace ... cannot be lost because of a vacuum of political leadership."

Mitchell is far from verbose, and chooses his words with surgical care. Therefore, what he said about "a vacuum of political leadership" was a damning criticism of our political leaders and should be heeded by all involved.

He also went on to comment on the deadlock at Stormont, saying: "This has to be taken as a very serious, potentially dangerous, moment in the history of Northern Ireland."

We ignore at our peril Senator Mitchell's words of warning and need political action to fix what are very fixable problems, in comparison to the enormous issues extant at the time of the Good Friday Agreement.

In addition, last week, the Lord Chief Justice, Sir Declan Morgan, bluntly criticised the deadlock at Stormont.

It is unusual for our top judge to make openly political criticisms, but he described the lack of political direction as a "period of intense frustration".

He specifically said that the failure to pay compensation to victims of historical institutional abuse, as recommended by an inquiry in January last year, was an example of the negative impact of the lack of a functioning Assembly.

Victims have been told by the Government that the recommendations cannot be implemented without ministerial approval. No Executive at Stormont, therefore, means no compensation for victims.

The Lord Chief Justice also stated that, in the absence of a functioning Executive, there is currently no process within the current legal framework for civil servants to resolve "difficult and challenging disputes".

This is not the first time the Lord Chief Justice has had to make public criticisms. In January last year, he rejected criticisms that Troubles-related inquests, conducted under his direction, were skewed against the security forces.

In September last year, he criticised the delay in dealing with legacy issues, especially legacy inquests, but this was his first major public criticism of the actual deadlock at the heart of the system.

He is to be commended for bluntly highlighting the impact that the deadlock is having on the lives of specific groups of people in our society.

But the fact that he felt compelled to speak out says a lot about the gravity and dangers lurking within the current state of our politics.

If we do not listen carefully to what he - and, indeed, Senator Mitchell - has said, then we make a huge mistake.

Our political system (if you can call it that) needs a huge wake-up call. Politicians need to respond to the dangers lurking in the undergrowth.

Politics is always the art of the possible, and the possible can only be achieved - even here - through compromise.

If the political system remains permanently dysfunctional through "a vacuum of leadership", the potential danger that Mr Mitchell has talked about could degenerate into something worse, even violence.

Drew Harris, fresh from his imaginative appointment by the Irish government as the new Garda commissioner (having been Deputy Chief Constable of the PSNI), stated that the greatest threat to the people of Ireland is dissident republicanism.

It is incumbent on all our politicians to stop that threat from becoming a reality through unnecessary disagreement and futile deadlock.
US President Donald Trump and Leo Varadkar during the Taoiseachs trip to the US earlier this year

Nothing is ever simple in the reign of President Trump. A mere few hours after the Taoiseach's office announced that the president's planned trip to the Republic in November had been postponed, we then hear from a White House spokesperson who said no final decision has yet been taken.

This is symptomatic of the chaotic nature of this presidency where policy, visits to countries and staff appointments are decisions apparently made on the hoof and subject to change at a moment's notice.

President Trump was expected to face protests during his trip and many in the Irish Government may secretly hope it is put on the long finger.
Nowhere has the goodwill towards both parts of this island been better demonstrated than in the European Parliament through its funding to cement the peace process. This has been ongoing since 1989 when the ending of violence was still very uncertain

Nowhere has the goodwill towards both parts of this island been better demonstrated than in the European Parliament through its funding to cement the peace process. This has been ongoing since 1989 when the ending of violence was still very uncertain.

And it seems that goodwill remains even in the throes of Brexit with the Parliament voting by a huge majority to channel hundreds of millions of pounds into peace and cross-community and cross-border work post-Brexit, whatever the outcome of those negotiations.

That is a fine gesture from the EU which has recognised the huge contribution that funding has made to rebuilding shattered economies and broken trust particularly in interface and border communities which suffered most during the Troubles.

While victims' groups can feel aggrieved that they have not prospered from this funding as much as community organisations even they cannot deny the contribution made by it in stabilising the province.

The Irish border has been a thorn in the Brexit negotiations with claims that a hard border could mean a return to violence and counter-claims that the issue has been overplayed. It was welcome therefore that an official from the Parliament's regional development committee made it clear that the EU was not arguing that if the money - some 470m - was not forthcoming it could lead to a resumption of violence.

He stressed that was not the case but did point out the benefits of the funding and the hopes that the EU, Britain and the Irish Government would continue to operate the two EU programmes.

Many, particularly in the farming and business communities, wish there was similar clarity on the likely outcomes post-Brexit. It is clear that the conflict between die hard Brexiters in the Tory party and other members hoping for a soft, nuanced exit is becoming more and more bitter. The die-hards seem to want to leave the EU come what may and certainly have failed to put forward any coherent policies for an exit strategy while decrying everyone else's attempts at negotiations.

Northern Ireland voted to remain in the EU and while it has to accept the overall UK desire to leave the concern is that it could become collateral damage in a Tory Party civil war. We need to be protected as much as possible and the European Parliament's intervention is a reassuring one.
Days after the state Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Amendment 10 will remain on the ballot, advocates for the measure are taking their arguments directly to the voters.

Proponents, including several constitutional county-level officers and sponsors of the amendment, announced Wednesday they have launched a statewide education initiative to encourage voters to approve Amendment 10, which among several changes would require five county-level officers (including sheriffs) to be elected in every county.

Though most counties already elect those positions, eight including Broward and Miami-Dade  do not require elections for some of those roles or have changed the positions' responsibilites. Miami-Dade in particular voted decades ago to eliminate its elected sheriff position and appoints a police director instead.

Were not appointed. We are the peoples choice in our individual counties, said Columbia County Sheriff Mark Hunter, who also serves as president of the Florida Sheriffs Association. Thats a right I think needs to be preserved so that the citizens of Florida can choose who they want to represent them and who they want to answer to them."

The amendments advocates  which include already-elected county sheriffs, clerks of the court and property appraisers  said they are running a grassroots campaign, including speaking at events to promote the measure and holding several press conferences in Tampa, West Palm Beach and Orlando in the next week. The push is also expected to include some radio spots, op-eds in local newspapers and mailers that will be distributed in areas including South Florida, they said.

Opponents have said the change, which other voters in the state could approve by the necessary 60 percent even if Miami-Dade voters dont agree, would violate the countys home rule charter. But proponents say that requiring elections statewide would return accountability for those roles to voters, and that the measure is not intended to repeal the charters of those counties that have them.

Amendment 10 was one of several ballot items proposed by the Commission (which meets once every 20 years) to be contested up to the states highest court this year. Last week, the justices handed down rulings on four of those amendments, striking one dealing with charter schools, but inoculating the rest from any future ballot challenges.

Amendment 10 in particular links four proposals, including one that would move up the states legislative session to January rather than March in even-numbered years, another that would create a counter-terrorism office and one that would make the existing state veterans affairs department constitutionally required. But the most sweeping proposal would require five county-level offices including tax collectors, sheriffs, property appraisers, supervisors of elections and clerks of circuit court  to be elected in every county.

That change would principally affect eight counties, all of which are governed by charters that currently allow them to make changes to how they can fill certain county roles. Six of those counties  Brevard, Broward, Clay, Duval, Orange, Osceola  have changed how positions like county clerk are filled or operated and would have to revert if the amendment is passed.

Volusia County does elect its sheriff but divides responsibilities between the department of public safety and the department of corrections. The requirement for the office of sheriff also singles out Miami-Dade, which has an appointed police director instead after voters chose at the ballot box four decades ago to do away with the sheriff position. (The vote to get rid of the office followed allegations of rampant corruption at the time that led to the indictment of then-Sheriff T.A. Buchanan. Buchanan was acquitted. The job, by voter referendum, was not.)

But today's voters have not had a chance to weigh in on having an elected sheriff since that decision, said Martin County Clerk of the Court Carolyn Timmann, who sponsored the constitutional officers proposal in the Constitution Revision Commission. (The Legislature had tried at least twice in 2015 and 2017 to require elections for these county-level constitutional offices, though neither effort succeeded.)

Timmann also argued that South Floridas disproportionately large population means the amendment needs some of their support to meet the 60 percent statewide threshold needed to pass.

Its time to ask them again and see what they want, Timmann said. "It's time."
Malaysian Peoples Justice Party leader Anwar Ibrahim speaks to business leaders during the annual CEO meeting of the Management Association of the Philippines, near Manila, Sept. 4, 2018.

Peoples Justice Party (PKR) leader Anwar Ibrahim is expected to return to politics officially after a lawmaker vacated his seat on Wednesday, triggering a by-election to make way for Malaysias prime minister in waiting.



Anwar, who was released from prison on May 16 after receiving a royal pardon on sodomy convictions, will seek election to the parliamentary seat serving Port Dickson, south of Kuala Lumpur, and is expected to take over eventually as prime minister from Mahathir Mohamad. No date has been set for the by-election.

Former Navy Adm. Danyal Balagopal, who was elected to the seat for the first time in May, cited difficulties adapting to a political life after four decades of military service. He made the announcement during a press conference at PKR headquarters attended by party Secretary-General Saifuddin Nasution and Vice President Rafizi Ramli.



Anwar agreed and is prepared to contest in Port Dickson. I am confident Anwar will win and become a member of parliament, and Malaysias eighth prime minister, Danyal said.

Also on Wednesday, parliaments upper house, which is controlled by the opposition Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, stalled the new governments efforts to repeal the Anti-Fake News Act that was passed during the lead-up to the May 9 general election, when Barisan ruled the country.



Port Dickson will be the first seat contested by Anwar other than his hometown seat of Permatang Pauh in Penang state that he held for six terms, beginning in 1982. He rose to deputy prime minister but was forced from office after a falling-out with then-Prime Minister Mahathir when both were members of the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), the anchor party of the then-ruling Barisan bloc.

Anwar and Mahathir realigned last year, forming the Pakatan Harapan (PH) alliance that upset UMNOs Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition to wrest control of the government. Mahathir, 93, is expected to relinquish the prime ministers office to Anwar in two years.

Anwar is credited with serving as PKRs de facto leader and managing the election campaign from behind bars even though he did not hold an official post with the party. His return to office is essential for the succession plan because the constitution requires that the prime minister be an MP.



Speaking on behalf of Anwar, who was in Hong Kong on Wednesday, Saifuddin told reporters that PKR officials spoke to leaders of the other Pakatan member parties and they agreed to support the candidate.

They have assured us of their full cooperation to ensure Anwars victory, he said.

He also said that Anwar would not accept a government leadership post if elected, but would focus on parliamentary reforms.



As an MP, Anwar who is also part of the PH presidential council, can play a more effective role in helping the government, Saifuddin said.

In an interview with CNBC that was published before Danyal announced his resignation, Anwar said that a parliamentary seat would have to be vacated before he could run for office as an MP.

That should happen very soon, Anwar, 71, told the network.

If I win, God willing, I will focus on parliamentary reform, he said.

However, PKR Housing Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin pointed out that the partys leadership did not follow the proper channels in selecting the candidate.

Every decision made by the party needs to be done through the committee so that a consensus can be achieved that is in line with the spirit of reformation and democracy, she said.

In response to the announcement about Anwars reentry to the political fray, BN official Khairy Jamaluddin posted a tweet suggesting that his coalition field a local candidate to face Anwar.



It will prove to be difficult for BN to win, but still, a local face will put up a better fight, he said.



Anwar has a strong chance of winning the election, no matter who runs against him, according to Wong Chin Huat, a political analyst with the Penang Institute.

Most Malaysians would want to have an MP who is the future prime minister, he told BenarNews.



Anwars challenge is to show his statesmanship as the next prime minister without being seen as in a hurry and undermining Mahathirs leadership, Wong said.

Senate roadblock

Meanwhile, parliaments upper house, also known as the senate, delayed the Anti-Fake News Act repeal in a party-line vote. Senate President S. A. Vigneswaran announced that 28 BN and Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) senators voted against repealing the act, while 21 Pakatan senators voted for the repeal and three abstained.

Despite the change in power, the senate, whose members are political appointees, is controlled by those loyal to the previous government.

In August, the lower house voted to repeal the act.

Under the constitution, bills rejected by the Senate must be returned to the lower house for approval again before being presented to the senate for a second time. The senate then has 30 days to approve the bill, after which, regardless of the decision, it is presented to the king for his royal assent and gazetted as law.

The king can opt to not give royal assent to a bill, forcing it to be sent back to both houses to be voted again and returned for his approval. If he still does not approve the bill, it automatically is gazetted as law after 30 days.
Moncks Corner, SC (29461)

Today

Cloudy with periods of rain. High 54F. Winds NNE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall near a half an inch..

Tonight

Rain. Low 48F. Winds N at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall around a half an inch. Higher wind gusts possible.
Les lunettes de marque ne sont pas ce qui manque dans les commerces. Il y en a de toutes les sortes dont les lunettes de []
Mercy Health will serve as a key partner with BGSU and will provide clinical experiences for students and employment opportunities for graduates. Together the organizations will also explore ways to enhance the health and well-being of their communities through research, grants and other training opportunities.

According to leaders of the organizations, linking Mercy Colleges strong, established programs and the clinical expertise of Mercy Health with BGSUs academic breadth and scope as a tier-one, comprehensive public university will benefit students and the state. BGSU students come from throughout Ohio and the Midwest, aligning with the service areas of Mercy Health, Ohios largest health care provider.



This partnership is a great fit, said BGSU President Rodney Rogers. As a public university, we have an obligation to create public good. That meshes seamlessly with Mercys mission to provide health care and wellness services to all in need. Together, we can strengthen health care education in Ohio and better serve our students.



Nurses and allied health professionals are absolutely essential for providing high-quality health care in this region, said Bob Baxter, president and CEO of Mercy Health - Toledo Region. Were already experiencing a nationwide shortage of nurses and the need is growing as our population ages. By working with BGSU, we can better meet that demand and enhance our ability to serve our patients and families in northwest Ohio and across the state. We look forward to aligning our mission with BGSUs and to continue reaching both traditional and nontraditional students for the betterment of our communities.



Health care is such an important industry in Ohio and our colleges and universities must continue to innovate in order to meet the workforce needs of this growing sector of the economy, said John Carey, chancellor of the Ohio Department of Higher Education. Pending final review and approval of the proposal, I look forward to working with the faculty, staff and administrators at BGSU and Mercy College on next steps in order to meet the need for health care professionals in Ohio.



BGSU and Mercy Health have begun the due diligence process necessary to execute an agreement. The transfer, which would include Mercy Colleges nine degree programs and six certificate programs, is expected to take two to three years to complete. In the meantime, Mercy College will continue to serve its approximately 1,500 students.



Mercy College and BGSU are deeply committed to ensuring the continued success of our Mercy students, said Mercy College President Dr. Susan Wajert. All current students, a record 1,300 in multiple degree programs in Toledo and 200 in an associate degree program in Youngstown, will be able to complete their programs of study. Given the breadth of BGSUs academic programs and its robust student-life offerings, well be able to offer more students a deeper, richer college experience.



BGSU is committed to honoring Mercy College and the Sisters of Mercys 100-year legacy of providing quality education in nursing and other health care program disciplines, aligned with the mission of Mercy Health.



According to BGSU, Mercy College faculty and staff will continue to be an essential part of program operations following the transition.



We look forward to welcoming Mercy College faculty and staff to the BGSU family, said Dr. Sue Houston, BGSU vice president for academic partnerships. Their expertise and dedication will be absolutely critical to the success of our students and these academic programs.



According to Baxter, changing market dynamics and declining reimbursement for provider-based nursing programs are also factors in Mercy Healths decision to pursue a relationship with BGSU.



This will allow us to focus on our core business  providing nationally recognized health care programs and services locally and across Ohio and Kentucky, Baxter said. "At the same time, well benefit from an expanded pipeline of qualified, highly trained nurses and allied health professionals by allowing BGSU to do what they do best  preparing students for careers and life.



For more than 40 years, BGSU had partnered with the former Medical College of Ohio and then the University of Toledo (UT) in a unique consortium for nursing education. Earlier this year, UT notified BGSU that it wanted to phase out its partnership. As a result, BGSU has been working to develop a full nursing program.



When UT approached us about discontinuing the consortium, we both recognized that it limited our ability to meet the growing demand for nurses and health care providers, Rogers said. Adding Mercy College to BGSU gives us high-quality, extremely competitive nursing and allied health programs that we can build upon and grow. We look forward to building upon this initiative with Mercy Health and upon our partnerships with other health care providers to continue developing new programs to meet the workforce needs of the state of Ohio in health care.



Any final agreement will require the approval of the BGSU Board of Trustees and the boards of trustees for Mercy College and Mercy Health. In addition, the Ohio Department of Higher Education, the Higher Learning Commission, the Ohio Board of Nursing, the U.S. Department of Education, and professional accrediting bodies for each of the accredited programs will also need to approve the plan.

About BGSU

Bowling Green State University is a tier-one, comprehensive public university serving more than 20,000 students on two campuses in northwest Ohio. The University has nationally recognized programs and research in the natural and social sciences, education, arts, business, health and wellness, humanities and applied technologies.

About Mercy College of Ohio

Mercy College of Ohio is a member of Mercy Health, the largest health care provider in the State of Ohio, and one of the largest health systems in the country. A Catholic health care ministry, Mercy Health employs more than 33,500 and provides nationally recognized programs and services at more than 600 points of care across Ohio and Kentucky.
Mercy College will serve as a key partner with BGSU and will provide clinical experiences for students and employment opportunities for graduates. Together the organizations will also explore ways to enhance the health and well-being of their communities through research, grants and other training opportunities.

By linking Mercy Colleges strong, established programs and the clinical expertise of Mercy Health with BGSUs academic breadth and scope as a tier-one, comprehensive public university, students will have more learning opportunities and the state of Ohio will have a more robust healthcare workforce.

This partnership is a great fit, said BGSU President Rodney Rogers. As a public university, we have an obligation to create public good. That meshes seamlessly with Mercys mission to provide health care and wellness services to all in need. Together, we can strengthen health care education in Ohio and better serve our students.

Nurses and allied health professionals are absolutely essential for providing high-quality health care in this region, said Bob Baxter, president and CEO of Mercy Health - Toledo Region. Were already experiencing a nationwide shortage of nurses and the need is growing as our population ages. By working with BGSU, we can better meet that demand and enhance our ability to serve our patients and families in northwest Ohio and across the state. We look forward to aligning our mission with BGSUs and to continue reaching both traditional and nontraditional students for the betterment of our communities.



We are finalizing a strategic alliance that will provide the clinical pathway for future BGSU nursing students while pursuing:

Offering concurrent enrollment at BGSU and Mercy College

Offering dual degrees

Developing new, joint health care programs that are in high demand

Sharing resources, such as learning management software and data-driven student retention tools

Expanding professional development options for faculty and staff

Expanding student life opportunities at BGSU for Mercy students

For more than 40 years, BGSU had partnered with the former Medical College of Ohio and then the University of Toledo (UT) in a unique consortium for nursing education. Last year, UT notified BGSU that it wanted to phase out its partnership. As a result, BGSU has been working to develop a full nursing program.



About BGSU

Bowling Green State University is a tier-one, comprehensive public university serving more than 20,000 students on two campuses in northwest Ohio. The University has nationally recognized programs and research in the natural and social sciences, education, arts, business, health and wellness, humanities and applied technologies.

About Mercy College of Ohio

Mercy College of Ohio is a Catholic institution sponsored by Mercy Health. It focuses on healthcare and health science programs in both on-campus and online formats. Mercy College offers graduate degrees, bachelor's degrees, associate degrees, and certificate programs. More information is available at mercycollege.edu.

About Mercy Health

Mercy Health is part of Bon Secours Mercy Health, one of the top 20 health systems in the United States and part of the top performing quartile of Catholic health systems for lowest cost per case for patient care. Mercy Health is the leading health system in Ohio and among the top five employers in the state, with more than 33,500 employees serving communities throughout Ohio and in Kentucky. Mercy Health provided care for patients more than 6.8 million times in 2017. The system includes assets of $6.8 billion and nearly 500 care facilities including 23 hospitals and 26 post-acute care facilities. Its clinically integrated network of more than 2,800 health care providers coordinates more effective and efficient care for more than 350,000 patients, saving money for taxpayers through the Medicare Shared Savings Program. As part of Bon Secours Mercy Health, the ministry provides nearly $2 million per day in community benefit.


Plus, Bill's Message of the Day, the woke vs. the awakened.

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The implementation of the National Health Protection Scheme in association with the state insurance scheme will benefit about 77 lakh poor and vulnerable families in Tamil Nadu.

The Tamil Nadu (TN) government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Central government to implement Ayushman Bharat Yojana in association with state-run Chief Minister's Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme (CMCHIS).

The implementation of the National Health Protection Scheme in association with the state insurance scheme will benefit about 77 lakh poor and vulnerable families in Tamil Nadu.

Tamil Nadu's health insurance scheme covers 1.57 crore families and provides coverage of Rs 1 lakh per year for 1,027 procedures, and Rs 2 lakh per year for 154 specified medical procedures.

The state also has a corpus for treatment of eight high-end procedures. All high-end procedures like cochlear implant, liver transplant, bone marrow and stem cell transplant, renal transplant, heart and lung transplant, auditory brainstem implant up to Rs 25 lakh covered by the corpus set up under the state-run insurance scheme will continue.
Sun Pharma will make the acquisition through a wholly owned subsidiary.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd plans to acquire an 18.75 per cent stake in Israel's Tarsius Pharma Ltd for $3 million in cash.

According to Sun Pharma, the acquisition does not need regulatory approvals and will be completed this week. Sun Pharma will make the acquisition through a wholly owned subsidiary.

Tarsius, which was founded in February 2016, is an early-stage research and development company focusing on the development of drug candidates in the ophthalmology segment. Sun Pharma's ophthalmology segment accounted for 2 per cent of the company's revenue in the last financial year ended 31 March 2018.

Sun Pharma's Israel business had come into focus in 2010, when it acquired a controlling stake in Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd, after a three-year battle for control.
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 []
10 Home Remedies To Prevent Swine Flu Wellness oi-Amritha K

On 6 January, 43 cases of swine flu were reported in Hyderabad, which indicates a rise in the number of cases in the state and has been reported to surge further by the end of the month. Although out of the 100 samples, 7 per cent have been reported H1N1 positive, health experts and hospitals have requested the public to be on alert.

Swine flu is a respiratory disease caused by influenza viruses that infect the respiratory tract and causes barking cough, decreased appetite and nasal secretions. The disease was initially reported in pigs and spread to human beings. Like other strains of the flu, H1N1 is highly contagious and can quickly spread from one person to the other [1] .

Even a small sneeze from an infected individual is enough for the germs to spread through the air and get stuck on to surface areas like doorknobs and furniture. In the event of the outbreak, one must be aware of the ways and means to prevent the onset of swine flu [2] .

Since swine flu is transmitted through air droplets from the affected patient, maintaining proper hygiene is the basic precautionary measure one should follow. Fever, headache, fatigue, sore throat and diarrhoea are a few of the symptoms of swine flu and if these symptoms tend to elevate in a period of 4 to 5 days, go to a doctor immediately [3] .

The best means of dealing with swine flu is to prevent it. Here are some simple and effective ways that would help prevent the onset of the condition.

1. Garlic One of the most beneficial herbs, garlic has been proven to help prevent swine flu. The presence of allicin in the herb help stimulate antioxidant activities in the body. The antioxidant activity, in turn, fights off the foreign microbes of swine flu and help improve your immunity against the flu. Swallow 2 garlic pods with warm water in an empty stomach every morning to gain the preventive benefit. 2. Ginseng Studies have pointed out that ginseng and its extracts are extremely beneficial in preventing H1N1 influenza. On consumption, the herb attacks the viral strain causing swine flu, thereby preventing the disease from attacking your immune system. Drinking a cup of ginseng tea every day can help prevent swine flu. It is also beneficial for swine flu patients. 3. Basil (Tulsi) The tulsi plant has various health as well as therapeutic benefits, studies point out. The medicinal properties of the plant can help keep your throat and lungs clear of infection and strengthen your immune system against swine flu. Experts suggest that you can have five leaves of the medicinal plant every morning. 4. Indian Gooseberry (Amla) Rich in vitamin C, Indian gooseberry is packed with immune-boosting properties. Consuming amla can help improve your body's resistance to several infections. You can eat 3 to 4 gooseberries every day or drink its juice daily to keep your body protected from swine flu. 5. Olive Leaves We are well aware of the amazing health benefits of olive fruit and olive oil. However, very few are aware of the deluge of benefits olive leaves possess. Leaves of this herb are rich in polyphenols and flavonoids which help you fight the symptoms of swine flu, such as nausea, chills, fever and headaches. You can consume olive leaves extract regularly to keep swine flu at bay. 6. Turmeric Milk Known for its anti-inflammatory properties, turmeric (haldi) is a natural antioxidant which has been long used for treating cold, flu, infections and for healing physical injuries as well. The preventive benefits of turmeric can be combined with a warm glass of milk. Drink a glass of milk with a pinch of turmeric before going to bed to improve your immunity and prevent the onset of swine flu. 7. Regular Exercise Studies point out that exercising regularly can help enhance your blood circulation, which in turn promote the spread of immune cells in your system. Regular exercise also helps in discharging endorphins which stimulate the lymphatic system to release the blood cell, thereby building a strong immune system which can help prevent the viral strain from attacking your body. 8. Proper Sleep A healthy amount of sleeping hour can help put your mind at ease and thereby help manage your stress level and vice versa, that is, managing your stress levels can help improve your sleep quality as well. Lack of proper sleep can impact your body in several ways. To maintain the appropriate function of your body, you need a minimum of seven-hour sleep. An interrupted sleep results in releasing stress hormones which have an acute negative impact on your immunity. 9. Hydration Drink lots of fluids, mostly warm fluids which can help ward off the viruses present in your body. Many studies suggest that people who take preventive measures such as staying well hydrated, taking vitamins, and getting plenty of rest are at a reduced risk of developing the infection. 10. Wear A Mask With the incidence of swine flu on the rise, always wear a mask before going out. Try to avoid unsanitary surroundings and more importantly keep your house and your surroundings clean. Note: Although the aforementioned home remedies are effective methods, consult a doctor when you develop the symptoms. Also, get medical advice before incorporating the above-said remedies into your diet.

View Article References [1] Hasan, F., Jamal, A., Asad, A., & Hasan, C. A. (2019). Management of Swine Flu: New Approaches. JPMA. [2] Davis, S. (2019). The different types of flu explainedseasonal influenza, swine flu and avian flu. SA Pharmacist's Assistant, 19(2), 10-11. [3] Mohan, H., Gill, P. S., & Kumar, A. (2019). Hemagglutinin gene based biosensor for early detection of swine flu (H1N1) infection in human. International journal of biological macromolecules, 130, 720-726.
A Ritual Where Married Women Stay Naked For 5 Days Life oi-Syeda Farah Noor

There are many unusual practices that people tend to follow during weddings. Some of the rituals are blindly followed while there are those which have a religious meaning behind them.

Here, in this article, we reveal to you a bizarre ritual where a woman is forced to stay naked for 5 days and has to abstain herself from sex or any physical contact.

Apart from this, also check out the bizarre rituals people follow during weddings in India.

Brides Have To Stay Naked For 5 Days After Wedding Here This is the weirdest ritual that people of Himachal Pradesh have been following for the longest time. Here, the brides are forced to follow a strict ritual where they have to stay naked for 5 days in a row. During these days, the women are not allowed to get physical with their partners. Awkward Things That Happen During Every Desi Shaadi Washing Feet Of Bride And Drinking The Water/Milk! People in Gujarat follow this bizarre ritual where the groom's feet are washed with milk and honey by his would-be father-in-law. The weirdest thing about this ritual is that he is supposed to drink that water or milk in the name of Madhuparka. The Trapeze Task This is one of the most common post-wedding rituals followed in Bihar, where a newlywed bride has to balance earthen pots after pots on her head. These pots are placed by her mother-in-law. The newlywed woman is then supposed to seek the elder's blessings by bowing down. The reason for this is to check on the bride's ability to balance her family responsibilities. Change Of Mind In certain Tamil Brahmin communities, a funny ritual is being practised where a groom pretends to change his mind at the last minute mandatorily, and he acts to refuse to become a married man. The man is then later counselled by the girl's brothers or her father of becoming a Sansarik' and not a Sanyasi.' Unusual Indian Wedding Pictures! The Grooms Mother Skips The Wedding In Bengali wedding tradition, there is a bizarre culture where the groom's mother is not allowed to be present at the time of the marriage. This ritual is practised for the sake of her son's happy life. The Run-Away Act Few Adivasi communities' in India have this strange tradition where the bridegroom keeps his newly wedded wife in a hidden place for a complete year. During this time, she is not allowed to go out or interact with an outsider. After the end of the year, the community seniors approve the wedding, and there are huge celebrations that are followed.
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It wasnt a typical hike for Ashley Lowe and her boyfriend Trevor McConnell, when the couple went searching for missing man Jeffrey Freiheit last month.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 11/9/2018 (1152 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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It wasnt a typical hike for Ashley Lowe and her boyfriend Trevor McConnell, when the couple went searching for missing man Jeffrey Freiheit last month.

The Canadians, who now live in Munich, Germany saw through a shared Facebook post that the Brandon man was reported missing in the European country.

Although they didnt know Freiheit, like many others they decided to help find the missing hiker.

My boyfriend and I both hike pretty frequently on the weekends, and Freiheit was a fellow Canadian, so we decided to join the (volunteer) group, Lowe said.

They joined others in the search on Aug. 18, all of whom hoping for good news.

We just hiked the routes that we thought he would have taken, Lowe said. They waded through a dense forested area, looking for signs that Freiheit had been there.

We were keeping an eye out for things like broken branches or if grass looked like it had been pulled or fallen on, but we didnt find anything, Lowe said.

After searching closely with some of the other volunteers, they struck up a friendship, something that McConnell said is difficult to do in Germany. Theyd been there since July 2017 after moving from Toronto, but even after a year overseas making friends remained a challenge.

A lot of the times they just have longstanding friend groups, so its hard to break into those groups, McConnell said.

They searched alongside their friend Kayla Kuefler, who is also Canadian, along with people they met during the search, including Susanne Williams, Martina Lachmuth and Robert Simmerle.

They just were really friendly genuine people  the people that you expect would search for somebody that they didnt know, Lowe said.

Were not as professional hikers or search rescuers as they are, but they still made us feel like we were really helping and that they appreciated our help.

One day, they took a break from the search and met up with Selena and Kathy, Freiheits wife and mother respectively, for a late lunch, Lowe said. Together, they hoped for a positive outcome.

We got to know them, which was a little intense because we dont know these people and we were kind of inserting ourselves into their situation, but they were wonderful people and so polite, and so composed and just kind to all of us the whole time, she said.

The following week, Lowe and McConnell returned from where they live in Munich to continue the search alongside the same group of people.

They were up and ready to go at 8:30 a.m., but before setting out they they got news that Freiheits body had been found.

Martina had just walked away to get some cell service, and she came back and said They found him, and thats all she said, Lowe said.

It was like a feeling of so happy that they found him, but also like my stomach just sank to the ground because of course everyone was still hoping that maybe there was a chance that he was still alive.

After they left the search area and went back to Munich, the two Canadians stayed in contact with the other volunteers they had worked so closely with.

The Facebook group called Volunteers searching for Jeff Freiheit has since been renamed to Friends of Jeff Freiheit. Although the more-than 500 members of the group never met him prior to last month, they were all brought together in the search to bring Freiheit home.

Martina, now, is one of our good friends who I cant imagine not knowing, Lowe said.

The friendships that we made are going to last, were still in touch with everybody in our core group.

 mverge@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @Melverge5
Dublin Airport Authority and its masters must fast-track the airport and facility expansion process, writes Joe Gill.

An interesting juncture has been reached at Dublin Airport, the key aviation gateway for Ireland and a critical part of the infrastructure needed to advance the economy.

The chief executive of the Dublin Airport Authority (Daa) has in recent months detailed the 1.2bn capital expenditure programme underway to build a new runway and expand the facilities in and around the existing terminals.

The need for that spending to be urgently advanced cannot be underestimated. The remarkable recovery of the Irish economy has brought the airport in Dublin up to full capacity at key times during the day, particularly for early morning and evening slots. While that is a great reflection of the success achieved it has hampered further growth.

Indeed, it seems new airlines wishing to serve Dublin cannot find slots to work with. That implies we are turning away economic activity which can help jobs and promote the economy. In addition, the two key operators at Dublin, Aer Lingus and Ryanair, have plans in place to build both of their businesses over coming years through expanded fleets.

Aircraft have already been ordered for this purpose but these cannot be deployed if room is not available in the airport.

To fix this the Daa and its masters need to fast-track both the airport and facility expansion process. The new runway will have a dramatic effect on capacity in the facility while the development of existing terminals and their environs can support expansion from 2019 onwards. This has to the key priority for the board of the Daa and its ultimate owner, the Government, over the coming months. While that is taking place there is also some work underway to explore the viability of another terminal in Dublin.

This is an interesting topic of debate but is not something that helps address near- and medium-term growth opportunities for the airport, its key customers, and the broader economy. Airline customers ought to make their preferences clear as time marches forward. Is a new runway and expanded facilities at the existing terminals the crucial pinch point to be fixed and prioritised, or is a third terminal more important?

Providing unequivocal guidance could help the interested parties to move forward and allow aviation play its part in driving the economy. Other Irish airports will be watching all of this with interest.

The challenges finding slots at peak times during the day are not an issue in either Cork or Shannon but both are a distance from the greater Dublin area which, like it or not, is the core engine of momentum in the Irish economy at present. What is clear, however, is that Dublin is becoming more difficult for new employers to recruit staff, given the huge costs of housing. This will eventually divert more investment and projects to areas around Cork and Limerick which, in turn, will increase demand for air travel to those regions.

Compared to a short eight years ago these are high-quality problems for policymakers. Back then, jobs were being lost, air services were contracting, and the economy was in reverse. Anyone worried about capacity constraints in the airports was laughed at. Today, we have existing and potential industrial investors who want to expand into Ireland but are faced with logistical hurdles to facilitate that growth. Many of these are coming from areas outside of Europe.

Finding ways to clear any obstructions and support investment by these corporates, especially at a time when we are seeking markets outside of the Brexit orbit, must be a key priority for all.

Joe Gill is director of corporate broking with Goodbody Stockbrokers. His views are personal.
The EU chief executive says the Union should move to a system of majority voting, and scrap national vetos on tax.

In his State of the Union address Jean-Claude Juncker also discussed Brexit, and assured that all member states will continue to show solidarity with Ireland when it comes to the border with the North.

Irish MEP Brian Hayes has warned that any changes to the EU voting rules on tax would have detrimental effects for Ireland.

"President Junckers comments on changing the EU voting rules on tax matters in the European Council must be blocked at all costs," said Mr Hayes.

"The European Council currently votes on tax matters by way of unanimity, thus allowing any country big or small to veto an EU tax proposal.

Junckers suggestion of changing this to qualified majority voting would suit big Member States but would sideline small Member States like Ireland.

"The EU Treaties make it absolutely clear that tax decisions are taken by way of unanimous vote.

"The only way this can change is by further Treaty change but this is something that Ireland cannot go along with."

We have big EU tax proposals coming down the tracks such as CCCTB and a new EU digital tax which will threaten the fundamental principles of Irelands tax policy. We should be afforded the right to veto these proposals if they are not in our national interest.

However, Jean-Claude Juncker says any changes would be for the greater good of the European Union.

"When we act together, the European Union can achieve results

"We must show that Europe is able to overcome differences between north and south, the east and the west, the European Union and Europe.

"We have to show clearly that together - east, west, south and north - we are able to plant the seeds of a more sovereign Europe."

Digital Desk
Shares in Ryanair fell 1% to bring its losses in the past year to over 27% as German pilots and cabin crew said they would strike today, forcing it to cancel 150 services.

Ryanair said its smaller bases in Germany, where it has around 400 daily flights, are especially at risk of being shut since they fail to make money in the winter low season.

While Ryanair has made progress in negotiations elsewhere, sealing deals with pilots here and in Italy, unions in Germany said earlier this week that talks on pay and contracts had failed to produce an agreement.

We want a stable collective labour agreement, chief operations officer Peter Bellew said in Frankfurt.

If we cant achieve that its going to be difficult to maintain our normal business in German

Ryanair says it has a market share of 9% or 10% in the country and that a deal with unions would allow it to pursue plans to increase that to 20%. Services staffed by contract pilots will be unaffected by the strike, together with operations that use planes based outside the country. The last walkout in Germany on August 10, which also involved pilots in four other countries, led to the cancellation of more than 400 flights.

Though Ryanair recognised Germanys Ver.di union in July, the trade union group says two rounds of talks on higher pay and minimum salaries produced no result and called on its 1,000 cabin crew at the carrier to walk out. Vereinigung Cockpit, representing pilots, said months of negotiations had led to deadlock. All told, Ryanair has reached recognition agreements with about 60% of the pilot and flight-attendant unions in the markets where it operates, according to Morgan Stanley.

Kenny Jacobs, Ryanairs marketing chief, described the latest German action as a wildcat strike and not good for anyone. At the same time, cabin crew from Spain, Italy, Portugal, and Belgium last week agreed to stage a further walkout later this month.

Meanwhile, the president of the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) said Ryanair shareholders should not re-elect longstanding David Bonderman as chairman at its shareholders meeting next week. Its clear that Ryanairs corporate governance model needs to change, said ITFs Paddy Crumlin.

Ryanair said: Ryanair shareholders will pass all AGM resolutions by a large majority this year, including the nomination of directors and chairman, as they have done in all previous years. They appreciate how fortunate we are to have an outstanding chairman like David Bonderman guide the board and the airline.

Bloomberg and Irish Examiner staff
US technology firm Smart Wires announced today that its European headquarters will be established in Dublin.

The company, a utilities and power flow solutions distributor, will create 40 jobs in Europe over the next three years.

Minister for Communications, Climate Action and the Environment, Denis Naughten visited Smart Wires HQ in Union City, California today and welcomed the announcement.

"Technology is central to the Governments plans for jobs and growth, and in the past two years we have added substantial jobs in this area. I have been highly impressed by the talent and technology I have seen here today," he said.

"The news that Smart Wires is basing its European Operations in Ireland is a clear endorsement of our business environment and talented workforce and the leading role Ireland is playing in integrating renewable technologies onto the grid.

Smart Wires Managing Director for the Europe Region, Michael Walsh added This is a special company with technology that will change how utilities everywhere think of power grids.

"We can now solve problems in weeks that traditionally took years. Our flexibility means we can respond to changing demands as they happen  saving customers money and reducing our impact on the environment and communities.

Martin Shanahan, CEO, IDA Ireland, said: Smart Wires was attracted to Ireland due to the countrys international reputation as a location where companies can quickly establish their operations and rapidly expand using the strong pool of tech talent.

The European HQ in Dublin will play a central role in the companys international expansion.

Smart Wires was founded in 2010 and currently has an international team of more than 200 engineers. Its European team delivers projects in the UK, Germany, France and Greece.

Digital Desk
The two men and two women were detained after Gardai searched two houses in Crumlin and Ashbourne yesterday morning.

It was part of an operation targetting the illegal streaming of TV content including pay per view products.
The lack of an American ambassador to Ireland is not helping the relationship between the two countries.

That is according to Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin, who has been reacting to the news that Donald Trump's trip to Ireland has been cancelled.

The US President was due to spend some time here as part of a short trip to Europe for World War I centenary commemorations.

The government now says that will not go ahead because the itinerary is too tight - but the White House say no final decision on the Irish trip has been made.

Fianna Fail's Micheal Martin thinks the channels of communication need to be improved.

"This has been an extraordinary series where government haven't been alerted that the visit is on in the first instance - it came out of the blue - and then in a similar manner it emerges that the visit is off," said Mr Martin.

I don't know whether channels are working between the government here and the government in the US. But I think that there is a need to get this relationship sorted.

A number of protests were planned for the visit of Donald Trump.

Activist groups and some politicians said they would boycott the trip.

If true, am absolutely delighted that #TrumpIreland visit cancelled. He should never have been invited. We have much more urgent priorities #housingcrisis #separatechurchandstate than having to deal with his hate filled & dangerous agenda. #fearofprotests  Richard Boyd Barrett (@RBoydBarrett) September 11, 2018

People Before Profit's Richard Boyd Barrett was one of them: "Well that's typical of Donald Trump, isn't it?

"You never know what the truth is, what his position is about anything from one day to the next.

"But that's why I will certainly be glad if the visit is cancelled as quickly as it was announced because we don't need Donald Trump here and I don't think most people want him here."

Digital Desk
By David Raleigh

There were jubilant scenes at Gaelcholaiste Luimnigh, Limerick City, where six Junior Certificate students achieved a remarkable 10 As, across all higher level subjects.

Principal, Donnacha OTreasaigh, said he was thrilled for all of the 103 junior cert students attending the school, who received their results today.

We have an excellent cohort of pupils and we are thrilled with all of them. They all worked extremely hard, OTreasaigh added.

We are a school that uses one-to-one devices, and we believe technology has a very important role to play in how young people learn in this day and age, he said.

There were smiles all around, especially for the six students who achieved top marks, Ide Ni Ifearnain, Joe Tanner, Eve McMahon, Muireann Ni She, Seoda Ni Chaoimh, Emily Calton OKeeffe.

Another 24 students attending the school achieved As and Bs in all higher level subjects.

Ni Ifearnain, from Lisnagry, was awestruck as she stared down at her 10 As.

It feels great to see the work you put in come good. I didnt expect to do that well in English so I'm really happy, she said.

Tanner, also from Annacotty, who has aspirations to be an engineer, was cool and calm as he reflected on his results.

It wasnt too bad, and it worked out in the end anyway, he said.

His mother, Mary Tanner, said she was extremely proud of him. He worked hard and steady since last September, so he deserved his results.

I'm not that surprised, he's been good and steady the whole way along, and I knew he'd do well.

You never know what's going to happen on the day, so this is a bonus. Whatever he got, we would have been delighted for him, she added.

Eve McMahon, from Ardnacrusha, Co Clare, couldnt hide her emotions.

It hasn't really sunk in yet to be honest; It's unbelievable, she admitted.

My mum is picking me up; I still haven't told her.

She didnt expect as many high marks as she got, saying: Absolutely not expecting all these As. I was hoping for a couple of As in the subjects that I liked, but, not this, to be honest.

After securing top marks across the boards, Seoda Ni Chaoimh joked she was looking forward to a bit of a rest.

It was hard when my brother and sister were watching movies and I had to do my homework, but I can watch all those movies now.

Emily Calton OKeeffe, was also ecstatic with her 10 As: I'm over the moon. I told my mum Anne and she just couldnt believe it.

Ni She, from Ruane, Co Clare was so shocked with her success.

I cant stop smiling. I really did not expect to get an A in Art, because it's marked very hard, she said.

I put a lot of work into it and Im really glad that paid off.

I'm very happy.

She joked: Put the hard work in and it really will pay off in the endThats what my teachers have been telling me, and, now I actually really believe them.

Her father Michael said: I am proud of her. She worked very hard.

There's no substitute for hard work and it seems to me that all the kids here today are happy, he added.

Her mother, Marie Slattery, added: Im delighted for her. I didnt mind what she got, because I knew she had given it (her) best shot.
Latest: The Irish Cancer Society has said that Dr Scally "puts the women affected, at the heart of his report" into the CervicalCheck scandal.

Donal Buggy, Head of Advocacy & Services at the Irish Cancer Society, has said the report highlights the need for "mandatory open disclosure" within the health service.

Mr Buggy said: It has been five months since Vicky Phelan courageously told her story, and during that time we have heard harrowing accounts from the women affected and their families.

Dr Scally puts the women affected and their families, at the heart of his report, and this compassion and understanding was crucially missing during the screening services audit process."

"We are very disappointed to see the full scale of serious communication errors that took place in the non-disclosure of the audit results, but more shocking is the nature and tone of the language outlined in the report during the follow-up disclosure meetings.

This report highlights the need for a radical cultural change in the health service to mandatory open disclosure, and raises important questions about the lack of compassion shown to these women.

The society is urging all eligible women to continue to attend for their cervical smears, and emphasises that Dr Scally has not found any quality issues with the current laboratories.

Mr Buggy said: CervicalCheck is 10 years old this month, and in its first eight years has detected more than 50,000 high-grade pre-cancerous changes in women. While understandably peoples confidence in screening has been shaken, we want to provide reassurance today, for the women attending screening next week or next month, that cervical screening is safe and does save lives.

Ultimately, with the combination of HPV testing, which will be introduced in the near future, and the HPV vaccination, Ireland has the opportunity to almost eradicate cervical cancer in a generation.

The Society said it will work to ensure that the recommendations of the report are fully implemented and that within three months an independent review of implementation plans is produced.

Earlier: Labour calls for Dr Scally to lead 'short-term inquiry with powers to compel witnesses' into CervicalCheck scandal

Labour Party Health spokesperson, Alan Kelly, has called for the recommendations of the Scoping Inquiry into the CervicalCheck Screening Programme to be implemented urgently and has called for an external investigative review.

Deputy Kelly said: I accept the recommendations of Dr Scallys Scoping Inquiry fully and I think it is an absolute priority that they are implemented straight away.

The recommendations by Dr Scally will help reinforce confidence in the screening programme. Dr Scally should be retained to ensure that these recommendations are implemented.

I note that Dr Scally states in his report that the HSE will carry out an internal investigation into the CervicalCheck scandal.

"The question must be asked should the HSE be investigating themselves."

"I dont believe the HSE should carry out this investigation internally but it should be done externally through an investigative process working with Dr Scally.

I am firmly of the view that a short-term inquiry with powers to compel witnesses is still needed. An investigation team potentially lead by Dr Scally should be established that has tight terms of reference to find out when, where, how and why the failures Dr Scally has identified in the audit process took place.

We have seen this system failing so many women and it is imperative that there is accountability.

Such an investigation should not in any way impact the timelines for implementing the recommendations by Dr Scally."

Earlier: Martin: There should be laws for open disclosure in medical profession following Scally Report

Fianna Fail have said they will be guided by women and families on whether there should be a larger investigation into the cervical cancer controversy.

Speaking in Malahide, Dublin, party leader Micheal Martin also said that there should now be laws for open disclosure in the medical profession.

The Scally report, released today, found there were "serious gaps" in the screening services.

It was highly critical about the way women were informed about how their smear tests were misread.

"The problems uncovered are redolent of a whole systems failure," it said.

Mr Martin earlier said that Fianna Fail would be guided by women and their families on whether or not there should be a full commission of investigation into the cervical cancer controversy.

We will talk to the families and the victims. We would like to get the reaction of families and victims themselves and we will be very much guided and what they require and their observations in relation to further observations and inquiries.

He added: We will also be guided by the overall importance of the cervical screening programme itself and the degree to which it does work in protecting many women in this country in preventing the onset of cancer."

Speaking to RTE earlier, Mr Martin also said his party would now back an open disclosure policy in the health system.

Open disclosure should be an essential part of health policy and medical treatment of patients.

"Everybody was taken back at the lack of disclosure in this case, the ambiguity around the Cervical Check's policy in telling the women and families concerned that there was serious misreadings and misdiagnosis of their cancers."
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By Liam Heylin

A Leaving Cert student got the fright of her life on the first day of her exams when she emerged from a cubicle in the school toilets to see a man unzipping his trousers and talking to her in a sexual fashion.

Tadhg Hopkins, 40, of halting site, Nashes Boreen, Fairhill, Cork, was jailed for 10 months today at Cork District Court.

Detective Sergeant Kieran OSullivan said the victim prepared a victim impact statement for todays sentencing hearing but she asked for this not to be read out in court.

Defence solicitor, Frank Buttimer, who represented Hopkins said: Clearly there have been consequences for the young lady  they leap off the page.

Judge Olann Kelleher said, This young lady was starting her Leaving Cert. It is not what you would hope to deal with when doing a state exam and it had such consequences for her.

She did observe him undoing his zip in front of her and she got the fright of her life.

The charges both relate to June 6 at Scoil Mhuire on Sidney Place, Montenotte, Cork. Two charges stated that he trespassed at the school without reasonable excuse in such a manner as caused or was likely to cause fear in another person. Two other charges stated that Hopkins intentionally engaged in offensive conduct of a sexual nature.

Inspector Ronan Kennelly said that at 1.40pm on June 6 the defendant entered Scoil Mhuire girls school on Wellington Road.

Here he spoke to two girls in an elevator in the school. The content of the conversation was sexual and suggestive in nature, he said.

One of the girls in the elevator was starting her Junior Cert and she made a statement of complaint giving rise to one of the sexual counts but she opted not to prepare a victim impact statement.

The second count arose out of the actions of Hopkins after he left the elevator.

Insp. Kennelly said of the accused: He went into the ladies toilet where the Leaving Cert student had opened the cubicle, to be confronted by the accused.

She said he had his trousers open and had his hand down his trousers."

"This lady exited the toilet and the male was escorted from the school by staff.

It was clarified that the defendant did not force or attempt to force any party to engage in any physical activity.

Det. Sgt OSullivan said Hopkins had 101 previous convictions  none for offences of a sexual nature. He had 13 assault convictions, including two for causing harm.

The detective said that Hopkins followed people entering a secure area of the school and that there may have been a belief that he was an examiner who was present for the Leaving Cert.

Mr Buttimer said the accused had a significant, longstanding difficulty with alcohol. He said Hopkins had alcohol taken on the occasion he visited the school but was not greatly under the influence of alcohol.

Mr Buttimer said Hopkins knew little of the school and believed it was some kind of college. The solicitor asked the judge to take a benign view of the defendants intentions on entering the school in the first place.

Mr Buttimer said the incidents were, in effect, verbal, non-contact in nature and that Hopkins was sorry for what he did.
The Scally Report on the inquiry into the CervicalCheck screening programme has been published today.

The 170-page report was compiled by Dr Gabriel Scally and provides analysis of and recommendations on the crisis after it emerged that dozens of women had not been informed of an audit into cervical cancer results.

In his address to the Minister for Health Simon Harris, Dr Scally said the screening system was doomed to fail at some point and that "the problems uncovered are redolent of a whole-system failure".

Dr Scally said the current policy and practice on open disclosure "is deeply contradictory and unsatisfactory" and that "there is no compelling requirement on clinicians to disclose".

"I know, very well, from very many of the women themselves and the families, that the issue of non-disclosure is felt very intensely," he said.

"They have expressed very clearly their anger at not being told at the time when the information from the audit became available, and they are equally as angry about how they were eventually told.

"In my view, the manner in which they were eventually told of their situation in many cases varied from unsatisfactory and inappropriate, to damaging, hurtful and offensive."

He said there are "serious gaps in the governance structures of the screening services", and in the case of CervicalCheck specifically, there was "a demonstrable deficit of clear governance and reporting lines between it, the National Screening Service and the higher management structures of the HSE".

The Scally Review has identified 'serious gaps' in the expertise and governance of the CervicalCheck screening programme | https://t.co/W6fZiExHnk pic.twitter.com/BWsfNmBYkK  RTE News (@rtenews) September 12, 2018

Dr Scally also said he was satisfied with the quality management processes in the labs.

He said that he had only become aware in recent weeks that slides which had been sent to a lab in the US had been sent for analysis in four labs across Texas, Hawaii and Florida.

Dr Scally said that this needs further and detailed examination but was clear that the lab in question is not a current provider, nor are any of the other labs to which they distributed slides.

The continuation of cervical screening in the coming months is of crucial importance. My Scoping Inquiry team has found no reason why the existing contracts for laboratory services should not continue until the new HPV regime is introduced," he said.

Dr Scally said that the exciting prospect of turning cervical cancer into a rare disease will need a strengthened focus and skilled leadership.

As dominated headlines yesterday following a leak of the report, Dr Scally said he had reached the view that a Commission of Investigation would not be the best way to proceed and instead outlined two tasks which should be given priority going forward.

Stephen Teap, whose wife Irene died last year, and Vicky Phelan

The first action should be ensuring that the women affected, and their families, are given the maximum amount of support in dealing with the difficulties that they now face arising from these complex and distressing events.

The second task, he said, should be to implement the recommendations of the Scoping Inquiry and he warned against a  prolonged investigation" which would consume valuable energy and resources that would be better devoted to the implementation of recommendations and achieving progress.

Dr Scally asked the Minister to instead consider commissioning a progress review which would involve an independent review within three months of the reports publication of the plans to be implemented by the State bodies involved.

He also asked that there should be a further review of progress reported to the Minister at six-monthly intervals and that these would be published.

Finally, following earlier praise of the extraordinary determination of Vicky Phelan not [to] be silenced, Dr Scally suggested that the women and families affected by the scandal should play a prominent part in the oversight of these reviews.
By Tom Tuite

A judge is to examine CCTV evidence before sentencing three teachers and two other men over a late night brawl in a busy Dublin pub.

Four of the accused who have Dublin addresses and the fifth, from Co. Kildare, had pleaded guilty to taking part in violent disorder after a row broke out at McGowans pub in Phibsborough on July 14, 2017.

Teachers Michael Davitt, 34 from Clanmaurice Road Donnycarney, Conor Shannon, 33, from Glendale Estate, Leixlip, Co. Kildare and Seamus O Cearra, 34, from Mount Symon Green, Clonsilla, appeared at Dublin District Court over the punch-up which involved 10 people.

Stephen Cantwell, 28, from Collins Avenue and David McSweeney, 31, from McKee Avenue, Finglas also appeared before the same court in connection with the incident.

Mr McSweeney faced an additional charge for producing a glass as a weapon during a dispute.

They had pleaded guilty in July and the case was adjourned for references to be handed in to court.

Judge Brian OShea was furnished with the documentation today but he said he would not be satisfied to adjudicate on sentencing without viewing the video evidence which was not in court.

In addition to the CCTV footage, he asked gardai to provide a statement outlining the roles of each defendant, so I can identify people by what they are wearing".

He said: The main thing I am looking for is something to identify what Im looking at.

The judge had enquired if the teachers would prefer if the case were adjourned until a date in a mid-term break but their solicitor Michael Hanahoe said it would not be necessary.

No, theyre making themselves available whatever date, he said. Sentencing was adjourned until September 20.

All five remain on bail.

Judge Brian OShea has heard the two groups of defendants were on opposing sides during the row.

They stood at opposite sides of the courtroom during the hearing.

In an outline of the allegations, the court heard the incident occurred at 2.40am and up 10 people got into a row which continued even after staff tried to separate them.

The fight continued for a while but was finished by the time gardai arrived.

Judge OShea heard Stephen Cantwell was observed hitting another male from behind  after he had been punched by that man earlier in the row.

The court was told Michael Davitt was also in the melee and had thrown a number of punches but not at anyone in particular.

He also suffered a bloody nose after receiving a blow to the face, the court heard.

David McSweeney was also seen fighting and threw a glass which hit Seamus O Cearra who was injured and suffered a cut to his forehead.

OCearra was also kicked, however, he was also observed punching one man in the face knocking him to the floor.

Judge OShea heard Conor Shannon was knocked down during the fight but he was seen throwing punches, but was not observed assaulting any person in particular.

Stephen OMahony, the solicitor representing Cantwell and McSweeney, said the issue of compensation for the injury caused by McSweeney would have to be addressed.

Shannon had one prior conviction for a minor assault for which he was bound to the peace in 2012.

Cantwell had convictions for public order, assault and drug possession offences.

McSweeney had prior convictions for public order and road traffic offences, the court was told.

At the previous hearing in July, the judge had said violent disorder was at the top end of a range of offences and recorded convictions could have dire consequences.

He also noted that no damage was caused to the pub and just bottles and glasses had to be cleaned up afterwards. None of the staff were injured, the court heard.

Another man was previously dealt with by a different judge at the district court for being involved in the incident. He had his case struck out and was spared a conviction after he pleaded guilty and agreed to a 400 court poor box donation.

The Director of Public Prosecutions had directed their cases should only be retained by the district court if they pleaded guilty, otherwise, they would have faced trial in the circuit court which has tougher sentencing powers.
A restored full fixture allocation for the Curragh and more blank Sundays during the summer are two of the principal features of the 2019 fixture list released by Horse Racing Ireland.

The opening of the newly-redeveloped Curragh will see the home of Irish Flat racing stage 19 meetings in a much changed configuration.

The Curragh season starts on Saturday, April 13 with a three-day Guineas Spring Festival taking place between Friday, May 24 and Sunday, May 26 - with a Group One race run each day.

The Irish Derby Festival moves to a Thursday-to-Saturday schedule in late June, with the Irish Derby now providing the climax on the Saturday.

The Flat turf season will continue to commence and conclude at Naas, with high-quality Sunday fixtures taking place on March 24 and November 3 respectively.

The number of completely blank Sundays in the summer months has been increased from three to five, while there will be five other Sundays during the Flat turf season with no Flat racing scheduled.

The two built-in breaks for National Hunt jockeys have been retained, with the late June to early July break extended from nine to 12 days.

The total number of fixtures for 2019 is 361, compared to 363 in 2018. There are a further two summer fixtures to be allocated to Dundalk pending clarification over plans to replace the all-weather surface.

Brian Kavanagh, chief executive of HRI, said: "The 2019 fixture list has been developed with the needs of both the customer and those working in the industry in mind.

"2018 enhancements such as extra Festival dates at Bellewstown, Killarney and Galway, and the newly-inaugurated Dublin Racing Festival have been retained, while an exciting new fixture list for the Curragh will coincide with the opening of the redeveloped racecourse.

"Consideration has also been taken of the needs of the industry's workforce with the introduction of extra blank Sundays and earlier finishing times where possible.

"2019 will be an exciting year for Irish racing and the publication of the fixture list certainly whets the appetite."

The dates of the major racing Festivals for 2019 will be:

Dublin Racing Festival 2nd  3rd February

Cork Easter 20th  22nd April

Fairyhouse Easter 21st  23rd April

Punchestown National Hunt 30th April  4th May

Killarney Spring 12th  14th May

Curragh Guineas 24th  26th May (now 3 days)

Down Royal Ulster Derby 21st  22nd June

Curragh Derby 27th  29th June (now Thursday to Saturday)

Bellewstown 3rd  6th July

Killarney July 15th  19th July

Curragh Oaks 20th  21st July

Galway 29th July  4th August

Tramore 15th  18th August

Killarney August 21st  24th August

Listowel 8th  14th September

Longines Irish Champions Weekend 14th  15th September

Galway October 26th  28th October

Down Royal 1st  2nd November

Punchestown November Winter Racing 16th  17th November

Fairyhouse Premier Jump Racing Weekend 30th November  1st December

Leopardstown Christmas 26th  29th December

Limerick Christmas 26th  29th December

PA
The chief medical officer of Commonwealth Bank's insurance arm warned in 2012 that it was rejecting trauma claims based on a heart attack definition that was up to five years out of date, but the bank has admitted failing to act in order to protect its bottom line.

In damaging revelations for the country's biggest bank, the royal commission into financial misconduct on Wednesday delved into repeated internal warnings CBA received that its policies included a definition of heart attack that was out of step with medical opinion.

CommInsure also admitted it misled the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) as it adopted hard-ball tactics in a dispute with a customer, which the ombudsman said may have been "serious misconduct".

CommInsure executive general manager Helen Troup. Credit:Royal commission

As the commission puts insurers under the microscope, senior counsel assisting the commission, Rowena Orr QC, tabled a 2012 email from CommInsure's then chief medical officer, William Monday. The email backed moving to a "universal definition" for heart attacks.
From the moment, three months ago, that Hong Kongs CK Infrastructure announced a $13 billion bid for APA Group and its dominant collection of gas pipelines it was clear it had put considerable thought into what would be required to obtain regulatory approvals for an acquisition that was highly sensitive on two fronts.

The obvious obstacle, given APAs dominant position in gas transmission infrastructure and the long-standing and increasing tensions between the company and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, was getting a clearance from the competition regulator.

An equally decisive approval is needed from the Foreign Investment Review Board. When CKI approached APA that may have appeared the lesser hurdle. Given what happened in Canberra last month, that may no longer be the case.

APA owns and operates 13 out of Australia's 30 largest gas pipelines. Credit:Bloomberg

CKI has now ticked off the first of those necessary approvals. The ACCC decided not to oppose the acquisition after CKI accepted a court-enforceable undertaking to divest a collection of Western Australian gas assets.
The markets negative reaction to the much-anticipated Myer full-year result suggests shareholders have lost faith in the companys promise that under new management it can stage a revival. They want to see results.

This company has had more than its share of false dawns. The 2018 net loss of $486 million was atrocious, and even the underlying profit was 52 per cent lower than last year, falling short of market expectations. The shares dived almost immediately by 7 per cent before recovering a little in the afternoon.

Yet none of this should have come as a surprise. This was always going to be a horrible result - and one that its recently installed chief executive John King was never going to sugarcoat because he wasn't responsible for it.

New Myer CEO John King has a tough job ahead of him convincing the market that his rescue plans will work.

There were a few bright spots buried inside the numbers delivered on Wednesday - the most hopeful of which was that sales in the second half of the year didnt fall as fast as they did in the first half.
"I think I look quite heroic," observes Lisa, this week's yarn spinner on the second season of True Story, and by the end of this concise  and frankly terrifying  episode you'd be hard pressed not to agree with her. With the narrative clipped and charted by hosts Hamish Blake and Andy Lee, she recounts the morning she was woken at her new boyfriend's home after he'd gone to work early by something biting her hand.

Hamish and Andy True Stories.

I won't go any further, but between Lisa's charming delivery, Jessica Tovey's performance as her, which nimbly balances nightmare comedy and creature feature horror, and various effects shots marshalled by director Colin Cairnes, this is a terrific episode.

Inside North Korea with Lisa Ling

SBS, 10pm

This is essentially a retrospective look in the flashpoint age of Kim Jong-un at one of the world's most secretive and authoritarian regimes, but American journalist Lisa Ling certainly has the credentials for it. In 2006 she infiltrated North Korea as part of medical team led by a Nepalese eye surgeon, revealing some of the country's brutal realities, while in 2009 her sister and fellow journalist, Laura, was arrested on the Chinese border, given a show trial, and sentenced to 12 years in a labour camp before being pardoned and sent home.
Three people tragically drowned in the ACT in the past financial year, while three Canberrans died in incidents interstate, according to a new report.

Also within the ACT, there were no pool drownings and none involving children, especially in the vulnerable age group of zero to four years.

Amanda Wise with her son Ethan, 6, who took part in Swim 4 Life program, and pool lifeguard Sam Murphy. Credit:Elesa Kurtz

The Royal Life Saving national drowning report found the drownings within the ACT borders represented a 25 per cent reduction on the previous year but a 50 per cent increase on the 10-year average.

The drownings in the ACT occurred at Lake Ginninderra, Casuarina Sands and another unspecified river location. All victims were adult men.
Lawyers for a Canberra barrister accused of conspiring to breach national intelligence laws told a court on Wednesday that they want as much of the trial to take place in open court as possible.

But a laborious court process might be looming over how material that is deemed to disclose sensitive information about Australia's national security will be dealt with.

The case of former Australian spy Witness K and his lawyer Bernard Collaery made its first appearance in the ACT Magistrates Court late on Wednesday afternoon.

Witness K's lawyer Haydn Carmichael (far left) and Mr Collaery's barrister (far right) pass protesters as they arrive at court on Wednesday. Credit:Jamila Toderas

The former spy and Mr Collaery are accused of conspiring to breach intelligence laws that makes illegal the communication of information concerning the Australian Secret Intelligence Service.
In the late 1950s and early 1960s she was one of the first British women to write and perform stand-up comedy, with solo shows and appearances in musical revues at such places as Peter Cooks Establishment club in Soho.

Its one of the mysteries of British life, noted The Independent in 2008, that Fenella Fielding, whose wit and distinctive stage presence captivated figures such as Kenneth Tynan, Noel Coward and Federico Fellini, should have drifted into obscurity rather than being celebrated as a national treasure.

Although renowned as Englands first lady of the double entendre, Fenella Fielding displayed a streak of engaging dottiness that rendered her more complex than her roster of smutty film comedies suggested. As a young actress she may have transfixed the cameras gaze with glimpses of her ample charms but she also earned acclaim for her title role in Ibsens Hedda Gabler (admired by The Times as one of the experiences of a lifetime), acted in Shakespeare and Sheridan and latterly gave readings of Greek poetry, one of her abiding personal passions.

Fenella Fielding, who has died aged 90, was one of the most glamorous faces of 1960s British film, a slinky femme fatale with a throaty drawl and come-hither stare best known for her roles in the Carry On and Doctor comedy capers.

A petite figure batting extravagant false eyelashes, she struck another Telegraph critic as having been designed by nature as an ornamental exercise in machine-age baroque  with her silvery radiator grin, her generous bumpers and her streamlined chassis, she is a Cadillac among girls. On television in 1965, she was ordered to cover up after arriving to take part in Juke Box Jury in a silk brocade gown with a neckline that plunged too deep for a Saturday teatime audience.

Vocally she could range from the plumminess of a duchess to the raucous expletives of the charwomen she used to meet as a footloose single girl sharing a Mayfair flat with a West End prostitute. But in person, as the journalist Gyles Brandreth recorded in his diary, that husky, purring voice is for real.

On the London stage she had a notable misfire in 1963 with So Much to Remember, a feeble revue that staggered from the Establishment to the Vaudeville in the West End before its fatal collapse. No actress languishes like Fenella Fielding, nodded Eric Shorter, the Telegraphs man in the stalls. Up go the eyelashes with a Kensington flutter; and down another register comes the Bagshot voice.

Films seemed to offer her a more reliable channel for her talent to amuse. Having made her debut in Carry On Regardless (1961), she flaunted her cleavage in the schlock-horror send-up Carry On Screaming, which has since become something of a cult classic. As a hospitalised Russian ballet dancer in Doctor In Clover (also 1966) she kept a poker face when asking a fellow patient, played by Arthur Haynes, if he wouldnt mind holding my crutch for a moment.

Her breakout stage role came in 1967 in Henry Jamess The High Bid (Mermaid) when she starred as Mrs Gracedew in what The Spectator rated a formidable performance. The part called for a soft Bostonian accent, and when Patrick McGoohan invited her to be the voice on the loudspeaker that addresses the villagers in his television series The Prisoner, launched the same year, he told her not to be too sexy. I mean, she reflected, such a thought would never have occurred to me.
Actor Geoffrey Rush will argue a woman who accused him of inappropriate behaviour, including physical touching, was upset about a relationship break-up and not his alleged behaviour, the Federal Court has heard.

Mr Rush, 67, is suing publisher Nationwide News for defamation over a series of articles in The Daily Telegraph alleging he behaved inappropriately towards a female cast member during a 2015-16 production of King Lear by the Sydney Theatre Company. He has vehemently denied the allegations.

Eryn Jean Norvill has been dragged into the defamation case brought by Geoffrey Rush against the Telegraph. Credit:Fairfax Media

Eryn Jean Norvill, who played Cordelia in the production, allegedly made a complaint to the Sydney Theatre Company but did not wish for it to be brought to the attention of Mr Rush.

The Federal Court has previously heard Ms Norvill did not speak to the Telegraph for its story and refused for months to become involved in the defamation case before she asked her lawyer to issue a statement to the newspaper's lawyers in July.
Prosecuting Chris Dawson for murder in connection with the 1982 disappearance of his wife Lynette does not depend on finding her body, police say.

Thirty-six years after the Sydney mother vanished, police on Wednesday announced a five-day "forensic search" at the Bayview home she and her husband shared in the 1980s.

Lynette Dawson on her wedding day.

Since the release of The Teacher's Pet, a podcast by The Australian newspaper about Lynette's disappearance, there has been significant renewed interest in the murder on Sydney's sleepy upper northern beaches.

A senior police source told Fairfax Media that "100 per cent" of the reason for the new dig was public pressure that had come about following the podcast and subsequent media and public interest in the case.
Justice Flanagan said the 76 defamatory imputations brought before the court were "extremely serious" and of the "gravest kind". The imputations made by Mr Jones on his radio show included claims that the Wagner family was part of a "massive cover-up" to avoid responsibility for the deaths. Over 30 broadcasts between October 2014 and August 2015, Mr Jones made defamatory claims that the family had covered up their "culpability" in the flood deaths and had lobbied Queensland Premier Anastasia Palaszczuk to avoid exposing the "truth". Further, Mr Jones accused the brothers of being corrupt in their work to build an airport at Toowoomba. Justice Flanagan found that 4BC and Mr Jones had sought to defend their claim over the airport construction, but had failed to prove it was substantially true.

Speaking to media on behalf of the Wagner family outside the Brisbane Supreme Court after the verdict, Denis Wagner said the verdict had given the family "enormous confidence in the justice system". "Our family, and us as individuals, have faced vilification from Mr Jones since 2011," Mr Wagner said in a prepared statement. Joe, John, Dennis and Neill Wagner speak to the media outside the Supreme Court after the verdict in their defamation proceedings against Alan Jones. Credit:AAP/Darren England "Until we commenced this action, Mr Jones' malicious attacks on our character and that of our family were unrelenting. "The Wagner family has been part of the Darling Downs and Toowoomba community since the mid-1850s.

"Mr Jones and his defendants relentlessly misled their listeners and the people who entrusted them to be honest and truthful. "They did this at great expense to our family and to the Toowoomba community. We decided to take a stand against this abhorrent, vicious and deceitful, spiteful behaviour." Mr Wagner said his family had not gone into the defamation proceedings in search of financial gain, and had not yet had time to consider the multimillion-dollar payout. The imputations made by Alan Jones on his radio show included claims that the Wagner brothers were responsible for the deaths of 12 people. Credit:AAP Mr Wagner said he and his brothers had only asked for an apology from Mr Cater but had not received it, hence included him in the defamation proceedings. He said the family would consider their options following the verdict.

In a statement, Macquarie Media said 2GB was disappointed by the decision and the radio stations and Mr Jones would be considering options for appeal. "2GB, 4BC and Mr Jones will be considering carefully their appeal options. As injunctions now restrain them, nothing further can be said at this time," the statement said. Mr Jones also issued a statement saying he needed to "read the entire judgement very carefully". "I do feel that I have somehow let down the people of the Lockyer Valley who sought my assistance," he said. "As the judge found in this case, I sought to ventilate concerns expressed to me by those people.

"I am restrained in what I can say because I am now subject to injunctions and will be making no further comment. Late in the trial, Mr Jones' lawyer Robert Anderson, QC, had dropped an "honest opinion" defence, conceding that some of the comments made by Mr Jones could not be defended. Loading "We accept there must be awarded damages because as your honour has seen ... there are some meanings that are not able to be defended," Mr Anderson told the Brisbane Supreme Court during closing submissions in June. On Wednesday, before releasing his 350-page final verdict, Justice Flanagan found that Mr Jones, for whose conduct 2GB and 4BC were "vicariously liable", had engaged in unjustifiable conduct and was "motivated by a desire to injure".
Alan Jones arriving at the Brisbane Supreme Court to give evidence during the trial. Credit:AAP

Queensland's Wagner brothers have successfully sued Alan Jones, Harbour Radio and 4BC for defamation over accusations a wall collapse from the Lockyer Valley quarry they owned contributed to the deaths of 12 people during the 2011 floods.

The Queensland Supreme Court has ruled radio identity Alan Jones defamed four Toowoomba brothers in comments made on his radio program.

The Wagners' lawyer, Tom Blackburn, claimed his clients were depicted as "cruel, selfish and lawless people (who) pursued their goals through corruption, cronyism, intimidation and criminality" in unparalleled attacks by Mr Jones.

John, Denis, Neill and Joe Wagner also allege they were accused of a high- level cover-up with politicians relating to their Wellcamp Airport at Toowoomba on Queensland's Darling Downs.

Denis Wagner labelled Mr Jones' broadcasts "gut-wrenching" and incredibly harmful to their reputations, while Neil Wagner claimed he thought Mr Jones was "going mad" after hearing his accusations.

Mr Jones admitted not having any scientific evidence to back up his claim the 12 people were killed as a result of the collapse of a quarry wall.

Journalist Nick Cater was accused of omitting evidence possibly contradicting his "narrative" about the Wagners' alleged blame.
A tourist has been airlifted from a cruise ship off the central Queensland coast on Wednesday suffering from "serious internal bleeding", according to the RACQ CQ Rescue helicopter service.

A 68-year-old man from South Australia was flown from the Majestic Princess cruise liner, which was bound for Brisbane, to Townsville Hospital in a serious but stable condition.

The view from the RACQ CQ Rescue helicopter as it approaches the Majestic Princess cruise liner. Credit:RACQ CQ Rescue

The RACQ CQ Rescue helicopter met the ship 83 kilometres south-east of Mackay about 6.30am and lowered a critical-care paramedic, rescue crewman and stretcher onto the deck.

The patient, who had been initially treated by the ship's medical crew, was stabilised on deck before being winched into the chopper under the watch of "the ships curious and concerned passengers", according to an RACQ CQ Rescue spokeswoman.
Rod Harding will take a second tilt at the top in Brisbane, confirming he will run for lord mayor in the 2020 Brisbane City Council election.

On Wednesday morning Mr Harding confirmed he had been endorsed by Labor to run against lord mayor Graham Quirk in 2020.

Labor's lord mayoral candidate Rod Harding said he had bold plans to announce. Credit:Michelle Smith

Mr Harding, who has never been elected for the council, said too much power for too long created a culture of arrogance.

"The way you change that culture is to change the people who are running these councils," he said.
A man has been charged over the deaths of numerous wedge-tailed eagles on a property in East Gippsland.

The Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning revealed on Wednesday a man had been arrested, charged and bailed over the deaths of the protected birds.

"Yesterday, two initial charges were filed, under the Wildlife Act 1975, in relation to the deaths of numerous wedge-tailed eagles in East Gippsland," a statement from the department read.
Time is running out for the federal government to strike a school funding deal with the Victorian government before it enters caretaker mode ahead of the state election.

State Education Minister James Merlino said it was "highly unlikely a funding agreement would be in place before Victorians went to the polls in November. He blamed the situation on "chaos" in Federal Parliament.

Schools say the uncertainty is making it difficult for them to plan their programs and staffing arrangements for next year.

Days before a meeting of education ministers in Adelaide, Mr Merlino said his hopes of securing a funding agreement had been dealt a blow by the recent turmoil in Canberra.

We have been handed a new federal minister in the middle of negotiations and there is no end in sight for the ongoing fight that they have been having with Catholic and independent schools, he said.
A Bulgarian man who admitted trying to smuggle 31 kilograms of methamphetamine into Western Australia has been jailed for 13  years.

Georgi Stanchev enlisted his girlfriend Nadezhda Nikolaeva Bratanova for the crime and the pair travelled to Perth before making their way north, the WA Supreme Court was told on Wednesday.

Some of the drugs found at the Port of Dampier were found in this life vest. Credit:Phil Hickey

Working with Sava Ivanov Kyuldzhiev, who had been onboard a bulk carrier docked at the port of Dampier, they placed the drugs in a vehicle before police arrested them on March 12.

The drugs had a purity of about 78.5 per cent and were valued at between $3.2 million and $8.7 million, depending on how the meth was cut and sold, the court was told.
Perth mother of three Mara Harvey was murdered late at night last Monday as she returned home from her night-fill job at the local Coles, police will allege.



WAtoday understands Mrs Harvey, 41, returned home to her family about 11pm on September 3 after finishing her shift stocking shelves at the supermarket in the inner-city suburb of Inglewood.

Police will allege her husband, Anthony Harvey, 24, murdered her soon after her arrival at the two-bedroom brick-and-tile home on Coode Street, which is a short three-minute drive from her workplace.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison does not believe Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton should apologise after accusing Roman Quaedvlieg of "grooming" a younger woman.

Mr Dutton on Tuesday used parliamentary privilege to accuse the former Australian Border Force commissioner of having "groomed" a younger woman who became his girlfriend.

Mr Quaedvlieg has demanded the Home Affairs Minister withdraw the "disgusting and offensive" comment, which he said was an accusation of a criminal sexual offence.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison defends Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton during a media conference in Canberra. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

However, the Prime Minister does not believe the former ABF boss was made out to be a paedophile.
A date in mid-October has been set for the crucial byelection in Malcolm Turnbull's former seat of Wentworth in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

Voters will go to the polls on Saturday, October 20.

While the Liberals have held the seat since the party's inception in 1944, there's no guarantee the government will win given the Canberra bloodletting that saw Mr Turnbull replaced as prime minister.

The women of Wentworth? Katherine ORegan, Maxine Szramka , Mary-Lou Jarvis and Kerryn Phelps, who is still undecided. Credit:Fairfax Media

It comes days after Andrew Bragg pulled out of the preselection race, saying a female should contest the seat for the Liberals.
A man whose gyrocopter plunged to the ground at the Caboolture airfield has had a miracle escape after he was taken to hospital with a minor head injury.

The pilot was able to escape the wreckage by himself after the crash, about 8.30am on Wednesday, before he was taken to Royal Brisbane and Womens Hospital for treatment, the Queensland Ambulance Service said.

The pilot, in his 40s, was lucky to be alive after his gyrocopter crashed at the Caboolture airfield. Credit:7 News Brisbane / Facebook

Queensland Fire and Emergency Services also attended the scene to assist in the clean-up of a fuel spillage.

An investigation into the accident was under way.
Google has attacked efforts by France's privacy watchdog to globalise the so-called right to forgotten, telling European Union judges that the regulator "is out on a limb."

In a hearing at the EU Court of Justice, Google said extending the scope of the right all over the world was "completely unenvisagable." Such a step would "unreasonably interfere" with people's freedom of expression and information and lead to "endless conflicts" with countries that don't recognise the right to be forgotten.

"The French CNIL's global delisting approach seems to be very much out on a limb," Patrice Spinosi, a French lawyer who represents Google, told a 15-judge panel at the court in Luxembourg on Tuesday. It is in "utter variance" with recent judgments.

Google says a global right to be forgotten would result in 'endless conflicts'. Credit:AP

The hearing will help judges to clarify the terms of the EU tribunal's landmark 2014 ruling that forced the search engine to remove links to information about a person on request if it's outdated or irrelevant. The Alphabet unit currently removes such links EU-wide and since 2016 it also restricts access to such information on non-EU Google sites when accessed from the EU country where the person concerned by the information is based.
Microsoft is launching an iPhone app designed to help the visually impaired navigate their way around from the moment they step outside.

Soundscape gives the blind or those with low vision greater spatial and location awareness by providing them audible clues about where they are and where they are going.

Using a combination of 3D audio and GPS, Soundscape can call out roads, intersections and landmarks as the user walks along, helping them form a mental map of their surroundings.

Screens from the US version of the Soundscape app.

The app was initially made available to the US and UK earlier this year, but the Australian version launching today comes with some new features based on months of feedback and testing from Vision Australia.
Hanoi: After sinking a number of illegal fishing boats in its territorial waters, Indonesia's President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo says his country and Vietnam have agreed to cooperate more in fighting illegal fishing and hope to boost two-way trade.

Indonesia has taken a tough stance against illegal fishing since Joko took office in 2014, destroying hundreds of foreign fishing boats, mostly from Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand.

Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, left, and Vietnamese counterpart Tran Dai Quang review the troops on Tuesday. Credit:AP

The two leaders witnessed the signing of a declaration on voluntary cooperation in combatting illegal fishing.

"We have agreed to boost cooperation in fighting illegal fishing," he said, adding he hopes the two sides will soon complete their negotiations on the demarcation of their exclusive economic zones.
Victory Monument in Bangkok. Credit:Michael Ruffles

Bangkoks Victory Monument is hard to miss. It stands about 50 metres tall on the intersection of three of the citys busiest roads, one of which runs 1005 kilometres north to the Myanmar border. A giant roundabout with multiple sets of traffic lights surrounds it, and the skytrain line bends so everyone on board notices its shaped like five bayonets stuck together.

But the obelisk built in 1942 in the name of an otherwise forgotten border skirmish between the Thai and French forces has encountered an unexpected problem: no one seems to be responsible for it.

Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon, who is the defence minister and a former army chief, admitted no one has a clue who looks after the countrys biggest monument to warfare.

And he needs to find out because the government has budgeted for an upgrade, with a tunnel mooted so visitors can safely avoid the traffic. They just don't know who to give the money to.
Moscow: In an extraordinary public outburst, the chief of the Russia's National Guard and President Vladimir Putin's former bodyguard has challenged opposition leader Alexei Navalny to a duel.

"I'm simply challenging you to a fight: to a ring, to a tatami, anywhere where I promise I will make a good juicy beef steak of you," Zolotov said, seated at the desk and shaking his fist.

Viktor Zolotov recorded an emotional seven-minute speech, posted on the National Guard's YouTube channel on Tuesday, attacking Navalny for his investigation into large-scale corruption at the National Guard. Zolotov admitted "shortcomings in terms of corruption" in his governmental agency but rejected Navalny's claim that he personally profited from the shady deals.

Navalny, Russia's most popular opposition leader, is currently in jail serving a 30-day sentence for organising an unsanctioned public protest. Last month he published an investigation alleging that at least $US29 million ($40 million) had been stolen in procurement contracts for the National Guard.
Vladivostok: Russian President Vladimir Putin says Russia knows the real identity of two men accused by British prosecutors of trying to murder former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Britain.

British prosecutors last week identified two Russians who they said were operating under aliases - Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov - who they said had tried to murder the Skripals with a military-grade nerve agent, Novichok, in England.

Alexander Petrov, left, and Ruslan Boshirov charged as the two Russians responsible for the Novichok poisonings in Britain. Credit:Met Police/AP

Putin, speaking at an economic forum in the Russian port city of Vladivostok, said Russia had found the two men, that they were civilians, and there was nothing special or criminal about them and that he hoped they would come forward and tell the world their own story.
An elderly woman has died after being struck while on an electric scooter on Lake Shore Boulevard. CityNews/David Misener

Toronto paramedics have told City News that a woman in her 70s has been killed after being struck by a car while on an electric scooter in Etobicoke. They were called to the scene at Lake Shore Blvd. near Islington Ave. just before 6 p.m. The woman was taken to a trauma centre with life-threatening injuries. She was pronounced dead in hospital.

STABBING DEATH IN ETOBICOKE

A man in his 50s has been pronounced dead and another is in hospital with injuries following a stabbing near Martin Grove and Redgrave Rds. in Etobicoke. The men were in a fight of some kind. This occurred about 4:30 p.m. Police say a woman tried to stop the fight and sustained minor injuries. The second knife fighter, reportedly in his 20s, fled the scene and was involved in a single-vehicle crash near Highway 401 and Islington Avenue.
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84th Precinct

Brooklyn HeightsDUMBOBoerum HillDowntown

Cut and loot

A punk stole a guys backpack with his phone and computer inside it in an Adams Street park on Sept. 6, police said.

The victim told cops he had put his bag down near a fence inside the green space near Cadman Plaza West at about 4:40 pm, and locked it up while he was working. When he returned to it a few minutes later, some nogoodnik had cut it off its straps and walked away with it, with his MacBook Pro, iPhone, airpods, and a journal inside it, according to authorities.

That stinks!

A baddie swiped a guys wallet and phone from inside a bathroom in an Albee Square building on Sept. 6, police said.

The 21-year-old victim told cops he had left his phone and wallet with his Florida drivers license, school identification card, and debit card inside on a toilet paper roll inside the bathroom near Flatbush Avenue Extension at about 4 pm, and when he remembered to get it a few minutes later it was missing, according to authorities.

Bad awakening

Some sneak swiped a guys backpack while on a Brooklyn-bound train on Sept. 7, police said.

The victim told cops he got on an F train in Manhattan and fell asleep a little before midnight with his backpack in his lap, but when he woke up near Bergen and Smith streets at about 3:45 am, he no longer had his bag  along with his social security card and passport that were inside it, officials said.

While he was sleeping

A jerk stole a wad of cash from a guys Nevins Street hotel room on Sept. 9, police said.

The victim told cops he had put $2,300 in his luggage inside his hotel room near Livingston Street at about 1 am, and when he woke up later that day at 7 am, it was gone, police said.

Water sneak!

Police arrested a guy for stealing a bottle of water from a Water Street ice cream shop on Sept. 3, police said.

The 27-year-old climbed through the window of the creamery near Furman Street at about 4:40 am and snatched a $3 bottle of Evian, cops said.

 Julianne Cuba
International

Suicide bomber kills 32 in Afghanistan

Afghan men carry an injured man to a hospital after a suicide attack in Nangarhar province, Afghanistan.

Kabul, Sep 11 (IANS) | Publish Date: 9/11/2018 12:10:21 PM IST

At least 32 people were killed and 128 wounded on Tuesday in Afghanistans Nangarhar province following a devastating suicide bomb attack on protesters who were calling for the dismissal of a police commander.

The incident, the fourth attack to hit the region on Tuesday, took place around 1 p.m, when an insurgent detonated a bomb he was carrying in his vest in the Momand Darah district, said Attaullah Khogyanai, a spokesperson for the provinces governor.

The incident occurred on the highway that connects Jalalabad with the Torkham border pass between Afghanistan and Pakistan, where a protest against a local police commander from the neighbouring Achin province was being held, Efe news reported.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack.

This was the fourth attack of the day, after a 14-year-old died and four civilians were injured in three separate explosions near two girls schools in Nangarhar. Two other blasts took place in Bihsud district early morning.

Khogyanai said that the third attack took place in the capitals police district 3, where one civilian sustained injuries.

In the past weeks, Nangarhar, the Islamic State terror organizations bastion since it became active in the country in 2015, has faced a large number of attacks targeting elections, the government and civilians.

In late August, two people died and four were injured in a suicide attack during a protest near a provincial office of the Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan.
Global technology provider announced that and Retail Ltd (ABFRL), an Indian fashion and lifestyle company, has expanded its existing relationship with to reduce costs, improve productivity enhancements and drive business growth.

The strategic 10-year services agreement will help ABFRLs growth, enabling them to expand their store network across the country. As a part of this agreement, will bring in its global technology and automation expertise to help enhance and manage ABFRLs IT infrastructure with better availability of IT systems, employee productivity through self-help solutions and improved disaster resilience. Last year in April, Aditya Birla Online Fashion ( ABOF), the e-commerce arm of ABFRL, and IBM had announced a new shopping experience to deliver a personalized and convenient shopping experience powered by IBM Cloud and Watson.

IBM will provide infrastructure-as-a-service in a private cloud environment, enabling ABFRL to scale their IT operations in line with their business growth. In leveraging IBMs deep technology and services expertise, ABFRL aims to build a world-class IT environment to support its strong growth in India. IBM also has existing IT infrastructure and services agreements with a number of Indian retail brands like Titan, Kalyan Jewellers and Honda among others.

With more than 8,000 points-of-sale across 700 cities, including more than 2,000 exclusive ABFRL brand outlets, the company owns brands such as Louis Philippe, Van Heusen, Allen Solly, Peter England and many others.

NP Singh, CIO, ABRFL, said, The retail industry has seen a stupendous growth in the past decade with the emergence of technology-enabled smart consumers. As leaders in the retail industry and to build platforms which provide a seamless experience to our consumers, the need of the hour is to have strong and stable technology partners that can help us realize our future growth.
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In a move to rationalise its operations and cost, Coal India has decided to close, reorganise or convert a majority of its existing mines which are either operationally or commercially unviable. And, has appointed the Indian School of Mines (ISM), Dhanbad, to give a report on this.

In this financial year, the government-owned behemoth will be shutting down 53 mines and opening new ones. We inherited many underground mines at the time of nationalisation (of coal, in 1971) when there were more than 700 mines. Now, we are trying to rationalise mines which are small and not ...
The Nairobi County Assembly Majority Leader is required by EACC to explain the chaos that erupted over the impeachment of County Speaker Beatrice Elachi.

In a summon letter issued on Tuesday, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) asked Mr. Ibrahim Abdi Hassan to appear at the Integrity Centre in Nairobi today at 10 am.

EACC is investigating allegations of unethical conduct at the county assembly premises by a section of Nairobi MCAs who stormed Speaker Beatrice Elachis office on Monday in a bid to eject her.

The commission would like you to respond to these allegations and record a statement regarding the same. Failure to comply with this notice shall render you liable to penal consequences, reads part of the letter.

Elachi, who was impeached on Thursday last week, reported to work on Monday after the labour court extended conservatory orders against the impeachment to Friday this week.

This prompted the MCAs to storm her office as they tried to forcefully kick Elachi out of her office.
The government must explain how and why was allowed to leave India, the Congress said and demanded a thorough inquiry, after the embattled business claimed in London on Wednesday that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country.

The government, the Congress said, was fully complicit in the flight of people such as Mallya and Punjab Bank fraud accused Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi from the country.

After Jaitley refuted Mallya's claim as "factually false,", the liquor baron, facing charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore, appeared to tone down the seriousness of his comments, saying it was not a "formal meeting" and he only "happened to meet" the finance minister.

"Everybody was complacent and everybody was aware...whether it was a casual meeting or a structured meeting. We need proper disclosures, full inquiries on this," Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said.

He said the moot question remains why was no action taken at that time in view of the knowledge of such situations in terms of allowing him to leave.

He said Mallya's claim is vindication of the party's stand and assertion that the government was always in the know about Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and others who have fled the country.



Singhvi said the country wants to know what transpired during the meetings between Mallya and Jaitley.

"Today we have a categorical assertion by Mallya in UK about the number of times he met the finance minister to have some resolution of his dues with banks. The government should now explain how and why he was allowed to leave and what transpired at those meetings. The nation wants to know," he said.

Singhvi said the Congress has repeatedly asserted for the past over 18 months that not only Vijay Mallya, but also Nirav Modi, Choksi and many others have been allowed to leave the country with impunity.

He said the phrase used by Mallya that 'I met the finance minister' does not suggest a passing and casual meeting inside Rajya Sabha. "I think more categorical and detailed response must be had. Question remains how could he have left after everyone knew of debts and NPAs," he said.

The Congress also tweeted on its official handle, saying, " met FM Arun Jaitley several times before escaping the country to discuss a settlement plan, in spite of this the BJP government allowed him to flee with thousands of crores debt. Do we need anymore proof that this govt. is in the pocket of crony capitalists."





Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said that with Mallya's revelation one thing is clear that the BJP is running "a travel, tour and immigration agency for looters to settle abroad".

"After Mallya reveals his 'consultation meetings' before his smooth escape...one thing is clear...BJP is running tour, travels and immigration agency for loot, scoot and settle abroad brigade," Surjewala said.



In a swipe at the government's 'sabka saath, sabka vikas' slogan, the Congress leader said the BJP's sole aim now was 'Bhagode ka saath, Lootero ka vikas' (helping absconders and enriching looters).

" left India with the country's money after a farewell from Arun Jaitley. Chowkidaar nahin, Bhagidaar hai (Not a watchman, but a partner)," he tweeted in Hindi.

Another Congress leader Anand Sharma said, "Vijay Mallya has run away after looting money from banks. Government had this information. So, when Finance Minister gave statements in Parliament on Vijay Mallya issue, he should have mentioned about this meeting with Mallya. Only FM can tell why he didn't tell about it?"



Earlier, the 62-year-old former Airlines boss told reporters in London that he met the minister and offered to settle with the banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the finance minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks), Mallya said, without naming the minister. He is facing court proceedings in London where India's plea for his extradition is being heard.
Embattled liquor tycoon said Wednesday that he met the finance minister before leaving India, a claim denied by as "factually false."



The 62-year-old former boss, who arrived here to appear before the Westminster Magistrates' Court in a case regarding his extradition to India to face the trial on fraud and money laundering charges, was asked by reporters if he was "tipped off" to leave the country.

#WATCH "I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks", says Vijay Mallya outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court pic.twitter.com/5wvLYItPQf  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

"I left because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the finance minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks. That is the truth," he responded, without naming the minister.

Arun Jaitley, who was the Finance Minister in 2016 when left India, denied the liquor baron's claim.

"Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise," Finance Minister Jaitley said in a Facebook post.

"The statement is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth," he asserted.

The statement is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth. Since'14, I've never given him any appointment to meet me&the question of his having met me does not arise: FM on Vijay Mallya's claim that he met the finance minister before he left (file pic) pic.twitter.com/mowWLgQiJu  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Jaitley said "misused" the privilege of being a Rajya Sabha MP to catch him in corridors of Parliament on one occasion while he was walking out of the House to go to his room.

He said Mallya, while walking alongside, "uttered a sentence that 'I am making an offer of settlement'. Having being fully briefed about his 'bluff offers', without allowing him to proceed with the conversation, I curtly told him 'there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers.'"



"I did not even receive the papers he was holding in his hand," Jaitley said.

#WATCH Finance Minister Arun Jaitley says, "I never gave him an appointment" on Vijay Mallya's claim that he met the Finance Minister before he left. pic.twitter.com/aGxlD69NHY  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

In London, talking to reporters Mallya said the media should question the banks why they are not supporting him in his efforts to repay.

"I have said before that I am a political football. There is nothing that I can do about it. My conscience is clear and (I) put almost Rs 150 bn worth of assets on the table of the Karnataka High Court," he said.

"I am certainly a scapegoat, I feel like a scapegoat. Both political parties don't like me," he said, while having a cigarette during the lunch break during the hearing for his ongoing extradition case at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London.

He sarcastically described the video of Barrack 12 at Mumbai's Arthur Road Jail, which has been prepared for him, as "very impressive".

"I have no comment, you are hearing everything in court," he added on further questions by the reporters.

Mallya has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year and is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 90 bn.

At the previous hearing in July, Judge Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4 last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya. It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of over Rs 90 bn in loans from a consortium of Indian banks.

Mallya's defence team has deposed a series of expert witnesses to claim he had no "fraudulent" intentions and that he is unlikely to get a fair trial in India.
In a dramatic disclosure, businessman Vijay Mallya, wanted in India for alleged fraud and money laundering, said on Wednesday that he met Finance Minister before leaving the country in 2016 in an effort to liquidate his Kingfisher Airlines debt.

To settle matters with banks is how Mallya put it while talking to journalists outside the Westminster Magistrates Court, where his extradition hearing is taking place. He later clarified it was an informal meeting. A source close to Mallya told Business Standard he had the date and place of the claimed meeting.

Mallya also cited his application to the Karnataka High Court to take control of and auction his assets said to be worth Rs 130 billion  to repay the bank loans. If this court, which will next hear the matter on September 18, proceeds with an auction and the banks concerned get their money back, this could render the extradition case in London almost redundant.

Meanwhile, at the end of what was the final days hearing in London, the chief magistrate, Emma Arbuthnot, set December 10 as the date of her judgment.

The Narendra Modi government has bent over backwards to appease the court in its bid to bring back Mallya, who is labelled as having conspired to defraud IDBI Bank to the tune of Rs 7.50 billion and illegally siphoned off money abroad. It has attempted to assure the court that the alleged fugitive will receive treatment far more comfortable and humane than generally extended to other detainees in Indian prisons, if it sends him back. India is looked upon less leniently internationally, as it is not a signatory to the United Nations treaty on torture.

Arbuthnot confirmed on Wednesday she had received video of the barracks at Mumbais Arthur Road prison, where Mallya will reportedly be kept in the event he is returned to India. She remarked: I have seen it (the video) three times. She did not, however, disclose what she thought of it.

There was expectation among the media and attendees in the public gallery that the video would be screened in the court, but it was not.

Referring to photographic evidence submitted earlier, Clare Montgomery, a Queens counsel appearing for Mallya, alleged that there had been a hasty clean-up job and that there had been a new lavatory put in. She pleaded for an expert opinion which was unvarnished.

British Crown Prosecution Service barrister Mark Summers, presenting his case on behalf of the Government of India, was curtly told by Arbuthnot: I don't want to hear about the prison (meaning Arthur Road).

Otherwise the two lawyers in their closing submissions either reiterated their earlier arguments or expanded on them. Montgomery asserted: The Indian governments case is not only unsubstantiated, but undermined by their own evidence. She added the charge that KFA had not fully disclosed its losses to IDBI Bank was utterly unfounded. Summers responded by saying KFAs projection that it would be profitable did not happen and that a jury could take the view Mallya had no intention to return the money, adding: Theres a prima facie case to be answered. Montgomery retaliated, the government case has shrunk and shifted from where it began.

The governments hopes of dragging Mallya back to India before the next general election, however, look bleak. Even if Mallya loses the first round, he can appeal to the high court and the Supreme Court in Britain, which would be time consuming. The saga has stretched to 18 months already since the charges were levelled against Mallya.

Mallya has been held liable for Rs 90 billion (with interest charges, penalties and surcharges) owed by KFA to Indian banks. He is being pursued by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate.
The Tamil Nadu cabinet has recommended to the state governor that all seven convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment in the 1991 Rajiv Gandhi assassination case be pardoned and released through the exercising of his powers under Article 161 of the constitution.

It has been well-settled by a constitution bench (i.e. five-judge bench) decision of the Supreme Court in Maru Ram vs Union of India that since we have adopted the British parliamentary system of government, the governor is bound by the advice of his council of ministers  even in the matter of granting pardons or ...
The cabinet has approved a new procurement policy under which one scheme will focus on compensating oilseeds if rates fall below the MSP, and another will allow states to rope in private players for procurement, sources said Wednesday.

A decision in this regard was taken in the cabinet meeting, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, held here.

In the budget this year, the government had announced that it will put in place a fool-proof mechanism to ensure minimum support price (MSP) to It had asked think-tank Niti Aayog to suggest a mechanism in consultation with the union agriculture ministry and states.

According to the sources, the agriculture ministry's proposal on new procurement policy 'Annadata Maulya Samrakshana Yojana' was taken up for discussion in the cabinet, and the same has been approved.

Under the new policy, the state governments will be given an option to choose multiple schemes to protect when prices fall below the



A new scheme 'Price Deficiency Payment (PDP)' has been framed on the lines of Madhya Pradesh government's Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana (BBY) to protect oilseeds farmers only.

Under the PDP, the government will pay to farmers the difference between the and monthly average price of oilseeds quoted in wholesale market. This would be implemented for up to 25 per cent of the oilseeds production in a state.

Besides this, the states are given option to rope in private players for oilseeds procurement on a pilot basis.

Both PDP and private players' participation will be exclusively for oilseeds because the government wants to bring down the country's import dependence on cooking oils, the sources said.

Under the new policy, the states will also have an option to choose the existing Price Support Scheme (PSS), under which central agencies procure commodities covered under the policy when prices fall below the MSP.

"The states can choose either PSS or PDP or engage private players in procurement to ensure MSP to farmers," the sources added.

The Food Corporation of India (FCI), the government's nodal agency for procurement and distribution of foodgrains, already procures wheat and rice at MSP for supply through ration shops and welfare schemes.

The centre also implements Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) for procurement of those commodities, which are perishable in nature and are not covered under the MSP policy.

Under the MSP policy, the government fixes the rates for 23 notified crops grown in kharif and rabi seasons.

India imports around 14-15 million tonnes of edible oils annually, which is around 70 per cent of the domestic demand.
Migori County Governor Okoth Obado underwent DNA testing Tuesday as detectives seek to establish whether he has any connection with the murder of Sharon Otieno.

Carrying white boxes and donning white lab coats, detectives from the homicide section and officers from the government chemist, on Tuesday afternoon arrived at the Nyanza Regional DCI headquarters in Kisumu, where Governor Obado was being grilled.

The detectives took DNA samples from Obado as they did with his PA Michael Oyamo while he was in custody at the Oyugis Police Station. The DNA sampling is said to be part of police investigations to establish whose unborn infant Sharon Otieno was carrying when she was killed after being abducted alongside Nation journalist Barrack Oduor.

Governor Obado had presented himself at the DCI headquarters at around 9 am upon summoning by the Director of Criminal Investigations George Kinoti.

The governor is said to have undergone a grueling grilling session that lasted more than six hours. He also recorded a lengthy statement with his lawyer Cliff Ombeta saying that his client cooperated with investigators.

Our client was not arrested. He came here to give his statement and that is what he has done, Ombeta said.

The Governor is also being represented by lawyer Rogers Sagana.

After the questioning, Obado was whisked away in a police car, with a senior DCI detective in the investigation saying that the governor was to be released on a free bond but would be required to report back for further questioning.

He will not spend the night in custody but we will still need him tomorrow, the senior officer was quoted.

Another detective added: We have interrogated the governor on the alleged affair with Sharon and many other issues including how and why his PA went to meet the deceased and the Nation journalist. We are analysing his statement.

Sources intimate that governor Obado was whisked away from the DCI offices and straight to the airport from where he was flown to Nairobi.

Obados PA Michael Oyamo and a former local County Assembly Member were also transferred late Tuesday to face charges in Nairobi due to the volatile situation in Homa Bay where the PA was arraigned on Monday.

They will be in court tomorrow (Wednesday) because the case is being moved to Nairobi, a detective said.

Police have said they are still looking for four men said to have raped and killed Sharon before dumping her body in the forest.
Special courts under the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) are likely to be set up by November to deal with an increasing number insolvency cases. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs is working on this proposal.

Officials in the ministry said 30 judges might be recruited. Our focus is to hire as many judges as possible because the tribunal cannot function without them. It can function with a few technical members or none, but not without judicial members, said a senior official. Eight courts would be set up for this, three in Mumbai, two in New Delhi, and one each in ...
Oil prices rose more than 2 per cent on Tuesday as US sanctions squeezed Iranian crude exports, tightening global supply despite efforts by Washington to get other producers to increase output. Since spring when the Trump Administration said it would impose sanctions on Iran, crude traders have priced in a risk premium reflecting the supply shortages that may occur when exports from the third-largest OPEC member are cut. As the Nov. 4 date for imposing sanctions draws nearer, the premium has increased. "The fear is that the sanctions could be so successful that it takes more ...
President is expected to sign an executive order on Wednesday that would authorise sanctions against countries or foreigners who try to interfere in American elections, according to a media report.

The move comes amidst increasing realisation in the that the Russians interfered in the 2016 presidential elections. intelligence agencies now believe that Russia would again try to interfere the mid-term polls this year and also the 2020 presidential elections.

The executive order in this regard is likely to be signed by Trump as early as Wednesday. The order described by a US official familiar with its drafting as "another tool in the tool kit" to deter election interference by foreign adversaries, according to The Wall Street Journal.

"This is not a single solution, but it makes a clear statement by the president that this sort of activity will not be tolerated and will be punished, the official was quoted as saying.



ALSO READ: Trump administration wants to make it easier to release methane into air

"President Trump is committed to protecting our nation's elections from foreign interference and has made it clear that his administration will not tolerate foreign interference in our elections from any nation state or other malicious actor, the White House National Security Council Spokesman Garrett Marquis said.

As per news reports, the order would put the CIA, the National Security Agency, the Department of Homeland Security and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in charge of determining whether meddling has taken place.

Among other things, it would require federal agencies aware of foreign election meddling to relay the information to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
India's rupee has been battered along with its emerging-market peers in recent weeks, but stock investors would do well to look beyond the currencys slump and pay attention to an improving earnings picture, according to the nation's largest brokerage. "We have moved away from the past when currency sneezed and the equity markets caught a cold, Shilpa Kumar, chief executive officer of ICICI Securities Ltd., said in an interview. The broad view is for a 15 per cent to 20 per cent earnings growth from here on for the next two years and the evidence of ...

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The Nairobi County govt could be dissolved if a petition by a city trader is adopted.

Patrick Kamotho Githinji, the chairman of Muthurwa Residents Association Welfare, wants Governor Mike Sonkos administration suspended on grounds that it has failed to deliver services.

Kamotho has petitioned both President Kenyatta and the Senate, arguing that internal conflicts have made it difficult for the county to serve Nairobi residents.

In the petition dated September 10, 2018, and addressed to Uhuru and the Clerk of the Senate, Kamotho argues that the dissolution of Sonkos government will ensure that Nairobians do not lose millions of funds through corruption, double funding, ghost projects, and broken accountability processes.

However, the suspension might be hard to come by.

Article 192 of the Constitution stipulates that a County Government may be dissolved by the President on two grounds. First, in an emergency arising out of internal conflict or war. Second, in any other exceptional circumstances.

The law further states that a county government shall also not be suspended unless an independent commission of inquiry has investigated allegations against the county government and the President is satisfied that the allegations are justified and the Senate has authorised the suspension.

The Senate has the powers to terminate the suspension.

This comes as the Nairobi county gvt continues to grapple with various wrangles including the recent impeachment of County Speaker Beatrice Elachi.

Meanwhile, governor Sonko is yet to nominate a deputy nine months after Polycarp Igathe resigned.

The governor has also attracted backlash for running County affairs from his home in Machakos since May for fear of his life after State reduced his bodyguards from 15 to four.
The death toll in a suicide attack near a gathering of protesters in eastern Afghanistan has soared to 68. The attack which took place on Tuesday afternoon left 128 wounded.

Nangarhar public health department confirmed the death toll on Wednesday.

According to TOLO News, the protestors were demanding the dismissal of a local police commander.

The attack came hours after bombs targeted at least three schools in the city of Jalalabad, killing a boy and wounding four people.

However, there has been no immediate claim of responsibility and the Taliban has also denied any role in the attacks.

In a statement, Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani strongly condemned the suicide attack against the demonstrators and the bomb blasts near the schools, saying that "attacks on civilian facilities, mosques, women, children are all crimes against humanity."

The United Nations' Assistance Mission in Afganistan also condemned the attacks and expressed its "mounting concern at the pattern of attacks targeting civilians and schools" in Nangarhar and its capital.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hours after actor Amanda Stanton was arrested for allegedly battering boyfriend Bobby Jacobs in Las Vegas, the former has addressed the act, calling it 'embarrassing'.

The former 'Bachelor' contestant's rep Steve Honig, told E! News, "Amanda is embarrassed and ashamed this happened and sincerely apologises to hotel security and the Las Vegas Police Department. Amanda is a gentle, respectful person who has never gotten physical with anyone under any circumstance."

He further explained that Stanton had gotten a bit rambunctious, following which the hotel security asked her and Bobby to be quiet. "Amanda gave Bobby what she thought was a playful shove. The hotel security did their job and reported the incident to the police, who in turn did their job."

"Stanton's boyfriend assured the police that it was not an ill-intended shove, the police still had to do their job which Amanda completely respects and understands," said Honig.

Through the course of the investigation, police said that there was probable cause to arrest her on one count of domestic violence.

Amanda became popular after appearing on season 20 of 'The Bachelor' with Ben Higgins in 2016.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday announced the launch of 'Yuva Nestam Scheme' on October 2, which would provide unemployment dole of Rs 1000 each to empower youth.

He said that the scheme's major motive is to empower the youth by providing skill development, self-employment opportunities and use the youth power for the development of an economy.

Discussing the 'Yuva Nestam Scheme' in the state Legislative Council, the chief minister said that youth should keep their attitude positive and strive to learn new things on a continuous basis by updating skills using technology.

"The state government has been providing skill development training to 10 lakh youth and providing employment opportunities to them. He said 260 training partners were appointed to train and provide employment opportunities to youth. The training partners were appointed from Singapore, Germany and UK too," Naidu said in the assembly.

The Chief Minister said 'Jnana Bheri', 'Yuva Nestam Scheme' and skill development programmes are aimed at empowering the youth of the Andhra Pradesh. He said that the state government is encouraging industrialisation to provide employment to youth and improve the economy.

Talking about the central government, Naidu said that if the "Centre came forward to extend cooperation by sanctioning railway zone, steel plant at Kadapa and special status to state there would be an opportunity to provide employment to lakhs of people."

Despite the lack of cooperation from the Centre, the state government has taken several irrigation projects including the Polavaram Project and making efforts to complete them.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday denied liquor baron Vijay Mallya's claim and said that he never gave any appointment to the latter since 2014.

In a press statement issued on Wednesday, Jaitley said: "The statement (by Vijay Mallya) is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth. Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise. However, since he was a Member of Rajya Sabha and he occasionally attended the House, he misused that privilege on one occasion while I was walking out of the House to go to my room. He paced up to catch up with me and while walking uttered a sentence that "I am making an offer of settlement." Having been fully briefed about his earlier "bluff offers", without allowing him to proceed with the conversation, I curtly told him "there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers." I did not even receive the papers that he was holding in his hand. Besides this one sentence exchange where he misused his privilege as a Rajya Sabha Member, in order to further his commercial interest as a bank debtor, there is no question of my having ever given him an appointment to meet me."

This comes after Mallya claimed in London on Wednesday that he had met the Finance Minister before leaving India. "I met the Finance Minster before I left," Mallya claimed outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court where his extradition case is being heard. Mallya is sought by India for allegedly defaulting on bank loans to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
With Ganesh Chaturthi around the corner, the devotees in Bengaluru have decided to add a touch of eco friendliness in their celebrations.

We often read reports about pollution being caused after idols are immersed in water bodies following the 10-day celebration of Ganesh Chathurthi. Keeping that in mind, Sathya Sai trust in Bengaluru has made Ganesh idol using sugarcane shunning Plaster of Paris (PoP).

Mohan Raj, a member of the trust told ANI, that each year they try to do something new and this time they chose to make the idol using sugarcane, which will be distributed to the people after 21 days of prayer.

"We decided to go eco-friendly this time. The colours and PoP causes damage to the creatures of the water, when immersed in it. After the Pooja the sugarcane which is used to make the idol will be distributed in the public," he said.

Around five tons of sugarcane was used to complete the magnificent idol of Lord Ganesh.

Avinash, a worker who made sugar cane Ganesha informed that it took nearly a month and a half for them to create the idol.

Even in Hyderabad, the devotees are prefering the idols made of mud rather than PoP. The sales of eco-friendly Ganesh idols have seen a sharp rise this year in the city.

Eco-friendly Ganesha idols are those that are made out of clay, natural fibres, papers and other biodegradable materials.

Satish Kumar, a shopkeeper while speaking to ANI said, "There is huge demand of eco-friendly Ganesh idol. People are avoiding idols made of plaster. I am selling such idols from the past 4 years. This is even good for the environment and the price is also affordable."

The festival of Ganesh Chaturthi will begin from September 13.

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The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that the five accused activists in the Bhima Koregaon case will remain under house arrest until September 17 (Monday). Hearing in the case will resume on the same date.

A three-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra, also agreed to hear certain other pleas filed by other accused persons who were arrested in June this year, along with the present batch of petitions.

The five activists- Sudha Bhardwaj, P. Varavara Rao, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Ferreira, and Vernon Gonsalves- were detained on August 28 from various cities for their alleged involvement in the violence that erupted in Pune in January this year during an event organised to mark 200 years of the Bhima Koregaon battle.

The Maharashtra government, in an affidavit to the Supreme Court, had stated that the activists were "members of banned terrorist organisation Communist Party of India (Maoist).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The police affidavit in the Kerala nun rape case has revealed that the victim was repeatedly raped by the Bishop of Jalandhar, Franco Mulakkal.

The affidavit, dated August 10, 2018, was filed in the Kerala High Court. It stated, "During the course of the investigation so far conducted and the available evidences collected so far, it is revealed that the accused Bishop Franco committed unnatural offence and committed rape repeatedly on different dates from September 23, 2016 to May 5, 2018."

This comes to light just a day after the accused Bishop cried foul over the rape allegations against himself. He had accused the 'anti-church elements' of falsely implicating him.

"I think some internal forces are using these nuns for some advantage. The antis in the church are pushing these nuns forward to raise their own issues. There is a conspiracy behind this. Few people are taking advantage of this. I will cooperate to all legal measures," Bishop Mulackal had told ANI.

The nun from Kerala had accused the 54-year-old priest of raping her on several occasions between 2014 and 2016. On Tuesday, the nun appealed to the Vatican seeking justice.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Malta for strengthening cooperation in the field of tourism.

The MoU will be signed during the upcoming visit of Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu to Malta.

The agreement aims at enhancing the quality of tourism in both the countries, increasing tourist arrivals from the entire world through the territories of India and Malta and promoting human resource development in tourism and travel-related industries in both countries.

The MoU will contribute to a new tourism offer, particularly through the promotion of natural and tangible, as well as intangible cultural heritage, the development of sustainable tourism and the use of information technologies to recognise that tourism is a means to foster a relationship between the people of the two countries.

The MoU will help the two parties in creating an institutional mechanism for enhancing cooperation in the tourism sector. It will also help India in increasing foreign tourist arrivals from Malta. This, in turn, will result in economic development and employment generation.

The agreement will create favourable conditions for long-term tourism cooperation for the mutual benefits of all stakeholders within the broader framework and areas of cooperation. It will also explore to incorporate the best practices in order to implement the measures that will realise its objectives.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Chhattisgarh unit of the Congress party on Wednesday chose a unique way to protest against the rising fuel prices.

Several of their legislators rode bullock carts to reach the Assembly building in Raipur to indicate how petrol and diesel prices have reached outside their budget.

The decision to use carts instead of cars was reportedly taken after legislators held a meeting on Tuesday under the leadership of the Leader of Opposition, T.S. Singhdeo.

Speaking to ANI, one of the protesters said that ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power, the prices of petrol, diesel, cooking gas have increased tremendously adding to common man's woes.

"The increased prices of fuel, gas and other products have burned a hole in the pockets of common man. People in Chhattisgarh are facing problems as they now have to shell out more money for buying these products," he said.

The quirky protest by the Congress was staged just two days after opposition parties-led countrywide lockdown to protest against the rising fuel prices and the softening of the rupee.

As many as 21 opposition parties, both regional and national, extended their support to the Bharat Bandh.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
EALA MP Simon Mbugua is a free man after a Nairobi court dropped robbery with violence charges against him.

The MP had been charged alongside two others for the assault on former chairman of the Nairobi Central Business District Association Timothy Muriuki on April 30.

Mbuguas co-accused are Benjamin Odhiambo alias Solo, and Anthony Ombok alias Jamal. They all denied robbing Muriuki of Sh100,000 and causing bodily harm and had been released on Sh200,000 bail.

But on Tuesday, Timothy Muriuki told Milimani Senior Principal Magistrate Martha Mutuku that he had forgiven them unconditionally after negotiations and decided to drop the charges.

Magistrate Martha Mutuku announced that the Court has withdrawn the case.

The suspects had been accused of hiring goons to rough up Muriuki during a press conference at Hotel Boulevard in Nairobi County. They claimed Muriuki wanted to use the press conference to taint governor Sonkos image.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday approved an additional assistance from Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) of Rs 157.23 crore for the state of Uttar Pradesh and Rs 60.76 crore for the state of Maharashtra.

The decision was taken in a High-Level Committee (HLC) meeting convened to consider the additional central assistance to the states of Uttar Pradesh (affected by rabi drought during 2017-18) and Maharashtra (affected by pest attack and cyclone during 2017).

The Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare minister Radha Mohan Singh, Home Secretary, Rajiv Gauba and other senior officers from the finance ministry, the ministry of home affairs, the ministry of agriculture and NITI Aayog were present during the meeting.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Congress on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on the Central Government over a possible reduction in the Indian Army force strength.

Referring to some unconfirmed media reports which claimed that Army is mulling upon a proposal to cut up to 1.5 lakh jobs, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi asked, "Is government cutting services of 1.5 lakh security personnel? Is it being done to save Rs.5000 crore which will be used for maintenance of equipments? Why is the government which has failed in giving employment reducing jobs in the Army?"

Earlier, reports emerged that Indian Army is considering reduction of its strength by 1.5 lakh men, thereby saving Rs .5,000 crore to Rs. 7,000 crore a year in revenue expenditure.

He further intensified his verbal attack on the government and said, "In the last 4.5 years, the government has spent Rs. 5 thousand crore on the advertisement. Rs. 35 lakh was spent on fitness video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Rs. 60 crores are spent every month to update Prime Minister Modi's picture. Rs. 1100 crore was spent on Bharatiya Janta Party's headquarter and Rs. 2000 crore has been spent on Prime Minister's foreign tours till now. Amid all these expenditures, the force strength is being cut down to save Rs. 5000 core.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Shiv Sena on Wednesday launched an attack on the Congress party, saying that the Rahul Gandhi-led party needs their support for making the Bharat Bandh successful in Maharashtra.

Through its mouthpiece, Saamna, the Uddhav Thackrey-led party said that the Bharat Band was not successful in Maharashtra, adding that it would have been successful, had the Sena supported it.

They further stated that the Congress did not support them when needed during the Palghar elections.

"In Palghar, the Congress and other left parties gave their candidates against Shiv Sena and the BJP won the elections. If Congress would have supported Shiv Sena candidate against BJP, Palghar result would have been different, like Bhandara Gondia," the Sena wrote.

The Sena also said that they would have been happy had the Bharat Bandh been successful as it was in the interest of the common man, adding that former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan alleging the Sena of double standards was wrong.

On Tuesday, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray compared Shiv Sena to a dog after the latter claimed that the 'Bharat Bandh' failed in the state.

"There is a breed of dog which doesn't know which way to look at. Same is Shiv Sena's situation. When their money gets stuck, they talk of stepping out of the alliance, when their work is done, they go silent," the MNS chief said.

The MNS had supported the strike that was held in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Pune, Nashik and others areas of Maharashtra.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a meeting with Chinese Ambassador Yao Jing in Rawalpindi, Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa reiterated that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is the economic future of Pakistan.

A statement on the official twitter account of Pakistan Government read,"Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa has reiterated that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is economic future of #Pakistan and its security will never be compromised. He was talking to Chinese Ambassador Yao Jing in Rawalpindi."

On Tuesday, it was reported that the Imran Khan-led Pakistan government was mulling over the agreements under the CPEC project.

Citing a report from UK-based Financial Times, top officials said that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led government would be looking to review the deals of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and renegotiate the trade pact signed with Beijing a decade ago.

Khan had recently established a nine-member committee to analyse the USD 62 billion project which reportedly gave "undue advantages to Chinese companies," The Express Tribune reported.

Pakistan and China, in a four-hour meeting on Sunday led by Minister for Planning Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar and National Development and Reforms Commission (NDRC) of China vice-chairman Ning Jizhe decided to add social sector and regional development schemes to the existing portfolio of CPEC projects.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Delhi Government and the Seoul Metropolitan Government are slated to sign an agreement this week for cooperation in urban regeneration. The agreement will be signed during Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's ongoing trip to Seoul.

On Wednesday, Kejriwal, along with Urban Development Minister Satyendar Jain visited the Cheonggyecheon stream in downtown Seoul to see its transformation. The 11 kilometre-long once dirty polluted stream, Cheonggyecheon, has now been transformed into a popular tourist spot.

Later, Kejriwal was welcomed by India's ambassador to the Republic of Korea, Sripriya Ranganathan, at the Yonsei University to attend the Sarang cultural festival being organised by the Indian Embassy in Seoul.

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The lawyer of liquor baron Vijay Mallya on Wednesday claimed that IDBI Bank officials were well aware of the losses incurred in the debt-ridden Kingfisher Airlines.

Mallya's lawyer told Westminster Magistrates Court in London, "IDBI bank officials were well aware of losses at Kingfisher. The emails from IDBI officials show that the government's accusation of Mallya hiding losses is baseless."

Mallya, while heading inside the court in connection with his extradition case, said that he is ready for a comprehensive settlement.

On being asked if he has convinced the Court that he has the means to pay what he said he will, Mallya told media here, "Obviously, that is why a settlement offer has been made. The hearing is on September 18."

Mallya, an alleged financial offender, is facing charges of bank fraud and money laundering in India, amounting to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore.

Mallya is wanted in India for defaulting on bank loans to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore, has been in the UK since March 2016. He was arrested by the Scotland Yard on an extradition warrant in April this year.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congress leader Salman Khurshid on Wednesday said that if fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi believes that the allegations leveled against him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) are false and baseless, he should come back to India and face the institutions of the country.

His comments come in the wake of Choksi's video statement, wherein he claimed that he was being made a "soft target" and was undergoing a "media trial," adding that "all the allegations leveled by the ED are false and baseless. They have attached my properties illegally without there being any basis of the same."

Speaking to ANI, Khurshid said, "I am not an appellate authority on the ED, the ED has made allegations, if they are false and baseless, Mr Choksi should come and face them in the country, that's the standard for everyone."

Khurshid emphasised, "If allegations are made against you, you go to a court and answer it, the courts will finally prevail. If what you are saying is correct, the courts will support you. So why is he running away if he believes that what the ED is doing is wrong? He should come back and face the institutions of the country."

Echoing similar thoughts, Congress general secretary Shakeel Ahmed said that if Choksi has nothing to hide, he should return to the country and face the charges leveled against him.

"Every person who has wronged says these things. There is evidence against him. The Prime Minister, who calls him "Choksi bhai," the ED and other agencies have made the allegations against him; it is not like the Congress party has leveled the allegations. He is making such statements just to save himself. If he did not do anything wrong then why is he hiding? He should come back and face the charges," Ahmed told ANI.

On Tuesday, Choksi issued a video statement, wherein he held the Punjab Bank (PNB) responsible for misinforming the probe agencies, adding that it was unprecedented how his company came to a complete standstill without thorough investigation.

Choksi, along with his nephew Nirav Modi, is the prime accused in the over USD 2 billion PNB scam. He is absconding and is currently in Antigua and Barbuda, with the Indian government trying to extradite Choksi under diplomatic provisions.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Latehar Police on Tuesday rescued a minor girl from a Naxal organistaion.

After being rescued the girl revealed that she was forcefully taken to the camp by the Naxals on the pretext of getting her married.

Following the incident Superintendent Police Latehar, Prashant Anand told ANI, "The Naxals forcefully used to induct children in their organistaion and they were forced to work there."

He further said they are also conducting a campaigning in the villages to make people aware about the same.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Kerala Police has summoned Bishop of Jalandhar Franco Mulakkal to appear before Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash on September 19.

The police has also asserted that scientific and technical errors still exist in the case and there are differences in the statements of witnesses.

Inspector General Vijay Sakre told media, "There are lots of contradictions in the case on the part of everyone -- the complainant, the accused and the witnesses. This is an old case and is based primarily on oral statements. It is very difficult to gather scientific and technical evidence. We have to ensure that contradictions are ironed out suitably. As part of that process, Bishop Franco has been summoned to appear before the investigating officer on September 19 and notice for the same has already been sent."

The senior police official also clarified that they had received a complaint from the nun who was allegedly raped by the Bishop, about death threats, following which security has been provided to the complainant and the witnesses.

Reacting on the same, the public relations officer for the Jalandhar diocese, Father Peter K, said, "I have heard of the notice but haven't seen it yet. If they call the Bishop on September 19, we will surely cooperate and he will go to Kochi as required".

Father Peter further claimed that the protest against the Bishop was "a politically-motivated anti-Christian movement"

Earlier in the day, Commission for Women (NCW) Chairperson Rekha Sharma spoke to Kerala's Director General of Police to get details of the investigation in the case.

NCW chairperson took to Twitter to share the developments and wrote, "Spoke to Shri Behera, DGP Kerala, this afternoon. He has assured me that Kerala Police will conduct a fair investigation and take strict action against Bishop Franco Mulakkal".

The Kerala Director General of Police also informed the NCW Chairperson that the investigation report will be filed in court on Thursday.

Kerala minister and CPI (M) leader E P Jayarajan also briefed media about the nun rape case and assured that the government is with the victim.

"Nuns protesting is a sad thing and the government is with the victim. They need not be concerned. We will take the right decision at the right time. Police will book culprits with the support of evidence. The investigation is on the right path. No one should try to outrage the modesty of a woman," he told reporters here.

A nun from Kerala had accused the 54-year-old priest of raping her on several occasions between 2014 and 2016. However, the Jalandhar Bishop, in an interview to ANI, accused 'anti-church elements' of falsely implicating him in the case.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Former Nagrota Corps commander, Lieutenant General Rajendra Ramrao Nimbhorkar, who participated in September 2016 surgical strike in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK), said that the Indian Army carried leopard urine during the operation. He revealed that the soldiers did so in order to keep dogs away from them.

Addressing an event on Tuesday, he said, "There was a possibility of dogs in villages barking at us on the route. I knew they are scared of leopards. We carried leopard urine with us and that worked and dogs didn't dare to come forward."

He further elucidated, "On 29th September 2016 at about 4:15 am there was Fajr namaz of the Muslim community. So we decided that we will not kill them (terrorists) when they pray. We decided to kill them before 4:15 am."

Lt Gen Nimbhorka said that the secrecy was maintained in the whole operation and only 10 people were aware of the strike.

On 29 September 2016, the Indian Army carried out the surgical strike, 11 days after Pakistan carried out Uri attack in Jammu and Kashmir killing 18 Army personnel.

Lt Gen Nimbhorka was awarded Pune-based Thorle Bajirao Shaurya Puraskar for his contribution to the strikes.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Conference de presse du nouveau parti politique ( URD) l`union pour la republique et la democratie



Mardi 11 Septembre 2018. Ouagadougou. S`est tenu une Conference de presse du nouveau parti politique ( URD) l`union pour la republique et la democratie.



Photo N 104826
Congress on Wednesday said that fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya's claimed meeting with the Finance Minister could not have been a "passing, casual, walking meeting" in Parliament. The party also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of allowing Mallya, diamantaire Mehul Choksi and nephew Nirav Modi with "impunity".

Senior Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi said, "Phrase used by Mallya today is that 'he met FM'. But 'met the FM' does not suggest a passing, casual, walking meeting inside the House of Rajya Sabha. I think more categorical and detailed response must be had. Question remains how could he have left after everyone knew of debts and NPAs?"

Singhvi's comments were in reaction to Mallya's statement, claiming, "I met the Finance Minister before I left." Mallya did not take the name of the Finance Minister. However, Mallya left India in March 2016 when Arun Jaitley was holding the post of Union Finance Minister.

"Congress has been repeatedly asserting for last over 18 months that not only Vijay Mallya but Nirav Modi, Choksi and many others have been allowed (to leave) with impunity," Singhvi further said.

Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala also took a jibe at the Finance Minister following Mallya's statement. He tweeted, "After Mallya reveals his 'consultation meetings' before his smooth escape, with Fiscal Mismanagement Blog Minister Sh Jaitley - one thing is clear - BJP is running "tour travels and immigration" agency for "loot scoot & settle abroad" brigade."

When Mallya was asked by a reporter if somebody had tipped him off, he said: "I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hours after fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya claimed that he met Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving India, Congress president Rahul Gandhi asked the latter to step down from the post.

Gandhi took to Twitter and said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should order an independent probe into the matter.

"Given Vijay Mallya's extremely serious allegations in London today, the PM should immediately order an independent probe into the matter. Arun Jaitley should step down as Finance Minister while this probe is underway," the Congress chief tweeted.

Earlier today, Mallya, who left India in March 2016, claimed that he had met the Finance Minister before leaving for London. "I met the Finance Minister before I left," Mallya claimed outside Westminster Magistrates' Court where his extradition case is being heard.

Meanwhile, Congress leader PL Punia told ANI that he saw both Jaitley and Mallya having a discussion in the Central Hall of the Parliament. "I saw both Arun Jaitley and Vijay Mallya having a discussion in the Central Hall of the Parliament. This can be verified with CCTV footage from that day," Punia said.

However, Jaitley has rebuffed the claims by Mallya and said that he never gave any appointment to the latter since 2014.

In a press statement issued on Wednesday, Jaitley said: "The statement (by Vijay Mallya) is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth. Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise."

Mallya, who is wanted in India for defaulting on bank loans to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore, has been in the UK since March 2016.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Reham Khan, the ex-wife of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, has revealed that the Pakistan government has been orchestrating forced abductions of the Sindhi social activist and nationalists.

In a video posted by Baloch Republican Party spokesman Sher Muhammad Bugti on Twitter, Khan spoke about the disappearances in Pakistan's Sindh province, saying, "The abduction of Sindhi social activists and Sindhi nationalists is a grave injustice. They should be treated as per the constitution and law of the state. The families of these disappeared people need closure as to whether they are alive or dead."

Showing a bunch of papers containing a list of missing persons, Khan emphasised how the forced abduction of people from Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has now spread to the Sindh region of the country, with a number of Sindhi activists going 'missing' without ever being found.

Blaming the mainstream media, Khan pointed out that these disappearances are only talked about on social media with government turning a blind eye to such reports.

"We talk about human rights violations in other parts of the like Palestine. We cry foul over Kashmir but we never look within our own country. We should first look inwards at the rights violation in Pakistan," Reham said emotively.

Khan stressed that "if the missing people are criminal, who are picked up by the law enforcement agencies then they should be brought to the court, there should be convictions, prosecution and a proper legal course should be followed, so that their families are able to find a mental closure."

Reham Khan is a Libyan-born British Pakistani journalist, who is often scoffed at in Pakistan for spilling beans about the country. She married Imran Khan in 2015 but the couple divorced within a year of their marriage. Her recently released biography whipped up a political storm in Pakistan. In the book, she wrote in detail about the behind-the-scenes political atmosphere of Pakistan.

In the latest video, she said with visible conviction, "Kidnapping and killing people in encounters or abducting them just because they are accused of a crime or wanted by the state, is a grave human rights violation. They should be treated as per law and should be produced in court."

She appealed to political analysts, lawmakers and party leaders to save the Sindhi social activists of this grave injustice they are being subjected to. "I support a judicial, constitutional appearance of these people," said Reham Khan.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Kicking off its largest war games since the fall of the Soviet Union on Tuesday, Russia hosted a bilateral meeting between President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Vladivostok city.

The meeting comes in the backdrop of the United States of America slapping sanctions on Russia and an escalating US-China trade war.

The three-day meeting in the Russian city of Vladivostok also brought together leaders from Japan and South Korea as well as 5,000 delegates from 60 countries.

According to Russia's defence ministry, the exercise named as Vostok-2018 has begun today 11 and will continue till September 17 in Russia's Eastern Military District. It involves more than 300,000 troops, 36,000 tanks, 1,000 aircraft, and 80 warships and support vessels.

Besides, China has also decided to send 3,200 members of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) to take part in the operations. The Chinese air force has also sent 24 helicopters and six jets belonging to the Russian air bases for the exercise.

In response, the drills have been condemned by North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). According to CNN, NATO has said it will monitor the exercise closely as will the United States, which has a strong military presence in the Asia-Pacific region. It is likely to be watched attentively by Japan and North and South Korea.

In 1981, the erstwhile Soviet Union exhibited its show of force as it conducted similar war games that saw between 100,000 and 150,000 Warsaw Pact soldiers take part in Zapad-81 - the largest military exercises of the Soviet era.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Pakistan government released former Pakistan Prime Minister and his daughter from Adiala Jail on parole late Wednesday night to attend the funeral of his wife, Begum Kulsoom Nawaz, reported Geo News.

passed way in London on Tuesday after a period of prolonged illness. She was 68.

On Tuesday, Pakistan Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry had informed that the Pakistan government has decided to release Sharif and his daughter for Begum Kulsoom's funeral.

"We have just received a request from the family, and, Inshallah, we will be granting parole," Dawn News quoted Chaudhry as saying,

The father and daughter will be granted parole according to rule 545 of the Punjab Prison Rules of 1978, Dawn News reported.

According to Dawn News, both Nawaz and Maryam boarded a special plane after being released from Adiala Jail. The other family members of the Sharif family were also reportedly on the plane bound for Lahore.

Soon after her death, tributes poured in from all corners as newly appointed Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan and India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj played glowing tributes.

Khan took to Twitter and said, "Sad to learn of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz's death. She was a courageous woman of great dignity and confronted her disease with fortitude. My condolences and prayers go to the Sharif family."

"I am sorry to know about the sad demise of Mrs. My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family. May her soul rest in peace," Swaraj wrote on Twitter.
The paroles of jailed former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Captain (retd.) Muhammad Safdar have been extended by three more days, the Punjab provincial government announced on Wednesday.

The trio was released on a 12-hour parole in the wee hours of Wednesday following the demise of Sharif's wife Kulsoom Nawaz. They were escorted by the police from Adiala jail in Rawalpindi to Nur Khan Airbase in Islamabad, from where they were brought to Lahore in a chartered flight, Geo News reported.

Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar was quoted by Geo News as saying that the paroles of Sharif, Maryam and Safar were extended to attend Kulsoom's last rites. A spokesperson from the Punjab Home Department said that if there was a delay in conducting the funeral, the parole would be further extended.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shehbaz Sharif, flew to London, to bring back mortal remains of Kulsoom. The party announced that the funeral prayers for Kulsoom will be held in London at a local mosque in Regent Park Islamic Centre on Thursday.

PML-N leader Rana Sanaullah said, "The body will then be transported to Heathrow Airport, wherefrom it will reach Lahore's Allama Iqbal International Airport on Friday morning, at around 6 am. Her second funeral prayers and burial will be held in Raiwind, Jati Umra."

The former Pakistan first lady passed away on Tuesday at a London hospital after battling with lymphoma (throat) cancer for a long time. She was 68 years old.

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Family of the 1988 road rage case victim on Wednesday filed a review petition before the Supreme Court seeking a modification of its earlier order in which the Punjab MLA Navjot Singh Sidhu was acquitted.

Sidhu was acquitted in connection with the culpable homicide charges but was convicted of the offence of voluntarily causing hurt in an order given by apex court on May, 15.

A two-judge bench of the top court, headed by Justice Jasti Chelameswar, and Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, in its judgment, also slapped a fine of Rs 1,000 on Sidhu. The court, also acquitted Sidhu's associate, Rupinder Singh Sandhu, in the case.

The case has gone through Session Court, High court and Supreme Court.

The Sessions Court Judge of Patiala had on September 22, 1999, acquitted Sidhu and his associate, , due to lack of evidence in the case and giving the benefit of the doubt.

It was then challenged by the victim's families before the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which had in 2006, convicted and sentenced Sidhu to three years imprisonment. Sidhu then filed an appeal before the apex court challenging this order.

On December 27, 1988 Sidhu allegedly beaten Gurnam Singh on his head, leading to his death.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd. (TCIL) signed an agreement with Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) for the implementation of e-VBAB (e-VidyaBharati and e-AarogyaBharati) Network Project for a total value of Rs. 865 Crores.

To continue providing Tele Education and Tele Medicine services from elite Indian Universities and Super Specialty Hospitals to African nations using Internet as transmission media, TCIL had already successfully executed Phase-1 of PAeNP from 2008 to 2017.

A Seshagiri Rao, CMD, TCIL and Sh. T. S. Tirumurti, Secretary (Economic Relations), MEA exchanged the signed agreement in the presence of Hon'ble Minister of Communications (Independent Charge) Sh. Manoj Sinha, Hon'ble Minister of External Affairs, Madam Sushma Swaraj, Dean of Diplomatic Corps (Africa Group) and Ambassador of Eriteria in Delhi, H.E. Mr. Allen Tsehaye Woldermariam, Secretary (DoT), Madam Aruna Sundararajan and African Ambassadors & High Commissioners in India and other Govt. officials.

"We were honored to have executed the first phase of the project in Africa and are humbled to get the opportunity to execute the second phase of the project. We also feel proud to be executing a project which has such widespread impact on the lives of common citizens in the African countries. This is not only a prestigious project for us, but also something that we are emotionally connected with as an organization," said chairman and managing director, Telecommunications Consultants India Limited, A Seshagiri Rao.

The e-VBAB Project is fully funded by MEA, GoI and is envisaged to be implemented in 9 months followed by 5 years of operations and maintenance. Indian Education (VidyaBharati) and Indian Medical services for human well being (AarogyaBharati) under the flagship e-VBAB Network Project of MEA, is a step towards capacity building in the field of education and medical science for all the 54 African Nations.

The project aims to provide an opportunity for local employment and opens the door for access to education and medical expertise from India to African students, doctors, nurses and paramedical staff. It will also give an opportunity for Global acceptance of Indian University Education system and Indian medical Health services.

TCIL, a pioneering Public Sector ICT company, under Department of Telecommunications, Govt. of India, have to their credit, successful execution of many large Telecom projects in India and abroad. They are well accepted in Africa, Middle East and South East Asia, for their skills in Telecom and IT. They have done number of infrastructure Projects of Fiber, ICT and Microwave in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Ghana, Botswana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Sierra Leone and Algeria.

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ThinkPalm Technologies has announced receiving recognition as one of 'India's Top 50 Great Mid - Size Workplaces' by Great Place to Work Institute.

ThinkPalm earned this title based on a detailed assessment of the quality of employee experience and people practices by means of a globally validated survey conducted by Great Place to Work Institute.

Previously in the year 2017, ThinkPalm was one among the Great Place to Work certified organizations but this time (2018), it has made it to the top 50 list of Great Place to Work, Mid- Size companies. A culture spun by fun and productive environment, empowering and encouraging culture, and family like atmosphere has made ThinkPalm one among the top employers.

Over 700 organisations were chosen from all over India for the assessment. The process of evaluation included gathering in-depth insights on the experience of all employees at both organizational and team level to understand precise levers of engagement at the organization.

A trust index survey was conducted to capture the employee feedback on different employee programs, based on which ThinkPalm has excelled on the 5 dimensions of creating and sustaining a High -Trust, High Performance Culture: Credibility, Respect, Fairness, Pride and Camaraderie.

"This recognition is a true reflection of our collective efforts to make ThinkPalm a great work place. We stand committed to the cause of our employees, as we firmly believe in the extra-ordinary capabilities of the intellectual capital we possess," said Manoj K.P, co-founder & CEO.

"Happy employees are more productive, more creative, and are able to perform better at work. They act as brand ambassadors outside the office, spreading positive and attracting attention of prospects. One of our focus was to work towards achieving this goal. This achievement proves that we have succeeded in the same," said Sangeetha Sreekumar, senior manager HR and Administration.

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Sindhi Congress (WSC) has condemned the Pakistan government's decision of building a dam on the River Indus.

Expressing concern, the global association of the Sindhis said that the Diamer Bhasha Dam will adversely affect the ecology and geography of the region.

The WSC said that Sindh and its indigenous people are already suffering from the shortage of agriculture water. Constructing a dam will aggravate their situation, depleting them of their already meagre resources.

"Unfortunately, since the inception of the country, every water, and energy project is planned and executed keeping Punjab's interest only. Pakistan has a long history of depriving lower riparian of their fair share of the water, bypassing local and international laws," they said in a statement.

The statement further read that the constructions of mega-dams will imbalance the relationship between water, land and indigenous people by destroying the existing ecosystem, which has taken years to develop.

Suggesting an alternative, the WSC has asked the Pakistani administration to scrap the plans for making mega dams and instead focus more on modern water management and electricity generation from solar, nuclear, and other renewable energy sources.

According to reports, "The Diamer-Bhasha dam is expected to cost 14 billion USDs with 6 Million Acre Feet of live storage" and will take three decades to payback. On the other hand, new technologies, which do not require billion-dollar investment and payback, begin on the first day of the project.

The organisation has also urged the international community to raise their voices powerfully and reject any mega-dam construction on the Indus River, the lifeline of the Sindh region.

"We also call the Sindh Assembly to pass a resolution regarding dismissing the Diamer-Bhasha dam which will deprive water to Sindh and its indigenous people," read the statement.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
U.S, President Donald Trump's Ireland visit has been postponed due to scheduling reasons, the Irish government announced on Tuesday.

"The proposed visit of the U.S. president is postponed," an Irish government spokesman told CNN. "The U.S. side has cited scheduling reasons."

In early August, Trump announced that he would visit Paris to attend events on November 11, which marks the 100th anniversary of the armistice that ended War I. It was decided that he will make a stop in Ireland.

Trump's visit was criticized by a number of groups in Ireland as including a number of ministers in the government.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Cipla said it received approval for its HIV treatment combination medicine 'TLD' from the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA). The drug will be manufactured at Cipla's facilities in Durban and Uganda. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries will be watched. With reference to the media report, "Sun Pharma's Mohali plant on FDA radar", the drug major clarified that the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) is conducting an inspection of the company's Mohali facility (Punjab, India). The inspection started yesterday, 10 September 2018 and is ongoing. The clarification was issued after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

Wipro and Duck Creek Technologies, the P&C insurance industry's leading Saas software provider, announced a relationship whereby Wipro will offer a broad array of implementation services and related software and data solutions for its insurance industry customers around the world. Wipro will offer systems integration, configuration, and support services for the Duck Creek Platform, which includes solutions for policy, rating, billing, claims, data insights, and digital engagement. Together, Wipro and Duck Creek will help insurers meet rapidly evolving consumer expectations in their digital transformation journey. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

Redington (India) announced that a meeting of the board of directors of the company is fixed on 17 September 2018 in Chennai, to consider a proposal to buyback the fully paid-up equity shares of the company. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

Godrej Agrovet announced that the meeting of the board of directors of the company is scheduled on 14 September 2018, to consider and approve scheme of amalgamation of Astec LifeSciences, a subsidiary of the company, with the company and also to discuss on business strategies. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

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As part of the ongoing Indo-US defence cooperation, a joint military training Exercise Yudh Abhyas 2018 is scheduled to be conducted in the foothills of Himalayas at Chaubattia in Uttarakhand from 16 September to 29 September 2018. This will be the 14th edition of the joint military exercise hosted alternately by both countries.

The joint exercise Yudh Abhyas 2018 will simulate a scenario where both nations will work together in counter insurgency and counter terrorism environment in mountainous terrain under United Nation charter. The two week exercise will witness participation of about 350 personnel of the US Army and similar strength of the Indian Army.

The exercise curriculum is progressively planned where the participants are initially made to get familiar with each other's organizational structure, weapons, equipment, confidence training and tactical drills.

Over the years the two countries have decided to progressively increase the scope and content of this joint exercise. Exercise Yudh Abhyas 2018 will witness a Division Headquarter based Command Post Exercise, an Infantry Battalion carrying out Field Training Exercise and discussions on issues of mutual interest by experts of both countries.

Both armies have vast experience in active counter insurgency & counter terrorism operations and sharing each other's tactics & drills in such diverse environment is of immense value. The exercise is a great step for the armies of the two democratic countries to train together and gain together from each other's rich operational experiences. The latest exercise will help further build interoperability between the forces of both the nations.

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Key benchmark indices were trading higher in early trade. At 9:18 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 90.25 points or 0.24% at 37,503.38. The Nifty 50 index was up 15.25 points or 0.14% at 11,302.75. Gains were triggered by bargain hunting after the market witnessed steep losses in the past few sessions.

Among secondary barometers,the BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.20%. The BSE Small-Cap index was down 0.01%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On BSE, 533 shares rose and 436 shares fell. A total of 38 shares were unchanged.

Overseas, Asian stocks fell on Wednesday, as investor confidence was chilled by the latest round of verbal threats in an intensifying US-China trade conflict. China will seek permission from the World Trade Organization (WTO) to impose sanctions on the US next week, according to the WTO's meeting agenda. China will seek authorization at a special meeting of the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body on Friday, 21 September 2018.

The request comes at a time of escalating trade tensions between the world's two largest economies, with US President Donald Trump saying last week he was "ready to go" on tariffs for another $267 billion on Chinese goods "if he wants." That would follow planned charges on $200 billion of Chinese goods in several industries, including technology. Beijing has vowed to retaliate if the US takes any new steps on trade.

US stocks shrugged off a wobbly start to close higher Tuesday, with the Dow climbing by triple digits, as energy and telecommunications rallied. However, trade worries were simmering below the surface as investors continued to watch the situation between the US and China.

On the data front, small-business sentiment climbed to a record in August, according to the National Federation of Independent Business. Separately, the number of job openings in the US climbed to a record 6.94 million in July while the US budget deficit in August was $211 billion, nearly double the gap during the year-ago period.

Meanwhile, the US budget deficit in August was $211 billion, nearly double the gap during the year-ago month, the Congressional Budget Office estimated late Monday.

Back home, Cipla was down 0.53%. The company said it received approval for its HIV treatment combination medicine 'TLD' from the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA). The drug will be manufactured at Cipla's facilities in Durban and Uganda. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries was down 0.75%. With reference to the media report, "Sun Pharma's Mohali plant on FDA radar", the drug major clarified that the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) is conducting an inspection of the company's Mohali facility (Punjab, India). The inspection started yesterday, 10 September 2018 and is ongoing. The clarification was issued after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

Wipro was up 0.82%. Wipro and Duck Creek Technologies, the P&C insurance industry's leading Saas software provider, announced a relationship whereby Wipro will offer a broad array of implementation services and related software and data solutions for its insurance industry customers around the world. Wipro will offer systems integration, configuration, and support services for the Duck Creek Platform, which includes solutions for policy, rating, billing, claims, data insights, and digital engagement. Together, Wipro and Duck Creek will help insurers meet rapidly evolving consumer expectations in their digital transformation journey. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

Redington (India) was up 0.63%. The company announced that a meeting of the board of directors of the company is fixed on 17 September 2018 in Chennai, to consider a proposal to buyback the fully paid-up equity shares of the company. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

Godrej Agrovet was up 2.60%. The company announced that the meeting of the board of directors of the company is scheduled on 14 September 2018, to consider and approve scheme of amalgamation of Astec LifeSciences, a subsidiary of the company, with the company and also to discuss on business strategies. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 11 September 2018.

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Market is seen opening higher on bargain hunting after witnessing steep losses in the past few sessions. Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could rise 12.50 points at the opening bell.

Overseas, Asian stocks fell on Wednesday, as investor confidence was chilled by the latest round of verbal threats in an intensifying US-China trade conflict. China will seek permission from the World Trade Organization (WTO) to impose sanctions on the US next week, according to the WTO's meeting agenda. China will seek authorization at a special meeting of the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body on Friday, 21 September 2018.

The request comes at a time of escalating trade tensions between the world's two largest economies, with US President Donald Trump saying last week he was "ready to go" on tariffs for another $267 billion on Chinese goods "if he wants." That would follow planned charges on $200 billion of Chinese goods in several industries, including technology. Beijing has vowed to retaliate if the US takes any new steps on trade.

US stocks shrugged off a wobbly start to close higher Tuesday, with the Dow climbing by triple digits, as energy and telecommunications rallied. However, trade worries were simmering below the surface as investors continued to watch the situation between the US and China.

On the data front, small-business sentiment climbed to a record in August, according to the National Federation of Independent Business. Separately, the number of job openings in the US climbed to a record 6.94 million in July while the US budget deficit in August was $211 billion, nearly double the gap during the year-ago period.

Meanwhile, the US budget deficit in August was $211 billion, nearly double the gap during the year-ago month, the Congressional Budget Office estimated late Monday.

Closer home, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 1454.36 crore on 11 September 2018, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 749.62 crore on 11 September 2018, as per provisional data.

The domestic market tumbled yesterday, 11 September 2018, extending its sharp fall from the previous session, as concerns over escalating tensions surrounding the US-China trade war continued to haunt investors. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 509.04 points or 1.34% to 37,413.13. The Nifty 50 index fell 150.60 points or 1.32% to 11,287.50. Domestic sentiment also took a hit as the rupee touched a new record low of 72.7375 in the afternoon trade.

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More than 1.5 million people have been asked to evacuate their homes along the Virginia, North and South Carolina coasts as Category 5 storm Hurricane Florence approaches, an official said.

It is expected to make landfall in the area later this week, Efe news reported.

Hurricane Florence is packing sustained winds of 140 miles (220 km) per hour and remains an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm as it approaches the US eastern coastline, specifically the Carolinas.

In its 5 p.m. advisory on Tuesday, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said that the eye of Florence was located 580 km south-southwest of Bermuda and 1,260 km east-southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina. It is likely to become a Category 5 before landfall.

The NHC experts warned that "life-threatening storm surge (is) possible along the coasts of North and South Carolina".

"Further strengthening is forecast tonight and Wednesday. While some weakening is expected on Thursday, Florence is forecast to be an extremely dangerous major hurricane through landfall," the NHC said.

The first waves directly kicked up by the huge storm system should begin coming ashore late Wednesday. Florence was expected to bring very heavy storm surge, rain and flooding to the entire region on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Beyond the Carolinas and Virginia, which were expected to bear the brunt of the storm, rain and flooding were expected through next week in certain parts of Tennessee, Georgia, West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Maryland and the District of Columbia have declared states of emergency.

President Donald Trump declared a state of emergency in North and South Carolina, thus facilitating federal aid to those states. He also cancelled several campaign events he had scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

"The safety of the American people is my absolute highest priority. We are sparing no expense," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office after meeting with Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Administration officials.

Trump said that his administration is "ready. We are as ready as anyone has ever been", adding: "This is going to be a very large one ... It's tremendously big and tremendously wet. Tremendous amounts of water."

Hurricane and storm surge warnings have been declared from South Santee River, South Carolina, to Duck, North Carolina.

A hurricane watch has been placed in effect for Edisto Beach South Carolina to the North Carolina-Virginia border, and a storm surge watch is in place for the same zone.

The storm surge will bring significant flooding of between 9-13 feet from Cape Fear to Cape Lookout, including the Neuse and Pamlico Rivers, 6-9 feet between North Myrtle Beach and Cape Fear, and 2-4 feet to the area between Edisto Beach and Murrells Inlet.

A total of 15-20 inches of rain is expected, with isolated areas of up to 30 inches in parts of North Carolina, Virginia and the northern part of South Carolina through Saturday.

So far during in 2018 Atlantic hurricane season there have been nine tropical storms, of which five -- Beryl, Chris, Helen, Isaac and Florence -- have become hurricanes.

--IANS

in/

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A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) trooper and a forest guard were injured on Wednesday when militants attacked a checkpost on the Jammu-Srinagar highway in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur district, police said.

The brief shootout took place near Jhajjar Nalla around 8 a.m. when police intercepted a truck travelling from Jammu to Srinagar. The militants were travelling in the truck and one of them opened fire at paramilitary troopers and the forest gaurd, the police said.

The militants who had two AKs and a pistol escaped in the melee, a police official said here.

"The three militants abandoned the vehicle after the firing and fled towards bushes nearby. A cordon and search operation has been launched to trace them," the officer said. Alert was also sounded on the 300-km-long highway after the incident.

The police said the militants were aged between 18 and 22 and urged people to alert the police if they were spotted. Two of the militants were wearing pant and shirt and one was in pathan dress.

--IANS

sq/ahm/mr

(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.)
Fifty members of the Kerala Social Centre (KSC), an organisation of expatriates in the UAE, have pledged to donate their one month's salary to the Kerala Chief Minister's Disaster Relief Fund (CMDRF) to help people in the flood-ravaged state.

The initiative was in response to an help appeal made by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to all Keralites on a Facebook post last month, KSC General Secretary Bijith Kumar told Gulf News on Tuesday.

The KSC's managing committee meeting decided that all its 16 members will contribute their one month's salary, he said.

Thirty-six other members also made a similar commitment, Kumar said. They included professionals and mid-and-low level employees working in various sectors in the UAE capital.

The KSC and its affiliate organisation, Shakthi Theatres, have already contributed Rs 2 million to the Chief Minister's Fund, said A.K. Beeran Kutty, President of the KSC.

Kutty and his colleagues directly handed over the cheques to senior Kerala ministers last week at Thiruvananthapuram, the report said.

He said the centre had also sent 6 tonnes of relief goods for the flood victims.

The 46-year-old KSC is a prominent sociocultural forum in Abu Dhabi.

One of the five Indian community organisations in the capital registered with the UAE Ministry of Community Development, the KSC caters to around 4,500 people, including around 1,500 members and their kin.

--IANS

soni/mr

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At least 58 Taliban militants were killed and several others wounded following separate air and ground operations in Uruzgan and Kandahar provinces, officials said on Wednesday.

More than 100 Talibans attacked two security posts on Uruzgan province's main roadway on Tuesday evening. However, they had to flee as the security forces retaliated appropriately.

It left 40 militants dead, provincial police chief Abdul Qawi Omari told Xinhua news agency.

In Talayee area of the provincial capital Tirin Kot, at least seven armed Taliban fighters were killed when the army shelled artillery on their hideouts, said Omari.

In neighbouring Kandahar province, late on Tuesday, a joint Afghan and US-led NATO coalition air operation killed another 11 militants and injured an equal number, provincial police chief Abdul Razeq said.

The sources did not give details if Afghan security forces or civilians suffered casualties.

Ground and air offensives against militants in the past few months have increased as the country prepares for parliamentary and district council elections slated for October 20.

The Talibans have not commented.

--IANS

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A judge in Brazil has ordered six major museums here to improve their security and fire-protection systems within 30 days, said an official.

They are the Museum of the Republic, the National Museum of Fine Arts, the National Historical Museum, the Villa-Lobos Museum, the Chacara do Ceu Museum and the Acude Museum.

This comes after the National Museum of Brazil, the oldest in the country, was completely ravaged by a fire on September 2, Efe news reported.

Judge Geraldine Pinto Vital de Castro's order came on a plea from the Public Prosecutor's Office, which on Tuesday requested temporary closure of these six buildings as they lacked the Fire Department's clearance.

However, she considered closing them a step too "drastic".

She though instructed relevant authorities to prepare technical reports on the current conditions of the electric and hydraulic systems in these museums.

The judge ordered "immediate adoption of emergency measures necessary to ensure compliance with minimum safety requirements against fire and panic".

The six museums were inspected after a huge fire completely gutted the National Museum of Brazil destroying most of the 20 million artifacts inside, only 10 per cent survived.

--IANS

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A nine-year-old girl in Australia is facing the ire of the country's prominent politicians, calling for her suspension from school, after she refused to stand during the national anthem "out of respect for the nation's Indigenous population".

Harper Nielsen, a student at Kenmore South State School in Brisbane, said that she decided to protest against the national anthem, saying it was not inclusive of indigenous Australians, News.com.au reported on Wednesday.

The anthem, titled "Advance Australia Fair", contains the line "Australians all let us rejoice, for we are young and free".

"(But) when it says Advance Australia Fair, it means advance the white people," the girl student told CNN-affiliate Nine News.

"And when it says 'we are young' it completely disregards the Indigenous Australians who were here before us for 50,000 years," said Nielsen.

According to the Courier-Mail newspaper, the school told the girl that she had to stand or leave the building. But when she refused to do either, she was handed a lunchtime detention for "blatant disrespect".

Nielsen was then told that she could not leave until she had signed a written apology and that she could be suspended.

Controversial right-wing senator Pauline Hanson said Australian schools were "brainwashing" children and called for Nielsen to be "taken out" of her school.

"It's about who we are as a nation, it's part of us ... Here we have a kid who's been brainwashed and I'll tell you what, I'd give her a kick up the backside," she said in a video posted on Facebook on Wednesday.

"This kid is headed down the wrong path and I blame the parents for encouraging this."

Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said the girl should "follow the rules".

Queensland Liberal National politician Jarrod Bleijie, the state's shadow minister for Education, called Nielsen a "brat". He said that the girl should be suspended if she continued to sit during the anthem.

The girl's father, Mark Nielsen, said his daughter was "very brave", adding he had met with the school's principal but no agreement had been reached.

In a statement, the Queensland Department of Education said the school had never suggested Nielsen would be expelled or suspended for refusing to stand during the anthem.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Leaders of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) members gathered here on Wednesday for the 2018 World Economic Forum on ASEAN, stressing the importance of fully tapping the Fourth Industrial Revolution for socioeconomic development.

"Digitalization has become a new growth catalyst," Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen said, adding that the technological frontier will create many positive changes.

To tap great potential of the Fourth industrial revolution and minimize its potential negative impact, the Cambodian Prime Minister proposed ASEAN countries enhance quality of education and training, sharpen skills of labourers and entrepreneurs, seek innovations, introduce new business models, and improve hard and soft infrastructure, especially their regional connectivity capabilities, Xinhua reported.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo said people should not be afraid of having smaller incomes or losing jobs due to automation, because the revolution will help increase productivity and efficiency, lower production cost of goods and services, and utilize both natural and human resources more effectively.

"As our economies develop, they are driven increasingly not by natural resources, which are limited, but human talent, which is unlimited," Widodo said.

Meanwhile, Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith proposed developing the ASEAN into a region of innovation with high competitiveness, better information and communication technology infrastructure, quicker trade and investment facilitation, and narrower science and technology gaps among members.

The ASEAN should also give stronger empowerment to private sector and entrepreneurs, Sisoulith said.

Highlighting recent technological achievements which have led to practical results in Myanmar such as sharp decline in prices of mobile phones and rapid growth of banking services, Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi said the revolution should be tapped to benefit people of all age and from all areas.

"Our approach to the Fourth Industrial Revolution is based on our belief in the creativity, empathy and stewardship qualities of our people, especially the young," she said.

Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said individual countries' approaches to the Fourth Industrial Revolution can be linked with the construction and development of the ASEAN Community.

Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Prajin Juntong agreed that the ASEAN should be connected physically and digitally amid the revolution which helps fuel economic growth.

Thailand has implemented a "Thailand 4.0" policy to shift its economic focus towards an innovation-driven economy, he noted.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc also spoke highly of digital economy and new technology, proposing countries to intensify application of new technologies to share innovations and new values as well as to forge connectivity for sustainable development.

Also on Wednesday, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Prajin Juntong, Aung San Suu Kyi, Thongloun Sisoulith and Hun Sen attended another plenary session themed "A New Vision for the Mekong Region," sharing their visions for the region in association with the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

The five leaders agreed that ASEAN members in general and Mekong countries in particular can no longer depend just on natural resources. They should embrace innovation, reform, creativity to connect the Mekong countries in a more dynamic way for sustainable development.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) on Wednesday stressed on the need to strengthen ties between countries in the region to survive the "Fourth Industrial Revolution" and warned against growing trade protectionism during a session at the regional World Economic Forum (WEF) summit.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo said trade wars had been a reality through the ages and the region was capable of combating another -- an indirect reference to the ongoing tariff disputes between China and the US, Efe news reported.

"Not since the great depression of the 1930s have trade wars erupted with the intensity that they have today, but rest assured, I and my fellow avengers stand ready to defend Thanos from wiping out half of the population," Widodo said, referencing an Avengers film.

However, he warned that trade wars should not become the plot of "Avengers: Infinity War" and stressed that it was a misguided belief that "the rise of some means the decline of others".

Other Asean leaders who spoke also stressed regional cooperation and openness.

Hu Chunhua, Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China, condemned an increasingly protectionist climate and called for a more open global economy.

"China's resolve to open its doors even wider will not change. We will pursue opening up at (our) own pace. This will offer opportunities for Asean countries and beyond," he added.

Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi challenged the concept of "leapfrogging" or rapid progress in developing economies. "What we have been engaged with is not mere amphibian hops but quantum leaps," she said.

Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc called for a common Asean code on data sharing and further cooperation across the region to benefit from the digital era.

"In the Fourth Industrial Revolution and with the rapid march of science and technology, Asean is known as the cradle of many new and innovative ideas in the world," he said.

Singapore's Prime Minister Hsien Loong said Asean was committed to further economic integration and added there was a need to boost the rules-based multilateral trading system.

"It has underpinned our growth and stability, but is under pressure and under threat," he warned.

The WEC Foum on Asean will run till Thursday.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
International human rights bodies urged Australia on Wednesday to end its military ties with Myanmar and impose sanctions on those responsible for "atrocities" committed against the Rohingyas.

Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International (AI), the Human Rights Law Center and the Australian Council for International Development made a joint statement calling on Canberra to assist in further prosecutions of those responsible for the crimes on the Muslim minority community.

"Those with blood on their hands, for the explosion of violence perpetrated by Myanmar's security forces against Rohingya villagers across northern Rakhine State, must be held to account," Diana Sayed, Crisis Campaigns Coordinator at Amnesty International Australia, said in the statement.

The four organisations urged Australia, a member of the UN Human Rights Council, to support the international call to refer the Rohingya case to the International Criminal Court as well as promote mechanisms to preserve evidence and assist in investigations for future prosecution.

A Rohingya insurgent group carried out a coordinated assault on border security posts in 2016, unleashing a violent response from the Myanmar army which led to an exodus of over 700,000 Rohingyas to Bangladesh.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) estimates that at least 6,700 Rohingyas, including 730 children, have died in the military crackdown.

The Myanmar military has been accused of committing murders, rapes and arson against the Rohingyas in what a group of UN experts saw as evidence of "intentional genocide" and crimes against humanity "perpetrated on a massive scale", as indicated in its report.

The document, presented on August 27, will be delivered to the UN Human Rights Council at the end of the week, Efe news reported.

"Faced with such a damning report, there is no excuse for inaction," according to Elaine Pearson, Australia Director at Human Rights Watch.

Myanmar does not grant citizenship to the Rohingyas, considering them to be illegal Bengali immigrants, and for years has subjected them to all kinds of discrimination, including restrictions on freedom of movement.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Egypt for cooperation in the field of agriculture and allied sectors.

The MoU provides for cooperation in areas of agricultural crops (especially wheat and maize), agricultural biotechnology, nano-technology, irrigation and water management technology including water harvesting and micro-irrigation technology, management of agriculture wastes management for energy production.

It will also focus on issues such as food security, safety and quality; horticulture; organic agriculture; livestock husbandry, livestock breeding, dairying, fisheries, feed and fodder production; animal products and value addition; sanitary and phyto-sanitary issues concerning trade in plant and animal products.

"Cooperation will also be effected through exchange of research scientists and experts," says a government statement.

It said a Joint Working Group (JWG) will be formed under the MoU to enhance cooperation on matters of mutual interest including consultations on bilateral issues.

"The JWG will meet at least annually in the initial two years, alternately in India and Egypt to formulate joint work programs, facilitation and consultation, including making additional supplementary engagements with regard to specific issues," the statement added.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday gave ex post facto approval for transfer of land of Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Ltd. (RCF) to Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA).

It also approved transfer of RCF land to Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) and selling of Transferable Development Right (TDR) Certificate received against the transfer of land to MMRDA/MCGM.

An official release said MMRDA acquired 48,849.74 sq m (8265 sq. m unencumbered/free land and 40584.74 sq. m. encumbered land) of RCF and completed the construction of Eastern Free Way-Anik Panjrapol Link Road (APLR).

It said RCF received TDR certificate of 16530 sq. m in Novemer 2017 issued by MMRDA against 8265 sq. m of unencumbered/free land as an interim relief.

The release said claim of RCF for TDR/compensation against encumbered land measuring 40584.74 sq. m is being decided by an arbitrator.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi will travel to Vietnam and the Philippines in a bid to strengthen ties with the two countries, which have had maritime tensions with Beijing related to sovereignty over the South China Sea, it was announced here on Wednesday.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said Wang would participate in the 11th round of bilateral dialogue between China and Vietnam and later travel to the Philippines on a tour which will begin on September 15 and continue until September 18.

Geng said ties with the two neighbours had improved in recent years, after earlier clashes about sovereignty over the Spratly and Paracel islands, claimed by Beijing as well as partially claimed by Manila, Hanoi and other regional governments.

"Since last year China-Vietnam relations are developing well, under the strategic guidance of our two leaders. Our across-the-border ties have deepened," Geng said.

"China is willing to work with Vietnam to elevate our strategic partnership to a new level and develop tangible benefits to our two peoples," he added.

The spokesperson also highlighted the progress in ties with the Philippines since Rodrigo Duterte became the President, with Duterte visiting China in April and participating in the annual conference of the Boao Forum for Asia.

"The Philippines is a coordinating country for China-Asia relations," Geng said.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Amid reports that the Army may cut 1.5 lakh jobs, the Congress on Wednesday came down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his extravagance on self promotion but keeping the Army cash starved.

Questioning if the proposal was true, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said it was in "BJP's DNA to seek political mileage from martyrdom of soldiers".

"If it is true that the Defence Ministry has a proposal that it wants the Indian Army to shed 1.5 lakh jobs, then isn't the Modi government guilty of destroying more jobs? 1.5 lakh families will be severely affected by this decision," Singhvi told the media here.

"If the government can spend Rs 5,000 crore in the last 4.5 years on publicity of the Prime Minister, why can't it spend that same amount for weaponry and ammunition for our armed forces?" asked Singhvi, citing media reports which claim the job cuts would enable the cash starved Army to save Rs 5,000-7,000 crore which could be used replenish its stock of weaponry.

Attacking further, the Congress asked why can't the Army be provided adequate funds when Modi had "spent Rs 35 lakh on his fitness videos, Rs 60 crore monthly on updating his pictures on petrol pumps, Rs 1,100 crore on a sprawling BJP headquarters, Rs 2,000 crore on his foreign travels.

"The Modi government has earned a windfall of Rs 11 lakh crore by levying central taxes on petrol-diesel, it squandered Rs 41,000 crore by overpaying in the Rafale purchase but it cannot spend Rs 5,000-7,000 crore on the Indian Army," Singhvi said.

Accusing the Modi regime of "systematically compromising" national security, the Congress leader blamed the government for the killing of 410 soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir (since 2014) and 243 troopers in Maoist attacks (since 2015).

He also cited excerpts from testimony of former Army Vice Chief Lt Gen. Sarath Chand to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence wherein it was stated that the Army doesn't have sufficient funds to pay for ongoing schemes, emergency procurement, weaponry for 10 days of intense war and future acquisitions among other issues.

--IANS

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As fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya on Wednesday said he had met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country, the Congress took a dig at him dubbing him as "fiscal mismanagement blog minister" and demanded a detailed response and disclosure from the government and inquiry into his claims.

The Congress said the BJP is running a "tour, travels and immigration" agency for "loot, scoot and settle abroad" brigade.

"After Mallya reveals his 'consultation meetings' before his smooth escape, with Fiscal Mismanagement Blog Minister Sh Jaitley, one thing is clear: BJP is running a tour, travels and immigration agency for loot, scoot and settle abroad brigade," Randeep Singh Surjewala tweeted.

The fugitive liquor baron, wanted in India for his alleged role in a multi-crore bank loan fraud case, claimed on Wednesday that he had met the Finance Minister before leaving India in 2016 and made an offer of settlement.

"I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the Finance Minister before I left...repeated my offer to settle with the banks. That is the truth," he told reporters outside a Westminster court where he is contesting an extradition case filed by Indian authorities.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said Congress demands a proper response from the government, which is formal, structured, detailed and comprehensive. "We are not making value judgments. Nation needs to know and government needs to answer," said Singhvi.

"Congress has been repeatedly asserting for the last over 18 months that not only Vijay Mallya but Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and so many others have been allowed to leave with impunity and with enormous mounting bank debts," he said.

Singhvi said: "The phrase used by Mallya is that he met the finance minister. I know there is a clarification, but 'met the finance minister' does not suggest a passing, casual, walking meeting inside the House of Rajya Sabha or in Parliament."

He said: "I think a more categorical and a more detailed response must be made. We had earlier photographs of Nirav Modi and others being photographed in Gujarat and in Switzerland with Prime Minister Narendra Modi."

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Kerala Police on Wednesday sent a notice to controversial Bishop Franco Mulakkal of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Jalandhar, asking him to appear before them on September 19.

A Kerala nun has accused him of repeated sexual abuse between 2014 and 2016.

"We reviewed the entire case today (Wednesday) and there are contradictions in the statements of the victim, the accused and the witnesses. So, we have asked the bishop to appear before us on September 19, when the Investigation Officer would question him.

"The contradictions in the statements have to be cleared, or else there could be issues," Inspector General of Police (IGP) Vijay Sakhre told the media in Kochi soon after a review meeting on the case.

"Security to the complainant and the witnessess is there and we have registered cases against the death threats that the nuns have allegedly received," added Sakhre.

State Industries Minister E.P. Jayarajan, deputising for Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who is off to the United States for treatment, told the media in the state capital that the government is with the victim.

"No one needs to be worried for anything and it's unfortunate that nuns have had to stage protests. We all know that the probe has been going on for a while now, but since it has to be submitted to the court, there just can't be any errors," said Jayarajan.

On Wednesday, a day-long protest before the state secretariat in Kochi was organised by the Joint Christian Council, whose indefinite relay fast at in the state capital entered its 5th day.

In the state capital, joining the protesters was former state Congress President V.M. Sudheeran, who said the protests should not be mistaken as one against the Christian community.

"The police itself said that all the evidences are there with them in the case, then why are they hesitant to go forward? The state police chief is unable to go forward in this case and it's most unfortunate," said Sudheeran.

In Kochi, Wednesday saw more and more leaders -- political and otherwise -- visiting to the protest venue. They included top political leaders from various parties, civil society members and film personalities.

Coming to the defence of Mulakkal was his own diocese, who in a statement said that this is nothing but a conspiracy hatched against the bishop.

"This is just an allegation... The bishop had visited the nun's home for a function and she looked very happy also. According to her complaint, the previous day the bishop had abused her. If that were the case, could she be happy? Moreover, all the complaints surfaced after a lady came with a complaint against the nun," says the statement.

Popular Malayalam film personality Joy Mathew led a protest in Kozhikode against the callousness of the authorities in the case as the nun is yet to get justice.

Incidentally, the Kerala High Court will on Thursday look into an affidavit that it asked the state government to file detailing the steps taken on the complaint of a nun alleging that a bishop sexually abused her for three years.

"All the details in the case would be presented before the high court on Thursday in the affidavit," said Kottayam Superintendent of Police who is leading the probe.

It was in June that the victim alleged that Bishop Franco Mulakkal of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Jalandhar had sexually abused her several times between 2014 and 2016.

An FIR was registered against the bishop and a 114-page detailed statement was taken from the nun and other inmates of the convent. However, Mulakkal has denied any wrongdoing.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Animal sacrifices at Hindu temples could be banned in Sri Lanka under new plans announced Wednesday, after growing protests over the rituals from the country's Buddhist majority as well as moderate Hindus.



The cabinet approved a proposal put forward by the Hindu Religious Affairs minister to outlaw the ancient practice that is still observed at several temples across the country.



"The legal draughtsman was asked to prepare a bill to ban animal and bird sacrifices at Hindu temples," the government said in a statement.



During religious festivals, some devout Hindus sacrifice goats, chickens, and buffalos, expecting good fortune in return.



But the practice has offended animal rights activists, as well as many other Sri Lankans.



Although there is currently no clear law prohibiting animal sacrifices at places of worship, Sri Lankan courts from time to time have issued temporary bans on such practices.



Hindus constitute about 12 percent of Sri Lanka's 21 million population, which is mainly Buddhist.



Muslims, the third largest religious group in the country, also conduct ritualistic animal sacrifices  although it appears the law would apply only to Hindus.



The country has experienced waves of religious tension in recent years, with anti-Muslim riots in March leaving three people dead and hundreds of mosques, homes, and businesses reduced to ashes.







AFP
Afghan authorities on Wednesday raised the death toll in a suicide bomb attack on protesters in Nangarhar province to 68 and the number of wounded to 165.

The attack took place on Tuesday when an insurgent detonated the explosives he was carrying in his vest in the Momand Darah district, where a protest against a local police commander from the neighbouring Achin province was being held.

"These are the final figures and the number of casualties increased after we collected the data from all hospitals in Jalalabad city and hospitals in districts particularly in areas near to the site of the blasts," provincial governor's spokesperson Attaullah Khogyanai told Efe news.

A number of dead bodies were directly taken to their homes by relatives and, therefore, not counted in Tuesday's figures, the official added.

The Taliban denied responsibility for the attack, the fourth attack to hit the region on Tuesday, after a 14-year-old died and four civilians were injured in three separate explosions near two girls' schools.

In recent weeks, Nangarhar, the Islamic State terror organization's bastion since it became active in the country in 2015, has faced a large number of attacks targeting elections, the government and civilians.

At least 18 people were killed, including the three attackers, and another 15 wounded in an attack against a provincial headquarters of the department of refugees and migrants at the end of July.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday was informed that political leaders are involved in the defacement of public property during the Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) elections.

The court was hearing a public interest litigation by advocate Prashant Manchanda, seeking a complete ban on the defacement of public property and also direction to the civic agencies to impose heavy fines on political parties and aspiring candidates in order to prevent further defacement of property.

Manchanda told a bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V. Kameswar Rao that littering of pamphlets, pasting of posters and spray painting of walls occurred this year as well in violation of court orders.

The bench directed the police, the municipal bodies and Delhi University to file reports indicating the extent of defacement, the steps that were taken to prevent it and action taken against each candidate who violated the law.

The court has earlier directed the Centre, Delhi University and the city police to ensure no defacement of public property takes place during the DUSU elections.

--IANS

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A Delhi Police head constable was gunned down early on Wednesday by unknown assailants near his residence here, police said.

The deceased was identified as Ram Avtaar. He was shot dead at around 12.15 a.m. when he went out to fetch an autorickshaw for a family member on Tanki Road in Mithapur area, the police said.

Some passers-by found Ram Avtaar in a pool of blood and informed the police. He was taken to a nearby hospital where doctors declared him brought dead.

Ram Avtaar stayed with his family in Shakti Vihar. He had joined the Delhi Police force as a constable in 2003.

"Posted at Ambedkar Nagar police station, Ram Avtaar left for his residence after finishing his duty on Tuesday at 8 p.m. He was a brave officer," Station House Officer O.P. Thakur told IANS.

"We are investigating the case with all possible angles including personal enmity. We are scanning the CCTV camera to establish the identity of the accused," Deputy Commissioner of Police Chinmoy Biswal said.

--IANS

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Less than half of the students of morning colleges of the Delhi University cast their ballots on Wednesday to elect their representatives in the student union for next one year.

The polling was conducted for morning colleges in both North and South Campus colleges between 8.30 a.m and 1 p.m, while polling for evening colleges started at 3 p.m and continued till 7.30 p.m.

"Everything remained peaceful in the first round of voting. There was no incident of any EVM glitch anywhere," Chief Election Officer Vijay Kaul told IANS.

The total voting percentage for morning colleges -- which form bulk of the 58 colleges affiliated with the Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) where polling happened -- was 43.87 per cent, according to the university official.

In all, over 450 Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were used for colleges in both campuses for students to cast their ballot. The voting percentage for the evening colleges could not be ascertained since the EVMs were still coming to the counting centre from various locations until late in the evening.

After a poor performance in 2015, the student wing of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS), has joined the fray this year by partnering with leftist group All India Students' Association (AISA), affiliated with CPI-Marxist-Leninist.

The other two strong groups in contention for the four central panel posts of President, Vice President, Secretary and Joint secretary are the Congress-backed National Students' Union of India (NSUI) and the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

Although there are several contenders, Ankiv Basoya and Sunny Chhillar of NSUI and ABVP, respectively, are betted to be the strongest ones for the post of President. The two groups have in the past also kept the four posts between them.

Abhigyan, a Political Science student, is the presidential candidate from the CYSS-AISA alliance.

--IANS

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The on Wednesday filed a charge sheet against the Pearls Group and its chief Nirmal Singh Bhangoo in connection with a ponzi scam involving over Rs 450 billion, which was collected allegedly by two from 55 million investors.

Apart from Bhangoo, who is in judicial custody, his three colleagues and other persons have also been named in the ED chargesheet filed in a special court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The ED, which started the probe after lodging an FIR in 2015 based on the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) case, had in January attached Australia-based assets of the Pearls Group and Bhangoo worth Rs 4.72 bn.

The CBI had arrested Bhangoo and his three colleagues in 2016 following allegations that they collected funds from investors in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and other states through ponzi schemes, in the name of real estate projects.

Bhangoo, his PACL and PGFL, as well as his lakhs of commission agents were accused of cheating 55 million investors on the pretext of sale and development of agriculture land.

The made false allotments of land to investors. However, the companies never owned any land in their own name.

Bhangoo and his companies promised the investors that allotment would be done on their investment between 90 and 270 days and if not, handsome returns would be paid.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday filed a charge- sheet against Pearls Group and its chief Nirmal Singh Bhangoo in connection with a ponzi scam involving over Rs 48,000 crore.

Apart from Bhangoo, who is in judicial custody, three of his colleagues and several of his commission agents have also been named in the ED chargesheet filed in a special court here under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The ED, which started the probe after lodging an FIR in 2015 based on the Central Bureau of Investigation's case, had in January attached Australia-based assets of Pearls Group and Bhangoo worth Rs 472 crore.

The CBI had arrested Bhangoo and his three colleagues in 2016 following allegations that they collected funds from investors in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and other states through ponzi schemes, in the name of real estate projects.

Bhangoo, his companies PACL and PGFL, as well as lakhs of his commission agents were accused of cheating 5.5 crore investors on the pretext of sale and development of agriculture land.

The companies made false allotments of land to investors even though they did not own any land in their own name.

Bhangoo and his companies promised the investors that allotment would be done on their investment between 90 and 270 days and if not, handsome returns would be paid.

The ED said the promoters and directors of PACL and PGFL collected more than Rs 48,000 crore of funds from investors all over the country through a collective investment scheme in the garb of sale and development of agriculture land. Earlier the amount was estimated over Rs 45,000 crore.

"Of the total funds, PACL invested Rs 164 crore in Pearls Infrastructure Projects Limited (PIPL) for acquiring 25.37 per cent shares and the remaining 74.63 per cent shares of PIPL were acquired indirectly by PACL through its 43 front companies for an investment of Rs 493.18 crore. In total, PIPL received Rs 657.18 crore from PACL during 2009 to 2014," said an ED statement.

The statement said that the PIPL, an associate company of PACL, further invested Rs 147.38 crore in 2010 for acquiring 50 shares of Australian firm Miiresorts Group 1 Pty Ltd, and Rs 459.23 crore from 2009 to 2014 for acquiring 99.24 shares of another Australian firm Miigroup Holdings Pty Ltd.

"Miigroup further invested Rs 147.38 crore in Miiresorts for acquiring 50 per cent of shares. An amount of Rs 25.07 crore was remitted to Australia to Hicky Lawyers Trust for purchase of immovable property (Sanctuary Cove Properties).

"In May 2010, Miiresorts, out of the funds received, purchased Sheraton Mirage Hotel in approximately AUS $62.5 million and sold it to Australian Wattle Development Pty Ltd in AUS 87.37 million equivalent to Rs 447 crore by the order of the Federal Court of Australia," the statement said.

The Miiresorts and Miigroup are controlled by Bhangoo and his family members.

--IANS

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Rome, Sep 12 (IANS/AKI) Italy's anti-migrant Interior Minister Matteo Salvini on Wednesday deplored the European Parliament's vote to punish Hungary's government led by far-right Premier Viktor Orban, calling the move "blackmail".

"Hungary won't give in to such blackmail and will continue to protect its borders," Salvini wrote on Facebook after the 448-197 vote by Euro MPs to sanction Hungary for flouting EU rules on democracy, civil rights and corruption.

"All my solidarity. No to sanctions and to trials of freely elected governments," read the post by Salvini, who is also Italy's Deputy Prime Minister.

Much of Orban's conservative European People's Party in the European Parliament which includes German Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats voted in favour of the motion to sanction Hungary over the rule of law.

Wednesday's vote is the first time the European Parliament has voted to take such action against a member state under EU rules.

Under Article 7 of the European Union treaty, breaching the bloc's founding principles can lead to the suspension of a member state's rights as a punitive measure.

--IANS/AKI

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Former minister and senior Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader Damodar Rout was on Wednesday expelled from the ruling party.

In pursuance of orders from party President Naveen Patnaik, Damodar Rout, MLA from Paradip, has been expelled from the BJD, said party's state secretary Bijay Kumar Nayak in a press statement.

Recently, Rout had created ripples in the political circle by alleging various irregularities and scams in the Naveen Patnaik government in the state.

He had also questioned the style of functioning in the party stating that BJD is being run by one bureaucrat and three MLAs.

After he put the government in trouble by raising corruption issues, Rout was facing heat from within the party for his alleged anti-party activities.

Earlier, Naveen Patnaik had removed Rout from his ministry last year. He was also removed from the vice-president post.

--IANS

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Google's "Neighbourly" app, which helps users with local information like nearby shopping arcades, parks, fitness, food and tuition centres is now rolling out to Indian cities such as Ahmedabad, Coimbatore, Mysore, Vizag, and Kota.

The beta version of "Neighbourly" is available on the Google Play Store for all Android devices across these seven cities in India.

"With 'Neighbourly', we are able to address the local information needs of India's fast-growing internet users in their neighbourhood," Josh Woodward, Group Product Manager, Next Billion Users team, Google, said in a statement on Wednesday.

The latest version of the application includes enhanced voice input, thus, allowing people to ask and respond to questions in their own languages, quicker replies and "similar answers" feature -- that would detect and group similar answers.

"The app was first rolled out to Mumbai and Jaipur and 20 per cent of people tap to speak their question and each question, spoken or written, gets an average of four relevant, trusted answers," Google said.

The launch took place after the company's extensive user testing in the past several months, where Google's "Next Billion Users" team conducted a series of studies and spoke to locals in neighbourhoods.

"The response was encouraging -- especially among women, students and daily commuters -- and people appreciated using their local language to ask questions to their neighbours and sharing their own knowledge with others," the firm added.

--IANS

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A Hardcore Guide to Africa

A review by Dragan Simic

The Birders Guide to Africa, by Michael Mills

Go-Away-Birding, 2017

544 pages, softcover

ABA Sales / Buteo Books 14785

What happened?

He psyched me out. Made me seasick. I think he thinks Im doing a Big Year. That is hardcore.

Are you doing a Big Year?

No. You?

Me? No. But only because I lack the funds. Otherwise, I would become the first birder with mobility issues to do a Big Year in Africa. Oh, Africa. We have a history together, that continent and I. Sometimes hard and bitter, sometimes smooth and seductive. On that sunny day of a long-gone June, between two orange-blossoming aloe trees on a manicured lawn in front of an airport building, the Cape Glossy Starling become my first ever bird on African soil. Oh, Africa.

Open in front of me is The Birders Guide to Africa by Michael Mills, holder of a masters degree in Conservation Biology and a freelance bird guide, working mostly with the tour company Birding Africa. The Guide is illustrated with photographs by Tasso Leventis, a London businessman whose conservation work in Africa has included the establishment of an avian research institute in Nigeria.

It has been 23 years since Nigel Wheatleys Where to Watch Birds in Africa appeared, and I expected from this new volume a generally similar concept filled with updated content. No: Not just the content but the very concept of this guide is something entirely different.

Bird books are getting heavier every year, yet every new publication surprises me in successfully outweighing its predecessors. The Birders Guide to Africa is no exception. Even in paperback it weighs close to three pounds. This is not a book you would want to carry along on a multi-country tour of Africa. It is the kind of book you study at home when deciding when to travel, which sites to visit, and what specialties to hope for.

The Birders Guide is the first concise summary of birding possibilities, challenges, and opportunities offered by all of Africa and its islands. The books three main parts comprise accounts for all 68 territories in the region, entries for all 142 of Africas bird families, and treatments of all 2,792 bird species.

In other words, in 544 pages, this book covers it all.

The first thing to draw your attention in the introductory chapter are the heat maps (along with other sample pages, the maps can be seen here). These maps indicate graphically the attractiveness of each country or island to different kinds of birders: the redder, or hotter, a jurisdiction is colored on the map, the more appealing it will be to, for example, a hardcore lister, a general natural history tourist, or a birder on a tight budget. Another map indicates poorly known, inadequately birded destinations most likely to be of interest to intrepid birding explorers or students and professionals in search of still unanswered questions. These maps are a first strong visual aid in making up your mindor just helping you daydream of Africa on a snowy northern winter afternoon.

The 108 pages of country accounts provide lists of key birds and when to see them, descriptions of habitats and main birding areas, and more general travel information about safety, money, geography, and climate, along with recommendations for field, site, and travel guides, DVDs, smartphone apps, websites, and so on.

The family accounts, running to 150 pages, are the least dry, sometimes even poetic, texts in this very comprehensive book. Perhaps that shouldnt be much of a surprise, given that the African region is home to more than half of all bird families worldwide, making it the richest continent when measured by families and orders. These accounts are the only illustrated section in the book; that sudden outburst of color looks a bit strange against the rest of the pages. Some of Leventiss photos are great, others more documentary.

While the countries are dispensed with in a fifth of the book, the bird species accounts occupy half of it. These 244 pages will be the most exciting chapter for many readers. Every single one of the 2,792 species recorded in Africa, 26% of the worlds total, is given up to 17 lines of text describing its status, abundance, and ease of finding; for each, its range and habitats are described, and the best places to look for it are indicated. These accounts also discuss the latest splits, potential splits, proposed lumps, and the status of endemic subspecies.

Finally, the short back matter includes indexes of countries, families and species, along with useful lists of books, websites and email groups, applications, and local organizations.

Lets try to use the book to help me plan my Big Year in Africa. With mobility issues, I would want to narrow my focus from all bird species to only one group, say, sunbirds. The Guides family account tells us that there are 91 species of IOC-recognized sunbirds in Africa and on its islands, a good percentage of the 143 worldwide; 90 of Africas species are endemic. Beautiful and charming, the highest level of endemism, lots of opportunities for great photosbut in all honesty, too easy, not enough of a challenge.

So lets shift the focus to something with real challenge, something nocturnal perhaps. Owls? Out of 218 species worldwide, 49 occur in Africa, 39 of them endemic to the continent. They are way harder to find. The family account says that of all bird families in the region with more than 25 species, seeing a high proportion of owls is the most challenging. Now were talking! Owls!

But going back to the matter of funds I mentioned earlier, lets assume that I cannot afford flights to various islands and so have chosen to bird only the mainland. And being familiar with the European owls, I do not feel like chasing those species through northern Africa.

How many Afrotropical species are left? In the species accounts we find that some 31 species inhabit the continent south of the Sahara. One of them, though, is the Little Owl of Eurasia, which reaches the southernmost part of its range in Somalia. This one is among the commonest owls of southern Europe, and I dont feel like facing the safety risks in its African range. And so I am left with a manageable 30 species. What next?

Going through the species accounts, Ill soon realize that almost half of those 30 are relatively widespread and that I should focus my efforts on the other half. There are several endemic species with extremely small ranges, among them the Abyssinian Long-eared Owl and the Sokoke and Sandy Scops-Owls. In the search for those and other range-restricted species, I should stand a fair chance of seeing the more widespread 14.

Now is the time to turn to the country accounts. Southern and East Africa are mostly well developed, peaceful, and stable, and can be criss-crossed easilyby African standards at least. But there are about ten owl species that inhabit only or mostly Central and West Africa. Most of those countries being off limits for safety reasons, their owls will be particularly difficult to find. Among the reasonably developed and fairly stable countries my choice would be Ghana, closely followed by Gabon, Senegal, and the Gambia.

Back to range-restricted endemics. The Sokoke Scops-Owl, the Guide says, lives in coastal forests at the KenyaTanzania border, with the most reliable area being the Arabuko-Sokoke forest in Kenya. The rare Usambara Eagle-Owl lives in central Tanzania, with the best chances in Amani in the East Usambaras. The Abyssinian Long-eared Owl inhabits mountain forests of Ethiopia, Uganda, and Kenya; the most reliable area is the Bale Mountains of Ethiopia. The Sandy Scops-Owl, rare anywhere in its Central and West African range, can sometimes be seen in Ankasa in Ghana. And the Albertine Owlet is a rare species of montane forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda; the Guide gives us slim chances in safe and developed Rwanda, better chances in Itombwe in eastern Congo.

Add to these rarities a real gem, the Congo Bay Owl, a very rare bird found twice, in the 1950s and the 1990s, in the forests of the Itombwe Mountains, the only confirmed sightings ever. Possible sightings in Burundi and birds heard in Rwanda remain unsubstantiated; hence, the best chances are in Itombwe, currently a dangerous place to visit, the Guide warns. Who in their right mind would even consider looking for the Congo Bay Owl? Then again, sanity is overrated: Youll never find the bird unless you search for it, however insane it may sound.

In addition to the Sandy Scops-Owl, Ghana offers the African Scops-Owl, African Wood Owl, and Red-chested and Pearl-spotted Owlets; Akun, Frasers, Verreauxs, and Grayish Eagle-Owls; Pels and Rufous Fishing Owls; and the elusive Sjostedts Owlet.

Pels Fishing Owls and Verreauxs Eagle Owls can also be found in southern Africa; it is best to look for them in Namibia and Botswana, according to the Guide, together with the Spotted Eagle-Owl, (Western) Barn Owl, African Scops-Owl, Southern White-faced Owl, African Wood Owl, and Pearl-spotted and African Barred Owlets.

To cut costs I will focus on fewer countries. For Central and West African species: Ghana. For southern birds: mostly Namibia and Botswana, together with a few moreCape Eagle-Owl, African Grass Owl, Marsh Owlin South Africa. About 22 species to hope for in those two regions so back to East Africa.

Besides endemics such as the Sokoke Scops-Owl, Usambara Eagle-Owl, and Albertine Owlet, East Africa offers a second chance for some of above, including the (Western) Barn Owl, African Grass Owl, Marsh Owl, African Wood Owl, Pels Fishing Owl (quite widespread, but northern Botswana offers the best chances), African Scops-Owl, Cape, Spotted and Verreauxs Eagle-Owls, and Pearl-spotted and African Barred Owlets. While most of these can be found region-wide, finding the endemics would require a tour combining Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda.

And voila, the outline of my strigid Big Year is here. No, the Guide doesnt offer precise and detailed info on how to reach a particular site, which signs to look for, and where to veer left until you get to. Practical site-specific information like that changes from year to year, quickly becoming outdated. Classic site guides covering a country or two have their uses, but such books simply cannot provide such a treasure trove of information on a continental scale. If you want a traditional site guide, do not buy The Birders Guide to Africa. But for what it is and what it is intended to do, this book is excellent. The concept is refreshingly new, giving you all the basic information and plenty of site names and other keywords to google further.

The Birders Guide to Africa covers all you ever wanted to know, but had no one to ask. It also describes what you may need without yet knowing you need it. Tightly squeezed, yes, but this book offers no-nonsense, up-to-date coverage of an entire continent and its islands. Impressive.

 Birder by passion and environmental scientist by training, Dragan Simic is an ecotourism consultant, a field researcher, and a nature blogger at 10,000 Birds. Hes a bird guide and a guy who always thinks that birding must be better around the next bend in the road, and that the best bird ever isthe next lifer.

Recommended citation:

Simic, D. 2018. A Hardcore Guide to Africa [a review of The Birders Guide to Africa, by Michael Mills]. Birding 50 (4): 67-69.
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Google will invest around $140 million to expand its data center in Chile, the company's only infrastructure of its kind in Latin America, which houses the information of millions of its users, the tech giant announced on Wednesday.

The complex, built in the Santiago suburb of Quilicura, is part of a group of 15 data centers that store and transmit information generated by applications like Gmail, Google Maps, YouTube, Waze and Uber, Efe reported.

During an event in the Chilean capital, attended by President Sebastian Pinera, Google announced that it will triple the data center's capacity, hiring around 1,000 people for the construction.

"With this investment, we are preparing for the future. We seek to improve the data center with this development, because our users will demand more and more information," said Edgardo Frias, country manager of Google Chile.

The company confirmed that only a handful of employees will have access to the server room - the highly-secured heart of the complex.

The expansion comes six years after Google announced the creation of the data center with an initial investment of $150 million.

"This expansion will mean improving our users' experience. We seek to make technology more accessible and easier to use," Frias said.

The complex runs on renewable energy coming from El Romero solar plant, located in northern Chile's Atacama Desert.

--IANS

qd

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Haryana government has set September 20 as the deadline for all Deputy Commissioners to ensure physical verification and distribution of subsidy to farmers to curb burning of paddy residue that causes environmental pollution.

The subsidy is given to farmers for purchasing equipment to manage the crop residue and not to burn it instead.

Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Department Principal Secretary Abhilaksh Likhi held a meeting with all Deputy Commissioners through videoconferencing here on Wednesday.

He said that Haryana has been making concerted efforts to check burning of crop residue.

"Rewari district has set a record in giving subsidy to all applicant farmers in both individual and custom hiring centre categories," Likhi said. He said that Deputy Commissioners in other districts have been directed to accelerate the pace of subsidy distribution.

Likhi said that the Haryana State Pollution Control Board has provided a list to Deputy Commissioners of villages where fires due to burning of crop residue took place in 2016.

"The Deputy Commissioners have been asked to advise sarpanches concerned not to allow anyone in their respective villages to burn crop residue," the officer said.

As a state survey had reported that crop residue burning incidents occur in 587 villages, Likhi directed the Deputy Commissioners concerned to launch a special campaign in such villages to make farmers aware.

The burning of crop residue leads to air pollution in north Indian states of Punjab and Haryana and National Capital Region-Delhi.

--IANS

js/tsb/sed

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A cook died here allegedly due to electrocution, while taking bath at the hotel, where he worked, police said on Wednesday.

A police official said that Vijay, who hailed from Jharkhand, was found dead at Hotel Apara International Karol Bagh in central Delhi.

"Burn injuries were found on the right arm and left shoulder of the deceased," the official said.

"He had gone to take a shower in the bathroom on the roof where he allegedly died of electric shock from the air-condition unit installed near the toilet," he added.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four law professors of the O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) have been cited by the Supreme Court in its landmark decision last week of decriminalising homosexuality in India.

In a historic judgment, the top court struck down the archaic 158-year-old Section 377 under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which criminalised gay sex, as "manifestly arbitrary".

Among the intellectual inputs cited by the apex court are those of the four professors -- Dipika Jain, Oishik Sircar, Danish Sheikh and Saptarshi Mandal -- from the varsity's Jindal Global Law School (JGLS).

These inputs support important points made in the landmark decision that has advanced the values of constitutionalism, equality, non-discrimination and justice.

"This is an important victory not only for the LGBTIQ community but also for generations of activists who have fought the legal battle for over 25 years in the courts," said Jain, Associate Professor at JGLS, in a statement from the university.

"It will also inspire other countries to follow suit and safeguard marginalised groups in their own jurisdictions. Like all other progressive legal pronouncements, this is only a beginning of an aspiration for an egalitarian society," Jain added.

Jain has been cited in the court's recognition of the constitutional right to health as part of the evolving rights framework under Article 21 of the Constitution.

The court has also cited from a special double issue of the Jindal Global Law Review in 2012, co-edited by Jain along with Sircar.

The judgment significantly elaborates on the right to privacy while drawing upon essays written by Professors Sheikh and Mandal.

To understand how LGBTIQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and questioning) persons are deprived access to justice, the court also drew on a report co-written by Sheikh in his capacity as a consultant at the International Commission of Jurists.

JGU's role in the litigation process has not been confined to the level of citation.

Jain has also spearheaded a series of legal awareness workshops for transgender activists that have served to provide crucial rights training for individuals at the forefront of social justice struggles.

Jain and Sircar, along with other JGLS faculty members, had filed an impleading application in the Suresh Koushal case in the Supreme Court and were part of the litigation team challenging Section 377 of the IPC.

Sheikh has also been a part of the litigation team and conceptualised the play "Contempt" based on the Suresh Koushal hearings.

"This judgment is infused with the promise of transformative potential. It is now up to us as activists, lawyers, academics and members of civil society to ensure that the letter of the law seeps into the daily fabric of our lives," Sheikh noted.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four law professors of the O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) have been cited by the Supreme Court in its landmark judgment last week decriminalising homosexuality in India.

In the historic verdict, the top court struck down the archaic 158-year-old Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which criminalised gay sex, as "manifestly arbitrary".

Among the intellectual inputs cited by the apex court are those of the four professors -- Dipika Jain, John Sebastian, Danish Sheikh and Saptarshi Mandal -- from the varsity's Jindal Global Law School (JGLS).

These inputs support important points made in the landmark decision that has advanced the values of constitutionalism, equality, non-discrimination and justice.

"This is an important victory not only for the LGBTIQ community but also for generations of activists who have fought the legal battle for over 25 years in the courts," said Jain, Associate Professor at JGLS, in a statement from the university.

"It will also inspire other countries to follow suit and safeguard marginalised groups in their own jurisdictions. Like all other progressive legal pronouncements, this is only a beginning of an aspiration for an egalitarian society," Jain added.

Jain has also been cited in the court's recognition of the constitutional right to health, as part of the evolving rights framework under Article 21 of the Constitution.

The verdict about the redundancy of Section 377, in the light of the 2013 amendment to the IPC, was made with reference to an essay written by Sebastian, while the judgment on the right to privacy was drawn upon essays written by Professors Sheikh and Mandal.

To understand how LGBTIQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/transsexual, intersex and queer/questioning) persons are deprived access to justice, the court also drew on a report co-written by Sheikh, in his capacity as a consultant at the International Commission of Jurists.

JGU's role in the litigation process has not been confined to the level of citation.

Jain has also spearheaded a series of legal awareness workshops for transgender activists that have served to provide crucial rights training for individuals at the forefront of social justice struggles.

Jain, along with other JGLS faculty members, had filed an impleading application in the Suresh Koushal case in the Supreme Court and were part of the litigation team challenging Section 377 of the IPC.

Sheikh has also been a part of the litigation team and has conceptualised the play "Contempt" based on the Suresh Koushal hearings.

"This judgment is infused with the promise of transformative potential. It is now up to us as activists, lawyers, academics and members of civil society to ensure that the letter of the law seeps into the daily fabric of our lives," Sheikh noted.

--IANS

rt/mag/sed

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Actor Manav Kaul says he directs films, but not with the intention of selling them to producers or distributors. He makes them for himself.

"I don't want to direct. I have directed films and I am editing, but I shouldn't direct. I direct films for myself. I have directed two. I don't want to release them also," Manav told IANS here.

He just loves the process of directing a film.

"It is an extension of my theatre (work). I will make a film and put on YouTube. I won't get into the selling part," said the "Tumhari Sulu" actor.

What about the people involved in his films?

"They work for free. I give them good food, alcohol and good travel. I also don't earn any money. I have been doing theatre for about 13 years. We don't get paid. Still, we keep doing new plays. If we earn, we distribute among ourselves," he said.

So, directing is his passion?

"Not passion. It's just the way I am. There is no passion. I don't know what else to do in my life. I do all these things and stay out of all the paperwork. I hate telling people what I am doing then convincing them to give me money and then convince people to come and see the film. It's too much. I love acting though," said Manav, who last featured in "Ghoul", Netflix's first Indian horror series.

On Tuesday, the "Jolly LLB 2" actor also tweeted an image of a no objection letter addressed to anyone wishing to stage his plays.

"I give permission for the usage of all my writing material for the purpose of performances that come under non-profitable/experimental space. Please consider this as a no objection letter of intent for anyone who might like to perform my material.

"I further add that the person of interest also has the freedom to adapt my writing into any language of their choice. The three books released till now are - 'Theek Tumhare Peeche', 'Prem Kabootar' and 'Tumhare Baare Maai' (to be released in October 2018)," he wrote on the microblogging site.

--IANS

nn/sim/vm

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Amid the rising clamour on the Rafale deal, the Indian Air Force Chief, Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa, on Wednesday said by acquiring the French fighters the IAF was strengthening its depleting fleet.

"By providing the Rafale and the S-400 (anti-missile system), the government is strengthening the Indian Air Force to counter the shortfall of our depleting numbers of aircraft," he said at an event here.

Pointing to IAF's strength coming down to 31 squadrons from the sanctioned strength of 42, Dhanoa said India faced a shortage of fighter aircraft despite the threat of a two-front war with Pakistan and China.

"Very few countries are facing challenges like us. We have two nuclear-armed neighbours.We have to match neighbours Pakistan and China to tackle a two-front war," he said.

The IAF chief's comments come a day after former Bharatiya Janata Party ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie alleged Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "personal culpability" in the Rafale deal which they dubbed as the country's "biggest defence scam".

Earlier this month, the IAF Vice Chief, Air Marshal S.B. Deo too, had endorsed the Rafale, deal saying the aircraft will give India "unprecedented combat capabilities".

Besides BJP rebels Sinha and Shourie, the Congress led by its President Rahul Gandhi has been relentlessly attacking the Modi government over the jet deal that was announced by the Prime Minister in 2015.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
IIT-Kharagpur has signed a pact with Carleton University of Canada to support research collaboration, capacity building and other academic partnerships.

Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), both institutions will focus on opportunities in student and faculty exchanges and professional development programmes, IIT-Kharagpur said in a statement here on Wednesday.

The two institutions will also explore the possibilities of collaborative master's programmes and jointly supervised Ph.D students.

The MoU will cover interaction among faculty on joint research projects and research visits and, when necessary, joint applications for research funding from external agencies.

"We are happy to sign the MoU with Carleton University. We look forward to a long and fruitful collaboration," IIT-Kharagpur Deputy Director Sriman Kumar Bhattacharyya said.

Carleton is focussing in areas such as autonomous vehicles and technology enablers for smart cities. IIT-Kharagpur has similar research focus on intelligent transportation, future of cities, digital convergence and centre of excellence in artificial intelligence.

"This new partnership is a beginning of a long-term collaboration with students exchanges and launch of exciting professional development programmes," said Karen Schwartz, Associate Vice-President, Research and International, Carleton University.

Discussions are on between the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering at Carleton University and Department of Electronics and Electrical Communications Engineering at IIT-Kharagpur for dual-degree programs for master's and doctoral students.

Plans are also in place for distance offerings in data analytics, cybersecurity and management leadership, which will be jointly taught by experts from both institutions.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At a time when smartphone makers are looking at camera giants to help them add top-of-the-line functionalities to enhance user experiences, Japanese major Canon on Wednesday said possibilities are there in the growing smartphone segment but the company cannot compromise with quality and standards.

According to senior Canon executives, discussions are currently on at the Internal levels but they are not yet convinced at delivering perfect smartphone camera experience, the way they have achieved with 'true' cameras.

"I do not deny the possibility when it comes to making lens for smartphones. However, a true and complete camera experience is core to our philosophy. We provide state-of-the-art ecosystem - lens, camera and processor -- and not just one component," Naoya Kaneda, Advisory Director, Group Executive, ICB Optical Business Group, Image Communication Business Operations, Canon, told IANS.

"We maintain very high standards when it comes to cameras and unless we achieve that for smartphones we will not enter that segment," Kaneda added during a media roundtable at Canon's headquarters here.

According to Yoshiyuki Mizoguchi, Group Executive, ICB Products Group, Imaging Communications Business Operations, Canon, they have been exploring the possibility of delivering a lens system for smartphones.

"However, we can't compromise on our camera legacy. Camera has always been centric to us," Mizoguchi added.

An early innovator in smartphone camera technology, Chinese smartphone maker Huawei has brought a Leica-designed, tri-camera system to the device, which is its USP.

Huawei P20 Pro is the world's first smartphone to feature a triple camera system from Leica, the German camera maker.

The rear camera system has a primary 40MP RGB sensor, a 20MP monochrome sensor and an 8MP sensor with telephoto lens.

All three lenses use the same optical image stablisation (OIS) technology, thus ensuring clearer shots.

According to Mizoguchi, "unless we have a comprehensive imaging system ready for smartphones that provides a high-level experience to users as they have with our cameras, we will not go ahead for the smartphone camera market".

(Nishant Arora is in Tokyo at the invitation of Canon Inc. He can be contacted at nishant.a@ians.in)

--IANS

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The Indian mining sector on Wednesday urged the government to incentivise exploration of the country's rich mineral wealth that remains untapped despite huge potential for its growth and development.

"As the country's vast and rich mineral wealth remains untapped despite huge potential for growth, the government should offer incentives to attract international firms to come and explore the mineral deposits," said Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI) Secretary-General R.K. Sharma here.

Geologically being a part of Gondwana land, India has the same prospects as other resource-rich countries like Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Indonesia and South Africa.

Gondwana was an ancient super-continent that broke up about 180 million years ago and split into land masses, including Africa, South America, Australia, Antarctica, the Indian sub-continent and the Arabian Peninsula.

"India remains largely under-explored for minerals like gold, diamond, copper, nickel, lead and zinc. Australia and Canada have 13-14 per cent of global exploration budget, while India's share is negligible. Exploration is pre-requisite for developing the mineral resource base," said Sharma.

Ahead of the 8th three-day Mining, Exploration Convention and Trade Show "Mining Mazma 2018" in the city from Thursday, the Federation has urged the government to amend the Mines and Minerals Development & Regulation (MMDR) Act, 1957 in line with the new National Mineral Exploration Policy, 2016.

Under the changed legal framework, non-exclusive reconnaissance permits (RP) are issued to prospective explorers without provision for sale or transfer of their permits or transition of their rights to prospective licensing-cum-mining licensing (PL-cum-ML).

"The MMDR Act needs to be amended to enable reconnaissance permit holders to have the right of transition to PL-cum-ML or sell their rights to prospective investors," reiterated Sharma.

Besides a favourable legal framework, the mining apex body asked the government on May 9 to relax the guidelines of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, which restrict prospecting of minerals with 5-10 per cent NPV (Net Present Value).

"As the guidelines are bound to impact exploration, we urge the government to withdraw them for effective exploration of minerals in the forest areas," added Sharma.

Of the 89 mineral blocks notified across the country, 45 were auctioned and 146 attempts for made for their exploration. Of the 45 blocks, though six have been ready for composite license (PL-cum-ML), not one of them were granted this over the last two years.

"Similarly, no mining lease has been granted for greenfield blocks auctioned for exploration, prospecting and mining them due to delays in clearances and consents by the Central and state governments," Sharma lamented.

The apex body, however, welcomed the deregulation of the coal sector that allows commercial mining of coal by private firms and gives an impetus to the sector's growth.

--IANS

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Rome, Sep 12 (IANS/AKI) Italy averted "many" deaths when its Diciotti coastguard vessel rescued 190 migrants from an overcrowded boat off Lampedusa in mid-August, Premier Giuseppe Conte told lawmakers on Wednesday.

The migrants were then stranded at sea for 10 days during a standoff with the European Union when Interior Minister Matteo Salvini stopped them disembarking in Sicily unless other states agreed to take them in.

"The evidence presented leads us to conclude that without the concrete and direct intervention of the Italian coastguard, many of these people would have perished," Conte told the Senate upper house of parliament.

Conte also accused Malta of "inertia" over the incident which began on August 15 morning when Libyan authorities alerted Maltese counterparts to the presence of the migrant boat in Malta's search and rescue area, south of Malta.

"Noticing the inertia of the Maltese authorities in their search and rescue area, the Italian coastguard's general command judged that it would probably be necessary to intervene and transfer all the boat's passengers to another vessel," Conte stated.

Thirteen of the rescued migrants were taken to Lampedusa because of serious medical conditions. But the remaining 177 were stuck in international waters for five days and spent a further five days aboard the Diciotti at the Sicilian port of Catania.

The standoff came to an end when Italy's Catholic Church, Ireland and Albania agreed to shelter most of the migrants.

"What has changed from the past is that Italy is no longer willing to indiscriminately welcome migrants, and to fuel - albeit involuntarily - human trafficking," Conte told the Senate.

Last month's Diciotti incident "was not an attractive page in European history", he said.

"Europe lost the opportunity to concretely uphold the principles of solidarity and responsibility (in managing migrant flows) that are constantly cited being among its fundamental values," he said.

--IANS/AKI

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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday called the 'meeting' of fugitive business tycoon Vijay Mallya and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley "absolutely shocking".

Mallya, who was wanted in India for his alleged role in a multi-crore bank loan fraud case, on Wednesday claimed that he met Jaitley before leaving India in 2016. However, Jaitley rejected Mallya's claim that they met two years ago.

"Finance Minister ought to respond. Obviously, PM knew about it," Kejriwal said.

In a series of tweets, Kejriwal first called the meeting "absolutely shocking" and later questioned the Finance Minister for hiding this information.

"PM Modi meets Nirav Modi before he flees the country. FM meets Vijay Mallya before he flees India. What transpired in these meetings? People want to know," Kejriwal said.

"Why did the Finance Minister hide this information till now?" he added.

Former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha tweeted saying "entire BJP must come clean on its relations with Mallya."

Senior Supreme Court lawyer and activist Prashant Bhushan blamed CBI for lowering its lookout notice.

"Mallya says he met Jaitley to offer a settlement and told him he was going abroad. Jaitley says no particular settlement was offered. Whatever the truth, there is no denying that CBI lowered its lookout notice from 'detain' to 'inform', to allow his escape," Bhushan said.

--IANS

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Manipur may ban auto-rickshaws and other vehicles which are 15 years old or more.

L. Radhakishore, Chairman of the Manipur Pollution Control Board, said on Wednesday that health hazards posed by the polluted air would be discussed in the next cabinet meeting.

"There is an immediate need to ban such vehicles on grounds of health hazard," he added.

According to Radhakishore, more than 70 per cent of the diesel-run auto-rickshaws were unfit to operate. "These vehicles need to be disposed of as scraps."

He said there was a need to control noise pollution in major towns including Imphal.

Officials say that for some decades Manipur has been the dumping ground for used cars and other vehicles which cannot be used in any city, including Delhi.

There is a sudden increase in the number of vehicles in Manipur as an used car is available as cheap as Rs 100,000.

--IANS

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NASA is set to launch its Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2, or ICESat-2 -- that will track Earth's melting poles and disappearing sea ice -- on Saturday.

The satellite with a three-year mission is scheduled to launch at 8.46 a.m. EDT on September 15, with liftoff aboard a Satellite Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex-2 (SLC-2), the US space agency said in a blog post late on Tuesday.

ICESat-2 is the NASA's most advanced laser instrument -- the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System, or ATLAS.

It measures height by precisely timing how long it takes individual photons of light from a laser to leave the satellite, bounce off Earth and return to the satellite.

The satellite will provide critical observations of how ice sheets, glaciers and sea ice are changing, leading to insights into how those changes impact people where they live, NASA said.

ICESat-2's orbit will make 1,387 unique ground tracks around Earth in 91 days and then start the same ground pattern again at the beginning.

While the first ICESat satellite (2003-09) measured ice with a single laser beam, ICESat-2 splits its laser light into six beams making it better to cover more ground (or ice).

The arrangement of the beams into three pairs will also allow scientists to assess the slope of the surface they are measuring, NASA said.

Further, the ICESat-2 will zoom above the planet at 7 km per second (4.3 miles per second), completing an orbit around Earth in 90 minutes. The orbits have been set to converge at the 88-degree latitude lines around the poles, to focus the data coverage in the region where scientists expect to see the most changes.

All of those height measurements result from timing the individual laser photons on their 600-mile roundtrip between the satellite and Earth's surface - a journey that is timed to within 800 picoseconds, NASA said.

--IANS

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday welcomed US President Donald Trump administration's decision to close the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO)'s office in Washington.

The State Department announced the move on Monday, citing its lack of steps to advance direct negotiations with Israel. It also cited the Palestinians' efforts to get the International Criminal Court to prosecute Israelis for apparent violations of international law in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.

"The US took the right decision regarding the PLO office in Washington," Xinhua quoted Netanyahu as saying in a statement released by his office.

"Israel supports the US actions, which were aimed at clarifying to the Palestinians that their refusal to negotiate and the attempts to attack Israel in international forums will not advance peace," he said.

The US move was denounced by the Palestinians. "This dangerous escalation shows that the United States is willing to disband the international system in order to protect Israeli crimes and attacks against the land and people of Palestine as well as against peace and security in the rest of our region," PLO Secretary-General Saeb Erekat said in a statement.

The Trump administration has been making preparations to unveil its long-awaited Middle East peace plan, but Palestinian leadership has declined to engage with Trump's envoys following his controversial recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in December.

The recent announcement was the latest in a string of measures taken by the White House against the Palestinians, including the defunding of the United Nations' Palestinian refugee agency of UNRWA.

--IANS

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There is no relief in sight from the rising petrol, diesel and gas prices which are burning a hole in the consumers' pockets.

The government on Wednesday eluded questions on the subject at an official media briefing here, with Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan asserting that he would not answer questions outside of the day's Cabinet decisions.

"We will confine ourselves to the Cabinet decisions only," Pradhan told IANS when asked if a relief was in the offing from soaring oil prices.

The Minister also chose to keep mum when asked if the Union Cabinet discussed the issue on Wednesday.

On Monday, Pradhan had an hour-long meeting with BJP President Amit Shah after the opposition organised a Bharat bandh on the issue.

--IANS

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The newly-elected Pakistani government has decided to present a mini-budget for the remaining nine months of the fiscal year of 2018-19 on Friday.

According to media reports, the decision was made during a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad on Wednesday.

The presentation of an amended budget is aimed at streamlining the government's economic policies in line with the major economic indicators and the introduction of policies and steps to increase government's revenues to help it overcome the budget and trade deficits, Xinhua news agency reported.

The new government is expected to make amends to the popular Tax Amnesty Scheme, which was launched by the previous government earlier this year.

Moreover, the incumbent economic managers are also likely to change the tax exemption annual slab from 1.2 million Pakistani rupees to 0.8 million Pakistani rupees.

President of Pakistan Arif Alvi has summoned a National Assembly (Lower House) session on Thursday where he will make his maiden speech to the parliamentarians. The session will also discuss various other measures to increase the tax revenues including the imposition of one percent regulatory duty on all the imported items.

--IANS

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Rafale jets will power the Indian Air Force (IAF) to fight "grave threats" India faces from Pakistan and China, Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa said on Wednesday, strongly batting for the French-made fourth generation aircraft whose purchase has triggered allegations of financial irregularities.

The IAF chief said that by acquiring the French fighters, the IAF would also be able strengthen its depleting fleet of fighters at a time when India's neighbours were "not sitting idle" and continuously modernizing their air warfare capabilities.

Speaking at a seminar here, Air Chief Marshal Dhanoa said the Russian-made S-400 Triumf advanced air defence systems to be bought from Moscow would also enhance the capability of the air force.

"By providing the Rafale and the S-400 (anti-missile system), the government is strengthening the IAF to counter the shortfall of our depleting numbers of aircraft," he said.

"The hi-tech fighters like Rafale are needed because medium-tech fighters like Tejas alone cannot do."

He said the IAF was already down with only 31 squadrons from the sanctioned strength of 42. "Even when we do have 42 (squadrons), we will be below the combined strength of our two adversaries," he said, adding that the gap was being "partially fulfilled by getting the hi-tech aircraft.

"The question that is asked very often in public domain is why 42 squadrons when older aircraft like MiG-21s are being replaced by more capable aircraft.

"There are reasons (for that) because our neighbours are not sitting idle. Pakistan has upgraded F-16s and made them 4.5 generation as far as avionic electronics goes and is inducting JF-17 (from China) in large numbers.

"China is rapidly replacing its 2nd and 3rd generation fighters with 4th generation fighters and is developing 5th generation fighter which is likely to be deployed very soon."

He said very few countries were facing challenges like India, which is surrounded by "two nuclear-armed neighbours".

"We have to match neighbours Pakistan and China to tackle a two-front war. Intentions of our adversaries can change overnight. We need to match force level of our adversaries," he said.

The IAF chief's comments come a day after former Bharatiya Janata Party ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie alleged Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "personal culpability" in the Rafale deal which they dubbed as the country's "biggest defence scam".

The procurement of 36 Rafale fighters from France's Dassault Aviation has come under fire from the Congress, alleging that the Modi government had compromised national security and bought the bombers at a higher price than what the UPA had negotiated with the French government.

Earlier this month, IAF Vice Chief Air Marshal S.B. Deo too endorsed the Rafale, saying the aircraft will give India "unprecedented combat capabilities".

--IANS

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Hours after fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya said he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country, Congress President on Wednesday demanded Jaitley's resignation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi should order an "independent probe" into the matter, he said.

"Given Vijay Mallya's extremely serious allegations in London, the PM should immediately order an independent probe into the matter. Jaitley should step down as Finance Minister while this probe is underway," said Gandhi in Twitter.





Given Vijay Mallyas extremely serious allegations in London today, the PM should immediately order an independent probe into the matter. Arun Jaitley should step down as FInance Minister while this probe is underway.  (@RahulGandhi) September 12, 2018

The fugitive liquor baron, wanted in India for his alleged role in a multi-crore bank loan fraud case, claimed that he had met the Finance Minister before leaving India in 2016 and made an offer of settlement.

"I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the Finance Minister before I left...repeated my offer to settle with the banks. That is the truth," he told reporters outside a Westminster court where he is contesting an extradition case filed by Indian authorities.

ALSO READ: Mallya claims he met FM before leaving India, Arun Jaitley rubbishes charge

However, Jaitley rejected Mallya's claim as factually false.

"My attention has been drawn to a statement made to the media by Vijay Mallya on having met me with an offer of settlement. The statement is factually false inasmuch as it does not reflect truth," he said in a Facebook post.
Of the 30 districts across Karnataka, 23 districts have been declared drought-hit due to deficit rainfall in the monsoon season, an official said on Wednesday.

"Though the monsoon (June-September) was near normal in coastal, south interior and Malnad regions with record rainfall causing floods in seven districts, deficit-rains forced the state government to declare 23 districts drought-hit," an official told IANS here after a review meeting.

According to the Indian Metrological Department (IMD) data, the cumulative seasonal rainfall across the southern state was minus 2 per cent from June 1 to September 12, with coastal areas recording 3 per cent above normal, and south interior region 7 per cent above normal, while north interior area posted 26 per cent deficit.

"A cabinet sub-committee on disaster management had identified 86 taluks (sub-districts) in the state's erstwhile Bombay province in northwest and the Hyderabad-Karnataka region in the northern region due to dry weather," said the official, citing a report its chairman and State Revenue Minister R.V. Deshpande submitted to the Chief Minister's office on Tuesday.

As per the revised guidelines, a taluk can be declared drought-hit with a 60 per cent rain deficit or a dry spell of three weeks with 33 per cent crop loss.

"Preliminary estimates reveal the kharif crop loss in the absence timely rains is about Rs 8,000 crore, as sowing was done in 63 lakh hectares of farm lands out of 75 lakh hectares across the state," said the official.

The state departments concerned, including agriculture, horticulture and sericulture will conduct a joint survey of the drought-hit districts and submit a report to the central government for grants from the National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF).

"Two central teams are touring seven flood-hit districts, including Dakshina Kannada, Hassan, Kodagu and Chikkamagaluru for spot assessment of the damage to life and property caused by heavy rains," added the official.

The state government will also request the central government to rush another team to assess the damage caused by drought in the 23 districts.

--IANS

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Indian-American Congressman Ro Khanna has said that he wants to revoke Myanmar State Counsellor Suu Kyi's Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honour in the US, which was bestowed on her with much fanfare six years ago.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi has been silent as military rulers of Myanmar ravaged the Rohingyas, an ethnic minority group on the country's western border, in a brutal campaign the UN deemed "genocide".

"For Aung San Suu Kyi to not speak out and to talk about a proportionate response to terrorism is a total abdication of any morality," Khanna, a Democrat from California, was quoted as saying by the Hill newspaper.

"We should revoke the congressional medal, and beyond that she should be investigated as part of the UN's (war crimes) tribunal," he said.

While there is a growing appetite on Capitol Hill for concrete steps to press Suu Kyi to rediscover the voice of moral clarity that made her a celebrated human rights symbol, many are out of patience.

"Her leadership is unacceptable - she's turned a deaf ear - and who the hell is she kidding?" said Representative Bill Pascrell. "She came in like the Blessed Mary and she's wound up like Jezebel."

But Representative Gerry Connolly said that revoking the medal may effectively harm their cause and send "a really strong burn-your-bridge kind of message".

"If our object here is to engage her and to incentivize and encourage her to speak out, even though we understand the delicacy of the balance with the military, I'm not sure that's the best way to do it," he said.

To make their case, bipartisan coalitions in both chambers of the Congress have sent a flurry of letters to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging tougher sanctions on the repressive Myanmar government.

One notable exception to the condemnations was Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a close friend to Suu Kyi, who says that she "simply lacks the power to rein in the violence in a country where the military elite still yield outsized authority over public policy - and could potentially knock her from power".

--IANS

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Students of two hostels at the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) created a ruckus on Wednesday as they clashed over mess food being forcibly eaten by unauthorised inmates, police said.

The Aiyyar and Birla hostel groups did not just engage in verbal spats but also vandalised varsity property and damaged many vehicles, a police officer told IANS.

Some rooms of the Birla hostel were sealed and 10 students were detained. Varsity officials are looking at the CCTV footage to identify the guilty, an official said.

BHU Chief Proctor Raina Singh and Superintendent of Police (City) Dinesh Singh intervened and pacified the groups, following which the demonstrations were called off.

Like every other day groups went to each other's hostel mess and forcibly ate the breakfast at the other's mess. It was then that the altercation started. Many coolers and two-wheelers were damaged, the officer said.

The Chief Proctor said she would look into the complaints and ensure that no such incident takes place in future.

There is already a heavy police deployment in the city ahead of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's visit here later in the day. He will also spend the night at the temple town.

--IANS

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Rajasthan Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday countered BJP's criticism of the party not announcing the chief ministerial candidate by saying the ruling party should "first set its own house in order."

"He (BJP chief Amit Shah) should not forget that despite being the president, he failed to appoint the state BJP chief of his choice," said Gehlot, a former chief minister and Congress general secretary.

"Shah wanted Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to head the state unit. But he had to bow to the wishes of Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje," claimed Gehlot.

"Parties work for elections as a team. No chief ministerial candidate is declared before elections. Congress respects public sentiments as well as the sentiments of its MLAs," said Gehlot.

Referring to Shah's remarks on Tuesday at public meetings, he said: "His language is rude...it is against the culture of Rajasthan, he said.

"Shah's speeches are so laudatory about Prime Minister Modi that the BJP expects these can help the Raje government in recapturing Rajasthan," said Gehlot, adding it looked as if Shah had no trust in Raje.

The former chief minister said there has been a steep rise in corruption cases in sand mining, education and transport because of poor governance.

Lashing out out at Raje, Gehlot said: "The Chief Minster loves to put up foundation stones. She was doing it all along her her Gaurav Yatra until the High Court intervened."

He said Rahul Gandhi will be visiting Rajasthan on September 20.

--IANS

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Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Mohammad Safdar have been released from prison on a three-day parole to attend the funeral of Kulsoom Nawaz, who passed away in London after months of battle with cancer.

The three, now serving prison sentences in Rawalpindi on corruption charges, were released hours after Sharif's wife died in a London hospital on Tuesday.

The funeral prayers of the former Premier's wife will held at London's Regent Park mosque on Thursday and her body will then be flown to Lahore, Geo News reported.

The Sharif family said that Kulsoom Nawaz will be laid to rest on Friday at their residence in Lahore.

Sharif, Maryam Nawaz and her husband were escorted by the police from the jail to the Nur Khan Airbase from where they flew to Lahore on Wednesday.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif accompanied the three on the flight. Later, he departed for London to bring Kulsoom Nawaz's body home.

According to the Punjab Home Department spokesperson, it was decided that Sharif, Maryam Nawaz and Safdar's parole be extended by three days. "In case of a delay in Begum Kulsoom's funeral, the parole will be further extended," the spokesperson said.

According to Dawn daily, Kulsoom Nawaz's sons in London would not accompany her body to Lahore though her daughter Asma and grandson Zikriya Sharif would go with the casket to Pakistan.

A large number of relatives, party leaders, workers, politicians and well-wishers visited the Sharif residence to condole the death.

--IANS

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The Congress said on Wednesday that the situation in Jammu and Kashmir was not conducive for holding municipal and Panchayat elections.

State party President G.A. Mir told the media after a meeting of the Congress core group: "The situation is not conducive for holding municipal and Panchayat polls."

Mir said the elections were declared without taking stock of the ground situation.

"The central government and state administration should make clear their stand whether they want to conduct the elections or is it just a gimmick."

The National Conference and the Peoples Democratic Party have announced a boycott of both the elections.

--IANS

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In a bid to strengthen bilateral trade between Assam and Bhutan, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Wednesday inaugurated Indo-Bhutan Border Trade Centre at Darranga in Tamulpur of Baksa district.

With the inauguration of this centre, the volume of trade between Assam and Bhutan, which has been going on since centuries, is expected to reach new heights.

Sonowal termed the day as a red letter day and said that inauguration of the trade centre will lead to strengthening of India-Bhutan relations.

Stating that the inauguration of the trade centre is a spontaneous response of the people of Assam, especially those residing in Baksa, Udalguri, Chirang and Kokrajhar districts, to the prevailing peaceful situation in the state, the Chief Minister said that the centre is a result of cooperation of the people of the four districts extended to the state government.

Sonowal said for the development of state, especially the BTAD (Bodoland Territorial Area Districts), 264 km of border roads touching four BTAD of the state would be constructed.

He also expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for unleashing a new era of development in the Northeast by enunciating Act East Policy, with which he vowed to strengthen bilateral relation of India with ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal) countries.

The Chief Minister also thanked both Bhutan and Bangladesh for opening their consulates at Guwahati which has given renewed thrust to the relations with the countries neighbouring Assam.

Sonowal said that newly introduced Druk Air flight connecting Paro-Guwahati-Singapore would take India's relation with ASEAN countries to new heights.

He said that the state government, with the support of the Central government, would revive the Rupsi Airport in Dhubri, work for which would start from next month.

--IANS

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Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said that the two suspects in the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter are "civilians, not criminals".

Putin said that his government had found the pair and he hoped they would appear soon and tell their story. "We know who they are, we have found them," he told the plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok city.

"I hope they will turn up themselves and tell everything. This would be best for everyone. There is nothing special there, nothing criminal, I assure you. We'll see in the near future," he was quoted as saying by Sputnik news agency.

Skripal, 66, and Yulia, 33, were poisoned in the UK in March. The incident caused tensions between Russia and the UK, as London and its allies accused Moscow of orchestrating the attack, which it refutes.

The UK government named the two as Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov and said they were from Russia's military intelligence service, the GRU, according to the BBC.

Scotland Yard and the UK's Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have said there was enough evidence to charge the men, who were understood to have travelled to London from Moscow on March 2 on Russian passports.

Two days later, they sprayed nerve agent Novichok on the front door of Skripal's home in the Wiltshire city of Salisbury, before travelling home to Russia later that day, the police said.

UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid warned that the men will be caught and prosecuted if they ever step out of Russia.

The CPS has not applied to Russia for the extradition of the two men, as Russia does not extradite its own nationals. But a European arrest warrant has been obtained in case they travel to the EU, the BBC said.

Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey also fell ill after responding to the Salisbury incident. He was later discharged from hospital, as were the Skripals.

The police linked the attack to a separate Novichok poisoning on June 30, when a couple -- Dawn Sturgess and her partner Charlie Rowley -- became unwell at a house in Amesbury. Sturgess died in hospital on July 8.

The police said that Sturgess and Rowley were later exposed to the nerve agent after handling a contaminated container, labelled as Nina Ricci Premier Jour perfume.

British authorities said they do not believe Sturgess and Rowley were deliberately targeted but were exposed after touching the contaminated item left behind by the perpetrators of the attack on the Skripals.

--IANS

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Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven on Wednesday rejected the possibility of helping the opposition centre-right alliance form a government after elections did not result in any bloc gaining sufficient support to govern alone.

Lofven ruled out the idea of lending the Social Democrats' support to the four-party Alliance during a press conference at the Rosenbad, his official residence, in response to an offer made by the Alliance shortly beforehand, Efe news reported.

The Prime Minister said it was "undemocratic" of the Alliance to want to govern independently of whether it had gained enough support and urged calm until the final results were in.

Lofven said while his party made up the biggest bloc it would not be right for anyone else to become the Prime Minister.

He called for the final result to be known before deciding if he should resign ahead of the new Parliament being formed on September 25.

The left, a coalition made up of the Left, Green and Social Democrat (SD) parties, had a two-seat lead on the Alliance, while the far-right Sweden Democrats were on 63, according to provisional figures.

The left obtained 40.6 per cent of the votes, the Alliance 40.3 per cent, while SD got 17.6 per cent, according to provisional results, which could change after overseas and other uncounted votes are tallied.

The electoral authority began counting votes from overseas on Wednesday and the definitive results would not be available tilL Friday.

Both the left and the Alliance do not want the far-right to have any influence on the Swedish government. Lofven said the SD could "never" be allowed to decide on the country's future.

--IANS

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Telangana state Congress chief Uttam Kumar Reddy on Wednesday vowed to send caretaker Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao to jail if the Congress party is voted to power in the ensuing elections.

Accusing KCR of misusing police to target Congress leaders, Kumar Reddy said that same treatment would be meted out to KCR when the Congress party comes to power.

He was addressing a public meeting on Wednesday night at Sangareddy town to condemn the arrest of party leader Jagga Reddy in an alleged human trafficking case.

The state Congress chief asked Director General of Police Mahender Reddy to act as per law and stop discriminating against the Congress leaders.

Kumar Reddy said that Jagga Reddy, a former MLA from Sangareddy, was implicated in a fake case just before elections only due to his popularity. He said the Congress party would not tolerate if any of its member is harassed by the police.

Jagga Reddy was arrested on Monday after a suo motu case was filed against him at a police station in Hyderabad.

According to the police, he allegedly obtained Indian passports and US visas by submitting fake documents in the name of his family members.

He allegedly obtained passports in 2004 for himself and for his wife, daughter and son by affixing the photos of others. He also allegedly obtained US visas for them and illegally transported them by accompanying them to the US as his family members.

--IANS

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Turkey's Permanent Representative to the UN Feridun Sinirlioglu has voiced opposition to the looming offensive on Idlib, Syria, the last rebel-held stronghold in the war-torn country.

"President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has underlined the need to preserve the de-escalation area and called for an immediate and complete ceasefire in Idlib," Sinirlioglu told the Security Council meeting on Tuesday.

At a summit last week involving Russia, Iran and Turkey there was a major point of divergence on whether to launch an offensive on Idlib.

While Russia and Iran proposed the military option, Turkey, which backs some of the opposition groups in Idlib, opposed it.

"Our calls for an immediate ceasefire include all military operations and Turkey will continue to work on this basis," Xinhua quoted Sinirlioglu as saying.

Idlib is the only remaining one of the four de-escalation areas created by the Astana process initiated by the three countries in 2017 in Kazakhstan.

"In a complex place like Idlib, traditional counter-terrorism methods would not yield the desired results. On the contrary, they would create further suffering, alienate and radicalise more Syrians," Sinirlioglu said.

He also said a military assault on Idlib "would trigger a massive wave of refugees and tremendous security risks for Turkey, the rest of Europe and beyond".

The UN has warned that a military operation in Idlib is likely to put the lives of some three million people, including one million children, in jeopardy.

"Only a viable ceasefire would allow the creation of an environment to effectively fight terrorism," Sinirlioglu said.

--IANS

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Japan's Crown Prince Naruhito has expressed hope for the further development of friendly ties with France in a speech he delivered in Paris.

The Crown Prince is making an official visit to France to mark the 160th anniversary of bilateral friendship.

He attended a welcoming ceremony on Tuesday in front of the building that houses Napoleon's tomb.

The national anthems of both countries were played. The Crown Prince, along with French land minister Jacques Mezard, received a salute from French troops.

The Crown Prince visited the official residence of the president of the National Assembly, the lower house of the French parliament.

The vice president of the lower house, Carole Bureau-Bonnard, welcomed the Crown Prince at the residence. They shook hands before a luncheon.

Bureau-Bonnard offered her condolences for the victims of the recent heavy rain and flooding in western Japan and the major earthquake that hit the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido last week.

The Crown Prince replied in French, expressing his deep gratitude to France for expressing a sense of unity with the Japanese people.

He noted that Japan and France have continued exchanges and cooperation in a wide range of fields for 160 years. - NHK
The US is already almost halfway to meeting its 2025 Paris Agreement goal. Existing commitments and policies will take the country two-thirds of the way towards those objectives despite the absence of federal support on climate action, a new report by America's Pledge said on Wednesday.

"If bottom-up climate collaboration accelerates and the coalition broadens, real economy actors can carry the United States within striking distance of meeting its 2025 Paris pledge," a report unveiled in this California city by Governor Edmund G. Brown and UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Climate Action Michael R. Bloomberg said.

The report 'Fulfilling America's Pledge', prepared by researchers at the University of Maryland and the Rocky Mountain Institute, demonstrates how cities, states, and businesses can bring the US within striking distance of its 2025 emissions reduction target in the absence of federal leadership.

Importantly, the cities, states and businesses can do their part to put us on a post-2025 pathway towards deep decarbonisation as well.

The report was released on the first of the three-day Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS), where over 4,000 business, city, state and civil society delegates are plotting more ambitious commitments to achieve the goals set by the 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement.

Governor Brown and Bloomberg are co-chairs of the GCAS.

"As the world feels the impacts of climate change, the need for widespread, ambitious climate action has never been clearer," UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa, also a co-chair, said in a statement.

"The new report provides a roadmap to galvanize even more action from all levels of society, both in the US and across the globe."

Using a purpose-built integrated assessment model incorporating thousands of aggregated data points from across diverse non-federal actors, the report finds current commitments and market forces will cut economy-wide emissions 17 per cent below 2005 levels by 2025, roughly two-thirds of the way to America's pledge under the Paris Agreement, which called for reductions of 26 to 28 per cent over that period.

Analyzing 10 high-impact climate action strategies across most major economic sectors and all greenhouse gases, the report identifies the most plausible pathways for accelerated implementation of climate commitments by cities, states and businesses, all within realistic legal and political constraints and without federal policy support.

Such pathways include setting and implementing more stringent renewable energy procurement policies, accelerating the phase out of super-polluting refrigerant gases, and mapping and repairing methane leaks from natural gas pipelines.

Among other findings, the America's Pledge report concludes that these 10 strategies, if implemented over the next three years, could drive US emissions down further than current measures, to 21 per cent below 2005 levels by 2025.

If a broader range of city, state and business leaders took more ambitious steps by 2020 to implement such programs, emissions would fall by 24 per cent in 2025, within range of the Nationally Determined Contribution set by the Obama Administration under the Paris Agreement.

These near-term actions would also set the stage for even faster emission reductions beyond 2025, putting the US on the path towards deep decarbonization of the economy, all in the absence of federal leadership.

In the wake of the Trump Administration's decision to pull out of the 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement, an unprecedented number of US cities, states, businesses, and universities have reaffirmed their commitment to helping America reach its Paris climate goals.

In July 2017, former New York City Mayor Bloomberg and California Governor Brown launched the America's Pledge initiative, which seeks to aggregate and quantify the actions to drive down greenhouse gas emissions consistent with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

(Vishal Gulati is in San Francisco at the invitation of the Climate Trends to cover the Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS). He can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)

--IANS

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The Uttarakhand government has suspended two senior IAS officials for their alleged role in the Haridwar-Udhamsingh Nagar-Bareilly highway (NH-74) compensation scam, an official said on Wednesday.

Pankaj Kumar Pandey and Chandresh Yadav have been found working arbitrarily and being involved in financial irregularities in connection with the widening of the national highway.

The state government had acquired land on both sides of the highway in Rudrapur for widening. It is alleged that many agricultural lands were shown as commercial and compensation was given in violation of rules.

The two officers were then District Magistrate of Udhamsingh Nagar.

The suspended officials have been attached to Additional Chief Secretary (Personnel) Radha Raturi for now.

Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat had ordered the probe and disciplinary action has been ordered against them.

The Bharatiya Janata Party government, soon after coming to power, had ordered the probe into the matter and suspended seven sub-divisional magistrates (SDMs) including one who was retired.

A Special Investigation Team was formed later and based on its report action now has been taken against the two IAS officials, Chief Secretary Utpal Kumar Singh said.

--IANS

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US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump have attended an observance in Pennsylvania -- the site of where a fourth plane crash had crashed on September 11, 2001.

On the 17th anniversary of the attacks the Trumps attended the ceremony in Shanksville "where a new Tower of Voices memorialises the victims of Flight 93, which crashed there 17 years ago, the White House said.

Trump marked the anniversary by paying tribute to his lawyer and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani before heading to the memorial service

"Rudy Giuliani did a great job as Mayor of New York City during the period ... His leadership, bravery and skill must never be forgotten. Rudy is a TRUE WARRIOR!" Trump tweeted on Tuesday.

The First Lady took to Twitter with an image from the moment of silence held last year at the White House. "#NeverForget 9.11.01," she tweeted.

US Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted:"We received a terrible reminder of the evil in our world. In the midst of horrific tragedy America stood strong.

"We will never be the same, but we will always resilient. Today we honour the memory of those who died, and those who keep us safe."

On September 11, 2001, 19 militants associated with the Al Qaeda hijacked four airplanes and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the US.

Two of the planes were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Centre in New York City, a third plane hit the Pentagon just outside Washington, D.C., and the fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.

Almost 3,000 people were killed during the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which triggered major US initiatives to combat terrorism and defined the presidency of George W. Bush.

--IANS

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ArcelorMittal on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that it was ready to pay Rs 7,000 crore - a liability which one of its sister concerns is burdened with for having 29 per cent stakes in now beleaguered Uttam Galva and KSS Petron - as it wanted to have its presence in India's steel sector and also live harmoniously with the banks.

Telling the bench of Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman and Justice Indu Malhotra that it would pay Rs 7000 crore, ArcelorMittal said: "I don't want to fight with Committee of Creditors. I find the (Essar Steel) plant worthy. I don't have a steel plant in India, It is worth it."

The Committee of Creditors comprises 16 lender banks that have financed the Essar Steel.

However, senior lawyer Harish Salve, appearing for ArcelorMittal, said that the company is willing to pay Rs 7,000 crore dues if it emerged as the successful bidder, but not as a precondition to become eligible to bid.

Telling the court to consider the bid of Rs 42,000 crore plus Rs 7,000 crore, Salve said: "If I am not the highest bidder, I go home. If you apply law, apply the law and see where we end up."

He said that Rs 7,000 crore, was already lying in its escrow account.

Salve said this as the court asked him if they could jack up their offer noting that if they clear their liabilities then they are at par with the NuMetal.

Salve said that they had acquired a little over 29 per cent stakes in the Uttam Galva but their's was a passive presence and at no stage they were promoters of the company now with sagging fortunes.

Even as Salve dwelt on the passive role of steel baron Mittal's company in Uttam Galva, senior counsel Mukul Rohatgi appearing for NuMetal said that they were co-promoters of the company.

On Rohatgi's intervention, Salve said: "Of course we had that right. We never exercised them. I never stepped into the shoes of promoters. I was never on the board or exercised voting rights."

Salve took exception to NCLAT holding that the stigma of NPA attached to KSS Patron cannot be cleared by KSS Global' by divesting its shares in 'KSS Petron' on 9th February, 2018.

The paragraph of NCLAT's September 7, 2018 judgment that troubled petitioner ArcelorMittal said: " Therefore, we hold that L.N. Mittal Group, a connected person of 'AM India Ltd.' being the promoter and in the control and management of 'KSS Petron' since 2011 and 'KSS Petron' having classified as 'NPA' by multiple banks, the stigma attached to it cannot be cleared by 'KSS Global' by divesting its shares in 'KSS Petron' on 9th February, 2018..."

It further said that ace... the stigma will continue for the purpose of ineligibility under clause (c) Section 29A, till the payment of all overdue amount with interest thereon and charges relating to NPA account of 'KSS Petron'.

Justice Nariman said "it is upsetting and is not correct at all".

In a counter attack on rival NuMetal, Salve described it as a Shell Company that was set up just seven days before it entered the field to bid for financially beleaguered Essar Steel facing insolvency.

Pointing to the holes in NCLAT judgment, he said that the Russia's VTB Bank backed Numetal's Rs 37,000 crore bid was accepted by the appellate tribunal without any riders.

He described as "highly unusual" the Russian bank's backing for the takeover of a sick Indian company.

He said on account of sanctions by the EU in the wake of Russia's annexation of Crimea, the Russian bank was barred from advancing any credits or trading or raising any capital from the market.

He said that the EU directives are enforceable here in India.

Meanwhile, NuMetal too has moved the court challenging three days time given by NCLAT to ArcelorMittal to deposit Rs 7000 crore to become eligible to bid.

Hearing on ArcelorMittal's appeal will continue on Thursday.

--IANS

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As colourful clay idols of Lord Ganesh are ushered into Hindu homes in Goa ahead of Ganesh Chaturthi, the symbolic significance of the deity, as a remover of obstacles and a god of new beginnings, may well dwell on the minds of state leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The party's top-rung leaders are battling a crisis of loyalty between their party and the ailing high priest of the BJP in Goa, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, who in the past has cleared innumerable political obstacles and ushered new beginnings for the party and its cadre. The 62-year-old former Defence Minister's persisting illness is now threatening to weigh heavy on the fortunes of his party as well as the BJP-led coalition government that he heads.

Parrikar returned from the US -- for the third time in six months -- after yet another round of treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer last week, but has failed to attend office.

The question of whether and who will replace Parrikar is still not a subject for on-record conversations for BJP leaders like state party General Secretary Sadanand Shet Tanavde and South Goa MP Narendra Savoikar, who insist that "there is no question of a change in leadership". But in the sanctuary of an off-record conversation, there is anxiety, anguish and worry -- both for Parrikar's failing health as well as the gaining perception that the Goa BJP and the government are virtually leaderless entities.

There appears to be neither hope, nor a consensus, among the party's senior leadership about who could potentially replace Parrikar for now, especially since his health is worsening, although the Chief Minister's Office as well as BJP spokespersons insist that the ailing leader is recovering just fine.

Last month, perhaps Parrikar's only peer in the Goa BJP in terms of longevity and acceptability among cadre, Union Minister of State for AYUSH Shripad Naik, made the first attempt to spark a conversation about "alternative leadership" in Goa, while conceding to a crisis. But within a matter of hours of his presser, a planned trip to Delhi to meet the party High Command by Naik himself and other top party functionaries was called off, after some leaders met Parrikar, who was admitted to a Mumbai hospital.

Since then, Naik too toes the line of "no question of leadership change". Now that the cry for leadership change has been swiftly squelched, the question is now limited to sincere, but muffled murmurs among BJP leaders, who feel that political ground beneath them is slipping, in the face of a series of scandals -- the inaction against those exposed for using carcinogenic agent formalin to preserve fish in a seafood-loving state and the never-ending mining ban and the seeming lack of effort by the state government to overcome it, being the two most significant.

It is not that there aren't options.

One of the few propped up include Speaker Pramod Sawant, who Parrikar, ignoring protocol, had handpicked to lead the government during the state Independence Day parade.

Alliance partners Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party and the Goa Forward Party have also been sounded out or have pushed for merging their legislative units into the BJP as a pre-condition for the top chair, according to sources.

Last week, Goa's political circles were in a tizzy about former Chief Minister and Congress MLA Digambar Kamat -- a favourite of the influential mining lobby -- along with other Congress MLAs joining the BJP with the Chief Ministerial berth as a prize for the coup. But Kamat, who on a clear winter day in February 2005 quit the BJP to join the Congress complaining of "suffocation" within the saffron party, has now formally said that no such move was on the cards.

Former Goa Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Subhash Velingkar, who has groomed the top rung of BJP leadership, including Parrikar, Naik and state BJP president Vinay Tendulkar, blames Parrikar for the lack of credible second-rung leaders.

"He (Parrikar) has ensured that there are no second-rung leaders. Laxmikant Parsenkar (former CM), Rajendr Arlekar (Speaker) and Naik have been systematically sidelined, which is the cause of this crisis. Leadership change right now is imperative," Velingkar told IANS.

One would wonder if Ganesh Chaturthi, with all its inherent symbolism, would usher in a new beginning for the BJP in Goa or, at least for now, clear up the obstacles.

(Mayabhushan Nagvenkar can be contacted at mayabhushan.n@ians.in)

--IANS

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Eighteen days after electric supply to their homes snapped, residents of Kanawani Pustapur in this district finally heaved a sigh of relief Wednesday as power was again restored, officials said.

The electricity department has replaced one defunct transformer, installed a new transformer of 100 KV and supply has been restored, District Magistrate Ritu Maheshwari said.

One more transformer will start functioning from tomorrow, she said. The electricity department was also planning to enhance the capacity of the transformers, Maheshwari said.

Kanawani village is situated in the flood-plain area of the Hindon River. Earlier, the village was registered under the land revenue records of district Gautam Buddh Nagar but a few years ago it was included in the Ghaziabad district.

Locals were upset that even after Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath declared Ghaziabad as a 'no power cut zone', officers of Pashimanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited) paid no heed to their complaints for several days.

Yesterday, villagers had told PTI the problems the 18-day long power-cut had inflicted on them.

"Life is impossible without electricity these days. Yet, we are living here in the national capital region without power for the last 18 days since all the four transformers burnt due to overload," Sunil Kumar Chauhan had said.

The forty eight-year old Chauhan said the 2,400 families of the village were dependent on submersible pumps for water but with no electricity the trouble had amplified.

Suneeta, 45, who had been living here for over six years now, had said her daughter was forced to skip school because of the situation.

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Eighteen Indian fishermen have been apprehended and their three boats seized by the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA) off Gujarat coast, officials of the Porbandar-based National Fishworkers' Forum (NFF) said Wednesday.

Two boats with 12 fishermen on board had sailed from the coastal town of Porbandar a week ago, while six others on the third boat belonged to Okha town of Devbhumi-Dwarka district.

These fishermen were apprehended by the PMSA near the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) in the Arabian sea Tuesday, NFF secretary Manish Lodhari told PTI.

"Eighteen fishermen belonging to Porbandar and Okha in Gujarat sailing in three boats were apprehended by the PMSA near IMBL yesterday and taken to Karachi port," he said.

According to Lodhari, this is the first incident of fishermen's apprehension since the resumption of fishing activities on August 15 after a three-month long mandatory ban during the monsoon season.

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A 26-year-old hotel employee allegedly died of electrocution in central Delhi's Karol Bagh area, police said Wednesday.

The deceased was identified as Vijay, they said, adding that he worked as a cook at a local hotel since August 19.

The police said they rushed to the spot after they were alerted that a man's body was lying on the roof of the said hotel on Monday night.

Vijay was taken to a nearby hospital where he was declared brought dead by the doctors, a police officer said.

Burn injuries were found on the right arm and left shoulder of the deceased, he added.

During investigation, it was learnt that Vijay had gone to take a shower in the bathroom on the roof of the hotel where he allegedly died of electric shock from the air-condition unit installed near the toilet, the officer said.

The family members of the deceased, who are in Jharkhand, have been informed about the death, police said. The post-mortem will be conducted after the family members reach Delhi. Further investigation is underway.

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Osaka's tourism has been hit hard as last week's typhoon ripped through western Japan causing a partial closure and reduced flights at Kansai International Airport.

Typhoon Jebi caused one runway at Japan's third-largest airport to be flooded, making one of its two terminals inoperable, while the sole bridge linking the airport on a man-made island in Osaka Bay to the mainland was damaged as a tanker ripped from its mooring smashed into it.

Although both domestic and international flights have partially resumed, only 10 percent of international flights were operating as of Tuesday.

While cleanup efforts are under way in the flooded terminal, its escalators and elevators were not working and electricity was cut off in some areas.

There were some signs of recovery at the other terminal as restaurants and convenience stores started to re-open, but the usual mass of foreign passengers -- mostly Chinese, Koreans and South Asians -- are gone. Many seats remain empty in the lobby.

"The number of foreign visitors is low and passengers are few. We don't think we will recover easily," said a public relations person for Peach Aviation Ltd., a budget airline with an office at the terminal. "We think the typhoon made an extremely negative impression on tourists so we need to emphasize the safety aspect."

Osaka's tourism industry is worried about the sudden reduction in visitors to the city.

The number of tourists to Osaka Castle has almost been cut by half compared with last year due to the typhoon.

Only 4,000 people visited on the first Saturday after the typhoon, and about 4,100 on Sunday compared with a daily average of 7,600 in fiscal 2017. The figure had translated into 2.75 million visitors that year, composed equally of Japanese and foreign tourists.

Hotels were also hit hard by the typhoon and there was prolonged traffic disruption. "Many foreign tourist groups have canceled their reservations and there are few new reservations," said one hotel manager, where 40 to 50 percent of its customers are foreigners. "Reservations had already gone down after this June's earthquake. Recovery has become even more difficult now," the person said, referring to a powerful earthquake that hit the Osaka area on June 18. - Japan Today
The counter-intelligence wing of the Punjab Police on Wednesday claimed to have arrested three alleged contract killers in connection with Ludhiana's infamous Rinkle murder case.

Police also recovered two sophisticated illegal pistols along with live cartridges and two cars used in the crime, Counter-Intelligence Wing's Assistant Inspector General, HPS Khakh, said in an official release.

The accused, who belong to Doaba's Sheru gang, were identified as Gurmeet Singh (36), Manmeet Singh (26) and Bhupinder Singh (34).

Jagdeep Singh Rinkle (22) was beaten to death at his house in Ludhiana on July 20. Khakh said Sheru's gang, led by Satnam Singh, along with Bhupinder, Gurmeet, Manmeet, Monu Kaul and Gurpreet Singh, was allegedly involved in the contract killings and robberies.

Police said they had the information that the accused were conspiring to target an agency for loot purpose and moving towards Bhogpur town in a white car from Tanda town of Hoshiarpur.

The officer said the information was timely-shared with Navjot Singh Mahal, SSP, Jalandhar(rural), and a joint team of the counter-intelligence wing and SHO Bhogpur was formed to nab the gangsters on Tuesday.

Three members of the gang were arrested, while other managed to flee away from the spot, police said. Apart from the weapons, police also recovered a car which was used in the murder



Khakh informed that Jatinder Pal Singh Sunny, son of the Ludhiana municipal councillor, had allegedly hired these gangsters for the murder of Rinkle. Sunny had surrendered before the police two days after Rinkle's murder.

Giving the details of the case, Khakh said the murder was committed to settle personal rivalry. He said Sunny, who was in good terms with gang head Sukhi Dherowalia, had struck a deal with him to eliminate Rinkle, he added.

"Following the deal, Sukhi and his accomplices Bhupinder, Gurmeet, Manmeet, Monu Kaul and Gurpreet Singh, Vishal, Deepu reached Ludhiana in a car and met Sunny who booked two rooms in a hotel for them.," he said.

Sunny and Budhu associates stayed overnight in the hotel. On the next morning, they took breakfast and Sunny left the hotel in a car and came back with rods and other sharp-edged weapons, he said.

"Around10 am, all left the hotel to attack Rinkle. Two associates of Sunny riding on a bike, joined them in the way and barged in Rinkle's house. Sunny hit hard on Rinkle head with an iron rod, following which he fell unconscious. But he continued hitting his head," he said.

They fled away from the spot. He said further investigations into the case were going on, he added.

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Three people were killed and 43 others injured when a man drove his SUV into a crowd and later went on a stabbing spree in China's Hunan province on Wednesday evening.

The attack took place as people had gathered in a square by the river in Hengdong county.

The driver, Yang Zanyun, 54, first ploughed through the people with his vehicle and later got out of it and went on a rampage attacking people with a knife.

Three people were killed and 43 others were injured, state-run China Daily reported.

Yang was detained by the police, who said he has a criminal record and has been jailed several times.

Knife attacks by disgruntled people in public places and schools to highlight their grievances periodically occur in China.

Several bystanders posted graphic video footage shortly after the incident on Chinese social media. In the videos, dozens of people can be seen lying on the ground, some in pools of blood, while panicked crowds and emergency services personnel gather around them, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

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Senior IPS officer Suresh Arora has been given a three-month extension as the chief of Punjab police.

According to official orders, the appointments committee of the Union cabinet has approved the Home Ministry's proposal to extend Arora's service for of three months beyond the date of his superannuation on September 30, in public interest.

Earlier, the Amarinder Singh government had approached the Centre, seeking extension of Arora's tenure as the DGP.

Arora, a 1982 batch IPS officer, was made the DGP in 2015 by the SAD-BJP government after replacing senior IPS officer Sumedh Singh Saini, following police firing at Behbal Kalan in Faridkot.

When the Congress came to power last year, it did not change the incumbent from the DGP post.

Notably, the state government had earlier announced that it would approach the Supreme Court to review its July 3, 2018 order, directing states to choose and appoint their DGP from a panel to be constituted by the UPSC based on the proposals of the state government concerned.

On August 28, the Punjab Assembly had passed the Police (Amendment) Bill 2018, to pave the way for setting up of a State Security Commission for selection of DGP.

The state government had decided to amend the Punjab Police Act, 2007, to enable constitution of a state police panel for appointment of DGP after seeking Advocate General Atul Nanda's opinion on this issue.

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A court here Wednesday granted four days police custody of five people arrested on the charge of hatching a plot to eliminate some leaders of two Hindu outfits in the city.

Allowing a plea by the police, Principal District Sessions Judge R Shaktivel directed them to produce the accused in the court on September 16.

The judge also ordered that the advocates and relatives of the accused be allowed to meet them at a particular time during the period of police custody.

Police had arrested the five people on September 2 based on an intelligence input that they were plotting to kill Hindu outfit leaders, including Arjun Sampath of Hindu Makkal Katchi and Anbu Mari of Shakthi Sena.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Nine people were killed and 46 others injured when a man drove his SUV into a crowd and later went on a stabbing spree in China's Hunan province on Wednesday evening.

The attack took place as people had gathered in a square by the river in Hengdong county.

The driver, Yang Zanyun, 54, first ploughed through the people with his vehicle and later got out of it and went on a rampage attacking people with a knife.

Nine people were killed and 46 others were injured, state-run Global Times reported.

Yang was detained by the police, who said he has a criminal record and has been jailed several times.

Knife attacks by disgruntled people in public places and schools to highlight their grievances periodically occur in China.

Several bystanders posted graphic video footage shortly after the incident on Chinese social media. In the videos, dozens of people can be seen lying on the ground, some in pools of blood, while panicked crowds and emergency services personnel gather around them, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

Local media reports quoted a restaurant manager in the vicinity of the attack as saying that he saw a red Land Rover suddenly ploughing through a crowd of people at a high speed after 7 PM.

A large number of mostly elderly people were dancing or walking in the square after dinner, at that time. Many fell to the ground after they were hit by the speeding SUV.

Uyghur militants from Xinjiang from the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) have also in the past attacked crowds with speeding cars.

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A methane gas explosion in a coal mine in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Wednesday killed nine miners while three others were still trapped, police said.

The incident occurred in Akhorwal area of Derra Adam Khel town of Kohat district due to the accumulation of methane gas, police said.

According to police, bodies of nine trapped labourers have been recovered while efforts are under way to rescue the remaining three miners trapped inside the coal mine owned by Haji Firdous.

The police said that so far three miners have been injured in the accident and they have been shifted to a nearby hospital.

Mining is considered highly dangerous in Pakistan where dozens of miners are killed each year due to lack of modern mining facilities, training and equipment.

According to the Pakistan Central Mines Labour Federation (PCMLF), about 100 to 200 labourers die on average in coal mine accidents every year.

Explosions of this nature are not uncommon in coal mines in Pakistan, most of which are located in Balochistan and Sindh.

In August, 13 miners were killed in Balochistan's Sanjidi after a mine collapsed. Two others suffocated to death in an accident on September 2 in Balochistan's Much tehsil. PTI AYZ



Pakistan-mine-accident



Nine killed in Pakistan coal mine collapse =(Picture)= PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Sept 12, 2018 (AFP) - Nine miners were killed and four injured when the roof of a coal mine collapsed on Wednesday in Pakistan's northwestern town of Darra Adam Khel, officials said. The incident, the second fatal coal mining accident in Pakistan in a month, happened in Akhurwal village as workers entered the coal mine at the start of the day, senior local administration official Shahid Ilyas told AFP. He said the nine bodies and all the injured workers were later pulled out of the mine, with two seriously wounded. A senior local police official, Muhammad Ejaz, confirmed the incident and said they were investigating. Pakistan's coal mines are notorious for poor safety standards. At least 18 miners were killed after a blast tore through a coal mine in Sinjidi village near the southwestern city of Quetta on August 13. In a similar incident, at least 43 miners were killed in Sorange district of Balochistan in 2011.

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The 20 AAP MLAs, who were facing allegation of holding office of profit, made a plea before the Election Commission Wednesday to cross examine Delhi government officials.

The petitioner, who had moved the EC seeking disqualification of these Delhi legislators for allegedly holding office of profit, opposed their plea, maintaining that the documents filed by the Delhi government officials were in the form of affidavit and there was no need to cross-examine them.

The poll panel reserved its order on the issue, petitioner Prashant Patel said after the hearing.

The EC is hearing afresh the case related to 20 AAP MLAs allegedly holding office of profit by being appointed parliamentary secretaries.

Earlier, their plea to cross examine Patel was rejected by the EC. They had then moved the Delhi High Court challenging the decision. The HC had said that while Patel cannot be cross examined, the MLAs were free to move the EC afresh to cross examine officials.

The AAP lawmakers have said it was important that the officials were cross-examined to ascertain if they had derived any profit as parliamentary secretaries.

The EC had, on January 19, recommended the disqualification of the 20 AAP MLAs. President Ram Nath Kovind had accepted the poll panel's opinion the next day.

But the EC's move was quashed by the Delhi High Court, terming it "bad in law".

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The Andhra Pradesh government has donated Rs 35 crore to rain-battered Kerala for relief and rehabilitation work.

Andhra Pradesh deputy chief minister Nimmakayala Chinnarajappa Wednesday handed over a cheque for the amount to state Industries minister E P Jayarajan here.

Chinnarajappa told reporters that Andhra Pradesh has also given 2,014 tons of rice and kits with essential food articles to Kerala.

The state witnessed one of its worst calamities last month, he said, adding that Andhra Pradesh would support Kerala in its rebuilding efforts.

Chinnarajappa asked the Centre to accord sanction for accepting assistance from foreign countries during the time of calamities.

He also asked Kerala to utilise a portion of the relief amount given by his state for rebuilding Pamba, the foothills of the Lord Ayappa temple at Sabarimala, which suffered massive devastation in the deluge.

Andhra Pradesh has a special connection with Sabarimala as lakhs of people from the state visit the hill shrine every year, he added.

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Steel and mining firm ArcelorMittal on Wednesday assailed in the the order of the NCLAT asking it to pay Rs 70 billion to become eligible to bid for Essar Steel, saying that it had already divested its shares in the firms Uttam Galva Steel and KSS Petron, whose bad loans were directed to be paid by it.

ArcelorMittal India (AMI), the steel tycoon L N Mittal-promoted group which has made a bid of Rs 420 billion for Essar Steel, alleged before a bench of Justices R F Nariman and Indu Malhotra that NuMetal was ineligible to bid for the steel company.

On the other hand, NuMetal, a consortium of Russia's VTB-JSW, told the bench that it has also filed an appeal challenging the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) order allowing ArcelorMittal to take part in the bid.

"ArcelorMittal is completely disqualified. The law says that the petitioner (AMI) is disqualified for want of non-payment (of Rs 70 billion)," senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for NuMetal, said.

Senior lawyer Harish Salve, appearing for ArcelorMittal, assailed the NCLAT order saying the company had exited Uttam Galva in February this year and its revised bid was submitted after it had divested from Uttam Galva. Moreover, ArcelorMittal never had any directors on the board of Uttam Galva, he added.

"We did not set up these (Uttam Galva Steel and KSS Petron). We did not exercise management powers. I had divested the shares. No bank has ever made any demand with regard to their loans. No personal guarantees were given," Salve said.

Salve also referred to NuMetal's earlier share-holding pattern and said it was incorporated in a joint venture with Arora Enterprises and Russian VTB Bank.

Arora Enterprises was owned by Rewant Ruia who is related to Essar Steel promoter, he said, adding that the European Union had passed an order against the VTB Bank for irregularities and it was "unusual" that a Russian bank was wanting to take over a sick company.

At the outset, when Salve alleged that NuMetal was ineligible to bid, the bench said "You worry about your's client (AMI) and not about Rohatgi's client (NuMetal)".

He said intially the bids of both ArcelorMittal and NuMetal were rejected but later NuMetal was allowed to bid and a condition was imposed on AMI to pay the money as it was a "stigma".

The bench posted the appeal of ArcelorMittal for hearing on Thursday when the appeal of Numetal may also come up for consideration.

On being inquired as to whether the court would pass any interim order in the matter, the bench said it "will pass order straightaway. There will be no interim order."



ArcelorMittal has moved the apex court challenging the NCLAT order of September 7 by which it had held as eligible the second bid of NuMetal, a consortium of Russia's VTB-JSW, for Essar Steel.

The NCLAT had asked ArcelorMittal to clear the stigma of defaulter by clearing the dues of its then subsidiaries. It had last Friday ruled that NuMetal's second bid for Essar Steel was eligible but the same by ArcelorMittal will qualify only if it cleared the Rs 7,000 crore dues of firms it was previously associated with within three days.

Both the had in February submitted separate bids to takeover Essar Steel, which lenders were auctioning, to recover their Rs 490 billion defaulted loans.

The Committee of Creditors (CoC) had, however, disqualified both the bids saying their promoters were tied to which were bank loan defaulters and hence ineligible under Section 29A of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

The second round of bids was called where JSW Steel joined NuMetal to put in a bid of Rs 370 billion, while Vedanta Ltd entered the fray as a third bidder. ArcelorMittal too had put in a bid.

The NCLAT had last week directed the lenders of the Essar Steel to expeditiously take a decision on the bids. It held that NuMetal was not related to promoters of Essar Steel and hence eligible for submitting a resolution plan for the company.

However, in the case of ArcelorMittal, it had held that the company was connected to Uttam Galva and KSS Petron, which are classified by many banks as non-performing assets.
Diversified PSU Balmer Lawrie & Co, under the ministry of petroleum and natural gas, is planning to make a capital expenditure of Rs 125 crore in the current financial year, an official said.

The money would be mainly spent to strengthen the company's logistics, grease and lubricants, and industrial packaging verticals, its chairman and managing director Prabal Basu said Wednesday.

Basu, who was talking to reporters after the company's AGM here, said the logistics division was mainly dealing with exim cargo. "Presently, 60 per cent of the cargo was being sent by air. We want to send more freight through ocean from the present levels of 20 per cent".

Ideally the ratio between air and ocean cargo should be 50:50, he said.

The company has also got land in Bhubaneswar for setting up a temperature controlled warehouse.

He said that the upcoming Vadodara plant in Gujarat would be commissioned by the month-end which would manufacture steel drums with an annual capacity of six lakh units.

Regarding Transafe, a subsidiary which deals with inland cargo, Basu said that the company has a debt of Rs 180 crore. "We are discussing with investors to take 50 per cent equity in the company and also to pay-off the debt through a one-time-settlement", he said.

The company had also constituted a start-up fund with a corpus of Rs five crore, he said.

"We have decided to fund to two start-ups in collaboration with IIM Joka", he said.

Basu said that the company is expecting a rise in the turnover to Rs 2000 crore in the current fiscal from Rs 1800 crore which it clocked in the last financial year.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The agitating students of the Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya (BCKV) in Nadia district blocked a road Wednesday alleging that they were attacked by outsiders inside the campus, police said.

The students blocked the Haringhata-Kanchrapara road in front of the university demanding action against outsiders who entered the campus and allegedly attacked them, the police said.

The blockade was later lifted, they added.

The students of the BCKV are agitating since September 7 demanding the removal of the Dean (Agriculture) Srikanth Das and Dean Students Welfare (DSW) Goutam Chakraborty.

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Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi on Wednesday expressed shock over poor maintenance of the dental chairs in the government-run Mahatma Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Dental Sciences near here.

After visiting the hospital, Bedi, in a press release, said almost all the dental chairs were in a deplorable condition putting the patients at risk, and the outpatient wing lacked sanitation and proper upkeep.

She said she has issued instructions to the society through which the government runs the college and the hospital thatthe dental chairs should be repaired or replaced within the next three months.

The college should adhere to the norms of the Dental Council of India on the requirements of the institution, she said, adding that the pending stipend for interns should be disbursed without delay.

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Senior Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia said Wednesday that the ruling BJP in Madhya Pradesh has forgotten two "gods", the voter and the farmer.

He also criticised Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for using a hi-tech bus-turned chariot for his 'Janashirwad Yatra' ahead of coming elections.

"There are only two gods...Annadata (farmer) and Matdata (voter), but Shivraj and the BJP-led Modi (prime minister Narendra Modi) government at the centre have forgotten both of them," Scindia said.

The Congress leader was addressing 'Parivartan rally' at Moondi in Burhanpur district.

"Chouhan emerges out of his hi-tech bus in a lift and behaves like a god," Scindia said.

Referring to last year's police firing during a farmers' protest at Mandsaur, in which six persons were killed, Scindia said when their kin sat on fast to demand justice, the government brought them to Bhopal, 450 km away.

These protesters were then offered "coconut water in silver glasses" to break the fast, he said.

"There is a tradition among Hindus, if someone dies, the family members will not leave the house for 13 days as they are in mourning, but the BJP has no respect for such traditions (as it brought the deceased's kin to Bhopal).

"While BJP leaders observed fast in air conditioned tents, I observed fast in a normal tent for getting justice for farmers," he said.

The Congress government will waive farmers' loans in ten days of coming to power, curb corruption and make the environment safe for women, Scindia said.

He also hit out at the Modi government for demonetisation, saying the exercise claimed over a hundred lives across the country.

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CPI(M) politburo member Manik Sarkar on Wednesday hit out at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Tripura ahead of the panchayat bypolls, saying it was "slaughtering democracy" in the state and the people in its rural areas were suffering from a food crisis.

The former Tripura chief minister accused the saffron party of trying to choke the voice of the Opposition and not allowing it to work democratically.

"The BJP is just slaughtering democracy in the state. Individual rights, civil liberties and human rights are persecuted under the BJP rule," Sarkar told a press conference at the CPI(M) state committee office here.

He alleged that there were no employment opportunities in the villages and the rural people were suffering from a severe food crisis. Many of them had to cross the international border and go to Bangladesh to collect forest products and sell them for a living, he claimed.

"The new (BJP) government has to make its position clear on the issue," Sarkar said.

He alleged that the BJP had grabbed power in Tripura by hatching conspiracies and added that the people of the state were gradually understanding it.

"I am sure the common people will not remain silent for long," Sarkar said.

On the series of clashes between the BJP and other political parties on Tuesday, the last date for filing nominations for the three-tier rural bypolls in the state, he claimed that elected public representatives were forced to resign from their positions.

Over 50 per cent of seats in the three-tier panchayat bodies fell vacant within five months of the BJP-led government coming to power.

"The bypoll was announced but the opposition parties were barred from submitting nomination papers. Those who collected the nomination forms were attacked and their houses ransacked," Sarkar said.

Of the 6,111 seats in the gram panchayat bodies across the 58 blocks of Tripura, 3,207 fell vacant due to mass resignations.

Sarkar claimed that 3,148 of these seats were vacated due to forced resignation. The case was similar in 161 of the 168 vacant panchayat samiti seats and 16 of the 18 vacant zilla parishad seats, he claimed.

Earlier in the day, state CPI(M) spokesperson Goutam Das alleged that the supporters of the Left party were attacked and not allowed to file nominations for the panchayat bypolls.

The Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT), an ally of the BJP, also alleged that its activists and supporters were attacked over filing of nominations in different parts of the state and demanded rescheduling of the bypoll.

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The BJP on Wednesday exhorted party workers to ensure victory of the NDA in all 40 Lok Sabha seats of Bihar in the Lok Sabha polls due within less than a year dismissing efforts by the opposition to cobble together a "Grand Alliance" as "a hypothesis and a myth".

Upon the conclusion of a two-day meeting of the state executive at the international pilgrim town Bodh Gaya near here, the party's national general secretary in-charge for Bihar Bhupendra Yadav also took a swipe at the opposition Congress-RJD combine, saying "the BJP is like a family. It does not belong to a family".

"We will win all 40 seats in the state by virtue of our ideology and organizational depth. We must drive out corrupt parties which believe in dynasty rule. The Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) is just a hypothesis and a myth. It is a grouping of opportunistic dynasts", a BJP release quoted Yadav as saying.

He also underscored that "whenever the Congress has lost power in a state, it has seldome regained the lost ground" and pointed out that the BJP had been growing stronger, especially since Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister.

"In 2014, the NDA had only 14 constituents while today it has 30. The number of states ruled by the coalition has also risen from five to 19", he said.

Deputy Chief Minister and national executive member Sushil Kumar Modi claimed "in Bihar 65 per cent of voters are with the NDA. The coalition has grown strong with the return of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. He was the face of the Grand Alliance which has disintegrated upon his exit".

On rival Lalu Prasad's party he said, "the RJD is riven by family strife which is evident from the absence of Tej Pratap Yadav at key events like Tuesday's party meet and Monday's Bharat Bandh".

"The election next year will be between the strong leadership of Narendra Modi and an opposition without any credible leader", he added.

State president Nityanand Rai said "we must ensure that we bag more than 50 per cent of votes in the next election. Our booth level workers have a big responsibility".

He also launched a scathing attack on Congress president Rahul Gandhi and RJD heir apparent Tejashwi Yadav saying "they care only for their families, They have no real concern for the country or the state".

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A fire engulfed an industrial unit in suburban Andheri in the wee hours Wednesday, a civic official said.

A fireman received burn injuries while dousing the flames and was rushed to hospital, he said.

The blaze erupted around 2 am at the commercial unit located in the SEEPZ industrial area at Marol in Andheri, the official said.

Fire fighting engines and water tankers were rushed to the spot and the flames were doused by 6 am, he said.

Fireman Shivkumar Suryakant Satarval, 25, suffered burn injuries in the incident and was admitted to the Cooper Hospital where his condition was reported to be stable, he said.

No one was present inside the unit at the time of the fire, the official said, adding that the cause of the blaze was yet to be ascertained.

There have been a number of fire incidents in residential buildings and industrial units in Mumbai in the last few months.

A blaze occurred Tuesday on the second floor of a commercial building situated in Madhur Industrial Estate in Andheri, injuring a fire fighter.

On September 4, a commercial unit in suburban Malad caught fire, but no casualty was reported.

On August 22, a fire occurred on the 12th floor of a posh high-rise residential building in Dadar area, killing four people and injuring 16 others.

On August 27, a blaze engulfed a three-storey residential building in Parel area, but there was no casualty.

On August 5, a fire at the Regional Transport Office (RTO) in Tardeo area of south Mumbai destroyed hundreds of documents and other items, but no one was injured.

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The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved signing of a memorandum of understanding between India and Malta to strengthen cooperation in tourism sector, an official release said Wednesday.

The MoU will be signed during the upcoming visit of the vice president to Malta.

The main objectives of the MoU is to encourage the promotion of quality destinations for the tourism industry in both countries, to increase tourist arrivals in both countries from the entire world through the territories of India and Malta and to promote human resource development in tourism and travel-related industries in both countries.

"This MoU will help the two parties in creating an institutional mechanism for enhancing cooperation in the tourism sector. It will also help India in increasing foreign tourist arrivals from Malta. This, in turn, will result in economic development and employment generation," the release said.

The MoU will create favourable conditions for long-term tourism cooperation for mutual benefits of all stakeholders within the broader framework and areas of cooperation. It will also explore to incorporate the best practices in order to implement the measures that will realize its objectives, it said.

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The Union cabinet Wednesday approved a memorandum of understanding between India and South Africa on cooperation for exploration and uses of the outer space for peaceful purposes, an official statement said.

The MoU is one of the three pacts signed between India and South Africa in Johannesburg on July 26 during the 10th BRICS Summit.

The cooperation under this MoU encompasses areas like remote-sensing of the Earth, satellite communication and satellite-based navigation, space science and planetary exploration, use of spacecraft, launch vehicles, space systems and ground systems.

This MoU envisages to plan and implement joint space projects of mutual benefit and interest, establishment, operation and maintenance of ground stations for supporting space activities, sharing of satellite data, results of experiments, and scientific and technological information.

The cabinet also approved another MoU between India and Brunei on cooperation in the operation of telemetry tracking and telecommand station for satellite and launch vehicles, and for cooperation in the field of space research, science and applications.

The MoU was signed in New Delhi on July 19.

The pact will enable India to continue to operate, maintain and augment its ground station meant for supporting India's launch vehicle and satellite missions.

"This will also help India to share its experience and expertise in space activities through training of officials and students from Brunei Darussalam on space technology applications," another official statement stated.

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Ahead of the 2019 polls, the government Wednesday announced a Rs 15,053-crore procurement policy allowing states to choose a compensation scheme and rope in private agencies for procurement to ensure a profitable price to farmers.

The new umbrella policy 'Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay SanraksHan Abhiyan' (PM-AASHA) was approved in the Cabinet meeting, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, held here.

"The PM-AASHA is aimed at ensuring remunerative prices to the farmers for their produce as announced in the Union Budget for 2018. This is a historic decision," Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh told reporters after the Cabinet meeting.

Under the PM-AASHA, states would be allowed to choose from three schemes -- existing Price Support Scheme (PSS), newly designed Price Deficiency Payment Scheme (PDPS) and Pilot of Private Procurement Stockist Scheme (PPSS)-- to undertake procurement when prices of commodities fall below the MSP level, he said.

The Cabinet has sanctioned Rs 15,053 crore to implement the PM-AASHA in the next two financial years, of which Rs 6,250 crore will be spent this year.

That apart, the credit line for procurement agencies has been enhanced by providing additional government guarantee of Rs 16,550 crore, taking the total to Rs 45,550 crore.

The government mentioned that the PDPS is on the lines of Madhya Pradesh government's Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana (BBY), but will protect oilseeds farmers only.

Under the PDPS, the government will pay to growers the difference between the MSP and monthly average price of oilseeds quoted in wholesale market. This would be implemented for up to 25 per cent of the oilseeds production in a state.

The price difference will be made to pre-registered farmers selling the produce in the notified market yard through a transparent auction process. "This scheme does not involve any physical procurement of crops and the central government will give support for the PDPS as per the norms," the statement said.

Besides this, the states are given an option to rope in private players for oilseeds procurement on a pilot basis in eight districts.

Under the new policy, the states will also have an option to choose the existing Price Support Scheme (PSS), under which central agencies procure commodities covered under the MSP policy when prices fall below the MSP.

"The states can choose either PSS or PDPS or PPSS to ensure MSP to farmers," Singh said adding that this is an unprecedented step taken by the government to protect the farmers' income which is expected to go a long way towards the welfare of farmers.

The other existing procurement schemes being implemented for procurement of paddy, wheat and nutri-cereals/coarse grains as well as commercial crops such as cotton and jute will be continued for providing MSP to farmers.

Singh further said that the government is committed to realizing the vision of doubling farmers' income by 2022.

The emphasis is on enhancing productivity, reducing cost of cultivation and strengthening post-harvesting management, including market structure. Several market reforms have been initiated by the government, he added.

Under the MSP policy, the government fixes the rates for 23 notified crops grown in kharif and rabi seasons.

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West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said that preparations for the circuit bench of Calcutta High Court at Jalpaiguri, a long standing demand of the local people, is nearing completion.

The circuit bench will initially take care of the north Bengal districts of Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Alipurduar, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar, she said after laying the foundation stone of a new building of the Calcutta High Court at Rajarhat New Town here.

"The demand for a circuit bench in North Bengal has been a demand of the people in those areas for the last 40 years," she said.

Banerjee said that fresh appointments in the judiciary must be done soon to reduce pendency of cases before the courts.

"It will take years to get the backlog of cases cleared if new judges are appointed," she said.

"The central government should coordinate with the Supreme Court and the high courts to ensure appointment of new judges," Banerjee said.

The chief minister said that the land for the new building of the high court at New Town was given for a token price of Rupee one.

"Despite the state government facing acute financial crisis with an annual debt servicing of Rs 48,000 crore, we decided to give the land for Rupee one only as a CSR activity," Banerjee said.

She said that land will also be provided for a new building of State Administrative Tribunal near the high court premises in New Town.

Banerjee and the then Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court Justice J N Patel had laid the foundation stone for the circuit bench in September 2012 on 40 acres of land provided by the state government.

The President's nod is awaited for the inauguration of the circuit bench.

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The Congress's Jammu and Kashmir unit Wednesday accused the Centre and the state government of creating "uncertainty" over the panchayat and local bodies polls, saying it will decide on participation once the "confusing" is cleared.

The elections in the state is scheduled to be held from next month.

The Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) would send a team to New Delhi to brief the party leadership on the issue, Congress state unit president G A Mir said at a press conference here.

He said the team of senior state leaders will also hold deliberations on whether to participate in the polls.

"There is a lot of confusion over the issue of conduct of these elections. Both the Centre and the state government have created the confusion. There is no clarity on part of both of them.

"The stand of the state government on the issue seems to be fluctuating with every passing hour," he said.

Mir said the party had raised certain questions on the issue when it met Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik and it seemed the government was only testing waters and not serious on the issue.

We have called on the governor twice in the last 10 days. Yesterday, also we met him. We had raised certain question on the preparations for these polls, but the concerns have not been addressed. The polls were announced without taking anyone onboard. It seems that the government is only testing the waters, he said.

The JKPCC president said the party is minutely watching the situation and wants the Centre and the state government to clear their stand on whether to conduct these polls or not.

They have themselves created an uncertainty here. We want them to clear the confusion and come out with their stand on whether to conduct the polls or not.

"The state administration should put up a credible person before the people and ensure them that it is ready for the polls. Once the confusion is cleared, the Congress party will take a decision on whether to participate," he said.

On whether the situation was conducive or not for conducting the polls, Mir said, Even a blind person will tell you that the situation is not fit for elections in Jammu and Kashmir right now.

To a question of the announcement of boycott of the polls by the the National Conference and the PDP over the issue of legal challenge to the Constitution's Article 35A, he said every party in entitled to its opinion, but linking the panchayat and local bodies polls with the hearing on the article in the Supreme Court by the government is wrong".

This creates apprehensions in the minds of people, Mir said.

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Chinese Consul General in Kolkata Ma Zhanwu said Wednesday his country was mooting a bullet train service between Kunming and Kolkata, traversing through Myanmar and Bangladesh.

With joint efforts of India and China, a high-speed rail link could be established between the two cities, Zhanwu said at a conference here.

"It will only take a few hours to reach Kolkata from Kunming if the rail link becomes a reality," he asserted.

The envoy also said that Myanmar and Bangladesh would benefit from the project.

"We may have a cluster of industries along the route. That increases the possibility of economic development of countries involved in the 2,800 km-long project," he maintained.

The project had also found mention at the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) meet in Kunming in 2015, he said.

The rail route was aimed at boosting trade flow in the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM) corridor, Zhanwu said, adding that his country has been striving for the revival of Silk Route to increase connectivity from Kunming to Kolkata.

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China has shown interest in buying soyabean de-oiled cake produced in Maharashtra and the initiative is likely to help fetch higher prices for the crop than the minimum guaranteed price, an official has said.

China's Consul General Tang Gochai, during a meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis here Monday night, said his country is looking forward to import agricultural products from the state and also invest in the sector, according to an official release.

Fadnavis said an independent officer would be appointed to develop more communication on this with China.

Keeping in mind the interest of soyabean cultivators, the Centre has announced a 10 per cent export promotional incentive (subsidy) as well.

This would certainly help soyabean growers to earn more as the export will also increase the demand in the domestic market, Fadnavis said.

Soya de-oiled cake is a coarse granular material, produced from cleaned soyabean seeds after a series of physical processes and multistage extraction.

A senior official in the state agriculture department told PTI that farmers would benefit if the soyabean market gets a boost.

"One quintal soybean produces 18 kg oil and 82 kg of de-oiled cake, so the price of the de-oiled cake is more important to a cultivator than the oil rates," he said.

"The Centre has also increased the import duty on various oils, including soyabean, crude palm and refined palm oils, that eventually benefit the local soyabean cultivators," the official said.

The soyabean grown in the state is non-genetically modified, so it in huge demand for export, he said.

"If the soybean market continues to soar, it could help farmers to earn better," the official said.

Maharashtra Agricultural Price Commission president Pasha Patel said about three million tonnes of soyabean will be available for export from the country this year.

About 50 per cent of that would be soya de-oiled cake available in Maharashtra, he said.

The demand for soyabean de-oiled cake in China is 10 times higher than that available in India. That is why China can be a good market for soyabean grown in the state, Patel said.

Maharashtra is one of the largest producers of soyabean in the country.

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China said on Wednesday that it would resolutely oppose any US move to impose sanctions against its officials and companies to punish Beijing for the alleged human rights violations against Uygur Muslims in the volatile Xinjiang province.

"China consistently resolutely opposes the United States using Xinjiang-related issues to interfere in China's internal affairs," Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told the media here.

His comments came after US State Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauert said that "there are credible reports out there that many, many thousands have been detained in detention centres since April 2017, and the numbers are fairly significant from what we can tell so far".

"We're deeply troubled by the worsening crackdown, not just on Uygurs, Kazakhs, other Muslims in that region of China," Nauert told a briefing in Washington on Tuesday.

She declined to confirm whether sanctions were being contemplated against Chinese officials.

"We have a lot of tools at our disposal," she said.

Towards the end of the last month, a group of US lawmakers asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to impose sanctions on seven Chinese officials, including Chen Quanguo, the Communist party chief in Xinjiang, saying he had overseen the crackdown.

Chen is a Politburo member of the ruling Communist Party of China.

Geng said the Chinese government protects people's religious freedom and all ethnic groups are entitled for religious freedom.

"If the relevant report is true we urge the relevant party to respect the facts, abandon prejudices and stop taking actions that may harms the China-US mutual trust and cooperation," Geng said.

China is currently carrying out a massive crackdown against the East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM) in the volatile Xinjiang province where Uygurs Muslims - who formed majority there - were restive over the increasing settlements of Han community in the region.

The reported US move against China over Xinjiang, if materialised, will be the first by the Trump administration against the Communist country over the alleged human rights violations.

The US officials are also seeking to limit American sales of surveillance technology that Chinese security agencies and companies are using to monitor Uygurs throughout northwest China, the Washington Post reported on Monday.

The US followed a report by UN Human Rights panel that China has detained over a million Uygur Muslims in re-education camps also called indoctrination camps.

Last month, the UN's Geneva-based Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination said it was alarmed by "numerous reports of ethnic Uygurs and other Muslim minorities" being detained in Xinjiang region and called for their immediate release.

Estimates about them "range from tens of thousands to upwards of a million."



UN Human Rights High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet this week said the Chinese government's arbitrary detention of Muslims is worrying and China should allow UN monitors into Xinjiang.

Asked for his comment, Geng said Tuesday that "I want to add that the UN Human Rights High Commissioner and her office should abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, respect China's sovereignty, fairly and objectively fulfil its duties, and not listen to and believe one-sided information.

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Come September 15, fans of the 'Caped Crusader' can immerse themselves into all things Batman, as Comic Con India gears up to celebrate Batman Day at Monkey Bar here.

From recreating memorable scenes from the Batman film series, and a healthy dose of Batman theme music composed for movies, to scoring limited edition Batman comics, the celebrations aim to take the fandom of the Dark Knight a notch higher.

"Batman Day is one of those occasions when comic book and pop culture aficionados come together across different platforms to express their love for one of the most popular and loved comic book characters of all time Batman.

"This special event organized by Comic Con India is our way of giving fans of the Dark Knight in India a platform so that they can engage, and interact with other fans and share unique collective experiences," Jatin Varma, Founder, Comic Con India, said.

Fans will also get an opportunity to sample a variety of drinks inspired by characters from the Batman comics and DC Universe such as Poison Ivy, Joker, Harley Quinn, Riddler, and Penguin, among others.

Also featured will be a Comic Con Express, a travelling pop culture event, which moves from city to city to expand the reach of comic books-based events to other locations across the country.

Batman Day will be celebrated on September 15 in four cities -- Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

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The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday said it was confident that Governor Banwarilal Purohit will respect people's feelings which reflect in the cabinet's recommendation for release of the seven convicts sentenced to life imprisonment in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.

The state cabinet recommended to Purohit the release of Nalini, her husband Sriharan alias Murugan, Perarivalan, Robert Payas, Jayakumar, Ravichandran and Santhan on September 9.

"The government is confident that Governor Purohit will realise the Tamil people's feelings and expectations and take a good decision at an appropriate time," Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar told reporters here.

He said the government is also "confident" that the governor will "take an expeditious decision" in the matter.

Asked if the government would mount pressure in case Purohit delays the decision, he said he cannot answer a hypothetical question.

The cabinet has taken the decision only in view of the urgency of the issue, Jayakumar added.

The governor, the minister said, can act only on the aid and advice of the cabinet, which is the collective voice of the people of Tamil Nadu.

"We have sent in the communication on cabinet decision the same day (Sept 9) to the governor. Prison department's recommendations and the jail records of convicts have also been sent," Jayakumar said.

On Sept 6, disposing of a petition by the Centre, the Supreme Court had said that Tamil Nadu Governor was at liberty to decide a mercy petition by Perarivalan.

Murugan, Santhan, Jayakumar and Payas are Sri Lankan Tamils and have been in prison since 1991 following the assassination of the former prime minister at Sriperumbudur near here on May 21, 1991.

Responding to a question about the probability of the state government cutting tax on fuel, Jayakumar said it can be considered in future when Tamil Nadu receives its pending devolution from the central government.

On copper giant Sterlite moving court to seek reopening of its plant in Tuticorin, he said, "Let the company go wherever it wants, we will face it. We shut down the plant in keeping with people's wish".

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Congress leader V M Sudheeran Wednesday asked Bishop Franco Mullakal of Jalandhar diocese, accused by a nun of raping her, to step down and face legal proceedings.

Speaking at a 'People's Gathering' here to express solidarity with some nuns who are staging a dharna in Kochi demanding Franco's arrest, former KPCC president Sudheeran said no one was above the law.

It was not possible to cover up the truth, Sudheeran said, adding that their protest was not against the church.

Former BJP leader P P Mukundan and former nun Jesmi were among those who participated in the protest.

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Opposition Congress Wednesday accused the Odisha government of delay in appointment of Lokayukta.

Odisha Congress president Niranjan Patnaik also criticised the NDA government at the Centre for not appointing a Lokayukta.

"The time frame given by Supreme Court for appointment of Lokayukta in Odisha has expired. But Odisha government did not carry out the Apex Court order to root out corruption," Patnaik said in a statement.

"The matter is pending with Supreme Court and Odisha had filed an affidavit on April 12 in this regard. Based on the fact, Apex Court ordered the state government to complete the appointment process by July 10," he said.

Patnaik further said that on July 11, Odisha chief secretary filed the status report in the Supreme Court.

"As per that, the Supreme Court gave just two months time to appoint Lokayukta. But the state has also failed in making appointment. No steps have been taken in this regard," the OPCC president alleged.

He said, the Congress led UPA government had enacted Lokpal and Lokayukta legislation in 2013. The Act would bring the Chief Minister, ex-CMs, other ministers and public servants under the purview of a six-member anti-corruption body to be headed by either a sitting or former High Court judge.

Stating that the Odisha chief minister used to talk about transparency in the administration, OPCC president said: "One of the former senior ministers of the state government Damodar Rout has put forth so many corruption allegations. Even chief minister has been biased and controlled by a non-Odia officer."



But the chief minister has not taken any step to enquire in to allegations made by his own party MLA Damodor Rout, he said.

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The Congress on Wednesday accused the Modi government of compromising national security and displaying insensitivity on the issue of joblessness, following reports that there were plans to cut the strength of the Army by 1.5 lakh personnel.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said the party is concerned about various reports in this regard and questioned why the Modi government was "not providing adequate funds" to the Army.

The opposition party's reaction came even as the government stated that there was no immediate plan to cut the strength of the Army.

Singhvi said if the reports are true, "then isn't the Modi Government guilty of destroying more jobs in the country? 1.5 lakh families will be severely affected by this decision."



"Modi Government which is so insensitive on the pressing issue of jobs and unemployment is again displaying its famous arrogance and abject apathy to crores of middle class youth and underprivileged. Instead of creating the promised two crore jobs per year, Modi Government is hell bent in destroying more jobs. Why?" he asked.

Singhvi said if the government can spend Rs 5000 crore in last 4.5 years on publicity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi then why cannot it spend that same amount for weaponry and ammunition for the armed forces.

"We demand answers from the Modi Government in this regard," he said.

The Congress leader alleged that "Modi had spent Rs 35 lakh on his fitness videos, Rs 60 crore monthly on updating his pictures on petrol pumps, Rs 1,100 crore on a sprawling BJP headquarters and Rs 2000 crore on his foreign travels.

"Then why is the Modi Government not providing adequate funds to the Army?"



He alleged that the government has earned a windfall of Rs 11 lakh crore by levying central taxes on petrol-diesel, but it cannot spend Rs 5000-7000 crore on the Indian Army.

"It squandered Rs 41,000 crore by overpaying in the Rafale Purchase, but it cannot spend Rs 7,000 crore on the Indian Army," he alleged.

Accusing the government of compromising national security, he said former Vice Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen Sarath Chand had testified to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence headed by Maj. Gens BC Khanduri, and had "exposed a shameful state of neglect" towards the requirements of the armed forces.

Singhvi cited the report that stated that only eight per cent of Army's equipment is state-of-the-art, 68 per cent is vintage and that it cannot pay for emergency weapons purchase.

It also said that there are not enough resources to undertake the construction of strategic roads on China border and 'Make in India' scheme in defence has completely failed, he claimed.

Singhvi said the report stated that in 2018-19 budget, the defence sector was provided just 1.58 per cent of the GDP, the lowest ever allocation since 1962.

The Congress is proud of the courage and sacrifice of the armed forces, he said and alleged that the BJP only tries to garner political gains by talking about soldiers and security personnel and does not do anything for them.

"The BJP and the Modi Government have systematically compromised our national security," he alleged.

He accused Prime Minister Modi of inaction in the matter, saying, "What makes the above worse is that the PMO was aware of the problems with regard to the need for modernization and did nothing despite his urgent intervention being sought."



Singhvi said despite the Parliament report, "it is not known whether the PMO has made any reference to Ministry of Finance in this regard. This Ministry has not received any additional allocation subsequent to taking up the matter with PMO."



"It is now clear that the PMO was briefed on the issue over a year ago and has done absolutely nothing. The Committee's recommendation was to try and request the Prime Minister's intervention again," he said.

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Congress in Karnataka Wednesday stepped up efforts to quell the internal discontent triggered by a faction of MLAs led by minister Ramesh Jarkiholi, who is locked in a turf war with another minister D K Shivakumar, casting a shadow over its coalition government with the JDS.

Ramesh and his brother Satish Jarkiholi whose dissident activities have caused trouble to the three-month old Congress-JDS coalition, have camped in Bengaluru meeting senior party leaders.

The leaders include state congress president Dinesh Gundu Rao, deputy chief minister G Parameshwara and Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge.

The Jarkiholi brothers are upset over Shivakumar allegedly trying to challenge their supremacy in Belagavi district through MLA Laxmi Hebbalkar.

The siblings were made to accept the candidates of the Hebbalkar camp in the recent Primary Land Development Bank's elections, which has reportedly infuriated them more.

The internal tussle has spilled into the open with the Jarkiholi brothers assertion about the support of eight MLAs and that they were in touch with the BJP fuelling speculation about the stability of the H D Kumaraswamy government.

"We do have our own faction and factionalism is found across all the parties. Our faction is of like-minded people. Factionalism existed before and will continue to remain in future too," Satish Jarkiholi told reporters here.

He also said, "we were always with the party and we are not dissidents. However, our group is of seven-eight MLAs and we will remain together.

We have faith that seniors will resolve the issues. I met Dinesh Gundu Rao to discuss how to stop this because suchnegative coverage in the media damages the party. Rao hassought two days' time to discuss the matter," he said.

He clarified that he had not discussed the issue with congress general secretary, Karnataka-incharge, K C Venugopal.

Ramesh Jarkiholi, the municipal administration minister, ruled out the possibility of quitting Congress.

Speaking to reporters here, he said, "There is no question of my quitting the party.I am very much in Congress.

I met Mallikarjun Kharge, who is a father figure to me. I explained the situation to him. I have full faith in our seniors who will set things right."



Deputy chief minister G Parameshwara termed reports about government collapsing a speculation.

"The stories that government will collapse is all speculation. Yesterday Ramesh Jarkiholi had contacted me. Hehad given some suggestions. There were no such things like make me minister or else I will topple the government," he said.

Parameshwara did not elaborate what the Jarkiholi brothers had demanded.

The Jarkiholi brothers have reportedly told the state leadership that they would brook no "inteference" from "outsiders" in their district and asked for key post for Satish, who was a ministerial aspirant.

Speculation is also rife in political circles that the Jarkiholi brothers were making the current moves at the behest of former chief minister Siddaramaiah, with whom they are close, to contain Shivakumar's influence.

Sensing trouble for the coalition government, the BJP has been holding meetings with its party MLAs, amid reports that it was in constant touch with the Jarkiholi brothers.

BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa met party MLAs at his residence Tuesday to discuss the future course of action borne out of dissidence in Congress.

BJP MLA from Honnalli seat and a confidant of Yeddyurappa, M P Renukacharya said the government would not survive and would fall soon.

The Congress has accused the BJP of hatching a conspiracy against the coalition government.

Dinesh Gundu Rao warned the BJP "not to stoop low" as it will also face the same consequences.

"We are not ready to stoop to their level.If they try to trouble our MLAs or poach on them, we will be forced to givethem a befitting reply.

I warn the BJP leaders that we are notready to indulge in such activities (of poaching MLAs) and wedon't need it but you give up your dirty politics," he said.

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Two persons, including a police constable were killed in a shootout here with armed robbers in the early hours of Wednesday, a senior police officer said.

The robbers had attacked the house of Nand Kishore Agrawal, a leading jute trader, in Gola locality of the district. His servants raised an alarm after the watchman was stabbed, Superintendent of Police, Purnea, Vishal Sharma, who is holding the additional charge of Kishanganj, said.

Policemen patrolling the area reached the house of the businessman and engaged the robbers, in a gunbattle wherein a constable Birsa Oraon and one of the dacoits were killed, the SP said.

Four of the robbers have been caught and many crude bombs and country made weapons recovered from the spot, Sharma said.

As many as 10 accomplices of the robbers managed to flee and raids were being conducted to nab them, the SP said.

The injured watchman has been admitted to a hospital, he added.

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The Corporate Affairs Ministry is open to amending norms, if required, pertaining to Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF) as current compliance levels are not up to expectations, according to a senior official.

Set up under the Act, 2013, IEPF's primary purpose is to protect the interest of investors. When there are unclaimed dividends for seven years, then that amount as well as the underlying shares are transferred to the IEPF account.

Corporate Affairs Secretary Injeti Srinivas said the IEPF Authority, which is a new body, is facing many challenges.

"It is a new body. It is facing many challenges. We are finding that the compliances are not much as they should have been. We are still at a stage where we are diagnosing the whole issues.

"There are requirements where you tweak the law also with IEPF's mandate and whatever provisions are there to ensure compliance," he said here Wednesday.

Srinivas, who is also the Chairperson of the authority, unveiled a new logo for it.

In the past two months, he said that around 1,500 claims are coming to the IEPF every month and that it has refunded more than Rs 20 billion to the claimants.

More than Rs 20.19 billion was transferred to the IEPF in financial year 2018.

The has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the CSC E-Governance Services India Ltd, wherein the latter would identify village level entrepreneurs for investor awareness projects, among other activities.
A Delhi court Wednesday granted bail to former Air Force Chief and others in a money laundering case related to the

Special judge Arvind Kumar granted bail to Tyagi and his cousins involved in the case and asked them to furnish a bail bond of Rs 100,000 with one surety of the like amount.

The bail was granted after they appeared before the court in pursuance to the summons issued against them.

The court had on July 24 summoned former AgustaWestland and Finmeccanica directors Giuseppe Orsi and Bruno Spagnolini, Tyagi and others as accused in the case.

The court had asked the accused to appear before it on Tuesday, while issuing fresh non-bailable warrants against Italian middlemen Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke and Dubai-based businessman Rajeev Saxena in the case.

Besides the six, the court also summoned as accused 28 Indian and foreign individuals and companies, including lawyer Gautam Khaitan, AgustaWestland and its parent company Finmeccanica SPA.

The court had passed directions after taking cognisance of the charge sheet, saying there was enough evidence against the accused in the matter relating to the alleged money laundering to the tune of around Euro 28 million.

However, foreign individuals and firms failed to appear before the court today.

The ED, in its charge sheet, has alleged that money was laundered through multiple foreign companies which were used as fronts to park alleged kickbacks.

On January 1, 2014, India had scrapped the contract with Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF over alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of kickbacks of Rs 423 crore paid by it to secure the deal.

Those summoned by the court include Tyagi and his cousins, Khaitan and his wife Ritu, Rajeev Saxena and his wife Shivani, both directors of two Dubai-based accused firms UHY Saxena and Matrix Holdings, O P Khaitan and Co, International Mediterranean Consulting, Tunisia and Infotech Design Systems Gordian Services.
A court here sent two suspected members of the Islamic State in Jammu and Kashmir (IS-JK), arrested last week from near the Red Fort, to a two-week judicial custody on Wednesday.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Deepak Sherawat sent Parvaiz Rashid Lone (24) and Jamsheed Zahoor Paul (19) to judicial custody after they were produced before him on the expiry of their five-day police custody.

The two were arrested from the Jama Masjid bus stop, near the Red Fort, as they were about to board a bus to return to Jammu and Kashmir, the police had said.

The accused were using Delhi as a transit point, they had said.

Lone was the elder brother of Firdous Rashid Lone, who, along with one Sameer Ahmed Lone, was killed by the security forces in an encounter in Jammu and Kashmir on January 24, the police had said.

Lone was pursuing M.Tech from Gajrola in Uttar Pradesh after completing B.Tech from Amroha and had joined the IS-JK after his brother was killed by the security forces, the police had added.

Paul is a final-year electrical engineering diploma student in Jammu and Kashmir.

Two 7.65 mm pistols and four mobile phones were seized from the duo, the police had said, adding that they had no plans to carry out terror activities in the national capital.

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The Delhi BJP Wednesday asked the parents of government school children not to share details with the AAP government, except the information given at the time of admission, claiming it could be compromised.

President of Delhi BJP Manoj Tiwari said in a statement that a circular issued by the Delhi government that seeks the government schools and aided schools to provide information about the parents of the children and Aadhaar number, voter identity card and other information of their family members.

It has been stated in the circular that a data bank will be formed but the purpose has not been disclosed, he said.

"It is to be considered that the Delhi government has appointed a private company for the verification of the documents collected by the schools which means that the information of the parents of the children is being given to a private agency," he alleged.

"It is a direct attack on the right to privacy. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal must clarify that in spite of the information collected at the time of admission what is the purpose behind verification by a private company," Tiwari asked.

He requested the parents that they should not share any other information with the Delhi government, except the information given at the time of admission so that it was not "misused".

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A Delhi Police head constable was shot dead allegedly by unidentified men in the Jaitpur area here, an official said Wednesday.

The deceased was identified as Ram Avtar. He was posted as head constable at south Delhi's Ambedkar Nagar Police Station, they said.

The incident took place Tuesday night when he was going to a shop near his house in southeast Delhi's Jaitpur area, a senior police officer said.

He said Avtar had returned home around 8 pm after completing his duty and was attacked between 10:30 pm and 10:45 pm.

The official said police are probing all angles and a search is underway to nab the perpetrators.

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Stating that high speed is the main reason behind most road accidents, a non-profit body has urged the government to not get pressured by automobile lobbies into increasing speed limit of vehicles.

Kamal Soi, chairman of Raahat - the safe community foundation, urged the government to not remove speed governors from vehicles as he said such a move could lead to "road terrorism".

Noting that India does not have homogeneous traffic, Soi, a member of the National Road Safety Council, said increase of speed limit would not improve traffic movement as the number of vehicles in the country are very high.

"Developed countries have homogenous traffic due to which they can afford to increase speed limit but even they are adding speed governors to their vehicles. We need to learn from them," he said.

"I request Union Minister Nithin Gadkari to not get influenced by automobile lobbies as speed is the biggest killer in road accidents," the former vice-chairman of Punjab State Road Safety Council said.

He was reacting to recent reports of union government planning to revoke the mandatory requirement of speed governors from commercial vehicles, which was imposed last year.

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Students who voted in the Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) polls on Wednesday said the results will help political parties gauge the mood of young voters ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Prakhar Yadav, a second year student of BA (Hons) in Hindi at Hansraj College, said the results of the DUSU polls will indicate which side the young voter is supporting and will help political parties prepare accordingly.

Prerna Bhardwaj, a second year student of BA (Hons) in Political Science at Kirori Mal College, said, "The Delhi University has students coming from across India. There can be no better way than this to know what the young India wants. In a way, the election results will be an indicator as to what the young voter of India wants."



Echoing similar sentiments, Vedansh, a first year student of BA (Hons) in History at Ramjas College and a first-time voter said the election results will help know what the young educated voter wants.

Many students opined that even the parties in their manifestos had mentioned youth-centric issues that have stirred up debates at the national level. This, they said, indicate that the parties are making strategies to woo young voters.

"For instance, the NSUI manifesto had made a pitch for getting the 'Institute of Eminence' tag for the DU, while the ABVP for 'Bharat First' and taking up issues of SC, ST and OBC students. The manifestos also have resonance with issues that are currently being debated and discussed at the national level," said Pooja, a student of Kirori Mal College.

Another student concurred with Pooja and said the "ABVP has been taking credit for getting the GST waived off on sanitary pads while the AISA-CYSS made a pitch for opposing commericalisation and privatisation" of if voted to power.

A member of the Congress-backed National Students' Union Of India (NSUI) said the DUSU elections are like the "semi-final for the Lok Sabha elections and will show what the young, educated voter wants".

A member of the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad said the election results will help the general public and the media in drawing a conclusion about the mood of the voters and also give an idea of what is the trend in the national politics.

In the fray are the NSUI, the ABVP, and the Aam Aadmi Party's students wing which is contesting the polls in alliance with the Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS), and left-wing students' outfit All India Students Association (AISA).

After the AAP came to power in Delhi in February 2015, its students' wing had unsuccessfully contested the DUSU polls.

The DUSU election results will be announced on Thursday.

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A team of officials from the Election Commission, which is here to assess the preparedness for assembly polls, Wednesday said it will submit a report to the EC which would take a call on conduct of the elections.

The team, led by senior deputy Election Commissioner Umesh Sinha, had earlier held discussions with the state administration and various political parties.

"It (satisfaction to conduct polls) is a call which the election commission will take. As I told you, we have assessed the basic preparation and that is all in right lines," Sinha told reporters.

"The Election Commission only sent this team to assess the level of preparedness. So at this momentitis not possible to give any comments. We will give our inputsto the Election Commissionandafter that EC will take a call..,"he said.

Replying to a query on voters of four mandals in Bhadrachalam which were merged into Andhra Pradesh, he said the issue would be taken to the notice of the EC.

According to him, the team has given certain guidelines to district officials on poll preparedness.

The team held discussions with senior police officials including district SPs on the law and order situation.

They also held talks with collectors and other senior government officialson issues ranging fromavailability of EVMs to manpower. The EC team also met chief secretary SK Joshi and DGP Mahendar Reddy, Sinha said.

On the electoral list, he said instructions have been give to officials to check and address every complaint that they receive from political parties.

"We have directed that all booth level officers to visit and verify each voter. People should get opportunity (to vote), we will review the progress of electoral revision everyday," the official said.

The team held formal consultations with representatives of various political parties here Tuesday.

Some parties complained that many names in the voters list were missing and sought the EC's intervention.

The party-wise strength in the 120-member Telangana Legislative Assembly before its dissolution last week was TRS-82, Congress-17, AIMIM-7, BJP-5, TDP-3, Vacant-2, the CPI, CPI(M), indipendent and nominated member (one each).

The TRS had bagged 63 seats in the 2014 polls but its strength rose over time with 19 MLAs from the opposition, including 12 from the TDP, three of the YSR Congress and two of the Bahujan Samaj Party joining it.

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Ending hooliganism on campus, 24X7 libraries for students, safer campus for women were some of the issues that weighed on the minds of the students of Delhi University before voting in students' union polls Wednesday.

Shubham Chaudhary, a second-year law student, said students do not vote for parties, rather they vote on the basis of the candidates' reputation and what work he or she has done.

Prakhar Yadav, a student of BA (Hons) Hindi at Hansraj College, said, "There should be no use of muscle power and students should have access to their elected representatives. The parties had promised to get new hostels for students, but no new hostels have been constructed till now."



Yadav also pitched for a cleaner and safer South Campus of the Delhi University for women students, from where some untoward incidents have been reported.

Many other students concurred with Yadav and stressed the need for ending 'gundagardi and hooliganism' on campus.

In May this year, a 20-year-old student was allegedly molested by a sweeper on the premises of Ram Lal Anand College, which comes under South Campus of the varsity.

Mahima Chachra, a second year-student of Ramjas College and a taekwondo player, stressed the need for better facilities for sportspersons.

Aanchal, a second-year law student, said they have voted for the resolution of their college issues.

Mridul, a second-year law student said, "There should be 24X7 libraries for students. We do not even have fans in the hall. Issues like these should be taken up by the representatives."



Rahul, a student of Ramjas college, said, "The Delhi School Of Journalism, which charges exorbitant fees, does not even have proper facilities for students, who even protested inside the college for a couple of days. The elected representatives should take up the issue because students' future is at stake."Another student said when it comes to DUSU polls, they always go by a candidate's reputation.

"We see whether the candidate has personally helped us in some way or has helped our peers. Even if a candidate does not belong to the party whose ideology I believe in, I have voted for them," he said.

In the fray are the National Students' Union of India, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, and the Aam Aadmi Party's students' wing Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS), which is contesting with left-wing students' outfit All India Students Association (AISA).

After the AAP came to power in Delhi in February 2015, its students' wing had unsuccessfully contested the DUSU polls.

The DUSU election results will be announced Thursday.

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A Tamil lawmaker from Sri Lanka said Wednesday he has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to convince the Lankan government and Tamil parties to fully implement the constitutional provision that deals with devolution of land and police powers to the provinces.

Douglas Devananda, the Eelam People's Democratic Party MP from Jaffna, said he has made the request to Modi on the 13th Amendment of the Sri Lankan Constitution in his personal capacity.

"The 13th Amendment should be implemented in full. For that, (he should) use his good office with the Government of Sri Lanka, with other Tamil party leaders, convince them to implement it," Devananda said during an interaction with reporters in New Delhi.

Devananda is a part of a delegation of Sri Lankan lawmakers visiting India.

The 13th Amendment, an outcome of an agreement reached between India and Sri Lanka in 1987, deals with devolution of land and police powers to the provinces in Sri Lanka.

As the northern and the eastern provinces, previously controlled by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, remain firm on devolving the police and land powers to them, the central government appears to be not in favour of provincial councils possessing more powers in these two prime areas.

During the visit, the Lankan lawmakers have also visited leaders of the principal opposition, the Congress. Their visit concludes Friday.

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The defence team of Vijay Mallya, who is fighting a case regarding his extradition to India to face the trial on fraud and money laundering charges, on Wednesday branded the evidence presented by the Indian government during the hearing at a London court as "utterly unfounded".

The liquor tycoon arrived at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London when the judge began hearing the closing submissions in his extradition case.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss' defence team, led by Clare Montgomery, opened the day by branding the evidence presented by the



government of India in the case as "utterly unfounded".

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, countered this with arguments that Mallya had intended "from the outset" never to repay the loans he sought for his struggling airline and misrepresented its profitability.

"The government of India case that there was some secret pocket of knowledge about losses within Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) which were not revealed to the banks is utterly unfounded," said Montgomery.

"That this was a carefully thought out dishonest strategy knowing KFA was bound to fail is just nonsense. It was a financial disaster, not as result of dishonesty but the result of a failing airline failing to recover," she said, reiterating her earlier submissions that KFA was the victim of a wider financial crisis that hit the aviation industry.

She dismissed the CPS argument that there was "stark disjoint between what Mallya knew and what the banks knew" and also repeatedly accused the Indian authorities of leaving documents "out of the bundle" that prove that "KFA was the victim of the economic climate" and not any deliberate fault.

Mallya's defence team also rubbished the video of Barrack 12 at Arthur Road Jail, where the businessman is to be held on being extradited to India, as having been freshly painted to give the perception of brightness that did not exist.

The video, submitted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Judge Emma Arbuthnot's direction at the last hearing, was not played in open court as the judge said she had already reviewed it three times.

"The video clearly shows the gloom that settles on this building, which is encased in what is effectively a steel oven," Montgomery said, as part of her arguments in favour of a court-led independent inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets the UK's human rights obligations.

"It is impossible to be satisfied about humane lighting and ventilation, she said, adding that it had been clearly tidied up for the purposes of the video as it did not match up with the photographs previously provided by the Indian authorities.

The judge, however, made it clear to the CPS that she did not require any further information in reference to the prison conditions awaiting Mallya in India.

As part of her closing submissions, Mallya's defence team effectively undertook a recap of the entire defence case, also repeating its claim that the case brought against the businessman was politically motivated. It was alleged that the CBI had been "forced to file charges" and once again referred to a newspaper report against CBI chief Rakesh Asthana, which had claimed that he influenced the heads of the state-run banks and threatened them with reprisals if action was not taken against Mallya.

"Mr Asthana has been solemnly sitting in court. If this were fake news, it could have been dealt with," Montgomery said.

The ongoing day-long hearing, which is expected to lead to a timeline for a ruling in the case, will continue to hear the closing submissions by the CPS, which will focus on highlighting that the judge should rule in favour of extradition based on the weight of the evidence.

Earlier, Mallya responded to the swarm of reporters gathered outside the court in his characteristic manner, saying the "courts will decide".

"As far as I am concerned, I have made a comprehensive settlement offer before the Karnataka High Court. I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess that's the primary objective," said Mallya, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year and is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4 last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya. It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of over Rs 9,000 crores in loans from a consortium of Indian banks.

The CPS has argued that the evidence they have presented establishes "dishonesty" on the part of the businessman and that there are no bars to him being extradited from the UK to face Indian courts.

Mallya's defence team has deposed a series of expert witnesses to claim he had no "fraudulent" intentions and that he is unlikely to get a fair trial in India.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A court here on Wednesday remanded two persons, originally arrested in the murder case of journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh, in the custody of the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad in connection with the seizure of explosives from different parts of the state.

The accused, Sujeeth Kumar and Bharat Kurane, were arrested earlier by the Karnataka police.

The ATS brought them here from Bengaluru and produced them before Additional Sessions Judge Vinod Padalkar. The court granted the ATS custody of the accused till September 17.

Chief prosecutor Jaisingh Desai told the court that the names of the two came up during the questioning of other accused in the explosives seizure case.

The ATS wanted to bring them face to face with the other accused and question them, he added.

Kumar and Kurane were present when the other accused conducted a reconnaissance, Jaisingh said.

The prosecutor added that arms training was provided at a farm owned by Kurane.

Last month, the ATS had arrested Vaibhav Raut, Sharad Kalaskar, Sudhanwa Gondhalekar, Shrikant Pangarkar and Avinash Pawar following the seizure of arms and explosives.

Their questioning led to the arrest of Vasudev Suryawanshi and Liladhar alias Vijay alias Bhaiyya Lodhi (32) on September 8.

Some of the accused were allegedly linked to radical Hindu groups, the ATS had said.

Among other things, they were planning to target a western music festival in Pune, it had said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Anti Terrorism



Squad (ATS) Wednesday detained a man from Jalna city in Maharashtra in connection with the explosives seizure case and an alleged plot to carry out blasts in the state, an official said.

The suspect runs a xerox shop in Jalna and is a DTP operator by profession. He was picked up from Shani Mandir Chowk in Jalna city, an ATS official in Aurangabad said.

According to the official, the accused was closely associated with former Shiv Sena corporator Shrikant Pangarkar, who was arrested in the case last month.

The ATS has so far arrested seven persons in connection with the case.

On August 10, the ATS had arrested Vaibhav Raut (40), who ran the 'Hindu Govansh Raksha Samiti'-- a little-known cow protection outfit-- at Nallasopara in Palghar district following the seizure of 20 crude bombs and other explosive material.

After Raut, the ATS had arrested Sharad Kalaskar (25), Sudhanva Gondhalekar (39), Shrikant Pangarkar and Avinash Pawar following seizure of explosive materials and arms from various places in the state.

Last Saturday, the anti-terror agency arrested Vasudev Suryawanshi (29) and Vijay alias Bhaiyya Lodhi (32) from Sakri in Jalgaon district of North Maharashtra.

Some of the accused were allegedly linked to radical Hindu groups, ATS had said.

Among other things, they were planning to target a western music festival in Pune, it had said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Wednesday urged the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to speed up the financial assistance process for road development projects in the state.

Fadnavis held a meeting here with the ADB officers regarding different projects in the state. Presentation on the projects for which the ADB is providing financial assistance was made during the meeting.

The projects include those under Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM), Mukhyamantri Gram Sadak Yojana and high voltage power distribution system for agriculture pumps in the state.

Fadnavis appealed to the ADB officers to expedite the process and directed the departments concerned to start the works on these projects.

Director of ADB in India Kenechi Yokoyama, Deputy Director Sabyascahi Mitra, Senior Village Development expert Li Ming Tai, Energy Department expert Lin George and others were present for the meeting.

"Road development and power supply for agriculture pumps are most important projects for development of states rural areas. Therefore, to complete these projects in a time bound manner, the ADB should expedite financial assistance to these projects."



He also directed the departments to speed up work on these projects.

Yokoyama said the ADB will extend financial help to all three projects in the state.

The Indian government has given its in-principle approval to financial assistance and the matter will be pursued by the bank headquarters for this, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A senior official of a public sector undertaking has been arrested in Jaipur for allegedly raping a woman colleague, police said on Wednesday.

The woman had lodged a case against Manmit Singh Bhullar (45) -- general manager with the Food Corporation of India (FCI) -- at the Bajaj Nagar police station on June 1, said Additional Superintendent of Police Mool Singh Rana.

According to the woman, Bhullar harassed her and was putting pressure on her to have physical relations with him. She complained that the accused had raped her in Jaipur on May 23 and in Delhi on May 29, Rana said, adding that a medical examination has confirmed rape.

Meanwhile, Bhullar, fearing action, took transfer to Jammu and Kashmir. He was summoned to Jaipur through a notice on Monday and arrested on Tuesday after interrogation. He was produced before the court on Wednesday and sent to 15-day judicial custody, the officer said.

A case has been registered under Sections 376 and 384 of the Indian Penal Code, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa said Wednesday the fight against the LTTE that ended in 2009 cannot be dubbed an "ethnic war", asserting that the military action was not directed against the Tamil community.

Rajapaksa, who was at the helm when the nearly three-decade-long civil war in Sri Lanka ended in 2009 with the defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) by the military, said India's "abiding friendship" was amply demonstrated by its rapid response to Sri Lanka's needs at the time, both material and moral.

"While this was of vital assistance to us, I remained unshaken in my conviction that foreign armies could not successfully banish terrorism from our soil, because the broad mass of popular opinion would not support this," he said in his address at a symposium, titled 'Indo-Sri Lanka Relations: The Way Forward', organised by the Virat Hindustan Sangam led by BJP MP Subramanian Swamy here.

The former Sri Lankan president said he was, however, mindful of India's special concerns at the time, arising principally from the proximity of Tamil Nadu and other relevant circumstances.

"Our policy in this regard was constant consultation with India and other neighbouring countries. For this purpose, we had evolved the TROIKA mechanism involving key officials on both sides, who were in touch with one another at all times," Rajapaksa, who was accompanied by his former foreign minister G L Peiris and son Namal Rajapaksa at the event, said.

He proposed that a similar mechanism could be set up by Sri Lanka and India to resolve economic and social issues.

Talking about the last phase of the civil war, which started with his government ordering military action against the LTTE, he said the move was not the first resort, but the last one.

"We did not at any time wage an ethnic war. The military action was certainly not directed against the Tamil community. It must not be forgotten that the reach of this terrorist organisation was not confined to Sri Lanka, but extended to Indian soil where they assassinated (former prime minister) Rajiv Gandhi and many others," Rajapaksa said.

He asserted that the eradication of terrorism was not for the sole benefit of one community, or for one country.

Rajapaksa recalled that during the final phase of the war, the foreign secretary of the UK and the foreign minister of France had called for discontinuation of hostilities, but he had replied that acceding to their demands would be nothing short of "betrayal" of coming generations.

Rajapaksa also slammed the current Sri Lankan dispensation led by President Maithripala Sirisena, saying that it undermined the sovereignty of his country by co-sponsoring a resolution at the Human Rights Council in Geneva calling for "internal supervision" of processes that are exclusively the domain of Sri Lanka's Parliament.

The former Sri Lankan president said a crucial feature of his vision was "abiding" friendship with India and asserted that a complete understanding between the two countries would be "one of the pillars of our foreign policy".

Swamy, in his remarks, said it was widely believed that Rajapaksa is the frontrunner for the next government in Sri Lanka which would come to power after polls next year.

Rajapaksa took decisive action against terrorism and cleaned up the country, Swamy said, adding that Sri Lanka had now become a favoured destination of international investment.

"I look forward to close relations as I know that our Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not easily shackled by past views and views expressed by intellectuals or anyone. He makes his own mind...there is a definite indication that we will give top priority to improving relations as soon as the matters in both countries politically get settled," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Jammu and Kashmir Police Wednesday registered an FIR against unidentified persons over fake social media posts of some youths joining militancy in Doda district.

The police managed to track two of the youths mentioned in the post. Another youth, however, was found to be missing, they said.

According to police, photographs of unsuspecting youths were circulated on WhatsApp with messages claiming that they had joined militancy.

"It came to the notice of Doda police that photographs and messages of some boys of Doda district joining militancy were being circulated on WhatsApp groups," a police officer said.

Police found that one of the youths from Tehsil Bhagwah, Doda district was working as a pony porter with Machail Yatra at Paddar, Kishtwar along with his father, he said.

Another youth from Kawkilla-Dessa mentioned in the post was also traced. He was found to be working with a private company at Hyderpura area of Srinagar, police said.

Meanwhile, a lookout notice has been issued for the third youth from Manjmi Dessa, they said.

Police added that a non-bailable warrant has also been issued against him.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The "highly successful" first 2+2 Dialogue between India and the United States was a "defining moment" and the defence co-operation between the two countries is on the right track, US Defence Secretary James Mattis said here Tuesday.

External Affairs Minister and held the crucial talks with Mattis and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New Delhi on September 6.

"Last week I did go to India for what could only be considered highly successful consultations between the world's two largest democracies. There was no difficulties that we uncovered there in moving forward on a number of pragmatic steps to draw ourselves closer together in terms of security," Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon here.

"It was a very heartening trip, historic I'd even say, as you look at where we've been over so many years as we've grown closer and closer together," Mattis said.

He specifically pointed to the COMCASA agreement, the communications compatibility and security agreement, which he said opens a lot of doors in "terms of defense cooperation".

"Probably we will look back on the 2+2, where Secretary Pompeo led the two of us in there as our senior diplomat. Probably a defining moment for the relationship between the US and India, and one that we think is absolutely on the right track in terms of defense cooperation, Mattis said.

Mattis was echoed by the US State Department later in the day.



"Last week's 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue was a historic milestone in the US-India relationship and an indication of the deepening strategic partnership between the United States and India, and India's emergence as a global power and net security provider in the region," a State Department spokesperson told PTI.

Asserting that the two countries want to grow their trade relationship in a fair and reciprocal manner, the spokesperson said at the 2+2 dialogue, both sides acknowledged that expanding fair and reciprocal trade was in their shared interests and would contribute to the prosperity of both "of our peoples".

"Both sides committed to further expanding and balancing the trade and economic partnership consistent with their leaders' 2017 joint statement, including by facilitating trade, improving market access, and addressing issues of interest to both sides," the spokesperson said.


Four cadres of the banned People Liberation Army (PLA) were arrested from different places in Manipur, the police said.

On a tip off, police arrested three PLA militants from Khurai Kongpal Ningthoubung Leikai area in Imphal East district during the past two days, it said



Police also recovered three 9 mm pistols, two handgrenads and several ammunition from the possession of the arrested three militants.

Another PLA cadre was arrested during frisking and checking at Heirok area in Thoubal district on Tuesday, it said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday slammed BJP chief Amit Shah for his statement that the saffron party will be invincible for the next 50 years if it wins the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Such a statement reflects the BJP's fascist approach, Gehlot said.

The BJP does not believe in democracy. It wants to come to power once again to damage and change the Constitution and rule for 50 years, he told reporters here.

The former Rajasthan chief minister said Shah had inadvertently exposed the thinking of his party and its ideological parent, the RSS.

They, Gehlot alleged, want people to give them one more chance so that there is no requirement of the election process.

Addressing party workers here yesterday, Shah had said that the BJP will be invincible for the next 50 years from panchayat to Parliament if it wins the 2019 general elections.

Attacking the BJP, Gehlot said those who could not appoint a state party president of their choice owing to pressure from chief minister (Vasundhara Raje) had no right to comment on the Congress and its president Rahul Gandhi.

He demanded answers from Shah on the huge rise in the turnover of his son's company and the Rafale fighter jets deal.

The Congress leader exuded confidence that the party would face no hurdles in winning the upcoming Assembly election in Rajasthan.

He said the candidates who work honestly for the party will be given a chance to contest the elections.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Government-owned reinsurance company, GIC Re, has secured 10th position amongst the top 40 global reinsurers in a recent ranking published by Standard and Poor's.

The ranking was given on the basis of premium booked during FY18, the company said in a release.

In FY18, the company registered a top line growth of 24.5 per cent, recording premium of Rs 41,799 crore. ******************* MSRDC gets Rs 735cr bank guarantees from R Infra for sea-link proj *



Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) Wednesday said it has received Rs 735 crore as bank guarantees from Reliance Infrastructure consortium for the Versova-Bandra sea link project.

The state government-run infrastructure company had last week signed an agreement with Reliance Infrastructure - Astaldi S.p.A (Italy) consortium for construction of 17.17 km long Versova-Bandra sea link, to be constructed at a cost of Rs 7,000 crore.

MSRDC has received Rs 350 crore as Performance Bank Guarantee (PBG) and Rs 385 crore as Advance Bank Guarantee (ABG) for the project, a release said. **************** SBI Mutual Fund launches SBI-ETF Sensex Next 50 *



SBI Mutual Fund (SBI MF) announced the launch of SBI-ETF Sensex Next 50, an open-ended equity scheme, tracking S&P BSE Sensex Next 50 Index.

The scheme aims to generate returns that closely correspond to the total returns of the securities as represented by the underlying index.

The NFO opens for subscription on Sep 5 and closes on Sep 17. ****************** Tata Sky Family Health to provide preventive healthcare guidance *



Tata Sky, India's leading content distribution platform launched Tata Sky Family Health. This interactive service will be offered free of cost to all Tata Sky subscribers.

It will provide medical information on various health-related issues from renowned doctors and people and care givers sharing their experiences on having successfully overcome their challenges.

Tata Sky Family Health will offer a gamut of medical information. The content will also help viewers understand medical terms and educate them on how to read medical reports.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Gold prices drifted lower by 0.04 per cent to Rs 30,944 per 10 grams in futures trading Wednesday as participants lowered their bets, tracking a weak trend overseas.

At the Multi Commodity Exchange, gold for delivery in December fell by Rs 13, or 0.04 per cent, to Rs 30,944 per 10 grams in a business turnover of two lots.

Similarly, the yellow metal for delivery in October moved lower by Rs 9, or 0.03 per cent, to Rs 30,708 per 10 grams in 69 lots.

Analysts said a weakening trend overseas with investors staying away from bullion on fears the US-China trade war could escalate, weighed on gold prices at futures trade here.

Meanwhile, gold was trading 0.45 per cent lower at USD 1,192.70 an ounce in Singapore.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Amid the Rafale deal row, senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan has claimed that the government last month floated international tenders to buy around 100 medium multi-role combat aircraft.

Adani Defence Systems and Technologies Limited signed an agreement with Swedish defence giant Saab for the supply of the aircraft, Chavan claimed.

Speaking at a seminar titled 'Is Modi really guilty in Rafale deal?', organised by an NGO here on Tuesday, the former Maharashtra chief minister said, "(Prime Minister Narendra) Modi, in order to benefit his friends (industrialists) Anil Ambani and Gautam Adani, has started playing with the defence ministry."



"After Reliance Defence, for the Rafale deal, Adani Defence Systems and Technologies Limited has been formed and it has signed an agreement with Sweden's Saab group for around 100 combat aircraft," Chavan said.

He added that the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government was to purchase 126 Rafale aircraft, but the Modi government signed an agreement to purchase 36 Rafale planes by paying Rs 1,000 crore more per aircraft.

"Considering the need for more Rafale fighter aircraft for the country, why only 36 aircraft are being purchased?" Chavan asked and sought a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the deal.

In 2000, the UPA government invited bids from various countries and then decided to purchase 126 Rafale aircraft -- 18 to be manufactured in France and the remaining 108 to be manufactured by the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) -- the Congress leader said.

"However, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to France in 2015, a new agreement for the purchase of 36 aircraft, costing more, was signed," he added.

Anil Ambani's Reliance Group has served legal notices to the spokespersons and leaders of the Congress party, asking them to cease and desist from levelling allegations against the Rafale deal.

Chavan later told mediapersons that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had "misinterpreted" former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan's letter on non-performing assets (NPAs) to the Parliamentary Estimates Committee and said during the UPA regime, the NPAs amounted to only Rs 4 lakh crore, which went up to Rs 11 lakh crore during the present National Democratic Alliance (NDA) regime.

Blaming the ruling BJP and Shiv Sena over the fuel price hike in Maharashtra, Chavan said the latter had no right to speak on the issue.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The government must explain how and why Vijay Mallya was allowed to leave India, the Congress said Wednesday after the liquor baron claimed in London that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country.

The government, the party said, was fully complicit in the flight of people like Mallya and others from the country.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said the country wants to know what transpired during the meetings between Mallya and Jaitley.

"The government should now explain how and why he was allowed to leave and what transpired at those meetings. The nation wants to know," he said.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss told reporters in London that he met the minister and offered to settle with the banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the finance minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks), Mallya said, without naming the minister.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Home Ministry is planning to relax the minimum height requirement for people from the Nepalese community residing in India to join the paramilitary forces, Minister of States for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju said Wednesday.

He was speaking at Haritalika Teej Mahotsav organised by Ramdev's Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust and Bharat Swabhiman Trust.

Rijiju praised the contribution of the Nepalese community in developing the Indian culture.

"The Nepalese community has played a very important role in saving and making the Indian culture and because of their enormous contribution, we are proposing relaxation of height for the Nepalese community residing in India in paramilitary forces," he said.

The minister said the relaxation in the height limit would be same as given to Scheduled Castes and Tribes in the paramilitary forces.

The Scheduled Tribes get a relaxation of a few centimetres in paramilitary forces. The minimum height for all candidates belonging to Scheduled Tribes is 162.5 centimetres for males and 150 centimetres for females.

The minimum height for General Category candidates is 170 centimetres for males and 157 centimetres for females.

At the event, Ramdev urged people to believe in national unity, which should be above unity over caste, religion and region.

"We keep hearing about OBC unity, SC/ST unity. National unity should be above all," Ramdev said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The government on Wednesday approved an over 25 per cent hike in the price of ethanol produced directly from sugarcane juice for blending in petrol in a bid to cut surplus sugar production and reduce oil imports.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs raised the procurement price of ethanol derived from 100 per cent sugarcane juice to Rs 59.13 per litre from the current rate of Rs 47.13, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan told a conference.

The price for ethanol produced from B-heavy molasses (also called as intermediary molasses) was hiked to Rs 52.43 a litre from the current Rs 47.13 but that for ethanol produced from C-heavy molasses was reduced marginally to Rs 43.46 from Rs 43.70.

Diverting sugarcane juice for directly making ethanol, which can be doped in petrol, is common across the major sugar producing nations. Brazil tops the list where all the ethanol produced is directly made from sugarcane juice.

The move would help sugar mills quickly release arrears of cane farmers, which stands at over Rs 13,000 crore. As much as 40 per cent of these dues are in Uttar Pradesh alone.

Ethanol so extracted would be doped in petrol to cut reliance on imports. The government is looking at scaling up the blending to 10 per cent in the next couple of years from 4-5 per cent now.

Molasses is a viscous product resulting from refining sugarcane or sugar beets into sugar.

"Oil marketing companies (OMCs) are advised to prioritise ethanol from 100 per cent sugarcane juice, B-heavy molasses / partial sugarcane juice, C-heavy molasses, and damaged food grains/other sources, in that order," he said.

Also, OMCs will pay GST and transportation charges.

Pradhan said the decision will reduce excess sugar in the country, increase liquidity with the sugar mills for settling cane farmer's dues and make higher ethanol available for Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme.

"Remunerative price to ethanol suppliers will help in reduction of cane farmers' arrears, in the process contributing to minimising the difficulty of sugarcane farmers," he said.

The government had launched the programme EBP in 2003 on pilot basis which was subsequently extended to 21 states and four Union Territories to promote the use of alternative and environment-friendly fuels.

But the target of 10 per cent blending of ethanol in petrol was never met.

Since 2014, the government notified an administered price for ethanol. The move significantly improved the supply of ethanol during the past four years.

The ethanol procured by public sector OMCs has increased from 38 crore litres in ethanol supply year 2013-14 to estimated 140 crore litres in 2017-18.

In the 2018-19 ethanol production season, which starts from December 2018, an estimated 200-225 crore litres of ethanol is expected to be supplied by sugar factories to OMCs against a total requirement of up to 340 crore litres. One-fourth of the supplies are expected to be produced from B-heavy molasses while the rest would come from the conventional C-heavy molasses.

Pradhan said surplus sugar production has been depressing sugar prices. Consequently, sugarcane farmers' dues have increased due to the lower capability of the sugar industry to pay the farmers.

Previously, the government had allowed diversion of B-heavy molasses/sugarcane juice for production of ethanol to limit sugar production in the country.

As the ex-mill price of sugar rose from the earlier estimated price, there was a need to revise price of ethanol, he said.

Sugar mills are incurring losses as prices have fallen below production cost on account of record output of 31.5 million tonnes in the 2017-18 season as against the annual domestic demand of 25 million tonnes.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The government will introduce a bill in Parliament to amend National Institutes of Design (NID) Act, 2014 to include four new such centres within the ambit of this law, and to declare them as institutions of national importance.

The decision regarding this was taken by the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday.

The four new NIDs, which will be included, are in Amaravati, Bhopal, Jorhat, and Kurukshetra.

"The Union Cabinet has given its approval for introduction of Bill in Parliament for amendment of NID Act 2014" to include the four new NIDs within the ambit of the Act and to declare them as Institutions of National Importance (INIs) at par with the NID Ahmedabad, an official statement said.

It said that some minor amendments to the Act will include re-naming of NID Vijayawada as NID Amaravati and nomenclature of principal designer as equivalent to Professor are also proposed in the bill.

According to the statement, establishing new NIDs as institutions of national Importance in different regions will help produce skilled manpower.

It will also help create job opportunities, both direct and indirect, by providing sustainable design interventions for crafts, handloom, rural technology, small, medium and large scale enterprises; and outreach programmes for capacity, capability and institution building, it added.

An Institute of National Importance in India is defined as one which serves as a pivotal player in developing highly skilled personnel within the specified region of the country or state.

Only a chosen few institutes make it to this coveted list and are usually supported by the government or even any other international institutes to develop centers of excellence in research, academics, and other such elite schools of education.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Jammu and Kashmir administration said on Wednesday that it would bear the school expenses of the children of policemen killed in militancy-related violence in the state.

The state administrative council (SAC), which met here under the chairmanship of Governor Satya Pal Malik, approved the proposal of bearing the expenses of up to two children of such personnel till Class XII. It would be borne by the department, an official spokesperson said.

It also sanctioned the enhancement of the ex-gratia to the families of such personnel. It will enhance the existing cumulative ex-gratia relief from Rs 48 lakh to Rs 70 lakh for police personnel and from Rs 14.5 lakh to Rs 30 lakh for special police officers.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
On this episode of Radio Free Acton, Caroline Roberts, producer and host of Radio Free Acton, speaks with Joseph Connors, Assistant Professor of Economics at Florida Southern College, about the global decline in poverty and how we can continue to reduce it. Then, on the Upstream segment, Bruce Edward Walker talks to Alex Chafuen, Actons Managing Director, International, on Operation Finale a new film depicting the capture of infamous Nazi Adolf Eichmann after he escaped to Argentina following WWII.

Check out these additional resources on this weeks podcast topics:

Read The growth of the worlds middle class may be the greatest story of our age by Jon Miltimore

Register here for the upcoming Acton on Tap: Extreme Poverty Takes a Fall featuring Joseph Connors

Learn more about the causes of poverty, effective solutions, and more

Read Operation Finale: Nazis In Our Midst by Alejandro Chafuen

Operation Finale IMDb

Do you have questions for the Radio Free Acton team that you would like answered in future podcast segments? We want to hear from you! Leave a message at 888-705-4180 or email [email protected] Lastly, if you like what you heard on todays episode, dont forget to give us a rating on iTunes.
Patidar quota agitation leader Hardik Patel ended his hunger strike on "people's advice" on the 19th day Wednesday but vowed to take his fight to Delhi, even as the Gujarat government showed no signs of initiating talks with him.

Hardik Patel had launched an indefinite fast for OBC quota for the Patidar community as well as farm loan waiver on August 25 from his house in Ahmedabad.

On Wednesday, he accepted lemonade from the community leaders Naresh Patel and C K Patel.

He said his fight will continue for quota, farm loan waiver and release of his friend Alpesh Kathiriya, arrested recently on sedition charges. Patel had added Kathiriya's release in his list of demands later, during his fast.

He said he will organise protests at Jantar Mantar or Ramlila Maidan in Delhi.

"I have ended my indefinite fast after considering people's advice that I can fight only when I am live, and I will win only when I fight," the 25-year-old leader told reporters.

"The BJP government should feel ashamed that it did not worry about the loan burden of farmers. I can understand that you may not agree with the demands of a community...but the government is not even serious or sensitive about the issues of people," he said.

He claimed his fast has brought together various factions of the Patidar community.

Hardik Patel also came down heavily on police, accusing them of manhandling his supporters and preventing them from entering his residence when he was on fast.

Asked about his next course of action, he said he will visit villages in Gujarat over the next 100 days to mobilize farmers and the Patidar community and then take his fight to Delhi.

Leaders from six Patidar organisations were present by Patel's side. They said they will press the community's demands by continuing talks with the state government.

"We will try to persuade the government to release Alpesh Kathiriya on a priority basis," said C K Patel.

After breaking his fast, Hardik Patel visited the Gandhi Ashram in the city to pay homage to Mahatma Gandhi.

Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel said Hardik Patel took the right decision to break his fast.

"He did it late but he took the right decision," Nitin Patel said, without indicating whether the government would hold talks with him.

Hardik Patel had started his fast at his house on August 25, the third anniversary of his 2015 agitation for quota.

He was admitted to a hospital after his health deteriorated on the 14th day of his fast. After spending two days in hospital, he returned to his house and continued the hunger strike.

He had started taking liquids and was administered glucose at the hospital, but claimed that he did not take any solid food during the fast.

The BJP government had alleged that Hardik Patel's agitation was "politically-motivated" and had opposition Congress' backing.

Energy Minister Saurabh Patel had said the government was open to talks with anybody, but no negotiations were held.

Leaders of opposition parties including state Congress leaders, independent MLA and Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani, Loktantrik Janata Dal leader Sharad Yadav, TMC MP Dinesh Trivedi, Dalit leader from Maharashtra Prakash Ambedkar and Congress leader and former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat met Hardik Patel during his fast and expressed their support.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Delhi government informed the Supreme Court Wednesday that it has cleared 148 acres of encroached forest land in the national capital.

The counsel appearing for Delhi government told a bench of justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta that it would file an affidavit giving full details of the actions taken to re-claim the encroached land and also about the water bodies.

On the point of issuing advance notice of sealing to defaulters, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) A N S Nadkarni, appearing for the Centre, said they have discussed the matter with senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, assisting the court as an amicus curiae, and they would finalise an agreed plan.

"We had a discussion and some agreed procedure will be finalised," the ASG said.

The bench said it would hear the issue on September 20.

It also granted two weeks' time to the Delhi government to file their affidavit in the matter.

The apex court had earlier taken serious note of the encroachments in Delhi and had said it was a "matter of great distress" that 2,280.43 kilometres of roads, streets and footpaths were encroached upon in the national capital.

The observation by the bench had come after it was informed that 844.33 kms, 811.01 kms and 601.2 kms of encroached roads and streets were cleared by the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) and those in South and East Delhi respectively as on August 31.

The bench had made it clear that once the special task force (STF), constituted on April 25 following the court's order to oversee enforcement of laws on illegal constructions here, clears the encroachments, the statutory authority would have to ensure that there was no more encroachment in the area.

The court had also dealt with issues relating to encroachment of forest land and water bodies here which was raised by the court-appointed monitoring committee in its report.

The committee had told the court that several water bodies in Delhi had dried up and were encroached upon, which was a matter of grave concern.

The apex court had in July directed that there would be "no stopping of sealing or demolition" of unauthorised constructions in Delhi after the Centre had said it had not given any instructions to the civic bodies to go slow or stop the sealing drive against offending structures.

The top court is dealing with the issue related to validity of the Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Act, 2006 and subsequent legislations which protect unauthorised construction from being sealed.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Uttarakhand High Court Wednesday directed the state government to pay a compensation of Rs 1.90 crore to the next of kin of a doctor shot dead while on duty in 2016.

A division bench of the High Court comprising Acting Chief Justice Rajiv Sharma and Justice Manoj Tiwari held that the doctor, Sunil Kumar, was discharging official duties at the Community Health Centre, Jaspur, when he was shot dead on April 20, 2016.

The chief minister has agreed to pay a compensation of Rs 50 lakh but till date, only a sum of Rs one lakh has been paid to the petitioner, the court said.

It was the duty of the state government to protect the life of the doctor, the court said, adding that he was on duty and killing a doctor on duty amounts to negation of the rule of law.

"Keeping this and various other factors in mind, the court directs the state government to pay a compensation of Rs 1.90 crore along with interest at the rate of 7.5 per cent per annum to the wife of the deceased," the bench said.

The state is also directed to award "extraordinary pension" to the petitioner as per the provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Civil Services (Extraordinary Pension) (First Amendment) Rules, 1981, as adopted by the State of Uttarakhand, within 10 weeks from today along with the arrears at the rate of 8.5 per cent per annum, it said.

The doctor was posted at CHC, Jaspur, as a paediatrician when he was shot dead.

An FIR was lodged at Jaspur police station by the Emergency Medical Officer, CHC, Jaspur.

After much deliberation, the state chief secretary made a proposal to the chief minister on May 26, 2016 for grant of compensation of Rs 50 lakh and appointment of Kumar's elder son as a lecturer in any polytechnic in Dehradun on permanent basis on compassionate grounds and a government accommodation for the doctor's widow for a period of 5 years in Dehradun.

The chief minister endorsed the proposal. However, the family has only been paid Rs one lakh as compensation.

The deceased's elder son was given compassionate appointment as a lecturer in Computer Science Department of State Polytechnic, Dehradun, on a contractual basis.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Delhi High Court Wednesday questioned the Tihar Jail authorities' deducting 25 per cent salary of the prisoners for a victim compensation fund, saying that it was the government's obligation to set up such a corpus.

A bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V K Rao said the Director General of Prisons of the Delhi government "cannot do something which was not permissible under the law".

The court asked the Delhi government to file an affidavit on the powers available to it for taking such a decision and listed the matter for further hearing on December 3.

It observed that the prison authority was assuming the power of a convicting court which imposes the costs or fines on a convict.

"You (prison authority) are also imposing a fine by deducting 25 per cent of their salary. You are assuming the powers of convicting court. How can you do that? Your decision is in conflict with the Criminal Procedure Code," the bench said.

It was hearing a PIL challenging the practice of deducting 25 per cent of the convicts' wages towards the victim welfare fund.

The court was earlier told that over Rs 15 crore collected since 2006 from wages of convicts lodged in Tihar Jail for welfare of their victims has been lying unutilised.

The prison, in a report, has said that till date it has held 12 meetings and approximately Rs 80.73 lakh has been disbursed to 194 eligible victims.

It has opposed the PIL which has sought quashing of an August 2006 notification and the Delhi Prison Rules of 1988 which mandate deduction of wages of prisoners.

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Congress MLA Karan Singh Dalal, who was suspended from Haryana Assembly for a year for alleged misconduct, has lodged a police complaint accusing INLD leader Abhay Singh Chautala of threatening him in the House.

While police said it will examine the complaint, Chautala on Wednesday claimed that Dalal was in the habit of lodging such complaints and he had done so in the past as well.

Dalal was suspended from Haryana Assembly on Tuesday for a year after the legislator and Leader of Opposition Abhay Singh Chautala hurled abuses and charged at each other with a shoe in their hand, prompting the Speaker to summon marshals.

In the complaint lodged at Sector 3 police station here on Tuesday, Dalal said, "Abhay Singh Chautala proposed my suspension from the House upon which heated exchanges took place between me and Abhay in the House and as a result of which he lost his mental balance and started abusing and threatening me."



"When I told him to behave, he threatened me saying that he will see me outside the House and get me eliminated. The House was adjourned and later Abhay Singh Chautala again threatened me saying that he will get me and my family eliminated."



"There is imminent danger to me and my family at the hands of Abhay Singh and as such a case be registered and lawful action may please be taken against him," Dalal, a five-time MLA said in his police complaint.

On Wednesday, Dalal told reporters that he is a CBI witness in the disproportionate assets case against Chautala and he would move an application before a court in Delhi apprising it how the INLD leader threatened him and his family.

The Congress MLA said he would plead with the court to cancel Chautala's bail in the case.

When asked to comment on the police complaint by Dalal, Chautala told reporters that the Congress leader was in the habit of doing so and in 2000 too, after being suspended from the Assembly, he had lodged a police complaint charging the INLD leader of threatening him.

Dalal said he had raised a matter concerning the poor in the Assembly as part of his calling attention motion and accused Chautala of preventing him from raising the voice of the financially weaker sections of the society in the House.

"INLD, which is the main opposition party, should have supported me. But the party, which is hand in glove with the BJP, conspired against me... Chautala is behaving like a BJP's bouncer," he said and wondered why was the INLD leader not suspended for flashing a shoe at him.

Former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda described Dalal's suspension for one year as unfortunate and said the events that unfolded in the Assembly on Tuesday would make it "a dark day in the history of the Vidhan Sabha."



"We want to know under what rules was our MLA suspended for one year, there is no such rule," he said, adding, "We have always been maintaining that INLD is BJP's 'B' team. The INLD has failed to discharge its role as the main opposition party."



Attacking the Manohar Lal Khattar government, Hooda said, "They are not able to face us in the Assembly as we confront them on various issues... To save itself from having to answer the questions which we raise in the Vidhan Sabha, the ruling party has conspired with the INLD to target our members.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa Wednesday strongly defended the government's decision to procure only 36 Rafale fighter jets against the original proposal of 126 aircraft, saying there have been similar "emergency" acquisitions in the past.

The Air Force is reeling under a severe shortage of fighter aircraft at a time India faces security challenges from two nuclear-powered neighbours, the air chief marshal said, adding that the purchase of 36 Rafale jets (two squadrons) will help the force deal with the situation.

One squadron of fighter jets comprises 16-18 aircraft.

"Whenever the government felt the air power element of the defence forces is likely to be in a disadvantageous position, it has gone in for emergency purchases of the aircraft under the umbrella of the inter-governmental agreement," Dhanoa said, addressing a seminar on IAF's force restructuring.

"The history is that the government had undertaken emergency purchase of fighter aircraft on several occasions in the past," he said.

The previous UPA government was negotiating a deal with French aerospace giant Dassault Aviation, the makers of the Rafale, for procuring 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA). However the deal could not be sealed.

"By providing the Rafale and S-400, the government is strengthening the IAF to counter the shortfalls of our depleting numbers," he said.

The government is also procuring a batch of S-400 air defence missile systems from Russia.

The Modi government inked a government-to-government deal with France for the purchase of 36 Rafale jets at a cost of Rs 58,000 crore on September 23, 2016. The delivery of the aircraft will start from September 2019.

The Congress has been alleging massive irregularities in the deal and has attacked the government for procuring just 36 jets when the Air Force required 126.

Justifying the decision to go for only two Rafale squadrons, Dhanoa said India procured two squadrons of MiG 23 MF jets after Pakistan received the first lot of F-16 aircraft in 1983.

In 1985, he said two squadrons of Mirage 2000 were procured from France, and later two squadrons of MiG 29 were purchased from the then Soviet Union



"All this procurement was under the umbrella of the inter-governmental agreement (IGA)," he said.

He added that acquisitions under IGA are "faster" and the quickest means of achieving operational capability of the IAF.

The IAF chief said the force currently has 31 squadrons of fighter jets against the sanctioned strength of 42 squadrons.

"Even when we do have 42 squadrons, we will be below the combined numbers of two of our regional adversaries," he said, referring to China and Pakistan.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The IIT Kharagpur has signed an MoU with Carleton University of Canada to support research collaboration, capacity building and other forms of academic partnerships.

Under this MoU, signed on Tuesday at IIT KGP extension campus here, both institutions will focus on opportunities in student exchange, faculty exchange and professional development programmes, an IIT KGP statement said here on Wednesday.

The two institutions will also explore possibilities of collaborative masters programmes.

The MoU will cover the scope of interaction among members of faculty relating to joint research projects, visits for such purposes and when necessary, joint applications for research funding from external funding agencies, the statement said.

"We are happy to have the MoU signed with Carleton University. We look forward to a long and fruitful collaboration with different units of the university," Deputy Director of IIT KGP, Prof. Sriman Kumar Bhattacharyya said.

Carleton University, which is among the best universities in Canada with high research focus and diverse academic programs, has been recently focussing in areas such as autonomous vehicles (which can be guided without humans at the wheels) and technology enablers for smart cities.

IIT KGP has been similarly carrying research on areas like intelligent transportation, future of cities, digital convergence and centre of excellence in artificial intelligence.

"I am excited about this new partnership. This is the beginning of a long-term collaboration, having students from IIT KGP come to Canada and Carleton students coming to India and launching of exciting professional development programmes," Associate Vice-President, Research and International at Carleton University, Dr. Karen Schwartz said.

Discussions are on between the department of Systems and Computer Engineering at Carleton University and the department of Electronics and Electrical Communications Engineering at IIT KGP to launch dual degree programs for masters and doctoral students.

Plans are also in place for distance offerings in Data Analytics, Cyber Security and Management leadership which will be jointly taught by experts from both the institutions.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Imran Khan Wednesday visited for the first time the headquarters of the Pakistan's spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) where he was briefed on various strategic intelligence and national security matters.

Khan paid his first visit to the ISI Headquarters in Islamabad after becoming the prime minister, the army said in a statement.

He was briefed in details on various strategic intelligence and national security matters by the senior security officials, it added.

Khan said that government and people of Pakistan firmly stand behind their armed forces and intelligence agencies.

Khan's cabinet ministers were also with him during the visit.

Earlier, Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa and ISI Director General Lt Gen Naveed Mukhtar received Khan on his arrival.

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The top brass of the Army Wednesday gave an in-principle approval to carry out extensive reforms in the second largest standing Army in the world with an aim to enhance its war-fighting capabilities, official sources said.

The decision was taken at a two-day brainstorming meeting of top commanders of the Army which was chaired by Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat.

The sources said the reform may include making various formations as well as divisions "leaner and meaner", transforming the procurement process into a seamless exercise, restructuring of various establishments of the force and possible downsizing of the troops if required.

"The detailed reform initiative will be deliberated upon extensively at the next month's commanders' conference," said a source.

The sources said operations, logistics and procurement wings will witness significant reforms.

They said the Directorate General of Rashtriya Rifles (DGRR), located in the Army headquarters in Delhi, may be moved out.

Similarly, the Directorate General of Military Training may be integrated with the Shimla-based Army Training Command (ARTRAC).

The sources said the top brass of the Army examined separate reports of two committees on reforming the force.

There have been indications that the Army may cut over 1,00,000 troops over the next five years as part of restructuring process. The current strength of the force is around 1.3 million personnel.

The commanders also reviewed the modernisation process of the Army and emphasised on the need to equip the force with new platforms and weapons, the sources said.

The Defence Ministry has already announced a series of reform measures for the Army which included redeployment of nearly 57,000 officers and other ranks as well as ensuring better utilisation of resources.

Under the cadre review, the Army is also looking at abolishing the rank of brigadier, they said.

The sources said the aim of the reform initiative is to ready a larger talent pool for crucial tasks and bringing down the age of those commanding key formations.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
India is among four countries with "no or little enforcement" mechanism to check foreign bribery, according to a report released Wednesday by anti- organisation Transparency International.

Citing cases of alleged bribery by foreign firms including in a deal of 12 helicopters by Italy-based firm AgustaWestland, it asked India to criminalise foreign bribery and introduce effective legislation to protect whistleblowers in the private sector.

"If China, Hong Kong, India and Singapore do not enforce hard-won international standards for conducting business, competitors from countries that do enforce will find themselves disadvantaged. This may lead to a reduction in enforcement, destabilising the global marketplace," said the 2018 edition of the 'Exporting Report'.

The classification of enforcement is based on the convention countries' enforcement actions in the period 2014-2017.

It said the real losers will be the global economy and people in countries affected by exported corruption, especially grand

"In this 2018 report, China, Hong Kong, India and Singapore - all with 2 per cent or more of world exports, but not parties to the OECD (Anti-Bribery) Convention - are classified for the first time and all fall into the lowest level (little or no enforcement). This poor performance argues for these countries' accession to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention," the finding said.

They are, however, parties to the UN Convention against Corruption, which also calls for enforcement against foreign bribery. Transparency International urges them to join the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, it said.

The OECD Anti-Bribery Convention was adopted in 1997 to address the supply side of international corruption. There are now 44 parties to the convention, 36 of them members of the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development).

"Despite their obligations under the UN Convention against Corruption, China, India and Hong Kong have not initiated any enforcement against foreign bribery and related offences, undermining the multilateral consensus that action in this area is essential. They should promptly initiate enforcement, and publish data on enforcement results and case resolutions," it said.

The Indian government does not publish statistics on its foreign bribery enforcement and does not disclose such statistics on request, the report said.

"The authorities do not disclose any information about unpublished cases related to bribery of foreign public officials by Indians. It is also not clear whether the governmental enforcement and investigative agencies collect information related to foreign bribery, separately or not," it said.

The report said in July 2018, the Indian Parliament passed a bill amending the present Prevention of Corruption Act, which covers bribe payers for the first time.

"The bill also covers agents, subsidiaries and subcontractors of foreign firms working in India or doing business with Indian entities," it said.

As foreign bribery is not yet criminalised in India, the adequacy of the enforcement system in relation to this specific offence cannot be assessed, said the report, which was released in Berlin.

"However, certain shortcomings in the enforcement system, in particular those evident from current enforcement of domestic corruption, are also a concern for foreign bribery enforcement. In particular, while the Indian Penal Code and Prevention of Corruption Act prescribe criminal and civil liability for domestic corruption, the reality is that actions taken against the perpetrators have been few," it said.

The report cited inadequacies in implementation of Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) Treaty.

"India has signed mutual legal assistance (MLA) treaties with 39 countries. The Ministry of Home Affairs is the central authority for seeking and providing MLA in criminal law matters. The translation of documents into foreign languages is a major factor slowing down the MLA process," it said.

The report cited several cases of alleged bribery or attempts to bribe Indian government officials by foreign firms including France-based Airbus, saying India was among 16 countries targeted by alleged bribery.

"In 2017, the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the 2013 conviction of a Canadian man for conspiring to bribe Indian public officials, including a minister, in a failed bid to win a major contract for Cryptometrics Canada ( a firm) to supply security-screening equipment to Air India," the report said, giving details of Canada which according to it has "limited enforcement".

Briefing about Italy with "active enforcement", it said that in 2016, an Italian appellate court overturned a previous lower court ruling and sentenced a former chief executive of Finmeccanica (now Leonardo S.p.A.) and a former head of (a subsidiary of Finmeccanica) to four-and-a-half years and four years in prison, respectively, and a fine of Euro 7.5 million, for corruption and falsifying invoices.

"The trial concerned alleged bribes in a Euro 560-million contract awarded to in 2010 to supply 12 helicopters to India," the report said.
A growing number of Chinese companies are adopting a crafty way to evade US President Donald Trump's tariffs: remove the "Made in China" label by shifting production to countries such as Vietnam, Serbia and Mexico.

On August 31, Ford announced it was canceling plans to ship the Focus Active to the USA from China - citing new tariffs on Chinese imports.

Trump took to Twitter Sunday to declare victory and write: "This is just the beginning".

"China-US trade frictions are accelerating the trend of the global value chain changing shape", said Cui Fan, research director at the China Society of WTO Studies, a think tank affiliated with the commerce ministry. Ford originally planned to make the next gen Focus Active - a cross hatchback version of the standard Focus to Mexico but changed those plans to make the economy auto in China instead. "We hope, instead, that you will reconsider these measures and work to find other, more effective solutions that leave the USA economy and USA consumer stronger and healthier than ever before".

As for Ford, the automaker in August said it was dropping plans to ship the hatchback-style Focus Active from China to America, citing Mr. Trump's new tariffs.

"It would not be profitable to build the Focus Active in the US given an expected annual sales volume of fewer than 50,000 units and its competitive segment", the company said in a statement, according to The New York Times. "As a result, tariffs will ultimately reduce the economic benefit we generate for the United States", Apple said.

On the companies front Primark owner Associated British Foods reaffirmed its full year guidance as it said that it expected to report a rise in full year like for like sales of 1.5% with United Kingdom stores helping drive the move higher.

But if Apple shifted to building its iPhones in the U.S. instead of China, it would require "20 percent price increases to offset the incremental labor costs", Bank of America Merrill Lynch told clients on Monday.

Some components for Apple products, including glass from manufacturers like Corning, are made in the United States, the company has said.

Shares of Apple are up 27% this year. Make your products in the United States instead of China.

In addition, USA stocks with a high exposure to China have underperformed the broader S&P 500 index since mid-June, when the White House announced the first tariffs.

Trump's threatened tariffs cover a total of $517 billion in Chinese goods, which would exceed last year's goods imports of $505 billion from China. That would pile more pressure on an economy that is already battling serious headwinds, they said. Trump slapped China-built autos with an additional 25 percent levy in July. The company is making iPhone display glass in Kentucky, and is setting up new plants in other areas.

Analyst Wamsi Mohan said that if Apple moves 10% of its iPhone assembly to the U.S., prices will rise by 8%. He said Japan will have a "big problem" if it doesn't conclude a new trade deal with the U.S. Last month, it added tariffs to another $16 billion in Chinese goods and is readying taxes on another $200 billion worth.
An interfaith meet was organised here to mark the 125th anniversary of Swami Vivekananda's historic speech at the Parliament of the World's Religions held in Chicago in 1893, according to a statement by the Ramakrishna Mission on Wednesday.

Former president Pranab Mukherjee was the chief guest at the event organised on Tuesday.

The Mission said nine religious denominations were represented by various scholars and preachers, who explained how every faith bears similarities with the line of thought expounded by Swami Vivekananda in his speech which had drawn thunderous applause from the largely American audience.

On the occasion, Mukherjee said the landmark speech in Chicago established India as the world leader in matters of spirituality.

Swami Shantatmananda, Secretary of Ramakrishna Mission, in his concluding remarks, said today the need for intra-faith harmony is perhaps even more than interfaith harmony.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Amid uncertainty over impending US sanctions against Tehran, Indian Oil Corp (IOC) has booked for import of usual monthly quantity of 0.75-0.8 million tonnes of crude oil from Iran in October but is unsure if the trade would continue thereafter, a senior official said.

While India wants to continue importing Iranian oil, albeit a reduced volume, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week stated that Washington would consider waivers on the embargo but made clear that these would be time-limited, if granted.

State refiners, however, have no advice from the government on Iranian imports yet, the official said.

IOC, he said, had planned to import of 9 million tonnes of Iranian oil in the 2018-19 fiscal (April 2018 to March 2019). "This comes to a monthly volume of 0.75 million tonnes and we have been doing similar kind of import till now, including in September. We have booked a similar volume of 0.75-0.8 million tonnes in October".

US sanctions against Iran kick in from November, which will block payment routes.

"We don't know yet what stance government of India will take. We have not been told to stop or cut down on imports from Iran as yet. We are importing oil on a monthly basis," the official said. "We don't know what will happen in November. Perhaps there will be clarity before that".

Indian refiners buying from Iran benefit from 60 days credit, terms not available from suppliers of substitute crudes Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Nigeria, and the US.

But, banks are unwilling to handle payments once sanctions are implemented in the first week of November. Also, the absence of payment mechanism may pose a challenge to the transportation of the oil as Iranian crude is bought on a CIF basis and shipped on Iranian tankers.

Under Cost, Insurance and Freight (CIF) mode of shipping, the seller assumes the responsibility of transportation and insurance. The liability and costs associated with successful transit are paid by the seller until the goods are received by the buyer.

Other state refiners, Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) are not importing Iranian oil in October, industry sources said.

India had planned to import about 25 million tonnes of crude oil from Iran in the current fiscal, up from 22.6 million tonnes imported in 2017-18.

While Iranian oil makes up for a very small volume in the basket of crude for HPCL, and BPCL has stopped buying Iranian oil but for a different reason. It had contracted for around 4 million tonnes of Iranian crude for 2018-19. This included one million tonnes for its joint venture refinery at Bina in Madhya Pradesh.

Of the remaining 3 million tonnes destined for Mumbai and Kochi refineries, one million tonnes was on a firm basis and the remaining was optional. BPCL has taken all of the firm volumes already, as well as around 1.5 million tonnes of the optional volumes, officials said.

Now, it has no need of the remaining 5,00,000 tonnes of optional crude because the hydrocracker unit was shut after a fire last month. And so, it has not booked any cargoes for October.

The hydrocracker will restart by December. Otherwise, Mumbai refinery is working at full capacity.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 54-year-old Irish man allegedly committed suicide by jumping off the third floor of a hotel here on Wednesday, police said.

The incident took place in Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh.

The deceased was identified as Brandon Liam, said Shalini Agnihotri, the Kullu Superintendent of Police.

The reason behind the suicide is not yet clear, she said, adding that the Embassy of Ireland has been informed about the incident.

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Actor Tiger Shroff has said the reports of his rumoured girlfriend Disha Patani walking out of a project because Hrithik Roshan flirted with her were extremely "silly" and there is no truth to that.

There were reports that Disha walked out of Hrithik and Tiger's next film as the former allegedly flirted with her.

When asked about it, Tiger told reporters, "It's part and parcel. Not just Hrithik sir, every star faces that. Once in the limelight, you become an easy target. It was a very silly rumour. I know both of them very well, they are nothing like that. They are lovely human beings."



Disha Patani had earlier rubbished the reports as "childish and irresponsible gossip" and called Hrithik a "dignified" person.

Tiger was speaking at the launch of new range of Macho.

The "Baaghi 2" actor said it was too early to speculate whether Hrithik and he would have a dance-off in their untitled movie backed by Yash Raj Films.

"It's too early to talk about that because we haven't created that song yet. But there's an interesting situation in the film where we come together on the dance (floor).

"It has been my life long dream to work with him. He's everything for me. I look up to him as an actor, human being. I am his big fan. I'll get to learn a lot from him. We begin shooting from October," he added.

At the event, he also brushed aside rumours that he will be collaborating with Sanjay Leela Bhansali and said the filmmaker was "kind enough" to meet him for a courtesy meeting.

Tiger will be seen next on screen in "Student of the Year 2", in which, it was reported that the actor has put a no-kissing clause.

When asked about it, the actor said, "It's just a rumour. If you've seen any of my films (you'd know). Not that I have deliberately done it (kiss) but every one of my films has had a kiss. If the story demands, I don't have a problem. As actors we have to be open things.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A high alert was sounded Wednesday in the Jammu region after suspected militants fired on security personnel on a highway here, police officials said.

Security in and around important and strategic establishments has also been increased, they said.

The high alert was issued for areas along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway and the Jammu region after the incident, the officials said.

Security was increased at Katra, the base camp of the Mata Vaishno Devi cave shrine, and on all roads leading to the town, they said.

The officials said all checkpoints on the highway have been put on alert and vehicles are being checked.

The suspected militants opened fire on the security personnel after they intercepted a truck that sped past a check point on the highway, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Jammu, Vivek Gupta, told PTI.

They fired on the personnel from the vehicle before fleeing, he said.

However, the driver and the conductor of the truck were taken into custody, the SSP said.

Gupta said an AK assault rifle and three magazines were seized from the truck during a search.

"2-3 suspected militants who ran away from the truck are being chased. Police, army and CRPF activated. Cordon and search operation is on ahead of Suketar near Katra crossing national highway," the Jammu and Kashmir Police said on Twitter. PTI AB



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The Jammu and Kashmir police Wednesday issued an advisory, urging people to inform the force about the three suspected Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists who have escaped after opening fire on security personnel on the state's main highway.

The police spokesperson said residents should inform the Senior Superintendent of Police of Police Control Room, Jammu, on mobile number: 7006690780.

He said the informer would be suitable rewarded.

The terrorists are believed to be part of a suicide squad.

They escaped into a forest area near Jhajjar Kotli after opening fire on security personnel when their truck was intercepted for speeding past a check-post this morning.

The police spokesman said the terrorists are in the 18-22 age group. Two of them have AK rifles and the third has a pistol. One of them is wearing a pathan dress and two are in pants, shirts.

Officials said all checkpoints on the highway have been put on alert and vehicles are being checked.

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The retirement of founder will not impact the company's investments in India as his successor will not make significant changes in the strategy, an industry analyst in China said on Wednesday.

On Monday Ma named the company's Chief Executive Officer Daniel Zhang as his successor who would take charge in September next year, while he would continue to be company's Director.

has diversified portfolio in India, including investments in digital payment platform Paytm, cloud computing via Cloud and the digital media space via UCWeb as well as several other innovative initiatives.

The company's investment strategy is not likely to undergo significant changes, Zhao Gancheng, director of the South Asia Studies Department at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies who has visited India many times, told state-run Global Times.

"It is because Alibaba's leadership regime is not based on Ma's personal charisma. The company has a set of collective decision-making mechanisms. It's an open corporation operated by a group of responsible partners," Zhao noted. "And India is generally keen on Chinese investment too."



"The Indian market has inestimable potential, but it's still hard to turn it into reality," Zhao said. "The country's business environment, laws and regulations are fairly complicated. I hope the company can make market-driven decisions there," he added.

"The developments of Alibaba's plan in India are yet to be seen," Zhao said, noting that "online payment businesses can be sensitive, because they concern national security."



"Zhang's media exposure is comparatively limited. Because of this, the implementation of Alibaba's plan in India is expected to be affected," Zhao estimated.
Jennifer Lawrence has hinted that she is keeping an eye on social media as a "voyeur" but is wary of the blue tick as there is "so much backlash".

The 28-year-old actor, who previously shunned the idea of joining social networking sites, says she has signed up for the apps but does not share any updates.

"I'm on it (social media). But I'm a voyeur: I watch, I don't speak. There is always so much backlash. So many people are listening and paying attention, and they have so many opinions about absolutely everything.

"I really don't want to welcome that unless it's absolutely necessary. I don't want to put myself out there for no reason. Unless I'm promoting something or something really burns my onions, you won't hear from me," Lawrence told InStyle magazine.

The "Red Sparrow" actor earlier said she would never get an account on social networking sites.

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Jet Airways will start direct services between Mumbai and Manchester from November 5, with five flights every week.

A wide-body A330-200 aircraft, having 254 seats, would be deployed for the direct flight to Manchester in the UK, the airline said Wednesday.

It would operate the flight "five days a week including Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

Manchester would be the 21st international destination for Jet Airways and fifth non-stop service to and from the UK.

In May, the full service carrier announced launching of Mumbai-Manchester flight from November.

"Jet Airways' flight 9W 130 will depart from Mumbai at 0230 hours and arrive in Manchester's Terminal 2 at 0755 hours (local time).

"The return flight, 9W 129 will depart from Manchester at 0930 hrs (local time) and arrive in Mumbai's Terminal 2 at 0040 hours," the release said.

Currently, Jet Airways operates three daily non-stop MumbaiLondon flights and a daily service between Delhi and London.

"The launch of five days a week flights to Manchester enhances Jet Airways' cargo capacity to approximately 1,550 tonnes a week between India," the release said.

At present, Jet Airways operates a fleet of 123 aircraft.

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"Richard Says Goodbye", starring Johnny Depp, is set to world premiere at Zurich Film Festival.

The comedy-drama directed by Wayne Roberts has found its place among films such as "Cold War", "Whitney" and "Never Look Away" in the line-up.

The 53-year-old actor will be seen as a college professor who receives a life-changing diagnosis that causes him to rethink his philosophy and throw every caution to the wind.

Depp and Roberts will attend the film's premiere.

Other films include Keira Knightley-starrer "Colette", Annabel Jankel's "Tell It To The Bees", with two German titles, "Trautmann" and "Der Vorname" braced for their world premieres.

"Green Book", featuring Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali, will open the event on September 27.

The festival runs through October 6.

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Erdogan has called for a cease-fire in the northwestern province of Idlib, the last opposition stronghold in Syria, as an assault by Syrian regime forces is expected any day.

Ibrahim Kalin's remarks came after a cabinet meeting chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the presidential complex.

He urged the West, including the USA, to join hands in stopping a possible attack on Idlib.

While officials in Washington, along with counterparts from European allies, are preemptively positioning to use chemical weapons attacks as a pretense for possible airstrikes, Russian Federation has pointed the finger at the U.S. for breaking global law with the use of white phosphorus bombs.

Kaln also stated that "there is no panic in the Turkish economy" and "ostensible turbulence will be over soon".

If chemical weapons are used, National Security Adviser John Bolton promised the USA would deliver a counterattack that's even more severe than the two previous assaults authorized by Trump.

A second strike, in April this year, saw British and French militaries assist the US-led mission.

"The Turks are making sure they have enough munitions that keep them going for a long while", he added.

In the article, Erdogan said "All members of the global community must understand their responsibilities as the assault on Idlib looms".

"The consequences of inaction are huge".

U.S. ambassador Nikki Haley accused the regime's main backers of escalating the violence in Idlib province and using terrorist tactics.

"Fighting terrorism does not absolve warring parties of their core obligations under worldwide law", said Guterres, who directly appealed to Iran, Russia and Turkey to spare no effort to protect civilians, "preserve basic services such as hospitals, ensure full respect for global humanitarian law".

"I am happy with the reports about an indefinite stay", O'Hanlon said, but added: "We also need a more realistic political strategy, explicitly and publicly, that ties everything together and lays out a vision and recognizes the reality of Assad's continued rule, at least in some of the country, at least for a while".

The U.N. has warned that an assault on Idlib could trigger a humanitarian crisis.

In turn, Russia's UN Envoy Vasily Nebenzya told the UNSC that foreign-backed Idlib terrorists should not be shielded and allowed to hold civilians hostage.

Mark Lowcock, the UN's new humanitarian chief, warned on Monday that a large-scale military operation against Idlib could create "the worst humanitarian catastrophe" of this century.

Idlib province and adjacent rural areas form the largest piece of territory still held by Syria's beleaguered opposition fighters, worn down by a succession of regime victories in recent months.

"In Idlib, we're watching very closely what the Assad regime, aided and abetted by the Iranians and the Russians are up to there", Mattis told Pentagon reporters.

"As of 9 September, 30,542 people have been displaced from northwest Syria, moving to different areas across Idlib", David Swanson, spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said.

"We're deeply concerned about this recent escalation of violence, which has resulted in the displacement of over 30,000 in the area".

Many made a dash for Syria's northern border with Turkey, with just under half seeking refuge in displacement camps and others living with local families or renting apartments.

The three countries had failed to reach an agreement for a ceasefire, however, prompting Sweden and other nations to again warn of a "humanitarian catastrophe" should the Syria government, backed by Russian Federation, wage a military offensive on Idlib, where millions are at risk.
The Bombay High Court-appointed judicial committee inquiring into the fire at Kamala Mills Compound here last year has recommended action against a co-owner of the premises and owners of the two restaurants, blaming them for the incident.

The fire at two rooftop restaurants -- Mojo's Bistro and '1 Above' -- at Kamala Mills Compound in central Mumbai on December 29, 2017 claimed 14 lives.

The three-member committee submitted its report to the high court on Monday. It was made available Wednesday evening.

The committee recommended "appropriate punitive action" against co-owner of Kamala Mills Compound Ramesh Gowani and owners of the two restaurants.

Gowani, who holds 95 per cent stake in the Kamala Mills property, permitted the restaurant owners to make unauthorised additions to the structures, it said.

"The owners of both the restaurants committed flagrant violations in converting the entire open terrace into two full-fledged restaurants divided by a partition of highly combustible material and covered by equally inflammable material, such as cotton curtains, plastic covers, etc.

"To make the situation... fatal for the patrons who died due to asphyxia...there was no trained staff or security personnel to guide them in case of emergency," it said.

One of the waiters of 1 Above directed 13 patrons to illegally constructed toilet block which had no exit or ventilation, and as a result all 13 and the waiter himself died of suffocation, the report noted.

"The rear side of the terrace was blocked, and the terrace area was used for stocking inflammable material such as liquor, kerosene and coal. Also, the terrace was used for serving hookah. All of these were in violation of the licence terms and the fire norms," the committee said.

Superintendent of State Excise A B Chaksar and Excise Inspector Sandeep More and Vijay Thorat ignored apparent violations of licence terms at the two restaurants, it claimed.

To avoid such tragedies in future, better coordination between government departments and implementation of "stricter checks and balances" to ensure there is no violation of construction or safety norms in commercial areas are needed, the committee said.

The three-member committee headed by Justice (retired) A V Savant and including architect Vasant Thakur and former municipal commissioner K Nalinakshan was set up by the high court in April.

The panel was formed by a bench headed by Justice Bhushan Gavai in response to a public interest litigation filed by former Mumbai police commissioner Julio Riberio demanding safety audit of all restaurants and pubs in Mumbai.

Gowani and six owners of the two restaurants were arrested by police after the fire.

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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Wednesday described as "absolutely shocking" the revelation by fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving India.

In a series of tweets, Kejriwal asked, "Why did the finance minister hide this information till now?"



"Absolutely shocking,"



"PM Modi meets Neerav Modi before he flees the country. FM meets Vijay Mallya before he flees India. What transpired in these meetings? People want to know (sic)," Kejriwal said.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss told reporters in London that he met the minister and offered to settle with the banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the finance minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks), Mallya said, without naming the minister.

Jaitley rubbished Mallya's statement, saying he never gave him an appointment since 2014 but the liquor baron misused his position as Rajya Sabha MP to accost him in Parliament.

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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday visited Seoul's Cheonggyecheon, an open public space and the site of an urban renewal project which is now a popular tourist attraction.

Kejriwal, accompanied by Urban Development Minister Satyendar Jain is currently visiting South Korea, his first bilateral visit to a foreign country after becoming chief minister.

Kejriwal also attended a leg of the ongoing India Festival in South Korea 'Sarang 2018' at Yonsei University, and praised the Indian Embassy in Seoul for showcasing India's heritage to Koreans.

"I am extremely pleased to participate in this festival and happy that the embassy has taken initiatives to showcase India's culture to Korea... And, this music fest is being launched today. I am very pleased, and I am here to attend a conference, to sign an agreement between Seoul city and Delhi city," he said in his address.

Cheonggyecheon is an over 8 km-long stream flowing west to east through downtown Seoul, and then meeting Jungnangcheon, which connects to the Han River and empties into the Yellow Sea. Several decades ago, Cheonggyecheon was covered with concrete for roads and even public transportation system was later built over it.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government undertook a restoration of the stream in 2005 and renewed it. The Cheonggyecheon restoration project had the purpose of preserving the unique identity of the natural environment and the historic resources in the central business district of Seoul, and to reinforce the surrounding business area with information technology, international affairs and digital industries.

Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party also posted pictures of his visit on Twitter.

"Delhi CM @ArvindKejriwal & Urban Development Minister @SatyendarJain visit the Cheonggyecheon stream in downtown Seoul. Cheonggyecheon stream was a dirty polluted stream stretched around 11 km, said to be urban regeneration marvel as it is now a tourist hotspot," AAP tweeted.

"CM @ArvindKejriwal is in Seoul for Twin City Agreement b/w Delhi & Seoul on Pollution, Water, Public Transport, Education & Urban Devp. If Cheonggyecheon stream in downtown Seoul can be regenerated to a tourist hotspot, why can't river Yamuna & drains in Delhi be revived ?" the party said.

Kejriwal is scheduled to leave Seoul on September 14. Sarang festival began on September 6 and ends on September 16.

A Carnatic music concert was also held at the Yonsei University on its 100th anniversary on Wednesday.

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Kerala police has asked Bishop Franco Mullakal of Jalandhar diocese, accused by a nun of raping her, to appear before the investigating team on September 19, Inspector General of police Vijay Sakhare said Wednesday.

The decision to summon the clergyman was taken after a meeting chaired by Sakhare, IG (Ernakulam range), which was also attended by Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar and Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash amid mounting pressure on police to initiate action against Mullakal.

The nun had recently sought urgent intervention of the Vatican for justice and demanded the bishop's removal as the head of the Jalandhar diocese, questioning why the church was "closing its eyes to the truth" when she mustered courage to make public her sufferings.

In a scathing letter to the Vatican that was made available to the media Tuesday, the nun also asked will the Church be able to give back what she has lost. She alleged that Bishop Franco Mulakkal was using "political and money power" to bury the case against him.

She had accused the clergyman of sexually assaulting her repeatedly between 2014 and 2016.

The bishop had, however, dismissed the allegations as "baseless and concocted", insisting she levelled those as the catholic order had rejected her demand for favours.

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Amid mounting pressure on the police to initiate action against a Roman Catholic Bishop accused of raping a nun, a meeting was held Wednesday to review the progress made in the case even as a clergyman of an influential Kerala diocese slammed the public trial in the matter.

Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar, Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash, who is heading the special investigation team, and other officials attended the review meeting chaired by Ernakulam Range IG Vijay Sakhare in Kochi.

Before the meeting, being held amid allegations of attempts to sabotage the case, Subhash told reporters that a notice may be issued to Bishop Franco Mulakkal of Jalandhar diocese to appear before the investigating team.

Harisankar, however, said the meeting was held to finalise the affidavit to be filed before the high court in this connection tomorrow.

On Monday, the Kerala High Court had directed the state government to inform it of the steps taken by the special investigation team probing the case of alleged rape of the nun by the Bishop.

While considering a plea filed by George Joseph K of the Kerala Catholic Church Reformation Movement seeking a court-monitored probe into the case, the court had said, "Law is above all other things and it will take its own course."



Slamming the public outcry over the alleged delay in action against Jalandhar Bishop, Auxilary Bishop of Changanassery Archdiocese, Thomas Tharayil sought to know whether declaring a person guilty without an investigation and trial was also a new Kerala model.

Tharayil said he had learnt that one should be treated as innocent till his crime was proved before the Court of law.

"If an accused is a priest or a Catholic Bishop, he will be treated as a guilty till his innocence is proved," he added.

Meanwhile, agitation of various Catholic reformation organisations in Kochi seeking justice for the nun entered the fifth day Wednesday.

Many cultural icons in Kerala including noted poet Balachandran Chullikkad have supported the protest.

Leaders of the Mahila Congress, BJP and various rights organisations expressed solidarity with the protesters.

The nun had yesterday shot off a letter to the Vatican representative in India to sack the Bishop, claiming he was using "political and money power" to bury the case.

Making a fervent plea for urgent intervention, the nun, in a scathing letter, also sought to explain her silence before coming out against the bishop, saying she had "tremendous fear and shame" and wondered why the church was "closing its eyes towards the truth".

Speaking to reporters in Jalandhar, the Bishop had said, "If I am found guilty, which I am not, I am likely to be punished... I will appear before police if I am summoned. I am a law abiding citizen."



Senior Kerala minister E P Jayarajan has rejected allegations of attempts to sabotage the case and asserted that the probe was proceeding in the "right direction.

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The Kerala government is yet to submit a detailed report on the damage caused by the recent floods, which may lead to the delay in sanctioning compensation to the state, officials said on Wednesday.

The central government will start the process of giving funds to Kerala for the damage caused by floods, when the state government sends a detailed report citing the loss of human life, properties, infrastructure and crops.

The memorandum from Kerala is yet to come. When it comes, an inter-ministerial team will be sent to the state for the verification of the damage, a government official said.

On the basis of the report of the inter-ministerial team, a high-level committee, headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh will decide on the compensation amount to be given to Kerala.

The inter-ministerial team will be sent to Kerala within days of receiving the memorandum from the state government, the official said.

At least 488 people have died in Kerala due to the rains and floods this monsoon, which hit 14 districts of the state.

On August 21, the central government had released Rs 600 crore to flood-hit Kerala as promised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Rs 500 crore) and Home Minister Rajnath Singh (Rs 100 crore) during their visits to the state.

This was in addition to Rs 562.45 crore already made available in State Disaster Relief Fund of the state.

Financial mechanism to meet the rescue and relief expenditure during any notified disaster event is governed by notified guidelines on State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), another official said.

State Disaster Response Fund has been constituted in each state in which the Centre contributes 75 per cent for general category states and 90 per cent for special category states of hilly regions every year according to the award of the successive Finance Commissions.

According to the guidelines, the Centre provides its allocation to SDRF of each state in advance in two installments. In case of any natural calamity, the state meets the expenditure of relief and rescue from the State Disaster Response Fund already available at its disposal.

In case of any natural calamity beyond the coping capacity of a state, the state government submits a detailed memorandum indicating sector-wise details of damage and requirement of funds for relief operations of immediate nature.

On receipt of a memorandum, an Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT) is deputed by the central government for on-the-spot assessment of damage and additional requirement of funds.

The IMCT report is considered by the Sub-Committee of National Executive Committee (SC-NEC) headed by the Union home secretary in conformity with the norms and then by a high-level committee, chaired by the home minister for approving the quantum of additional assistance from the NDRF, the official said.

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Two apparent key sources for Bob Woodward's devastating new book on Donald Trump criticized the author's depiction of the president Tuesday, suggesting he distorted their accounts.

Gary Cohn and Rob Porter both issued statements taking some issue with Woodward's description of Trump's White House in "Fear," which was released Tuesday, as a "Crazytown" where aides plot to thwart Trump's orders and keep him contained.

Cohn, the former White House chief economic advisor, and ex-staff secretary Porter are portrayed as having worked together to prevent a poorly informed Trump from making unsound and potentially disastrous decisions involving national security and the economy.

"This book does not accurately portray my experience at the White House," Cohn said in a statement he sent to the political site Axios.

"I am proud of my service in the Trump administration, and I continue to support the president and his economic agenda." Porter said he was "struck by the selective and often misleading portrait it paints of the president and his administration."



He praised Trump's legislative accomplishments, which he said Woodward's book ignores, and said the president "invites robust discussion" from aides.

"But in the end, President Trump is the one who decides, and he has shown himself more than capable of doing so," Porter said.

But neither Cohn nor Porter said specifically what was inaccurate, and neither denied speaking to Woodward.

Porter did not contest having described his job as one third focused on steering the president away from dangerous ideas, and the White House as perpetually "walking along the edge of the cliff."



Trump told journalists he "really" appreciated the pair's statements, which helped show that "the book is just a piece of fiction."Other Trump aides, including chief of staff John Kelly and Defense Secretary James Mattis, have denied quotes attributed to them in the book -- quotes that ridicule Trump as "unhinged" and acting like a grade-school child.

Still, Woodward's book has fed talk that Trump could seek to replace Kelly and Mattis.

Asked about it Tuesday, Mattis said there is "no problem" in his relationship with Trump. "It's been the same all along," he told journalists.

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The saga of Chanda Kochhar dominated the annual general meeting of ICICI Bank here Wednesday, with shareholders seeking clarity on the allegations of impropriety against the CEO even as she was absent.

Kochhar is on an



indefinite leave since June amid allegations of impropriety and 'quid pro quo' involving her and family members with respect to a loan extended to Videocon Industries by the lender.

Some shareholders, who spoke at the 24th AGM, also questioned the corporate governance practices and standards at the bank, while some rallied in support saying it is just a phase which shall pass.

Kochhar has been away from office following an enquiry initiated under the retired Supreme Court judge BN Srikrishna late May, but continues to hold onto her position as the



Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. She did not attend the AGM.

Government nominee on the board Lok Ranjan was also absent at the hour-long AGM chaired by newly-appointed chairman GC Chaturvedi.

Last month's re-appointment of Kochhar on the board of the bank's broking arm ICICI Securities despite she being under probe also peeved many shareholders, who questioned the decision.

Many shareholders also spoke against the core issue of sanctioning loans to the Venugopal Dhoot-run Videocon Industries, which is currently facing bankruptcy proceedings.

Many shareholders also sought stern action from the bank on any misdoings on the part of Kochhar, while some also called for a restructuring of the top leadership given the allegations and questioned the board for initially backing Kochhar.

In late March after reports of alleged improprieties in extending Rs 3,250 crore loan by the bank to Videocon Industries, the lender issued a detailed statement denying the allegations and supporting Chanda Kochhar.

More reports came out showing Kochhar's immediate family members, including her husband Deepak and his brother, had allegedly benefitted from ICICI Bank's borrowers like Videocon and also the Ruias-promoted Essar group. This led to the launch of a multi-agency probe into the matter.

Later, the bank also disclosed the receipt of an internal complaint against Kochhar but did not divulge its content. This led it to the appointment of Srikrishna to carry out an independent probe into the matter.

While the Srikrishna panel report is still awaited, Kochhar's term expires on March 31, 2019.

Replying to the concerned shareholders, Sandip Bakhshi, the newly-appointed chief operating officer who is overseeing the day-to-day affairs in Kochhar's absence, said the bank has been taking necessary steps and also pointed to good numbers in the first quarter.

"The bank is able to perform and will come out of this," he said, expressing his inability to take any decision on Kochhar pending the Srikrishna panel report.

Some shareholders also questioned the reasons for a jump in legal expenses and rued that this comes even as it has reduced the dividend payout.

All the 14 ordinary resolutions and four special resolutions put up by the management were passed at the AGM.

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Lack of robust IT security system in organisations is the key reason behind increasing cyberattacks as 65 per cent of the participant organisations do not even have a department to manage network security, says a survey.

According to the survey conducted by risk and integrity management firm Netrika Consulting, only 18 per cent organisations have dedicated IT staff where more than 25 persons are employed, while 21 per cent companies do not have dedicated employees.

Moreover, 18 per cent organisations have IT strength of just 1 to 3 employees, the survey said, adding that 65 per cent of the participant organisations do not even have a department to manage network security.

This is despite the fact that 62 per cent participant organisations witnessed IT breach in the form of virus attack (7 per cent), malware (10 per cent), phishing (19 per cent), ransom ware (26 per cent), while 32 per cent said they did not suffer any breach in the past 12 months.

According to US-based Software Company Symantec's Internet Security Threat Report, India is the second worst affected country in the world after the US.

Netrika Consulting's survey noted that Indian corporates are not very regular in assessing their which leads to regular loss due to cyber attacks.



Just 44 per cent participant companies confirmed that they conducted IT security audit in last 6 months in their organisations, while 56 per cent stated that during last six months no IT security audit was undertaken in their organisation.

"A risk-based approach is to form your data security strategy by prioritising measures based on how much they will affect," Netrika Consulting MD Sanjay Kaushik said.

Kaushik further noted that "there are two types of companies one who have experienced a cyber-breach/cyberattack and others who are going to experience a cyberattack in the future. It's not a question of if, but only a matter of when".

The survey, covered 1,800 respondents from a range of industries - from manufacturing, BFSI, pharmaceuticals, hospitality, NBFC and IT/ITES



.
The health department was put on alert on Wednesday after a 31-year-old man tested positive for swine flu, an official said.

Acting on a report that Mohd Atif has tested positive for H1N1 virus, Lakhimpur Kheri chief medical officer (CMO) Dr Manoj Agrawal rushed a medical team to Nai Basti locality, where the patient was staying with his family.

"The man is presently undergoing treatment in Lucknow and his neighbours and relatives, suspected to have come in contact with him, have been administered anti-swine flu medicine," Agrawal told PTI.

No swine flu cases were reported in Lakhimpur Kheri in the last two years, he said.

"Atif carried H1N1 virus from Dubai where he worked in a company," the CMO said.

Atif was sent back to India on September 4 after he developed swine flu. In Lucknow, he tested positive for the H1N1 influenza at a private clinic and should have been quarantined, but he came to his residence in Lakhimpur, Agrawal added.

"Here too, the family members continued his treatment at private clinics without intimating the district hospital," he said, adding that Atif was sent to Lucknow for treatment only on September 7.

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Approximately 1.7 million people are under mandatory or voluntary evacuation orders across North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia, the three states that will be most affected, according to the latest numbers Tuesday afternoon from Byard.

Hurricane Florence moved closer to the U.S. East Coast after becoming a major hurricane Monday again. "It's going to dump amounts of water that some of these areas haven't seen in a long, long time".

Packing winds of up to 220 km/h (140 mph) late Monday, Florence was expected to further strengthen and become "an extremely risky major hurricane" by the time in makes landfall in the Carolinas on Thursday, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said in a 21:00 UTC update.

Packing maximum sustained winds of 140 miles per hour (225 km per hour), the storm ranked as a Category 4 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale and was expected to grow stronger and larger over the next few days, the NHC said. Governors in North and SC have declared states of emergency, and President Donald Trump has authorized federal funding and resources to assist with preparation for the storm.

"You're going to get heavy rain, catastrophic life-threatening storm surge and also the winds". "The forecast shows Florence stalling over North Carolina, bringing days and days of rain".

"Due to impacts from Hurricane Florence, an evacuation order has been issued for coastal SC, including Charleston, Dorchester, and Berkeley counties, beginning at noon Tuesday, Sept. 11", a spokesperson for Boeing said by email. The last Category 4 hurricane to plow directly into North Carolina was Hazel in 1954, a devastating storm that killed 19 people and destroyed some 15,000 homes. "The threat will be inland, so I'm afraid, based on my experience at FEMA, that the public is probably not as prepared as everybody would like", said Craig Fugate, former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Trump was widely panned for a lackadaisical response to the impact of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico past year, which killed almost 3,000 according to the most recent estimates. Information gathered Tuesday by a hurricane-hunting aircraft suggests it will intensify again as it nears the coast, approaching the 157 miles per hour (253 kph) threshold for a worst-case Category 5 scenario. "It is an extremely, dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane", said North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper. On Monday, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency for the state.

Not everyone was in a hurry to leave. Some gasoline stations also ran low on fuel.

"The water could overtake some of these barrier islands and keep on going".

Another said: "We will see what happens and hopefully we have a business to come back to".
Shahid Kapoor has clarified his stand on staying away from the promotions of "Batti Gul Meter Chalu", saying he devoted last few days to his children's care as "being a parents is above all else".

The37-year-old actor, who welcomed son Zain with wife Mira Rajput last week, said their daughter Misha, two, has not been keeping well.

"The last few days have been tough. Misha (is) running very high fever and Zain just came home. Have had to miss some promotions. Just 9 days to go for 'Batti Gul Meter Chalu' to release but being a parent is above all else," Shahid wrote on Twitter.

The "Padmaavat" star hopes to resume promotions soon.

Also starring Shraddha Kapoor, Divyendu Sharma and Yami Gautam, "Batti Gul..." releases September 21.

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San Francisco-based digital customer care firm Technologies will double workforce in in the next 18 months as it looks to expand product development and operation base, a top company official said.

" has an office in Bangalore with about 100 people and in the next 12-18 months will probably come close to doubling that. will do product development in Bangalore including customer support and operations," Lithium Technologies Pete Hess told

Around 80 per cent of the workforce at Lithium office in is engaged in product development and it has plans to hire a majority of the workforce from computer science stream.

"Most of the people hired till now in Bangalore office are from computer science background. But we won't shy away from talents in other fields," Lithium Technologies Chief Technology Officer Raju Malhotra said.

The company has no client based out of but serves multinational firms that have a presence in the country.

"Revenue-wise we don't have many customers here in India. We have customers who have offices here. That is a priority for us to build a marketing team here in India," Hess said.

The company today moved to a 30,000 square feet leased premise where it can accommodate 200 people.

"I would hope that we will close our first deal before the next calendar year. I would expect that our sales organisation built up here by the end of this year can certainly close a deal by the middle of next year," Hess said.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Madras High Court has stayed a state government order stipulating that all minority educational institutions should admit not less than 50 per cent of students from the minority community every year to retain the minority status.

Justice SS Sundar granted the interim stay Tuesday while admitting a petition from the Institute of the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary, by its president Rev Sr Sriyapushpam, seeking to quash the government order issued on April 5, 2018, which also fixed the upper limit of 75 per cent in respect of aided institutions.

The judge then posted the matter for further hearing after two weeks.

Referring to a Supreme Court directive, the petitioner said the top court has held that admissions in unaided minority educational institutions at school education level could not be regulated by the state government, while it could notify the percentage of the non-minority students to be admitted in the aided minority institutions.

That will be in respect to the minimum admission but never be a maximum limit.

The petitioner also noted that the apex court has time and again held that the minority institutions gain minority character because it was established and administered by the minority community and not because of the number of minority students admitted therein.

If the minority status was linked to the ratio of admission of minority students, the status would be fluctuating every year, she contended.

Moreover, there would never be certainty in the nature of the institution. That was not the intention of the founding fathers of the Constitution, the petitioner said.

The government order suffers from executive mala-fide to indirectly deprive the minority status to the educational institutions established and administered by the minority community by imposing a burdensome and impractical condition, modifying the principles that have stood the test of time, she added.

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The zilla parishad schools in Maharashtra have been asked to screen a short film on Prime Minister Narendra Modi next week, drawing criticism from the opposition, which has accused the ruling BJP of misusing government machinery.

A government official said the ZP schools were asked to screen a short film -- "Chalo Jeete Hai" -- on September 18 as it had a "social message" and would inspire students.

He added that the expenses towards the screening of the film would be borne by an NGO and not the government.

Sources in the education department said the chief minister's office had issued an instruction to this effect, but they did not clarify if there was a written order.

The 32-minute film, directed by Mangesh Hadawale and presented by Aanand L Rai and Mahaveer Jain, is based on the early life of Modi and shows how he got inspired by Swami Vivekananda and the empathy he exhibited towards the poor while growing up in Vadnagar in Gujarat.

"The film has a social message and will inspire the students," the government official said.

According to sources, the ZP schools have been asked to make available a laptop or desktop with a minimum of one MBPS internet speed, a projector, a screen and a sound system for the screening of the film.

Opposition Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) have slammed the BJP-led dispensation over the move.

State Congress spokesman Sachin Sawant took a dig at the government, saying, "Why just a short film, have a curriculum on Modi and also give students a degree on Modi. He can make untruths look like truth. Keeping silence on important issues and speaking on other aspects is a subject of PhD."



NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik said asking the schools to screen the short film on Modi showed that the popularity of the prime minister was sinking.

"The government order is wrong as it is a misuse of the official machinery. The BJP is using schools for its election campaign. We appeal to the schools to oppose such illegal orders. Raise your voice and protest against this order," he said.

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CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury slammed the NDA dispensation on Wednesday over embattled businessman Vijay Mallya's claim that he met the finance minister before leaving India, and said it reconfirmed how the Modi government "enables big defaulters to loot public money and scoot".

"The fundamental point is how he got away despite 'lookout notices'?" Yechury tweeted while mocking Prime Minister Narendra Modi by tagging a picture of him performing yoga by resting on a stone and facing the sky.

Mallya, facing charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore and fighting an extradition case, told reporters in London that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and offered to settle with the banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the finance minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks)," Mallya said, without naming the minister.

Jaitley rubbished Mallya's statement, saying he never gave him an appointment since 2014 but the liquor baron misused his position as Rajya Sabha MP to accost him in Parliament.

Yechury said the government did not act against big loan defaulters despite former Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan apprising it about them.

"The former RBI governor says he gave a list of fraud cases to the top - the PMO. It is clear why nothing was done - other than packing off the former Governor. Shame," he said.

"As with the Rafale scam and Choksi scam, this latest revelation by Mallya puts Modi govt in the dock. It is not the finance minister alone, we cannot be sure what other facts are being hidden even now," Yechury said.

Diamond trader Mehul Choksi, along with his nephew and business partner Nirav Modi, is accused of defrauding the state-run Punjab National Bank of about Rs 13,000 crore. Both Choksi and Nirav Modi have fled the country earlier this year.

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Vijay Mallya will appear before a London court on Wednesday for a hearing in his extradition case, during which the judge is expected to review a video of the Mumbai jail cell prepared by the Indian authorities for the embattled liquor tycoon.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.

At the previous hearing in July in the Westminster Magistrates' Court in, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, had agreed to the request and the video has since been submitted to the court.

Mallya's defence team had demanded an inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets the UK's human rights obligations related to extradition proceedings.

The CPS stressed that the Indian government had provided adequate material which rendered the need for an inspection unnecessary, leading to the demand for a video recording to be reviewed by the court.

The judge is also expected to hear the final closing arguments in the case, after which a timeline for her ruling is likely to become clearer.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4 last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya.

It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of over Rs 9,000 crores in loans from a consortium of Indian banks.

The CPS has argued that the evidence they have presented establishes "dishonesty" on the part of the businessman and that there are no bars to him being extradited from the UK to face Indian courts.

Mallya's defence team has deposed a series of expert witnesses to claim he had no "fraudulent" intentions and that he is unlikely to get a fair trial in India.

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A 67-year-old man of Meghalaya's West Garo Hills district, who was abducted by armed criminals from Bangladesh three months ago, was handed over to the Indian authorities along with two others, officials said Wednesday.

The three were received by the state police in presence of other authorities at Dawki on Tuesday evening.

Phalgun Arengh was abducted by Bangladeshi criminals from his home at Hatimara on May 23 , the officials said, adding that the abductors had demanded Rs 50 lakh as ransom.

Areng escaped from captivity on June 1 when his captors were asleep and went to his relative's house in Sherpur district of the neighbouring country.

He was later handed over to the Bangladesh police and jailed, a senior state police official told PTI.

Efforts from Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma and the state authorities along with the Indian High Commission helped his early release from Sylhet jail, the officer said.

Meanwhile, 56-year-old Garango Das and S Acharjee, residents of Bholaganj village in East Khasi Hills district were also handed over to the Indian authorities at Dawki along with Arengh Tuesday.

Das had spent 14 years in a Bangladesh jail for illegally entering the country to buy fish and he was arrested there on March 11, 2004.

Acharjee, was also arrested for illegally entering Bangladesh in 2010, the police said.

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A man has been arrested by the Customs department at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport here for allegedly trying to smuggle in one kg gold by hiding it in his rectum, an official statement said Wednesday.

The 24-year-old passenger was intercepted upon his arrival from Dubai on Monday, it said.

On detailed baggage examination and personal search, it was discovered that the accused had hidden nine gold bars, weighing 1.04 kg, inside his rectum, the release said.

The gold bars, valued at Rs 32 lakh, were seized and the passenger was arrested, the department said.

In another case, a French national and an Indian man was arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle gold into the country.

Both the accused had arrived at the Delhi airport from different locations.

One of them had come from Chennai, and the other, who holds a French passport, arrived here from Singapore on Monday, the statement said.

"A detailed baggage and personal search of the passengers resulted in the recovery of one gold bar and five gold biscuits weighing 1.5 kgs," the customs department said, adding that the duo were arrested and the gold was seized.

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With Johnson and Johnson embroiled in a controversy over its alleged 'faulty' hip implants, medical experts have asked the government to establish a 'national joint replacement registry' to regulate medical implants and drugs for patients' safety.

An expert panel, constituted earlier by the Union Health Ministry to probe complaints of "faulty" ASR hip implant devices, in its report has said the pharma giant "suppressed" facts on the harm of surgeries which were conducted on patients in India using "faulty" hip replacement systems.

"It is strange that although about 4,700 patients received the 'faulty hip implants' in India, over 3,600 of them are untraceable. The J & J Company has said that only the hospitals would have this data. However, it is not difficult to identify these patients from the hospital data, where these joints were supplied," said a statement quoting Dr Raju Vaishya, senior joint replacement surgeon, Apollo Hospital, Indraprastha, and president of Indian Cartilage Society (ICS).

He said incidentally there is no government body like a national joint replacement registry in our country, though the formation of such a body was suggested years ago.

"The Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) did not take any timely action on this matter, despite knowing the problems related to these implants since at least 2010. It is, therefore, a gross regulatory failure, on the part of our government regulatory authorities," Dr Vaishya said.

The statement quoted Vaishya saying he had voiced and highlighted the issue of 'faulty hip implants' in 2012 through a letter published in The Journal of Arthroplasty. The letter was said to have been written in response to a research paper published by a team of orthopaedic surgeons of AIIMS -- Hip Resurfacing Arthroplasty in Inflammatory Arthritis: A 3 to 5 Year Follow-up Study.

Dr Atul Srivastava, secretary, Indian Orthopaedic Association (IOA), also agreed to the idea of setting up of such a national body, which may be called national joint replacement registry or national healthcare data storage and management committee so that the use of faulty implants or medical devices can be stopped.

The expert panel of the Health Ministry had also suggested that the firm pay compensation of around Rs 20 lakh to the affected patients.

Some of the patients who had suffered due to faulty implants had questioned the panel's recommendation of the paltry amount, saying it was like "rubbing salt on their wounds."



Dr Rahul Gupta, additional director, brain and spine surgery, Fortis Escorts Heart Institute and Research Centre in New Delhi, said more catastrophic failures of medical implants and devices are "almost guaranteed" to happen because there have been no significant reforms on the way these equipment are regulated in India.

Dr R N Kalra, medical director of Kalra Hospital and SRCNC, New Delhi said, "There are established systems in place in most developed countries where the doctors and patients can register their opinion and complain regarding adverse effect of any implant or drug.

"Hence, the government authority can immediately know, if there is any flaw in them but in India, there is no such apparent system," the statement quoting Kalra read.

A meeting between senior officials of the Union Health Ministry and executives of Johnson and Johnson is likely to take place this week to discuss the modalities of paying compensation to affected patients in India.

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Personal effects belonging to a Dutch WikiLeaks associate who went missing in Norway three weeks ago have been found in a fjord, Norwegian police said Wednesday.

A fisherman found the objects floating in the water late Tuesday, police said in a statement, confirming the items "belong to the missing person" but providing no details about them due to the ongoing investigation.

Arjen Kamphuis, a 47-year-old cyber security expert, was last seen on August 20 leaving his hotel in the northern Norwegian town of Bodo, where he had been on holiday.

The objects were found near Kvaenflaget, some 50 kilometres (30 miles) east of Bodo, in the waters of a fjord. Police and emergency crews have now begun searching the water and land in the area.

The disappearance, described as "strange" by WikiLeaks, has sparked numerous conspiracy theories on social media.

Police said they were examining three theories: a voluntary disappearance including a possible suicide, an accident, or a crime.

"We haven't made enough progress in the case to be able to eliminate or confirm any of these three theories," inspector Bjarte Walla told AFP. "We are keeping all options open."



A friend of Kamphuis, Ancilla van de Leest, told AFP there were "absolutely no signs he wanted to disappear." "Quite the contrary, he made many plans, privately and professionally." According to investigators, the Dutchman is believed to have taken a train from Bodo to the town of Rognan on August 20.

WikiLeaks has previously said he had a ticket for a flight on August 22 departing from Trondheim, a town located more than 700 kilometres south of Bodo, but he did not board the plane.

Adding to the mystery, a phone linked to Kamphuis sent a signal in an area near the southwestern city of Stavanger, located 1,600 kilometres from Bodo, late on August 30, police said, but they could not confirm if it was Kamphuis who had switched the phone on. German and Dutch SIM cards were used that day.

Two Dutch investigators have been in Norway since Monday to assist in the search for Kamphuis, who in photos circulating on social networks can be seen wearing glasses with half-long blond hair and a thin beard.

Van de Leest said the ties between Kamphuis and WikiLeaks have been "strongly overblown in the press." "He helps organisations with infosecurity advice," his friend said.

Julian Assange, a founder of WikiLeaks, 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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There are fears Florence could match the devastating impact of Hurricane Hazel in 1954, which brought 130mph winds to North Carolina, destroying 15,000 buildings and killing 19 people.

More than 1.5 million people living along the coastlines of North Carolina and SC were ordered to evacuate as the National Hurricane Centre warned of a "large and extremely dangerous" storm that posed a threat to life. The biggest problem now is there is nothing to slow or weaken this storm between now and then. It is an extremely unsafe, life-threatening, historic hurricane, " North Carolina governor Roy Cooper said.

Florence is so wide that a life-threatening storm surge was being pushed 300 miles (485 kilometres) ahead of its eye, and so wet that a swath from SC to OH and Pennsylvania could get deluged.

Hurricane Watches have been issued for the entire North Carolina coast with Tropical Storm Watches in effect for those along the I-95 corridor. CBS News correspondent David Begnaud reported that lanes, at noon, will be reversed on four of the largest roads leading to the SC coast, so cars will only be able to drive inland.

The American Red Cross said more than 700 workers were headed to the target area while shelters were set up to take in those who could not evacuate.

Charleston International Airport in SC tweeted that it expects runways to close by midnight Wednesday as it monitors Hurricane Florence.

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an Oval Office meeting on hurricane preparations for Hurricane Florence at the White House in Washington, U.S., September 11, 2018.

"That's the million dollar question and, right now, we just don't have an answer to it", he said.

"This storm is going to knock out power days into weeks".

The NWS predicts potential storm surges of up to 3.6m on the coasts along with dangerously large swells and rip currents.

Forecast models have said that several feet of heavy rain could cause flooding well inland from the coast.

But not everyone was in a hurry to leave.

Residents prepared by boarding up their homes and stocking up on food, water and other essentials, stripping shop shelves of stock. Some gas stations also ran low on fuel.

"We are in a very deadly and important game of chess with Hurricane Florence", South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster said at a Tuesday news conference. Generator maker Generac Holdings Inc rose 1 per cent and reached its highest price since April 2014.

The last time the USA capital declared a state of emergency was in January 2016 when a winter storm dubbed "Snowzilla" blanketed the capital region in knee-deep snow.

Cooper, the governor of neighboring North Carolina, ordered an evacuation of the Outer Banks, barrier islands that are a popular tourist destination, and parts of coastal Dare County.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has condoled the death of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz, saying he would always cherish the memories of his interaction with the wife of Pakistan's former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, according to a media report.

Kulsoom died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68.

"It is with profound grief that I learnt of the sad demise of Begum Sahiba," Modi wrote in a letter to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Sharif, a copy of which was displayed by Geo

Modi on Tuesday conveyed his deepest condolences to the Sharif family.

"I pray to the Almighty to grant eternal peace to Begum Sahiba and strength to you and the bereaved family to bear this irreparable loss," the letter read further.

"I would always cherish memories of my interaction with her," Modi said in the condolence message, apparently referring to his unannounced visit to Lahore in 2015 on Sharif's birthday and his granddaughter's wedding.

Kulsoom was diagnosed with lymphoma last year, barely a month after Nawaz was removed from office by the Supreme Court, which ordered him to face trial in an anti-corruption court.

She will be laid to rest on Friday. The funeral prayers will be offered at the Regent Park mosque in London on Thursday and her body will be flown to Lahore after completion of legal formalities.

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Madhya Pradesh Congress alleged Wednesday that the the BJP government suppressed the "truth" of the blast at Petlawad in Jhabua district in which 89 people were killed three years ago.

On September 12, 2015, 89 people were killed and nearly 100 injured after a massive blast of mining explosives stored in a building ripped through a crowded area in Petlawad town.

Paying tributes to the victims on the third anniversary of the blast at Petlawad, about 40 km from here, state Congress chief Kamal Nath said, "The government has suppressed the truth of the Petlawad incident...The people killed in Petlawad were martyrs."



Deputy Leader of Opposition in Assembly Bala Bachchan said, "When the Congress raised the issue in Assembly, then home minister Babulal Gaur had said the inquiry report had been submitted. But the report has not been made public by the government so far."



Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Ajay Singh said Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had promised compensation and jobs to the kin of the blast victims, but the promise was not kept.

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National Health Mission Director Manoj Jhalani has been conferred the prestigious UN Interagency Task Force Award for his outstanding contribution towards the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases.

Jhalani, an additional secretary in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, was given the award in recognition of Indian government's efforts in the field of prevention and control of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), according to an official statement.

The award will be conferred on Jhalani during the third high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly on the prevention and control of NCDs in New York on September 27.

India's national programme to control NCDs has been scaled up by more than eight times in the past four years and covers all the 36 states/union territories now, the statement said.

Free diagnosis, treatment, follow-up, referral and back referral have been integrated into the programme with an information technology platform developed through a multi-stakeholder partnership. The intervention also forms the core of the government's ambitious healthcare scheme Ayushman Bharat, it said.

The United Nations Interagency Task Force (UNIATF) on the Prevention and Control of NCDs coordinates the activities of relevant UN organisations and other inter-governmental organisations to support governments to meet high-level commitments to respond to NCD epidemics worldwide. The commitments were made by Heads of State and Government in the 2011 Political Declaration on NCDs.

The task force was established by the UN Secretary-General in June 2013 and placed under the leadership of WHO.

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Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa said Wednesday that China was significantly ramping up its air power including deploying fighter jets in Tibet and India must modernise its air force to match the capabilities of its "adversaries".

India was facing a unique situation of having two nuclear armed neighbours -- China and Pakistan -- on its borders and the intentions of the adversaries could change overnight, he said.

Delivering a lecture on IAF's force structure, he said the capability of the force needs to be enhanced in sync with security challenges facing the nation.

"China has approximately 1,700 fighter aircraft of which 800 are fourth generation jets. A large number of these can be expected to be brought against us in the Tibet Autonomous Region in case of hostilities," he said addressing a seminar.

The IAF chief said though India was facing a grave security threat, its combat squadron has come down to 31 from sanctioned strength of 42 which is a matter of concern. Each fighter squadron has 16-18 aircraft.

"Indian armed forces are operating in a unique environment. Presently, there are very few countries which are facing security challenges as grave as ours," he said, referring to threats from Pakistan and China.

"India's neighbours are not sitting idle.... We have a unique situation of having two nuclear armed neighbours on our borders. No other country in the world has this kind of a situation," he said.

The Air Chief Marshal said China has significantly developed and upgraded infrastructure in Tibet Autonomous Region and that fighter jets and surveillance jets have been permanently stationed in airfields in the area bordering India.

"We have to match the force level of our adversaries so that we can fight simultaneously on two fronts," he said, referring to possible scenario of engagements with China and Pakistan simultaneously.

He said the IAF must have adequate number of fighter jets to deal with any security challenge.

"What we do not have is the numbers. Against the sanctioned strength of 42 squadron, we are down to 31. Even if we have 42, it will be well below the combined strength of two of our adversaries," he said.

He said both China and Pakistan were replacing their second and third generation fighter jets with fourth generation aircraft, adding India needs to urgently upgrade its combat squadrons to effectively face any challenge.

"We need the numbers to carry out full spectrum operation... we need a force that can quickly respond, cause devastating damage to the other side and get us peace on our terms," he said.

Emphasising the need for procurement of advanced aircraft like Rafale, he said, "We cannot have an air force of medium technology platforms. We need to have fighters which will win high end fights. In a conventional warfare winning the air battle is very important.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday accused European leaders of "appeasing" Iran instead of confronting its militant activity.

Netanyahu's remarks, made in a cabinet meeting, feed into his ongoing efforts to sway world leaders to join the US in upping pressure on Israel's arch foe through sanctions.

"The time has come for the world to unite in the fight against terrorist organisations. It is doing so to a certain extent against the Islamic State group, but it is not doing so against Iran," Netanyahu said.

He accused European leaders of "appeasing" and "reconciling" with Iran.

In May, US President Donald Trump withdrew from a nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, before re-imposing a first major round of unilateral sanctions on Tehran in August.

Netanyahu had consistently called for the landmark 2015 accord to be altered or scrapped, saying it was too limited in scope and time-frame, and did nothing to stop Iran financing militant activities in the region.

European powers are seeking to save the nuclear deal and have vowed to keep providing Iran with the economic benefits it received from the accord.

Germany, France and Britain -- and other signatories Russia and China -- argue that the agreement has worked as intended in keeping Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons for now.

"The appeasement of Iran abets the relentless assault on the values and security of the free societies, and the time has come for Western governments to join the strong and clear effort by the Trump administration against the terror regime in Tehran," Netanyahu said on Wednesday.

Washington has sought to build up multilateral pressure on Iran and has set a November 5 deadline for halting its oil exports.

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Sri Lanka's Tamil northern provincial council adopted a resolution on Wednesday calling for a UN-monitored referendum in the north and east to "determine the aspirations of the Tamil people".

"The people can vote at the referendum to express their view on the Tamil political aspirations," provincial council member M K Shivajilingam of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said.

The resolution says that Sri Lanka had failed to implement its commitments under the UN Human Rights Council resolutions "which called for investigations into credible allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity".

The five-point resolution urges the UNHRC to refer Sri Lanka to the International Criminal Court, to appoint a special UN rapporteur on Tamil people, impose military sanctions on Sri Lanka, impose a travel ban on Sri Lankan military personnel accused of war crimes and to hold the referendum which should lead to finding a permanent political solution for Tamils.

The resolution came after President Maithripala Sirisena's public statement last week that he would make a special appeal during his address at the UN General Assembly later this month to urge dropping of war crime accusations against government troops.

Sirisena's government in 2017 co-sponsored the US moved UNHRC resolution against Sri Lanka pledging to set up credible mechanisms for reconciliation with the Tamil minority.

But he has rejected the idea to set up international courts to probe war crime charges blamed both on the government troops and the LTTE militants.

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Odisha Police has rescued at least 1,497 children missing from different parts of the state this month, a senior police officer said Wednesday.

The search mission named Paree-II was launched on September 1 and till Tuesday (Sep11), a total of 1,497 children have been rescued and drive is still continuing, the senior officer at the Crime Branch of Odisha Police said.

While the search mission within the state will continue till September 15, the teams will go to other states and launch search for missing children from September 16 to September 30, the official informed.

He said like previous years, eight composite teams of police and officials of women and child development department have been selected for coordinated approach for recovery of missing children from other states like Delhi, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telengana, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and others.

Before leaving on the mission, the team members were given interactive inputs at the Crime Branch headquarters in Cuttack by officers.

These teams will be on special mission from September 16-30 in on basis of available inputs, he said.

Emphasis has been laid on integration of rescued children to mainstream and subsequent rehabilitation in collaboration with all stakeholders, the official said.

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Opposition parties Wednesday latched on to Vijay Mallya's statement he had met Arun Jaitley before leaving India, and demanded a probe into the fugitive liquor baron's claim, which was rubbished by the finance minister as "factually false".

Congress chief Rahul Gandhi tweeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi should immediately order an independent probe into Mallya's "extremely serious allegations" and Jaitley should step down while the investigation is underway.

The claim made by Mallya, facing charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to Rs 9,000 crore, has triggered a political storm, with the Congress saying the government must explain how and why Mallya was allowed to leave India.

Jaitley, however, said he never gave Mallya an appointment after becoming a minister in 2014, but the liquor baron misused his position as an MP to accost him once in Parliament.

Soon after Jaitley's rebuttal, Mallya appeared to tone down the seriousness of his claim, saying it was not a "formal meeting" and he only "happened to meet" the minister, when he told him he was going to London. Mallya also said he was not "tipped off" by anyone to flee the country.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, too, described as "absolutely shocking" the revelation by Mallya and asked, "Why did the finance minister hide this information till now?"



"Absolutely shocking. PM Modi meets Neerav (sic) Modi before he flees the country. FM meets Vijay Mallya before he flees India. What transpired in these meetings? People want to know," Kejriwal said on Twitter.

Former BJP leader Yashwant Sinha, a former union finance minister who has been critical of Jaitley and his handling of the ministry, said the entire BJP leadership, not just the finance minister, must come clean on its ties with Mallya.

Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi said the government was "fully complicit" in the flight of Mallya and Punjab National Bank fraud accused Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi from India.

"Everybody was complacent and everybody was aware... Whether it was - a casual meeting or a structured meeting. We need proper disclosures, full inquiries on this," he said.

Singhvi said the moot question remains why was no action taken before Mallya fled the country.

He said Mallya's claim is a vindication of the Congress's stand that the government always knew about the fleeing defaulters. He said India wants to know what transpired during the meeting between Mallya and Jaitley.

CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said Mallya's escape reconfirmed how Modi government "enables big defaulters to loot public money and scoot".

"The fundamental point is how he got away despite 'lookout notices'?" Yechury tweeted while mocking Prime Minister Narendra Modi by tagging a picture of him performing yoga by resting on a stone and facing the sky.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav said the entire NDA government was "hand in glove" with scamsters and absconders.

"They hatched a plot to loot hundreds of thousands of crores. PM and FM must respond on this," Yadav said in a tweet.

Terming Mallya's offer to settle overdue loans of more than Rs 9,000 crore to his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines as "bluff offers", Jaitley said he did not even take the papers the liquor baron was carrying during that brief encounter.

Mallya, 62, is fighting numerous lawsuits in the UK and back home over fraud and money-laundering allegations as well as an extradition to India.

"I left because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks. That is the truth," he told reporters outside a London court hearing a case for his extradition.

The verdict in the extradition case will be announced on December 10.

The Congress also said on its official Twitter handle that Mallya met Jaitley "several times" before escaping the country to discuss a settlement plan.

"In spite of this, the BJP government allowed him to flee with thousands of crores debt. Do we need anymore proof that this govt. is in the pocket of crony capitalists."



Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said Mallya's revelation shows that the BJP is running "a travel, tour and immigration agency for looters to settle abroad".

"Vijay Mallya left India with the country's money after a farewell from Arun Jaitley. Chowkidaar nahin, Bhagidaar hai (Not a watchman, but a partner)," he tweeted in Hindi.

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Opposition parties Wednesday hit out at the Congress-led Punjab government, accusing it of "murdering democracy" by resorting to 'goondagardi' (hooliganism) to stop their candidates from participating in the upcoming zila parishad and block samiti polls.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) questioned the role of the State Election Commission in holding fair and free polls, and alleged that it was working under "pressure" of the state government.

They claimed that the candidatures of their nominees at most of the places were rejected on "flimsy grounds with mala fide intention", reducing the entire poll process to sham.

"Over 200 nominations of our party were rejected on flimsy ground in the entire state. There had been large scale rejection of nominations. It is a total murder of democracy," SAD spokesperson and former minister Daljit Singh Cheema said.

"Earlier, our candidates were forcibly stopped from filling nomination papers at several places. Those who managed to file nominations now faced rejection," he further said.

The Akali Dal is considering to approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court, seeking probe into the "large scale" rejection of nomination papers of the opposition parties, said Cheema.

"We will also question the role of the State Election Commission which appeared to be functioning under the pressure of the state government and showing helplessness," he said.

Cheema said the Akali Dal will not to be cowed down by the "gimmicks" of the ruling party.

Echoing similar sentiments, the BJP accused the Congress of threatening candidates of the opposition parties with arrest.

"In these elections, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh is trying to murder the democracy the way West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had done in the panchayat polls," said BJP national secretary Tarun Chugh.

"The Congress government knows if free and fair polls take place they will face humiliating defeat and that is why they are trying to crush the voice of the opposition parties by indulging in violence," Chugh alleged.

AAP MLA Aman Arora also lashed out at the Congress, accusing the state government of denying the right to fight the zila parishad and block samiti polls.

"Complete 'goondagardi' (hooliganism) is taking place in Punjab during these polls," claimed Arora.

He pointed out that the nomination of his party candidate in Ubhowal zone in Sangrur was shown as withdrawn even as the candidate had not done so.

"The signature of candidate on the withdrawal form was forged by someone in order to elect a Congress candidate," claimed Arora.

Notably, the body of AAP candidate Harvinder Singh Hinda was found at his home in Jethuke village in Bathinda district.

Meanwhile, Punjab Rural Development and Panchayat Minister Tript Rajinder Singh Baja denied all the charges of the opposition parties, claiming that they were levelling allegations out of sheer frustration.

"Everything is going on free and fair in the polls," said Bajwa.

Elections to zila parishads and panchayat samitis will be held on September 19. The counting of votes will take place on September 22.

A total of 354 member of zila parishad and 2,900 members of panchayat samitis will be elected during the polling.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
More than 100 brokerage firms, including several big names, have come under capital market regulator Sebi's scanner for allegedly defrauding investors of over Rs 4,000 crore in the high-profile NSEL case, officials said Wednesday.

While proceedings are already underway against five brokers (Anand Rathi Commodities, Geofin Comtrade, Motilal Oswal Commodities Broker, Phillip Commodities India Pvt Ltd and India Infoline Commodities), Sebi has identified 111 other brokerage firms under its jurisdiction for further possible action for allegedly defaulting on payments on the erstwhile National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL) platform.

Out of these, Sebi will first initiate inspection of the ten biggest players by appointing an auditor, while action against the remaining 101 entities registered as stock brokers with Sebi would be taken after receipt of digital forensic audit from the Mumbai Police's Economic Offence Wing (EOW), which has been probing the NSEL case.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) will apprise its board next week of the status on the NSEL matter and also seek approval for its proposed action against stock brokers.

Overall, a total of 147 brokers have allegedly defaulted on payments to the tune of Rs 5,403 crore on the NSEL. Of these, 116 have applied or registered with Sebi as stock brokers and the remaining 31 members of the NSEL have not applied with markets regulator for registration.

Accordingly, 116 brokers are under Sebi's jurisdiction and they are now under the scanner of the markets regulator for allegedly defaulting on payments totalling Rs 4,033 crore.

Further, Sebi board will consider a proposal that a complaint will be sent to EOW against brokers for action for participation on NSEL platform, senior officials said.

According to them, Sebi has no role to play in the matter of effecting recovery of dues from the defaulters of NSEL and this recovery matter is beyond its regulatory domain.

This recovery matters are being dealt by agencies such as Economic Offences Wing (EOW) and enforcement directorate (ED) as well as three-member committee set-up by Bombay High Court to ascertain the assets of defaulters and to determine the assets payable to investors.

NSEL was incorporated as a company, with FTIL holding 99.98 per cent stake, with an objective of operating pan-India commodities spot exchange platform for which it obtained licenses under APMC Acts of various state governments to run spot exchange activities.

It was also granted exemption by the government from the preview of the erstwhile Forward Contracts Regulation Act (FCRA) to conduct trading of one-day duration forward contracts subject to various conditions.

The erstwhile Forward Markets Commission (FMC) was the statutory regulator under the FCRA and was functioning under administrative control of the Consumer Affairs Ministry. Later, this administrative control was transferred to the finance ministry in September 2013.

While NSEL was outside the domain of regulation of the erstwhile FMC, the government through notifications in February 2012 and August 2013 had assigned specific role to FMC to discharge certain responsibilities vis-a-vis NSEL.

Before the merger of FMC with Sebi, the government also withdrew the exemption granted to NSEL from the FCRA provisions.

However, as on the date of FMC-Sebi merger, there was no notification in existence for observance by FMC with respect to NSEL and therefore Sebi did not have any role to discharge regarding NSEL, except for defending the interest of the erstwhile regulator and the central government in various litigations pertaining to the NSEL scam.

The regulator on September 3 had granted three more weeks to Motilal Oswal Commodities Broker to submit its reply on a show cause notice issued by it in April 2017.

Further, it had passed similar orders on August 30, directing Geofin Comtrade and Anand Rathi Commodities to file their respective replies within three weeks to the SCNs issued to them in April 2017, while giving India Infoline Commodities two weeks of time to file its reply.

On June 6, the regulator had come out with a ruling against Phillip Commodities India Pvt Ltd, asking it to file a reply in four weeks to the SCN issued to it.

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Over 600 sugarcane farmers Wednesday blocked vehicular and rail traffic at Bhangala, 70 kms from here, in protest against non-payment of their dues by various sugar mills.

Under the banner of Pagri Sambhal Jatta Lehar, agitating farmers, led by Kamalpreet Singh Kakki, president of the outfit, blocked vehicular and rail traffic from 11 am to 4:45 pm.

The traffic on Jalandhar-Pathankot rail section was diverted from Amritsar section and vehicular traffic on alternative routes.

The protesters lifted the blockade after the SSP of Hoshiarpur and ADCs (General), Hoshiarpur and Gurdaspur intervened in the matter.

They assured farmers that they would arrange their meeting with the additional chief secretary regarding their demands.

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Pakistan's Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected an appeal by the federal government against an interim order of the Lahore High Court which allowed Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and Falah-i-Insaniyat Foundation (FIF) charities to continue their social work.

The verdict was issued by a two-member bench including Justice Manzoor Ahmed and Justice Sardar Tariq Masood.

The apex court in its verdict rejected the federal government's appeal against the Lahore High Court's interim order of April 5.

The high court had restrained the government from interfering with the social welfare organisations of Saeed and also allowed legal activities of JuD and FIF.

JuD chief Saeed termed the Supreme Court verdict as a "victory of justice and truth".

Earlier, the Pakistan government had banned companies and individuals from making donations to JuD, FIF, and other organisations on the UN Security Council sanctions list.

Saeed's counsel A K Dogar claimed the FIF owned 369 ambulances, had helped 72,000 persons to charity hospitals and treated 600,000 patients in 2017.

Officials said JuD's network also includes 300 seminaries and schools, hospitals, a publishing house and ambulance service, and added that JuD and FIF have about 50,000 volunteers and hundreds of other paid workers.

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For the first time, Pakistan's Supreme Court will hire two transgenders to give them their rights in the Muslim-majority country, the Chief Justice said.

Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar on Tuesday said two transgenders would be provided jobs in the Supreme Court.

The remarks came as he chaired a bench to hear a case regarding transgenders' rights.

"In our society transgenders are subjected to ridicule. It is our top most priority to give them their rights," he was quoted as saying by Geo

The chief justice said the court would issue notice to NGOs and the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa while it hears the case related to basic rights of transgenders.

"Court wants to bring them into mainstream. It wants to resolve their issues," he said.

National Database and Registration Authority Chairman Usman Mobin who appeared during the hearing, informed the court upon being asked whether identity cards to all transgender applicants have been issued, that his organisation is issuing cards and also initiated a facilitation campaign.

The Chief Justice lamented that the community was facing threats and ridicule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The court also took exception to a website that he was told is involved in spreading misleading materials against transgenders.

The court was told that an NGO named Blue Van had established the website which claims as many as 500 transgenders have been murdered in the country.

In 2009, Pakistan became one of the first countries in the world to legally recognise a third sex, allowing transgenders to obtain identity cards. They number at least half a million people in the country, according to several studies, but their representation in politics and many other spheres of life remains negligible



The transgender community was counted in the national census for the first time last year.

Pakistan is a deeply conservative country where homosexuality is illegal. However, the country has approved laws giving transgender people better rights than in many other nations, media reports said.

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Opposition Congress in Goa wrote to Governor Wednesday, expressing fear that Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar may dissolve the Assembly as he is "losing grip" over allies and facing intra-party

In a letter to governor Mridula Sinha, Goa Congress chief Girish Chodankar said in such a scenario, the Congress should get a chance to form the government, and the Assembly should not be dissolved before its term is over.

Chodankar also claimed that Parrikar -- who returned from the US last week after medical treatment -- has not resumed office yet.

The state BJP refuted his claims.

Parrikar underwent treatment in the United States for a pancreatic ailment for nearly three months earlier this year.

The Congress leader said in the letter to governor that Parrikarmay recommend dissolution of the assembly so as to stay as caretaker chief minister before going for state elections along with the Lok Sabha polls.

The Congress, which emerged as the single largest party in the coastal state in 2017 elections, should be invited to form the government in such a scenario, Chodankar demanded.

"He (Parrikar) is losing his grip over allies and his party MLAs and leaders. The administration is on its knees. Goa is in a state of emergency on account of the void created by lack of administrative and political head," he said.

"If Parrikar is unable to run the government, we should be given the opportunity to form government," he said.

Goa BJP chief Vinay Tendulkar said the opposition party was "playing to the gallery" by making such petitions to the governor.

Chief minister Parrikar was ably handling the administration and there was no question of dissolution of Assembly, he said.

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Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Wednesday paid rich tributes to the soldiers of the historic Saragarhi battle on its 121st anniversary, and said the state-of-the-art memorial would be built before its next anniversary.

After paying obeisance in Gurdwara Saragarhi during the state-level martyrdom day function, the chief minister went to 'Barki Square' to pay floral tributes to the soldiers who laid down their lives in the 1965 Indo-Pak war.

Addressing the gathering at Saragarhi gurdwara complex, Amarinder Singh spoke about the exemplary valour of the 22 soldiers of the 36 Sikh Regiment of the British Indian Army stationed near Samana ridge (now in Pakistan), who laid down their lives after a fierce battle following an attack by nearly 10,000 Afghans on September 12, 1897.

A model depicting the architectural and layout of the state of the art memorial has been finalised, the chief minister said, adding the Saragarhi Memorial Management Committee under its Chairman Maj Gen J S Sandhu, GOC, 7 Inf Div would oversee the entire construction.

He assured the management committee that his government would extend full support in the execution of the iconic project as a befitting tribute to the Saragarhi martyrs.

Responding to the demand raised by local MLA Parminder Singh Pinky for establishing Saragarhi Memorial Institute for Competitive Exams in Ferozepur, the chief minister said the state government would take necessary steps after getting the matter thoroughly examined.

He also assured fulfilment of the other demand for setting up Saragarhi Club here.

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The Punjab Congress asked its rebel candidates on Wednesday to support party's official candidates in the upcoming zila parishad and panchayat samiti elections, and warned them of "disciplinary action" for non-compliance.

Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Sunil Kumar Jakhar expressed confidence that the party would win Panchayti Raj elections with "huge margin" as he claimed "support of all the segments of society"



.

"The SAD, BJP and AAP are not seen anywhere in the electoral fray and people of Punjab had already rejected them," Jakhar said in a party release here.

Meanwhile, election symbols have been allotted to 855 candidates for 22 zila parishads and 6,028 candidates for 150 panchayat samitis in Punjab.

On the last day of withdrawal of nomination papers, 3,734 candidates withdrew their papers, out of which 446 candidates are for zila parishads and 3,288 candidates for panchayat samitis, an official spokesman for the State Election Commission said in a release here.

Thirty-three candidates of zila parishads and 369 candidates of panchayat samitis have been elected unopposed, he further said.

The spokesperson said that material related to the elections had been distributed and the printing process of ballot papers also started.

Elections to zila parishads and panchayat samitis will be held on September 19. The counting of votes will take place on September 22.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday announced the launch of the 'Swachhata Hi Seva Movement' from September 15 to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

In a video message, he called upon people to join the movement on Saturday morning.

"I look forward to interacting with those who have worked assiduously on the ground to strengthen the Swachh Bharat (Clean India) Mission after which swachhata (cleanliness) activities will begin," he said.

The Swachhata Hi Seva Movement' (cleanliness is true service) is a great way to pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi, he said.

He pointed out that on October 2 when the country marks the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the Swachh Bharat Mission will complete four years.

The prime minister termed the mission as a "historic mass movement aimed at fulfilling Bapu's dream of a clean India.

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Amid mounting pressure and continued protests demanding action against him over allegations of rape by a nun, Bishop Franco Mulakkal of Jalandhar diocese has been asked by the Kerala police to appear before the investigating team on September 19.

Announcing the decision to summon the clergyman after a meeting where the probe in the case was reviewed, inspector General of police Vijay Sakhare Wednesday said here the delay in completing it was due to "contradictions" in the statements given by the victim, the witnesses and the accused.

He also said a decision on arrest could be taken only after ironing out the contradictions in the statements.

The meeting, chaired by Sakhare, was also attended by Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar and Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash, who is heading the Special Investigation Team probing the case.

"Bishop Franco Mulakkal has been summoned by the investigating officer (IO). He has been asked to appear before the IO on September 19," Sakhare told reporters.

The bishop, who was already questioned by the state police in Jalandhar last month, is expected to be interrogated in Kottayam.

The development came as the protests by various Catholic Reform organisations and some nuns in Kochi seeking justice for the victim entered the fifth day Wednesday and the Kerala High Court was moved seeking a CBI probe.

Leaders of the Mahila Congress, BJP and various rights organisations expressed solidarity with the protesters.

The state government made it clear that it stood with the protesting nuns and there was no need for them to be anxious, reiterating that the investigation was going on in the "right direction".

The Kerala Catholic Bishop Council, however, slammed the protests as having "crossed all limits", while noting both the complainant nun and accused bishop were members of Catholic family and the church shared their "wound and agony".

The nun had recently sought urgent intervention of the Vatican for justice and demanded the bishop's removal as the head of the Jalandhar diocese, questioning why the church was "closing its eyes to the truth" when she mustered courage to make public her sufferings.

In a scathing letter to the Vatican that was made available to the media Tuesday, the nun also asked will the Church be able to give back what she has lost. She alleged that Bishop Franco Mulakkal was using "political and money power" to bury the case against him.

She had accused the clergyman of sexually assaulting her repeatedly between 2014 and 2016.

The bishop had, however, dismissed the allegations as "baseless and concocted", insisting she levelled those as the Catholic order had rejected her demand for favours.

IG Sakhare said there were lot of contradictions in the case. "And the case is an old case and it is based primarily on oral evidence. It is very difficult to gather scientific and technical evidence," he added.

Police, as part of the investigation, have to ensure that all these contradictions were ironed out.

"So that when the charge sheet is submitted we have evidences and we are totally sure about what we are doing and what evidence we have," Sakhare said.

The review meeting also finalised the affidavit to be submitted on Thursday in the Kerala High Court, which had earlier this week directed the state government to inform it of the steps taken by the SIT.

While considering a plea filed by George Joseph K of the Kerala Catholic Church Reformation Movement seeking a court-monitored probe into the case, the court had said, "Law is above all other things and it will take its own course."



The KCBC said the allegation raised against the bishop was 'serious', adding that whoever may be the accused, they should be punished if the charges were proved. "This is the firm stand of the Church," it said.

However, it denounced the protests, saying it "has crossed all limits".

It also alleged attempts by vested interests and a section of media to tarnish the church and the bishop community as a whole under the cover of the protesting nuns and said this was not "acceptable".

Police should not succumb to any kind of pressure and should complete the investigation impartially at the earliest, Vaghese Vallikkat, deputy secretary general and official spokesperson of KCBC, said in a release here.

Senior Minister E P Jayarajan said investigation, covering all aspects, was going on in the "right direction".

"I wish to make one thing very clear. We are with the victim.

No accused will be allowed to escape the clutches of the law," he told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram.

The government was keen that there should be ample evidence to ensure the prosecution case was strong, he said.

In a related development, a fresh petition was filed in the court Wednesday seeking a CBI probe into the case.

Petitioner V Rajendran from Alappuzha alleged that the investigation was 'ineffective' and police efforts were aimed at protecting the interests of the accused. The petition is likely to be considered Thursday.

In an indication of the Latin Church disowning its Jalandhar Bishop, an organisation attached to the Latin Catholic church, issued a statement in Kochi saying had he resigned from the post when the allegations cropped up, he would have got greater acceptability in the society.

The statement was issued by Shaji George, spokesperson of the Kerala Region Latin Catholic Council (KRLCC), headed by Archbishop of the Thiruvananthapuram archdiocese Soosa Pakiam.

The KRLCC criticised Bishop Franco's argument that the personal allegations and criticisms against him were as part of the move to target the Church as a whole.

However, a clergyman of an influential Kerala diocese slammed the "public trial" in the matter.

Auxiliary Bishop of Changanassery Archdiocese of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church Thomas Tharayil sought to know whether declaring a person guilty without an investigation and trial was a new Kerala model.

Tharayil said one should be considered innocent till the charge against him was proved in a court of law.

However, "If an accused is a priest or a Catholic Bishop, he will be treated as a guilty till his innocence is proved," he said sarcastically.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Poland's president came under heavy criticism from political opponents Wednesday after he called the European Union an "imaginary community" of little relevance to Poles.

Andrzej Duda is aligned with the ruling Law and Justice party, which has been in conflict with the EU over an overhaul of the Polish judicial system which Brussels sees as violating the rule of law.

"When our affairs are resolved, we will deal with European affairs," Duda said in a speech on Tuesday. "For now let them leave us alone and let us fix Poland, because this is the most important thing." Duda and government officials insist that the changes, which give the ruling party vast new powers over the courts, are democratic, making judges more accountable. The EU and a number of human rights groups say the changes erode the independence of the judicial branch.

Duda's speech came as the EU is struggling with challenges on several fronts, including a similar conflict with Hungary, Britain's departure next year and a new euroskeptic government in Italy. EU lawmakers on Wednesday voted to launch action against the Hungarian government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban for allegedly undermining the bloc's democratic values and rule of law.

The reaction in Poland to Duda's words was strong, and some commentators expressed fears that Polish authorities could be putting the country on a path of eventual departure from the union.

Chief opposition leader Grzegorz Schetyna said that Duda didn't understand the "damage that such words bring to Poland's image and reputation."



Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, the leader of the small agrarian Polish People's Party, accused Duda, who is a practicing Catholic, of rejecting the teaching of Poland's top authority, the late pope St. John Paul II, who advocated for EU membership.

In his speech to the southeast community of Lezajsk, Duda accused Europe of abandoning Poland to Soviet control after World War II. He said because of that history, Poland has the right to have expectations of Europe and that above all, Poles "have the right to govern here and decide what kind of Poland we should have."



Poland joined the EU in 2004, a step that has brought 14 years of strong economic growth, fueled by billions of euros received from various EU funds. EU membership offered new freedoms for Poles to travel, work and study across Europe.

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The anti-drug task force of Pithoragarh police arrested a student of a polytechnic college after 7.02 grams of smack was found in his possession, a senior police official said.

"Nirankush Kumar, a student of a polytechnic college near Rudrapur in Udham Singh Nagar district, was arrested when the anti-drug task force personnel were checking a vehicle near the town," Superintendent of Police Ramchandra Rajguru said.

The contraband seized from him is worth Rs 75,000, he said.

The accused is a resident of Timta village in Gangolihat sub division, Rajguru said.

He has been charged under sections of the NDPS Act, the SP added.

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The Arab four-member committee in charge of monitoring the crisis with Iran and ways to deal with its interference in Arab affairs Tuesday expressed its solidarity with Morocco, which has decided to sever diplomatic relations with Tehran last May.

The Committee expressed its solidarity with Morocco regarding the dangerous and reprehensible interference of Iran and its ally Hezbollah in the Kingdoms internal affairs, underlined the committee in a statement issued at the end of its 9th meeting at the headquarters of the Arab League in Cairo.

The Committee, composed of the Foreign Ministers of the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, as well as the Secretary-General of the Arab League, denounced Irans attempt to arm and train elements to undermine the security and stability of Morocco, noting that this practice is part of Tehrans plan to disrupt security and stability in the region.

Morocco severed ties with Iran early May to protest its documented involvement in facilitating an alliance between its proxy Hezbollah and the Algeria-backed Polisario separatists. With logistical help of Irans embassy in Algiers and Algerias consent, Hezbollah military officials trained Polisario militias on urban warfare against Morocco and supplied them with surface to air missiles, SAM-9, SAM-11 and Strela missiles.

Several countries had expressed support for Morocco in its standoff with Iran and Algeria. These include member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

The Arab four-member Committee also condemned Irans repeated interference in the internal affairs of Arab countries, and denounced the continued provocative statements made by Iranian officials against Arab States.

The committee expressed deep concern over Iranian practices aimed at igniting sectarian conflicts in Arab countries and sowing instability and lawlessness in the Arab region, hindering thus regional and international efforts to resolve crises in the region by peaceful means.

According to the statement, the Committee also condemned Irans threats to international shipping in the Arabian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea through its Houthi militias.

During its meeting, held on the sidelines of the 150th session of the Council of Arab Foreign Ministers, the Committee drafted a resolution on Iranian interference in the internal affairs of Arab States.

The draft will be submitted for approval to the Arab League ministerial Council.
Various tourism trade associations organised a day-long 'Car and Bullet Rally' from here to Munnar on Wednesday to invite tourists to experience the hill station in all its grandeur, particularly after floods ravaged Kerala.

The rally was aimed at telling travellers across the world that the tourism industry of the state was back in business with renewed vigour, the organisers said in a press release here.

Munnar and Idukki were among the worst-hit in the recent floods in the state, which claimed over 400 lives.

Around 150 cars and several 'Bullet' motorcycles reached Munnar this evening after going through tourism spots in Ernakulam and Idukki districts, the release said.

President of Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) Baby Mathew Somatheeram and expert member of National Tourism Advisory Council Abraham George jointly flagged off the rally, supported by Kerala Tourism.

"This is a rally to draw tourists to experience Munnar and convey the message that there are no longer hurdles to reaching the place and experiencing the beautiful sight of Neelakurinji flowers blooming," the release quoted Mathew as saying.

The Neelakurinji bloom once in 12 years.

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The External Affairs Ministry Wednesday dismissed reports that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was denied permission to visit Chicago to attend the world Hindu conference.

Spokesperson of the ministry Raveesh Kumar said the government did not receive any request for clearance for her visit.

"We did not receive any request for clearance regarding the visit of Ms Mamata Banerjee to Chicago for the event. The reports about the denial of permission are, therefore, not true," he said in response to a question on the reports.

The West Bengal chief minister had yesterday said, "I wanted to go to Chicago... I could not go there because of an unholy conspiracy hatched by certain people. This incident has given me a lot of pain."



She had made the comment at a gathering in Belur Math, the global headquarters of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission, to mark 125th anniversary of Swami Vivekananda's historic speech at the Parliament of the World's Religions held in Chicago.

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Differences between the BJP and its regional partner Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura (IPFT) have come to the fore in the run up to panchayat bye-elections, with a series of clashes between the workers of the ruling allies over submission of nominations.

Bypoll will be held on September 30 in over 3,000 seats in gram panchayats, panchayat samitis and zilla parishads, which were rendered vacant due to resignation of public representatives since March this year in Tripura.

The IPFT, which is contesting against ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)l, claimed its candidates could submit nominations in only 10 out of the 35 rural development blocks of Tripura. It demanded that the Election Commission put off the by-elections where candidates were unable to file nominations freely.

The opposition CPI(M) in Tripura also demanded immediate postponement of the panchayat bye-elections or extension of the time period for filing nomination papers.

IPFT general secretary Mangal Debbarma alleged that the BJP supporters have attacked IPFT activists in different districts since they "didn't want the indigenous party to grow strong".

Election exercise could not be carried out in some of the rural development blocks and aspirant candidates could not file their nomination even on the last date, he told reporters.

The State Election Commission is requested to take immediate decision to exclude such blocks from the purview of the present election exercise, an IPFT executive committee resolution, which was circulated at the press conference, said.

The party also urged the state Election Commission to reschedule by-polls in those blocks at the earliest.

Signalling a rift between the allies which came together to form a government in March, the IPFT general secretary said his party and all its front organizations would soon launch a statewide movement for Tipraland, a proposed separate state for indigenous communities.

He urged the BJP to hold an immediate state level joint meeting with IPFT and said "findings of the meeting would decide the nature of the movement".

Meanwhile, IPFT supremo and revenue minister Narendra Chandra Debbarma alleged that "rule of law is under question in Tripura".

"Severe chaos was created in different blocks on Tuesday the last day of nomination submission for three tier panchayat polls," he said.

State police control room said Wednesday that clashes were reported from Boxanagar, Dhanpur and Melaghar in Sipahijala district, Amtali in West Tripura, Kamalpur in Dhalai, Dharmanagar in North Tripura, Gournagar in Khowai district and from other parts of the state yesterday.

The IPFT called an emergency meeting Wednesday morning to conduct a detailed review of the state's political situation.

The IPFT supremo, however, refused to name the attackers and said miscreants led the charge against its supporters in different districts.

Asked why BJP and IPFT are not fighting together in the panchayat by-polls, NC Debbarma said, "We are allies in government. Though there is no formal decision, we have discussed that we shall have a friendly contest in panchayat bye-election. It was a gentleman's agreement".

When contacted, BJP spokesperson Mrinal Kanti Deb said that his party supporters did not attack any person, group of any political party during filing of nominations, which ended on Tuesday.

Some miscreants had attacked BJP activists and supporters when they went to file nominations, Deb claimed.

Sipahijala district Superintendent of Police Kulwant Singh told PTI that the situation is normal there but adequate deployment of police and para-military forces was made and patrolling was also intensified in vulnerable areas.

Meanwhile, an FIR was filed by BJP MLA Birchanda Debbarma at Takarjala police station, 25 km from here, on September 10 night accusing a group of unidentified miscreants of breaking open his residential gate and damaging the property.

The MLA was not in the house during the attack but his family was terrified. Investigation is continuing but nobody has been arrested so far, the SP said.

The Opposition CPI(M) attacked the BJP and IPFT over the situation in the state.

CPI(M) spokesperson Goutam Das alleged that a fascist rule is prevailing in Tripura under BJP-IPFT coalition government. Opposition supporters, common people, even policemen are not spared from attacks of BJP and IPFT supporters, Das alleged.

"An unusual and abnormal situation is prevailing in the state. Election can't be held in such a situation," he added.

Dhalai district superintendent Sudipta Das said Wednesday that Kamalpur Sub Divisional Police Officer of Dhalai district, Shankar Das, and other officials including a police station in-charge were injured when they tried to lift a blockade at Srirampur, 10 Km away from Kamalpur town.

A convoy of IPFT MLA Dhananjoy Tripura was attacked in the area earlier Tuesday at Srirampur and two of his vehicles were damaged, the official said. The blockade was subsequently staged by IPFT supporters, Das said.

He also informed that a service rifle of a policeman was dropped during mob control operation but was later recovered. Adequate deployment was made to maintain peace.

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Describing India as a "rising economy", Chinese Consul General in Kolkata Ma Zhanwu Wednesday said his country wants to maintain stable relations with its neighbours.

Asserting that the much-vaunted Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is not a scheme designed by China to conquer the world or its neighbourhood, Zhanwu said the project is all about "shared benefits and development" through consultations and discussions.

"India and Russia are major powers and neighbours of China. Our country wants to maintain stable relations with its neighbours," the Chinese consul general in Kolkata stated.

Talking about the recent devaluation of Indian currency, Zhanwu said "rupee must have depreciated in the past few days, but the rise of Indian economy is irreversible".

The world has been witnessing the rise of China, India and other developing countries in Africa and Latin America, he observed.

Zhanwu, however, described the trade protectionism policy in the US as "negative development".

"We need to cooperate with each other for overall development. Every Indian state realises that it needs to create jobs for its people to move forward," he said while speaking here at a conference on connectivity and trade relations between China and Eastern India.

Stating that Chinese investors would want to finance various projects in India, the Chinese consul general in Kolkata said companies who invest money to earn profits should be answerable to their shareholders.

On this occasion, Zhanwu also addressed complaints of a section of importers, who claimed that Chinese products received by them were of inferior quality and manufacturers, in some cases, have not supplied goods on time.

"People should practise fair trade to grow in the long run. No one should cheat," he said.

Referring to BRI, he said the project takes cue from Silk Route - an ancient network of trade routes that connected India and China.

"Silk Route is an example of open trade and shared development. Buddhism was brought to China via the Silk Road," Zhanwu added.

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Rockets were fired at the only working airport in the Libyan capital Tripoli overnight, with no reports of casualties or damage, an airport source said early Wednesday.

It came within days of Mitiga International Airport's reopening after it was forced to close for a week because of deadly clashes between rival militias in and around Tripoli.

A Libyan Airlines flight was diverted to Misrata airport, some 200 kilometres east of the capital, the source said, adding that preparations were also underway to move planes on the tarmac in Tripoli to Misrata.

The airport had reopened on Friday after a ceasefire overseen by the UN was signed between the armed groups waging a bloody conflict mostly in Tripoli's southern suburbs.

The agreement has largely been respected but witnesses reported brief clashes in the south of the capital on Tuesday night.

The fighting has killed at least 50 people and wounded 138 others -- most of them civilians -- since August 27, according to the health ministry.

Thousands of families have fled the violence to nearby towns or have had to seek shelter in other districts of Tripoli, authorities have said. During heavy clashes last month, at least three rockets landed in the airport's vicinity, forcing staff to reroute all flights to Misrata.

Tripoli has been at the centre of a battle for influence between armed groups since the fall of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011.

Mitiga, a former military airport in the east of the city, was first opened to civil air traffic after the destruction of Tripoli's international airport in the capital's south during unrest in 2014.

Since then only Libyan airlines have operated in the country, running internal flights and regular connections to a handful of countries, including Tunisia and Turkey.

Libyan airlines are banned from European Union airspace for "security reasons".

Separately in the capital, the Islamic State group claimed responsibility on Tuesday for a suicide attack a day earlier against the headquarters of Libya's National Oil Corporation which killed two employees.

Three attackers died in the assault on the NOC's offices, IS said in a statement published by the US-based SITE Intelligence Group which tracks extremists.

That attack came four months after the headquarters of the country's electoral commission in the capital was hit by suicide bombers, killing 14 people and also claimed by IS.

The jihadist group gained ground in Libya in the chaos following Kadhafi's ousting and despite being driven in December 2016 from its main fiefdom of Sirte, east of the capital, it continues to carry out deadly attacks.

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Russia's defense minister says Moscow and Beijing intend to l regularly conduct joint war games similar to the massive ones being held this week.

Sergei Shoigu and his Chinese counterpart, Gen. Wei Fenghe, on Wednesday visited the Tsugol firing range in eastern Siberia where nearly 300,000 Russian troops and about 3,200 Chinese troops are participating in joint exercises.

The weeklong Vostok (East) 2018 maneuvers launched Tuesday span vast expanses of Siberia and the Far East, the Arctic and the Pacific Oceans. They involve 1,000 Russian aircraft and 36,000 tanks.

China sent 900 combat vehicles and 30 aircraft to join the drills at Tsugol. The significant deployment reflects its shift toward a full-fledged military alliance with Russia amid tensions with the United States. Mongolia also has sent a military contingent.

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Book publishing house S Chand and Company said Wednesday it has entered into a strategic partnership with South Korea-based Sigong Media to make a foray into the pre-school child education system.

It would introduce Sigong Media's teaching materials and tools under NuriNori brand here.

The Delhi-based company would have a dedicated curriculum and sales team and would localise the contents within one year.

S Chand Group would introduce learning programmes for over three years and four years age group as the company is eyeing the fast growing pre-school market valued at USD 2.18 billion in 2016.

According to the company, this pre school market is expected to grow to USD 3.4 billion by 2020.

"There are about 56 million children in the age group of 2-4 years in India," the company said in a presentation adding "about 15 per cent of the urban child between 2 to 4 years age are going to pre school, whereas penetration in tier 2 & 3 is lower."



Education is the second highest expenditure in India after food and grocery.

The company is looking double income nuclear family as its primary customers for the segment.

S Chand and Company is one of the leading publisher in 4 to 18 years age group school text books.

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The National Commission for Safai Karamcharis Wednesday directed the district magistrate (west) to give a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the family of each of the five people dead due to asphyxiation while cleaning a septic tank at a housing complex in Moti Nagar area in Delhi, officials said.

The incident happened on Sunday at DLF Capital Green Apartments.

The commission has sought registration of a case of death caused by negligence under provisions of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act 2013 and under sections of IPC against DLF, service managing firm JLL, and the maintenance contractor Unnati Agency.

The commission asked police to make arrests accordingly.

A team of the commission visited the spot Monday and had a discussion with the Delhi chief secretary, the district magistrate (west), DCP and other police officers, officers from Municipal Corporation (west) and Delhi Jal Board.

DLF representatives informed the visiting commission team that the JLL will take care of the families affected.

Deputy commissioner of police (west) said an FIR has been registered under section 304A at Moti Nagar police station and the process is on to identify people responsible for the deaths.

"On the basis of the discussion, the commission has noticed that the cleaning of sewage treatment plant of the DLF Capital Greens was taken up without safety equipment, supervisory team, ambulance with doctor etc, which shows a clear violation of the provision of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act 2013 and also the Supreme Court judgment dated March 27, 2014," the statement said.

This matter will be taken up with the concerned departments for solution of "non-stop sewer deaths" in Delhi and action against the agencies that violate Act, it said.

A 32-year-old supervisor, an engineer working with JLL was arrested Monday for alleged negligence into the case.

The Delhi government has ordered a probe into the matter, while the National Human Rights Commission has sought a report from the Delhi chief secretary and the police commissioner.

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Actor Said Taghmaoui has claimed that he was roped in by director Danny Boyle to play the villain in next James Bond movie.

The 45-year-old actor, who has acted in films such as "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra", "Vantage Point" and "Wonder Woman", told Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National that there is "uncertainty" over his casting after Boyle's departure from the project.

Boyle recently dropped out of directing the movie due to "creative differences" with the producers.

"I'm supposed to do the next James Bond, playing the lead bad guy. I was cast by Danny Boyle, and just now he left the project, so of course there's some uncertainty..." Taghmaoui said.

The actor said he was recently contacted by the producers who told him that they are yet to decide on the antagonist's nationality.

"We don't know who the director will be, and the producers don't know if they're going to go Russian or Middle East with the baddie right now," Taghmaoui said.

"I literally just received a message saying: 'If they go Middle East, it's you. If they go Russian, it's someone else.' It's the story of my life. Always on that line between something that could change my life and something that disappears," he added.

After Boyle's departure, the untitled film is likely to miss its release date of November 8, 2019 in the US.

The producers are yet to announce a replacement for Boyle.

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The Supreme Court Wednesday extended the house arrest of five rights activists who were arrested from several cities in connection with the Koregaon-Bhima violence case for another five days.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud adjourned the hearing on the plea filed by historian Romila Thapar and four others to September 17, after it was submitted that senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who is representing the petitioners, was busy in another court.

Earlier, Singhvi appeared before the bench and submitted that the hearing on Thapar's plea be conducted after noon as he has to appear in another matter.

The court was hearing the plea filed against the arrest of the activists -- Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha.

Prominent Telugu poet Rao was arrested on August 28 from Hyderabad, while activists Gonsalves and Ferreira were nabbed from Mumbai, trade union activist Sudha Bharadwaj from Faridabad in Haryana and civil liberties activist Navlakha from Delhi.

The Maharashtra police had arrested them on August 28 in connection with an FIR lodged following a conclave -- 'Elgaar Parishad' -- held on December 31 last year that had later triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village.

The Supreme Court had on September 6 taken strong exception to the statement of a senior police officer on the arrest of the activists, saying he had cast "aspersions" on the top court.

An irked court had referred to the statements made to the media by an Assistant Commissioner of Police of Pune and said he was casting aspersions on the apex court by saying it should not have entertained the petition against the arrests.

The petition was filed by Thapar, economists Prabhat Patnaik and Devaki Jain, sociology professor Satish Deshpande and human rights lawyer Maja Daruwala.

The Maharashtra government had told the court that the petitioners were "strangers" to the mater and questioned their locus. Its counsel had said there was enough evidence including the materials taken from the activists' computers and other sources which belied the perception of the petitioners about those arrested.

Senior advocate Harish Salve, the counsel for Tushar Damgude who had filed the FIR in the Koregaon-Bhima violence, had opposed the plea of Thapar and said it could have been raised in the magistrate's court by the affected parties.

Earlier, the Maharashtra government had filed its response to the plea claiming the five rights activists were arrested due to the cogent evidence linking them with the banned CPI (Maoist) and not because of their dissenting views.

The state's response had come in the backdrop of the apex court, while ordering the house arrest of the five activists on August 29, categorically stating that "dissent is the safety valve of democracy".

The court had questioned the state police's move to arrest these activists nine months after the incident and said all of them were reputed citizens and "stifling the dissent" was not good.

The plea by Thapar and others has sought an independent probe into the arrests and their immediate release.

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Parliament of African Civil Society (PASOCI) denied the organization this year of a conference in Algeria on migration, maintaining that the event will rather be held in Rabat under the theme Migration and development.

PASOCI said in a statement that it hasnt given its approval to any person or organization for such a conference to be held in Algiers, after some state-media said that the event will be held there.

A source from PASOCI said that Yves Magloire who is no longer a member of the organization had spread the news despite having lost his membership.

The same source said that Magloire has been sacked from PASOCI after being arrested following his involvement in embezzling funds dedicated to the organization of the Conakry conference in December 2017.

PASOCI, via its communication officer, denounced the maneuvers of Magloire.

Morocco will hold this year the 11th Summit of the World Forum on Migration and Development on December 5-7, and the Intergovernmental Conference which will adopt the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, is due to be held on the 10th and 11th of the same month.
The Supreme Court Wednesday asked 25 states and union territories and the high courts to place before it "full and complete updated information" about the status of cases pending against MPs and MLAs.

The apex court also asked these states, union territories (UTs) and registrars general of all high courts to place before it the "precise number" of cases which are currently pending and are required to be transferred to the special courts, set up to deal exclusively with cases involving MPs and MLAs.

A bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Navin Sinha noted that 12 special courts have already been set up in 11 states and said the information should be placed before it by October 10, the next date of hearing.

The bench noted in its order that 25 states and UTs, including Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Punjab and Chandigarh, have not furnished any information in pursuance to the orders passed by the court on November 1 last year and August 21 this year.

"We direct the chief secretaries of the above mentioned (25) states and union territories as well as the registrars general of the High Courts in each of the states and union territories to lay before us full and complete updated information as required in terms of our order dated November 1, 2017 and August 21, 2018," the bench said.

"We specifically direct the two authorities, namely the chief secretaries of the states and the registrars general of the High Courts, to lay before us the precise number of cases which are presently pending and required to be transferred to the special courts; whether the 12 special courts set up are functional and whether in view of the volume of cases that would be required to be transferred to the special courts, there is the necessity of setting up of additional courts," it said.

The bench also made it clear that on receipt of this information, the top court would, if needed, monitor compliance of its orders by clubbing a number of states together for being separately taken up on each date of hearing.

Senior lawyer Sajan Poovayya, appearing for petitioner and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, referred to the affidavit filed by the Department of Justice and said 12 special courts have been set up in 11 states but there was no material to show how many cases have been transferred to these courts.

He said that as per the government's affidavit, one special court has been set up in Andhra Pradesh and 25 cases were transferred to the court, but it has not been said whether there were only 25 cases involving MPs and MLAs in the entire state.

As per the government's affidavit, the total number of cases transferred, disposed of and pending in these special courts are 1233, 136 and 1,097 respectively.

Poovayya said the apex court had noted in its November 1 last year's order that there were 1,581 cases involving MPs and MLAs, as declared at the time of filing of the nomination papers for the 2014 elections, but this year, the number of cases against them might have increased.

The apex court in its November last year's order had also sought details as to whether any further criminal cases have been lodged against any present or former MPs and MLAs between 2014 and 2017, along with their details.

The Department of Justice, in their latest affidavit, has said that one special court each has been set up in states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Telengana, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal whereas two such courts have been set up in National Capital Territory of Delhi.

The affidavit has further said that information from the remaining states and high courts has not yet been received.

Out of the 12 special courts, six have been set up at the sessions court level, five at the magistrate level, while the class of the court in Tamil Nadu has not been indicated, it said.

It said that states where the criminal cases against MPs and MLAs were less than 65, regular courts would try these matters on a fast-track mode.

With regard to the setting up of courts in addition to the 12 notified, the department has said the high courts of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Patna, Calcutta and Kerala have negated any such requirement, while the Bombay High Court has expressed the requirement for additional courts without specifying any particular number.

On August 21, the apex court had sought details about the special courts, including the number of cases pending before each of these courts, along with a break-up of magisterial and sessions triable cases.

The top court's order was passed on a petition filed by Upadhyay seeking to declare the provisions of the Representation of the People Act, which bar convicted politician from contesting elections for six years after serving jail term, as ultra vires of the Constitution.

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Concrete equipment manufacturer SCHWING Stetter India has acquired 53 acres in Tamil Nadu for setting up a new manufacturing facility with an investment of Rs 350 crore.

The plant would come up in SIPCOT Industrial area, Cheyyar in Tiruvannamalai district, a company release said.

Top executives of the firm made the payment towards acquiring the land to officials of State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu (SIPCOT) Wednesday.

"The new site aims to focus on new product launches and support the progression of engineered products from the prototype stage to serial production," the release said.

The firm would invest the amount in two phases towards installing "the technology-enabled and environmentally-sustainable manufacturing facility," it said.

Company vice-chairman and managing director Anand Sundaresan said, "the new facility is core to the company's long-term strategy to expand and reinforce our position as one of India's leading concrete equipment manufacturers."



The facility would cater to the needs of the emerging infrastructure boom in India as well as export requirements of the Asian and African markets, the release added.

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Markets regulator Sebi Wednesday said it has granted recognition to National Commodity Clearing Ltd, the wholly-owned subsidiary of NCDEX, as a clearing corporation for a period of one year.

The period of recognition is from September 10, 2018 till September 9, 2019, according to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi).

"Sebi has granted recognition to National Commodity Clearing Ltd (NCCL) as a clearing corporation for a period of one year commencing from September 10, 2018 to September 09, 2019.

"The grant of recognition to NCCL has been notified in the Gazette of India," the regulator said in a statement.

Earlier, the regulator also granted recognition to Multi Commodity Exchange Clearing Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of MCX, for a period of one year from July 31, 2018 till July 30, 2019.

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Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar reached here early Wednesday from Rawalpindi after they were released from Adiala Jail on a 12-hour parole to attend the funeral of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz.

Kulsoom, the wife of Sharif, died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68. Her body will be brought back here and buried in the Jati Umra Lahore residence of the Sharif family.

Sharif and two others were transported to Jati Umra in a special plane from Nur Khan Airbase Rawalpindi in the early hours of Wednesday after the Punjab government's home department issued their release order for a 12-hour parole. The trio arrived in Lahore at 3.15 am Wednesday.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Maryam Aurangzeb told PTI that Shahbaz Sharif, had filed an application with the Punjab government requesting the release of his elder brother Nawaz, niece Maryam and Safdar for five days on parole so that they could attend the last rituals of Kulsoom who died of cancer in London.

The Punjab government did not entertain Shahbaz's request for five days and only granted their release for 12 hours, she said.

"We are hopeful that the government will extend the parole till the funeral of Begum Kulsoom to be held on Friday in Lahore," Aurangzeb said, adding Shahbaz will leave for London on Wednesday to bring Kulsoom's body back.

A senior official of the Punjab government also confirmed to PTI that the parole period would be extended till the last rituals of Kulsoom are performed in Lahore.

"Since Kulsoom' body is scheduled to arrive here on Friday there is no point of not extending the parole period. The government has allowed Mr Sharif to attend the funeral prayer of his wife purely on humanitarian grounds," the official said.

According to a notification of the home department, "In pursuance of rule 545-B of Pakistan Prison Rules 1978, permission granted to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar, confined at central prison Rawalpindi, to attend the funeral prayer of Kulsoom Nawaz. The duration of permission granted shall not exceed 12 hours. Police will be responsible for their security and safety. They will not leave the place (Jati Umra) specified in the permission order".

Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered to facilitate the Sharif family regarding the bringing back of body of Kulsoom and matters related to their parole.

Heavy contingent of police has been deployed at the Jati Umra to provide security to the Sharif family.

Kulsoom, who had been battling with lymphoma (throat cancer) for over a year, breathed her last at the London's Harley Street Clinic.

"Begum Kulsoom's condition deteriorated early in the morning on Tuesday. Doctors tried their best but couldn't save her life," Aurangzeb said.

To a question whether her sons - Hasan and Hussain - would return to Lahore to attend her funeral prayer, she said, "No decision has been taken as yet".

It is likely that both sons may not return to Pakistan as they have been declared absconders by an accountability court in the off-shore properties case.

The former first lady was diagnosed with lymphoma (throat) cancer in August last and had been in London since, where she underwent multiple surgeries and at least five chemotherapy sessions.

She was placed on a ventilator in June following a cardiac arrest. Her family reported a slight improvement in her condition on July 12, a day before her husband Sharif and Maryam were set to return to Pakistan after the accountability court sentenced them to jail.

She served as the first lady of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms from 1990-1993, 1997-1999 and 2013-2017.

She also served as the president of the PML-N from 1999 to 2002, after her husband's government was toppled by former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf in a bloodless coup. She was also placed under house arrest following Sharif's ouster by Musharraf in 1999.

She led defiant, lonely protests against the Musharraf regime to get her husband freed from prison.

Kulsoom was elected to Lahore's NA-120 constituency in a by-poll after her husband was disqualified from the seat by the Supreme Court last year. Due to her illness, she was unable to return and formally take oath for the seat.

She was born in 1950 in Lahore to a Kashmiri family. She graduated from the Forman Christian College in Lahore and received a Master's degree in Urdu from Punjab University in 1970.

From her maternal side, she was granddaughter of famous wrestler of the sub-continent Gama Pehlwan.

Kulsoom married Sharif in April 1971 and they have four children - Hassan, Hussain, Maryam and Asma.

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Former Union minister Arun Shourie met NCP chief Sharad Pawar here on Wednesday and discussed the political situation in the country, the party said.

Shourie, a former minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee's NDA government and a bitter critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, met Pawar at the latter's residence in south Mumbai for over an hour, said Nationalist Congress Party spokesperson Nawab Malik.

"Shourie told Pawar to take the lead in uniting all the Opposition parties ahead of the general elections," a party source said.

"Pawar told Shourie that he was trying to unite all Opposition parties," the source added.

NCP MPs Supriya Sule and Majeed Memon and a former judge of the Bombay and Allahabad high courts, Abhay Thipsay, who joined the Congress in June, were present at the meeting.

Pawar recently suggested that the Opposition parties should not project anyone as the prime ministerial candidate before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. He also claimed that Congress president Rahul Gandhi had echoed his suggestion.

While advocating a grand alliance of Opposition parties, Pawar had suggested that national parties should go with a strong party at the regional level.

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Buoyed by the recent landmark ruling on homosexuality in India, a Singaporean disc jockey has filed a court challenge against a law in the city state banning gay sex, saying it is inconsistent with parts of the Constitution, a media report said Wednesday.

Johnson Ong Ming, 43, filed the case on Monday, and will contend that Section 377A is "accordingly void" as it is inconsistent with Singapore's Constitution.

Ming's court challenge comes a few days after India's Supreme Court in a landmark ruling decriminalised consensual gay sex and termed it as an important step forward towards a liberal and tolerant society.

Ming, who also owns a digital marketing agency, told Channel NewsAsia on Wednesday that he chose to mount the court challenge as LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) groups are "not allowed to organise" and "don't see ourselves represented positively on mainstream media, if at all".

"Without access to help and resources, navigating through life is a lonely and often stressful process for every LGBT Singaporean.

"Most importantly, I am not a criminal and I do not want to go through life being branded as one by my own country. It takes a psychological toll on you going through life thinking you are less than everyone else," Ming said.

According to court papers, the case argues that Section 377A of the Penal Code is inconsistent with three articles in the Constitution concerning liberty of a person and equal protection.

Under 377A, any male person who commits or tries to get another male person to commit "any act of gross indecency with another male person", whether in public or private, can be jailed for up to two years.

Ming will be represented by lawyer Eugene Thuraisingam whose law firm said it will argue that Section 377A "violates human dignity".

Veteran Singapore diplomat Tommy Koh called for Singapore's gay community to challenge 377A last week.

The ambassador-at-large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs made the comments in response to a Facebook post on India's landmark ruling.

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At least six labourers died while two others were seriously injured in an explosion in a petro-chemical factory here Wednesday, police said.

According to the police, one labourer is still missing.

The blast took place around 8 am when the boiler of the factory was being repaired.

"There was a blast in the Mohit Petro-Chemical Factory located on Nagina Road. In the blast, labourers Balgovind, Ravi, Lokendra, Kamalveer, Vikrant and Chetram died. Two labourers were brought to a hospital in a serious condition. One labourer is said to be missing." Superintendent of Police Umesh Kumar Singh told PTI.

"As per information gathered so far, the boiler of the factory was not functioning for the past few days. Today, while it was being repaired, there was a blast in the boiler while welding work was going on," he said.

Singh said efforts are on to trace the owner of the factory.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed grief over the loss of lives in the accident, and conveyed his condolence to the family members of the deceased.

The UP chief minister also instructed officials that proper medical treatment should be given to the injured persons, a government spokesperson said in Lucknow.

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After having been at the receiving end of online abuse, and her posts being reduced to memes, student activist Gurmehar Kaur on Wednesday said the "hate" would never match to the level of "love" and support she received from people through social media.

Last year, Kaur was trolled online for her stand against campus violence and for appearing in an earlier recorded video in which she was seen holding a placard that read, "Pakistan did not kill my father but war did".

"Everyone wants to know about the gossipy bit 'How did you feel', 'Were you scared when that happened'. But nobody asked me how many friends I made, how many women stood up, how many messages of solidarity I got.

"Hate comes in a very orchestrated way, it is a 9 to 5 thing with the hate. But the love I got is impossible (to explain). I don't think I would have survived if it wasn't for the love of the people that I received throughout," said Kaur, while speaking here at the 6th edition of the annual SHEROES Summit - 'Building Communities'.

Describing social media as a "public space" similar to a street, Kaur said that women should occupy this space to make it more "safe" and not shy away from it for the "fear of trolls".

"Everyone is online, everyone is putting up their opinion, it is not a virtual world anymore it is a public space.

"We need to occupy these spaces so that many young girls sitting in a tiny town, who have an idea or a thought, can put their opinion out there without any fear," the 21-year-old student activist added.

Kaur, who made it clear that her activism didn't start at once after she joined Delhi University, said speaking up has been important for her since the school days.

"Speaking up is important because when you speak up, face the brunt of it, and survive it... you then give courage to at least ten other women to speak their mind.

"They say 'she spoke up, she survived the distress, now I think I can also do that.' This is how they get the courage to raise their voice," she said.

At SHEROES Summit, an initiative by a women's online community platform, diverse women professionals and businesses come together, with choices at the center of it all.

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Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal Wednesday inaugurated the Indo-Bhutan Border Centre at Darranga in Assam's Baksa district to strengthen bilateral trade with the neighbouring country.

The inauguration of the trade centre is a spontaneous response of the people of Assam, specially the people residing in the four BTAD districts of Baksa, Udalguri, Chirang and Kokrajhar, to the prevailing peaceful situation in the state, Sonowal said on the occasion.

The Centre has decided to construct 264 km of border roads touching four BTAD districts of the state, he said.

The chief minister expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for unleashing a new era of development in Northeast by enunciating Act East Policy.

He vowed to strengthen bilateral relation of India with ASEAN and BBIN countries.

Sonowal thanked both Bhutan and Bangladesh for opening their consulates at Guwahati which has given renewed thrust to the relations with the neighbouring countries with Assam.

Referring to Indo-Bhutan relations, Sonowal said the recently introduced Druk Air flight connecting Paro-Guwahati-Singapore would take Indias relation with ASEAN countries to new heights.

He also said that the state government with the active support of the Central government would revive the Rupsi Airport in Dhubri and revival work would start from next month.

Assam Industries and Commerce Minister, Chandra Mohan Patowary said on the occasion that the trade centre at Darranga besides strengthening the bilateral trade will help to economically empower the people on both sides of border.

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Animal sacrifices in Hindu temples in Sri Lanka could be banned after the Cabinet approved a proposal Wednesday to enact laws banning the "primitive" methods of worship, amid calls from the Hindu community to make the ritual a "punishable offence" in the Buddhist-majority country.

The Cabinet headed by President Maithripala Sirisena approved the proposal submitted by Resettlement, Rehabilitation, Northern Development and Hindu Religious Affairs Minister D M Swaminathan.

Hindu Cultural Affairs Director Uma Maheswaran was quoted as saying by the government-owned newspaper 'Daily News' that the slaughter of animals such as goats and fowls in Hindu temples would be banned by this legislation.

He said the Cabinet-approved draft legislation would be sent to the Legal Draftsman's Department for final consent.

It will then be sent to the Attorney General's Department and published in the gazette. He said the law would come into effect once passed by Parliament.

According to the Cabinet Memorandum, animal and bird sacrifices in Hindu Temples or its precincts will be prohibited.

"One of the primitive methods of worship is animal and bird sacrifices, while the majority of Hindus do not accept the practice. Slaughtering of animals is carried out in public in open courtyard of the temple without considering health and mental harm of the devotees.

"Legislation to ban animal sacrifice in Hindu temples is operative in India. The members of Parliament representing the Hindu Community and Hindu Association in Sri Lanka are of unanimous view that sacrifices of any living being in the name of Hindu Religion should be banned and made a punishable offence," the memorandum stated.

Jaffna High Court Judge M Ilancheliyan, delivering a ruling in a case filed by the All Ceylon Hindu Maha Sabha against the killings of animals at the Kavunawatte Narasimmar Kovil festival in October last year, prohibited the slaughter of animals in Hindu temples.

"Fundamental characteristics of most of the religions are 'Ahimsa' and non-cruelty towards all living being. Hindu Religion practised by a substantial section of the Sri Lankan population is vigorously preaching this concept and declares it as sinful and advocates the prevention of killing of any living being," the memorandum noted.

"There is no institutionalised structure for the regulation of activities carried out in the name of Hindu Religion. Almost all Hindu temples and religious institutions in the country are managed by individuals or management committees elected by people.

"There is no regulatory mechanism to impose or guide line or instruction unified practice in these temples and left in the hands of these individuals or Management Committees," it added.

Sri Lanka is a Buddhist-majority country with Buddhist Sinhalese making up nearly 75 per cent. Muslims account for 10 per cent of the 21 million population another 13 per cent of the population are Hindus.

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President Aleksandar Vucic of Serbia has renewed his countrys full support to Moroccos territorial integrity at a meeting held Tuesday in Belgrade with visiting Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita.

In a statement to the media after the meeting, President Vucic reaffirmed Serbias support for Moroccos territorial integrity and hailed the strong ties of cooperation binding the two countries.

He said he discussed with the Moroccan officials issues of common interest and means to further strengthen bilateral cooperation in various fields.

Bourita had earlier met with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic, who also reiterated full support to Moroccos territorial integrity.

The Serbian top diplomat also stressed the importance of political and peaceful resolution of regional conflicts in line with United Nations Security Council resolutions.

There is a momentum in Moroccan-Serbian relations, said Ivica Dacic, underlining the two countries strong determination to enhance further their cooperation and friendship ties, while respecting their respective territorial integrity and national sovereignty.

We have agreed to continue our coordination at international organizations and fora, added the Serbian minister of Foreign Affairs, saying Rabat and Belgrade look forward to lifting up their economic cooperation to higher levels.

For his part, Bourita said talks with his Serbian peer covered several issues related to bilateral relations, latest developments on regional and international scenes as well as the setting up of a Moroccan-Serbian business council to boost partnership in trade, investment, renewable energies, agriculture, and car industry.

The meeting was marked by the signing of a memorandum of understanding in the field of youth and sports.

Bouritas visit to Belgrade is part of a tour to the Balkan region aimed at expanding and diversifying the Kingdoms partners in Europe.

After Serbia, the Moroccan Foreign Minister will travel to Romania and Bulgaria.
Three suspected Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists, believed to be part of a suicide squad, infiltrated into Jammu and Kashmir Wednesday and fired at security personnel on the state's main highway before escaping into a forest near this city, police said.

The terrorists attacked security personnel from a truck that was intercepted as it was speeding past a checkpost in Jhajar Kotli on the arterial highway that connects Jammu to Kashmir Valley, officials said.

Panic gripped Jammu and its neighbouring areas after the three men escaped into a forest between Jhajar Kotli and Nagrota on the outskirts of the city.

Additional checkpoints were erected at Katra, the base camp of the Mata Vaishno Devi cave shrine visited by thousands of devotees. Drones were deployed over the forest areas to locate the missing terrorists.

A search operation was launched by police, paramilitary forces as well as the Army and security around important installations was strengthened.

A forest guard was injured when they fired at him.

"After they were intercepted, they ran into a forest area between Jhajar Kotli and Nagrota. They spotted a forest guard, wearing a uniform and fired at him. He was injured and is stable," said Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Jammu, Vivek Gupta.

Though the men managed to escape, the driver and the conductor of the truck was caught.

Piecing together events of the morning from the interrogation of the driver, from Budgam in central Kashmir, officials said the trio infiltrated from the Kathua-Sambha border early Wednesday morning. They boarded the truck at Chak Dayala, a village about two to three kilometres from the international border.

The Special Task Force of the state police has taken the driver and his aide to the place in Jhajar Kotli where they were picked up, the officials said.

The three terrorists are believed to be part of the Jaish-e-Mohammed and had entered India to carry out a 'fidayeen' (suicide) attack, a senior official said.

"The recoveries, including medicines and dry fruits, made from the truck suggest that they are here to carry out a terror attack," he said.

Gupta added that an AK assault rifle and three magazines were seized from the truck.

Using the bypass road, the truck attempted to flee at a security checkpoint near Jhajar Kotli and was intercepted by security personnel after a few metres, officials said, giving details.

They said the men crossed over to the India side through a 'nallah', or drain.

"This is being frequently used. The issue has been flagged but the BSF, which is mandated to man the international border, disputes it every time," an official said.

A high alert was issued for areas along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway and the Jammu region after the incident.

The last time a terror incident happened in the Jammu region of the 294 km highway was in August 2015 when Lashker-e-Taiba terrorists fired at a Border Security Force (BSF) convoy, killing two personnel.

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Students at Switzerland's ETH Zurich here have developed a robot which works 30 times faster than the quickest human.

The Institute of Neuroinformatics' "Sensors Group"at the ETH Zurich has used a brain-inspired neural network and camera to develop "Dextra a robotic hand" which essentially reads your mind anticipating your hand gestures to defeat you in the rock-paper-scissors game.

"Dextra sees the world in super slow motion. It is so fast at seeing the symbol you are about to throw that it is able to both determine your next move and execute a winning symbol 30 times faster than the quickest human," ETH Zurich Professor, Tobi Delbruck told PTI.

"Unlike conventional artificial intelligence (AI) vision systems based on image frames, Dextra wins by being frame-free," he added.

Conventional robotic or computer systems must continually process frames at a very high rate in order to react quickly. High processing rates in the camera and the computing system sap energy and power.

"Dextra's AI vision technology drives the motion in the scene by using a silicon retina Dynamic Vision Sensor (DVS) camera and a custom neural network accelerator called, 'NullHop'.

"The robotic AI computation occurs only when necessary enabling the system to always react quickly, while at the same time, optimizing energy use. It is a digital convolutional neural network (ConvNet) accelerator that determines which symbol the human game player displays," he added.

The professor further explained that NullHop, like the DVS, takes advantage of the sparse data reducing the number of necessary computations by a factor of four.

"By using NullHop and the DVS, the system driving Dextra can react in about 10 milliseconds, about 30 times faster than the quickest human," he added.

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UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Syria and its backers Tuesday against launching a full-scale offensive in Idlib, saying the rebel-held province "must not be transformed into a bloodbath."



"It is absolutely essential to avoid a full-scale battle in Idlib," Guterres told reporters at UN headquarters.

"This would unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict." The UN chief spoke after Russia and Iran clashed with Turkey at a summit last week on plans for military action to restore Syria's control over Idlib, where three million people live.

Turkey is appealing for a ceasefire to allow for negotiations on the fate of armed groups in Idlib, Syria's last major rebel stronghold, but its call has been rejected by Russia and Iran.

Guterres said he was appealing to Iran, Russia and Turkey to "spare no effort to find solutions that protect civilians" and warned that any use of chemical weapons would be "totally unacceptable."



The UN Security Council met earlier to hear a briefing from Russia, which insisted that the planned assault on Idlib is a "counterterrorism operation" and that measures will be taken to spare civilians.

"There is no doubt that an all-out military operation would result in a major humanitarian catastrophe," Turkish Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioglu told the council meeting.

Air strikes and bombings will trigger a "massive wave of refugees and tremendous security risks for Turkey, the rest of Europe and beyond," he warned.

Turkey, which has sent troops to Idlib and supports some of the armed groups, called for "an immediate ceasefire" and urged "the international community to vocally and actively support our efforts to this end."



Iran, Russia and Turkey last year set up the Astana process, a negotiating track to end Syria's war that has largely eclipsed the UN-led peace process.

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The driver of the bus that plunged into a ravine in Telangana killing 57 people was conferred the best driver award by the government only last month, officials said Wednesday even as the death toll from the accident rose to 58 with a woman succumbing to injuries.

The overcrowded state-run bus had swerved off the road and hurtled down a hillside into a gorge Tuesday, killing 57 people and injuring 28 others in one of the worst highway tragedies in recent memory.

The accident involving the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) bus occurred on the ghat section of the road near Shanivarapet village some 200 km from state capital Hyderabad.

The TSRTC has submitted a preliminary report to the government indicating that the accident happened when the driver, who was also killed, either lost control while trying to avoid a collision with an oncoming vehicle or negotiating a sharp downhill curve, a corporation official said.

A police officer said the number of those killed rose to 58 Wednesday when a woman succumbed to injuries during treatment. Twentyseven people are still undergoing treatment in hospitals in Jagtial and Karimnagar districts and the condition of at least three is serious.

All the bodies were identified and handed over to the families after post-mortem and inquest, Jagtial Deputy Superintendent of Police Venkat Ramana told PTI.

The deceased included 37 women and five children.

Some of the victims were pilgrims returning to Jagtial from the temple town of Kondagattu after offering prayers at the famous Hanuman temple.

The deceased were from nearby villages and most were daily commuters, he said.

Some of them died due to suffocation, while others succumbed to head injuries.

A case has been registered and investigation is on, Ramana said. He said experts will examine the vehicle to ascertain the exact cause of the accident.

The bus depot manager was suspended Tuesday, a TSRTC official said, adding the vehicle was still in the gorge.

He dismissed media reports that the driver had taken the dodgy shortcut to save fuel, insisting "it is the regular route, and the driver was also regular".

The official said bus driver Srinivas was not only presented the best driver award last month, but was also earlier rewarded for best fuel efficiency, which indicated his impeccable driving skills.

The officer, who did not want to be named, ruled out the possibility of brake failure being the cause of accident.

"Based on prima-facie information, a preliminary report has been submitted to the government. A detailed report will follow after a thorough inquiry," he said.

Police and TSRTC officials said around 90 passengers were on the bus against seating capacity of 54 when it met with accident.

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The last week's dissolution of the Telangana assembly months ahead of its scheduled end has spurred the opposition parties, including arch rivals TDP and the Congress, to explore the possibility of an alliance to take on the TRS of K Chandrashekar Rao.

The Congress and the TDP, which is in power in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and was formed as a consequence of an anti-Congress movement by film icon-politician N T Ramarao, held preliminary talks on Tuesday.

The Telangana Jana Samithi (TJS) of M Kodandram, a former associate of caretaker chief minister Chandrashekar Rao who was the chairman of Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC) which spearheaded the movement for a separate state, and other smaller parties could be part of the proposed 'grand alliance'.

The Congress had backed the TDP-sponsored no-trust motion against the Narendra Modi government, and the two parties had voted together against NDA nominee M Vankaiah Naidu in the vice-presidential election.

Noting that these parties wanted the "TRS misrule" to end, Telangana Congress president N Uttam Kumar Reddy said representatives of his party, the TDP and CPI met on Tuesday for a preliminary discussion.

The TDP's state chief L Ramana said his party favoured a 'grand alliance' of opposition parties ahead of the assembly election as it was in the interest of the people of Telangana.

Echoing his view, state CPI secretary Chada Venkata Reddy claimed the TRS dispensation, which ruled the state since its creation, disregarded democratic principles.

Kodandram, a key figure in the Telangana movement, said his party had earlier decided against any pre-poll alliance, but had to change its strategy due to the current state of affairs.

He, however, said his party would insist on the prospective opposition alliance having a common manifesto as it was the "fundamental thing".

Kodandram said different parties had approached TJS to explore the possibility of forging an alliance.

"Different parties have made this proposal. We met and discussed with them while trying to know their thinking. It (the alliance) has to be debated at different levels.

"Political affairs committee will come back to the core group then the state committee will finalise the issue," he told PTI.

Kodandram said he wanted a "pragmatic and programme- based" alliance in place where no constituent has to lose its identity.

TDP supremo and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has authorised its Telangana leadership to take a decisio on alliance.

"The TDP's presence in Telangana is a historical necessity," he said recently.

In an indication that a broad-based opposition alliance could become a reality in Telangana ahead of the election, Congress, TDP, CPI and TJS leaders met Governor ESL Narasimhan on Tuesday and demanded imposition of President's rule in the state to ensure free and fair poll.

"Even if KCR is only a caretaker chief minister, free and fair polls will not be possible in Telangana. We have demanded that elections be conducted after imposing President's rule," Uttam Kumar Reddy said soon after the meeting with Narasimhan.

When asked how will there be a rapprochement between the Congress and TDP after years of acrimony, AICC in-charge for Telangana R C Khuntia said," Congress does not harbour bitter feelings for the TDP."



The TRS has, meanwhile, called the opposition's move "opportunistic".

"It appears some desperate efforts are being made to stitch together a 'Maha Ghatia Bandhan' (a wordplay calling the proposed alliance cheap or inferior to rhyme with Maha Gathbandan or grand alliance).

"TRS had fought the 2014 polls alone and is ready again to face any opportunistic alliance," K T Ramarao, state minister and son of caretaker chief minister Rao, said.

The party-wise strength in the 120-member Telangana Legislative Assembly before its dissolution was TRS-82, Congress-17, AIMIM-7, BJP-5, TDP-3, Vacant-2, the CPI, CPI(M), indipendent and nominated member (one each).

The TRS had bagged 63 seats in the 2014 polls but its strength rose over time with 19 MLAs from the opposition, including 12 from the TDP, three of the YSR Congress and two of the Bahujan Samaj Party joining it.

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Shares of Tata Motors Wednesday slipped as much as three per cent in morning trade on bourses after the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) issued a warning to the UK government of massive losses if Britain was to leave the European Union (EU).

JLR CEO Ralf Speth, who was speaking at the Zero Emission Vehicle Summit in Birmingham, Tuesday said that fears of a so-called "no-deal" Brexit and lack of clarity over Britain's post-Brexit plans threatens the UK-based luxury carmaker's entire operational set up.

Following the development, shares of Tata Motors opened on a weak note at Rs 269.80, then slipped to a low of Rs 259, down by 3.06 per cent over its previous closing price.

On NSE, the Tata Motors stocks opened at Rs 142.95, then lost ground and fell to a low of Rs 139.40, down 2.34 per cent over its last close.

"Just one part missing could mean stopping production at a cost of 60 million pounds a day. That is a huge risk. We depend on free, frictionless, seamless logistics," he said.

Back in July, the JLR CEO had issued a similar statement warning the UK government against a "bad Brexit deal".

The UK's largest carmaker has witnessed a complete turnaround in its fortunes since, Tata Motors acquired the traditional British brands from Ford 10 years ago.

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BJP MP Udit Raj has suggested that the "gold and wealth" of three prominent temples in Kerala could be used for helping the people of the state which was devastated by floods last month.

"The Gold & Wealth of Padmanabha,Sabarimala,Guruvayur is more than 1 lakh crores & to compensate the losses of 21 thousand Crores is for less than temples wealth. What is use of such and wealth. When people are dying and crying (sic)," the Dalit leader said in a tweet.

The North West Delhi MP has urged the public to make this demand. Over 400 people died in the deluge in Kerala last month and massive rebuilding efforts are underway at present.

The centre has released Rs 600 crore to the flood-hit state. Various state governments have donated to help Kerala.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan earlier demanded Rs 2,000 crore on an immediate-basis from the Centre, while pegging losses at around Rs 20,000 crore.

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As someone who has made a career out of playing regular guy roles, Ayushmann Khurrana believes it is a great time to be an actor in Bollywood where the space to experiment has grown like never before.

The actor, who has cemented his standing in the industry by featuring in middle-of-the-road films such as "Vicky Donor", "Dum Laga Ke Haisha" and "Bareilly Ki Barfi", says not playing safe has worked in his favour.

"This is the best era to be an artiste in the industry. You get to explore a lot of things which were not possible earlier. Parallel films did not make money but in this day and age, content films are doing commercially great. The trend probably started with 'Vicky Donor'.

"These films give confidence to not just actors but also directors, writers and producers. They know that one can put their money on such films. Actors get to experiment a lot because viewers seem to like that," he told PTI in an interview.

Ayushmann says he is always looks to reinvent himself and his next, Sriram Raghavan-directed "Andhadhun", is a thriller that will see him playing a blind pianist.

"I started my career with an unconventional film. There is no point in playing safe because the audiences love different quirks, something that is crazy and out-of-the-box. I think that's what my space is and if you are going to have your own space in the industry, this is where I want to be."



Working with Raghavan, who has best thriller films in India to credit, be it "Ek Haseena Thi", "Johnny Gaddar" or "Badlapur", was on Ayushmann's bucket-list.

The actor approached Raghavan when he heard about "Andhadhun". They met and Ayushmann offered to take a screen test, his first as an actor.

"When I got to know that he was looking to cast his film, I met him. He told me 'This is not a slice-of-life film'. And I told him, 'This is why I have come to meet you. I don't want to do a slice-of-life film with you. I want to do a thriller'. Working with him was on my bucket list," he recalls.

To perfect his role, Ayushmann decided he would not see any film, Indian or Hollywood, for reference. He and Raghavan visited a blind school and in a case of life imitating art, ended up meeting a blind pianist, who helped the actor in understanding the world.

"We called him to Sriram's office and recorded his body language and I realised the space was completely alien to him because in his school he was familiar about the geography. But a new place becomes difficult to navigate. So, I spent a lot of time researching and rehearsing.

"In all the characters I have played before this film, there is something that I have taken from the people around me but I had no reference for this character. It has been my most challenging role so far," he says.

Ayushmann believes he has become a more assured artiste and he credits his experiences, both good and bad, for that.

"It only comes with experience and it has been six years for me in the industry. I have seen both highs and lows. It gives you a perspective about life, your career and everything. The confidence about a certain product or a character comes from there and then there are directors who you really trust like Sriram Raghavan, who is a credible name in the industry."



Ayushmann's brother Aparshakti is also finding his feet in the industry and the actor is happy that he has already featured in films like "Dangal" and recent release "Stree".

"I'm really proud of him. He has made a mark for himself and is doing good stuff. Both Rajkummar (Rao) and Aparshakti and all the other actors in 'Stree' are so good. Aparshakti has his own journey and as a sibling I can only wish him good luck. I would also love to work with him as an actor," he says.

Also starring Tabu and Radhika Apte, "Andhadhun" releases October 5.

Ayushmann will follow it up with another release, "Badhaai Ho", which is slated to hit the screens on October 12.

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Fans of Bollywood filled the cavernous Roy Thomson Hall in downtown Toronto to the rafters on Tuesday night for the Gala world premiere of Anurag Kashyap's "Manmarziyaan".

It was, as always is the case when a star-driven vehicle from the Mumbai movie industry is unveiled in North America's leading film festival, a celebratory occasion.

The film's director, a Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) regular, and his three leading actors Abhishek Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu and Vicky Kaushal flew into the city after hectic rounds of promotions back in India for the all-set-for-release romance.

TIFF artistic director Cameron Bailey, introducing "Manmarziyaan" to its first audience, described Kashyap as "a pure cinephile". He said: "I just met him backstage. After a big hug, he asked me what films he should watch in the festival. Anurag has a voracious appetite for films... We love the fact that he loves films as much as we do."



"He has made a pure, joyful masala movie," Bailey said, adding that he personally loves such films.

He also announced that "Manmarziyaan", titled "Husband Material" in English, will open in TIFF Bell Lightbox, the festival's headquarters and principal venue, on September 21, a week after its India release.

Kashyap said: "This is actually the first time that I've made a love story... I am grateful to Colour Yellow Films for letting me do the film exactly the way I wanted it."



He added: "It is always great to come to TIFF. If you love cinema, this is a great place to catch films."Referring to Abhishek Bachchan's return to the big screen after a two-year hiatus, the director said: "I consider myself lucky that he chose to come back with this film.""The last time I was in TIFF," Bachchan joked, "I proposed to my wife (Aishwarya Rai Bachchcan). She has warned me not to do any such thing this time.

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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami Wednesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging the Centre again to confer the country's highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna on late J Jayalalithaa and Dravidian icon C N Annadurai.

The Bharat Ratna "would be the most fitting way to recognise the extraordinary public service, phenomenal achievements and the remarkable life of one of the most influential political leaders of independent India," Palaniswami said in the letter to Modi, recalling Jayalalithaa's welfare measures and initiatives.

The chief minister drew Modi's attention to a letter of December 18, 2016 of the state government recommending the award to the former chief minister posthumously.

Jayalalithaa passed away on December 5, 2016.

The Tamil Nadu Cabinet resolved on September 9 to reiterate to the Centre its decision taken in the Cabinet meeting on December 10, 2016, he said.

Hailing former chief minister Annadurai as "the ideological fountainhead of major Dravidian parties," Palaniswami said the late leader stood for a "politics that foregrounded social equality, self-respect and linguistic pride."



Annadurai was a great social reformer, writer, orator, litterateur and a tall Dravidian leader, he said.

Palaniswami highlighted another Cabinet decision taken last week urging the Centre to rename Chennai Central Railway Station after "Puratchi Thalaivar Dr MG Ramachandran," in view of his birth centenary celebrations.

Ramachandran was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna in 1988.

On August 24, AIADMK's executive committee meet renewed its demand for conferring the Bharat Ratna on Jayalalithaa.

Also, it sought the highest civilian honour for late Dravidian stalwarts E V Ramasamy 'Periyar' and Annadurai.

AIADMK first made the demand for honouring Jayalalithaa with Bharat Ratna months after her demise in December 2016, and the move to seek the honour for Periyar and Annadurai comes decades after their death.

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I am not a sheep, I have my own mind

I have had enough of being told what and how to think

Whilst we are still allowed the remnants of free speech,

I will speak out.



I also reserve the right to discuss less controversial matters should I feel the urge.
Commenting on the allegation against a bishop of raping a nun from Kerala, Union minister Giriraj Singh Wednesday called for similar treatment whether a Hindu religious leader or one from another religion was involved.

When the Kerala issue comes up, the approach should not be different from when the issue relates to a Hindu spiritual leader, he told reporters when asked to comment on the controversy involving the bishop of the Jalandhar diocese.

The minister did not elaborate on his remark.

At the same event here he took a dig at Congress president Rahul Gandhi and the award wapsi people, a reference to protesting writers who returned their awards to the Narendra Modi government in 2015.

He said the atmosphere in the country should not be vitiated, and the focus should be on development.

The minister, who holds the micro, small and medium enterprises portfolio, launched products developed by a unit of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC).

These included paper made out of rags and cow dung.

I would like to request Rahul Gandhi, mob lynchers and award wapsi people to see to what heights the KVIC is taking the dreams of Mahatma Gandhi and Narendra Modi, he said, referring to cleanliness.

Singh indicated his MSME ministry may decide to promote the initiative at the national level, saying it will generate employment as well.

The Kumarappa National Handmade Paper Institute, a KVIC unit in Sanganer near here, also uses plastic waste to make paper for manufacturing carry bags.

KVIC chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena said the paper made out of rags and cow dung would increase cattle owners' income and lead to cleanliness on the streets.

The minister also launched environment friendly 'havan samagri' for religious rituals, using discarded coconut shells and other material.

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has identified along with 21 other countries as among the major illicit drug producing or transit nations.

Other Asian countries identified as major drug transit or major illicit drug producing countries are Afghanistan, and

The Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela, are other countries listed in the group, as per a presidential determination.

"A country's presence on the foregoing list is not necessarily a reflection of its government's counternarcotics efforts or level of cooperation with the United States," Trump said.

The reasons countries are placed on the list is the combination of geographic, commercial, and economic factors that allow drugs to transit or be produced, even if a government has engaged in robust and diligent narcotics control measures, he said.

Simultaneously, Trump designated Bolivia and Venezuela as countries that have failed demonstrably during the previous 12 months to adhere to their obligations under counter-narcotics agreements.

He also determined that support for programs to aid the promotion of democracy in Venezuela are vital to the national interests of the

Asserting that combatting the ongoing opioid epidemic is one of his Administration's most urgent priorities, Trump said his government has dedicated nearly $4 billion in additional funding to confront this national crisis.

The Trump Administration is committed to addressing all factors fueling the drug crisis, which is devastating communities across America, including steps to curb over-prescription, expand access to treatment and recovery programs, improve public education programs to prevent illicit drug use before it begins, and to strengthening domestic drug enforcement at the borders, he said.

"Alongside these massive and historic efforts, I expect the governments of countries where illicit drugs originate and through which they transit to similarly strengthen their commitments to reduce dangerous drug production and trafficking, Trump said.

In his presidential determination, Trump expressed his deep concerns that illicit drug crops have expanded over successive years in Colombia, Mexico, and Afghanistan, and are now at record levels.

Drug production and trafficking in these three countries directly affect the US national interests and the health and safety of American citizens, he said.

"Heroin originating from Mexico and cocaine from Colombia are claiming thousands of lives annually in the United States. Afghanistan's illicit opium economy promotes corruption, funds the Taliban, and undermines that country's security, which thousands of United States servicemen and women help defend," Trump said.

Despite the efforts of law enforcement and security forces, these countries are falling behind in the fight to eradicate illicit crops and reduce drug production and trafficking, he rued.

As such, Trump said that these governments must redouble their efforts to rise to the challenge posed by the criminal organisations producing and trafficking these drugs, and achieve greater progress over the coming year in stopping and reversing illicit drug production and trafficking.

The US will continue its strong support for efforts against drug production and trafficking, as well as to strengthen prevention and treatment efforts in the United States, he added.
A UK court on Wednesday fixed December 10 as the date to deliver its verdict on whether beleaguered liquor baron can be extradited to India to face charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 90 billion.

Marking the conclusion of the trial, Westminster Magistrates' Court Judge Emma Arbuthnot fixed December 10 as the date on which she expects to deliver her verdict.

"There is an awful lot to go over the most important point is the prima facie case," the judge said, indicating that other issues relating to prison conditions would be secondary.

Mallya has now been bailed to appear before the court on December 10, marking the conclusion of the year-long extradition trial which opened on December 4 last year.

The 62-year-old former Airline boss' defence team, led by Clare Montgomery, opened the day by branding the government of India's evidence presented in the case as "utterly unfounded".

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, countered this with arguments that Mallya had intended, from the outset, never to repay the loans he sought for his struggling airline and misrepresented its profitability.

"The government of India case that there was some secret pocket of knowledge about losses within Airlines (KFA) which were not revealed to the banks is utterly unfounded, said Montgomery.

"That this was a carefully thought out dishonest strategy knowing KFA was bound to fail is just nonsense. It was a financial disaster, not as result of dishonesty but the result of a failing airline failing to recover," she said, reiterating her earlier submissions that KFA was the victim of a wider financial crisis that hit the aviation industry.



She dismissed the CPS argument that there was stark disjoint between what Mallya knew and what the banks knew and also repeatedly accused the Indian authorities of leaving documents out of the bundle that prove that KFA was the victim of the economic climate and not any deliberate fault.

Mallya's defence team also rubbished the video of Barrack 12 at Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai, where the businessman is to be held if he was to be extradited to India, as having been freshly painted to give the perception of brightness that did not exist.

The video, submitted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Judge Arbuthnot's direction at the last hearing in July, was not played in open court as the judge said she had already reviewed it three times.

The video clearly shows the gloom that settles on this building, which is encased in what is effectively a steel oven, Montgomery said, as part of the defence arguments in favour of a court-led independent inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets the UK's human rights obligations.

It is impossible to be satisfied about humane lighting and ventilation, she said, adding that it had been clearly tidied up for the purposes of the video as it did not match up with the photographs previously provided by the Indian authorities.

The judge, however, made it clear to the CPS that she did not require any further information in reference to the prison conditions awaiting Mallya in India.

As part of the closing submissions, Mallya's defence team effectively undertook a recap of the entire defence case, also repeating its claim that the case brought against the businessman was politically motivated.

It was alleged that the CBI had been forced to file charges and once again referred to a newspaper report against CBI chief Rakesh Asthana, which had claimed that he influenced the heads of the state-run banks and threatened them with reprisals if action was not taken against Mallya.

Mr Asthana has been solemnly sitting in court. If this were fake news, it could have been dealt with, Montgomery said.

The day-long hearing, which marks the effective end of the trial until the verdict in December, also heard the closing submissions by the CPS, which focussed on highlighting that the judge should rule in favour of extradition based on the weight of the evidence.

"The evidence is capable of sustaining an inference of dishonesty, said CPS barrister Mark Summers, adding that the government of India has proved that Mallya has a case to answer before the Indian courts.

Earlier on Wednesday morning, Mallya responded to the swarm of reporters gathered outside the court in his characteristic manner, saying the courts will decide.

As far as I am concerned, I have made a comprehensive settlement offer before the Karnataka High Court. I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess that's the primary objective, said Mallya, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year and is fighting extradition to India.

He said the media should question the banks why they are not supporting him in his efforts to repay.

"I am certainly a scapegoat, I feel like a scapegoat. Both political parties don't like me," he said.

He sarcastically described the video of Barrack 12 at Mumbai's Arthur Road Jail, which has been prepared for him, as very impressive.

Mallya's defence team has presented a series of expert witnesses in an attempt to prove that he had no fraudulent intentions when he took out the loans for erstwhile Airlines. The CPS, on behalf of the Indian authorities, have sought to establish that he had no intentions to pay back those loans in the event of the airline's collapse.

(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.)
A UN commission on Wednesday called on rebel groups in Syria's Idlib province to leave urban areas to protect civilians from any looming regime assault.

The proposal comes after the United Nations' peace envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, last week suggested a deadline be set for fighters in Idlib to pull back from its cities.

UN agencies and relief organisations have warned repeatedly that any major assault on the province of Idlib, which borders Turkey, could spark one of the worst humanitarian disasters of Syria's seven-year war.

On Wednesday, the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria called for jihadists and opposition fighters to leave the most densely populated areas in the region where some three million people live.

"Most of those terrorist groups and other armed groups, they are in the cities. Perhaps one wonderful scenario is: leave the cities," commission chief Paulo Pinheiro said.

Hany Magally, a fellow panel member, said: "Shouldn't the armed groups move out and spare the civilian population?" Idlib and adjacent areas are largely controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an alliance led by Al-Qaeda's former Syrian affiliate, as well as rival rebels. HTS controls the provincial capital Idlib city.

The northwestern region has seen its population almost double with the arrival of Syrians displaced from other parts of the country, many of whom already depend on aid.

"All the other disasters would be minor events compared to what can happen in Idlib," Pinheiro said.

On Friday, rebel backer Turkey and regime allies Russian and Iran failed to reach an agreement in Tehran to avoid a regime assault on Idlib.

On Tuesday, UN chief Antonio Guterres warned a full-scale battle on Idlib "would unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict".

More than 350,000 people have been killed and millions more displaced in Syria's war since it started in 2011.

In the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, US-backed fighters were battling to oust IS from the town of Hajin on the east bank of the Euphrates, the most significant remnant of the jihadists' "caliphate" which once spanned Syria and Iraq.

The operation "will clear remnants of (IS) from northeastern Syria along the Middle Euphrates River Valley toward the Syria-Iraq border," the US-led coalition said.

Despite a number of military campaigns against them, IS fighters are still present in Deir Ezzor, as well as in the vast desert that stretches from Damascus to the Iraqi border.

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The Security Council gave strong backing Tuesday to the UN special envoy for Yemen as he seeks to bring the warring parties together after a failed effort last week.

In a statement following a briefing by Martin Griffiths on his plans, the council urged all sides "to invest in confidence-building measures, engage in future consultations in good faith and seize the opportunity to de-escalate tensions."



A delegation of the internationally recognized government arrived in Geneva for talks scheduled to start last Thursday, but rival Iranian-backed Shiite rebels known as Houthis did not, arguing they didn't have guarantees for their safe return.

Griffiths told the council by video from Amman that the Yemeni political process "will see ups and downs" and "the challenges that we faced are temporary hurdles to be overcome." "It is not a sign that the political and military situation is not conducive to formal consultations," he said.

"We need to stay focused on nurturing the political process particularly in its early stages, and building the needed momentum so that it can deliver tangible benefits to Yemenis throughout Yemen."



Griffiths said he will begin a series of visits in the coming days to secure "a firm commitment" for new talks and build on discussions with the government last week to make progress on confidence-building measures including an exchange of prisoners and the opening of the airport in Sanaa, the rebel-held capital.

He said he will first go to Oman's capital Muscat and Sanaa to engage Houthi leaders, and will also meet Yemen's President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi in the Saudi capital Riyadh.

He said he also plans to consult "very soon" with parties in southern Yemen where there were widespread demonstrations in the past 10 days against the country's failing economy and lack of services that also saw renewed calls for secession.

The conflict in impoverished Yemen began with the 2014 takeover of the capital of Sanaa by the Houthis, which toppled Hadi's government. A Saudi-led coalition allied with the government has been fighting the Houthis since 2015.

Civilians have borne the brunt of the conflict which has killed over 10,000 people and pushed Yemen to the brink of famine, crippled the country's health system, sparked a cholera epidemic, and created the world's worst humanitarian crisis according to the U.N.

The Security Council expressed regret that the Houthi delegation did not attend the Geneva talks and reiterated that only a political solution can end the conflict and alleviate the humanitarian suffering.

Griffiths stressed that as he attempts to resume talks, it's important that the parties don't become embroiled in large-scale military operations.

He expressed relief that the Red Sea port city of Hodeida key to deliveries of food, medicine and other needed supplies hasn't yet suffered "the calamity of military operations."



But he said "the war has been escalating across all fronts" including intensive operations on the outskirts of Hodeida and fierce fighting in other areas including Saada, Hajjah, Marib and Taiz governorates.

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The UN began work Wednesday inside Myanmar's violence-torn northern Rakhine state, the first time its agencies have been granted permission to operate there since more than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims fled the area last year.

The UN has been waiting for access to the epicentre of the military's "clearance operations" against the Rohingya minority since June when its refugee and development agencies signed a deal with the government.

Its work is highly sensitive inside Rakhine, a state cut deep with ethnic and religious hatred and where Buddhist locals stand accused of helping the army chase out their Muslim neighbours.

Many Rakhine accuse international aid groups, including the UN, of a pro-Rohingya bias and foreign aid groups have been granted very limited access to the state.

The task is complicated further as the UN's rights arm is expected to heavily censure Myanmar again in the coming days when it publishes in full the findings of its investigation into atrocities against the Rohingya. On Friday, specialists from the UNHCR and UNDP agencies were finally given permission to enter northern Rakhine before work began on Wednesday to assess local conditions.

"The team is on the ground and commenced with the first assessments today," UNHCR spokeswoman Aoife McDonnell told AFP.

This first step of the UN's "confidence-building measures" is expected to take two weeks and will cover 23 villages and three additional clusters of hamlets. It was not immediately clear which villages they will visit or which communities the UN teams will consult.

The expectation is this "very initial and small step in terms of access will be expanded rapidly to all areas covered" by the agreement, McDonnell said.

The stateless Rohingya are widely seen as illegal immigrants by Myanmar's majority-Buddhist population, complicating the repatriation of those who fled to Bangladesh.

Last August's crackdown by Myanmar's army pushed hundreds of thousands of Rohingya across the border.

Refugees have carried accounts of rape, murder, arson and torture perpetrated by the military and buttressed by Rakhine mobs.

The northern part of Rakhine has been locked down since then, with journalists and observers only allowed to visit on short, chaperoned trips.

The deployment of the two UN agencies comes as Myanmar faces growing demands for accountability over its treatment of the Rohingya.

A UN-led report last week two weeks ago called for the prosecution of army chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and five other top-ranking generals for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

That was swiftly followed by a ruling by the International Criminal Court (ICC) that it has jurisdiction to open a probe into "deportations" of the Rohingya, saying it was a cross-border crime.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Question Hour in Odisha Assembly was washed out for the sixth consecutive day Wednesday amid a ruckus by members of opposition parties, who demanded a clarification from Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik over recent scams.

The House was adjourned twice in the pre-lunch session as members tried to climb Speaker P K Amat's podium, seeking action against defaulters.

As soon as the House assembled for the Question Hour, the opposition MLAs trooped into the Well, raising slogans against the ruling BJD.

The Congress legislators raked up the alleged sapling scam and sought to know the names of people involved in it.

"The Agriculture Minister has already acknowledged irregularities in sapling plantation project. He should now reveal the names of persons involved in corruption," party's chief whip Taraprasad Bahinipati Bahinipati told reporters outside the Assembly.

The BJP members, on the other hand, created a pandemonium over alleged Orissa State Cooperative Milk Producers' Federation (Omfed) scam and cooperative bank irregularities.

"We want the CBI to probe into cooperative bank scam. Also, no action has been taken against those involved in sapling scam. The chief minister should clear his stance on these issues," BJP MLA Rabi Naik said.

Earlier, BJD legislator Damodar Rout had come under fire for pointing out irregularities in activities of Omfed, and cooperative banks.

He also alleged fraud in sapling plantation project to the tune of Rs 100 crore.

Accusing Rout of making "anti-party" statements, BJD MLA Prashant Muduli, along with party's Jagatsinghpur district president Bishnu Das and other workers, met Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at his residence Tuesday seeking his ouster.

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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday he has told Congress that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are doing enough to protect civilians in Yemen where a Saudi-led coalition is battling Iran-aligned rebels in a civil war.

Thousands of have died in the fighting and millions are in dire need of aid.

Pompeo said in a statement that he had certified that the Saudi and Emirati governments "are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure." Ending the war is "a national security priority" for the Trump administration, he said.

The US will work to ensure the coalition's support for UN-led efforts to end the war, allow the delivery of humanitarian support and lessen the war's impact on civilians and infrastructure, Pompeo said.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said he endorsed and "fully" backed Pompeo's certification, adding that Saudi Arabia and the UAE were "making every effort" to reduce the risk of civilian casualties and collateral damage.

Mattis said the US was working with a UN special envoy "to achieve a negotiated end to this fighting." Mattis said last month that the US intended to keep backing the coalition despite civilian casualties and questions about the Saudis' commitment to avoiding killing innocent people.

He said American influence on the Arab air campaign had made a difference in reducing instances of errant bombing and the targeting of civilians.

Yemen's civil war, pitting the Saudi-led coalition against Iran-aligned Houthi rebels who ousted Yemen's internationally recognized government, has raged since March 2015. The coalition backs the government of Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and aims to restore it to power.

Saudi Arabia announced in 2015 that it would lead a coalition of countries against the Houthis.

In the years since then, 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.

Human rights experts documented 6,475 deaths from March 2015 until last June but said the real figure is likely to be significantly higher.

Other groups have estimated that more than 10,000 people have been killed, excluding 2,300 cholera deaths since April 2017 amid pitiful water supplies.

Just last month, an airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition hit a bus carrying children in a busy market, killing dozens of people in what the international rights group Human Rights Watch called an "apparent war crime."



The coalition expressed regret and pledged to hold accountable those found to be responsible for the airstrike, which killed at least 51 people, including 40 children.

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The United States will fall short by a third on its commitment under the Paris climate treaty to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a report released Wednesday in San Francisco.

A crescendo of efforts at the sub-national level by states, cities and business to shrink the country's carbon footprint will not fully compensate for President Donald Trump's decision to scrap his predecessor's climate policies and promote the use of fossil fuels, it found.

"The Obama target was always going to be a stretch," co-author Paul Bodnar, managing director of the Rocky Mountain Institute, told journalists.

"This work shows definitively that states, cities and businesses have the power to bring the nation to the brink of that ambitious target through their own authorities." Financed by former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, the "Fulfilling America's Pledge" report kicks off the three-day Global Climate Action Summit, a gathering of several thousand governors, mayors, business leaders and climate activists from around the world.

"Current federal and real economy commitments, combined with market forces, will drive US emissions to 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2025 -- roughly two-thirds of the way to the original US target," the report found.

Under the 196-nation Paris Agreement, the United States made a voluntary pledge to cut carbon pollution 26-28 per cent by 2025.

The 2015 treaty marked the first time that all countries -- including emerging giants such as China and India -- laid out specific targets for greening their economies.

The new projections are conservative in so far as they assume no help from the federal government over the next six years.

But even without a Democrat in the White House in 2020, up to 90 percent of US targets could still be met if non-state actors double down on climate action, they found.

On Monday, outgoing governor Jerry Brown signed legislation committing the state to purging greenhouse gases from its electricity grid by 2045, replaced by energy generated mostly by solar and wind power.

"We all have the opportunity and the obligation to do our part to combat climate change," he told AFP after signing the bill into law.

The fifth largest economy in the world, California has also adopted targets that would see its emissions fall at least 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030.

Trump -- who vowed to pull out of the Paris Agreement months after gaining office -- wants to relax pollution rules for coal-fired power plants and roll back car-mileage standards, the twin pillars of President Barack Obama's Clean Energy Plan.

He has also challenged the Golden State's right to set it's own vehicle fuel standards.

The transport sector is the single largest source of man-made greenhouse gases in the United States.

US mayors, governors and business leaders -- under the banner "We Are Still In" -- have pushed back by adopting more ambitious targets at the local level.

Taken together, these jurisdictions represent about half of the US economy, the equivalent of the third-largest country in the world, according to the report.

"Businesses, states and local governments have stepped in to fill the leadership gap," said Lou Leonard, senior vice president for climate change and energy, WWF-US.

"But even more is needed to fill the remaining emissions gap and reduce risks from droughts, wildfires and superstorms bearing down on American communities."



As if to illustrate the point, a monster hurricane exhibiting unusual patterns consistent with the influence of global warming is barrelling toward the US eastern seaboard, and projected to make landfall Thursday or Friday in the Carolinas.

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During the seven-decade political struggle in the Netherlands to allow parents to select schools corresponding to their religious convictions, Abraham Kuyper articulated a concept of sphere sovereignty that translates, in policy terms, into principled structural pluralism, says Charles L. Glenn in this weeks Acton Commentary. That Dutch experience, and its resolution in the Pacification of 1917, is highly relevant for the present situation in the United States.

Popular schooling is often a primary focal-point for attempts to make effective the hegemony of the sovereign state over every aspect of society, to achieve not only obedience to laws and policies but also an inner disposition immune to alternative or partial loyalties. Employed in a monopolistic manner as under totalitarian regimes, it poses the profoundest threat to freedom. Educational pluralism, of the sort that emerged spontaneously as the American nation developed but has been under growing threat in recent decades, is the best protection against this profoundly undemocratic abuse.

The full text of the essay can be found here.
What about his aides emails? Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

When yet another controversy emerged last weekend in the Democratic primary battle between Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon, the New York governor was adamant that he had nothing to do with a mailer sent by the New York Democratic Party that misrepresented his opponents views on Israel and accused her of ignoring anti-Semitism.

I didnt know about the mailer; I heard about the mailer, I havent seen the mailer, Cuomo said at a press conference on Sunday. The way I ran this campaign, its been on the issues, its been positive. I think the mailer was a mistake. I think it was inappropriate.

Cuomo and the New York Democratic Party have acknowledged that the mailer  which went to 7,000 households and cost about $11,000  was wrong. But many were skeptical that the party could have sent out the mailer without Cuomos approval, and on Tuesday the New York Post presented what it described as a smoking-gun email that casts further doubt on Cuomos account.

The Post reports that on Friday afternoon one of Cuomos top campaign aides, who the paper does not name, sent an email pitching a story about Nixons alleged support for the pro-Palestinian Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement:

Nixon has supported insidious BDS campaign, signing onto letter boycotting Israel, it says.

Obviously something you guys have reported on a lot and right before the jewish high holidays!

Can get you folks on the record slamming her as well, the aide added.

The email also included excerpts of news reports from 2010, detailing how Nixon was among about 200 American celebrities  including many Jews  who signed a letter supporting a boycott by Israeli actors, directors and playwrights of a new theater in Ariel, one of Israels largest Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

The Post reports that the campaign official also sent a reporter several texts urging them to cover the story. Hey I got something for you on nixon.Im going to email to you. But not from me, the texts said.

The Cuomo campaigns press secretary, Abbey Collins, denied that the emails and texts are evidence that the governor was behind the mailer.

The off the record email forwarded to the New York Post contained published articles and publicly available information on Cynthia Nixons positions on issues concerning Israel sent for the Posts information  those articles have nothing to do with the wrong and inappropriate mail piece that went out and shouldnt have, Collins told the Post.

It is apples and oranges, and to disclose an off the record exchange that had been agreed to by the New York Post is a violation of journalistic ethics, Collins added.

The New York Times notes that neither Cuomo nor the state Democratic Party have offered details on how exactly it wound up accusing Nixon  who is raising two Jewish children  of being anti-Semitic days before Thursdays primary.

As we have said this mailer was a mistake and completely inappropriate, the partys executive director, Geoff Berman, said in a statement. The party does not discuss internal processes but we take this matter very seriously and are putting rigorous controls in place to ensure it never happens again.

The Cuomo campaign offered a few new details on Tuesday, saying the flier was created by an individual helping the campaign on constituency outreach.

In the future, constituency representatives will not be allowed to draft or participate in the mail program, Collins said in a statement. Moving forward, the state party executive director and lawyer must sign off on each piece.

The campaign did not respond to further questions from the Times about the role constituency representatives play in the party organization.

While the state party offered to make up for the blunder by sending out a mailer of Nixons choosing, she scoffed at the idea during an interview on WNYCs Brian Lehrer Show on Tuesday, saying it wouldnt arrive before the primary. Nixon said she still wants more information about what she calls a smear campaign.

This was not a mistake, this is not like a typo, Nixon said. A lot of people were involved in concocting this and executing it and approving it. And we need better answers.

Though Cuomo has been acting like an incumbent worried hes about to be swept out of office in a progressive wave, that seems unlikely, even in light of last-minute disputes over the mailer and the opening of the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge. In a poll released Monday, Cuomo had a 41-point lead over Nixon.
The West Bengal Cabinet has given its nod for setting up a pump storage hydel project in Purulia and agreed to revise the retirement age of nurses in state-run hospitals from 60 to 62 years, senior state minister Chandrima Bhattacharya said Wednesday.

The Rs-6921-crore hydel project would help in generating more power in the state, Bhattacharya, the minister of state for health, told reporters at the state secretariat.

The power project in Purulia is eyeing to utilise waters of Turga river in Ayodhya hills for peak power generation.

The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) had last year given a conditional clearance to the project.

In another move, the Cabinet agreed to raise the retirement age of nurses working at state-run hospitals from 60 to 62 years from the current financial year, which started in April, she said.

Admitting that the state currently has fewer nurses, Bhattacharya told reporters that the Cabinet has also given its nod for setting up 27 nursing schools in the state.

"The number of hospital beds has increased, but the number of nurses hasn't. There is a gap and we need to plug that. The Cabinet has approved the setting up of 27 new nursing schools to solve the problem," she said.

Additionally, the Cabinet also agreed to raise the monthly remuneration of civic volunteers from Rs 5,500 to Rs 8,000 from October 1, the minister added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Mexican-American actor Demian Bichir, best known for his performances in "A Better Life" and "The Hateful Eight", believes there is a lot to be done to achieve real diversity in cinema.

In the last two years, debate around representation and gender equality has intensified and Bichir feels it was much needed.

"We still have to work towards diversity in every sense. I don't think we are there when it comes to equality, protecting and representing minorities.

"The world is a very vast place with so many nationalities and cultures. We have to make more films that represent women, Latins, African-Americans and other communities. It is the time for that. We need more Chinese films, more Indian and Latin-American films," he told PTI in an interview over phone.

The 55-year-old actor was last seen in the Corin Hardy-directed horror film "The Nun", which is a part of "The Conjuring" universe, a franchise that is very popular in India.

Asked whether he had ever visited the country, Bichir said he is keeping his fingers crossed.

"I would love to go to India. A dear friend has invited me to make that trip together. I hope that I have that chance sooner rather than later," he said.

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Triggering a controversy, Mumbai Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam on Wednesday called Narendra Modi "illiterate", while criticising the state government's decision to screen a short film on the prime minister's life at schools in Maharashtra.

His comment drew sharp reaction from BJP leaders with the party's Maharashtra unit spokesperson Shaina NC calling Nirupam "mentally deranged."



"The decision to screen the film forcibly is wrong. Children should be kept away from What will students learn from watching a film on an uneducated and illiterate person like Modi," the Congress leader told a channel.

"Children and people do not know how many degrees the prime minister holds," he said.

Later, asked by reporters about his choice of words, Nirupam said the ruling party need not object to each and every word, and "in democracy the prime minister is not god".

Reacting to Nirupam's remarks, Shaina NC tweeted, "Yet another abnoxious comment by a mentally deranged @sanjaynirupam . May be he forgets that @narendramodi is elected by 125 cr Indians who aren't "unpad or gavar".@INCIndia is devoid of ideology and relevant questions. Sure citizens will give a befitting reply in 2019 (sic).

Anil Shirole, a BJP MP from Maharashtra tweeted, "PM is not a representative of one party, he is the Prime Minister of the Country and it's people. @sanjaynirupam by insulting our PM you have insulted and disrespected the office, the country and the constitution drafted by Dr.Babasaheb Ambedkar ji (sic).

The Zilla Parishad (ZP) schools in Maharashtra have been asked to screen a short film on Modi next week, a directive which has drawn criticism from Opposition.

A government official said that ZP schools were asked to screen the short film "Chalo Jeete Hai" on September 18 as it has a "social message" and would inspire students.

The 32-minute film -- "Chalo Jeete Hai" -- directed by Mangesh Hadawale and presented by Aanand L Rai and Mahaveer Jain, is based on the early life of Modi.

Opposition Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) have slammed the BJP-led dispensation over the decision.

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The Supreme Court Wednesday expressed its displeasure that foreign nationals kept in a detention centre in Assam are "separated" from their families and asked the state government to look into the issue with some urgency so that families are "not broken up".

"You cannot separate them from their families like this," a bench of justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta told Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Tushar Mehta, who was appearing for Assam.

The bench was dealing with the issue related to condition of the detention centre in Assam.

It considered the note submitted by advocate Gaurav Agrawal, assisting the court as an amicus curiae in the jail reforms matter, on this issue and said these detenuee cannot be separated from their families.

The ASG told the court that there was "space constraint" in keeping families of the detenuee in the detention centre.

He said necessary arrangements could be made for the families subject to availability of accommodation in the detention centre and he would take instructions on the issue.

The bench also asked the state to provide gas cylinders and other necessary facilities at the detention centre.

"We expect state of Assam to act with some degree of promptitude in this regard as it relates to Article 21 (right to life and personal liberty) of the Constitution," the bench said.

It also asked the Assam government to explore the possibility of converting the earlier jail in Guwahati, which was shifted to a new building, into a detention centre for foreign nationals.

The ASG said that he would take instructions in this regard after which the bench posted the matter for hearing on September 20.

Meanwhile, ASG A N S Nadkarni, appearing for the Centre, told the court that they were in the process of finalising a manual for keeping foreign nationals in detention centres across the country.

The bench asked government to prepare the manual "at the earliest".

The Centre also told the court that Rs 46.51 crore has been sanctioned to Assam for construction of detention centre.

Mehta informed the bench that a piece of land near Goalpara district in Assam has been earmarked for construction of a detention centre and work was expected to be over within a year.

The Centre told the apex court that they had sent a communication to all the states in September 2014 regarding foreign nationals kept in detention centres.

"We are not at all surprised that not a single state has set up separate detention centre," the bench said, adding that these foreigners cannot be kept in jails with other criminals after they serve their respective sentences.

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The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) has said the widow of a deceased government servant is eligible for family pension even after remarriage.

Administrative member Praveen Mahajan ordered restoration of the family pension to Delhi resident Renu Gupta (47), wife of late Pawan Kumar Gupta, an employee of the Defence Ministry at the time of his death, saying Gupta had requested for transfer of the family pension in the name of her son after her re-marriage without understanding the consequences.

The CAT asked the Ministry of Defence to transfer the pension claim to her from her son's name within four months.

"Without understanding the consequences, she requested for transfer of the family pension in the name of her son after her marriage. However, the said family pension will become inadmissible after the son attains the age of 25 years," the tribunal said, adding that, "It has been held by the government that even in the case of remarriage of a widow, family pension can be given".

The bench rejected the contention of the ministry and said that she was "legally entitled for family pension under CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972" and there seems to be "no legal bar in re-transferring the pension in her name".

The Defence Ministry had appointed Gupta as store keeper in 1998 on compassionate ground after the death of her husband the year before.

She was also granted family pension in accordance to Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972 and other retiral benefits were offered.

Gupta remarried after, which at her own request, the family pension was sanctioned afresh to their son, Karan Gupta in 2002.

However, in 2013, she had sent multiple requests for restoration of her family pension, which was subsequently rejected every time and she was informed that she cannot be granted the pension since she had re-married.

During the course of the hearing, the counsel for the ministry, reiterated that Extra Ordinary Pension Rules are applicable only when death of the employee is attributable to government service, which was not the case here and her claim for it after 20 years of her husband's death had no merit.

The ministry claimed that she had already been granted family pension under CCS (Pension) Rules as per her entitlement.

"The same was however transferred in the name of her son, on her own request and she cannot be allowed to change her request, intermittently, as per her whims," the ministry had said.

However, Gupta's counsel contended that she was entitled to family pension as per an office memorandum of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions which had held that "the childless widow of a deceased Central Government employee who had expired before January 1, 2006, shall be eligible for family pension in the light of sixth CPC's recommendations irrespective of the fact that the remarriage of the widow had taken place prior to/on or after January 1, 2006".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Stephen Nellis and Noel RandewichCUPERTINO, Calif. (Reuters) - Apple Inc introduced its largest-ever iPhone and a watch that detects heart problems on Wednesday in an attempt to get customers to upgrade to more expensive devices in the face of stagnant global demand for smartphones.The relatively small changes to its lineup, following last year's overhauled iPhone X, were widely expected by investors and the company's shares ended down 1.2 percent at $221.07. The strategy has been successful, helping Apple's stock to rise more than 30 percent this year and making it the first publicly ...
By Ginger GibsonWASHINGTON (Reuters) - After months of waging a behind-the-scenes war against President Donald Trump's trade tariffs that have escalated far beyond what business groups once imagined, more than 85 U.S. industry groups launched a coalition on Wednesday to take the fight public. The launch of Americans for Free Trade comes as Trump increasingly warms to using tariffs. He has imposed levies on billions of dollars worth of goods on trading partners, prompting retaliation against U.S. exports."A lot of other interest groups thought they wouldn't go this long or go this deep, but ...
By Marcelo TeixeiraSAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazilian and Australian sugar industry groups are working together with their respective governments to prepare a formal complaint to the World Trade Organization (WTO) over any possible sugar export subsidy by India, a top Brazilian sugar official told Reuters. Brazil and Australia view any subsidy by India, set to take over as the world's largest sugar producer this year, as a grave threat to a recent price recovery, Eduardo Leao, executive director at Brazil's cane industry group Unica, said in an interview.The two countries reached a consensus ...
By Stephanie KellyNEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil futures rose on Wednesday, with Brent reaching $80 a barrel, after a larger-than-expected drop in U.S. crude inventories and as U.S. sanctions on Iran added to concerns over global oil supply. Benchmark Brent crude futures rose 68 cents to settle at $79.74 a barrel. The global benchmark earlier reached $80.13 a barrel, its highest level since May 22. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose $1.12 to settle at $70.37 a barrel, a one-week high. U.S. crude inventories fell by 5.3 million barrels in the last week, the U.S. Energy ...
Senator Elizabeth Warren. Photo: Pat Greenhouse/Boston Globe via Getty Images

Elizabeth Warren is often bracketed with Bernie Sanders, a fellow folk hero of the partys progressive activists, and a competitor for much of the same support base she will need to win the nomination. But Warren is not attempting to out-Bernie Bernie. She is trying to co-opt his support without copying his platform. The Massachusetts senator has made a series of unusually early moves that, taken together, suggest a well-designed strategy to compete across the spectrum of the Democratic Party without risking her viability in a general election.

Sanders made the unusual gambit of proudly identifying himself as a socialist even though he does not advocate public ownership of the means of production. That is a reasonably safe thing to do when youre running in one of the most progressive states in the country, or competing in a Democratic primary. Its much riskier in a general election, given that the country as a whole still dislikes the socialist label quite a bit:

Warren has taken the opposite tack, defending her agenda as a plan to save capitalism from its excesses. She has called herself a capitalist to my bones (or, at other times, her ankles.) There are so many people right now who argue against these reforms and other reforms, who claim they are pro-business, she told Franklin Foer, Theyre not. Theyre pro-monopoly. Theyre proconcentration of power, which crushes competition. It is also notable that Warren has directed some of the messaging for her early moves at economic liberals like Foer and Voxs Matthew Yglesias, who would have a more skeptical view of Sanders-style socialism. She even touted her plans in a Wall Street Journal op-ed.

You might think such rhetoric would alienate Warren from progressives. But what she probably recognizes is that, while identifying as a socialist did not harm Sanders in the primary, it does not account for his support. People who supported Sanders in the primary actually had views on the size of government that were the same as, or slightly more conservative than, those of Hillary Clinton supporters. So what accounted for his enthusiasm? Sanders tapped into a deep vein of good-government progressivism. Contrasting himself with Hillary Clinton, who was mired in scandals about donor access, Sanders presented himself as authentic and idealistic.

Warren is shrewdly co-opting that appeal to openness and authenticity, and the importance liberal voters place on appearing to have nothing to hide. She has opened up her academic records, disclosed her tax returns, and (reversing previous practice) made herself accessible to Capitol Hill reporters. Her academic disclosures have already paid a major dividend. The Boston Globe investigated her hiring history, and found  contrary to accusations that have circulated on the right since the beginning of her political career  her occasional categorization as Native American resulted in no hiring preference. (Trump and his allies will obviously continue to mock her as Pocahontas, but Warren has a knock-down defense, and the mainstream media will not take the accusations seriously.)

Warren is running on a progressive platform that, if enacted, would sharply curtail political and economic inequality. But unlike Sanders, she is building a profile designed to compete for swing voters also, rather than solely to inspire progressive activists. The distinction can be seen in her rhetoric, policy substance, and choice of emphasis.

Over the last month, Warren rolled out two foundational campaign proposals. The first is a sweeping package of corporate reforms, called the Accountable Capitalism Act, the primary centerpieces of which would be to disincentivize stock buybacks and require firms with at least $1 billion in revenue to reserve 40 percent of the seats on their board of directors for workers. (The latter measure is called codetermination, and it has been used for decades in Germany, which has a highly productive corporate sector.)

Her second proposal, the Anti-Corruption and Public Integrity Act, would impose lifetime lobbying bans on many federal officials, ban members of Congress and federal judges from owning individual stocks (they could instead invest in broad mutual funds), and require presidential candidates to release their tax returns, among other reforms.

Neither of these bills is what youd call modest or incremental. Indeed, they would both represent highly ambitious plans that would be difficult, though perhaps not impossible, to pass even in a Democratic Congress. What stands out about both ideas is the coherent strategy they reflect not only to distinguish Warren from other Democrats, but to position her effectively against Donald Trump.

First, they directly attack the most glaring political weakness of Trump and his Republican allies: the nexus of corruption and self-enrichment that has defined the Trump era. Trump is enriching himself and his family in office, and Republicans are allowing him to do so because he signs policies that enrich them and their donors  in some cases, through literal graft, and in other cases through routine Republican policies like corporate tax cuts, deregulation of polluters, exploitative for-profit colleges, Wall Street, and other wrongdoers.

Second, they are all popular issues. Huge supermajorities support disclosing presidential tax returns and bans on lobbying by former officials. One poll found public support for electing workers to corporate boards by a 30-point margin. The polls wording may have tilted the result  it asked about allowing workers to elect members to corporate boards, rather than requiring the firms to reserve seats for workers. Still, people tend to respond more favorably to policies that impose rules on corporations than to policies that impose costs through general taxation.

Third, neither Warrens corporate reforms nor her political reforms carry any fiscal cost. The weak spot not only of Sanderss policies but of the entire progressive agenda is that they are difficult to finance solely by raising taxes on the rich. And when they require taxing the middle class, even popular social policies get unpopular fast.

Warren, like many Democrats, has endorsed single-payer coverage, but she simultaneously proposed her own plan with more achievable methods to expand health-care access and affordability by building on Obamacare and protecting it from Republican sabotage. Progressives favor single-payer insurance as a blue-sky proposition, but nobody has really figured out a way to enact it without raising taxes on the middle class or opening up the attack that people will lose their employer-sponsored insurance (and have to be sold on the true but difficult-to-sell case that a new government plan will be better). Warren is establishing a platform she can run on that she can truthfully portray as both enacting transformative change and avoiding sacrifice by the middle class.

I have some reservations about Warren as a candidate and as a policy-maker, which I will lay out in a separate story. But her moves so far have been extremely impressive. My colleagues Rebecca Traister and Gabriel Debenedetti have made it perfectly clear Warren is, for all practical purposes, already running for office. She is building a national profile to position herself to win a primary and a general election, without sacrificing one for the sake of the other.

Earlier this year, I often told people I had no idea at all who would win the Democratic nomination. In a potentially huge field, it is still impossible to predict the outcome with much confidence. But at this point, Warrens early moves position her as a clear front-runner.
By Ben HirschlerLONDON (Reuters) - European medicines regulators have issued a notice that an ingredient for a generic brain cancer drug made in China does not meet manufacturing standards, after inspectors were refused entry to a factory run by Jiangsu Yew Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.The incident, reported in a notice published this week on a database maintained by the European Medicines Agency, is the latest example of regulatory problems with bulk pharmaceutical substances manufactured in China.It follows a scandal over tainted supplies of the widely used heart drug valsartan from Zhejiang ...
By Eric Onstad and Pratima DesaiLONDON (Reuters) - Chinese conglomerate Fosun International Ltd is in discussions to buy British-based commodities broker Marex Spectron, two industry sources said.The deal to buy privately-owned Marex would expand the portfolio of Fosun, one of China's most acquisitive overseas dealmakers, in both financial services and commodities, of which China is the world's largest consumer and producer.Fosun already owns iron ore, steel and oil companies.Fosun declined to comment.A spokesman for Marex said: "Marex Spectron is a profitable and successful business and such ...
STRASBOURG (Reuters) - European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker delivered his annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday.The following are highlights of his speech.For full text, please see: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/soteu2018-speech_en_0.pdfBREXIT"We respect the British decision to leave our Union, even though we continue to regret it deeply.""But we also ask the British government to understand that someone who leaves the Union cannot be in the same privilegedposition as a member state. If you leave the ...
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Economy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will likely hold a second round of trade talks on Sept. 21 in the United States, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.Their meeting is planned to precede an expected summit between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Donald Trump on the sidelines of a U.N. General Assembly General Debate starting Sept 25, the source said. Tokyo wants to avert steep tariffs on its car exports and fend off U.S. demands for a bilateral free trade agreement as Japan is wary ...
The chief executive of South Korea's LG Display, Han Sang-beom, was determined to deliver a strong message when he appeared before 1,000 employees at the firm's main manufacturing plant last spring. So he donned a pair of goggles, picked up a hammer, and smashed a liquid-crystal display screen to bits. The symbolism was impossible to miss: LCD panels, the company's mainstay for years, were being relegated to the industrial dustbin. The company's future would depend on a newer technology, organic light-emitting diode, or OLED. "I've never seen him do ...
By Michael HoldenLONDON (Reuters) - The Indian government has failed to provide any substantial evidence to justify extraditing tycoon Vijay Mallya from Britain to face fraud charges, his lawyer told a London court on Wednesday.India wants to extradite 62-year-old Indian businessman from Britain to face criminal action relating to loans taken out by his defunct Kingfisher Airlines and Indian authorities want to recover about $1.4 billion they say Kingfisher owes.In her closing submission, Mallya's lawyer Clare Montgomery told London's Westminster Magistrates Court that India had failed to ...
By Henning GloysteinSINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Wednesday after a report of a decline in U.S. crude inventories and looming sanctions against Iran raised expectations of tightening supply, while top producer Russia warned of a fragile global market.U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $69.93 per barrel at 0646 GMT, up 68 cents, or 1 percent, from their last settlement. WTI futures gained 2.5 percent in the previous session. Brent crude futures climbed 30 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $79.36 a barrel. Brent has climbed for four straight sessions, gaining 2.2 ...
By Henning GloysteinSINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Wednesday following a report that crude inventories in the United States fell and as looming sanctions against Iran raised expectations of tightening supplies, with top producer Russia warning of a "fragile" global crude market.U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $69.81 per barrel at 0047 GMT, up 56 cents, or 0.8 percent, from their last settlement. WTI futures gained 2.5 percent in the previous session. Brent crude futures climbed 24 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $79.30 a barrel. Brent has climbed for four straight ...
DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ryanair believes there is a growing risk that Britain will fail to secure an agreement on its exit from the European Union, and that aircraft could be grounded for a period of days or weeks next March as a result, its chief executive said."We remain concerned at the increasing risk of a hard (no-deal) Brexit in March 2019," Michael O'Leary said in a statement published ahead of a London press conference by the airline, Europe's largest low-cost carrier. "While we hope that a 21-month transition agreement from March 2019 will be agreed, recent events in the UK have added ...
HANOI (Reuters) - Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Wednesday said he was not sure if an agreement on major regional trade pact backed by China will be finalised this year. Member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are working to finalise terms of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade agreement, which also includes China, Australia, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand. "(We) hope to achieve a substantial conclusion to the RCEP by the end of this year, but that is not yet assured," Lee said at a World Economic Forum event in Hanoi. ...
What began as a criticism of Brett Kavanaugh by Kamala Harris has now embroiled Hillary Clinton, which gives the whole brouhaha a much larger dimension. Photo: Win McNamee; Don Arnold/Getty Images

One of the many controversies involving Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaughs attitude towards reproductive rights has blown up into an incident in which conservatives are going after their old nemesis Hillary Rodham Clinton. It all began with a video of Kavanaugh during his Judiciary Committee hearings, circulated by Senator Kamala Harris, in which he refers to abortion-inducing drugs in a discussion of a well-known religious liberty case heard by the D.C. Circuit:

Kavanaugh chooses his words very carefully, and this is a dog whistle for going after birth control. He was nominated for the purpose of taking away a womans constitutionally protected right to make her own health care decisions. Make no mistake - this is about punishing women. pic.twitter.com/zkBjXzIvQI  Kamala Harris (@SenKamalaHarris) September 7, 2018

As several fact-checkers immediately pointed out, Kavanaugh was pretty clearly referring to the argument made by the plaintiffs in the case (Catholic hospitals and an anti-abortion group called Priests for Life) in using that language, not necessarily making his own characterization. Abortion-inducing drugs is a confusing term in any event; it seems to refer to Plan B contraception pills. In his actual dissent in the case, Kavanaugh characterized the plantiffs argument as objecting to insurance coverage of abortifacients, a more general term referring to both drugs and devices (most notably IUDs) that while commonly thought of as contraceptives are treated according to some conservative religious viewpoints as producing an abortion of a fertilized egg by preventing its implantation in the uterine wall. What Harris was clearly trying to do was to associate Kavanaugh with that rather extreme point of view, which would make contraceptives vulnerable to some future hypothetical abortion ban.

Harriss video omitted Kavanaughs introductory words  they said  which pretty clearly indicate he was quoting the plaintiffs and not himself describing Plan B as an abortion-inducing drug. And thus the fact-checkers adjudged the California senator as having made a seriously misleading accusation (the Washington Post awarded her Four Pinocchios; PolitiFact labeled it False). Harris subsequently released the full video while arguing that Kavanaugh showed his extremist hand by not going out of his way to dispute the abortion-inducing drugs language.

And then, today, the 2016 Democratic nominee for president weighed in on Twitter:

I want to be sure we're all clear about something that Brett Kavanaugh said in his confirmation hearings last week. He referred to birth-control pills as "abortion-inducing drugs." That set off a lot of alarm bells for me, and it should for you, too.  Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 12, 2018

Kavanaugh didn't use that term because he misunderstands the basic science of birth controlthe fact that birth control prevents fertilization of eggs in the first place. He used that term because it's a dog whistle to the extreme right.  Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 12, 2018

Conservative media reacted quickly. This lede from National Review was typical:

In a Wednesday tweet sent after multiple mainstream fact checkers exposed Senator Kamala Harriss inaccurate characterization of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaughs confirmation-hearing testimony regarding contraception, Hillary Clinton echoed the false claim.

Ross Douthat chose to go with sarcasm rather than outrage:

Nothing is more characteristically Hillary Clinton that going in on a particular partisan talking point only *after* it has been extensively litigated, fact-checked as false, etc.  Ross Douthat (@DouthatNYT) September 12, 2018

So is this simply a matter of an unsuccessful partisan hit on Kavanaugh? Not if you look at the broader context of his impressive evasiveness during the hearings whenever the subject of reproductive rights came up. And the clear intentions of the president (who promised to nominate Justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade) and the conservative coalition (led by anti-abortion stalwart Leonard Leo of the Federalist Society, who supervised the vetting of Kavanaugh and others on Trumps SCOTUS list, with every anti-abortion group whipping up support for Trumps nominees) backing Kavanaugh, should all give the very strong presumption that he is hostile to reproductive rights. His rulings and writings  including his lionization of the constitutional jurisprudence of former Supreme Court chief justice William Rehnquist, a dissenter in both Roe v. Wade and the Planned Parenthood v. Casey decision that reaffirmed Roe  reinforce suspicions about Kavanaughs disposition, careful as he naturally was in the hearings to cloak his position (in the tradition of SCOTUS nominees declining to answer questions about specific cases past or future).

Because of this, a big part of the confirmation hearings was a cat-and-mouse game in which Democrats (and strangely, one anti-abortion Republican, Lindsey Graham) tried to suss out indications of exactly how big a threat to reproductive rights a new conservative majority forged by Gorsuch and Kavanaugh might pose. And in that context, language like abortion-inducing drugs is indeed a big, flashing, red sign. It represents the viewpoint of those who want to ban not only late abortions, and all clinical abortions from the earliest stage of pregnancy, but contraceptive methods that work after fertilization. That would include the influential (if not very popular) personhood movement focused on endowing every zygote with full citizenship rights.

Now it might seem implausible to assume that a worldly judge like Brett Kavanaugh would share such an extremist viewpoint. But it is, after all, the position of his church (if not of most American Catholics), which has clearly condemned use of the morning-after pill as a chemically induced abortion, and has fought for restrictions on in vitro fertilization clinics on the grounds that they destroy human embryos. And the very case that led to the current brouhaha over abortion-inducing drugs obviously involved Kavanaughs co-religionists.

Democrats have pretty clearly made a decision not to do or say anything to suggest that they are questioning Kavanaughs religious views, even if they have a bearing on his constitutional philosophy generally or in cases involving life-and-death questions. Dianne Feinstein and Richard Durbin got into hot water in 2017 by closely questioning Court of Appeals nominee Amy Coney Barrett (reportedly a runner-up to Kavanaugh as Trumps current SCOTUS pick) about the relationship of her own Catholic beliefs to her role as a judge (a topic Barrett herself had raised in an article earlier in her career). So leaping on language Kavanaugh used to discuss a case in which Catholics were advancing an extremist position on birth control probably seemed safer than talking about Catholic doctrine directly.

In the end, Harris made a misleading argument against Kavanaugh, and then replaced it by stipulating a dubious standard of expecting the judge to go out of his way to attack the language used by a litigant in a case he had heard. Clinton could have made any number of arguments about Kavanaugh and reproductive rights without echoing Harris on such a narrow and questionable point.

Democrats are, however, justifiably frustrated by the much larger pattern of deliberate deception that Kavanaugh and his supporters have undertaken in hiding his inclinations on reproductive rights. If the nominee ascends to the Court and fails to help pare back abortion rights precedents, there will be an explosion of outrage from bamboozled conservative evangelicals and other anti-abortion folk who keep telling us they voted for Donald Trump primarily because of his judicial promises, centered on restricting or banning abortion and expanding a religious right to discriminate.

Perhaps Brett Kavanaugh poses no real threat to legal contraception (as opposed to legal abortion). But thanks to the wall of silence he and the Republican Party have erected around his actual views, theres no way of finding out whether or not Kamala Harris and Hillary Clinton are ultimately wrong in accusing him of exceptional extremism. If he is confirmed, we will all have to wait and see.
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain will remain a major hub for global finance, regardless of what happens with Brexit, a senior Bank of England official said in an interview published by Welsh media group WalesOnline on Wednesday.Alex Brazier, the central bank's executive director for financial stability strategy and risk, said during a visit to Cardiff said it was hard to predict what exactly would happen if Britain left the European Union next year without a trade deal."The big point ... regardless of what happens with Brexit is that Britain will remain a global financial centre," Brazier was ...
By Sonya DowsettMADRID (Reuters) - Zara owner Inditex said on Wednesday its autumn clothing collections had been well received and forecast a second-half sales rise of up to 6 percent and improved profitability, despite a strong euro.The world's biggest clothing retailer, which is controlled by Europe's richest man, Amancio Ortega, said customers had welcomed its latest ranges, featuring items such as printed dresses with embroidery and corduroy coats.Despite strength in the euro against its key currencies, Inditex said net profit was 1.41 billion euros, in line with analyst forecasts, on ...
Kaneh Bosm BioTechnology Inc.

Kaneh Bosm Engages Leading Lesotho Based Infrastucture and Development Firm





ID: 1541045

(firmenpresse) - Kaneh Bosm Engages Leading Lesotho Based Infrastucture and Development Firm



VANCOUVER, British Columbia, September 12, 2018 -- Kaneh Bosm BioTechnolgy Inc. (CSE: KBB)(FWB: 8K51)(OTC: KNHBF)(Kaneh Bosm or the Company) is pleased to announce that it has engaged Volare, a leading Lesotho based infrastructure and development consultancy firm. Volare will assist the Company with local development support, as well as the acquisition of land earmarked for Cannabis cultivation, storage and manufacturing facilities. Volare has identified a portfolio of key land parcels that are well suited for agriculture and manufacturing development. The identified parcels are equipped with the necessary onsite utility resources and are located in close proximity to transportation hubs.



Kaneh Bosms portfolio company CanAfrica, holds licenses for medical Cannabis cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, transport, research and import/export in the Kingdom of Lesotho (see Kaneh Bosms news release dated June 20, 2018). In 2017, Lesotho became the first African Nation to issue licenses for medical Cannabis operations. Lesotho is a favourable jurisdiction for Cannabis cultivation due to its rich soils, ideal climate, skilled agricultural workforce, low cost labour, and access to key infrastructure. Lesotho has also signed numerous international trade agreements. These trade agreements permit the unencumbered export of Lesothos Cannabis products to various jurisdictions worldwide. It is anticipated that Lesotho will act as a staging ground for access to larger African markets that may yield greater demand potential.



Kaneh Bosms Chief Executive Officer, Eugene Beukman, states, "Kaneh Bosms African developments mirror industry peers such as Canopy Growth Corporation, Supreme Cannabis Company Inc. and Aphria Inc. Earlier this year Canopy acquired Daddy Cann Lesotho PTY Ltd. for $28.8 million. Daddy Cann and Kaneh Bosms CanAfrica have been awarded identical medical cannabis licences by the Kingdom of Lesotho. In March of 2018, Supreme Cannabis invested $10 million for a 10 percent stake in Lesothos MediGrow Holdings PTY Ltd. Kaneh Bosm would like to also mention Aphria Inc.s recently announced Joint Venture with Lesotho based Verve Dynamics. The Company believes that it is well positioned to capitalize on its flagship African asset while maximizing shareholder value.





Kaneh Bosm also pleased to announce that Company representatives have visited the Kingdom of Lesotho to initiate development efforts and advance regional relationships.

The Company continues to complement its existing African cultivation and distribution footprint. Most recently the Company acquired South African based Aricannabis BioTech Corp (see Kaneh Bosm news release dated August 26, 2018). Aricannabis works on an exclusive basis with NuCare Health to provide Cannabis products to over 2,800 independent and corporate pharmacies across South Africa. South Africa has a population of 55 million people and have announced plans through the Medicines Control Counsel for medical Cannabis distribution to South African patients.



The Company looks forward to providing additional updates on its Lesotho initiatives in the coming months.



On behalf of the Board of Directors of Kaneh Bosm Biotechnology Inc.



Michael Martinz



Michael Martinz

President, Director

mmartinz(at)kanehbosmbiotech.com



Kaneh Bosm BioTechnology Inc.

810 - 789 West Pender Street

Vancouver BC V6C 1H2

Tel: 604.687.2308



THE CSE HAS NOT REVIEWED AND DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ACCURACY OR ADEQUACY OF THIS RELEASE.



This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed forward-looking statements. The use of any of the words anticipate, continue, estimate, expect, may, will, would, project, should, believe and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. These statements speak only as of the date of this News Release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks including various risk factors discussed in the Companys disclosure documents which can be found under the Companys profile on www.sedar.com





























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Even as Mehul Choksi, a key accused in the Rs 13,000 crore Punjab National Bank scam, plays up the victim card, the case against him continues to build up at home. The investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has found that the absconding jeweller diverted funds to the tune of over Rs 3,250 crore to foreign shores for his personal use.

However, in a second video recently released from his hideout in Antigua, Choksi has blamed agencies of raiding his companies - and virtually seizing the entire inventory in the factories and showrooms - on "misinformation" by PNB.

In its chargesheet filed against the absconding businessman, the ED said that Choksi diverted $56.12 million (about Rs 400 crore) of loan funds to his nephew Nirav Modi, accused of being the mastermind in the scam, and around $50 million to Modi's father Deepak Modi. "Choksi was using several dummy companies for rotating his transactions. Under this arrangement, origin of the sale transactions and final destination used to be any of the Gitanjali group of companies," read the chargesheet. "For in-between transactions, dummy companies were used for layering purpose wherein only sale/purchase bills were created and no movement of goods used to take place. He has been doing this to project inflated turnover to avail higher banking facility."

The agency said it has detected that funds totalling Rs 3,257.54 crore, that were obtained from PNB's Brady House branch in Mumbai, were "diverted" to countries like Thailand, the US, Belgium, UAE, Italy, Japan and Hong Kong. In its probe report, accessed by PTI, the ED claimed that these funds were "fraudulently obtained" by Choksi and his firms from the PNB by way of Letters of Undertaking (LoUs) and Foreign Letters of Credit (FLCs).

"It is apparent that the funds acquired by fraudulent means were siphoned off within the country as well as to the overseas dummy companies owned and controlled by Mehul Choksi himself," the ED alleged, adding, "The dummy directors and others were mechanically transferring the goods and monies as per the directions of Choksi without any economic rationale and logic".

That's not all. Choksi was allegedly in the business of "highly inflating" prices of the gems and jewellery sold from his outlets. "Choksi used to fix the rate/value of the goods without applying economic rationale. The goods in question were either low value or poor quality and was not commensurate with the price/value fixed by him," the chargesheet said. The ED added that these charges have been "confirmed" in the statement given to it under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act by Vipul Chitalia, vice-president (banking operations) of Choksi's Gitanjali Group.

"It is further confirmed from the goods seized at Hyderabad whose declared value was found to be highly inflated and in some cases the actual value of these goods is even less than 3 per cent of the declared value," the ED claimed.

According to the agency, the proceeds of the money laundering exercise in this case were "partly remitted back to Gitanjali group of companies" in India in the guise of export-import transactions for settling older credit liabilities. For instance, it was allegedly used to make payment for a villa booked by Choksi in the UAE as well as for transferring preferential shares of MS Bezel Jewellery (India) Pvt Ltd to Ms Al Burj Diamond and Jewellery FZE, UAE.

The ED chargesheet also accused Choski of conducting illegal 'air to air' export using the Gitanjali group, where consignments exported from India to Hong Kong, and back, were routed to Dubai but were not cleared through customs at the UAE airport. Moreover, Choksi's firms were guilty of "fraudulent export and import" and there was "no manufacturing activity" in any of the overseas companies situated in Hong Kong and the UAE - only bogus business and sales were carried out among the group companies. "The export/import was also not genuine and was just rotational transactions. The jewellery exported from India was dismantled and diamonds/pearls were taken out of it," the agency charged.

Choksi dismissed all these charges levelled against him by the ED as "false and baseless" in the first video that he released earlier this week. He had added that his properties were attached by the central probe agency "illegally".

The ED, meanwhile, has sought an Interpol arrest warrant against him, and has also approached a Mumbai court to get him declared a fugitive economic offender under the country's new Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance. In addition, India has recently moved for Choksi's extradition from Antigua.

With PTI inputs
In a temporary relief to the stressed companies, over 34 of which are thermal power producers, the Supreme Court asked the Reserve Bank to maintain a status quo until November. The top court has also decided to hear all petitions challenging the RBI's February 12 circular. As nine of these 34 power companies are nearing resolution outside the National Company Law Tribunal, they will benefit the most from the SC order. The SC order will also buy the stressed shipping and sugar companies, which had approached the top court against the order, some more time.

The Allahabad High Court had refused to give interim relief to power producers facing insolvency proceedings after the Reserve Bank of India's debt resolution plan deadline ended on August 27. However, the RBI gave 15 more days to banks to hire legal counsels and resolution professionals, which gave them more time to resolve these NPAs and approach the higher court. Major companies that had filed cases in different courts across the country include RKM Power, IL&FS, Essar Power and GMR Energy. The RBI's 15-day deadline ended on Tuesday.

"The order has provided a great relief to stressed assets in the power sector. This would provide time for bankers to finalise resolution plans for projects of about 13 GW in their final stages and the High-Level Empowered Committee to submit its report on corrective actions," Business Standard quoted AK Khurana, director general, Association of Power Producers, as saying.

As per the RBI's February-12 circular, the over 70 defaulting companies had been given six months starting from March, following which financial creditors were supposed to move the NCLT against them. The RBI circular came into effect on March 1 and the 180-day deadline concluded on August 27.

There are about 34 stressed power projects and the combined value of their outstanding loans is about Rs 1.74-lakh crore. Banks believe the insolvency process could depreciate the value of these assets and want more time to resolve them. They are also trying their best to find out solutions before such NPAs are referred to NCLT. The State Bank of India recently said about 7-8 power sector projects, including KSK Mahanadi, Prayagraj Power, JP Power Venture, etc, worth Rs 17,000 crore are expected to be resolved soon as lenders are nearing consensus on these projects.
Chief of Air Staff BS Dhanoa on Wednesday has said the Rafale aircraft will strengthen India's air defence against regional adversaries. Hailing the government's decision to buy Rafale and S-400 aircraft, the IAF Chief said these jets would help India counter the falling number of aircraft. Six days ago, Deputy Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar had also said Rafale is the best fighter jet available in the market today and will help in establishing the IAF supremacy over the subcontinent skies.

"By providing the Rafale and S-400 aircraft, the government is strengthening the Indian Air Force to counter the shortfall of our depleting numbers [of aircraft]," Dhanoa said. India is buying five regiments of cutting-edge fighter jets, S-400 Triumf, from Russia.

He added: "One of our adversaries, Pakistan, has approximately 20 fighter squadrons that can be brought to bear against us. In the last decade, China has significantly developed road, rail and airfield infrastructure in the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR). In the last few years, fighter aircraft have been permanently stationed in the airfields in TAR, so have advanced radar and surface-to-air missiles."

The Chief of Air Staff talked about China's growing air power, which might pose threat to India's national security as well as regional interests. "As per open source information, China has around 1,700 aircraft, of which 800 are the fourth generation. A large number of these can be deployed against us in the TAR in case of hostilities. There are some limitations on parking and operating from there but it has got enough reserves and depth to take care of its attrition," he said.

#WATCH What we do not have are the numbers, against a sanctioned strength of 42 squadrons, we are down to 31. Even when we do have 42 squadrons, we will be below the combined numbers of two of our regional adversaries:Air Force Chief Birender Singh Dhanoa in Delhi pic.twitter.com/DKa6sQHDva - ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Talking about India's air strength, Dhanoa said India lacked an adequate strength of squadrons. "What we do not have are the numbers, against a sanctioned strength of 42 squadrons, we are down to 31. Even when we do have 42 squadrons, we will be below the combined numbers of two of our regional adversaries," he said.

IAF Chief's comments bear significance in wake of the recent controversy around the Rafale deal. On September 6, Nambiar had also dismissed Congress President Rahul Gandhi's claims of a "scam" in the Rafale deal, calling it a "much better deal" than the one negotiated by the Congress party. He also said the Modi government's deal was 40 per cent cheaper than the Congress deal, which was being negotiated since 2008 and could not be completed.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi has repeatedly accused the Modi government of favouring a businessman (Anil Ambani) with "zero" experience in the defence sector. The party has been accusing massive irregularities in the Rafale deal, alleging the government was procuring each aircraft at a cost of over Rs 1,670 crore as against Rs 526 crore finalised by the UPA government for the procurement of 126 Rafale jets.

The BJP, however, has junked the accusations. Recently, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the Rafale deal negotiated by the Modi government is 9 per cent cheaper than what the Congress had negotiated. The Congress has also been pressing for the price details of the deal, but the Modi government has refused to divulge them citing confidentiality provisions of a 2008 Indo-France pact.
Raghuram Rajan, former governor, Reserve Bank of India is known for calling spade a spade. He focuses on solution rather than problems or looking ahead than doing a postmortem of the past. In his letter to the parliamentary committee, the celebrated economist Rajan listed out the key reform areas to prevent recurrence of the kind of bad loan that the system is currently grappling with. But somehow his message is lost in the political slugfest. Let's analyse Rajan's prescription for making the banking system foolproof:

Improve governance of PSBs and distance them from government

The current government was quick to set up a Bank Board Bureau (BBB) for initiating governance reforms in the Public Sector Banks (PSBs) with a mandate to recommend people for the post of MD & CEO and Chairman. The PSBs saw split of the post of Chairman and MD and also outside professionals taking charge at some banks. Bank of Baroda saw two outside professionals manning the bank. But the BBB later lost the relevance as many of the CEO appointments recommended by BBB saw delays of clearance from the finance ministry. The next logical step for BBB was to create an Investment Holding Company (IHC) for housing the government stake. The BBB was to transform into IHC at a later stage. But nothing of that sort happened. Things are back to square one.

Plugging the talent gap

Barring Bank of Baroda (BoB) and State Bank of India (SBI), the PSBs are still managing with its existing staffers. The banking has changed a lot in the last decade with a focus on retail, risk-management, treasury and digital banking. Globally, banks are facing disruption from new fintech players. PSBs desperately need talent in newer areas like technology, digital banking, risk management, especially operational risk, and also cyber security.

Strengthening the recovery mechanism

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) was seen as an effective tool of resolving the bad loan problems. But there have been roadblocks from the government and the court both. The government has come out with a new three-point formula, which includes Asset Management Companies and Alternative Investment Funds. The Supreme Court has stayed the RBI's circular for taking companies to IBC if they default even for a single day. The 180-day given by the RBI for finding a resolution was long enough to find a resolution. But now banks have no option but to wait for further orders.

Focus on sources of next crisis

The role of the government and the regulator is to see where the next bubble is building up and take corrective action. For example, the small ticket size loans (mudra, personal loans) are growing very fast and there is a risk of default in future.
The Reserve Bank of India has just upped the ante in its crackdown on cryptocurrencies by filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court today. According to a CNN News 18 report, the banking regulator has clarified its stand on cryptocurrencies in the affidavit saying that bitcoins and its brethren can't be recognised under the existing legal regime. The RBI added that virtual currencies are "neither currency nor money; they can't even be considered as a valid payment system".

The Supreme Court is currently hearing a case between virtual money exchanges and the RBI, and the next hearing on the matter is scheduled for September 17.

In April, the RBI had directed all the banks to stop dealing with individuals and businesses dabbling in virtual currencies by July 5. The move was an attempt to ring-fence regulated entities from the risks associated with cryptocurrencies after it was observed that several companies had started dealing in over thousands of digital currencies, which the government and the RBI claim have no intrinsic value.

Before this development, the RBI had issued four warnings against bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies since December 2013. Along with the Finance Ministry, it had made it clear that virtual currencies are not legal tender.

Within days of the blanket ban announced by the RBI, a number of cryptocurrency exchanges moved court. According to Quartz, the ball was set rolling on April 22, when the Delhi High Court issued a notice to the RBI after a petition filed by Kali Digital Eco-Systems, which had plans to launch its own cryptocurrency exchange, CoinRecoil, shortly.

The Ahmedabad-based firm had reportedly challenged the RBI order on two grounds: Under Article 19(1) (g) of the Indian constitution, which allows citizens to enjoy the right to carry on any occupation, trade, or business; and Article 14, which prohibits discrimination and mandates equal protection under the law for all.

In May, in a big blow to the petitioners, the Supreme Court refused to stay the RBI circular and grant interim relief to them. It also told the exchanges to engage directly with the central bank on the ban. The once-booming industry has suffered badly ever since. For instance, Unocoin, a Bengaluru-based cryptocurrency exchange, has seen its average monthly transactions dwindle from a peak of over 200,000 traders to merely 20,000 currently.

In the meantime, following the Supreme Court's directions, the exchanges sent out detailed representations to the RBI on why its ban should be lifted. They added that they are open to greator scrutiny and willing to be regulated. The portal added that in their correspondence, the industry players further agreed to include more information and precautionary measures such as passport details and insurance cover.

But the RBI was not convinced. In July, it clearly listed out its concerns on cryptocurrencies to the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), which counts bitcoin exchanges as its members. The regulator had flagged off concerns over investor protection, money laundering and terror financing given the anonymity of such transactions, and the cryptocurrencies' lack of intrinsic value.

The affidavit filed today only shows that it has no plans of softening its stand.
The Westminster Magistrates' Court has reserved its decision over extradition of Vijay Mallya to India for December 10. The bench of Judge Emma Arbuthnot heard the closing arguments in the extradition proceedings as well as reviewed the prison cell which has been prepared for the embattled business tycoon in Mumbai's Arthur Road jail.

Defending his case, Mallya's lawyer Clare Montgomery argued that the Indian government has failed to provide any substantial evidence to form a 'prima facie' case of fraud against him, justifying his extradition, said a Reuters report. Mallya is wanted in India for alleged loan default and money laundering worth over Rs 9,000 crore.

Montgomery said that the evidence she and the Indian government have provided showed that Kingfisher Airlines had been clear about what the loans were for - to secure the airline's viable future - and that it had been open about its losses. The Indian government has contested that the loans had been taken from a consortium of banks on false pretences and on the basis of misleading securities. Indian authorities have maintained that Mallya has no intention of repaying his loans.

The British court also reportedly reviewed the 'step by step' video of Barrack 12 of Arthur Road jail to ascertain that it meets the UK's human rights obligations regarding extradition proceedings. This cell is meant to hold Mallya before and during his trial in Indian courts, and incarcerate him in the event of his conviction. In earlier hearings, Mallya's defence team had mentioned that the living conditions of Indian prisons could adversely affect the health of the 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss.

Also Read: Met Finance Minister before I left India, says Vijay Mallya outside UK court

Earlier today, Mallya stirred up controversy with his statement that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving India with an offer to settle matters with the government. "I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle (the dues) with the banks," Mallya said while talking to reporters outside Westminster Magistrates' Court.

Later he clarified that it was no formal meeting, and the entire fiasco was a media-created controversy. Talking to ANI, Mallya said that he met Jaitley in the Parliament and the Rajya Sabha, which he attended as a Member of Parliament, and expressed his intention to settle his dues.

Jaitley, in his response to Mallya's statement, has already clarified that there was no formal interaction between the two. I curtly told him 'there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers', Jaitley said in a Facebook post following Mallya's statement.

Also Read: Vijay Mallya extradition hearing today: London court to review Mumbai jail video

Edited by Vivek Punj
Democratic U.S. House nominee Chris Pappas won over a huge field that included Bernie Sanderss son Levi, who proudly ran without a familial endorsement. Photo: Elise Amendola/AP/REX/Shuttersto

New Hampshires 2018 primary last night didnt get a fraction of the national attention that each day on the 2020 presidential campaign trail in the Granite State will receive. But it featured some intrigue, if not exactly drama.

The most interesting contests involved the First Congressional District seat held by retiring Democratic representative Carol Shea-Porter. Eleven Democrats competed for the nomination, and the longtime front-runner, Executive Council (an unusual New Hampshire institution with extensive powers) member Chris Pappas easily defeated free-spending first-time candidate Maura Sullivan, his most viable opponent. Pappas, who would be the states first openly gay congressman, was backed by virtually the entire Democratic Establishment in the state, while Sullivan, who recently moved to New Hampshire, was supported by EMILYs List and a smattering of national Democrats motivated by her background as a Marine serving in Iraq.

But the candidate who got nearly as much attention as the winner and runner-up was Levi Sanders, an advocate for disability benefits applicants, and much better known for his strategist role in the 2016 presidential candidate of his father, Bernie Sanders. Both father and son made it clear from the get-go that as a matter of anti-dynastic principle, Bernie would not endorse Levi or get involved in his campaign. The candidate (who doesnt live in the district, but has lived in New Hampshire for a good while) did not raise much money and wound up finishing seventh, with about 2 percent of the vote. Thats 58 percentage points below Bernies performance in the state in the 2016 primary.

The GOP primary in the district was closer, and produced an interesting nominee: African-American conservative Eddie Edwards, an ex-police chief who was endorsed by Trump attorney and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani. The big issue in the race, however, involved allegations of sexual harassment of employees by the early front-runner, State Senator Andy Sanborn.

All in all, the First District primary results are being interpreted as a boost for Democrats in what has been one of the most competitive congressional districts in the country in recent years. Shea-Porter and Republican Frank Guinta swapped the seat back and forth four times between 2010 and 2016. But now the Cook Political Report rates the race as Likely Democratic.Democrats arent quite as sanguine about their odds of knocking off incumbent Republican governor Chris Sununu (another famous son; his father was governor and White House chief of staff John Sununu), rated the nations fourth most popular governor as of July by Morning Consult, with a 61/22 job approval ratio. But the primary did give them the nominee most state party stalwarts wanted, former state senator Molly Kelly, who handily defeated self-identified progressive and former Portsmouth mayor Steve Marchand. Kelly became the 11th Democratic woman to win a gubernatorial nomination this year.

Democrats should benefit in New Hampshire as elsewhere from a stiff midterm breeze in their favor in November. But the minute the returns are in, the states political culture will instantly begin to revolve around the 2020 presidential contest, and what could be a massive Democratic field fighting for the right to go up against Donald Trump (assuming hes still president and is still running for a second term).
Perhaps the fate of Maruti Suzuki's Gurgaon factory was sealed in part on the day it rolled out its last Maruti 800 in 2012. After three decades of making the car that put the average middle-class Indian in the driver's seat, the company at the time had mulled partly dismantling the plant - Gurgaon was getting too congested to have a car assembly plant even back then. Matters have reportedly finally reached a tipping point.

According to The Economic Times, Maruti Suzuki plans to shift its Gurgaon factory to another location in Haryana but it would take 4-5 years for a new facility to become operational. "There was a long pending request from residents to decongest the Gurgaon area. The movement of trucks was also an issue and the local administration is also very well aware of it," a person in the know of the company's plans told the daily. "The company is asking for land which is not too far so that there is no major challenge faced by the vendors and working population."

The buzz is that it has already requested the Haryana government to directly allocate 1,200-1,400 acres in Sohna, about 25 km south of Gurgaon, at a fair price. But the state, which has a policy of auctioning land and not allotting directly, is yet to take a call on this.

According to the daily, the plan suggests that Maruti will be investing in the facility and not the Japanese parent, Suzuki. The latter is focussing on its relatively newer facility of Suzuki Motor Gujarat, its 100 per cent subsidiary set up to produce automobiles with an envisaged installed capacity of 7.5 lakh units annually. This way, the local company can continue to expand capacity for its existing models while Suzuki focusses on the development of new generation models, including electric and hybrid vehicles.

Maruti Suzuki, which commands nearly 50 per cent of the passenger vehicle market in the country, manufactures 6-7 lakh units out of Gurgaon and has been using the facility to the hilt with demand outpacing supply over the past few years. The plan is to house three-four assembly lines in the proposed facility, which will likely need an investment of Rs 10,000-15,000 crore. A source said that if the company goes ahead with the plan, it will unfurl in stages as the existing facility is mothballed and the new one is made operational.

So the move will not only enable Maruti Suzuki to ramp up production, but also help unlock tremendous real estate value on the Gurgaon site eventually. Besides, the company's shareholders who had initially raised objections to the contract manufacturing agreement with Suzuki Motor Gujarat, are likely to be won over easier for this new plan. That's because the new factory will help with more productive use of free cash flow that Maruti Suzuki is generating - expected in the range of Rs 6,600-8,200 crore a year during FY18-21.

In addition, the company is sitting on cash and cash equivalent of Rs 34,000 crore. Given that setting up an assembly line to produce 250,000 vehicles a year typically commands an investment of Rs 1,800-2,000 crore, Maruti Suzuki has more than enough funds to bankroll its plans for a new factory.

Edited By Sushmita Choudhury Agarwal
Defaulting companies in the power sector as well as some sugar, shipping and textile companies that had seemed destined for bankruptcy court under the RBI's new norms on stressed assets got a last-minute breather from the Supreme Court yesterday.

The apex court has stayed the RBI's controversial February 12 circular and asked banks not to initiate insolvency proceedings against the loan defaulting companies. Citing bankers the Economic Times said that this decision will delay the resolution process at least until November 14, when the next hearing is scheduled.

The bench, comprising Justices RF Nariman and Indu Malhotra, also directed that the 12 cases related to this issue that are pending before different high courts should be transferred to the Supreme Court.

In February, the RBI had issued a circular outlining a revised, stricter, framework for resolution of stressed assets. The new framework made it mandatory for banks to identify signs of incipient stress in loan accounts and classify stressed assets as Special Mention Account (SMA), immediately on default. Furthermore, lenders were asked to finalise a resolution plan in case of a default on large accounts of Rs 2,000 crore and above within 180 days, failing which insolvency proceedings have to be invoked against the defaulter.

Challenging this circular, several petitioners, including the Independent Power Producers Association of India, Association of Power Producers (APP), the Sugar Manufacturing Association from Tamil Nadu as well as groups representing shipyards and textile makers, had moved different courts.

The RBI circular had particularly impacted the power sector because, as pointed out by the 37th report of the Standing Committee on Energy, which was presented to the Lok Sabha in early March, the sector was already reeling. Many power plants were already under SMA-1/2 stage or on the brink of becoming non-performing assets (NPAs) due to unforeseen circumstances ranging from fuel shortage to regulatory clearances that hit their cash flows, credit rating, and the like. Banks currently have exposure of around Rs 1.74 lakh crore to stressed power assets.

No wonder, power companies welcomed the Supreme Court verdict. "Where cases have been referred to NCLT [National Company Law Tribunal] after the RBI circular, there will be a status quo, and where they have not been filed, they will not be referred to NCLT now," said senior advocate Mahesh Agarwal, who represented the power companies.

The Supreme Court decision gives lenders more time to completing resolution proceedings for borrowers such as KSK Mahanadi, Prayagraj Power, Jhabua Power and GMR Chhattisgarh Energy, which were hopeful of escaping the bankruptcy process. Meanwhile, biggies like Resurgent Power, Adani Power, JSW Energy and Vedanta Plc have been eyeing a chunk of stressed power assets through the bidding route at as much as half the project cost.

"SC order has provided a great relief to power sector stressed assets," Association of Power Producers director general Ashok Khurana told the daily. "This would provide time for bankers to finalise resolution plans for about 13 GW of projects which are presently in their final stages and the high-level empowered committee under cabinet secretary to submit its report on corrective actions that the government intends to initiate to mitigate stress factors."

But according to experts, the challenge now will be ensuring that the resolution process for these defaulting companies do not move at a snail's pace, else they risk going from stressed to unviable.

Significantly, since the verdict is not a general order - it reportedly only applies to the companies that had moved court - it is expected to prompt other borrowers affected by the RBI circular to rush to Supreme Court seeking similar relief.

Edited By Sushmita Choudhury Agarwal
The President of the Irish Hotels Federation (IHF), Michael Lennon, today warned that increasing the tourism VAT rate from its current 9% would damage a national industry that generates over 2 billion in taxes for the Irish government each year.

Lennon said, at a time of increased uncertainty over Brexit, it makes no sense to jeopardise Irish tourism further and hinder capacity for growth. In particular, he said the 9% VAT is a key part of the overall competitiveness of Ireland's tourism product.

Mr Lennon said the 9% VAT has enabled Irish tourism to become more competitive internationally and has contributed to tourism growth across the country. At present 16 European countries have VAT rates of less than 10% on accommodation. Lennon stated that any increase in the VAT rate would put tourism businesses throughout the entire country at a major competitive disadvantage compared with other EU countries, particularly at a time when the sector is preparing for Brexit.

The Government introduced the tourism VAT rate in 2011 to promote job creation when the live register had reached almost 450,000 nationally. The IHF beleive Irish tourism will yield 2 billion in various taxes in 2018 and 65,000 new jobs have been created since 2011, with 40,000 more over next five years.

Speaking today, Mr Lennon said, "The financial crisis showed just how vulnerable we are to external economic events beyond our control. Today we face enormous risks and uncertainty with Brexit. Some of the scenarios being forecast would have grave knock-on effects for our own economy, particularly at a regional level."

He added, "The implications for tourism are stark given our heavy reliance on the UK  our largest market, accounting for over 45% of inbound visitors. Added to the poor Sterling exchange rate, any increase in VAT could result in a tipping point that risks a significant loss of market share to other destinations."

Source: www.businessworld.ie
*Exporters appear to be rushing shipments to U.S. to avoid getting hit by tariffs down the road

*Front-loading will only exacerbate the eventual hit to exports from higher levies

Even though the first tariffs of the trade war have been in place since June, Chinas trade surplus with the U.S. hit a record $31.05 billion in August, according to data from the General Administration of Customs. Exports to the U.S. grew 13.2% year-on-year in August to $44.4 billion, the fastest growth since February.

Part of the reason is healthy demand from the U.S. economy  the Institute for Supply Managements Manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index hit 61.3 in August, indicating the biggest expansion in factory activity since 2004. Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, is also strong, rising 0.4% in June and July.

But we think a more important factor is front-loading, as exporters increased their shipments in advance of a new round of tariffs to avoid paying the extra levy. Given the uncertainty over the size of the tariffs and when they will be imposed, this factor could continue to boost exports to the U.S. for a few more months. A second round of levies of up to 25% on a further $200 billion of Chinese goods may be just around the corner, after a public comment period ended last week. A third round on another $267 billion in Chinese goods could be rolled out on short notice, according to comments made by President Donald Trump last Friday. But as theres still no concrete date for either, the front-loading could go on for some time.

Once these sets of tariffs are in place  and given the lack of progress in negotiations, our view continues to be that theres no reason to assume an agreement will be reached to prevent them  Chinas export growth to the U.S. will likely slow significantly, and potentially shrink. This deceleration will be exacerbated by the end of the front-loading effect and could come by the end of 2018, based on the timing of implementation of previous rounds of tariffs.

If the next rounds of tariffs is put in place and Trump implements his threat of a third round, then the total value of Chinese goods affected will be $517 billion, more than the total value of Chinas exports to the U.S. in 2017, which were $505 billion according to U.S. government data.

Further escalation of the trade war in terms of tariffs would therefore probably involve increasing existing tariff rates.

How will this affect Chinas exports more generally? Former central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said last week that the country could quickly diversify its export markets and ship goods to other countries. But we are less optimistic for two main reasons. First, sales to the U.S. make up such a large chunk of Chinas total exports  more than 20% in August, for instance  that it would be very difficult to find new markets for these goods quickly. Second, growth in global demand for Chinese goods seems to be weakening. Chinas overall export expansion slowed in August to 9.8% year-on-year, down from a 12.2% pace in July and the lowest since March. Shipments to the EU, Hong Kong and Japan, Chinas biggest trading partners after the U.S., all increased at a weaker pace in August  Japan, for instance, rose by just 3.8%, down from Julys 12.3% and the slowest rate since March. Emerging markets were no better: year-on-year export growth to Brazil and Russia shrank more than 14 percentage points in August compared with July.

Our view is that while President Trumps tariffs have so far had the opposite effect of what he wanted and incentivized greater Chinese exports to the U.S., this cannot last much longer. And given slowing global demand and the importance of the U.S. market, China will struggle to simply reroute its exports to other countries.

Calendar

September 14: National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) releases industrial production and retail sales data for August, fixed-asset investment, real-estate investment and sales data for January-August and surveyed urban unemployment rate for August

September 15: NBS releases August data on housing prices in 70 major cities

Peoples Bank of China may release money supply and total social financing data for August this week

Ministry of Commerce may release foreign direct investment (FDI) and outbound investment (ODI) data for August this week
Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) has become the third international petrochemicals giant to announce plans to build a major complex in southern China in the last two months as the industry prepares for a boom in Chinas demand for plastic.

SABIC has signed an agreement with the Fujian government to build a petrochemical complex in the southeastern Chinese province, according to an announcement on the companys website. A location and time frame are not yet known.

The move is part of SABICs strategy to diversify its operations, seek new strategic investment opportunities and strengthen its position in the Chinese market, the announcement said.

SABICs plant comes amid an unprecedented boom in Chinas petrochemicals sector, with at least 13 major projects planned or under construction, bringing around 1.37 million metric tons (1.51 million U.S. tons) of new capacity across the country, according to Reuters. While much of the new capacity is coming from domestic companies such as Sinopec Corp. and Hengli Petrochemical Co. Ltd., major international players are entering the competition.

Last week, ExxonMobil Corp. announced it is in advanced talks with the Guangdong government to build a multibillion-dollar petrochemical and liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in the province. BASF SE, the worlds biggest chemicals company by sales, had signed a memorandum of understanding to build a $10 billion complex in the province just two months before.

At the heart of the expansion is ethylene, a versatile chemical that is a key ingredient in producing polyethylene, the most common plastic in the world. China is already a major market for the chemical, but demand is expected to skyrocket over the next decade, catalyzed by the governments efforts to move the countrys economy up the production chain and into higher-value-added commodity production, according to information service ICIS. China will account for a third of global demand in petrochemicals over the next decade, IHS Markit reckons.

The U.S. boom in shale gas, which can be converted into ethylene, has largely met recent rising demand, but this period is coming to an end, said Steve Jenkins, vice president of consulting at Wood Mackenzie Chemicals.

Theres been a lack of investment in ethylene facilities in Asia over the last four years because so much building has been going on in the U.S. in tandem with the shale boom, but there is now uncertainty over how much the U.S. can supply from a second wave of investment and real doubts that it can serve as the main source of ethylene derivatives supply for China, he said.

This has led to a surge in companies looking to build crackers, which produce olefins, and other chemical facilities across Asia, Jenkins said. This is particularly true in Guangdongs Pearl River Delta area, where BASF SE and ExxonMobil intend to build their plants. The province already benefits from extensive transportation infrastructure and a strong consumer goods manufacturing industry, a legacy of its status as the first area to begin experimenting with foreign investment through the reform and opening-up policies from the late 1970s that catapulted Chinas economic transformation. SABIC is also positioning itself in a powerhouse that catapulted ahead thanks to its proximity to Taiwan.

Building plants in Guangdong puts chemical producers in the same location as their customers, and in turn it also encourages more manufacturers to develop in the area, supporting the governments efforts to push into higher-end, value-added production, Jenkins said. While Chinese production costs have risen, an industry report from McKinsey & Co. said that they are nevertheless 10% to 50% cheaper than they are in Western countries.

Also of note in the surge in petrochemicals investment is the prominent role of the international private sector, rather than the domestic state-owned entities the government has typically relied on. The state-owned companies have their hands full upgrading their plants to meet higher environmental standards as the government tries to reduce pollution, while they also pivot away from diesel-based heavy transport fuels to the more refined types demanded by Chinas modern automobile industry, Jenkins said.

This is why China has invited the private sector to lead the development of petrochemicals associated with plastics. Private companies have the technology and capital to make these major investments. For the likes of ExxonMobil, BASF and SABIC, they recognize China is going to be dominating demand for decades to come, and so they are positioning themselves as important government partners early, he added.

Contact reporter Ke Dawei (daweike@caixin.com)
Here is the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission report



Here are the conclusions.



 We conclude this financial crisis was avoidable. ...



Despite the expressed view of many on Wall Street and in Washington that the crisis could not have been foreseen or avoided, there were warning signs. ... Yet there was pervasive permissiveness; little meaningful action was taken to quell the threats in a timely manner.



The prime example is the Federal Reserves pivotal failure to stem the flow of toxic mortgages, which it could have done by setting prudent mortgage-lending standards. The Federal Reserve was the one entity empowered to do so and it did not.

 We conclude widespread failures in financial regulation and supervision proved devastating to the stability of the nations financial markets. The sentries were not at their posts, in no small part due to the widely accepted faith in the selfcorrecting nature of the markets and the ability of financial institutions to effectively police themselves. ...



Yet we do not accept the view that regulators lacked the power to protect the financial system. They had ample power in many arenas and they chose not to use it. To give just three examples: the Securities and Exchange Commission could have required more capital and halted risky practices at the big investment banks. It did not. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York and other regulators could have clamped down on Citigroups excesses in the run-up to the crisis. They did not. Policy makers and regulators could have stopped the runaway mortgage securitization train. They did not. In case after case after case, regulators continued to rate the institutions they oversaw as safe and sound even in the face of mounting troubles, often downgrading them just before their collapse. And where regulators lacked authority, they could have sought it. Too often, they lacked the political willin a political and ideological environment that constrained itas well as the fortitude to critically challenge the institutions and the entire system they were entrusted to oversee.

 We conclude dramatic failures of corporate governance and risk management at many systemically important financial institutions were a key cause of this crisis. ...



 We conclude a combination of excessive borrowing, risky investments, and lack of transparency put the financial system on a collision course with crisis. ...



 We conclude the government was ill prepared for the crisis, and its inconsistent response added to the uncertainty and panic in the financial markets. ...



 We conclude there was a systemic breakdown in accountability and ethics. ... For example, our examination found, according to one measure, that the percentage of borrowers who defaulted on their mortgages within just a matter of months after taking a loan nearly doubled from the summer of 2006 to late 2007. This data indicates they likely took out mortgages that they never had the capacity or intention to pay. You will read about mortgage brokers who were paid yield spread premiums by lenders to put borrowers into higher-cost loans so they would get bigger fees, often never disclosed to borrowers. The report catalogues the rising incidence of mortgage fraud, which flourished in an environment of collapsing lending standards and lax regulation. ...



 We conclude collapsing mortgage-lending standards and the mortgage securitization pipeline lit and spread the flame of contagion and crisis. ... Many mortgage lenders set the bar so low that lenders simply took eager borrowers qualifications on faith, often with a willful disregard for a borrowers ability to pay. ... These trends were not secret. As irresponsible lending, including predatory and fraudulent practices, became more prevalent, the Federal Reserve and other regulators and authorities heard warnings from many quarters. Yet the Federal Reserve neglected its mission to ensure the safety and soundness of the nations banking and financial system and to protect the credit rights of consumers. ...



 We conclude over-the-counter derivatives contributed significantly to this crisis. ...



 We conclude the failures of credit rating agencies were essential cogs in the wheel of financial destruction. The three credit rating agencies were key enablers of the financial meltdown. The mortgage-related securities at the heart of the crisis could not have been marketed and sold without their seal of approval. Investors relied on them, often blindly. In some cases, they were obligated to use them, or regulatory capital standards were hinged on them. This crisis could not have happened without the rating agencies.

This is absolutely correct. In 2005 I was calling regulators and I was told they were very concerned - and several people told me confidentially that the political appointees were blocking all efforts to tighten standards - and one person told me "Greenspan is throwing his body in front of all efforts to tighten standards".The dissenting views that discount this willful lack of regulation are absurd and an embarrassment for the authors.This is a key finding and absolutely correct.My view is the keys to the crisis are 1) the willful lack of regulators to do their jobs, combined with 2) the rapid "innovation" in the mortgage market, especially the agency problems associated with the originate-to-distribute model. I'm just starting to read the report, but just based on the conclusions, this report deserves praise.
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The states turnout rates are woeful. Photo: Wang Ying/Xinhua News Agency/Getty Images

With New Yorkers heading to the polls on Thursday for the gubernatorial primary, its a good time to reflect on the dreadful state of the supposedly progressive states voting laws. Despite a governor who pays lip service to the issue, New York seems determined to make it difficult for its citizens to cast ballots, forgoing the progress made in much of the rest of the country in recent years. Perhaps not coincidentally, New York has some of the lowest voting rates in America.

Daily Intelligencer spoke briefly with Susan Lerner, the executive director of Common Cause NY, about why New Yorks antiquated rules are still with us today, and whether they might change anytime soon.

Can you give me a quick overview of the ways in which New York is worse than other states around the country at making it easy for people to vote?

New York likes to pride itself on being exceptional  and in the area of election administration, it is exceptionally behind. Thirty-seven other states have early voting; weve seen waves of reform elsewhere in the past decade, with other states adding features like same-day registration, and pre-registration of 16 and 17-year-olds. Fourteen states have adopted automatic voter registration. Meanwhile, New York is the only state that cant get its act together to hold a congressional and state primary on the same day. Each primary election costs the taxpayer $25 million, and if we consolidated them, wed have money left over for early voting.

Were also one of the few states that doesnt provide any support to the counties for election costs. Ohio decided electronic poll books were mandatory, so the state gave counties some money to buy them. Another anomaly: are you aware that this Thursday, people outside the southern part of the state cant cast their ballot until after noon? You cant make this stuff up.

How did things get this bad?

Election laws were basically written in the 1890s, with minor revisions in the 1930s. Enshrined political parties were the important actors at the time, and the idea was to pit the parties against each other, significantly advantanging their interests over those of voters. This has real consequences when the fastest-growing affiliation for people is independent.

It also means inherent resistance to change, because we have a partisan-driven election administration. The commissioners who serve on the Board of Elections split evenly between Democrats and Republicans; our laws require that the staff is duplicated. Were paying double, not because these people have extensive election experience, but because they are the sister-in-law of an important party official, or were the party treasurer, and they can be reliably trusted. Its a patronage mill. That isnt to say that there arent good people involved but again, why are they chosen to work for the Board of Elections?

The two parties collude against the voters. And they often deadlock, like when a Republican commissioner in Duchess County decided last summer that changes of address voters made through the DMV were incomplete, and told his staff to stop entering them into the voter rolls. Then, Democrats blocked a DMV transferring procedure the Republicans came up with. It took months of negotiations and pressure from activists to change that.

Theres a spitting match between Democrats and Republicans on the commissions at the local and state level, and the voters are caught in the crossfire.

Is there reason to hope that change is on the horizon?

Theres tremendous pressure on the legislature to move New Yorks elections into the 21st century, and its not coming exclusively from Democrats and progressives. If you talk to most New Yorkers about this, youll hear about the time they had a sick child and it was hard to get to the polls, or  for people who live upstate  Hurricane Irene, or other obstacles. The need for early voting is incredibly obvious.

When we convinced Governor Cuomo to put funding for early voting in his budget, I was told by numerous Republicans: this means the governor is serious, and youre likely to get it. So when it didnt pass as part of the budget, when it dropped out instantaneously, it immediately raised questions as to how serious the governor is to making it happen. Over and over, behind the scenes, on both sides of the aisle, people tell us that when the governor is really determined to get something, he gets it.

We hope this election has made it clear to whomever is sworn in this January that election reform must happen. It is a demand of the people of New York.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
news, latest-news

One Queenslander and two Victorians have reported discovering sewing needles in their strawberries, and police believe the contamination is deliberate. It has prompted an urgent supermarket recall and a health warning across Queensland, Victoria and NSW after the needles were found in punnets of strawberries from a south-east Queensland farm. The two brands involved are Berry Licious and Berry Obsession, which were supplied to Woolworths and other stores. The Queensland man who reported the contamination on Sunday was the only person known to have consumed the fruit with needles inside and was being assessed by doctors. In a Facebook post, Joshua Gane said his friend swallowed "half a sewing needle" after biting into a strawberry. "We then checked the other strawberries and found another sewing needle lodged inside one of them. We are now at the ER because he subsequently started experiencing severe abdominal pain. "Just being a helpful member of the community and making sure your children dont have to endure what we have had to experience today. Please make your family and friends aware." Two more cases in Victoria reported the contamination on Tuesday night, but had not eaten the strawberries. Victoria Police said the punnets were found in Yarram and Ballarat. Queenslands chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young said the products had been recalled on Wednesday to ensure any potentially contaminated strawberries were removed, but would be back on shelves on Thursday. "I'm out here today to advise people that if they have bought strawberries in Queensland, NSW or Victoria since early last week that they should dispose of them," Dr Young said. "Definitely those two are the only brands of concern, but if people don't know and they want to be ultra-cautious then it would be best if they just throw out any strawberries they've kept." Dr Young said the two brands of strawberries came from the same south-east Queensland farm and particularly warned those who had stored strawberries in the fridge or freezer to check the brand. There could be serious health risks, because the needles could get caught in the gut. Anyone who believes they may have swallowed contaminated strawberries should call 13 HEALTH (13 43 25 84) or see their local doctor. Queensland Strawberry Growers Association industry development officer Jennifer Rowling claimed a "disgruntled ex-employee" may be responsible for the contamination. "At this time, the Queensland Strawberry Growers Association have reason to suspect that a disgruntled ex-employee may have orchestrated the occurrence, wherein sewing needles were found in a number of strawberries, in Queensland and Victoria," Ms Rowling said in a statement. "The Queensland Strawberry Growers Association is waiting on more information from Queensland Police on this matter and will update the Australian public as news becomes available to us." The Queensland Police Service declined to comment on the claim. Detective Superintendent Terry Lawrence said those responsible for contaminating the fruit could be charged with maliciously causing grievous bodily harm. "We're fairly confident that if people do come forward with a needle in a strawberry and in particular the packaging, that will provide us with some direction," he said. "It's been some time for us to look at this sort of investigation." The farm owner and employees were assisting police with their inquiries.

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news, latest-news

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." 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". 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. 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. 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. 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. The failure of the vast majority of agencies to make public submissions is not just a failure of intellectual fortitude. It's a failure to promote public discussion and to have their views tested in the open marketplace, a thing some agency heads appear to believe in, if only theoretically. But no  with a handful of honourable exceptions, the senior public service flunks a major test of leadership, even if it is wielding its influence via confidential whisperings into the ears of Thodey and his colleagues. The contrast with the strikingly productive openness of the banking royal commission could not be starker. So we might turn with hope to the submission from the Institute of Public Administration Australia. By cripes it's innovative, including as it does full-page colour photographs of its president and four other public administration notables. Never, it might be safely wagered, has the cult of personality been more grandiloquently vented in any public submission in world history. Professor Mark Evans, of the University of Canberra, was the submission's "lead investigator" and, presumably, its drafter, although he's presumably not responsible for its typographical errors. (Professor: the review's chairman is David, not Davis.) The institute's president, Professor Peter Shergold, puts up the institute's weights by saying "the paper helps increase the likelihood of the review" imagining "how the APS can be transformed" and give new life to "public service traditional values". The submission fails to live up to that hype. While aiming, it says, "to help bridge a significant gap in the existing evidence base of APS reform", the submission distorts significant bits of that evidence. For example, it says many of the Coombs royal commission's recommendations were "not implemented for some time" and most of its proposals "were addressed incrementally over a 30-year period". The truth is that the Fraser government implemented a good deal of the Coombs report in its more immediate aftermath (see the Senate Hansard, May 23, 1980, pages 2863 to 2871). The Dawkins taskforce review dealth with most of the rest of the report in 1983-84, which resulted in the biggest single swag of public service changes in the last 40 years. Inexplicably, this most influential of reviews does not make it onto the IPAA's list of major reviews since 1974. Let's be quite clear: the Coombs recommendations were not addressed over a 30-year period. The report was effectively put on the shelf in 1987 after the publication of the fourth and last of the Hawke government's white papers on public sector reform. The fact is that the contemporary public service is distinguished not by the extent to which it reflects the Coombs commission but by the extent to which it doesn't: different procedures for senior appointments, no "unified public service", no strong central personnel and management agency, a lack of coordination and synchronicity in pay and conditions, and so on. This is an important analytical point, which those responsible for the IPAA submission (and Thodey) appear not to appreciate. Instead of filling its list of references exclusively with secondary sources (including four from Evans), the IPAA might have better represented the historical record if it had included basic source documents, of which there is no shortage. It would also have done itself a favour if it had included Dawkins and Michael Delaney in the list of luminaries it consulted. Dawkins is one of the few ministers to take an effective interest in public service reform, and Delaney was the driving force behind the establishment of the Coombs commission and played a critical role in helping Dawkins in the 1983-84 changes. That is to say, Dawkins and Delaney have had a greater influence on public service reform than any of those the IPAA includes on its list. The IPAA submission does, however, draw 10 useful "lessons" from the faulty short-list of past reviews it has examined. The irony is that the review meets only two of them, misses another four, with it being too early to say with the others. The real disappointment with the IPAA submission is that, while it makes a reasonable fist of explaining what it would like the public service to be, it makes virtually no useful, practical suggestions as to how the noble aims it describes might be achieved  that is the core of what the review must get to grips with. Finally, let's come to the Labor Party. While the Turnbull government didn't consult it about having a public service review, the shadow finance minister, Jim Chalmers, has been talking to Thodey. Early in August, Chalmers made a speech outlining "the direction in which Labour would take the public service" and "some initial plans for it". His intentions are worthwhile although narrow and unimaginative. They are to reduce spending on consultants, add 1200 public servants to the Department of Human Services, not proceed with the extra 0.5 per cent efficiency dividend next year, abolish the staffing cap (a decision made by the Hawke government in 1983) and reduce travel spending by 10 per cent (a hoary, populist old chestnut if ever there was one). While reasonably complaining about the taint of politics in some senior appointments, Chalmers doesn't see any need to change the system that's now producing such results. He and his party should think again. The risk of politicisation in appointments to statutory positions now arises because secretaries and other senior officials normally providing advice about them can be told by prime ministers or other ministers whom they should recommend. That is to say, the process can be fouled from the outset. These risks could be minimised by making the primary advising role as independent as possible, as is now the case, for example, for members of the ABC and SBS boards. Therefore, for positions like the public service commissioner, the Commonwealth ombudsman, the productivity commissioner, the auditor-general and others, it would be useful if: Although such an arrangement might be resisted by ministers and some senior officials because it would curtail their flexibility and scope for patronage, it might be hoped that the APS review could properly balance these self-interests with the public interest in doing the right thing. It could even give the idea a run in its workshops, even the one in Bridgewater (Tasmania). Paddy Gourley is a former senior public servant. pdg@home.netspeed.com.au

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All we are saying is give more war a chance. Photo: Bandar Algaloud/Saudi Kingdom Council via Getty Images

For the past three years, the U.S. government has been helping Saudi Arabia wage a war against Houthi rebels in Yemen. The U.S. has done this even though:

 The United States has no compelling interest in preventing the Houthis  who are enemies of Al Qaeda  from governing the Middle Easts poorest country, and Congress never approved American involvement in the conflict.

 Aiding the Saudi campaign in Yemen has made the U.S. complicit in war crimes that have claimed the lives of thousands of civilians, and put millions at the risk of starvation  a state of affairs that the European Union has deemed the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.

 Our commitment to defeating the Houthis has (reportedly) led the United States to make common cause with Al Qaeda militants in Yemen  which is to say, in a civil war between an Islamist group that is committed to killing civilians in the West, and another group that is not, the U.S. is intervening on behalf of the former.

 The Saudis dropped a U.S. missile on a school bus carrying 40 Yemeni children last month  and subsequently declared this strike legitimate, as intelligence suggested some Houthi rebels were also killed in the bombing.

 Allowing a totalitarian monarchy to kill thousands of civilians with bombs that are labeled made in the USA is a pretty good strategy for increasing the number of people in the Middle East who would like to commit terrorist attacks against the United States.

For these reasons and others, a bipartisan coalition in Congress has called on the Trump administration to withdraw its support for the Saudi campaign (which could scarcely exist without our governments decision to supply Riyadh with planes, bombs, intelligence, and midair refueling services). Those legislators successfully inserted a provision into this years defense spending bill that would have barred the U.S. from refueling Saudi jets conducting bombing campaigns in Yemen  unless Secretary of State Mike Pompeo certified by September 12 that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were taking meaningful steps to reduce civilian casualties, increase humanitarian aid, and negotiate a resolution to the conflict in Yemen.

On Wednesday, Pompeo did just that  assuring Congress that the Saudis were really, truly committed to trying their very best to massacre somewhat fewer children in Yemen. Defense Secretary James Mattis endorsed Pompeos conclusion, saying, The Saudi-led coalitions commitment is reflected in their support for these U.N.-led efforts  Alongside the Department of State we are actively engaged with Mr. Martin Griffiths, the U.N. special envoy, to achieve a negotiated end to this fighting.

The United Nations director of Human Rights Watch, Louis Charbonneau, called the U.S. certification ridiculous in an interview with NBC News. There is no indication that the coalition has been really trying to improve things. Citizens continue to be taking the brunt of the attacks; civilian infrastructure, hospitals, schools, continue to be hit.

In unrelated news (that in no way calls into question the Trump administrations commitment to minimizing atrocities in the Middle East), White House national security adviser John Bolton threatened Monday to sanction the International Criminal Court if it pursued an investigation into alleged American war crimes in Afghanistan.
Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) has released an employment notification calling out aspirants to apply for the post of Deputy Engineer. Those interested can check out the eligibility, salary scale, how to apply and the complete details of the government job here. Candidates will be first shortlisted and given written test. Those who clear it will have to attend an interview. Selected candidates can earn up to INR 140000.

The engagement will be on a fixed term basis for a period of 5 years. Reservation in seats and concession in fee will be provided for the backward classes as per government norms. Application fee (INR 500 for general category) can be paid online through SB Collect. The last date to apply for the government job is Sep 22, 2018.

BEL Recruitment 2018 For Medical Officers

BEL Recruitment 2018 Vacancy Details

CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts Deputy Engineer Organisation Bharat Electronics Limited Educational Qualification BE or BTech in electronics and communication Experience Desirable Skills Required Engineering skills Job Location Bangalore (Karnataka) Salary Scale INR 40000 to INR 140000 Industry Electronics Application Start Date September 12, 2018 Application End Date September 22, 2018

Offline Application Deadline Oct 1, 2018 Maximum Age Limit 26 years

Also Read: Undergo Skill Training At BHEL: 529 Vacancies Open

How To Apply For BEL Recruitment 2018

In order to apply for BEL Recruitment 2018, follow these steps:

Step 1 Log on to the BEL official website. Step 2 Click on the job code that reads, MS-PS01. Step 3 The application form will open. Enter your details in the fields provided. Step 4 Click Submit and complete the application process.

Step 5: Send the completed application form to BEL.

BEL Recruitment 2018 Application Format And Mailing Address

Superscribe on the envelope, "Application for the post of "Deputy Engineer" and send it to:

Manager (HR/MR&MS) Bharat Electronics Limited, Jalahalli PO, Bangalore 560013.

Follow the link - http://bel-india.in/Documentviews.aspx?fileName=Web-advertisement-11918.pdf to read the detailed official notification.
Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), one amongst the five Central Armed Police Forces of India, has released a recruitment notification to fill 42 vacancies purely on a contractual basis (limited to 3 years) for the posts of Specialist and General Duty Medical Officer (GDMO).

The selection of the candidates will be based on the walk-in interviews scheduled in the month of October. The selected candidates will earn up to INR 85,000 per month. Interested candidates can attend the walk-in interview on October 29, 2018. Check all the details such as age limit and interview venue below.

ITBP Released Recruitment Notification For 390 Vacancies

CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts Specialist and GDMO (General Duty Medical Officer) Organisation Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Educational Qualification Varies from one post to another Salary Scale INR 75,000 to INR 85,000 per month Application End Date October 29, 2018

Age Limit

All doctors appointed will not continue to be employed once he/she reaches 67 years of age.

How To Apply

Step 1 Candidates should visit the official website of ITBP - http://itbpolice.nic.in/itbpwebsite/index.html. Step 2 Go to ''Recruitment'' section. Step 3 Click on ''WALK-IN-INTERVIEW FOR GDMOS & SPECIALIST DOCTORS FOR ITBPF''. Step 4 The notification will be displayed. Step 5 Read the notification clearly. Step 6 Scroll down for the walk-in interview details before applying.

Click here for the official notification.

Interview Venue Address

The Inspector General (Medical),

Referral Hospital, ITBP, CISF Camp, VIII- Suthania,

PO-Surajpur, Greater Noida.

District - GautamBudh Nagar,

UP, Pin - 201306.

All You Need To Know About Combined Defence Services (CDS) Examination
Step 1

Log on to the Vijaya Bank official website.

Step 2

Hover over the CAREERS tab on the home page.

Step 3

Select Current Careers.

Step 4

The career notification link will appear.

Step 5

Click View Details.

Step 6

On the next page, click on the link for applying.

Step 7

You will be directed to the IBPS website.

Step 8

Click on the button that reads, Click here for New Registration.

Step 9

Read the important points that appear in the pop-up box.Step 9

Step 10

Click CONTINUE.

Step 11

The registration form will open. Enter your details in the fields provided.

Step 12

Enter the security code.

Step 13

Click Save & Next and follow the subsequent pages to complete the registration process.

Step 14

Login using your credentials and complete the application process.
Sweden Democrats supporters display a signed picture of the partys leader, Jimmie Akesson, before a campaign meeting in Stockholm, Sweden, on September 8, 2018. Photo: JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP/Getty Images

When Swedish voters headed to the polls on Sunday, the far-right Sweden Democrats party fell short of its own predictions, failing to emerge as one of the top vote-getters in the general election. This quickly became a new talking point for those who argue that right-wing extremism in Western Europe, while unpleasant, is nothing to get too worked up about.

It would be awfully nice if that were true, but it isnt. If anything, the actual threat in Western Europe  the collapse in support for the mainstream political parties that dominated the last 70 years, and the space for extremism that opens  is under-appreciated, not overblown. And whats wiggling under the blanket in Europe should concern Americans who are focused on the midterms, seeing a blue wave as the solution to many of their problems.

Take Sweden. Sure, the Sweden Democrats only finished third, not first or second. But the party, which has neo-Nazi roots, still won 17.6 percent of the vote, up from 12.9 percent in the last election four years ago. With most districts reporting, Sweden Democrats had gained 14 seats, while the prime ministers Social Democrats lost 13  their worst showing in a century, with the main center-right opposition party also showing significant losses. Sweden Democrats leader Jimmie Akesson crowed that his party would gain huge influence over what happens in Sweden during the coming weeks, months and years.

There are equally worrying trend lines emerging elsewhere in Europe. The German state of Bavaria holds elections in October, and its long-ruling Christian Social Union (CSU), the sister party to Chancellor Angela Merkels center-right Christian Democratic Union, has been pushing Merkels government to the right for months, demanding that the border with Austria be closed and newly arriving refugees be put in camps. CSU is trying to fend off the threat posed by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), whose latest campaign ads show grinning, leaping, right-arm-raising children celebrating their Islam-free schools. In the 2017 federal election, CSUs support dropped 10.5 points compared with four years earlier, with many of those votes going to AfD. Though the far-right partys policies and rhetoric have drawn condemnation from officials and organizations across Europe, AfD appears likely to make more gains the fall, finishing second in Bavarias elections. Across the country, public support for the grand coalition of centrist parties that governs under Merkels leadership fell to an all-time low in a poll released last weekend (though the 46 percent may not look that low to American eyes).

All of Germany is still feeling the reverberations from last months demonstrations in the eastern city of Chemnitz, following the fatal stabbing of a 35-year-old German, for which two immigrants were arrested. Thousands turned out during a weekend of far-right protests and riots, and there were allegations of an attack on a Jewish-owned restaurant and mobs targeting minorities. This aspect of the riots has again exposed the divisions within Merkels government; while her personal office said video footage showed protesters had singled out people who looked different, the head of German internal security, Hans-Georg Maaen, suggested on Friday that the allegation was a deliberate misinformation effort to distract the public from the murder of an ethnic German. On Sunday, a fresh round of anti-migrant protests broke out in the small German city of Kothen after a 22-year-old German man died following an altercation with two Afghan nationals.

In neighboring Austria, where a far-right party with Nazi roots is actually in government, foreign minister Karin Kneissl flaunted her right-wing geopolitics by inviting Vladimir Putin to her wedding last month and calling it a working visit. Putin  whose government has been accused of covertly funding and mounting information campaigns for right-wing parties across Europe  arrived with a Cossack choir to serenade the couple and danced with the bride.

Meanwhile in France, where Emmanuel Macrons election last year was supposed to set the standard for how the center-left can save the day, the presidents approval rating hit a record low of 31 percent in a poll released last week. As is the case elsewhere, Macrons disaffected supporters are turning not to establishment forces, but to the political fringe. Longtime standard-bearer of the far right Marine Le Pen, who lost to Macron in a landslide, is not seeing her numbers rise, but more of her partys positions are being adopted by mainstream figures on the right  and left.

Establishment parties are also collapsing in the Netherlands and Italy, while the U.K., which one might call a two-and-a-half party system, is seeing both its major parties flounder internally. The names and histories differ in important ways, but Europes political turmoil shares three antecedents  all of which should make Americans think about whether our troubles began, or will end, with Donald Trump.

First, theres the staleness of the European political establishment. The same left-right coalition, installed as an anti-communist fixture after World War II, had ruled Austria for 50 of the last 70 years. In Germany, a so-called grand coalition comprising the largest two parties has been in power for much of the last decade as well. In France, by contrast, party names and governments change frequently, but the key players do not. Voters have felt that they have few opportunities to effect change through the ballot, and theyve gone looking for outsider voices to do it.

But what exactly are these voters so upset about? One thing we know for sure: Far-right voters in Europe (like their U.S. counterparts) are disproportionately likely to be male. The professor and columnist Cas Mudde points to another trend economists think they see emerging: Voters hard-hit by the 2008 global recession are the most likely to move to extremist parties  though that tendency is not necessarily most pronounced in the countries that took the worst economic blows. That sense of relative, rather than absolute, deprivation should sound familiar to Americans as well.

Then theres the matter of discomfort with diversity, and specifically with the perceived strain immigrants and refugees place on social institutions. As Foreign Affairs observed after the Swedish elections, Practically all Western countries now have some 20-odd percent of the voting population who, for one reason or another, dont like immigrants Sweden joined the club.

It seems profound anxieties about gender, economics, culture, and race  in other words, about winners and losers in traditional versus postmodern worlds  are at the root of the energy that is spinning up old hatreds and assaulting norms from Charlottesville to Chemnitz. No one election should put anyone at ease, not Swedens  and not the U.S. midterms.
Borbor on her trusty motorbike, which she uses to travel from community to community in Liberia, teaching citizens about the law and serving as a mediator.

Theodosia Borbor is a community justice advisor in Liberia, providing free mediation services to citizens. Borbor has the highest case load of any advisor  shes resolved roughly 95 cases in the past two years. (Photos: The Carter Center)

Theodosia Borbor may not be a lawyer, but she knows Liberian law. And shes passionate about making sure others do, too.

Borbor is a community justice advisor with the Carter Center-supported Catholic Justice and Peace Commission. She provides free mediation services and organizes community awareness sessions for the people of Margibi County, which sits about an hour from Liberias capital, Monrovia. She travels the county on a motorbike, sometimes spending the night in the village where she has been working when she wraps up too late to safely travel home on Liberias unlit  and often unpaved  roads.

As a CJA, I educate community members on the law of Liberia, she said. All of the laws. Marriage. Child support. Property. Divorce. Rape. Inheritance. And I help people settle disputes out of court.

Of the 54 or so community justice advisors spread across eight Liberian counties, Borbor has the highest case load, according to her supervisor, Cora Hare.

Theo is overrun with cases, Hare said. She loves her job. Shes fearless and energetic, and she has a knack for getting people to trust her.

In two years, Borbor has resolved roughly 95 cases, though the number of people shes helped is much higher because she often gives legal advice without opening a case. Clients and advice seekers find her through her awareness sessions, through her Tuesday evening radio show, and through word-of-mouth.

Though CJAs make their services available to both sexes, the majority of their clients are women.

The biggest issue the women I see face is lack of child support, she said. We have women with three, four, five children, and no father to take care of them. Many of the women dont have jobs. Child support includes food, clothing, shelter, education, medication. Can the mother alone provide all of these things? No.

Borbor tracks down fathers and encourages them to sit down with her and the mothers to figure out how they can contribute to their childrens survival.

Sometimes it takes a lot of work to get the men to the table. Sometimes they are angry. But Borbor persists: I tell them I am working for the best interest of the child. Most of the time, the father agrees because its important to send the children to school.

If he refuses, she helps the mother pursue a criminal case against him.

Another issue women frequently confront is denial of property  for example, a father dies and a brother tries to squeeze a sister out of her rightful inheritance, or a couple who are not legally married split and the man kicks the woman out of the house they bought together. (The issue of marriage is a tricky one in Liberia, because many people engage in customary marriages, which are recognized by their families and by village chiefs, but not by the government.)

Borbor helps women get the property to which theyre entitled.

She also handles rape cases. Because these are criminal cases, she doesnt mediate, but rather refers them to the courts. She does, however, counsel the women and help them make their way through the court system.

We know what trauma is, so we counsel them for the stress and trauma they are going through, she said. Sometimes they want to blame themselves. And we say, You are not responsible for what happened. So we counsel them, and we give them hope again.

Often, Borbors assistance goes beyond basic legal advice shes helped women figure out ways to support themselves by starting their own small businesses.

The work is helping to empower women a whole lot, she said. And that travels down the line. When a girl sees that her mother is empowered, that she is able to bring some money home  this girl, she has hope again. Theres hope that if her mother can do it, she can do it.

Working as a CJA can be stressful. The job frequently takes Borbor away from her five children for long stretches at a time.

But, she said, the rewards outweigh the sacrifices.

Im very proud, and Im very grateful to the Carter Center for the training, she said. I gain strength because I have passion for this job. If someone tells me that they have paid $1,300 but the other person refuses to give them their land, and I can advocate for them, that makes me feel great. I have the passion to help somebody.
Photo: The Canadian Press Lt.-Gen. Charles Lamarre

The Canadian Armed Forces is seeking to reassure allies about the military's new policy on recreational marijuana, which a senior commander says has so far elicited significant curiosity.

Lt.-Gen. Charles Lamarre, the military's chief of personnel, says allies have been closely following the military's year-long work to develop its policy on marijuana use, which was officially released last week.

The policy limits all consumption to within Canada and puts time restrictions on when service members can use marijuana.

The key question for many is whether marijuana, which becomes legal in Canada on Oct. 17, will impact the military's ability to do its job.

Lamarre says he explained the policy this week to counterparts from the U.S., Britain, Australia and New Zealand, one of whom questioned why the Canadian military didn't simply ban all marijuana use by service members.

The Armed Forces is required to follow Canadian laws and sought to balance that imperative with the need to protect the safety and security of people, equipment and operations by putting in certain restrictions, Lamarre says.

He believes the new policy will ensure the military's operations are not affected and adds that Canada's closest allies appear satisfied with the new policy.
Unsafe space? Photo: Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images

Last year, the Trump administration warned the American people that their nations system of higher education was becoming an echo chamber of political correctness. In an address on the Importance of Free Speech on College Campuses, Attorney General Jeff Sessions lamented the misguided notion that universities have an obligation to shield their students from speech that creates an offensive educational, work or living environment.

Who decides what is offensive and what is acceptable? Sessions asked. The university is about the search for truth, not the imposition of truth by a government censor.

The Justice Department translated Sessionss sentiments into federal policy. Over the past year, the Trump administration has intervened on behalf of College Republicans who sued the University of California, Berkeley, for infringing on their First Amendment rights (by failing to provide Ann Coulter a speaking venue on the day of their choosing), while also lending its support to lawsuits brought by opponents of Michigan Universitys rules against racially biased speech, and Pierce Colleges circumscribed free speech zones.

The administrations disproportionate focus on the complaints of conservative students have led some to question the sincerity of its commitment to free speech as such. But in remarks before Turning Point USAs High-School Leadership Summit this past July, Sessions insisted that the First Amendment is not a partisan issue. Constitutional rights are for all Americans  not just those in one party or one faction. In truth, the attorney general argued, the censorious environment on college campuses today is hurting young people of all political persuasions by actively preventing them from scrutinizing the validity of their beliefs, and thus, rendering them sanctimonious, sensitive, supercilious snowflakes.

But even the Trump administrations tolerance for political incorrectness has its limits. And so, on Wednesday, the Education Deparment announced that certain beliefs are too valid to be scrutinized on campus  and other ideas, too offensive to be voiced in college classrooms.

Trumps Education Department first adopted this position last month, when it decided to change its definition of anti-Semitic speech. In a newly revealed letter, the departments Civil Rights division announced that, from now on, it will use The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliances working definition of anti-Semitism when investigating allegations of discrimination on campus.

That definition names the following speech acts as potential examples of anti-Semitism in public life:

Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.

Applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.

In the aforementioned letter, Kenneth Marcus, the head of DOEs Office of Civil Rights, announced that the department will reopen a 2014 investigation into allegations of anti-Semitism at Rutgers  which the Obama administration had previously closed citing insufficient evidence  in light of the [new] definition of anti-Semitism.

It is hard to imagine a clearer example of a government censor imposing an official truth on universities  for the sake of sparing sensitive students the discomfort of scrutinizing their beliefs  than the Education Departments new policy.

Who determines when a person has applied a double standard to Israel  or what behavior it is appropriate to expect or demand of democratic nations? For that matter, what gives the government the right to tell college students which nations they can and cannot consider democratic? Millions of Palestinians in the West Bank live under the authority of the Israeli state. The sitting Israeli government claims sovereignty over the regions settlements. And yet, none of the West Banks Palestinian inhabitants have a right to elect the government that rules them. Is it inherently anti-Semitic to insist that a nation cannot subject ethnic out-groups to martial law and still call itself a democracy?

And is refusing to endorse the Jewish peoples right to self-determination (in an ethnically defined nation-state in the Middle East) really tantamount to a civil rights violation? Beyond the fact that anti-Semitism is hardly a prerequisite for opposing state Zionism specifically (a reality reflected by the myriad Jewish groups that have opposed the concept of the Jewish state from before its founding to the present day), the Education Departments new definition would also ostensibly bar college students from questioning the legitimacy of ethnic self-determination and the nation-state, more broadly.

Beyond the fact that anti-Semitism is hardly a prerequisite for opposing state Zionism specifically (a reality reflected by the myriad Jewish groups that have opposed the concept of Jewish state from before its founding to the present day), the Education Departments new definition would also ostensibly bar college students from questioning the legitimacy of ethnic self-determination and the nation-state, more broadly. You dont have to be a staunch supporter of the Palestinian cause to question Israels right to exist as a Jewish state. You could simply believe the human beings should be allowed to freely move across borders, regardless of their race or ethnicity  a position often championed by the CATO Institute, a think-tank co-founded by Republican megadonor Charles Koch.

Or else, you could believe that ethno-nationalism is an inherently destructive force, and that no nation-state should have an official ethnic or religious character  an idea endorsed by some of our republics founders. Or, one could believe that the nation-state is obsolete, and that, in a world where dominant economic institutions are multinational, and the climate is rapidly warming, human beings must establish a single, globally governed polity.

It is true that the IHRA definition stipulates that one should consider the overall context of a remark before determining if said speech act qualifies as anti-Semitic. And the organization isnt wrong to suggest that there are a lot of anti-Zionists whose views on Israel are motivated by contempt for Jews. But since criticism of state Zionism is not inherently anti-Semitic, there is no way to determine whether a given instance of such speech is motivated by Jew hatred unless one possesses separate, dispositive evidence of the speakers bigotry  in which case, his or her views on Zionism are irrelevant. If a student activist is known to hand out pamphlets on the Jewish World Conspiracy, then she is an anti-Semite, regardless of what position she takes on the Palestinian right-of-return. Which is to say, there is good reason to include anti-Zionist speech in your definition of anti-Semitism, if your intention isnt to discredit the former by equating it with the latter. The disclaimer about overall context merely offers those who wish to stigmatize opposition to Israel  by equating it with hate speech  a means of denying that this is what theyre up to.

The Education Departments new policy is part of a broader crackdown on dissent against Israel on college campuses. These efforts appear to be inspired by the very impulse that the rights free-speech warriors claim to revile  the urge to suppress an argument out of fear that ones position isnt strong enough to withstand debate. The Likud government, and its allies in the U.S., know that Americas young people  particularly those enrolled in college  tend to subscribe to a liberal, cosmopolitan, and anti-racist worldview. And they also know that such ideological commitments are increasingly difficult to reconcile with the Zionist project as its defined by Benjamin Netanyahus governing coalition.

In previous eras, radical activists had to make the case that Israeli policy in the West Bank constituted de facto apartheid; now Israeli government ministers proudly advertise their intention to establish the de jure variety in that region. Earlier this year, Israels deputy defense minister, Rabbi Eli Ben-Dahan, called for the formal annexation of the West Bank as soon as possible. They want to scare us, that maybe soon we will not be a majority and therefore we have to abandon Judea and Samaria [the West Bank]. This is a grave mistake, Ben-Dahan told the Israeli newspaper Arutz Sheva. Even if we apply Israeli law in Judea and Samaria, full civil rights are not just given, and certainly not on the first day.

This isnt empty rhetoric. Israeli legislators and judges are in the process of turning Ben-Dahans words into law. As Israeli civil rights lawyer Michael Sfard recently explained in The New York Review of Books:

[T]he ruling parliamentary coalition has put its lawyers to work drafting numerous annexationist bills. Their latest accomplishments include a law, enacted last year, which instructs the army to confiscate private Palestinian land and assign it to the intruding Israelis who have put up settlements there. This law is not only a naked sanction of land theft; it is also an unprecedented imposition of Knesset legislation on Palestinians who have no parliamentary representation.

There are many political commitments that could lead an administration to defend Ann Coulters right to university speaking fees, while denying college students the right to advocate for a one-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict. A sincere desire to promote free speech on campus is not one of them.
A storm as big as Hurricane Florence will hit with a "one-two punch" deluge of water, Erik Salna, the associate director of the International Hurricane Research Center at Florida International University, says.

According to the US National Hurricane Center, Florence is expected to strengthen further as it is ready to move over the southwestern Atlantic between Bermuda and the Bahamas on Tuesday and Wednesday. Lanes will be reversed on several highways in the state. "This is not just a coastal event".

Florence, a potentially life-threatening Category 4 hurricane, is on track to make landfall in North Carolina or SC on Thursday (Sept. 13).

The eye of the storm is forecast to make landfall late on Thursday or early Friday along a stretch of coastline already saturated by rising seas, and then the system could meander over the land for days. The storm's track is now heading toward the North Carolina city of Jacksonville, about 50 miles north of Wilmington.

The NWS predicts potential storm surges of up to 3.6m on the coasts along with dangerously large swells and rip currents.

"The water could overtake some of these barrier islands and keep on going. With time, the wind pushes the water into every nook and cranny you can think of", Graham said.

Forecasters have warned the the hurricane could be "life threatening" by the time it strikes. The very center of that bullseye may be Camp Lejeune, the sprawling Marine Corps training base, where authorities were opening emergency operation centers, staging equipment and urging families on the base to build survival kits with food and equipment needed to sustain themselves for 72 hours.

UEFA to introduce third club competition

Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin had played down media reports on the subject when speaking to journalists in Monaco last month. It was an idea first put forward in 2015 and should offer more chances for Scottish clubs to progress in European football.

"Please be prepared, be careful and be SAFE!" tweeted President Donald Trump, adding: "WE are here for you".

More than a million people are expected to flee low-lying areas, as SC and Virginia ordered mandatory evacuations of coastal areas starting on Tuesday.

Governors in SC and Virginia have also issued mandatory evacuation orders ahead of the storm.

The North and SC coasts are on high alert as residents brace for Hurricane Florence's brutal lashing. North Carolina has only been hit by one other Category 4 storm since record keeping began in the 1850s - Hurricane Hazel in 1954, which took 19 lives.

Laws to combat price gouging are reportedly already in effect in North Carolina and SC, while motorists on the East Coast can expect to see gas prices spike this week due to Florence, according to AAA.

More than 400 hundred officers from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division will be stationed in the coastal areas to help assists evacuation and protect property.

"We have seen projections, most recently this evening, upwards of 20 inches (rain) in some areas with generally eight to 10 and 12 to 15 inches across over half the Commonwealth", said Jeff Stern, State Coordinator with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management.
The People's Liberation Army, China's military, was "still in the process of acquiring combined arms training and expertise as it transformed into an informationised and modern fighting force", he said.

Some 300,000 soldiers, 36,000 military vehicles, 1,000 planes and 80 warships will take part in the show of firepower, dubbed Vostok-2018 (East-2018).

While both Russian Federation and China have said the manoeuvres are not directed against other countries they do coincide with Nato's Rapid Trident 2018 military exercise in Ukraine, which started on September 3 and ends on Saturday.

In the strategic drills, the PLA and Russian armed forces have formed a joint operational commanding system, under which military forces from the two countries will hold joint exercises including mechanized defensefire strike and counter-attack training.

But Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said these exercises are even larger, with 300,000 soldiers, 36,000 military vehicles, 1,000 planes and 80 warships taking part in the drills.

At sea, the Russian fleet is deploying several frigates equipped with Kalibr missiles that have been used in Syria.

Russias previous military exercise in the region, Vostok-2014, was nearly half the size, with 155,000 soldiers participating.

Collin Koh, a research fellow at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, said the shift away from anti-terrorism drills to more conventional war games could pave the way for greater cooperation between China and Russian Federation. Ukraine and the Baltic states said the true number was far bigger.

"China, by sending a PLA element to train with the Russians, is signalling that US pressure is pushing it towards much closer military cooperation with Moscow".

Ariana Grande Was An Unbelievably Stabilizing Force for Mac Miller, Says Friend

According to TMZ , the document notes that the 26-year-old's cause of death is "deferred", meaning the L.A. News about how, before his friend, Mac Miller's death , he tried his hardest to help him become sober.

"The armys General Staff believes this will take place after 2020 in the form of either a global war or a series of conflicts with magnitude", he said.

From China's perspective, the emerging military alliance with Russian Federation sends a strong signal to the US and its ally Japan as Beijing moves to defend its interests in the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, as well as Taiwan and the Senkaku and Diaoyu islands controlled by Japan but claimed by Beijing.

"Its not just about a sign or a message, but about a preparation for a real-life war of great magnitude", he said.

The drills, which include the Chinese and Mongolian armies, have been condemned by North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as a rehearsal for "large-scale conflict".

"It fits into a pattern we have seen over some time - a more assertive Russian Federation, significantly increasing its defense budget and its military presence", White said.

Forces from 10 member nations are taking part in the drills amid an ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine between government forces and Russia-backed separatists.

Relations between Russian Federation and the West declined sharply in 2014 with Moscow's annexation of Crimea and the outbreak of a Kremlin-backed uprising in eastern Ukraine.

Moscow has increased the number of its large-scale military exercises in the Caucasus, the Baltic and the Arctic in recent years.
Housing study suggests Pueblo will need nearly 10,000 units

A study conducted by Pueblo Housing and Citizen Services with Gruen Gruen and Associates predicts Pueblo will need 9,561 new housing units by 2031.
Join City Hope Church in the Race for Hope through Midtown Mobile

to Benefit Human Sex Trafficking Drop-in Center

WHAT: Third Annual Race for Hope

WHERE: Public Safety Memorial Park, 2301 Airport Blvd., Mobile. Ala. 36606

WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 13, 8 a.m. 5K Race, Fun Run/Walk to follow

INFO: Race info, race registration, donation, sponsorship, volunteer links

are at https://cityhope.cc/raceforhope

COST: $25 until Sept. 30; $35 on Oct. 1

Spanish Fort - In its third year, City Hope Church announces the Race for Hope 5K and 1-Mile Fun Run set for 8 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 13, at Public Safety Memorial Park, 2301 Airport Blvd., Mobile, Ala., 36606.

Registration is available online now for the 5K or 1-mile Fun Run event on Eventbrite at Race for Hope 5K and Fun Run. Registration is $25 until Sept. 30, and $35 on Oct. 1.

City Hope Church's aim for the 2018 Race for Hope is to raise $40,000 to help fund operating expenses for the Rose Center, a place of refuge for survivors of human sex trafficking.

Every day in Mobile and in cities across the U.S., underage girls are forced to service as many as a dozen men a night. They are victims of sex trafficking, also known as human trafficking. Sex trafficking is on the rise, in part because of the internet and the ability to more quickly lure underage girls into modern day enslavement.

Why the Rose Center?

The Rose Center relies solely on individual donations, corporate donors and church partnerships to fund its mission. Mobile was selected as the location for the drop-in center in 2018 for survivors of human trafficking, in part because there are no other similar centers in Alabama, Mississippi or Louisiana.

Mobile's location along the I-10 corridor, in a spot where two large interstate systems connect, make it a prime location for sex traffickers because of the ability to move victims across multiple state lines quickly without detection.

For Race for Hope sponsorship information, visit https://cityhope.cc/raceforhope; or contact ben@cityhope.cc. Telephone: 251.626.0123. For more information on the Race for Hope 5K and Fun Run and to register, visit cityhope.cc.

ABOUT CITY HOPE CHURCH

City Hope is one church with multiple locations in Alabama and Honduras. City Hope's values make them who they are. These core principles are the heartbeat of City Hope. They are guided by their simple mission...to lead people to become fully alive in the true hope of Jesus Christ. Learn more at cityhope.cc.

ABOUT RACE FOR HOPE

Organized by City Hope Church, Race for Hope was launched in 2016. That year, more than 400 participants raised $20,000, which provided 800 pairs of shoes to students at Destiny School in Honduras. Many previously came to school with no shoes, shoes that were taped together or shared shoes with family members. Each student received a pair of new shoes from proceeds from the first Race for Hope. The 2017 Race for Hope proceeds of $24,000 supported an India-based Christian organization that built 10 homes for single moms or widows in need of permanent shelter.

ABOUT THE ROSE CENTER

The mission of the Rose Center is to stand in the gap between the streets and an aftercare program for anyone who has been exploited by the commercial sex industry by offering a safe place to find rest, build trust and restore hope. The Rose Center relies solely on individual donations, corporate donors and church partnerships to fund its mission. For the first year, hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Funds can be accepted through the website: eyeheartworld.org/therosecenter. The staff includes four team members and dozens of vetted volunteers. For more information, call 251.345.4059.
The distribution of votes means that any minority government would either have to somehow secure support from a party in the opposite bloc or work with the Sweden Democrats.

The governing center-left bloc has a razor-thin edge over the center-right opposition Alliance, with roughly 40 percent each.

However, others say the Sweden Democrats are trying to fix a historical problem.

When 17.6 percent of the electorate in a sensible country like Sweden vote for an outsider party, the political elite should sit up and take notice.

Despite their successes, the Sweden Democrats remain an unlikely coalition partner for the other parties.

Claiming a kingmaker role for this party, Jimmie Akesson, leader of the Sweden Democrats, said in a speech at his campaign headquarters that his party will now have "influence over Swedish politics". "We need a cross-bloc cooperation", he told his party supporters.

While the results need to be taken with caution - the votes of Swedish expats living overseas are not included yet and will only be released sometime this week, it seems clear already: the right-wing "populists" once again performed well, while finding a government will be tough for everyone involved.

Susanne Madsen, 61, another Social Democrat voter, was confident Sweden's current prime minister, Stefan Lofven, would stay in place.

The party, with roots in the neo-Nazi movement, called the arrival of immigrants to Sweden a threat to the country's culture, European news network The Local reported. But as the issue continued to gain relevance, the Sweden Democrats' position gained traction. If that person fails to form a government, it opens the door to fresh elections within three months.

"What they [the polls] do conclusively show, though, is that the worst case scenario that many Swedes had feared, that the far-right Sweden Democrats party might edge into first place, has not come to pass", he added.

Many Swedes began to worry about an erosion of "humanitarian values" as the Sweden Democrat party rose in popularity.

Pittsburgh Steelers: 3 Standouts from Week 1 vs. Browns

Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota left the game in the third quarter due to an elbow injury. -Washington defeated Arizona 24-6. It was his worst game since he had five passes picked off against Jacksonville in Week 5 last season.

"If the red-green bloc is bigger, the Centre and the Liberals hold the key and not Jimmie Akesson", the Sweden Democrat leader, said University of Gothenburg political science professor Mikael Gilliam on Swedish public radio.

Unless parties on the centre-left and centre-right break ranks with their blocs, it is likely to be impossible to form a stable government without some kind of support from the Sweden Democrats, who want the country to leave the European Union and freeze immigration.

Mattias, a Stockholm resident at an election night party in the city, said he was "extremely concerned" about the far right's steady climb since it entered parliament in 2006 with 5.7 percent.

Mr. Akesson challenged Mr. Kristersson to choose between seeking support from the Sweden Democrats for an Alliance government or accepting four more years of Mr. Lofven as prime minister.

The party presented the vote on Sunday as a ballot on immigration and integration.

Over 99 percent of the votes have been counted, but one question remains unanswered after the Swedish election. They'll "have to face the facts", Andersson said.

A new election will be called if parliament doesn't agree on a prime minister after four attempts.

But it's also interesting to note that immigration may not have turned out to be quite such an important factor to voters than expected.

Rather than copying the far-right's emotional appeals toward identity and its criticism of the state, mainstream parties should offer voters fresh alternatives, Berman said. Among other things, the party no longer advocates for reintroducing the death penalty or for limiting the adoption of non-Nordic children.

The biggest victor of this election were the Sweden Democrats, a populist party whose program has a strong focus on nationalism and social conservatism.
Parents Win: Colorado Schools End Sex Ed Program That Exposed Children to Porn Christian Post Contributor | 12 September, 2018 by Stoyan Zaimov

One of Colorado's largest school districts has agreed to discontinue using products from a company that parents say exposed their children to "horrific" porn images.

Thomas More Society, which has been assisting the concerned Colorado parents for close to two years, revealed that the Denver-area Cherry Creek School District decided on Friday to stop using products from EBSCO, the database company in question.

Parents have accused EBESCO of embedding pornography in its databases, which are used by children in 55,000 elementary schools, middle schools and high schools across the United States.

Aurora parents said back in September 2016 that they found that the EBSCO databases, which are meant to be age-appropriate and reliable, contain hardcore pornography that can be easily accessible by unsuspecting children searching for unrelated topics on the databases.

"We had a child [in] one of the Cherry Creek Middle Schools and we found large volumes of pornographic material," Robin Paterson, one of the parents, told KUSA-TV.

Drew Paterson added: "There was some horrific images and text."

The Cherry Creek School District responded to the development in a statement that did not specifically mention the pornography complaints.

"The Cherry Creek School District has chosen to go with a different vendor for delivering database systems to students this year," the message read.

"We worked with EBSCO for over a year-and-a-half to address concerns raised by parents. Ultimately, we were not satisfied by EBSCO's response to our requests for them to identify and remove objectionable content from their middle and high school databases," it added.

"This is a one-year decision and will be reviewed again in the future to determine which databases will best serve our students."

Other districts in the past have also severed their ties with EBSCO, including Denver Public Schools, which dropped the company on June 30. The Douglas County School District made the same decision in 2017.

Robin Paterson said that parents are "just happy the school district finally is doing the right thing," even if it has taken two years of efforts.

She added that Cherry Creek School District has not so far admitted that its decision to drop EBSCO has anything to do with the parents' concerns, but noted that the district was not looking at the problem until it started being pressured to do so.

"Without parental pressure, it's highly unlikely Cherry Creek would have discontinued buying EBSCO products. So we look at this as a victory for parents' rights," Paterson said.

Thomas More Society Senior Counsel Matt Heffron revealed that the law group had been preparing a lawsuit against Cherry Creek, before the school district made its announcement on Friday.

Read more about parents protesteing sex education programs on The Christian Post.
A US regulator said on Tuesday it would launch an investigation into an off-road utility vehicle produced by Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd following a complaint by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV that it infringed upon the intellectual property rights of its Jeep design.

The US.International Trade Commission (ITC) said in a statement that it was launching a patent-related investigation into the Indian automaker's ROXOR vehicle. The ITC said the complaint was related to the import and sale in the United States of certain motorized vehicles and components that Fiat Chrysler had alleged infringed on its trademarks. The agency said it would aim to complete its probe within 45 days.

The ITC has indicated it will begin an investigation of Fiat Chrysler's complaint and that it will also be conducting a 100-day expedited consideration of the 2009 agreement and its effect on the investigation, said Rich Ansell, vice president of marketing, Mahindra Automotive North America.

Fiat Chrysler could not immediately be reached for comment. Last month, Mahindra said that Fiat Chrysler had filed a patent violation complaint with the ITC against the company and called the complaint without merit.

Mahindra said that it and its North American unit had filed a public interest statement with the ITC and had begun proceedings in a Michigan court to enforce a design agreement that it had executed with Fiat Chrysler in 2009. Mahindra was seeking an injunction against Fiat Chrysler from proceeding with the complaint, it added.

Fiat Chrysler had not made a monetary claim in the complaint but was seeking to block Mahindra Automotive from importing any parts or components into the United States that infringe upon Fiat Chrysler's intellectual property rights, it said.
September 12, 2018 (Morning Star News)  The growing crack-down on unofficial churches in China deepened on Sunday (Sept. 9) when authorities closed one of the largest churches in Beijing, according to reports.



The Beijing Chaoyang District Civil Affairs Bureau informed Zion Church that it was legally banned for organizing events without registering as an official Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM) church, Reuters reported. The church has faced growing threats from authorities, including eviction, since it refused to comply with a government order in April to install closed-circuit television cameras at its worship site.



Bob Fu, president of advocacy group China Aid, said authorities are enforcing rules requiring registration as a TSPM church in order to exercise increased control over ideologies. He called the church closure part of a larger crackdown on Christianity across China.



The massive clampdown against thousands of churches in Henan [Province] and the forced closure and total shutdown of the largest house church in Beijing, Zion Church, represents a significant escalation on President Xi [Jinping]s crack-down against religious freedom in China, Fu said in a statement. Now that the Chinese Communist Party has started to burn Bibles and coerce millions of believers in the Christian faith and other religious minorities to even sign a written pledge to renounce their basic religious beliefs, the international community should be alarmed and outraged at this blatant violation of freedom of religion and belief and demand the Chinese regime stop and remedy this dangerous course.



Zion Church leaders have decided they will continue holding services outdoors, Fu said.



The Associated Press reported that about 60 government officials arrived at 4:30 p.m.accompanied by buses, police cars and fire trucks to close what is regarded as Beijings largest unofficial church. They reportedly sealed the church building and froze pastor Ezra Jin Mingris personnel assets, besides confiscating illegal promotional materials.



Reuters reported that the church had operated for years with relative freedom. Chinas unofficial Christian institutions have faced increased harassment since new regulations took effect in February.



More than 30 of Beijings hundreds of unofficial Protestant churches released a statement in July lamenting interference, assaults and obstruction since the new regulations came into effect.



In Luohe, Henan Province, more than 50 officials stormed into Meisheng Church on Sept. 2, beat worshippers and confiscated most church property, China Aid reported.



Uniformed and plainclothes police, as well as agents from the local religious affairs and cultural bureaus, invaded the service as the pastor, Chen Qi, was reading the Bible, the organization reported.



One Christian told China Aid that officials grabbed the pastors microphone and forcibly stopped worship. The director of Luohes Yuanhui District Religious Affairs Bureau, identified only as Li, walked to the podium and announced that the fellowship was illegitimate, according to China Aid.



After reading a document about the churchs supposed violation, he asked Chen to sign it, but Chen refused and was taken away, the group reported. An official said to him, The document will be effective no matter if you sign it or not. During the ordeal, a woman stood in the hallway and photographed the situation. Police pulled her hair and slapped her face as they pushed her up against the wall. Once they were finished, they took her into custody.



Several police officers also kicked another woman who disobeyed their orders to refrain from taking photos.



She fell to the ground, and her cell phone was confiscated, China Aid reported. When her fiance confronted one of the officers, saying How can you bully a girl? he was punched and accused of assaulting the police.



Also on Sept. 2, authorities in Xinyang, Henan Province, entered a church service without showing identification, expelled worshippers and welded the door shut, according to China Aid.



Some of the congregants attempted to film evidence, but police took their phones, the group reported. Later on, the church rented a storage unit to hold their services in.



Officials in the same area closed off the road leading to another church, prohibiting church members from entering, the advocacy group reported.



Similar disturbances occurred in other areas of Henan, including Hua County, where Christians gathered in front of Baidaokou Church to prevent authorities from breaking in, China Aid reported. After a short confrontation, the authorities forced their way into the church and took chairs, desks, and a variety of other items. As they resisted, some of the Christians were injured and fell to the ground. After the authorities left, however, some of the congregants stayed and sang worship songs.



Article 36 of Chinas Constitution stipulates that all Chinese citizens have freedom of belief.



Last year the Henan Provincial Three-Self Patriotic Committee and the Henan Provincial China Christian Council issued an order forbidding churches from organizing summer camps for minors and students, citing high temperatures as a possible health risk.



Also, the Nanyang Municipal Religious Affairs Bureau in Henan ordered all 20,000 house-church members in the province to join the Three-Self Church, according to China Aid. Many Chinese Christians disagree with the Three-Self Church based on theological discrepancies and rampant government censorship, making the forced merging of these two branches a violation of religious freedom, the advocacy group asserted.



If you would like to help persecuted Christians, visit http://morningstarnews.org/resources/aid-agencies/ for a list of organizations that can orient you on how to get involved.



If you or your organization would like to help enable Morning Star News to continue raising awareness of persecuted Christians worldwide with original-content reporting, please consider collaborating at https://morningstarnews.org/donate/?

Article originally published by Morning Star News. Used with permission.

Photo courtesy: Unsplash/Chuttersnap
What should I do to become a pastor?

Recently a young man asked me this question via text message. I imagine you have been asked the same question by someone in your congregationan eager person looking to take the next step in their spiritual growth. You probably have a safe guess as to what my answer was, especially since I am the director of the Western Seminary Seattle Teaching Site. We all know the assumed logic in America for landing a career:

1. Decide what to do with your life.

2. Go to school to learn the skillset.

3. Graduate from said school.

4. Get hired for a job using that skillset.

Now substitute school with seminary, and voila! You have a career in pastoring  right?

You might be surprised to learn that this isnt the answer I texted back to the aspiring pastor, and it isnt the answer I hope pastors give congregants who ask the same question. In the Bible, those God called to shepherd his people didnt look at their ministry work as a careerat least not in the way we understand the concept. Their learning came first from development in the context of a local church, with an eye for Christ-centered conviction, character formation, and the ability to make and multiply disciples. Formal training, if they received it, came after the core development they received within the local church.

That is not to say I am anti-seminary. As I wrote above, my full-time job is with a seminary. Academic training is an important resource for those entering full-time ministry. My aim here is not to discourage pastors from recommending seminary, but to provide an intentional order of steps they can offer aspiring pastors that starts long before formal, academic training. This model comes in part from my personal experience of being mentored in the local church prior to attending seminary and in part from my current work counseling people toward theological training.

How, then, did I respond to the young man who asked me what he needed to do to become a pastor? Below youll find the strategic, six-step process I recommended. This list is not exhaustive, nor must each step be followed strictly in sequence, one right after the otherthey can overlap.

Step 1: Commit to a local church and begin serving.

This may seem basic, but its too important to skip, and it isnt a given. A friend of mine recalls meeting several people during his seminary education who had not committed to a local congregation in years. Some were indecisive. Others were jaded. Many couldnt imagine joining a congregation that didnt fit their ideal vision of churchone they hoped to implement right after graduation.

If a pastors primary task is to shepherd a local church, the sooner aspiring pastors commit to life in the local churchin all its imperfection and beautythe better prepared they will be for future pastoral ministry. It is primarily in the context of the local church where on-the-job ministry training begins.

Behind-the-scenes roles help to form a pastors character around the gospel, shaping them with humility and gentleness.

A major component of organic training in a local church includes experiencing what it is like to serve in that context. This can be in a variety of capacities, but it should start with small, behind-the-scenes responsibilities.

Before I began any formal leadership role in the local church, I immersed myself in volunteer ministry by serving with middle school students in the youth program. There, I began to learn what it means to be a servant: committing to show up for weekly youth events, helping with setup and cleanup, making space in my schedule to spend one-on-one time with kids, and enduring all-nighters and weekend retreats. I was not paid to serve in this way, nor was I given an upfront role. I was merely one of a team of servants giving of my time, energy, and gifts to serve the church.

This experience built into my leadership DNA three values. First, the core motivation for ministry comes from the gospel. We get to serve the church because we have been so graciously served by our savior. Second, I learned the art of modeling what I taught. Pastors cannot lead people to serve wholeheartedly if they have never done the same. Third, behind-the-scenes roles help to form a pastors character around the gospel, shaping them with humility and gentleness. In other words, one of the best ways to prepare someone for full-time pastoral ministry is to seat them behind a soundboard, ask them to set up chairs before an event, or invite them to mentor a student as a volunteer.

Step 2: Read the whole Bible at least once.

I worry that the process of reading the entire Bible is becoming a lost art. Thats unfortunate for any Christian, but for potential pastors, it is devastating. Admittedly, this is a step I didnt experience early in my faith and church experience. I was encouraged to read portions of Scripturekey narratives and memorable passagesbefore I began leading in ministry, but reading the whole Bible was not part of my regular practice until later.

Obviously, the Bible is a massive tome. The thought of reading the whole book cover to cover can seem a daunting task. But over the years, as I learned the importance of reading through the entire Bible, I discovered advantages for potential pastors. First, they will begin to learn the importance of context when interpreting Scripture. Second, they will begin to grasp the story-formed worldview of the gospeldifficult to discern from disembodied verseswhich is a necessary component of Christian theology. Third, it will help them develop a life-long love and appreciation for Scripture, which will be their lifeblood throughout the rigors of ministry. Fourth, even before they serve as a pastor, they will take the lead in curbing the increasing problem of biblical illiteracy in the church.

Step 3: Learn how to make disciples and shepherd people.

The Great Commission undergirds all pastoral ministry. There is no pastoring without disciple-making. It is absolutely imperative that aspiring pastors learn what the Great Commission ought to look like in the local church and everyday life.

During my early development, I learned that making disciples happens not just through weekly, large-group teaching, but through one-on-one and small-group environments. In one situation, I had built a relationship with a middle school boy who was deficient in his reading ability. Part of my discipleship strategy with him was reading Scripture, as well as books from the Chronicles of Narnia. This was immensely fruitful for both of us. He learned to read, and I learned how to do life-on-life discipleship.

I should point out that each of these first three steps arent limited to those working toward full-time ministry. They are things every committed follower of Christ should aspire to achievewhich makes it even more distressing when I encounter seminary students who havent done any of them. Pastors often say things like, Seminary didnt teach me how discouraging it would be to toil in obscurity, or, Seminary didnt train me to shepherd distracted people and naysayers. Those things should be discovered in the discipleship process of any committed Christian, and I encourage you to push aspiring pastors in those areas before discerning a particular call to pastoral ministry.

Step 4: Pray and listen for Gods direction toward ministry.

Aspiring pastors cannot answer the question How do I become a pastor? until they have first answered the question, What is God telling me to do? Whatever your view of calling into ministry, the potential pastors youre guiding wont get very far without committed time in prayer and listening to God. I encourage this step after someone has spent time serving and making disciples because it is during those experiences when people typically begin to get a specific sense of Gods leading.

Seminary is not the end-all means of ministry training, nor should it be the first step in the training regimen for future pastorsand I trust many seminaries would agree.

God often speaks in the context of church community. Early on, as I continued to serve in various capacities with opportunities to teach and lead worship at Sunday gatherings, church members began to encourage me and affirm my gifts (though not without constructive feedback, especially on my preaching). I did not hear God speak audibly to me, but I sensed his will and vocational plan for my life through his church by way of collective affirmation. As you encourage prospective pastors to express their gifts and passions in various ministry environments, help them listen carefully for feedback from other members of the congregation. The church community can provide many sets of eyes to observe and assess their readiness for pastoral ministry.

This process of prayer and listening has another benefit: aspiring pastors will grow in maturity by developing a healthy self-awareness and gratitude for how God has created them. Pastors sometimes leave the ministry because they were a poor fit for a particular role; because their gifts were under-utilized, resulting in vocational strain; or because they tried to express a gift they simply didnt have. This growth in self-awareness will serve future pastors well for years of effective ministry.

Step 5: If God is leading toward pastoral ministry, begin to look at seminary.

I insert this step near the end as a way to define the nature and purpose of seminary. Unlike the typical role of education in the modern American model of career building, seminary is not the end-all means of ministry training, nor should it be the first step in the training regimen for future pastorsand I trust many seminaries would agree. They offer a unique context for honing theology and ministry theory, but they are not the kind of environment where potential pastors can learn the crucial skillsets of shepherding and making disciples. This context can only be found within the local church.

I have seen this step play out well in the life of a student at my institution, Western Seminary. He spent much of his high school, college, and young professional years serving in a variety of unpaid roles with his local church, where he has been a committed member for more than 10 years. He learned some basic theology while serving there, but it wasnt until he attended seminary that he achieved greater confidence and clarity in his theology. He found this to be true, for example, with the doctrine of the New Covenanta concept he had heard about in Sunday liturgy and of which he understood the basic gist. However, since his time in seminary, he has added depth and nuance to his understanding of this crucial aspect of theology: how it compares and contrasts with the Old Covenant and its place in Gods redemption plan and the grand narrative of Scripture.

This student is experiencing the rightful purpose of seminary. It exists to augment hands-on training in the church with accurate theology and ministry theory. It is an academic context where pastors and leaders are trained in tandem with experiential learning in the local church.

Once you are confident God is leading a person toward a vocation in pastoral ministry, you should begin helping them look at which seminary will best prepare them for pastoring. Choosing a seminary to attend for four-or-more years is a big decision, and every seminary is different. Aspiring pastors will likely look to you for guidance and recommendations.

Step 6: Begin reading theology.

This step could actually come right after Step 2, but I place it at the end because the previous steps add so much important context to the study of theology. When aspiring pastors have real-life experience serving and making disciples in a local church, they will realize the need for help in responding to tough questions, from others and in their own minds.

Even veteran pastors struggle with doubts and wrestle with biblical texts and doctrines. Aspiring pastors should expect the same. They may even find they have a personal passion to study theology more deeply. They could attempt this undertaking on their own, but seminary training will equip them with tools and research methods to make their theological study more fruitful. In-depth reading of theology is an addendum to the foundational biblical story and truths of the gospel attained through Bible reading and experiential learning in the local church and everyday life.

If you know people who want to pursue full-time ministry, it is paramount that you help them approach their training in a holistic way, prioritizing hands-on ministry skills supplemented with theological education in the classroom. They do not need help pursuing merely a vocational path to ministry; they need preparation to equip people for living in the powerful reality of the kingdom of God amidst a dark and broken world. The gravity of that situation requires an equally weighty and intentional approach to pastoral development.

Derek Hiebert is the director of the Seattle Teaching Site of Western Seminary.
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I've noticed a major blunder in the Woodward book about President Trump, just released. Will there be more to come?

Reporter Bob Woodward, of Washington Post/Watergate fame has launched his literary missile, Fear: Trump in the White House. The book is a supposed expose, but the title tells you everything you need to know about both the starting and the ending point of Woodward's take on the current Administration. President Trump has called it fiction. But no need to wrestle with that. Right off the bat, I think that Woodward and CNN, the news site that is touting the book, have already goofed in an epic way.

In a September 6th article by Marshall Cohen, CNN's political researcher and Jamie Gangel one of its correspondents, the network promoted Woodward's book. The CNN piece included a letter from the Woodward book that was reputedly lifted from the Oval Office ("Read the stolen letter from Trump's desk reported in Bob Woodward's book," the headline shouts). CNN obviously considered the letter a blockbuster. Author Bob Woodward clearly thought it was. They were all wrong. And so are the cadre of media sites heralding the author's take on this topic.

Here's the context: the document at issue purports to be a September 5, 2017 draft letter from President Trump to the President of South Korea, our obvious ally, indicating that the existing tree trade agreement between the United States and South Korea was not in the best interests of America and accordingly, was to be terminated in 6 months, adding, though, that the U.S was prepared to re-negotiate trade terms in the meantime. The Woodward hit-piece against Trump that is lauded by CNN ominously argues that such an action would have affected South Korea's agreement to monitor the missile activities of North Korea on our behalf.

The plot thickens. Key to dramatic soundtrack - Dun, dun, duuuuuun. But never fear, for Woodward and his CNN surrogates point out that former Economic Advisor Gary Cohn rescued the American Republic by grabbing it off of Trump's desk and making sure he never signed it. The Republic was saved, as the story goes, or at least as Woodward's book sees it, and as CNN echoes it.

Oh, but there's a "rub," as the Bard would say. At the top of the letter reproduced in the Woodward book and included in the CNN piece there is an interesting disclaimer imprinted at the top of the Oval Office letter. Here is what it says 

Pre-decisional/ Deliberative

Those words are, as we lawyers would say, words of art. They find their derivation from the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Those terms signal the fact the document reflects, not a final, official decision, but only a preliminary idea that was in the process of being considered. Those kinds of records are guarded by FOIA from disclosure to the public because every Administration needs the breathing room to consider, without the prying eyes of political or governmental opponents, countless numbers of strategies every day, both domestic and foreign. Such tentative ideas, like the unsent letter to South Korea in this case, need at least the same privacy and confidentiality that juries get every day when they go into deliberations. A draft document that declares at the top that it is merely an idea under consideration, so preliminary in fact that it doesn't even bear the format of the White House letterhead, would usually be a protected record. Unless of course, someone steals it from the President's desk and leaks it to a hostile press.

But there is more. According to breaking news from The Daily Caller, Gary Cohn has now stated that Woodward's "book does not accurately portray my experience at the White House." Considering all of this, can we really believe that his document snatching saved our nation from the dangerous impulses of a President? CNN and the left-leaning media would have you believe exactly that. If it is because they believe Cohn to be credible, they now need to distance themselves from the book in light of Cohn's refutation. Or is it, perhaps, something else that is at play; the elite media's unabated disgust with our current President and his policies.

This is just another chapter in some of the journalistic irresponsibility currently reigning in Washington, like the New York Times' recent publication of an anonymous op-ed hit-piece against the Administration. Regardless of our feelings, pro-or-con, about President Trump, caveat emptor is the watchword: beware the "truth" that some in the press are asking you to buy into. When it comes to Big Media, I would reverse the old Reagan adage and put it this way: Verify first, then trust.

Craig Parshall is a civil liberties attorney and best-selling fiction author of suspense novels featuring political and legal themes. He also serves as Special Counsel to the American Center for Law and Justice. His opinions, here, are entirely his own.
Archbishop of Canterbury calls for end to foodbanks, nightshelters in barnstorming TUC address

The Archbishop of Canterbury has used an address to the Trade Union Congress to make an impassioned plea for economic justice for vulnerable and disadvantaged people.

Beginning with an appeal to the Magnificat, Mary's song at the beginning of Luke's Gospel that speaks of God 'scattering the proud' and 'filling the hungry with good things'  words that drew a ripple of applause  he said the Bible is 'political from one end to the other', though 'we step into dangerous territory when either the left or the right claim God is wholly on their side'.

He called for an end to the rollout of Universal Credit, saying it was leaving people poorer, and hit out at tax-avoiding large companies and the inflated salaries of chief executives.

He warned of the toxic nature of the divisions in modern society, saying: 'Where inequality and profound injustice seem entrenched, insurmountable, it leads to instability in our society: divisions between people, and vulnerability to the populism that stirs hatred between different ethnicities and religious groups, the rise of ancient demons of racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia and xenophobia. And the rise of extremism.'

He spoke of the rise of antisemitism and of the 'anxiety' from his Jewish and Muslim friends about the language they heard used about them. 'That is an anxiety I share,' he said. 'From the left and the right, we have seen language that is insensitive to those who have too often been talked about and less often talked with.'

When any vulnerable group is trolled on social media, he said, 'we are all diminished'.

He drew applause when he quoted Martin Niemoller's famous lines during the rise of Nazism beginning, 'First they came for the socialists and I did not speak up because I was not a socialist.'

Using words from the prophet Amos as a recurring theme  'let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream'  Welby called on this and future governments to put his Church's foodbanks and night shelters out of business.

'Five years ago, I said to the chief executive of Wonga that I wanted credit unions to compete him out of business,' he said. 'Well, he's gone.

'Today I dream that governments, now and in the future, put church-run food banks out of business. I dream of empty night shelters. I dream of debt advice charities without clients. When justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream, the food banks close, the night shelters are empty, families and households are hopeful of better lives for themselves and their children, money is not a tyrant, and justice is seen.'

He hit out at levels of household debt, noting that households were now more indebted than they were in 2008 before the financial crash.

That is the result of low pay, an economy that allocates rewards through power, not for labour,' he said. He referred to the work of Bradford-based debt support charity Christians Against Poverty, who were seeing more and more people caught in debt slavery. 'More than that, when these charities help them, strengthening their families, working with them to negotiate with their lenders, it has been the understanding that the creditors would contribute so that the charity can help people get their life back on track. A full third of lenders and debt collectors simply fail to contribute. That is not an economic failure of the market, it is a failure of common human decency and values.'

His fiercest criticism was levelled at large companies that avoided paying tax.

'Not paying taxes speaks of the absence of commitment to our shared humanity, to solidarity and justice. If you earn money from a community, you should pay your share of tax to that community,' he said.

'I was in business, and I know that, within limits, its right and proper for people to arrange their tax affairs, and for companies to do so. But when vast companies like Amazon, and other online traders, the new industries, can get away with paying almost nothing in tax, there is something wrong with the tax system. They don't pay a real living wage, so the tax payer must support their workers with benefits.

'And having leached off the tax payer once they don't pay for our defence, for security, for stability, for justice, for health, for equality, for education. Then they complain of an undertrained work force, from the education they have not paid for, and pay almost nothing for apprenticeships. Those are only a fraction of the costs of aggressive tax management.'

In comments that will infuriate libertarians, Welby said unions were vital for economic and social justice: 'There must be Unions in the gig economy. There must be unions in industries being automated, unions wherever workers are vulnerable. There must be a new unionisation, or, President, there will only be a new victimisation.'

He excoriated the pay differentials between workers and chief executives, pointing out that while for those at lower income levels real earning were virtually the same as they were 20 years ago and lower by seven per cent than they were at the financial crash, but that FTSE 100 chief executives' remuneration had risen by 11 per cent over the last 12months alone. 'We need genuine living wages that enable people to save more than 10 pounds a month, if they're lucky, and put an end to the days when replacing a fridge or a car tyre is a household crisis. Unions are crucial to achieving real living wages.'

He said only a partnership between governments, civil society  including unions and churches  business and community could ' heal the sicknesses of society now and in the future'.

In questions following his address he confirmed that he wanted to see a minimum wage as set by the Living Wage Foundation  10.20 in London and 8.75 in the rest of the UK. Noting that he and his family had been reliant on the benefit system when their children were younger, he said: 'There should be a real living wage, enough to live on and live decently.'

He said he would encourage everyone to join a trade union, including clergy.

Asked about the troubled Universal Credit system, he said: 'It was supposed to reform the benefit system, to make it simpler and more efficient. It has not done that. It has left too many people worse off than they were.' More people were left at heightened risk of hunger, debt, rent arrears and needing to use foodbanks, he said. 'What's clear is that if they can't get it right they need to stop rolling it out.'

His address had been trailed with an interview in which he stressed the importance of trade unions as 'one of the civil society institutions essential to the aim of solidarity, the common good and fully valuing all people regardless of differences in nature and capacity'.

Asked how unions should address declining membership and make themselves relevant to new generations, he replied in terms that would also resonate for the church. He said: 'I would say return to your founding values frequently. What are you here to do? But don't be afraid to change the strategy. How effective are you being? Like us, you also have to let new generations come in and shape the way you do things.'

A spokesperson from Amazon said later: 'We pay all taxes required in the UK and every country where we operate' and that the company offered employees a comprehensive benefits package and had invested heavily in Britain.

Last week Welby had been attacked in right-wing media for his co-authorship of a report by the Institute for Public Policy Research which called for higher taxes and a reformation of the economy to serve working people better. In an article for the Daily Mail he said bluntly: 'I do not believe we can continue with an economy that works so badly for so many.'

In advance of his address to the TUC, Justin Welby tweeted a link to an article he wrote for the Huffington Post in March with the comment, 'I'm often told that Archbishops should "stick to religious and spiritual matters" and "stay out of politics".

I have a feeling today might be another one of those days, so I'm just going to leave this here.'

In his article, entitled 'Is mixing faith and politics worth the risk?' he notes that five of his predecessors have died violently, three because they were involved in politics  including St Thomas Beckett. However, he continued: 'Jesus was highly political. He told the rich that, unlike the poor who were blessed, they would face woes. He criticised the King as a fox. He spoke harsh words to leaders of the nations when they were uncaring of the needy.

'He did this because God cares for those in need and expects those who claim to act in his name to do the same. That means action  and words.'

He referred to the part the church played after 1945 in 're-imagining Britain'  the title of his book  and urged the need for the church take part in forming Britain's values today.
CofE bishops adopt international definition of antisemitism

The bishops of the Church of England have formally adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism.

During the annual residential meeting of the College of Bishops, which is taking place in Oxford, they agreed a joint statement endorsing the IHRA definition of antisemitism on behalf of the Church.

They also issued a call to everyone in public life to reject any language or actions which could cause 'prejudice, stigma or hatred towards people on the grounds of their religion, culture, origins, identity or beliefs'.

The IHRA definition of antisemitism has proved a toxic issue for the Labour Party because of the reluctance of some among its activists and leadership to give it an unqualified endorsement. Opponents believe accepting the examples of antisemitism it provides would limit the ability to criticise Israel for actions prejudicial to Palestinians.

The CofE bishops have endorsed the statement complete with the examples.

The Church of England's interfaith team and national advisers already use the IHRA's definition of antisemitism as the benchmark in their work and ministry.

However, the bishops noted the 'necessity of making explicit' the Church's adoption of and adherence to the definition without qualification or exemption.

Last week the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, also spoke of the need for the Church of England to adopt the definition formally.

The Bishop of Manchester, David Walker, said: 'The Jewish community, among whom I live in Salford, carry with them the vivid memory and scars of the Holocaust; they know all too well that antisemitism is never far below the surface of our society.

'Today's statement from the Church of England bishops assures them that we will continue to reject such prejudice and bigotry firmly, in line with our practice over 75 years.

'At the same time we will continue to speak out critically when governments here and elsewhere act in ways that our faith calls us to challenge.'

The full statement adopted by the College of Bishops reads:

'In the context of 75 years of friendship marked by the establishment of the Council of Christians and Jews, the Church of England's College of Bishops now notes the necessity of making explicit its adoption of and adherence to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism, including all examples, without qualification or exemption.

'We urge anyone involved in our political, spiritual and national life to reject all language and activity that leads to prejudice, stigma or hatred towards people on the grounds of their religion, culture, origins, identity or beliefs.'
New study details sexual abuse by German Catholic priests over decades, magazine claims

Roman Catholic clerics in Germany sexually abused thousands of children over a 70-year period, Der Spiegel magazine reported on Wednesday, citing a study commissioned by the German Bishops' Conference.

Der Spiegel said the study, conducted by three German universities, had revealed that 1,670 clerics and priests had sexually abused 3,677 minors, mostly males, in Germany between 1946 and 2014.

Asked about the report, a spokesman for the Bishops' Conference told Reuters: 'We are checking the matter.'

He added that the organisation would issue a statement later on Wednesday.

The study examined more than 38,000 personnel and reference files from 27 German dioceses and showed that more than half of the victims were aged at most 13 years old at the time of the crime, Spiegel reported.

The German Bishops' Conference commissioned the 'strictly confidential' study and Cardinal Reinhard Marx, its chairman, is expected to present its findings later this month, Spiegel said.

The Roman Catholic Church, which has more than 1.2 billion adherents worldwide, has grappled in recent years with reports of sexual abuse by clergy that have harmed its moral authority.
Patriarchs in conflict: Could Ukraine's divisions cause a schism in the Orthodox Church?

Russia's annexation of the Crimea in 2014 and its deployment of the 'little green men'  incognito military who backed separatist rebels  to take over the east of Ukraine caused a global strategic and diplomatic crisis that is not over yet.

In the context of a shooting war that has left thousands dead and brought lasting poverty and instability in its wake, the struggle for control of Ukraine's churches might seem trivial. But it's being bitterly fought, and is inseparable from the wider conflict.

At its roots are questions of nationalism. Ukraine has three Orthodox groupings, the Moscow Patriarchate loyal to Russia, the Kiev Patriarchate loyal to Ukraine, and the much smaller Ukrainian Autocephalous Church. In Orthodox understanding, this is completely irregular, as there should be just one church per country. The division between Moscow and Kiev goes back to the early days after the breakup of the Soviet Union, when Kiev's Metropolitan Filaret formed the breakaway Kiev Patriarchate in the early 1990s after a campaign against him orchestrated by Moscow.

The poisonous atmosphere between Ukraine and Russia since the conflict that began in 2014 has only exacerbated the struggle between the churches. Ukraine's President Poroshenko has pushed for the Kiev Patriarchate to become independent (or 'autocephalous', self-governing). For Vladimir Putin's Russia  in the person of the Russian Orthodox Church's head, Patriarch Kirill  this would represent a humiliating defeat. Kirill, and his 'foreign secretary' Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, have waged a relentless propaganda war against the Kiev Patriarchate, which they accuse of planning a spiritual land-grab. According to the ROC, Ukraine's independence does not automatically mean that it needs an independent church; they point out that the ROC itself includes largely self-governing churches in several other former Soviet republics.

During the last fortnight, however, the situation has escalated. In the Orthodox world, the ultimate spiritual prestige lies with the Patriarch of Constaninople  now Istanbul  which was the centre of the Orthodox world's political power until the city's fall in 1453. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is still the first among equals among the heads of Orthodox Churches and regarded as their representative and spiritual leader, though he has no direct jurisdiction over them. However, while he does have extensive authority over dioceses and churches throughout the world, his economic and political power is dwarfed by that of Patriarch Kirill, who thanks to generous support from President Putin controls a church that is not only very wealthy but increasingly assertive. So behind the struggle between Moscow and Kiev, there is another struggle for precedence in the Orthodox world between Moscow and Constaninople  and it is Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew who has asserted, in the teeth of opposition from Kirill, that he has the right to rule on the claims of the Kiev Patriarchate that Ukraine's Orthodox Christians should be independent from Moscow.

On September 7, the Ecumenical Patriarchate announced it had appointed two 'exarchs' or representatives, one from the US and one from Canada, to prepare the ground for the granting of autocephaly. The ROC issued a string of statements on its website condemning the move. It was 'a gross violation of the church canons prohibiting bishops of one Local Church to interfere in the internal life and affairs of another Local Church'; Bartholomew had acted 'basely and treacherously' (Hilarion); sending the exarchs was 'a gross and unprecedented incursion by one Local Church into a distant canonical territory' (Bishops of the Russian Church Abroad).

As an indication of how far back Orthodox memories go, and the genuine outrage Russian and Russian-affiliated Orthodox feel about Bartholomew's refusal to kowtow, Hilarion's interview and statement are worth reading. He draws on the full history of Eastern Christianity to argue that Bartholomew has exceeded his authority  which his supporters, of course, thoroughly contest  and warns that the Ecumenical Patriarch is leading the Church to schism. 'The Russian Church will not recognize this autocephaly, of course. We will have no other choice but to break the communion with Constantinople. It means that the Patriarch of Constantinople will no longer have the right to call himself, as he is doing now, "the leader of the 300 million Orthodox Christians worldwide." At least half of the Orthodox Christians will not recognize him at all. By his actions he will, in fact, split the world Orthodoxy.'

He says Constantinople has been attempting to expand its authority in a 'papistical' way for the last hundred years, that is, ruling Orthodoxy as the Pope rules the schismatical Catholics.

Furthermore, in singularly intemperate language, he appears to claim Ukraine itself is on the verge of collapse, with implications of a potential Russian takeover: Bartholomew 'realises that the days of the current Ukrainian authorities are numbered, that some other force will come, which will not endorse these papistical claims of Constantinople. That is why they are trying to do their dirty deed as soon as possible.'

In his statement of September 10, Hilarion goes, if possible, even further. He accuses Bartholomew of declaring war on Orthodox unity and says he will 'bear personal responsibility before the judgment of God and the judgment of history'.

However, though the granting of autocephaly to Ukraine's Orthodox is not yet a done deal, the assumption appears to be that it will happen. As the ROC points out, this would be against the wishes of the bishops of Ukraine's majority Moscow Patriarchate, who say they don't want it (there are 12,000 Moscow church communities and 5,000 Kiev church communities).

According to the Ukrainian think tank the Razumkov Centre, however, 41 per cent of Orthodox believers support the creation of an autocephalous church, as opposed to 21 per cent who oppose it. In the Western-backed region support rises to 60.5 per cent, with only 12 per cent against, reflecting the attitude to Russia provoked by its invasion of Ukrainian terrority. Many others, according to the poll, are indifferent. However, the figures may indicate that while the bishops, appointed in happier times, might feel a residual loyalty to Moscow, their congregations are far less likely to do so.

What lies ahead, then, for the unity of the Orthodox Church? It has, in fact, rarely been a united or harmonious body, not least because it is organised on national lines and politics is never far away. A Holy and Great Council held in Crete in 2016, decades in the planning and set to bring all 14 autocephalous churches together for significant consultation and declarations, was sabotaged at the last moment by a string of defections from churches that decided they could not sit down with their fellow Orthodox while certain issues were outstanding. Among them was the ROC, whose decision to stay away was widely seen as a carefully timed and deliberate blow at the authority of Bartholomew, whose brainchild the Council was.

If Bartholomew does grant Ukraine autocephaly, he might well find himself with the support of most of the Orthodox world, judged in terms of territory. It is hard, however, to see how in that case the ROC could row back from Hilarion's explicit threats  and a breach in communion between Moscow and Constantinople is a very big deal indeed.

Illustrating the depth of distrust between the two camps is a split second clip from a video taken at a meeting between Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Patriarch Kirill in Istanbul on August 31, a presumed last ditch attempt by Kirill to talk Bartholomew out of granting autocephaly.

They are having tea together, and as Kirill is reaching out for a cup a functionary darts forward and indicates the one he should take instead. Reports immediately began to circulate on Ukrainian social media of an attempt to poison Bartholomew. The report was widely refuted by participants, including Bishop Daniel Zelinsky, one of Bartholomew's exarchs to Ukraine, who said: 'A few days ago, social media and even TV and news channels reported that supposedly there was an attempt to present a glass of poisoned water to the Ecumenical Patriarch by the employee of the Ecumenical Patriarchate... Not true... I got to know Alexander pretty well, and had a glass of water with him today in the presence of the Consul General of Ukraine Oleksandr Gaman and Consul Max Vdovychenko... The water was great...'

While the Archbishop of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, Job Getcha, said the allegation was a 'stupid fake'.

Of course: but when relations have deteriorated so far that such suggestions even have to be refuted, it's hard to see a way back.

Follow Mark Woods on Twitter: @RevMarkWoods
Slamming the door: How Donald Trump transformed the US refugee programme

On January 19, 2017, Aden Hassan's long wait to start a new life ended when he stepped off a plane in Columbus, Ohio, half a world away from the Kenyan refugee camp where he had lived for a decade.

Years earlier in Mogadishu, Somalia, Hassan's father, a community organiser, was shot dead by the Islamist militants he opposed. A few years later, a younger brother and sister were killed by gunmen while walking home from school. After Hassan's mother survived an assassination attempt, she fled with her surviving children to neighboring Kenya.

The Midwestern winter chill could not dampen Hassan's hope, as he left the airport with his wife, their two young children and his brother, that Ohio would provide a security and stability the family had not known in years. All that remained was for his mother, her second husband, and Hassan's brother and sister to join them, which refugee officials assured him would happen soon.

'When we landed at the airport, we felt we could start a new life,' said Hassan, now 27. 'We were very hopeful, very grateful.'

The next day, Donald J Trump was sworn in as US president. Nineteen months later, Hassan's mother, Fatuma Diriye, a diabetic with heart problems, and his other relatives remain in Kenya's Kakuma refugee camp. Although they were approved for resettlement in the United States at the same time Hassan was, their plans have been repeatedly delayed by the Trump administration's dismantling of longstanding US refugee policy. The State Department declined to comment on Diriye's case.

A week after his inauguration, Trump issued an executive order temporarily banning travel from several Muslim-majority countries and halting all refugee admissions. Since then, through procedural changes made largely out of public view, the administration has reshaped the US refugee programmeme, slashing overall admissions and all but halting entry for some of the world's most persecuted people, including Syrians, Iraqis, Iranians and Somalis.

This year, with a record high 68.5 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, the United States is on track to take in about 22,000 refugees, a quarter the number admitted in 2016, the last year of Barack Obama's presidency, and the fewest in four decades.

In interviews with Reuters, more than 20 current and former US officials described how the Trump administration has abandoned policies established over decades and embraced by Republican and Democratic administrations alike. The officials, most of whom spoke on condition of anonymity, say the administration has rejected internal findings that refugees could be admitted safely and with little expense. Two senior staff members who questioned the administration's policies were removed from their positions.

The administration has instituted opaque and complicated new security vetting procedures that have bogged down admissions and eliminated many candidates for resettlement who would previously have been accepted, many of the officials said. It has extended the strictest kind of vetting to women as well as men from 11 countries, mostly in the Middle East and Africa. And it has reduced by nearly two-thirds the number of officials conducting refugee interviews, reassigning about 100 of 155 interviewers to handle asylum screenings for people already in the country, including those who crossed the border illegally.

'They're just stuck,' said Angie Plummer, executive director of Community Refugee and Immigration Services in Ohio, the group that welcomed Hassan and his family last year. 'It's blocking people who absolutely would have been here two years ago.'

The Trump administration says the changes were necessary.

'Security improvements in the refugee programmeme made in recent years to mandate additional screening for refugee applicants undoubtedly makes Americans safer,' said Katie Waldman, a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security.

In addition to far lower admissions overall, the type of refugee admitted has changed under Trump, a Reuters analysis of government data shows. The percentage who are Muslim is now a third what it was two years ago; the percentage who are Europeans has tripled.

The shift has led to striking imbalances. Refugees admitted to the United States from the small European country of Moldova, for example, now outnumber those from Syria by three to one, although the number of Syrian refugees worldwide outnumbers the total population of Moldova.

Somalis like Hassan and his family now have little chance of getting in. As of September 10, 251 Somali refugees have been resettled in America this year, a 97 per cent drop from the 8,300 admitted by this point in 2016.

A predictable path

When Hassan and his family started the refugee process, the path was gruelling and lengthy, but largely straightforward.

Granted refugee status by the United Nations in 2008, Hassan and his family were assigned to the United States for resettlement in 2016. Family members were then interviewed by US refugee officers to establish whether they faced a serious threat if they returned to Somalia.

They then had to undergo rigorous security checks put into place after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Because of his age, gender and country of origin, Hassan was subjected to extra vetting.

After Hassan's family all passed the checks, they were told they would be sent to Ohio in two groups, one traveling first and the second soon after. Trump's January travel ban disrupted that plan.

In addition to suspending travel from some majority-Muslim countries and all refugee admissions, the order capped the maximum number of refugees in 2017 at 50,000, less than half the number Obama had set a few months earlier.

Courts eventually barred implementation of the order. The administration replaced it with a less comprehensive version in March of 2017, followed by additional temporary restrictions on some nationalities. Today, no country's refugees are under an official ban, but several nationalities are nevertheless almost entirely blocked.

Syrian refugees, for example, were singled out in the first executive order as 'detrimental' to the nation's interests. In the 10 months since the ban lapsed, only 27 Syrian refugees have been resettled in the United States. By contrast, the United Nations counted 6.3 million Syrian refugees as of 2017, by far the single largest nationality of refugees.

Current and former US officials say the new policies have been driven by a small core of top administration officials, including White House senior adviser Stephen Miller; Gene Hamilton, a former adviser at the Department of Homeland Security; and John Kelly, former secretary of Homeland Security and now White House chief of staff.

Hamilton, now at the Department of Justice, declined to comment through a spokesman. The White House did not respond to requests for comment.

Provided with a detailed description of Reuters' reporting, White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said that 'the administration is committed to a fair and responsible refugee policy that maximizes the reach and effectiveness of our global humanitarian assistance'. He added that 'America is now safer'.

The remaking of the refugee programme began with a full examination of screening procedures, something called for in the travel ban. Conducted in the summer and fall of 2017, the review concluded that refugees from all countries could safely be allowed to enter with some tightening of vetting, according to seven current or former US officials who helped formulate or were briefed on the findings.

White House staff, including Miller and Kelly, were not happy with that conclusion, said one current and two former officials. In particular, the White House wanted to continue barring refugees from Somalia, Hassan's home country, for reasons that were unclear, the two former officials and a second current official said. That posed a problem: The working group had found no evidence that Somali refugees presented a unique threat.

Homeland Security officials proposed that when admissions were resumed, the government would conduct a further 90-day review of refugees from 11 countries, including Somalia. During that time, refugees from the countries would remain effectively blocked.

Some members of the working group felt the additional review  which directly affected thousands of refugees  was unnecessary, designed solely to satisfy White House officials.

Waldman, the Homeland Security spokeswoman, disputed that assessment. 'The further 90-day review was proposed for absolutely no other reason than to ensure a risk-based approach to the security enhancements,' she said.

The 11 countries  Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Mali, North Korea, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen  had been identified as potential threats as far back as the early 2000s, and their refugees had long been subject to more rigorous screening. But previous administrations still admitted refugees from those countries. Between 2002 and 2016, they accounted for 36 per cent of US refugees.

Since the end of the 90-day review, when admissions of refugees from the 11 nations were supposed to continue with additional screening, refugees from the countries have made up fewer than two per cent of admissions.

Through September 10, 564 refugees from the countries have been admitted since the start of the fiscal year in October, a 98 per cent decrease over the same period in 2016, when nearly 34,000 refugees from the 11 countries came to America.

Fatuma Diriye, who cannot read or write, does not follow the details of US policymaking. Her son, who does, realized the new procedures posed huge obstacles for his mother.

'I lost a lot of hope that I had before,' he said.

Backlog

Diriye had cleared all the security screening required in 2016, but now she must undergo an additional advanced check known as a Security Advisery Opinion. That type of vetting previously was required just for men from the 11 targeted countries.

The online portal that tracks Diriye's case now says her security status is 'in process,' but she doesn't know what that means. When the refugee group assisting the family inquired about Diriye's status last month, they were told only that her case is 'on hold pending further review'.

One primary source of the long delays, five current or former officials told Reuters, is the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which shares responsibility with other intelligence agencies for Security Advisery Opinions, the extra background checks now required of most refugees from the 11 countries.

In May, the State Department limited requests for the advanced checks to 500 per month globally, according to a State Department memo reviewed by Reuters. The memo cited an increasing 'backlog' as the reason for the limit, without mentioning the FBI.

The cap has effectively kept a large portion of refugees from the 11 countries from progressing beyond the first stages of the refugee process.

Asked about its role in the vetting process, an FBI spokeswoman said the agency's 'primary focus is to protect the United States from national security and criminal threats'.

A State Department spokesman said improvements in the refugee vetting process have 'had a direct impact on how quickly security checks can be conducted'.

'A horrible, horrible misstep'

Some Pentagon officials have expressed alarm to the White House and other agencies about how the new screening measures are affecting one category of refugees: Iraqis who helped the United States in battle.

These Pentagon officials say such admissions provide a lifeline to people who risked their lives assisting the United States. As of September 7, just 48 Iraqi refugees with US affiliations had been admitted this fiscal year, according to State Department data. More than 3,000 were admitted last year and about 5,100 in 2016.

During a White House meeting last month, FBI officials revealed that their screening had turned up suspicious information on 87 of 88 US-affiliated Iraqis who recently underwent background checks, a far higher hit rate than in the past, according to two officials with knowledge of the meeting. But it is unclear even to people inside the government how the FBI's processes have changed, they said. The FBI spokeswoman declined to give information on vetting processes, saying only that the agency 'takes the necessary time to thoroughly review all the information available'.

One Iraqi interpreter, who worked for the US Army for years and was approved for refugee status, described the obstacles he has faced since Trump took office. His account, provided on condition of anonymity, was confirmed by records from a court case against the administration in which he is a plaintiff and by two US veterans who worked with him.

After being targeted by militants opposed to the US in Iraq, the man fled to Egypt in 2014 and applied for refugee status. In late 2016, he was accepted.

Trump's travel ban delayed his plans. He persisted, however, filing additional paperwork and undergoing new medical exams, and last September was again cleared for travel. Then came the 90-day review of Iraqis and others from the 11 countries. When that lifted, the interpreter said, he was asked to provide information for additional vetting, including 10 years' worth of travel history, residential addresses, email addresses, phone numbers and information about his wife, children and brother  a daunting challenge, he said, given the turmoil in Iraq.

'I can't tell you how exhausting it was,' he told Reuters. 'In Iraq, for a period of time, it was hard to keep a phone number.'

Months after submitting the information, he is still in limbo and fears being deported by Egypt.

Not admitting the interpreter is 'just a horrible, horrible misstep for national security', said Chris Brusznicki, a US Army veteran who worked with him in Iraq. People like him, Brusznicki said, 'keep Americans from coming home in coffins'.

Sidelined

Each September, the president must determine the maximum number of refugees the United States will admit during the next fiscal year. Last year, Trump set the cap at 45,000, the lowest since the modern refugee programme was established in 1980. State Department data suggests it is unlikely actual admissions will reach half that number, if they continue at the current rate.

With October a few weeks away, the administration now must decide next year's ceiling. In early meetings, the Pentagon and State Department have supported maintaining a cap of 45,000, one current and one former official said. Refugee advocates fear it will be set lower.

In part, that is because two advocates for the refugee programme will not participate in the discussions this year: Jennifer Arangio, until July a senior staffer at the National Security Council, and Lawrence Bartlett, a career State Department official who has served in Republican and Democratic administrations.

Arangio worked on Trump's election campaign, but on refugees she found herself in opposition to Miller, Hamilton and their allies, three people who worked with her said, because she supported a higher cap than they wanted.

She was turned down for positions she hoped to get at the State Department, including in the bureau that handles refugees, said two people familiar with her departure. In July, she was fired from her NSC job. Arangio declined to comment.

Bartlett was removed as director of US refugee admissions late last year. He is now posted to Turkey, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Both Bartlett and the State Department declined to comment on his removal. Sarah Breen, a spokeswoman for the agency's Inspector General, said her office is 'conducting a review of allegations of political retaliation against Department of State employees'.

Hassan and his family are learning to navigate their new life. They live in a modest apartment furnished with donations. He has a driver's licence and a job on the overnight shift at an Amazon warehouse, and his English is improving. Last month, Hassan's wife gave birth to their third child, a girl. They take the older children to a nearby park to ride bicycles.

But he worries about his family in Kenya. Diriye, her husband and Hassan's 10-year-old brother and 14-year-old sister remain in a two-room shelter at the Kakuma camp, home to nearly 150,000 refugees. Their home has no running water or electricity. They survive on UN-supplied rations and whatever money Hassan can send each month.

Diriye does not know when or if she will meet her new granddaughter. Recently, the online portal tracking her case had additional information: Her required medical exam was no longer current and needed to be repeated, but she must wait to be contacted about a new appointment.

'Please be patient,' it says.
Paper on the ground. Paper scattered on desks. Paper with coffee stains and paper with inscrutable scribbles. At your local elected official's office, chances are, there's going to be paper everywhere.

The job consumes a lot of paper. There are agendas running hundreds of pages, countless subcommittees producing reports, bureaucratic agencies analyzing the legal viability of a four-unit housing project. In city halls all over California, the office printer gets a good workout.

One must look no further than our own backyard of San Francisco, where the Board of Supervisors printed north of 350,000 pages in the 2018 fiscal year, stretching from July 1, 2017, to June 30, 2018. That's right  350,000 pages in one year, costing a little over $30,000 in taxpayer money.

SFGATE filed a public records request last month and unearthed the aforementioned numbers. A little background: the supervisors split the cost of leasing a Ricoh printer, which runs each supervisor $1837.52 each, per year. On top of that, each supervisor pays $0.0065 a page for black-and-white printing and $0.055 a page for color copies.

Take Supervisor Sandra Lee Fewer, who represents the Richmond District. Fewer's office led all offices in both total pages and total cost incurred. In the 2018 fiscal year, Fewer's office printed nearly 48,000 pages at a cost of $3016.42 to the city, including her split of the lease. (Only $12 more than District 2, Fewer is quick to point out.)

The supervisor spoke with SFGATE this week to explain her high printing costs. She said that her office hosts frequent community meetings on tsunami safety or Outside Lands or the Autumn Moon festival with attendance running into the hundreds. Many of her constituents also speak Russian and Chinese, requiring printing in a number of different languages. Ninety-five percent of her printing costs, she estimates, come from materials for these community meetings.

"I'd say we don't abuse our printing costs; I think our printing is instrumental to getting information out to our constituents," Fewer told SFGATE. "I think if you called other offices, they probably don't go out as much as we do and translate things into multiple languages and hold as many community meetings."

Fewer thinks the unique geographical design of her district  the Richmond is naturally bordered by Golden Gate Park, the ocean and the Presidio  means a community more engaged on the same issues than the average supervisorial district.

Supervisor Norman Yee, on the other hand, can point to his health for the 44,475 pages printed last fiscal year.

"Our office prints Board and Committee agendas, briefing packets and reports, flyers for community events our office is hosting, and emails for constituent issues with a longer history for reference," Jarlene Chow, an aide to Yee, wrote in an email to SFGATE. "Given [Supervisor] Yee's eyesight, it is easier for him to read it on paper, than on the computer."

Let's return to District 2, which, as promised to Supervisor Fewer, SFGATE would investigate. Yes, the legislators representing the Marina finished just $12 behind Supervisor Fewer last year, but that belies the truth of affairs.

Mark Farrell, who served for the first seven months of the fiscal year, left to serve as interim mayor in February. (You may remember this controversy.) Catherine Stefani took his place for the final five months and proceeded to blow every other supervisor out of the water on a rate basis. Stefani racked up $1458.50 in just five months; extrapolated to a full year, that means over $3,500 in printer costs, far outpacing Fewer's $3016.24.

(For a comprehensive list of each supervisor's printing records, check out the slideshow above.)

SFGATE spoke with Stefani's aide, Wyatt Donnelly-Landolt, about Stefani's outsized printing costs. Donnelly-Landolt explained that the Stefani office is particularly research-heavy; on any given day, he might be printing an MTA 10-year-plan, or a Public Works report running hundreds of pages, or a dispatch from a civil grand jury. Lots of policy writing means lots of printing.

He also chalks up the high costs, partially, to the transition from Farrell to Stefani.

"When Supervisor Stefani took office, she wanted to get caught up on all the issues," Donnelly-Landolt said. "We were printing a lot of reports, trying to get all our records set, transferring things from Supervisor Farrell to her."

SFGATE asked Donnelly-Landolt whether he saw a way to reduce printing costs, or whether the hundreds of thousands of pages produced by the Board every year was simply part of the job.

"I think there's definitely a lot of printing that does need to be done," Donnelly-Landolt says. "You need documents in front of you at board meetings, and these documents can be hundreds of pages, and going through them electronically can be challenging."
3 1 of 3 Brittany Sowacke / Bloomberg Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Brittany Sowacke /Bloomberg Show More Show Less 3 of 3





A Washington investment firm is partnering with Diamondback Energy in a $620 million deal to finance Midland oil and gas driller's development of the Southern Delaware Basin.

The Carlyle Group will fund up to 85 percent of Diamondback energy's development of oil and gas assets in the San Pedro area of Pecos County in the Permian Basin over the next five years. The money will come from Carlyle Energy Mezzanine Opportunities Fund II L.P.
As politics takes centre stage over the falling price of Indian rupee against US Dollar, the government of Maharashtra is anticipating that the domestic currency would further dip to 80 mark against the greenback.

The state government on Tuesday published a corrigendum for procuring a new chopper for Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis, where the it corrected the earlier price of rupee from 70 to 80 per US dollar. The earlier notification was issued on May 8, 2018. India Today is in possession of the latest corrigendum dated September 11, 2018.

After Devendra Fadnavis miraculously escaped a helicopter mishap in Latur last year, followed by a couple of similar technical snags, the state government had decided to buy a Sikorsky S76-D helicopter for him. The notification in this regard was issued on May 8, 2018. The initial cost mentioned in the first notification was Rs 127.11 crore. Now with the fall in rupee, the state govt has anticipated that the rupee will further fall to 80 rupees and the new cost of the chopper would shoot up to Rs 145.27 crore.

The corrigendum issue by the General Administration department (GAD) mentions that the change is being made due to the rise in the value of US dollar as compared to the rupee.

Meanwhile, the change in chopper's price has already led to politicking as Mumbai congress President Sanjay Nirupam has raised doubts over the whole purchase. "Either the govt accepts that the rupee is going to fall further or else the steep rise on the price smells of a scam", Nirupam said.

Leader of opposition in the legislative assembly, Radha krishna Vikhe Patil, slammed the government, saying that the priority of the government should now be to bring down fuel prices and provide relief to common man and not buying helicopters.
Crude touched $80 a barrel in London for the first time since May amid signs that global supplies are rapidly shrinking.

Brent futures rose 0.9 percent on Wednesday, while the U.S. crude benchmark added 1.6 percent. U.S. efforts to isolate Iran have disrupted shipments from OPEC's No. 3 supplier at the same time that American crude stockpiles dwindled to a 3 1/2-year low. Meanwhile, Hurricane Florence threatened East Coast fuel markets.

"What you're seeing is a tightening inventory picture from the Iranian sanctions globally," said Nick Holmes, an analyst at Tortoise in Leawood, Kansas, which manages $16 billion in energy-related assets.

As investors assessed the impact of Iranian sanctions, the unanswered question is whether mega-producers Saudi Arabia and Russia will jump in to fill supply gaps. Russia said it has the capacity to set a new oil-production record but won't decide whether the market needs those additional supplies before a meeting later this month with its OPEC allies.

West Texas Intermediate for October delivery climbed $1.12 to settle at $70.37 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest in more than seven weeks. Total volume traded was about 56 percent above the 100-day average.

Brent for November settlement advanced 68 cents to end the session at $79.74 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange, after earlier rising to as high as $80.13. The global benchmark traded at a $9.58 premium to WTI for the same month.

Florence, which is still more than 700 miles from the coast, is expected to make landfall late Thursday or early Friday and then stall, dropping as much as 30 inches of rain on North Carolina.

Gasoline futures rose 1 percent to settle at $2.0348 a gallon, the highest in more than a week.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Wednesday that domestic crude inventories fell by 5.3 million barrels last week partly due to a rise in exports. Meanwhile, gasoline and diesel stockpiles increased.

"Everybody's worried about Iranian oil supply and the U.S. inventory drop," said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research in Winchester, Massachusetts. "We're heading for a tight supply situation."

Other oil-market news:

OPEC highlighted a range of risks brewing in the global economy that could hurt oil demand as ministers prepared for a meeting on production policy, marking a shift from last month's outlook.

Iran is starting to store oil in its fleet of supertankers as U.S. pressure forces the Persian Gulf country to revive a strategy it deployed under previous curbs.

America likely overtook Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world's biggest oil producer earlier this year, according to the EIA.

2018 Bloomberg L.P.
BRIDGEPORT  Often-controversial Board of Education member Maria Pereira has been arrested after a Success Village Apartments Board of Directors meeting got out of hand.

The Wednesday night meeting concerned the removal of five Success Village board members. Sources said Pereira was supporting one of the board members being removed.

The meeting had nothing to do with the school board. And Pereira, 51, is not a resident of Success Village; she lives on Nutmeg Road, according to city records.

Pereira was charged with criminal trespass, breach of peace and interfering with an officer and her bond was set at $5,000, which she posted, and is scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 18.

She did not immediately respond to a request for a comment.

Angel Figueroa, who operates the Facebook page Success Village 411, said that Pereira was there to support one of the board members who was about to be kicked off the panel, Samia Suliman, who was the vice-president of the board.

(Pereira) had come to our meetings before  and she doesnt even live here, Figueroa said. And we decided that we had enough, so we called the police for help  she pretty much forced her way into our meetings.

Confrontation

Also arrested was Lisa Moragne, 59, of Hemlock Avenue, West Haven, who was charged with interfering with an officer and breach of peace

Police were called to Success Village at 6:13 p.m. on a report of a disturbance involving as many as 90 people there to vote on the removal of the elected Village board members, including Moragne.

When the crowd was asked to leave, police said, Pereira refused.

Pereira stated among other things, I have a right to be here,  the police report states. But some at the meeting took issue with this statement, because shes not a resident of the co-op complex.

When she did leave, police said, Pereira turned around quickly, swinging her arms, almost striking the arresting officer in the face with a black object. Police said they feared it was a weapon, but it turned out to be a cell phone.

Pereira was handcuffed and placed in the rear of a patrol vehicle. Moragne was arrested, too, when she too refused to leave, police said.

School Board Chairman John Weldon said he was extraordinarily disappointed by reports of the incident.

Elected school board members should take every effort conduct themselves in a manner which is a model to the staff, students and parents they serve, Weldon said. Moving forward, it is my hope that Ms. Pereira will be able resolve her current situation in a manner expected of someone in the position she holds.

Contentious history

Pereira is no stranger to controversy. Her tenure on the school board has included a boycott by other members in a failed attempt to get her to resign. She once disrupted a school board Finance Committee meeting by blasting the song Fight the Power, from her cell phone when she was unhappy with the agenda. The committee consisted of the three board members who stood by her during the boycott.

Former Interim Schools Superintendent Fran Rabinowitz resigned in late 2016 saying Pereira was waging a negative crusade to undermine and discredit much of what we have built for children in this school district.

Pereira was first elected to the school board in 2009 and her first term was interrupted by a failed state takeover of the panel. When the state supreme court ruled the takeover was illegal, she returned to finish out her term then did not seek re-election until 2015.

Pereira was one of three petition candidates who succeeded in winning the Democratic primary and then general election.

In 2016, Pereira lost a primary bid to be the Democratic candidate to represent the 126th District in the state House of Representatives.

The residents of Success Village have been upset with their governing board over, among other things, an increase in their common charges. The complex is in Bridgeports East End, on the Stratford town line.

After things quieted down Wednesday night, the meeting reconvened and five of the Success Village board members were removed: Gamaliel Samayoa, Ekaterina Frank, Moragne, Suliman and Thieu Tran. They were replaced by a new slate of board members.
A woman was recently arrested for leaving her 13-year-old son home alone, according to Laredo police.

Adriana Plaza, 33, was arrested on the charge of child abandonment by criminal negligence. She is out on bond from the Webb County Jail.

READ ALSO: LPD: Woman bites, assaults man after he receives call from another female

On Aug. 26, officers responded to reports of an intoxicated woman at about 1:30 a.m. by Albany and Rancho Viejo drives. They encountered a 13-year-old boy who told them that his mother, Plaza, was intoxicated and left him home alone, according to LPD. He further stated that she had returned home but left him home alone again, police said.

He tried to follow her, but she allegedly yelled at him to leave her alone.

RELATED: LPD: Mother arrested after not seeking medical attention for infant who had fever for days

Officers said they canvassed the area and found Plaza laying on the street by the side of a residence. While speaking to her, officers noted that she smelled of alcohol and her speech was slurred.

Officers asked her if she was aware that her son was out looking for her.

"Take him. I'm not crazy. I don't care," she told police, according to LPD.
MIDDLETOWN  The state will soon begin a three-year project to erect an 8-foot high anti-suicide barrier along the entire length of the Charles J. Arrigoni Bridge as part of an overhaul expected to extend the spans usability by 40 years.

The state Department of Transportation is incorporating these preventative measures, which will replace the current railings and add 3 feet of height to the current 5-foot high ones, into its upcoming rebuild of the spans undergirding.

The walls would consist of thin wire mesh or non-clingable wire fencing, according to the DOT.

The $37 million project on the four-lane bridge over the Connecticut River between Middletown and Portland is scheduled to start in 2019, with an anticipated completion in fall 2021. That cost does not include the price for fencing, yet to be determined by the DOT.

Police have responded to more than 80 reports of possibly suicidal people on the bridge since 2008.

It will be difficult to defeat: Anyone with any intention of either thrill seeking or harming themself would find it extraordinarily challenging to defeat the fencing. The design makes it very hard to get over, and the height, said DOT spokesman Kevin J. Nursick.

A fence thats specifically anti-suicide of this caliber, Im not sure weve done that before, he said.

The Arrigoni Bridge, built in 1938, is 3,420 feet long, and consists of two three-hinged arch spans, each 600 feet long, over the river.

Safety measures such as the fence have enjoyed success in other areas, Mayor Dan Drew said in a post Saturday on his Facebook page.

The barriers will be very similar to fencing on the new Tappan Zee Bridge, or Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, in New York, which spans the Hudson River, the mayor said.

Research shows that many suicides are impulsive. When deterred, theyre often avoided altogether, said Drew, who added officials expect it will significantly reduce suicides from the bridge.

I was shocked, after my election in 2011, to learn of how many people take their own lives there. Youd be shocked, too, if you knew, as very few are actually reported, Drew said. The police and fire departments are often up there multiple times in a week to rescue people threatening to or considering jumping.

The main spans over the river, including the superstructure above and deck below (which has 5-foot fencing) were rehabilitated in a very encompassing project completed in November 2012, Nursick said.

When were rehabilitating the approach spans, the newest standards for a structure like this would be the 8-foot fencing, along the highway lead-ups to the bridge, Nursick said. It wouldnt make a whole lot of sense to leave the main spans without the 8-foot fencing.

The work will extend the bridges service life by about 40 years with routine maintenance. Traffic lanes are expected to be reduced to one lane in each direction during the deck replacement phase for about 18 months, according to the state.

Every bridge has a life cycle. As the structure ages, the level of work being performed generally increases in intensity, said Nursick, who likened it to someone who buys a new car. While the vehicle is in its first years, maintenance entails changing the oil, tires, brakes and other routine upkeep.

By the time you get to 100,000 miles, youre going to need more of a rehabilitation project for that car  maybe get the paint fixed, get an alignment, change the transmission fluid, get the A/C serviced.

The same thing happens with a bridge. You do the routine maintenance, but, at a certain point, overwhelmingly, farther out in the life span, you have to do something a lot more substantial like a rehabilitation or a complete replacement project, Nursick said, to keep it safe and extend the useful life of the bridge.

Its costly and a lot more intensive and thats to be expected when these bridges get to that age, he said.

Before the project begins, the DOT agreed to install six suicide prevention call signs, three on each side of the structure.

Middletown and Portland police have often been called to the bridge for incidents involving people intending to harm themselves.

Middletown Capt. Sean Moriarty, who retired last month, very likely saved a teen from jumping off the Arrigoni Bridge, he said.

The girl was about 15, and during the course of their 15- to 20-minute conversation, he convinced the girl to come down, Moriarty said.

She was not looking too good, leaning over the side of the bridge. We just chatted for a while. She had some issues at home and she had been thinking about going over.

Without having to use any force  just by talking and engaging with her  I was able to get her come down and get her the help she needed, Moriarty said.

Once complete, Nursick said, the barrier will be impossible for people to breach.

Theres no way youre getting over it. Those bridges have concrete parapets that acts as a countermeasure for vehicles going over the bridge. On top of that wall, you have fencing, it may be 5 feet, but when its 5-foot fencing on top of a concrete wall its awfully high now.

Its not mountable, Nursick said, pointing to chain-link fencing, which has openings large enough for people to get hand- and footholds.

This stuff very narrow holes, theres no place to get your feet or fingers into theres no way to get over it.

Managing Editor Cassandra Day can be reached at cassandra.day@hearstmediact.com or Twitter @cassandrasdis.
The recent rains that have pelted the Houston area, coupled with high summer temperatures, provide the ideal environment for mosquitoes to breed in, according to Harris County health department officials. Because of this, more mosquitoes have plagued the Houston area this past week.

"People complain about mosquitoes all the time, [but] we live in Houston, mosquitoes are part of our habitat," Harris County Public Health Department spokesperson Martha Marquez said. "As long as there is water and there is [high] temperatures than that is the perfect recipe for mosquito breeding."

Houston's mosquito season runs from as early as April through October, so some residents will have to continue to deal with the pesky nuisances depending on what county they live in.

RAIN AHEAD: What to expect in Houston weather the rest of this week

Counties like Harris and Fort Bend take a public health approach to handling mosquitoes and typically do not respond to nuisance calls, so residents are on their own. Residents in other counties like Brazoria, Chambers and Montgomery have a little more help from the health departments there in terms of addressing the increase in mosquitoes.

Harris County

Harris County officials said the county takes a public health approach to handling mosquitoes and does not respond to nuisance calls. Additional spraying is only done if inspectors identify standing water housing mosquito larvae that constitutes as a breeding site.

"We spray for disease, we are not a pest control company," Marquez said.

Officials said the department's main priority is to identify areas with prominent disease-carrying mosquitoes and then spray those areas. The department sets traps throughout Harris County in 268 sites both above and underground in storm sewers.

Harris County residents who think they may be living near a breeding site for mosquitoes can contact the county's Public Health's Mosquito Control Division to talk with an official about scheduling property inspections. If a site is identified, officials will recommend ways to reduce the source breeding site.

LOWERING LAKE HOUSTON: Officials plan for possible tropical depression

Officials ask the public to do their part to reduce mosquitoes by removing standing water inside and outside of homes, wearing long sleeve shirts and pants and using EPA registered bug spray.

Those with more questions about identifying breeding sites in their homes and neighborhood or to see confirmed mosquito-borne disease activity by ZIP code visit the county's mosquito control division website.

Brazoria County

Brazoria County residents can request mosquito control spray services through the county's website. Residents submitting a request are asked to identify the time of day mosquitoes are most active. The county's mosquito control division has new spray truck hours of operations and operates 8 p.m.-4:30 a.m. Monday-Friday.

According the control division website, aerial spraying is done when there is a widespread outbreak of mosquitoes. Those interesting in speaking with an official from the division can call 979-864-1532.

Galveston County

Residents living in Galveston County can call the county's mosquito control department to request for an area to be sprayed. Residents can also see what areas the county has sprayed each day and the time the areas were sprayed by visiting the department's spray schedule and maps.

Chambers County

Chambers County residents can request for their neighborhood to be sprayed by filling out a service request form online. According to the county website, the mosquito control department uses an average of 10,000 gallons of spray each year to cover 625,000 acres through aircraft services. Find more information on Chambers County mosquitoes here.

WEST NILE: Virus found in Stafford mosquito trap

Montgomery County

Montgomery County residents experiencing a mosquito problem can fill out a complaint form to the county's environmental health services department.

Fort Bend County

Fort Bend County's Road and Bridge and Health and Human Services Departments allow residents to track the locations and logs of vehicles that spray for mosquitoes throughout the county. The county lists specific instructions to log into the system and determine if an area has been sprayed.

Officials from the county's HHSD said like Harris County, it takes a public service approach to mosquito maintenance and does not respond to nuisance calls. Officials said residents can call the county's Road and Bridge department, which coordinates mosquito spraying services, to issue a complaint but cannot guarantee that more spraying services will be completed.

Rebecca Hennes covers community news. Read her on the breaking news site chron.com and the subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com. | Follow her on Twitter: @beccaghennes.
Houstonians searching for new homes outside their city are most likely to be eyeing Austin or Chicago, according to real estate website Redfin.

The percentage of Redfin users from Houston searching for homes in other cities has increased in the past year -- 25.2 percent up from 24.1 percent.
Embattled businessman Vijay Mallya told reporters outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country and offered to settle his dues with the Indian banks. The London court was hearing the closing arguments in the extradition case against Mallya on Wednesday, as well as review the video of jail cell prepared for him by the Indian authorities.

"I left (India) because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle (the dues) with the banks," Mallya said while talking to reporters outside Westminster Magistrates' Court.

Mallya reportedly told the court the same thing during his hearing today. He, however, refused to divulge any further details about his conversation with the Finance Minister. Mallya has tried to resolve matters with the Indian government while staying in the United Kingdom, which was turned down by the latter.

In response to Mallya's statement, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that the businessman's claim are "factually false" as it does not reflect the truth. "Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise. However, since he was a Member of Rajya Sabha and he occasionally attended the House, he misused that privilege on one occasion while I was walking out of the House to go to my room. He paced up to catch up with me and while walking uttered a sentence that "I am making an offer of settlement". Having been fully briefed about his earlier "bluff offers", without allowing him to proceed with the conversation, I curtly told him there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers," Jaitley said in a Facebook post following Mallya's statement.

On being asked why the government and the banks are still on his case despite his settlement offer, Mallya put the ball in the banks' court. "It might interest you to know, banks have filed objections in the court on my settlement application. You should ask them are they not supporting me in my efforts to repay them," Mallya told the reporters.

On being asked how he plans to repay the banks with his assets being frozen, Mallya said that the decision in this regard will have to be taken by the Enforcement Directorate.

"I am a scapegoat. I feel like a scapegoat," Mallya said.

The bench of Emma Arbuthnot is likely to take a final call on handing over Mallya to Indian authorities after reviewing the video on Barrack 12 of Arthur Road jail in Mumbai. This is the prison cell where Mallya will be housed before and during trial, as well as in the event of his conviction by the Indian courts.

Also Read:Vijay Mallya extradition hearing today: London court to review Mumbai jail video

Mallya has been out on bail on the extradition warrant since his arrest in UK last April. He has been engaged in a legal battle over his extradition to India on charges of banking fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore. The Enforcement Directorate is vying to declare Mallya a fugitive economic offender and confiscate his assets worth Rs 12,500 crore.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4 last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Vijay Mallya. It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged loan default of Rs 9,000 crore.

Also Read:Vijay Mallya watches India-England match, says court will decide his return to India

Edited by Vivek Punj
Houston-born rapper Travis Scott has been showing Houston some major love in recent months with the debut of his new "Astroworld" album complete with many homages to the Bayou City.

He also recently gave away $100,000 to fans who were willing to tweet a lyric from the new album.

Now, he's back at it again after seeing a tweet from Sandra Vasquez, a senior at Eisenhower High School asking permission to use some of his album art for the class of 2019 shirts.

LOVE FOR HOUSTON: Were Travis Scott and Drake in Houston filming a music video?

It didn't take long for Scott to see the tweet, and instead of just giving permission for the school to use the design, he offered to go ahead and design the shirts instead.

According to Vasquez, the senior class wants to take up Scott's offer, but it still has to be approved by the principal.

Vasquez was unable to say when the design would be approved or denied. Chron.com reached out to the school for more information and will update this story when it becomes available.

Take a look through the gallery above to see some of the Houston references made in Scott's new album.

Daniela Sternitzky- Di Napoli is a digital producer covering Texas news and pop culture. | Daniela.DiNapoli@chron.com | @Dani_DiNapoli
The city of Dayton continues to recover from a dip in taxes revenue fueled by the oil slump a few years ago, but with a proposed rate increase for FY 2019, the city should come closer to recovery.

The new proposed tax rate is $0.6821 cent per $100 valuation, which is nearly 3 cents more that last years rate of $0.6557 cent per $100 valuation. The proposed rate is also just below the rollback rate of $0.6821 cent per $100 valuation.

The need to raise taxes was precipitated by the fall in oil prices and the downturn it caused in the economy, city officials said. The issues came to a head two years ago.

In 2017, the city ran a deficit budget when council decided not to raise the tax rate to the highest amount they could have without triggering a rollback election that year. City officials decided to keep the rate at 65 cents per $100 valuation to limit the pressure residents are facing with increasing valuations, city officials said.

The main product in the rail cars are those plastic pellets made from petroleum. As the values go down, it goes down to the tune of $130 million, said Assistant City Manager Rudy Zepeda.

He said the railyards hold as much as 40 percent of the citys value.

The last two years, the city has been trying to get back on track with the recovery from that loss and thats the reason for the 2.6 percent increase in the tax rate.

The increase would mean an additional $9.70 on a $100,000 home, Zepeda said.

The money would generate approximately $190,000 in new revenue for the city but would be used to help the city with coming growth.

Two new safety officers would be hired for the police department, two additional staff in the planning department to help expedite permits, and a full-time clerk would be added to the courts.

We have streets that have a lot of accidents and it straps the police department to do the investigations and then at the same time try to patrol the neighborhoods, said City Manager Theo Melancon. Adding staff would increase that ability. The city added two in the police department and two in planning last year as well.

Public safety has been something we wanted to tackle in the community, he said.

Zepeda also said that there would be another staff member added for IT.

As we establish more locations and increase our network capability and make things more efficient, we need to have additional personnel to help support that technology infrastructure.

A cursory comparison of the 2018 budget from last year to this year shows numerous changes, so much to the point it almost didnt look the same.

Zepeda explained many of those were either budget amendments or changes made in the new software.

Part of the adjustments have been because weve changed systems from Assist to Incode, he said. Weve had to consolidate and were moving a lot of money into different categories to prepare for the Fiscal Year 2019.

Zepeda said they were approved council changes from throughout the year 2018 now reflected in the 2019 budget proposal side-by-side.

There are some major benefits in the city moving to a new accounting system, one being tracking.

One of the most important assets of an accounting system is that you can track every individual user with an audit trail, he said. I can look at any individual user and see what they have touched in the entire system. If theyve changed, deleted, or included cash that theyve received, he said.

The former system, Assist, didnt have those capabilities.

Zepeda said the new system isnt as user-friendly, but it offers many more options.

An accounting system is only as good as youre able to produce reports out of it, Zepeda said. In the old system, Zepeda had to manually generate the reports or extract into Excel.

It makes it incumbent upon the system to generate the report and not the individual where there could be human error, the assistant city manager said.

Some of the changes were intradepartmental while others were interdepartmental, but all necessary to be able to break down expenses and revenue within departments and produce reports.

Melancon said the city was preparing to do an in-house assessment of every street in the city.

Well grade each street. This is an F street, or this is an A street. Then how do we get it on the capital improvement plan and address it in an orderly fashion, he said.

They will also be in meetings with the school district to discern any impact on the citys plan to extend Waco Street to 321.

We think that would alleviate a lot of traffic in the middle of town, Melancon said.

The budget and tax rate are expected to be approved at the next council meeting.

dtaylor@hcnonline.com
Theater

 da Kink in My Hair

Life in a hair salon. Presented by Ensemble Theatre. Opens Thursday; $36-$50; 3535 Main; 713-520-0055, ensemblehouston.org.

Dominique Morisseau play about the Detroit working class. Presented by Alley Theatre. 8 p.m. Friday, 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. ThSkeleton Crewursday, through Oct. 7; $45-$65; 615 Texas; 713-220-5700, alleytheatre.org.

Jesus Hopped the A Train

Stephen Adly Guirgis dark comedy/drama about two prisoners facing murder charges. Presented by 4th Wall Theatre Company. 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, through Sept. 29; $17-$53; Studio 101, 1824 Spring; 832-786-1849, 4thwalltheatreco.com.

Oklahoma!

Update on the 1943 classic. Presented by Theatre Under The Stars. 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, through Sept. 23; $30-$104; Hobby Center, 800 Bagby; 713-558-8887, tuts.com.

Violet

Award-winning musical about a girl with a scar. Presented by Queensbury Theatre. 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, through Sept. 23; $21-$49; Queensbury Theatre, 12777 Queensbury Lane; 713-467-4497, queensburytheatre.org.

The Moors

Jen Silvermans Victorian-novel-inspired dark comedy. Presented by Mildreds Umbrella. 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday; pay what you can, $25 suggested; Chelsea Market Theater, 4617 Montrose, No. 100; 832-463-0409, mildredsumbrella.com.

Classical/Opera

Mahlers Resurrection Symphony

Andres Orozco-Estrada conducts, with soprano Nicole Heaston. Presented by Houston Symphony. 8 p.m. Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday; Jones Hall, 615 Louisiana; $25-$136; 713-224-4240, houstonsymphony.org.

Dance

The Sky Was Wild With Sunshine

The Pilot Dance Project premieres Ashley Horns new work about compassion and humanity; part of the Houston Fringe Festival. 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday. $15; MATCH, 3400 Main; 713-521-4533, matchouston.org.
14 PEWS

1001 Bissonnet; mfah.org

The Gospel According to Andre

Filmmaker Kate Novack explores the life and career of fashion journalist Andre Leon Talley. 7 p.m. Friday

MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, HOUSTON

1001 Bissonnet; mfah.org

Persona

A nurse is put in charge of a mute actress and finds that their personae are melding together. 7 p.m. Friday

Cries & Whispers

When a woman dying of cancer is visited by her two sisters, long-repressed feelings between the siblings rise to the surface. 7 p.m. Saturday

Liv & Ingmar

The 42-year long relationship between legendary actress Liv Ullmann and master filmmaker Ingmar Bergman. 3 p.m. Sunday Autumn Sonata

A married daughter, who longs for her mothers love, is visited by the latter, a successful concert pianist. 5 p.m. Sunday

ALAMO DRAFTHOUSE CINEMA

2707 Commercial Center, Katy; drafthouse.com/houston

Fight Club

An insomniac office worker and a devil-may-care soapmaker form an underground fight club that evolves into something more. 7:30 p.m. Friday

Ferris Buellers Day Off

A high school student is determined to have a day off from school, despite what the principal thinks. 7:30 p.m. Saturday

Drunken Master

A mischievous, yet righteous, young man is disciplined by a notoriously intoxicated martial-arts master. 10 p.m. Saturday

Coherence

Strange things begin to happen when a group of friends gather for a dinner party on an evening when a comet is passing overhead. 4 p.m. Sunday

The Outsiders

The rivalry between two gangs heats up when one gang member kills a member of the other. 1:15 and 6 p.m. Sunday

Joysticks

Video-arcade employees fight back when a top local businessman and his two bumbling nephews try to shut them down. 10 p.m. Wednesday

American Graffiti

A couple of high school grads spend one final night cruising the strip with their buddies before they go off to college. 7:30 p.m. Thursday

MEMORIAL CITY MALL

303 Memorial City Way; memorialcity.com

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

The daughter of an Imperial scientist joins the Rebel Alliance in a risky move to steal plans for the Death Star. 8 p.m. Friday

HOUSTON MUSEUM OF NATURAL SCIENCE

5555 Hermann Park Drive; hmns.org

Pandas 3D

In Sichuan, China, a researcher forms a bond with a panda that is about to experience nature for the first time. Multiple screenings daily.

Hurricane 3D

A storm forms off the coast of West Africa and grows as it crosses the Atlantic. Multiple screenings daily.

Oceans: Our Blue Planet 3D

A journey of discovery, transporting the audience to the mysterious world of Earths oceans. Multiple screenings daily.

RIVER OAKS THEATRE

2009 W. Gray; landmarktheatres.com

A Hard Days Night

A typical day in the life of The Beatles, including many of their famous songs. Midnight Friday and Saturday

RICE CINEMA

6100 Main; film.rice.edu

Dirt Rich

Documentary explores strategies that restabilize atmospheric carbon levels and revitalize the soil in an effort to reverse the effects of runaway global warming. 6:30 p.m. Wednesday
This week Houston rap fans were in a lather with rumors that rappers Travis Scott and Drake were in the Bayou City filming a video for Scott's cut "SICKO MODE" from his August album release "Astroworld".

The rumor began making the rounds on hip-hop blogs earlier this week. The only indication a video was being shot was a photo posted on Scott's official Instagram story of the rapper wearing a brown suit with the word's "Video Mode" on the screen.

HOUSTON HISTORY: A primer on AstroWorld, the inspiration for Houston rapper Travis Scott's new album

A spokesperson for the Houston Film Commission didn't have a comment on the rumored music video shoot here in Houston featuring the two chart-topping rappers.

That doesn't mean they aren't in town shooting something together though. If the pair were shooting footage on a Houston city street, or in a public place, there is no doubt that Houston social media would capture it. They would also need city approval too.

According to the Houston Film Commission, filmmakers don't need a filming permit in Houston, per se, but productions do need to acquire the necessary permits regarding sound, street closures, security, and production plans. The video could have very well been shot on a closed set behind closed doors.

LISTENING STATION: There's a song on Travis Scott's 'Astroworld' album called 'Houstonfornication'

Drake was due to be in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday night for the first of two shows at the Capital One Arena. Scott's first-ever Astroworld Festival is scheduled to go off on Nov. 17 at NRG Park.

With the invention of air travel it's entirely possible the pair were or are in Houston shooting a music video this week. We'll just have to wait for something to premiere on YouTube, or wherever else people currently consume music videos.

Craig Hlavaty covers Houston history and pop-culture. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com. | craig.hlavaty@chron.com
Makers of the CBS-TV comedy "Young Sheldon," a spin-off from the hit series "The Big Bang Theory," are issuing grants to 19 schools in Texas and California to support their STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) programs.

Producer Chuck Lorre's The Chuck Lorre Family Foundation has launched the Young Sheldon Stem Initiative, which will offer more than $600,000 in two-year grants to a variety of elementary, middle and high schools. Texas and California were chosen because the series is set in East Texas and filmed in Burbank, Calif.
For weeks chef Ronnie Killen has been teasing his social media fans with mouth-watering photos of classic Tex-Mex dishes he's been recipe-testing and hints of a Killen's-branded restaurant where he can play out his tacos/enchiladas/tamale dreams.

That day has come. Killen told the Chronicle Wednesday that he has signed a lease for a new restaurant in Pearland, Killen's TMX, at 9330 Broadway, about a mile west of his Killen's Steakhouse. Already under construction, Killen's TMX is expected to open in November; when it does it will bring to four the number of restaurants that Killen operates in the Houston suburb (including Killen's Steakhouse, Killen's Barbecue and Killen's Burgers).

For months, Killen has been using his barbecue joint as a sort of incubator for his Tex-Mex quest. He's snuck smoked chicken enchiladas, brisket enchiladas, brisket tacos and quesadillas onto the dinner menu to gauge his customers' interest in smoked meats-stoked Tex-Mex classics. The dishes -- most presented with his own takes on Mexican rice, charro beans, guacamole and roasted tomato salsa  have been a hit.

And that's what Killen says he hopes his TMX will be, too.

"Tex-Mex has never been so popular. In Texas, it's Tex-Mex, barbecue and burgers," he said. "That's Texas comfort food. You can't go wrong."

Well, you can. But Killen has proven he has the touch since expanding beyond the steakhouse brand that brought him nationwide acclaim. Now his barbecue is considered among the state's best; the burger joint is killing it; and his Killen's STQ in Houston has earned respect as a thoughtful merger between his steakhouse and barbecue passions.

He's been stewing on his Tex-Mex plans like a long-simmering guisada, stoked on by his 16-year-old son, Cameron, who has been imploring Killen to open a Tex-Mex. Cameron, apparently, is a big fan of his father's enchiladas.

Only at HoustonChronicle.com: Breakfast at Killen's Barbecue with Ronnie Killen [podcast]

Killen told the Chronicle in June that a Tex-Mex restaurant was imminent. Since then he's been working on recipes and for all manner of classic dishes. But he also wants to pay homage to traditional Mexican foods and has even traveled to Mexico for research and cooking classes.

Killen's TMX will occupy a 5,700-squre-foot space and will have seating for about 150. It will serve both lunch and dinner.

Greg Morago writes about food for the Houston Chronicle. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter. Send him news tips at greg.morago@chron.com. Follow him on the podcast BBQ State of Mind to learn about Houston and Texas barbecue culture.
The city of Houston may begin pre-releasing water from Lake Houston depending on the progression of tropical activity heading toward the Gulf of Mexico.

Houston Public Works is monitoring tropical development approaching the Gulf of Mexico labeled by the National Hurricane Center as Invest 95L, states a city press release. If the storm develops, Houston Water is preparing for the potential of a pre-release of water to lower Lake Houston later this week.

The Tropical Weather Outlook Text on the NHC website stated as of 1 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 12, there is a 70 percent chance that a tropical depression will develop before reaching the coast on Thursday, Sept. 12.

Multiple agencies have partnered together to prepare for rain events this hurricane season.

MORE GATES: City of Houston seeks funding to add 10 Lake Houston gates

Weve been prepared since last week for rains this weekend and in the long term, said Cory Stottlemyer, public information officer with the Office of Emergency Management.

Agencies will continue tracking the development. No matter what, Stottlemyer said, additional rain is expected, which may lead to likely street flooding.

Well probably start seeing impacts starting (Thursday, Sept. 13,) Stottlemyer said. Were expecting about 2-4 inches of rain from Thursday to Sunday. In isolated areas, there could be higher amounts, which could result in street flooding.

He said agencies are prepared for rain events through the weekend.

YEAR LATER: 85 percent of Lake Houston area businesses reopen after Harvey

The Houston Fire Department has staged high water vehicles and rescue boats in areas, and the Houston Police Department has done the same thing, Stottlemyer said. Houston Public Works staged barricades throughout the city. The Emergency Operations Center is not active right now. As we get more concrete facts from the National Weather Service, well start making more quick decisions.

According to Erin Jones, Houston Public Works public information officer, the determination to lower Lake Houston may be made closer to the weekend.

As it develops, Mayor (Sylvester) Turner is keeping the public informed, Jones said.

If a pre-release is deemed necessary, Lake Houston may be lowered 12 to 18 inches and residents around the lake are urged to prepare accordingly.

Property owners should make arrangements for boats and other items along the shoreline, states the press release.

Stottlemyer explained that the goal right now is to keep the public informed and prepared  not on edge.

We encourage people to sign-up for Alert Houston and also for direct notifications from the Office of Emergency Management to get those sent directly to your phone through text message, email and phone call, Stottlemyer said. Staying alert is what were encouraging. Also, people can visit www.readyhoustontx.gov to have plans in place for whatever comes through here this hurricane season.

mfeuk@hcnonline.com
Burly Q Lounge

Show features local and touring burlesque performers, stand-up comics, musicians, showgirls, games and circus tricks.

When: 7 p.m. Friday

Where: Warehouse Live, 813 St. Emanuel

Details: $25; kikimaroon.com

DeRay Mckesson

Internationally recognized civil rights leader and host of the podcast Pod Save the People will discuss and sign his new book On the Other Side of Freedom.

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Where: The Ballroom at Bayou Place, 500 Texas

Details: $25, includes a copy of the book; brazosbookstore.com

Elemental

Jazz artists Raquel Cepeda and Thomas Helton present an intimate concert.

When: 8 p.m. Friday

Where: MATCH, 3400 Main

Details: $17-$60; matchouston.org

Messengers Divinos

Houston Fringe Festival presents a Butoh dance performance directed and choreographed by Ivan Espinosa.

When: 9:30 p.m. Friday

Where: MATCH, 3400 Main

Details: $20, matchouston.org

Screwed Up Sunday

Event pays homage to the creator of the iconic art and sound of chopped and screwed. Tickets include admission to the brewery for music, an interactive live art show and limited-edition souvenirs.

When: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday

Where: 8th Wonder Brewery, 2202 Dallas

Details: $30; 8thwonder.com

Slip N Slide Party!

An adult Slip N Slide event, benefiting Houston Needs a Swimming Hole. Sponsored by Buffalo Bayou Brewery and Axelrad.

When: Noon-5 p.m. Sunday

Where: 1517 Alabama

Details: facebook.com/events/469854743516594

Unplugged

Concert series challenges local artists to rearrange their songs using only acoustic instruments, resulting in a unique and intimate performance.

When: 5-9 p.m. Sunday

Where: Discovery Green, 1500 McKinney

Details: discoverygreen.com

Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience

Composer Ramin Djawadi leads an orchestra and choir through music from all seven seasons of the hit television show.

When: 8 p.m. Monday

Where: Toyota Center, 1510 Polk

Details: $39.50-$99.50; houstontoyotacenter.com

Banh Mi Cook-off

Local chefs battle for Peoples Choice and Judges Choice at the 5th annual Banh Mi Cook-off. Tickets include unlimited Banh Mi and dessert samples.

When: 6:30-9:30 p.m. Tuesday

Where: Chapman & Kirby, 2118 Lamar

Details: $30; facebook.com/events/1916521571693395

Zumba

Outdoor Zumba class led by certified personal trainer Oscar Sajche.

When: 6:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesday

Where: Discovery Green, 1500 McKinney

Details: discoverygreen.com
A 3-month-old girl was found among clouds of marijuana smoke inside the apartment of a suspected drug dealer near Katy on Monday.

The girl was found during a raid of Shawn Sunstrom's apartment in the 21500 block of Park Row Drive by the Harris County Precinct 5 Constable's Office Narcotics Unit, authorities said.

Sunstrom, 30, was suspected of being a drug dealer in the Katy area, a suspicion bolstered by the discovery of a plethora of drugs throughout the apartment, deputies said.

Among 220 grams of marijuana, deputies found 97 grams of Xanax, 41 doses of LSD, 16 grams of mushrooms, five grams of crystal meth, 20 grams of ecstasy pills, and eight grams of THC cannabis oil, officials said.

TEXAS NEWS: Mom allegedly bit and dragged son for wanting to go to church

The baby was rushed to an area hospital to see if she was exposed to any of the drugs, but she was given a clean bill of health, according to the constable's office.

The baby's mother, Sunstrom's fiancee, was also in the apartment with the baby but does not appear to have been arrested.

Investigators with Child Protective Services are conducting an inquiry into the baby's living environment.

Sunstrom is being held in the Harris County Jail on a $20,000 bail amount on two felony counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver.

Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message.

Jay R. Jordan covers breaking news in the Houston area. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com | Follow him on Twitter at @JayRJordan | Email him at jay.jordan@chron.com
Court resumed corruption reference against Ishaq Dar

ISLAMABAD: Accountability court I resumed on Wednesday a corruption reference hearing against the former finance minister Ishaq Dar for owning assets disproportionate to his declared income. Judge Muhammad Bashir is presiding over the hearing session.



Three more accused, in relation to the supplementary reference, were presented in court today. A private banks employee Tariq Saleem and Mohsin, both prosecution witnesses, were also present for the hearing session.



Previously, the Interior Ministry blocked former finance minister Ishaq Dars passport and his name was blacklisted.



The former finance minister is accused of possessing assets disproportionate to his declared sources of income.



The case itself involves the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) initiating proceedings against Ishaq Dar for possessing assets that do not equate with his known sources of income, and follows the original Supreme Court verdict in the historic Panama Papers case verdict in July 2017.



NAB had filed an interim reference against Dar in September 2017, who was later indicted in the case but has been absconding since then.



The national watchdog later filed references against National Bank of Pakistan President Saeed Ahmed, Naeem Mehmood and Mansoor Rizvi, and held them as co-accused in the case.
Get ready, Houston, as Fandemic Tour rolls in this weekend.

The new convention, rescheduled from 2017 due to Hurricane Harvey, will fill the NRG Center with guests, panels, autograph and photo opportunities, and more Sept. 14-16.

The tour is the brainchild of former Wizard World CEO John Macaluso, whom guest James Marsters (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Smallville) said puts on a great show for fans and staff alike.

I have known John Macaluso for many years, and he has also run, I think, the best cons, Marsters said. He spends extra to make sure that everyone has a good timebut also that the people that work for him all across the board are enjoying themselves which translates to the fans having a really great time.

Marsters, who was part of Macalusos inaugural Fandemic Tour event in Sacramento in June, said it was like a reunion for him.

I think it was his first Fandemic coming back (to producing cons), Marsters said. I got to see a lot of people that worked for him that I hadnt seen for a while. It was kind of like a reunion actually.

Marsters said as hes filming at the moment, cons are his opportunities to get out and where he gets to meet interesting people.

I met someone who helped design the Mars rover at a convention, Marsters said. They were dressed as a Wookie. I met a young woman who spoke 16 languages. I met another young woman who was working on the large Hadron collider in EuropeI find that fans tend to be smart and funny and dont take themselves too seriously and I think thats a really good combination.

Guest Sean Patrick Flanery (Boondock Saints) is excited for the Houston leg of the tour as its his hometown.

Its where I was brought up, I went to Saint Marks Episcopal down by the Medical Center, I went to Quail Valley Elementary out in Sugar Land, I went to Missouri City Junior High, I went to Quail Valley Junior High, Dulles High School, University of St. Thomas downtown in the Museum District, all of my formative years were spent in Houston, Flanery said. Although I was born in Lake Charles, LA, I consider myself a Texan, and more specifically a Houston boy, its my stomping grounds.

Flanery said he and his friend Norman Reedus (Boondock Saints, The Walking Dead) have been doing conventions with Macaluso since 2010 and joined Fandemic Tour because of him.

When he started the Fandemic Tour, hes one of our closest friends and we obviously wanted to do it with him, Flanery said.  Because I live so far away, Im a West Coast guy and a Texas guy, and Norman is an East Coast guy, well meet at some of these events to spend a few days together. So when Macaluso came up with the idea to do a Fandemic Tour, we were like absolutely, lets do that.

Flanery, like Marsters, commented on the uniqueness of Macalusos events.

The first time wed ever went to one was in 2010, when we met Macaluso. You go into it with a little bit of ah, what is this gonna be like and we had an absolute ball, Flanery said. Theres a 12-foot Chewbacca walking around, theres all these events and parties and get togethers at night, it was such an odd but entertaining event, unlike anything wed ever been to and we fell in love with doing these things.

He said that while conventions do have similarities, each is run a bit differently, and called Macalusos the pinnacle of fun events.

With some of these events, youre all on your own and youll have a panel, Flanery said. At Macalusos events, all the panels have a theme, theres events at night, theres isolated events for you and your friends, its just a very different production. I think Macaluso is one of the first people that created an event that looks after all parties.

Fandemic Tour Houston will feature a slate of guests from film and television, including Chuck Norris of Walker, Texas Ranger, Delta Force and The Expendables fame; Reedus, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Steven Yeun, and Pollyanna McIntosh from AMCs The Walking Dead; Bruce Campbell of the Evil Dead franchise; Tom Welling, Michael Rosenbaum, and John Schneider from Smallville; Dave Bautista, Michael Rooker, Sean Gunn and Chris Sullivan from Marvels Guardians of the Galaxy franchise; Marsters and Clare Kramer from Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Flanery and David Della Rocco from Boondock Saints; Jason David Frank from Power Rangers; Dean Cain of Lois and Clark fame; Adam Baldwin from Firefly; and WWEs Paige.

In addition to celebrity guests, cosplay guests and comic creators will also be in attendance, such as local cosplayer Lana Marie, Marvel/DC Comics artist Rob Prior, The Simpsons animator Phil Ortiz, The Zombie King Arthur Suydam, Disney Fine Artist Clinton Hobart and more.

For passes, times, and guest information, visit Fandemic Tours website, www.fandemictour.com.
Two more Texas death row inmates - a North Texas man who murdered a newlywed couple and a convicted child killer from East Texas - now have execution dates on the calendar.

The first of those is Alvin Braziel, a Dallas County man now scheduled for execution on Dec. 11, according to Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jeremy Desel.

The now-43-year-old was sent to death row for the deadly 1993 attack of Doug and Lora White, who Braziel approached on a Mesquite jogging trail. After demanding money and finding the couple had none, Braziel shot the man and raped the woman at gunpoint before killing her, too, a jury found.

He wasn't linked to the crime until 2001, when a DNA match led police to him as the primary suspect. At that point, he was already in prison for another sex crime.

On appeal, his attorneys raised claims of sub-par representation earlier in the case, after trial lawyers failed to bring up his abusive upbringing, family history of mental illness and childhood head injury as possible reasons to consider a life sentence instead of death.

READ MORE: E. Texas mom gets life term in baby's sex assault, death

But the courts turned him down and on Wednesday his attorneys declined to comment.

The second of the newly scheduled execution dates is for Blaine Milam, who is slated to die on Jan. 15.

Milam was sentenced to die for the 2008 slaying of his girlfriend's toddler during a alleged botched exorcism the couple attempted in his trailer in Rusk County.

The child, 13-month-old Amora, was beaten with a hammer and covered head-to-toe in bite marks, with injuries so extensive a medical examiner testified that it wasn't possible to tell how the little girl died.

The case was tried in Montgomery County after extensive pre-trial publicity forced a change of venue. Milam's then-girlfriend, Jessica Carson, was sentenced to life in prison without parole, while Milam was sent to death row in 2010.

On appeal, his attorneys raised claims of prosecutorial misconduct, earlier bad lawyering when his trial attorneys failed to present evidence about his "drug induced psychosis" at the time of the slaying.

His lawyer declined to comment.

The state of Texas has executed eight men this year, including two Houston-area serial killers. Including Milam and Braziel, there are another 10 men scheduled for execution in the coming months.
Authorities in Florida have arrested a Harris County man charged in the shooting death last month of his childhood friend at his Westfield-area home.

The United States Marshals Service Task Force arrested Kysion David, 29, on Tuesday in Fort Lauderdale, the Harris County Sheriff's Office said. David was wanted in the slaying of Anselmo Harrington, 29, who was shot Aug. 24 at David's apartment in the Inverness at Westador complex on the 17000 block of Red Oak Drive in north Harris County, police say.
Grab the binoculars, residents of The Woodlands: certain feathered and flighted birds are expected to move back into the area in the next two months.

While theyve lived in the township for nearly 20 years, the townships famous bald eagles that make their nests high up in trees around The Woodlands have gained considerable fame over the past few years.

There are two nesting pairs of bald eagles in this area. One is by Lake Front Circle near Hughes Landing, and another is in the Bear Branch area, according to Howard Hughes Corp. Environmental Manager Fred LeBlanc.

There is some speculation about whether these bald eagles are the same ones that have always claimed this territory or whether they are grown offspring of the original eagles, but LeBlanc said they have a few different nests theyve been building up for years.

Yet, things have been pretty quiet in those nests recently. The eagles have most likely been away for the summer in a sort of reverse migration pattern, LeBlanc said.

They supposedly migrate north to somewhere between here and Canada, LeBlanc said.

The Woodlands resident Randy Scott, who started the Facebook page Save The Woodlands Eagles to document the birds activity, has been watching the bald eagles for more than a decade.

Scott said he suspects that the eagles fly up to Arkansas during the summer.

Im sure they went and socialized with other eagles. Nobody knows where they go, but (in Arkansas) theres a large concentration of eagles, Scott said.

The theory, Scott says, is that the eagles travel in order to meet other eagles and learn how big the world is.

After all, its a short trip for them. Scott said they can make the journey to Arkansas in just two days.

However, theyre expected to return in October or November to start rebuilding their vacated nests for nesting season, which is when the eagle pairs mate. The territorial birds lay one or two eggs in December and incubate them for just over a month until they hatch in January.

LeBlanc said that the two pairs of Woodlands eagles have hatched 38 young birds over the course of their residency here, contributing to the continued success of the species.

Chosen in 1782 as the national bird and symbol of the United States, the bald eagle is perceived as a majestic, strong creature.

As previously reported by The Villager, eagles were on the endangered species list from 1963 to 2007, but have since rebounded in what Fish and Wildlife Service officials said was a remarkable recovery.

Usually, the bald eagle pair nesting near Lake Front Circle can be seen from the parking lot of The Woodlands United Methodist Church. Yet, Scott advised onlookers to give the eagles privacy until January or February.

They get nervous when the eaglets are little, and plus theyre mating. Two years ago I saw a lot of people trying to watch them mate, and I felt that was too much intrusion into their lives, Scott said. They do have a family life.

jane.stueckemann@chron.com
BRUSSELS - European lawmakers voted Wednesday to initiate sanctions proceedings against the Hungarian government for what they said was backsliding on democracy, an extraordinary censure for a nation that was once a beacon of post-Communist transformation.

The measure, which required a two-thirds supermajority of the European Parliament to pass, declared there was a "clear risk of serious breach" of European values by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. It was the first step in a process that could ultimately strip Hungary of its voice in decision-making in the European Union.

The decision creates head winds for Orban's ambitious quest to remake the continent in his model of "illiberal democracy" - a bloc that would be closer to Russia, less open to migration, and less concerned about independent judiciaries, a free press and minority rights.

The vote on the proceedings, known as Article 7 after a provision in the EU treaties, was welcomed by Orban's increasingly besieged foes inside Hungary, who saw it as their final hope to preserve democratic values at home, and his critics across Europe.

"The alt-right in Europe is trying to undermine this European Union," Guy Verhofstadt, a Belgian member of the European Parliament, said ahead of the final tally. "And it is, in fact, trying to take over European politics from within."

Despite the vote's symbolism, however, it is probably too late for Orban's critics to succeed in blocking Hungary's EU voting rights or win major concessions from him. Orban has teamed up with Poland, another EU country that has been slapped for rule-of-law problems, to protect each other against punitive measures targeting either nation that require the unanimous vote of all 28 EU countries.

The gravity of the measure was reflected in the supermajority necessary to pass it onward to EU for further study. It passed with 448 lawmakers in favor, 197 against.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto called the vote the "petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians" and said Hungary would fight it.

Orban on Tuesday castigated European lawmakers in a fiery speech at the parliamentary chambers in Strasbourg, France, saying, "Hungary is going to be condemned because the Hungarian people have decided that this country is not going to be a country of migrants."

He said Europe had no right to interfere in the actions of a sovereign government.

"Hungary will not accede to this blackmailing. Hungary will protect its borders, stop illegal migration," he said, "and if needed we will stand up to you."

Orban, who has been elected four times and now presides over what is effectively a one-party state, has been a thorn in the side of EU leaders since he came back to office in 2010. He cracked down on media freedoms, rewrote laws to favor his center-right Fidesz party and has blasted Brussels for allowing a wave of more than 1 million migrants into Europe in 2015.

When Orban began consolidating power after his 2010 election victory, he was largely the only leader in the EU promoting what he calls his "illiberal" platform. Since then, far-right politicians have gained ground across the continent, including in Italy, where they are in government, and in Sweden, where an anti-immigrant party won its best result to date in elections on Sunday.

Along the way, Orban has been shielded by his alliance with fellow center-right European leaders as part of the European People's Party, an arrangement that gives them control of the European Parliament and, other leaders have said, more sway over his moves at home.

The partnership has created increasing uneasiness as leaders who portray themselves as defenders of liberal European values, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, have found themselves covering for Orban as he cracks down on civil society and the free press.

Wednesday's vote was the first sign of a split, with 115 lawmakers from that party voting against Hungary and only 57 defending it. Manfred Weber, the German leader of the European People's Party and an influential voice in the debate, said Tuesday night he had had enough.

"The values of the European Union are not negotiable for us," Weber said. "We had enough dialogue."

The vote in Strasbourg was closely watched in Hungary by the people and institutions that have been the targets of increasingly repressive moves by Orban's government.

The vote was seen as a possible last chance to put a brake on Orban's most illiberal behavior, which has included criminalizing the work of nongovernmental organizations that assist refugees and an attempt to oust a renowned university.

"If there isn't a clear signal from the European Parliament, then we have a very tough few months ahead of us," said Marta Pardavi, co-chair of the Budapest-based Hungarian Helsinki Committee, who traveled to Brussels last week to lobby lawmakers to vote for the sanctions.

"I told them, 'Right now, I am sitting with you talking. But six months down the line, I might be sitting with you in prison.' I think that was important for them to hear," she said.

Pardavi's organization, which advocates on behalf of refugees and other marginalized groups, is among those that could be punished under legislation passed in June that makes it illegal for individuals or groups to help undocumented immigrants gain asylum.

Also watching the vote carefully were professors, students and administrators at Central European University, a U.S.- and Hungarian-accredited institution in Budapest. It could be forced into exile in the coming months, the culmination of a year-and-a-half campaign by the government to discredit it.

Michael Ignatieff, the university's president, said the vote could be a key moment in determining whether the university gets to stay. It was also, he said, a critical choice for conservative leaders across Europe who have advocated for CEU but who had, at least until Wednesday, also sought to avoid alienating Orban.

"European conservatism has a very honorable tradition of supporting the rule of law and academic freedom," said Ignatieff, a human rights scholar and former Canadian politician. "This is when European conservatism defines itself."

- - -

Witte reported from Budapest. The Washington Post's Quentin Aries in Brussels contributed to this report.
The Houston bar scene is full of personalities  bar stars, if you will. Each week in Preview, we'll feature one of these mixologists to let you know more about them, aside from how good they are at making you feel good.

Know someone who deserves the spotlight? Email joey.guerra@chron.com

Length of time working at current place?

Coming up on three years.

Nickname?

OG Muse because I married a beautiful woman who is also named Lauren. She took my last name. So now Im the OG.

Lamest pickup line youve heard at the bar?

I used to work in a lesbian bar. The few straight men that would come in thought they were the anti-venom that could cure a sickly lesbian back into straightness. Ive overheard one too many men use the Youre too hot to be gay. Maybe you havent been with the right man line.

Most famous person youve ever served a drink to?

Ruby Rose. Good God, shes hot.

Becoming friends with customers: yes or no?

Its hard to not become friends with your regulars. Bartending is more than just serving the newest fancy cocktail. You also serve an experience. Two of my greatest friends started out as my customers.

Most common customer complaint?

This drink isnt strong enough. Or my favorite, This isnt how (insert chain restaurant) makes it.

Song youve gotten sick of at work?

Please stop playing Yeah! by Usher. A cute puppy loses his tail every single time that song plays.

Whats the sloppiest, drunkest thing youve ever seen on the job?

Once, at an old job, it was storming and flooding. We closed the back patio down and shuffled everyone inside. Or so we thought. At closing/cleaning time, I went outside to start gathering trash. To my surprise, there was a super-intoxicated couple, laying in about 2 inches of water, doing the dirty-dirty. A trash can had fallen over next to them because of the rain, and they were still going at it in the middle of mushy trash water and debris. To make it worse, they had to sift through another trash can to find their garments and do the walk of shame from a fully lit bar with the entire staff watching.

Whats the most outrageous request youve ever gotten?

I used to be a bartender. Can I come back there and make it? Maybe you were a bartender 20 years ago, but I assure you, I know how to make this unoriginal drink you have requested.

Where do you like to go have a drink when youre not at work?

I love going to East End Hardware. Its a super chill bar on the East End that has an amazing whiskey selection. And they serve boozy Sno-balls.

Whats your specialty drink, and how do you make it?

My latest and favorite drink Ive concocted is the Buzz Aldrin. I puree watermelon, mint and cucumbers together, then strain it to create a juice. Add a little gin, honey and lemon juice and voila. We serve it over dry ice to give it a cool effect, but its tasty and refreshing no matter how its served. Ive even made popsicles out of my recipe.

Whats something your customers may not know about you?

Ive been on the local news because I had a pet pig escape from my yard. I put a few flyers out and somehow it generated enough community love that a flyer was sent in to the news. He ran away down the street to Laurenzos Italian restaurant, where the bussers had looked after him for a few days before he was safely returned.
If Pakistan opted IMF for any financial help,USA will not oppose it: Mike Pompeo

ISLAMABAD: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo assured Pakistan last week Washington would not try to block any request for a bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Tuesday.



The remarks, which the minister said Mr Pompeo made during his visit to Pakistan on Wednesday, came in stark contrast to the US secretarys warnings in July that the United States had serious reservations about the IMF giving money to Pakistan due to concerns Islamabad would use the cash to pay off Chinese loans.



Those comments rattled Islamabad, which is facing a financial crisis and may have no option but to turn again to the IMF to prop up its foreign currency reserves.



Mr Chaudhry said that relations between the United States and Pakistan were broken before Mr Pompeos trip to Islamabad but the visit had set many things straight and re-invigorated ties.



He assured Pakistan that... if Pakistan opted to go to IMF for any financial help, the USA will not oppose it, he said.



The US embassy in Islamabad did not have any immediate comment on the matter.



The government of Prime Minister Imran Khan, who took office in August, is trying to avert a currency crisis caused by a shortage of dollars in an economy hit by a ballooning current account deficit and dwindling foreign currency reserves.



Pakistani officials say they are discussing taking drastic measures to avert seeking a bailout from the IMF, which has come to Pakistans rescue 14 times since 1980, including most recently in 2013.



Pakistans relations with the United States have soured in recent years over the war in Afghanistan. Ties dropped to a new low when President Donald Trump in January accused Pakistan of lies and deceit by playing a double game on fighting terrorism.



Islamabad denies aiding militants in Afghanistan and lashed out against Mr Trumps remarks, which were followed up by Washington suspending US military aid.



At the United States urging, a group of Western countries in February convinced a global body to put Pakistan on a terrorism financing watch list, a move that triggered concerns the United States might also seek to block Islamabad in other forums.



In July, Mr Pompeo said there was no rationale for the IMF to bail out Pakistan. His worries that Islamabad would use the IMF money to pay off Chinese loans echoed concerns by other US officials that China was saddling many emerging market countries with too much debt. Beijing staunchly denies such claims.
WESTPORT  The only thing more contentious than land use in Westport is how the towns waterfront is managed.

Several residents expressed frustration after one of resident Ed Trains boats washed close to Saugatuck Shores during Monday mornings storm.

Trains boat, which has been criticized by residents who call it disheveled, broke free from its mooring and washed close to shore, town Harbor Master Robert Giunta said.

The afternoon after his boat washed ashore, Train met with U.S. Coast Guard officials and the Marine Police, who Train said are concerned contaminants may have leaked from Trains unmoored boat.

Im working with the Coast Guard right now to meet all of their requirements to ensure theres no further contamination, Train said, noting the contamination could be from something inside the boat, such as cooking oil or salad dressing.

When I was down there, I smelled oil. One of the other people down there, a resident, also mentioned smelling oil. It appears the boat is definitely leaking, said Michael Yormark, who was on the shore taking photos of the boat on Monday.

To remove the boat, Train said hell need to get advice and assistance from experts. Im at the very beginning of that process, Train said, adding he doesnt know when the boat will be removed from shore, but said a plan will likely be in place within the next few weeks.

Three other boats broke free from their mooring on Monday, two of which are Trains, Giunta said. Trains other boat washed up near the bridges on Harbor Road, Giunta said.

Theyre not beyond repair. Theyre stuck, Train said of his boats, which were built in the 1970s, but in Trains possession and docked at the Westport shore for the past 20 years.

When asked how much time he spends on his boats, Train said, Not much time right now. The boats are essentially being stored on the moorrings this summer, but in the past Ive spent more time on board.

Life has gotten in the way of him spending more time on the boat, Train, a musician, said.

The boat needs some paint and TLC right now. The same boat, if it had some sparkling paint on it, everybody would be oohing and ahhing, but right now everybody says its an eyesore, Train said.

His boat is not the best-looking boat, I agree with that completely, but hes taken out a permit, so its legal, Giunta said in response to residents complaints on a town blog about the appearance of Trains boat.

This is a legal, seaworthy vessel, although it may be cosmetically challenged, Train said, adding, There are always going to be people who are understanding and compassionate and theres always people who are going to be upset, especially on a blog sitting at home on the internet. Im sorry if anybody is offended.

svaughan@

hearstmediact.com; 203-842-2638; @SophieCVaughan1
Imran Khan presided over merger of Fata with KP meeting

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has directed the special committee on local bodies to finalise within the next 48 hours its recommendations regarding changes in the existing local government system in the country.



The directive was issued by Mr Khan during a meeting of the committee at the Prime Minister Office here on Tuesday. According to an official handout, the meeting attended by representatives from the four provinces deliberated upon various proposals about the local government system.



During a meeting of the federal cabinet last month, the prime minister had constituted six task forces to suggest steps to implement the governments 100-day plan of change and introduce reforms in different sectors, including civil services and the local government system.



The prime minister has also constituted a task force to suggest measures for implementation of the planned merger of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.



The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf had announced during its election campaign and after assuming power that it planned to introduce a KP-like local government system throughout the country for better delivery of services to the masses. Opposition parties, particularly the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, have opposed the move and decided to resist it.



Meanwhile, the prime minister also presided over a meeting to review the progress of merger of Fata with KP.



According to the official news agency APP, the prime minister assured the participants that the federal government would provide additional resources required for the uplift of the tribal areas, besides playing an effective role in allocation of a development package meant for the areas out of the National Finance Commission (NFC) award.



The meeting took stock of the progress on the merger of the tribal areas and different administrative and legal measures taken in this regard.



The prime minister called for ensuring the implementation of the new system aimed at merger of the tribal areas with KP while keeping in view the prevalent traditions and customs of the tribesmen. He stressed the need for consultations with the tribesmen on implementation of the new system. Employment opportunities for the youth of the areas should be ensured and no one should be made jobless as a result of the administrative measures, he said.



The prime minister said the specific quota for the tribal people in educational institutions and universities should not be affected. He called for expediting the efforts for introduction of the local government system in the tribal areas.



For consultation and seeking feedback of the tribal people with regard to the progress and prosperity of the areas, swift introduction of the local government system was a requisite, Mr Khan observed. He underscored the need for improving the conditions in the areas of health and education. The mechanism for speedy and inexpensive justice should also be evolved, he said.
TORRINGTON  A nationally recognized food donation event was held for the first time in the city Tuesday, providing food for about 800 families with the support of several corporate sponsors.

Price Rite teamed up with the nonprofit Feed the Children organization and the United Way of Northwest Connecticut to provide food to families with children who live in the region. The event is called Feeding Minds and Bodies.

We went to every program and agency (in the region), said Owen Quinn, executive director of the United Way. The visits helped the organization determine who was eligible for the donations, he noted. The food will feed about 4,000 individual family members, Quinn said.

The eligible recipients were able to pick up donated food and essentials using a voucher that was provided by the participating agencies. The donation center was located in front of the Price Rite store at 695 Main St.

The pickup process was simple and quick. Each vehicle entered a designated lane where volunteers loaded 25-pound boxes of food, a bag of fresh produce and 15-pound boxes of personal care items. Bottled water also included.

One recipient, who asked not to be named, said the donations were welcome. This is everything. We are a working family and we are going through tough times. This goes really far, she said.

Childrens books were also donated at the event. Books feed the mind, said Bill Britten, the director of human resources for Price Rite. He said the program will be held this year at seven other locations in the northeast, where the companys stores are located.

Its going fantastic, said Price Rite President Jim Dorey. It is so efficient, we got most of the families through in good time.

The grocery store has been involved with the annual food donation program for five years, Dorrey noted. We grew through the partnership with Feed the Children, which began in 2015.

Volunteers arrived at 7 a.m., Dorey said, to move boxes to their designated locations. Employees of O&G Industries in Torrington volunteered to set up of the distribution lanes, he said. They brought in cranes to lift the food pallets into place, he said.

We filled 800 bags from Price Rite, said Stephanie Synott of Torrington. She works for Lowes, which she said supports their employees volunteerism.

The bags were filled with fresh vegetables, oatmeal and macaroni and cheese, Synott said. It was an assembly line. Different people put stuff in different bags. It was kind of like trick-or-treating.

This represents what the region does well. There are a lot of volunteers, said Michael Rooke, president of the Northwest Connecticut Community College, who was also a volunteer. It is also in the spirit of September 11, he added.

Rooke is also a board member of the United Way. Its important to give back. Community is our middle name, he added, referring to the colleges moniker.

Employees of Friends of Service to Humanity, or FISH, said the donations will feed about 130 families who utilize the organizations food pantry. Its a tremendous effort by the community and Price Rite, said Executive Director Deirdre DiCara.

It went well with all the families we had here, said Milly Delvalle, a human resources staff member who oversees the Torrington Price Rite store. She said she expected the donation site to get busy as the event neared its closing time of 12:30 p.m.

Devalle noted that the local store is the second oldest in the state. It was built about 20 years ago, she said.
Kulsoom Nawaz passed away, Nawaz Sharif released on parole 12 September, 2018



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Ways that Players Used to Take Advantage of Slot Sites FORMER prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law retired captain Mohammad Safdar were released from Rawalpindis Adiala jail on parole hours after his ailing wife Begum Kulsoom Nawaz passed away in a London hospital on Tuesday.



All three were released on 12-hour parole, which is likely to be extended till the burial of Begum Kulsoom at Jati Umra on Friday afternoon, on an order of the Punjab home department and were escorted by police to the Nur Khan airbase from where they were being taken to Lahore.



The application was filed by PML-N president Shahbaz Sharif for their release for at least five days. Sources in the government said the Punjab government would extend the parole period till the burial of Begum Kulsoom in Jati Umra Lahore residence of the Sharif family.



The PML-N, they said, might file another application with the government to declare Jati Umra residence a sub-jail.



Diagnosed with throat cancer in August last year, Begum Kulsoom was still undergoing treatment when she suffered cardiac arrest on June 15 and was rushed to a private hospital in London where she remained admitted since then. According to her family sources, her health deteriorated on Sunday night and she was placed on life support but she couldnt be revived and breathed her last on Tuesday.



The family sources said Shahbaz Sharif, PML-N president and leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, and his son Hamza Shahbaz would fly to London to attend her funeral prayers at the Regent Park mosque on Thursday before shifting her body to Lahore. It was also confirmed that her sons would not accompany her body to Lahore though her daughter, Asma, and grandson, Zikriya Sharif, would go with the casket to Pakistan.



Later, party sources in Lahore confirmed to the media that Begum Kulsoom would be laid to rest at the Jati Umra residence of the Sharif family. A PIA flight carrying the body will arrive here on Friday morning and she is likely to be laid to rest the same day beside the grave of her father-in-law Mian Sharif at Jati Umra, they said.



The PML-N announced suspension of political activities for three days and started funeral preparations at Jati Umra where Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharifs mother Begum Shamim Akhtar and their late brother Abbas Sharifs family reside.



While talking to reporters earlier outside the private hospital on Harley Street in London, her son, Hussain Nawaz, said: My mother died at 11.15am (BST). He said that during the last few weeks she made very good recovery. He said that her recovery not only helped the doctors to remove the ventilator but also allowed her to be shifted to a room. But on Sunday night, her health deteriorated suddenly and she had to be put back on the life support machine. However, her condition didnt improve and she left for her eternal abode today, he said.



Her body was later shifted to the mortuary of Regents Park Mosque where, according to the family sources, her funeral prayers will be offered on Thursday after Zuhr.



In reply to a question about her funeral, Mr Hussain said that arrangements were being worked out and the details would be released to the media as soon as they were finalised. It is not a long time since she breathed her last. We are working on the arrangements for her funeral prayers and will inform the media soon, he reiterated.



To condole with her sons, Hussain Nawaz and Hassan Nawaz, on her death, some party workers gathered outside the hospital where various TV channels of Pakistan did live transmissions.



Later in the evening, family sources confirmed to the media that Begum Kulsoom Nawazs funeral prayers would be offered at the Regent Park mosque on Thursday after Zuhr and her body would be flown to Lahore by a PIA flight the same evening after completion of legal formalities involving death certificate from the hospital and relevant permission from the coroner allowing the family to take the body out of the UK.

A life-long regret for Nawaz, Maryam



A regret which may continue to haunt Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam for the rest of their lives is not seeing Begum Kulsoom Nawaz when she temporarily regained consciousness last month after being on a life-support machine for about two months in a London hospital.



My father and I have great regret that when my mother regained consciousness last month we were not there with her. To add insult to injury, my father was allowed to speak to her (on telephone) once a week for a limited time due to the jail restrictions. Once she asked why I didnt visit her or speak to her (via Skype) so that she could see my face, former information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said quoting Maryam Nawaz.



What would my mother have been thinking... have they (Nawaz and Maryam) got so busy (in politics) that they dont have time for her. Perhaps this regret may continue to haunt me for the rest of my life, Ms Aurangzeb quoted an anguished Ms Nawaz as saying while talking to reporters on Tuesday.



Begum Kulsoom complained as to why Maryam would not come to see her... she wanted to see her face, Ms Aurangzeb said, adding that Ms Maryam had a remorse what her mother would have been thinking of her and why she was not sparing time to see her.



The former First Lady was not told about the imprisonment of her husband and daughter.



It was so cruel and whom should they (the Sharifs) blame for this? Ms Aurengzeb said.



Hours after her death, PML-N president Shahbaz Shairf flew from Lahore to Rawalpindi and went straight from Benazir Bhutto International Airport to Adiala jail to meet his brother Nawaz Sharif and niece Maryam Nawaz for condolence. He also discussed with the former premier matters pertaining to shifting of her body and their release on parole for her burial.



Mr Shahbaz remained with his brother for about an hour and discussed the schedule of her burial before flying back to Lahore.



Other relatives Hamza Shahbaz, Maryams daughter Mehrun Nisa and son-in-law Raheel Munir, Suleman Shahbaz, and Abbas Sharifs family members also visited the jail to condole with the daughter and spouse of Begum Kulsoom. Besides, some PML-N leaders including Senator Chaudhry Tanveer and former federal minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry also met the Sharifs in the jail.



Meanwhile, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry told Dawn that Prime Minister Imran Khan had directed to facilitate the shifting of the body for burial or release of Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz on parole.



The prime minister has already directed the relevant authorities to facilitate their release on parole in accordance with law, Mr Chaudhry said and hinted that they could be released for 12 hours according to the law.



Meanwhile, it is yet to be decided whether Hassan and Hussain would return to attend the funeral prayers of their mother in Lahore. No decision in this regard has been taken yet. Hassan and Hussain will themselves decide about their return to the country, said former law minister of Punjab Rana Sanaullah. A source in the PML-N said it was unlikely that Nawazs sons would return in the face of corruption cases against them. Both of them have already been declared proclaimed offenders, therefore, they will not be advised by their father to return, he said.
US will be very supportive for talk between India-Pakistan: Alice G. Wells

WASHINGTON: The United States will be very supportive if conditions are created for productive talks between India and Pakistan, says senior US diplomat Alice G. Wells.



Ms Wells, who heads the bureau for South and Central Asian affairs at the State Department, also said at a news briefing on Monday that the United States had sent a two-pronged message to Pakistan: a desire to engage constructively and an emphasis on the need for Pakistan to implement its promises to fight all terrorist groups.



Asked if Pakistan had sent a message through US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo on India-Pakistan dialogue and if that was raised during Mr Pompeos meeting with the Indian foreign minister, she did not say if such a message was received and delivered.



Secretary Pompeo visited both Islamabad and New Delhi last week. In Islamabad, he met Prime Minister Imran Khan, other members of the new government and Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa.



In New Delhi, he participated in the Two-plus-Two talks between India and the United States. The US military chief, Gen Joseph Dunford, accompanied him on both the visits.



Apparently, the two visits were not linked but media reports claimed that Islamabad did ask Mr Pompeo to convey its desire to Indian leaders for restarting talks between the two neighbouring states.



In general, the United States supports dialogue between India and Pakistan that can reduce tensions, said Ms Wells, without confirming or denying if Islamabad had sent such a message.



We understand and had frequent conversations with the Indian partners on the expectations that there would be demonstrable reduction in cross-border terrorism or infiltration that would help create the confidence for dialogue to take place, she added.



Ms Wells said the US had also welcomed the positive messages that were exchanged between Prime Minister Khan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Mr Khans election and deferred to the two governments on how they could build on what were already existing structures.



She also identified the channels of communication that the two neighbours were already using, such as the dialogue between their national security advisers and the DGMOs, and the people-to-people ties that have been sustained through a bus service.



And so, this is if the conditions can be created for productive bilateral conversation, obviously we would be very supportive, she said.



Asked if Secretary Pompeo had returned with the impression that Pakistan had the intention to fight terrorism, Ms Wells said the secretarys visit to Islamabad was an opportunity to meet the new civilian leadership early in its tenure to describe the aspirations we have for the bilateral relationship.



Secretary Pompeo, she said, also described to the new Pakistani leadership how the US would like to work with Pakistan to establish stability and a political settlement in Afghanistan.



And [explained to them] that the nature and quality of our bilateral relationship was obviously going to be a function of whether we saw Pakistan take meaningful steps to halt support for the terrorist proxies that operate on its soil.



Ms Well said that Secretary Pompeo also conveyed our concern that we havent seen since the President [Donald Trumps] announcement of the South Asia strategy, the kind of decisive steps and sustained steps we believe are necessary to provide the appropriate incentives to convince the Taliban to go to the negotiating table, she said.
Six Ghanaian tour companies have won Africas Biggest Operators Award at the 14th edition of West Africas biggest travel, tourism, and hospitality Expo in Lagos Nigeria at Eko Hotel.



Akwaaba African Travel Market is an annual event that attracts visitors from over 20 African countries hosted in Lagos, Nigeria.



One of Africas most prominent women Senator Florence Ita Giwa who doubles as the Chairperson of carnival Calabar and promoter cuisine received the delegates of the Expo as Special Guests of honour.



Among the participating countries were Ghana Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa , Gambia, Benin and host country Nigeria.



In his welcome address, the organiser of the Expo Mr. Ikechi Uko expressed his profound gratitude to Destination Management Companies and organisations for harmonizing the tourism travel trade business in Africa.



He stressed the need for more easier travel connectivity among African States.



The Ghana Tourism Authority led a team of professionals from the Chefs Association of Ghana, Ghana Tourism Federation and private tour operators to the 14th West African Event.



Six Ghanaian Travel and Tours companies Dodi Travel, Kaya Tours, Apstar Tours and Pacific Tours emerged among the top 100 travel and tour operators in Africa.



Ghana displayed most of its national cuisine like Ampesi, Apapransa, Jollof rice with Sobolo, Asana and chocolates to give the participants and exhibitors a taste of Ghana.



Over 15 companies from Dubai participated in the Exhibition to boost Destination Dubai to Nigeria traveller.



The Gambian Tourist Board took the opportunity to renew their presence in Nigeria as part of its efforts to increase awareness for prospective travellers and investors.







The Expo ended with a high powered B2B session, which featured leading travel and tourism businesses across Africa, there were other exciting activities such as Gambia Day, Ethiopia Day, Africa Top 100 Tour Operators coupled with cultural performance and jollof competition between Ghana, Nigeria, and Gambia.



Mr. Gilbert Abeiku Aggrey also known as Abeiku Santana who emerged among Top 100 tour operating in Africa, expressed his profound gratitude to God almighty, his wife, staff and patrons who have propelled him to this great hight.



Abeiku Santana is expected in Mombasa Kenya, next month for another international ceremony.

Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Instagram has released a new guide for parents, aimed at preparing them to help teenagers better manage their time, interactions, and privacy on the hugely popular social media platform.

Included in the guide are instructions on using two of Instagrams newest features: a dashboard that shows how long users have spent on the app, and a tool for setting daily limits on Instagram use.

Mostly missing, however, is fresh insight into Instagrams own strategies for keeping users active on its platform, or any steps the company may be taking to minimize the pressure many users feel to present their lives in an idealized way.

Also not mentioned in the guide: that Instagram is owned by Facebook, and that the parent company collects and shares massive amounts of data on users across all its platforms.

The guide, titled Know How to Talk With Your Teen About Instagram , was produced in partnership with a range of organizations, including the National PTA, the National Alliance for Mental Health, and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

It comes just as new research shows that Instagram is the second-most popular social media platform among young people, with 61 percent of teens saying they use the platform, and 22 percent say its their main social media site, according to a national survey released Monday by Common Sense Media .

We know many parents and guardians think about what their teens are doing online, and we feel a great responsibility to make sure Instagram is a positive place for them to connect and share, wrote Marne Levine, the companys chief operating officer, in a blog post announcing the new resource.

Were committed to being here every step of the way to make sure parents and their teens have the tools they need to make the choices that are right for them.

What is Instagram?

Teens use the photo- and video-sharing app to celebrate big milestones, share everyday moments, keep in touch with friends and families, build communities of support, and meet others who share their passions and interests, according to Instagrams new parent guide.

But while the document features glossy, glowing testimonials from teens, outside experts say the platform is home to a wide range of experiences.

Research from Common Sense Media and the Pew Research Center , for example, has consistently found that teens do indeed like Instagram as a means of connection, a forum for creative self expression, and a way to stay on top of news, gossip, and current events. The platform can also serve as a powerful vehicle for connecting marginalized and vulnerable teens to communities of support.

But compared to other social media, Instagram is also a place where teens are particularly likely to follow celebrities, encounter product placements, and attempt to curate and present a perfect image of themselves, often in search of the feedback the platform encourages, said Christine Elgersma, the senior editor for parent education at Common Sense Media.

Seeking out likes and follows [on Instagram] can be problematic, especially for teens, Elgersma said. You can start to rest your self-esteem on those things, and if its all based on how you look, that can affect your sense of self.

In recent years, teens have also landed in trouble for using Instagram to post offensive and racist content and to make school-shooting threats.

And Elgersma said teens often use multiple Instagram accounts: a rinsta, which is highly curated and for a wider public, and a finsta, which is more casual, and limited to just close friends. (Across all platforms, the Common Sense survey found, 16 percent of teens have hidden duplicate accounts, and 7 percent said the purpose was to hide the account from their parents/caregivers.)

Particularly for those public Instagram accounts, the process of posting content is often slow, calculated, and painstaking, according to Katrin Tildenberg, an Estonian researcher who has extensively studied users practices on visual social media apps.

Instagram is experienced and construed as an app where participation is effortful, driven by self-imposed rules, and occasionally depressing because of comparison to, and envy of, strangers beautiful lives, Tildenberg wrote in a 2017 paper presented at the annual conference of the Association of Internet Researchers.

Sharing Data With Facebook

Then there are the privacy concerns.

Consistent with Facebooks recent public push to reassure lawmakers and the public that that users are in control of the content they share, the new Instagram guide emphasizes to parents there are a number of tools you can share with your teen that will give them more control over their digital identity and footprint.

Among them: setting an account as private, and blocking accounts.

Your teen can block accounts they dont want to interact with, the guide advises. This will block people from seeing and commenting on their posts, stories, and live broadcasts.

But neither strategy gets at the vast amounts of information that Instagram can collect from its usersincluding all the content they post and share, as well as their contacts, location, web-browsing history, device information, location, and more.

Nor does the guide reference Instagrams policy that it may share that information with the same group of companies that Instagram is a part of"i.e., Facebookand, in some cases, outside third parties, such as advertisers.

And it doesnt appear that Instagram has changed any of the default privacy settings on its app, instead forcing usersincluding teensto opt out of such practices as location tracking.

Thats why when it comes to privacy, groups such as Common Sense Media offer parents a different message than the company itself.

It is safe to assume that these platforms will do everything they can to collect data that helps them target your kids, said Ariel Fox Johnson, senior counsel for policy and privacy at Common Sense Media.

Talk with your kids about whether or not they want to use Instagram in the first place, and if they do, take the time to change those default privacy settings that the companies prefer to much stronger settings that protect your family, Johnson advised.

An Emphasis on Personal Responsibility

Efforts to interview Instagram officials were unsuccessful.

Author and social media expert Ana Homayoun, who helped write the companys new guide, said she was probably not the best person to answer questions about Instagrams data-collection and -sharing practices.

Ultimately, said Homayoun, the author of Social Media Wellness: Helping Tweens and Teens Thrive in an Unbalanced Digital World , the responsibility for ensuring healthier social media use rests with teens and families themselves.

Regardless of what social media companies do or do not design, I think it comes down to helping students, giving them autonomy, and making sure they understand they can make choices, she said.

Parents can promote healthy socialization and online safety by making sure teens know how to limit who can comment on their posts and report offensive or threatening comments, Homayoun said.

She also advises parents to help teens customize and personalize their feeds, filtering out and unfollowing the accounts that are draining while focusing on those that are energizing.

And the new guide closes with a list of 10 questions that Homayoun and Instagram suggest parents use to start a healthy conversation about the social media platform with their teens. Among them:



What do you wish I knew about Instagram?

How do likes and comments affect how you feel about a post?

Do you know your followers?

Have you ever felt uncomfortable with something you saw or experienced online?

The reality, Homayoun said, is that millions of teens are already on Instagram, and parents and educators need to meet them where they are.

When you give kids information and the opportunity to make good choices, they actually come through, she said. Im optimistic.

Photo: Instagram logo

See also:

for the latest news on ed-tech policies, practices, and trends.
Counselor George Lutterodt has described Ghanaian bloggers as swine.



According to the controversial Counselor, these swine that Ghanaians call bloggers are apparently shallow thinking group of journalists.



He made this shocking comment during an interview on Okay FMs Drive show with Abeiku Santana as the host.



Counselor Lutterodts comments stemmed from heated arguments in the studios regarding Comedian DKB.



DKB was at GLO Laffta Fest which took place at the Fantasy Dome, Trade Fair in Accra on Sunday, September 9, 2018 to entertain the patrons but reportedly failed to crack their ribs.



The comic icon, who touts himself as Ghanas King of Comedy, is said to have failed woefully to make the patrons laugh as he cracked his jokes.



DKB seems to have pissed the Counselor off for reportedly putting up an abysmal performance and in response to DKB, Counselor Lutterodt instead vented his spleen on media practitioners saying you, these bloggers and these writers, youre swines.



The media has since the origin of Ghana played their role in the media space serving as a check on administrators of the country as well as being a conduit in which the general public gleans reports to inform their decisions and actions.



The media, as fourth estate of government, is a watchdog, an informant, reporter and law enforcement to ensure the right thing is done and information is disseminated across the nation.



Journalists or media practitioners and bloggers have been executing their duties within the parameters of journalism.



Watch video below:





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Three months after a do-gooder defense lawyer launched an online crowdfunding effort to get more books into the Harris County jail, the downtown lock-ups literary coffers are overflowing - so much so that theyve lifted their limitations on the number of books allowed per pod.

I wanted to be part of making a change, said public defender Amalia Beckner. Im floored by how much it took off.

The book-gathering efforts began in June with an Amazon wish list, which led to social media shares and news coverage. That sparked a flood of donations that helped Beckner raise nearly $5,000 - not even including the more than 500 books donated through a book drive the Harris County Public Defenders Office held in conjunction with the sheriffs office last month. At the same time, the jail saw an influx in its own book donations, drawing in several loads of 10 to 20 boxes of literature, according to Don Savell, the chaplaincy manager and a former sheriffs office lieutenant. Now, theyre letting Beckner start a jailhouse book club.

I am really heartened by the jails response, she said. Its great that theyre open to making some changes.

The heartwarming tale started three years ago, when one of Beckners clients wanted more reading material. Given his charges, the mans security classification kept him out of the jails educational programming and GED classes

He was extremely bright, Beckner told the Chronicle in June. He was a super-smart kid, but he did have more obstacles than a lot of us in terms of extensive mental health issues growing up.

He wanted to take the ACT, so Beckner supported his efforts by getting up early to grade his practice exams - even though hed never be able to take the test behind bars. Then, he turned to reading, and discovered his options in jail were limited.

So Beckner started manually photocopying bits and pieces of popular works and sending them in to her client. Then other clients started asking, and soon the young lawyer found herself coming in early to prepare reading material for the people she represented.

To Beckner, it was part and parcel of being a good defense lawyer; books could spark conversations and engender trust that would help her know her clients better and, hopefully, represent them better. And, she said, its just good, mental health-wise, for people who are in a horrible situation.

After three years of early mornings, in June she finally decided to try a different approach when she launched her crowdfunding campaign. One thing led to another and now, shes sent in $580 of books in the past three months - and thats not counting all the donated works destined for the jail library.

And, while the jail once had a five-book-per-pod limit intended to conserve literary resources, now officials have relaxed that rule. We changed it because now we have more inventory, Savell said.

Altogether, its an outcome thats pleased other activist-minded lawyers.

Im thrilled, said Drew Willey, a defense attorney whos been vocal in advocating for men and women behind bars. Every single one of those inmates, theyre going to see that change.

Now, the next step is the book club. Savell pitched the idea to Beckner after the Chronicles July article sparked a well-meaning partnership.

I hadnt even thought of a book club, Beckner said. The first group will likely be small, possibly called out from the inmates in the jails existing re-entry programs.

We really want to start to have an early success to go with a population that already desires change, Savell said.

Theres not a firm start date, and its not clear who will participate.

And, Beckner hasnt picked out the first book yet. But she has one non-negotiable criterion: I wanna find something with some hope.
Google Maps

A man was critically injured in a shooting at a liquor store near Greater Greenspoint last week , Houston police said.

The gunman came into the store at 17539 Imperial Valley, near Greens Road, and began shooting around 7:40 p.m. Friday, police said.
A Palestinian refugee in Houston convicted of attempting to back Islamic State terrorists overseas is seeking a new federal trial, claiming he didnt understand the consequences of violating the terms of supervised release when he pleaded guilty.

Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan, who came to the U.S. in 2009, alleges that U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes did not clearly advise him that he faced a possible life term for violating federal probation if he entered a guilty plea, according to court document filed Tuesday. Al Hardan, who had an Arabic interpreter for the proceeding, also says his court-appointed lawyer failed to ensure that the judge advised him of this possibility.

ISIS SUPPORTER SENTENCED: Palestinian refugee who supported ISIS given 16 years

However, David Adler, Al Hardans court-appointed trial lawyer, noted in an email that the judge appears to have warned Al Hardan about this scenario, and pointed to a verbatim excerpt of the hearing quoted in Al Hardans appellate brief.

In the document filed Tuesday with the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Hughes is quoted as saying at Al Hardans 2016 plea hearing, Now, the maximum penalty  Im not saying this is what I'm going to give you  that the statute would allow on your plea of guilty is for you to be imprisoned for 20 years, fined $250,000 and supervised release with up to your  up to life and there is a $100 tax. Do you have any question about the punishment?

After a back and forth with the judge, the defendant said he understood.

A spokesperson for U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick did not respond to a request for comment.

ANOTHER ISIS SENTENCING: UH engineering student who tried to join ISIS in Syria sentenced to 18 months in federal prison

Hughes sentenced the 25-year-old father in December 2017 to 16 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release. Al Hardan pleaded guilty on Oct. 17, 2016, to attempting to provide support to ISIS, admitting that he associated with jihadists, swore an oath to Islamic State terrorists, lied on a passport application about his affiliation with terrorists and stockpiled materials to make remote detonators at his West Houston apartment. He also accepted as fact the governments accusation that he discussed decapitating Americans in support of the jihadist struggle.

David Sterman, a senior policy analyst at the New America Foundation who maintains a database on terrorism cases in the U.S., said its very common for defendants to plead guilty in these cases.

Youll often see appeals or statements of intent to appeal like this, Sterman said. It doesnt surprise me  this seems relatively in line with the general legal wrangling over terrorism cases.

GOVERNMENT APPEALS LIGHT TERRORISM SENTENCE: Justice appeals judges brief term for UH student who tried to join ISIS

Sterman noted that almost none of the defendants dating back to the 9/11 terrorist attacks have been acquitted or successfully challenged a terrorism conviction on appeal.

Yolanda Jarmon, who was appointed to represent Al Hardans in the appeal, declined to comment. But she argued in a court filing that her client thought he faced at most 20 years in prison. He would not have entered a plea of guilty if he understood that a violation of supervised release could result in a lifetime in prison, as opposed to the statutory maximum of 20 years the judge mentioned during his plea hearing, according to court documents.

Gabrielle Banks covers federal court for the Houston Chronicle. Follow her on Twitter and send her tips at gabrielle.banks@chron.com.
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
In 1997, the Federal Reserve Board told Congress, It is the freedom to speak, supported by the availability of information and the free-flow of data, that is the cornerstone of a democratic society and market economy. The board was especially concerned to preserve the U.S. system of open public records.

The availability of public records enables a wide variety of publicly beneficial activities

Public records play a vital role in ensuring that the press can provide citizens with the facts and information they need to be informed citizens, fulfilling Louis Brandeis dictum for democratic government that sunlight is the best disinfectant.

These records enable rapid and inexpensive access to credit for consumer purchases and business expansion. They have democratized finance, allowing individuals and small business to demonstrate their credit-worthiness so that, as Fred Cate noted in his 1999 study, economic opportunities are based on what you have done and can do instead of who you are and who you know.

National security and law enforcement officials rely on access to public records keep the public safe by tracking terrorists and organized crime figures and to bring to justice perpetrators of everyday crimes.

Companies, government agencies, investors and other institutions need information about individuals in their business capacity and about public companies drawn from public records such as state business registries, filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, company websites and court documents on liens and bankruptcies to perform essential corporate due diligence, risk management and business intelligence functions.

Public records are used to locate missing family members, witnesses in criminal and civil matters, parents who are delinquent in child support payments, and owners of recalled automobiles.

Businesses use public records to accurately and efficiently identify consumers likely to be interested in a given product or service.

Crucial participants in this information infrastructure are the commercial resellers who invest billions to gather information from open government sources and aggregate it into useable digital files which they maintain, update and make available to the public and institutional customers. It would be as wasteful for news organization, child safety centers, law enforcement, business intelligence services and companies in all sectors of the economy to create and maintain their own public record data bases as it would be for them to generate their own electricity. They rely on these information intermediaries for accurate, relevant and up-to-date information from public records.

To preserve this open system, the laws governing public access to government information treat pubic release as the default and redaction to protect privacy interests as the exception. For instance, the Federal Freedom of Information Act requires the disclosure of all records other than personnel, medical (and similar files) and law enforcement records whose disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.

Constraints on the collection, dissemination and use of public records might sometimes be in the public interest

Detailed pictures of individuals can be assembled by curating various bits of information from public sources. No single piece of information is all that revealing but together they form a mosaic that reflects an individuals interests, tastes and preferences. Combining these public records with privately assembled information about an individuals behavior in the marketplace and using advanced data analytic techniques can provide even more detailed individual digital portraits.

Congress addressed these data risks 50 years ago in the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), mandating that consumer credit reports could only be used for certain permissible purposes such as employment, credit or insurance. The FCRA allowed consumers to access their reports and correct inaccuracies and required companies to tell them when an adverse decision was based on their reports. It obliged credit reporting agencies to keep their files accurate, relevant and up-to-date. Congress might need to revisit these issues as it considers a new national privacy regime.

The states have not done a good job of providing Congress with models of effective public data governance regimes

The Vermont data broker law, for example, requires companies that collect and use public records to register with the state of Vermont, for no apparent reason or discernible public purpose.

The California privacy law appears aimed at companies that collect information from their customers and then transfer it to third parties, and provides customers with the ability to opt out of such transfers and to access, correct or delete information pertaining to them. But it also extends these rights to public records if the use of the public record data is not compatible with the purpose for which the data is maintained and made available in the government records or for which it is publicly maintained.

Unless revised or clarified, this obscure use constraint will almost certainly obstruct valuable public safety uses of public records databases, potentially enabling fraudsters, terrorists and criminals to hide their misdeeds.

Privacy rules restricting the use of public records must pass a First Amendment test

Careful thought about how to protect valuable uses of public records is needed as Congress considers a new national privacy regime. In a privacy framework in which the objective is to control the risk of harm from data use, all data, even data compiled from public records and combined with proprietary non-public information, would be subject to a risk analysis and to constraints when the use creates a significant risk of harm.

This approach of narrowly tailoring privacy rules around public records as an exception to achieve specific government purposes is not only good policy. It is also the constitutional standard that will prevent new privacy rules from running afoul of the First Amendment. Because the collection, dissemination, and use of information, even personal information, is speech under settled Supreme Court case law, privacy laws are subject to heightened constitutional scrutiny. A measure that is more restrictive of the free flow of information than is necessary for the achievement of its public policy goals, including privacy, would not pass judicial review.
Many companies find they need to undertake IT modernization to support later digital transformation to create new competitive advantage. They recognize that IT and shared service groups must modernize so they can respond more effectively and quickly to the business needs. However, its a mistake to approach IT modernization with the same approach as traditional transformations. The changes to people/talent, processes, policies and philosophies are cross-functional and cross-departmental and cut deeper into the organization than many companies anticipate. Despite these hurdles, Novartis achieved great success in its multi-year IT modernization journey. I spoke with Scott Mason, Head of IT Operations at Novartis, about the companys keys to success in IT modernization.

In 2011, Novartis faced a challenge of infrastructure instability and cost explosion. Its a global healthcare company and recognized it needed to modernize its operations to prepare the infrastructure as the backbone for the companys agile, digital business world. We recognized that the modern technology landscape is about building the backbone operating model and competencies that prepare your platform for digital. Thats the foundation  without it, nothing can happen, said Mason.

IT was not the companys core competency and was considered a silent service, so Novartis previously outsourced its IT infrastructure to gain efficiency. But the leadership team recognized they had to change that strategy for the digital world. Mason said they understood they needed to make a 180-degree shift in what constitutes core and in how to align the backbone costs to the overall thinking around digital.

We recognized that transforming to a digital model meant we needed to be the strategist, the architect and the integrator and needed competency in managing the whole business as a service instead of managing a vendor. Without the as-a-service, end-to-end strategy, our eventual digital transformation ultimately would not have staying power and impact.

This 180-degree shift necessitated taking back control of the outsourced IT infrastructure services. The existing contract had assumed operations would be static; as a result, they experienced mounting change requests and infrastructure deterioration.

The leadership team took a holistic approach to IT modernization, focusing not only on enablers for supporting a digital enterprise but also identifying the roadblocks to digital operations. The unstable, high-cost infrastructure was posing an elevated risk on the companys competitiveness. In addition, many business processes were stuck in old-school thinking and execution, which slowed progress.

Mason explained that they also realized users would not support the change unless the company first transformed IT in its business-facing functions and IT competency to become flexible, responsive and able to support the focus on value and what really enables that value.

How Novartis drove change

Novartis describes its modernization journey approach as a segregated model, meaning the company segregated leadership of activities across two teams  a journey team and a capability team. The teams operated with a different intensity at different points in time.

The leadership team was the journey team in Phase 1. They focused primarily on defining the target state and strategy and sharing it with the executive committee and board to get their buy-in and funding commitment. They also conducted scenario, negotiation and risk-management planning.

The journey team also focused on potential challenges the company would face with its eventual digital model and decided to change the IT model to establish a high degree of integration across services. Mason said they started by architecting how to get ownership and control of the IT processes and tools so that they would be able to drive a set of disruptive services that would reflect the companys future. To ensure stability going forward on a multi-year journey, the journey team structured the transformation journey to endure potential changes in management over the course of the years.

The journey team also had to decide whether to renew the existing infrastructure outsourcing contract since it didnt allow the company enough control and presented the risk of vendor lock-in. This was a prime decision that would illustrate the effectiveness of the companys modernization approach using two teams in a segregated model. Mason said some decision makers were not ready to take the risk of renewing the contract and then experiencing failure with a big vendor contract. Business leaders believed taking ownership from the vendor was also a risk. Ultimately, however, executives in the journey team made the decision to take back ownership, secured by investment in rebuilding the necessary internal skillsets, for example, architecture, engineering and service integration and ownership.

When the journey team completed its activities and all hands were on deck for the modernization initiative, the capability team took over and drove the changes. Journey team activities moved to the background except for tracking progress toward goals.

New metrics

The journey team defined new metrics for the cost dimension, flexibility dimension and stability necessary for the backbone infrastructure to support how the company wanted to operate in a digital world. The new metrics also included regaining ownership of IT processes, tools and data, and simplifying and standardizing third party-contracts based on consumption elements. There were no references to the companys existing condition. The modernization metrics focused only on where the company wanted to go and then worked backwards from that perspective.

In my conversation with Mason and Vijay Vadrevu, Head of Technology and Infrastructure Services, it was clear that using metrics to track progress was crucial in addressing resistance to change. The journey teams reporting on progress toward goals as the company achieved each of six value sprints, enhanced employees confidence in the change and eventually diminished their resistance.

Four tips for managing IT modernization initiatives

As Novartis proves, a two-team approach to IT modernization is a successful approach. Here are some tips for allocating tasks between the two teams.

The journey team. Make sure this team drives toward the stated business goals and keeps everyone focused on achieving the desired performance. This team also should be responsible for determining the funding model for the modernization, securing the funding and making decisions about additional funding as needs arise on the journey.

Make sure this team drives toward the stated business goals and keeps everyone focused on achieving the desired performance. This team also should be responsible for determining the funding model for the modernization, securing the funding and making decisions about additional funding as needs arise on the journey. The capability team. This team should be responsible for overseeing the current environment while driving initiatives to change capabilities. The team should include capability experts in internal departments and business units as well as the vendor ecosystem partners that support various functions. This team will be responsible for multiple activities involved in changing a function or other aspect of company capabilities, whether its a technology implementation, a change in talent or some other organizational change.

Following this approach will ensure the necessary continuity and commitment for moving forward on your IT modernization journey.
Audio Transcript

Brian Anderson: Welcome back to the 10 Blocks podcast. This is your host Brian Anderson, editor of City Journal. Coming up on the show today, we have another special feature for our listeners. Every year our parent organization the Manhattan Institute hosts the annual Wilson lecture, named after the esteemed political scientist, James Q Wilson. Wilson died in 2012. He was a long-time professor of public administration at both Harvard and UCLA, and he was a great friend to City Journal and the Institute. Both his academic career and his career in government is too extensive to discuss here. His most famous contributions to public life were his masterful 1989 book Bureaucracy, which offered deep insight into how government agencies function, and the broken windows theory of crime and disorder, which he and George Kelling first advanced in 1982. And this years James Q. Wilson Lecture at the Manhattan Institute again invited Harvard prof and city journal editor Edward Glaeser, this year to address the challenges of selling the idea of capitalism to skeptical millennials and even younger Americans. Edward Glaeser is the Fred and Eleanor Glimp professor of economics at Harvard. Hes also a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and author of the bestselling book, Triumph of the City, which grew in part out of his City Journal essays. The first voice youll hear after this is that of the Manhattan Institutes president, Larry Mone, who introduced Ed at the event. We hope youll enjoy!

Lawrence Mone: Good evening and welcome to the 2018 James Q. Wilson Lecture. It is the Manhattan Institutes honor to host this lecture series now in its fifth year, dedicated to the legacy of one of Americas preeminent public intellectuals. James Q. Wilson was a political scientist at Harvard and UCLA who contributed invaluably to American public policy and intellectual life. His textbook American Government has introduced thousands of high school and college students to the basic principles of our federal system. And his 1989 book Bureaucracy is perhaps the greatest study of American government agencies ever written. Wilson received the nations highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, in 2003. The Manhattan Institute had the great honor of a long relationship with Jim. Just one product of that relationship was an annual lecture series that he delivered here for 15 years between 1997 and 2011. The diversity of topics he discussed: criminal justice, the origins of terrorism, the nature of democracy, the role of media and television in shaping public discourse, just to name a few, suggest the staggering range of his intellect. When Jim died in 2012, we decided to honor this legacy by continuing his lecture series. And we could think of no better intellectual to do so than Edward Glaeser. Like Jim, Eds wide-ranging curiosity generates seemingly endless and always fascinating material. We know that with Ed at the helm of the lecture series we will have an intellectual feast for many years to come. Ed is a Manhattan Institute senior fellow and the Fred and Eleanor Glimp professor of economics at Harvard University, where he has taught since 1992. He is a pioneer in the field of urban economics and has done more than perhaps any other scholar to enrich our understanding of cities. He has served as Director of the Taubman Center for State and Local Government and Director of the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston. He has published dozens of papers on how cities grow and the role they play as hubs of ideas and inventions. His best-selling book, Triumph of the City , is a passionate argument for the importance of thriving vital cities humanities future. It began life in part as a series of articles for our quarterly magazine, City Journal. For those in the audience who havent read it, I would strongly encourage you to do so. Eds topic this evening, How to Correct the Waning Popularity of Capitalism in the Younger Generation, is one whose critical importance to our countrys future is self-evident. So, without further ado, I would like to welcome Ed Glaeser to the podium.

Edward Glaeser: Thank you. Thank you, Larry. Thank you all for coming. Thank you for sharing your incredibly valuable time with me. It is such an honor for me to give the annual James Q. Wilson Lecture here. I, of course, was a huge fan of James Wilson. And his spirit, his ideas, his energy inspire me daily. And I am also just so happy to be part of the MI family, which I have had a relationship with of some form for many decades under Larrys leadership and I always feel coming here and being part of this lecture series gives me a sustenance that maintains me through my, you know, return to Cambridge  where not everyone has the same views. So, normally the past four James Q. Wilson Lectures have had the following structure: that I have focused on a problem, the war on work, a rising joblessness in the American Eastern Heartland, and offered a series of economic policies that I feel quite confident at least are good economics. In this case, the problem is intellectual. The problem is spiritual, the problem is in some sense even deeper and more important than any of the other ones that I have talked about. And I will talk about things that I think are helpful solutions, but I feel infinitely less confidence than I do, than I would if I were say, for example, talking about a change in restricting disability insurance. Right? This is a harder topic and figuring out how to talk to millennials, about capitalism, socialism, is something that is enormously difficult and enormously interesting as well. And I think its a challenge for all of us going forward. Because in some sense it starts with a failure. Right? It starts with a failure that is shown almost every week in stories like this, this is a relatively old one, but since it comes from Harvards Institute of Politics, I thought I would start with it. Right? So, this is the 2016 Harvard Youth survey saying that 51% do not support capitalism as opposed to 42% that do; 48% believe the American dream is dead; 47% believe our justice system is unfair; four in five say significant reform in Washington is needed  well that ones probably okay. This gives you the cuts by age. And, so, I am in this 50 to 64-year-old bracket. And just go along the bottom line here, so only 27% of us  and I know there are more than a few of us in the 50 to 64 bracket in this room today  only 27% of us have a favorable view of socialism. The 65-plus has even less favorable view  thats at 24%. Switch to the 18 to 29 years, 55% of them say that they have a favorable view of socialism. Thats an astounding number. This is a May 2016 Gallup daily tracking number. 55% socialism as opposed to 57% of capitalism so they are running neck and neck here. And you can see sort of this generational shift. Note one thing, Im going to come back to this later, the 18 to 29-year-olds are not down on small business, they have if anything the most rousingly positive views. 98% of them said that they favored small business. I dont know what you get 98% favorable ratings on anything in the modern world, its astounding. And 90% say that they like entrepreneurs. And I think that fact is something that we are going to have to work on. And Ill come back to that in a second. This is from an August 2018  so this was just recent  a YouGov poll. Again, 18 to 29-year-olds  in this case they show you that 40% are unsure as to whether or not they are favorable or unfavorable of socialism, so that suggests that there is something at least to work with. But when you compare the very favorable versus very unfavorable groups you have a 35% they are saying they are favorable or somewhat favorable as opposed to 26% who are saying that they are somewhat unfavorable or very unfavorable. So, in this recent poll, the favorable views really beat out the unfavorable views in terms of socialism. And the last one that I will show you  this is again YouGov  this is comparing May 2015 versus August 2018. Within each one of the age brackets you have falling support of capitalism, and I tend to think these numbers are quite low in the YouGov numbers. Now, again, a lot of these questions have slightly different wording, as we know slightly different wording can get you quite different results in terms of polling. But, you know, this is a 30% favorable view of capitalism in 2018 among 18 to 29-year-olds as opposed to 39% three years ago. So, those are really striking numbers. And for anyone who believes in the cause of freedom, they should be worrisome numbers. Right? I mean, I think its impossible to look at this and thing that all is well in the spiritual lives of the young. And if you needed more reminder of this, there are political repercussions of having these beliefs going forward. This may very well play a non-trivial role in the election of the next president of the United States. So, this is something indeed that has major importance for all of us. I found this article which just came out in August 24, 2018, to be particularly striking and deeply Orwellian, in fact when I read it. So, the socialist argument against capitalism isnt that it makes us poor  its that it makes us unfree. Okay? So, this guy is a Yale-trained  and I want that emphasized  a Yale-trained professor of political science at Brooklyn College. And he is writing, of course, in a page of The New York Times, capitalism makes us unfree when my well-being depends upon your whim, when the basic needs of life compel submission to the market and subjugation at work, we live not in freedom, but in domination. So, now you understand the obligation to go to work, to do something, to earn something, is now akin to slavery  right? In this view of this. Right? Socialists want to end that domination to establish freedom from rule by the boss, from the need to smile for the sake of a sale, from the obligation to sell for the sake of survival. I sort of find that so mind-boggling in terms of a viewpoint. And so far away from where I would have started on this. This is Hayek and The Road to Serfdom, our freedom of choice in a competitive society rests on the fact that if one person refuses to satisfy our wishes we can turn to another. But if we face a monopolist we are at his absolute mercy. And an authority directing the whole economic system of this country would be the most powerful monopolist conceivable. Right? So, the problem that we have  and I suspect many people in this audience have  the same problem that I have. We read the Hayek words, we think they are obviously true and that any right-thinking person should immediately nod and say that this is right. And yet, if that is your viewpoint, you have no ability to communicate with anyone who reads those words and think theyre right. Okay? So, that is the leap that we have to make if we are going to have any success in actually making this communication. That we cannot just read Hayek and nod, as great as Hayek is, we actually need to have a story, a narrative, a way of communicating to people who read Corey Rubins article and think boy that sounds right to me. I need to be free from the domination of having to work for a living. One other thing to point out, the rise of the Democrat Socialists of America, several prominent political candidates in recent days have been members of this group. The growth has been from 5,000 to 49,000 in three years. Thats a self-reported figure. Another figure is 35,000, but it has grown substantially. And just to give you, its often hard to pin down what socialism means  and I will return to that in a second  but the DSA constitution at least spells it fairly clearly out: We are socialists because we share a vision of a humane social order based on popular control of resources and production, economic planning, equitable distribution, feminism, racial equality and non-oppressive relationships. Okay? So, this sort of throws it all in together. Now, its good that they have a story because its often pretty hard to figure out what socialism actually means to the people who say that they are favorable of it. Right? Its not clear that they know all that much about the history of socialism in lots of contexts. One thing is pretty clear. Certainly, they are all in favor of more redistribution to the very poor. And I have always had the view that this is in fact, you know, MI has been committed, at least as far as Ive known it, to making the lives of the poorest Americans, the poorest New Yorkers better. Right? That is something that we all share a commitment for. There is no sense in which we do not want to deliver better things to the poorest members of our society, to make those people, whether or not they are non-employed 45-year-olds in West Virginia or immigrants in the Bronx, making sure that they have every opportunity to use their talents to make the world a better place. I think we all believe in this. We may differ slightly on means, but, you know, that is not the area in which we can possibly disagree. There is also the view that it is about more distribution to them, in particular, whether or not they are lower income or middle income, the sort of more free stuff for me agenda. Thats a little bit easier to fight against. And I think we probably should  especially if they are middle income. Then comes the stuff that is even slightly scarier. A really widespread distrust of free markets, a distrust of freedom more generally, a belief in price controls, a belief that prices should be free, right, in the case of lots of things. And, in some cases  and you saw that in the DSA agenda  public ownership of more services; education, health care, perhaps even other currently free industries. And it is not clear what they actually want where they want it, but certainly this is conventionally what socialism means  and certainly the DSA agenda at least suggests popular control of resources and production that they are actually signing on for that. And, you know, the DSA candidates have had some success lately. Okay, so now I am just going to pivot slightly and talk a little bit about why we think this has occurred. So, some part of this is assuredly the normal generational churn and that part we probably shouldnt be that excited about. Right? Or shouldnt be that upset about. So, there is a famous line which has been alternatively attributed to Churchill, Clemenceau and Disraeli, all three at once, perhaps: Any man who is not a socialist at age 20 has no heart. Any man who is still a socialist at age 40 has no head. A little bit of looking on my friend Google has suggested that at least there are two alternative versions. This one I particularly love, this is John Adams from 1799, so this is a confirmed quote from him: A boy of 15 who is not a Democrat is good for nothing and he is no better who is a Democrat at 20  pretty close  but I think the real origin of this quote is Guizot who says that: Not to be a Republican at 20 is proof of want to heart. To be one at 30 is proof of want of head. So, Guizot actually seems to be the oldest side of this. But, you know, we cant rule out earlier generators of this idea. The other Guizot quote I think thats really important that we keep in our minds as we go forward, is that we are not going to win if we are just against stuff. Right? We need optimism. We need the cause of freedom to be a cause of hope as it ever has been and ever will be. Right? And the Guizot quote that I like is that: The world belongs to the optimists, pessimists are only spectators. And whatever we do has to be about empowering the millennials, not about saying that they are wrong or foolish. It has to be about helping them change the future and recover their dreams. Now, this generational churn doesnt always occur. So, I am of a generation which I like to think of myself as a Jimmy Carter Republican  okay? Meaning, that I was nine when Jimmy Carter was elected and 13 when he lost his office. And, you know, this was an experience which very much seared me and made me fairly unenthusiastic about Jimmy Carter and his legacy. And, you know, I know a lot of people of my generation who share this view, who had this coming of age, its very associated with Reagan in 1981 and this can happen  of course it happened in earlier ages, right? The 1964 Republication National Convention was very much of a generational fight and the young generation was the one on the right. The young generation were the Goldwater Girls and the Goldwater Young Republicans. So, it doesnt have to be, but it seems like the current generation eventually are conspiring. And I think one variant of just the simple Guizot, Clemenceau view is its about reaction to the status quo, especially when things arent going very well for you. So, you know, a view that you just reject the views of your elders, especially if things arent going so well, and its not too hard to see why they might think, why the young might think, that their lives arent going that well. Remember, this is a generation that was raised in the shadow of the Great Recession. Right? Their entire sort of adult waking life has been starting in 2007 for many of them, or 2006, and so they have experienced a great deal of stasis, a great lack of dynamism. This is median usual weekly real earnings, which you know 16 years and older, so this is the world that many of them are experiencing. Fairly static wages. At the same time, the things that their elders own, like stocks, right? Have been going up. Or houses, for another example, have been going up. So, you know, you see a world in which your elders are getting rich and you are facing the same static wages and that doesnt seem like a great world for you. And you want something else. And the old Left has been out of power for so long that they can bear no blame for what went on. Right? The center-Left is complicit in Obama, the center-Right is complicit in Busch, whereas the guys who were, you know, on the Eugene Debs ticket, those guys have nothing to blame for. And thats only part of whats going on. Its like it is harkening back to a group that is so far out of touch that it doesnt bear any blame. And there is a narrative which is around a zero-sum economy, where rising inequality means that younger, poorer voters are being robbed by older insiders. Thats the story that they are being told. And sometimes thats not totally false. Right? So, I view the world of NIMBYists, sort of opposition to new growth, as very much of being one in which insiders are protecting their rights against, you know, the economic growth, the new development of housing, that would in fact empower and strengthen the young and provide more affordable housing. But most of the time this narrative is false. Moreover, things which we thought should have been seared into the consciousness of the world are being forgotten. Right? The failures of communism are being forgotten, the downsides of a century. I think I have an op-ed by a student of mine that she wrote in the Harvard Crimson a year ago, Ill just read you a few words on this. So, 100 years, 100 million Lives, think twice. And she is responding to the rise of fashionable communism on the Harvard campus. The words are pretty powerful: In 1988, my twenty-six-year-old father jumped off a train in the middle of Hungary with nothing but the clothes on his back. For the next two years, he fled an oppressive Romanian Communist regime that would kill him if they ever laid hands on him again. My father ran from a government that beat, tortured, and brainwashed its citizens. Right? This is a memory that should not be lost. This is an important memory, and indeed its a memory that, you know, as my father grew up in Nazi Germany and my grandfather grew up in the czars Russia, those are memories that are lodged with me and make me always skeptical of the benevolence of government. Right? The Scandinavian model is extolled without any real understanding of how much market-friendly reform was required to make it work. And the right answer is not that Denmark is hell, it is not hell, but the right answer is that in fact for Denmark to work the whole original socialist model had to be reformed in a way that empowered entrepreneurship. And I was at an event, for example, last week, in Sweden done by a thinktank of the same sort of genre, which was full of Swedish entrepreneurs, Swedish unicorn leaders, of people who felt empowered by their system because they had returned to a model that respected entrepreneurship. Because they knew that socialism wasnt enough, that wasnt the model. And thats being forgotten. And, finally, the plight of Southern European social democracies, Greece, Spain, Italy, Portugal, is completely ignored. And if you think a more socialist America how confident are we that we would end up looking like Sweden relative to looking like Greece? Right? And Im certainly not at all confident that we would end up with the sort of relatively benign market-friendly view of social democracy relative to a view that is, you know, much more painful and much more difficult. And part of what has to happen is memory, the forgotten joys of soviet shop queues. Part of it is just looking around the world, right? You dont need to look back fifty years to see the failures of a communist regime. You just need to look at Venezuela today. You just need to look at the difficulties of Argentina. This is around us. And we can see the flight of thousands from Venezuela to nearby Colombia on a daily basis. Right? Fleeing what happens when you go too far in this direction, showing the dangers of it. I will say so this morning I talked to a student of mine who now is a professor at the University of Chicago who said I dont understand how millennials can possibly think communism is a good idea. I lived through, I grew up in China and, you know, it seems to me absolutely achingly obvious that Deng Xiaopings decision to allow in some degree of market capitalism was responsible for incredible uplifting in the quality of life for millions and millions of people. This is an incredibly big story that should be obvious to everyone, and yet it is a story that is not being told, it is a story that is not being heard. Okay? I think in general within the U.S. our old story that capitalism engenders growth doesnt seem to work anymore. And I dont know the extent to which its because millennials just feel like wealth is not the story or whether or not they dont believe that story, but its certainly deeply worrisome to me. And it means that we need new stories. We need new stories. As true as this one, as much as we should not forget this one, we need a narrative that speaks more to 23-year-olds than, you know, the glories of American capitalism. So, a few things. And while we get into the mindset of millennials. I have been told  I think the first thing for all of us to do is we need to take a selfie together. I think thats the MI, the excellent MI  lets see if we can do it. There we go. We are all taking a selfie. Okay. So now we have entered the mindset of millennials. The first thing that some of us have trouble with dealing with millennials is occasionally they might have a tad of a sense of entitlement. A tad of a sense of entitlement. Which is not totally unrelated to a sense that having to work is some egregious obligation on us. And, I love this quotation from a discussion with graduate students. I actually, theres a slight typo on this, but the graduate students said we are outraged, meaning we graduate students are outraged that our professors wont spend long hours with us. But at the same time, we deeply resent the undergraduates who think they are entitled to our time. So, you know, its a sense that we are entitled to the people above us giving us all the time in the world, but we have no obligation to give time to the people who we teach. Now, notably the student who said this grew up in the former Soviet Union. Right? So, in fact, he was not an American millennial at all. He was just observing them from the eyes of someone who had seen a world that was much worse. But at the same time  so this is a challenge  but at the same time I taught both graduate students and undergraduates this morning. And I find them teaching them inspiring, absolutely engaging. They are full of energy. They are full of hope. There are lots of good things about them. This is not some, and if we approach this with some view that they are some entitled generation that we cant, you know, we cant love or admire, were going to lose it from the beginning. And there is a lot to admire. There is a lot of social spirit in them. There is a lot of sense of hope. There is a lot of sense of dynamism in them. And we need that. They are, of course, deeply skeptical of both parties  especially the GOP  the recent Pew numbers are that millennials are 44% independent, 35% Democratic and 17% Republican. But they have also watched  and you saw this in the numbers of entrepreneurs and you saw this on the numbers on small businesses  they have also watched individual entrepreneurs do amazing things. Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, while the public sector often appears stagnant, right? The natural response for them seems to be at this point to buy into some dynamic figure who is going to socialize everything, but they have got to understand that that is a recipe for an utterly stagnant government in the future. And they have to understand the right model is one in which we use talents, and skills, and ideas like those of Jeff Bezos or Steve Jobs in order to transform social services. That in fact the right model is the model that they have seen work, is the model of private entrepreneurship and private innovation. It just needs to be directed a little bit better towards solving social problems rather than just finding a more user-friendly version of Twitter, right? Okay. So, my big question, then  and I think its with this question that I think we should start our discussion  what system and what policies are going to empower you, the millennials, and your generation to make America a better country? Will this system impose a lot of rules from Washington? Will it impose a lot of public ownership? Or will it empower nonprofit and for-profit entrepreneurs, right? Will the system enable the dreamers of tomorrow to solve todays problems, or will it lock current problems in place? And I think the message of hope is absolutely critical for this, right? Who is going to give us better cities, HUD or millennial entrepreneurs? I think every 24-year-old knows the right answer to that, okay? And that question leads you inexorably towards a world of asking why is it that we are holding back entrepreneurs, why is it that we are holding back the food trucks, and why is the right answer to be public ownership of food trucks? How can that possibly be a sensible thing to do, right? Except that the current system has often failed them. But ask them how can the right answer be big government, right? The history of millennials is full of objections to government policies, of cases in which they dont like government, how can the answer be more big government for them? So, I feel inspired by Reagans 81 inaugural address. Again, remember I was 14 then, so this was a big deal for me. In this land we unleashed the energy and individual genius of man to a greater extent that has ever been done before, right? They are inspiring words that are still inspiring. The problems of our age still require us to unleash that energy and genius, yet the millennial and tech industry public sector solutions feel more akin to the age of Karl Marx than to the age of Sergey Brin. Universal basic income, just putting everyone on the dole, how can that possibly be a creative answer to the change in demands for labor? Price controls are deeply unfair and they limit the ability of entrepreneurs to make things better, right? Wheres the focus on creative education programs, whether for the inner cities of for the Eastern Heartland? The right answer for a jobless future is for them to use what they saw work, which is innovative entrepreneurs doing new stuff, for them to do it themselves, not for them to come down with a rigid top-down solution. And it has to have some story that is like this. Private creativity for public good. Now, I love, and I am speaking at YIMBYtown in a couple weeks, and I am really excited about this. I love the YIMBY movement. And it is a millennial movement, and its a movement that has got the point that freedom is actually a progressive thing, that in fact if you want to promote more affordable housing for ordinary Americans, the right thing to do is unleash the supply of housing, right, is to get rid of the regulations that hold housing back. Thinking about how YIMBY got there is really important for understanding what might be able to work with it. Now, they havent gotten there everywhere, right? We certainly have plenty of people running for office, particularly in New York State, who still seem to think that universal rent control is the right answer, because rent control has worked so well to promote affordable housing in the left 75 years in New York City. But, we really have got a growing movement that sees the case for freedom as being the right answer for affordability, right? We have got our 75-year history of rent control, weve got the evidence on public housing projects, you know, the quintessential book is written by our own Howard Husock here. Everyone can see that housing is inexpensive in much of America, right, where we allow relatively free building. The enemies of growth, the NIMBYs, are easy to demonize, and that helps. The unfairness of rent control is very powerful, and Ill come back to that in a second. And other causes of the young, inclusion, environmentalism, right, can be tied to allowing more building. Weve got a case against the quasi-socialist status quo in favor of more, not less, market capitalism high-cost housing markets. We have to understand how to do this in more markets. We have to understand both how to enable the YIMBYist movement to grow and how to make sure it works in labor markets in entrepreneurship areas, in other areas where we crucially need change, right? Obviously there has been a cottage industry by the New York Post and others in demonizing the beneficiaries of rent control for the past 40 years. That demonization is unfortunately part of making the case for anything, right? Because they certainly do it to their enemies all the time, right? Demonization has been a huge part of everything and unfortunately, you know, as a point that I try to make when understanding the political economy of hatred, unfortunately hating the haters tends to often be a more effective strategy than preaching love. So, its unfortunately true that almost certainly there needs to be a bit of demonization. I prefer there to be less rather than more, but we need to have some of it. Permits issued, this just shows the places that build a lot arent expensive, the places that are expensive dont build a lot. So, taking this argument, taking the case for freedom to other markets, now, unfortunately just see again the Orwellian nature of this. So, Bernie Sanders wants to make college tuition free and debt-free, okay? So free. So, this means no prices for anything, you know, obviously forced. This is not a freedom that I understand, but its a certain type of freedom, I guess. Obviously, theres the economic case, wont poorer colleges just shut down, or hide fees, or lower quality, but it seems to me that in many cases the stronger argument, and the stronger argument against socialism more generally are that its not fair, that your actual understanding of fairness is misplaced. So, its not fair because often these services are not benefitting the poorest Americans, they are benefitting richer Americans, they are benefitting whiter Americans. Often you know, when you have rent control it has gone to people who are not at the, you know, on the margins of living, but who are wealthier. When we promote employment with high minimum wages then poorer customers pay the cost of income redistribution, thats not fair. When low prices or no prices generate overuse, or in some cases like driving thats unfair as well. So, let me just show you some pictures. So, this just points out that when you look at who is getting college, right, overwhelmingly its white non-Hispanics, not blacks or Hispanics. So, if you are favoring free college, you are favoring racial distribution in the U.S., and how can that possibly be something that good socialists actually want? You are favoring redistribution to the rich away from the poor. So, this is just income of people who are, you know, have college degrees or graduate degrees relative to people who dont have it. By making it free you are taking somebodys earnings and you are giving it to someone who is richer. How can that possibly be fair, right? And Ive tried this. I tried this on a  this is my focus group of one, I tried a twelve-year-old who happens to live in my house, me, Im trying to work on how to talk to young people about socialism. A twelve-year-old  hmm. Me: Who do you think should pay for schooling? The people who go to schools and get the benefits, or the taxpayers? Twelve-year-old: The people who go to school, obviously. Right? Implication that the adult is a bit slow as usual. Me: How about other things? Twelve-year-old: The people that use them. Me: After all, somebody needs to pay. Twelve-year-old: Obviously. Right? Same thing. And the point there is that actually if you get them before the political indoctrination, they kind of understand that like the person who gets something should pay for it. That is not something that is hard for a nine-year-old to grasp. After all, they have got siblings and when their siblings get stuff they want their siblings to pay for it, right? Thats pretty clear. But you know, that logic gets missed in  as they get older, right? I have made a big point about how airports should be self-funded by user fees, and thats not just an issue of sort of good management, thats also an issue of fairness. The average user of JFK airport is much richer than the average American taxpayer. We should have airports that are of course independent of Port Authority and much, probably private in most cases, and funded by user fees. Social Security. Social Security goes more to people who live longer. People who live longer are typically richer. Its not fair. Medicare goes typically to people who live longer. People who live longer are richer. Its not fair. All of these policies one can demonize with the fairness lens. I think its even more powerful the demonization of minimum wages. Who pays for minimum wages? The customers. What, you know, what cockamamie system is going to try and solve the problems of income redistribution by charging the people who go to McDonalds to pay higher wages to the people who work in McDonalds. That is the most backward system of thinking about what a fair system would look like that I could possibly imagine. Whatever we think we want to do for the people that work for McDonalds, surely that should be paid for by taxpayers everywhere, not saying in particular we want the customers at McDonalds to bear this burden, and yet that is exactly what minimum wages do. Its not fair, right? Freeways. Free highways, making these things free encourage more people to drive, how can that possibly be good for the planet, right? We have a long cottage industry of people on the Left demonizing for-profit entities of a variety of forms, they are very good at it, and it is easy to demonize those companies that take federal subsidies. But the problem with that particular road is it doesnt give us enough that is positive, right? We can do the not fairness thing but the hope is to get off of that, off of the its not fair line, try to neutralize their its not fair line, and get to something that is full of hope. And that is where I am going to end on this, right? So, you know, Robin has this line when the basic needs of life compel submission to the market and subjugation at work, we live not in freedom but in domination, right? Either Robin is believing that freedom requires our needs to be met by someone else as in universal basic income, which sounds more like slavery, right, and prying someone else to work for you to not work, that feels like not freedom to me but something else  or that somehow or other we are all going to work but no markets are going to be involved, right? I know an older line of this: What will be the manner of life among men who may be supposed to have their food and clothing provided for them in moderation, and who have entrusted the practice of the arts to others, and whose husbandry committed to slaves paying a part of the produce  thats Plato, right? Hes talking about the lives of his guardians, who, like Robins people, he expects to be able to not subject themselves to the market in their working, but at least he comes out and says that he expects slaves to do the work, right? So, there is a you know, there is a form of you know, of serfdom that inevitably comes by going down this route, and its a route that involves a larger and larger share of the GDP being spent on entitlements. Now, I weighed in last year again about the costs of expecting people to be on universal basic income and just not working and having this paid for them, I think I cannot stress enough this is self-reported life satisfaction, employed low-income people, maybe 12% of them among single, childless men are unhappy, but if you are not working that rises to over 30%, right? The misery of the jobless cannot be overestimated. And a view that we are going to have 30, 40% of the American population that are paid for by universal basic income who arent working, that is a hell. That is not a positive role. It is much healthier for them in the long-run to subject themselves to the subjugation of the market and does something that yields joy to someone else. To actually give someone a smile when selling something. Thats not a horrible thing. Thats an upside, thats a plus, thats being of service to the world and thats something that brings satisfaction and a sense of purpose. Federal job guarantees seem even worse. This is a Gillibrand, Cory Booker idea, a Bernie Sanders idea, that the federal government is going to guarantee everyone  they havent specified the wage  the cost of this is obviously likely to be enormous, but is also is not going to train people to do new skills, to be entrepreneurs, its going to create these guys. This we cant show online, though. I dont have copyright on any of that. So, whats the positive thing? So, we have to start with the idea of a free market for social entrepreneurs. We need to start with a vision that starts with heroes. Heroes who everyone can see has done something good for the world, right? I am perfectly happy to defend the Steve Jobs and Sergey Brins, but choose ones that everyone Right and Left agrees have done something good. Jane Addams, Geoffrey Canada, right? Mother Teresa, right? People who are obviously in the service of the world. They were also entrepreneurs of a form. Many of them have also been held back by undue regulations, right? Then once we have understood that those are the people the millennials can be and should be, we need to broaden it. We need to make it clear that the entrepreneur who starts their grocery store in a low-income neighborhood, thats also a social entrepreneur. Thats also an entrepreneur who is providing a path forward, and yet that is an entrepreneur who is blocked by a need for 17 permits in New York, okay? So, that person is not someone that we need a socialist answer, we need a capitalist answer, we need an answer thats about freedom, we need an answer that is about empowering them. We also have to include those ordinary for-profit entrepreneurs who provide new jobs for the people who have lost their jobs, for those who fight this herculean effort of creating employment in the Eastern Heartland, in the parts of America where 25, 30% of Americans are jobless. We need to start with this notion that there are entrepreneurs that everyone can applaud, can appeal, and then we have to broaden it to make it clear that other people are achieving the same ends, whether or not they are for-profit or not-for-profit, right? We must convey our faith that the millennials, will provide the greatest generation of social entrepreneurs yet, and as long as government empowers instead of restricting, and that is fundamentally the freedom agenda. That it is fundamentally not one about restrictions, that it is one about enabling them to do their dreams and make the things better. Now, to be concrete to sort of five policies, you know, as I have said before, employment subsidies, not minimum wages, not free guaranteed government jobs, competitively sourced out-of-school programs that provide vocational training, right? We want to unleash the genius and entrepreneurs of 25-year-olds to figure out how to provide skills in the inner city or in West Virginia that will lead to jobs. We want to reward skill providers, not enforce zero costs, not say that you have to provide your education for free, but reward them. Give them some form of payoff. We want one-stop business permitting for all social startups everywhere, and all startups in disadvantaged areas. We want to start including entrepreneurial innovators into the cost-cutting side of government. Can we make Medicare cheaper without cutting quality and we want them to participate in this. Finally, we want to applaud YIMBYism. We want to applaud anyone who understands that freedom is the path towards more affordable housing. And just my final thoughts: The cause of freedom has one great advantage over its enemies  it is true, it is right, okay? And we never need to forget that. But every generation we need to fight the battle for it again, and we are not doing very well right now with this generation. I have tried to put together my thoughts. I am not sure that they are right, okay? I am sure that whatever the answer is has to be full of hope and has to be full of respect for the millennial generation, because I think they are incredible in lots of ways. They are just a little bit mislead right now. I am sure that you know, freedom will inspire them to change the world, and I think in fact they can do it. But, we all need to come together and make sure that they dont get trapped in this socialist era that has caused so much harm over the course of the twentieth century. And you know, my final observation is that thank god that twelve-year-old girl that I was talking about thinks that Alexander Hamilton is the greatest guy in the world thanks to Lin-Manuel Miranda, so I just want to end by thanking Lin-Manuel Miranda on this, and end there.
The Lloyds Bank Foundation for England and Wales has today warned of a quiet crisis in local government funding, placing more pressure on charities.

It commissioned the research because the local charities it funds tell us every day of the increasing pressure on their communities and that charities are left to pick up the pieces.

A Quiet Crisis: Local Government Spending on Disadvantage, by the New Policy Institute (NPI) for Lloyds Bank Foundation for England and Wales, looks at official data on local government spending in England on a range of services for adults and children facing disadvantage.

The research found that councils had moved away from preventative spending and that areas with higher levels of disadvantage were most affected.

It also found there is great variation in spending on different types of disadvantage

Councils have faced significant cuts to their own funding since 2010, but the research suggests that most have tried to protect vulnerable people. Overall there has been an 8 per cent decline in local government spending but spending on disadvantaged groups has fallen by 2 per cent.

However the report said that there had been an increase in demand for some services.

Local authorities are a significant funder of the voluntary sector. According to the latest NCVO Almanac figures, for the 2015/16 financial year sector income from local government reached 7.5bn, overtaking income from central government for the first time since 2004/05.

Worst could be yet to come

Paul Streets, chief executive of the Lloyds Bank Foundation, said: This research uncovers the quiet crisis that even well-run local authorities are facing up and down the country in trying to fund services for disadvantaged adults and children, a crisis for which the worst may be yet to come.

He added that councils are approaching the tipping point and that: Local charities are doing their best to help councils pick up the pieces but as a country, we can and must do better than this. The government needs urgently to look again at how it funds local councils to enable them to provide and fund services for those who need it the most, regardless of where they live.

The research calls for a change of direction and an urgent debate about future funding for local councils.




Bob Woodwards new book, Fear, a devastating portrait of a presidency lurching from crisis to crisis, is a certified blockbuster. On its first day on shelves, 750,000 copies were sold. The hype was good: for more than a week before its debut, Fear dominated the news cycle, as journalists and pundits parsed the revelations within. Those scoops, as Woodward writes in his note to readers, come from hundreds of hours of interviews conducted on deep background, meaning that the officials with whom Woodward spoke are not named in the text.

This sort of reporting isnt new for Woodward, nor is he its only practitioner. In books about presidents from Nixon to Obama, Woodward has employed a similar approach, conducting exhaustive interviews on background and using the information he gathers to write from an omniscient perspective. Woodward and Carl Bernstein, his colleague at The Washington Post, used the most famous anonymous source in American historyFBI Associate Director Mark Felt a.k.a. Deep Throatto expose the cover-up behind the Watergate burglary that unraveled Nixons presidency. This week, Woodward told Michael Schmidt of The New York Times that you wont get the straight story from someone if you do it on the record. You will get a press release version of events. But as Axioss Jonathan Swan, one of the current masters of Washington intrigue, noted, sources also lie on background. A lot.

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And no group of officials in recent memory has proved as willing to bend the truth as those in the Trump administration. The recent controversy over Steve Bannons invitation (later rescinded) to appear at The New Yorker Festival led The Washington Posts Margaret Sullivan to declare, Enough, already, with anything Steve Bannon has to say. When Kellyanne Conway appears on CNN, critics question why the network gives a platform to the official who coined alternative facts. Yet for Woodward, reliance on the same sources is received differently: If its not OK for David Remnick to talk to Bannon in front of an audience, why is it OK for Woodward to use him, quite obviously, as a key source in the book?

Woodwards approach hasnt changed; the climate in which his sources are viewed has. Every administration is filled with people who have an agenda, who want to spin events in their favor, but the lines of credibility have shifted. In taking on the Trump presidency as his topic, Woodward is left to assemble a reliable book from unreliable sources.

In taking on the Trump presidency as his topic, Woodward is left to assemble a reliable book from unreliable sources.

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No onewith the possible exception of a few people in the White Housedoubts that Woodwards sources are real, or that he has exhaustive tapes of their conversations. (Hes publicly released one, of an interview with Trump he conducted after the book was complete.) When possible, as in the case of a January 2018 National Security Council meeting, Woodward clearly draws on multiple sources. He writes that, after Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told Trump that the US presence in South Korea was designed to prevent World War III from breaking out, Time stopped for more than one in attendance.

But because Woodwards omniscient style doesnt attribute the events to specific sources, it can be difficult to know whose version of the truth readers are getting. Every subject, of course, brings his biases to an interview, and can only provide his perspective and recollection of events. In Fear, a small handful of sources dominates large chunks of the narrative, and in some caseswhere one can discern who is driving the storythat raises concerns about whether readers are getting a true picture.

Woodward hasnt confirmed the identities of any people he spoke with, but it doesnt take much of a close reading of Fear to recognize the fingerprints of Bannon, Rob Porter, John Dowd, and Reince Priebus, among others, on the narrative. Bannon is a visionary (see ch. 2), Porter a bulwark against chaos (ch. 32), Priebus a beleaguered good soldier (ch. 18), and Dowd a committed lawyer who knows his client is a fucking liar (ch. 42).

Early chapters covering Trumps campaign are often given over to Bannons view. He feels sorry for Paul Manafort; he judges Manaforts wife to look younger than she is; he wants to call Chris Christie a fat fuck. Bannon, in Woodwards retelling, is responsible for closing the gap between Trump and Hillary Clinton and developing a strategy that leads to the most shocking result in modern electoral history.

Porter, a central figure throughout much of the book, is cast as an honest broker trying to negotiate between warring factions and depicted as one of the staffers who works to keep the nervous breakdown of executive power from doing more damage. His resignation, in February 2018, amid allegations of domestic abuse backed up by photographic evidence, is given little attention; the brief section in which its mentioned concludes with Gary Cohn, who was director of the National Economic Council, thinking that one of the main restraining influences on Trump was now gone.

Dowd, who from June 2017 to March 2018 was Trumps lead lawyer for the special counsel investigation, struggles to keep the president clear of Robert Muellers tentacles, all the while recognizing that Trump is unable to stick to the truth. Readers are privy to Dowds thoughts, such as when he observes that the president was very lonely, presumably because Dowd shared them with Woodward. Hes shown battling with Mueller and his associates, trying to protect the president, before he resigns.

The reliance on Bannon for sections of the narrative is especially troubling. Practiced in the art of self-aggrandizement, he not only holds the sort of views on immigration and race that got him banished from The New Yorker event, but hes told his story before.

Woodward has earned readers trust through a career built upon diligent reporting, and its that record that led even Trump to admit, on their taped conversation, that Youve always been fair. Indeed, Woodward gets at a central truth of the administration, but at least some of the sources he draws from have proven that they have, at best, a loose relationship with honesty. Relying on their words to narrate events, to borrow the title of Joshua Greens book on Steve Bannon, is a devils bargain.

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Pete Vernon is a former CJR staff writer. Follow him on Twitter @ByPeteVernon.
During the last week of August, Sara Coello wrote eleven stories for the Dallas Morning News. Thirteen if you count the two pieces she co-bylined with other reporters. Sixteen if you count the three she filed the previous Sunday.

It was a pretty typical week for Coello, who started as a full-time breaking news reporter for the Morning News in May, after she graduated from college. Shes published more than 200 stories since thenclose to three a day. Her record is seven stories in a single day, she says, and her longest dry spell has been three days. Its a hustle, butso far, anywayits worth it.

I love it, Coello says. If I were expected to write this many articles or get a certain number of views based on what I do now in another newsroom, I would be very stressed out. But the approach here is, if you break a story, you get custody of it.

Coellos account differs, however, from the typical industry narrative of overworked reporters and burnout. Declining revenues have forced newsrooms across the US to do more with less, testing the productivity of journalists in new and sometimes uncomfortable ways. In January, Martha Waggoner, an Associated Press reporter and the international chair for the NewsGuild-Communication Workers of America, detailed a trend of newsrooms tracking individual reporters pageviews as part of performance reviews. Journalists who spoke with Waggoner complain of goals that are too high and require too many stories, given the severely reduced size of newsroom staffs, she wrote. The churn is constant. Pageview concerns push journalists to take time from chipping away at that larger story to write smaller stories to keep you on track, as one told Waggoner.

From archives: GQ gave a freelancer 2 days to produce 4-page section as an edit test. The mags response was a letdown, to say the least

Waggoner started thinking about the problem when she heard a handful of other NewsGuild representatives griping. Facing no such pressures herself, Waggoner was surprised to hear how common pageview-driven demands had become. If you heard about this going on at a widget factory, youd have concerns about the people making the widgets, she recalls thinking.

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Several reporters working in high-output jobs tell CJR the work is doable. News briefs dont take too long to produce, for one thing: A recent story about a con man in Dallas who had used dating apps to scam dozens of victims out of thousands of dollars took Sara Coello about 45 minutes to report, write, and post to the web, she saysthough it was backed up by a press release and a previous story by a different Morning News reporter. Several editors told CJR theyre careful to put people in high-output positions who they know can handle the pace.

Most editors are good about releasing reporters from daily duties if theyre hunting down something juicy. Becky Jacobs, a crime and courts reporter for the Post-Tribune of Northwestern Indiana, a paper owned by the Chicago Tribune, has racked up 350 bylines since the beginning of the year, an average of two for every working day. In a previous job, at the North Dakota Grand Forks Herald, she used to feel pressured to meet story quotas. But at the Post-Tribune, shes able to watch the courts, report the news as she sees fit, and keep an eye out for bigger stories. Im very lucky in that sense, Jacobs says . I dont have the editors that are looking at How many pieces are you turning around? We really focus on, whats the bigger picture? Whats the better story we can do?

Waggoner, in her interviews, didnt hear from anyone who admitted to cutting corners or botching a story because of productivity pressures. Yet speaking on- and off-the-record with newspaper reporters around the country, she concluded that click goals sometimes increase stress and kill morale, demanding too many stories or forcing reporters to abandon important beats that dont drive traffic. I think reporters are harried, Waggoner tells CJR.

In June, The News-Graphic in Georgetown, Kentucky, a city of 30,000, posted a job for a general assignment reporter who could write compelling and timely news stories for print, web, special publications and video at a rate of 8 to 10 pieces a week. According to Mike Scogin, the editor and publisher, its a small paper with only five people in the newsroom. The News-Graphic runs three days a week, and each reporter is urged to write three stories per issue. Scogin says that he used to hate quotas when he was a cub reporter at The Natchez Democrat, but they did set expectations. Its not hard and fast, Scogin says. But setting quotas fills pages. Weve got to have content, and weve got to have local content. I want them to be productive and thats the key. It really sort of weeds out those folks that think they can just write one story a week and be done.

Waggoner, for her report, spoke with Ed Fletcher, a now-former reporter and Guild unit chair for the Sacramento Bee. Fletcher told Waggoner that traffic performance would soon be incorporated into reporters performance reviews. (Fletcher, who had been at the Bee for more than fifteen years, lost his job during a round of layoffs in April. Traffic goals hadnt made it into the contract by the time he left but, he tells CJR, its apparent that [management] will make an issue of it or try to add that to performance evaluations down the road..) Most of the reporters at the Bee were writing between three and seven stories a week, Fletcher says, and the pace of output was faster than when he started.

From archives: How hacked emails and a yacht in Monaco ended my career at WSJ

In 2011, the Pew Research Center released a study of nonprofit newsrooms showing that a typical newsroom produced eight stories a week with an editorial staff of three. At 18 of the 46 sites studied, all of the stories were authored by one or two people. Some positions expect much higher churn: In 2013, there was a brief Twitter storm over a Washington Post gig for a style blogger who could produce 12 posts a day. (In vintage contrarian style, Slate ran a piece headlined Stop Making Fun of WaPos Blogger Job and Start Applying for It.)

The way newspapers report newsyou produce more errors if you try to produce things fast. Thats just a fact.

Newsrooms are smaller and the news has not decreased in volume, Rebecca Baker, the president of the Society of Professional Journalists, says. Some reporters are better suited to breaking news or features or investigative stories; some are fast and others are slow. But everyone has to be accurate and above-board, she says, and its an editors job to decide where to place people. Everybody has to make those personal choices, Baker says. But a good newsroom manager should be able to see when one of his or her reporters is starting to be affected by either the amount of work or the trauma of covering a violent news event. And reporters also have the responsibility of being forthright in saying that they need time for self-care.

Recently, Richmond BizSense, a local business news site, was looking for an intern who could produce between eight and 10 stories a week for $650 a week during the academic year. Thats about on par with what the sites four full-time reporters produce, says Michael Schwartz, the editor, who also writes pieces. Its fast-paced, but Schwartz says his newsroom avoids burnout by being quick-hit, hard-news heavy. They dont do many features. The average story is 400-800 words, Schwartz says, and they know how to manage their time. As the editor and sort of the manager of the reporters, Im cognizant of observing whether theyre feeling burned out. Schwartz says.

Even if 10 stories a week feels like a manageable workload, the pace seems hard to square with journalisms quality-control concerns. Early this summer, two reporters working in high-volume positions at major daily papers were fired for cutting corners when attributing material to its original sources.

In June, The Washington Post made public its decision to dismiss Marwa Eltagouri, a reporter whose work mimicked too closely the structure of news stories she was aggregating, Paul Farhi, a Post media reporter, wrote. In July, Robyn Tomlin, the editor of Raleighs News & Observer, posted an online note to readers saying that, following up on a complaint from a writer at another outlet, the papers leaders had reviewed the recent articles of Anne Blythe, a journalist on staff, and found at least a dozen that contained phrases, sentences or, in some cases, whole paragraphs, lifted from other publications.

Volume wasnt cited as a reason in the dismissals, yet it seems unlikely that it played no role. Blythe, a 30-year veteran of the News & Observer, had published 600 stories since the beginning of 2016. Eltagouri had filed close to 150 stories for the Post in the first five months of 2018. (Both Eltagouri and Cameron Barr, The Washington Post managing editor, declined to be interviewed for this story. Blythe did not respond to messages seeking an interview; Tomlin says that the News & Observer doesnt have story quotas or any kind of measured productivity standards.)

It is unclear, however, whether the reporters or their publications consider volume to be a factor in the dismissals. The way newspapers report news, and the Sacramento Bee included, you produce more errors if you try to produce things fast, says Fletcher. Thats just a fact.

ICYMI: We spoke with writers, journalists, and novelists about writing on the web. One writer and one article was mentioned over and over again

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Jared Brey is a freelance journalist in Philadelphia and a contributing writer at Next City. His work has appeared in Philadelphia magazine, Grid magazine, PlanPhilly, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and other publications.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Ohio Supreme Court announced Wednesday that it will hear grocery store chain Giant Eagle's appeal in a case where a Cuyahoga County jury awarded $1.3 million to a customer struck by a motorized scooter.

The court accepted the Pittsburgh-based grocer's challenge to a lower court's ruling finding the company was negligent in its response to more than 100 scooter-related accidents at its stores in the years before Barbara Rieger was injured at the company's Brook Park store in 2012.

The case could have major implications for retailers that let disabled, injured and elderly customers use the scooters to move around the stores, according to a friend-of-the-court brief filed by several industry groups representing retail and grocery store agencies.

The 8th District Court of Appeals earlier this year upheld the jury's finding and in doing so created a "new legal standard" that would hold defendants in tort lawsuits responsible for injuries in even the most improbable of circumstances, the store argued in its appeal of the case.

"The Eighth District has created a new standard for malice that makes the mere possibility of harm from the underlying tortious conduct - no matter how improbable - sufficient for an award of punitive damages," Giant Eagle lawyers argued in court filings.

The Food Marketing Institute, The Ohio Council of Retail Merchants, The Ohio Grocer's Association, The Ohio Alliance for Civil Justice and The National Grocers Association all signed on to a brief in support of Giant Eagle's argument.

"When faced with these new realities, Ohio retail stores will have no choice but to reconsider their decision to provide motorized shopping carts to people with disabilities," the brief said.

Lawyers who represented Rieger, John Wargo and Thomas Wilson, called Giant Eagle's arguments "dramatizations" that are "nothing more than a smoke screen which Giant Eagle hopes will distract this Court from Giant Eagle's own failures at trial."

Rieger was pushing her shopping cart around the company's Brook Park store in December 2012 when Ruth Kutka lost control of a motorized cart and struck Rieger's cart. The impact knocked the cart into Rieger, who had her back turned, and knocked Rieger several feet into a shelf.

Rieger suffered a cut and some bumps and bruises. Her lawyers filed a lawsuit in 2014, accusing Giant Eagle of creating the risk by letting customers drive motorized carts without adequate supervision or training.

A jury awarded Rieger $121,000 in actual damages, and more than $1.1 million in punitive damages after her lawyers presented evidence that there had been 119 incidents involving motorized carts at Giant Eagle stores across the country in the decade before her incident.

The company therefore knew the scooters could be dangerous but did nothing to ensure its customers were not injured, Rieger's lawyers argued.

Giant Eagle appealed to the 8th District Court of Appeals, which upheld the jury's findings that the company was liable for Rieger's injuries. The appeals court reduced the punitive damages to just over $240,000, citing an Ohio law that caps punitive damages in most tort claims to twice the amount of actual damages.

The company appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that the 8th District Court of Appeals relied upon too lax of legal standards to find it acted with malice and committed negligence.

The company's lawyers claim that only a handful of the scooter accidents cited at trial resulted in injuries. They also say that 119 incidents spread out over 10 years and thousands of stores means that its customers would be more likely to win the lottery or be bitten by a shark than to be injured by a scooter.

The company noted a 2002 decision involving Walmart where a court rejected negligence claims by a customer hurt on a scooter.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Ohio Supreme Court will decide whether a 10-year prison sentence is too harsh for a Richmond Heights couple convicted of letting their adopted daughter with special needs slowly die without seeking medical care.

Randy Jones, 46, and Carissa Jones, 49, were sentenced in June 2015 after a jury convicted them of involuntary manslaughter, child endangering and neglect charges in the death of their 12-year-old daughter, Tia Jones.

The 8th District Court of Appeals vacated the sentence earlier this year because it found it to be too severe, even though the maximum sentence that the couple faced under Ohio law was 11 years.

The Ohio Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to hear the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office's appeal arguing that the 8th District had no legal authority to overrule Common Pleas Judge Deena Calabrese's sentence.

Tia, who was diagnosed with autism and mental retardation and had ADHD, fell severely ill in 2013 and died after an abscess on her ankle morphed into gangrene and a staph infection that gave her pneumonia. Doctors noted that the child weighed 64 pounds and had severe bed sores on her lower body. Her toes had turned black from where her flesh had began to die, according to court records.

Randy Jones initially told doctors at the emergency room that the couple did not seek medical treatment for Tia earlier and instead tried to cure the girl with home remedies made of garlic and cayenne pepper because they didn't believe in conventional medicine, court records say.

Prosecutors said that argument was a lie and said Randy Jones insisted one week before the girl died that Carissa Jones go to an urgent care for treatment of a cold.

The 8th District called Tia's death a tragedy and said that, while the Joneses "exercised poor judgment" in caring for her, they cared for her nonetheless and "did what they believed was best for her."

The court said the end goal judges are supposed to achieve in crafting a sentence are to protect the public from future crimes by the defendant and punish the defendant with the minimum possible sanction. No evidence was presented during trial or at the sentencing hearing to warrant such a lengthy sentence for the Joneses, the court held.

"The public does not need to be protected from them -- the likelihood of this happening again is almost nonexistent," the court held. "And as for punishment -- what greater punishment can there be than the death of their child."

Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Christopher Schroeder called the decision "badly confused, confusing, and sharply divided" in court filings supporting the office's appeal to the Ohio Supreme Court.

Schroeder argued that the appellate court cited no actual miscue by Calabrese to find the sentence was improper, other than "its own belief that the sentences were too long."

If the Supreme Court does not step in, the appellate court could turn into a second-tier sentencing court, Schroeder argued.

The Ohio Supreme Court accepted the appeal and is currently considering another case where an appeals court overturned a 65-year sentence given to a Delaware County woman who pleaded guilty to dozens of felony counts for breaking into several rooms at a nursing home and stealing money to feed a cocaine habit.

To comment on this story, please visit Wednesday's crime and courts comments page.
AKRON, Ohio -- A 37-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the robbery of a CVS drug store, police say.

William L. Coffman, who police say is homeless, is facing a charge of aggravated robbery.

Police say Coffman is accused of going to the CVS at 590 East Market Street at 8 p.m. Monday and handing a clerk a note demanding money and that he had a gun.

The suspect ran from the store after receiving an undisclosed amount of money, but police found him near railroad tracks at Grace Park, about a mile to the west of the CVS.

Police arrested Coffman at the park, saying he matched the description of the robbery suspect.

Coffman is being held in the Summit County Jail.

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ELYRIA, Ohio -- A Lorain County grand jury handed up an indictment against a Wellington Township man last week on charges of felonious assault and domestic violence in connection to a July 10 incident where the man shot himself in the head and survived.

Joel Slone, 51, was indicted Thursday on a second-degree felony charge of felonious assault and a first-degree misdemeanor charge of domestic violence, according to a secret indictment unsealed Monday. Slone was arrested Friday by Lorain County Sheriff Phil Stammitti, court records show.

The charges stem from an incident at Slone's home in the 43000 block of Smith Road, according to the indictment.

Slone's fiance of two years called the Lorain County Sheriff's Office on the evening of July 10 to say that Slone had attempted suicide by shooting himself in the head in the upstairs master bedroom, according to a police report.

When deputies arrived, Slone was conscious and alert but bleeding from the top and right side of his head, the police report says.

Slone's fiance told deputies that she came home that evening from Fort's Tavern in Wellington with a friend for an early wedding present, according to the police report. She and Slone were set to get married the following weekend on July 14.

When she got home, she saw that Slone was intoxicated and an argument ensued, according to the police report. She told deputies that she did not know when Slone started drinking but he appeared to have consumed about half of a bottle of Jack Daniel's Fire.

During their argument, Slone said he wanted to call off the wedding before he picked up a coffee table and threw it on the floor, breaking it, according to a police report.

His fiance said he then pulled out a gun out from an end table and the couple began to struggle for it. Slone pushed her into an end table, knocking her and a lamp to the floor, but she was able to get the gun away from him.

Slone then went upstairs and went into what his fiance described as a "blind rage" as he hit her several times in the head with his fist, the police report says. He grabbed a .22 caliber revolver out of a safe in the master bedroom and shot himself in the head, falling to the floor, his fiance told deputies.

Slone was brought by helicopter to MetroHealth in stable condition, according to the police report.

Despite calling off the wedding during the incident, Slone and his fiance got married on July 14, according to a Lorain County Sheriff's Office deputy who spoke with Slone after the incident. Slone said he would seek mental health therapy in the near future, according to the police report.

Slone was released from the Lorain County Jail on a $75,000 personal recognizance bond and a $75,000 cash bond, according to court records.

To comment on this story, visit Wednesday's crime and courts comment section.
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Three of the eight places in the state where Ohio Division of Liquor Control's allotment of Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit is available are in Northeast Ohio.

Release date is Friday, Sept. 21. It will be the only release this year of the bourbon. Bottles will sell for $49.95 plus tax.

State reps say those interested should arrive early; a previous special bourbon release drew lines as early as 5 a.m.

Northeast Ohio locations and the specific barrel origins:

* Giant Eagle Market District, 15919 Pearl Road, Strongsville.

Barrel No. 18-0029, Lawrenceburg Warehouse K, 3rd floor - eight years, six months.

* Acme Fresh Market, 2905 Whipple Ave. NW, Canton.

Barrel No. 18-0027, Lawrenceburg Warehouse K, 3rd floor - eight years, six months.

* Pat O'Brien's Fine Wines, 30800 Pine Tree Dr., Pepper Pike.

Barrel No. 18-0813, Camp Nelson Warehouse F, 5th floor - eight years, eight months.

Other locations in Ohio are in Gahanna, Lancaster, Cincinnati, Loveland and Springboro.

Kentucky Spirit is a 101 proof, single-barrel bourbon. It's billed as being full-bodied "with rich vanilla flavors and a hint of sweetness. ... A complex layering of almonds, honey, blackberries and leather gives way to a long, dark and lingering finish."

In June, the state made Wild Turkey's Russell's Reserve Single Barrel Bourbon available. It sold out in hours.

Appropriately enough, September is National Bourbon Heritage Month.
LYNDHURST, Ohio -- Fraud, Acacia Park Drive: At 3:45 p.m. Sept. 7, a woman, 88, reported that someone had called and told her that she had to send $2,000 for bond for her grandson, who had just been arrested.

The woman sent the money and later learned that her grandson had not been arrested.

Fraud, Mayfield Road: At 1:50 p.m. Sept. 7, a woman, 71, reported that a caller told her that she had to purchase gift cards to pay off her supposed debts. The woman purchased $17,000 worth of gift cards in falling victim to a scam.

Suspicion, Thornbury Road: At 6:40 p.m. Sept. 7, a man reported that three boys on bicycles had thrown things at his car's windows.

Police located the three youngsters, all 15, who claimed that the man had called them names. The man denied calling the boys names. The man asked that police pay special attention to his home during the recent Lyndhurst Home Day event.

Drug abuse, Professor Road: At 1:20 a.m. Sept. 7, an officer spotted an occupied car parked in the Schaeffer Park lot.

The 37-year-old Cleveland man in the driver's seat was charged with possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. A female passenger, 23, was released and walked home.

Traffic altercation, Mayfield Road: At 12:20 p.m. Sept. 5, a motorcyclist reported that a man in a car was trying to run him off the road.

Police caught up with the two vehicles on Mayfield Road. The car's driver, a man, 37, denied trying to cut off the motorcyclist, a man, 47. Both men were sent on their way.

Later, the car's driver went to the police station to make a statement and possibly pursue a harassment charge against the motorcyclist.

Neighbor trouble, Sunview Road: At 4:40 p.m. Sept. 4, a resident called police, stating that her neighbor had been threatened by another neighbor, a woman, 56.

The caller said the 56-year-old had threatened to burn down her neighbor's house. Police issued the neighbor who made the threat a criminal trespass warning, ordering her to stay away from her neighbor's property.

Overdose, Gordon Road: At 4 p.m. Sept. 4, a caller reported that she went to check on a neighbor and found him on his home's floor. The man, 41, was dead and is believed to have overdosed on drugs.

Theft, Mayfield Road: At 1:15 p.m. Sept. 3, the manager at Aldi, 5144 Mayfield Road, reported that a person had attempted to return $30 worth of stolen meat to the store and get a refund.

The manager had been alerted by an Aldi manager at another store that the suspect had also attempted to get a refund at that store. Police gathered information for a report and are seeking the suspect.

Drug abuse, Professor Road: At 2:20 a.m. Sept. 3, an officer saw an occupied car parked in the Schaeffer Park lot. A man and woman were in the car.

Police confiscated a small amount of marijuana from the car's occupants and sent them on their way.

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CLEVELAND, Ohio -- An off-duty Cleveland police officer who sped away from a fellow officer attempting to tow her car because she had $1,500 in unpaid parking tickets enter a court-supervised diversion program that could erase the charges from her record.

Officer Angelia Gaston, 33, on Monday changed her not guilty to plea on a charge of obstructing justice to no plea which paved the way for Cleveland Municipal Judge Joseph Zone to allow her to enter the court's Selective Intervention Program.

The program is designed for first-time offenders to complete an intervention program designed by a probation officer for a year. If Gaston completes the court-monitored program, the arrest will be erased from her permanent record.

Attempts to reach her attorney, Christopher McNeal, were unsuccessful.

Gaston on Feb. 12 was parked on Huron Road and Prospect Avenue in downtown Cleveland. A police officer ran her license plate and found that the car needed to be towed because of the outstanding parking tickets, according to police reports and body camera video from the incident.

The officer told Gaston her car must be towed and that she needed to go to the city's impound lot to pay her fines and get her van back. She replied: "No, I'll just drive down there now."

She continued to talk over the officer and walked to her van while the officer kept talking to her. The officer followed her, stood in front of her van and asked dispatch to send a backup officer.

The officer told her at least six times to stop getting her car and to not leave. The officer walked up to Gaston's driver's side door and she drove away.

The officer ran back to his cruiser but lost sight of her. He told the dispatcher to send an officer to her home.

Cleveland police are not allowed to chase suspects unless they're accused of committing a violent offense and they're authorized by a supervisor.

Gaston was eventually arrested later that day at her home.

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HIGHLAND HILLS, Ohio -- Cuyahoga Community College graduate Lisa Williams is the new president of its eastern campus.

About 5,000 students are enrolled at Tri-C's campus in Highland Hills. Williams served as interim president for the past eight months after J. Michael Thomson left to become president of Northwest State Community College in Archbold, Ohio.

He served as president of the eastern campus since 2013.

Williams graduated in 1994 with an associate of applied sciences degree. She received her bachelors and masters from University of Akron, going on to earn a doctorate in higher education administration from the University of Toledo.

Two decades working in community colleges led Williams to this role. She began working full-time at Tri-C in 1994, leaving in 2009 to work at Terra State Community College. She returned to Tri-C in 2014 as vice president of learning and engagement.

Williams will make $180,000 as president.

"I was married with children and looking to start a career when I came to Tri-C," Williams said in a press release. "The college represented opportunity to me, just as it does for the students in our classrooms today. I'm honored to be helping this next generation fulfill their academic and career dreams."
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Ohio State University team doctor accused of groping scores of young men decades ago also had an off-campus men's clinic that was marketed in the campus newspaper with a series of ads promising prompt treatment of genital problems, plus a student discount, according to two former employees.

The ads published in the fall of 1996 labeled it as a "Men's Clinics of America" and didn't mention the now-deceased physician, Richard Strauss, but the connection was confirmed by two former nursing students who say they did appointment-booking and other clerical work for Strauss. One of the former students said he was touched inappropriately by Strauss during an exam at the clinic, and he wonders if others were abused there.

The ex-employees describe a bare-bones clinic set up in an office building roughly a mile from campus: Strauss was the only doctor, contrary to the ads. He conducted some exams with no one else present and without wearing gloves.

Information on the medical charts was minimal. Ohio State athletes occasionally dropped by for exams. All patients were directed from a waiting area to an exam room that had very little medical equipment, and then to a different exit so they wouldn't see anyone else afterward, the ex-employees said. One recalls using a cash box to hold payments.

It seemed then to be a real but oddly run part-time business, and it was understandable that patients with potentially embarrassing problems might appreciate privacy and discretion, but the allegations recently raised against Strauss cast it all in a much more suspicious light, the ex-employees said.

"It wasn't like any doctor's office I've ever seen, and I've been in a lot," said Brian Garrett, who said he briefly worked for Strauss but quit immediately after both witnessing and experiencing sexual abuse by the doctor during exams at the clinic one day. Garrett said he was embarrassed and repressed what happened, keeping it to himself until this year.

The second ex-employee, a former nursing student who works in health care, said Strauss sometimes mentioned that an athlete would be visiting the office at night and told the employee to head home.

That worker, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he doesn't want to be associated with Strauss, said he wasn't abused by Strauss and never witnessed misconduct or heard or saw any signs of distress from patients during the few months he worked there, starting in late 1996.

Strauss' behavior at his private medical office is now part of the ongoing investigation by an outside law firm that also is examining allegations involving the student health center and Ohio State male athletes from at least 16 sports, including some plaintiffs in three related lawsuits against the school.

Garrett is among the 145 former students who have given the investigators firsthand accounts of alleged sexual misconduct by Strauss between 1979 and 1997.

Strauss killed himself in 2005. His relatives have said they were shocked by the allegations.

The school has urged anyone with information about him to contact the investigators from Seattle-based Perkins Coie, which isn't proactively contacting possible victims because of concern for potentially re-traumatizing them.

Some of Strauss' accusers claim Ohio State officials didn't properly respond to concerns raised throughout his two decades there. The university has said that is a key part of the investigation and the school is committed to uncovering the truth.

It documented at least one complaint before Strauss retired from the university in 1998. A student health center director said a student's report about being inappropriately touched by Strauss during an exam in 1995 was the first such complaint he'd received.

That was a year before Strauss launched his off-campus clinic, which was open for less than two years.
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Ohio faces high stakes as it tries to close its so-called skills gap, experts told mayors from across the state Monday. Try billions of dollars in earnings, the future of the American dream and the odds of surviving the coming robot revolution.

During a gathering on the Ohio State University campus, members of the Ohio Mayors Alliance learned more about the mismatch between residents' education and skills and what the changing economy will demand.

Researchers, academics, former governors Ted Strickland and Bob Taft and current candidates for lieutenant governor shared the same message: The gap is real, and making Ohioans competitive in coming job markets is key to ensuring that the state's people - and its economy - thrive.

"The states that get it right will be the ones that prosper," said Ohio Secretary of State John Husted, the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor in this fall's election. "The ones that don't will fall behind. The same is true of people. The more people that get it right, the more will prosper. The more that don't, the more we'll fall behind."

Ohio's skills-gap debate mirrors the concerns of Northeast Ohio, where leaders worry about the double economic blow of having residents who lack the skills necessary for good-paying jobs even as companies struggle to fill open positions.

State officials believe 64 percent of all jobs by 2020 - just two years from now - will require a college degree or work credential. Only about 42 percent of adults meet that criteria now.

Last year, at the urging of the governor's office and the Ohio Department of Education, the state legislature set a goal of having 65 percent of adults hold a degree, certificate or other workforce credential by 2025.

See a fact sheet on the goal below.

That goal is similar to one established by the Indianapolis-based Lumina Foundation, which has been campaigning nationwide for states to set aggressive training targets.

Even supporters admit that Ohio's objective isn't really realistic. A growing number of older and less-educated adults are unlikely to seek training as they near retirement, making the 65-percent threshold unreachable over the next seven years if only young people are pursuing credentials.

"It is tempting to get demoralized," Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley told the group Monday.

But pressing toward the goal matters, she said.

"Rise of the Robots" was just a video game in 1994, said Eric Hanushek, a North Olmsted High School graduate who is now a leading free-market economist at Stanford University. But science fiction is an economic reality in 2018, as automation wipes out jobs that once paid living wages. If workers want to stay valuable, he told the mayors, people need skills that robots can't replace and must adapt faster than machines.

That's crucial for a state like Ohio, where income growth ranked 43rd nationally between 1970 and 2007. Hanushek attributed that sluggish performance to low-quality education at early ages, couple with a lack of post-high school training.

If Ohio improved education levels to those of students in Canada or Minnesota, which scores near the top on national tests, Hanushek said wages could rise 10 to 11 percent and bring $1.5 trillion in value to the Buckeye State over students' lifetimes.

He recommended that Ohio improve early childhood education and the quality of the state's teachers, who can drastically impact students' lifetime earnings prospects. But it's not enough just to add more people with credentials, Hanushek warned. Education has to be meaningful, and people need to truly learn skills for the gap-closing campaign to work.

"The robots are coming," he said. "Buy insurance: Improve Ohio's schools."

John Friedman, a Brown University professor, told the group that the dream of faring better than one's parents is dwindling every year, with the share of people reaching that goal falling steadily since the 1960s.

This chart, shown to Ohio mayors by Brown University professor David Friedman, shows the steady decline in people earning more than their parents over time.

He shared a map of the United States showing the percentage of people by metropolitan region jumping from the lowest fifth in income to the top fifth in their lifetime - a sign of opportunities for people to advance by their efforts. Southeastern states had the worst rates of class mobility, but Ohio was barely better. Meanwhile, conditions improved for people in many western states.

And disparities were apparent across Ohio, with urban areas showing little movement of people from the economic bottom to the top.

This map shown to Ohio mayors by Brown University John Friedman shows the percentage of people able to move from the lowest quintile of income to top quintile over their lifetime. Note the lowest numbers in the southeast, with Ohio also lagging.

Ohio's colleges aren't helping much, Friedman said. Poor people can narrow the gap between them and their rich peers through college, but so few low-income individuals are enrolled that higher education barely makes a dent. Friedman is working with Ohio State and more than 300 other colleges nationwide to find out what's helping people advance and holding them back.

He stressed that helping the poor gain better skills and jobs is more than a social exercise. If Ohio can elevate low-income kids, invention and innovation could quadruple in the state, he said, improving life for everyone.

"It's not just about redistributing the pie," Friedman said. "It's about making the pie a lot bigger."

Youngstown Mayor Tito Brown said that fairness across racial lines also matters. "We have a serious problem in our state of not looking at the opportunity gap that exists for children of color," he said. "Our future is very bleak if we do not look at how race impacts this problem."

Education leaders from across the state talked about approaches their school districts are taking, from making sure students complete college financial-aid applications in Dayton; to completing plans in Cincinnati for reaching college, a job or the military by graduation; to creating college and career academies in Akron to mix college preparation and career training for all students.

Betty Sutton, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, also called for a nuanced effort.

"The answer is not an either-or trade-off between trade school, community college or four-year universities," she said. "The answer is, 'All of the above.' Ohio needs more students in trade school, more students with community college degrees and more students with bachelor's and graduate degrees."
AKRON, Ohio -- Police are investigating after a teen was shot in the stomach late Monday night.

The 18-year-old female was with a group of friends walking on Sumner Street just before 11 p.m. near an unspecified park, according to police.

The group noticed a large group of people at the park and then heard several gunshots. They say they then saw the teen female had been shot.

The teen and her friends ran to their car and she was taken to Akron General Hospital. Police say she was listed in serious condition.

No description of a suspect was given to police. The shooting remains under investigation.

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MIDDLEBURG HEIGHTS, Ohio -- City Council on Tuesday night overrode Mayor Gary Starr's Aug. 21 veto of its legislation to hire its own legal counsel. The vote was 6-1, wth Councilman John Grech casting the lone dissension.

Just prior to the vote, however, Starr announced his withdrawal of the veto, indicating his decision was made "in the spirit of working out the issues and finding amicable solutions."

City Law Director Gary Ebert then told council that having a vote on the override was "moot" since the veto no longer existed.

Council President Matt Castelli expressed appreciation for the mayor's action, but the vote proceeded.

"I think as a matter of formality, we should just move forward with the vote, and then we can move on to the ordinance that we have worked on with Mr. Ebert (to hire a special legal consultant for City Council)," Castelli said, calling the vote on the override "the responsible thing to do."

A new ordinance officially designating attorney Joe Diemert as "an assistant assigned to City Council" later passed unanimously. The legislation indicated the need to retain Diemert so that council "can do its due diligence as legislators and keepers of the finances within the city of Middleburg Heights."

Council originally voted to hire Diemert in August in order to help council members secure unredacted legal documents and invoices they had requested for several months and had not received from Starr's administration.

"(Council members) are agreeable to accept the designation of this assistant through this ordinance providing the consultant is assigned to and reports only to City Council," the legislation reads. "Such assistant ... will be directed solely by City Council through its council president."
During a recent appearance on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Princeton University's Eddie S. Glaude Jr. called out politicians for seeing African-Americans as either problems or causes.

The same can be said of the way blacks are too often portrayed in art.

And, on the surface, the characters populating Dominique Morisseau's "Sunset Baby," the first production of Dobama Theatre's 2018-19 season devoted entirely to women playwrights, could be viewed through that reductive lens.

Nina (Mary-Francis Miller) and Damon (Ananias J. Dixon) are robbers, drug dealers and lovers like Bonnie and Clyde (or Ice Cube and Yo Yo or Trena and Trick Daddy, as Damon riffs).

Kenyatta (Greg White), Nina's estranged father, a former black revolutionary who spent time in prison for his seditious exploits, is looking for a way back into her life.

But Morisseau sees the people beneath the stereotypes -- individuals made up of a kaleidoscope of contradictions. (Anyone who has sampled her work in "Shameless," the Showtime series that follows William H. Macy's alcoholic dad Frank Gallagher and his brood of hustlers, should expect nothing less.)

Nina may dress like a hooker -- leopard hot pants, thigh-high boots, a teased magenta weave -- but it's a costume, a lure to get unsuspecting men into range so Damon can relieve them of their cash.

Nina has plans: to finance her escape from the streets to a slower, saner existence. Lately, she's obsessed with traveling to the U.K. to ride the London Eye. She's sharp-witted, resourceful and diamond-hard. Everyone has disappointed her, so she's learned to rely on no one but herself.

And Damon? He's even more uncategorizable, particularly as played by Dixon in a performance so charming, wily and unpredictable, I'd buy a ticket just to see him do it all over again. At times, he reminded me of a young Forest Whitaker. You don't see him coming, and suddenly, he's all you can see.

Despite his vocation -- and the gun he carries -- Damon is no mindless thug.

He is "book and street smart," Nina tells Kenyatta. "No degree but a degree don't make you smart. It's a lot of educated idiots out there ... and most of 'em runnin' the country." (In a sign o' the times, that line elicited nearly showstopping applause opening weekend.)

Kenyatta: He got you into your ... trade?

Nina: My trade? Oh I get it. You want to know if you should blame him for turning me into this? Your greatest disappointment? Don't. I'm nobody's puppet. I create my own destiny. I came to him. I was looking for a hustle.

Kenyatta is taken aback, as are we. This won't be a story of easy salvation, a father liberating the daughter he named after Nina Simone from the corrosive influence of her Svengali boyfriend.

"What you look so surprised for?" Nina asks. "You think books is free? You think college tuition just falls from the sky? Not when your mama is addicted and your daddy's in jail.

Damon also has a 7-year-old son from a soured relationship whom he rarely sees, a fact that eats at him but he does nothing to rectify. It bothers Nina, too, irritating her own scabs.

Morisseau uses these multifaceted characters to build a completely absorbing family drama about lots of things, including what we expect from our parents and the deep wounds we carry with us into adulthood when those expectations aren't met.

When Kenyatta was behind bars, Nina and her mother, Ashanti X, also a warrior in the fight for equality, were left to fend for themselves. Already traumatized by harassment from police and the fracturing of the movement, Nina's famous mother turned to crack.

As the play begins we learn Ashanti X has died, leaving to Nina the love letters she wrote to the imprisoned Kenyatta, but never sent.

Kenyatta wants them. So do academics and historians who are willing to pay thousands for them. And Nina? She wants nothing to do with the man who left her behind to save the world.

What was Kenyatta's sacrifice for? Nina wants to know. What did it really change?

Director Justin Emeka skillfully mines that question with the use of projections by T. Paul Lowry that merge the protests of the past with those of the present.

The image of U.S. sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos, giving the Black Power salute on the medal podium at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, is juxtaposed with Nike's new pitchman Colin Kaepernick taking a knee.

Snippets of live interviews from Simone and Tupac Shakur, seminal artists whose revolutionary art captured the struggles of their times, ripple across the exposed brick of Nina's living room wall.

Emeka's intelligent production enhances the work of a savvy playwright who knows every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way. No problems or causes in sight.

REVIEW

Sunset Baby

What: Dobama Theatre presents the Ohio premiere of the play by Dominique Morisseau. Directed by Justin Emeka.

When: Through Sunday, Sept. 30.



Where: 2340 Lee Road, Cleveland Heights.



Tickets: $27-$35; student discounts available. Go to dobama.org or call 216-932-3396.



Approximate running time: 100 minutes, with no intermission.




COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio has added 71 physicians to the list of doctors able to recommend medical marijuana, bringing the total number to 293 certified since April.

Certified physicians can recommend medical marijuana to patients with one of 21 medical conditions. Patients will register for Ohio's medical marijuana program through physicians, but the registry is not yet operational.

All currently certified doctors can be found in a searchable database on cleveland.com. Click this link to find a certified doctor by name or zip code.

The database is updated monthly after the medical board approves physicians' applications for the certification. Participating physicians must hold an active, unrestricted MD or DO license from the Ohio State Medical Board and complete two hours of continuing education credits about cannabis and Ohio's qualifying medical conditions.

Physicians must sign off on several requirements before a patient can register:

The doctor has a bona fide relationship with the patient,

The patient has a qualifying condition,

The doctor has discussed the pros and cons of marijuana use and has reviewed the patient's history in the state's controlled substances database.

Ohio's medical marijuana program was supposed to be "fully operational" earlier this month, but licensing and business-related delays have pushed back the start date several months. Two of the state-licensed medical marijuana cultivators expect their first harvest in October, but it could take several months for the first dispensaries in the state to open.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A new national poll shows Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio holding a big lead in his re-election campaign.

The poll, released Wednesday and commissioned by Politico and the AARP, found Brown leading Republican Rep. Jim Renacci by a 47 percent to 31 percent margin. It also found Republican Mike DeWine just ahead of Richard Cordray in the Ohio governor's race, 39 percent to 38 percent.

The poll also found President Donald Trump has a 43 percent approval rating among voters in Ohio, with 53 percent disapproving.

The poll was conducted online of 1,592 registered voters between Sept. 2 and Sept. 11, according to Morning Consult, the pollster Politico and the AARP hired. The poll's margin of sampling error is 2 percent. The election is in November.

Why the results might seem confusing

A different poll released last week, commissioned by Innovation Ohio, a liberal Columbus think-tank, showed Brown leading Renacci by just 4 points, 46 percent to 42 percent. The same poll, conducted by Change Research, a Democratic polling firm, showed DeWine leading Cordray 45 percent to 43 percent.

Like the Politico/AARP poll, the Innovation Ohio poll was conducted online. This can pose problems in and of itself, since phone polls with live interviewers are seen as being more accurate.

But the Innovation Ohio poll was different in that it sampled "likely voters," meaning it attempted to screen out people who were unlikely to vote. The Politico/AARP poll simply asked registered voters.

Drilling down into the numbers, some aspects of the Politico/AARP sample suggest the survey disproportionately includes Democratic-leaning voters. For example, it says of the poll respondents, 39 percent said they voted for Donald Trump in 2016, while 38 percent voted for Hillary Clinton. (Trump actually won Ohio 52 percent to 44 percent.)

"A distorted poll that underrepresents Republicans and uses registered voters instead of likely voters does not illustrate the realities of the race," Leslie Shedd, a Renacci campaign spokeswoman, said in an email. "A public poll released just last week, in addition to our internal polls, shows a tight race."

FiveThirtyEight, the polling website, gives Morning Consult a B- for accuracy, while Change Research gets a C+.

Why they still matter

Even if the Innovation Ohio poll more closely reflects political reality -- we generally view Brown as having a comfortable lead but not an insurmountable one -- many more people are likely to read the Politico poll, given the national publication's broad reach among political junkies.

And for Renacci, national perception matters. Due in part to public polling that's generally shown Brown with a double-digit lead, and due in part to private polling from Republican organizations that apparently haven't painted a much rosier picture, Renacci has struggled to gain financial traction for his campaign.

Renacci has trailed Brown in fundraising. But more than that, the deep-pocketed national Republican groups that could help him out have passed over Ohio in favor of other states with Senate races viewed as more competitive. Tellingly, Republican Senate President Mitch McConnell on Tuesday told reporters he's closely watching nine Senate -- none of which are Ohio.

Perhaps because of his need to be stingy with his campaign funds, Renacci has yet to air TV ads heading into this final leg of the election, meaning many Ohioans likely still don't know who he is.

In a Sept. 11 interview with National Journal, a Washington, D.C. publication, Renacci claimed his campaign's internal polling shows the race as effectively tied. But, he also alluded to the need to attract attention to his campaign.

"The plan is to continue to be in Ohio almost every day that I can be. It's to go from event to event to event. It's to make sure that the media's picking up this race, that people know it's important," Renacci said.

Why we care about polls



We don't write about every poll, but we do make note of them, looking for larger trends. They don't predict the race's outcome as 2016 showed, but they do help set expectations, likely accurately framing August's special election for Ohio's 12th Congressional District as a close race.

And particularly because of Renacci's particular need to impress on a national level, any poll can make a difference.
COLUMBUS, Ohio--The two candidates for Ohio attorney general have agreed to debate each other Oct. 22 at the City Club of Cleveland, according to their campaigns.

The debate is likely to be the only time Democrat Steve Dettelbach and Republican Dave Yost will square off publicly prior to the November general election.

The event is scheduled to be held between noon and 1:30, according to Stephanie Jansky, the City Club's director of programming. Members of the public can buy tickets to the debate, which includes lunch; the cost is $22 for City Club members and $37 for non-members.

The City Club also plans to stream the debate online.

Dettelbach, a former U.S. attorney from suburban Cleveland, challenged Yost, Ohio's state auditor from Columbus, to three debates, according to Dettelbach campaign manager Ian Moskowitz.

But Yost spokesman Carlo LoParo said attorney general candidates in past elections have only held one debate.

"We'll stay with that tradition," LoParo said, adding that the two candidates will also meet at other times, such as during an endorsement meeting with the cleveland.com/Plain Dealer editorial board.
COLUMBUS, Ohio - University Hospitals in Cleveland is one of a dozen recipients of a state grant to develop technology aimed at combating Ohio's opioid addiction epidemic, a state commission announced Wednesday.

Eric Beck and a University Hospitals team received $200,000 to work on a real-time opioid surveillance and tracking tool. The computer-aided dispatch would identify patients at risk for opioid addiction and abuse. It would identify opportunities for patient education on opioid use and disposal before the patients are discharged.

University Hospitals competed for the grant as part of the Ohio Opioid Technology Challenge, an idea Gov. John Kasich proposed to fight the state's addiction problem with technology. The money comes from state-backed bonds from the Ohio Third Frontier Commission.

Over 50 research groups applied for the latest round of funding - which in all will leverage $8 million of an up to $20 million state commitment to advance new ideas in the battle against drug abuse and addiction.

Eleven other research teams won grants, including others from Northeast Ohio.

Ray Dalton and the team at

Abraham Joy and the team at the University of Akron want to help first responders quickly identify the presence of an opioid on a person or surface through a specially designed glove that would change color upon contact with an opioid. Based on the glove's color, the first responder can then take appropriate actions, helping to decrease stress while carrying out their duties and potentially save lives.

Philip Payne and the Apportis team in Dublin, outside Columbus, have created an integrated platform to allow patients to connect electronically to licensed health care professionals and opioid addiction resources, as a complement to medication-assisted therapies. The platform, also accessible at clinics, hospitals, shelters and kiosks, would lessen the distance between patients and providers to deliver personalized medical support during a time of great need.

Gordon Casey and the Brave Technology Coop team in Vancouver, Canada, are building an online platform with a mobile app, text message tools and a wearable technology for remote supervision of people who use drugs in isolation, providing them with community-based support and access to overdose prevention and response.

Eric Gastfriend and the DynamiCare Health team in Boston have created a digital platform, using evidence-based psychosocial treatments to help patients struggling with opioid addiction.

Brian Carrico and the Innovative Health Solutions team in Versailles, Indiana have developed a device for opioid withdrawal symptoms. It includes an electrical nerve field stimulator that is placed behind a patient's ear to reduce the adverse effects of withdrawal symptoms.

Trish Henrie-Barrus and the team at InteraSolutions in Orem, Utah, have developed an opioid risk assessment screening app to enable medical professionals to flag at-risk patients and direct them toward alternative methods of pain management, preventing a potential path toward opioid dependence.

Robert Valuck and the OpiSafe team in Denver are developing an automated patient monitoring system for opioid prescribers that would include alerts about opioid dosage, pain and function scoring, toxicology lab integration, etc.

John Konsin and the Prapela team in Concord, Massachusetts are developing a device to help treat opioid-exposed newborns with postnatal drug withdrawal syndrome.

Dave Gustafson and a University of Wisconsin in Madison team developed a smartphone app to prevent relapse of opioid abuse. The app, which provides a suite of tools to increase patients' coping ability, recovery motivation and emotional support, is used in collaboration with treatment agencies.

Sandip Agarwal, Melissa O'Meara and the team at Vuronyx Technologies in Woburn, Massachusetts are developing portable paper analytical device test cards to quickly and reliably test for the presence of opioids.

This is the second phase of funding in the opioid challenge. In this phase, the commission was looking for technology projects that would diagnose, prevent, connect and protect people from the drugs.

"Advancing innovation and technology is another way to ensure that no stone is left unturned," said David Goodman, chair of the Ohio Third Frontier Commission, in a statement. "As the state and the nation continue to fight this battle, we are committed to getting new products to market and saving lives."
Brian Darling

Whoever wins election for the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas judgeship that commences Jan. 9, the retirement -- because of Ohio's judicial age limits -- of Judge Carolyn B. Friedland after 30 years on the bench guarantees a fresh face in that role.

Vying to replace Friedland are Democrat Emily Hagan, 40, who spent a decade as staff attorney for Common Pleas Judge Michael P. Donnelly before taking on the role of an assistant Cuyahoga County prosecutor in June; and Republican Brian Darling, 45, an attorney who since 2008 has worked primarily in criminal defense - the last seven with his own firm, Darling Duffy of North Olmsted.

Hagan, the Democratic primary winner, comes from a well-known political family and is the niece of former Cuyahoga County Commissioner Tim Hagan. She ran unsuccessfully for state senate two years ago, but says the judiciary has become her true passion.

Darling said he's not worried about the name game. Of his own name, he said, "it's a good name, it's a funny name, it's got its own story," but said he preferred to concentrate on his experience in the well of the courtroom and his intention to make the court more fair and accessible and less frightening for the people who pass through it.

The "Judge4Yourself" ratings from four local bar associations rated Darling "good," while three rated Hagan "adequate" and one, the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, rated her "not recommended" - a rating that "shocked" her.

It's difficult to assess the credibility of this rating since the bar groups decline to offer their reasons for specific candidate ratings. Hagan by all accounts is a competent and well-respected attorney.

We believe either Hagan or Darling would make a good judge, but in a close call, we rate Darling as the better choice, based on his wide-ranging trial experience and his friendly, outgoing demeanor.

Early in-person and absentee voting for the Nov. 6 election begins Oct. 10. For more resources on judicial races, besides Judge4Yourself, consult Judicial Votes Count at the University of Akron and the League of Women Voters' voters' guide.

Lawyers Emily Hagan and Brian Darling, candidates for Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge, Jan. 9 term, were interviewed by the editorial board of cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer as part of its endorsement process on Aug. 27, 2018. Listen to full audio of the interview below:

About our editorials: Editorials express the view of the editorial board of cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer -- the senior leadership and editorial-writing staff. As is traditional, editorials are unsigned and intended to be seen as the voice of the news organization.

Have something to say about this topic?

* Send a letter to the editor, which will be considered for print publication.

* Email general questions about our editorial board or comments on this editorial to Elizabeth Sullivan, director of opinion, at esullivan@cleveland.com.
Judge Joseph D. Russo

Jeffrey C. Sindelar Jr. has an impressive background in the law, with a resume that includes a law degree from Harvard, four years as an attorney with Jones Day, and his current position specializing in complex civil litigation with the Tucker Ellis law firm.

Sindelar, 36, who says he has been recruited several times before to run for judge, believes the right time is now. But it is hard to imagine a more daunting challenge for the first-time Republican candidate than longtime Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Joseph D. Russo, 56.

The two are running for the six-year term that commences Jan. 1.

This is Russo's first challenge since he won the Democratic primary and then wrested the seat from three-term Judge Patricia Cleary in 2000. He was twice re-elected without opposition, and in the interim has adjudicated more than 20,000 cases, by his count.

Along the way he has been a prime advocate for bail reform in the county, and for establishing the county's effective Drug Court, and has regularly received positive recommendations from the four bar associations that participate in the Judge4Yourself ratings. (This year he was rated "excellent" by one and "good" by the other three. Sindelar received "adequate" ratings from all four.)

Sindelar is bright and committed, and should be encouraged to run for judge in the future when the odds are not so stacked against him. But he offered no compelling case for why voters should not return Russo to the bench.

Joseph D. Russo is the clear choice in this race.

Early in-person and absentee voting for the Nov. 6 election begins Oct. 10. For more resources on judicial races, besides Judge4Yourself, consult Judicial Votes Count at the University of Akron and the League of Women Voters' voters' guide.

Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Joseph D. Russo and attorney Jeffrey C. Sindelar Jr. were interviewed by the editorial board of cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer as part of its endorsement process on Aug. 20, 2018. Listen to full audio of this interview below:

About our editorials: Editorials express the view of the editorial board of cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer -- the senior leadership and editorial-writing staff. As is traditional, editorials are unsigned and intended to be seen as the voice of the news organization.

Have something to say about this topic?

* Send a letter to the editor, which will be considered for print publication.

* Email general questions about our editorial board or comments on this editorial to Elizabeth Sullivan, director of opinion, at esullivan@cleveland.com.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The TCU game should give us information on the Ohio State linebackers. For instance, we'll find out how close Tuf Borland might be to completely healthy, after he played about 10 snaps in week one and 20 snaps in week two.

If Borland is close to that, we should find out just what the Buckeyes think about the middle linebacker spot, and whether Borland or Baron Browning is really the No. 1 guy there.

And then, we should find out if middle linebacker is the best place long-term for Browning.

We do know this about Browning, a sophomore from Texas who was the No. 11 overall recruit in the Class of 2017. He's rare.

"Baron has an unbelievable ability to cover ground," defensive coordinator Greg Schiano said this week. "If you look at him, for a big man, or for anybody, he runs extremely well."

An outside linebacker at Kennedale High School just outside Fort Worth, Browning has played middle linebacker since he arrived at Ohio State. So has Borland, who came a year earlier as the No. 324 overall player in the Class of 2016. After a first-year redshirt season, Borland is now a sophomore, too.

If Borland is staying at middle linebacker, where he settled the defense last season after joining the starting lineup, then it makes sense to put Browning back outside. Borland and Browning at their best and healthiest might both be too valuable to rotate in one spot.

That's what they're doing now.

"Both those guys I think are getting better and better," Schiano said. "I anticipate that to continue, that they will both play."

At 6-foot-3 and 242 pounds, Browning could play any linebacker spot. But a guy with his skills should play somewhere.

"For my size," Browning said, "I think I move pretty well."

Given a choice, Browning would pick the middle because that's where he's worked for two years. He had to adjust to fit that, to change the defensive call if needed and make sure the entire defense is set. At outside linebacker, you just worry about you.

"There's more things to do and a different personality I have to have while doing it," Browning said.

Browning thought he played better in week two than week one. If he looks good in week three, and Borland does too, Browning may need to adjust again. A big guy who can move can't sit. He needs to play.

Buckeye Take is a quick 300- to 400-word column on a single aspect of Ohio State football. We're trying to replicate in written form the feel of our Buckeye Talk Podcast, where we drop a multitude of opinions every week. We know not all of you listen to the pod (though you should), and we don't want you to miss out on what we're thinking about the Buckeyes.

The TCU Buckeye Talk Preview
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- TCU owns a legitimate top 20 defense, ranking sixth in fewest yards allowed this year and 19th in yards allowed last year.

So what's the best way for the Ohio State Buckeyes to attack the Horned Frogs in their primetime matchup in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday night?

Bill Landis and I break that down in the latest episode of Buckeye Talk, with one of us thinking run and the other thinking pass.

We also delved into why this game is a one-time neutral site matchup and not a home-and-home as originally scheduled. We talked about Braxton Miller's release by the Houston Texans and catching on with the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad.

And then we took your questions, while also thanking you vociferously for all the reviews in the last week that got us back to an overall five-star rating on iTunes.

You can always submit questions via Twitter to the @BuckeyeTalkPod account. You can also now submit questions, comments and complaints via email to BuckeyeTalkPod@gmail.com.

Before listening to the podcast below, make sure to subscribe to Buckeye Talk at any of these places:

* Buckeye Talk on iTunes

* Buckeye Talk on Google Play

* Buckeye Talk on Stitcher

* Buckeye Talk on Spotify
PARMA, Ohio -- Fleeing, Grantwood Drive: During an Aug. 29 traffic stop, a Cleveland man attempted to escape capture. The officer caught the driver, who was cited for fleeing.

Breaking and entering, Newport Avenue: On Aug. 29, police were dispatched to a Newport Avenue home after a resident discovered that someone had broken into their car.

Various items were taken. There are no suspects. Police are investigating.

Burglary, Nassau Drive: On Aug. 29, a Parma woman discovered that someone had broken into her home and taken property. There are no suspects. Police are investigating.

Car theft, Liberty Avenue: On Aug. 29, a Liberty Avenue resident called police after discovering that someone had stolen their car from the driveway. There are no suspects. Police are investigating.

Drug abuse, Pearl Road: During an Aug. 30 traffic stop, police discovered that a Cleveland driver was in possession of narcotics. He was arrested for drug abuse.

Theft, Snow Road: On Aug. 24, police were dispatched to a Snow Road home after a resident discovered someone had stolen his credit card and rung up fraudulent purchases. There are no suspects. Police are investigating.

Stolen car, Hauserman Road: On Aug. 24, police were dispatched to a Hauserman Road residence after a man discovered that someone had stolen his vehicle from a parking lot. There are no suspects. Police are investigating.

Disorderly conduct, Broadview Road: On Aug. 24, police were dispatched to the Pat Catans parking lot regarding a man overdosing. After police administered Narcan, the Tallmadge man was cited for disorderly conduct.

Counterfeit money, Pearl Road: On Aug. 24, police were dispatched to Walgreens after a resident discovered that someone had passed counterfeit bills. There are no suspects. Police are investigating.

Burglary, West 48th Street: On Aug. 24, police were dispatched to a West 48th Street home after a resident reported that a man had removed property from the house. Police are investigating.

If you would like to discuss the police blotter, please visit our crime and courts comments page.
PARMA HEIGHTS, Ohio -- Drug abuse, Halcyon Drive: On Aug. 19, police observed a car make an illegal turn without signaling.

While talking to the Cleveland driver, the officer smelled marijuana. During a search of the car, police discovered marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

The driver was cited for drug abuse and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Drug abuse, Snow Road: During an Aug. 20 traffic stop, police discovered a Berea driver and a Cleveland passenger were both in possession of marijuana.

They were each cited for drug abuse.

Drug abuse, Independence Boulevard: During an Aug. 20 traffic stop, police smelled marijuana. It turned out that the man had marijuana in the car.

He was cited for drug abuse.

Threats, Beresford Avenue: On Aug. 20, a Beresford Avenue resident called police after a man made threats against family members. Police arrested the Northfield man for making threats.

Fraud, Jamestowne Drive: On Aug. 22, police were dispatched to a Jamestowne Drive residence after a homeowner discovered that they had been the victim of fraud.

The man told police that someone was using his debit card to make an unauthorized out-of-state purchase. There are no suspects. Police are investigating.

If you would like to discuss the police blotter, please visit our crime and courts comments page.
"We also strongly encourage Congress to exercise its oversight role on trade policy matters to prevent further harm to U.S. workers, consumers and families that will result from new tariffs  both those already being implemented and future tariffs that have been proposed," the letter says.

In a letter to members of Congress, the group called on lawmakers to participate in events next week in Pennsylvania, Illinois and Tennessee.

Rolling out Wednesday, the "Tariffs Hurt the Heartland" campaign involves reaching out to members of Congress, buying ads and hosting town hall style meetings in swing states.

Americans for Free Trade is made up of companies from multiple industries, ranging from toys to tech, and aims to highlight the negative consequences of tariffs.

The Trump administration's tariffs are the target of a new multimillion dollar campaign by a coalition of businesses.

The broad-based group is building off the momentum of the agricultural industry, which highlighted the damage tariffs have had on farmers. The effort was one of the drivers behind USDA's $12 billion farm aid package designed to soften the blow of retaliatory tariffs.

Business groups have already protested the proposed tariffs on $200 billion on Chinese imports. Over five days of public hearings and thousands of pages of public comments, businesses argued that tariffs disrupt supply chains, add costs and lead to price increases.

"We had hoped we wouldn't get to this point, but there has been no sign of progress in the talks or de-escalation, simply more rhetoric about increasing tariffs, that's not going to be good for the economy," said Matthew Shay, president of the National Retail Federation, who is helping to lead the coalition.

Just last week, President Donald Trump said the proposed tariffs could be implemented very soon and threatened to levy additional tariffs.

"I hate to say it, but behind that there's another $267 billion ready to go on short notice, if I want, that totally changes the equation," Trump told reporters.

David French, senior vice president of government relations at National Retail Federation, said: "We're very concerned that instead of deliberative process, we're seeing go faster and go bigger, and now is time to launch a coalition like this in face of this major escalation."

The boating industry is getting hit from multiple sides in the trade war, with tariffs on raw materials and components along with Europe's retaliatory measures, which have closed off the market there.

"This tit-for-tat tariffs is not getting us anywhere and at the same time, the aim from the administration is 'We're trying to help the U.S.' and this is having the exact opposite effect. This is hurting U.S. manufacturers," said Nicole Vasilaros, vice president at the National Marine Manufacturers Association.

A study by the Consumer Technology Association found that the proposed tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods would have a broad impact on tech, leading to supply chain disruption and increased costs totaling $900 million to $1.8 billion on everything from circuit boards and servers to smart speakers and fitness trackers.

"That's why we've decided we decided to be part of this broader coalition, with the aim of getting the president to shift away from this focus on tariffs," said Dean Garfield, president and CEO of the Information Technology Industry Council.
All eyes in the tech world are on Apple, which is expected to unveil three new iPhone models on Wednesday at its annual product launch.

Not all investors are fazed by the hotly anticipated event. Mark Newton, president and founder of Newton Advisors, sees a sharp pullback in Apple's near future.

"Apple still looks very good on an intermediate-term basis. My concern really is with the near term," Newton told CNBC's "Trading Nation" on Tuesday. "It's gotten very, very overbought in a short period of time. When you look at gauges of technical momentum like the relative strength index, RSI, it's gotten above 70 on both the weekly and a monthly basis."

Apple's RSI reached above 80 at the beginning of September after the company closed out its best month since April 2009. Any reading above 70 generally indicates overbought conditions.

"I'm really playing for a pullback down to near $205 which is about 6 to 8 percent lower than where we have it, and that would really be a much better place for people to consider buying dips," said Newton.

Apple came under some weakness in recent days following warnings over the impact of the Trump administration's tariffs. Since Friday's open, shares have dropped more than 2 percent. However, Gina Sanchez, CEO of Chantico Global, says Apple is best suited to bounce back from any short-term trade impact.

"Apple is one of the few companies that throughout this very wageless recovery that we've seen over the last 10 years, they've actually maintained pricing power which suggests that demand for Apple is more inelastic than you might think," said Sanchez. "You can put a tax on that, which is what a trade tariff is, and people will still buy it."

Bank of America analysts warned on Monday that $200 billion in proposed tariffs on Chinese products could be "materially demand destructive." The tariffs would likely affect the Apple Watch and AirPods.

"If you consider the trade tariffs a short-term story, I think Apple still has a long-term future," added Sanchez.
"Since then," he added, "the stock has lost over half its value."

"We are tired of Snapchat's excuses for missing numbers and are no longer willing to give management 'time' to figure out monetization," Greenfield wrote Tuesday. "We incorrectly stuck to our neutral rating in October 2017 due to our view that communications apps were sticky and would protect Snapchat engagement, with management simply needing more time to figure out monetization."

Lambasting the social media company for a lack of innovation and anemic quarterly results, BTIG analyst Richard Greenfield told clients he is no longer confident the company will be able to monetize the platform.

One Wall Street analyst is sick of waiting around for Snap to post stronger numbers and cut his rating to sell, predicting another 50 percent slide for the social media stock.

The stock closed down 6.98 percent after trading lower for part of the day on Wednesday.

Snap, which operates a camera-based phone application that allows people to share photos and short videos, has proved a tough investment for many since its initial public offering in March 2017.

Since the IPO, Snap's stock is down nearly 60 percent, a slide many have blamed on lackluster engagement growth, slow monetization and disappointing innovation from Chief Executive Evan Spiegel.

Greenfield had been neutral on the shares since initiating coverage in April 2017.

While the Snapchat parent beat on both earnings and revenue in the second quarter, executives disclosed that the app's number of daily active users dropped to 188 million from 192 million.

It also issued guidance that fell short of analyst expectations.

While Snap closed Tuesday at $9.89 per share, the analyst believes it will slide to $5 per share by September 2019.

Others have pointed to the success of Facebook's Instagram as a major headwind for Los Angeles-based Snap. Since Instagram launched its Stories feature just over two years ago, it now has more than twice the daily active users of Snapchat, according to BTIG.

"We have been disappointed in Snap's product evolution (as have users) and see no reason to believe this will change," continued Greenfield. "We have not seen any meaningful innovation since the IPO; Snapchat has simply been out-innovated by Instagram."

Jefferies also cut its forecast for Snap, issuing a new 12-month price target of $11 per share Wednesday.

Echoing Greenfield's criticism, analyst Brent Thill told clients that early analysis shows persistent declines in user engagement in the third quarter.

"While still too early to call, Snap's flywheel of engagement seems to have stalled with both daily active users and time spent beginning to trend in the wrong direction," Thill warned. "Snap's position as a communications platform and content distribution platform hinges on the need for users to have multiple friends on the platform."

"If users begin to churn to other services, it could cause a negative flywheel as users have less incentive to open the app," he added.

Thill said he reduced his 2019 revenue estimate to reflect his growing uncertainty around user interest. He now sees income at $1.53 billion for the year.

Disclosure: CNBC's parent company, NBCUniversal, is an investor in Snap.
YouTube's logo is seen against the flag of the European Union. Omar Marques | SOPA Images | LightRocket | Getty Images

European parliamentarians are set to vote on a controversial copyright law that some critics believe could stop people from sharing memes and articles online. Lawmakers in Strasbourg, France, will cast their votes on the European Union's new copyright directive on Wednesday. The result of that vote could determine whether large tech companies including Facebook, Twitter and Google are forced to use filtering systems that block copyrighted content. Such firms may also be required to pay news organizations for the rights to share articles and other copyright-protected content like scientific papers, something that critics have dubbed a "link tax." The proposed law has ignited a fierce debate, luring high-profile figures from both the tech and media industries. On the tech side, voices arguing against the legislation include internet pioneer Tim Berners-Lee and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales. Big names within the media sector, who are mostly for the reforms, range from former Beatle Paul McCartney to French DJ David Guetta. The European Parliament had initially voted to delay the proposed law in July, rejecting a closed-door debate that would have sped up the process of passing it into law.

Why is it so controversial?

Two particular parts of the directive have attracted the most criticism from pro-internet freedom activists. One is Article 13. This section calls on internet giants to take "appropriate and proportionate" measures to prevent user-generated content that infringes a rightsholder's copyright. This part of the law has come under heavy criticism over concerns that tech giants could end up using automated content filtering systems. The law states that "effective content recognition systems" should be put in place by digital companies to prevent copyrighted materials from being distributed on their platforms. Campaigners have scrutinized this part of the legislation over concerns that it could amount to censorship, and argue that the use of copyright-protected material by way of commentary or parody should be permitted under the doctrine of "fair use." Particular attention has been paid to the status of "memes," which often rely on copyright protected images or pieces of video, and whether they could be censored as a result. "This plan for 'robo-copyright' would target memes, parodies and clips of people cheering at football matches," Jim Killock, executive director of anti-censorship organization Open Rights Group, told CNBC in an email Tuesday. "Copyright is important, but so is free speech." He added: "Machines can't judge human culture. When they can, we'll have bigger issues to think through than copyright enforcement." But Axel Voss, a European parliamentarian and key proponent of the law, has said it won't lead to the censorship of memes. "If we are looking to memes, the legitimate use of memes is not a question of Article 13, it is of copyright," Voss told CNBC in July. "This is nothing new."

Another controversial section is Article 11, which would grant news outlets a claim to copyright over the sharing of their content online. Opponents of the law, like Julia Reda, a European lawmaker and German Pirate Party politician, see this as an effective "link tax." But proponents, like Voss, say hyperlinks aren't under threat.

Why does it matter?

It's important to remember that internet giants such as Google are opposed to the law as it would impact their business model. The company has been accused of lobbying aggressively to prevent the directive from being passed into law. Many tech platforms, like Google's YouTube, rely on a model of user-generated content, where people often share images, music and snippets from films. In most cases, where a copyright infringement has taken place, content is taken down following a request from a publisher. But the new legal framework would place the onus of removal on internet giants. Such a shift in the law could force many of these firms to rethink that model. YouTube has said it is opposed to the law on the basis it could stifle the creative freedom of video makers and impact negatively on their subscriber bases and incomes. "We've always believed there's a better way than this, and that innovation and partnership are the keys to successful, diverse and sustainable news and creative sectors in the EU," the company said in an emailed statement. "For both European creators and consumers, it's vital to preserve the principles of linking, sharing and creativity on which so much of the web's success is built."

Julia Reda, German member of the European Parliament. Thierry Tronnel | Corbis Historical | Getty Images
A decade later, the three officials who helped pull the U.S. out of the financial crisis now struggle with the choices they made, particularly considering that the public still sees the moves as a bailout for Wall Street.

Speaking Wednesday during a forum in Washington, D.C., former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson and New York Fed President Timothy Geithner reflected on the daunting events before, during and after the crisis.

The three spoke during a forum at the Brookings Institution in a talk moderated by CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin, who wrote "Too Big to Fail," a chronicle of the crisis told from the inside of those who experienced it first-hand.

"We stepped in before the banks had collapsed and we did some things to fix the financial system which are very hard to explain because they are objectionable things," Paulson said. "In the United States of America there's a fundamental sense of fairness that the American people have. ... You don't want to reward the arsonist."

However, they said doing nothing would have caused the economy to capsize. They acknowledged that some of the terms were distasteful, but they were necessary given the options at hand. Programs like the Troubled Asset Relief Program pumped money back into banks and restored liquidity to the system.

While they believe the actions were essential, the former officials also recognized the areas where they failed. Paramount among those failures was the inability to save Lehman Brothers, whose collapse Sept. 15, 2008, intensified a crisis that began six months earlier with the failure and bailout of Bear Stearns.

"We thought it was going to be bad, and it was bad," said Geithner, who would go on to serve as Treasury secretary under President Barack Obama. "It was much worse than we thought, than we envisioned. It was a good lesson."
Tickets start at $500 and run through $1,000 but those who have written checks or raised funds for up to $10,000 for the campaign also can gain access to Wednesday's event, according to the invite. Andy Cohen, host of the Bravo late night show "Watch What Happens," will be in attendance.

According to an invite first obtained by CNBC, O'Rourke will be attending a campaign money-making reception at the Cutting Room , a concert venue located on East 32nd Street in Manhattan, which has hosted a variety of top performers including John Mayer, Lady Gaga, Sting and Sheryl Crow, among others.

Beto O'Rourke , Texas Democratic U.S. representative and nominee for U.S. Senate, is making a surprise visit to New York on Wednesday for a private fundraiser as he tries to rake in enough cash to pull off an upset over incumbent Republican Ted Cruz .

A spokesperson for the O'Rourke campaign did not return requests for comment.

The efforts by O'Rourke's campaign to host a fundraiser in New York, almost 2,000 miles away from Texas, are the latest example of its efforts to keep up with Cruz and giving him a run for his money for a seat that has been held by a Republican since 1993.

O'Rourke's growing popularity has led to a behemoth grassroots fundraising operation. He has brought in $9 million in small contributions, accounting for just more than 41 percent of his total. He has raked in $13 million in donations over $200, as well.

O'Rourke has also had a strong presence on social media. His speech defending the rights of players in the National Football League to take a knee during the national anthem went viral.

Going into the final three months of the election, Cruz and O'Rourke are nearly even in their total fundraising haul with the Republican senator raising $23.33 million through July and the congressman bringing in $23.36 million during the same time period, according to the Center for Responsive Politics

O'Rourke has also had a surprise showing in the polls. A Real Clear Politics polling average shows O'Rourke trailing Cruz by just more than 3 points.

With the two Texas lawmakers dead even in campaign financing and separated by only a few points in some surveys, Republican strategists have been sounding the alarm bells to outside spending groups that it might be high time for them to get involved in the election.

The nonprofit conservative group Club for Growth barnstormed Texas, as its president, David McIntosh, recently completing a fundraising swing through the state. The group also unleashed a major advertising buy, which is part of its seven-figure television campaign to back Cruz.

The Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC linked to former aides of Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, has also not ruled out wading into the race. The PAC has no immediate spending plans for Texas, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter. A spokesman for the group declined to comment.

McConnell himself admitted on Tuesday that Cruz faces a tough fight in the traditionally deep red state, but he still expects the incumbent lawmaker to pull off a victory.

"I think Ted's got a competitive race by all indications," McConnell said at a news conference in Kentucky. "We certainly expect to win Texas, but I think he does have a competitive race."
Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is greeted by supporters during a rally in Santana do Livramento, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil March 19, 2018.

Brazil's most popular politician, imprisoned former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, on Tuesday ended his legal battle to run for the top office in next month's election.

Senator Gleisi Hoffmann, head of the leftist Workers Party (PT) that Lula founded, made the announcement in the southern city of Curitiba, where Lula has been jailed on corruption charges since April.

Lula had stepped aside to allow running mate Fernando Haddad to stand for the presidency, Hoffman said. A letter from the ex-president was read out to supporters who have been keeping vigil outside the federal police headquarters where Lula - who maintains his innocence - is being held.

"A man can be unjustly imprisoned, but not his ideas," Lula wrote in the letter, read aloud by founding PT member Luiz Eduardo Greenhalgh. "We are millions of Lulas and from today Fernando Haddad will be Lula for millions of Brazilians."

Lula, serving a 12-year sentence for a graft conviction, was president from 2003-2010. He is ineligible for office under Brazil's "Clean Slate" law, which prohibits candidates from running if they have convictions that have been upheld on appeal.

Support for Haddad, a 55-year-old former mayor of Sao Paulo, is rising, according to opinion polls released this week, but he does not have the national name recognition of Lula and still lags his rivals.

The polls, which also showed support for other leftist candidates increasing, sent Brazil's currency and stocks down.

Haddad will need all the political power that Lula's backing can offer to make it into a likely runoff vote, which would take place between the top two finishers in the Oct. 7 first round ballot if none wins a majority.

Haddad's running mate is Manuela D'Avila, 37, a member of the Communist Party of Brazil.

Polls have shown that about half of Lula's legion of followers are likely to vote for whomever he names as his successor atop the PT ticket.
Firefighters douse flames as a home burns in the Napa wine region in California on October 9, 2017, as multiple wind-driven fires continue to whip through the region.

A California bill that would allow investor-owned utilities to pass on wildfires-related costs to ratepayers could be signed as early as this week by Gov. Jerry Brown, despite charges by some consumer groups that it's a "bailout" for the state's largest electric utility PG&E.

Senate Bill 901, approved last month by the legislature, would direct the California Public Utilities Commission to conduct a stress test to determine how much utilities can pay for wildfire-related damages. It also would allow PG&E to issue "recovery bonds" that would help it finance costs from last year's devastating fires in the state's North Bay region.

California has a history of power lines or faulty equipment sometimes sparking wildfires. Earlier this year, the state's firefighting agency, Cal Fire, blamed PG&E for at least 16 wildfires in Northern California in October 2017, which included some with fatalities. In July, PG&E announced it took a pretax charge of $2.5 billion in connection with wildfire costs.

"We've sent a letter to the governor asking him to veto the bill, which is a bailout for PG&E and blank check for all three utility companies," said Mindy Spatt, a spokesperson for the Utility Reform Network, a San Francisco-based consumer group. "We believe that PG&E had a hand in negotiating its own bailout, and we know that they've spent millions and millions lobbying for this."

However, proponents of the bill have contended the "protection bonds" would essentially shield ratepayers from having even higher bills from wildfire-related costs. The legislation also requires California utility companies to take new steps to reduce risk of catastrophic fires and streamlines brush thinning in forests to avoid future wildfires.

Brown's office declined to comment on his position on the bill but said he has until Sept. 30 to take final action. The governor has more than 600 bills on his desk from the legislative session, which ended Aug. 31.

Last month, Brown proposed a plan to reduce utility liability for wildfires caused by equipment, but the proposal also included tougher penalties for violating state safety rules and barred utilities from passing on the costs of penalties to ratepayers. SB 901 contains no such penalty increases.

"Senate Bill 901 is a common-sense solution that 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," said Lynsey Paulo, a spokesperson for San Francisco-based PG&E.

"While the legislation addresses many urgent needs, we must continue to work together to ensure ongoing investment in climate resiliency and clean energy and to combat the devastating threat that extreme weather and climate change pose to our state's shared energy future," Paulo said.

Utilities in California face liability under what's known as inverse condemnation as well as for negligence claims for wildfire and other damaging incidents caused by utility equipment. There are already state regulations requiring strict vegetation management practices by utilities, and they include standards for keeping vegetation clear of power lines.

Fitch Ratings previously estimated PG&E could face upwards of $15 billion in financial exposure from October's wine country or North Bay wildfires given the state liability laws and scale of the disaster, which destroyed or damaged about 10,000 homes and resulted in 44 fatalities. The fires were in Mendocino, Butte, Humboldt, Sonoma, Lake and Napa counties.

Cal Fire continues to investigate the cause of October's Tubbs fire in the wine country. The Tubbs fire was blamed for 22 deaths and the destruction of more than 5,600 structures, including entire neighborhoods in the Santa Rosa area.

A spokesperson for Cal Fire said Tuesday there is no timetable on when the Tubbs report will be issued.

Besides the North Bay fires, SB 901 also could have implications for December's devastating Thomas fire in Southern California, which contributed to mudslides that swamped the community of Montecito in January. The Thomas fire ranks as the state's second-largest wildfire after the recent Mendocino Complex fire in Northern California, according to Cal Fire.

Electric services company Southern California Edison, a subsidiary of Edison International, is facing more than 40 lawsuits accusing it of negligence in connection with the Thomas blaze. No official cause of the fires has been announced by investigators. CNBC reached out to SCE for comment for this story.

On Monday, SCE filed for approval with the state utility regulator to recover costs in connection with a "grid safety and resiliency program" that it said aims to reduce wildfire risk. The Rosemead-based utility, which expects the improvement program to cost nearly $600 million, needs the approval of the California Public Utilities Commission to pass on costs to its ratepayers.

As part of the "grid hardening" plan, SCE wants to replace "exposed electric wires" with "covered" wires that will feature insulation to protect them against contacting foreign objects. The utility also said it wants to install fire resistant, composite poles as part of the infrastructure upgrade.
Mick Mulvaney, acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, said Wednesday he's worried about the impact that rising student loan debt could have on the United States.

Mulvaney, also President Donald Trump's budget chief, told CNBC there appears to be a "disconnect" among many college students when it comes to the "making of a loan" and "repaying of a loan."

"I think people don't pay as much attention about paying the loan back," Mulvaney told CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin on "Squawk Box." "That worries me from a financial standpoint and a moral standpoint."

According to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, outstanding education debt in the U.S. has tripled over the last decade and now exceeds $1.5 trillion.

"If we teach an entire generation of people that the first major loan they take out, they don't have to pay back, I'm worried about the long-term impact of that," added Mulvaney, formerly a congressman from South Carolina who was a member of the hard-line conservative Freedom Caucus.

The CFPB was created as part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act, which was passed in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis and subsequent Great Recession. Dodd-Frank was intended to better regulate financial institutions and safeguard their customers against risky loans and abusive practices.

The Consumer Protection bureau has been highly scrutinized under Mulvaney.

Seth Frotman, the CFPB's former top student loan official, accused Mulvaney in an August resignation letter of favoring "powerful financial companies" over consumers. Frotman said Mulvaney's team suppressed the publication of a report drawing attention to questionable fees charged on college students' bank accounts.

Mulvaney, who told CNBC he read the letter, said he had never heard of any complaints from Frotman while at the bureau. "I think he was more interested in getting his name in the paper," he said.

Asked during the 10th anniversary week of the 2008 financial crisis, Mulvaney sajd on CNBC he would not describe students loans as a brewing crisis. But he did say changes are needed.
People watch the news on television at a train station in Seoul, South Korea.

Since Americans were barred from traveling to North Korea last year, an academic at one of Pyongyang's top schools hasn't been able to return to his job.

U.S. citizen Chan-Mo Park, who was born in South Korea, is the chancellor of Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST). He has been working with the privately funded school since 2000, but could not travel back to the reclusive country after Washington issued travel restrictions for Americans in September 2017.

But Park expressed optimism in a Wednesday interview with CNBC's Geoff Cutmore that relations between the world's largest economy and the isolated state could improve.

Recent meetings between the two Koreas, as well as President Donald Trump's historic face-to-face summit with North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un, indicate "a big improvement in reconciliation," the academic said on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.

"Eventually, with more bilateral meetings with the United States and North Korea, I hope they relax regulations," he said.

The travel ban was introduced after American student Otto Warmbier died following his release from a North Korean prison. Park said that while he understood the safety concerns behind the U.S. State Department's decision, he felt "so safe" during his 17 years in the North.

PUST conducts classes in English and many of its lecturers are foreigners. But, unlike other educational institutes, PUST enjoys access to the internet, Park said.

Students are keen to learn about the outside world, he said.

"We are trying very hard to make students globalized, so, eventually, they will globalize their country," he added.
Chinese President Xi Jinping attends an event commemorating the 200th birth anniversary of the founding father of communism Karl Marx in Beijing, China May 4, 2018.

Chinese President Xi Jinping wants more investment projects with neighboring Russia, at a time when the world is facing rising protectionism.

Speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum in Russia Wednesday, Xi said Beijing's relationship with Moscow was at an "all-time high" and there was further scope for investments in Russia.

"China has always been and is still a participant in development projects in the eastern part of Russia," the Chinese leader told an audience in Vladivostok.

"We have unique geographic benefits. China and Russia are the biggest neighbors, we have solid political ties  Chinese and Russian relationships are at an all time high level," Xi noted.

The Chinese president suggested both countries should continue investing in energy, agricultural projects, tourism, infrastructure an education. "There are deep and complex changes underway in the international situation, the politics of force, unilateral approaches and protectionism are rearing their head," he said.

He added that "China is open for international cooperation" and is "willing to study" other opportunities with other countries.

Earlier in the session, Russian President Vladimir Putin also appeared to criticize protectionist policies. During the meetings this week, both countries discussed further military cooperation and ways to boost trade in their local currencies.

The meetings are taking place at a time when Russia's relationship with the West is being tested by economic sanctions. At the same time, China is also being impacted by new trade tariffs from the U.S.
Ether, one of the best-performing cryptocurrencies during the boom last year, is taking another nose dive on Wednesday.

The world's second largest cryptocurrency fell 8 percent to a low of $170.34, bringing its drop since the high in January to roughly 90 percent, according to CoinDesk.

Ether typically rises and falls alongside its larger, better-known predecessor bitcoin. But that trend is changing. Despite volatility, bitcoin's value in 30 days has risen by 0.1 percent. Ether meanwhile has fallen 45 percent in the same time period.

"In this case, bitcoin is acting like more of a safe haven for cryptocurrencies  it's kind of consolidating," said Mati Greenspan, senior market analyst at cryptocurrency brokerage eToro.

Ether's recent performance marks a sharp reverse from last year. Retail investors were excited about its utility compared to bitcoin, which can't be used to build blockchain applications and is mostly seen as a speculative investment or a store of value. The cryptocurrency rose more than 9,000 percent after starting the year around $8.

Bearish comments from co-founder of the Ethereum blockchain Vitalik Buterin over the weekend may have also spooked ether investors.

"There isn't an opportunity for yet another 1,000-times growth in anything in the space anymore," Vitalik told Bloomberg News interview this Saturday in Hong Kong. "The blockchain space is getting to the point where there's a ceiling in sight."

Ether is the name of the cryptocurrency, but it's closely associated with the popular Ethereum blockchain. Unlike bitcoin, which gives access to a global financial network, ether gives users access to a computer network. Its use has been compared to gasoline for a car. Developers can use ether tokens as fuel for certain functions on that blockchain.

"The fact that Vitalik is less bullish could be causing some to sell and it stands to reason that most of his most devout followers will be holding Ether," eToro's Greenspan said.

Short-sellers are also putting pressure on markets. Data from market intelligence platform CoinFi shows bets against ether at an all-time high, according to CoinFi CEO Timothy Tam.

Not insignificant bets, either. Tam said they're watching "multi-million dollar bets" in real time.

"Retail investors were completely euphoric a few months ago. Now, that emotion has flipped and they're panicking," said Tam, who is also a former Goldman Sachs analyst. "Shorts are going to ride that wave.

Ethereum shorts at an all-time high

Source: CoinFi

Analysts also say investor enthusiasm is eroding because of scrutiny in initial coin offerings that built on Ethereum's platform.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said earlier this year that ethereum itself is not a security. But the agency's chairman has said initial coin offerings, many of which were built on the Ethereum blockchain platform, are indeed securities subject to SEC law.

Tons of those projects have failed since launching during the crypto boom, and have had to sell a significant portion of ethereum holdings to manage cash flow and expenses.

On Tuesday, a federal judge in New York refused to dismiss a case that argued two cryptocurrencies were not securities for the purpose of criminal law. The Brooklyn, New York district judge said a reasonable jury should be able to apply what's known as the Howey Test, which is applied to securities.

While CoinFi's Tam sees regulation as a positive for the long haul, and the only way to usher in a "healthier market," investors seem to disagree.

"Others see this as cause for panic  an end to the lax rules and low hanging fruit to which they've become accustomed," Tam said. "You also now have a ruling on the table that effectively means ICOs are now subject to securities law."

Bitcoin was mostly flat Wednesday, trading near $6,269 while the rest of the cryptocurrency landscape was mixed. XRP was up .5 percent, and Stellar rose 4.8 percent. Bitcoin Cash meanwhile fell 7 percent, EOS was down 1 percent, according to CoinMarketCap.com.

The entire cryptocurrency market has suffered alongside ether in 2018. The total crypto market capitalization has fallen by about 68 percent since January 1, according to CoinMarketCap.com.
In October 2017, cyclist Juli Briskman was photographed giving the middle finger to President Donald Trump's motorcade during a weekend bike ride in Virginia. The photo quickly went viral, and on the Monday after it was taken, Briskman informed her employer, government contractor Akima, that she was the cyclist pictured. The next day, she was fired.

In April 2018, Briskman filed a lawsuit against Akima. She won her severance claim but her wrongful-termination lawsuit was dismissed.

Now, she is running for office.

"Today, I am filing my organizational papers in a bid for local office in Loudoun County, Va. Loudoun deserves transparency in government, fully funded schools & smarter solutions to growth. It's time for a change," she shared via Twitter.
President of Commission Jean Claude Juncker gives a joint press with Slovak Prime Minister after to their bilateral meeting on April 12, 2018 at the EU Headquarters in Brussels.

The European Union stands ready to work "day and night" to find an agreement with the U.K. over Brexit, the President of the European Commission said Wednesday.

In its usual annual address to the European Parliament, Juncker, who leads the EU's executive body, also said that London needs to understand that it cannot keep all benefits of being a member of the EU and being outside of the bloc.

"We owe it to our citizens and our businesses to ensure the United Kingdom's withdrawal is orderly and that there is stability afterwards. It will not be the (European) Commission that will stand in the way of this, I can assure you of that," Juncker told lawmakers.

"But we also ask the British government to understand that someone who leaves the Union cannot be in the same privileged position as a member State," Juncker said, in what was his last annual speech to the Parliament, given that his mandate ends next year
The European Union flag is seen with Google's logo.

European parliamentarians have passed a controversial overhaul of copyright law that could force tech giants to install filters that prevent copyright-protected content from being uploaded.

Lawmakers in Strasbourg, France, voted on Wednesday in favor of the European Union's revamped directive, which is aimed at bringing the bloc's rules on copyright into the 21st century.

The copyright reform was passed with 438 votes in favor, 226 against and 39 abstentions.

But critics say such a law would normalize censorship and restrict internet freedom, preventing users from being able to post content ranging from memes to links to articles from news outlets.

The controversy mainly surrounds two sections of the law  Articles 11 and 13.

Article 11 would grant press publications copyright over the sharing of their content online, meaning they would be able to charge services like Google News for aggregating their stories. Critics have dubbed this as an effective "link tax," but proponents say hyperlinks will be exempt.

Meanwhile, Article 13 calls for "effective content recognition" technology to filter out copyright-protected content. Detractors hold that this part of the law could threaten social media users' ability to share anything from internet memes to snippets of music and film.

Member of the European Parliament Axel Voss  a key supporter of the directive  said parliament had addressed concerns raised by activists, citing amendments including the exclusion of "small and micro platforms or aggregators" from the scope of legislation.
European stocks posted solid gains on Wednesday, despite intensifying trade tensions between the world's two largest economies. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed up 0.47 percent, with almost all sectors finishing in positive territory. The majority of Europe's bourses ended on an upbeat note, with the U.K.'s FTSE 100 rising 0.55 percent, the French CAC 40 jumping 0.92 percent and the German DAX seeing gains of 0.52 percent by the close.

Looking across Europe's sectors, oil and gas stocks were among the top performers Wednesday, finishing up 1.6 percent as investors continued to monitor rising crude prices and looming sanctions against Iran. The sector was supported by a strong uptick in U.S. WTI, which rose over 2 percent by Europe's close on the back of a bigger-than-expected fall in U.S. inventories. Retail popped 1.5 percent as a sector amid earnings news. Inditex reported net profit largely in line with expectations and forecast an increase in second-half sales of up to 6 percent. The Spanish fashion group's share price finished up more than 4 percent. In individual stock news, Galapagos shares surged to the top of the European benchmark, closing up 17.58 percent, following positive trial results for a drug designed to treat rheumatoid arthritis. Sticking with top performers, Barry Callebaut soared almost 7 percent, after UBS upwardly revised its target price and upgraded the chocolatier's stock to "neutral" from "sell." Hexpol also rose over 4.5 percent following news it is poised to buy U.S. firm Kirkhill Rubber. SSE slumped towards the bottom of the index, closing down over 8 percent, after the company warned profits in the first six months of the year would halve compared to last year. Bucher, however, fell further, down 8.4 percent after Berenberg cut its rating to "sell" from "hold".

Trade, Brexit news rattles on
In this NASA handout image taken by Astronaut Ricky Arnold, Hurricane Florence gains strength in the Atlantic Ocean as it moves west, seen from the International Space Station on September 10, 2018. Weather predictions say the storm will likely hit the U.S. East Coast as early as Thursday, September 13 bringing massive winds and rain.

Scientists are watching the Carolina coast for what could be a historic storm surge from Hurricane Florence that pushes water inland at heights of up to 20 feet.

The surge from Florence will be particularly dangerous due to the flat nature of the coastline off North Carolina and South Carolina, allowing the storm to pile a lot of water over a large area. It's exacerbated by two bays in the storm's path that collect water and increase the height of a surge.

"This has the potential to become the storm of record for the state of North Carolina," said Robert Young, a professor of coastal geology at Western Carolina University. "If its track holds, it could break storm surge records and do a significant amount of coastal damage."

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is calling Florence a major and deadly storm. It's expected to drop between 20 and 40 inches of rain in some parts that could produce "catastrophic flash flooding," according to NOAA. The governor of North Carolina ordered a mandatory evacuation for more than 1 million people along the coastline.

The storm's direction, moving straight into the coast at a perpendicular angle rather than along it, increases the severity of the storm surge, Young said. Florence is following a similar sort of path hurricanes as Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005 and Hurricane Hugo in the Caribbean and southeastern U.S. in 1989, he said.

Young estimates the storm surge to be between 15 and 20 feet.

More than 750,000 homes in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia are at potential risk of storm surge damage from Florence, data analytics firm CoreLogic said Monday. The firm estimates threats to real estate total about $170 billion.

"Yes, the winds will be bad, but really the water is what will be deadly," said Rob Galbraith, director of underwriting research for insurance firm USAA. "The type of inundation we are talking about here happens very quickly. Six inches of water can knock you off your feet, and two feet of water can actually lift your car off the ground."
Airlines have canceled hundreds of flights and added more service to get travelers out of areas that could be affected by Hurricane Florence.

The Category 3 storm is expected to make landfall in North Carolina and South Carolina early Friday, but the storm will affect several states with high winds and widespread flooding, federal forecasters said.

Southwest Airlines said Wednesday that it plans to suspend operations out of Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Thursday through at least Friday night.

So far, airlines have canceled more than 450 flights scheduled for Thursday in or out of Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham International Airport, Charleston International Airport and Myrtle Beach International Airport, according to FlightAware.com, a flight-tracking site. Scores of other flights scheduled for Friday in the area were also canceled and more are likely.
The presidents of Japan and Russia expressed a desire to achieve a peace treaty between the two nations, more than 70 years after the end of World War II.

"Our relations with Russia hold unlimited potential," Japan's Shinzo Abe said, speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia Wednesday.

"Over the long stretch of more than 70 years since the end of World War II, Japan and Russia have yet to conclude a peace treaty between them. Both (President Vladimir) Putin and I agreed this is an abnormal state of affairs."

The peace deal relates to a dispute over a chain of Pacific islands since the time of World War II. Both countries have not signed a peace treaty since then.

Putin, also speaking at the same event Wednesday, pointed out that Russia and Japan's militaries are cooperating for the first time. The Russian leader told Abe that the two nations should pen a peace agreement this year.

"Let's conclude a peace treaty before the end of this year, without any pre-conditions," Putin told Abe at the forum, with the Japanese leader not giving a direct response.

Shortly after the statements were made, Japan's chief government spokesman issued a statement saying there would be no change to Japan's positioning on resolving the northern islands issue before signing a treaty with Russia.

The Eastern Economic forum, which covers economic development, cooperation and investment projects in northeast Asia and is now in its fourth year, attracted more than 6,000 attendees from over 60 countries.
Former Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday didn't rule out running for president during the 2020 elections.

"I haven't ruled things out," Kerry said in an interview on CNBC's "Squawk Box" when asked about a possible presidential run.

The 74-year-old Democratic former senator, who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2004 against then-GOP incumbent George W. Bush, also said "it's a mistake" to discuss impeachment of President Donald Trump during the midterm elections.

"In two months, we have an election in the country, and that's the most important course correction moment the American people have right now," he said.

Most Democrats have avoided talking about booting Trump from office ahead of the midterms even after Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen claimed that the president directed him to commit a crime. An impeachment push is risky now, strategists say, as Democrats try to flip at least 23 GOP-held House seats and take control of the chamber.

Kerry also criticized Trump's tariffs on Chinese goods. While Kerry admits the U.S. economy is doing well under the Trump administration, he said any future economic gains will be offset by the trade war.

The Trump administration is attacking what it sees as unfair trade on a number of fronts. A new round of U.S. tariffs on $16 billion worth of Chinese imports kicked in last month, prompting an equivalent retaliation from Beijing.

"If this next round of tariffs is put in place with respect to China, the Chinese I know are prepared to come back and slam us," Kerry said.

He also said low and middle-income American families probably aren't seeing the benefits of a stronger economy, joining other Democrats who say that tax cuts and deregulation benefit wealthy corporations.

Kerry released a memoir last week titled "Every Day Is Extra," which includes details on his five-terms in the senate, his 2004 presidential run, and his four years as secretary of State under former President Barack Obama.
U.S. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy blasted Google in a tweet on Tuesday, accusing the tech giant of giving a "silent donation" to a left-wing group to stop President Donald Trump, and for allegedly working with China and Russia to censor the internet.

The Republican official said an "invite will be on its way" to the company  presumably a request for it to testify.

Tweet: Google claims to be fair, but gave a "silent donation" to a left-wing group to stop Trump; Works w/ China/Russia to censor the internet, but cancelled a contract with our military; Ignores Senate hearing; It's time for @Google to answer some ?'s An invite will be on its way.

A Google spokesperson told CNBC in a statement:

"The suggestion that Google's products or actions are politically biased is simply wrong. For the past decade, we've worked alongside other technology companies to provide users with voting information before they head to the polls, and have offered tools to protect elections from hacking and digital attacks."

It wasn't clear what McCarthy was referring to when he claimed Google gave "a 'silent donation' to a left-wing group to stop Trump." Phone calls made to McCarthy's offices outside business hours went unanswered. Such an allegation was made by Fox News host Tucker Carlson earlier this week, but CNBC was unable to independently verify his claims.

McCarthy's claim of Google supporting internet censorship may have been tied to reports from last month that said the tech giant had plans to launch a version of its search engine in China that would block some websites and search terms. That supposed plan was criticized by human rights advocates, and Google CEO Sundar Pichai later told employees that the company was "not close" to launching a search product in China and that whether it would  or could  "is all very unclear."

It was not clear, either, to what "cancelled" contract the congressman referred. In June, Google told its employees that it would not renew a contract to help the U.S. military analyze aerial drone imagery after it expires next March, according to a report, which added that more than 6,400 employees signed a petition calling for the company to end the deal.

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee to address election meddling and abuse on their platforms. Google's Pichai and Alphabet CEO Larry Page were invited to testify as well but they declined.

The tech giant came under fire last month from Trump when the president said, without providing evidence, that its search engine was hiding "fair media" coverage of him and added that he would address the situation, without giving any details. Google denied any political bias.

Here's the full statement from the Google spokesperson:

The suggestion that Google's products or actions are politically biased is simply wrong. For the past decade, we've worked alongside other technology companies to provide users with voting information before they head to the polls, and have offered tools to protect elections from hacking and digital attacks. The employee's email is an expression of her personal political views about the outcome of the 2016 election and those views do not reflect any official stance by the company. We have nearly 90,000 employees comprising a broad array of political affiliations. The email itself explicitly notes that she is speaking personally, and that Google's efforts were non-partisan. Currently, we are working with the non-partisan National Voter Registration Day -- a board represented by Secretaries of State from both sides of the aisle -- to increase awareness about voter registration before November's election. Our election and voting information is made available to all Americans who search for it -- it is not targeted to any locations or demographic groups. And contrary to reports, we made no donation -- monetary, in-kind, silent or otherwise -- to Voto Latino to drive people to the polls. As we approach the midterm election, we will continue to ensure that our products and election efforts remain strictly non-partisan in nature. Our goal is to equip users with accurate, up-to-date information about their elections -- not to support any particular candidate or ideology.

 Reuters and CNBC's Sara Salinas contributed to this report.
United Arab Emirates (UAE) real estate developer Aldar Properties is spinning off its investment division to create a subsidiary with around $5.4 billion worth of iconic property assets. "It's another extremely exciting day in the Aldar story, we're launching Aldar Investments, the region's largest and most diversified investment company," Aldar Properties Chief Executive Talal Al Dhiyebi told CNBC's Hadley Gamble. "A lot of people still look at Aldar as a development company but today we're much more balanced, 50 percent of our income comes from the development business  that's the typical homebuilder and 'build to sell' developer  and then on the asset management side we have quite a diverse portfolio of assets," he said.

UAE, Abu Dhabi, Yas Island, Yas Mall, interior, opened in 2015 Walter Bibikow | Photolibrary | Getty Images

He said the firm were "spinning off" the investment company with 20 billion United Arab Emirates (UAE) dirhams ($5.4 billion) worth of assets in residential, commercial, retail and hospitality. This includes some "trophy assets" such as Yas Mall, The Gate Towers and Arc. Explaining the rationale for the move, Al Dhiyebi said the company thought it "was the right time to optimize our capital structure and unlock capital." He added that Aldar Investments had been assigned a "Baa1" rating by Moody's ratings, the region's highest non-government corporate credit rating, which means that Aldar Investments can raise capital, independently of Aldar. Al Dhiyebi said Aldar Investments would consider an initial public offering (IPO)  becoming a publicly-listed company on a stock exchange  at some point in the future. "We are ready to monetize this business at the right time if it's going to deliver more shareholder growth."
UPDATED

More than 800,000 students from North Carolinas Outer Banks to Newport News, Va., are out of school as districts shut their doors and battened down in anticipation of Hurricane Florence.

The storm, which was downgraded to a Category 3 early Wednesday afternoon, is expected to hit the Carolina coast on Thursday night or early Friday morning. The National Hurricane Center warns of a life-threatening storm surge and heavy rainfall to the Carolinas.

Florence could dump between 20 to 30 inches of rain in coastal North Carolina and up to 40 inches in some parts of both North and South Carolina. Such heavy rainfall could result in catastrophic flooding, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The storm has shifted southwest, and it is expected to have a greater impact on South Carolina than earlier thought. Florence is expected to slow down and stall as it approaches the Carolinas and linger over the weekend. South Carolina officials are asking residents who live inland, away from the coast, to prepare for heavy rainfalls and flash floods.

Up to three million residents in both states could lose power, according to The New York Times.

Some school districts announced as early as Monday that they were closing for the rest of the week. And South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster ordered schools closed in 26 counties and the evacuation of about a million people from coastal areas. McMaster lifted part of the order on school closures in some of those counties on Tuesday.

While coastal districts announced early closures, some inland school districts in North Carolina were still open as of Wednesday. Students in Pitt County, Chapel Hill-Carrboro, and Durham are in class today. All of those districts are expected to be closed on Thursday and Friday, with the exception of Durham, which will have classes on Thursday but will release students early.

While some districts were criticized for delaying the decision to close, a spokesman for North Carolinas department of public instruction told the New York Times that the districts had to consider a number of things before making the decision.

You dont want to cancel schools too early, the spokesman, Drew Elliot, told the paper. On the other side, you need to cancel early enough so that people can make plans and evacuate, if thats what they need to do. And if you cancel too broadly and too early and then the forecast is wrong, you get the cry wolf syndrome of, are they going to heed the call next time.

In addition to following the hurricanes track, districts take a series of steps before deciding when to close, including authorizing emergency spending, ensuring that school buses have gas, and making sure that payroll is lined up so that staff can get paid even if schools are closed for an extended period. (Read how Orange County Schools in Florida made the decision to close last year as Hurricane Irma headed toward the state .)

Most districts in Hurricane Florences path are closed through Friday, with schools in Virginiaincluding Chesapeake, Virginia Beach City, Newport News and Portsmouthshuttered until further notice. Norfolk public schools are also closed.

The last Category 4 hurricane to hit the Carolinas was Hurricane Hugo on Sept. 21-22, 1989.

South Carolina schools sustained an estimated $24 million in damages during the storm, according to GAO report, while North Carolina schools suffered $1.8 million in damages, Education Week reported.

Schools in both states reported that they faced delays in receiving assistance from the education department to help them rebuild. A year after the storm, 48 South Carolina districts and seven North Carolina districts that applied for help from the Education Department had not received any of the money they sought, according to the report.

Photo credit: Russell Meadows boards up his neighbors home as a projection of Hurricane Florence is broadcast on a television inside in Morehead City, N.C., on the evening of Sept. 11.

--David Goldman/AP
Zephyr Teachout, law professor at Fordham University and candidate for New York Attorney General, arrives for a press conference outside of Trump Tower in Midtown Manhattan, August 8, 2018 in New York City.

As President Donald Trump faces down special counsel Robert Mueller, he could soon be facing new legal challenges from New York, where Democrats vying for the role as the state's top prosecutor have all made hostility to the president a central part of their campaigns.

The latest polling shows the Democratic primary, which will be held Thursday, is a tossup between Rep. Sean Maloney, New York City public advocate Letitia James and Zephyr Teachout, a law professor at Fordham University who has written a book about political corruption. A fourth candidate, Leecia Eve, a former aide to Hillary Clinton, is trailing.

The state has a track record of taking on the Trump administration. The state sued Trump University in 2013 for defrauding students, part of a legal case which led to a $25 million settlement. In June, Attorney General Barbara Underwood filed a suit against the president's charitable foundation alleging a "pattern of persistent illegal conduct."

The candidates running to replace Underwood could take the legal challenge a step further. The attorney general position in New York presents a unique opportunity to go after the president because the deeply blue state is where he built his business empire.

New York is also where Trump headquartered his campaign, and the site of a number of events that have come under the scrutiny of federal prosecutors. Mueller is looking at a June 2016 meeting between a number of Trump's top campaign advisors and a Kremlin-linked attorney that occurred in Trump Tower, for instance.

Last month, Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen pleaded guilty in federal court in New York to a number of violations related to the 2016 campaign.

The president's attorney, former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, has said that Trump has nothing to worry about because he has done nothing wrong. The White House did not respond to a request for comment from CNBC.

"Like we are seeing with the recent Cohen plea, there is a profound overlap between his campaign, his foundation, and his businesses, the beating heart of which is here in New York," Teachout said Wednesday at an event in front of Trump Tower in Manhattan. "So yeah, New York has an incredible opportunity to really investigate  stop  the central illegality of the Trump administration."

Asked if Trump should fear her, Teachout responded: "Yes."

Teachout, the only candidate who agreed to comment for this article, said that she would bring a lawsuit against Trump on "day one" of her term over alleged Emoluments Clause violations. James has also said she would investigate whether the president has violated the Emoluments Clause.
The oil price rallied towards its highest level this year on Wednesday, after a drop in U.S. crude inventories and as the prospect of the loss of Iranian supply added to concerns over the delicate balance between consumption and production.

Brent crude futures were last up 59 cents on the day at $79.65 a barrel and briefly broke above $80. U.S. crude futures rose $1.12, or 1.6 percent, to settle at $70.37 a barrel.

The Energy Information Administration said Wednesday that U.S. crude oil inventories dropped by 5.3 million barrels last week.

"We think oil market fundamentals are increasingly supportive of crude prices, at least at current levels," said Gordon Gray, HSBC's global head of oil and gas equity research.

"While we aren't explicitly forecasting Brent to rise to $100 a barrel, we see real risks of this happening. The fact that much higher supply is already needed from the likes of Saudi Arabia - and the low levels of spare capacity remaining - leave the global system highly vulnerable to any further significant outage."

Outside the United States, traders have been focusing on the impact of U.S. sanctions against Iran that will target oil exports from November.

"Iran is increasingly becoming the preoccupation of the crude market. The last couple of weeks have seen the expected squeeze on Iranian crude flows taking shape, with overall outflows down markedly," consultant JBC Energy said.
Despite fears of disruptions to global oil supplies and curbs on production, major oil producing group OPEC sees global oil supplies as fine  it's demand that should be worrying people.

The 15-member OPEC said Wednesday in its latest monthly report that preliminary data suggested that the global oil supply increased 490,000 barrels a day to average 98.9 mb/d in August, compared with the previous month.

In 2018, OPEC believes the non-OPEC oil supply in 2018 will grow by 2.02 million barrels a day (mb/d) despite making a downward revision of 64,000 b/d from its last report. In 2019, non-OPEC oil supply is expected to grow by 2.15 mb/d, a minor upward revision of 17,000 b/d.

Meanwhile, OPEC's supply is also rising.

According to secondary sources (that is, not the producers themselves) total crude oil production by OPEC members averaged 32.56 mb/d in August, an increase of 278,000 b/d over the previous month.

Crude oil output increased mostly in Libya, Iraq and Nigeria, while production declined in Iran, Venezuela and Algeria.

Iran is due to be hit with sanctions on its oil industry from November onwards while Venezuela is experiencing economic and political upheavals, affecting production.

Oil production by OPEC's defacto leader Saudi Arabia has ticked up since May, when it and Russia signalled that they could increase output to fill any supply shortages due to incoming U.S. sanctions on Iran's oil industry.

The increase comes despite an ongoing deal between OPEC and non-OPEC producers, notably Russia, to curb oil production (and limit it to 32 million barrels a day) in order to support prices. The deal, in place since late 2016, has effectively lifted prices from a slump in 2015 to current levels of around $79 a barrel for Brent crude and $69 for U.S. West Texas Intermediate.

The latest data from OPEC, collected both by direct communication with producers and from secondary sources, shows a contrasting picture of production in Iran as it faces impending oil sector sanctions.
A Wall Street Journal story published Wednesday said that a deal is unlikely to include an explicit requirement that Manafort help Mueller in the special counsel's ongoing probe into the Trump campaign.

But Manafort "is resisting" and his lawyers do not want the plea deal to include cooperation, ABC News said in its story, citing unnamed sources.

On Wednesday, ABC News reported that Mueller wants Manafort to cooperate by providing information "related to President Trump and the 2016 campaign " that sent Trump to the White House. Manafort managed that campaign for several months in 2016.

On Tuesday night, The Washington Post broke the news that Manafort, who was convicted last month of bank and tax fraud , has been talking with prosecutors from Mueller's team about a potential deal in which he would plead guilty to avoid a second trial this month on different charges.

Paul Manafort , a longtime Republican consultant, is reportedly in talks with special counsel Robert Mueller about a plea deal, but he is resistant to cooperating with prosecutors investigating his former client, President Donald Trump .

The stories came on the heels of a two-day postponement, without explanation, of a hearing for Manafort's upcoming trial in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., where he is accused of violating lobbying laws, money laundering and witness tampering.

That hearing, which was originally scheduled for Wednesday, is now set for Friday. Jury selection for the trial in Washington currently is scheduled to begin next Monday.

The Washington case, like the one in Virginia federal court where he was convicted last month, largely relates to work that Manafort did for pro-Russia politicians in Ukraine, before he worked for Trump's campaign.

Manafort, 69, has pleaded not guilty in both cases. He has been held in jail without bail since June, when Mueller charged him with trying to tamper with potential witnesses.

Manafort's spokesman declined to comment Wednesday when contacted by NBC News, citing a gag order in the case.

A spokesman for Mueller also declined to comment when contacted by CNBC.

Mueller's team is continuing to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, as well as possible collusion by members of Trump's campaign in that effort.

The special counsel also is investigating whether Trump himself has obstructed justice by seeking to affect the course of the Justice Department's inquiry into Russia's role in the election.

Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing by himself or his campaign. He also has called Mueller's probe a witch hunt.

Manafort attended a meeting in Trump Tower in New York City in June 2016, with, Donald Trump Jr., President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kusher and a Russian lawyer who supposedly had damaging information about Trump's election opponent, Hillary Clinton.

Mueller reportedly has taken a keen interest in that meeting.

Donald Trump Jr. later said in a statement that the Russian lawyer and the Trump team "primarily discussed a program about the adoption of Russian children that was active and popular with American families years ago and was since ended by the Russian government."

"But it was not a campaign issue at the time and there was no follow up," Trump Jr. has said.

President Trump actually dictated that first statement for his son, his lawyers told Mueller in a memo that was obtained by The New York Times.

The younger Trump issued another, later statement, which said that the Russian attorney, at the Trump Tower meeting, had "stated that she had information that individuals connected to Russia were funding the Democratic National Committee and supporting Ms. Clinton."

"Her statements were vague, ambiguous and made no sense. No details or supporting information was provided or even offered. It quickly became clear that she had no meaningful information," Trump Jr. said.

"She then changed subjects and began discussing the adoption of Russian children and mentioned the Magnitsky Act. It became clear to me that this was the true agenda all along and that the claims of potentially helpful information were a pretext for the meeting."
Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort arrives for arraignment on a third superseding indictment against him by Special Counsel Robert Mueller on charges of witness tampering, at U.S. District Court in Washington, June 15, 2018.

Multiple reports are indicating that Paul Manafort, the former campaign chairman for U.S. President Donald Trump, is in talks with the Justice Department special counsel's office about a potential plea deal.

The latest, which The Washington Post reported on Tuesday, cited two people with knowledge of the discussions, and indicated that the talks may not result in a deal with special counsel Robert Mueller.

That followed a report from Bloomberg that said Manafort may be in talks for a plea deal ahead of his second trial in Washington. That trial is scheduled to begin with opening statements on Sept. 24, according to the Post.
President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia knew the real identity of two men accused by British prosecutors of trying to murder former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Britain.

British prosecutors last week identified two Russians who they said were operating under aliases - Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov - who they said had tried to murder the Skripals with a military-grade nerve agent in England.

Putin, speaking at an economic forum in the Russian port city of Vladivostok, said Russia had found the two men, that they were civilians, and there was nothing special or criminal about them and that he hoped they would come forward and tell the world their own story.
President Vladimir Putin appeared to take another thinly veiled swipe at Trump's economic policies on Wednesday, a day after Russia and China vowed to stand together to fight protectionism. "The world and global economy are coming up against new forms of protectionism today with different kinds of barriers which are increasing," Russian President Vladimir Putin told a plenary session at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok, Russia. "Basic principles of trade  competition and mutual economic benefit  are depreciated and unfortunately undermined, they're becoming hostages of ideological and fleeting political situations, in that we see a serious challenge for all of the global economy, especially for the dynamically-growing Asia-Pacific and its leadership," he added.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) greets Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) during their meeting at the Eastern Economic Forum on September 11, 2018. Mikhail Svetlov | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Putin's comments come as China and Russia appeared united on Tuesday after the leaders of both countries pledged to stand together to fight protectionism. The comments were seen as a thinly veiled attack on U.S. President Donald Trump who has implemented a massive package of tariffs on Chinese imports and threatened further sanctions on Moscow. The U.S.' trade war and tariffs on China and sanctions on Russia, which started in 2014 due to its annexation of Crimea but increased due to allegations of Russian meddling in the U.S. 2016 election, appeared to have brought china and Russia together. Putin said Wednesday that Russia and its eastern economic partners should work to keep trade free of barriers.
At hotpot restaurants in China, most of the ingredients are relatively inexpensive. Customers dip pieces of raw meat and vegetables into a big vat of simmering broth until everything cooks and bubbles to the surface.

For one Chinese restaurant chain, however, an item found by a customer at one of its outlets has proved to be particularly costly: a rat.

A video of a small, dead rat  boiled, gelatinous and with its stunned arms outstretched  fished out of a vat of bubbling broth has shocked China, and sent shares of a popular restaurant chain plummeting.

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The rat was found last week at a branch of the chain, Xiabu Xiabu, in Weifang, a city in the eastern province of Shandong. A local newspaper reported the incident on Friday and video footage of the customer picking the rat out with chopsticks circulated on Chinese social media all weekend.

By the close of trading on Tuesday, shares in the chain's parent company, Xiabuxiabu Catering Management, had fallen almost 12.5 percent, at one point dropping to their lowest in nearly a year. In all, the discovery of the rat had knocked about $190 million off the market value of the business, which is publicly traded in Hong Kong. The company's shares recovered somewhat on Wednesday, gaining around 3 percent.

The rat appeared when hotpot has been enjoying something of a moment in China. Traditionally eaten as a family meal in winter, hotpot is a national favorite, and chains selling it are growing in popularity. Xiabu Xiabu and one of its rivals, Haidilao, have reported surging sales and an expanding network of restaurants.

The cuisine's setup is similar to fondue, with customers sitting round a table centered on a large vat of simmering broth, which adds flavor to the toppings, and can be concentrated to the point of being opaque.

It was under such circumstances that the rat was dredged from swirling, red-hot broth.

Xiabu Xiabu initially released a statement Saturday night saying that it had "ruled out the possibility that an unhygienic environment has caused the rat to appear," but that statement was later deleted.

A company representative, Catherine Gao, later said that the chain was cooperating with the authorities.

"We have set up a task force to carry out an in-depth investigation into this incident, and will also invite third-party authorities to help us clarify the truth," she wrote in an email. Ms. Gao said the chain had always taken great care over the quality and safety of its food.

The market supervision bureau, an official watchdog organization, in Weifang has ordered the Xiabu Xiabu branch to suspend its services for "improvement." In a statement published on Sunday on the Chinese messaging platform WeChat, the bureau said that while it found no traces of rats, the restaurant had committed violations related to stagnant water and buying food from unlicensed suppliers.

Though hotpot has gained in popularity in recent years, customers across China have complained about questionable hygiene standards at hotpot chains, particularly over restaurants reusing hotpot broth with new customers.
Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary said Wednesday that the risk of a no-deal Brexit grounding flights across Europe is being "underestimated."

Aviation is one sector that could be the most severely impacted after Britain leaves the European Union next spring. That's because there is no default fallback option for the industry if there is no deal on future ties.

The U.K. has said it wishes to remain part of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) after leaving the bloc on March 29, 2019 but it is not yet clear whether this will be possible.

"We remain concerned at the increasing risk of a hard (no-deal) Brexit in March 2019," Ryanair's O'Leary said in a statement Wednesday.

"While we hope that a 21-month transition agreement from March 2019 will be agreed, recent events in the U.K. have added uncertainty, and we believe that the risk of a hard Brexit (which could lead to flights being grounded for a period of days or weeks) is being underestimated," he added.

In the absence of an agreement for the aviation industry, a no-deal Brexit scenario could result in flights being grounded. It would also mean Britain would need to takeover safety and regulatory processes currently being managed by the EASA.
Corporate debt in the U.S. is now higher than it's ever been.

This is typically manageable if companies have a lot of cash to service that debt. But a looming problem, many economists are warning, is that  excluding the country's biggest companies  debt-to-cash ratio is now higher than it was in 2008 during the financial crisis.

Ten years on from the crash of Lehman Brothers that heralded the Great Recession, market watchers are looking for clues as to where the root of the next crisis might lie. Steve Blitz, chief U.S. economist at TS Lombard, sees a giant red flag in corporations' debt versus their means to pay that debt off.

"The real biggest problem lies, if I'm looking at the U.S., I look at debt-to-cash ratios, and I take out the top ten companies," Blitz told CNBC's Squawk Box Europe on Wednesday, noting his exclusion of highly capitalized companies like major tech and pharmaceutical firms who are well-stocked to service their debts.

"Debt to cash is very very high, but debt equity is very very low. What that tells me is corporations are borrowing against their net worth, as opposed to borrowing against cash flow and income, which in effect is the same thing households were doing in 2004, 2005 and 2006."

S&P Global reported U.S. corporate debt at a massive $6.3 trillion in June, with companies also holding a record $2.1 trillion in cash to service that debt. But most of that cash is held by a handful of giants at the top.

Meanwhile, riskier borrowers are more leveraged than ever before.

The cash-to-debt ratio of speculative-grade borrowers reached a record low of 12 percent in 2017, below the 14 percent level in 2008  meaning that for every dollar they have in cash, they have $8 of debt.
Customers try IQOS device during demonstration at IQOS store in Tokyo, Japan on July 31, 2017.

Tobacco stocks surged Wednesday after regulators threatened to pull e-cigarettes from shelves if manufacturers do not control "widespread" teen use.

Shares of Altria rose more nearly 7 percent to their best day since November, 2008. Philip Morris International increased about 3 percent. British American Tobacco shares increased nearly 6 percent to their best day since December, 2008. In London, Imperial Brands rose 3 percent.

The FDA is considering restricting e-cigarette manufacturers from selling flavored nicotine liquid or making the products undergo an agency review. FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb extended an Obama-era deadline that would have required e-cigarettes on the market by 2016 to be reviewed starting this year.

The FDA is specifically ordering five brands  Juul, BAT's Vuse, Altria's MarkTen, Imperial's Blu E-cigs and Japan Tobacco's Logic  to submit plans within 60 days detailing how they will prevent teens from using their products. The agency may require the companies to revise their sales and marketing practices, to stop distributing products to retailers that sell to kids and to stop selling some or all of their flavored e-cigarette products until the companies clear the application process.

Investors welcomed the regulatory crackdown. E-cigarette sales have threatened Big Tobacco companies. Some of them own their own e-cigarette brands, but none has been nearly as successful as privately held Juul.

The San Francisco-based company sold $1.29 billion in vape kits and nicotine pods over the 12 months ended Aug. 11  more than half of the $2.31 billion for the entire category, according to Nielsen data compiled by Wells Fargo analyst Bonnie Herzog.
"Unbelievable," Andover Fire Department Fire Chief Jerry Streich repeatedly exclaimed on the video he shot in the northern Minneapolis suburb of Coon Rapids. The department says the video has been viewed more than one million times.

A viral video captured Tuesday appears to show a wild bald eagle perching on the extended ladder of a Minnesota fire truck. That truck was taking part in a flag display commemorating the 17th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

The video shows two aerial fire trucks parked on an overpass, suspending an American flag between their ladders  a tribute to the victims and first responders of the 9/11 attacks.

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The national bird landed on the top of one of the truck's ladders, paused for a moment on the edge of the basket, then flew off.

"There's no better symbol to represent America today than a flag but then for an eagle to land on a fire truck holding a flag, I mean, it doesn't get much more symbolic than that," Streich said, KARE-TV reports.

Streich said this is the 17th year for the city's annual tribute.

Firefighters from multiple departments were at the event, which included draping a banner over the overpass' railing that said "We will never forget," reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Streich said he couldn't believe his eyes when the eagle landed for what he described as less than a minute.

Contributing: KARE-TV, Minneapolis-St. Paul; Associated Press
Several of China's largest companies are acknowledging that they're concerned about risks from a trade war with the U.S.

In the face of tariffs on the bulk of exports to its largest trading partner, Beijing has maintained a resolute position that it will respond with countermeasures. But some local corporations, many owned or influenced by the state, have voiced worries about the rising trade tensions in their latest earnings releases and other financial documents.

For one, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, or ICBC, said late last month that a primary challenge the bank faces is increased instability and uncertainty in the international environment and intensifying global financial market volatility, especially since rising U.S.-China economic tensions may negatively affect many sectors.

That's according to a translation of a Chinese-language mid-year report from the Beijing-based bank, the largest in the world by assets. CNBC accessed the filing through Wind, a financial terminal operated by a Shanghai-based company. Using the database, CNBC found numerous mentions of trade risks in other mainland Chinese mid-year reports, statements to analysts and financial documents in the last month.

Notably, Yantai China Pet Foods laid out a detailed analysis of the potential impact from the U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed 25 percent tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods  which include dog and cat food.

About 30 percent of the medium-sized company's operating revenues come from exports to the U.S., the firm said in a report issued late Tuesday Beijing time to address concerns about a convertible bond offering.

Yantai China Pet Foods said its 2017 return on assets excluding one-time items was 16.49 percent. With a 10 percent or 25 percent tariff, that would have only come out as a return of 13.16 percent or 8.31 percent, respectively, the company said.

Looking ahead, the company said that, if it must bear the entire 25 percent tariff burden, then return on assets this year will be around 4.6 percent. If U.S. consumers bear half the cost of the duties, the pet food company projected 2018 return on assets of just under 6 percent. Stopping exports to the U.S. would lower return on assets to about 5 percent, Yantai China Pet Foods said.

The company did note it expects increased demand in China and Europe to offset any drop in exports to the U.S. The firm also said it has a factory in the U.S. that accounts for about 15 percent of total sales.

Over a two-year period, the weighted average return on assets would not fall below 6 percent, still allowing the company to issue convertible bonds, the report said.

To be sure, many companies did not mention risks from rising trade tensions, or noted the impact to their business would likely be minimal.

For example, rubber and plastic goods producer Anhui Zhongding Sealing said in a filing that all its products are named in the latest proposal for $200 billion worth of tariffs. However, the company noted there is no impact from the current U.S. duties, and that the world's largest economy accounts for a relatively small proportion of the company's global market.

The CNBC analysis only covered mainland-traded Chinese stocks, known as A shares, and not those in Hong Kong, where many major Chinese companies are traded or have a dual listing.

Other company mentions of the trade tensions include:

China Southern Airlines: In the second half of 2018, U.S.-China trade tensions may increase downward pressure on China's economy, the company said. At the same time, it added, China's airline industry also faces high oil prices and fluctuations in the yuan, causing near-term challenges to operating profits.

Jiangsu Sunshine: China's share of textile imports into the European Union, U.S. and Japan has decreased this year, the company said. The yuan's declines, increasing U.S.-China trade tensions and rising textile industries in Vietnam and other southeast Asian countries have increased uncertainty around the development of China's textile industry, according to the firm.

Shanghai Pudong Development Bank: The U.S.-China trade tensions have increased uncertainty around China's economic growth, the bank said.

China Merchants Bank: Regarding the second half of the year, the U.S.-China trade war may increase uncertainty around the domestic economy, the Shenzhen-based bank said. As a result, it added, growth will likely slow compared with the first half of the year, putting pressure on the steady growth of credit assets and the pricing of risk assets.

Guangdong Haid  In the first half of the year, the company said, the feed industry was negatively impacted by consumption trends, low prices in the breeding market, promotion of environmental protection policies and U.S.-China trade tensions that caused raw material soybean meal prices to fluctuate. Not only did small and medium-sized enterprises suffer and exit the market, it added, but some large companies also faced increased difficulties of weak growth and even declines in sales and profits.
Motorcyclists pass vendors selling food in a market at night in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on Wednesday, June 20, 2018.

Vietnam could potentially benefit from the escalating China-U.S. trade war even as Washington continues to threaten Beijing with more tariffs, according to one investor.

The Southeast Asian nation could be a "winner" if a lot of foreign direct investment shifts into Vietnam due to rising cost pressures from the U.S.-China tariffs, Bill Stoops, the chief investment officer of Dragon Capital, told CNBC on Tuesday.

"Even China might start to shift a lot more of its production to Vietnam," Stoops said, so long as the move is not "zapped" by U.S. President Donald Trump.

"This is the sort of trend we could see," he added.

Vietnam is unlikely to be a target in the trade war, despite having a $40 billion trade surplus with the U.S., Stoops said. For Washington, it is "all about bashing China" for geostrategic and commercial reasons, he added.

Stoops said Vietnam's exports to America were "too low-end for the U.S. to even care."
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Some called them "the committee to save the world," brought together to try to resolve the financial crisis that hit its apex on Sept. 15, 2009 with the implosion of Lehman Brothers.

At the time, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson and New York Fed President Timothy Geithner were called on to find a way to save a flailing system that was devoid of liquidity and teetering on insolvency. The three joined to devise a litany of programs that would help restore investor faith and ultimately re-engage an economy that was in its worst throes since the Great Depression.

The three agreed to an interview Wednesday with CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin, who wrote "Too Big to Fail," the seminal book chronicling the Wall Street panic that ultimately was made into an HBO movie. The session was scheduled for the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. to begin at 10 am ET.

Read more:

Warren Buffett on why the next financial crisis is unavoidable: Greed

Remembering 2008, financial advisors share some lessons learned and look ahead

She lost $1 million. He can't find a similar job. Here's where Lehman Brothers employees are today.
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Guwahati : The employees of 108 and 102 ambulance services on Tuesday have staged a half nude protest in Guwahati to fulfil their various demands.





The protesters demanded to clear their pending payments, increments and other benefits by their employer GVK-EMRI.





The protesters shouted slogans against their employer and Assam state government.





Nearly 3000 employees of 108 and 102 ambulance services are on strike since September 5 to clear their pending payments, increments and reduction of duty hours from 12 to eight hours





The protesters also demanded to secure their jobs and urged the state government and the employer to fulfil their demands.





Meanwhile, the 108 and 102 ambulance services have been affected in the state due to the ongoing protests.




The Missourians Opinion section is a public forum for the discussion of ideas. The views presented in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Missourian or the University of Missouri. If you would like to contribute to the Opinion page with a response or an original topic of your own, visit our submission form
Consider the following Gedankenexperiment.

You turn on your Chromebook (or phone or iPad), things whirr and glurg for a few minutes, and the computer throws up this message:

Error. Failure to install SSU before LCU. Turn your computer off and back on again.

Enlightening, eh?

Thats what were seeing this week in Windows land. Except Windows isnt polite enough to throw a message up. It just throws up.

To understand the problem, and its documentation, you need to unravel this Microsoftspeak:

SSU = a Servicing Stack Update = an update to the part of Windows that installs updates. As Microsoft says:

The "servicing stack" is the code that installs other operating system updates. Additionally, it contains the "component-based servicing stack" (CBS), which is a key underlying component for several elements of Windows deployment, such as DISM, SFC, changing Windows features or roles, and repairing components. The CBS is a small component that typically does not have updates released every month.

Servicing Stack Updates arrive from time to time. We got one for Win10 version 1803, KB 4456655, on Patch Tuesday. The last Win7 Servicing Stack Update that I know about appeared in September 2016  two years ago. Its identified as KB 3177467.

Whats the latest Servicing Stack Update for your version of Windows? I dunno. If Microsoft has a list of the latest, Ive never seen it.

LCU = Latest Cumulative Update. No, I dont know why the documentation insists on using yet another three-letter acronym for something thats easily spelled out. I guess they needed something to keep SSU, CBS, DISM and SFC company.

What does this have to do with you? Ah, glad you asked.

The general rule of thumb is that you should install the latest SSU before you try to install the LCU, er, the latest Cumulative Update (or, in the case of Win7 and 8.1, the latest Monthly Rollup). You might think that the Windows installer would be smart enough to update itself prior to installing a new cumulative update and, well, youd be wrong.

It now appears as if this SSU-before-LCU rule is responsible for two of the confounding problems with updates this month.

Windows 7 Monthly Rollup, KB 4457144, fails with error 0x8000FFFF

Ive seen reports from all over the world that people cant install yesterdays Win7 Monthly Rollup because they keep hitting an error 0X8000FFFF.

An anonymous poster on AskWoody says:

Feedback from Microsoft premier support: install Servicing Stack Update KB3177467 (September 2016), restart computer, install KB4457144. KB3177467 ist pre-requisite for KB4457144

And it appears as if that solves the problem. Yes, you have to manually install an obscure two-year-old Servicing Stack Update before you can get this months Win7 Monthly Rollup to install. (Nope, you dont need to reboot after installing KB 3177467.)

Error 0X8000FFFF sure sounds more user-friendly than manually install KB 3177467, doesnt it?

Win10 1803 Cumulative Update KB 4457128 installs twice, or not at all

Ive also seen reports from all over the world about an odd behavior with this months Win10 1803 Cumulative Update. Yep, thats the latest, newest and bestest version of Windows ever.

Gunter Born describes the sequence many people see:

Cumulative update (CU) KB4457128 requires the previous installation of the Servicing Stack Update (SSU) KB4456655 for Windows 10 Version 1803. This update is not part of KB4457128 this time. If the Servicing Stack Update (SSU) KB4456655 is missing, last cumulative update (LCU) KB4457128 cant be installed. So KB4457128 is scheduled for installing, but fails  without an error, and Servicing Stack Update (SSU) KB4456655 is installed first. The KB4457128 is installing again  so users can see two installs in Update History or Reliability Monitor.

SSU before LCU except after C or when it sounds like a  oh, never mind.

WaaTOR

Why should you have to hassle with this? I dunno. Why cant Windows update itself as smoothly as ChromeOS? Or macOS or iOS or Android? I dunno. Why do you have to be aware of the Windows installers burps  why doesnt Windows just fix itself and get on with the business at hand? It must be a hard computer science problem.

I call it WaaTOR = Windows as a Tired Old Relic. Were seeing a lot of that lately.

Thx @Pradeep_Dixit, @PKCano

Join us for a candlelight vigil on the AskWoody Lounge.
11 arrested and 11,400 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes seized from two operations

Singapore Customs arrested seven Singaporean men and seized a total of 11,400 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes from two operations conducted on September 4 and 6, 2018.

On the noon of September 6, customs officers conducted an operation in an industrial estate in Depot Lane. They arrested three Singaporean men, aged between 25 and 55, who had transferred duty-unpaid cigarettes from a truck to a van.

A fourth Singaporean man, aged 23, had drove another van loaded with duty-unpaid cigarettes from Depot Lane to an open carpark in Seah Im Road before fleeing the scene. He was subsequently arrested at the Woodlands Checkpoint on the same day, the Singapore Customs said in a press statement.

Duty-unpaid cigarettes seized during the operation on September 6. Photo courtesy: Singapore Customs

In this operation, 7,500 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes were seized. The three Singapore-registered vehicles  a truck and two vans  used to transport the duty-unpaid cigarettes were also confiscated.

In a separate operation in the same week, Singapore Customs officers raided a warehouse in a commercial building in Tuas View Place on the evening of September 4.

Previously, three Singaporean men, aged between 19 and 42, were spotted moving green gunny sacks into the warehouse. The sacks were suspected to contain duty-unpaid cigarettes.

Duty-unpaid cigarettes seized during the operation on September 8. Photo courtesy: Singapore Customs

The officers seized a total of 3,900 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes and a Singapore-registered truck, from which the duty-unpaid cigarettes were being unloaded earlier.

The duty and Goods and Services Tax (GST) evaded in both operations amounted to about $988,930 and $72,410 respectively.
Ben Roback is Head of Trade and International Policy at Cicero Group and a member of the US Embassys Young Leaders UK programme.

President Trump has promised to bring his deal-making acumen to the Middle East peace process, in an attempt to break the deadlock that has consumed presidents and prime ministers before him. At present there is no shortage of ambition but no sign of material progress. In pinning this administration so close to the government of Benjamin Netanyahu, the president has risked isolating the key Arab nations whose support would be critical for any progress to be made in the region. Whilst Trump has promised the deal of the century, there appears to be more cause for concern than celebration.

The Bibi-Trump relationship

Presidents Trump affection for the worlds strongmen is well known by now. He has waxed lyrical about Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Kim Jong-Un and Rodrigo Duterte while offending Angela Merkel, Emanuel Macron and Theresa May to the point of isolation. Increasingly appearing to fall into the first bracket, Benjamin Netanyahu has carved out a unique bond with President Trump and those at the top of the administration in charge of the Middle East. Namely Jared Kushner, the presidents son in law and Jason Greenblatt, the former chief legal office to the Trump Organisation and now advisor to the president on Israel. After months of shuttle diplomacy between Washington, Jerusalem, Cairo, Riyadh and a shortlist of other Middle East capitals, the optics point to a flourishing relationship between the US and Israel that far exceeds the bilateral rapport with Arab nations.

That hasnt always been the case. Arab nations were buoyed by early positive signs from Trump. In May 2017, the president posed for orb-grabbing photos with President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi of Egypt and King Salman of Saudi Arabia in Riyadh. That was the apex in US-Arab relations within this administration. Since then the balance has wildly swung.

Trump visited Israel in May 2017 and received a heros welcome as he announced his intention to move the US embassy to Jerusalem and recognise the city as Israels national capital. In March 2018, Netanyahu made the return trip and visited Washington. Afterwards, the Washington Post wrote: No world leader has forged a closer or more public camaraderie with President Trump than Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Trump did not make the journey to Jerusalem for the ribbon cutting at the new US embassy in May, but extensions of his presence were everywhere. In the front row sat Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner and a handful of other key consiglieres. The roads were dressed with vast TRUMP MAKE ISRAEL GREAT banners, whilst others declared TRUMP IS A FRIEND OF ZION. In Gaza, thousands of angry Palestinians charged into protests that ended in the bloodiest day in the territory since the 2014 war.

The contrast could not be clearer. Having spent months courting one another, the US-Israel relationship is enjoying a period of significant strength and renewal while other leaders in the region struggle for significance and favour. It is hard to envisage how the US will re-insert itself as a moral mediator between Israel and the Palestinians under such circumstances. None of it feels very art of the deal.

So what of the promised US plan for the Middle East?

Expectations in Washington and Jerusalem are sky high, but elsewhere cold water is already being poured over a plan that has not yet seen the light of day. Saad El Gammal, head of the Egyptian parliaments Arab Affairs Committee, has said most of the Arab world  including Egypt and Saudi Arabia  have rejected the U.S.-proposed Deal of the Century.

Simultaneously, the Palestinians find themselves increasingly locked out of talks. The US State Department this week announced it will close the Palestine Liberation Organisations (PLO) mission in Washington, DC. In a statement, the foreign-policy-making arm of the US Government said PLO leaders had failed to engage with US efforts to bring about peace with Israel and attempted to prompt an investigation of Israel by the International Criminal Court. Responding, Saeb Erekat, the PLO Secretary-General, described it as a dangerous escalation.

It follows a reduction in State Department funding to the Palestinians, in the shape of $25 million allocated for the care of Palestinians at six hospitals in East Jerusalem. A fortnight before that, the US said it was cutting hundreds of millions of dollars of funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency that provides assistance to five million Palestinian refugees across the Middle East.

All signs point to a proposed deal that will be embraced in Jerusalem but laughed out of the room in the capitals of surrounding nations. The basis of the plan is said to centre around the creation of a new economic development program for Gaza, with similar incentives applying to the West Bank. In exchange for increased economic prospects, the Palestinians will need to concede control over Jerusalem with large settlement zones for Israelis. A deal that handles economic prosperity and national sovereignty as transactional commodities will be dead on arrival.

Its hard to envisage another Camp David moment

When the American vision for the Middle East peace process is finally published, the eyes of the world will be on its chief architects. The pressure on Messrs Kushner and Greenblatt could not be higher, in a part of the world beset by conflict and territorial wrangling for centuries. But having delivered on his campaign promise to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital and move the US embassy accordingly, President Trump might consider his work on the Middle East complete. At the same time, he might find that the encircling of Special Counsel Robert Mueller and a Democratic resurgence at the midterm elections in November more pressing issues to devote precious time to.
Nick Boles is a former Planning Minister and Education Minister, and is MP for Grantham and Stamford.

There are only 28 weeks left before we leave the European Union (EU). In all of my conversations with MPs since I published my plan for a Better Brexit, this fact has been uppermost in everyones mind. As my colleagues contemplate the prospect of a parliamentary vote on whatever deal the Prime Minister agrees with the EU, they recognise that there is very little time left.

The Government knows this too and are using it to try and persuade MPs who have serious reservations about the Chequers Agreement or the Irish backstop to hold their noses and vote for the Withdrawal Agreement when the time comes. The steady drumbeat of announcements about the consequences of crashing out of the EU without a deal is designed to frighten MPs about the consequences of voting down the Prime Ministers plan. They are right to be worried. We are woefully unprepared for no deal and the voters will never forgive us for inflicting major disruption on the country, and serious harm to British businesses, if we allow it to happen. After all, we have had over two years to prepare for this day and there really is no excuse for not being ready for it.

So the questions that every Conservative MP needs to ask themselves are these. If the Prime Ministers plan does not get through the Commons, what then? If MPs also cant stomach a No Deal Brexit, whats the alternative? Have you got a fallback plan? Can it get through the Commons?

In looking for a Plan B, we do not have the luxury of holding out for perfection. Now is not the time to be designing a brand new bespoke relationship. We need a plan that works, that is legally doable, and that fulfils a few basic conditions. Does it take us out of the EU on time at the end of March next year? Does it give British businesses the confidence to invest and grow? Does it put us in a strong position to negotiate an advantageous deal with our European friends?

Like most Conservatives, I believe that, in the long term, Britain should be pursuing a Canada-style free trade agreement rather than the half-in half-out pushmi-pullyu envisioned by the Chequers Agreement. David Davis has done us all a heroic service in preparing for such an agreement and I have complete confidence that, in time, such a deal can be done. But nobody, not even the most optimistic Brexiteer, believes that we can finalise and implement such an agreement in a matter of months. One way or another, we need an interim phase, a halfway house, a secure platform from which to negotiate without the pressure of an artificial deadline, or a gun against our heads.

The Prime Minister proposes a 21-month Implementation Period, in which we effectively become a non-voting member of the EU  paying all the same charges, abiding by all the rules, but without a say in any of it. In her interim, we will still be subject to the European Court of Justice, still be bound by freedom of movement, still be subject to the Common Agricultural Policy and the Common Fisheries Policy. Run by Europe, but not in Europe, one might say.

The halfway house that I propose involves a much bigger immediate step out of the EU. By asserting our right to stay in the European Economic Area, applying to join the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) as an associate member and negotiating an interim customs union like Jerseys, we can retain all of the benefits of single market and customs union membership while escaping the clutches of the Common Agricultural Policy, the Common Fisheries Policy and the European Court of Justice (replacing the latter with the much less intrusive EFTA Court.) It would even give us some wiggle room on freedom of movement.

Some have questioned whether my plan for an interim relationship like Norways would be acceptable to the EU or to the other EFTA states (Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland.) But Michel Barnier has consistently made clear that the Norway relationship is one of the models that the EU would be happy to offer. We would of course require the EUs consent for our transition into the EFTA pillar of the EEA, but we have already said that we are willing in principle to pay up to 39 billion for a reasonable agreement with the EU ,so I feel confident that we can find a way to make it worth their while. Norways Prime Minister has said that they would welcome an application from the UK, and recent conversations have confirmed that this is still the governments position. It has always been understood that membership of the EEA and EFTA can be used as a transitional step for countries on their way in to the EU. We would simply be proposing to travel in the opposite direction. We should approach Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein with sensitivity, humility and respect. But there is every reason to be confident that we can reach a mutually advantageous agreement with these ancient allies, neighbours and friends.

Leavers biggest concern about leaving the EU via the EEA is that we might never leave, that the EU wouldnt have any incentive to offer us a decent free trade deal, and that Parliament would lose interest in Brexit and want to move on. This betrays a surprising lack of confidence on their part. If the Prime Ministers plan fails to win a majority in Parliament, her government will be on the ropes. In exchange for supporting an application to join EFTA and stay in the EEA, Leaver MPs could quite reasonably demand a short piece of legislation committing the government to leave the EEA in three years time. They could also insist that the government embarks on a major investment programme to ensure that by 2022 our ports, and our border systems, are ready to leave the EEA without a free trade agreement and move to trade on World Trade Organisation (WTO) terms.

Theres a hard truth in politics. Ambition, passion and belief arent enough. If you want to get anywhere, youve got to have a plan. Ive got one. It works, and will get us where we want to go. Whats yours?
Rebecca Lowe is Director of FREERa new initiative promoting economic and social liberalism, which is based at the IEA, where she is a Research Fellow. She is also an Assistant Editor of ConservativeHome.

In May, I wrote about the claim that the Conservative Party needs to focus on attracting more women representatives, members, and voters. This fixation on fixing things annoys me. Worst is the implication of a women-focused approach, premised on the idea that women and men are essentially different, rather than recognising that gender is just one of many things that describe us, as individuals. Sure, some of those things sometimes make some of our kinds of behaviour predictable in some ways. But thats light-years away from commissioning a pink bus, or switching references about soldiers for ones about sewing.

That heavy-handed approach is typically seen as the Labour Partys (pink) bag. Yes, the Conservatives have been edging that way with new identitarian-style stances, alongside an ever-increasing interventionism. But, since 1993when Labour introduced themthe biggest divider has always been all women shortlists (AWS). The main evidence, therefore, that suggests its no longer just the critics of the Conservatives who believe in the partys so-called women problem, but the people on top of its internal hierarchy, too, is the new 50:50 candidates target.

Ive written so many times about the problems inherent in these approaches that I cant justify doing it again, now. So, rather than focusing on why this kind of policy is unjust and leads to unintended negative consequences, lets assess the extent to which the panicking that (presumably) led to its introduction is warranted.

First, lets consider the numbers. 209 of the current 650 MPs are womenthis, at 32 per cent, is a record high. 32 per cent of that 32 percent are Conservatives, constituting 21 per cent of the partys MPs. See below for comparisons with Labour et al, but remember the parties size differences, and also issues related to length of service and the safety of seats. (See here for details about how, in 2017, Labour had a greater proportion of women running in safer seats, but that the Conservatives had 10 per cent more than Labour of its female candidates in the most winnable seats. And this, which concludes that, generally, the longer an MP has been in Parliament, the more likely they are to be male.)

Percentage of MPs who are women, by party, UK

Women make up 26 per cent of the House of Lords membership. 25 per cent of Conservative peers are women, as opposed to 31 per cent of Labour, and 35 per cent of LibDems. Meanwhile, five of the current 23 cabinet members are women, making 22 per cent. When you include all the parliamentarians who attend cabinet, that proportion increases to 31 per cent. The shadow cabinet, unsurprisingly, has a 50:50 gender split.

So, why do fewer women hold high political office than men? And why is this particularly the case regarding Conservative representatives? To what extent might the latter of these questions be related to a general gender division regarding party preferences? As when I wrote about this last, views between the genders remain very similar to each other in terms of headline voting intention. The most recent YouGov poll shows slightly more women than men favouring the Conservatives (40:38) and Labour (36:35), with the genders very equally balanced, and the Conservatives winning overall. Survation shows men as slightly keener than women about the Conservatives (39:37), and a sizeable gap between the genders among those favouring Labour (33:43, although this is more balanced if you include undecided voters).

As in May, YouGov shows both genders overall policy priorities to be similar. When asked to choose up to three issues as the most important facing the country at this time, both put Britain leaving the EU topboth finding this even more important than last time; the gap has tightened (68:63, as opposed to 62:52). In May, health was the second priority for both; it remains so for women, but men now put the economy in second place. Women also see the economy as more important than before: it was in fifth place closely following immigration, housing, and crime; now, only immigration is more important. Male and female preferences regarding the other policy areas remain very similar.

By now, youre probably shouting at the screen about other variables. Again, age disparities look much greater than gender, particularly in terms of the priorities of 18-24 year olds. Unsurprisingly, its still the case that the younger you are, the better you believe Labour to be at dealing with political problems. Theres no time to consider other factors such as education, family background, or even specific political beliefs, to understand the stories beneath this data better. Since it seems unlikely, however, that general gendered views about the parties explain Labours better ratiosagain suggesting the most significant divider to be AWSlets compare the parliamentary statistics with other top professions.

Kate Andrews has raised awareness about the inherent failures of the new pay gap reporting measures, as well as the assumption that any disparity in pay between the genders is necessarily a result of discrimination. The fact that pay is not unequally unfair, however, does not, of course, mean that that an equal number of women and men hold positions of seniority. A recent Catalyst study reported that, in 2017, women constituted 28 per cent of FTSE 100 board members, and that women in senior leadership roles was at 22 per cent in 2018. On those figures, the Conservative Party (with women comprising 21 per cent of its MPs, 25 per cent of peers, and 31 per cent of ministers attending cabinet) is not so unusual.

A key reason for gender disparities in terms of long-term pay is the way in which career interruption affects lifetime pay, and longer tenures association with higher pay increases. This has obvious parallels with seniority of positions. The elephant in the room here is very much a baby elephant. So, rather than assuming endemic institutional sexism, or essential differences of attitude between men and women, lets consider the extent to which parenthood might affect parliamentary gender balance. Again, lets assume AWS to be the main driver of difference between the parties, although employment practices would also, ideally, be considered.

Only 2 per cent of MPs elected in 2017 were under the age of 30. The average age of MPs elected in 2017 was 50, which is also the average age of current MPs. Meanwhile, the latest ONS bulletin shows that, in 2016, the average age of mothers was 30, and fathers was 33. On average, therefore, almost all MPs entering and serving in parliament are above the average age of parenthood. Being a parent, or wanting to become one, seems crucial here.

A 2014 Political Quarterly article entitled Parents in Parliament: Wheres Mum? reported that 45 per cent of women MPs are childless, as opposed to 20 per cent of all women born in 1966 (used as a comparator), and 28 per cent of male MPs. Males MPs also have more children on average, and male MPs children tend to be of a younger age when their parent is first elected.

Being an MP typically involves peculiarly long hours, long-distance travel, and time away from ones family. Although theres been a small parliamentary nursery since 2009, suggestions that women should be allowed to breastfeed in the chamber have caused an astonishing amount of controversy. Later this week, there will be a parliamentary debate on parental proxy voting, but this seems ridiculously overdue.

Parliament, therefore, seems an extreme exemplar of the parenthood-related issues that are replicated throughout the country. In a world in which women still tend to be the primary caregivers of children, and men dont even take equal amounts of parental leave, big economic questions remain, not least regarding the effects of all this on workforce productivity. Big societal questions also remain. Many women want to stay at home for the first part of their childs life, but we shouldnt assume that to be the case. (The average age of MPs should again be taken into account when considering their views about parenthood.) The physical burdens of pregnancy and motherhood should not be used as a reason to discriminate unfairly against women; other things being equal, mothers and fathers should be treated equally at work. Moreover, although people choose to have children, and must bear primary responsibility for them, it is also in our combined societal and economic interests for people to continue to choose to become parents.

Rather than wasting time with unjust and counterproductive forays into positive discrimination, therefore, the Conservatives (and other parties) should lead the way in considering how various forms of increased flexibility at work might not only move them closer to the gender parity they desire, but also inspire the country towards greater freedom, wellbeing, and prosperity, in general.
It is very hard indeed to find a Conservative MP who can simultaneously look one in the eye and say that Theresa May should lead the Party into the next election. Most agree with the plurality view expressed over the last year by our Members Panel: that she should quit, but not now. Many Tory MPs believe that there should be a changing of the guard once Brexit takes place at the end of March next year.

Until now, that has also been the view of most of the members of the European Research Group. The case put to them by Jacob Rees-Mogg and other leading members has persuaded: namely, that Brexiteers must focus on Brexit itself, and on helping to deliver the legislation that sets the legal framework without which it would be inoperable.

A confidence ballot would be a distraction from this mission, to put it mildly. At a crucial juncture in the most important Government negotiation in modern times, the Tories would whistle up the self-indulgent carnival of a challenge. If successful, it would remove the woman heading the British side of the talks, stall them at a moment when the Government needs more time rather than less, and plunge the ruling party into the bloody business of a leadership election. If unsuccessful, it could reinforce Theresa Mays internal standing, thus empowering her to dilute a Chequers plan that already dilutes her previous position. Either way, Rees-Moggs logic is sound.

Why is it, then, that  as Robert Peston reported yesterday  there was open discussion at yesterday evenings ERG meeting of mounting a leadership challenge sooner rather than later. The Daily Telegraph claims that 35 letters have now been submitted to [Graham Brady], just 13 short of the number of letters that would automatically trigger a vote under Party rules. We advise caution. Only one person can know how many letters requesting a ballot the Chairman of the 1922 Committee has received  namely, Sir Graham himself.

But the fact of the debate at yesterdays meeting is real enough. ConservativeHome is told that some MPs have put in post-dated letters of no confidence and that, in at least one case, such a letter has been submitted with the request that it only be opened in the event of Sir Graham receiving 47 others  making it the one that tips the balance and triggers a ballot. What, then, has changed in the week or so since Conservative MPs returned from their summer holidays?

There are three main factors. First, it appears that the Prime Minister isnt going to drop the Chequers scheme, at least before Party Conference, and it now seems possible that the EU will accept it as the basis for a deal  though the Commission and the EU27 will doubtless come back with demands over customs, services and immigration. So some pro-Brexit MPs now argue that the only way of stopping Chequers is to depose May.

Second, Downing Streets attempts to sell the scheme are meeting with mixed success. Brexiteering MPs are being briefed, at dinners or elsewhere, by Gavin Barwell and Robbie Gibb. But with all due respect to both gentlemen, most Tory MPs will want to have the case for Chequers put to them by a fellow MP and a senior pro-Brexit Minister: Dominic Raab, say; or Liam Fox and, above all, by the Prime Minister herself. Where is she, our columnist Henry Newman, the Director of Open Europe, asked yesterday? Where indeed?

Finally, the Brexit negotiation, Mays future and Boris Johnsons ambitions are now all tangled up. For all his impulsive private life, the latter is a calculating public operator: he withdrew his candidacy, remember, from the only Tory leadership election in which he has been a runner. But his florid Telegraph columns, and stealing of the show yesterday at the launch of an ERG-backed paper, suggest that he knows that, as far as a Johnson premiership is concerned, it may be now or never. That is certainly the take of some of his backers.

But if there is a mood among some Brexiteer MPs flows one way  i.e: towards a challenge, perhaps soon after Party Conference  there is also one among others that moves in the opposite direction. The 80 or so MPs on the ERGs mailing list are not a uniform band. Not all of them are admirers of Johnson, or are resolved to oppose Chequers  thats to say, to vote down an EU withdrawal settlement and whatever vague political declaration accompanies it. Furthermore, not all pro-Brexit Conservative MPs are ERG members in any event. We counted 129 Tory MPs as Leave supporters at the referendum. That means that at least 50 who backed Brexit arent signed up to the ERG.

On the one hand, order near the top of Government is fragile. Even the Cabinet Ministers who keep faith with Chequers do so on their own terms. (Jeremy Hunts defence of the plan last weekend could be read as a warning against concessions on freedom of movement.) Above all, the Prime Minister has failed to explain why she ditched the mutual recognition approach set at Mansion House.

But on the other, discipline and coherence among Brexiteers themselves, so marked during the passage of the withdrawal legislation, shows signs of strain. There is a coherent Canada Plus Plus Plus alternative to Chequers, set out in the Alternative White Paper drawn up by David Davis as Brexit Secretary, and published on this site.

And today, Davis, Owen Paterson, Theresa Villiers and David Trimble will launch an ERG paper on how the Government should handle the UK-Ireland border, which is welcome. None the less, some pro-Brexit MPs have been less disciplined than they might be. Yesterdays launch of an Economists for Brexit paper should have been left to the platform speakers, rather than become a bit of a free-for-all.

The ERG leadership put a prompt stop to trouble-inviting proposals from Brexiteer MPs for post-No Deal star wars systems and Falklands expeditionary forces. We mean no offence to Conservative MPs when we say that not all of them are front-rank operators outside their constituencies and the Commons  thats to say, at crafting and executing a political strategy.

But the main problem for pro-Brexit MPs is neither the lack of an alternative to Chequers (there is one) nor the distintegration of discipline. It is, rather, that many are wrestling with the same question that we keep putting. If the Commons votes down a deal based on Chequers, could the consequence be an unmanageable No Deal, or even no Brexit at all?

Whatever ones answer, the case against a leadership challenge is no less strong this September than it was in July. One can change the Prime Minister; but one cant change the Commons, and the obstacles that a new Tory leader would face  at least, not without an election. And after the experience of June last year, there is no appetite for risking marginal seats against a Marxist opposition.

Expect a backlash today against talk of a leadership putsch. It usually comes to nothing: after all, there has only been one confidence vote in a Tory leader in over 15 years. But keep your eye on events. Sometimes they create their own momentum  as in the film, when you suddenly realise that the Sundance Kid, who cant swim, is going to hurl himself off the cliff and into the waters after all.
A new Netflix documentary investigating the medical device industry ends on a particularly devastating note for Ana Fuentes, a single mother in California who received a permanent birth control implant when she was still married.

The film shows her struggling to make ends meet and searching for cheap hotels with her daughters after she loses the apartment. She cant hold a job because she is constantly in the emergency room, in so much pain that she can barely walk to the entrance. In her final scene, she is visiting her daughters in a strangers home; the children eventually were placed in foster care.

Director Kirby Dick said that it was clear through his reporting that Fuentes and her daughters were extremely close, even after they could no longer live together, and he wanted to be sure that message was conveyed in the film.

In an interview with ConsumerAffairs, Fuentes provided more details about the domino-effect that the botched procedure had on her family.

Though Fuentes is pleased with how her story is validated and portrayed in the film -- she says she watched it three or four times after it aired -- her sense of betrayal from the medical community is still raw.

It was really hard for me to accept that he didn't care about me, she says of her doctor. Because he took care of me with my last pregnancy and my last baby. I trusted him so much when he told me about Essure."

Before the procedure

When Fuentes agreed to be implanted with Essure back in 2011, she was living in an apartment with her husband and their four daughters in southern California. She took care of the girls while he worked. She received health coverage through Medi-Cal, the Medicaid program offered in California.

Fuentes recently had a baby and did not want more children. She asked about getting her tubes tied, the more common and older sterilization procedure. Her doctor told her it wasnt a good idea because she had a family history of ovarian cancer.

He said a permanent medical implant called Essure was the better option.

Like thousands of other patients who have filed complaints to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Fuentes says she suffered sharp pains and heavy bleeding immediately after the procedure. The symptoms persisted.

She went back to the same doctor who implanted her. He kept telling me it was in my head, Fuentes remembers.

She would learn much later that her doctor had admitted to accepting thousands of dollars from Bayer via government disclosure websites. The financial incentives that device companies provide doctors are well-documented in the film and in medical research, but it wasnt the only factor hindering her care.

As Fuentes recounts in the film, her doctor also blamed the fact that she was a Latina woman for the bleeding, claiming that they simply have heavier periods than other woman.

In an interview, Fuentes says she also remembers her doctor telling her that it had to do with "you guys [having] so many kids, referring to Latina women. Fuentes recollection comes at a time when researchers are increasingly calling attention to racism and sexism in medicine.

Struggling through it

Sometimes she felt a jolt travel through her body when she plugged electronics into the wall socket. It was a strange, unsettling sensation. Like everything else that was happening to her, she didnt have an explanation.

She never told her husband why she could no longer be intimate with him. They simply stopped talking about it.

He just looked at me and he would walk away, Fuentes recalls. The next year, he left the family without saying goodbye. Fuentes learned from her landlord that he didnt pay that month's rent before fleeing. The landlord gave the family 16 days to pack their bags.

Trying to work

Fuentes looked for work when her older daughters were in school and slept with them at a homeless shelter or in their car in the evenings. She found a daycare center for her youngest child, still a toddler at the time, and worked three different jobs when she could. She took 900 milligrams of ibuprofen each day, but on some days the symptoms were still too much to handle.

One afternoon, while crossing the street with her toddler, the pain suddenly flared up again. She could feel blood soaking through her pants. She could barely make it to the other side of the street.

People were just honking, calling me crazy lady, what are you doing? But I couldn't move. I couldn't walk. The pain was so strong, Fuentes says, crying at the memory.

I just kept walking slowly. Nobody got out of the car to help out or anything.

On another day, while carrying a tray of food during her shift at a restaurant, she suddenly passed out. She asked coworkers not to call anyone and drove herself to the hospital. The restaurant cut her hours.

In 2013, Fuentes found the E-sisters, the activists who have convinced regulators to scrutinize Essure and who share their stories on a popular Facebook page called Essure Problems. It was through the women that Fuentes learned how common her symptoms were.

She consulted with new doctors thanks to the Medi-Cal coverage and learned that tubal ligation surgery isnt actually dangerous for women with a family history of ovarian cancer, as her implanting doctor had claimed.

"I already felt betrayed, and then hearing all these options from other doctors, You could have done this," she says, trailing off.

Like other women in the group, Fuentes learned that removing Essure is difficult and she that she would need a hysterectomy, followed by weeks of recovery in which she would not be able to work. Still, she relented and agreed to undergo the procedure in 2014.

She was recovering in the hospital when a social worker showed up and told her to find a home for the children. "I think the hospital reported me, because they asked me where I live, and I gave them my brother's address, Fuentes says.

The social worker warned her to "find a solution or we'll jump in. Because you need to take care of your health.

Through her church, Fuentes found a nonprofit that allowed her to keep her children with other Christian families. As the film shows, the families often invited her to visit the girls, even though they were not required to do so.

All of the families have been a blessing, Fuentes says.

Participating in the documentary was an easy decision. The E-Sisters told her that sharing her story would help other women.

Though the film ends with Fuentes leaving her children in foster care, Fuentes says their situation has become more stable since then. She is now reunited with her daughters thanks to a nonprofit program that assists with partial rent each month.

A GoFundMe page that Fuentes set up following the films release in late July, asking for $5,000 to cover living expenses, has since raised nearly five times that amount from people all over the world.

Still, medical expenses could quickly eat those donations away. Even after the hysterectomy, her symptoms remained.

Fuentes began losing her back teeth several years ago, and Medi-Cal insurance doesnt cover dental work beyond regular cleanings. On a new doctor's advice, she underwent another surgery in March, this time to have her ovaries removed. He told her to wait at least three months before trying to work again.

One day you feel like superwoman and the next day you don't want to get out of bed, Fuentes says of the symptoms she and other women still live with. She is only 36-years-old.

Shortly before the film aired, Bayer took Essure off the market in the United States, the one country where it was still for sale. But Bayer maintains that the implant is safe. As the documentary shows, Essure is only part of the problem. The medical device industry generally faces a low barrier to prove that its products are safe before they can be used on patients.

Conceptus, the company that originally developed Essure, was not required to conduct long-term studies on the device. Little is known about what will happen to women like Fuentes when they reach middle-age and beyond. Fuentes says that her legs are covered in small red dots that didnt exist before the procedure. She is also starting to lose her hair.

Because Essure is made from nickel, other women who are experiencing similar symptoms suspect that they have a metal allergy. Numerous women say that they were never tested for metal allergies before receiving the device.

I just wish they could have done more studies on this, Fuentes adds.
The push for smart manufacturing and increased automation is taking on many different forms at IMTS 2018 at McCormick Place in Chicago. From vehicles to machines to robotsand sometimes a combination of thesethe products used on the plant floor are getting smarter. Some of the developments, such as a self-driving lift truck, offer major benefits for a manufacturing industry that is often changing and taking on new forms.

"The way manufacturers do business is constantly changing. Those who adapt have the competitive advantage. Those that dont risk falling behind or risk going out of business." said John Schlemmer, chief operating officer (COO), JAAS Systems Ltd. in his presentation "Trends in Manufacturing  2018."

Being smart, though, isnt enough for companies looking to improve their bottom line and return on investment (ROI). Knowing the product, their setting on the plant floor, and knowing when and acting to make changes is just as important as creating the appearance of a "smart" manufacturing facility. While technology applications can challenge manufacturers, solutions and ideas displayed and presented at IMTS 2018 shows many possible answers to being smarter. The only wrong answer is not doing anything.

Self-driving lift truck for material handling operations

The Otto Omega self-driving lift truck from Otto Motors, which is making its debut at IMTS in the East hall, is an example of using technology to make manufacturing operations smarter and safer. It is designed to react to real-time changes on the factory floor and move around obstacles to prevent disruptions in operations.

"We wanted to take appropriate steps to ensure safety," said Matt Rendall, CEO of Otto Motors, at a press event on Tuesday. "We want to be sure that our machine can move pallets through busy factories without disruption."

The concept of a self-driving lift truck is not that different from what has been seen with self-driving vehicles.

"We want to get the vehicle to the right place at the right time every time," Rendall said.

The Omega is designed to achieve this with laser scanners and cameras that take accurate pictures of its surroundings several times a second. It also has safety scanners to prevent the robot from hitting people. While this might seem like a lot of hardware, Rendall demonstrated the vehicles ability to adapt while walking near the robot during the presentation.

Rendall said the goal is to provide products that result in minimal or even zero downtime and being able to adapt on the fly. In todays manufacturing world, it is not enough to be smart. It is vital to keep operations moving without planned or unplanned interruption interruptions.

Intelligent connected devices for reducing downtime

Jeremy King, a product marketing manager for Bimba, had similar thoughts during his presentation "The role of intelligent connected devices in reducing downtime and improving efficiency throughout a machines lifecycle." His approach, while focused more on machine parts such as vacuum cups and actuators, nonetheless is representative of manufacturings general efforts to improve efficiency and reduce downtime whenever possible.

"Its easy to focus on high-priced items when thinking about breakdowns," he said, referring to a robot and a tooling machine. "Its the small-time items like the actuator and the suction cup, however, are likely to wear down first. Thats where the unpredicted downtime comes from."

For King, who deals with vacuum pumps that move objects around, the cost might not seem so bad. It might be a slight delay because an object wasnt picked up or it might have dropped. These delays, though, while perhaps not significant by themselves, do add up. He referred to a situation with a client where a slowdown led to a conveyor breaking two weeks later because the gear in the conveyor overcompensated because of an initial slowdown.

King said using sensors to analyze performance and anticipate how certain items can help determine what needs to be fixed before it becomes a problem. This can, King said, not only reduce downtime, but it can help maximize the life of the components in use to save money long-term. Performing spot checks or doing continuous monitoring on the product can also help.

"Continuous monitoring is better than spot checks, but it is more expensive," King said. "It provides more real-time information to help detect problems sooner to reduce downtime."

The key, King said, is to turn the information into a diagnostic tool to make better decisions in real time. And it starts with checking on the status of a few cheap products that might seem interchangeable. While they may be in terms of initial cost, they play a large role in how companies use smart manufacturing through sensors and real-time information to prevent even larger breakdowns and challenges.

Keeping smart manufacturing costs down

Smart manufacturing has brought a lot of initiatives such as Industrie 4.0, Made in China 2025, and others. Tomer Goldenberg, director of marketing and strategy for Elmo Motion Control, said all these programs boil down to the same thing in his presentation "The paradox of Smart Manufacturing."

"Its all about making the manufacturing process better than it already is," he said. According to Goldenberg, there are four areas being improved by smart manufacturing:

Flexibility: These include rapid design and production changes as well as more customizable products.

These include rapid design and production changes as well as more customizable products. Efficiency: Higher throughput, shorter time to market (TTM), higher operation simplicity, and less downtime.

Higher throughput, shorter time to market (TTM), higher operation simplicity, and less downtime. Quality: This includes greater reliability and a higher yield.

This includes greater reliability and a higher yield. Technology: Cutting-edge development that are mandatory for production to produce advanced and better products.

There is no question about the overall benefits when improving these four areas, but therein, said Goldenberg, lies the paradox: Improving value costs money. So the question is: How do manufacturers improve efficiency and value while reducing costs?

The answer, said Goldenberg, is technology. Improved technology can help lower costs and improve the other areas benefiting from smart manufacturing.

Goldenberg highlighted a case study involving a manufacturer that needed to keep up with rising market demand by increasing their production. They made improvements in their machines and robotics, but now they needed to find ways to use technology to improve overall production. Goldenberg said this was accomplished in three ways:

Smarter controls that provided minimal TTM with simplified implementation.

that provided minimal TTM with simplified implementation. Efficient motion control that reduced wasted energy and movement.

that reduced wasted energy and movement. Functional safety, which shifted the responsibility to the servo drive to improve machine functionality while simplifying operations and safety.

Goldenberg emphasized the final point, saying, "Safety, more than ever, is an integral part of todays smart factory."

A smart manufacturing team, with the right knowledge and information at their core, will be working alongside smart machines and technologies in the new and better age of manufacturing.

IMTS 2018 breaks attendance, space records

IMTS 2018 has broken all previous records for largest show. Visitor registration reached 122,636 on Tuesday, eclipsing the old record by nearly 1,000 visitors. Other records for IMTS 2018 include 1,424,232 sq. ft. of exhibit space and 2,123 booths representing 2,563 exhibiting companies.

Previous historical highs were 1,415,848 sq. ft. of exhibit space at IMTS 2000; 2,407 exhibiting companies at IMTS 2016, 1,475 booths at IMTS 2014 and 121,764 visitors at IMTS 1998.

Chris Vavra, production editor, CFE Media, cvavra@cfemedia.com.




Guwahati : Indo-Mongolia Joint Exercise Nomadic Elephant-2018, a joint military exercise between Indian Army and Mongolian Army, commenced on Tuesday at Mongolian Armed Forces (MAF) Desert Region Training Centre, UMNUGOVI PROVINCE, Mongolia with a brief but impressive opening ceremony.





Exercise Nomadic Elephant is an annual, bilateral exercise designed to strengthen the partnership between Indian Army and Mongolian Armed Force.





The exercise will see them improve their tactical and technical skills in joint counter insurgency and counter terrorist operations in rural and urban scenario under UN Mandate.





The Indian contingent was represented by 17 PUNJAB while the Mongolian contingent was represented by Unit 084 of the Mongolian Armed Forces.





Maj Gen J Badambazar, Deputy Chief of Mongolian Armed Forces welcomed the Indian soldiers and in his inaugural remarks highlighted the common shared beliefs of freedom, equality and justice that are precious to both nations.





The opening ceremony started with briefing on Army organization and country presentation including display of weapons and equipment at sub-unit level.





During the exercise both sides will jointly train, plan and execute a series of well developed tactical drills for neutralization of likely threats that may be encountered in urban warfare scenario.





Experts from both sides will also hold detailed discussions to share their experience on varied topics for mutual benefits.





Exercise Nomadic Elephant-2018 will contribute immensely in developing mutual understanding and respect for each others military and also facilitate in tackling the world wide phenomenon of terrorism.




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It's no secret that today's beauty consumers are actively seeking out and purchasing beauty products with natural and organic claims. In fact, a recent consumer survey found that 73% of Gen Z consumers are purchasing natural/organic products.

According to a recent article from Hartman Group, only 1% of U.S. farmland is certified to grow organic crops, meaning the growing demand for natural/organic products has the potential to outgrow the capacity for which such products are produced. In 2016, however, Certified Transitional, an independent labeling system, was developed. The system checks for organic compliance during a three-year switch-over period, enabling farmers to sell their products under the Certified Transitional label.

The article states that consumers are becoming increasingly aware of the term "certified transitional farming"13% were familiar with the term in 2016, while 40% are aware in 2018.



While transitional farming indicates that a source is working towards organic certification, there is still some confusion among consumers regarding what exactly the system means and uncertainty regarding health and safety.



For the full article, please visit www.hartman-group.com.
Bhadrakumar adds, We are living in a fool's paradise to think that the region will side with India to undermine SAARC. The right thing to do is to allow the SAARC summit to be held in Islamabad.

Bhadrakumar

The top Russian media outfit notes, Nepal and Thailand are participating only as observers in the Milex-2018 anti-terror military drill which began in Pune, India on Monday. While Nepal pulled back from the drill following strong protests from political parties in the country, including that of ruling Communist Party of Nepal; Thailand cited prior commitments as the reason for not attending.

It added, The drill is an initiative proposed by India to strengthen the joint anti-terror mechanism of the seven-member Bimstec that includes India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Thailand. However, many see it as India's effort to further dilute the relevance of SAARC in order to isolate Pakistan.

The commentary says, The Nepali Army earlier confirmed that it would participate in the drill. However, only three days prior to the commencement of the drill, Prime Minister KP Oli conveyed to the army that Nepal's participation was being canceled. Oli's decision is understood to have been prompted by strong opposition from political parties including his own Nepal Communist Party (NCP), widely considered pro-China.

After pulling out of the drill, the Nepali government clarified that it had been proposed by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi but was not unanimously endorsed by all members during the Bimstec summit, the commentary says, quoting Nepal's Minister for Foreign Affairs Pradeep Gyawali as saying that "India was free to float the agenda, but we did not endorse it", insisting, Bimstec is purely a developmental forum.

The commentary goes to say, Analysts say that geostrategic imperatives, security dialogues, or counterterrorism cooperation initiatives are no substitute for Bimstec's primary mandate to increase regional connectivity.

It cites Constantino Xavier, fellow in Foreign Policy Studies at Brookings India, New Delhi, as saying, "(There are) many reasons behind Nepal's decision to pull out of the BIMSTEC military exercise, most of which (are) without merit. But this should also serve as a lesson for India about the limits of security cooperation, bound to weaken the organization."

Meanwhile, says the commentary, Former Nepali Prime Minister Push Kamal Dahal (Prachanda) has made his country's priorities more clear by asserting during his just-concluded Delhi trip that Nepal wants to revive SAARC and underlined to New Delhi that Bimstec cannot replace SAARC for regional prosperity.

It quotes Prachanda as saying, while delivering a keynote address at the Indian Council of World Affairs in Sapru House, New Delhi, "As the current Chair of another important regional process, namely SAARC, Nepal's desire is to revive it and see an environment conducive for the early convening of the stalled summit. We believe that SAARC and Bimstec do not substitute but complement each other."

Even as what is being termed as historic joint military anti-terrorism field training exercise begins at the foreign training node at Aundh in Pune on the backdrop of the recent 4th Bimstec (which stands for Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperations) ummit in Kathmandu, which insisted that fighting terrorism is one of its major goals, a top Russian media house has called it a failed initiative. Sputnik International, which is the successor of the powerful state-run Russian propaganda state-run news agency RIA Novosti and the Voice of Russia radio service, has said that the Bimstec exercise has suggested Indias anti-Pakistan diplomacy has gone awry, noting how Nepal and Thailand skipped the military drill.In an unsigned commentary , Sputnik International says, Nepals decision to skip the Bimstec military drill has posed a big question mark over the Indian governments diplomatic adventurism pushing for the revival of the seven-member Bimstec in place of SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) in a bid to marginalize Pakistan in the region.The commentary comes even as a former Indian diplomat, Bhadrakumar Melkulangara, who has served in Russia, Pakistan and several other countries, has said , India's Bimstec project splutters. It was a deeply flawed project because regional cooperation cannot be fostered on a platform of negativism -- in this case, geared to 'isolate' Pakistan in its region.He insists, At any rate, Bimstec should have gained traction and acquired a habitation and name before loading it with a military drill. And it now transpires that Modi tried to shove the half-baked idea of military drill down the throat of others at the recent Bimstec summit in Kathmandu even after it became apparent that there was no enthusiasm for it in the region.
Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines has celebrated an historic coming together of its fleet of four ocean ships  Balmoral, Braemar, Boudicca and Black Watch  in Cadiz, Spain.

The four ships came together in Cadiz on Sept. 10 for the "Captains in Cadiz." It marks only the second time the entire Fred. Olsen fleet has been in the same place.

Fred. Olsen's four ships sailed into Cadiz harbour at just before 8am, carrying 4,000 guests, who were welcomed by the Los Sones de Cadiz band and a port bedecked with "Captains in Cadiz" fiesta-style bunting and banners.

Mike Rodwell, Managing Director for Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, said: We have named this years event Captains in Cadiz, as our Captains  and their dedicated crews  help to make the cruise experience across our fleet such an enjoyable and memorable one.

This year marks the 170th anniversary of Fred. Olsens start as a shipping company and we are delighted to be celebrating today in the stunning city of Cadiz. Our cruise ships have been calling here since 1987, and the excellent port facilities mean that we can berth all four ships in close proximity to each other.

Captains in Cadiz has been two years in the planning, and follows on from the tremendous success of our Four Ships in Bergen event in July 2015, when we brought our four ocean ships together for the very first time in Bergen, Norway. We would like to thank the Port and city of Cadiz for their very warm welcome, and we look forward to giving our guests another unforgettable Fred. Olsen experience here today with Captains in Cadiz!"

A key part of the "Captains in Cadiz" celebrations day was the bringing together of the eight ships Masters from across the Fred. Olsen fleet: Captains Victor Stoica and Rommel Pineda from Balmoral, Captains Jozo Glavic and Jens Erik Gulowsen from Braemar, Captains Juha Sartela and Mikael Degerlund from Boudicca, and Captains Henrik Mattsson and Valentin Giuglea from Black Watch.

Also attending the event was Chairman of Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, Fred. Olsen Junior, who watched the fleet come together.

Captain Mikael Degerlund, Master of Boudicca, said: "'Captains in Cadiz' really was another tremendous success for Fred Olsen Cruise Lines. The event was wonderful, not only for all of us eight Captains, but also for all the staff and crew, who had a great opportunity to meet and mingle with guests from across the fleet, together with the Chairman, Directors and Managers from both of our offices in Ipswich and Oslo. Wherever you walked and turned, there was always a familiar face.

"On a personal level, it makes me very proud to be part of Fred. Olsen, whose cruise ships  for me and many of our guests  are our 'home away from home.'"

The company was able to put together a program of festivities and activities during the day, along the quayside and throughout the city.

Guests could take part in a 'Siege of Cadiz' themed Treasure Hunt, enjoy live bands and Flamenco shows along the route, try local produce, cheer on the crew in a hotly-contested inter-ship Tug of War competition, and sample local Sherry, the company said.

One of the highlights of the event was a ceremonial Plaque Exchange on stage, attended by all eight Captains, Fred. Olsen Junior, Mike Rodwell, the Mayor of Cadiz, President of Cadiz Port Authority and other local dignitaries, at which ships' plaques were presented by the Captains and commemorative gifts received from the city of Cadiz, followed by a VIP Reception onboard Balmoral.

Guests also had the rare opportunity to visit all of the Fred. Olsen ships during the day, and many took advantage of the chance to meet up with each other  or their favorite crew members  and get to experience the rest of the fleet for themselves, the company said

At 5pm, all four ships made a dramatic departure from Cadiz in convoy, serenaded by a local jazz band. Led out of the harbour by a fire tug boat spraying its water cannons, the Fred. Olsen fleet passed under the imposing The Constitution of 1812 Bridge in formation, before setting sail for their next destinations: Braemar was returning to Southampton, UK; both Balmoral and Black Watch continued to Lisbon, Portugal; and Boudicca headed to Ibiza, Spain.

Fred. Olsen has already started planning its next fleet reunion  the third such event  in Funchal, in Madeira, on April 4, 2020. The event will be named "Four Fred.s in Funchal."
The 2018-2019 cruise season kicks off Friday at the Port of San Diego, with the most traffic expected in seven years.

According to a statement, San Diego expects 92 cruise calls versus 84 from last season.

Additionally, passenger counts will increase by 15 percent over last year, with 295,000 people anticipated to cruise from San Diego, up from 256,000 the previous season, the port said.

Voyages range from two-day to 14-day cruises along the Mexican Riviera to a 35-day cruise to South America. San Diegos primary cruise lines include Holland America Line and Disney Cruise Line, with regular voyages onboard the Eurodam, Nieuw Amsterdam and Disney Wonder.

The Port of San Diego offers a unique opportunity to enjoy both an amazing destination on land and an incredible cruise adventure on the water, said Rafael Castellanos, Chairman of the Board of Port Commissioners. Our cruise terminals are ideally situated on picturesque San Diego Bay, right in the heart of the city, with many unique attractions to discover.

San Diego is Californias third busiest cruise port, following Long Beach and Los Angeles.

New cruise business for San Diego this season includes calls from the Viking Star and the Norwegian Pearl.

Next season, San Diego will welcome new business from the Carnival Miracle.
The Regal Princess became the first cruise ship to plug into shorepower in Norway this week as Kristiansands installation came on line. It is only the second functioning shorepower installation for cruise ships in Europe and was made possible by an EU grant.

The only other European port to offer shorepower for cruise ships is Hamburg at its Altona terminal.

In addition, AIDA Cruises has a hybrid solution with the AIDAperla and AIDAprima running on LNG supplied by truck while in port in Hamburg, Rotterdam, Le Havre, Southampton and Zebrugge, as well as in Barcelona and Madeira.

Other Norwegian ports have applied for grants from Enova, a government agency working to improve energy efficiencies and reduce emissions, but have been turned down. The agency said it considers cruise ship usage to be seasonal and not cost effective.

A 16 MW installation for cruise ships, like in Kristiansand, is also much more expensive than smaller installations for ferries, fishing, coastal and offshore vessels. So far Enova has awarded nearly half a billion NOK, financing up to 75 percent of the installation cost for shorepower in Norwegian ports, but not for cruise.

PowerCon of Denmark supplied the equipment and made the installation consisting of eight containers with frequency converters, transformers and switchgears.
As potential homebuyers scour southwestern Connecticut for just the right fit, theyre often checking out the neighbors  and not just the other houses.

While the presence of individual shops nearby will rarely directly affect listing prices, market professionals suggest that recognizable brands like Starbucks setting up in the neighborhood could help increase an areas appeal to prospective buyers.

Its more area-driven than an actual store or restaurant, but in theory that does drive up the market, said William Raveis agent Ken Zerrella, in Fairfield. It might drive up the desire to buy in that area because you have amenities.

Once Starbucks and other businesses are in place, neighborhoods tend to become even more attractive to both buyers and other brands, analysts say.

Selling points

Like house hunters, businesses will choose locations based on neighborhood appeal and economic viability. Cynthia Hughes, of Coldwell Banker in Danbury, said it is a reciprocal relationship. Businesses target expansion in areas that are already growing and showing movement forward.

Once an area has the convenience of such storefronts, it does make the area more attractive for just that  convenience and accessibility, she said. That could slightly sway more homeowners to buy in the area, causing more of a supply-and-demand type of home-pricing situation.

Hughes said Keystone Place at Wooster Heights, a 139-unit continuing-care facility being built near a residential neighborhood in Danbury, would have a similar effect on the desirability of homes in the area.

In Darien, Barb Hazelton remembers well a battle waged by some town residents to keep Whole Foods out of the town. With the store opening in 2010, Hazelton, a Houlihan Lawrence agent who is president of the Darien Board of Realtors, said Whole Foods has been a tremendous selling point for those looking to sell their homes to incoming residents.

Hazelton said the presence of Starbucks and the recent addition of a Shake Shack also have parts to play in the towns residential appeal.

I believe that the addition of Shake Shack and Whole Foods have been an asset to our (town) and its something we continue to promote when we talk about reasons to live here, Hazelton said. So many residents make (Starbucks) a regular stop and I use it for frequent meetings. I feel that it anchors a community.

Congestion worries

Along with benefits new businesses can provide, there are downsides, as well.

The impact a business has on perceived home values is also dependent on the surrounding area, according to Re/Max agent Daniel Thomas. Less-developed areas can benefit or suffer from the addition of different brands, while developed areas and cities may not see much of a difference.

There are certain things that you can put in, like a graveyard, that can impact it negatively, he said. On the positive side, if you bring in certain big businesses, it could be good for the economic growth.

In the past year, several projects have caught the attention of residents concerned that new development would increase congestion and diminish the character of their neighborhoods.

Last month, Stamfords Board of Representatives overturned a Zoning Board decision that would have allowed a Life Time Fitness Center in the High Ridge Park office complex next to the Merritt Parkway.

There are certainly times where a new business will improve the neighborhood, such as a charming coffee house or good restaurant, said Tammy Felenstein, Stamford-based executive director of sales for Halstead Property. But there are usually also concerns about additional traffic.

Also last month, Chick-fil-A withdrew a proposal to build a new restaurant at the site of a vacant bank branch at the corner of High Ridge Road and Cold Spring Road in the citys Bulls Head section. The citys Transportation Bureau and Mayor David Martin were among those who advised against the project.

I think that Chick-fil-A was a somewhat controversial choice for that location, and that ultimately the decision to decline the proposal was a good one, Felenstein said.

Jordan.grice@hearstmediact.com

Includes reporting by Christopher Bosak, Alexander Soule, and Paul Schott.
For many business owners, bookkeeping is an unpleasant experience  and that's where Ashley Slote comes in.

"People bring me in for that reason  they don't like doing it," she said. "That's the last thing they want to do."

Slote is the founder of The Office Genie LLC, a mobile bookkeeping service for business owners and individuals in Fairfield County. Slote, who will be celebrating her first anniversary in business next month, views bookkeeping through a somewhat heroic spectrum.

"The thing I really enjoy is that I come in and solve problems," she said. "And when you need a bookkeeper, that often means you have a problem that has to be solved. Your ducks need to be in a row and you need to have everything ready to go for taxes."

Slote, who holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business management and an MBA from Southern Connecticut State University, did bookkeeping for a landscaping company and a few freelance gigs before deciding to become her own boss.

"I had a few people approach me who wanted to be a client," she said. "I had a guy referring a lot of people to me. And it was funny that he did that because I was thinking of starting on my own."

The Office Genie covers tasks ranging from helping startups with their business formation and payroll processing to assisting established businesses with their financial reports for quarterly and annual tax filings plus accounts payable and receivable. For individual clients, Slote provides input on personal bookkeeping needs and bill paying.

Slote works from a home office in Norwalk and spends much of her time traveling to clients across the region. "I go to Easton, I go to Ridgefield and Redding and Trumbull," she said. "My other clients' businesses are run out of Fairfield. It's funny, but I don't have any clients in Norwalk."

In running The Office Genie, Slote puts in lengthy days, sometimes working from 6 a.m. to midnight. And while she enjoys meeting with clients, she admitted that her concentration is best when working out of her home office "because that's when I get the time to dial in and get the real work done on the numbers."

While referrals and word of mouth have helped bring in business, Slote has also tapped into Craigslist advertising to call attention to her service. She already snagged two clients from the popular site, although she admitted she also harvested some sketchy responses.

"There has been some spam text and emails, but I can tell by this point what's what," she said. "I do a lot of Googling of names, emails and phone numbers before I will talk to them."

One concern that has kept Slote busy on behalf of her clients is the federal Tax Cut and Jobs Act that was signed into law last December by President Trump. Slote said the changes to the tax code have yet to create a negative impact on her clients, but she added there is still uncertainty on what the near-future will bring  especially with the new law's limits on individual state and local tax deductions to $10,000, which are considered by many to be difficult in high-tax states such as Connecticut.

"Time will tell," she said. "Next year, we'll see how the real numbers work for everybody."

As for her next year in business, she is planning to bring in an intern to help with her growing duties. "Last week, I was doing a lot of data entry work for an account I was working on and I thought it would be great if I had a person to do the data entry for me," she said.

And while she admitted that there are software programs that can assist business owners with bookkeeping tasks, having a professional can offer a personalized attention to detail that software cannot duplicate.

"I think it is really important that everyone with a small business has a bookkeeper," she said. "It doesn't have to be regularly scheduled. I can spend an hour or so a month with you, that will keep you going. Also, it is better to hire a bookkeeper before things get tumultuous and challenging. It doesn't have to be a full-time person, but you can call in a person like me to check things out."

Phi Hall is a reporter for the Fairfield County Business Journal. For more of his work and that of the journal, please visit westfaironline.com.
September is National Preparedness Month and, with hurricane Florence lurking around the East Coast, the Connecticut Better Business Bureau thinks its a good time to offer tips on how to ready yourself for a potential crisis.

National Preparedness Month is sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency within the Department of Homeland Security, and its part of a governmental effort to increase the overall number of individuals, families, and communities that engage in preparedness actions at home, work, business, school and places of worship.

Better Business Bureau is proud to partner with FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security (Ready.gov) to offer the following advice on prepping for disaster.

Make and Practice Your Plan: Start by making an emergency plan with everyone in the home. Discuss how you will receive emergency alerts and warnings, what your shelter plan is, your evacuation route, and the household communication plan. Its best to practice your escape plan with your family, including animals, at least twice a year.

Learn Life Saving Skills: Learning basic home maintenance skills can protect your home and your family. Learn how to turn off utilities like natural gas and electricity, and how to test and replace smoke alarms. Its recommended to test smoke alarms every month, and to replace them every 10 years.

Check Your Insurance Coverage: Insurance is your first line of defense, which is why you should check your insurance coverage, and review your policy to ensure that what you have in place is enough for you and your family. Save all receipts, including those for food, temporary lodging, or other expenses that may be covered under your policy should a disaster happen.

Save for an Emergency: Disasters can be very stressful, but having access to personal, financial, medical and other records is crucial to a quick recovery. Its important to be financially prepared for any type of disaster. Consider saving money and storing it in an emergency savings account, as well as leaving a small amount of cash at home in a safe place.

Watch Out for Storm chasers: No matter how much you prepare, you might have some damage to deal with after a natural disaster. Storm chasers are contractors who seek to take advantage of disasters and get consumers to make quick and potentially uninformed decisions. Although not all storm chasers are scammers, they may lack the proper licensing for your area, offer quick fixes, or make big promises they cant deliver. Visit https://go.bbb.org/2BJNzob for BBBs tips on how to protect yourself from storm chasers.

Remember you can always visit bbb.org to review a companys marketplace report before you hire them.

You can also call Better Business Bureau Serving Connecticut from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday through Friday at 860-740-4500.
BRIDGEPORT - A local nurse, convicted last year after a third trial of killing a 20-year-old college student and scattering her body parts in Trumbull, is now being represented by his fourth lawyer.

Attorney Norman Pattis filed paperwork in Superior Court here to represent Jermain Richards in his appeal on Wednesday.
The immediate local media reaction may offer a glimpse at the on-the-ground reality behind the report adopted by the European Parliament to censure Hungary over the erosion of democratic standards.

An array of publications in control of the state or businessmen in Prime Minister Viktor Orban's orbit sprang into action to amplify the government's message after the vote. They echoed a portrayal of the proposed sanctions as fraudulent revenge by forces opposed to the premier's anti-immigration policies.

The vote in Strasbourg, which Orban called an offense to the Hungarian people, also allowed journalists sympathetic to his views to further the narratives that have been central to his political campaigns in recent years.

"Brussels takes Soros's side" and "Hoodwinked by lies" and "Revenge against Hungary," cried some of the headlines in news websites friendly to the government. Another offered a selection of supportive messages on Orban's Facebook account from across Europe. Though some reports included opposition voices, outlet after outlet gave top-line play to the interpretation of the events presented by the premier, his government and the ruling party.

The report by European lawmaker Judith Sargentini cited evidence that Hungarian editorial output has been consistently favoring the ruling coalition. It also listed a lack of "access to pluralistic information" and polemic against Hungarian-born financier George Soros among the symptoms of the country's democratic backsliding.

For Orban, an even more bitter fight against an alleged cabal of enemies -- including Soros, liberals, "speculators," rights activists and EU bureaucrats -- may just be a useful way to keep his narrative going.

Much of the electorate is "receptive toward this type of communication, especially if the government links it with the safeguarding of national interest and rejecting Muslim immigration," said Attila Tibor Nagy of the Center for Fair Political Analysis in Budapest.

What remains of independent media ran headlines on Orban's government having been "branded with shame" by the European Parliament. As the Hvg.hu news website pointed out, Orban may not even just be courting his electorate at home any more with his rhetoric, but the awakening populist forces he is thinking of uniting in in next year's European elections.
 Potent new quote from AG Eric Holder: "Too many people go to too many prisons for far too long for no good law enforcement reason" | Main | "Toward a Right to Litigate Ineffective Assistance of Counsel" 

April 5, 2013

Rand Paul begins forceful pitch in campaign against federal mandatory minimums

I suspect that US Attorney General Eric Holder and US Senator Rand Paul do not have the same position on a lot of different issues. And yet, today in the post right after this post covering a big speech by AG Holder in which he suggests exploring ways "to give judges more flexibility in determining certain sentences," I get to highlight this new op-ed in the Washington Times by Senator Paul which assails federal minimum sentencing laws for taking sentencing authority "away from the jury and judge." I urge everyone to read Senator Paul's op-ed in full, and here are just a few passages that prompted me to find and post the picture that accompanies this posting: Mandatory minimums reflect two of the biggest problems in Washington: The first problem is the idea that there should be a Washington-knows-best, one-size-fits-all approach to all problems, be they social, educational or criminal. This approach leads to our second problem: Washingtons habit of undermining the system our Founding Fathers created. Their system left as much power as possible in the hands of local and state officials, and sought to treat people as individuals, not as groups or classes of people. Last year in my community, a family lost one of their sons to an overdose. They almost lost their other son to a mandatory minimum sentencing. Federal law requires a mandatory 20-year sentence if a death occurs, even an accidental one. If prosecutors had charged the surviving brother in federal court, he would have received a mandatory 20-year sentence. When a crime is committed, it should fall to the local prosecutor, judge and jury to determine the guilt or innocence, as well as determine the just punishment for the crime. In the current system of federal mandatory-minimum sentencing, the authority is taken away from the jury and judge, and given by the legislature to the executive. Prosecutors already have tremendous power because they collect the evidence and choose which crimes to charge. If a mandatory penalty is attached to that crime, the prosecutor then exerts much influence over the entire procedure, including the sentence. Our Founding Fathers went to great lengths to prevent the executive and prosecutors from obtaining too much power. The Fourth Amendment was written to stop overzealous searches, and the Fifth and Sixth Amendments were written to establish full due process as an inalienable right. Ignoring these rights comes with several tangible costs. In the last 30 years, the number of federal inmates has increased from 25,000 to nearly 219,000. That is nearly a 10-fold increase in federal prisoners, each of whom cost the taxpayers $29,027 a year to incarcerate. The federal prison budget has doubled in 10 years to more than $6 billion. Half of the people sentenced to federal prison are drug offenders. Some are simply drug addicts, who would be better served in a treatment facility. Most are nonviolent and should be punished in ways that do not require spending decades in a federal prison, with meals and health care provided by the taxpayers. For these reasons and others, last week I joined my colleague Sen. Patrick Leahy, Vermont Democrat, in introducing a bill that would authorize judges to disregard federal mandatory-minimum sentencing on a case-by-case basis. Some might think it is unusual for a conservative Republican to join a liberal Democrat on such a bill, but contrary to popular belief, the protection of civil liberties and adherence to the Constitution should be a bipartisan effort.... I will speak more about this in a speech I am giving at Howard University on April 10. I hope to engage conservatives and liberals in a discussion of how the federal government should handle mandatory minimums and the reforms needed to secure our Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights. How much of our liberty are we willing to yield to the government in the name of a false sense security? This is a debate that crosses many issues, and deserves full and fair exploration.

Ever the sentencing geek, I am already giddy in anticipation concerning Senator Paul's upcoming speech on these issues at Howard University. The setting is notable in part because way back in 2007, as blogged here and here, then-Senator Obama gave a big speech about the need for federal criminal justice reforms. I would be foolish to assert that talking the talk about criminal justice at Howard University is a key step toward becoming US President, but I do not think it is foolish to assert that Rand Paul has (in my view, wisely) perhaps figured out that it may be politically valuable to speak forcefully and in constitutional terms about the need for significant federal criminal justice reform.

Some recent and older related posts:

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Doug, in my forty years of doing criminal defense, the biggest shift I have seen is the balance of sentencing power swinging from the judge to the prosecutor. North Carolina's extremely complicated grid of potential sentences has created a system where prosecutors can place tremendous pressure on defendants to plead guilty and accept long sentences rather than go to trial and risk a much longer sentence. There are some prosecutors around the state who pride themselves on how "creative" they can be to impose a trial penalty, a practice which I believe is blatantly unconstitutional.

I look forward to what Sen. Paul has to say on April 10.

bruce

Posted by: bruce cunningham | Apr 5, 2013 4:03:27 PM

I remain cynical as to whether it is affirmatively politically valuable to speak out on these issues in this direction. But getting to the point where it is not affirmatively politically dangerous to do so is an accomplishment not to be sneezed at.

Posted by: JWB | Apr 5, 2013 4:47:00 PM

JWB --

Your cynicism is well grounded. Sen. Paul knows exactly what he's doing, to wit, laying the groundwork for his 2016 Presidential run. He knows his current pitch will be well received by groups with a great deal of money to contribute to their anointed candidate.

Posted by: Bill Otis | Apr 5, 2013 5:10:44 PM

Maybe I'm not cynical enough, because I don't see the obvious donor-base angle. If Sen. Paul ever gets anywhere in the polls, the liberal media will go back to their prior storyline of OMG HE WANTS TO REPEAL THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT. On the other hand, if criticizing DOJ overreach becomes as guaranteed an applause line to GOP primary voters as criticizing the IRS (not that winning GOP candidates ever really do much to change the IRS . . .) that would be pretty interesting. FWIW, while I'm sure he's sensitive to political advantage, I see no reason to doubt Sen. Paul's sincerity. If we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again (Coolidge would be better), we should be willing to roll back DOJ to its pre-1933 dimensions (except without the Volstead Act enforcers).

Posted by: JWB | Apr 5, 2013 5:41:18 PM

I have questions about the historical accuracy of Senator Paul's statements. There have always been sentencing ranges with a minimum punishment and a maximum punishment as well as non-probationable offenses. The problem is not the concept of a mandatory minimum but rather the details of what triggers a different minimum sentence and how much of a bump is caused by that trigger.

The other part of Senator Paul's complaint has to do with the over-federalization of the criminal law. While the generic complaint is something that I sympathize with, both sides of the aisle tend to introduce legislation increasing the number of federal offenses to respond to the issue du jour, and there are some offenses which should be handled by the federal prosecutor instead of, as all too often occurs, left to the state prosecutor because the charge does not meet the criteria of a given US Attorney.

Posted by: tmm | Apr 5, 2013 6:14:20 PM

I applaud Paul's stance. For more reading he had written a book "Government Bullies" just published in September 2012, further crystalizing his stance on Over Criminalization in this country...so it is Not just mandatory minimums he is attacking. As readers know, I was accused of Federal Crimes for buying a boat, and allowing my spouse to remove spouse's name from a joint account. (these every day activities become crimes IF the Government could convince a jury that I knew I was handling money from a criminal source---they could not--- it all hinged on KNOWING in my case. Any transaction with money you might even should have SUSPECTED came from a criminal source could potentially land you in prison. For me, this made the Government the Thought Police--"Did the defendant Know..?" Because, as just stated, buying a boat is generally not considered a crime. There was absolutely no negotiating with the prosecutor in my case. I had to have a Jury tell him I was innocent.

Our Justice System does need reforms...the US should not be proud of its label:

Incarceration Nation.

Posted by: folly | Apr 8, 2013 1:58:07 PM

Post a comment
MILFORD - Police say a man, who was suspected of shoplifting, ate a counterfeit $20 bill when questioned by police.

Mizraim Diaz-Rivera, 42, of Truman Street in New Haven, was charged with sixth-degree larceny, tampering with evidence, first-degree forgery, interfering with a police officer, second-degree breach of peace and possession of narcotics.
In an increasingly virtual world, museums remain an important testimony to authenticity. But what happens when museums add an element of virtual reality to the scope of existing stories and artifacts? The new interactive Impact of CUSOs exhibit at Americas Credit Union Museum in Manchester, N.H., is beginning to reveal some answers that could help shape how history is viewed. The real-time accessibility of this new display makes it a quintessential bridge between current curiosities and the historic role CUSOs have played in the progression of the credit union industry.

The Impact of CUSOs exhibit tells the story of the value of CUSOs to the credit union movement and outlines the foundation on which CUSOs were built. This exhibit exists to spread awareness of CUSOs and teach others about the pivotal ways in which they have helped credit unions balance trends throughout history.

The exhibit uses an interactive touch-screen display and has the power to tell a very big story in a very small space. For those unable to travel to the Manchester location, the exhibit will soon be accessible from any desktop computer. Americas Credit Union Museum is an amazing experience for anyone interested in the human side of the credit union story as it provides the opportunity to learn from history and the important impact credit unions have had on the communities they serve.

Key CUSO pioneers are given rightful recognition within the exhibit; these pioneers include: Dave Serlo, former President and CEO of PSCU; Guy Messick, General Counsel for the National Association of Credit Union Service Organizations (NACUSO) and partner of Messick, Lauer & Smith P.C.; and Sarah Canepa Bang, credit union industry expert and former President of Shared Branching at CO-OP.

With nearly 100 years of combined experience, there are no better people to tell the CUSO story than these three individuals. Serlo, Messick and Canepa Bang understood the importance of leveraging the power of collaboration to bolster an entire industry. Collectively, these visionaries were able to ensure a model for cooperative self-help that enables CUSOs to spur innovation, increase efficiencies, and gain economies of scale for credit unions everywhere.

Early CUSO pioneers recognized that while communities of the past faced different problems than those today, one thing remains the same: people. For all that has changed in todays financial landscape, human nature remains much like it has always been: people and their communities are at their best when they exist to help one another. This belief is at the very heart of the credit union philosophy of People Helping People, something this exhibit is able to bring to life.

CUSOs number around 1,100 today, and like the credit unions they serve, they strive to remain fluid  some increasing in size, others decreasing, to meet the needs of their credit union owners. Dynamic collaboration at a niche level is at the heart of each CUSO interaction. Thanks to the Legacy Campaign that funded the new exhibit, everyone now has the opportunity to learn about CUSOs role in community economics and celebrate shared progress and achievements.

Studies have shown that organizations that are inclusive of all people and cooperate to uplift one another are historically more successful than those that do not. Time spent with the new CUSO exhibit is a reminder of this simple truth.
 A terrific partial unpacking of "Johnson v. United States: Three years out" | Main | "Misdemeanor Records and Employment Outcomes: An Experimental Study" 

Long-time readers know I have been singing the praises of Senator Rand Paul since he began making the case for consequential federal sentencing reforms more than half a decade ago. Now I am pleased to see that Senator Paul's spouse, Kelley Ashby Paul, is adding her voice to the call for reform through this new op-ed headlined "Kelley Paul: We must focus on recovery, not incarceration." Here are excerpts:

As a community, as a state and as a nation, we must speak out in favor of expanded rehabilitation opportunities for those struggling with addiction. Because of the Hope Centers expansion, even more women ... will have the tools to overcome addiction and begin a new path forward in life.

It is recovery, not incarceration, which allows people to become productive members of society  citizens with jobs and families who can contribute and make our communities better places to work, grow and live. It is recovery, not incarceration, which brings hope and peace into the lives of thousands of Americans and their families struggling with addiction.

The Hope Center expansion comes on the heels of the enactment of the first ever Dignity Bill in the nation, right here in Kentucky. Because of Sen. Julie Raque Adams sponsorship of the bill, and the tenacity of women leaders on both sides of the aisle, pregnant women accused of minor, non-violent crimes now have the option to enter into a recovery program. They can get the treatment they need, instead of languishing behind bars because they are unable to make bail.

Criminal-justice reform is something my husband, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, has been fighting for since he arrived in Washington. He is a lead co-sponsor of bipartisan bail reform legislation with Sen. Kamala Harris, and with the recent introduction of the First Step Act, a major bipartisan prison reform bill that includes expanded treatment opportunities, I am hopeful we can continue our efforts to fix a broken system. I am proud to assure the people of this commonwealth that my family will do everything we can to ensure that the First Step Act will get a vote.

Criminal-justice reform goes hand in hand with reducing homelessness, alcoholism and drug addiction. We have learned that locking people up who are in need of treatment is not the answer.

The U.S. is the most heavily incarcerated country in the developed world, and many of those incarcerated have suffered a trauma, such as sexual or physical abuse, which led to addiction, and ultimately led them to our justice system. Instead of treating these individuals, we toss them behind bars, where their problems only get worse. This cycle of failure results in staggering financial costs to the taxpayer, but more importantly a devastating cost to families and children.
JuJu Smith-Schuster gives pregame talk, sparks Windber win over Berlin

Windber moved on to the District 5-8 Class AA title game with a shutout of Berlin Brothersvalley on Friday.
CNH VS CNY TALKING POINTS:

What is CNH and CNY?

The h istory of the two Yuan

Understanding the difference between CN Y and CN H in t rading

What is CNH and CNY and what are the main differences?

CNH refers to the Chinese Yuan in the offshore market, which is outside of Mainland China (the onshore market). Chinas capital markets, including the FX market, are controlled and not fully opened yet. This leads to different features of the Chinese currency in the onshore and offshore markets, and thus two tickers are assigned to distinguish them.

In the onshore Mainland China market, the Chinese Yuan is called CNY. On the other hand, the offshore market includes traditional Yuan centers, such as Hong Kong (a special administrative region of China), Singapore, London and newly-developed centers such as Luxembourg.

Find out more on the differences between RMB, Yuan, CNH and CNY

THE HISTORY OF CNY

USD/CNY Price Chart from 1992 to 2018

Data downloaded from Bloomberg; chart prepared by Renee Mu.

1994- 2005: A sole CNY rate was formed, signalling the start of Chinas modern foreign exchange rate system. Before 1994, China had two CNY rates in the onshore market, an official rate and a market rate. The spread was significant. For example, at the end of 1993, the official USD/CNY rate was 5.8 while the market rate was 8.7. On January 1, 1994, the dual-track exchange rate system was ended, with the two CNY exchange rates merged into one.

2005 - Mid 2008: The CNY flexibility was increased. On July 2, 2005, the USD/CNY was strengthened by +2.1% from 8.2765 to 8.1100, following Chinas Central Bank launching a managed-floating exchange rate regime. Under the new system, the Central Bank loosened Yuans pegging against a sole currency  USD, and introduced a basket of currencies as the new reference.

Read More: What is Chinas managed-floating exchange rate regime?

Mid 2008 - 2010: The CNY was re-pegged to the USD, following the eruption of the global financial crisis in the mid of 2008. This was used as a measure to protect Chinas international trade during the crisis. The USD/CNY was restricted in a narrow range between 6.81 and 6.85.

2010 - Aug 2018: The CNY reform was resumed. The flexibility in the Yuan was increased again after the financial crisis. On April 16, 2012, the CNY daily trading band was raised from 0.5% to 1%. Then, it further expanded to 2% on March 17, 2014.

Aug 2018 - Today: The CNY was de-pegged against the USD and referred to a basket of currencies again. On August 11, 2015, Chinas Central Bank weakened the daily CNY fixing (Yuans reference rate) by -1.82% to 6.2298, starting a new round of reforms on the Chinese currency. On December 11, 2015, the PBOC introduced CFETS Yuan Index, a reference for the CNY price.

As of today, China has continued to adopt the managed-floating exchange rate regime in the onshore market. The USD/CNY remains to be the top pair among all Yuan pairs and has the highest trading volume; at the same time, Chinas Central Bank also looks to other CNY pairs when guide the onshore Yuan rate.

THE HISTORY OF CNH

USD/CNH Price Chart from August 2010 to August 2018

Data downloaded from Bloomberg; chart prepared by Renee Mu.

2004 - 2010: Preparation Phase for CNH. The CNH has a much shorter history than the CNY. The letter H in CNH was originally referred to Hong Kong, the first offshore market for the Yuan. From 2004, Hong Kong began to introduce Chinese Yuan business, such as trade settlements in the Yuan.

2010 - Today: CNH was launched and in use. On July 2010, Chinas Central Bank (PBOC) and Hong Kong Monetary Authority signed the revised clearing agreement on the Chinese Yuan, marking a milestone for the offshore Yuan development. On August 23, a quote on the USD/CNH was launched, signalling the start of the Chinese Yuan trading in the offshore market.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CNY AND CNH IN TRADING?

It is important for traders to understand the difference between CNY and CNH. Fundamentally, the CNH, traded in the offshore market, is considered to be less controlled and more market-driven than the CNY. This makes it more like a free-floating currency than the CNY, and a better choice for speculative trading.

USD/CNH vs USD/CNY Price Chart from August 2015 to August 2018

Greater volatility is more likely to be seen in the CNH than the CNY when they respond to the same event. For instance, from May 2018 to August 2018, both the USD/CNH and the USD/CNY rose from a 15-month low to high, largely driven by the US-China trade war. The USD/CNH advanced from 6.2358 to 6.9587 while the USD/CNY increased from 6.2419 to 6.9347.

New to forex trading? Download theDailyFX Free Trading Guide to learn how to put ideas into action.

READ MORE ON CNY and CNH

For CNH trading ideas and technical analysis, view the latest CNH weekly forecast report .

latest CNH weekly forecast report Find out more about the Chinese currency, with our in-depth guide on What is the Chinese Yuan ?

-- Written by Renee Mu, Currency Analyst with DailyFX
After more than a year of negotiations with the federal government, Florida has yet again revised the way it wants to revise its school accountability system under the Every Student Succeeds Actand this time Florida Republican Gov. Rick Scott has weighed in.

The Every Student Succeeds Act was hailed as the ushering in of a new era of state flexibility, Scott said in a Aug. 24 letter addressed to U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. As with all federal partnerships, Floridas expectations is that our state is treated fairly and given full flexibility to provide the greatest return to our students.

Other states, such as North Dakota and Utah, have complained about the fairness and consistency of DeVos ESSA-approval process. But while 49 other states plans have been approved, the spat between Florida and the federal department over the dynamics of its plan has gone on for more than a year and spanned three previous state proposals.

The federal law went into full effect this school year. If the federal department rejects the states latest plan, Florida stands to lose more than $1.1 billion in federal dollars . Department spokeswoman Meghan Collins said schools funding has not been effected by the ongoing dispute between the federal and state departments.

In its most recent draft, submitted Aug. 24, the state, along with some other tweaks, made changes to the way some middle school students who take advanced courses are tested.

But the state still plans to spin off a seperate federal accountability system from its state accountability system in order to meet federal requirements that the state hold schools accountable for the performance of historically disadvantaged groups of students and how well English-language learners perform on proficiency exams.

This has infuriated the advocates for the states large body of immigrant, Latino, and black students, who warn that Florida could set a dangerous precedent among states. Having two seperate rankings for schools, they say, would require lots more paperwork for district officials to fill out and would confuse the public over how schools are performing.

Congressional intent with ESSA was to focus attention on struggling student subgroups and thereby stimulate corrective action, said Rosa Castro Feinberg, a Florida civil rights activist and scholar who has protested the states many submitted ESSA plans, including its most recent one. A seperate federal index is merely a reporting mechanism. It is not part of the ESSA-required single statewide system for differentiating schools ... the federal index simply identifies schools and seems to offer no more than the same low-intensity assistance already available online to all schools.

In his letter, Scott cites praise the states public schools have received in recent years for their academic outcomes, including from DeVos herself. The state made some of the nations highest gains in NAEP scores and, most recently, placed fourth in Education Weeks Quality Counts analysis of academic achievement.

Were proud that you have regularly touted Floridas results and suggested to other states that they should follow Floridas lead, Scott said. Our record of educational excellence and strong performance should serve as a testament that our system is working and that our state understands how to best serve our students.

An Education Week analysis of the Floridas state standardized tests since 2015 show no significant reduction in the performance gaps between the states wealthier white students and their more-disadvantaged peers.

Civil rights activists have also complained that the drafting of the states plan and the state departments subsequent negotiations with the federal department have taken place behind closed doors with little input from the public.

Collins denied that accusation.

We certainly did take feedback into account, said Collins. Residents and organizations are welcome to provide input at any time.

Update: On Wednesday evening, the federal department sent Floridas department of education a memo asking for further clarification on how the state planned to create two seperate accountability systems. Floridas department of education has until Oct. 4 to respond to the feedback.

Dont miss another State EdWatch post. Sign up here to get news alerts in your email inbox. And make sure to follow @StateEdWatch on Twitter for the latest news from state K-12 policy and politics.
The official made the confirmation during a working with To Thi Bich Chau, Vice President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front  Ho Chi Minh City chapter, as he was visiting the city on September 6.Along with front work, he also expressed his hope that the two cities will intensify cooperation in trade and investment, pave the way for both sides goods to enter each others market, thus helping nurture and develop the two countries traditional friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation.Chau told the guest that the Vietnam Fatherland Front  Ho Chi Minh City chapter has focused on intensifying dissemination on the occasion of the countrys main festivals, and step up the implementation of patriotic emulation programmes and promote locals patriotism through dissemination activities related to national border, sea and islands.The organisation has also held fundraising programmes in support for disaster-affected victims, while supervising the implementation of socio-economic development plans of the citys authorities, Chau stated.She said that the organisation is preparing for its congress for the 2019-2024 tenure, with the focus on bettering front work programmes, serving as a bridge between the Party and the people, taking part in Party and administration building, and creating the highest consensus in implementing socio-economic development plans.

Vietnamplus
Reeceville Elementary School students, faculty, family members and first responders who gathered at the Patriots Day ceremony Tuesday were urged to uphold a sense of pride in America.

The Coatesville Area School District officials said the emotional Patriots Day ceremony is a time for the school community to come together and remember those whose lives were affected in so many ways throughout the country because of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives.

Today, we gather to pay tribute to the many innocent people who died 17 years ago today during the worst attack on American soil, state Rep. Becky Corbin said on Tuesday during the ceremony. While none of the students here today were alive on this awful day, I know the staff can remember in vivid detail those events.

Corbin, R-155, of East Brandywine, spoke of the heroism and courage displayed on that day in 2001 and how it brought Americans closer together, with patriotism reaching new heights.

It was a day of infamy, but also a day of heroism and courage. A day of national unity in the face of terror, a day that forced us to re-examine our priorities and renew who we are as a nation, Corbin said. While what happened was horrific, September 11th brought us, as Americans, closer together.

She challenged those in attendance to uphold that same sense of pride and also to remember the departed heroes and innocent victims of that day.

The fifth-grade chorus led the crowd in singing the National Anthem, as the Scout Troop lowered the flag to half-staff. East Brandywine Fire Company firefighters attended the ceremony this year. Students and other participants observed a moment of silence in remembrance of those who were affected by the events of the Sept. 11 attacks.
All the zing was not in the Commons Chamber, where Chancellor Philip Hammond was droning away with the latest Project Fear misery, but on the committee corridor.

Matador of the moment Boris Johnson arrived at an event where Brexiteers were hearing upbeat predictions about the economic impact of any 'no deal' exit from the EU.

'From Project Fear to Project Prosperity' said a windy logo. Project Polyanna, possibly. But this continued jauntiness by the Brexiteers, which drives Remainers round the twist, is as much political as scientific.

The former Foreign Secretary (pictured, alongside Tory MP and lading Brexiteer Peter Bone) sat with his head in his hands for some of the meeting

By continuing to tug at Madam Glumbucket, they make it harder for her to drift further to Brussels.

Boris arrived late. Often does. Bad time-keeping or a desire to sweep in last, a Sicilian prince entering a ball? I have finally read Giuseppe di Lampedusa's novel, The Leopard, and the prince in that great story  magnetic and lustful  has similarities with our blond hero.

The meeting was chaired by Jacob Rees-Mogg who praised David Davis and Boris for quitting the Cabinet after Mrs May ambushed them at Chequers. Applause. Some attendees clutched their brows.

Boredom at the economics lecture? Or shielding their eyes from the room's alarmingly swirly green wallpaper?

Boris intervened to say he agreed with beancounter Patrick Minford that Chequers would leave us 'a vassal state' to Brussels. The meeting was firmly opposed to Chequers but Mr Rees-Mogg averred it would be possible to vote against Chequers yet still support Mrs May in a confidence vote.

Boris Johnson (pictured at today's Brexiteer event with Jacob Rees-Mogg in the background and former Conservative leader Iain Duncan-Smith in the foreground) blasted Theresa May's Chequers proposal during the meeting

This debate was about policy, no personalities.

The heavy media presence, there almost entirely for boisterous Boris, suggests that may not be entirely the case.

Come the meeting's end, he was pursued by a posse of scribes and broadcasters into the committee corridor (it is the length of a rural aerodrome). First he turned left, then right, then darted into a siding, then out again.

News hounds all this time yapped 'do you have full confidence in Mrs May?' and 'is this a leadership bid?'. Shades of a rolling maul under the Twickenham goalposts.

Boris insisted the meeting had 'absolutely nothing' to do with leadership plotting. It was about trying to wrench the May regime away from a stinky deal that could 'humiliate' Britain.

Things in the Commons were duller but not without incident, Mr Hammond announcing that Bank of England governor Mark Carney would now stay to early 2020.

At the meeting, held in Parliament today, Brexit-backing economists said that Britain should pursue a Canada style deal with the EU

Mr Hammond thought Mr Carney would bring stability 'to what could be quite a turbulent period for our economy'. This elicited a cry of 'shame!'.

It was not clear if the heckler was angry about smoothiechops Remainer Carney being given more time, or about Mr Hammond's habitual pessimism.

Who are the Tory figures who were at the Brexit economic plan launch? Here are the Tory Brexiteers who were at the launch of the economic plan in Parliament: Steve Baker (former Brexit minister) Jacob Rees-Mogg (chairman of the Brexit-backing European Research Group) Boris Johnson (ex Foreign Secretary) David Davis (former Brexit Secretary) Iain Duncan Smith (former Tory leader) Peter Bone (Tory MP) Sir William Cash (Tory MP) Advertisement

Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell had a chance to clarify Labour thinking on Brexit. 'Let me put this to the Chancellor,' he began, with tremendous self-importance.

Then it started to go wrong. 'Can we both try to get the message across to the Prime Minister, who continues to insist that no deal is better than...' Doubt nibbled at Mr McDonnell's sweetbreads.

He paused. 'No deal is better than...' he said. Another pause. Outer calm, inner meltdown. He continued: 'No, a bad deal. No deal. To insist. That a bad deal is better. Than no deal.'

Labour frontbencher Jonathan Reynolds, who is perhaps twice as bright as Mr McDonnell, gave the smile of a parent whose child has just dried at the school poetry recital.

For the record, Mrs May says no deal would be better than a bad deal. Even though she probably believes the opposite. Then Dennis Skinner (Lab, Bolsover) claimed Mr Hammond had boasted he had 'money to burn'.

So why was he still closing libraries? Mr Hammond, irked, said Mr Skinner should have 'a hearing test'.

Much clucking from Labour. Mr McDonnell demanded an apology for this allegedly grievous insult to the ancient (and maybe slightly cloth-eared) Skinner.

Not for the first time this week, the outrage at a politician's perfectly legitimate, lively language was bogus.

Fifty MPs want May out unless she ditches her Chequers plan

By Jason Groves

Tory Brexiteers were openly discussing how to oust Theresa May last night.

Sources at a meeting of the European Research Group said the MPs were deciding what action to take if the Prime Minister refused to drop her Chequers proposals.

It was amazing, said one. There were 50 people present, openly discussing how to get rid of the PM and literally no one said Oooh no, we mustnt talk about that.

Another source said the conversation continued even when Tory Party whips entered the room. It was brazen  really detailed discussion of how best you game the leadership rules.

Sources said there was also mockery of a charm offensive in which MPs invited for dinner in Downing Street for briefings on the Chequers plan for Brexit.

Another MP present said the discussion about Mrs Mays future took up almost half of last nights meeting.

Tory Brexiteers were discussing how to oust the PM if she refused to change her Chequers Brexit plans

He said opposition to Chequers had hardened over the summer recess after MPs spent time speaking to constituency members and voters.

This is a fight to the death, he said. I would be amazed if a leadership contest is not triggered straight after (Tory) conference unless she backs down.

The level of discontent will alarm Mrs Mays aides who know it takes just 48 MPs to force a confidence vote.

However, senior Tories believe the ERG does not have the numbers to defeat her.

The meeting followed a difficult week for the ERG in which plans to publish a detailed blueprint for an alternative Brexit have been shelved.

It came just hours after Boris Johnson gave his first public show of support by attending an event hosted by its leaders.

Last week, the ERG told journalists it had drawn up a series of announcements to show it had a full alternative to Chequers. But the plan was dropped after senior members spotted inaccuracies and warned some of the ideas would be seen as eccentric.

Which Tories are backing Boris Johnson and who is against him? Boris Johnson caused fury by accusing Theresa May of 'wrapping a suicide vest' around the UK constitution and 'handing the detonator' to Michel Barnier. The response illustrated the deep divisions in the Conservative Party. BLASTING BORIS Foreign Affairs committee chair Tom Tugendhat, former army officer: 'A suicide bomber murdered many in the courtyard of my office in Helmand. 'The carnage was disgusting, limbs and flesh hanging from trees and bushes. 'Brave men who stopped him killing me and others died In horrific pain. 'Some need to grow up. Comparing the PM to that isn't funny.' Foreign Office minister Sir Alan Duncan: 'For Boris to say that the PM's view is like that of a suicide bomber is too much. 'This marks one of the most disgusting moments in modern British politics. 'I'm sorry, but this is the political end of Boris Johnson. 'If it isn't now, I will make sure it is later.' Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt: 'I'm stunned at the nature of this attack. 'There is no justification for such an outrageous, inappropriate and hurtful analogy. 'If we don't stop this extraordinary use of language over Brexit, our country might never heal. Again, I say, enough.' Home Secretary Sajid Javid: 'It's a reminder for all of us in public policy, whichever party we represent, to use measured language because I think that's what the public want to see.' BACKING BORIS Tory MP Andrew Bridgen 'Boris says it how he sees it, and I think it's how a lot of people in our country see it, but very few dares to call it. 'He speaks truth unto power and I'm not surprised that those in power resent that and that there's a backlash.' Tory MP Nadine Dorries 'Don't underestimate the vitriol that'll be directed towards Boris. 'He delivered the leave vote, remainers and wannabe future PMs hate him. 'If he becomes leader (and PM) he'll deliver a clean and prosperous Brexit 'They are terrified of his popular appeal.' Stewart Jackson, ex-chief of staff to David Davis, dismissing Sir Alan Duncan 'This is the guy who flew to Chicago at public expense to tell us that Brexit was a 'tantrum' by the 'working classes (sic)'. 'Pompous doesn't really do it justice.' Advertisement

Leaked drafts suggested it contained a number of radical ideas, including a Star Wars-style missile defence shield, an expeditionary force to defend the Falklands and dropping all tariffs on food, which the farming establishment claims would destroy British agriculture.

One source said: We had to pull it. We had to make sure every dot and comma was sensible or we would be torn apart. Some of the ideas, such as the Falklands force, were nonsense. Thats got nothing to do with Brexit and should never have been in there.

Another said some in the group had included their own pet projects, such as massively boosting defence spending, that were unrelated to Brexit. The report, entitled A Better Deal For Britain, is now not expected to be published.

The group faced further confusion last night over its plans for resolving the problem of the Northern Ireland border, which are due to be published this morning. Sources said that an early draft that proposed allowing flying squads of tax inspectors to carry out checks away from the border had been dropped.

Its not been our finest week, one member of the ERG acknowledged last night.

But I wouldnt write us off. Chequers is not going to get through  we will make sure of that.

In other developments:

Mr Johnson threw his weight behind a new report calling for the UK to leave the EU without a deal, and warned: I cannot possibly vote for Chequers;

The Economists for Free Trade group said no-deal would let the UK make global trade deals and cut regulation, boosting the economy by 1trillion over 15 years;

Chancellor Philip Hammond warned the UK would still have to pay much of the 39billion Brexit divorce bill in the event of no deal;

Whitehall sources said the EU was preparing for an emergency summit in November to hammer out a Brexit deal with the UK amid fears time was running out.

The setback to the ERGs plans has delighted Downing Street, which sent out loyalists to point out that the partys Eurosceptic wing no longer claimed to have a fully worked-up alternative plan.

One senior Tory source said: They have been promising an alternative plan since Chequers and we were all ears, if a bit sceptical.

Now it turns out they havent got one after all.

Comment  Page 16
Are you rather nervously watching Wanderlust with your partner?

This new BBC drama is about a long-term couple who've lost desire for each other and try sleeping with other people as a way to reignite their libido.

While few couples embrace the idea of polyamory and open relationships, most couples who've been together a while absolutely acknowledge the sexual monotony in monogamy.

Sex in the beginning is hot, frantic and fuelled by lust rather than ruined by domesticity.

Who wouldn't want it back again?

Inspired the new BBC drama Wanderlust, a series focused on a couple whose sex life has fizzled out, Tracey Cox reveals how to reignite your libido in the bedroom. Pictured: Toni Collette and Steven Mackintosh as Joy and Alan in the new drama

How to have just-met-sex

The trick to recapturing that fresh excitement is to create sex scenarios that push you both firmly out of your comfort zones and back into treating each other like good old-fashioned sex objects.

Just like you used to at the start, remember?

Here you'll find a list of simple, easy-to-do, relatively 'prop' free sex treats you can do for each other or together to shift your sex life up a gear.

Or two. Or ten.

They start out mild and climb higher on the 'kinky' scale as they go but, panic not, there's nothing too out there.

Certainly, there might be stuff you haven't done (I hope so, anyway!) which will raise your anxiety level. But that's a good thing  a bit of nervous excitement isn't going to harm either of you.

(Obviously) don't try anything you really are morally opposed to but do push yourselves a little. I'm not talking other bodies in the bed, Wanderlust style, so be adventurous! Playful. Daring.

Simple tricks like having sex with your eyes open can spark a sexual connection between you and your partner

Here goes

Easy does it

Have sex with your eyes open

Seventy percent of couples have sex with their eyes closed and only fifteen per cent open them during orgasm, according to US sex therapist David Schnarch.

'Most of us tune out our partner at a time that's supposed to be the most intimate,' he says.

Make eye contact all the way through. You'll laugh, you might even cry (some people do!) but you sure as hell will feel more connected.

Run a bubble bath, fetch two glasses of something bubbly then jump right in there.

Sleep naked  always. But especially if you're going through a low or no sex period. Skin to skin snuggling at least satisfies the cuddle craving.

Play in public. Discreetly suck his finger like it's another body part. Pull her palm to your mouth and bury your tongue.

Chat to him as he's in the shower.

Then say 'Hold on a minute', quickly remove your clothes and step in to pleasure him using a soapy, thick washcloth.

Both the texture of the cloth and the spontaneity of the gesture means the whole thing will be over in a flash  but deeply appreciated!

Mix it up every single time

Change one of the following elements for each session you have: the time of day you do it, what room you do it in, what you're wearing, what position you choose, who initiates, what the focus of the session is (hand-job, oral, intercourse etc).

Offer 'no strings' sex

They don't have to do anything but lie back and take, take, take.

Not only will this make you look wonderfully generous sexually, only the most selfish of partners won't feel obligated to return the favour at a later date.

Now you've got the idea

Dare to do the cliches like chocolate body paint poured on and licked off or dressing up as a French Maid and serving him breakfast in bed.

The reason why these moves are cliches is because they appeal to a lot of people.

Tracey recommends that all couples sleep naked every night without exception as skin to skin contact is beneficial even if you don't have sex

Start a 'sex jar'

Another golden oldie that works.

Each privately write down 10 things you'd like to try. Rip the paper into separate points, fold and put all of them into a jar and pick out one a week to try.

Sext

It's not just for teens.

'I've been thinking about what we did all day'; 'If you want me right now, I'm in the upstairs bedroom'.

Shave each other's bits

It's a laugh.and sexier than you think!

Wrap yourself as a present

Coloured non-stick bondage tape can be fashioned into quite a cool boob tube and matching mini.

Or grab the cling-wrap from the kitchen and wind around and around to encase your breasts.

He can lick through it and unwrap you, layer by layer.

Try the 'Kivin method'

Transform a predictable oral sex session for her from dreary to dynamite with one slick move.

WATCH TELLY DRESSED FOR SEX Listen, I love comfy/slobby clothes as much as the next person, but there is a limit to how often you can both pull on the same stained, moth-eaten sweatshirts and track pants. Happily, there's a way to be super-comfy and sexy at the same time. Fine, for instance, for you to pull on a baggy singlet vest or fall-off-the-shoulder jumper if there's a hot-coloured push-up bra peeking out underneath it. Even better is wearing all the 'mistake' clothes you forked out for, then realized you'd never have the guts to wear in public  like the short skirt that barely covers your knickers, bought in a little-too-confident mood, or the way too low top that reveals a nipple the minute you move. Yes, I know, you shouldn't have to look your best all the time but don't go to the other extreme and look your worst all the time. Work mates and friends get to see you all dressed up, why can't your partner? This is particularly relevant if times are tough and you're not going out that much. Even if you're staying in every Saturday night to watch a boxset and have takeaway, pulling on a nice pair of jeans and top won't kill either of you. Advertisement

Also called 'Tahitian cunninlingus', you simply position your head so it's at right angles to her body.

You're licking up and down but because your head is perpendicular to her body, your tongue travels from side to side, producing an entirely new sensation.

Go on, you know you want to

Play I spy

Lead him into a dark room, take off his shirt, then tie his hands behind his back (with his tie or your tights) before stripping him stark naked.

You remain clothed.

Stand behind him and tell him you've been watching him from across the road with binoculars. You've dreamed of the day you could actually touch him and  what luck!  now he's virtually your sex slave.

Do what you would do, if this was true.

Do yourselves  in front of each other

Come on, you've read this advice a hundred times before but avoided doing it out of embarrassment/ prudishness/ whatever.

Thing is, you will learn so much about each other by masturbating in front of each other, I insist you at least give it a try. (If you're really shy, close your eyes so you can't see your partner watching.)

Even if you don't actually masturbate with your fingers anymore (why would you when a vibrator does the job so well for you?), pretending to do it is enough.

Men are generally less shy about showing off but don't launch into it so quickly, she doesn't get to see what technique, grip and hold you use.

This isn't just a turn-on exercise, it's a show-and-tell one.

Play 'What if you could do anything you want?'

It's a fantasy game. Ask your partner, 'What's the thing you'd most like to do in bed that would surprise me. Then I'll tell you'.

If they're shy, you start.

Make it silly or funny to begin with and if they claim there's nothing they'd like to do that they haven't already done, tell them to make something up.

Believe me, people always have something up their sleeve: letting them pretend it's 'made up' let's them put something out there and see your reaction without risking anything.

If it's 'I'd rather scoop my eyes out with a teaspoon' all they have to do is say, 'Well, you said to make anything up!'

Sneaky or what!

The more you share, the more they'll share.

Visit the all-new traceycox.com for more information about love and sex and to see Tracey's product ranges.
A group of males have dressed up as mermen for the second year in a row in a calendar shoot, but the reason might not be for what you think.

The Newfoundland and Labrador Beard and Moustache Club in Canada raised almost $250,000 last year when a group men sporting facial hair decided to wear fishtails and scales.

Now the bearded men are back for a second round and this time plan to donate all proceeds to the Violence Prevention Newfoundland and Labrador, an organization which aims to reduce violence for vulnerable populations.

Amazing: A group of men from Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada dressed up as mermen for the second year in a row for a calendar shoot

Generous: Last year, the group went viral for the shoot and donated all the proceeds to a charity that helps people with mental illnesses through animal therapy

Important: This year, all the proceeds for the MerB'y 2019 calendar will go to the Violence Prevention Newfoundland and Labrador

Vulnerable populations targeted by the intended charity include women, children and those with disabilities.

The funding will help with education, advocacy and support for those groups who are impacted by violence.

Group founder Hasan Hai told the HuffPost why the bearded men decided to release a second calendar after the success of last year's edition.

'After last year's calendar went viral, we knew we found the perfect organization and project to support this year,' he said.

The group, entitled the MerB'ys, first came up with its name because it combined the term 'mermen' with 'b'y', which is a Newfoundland gender-neutral word for 'buddy'.

What's required to become a member of the fishtail-wearing group? You must have facial hair and a passion for giving back to charity.

Poised: Requirements to be one of the mermen? You have to grow phenomenal facial hair and have a passion for charity

Amazing: The group pics men to be in the shoot based on their written application, not by how they look

Heartwarming: The group focuses on giving back to its community. Pictured is the check they donated last year to the Spirit Horse Mental Health Program

'This calendar is really an opportunity to take a traditionally accepted idea of what masculinity looks like  big and bearded, for instance  and show that masculinity is actually a beautiful spectrum,' he said.

'Men can be gentle, affectionate, whimsical and loving.'

This year, Hasan said the calendar includes transgender men and men of all different races to incorporate diversity.

'What most people don't realize is that being selected to be a merb'y has nothing to do with your physical appearance or amount of facial hair you have,' Hasan said.

The selection process was all about what the men wrote in their application.

'It's really the beard on the inside that matters,' Hasan said.

After raising almost $250,000 last year, the proceeds were donated to the Spirit Horse Mental Health Program, which incorporates animal therapy to help people with mental and physical ailments.
A newly-launched 'immersive outdoor spa' invites stressed-out Londoners to bathe in an infrared sunset, drink in a pink mist waterfall and relax on 'meditation dunes'.

Paradise Now, dubbed 'the world's first wellbeing playground' by posh bible Tatler, is a pop-up wellness retreat located in Belgravia's Eccleston Yards, just a stone's throw from Victoria Station.

It promises to showcase the very latest wellness trends such as biohacking, nootropics, rehydration technology, urban nature bathing and touchscreen chromo-therapy.

Set in a large, open-air courtyard, it is billed as a 'unique and pioneering experience' designed to refresh and supercharge visitors in 30 minutes.

The newly-launched Paradise Now in London's Belgravia which promises to showcase the very latest wellness trends such as biohacking, nootropics, and rehydration technology

Pride of place in the outdoor spa is a huge pink mist waterfall, infused with minerals and extracts of raspberry leaf, aloe vera, chamomile and citrus where guests are invited to 'bathe in the mist of the fountain of nature'.

Also available to visitors are the haptic dunes; described as an 'immersive meditation zone' where guests can absorb nutrients from the vitamin-infused, aromatherapy-scented pebbles.

The pebbles are even painted Baker-Miller pink - a colour scientifically proven to relax and reduce anxiety.

Opposite the dunes, a huge infrared light installation shaped like the sun - dubbed a 'perpetual sunset' - will exude a warming glow.

Pride of place in the outdoor spa is a huge pink mist waterfall (pictured), infused with minerals and extracts of raspberry leaf, aloe vera, chamomile and citrus for guests to inhale

Paradise Now's haptic dunes (pictured) are described as an 'immersive meditation zone' where guests can absorb nutrients from the vitamin-infused, aromatherapy-scented pebbles

Infrared light therapy is used to boost endorphins and metabolism, relieve depression and stimulate vitamin D production.

The sunset will be surrounded by screens streaming live sunsets from stunning locations across the world, according to Eccleston's website.

Finally, the spa's electrolyte aqua bar features water collection columns infused with different properties from each of the seven continents to transform London's rainwater into nutrient-rich filtered water.

The bar will also serve a selection of 'designer waters', infusions, and water-based cocktails.

Visitors to Paradise Now can also make use of the electrolyte bar which features water collection columns infused with different properties from each of the seven continents

Created by foodie dup Bompas and Parr, Paradise Now is described as 'a new hub for foodies, creatives and wellness lovers' with free entry, and runs from 7 to 15 September.

The temporary installation will have no trouble luring in millennials with its futuristic wellness offerings and neon pink colour scheme.

Co-creator Harry Parr told Wallpaper* magazine: 'Although honing our physical selves and going to the gym has become the new normal, focusing on mental well-being is definitely playing catch-up, so in that sense, Paradise Now offers a glimpse into the future.'
A paint colour often associated with the 1970s could be making a comeback, Grand Designs host Kevin McCloud predicts.

While grey had replaced brown since he became the host of the popular BBC show in Britain almost 20 years ago, McCloud said yellow was now ripe for a revival.

Ahead of his Australian tour, he evoked a chuckle from 7.30 host Leigh Sales when said the 'unending appetite for bi-fold doors' was the biggest change he had noticed during his TV career.

Scroll down for video

Grand Designs host Kevin McCloud said grey had replaced brown since he became the host of the popular BBC show in Britain almost 20 years ago, but predicted the 1970s could return

While grey had replaced brown since he became the host of the popular BBC show in Britain almost 20 years ago, McCloud said yellow was now ripe for a revival

He also predicted the move to a neutral shade could soon be replaced by a colour more commonly used during the 1970s, in the era when brown was also popular.

'Somebody said to me the other day, "What great changes have you been able to mark over the past 20 years?" So I think the movement from brown to grey, that's been quite a big one,' he told the ABC on Tuesday.

'You know, we used to put brown windows in buildings; now they're all grey.'

'Next it's going to be yellow.'

The 59-year-old television presenter also observed a disturbing trend as homes became even bigger.

Ahead of his Australian tour, he evoked a chuckle from 7.30 host Leigh Sales when said the 'unending appetite for bi-fold doors' was the biggest change he had noticed

The 59-year-old television presenter also observed a disturbing trend as homes became even bigger, nominating the need for ever-more bathrooms

'People are putting in more toilets into their homes than there are actual physical inhabitants of the building,' he said.

'I mean, I don't understand that. How can four people need five toilets?

'The house I grew up in had one toilet for the entire family. That seemed to be enough. People queued outside if they needed it.'

He joked a home in 10 years' time would be 'just toilets and nothing else'.

McCloud is touring Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth in October.
President Quang said the two leaders had very successful talks, during which they exchanged ideas on all aspects of the relations between the two countries, discussed and agreed to further develop the Vietnam  Indonesia strategic partnership in a more vigorous and profound way, for the interest of each country and for the sake of peace, prosperity, cooperation and development prevailing in the region.



The State leader stressed that the two sides worked out major orientations to push up bilateral in the time to come, focusing on the boosting of delegation exchanges and contacts at all levels via the channels of State, National Assembly and Government, as well as people-to-people exchanges so as to further improve the bonds and political trust and, at the same time, lay a foundation conducive to the bringing into full play the potential and advantages, thus bringing about practical, effective and mutually beneficial fruits to the bilateral cooperation.



The two leaders also pledged mutual support in grasping chances of the regional economic linkage to strengthen the bilateral trade cooperation and within the ASEAN.



President Quang stressed that the two sides agreed to facilitate each others key exports, striving to bring the revenue of the bilateral trade of goods to the level of US$10 billion or even higher in 2020.



President Widodo said very many Indonesian investors look to develop their investment in Vietnam, and that is why Indonesia hopes the Vietnamese State will facilitate and give fair treatment to Indonesian investors.



Sharing the common values on a region of peace, stability, security and safety, President Quang said the two sides pledged to continue pushing up their defence  security cooperation to effectively cope with traditional and non-traditional security challenges now rising in the region. The two sides will also intensify their cooperation on the sea, agriculture, transport, energy, culture, tourism, people-to-people exchanges, etc, to match the potential and demand of the two countries.



President Widodo said the two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in fighting and preventing illegal fishing activities, and accelerate negotiations on the two countries exclusive economic zones.



The two leaders laid stress on the strengthening of cooperation to complete the goal of building the ASEAN Community Vision 2025, building an ASEAN Community of solidarity, self-reliance and creativeness, and bringing into full play its central role in the region as well as contributing to the maintenance of peace, stability and development in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. They also agreed to support trade liberalization, ensuring peace, security and development of the states in the region.



President Quang said the two sides reaffirmed the importance of peace, stability, security, marine and aviation safety and freedom in the East Sea; settling disputes by peaceful measures on the basis of international law, especially the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982, fully respecting the diplomatic and legal procedures, seriously and fully implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of the Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and reaching the Code of Conduct (COC) at an early date.



President Widodo stressed Indonesia welcomes progress recorded in the negotiations on COC, making important contributions to affirming that the Ease Sea remains a region of safety, stability and peace. He also thanked Vietnam for supporting Indonesias viewpoint on the perception of the Indo-Pacific.



President Joko Widodo is now making a state-level visit to Vietnam from September 11-12 at the invitation of President Tran Dai Quang. After their talks which followed the official welcome ceremony for the guest also on September 11, the two leaders witnessed the signing of various cooperation documents between the two countries.

Vietnamplus
A woman who received up to $100 per hour to accompany wealthy men on lavish dates insists her role was different to 'escorting'.

Josephine*, a 'sugar baby', was 19 when she discovered a website which charges men a subscription fee to bid for dates with women.

'I was always upfront with my dates about my "no-sex rule" if they asked. Sometimes they'd cancel, but it didn't matter, there were plenty more who wanted to pay for my company alone,' she told Mamamia.

Josephine* revealed she was 19 when she discovered a website which charges men (and women) a subscription fee to bid for first dates (stock image)

Josephine was living overseas at the time and was struggling to make ends meet when she met a woman who had discovered a quick way to make money to fund her 'nights out, designer wardrobe, and lavish holidays'.

The secret? Paid dating.

The idea appealed to her so she set up a profile and watched as the 'requests rolled in'.

Josephine's first date was with a 60-year-old film director at a restaurant frequented by 'the rich and famous'.

I quit the bar job and was finally able to enjoy my life abroad comfortably

When the night ended, the man didn't ask for sex, all he did was slip an envelope containing $200 into Josephine's bag.

'I'd been there for two hours, and made $200, which was much more than I'd make in an eight-hour shift at the bar. It was the easiest money I ever made,' she said.

A further 12 dates 'with mostly older businessmen' followed - many of them showering her with expensive gifts.

'I was always upfront with my dates about my 'no-sex rule' if they asked,' Josephine said (stock image)

The men she met said they were paying for dates because they were either 'socially awkward and found traditional dating difficult' or simply wanted to cut through the 'noise of Tinder'.

At her peak, Josephine had a 'drawer full of cash' she could dig into whenever she needed money.

'I quit the bar job and was finally able to enjoy my life abroad comfortably,' she said.

While Josephine maintains sex wasn't part of her dating arrangements, she said she dated a man from South Africa with 'piercing blue eyes' who she kissed.

And while she's left these days behind her for now, she doesn't have any qualms about sharing her past as it's part of 'who she is'.

*Name has been changed
At just 21 years of age Madeline Stuart has rubbed shoulders with some of the fashion industry's best, shooting for the likes of Marie Claire, Moda Magazine and Vogue.

And this week the Brisbane-born model with Down syndrome flew to New York for her sixth season of fashion week - walking in more shows than she ever has before.

'It's been both exhilarating and rewarding. Maddy has walked in seven shows here and has shown her own collection 21 Reasons Why which was received with excitement and favour,' her mother Rosanne Stuart told FEMAIL.

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At just 21 years of age Madeline Stuart has rubbed shoulders with some of the fashion industry's best, shooting for the likes of Marie Claire, Moda Magazine and Vogue

This week the Brisbane-born model with Down syndrome flew to New York for her sixth season of fashion week - walking in more shows than she ever has before

'It has been great to see so many international designers embracing Madeline and other models with diversity, be it Down syndrome or transgender... there is a great feeling of unity in New York this year.'

Madeline, who rose to prominence after shedding 23 kilos and becoming the world's first professional catwalk model with Down syndrome, walked for Burning Guitars, Femata Couture and House of Byfield.

She also strutted her stuff for Rhutu Bhonsle, Duane Topping and Luluetgigi.

'Maddy has walked in seven shows here and has shown her own collection 21 Reasons Why which was received with excitement and favour,' her mother Rosanne Stuart told FEMAIL

The designers were enamoured by her presence at the shows, explaining how they were excited to have a world-class model on their shores

The designers were enamoured by her presence at the shows, explaining how they were excited to have a world-class model on their shores.

'Having Madeline walk for us is such an honour. She is a shining voice shouting out that beauty is everywhere and in everyone. We are proud to be a part of that message this year,' Topping Designs said of her appearance.

'While I love creating collections and imparting art into the fashion industry, I believe as humans, we have to find a cause larger than ourselves to dedicate ourselves to,' designer Rutu Bhonsle said.

Her own label 21 Reasons Why celebrated its third season at fashion week and featured watercoloured jumpsuits, crop tops and high-waisted pants

While the frantic fashion week in New York is winding down, Madeline won't be returning home to Australian soil just yet

The 21-year-old will attend both London and Paris Fashion Week to walk for Colleen Morris and Fashions Finest

Her own label 21 Reasons Why celebrated its third season at fashion week and featured watercoloured jumpsuits, crop tops and high-waisted pants.

It is described as 'a contemporary, edgy women's ready-to-wear collection, perfect for day wear and yet trendy and versatile for an evening out on the town'.

While the frantic fashion week in New York is winding down, Madeline won't be returning home to Australian soil just yet.

The 21-year-old will attend both London and Paris Fashion Week to walk for Colleen Morris and Fashions Finest on September 15 and 16.

You can follow Madeline on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
An American model has been forced to apologise after she brought up the struggle of having blonde hair during a conversation about diversity on the catwalk.

Victoria's Secret star Devon Windsor, 24, compared the hardship of keeping up her highlights to the discrimination faced by women of colour in the fashion industry.

She made the comment after fellow model Shanina Shaik, whose mother is of Lithuanian descent and father is half Pakistani, half Arab, told how she had been bullied over her skin colour.

Devon hit back: 'Do you know how hard it is to be blonde?'

A clip of the conversation, which was filmed as part of upcoming reality show Model Squad, sparked a fierce backlash on social media and prompted a Twitter apology from Devon.

The model claimed the 'joke' had been taken out of context but said she understood it was an 'incredibly insensitive' thing to say.

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Victoria's Secret star Devon Windsor, 24, far right, compared the hardship of keeping up her highlights to the discrimination faced by women of colour in the fashion industry. She made the comments while speaking to fellow model Shanina Shaik (left). Centre, Nadine Leopold

A clip of the conversation, which was filmed as part of an upcoming reality show, prompted a fierce backlash on social media and prompted a Twitter apology from Devon, pictured

The exchange came during a conversation between Devon, Shanina and a group of other models including Chinese-born beauty Ping Hue while filming a scene for Model Squad, which premieres on E! this weekend.

Bringing up the need for better representation in fashion, Shanina said: 'I used to get bullied. Because of my skin colour I wasnt gonna be able to do high fashion.

'A lot of black girls would have to miss Milan because they werent able to walk in the shows because they dont want girls of that colour.'

Speaking to Devon, Ping suggested the issue must be 'super hard to relate to'.

But Devon hit back, saying: 'I literally f*****g went through hell and literally lived in different countries like every other month, and didnt speak that language.

'I didnt speak Paris, didnt speak Italian. And I did that for like, two years.'

'You know how hard it is to be blonde? I have to get a highlight every month! Do you know how expensive that is?'

Devon, pictured far left at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in Shanghai in 2017, claimed the 'joke' had been taken out of context but said she understood it was an 'incredibly insensitive' thing to say. Also pictured l-r, Megan Williams, Roosmarijn de Kok and Nadine Leopold

The clip was met with widespread criticism after it was shared on social media, including by user theartofshade_.

One outraged woman wrote: 'Theres so many young women looking up to you right now instead of being a role model, your just out here being a dump blonde who complains about traveling the world, when so many girls would take your place without hesitation.'

Another added: 'Joking or not what an ignorant thing to say.'

A third posted: 'Disappointed that someone would even respond in this way to a POC [person of colour] speaking her truth.'

The comment emerged in a promotional clip for reality show Model Squad, which premieres on E! this weekend. Devon told how she 'went through hell' in the early days of her career

As fellow models including Daniela Braga, pictured, looked on, Devon asked: 'Do you know how hard it is to be blonde?' The question came amid a conversation about diversity

Devon ended her outburst by adding she 'has to get a highlight every month'. The comment was widely criticised by viewers who watched the clip on social media

Devon, who has been spotted at New York Fashion Week parties this week, was forced to apologise in the wake of the backlash.

In a post shared on Twitter, she said the comment was a joke that had been taken out of context.

She wrote: ' I want to apologize for what I said. It goes without saying that the comments in the show are incredibly insensitive.

'The majority of the conversation was edited and if a peer of mine wanted to discuss such a serious subject, I would never follow it with a joky...

'I know the struggle of diversity and inclusion in my business as well as in so many others is not one to take lightly.'
A Big Brother star has admitted to using smacking to discipline her daughter, and claims she's turned out better because of it.

Rebecca Jane, 32, said she had smacked 12-year-old Paris when her behaviour got 'out of control' in the past, and she'd tried other discipline techniques like putting her in a 'time out' or on the so-called naughty step.

She was speaking on This Morning during a debate following the announcement that Scotland is set to be the first part of the UK to ban smacking, after Nicola Sturgeon's government endorsed a proposed new law.

Rebecca said she refused to let other people 'tell her how to parent', and insisted that her daughter was doing 'fantastically well' as a direct result of her disciplining.

But her comments were slammed by This Morning viewers, who said there was 'no excuse' to smack children.

Big Brother 2017 star Rebecca Jane, 32, said she has smacked her 12-year-old daughter Peaches when her behaviour has got 'out of control'. Pictured: Rebecca on This Morning on Wednesday

Rebecca insisted that her daughter was doing 'fantastically well' because of being smacked. Pictured left to right: Rebecca, Paris and youngest daughter Peaches, five

The proposed legislation will remove the defence of 'justifiable assault' in Scots law, which allows parents to use physical punishment to admonish a child.

Rebecca, who is also mum to Peaches, five, who she has never smacked - said that smacking is sometimes justified in extreme situations when children are behaving badly.

She said: 'Its been very extreme measures when she's been completely and utterly out of control, it's used as distraction technique for them to address their behaviour.

'Its not just that, its about the threat of it and if they think that may happen to them then they will control their behaviour.'

Her comments were slammed by This Morning viewers on Twitter (pictured), who said there was 'no excuse' to smack children

Rebecca said she only gives her daughter a light smack on her bottom or arm and doesn't caused physical damage.

She blamed declining levels of smacking for the increasing levels of youth crime, saying that older generations committed less crime because they were disciplined.

She slammed the proposed legislation, and said she should be able to punish her children in any way she sees fit.

Rebecca continued: 'Lets us parent our children dont us how to tdo it. ive got the best interests of my child at heart shes turned out fantastically well and I perfectly agree with smacking.'

It was recently announced that Scotland is set to be the first part of the UK to ban smacking after Nicola Sturgeon's government endorsed a proposed new law. File photo

This Morning viewers took to criticise Rebecca for smacking her children, saying it's never justified.

One tweeted: 'There is no excuse for smacking children. All it shows to your child is that when youre buttons are pressed, you can lash out. If you need to smack anyone, then youve lost control.'

'Smacking is wrong on every level, its violence towards an innocent child, a stern word and warning should be more than enough,' another posted.

A third said: 'Smacking your children will make them hate you and think its okay to deal with their anger with violence. Not rocket science, no one should be putting their hands on anyone.'
The Duchess of Sussex has opted for a very down-to-earth option for her first solo thank you note as a royal, sending out a postcard to fans who wished her well on her 37th birthday.

The missive was shared on Instagram by royal fan loopycrown3 and unusually features a candid snap of the Duchess greeting royal fans during a walkabout on her royal visit to Ireland this year .

Former Suits star Meghan can be seen beaming in the image, taken at Trinity College Dublin, as she accepted a bunch of flowers presented by wellwishers.

Meanwhile, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have also been sending out cards to thank those who wished Prince George well on his birthday in July.

The couple chose the youngster's official birthday potrait for the the card, showing the little prince captured by Matt Porteus on the day of his brother Prince Louis' christening.

Meghan has broken with tradition by sending a postcard featuring a candid shot from a royal walkabout in Dublin in July 2018 to thank people who wished her well on her 37th birthday

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have sent out a thank you card featuring an adorable portrait of Prince George at his brother Louis' christening to those who wished him a happy fifth birthday

It's an example of how royal thank you cards usually feature a posed image, showing that Meghan has broken with tradition with a more laid-back approach.

However, the message inside was typical of royal thank you cards, saying: 'The Duchess of Sussex is so touched you took the trouble to write as you did on the occasion of her 27th birthday.

'It really was most thoughtful of you and Her Royal Highness sense you her heartfelt thanks and best wishes.'

It's identical to the message the Duchess of Cambridge's past thank you cards have featured, although Meghan substituted 'heartfelt' thanks for 'warmest'.

Adding her own stamp! Meghan's message is identical to that used by Charles and Camilla and William and Kate, although she expressed 'heartfelt' rather than 'warmest wishes'

Kate and William have sent a thank you card to royal fans who wished Prince George a happy fifth birthday in July this year

Kate uses almost the same message as Meghan for thank you cards sent to wellwishers

The difference indicates that the Duchess may have wanted to add her own stamp on correspondence to royal fans.

Last year, it was revealed how William and Kate send the same 'warmest thanks and best wishes' to wellwishers almost every time they send out a thank you card.

The message on their cards is also exactly the same as that used by Prince Charles and Camilla.

Kate and William also sent almost identical thank you cards to people who wished them well on their wedding anniversary in 2017 and 2018, featuring the same image of the couple during their Himalayan trek to Bhutan's Tiger Nest monastery.
A job advert that stated 'persons with young children need not apply' has sparked anger on social media.

The advert for an office worker for a Dublin-based oil company was posted on recruitment website Indeed, but appears to have since been removed.

The job description has been heavily criticised online, with some describing it as 'hugely depressing' and 'surely illegal'.

Under the Employment Equality Acts in Ireland, employers cannot discriminate against those who have children.

A job advert for an office worker in Dublin has sparked anger, as the description states: 'Persons with young Children need not apply' (circled)

The job advert was for an office worker position at a 'Dublin Oil Company', based in Malahide. It is not clear which company posted the ad.

The description said the company needed an employee for 'answering phones and computer skills', and said the person 'must have a good knowledge of the Dublin area'.

It also stated in the third line of the description: 'Persons with young Children need not apply'.

The controversial job advert was first shared on Twitter by the @WorkJuggle account, who commented: 'This just shared with us. Can you believe someone wrote this? And that @indeed posted it?'

Social media users say they were left shocked by the job advert, with one questioning: 'Can you believe someone wrote this?'

Others were quick to comment on the job description: with one posting: 'On what level did they think this would be okay!? Speechless.'

Another added: 'This is terrible! And Im 2018 for gods sake, shows that this company have a long way to go.....'

However, one person said they weren't surprised by the advert, commenting: 'Absolutely can believe someone wrote it.

'I know this is the caveat for the half the jobs I have applied for but usually it is coded with "must be available for long hours" or "deadline driven environment" when I know the jobs don't really require either.'

MailOnline has contacted Indeed for comment.
She is the proud mother to Princesses Leonor, 12, and Sofia, 11.

And Queen Letizia of Spain showed her maternal side as she visited the Baudilio Arce public school to chair the opening of the 2018/2019 academic year, in Asturias, northern Spain on Wednesday.

In adorable scenes the Spanish royal, 45, was swamped by excited young pupils as she arrived at the school on the first day of term.

Her visit came after she and King Felipe joined fellow school run parents in dropping their own daughters off at the school gates for the start of the new term in Madrid on Tuesday.

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Queen Letizia of Spain showed her maternal side as she visited the Baudilio Arce public school to chair the opening of the 2018/2019 academic year, in Asturias, northern Spain on Tuesday

In adorable scenes the royal consort, 45, was swamped by excited young pupils as she arrived for the school's first day

Famed for her effortless elegance, Letizia put on an understated chic display in a casual monochrome ensemble.

Dressed in white jeans and a black and white checked blouse, the former journalist wore her brunette hair in a sleek side parting.

Letizia was seen making her way through the excited crowd of children, who stretched out their arms, keen to hold hands with the country's queen.

Later on the royal was seen visiting a class of primary school pupils, helping them with their drawings.

Later on Queen Letizia was seen visiting a class of primary school pupils, helping them with their drawings during the first day of the new term

Queen Letizia of Spain attends the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school and gives a presentation to the class

Queen Letizia is mother to Princesses Leonor, 12, and Sofia, 11, with husband King Felipe, 50, who ascended to the Spanish throne in 2014, and was seen bonding with the children

Queen Letizia is mother to Princesses Leonor, 12, and Sofia, 11, with husband King Felipe, 50, who ascended to the Spanish throne in 2014.

On Tuesday Felipe and Letizia of Spain looked every inch the proud parents as they dropped their own daughters off for the first day back at school.

The Spanish royals joined other mothers and fathers taking their children back to Santa Maria de los Rosales, in Madrid, after the summer break.

Queen Letizia of Spain was seen chatting to the children as she helped them with their drawings in adorable scenes

Famed for her effortless elegance, Letizia put on an understated chic display in a casual monochrome ensemble as she joined the class

Letizia was seen beaming as she put her arms around one of the children and chatted to two attentive little girls

Princess Leonor and Princess Sofia looked delighted to be seeing their classmates and beamed as they made their way up the school steps.

In a statement, the Spanish palace said that Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofia would travel to America to join the educational camp in a bid to give them 'new knowledge and experiences'.

King Felipe and Letizia, who are keen to complement their daughters' education with broader influences from different cultures, remained in Madrid to continue their royal duties while the girls were abroad.

Letizia married King Felipe ten years ago at Cathedral Santa Maria la Real de la Almudena in Madrid.

Dressed in white jeans and a black and white checked blouse, the former journalist wore her brunette hair in a sleek side parting

Queen Letizia of Spain (C) attends the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on September 12,

Queen Letizia of Spain attended the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on Tuesday and was seen interacting with the children

Queen Letizia of Spain attended the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on Tuesday and visited a computer class

Queen Letizia of Spain attended the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on Tuesday and handed out goodie bags for the children

The relationship began in November 2002 and in 2003, just months after she had been promoted to the position of anchor on the national news channel, she quit her job and days later the royal engagement was announced.

When Prince Felipe of Asturias announced his engagement to then TV presenter Letizia Ortiz in 2003, it sent tongues wagging.

Letizia boasted a hugely impressive career, during which she reported on 9/11 and covered the Iraq War, and an ex-husband.

Letizia chatted happily with the teachers as she attended the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on Tuesday

Queen Letizia of Spain was seen arriving to school with the children as she attended the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on Tuesday

Queen Letizia of Spain was swamped by mini fans as she attended the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on Tuesday

On her big day the royal bride dazzled in an ivory gown with a 15-foot-long train and a sparkling platinum and diamond tiara, which her mother-in-law Queen Sofia wore for her wedding almost exactly 42 years previously.

Letizia is the granddaughter of a taxi driver and the eldest daughter of Jesus Jose Ortiz Alvarez, a journalist, and first wife Maria de la Paloma Rocasolano Rodriguez, a nurse and hospital union representative from a working-class background.

She attended public high school and did a degree at the Complutense University of Madrid. She later gained an MA in Audiovisual Journalism at the Institute for Studies in Audiovisual Journalism.

King Juan Carlos abdicated in 2014 in favour of his son, now King Felipe VI.

Queen Letizia of Spain stopped to take selfies with fans as she attended the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on Tuesday

Pupils were seen reaching out to hold hands with Queen Letizia of Spain as she attended the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on Tuesday

Queen Letizia of Spain stopped to take selfies with fans as she attended the opening of 2018/2019 Scholarship course at Baudilio Arce school on Tuesday
The Scrooges among us might complain that Christmas comes earlier every year, but this year it has arrived fully formed a whopping three months before the big day.

Shops are already getting ready for December 25 despite it only being September, with brands like Tesco and Sainsbury's putting out their festive stock - and shoppers are not happy.

Twitter users have been sharing snaps of aisles laden with wrapping paper, biscuits, crackers and mince pies.

Many complained that it was much to early to be selling Christmas products, while others joked that they couldn't make tins of biscuits and chocolates last that long.

Supermarkets like Tesco and Sainsbury's have already started selling Christmas stock, despite it being three months until December 25. Comedian Bethany Black (below) spotted this festive display in Manchester (top) which featured Terry's Chocolate Oranges, Quality Street tins and Toblerones and other products.

One Tesco branch based in Manchester has a 'Stocking up for Christmas' aisle filled to the brim with festive fare.

Terry's Chocolate Oranges, Quality Street tins and Toblerones were among the products on sale.

Comedian Bethany Black shared a picture of the display on Twitter, writing: 'Like any of that stuff would stay in the cupboard until Christmas. It's like you don't know me at all @Tesco.'

Another branch based in London had countless rolls of wrapping paper already under a three for two offer.

Another Tesco store in London had Christmas wrapping paper in several patterns already on sale, though it's on a three for two deal (top). Josephine Cumbo joked 'thank goodness for Tesco' (below) when she shared the picture

Another London branch is selling Christmas shortbread with snowy scenes of robins and deer on the the tins (top). Gerard Batten shared the snap saying he was 'tempted' by it but said 'there should be a law against' selling the products so early (below)

'It's so easy to run short of Christmas wrapping in September. Thank goodness for Tesco,' Journalist Josephine Cumbo tweeted.

Another branch based in the west country even had a selection of chocolate Father Christmases.

@WestCountry suzi posted: 'Tesco giving everyone the chance to get their chocolatey things nice and early ready for Christmas IN THE FIRST WEEK OF SEPTEMBER.'

A London store had biscuit tins with festive scenes of red robins and deer on a snowy background.

Tesco are also selling chocolate Father Christmases for 1 each (top), with @WestCountrySuzi complaining that they're on sale in the 'first week of September' (below)

Gerard Batten tweeted the picture, saying: 'I'm in Tesco, it's 8th September and they are already selling Christmas stuff. Chocolate Father Christmas' and all. I'm tempted by the mince pies but what does four months of this do to a child's perception of Christmas before the big day? There should be law against it!'

MailOnline has contacted Tesco and is awaiting comment.

In a Sainsbury's store in London stacks of the store's own brand mince pies were already on the shelves.

'And so it begins. I can believe it's Christmas @sainsburys already. #September,' Irish journalist Tadhg Enright captioning the photo.

A London based branch of Sainsbury's are already selling their own brand mince pies in their bread aisle (top). Journalist Tadhg Enright said 'And so it begins' (below)

A spokesperson for Sainsbury's said: 'We start to stock some festive products in advance of the main Christmas period as some customers like to be more organised and help spread the cost.'

However, other Twitter users pointed out that families on lower incomes may be doing their Christmas shopping early so they can save money.

One tweeted: 'Before you kick off about the shops having Christmas stuff in, bear in mind that for a lot of people - under pressure to provide - the shopping has to start now, getting a little bit each week or month as they get paid.'

Another posted: 'A person or family on a lower income might need to spread their purchases across the rest of the year. And I dont just mean gifts, I mean things you might take for granted as parts of Christmas, like tins of sweets, drinks, decorations and lights.'

Other Twitter users pointed out that getting Christmas stock in early is beneficial for shoppers on lower incomes so they can spread the cost of their Christmas shopping (top and bottom)

Some 8.6 million Britons have already started their festive shopping, a survey by American Express found.

Almost half (49 per cent) of people start shopping early to pick up presents in the sales, while year-on-year data shows more Britons are getting a head start on shopping - since 2016 an extra 1.1 million people have started shopping with 100 days to go, the study shows.

Stephen Steinhardt, from American Express, said: 'With so many people starting their shopping early the Christmas countdown is now well and truly under way.

'If you're not an early-bird shopper, it's a good idea to get started before it's time to dig out the tinsel and decorate your Christmas tree. This will avoid last-minute panic buying and help you spread the costs.'
An American designer has said he's rather have the 92-year-old Queen of England sit front row at one of his shows than Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex.

Dennis Basso presented his Spring 2019 collection at New York Fashion Week on Tuesday, and told the New York Post who he'd really like to have as a guest next season.

While he said that 37-year-old Meghan 'is a girl who is showing up style,' he added: 'But the Queen  that is a double snap.'

Playing favorites: American designer Dennis Basso has said he favors the Queen's style over that of Meghan Markle

His choice: He was asked who is dream front row guest would be, and said he's rather have the Queen

Fashion fan? Earlier this year, the Queen attended Richard Quinn's runway show, her first

Shifting focus: Meghan hasn't been to Fashion Week in quite a few years, and certainly not since she started dating Harry

Basso seems to favor royalty across the board, naming two other queens  of pop, that is  as dream guests at his show: Cher and Madonna.

While it seems unlikely the Queen will ever fly into New York to attend Fashion Week, though, she has sat front row at a fashion show more recently than Meghan.

Though the Duchess of Sussex attended quite a few shows back before she started dating Harry, she's stayed away from that scene in recent years.

In February, though, the Queen sat next to Anna Wintour at London Fashion Week, taking in Richard Quinn's show.

Opinion: While he said that Meghan 'is a girl who is showing up style,' he added: 'But the queen  that is a double snap'

Joining the fam: Meghan's style has become more conservative since she started publicly dating Harry

Signature look: The Queen, meanwhile, has dressed much the same for decades

Her look: She opts for ladylike below-the-knee dresses and simple low heels

It's also interesting that Basso should favor the Queen's style, which has gone mostly unchanged in her many decades on the throne.

Many of the colorful coats and matching hats she wears for official appearances today look identical to ones she wore in the 50s, 60s, and 70s.

Dream guests: Basso said he'd also love Cher and Madonna to come to his shows

She also accessorizes quite the same way, picking ladylike frame bags, low heels, and sparkly brooches to pair with nearly every outfit.

Meghan, on the other hand, is a bit more modern in her choices, and certainly dresses with more variety.

Since joining the royal family, she's ditched some of her sexier outfits for polished, slightly more conservative looks, opting for streamlined coats, dresses, and skirts, with ladylike silhouettes and little to no embellishment.

And she also has the magic touch when it comes to making an item of clothing or an accessory an instant hit: Many of the things Meghan chooses to wear instantly sell out  take, for instance, the Club Monaco dress and 22-karat gold Linda Farrow sunglasses she wore to a wedding in August, which both flew off the shelves.

She was also single-handedly responsible for the selling out of a Shoshanna dress this summer, as well as a Goat dress she wore to Prince Charles's 70th birthday celebration  which sold out overnight.

And in fact, based on her current style, Meghan would be more likely to wear a Dennis Basso design than the Queen.

Stars: This time, Martha Stewart and Nicky Hilton Rothschild sat front row

Other guests: Also in attendance were Jonathan Cheban (center), Susan Lucci (left), and Kelly Killoren Bensimon (right)

Take a bow! Basso walked out at the end with Mary J. Blige

As for who actually turned up for Basso's ready-to-wear show this week, the closet thing to royalty was Nicky Hilton Rothschild  whose husband, James Rothschild, is part of Rothschild banking family of England (and whose relations include several with titles).

Also in the front row were Jonathan Cheban, Susan Lucci, Kelly Killoren Bensimon, Warren Elgort, and Martha Stewart.

Mary J. Blige actually walked out with the designer at the end of the show as he took credit for the collection, which he told Vogue was designed for 'the modern-day swan.'

The pieces were a mix of pajama dressing, athleisure, and cocktail, though his main stunners were in the eveningwear category.

Just her style! Despite Basso's preference, it seems more likely than Meghan would wear one of these looks

Flash of red: Basso's known for the sort of eveningwear that a younger royal like Meghan would favor

Girly: His latest collection included gowns with beading, ruffles, and floral prints
Lara Trump penned a heartwarming tribute to her son Luke in celebration of his first birthday, just one day after she revealed critics of her family have stooped as low as verbally attacking her baby boy.

The 35-year-old mom took to Instagram on Wednesday to share a sweet photo of little Luke sprawled on the floor while playing with a birthday balloon.

'To my silly, dog-loving, always-smiling, drumming, two-toothed #SweetPotato: HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY!!!' she wrote. 'You are loved more than youll ever know and I am the luckiest mom in the world. To many, many more!'

Too cute: Lara Trump, 35, took to Instagram on Wednesday to share this sweet photo in honor of her son Luke's first birthday

In the snapshot, Luke's wild blonde hair is sticking straight up in a faux baby mohawk and he is giving the camera a gummy, open-mouth smile.

Fan: The mom revealed on Instagram Stories that little Luke spent the morning watching his dad, Eric Trump, on Fox and Friends

Although he is surrounded by toys, his one hand is resting on a bright yellow balloon while his other holds the red string attached to it.

The darling little boy is dressed casually in a beige tank top, striped shorts, and a baby kerchief around his neck.

Lara revealed on Instagram Stories that her little boy spent the morning of this first birthday watching his father, Eric Trump, on TV.

The proud wife and mother shared a snapshot of Luke wearing the hood of his sweatshirt over his head while staring up at the television.

'Watching dad on @foxandfriends this morning,' Lara wrote.

The night before Luke's birthday, Lara attended the Chiara Boni La Petite Robe show during New York Fashion Week.

President Donald Trump's daughter-in-law donned a black jumpsuit and was seen smiling and chatting with Fox & Friends star Jillian Mele and TV judge Jeanine Pirro, who both sat in the front row with her.

Before the show, Lara spoke with Women's Wear Daily about the criticism she receives as a member of the Trump family, explaining that even her baby boy has been a target for aggression.

Night out: Lara (pictured with designer Chiara Boni) attended the Chiara Boni La Petite Robe show New York Fashion Week show on Tuesday evening

Style: The mom (pictured with fashion entrepreneur Anthony Vecchione) donned a figure-hugging black jumpsuit featuring an open back

Friends: Lara sat in the front row with Fox & Friends star Jillian Mele and TV judge Jeanine Pirro (left to right)

'I think the saddest things Ive seen is people attacking my son, who is turning a year old Wednesdaypeople saying really nasty things about him [as an infant] and while I was pregnant with him, its just a shame that anybody would stoop to that level,' she said.

'But, honestly, nothing surprises us anymore, sadly in a way. But again, we all understand that its so much bigger than all of us,' she added. 'Were willing to take the slings and arrows, if it means that the world is really a better place, and the country is headed in a better direction.'

Lara had nothing but positive things to say about the president, whose time in office as been steeped in controversy and opposition.

'What I will say is I know the man that is my father-in-law. I know that hes doing this for the right reason,' she said. 'His heart is in the right place. If you look at where the country has come since he took office  just sheer numbers  there is no metric that is worse because he is president.'

Opening up: Lara spoke about her father-in-law, President Donald Trump, at the show, saying she knows his 'heart is in the right place'

Heartbreaking: Lara revealed that some critics of her family have stooped as low as saying 'really nasty things' about her baby boy

Look of love: Lara insisted they are just a 'really normal family' that likes to spend time together and catch up. Luke visited Eric, 34, at his Trump Tower office last month

Lara went on to insist that 'in fact, everything is better since he took office,' noting that she is 'incredibly proud' of the 'important changes' her father-in-law has made during his year and a half as president.

Although the Trumps are constantly under scrutiny, she insisted they are just a 'really normal family' that likes to spend time together and catch up.

'It used to be so easy. We used to all be in New York. Now everybody is more spread out between Washington, D.C., and New York,' she said. 'Getting the kids and the cousins together is fun.

'My son loves seeing his grandfather, when we visit him and Melania and Barron. Were like any other family. We just want to catch up and enjoy.'

Lara also spoke about her parents' car wash in North Carolina, which is located right where Hurricane Florence is headed.

Romantic getaway: Eric and Lara spent last weekend in scenic Wyoming

Having a blast: Lara shared photos of herself and Eric riding horses during the trip

In her element: The mother-of-one is an accomplished equestrian, and horseback riding is one of her favorite activities

'So I dont think anyone will be washing cars, coming up,' she said, noting that her parents have been small business owners her entire life.

'My parents have owned the car wash for about 20 years now,' she said. 'It hits very close to home the things that I hear from people. I fully understand and can appreciate the impact that it can have on a business.'

Lara, who was born and raised on Wrightsville Beach, opened up about the impending hurricane in a heartfelt Instagram post on Tuesday.

'Currently living in NY, I cant help but feel helpless right now,' she admitted. 'So many beach communities know what it means to prepare for a hurricane: boarding up windows, raising everything to a higher floor, gassing up cars, taking boats out of the water. Yet, here I am, in New York City, and all I can do is pray for everyone in the path of this storm.

'Weve been through a lot on the Carolina coastline, and, well be through more. But, now, while theres time, get ready: prepare your homes, cars, yards; remember that wherever you go, your pets should go too,' she animal activist added.

Majestic: One stunning photo from the trip shows Eric and Lara riding horses through the mountains

Catch of the day: The couple also went fishing while enjoying the weekend in Wyoming

All smiles: 'Kudos to my husband for hanging in with a crazy horse lady for the weekend,' Lara captioned her Instagram post about the trip

'Its easy to get complacent when weve weathered so many storms before but, please, to everyone in the Carolinas, take this one seriously. Praying for my home state, my home town and all those potentially affected. #GodBlessTheCarolinas#HurricaneFlorence.'

Just last weekend, Lara and Eric, 34, spent a romantic weekend horseback riding and fishing in Wyoming.

Lara famously broke two of her wrists while horseback riding, just weeks before her 2014 wedding to Eric, but it is still one of the equestrian's favorite activities.

At the end of the trip, Lara posted a series of photos of herself and Eric on horses, and she looked right at home in rugged boots and a cowyboy hat.

'What an incredible time in Wyoming!!! Sad to leave but excited to get back to our babies,' she captioned the image, referencing their son and dogs.

'Kudos to my husband for hanging in with a crazy horse lady for the weekend.'
At the dialogue, the Vietnamese leader wanted to know what investors expect from the Vietnamese Government and who are willing to expand investment in Vietnam.The PM urged the foreign businesses to clarify what adjustments that Vietnam should make to facilitate investors expansion in the country.He asked the participants to talk about issues of their interests as well as biggest concerns while running business in the country, and called on investors to contribute ideas to help Vietnam make breakthroughs in its development in both short and long terms.Speaking at the dialogue, global CEOs appreciated the Vietnamese Governments management, especially in improving business and investment environment, and managing macro-economy.They all committed to working closely with the Vietnamese Government to carry out its major policies, including building e-Government and developing digital economy.Judy Hsu, CEO ASEAN and South Asia, Standard Chartered Bank, said the bank, which has operated in Vietnam for 115 years, pledged to continue to promote stronger cooperation in the country.She added that the State Bank of Vietnam recently allowed Standard Chartered to open its 4th branch in Ho Chi Minh City.Meanwhile, Simon Milner, Facebook's Vice President for Public Policy in Asia Pacific, said his firm wants to join the implementation of the Vietnamese Governments vision on digital country in the fields of digital citizen, digital economy, digital Government and digital connection.Giving recommendations on policies for Vietnam to maintain a high growth in the coming time, Yasuo Tanabe, Senior Vice President of Hitachi - the firm that is participating in a metro project in HCM City, stressed the need for Vietnam to develop infrastructure, digital economy and digital commerce.At the same time, representatives from Thai Beverage (Thaibev) of Thailand said the group invested about 5 billion USD in Sai Gon Beer, Alcohol and Beverage Corporation (Sabeco) of Vietnam, and expressed the belief in Vietnams strong economic growth prospect. The group pledged to promote Sabeco brand name to the world.President and CEO of the General Electric (GE) Company Alex Dimitrief, for his part, said that his business has some 300,000 staff working across the five continents, including 2,000 in Vietnam.GE has provided equipment for Vietnam to generate power and upgrade thousands of power transmission lines. About 55 percent of the Vietnamese hospitals use at least one technology of the company, he said, adding that Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air have already bought jet engines of the firm.Lauding GE for its commitment to land long-term investment in Vietnam, PM Phuc said that GE has made significant contributions to the Vietnam-US relations.He told the guests that Vietnam has ordered 200 airplanes from the US, with 200 engines produced by GE.Lauding GEs construction of large plants in Ho Chi Minh City and Hai Phong, the PM said the move is significant to balance trade between Vietnam and the US.The Vietnamese Government leader affirmed that Vietnam always attaches great importance to foreign investors, and is making constant efforts to better business climate to facilitate foreigners landing investment and expanding business in the country.

Vietnamplus
Many people who have lost limbs like to disguise the fact, seeking out artificial replacements that look like the real deal  but not Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth.

The 50-year-old veteran lost both of her legs while serving in Iraq in 2004, but would much rather wear robotic prosthetics over skin-tone ones.

Posing for Vogue's October issue, Senator Duckworth explained that those realistic-looking prosthetics  so like her old legs, but still so unlike them  simply remind her of her loss, while the metallic ones remind her of her strength.

In the mag: Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth posed for Annie Leibovitz for the October issue of Vogue

Duckworth, a Democrat who represented Illinois's 8th district in the United States House of Representatives before getting elected to the Senate in 2016, has both types of prosthetic legs.

Preferred: Though she has prosthetics that look like real legs, they remind her of her loss - whereas her metallic ones remind her of her strength

One pair were hand-painted to match her skin tone and even adorned with freckles to look like the rest of her body. The toes, too, were modeled to be the same size as the ones she lost.

But the Senator doesn't like to wear them.

'When I see myself wearing those legs in a mirror, I see loss,' she said.

Instead, she prefers her steel-and-titanium prosthesis, explaining: 'But when I see this, I see strength. I see a reminder of where I am now.'

The same goes for her wheelchair, which she is quite proud of.

'People always want me to hide it in pictures. I say no! I earned this wheelchair. Its no different from a medal I wear on my chest. Why would I hide it?' she said.

Duckworth earned that medal, a Purple Heart, while serving in Iraq at age 36. On November 12, 2004, she was flying back to her base after getting groceries when the plane was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.

High-flyer: Duckworth earned a Purple Heart while serving in Iraq at age 36

Life change: She was piloting a plane that was shot down, and she had to have both of her legs amputated

'It wasnt an accident; those suckers were trying to kill me,' she said

It went up through the floor, blasting her legs. Duckworth tried to land the plane, but passed out, after which her copilot took control.

When asked about the 'accident' that led to her double amputation, she was quick to make correct her interviewer.

'It wasnt an accident; those suckers were trying to kill me,' she said.

And her crew did in fact assume she was dead once they landed. Still, they took the time to retrieve her body and got her to a combat hospital, where she was saved. She was later transferred to Walter Reed, where doctors also discussed possibly having to amputate an arm, too.

Still, she said, 'I am no hero. The guy who carried me out of there? Hes the hero.'

From the way she fights for veterans and women's rights, though, there are many who would beg to differ  and who are in awe of what she's done.

Duckworth was also the first member of the Senate to give birth while in office, to two little girls: Abigail, now three, and Maile, who was born earlier this year.

The Senator posed in her office with both of her little girls for the new issue of Vogue, cpatured for Annie Leibovitz's camera

Speaking about having babies, Duckworth remarked on the language doctors used about her pregnancies  including one when she was 50.

Thankful: Her crew thought she was dead but went back for her body anyway. Said Duckworth: 'I am no hero. The guy who carried me out of there? Hes the hero'

Kids: She and her husband Bryan Bowlsbey now have two little girls after trying for years to start a family

'Geriatric pregnancy,' she said 'Geriatric! Not even advanced maternal age!'

Duckworth and her husband had actually been trying to have a family for nearly a decade before she got pregnant the first time. They tried naturally and went to a fertility doctor recommended by the VA.

That doctor told her that the daily X-rays she had at Walter Reed might have affected her ability to get pregnant, and eventually told her that she was too old and it wasn't going to happen.

The couple was looking into adoption when a friend recommended a specialist in Chicago  who had a different opinion, and successfully employed IVF to help Duckworth and her husband have two daughters.

The Senator later found out, quite frustratingly, that the original fertility doctor she saw was at at a Catholic facility, which didn't allow the fertilization of embryos outside the body  and didn't even tell her that would be an option, she just had to go somewhere else.

'What bugs me to this day is that she never said, "You need to go to a different kind of facility,"' she said. 'I was educated! I was the director of Illinois Veterans Affairs. I didnt do my due diligence, so what about those other families?'

These days, she's balancing a very demanding job with two very little kids, which definitely takes its toll.

'I am tired. I am overwhelmed,' she said. 'Who isnt? The average American mom is tired. So many of us are numb from the trauma of having a president who acts the way he does.'

But, she added, 'It doesnt matter if I am tired. I am going to show up every day and fight. If that means I have to crawl to get a vote, I am going to do it.'
Like many women who find themselves raising a child single-handedly, Amanda Tinker thought long and hard about what to tell her son Jamie about his parentage.

She decided that honesty was the best policy from the start  no half-truths, no sugar-coated slants. In Jamie and Amandas case, that means not using the word daddy, either.

We talk about his donor, not his father, explains Amanda, a 47-year-old from London. Jamie is completely aware of him  we have a photograph of the donor as a boy.

They look similar, actually, something about the shape of the eyes, and the smile. But he knows his donor isnt his Daddy, and never will be.

Amanda Tinker is one of the British women who imported Danish semen to get pregnant. Here, she is pictured with her son Jamie, who she told about the process at the age of four. They even have a childhood photo of the donor

Jamie is only four, but he already knows about the birds and the bees  or rather, the biological facts.

Hes always known I wanted a baby, but hadnt met the right person to be a daddy, so a kind man let me use his sperm, and we made Jamie, she says.

Some might balk at the idea of a four-year-old knowing the word sperm. Amanda thought carefully about it. Some mothers in my position use seed, which is fine, too, but I prefer to be anatomically correct. Sperm is not a weird word for him. It was important none of this would ever be a surprise.

Jamie also knows that his donor  who has blond hair like his as well as piercing eyes  lives in Denmark. He might even get to meet him one day, if he wants to. Hes at that age where he is obsessed by Vikings anyway, his mum laughs. Nothing to do with this.

There has always been a dearth of UK donors, and changes to the law in 2005  which decreed that a child would have the right to trace any donor when they turned 18  devastated the industry, as men were reluctant to face the possibility of a knock on the door years later

Amanda is one of a growing army of British women who speak proudly of their Viking babies. Government figures released last month show that Danish semen makes up almost half of all non-British male reproductive material imported into the UK.

Last year, 3,000 samples arrived in the country, with women paying around 460 per laboratory issue straw (though the costs of a donor-assisted baby soar if IVF is involved  Amandas fertility treatment cost 13,000).

How many babies were born as a result? Peter Reeslev, CEO of the sperm bank Cryos, which sends Danish sperm all over the world from the coastal city of Aarhus, reckons his clinic alone is responsible for around 6,000 Viking babies in Britain.

It is difficult to be precise because there is no obligation for women to report back to us, he says, but were keen to understand the numbers involved, so weve introduced a new system to encourage them to do so, with a financial incentive.

Government figures released last month show that Danish semen makes up almost half of all non-British male reproductive material imported into the UK. It it thought that there are thousands of 'Viking' babies in the UK (file photo)

What Cryos does know  and Peter has countless graphs and charts to support this  is that Danish sperm has never been so popular, particularly with women like Amanda: single, middle-class, affluent and well-educated.

This marks a dramatic shift over the 15 years that the clinic has been exporting to Britain.

Ten years ago, heterosexual couples were our main clients, he says. Then it shifted a little, and we were seeing more gay couples. Now it is the single mothers, women who are going it alone.

And they are doing so in rapidly increasing numbers. But why on their own?

Because they can, Peter explains: Its not that they dont want a man, more that they know they dont need a man to have a child. Maybe they are more picky as a result.

Every country has rules about how many children a donor can father. In the UK, the limit is ten families, meaning there could be several siblings within one family. One Danish donor  not registered with Cryos  fathered 99 children worldwide.

Lucinda Bird, 42, is a former hospital administrator and now a writer and mother to daughters Raphael, five and Aelfrida, 20 months  both Viking babies. They live near Truro in Cornwall. Pictured is Lucinda with Aelfrida

The world of the donor-assisted baby is still secretive, with most women unwilling to talk openly. Now, however, the personal has become political, as it is possible that a no-deal Brexit would have an impact on the supply of Danish semen to Britain.

At Cryos, they are certainly concerned. On one level, things shouldnt be affected, admits Peter. Our sperm is fully compliant with UK law, but the concern is more that there could be issues with customs and tariffs.

He warns any changes could lead to more fertility tourism, with British women travelling to Denmark, or elsewhere.

It would be devastating if it was made more difficult for women like me, says Amanda. This process is tricky enough, without more hurdles being put in the way. Amanda came out of a long-term relationship at 35, and in her early 40s decided to go it alone.

Id had a brief relationship where I got pregnant, but lost the baby at ten-and-a-half weeks, she says. I was devastated, but also certain that I wanted to be a mother. I thought: If I am going to do this, I need to do it myself. 

Lucinda rejects the criticism that women who use sperm donors are denying their children a male influence. She says that her children have grown up with her boyfriend, father and male friends

A London clinic told her that she was right on the edge because her ovarian reserves were so low. The clinic recommended Danish sperm, and the process of choosing a donor was in some ways straightforward (like shopping online), but in other ways, fraught.

I wanted to get a real sense of the person, rather than just the physical characteristics, she says. In the end, I was swayed by the personal statement the donor recorded, which is nice because we now have a clip of his voice.

He had a son of his own, which seemed important. I suppose I liked the idea that he was older  he is my age  and is a family man.

The vials were duly despatched from Denmark and arrived in London at Amandas clinic, ready for a round of IVF.

Amanda rails at the idea that its a fashion choice, that she has opted for a tall, blond Scandinavian man for purely superficial reasons

Why are we so dependent on Danish sperm? Amanda rails at the idea that its a fashion choice, that she has opted for a tall, blond Scandinavian man for purely superficial reasons.

They are a good-looking bunch, but they are not all Alexander Skarsgard, she laughs, referencing the hunky (Swedish) actor.

They are human. Some have big noses and buck teeth, but you go with what is available at the time. In my case I went for someone who was roughly the right height and the blond hair was more about matching my colouring.

Given the option, she would have gone for a British donor. But there has always been a dearth of UK donors, and changes to the law in 2005  which decreed that a child would have the right to trace any donor when they turned 18  devastated the industry, as men were reluctant to face the possibility of a knock on the door years later.

Attempts to revive it have failed. In 2014, a national sperm bank opened in Birmingham, but closed after two years because of a lack of donors.

Meanwhile, the Danes cant donate enough. There are nearly 500 donors on Cryoss books  all highly vetted. Some visit to deposit twice a week. They are paid around 54 a time, but this doesnt explain the attraction.

Lucinda was very surprised by the amount of information that was available about her potential sperm donors. Lucinda has spent around 8,000 on fertility treatment, though my children are priceless she says

At one point they upped the amount, then put it back down again because it didnt make a jot of difference, says Amanda. Scandinavians have a healthier attitude to sex and procreation. They see it as honourable.

Donors can be anonymous in Denmark, but for the sperm heading to the UK, British laws apply. The idea that Jamie may one day know his donor was part of the attraction for Amanda.

I could have gone down the route of a one-night stand. Or gone online and done some sort of dubious transaction. But I wanted a donor who was doing it for the right reasons, and who will be happy to meet Jamie if he ever wants to trace him.

There were six of us, in touch every day on WhatsApp. We all used Danish sperm

The sheer scale of the Viking baby community in Britain is staggering. Photographer Jemma Watts, 45, a friend of Amandas, says she was part of a close-knit support group when she went through her own treatment.

There were six of us, in touch every day on WhatsApp. We all used Danish sperm. There are four babies in the group now.

Sadly, it did not happen for Jemma. She had six gruelling rounds of IVF, costing over 20,000. All came from eggs fertilised by the same donor sperm.

I think my time has run out now, she admits. But although the emotional toll is huge, she is a passionate advocate of the Danish system. I just wish that in the UK we could get over our issues with sperm donation. Its still taboo, and it shouldnt be.

Many of those successful with treatment have more children via the same donor.

Lucinda Bird, 42, is a former hospital administrator and now a writer and mother to daughters Raphael, five and Aelfrida, 20 months  both Viking babies. They live near Truro in Cornwall.

She and her boyfriend have been together for eight years, but they do not live together and he did not want children.

Lucinda and her boyfriend have been together for eight years, but they do not live together and he did not want children. She said: 'People say that Im brave, but the really brave women are those who settle for second best with a man wholl father children, but who they dont really love

Lucinda rejects the criticism that women who use sperm donors are denying their children a male influence.

She says: My children have male influences in the shape of my boyfriend, grandfather and male friends. I hope one day they will meet their donor, too.

Id like to meet him out of curiosity as well, but he has no rights over the children and Im grateful for that.

She started researching fertility treatment when she left university, but she was 36 when she embarked on IVF. Her British clinic recommended a Danish donor.

Lucindas parents helped draw up a shortlist of candidates and she was surprised at how much information she could access.

I paid a little bit more to get an extended biography, and got a photo of him as a child as well as his age, blood group, education level and even his familys history.

I know more about my childrens donors family than many people who have a child naturally.

My children have male influences in the shape of my boyfriend, grandfather and male friends. I hope one day they will meet their donor, too

His mother is a teacher, his father works in tech. His aunt had breast cancer, but other than that, there are very few health problems.

A few clicks later, Lucindas sperm was en route to the UK.

I had seven eggs harvested, then six were successfully fertilised with the sperm, meaning I had six chances to have a baby. I was very lucky and got pregnant with Rafi the first time. I was thrilled.

Two of the other eggs didnt make it, then I had a miscarriage with another after Rafi.

I tried again and got Frida, so now Ive one egg left which I plan to use in the next year.

My embryos are too old to be donated to another woman who cant have a child, and will be destroyed if I dont use them, so I feel I have to give it a shot.

Lucinda has spent around 8,000 on fertility treatment, though my children are priceless.

None of these women has any regret about going it alone. Lucinda says: People say that Im brave, but the really brave women are those who settle for second best with a man wholl father children, but who they dont really love.

She, too, is completely open with her daughters about how they came to be: I tell them some children have daddies and others have donors.

Amanda, who isnt in a relationship but wouldnt rule it out, is simply grateful to be living in an age where more women than ever have the opportunity to become a mother: A generation ago, Id have been the spinster maiden aunt.

And does the genetic heritage of her little Viking ultimately matter? I had my own DNA profile done recently, she reveals. It came back saying I had Scandinavian, Scottish and Irish ancestry.

I was quite pleased his genetic origins are maybe not too far from my own.

Some names in this article have been changed.
Cambridge classicist Mary Beard has dyed her hair pink as she prepares to present the forthcoming series of television programme Front Row.

The outspoken broadcaster, 63, will be sporting the colourful streak when the BBC Two series gets under way on Friday.

The show will see Mary and her guests debate culture and current affairs, with the first episode focusing on whether older people are fairly represented on stage and on screen.

Speaking about her eye-catching new look, Mary said: 'It's taken me 63 years to colour my hair and I always said if I ever did, it would be with a pink streak!'

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Cambridge classicist Mary Beard has dyed her hair pink as she prepares to present the forthcoming series of television programme Front Row

Mary's hair makeover as seen on the BBC's Twitter coincides with fashion week, and she has previously spoken out about being trolled over her looks and devil-may-care approach to fashion.

She famously hit back at the late critic AA Gill, who suggested she would be better suited to The Undateables than a presenting gig.

In a column for the Daily Mail, Beard said: 'It seems a straight case of pandering to the blokeish culture that loves to decry clever women, especially ones who dont succumb to the masochism of Botox.

'Sure, I dont wear make-up. I have nothing against those who do if it gives them pleasure, but actually I feel happy enough in my own skin not to feel I want to bother with it.'

In February the Cambridge classicist revealed she would be returning to the BBC Two series when it airs Friday nights at 11pm.

The cultural broadcaster, 63, will be sporting the colourful streak when the BBC Two series gets under way on Friday, - seen here before her pink hair transformation

Mary's hair makeover coincides with fashion week, and she has in the past spoken out about being trolled over her looks, explaining her casual approach to fashion

Alice Feinstein, commissioner of Front Row, said Beard's take on the week in arts and culture 'is bound to be dynamic and exciting as she has the fearless intellect, critical eye and warm wit to host a discussion of the week's talking points'.

BBC Two controller Patrick Holland said: 'Mary Beard is one of the most thought provoking intellectuals in the UK and a defining voice for BBC Two.

'I am delighted that she's agreed to take the lead with this evolution of Front Row on Two.'

Beard presented the sixth episode of Front Row last October, where she explored The Roman Singularity exhibition at the Sir John Soane's Museum in London and reviewed Jean-Rene Lemione's contemporary reimagining of Greek legend Medea.

She also presented two programmes in the forthcoming landmark BBC Arts series, Civilisations, on BBC Two as well as an additional programme to accompany the series called Civilisations On Your Doorstep.
The Duke of Cambridge will return to Africa for a conservation-led visit to the continent later this month, he announced tonight.

William, 36, revealed he will be making a working visit to Namibia, Tanzania and Kenya later this month during his first speech as patron of the Royal African Society (RAS).

Royal watchers will be hoping for an appearance from his wife Kate, who has kept a low profile since giving birth to Prince Louis in April.

However it is unlikely that the Duchess will join; she has attended just a handful of official appearances in recent months - including Trooping the Colour and Wimbledon - during her maternity leave.

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The Duke of Cambridge, who is patron of the Royal African Society (RAS), talks with members as he attends a reception at the British Academy in London. He announced tonight that he will making a trip to Africa later this month

The Duchess of Cambridge came out of maternity leave in July to join her husband at Wimbledon (pictured). It is unlikely she will join him on his upcoming trip to Africa

Kate also stepped out for the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, and her youngest child's christening on 9th July.

She was also spotted out and about with her young family at the polo over the summer.

Dates of the Duke's Africa visit have yet to be announced. MailOnline has contacted Kensington Palace for further detail.

William, who took over the role from the Queen in December 2016 after 64 years, told a central London reception for the RAS: 'Africa's wildlife is suffering as well as its people.

'Like so many others, I am deeply saddened by the numbers of elephant, rhino and pangolin who have been illegally slaughtered for their tusks, horns and scales. But the illegal wildlife trade also has a devastating human impact.

'Too many brave rangers are tragically killed each year by poachers. Communities see their tourist livelihoods threatened. And the proceeds of the illegal wildlife trade fund broader criminal networks and threaten security.

During tonight's RAS reception, William met fellow members and spoke in greater depth of the work the Society does in the spheres of business, politics, academia, arts and education

'This is why I am committed to doing what I can to help end this terrible, global crime. This will be a particular focus of my upcoming visit to Africa, and of course the conference on the illegal wildlife trade taking place here in London in October.'

William recalled how he first 'fell in love' with Africa when he spent time in Kenya, Botswana and Tanzania as a teenager.

He said: 'Africa is both the oldest and the youngest continent in the world, being both the birthplace of humankind and the continent with the youngest population.

'My patronage of the Royal African Society is an honour and I will certainly continue to be a passionate advocate for Africa here in the UK.'

William described the futures of Britain and Africa as being 'inextricably intertwined' and stated that African communities have 'a long history in Britain.'

William and Harry meet a cheetah during a visit to the Mokoloda Nature Reserve in Gabarone, Botswana in 2010. William revealed this week he 'fell in love' with Africa during the trip

He also spoke of job creation, generating investment, improving security, harnessing new technology, tackling corruption, managing urbanisation, and adapting to social and environmental change as some of the challenges which Africa faces.

William earlier took part in a private roundtable with experts from the fields of business and academia that touched on the opportunities and challenges faced in modern-day Africa.

Reception guests included people from various sectors including academia, business, politics, culture, the arts and education - to reflect the many areas in which the RAS works.

The RAS aims to promote Africa in business, politics, culture and academia and to foster better understanding and strong relationships between Britain, Africa and the world.

It is seen as a way for people to connect, celebrate and engage critically with a wide range of topics and ideas about Africa today.
Meghan Markle is having a difficult time deciding who she can trust these days.

Since the 37-year-old Duchess of Sussex said 'I do' to Prince Harry earlier this year, relationships she had in her pre-Harry days have fallen by the wayside as she struggles to know whom she can let in.

'Meghan has lost touch with some of her close friends from before the wedding, which has been tough,' a source told People in its new issue. 'Shes finding it hard to know who to trust.'

Who'll blab? A source told People this week that Meghan Markle is finding it hard to know who to trust' since her engagement to Prince Harry

Staying in touch: She's still close with her BFF Jessica Mulroney, who lives in Toronto, and she recently visited her

According to the magazine, she's cut her circle of friends down to a select few whom she knows are trustworthy.

Concern: Her makeup artist, Daniel Martin, told the magazine: 'There's a small group of us that check in with her and see how she's doing, but she's still the same person'

With so many leaks to tabloids  and her own family frequently talking to the press about her  it makes sense that she would limit her relationships to people who won't blab to news outlets as 'anonymous sources' with inside scoop.

These trustworthy friends include her makeup artist, Daniel Martin, and her stylist BFF Jessica Mulroney  whom she secretly flew out to in Toronto in August to visit.

'There's a small group of us that check in with her and see how she's doing, but she's still the same person,' Martin told People.

Being guarded is hardly new for members of the royal family. Earlier this year, royal observer Patricia Treble told Vanity Fair, 'You look at all the senior royals, and theyre incredibly careful about whom theyre friends with. They end up having lots of "acquaintances," or people who "know them."'

Another royal-watcher, Emily Nash, told the magazine that post-wedding, Meghan 'getting used to a more discreet social life . . . she is still going to be seeing and speaking to her most trusted friends just as before.'

New life: She's also kept her mom close. Doria Ragland is rumored to be moving to the UK to be closer to her

Then there's her family. While her mother Doria Ragland is rumored to be making the move to the UK to be closer to her daughter, she's very publicly estranged from much of the rest of her flesh and blood.

Her dad, Thomas Markle, has continued to criticize her and her new husband to the press, while her half-sister makes rude remarks on social media.

'It was very wearing on her. Its her private life,' a source told People of the family scandal. 'The beginning of marriages are not that easy, but to have that impetus of your own family being disloyal is horrible and embarrassing.'

Just this week, Meghan's sister Samantha took to Twitter to coin a nasty schoolyard nickname for her and attack her yet again.

'I am not candy coating anything anymore! The DUCHA** should be humane to our father who has given her everything and this media crap can stop!' Samantha tweeted on Monday.

'He was the one who was always there for her. Fake waves and smiles can stop. The duchA** can bow to the daddy'.

Talking to reporters:But she's grown wary as people once close to her talk to the press  most notably her dad, Thomas

Bitter: Her half-sister Samantha has also repeatedly attacked her, and did so earlier this week

At one point during her rant Samantha proclaimed that the Duchess of Sussex 'wasn't much different than Trump'  clearly failing to see the irony that it was her, not Meghan, coming up with Trump-esque insults on Twitter.

'[He] thinks he can shoot someone and still get votes. She can dump an entire family both sides and a best friend of 30 years and ignore it and be popular. Sad,' she tweeted.

Samantha continued with the comparison in another tweet as she hit back at one critic and proclaimed she had the right to express her feelings about Meghan.

'She was the one who crapped on both sides of the family and she wants everyone to be quiet and not respond?' she wrote. 'I am not surprised Trump said he could shoot someone and still get votes. Same mentality here.'

She also repeatedly referenced Meghan's former best friend Ninaki Priddy. Priddy has also been more than happy to speak to the media about the Duchess.

Trust: Meghan has lost touch with some friends as she decides who to keep close

'Sorry folks there is no valid or a good argument in favor of inhumane treatment of both sides of the family and a best friend of 30 years,' Samantha wrote.

The childhood friends had a falling out after Priddy, who was Meghan's maid of honor at her first wedding, disapproved of how she broke things off with her film producer husband Trevor Engelson.

In December of last year, Priddy spoke to the Daily Mail about the end of their friendship.



'I dont believe she gave him enough of an opportunity. I think there was an element of out of sight, out of mind for Meghan,' she said. 'The way she handled it, Trevor definitely had the rug pulled out from under him. He was hurt.

'I tried to get details from her, but she wouldnt tell me. What came to light after Trevor and I spoke ended my friendship with Meghan.

'All I can say now is that I think Meghan was calculated  very calculated  in the way she handled people and relationships. She is very strategic in the way she cultivates circles of friends. Once she decides youre not part of her life, she can be very cold.

'Its this shutdown mechanism she has. Theres nothing to negotiate. Shes made her decision and thats it,' she said.
Supermarket chains have mocked Waitrose over its 'out of touch' edit of student essentials by releasing their own lists of more realistic university must-haves.

Upmarket retailer Waitrose faced criticism over must-have items for freshers, which it published in its in-house magazine under the title 'Student Storecupboard - a starter kit for the fledgling cook about to fly the nest'.

Among the 'essential' items is a jar of Rose Harrisa at 4, Italian Seasoning at 1.89 and organic apple cider vinegar 1.70.

Waitrose faced criticism over must-have items for freshers, which it published in its in-house magazine under the title 'Student Storecupboard', pictured. Among the 'essential' items is a jar of Rose Harrisa at 4, Italian Seasoning at 1.89 and organic apple cider vinegar 1.70

Now fellow retailers have had their say, responding with their own takes on the essentials, including Sainsbury's Basics Pasta Shapes for 30p and 3 Sainsbury's Basics cheddar. Iceland suggests stocking up on frozen goods like chicken nuggets and pizzas before starting

Parents and students alike have taken to Twitter to slam the 'ridiculous' list - which also boasted Swiss vegetable Bouillon powder.

Now fellow retailers Sainsbury's and Iceland have had their say, responding with their own takes on the essentials.

Sainsbury's pointed out that many students will rely on a classic combination of cheese and pasta.

Its Sainsbury's Basics Pasta Shapes for 30p and 3 Sainsbury's Basics cheddar cheese, certainly make for an affordable alternative.

Meanwhile Iceland tweeted: 'Heres a REAL student starter pack for you @Waitrose: Beans, Chicken Nuggets, Pizza,' adding: 'Frozen Avocados if youre feeling fannncy'.

Delighted customers praised the supermarket for the clever take down, with one agreeing: 'That's more like it!' Others questioned whether students could afford Waitrose

Delighted customers praised the supermarket for the clever take down, with one agreeing: 'That's more like it!'

The list compiled by Waitrose consists of five items: Marigold Swiss Vegetable Bouillon powder, 2, Aspall Organic Cyder Vinegar 1.70, Waitrose Cooks' Ingredients Organic Italian Seasoning 1.89, Belazu Rose Harrisa, 4 and Clearspring Organic Tamari Soya Sauce 3.15.

The list was initially shared on Twitter by Andrew Stronach from Norwich.

Many pointed out that the original list, which includes harrisa paste and apple cider vinegar, would cost a student 13 and they still wouldn't have anything to eat

Many parents were quick to scoff at the 'luxury' items and shared the food packages they had sent their offspring to uni with.

One mother commented: 'Uh oh...my son has just gone off with 3 jars of coffee, 4 packs of Super Noodles, 2 Pot Noodles and a bottle of Nandos peri peri sauce.'

Responding another added: 'Mines got pot noodles, bread, beans, cheese and a couple of frozen pizzas.'

Others were quick to point out that the shopping list amounted to 12.74 but the customer still wouldn't be able to make a meal.
Last year was the world's saddest in more than a decade, according to a new survey.

More people reported feeling stressed, worried, anxious and in physical pain in 2017 than in any previous year, according to Gallup's annual Global Emotions Report.

Pollsters say that this means the global mood is at its gloomiest since the first such survey was conducted in 2006.

The violence-plagued Central African Republic was named the country with the most negative experiences, while Paraguay took the crown as the nation with the most positive experiences.

More people reported feeling stressed, worried, anxious and in physical pain in 2017 than in any previous year (file image)

For the report, Gallup surveyed more than 154,000 people in 146 countries on whether they had felt pain, worry, stress, anger or sadness the previous day.

The pollsters found that close to four out of 10 people said they experienced stress or worry the day before the survey, reported CNN.

One in five people reported feeling anger or sadness the previous day, and around one-third said they were experiencing physical pain.

Negative stress can manifest physically including headaches, elevated blood pressure, and chest pain.

These can all raise the risk of - or worsen - diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma and arthritis.

Additionally, an increase of cortisol, called the stress hormone, can raise the amount of fat tissue your body and cause you to gain weight.

'Collectively, the world is more stressed, worried, sad and in pain today than we've ever seen it,' Gallup's managing editor, Mohamed Younis, wrote in a foreword to the study.

Geographically, Sub-Saharan Africa was the region with the most negative emotions, with 24 of 35 countries surveyed reaching a 10-year happiness low in 2017.

The nation's civic unrest has both crippled the healthcare systems and caused people to go hungry.

The Central African Republic (CAR) unseated Iraq for the first time in four years as the country with the highest reported negative experiences.

The country has been plagued by violence over the last seven years due to the conflict between Muslims and Christians.

According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, more than 600,000 people in the country have been displaced.

Gallup pollsters said they couldn't reach close to 40 percent of the CAR's population because of the violence.

However, of the people spoken to, three out of four said they were in physical pain or felt worry the day before being interviewed.

Additionally, CAR received a Negative Experience Index score of 61, which is the highest ever recorded for any country since the survey was started.

'In CAR and some of these other places, high percentages of the population are just struggling to afford the basics,' lead author Julie Ray, a writer at Gallup, told Reuters.

'Collectively, the world is more stressed, worried, sad and in pain today than we've ever seen it Mohamed Younis, Gallup managing editor

Rounding out the bottom five of the most negative countries were: Iraq, South Sudan, Chad and Sierra Leone.

Worldwide, the Negative Experience score was 30, two points up from 28 in 2016 - and a huge spike from 23 in 2007.

Wealthier countries were not immune to the dip in mood. About half of Americans interviewed said they were stressed - roughly the same proportion of respondents as in the CAR.

Economist Jan-Emmanuel De Neve said it was 'disturbing' to see the global mood souring against a backdrop of rising wealth and material progress.

'There is probably a more structural indicator around the increasing wealth not being inclusive enough,' said De Neve, an associate professor at the University of Oxford who has written about the link between income and happiness.

When it came to countries on the Positive Experience Index, Paraguay topped the list.

To determine placements on this list, pollsters asked residents how often they felt enjoyment, smiled, were well-rested and treated respectfully.

Globally, the Positive Experience score of 69, a percentage point down from 70 in 2016.

Paraguay, which received a score of 85, was followed by Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala and Canada.

The US and UK tied with seven other countries and ranked 38 on the Positive Experience Index

Despite many of these countries also experiencing civil unrest and poverty, the pollsters wrote that Latin American countries tend to 'focus on life's positives'.
A bride who suffers from severe eczema has revealed the horror she felt when she woke up a week before her wedding to find her eyes were swollen shut.

Gemma Day, from Toowoomba in Queensland, Australia, suffered the extreme reaction as a withdrawal symptom from her steroid skin cream.

The 24-year-old has suffered from eczema  which causes skin to become dry, itchy and raw  since she was a child, and used steroid cream to keep it under control.

But when Mrs Day ditched the ointment, she discovered her skin had become addicted the medication and her eczema became worse than ever.

She became unable to open her eyes and her skin felt dry and like it was burning, meaning she had to cave in and return to using the cream to make it through her hen party, wedding day and honeymoon.

Mrs Day admits 'eczema dictates all the big events in my life, which doesn't seem fair,' and said her skin condition even influenced the dress she wore.

Now living without the steroid cream, but having to drink three litres of water and moisturise four times a day, Mrs Day hopes sharing her story will help others.

Gemma Day, 24, was prescribed steroid cream to control her lifelong eczema but her skin became so addicted that when she stopped using the cream her eyes swelled up and her skin got worse (left), but after making it through initial withdrawals her skin has improved (right)

Born with eczema  a common condition thought to affect around a million Australians, 15 million Brits and 35 million Americans  Mrs Day had it under control as a young child, but things changed when she hit 13.

What had begun as small patches of dry skin spread gradually until it covered the office administrator's entire body.

When she visited a doctor in her teens, they suspected her condition had worsened because of school stress and prescribed her steroid cream to help.

But she found that as soon as she stopped using the creams, her skin went into what she later discovered was topical steroid withdrawal  leaving it dry, red and burning, with the redness spreading even more.

The withdrawal symptoms happen when skin becomes so used to receiving a drug that when the medicine is removed it reacts badly.

And, just seven days before tying-the-knot with her lawyer fiancee Brenton Day, 25, on April 14 this year, the effects were so extreme she could not open her eyes and was forced to have another steroid 'fix.'

Mrs Day, who had been trying to stop using the creams her skin had become dependent on, had to 'cave' and use them again to look good for her wedding to now-husband, Brenton (pictured)

Mrs Day said: 'After using the cream so much over the years, unwittingly I became addicted,' she said.

'I'd get flare-ups of sore and cracked skin every time I tried to wean myself off the steroid creams.

'Now only my feet, a small part of my chest and my palms are clear, but the rest of me is coated.

'Sometimes I feel like a monster  I try to keep as much of my skin covered as I can. I have even asked my boss if I could work somewhere where no one could see me.

Mrs Day said when her eczema flares up she feels 'like a monster' and even asked her boss at work if she could sit where nobody can see her

The eczema started off in small patches when she was young but during her teenage years Mrs Day's condition spread across her entire body, leaving only her palms, feet and part of her chest clear of the dry skin

Mrs Day is so affected by eczema that she tries to cover as much of her body as possible with clothing, and even planned her wedding for a time she knew her skin would be clearest, as well as choosing a dress which covered her arms

Mrs Day's eczema became so bad she was hospitalised but she has now managed to stop using the steroid creams and has to moisturise four times a day and drink at least three litres of water

'I had to cave in and use more steroid cream to calm everything down before my wedding.

'Eczema dictates all the big events in my life, which doesn't seem fair.

'I can't even wear make-up. I've only used it 10 times in the past five years, but did manage to wear it on my wedding day.'

HOW SKIN BECOMES 'ADDICTED' TO STEROIDS PRESCRIBED TO HELP ECZEMA SUFFERERS MANAGE BREAK-OUTS Topical steroid addiction arises from the use of such creams to treat conditions like eczema. First described in 1979 in the International Journal of Dermatology, the theory is, over time, the skin becomes addicted to the steroids. But it is not widely accepted among the medical community. Many have called the 'condition' a fad, however, it has been recognised by the National Eczema Association since 2013. Also known as red skin syndrome, the disorder does not have many statistics to show how common it is. One 2003 study from Japan, found that 12 per cent of adults who were taking steroids to treat dermatitis developed RSS. It occurs when steroids have been abruptly discontinued after a prolonged or inappropriate length of administration. Women who blush easily are thought to be most at risk. Topical steroid addiction has not been reported with correct drug use. Symptoms include: Redness, particularly on the face, genitals and area where the steroids were applied

Thickened skin

Swelling and puffiness

Burning or stinging

Dryness and cracked skin

Excessive wrinkling

Skin sensitivity and intolerance to moisturisers

Frequent skin infections Excessive sweating and itching is a sign of recovery. Many sufferers also develop insomnia. Treatment focuses on anxiety support, sleep aids, itch management, infection prevention and immunosuppressants. Doctors should advise patients to avoid long term or high dose steroid use. Long term is considered to be one-to-two years of regular use. Patients are also advised to cut down on steroids slowly but using a lower dose and gradually cutting back to, for example, every other day or a few times a week. Source: DermNet NZ Advertisement

Her withdrawals had become so extreme she could not open her eyes  causing her to panic just days before her hen do and not long until the big day and honeymoon.

'I woke up and couldn't open my eyes because they were so swollen,' Mrs Day said.

'It's a common side effect of withdrawal from steroid creams and I was freaking out.

'With my hen do the next day and my big day not long after, I was devastated to think everything could be ruined.'

Visiting her GP, Mrs Day was given steroid creams again to get her through her wedding and honeymoon to the UK.

Even before this happened, she had planned her big day around her eczema.

'Autumn is the best time of year for my eczema,' she explained. 'So there was no question  we would be getting married in the Australian Autumn season, which is March to May.

'We picked April, but then there was the question of my wedding dress.

'I had always suffered with the eczema on my arms, so knew I could never choose a short-sleeved wedding dress and opted for a long-sleeved one.'

When the pair, who met online, tied the knot on April 14, Mrs Day says it was the best day of her life but regrets the hold her eczema had over her.

Hospitalised by the condition only last week, she has now given up the steroid cream, but has to moisturise four times a day, drink at least three litres of water and, most importantly  try not to scratch.

Mrs Day added: 'It was only after my wedding that I realised I had been addicted to steroid cream because of how much my skin flared up when I wasn't using the treatment.

'Now, I want other people with eczema to know they are not alone and hope that sharing my story will help them.'
A mother's joy at having twins turned to heartbreak when she lost one of the newborns to cot death.

Twenty-nine-year-old Crystal Venus was handed her 'lifeless' 11-week-old daughter Sapphire after her partner Daniel Brady noticed the baby's heart was not beating while cuddling her.

After being rushed to hospital, doctors worked 'frantically' to save the mother-of-five's 'beautiful daughter', however, there was nothing they could do.

Sapphire, from Margate, Kent, died of sudden infant death syndrome on July 16 this year. Also known as cot death, the condition kills around 300 babies in the UK and 3,500 in the US every year.

Ms Venus said: 'My world had just ended and my heart [was] ripped out. My life has completely stopped, I can't bring her back.'

Mother-of-five Crystal Venus is pictured with her partner Daniel Brady and their daughter Sapphire, when she was alive. Sapphire died of sudden infant death syndrome at just 11 weeks old after Mr Brady noticed her heart was not beating while he was cuddling her

Sapphire (pictured right with her twin brother Brandon before she died) was rushed to hospital after becoming lifeless. Doctors worked hard to save her but there was nothing they could do

Speaking of the ordeal, Ms Venus said 'My partner said Sapphire wasn't breathing and handed her to me lifeless.

'I could not believe what I was seeing and started CPR. All I knew was I needed to get her little heart beating again.'

Paramedics were called to the family's home, who immediately rushed Sapphire to hospital.

Ms Venus, who is also mother to Sapphire's twin brother Brandon and three older children, said: 'There were loads of doctors frantically working on my beautiful daughter.

'Then I heard "7.12am time of death". I fell to the floor in disbelief. I thought "my daughter isn't gone, this is just some bad dream".

'I glanced up to my lifeless daughter, tubes everywhere and machines being switched off.'

WHAT IS COT DEATH AND HOW CAN IT BE PREVENTED? Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), or cot death, is the sudden, unexpected and unexplained death of an apparently healthy baby. SIDS kills around 2,500 babies in the US and just under 300 in the UK every year. It usually occurs within the first six months of an infant's life and is more common in those born prematurely or of a low birth weight. The cause of SIDS is unknown, however, it is associated with tobacco smoke, tangled bedding, co-sleeping with parents and breathing obstructions. Prevent the risk by: Placing sleeping babies on their backs

Keeping babies' heads uncovered

Sleeping in the same room as babies for the first six months of their lives

Using a firm, flat, waterproof mattress in babies' cribs

Breastfeeding, if possible Do not: Smoke during pregnancy or in the same room as a baby

Sleep on a bed or chair with an infant

Allow babies to get too hot or cold. Temperatures between 16 and 20C should be comfortable Source: NHS Choices Advertisement

Ms Venus thought it had to be a 'bad dream' when she heard doctors announcing Sapphire (pictured left with Brandon) had died. The mother-of-five then collapsed in disbelief

Without Sapphire (pictured), Ms Venus claims 'every day is a struggle', adding her 'beautiful' daughter 'touched so many people's hearts' during her short life

Speaking of her life now, Ms Venus said: 'Every day is a struggle but my four other beautiful children give me strength each and every day to carry on.

'I have made a Facebook page called Sapphire's Neverland Angels to raise awareness of sudden infant death syndrome, to comfort other families, raise money for Cuddle Cots and make memory boxes for families suffering what my family is suffering now.

'My daughter's life will mean something, she won't ever be forgotten.

'Eleven weeks in this world is all my beautiful Sapphire got and she touched so many people's hearts. It's not something any parent should have to go through.

'I miss her so much but I have to keep strong for my other children. They need me, but I will never forget her.'

At 7pm on Monday October 15, Ms Venus will be holding a wave of light on Margate beach to raise awareness of infant loss.
A stomach-churning video shows the moment a doctor drains a huge abscess in a woman's throat.

The growth on the patient's tonsil is prodded and grabbed with a pair of tweezers before being sliced with what appears to be a hot wire.

As the large abscess is cut open, pus oozes out and into the patient's mouth as the doctor continues to cut chunks off the red lump.

The pus is swabbed away with a cotton bud and eventually the entire abscess is sliced off and removed, leaving just a section of damaged tissue where it was attached.

The doctor who performed the procedure said antibiotics had failed to get rid of the infection causing the abscess, but it had healed within a week after the surgery.

Dr Rahmat Omar, from Kuala Lumpur, performed the operation using what appears to be electrocautery, in which a hot wire is used instead of a knife or scalpel to slice human tissue

The patient in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia needed the surgery to remove a tonsil abscess on the right-hand side of her mouth.

Tonsil abscesses are a common infection in adults and are usually caused by bacteria in the throat.

Symptoms of an abscess can include pain in the throat, a fever and lockjaw.

They can be treated using antibiotics but, because abscesses are filled with pus and can grow to be large, the flesh and fluid must also be removed from the throat.

This video shows 49-year-old surgeon Rahmat Omar removing an abscess from one of his patients.

He appears to using electrocautery, in which an extremely hot wire is used to slice through tissue  as he cuts the flesh, steam or smoke passes over the front of the camera.

When the abscess is first punctured, pus leaks out into the patient's mouth and has to be swabbed up with a cotton bud  removing the pus and extra flesh is a key part of treating an abscess, even if antibiotics successfully clear up the infection which caused it

At the end of the video the patient is left with just a patch of damaged skin where the abscess was before, and Mr Oman, the surgeon, said the wound had healed completely within a week

When the abscess is first damaged, pus leaks out and has to be mopped up with a cotton bud but then the op is a case of slicing away the excess tissue.

By the end of the procedure just a patch of damaged flesh is left and the lump has been completely removed.

After a course of injected antibiotics and painkillers the patient's condition had cleared up completely within a week.

Mr Omar said: 'The video shows the incision and drainage of right tonsil abscess.

'Initial oral antibiotic therapy has failed and she became febrile and unwell.

'Incision and drainage with biopsy of the protruding right tonsil was performed and the patient was placed on an intravenous antibiotic with pain relief medications.

'The lesion recovered fully after one week.'
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang's Regular Press Conference on September 12

2018/09/12

Premier Li Keqiang of the State Council will attend the 12th World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Tianjin on September 19-20. Premier Li Keqiang will deliver a speech at the opening ceremony, hold talks with leaders from Estonia, Latvia, Serbia and Samoa, and exchange ideas with representatives from the business, finance, think tanks and media circles.

Convened under the theme "Shaping Innovative Societies in the Fourth Industrial Revolution", the meeting will welcome more than 2,000 government, business, academic and media representatives from nearly 90 countries.

At the invitation of Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh and Philippine Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi will chair the 11th meeting of the China-Vietnam Steering Committee for Bilateral Cooperation in Vietnam and visit the Philippines on September 15 to 18.

Since last year, China-Vietnam relations have enjoyed sound development. Under the strategic guidance of the historic visits of the top leaders of our two parties and countries, the cooperation across the board between the two sides has continued to deepen and the cultural and people-to-people exchanges have grown more active. China is willing work with Vietnam to scale our comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership onto new heights and bring tangible benefits to the two peoples.

During the 11th meeting of the China-Vietnam Steering Committee for Bilateral Cooperation, the two sides will jointly review the positive progress in China-Vietnam relations and identify the measures to advance our comprehensive strategic cooperation in the next stage. We believe that with the concerted efforts of the two sides, this meeting will fulfill its planned goals, promote the implementation of the important outcomes of General Secretary and President Xi Jinping's visit to Vietnam, consolidate the positive momentum for the development of China-Vietnam relations and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in various areas.

The China-Philippines relationship continues to improve as evidenced by deepening political mutual trust and fruitful outcomes of across-the-board practical cooperation, which has brought tangible benefits to the two peoples. In April, President Xi Jinping held his fifth meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte on the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference in China, during which they reached important consensus on further developing bilateral relations. The Philippines has taken over as the country coordinator for ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations. The two sides also have major political and diplomatic events planned for the second half of this year. All these offer new development opportunities for China-Philippines relations in both bilateral and multilateral areas.

State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi's visit to the Philippines will further implement the important consensus between the two heads of state, consolidate and deepen friendly cooperation and ensure closer communication and coordination in regional cooperation, so as to continuously move forward China-Philippines and China-ASEAN relations and East Asia cooperation.

Q: It is reported that the US government is considering putting sanctions on Chinese government officials who are involved in the so-called human rights abuses in Xinjiang. What is your comment?

A: China consistently opposes the US side using Xinjiang-related issues to interfere in China's domestic affairs. In accordance with the law, the Chinese government protects its citizens' right to freedom of religious belief and people of all ethnic groups enjoy their full freedom of religious belief. If the relevant reports are true, we urge the US side to respect fact, discard prejudice and stop saying or doing anything that may undermine mutual trust and cooperation between the two sides.

Q: On September 10, the 72th General Assembly adopted one resolution on new partnership for Africa's development (document A/72/L.57/Rev.1) and one on the causes of conflict in Africa (document A/72/L.59/Rev.1) submitted by the Group of 77 which reaffirmed the concepts of "win-win cooperation" and "a community with a shared future for mankind". What is your comment?

A: The FOCAC Beijing Summit was just concluded with full success and fruitful outcomes. One of these outcomes is that China and Africa agreed to build a stronger community with a shared future, implement the eight major initiatives while upholding win-win cooperation, and upgrade China-Africa cooperation to deliver more benefits to African people.

We are very glad with the adoption of these two important resolutions by the General Assembly which follows the heels of the FOCAC Beijing Summit.

These resolutions call on the international community to follow the spirit of win-win cooperation and the building of a community with a shared future for mankind and strengthen support for African countries in their efforts to realize sustainable development and long-lasting peace. The tone and purpose of these resolutions is in line with that of the consensus reached at the Beijing Summit. It once again proves that the concepts of win-win cooperation and the building of a community with a shared future for mankind have gained great popularity and support from the international community. China-Africa cooperation serves the common interests of the two sides and echoes the aspiration of the international community.

Q: President Xi Jinping met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe today. The Japanese side said that the two sides agreed to make joint preparation for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to China next month. What's your comment?

A: President Xi Jinping met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF). I believe you have seen the press release on the relevant event issued by the Chinese side.

As for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to China, the Chinese side has extended the invitation already. The two sides are in communication on this. We hope the two sides can work together to create sound atmosphere and conditions for the visit.

Q: According to a Financial Times report on September 9, Malaysia canceled three Belt and Road projects which have already been suspended since July. What is your comment?

A: Economic and trade cooperation between China and Malaysia has been growing with a positive momentum, delivering real benefits to the two peoples. Both sides attach great importance to the BRI cooperation. Malaysia is among the first group of neighboring countries to support and participate in the BRI. During his visit to China last month, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir spoke highly of the BRI, believing that it is conducive to regional exchanges and cooperation and beneficial to all regional countries and expressing Malaysia's willingness to support and continue to participate in the BRI. China and Malaysia have signed relevant cooperation MOU and agreed to discuss the formulation of relevant outline of cooperation plans to move forward the BRI cooperation.

We believe that it is natural to see some problems coming out of bilateral cooperation and these problems could be properly resolved through dialogues on the basis of friendship and long-term development of bilateral relations, which is also an important common understanding reached between the two sides during Prime Minister Mahathir's visit last month. In fact, China and Malaysia are in friendly consultations over the relevant cooperation projects.

Q: The Vice President of Venezuela and the head of the State Petroleum Corporation are in Beijing for a meeting. Can you give us any information about this meeting? Were there any deals that have been made?

A: Venezuela is China's comprehensive strategic partner as well as an important partner for economic and trade cooperation in Latin America. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties 44 years ago, our bilateral relations have maintained a sound momentum for development and the exchanges and cooperation in various areas have increasingly deepened. Especially in the last 20 years, the practical cooperation between the two countries has grown significantly and brought tangible benefits and interests to the two peoples. China is willing to work with the Venezuelan side to continuously deepen our cooperation and further enrich the China-Venezuela comprehensive strategic partnership.

As to the specific visit you mentioned, I would like to refer you to the competent authority.

Q: According to reports, vice president for China operations of the US-China Business Council Jacob Parker said on September 11 that they were told by Chinese senior officials that China is putting off accepting license applications of American enterprises until the US-China relationship improves and stabilizes. The disclosure is the first public confirmation of US companies' fears that their operations in China or access to its markets might be disrupted by the trade war. What's your comment?

A: I am not aware of the Chinese officials' remarks you mentioned.

Regarding China-US trade disputes, China's position remains clear and consistent. We have been stressing that trade war never solves any problems, and will only be self-defeating as well as harmful to others. Dialogue and negotiation on the basis of equality and good faith marks the only viable way out for China-US trade frictions. In face of the US unilateral acts, on the one hand, we will resolutely take necessary countermeasures to safeguard our legal rights and interests; on the other hand, we will take forceful steps to help Chinese and foreign businesses operating in China overcome difficulties and ensure the steady and sound development of the Chinese economy.

As for the operations of foreign enterprises in China and their access to Chinese market, which is a concern for some people, I would like to reiterate that China will steadfastly advance a new round of reform and opening-up. With a faster pace of reform and the door opening wider, the investment environment in China will become even better. We will continue to implement high-standard trade and investment facilitation policies and further widen market access by a great margin, in a bid to provide more convenience to foreign enterprises' operations here.

According to latest statistics, around 30,000 new foreign-invested businesses were set up in China in the first half of this year, registering a year-on-year 96.6% increase. On September 5, the biggest US oil company ExxonMobil Corp signed agreements with Guangdong Province, announcing plans to invest $10 billion to build a wholly foreign-owned large-scale petrochemicals project. In July, German company BASF also decided to invest $10 billion to build a world-class petrochemicals industrial park in Zhanjiang, Guangdong. In addition, recently, German BMW Motor Corporation and US electric car-maker Tesla also expanded their production capacity, scale and investment in China. All these statistics and examples do speak volumes.

To sum up, I would like to reiterate that we welcome foreign businesses to invest and start up business in China, including the US ones, and are willing to share with them the opportunities and dividends presented by China's development for win-win results and mutual benefits.

Q: It is reported that US State Department Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun is in China on a visit. Has the Chinese side met with him? What were discussed?

A: What I have on hand is that Mr. Biegun, US State Department Special Representative for North Korea, is in China on September 12. He will talk with Vice Foreign Minister and Special Representative of the Chinese government on the Korean Peninsula affairs Kong Xuanyou. We will release relevant information on their meeting in time. Please keep following that.
A man developed mysterious boils on his neck after catching a life-threatening infection from his cat.

The unnamed 68-year-old, from Missouri, went to his GP after enduring painful red swellings on the right side of his neck for two months.

Blood tests revealed he was battling the rare condition tularemia, which can cause deadly pneumonia in up to 60 per cent of cases. The man is thought to have caught the disease from his cat, who died two days before he started feeling unwell.

Tularemia is rare but can affect both humans and animals if they eat undercooked meat from an infected animal, usually rabbits. Skin-to-skin contact with an infected pet can also spread the condition.

After being treated with antibiotics for a month, the patient made a full recovery.

A man developed mysterious boils on his neck after catching a deadly infection from his cat

WHAT IS TULAREMIA? Tularemia is a life-threatening infection that can affect both humans and animals, particularly rabbits and rodents. Humans can become infected via tick bites, skin contact with an infected animal or eating the undercooked meat of an infected animal. Symptoms vary depending on the route of infection. In most cases a skin ulcer occurs at the site where the bacteria, known as Francisella tularensis, entered the body. This is accompanied by swollen lymph nodes. If the bacteria enters via the eye, it can become irritated and inflamed, with lymph nodes swelling in front of the ear. If a person becomes unwell from eating or drinking contaminated food or water, they may have a sore throat, mouth ulcers, tonsillitis and swelling of the lymph nodes in their necks. The most serious form of the condition is pneumonic. This can occur if someone breathes in dust containing the bacteria or if other forms of the disease are left untreated and the pathogen spreads to their lungs. Pneumonic tularemia causes cough, chest pain and difficulty breathing. Although dangerous, most cases can be treated with antibiotics. People can reduce their risk of infection by using insect repellent and wearing gloves when handling sick or dead animals. Source: CDC Advertisement

Although the man had been battling painful swellings that were gradually getting worse for two months, he only went to his GP after spending one week with a fever.

After being transferred to Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, the man was told his red, painful swellings where actually enlarged lymph nodes.

Blood tests revealed he was infected with the bacteria Francisella tularensis but was otherwise healthy, according to the case report published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

He was diagnosed with glandular tularemia, which occurs when a person's lymph nodes swell at the site the bacteria enters their body.

It is the second most common form of illness from an Francisella tularensis infection, with the most common causing the same symptoms but with ulceration.

When the man was asked if anything unusual had happened in the lead up to his illness, he told doctors his cat had died from 'feline leukemia' days before.

Yet this cancer diagnosis was made by a vet without any lab tests being carried out to confirm it.

The man is therefore thought to have caught Francisella tularensis from his cat while giving his pet the cancer drug prednisone.

He was treated with the antibiotic doxycycline for four weeks.

His lesions began to improve within five days and disappeared after three weeks.
A couple watched their baby die from chickenpox after doctors allegedly failed to spot the infection.

Layton Boys-Hope was 12 months old when he died from sepsis - a violent immune response caused by the common childhood virus that he caught from his brother.

His parents, Nichol Boys and Dave Hope, both 38, claim medics at Sunderland Royal Hospital didn't notice the warning signs.

They say his purple foot - often a sign of sepsis - was dismissed as being caused by a 'tight nappy' and allege he wasn't given any antibiotics for eight hours - despite blood tests revealing an infection was present.

Now, after a tense three year battle, Layton's parents have finally agreed a damages settlement with health chiefs who run the hospital.

But City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, who will pay the family an undisclosed four-figure sum, denies liability for his death.

Layton Boys-Hope was 12 months old when he died from sepsis - a violent immune response caused by the common childhood virus

His parents, Nichol Boys and Dave Hope (pictured together), both 38, claim medics at Sunderland Royal Hospital didn't notice the warning signs

Hudgell Solicitors said the trust did admit earlier treatment with antibiotics could have saved Layton's life and that it had breached its duty of care by failing to carry out observations for six hours.

The trust said they expressed their 'deepest condolences' to Layton's family and had placed a major focus on increasing sepsis awareness.

Mr Hope, an optical lab technician, said: 'All of us are total shadows of our former selves after losing Layton and it makes it even harder to accept or understand when you know he was let down.

'The hospital failed to carry out observations and there were delays in giving him antibiotics which we have been told since would have saved him.

'Whatever we do and wherever we go, we'll always be thinking "what if?" If things had been different, Layton would still be here and that's the hardest part of it all.

'No parent should have to go through that and deal with that. We thought he was in the best place but, in my eyes, they didn't do everything they should have done. We can't ever accept that.'

Layton was rushed to SRH by his worried parents after he became breathless and was feverish on February 8, 2015.

His parents claim he had been making a good recovery from a bout of chickenpox he caught from his brother James, when he suddenly became ill at home.

He was rushed to hospital by his parents and admitted with a high temperature and his left foot purple in colour.

Layton was first assessed by a doctor at 3.45pm, who noted an enlargement of his liver and the possibility of a bacterial infection.

Ms Boys, a mother-of-six, said: 'However, despite this, no further observations were then made to assess Layton's condition over the following six hours.

They say his purple foot - often a sign of sepsis - was dismissed as being caused by a 'tight nappy' and allege he wasn't given any antibiotics for eight hours

Layton was rushed to SRH by his worried parents after he became breathless and was feverish on February 8, 2015 (pictured with his mother Nichol Boys)

'The doctors had noted the discolouration in Layton's foot but were not in agreement over its cause.

'It was dismissed as having been caused by either his nappy being too tight or having slept on his leg.'

Layton was only admitted to a ward at 9pm and given antibiotics at 11.25pm  more than eight hours after he was first seen.

However, at this point his oxygen levels dropped and his heartbeat had almost come to a stop.

He was immediately transferred to theatre but died after 30 minutes of CPR proved unable to save him.

Layton's cause of death was recorded as overwhelming sepsis, caused by Group A Streptococcus Pyogenes, triggered by chickenpox.

As part of legal action against the trust through medical negligence lawyers, it was alleged Layton would have survived if he had been given antibiotics before 6.45pm.

Layton's parents claim Layton was given Calpol to reduce his temperature while investigations were carried out.

The trust said they expressed their 'deepest condolences' to Layton's family and had placed a major focus on increasing sepsis awareness (pictured: Layton's purple leg)

HOW CAN CHILDREN DIE OF CHICKENPOX? For most children, chickenpox - which causes a red itchy spots that crust over to form scabs - is a mild illness that gets better on its own. But one in 100 chickenpox patients suffer complications from the virus. Around 95 per cent of children catch chickenpox before the age of 16, and for most it's a mild illness leading to itching, blisters and sometimes a high temperature. It's caused by the varicella-zoster virus and is highly contagious, usually lasting a week to ten days. In an estimated one per cent of cases, though, serious complications can develop such as pneumonia, meningitis, encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), sepsis and inflammation of the heart - all usually down to impaired immunity. Doctors advise parents to contact a GP straight away if your child develops any abnormal symptoms, such as: the blisters on their skin become infected

they have a pain in their chest or difficulty breathing Advertisement

But blood tests were not assessed until three and a half hours after his admission, when a low white blood cell count was discovered.

Hudgell Solicitors, who led a legal case against the trust, said these results should have triggered a decision to administer antibiotics to help fight infection.

Tasmin White, of Hudgell Solicitors, 'This is a tragic case, and it is particularly upsetting and distressing as from a parenting point of view, Dave and Nichol did everything they could.

'They took him to hospital as soon as they felt his condition was worsening and worrying.

'For the hospital to then approach his care with such a lack of urgency and detail, failing to carry out observations for six hours and not taking more decisive action, was inexcusable.

'Layton's very high temperature, rapid breathing and his discoloured leg were all red flag warnings that something adverse was happening and should have led to a decisive conclusion that an infection was present.

'There were certainly enough symptoms to warrant the early administration of antibiotics  treatment which it has accepted could have saved Layton's life.'

The family have been left heartbroken by the loss of their son but are determined to ensure it doesn't happen to other children.

Mr Hope, pictured with Layton, said: 'We will never forget him and when his baby brothers are old enough, we will tell them all about him. We don't want others to suffer the same as us'

Mr Hope said: 'The doctors told us they were trying everything possible to save him and from that moment our world started falling apart.

'We were shouting "come on Layton, you can do it son". They worked on him for about 30 minutes before they made the decision to stop and they asked us if we wanted to be there.

'When we go to the cemetery, the kids kiss his picture and we spend hours there.

'We will never forget him and when his baby brothers are old enough, we will tell them all about him. We don't want others to suffer the same as us.'

Ian Martin, medical director at City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, said: 'On behalf of the Trust, I express our deepest condolences to Layton's family for the tragic loss of their son and brother in 2015.

'Over the past three years, the NHS nationally and locally has placed a major focus on increasing awareness of sepsis to support healthcare professionals in recognising and treating symptoms of this 'silent killer'.

'Ensuring timely identification and treatment of sepsis is one of our key quality improvement priorities and we now have a dedicated sepsis lead working with teams across the trust to provide regular training and support for staff around spotting the signs and symptoms of potential sepsis cases early and acting quickly to provide prompt treatment.

'Sepsis is a serious complication of an infection and a leading cause of death across the UK.

'It is extremely difficult to recognise and diagnose and working together with the UK Sepsis Trust, the NHS is now making great strides to raise awareness amongst all staff groups to help potentially save more lives in future.'

Layton's parents are now raising funds in memory of their son, which will be given to the UK Sepsis Trust. Anyone wanting to donate can do so here.
Health chiefs have issued an urgent monkeypox warning telling doctors and nurses to avoid touching suspected cases with their bare hands.

Public Health England (PHE) gave out the official guidance yesterday after a second patient was struck down with the killer virus in the UK.

Officials revealed monkeypox can be spread through contact with clothing or linen, such as bedding or towels, used by an infected person.

They said medics must wear gloves when touching patients who could be infected and practise good hand hygiene because the disease can spread between people via a rash which develops into skin lesions which later scab and fall off.

Officials on Friday confirmed the first ever case of the virus in the UK, in a Nigerian naval officer who had the virus and travelled to Cornwall for military training.

And yesterday they revealed a second case in the country, being treated at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital (RLUH) - but added the two were unrelated.

Monkeypox was recorded for the first time in the UK on Friday in a Nigerian national staying at a naval base in Cornwall  the patient is now being treated at the Royal Free Hospital

Both patients had travelled from Nigeria where the rare infection is more common, and can be caught from contact with animals such as monkeys.

The hospitals treating the two unidentified patients deny there is any risk of catching the virus for those who need to visit either institution.

The RLUH and the Royal Free Hospital in London, currently treating the first patient, also told MailOnline they would not offer any updates over the current state of either monkeypox cases unless there is a major change in their health.

PHE released the guidance yesterday in a document called 'Monkeypox: information for primary care'.

It reassured medics it is difficult for the virus to travel between people and it's usually caught from animals.

But it can be caught from clothes, bed sheets or towels used by an infected person, through direct contact with skin lesions or scabs, or from coughing and sneezing.

If a doctor sees someone who may have monkeypox, PHE warns, they must avoid touching them without gloves.

Doctors and nurses have been warned to wear gloves if they touch the skin of people who they suspect might have monkeypox, which causes lesions and scabs which can spread the virus through physical contact (stock image of monkeypox symptoms)

And doctors should not use the room in which a patient is diagnosed with monkeypox until it has been decontaminated.

The official guidance said: 'Practitioners should avoid touching skin lesions with bare hands, wear disposable gloves and observe strict hand hygiene.'

And it said it's important to decontaminate the room the patient was diagnosed in before it can be used again.

The document added: 'If monkeypox is considered likely and the patient is referred to hospital, the room should not be used following transfer and the nearest [health protection team] should be contacted for advice about cleaning and decontamination.'

WHAT IS MONKEYPOX? Monkeypox - often caught through handling monkeys - is a rare viral disease that kills around 10 per cent of people it strikes, according to figures. The virus responsible for the disease is found mainly in the tropical areas of west and central Africa. Monkeypox was first discovered in 1958, with the first reported human case in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970. Human cases were recorded for the first time in the US in 2003 and the UK in September 2018. It resides in wild animals but humans can catch it through direct contact with animals, such as handling monkeys, or eating inadequately cooked meat. The virus can enter the body through broken skin, the respiratory tract, or the eyes, nose or mouth. It can pass between humans via droplets in the air, and by touching the skin of an infected individual, or touching objects contaminated by them. Symptoms usually appear within five and 21 days of infection. These include a fever, headache, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes, chills and fatigue. The most obvious symptom is a rash, which usually appears on the face before spreading to other parts of the body. This then forms skin lesions that scab and fall off. Monkeypox is usually mild, with most patients recovering within a few weeks without treatment. Yet, the disease can often prove fatal. There are no specific treatments or vaccines available for monkeypox infection, according to the World Health Organization. Advertisement

PHE said if doctors do see someone with the infection, it is likely to be early on when the risk of spreading the virus is lower.

The second monkeypox patient was confirmed yesterday and is being treated at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital.

They were diagnosed less than a week after England's first ever case appeared in Cornwall last Friday  but officials say one did not catch it from the other.

The Cornwall patient, who was staying on a naval base at the time, is now being treated at the Royal Free Hospital in London.

Both patients travelled to the country from Nigeria in West Africa, where there was a 'large sustained outbreak' in September.

Dr Nick Phin, deputy director of PHE's National Infection Service, said it was 'unusual' to see two cases in a matter of days.

Dr Phin said yesterday: 'It is likely monkeypox continues to circulate in Nigeria and could therefore affect travellers who are returning from this part of the world.

'However, it is very unusual to see two cases in such a relatively short space of time.

'We are working hard to contact individuals, including healthcare workers, that might have come into contact with the individual to provide information and health advice.'

Monkeypox is a viral infection similar to smallpox, which was declared eradicated in 1980 after a worldwide vaccination programme.

Many cases resolve themselves but it can cause fever, intense headache, back and muscle pain and a lack of energy.

Within a few days of a fever appearing, patients also experience skin symptoms which begin as a rash and progress to scabs.

Around 10 per cent of cases are thought to be fatal.

And although there is no specific treatment for the infection, the spread of it can be controlled while patients recover.

Dr Mike Beadsworth, clinical director of the Tropical and Infectious Diseases Unit at the RLUH said yesterday: 'We are treating a patient who has tested positive for monkeypox.

'The patient is being cared for on our specialist infectious and tropical diseases unit, by highly trained staff who are experienced in dealing with a variety of infectious diseases.

'All necessary precautions are being taken by specialist staff and there is currently no risk to other staff, patients or visitors.

'We ask that people continue to use our services as normal and that people only come to our emergency department if their condition is serious and/or an emergency.'

Dr Michael Jacobs, clinical director of infection at the Royal Free Hospital, said last week: 'Monkeypox is, in most cases, a mild condition which will resolve on its own and have no long-term effects on a person's health.

'Most people recover within several weeks. It is a rare disease caused by monkeypox virus, and has been reported mainly in central and west African countries.

'It does not spread easily between people and the risk of transmission to the wider public is very low.

'We are using strict isolation procedures in hospital to protect our staff and patients.'
Chronic pain suffered by millions may drive people to commit suicide.

Out of more than 120,000 suicides that took place in the US over 11 years, 10 percent of the deceased claimed to be in ongoing discomfort in their suicide notes or medical records, a US study found.

Back pain was the most common complaint, followed by cancer-related discomfort and arthritis.

Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US and the highest cause among men under 50 in the UK.

Chronic pain, which lasts more than three months, affects around 11 percent of adults in the US. In the UK, up to 14 percent of pain sufferers claim their discomfort has left them severely disabled.

Chronic pain suffered by millions may drive people to commit suicide (stock)

HOW MANY STUDENTS CONSIDER SUICIDE? An alarming number of college students say that they experience so much stress that they consider suicide, a report released in September 2018 reveals. As many as one in five students encounter such intense academic pressure, family, relationship, career and financial troubles that they struggle to see a way forward. Researchers from Harvard Medical School's Brigham and Women's hospital were especially surprised by how many college students encountered not one, but several, sources of stress they felt might be insurmountable. One in four of the 67,000 students the researchers surveyed said they had a diagnosed mental health issue or had been treated for one in the past. But far more - three quarters - had experienced a significantly stressful event in the past year. These events could include anything from pressure to succeed in their classes to health problems (including their own or those of family members and loved ones), to a death in the family, relationship and financial fall out. About 20 percent of the students had six such events in the span of just one year, and previous research has shown that this type of stress can have particularly significant effects on suicide risks for adolescents and young adults. Perhaps the most gravely affected groups were LGBTQ students, for whom rates of suicidal thoughts increased by more than 20 percent since 2009. Now, the majority - 58 percent - of lesbian, gay and bisexual students report considering suicide. Advertisement

Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analysed data from the National Violent Death Reporting System.

This system collects information on the circumstances surrounding suicides in 18 states.

Some 123,181 suicides that took place between January 2003 and December 2014 in people over 10 years old were assessed to determine if the deceased were in pain beforehand.

Pain was determined by evaluating the patients' medical records for signs they were in discomfort, such as back pain, for at least three months.

Records also showed if the patients had any medical conditions that cause pain, like sickle cell disease. 'Emotional pain' was not included in the analysis.

In cases where suicide notes were left, these were examined to determine if pain was mentioned.

Results, published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, suggest 10 percent of people who committed suicide in 2014 were in chronic pain, a 31 percent increase from 2003.

Of those in pain who took their own lives, 24 percent were experiencing spinal discomfort, while back pain affected 22 percent. Cancer-related discomfort affected 12 percent and arthritis seven percent.

More than half of the deceased had pain related to one medical condition, while 15 percent had two disorders and five percent had three or more.

Some 51 percent with pain and 44 percent without had a known mental-health condition, with depression being the most common.

Around two in three people who committed suicide while battling pain were male, with most being 80 or older.

This contradicts other suicide data, which suggest men are most likely to take their own lives in middle age.

Lead author Dr Emiko Petrosky said: 'Health care providers caring for patients with chronic pain should be aware of the risk for suicide.

'Chronic pain is a huge public health problem. Its essential that we improve chronic pain management through integrated patient centered management that includes mental health care in addition to medications for these patients.'

If you are having suicidal thoughts, contact the Samaritans here.
When Jaxon Dugger was two years old, his parents, Cody and J'Cinda, noticed that he was having trouble walking and was often falling.

A visit to the doctor's office in September 2012 and an MRI showed that he had a tumor on his brain, known as Ewing sarcoma, affecting the part that controls motor function.

After undergoing multiple rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, Jaxon was declared cancer-free.

But just a few months later, doctors in Hollis, Oklahoma, told the Duggers that his tumor had grown back and aggressively.

Now eight years old, Jaxon has been fighting ever since - having a needle inserted into his skull every two weeks to receive chemotherapy.

His mother J'Cinda told KFOR that her son is the one who keeps her spirits up and assures her he'll beat his cancer - despite having just an 18 percent chance of survival.

Jaxon Dugger, eight (left and right), from Hollis, Oklahoma, was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma when he was just two years old. His parents first noticed something was wrong when he began having trouble walking and was falling often

Ewing sarcoma is a rare cancer that occurs usually in the bones or soft tissue surrounding the bones. But Jaxon's tumor was on his brain. Pictured: Jaxon and his mother, J'Cinda

Jaxon's mother, J'Cinda, told KFOR, that the symptoms began when Jaxon was two years old.

'When Jaxon was two, we started noticing that he was having trouble walking and he started falling,' she said.

An MRI in September 2012 revealed that the tumor was pressing on his brain and a biopsy confirmed it was Ewing sarcoma.

Ewing sarcoma is a rare cancer that occurs usually in the bones or soft tissue surrounding the bones.

The tumor most often begins in the long bones in the pelvis, legs or arms.

Symptoms include pain or swelling in the cancerous area, fatigue, fever, and unexplained broken bones.

It affects around 200 children and young adults in the US every year and usually appears between ages 10 and 20.

Jaxon underwent surgery to remove the tumor followed by 14 cycles of chemotherapy and 31 rounds of proton radiation, according to a GoFundMe page.

A highly effective form of radiotherapy, proton radiation uses a high energy beam of protons rather than high energy X-rays, delivering targeted doses to the cancerous areas.

The treatment has been particularly effective treating cancers at the base of the skull and of the spine.

Jaxon (pictured) underwent surgery to remove the tumor followed by 14 cycles of chemotherapy and 31 rounds of proton radiation

One year later, in September 2013, Jaxon was declared cancer-free But in January 2014, an MRI found a nodule, a small aggregation of cells in the body. Pictured, left to right: Jaxon, his mother J'Cinda, and his sister

J'Cinda said it was during this time that Jaxon experienced some of the most severe side effects of radiation and the steroid medication he was on.

The young boy's weight ballooned to 75 pounds, three times his normal weight at the time, despite a loss of appetite.

'He spent nine weeks [in the hospital] just trying to learn to walk again, trying to eat,' she told KFOR.

One year later, in September 2013, Jaxon was declared cancer-free.

However, just three months later, in January 2014, an MRI found a nodule, a small cluster of cells in the body.

In March, doctors confirmed that the nodule was a Ewing sarcoma - meaning the tumor had returned.

According to St Jude Children's Research Hospital, around 70 percent of children with Ewing sarcoma are cured.

However, among teens between the ages of 15 and 19, the survival rate falls to around 56 percent.

Once the tumor has spread throughout the body, the rate is less than 30 percent.

A study from the hospital found that for patients with recurrent Ewing sarcoma, the five-year relapse-free survival is around 18 percent.

Jaxon underwent surgery to remove the tumor followed by 14 cycles of chemotherapy and 31 rounds of proton radiation, according to a GoFundMe page.

A highly effective form of radiotherapy, proton radiation uses a high energy beam of protons rather than high energy X-rays, delivering targeted doses to the cancerous areas.

The treatment has been particularly effective treating cancers of the skull and the spine.

J'Cinda said it was during this time that Jaxon experienced some of the most severe side effects of radiation and the steroid medication he was on.

The young boy's weight ballooned to 75 pounds, three times his normal weight at the time, despite a loss of appetite.

Certain cancer-fighting drugs and steroids can cause your body to retain salt and lose potassium, which can cause bloating and weight gain.

'He spent nine weeks [in the hospital] just trying to learn to walk again, trying to eat,' she told KFOR.

One year later, in September 2013, Jaxon was declared cancer-free.

In March, doctors confirmed that the nodule was an Ewing sarcoma - meaning the tumor had returned. Ever since then, Jaxon (left and right) has been on chemotherapy which he receives via an access port surgically implanted under his scalp

J'Cinda said that when the family learned the cancer had returned, Jaxon (pictured) told her: 'Mom, don't cry. I've beat it. I'll beat it again'

However, just three months later, in January 2014, an MRI found a nodule, a small aggregation of cells in the body.

In March, doctors confirmed that the nodule was a Ewing sarcoma - meaning the tumor had returned.

Currently, Jaxon is undergoing chemotherapy, which he receives via an access port surgically implanted under his scalp.

Nurses have to pierce a needle to access the port. From there the chemotherapy is delivered to his brain tumor.

'I can't think of a time he's cried or fought with them to access the port,' J'Cinda said.

'Whether it's labs, a spinal tap, or an MRI, he just sits there. He has ever since he was two' said J'Cinda.

Both she and the medical team at Jimmy Everest Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases in Children in Oklahoma City said Jaxon has continued to stay positive despite his trials and tribulations.

J'Cinda recalled that when the family received the news that the cancer had returned, Jaxon was the one to try and cheer her up.

'I was crying and he said: "Mom, don't cry. I've beat it. I'll beat it again'",' she said.

A family friend has set up a GoFundMe page to help cover the cost of Jaxon's medical bills.

So far, more than $3,000 has been raised out of a $25,000 goal.
Some NHS staff are refusing to get the flu jab because they wrongly believe it will make them ill, England's top nurse has warned.

Professor Jane Cummings said 'myths' persist around the vaccine, including among doctors and nurses, with the 'big one' being it gives people flu.

It comes just days after all NHS staff were told to get the jab or risk being banned from treating vulnerable patients this winter.

Officials hope to achieve 'near universal' coverage of frontline staff this year to help protect patients after only about two-thirds received the jab last winter.

Almost 69 per cent of NHS staff had the flu vaccine last year  up from 53 per cent in 2015  and those who refuse now have to explain why to their bosses and may be prevented from working with vulnerable patients

'It's really important we make it as easy as possible for staff and we give them the full facts,' Professor Cummings said.

'Anything up to 50 per cent of staff may have the flu virus but be asymptomatic. They may not feel ill, they may not be aware that they are.

'Of course, all of us as clinicians have a duty of care to our patients, so we are actually working really hard with staff this year to have the vaccine.'

The flu vaccine does not contain any live viruses and cannot cause flu, though some people may experience a slight temperature and aching muscles afterwards.

Professor Cummings stressed that those turning down the vaccine because of this misconception were unlikely to be doctors and nurses.

It comes after health bosses last week said they are considering moving medics who don't have the vaccine to different departments in order to protect vulnerable patients.

HOW TO GET A FLU VACCINE Flu can be a serious illness and can cause complications such as pneumonia, kidney failure and inflammation of the heart or brain. People at most risk of serious illness or death if they get flu are offered the vaccine on the NHS. Ideally you should have this before the end of December, when flu peaks (it takes around two weeks after the jab for the vaccine to work). At-risk groups include anyone aged 65 and over, people living in long-stay residential care homes, carers and pregnant women. The vaccine is also offered via GP surgeries to anyone aged six months to 65 years with certain conditions, such as diabetes. All children aged two to eight are also offered the vaccine as a nasal spray. If you do not qualify to have the jab on the NHS, you can pay to get it at a pharmacy. Well Pharmacy charges 9 to 14 (depending on the number of strains in the vaccine), Superdrug from 9.99, Lloyds Pharmacy 10, Boots 12.99 and Tesco 9. Children's nasal spray vaccines can also be paid for at pharmacies if they are above primary school age. Advertisement

A measure was introduced last year meaning staff would have to explain why they refused the vaccine, and now they face being moved to a different department.

Patients in cancer care, those with blood disorders, and babies in neonatal intensive care are all usually high-risk and may be shielded from the unvaccinated workers.

The NHS's plan has been revealed after chiefs yesterday warned this year's flu vaccine will not protect over-65s from a deadly Japanese strain of the virus.

A letter to hospital trusts from NHS England and NHS Improvement suggests the health service is concerned about the effect of flu this winter.

Last year saw the worst flu season in seven years and 68.7 per cent of all NHS staff had the vaccination  up from 53 per cent in 2014-15.

The numbers of staff having the flu jab varies across different hospital trusts, with some areas having 90 per cent of staff immunised but others only managing 20 to 30 per cent.

In a letter to staff, NHS bosses said: 'Our ambition is for 100 per cent of healthcare workers with direct patient contact to be vaccinated.

'In hospital departments where patients have a lower immunity and are most at risk of flu, it may be appropriate for healthcare workers who choose not to be vaccinated to be redeployed to other areas where this promotes patient safety.'

More than 15,000 excessive deaths were attributable to flu last season, figures show.

This year, a newly-available adjuvanted vaccine will be offered to those over the age of 65, protecting against three strains of flu.

The jab could reduce GP consultations by 30,000, hospitalisations by more than 2,000 and prevent more than 700 hospital deaths from flu in England, according to analysis by PHE.

The quadrivalent vaccine, protecting against four strains, will be offered to all eligible adults under the age of 65, including pregnant women and those with long-term health conditions.

The programme has been extended this year, with children in Year Five now offered the vaccine, along with children in Reception to Year Four.

The vaccine will eventually be offered to all primary school-aged children.

Social workers and frontline healthcare workers are also eligible to receive the vaccine for free.

Professor Paul Cosford, medical director at PHE, said: 'Flu is potentially a very serious illness, and we know adults over 65 are more likely to catch and have complications from flu so have the most to gain from an improved vaccine.

'By introducing an enhanced flu vaccine for this age group they will be better protected as well as helping to reduce the spread of flu to those around them.

'Further protection will be gained by offering flu vaccine to more children this year and giving a vaccine that provides protection against four strains of flu to all eligible people under the age of 65.

'We encourage everyone who is eligible to get the flu vaccine from their general practice or pharmacy before the end of November.'

The flu vaccine, which will be offered to 24 million people this year, will be available from early October.

Although it is a common infection and most people can recover quickly, flu can be deadly for those with weaker immune systems like old people, babies and people with long-term medical conditions.
Women are struggling to access contraception due to such services being cut throughout England.

According to Freedom of Information requests, almost half of all councils in England have closed or plan to cut the number of sites issuing contraceptives between 2015 and 2019.

Experts fear restricted access to long-term contraceptives, like the coil and implant, will cause a surge in abortion rates.

Dr Louise Skioldebrand, who is one of the few GPs that still fits long-acting contraceptives in Stowmarket, Suffolk, said: 'I think there's a real risk that unplanned pregnancies will go up.

'I would guess in a year's time, we will have more.'

Women are struggling to access contraception due to services being cut throughout (stock)

DOES HORMONAL BIRTH CONTROL INCREASE A WOMAN'S RISK OF DEPRESSION? Hormonal birth control does not increase women's risk of depression, research suggested in February 2017. Contrary to popular belief, contraceptive pills, implants or injections do not make women more likely to suffer from the mental-health condition, a study found. Lead author Dr Brett Worly from Ohio State University, said: 'Depression is a concern for a lot of women when they're starting hormonal contraception. 'Based on our findings, this side effect shouldn't be a concern for most women, and they should feel comfortable knowing they're making a safe choice.' The researchers blame platforms such as social media for making contraception complications seem more common than they are. Dr Worly said: 'We live in a media-savvy age where if one or a few people have severe side effects, all of a sudden, that gets amplified to every single person. 'The biggest misconception is that birth control leads to depression. For most patients that's just not the case.' The scientists add, however, certain women are at a greater risk of the mental-health disorder and should be monitored closely. Dr Worly said: 'Adolescents will sometimes have a higher risk of depression, not necessarily because of the medicine they're taking, but because they have that risk to start with. 'For those patients, it's important that they have a good relationship with their healthcare provider so they can get the appropriate screening done - regardless of the medications they're on.' The researchers reviewed thousands of studies investigating the link between contraceptives and people's mental health. Such studies included various methods of contraception, including injections, implants and pills. Participants in the trials were made up of teenagers, women with a history of depression and those who had given birth in the past six weeks. Advertisement

The Advisory Group on Contraception contacted all 152 local authorities in England, of which 74, or 49 per cent, claimed to have reduced or plan to reduce their contraception services.

Long-acting contraceptives will be most affected. These are often preferred, particularly by older women, due to them being more effective than the pill or condoms.

Between 2014 and 2016, three quarters of councils in England made cuts to contraceptives being issued in GP clinics or walk-in services due to doctors not have the time or training to fit them. This caused many to turn to sexual-health clinics.

Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Royal College of GPs, claims it is 'bizarre' that cuts are being made to contraception services when evidence suggests they are one of the most cost effective healthcare interventions.

She fears such cuts will set back improvements that have been made to sexual and reproductive healthcare in the UK over the past few years, with teenage pregnancy rates halving and contraception use increasing.

Professor Stokes-Lampard told the BBC: 'We're at a crossroads, whereby all the progress we've made is under serious threat, and we fear it will be some of our most vulnerable patients who are affected most.'

She also added the way sexual and reproductive healthcare clinics are run is too fragmented, with not all being adequately funded to carry out such services. The Department of Health claims local councils allocate their health budgets.

This comes after previous research suggests oral contraception increases a woman's risk of suffering from certain types of stroke.

Birth-control pills raise a woman's likelihood of suffering from an ischemic stroke, which occurs when an artery to the brain is blocked and makes up around 85 per cent of cases of the life-threatening condition, a study found.

The researchers, from Loyola University in Chicago, wrote: '[Among] women with other stroke risk factors, the risk seems higher and, in most cases, oral contraceptive use should be discouraged'.

Such contraceptives do not raise the risk of hemorrhagic strokes, which are caused by bleeding in the brain, the research adds.

Birth-control pills, patches and jabs are thought to rise the risk of artery blockages by making blood more likely to clot.

The researchers stress, however, the risk is low among women without any risk factors for clotting, such as high-blood pressure and smoking.
North Carolinans could face weeks toxic sludge and contaminated drinking water even after Hurricane Florence has passed.

With rainfall expected to reach three feet, the parts of the state could soon be awash in everything from coal ashes to pig manure and even nuclear waste from flooded sites.

The slush and all the fecal matter and toxins it may contain will be liable to seep into farm soil, groundwater and wells.

Daily Mail Online breaks down the health threats that may lurk long after the storm has passed.

Even after Hurricane Florence has made landfall in North Carolina and the storm has died down, three feet of rain, plus storm surges, could lead to flooding and water contamination

Winds up to 130 mph and a 13-foot storm surge are due to slam into North Carolina in the coming hours.

Though the damage inflicted by the storm itself will undoubtedly cost the state billions and destroy homes, filthy flood waters have the potential to sicken even more people.

North Carolina, several other US states and territories and countries including Japan have seen the horrors that floods can release into the water before.

'It's an issue that's kind of behind the scenes and undetected,' says Dr Neill Grigg, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Colorado State University.

'For example, in the Puerto Rico aftermath, initially there were 20 deaths reported. Now the toll is 3,000.'

Dr Grigg says that populations affected by hurricanes - especially those most vulnerable, like children, the elderly and disabled - take a series of hits that slowly drive up death tolls.

'You have people being injured, and then they can sometimes sustain another accident, and it takes awhile and weakens them further ... this kind of thing is pretty endemic with flooding,' says Dr Grigg.

'It's just gigantic. It's not nearly as talked about as the near-term losses, like people losing their homes and belongings, but we often don't see the illnesses long-term.'

Environmental contamination plays a significant role in that long-term fallout, and North Carolina's industries make it especially vulnerable.

North Carolina has a $1.5 billion pork industry, but billions of pounds of manure could end up in the water following Florence, while pigs swim for their lives as they did after Hurricane Floyd

FLOOD WATERS COULD LIFT PIG MANURE FROM ITS PITS

Flood waters could lift pig manure from its pits

North Carolina is one of the nation's largest pork producers, with a nearly $1.5 billion pig industry.

The animals produce 10 billion pounds of manure every year. That manure is stored in 'lagoons,' open earthen pits, into which tons of animal waste pours from the farms where the hogs are kept.

'Hog, chicken, animal, and human waste all have a lot of different kinds of bacteria,' says Dr Grigg.

'The deadly one is E. coli, but all sorts can make you sick from contact as well as from drinking contaminated water.'

Earlier this year, E coli-contaminated water infected lettuce which in turn sickened some 200 people and even killed five in the US.

In 1999 and 2016, Hurricanes Floyd and Matthew, respectively, brought flood waters that overran a number of pig lagoons. It is unclear how many people may have been sickened in the aftermath of either storm.

The state has urged pig farmers to pump as much of the waste as possible from these lagoons and haul it away.

Andy Curliss, CEO of the North Carolina Pork Council told Bloomberg that the lagoons can accommodate an additional 25 inches of rain water - but meteorologists are anticipating up to 36.

Coal ash has spills have already contaminated water supplies in North Carolina. Flooding could lead to unsane levels of carcinogenic arsenic in drinking water

FINE COAL ASH DISSOLVED IN WATER BECOMES ARSENIC-LADEN SLUDGE

Earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency found that coal ash ponds in North Carolina had contaminated drinking water there so badly that levels of toxic chemicals were more than 40-time the level the agency considers safe.

Like the pig manure much of this ash is stored in pools, where the water keeps it from blowing away.

But this means it is equally vulnerable to flood waters, which may dilute the sludge solution and carry ash far and wide.

'Coal ash contains arsenic, and how that reacts with water can change the chemistry of the water, infecting source water even after it's been treated,' says Dr Grigg.

Plus, many North Carolinans have their own backyard wells which can be easily contaminated by flood waters.

Drinking water heavy with arsenic has been linked to all kinds of long term ailments, including an increased risk of cancer, blood vessel hardening, heart disease and nerve pain.

There are six nuclear power plants in North Carolina and severe flooding has the potential to ruin their cooling systems, leading to a meltdown that could release radiation

NORTH CAROLINA'S NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS COULD FACE MELTDOWNS AND LEAK RADIATION INTO THE ENVIRONMENT

North Carolina's nuclear power plants could face meltdowns and leak radiation into the environment

There are five power plants in North Carolina, including the Brunswick plant, right along the southern coast of the state, which is expected to be hardest hit area of the state.

In past hurricanes, the structures have held strong, and officials insist they've only been made stronger since.

Nuclear power plants rely on water intake - often from rivers or other natural bodies of water for their cooling systems.

Yet, if the plant floods the water can ruin the electrical power systems that power their cooling mechanisms and this in turn leads to overheating.

If the core overheats, the plants ability to contain nuclear radiation may fail as well, releasing radiation into the environment, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Plus, 'what might be stored around the plant that might be unique to that power plant gets into the flooding water,' says Dr Grigg.

'What might be stored around the plant that might be unique to that power plant might get into the flooding waters.'

In 2011, all three reactors of the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan melted after a tsunami led to the shutdown of its cooling systems; the fear is that something similar could happen in North Carolina.

In the short term, the plant's staff and surrounding communities had sufficient warning to get out of dodge before the meltdown.

These people may be at a sightly elevated risk of thyroid cancer, though are still in significantly less risk than those affected by higher doses of radiation from the Chernobyl incident.

The World Health Organization closely monitors food and water there for contamination. Radiation levels in some foods and in iodine were high in the early aftermath o the meltdown, but now ingestibles there seem to be safe.

But that was only a few years ago.

THE FUTURE EFFECTS ARE UNCERTAIN AND IMMEASURABLE

'Anything radiation-related is going to be longer term - cancer-causing, etc,' says Dr Grigg.

'In the shorter term, it's more acute gastrointestinal problems with bacteria, not only from contamination from river and source water, but even flooding out of the pipes around the system.'

These acute infections could continue for a week or even two, but it will be difficult to know how badly the flooding has affected public health until long after the storm ha spassed.

'The acute phase is going to last a week or two, it takes a few days to get a water treatment back up and going,' says Dr Grigg.

Then come the relief and recovery phases.

'But one of the health issues is grief an mental health problems. A lot of deaths occur in the recovery phase, but it's hard to say, it will just depend on the severity,' Dr Grigg adDs.


The owner of the high street fast fashion firm Zara has reported soaring profits and record sales.

Despite currency pressures and difficult conditions for retailers, Spanish group Inditex announced a 3 per cent rise in net income to 1.4 billion (1.2 billion) for the six months to July 1 giving the company its best ever half-year results.

Shares in Inditex, which also owns Massimo Dutti and Pull&Bear among a number of other brands, have risen by more than 2 per cent since the progress report was unveiled.

Zara is owned by the Spanish group, Inditex, who also own other big named high street fashion brands such as Massimo Dutti, Pull&Bear and Bershka.

Net sales also smashed the previous record of 12 billion (10.7 billion) for the first time to hit 12.03 billion (10.7 billion).

Inditex, the world's largest clothing retailer, said group like-for-like sales rose by 4 per cent and were higher across all regions including Europe and the UK. However, this is a reduction on the 6 per cent growth seen last year.

It said its autumn/winter initial collections have been 'well received', estimating that like-for-like sales growth has improved in the second half so far to between 4 and 6 per cent.

This is despite many customers being driven away from the high street due to the tough economy with people having less spare money to spend on non-essential items.

Pablo Isla, chairman and chief executive of Inditex, said: 'The strong first-half results are the result of a solid sales and operating performance, arising from the unique strength of the group's integrated and sustainable business model.'

The stronger euro had been expected to take its toll but the group's profits still increased with its gross profit margin increasing slightly to 56.7 per cent from 56.4 per cent.

The group reported record profits despite the tough economy driving many customers away from the high street.

Many of Inditex's products are made in the eurozone but it makes more than half of its sales outside the currency bloc.

The strong euro has certainly made an impact, as shown in its total sales figures with local currencies up by an impressive 8 per cent.

The high street empire, who employs over 170,000 people, opened stores in 44 markets in its first half, taking its total number of outlets to 7,422 across 96 markets.

It also recently declared that all of its brands will be available online worldwide by 2020.

It currently has online sales in 49 of its 96 markets.
The bosses of Britain's four biggest banks have pocketed almost 178m since the financial crisis struck  while average wages have fallen by 760 a year.

Vast payouts to the chief executives of Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland have continued despite bailouts, mis-selling scandals and massive fines.

Meanwhile a report by the Institute For Fiscal Studies shows the typical worker is still earning significantly less.

Gravy train: Vast payouts to the chief executives of Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland have continued

Its analysis shows that average annual earnings stood at 23,327 last year, 3.2 per cent lower than in 2008 when the average wage was 24,088. It is likely to fuel fresh criticism of the industry and spark fears that ordinary families have shouldered the burden of the crisis while City chiefs have sailed on regardless.

Labour MP John Mann, a member of the Treasury select committee, said: 'These figures show there is one rule for the bankers and another rule for the rest of the country. Let's not forget that taxpayers bailed them out and saved their skins. This is greed, not performance-related pay.'

Luke Hildyard of the High Pay Centre said: 'Britain is an angrier, more divided country in the aftermath of the crisis, and the contrasting experiences of the top bankers who caused it and the blameless majority of people explain why.'

Analysis by the Mail reveals that HSBC has been responsible for the most generous pay packets, doling out 65.8m to bosses Michael Geoghegan and Stuart Gulliver from 2009 to 2017.

The bank came through the crisis is relatively good shape financially, but was hit with a 1.5bn fine in 2012 for laundering money on behalf of Mexican drug cartels and threatened with losing its US banking licence.

Lloyds has paid its chief executives 49.6m since the crisis, when it was forced to accept 20.3bn of taxpayers' cash to stay afloat.

This cash has since been repaid, but the bank was the biggest culprit of the huge PPI mis-selling scandal and has shelled out 18.7 billion in compensation.

Hard hitter: Bob Diamond was paid a total of 13m at Barclays

Current boss Antonio Horta-Osorio, who was caught in 2016 having an affair on a business trip, has been handed 45.1m.

At Barclays, bosses have picked up 39.3m.

The bank avoided a bailout after securing 2.3bn of investment from Qatar in a deal for which it is now being prosecuted by the fraud squad. Then-boss John Varley, who earned 6.6m after the crisis, is also due to go on trial along with three other former executives.

They all deny wrongdoing, as does the bank.

Barclays was later at the centre of the Libor rate-rigging scandal, for which it was fined a then-record 290m.

The scandal led to the resignation of Varley's successor as chief executive Bob Diamond, who was paid a total of 13m.

Current chief executive Jes Staley has earned 8.4m but was forced to hand back a 500,000 bonus and fined 642,430 after wrongly trying to unmask a whistleblower who had written a poison pen letter about one of his staff.

The last of the big four banks, Natwest owner RBS, has given its bosses 22.8m despite a 46bn bailout which has left taxpayers with a 62.4 per cent stake they are almost certain to lose money on.
September 11 is a time to be reflective, particularly if you grew up and went to school in the shadow of the World Trade Center. They blew up the place I called home.

Years have passed, and I cant help but think those frightening events on that day are lost to so many. I think about the fact that the average student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, a victim of the Parkland massacre, was born three years after 9/11.

Each generation has an event which shapes our lives. If you are pushing 70, as I now am, it was not the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1942. That was my dads. For me, it will always be September 11, 2001, when I was publisher of the Express Gay News of South Florida.

I am grateful that I can still be publishing a newspaper in a digital age. I am humbled by the honors that Equality Florida is bestowing on me and SFGN, announced this week on our page 2. Most of all, I am proud that I can still illuminate the good work and bold deeds of the LGBT community every week.

As a publisher, you have to deal with the fact that real news does not mean you support everyone around you. No. Your duty is to report on everything around you. That means not every story is pleasant, not every paragraph is proud.

Look, it becomes newsworthy when the director of a pride organization steals money, and you have to report he has been arrested and jailed. But you never forget all the volunteers who put the event together. Its just that you dont always write enough about the 99,000 pilots who fly around the pigeons and land their plane safely. You write about the plane that crashes because it hit those poor birds.

Sometimes, newspapers are like critics, who can find a little bad in the best of things. You think we are promoting scandals rather than substance. But we were not the ones who hired sexual offenders to work at a pride center playground. We were unfortunately the messengers who had to write about the mess.

Dont let a little bad in the news interfere with the overall good in our lives. Dont ever lose sight of the bigger picture, where we achieve and accomplish, live and love, making a difference in our world. Of course, we have our warts and our wounds, in the community, just like at home. Dont beautiful rose bushes also have thorns?

A little blister and bluster does not mean we dont have our churches and temples, offering solace and spiritual strength to those of us who have suffered loss and are enduring sorrow.

That does not mean we do not have our champions, volunteering time at HIV clinics or food banks, in bowling centers or at food lines. That does not mean we dont have youthful LGBT competitors in swimming tournaments, raising money at weekend car washes to pay their way to the competition.

With the midterm elections almost upon us, we will tend to find ourselves decrying politicians and cutting down our government. But the truth is whether you are in the Dolphin Democrats or the Log Cabin Republicans, you are not making money. You are participating in a process which makes our community better and democracy stronger.

As Barack Obama said last week, anyone who thinks voting does not matter ought to think about what has happened the past two years. We all make a difference in our own way. You dont have to make headlines. You dont have to get awards. You just have to make choices which make your life and community better along the way.

Let us show up in great numbers this year, and make the rest of our community stunned and blown away by the voting ratios of our gay community. Let the world know we are a force to be reckoned with, at the polls, in our schools, and in our social and political congresses. Lets help Equality Florida shape equality in Florida.

For voting, for your own life, my advice is to follow the guides of constitutional scholars I studied too many years ago, resting in books on the high shelves of my house I may never reach again. But their truth stands, their words have withstood the test of time, and endure in my soul. Be not injurious to others. Be truthful to yourself. The good you do comes back to you, but watch your ass. So does the bad.

On September 11, 2001, there were many heroes. One was a gay man that the late Senator, John McCain honored ever so gloriously, after his passing. His name was Mark Bingham, and in taking down the last set of terrorists who sought to fly their plane into the Capitol Building, he called upon his passengers to retake the cockpit.

His memorable and final words were, Lets roll. Each of us, every day, has that duty, as citizens. America lost John McCain this past month. His words in this weeks newspaper show why he should matter to our gay community. He was a good man who recognized the inherent decency and goodness of Americans.

If Athens shall appear great to you, the great orator Pericles once wrote, consider only that her greatness was purchased by decent citizens simply doing their duty each day.

May you find that purpose and presence in your own lives. Here at SFGN, our goal is simply to shine a light upon it. Let me know if you think we can be doing more.

And to my Jewish friends, Shanna Tovah, Happy New Year. I really did mean to go to Temple last week. But you know, the Dolphins had this home opener..OK it lasted two days, but what a game.
Nestled on the Jurassic Coast in Devon, the picturesque seaside town of Sidmouth is a haven for tourists.

Set against a backdrop of red sandstone cliffs, its pretty beach and bustling High Street attract thousands of families every year.

But locals say the historic area risks becoming a ghost town if its shops continue to close at the current rate.

Already this year, three have shut their doors or announced plans to do so. Many more say they are close to breaking point.

Shutting up shop: Alan Morgenroth is closing Goviers in Sidmouth which opened in 1904

Shopkeepers say that, while local car parking issues and competition from online rivals are partly to blame, one of the biggest problems they face is crippling business rates.

Eighteen months ago, changes to business rates led to higher bills for more than half a million shops, restaurants and pubs.

Following a public outcry, government ministers hastily drew up plans for a 435 million relief package.

But many businesses say that help never reached them, or that it was not enough to save them. The Government claims that, for most shops, last years rates reshuffle led to no change or to even lower bills.

But more than 8,000 High Street shops are estimated to have closed over the past 18 months, with one in eight shop units in England and Wales now standing empty.

On Britains worst-affected High Streets, campaigners say independent shops are falling like dominoes as punitive rates force them out of business.

Today, as Money Mail reveals the true scale of the crisis, we renew our call for a major review into the out-dated levy.

114-year-old shop forced to close

Chinaware store Goviers, which opened in Sidmouth in 1904, is expected to close by the end of the year.

The shop, which has run for 114 years, has made a loss in recent times. Going forward it has decided to operate only online and through a mail-order catalogue.

Alan Morgenroth, who has owned the store for 34 years, says high business rates are partly to blame for his decision to shut the doors.

Chinaware store Goviers opened in Sidmouth in 1904. It is expected to close by the end of the year

Business rates are based on the income a property could hypothetically make if it was rented out, a calculation estimated by the Valuation Office Agency.

But critics say this punishes small shops in areas where property prices have soared in recent years, particularly pretty market towns.

Alan currently pays 9,818 a year in business rates, up from the 8,816 he paid in 2012.

Alan, 60, says: Its devastating to close, we are one of the few truly independent shops left in Sidmouth.

Its devastating to close, we are one of the few truly independent shops left in Sidmouth Alan Morgenroth

I dont have a problem with charity shops [which are exempt from 80 per cent to 100 per cent of business rates] but Sidmouth is now known as the charity shop capital of the South West.

The Government has done very little to support High Street shops. Then you have the online businesses, which might not even be the giants like Amazon, but may operate from a backroom and dont have to pay these rates.

They can undercut us and offer the same items at lower prices, he adds.

The butcher paying 2,000 more than five years ago

Stewart Hayman, 67, says his 111-year-old family butchers firm made practically zero profit last year following a huge increase in business rates

Stewart Hayman, 67, says his 111-year-old family butchers firm made practically zero profit last year following a huge increase in business rates.

He pays 7,800 a year  around 2,000 more than five years ago.

Stewart, who has worked at Haymans Butchers for 51 years, says: On Church Street we are one of only two businesses which are actually paying rates. Many of the other businesses are charity shops, he says.

I think if we didnt own the building and were paying rent on top of all these costs, we wouldnt be here.

John Wycherley, 64, and his wife Jeannie have run Sidmouth Gifts for five of the 40 years the shop has been open. In 2015, the owners were paying 5,950 a year in business rates. This year, they must fork out 7,738.

John says: The whole system needs to be changed so that rates are based on income, rather than property value.

Internet-based companies such as Amazon get away with not paying these high rates while High Street shops have to foot the bill.

Areas such as ours tend to have higher rateable values because of the property [market]. Sidmouth is a well-off area full of second homes and pensioners who worked in London.

In April 2017, the Government undertook the first revaluation in seven years of shops rateable worth  the rental value on which business rates are based.

But while three-quarters of businesses saw their bills fall or stay the same, some were hit with annual rate rises of thousands of pounds.

According to research compiled for accountancy giant PwC, an average of 16 High Street stores closed every day in 2017.

This means an estimated 8,400 shops have closed since the rates were revalued last April.

According to the PwC data, there were substantially more closures in the second half of last year  following the business rate changes  compared with the first half of the year.

Wheres the help they promised?

Following a huge backlash against the rates reshuffle, the Government revealed plans for a 435 million emergency package. It offered payments over four years for those shops facing the largest increases.

That included a 300 million pot which councils could dole out at their discretion to smaller struggling businesses.

The Government claims to have helped small shops on rates, but Goviers owner Alan Morgenroth currently pays 9,818 a year, up from the 8,816 he paid in 2012

The Treasury appeared unable to tell Money Mail exactly how much of this fund has been handed out so far.

But Freedom of Information figures from last year show that 300 days after the money was promised, tens of millions of pounds had yet to be distributed.

A total of 175 million from the 300 million pot was supposed to have been allocated by the end of March.

By last December, however, only 56 per cent, or 98 million, of it had been given away, according to Freedom of Information requests by property consultancy firm Gerald Eve LLP.

Alan Hawkins, chief executive of the British Independent Retailers Association, says: It is tough out there and, over the past 18 months, it has got worse.

Internet sales continue to march forward while traditional stores are paying billions to the Government in an unfair tax.

It is a ridiculous burden on bricks and mortar.

Pubs closing down In an apparent acknowledgement that some would be hard hit, Britains smallest pubs were granted a 1,000 discount on their rates bill. But publicans say this does not go far enough. According to the British Beer and Pub Association, 1,560 pubs have closed since the last business rates revaluation.

The discretionary fund does not appear to be being properly handed out and many small independent retailers are not even aware it is something they can apply for.

This week, former Wickes and Iceland boss Bill Grimsey issued a stark warning that the future of the High Street has now reached a tipping point and he called for business rates to be binned.

He said that 2018 had seen the worst performance in many years for High Street retailers.

The Government has said that any rates rises were introduced gradually to help businesses.

Campaign to support Britains bookshops

Other industries say they should be given the same help as pubs.

Hazel Broadfoot has owned Village Books for more than 21 years, but in the past eight years her business rates have quadrupled

This summer, The Booksellers Association launched a campaign calling on the Government to recognise the community value of bookshops by giving them the same business-rates relief enjoyed by pubs.

The association says business rates are one the biggest and most problematic costs to bookshops, which are already running on very thin margins.

A branch of Daunt Books, in Marylebone, Central London, for example, was hit with a 100 per cent increase, which equates to a rise of 56,000. The company has seven of its nine shops in the capital.

The business rates bill for Waterstones rose by 2 million, or about 20 per cent of its 9.8 million profit from the previous year.

Nic Bottomley, president of the Booksellers Association, says: Business rates are a massive burden for too many bookshops. Bookshops bring vitality to the High Street at a time when it is under constant threat.

Hazel Broadfoot has owned Village Books, in Dulwich, South-East London, for more than 21 years, but in the past eight years her business rates have quadrupled. The bookseller once paid 2,000 a year, but will soon face rates of up to 8,000, after last years revaluation.

When I saw the numbers, I just thought it was monumentally unfair, she says.

She currently pays 2,000 because she receives a 4,000 reduction in transitional relief and a further 2,000 discount in small business relief.

But Hazel will receive her transitional relief only until 2022, and she fears further rises could have a serious impact on her 90-year-old business.

I know that the transitional relief will not last forever and that I will eventually have to pay more, she says.

Im a local employer and I wouldnt want to lose any of my staff, but if this continues, there would be questions to be asked, she says.

Councils call in the bailiffs

Some councils have been accused of bullying shopkeepers who miss a payment by sending out bailiffs.

Jerry Schurder, head of business rates at Gerald Eve LLP, says: Councils appear to be being more aggressive at the moment and have a trigger-happy approach to calling in enforcement when shops get into difficulties.

Bailiffs have been sent to more than 81,000 companies in the past year over unpaid business rates, according to research by management consultants Altus Group.

Local authorities are said to be pursuing struggling businesses with more fervour than previously because they now share a slice of any cash they collect.

Under previous rules, they simply collected the money on behalf of central Government. But since 2012, councils have been able to keep half the business rates raised in their area.

Shahjahan Janshah has owned his convenience store in Cricklewood, North London, for 18 years. But, last week, the 48-year-old was visited by bailiffs sent in by the council when he failed to keep up with ever-increasing business rates.

Shahjahan, a father of five, paid around 4,440 a year in rates for Pound Village back in 2003, but this cost has risen to 8,000.

He says a combination of escalating business rates and the erection of scaffolding near his premises, which damaged footfall, has left him unable to keep up with his payments to Barnet Council.

You feel the council should be looking after local businesses, not outsourcing expensive bailiffs who charge high enforcement fees on top of the debt Shahjahan Janshah

Bailiffs visited him two weeks ago demanding 6,398, including a 75 compliance stage fee and 500 in enforcement fees.

He says: I have a wife and family to support. You feel the council should be looking after local businesses, not outsourcing expensive bailiffs who charge high enforcement fees on top of the debt, he says.

These kind of [business rates] hikes are forcing small businesses out.

In the end, Shahjahan kept the bailiffs at bay by making a partial payment on his credit card.

A spokesman for Barnet Council says: We highly value the importance of small businesses, and if they do experience difficulties, we will always try to come to a reasonable arrangement, which allows them to pay the money in a manageable way.

Referral to a debt collection agency is always the last resort, but the council does have a statutory responsibility for collecting business rates due.

Boarded up: Alan Hawkins, of BIRA, says he fears the High Street could become unrecognisable if it does not receive a lifeline

Rise of the coffee shops

Shop sales have fallen by 1.05 per cent in the year since the introduction of business rate changes, according to the British Independent Retailers Association (BIRA).

BIRA says the figures reflects the damage being done to the High Street. In its latest sales report, members described business rates as totally unfair, archaic and a killer to pay.

One member wrote: We were hit by the 80 per cent rate rise and now the parking charges in our town are being hiked considerably.

Were not sure how long the High Street can put up with all these unfair hidden taxes.

Alan Hawkins, of BIRA, says he fears the High Street could become unrecognisable if it does not receive a lifeline.

He says: High streets will be for premises you must visit in person such as nail salons and coffee shops. Shops which sell products will survive only online if we do not help them.

According to commercial property advisors Colliers International, the percentage of empty shops in the UK has risen by 9 per cent since the rate revaluation, with one in eight shops now empty.

The amount of empty floor space has also risen by 21 per cent in the year to April.

John Webber, head of business rates at Colliers International, says: The business rates crisis has left many retailers hung out to dry.

A Government spokesman says: Weve introduced more than 10 billion of business rates support to help our High Streets, so many bricks and mortar businesses now pay no rates at all.

We recognise, however, that this remains a difficult time for High Streets and town centres. Thats why weve appointed an expert panel of industry leaders, with a survey due to launch later this year, to diagnose the issues currently affecting our High Streets, and advise on the best long-term approach to help their revival.
Credit card giants are hiking borrowing limits by up to 8,000 when customers have not asked for an increase. Money Mail has discovered that banks are routinely doubling customers' credit limits unprompted.

In extreme cases, credit limits are being tripled and even quadrupled.

Customers must then pro-actively contact their bank within a month if they want to cancel the increase  something many do not remember or bother to do.

Experts have accused lenders of fuelling Britain's growing debt crisis. They warn that automatically bumping up borrowing limits creates temptation for millions of people who are already battling to keep on top of their finances.

Reckless: Banks are hiking customers's borrowing limits by up to 8,000 prompting many to spend more on their cards

Exclusive research for Money Mail reveals half of people who own a credit card have had their credit limit increased without being asked over the past three years.

One in three says their credit limit has been doubled, one in 20 says it was tripled and one in 100 quadrupled, according to a survey of almost 2,200 people by Consumer Intelligence.

One in four people (24 per cent) were given a rise of more than 4,000. And of these customers, one in 14 (7 per cent) received an increase of more than 8,000.

Worryingly, the research also reveals one in three customers spent more on their credit card after their borrowing limit was pushed up unprompted.

Such increases also appear to be on the rise, with one in three saying they had noticed their credit limit had increased more frequently in the past 12 months.

It comes as official figures last week revealed that families now owe a record 213.5 billion on credit cards, car finance and short-term loans.

The higher limit seems like a lifeline Law firm worker Mark Probets, 41, racked up 6,000 of credit card debt after predatory firms increased his borrowing limits. Two years ago, he spent 1,300 on a Capital One card for a holiday. When he returned, he could make only the minimum payments and interest quickly accumulated. He admits he was living beyond his means, but later took out three more cards. Despite this, three of the four card providers increased his credit limit uninvited. Mark, of London, says: The industry is predatory. They constantly offer you more money to draw you in deeper. You see it as a lifeline and you grab it. Thats how they get you. You think youll pay it off somehow. In the end Mark, who also took out 9,500 with personal loans and payday lenders, was forced to contact PayPlan, which made a debt management plan including affordable monthly repayments and arranging for the interest to be frozen. A Capital One spokesman said: We tell customers it is their choice to accept an increase.

Households borrowed 800 million in the past year alone, suggesting the country is fast becoming a nation of borrowers.

Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, says: 'Credit card companies must start lending more responsibly. There is no good reason why lenders shouldn't get approval from customers before increasing their credit card limit.

'We also know that people in debt are more likely to have their limit increased than those who aren't, which leaves them vulnerable to deeper financial troubles.'

A report by Citizens Advice, last November, revealed that six million people had their credit limit increased over a 12-month period without asking for it. The survey found customers receive an average increase of 1,481.

The Financial Conduct Authority has taken steps to stop banks pushing up customer credit limits without their consent.

From this week, customers in persistent debt  which means someone who has in the past 18 months paid more in interest, fees and charges than they have repaid of their borrowing  will no longer be allowed to be offered credit limit increases.

Experts warn that automatically bumping up borrowing limits creates temptation for millions of people who are already battling to keep on top of their finances

On top of this, all new customers must be asked if they want to 'opt-in' or 'opt-out' of future credit limit increases.

If they select 'opt in' it means that in future they will have to pro-actively opt in to increases.

This means customers will have to call, text or email their provider to take them up on an offer of a rise. If they select 'opt out', it means they will have to proactively opt-out of future increases.

If they do not, their limit will increase automatically within a few days of receiving a letter telling them it is happening.

But, for existing customers, campaigners say the changes are minimal and do not go far enough. Credit card providers must contact customers to ask if they want to 'opt in' for future rises.

But if borrowers fail to respond they will continue to get automatic increases, and charities warn that most people will likely ignore the letter.

Families now owe a record 213.5 billion on credit cards, car finance and short-term loans

Martyn James, of complaints website Resolver, says: 'We've seen a rise in the number of people who tell us that they've got into debt after the credit card company increased their card limits without asking. This repeats a pattern that was at its peak ten years ago.

'This is a worrying trend, because research suggests we're worse off as a nation, debt is at record levels and the credit industry is booming.'

The vast majority of us (74 per cent) would prefer to only be given increases to our credit limits when we ask for them, according to Consumer Intelligence's research.

On social media, shoppers have expressed mixed feelings over their credit limit increases.

Radio presenter Gerald Holdsworth, of Inverness, tweeted: 'Got a letter from @AmericanExpress this morning with an 'offer' to increase my credit limit.

'I can accept or decline it, but if I do nothing it gets increased anyway! How about not increasing it if I do nothing? No wonder folk getting into debt.'

Others were delighted with their raised credit limits.

Steven Findlay, of Newcastle, tweeted: 'Very kind of Capital One to double my credit limit', while Doug Morton, of London, tweeted: My Amex credit limit is now 9,000. Hope I never need to use it, but it's there if I do.'

Yet while most traditional banks offer unsolicited hikes in credit limits, some newcomers do not.

Paul Riseborough, chief commercial officer at Metro Bank, says: 'Increasing customers' credit limits without them asking, doesn't sit right with us.'

A Financial Conduct Authority spokesman says: 'We have agreed changes with the industry which give customers greater control over their credit limits.

These measures are being monitored and, if necessary, the FCA would reconsider its approach to credit limit increases in due course.'

moneymail@dailymail.co.uk
The prime minister of the southern African state of Lesotho has fled after claiming the army had staged a coup.

The tiny kingdom's military seized two police stations today as gunfire rang out in the capital of the mountainous region.

Prime minister Thomas Thabane said the actions amounted to a coup - though an army spokesman said the soldiers were only securing the country.

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Prime minister Thomas Thabane said the actions amounted to a coup - though an army spokesman said the soldiers were only securing the country (file picture)

Reports suggest the capital Maseru is now calm.

Political tensions have been high in the tiny kingdom that is completely surrounded by South Africa, since June, when there was a power struggle after Prime Minister Thomas Thabane suspended parliament to dodge a vote of no confidence.

At the time, South Africa warned against simmering conflict.

'As we speak now, the situation in Lesotho, in the capital, is back to normal. It's business as usual,' defense forces spokesman Ntlele Ntoi told The Associated Press.

The military had gathered intelligence that the police were going to arm factions participating in a demonstration planned for Monday by one of the coalition parties, the Lesotho Congress for Democracy, he said.

The military disarmed police in the capital, Maseru, to avoid bloodshed, Ntoi said.

An exchange of gunfire between the military, youths and police injured one soldier and four policemen, he said.

'The arms have been removed and they are in military custody. The military has returned to the barracks,' Ntoi said, denying reports of any coup attempt.

The tiny kingdom's military seized two police stations in the capital Maseru, pictured, today as gunfire rang out in the capital of the mountainous region (file image)

'We are not in a position now or in the future to stage a coup. All we do is to carry out our mandate to secure our country and property.'

He said that the military did not know if the march will still take place Monday.

Ntoi said he had heard reports that radio stations had been down for a few hours. He said he could not say if they were down for technical problems or because of the military.

But Lesotho's Prime Minister Thomas Thabane told South Africa's eNCA television that the military actions amounted to a coup.

He said he did not give permission for the action and that something like this should not be happening in a democratic state.

He is going to meet with South African officials, and expects South Africa to help his government restore law and order, he said.

'There is a situation unfolding in Lesotho and our interest is to see it resolved through peaceful means,' said Clayson Monyela, spokesman for South Africa's Department of International Relations and Co-operations.

He said actions by Lesotho's military bore the hallmarks of a coup d'etat, but added, 'The situation in Lesotho is still unfolding. No one has claimed to take over government ... so we are monitoring that.'

'We are calling on the commander of the armed forces to return to the barracks and allow the democratically elected government to return to its business,' he said.

There was a power struggle after Prime Minister Thomas Thabane, pictured, suspended parliament to dodge a vote of no confidence

Monyela said the actions taken by the military have forced the prime minister to go into hiding.

However, the prime minister had earlier told BBC that he is in South Africa visiting his daughter and would return to Lesotho on Sunday.

Calls to the prime minister's spokesman and office were not answered.

Monyela said the 15-nation regional group, the Southern African Development Community, will intervene and they are trying to bring all players to the table for talks at this time.

When asked if South Africa would send military, Monyela said that wasn't under consideration at this time.

'We prefer peaceful resolution to any crisis, particularly if it's a political crisis... Such things become last resorts,' he said.

Bernard Ntlhoaea, a guard at the U.S. Embassy in Maseru, confirmed that gunfire was heard in the capital early Saturday.

'The military has been moving around from 3 o'clock in the morning, occupying police stations in Maseru and moving around to other districts,' said Ntlhoaea.

He said the military was armed and he saw at least one armored personnel carrier on the streets.

The landlocked country's first coalition government was formed in 2012 after competitive elections that ousted the 14-year incumbent Pakalitha Mosisili, who peacefully stepped down from power.

The coalition has since been fragile.

Lesotho has seen unrest in its past and has seen a number of military coups since gaining independence from Britain in 1966.

The constitutional government was restored in 1993, after seven years of military rule.

Violent protests and a military mutiny in 1998 came after a contentious election prompted intervention by South African military forces.

Political stability returned after constitutional reforms, and parliamentary elections were peacefully held in 2002.
Muslim activist Yassmin Abdel-Magied has written a 'eulogy' for her broadcast career that reveals a vile message she received on Instagram.

The 27-year-old Sudanese-born writer penned a speech for the Melbourne Writers Festival program called 'Eulogy for My Career', that highlights some of the backlash she has received.

The speech explored the grief the former oil rig engineer has endured since she sparked a wave of controversy over a tweet she posted on Anzac Day in 2017.

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Muslim activist Yassmin Abdel-Magied (pictured) has written a 'eulogy' for her broadcast career that reveals a vile message she received on Instagram

The Brisbane-raised, former Queensland Young Australian of the Year explained that she received an Instagram direct message just before coming back to Australia.

'My Name Is Nelson, and Im a big fan. Do you mind if I ask just one favour? Please Reply, I love You,' the message began.

The message then took a dark turn: 'Go to Flinders St Station, Cut Your Wrists and Let them bleed out so we can all watch you die. Lest We Forget.

'Hopefully Ill be able to distinguish you from all the other Sudanese N*****s, but I know youll be the only ape wearing a ridiculous towel over your head.'

The horrific message makes reference to the controversial tweet Ms Abdel-Magied posted in 2017 that linked Anzac Day with the plight of asylum seekers on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea.

'Lest we forget (Manus, Nauru, Syria, Palestine)', she infamously wrote on Anzac Day 2017.

The message references the tweet (pictured) she posted in 2017 that linked ANZAC Day with the plight of asylum seekers on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea

Although she quickly deleted and apologised for the tweet, the damage had already been done.

'It was brought to my attention that my last post was disrespectful, and for that, I apologise unreservedly,' she said.

Following the tweet, Ms Abdel-Magied was inundated with abuse and had her news program with the ABC cancelled.

The Brisbane-raised, former Queensland Young Australian of the Year, explained that she received an Instagram direct message just before coming back to Australia

The activist has since moved to London but stressed that she hadn't run away from Australia.

'I left. And I don't think that's the same as running away,' she told SBS program The Feed.

However, on Remembrance Day just seven months later, the Muslim activist was again slammed for a similar post: '#LestWeForget (Manus)'.


Julian Assange is living a life of almost total isolation inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London amid failing health and fears he could soon be forced out, friends say.

Vaughan Smith, a journalist and supporter of Assange, says he is worried for his well-being after he was banned from using the internet, phones or having visitors.

Meanwhile there are rumors that Ecuador is being pressured to rescind Assange's asylum so he can be arrested by British police and potentially extradited to the US.

Julian Assange may be forced from the Ecuadorian embassy amid renewed American interest in him and Wikileaks and their involvement in the 2016 election

Robert Mueller is believed to be investigating whether Assange conspired with Russian hackers to leak DNC emails in the run-up to the vote

Robert Mueller is believed to be looking into Assange and Wikileaks as part of his Russian election meddling probe.

It is not known if Mueller has enough evidence to charge Assange, but he has already indicted a dozen Russians and three companies over the DNC email leak.

Charging documents allege communications between Russian agents posing as hacker Guccifer2.0 and 'Organisation-1' - believed by many to be Wikileaks.

Assange's supporters fear this renewed interest could persuade Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno, who has already called him a 'hacker', to sacrifice him, ABC News reports.

Supporters saying they've heard rumors that Ecuador - whose president, Lenin Moreno, has derided Assange as a 'hacker' - will revoke his asylum 'imminently'.

Even if Mueller does not charge him, Assange would almost certainly face charges over the leak of millions of highly-sensitive US diplomatic cables in 2010.

If he is kicked out of the embassy, he would be immediately arrested by British police for failing to surrender on a warrant related to a since-dropped rape case in Sweden.

While in British police custody, he could be hit with charges by American authorities, which would spark and extradition request.

Vaughn Smith, (right), Assange's long-time supporter, says he is worried for his heath after he was banned from having visitors or using the internet back in March

Speaking to ABC, Smith said that Assange was feeling the pressure when he last saw him just a day before visitation was banned.

Despite that, Smith believes he will stay put until he is forced out.

He said: 'Assange is a toughie. He is built to do this sort of thing.

'He is motivated by a belief that he is making a difference. From his perspective, he considers that hes doing the world a favor.'

Assange has been in self-imposed isolation inside the embassy since 2012 after a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden on charges of rape and molestation failed.

The activist said the request was a guise to get him into the hands of US authorities, who would likely lock him up for decades for the leak of diplomatic cables.

On March 28 this year, Assange was banned from having any contact with the outside world except via his legal team after he posted a tweet questioning the UK government's claim that Russia was behind the Novichok attack in Salisbury.
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Yes - it's top of everyone's list when visiting Peru - and it's not hard to see why Machu Picchu is so popular

1. On the top of the list is Machu Picchu

Yes - it's top of everyone's list when visiting Peru - and it's not hard to see why.

There's no more exhilarating a feeling than looking out onto the picturesque scenery as you pass by the surrounding mountains and valleys.

And the relief as you walk back down, passing the masses of tourists and knowing you have climbed Machu Picchu, really is something else.

For those who are a little more adventurous and thrive off a challenge, climbing to one of the peaks of Machu Picchu for a bird's eye view is worth the extra effort.

The Machu Picchu Montana trail is supposed to be moderately difficult  they lied  it's challenging and by the end you'll be finding it difficult to breathe!

Adjusting to the high altitude was a real struggle for myself and most of the other hikers, and it only gets harder as it goes on.

At the start of trail it is a slow but steady ascent of about 30-35 degrees for about an hour (but it feels like two).

Gradually the paths become narrower and the steps become steeper and steeper and narrower again, making it even more challenging. A good level of fitness is definitely required for this trek.

After trekking for what seems like an eternity (OK, it was roughly 1 hour and 30 minutes) reaching the top of the peak is nothing short of breath-taking.

The summit of Machu Picchu is absolutely stunning. Reaching an altitude of 10,000ft gives you a great sense of achievement - some would even say a feeling of being on cloud nine - however in this case you are looking down on the clouds.

Hot Tip  there are only 400 tickets sold per day, tickets book out months in advance, so get in early and don't miss out on once in a lifetime trek.

There's no more exhilarating a feeling than looking out onto the surrounding scenery as you pass by the surrounding mountains and valleys at Machu Picchu

The Machu Picchu Montana trail is supposed to be moderately difficult  they lied  it's challenging and by the end you'll be finding it difficult to breathe

The height of the climb from the base of the entrance to the trail is 652 metres. That might not sound to be bad, but don't be fooled. Take snacks and plenty of water and hiking poles if you feel you may need that extra support.

For ease I would recommended booking with a tour group such as Bamba Experience where everything is organised in advance, including: ticket entrance to Machu Picchu, train tickets, bus transfers and accommodation in the town Aguas Calientes.

Entering Machu Picchu is a military operation which starts at 5am, with hundreds of tourists lining up in the cold as they wait for buses to take them to the entrance to the site.

You can either wait for over an hour to get the bus or take the road less travelled and walk into the darkness to the base of the mountain and start the journey into the 'lost city'.

The tour guide advised us that those who are fit can get to the peak in 45 mins, and those who are slower take a little over an hour.

Needless to say, it took me a little over an hour - and then some.

2. Cusco full of culture

Cusco is the gateway to the history of the Inca Empire. The streets are filled with Peruvians in Inca outfits and alpacas striding through the streets, which are full of culture.

Cusco is 3,399 metres above sea level, meaning you need a couple of days to acclimatise, so remember to take it easy as you discover the vibrant city of Cusco.

Cusco is the gateway to the history of the Inca Empire. The streets are filled with Peruvians in Inca outfits and alpacas striding through the streets, which are full of culture

Cusco is 3,399 metres above sea level, meaning you need a couple of days to acclimatise, so remember to take it easy as you discover the vibrant city of Cusco

There is so much to see and do and the city is full of archaeological remains and Spanish colonial architecture.

Seeing the San Pedro Markets is a must, as are the Inca and the Machu Picchu museums.

The Plaza de Armas, in Cusco's city centre, boasts many shops, restaurants and bars making it a great place to spend the afternoon and night.

3. Palacio del Inka, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Cusco

My hotel pick for Cusco would be the Palacio Del Inka. The hotel is rustic with Inca influence, and is designed to showcase a centuries-old, magical blend of pre-Colombian, Incan, Spaniard, colonial, and modern cultures.

A hidden oasis in the city of Cusco - Palacio Del Inka presents a captivating variety of rare opportunities and state-of-the-art amenities. Dating back nearly five centuries, Palacio Del Inka stands in the historic centre of Cusco.

My hotel pick for Cusco would be the Palacio Del Inka . The hotel is rustic with Inca influence, and is designed to showcase a centuries-old, magical blend of pre-Colombian, Incan, Spaniard, colonial, and modern cultures

Directly across from the Koricancha temple, it is a five-minute walk from the main square and less than a mile from an array of museums, markets, and restaurants.

You feel like you have stepped back in time to the Inca Empire amd it was an enriching and memorable stay.

4. Festival of the sun in Cusco

Festival of the sun is a religious ceremony of the Inca Empire in honour of the god, which is held on June 24 and spans over a couple of days in the Cusco region.

This year the festival attracted record numbers of 50,000 people on the surrounding hills of Cusco in Peru. The festival takes place on 3 scenes staged in 3 different places in and around areas of Cusco.

The first ceremony was held at Qoricancha Temple, where the Inca escorted by his entourage sang to the Inti (Sun God).The second one took place at Cusco's main square, where the Inca re-enacted the famous Two Worlds Encounter scene.

Lastly, the main ceremony was performed at Sacsayhuaman Fortress, one of Cusco's emblematic attractions. The festival showcases Peruvian costumes and dances which is full of colour and excitement.

Festival of the sun is a religious ceremony of the Inca Empire in honour of the god, which is held on June 24 and spans over a couple of days in the Cusco region

5. Tambo del Inka, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa

The taste of luxury at its finest, Tambo del Inka is a lavish, unforgettable experience. From the moment you drive into the grounds of the hotel it is nothing short of spectacular.

The triple-height ceilings, with the most epic stone wall chimney and glammed up weavings, can be found in the reception and dining area.

The grounds are so beautiful that there is no reason to leave the hotel, which also offers a pool, sauna and jacuzzi.

The Euro-Peruvian food at Hawa - the fine-dining restaurant on-site - was by far one of the best meals I had in Peru and the service was absolutely perfect.

The taste of luxury at its finest, Tambo del Inka is a lavish, unforgettable experience. From the moment you drive into the grounds of the hotel it is nothing short of spectacular

The Euro-Peruvian food at Hawa - the fine-dining restaurant on-site - was by far one of the best meals I had in Peru and the service was absolutely perfect

There is no other way to experience the Peruvian Amazonian Jungle, than sleeping 20 feet above ground in a tree

6. A true jungle experience at the Treehouse Lodge

There is no other way to experience the Peruvian Amazonian Jungle, than sleeping 20 feet above ground in a tree.

The location provides an amazing backdrop as you discover the serene protected Yarapa and Cumaceba rivers near the Pacaya Samiria Reserve.

Every bungalow has its own aerial space in the jungle with its own views and privacy. Each of the rooms are well constructed and comfortable, considering you are living in a tree.

There is running cold water to shower, brush and flush and plenty of space to enjoy the views. The fish nets provide cover from the bugs and the height from the jungle floor provides relief from the heat and humidity.

Nothing could be more romantic than waking up to the tweeting of the birds, which is truly a magical experience.

Exploring the grounds of the tree lodge is one of the great features of the resort. Walking from one bridge to another is fun way to see the jungle and is like no other hotel stay.

The chill out common area has hammocks and games and is also a great space to mingle with other lodges to hear their experiences on their excursions.

The lodge is all inclusive with breakfast, lunch and dinner provided. Each meal draws on how the locals Peruvians in the jungle eat.

The location provides an amazing backdrop as you discover the serene protected Yarapa and Cumaceba rivers near the Pacaya Samiria Reserve

Every bungalow has its own aerial space in the jungle with its own views and privacy. Each of the rooms are well constructed and comfortable, considering you are living in a tree

7. Adventures in the Peruvian Amazon Jungle

The Treehouse Lodge package includes all excursions and from the moment you are picked up at the airport you are assigned your own personal tour guide, making for a very personalised experience.

Our tour guide was a local from the depths of a village in the Peruvian jungle, helping you design your own itinerary to suit what you would like to explore.

The experience will take you through denserainforest, above land and through the rivers, making every day a new adventure.

Every hour is different, with our guide taking us on night jungle walks, 6am bird watching trips, kayaking, swimming in the Amazon, sunset watching, village walkabouts, meeting sloths, caiman spotting, medicine walks through the jungle and - my favourite - feeding monkeys up close and personal.

One of the most touching experiences of all was visiting a local village and seeing how people live on the banks of the Amazon River.

Huacachina is surrounded by golden sand dunes and at the centre of it all is a lagoon, ringed by palm trees, restaurants and epic sunsets. Although it is a small town, don't be fooled, as there are plenty of adventures to be had

8. Huacachina a hidden oasis

Huacachina is a desert oasis and tiny village just west of the city of Ica in southwestern Peru.

Huacachina is surrounded by golden sand dunes and at the centre of it all is a lagoon, ringed by palm trees, restaurants and epic sunsets. Although it is a small town, don't be fooled, as there are plenty of adventures to be had.

By far the most fun thing to do is take to the sand dunes for the intense sunrise and sunset.

The tour includes a four-wheel drive through the sand dunes, followed by watching the most serene peaceful sunset.

Not many tourists know about Huacachina but this little magical spot within Peru should not be missed.

Huacachina is a desert oasis and tiny village just west of the city of Ica in southwestern Peru

Not many tourists know about Huacachina but this little magical spot within Peru should not be missed

9. Lima  the busy capital city

With a population of 10 million people that spans over 43 districts, Lima is the city that never ends. Luckily taxis are cheap, making it an easy, comfortable way to explore good handful of the districts in a small amount of time.

Key sights to explore would be the old town, main square, coastal beaches, Huaca Pucllana ruins, the impressive huge Jockey Shopping Mall, bohemian quarter and park reserve to watch the water fountains.

CONNIE'S TRAVEL TIPS Best time to go? June/ July  dry season The winter in Peru (May  September) is the driest season and therefore the best time of year to travel to see Machu Picchu. The rainfall and the humidity is lower during this time in the rainforest. Handy Hints:  Currency in Peru is Sol. It is rare to find currency exchanges places that do Sol, so either order in advance or change your currency into Chilean Peso or into US dollars and when you arrive in Peru you can exchange for Sol.  You will need to ensure you are up to date with your vaccinations before entering the jungle Advertisement

What I enjoyed most above all the sites was the ceviche and the Pisco sours. By far my favourite meal was at the La Viste Resturant, which is well worth a visit.

Depending what you prefer, I have two hotel recommendations for Lima.

Option one, JW Marriot Lima  located closer to the beach and offering ocean views, the hotel is opposite a shopping mall, has a casino and you can find La Viste Resturant on the foyer level.

Option two, Westin Lima - the hotel is more centrally located and offers views of the busy city skyline. The spa facilities are out of this world and probably the best and only way to end the long trip.

10. All about that eco life  experience Inkaterra

Established in 1975, Inkaterra has been at the forefront of ecotourism and sustainable development in Peru.

It offers boutique luxury hotels teamed up with eco-friendly excursions making for an all-round experience.

The Inkaterra properties are based in the heart of Machu Picchu, Sacred Valley, Cusco and the Amazon Jungle. Excursions include bird watching, nature walks, Orchid Trails, Organic Tea Plantations, twilight walks, and native farms tours. Inkaterra has spent the past four decades dedicated to authentic travel experiences, aiming to preserve biodiversity and local cultures.

Its sustainability efforts have gained them membership with diverse alliances, such as Relais & Chateaux, Virtuoso and National Geographic Unique Lodges of the World. If you are looking for an eco-friendly luxury experience than Inkaterra has everything to offer and with the most high standard of service.
This is the disturbing moment two women allegedly lure a family cat away from his home.

Fluffy, who has been in the care of Stephen Godfrey and his wife for 14 years, was sat outside their home in its usual resting place when she was approached by the two women.

The cat can be seen wandering in front of its owner's driveway in Albany Road, Cardiff in footage taken on a home surveillance camera, as one of the girls appears to coax it, in a bid to gain her trust.

The CCTV footage, appears to show one of the women offer her some fuss before grabbing the ginger feline and making a get-away.

This is the disturbing moment two women allegedly lure a family cat away from his home

Fluffy's owner Stephen said that the clip was taken on Tuesday at 6.15pm and after discovering the footage launched a Facebook appeal which has since been shared more than 6,000 times.

The Godfrey's claim that their neighbours footage taken at the same time shows one of the women 'kidnapp' Fluffy.

Footage filmed on a home surveillance camera shows the two girls walking past the house, looking back at the cat to see if it is following them.

The first girl - seen wearing a blue and white jacket and black leggings - appears to hold her fingers out to encourage the cat to come nearer.

As Fluffy approaches tentatively, the girl rushes over and stoops down in an attempt to grab her - but the cat manages to dart away to safety.

Fluffy, who has been in the care of Stephen Godfrey and his wife for 14 years, was sat outside their home in its usual resting place when she was approached by the two women

The girl then bends down and holds her fingers out and this time snares the poor animal when she comes back for fuss.

Having scooped her up in her arms, the girl is then seen walking away as the footage cuts out.

The 58-year-old engineer said: 'Fluffy's been with me and my wife for 14 years. We live on a main road and Fluffy likes to sit on the path outside our house.

'When she didn't come home that night I was concerned because she always comes back, but I was sure I'd find her waiting at the back door in the morning.

'When I woke up and she wasn't there I knew something was wrong. I looked at our CCTV and I could see these two girls enticing her, she was walking down the pavement towards them.

The cat can be seen wandering in front of its owner's driveway in Albany Road, Cardiff in footage taken on a home surveillance camera, as one of the girls appears to coax it, in a bid to gain her trust

'The one girl went to pick her up but she walked away, then she enticed it back and grabbed it. On my neighbour's CCTV I saw the other girl holding a bag open and they put her inside and walked off.

'I can't understand why anyone would do something like this. It's an old cat, not a kitten, not a stray cat. They just seem to have decided they wanted my cat for some reason.

'We're hoping she hasn't come to any harm. We've had a lot of responses to the appeal and somebody's come forward with a name which we're looking into.'

The family said they have not yet reported the theft to the police as they hope they can find Fluffy themselves.

The CCTV footage, appears to show one of the women offer her some fuss before grabbing the ginger feline and making a get-away

Stephen's daughter Holly, 23, added: 'I'm raging. We've had Fluffy since she was a kitten.

'Everyone in our road knows she loves to sleep on that same spot on the pavement and they all come over and fusses her. She's a friendly cat.'

South Wales Police said it could find no record in its logs of a complaint being made about the incident.

An RSPCA spokesman said: 'Stealing any animal is a crime and anyone with information should contact the police by calling 101.

'To help ensure that lost and stolen pets are reunited with their owners, the RSPCA encourages all owners to get their pets microchipped where possible. More information can be found online at rspca.org.uk.'
Jewelry designer Kara Ross is being sued by her longtime friend who claims she still owes him nearly $20,000 for his work on her fashion show.

Court documents obtained by DailyMailTV reveal Frank Lazcano, a women's luxury bag designer, is suing Ross for breach of contract and is seeking $19,800 of the unpaid balance, plus interest since 2015.

The suit, filed on September 5, states Lazcano was hired in May 2015 to manufacture and manage the production of all handbags ahead of Ross's 'Diamonds Unleashed' runway show.

He claims he 'entered into an oral contract' with Ross and her company in which both parties agreed he would be paid immediately upon completion of his work.

New York jewelry designer Kara Ross, pictured with husband and Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross in 2015, has been sued by a longtime friend who claims she stiffed him out of $20,000

Frank Lazcano was hired to produce handbags for Ross's Diamonds Unleashed project in 2015 which was intended to promote her diamond jewelry campaign in collaboration with designers Dennis Basso and Stuart Weitzman. Pictured above are models at Dennis Basso's runway show in September 2015

The project was intended to promote Ross's diamond jewelry campaign in collaboration with designers Dennis Basso and Stuart Weitzman, with a runway show scheduled for September 2015.

The designer, who is the wife of billionaire and Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, has been known to have famous customers such as Oprah Winfrey, Kate Hudson, Anne Hathaway, and even Michelle Obama.

In fact, the former first lady put Ross's designs on the map during Obama's presidency by commissioning her to create pieces for White House visitors and heads of state.

Lazcano, who has had a professional and personal relationship with Ross since 2007, had previously been commissioned to create handbags for the designer and her daughter.

He charged a fee of $1,200 per four-day week, a discount from his usual rate of $1,600, because of their close relationship, the suit states.

However, Lazcano and Ross both agreed that for this project his payment structure would be 'subject to modification for expansion of the Diamonds Unleashed Project's scope and increasing demands on [p]laintiff.' He was also told all payments 'due and owing' would be made prior to the show.

Between May and September 2015, Lazcano was asked to produced more bags and was eventually working up to seven days a week.

Ross (pictured showing off designs with actress Debra Messing) is known for her celebrity clientele including Michelle Obama and Oprah

The former first lady put Ross's designs on the map during Barack Obama's presidency by commissioning her to create pieces for herself (pictured) as well as White House visitors and heads of state

Kara Ross fall 2013 presentation during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week on February 7, 2013

'These additional handbags were more labor-intensive, more complex, and required more expensive materials,' documents state.

According to the suit, Lazcano ultimately produced 17 handbags and the products were completed 'satisfactorily and delivered on time.'

In August, he had received a spreadsheet confirming he was owed $39,930 for design services, labor and materials.

He then sent an updated invoice of $43,730 on September 9, which was based on a $1,600 weekly design fee reflecting the increased time and labor required for the project, which was confirmed by Ross's operations team.

Ross ultimately made two payments totaling $23,930 but has not paid a dime since, the suit claims.

'Despite two formal demand letters and initial repeated assurances of payments from Defendants, its agents, employees and/or representatives, Defendants failed to pay the $19,800 amount exclusive of interest and fees owed to Plaintiff when it became due on September 1, 2015,' lawyers for Lazcano state.

Ross founded Kara Ross New York in 2003, which is sold at upscale department stores such as a Bergdorf Goodman, Harrods, and Saks Fifth Avenue.

As of 2018, her husband Stephen Ross, a real estate developer whose projects include New York City's Hudson Yards redevelopment, has an estimated net worth of $7.7 billion, according to Forbes.

The couple currently live in Columbus Circle in the penthouse of Time Warner Center, which Ross also helped develop.
The Dallas police chief has called for a full review and plans to meet with protest leaders after learning about reports that police used pepper-spray projectiles at a demonstration over a black man's death.

Chief U. Renee Hall said in a statement that the projectiles, which are called pepper balls and usually contain the chemical in pepper spray, should only be used if there is an immediate threat to the public or if an on-scene commander calls for them to be used.

The projectiles irritate the nose and eyes.

Hall said she wants to meet with protest leaders to 'address their concerns'.

Dallas Police Chief U. Renee Hall has called for a full review and plans to meet with protest leaders (left) after learning about reports that police used pepper-spray projectiles at a demonstration over a black man's death

Hall said in a statement that the projectiles, which are called pepper balls and usually contain the chemical in pepper spray, should only be used if there is an immediate threat to the public. Protesters are pictured on Monday

Hall said she wants to meet with protest leaders (pictured) to 'address their concerns'

Monday's demonstration came a day after a white Dallas police officer, Amber Guyger (left), was arrested for manslaughter in the off-duty shooting death of her 26-year-old neighbor, Botham Jean (right)

Here's raw video of a Dallas police officer firing a Pepperball Gun to keep protesters from marching down Cadiz St. The protesters are marching for Botham Jean who was shot and killed by a Dallas officer last week. pic.twitter.com/eeMbnqRizZ  Tommy Noel (@TommyNoel) September 11, 2018

Monday's demonstration came a day after a white Dallas police officer, Amber Guyger, was arrested for manslaughter in the off-duty shooting death of her 26-year-old neighbor, Botham Jean.

Authorities have said that Guyger said she mistook Jean's apartment for her own when she fatally shot him last week. She was released on bond.

Demonstrators gathered outside Dallas police headquarters, and several dozen blocked traffic as they marched about half a mile.

At one point, police used the pepper-spray projectiles to help control the crowd, according to news reports.

Jean grew up in the Caribbean island nation of St. Lucia before attending college in Arkansas.

He graduated from Harding University in 2016 and had been working for accounting firm PwC.

Attorneys for Jean's family have criticized the officer's account of the shooting, saying it contradicted statements from neighbors.

The officer's description of what happened was included in an arrest affidavit prepared by a Texas Ranger and released Monday, shortly after the district attorney announced that the case would be presented to a grand jury, which could decide on more serious charges than manslaughter.

Authorities have said that Guyger said she mistook Jean's apartment for her own when she fatally shot him last week. Flowers were placed at the front door of Jean's apartment on Monday

Guyger, a four-year veteran of the police force, told investigators that she had just ended a 15-hour shift Thursday when she returned in uniform to the South Side Flats apartment complex (pictured)

Demonstrators gathered outside Dallas police headquarters, and several dozen blocked traffic as they marched about half a mile. At one point, police used the pepper-spray projectiles to help control the crowd, according to news reports

Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Jean's family, said Monday that the affidavit is 'very self-serving.' Lee Merritt, who also represents the family, called it an attempt to 'condone what happened, give her a break.'

Guyger, a four-year veteran of the police force, told investigators that she had just ended a 15-hour shift Thursday when she returned in uniform to the South Side Flats apartment complex.

She parked on the fourth floor, instead of the third, where she lived, according to the affidavit, possibly suggesting that she was confused or disoriented.

When she put her key in the apartment door, which was unlocked and slightly ajar, it opened, the affidavit said. Inside, the lights were off, and she saw a figure in the darkness that cast a large silhouette across the room, according to the officer's account.

The officer told police that she concluded her apartment was being burglarized and gave verbal commands to the figure, which ignored them. She then drew her weapon and fired twice, the affidavit said.

She called 911 and, when asked where she was, returned to the front door to see she was in the wrong unit, according to the affidavit. Authorities have not released the 911 tapes.

Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Jean's family (pictured), said Monday that the affidavit is 'very self-serving'

Attorneys for Jean's family (pictured) have criticized the officer's account of the shooting, saying it contradicted statements from neighbors

The Dallas County medical examiner's office said Jean died of a gunshot wound to the chest. His death was ruled a homicide.

Merritt said Monday that two independent witnesses have told him they heard knocking on the door in the hallway before the shooting.

He said one witness reported hearing a woman's voice saying, 'Let me in! Let me in!' Then they heard gunshots, after which one witness said she heard a man's voice say, 'Oh my God! Why did you do that?'

Merritt said he believes those were Jean's last words.

Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson emphasized that her office was conducting its own probe, in addition to the investigation by the Texas Rangers.

She will have the option of presenting more serious charges to the grand jury.

It's not clear if Guyger has an attorney.

Guyger's blood was drawn at the scene to be tested for alcohol and drugs, according to Hall, but authorities have not released results.
Pope Francis has claimed Satan is behind the sex abuse cover-up scandal engulfing the Catholic church.

The head of the Catholic church said the devil 'had it in' for bishops 'in order to scandalise the people'.

Although he did not mention recent sex abuse cover-up allegations directly, the speech seemed to reference the Theodore McCarrick scandal from earlier this year.

The US prelate was removed and ordered to live a lifetime of penance and prayer by Pope Francis after a church investigation determined that an allegation he groped a teenage altar boy in the 1970s was credible.

Archbishop Georg Gaenswein looks at Pope Francis delivering his message during an audience at the Paul VI Hall, at the Vatican. He told a book presentation yesterday that the sex abuse scandal that has convulsed the Catholic Church for years is 'its own 9/11'

Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano accused Pope Francis last month of covering up the sexual misconduct of ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick and rehabilitating him from sanctions imposed by Pope Benedict XVI

Italian Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano claimed in an 11-page statement Francis lifted unconfirmed Vatican sanctions against the disgraced McCarrick when Benedict XVI was in the papal throne.

As a result the former papal envoy to Washington called for the pope to resign.

Hours after Vigano made the statement to conservative Catholic news media, Francis had told journalists he 'won't say a word' about the sensational claims.

Pope Francis' papacy has been thrown into crisis by accusations he covered-up sexual misconduct by ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick

Last month Francis called for 'silence and prayer' for those involved in the scandal and criticised Irish church authorities for failing to act to sexual over abuse allegations after he met with victims in Dublin.

Although Francis initially has refused to comment directly about Vigano's claims, but nearly every day over the past two weeks his homily at morning Mass has seemed related to the scandal.

Addressing the congregation at the Vatican yesterday, he suggested the 'Great Accuser' - or the devil - was behind Vigano's revelations.

He said: 'In these times, it seems like the 'Great Accuser' has been unchained and has it in for bishops.

German Catholic Church's 'shame' at decades of child sex abuse Germany's Catholic Church said the institution was 'ashamed' by nearly seven decades of child sex abuse by priests. A leaked new study showed that 1,670 clergymen in Germany committed some form of sexual attack against 3,677 minors between 1946 and 2014. Bishop Stephan Ackermann said on behalf of the German Bishops' Conference: 'We know the extent of the sexual abuse that has been demonstrated by the study. We are dismayed and ashamed by it. 'This is a dark side of our Church, for the sake of those affected, but also for us ourselves to see the errors and to do everything to prevent them from being repeated.' The research also uncovered how priests got away with their abuses, with official documents manipulated or simply shredded. Predator priests were often transferred to another location, but information on their criminal history were not provided to the new site. Only one in three - 566 out of 1,670 accused - were subject to disciplinary hearings by the Church, and most got away with minimal punishment with 154 cases ending with no penalty, while 103 investigations closed with just a warning. Only 38 per cent of the accused were prosecuted by civil courts - on complaints lodged by victims themselves or their families. Over the last decade, several German Catholic institutions have had allegations of child sexual abuse cases, including an elite Jesuit school in Berlin which admitted to systematic sexual abuse of pupils by two priests in the 1970s and 1980s. Last year, a world-famous Catholic choir school in Germany, the Regensburger Domspatzen school, revealed that more than 500 boys there suffered sexual or physical abuse in what victims have likened to 'prison, hell or a concentration camp'. Advertisement

'True, we are all sinners, we bishops. He tries to uncover the sins, so they are visible in order to scandalise the people.'

After the allegations against McCarrick were publicised in June, it emerged that it was apparently an open secret - including at the Vatican - and that he routinely molested seminarians and young priests and harassed them.

Bishops should be men of prayer and should know they were chosen by God and keep close to their flock, he added.

In other eyebrow-raising comments on Tuesday, a top aide to both Francis and Benedict said the sex abuse scandal was such a game-changing catastrophe for the church that it amounted to its 'own 9/11'.

Archbishop Georg Gaenswein told a book presentation that he by no means was comparing the scandal to the nearly 3,000 people killed in the US 17 years ago.

But he said the years-long scandal, and recent revelations in the Pennsylvania grand jury report, showed just 'how many souls have been wounded irrevocably and mortally by priests from the Catholic Church'.

He added: 'Today, even the Catholic Church looks full of confusion at its own 9/11, at its own September 11, even though this catastrophe isn't associated with a single date but rather at so many days and years, and innumerable victims.'

The same day also saw the announcement that the US delegation would be headed by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, head of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, and will also include Francis' top sex abuse adviser, Cardinal Sean O'Malley.

Di Nardo said he wants Francis to authorise a full-fledged Vatican investigation into ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who was removed as cardinal in July after a credible accusation that he groped a teenager.

The Vatican has known since at least 2000 that McCarrick would invite seminarians to his New Jersey beach house and into his bed.

And yet St John Paul II made him archbishop of Washington and a cardinal in 2001, presumably because Vatican officials impressed by his fundraising prowess considered his past homosexual activity a mere 'moral lapse' and not a gross abuse of power.

DiNardo also said recent accusations that top Vatican officials - including the current pope - covered up for McCarrick since 2000 deserve answers.

Vatican spokesman Greg Burke said DiNardo and O'Malley would meet with Francis on Thursday in the Apostolic Palace.

The summit recalls the April 2002 meeting John Paul called with the senior US church leadership after the sex abuse scandal first exploded publicly in Boston.
Fans of Will & Grace were left reeling after Minnie Driver promoted the sitcom while wearing garb that is traditionally worn by Orthodox or Hasidic Jewish men, DailyMailTV has learned.

The guest star on the popular show wore a black hat, curly sideburns - called payot - and a low-cut top underneath a prayer shawl, known as a tallit, as she waved and said: 'Shalom everybody! Lorraine Finster is back on Will & Grace!'

The short clip was uploaded to the NBC show's official Instagram account on August 30 but was quickly deleted after viewers pointed out how distasteful it was.

The British actress was also seen wearing the garb in a video clip posted by star actress Debra Messing as she and co-stars sang and goofed off behind the scenes.

Fans of Will & Grace were left reeling after Minnie Driver promoted the sitcom while wearing garb that is traditionally worn by Hasidic Jewish men

The British actress was also seen wearing the garb in a video clip posted by star actress Debra Messing (pictured)

An upset viewer explained that only male Hasidic Jews wear the black hat and the payot, which are the long curls on the sides of the head. Pictured: Driver with cast members on set on August 28

There appeared to be no obvious reason as to why Driver was wearing the Hasidic clothing.

DailyMailTV reached out to NBC for comment but representatives for the network declined to comment on the video.

One Jewish fan of the show felt Driver and NBC's decision to record and then upload the promo was in poor taste, even showing family members who agreed.

The offended fan told DailyMailTV: 'It wasn't up for too long and after I sent my objections [which] were not even addressed, they took down the story.'

The upset viewer explained that only male Hasidic Jews wear the black hat and the payot, which are the long curls on the sides of the head.

Driver also wore a tallit, which is a religious prayer shawl, over what appears to be just a bra.

A Jewish fan of the sitcom felt Driver's promo was in poor taste and said their family members agreed

Driver plays the guest character of Lorraine Finster on the sitcom, which was rebooted last year. The character of Lorraine is not thought to be Jewish

The tallit is such a sacred garment that women have been detained at the Western Wall in Jerusalem for wearing the shawl because tradition dictates it is only to be worn by men.

The dismayed sitcom fan added: 'First, a woman would never dress like that. It is traditional male garb.

'Even if she did all that, the hat, the tallit... to add the payot, which in the traditional Jewish religion they are against shaving the sides of one's head, is even worse.

'That too is traditionally male.'

In 2014, Driver was part of a campaign for the World Jewish Congress and was seen posing for a poster that read: 'Hamas cannot be allowed to rain rockets on Israeli cities.'

Driver plays the scandalous guest character of Lorraine Finster on the sitcom, which was rebooted last year.

The character of Lorraine is not thought to be Jewish.

In her personal life, Driver has been a supporter of Israel and was part of a group of 187 celebrities that signed a letter blasting Hamas for 'ideologies of hatred and genocide'.

In 2014, she was part of a campaign for the World Jewish Congress and was seen posing for a poster that read: 'Hamas cannot be allowed to rain rockets on Israeli cities.'
The Duke of Cambridge has opened up about 'all the pain' he witnessed as an air ambulance pilot - as he launched an initiative to improve workplace well-being.

Prince William travelled to the Engine Shed, a community work-hub in Bristol, to launch his Mental Health at Work project.

At the event, he took the opportunity to speak out about his experience as an air ambulance pilot.

Prince William opened up about his experience as an air ambulance pilot at the Engine Shed community work-hub in Bristol (pictured)

'You're just seeing all the sad things, all the pain every day,' he told senior paramedic Dawn Anderson, who has recovered from post traumatic stress disorder with help from her employer.

The second-in-line to the throne chatted to Ms Anderson and others who have recorded videos talking about their experiences of workplace mental health to promote his new project.

He said of his time with the East Anglian Air Ambulance: 'I took a lot home without realising it.'

'If you see sad things every day, you think all life is like that, you're just seeing all the sad things, all the pain every day.

'I think that for the medical community, particularly, must weigh a lot on their minds.

'That you're always dealing with despair, sadness, injury, things that are really quite troubling.

'The attrition builds up and you don't really have the opportunity to off-load it.'

The Mental Health at Work project is an online gateway aimed at providing resources, training and information for managers to support their staff.

The website was created by the duke's mental health campaign Heads Together and the charity Mind which has released the findings of a major study into workplace wellbeing.

The prince said he 'took a lot home' from his work with the service - and said being around sadness every day can be troubling (pictured, Duke of Cambridge on his final shift with the East Anglian Air Ambulance in 2017)

It found almost half of the 44,000 workers questioned had experienced poor mental health in their current job.

The survey also revealed only half of those who had experienced poor mental health had talked to their employer about the issue, suggesting as many as one in four are struggling in silence with problems such as anxiety, low mood and stress.

In a speech to launch the portal which went live on Tuesday, Prince William said: 'If you are a business owner, a team leader, a line manager, you work in HR, or just believe in supporting the wellbeing of your colleagues  Mental Health At Work can help.'

The prince said he wanted the gateway to be a 'big shift in working culture' and ensure that dealing with mental health is a part of the everyday working life.

During the event, the duke visited workshops demonstrating the gateway and met people trying out the new system.

The prince said he wanted the gateway to be a 'big shift in working culture' and ensure that dealing with mental health is a part of the everyday working life

Ms Anderson, who works for East of England Ambulance Service based in Whitham, Essex, said: 'I've always held the belief that everybody is susceptible to mental health problems and I wouldn't expect even a member of the royal family to be exempt from that.

'To hear him admit that just goes to prove how good it is to speak about these things and how positive that can be.

'And it goes towards removing that stigma about mental health and to speaking up to and owning up to it.'
The U.S. government will expand its tent shelter for immigrant minors crossing the southwest border to 3,800 beds and keep it open through the end of this year.

The facility at Tornillo, Texas, which originally opened with just a 360-bed capacity for 30 days, is being expanded based on how many children are in the care of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, agency spokesman Kenneth Wolfe said in a statement.

This is the third time the temporary facility's closure has been delayed. It was originally due to close July 13. It opened June 14.

'The need for the continuation of the operation at Tornillo is based on the number of unaccompanied alien children in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement at HHS' Administration for Children and Families, who crossed the border alone without their parent or legal guardian,' HHS spokesperson Kenneth Wolfe said according to CBS News.

'Family separations resulting from the zero tolerance policy ended on June 20 and are not driving this need,' he added.

Three months after enforcement of the policy officially ended, more than 400 children remain in government care, away from their parents, many of whom were deported.

The government announced its plan to expand the migrant tent city in Tornillo, Texas to eventually house up to 3,800 boys by the end of the year

Shoes and toys left for children by protesters at the facility in June. The government has originally scheduled to shut down the facility- but now its staying open and expanding

The original tent capacity was just 360 beds, however the government says the need for more beds is not a result of family separations but due to minors crossing either unaccompanied or without proper legal guardians

Department officials have visited military bases and other properties in Texas, Arkansas, and Arizona that could host more beds for immigrant children, but 'no decision to use any of these properties has been made,' Wolfe said.

While the government has stopped large-scale separations, thousands of immigrants continue to arrive at the southwest border each month, mostly from Central American countries roiled by gang violence and poverty.

The U.S. Border Patrol said it apprehended nearly 4,000 children unaccompanied by an adult at the southwest border in July, the most recent month for which figures are available.

That represented a decrease from May and June, but border crossings historically tend to rise as the summer heat gives way to cooler temperatures in fall.

In Texas, the state with the longest segment of the U.S.-Mexico border, 5,168 children were being held in government facilities in early August, about 500 children short of capacity, according to figures released by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.

A mental health and case management tent is shown at the Tornillo facility which was initially used to house migrants separated from their parents and unaccompanied minors. The government says the additional beds are for the the latter

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said Tuesday that the facility will be expanded to 3,800 beds from its initial capacity of 360 beds

The Tornillo facility is at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection port of entry about 40 miles southeast of El Paso. The Tornillo port of entry had previously been used to shelter children in 2016.

Reporters were allowed to tour the facility in June, shortly after it was re-opened in the wake of family separations.

At the time, more than 320 children ages 13 to 17 were being held in air-conditioned tents. A facility administrator told reporters that the main complaint he hears from children on site is that the tents sometimes get too cold.

Reporters were not allowed to enter any tents holding children. Two girls who stopped briefly in front of reporters said that they were doing well.
A man who called a telecommunications company to discuss their wireless internet plans has received a shocking text message back from one of its customer service workers.

The man allegedly received the text message from telco TPG after he spoke to one of its customer service workers about wireless internet speed.

A man who called a telco company to discuss their wireless internet plans has received a shocking text message (pictured) from one of its customer service workers

After receiving a standard computer-generated text message, which provided a link to get 'more wireless speed info and tips', the man then received a second text.

While the follow-up message, from someone named Paul, was helpful, the recipient was stunned by the use of language.

In the message, the customer service worker introduced himself by saying: 'Hi! Dis is Paul frm TPG monitoring ur internet connection.'

But despite having a few missing characters, it was the second half of the message the man found the most alarming.

'F u stil nid help call us back,' the message stated.

After receiving the message, the man posted the text on Reddit on Tuesday.

Since then the post has garnered plenty of comments from people with mixed opinions.

Many customers blamed the confusing text message on international call centres.

'In the Philippines, when messaging someone it's common to use abbreviation for simple words, for example 'dito' (here) is 'd2', and 'tara' (lets go) is 'tra', one person wrote.

Others said Paul simply used texting abbreviations, to make it quicker to type and cheaper to send.

'I'm wondering if this trend comes from an actual need. I have heard SMS in 3rd world countries is really expensive,' another person said.

A third person added: 'However that's not to say 'Paul' hasn't internalised the need to be efficient with his texts and does it without thinking.'

The man allegedly received the text message from telco TPG (pictured) after he spoke to one of its customer service workers about wireless internet speed

Despite the backlash from some customers, others were impressed by the telco's service.

'TPG has the best customer service I've seen - even if there has quite a few spelling mistakes they do get the job done,' one person wrote.

'People deride overseas call centres but the people in the Philippines have been nothing but helpful and always explain things clearly,' another person said.

A third person added: 'I've been with them for about 7 years now and have phones with them as well. No issues for me either'.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted TPG for comment.
A hairdresser has slammed Woolworths for selling a dangerous hair dye product that is meant for 'professional use only'.

Marie Nieuwoudt, a hairdresser from North Lakes in Queensland, is outraged professional hair-dye products by Sol-fine are being sold on supermarket shelves.

Nieuwoudt claims customers with the skin condition psoriasis or users of certain types of medications would react to the product and generic manufacturing guidelines do not cater to the needs of every consumer.

Marie Nieuwoudt, North Lakes Queensland hairdresser, is outraged professional hair-dye products by Solfine are being sold on supermarket shelves

The Sol-fine colour tubes have 'professional use only' written on the side of the box and come with a guide to use inside the package

The Sol-fine colour tubes have 'professional use only' written on the side of the box and come with a guide to use them inside the package.

The range must be mixed to a certain ratio with a supplementary product called Crema Developer Oxy which is also sold at Priceline and Woolworths.

This product differs from typical boxed colour products which are measured out for the consumer, have a shade of colour on them and do not require any mixing.

Upon visiting a professional hairdresser, questions surrounding important variables like previous colours, hair-loss, allergies, medication intake and medical history are asked as a number of ingredients in professional hair dye can cause harm or reaction.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR USE OF SOL-FINE 1. To be used in combination with Crema Colour Oxy. 2. 65ml of the selected Crema Colour shade have to be mixed with 65ml of Crema Colour Oxy. 3. Should a greater lifting action be desired, add half a tube of shade Number 30 (Neutral Superlight Blonde) to half of the tube of the chosen shade. 4. First time application on natural hair: apply the mixture 1. 5 cm from the scalp, then along lengths and tips. 5. Prepare fresh mixture and apply to roots, lengths and tips. 6. Touch-up: apply part of the mixture to the regrowth area and leave on. 7. Apply the remaining mixture to the lengths and tips. 8. Processing times 35-40 mins (lengths and tips, 5 to 10 mins) with Oxy at 20 vol. /40 to 45 minutes with Oxy 30 vol. (lengths and tips, 5 to 10 mins). 9. Once the processing time is over, wash hair with Solfine Care Colour Shampoo and rinse. Advertisement

When Ms Nieuwoudt contacted Woolworths as a consumer asking questions around the product, she was not able to receive a response around how to use the product or what was in it.

With more than 33 years' experience, Ms Nieuwoudt insists professional hairdressers are trained to understand different ingredients and their make-ups and purposes.

She told Daily Mail Australia: 'There is too much room for consumer error when using these products, what's meant for a consumer is different for professionals and Woolworths isn't doing their due diligence.'

'At the end of the day the Australian hairdressing industry is meant to make people look and feel good and the amount of heartbroken people coming into professional salons after bad at-home hair dye experiences is alarming.'

David Kairuz, David K Hair Direction Sydney salon owner and educator, weighed in on the conversation and told Daily Mail Australia: 'Consumers can risk damage to their hair or scalp, so really professional hair products should be left to the professionals.'

Ms Nieuwoudt put forward the question of: 'My question to Woolworths is, how are you protecting your customers?'

A Woolworths spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia: ''The Solfine crema colour products sold at Woolworths complies with all relevant regulations that apply to hair dyes sold directly to consumers in Australia'

A Woolworths spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia: 'At Woolworths we treat customer concerns about product safety very seriously.'

'The Sol-fine crema colour products sold at Woolworths complies with all relevant regulations that apply to hair dyes sold directly to consumers in Australia.

'We advise customers to follow all safety instructions as outlined on the product leaflet as well as the package label.'

The product is made in Italy and distributed throughout Australia and New Zealand by Sabre Corporation

The relevant regulations that apply to hair dyes sold directly to consumers in Australia include the Poisons Standard, administered by the TGA, The Trade Practices (Consumer Product Information Standards) (Cosmetics) Regulations 1991, administered by the ACCC and The Industrial Chemicals (Notification and Assessment) Act 1989 (ICNA Act), administered by NICNAS.

The product is made in Italy and distributed throughout Australia and New Zealand by Sabre Corporation.

It retails for $13.99 per tube and the supplementary product for mixing, Oxy, is $3.99 for 65mL.
A desperate search has been launched to find two young Aboriginal children who have been missing for more than 24 hours.

An 11-year-old girl and a 12-year-old boy have not been seen since they were were last spotted at a train station in Brisbane's north.

They have not made contact with friends or family since 8.55am on Tuesday when they were at Zillmere Railway Station.

Queensland Police have launched a public appeal to help find a 12-year-old boy (left) and an 11-year-old girl (right) who have not been seen for more than 24 hours

Police are appealing for public help to find the two children and say it is thought the pair may be using the rail network to travel to Brisbane city or Southbank parklands.

In a statement, police said the boy is described as Aboriginal, 155cm in height with a slim build.

The girl, who is also Aboriginal, is said to be 150cm in height, with a slim build and dark brown shoulder length hair.

At the time she was last spotted, she was wearing dark blue jeans, a light grey hoodie style jacket, grey sneakers and a Fila brand blue and red polo shirt.

It is not known what clothing the boy was wearing.

Police are urging anyone with information to contact either Policelink on 131 444 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
President Donald Trump has once again sparked outrage on social media, this time by tweeting a year-old photo of himself and the White House staff honoring the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Though the picture is from last year, it leads people to believe it was taken on Tuesday.

Departing Washington, D.C. to attend a Flight 93 September 11th Memorial Service in Shanksville, Pennsylvania with Melania, Trump tweeted on Tuesday.

The tweet included a photo of Trump, the First Lady, and hundreds of White House staff pay homage to the victims of 9/11.

But Twitter users pointed out that the photo was taken last year since it includes staff members who are no longer working at the White House, among them Omarosa Manigault Newman and Hope Hicks.

President Donald Trump tweeted a photo of himself and the White House staff honoring the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, though the picture appears to be from last year even though it leads people to believe it was taken on Tuesday

Twitter users pointed out that the photo was taken last year since it includes staff members who are no longer working at the White House, among them Omarosa Manigault Newman and Hope Hicks. Newman is seen above with a circle around her

Newman, who was responsible for the White House outreach to the African American community, is seen standing next to Hicks (left), the former communications director

There was a memorial ceremony in front of the White House on Tuesday which was attended by staffers, but Trump had already departed for Pennsylvania

Hicks and Newman are seen standing alongside Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders toward the right-hand side of the photo.

More evidence that the photo tweeted by Trump was from last year can be seen in pictures from Tuesday morning in which the president is seen arriving in Pennsylvania for the memorial service.

In one picture, Trump is seen enthusiastically pumping his fists while greeting supporters on the tarmac in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.

Trump is seen in the photo wearing a blue striped tie. The photo Trump tweeted shows him wearing a red tie.

There was a memorial ceremony in front of the White House on Tuesday which was attended by staffers, but Trump had already departed for Pennsylvania.

Twitter users also pointed out that First Lady Melania Trump posted a photo of the same event on her account a year ago.

Predictably, Trump's tweet of a year-old photo which the president tried to pass off as current riled social media users.

'This was not taken today! Why do you lie about everything?' Paulette Feeney tweeted.

Noted another Twitter user: 'It's cloudy and dreary in DC today, you lying putz.'

'I think I see Hope Hicks (red dress) and Omarosa (flowered dress) in the photo,' tweeted Van Cleve.

Twitter users also pointed out that First Lady Melania Trump posted a photo of the same event on her account a year ago

Predictably, Trump's tweet of a year-old photo which the president tried to pass off as current riled social media users

Noted another Twitter user: 'It's cloudy and dreary in DC today, you lying putz'

'I think I see Hope Hicks (red dress) and Omarosa (flowered dress) in the photo,' tweeted Van Cleve. 'Did Trump invite them back to see him off?'

'BluePixie' tweeted: 'Did you change your tie and Melanie/Melania change dresses on the way (and for some reason invited Omerosa [sic] and H Hicks to pop by for the pic) or is this just last year's photo?'

Cindy Gail Hamilton tweeted a photo calling Trump a 'chronic pathological liar'

'Did Trump invite them back to see him off?'

A Twitter user with the handle 'BluePixie' tweeted: 'Did you change your tie and Melanie/Melania change dresses on the way (and for some reason invited Omerosa [sic] and H Hicks to pop by for the pic) or is this just last year's photo?'

'[F]or someone who has so much experience lying, you should be better at it than this.'

The post ended with the hashtag #Moron.

Cindy Gail Hamilton tweeted a photo calling Trump a 'chronic pathological liar.'

Since the 9/11 attacks, it has been tradition to honor the victims with a moment of silence on the anniversary. President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and his wife, Jill Biden are seen above at the White House moment of silence in 2013

The President commemorated the victims of Flight 93, praising the heroes who stopped a hijacked plane from reaching Washington, D.C. seventeen years ago - but only after starting the day of national unity by tweeting about the FBI, its scandal-tainted lovers and Hillary Clinton then arriving for the event with a double fist pump.

A quartet of plots in 2001 shook America's collective sense of national security and signaled the global beginning of a new normal.

They 'took their own fate, and America's fate, into their own hands' by storming the cockpit and forcing a group of jihadis to crash into a field instead of turning the U.S. Capitol building into a domed inferno, Trump said.

'America will never forget what your loved ones did for all of us,' he told a crowd of hundreds.

'They stopped the forces of terror and defeated this wicked, horrible, evil plan,' Trump said, referring to 'radical Islamic terrorism' several times as 'the enemy.'

Earlier on Tuesday, Trump tweeted praise of then-New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for his role in coordinating the emergency response to the 9/11 attacks

Trump also tweeted criticism of Attorney General Jeff Sessions as voiced by one of his favorite cable news personalities, Lou Dobbs, of Fox Business Channel

Trump drew criticism for using his Twitter feed on 9/11 to continue his public campaign against the Justice Department and the FBI

The president also tweeted about the Russia investigation while insisting 'no collusion'

His remarks came during an annual ceremony marking the 9/11 attacks that shook America's collective sense of national security in 2001.

Speaking against the backdrop of wind turbines and mountaintops, Trump praised law enforcement and first responders while promising to do 'everything in my power to prevent terrorists from striking American soil.'

He said the four planes were 'hijacked by evil men bent on terror and conquest' and promised to 'never flinch in the face of evil.'

President Donald Trump praised the heroes of Flight 93 who forced a group of terrorists to drash a hijacked plane rather than allow it to hit the U.S. Capitol. The 9/11 attacks happened 17 years ago today

Trump pledged to fight 'radical Islamic terrorism' and lauded the 40 men and women who fought hand-to-hand with 'the enemy' to save others' lives in Washington on September 11, 2001

The president pumped his fists as he arrived at a small regional Pennsylvania airport in advance of his speech

Memorial: The ground in Shanksville where Flight 93 crashed into the ground is marked by a 93-foot tower with 40 wind chimes, one for each of the passengers and crew who died

As it was: This was the aftermath of Flight 93's crash on 9/11, when the day after it was a crime scene

Intimate: Trump addressed a small crowd of a few hundred people at the Shanksville ceremony

Trump and his wife Melania traveled to the rural town of Shanksville, PA, where a California-bound United airliner crashed after the 40 passengers and crew members learned what was happening and attempted to regain control

Gathering: Trump addressed an audience which included service personnel and veterans, relatives of the dead and local residents

United in grief: Flight crew from the airline were among those at the commemoration addressed by the president. Flight 93 was on its way from Newark Airport, New Jersey, to San Francisco, when it was targeted by four hijackers. Its 33 innocent passengers and seven crew all died.

Visit: Trump gave a thumbs-up as he walked into the Flight 93 National Memorial with his wife Melania and Stephen Clark, the superintendent of the park

Tour: Donald and Melania Trump were taken through the plaza in the memorial to the overlook which has a view of the field where Flight 93 crash landed

Explanation: Memorial superintendent Stephen Clark pointed out the ground where Flight 93 crash landed from the Flight Path Overlook

Moment of reflection: President Trump and the First Lady were left alone on the memorial overlook to spend time with their thoughts

Solemn: Trump and Melania walk back towards the memorial plaza after spending time looking at the ground where the flight crash landed after passengers and crew fought back

Hail to the chief: An Air Force chief master sergeant salutes the president and first lady at Shanksville, PA

Escort: Memorial superintendent Stephen Clark leads President Trump and the First Lady on to stage in Shanksville, PA

Trump and his wife Melania traveled to the rural town of Shanksville, where a California-bound commercial airliner crashed after the 40 passengers and crew members learned what was happening and attempted to regain control of the aircraft. Everyone on board was killed.

Trump is a New York City native making his first visit as president to the site.

'A piece of Americas heart is buried on these grounds, but in its place has grown a new resolve to live our lives with the same grace and courage as the heroes of Flight 93,' he said.

'This field is now a monument to American defiance' that delivers 'a message to the world: America will never, ever, submit to tyranny.'

At the Pentagon, a choked-up Vice President Mike Pence recalled the deaths of 'little children just finding their way in the world' when American Airlines Flight 77 brought down part of the Pentagon's west wall.

'There were new recruits and dedicated veterans, patriots all,' he said.

But he recalled the teamwork as military brass and enlisted men and women rushed to crawl through the rubble for survivors.

'I'll never forget what I saw that day. I saw heroism. I saw strength,' Pence said.

He also praised Trump for winning the largest budget increase for America's military in the history of the nation, saying it would help the U.S. 'drive ISIS from the face of the earth.'

Al Qaeda's terrorists 'looked to break our spirit and they failed,' Pence said.

Americans nationwide commemorated the anniversary with somber tributes, volunteer projects and a new monument to victims Tuesday, after a year when two attacks demonstrated the enduring threat of terrorism in the nation's biggest city.

Trump started the day tweeting about his domestic political enemies.

He was incensed about a new development in the investigation of a senior FBI agent caught conspiring with his lover to help ensure his defeat in 2016.

A text message revealed Monday night by a Republican congressman shows Peter Strzok telling Lisa Page in April 2017 that they should collaborate on a 'media leak strategy.'

So as he prepared to visit Shanksville, he blasted the pair and praised his own lawyer Rudy Giuliani, who was mayor of New York City when the terrorists struck in 2001.

'New Strzok-Page texts reveal 'Media Leak Strategy',' he marveled, citing a Fox News Channel report.

'So terrible, and NOTHING is being done at DOJ or FBI  but the world is watching, and they get it completely.'

Strzok's lawyer said a few hours later that 'media leak strategy' referred to an effort to stop leaks, not to initiate or promote them.

The White House told reporters that 'bad weather' had forced the president to travel to Joint Base Andrews via motorcade instead of helicopter, denying the press the chance to ask him questions on the South Lawn.

White House aides participated in a moment of silence on the South Lawn later in the morning, in fair weather.

New York City marked the anniversary with a moment of silence at the site of the attacks on Tuesday morning.

Governor Andrew Cuomo, Rudy Giuliani, Nikki Haley, Bill de Blasio and Chris Christie were in attendance in New York.

Giuliani was the New York City mayor and Christie governor of New Jersey on the day Al Qaeda terrorists killed nearly 3,000 Americans with coordinated airliner hijackings and calculated crashes.

Vice President Mike Pence spoke during a ceremony at the Pentagon in suburban Virginia

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump attended a 9/11 anniversary tribute in Shanksville, Pennsylvania on Tuesday

Bill Anders, left, and Sharon Custer ring bells as part of the Name Presentation and Ringing of Bells Remembrance during the Shanksville service while the Trumps looked on

The Flight 93 memorial service where Trump spoke was attended by hundreds including ordinary Americans who traveled to pay honor tothe 40 victims of Flight 93

Address: Trump spoke to commemorate the victims of 9/11 and said: 'America will never, ever, submit to tyranny.'

Support: Trump supporters were among those who attended the memorial ceremony in Shanksville, PA

Display of affection: Trump kissed the First Lady at the end of the ceremony for the victims of 9/11 and particularly those on Flight 93

Hand-in-hand: The President and First Lady walked off Marine One as they transferred to Air Force One for the flight back to the White House

Pence and his wife Karen Pence lowered their heads after laying a wreath during the Pentagon memorial observance

Former Mayor of New York City Rudy Giuliani speaks with Chris Christie, former New Jersey governor, during ceremonies marking the 17th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks. The U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley is also pictured

There was a moment of silence and an annual reading of the victims' names at the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum

Trump and Melania arrive with Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf (back) at the September 11 Flight 93 Memorial Service in Shanksville on Tuesday morning

Hail to the chief: Trump and the first lady are saluted as they walk down the steps of Air Force One

Political gesture: The day of unity and mourning also attracted some supporters of the president

Chance to see Trump: The president's supporters were among those at the Pennslyvania commemoration

Margie Miller was among the 9/11 victims' relatives, survivors, rescuers and others who gathered on a misty Tuesday morning at the memorial plaza where the World Trade Center's twin towers once stood.

She came to the site from her home in suburban Baldwin, as she does 10 or so times a year, to remember her husband, Joel Miller. Only a few fragments of his remains were recovered.

'To me, he is here. This is my holy place,' his widow said before the ceremony began with a moment of silence and tolling bells at 8.46am, the time when the trade center was hit by the first of two terrorist-piloted planes.

Trump and Pence headed to the two other places where hijacked planes crashed on September 11, 2001, in the deadliest terror attack on American soil.

Trump took the occasion of last year's anniversary to issue a stern warning to extremists that 'America cannot be intimidated.'

Nearly 3,000 people died in the attacks on 9/11, when international terrorism hit home in a way it previously hadn't for many Americans. Sept. 11 still shapes American policy, politics and everyday experiences in places from airports to office buildings, even if it's less of a constant presence in the public consciousness after 17 years.

A stark reminder came not long after last year's anniversary: A truck mowed down people, killing eight, on a bike path within a few blocks of the World Trade Center on Halloween.

In December, a would-be suicide bomber set off a pipe bomb in a subway passageway near Times Square, authorities said. They said suspects in both attacks were inspired by the Islamic State extremist group.

Remember: Unlike 17 years ago, New York was rainy and misty, with the Freedom Tower wrapped in cloud

Never forget: Firefighters from Engine Co. 10 and Ladder 10, the closest New York Fire Department unit to the twin towers, were among those taking part in commemorations in New York

Remember: A New York firefighters was among those attending the commemoration in New York in dress uniform, and walked past the reflecting poll which marks where the South Tower stood

Remembered: Firefighters gather at the Liberty Street firehouse of Engine Co. 10 and Ladder Co. 10 before the commemoration. The units lost five active duty firefighters that day and a retired captain who was fire and safety director of the World Trade complex

Guests at the National 9/11 Memorial listen as the victims' names are read out during a ceremony on Tuesday

A woman holds a bouquet of flowers during at the 17th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the United States on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018, in New York

A woman arrives with a sign bearing photo memories for Wilder Gomez in New York. Gomez, from Colombia, was a bartender at Windows on the World on the 103rd floor of the World Trade Center

James McGlynn looks towards the One World Trade Center site wearing a tie bearing the likeness of the original World Trade Center towers. He says he purchased it about about a week after the attacks in 2001 and has worn it every anniversary since

A U.S. flag that few over the World Trade Center is presented during ceremonies marking the 17th anniversary of the attacks

A firefighter pauses at the South pool of the 9/11 Memorial during ceremonies marking the 17th anniversary of terrorist attacks

A man pauses at the north pool before the start of a commemoration ceremony for the victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks at the memorial in New York City

Remembered: U.S. Army Reserve Sgt. Edwin holds a photo of his cousin Ruben Correa, an FDNY firefighter with Engine Company 74 who was 44 when he died. Retired New York City firefighter Bruce Stanley brought a portrait of his late friend Leon Smith Jr., an FDNY firefighter with Ladder Co. 118, who was 48 when he died

Present: New York governor Andrew Cuomo was at the Ground Zero commemoration with his partner Sandra Lee

Remembered: Traders observed a moment of silence on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, which is close to where the terror attacks took place

The recent attacks in New York, as well as terror attacks elsewhere, were on Miller's mind as she arrived Tuesday.

'You don't want to live in fear, but it's very real,' she said.

Debra Sinodinos, who lost her firefighter cousin Peter Carroll and works near the trade center, said she tries not to let the recent attacks unnerve her.

'You have to move on,' she said as she headed into the anniversary ceremony with her extended family. 'Otherwise, you'd live in fear.'

The 9/11 commemorations are by now familiar rituals, centered on reading the names of the dead. But each year at ground zero, victims' relatives infuse the ceremony with personal messages of remembrance, inspiration and concern.

For Nicholas Haros Jr., that concern is officials who make comparisons to 9/11 or invoke it for political purposes.

'Stop. Stop,' pleaded Haros, who lost his 76-year-old mother, Frances. 'Please stop using the bones and ashes of our loved ones as props in your political theater. Their lives, sacrifices and deaths are worth so much more. Let's not trivialize them.'

White House Chief of Staff John Kelly and other members of staff observe a moment's silence on the south lawn at 8.37am - the time the first tower was hit in the 9/11 attacks

U.S. Army Reserve Sgt. Edwin Morales kneels as he honors his cousin Ruben Correa at the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum in New York

A nation remembers: In Lansing, Michigan, members of the city's fire department honor guard took part at the 9/11 memorial in downtown Lansing

A nation remembers: In Miami, firefighters and police took part in a service of commemoration

A nation remembers: In Tempe, Arizona, 3,000 flags were planted in a park, each one carrying a name of a victim of the attacks

This year's anniversary comes as a heated midterm election cycle kicks into high gear. But there have long been some efforts to separate the solemn anniversary from politics.

The group 9/11 Day, which promotes volunteering on an anniversary that was declared a national day of service in 2009, routinely asks candidates not to campaign or run political ads for the day. Organizers of the ground zero ceremony allow politicians to attend, but they've been barred since 2011 from reading names or delivering remarks.

Hours after the ceremony, two powerful light beams will soar into the night sky from lower Manhattan in the annual 'Tribute in Light.'

Memorials to 9/11 continue to grow at Shanksville, where the Tower of Voices will eventually include a wind chime for each of the 40 people killed there, and ground zero, where work is to begin soon on a pathway honoring rescue and recovery workers.

A U.S. flag is unfurled at sunrise on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018, at the Pentagon

The annual 9/11 commemorations are by now familiar rituals, centered on reading the names of the dead. But each year at ground zero, victims' relatives infuse the ceremony with personal messages of remembrance, concern and inspiration

It will serve as a way to honor those who became sick or died from exposure to toxins released when the Trade Center's twin towers collapsed. Researchers have documented elevated rates of respiratory ailments, post-traumatic stress disorder and other illnesses among people who spent time in the rubble.

About 38,500 people have applied to a compensation fund, and over $3.9 billion in claims have been approved.

Meanwhile, rebuilding continues. A subway station destroyed on 9/11 finally reopened Saturday. In June, doors opened at the 80-story 3 World Trade Center, one of several rebuilt office towers that have been constructed or planned at the site. A performing arts center is rising.

However, work was suspended in December on replacing a Greek Orthodox church crushed in the attacks; the project hit financial problems.
Radio star Ray Hadley's policeman son has quit the force as he faces a charge of possessing cocaine at a Sydney hotel.

Daniel Hadley did not appear at Parramatta Local Court when the matter was briefly mentioned on Wednesday morning.

A New South Wales Police Force spokesman later told Daily Mail Australia the 28-year-old had resigned from his job.

Hadley was off-duty when he was arrested at the Australian Hotel and Brewery at Rouse Hill in Sydney's north-west on Friday night, August 3.

Daniel Hadley (right) did not appear in court on Wednesday for his cocaine possession charges

The former senior constable was allegedly caught in possession of 0.79 grams of cocaine, with a street value of about $200.

Shortly afterwards, between 8.05pm and 8.20pm, Shaquillie Sione Vaisiqine Laf Moubayed was arrested in a nearby vehicle allegedly holding 7.51 grams of cocaine and a wad of $500 in cash.

Moubayed, who was described in court on Monday as Hadleys co-accused, was taken to Riverstone police station, charged and granted conditional bail.

Senior Constable Hadley was also granted bail and later admitted to a mental health clinic.

In recent months he has been suffering from a dislocated knee and was awaiting a hernia operation.

Daniel Hadley split from and his estranged wife Tahlee Anderson, who split earlier this year

Hadley split from his wife of two years Tahlee Anderson earlier this year.

Police had been reviewing the officer's employment and removed him from operational duties at his North West Metropolitan Region job.

'Officers from the Professional Standards Command have been investigating allegations a senior constable had been involved with prohibited drugs,' police said in a statement at the time.

The next day Hadley senior convened a press conference during which he tearfully admitted to feeling 'inadequate' as a father for failing to notice his son's mental health problems.

'When I was first told I was angry and perplexed,' Hadley said.

'I had no idea my son, a respected police officer, would be involved in such a matter.

'I brought Daniel back to my home and my anger turned to shock and sadness.

'My son revealed to me he's been having mental health issues.

'I'm not a medical professional and I won't guess the nature of his illness but I will tell you it's very serious and his family - me, his mum, sisters, aunts and uncles - are very concerned.'

Radio broadcaster Ray Hadley speaks to the media after his policeman son Daniel was arrested for cocaine possession. 'This is going to be a long slow process for my son,' he said

Senior Constable Daniel Hadley, 28, was admitted to a mental health clinic after being charged with possessing 0.79 grams of cocaine at a pub in Sydney's north-west on August 3

Daniel, who has been a policeman for six years and was previously a plumber, is Hadley's eldest child from his first marriage.

'Daniel accepts responsibility for his behaviour but unfortunately is not in control of his mental health,' his father said.

'I now know how many parents feel when they think things are OK when they're not.

'This is going to be a long slow process for my son, I love him dearly,' Hadley said.

'I wish to God he'd come to me before this morning to tell me what he was battling.'

The top-rating 2GBbroadcaster returned to the airwaves the following Monday to thank well-wishers for their support and to attack social media trolls.

'To the few haters and trolls on social media, you're being treated with the contempt you deserve,' he said.

'My employers gave me the chance to have a week off but I have never hidden from my own shortcomings - of which there are many.'

'I am here today to do what I do best, to get on with it and lead by example for my son and my family.'

Hadley told his listeners it would be 'totally inappropriate' to comment further, adding that his son was entitled to privacy. He has remained publicly silent on the issue since then.

Radio giant Ray Hadley farewells his son Daniel, now a police officer, as he races off to school

His son is due back at the same court on October 3.

Moubayed, from Seven Hills, appeared briefly on Monday at Blacktown Local Court where he did not enter pleas.

The 22-year-old is charged with supplying a prohibited drug, possessing a prohibited drug and having goods in custody reasonably suspected of being unlawfully obtained.

The court heard the New South Wales Director of Public Prosecutions had elected to take over the case from police when the case next came before court.

Moubayed, who has worked at Flemington Markets, was represented by a Legal Aid solicitor on Monday but the court heard he would retain private counsel after seeking further advice from his family.

His case was also adjourned until October 3 when he is set to face Parramatta Local Court.
These incredible photos show the moment a fearless rhino wrangler tamed an injured animal to give it a full 'health MOT' - by grabbing it by the tail.

Pictures show the dangerous mammal being located, before a vet fires a tranquiliser dart to anaesthetise it, while a team member guides it to the ground by holding it by the tail.

The injured rhino was tracked down by a conservation team using a helicopter on the Eastern Cape of South Africa.

The injured rhino was tracked down by a conservation team using a helicopter on the Eastern Cape of South Africa

A vet had to fire a tranquiliser dart to anaesthetise the rhino

Once safely unconscious the team set to work on inserting a small microchip

Once safely unconscious, the team can be seen hastily getting to work, giving the animal a once over before dressing a suspected gunshot wound and inserting a small tracking microchip into its horn.

The photos were captured by professional photographer Rainer Schimpf, 51.

He said: 'The microchip in the horn lasts for only a certain amount of time so it has to be replaced once a year.

Vets are working hard to keep the animal safe. Since 2008, rhino poaching in South Africa has skyrocketed year on year, culminating in a total of 448 rhinos killed in 2011

Rhino deaths in South Africa continue apace despite the government responses to combat poaching. Which is why the vets use microchips to track their whereabouts

Ready to go, once the rhino had its health check the vets got the animal back on its feet

'If poaching takes place then one can trace where the horn is going and who the parties are who have conducted those crimes.'

'The whole process took about 45 minutes.'

The rhino, which lives at an undisclosed location on the Eastern Cape, was shot with a tranquiliser dart.

The rhino had to be treated for several injuries when it was located by vets

The team had to use a tranquilliser dart to anaesthetise the rhino

Once safely unconscious, the team can be seen getting to work

Rainer added: 'It's quite sad that about 2,000 rhinos are poached a year.

'The price of a rhino is equivalent to the gold price so the value of the rhino horn pictured would have been up to $50,000 USD (38,000).'
Suspected kidnapper Jeremy M. Jones (pictured) was stood up by his bride Tuesday at their courthouse wedding

A man scheduled to start trial next month for allegedly kidnapping a Wheaton College student was sadly stood up at his own wedding at an Illinois courthouse.

Jeremy M. Jones, 25, was granted permission to wed his unnamed bride by Judge John Kinsella in his courtroom Tuesday, but his lover was a no-show.

The Chicago Tribune reported that Jones waited patiently for his bride in a room in the courthouse early this morning.

The wedding was supposed to take place at 9am.

Court was adjourned after there was no sign of the bride after nearly an hour and a half.

Jones and two other men were charged in the August 2016 kidnapping and robbery of a Wheaton College student.

The men allegedly kidnapped a male student and threw him into one of their vehicles. The trio then drove him to ATMS where they forced the student to withdraw $1,500 in cash.

The victim gave the men his money and was later freed in Chicago.

The jailbird was set to be wed in an Illinois courthouse by Judge John Kinsella (pictured)

Although Jones' wedding was a flop, his lawyer, Glenn Jazwiec, told the Tribune he is hopeful Jones will be acquitted at his trial come October 16.

'I will personally tie the cans onto the back of his car,' Jazwiec said.

Jones is currently being held at the DuPage County Jail in Wheaton on $3.5 million bond.
Donning heels and a wig isnt necessarily actor and director Ed Sparans idea of fun, but its a labor of love when it comes to one of his favorite playwrights, Charles Busch. Sparan is directing and starring in a new production of Buschs classic Die, Mommie, Die! opening this weekend at Empire Stage in Fort Lauderdale.

Ive always been such a big fan of Charles Busch and directed a lot of his plays when I was an actor in New York in the 80s, Sparan said. I fell in love with the Charles Busch style of theater.

Die, Mommie, Die! was first staged in Los Angeles in 1999 and has been produced Off Broadway and across the country. The satirical dark comedy pays homage to the psycho-biddy of the 1950s and 1960s that featured aging actresses like Bette Davis, Joan Crawford and Ethel Merman. Busch starred in a film adaptation in 2003 that is still available on streaming and movie rental services.

Sparan hesitated to throw out any spoilers, but the plot goes like this: Angela (Sparan) is trapped in a bad marriage with film producer Sol Sussman. Desperate to find happiness with her younger lover, an out-of-work TV actor, Angela murders her husband with a poisoned suppository.

Angelas daughter, Edith, convinces her emotionally disturbed brother, Lance, that they must avenge their fathers death by killing their mother. Lance, demanding proof, slips some LSD into her coffee. All hell then breaks loose as the familys dirty laundry is eventually aired.

It is a challenge because Im older, reflected Sparan on his gender-bending role. I dont act that much anymore I did Muscle Bears the Musical last summerbut, I couldnt find the right person I was looking for and I thought I might like to do this because its a role of the lifetime. Its such a fun play and harks back to the old Shakespearean style of male actors playing the female role. Its not really drag.

Sparan, a theater veteran, is willing to make sacrifices for his craft. The Connecticut native moved to New York while still a teen. Openly gay in the early 1980s, Sparan found plenty of roles in gay theater productions (I wasnt shy, he said.) before landing a gig on Broadway in A Chorus Line as Gregory, the gay dancer. At the height of the AIDS crisis, few actorsgay or straightwere willing to take on a gay role.

After moving to South Florida in 1990, he more into writing, directing and education as artistic director of the PWA (People With AIDS) Theater. More recently, he was director of operations for the World AIDS Museum in Wilton Manors.

In some ways, I was still doing what I did 25 or 30 years ago, Sparan reflected.

Charles Buschs Die, Mommie, Die! runs Sept. 14  30 at Empire Stage, 1140 N. Flagler Dr. in Fort Lauderdale. Tickets are $30 at Eventbrite.com.
A British convicted robber who was shot dead by police at a Costa Del Sol hotel after a dramatic shootout has been named.

Sean Hercules, a 39-year-old from Leeds, died on Monday after he resisted arrest just after 5pm at the Autosole Aparthotel in Cancelada, a short drive from Estepona (Malaga).

He had shot at police officers when they arrived at his room in the hotel to arrest him for fleeing an accident following an earlier car crash.

Sean Hercules, a 39-year-old from Leeds, centre, died on Monday after he resisted arrest

Police had gone to the hotel to arrest Hercules and the shootout occurred after they knocked on his door

A Foreign Office spokesman confirmed the death of a British man in Estepona, and said in a statement: Our staff are in contact with the family of a British man following his death in Spain, and have offered them support and advice on bereavement abroad.

In a report by El Pais, witnesses said they called emergency services after seeing him carrying a firearm upon leaving the scene of a collision - rather than wait for help.

He later fired his gun at local police in the hotel during a confrontation. Police had gone to the hotel to arrest him and the shootout occurred after they knocked on his door.

The drama happened just after 5pm at the Autosole Aparthotel in Cancelada, Spain

Staff at the apart-hotel declined to comment.

A spokesman for Spain's National Police in Malaga confirmed: 'Police have had to repel an armed man who shot at them. He has been killed. The matter remains under investigation.'

Two pistols found in the hotel guest's room are believed to have been seized by investigators, along with four magazines.

Investigators confirmed they went to his hotel to arrest him after identifying him as the man seen fleeing the scene of an accident in Puerto Banus on Monday with a weapon.

The police spokesman said in a statement: 'Officers came under fire when they went to arrest him and were obliged to use their weapons to repel the attack, resulting in the death of the gunman.

'Two firearms and four cartridges he used to try to resist arrest were found next to the body of this British man.'

A spokesman for Spain's National Police in Malaga confirmed: 'Police have had to repel an armed man who shot at them

The spokesman said the dead man had a police record for drugs and weapons offences.

His death comes 12 years after Hercules, a convicted robber, blasted a man in Leeds city centre with a double-barrelled shotgun, leaving him with more than 250 gunshot pellets in his body  weeks after being released early from prison, according to a story written by the Yorkshire Evening Post in 2006.

It said that Hercules had only been out of prison for 12 weeks when he carried out the attack, having been allowed back on the streets after serving four years of a nine-year prison sentence in 2001 for taking part a robbery at a post office.

He pleaded guilty to wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life, and possessing a prohibited weapon.
The room next door to where a British couple died in an Egyptian hotel last month had been fumigated with 'farm-strength' insecticide just hours earlier, it has been confirmed.

John Cooper, 69, and his wife Susan, 64, died after being taken ill during a Thomas Cook holiday in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada.

An investigation was launched after the couple died at the luxury five-star resort, although a further post mortem into their deaths will be carried out when their bodies are repatriated.

John, 69, and Susan Cooper, 64, died on August 21 after being taken ill during a Thomas Cook holiday in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada before their mysterious death

Egyptian officials said on Monday they would release the bodies so they can be returned to the UK.

According to The Times, the day before the couple died, August 20, Namaa Agricultural and Engineering Services sprayed an adjacent with lambda-cyhalothrin 5 per cent.

The door of the room, which was sealed with tape, was at the end of the corridor next to where the Coopers were due to stay.

It is feared the fumes may have entered their room through the ceiling space.

According to the University of Hertfordshire, the spray is highly toxic to mammals and is a known irritant.

WHAT IS LAMBDA CYHALOTHRIN? The insecticide is used to control flies and is similar to that used to fumigate aeroplanes when they land. It was developed in 1977 and has been approved for use on agricultural land in the UK since 1988. But according to Public Health England, prolonged exposure can be harmful to humans. They warn symptoms can include dizziness, loss of appetite and production of too much saliva. It is highly toxic to mammals and is a known irritant. Advertisement

A World Health Organisation bulletin from 1990 investigated possible poisoning cases involving the insecticide.

According to the report: 'Acute pyrethroid poisoning in humans is characterised by headache, nausea and, when severe, by muscle fasciculation (spontaneous contractions) and convulsive attacks.'

Their daughter Kelly Ormerod has previously said said vital clues may have been lost when cleaners and maintenance workers accessed the room soon after her parents died.

Ms Ormerod has always been adamant that she believes something in the room killed her parents, despite Egyptian officials insisting their deaths were 'normal for an old English man and his wife' and the result of respiratory and heart failure.

She has previously mentioned a 'funny smell' in the room at Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel the night before they died.

The results of the post-mortem were still spending on Friday, nearly three weeks after the tragic double death.

Their daughter Kelly Ormerod (right) has previously said said vital clues may have been lost when cleaners and maintenance workers accessed the room soon after her parents died

However confirmation has now been given by Egyptian authorities that their bodies have been released and can be brought back to the UK.

Egypt's General Prosecutor released a statement ordering the release of the bodies of Susan and John Cooper to a UK Embassy representative in Cairo.

The statement says the results of the autopsy will be released at a later stage and that the investigation will continue.

Ms Ormerod said she had returned to her parents' room the day after their deaths to collect belongings and noticed that the cleaners had been inTrip of a lifetime: Susan and John Cooper were staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel (pictured) in the resort. Ms Ormerod said: 'All the floors had been mopped, all the bedding had been changed and for those 24 hours maintenance were in and out quite often'

It says they can now be repatriated and the British can conduct their own post-mortem.

Ms Ormerod told ITV News that she had returned to her parents' room on Wednesday the day after their deaths to collect belongings and noticed the cleaners had been in.

Kelly and her three children (pictured leaving Egypt) landed at Manchester Airport in the early hours of Sunday flanked by staff from Thomas Cook

'All the floors had been mopped, all the bedding had been changed and for those 24 hours maintenance were in and out quite often.

'If it happened over here it would have been taped off but the room wasn't taped off until I believe the Thursday so everybody and anybody could go in that room on that Wednesday.'

She said she had 'no idea' what maintenance had been doing and added that the room was not taped off until the Thursday.

Ms Ormerod believes potentially crucial evidence may have been lost in the process.

'There was obviously evidence left over from my Mum and Dad in that room which I think was quite crucial as to why they possibly died.

'There was a distinct change of smell in the room. The air conditioning unit was a lot crisper and cooler and you could tell that somebody had been in that room doing something.'

Ms Ormerod had reported a strange smell in the room in the hours before they died.

Ms Ormerod has always been adamant that she believes something in the room killed her parents, she told ITV news

She also said her daughter had intended to stay the night with her grandparents but returned to her room due to the odour.

The couple had been staying next to a room that had been fumigated just hours before, raising fears they may have been poisoned by toxic gases.

The Mail on Sunday revealed that pest controllers sprayed chemicals into the room on August 20, the day before Susan and John Cooper died.

The fumigated room  number 5106  is located at the end of the first floor. The only connected room was that occupied by the couple.

Susan and John were staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel (pictured) in the resort

Speaking with the BBC she explained: 'At 11 o' clock I went to knock on the door to see if they were just having a bit of a lie in and didn't want to be bothered, and as I opened the door I could see that my dad was extremely ill.

'He was staggering back to the bed. Mum was laid on the bed. And I could tell there was something seriously wrong with them.'

Ms Ormerod said she was feeling 'disheartened' that neither post-mortem results had been returned, but didn't think 'the answers will be the answer I necessary believe'.

The fumigated room  number 5106  is located at the end of the first floor. The only connected room was that occupied by Susan and John from Burnley

Her father died in the couple's room at the hotel while Susan was later rushed to hospital where she later passed away.

Egyptian authorities ordered an investigation into the deaths despite saying the British couple died of natural causes.

Thomas Cook evacuated 300 guests staying at the all-inclusive Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in the Red Sea resort town of Hurghada.

The tragedy happened in the Red Sea resort town of Hurghada in eastern Egypt

Around 200 people have lodged sickness complaints against the resort.

Thomas Cook commissioned an independent hygiene specialist and air quality specialist to conduct a series of tests at the hotel.

They said the tests on the food and hygiene standards identified a high level of E.coli and staphylococcus bacteria.

The travel firm said its experts did not think E. coli killed the Coopers.

It said the results of the tests identified 'a high level of E. coli and staphylococcus bacteria', which were reviewed by Dr Vanya Gant from University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Fire has engulfed a famous ski area in the French Alps after an inferno broke out at 6,400 feet.

There was extensive damage to the ski lift structure and buildings at Grands Montets in the Chamonix Valley, a popular destination for British skiers and hikers.

Lift cables melted sending passenger cabins capable of carrying 60 people crashing into the mountainside.

The area had been closed to the public while maintenance work was being carried out.

The fire started just before 2pm in the Lognan building which houses store rooms, restaurants, toilets and a lift station giving people access down to the base station in the village of Argentiere or up to Grands Montets at an altitude of 10,700 feet.

Clouds of smoke billowing from the mountain were visible 20 miles away. The lift is owned by Compagnie du Mont Blanc. Its president, Mathieu Dechavanne, described the fire as 'a big, big disaster'.

Clouds of smoke billowing from the mountain were visible from 20 miles away but nobody was injured in the inferno

Fire rages at the resort, where an inferno broke out a the resort, which is popular with British tourists

'An external society was doing work for us in the buildings,' he said. 'A fire broke out under the roof at the Lognan building at an altitude of 2000 metres altitude.

'The fire took hold quickly and progressed into the lift building. No one has been injured which is the good news. Its a big, big disaster.'

He said repairs would last 'many months' and it would be necessary to change the load-bearing cables and replace the cable cars that were affected by the flames.

A helicopter from the gendarmerie was mobilised, as well as a private helicopter chartered by the Compagnie du Mont-Blanc to dump water on the fire.

All workers on the site were evacuated and also staff in the base station and residents of houses near the lift cables. The Grands Montets lifts transport 600,000 passengers a year.

The fire marks the second lift-related incident in Chamonix this year. The Aiguille du Midi cable car was shut down in July after a defective cable was discovered. Ends
An Oregon novelist who was arrested last week for the murder of her husband published an essay online titled How to Murder Your Husband, it has been reported.

Nancy Crampton Brophy, 68, was arrested last week for the June 2 murder of Daniel Brophy.

The 63-year-old Brophy was found shot to death inside the Oregon Culinary Institute in Portland.

His wife, who authored romance and mystery novels, also wrote a blog on WordPress about killing a spouse that was posted on the website See Jane Publish.

Nancy Crampton Brophy, 68, was arrested last week for the June 2 murder of her husband, Daniel Brophy. She is seen during her appearance at Multnomah County Circuit Court on Thursday

Seven years ago, she published an essay online titled How to Murder Your Husband

The essay lists a number of motives that would drive a wife to kill her husband, including financial incentives, infidelity, and abusive behavior. A screenshot of the essay is seen above

The existence of the essay, which was first written seven years ago, was first reported by The Oregonian newspaper.

The privacy settings of the WordPress blog have been changed so that only the owner can grant permission for access.

But a number of news organization have taken screen shots of the blog posting.

As a romantic suspense writer, I spend a lot of time thinking about murder and, consequently, about police procedure, Crampton Brophy wrote in the November 4, 2011 blog post.

After all, if the murder is supposed to set me free, I certainly dont want to spend any time in jail.

The essay lists a number of motives that would drive a wife to kill her husband, including financial incentives, infidelity, and abusive behavior.

Divorce is expensive, and do you really want to split your possessions? she wrote.

Or if you married for money, arent you entitled to all of it?

The drawback [sic] is the police arent stupid. They are looking at your first.

So you have to be organized, ruthless, and very clever.

Husbands have disappeared from cruise ships before. Why not yours?

Crampton-Brophy was arrested last Wednesday at her Beaverton home accused of killing her husband at the Oregon Culinary Institute.

Crampton-Brophy - who has published novels entitled 'The Wrong Husband' and 'The Wrong Lover' - was booked into Multnomah County Detention Center accused of murder and unlawful use of a firearm, according to Oregon Live.

Her husband, Daniel Brophy, 63, (left), was lead instructor at the Oregon Culinary Institute where he was found dead. Crampton-Brophy (right) was arrested last Wednesday at the couple's Beaverton home

The day after his murder she posted on Facebook announcing his death saying 'please save phone calls for a few days' and 'I'm struggling to make sense of everything right now'

On June 2, 2018 Brophy was found shot in the kitchen area of the school by his horrified students. His wife had penned the book 'The Wrong Husband'

On June 2, 2018 Brophy was found shot in the kitchen area of the school by his horrified students.

He worked at the school since 2006 and was a marine biology and mushroom expert, according to the institute's website.

A day after his death she took to Facebook to share an eerie post announcing his death and urging friends to refrain from calling her.

'For my facebook friends and family, I have sad news to relate. My husband and best friend, Chef Dan Brophy was killed yesterday morning. For those of you who are close to me and feel this deserved a phone call, you are right, but I'm struggling to make sense of everything right now,' she wrote.

Crampton-Brophy - who has published novels entitled 'The Wrong Hero' and 'Hell On The Heart' - was booked into Multnomah County Detention Center accused of murder and unlawful use of a firearm

He was found dead at the Oregon Culinary Institute where he was lead instructor by students, pictured left with a friend

Crampton-Brophy pictured right selling her novels which she describes as 'romance suspense' with titles like 'The Wrong Husband' and 'The Wrong Lover'. She was booked into jail on charges of murder and unlawful use of a weapon

Brophy was fatally shot here at the Oregon Culinary Institute where he taught

'While I appreciate all of your loving responses, I am overwhelmed. Please save phone calls for a few days until I can function,' she added.

On her website she writes that she's married to a chef 'whose mantra is: life is a science project'.

'Like all marriages, weve had our ups and downs, more good times than bad,' she adds.

She says her romance suspense stories are about 'pretty men and strong women, about families that dont always work and about the joy of finding love and the difficulty of making it stay'.

She penned 'The Wrong Series' with books entitled 'The Wrong Cop', 'The Wrong Husband', 'The Wrong Seal', 'The Wrong Lover', 'The Wrong Hero'.

She is scheduled for her first court appearance in Multnomah County Thursday afternoon.

It is not immediately clear if Crampton-Brophy has an attorney.
Sydney radio broadcaster Alan Jones and his employer have been ordered to pay a record $3.7 million in damages for defaming one of Queensland's richest families by claiming they were responsible for 12 deaths in floods almost eight years ago.

The 2GB breakfast presenter, Harbour Radio and its sister station 4BC were sued by the prominent Wagner family, who claim they were blamed for the deaths in the small Lockyer Valley town of Grantham, south-west of Brisbane, when one of the walls of the quarry they owned collapsed.

The Wagners, who own the Wellcamp Airport in Toowoomba and have an estimated worth of $955 million, sued Jones after he linked them with a dozen deaths, which occurred as Queensland and northern New South Wales were devastated by raging floods in January 2011.

Supreme Court of Queensland Justice Peter Flanagan dismissed the complaint against journalist Nick Cater, a conservative columnist with The Australian newspaper, in delivering the record Australian defamation payout on Wednesday.

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Sydney radio broadcaster Alan Jones and his employer have been ordered to pay a record $3.7 million in damages for defaming Queensland brothers over the 2011 floods

The 2GB breakfast star, Harbour Radio and its sister station 4BC were sued by the Wagner family, who claim they were blamed for the deaths in Grantham, south-west of Brisbane

Brothers John, Denis, Neill and Joe Wagner had sought $1.2 million each from the four defendants.

In a summary of his judgment, Justice Flanagan said the defamatory comments were 'extremely serious and of the gravest kind'.

He said Jones, Harbour Radio and 4BC had failed to establish any defence to any of the defamatory matters published.

Jones's top-rating Sydney 2GB breakfast show is also broadcast in Brisbane.

Brothers John (second left), Denis (second right), Neill (right) and Joe Wagner (far left) had sought $1.2 million each from the four defendants

Supreme Court Justice Peter Flanagan said Alan Jones's defamatory comments were 'extremely serious and of the gravest kind'

The judge noted the effect the comments had had on the Wagners.

'Prior to the publication of the defamatory broadcasts, each plaintiff enjoyed an excellent reputation for honesty and integrity, both in business and community circles,' he wrote.

'The publication of the defamatory broadcasts was very extensive.

'The defamatory broadcasts have caused each of the plaintiffs to suffer profound personal hurt and harm to their reputations, which includes their business reputations.'

The payout smashes the previous Australian record for defamation, with $2.62 million awarded to Perth barrister Lloyd Rayney last year after police defamed him by naming him as the 'prime' and 'only' suspect in the murder of his wife, Corryn.
Consumers are being urged to throw out strawberries purchased over the past week in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria after needles were found inside the fruit.

Health officials and police on Wednesday said needles were hidden in at least three punnets of strawberries supplied to Woolworths from a southeast Queensland farm.

Authorities are investigating the contamination after a man reported swallowing a strawberry with a needle on Sunday.

A man has posted a picture of a sewing needle sticking out of a strawberry, claiming his friend had to be taken to the emergency room after swallowing another on Sunday afternoon

Needles have been found in packets in two Woolworths stores in Victoria and another in Queensland with an urgent recall underway.

The farm where the strawberries were sourced sells to stores in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria.

Joshua Gane was driving with his friend, Haoni van Dorp on Sunday afternoon, when they went into the Strathpine Centre Woolworths, about 20km north of Brisbane.

Buying a punnet of strawberries, the two men left the supermarket and kept driving.

Soon after, van Dorp says he bit into one and swallowed half of a sewing needle, before the pair found another.

Haoni van Dorp (pictured) bit into one of the strawberries and swallowed half of a sewing needle

Police believe the needles may have been deliberately planted with the perpetrator wanting to cause harm.

Gane posted the ordeal to Facebook, along with a picture that shows a metal pin poking out of a strawberry.

He said they took apart the rest of the strawberries, finding another pin.

He said his friend had to be taken to the emergency room with 'severe abdomen pain'.

The pictures on Facebook show a metal pin sticking out of the strawberry, but the men aren't sure how it came to be there.

Gane said the store manager contacted him following the incident, and told him they suspected foul play.

He wrote it was unclear who planted the needle, but said police and health and safety officials were called.

Queensland Police have now commenced an investigation into the contamination of the affected strawberry brands - Berry Obsession and Berry Licious.

Authorities are liasing with retailes to ensure all stock is removed from sale to prevent any further incidents.

He says after swallowing the needle, they took apart the rest of the berries and found another

Queensland's Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young said anyone else who had bought the brands of strawberries without signs of tampering should return them to the store or throw them away.

'While it is expected that berries picked early last week would now not be useable, many people freeze the fruit for later use,' she said.

'If you are in doubt, just throw them out.

She said that any strawberries bought from September 13 are safe and said this incident does not mean you stop eating strawberries.

'Any strawberries that you are certain are not the brands Berry Licious and Berry Obsession, are safe.

'If you believe you have eaten a needle, we would recommend you speak to your doctor or call 13 HEALTH.

'There is no reason to stop eating strawberries, we just need to be aware of this incident.'

A spokesperson for Woolworths said the brand of berries have been 'temporarily withdrawn' from shelves, after the two men bought their punnet from the Strathpine Centre Woolworths

A Woolworths spokesperson said the 'Berry Obsessions' brand has been 'temporarily withdrawn' from shelves wherever they are supplied.

'Woolworths takes food safety very seriously and we are looking into these claims with our supplier,' they said in a statement.

'We are working closely with authorities as they investigate this matter.

'We have withdrawn Berry Obsession and Berrylicious branded strawberries from sale while this incident is being investigated.'
A new flu jab will still not protect the elderly from a deadly strain of flu which killed thousands last winter.

Health bosses yesterday announced a stronger immune-boosting vaccine which is tailored to the over-65s, whose defences are naturally weaker.

But they admitted the new jab covers only three strains of the deadly virus  and not Japanese flu.

Flu killed 15,000 people last winter  almost double the number the year before  with B Yamagata one of the most dominant strains.

A new flu jab will still not protect the elderly from the deadly strain of flu which killed thousands last winter

The worst flu season in seven years was exacerbated by ineffective vaccines which worked for just 15 per cent of all patients, including only one in ten pensioners.

Health chiefs hope the three-strain 'trivalent' vaccine will prevent 700 deaths, more than 2,000 hospitalisations and 30,000 GP consultations among over-65s this winter.

They say it offers the elderly the best protection because it contains a chemical that boosts their weaker immune systems, making them more responsive to the vaccine.

But the jab will only protect against three strains  'Aussie flu' H3N2, 'swine flu' H1N1 and B Brisbane flu  because a four-strain 'quadrivalent' version with a booster for the elderly has not been made yet.

Pregnant women, children and those under 65 with long-term health problems will be routinely given the quadrivalent jab for the first time  protecting them against Japanese flu.

Doctors believe that for the vaccine to be most effective in the elderly, it needs an 'adjuvant', a chemical that increases immune response.

This is currently only available in the three-strain vaccine, not the four-strain one, which is why health experts are not giving the quadrivalent to everyone.

Last year older patients were given jabs without the booster, limiting effectiveness.

Dr Paul Cosford, of Public Health England, said there would be some 'cross-protection' from this new vaccine.

But he said the 'adjuvanted quadrivalent', suitable for the elderly, would only be available 'in the coming years'.

Health bosses yesterday announced a stronger immune-boosting vaccine which is tailored to the over-65s, whose defences are naturally weaker

He added: 'We're going with the best possible vaccine we've got and we're confident it will have a significant impact.'

The flu outbreak saw A&E departments and GP surgeries inundated with patients.

In January NHS bosses were forced to cancel all non-urgent procedures for four weeks to free up hospital beds. The reason the trivalent jab did not work was because it was developed in March 2017  eight months before flu season starts in November.

Scientists have to predict the flu strains that will circulate in the Northern Hemisphere  and failed to foresee the deadly B Yamagata strain.

The NHS says the best time to have a flu vaccine is from early October to the end of November. The new jab is available from October.
Drivers can be fined for leaving their car doors unlocked under a parking law most people don't know exists.

Officers from Queensland police visited the Stockland shopping centre carpark in Caloundra, 95km north of Brisbane, on Tuesday morning and found 22 vehicles with unlocked doors.

During the operation, no fines were issued, just a friendly community reminder for people to lock their cars.

Sunshine Coast Superintendent District Officer Darryl Johnson said: 'It is an offence to leave your car unlocked'.

The Queensland police visited Caloundra's Stockland carpark on Tuesday morning and found 22 vehicles with unlocked doors

Vehicle owners with locked cars were also issued a letter on their windscreen congratulating them for leaving their vehicle locked.

On the east coast of Australia, the law stipulates drivers must lock their vehicle if they are more than three metres away from it.

Failure to do so can result in police issuing a fine in NSW, Victoria and Queensland.

'We're trying to reinforce that people need to take responsibility for their own actions, for their own property and stop the thieves having access to their vehicles,' Superintendent Johnson said.

'The criminal element in our society will take the opportunity in car-parks such as this to take the chance they'll check cars and pick the ones that are unlocked and its easy picking like this.'

In NSW, police can issue a fine of $108, a $40 fine in Queensland and $117 in Victoria

ROAD TRANSPORT ACT 2013 (NSW) ROAD RULES 2014 (NSW CONSOLIDATED ACT) Section 213 making a motor vehicle secure (5) If the driver will be over 3 metres from the closest part of the and there is no-one left in the vehicle the driver must: (a) if the windows of the vehicle can be secured- -secure the windows immediately before leaving the vehicle (b) if the doors of the vehicle can be locked- -lock the doors immediately after leaving the vehicle Advertisement

In NSW, police can issue a fine of $108, while a $40 fine applies in Queensland and $117 in Victoria.

Whilst the road rule is rarely enforced, the option is there for police to use.

One local told 7News: 'When I was a little fella, you'd leave your house open - windows, doors and everything.

'You'd get home and it'd still be the same, but nowadays I wouldn't leave without locking up.'

Detective Inspector Brad Ainsworth told the ABC: 'It would be a crook day when we have to do that, but that's one of the options up our sleeve.'

NSW Council for Civil Liberties president Stephen Blanks said: 'Police should not be doing that kind of thing without a warrant, and the mere fact a car is unlocked is not a cause for suspicion there's something illegal in it.

'If they do that kind of activity they will lose community support and they already require strong community support to do their job well.'

According to statistics by the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council, in 2017 there was 12,216 motor vehicle thefts in NSW, 11,125 in QLD and 15,332 in Victoria

According to statistics by the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council, in 2017 there was 12,216 motor vehicle thefts in NSW, 11,125 in QLD and 15,332 in Victoria.

The car-check blitz angered the Sunshine Coast community with one resident taking to Facebook to comment: 'Charge the innocent and protect the guilty. Typical bulls***.'

Another Facebook user wrote: 'As far as I am concerned that's breaking into someone's vehicle.'
Struggling department store Myer has announced a major strategy shake-up after it was revealed the store suffered a record $486million annual loss in 2017-18.

Despite having already slashed costs to remain competitive earlier in the year, sales for the battling retailer still plummeted by 3.2 per cent to $3.1 billlion.

As a result, the department store had a whopping $486million loss - its first since publicly listing on the Australian Stock Exchange in 2009.

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Struggling department store Myer (pictured) has announced a major strategy shake-up after it was revealed the store suffered a record $486million annual loss

That said, before restructuring costs and significant expenses, the retailer's net profit was $32.5million - but even that was 52.2 per cent lower than the previous year.

Recently appointed Myer chief executive John King described the result as disappointing and said 'shareholders deserved better', The Australian reported.

Myer's share price was also affected, with it dipping more than five per cent.

Mr King promised to 'put customers first' after he announced a major review and overhaul of the struggling retailer that will see him visit 44 of its 70 stores.

'With this customer in mind, we are making changes to our product ranges, store layouts, and online offering and we have worked to influence how we will trade Christmas 2018,' he said.

As part of the strategy shift, Mr King said Myer will be implementing a new 'Customer First' plan aimed at improving the customer experience.

He said the customer-focused upgrade will enhance the shopping experience, improve efficiency 'from factory to customer' and accelerate cost cutting.

Despite the terrible decline in store sales, Myer (pictured) had a much better performance online

The chief executive also announced Myer will be launching a new and improved website later in the year.

Despite the terrible decline in store sales, the retailer had a much better performance online - no doubt the impetus for the revamped website.

Myer is set to save millions after ambassador Jennifer Hawkins (pictured) is released from her $5million contract in November

Over the last year, online sales were up 34.1 per cent to $192.5m, with total online sales now representing 7.7 per cent of the total retailer sales.

Mr King was brought on board by Myer in June to help rectify the damages caused by dwindling sales.

As part of his plan to recoup losses, the former boss of iconic British retailer House of Fraser has been hard at work slashing costs wherever he can.

He has already withdrawn from the traditional Myer tent at the luxurious Melbourne Cup Birdcage, and let go of senior executive management in an attempt to save money.

The retailer is also set to save millions after ambassador Jennifer Hawkins is released from her $5million contract in November.
Victoria Police have released CCTV images of a man (pictured) they are looking to identify following a sexual assault in Melbourne's CBD

Police have stepped up their pursuit of a predator who dragged a teenage woman into a Melbourne laneway and sexually assaulted her, more than three months after the savage attack.

They have now released CCTV images of a fourth man officers are looking to identify following the assault in the city's CBD early on June 9.

The woman was attacked while walking along Flinders Street toward Swanston Street just after 1.45am, leaving her 'extremely traumatised'.

The man captured on the CCTV images, released on Wednesday, 'may have possibly spoken with the victim around the time of the incident', police said in a statement.

He is described as being of African appearance and he was wearing a black puffy jacket with red lining, light blue jeans and white runners at the time.

Detectives are hopeful the man will be able to provide them with information to assist their investigation and they also want to speak to anyone who knows him.

Police launched a public appeal last month to find three men who assisted the victim after the incident.

One has already come forward but police are still searching for the others and they have now re-released CCTV images of the two male 'Good Samaritans'.

The man in the CCTV images (pictured) is described as being of African appearance and he was wearing a black puffy jacket with red lining, light blue jeans and white runners at the time

As the woman was walking, a man had approached the girl, put his arm around her shoulders and neck and began talking to her as she walked, police said.

He pulled the woman towards him and kissed her as they passed the Metro Tunnel.

She pushed him away and continued walking but the man grabbed her again.

He then dragged the woman into an alleyway behind metal gates, locked the gates, and sexually assaulted her, police said.

The woman screamed before fleeing onto Flinders Street.

Police have also re-released CCTV images of two male 'Good Samaritans' (pictured) who assisted the victim after the incident but have yet to come forward

Three men walking nearby noticed the distressed woman and helped her get in touch with a friend and organise a ride home. She did not tell the men she had been assaulted, police said.

The man who assaulted the woman is described as being aged in his early 20s, around 178cm tall with a lean build, dark brown skin and short hair.

He was wearing a dark coloured jacket and long pants.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.


Activism comes in many forms in Botswana, but Lesh Masengs show G.A.Y. is breaking societys dont ask, dont tell attitude through contemporary dance.

Maseng is from Gaborone, the capital where gay-friendly bars, restaurants, and nightclubs flourish. But Botswana still criminalizes gay sex, but the law has not been enforced since the late 90s. Society is silent about the community instead.

Maseng wants to break this silence with honesty in Give All Yourself, a show about his life as a queer dancer in Botswana  and starting out on stage naked is one way he represents that.

Give yourself means giving my all to the audience, as a queer dancer and artist. Starting out naked is just a way of making that point in the most dramatic way possible, he said to 76Crimes. G.A.Y. is meant to convince people its okay to be gay.

Other activism in Botswana includes LGBT rights organization LeGaBiBo and Batho ba Lorato, the first queer film festival outside South Africa on the continent.
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Lara Trump has been spotted in front row of Chiara Boni show during New York Fashion Week.

President Donald Trump's daughter-in-law, who is married to Eric Trump, donned a black jump suit for the Boni La Petite Robe show at Gallery II, Spring Studios in New York, on September 11.

The mother-of-one, an apparent fashion lover, appeared to be having fun at the show, smiling and chatting with Fox & Friends star Jillian Mele and TV judge Jeanine Pirro, who were sat alongside her in the front row.

Lara Trump (right) has been spotted in front row of Chiara Boni show during New York Fashion Week on September 11

President Donald Trump's daughter-in-law was sat next to TV judge Jeanine Pirro (center) and Fox & Friends First Jillian Mele (left)

The mother-of-one, an apparent fashion lover, appeared to be having fun at the show, smiling and chatting with the TV personalities

Trump, who is married to Eric Trump, donned a black jump suit for the Boni La Petite Robe show at Gallery II, Spring Studios in New York, on September 11

They watched on as Boni's latest line, heavily featuring florals, was trotted out in front of them.

Trump was later seen embracing fashion designer Boni who was also wearing an all black ensemble.

Reporters caught up with her at the NY Fashion Week event on Tuesday who is celebrating her son Luke's first birthday tomorrow.

Trump was later seen embracing fashion designer Boni who was also wearing an all black ensemble

Reporters caught up with her at the NY Fashion Week event on Tuesday who is celebrating her son Luke's first birthday tomorrow

The 35-year-old was asked for her opinion on who was behind the bombshell NY Times Op-Ed essay in which an anonymous high ranking member of Trump's administration described themselves as being part of 'the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration... vowed to thwart parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations.'

'If only I knew. I wish I knew,' Trump told Extra.

'It's a sad thing that anybody would stoop to this level. It's really a new low and more so than anything, I feel sad for the country. I think we'll find out one day who it is. I think they are a coward, I think it's disgusting and despicable.'

Trump and the TV personalities watched on as Boni's latest line, heavily featuring florals, was trotted out in front of them

A model exhibits a creation by Chiara Boni's 'La Petite Robe' at New York Fashion Week Spring 2019 in New York

A model exhibits a colorful creation by Chiara Boni at the New York Fashion Week show

Italian fashion designer Chiara Boni is seen at the conclusion of her fashion show at New York Fashion Week Spring 2019

Trump also had plenty of opinions on former Trump aide Omarosa Manigault Newman, who wrote a negative book about her time in the administration.

'I think she's shown her true colors for the kind of person that she is,' she said, adding that Newman was 'a back-stabbing horrible person?'

'I think that karma comes around for everyone and I think she's going to be in for a lot of it. This is not the right thing to do. She's manipulated a lot of tapes, she lies, she goes on national television and says really horrible inappropriate things that are completely false. It's sad to see, but I truly believe in karma, and we'll see what it holds for her.'
A young boy left fighting for life after allegedly 'being assaulted' and 'turning blue' in the schoolyard, was playing a game with friends when the incident occurred.

The 10-year-old boy was rushed to hospital in a serious condition on Tuesday after he suddenly collapsed at Wattawa Heights Public School, in Bankstown, in Sydney's west.

Police initially declared the school's playground a crime scene after reports the boy had been bashed.

But relatives of the boy - whose condition has stabilised - told Daily Mail Australia he had been playing a game with friends and they did not believe he had been attacked.

A young schoolboy is in critical condition after he was allegedly bashed at a school in Sydney's west

Emergency services were called to the school about 12pm on Tuesday, where they attended to the boy

'These are all rumours, there was no bashing, nothing like that. It was just an incident with friends playing around,' the family member said.

'We are just waiting for him to wake up for him to tell us what actually happened.'

Police confirmed on Wednesday morning that the boy suffered from a pre-existing medical condition.

In a statement, police said they had spoken to the other students involved in the alleged incident, and were not expecting to take any further action.

'Police have been told the boy was involved in a game with a group of other students when he was allegedly assaulted and fell backwards,' the statement read.

'The child was taken to The Children's Hospital at Westmead where he remains in a critical but stable condition.

'It's understood the boy has a pre-existing medical condition.

'The boy's condition will be monitored, but no further police action is expected.'

The 10-year-old was at Wattawa Heights Public School in Bankstown, in Sydney's west, when the alleged incident occurred

Officers from the Bankstown area attended the school and established a crime scene

Emergency services were called about 12pm on Tuesday, where they attended to the boy and turned the school into a crime scene.

One student reportedly saw the boy 'turn blue' after he hit the floor following the incident.

Parts of the school were taped off by police, with officers entering classrooms armed with bodycams.

Angry and worried parents lashed out on the school's Facebook page, slamming the staff and questioning their presence during the alleged incident.

The boy was taken to Westmead Children's Hospital, where he remains in a serious but stable condition

One woman wrote: 'What a lovely bunch of staff, allowing a 10-year-old boy to get bashed almost to death while in your care and supervision.

'Where were you when this huge fight happened? Where was the supervision which you are required, by law, to supply to the children in your care?

'Shame, Wattawa Heights School; I hope the young boy survives.'
Council staff will be taught how to cross a road in a bizarre bid to combat pedestrian-related accidents in Brisbane.

Like school children, Brisbane City Council's 7,500 staff will be educated in road safety, including where is the safest place to cross and mobile phone use, under a trial program funded by taxpayers.

Managers will be required to 'model the desired behaviour', according to the interim report into pedestrian safety.

But opposition councillors and social media users have slammed the initiative, labeling the training as 'ridiculous'.

Brisbane City Council is developing a program that will encourage its staff not to use their cellphones while cross the road

Social media users have also sided with the opposition, with some people calling the initiative 'embarrassing'.

'Next week we learn how to make breakfast and brush our teeth. Jesus, the human race is dumbing down big time,' one person commented.

'Do they also need potty training?' another person asked.

Social media users were quick to blast the council plan. Many said it was a waste of money teaching council staff how to cross a road

2GB radio host Alan Jones told Sunrise how to cross a road is something people are taught when they are four or five, not as an adult.

'If you get to that stage of your life without knowing how to cross the road, you are in big trouble.'

Opposition transport spokesman Jared Cassidy said there were better ways to solve the safety issue than the 'nanny state' approach.

'We think it's a bit ridiculous. It misses the point of the whole issue,' he said.

'What's next? Holding hands while crossing roads?'

Part of the debate was that people weren't paying attention when crossing roads, he said.

'But I don't really buy that,' he said.

'The main issue is we've got a CBD where pedestrians aren't given the priority, there's more priority given to vehicles.'

He would like to see a lower speed limit trialed in the CBD instead.

BCC's Infrastructure Chairman Amanda Cooper said the council was dedicated to improving safety and was developing the campaign to promote positive pedestrian behaviour, The Courier Mail reported.

The program, which is still in development, will be made available for other employers and schools.

In July a pedestrian was hit on the corner of Creek and Adelaide streets in Brisbane. It was the same area where a woman was killed after she was hit by a bus in May

There will also be 'co-ordinated behavioural change and enforcement approach' developed with the police as part of a broader city safety campaign.

The strategy comes after a string of tragic incidents involving pedestrians.

In July, a pedestrian was hit on the corner of Creek and Adelaide streets.

In May, a woman was killed after she was hit by a bus on the same corner, ABC reported.

Royal Automobile Club of Queensland spokesman Paul Turner said there had been an increase in incidents involving pedestrians and vehicles in the CBD.

'All of us  and we're all pedestrians at some stage  need to take responsibility for our actions,' he said.

Lord Mayor Graham Quirk has announced new and upgraded pedestrian crossings for Brisbanes CBD, as well as a reduced speed limit on Ann Street, in response to the interim report on Brisbane City Councils Pedestrian Safety Review.
In the span of just two years, Paul Manafort has gone from one of Washington's most sought-after Republican lobbyists to a political pariah with a shattered family.

'My life - personally and professionally - is in shambles,' he told Judge T.S. Ellis III, in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia on March 7.

'The last two years have been the most difficult years for my family. Humiliated and would be a gross understatement.'

He laid it on thicker to the next sentencing judge, Amy Berman Jackson, in Washington D.C. on March 13: 'I will be 70 years old in a few weeks. My wife is 66. She needs me. I need her. Please let me and my wife be together.'

Self-pitying certainly, but hardly wrong. Sitting in a wheelchair and contemplating the real prospect of dying behind bars, Manafort was diminished in every way, the extravagantly-tailored and immaculately connected powerbroker who could ask for millions for his counsel now wearing prison green as he asked not for money but compassion.

Typically though, the whole story was not on display; in recent years, Manafort had betrayed his wife with a mistress 30 years his junior who he put up in a New York apartment and handed an unlimited credit card.

That infidelity was only another staging post on the long and spectacular fall from grace for the 69-year-old former Trump campaign manager, the son of a small-town mayor who went on to work for four U.S. presidents and made his fortune as the Washington mouthpiece for some of the world's most notorious dictators.

Today Manafort has few defenders in the nation's capital, after being convicted of tax fraud and money laundering by special counsel Robert Mueller - who first secured a guilty verdict from a jury then a plea deal on the eve of a second trial.

Even Manafort's former boss, President Trump, claimed he never would have hired the former lobbyist if he had known about the allegations.

'Paul Manafort came into the campaign very late and was with us for a short period of time (he represented Ronald Reagan, Bob Dole & many others over the years), but we should have been told that Comey and the boys were doing a number on him, and he wouldn't have been hired!' wrote Trump in a Twitter post in June 2018.

The president had faced Manafort co-operating with Robert Mueller 'fully and truthfully.'

But even that was beyond the ability of Manafort, who Mueller's prosecutors charge lied to them after his agreement to cooperate.

The power brokers: Paul Manafort, his future business partners Roger Stone and Lee Atwater, were photographed as young Republican operatives. Stone, a Trump confidante and notorious political dirty trickster is now fighting off the Mueller probe himself; Atwater died in 1991, a former RNC chairman with a reputation for dirty campaigns. All three cashed in on their political work by lobbying those they got elected

Manafort, the grandson of an Italian immigrant, was raised in a staunch Republican home in New Britain, Connecticut.

When he was 16, his father Paul John Manafort Sr. was elected mayor of New Britain and served for three terms.

In 1981, Manafort Sr. was indicted  but later acquitted  on perjury charges in a sweeping city corruption and bribery scandal that also ensnared the police and fire chiefs.

After Catholic parochial schools and graduating from Georgetown University Law School, Manafort went on to work as an advisor for Republican Presidents Gerald Ford. It is unclear why he was not drafted for Vietnam.

He went on to serve as an advisor to Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bob Dole's presidential campaign.

But he worked out how to turn political advising into a gusher of cash: by lobbying the very politicians they had helped elect.

He co-founded a prominent lobbying firm with ex-Nixon aide Roger Stone, and Lee Atwater, another notorious figure, which shopped their access to top Republicans to U.S. businesses, state and city governments, and anyone who would pay.

The lobbying would be punctuated by periods of working for campaigns - guaranteeing the access on which they depended if their candidates won (which by and large they did).

That came to embrace the wider world too; the Manafort lobbying roster included brutal regimes willing to pay high fees for his services  including Filipino dictator Ferdinand Marcos and Zaire military leader Mobutu Sese Seko.

Betrayed: Kathleen Manafort stood by her husband despite his family finding proof of his mistress on Instagram; she attended every minute of his trial and was there when he said he was flipping

Manafort went on to found his own political consulting firm in 2005, bringing on his former intern Rick Gates as his trusted deputy.

He also continued to take on controversial clients. In 2010, Manafort helped elect Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, head of Ukraine's Putin-allied Party of Regions.

The victory paid off  between 2010 and 2014, federal investigators said Manafort's firm earned 'a cash spigot': $60 million in fees from the Party of Regions' political patrons.

According to prosecutors, Manafort stashed the funds away in a series of offshore bank accounts and shell companies, and failed to disclose the income in his tax returns. In total, they claim he dodged taxes on $15 million.

But after Yanukovych was voted out of power by Ukraine's parliament in 2014, Manafort's fortunes suddenly changed. He stopped getting payments from Yanukovych's wealthy oligarch supporters, and started to have trouble paying his bills.

This is when prosecutors claim Manafort started applying for loans using phony financial information. In total, they said he scammed banks out of $20 million.

Manafort's then-alleged crimes were uncovered during the course of a special counsel investigation led by Robert Mueller, who has been investigating potential Russian interference in the 2016 election and collusion with the Trump campaign.

Even before the charges were filed against him, Manafort's personal life had been unravelling, according to years of hacked text messages between his daughters Andrea, 32, and Jessica, 36, that were posted online.

According to the messages, Manafort's family had caught him having an affair with a woman who was around the same age as his daughters, renting a pricey house for her in the Hamptons and paying her credit card bill.

They discovered the affair after seeing the woman's posts boasting about her expensive travel and dinners on Instagram.

Manafort, who was undergoing an emotional breakdown according to the messages, committed himself to a psychiatric clinic in Arizona in 2015.

Texts: Manafort's daughters Jessica (left, with now ex-husband Jeff Yohai, who flipped) and Andrea (right with husband Christopher Shand) exchanged text messages which were hacked revealing his affairs and calling him a psychopath. Jessica has changed her name to Bond, her mother's maiden name

Fruits of lobbying: This is the condo overlooking the Potomac where the FBI raided Manafort on orders from Mueller. He bought it for $2.75 million, part of a property empire worth conservatively $15 million

After he was released in 2016 - claiming he had 'new insight' into himself - he linked up with the Trump campaign and became the candidate's campaign manager during the crucial months surrounding the Republican National Convention.

His daughter Andrea took a different view of that. She wrote in a leaked text to a friend, who was not named in the leak: 'Trump probably has more morals than my dad. Which is really just saying something about my dad. My dad is a psycho!!! At least trump let his wives leave him. Plus, Trump has been a good father.'

And she also texted: 'Trump waited a little too long in my opinion, but I can attest to the fact that he has now hired one of the world's greatest manipulators. I hope my dad pulls it off. Then I can sell my memoir with all his dirty secrets for a pretty penny.'

But getting in tow with Trump in June 2016, his neighbor in Trump Tower, was to prove catastrophic.

Trump in fact fired him in August 2017 when questions about Manafort's dealings with Russians in Ukraine started to surface.

Manafort returned to his shadowy lobbying life, but then he was caught up in the Mueller probe.

In July 2017 his home in Alexandria was raided before dawn; in October he and his loyal deputy Gates were indicted, with charges of tax fraud, bank fraud, money laundering, failing to register as foreign agents and conspiracy against the United States.

Manafort's legal strategy was to split the cases in two, meaning two separate trials - one for the monetary charges, the second conspiracy and failing to register as a foreign agent.

But before they began, Gates took a plea bargain, turning on his boss, agreeing to cooperate fully and truthfully with Mueller. From there Manafort's path was consistently downhill.

In Washington D.C. Judge Amy Berman Jackson, an Obama appointee, proved tough; she had him locked up before trial when Mueller accused him of witness tampering.

Turned: Rick Gates

That meant he attended his first trial, in Virginia, from jail, walking in every day with federal marshals and walking out in handcuffs.

In Virginia, Ronald Reagan-appointee T.S. Ellis III presided over the first trial in August 2018. Manafort and his supporters might have been cheered by his apparent toughness on the Mueller prosecutors, including berating them in front of the jury, and repeated demands for them to hurry up.

But when the jury returned its guilty verdicts on eight of the 18 counts, other legal observers said Ellis was making sure the case could not be appealed. Ellis declared a mistrial on the remaining 10 counts, which meant that Mueller could keep them in reserve for a second trial.

And if there were any lingering thoughts that the judge had sympathy for the felon, Ellis told Manafort that he would be wearing prison, not regular, clothing for subsequent hearings.

The next month his second trial was due to begin but Manafort then decided, finally, to seek a deal with Mueller, and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and witness tampering.

He also admitted to most of the 10 charges which the jury could not reach a verdict on the previous month, and - crucially - agreed to cooperate fully and truthfully with Mueller.

But he could not even manage that; by November, Mueller filed a court document accusing him of lying in breach of the plea deal.

The next month they revealed Manafort's attorney had briefed the White House on his dealings with Mueller.

Then in January came a moment which showed Manafort still had the power to shock: Mueller revealed in a court filing that he had passed Trump campaign polling data to Konstantin Kilimnik, his one-time aide who has been named as a suspected Russian intelligence asset.

In a February hearing Mueller's prosecutors went further, suggesting Manafort might have lied about passing on the polling data to boost his chances of a presidential pardon.

Judge Berman Jackson ruled he had lied and set his sentencing for March; his sentencing in Virginia will come after that.

If he were to get a pardon, the peril is hardly over; New York state's attorney general is investigating his tax fraud to see if he could be prosecuted for evading state taxes. Presidential pardons do not apply in state courts.

Left in tatters is a reputation, a fortune, and a family.

His elder daughter, Jessica Manafort filed to change her name to Jessica Bond in August 2018, after his conviction, telling the Los Angeles Times: 'I am a passionate liberal and a registered Democrat and this has been difficult for me.'

Despite the clearly unhappy family, Manafort's wife Kathleen stood by him in the face of his infidelity.

She loyally attended each day of his tax fraud trial, always sitting in the row directly behind his defense table.

Tarnished legacy: Paul Manafort Sr. was three-term mayor of New Britain, CT

Since June 2018, Manafort has been incarcerated in a county jail in Alexandria.

Largely held in solitary confinement for his own safety, his health has clearly suffered. He attended some hearings in a wheelchair and his legal team disclosed he had been diagnosed with gout.

Perhaps more stinging to his vanity, in a mug shot, the fashion-conscious Manafort sported a jailhouse jumpsuit and shadowy stubble. His brown hair, which he previously dyed, is now tinged with grey.

The former lobbyist, who once spent $18,000 on a python skin jacket, has also been forced to attend his trial without socks  because he reportedly balked at the white ones he is required to wear as an inmate.

He has depression and anxiety and his lawyers complained he had little contact with his family. In letters submitted ahead of his sentence family members pleaded for leniency.

But there were no letters from the rich, powerful Republicans who Manafort had counted as his friends.

Manafort's conviction even impacted the legacy of his father, the popular three-term mayor in New Britain, Connecticut, from 1965 to 1971.

In August 2018 the city changed a street named after the former mayor from 'Paul Manafort Drive' to 'Paul Manafort Sr. Drive.'
A mass exodus of tens of thousands of rats is expected to be unleashed in Japan as the world's biggest fish market is closed.

Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market is also a huge tourist magnet for its pre-dawn tuna auctions, some 900 businesses handling 480 kinds of seafood worth $14 million on a daily basis, as well as 270 types of fruits and vegetables.

But the huge market will close after 83 years and relocate over a period of five days to a brand-new facility in Toyosu, about 1.4 miles away (2.3 km) on the waterfront.

The moving operation is unprecedented and will see thousands of trucks and forklifts take part in the move, with tonnes of waste produced in the process, which is heaven for the furry rats that run all over the sewers of the city.

Fishmongers checking bluefin tuna before the new year's first auction at the Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo, which will close after 83 years

A rat near Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market, which is soon to close after 83 years, which is expected to unleash a mass exodus of tens of thousands of the rodents

Tsukiji fish market - the largest fish market in the world - has long been a tourist magnet for its pre-dawn tuna auctions

Tatsuo Yabe, a rat expert in the city, says the 23-hectare (57-acre) market near Tokyo's swanky Ginza district is home to 'not thousands but tens of thousands' of rats, attracted by fish off-cuts and the market's maze of sewers.

The authorities say the operation must be ruthless, thorough and silent, with a unit of highly trained Japanese agents to throw up a ring of steel to block any escape from the vast battleground.

Despite being vastly outnumbered, the unit's chief commander is confident of total victory against the enemy army - expected to scurry loose when the world-famous Tsukiji fish market closes next month.

A Tokyo government official who commands the Tsukiji anti-rat operation told AFP: 'They will likely start moving en masse once they notice something unusual... The week after the market closes on October 10 will be the major battle.

Some 900 businesses handle 480 kinds of seafood worth $14 million on a daily basis, as well as 270 types of fruits and vegetables at the famous market

Pest control workers will use hundreds of kilos of poison as part of their extermination plan

Tokyo officials - helped by veteran rat exterminators - will be blocking pipe and sewer exits and plugging holes in fences with corrugated sheets to tackle the rat problem

To prevent a mass exodus from Tsukiji, Tokyo officials - helped by veteran rat exterminators - are busy blocking pipe and sewer exits and plugging holes in fences with corrugated sheets.

Before the market is torn down, they will erect an impregnable 10ft (three-metre) steel wall around the site and slowly move in through the perimeter to 'corner and catch' the rodents, said the operation's commander, who asked not to be named.

In addition, they will instal 40,000 sticky sheets to catch rodents, along with traps and use 47st (300 kilograms) of rat poison.

Restaurants and bar managers in the area surrounding the market are on red alert for a possible influx of unwelcome rodent visitors.

A 56-year-old restaurant in Ginza, one of Tokyo's most fancy wining and dining districts just a stone's throw from the market, said: 'It's frightening. We heard rats scrabbling around when an old theatre building was torn down in this neighbourhood.

Moving the market unprecedented and will see thousands of trucks and forklifts take part, creating tonnes of waste in the process - unleashing rats from all over the sewers of the city

Japan's Tsukiji market will relocate over a period of five days to a brand-new facility in Toyosu, about 1.4 miles away (2.3 km) on the waterfront.

'Some of our neighbours are even feeding stray cats now. That is how defensive we are getting.'

The Ginza Street Association, which brings together local businesses, even created a special anti-rat taskforce last year.

Kazuya Takahashi from Tokyo exterminator GP Corporation said: 'We are calling on them [clients] to stay vigilant and not even keep the doors open because sewer rats may come right in once the moving starts.'

Hiroyasu Ito, a veteran fish trader as old as the Tsukiji market itself, has known Tsukiji since the days when buyers and sellers communicated via telegram.

Now chairman of the Seafood Wholesalers' Association, Ito is aware of the venerable market's issues.

The sparkling new Toyosu fish market features sensor-controlled doors and shutters and 'air curtains' blasted down from the ceiling that keep cool air inside and should keep dust and bugs and rats out

Fish brokers at the Tsukiji fish market ahead of its closure and relocation next month

He said: 'We have many problems. Birds fly in, and many things like rats come in and out freely.

'We've hardly had any food poisoning incidents in this market. We are proud of it.'

In recent decades, market players have made the utmost sanitary efforts, with special inspectors in white jackets checking on food safety every day.

The gigantic complex stands on reclaimed land nearly twice as large as Tsukiji, and it is fully air-conditioned and prepared to welcome its new tenants as part of the new Toyosu facility, equipped with state-of-art refrigeration.

Masataka Miyake, a Tokyo official preparing for the new facility, said: 'The biggest difference is that Toyosu is an enclosed market, so all buying and selling will be done in this building.

'I hope the new Toyosu brand will soon become a global household name.'

Originally planned in 2016, Tsukiji's relocation has been postponed several times, held up by revelations of heavy soil contamination at Toyosu, a former gas plant.

Doors and shutters at the new facility are sensor-controlled, and when they are open, air is blasted down from the ceiling -- like an invisible screen.

'The air curtain prevents the cool air from escaping outside,' added Miyake, as well as fending off unwanted intruders like dust and bugs - and rats.
A Chicago teen who was shot in the chest failed to seek medical treatment until the following day because he was too drunk to remember.

Police said a 19-year-old man, whose name has not yet been released, was shot around 11:30pm Monday.

He finally sought treatment at the Roseland Community Hospital around 5pm Tuesday.

A heavily-intoxicated Chicago man who was shot in the chest Monday night didn't seek treatment until the following day

Police said the 19-year-old man, whose name has not yet been released, finally checked into the Roseland Community Hospital around 5pm Tuesday

The shooting victim told authorities Tuesday he was too drunk the night he was shot in the chest to realize what had happened to him.

This shooting occurred on the West Side.

Police have not released further information on the man's condition nor the suspect responsible.

Further investigation is underway.

Roseland, located on 45 West 111th Street, has an average Google rating of just 1.8.
An outraged Pauline Hanson has called a nine-year-old schoolgirl a 'brat' for refusing to stand for the national anthem

An outraged Pauline Hanson has called a nine-year-old schoolgirl a 'brat' for refusing to stand for the national anthem.

Harper Nielsen sparked both outrage and inspiration when she refused to stand when Advance Australia Fair was played at an assembly at her Queensland School.

The strong-minded pupil was given detention and threatened with suspension for the act that she believed showed solidarity with Australia's indigenous people.

But the stance has angered Senator Hanson, who posted a video on Facebook on Wednesday calling for Harper to be kicked out of school.

'Here we have a kid who's been brainwashed and I tell you what, I'd give her a kick up the backside,' the One Nation leader said.

'This kid is headed down the wrong path and I blame the parents for it, for encouraging this.

'No. Take her out of the school.'

Harper Nielsen (pictured) sparked both outrage and inspiration when she refused to stand when Advance Australia Fair was played at an assembly at her Queensland School

Senator Hanson said there was support for the anthem among the indigenous community, as sporting stars regularly stood for the anthem.

'I'm angry about this. I'm proud of the Australian flag and the national anthem as everyone should be and so was Cathy Freeman,' she said.

'We were all proud of her, her cultural background, the Aboriginality, and the whole fact that she carried the two flags.

'She stood at the podium with the national anthem being played. Have they told this kid that?

'If it's good enough for Cathy Freeman, Johnathon Thurston, and Warren Mundine to stand for the National anthem, it should be good enough for this nine-year-old brat.'

Shadow education minister Jarrod Bleijie echoed Senator Hanson's words, saying Harper deserved suspension if she continued her protest.

'Stop the silly protest and stand and sing proudly your National Anthem. Refusing to stand disrespects our country and our veterans. Suspension should follow if she continues to act like a brat,' he tweeted.

The nine-year-old pupil said she believes the lyrics 'we are young' marginalises indigenous people.

'The reason why I don't sing it or stand is because Advance Australia Fair means advance White Australia,' she told The Courier-Mail.

'When it says we are young it completely ignores the fact that indigenous culture was here for over 50,000 years before colonisation.'

Harper has the support of her 'proud' dad Mark.

'She's shown incredible bravery in wanting to stick to what she believes in and to make a stance for what she believes is right', he told ABC radio on Wednesday.

Nine-year-old Harper Nielsen believes that the national anthem is not inclusive of the indigenous people of Australia

Kenmore South State School are at a loss of what to do as Miss Nielsen continues to not play by the rules

Kenmore South State School are at a loss of what to do as the nine-year-old continues to reject demands that she must either stand for the anthem or leave the room.

Harper was given detention last week as a result of her defiance but the punishment has not seemed to phase her.

'I just imagine what it would feel like for all of your friends to be singing the anthem if you were an indigenous person. That makes me determined to keep going,' she said.
A 58-year-old man on parole who reportedly admitted to stabbing his wife to death shocked her family on Tuesday when he was overheard saying: At least now I dont have to worry about another man f***ing my wife.

Prosecutors in Bronx Criminal Court repeated the statement in public on Tuesday during Virgil Solis arraignment.

Solis is reported to have made the remark after his arrest Monday morning as police led him to central booking, according to the New York Daily News.

He allegedly disemboweled Valerie Solis, 53, in her seventh-floor Bronx apartment on Monday morning, law enforcement sources said.

Virgil Solis (left) was arraigned on Tuesday in a Bronx court - one day after police arrested him for the fatal stabbing of his wife, Valerie Solis (right)

Solis shocked his wife's family when he is reported to have said: At least now I dont have to worry about another man f***ing my wife

Solis is reported to have made the remark after his arrest Monday morning as police led him to central booking

When the line was repeated by Bronx Assistant District Attorney Richard Fasano in court, Valerie Solis family reacted in horror, according to the Daily News.

Authorities allege that Virgil Solis stabbed his wife to death at around 8:30am on Monday in her apartment, which is located in the Tremont section of the Bronx.

'(He) then called several people including his parole officer and several members of the victim's family to report to them what he had done,' Fasano said.

'He then broke his ankle monitor and then fled until he was apprehended by police in downtown New York City.'

Virgil Solis (left) has been charged with the gruesome murder of Valerie Solis (right) after allegedly disemboweling her before making a series of disturbing calls to her daughter's father

Fasano said that Solis confessed to the crime during a videotaped interview with police.

'Hes guilty as hell,' one family member told the Daily News.

'Hes been to every family function, hes been around us. Hes been to our houses.

'Hes sat down and ate with us,

'He went to every gathering. And for this to happen is unacceptable.'

Prosecutors asked the court to hold Solis without bail.

A friend of Valerie told the New York Post he made a particularly disturbing call to the father of the woman's daughter, and continued calling into the night.

The friend, known only as Sasha, said he told the man: 'Go get your daughter - I just killed her mother'.

Another family member said Solis called his stepdaughter and another family member, 'telling him that hes coming to the funeral, hes going to get a gun, if you try to stop me, hes going to shoot everybody.'

Solis allegedly stabbed his wife inside her New York apartment (pictured) on Monday morning

The family member believes that Solis made the calls deliberately to pave the way for an insanity defense that he hopes will result in a lighter sentence.

At the time of the murder, Solis had been recently released from prison after serving 18 years for the brutal assault of a woman who had refused to have sex with him, law enforcement sources told the Post.

After allegedly stabbing his wife several times, it's claimed Solis made calls to his parole officer and a counselor at the Manhattan Psychiatric Center, where he lives, the New York Daily News reported.

Solis also texted his step-daughter about her mother's murder, sources told the paper.

Valerie was pronounced dead at the scene, and police say she suffered a severe stab wound to her stomach.

When officers arrived at the apartment on Southern Boulevard, Solis was nowhere to be found.

He was eventually arrested about 8pm in Manhattan and charged with murder, manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon.

Friend Trina Nimmons told the Daily News Valerie was 'the world to everybody'.

'Its terrible she had to die this way. She leaves a grown daughter,' she said.

Solis had fled the scene when police arrived but he was arrested and charged that night

Solis' lawyer, Suzanne McElwreath, asked the court for a 'more reasonable' bail.

'He has been in full compliance and has been in touch with his parole officer and I would ask you for those reasons,' she told the court.

'Although I understand these are very serious charges I would ask that you consider setting much more reasonable bail.

'He is someone who could benefit from getting help from the outside and fighting these charges from the outside.'

Judge Patsy Gouldbourne eventually sided with prosecutors and ordered Solis remanded without bail.

The judge also ordered Solis to be placed on suicide watch while he undergoes psychiatric evaluation.

His next court date is scheduled for September 14.
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At least 25 million residents on the East Coast are at risk from Hurricane Florence which is expected to deliver a 'direct hit' this week, bringing 157 mph winds, devastating flooding and even the threat of a tainted water supply.

The 'life-threatening' hurricane has sparked mass evacuations with as many as 1.5 million people warned to seek shelter from the potentially catastrophic storm, while five million are under a direct hurricane warning.

CNN said more than 25 million people are in the 'forecast cone' from the storm though strong winds and flooding could hit even more people.

'This will likely be the storm of a lifetime for portions of the Carolina coast,' the National Weather Service said.

Florence was upgraded to a Category 4 hurricane on Tuesday and was packing deadly winds of 130 miles per hour, but it is expected to strengthen and turn into 'an extremely dangerous major hurricane' on Thursday night before making landfall.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said the biggest danger was the storm surge - a wall of water from the sea which could reach 20ft high. Some areas could get deluged with 20 inches of rain.

At least 25 million residents on the East Coast are at risk from Hurricane Florence which is expected to deliver a 'direct hit' this week

People evacuate ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence as they seek shelter at Emma B. Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North Carolina, USA

Chuck Ledford (L), watches Looney-Tunes with his daughter Misty as they evacuate ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence as they seek shelter at Emma B. Trask Middle School in Wilmington,

The category four storm could be the strongest to strike the Carolina coast since Hurricane Hugo in 1989

The 'life-threatening' has sparked mass evacuations with as many as 1.5 million people warned to seek shelter from the potentially catastrophic storm, while five million are under a direct hurricane warning

'Storm surge has the highest potential to kill the most amount of people,' FEMA Administrator Brock Long told CNN. 'It also has the highest potential to cause the most destruction.'

FEMA said Florence is the strongest storm to hit the Carolinas and Virginia region 'in decades.'

'We cannot stress the importance to our citizens that are in evacuations to heed the local and state warnings,' added Jeffrey Byard of FEMA at a news conference.

'Hurricane Florence is the strongest storm to target the Carolinas and this part of our country in decades.'

Byard said that they are bracing for 'massive damage,' power outages and even fatalities.

'This storm will and has the potential to cause loss of life, and we cannot emphasize the importance to take action now,' said Byard.

On Tuesday night, the storm was about 350 miles southwest of Bermuda and is moving northwest, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Allison Violette, a resident of Fayetteville, North Carolina, told NBC that she and her husband were moving all their belongings to the second floor of their home in preparation for the hurricane.

She said they had learned their lesson after Hurricane Matthew flooded the house in 2016.

At least 25 million residents on the East Coast are at risk from Hurricane Florence which is expected to deliver a 'direct hit' this week

'It's devastating to walk into your house and have seen it flooded, and to lose everything. And to think that can happen again, I just don't, I just don't want to have that. And so anything I can save that's meaningful for us, I want to save it,' she said.

'I don't know if we would want to do that again, and experience it. It's just life-changing,' said her husband Cal Violette.

Hog farmers along the East Coast are also scrambling to drain their waste pools ahead of the storm. Hog farms each have open-air 'lagoons' filled with manure - which turn bright pink due to the bacteria festering in the lagoons.

If the rivers break their banks, or lagoons overflow, affecting local waterways, which could damage to local environment and put drinking water sources and public health at risk.

Flooding could also lead to the deaths of thousands of animals if they cannot be evacuated in time.

Marlowe Vaughan of Ivy Spring Creek Farm in Goldsboro, has spent most of day pumping liquid waste from her lagoons to make more room for incoming rainfall.

'We try to pump down as much as we can, but after that, it's kind of in God's hands. We're kind of at the mercy of the storm.'

On Tuesday, motorists streamed inland on highways converted to one-way routes and supermarket shelves were stripped bare as more than 1 million people in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia were ordered to flee their homes as the hurricane churns across the Atlantic Ocean towards the coast.

Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, S.C., prepare to evacuate to Marine Corps Logistic Base Albany following an evacuation order directed by Brig. Gen. James Glynn, the depot's commanding general, Tuesday

Dorothy Pope, 78, and her sister Clydie Gardner, 71, settle in to the home they share in Princeville, N.C., after a normal grocery run on Tuesday. They are keeping an eye on the storm but have no plans to leave unless they are threatened by flooding

A store's bread shelves are bare as people stock up on food in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina on Tuesday ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Florence

People drive over a drawbridge in Wrightsville Beach, N.C., as they evacuate the area in advance of Hurricane Florence

More than 1.5 million people were ordered to evacuate their homes in preparation. Vehicles lined up in heavy traffic (above) in Wallace, North Carolina on Tuesday

Rob Quinn boards up Lagerheads Tavern in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina after 300,000 people were ordered to evacuate the state's coastal areas

Walker Townsend (right) and Dalton Trout (center) fill sand bags in Isle of Palms, South Carolina on Monday as the state's entire coastline was ordered to prepare for mandatory evacuations

Don Parrish, on vacation with his wife Barbara, from Finely Ohio, talks about his plans to ride out Hurricane Florence in his vacation rental in Kill Devil Hills in the Outer Banks of North Carolina on September 11

'This storm is going to be a direct hit,' added Byard.

Forecasters and politicians pleaded with the public to take the warnings seriously and minced no words in describing the threat for what could become one of the most catastrophic hurricanes to hit the Eastern Seaboard in decades.

Despite the evacuation order, South Carolina Department of Corrections decided not to remove inmates at the Ridgeland Correctional Institution.

SCDC spokesman Dexter Lee said: 'In the past, it's been safer to leave them there'.

'This storm is a monster. It's big and it's vicious. It is an extremely, dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane,' said North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper.

'The waves and the wind this storm may bring is nothing like you've ever seen. Even if you've ridden out storms before, this one is different. Don't bet your life on riding out a monster.'

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, who issued a mandatory medical evacuation of 177 hospitals and medical facilities in his state said: 'We know the evacuation order I'm issuing will be inconvenient.

'But we're not going to gamble with the lives of the people of South Carolina. Not one.'

Sailors cast off mooring lines to the Command hospital ship USNS Comfort as the ship evacuates Naval Station Norfolk in preparation for Hurricane Florence in Norfolk, Virginia

In anticipation of the arrival of Hurricane Florence, sailors of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 28 prepare MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopters to evacuate Naval Station Norfolk to ensure personnel safety and prevent damage to Navy assets on September 11

Greg Cook carries belongings to a van as he evacuates days before the arrival of Hurricane Florence at Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina on September 11

Employees of Redix board up the front windows of the store in Wrightsville Beach, N.C., Tuesday, Sept. 11

People evacuate ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence as they seek shelter at Emma B. Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North Carolina

People evacuate ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence as they seek shelter at Emma B. Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North Carolina

A Walmart in Mt. Pleasant, S.C, is closed, and barricaded, after Gov. Henry McMaster ordered a mandatory evacuation

Several interstates will close from Wednesday as will state offices  including the University of South Carolina  and schools across 26 counties in the eastern part of the state. Some schools will be used as evacuation shelters officials said Monday.

'We don't want the school children in harm's way,' McMaster told The State. We know it's going to hit somewhere where it's going to have a dramatic impact on South Carolina. We're going to get a whole lot of water that we haven't seen in some time.'

McMaster previously issued a mandatory medical evacuation of 177 hospitals and medical facilities, including nursing homes, in the eight coastal counties.

North and South Carolina and Virginia have all ordered mass evacuations along the coast after declaring states of emergency.

Virginia issued a mandatory evacuation order for about 245,000 residents in flood-prone coastal areas beginning at 8am.

At least 250,000 more people were due to be evacuated from the northern Outer Banks in North Carolina on Tuesday after more than 50,000 people were ordered on Monday to leave Hatteras and Ocracoke, the southernmost of the state's barrier islands.

Getting out of harm's way could prove difficult and officials are already predicting the financial toll could reach $30 billion.

Sandbags sit in doorways as water floods outside buildings in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia on September 11

People cross the street as water floods outside buildings in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia on September 11, where more than a million people were under evacuation orders in the eastern United States Tuesday

Florence is so wide that a life-threatening storm surge was being pushed 300 miles ahead of its eye, and so wet that a swath of states from South Carolina to Ohio and Pennsylvania could get deluged.

People across the region rushed to buy bottled water and other supplies, board up their homes or get out of town.

A line of heavy traffic moved away from the coast on Interstate 40, the main route between the port city of Wilmington and inland Raleigh.

Between the two cities, about two hours apart, the traffic flowed smoothly in places and became gridlocked in others because of fender-benders.

Only a trickle of vehicles was going in the opposite direction, including pickup trucks carrying plywood and other building materials. Service stations started running out of gas as far west as Raleigh, with bright yellow bags, signs or rags placed over the pumps to show they were out of order.

Florence could hit the Carolinas harder than any hurricane since Hazel packed 130 mph winds in 1954. That Category 4 storm destroyed 15,000 buildings and 19 people in North Carolina. In the six decades since then, many thousands of people have moved to the coast.

The pumps at the Shell gas station on Western Boulevard featured 'out of gas' signs as people prepared to ride out Hurricane Florence on Tuesday

A gas station in Mt. Pleasant S.C. alerts motorist that it is out of gas due to the heavy demand caused by Hurricane Florence

Tarek Elshik, left, fills gas cans to fuel a generator to refrigerate insulin for his 10-year-old daughter Yasmeen Elshik's Type 1 diabetes treatment in case power goes out during Hurricane Florence

Food Lion employee Greg Partin helps a customer to her car on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018 at the Woodcroft shopping center in Durham, N.C

Wood boards and cardboard boxes block the entrance to a Walmart store in Kill Devil Hills in the Outer Banks of North Carolina on September 11

A man uses a drill to install storm shutters on a home in Kill Devil Hills in the Outer Banks of North Carolina on September 11

The storm's first effects were already apparent on barrier islands as dangerous rip currents hit beaches and seawater flowed over a state highway - the harbinger of a storm surge that could wipe out dunes and submerge entire communities.

Authorities warned of life-threatening coastal storm surges and the potential for Florence to unleash prolonged torrential rains and widespread flooding, especially if it lingers inland for several days.

National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham warned of 'staggering' amounts of rainfall that may extend hundreds of miles inland and cause flash flooding across the mid-Atlantic region.

'This one really scares me,' Graham said.

The US military said it was sending an advance team to Raleigh, North Carolina, to coordinate with federal and state partners. The US Navy also ordered 30 warships out to sea from their port at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia.

For many people, the challenge could be finding a safe refuge: If Florence slows to a crawl just off the coast, it could bring torrential rains all the way into the Appalachian mountains and as far away as West Virginia, causing flash floods, mudslides and other dangerous conditions in places that don't usually get much tropical weather.

'This is going to produce heavy rainfall, and it may not move very fast. The threat will be inland, so I'm afraid, based on my experience at FEMA, that the public probably not as prepared as everybody would like,' said Craig Fugate, former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The storm's potential path also includes half a dozen nuclear power plants, pits holding coal-ash and other industrial waste, and numerous hog farms that store animal waste in massive open-air lagoons.

Airlines, including American, Southwest, Delta and JetBlue, have begun letting affected passengers change travel plans without the usual fees.

Amtrak trains are also being canceled or face schedule modifications from Wednesday to Sunday. The company is also waiving charges for reservation changes.

A warm ocean is the fuel that powers hurricanes, and this area of the ocean is seeing temperatures peak near 85 degrees (30 Celsius), hurricane specialist Eric Blake wrote. And with little wind shear to pull the storm apart, Florence's hurricane-strength winds were expanding.

'Unfortunately, the models were right. Florence has rapidly intensified into an extremely dangerous hurricane,' Blake wrote Monday evening, predicting that the hurricane's top sustained winds would approach the 157 mph threshold for a wost-case Category 5 scenario.

Tuesday morning's forecast still supports this, the National Hurricane Center said.

By 5am Tuesday, Florence was centered about 975 miles east-southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, and moving west-northwest at 15 mph. Its center will move between Bermuda and the Bahamas on Tuesday and Wednesday and approach the coast of South Carolina or North Carolina on Thursday.

Russell Meadows, left, helps neighbor Rob Muller board up his home ahead of Hurricane Florence in Morehead City, N.C

Larry Lynch selects a can of Armour Vienna Bites while grocery shopping in preparation for Hurricane Florence on Tuesday

Irene McNeil selects canned vegetables while grocery shopping in preparation for Hurricane Florence

A treasure hunter uses his metal detector on the beach in front of the surf before Hurricane Florence comes ashore

Two other storms were spinning in the Atlantic. Hurricane Isaac was expected to lose strength as it reaches the Caribbean, and Helene, much farther out to sea, may veer northward into the open ocean as the 2018 hurricane season reaches its peak.

In the Pacific, Hurricane Olivia triggered warnings for multiple Hawaiian islands, blowing westward and expected to arrive in the state as soon as late Tuesday or early Wednesday.

'Please be prepared, be careful and be SAFE!' President Donald Trump tweeted Monday evening.

He added on Tuesday it would be 'tremendously big, and tremendously wet.'

'The safety of the American people is my absolute highest priority. We are sparing no expense. We are totally prepared, we're ready, we're as ready as anybody's ever been,' Trump said.

'The places that are in the way and in the most jeopardy would be Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, that area. They haven't seen anything like what's coming at us in 25, 30 years, maybe ever. It's tremendously big and tremendously wet,' he added. 'Tremendous amounts of water.'

Just months ago, disaster planners simulated a Category 4 hurricane strike alarmingly similar to the real-world scenario now unfolding on a dangerously vulnerable stretch of the East Coast.

A fictional 'Hurricane Cora' barreled into southeast Virginia and up the Chesapeake Bay to strike Washington, D.C., in the narrative created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Argonne National Laboratory.

The result was catastrophic damage, which has some experts concerned that Hurricane Florence could produce a disaster comparable to 2005's Hurricane Katrina and in a part of the country that is famously difficult to evacuate.

The simulated hurricane knocked out power for most gas stations in the Mid-Atlantic region, damaged a nuclear power plant and sent debris into major shipping channels, among other problems, according to a Department of Energy simulation manual.

'What they were trying to do was create a worst-case scenario, but it's a very realistic scenario,' said Joshua Behr, a research professor at Virginia's Old Dominion University who is involved in disaster modeling and simulations.

Senior leaders from the White House, along with more than 91 federal departments and agencies, participated in the 'national level exercise' in late April and early May, FEMA said.

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an Oval Office meeting on hurricane preparations for Hurricane Florence at the White House in Washington, U.S., September 11

The fictional storm made landfall in the heavily populated Hampton Roads region, bringing a 15-foot storm surge and up to 9 inches of rain to some areas within the first six hours. That cut off main routes - used for escape as well as for rescuers - in the Hampton Roads area and elsewhere.

In the scenario, Cora also slammed hurricane-force winds into three nuclear power stations. One was damaged. Thirty-three major power substations were at risk from storm surge and major flooding.

Key roads and bridges were also damaged, and debris blocked the Newport News Channel and other waterways. Coast Guard Station Cape Charles lost power, and Coast Guard Station Chincoteague was severely damaged by high winds. The ferocious fictional storm also damaged and closed Reagan National Airport in Washington.

The make-believe hurricane threatened hundreds of cell towers, and the area where power was knocked out included 135 data centers in Virginia and another 60 in Maryland.

The Cora scenario projected hurricane-force winds inflicting 'catastrophic damage' to homes and significant damage to critical infrastructure within a 50-mile radius of the hurricane's center.

The manual makes no mention of deaths and injuries, focusing instead on infrastructure.

Another striking similarity between the scenario and Hurricane Florence's path: already saturated ground on that part of the Mid-Atlantic coast.

'What I fear is that saturation, combined with a storm that kind of stalls out,' said Behr, who has studied vulnerable populations in the paths of Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast and in the Hampton Roads region.

If parts of the East Coast are deluged with water, it could result in a catastrophe on the scale of Katrina, Behr said. And recovering from a disaster in the Hampton Roads region would also parallel Katrina's aftermath, he added.

'I believe that those patterns are also going to manifest in Hampton Roads if and when a large storm hits,' he said. 'The vulnerability of our populations are quite similar to New Orleans. Displacement, pain, suffering, property loss. All those things are going to play out in a fashion that has parallels to how Katrina played out.'
Comedian Norm MacDonald has spoken out about his concerns with the #MeToo era, and revealed that he convinced friend Louis CK to call Roseanne Barr to commiserate after her show was cancelled.

'I'm happy the #MeToo movement has slowed down a little bit,' MacDonald told the Hollywood Reporter in an interview to promote his new talk show premiering Friday on Netflix.

MacDonald, 58, said he believed that the movement to expose sexual misconduct in the workplace had gone off the rails in the year since the bombshell allegations against Harvey Weinstein inaugurated the #MeToo era.

'It used to be, 'One hundred women can't be lying.' And then it became, 'One woman can't lie.' And that became, 'I believe all women,'' MacDonald said.

Comedian Norm MacDonald (above) has spoken out about his concerns with the #MeToo era

'And then you're like, 'What?' Like, that Chris Hardwick guy I really thought got the blunt end of the stick there,' he continued.

Hardwick, the host of AMC's The Talking Dead, was investigated by the network after his ex-girlfriend Chloe Dykstra raised abuse allegations in a blog post, but was ultimately re-instated to the show after she refused to participate in the probe.

MacDonald commented that while in the past, admitting wrongdoing and showing contrition could allow a celebrity to move past some kinds of misconduct - but said that now, admitting wrongdoing is a career ender.

'That's not healthy  that there is no forgiveness,' he said, remarking that he had seen the impact on two friends, Barr and CK.

CK was shamed last November by the revelation that he had repeatedly masturbated in front of female comics, allegations he admitted to saying he had always asked permission before displaying his member.

Barr's fall from grace came in May, when she tweeted that Valerie Jarrett, a close advisor to Barack Obama who is black, was like 'Muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes has a baby'.

Barr apologized profusely, and claimed she thought the light-skinned Jarrett was white. But ABC quickly cancelled the wildly successful reboot of her eponymous sitcom.

'And Roseanne was so broken up that I got Louis to call her, even though Roseanne was very hard on Louis before that,' said MacDonald, referring to the fact that Barr had publicly floated rumors of CK's masturbatory behavior long before it became public knowledge.

'But she was just so broken and just crying constantly. There are very few people that have gone through what they have, losing everything in a day. Of course, people will go, 'What about the victims?' But you know what? The victims didn't have to go through that,' MacDonald said.

MacDonald, who wrote for the original run of Barr's sitcom, said he didn't believe she was a racist at all, and that her opposition to Obama centered around her support for Israel.

After the interview was published, MacDonald was forced to apologize on Twitter when he came under attack for allegedly disrespecting the victims of Barr and CK's actions.

'Roseanne and Louis have both been very good friends of mine for many years,' MacDonald wrote.

'They both made terrible mistakes and I would never defend their actions. If my words sounded like I was minimizing the pain that their victims feel to this day, I am deeply sorry.'
Ephraim Mirvis, chief rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth, has released a guide encouraging staff at Orthodox Jewish schools to accept LGBT children.

The guide is called "The Wellbeing of LGBT+ Pupils: A Guide for Orthodox Jewish Schools," and claims that fighting homophobia is a Jewish imperative. Orthodox Judaism is the most traditional sect of the religion, and its practioners have been known to put children in conversion therapy camps and encourage them to marry outside of their sexuality, Advocate reported.

Censoring in education is common as well. Londons Yesodey Hatorah Senior Girls School received backlash from both school inspectors and human rights organizations earlier this year by blacking out LGBTQ content from their textbooks, reported the Guardian.

"Our children need to know that at school, at home and in the community, they will be loved and protected regardless of their sexuality or gender identity," Mirvis said.
An outback hospital has revealed six stillborn babies have been left unclaimed in its morgue for up to five years.

Katherine Hospital, in the Northern Territory, made the startling admission during a Senate inquiry into stillbirths.

All six were stillborn at the hospital over a five-year period to 2017, with two of the babies in the morgue since 2013, The Guardian Australia reported.

Three babies remain in the morgue, while three were only buried this year.

Northern Territory Labor Senator Malarndirri McCarthy, the Chair of Select Committee on Stillbirth Research and Education, has demanded answers.

A Senate inquiry into stillbirths has this month held public hearings in Katherine (pictured), Brisbane and Canberra

Katherine Hospital, in the Northern Territory, revealed six stillborn babies have been left unclaimed in its morgue for up to five years (stock image)

'Who is responsible here?' she said.

Ms McCarthy said parents needed to be provided with support services such as grief counselling and information on their rights in relation to the burial of a child.

'If those resources are lacking that enables a child to lay dead in a morgue for five or six years, there is a serious question about humanity that is not being answered here,' she said.

Sara Potter, the hospital's clinical nursing midwife, told the committee Katherine did not offer mothers of stillborn babies 'wraparound services available elsewhere'.

She said the hospital has a single social worker and one Aboriginal liaison officer but they were mainly tasked with emergencies.

The hospital also has no Aboriginal midwives and just two Aboriginal health practitioners.

Ms Potter added Katherine residents had been faced with expensive burial costs, above the $2,199.83 one-off bereavement payment offered by Centrelink.

Up until last year, the town had just one funeral business which charged $4,000, with a second business beginning this year which charges $2,500.

Northern Territory Labor Senator Malarndirri McCarthy (pictured) said 'there is a serious question about humanity' in response to Katherine Hospital's revelations

'As of a year ago, the Centrelink payment wouldn't have got the baby buried. The payment didn't cover the cost of what the funeral services are,' Ms Potter said.

The committee, which was established in March, has this month held public hearings in Katherine, Brisbane and Canberra.

It is due to report on the future of stillbirth research and education in Australia in early 2019.

In a statement provided to Daily Mail Australia, a Northern Territory Department of Health spokesperson said: 'There are a range of complex, exceptional and sensitive reasons why bodies may stay in the morgue for a lengthy period of time'.

'The Top End Health Service (TEHS) works closely with families, where possible, to ensure appropriate funeral arrangements are in place within a respectful time period.

'Katherine Hospital has been working with a number of families over the past 18 months to ensure a safe bereavement process and culturally appropriate funeral arrangements for their babies.

'A range of support services are available to the next of kin before and after the death of a loved one. This includes support from a multidisciplinary team of midwives, nurses, doctors, social workers and aboriginal liaison officers to ensure a safe bereavement process and culturally appropriate funeral arrangements.'

The spokesperson added the Royal Darwin Hospital has recently reviewed the way next of kin are supported and managed after the death of a family member and new guidelines have been developed, and it is anticipated similar guidelines will be rolled out across all TEHS hospitals in the future.
A Eurosceptic coup plot against Theresa May collapsed today as leading Brexiteers were forced to swear loyalty to the Prime Minister.

Members of the hardline European Research Group (ERG) openly discussed ousting Mrs May at a meeting last night.

But the scheme backfired immediately as ERG leader Jacob Rees-Mogg and former Brexit Secretary David Davis had to swear allegiance to Mrs May.

The duo were presenting the hard Brexiteers vision of how to make the Irish border work after Britain quits the EU and could not avoid questions on the PM's future.

Leading Brexiteer Iain Duncan Smith branded the plotters 'stupid' after their actions overshadowed today's policy launch.

Meanwhile, a defiant Mrs May stood by her approach at PMQs, and Downing Street insisted her blueprint was the only viable option.

As many as 50 Tory MPs were openly discussed how to get rid of Theresa May (pictured at PMQs today) at a meeting last night

Asked about the prospect of changing leader at the launch of Eurosceptic plans for the Irish border this morning, David Davis (pictured) said 'we have got a very good' prime minister and he only disagreed with her on 'one issue'

The latest escalation in the Tory chaos began at a gathering of the ERG in Westminster last night.

One source said the level of manouevring against the leader was 'amazing'.

'There were 50 people present, openly discussing how to get rid of the PM and literally no one said 'Oooh no, we mustn't talk about that',' they said.

Theresa May to quit: What happens next? How does a leadership election work? The election to find Theresa May's replacement is held in two stages with up to 20 Tory MPs expected to try to stand. To join the battle, any candidate requires two other MPs to sign forms agreeing to be their proposer and a seconder. The race will start on June 7 and is expected last around six weeks with the new leader in place by the end of July. Mrs May is expected to remain as Prime Minister until a successor is appointed and ready to be confirmed by the Queen. How are candidates eliminated? Conservative MPs will hold a series of head-to-head ballots to whittle the list of contenders down to a final two, with the lowest placed candidate dropping out in each round. Who votes on the final two? There will then be a series of hustings involving the two final candidates - probably in all regions of the UK - and a TV debate could also be held. It is then the Tory members across the country step in. They will then have around a fortnight to vote via postal ballot - which Mrs May avoided after rival Andrea Leadsom dropped out of the race. The last time a postal vote was held was in 2005, when David Cameron grabbed the leadership. Advertisement

Another source said the discussions continued even when Tory Party whips entered the room. 'It was brazen  really detailed discussion of how best you game the leadership rules.'

Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said any MPs talking about challenging Mrs May were indulging in 'stupid personality nonsense'.

He confirmed he was not at the meeting last night, adding: 'You get 50 MPs of any political party together and you're always going to get some that are going to start arguing the toss about ridiculous issues.

'All I would say to them is: Stop it, it's just stupid. If you've got nothing better to do, go and find yourself some work, because that's the best cure for stupid personality nonsense.'

Speaking at the launch of the ERG's Irish border plan today, Mr Rees-Mogg said: 'I have long said, and repeated again and again, that the policy needs to be changed but I am supporting the person.

'Theresa May has enormous virtues, she is a fantastically dutiful Prime Minister and she has my support.

'I just want her to change one item of policy.'

Asked at the same event about the prospect of changing leader, Mr Davis said 'we have got a very good' prime minister and he only disagreed with her on 'one issue'.

He said: 'I have made very plain from when I resigned and thereafter that I think we have got a very good Prime Minister and, like Jacob, I disagree with her on one issue - this issue.'

Environment Secretary Michael Gove, one of the leading figures in Vote Leave, urged his colleagues to back away from a confrontation or risk putting the whole Brexit project at risk.

'I urge everyone to get behind the PM. I think she is doing a great job at the moment,' he said.

'This is loose talk. The critical thing is to ensure that we deliver on that Brexit mandate.

'Any diversion or any distraction from that mission means that our ability to ensure that the referendum mandate that we were given is delivered, is undermined.'

Allies of Mrs May believe the ERG does not have the numbers to defeat her.

One Cabinet minister told MailOnline that attempting a coup now would be 'crazy'. Under Tory leadership rules, if Mrs May wins a no-confidence vote she cannot be challenged again for 12 months.

Allies of Mrs May (pictured leaving Downing Street today) believe the ERG does not have the numbers to defeat her

Iain Duncan Smith (pictured right at an event in Westminster last night) said plotting to oust Mrs May was 'stupid'. Boris Johnson seems to be trying to stay out of the latest row, as he was photographed at his Oxfordshire home this morning

'They would be crazy to try it now. She will win a no confidence vote, and then there is a year's delay when she is immune to a challenge,' the minister said.

The source also warned that the wider public would not forgive the Tories for descending into civil war rather than sorting out Brexit.

'How would it look to the public if they somehow managed to force a contest, and we spend six weeks on that while the negotiations are at the most crucial stage?' they added.

Supporters of Mrs May believe any Tory rebellion in a Commons vote on a Chequers-style deal would be 'much smaller' than the 80 MPs the ERG claims.

The tactic would be to 'squeeze' rebels down to a hard core, and then seek to win over Labour moderates.

The government would need to convince a group of Opposition MPs to accept 'something that it not ideal to avoid the risk of a much worse no deal outcome'.

Mrs May's spokesman said she would fight any no confidence vote called by her MPs.

Tory Eurosceptics today unveiled their plan for the Irish border, insisting the issue which has deadlocked the talks with Brussels can be easily solved.

The ERG report argued that technological solutions and accepting EU agricultural rules are enough to solve the issue.

Mr Rees-Mogg insisted the proposals had been drawn up from the EU's perspective to win Brussels' support, while Mr David said they should 'unlock' the negotiation.

Juncker says the UK cannot stay in 'parts' of EU single market Jean-Claude Juncker (pictured addressing the European Parliament today) has insisted Britain cannot stay in only parts of the EU's single market after Brexit in a new blow to Theresa May's plans Jean-Claude Juncker has insisted Britain cannot stay in only parts of the EU's single market after Brexit in a new blow to Theresa May's plans. The EU Commission President said the EU would work 'day and night' for a close relationship after the UK quits the bloc. But he said the Brexit deal cannot unpick the unity of the remaining 27 members. The Prime Minister's Brexit blueprint imagines Britain following EU rules on goods to maintain existing trade, while striking out in other areas such as services. Her proposals, deeply controversial in her own party, have been repeatedly dismissed by Brussels but No 10 say they remain the only 'credible and negotiable' option. In his annual state of the union address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Mr Juncker said they owe it to EU citizens to preserve stability in the wake of the UK's withdrawal. At the same time, he warned the other 27 member states remain united behind the commission's negotiating position and that the UK cannot enjoy the same 'privileged position' as a member state. Advertisement

The draft bears a striking resemblance to the model Mr Davis tried and failed to promise as Brexit Secretary before resigning in fury from the Government.

But the PM's spokesman gave them short shrift, saying: 'We have a commitment to no hard border in Northern Ireland ad we don't believe that the answer is to move the border.

'People want to live their lives as they do now and that is what the Chequers plan delivers.'

The spokesman added: 'We have been working on the issue of the Northern Irish border for two years. We have looked at a significant number of potential solutions, we believe that that the positon put forward by Chequers is the only credible and negotiable one.'

Speaking at PMQs in the House, Mrs May defended her handling of the Brexit process.

Questioned by Tory Chris Philp on whether the 39billion divorce bill would be withheld if there was no deal with the EU, Mrs May said Britain was a 'country that honours our obligations'.

But she insisted it was 'very clear that we need to have a link between the future relationship and the withdrawal agreement'.

'The specific offer was made in our desire to reach a deal with the European Union,' she said.

'And on the basis, as the EU themselves have said, that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, without a deal the position changes.'

The comments appeared at odds with Chancellor Philip Hammond's position yesterday.

Giving evidence to a Lord committee, Mr Hammond acknowledged the agreement in December including the divorce bill would fall if there was no overall deal with Brussels.

However he said that would not mean an end to the UK's obligations under international law.

He said it could lead to a 'time-consuming' process of legal wrangling to establish just how much was owed.

'In the context of no negotiated exit, that agreement (to pay 39 billion), like all the other agreements that were settled between December and March subject to the caveat nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, will fall,' he said.

'What will not fall is our legal obligation under international law to make payments of sums which were due to the European Union. But to quantify those sums could require a complex and time-consuming process of arbitration.'

He added: 'If we were to say we are going to sit on our hands and pay nothing we would probably expect a very hard-nosed response from the other side.'

The meeting last night followed a difficult week for the ERG in which plans to publish a detailed blueprint for an alternative Brexit have been shelved.

Sources said there was also mockery of a charm offensive in which MPs invited for dinner in Downing Street for briefings on the Chequers plan for Brexit.

Another MP present opposition to Chequers had hardened over the summer recess after MPs spent time speaking to constituency members and voters.

Boris Johnson, who has launched a series of attacks on the PM's Chequers plan, was seen leaving his Oxfordshire home today

Mr Rees-Mogg (pictured arriving at the ERG launch today) was asked about the leadership issue and said 'the policy needs to be changed but I am supporting the person'

'This is a fight to the death,' he said. 'I would be amazed if a leadership contest is not triggered straight after (Tory) conference unless she backs down.'

But some Conservatives who were there played down the plotting.

Tory MP Michael Fabricant said: 'I attended the ERG last night. Reports of (Theresa May's) demise are greatly exaggerated.

Who are the Tory hardliners plotting against the PM? The European Research Group (ERG) is believed to have around 80 members in total. But the MPs, while Eurosceptic, are far from having a united view on how to handle Brexit. There is a general unhappiness with the Chequers plan the PM has put forward. But very few have openly demanded Mrs May be sacked. They include Andrew Bridgen and Nadine Dorries. Some spoke out against the premier at the ERG meeting last night. However, senior figures such as Iain Duncan Smith, David Davis and Jacob Rees-Mogg have made clear they were not present and condemned the leadership plotting. Advertisement

'Of the 40-50 there, only 5-6 people discussed letters to the Chairman of the 1922 and they wrote ages ago. The rest of us sat in uncomfortable silence.

'Though most are unhappy with Chequers.'

The meeting last night came just hours after Boris Johnson gave his first public show of support by attending an event hosted by its leaders.

Last week, the ERG told journalists it had drawn up a series of announcements to show it had a full alternative to Chequers.

But the plan was dropped after senior members spotted inaccuracies and warned some of the ideas would be seen as eccentric.

Leaked drafts suggested it contained a number of radical ideas, including a Star Wars-style missile defence shield, an expeditionary force to defend the Falklands and dropping all tariffs on food, which the farming establishment claims would destroy British agriculture.

One source said: 'We had to pull it. We had to make sure every dot and comma was sensible or we would be torn apart. 'Some of the ideas, such as the Falklands force, were nonsense. That's got nothing to do with Brexit and should never have been in there.'

Another said some in the group had included their own pet projects, such as massively boosting defence spending, that were unrelated to Brexit.

The report, entitled A Better Deal For Britain, is now not expected to be published.

Several Conservative MPs have already submitted letters of no confidence in the Prime Minister (pictured at PMQs today)

Meanwhile Boris Johnson (pictured at the launch of a Brexiteer report in the Commons yesterday) said he 'could not possibly vote for Chequers'

Chancellor Philip Hammond (pictured yesterday) warned the UK would still have to pay much of the 39billion Brexit divorce bill in the event of no deal
An ad has been posted for a personal assistant for a nine-year-old girl.

The duties are virtually identical to those of a live-in nanny, but mining company Ausgold advertised the position as a personal assistant, using the online job search agency Seek.

Ausgold is owned by Chinese businesswoman Sally Zou, and the position would be based in Adelaide. It is understood Ms Zou has two daughters.

The ad requires the suitable candidate to: 'live in and stay with the girl 7 days a week during the private primary school semesters.'

An ad has been posted for a personal assistant for a nine-year-old girl

The ad has now been deleted but also read: 'kind-hearted, well-spoken, responsible, caring and fun-loving live-in personal assistant required for an energetic and sweet and nine-year-old girl based in Adelaide.'

'Much of the time you will have sole responsibility for the child as the mother travels frequently.'

A comparative ad for a 'live-in nanny' in Sydney requires the candidate to be 'friendly, polite, honest and able to work unsupervised.'

'You will accompany us on our overseas holidays as needed. This is a full time position and we live in a gorgeous house on the harbour,' the Seek ad reads.

It is assumed the ad has been placed to look after Ms Zou's youngest daughter who was previously living in China.

It is assumed the ad has been placed to look after Ms Zou's youngest daughter who was previously living in China

Previously residing in Pymble, NSW, the family moved to Adelaide so Gloria Zou, now 11, could attend St Peters Girls School, an Anglican and International Baccalaureate World School at Stonyfell.

Ms Zou marked her daughter's first day at the school with a full-page newspaper advertisement.

The girl's eighth birthday on a super-yacht in Sydney's Pittwater had a celebrity guest list and a public relations campaign.

Before the family's move to Adelaide, Sally Zou took out an ad in The Advertiser in October 2017 looking to buy a house close to the city that she could call home.

Ms Zou marked her daughter's first day at the school with a full-page newspaper advertisement

The girl's eighth birthday on a super-yacht in Sydney's Pittwater had a celebrity guest list and a public relations campaign

Upon moving to Adelaide, Ms Zou established two new South Australian based businesses  AusDiamond Mining and AusFood Alliance, which includes the Australian Romance Wine brand.

One focuses on diamond mining while the other is focused on food and wine exports to the world.

Ms Zou also sponsored the Port Adelaide Power AFL team, and established a scholarship for the study of mining engineering at Adelaide University.
The pocket watch that turned Del Boy and Rodney Trotter into overnight millionaires on Only Fools and Horses is going on sale for 15,000 in real life.

They fainted when the so-called Harrison Lesser watch Del Boy's father-in-law found sold at auction for 6.2million.

But the timepiece made especially for the episode Time On Our Hands doesn't actually work - so is going on sale for considerably less.

The watch was commissioned by the BBC for the memorable episode that finally saw the Trotter brothers realise their dream of making millions.

The pocket watch that turned Del Boy and Rodney Trotter (pictured with it) into overnight millionaires on Only Fools and Horses is going on sale for 15,000 in real life

The pocket watch (pictured) was made especially for the episode that saw the Trotters make their millions

It sees Raquel's antique dealer father spot an old watch on top of an oven hob that has been sat in Del Boy's garage for years.

He correctly identifies it as the historic missing Harrison watch that goes on to sell at auction for 6.2million, causing both brothers to hilariously faint in shock.

Three watches were actually made for the episode, with the one being sold now used in the auction scenes.

The alloy metal timepiece, that measures three by four inches, belongs to an anonymous collector who acquired it after filming had finished.

It is now being sold at auction again, this time at Aston's Auctioneers of Dudley, West Midlands.

The timepiece made especially for the episode Time On Our Hands (pictured) doesn't actually work

It is going up for auction in the West Midlands next week for 15,000

The pocket watch has been verified by Perry Aghajanoff, the president of the Only Fools and Horses Appreciation Society and comes with a certificate of authenticity.

Steve Kennedy, of Aston's, said: 'There is a huge market for anything to do with Only Fools and Horses.

'People love the programme and such an iconic item with its history is sure to create a huge buzz.

'We've given it an estimate of up to 15,000 but at the end of the day, you can never be sure in this business - it could go for well above that.'

The watch, that does not work, was made by the BBC's prop company specifically for the episode that was broadcast in December 1996.

The pocket watch has been verified by Perry Aghajanoff, the president of the Only Fools and Horses Appreciation Society and comes with a certificate of authenticity (pictured)

Mr Kennedy added: 'It's not a working watch so it's value comes solely from its provenance and importance to the Only Fools story.

'It is in pristine condition and has been perfectly cared for by a true lover of the show.

'The watch was used in the auction scenes of the show, so it's nice that it's come full circle and will now go under the hammer in real life.

'It's unclear what became of the other two props - you'd have to ask Del and Rodney - but we're delighted to be selling such a unique lot.'

The alloy metal timepiece, that measures three by four inches (pictured centre) belongs to an anonymous collector who acquired it after filming had finished

In 2007 one of the other two watches was stolen from the Only Fools and Horses Museum in Diss, Norfolk. The storyline in the 1996 episode was actually based on fact.

British clockmaker John Harrison drew up plans for the H6 watch in the 18th century but it was never made.

Experts believe that had it ever come to auction it would have sold for about 6million. The sale takes place on September 20.

Only Fools and Horses: David Jason is pictured as Del Boy (centre) with Rodney (Nicholas Lyndhurst, right) and Granddad (Lennard Peace, left)
White King Power Clean toilet gel has seen a 50 per cent increase in numbers

One particular bathroom product has received a massive boost to sales at Coles

An Australian toilet gel has seen a massive increase in sales since taking part in Coles' monstrously successful Little Shop campaign.

The decision for Pental - an Australian manufacturer of household chemicals - to add their White King Power Clean toilet gel into the mini-collectables range has seen them achieve a 50 per cent spike in sales, The Australian Financial Review reported.

Pental CEO Charlie McLeish spoke to AFR, saying that he was glad the company had taken a punt on the promotion.

Pental's White King toilet gel has seen a massive 50% increase in sales over the last two months- bringing it all down to the massive Coles Little Shop campaign

Mr McLeish said the company had to pay to be involved and although he didn't divulge how much, he said it was similar to a normal step-up in promotional drive.

Interestingly, Mr McLeish also revealed that it wasn't the only cost.

'We had to pay for the manufacture of the collectables,' he explained.

Mr McLeish said the brand would use the increased sales to help the company move into the Chinese market.

'It's been a ripper. I'm just glad that we took up the opportunity and not one of our competitors,' he said of the decision.

Meanwhile, an expert has labelled the Little Shop promotion as 'one of the greatest retail marketing campaigns ever'.

Julie Wrobel, managing director of branding and communications studio, Algo Mas, made the bold claim in a first-person piece written for Mumbrella.

'Last week I purchased two Snickers bars at the Coles checkout to increase my $57.80 shop to over $60 so Id be eligible for two Little Shop packets instead of one. I dont even like Snickers,' Mrs Wrobel wrote.

Not just for kids: An expert labelled the Coles Little Shop as 'one of the greatest retail marketing campaigns ever' as it appealed to everyone

She said the ingenious idea of making the branding on the plastic toys visible created instant brand loyalty. She also praised the extended reach of the campaign.

'The Coles Little Shop campaign has created, organically, a secondary market of swap meets and recess time trade-offs,' she said.

During the campaign, and as Coles acknowledged the growing hype - they held in-store 'swap days' for customers to trade their collectables.

Thousands turned out to the events in over 45 stores around the country in hopes of completing their collections.

According to News.com.au, the supermarket's main rival Woolworths also admitted defeat, acknowledging that Coles Little Shop was one of the main reasons for its poor 2019 Q1 sales.

Collect them all: Customers had to spend $30 to receive one mini-collectable which were packaged in blind bags so they had no idea what item they were getting

Coles launched Little Shop in July this year, featuring 30 iconic household brands including Vegemite, Nutella and Weet-Bix all shrunk to a mini-collectable.

Shoppers recieved one collectable for every $30 spent in store which they then picked from blind bags at the checkout.

The campaign was a nationwide craze with families pleading with people to swap minis with them on social media, complete sets were reaching up to $1000 on Gumtree and appreciation groups on Facebook boasting hundreds of thousands of members.

The campaign wrapped up on Tuesday.
Nirmal Mulye, the CEO of Nostrum Laboratories, defended his company's decision to hike the price of an antibiotic

A pharmaceutical executive has defended the decision to raise the price of an antibiotic to more than $2,000 a bottle because companies have a moral requirement to sell the product at the highest price.

Nirmal Mulye, the CEO of Nostrum Laboratories, also defended the notorious Pharma Bro, Martin Shkreli, who became one of the most hated men in the country for raising the price of a vital AIDS drug by 5,000 per cent.

Mulye was responding to criticism of his companys decision last month to more than quadruple the price of a bottle of nitrofurantoin.

The price of a bottle went up by 400 per cent - from $474.75 to $2,392, the Financial Times reported.

Nitrofurantoin is an antibiotic that is used to treat bladder infections. It is considered an essential medicine by the World Health Organization.

Nostrum, which is based in Missouri, manufactures the drug in a liquid form.

Mulye defended his company, saying that the price increase was necessary to stay competitive.

I think it is a moral requirement to make money when you can . . . to sell the product for the highest price, Mulye said.

Mulye was responding to criticism of his companys decision last month to more than quadruple the price of a bottle of nitrofurantoin. The price of a bottle went from $474.75 to $2,392. The above image is a stock photo of a variety of antibiotics

Nostrum, which is based in Missouri, manufactures the drug in a liquid form. Mulye defended his company, saying that the price increase was necessary to stay competitive

He said that the companys price hike was a response to an increase in price by a competitor, Casper Pharma.

That company recently boosted the price of Furadantin by 182 per cent - making one bottle worth $2,800.

The point here is the only other choice is the brand at the higher price. It is still a saving regardless of whether it is a big one or not, Mulye said.

He said that he was in this business to make money and that he was no different than an art dealer who sells a painting for half a billion dollars.

Mulye was also asked about Shkreli, who was sentenced to prison earlier this year on fraud charges unrelated to his decision to boost the price of Daraprim, the AIDS and cancer drug, from $13.50 a tablet to $750 per tablet.

I agree with Martin Shkreli that when he raised the price of his drug he was within his rights because he had to reward his shareholders, Mulye said.

Mulye was also asked about Shkreli, who was sentenced to prison earlier this year on fraud charges unrelated to his decision to boost the price of Daraprim, the AIDS and cancer drug, from $13.50 a tablet to $750 per tablet. Shkreli is seen above in New York in December 2015

He said that because Shkrelis company was the only one manufacturing that drug, he did the right thing in trying to maximize profit.

If hes the only one selling it then he can make as much money as he can, Mulye said.

This is a capitalist economy and if you cant make money you cant stay in business.

We have to make money when we can.

The price of iPhones goes up, the price of cars goes up, hotel rooms are very expensive.

Drug companies have raised the price of the antibiotic due to a reduction in supply brought on by new Food and Drug Administration regulations.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb reacted angrily to Mulyes comments. Theres no moral imperative to price gouge and take advantage of patients, Gottlieb tweeted on Tuesday

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb reacted angrily to Mulyes comments.

Theres no moral imperative to price gouge and take advantage of patients, Gottlieb tweeted on Tuesday.

FDA will continue to promote competition so speculators and those with no regard to public health consequences cant take advantage of patients who need medicine.

Mulye slammed the FDA as incompetent and corrupt while dismissing the new regulations on liquid drugs as a piece of nonsense.

He also accused the federal government of highway robbery because of fees that companies needed to pay.
The Philadelphia Insectarium and Butterfly Pavilion said around 7,000 venomous spiders, scorpions and other creepy crawlers were stolen from the premises late last month in a bizarre heist believed to be an inside job.

'The stolen animals include insects and arthropods used in school programs, exhibits throughout the museum, and behind the scenes rearing and feeding programs,' the IBP team said August 29 on their GoFundMe page.

The IBP team is raising funds in order to regrow their collection after the thieves took roughly $50,000 worth of insects, animals and other creatures.

The insectarium shared saddening photos to social media last month that showed bare shelves inside the center.

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Philadelphia Insectarium and Butterfly Pavilion CEO John Cambridge (pictured) said 7,000 venomous spiders, scorpions and other creatures were stolen last month in a bizarre heist believed to be an inside job

The IBP team is raising funds in order to regrow their collection after the thieves took roughly $50,000 worth of insects, animals and other creatures

The owner believes the heist was financially motivated and fears some of the animals and insects have already been sold

The team set up the crowdfunding page as way to raise funds to regrow their collection

Museum owner John Cambridge told Gizmodo that at least five employees were caught on surveillance stealing part of the collection that was placed in one of their cars afterward.

Cambridge later checked a back room for the animals and insects but found nothing.

'Its not uncommon for a creature to be taken out of its tank and into the back room receive whatever,' Cambridge told Gizmodo.

While checking the back room, the CEO saw two employees' work shirts hung from the wall with knives.

The employees have not been identified. Cambridge did not say whether the individuals would be terminated.

The insectarium shared saddening photos to social media last month that showed bare shelves inside the center

The employees have not been identified. Cambridge did not say whether the individuals would be terminated

While checking the back room, the CEO saw two employees' work shirts hung from the wall with knives

He said he initially didn't wish to get police involved - and just wants to 'contact the people that did it and [tell them] to bring the creatures back.'

Philadelphia police, however, are investigating the matter.

The team's GoFundMe description further said: 'We strive to bring insects and other arthropods to the public in a way that they can be loved and appreciated.

'People may walk in thinking that insects are "creepy" but leave with the knowledge that these creatures have a unique beauty and are incredibly important for us and our planet.'

The owner believes the heist was financially motivated and fears some of the animals and insects have already been sold.

'They are not difficult to sell, and theres a thriving market of insect enthusiasts,' he added while speaking to Gizmodo.

Philadelphia police are investigating the heist that took place at the Philadelphia insectarium (pictured)

'The stolen animals include insects and arthropods used in school programs, exhibits throughout the museum, and behind the scenes rearing and feeding programs,' the IBP team said
Mother-of-three Mara Harvey was murdered only minutes after her late-night shift at a local Coles ended, police will allege.

Mrs Harvey, 41, was returning to her home in Perth's inner-city suburb of Inglewood from her shift stocking shelves at a local Coles at around 11pm on September 3.

Her husband, Anthony Harvey, 24, allegedly murdered her and their three daughters shortly after she arrived home.

The Coles where Mrs Harvey worked is only a three-minute drive from their Coode Street home.

Mara and Anthony Harvey (pictured) were franchisees for Jim's Mowing, with emails revealing quotes were sent to clients hours before the alleged murder

Neighbours have been devastated by the alleged murders, which saw the death of the couple's beautiful girls, Charlotte, 3, Beatrix and Alice, 2, their mother and their grandmother, Beverley Quinn, 74.

Mr and Mrs Harvey ran a Jim's Mowing franchise.

Mrs Harvey's friend told Fairfax Media on Wednesday the 41-year-old had supported her husband financially while they started the venture.

Mr Harvey appeared to carry on with business as usual in emails sent from his work account just hours before the alleged murders.

Quotes sent to the couple's clients at 6:21pm and 6:37pm on September 3 were signed off from both Mr and Mrs Harvey.

Mara Harvey, pictured right in green, was allegedly murdered only minutes after finishing work

Mr Harvey allegedly murdered his mother-in-law, Beverley Quinn (pictured right), 74, when she arrived the following morning to help get the children ready for the day

Police allege Charlotte (left), 3, and Beatrix and Alice (second left, right), 2, their mother Mara, 41, and grandmother, Beverley Quinn (center), 74, were allegedly murdered by Anthony Harvey

The backyard (pictured) where Anthony Robert Harvey, his wife Mara and their three children celebrated Father's Day - just 24 hours before Mr Harvey allegedly murdered them all

Neighbours of the suburban Perth family recalled hearing the children 'giggling and playing' in the yard the day before they were allegedly murdered (pictured)

'Everything seemed normal - we said hello and they were happily playing in the backyard,' neighbour Richard Fairbrother said (pictured are floral tributes outside the home)

Neighbours of the suburban Perth family recalled hearing the children 'giggling and playing' in the yard the day before they were allegedly bludgeoned to death.

'We had someone minding our house who said everything seemed normal... they said they heard the kids and their parents playing a lot in the backyard on the Sunday, which was Father's Day,' neighbour Richard Fairbrother said.

They had lunch, played in the sunshine and the children ran between a backyard swing set and a slippery dip, neighbours report.

But late the next evening, police allege Mr Harvey murdered his wife and daughters inside the Bedford home with 'a blunt object and knives.'

The following morning he then allegedly murdered Ms Harvey's mother, Beverley Quinn, 74, when she arrived to help get the children ready for the day, as she did most mornings.

Mr Harvey then allegedly stayed at the house with all five bodies for up to six days before he drove 1,500km to Pannawonica, where he then went to police.

Neighbours on Coode Street said they recall seeing Mr Harvey's Toyota Landcruiser coming and going from the house during the week, up until Thursday.

Whether he continued his Jim's Mowing work that week is not known.

Mr Fairbrother said Mr Harvey sometimes complained about money problems and the struggles of owning his own business.

On Father's Day the Harveys had lunch, played in the sunshine and the children ran between a backyard swing set and a slippery dip, neighbours said (pictured is the backyard)

'Your loss is a matter of great sorrow, your pain and heartache cannot even [be] imagined,' one card left outside the Harvey family home read (pictured)

Outside the family home floral tributes (pictured) continue to grow as people stop to pay respects

Police allege Mr Harvey murdered his wife, daughters and mother-in-law inside the Bedford home with 'a blunt object and knives' (pictured are Anthony and Mara)

For the past nine months, Mrs Harvey had reportedly been struggling to sell an investment unit she owned in a nearby suburb, possibly to ease their financial woes.

The unit, in Maylands, which she purchased in 2005 for $125,000, had been on the market since January.

'You will be impressed with this neatly presented 2 bedroom unit on first floor and at the rear of the complex, nice and quiet,' the real estate advertisement reads.

'Upgraded kitchen has gas appliances, nice sunny lounge, dining area and bathroom has been re-furbished.'

She also owns a second investment unit in the same suburb, which she bought in 2010 for $265,000, and is currently rented out.

Mr Harvey allegedly murdered his mother-in-law, Beverley Quinn (pictured), 74, when she arrived the following morning to help get the children ready for the day

For the past nine months, Mrs Harvey had reportedly been struggling to sell an investment unit (pictured is the unit building) she owned in a nearby suburb, possibly to ease their financial woes

Jim's Mowing managing director Jim Penman said they had some trouble getting Mr Harvey to return phone calls, but he was not aware of Harvey's financial woes.

'Anthony was a well-respected and well-liked franchisee who had given no hint of financial or emotional problems in the many contacts we had with him over the past few months,' he said.

'The only suggestion of trouble was his failure on several occasions to respond to phone calls, made as part of our effort to keep in regular contact with franchisees.'

Mr Fairbrother and his partner Rebecca Della recalled the last conversation they had with the Harveys before the alleged murder, when they handed back a ball which had gone over the fence.

'I went over a few times, most recently last month, and they always seemed very close and were always together.

'It's quite shocking.'

Ms Della also said she never saw any signs of tension or cracks in the couple's relationship.

'Even the week before - they seemed happy and cheerful, I never heard them have any fights,' she said.

'They were quiet, except for their kids always playing in the backyard. We never expected anything was wrong.'

Outside the family home, floral tributes continue to grow, as people stop to pay respects.

'Your loss is a matter of great sorrow, your pain and heartache cannot even [be] imagined,' one card read.

'Our love and thoughts go out to you and your family.'

Vince Garcia said he was so shocked and angry about the murders he felt compelled to leave a bunch of flowers.

'My heart is broken. I couldn't believe it when I heard it on the radio,' he said.

'I have two kids of my own, so it really hits home. It's hard to put into words how devastated I am for them.'

The unit in Maylands (pictured), which Mrs Harvey purchased in 2005 for $125,000, had been on the market since January

Friends and former colleagues of Mara and Beverley also paid tribute to two loving mothers who adored their children.

'Bev and Mara are the kindest of souls. I break down every time I think of how they passed,' one said.

The longtime family friend said they were caring people who would help everyone.

A member of the public lays flowers outside the Harvey family home after the massacre

'Bev would knit and crochet a lot. She would be making things all the time. Bev was very talented in the craft way,' she said.

'She was a dedicated mother and grandmother. Bev ran the Morley Primary School canteen to be as close to her girls' education as possible.

Mara's former mining colleague Bjorn Karason said: 'She was a wonderful, caring person with a fabulous outlook on life. Nothing ever got her down.

'She had a cracking sense of humour and I valued my time working with her tremendously.'
An eyeliner containing high levels of lead is being pulled from shelves nationwide.

Australian consumers are being urged to check their cupboards after the consumer watchdog pulled the plug on Hashmi Kajal, Hashmi Tube, Hashmi Surma and Hashmi Kohl Aswad eyeliner products.

The eyeliner/kohl, made in India and distributed by Oasis Corporation, was recalled by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission on Wednesday.

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The consumer watchdog has pulled the plug on Hashmi Kajal, Hashmi Tube, Hashmi Surma and Hashmi Kohl Aswad eyeliners produced in Indian and distributed by Oasis Corporation

Arsenic and Mercury are among the dangerous metals found in the Indian eyeliners which contain 84 per cent lead in their makeup.

The makeup product was immediately removed from 12 stores across Western Sydney after three children in NSW experienced elevated levels of lead in their blood related to the use of the products in July.

Testing was conducted and determined the 'Hashmi Surma Special' contained 84 per cent lead content, with 'Hashmi Kohl Aswad' containing 29.5 per cent lead content.

Consumer Affairs Victoria identified the product in Victoria and have since seized more than 7,400 eyeliner products.

Testing was conducted and determined the 'Hashmi Surma Special' contained 84 per cent lead content, with 'Hashmi Kohl Aswad' containing 29.5 per cent lead content

From July 2017 until 31 July, 2018 the eyeliner products were being sold in specialist Indian and Pakistani stores in Victoria, NSW, ACT, SA and Queensland and are also available online.

WHAT CONSUMERS SHOULD DO NOW 1. Consumers should stop using these products immediately and seek medical advice, especially if they experience any of the above symptoms. 2. If you have used the products, wash with running water any area of your body that has been exposed to the product e.g. eyes, skin or hair. 3. Return the product to the place of purchase for a full refund. Advertisement

Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria Simon Cohen said it was important for consumers to be aware of these potentially dangerous products.

'Consumers should stop using these products immediately and we encourage anyone who comes across these items to contact Consumer Affairs Victoria.'

Inspectors identified and seized the potentially dangerous items for failing to meet mandatory information standards, which require all ingredients to be listed.

NSW Minister for Better Regulation, Matt Kean, told the Sydney Morning Herald: 'Inspections have so far shown that the Hashmi brand eyeliner products are sold predominantly in stores stocking Indian and Pakistani goods,' Mr Kean said.

From July 2017 until 31 July, 2018 the eyeliner products were in specialist Indian and Pakistani stores in Victoria, NSW, ACT, SA and Queensland and are also available online

'Some of the product packaging even specifically states that no lead is present, which is a total disgrace.'

'I'm absolutely appalled by this as we know that use of cosmetics containing lead can have long-term health effects, including brain and kidney damage, in both adults and children.'

Consumer Affairs Victoria product safety experts conduct inspections of retailer and suppliers as part of the state-wide compliance program.

Under the Australian Consumer Law, a supplier who fails to comply with a mandatory safety standard can face fines of up to $220,000 for individuals and $1.1 million for a body corporate.
President Donald Trump has publicly praised his former aides Rob Porter and Gary Cohn for denying the accounts in Bob Woodward's new book, 'Fear', after sources revealed that he had bashed Porter in private.

'I really appreciate their statement. Their statement was excellent. And they both said that beautiful, which shows that the book is just a piece of fiction,' Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday.

Former chief economic advisor Cohn said in a statement to several news outlets on Tuesday that Woodward's book 'does not accurately portray my experience at the White House.'

Porter, who was ousted as White House Secretary in February, issued a statement saying of the book: 'I am struck by the selective and often misleading portrait it paints of the president and his administration.'

Trump was speaking at a press briefing about Hurricane Florence on Tuesday when a reporter asked about Porter and Cohn's denials, which the president praised

Porter (right), who was ousted as White House Secretary in February, called Woodward's book 'selective and often misleading'. Privately, Trump believes he is a primary source

Cohn also called the book inaccurate. Woodward claimed in the book that Cohn stole a memo off of the Resolute Desk to prevent Trump from signing it

Earlier on Tuesday, it emerged that the president is convinced his Porter was 'a major source' of information in Bob Woodward's new book, 'Fear,' according to two West Wing sources and a longtime Trump friend who has his ear on a regular basis.

'He thinks Rob trash-talked him after he was forced out,' one senior White House official told DailyMail.com on Tuesday.

The other official said the president 'is always wondering which of his people aren't really his people, and now he's pretty sure which camp [Porter] is in.'

Asked about Trump's sense of disappointment in Porter, who once organized most of his daily life in office, the president's longtime friend said he now seems more likely to believe the spousal abuse allegations that torpedoed the former aide's West Wing career.

Porter was revealed by DailyMail.com to have been accused by both his ex-wives of physically abusing them, and to have cheated on his girlfriend with Hope Hicks, Trump's then director of communications.

'You know how he is with loyalty,' the friend added, referring to the premium Trump has long placed on fealty and devotion among his most trusted employees. 'It's not like this is as bad as Michael [Cohen], but now he thinks he never really knew the guy. I mean, really. He was a major source for the book.'

'The president used to wonder if Rob was really that guy, a guy who was violent with his wives. Not now,' the source added.

Woodward, a famed Watergate-era journalistic sleuth, published a blistering book on Tuesday that the president thinks was the result of backstabbing from Porter

Porter, pictured at center on Trump's first day in office, was responsible for the flow of paper in and out of hte Oval Office until accusations of spousal abuse drove him out of the White House

Tump is seen with Hope Hicks in March. Porter was dating Hicks at the time of his ouster

A White House spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.

Woodward writes that at one point Trump wanted to elevate Porter, a Harvard-educated lawyer, to the high-profile and high-stakes role of White House counsel.

Instead, Porter was shown the door in February following accusations that he was physically abusive to both of his ex-wives.

'Fear' largely soft-pedals that scandal, which emerged from DailyMail.com's reporting.

Woodward also writes that Porter 'quickly concluded' he shouild resign when the first domestic violence allegation rocked Washington. In reality, the White House circled its wagons around him at first in an effort to ride out the storm.

That effort ended abruptly when his other former spouse released photos showing her with a black eye she said Porter inflicted on her.

President Trump thanked Porter and Gary Cohn for their statements on Tuesday during a press availability about hurricane preparendess, but private he's fuming that they both sold him out

The book's publisher has reportedly printed 1 million copies, anticipating a massive run on hardcover copies

Despite an avalanche of negative publicity that forced the White House to revamp the way it awarded security clearances  Porter had high-level access to government secrets on an 'interim' basis, Trump continued to talk with the former aide after his departure.

As the scandal reached its peak, Trump publicly defended him, telling reporters that he 'says he's innocent and I think you have to remember that. ... We absolutely wish him well.'

He later mused about bringing Porter back to the White House, The New York Times reported about seven weeks after his ouster.

Porter issued a lengthy statement Tuesday, hours after Woodward's book went on sale, defending his role as Trump's clerical chieftain and taking issue with descriptions of him as a behind-the-scenes conspirator determined to intercept Trump's unforced errors in mid-flight.

Like a good soldier, Porter said Woodward had rendered a 'selective and often misleading portrait' of Trump and his administration.

But the bulk of Porter's statement concerned his own role in keeping Trump's Oval Office running with some semblance of smoothness.

He pointedly disputed an embarrassing anecdote that Woodward explores in exacting detail, about Cohn swiping a draft letter to South Korea from Trump's desk as a way of stopping the president from ending of a 2102 trade agrement.

Porter's first wife, Colbie Holderness, released photos in February of her with a black eye  an injury that she said Porter caused during their marriage

'I stole it off his desk,' Cohn later boasts to an associate in Woodward's telling of the story. 'I wouldn't let him see it. He's never going to see that document. Got to protect the country.'

The disappearance of paperwork from the Resolute Desk, no matter the culprit, would have represented a significant lapse on Porter's part.

He pushed back Tuesday, insisting the tale was just that.

'The suggestion that materials were 'stolen' from the President's desk to prevent his signature misunderstands how the White House document review process works,' he said, 'and has worked for at least the last eight administrations.'

ROB PORTER'S 'FEAR' STATEMENT Former staff secretary to the president Rob Porter issued this statement to reporters on Tuesday after Bob Woodward's book 'Fear' hit store shelves: 'Having now read Bob Woodward's Fear, I am struck by the selective and often misleading portrait it paints of the President and his administration. 'As Staff Secretary, I was responsible for managing the flow of documents to and from the Oval Office and ensuring that anything the President was asked to sign had been properly vetted. The suggestion that materials were 'stolen' from the President's desk to prevent his signature misunderstands how the White House document review process works  and has worked for at least the last eight administrations. 'It was also my responsibility to help ensure that relevant viewpoints were considered, that pros and cons were evaluated, that policy proposals were thoroughly vetted, and that the President could make decisions based on full information. Fulfilling this responsibility does not make someone part of a 'resistance' or mean they are seeking to 'thwart' the President's agenda. Quite the opposite. 'President Trump invites robust discussion and asks probing questions. He has the confidence to allow advisors to disagree with a proposed course of action and advocate for an alternative outcomeand I sometimes did just that. But in the end, President Trump is the one who decides, and he has shown himself more than capable of doing so. During my time in the White House, I sought to serve the President's best interests and to help enable his many successessuccesses that Mr. Woodward's book ignores. 'President Trump's accomplishments are undeniable: significant tax relief to spur economic growth, rolling back burdensome regulations to unleash job creators, remaking the federal judiciary to uphold the Constitution, and much more.' Advertisement

One of the only figures who appears more often than Porter in Woodward's book is former chief economic adviser Gary Cohn (right), who hasn't denied an account in 'Fear' of him stealing a document from the Resolut Desk so Trump couodn't sign it

'I am proud of my service in the Trump Administration,' Cohn said, 'and I continue to support the President and his economic agenda.'

'President Trump's accomplishments are undeniable: significant tax relief to spur economic growth, rolling back burdensome regulations to unleash job creators, remaking the federal judiciary to uphold the Constitution, and much more,' Porter gushed.

Trump, meanwhile, has blasted Woodward as a 'fiction' writer who used 'made up quotes' in his 'scam' book.

Porter's name appears in Woodward's book more than 240 times, figuring more prominently than Jared Kushner, Kellyanne Conway, Ivanka Trump, Reince Priebus or Melania Trump.

Among the few people Woodward name-checked more often than Porter are former chief strategist Steve Bannon and former economic czar Gary Cohn.
Le Collectif Cheikh Yassine a organise un certain nombre dactivites et de festivites pour les enfants de Gaza sous le theme  La joie des enfants de Gaza pour lAid . Ces activites ont commence le premier jour de lAid et continue jusquau 4eme jour de lAid dans la bande de Gaza.



Plusieurs activites, ont ete organisees parmi lesquelles : des competitions recompensees par des prix, des jeux, des animations et des chants presentes par un groupe ainsi que des distributions de cadeaux et daides financieres.




Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers could soon be forced to wear gloves all day if the government's planned new uniform policy is approved.

The new policy demands officers cover up any visible tattoos, and although it was originally only meant to apply to officers in uniform, it now also includes those who wear AFP insignia, including lanyards.

Angela Smith, president of the Australian Federal Police Association (AFPA), told Daily Mail Australia that there was no consultation period with AFP staff prior to the adoption of the new policy.

The government has imposed a brand new uniform policy for Australian Federal Police (AFP) which will force officers to cover up any visible tattoos

Instead, employees were simply sent an email stating that the policy would be effective as of September 1 this year.

The AFPs previous policy stated that staff members could have tattoos, providing they were not deemed offensive, and were not located on the hand, scalp, ears or neck.

Angela Smith, president of the Australian Federal Police Association (AFPA), told Daily Mail Australia that there was no consultation period with AFP staff prior to the adoption of the new policy

It was very much a common-sense approach, Smith said.

But now, Smith has questioned what those with tattoos that are harder to conceal are supposed to do.

'What about the females that have a small tattoo behind their ear or the members with tattoos on their hands, surely they cant require to wear gloves all day?' she said.

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, an AFP spokesman said staff could choose how to cover up their visible tattoos as long as it did not interfere with their ability to perform their role.

Common sense will prevail in the application of this policy and exemptions considered on a case-by-case basis, the spokesman said.

The change of policy is said to have come as part of the governments attempt to ensure a consistent law enforcement approach across the Home Affairs portfolio.

[The Home Affairs secretary] had a view that all members should be made to cover up, Smith said.

However, an AFPA statement earlier this week said that justification for the policy change has not been clarified.

The AFPs previous policy stated that staff members could have tattoos, providing they were not deemed offensive, and were not located on the hand, scalp, ears or neck

The statement claimed that the AFPA does not support the change and said that it was another example of the AFP deliberately seeking out committed and intelligent employees, then treating them like fools.

The amount of feedback received by the AFPA in relation to this issue has been extraordinary and highlights to us the depth of feeling among members about what is for many a very personal change, Smith said.

A significant portion of feedback has been from members without tattoos who remain concerned about the nature of the change and the circumstances in which it was imposed.

The Australian Border Force (ABF) has also had the same policy imposed, but is allegedly reviewing feedback from employees.

Their updated tattoo policy is expected to be included in wider changes to ABF uniform policy due for release next month.
Children as young as 11-years-old are being arrested for dealing cannabis because suppliers are using them to sell the drugs, new research has found.

There was a 5.5 per cent increase in the prosecution of drug dealers under the age of 18 from 2012/13 to 2016/17.

Over those five years, Hampshire Police took action against an 11 and a 12-year-old, while forces in the West Midlands and South Wales arrested three 12-year-olds each, according to The Times.

Children as young as 11-years-old are being arrested for dealing cannabis because suppliers are using them to sell the drugs, according to new research. File image used

Today's report by think tank Volteface says children are being 'exploited' to deal cannabis on adults' behalf, as figures show there has been a 16 per cent drop in adult prosecutions while youth arrests go up.

Politicians said the report showed the 'war on drugs has failed' and that children were paying for 'outdated' policies.

Volteface argued: 'Dealing cannabis as a young person be considered a potential indicator of vulnerability, rather than criminality, and should be treated as a safeguarding concern, much like in instances of child sexual exploitation.'

Its poll of more than 1,000 16 and 17-year-olds across Britain suggested the banned drug was easier to access than the heavily-restricted alcohol.

Some 22 per cent of those who had drunk alcohol said it was easy to buy, compared to 44 per cent of those who had used cannabis saying the drug was straightforward to obtain.

Over a period of five years, Hampshire Police took action against an 11 and a 12-year-old, while forces in the West Midlands and South Wales arrested three 12-year-olds each. File image

Labour MP David Lammy said the report shows 'the war on drugs has failed' and 'all options' including legislation should be considered as a remedy.

He said: 'Cannabis specifically has become the substance of choice for young people, who are unable to purchase alcohol because of its strict regulation.

'Therefore the criminalisation of the drug has had the exact opposite effect to the deterrence it was meant to induce.'

Liberal Democrat former health minister Norman Lamb said children are 'paying the price for the UK's outdated' drugs policy.

'The Government is directly putting children and teenagers at risk by leaving the supply of cannabis in the hands of organised crime,' he added.

Anne Longfield, the children's commissioner for England, told The Times that young people are at the 'bottom of a ladder of cannabis distribution'.

Anne Longfield (pictured) the children's commissioner for England, told The Times that young people are at the 'bottom of a ladder of cannabis distribution'

She added: 'We may need to look again at how we protect our young people from harm while not rushing to criminalise them too soon.'

The child drug dealing revalations come amid an ongoing crisis in policing, with the National Audit Office warning budget cuts mean the police are no longer able to keep the public safe.

Chief constables are finding it increasingly difficult to deliver an effective day-to-day service, according to Britains spending watchdog.

The National Audit Office said spiralling rates of high harm crime such as sex attacks, gun and knife offences, were increasing the pressure on resources.

It said that police chiefs had sought to balance the books by reducing the number of bobbies on the beat  leaving forces overstretched.
A judge has said he would jail two pub developers who dumped asbestos riddled waste near homes if he could.

Stefce Kutlesovski and Raman Shaqiri pleaded guilty to dumping industrial waste from the former Corkman Hotel site in a residential area in Melbourne's north-west.

They were each fined $120,000 in the Sunshine Magistrates Court on Wednesday, almost the maximum amount available.

Raman Shaqiri (pictured) pleaded guilty to dumping industrial waste from the former Corkman Hotel site

Their company, 160 Leicester, was fined a further $300,000 for the offence.

Magistrate Richard Pithouse said this type of behavior needs to be stopped, 9News reported.

'If jail was available I would be imprisoning the accused,' he said.

'There needs to be a putative punishment for any developers who may wish to follow this path. It has to be discouraged.'

He also criticized Kutlesovski over his behaviour in court, ABC reported.

Stefce Kutlesovski (pictured) pleaded guilty to dumping industrial waste from the former Corkman Hotel site

'You think you're above the law, but you are not.'

'I wouldn't be sitting rubbing your chin so smugly as you are today.'

The developers knocked down a 159-year-old Melbourne pub in October 2016 after they had promised to restore it to its former glory.

The company and Shaqiri pleaded guilty to knocking down the pub in May.

Kutlesovski is fighting those charges and a hearing is scheduled for January.
Spurned prime ministerial aspirant Julie Bishop brought a stack of fan mail on to the floor of Parliament to send a message to her Liberal colleagues who rejected her.

The former foreign minister sat on the backbench during Question Time with a pile of papers, three weeks after receiving just 11 votes in a party leadership ballot.

The woman, who was deputy Liberal leader for almost 11 years, displayed the folders in the House of Representatives as a backbench colleague, one row in front of her, asked a 'Dorothy Dixer' question to new Treasurer Josh Frydenberg.

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Spurned prime ministerial aspirant Julie Bishop (seated behind backbencher Luke Howarth) brought papers into Parliament to send a message to her Liberal colleagues who rejected her

Julie Bishop sat on the backbench next to disgruntled fellow backbencher Julia Banks as the man who replaced her as Liberal deputy, Josh Frydenberg, was asked a 'Dorothy Dixer'

The senior minister answering the question last month replaced her as the Liberal Party's deputy leader, as Australia woke up to its fifth PM in five years.

As Luke Howarth asked Mr Frydenberg about tax relief for small business, shortly after lunch, Ms Bishop continued checking her smart phone as she sat next to another disgruntled backbencher Julia Banks, who had complained about male Liberal MPs bullying her during the leadership ballot.

Afterwards, Ms Bishop's office told Sky News the papers were from voters lamenting how she garnered just 11 votes from the Liberal Party's 85 federal members during the first round of the leadership ballot on August 24.

The 62-year-old former partner with corporate law firm Clayton Utz became the Liberal Party's deputy leader in December 2007, serving under Brendan Nelson, Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott, throughout four leadership changes.

Julie Bishop's office told Sky News afterwards the stack of papers were letters from voters lamenting how the Liberal Party hadn't chosen her as leader

Opinion polls consistently showed she was more popular than Scott Morrison, who is now Prime Minister, and Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, as former Liberal leader Malcolm Turnbull struggled to maintain political traction with voters.

She was a popular figure among voters despite the federal government's unpopularity.

Mr Morrison and much of his party have rejected a call for Labor-style gender quotas, even though women make up just 22 per cent of the Liberal Party's federal MPs.

Julie Bishop became the Liberal Party's deputy leader in December 2007, serving under Brendan Nelson, Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott, throughout four leadership changes

Ms Bishop, a divorced MP from Perth who has been in Parliament since 1998 as the member for Curtin, supported gay marriage and had support from the Liberal Party's ideologically moderate faction.

The party's moderates, however, backed Mr Morrison, a Hillsong Christian who opposed gay marriage, in a bid to stop Mr Dutton prevailing as the right's candidate.

Ms Bishop rejected Mr Morrison's offer to continue as Australia's first female foreign minister, and resigned from the post to sit on the backbench for the first time in 15 years.
South Carolina has reversed the flow of traffic on some of the state's busiest highways after more than a million people were ordered to evacuate ahead of Hurricane Florence.

Aerial footage showed traffic heading in the same direction up both sides of the road along Interstate 29 and Highway 501 on Tuesday afternoon.

Authorities have warned that Florence is the worst hurricane to hit the Carolinas and Virginia region in decades, with a loss of life expected.

Traffic flows in the same direction up both sides of Interstate 26 in South Carolina after lanes were reversed to help with Hurricane Florence evacuations

State troopers were ordered to reverse the direction of traffic along the I-28 and US 501 from midday on Tuesday after governor Henry McMaster ordered eight counties to evacuate

More than a million people have been told to flee the coast as Florence approaches, with 177 hospitals and nursing homes completely emptied (pictured, state troopers block the entrance to a highway after traffic flow was reversed)

Florence is already a Category 4 storm with 130mph winds. It changed course overnight promising to bring even worse devastation to the Carolinas and even parts at Georgia  with the Michigan-sized storm now set to linger for days and cause catastrophic flooding with up to four feet of rain and 13-foot storm surges.

It is predicted to stall even more off the coast of the Carolinas before scraping down the US east coast and moving inland before the weekend.

The new trajectory means the storm will idle at sea for longer creating even heavier and prolonged rains and storm surges for the Carolinas and possibly northern parts of Georgia.

At least 25 million residents are at risk from the storm and experts predict its current path could cause up to $170 billion worth of damage, hit up to 759,000 homes and businesses and become the costliest to ever hit the U.S.

Hurricane-force winds will reach the Carolina coasts late Thursday or early Friday.

The highway reversals came into effect at noon on Tuesday, but traffic volumes were already significantly higher during the morning.

At mid-morning , the S.C. Department of transportation reported 'four to six times the traffic volumes coming out of Myrtle Beach,' 'three times the normal volumes on I-26 out of Charleston' and twice the 'normal volumes on U.S. 278 from Hilton Head.'

A young man sits with his head in his hands outside Trask Middle School, South Carolina, which is being used as an emergency shelter ahead of Hurricane Florence

Stores have been emptied of supplies and gas stations have run dry as forecasters warn Florence will be the worst hurricane to hit the region in decades

This marks the third straight year in which South Carolina has been forced to reverse its roads to deal with storm evacuations.

McMaster ordered the last reversal himself in 2017 when Hurricane Irma was approaching, while former governor Nikki Haley made a similar order in 2016.

Before Haley, the last person to order the highways reversed was Jim Hodges who made the order in 1999 to deal with traffic surges ahead of Hurricane Floyd.

North and South Carolina and Virginia have all ordered mass evacuations along the coast after declaring states of emergency.
Mystery deepened today over the pair of 'Russian assassins' who flew to London to poison the Skripals with novichok.

Vladimir Putin claimed they were civilians not GRU military spies and had done nothing criminal - as he urged them to come clean and tell their story.

But one - who appears to work for a drugs company in Tomsk, Siberia, making vaccine against smallpox - snubbed him by refusing to speak before next week.

'No comment for the moment. Maybe later. Next week, I think,' a man identified as Alexander Petrov was reported to have told State television channel Rossiya-24.

Vladimir Putin, pictured at an economic forum in Russia today, claims his country's authorities have found the men suspected of the Novichok attack

Left, an alleged picture of poisoning suspect Ruslan Bochirov and, right, an alleged pictured of suspect Alexander Petrov

Last week the same man had told Russian TV: 'I don't know a thing about it. And I have nothing to do with the Skripal story.'

He claimed he was the victim of mistaken identity, and denied possessing a foreign passport.

'This is a complete coincidence,' he said. 'Let alone London, I can't even manage to get to the Altai Mountains (in southern Siberia).'

The other suspect, Ruslan Bochirov, also named by anti-terror police in London, has not so far spoken and showed no immediate indication of obeying Putins call.

And if Putin intended to imply that Petrov had been innocently in Britain, this was immediately denied by Viktoria Skripal, niece of poisoned ex-double agent Sergei Skripal.

'According to my information, real Alexander Petrov was not in the UK at that time,' she told Interfax news agency.

Viktoria went on to say about Petrov and Boshirov: 'Through my sources I know that these are ordinary people. Petrov's work is even not related to the government.'

Without naming her sources she said that Petrov and Bochirov 'and their close ones are in complete bewilderment and shock over what's happening.

'I knew it from the first day that this whole story about involvement of Petrov and Boshirov is fake.'

This claim appeared to contradict Putin who said the Russian government had 'found' the pair identified by Britain.

'We've found them, and hope they will come forward and tell us about themselves,' said the Kremlin leader.

'This would be best for everyone. There is nothing special here, nothing criminal, I assure you.'

Meanwhile newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets (MK) claimed pictures of the Petrov from Tomsk do not appear to match the man seen in London on CCTV footage.

A separate Alexander Petrov - a common Russian name - has grandparents who were in Stalins SMERSH death to spies killing machine, but Russian state-run TV, at least, appears to think he is the wrong man.

This is despite his foreign passport - evidently used to travel to London - apparently matching his address in Moscow.

This Petrov once ran a lingerie plant in Ukraine - and left under a cloud of debt, according to his business partner today.

Also today, MK today claimed there are many 'unexplainable moments in Ruslan Boshirovs biography'.

It came as Downing Street accused Russia of lying after Vladimir Putin claimed that the two men identified as suspects by British authorities were 'civilians, not criminals'.

They identified the pair as Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov and claimed they were members of the GRU, Russia's military intelligence network.

The Russian premier said he knew the true identities of the men accused of trying to murder Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia and denied they were spies.

Alexander Petrov, right in CCTV footage, and Ruslan Boshirov, left, were named by British authorities as the suspects and were said to be part of the Russian military intelligence service

The Kremlin also claimed that Petrov worked for a pharmaceutical company and was not involved with the military.

But Theresa May hit back at these claims and said Russia has repeatedly failed to answer questions over what the men were doing in the UK if they were not involved.

Official documents suggest Boshirov was born on 12 April 1978 in Dushanbe, capital of ex-Soviet republic Tajikistan.

Now 40, he apparently lived in Blagoveshchensk, deep in Siberia, before moving to Moscow.

Intriguingly, MK newspaper said a passport issued in his name shows a picture similar to the CCTV pictures from Britain.

This passport - believed to be his domestic identity document not a foreign travel document - was issued in 2010, it was reported.

'A passport with the name of Ruslan Boshirov actually exists. It was issued in Moscow on 20 October 2010.

'The man on the picture looks very much like the man who is suspected by the British of poisoning the Skripals.'

The paper did not published the picture - but it emerged tonight. Yet the trail for Boshirov goes cold.

Official databases suggest Boshirov lives in a flat with a non-existent address - or, according to another version, one occupied in a 25-storey Moscow block by a woman called Alina Isakova, owner of the apartment for 11 years.

'The woman swears by God that a Ruslan Boshirov is not registered and has never been registered at her address,' reported MK. 'She lives with with her husband and teenage son in a one-room apartment 43.3 square metres in size.'

Isakova fumed: 'I am tired explaining to everyone that I do not know this person. In the past two days we've been attacked by journalists.

'They even managed to get through our concierge that a fly cannot pass. No one would have been able to register him without my knowledge.'

MK concluded: 'There is no reason not to trust Isakova This is why it is possible to say that at least the information about the residential registration of Ruslan Boshirov is incorrect.'

Boshirovs parents are listed as Tatiana Sergeyevna Boshirova and Timur Mikhailovich Boshirov.

But MK insists it was told by the Russian migration service that 'there are no such people' on their databases. Their names are not on other Russian registers.

Two mobile phones issued to the man are 'blocked', reported the newspaper.

'Two messengers are registered to one of them showing that this user was last seen online on March 11, precisely one week after poisoning of Skripals.'

Separately Viktoria Skripal denied claimed the story was like 'a good detective story, or bad vaudeville'

On Petrov and Boshirov, she said: 'I dont know who they arethey might be fake identities, and they might be real.

'TV shows some strange shots from (Gatwick) airport which make me want to say that if you fake a story, fake it better. These two were seen in Salisbury.

A spokesperson for the Prime Minister, pictured today, reiterated claims by British authorities that the men were Russian intelligence agents and accused the Kremlin of 'lies'

The Russian leader, pictured in Vladivostok, added there was 'nothing criminal' in the actions of the pair

'Sergey has CCTV cameras at home. Why didnt we see them by the house?

'Reports suggested that it took Sergey and Yulia up to four hours to succumb to Novichok.

'Earlier we were made to believe that the military-grade nerve agent kills almost instantly.

'Then, a door handle was sprayed or smeared with Novichok. So why wasnt the house demolished, why does it still there, contaminated.

'There are two more houses as close as 20 metres to Sergeys house, people continue to live there and dont get poisoned - how come?

'People who got close to Novichok, namely who lived next to the site and who stood in the police cordon, none of them got poisoned. I find it strange. Could this be a GRU punishment to a traitor?

'Honestly, I find it somewhat ridiculous. Does the Russian GRU have nothing better to do? Dont we have problems in Ukraine? Dont we have heaps of other problems?

'Sergey was one of four who was pardoned; the last on the list (of spies exchanged in the swap with Anna Chapman in 2010). Why werent the others poisoned? Why are our other double-agents not poisoned in the US? Why only Skripal, and only in the UK?'

Russia paraded nuclear-capable missiles able to reach London at a week-long war games event with China, with 300,000 Russian troops taking part in a move that has rattled the West.

Speaking at an economic forum in Vladivostok, Mr Putin said: 'We have checked what kind of people they are. We know who they are, we have found them.

'We hope they will turn up very soon and will tell everything themselves. It will be better for all of us. There is nothing criminal in it'.

The president's claims fly in the face of the Prime Minister Theresa May, who previously told MPs the attack was 'almost certainly approved at the top level of the Russian state'.

But Mrs May said today: The police and CPS have identified these men as the prime suspects in the attack in Salisbury. These men are officers of the Russian military intelligence service, the GRU, who used a devastatingly toxic illegal chemical weapon on the streets of our country.

The Government has exposed the role of the GRU and its operatives in these methods. Its position is supported by our international allies.

We have repeatedly asked Russia to account for what happened in Salisbury in March. They have replied with obfuscation and lies. I have seen nothing to suggest that has changed.

In an unusual move, Mr Putin called on Petrov and Boshirov to appear before the media to talk about 'themselves'.

The denial comes amid claims the pair had a 'back up' team with four more suspects still thought to be at large.

In a bizarre twist the Russian state media has claimed that the Alexander Petrov suspected in the case previously ran a failed lingerie company near the Ukrainian city of Odessa.

Russian news outlet RT contacted his former business partner in Odessa, Sergey Prudnikov, who 'did not say anything good about his companion'.

He alleged Petrov left his business with a half million hryvnia debt - around 13,640.

Mr Prudnikov said: 'In a word, he cheated half-Odessa. Many are looking for him but nobody found him yet.'

'I don't know what kind of businessman he is. Most likely, a fraudster.'

They were accused of the Novichok attack on former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal, right, and his daughter Yulia, left

Petrov's links to a lingerie firm in Ukraine were found on a database stating he was co-founder of Lyubopil Sewing Factory (pictured) which made underwear and T-shirts but is now facing bankruptcy

One theory - after Putin's statement - is that Petrov may have had his identity stolen by the would-be assassin seen in Britain.

Mr Prudnikov added his former business partner was 'secretive' and he 'did not know who he really was'.

He said: 'He said he was from Moscow, but maybe not from Moscow, and maybe not Petrov, maybe not even Sasha (Alexander).

Last week it was claimed Petrov's grandparents served in Stalin's 'death to spies' SMERSH killing machine during the Second World War.

His links to the lingerie firm in Ukraine were found on a database stating he was co-founder of Lyubopil Sewing Factory which made underwear and T-shirts but is now facing bankruptcy.

He is also registered to an address in Marshala Tukhachevskogo street in Moscow.

Alexander Petrov (left) and Ruslan Boshirov (right) have been accused by British police of being two Russian spies who launched a novichok attack in Salisbury earlier this year

The pair were caught on CCTV at Salisbury train station shortly after 4pm on March 3, the day Mr Skripal was poisoned

Another Russian scientist called Alexander Petrov who works at a secretive Siberian plant that produces smallpox vaccine has already denied he is a GRU spy who was sent to Britain to assassinate Sergei Skripal.

This Petrov, 39, employed at mysterious Siberian 'scientific' company Virion, said: 'I don't know a thing about it.

'And I have nothing to do with the Skripal story.'

The two alleged assassins are said to have visited the UK several times, posing as wealthy Russians, so that their trip in March would not attract suspicion.

Work has started to decontaminate the home of poisoning victim Mr Skripal, six months after the attack.

A cordon is in place so that police investigations or clean-up work can be carried out safely and will remain in place until the decontamination has been completed.

Novichok 'assassins' movements revealed: Spies flew into Britain from Russia before getting train to Salisbury Scotland Yard today released detailed information about the movements of the prime suspects in the novichok nerve agent attack. Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov arrived in the UK on a Friday afternoon in March and checked into a budget hotel in east London. On the Saturday, the day before the attack, they carried out a reconnaissance trip to Salisbury before returning to London. On the Sunday, they took another train to Salisbury and are thought to have smeared the novichok on Mr Skripal's front door. That afternoon they returned to London and flew from Heathrow hours after the Skripals were found collapsed in a park. Friday, 2 March: 3pm: The suspects arrive at Gatwick airport, having flown from Moscow on Aeroflot flight SU2588. CCTV images from 3pm on Friday, March 2 show Petrov (left) and Boshirov (right) arriving at Gatwick airport on a flight from Moscow Friday, March 2 5.40pm: After travelling into London by train, the pair arrive at Victoria station. 6pm: They travelled to Waterloo station, where they were seen between 6pm and 7pm. 7pm: The pair then travelled to the City Stay Hotel in Bow Road, East London, where they stayed on the night of the Friday, 2 March. Saturday, 3 March: 11am: They left the hotel and took the underground to Waterloo station, arriving at approximately 11.45am. The two spies were pictured in Salisbury the day before the attack, when they carried out a reconnaissance trip 2.25pm: Having caught a train to Salisbury from Waterloo, they arrive in the cathedral city, the day before the attack. 4.10pm: After carrying out what police believe was reconnaissance of the Salisbury area, they leave the city and return to London. 8.05pm: They return to their hotel in Bow and stay there for the night. Sunday, 4 March: 8am: They made the same journey from the hotel, again using the underground from Bow to Waterloo station before continuing their journey by train to Salisbury. CCTV later showed them in the vicinity of Mr Skripal's house and police believe that they contaminated the front door with novichok. The pair are pictured at Salisbury train station on the morning of the day the Skripals were poisoned The pair are pictured in Wilton Road, Salisbury shortly before midday on March, 4, the day the Skripals were poisoned with novichok The pair were then seen on Salisbury's Fisherton Road on March 4 shortly after 1pm, around the time the nerve agent is thought to have been smeared on their target's front door As they walk around Salisbury on the day of the attack, they are seen on CCTV in Fisherton Road shortly after 1pm The pair were seen at Salisbury train station shortly before 2pm on March 4. This is thought to be after they left the novichok on the door 4.45pm: The arrived at back Waterloo Station after the hour and half journey from Salisbury. 6.30pm: They boarded the London Underground to London Heathrow Airport. 10:30pm: They fly out of London, returning to Moscow on Aeroflot flight SU2585. The two men were then seen going through security at Heathrow on their way back to Russia at 7.30pm, just hours after the Skripals were found collapsed in the park in Salisbury Advertisement

Counter-terrorism officers believe the house is where Mr Skripal, a former Russian agent, and his daughter Yulia were contaminated with nerve agent on March 4, after a high concentration of the chemical weapon was found on the front door.

Former GRU officer Mr Skripal and his daughter Yulia were left critically ill after being exposed to the military grade nerve agent Novichok in Salisbury in March.

Experts believe the Novichok was kept in a fake Nina Ricci perfume bottle and claim it took up to three months to produce and was probably sanctioned at the highest levels of the Russian state.

Detectives say it is likely the two suspects, thought to be aged around 40, travelled under aliases and that Petrov and Boshirov are not their real names.

Prosecutors deem it futile to apply to Russia for the extradition of the two men, but a European Arrest Warrant has been obtained and the authorities are also seeking the assistance of Interpol.

Officers have formally linked the attack on the Skripals to events in nearby Amesbury when Dawn Sturgess, 44, and her partner Charlie Rowley, 45, were exposed to the same nerve agent. Ms Sturgess later died in hospital.

Moscow has continued to deny it was involved in the attack.

A critic of Putin's regime has claimed the suspects are 'already dead' and that a search for them is futile.

Andrei Piontkovsky, a political analyst, raised the prospect that Russia may have disposed of Petrov and Boshirov in order to hide evidence of the alleged crime

Petrov and Boshirov are accused of using a modified perfume bottle to spray deadly nerve agent on the front door of Sergei Skripal's home in Salisbury (pictured being decontaminated)

Andrei Piontkovsky believes that Petrov and Boshirov could have been executed to hide traces of the alleged crime.

He compared the case to that of Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitry Kovtun, the men accused by Britain of poisoning Alexander Litvinenko with polonium in 2006.

Lugovoy and Kovtun went public to deny the claims soon after being accused, meaning the Russian authorities then protected them, said Piontkovsky.

'Lugovoy and Kovtun rescued themselves by running to Ecko (radio station) and going public,' the respected mathematician and political analyst said.

'One (Lugovoy) even had to be made an MP. If 'Petrov' and 'Bashirov' don't appear in the coming days, it means they are already dead.'

Prime Minister Theresa May told the House of Commons last week that CCTV evidence 'clearly' places the two Russians in the vicinity of the Skripals' house shortly before the attack on them.

Former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were poisoned with Novichok in Salisbury in attack which the UK has blamed on Russia

Police have released images of the fake perfume bottle they say was adapted to help the two Russian suspects carry out their lethal attack

The Met Police released photographs of the elaborate ruse used by the Russian agents including a perfect reconstruction of packaging to transport the weapon

She said: 'This hard evidence has enabled the independent Crown Prosecution Service to conclude they have a sufficient basis on which to bring charges'.

Mrs May said around 250 detectives had trawled through 11,000 hours of CCTV footage to identify the attackers and had taken more than 1,400 statements.

'Working around the clock, they have carried out painstaking and methodical work to ascertain exactly which individuals were responsible and the methods they used to carry out the attack,' she told MPs.

May told MPs that 'this was not a rogue operation' and would 'almost certainly' have been approved at a 'senior level of the Russian state'.

CCTV images showed Petrov and Boshirov grinning as they walked around the Wiltshire city on the day former double agent and his daughter were poisoned with the military grade nerve agent.

The pair were also pictured leaving Britain at Heathrow Airport shortly after the attack and have never returned.

Making the announcement on the suspects, Scotland Yard's counter terror Commissioner Neil Basu said: 'Today marks the most significant moment so far in what has been one of the most complex and intensive investigations we have undertaken in Counter Terrorism policing; the charging of two suspects  both Russian nationals - in relation to the attack on Sergei and Yulia Skripal.'

Scotland Yard's counter terror Commissioner Neil Basu (pictured) said the identification of the suspects was the most 'significant development so far' in the investigation

A timeline of the key developments in the Salisbury poisoning case Russian agents attacked Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with Novichok in 2018 2010 - Sergei Skripal, a former Russian military intelligence officer jailed for spying for Britain, is released and flown to the UK as part of a swap with Russian agents caught in the United States. He settles in Salisbury. March 3, 2018 - Yulia Skripal arrives at Heathrow Airport from Russia to visit her father in England. March 4, 9.15am - Sergei Skripal's burgundy BMW is seen in suburban Salisbury, near a cemetery, where his wife and son are commemorated. March 4, 1.30pm - The BMW is seen driving toward central Salisbury. March 4, 1.40pm - The BMW is parked at a lot in central Salisbury. A police officer stands guard outside the Zizzi restaurant where Sergei and Yulia had lunch before they collapsed in a nearby park March 4, afternoon - Sergei and Yulia Skripal visit the Bishops Mill pub. March 4, 2.20pm to 3.35pm - Sergei and Yulia Skripal have lunch at the Zizzi restaurant. March 4, 4.15pm - Emergency services are called by a passer-by concerned about a man and a woman in Salisbury city centre. Officers find the Skripals unconscious on a bench. They are taken to Salisbury District Hospital, where they remain in critical condition. March 5, morning - Police say two people in Salisbury are being treated for suspected exposure to an unknown substance. March 5, afternoon - Wiltshire Police, along with Public Health England, declare a 'major incident' March 7 - Police announce that the Skripals were likely poisoned with a nerve agent in a targeted murder attempt. They disclose that a police officer who responded to the incident is in serious condition in a hospital. March 8 - Home Secretary Amber Rudd describes the use of a nerve agent on UK soil was a 'brazen and reckless act' of attempted murder March 9 - About 180 troops trained in chemical warfare and decontamination are deployed to Salisbury to help with the police investigation. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says Moscow might be willing to assist with the investigation but expresses resentment at suggestions the Kremlin was behind the attack. March 11 - Public health officials tell people who visited the Zizzi restaurant or Bishops Mill pub in Salisbury on the day of the attack or the next day to wash their clothes as a precaution. March 12, morning- Prime Minister Theresa May tells the House of Commons that the Skripals were poisoned with Novichok, a military-grade nerve agent developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. March 12, afternoon - Public Health England ask everyone who visited Salisbury town centre on the day of the attack to wash all of their clothes and belongings. Officers wearing chemical protection suits secure the forensic tent over the bench where Sergei and Yulia fell ill March 14 - The PM announces the expulsion of 23 suspected Russian spies from the country's UK Embassy. March 22 - Nick Bailey, the police officer injured in the attack, is released from hospital. March 26 - The United States and 22 other countries join Britain in expelling scores of Russian spies from capitals across the globe. March 29 - Doctors say Yulia Skripal is 'improving rapidly' in hospital. 'Unknown time in the spring' - Dutch authorities expelled two suspected Russian spies who tried to hack into a Swiss laboratory April 3 - The chief of the Porton Down defence laboratory said it could not verify the 'precise source' of the nerve agent. April 5, morning - Yulia Skripal's cousin Viktoria says she has received a call from Yulia saying she plans to leave hospital soon. Dawn Sturgess died in hospital on July 8 April 5, afternoon - A statement on behalf of Yulia is released by Metropolitan Police, in which she says her strength is 'growing daily' and that 'daddy is fine'. April 9 - Ms Skripal is released from hospital and moved to a secure location. May 18 - Sergei Skripal is released from hospital 11 weeks after he was poisoned. June 30 - Dawn Sturgess and Charlie Rowley fall ill at a property in Amesbury, which is eight miles from Salisbury, and are rushed to hospital. July 4 - Police declare a major incident after Ms Sturgess and Mr Rowley are exposed to an 'unknown substance', later revealed to be Novichok. July 5 - Sajid Javid demands an explanation over the two poisonings as he accuses the Russian state of using Britain as a 'dumping ground for poison'. July 8 - Mother-of-three Dawn Sturgess, 44, dies in hospital due to coming into contact with Novichok. July 10 - Mr Rowley regains consciousness at hospital, and later tells his brother that Dawn had sprayed the Novichok onto her wrists. July 19 - Police are believed to have identified the perpetrators of the attack. August 20 - Charlie Rowley is rushed to hospital as he starts to lose his sight, but doctors can't confirm whether it has anything to do with the poisoning. August 26 - Charlie Rowley admitted to intensive care unit with meningitis August 28 - Police call in the 'super recognisers' in bid to track down the poisoners September 4 - Charlie Rowley's brother says he has 'lost all hope' and doesn't have long to live. Independent investigators, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, confirm the toxic chemical that killed Ms Sturgess was the same nerve agent as that which poisoned the Skripals. September 5 - Scotland Yard and CPS announce enough evidence to charge Russian nationals Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov for conspiracy to murder over Salisbury nerve agent attack. September 13 - Britain's most wanted men speak to RT and claim to be humble tourists September 26 - The real identity of one of the two assassins, named by police as Ruslan Boshirov, is reported to be Colonel Anatoliy Vladimirovich Chepiga. October 3: New photo emerges that appears to show Col Chepiga on the Wall of Heroes at the Far-Eastern Military Academy, providing more evidence against the Kremlin's denials. Advertisement

Putin's show of strength: Russia begins 'war games' by parading nuclear-capable missiles that can reach London and mobilising 300,000 troops and 36,000 tanks alongside Chinese forces in rehearsals for a 'large conflict'

Russian president Vladimir Putin's denial his country had anything to do with the Novichok poisoning comes a day after he paraded nuclear-capable missiles that are able to reach London in rehearsals for a 'large conflict' alongside Chinese soldiers.

Beijing issued a veiled threat to US President Donald Trump as it launched its largest every military drills, with 300,000 Russian troops taking part along with Chinese soldiers in a massive show of force that has rattled the West.

The week-long war games dubbed 'Vostok-2018' (East-2018), 'have kicked off' in far eastern Russia and on the Pacific Ocean, the Russian defence ministry said in a statement.

Hundreds of thousands of troops including Chinese soldiers are taking part in Russia's largest every military drills. Pictured, Russian armored personnel carriers roll during the military exercises in the Chita region, eastern Siberia

The defence ministry released video footage of military vehicles, planes, helicopters and ships getting into position for the initial stage of the drills

Several frigates equipped with Kalibr missiles that have been used in Syria during the games are seen in Russian waters on Tuesday

It broadcast images on Tuesday of military trucks being transported on trains, columns of tanks, armoured vehicles and warships on the move, ships getting into position and combat helicopters and fighter aircraft taking off.

The ministry said this activity was part of the first stage of the exercise, which runs until September 17, and it involved deploying additional forces to Russia's far east and a naval build-up involving its Northern and Pacific fleets.

The main aim was to check the military's readiness to move troops large distances, to test how closely infantry and naval forces cooperated, and to perfect command and control procedures. Later stages will involve rehearsals of both defensive and offensive scenarios.

The week-long war games dubbed 'Vostok-2018' (East-2018), kicked off in far eastern Russia. Pictured, a military aircraft getting into position on Tuesday

Drone footage captured a Russian fleet being loaded with a missile ahead of the war games dubbed 'Vostok-2018'

A Russian soldier guards an area during the military exercises in the Chita region of eastern Siberia during the Vostok-2018 exercises in Russia

The defence ministry said the largest military drills since the end of the Cold War will involve about 36,000 tanks and 300,000 troops at sea and on the ground. China is sending 3,200 troops to take part in the exercises later this week.

They coincide with talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of an economic forum in Vladivostok in Russia's far east on Tuesday, at which he claimed his authorities 'knew who the Novichok suspects were'.

The military exercises come at a time of escalating tensions between Moscow and the West over accusations of Russian interference in western affairs and ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Syria.

The Russian army has compared the show of force to the USSR's 1981 war games that saw between 100,000 and 150,000 Warsaw Pact soldiers take part in 'Zapad-81' (West-81) - the largest military exercises of the Soviet era.

China's President Xi Jinping (left) and Vladimir Putin (centre) toast with a shot of vodka at a pancakes stand on Tuesday

Russian armored personnel carriers roll through the Chita region, Eastern Siberia, during the war games on Tuesday

The Russian army is rolling out all of its latest additions for the massive military exercises including T-80 and T-90 tanks

Russian military helicopters fly, in the Chita region, Eastern Siberia, during the Vostok 2018 exercises in Russia

Some 30 aircraft from the Chinese air force will also take part in the five day drills.

The Chinese claimed the vast operation was not 'directed against any third party' and would focus purely on 'defences, firepower strikes and counterattack.'

The latest in a series of massive drills ordered by Putin come at a time of escalating tensions between Moscow and the West over accusations of Russian interference in western affairs and ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Syria.

Vostok-2018 also features more than twice the number of troops in the entire British armed forces, which is just below 150,000.

The Kremlin has also accused NATO of expanding westwards and threatening Russian national security.
A woman is recovering in hospital after a daylight shooting on Wednesday afternoon.

The woman was walking down Leeds Street in the inner-city Melbourne suburb of Richmond when she was shot in the back of the leg.

The suspected gunman is still on the loose with officers appealing to the public with any information that may lead to his or her arrest.

A woman was shot in the leg in the trendy inner-city Melbourne suburb of Richmond today

Upon police arrival at the crime scene, a 44-year-old woman was located with non-life threatening injuries to her leg, a Victoria Police spokesperson confirmed to Daily Mail Australia.

She was then taken to The Alfred Hospital where she is in a stable condition.

Police are yet to establish the exact circumstances surrounding the incident with the investigation ongoing.

Richmond mother Nyariak Deng was picking up her son up from childcare when she heard what she believed to be gun fire.

'It was really loud,' she said.

'I heard the bullet. I was really scared.'

A 44-year-old woman was taken to hospital after she was shot in the leg in Melbourne today

Local resident James Meikle said he heard some loud noises on Leeds Street.

'It's a bit weird, you get a lot of crime in the area but never shootings,' he said.

'I automatically thought it was related to the (housing) commission flats.'

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at crimestoppersvic.com.au
This is the terrifying moment a white man pulls out a gun on a group of black students who were waiting for a friend to let them in to his college apartment block.

Footage posted on Twitter shows a man, identified as Don Crandall, blocking the entrance of several black Florida A&M University students to the Stadium Center student accommodation in Tallahassee last Saturday.

In the clip a group of students including Isaiah Butterfield, who filmed the incident, can be seen in a heated conversation with Crandall who at one point pulls out a gun.

Crandall had reportedly confronted the students as they waited outside the block for a friend to let them in to attend a party.

In the clip the man, later identified as Don Crandall, can be seen holding a gun in his right hand

'Find another elevator, you can't get in this one,' Crandall can be heard saying as he blocks their way into the building.

'Why not? Do you own the building?' the students asked.

'Because you don't belong in this building,' he replied, before adding, 'You ain't got a key for the building, you don't belong in the elevator.'

Footage of the incident was posted on Twitter by Butterfield and is being investigated by Tallahassee police.

'We are sick of the discrimination,' Butterfield wrote alongside the tweet.

'Never thought I'd have a personal experience with racism like this, this man pulled a gun on us because we were walking up to my friends apartment w/o a key.'

The group of black students can be seen having a prolonged argument with Crandall as he refuses to let them in the elevator

A spokesperson for the Stadium Center accommodation said Crandall did not live there after he was identified

Butterfield later told ABC News he believed Crandall had been trying to 'provoke' the students in order to use his weapon.

'Once we found out he had the gun, it turned into a whole different situation,' Butterfield said.

'We really think he was trying to provoke us to the point where it got violent so he could retaliate with the gun. I knew that if this dude even feels threatened, he's going to find any excuse to pull the trigger.'

Twitter users later identified the man in the video as Crandall, the manager of a local hotel Baymont by Wyndham.

In a post on Instagram, the hotel confirmed his identity and said that he was no longer working there.

A spokesperson for Stadium Center also confirmed that Crandall did not live in the apartment block.

Florida A&M student Isaiah Butterfield filmed the confrontation and posted the video to Twitter

The confrontation took place outside the Stadium Center accommodation in central Tallahassee (pictured)
The leader of al-Qaeda called for more terror attacks to take place against the United States on the anniversary of 9/11.

Ayman al-Zawahiri declared that Muslims around the world must declare war against the United States, as he claimed the country was a religious enemy of Islam.

In his 30-minute speech presented directly to camera, al-Zawahiri used Trump's decision to move the embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as justification to carry out more attacks.

Ayman al-Zawahiri used a 30-minute address to camera to call on more terror attacks against the United States

Al-Zawahiri has taken over the reigns of the terror cell following the death of Osama Bin-Laden at the hands of US special forces in 2011. Pictured: The two terror leaders in May 1998

In the footage, al-Zawahiri says: 'America (is) the number one enemy of Muslims ... despite its professed secularism.'

He listed 14 directives to fight the United States, including an appeal for Muslim unity and jihadists to close ranks.

Al-Zawahiri's call to arms came on the 17th anniversary of September 11 attacks, where nearly 3,000 people died.

Al-Zawahiri has previously cited the US embassy move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as a reason to declare war on America.

In May, he said 'appeasement' with the US had failed and urged Muslims to conduct attacks on the US.

Al-Zawahiri has taken over the reigns of the terror cell following the death of Osama Bin Laden at the hands of US special forces in 2011.

Al-Zawahiri's (right) call to arms came on the 17th anniversary of September 11 attacks, where nearly 3,000 people died. Left: Osama Bin Laden

Bin Laden is regarded as the mastermind behind the attack against the US 17 years ago.

He cited US support of Israel, the presences of American troops in Saudi Arabia and sanctions against Iraq as motives to start what eventually triggered the 'war on terror'.

On Tuesday, Donald Trump paid tribute to the 'heroes' who fought back against hijackers on 9/11, vowing America would never flinch in the face of evil.

He added: 'As commander-in-chief, I will always do everything in my power to prevent terrorists from striking American soil.'
Sydney radio broadcaster Alan Jones has broken his silence after he and his employer were ordered to pay a record $3.7 million in damages after defaming one of Queensland's richest families.

The 2GB breakfast presenter, Harbour Radio and its sister station 4BC were sued by the prominent Wagner family, claiming they were responsible for 12 deaths in floods in the Lockyer Valley town of Grantham, south-west of Brisbane almost eight years ago.

Jones said he needed to 'read the entire judgement very carefully' in a statement released on Wednesday afternoon.

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Sydney radio broadcaster Alan Jones (pictured) and his employer have been ordered to pay a record $3.7 million in damages for defaming Queensland brothers over the 2011 floods

'I do feel that I have somehow let down the people of the Lockyer Valley who sought my assistance,' Jones said in a statement.

'As the judge found in this case, I sought to ventilate concerns expressed to me by those people.

'I am restrained in what I can say because I am now subject to injunctions and will be making no further comment.'

Macquarie Media expressed 2GB's disappointment in the decision.

'2GB, 4BC and Mr Jones will be considering carefully their appeal options. As injunctions now restrain them, nothing further can be said at this time,' a statement said.

The Wagners, who own the Wellcamp Airport in Toowoomba and have an estimated worth of $955 million, sued Jones after he linked them with a dozen deaths, which occurred as Queensland and northern New South Wales were devastated by raging floods in January 2011.

The Wagner family has been part of the Darling Downs and Toowoomba community since the mid-1850s.

The 2GB breakfast star, Harbour Radio and its sister station 4BC were sued by the Wagner family, who claim they were blamed for the deaths in Grantham, south-west of Brisbane

The Wagner brothers represented in the Wagner/Jones defamation case  John, Denis, Neill and Joe  have expressed relief after their six-year ordeal in which they endured attacks they today described as 'abhorrent, vicious, deceitful and spiteful'.

'Our family, and us as individuals, have faced vilification from Mr Jones since 2011,' Mr Wagner said in a prepared statement outside court.

'Until we commenced this action, Mr Jones' malicious attacks on our character and that of our family were unrelenting. They did this at great expense to our family and to the Toowoomba community.'

Supreme Court of Queensland Justice Peter Flanagan dismissed the complaint against journalist Nick Cater, a conservative columnist with The Australian newspaper, in delivering the record Australian defamation payout on Wednesday.

'I do feel that I have somehow let down the people of the Lockyer Valley (pictured in the 2011 floods) who sought my assistance,' Alan Jones said in a statement

Brothers John, Denis, Neill and Joe Wagner had sought $1.2 million each from the four defendants.

In a summary of his judgment, Justice Flanagan said the defamatory comments were 'extremely serious and of the gravest kind'.

He said Jones, Harbour Radio and 4BC had failed to establish any defence to any of the defamatory matters published.

Jones's top-rating Sydney 2GB breakfast show is also broadcast in Brisbane.

Brothers John (second left), Denis (second right), Neill (right) and Joe Wagner (far left) had sought $1.2 million each from the four defendants

Supreme Court Justice Peter Flanagan said Alan Jones's defamatory comments were 'extremely serious and of the gravest kind'

The judge noted the effect the comments had had on the Wagners.

'Prior to the publication of the defamatory broadcasts, each plaintiff enjoyed an excellent reputation for honesty and integrity, both in business and community circles,' he wrote.

'The publication of the defamatory broadcasts was very extensive.

'The defamatory broadcasts have caused each of the plaintiffs to suffer profound personal hurt and harm to their reputations, which includes their business reputations.'

The payout smashes the previous Australian record for defamation, with $2.62 million awarded to Perth barrister Lloyd Rayney last year after police defamed him by naming him as the 'prime' and 'only' suspect in the murder of his wife, Corryn.
A rare brown-and-white male panda has been arranged to mate with a female panda by Chinese scientists who hope to find out what gives him his special fur colour.

Experts in China's Qinling Giant Panda Research Centre said they had picked a 'super experienced' partner for nine-year-old Qizai, which had never mated before.

Qizai is the only brown-and-white panda in captivity in the world and his unique coat has left experts baffled for years.

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Nine-year-old Qizai, which has a unique colour of brown and white, has been arranged to mate with 18-year-old female panda Zhu Zhu. Zhu Zhu had been a mother four times since 2008

Qizai, about 27 in human years, is said to be in an opportune age to mate. Scientists described him as 'strong', 'active' and 'full of energy'.

Experts had spent months trying to choose an ideal partner for Qizai. They finally decided on 18-year-old Zhu Zhu, which had got pregnant twice through natural mating and had been a mother four times since 2008.

Zhang Danhui, a researcher at Qinling Giant Panda Research Centre, told China Central Television Station: 'The female panda must be very cooperative and have good stamina. Only then could she attract the male panda to mate successfully.'

Scientists said Zhu Zhu had 'excellent genes'. They added that she was 'healthy and as energetic as any younger female pandas'.

Qizai was found as a two-month-old cub, weak and alone, in China's Qinling Mountains

The nine-year-old male bear lives in the Foping Panda Valley in Shaanxi, north-east China

China Central Television Station said Qizai and Zhu Zhu were brought to stay in two neighbouring enclosures in Qinling Giant Panda Research Centre in late June after Zhu Zhu had started to show signs of being in season.

A female panda is in heat only once a year for 24 to 72 hours, which is why it is so hard to have baby pandas.

Scientists hoped that by staying next door, the two pandas could get familiar with each other before being put to mate.

When experts confirmed that Zhu Zhu was in heat through a hormone test, they brought Qizai and Zhu Zhu into the same cage to mate.

Adorable white-and-brown Qizai has grown to be a star in the animal world

However, researcher Zhang said the process wasn't successful because Qizai was 'inexperienced'.

He told China Central Television Station: 'He tried many times, but failed.'

In order not to miss the brief window to get Zhu Zhu impregnated, scientists carried out artificial insemination on the couple.

They are expected to find out if Zhu Zhu is pregnant at the end of this month.

If the artificial insemination is successful, experts said the colour of Qizai's cubs could provide them with a clue to understanding what has caused some pandas to be brown and white.
As the countdown to Brexit looms nearer the boss of JD Wetherspoon has announced the chain will axe European drinks in just a few days' time.

French Champagne and German beers have already been taken off menus to be replaced by UK, American and Australian brands which will see prices lowered across some 800 pubs by the end of this month.

This comes after Brexit-backing Tim Martin, the pub chains founder, launched a new series of beer mats claiming a no deal departure from the EU would lower its prices.

Brexit-backing Tim Martin, the pub chains founder, said the move will lead to lower prices across its 880 pubs from September 26

The pubs will stop serving Jagermeister as well as French brandies Courvoisier VS and Hennessy Fine de Cognac

The company said the move will lead to lower prices across its 880 pubs from September 26.

The pubs will stop serving Jagermeister as well as French brandies Courvoisier VS and Hennessy Fine de Cognac.

What drink changes are Wetherspoon making? Wetherspoon will replace Champagne with sparkling wines from the UK - Denbies Sparkling Whitedowns Brut and Whitedowns Rose Brut - as well as Hardys Sparkling Pinot Chardonnay from Australia. The pubs will also serve wheat beers from the UK and USA - Blue Moon Belgian White, Thornbridge Versa Weisse Beer and SA Brains Atlantic White. It will continue to serve Kopparberg cider from Sweden, after the firm confirmed that it will be producing its cider in the UK post-Brexit. Meanwhile alcohol-free Adnams Ghost Ship will replace Erdinger alcohol free beer from Germany. Advertisement

They will be replaced with E&J Brandy (the number two selling brandy in the US), Black Bottle (the number one selling brandy in Australia) and Strika, a herbal liqueur produced in England.

Wetherspoon has already replaced Champagne with sparkling wines from the UK and Australia as well as German wheat beers with those from the UK.

Sparkling wines from the UK will include Denbies Sparkling Whitedowns Brut and Whitedowns Rose Brut, as well as Hardys Sparkling Pinot Chardonnay from Australia.

The pubs will also serve wheat beers from the UK - Blue Moon Belgian White, Thornbridge Versa Weisse Beer and SA Brains Atlantic White.

Wetherspoon's will continue to serve Kopparberg cider from Sweden.

Kopparberg has confirmed that it will be producing its cider in the UK post-Brexit.

Alcohol-free Adnams Ghost Ship will replace Erdinger alcohol-free beer from Germany.

Wetherspoon has already replaced Champagne with sparkling wines from the UK and Australia as well as German wheat beers with those from the UK

Pub chain JD Wetherspoon has launched a new series of 'Brexit beer mats' claiming a no deal departure from the EU would actually lower its prices

Chairman Tim Martin, a strong supporter of Brexit, said: 'The three new products will be offered at a lower price than those they are replacing.

'This is a significant move by us and highlights our commitment to offering an excellent range of UK and world products, with the emphasis on quality and value for the two million customers who visit our pubs each week.

'In blind tastings conducted by Wetherspoon, the new products were more popular than those they are replacing.

'Many commentators talk of a 'cliff-edge' if the UK 'crashes out' of the EU without a deal.

'In reality, there is no cliff-edge, only sunlit uplands beyond the EU's protectionist system of quotas and tariffs.

'All EU products have UK or non-EU replacements, often at equal or better quality and price.'

Around 500,000 mats were sent around the company's 875 pubs which describe Theresa May's Chequers plan as 'crazy'

The pubs will also serve wheat beers from the UK - Blue Moon Belgian White, Thornbridge Versa Weisse Beer and SA Brains Atlantic White
A disgruntled ex-employee has been blamed for deliberately planting sewing needles in strawberries as thousands of punnets are recalled and a man recovers in hospital.

Consumers are being urged to throw out strawberries purchased over the past week in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria after needles were found inside the fruit.

Industry Development Officer Jennifer Rowling of Queensland Strawberry Growers Association released a statement on Wednesday of the company's suspicions.

'At this time, the Queensland Strawberry Growers Association have reason to suspect that a disgruntled ex-employee may have orchestrated the occurrence, wherein sewing needles were found in a number of strawberries, in Queensland and Victoria,' the statement read.

'To our current knowledge, two labels, Berry Licious and Berry Obsession are the only affected lines.

'We will update the Australian public as news becomes available to us.'

A man has posted a picture of a sewing needle sticking out of a strawberry, claiming his friend had to be taken to the emergency room after swallowing another on Sunday afternoon

Health officials and police on Wednesday said needles were hidden in at least three punnets of strawberries supplied to Woolworths from a southeast Queensland farm.

Authorities are investigating the contamination after a man reported swallowing a strawberry with a needle on Sunday.

Needles have been found in packets in two Woolworths stores in Victoria and another in Queensland with an urgent recall underway.

The farm where the strawberries were sourced sells to stores in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria.

Joshua Gane was driving with his friend, Haoni van Dorp on Sunday afternoon, when they went into the Strathpine Centre Woolworths, about 20km north of Brisbane.

Buying a punnet of strawberries, the two men left the supermarket and kept driving.

Soon after, van Dorp says he bit into one and swallowed half of a sewing needle, before the pair found another.

Haoni van Dorp (pictured) bit into one of the strawberries and swallowed half of a sewing needle

Police believe the needles may have been deliberately planted with the perpetrator wanting to cause harm.

Gane posted the ordeal to Facebook, along with a picture that shows a metal pin poking out of a strawberry.

He said they took apart the rest of the strawberries, finding another pin.

He said his friend had to be taken to the emergency room with 'severe abdomen pain'.

The pictures on Facebook show a metal pin sticking out of the strawberry, but the men aren't sure how it came to be there.

Gane said the store manager contacted him following the incident, and told him they suspected foul play.

He wrote it was unclear who planted the needle, but said police and health and safety officials were called.

Queensland Police have now commenced an investigation into the contamination of the affected strawberry brands - Berry Obsession and Berry Licious.

Authorities are liasing with retailes to ensure all stock is removed from sale to prevent any further incidents.

He says after swallowing the needle, they took apart the rest of the berries and found another

Queensland's Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young said anyone else who had bought the brands of strawberries without signs of tampering should return them to the store or throw them away.

'While it is expected that berries picked early last week would now not be useable, many people freeze the fruit for later use,' she said.

'If you are in doubt, just throw them out.

She said that any strawberries bought from September 13 are safe and said this incident does not mean you stop eating strawberries.

'Any strawberries that you are certain are not the brands Berry Licious and Berry Obsession, are safe.

'If you believe you have eaten a needle, we would recommend you speak to your doctor or call 13 HEALTH.

'There is no reason to stop eating strawberries, we just need to be aware of this incident.'

A spokesperson for Woolworths said the brand of berries have been 'temporarily withdrawn' from shelves, after the two men bought their punnet from the Strathpine Centre Woolworths

A Woolworths spokesperson said the 'Berry Obsessions' brand has been 'temporarily withdrawn' from shelves wherever they are supplied.

'Woolworths takes food safety very seriously and we are looking into these claims with our supplier,' they said in a statement.

'We are working closely with authorities as they investigate this matter.

'We have withdrawn Berry Obsession and Berrylicious branded strawberries from sale while this incident is being investigated.'
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From the Short Tail Gang to the Gopher Gang, these are the remarkable photos of the real-life gangs who ruled New York in the late nineteenth century.

For nearly one hundred years, these infamous gangs - which were collectively known as the Five Points Gang - practically ran the city and made their New York neighborhood one of the deadliest on earth.

Under their rule, Five Points gained international notoriety for having the highest murder rate of any slum in the world and stories of violent confrontation between warring gangs became legendary.

This incredible collection of images show the nineteenth century mobsters who inspired Martin Scorsese's film 'Gangs' of New York'.

The Montgomery Guards, an Irish-American gang who took their name from an old Irish-American militia, pictured relaxing in the docks near the Five Points. The original Montgomery Guards were an Irish-American militia company that formed in Boston in 1837 and were forced to disband the following year due to extreme nativist and anti-Catholic sentiment in the city

The Gopher Gang, an Irish-American gang that, at its peak, controlled most of Manhattan, pictured around 1910 as authorities stepped up efforts to gentrify the Five Points. Based in the Irish neighborhood of Hell's Kitchen, the Gopher Gang grew to control most of Manhattan with their territory covering Fourth to Forty-Second Street and Seventh to Eleventh Avenue. The gang declined in power by the 1910s and was eventually all but destroyed in 1917 with the death of its leader and arrest of its commanding figures

Mulberry Bend, one of the most dangerous areas controlled by the Five Points gangs pictured in 1896 at the height of gang influence in the area. The original street has now been changed in layout and replaced with Mulberry Street. The area was the original home of several of the most dangerous Irish gangs in the Five Points who lived in cramped tenement buildings surrounding the bustling high street.

The images show violent thugs like the Short Tail Gangs who were known to the police as hard drinkers and thieves.

Also pictured are an Irish-American group known as the Gopher Gang at the peak of their power and groups of young boys robbing drunk men in New York in the early 1900s.

Five Points was a nineteenth century neighbourhood in the area now known as Lower Manhattan in New York City. Sometimes considered the original American melting pot, this run-down Manhattan district became the centre of settlement for the poorest and least fortunate immigrants. Irish, Italian and Eastern European immigrants and freed Black slaves settled in Five Points.

Gambling dens and brothels were numerous in the Five Points area, and it was considered a dangerous destination, where many people had been mugged particularly at night and where race riots would regularly break out. In 1842, Charles Dickens famously visited the area and was appalled by the terrible living conditions.

At the height of occupation of Five Points, only certain areas of London's East End vied with it in the western world for population density, disease, child mortality, prostitution and crime.

Five Points was a place where life was short and violent and the place where the original gangs of New York were formed.

A gang of young boys demonstrate how they make their living for the camera, by robbing drunk men who have passed out in the middle of the street. Pick-pocketing was one of the main rackets controlled by gangs in the Five Points who would divide up the loot from successful robberies. Alcoholism and poverty went hand-in-hand in the neighborhood which meant crude techniques like the one pictures were devastatingly effective and allowed thieves to easily get away with the crime

A busy street scene outside a hatters shop in the Five Points district of Manhattan in 1880 when gang violence was at an all-time high. Although the neighborhood was shrouded in suspicion and criminal activity there were a number of legitimate businesses which ran alongside the day-to-day organised crime syndicates. Shops like this hatters lined the busy shopping streets which were both a hub for criminals and for local business leaders

A crime scene photo at Bottle Alley, the headquarters of the Irish-American Whyos Gang. The 'X' denotes where police discovered a dead body. The body of a man was discovered in the alleyway behind a tenement building in the Five Points. According to local sources in one building known as the 'Old Brewery' there was at least one murder per night at the height of the gang's power

Members of the Five Points Gang, an Italian American gang founded around 1880, whose later members included the most famous gangster of all time - Al Capone. After becoming a predominantly Irish neighborhood during a wave of immigration in the 1860s, the Five Points found a new Italian influence thrust upon the area with a new wave of arrivals in the 1880s. Some of the new Italian immigrants had connections within the Mafia and were experienced crime bosses back in their old country

Organized criminal gangs, like the Bowery Boys, the Dead Rabbits, the Short Tails, the Gopher Gang, the Whyos Gang and the Montgomery Guards cropped up across Manhattan.

Each group had had their own way of letting people know who they stood with. The Bowery Boys, a gang mainly made up of firefighters, would go out in red shirts and stovepipe hats; the Short Tails went out with their shirt untucked and the Irish Dead Rabbits would head out with a rabbit nailed to a stick.

Meanwhile the Whyos - an Irish-American criminal group who ranged from pickpockets to murderers - had a distinctive gang's cry which sounded like a bird or owl calling 'Why-oh!' to let people know they were on the streets.

All of the gangs of Five Points competed for control of the revenue made from illicit activities and fights would break out over most anything.

The Five Points gangs made their neighborhood one of the deadliest places on earth. It was said that they had the highest murder rate of any slum in the world. According to the legends, the most dangerous building - a housing tenement called the 'Old Brewery' - saw a murder every single night.

The Short Tail Gang, a violent group of thugs and one of the most feared of the Five Points gangs, was reportedly known to the police for being 'hard drinkers, highwaymen and thieves'. They were recognisable in the streets around the Five Points because of their distinctive style of dressing. They can be seen here wearing their characteristic short-tailed coats which gave the gang its name

One of four men sharing a single cellar beneath a tenement home, circa 1880. Poverty was rife in the Five Points among the newly arrived immigrant communities. Notable Danish-American photographer Jacob Riis, a friend of Theodore Roosevelt's, took the photos of the impoverished communities within New York City in order to try and raise awareness about the extraordinary deprivation they were suffering

Bandit's Roost, now Mulberry Street, an alleyway where gangsters and thugs would congregate in the district (pictured in 1896) Jacob Riis, who took this photo, called Bandit's Roost 'the vilest and worst to be found anywhere.' Riis identified a tenement in his photo of Bandit's Roost as 59  Mulberry Street, the area of New York's Columbus Park where people now sit on benches and warm themselves in the sun

Members of the Irish-American Whyos Gang. Top row left to right: Baboon Connolly, Josh Hines and Bull Hurley. Middle row left to right: Clops Connelly, Dorsey Doyle and Googy Corcaran. Bottom row left to right: Mike Lloyd, Piker Ryan and Red Rock Farrell. The Whyos were so called because they made a distinctive call to one another where they shouted 'Why-o' in the street to mark themselves out as gang members

Above all, it was nationality and race that turned the Five Points gangs against one another. Riots and fights broke out between the staunchly anti-Catholic Bowery Boys and the Irish Dead Rabbits.

In one brutal two-day battle, an estimated 1,000 people took to the streets of New York to fight, beating each other senseless and looting one another's homes. By the time the blood had dried, eight men were dead and up to a hundred more lay injured - an event that inspired Martin Scorsese's 2002 film Gangs of New York.

This incredible collection of images show the nineteenth century mobsters who inspired Martin Scorsese's film 'Gangs' of New York', which starred Daniel Day Lewis, Leonardo DiCaprio and Cameron Diaz. Day Lewis was a leader of the Protestant 'native' gang who engaged in frequent deadly skirmishes with the Irish Catholic Dead Rabbit gang.

The film was based in the Five Points area, which was marred by violence, poverty and overcrowding

For a century, these notorious gangs ruled their neighbourhood but by the early 1900s, Five Points was torn down piece by piece. Politicians railed for it to be ripped apart with one telling his constituent, 'This hot-bed of infamy, this modern Sodom, is situated in the very heart of your City!'

The crime-riddled Old Brewery was pulled down, missionary houses were brought in, and bit by bit, the face of the city changed.

The Five Points gangs were broken up and slowly faded into history. These images remember their notorious legacy.

Four homeless men lay passed out on the steps of a dilapidated home in the Five Points around 1880 when the neighborhood was its most impoverished. Various efforts by different charitable organizations and individuals, most Christian themed, attempted to ameliorate the suffering of the poor in Five Points. Towards the beginning of the 20th century the area was completely redeveloped and upgraded

Inside of a tenement in Hell's Kitchen where several women and men are crowded into a small room and forced to wrap up in several layers to protect them from the cold. Disease was rife among the residents in the Five Points. The lack of scientific knowledge, sanitation systems, the numerous overcrowded dwellings, and absence of even rudimentary health care made impoverished areas such as Five Points ideal for the development and spread of these diseases

A cobbler taking a break from making shoes and eating some bread inside of a tenement in Five Points, New York city, circa 1880. Among the criminals, enterprising individuals were able to flourish and the streets of the neighborhood were awash with craftsmen selling everything from hats to shoes and unique garments. Skilled laborers had come over from Ireland and Italy and were able to peddle their wares in New York as they had done in their old country

An illegal tenement in the neighborhood which crammed in residents for the price of five cents a spot despite the fact there was limited floor space. At the height of occupation of Five Points, only certain areas of London's East End vied with it in the western world for population density, disease, infant and child mortality, unemployment, prostitution, violent crime, and other classic ills of the urban destitute

Women lodge inside of the local police station during a typhus epidemic in the 1880s. Diseases were common in the Five Points because of poor living conditions. Several epidemics swept the City of New York in the 18th and 19th centuries, some of which originated in Five Points. Others were introduced by passengers disembarking from ships from overseas, including immigrants

A 1901 map of the lower Manhattan area shows Five Points and Mulberry Bend which served as a focal point for gang violence. Jacob Riis once described it as the 'foul core of New York's slums'.

Today Five Points - and Mulberry Bend within it - are no more, but the areas where they once stood can still be found on the map. Today they form part of the Chinatown and the courthouse district.

A busy street scene in the Five Points during the 1890s as ramshackle housing developments began to be replaced with more permanent structures and shops. The area formerly occupied by Five Points was gradually redeveloped through the twentieth century. In the west and south, it is occupied by major federal, state, and city administration buildings and courthouses known collectively as Civic Center, Manhattan.
Katie Piper has been given round the clock security by bosses at Strictly Come Dancing ahead of her acid attacker being released from prison.

Stefan Sylvestre, 30, is set to be freed imminently after Parole Board officials ruled he was no longer a danger to society, despite the model pleading with them to keep him locked up.

Piper, 34, is active in training and rehearsals for the BBC show and sources say bosses have taken action to ensure she feels safe at all times.

And she was seen accompanied by a security guard while out with dance partner Gorka Marquez ahead of their next appearance on September 22.

Katie Piper is to receive 'round the clock security' from Strictly Come Dancing bosses following the decision to release her acid attacker Stefan Sylvestre. She is pictured here with what appears to be a security guard at a festival in London last week

Piper, pictured with Strictly dance partner Gorka Marquez, pleaded with the Parole Board not to release Sylvestre but said the show was helping her come to terms with the decision

A source at Strictly told The Sun: Strictly have discussed security with Katie and she has voiced her worries.

They told her that they will do all they can to ensure she is safe at all times. She decided against attending the press day but is putting on a brave face for the show.

Off-camera she keeps a very low profile. Now she is on Strictly its going to be tougher, but part of the conditions of her being on the show was they understood this.

Sylvestre was jailed for six years after the attack in north London in March 2008 which left Piper severely scarred on her face and body.

Her ex-boyfriend and obsessed fan Daniel Lynch ordered the attack and was subsequently jailed for 16 years.

The Parole Board decided to release Sylvestre after concluding he 'displayed empathy for the victim and expressed remorse and shame for his actions'.

A spokesman for the Parole Board said: 'We can confirm that a panel of the Parole Board directed the release of Mr Stefan Sylvestre following an oral hearing.

Sylvestre, pictured, was jailed for six years in 2009 for the vicious attack that left Piper's face and body scarred

'Parole Board decisions are solely focused on whether a prisoner would represent a significant risk to the public after release.

'The panel will have carefully looked at a whole range of evidence, including details of the original evidence and any evidence of behaviour change.

'We do that with great care and public safety is our number one priority.'

The Parole Board's decision summary said Sylvestre's case was considered at an oral hearing, adding that Piper read statements in person to the panel.

'The panel took full account of the content of these statements and the supporting documentation,' the summary says.

The document adds: 'The panel considered that there were a number of things that reduced Mr Sylvestre's risk of causing serious harm in the future.

'Mr Sylvestre is now 30 years of age and was just 19 when he committed the index offence.

'He was drawn into a criminal lifestyle in his teens and was involved with drugs.

'During his time in custody, Mr Sylvestre has actively avoided anti-social behaviour within the prison and has avoided violence, despite being under threat.

'He has behaved well to distance himself from such influences.

'He has repaired his relationship with his family, has gained employment-related skills and improved his education.

'He has not been involved in drugs in prison and has completed relevant offence-focused work to challenge and change his attitude and thinking.'

Piper, pictured with fellow Strictly celebrity Joe Sugg, has thanked fans for their support

In an Instagram post last week, Piper revealed she was devastated Sylvestre would be released but her time on Strictly was helping her through it.

She wrote: 'Hi everyone, I felt it was important to put a message out to my friends, supporters and followers.

'This is a really difficult time for me. I am trying to come to terms with the decision and this is something I need to deal with.

'Over the past two weeks Strictly has already given me such a welcome and positive distraction from my past.

'Whilst there is never a good time to hear this news I am glad I have this new journey to concentrate on.

'Thank you for your continued support, I really appreciate it. Love Katie x'

A spokeswoman for Strictly Come Dancing said the show always considers the security of its celebrities as a high priority.

A statement: We always have extensive security measures in place to protect our cast, crew and audience, and the arrangements are reviewed regularly.

Representatives for Piper declined to comment when approached by MailOnline.
Jean-Claude Juncker (pictured address the European Parliament today) has insisted Britain cannot stay in only parts of the EU's single market after Brexit in a new blow to Theresa May's plans

Jean-Claude Juncker has insisted Britain cannot stay in only parts of the EU's single market after Brexit in a new blow to Theresa May's plans.

The EU Commission President said the EU would work 'day and night' for a close relationship after the UK quits the bloc.

But he said the Brexit deal cannot unpick the unity of the remaining 27 members.

The Prime Minister's Brexit blueprint imagines Britain following EU rules on goods to maintain existing trade, while striking out in other areas such as services.

Her proposals, deeply controversial in her own party, have been repeatedly dismissed by Brussels but No 10 say they remain the only 'credible and negotiable' option.

In his annual state of the union address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Mr Juncker said they owe it to EU citizens to preserve stability in the wake of the UK's withdrawal.

At the same time, he warned the other 27 member states remain united behind the commission's negotiating position and that the UK cannot enjoy the same 'privileged position' as a member state.

'If you leave the union you are of course no longer part of our single market - and certainly not only in parts of it,' he said.

He welcomed Mrs May's proposal in the Chequers plan for the establishment of a free trade area between Britain and the EU.

'The United Kingdom will never be an ordinary third country for us. The United Kingdom will always be a very close neighbour and partner, in political, economic and security terms,' he said.

The EU Commission President (pictured making his State of the Union address) said the EU would work 'day and night' for a close relationship after the UK quits the bloc

The Prime Minister's (pictured today in Downing Street) Brexit blueprint imagines Britain following EU rules on goods to maintain existing trade, while striking out in other areas such as services

'The commission's negotiators stand ready to work day and night to reach a deal.

'We owe it to our citizens and our businesses to ensure the United Kingdom's withdrawal is orderly and that there is stability afterwards. It will not be the commission that will stand in the way of this.'

Mr Juncker also said the EU will always show 'loyalty and solidarity' with Ireland on the issue of its border with Northern Ireland.

'We will defend all the elements of the Good Friday Agreement,' he said.

'It is Brexit that risks making the border more visible in Northern Ireland. It is not the European Union.'

Mr Juncker also dismissed suggestions from Britain it could build and launch its own replacement for the Galileo satellite navigation system (file image)

Mr Juncker also dismissed suggestions from Britain it could build and launch its own replacement for the Galileo satellite navigation system.

UK negotiators have insisted Britain should keep privileged access to secure parts of the EU system even after Brexit. Brussels say it is for members only.

Mr Juncker blasted: 'It is our Galileo programme that is today keeping Europe in the space race.

'No single member state could have put 26 satellites in orbit, for the benefit of 400 million users worldwide. No single member state could have done this alone.'
A young boy shared a stash of ecstasy pills with a group of his school friends after confusing his father's drugs for candy.

The 8-year-old boy shared the pills with four of his friends, aged 7-9 in an elementary school in the Indonesian province of Riau on Monday.

The ecstasy pills allegedly belonged to the 8-year-old's father, identified as a 46-year-old with the initials HR.

An eight-year-old boy shared his father's ecstasy pills with his school friends, accidentally mistaking the stash for candy.

Police have said HR's 2-year-old toddler had found the stash in his car who had given it to his older brother.

'The kids thought the green pills in their parents' car were candy. They cut up the pills and shared them with friends,' Riau Police Public Relations Head Kombes Sunarto told the media according to Detik News.

The 8-year-old and his school friends complained of headaches and dizziness after swallowing the drugs and were taken to hospital, except the 2-year-old who was put off by the bitterness of the taste.

'They are feeling better now. They have received treatment,' said Sunarto.

HR confessed he owned the ecstasy stashed and was soon arrested by police.

Police have not mentioned if HR will face any further charges.
A refugee detained on Nauru since 2013 was denied entry into Australia for an emergency abortion despite her vagina being partially stitched up because she had given birth in the past.

Peter Dutton's Home Affairs office denied the application for entry which was appealed at the Federal Court in June.

There the government's lawyers claimed because the Somalian woman's vagina had been unstitched and she had given birth previously that she was not at risk and didn't need entry to Australia.

Instead they suggested she be transported to Taiwan for the procedure.

Peter Dutton's Home Affairs office denied a refugee detained on Nauru since 2013 into Australia for an emergency abortion

'The bottom line is that having examined her, the relevant medical officer formed the view that she is already de-infibulated and the vaginal opening is sufficient to perform the operation,' the lawyer argued

Asylum Seeker Resource Centre detention advocacy manager Natasha Blucher spoke with BuzzFeed News and described the decision as abhorrent.

'The fact that the government would quite literally send lawyers into court to argue over the degree of a woman's 'vaginal opening' in order to prevent her accessing the best health care available to her is abhorrent,' she said.

The woman suffers from type three female genital mutilation (FGM) which is categorised by the World Health Organisation as 'narrowing of the vaginal orifice with creation of a covering seal by cutting and appositioning the labia minora and/or the labia majora, with or without excision of the clitoris (infibulation)'.

The lawyers argued that since the woman had been 'de-infibulated' (her labia had been unstitched) and she had already given birth in the past, that she did not require specialist treatment in Australia.

There the government's lawyers claimed because the Somalian woman's vagina had been unstitched and she had given birth previously that she was not at risk and didn't need entry to Australia

A senior doctor on Nauru had submitted a report to the Australian Border Force claiming the woman had 'de-infibulation'.

Despite the argument set out by the government lawyers, Justice Alan Robertson ruled against them and said there was 'substantial risks involved with sending her to Taiwan.

He stated that the woman did indeed require 'specific surgical needs' that could not be provided in Taiwan, but could be provided by a 'clinic with experience in treating women with FGM'.

She was then flown to an agreed upon facility in Australia for the procedure.

Obstetrics and gynaecology professor Caroline de Costa, who testified in the case said refugees should be provided with the best possible care while in detainment

Obstetrics and gynaecology professor Caroline de Costa, who testified in the case, told BuzzFeed News that refugees should be provided with the best possible care while in detainment.

'Where abortion has been requested by women refugees or asylum seekers they should receive the same standard of care and respect available to women with similar issues in Australia,' she said.

The Department of Home Affairs declined to comment on individual cases.
EU President Jean-Claude Juncker has called for a 10,000-strong EU border and coastguard force to tackle the migrant crisis engulfing the continent.

European Commission President Juncker called for the establishing of the increased border and coastguard force, as the bloc bolsters efforts to reduce migration.

The president used his annual address to the EU's parliament to pledge the extra border force over the next two years, in a bid to stem the migrant crisis which began in 2015.

Juncker said in his State of the EU speech to the Strasbourg today as a wave of far-right and populist parties have gained a foothold in many European countries in response to increased immigration as a result of the 'open doors' policy.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker delivers a speech today during a debate on The State of the European Union at the European Parliament in Strasbourg

The commission has also proposed spending 2.2 billion euros in the next seven-year EU budget to buy and maintain planes, boats and vehicles to patrol entry points from Africa and the Middle East.

The European Union is under massive political pressure to further cut the flow of migrants to the bloc after having sharply reduced arrivals since a 2015 peak as a result of cooperation with Turkey and Libya.

Juncker said in his state of the union speech to the European Parliament: 'The European Commission is today proposing to strengthen the European Border and Coast Guard to better protect our external borders with an additional 10,000 European border guards by 2020.'

The goal, if achieved, would be a significant boost from the current pan-EU force of 1,300 staff to help individual member states patrol their borders.

In 2015, the EU faced its worst migration crisis since World War II when more than one million asylum seekers entered the bloc, sowing chaos and political division.

The latest tensions flared over decisions by Italy, which has a new populist anti-migration government, to turn away rescue ships carrying African migrants.

On Sunday, the anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats, which has only recently abandoned its neo-Nazi roots, sharply increased its share of the vote since the last election and could become the country's second largest.

As many as 165,000 immigrants arrived in Scandinavian in 2015 alone.

Since several high-profile murders and sexual assaults in Germany, which accepted 2 million migrants since 2015, the AfD party have gained support in the eastern state of Saxony amid riots and counter-protests

The commission is also proposing the border force have greater powers to deport people classified as economic migrants who are fleeing poverty and seeking jobs.

Under international law, economic migrants can be deported but not people who have a genuine case for asylum, including refugee status.

EU officials consider most of the arrivals from Africa to be economic migrants eligible for deportation.

Migrants gather as they begin to leave the Calais Jungle camp before authorities demolish the site in October 2016

But EU nations still have to endorse his plans. Beyond that, the Commission's idea of what the 2021-2027 budget should look like and what its priorities should be are certain to differ from that of member states.

The border and coast guard staff would be able to check ID papers and stamp travel documents, detain people who are crossing the border without authorization, and help ensure those not eligible are deported.

Many nations have expressed concern about having their borders policed by staff from other countries, even if they are European partners.

In recent months, Italy's new anti-migrant government has refused to allow some ships carrying rescued people to enter its waters, routinely leaving the boats stranded at sea for days while a short-term solution is found. Austria, France and Malta have argued over who should take charge.

'With every new ship we can't be talking about ad-hoc solutions for the people on board,' Juncker said. 'We need a lot more. We need more solidarity, and solidarity must be lasting and organised.'

EU leaders meet in Salzburg, Austria, next week to thrash out better ways to manage the arrivals, many reaching Italy from lawless Libya.

Juncker's proposals also include a plan to help countries deport people who do not qualify for asylum because they do not face the threat of death or violence in their home countries. Just over one in three people denied international protection are actually sent home.

The border and asylum agencies would help identify those to be returned, obtain travel documents - often a time-consuming business - and prepare the paperwork so countries can send them back.

Juncker noted that one of the jewels in Europe's crown - the passport-free Schengen travel area - is under threat due to barriers and tougher border ID checks being imposed by some countries.

He branded such obstacles 'an unacceptable backward step in Europe'.

In his speech today Juncker also called for a 'new alliance' with Africa that would create millions of jobs and include a free trade deal.
Tory Eurosceptics today unveiled their plan for the Irish border and insisted the issue which has deadlocked the Brexit talks can be easily solved.

Brexiteers including Jacob Rees-Mogg and David Davis demanded Theresa May ditch her Chequers plan - saying that technological solutions and accepting EU agricultural rules are enough to solve the issue.

Mr Rees-Mogg insisted the proposals had been drawn up from the EU's perspective to win Brussels' support, while Mr David said they should 'unlock' the negotiation.

The draft bears a striking resemblance to the model Mr Davis tried and failed to promise as Brexit Secretary before resigning in fury from the Government.

The blueprint from the the European Research Group (ERG) of Conservative MPs comes as plotting against Mrs May reaches unprecedented levels.

At a meeting last night around 50 MPs openly 'wargamed' how to carry out a coup if Mrs May refuses to drop her Chequers plan.

Meanwhile, a former director of GCHQ has warned a return to a hard border in Northern Ireland after Brexit would be a 'very unhealthy development'.

Brexiteers including Jacob Rees-Mogg (pictured today on Whitehall) and David Davis were at the launch in Westminster today demanding that Theresa May ditches her Chequers plan

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis (pictured at today's ERG launch in Westminster) told the meeting that the proposals were workable

The Brexiteer band revealed their report in the RUSI library, the scene of Theresa May's leadership campaign launch, amid claims the group wants to remove her

One source said the level of manoeuvring against the leader was 'amazing'. 'There were 50 people present, openly discussing how to get rid of the PM and literally no one said 'Oooh no, we mustn't talk about that'.'

Another source said the discussions continued even when Tory Party whips entered the room. 'It was brazen  really detailed discussion of how best you game the leadership rules.'

Allies of the PM warned that any attempt to oust the PM would be 'crazy' and doomed to failure.

The Irish border is one of the key sticking points in Brexit negotiations, with both the UK Government and the EU stressing they want to avoid it.

Crucially, Mrs May's DUP allies have endorsed the proposals today as a 'positive and timely development'. .

In the new paper, the ERG proposes that the Government should agree equivalence of UK and EU regulations and conformity assessment for all agricultural goods on the island of Ireland.

Northern Ireland and the Republic would be maintained as a Common Biosecurity Zone after Brexit, allowing the smooth movement of these products across the border.

'Since UK and EU standards are identical and will remain identical at the point of departure, determining equivalence after Brexit should be straightforward,' said the document.

For other goods, the ERG said existing simplified customs procedures could continue to be used to avoid the need for checks at the border.

Larger companies would use 'trusted trader' schemes to clear their goods for export and import, and other declarations would be incorporated into the existing system used for VAT returns.

The blueprint from the the European Research Group (ERG) of Conservative MPs comes as plotting against Mrs May (pictured in Downing Street today) reaches unprecedented levels

'The EU will be able to maintain the integrity of its internal market without erecting a hard border along its border with Northern Ireland,' said the ERG paper, launched in Westminster.

'At the same time, the United Kingdom will be able to develop a fully independent trade policy rather than remaining a rule-taker.

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

'The one element of 'alignment' necessary is the maintenance of the current Common Biosecurity Zone covering the island of Ireland, and this is not contentious.

'The necessary procedures described can all be implemented within the existing legal and operational frameworks of the EU and the UK, based on the mutual trust on which regular trade depends.

'Rational, pragmatic approaches can ensure that the vital trade across the border is maintained. At the same time, this allows the United Kingdom to conduct an independent trade policy without threatening the integrity of the EU single market.'

The ERG said its proposals could be delivered without the need for any new infrastructure at the border and without weakening North-South co-operation.

'There is nothing which would reduce our commitment to the Belfast Agreement, or which might jeopardise peace in Northern Ireland,' the group said.

'Harnessing the latest developments in international best practice can deliver continued co-operation and prosperity in the best interests of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.'

Former Brexit Secretary Mr Davis commended the report and insisted while the issues were important the Irish border was 'no threat whatsoever to the integrity of the single market'.

He said: 'This is a fabulously practical and sensible approach to this.

'The only way we are going to resolve this issue and unlock the negotiation is by engaging on a practical level with these proposals in a way that the Union has not yet done.'

Ex Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers insisted the ERG paper 'provides solutions that we think will work to answer the Irish border question'.

Former Northern Ireland Secretary Owen Paterson told the meeting there was 'absolutely no need for new physical infrastructure at the border'.

ERG MPs (pictured from left) Marcus Fysh, Owen Paterson, Theresa Villiers and David Davis arrived for the latest part of the Brexiteer plan today

He insisted there was already significant smuggling at the border and Brexit would make no difference.

He said: 'This is stopped by intelligence and... Will go on after without any new infrastructure.'

Mr Paterson insisted there was 'absolutely nothing new' in the 'boring' report in a bid to reassure sceptics the proposals were coherent.

DUP Westminster leader Nigel Dodds praised the report after its launch.

He said: 'The paper published by the European Research Group today is a positive and timely development.

DUP Westminster leader Nigel Dodds (file image) praised the report after its launch as a 'positive and timely development'

'The paper makes clear that in the event of a free trade deal being negotiated with the EU there are sensible, practical measures which can ensure they will be no hard border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.'

Meanwhile, a former director of GCHQ has warned a return to a hard border in Northern Ireland after Brexit would be a 'very unhealthy development'.

A rise in smuggling which would benefit paramilitaries and a hit to community relations would be a result of a return to solid infrastructure between the province and Ireland, according to Robert Hannigan, who led the intelligence agency from 2014 to 2017.

He told BBC Radio 4's Today that a hard border would 'fray around the edges of the peace process'.

He continued: 'It wouldn't suddenly bring a return to the conflict I don't think.

'But it would lead to poorer community relations and it would certainly lead to a rise in smuggling and historically, right through the troubles, smuggling was bad for peace because it meant a lot of money going to criminal groups who were closely allied with or became paramilitary groups.

'So it's a very unhealthy development.'
Cameras outside the International Space Station captured a stark and sobering view of Hurricane Florence the morning of Sept. 12 as it churned across the Atlantic in a west-northwesterly direction with winds of 130 miles an hour. The National Hurricane Center forecasts additional strengthening for Florence before it reaches the coastline of North Carolina and South Carolina early Friday, Sept. 14. Credit: NASA.

JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) has rescheduled the launch of its HTV-7 resupply ship to the International Space Station to Thursday, U.S. time.

As a result of the new launch and arrival dates for the HTV-7, the target dates for a pair of maintenance spacewalks have been adjusted as well.

More than five tons of food, fuel, crew supplies and new science gear is due to launch Thursday at 5:21 p.m. EDT from the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan. The HTV-7 with the space cargo will take a 3-1/2 day ride to the orbital laboratory where it will be captured Monday with the Canadarm2 robotic arm around 6:50 a.m. It will then be installed on the station's Harmony module around three hours later. NASA TV will broadcast all the activities live.

The HTV-7 is also delivering six new lithium-ion batteries to the station which will be the focus of the upcoming spacewalk activity. Robotics controllers will remove the new batteries from the HTV-7 and install them on the Port 4 truss structure. Then astronauts Alexander Gerst and Drew Feustel will begin the final battery hookup work on the first of two spacewalks on Sept. 23. Gerst will go outside a second time with spacewalker Ricky Arnold on Sept. 29 to complete the battery hookups.

Gerst, Feustel and Arnold spent a couple of hours today reviewing their upcoming spacewalk procedures and discussing their concerns with specialists on the ground. Flight Engineer Serena Aunon-Chancellor cleaned the trio's spacesuits' cooling loops and refilled the suits' water tanks.

The entire Expedition 56 crew did manage to conduct a variety of science experiments exploring biology and physics in microgravity. The astronauts researched how mice adapt to space and swabbed their own bodies to collect microbe samples for analysis. The crew also studied liquid atomization and the composition of meteorites entering Earth's atmosphere.

On-Orbit Status Report

Microbial Tracking-2 (MT-2): Today a crewmember collected saliva and body surface samples for the Microbial Tracking-2 investigation and placed them inside a Minus Eighty Degree Celsius Laboratory Freezer for ISS (MELFI). MT-2 monitors the different types of microbes that are present on ISS over a 1-year period. After the samples returned to Earth, a molecular analysis of the RNA and DNA will be conducted to identify the specific microbes that are present on ISS in order to understand the microbial flora diversity on the ISS and how it changes over time.

Atomization: The crew replaced sample syringes and water trap for the Atomization investigation today for Run #8. The Atomization experiment investigates the disintegration processes of a low-speed water jet for various jet issue conditions in the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) to validate the new atomization concept by observing the process using a high-speed camera. The knowledge gained applies towards improving various engines utilizing spray combustion.

Material Science Research Rack (MSRR): As a verification of the recent master controller replacement, the crew disconnected the Vacuum Resource System (VRS) line from the rack in order to allow the ground team to perform an activation and leak check of the system for a 24hr period. MSRR-1 can accommodate and support diverse Experiment Modules (EMs). In this way, many material types, such as metals, alloys, polymers, semiconductors, ceramics, crystals, and glasses, are analyzed in order to discover new applications for existing materials and new or improved material.

Meteor: Today the crew replaced a failed T61P Laptop with a spare for use by the Meteor experiment. The Meteor payload is a visible spectroscopy instrument used to observe meteors in Earth orbit. Meteor uses image analysis to provide information on the physical and chemical properties of the meteoroid dust, such as size, density, and chemical composition. The study of the meteoroid dust on orbit provides information about the parent comets and asteroids.

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Loop Scrub, Iodination, Flow Test, and H20 Recharge: In preparation for the upcoming H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV)-7 Battery R&R ExtraVehicular Activities (EVAs), the crew performed EMU water loop scrubs and tested water samples for conductivity. An EMU flow test was also performed on EMU 3003 and FE-5's Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment (LCVG) was filled using EMU 3004. EMU Loop Scrubs are required preventive maintenance needed to remove any chemical and biological contaminants from the EMU Transport Loop.

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparation: Today the USOS Crew reviewed the EVA Briefing Package for the upcoming HTV-7 Battery R&R EVAs. This comprehensive review included a Tool Configuration Summary, detailed EVA Procedures and Timelines, Get Ahead Procedures, and Notes, Cautions and Warnings associated with the aforementioned tasks. Once complete with their self-study, the crew had a conference with EVA specialists to answer their questions and address any concerns.

Public Affairs Office (PAO) Live Event: Today Feustel participated in a live PAO event with ABC News Correspondent Bob Woodruff for release on the ABC News Web. During the event, they discussed how the ISS crewmembers fixed the leak in Soyuz 55S, talked about the upcoming HTV-7 Battery R&R EVAs, and learned what the crew miss most about Earth while on ISS.

iPad iOS Update: Today the crew configured two spare iPads, a Cargo Ops/Spare and a Food Intake Tracker (FIT) Spare, for update by ground specialists. By updating these spare iPads, the crew can verify there are no capability issues between the new operating system and applications needed for nominal ISS operations. iOS updates are completed periodically to ensure the latest security patches are on-board.

Completed Task List Activities:

None

Ground Activities:

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

N3 MCA Activation

Two-Day Look Ahead:

Wednesday, 09/12:

Payloads

Rodent Research 7 dissections

RADIN-2 retrieve and handover

Food Acceptability

Systems

WHC Urine Receptacle R&R

EMU LLB Autocycle Termination

Thursday, 09/13:

Payloads

Microbial Tracking-2 Saliva Collection

Rodent Research 7 Dissections

Systems

HTV-7 OBT

Today's Planned Activities:

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

IMS Update

Makita Battery Charge

DUBRAVA. Observation and photography using Photo Equipment

Microbial Tracking-2 Sample MELFI Insert

Hematocrit Test

Hematocrit Hardware Stowage

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Cooling Loop Maintenance Scrub Initiation

ALGOMETRIYA. Tenso- and thermos-algometry setup and measurement session

XF305 Camcorder Setup

In Flight Maintenance (IFM) Waste and Hygiene Compartment (WHC) Full Fill

Test activation of 2 Power Supply in idling mode with 1 compressor

Atomization syringe installation

Microbial Tracking-2 Body Sample Questionnaire

Microbial Tracking-2 Body Sample Collection

EVA Support Panel (-2) power removal in DC1 and isolation of failure to deactivate

Microbial Tracking-2 Sample MELFI Insert

Metal Oxide (METOX) Regeneration Termination

Rodent Research Gather 1

Rodent Research Dissection Review

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Training Review

Test activation of 2 Power Supply in idling mode with 1 Compressor

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Cooling Loop Maintenance Scrub Reconfiguration

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Flow Meter Measurement

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Cooling Loop Maintenance Iodination

Meteor System Disk Recovery

SEPARATSIYA. Preventive maintenance activation of  distiller

Glacier Desiccant Swap

Rodent Research Review

Rodent Research LAB SD Camcorder Video Setup

Rodent Research Setup

ALGOMETRIYA. Pressure Algometry Measurement Ops

Food Acceptability Questionnaire - Subject

Public Affairs Office (PAO) High Definition (HD) Config JEM Setup

Toilet Funnel Stow

Filling (separation) of  [] No.1298 for Elektron using 

Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD) - JEM

Repairs of SM Interior Panel by installing cover panels, Day 2

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Short Dryout

EVA Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Cooling Loop Scrub Deconfiguration

 maintenance

Payloads Network Attached Storage (NAS) Vent Cleaning

On MCC Go Assessment of Progress 439 (DC1) Rodink 1 tank leak

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Liquid Cooling Ventilation Garment (LVCG) Water Fill

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Water Recharge

INTERACTION-2. Experiment Ops

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Procedure Conference

Metal Oxide (METOX) Regeneration Initiation

iPad iOS Update

ALGOMETRIYA. Tenso- and thermoalgometry mode measurements

Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.
A woman who ordered a fake pregnancy belly on Amazon during a 'sinister' stalking campaign against her ex-boyfriend sent him a chilling email saying 'the queen will have words tomorrow,' a court heard.

Jessica Nordquist, 25, broke up with former lover Mark Weeks, who she had met when they both worked at London ad company Unruly.

But after the split last November, Nordquist carried out an increasingly menacing harassment campaign against her ex, Snaresbook Crown Court heard.

She posted messages online claiming he had committed rape and ordered a fake silicon pregnancy belly from Amazon, jurors heard.

Nordquist then sent him threatening emails, apparently referring to herself as a queen in a game of chess, the court heard.

Ad agency worker Jessica Nordquist ordered a fake pregnancy belly on Amazon during a stalking campaign against her ex, Mark Weeks (right), a court heard

Nordquist told police that both she and Mr Weeks were the victim of another stalker

She wrote: 'The queen is the most valuable piece on the board she protects your king.'

Nordquist, who is originally from Eagle River in Alaska and went to Northern State University in South Dakota, had moved to Unruly's London office from New York.

She is now on trial for stalking, sending malicious communications and perverting course of justice at London's Old Bailey. She denies the charges.

Prosecutor Claire Robinson said the pair started dating in August last year but 'wanted different things' and broke up three months later.

After they separated Nordquist 'seemed to want to get his attention, the court heard.

'She left handwritten notes on his bike and desk. He thought that she was rather following him around the office and also that she continued to send him text messages.'

She then claimed she was eight weeks pregnant with his baby, jurors heard.

They went to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel and on 13 December Nordquist had an abortion.

Mr Weeks described his ex-girlfriend was upset and 'made a scene' at the hospital.

Nordquist allegedly posted a series of messages online, one of which accused her ex of rape, prosecutors said. She is said to have ordered a fake baby bump, like that pictured, on Amazon

When they returned to Unruly after the Christmas break, Nordquist asked if they could rekindle their romance, the court heard.

But he rejected Nordquist and she sent him a message on Instagram saying: 'I'm telling people at work I had an abortion and if they ask with who I'll say you.'

Nordquist then posted an Instagram message saying she had an abortion after she 'fell into a relationship', said Ms Robinson.

Nordquist allegedly posted a message, purporting to be from her friend, claiming she had taken an overdose on 5 January.

After Mr Weeks rang the police, Nordquist attempted to make it look like they were both being targeted by the same stalker, the court heard.

One email, which appeared to come from another person, read: 'You are going to meet at 3pm at Shoreditch Grind (cafe).

The prosecution say she posted messages on posts by the company's clients alleging Weeks had committed rape

'If neither of you show, we're going to release your past secrets around the office. We will come for you.'

When Mr Weeks didn't show he received a message saying: 'I gave you both a chance to show up. Tick tock, the rabbit's got f***ed.'

Ms Robinson said: 'The Crown suggest that these all came from Jessica Nordquist.'

She said the stalking campaign became 'more and more sinister'.

Nordquist also sent tagged posts to Mr Weeks' Unruly clients accusing him of rape, referencing his @weekmar page.

One, sent from an account called Karen Schuler said: '@weekmar raped her. Unruler raped and assaulted an employee. Still went to work with him and trying to cover it up.'

Nordquist attended Bethnal Green police station on 26 January and her phone and iPad were seized.

Police found searches about sending fake emails and stalking on her devices.

Ms Robinson said: 'She told police she and Mark Weeks were being stalked. She claimed her searches were all related to trying to find out about stalking.'

When she was arrested again four days later, police found searches for 'fake babies' and a silicon baby bump had been ordered on Amazon.

Nordquist also sent tagged posts to Mr Weeks' Unruly clients accusing him of rape, referencing his @weekmar page

She had also researched whether police can track where emails are sent from, the court heard.

The jury also heard Nordquist sent raunchy texts to Mr Weeks about her love life, claiming she had hooked up with a man called Max who she met in Soho.

Mr Weeks said he also received messages about a burglary at his home but he never replied.

'I was under the impression it would be easy for Jess to find out if my house was burgled as my asking for a new laptop for example.'

He said while he was working from home a Reindeer, bought for him by workmates, as a Christmas gift went missing from his desk.

Mr Weeks said emails about his private life were also sent to senior colleagues at Unruly.

'I was embarrassed I was really anxious. The effect it was having on my career and my reputation in the company.

'It was sent to the people who control how I progress within the company so obviously it was scary.

'They were concerned about the content of the emails the day before so they wanted to make sure there were no security issues.

'I had a toy reindeer on my desk at work which someone had given me for a Christmas. When I went back to the office that toy was no longer there.'

The pair met at London ad agency Unruly, which is now based in the Whitechapel Building

He said Nordquist alluded to chess in her emails and in one said: 'If you can, protect the queen, she is the most valuable piece on the board she protects your king.'

Another message read: 'The queen will have some words tomorrow. Did you not know she is worth 26 million dollars.'

Mr Weeks said his boss urged him to take two weeks off work on compassionate leave during the alleged stalking campaign.

He said he later received a message from his brother who lives in Jersey allegedly sent by Nordquist.

The message read: 'Your brother is in trouble. You should be more careful.'

Mr Weeks added: 'This was sent to my brother on Instagram. So the brother refereed to is me and he took the screen-grab and sent it to me.'

Weeks decided to remove himself from social media and deleted his Instagram account after forwarding many of the messages to the police.

Nordquist, of Tower Hamlets, east London, denies two counts stalking, two counts of sending malicious communications and one count of perverting course of justice. The trial continues.
Richard Branson has sparked an angry backlash among rail passengers after he ranted on Twitter about his pet hate - people turning up late.

Users were quick to respond to the billionaire entrepreneur whose Virgin Trains services appear to be a sore point among many commuters.

Taking to Twitter, Mr Branson shared a message emphasising the importance of punctuality to his 12.4 million followers - along with a picture of himself running to a meeting to hammer the point home.

Mr Branson shared a message emphasising the importance of punctuality to his 12.4 million followers along with a picture of himself running to meeting to hammer home the point

Users were quick to respond to Mr Branson, whose Virgin Trains service appears to be a sore point among many commuters

He wrote: 'There's very little that annoys me in life, but people turning up late really does. Punctuality shows organisation and respect for others.'

But customers who use his West Coast and the East Coast services, which has routes between Glasgow and London Euston, poured scorn on the post, suggesting that his trains were the reason many had been late in the past.

Retweeting Mr Branson's initial tweet, Rebecca Reid wrote: 'About 30% of the times I've been late it's been because of one of your trains mate.'

But customers who use his service, which has routes between Edinburgh and London Euston, poured scorn on the post, suggesting that his trains were the reason many had been late in the past

Another wrote: 'Have you ever been on one of your b****** trains?'

While Laurence Turner wrote: 'After East Coast was privitised by Virgin, punctuality fell from 82% to 73%.'

Seeing the funny side, one suggested jokingly that Mr Branson should consider running a national rail service, while another said 'yup get the 12.45 to Milton Keynes fun every day.'

Seeing the funny side, one suggested jokingly that Mr Branson should consider running a national rail service, while another said 'yup get the 12.45 to Milton Keynes fun every day.'

Along with the tweet he included a link to a blog post where he explained that he learned the importance of punctuality from his father.

In the blog he added that punctuality: 'Shows you are serious, and it shows you are organised.

'But, most importantly, it shows you are respectful of other people's time and their value.'

Despite the criticism of Virgin Trains, Mr Branson's service is far from the worst offender, according to Network Rail statistics

Figures from the Office of Road and Rail showed last year that Virgin's East and West Coast franchises generated more complaints that any rivals.

Passengers criticised the company for its 'Gestapo-like' ticketing policy.

Campaigners said travellers are forced to pay huge sums for a simple mistake when they have accidentally paid the wrong fare  something many blame on Virgin's complicated pricing structure.

The operator has also been criticised for expensive fares, with a standard single 'anytime' ticket for the four-and-a-half-hour journey from London to Glasgow priced on its website last night at 182.50.

Despite the criticism of Virgin Trains, Mr Branson's West Coast service is far from the worst offender, according to Network Rail statistics.

In the period between 2017/18, the service, of which he owns 51 per cent, had a public performance measure score of 90.8%.

The figures, which indicate the number of services that arrived within five minutes of their allocated times for short journeys and ten for longer ones, placed Virgin Trains West Coast above seven others including Great Western Railway and Greater Anglia.

His service had an overall journey satisfaction score of 89% placing Virgin Trains West Coast sixth among 23 services nationally.

The East Coast service, which passed back into public hands this year and is now named London North Eastern Railway, languished behind with an 86% rating for 2017/18, and a damning score of 65% for 2018/19 so far.

Last year it was reported that Mr Branson was set for a bumper 24million payout from West Coast after the line generated profits of 66.8million in the year to March.

A Virgin Spokesperson said: 'We know punctuality is hugely important to our customers - and rightly so.We work hard to make sure our trains run on time and we have one of the highest customer satisfaction scores in the industry.

'When our trains are running late, we believe customers should get compensation - which is why we have pioneered the use of automatic compensation for delays for people who book direct.

'Our teams go the extra mile to ensure our customers receive the best service possible.'
Class 'activists' launched a sickening tirade at Jacob Rees-Mogg's children  including his six-year-old son  telling them their daddy is a 'totally horrible person'.

The three youngsters stood stunned while their parents tried to usher them inside, but they still heard the full bullying rant demanding to be told how much the family's long serving nanny is paid.

Activist Ian Bone, wearing a flat cap and leaning on a stick, was filmed shouting: 'Your daddy won't answer the question.

'Your daddy is a totally horrible person.

'A lot of people don't like your daddy, you know that. No he's probably not told you about that.'

The grandfather and father-of-five added: 'A lot of people hate him.'

Class activists launched an extraordinary tirade at Jacob Rees-Mogg's children  including his six-year-old son  telling them their daddy is a 'totally horrible person'

Activist Ian Bone (right, in the flat cap) was filmed accosting the Rees-Mogg family and telling the children that their father doesn't pay their nanny Veronica Crook (in black) 'very much' because he was too busy 'posing as a Latin eating, gut-orientated toff'

The encounter last night involving the Rees-Mogg's nanny Veronica Crook - who has been with the family for decades and cared for the MP when he was a boy - lasted several minutes.

Veronica Crook: The nanny who looked after Rees-Mogg as a boy Veronica Crook: 'She's the most remarkable woman and as you can imagine, incredibly good with children  but she might say it's jolly hard work.' Jacob Rees-Mogg praised his 'remarkable' nanny of 51 years at the birth of his sixth child Sixtus in July last year. The Brexiteer Tory MP has known Veronica Crook since birth and now despite being aged in her 70s she is looking after the next generation of Rees-Moggs. Miss Crook once famously campaigned with Mr Rees-Mogg in his mother's Mercedes. The MP for North East Somerset told MailOnline at the time that Miss Crook has been working for the Rees-Mogg family for more than half a century and 'she is still on duty', looking after his latest addition. He said: 'Nanny is still looking after the children, which is absolutely wonderful as I hear her telling them things she used to tell me. 'She reminds them of the post-war rationing. So if they have great dollops of butter on their toast, she says that would have been a week's ration. I love that, the historic continuity that you get.' A nanny never reveals her age, Mr Rees-Mogg added, but he guessed that Miss Crook is 'in her seventies'. She does not have a family of her own, he said, but 'we are her family.' 'She's the most remarkable woman and as you can imagine, incredibly good with children  but she might say it's jolly hard work.' Previously, Miss Crook has described the young Jacob's behaviour as 'perfect - or for most of the time perfect'. 'He wasn't really naughty, he was a one-off,' she said in 2015. She added: 'He did his own thing, he didn't copy. He had that sort of attitude.' Mr Rees-Mogg said his six children are as 'informed' about politics as he was as a child and regularly join him on the doorstep. Advertisement

It was filmed by left wing activist group Class War and posted on their Facebook page.

When questioned by MailOnline last night, despite his apparent willingness to bring Mr Rees-Mogg's children into debate, Mr Bone refused to say how many grandchildren he has or how old they are.

He said: 'I ain't going there, no.'

The Prime Minister's official spokesman condemned the confrontation of Mr Rees-Mogg as 'completely unacceptable'.

He said: 'No elected member or their family should be subject to intimidation or abuse in that way.'

Others, including Tory MP Ben Gummer, whose father John was Environment Secretary in the early 90s, were equally horrified by the encounter.

He Tweeted: 'I had my share of this stuff. All I can say is that seeing it done to @Jacob_Rees_Mogg's children still brings an oh so angry lump to my throat. It is a cruel thing to do to a child, and it will mark them forever.'

Even Class War's own supporters online found Mr Bone's direct attack on the children too much.

Steve Cason wrote on Facebook: 'I think taking the Tories on is fair game and in fact must be done - I do it all the time.

'Sorry but I don't agree that children should be brought into the argument in this way. The bit about not being liked etc crossed the boundary.'

Malcolm Brooks added: 'Well I don't have any time for the tory git but not good in front of anyone's kids.'

And Wayne England said: 'In front of children. NOT COOL.'

However, Mr Rees-Mogg appeared unconcerned about the attack and told Mail Online: 'It was a small protest by anarchists which not surprisingly was disorganised, unpunctual and short lived.'

He later sought to play down the incident, insisting his children were 'absolutely fine', despite the barracking.

'I wouldn't get too excited about it. It was a few anarchists who turned up and it wasn't very well organised. It wasn't terribly serious,' he told LBC radio.

The three clearly stunned youngsters stood while their parents tried to usher them inside, but they still heard the full bullying rant demanding that the protesters know how much their nanny Veronica Crook (above in black) is paid

The encounter last night between Mr Bone and the Rees-Mogg family was filmed by activist group Class War and posted on their Facebook page

But even Class War's own supporters online found the attack on the children too much. Steve Cason wrote on Facebook: 'Sorry but I don't agree that children should be brought into the argument in this way. The bit about not being liked etc crossed the boundary'

Mr Bone told the children: 'Daddy doesn't pay nanny much, so poor nanny Crook who looks after you and wipes your bottom, she doesn't get enough money every week'. Ms Crook (holding the baby) regularly appears in family pictures

'We are a free country. They weren't violent. They aren't admirers of mine. I am in public life and not everybody is going to like me. That is a reality of public life.

'I'd have preferred it if it hadn't happened but I don't want to get it out of perspective. I think much worse things happen to many other people.'

During the confrontation Mr Bone, 71, told the children: 'Daddy won't say how much he pays your nanny, his nanny who looks after you. Daddy doesn't pay her very much.

Today, Mr Bone, who has Parkinson's Disease, walks with a stick and whose father was a butler, was unrepentant about speaking directly to the children

'Daddy says the minimum wage doesn't count for anything, or the London minimum wage.

'Daddy doesn't pay nanny much, so poor nanny Crook who looks after you and wipes your bottom, she doesn't get enough money every week.

'But daddy, he doesn't care because he's too busy posing as a Latin eating, gut-orientated toff which he does pretty well.'

He then repeatedly asked again how much Ms Crook was paid, before she appeared on the street to cries of 'Oh my God, she's here!'

She emerged and said that she wasn't paid by the hour and that she didn't need to tell him how much she was paid as she hugged Mr Rees-Mogg's son.

Mr Bone was not put off and went on to accuse Ms Crook of having 'Stockholm syndrome' because she wouldn't reveal her salary.

She asked Mr Rees-Mogg, standing just behind her and cuddling his smaller child, 'Do I?'

He replied: 'No!'

When someone questioned another protester's actions, he was told: 'Well too bad. If you don't like it, f*** off!'

Ian Bone (right) repeatedly asked again how much Ms Crook was paid, before she appeared (in black) on the street to cries of 'Oh my God, she's here!'

Ms Crook, who regularly appears in family pictures, not only looks after all six of the MP's children but cared for him when he was a boy. Four of Mr Rees-Mogg's children came out to witness the confrontation

Mr Rees-Mogg told Mail Online: 'It was a small protest by anarchists which not surprisingly was disorganised, unpunctual and short lived'

Ms Crook, who regularly appears in family pictures, looks after all six of the MP's childrenand has been connected to the family for half a century.

Today, Mr Bone, who has Parkinson's Disease, walks with a stick and whose father was a butler, was unrepentant about speaking directly to the children.

He told Mail Online: 'Jacob Rees Mogg brought his family outside and into our demonstration. I stand by everything that I said.

'I think that my comments to his children are nothing in comparison to the policies that Rees Mogg believes in.

'His children are going to Eton, like their father, where they'll get mercilessly bullied anyway.'
Four cows died after they were freed from their pens at an organic farm by German activists  and ate too much concentrated feed.

A further 40 cows are in a critical condition after they ate up to 10kg of feed at the Liebenwalder Agrar farm in the state of Brandenburg, the Berliner Zeitung reports.

It is thought the suspects, thought to be animal rights activists, trespassed onto the farm and released the dairy cows and calves between Saturday night and Sunday morning.

Four cows died after they were freed from the pens at an organic farm and ate up to 10kg of concentrated feed. Stock photo

The cows then made their way to the concentrate feed area and ate up to 10kg of concentrated feed. They are normally give a maximum of 2kg a day.

Anja Schiemann, the farm's managing director, told the newspaper: 'Too much concentrate feed causes the digestive system in the rumen to be severely disturbed.

'The damage to the liver is just too much.'

Schiemann added the loss of four cows as well as the deteriorating health of so many others will cause the farm to suffer financially.

The suspects, thought to be animal rights activists, trespassed onto the farm and released the dairy cows and calves between Saturday night and Sunday morning. Stock photo

The farm has offered a 1,000 (890) reward for information that could lead to the capture of the suspects.

Police are also investigating the incident.
This is the shocking moment a professor died while broadcasting on live television.

Professor Rita Jitendra choked and passed away while speaking during the filming of 'Good Morning J&K'.

Speaking about her life and career to date, the renowned professor, writer and artist suddenly stopped speaking mid-sentence and collapsed.

Professor Rita Jitendra was appearing on the Indian talkshow DD Kashir's 'Good Morning J&K' to discuss her life

Zahid Mukhtar, the anchor of the show, said: 'She was telling us a few interesting things about her life and was looking absolutely normal.

'But suddenly she stopped talking and began having hiccups. We had to cut the interview (and switch to) a documentary to attend to her and take her to hospital.'

He told the Indian Telegraph: 'She had a great association with television and her last words were on how she had started doing the dramas.'

Hafiza Muzaffar, Rita's host in Srinagar, said while Ms Jitendra was being driven to the studio for the interview, she said she wanted her death to be like former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam's.

Muzaffar, former secretary of the state women's commission, said: 'She told him that Dr Kalam had died while working. That is how she met her end too. She breathed her last in the studio itself.'

She was declared dead on arrival at the SMHS Hospital in Jammu, India.

Dr Saleem Tak said she died due to a sudden cardiac arreest.

He said: 'The cardiac arrest may have taken place due to heart arrhythmia, which is an abnormal heart beating.'

Professor Jitendra passed away on the show, where she was speaking about her life and career

Her body was later handed over to her family. The producer of the show, Tanveer Mir, said Jitendra choked suddenly and collapsed.

Mir told Kashmir Reader: 'It's shocking for us as this is the first incident in the Doordarshan history when any guest died in a live program.'

He added: 'We managed to run the whole programme to keep the broadcast uninterrupted. But we are very saddened with this incident and we pray for the departed soul.'
Majid Rasoolzadeh (pictured outside Manchester Crown Court yesterday), is accused of peddling crystal meth

An alleged drugs kingpin used holiday flights to run an international trafficking operation from his home, a court heard.

Majid Rasoolzadeh sourced high-purity crystal meth from his native Iran before moving it through Turkey, Manchester Crown Court heard.

The 46-year-old then allegedly used couriers to fly the drugs to the UK on commercial flights, and on to Japan to be sold for vast profits.

The synthetic drug had a wholesale value of 80,000 per kilo in Japan, while the same quantity of high-purity cocaine sold for 20,000 in the UK, jurors were told.

Rasoolzadeh is alleged to be one of a number of Iranians living in the UK behind the movement of crystal meth to Japan.

The drugs were manufactured in Iran and moved across the border on 'one of the oldest established smuggling routes' into eastern Turkey, where couriers used holiday flights to transport them to airports across the UK, the court heard.

Hidden in the lining of suitcases, couriers paid for airline tickets in cash and used scheduled flights to fly the drugs to Tokyo where they were sold to the underworld.

Prosecutor Henry Blackshaw told the court: '[Rasoolzadeh] is one of a group of Iranians living in the UK and we say he's a ringleader of those that are in the dock.

'He was the most senior person in this operation, who we say was overseeing and co-ordinating from his home in Alderley Edge.'

The defendant was said to have 'supervised the collection of the drugs' in Turkey and then been present when the contraband was sold on in Japan.

A series of photos was shown to the jury which appeared to show the defendants in bars and sightseeing in Japan.

Rasoolzadeh's three co-defendants were from the same town in eastern Slovakia and had emigrated to the UK, living in Leeds and working at the same chicken factory, jurors were told.

They were 'tempted to boost their incomes with2,500 for a drugs run to Turkey and up to 5,000 for a trip to Japan,' according to prosecutors.

'It's these men who were at the bottom of the pile getting their hands dirty and taking greater risks while the bosses kept themselves one or two steps removed from it,' said Mr Blackshaw.

The couriers had been made directors of 'shell companies' to give them 'a respectable business veneer' for their trips to Japan, the court was told.

Manchester Crown Court heard the defendants hid the drugs in the lining of suitcases to ship them across the world

Jan Pasulka, 36, acted as the 'gangmaster' while Jan Stinic, 37, and Dusan Staruch, 29, were couriers, according to the prosecution.

The court heard the operation began to unravel when Staruch was stopped at Leeds Bradford Airport in July 2014, with three kilos of crystal meth valued at $300,000 hidden in the lining of his suitcase following a flight from Turkey.

Mr Blackshaw asked jurors whether they had seen the popular American TV drama Breaking Bad, in which a 'disenchanted chemist' uses his skills to produce and sell highly-addictive crystal meth: 'If you have you will have heard of crystal meth or 'glass' as it's sometimes known.

'It's set in America, where that drug is widely abused. It's not used very much in the UK, but it is used abroad.'

Majid Rasoolzadeh, from Alderley Edge; Jan Pasulka, from Plymouth; Dusan Staruch, from Leeds; and Jan Stinic, from Plymouth all deny one count of conspiracy to supply class A drugs and another of conspiracy to import a controlled drug.

The trial continues.
A three-year-old boy has been saved by his backpack after being mowed down by a car in front of his shocked mother.

The bag propped up the car's wheel, preventing it from crushing him, according to local media.

The child survived the accident with minor injuries.

The boy's mother was taking him back home from his kindergarten in Yinchuan, China. The driver of the car claimed he didn't see the three-year-old boy because he was squatting

The accident took place in the Helan County of Yinchuan city on September 4, reported Yinchuan News.

It is said the boy's mother was taking him back home from his kindergarten when the car knocked him down.

The driver claimed he had not seen the child who was squatting when the car approached him.

The boy's mother dragged him from under the wheel after his bag stopped it crushing him

Dong Bo, an officer from the Helan County Public Security Bureau, said the boy had survived the hit because of his backpack.

Dong said though the boy was run over, the bag had supported the car's rear wheel and prevented the boy from suffering fatal injuries.

'Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable,' Dong told Yinchuan News.

The boy's mother dragged him from under the wheel. The driver then send both to the hospital and called the police.

The boy was found to have bruises and treated by doctors accordingly.
A woman who recently moved back to Perth is 'in pieces' after a local ranger recommended her beloved dog be euthanised.

Monty, a two-year-old boxer x mastiff, jumped over a secure fence in an East Fremantle backyard when his owner Angela Beechey was out getting dinner last Wednesday.

According to witnesses, the rescue dog, who is also deaf, 'attacked' two people nearby, including a cyclist.

Both had subsequent tetanus shots for leg bites.

Monty, pictured with his owner Angela Beechey on the Gold Coast earlier this year

Monty was popular at a number of cafes, gym and even a pub in Gold Coast suburb Miami

Ms Beechey was approached by a ranger at her home address the following day, who informed her Monty must now be formally declared a 'dangerous dog.'

He must also be classified under the Dangerous Dog Act, which includes caging, muzzling and surveillance.

If Ms Beechey doesn't comply, her companion will reportedly have a destruction order placed on him.

'I was in shock, I didn't know what to say at first,'' the 24-year-old told Daily Mail Australia on Wednesday.

'Monty is such a fun loving dog, when I was living in Queensland I used to always take him to the gym, cafes, even my local pub for happy hour.

'He has never attacked anyone before, it was definitely out of character.'

Monty was taken away by the ranger last week and is currently at a Perth refuge until an investigation is complete.

Ms Beechey, who has engaged the services of a lawyer, is paying $46 each day to keep Monty in the pound.

Monty, a two-year-old boxer x mastiff, pictured on a popular beach in Queensland recently

Monty's distraught owner Angela Beechey took to Facebook to recall her 'living nightmare'

Monty, a two-year-old boxer x mastiff, could be euthanised after biting two women in Perth

'They (ranger) took him straight away on a pole with a muzzle on him,'' the distraught marketing manager said.

'I will be fighting the destruction order in court as well as the request for him to be marked down as a dangerous dog for the rest of his life.

'This has all happened so quickly so I'm a bit of a mess - I've barely slept the past week out of worry.

'If anyone has any advice on getting him out of this situation it would be greatly appreciated.'

Ms Beechey has also raised close to $2500 of her $4000 goal via GoFundMe.
A Jewish TV doctor today revealed that she and her husband are discussing how to leave the UK if Jeremy Corbyn becomes Prime Minister amid the anti-Semitism row.

Dr Ellie Cannon and her husband Adam spent Jewish New Year with their friends discussing 'the merits and logistics of fleeing'.

Dr Cannon - who has appeared on a string of TV shows and also writes for MailOnline - said British Jews are scared of a Corbyn premiership.

She said: 'Jews who escaped Europe in the 1930s talked about the suitcases always being ready. It's 2018. The suitcase, once again, is packed.'

Her stark warning comes after Mr Corbyn has faced years of criticism over his failure to tackle the anti-Semitism festering among some of his supporters.

Ex chief rabbi Lord Sacks accused him of being an 'anti-Semite' after MailOnline exclusively revealed a video of Mr Corbyn saying British Zionists have 'no sense of English irony'.

Dr Ellie Cannon (pictured left) and her husband Adam spent Jewish New Year with their friends discussing 'the merits and logistics of fleeing' if Jeremy Corbyn (pictured, right, in a museum in Leicester last week) becomes Prime Minister

The TV doctor revealed that she and her friends are fearful about what a Corbyn premiership would mean for them

She said that they spoke about options for passports and what country to move to

She warned that educated British Jews could flee the UK if Jeremy Corbyn gets the keys to Number Ten

Dr Ellie described how she has gone from being a Labour supporter to fearing what a Labour government would mean for her

She said that just like in the 1930s, Jewish people now have their suitcases packed

In a highly personal and emotional Twitter threat, Dr Ellie said that despite being born and raised in Britain, she now fears that she may no longer be welcome.

She wrote: 'A (very personal) thread from me and Adam.

'So we just spent Jewish new year as we always do - friends, family, eating, honey cake, synagogue... And it's all been the same as normal as it has been for the last 40 years that I can remember until last night.

'Last night the conversation moved on from schools, and TV, and work to the subject on every Jew's mind at the moment: Corbyn.

'And we sat for hours planning with our friends where and how we would leave if he became Prime Minister. We swapped potential passport options.

'We argued on the merits of other 'safer' countries. We discussed when, why, how and where we would make a new start.

'Do people realise this is happening in the UK in 2018? Two British born, Oxbridge educated professional adults discussing the merits and logistics of fleeing.

'We were all born and raised here. We are mostly third or more generation British.

'I cheered in my university bar when my Labour vote won in 1997. I have never considered myself anything other than British ( for me being Jewish comes second to that).

'But last night we planned where we're going next. Jews who escaped Europe in the 1930s talked about the suitcases always being ready.

'It's 2018. The suitcase, once again, is packed.'

They are not the first Jewish couple to say they will leave over the Labour anti-Semitism scandal.

Mark Lewis, an ex Labour supporter who represented victims in the phone-hacking case, and Mandy Blumenthal said they are planning to move to Israel by the end of the year.

They accused Mr Corbyn of moving the 'rock anti-Semites have crawled out from' and said they have received a growing wave of hate and threats since he became Labour leader.

Mr Lewis said a man has been sent to prison for threatening to kill him simply because he is Jewish.

He told the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire Show last month: 'The online abuse might continue, the Israelis might not like me because I am too left, might not like me because they think I am too right, whatever their view.

'But they are not going to dislike me because I am Jewish. And there is only so much you can take  when you are getting threats to kill you.'

Ms Blumenthal said: People are  in the majority of circles that I mix in  actually talking about their options of leaving here because of the anti-Semitism.

Challenged about the possible looming departures, Mr Corbyn's official spokesman said: 'I think Jeremy has made clear that he is determined to take whatever action is necessary to eradicate anti-Semitism inside the Labour party and in society as a whole.

'And he wants to work with Jewish organisations and the Jewish community to do that as effectively as possible.'
WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT

A pet dog snatched to settle a family debt has been rescued from a Cambodian slaughterhouse moments before it was due to be chopped up for food.

The slaughterhouse owner took mongrel Noun after her owner borrowed 2,600 to pay off gambling debts.

Noun's family contacted animal activist Michael Chor, who runs charity The Sounds of Animals, to help save Noun before she was killed and eaten.

He travelled from Thailand to Cambodia and found Noun chained to a fence and bound inside a plastic bag in the slaughterhouse.

Mr Chor was able to raise the cash needed to free Noun, whose name means 'sit under the sun', in just 24 hours after his followers made donations.

Campaigner Michael Chor travelled from Thailand to Cambodia to save mongrel Noun (pictured together)

But Mr Chor returned to the market hours later to find hundreds of the dogs Noun was caged among had been slaughtered - chilling proof of the fate she escaped.

He captured horrifying videos and pictures that show the remains of the skinned, butchered and boiled animals being peddled to customers.

But Noun has now made a full recovery and is set to be adopted somewhere far from Cambodia.

Mr Chor, a former doctor, said: 'Noun was a family pet and was very much loved by the children in the family,' Mr Chor, who is from France but is now based in Thailand, said.

'She had lived with the family her whole life and when we had Noun we rang them to let them know she was safe.

'The children were crying with joy, that their beloved pet had not been killed.'

He added: 'The slaughterhouse was filthy, it was covered in dog body parts all over the floor, there was staff chopping up dogs, boiling dogs, and their bodies being thrown on the floor.

Nouns family contacted animal activist Michael Chor, who runs charity The Sounds of Animals, to help save Noun before she was killed and eaten

Noun's rescuers found her bound in a bag with just her head left outside so she could breathe

'They were killing and processing hundreds of dogs a day and the live dogs were kept in a cage at the back of the slaughterhouse, awaiting their fate.

'It smelt of death. It was worse than hell.'

Noun's rescuers found her tied into a plastic bag with just her head left outside so she could breathe.

She was malnourished and dehydrated after being been tied to a wall by her lead for a week and left surrounded by the body parts of other dead dogs.

Her teeth had also been broken  a common practice to stop her from biting any of the slaughterhouse workers.

Noun was given vitamins, calcium and antibiotics for an infection and will also be microchipped and receive all her necessary injections.

Mr Chor said his goal is to shut the trade down - but for now, he must tread carefully and accept it is a deeply rooted tradition. Pictured, the slaughterhouse

She will then cross the border to Thailand, where she will be cared for at the Blue Dream Shelter, managed by the Sound of Animals, before being rehomed in the UK or US.

Mr Chor added: 'When I took Noun out of the bad she was frozen with fear.

'She still had her collar and lead on, the lead was used to tie her to the wall, so she was unable to move at all. Her teeth had been broken so she couldn't bite anyone.

'They opened the vet especially to take Noun in and she was given pain relief.

'She will stay with the vet in Cambodia for one week and will be given all necessary care. Hopefully she will get a forever home.'

Despite being traumatised by the discovery of the other disemboweled animals when he returned to the market, Mr Chor said he was forced to keep his cool because the market is run by dangerous criminals.

The campaigner relocated to Asia to join the fight against the dog meat trade in 2005.

While the dog meat industry has drawn global attention in China, it is lesser known in Cambodia

While the industry has drawn global attention in China, it is lesser known in Cambodia - despite it being legal to slaughter dogs and sell their meat in the country.

Mr Chor said his goal is to shut the trade down - but for now, he must tread carefully and accept it is a deeply rooted tradition.

But his work has come with a heavy toll as he says he has developed PTSD caused by the suffering he has seen at the hands of the butchers.

Mr Chor, who said up to 400 dogs were killed in the market every day, said: 'I tried to come back to find what had happened to the dogs that were alive in the morning.

'It's a feeling you cannot explain, I couldn't sleep for days. But you cannot get worked up and start a fight, because these people are dangerous.

'This is a very dangerous place, it's run by the local mafia. I had to try and negotiate to get them for free rather than buying the dogs, which would fund the market.

'They call me 'the crazy Frenchman' around here. I believe I have developed PTSD from what I have seen. It's impossible for me not to feel anything.

'Things are getting better and there are more and more dogs being saved and awareness is being raised. But there's a long way to go.'
A mother-of-two was sending a text message to her husband while on her way to meet her children from school when she was killed by a crazed terrorist.

Aysha Frade was unaware of the approaching danger when Khalid Masood mowed her down as he carried out his sickening rampage along Westminster Bridge, an inquest heard today.

The school administrator had told her husband she feared an attack when her job moved to London but was reassured she would 'be in the safest part' of the capital.

The 44-year-old had her back to Mahood's SUV and died instantly when she was thrown some 57ft into the path of an oncoming bus.

Moments later she received a call from her husband which was answered by a passer-by who told him there had been a 'terrible accident'.

The Old Bailey was shown harrowing CCTV clips of Mrs Frade's final moments

The school administrator had told her husband John (pictured together) that she feared an attack when her job moved to London

Mrs Frade's husband John had earlier told the inquest: 'She worried about the new location of [her college] DLD's campus moments away from parliament.

'She asked me several times, what if anything were to happen in Westminster?

Mother-of-two Aysha Frade, 44, was killed in the Westminster Bridge terror attack

'My words were always of encouragement and positivity, never once entertaining how an incident could horrifically become reality, especially a place I imagined so highly clad with security, CCTV, and police.

'Least of all could I ever imagine the odds of something happening to Aysha, at that precise spot, at that exact moment, innocently walking away from a job she cherished on her way to pick up her children whom she emphatically loved above all else in this world.'

Detective Constable Simon Osland today took the Old Bailey through harrowing CCTV clips of Mrs Frade's final moments as members of her family in court looked away.

He told the inquest: 'Just before the impact she had the phone in front of her and looking at it. At no stage do we see her turn around or make any movement.

'It is obvious there would have been all the other traffic noise and bus engines in that area. She seemed completely unaware.'

Masood was driving around 31mph when he deliberately knocked down Kurt Cochran, 54, Leslie Rhodes, 75, Mrs Frade, 44, and Andreea Cristea, 31, on the bridge before stabbing Pc Keith Palmer to death at the gates to the Palace of Westminster on March 22 last year.

Masood, 52, killed five in his 82-second rampage over Westminster Bridge in March last year

Mr Patterson said there was hair on Masood's car, suggesting she hit her head on the windscreen before being thrown into a bus lane.

The lawyer for the family said a pathologist had concluded her death would have been 'instantaneous and would have been without suffering'.

Mr Patterson said graphic photos and videos had been posted on the internet of Mrs Frade's body by passers-by, causing 'real distress to the family'.

He added: 'Despite efforts to have them taken down because of the distress caused, to this day there are images on the internet.'

Bus passenger Rob English picked up Mrs Frade's phone from the road, and answered a call from her husband John.

Mr English told him there had been a terrible accident and advised him to get to the bridge.

Masood drove along the pavement of Westminster Bridge before running into the grounds of Parliament

Flowers left at the scene of the attack on Westminster Bridge last March

Pc Kirsty Bambrough stayed with Mrs Frade for a number of hours, even though medics quickly realised her injuries were 'absolutely incompatible with life'.

The officer broke down as she recalled the 'horrific injuries' to Mrs Frade's face and head, and tearfully gave her condolences to the family, who thanked her as she left court.

In Mrs Frade's brown handbag, which had been over her shoulder, PC Bambrough found a letter from her children's school.

Rob Lyon told how he banged on the side of the bus in an attempt to stop it, moments before Mrs Frade was crushed under its wheels.

Mr Lyon had been returning to his hotel from Millbank when a colleague shouted: 'Get out of the way.'

Masood's car had missed him by inches while his colleague was forced to climb the balustrade to get out of his murderous path.

This is one of the last photos taken by tourist Andreea Cristea on Westminster Bridge before she was hit by a car driven by terrorist Khalid Masood and knocked into the Thames

Earlier, Mrs Frade's husband told the inquest how the couple met at the gym in 1996, and described how he was immediately struck by her smile.

He said Aysha was 'relaxed, fun to be around, laughing and smiling', and greatly valued her family and close friends.

She loved her job as a PA at a school and was a devoted mother to her two daughters, the Old Bailey heard.

Mr Frade said the couple had plans for a big white wedding in 2006, but the idea was shelved when she became pregnant with their first daughter in 2005.

Keen to be married before she gave birth, the couple 'grabbed two strangers from the street' to be witnesses and were married in a 10-minute ceremony.

The inquest heard Mrs Frade 'lived and breathed for her daughters', and her husband was in awe of the balance she struck 'between tender care and discipline'.

He told the court that she was a loving daughter to her aging mother who she visited every day.

Mr Frade went on: 'The truth is that she still doesn't feel like she's gone, her love surrounds us, her aura lights up the paths of life's journey.'

He said his wife had been 'cruelly and brutally ripped away from us'.

Her sister Michelle also read an emotionally-charged statement to the hearing.

She said: 'People cannot understand how this despicable act of futile atrocity has impacted on not only her families' lives but also herself. She will never be able to smile again, see her daughters grow up.

'Aysha and all the other victims of this tragedy are people and not just statistics or a name that will be forgotten once this inquest is over.'

Inquests are being held into Mrs Frade's death and those of four other victims of the attack in March last year. The jury inquest is expected to last up to five weeks.
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Sleeping five-to-a room and crammed into a cupboard, this is inside the rundown farmhouse where eight suspected modern-day slaves were rescued by police yesterday.

Stinking of cat urine and littered with broken furniture and electrical goods, it is here in this filthy cottage in the Berkshire village of Iver where the immigrants were allegedly held.

Laundry hangs on make-shift washing lines across the entrance to other living quarters.

Dirty sofas and plastic chairs can be seen set under the awning of a farm cottage a few miles from London's Heathrow Airport.

Images show bunk beds and on mattresses on the floor, including one in the fire place

The filthy and cramped conditions have now been revealed after police were tipped off about the site

Washing hangs up in the back of the house where a suspected slavery gang were arrested on Tuesday

Grown men were sleeping in bunk beds in tiny rooms before being sent out to work illegally on building sites, it is claimed

MailOnline gained exclusive access to Willow Tree Farm in Iver Bucks from where occupants were found yesterday.

More than 100 police officers took part in the police operation yesterday.

The victims are alleged to have been forced to work on building sites. They were lead away following the raid clutching their bags and suitcases.

But today the three people arrested on suspicion of modern day slavery protested their innocence and claimed they had not exploited anybody.

An unnamed Romanian bricklayer, 41, his girlfriend known only as Gabriela, 28, and his best friend named as Luigi, 49, told of their shock at being arrested.

All three live in a bungalow on the site in Iver, Berkshire bought for 1.3million in July last year by Jujhaar Singh Brainch.

Gabriela, who was released by police pending further enquiries, told MailOnline: 'We are not slave owners! Yes, I was arrested yesterday. It was the first time I have ever been arrested. I'm so embarrassed. I know what the crime police have accused me of  of slavery  but I have not exploited anyone.'

Two of the men arrested on Tuesday. A woman denied they had exploited anyone. One is a bricklayer, 41 (left) and another (right) is his friend named only as Luigi

While luxury cars were parked outside the grotty farm house the men inside were living in squalor

Officers are pictured at the property in south Buckinghamshire, where they detained eight suspected slavery ring members

Speaking on behalf of all three Gabriela claimed that the alleged 'slaves' were actually Romanian construction workers who earned up to 130 per day.

She said: 'All of the eight people who were taken away work in construction. They are bricklayers and labourers. They earn 130 per day.'

Sitting outside the farm cottage, which was raided in a huge police operation yesterday, the three Romanians held their heads in their hands in shock.

'We have not done anything wrong,' Gabriela claimed.

'The police say these people have been treated as slaves but they work and they get paid.

'They live here and are picked up and taken to work. They earned good money, a lot more money than they would earned back home [in Romania}.

'They pay rent, 250-a-month, and I look after the property.'

Police raided the property in Iver in response to reports of forced labour being used on building sites in the area

Gabriela's partner, who declined to give his name, and his friend Luigi both work as bricklayers. They work with the 'slaves' and earn the same amount of money - 130 per day, they told MailOnline.

'I am a bricklayer,' he told MailOnline. 'I work on building sites in England.'

The three suspects were released on police bail last night pending further inquiries.

The owner of Willow Tree Farm, Jujhaar Singh Brainch, runs the airport car parking service which uses the land to store cars.

Mr Brainch, who was not arrested in the dawn raid, told MailOnline that he had already handed police documents to show that the house in Iver, Buckinghamshire, was being let through a local estate agent over the past 18 months and that he had no contact with the tenants.

The 38-year-old said: 'The rent came on time and I was never notified of any problems, so I had no reason to raise any concerns about who was living there.

'I visited the property about a year ago because some repairs needed to be carried out and there were two Eastern European men there who said they were the tenants. One of them said that he was married and that his wife was out at work.

'I didn't speak to them that much and didn't see anything suspicious taking place.'

The slaves were forced to wash outside and on sit dirty sofas while there was no room in the house

Police officers monitor the entrance to the property in Buckinghamshire today

Washing machines were kept outside with filthy furniture, close to London's Heathrow Airport

A cat can be seen in one of the bedrooms. The home smelt strongly of feline urine

Police vehicles are pictured in Iver, Buckinghamshire after a National Crime Agency operation to rescue 'slaves'

Eight people, believed to be victims of modern slavery, were taken by police in Buckinghamshire

The property in Iver where eight 'slaves' were taken into care

Thames Valley Police officers mounted a huge arrest and rescue mission at the site today

Approximately 100 officers were involved in the operation which took place following allegations made about forced labour being carried out at building sites

Mr Brainch runs New Punjab Coaches, a coach hire company in Southall, west London as well as a luxury car and skip hire business and a fleet of HGVs.

He admitted that he was closely connected to the building trade but denied being involved in anything to do with slave labour.

He said: 'This has got absolutely nothing to do with my business.

'I have already told the police that I am prepared to work with them further and provide them with any more information. I know a lot of people in the building trade in Buckinghamshire and if I can help with this investigation, I will.'

Mr Brainch said that the first the first he heard about a raid at the property was when he received a phone call from a friend and the police then got in touch asking to speak with him.

Thames Valley Police led the operation alongside the National Crime Agency, and the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority

Detective Inspector James Mather, leading the operation, said: 'This operation has safeguarded vulnerable people in society and a number of arrests have been made'
Anyone who recognizes the people involved or who has information is urged to call the Auburn Police tip line at 253-288-7403

The gas station cashier who was left to die by two heartless teenage thieves after suffering a heart attack in front of them last week has been identified as father-of-three Zarif Kelada.

Kelada was working at the Shell gas station in Auburn, Washington, when the two youngsters and an adult male they were with came in.

He suffered a heart attack and collapsed in front of them after confronting them about two pepperoni sticks they hadn't paid for.

Instead of calling 911, the adult fled and the two teenagers ransacked the gas station, stealing $178 from the cash register and a packet of cigarettes.

Kelada was only saved when another customer came into the station three minutes later and called 911.

He remains in the hospital but is expected to make a full recovery. Friends are now fundraising to help his family cover the cost of his medical care.

Zarif Kelada is the father-of-three who was left to die after suffering a heart attack in front of robbers at the gas station where he works on Saturday. He is pictured with his three young kids in a photo shared to raise money through a GoFundMe page that will help cover the cost of his medical care. Kelada remains in the hospital

These are the two teenage boys police are hunting for in Auburn, Washington. They were filmed not only leaving Kelada to die but robbing his gas station and returning twice to pick up any goods they may have missed on Saturday afternoon

'Zarif has 3 small children at home, his wife is a stay-at-home mom.

'He will not be able to return to work for an unknown period of time. His family will need help with money for food, rent and the medical bills,' a GoFundMe page set up to help him reads.

They have already surpassed their goal of raising $10,000. The total on Wednesday morning was $12,000.

The robbery took place at a Shell gas station in Auburn, Washington state, on Saturday at 5.41pm.

It began when the two teens entered the gas station and took two pepperoni sticks from the register while he was in the back.

When Kaleda tried to get an adult they were with to pay for the pepperoni sticks, an argument ensued and he walked out from behind the cash register to confront them on the shop floor.

After being given a $1 bill from one of the teens, he started began making his way back round to the other side of the register but collapsed before he could make it.

The confrontation began when the boys took two pepperoni sticks without paying for them. Kelada is seen (right) demanding money from them or the adult they were with (left)

As Kelada walked back towards the cash register with $1 in his hand, he suffered a cardiac arrest and crashed into a display of water bottles as the men watched on

When he fell, neither the boys nor the adult they were with called 911. Instead, they stood over him then the two boys stepped over him to carry out their theft

Video taken by surveillance cameras inside the station shows him stumbling and walking into a display of goods then falling to the ground.

Rather than call 911, the two teens stood over him and then, after the adult they were with fled, returned twice to rob the cash register.

No one called for an ambulance until another person entered the station three minutes after they had left.

They also heartlessly snatched back the $1 bill he had in his hands.

They ransacked the register and stole goods, returning twice before fleeing for good

Police not only want to identify the boys but also the adult male they were with who fled when the man collapsed and did not call 911

Auburn police are now appealing for the public help's to identify the two young teenagers and the man.

Earlier, a woman who works with Kelada at the store shared her shock and disbelief.

'It just breaks our hearts. Now this guy is fighting for his life.

'He has three little children. He has a stay-at-home wife.

'We just pray to God that he makes it,' Angela Sharapova, who works with the man, told KOMO news.

He was described by another colleague as a 'long term employee'.

Anyone who recognizes the people involved or who has information is urged to call the Auburn Police tip line at 253-288-7403.
The mother of a 10-year-old boy who was rushed to hospital after allegedly being assaulted in a schoolyard game, have praised school staff, paramedics and police for their efforts to save their son's life.

Rana Zahed Chemaisse, the mother of Nadal Chemaisse, flew back from Dubai with her husband to be with their son after he suddenly collapsed at Wattawa Heights Public School, in Bankstown, in Sydney's west on Tuesday.

'We've never had any issues with fights or bullying ... I want to emphasise that he is a happy and popular child at the school and we've never had any problems there,' Mrs Chemaisse told Nine News.

Nadal Chemaisse was hospitalised and is in critical condition after allegedly being assaulted

The young boy was left fighting for life after allegedly 'being assaulted' and 'turning blue' in the schoolyard, where he was playing a game with friends when the incident occurred.

'We are grateful for the quick response from the school, paramedics and the NSW Police for all their efforts for saving my son's life,' she said.

Nadal's mother is an employee at the school but was in Dubai when the incident occurred.

Paramedics performed CPR on Chemaisse after he collapsed in Wattawa Heights Public School

Police initially declared the school's playground a crime scene after reports the boy had been bashed.

But relatives of the boy - whose condition has stabilised - told Daily Mail Australia he had been playing a game with friends and they did not believe he had been attacked.

'These are all rumours; there was no bashing - nothing like that. It was just an incident with friends playing around,' the family member said.

A young schoolboy is in critical condition after he was allegedly bashed at a school in Sydney's west

Emergency services were called to the school about 12pm on Tuesday, where they attended to the boy

'We are just waiting for him to wake up for him to tell us what actually happened.'

Police confirmed on Wednesday morning that the boy suffered from a pre-existing medical condition.

In a statement, police said they had spoken to the other students involved in the alleged incident, and were not expecting to take further action.

'Police have been told the boy was involved in a game with a group of other students when he was allegedly assaulted and fell backwards,' the statement read.

'The child was taken to Westmead Children's Hospital, where he remains in a critical but stable condition.

'It's understood the boy has a pre-existing medical condition.

'The boy's condition will be monitored, but no further police action is expected.'

The 10-year-old was at Wattawa Heights Public School in Bankstown, in Sydney's west, when the alleged incident occurred

Officers from the Bankstown area attended the school and established a crime scene

Emergency services were called about 12pm on Tuesday, where they attended to the boy and turned the school into a crime scene.

One student reportedly saw the boy 'turn blue' after he hit the floor following the incident.

Parts of the school were taped off by police, with officers entering classrooms armed with bodycams.

Angry and worried parents lashed out on the school's Facebook page, slamming the staff and questioning their presence during the alleged incident.

The boy was taken to Westmead Children's Hospital, where he remains in a serious but stable condition

One woman wrote: 'What a lovely bunch of staff, allowing a 10-year-old boy to get bashed almost to death while in your care and supervision.

'Where were you when this huge fight happened? Where was the supervision which you are required, by law, to supply to the children in your care?

'Shame, Wattawa Heights School; I hope the young boy survives.'
A police officer who sent a string of flirty text messages to domestic abuse victims calling himself 'Lord' after an evil character from the Shrek movie has been jailed for 32 months.

PC Jason Farquhar, of Stamford, Lincolnshire, pleaded guilty to six counts of misconduct in a public office and misusing force systems.

Northampton Crown Court heard how he bombarded women with messages after they had reported abuse by their partners.

PC Jason Farquhar, of Stamford, Lincolnshire pleaded guilty to six counts of misconduct

Farquhar, who was sacked from Northamptonshire Police told one woman she had 'great' breasts and buttocks.

Another woman rang police in February 2015 to report her husband had been shouting and smashing things.

The randy policeman sent her 12 flirty texts in the space of eight days despite her asking him to stop.

After she gave her number to Farquhar, who was formerly a member of the Cross Border Police team, he texted her that evening.

In the message he explained his colleagues call him Lord - after the main villain from the 2001 Shrek movie Lord Maximus Farquaad.

The text read: 'It's PC Jase Farquhar...yes I know you are looking at my surname and thinking Shrek [the evil character in the kids' movie].

'I am an understanding type of guy...explains why I am called Lord at work.'

He continued to contact her through messages, some of which were sent while he was on duty and told her he 'admired a woman with ambition and desire' and that she kept herself in shape.

At the same time he was texting another woman who rang police to report an abusive partner.

Farquhar was one of the first officers to attend her home and he took her contact details.

Lord Maximus Farquaad (pictured) from the first Shrek movie also liked to think of himself as a ladies' man but was mocked for being incredibly short. The similarity with PC Farquhar's name led police colleagues to call him 'Lord'

Prosecutor Grace Hale said: 'He began contacting her with the purpose of establishing an improper relationship.

'He sent her messages a few days later asking her how she was and the woman opened up about her abusive partner to him, saying she was lonely and frightened.

'Things changed when the defendant overstepped the mark by complimenting her on her figure and wondering how anyone could ill-treat someone as beautiful as her.

'He began calling her gorgeous and putting kisses on his messages to her.'

She ignored the flirtatious texts but he sent her messages on WhatsApp complimenting her on her new profile picture if she changed it.

She told him to stop making the comments as he was a married man and he would stop.

Two messages from Farquhar, who joined Northamptonshire Police in 2005, were saved on her phone.

One read: 'Hey gorgeous xx' and another one said: 'That is one helleva [sic] gorgeous profile pic xx'.

Miss Hale said: 'She was left wondering what his intentions towards her were.

'She trusted and confided in the defendant because he was a police officer.

'She now feels sick as she realised that he had only pretended to be her friend for an ulterior motive.

'He was in fact, predatory towards her.'

Another young woman, in her 20s, rang the police to report veiled threats sent to her by her partner on Facebook.

Farquhar, a former member of the British Army, attended her home and took her details but within days began bombarding her with texts.

Miss Hale added: 'It was more akin to someone that she had just met in a bar on a night out.

'She thought this ultimate intention towards her was a sexual one.'

The court also heard that that Farquhar lied to colleagues that he had to go to investigate a crime when he actually left to meet a woman.

Eight further charges were ordered to lie on file with one count of perverting the course of justice.

Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Swann, of Northamptonshire Police, said after the case:

'Farquhar deliberately and consciously crossed the boundary between his role as a police officer and his personal life, repeatedly breaching the standards of professional behaviour by failing to act with self-control and pursuing improper personal relationships.

'They needed the professionalism expected of a police officer not the selfish advances of a sexual predator.

'This, the worst ever such case uncovered within this Force, was an absolute abuse of his position and we hope this conviction and his dismissal from the police service goes some way to reassure the public of our determination to identify and deal with unprofessional conduct and, where necessary, pursue the case through the criminal justice system.'
Super typhoon Mangkhut - expected to be the strongest typhoon this year - is rapidly gathering momentum in the Pacific as it heads towards populous Asian coasts.

With powerful winds set to reach 278 kilometres per hour (172 miles per hour), Mangkhut is expected to hit the Philippines today before striking financial hub Hong Kong as well as southern China's Guangdong Province by the weekend.

The tropical cyclone - having already hovered through Marshall Islands and Guam earlier this week - could also impact Taiwan and Vietnam.

Nearly 43 million people in the south-east Asian region could be affected, according to United Nations' Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System.

Filipino forecaster illustrates the path of typhoon Mangkhut as it approaches the Philippines with sustained winds of 205 kilometres per hour and gusts of up to 255 kilometres per hour

Super typhoon Mangkhut is expected to hit the Philippines before moving to strike Hong Kong

Filipino residents in Bacoor city, south of Manila, ride on a makeshift raft on a river ahead of impending super typhoon Mangkhut. The typhoon is set to reach 278 kilometres per hour

Typhoon is the name given to tropical cyclones generated in the western Pacific. A super typhoon is one with winds of 241 kilometres per hour (150 miles per hour) or greater.

Mangkhut, the 22nd typhoon this year, will pass through the Philippines with estimated maximum sustained winds of 250 kilometres per hour (155 miles per hour), reported The Philippine Star.

Known as Ompong in the Philippines, the typhoon is expected to barrel through the northern and central parts of Luzon - the most populous island of the nation and where its capital Manila is - from early Thursday to Friday, a weather forecaster from Filipino weather agency PAGASA told The Philippine Star.

PAGASA has warned residents in the area to prepare for possible flooding and landslides.

A handout photo made available by NASA today shows a satellite image of super typhoon Mangkhut approaching the Philippines yesterday. Mangkhut will hit the island country today

Filipino residents disembark from a makeshift raft ahead of Mangkhut in Paranaque city today

With winds set to reach 278km/h, Mangkhut is expected to be the strongest typhoon this year

Mangkhut is expected to be as strong as Haiyan - a super typhoon that killed more than 6,200 people in the Philippines in 2013.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development of the Philippines has set aside 1.7 billion Philippine Pesos (24 million) worth of emergency funds and stockpiles in preparation for the possible extreme weather, according to the government-run Philippine Information Agency.

Classes have also been cancelled in some areas of Luzon in the path of the typhoon.

Mangkhut is predicted to be the strongest storm to ever hit Hong Kong since records began

According to Hong Kong Observatory, Mangkhut will enter the South China Sea on Saturday.

It is due to hit Hong Kong - a densely packed skyscraper city with more than seven million residents.

The observatory said Mangkhut will pack winds of up to 220 kilometres per hour (136 miles per hour) as it passes through Hong Kong.

Mangkhut has been predicted to be the strongest storm to ever hit Hong Kong since records began according to South China Morning Post, and is expected to bring heavy rain and chances of flooding to the harbour city on Sunday.

Guangdong is next on Mangkhut's track. With more than 111 million residents, the most populous province of China will embrace the super typhoon on Sunday before it is expected to downgrade to a severe tropical storm next Monday.
A drunk driver who u-turned on a motorway, killing a father-of-four, is set to be jailed.

Romanian national Adrian Radu, 28, performed the dangerous manoeuvre in the middle lane of the M1 at 5.40am on March 24.

Jaw dropping dash-cam footage shows how Radus was recklessly speeding along the carriageway, just moments before the fatal smash.

His blue Vauxhall Astra can be seen braking sharply before making a u-turn on the southbound carriageway, going from the middle lane and turning to face the wrong direction into the over-taking lane.

The incident happened just over a mile after junction 27 for Hucknall, Nottinghamshire.

A car brakes suddenly as it sees Radu about to attempt to turn around - the car manages to swerve and avoid hitting him

Radu's Astra can be seen performing the u-turn into the fast overtaking lane (right) as the car in front managed to squeeze past

Van driver, Neil Rowe, who was travelling behind was unable to avoid smashing into him and the Eddie Stobart lorry he was overtaking.

Mark Downham, 48, was sleeping on the backseat of the van after being picked up from his home in Chorley, Lancashire.

The steel erecter was rushed to hospital after the crash but died two days later as a result of catastrophic head injuries.

Following the crash Radu continued to drive the wrong way down in the fast lane for approximately 550 metres before eventually coming to a stop.

Radu continues the turn before (off camera) a van smashes into the car, killing a father-of-four sleeping on the back seat

Radu completes the move before a car hits him, and then a lorry, resulting in fatality

Adrian Radu has been found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving and is set to be sentenced

Mark Downham was killed by a drunk driver who performed a dangerous u-turn on the M1 and was later found with a bottle of whisky

Police attended the scene and Radu was arrested after being found with a bottle of Jack Daniel's whisky in his pocket and failing a roadside breath test.

Radu was twice the drink drive limit two-and-a-half hours after the crash, providing a reading of 71 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, while the legal limit is 35.

Radu, of Nottingham, previously admitted dangerous driving, driving while disqualified, driving while over the prescribed limit and driving without insurance.

On Tuesday he was found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving at Nottingham Crown Court and will be sentenced on Thursday.

Judge Gregory Dickinson QC warned Radu he faced the 'inevitable outcome' of a lengthy prison sentence.
The Australian newspaper behind a universally admonished, racist cartoon of Serena Williams stubbornly doubled down on its defense of it on Wednesday and even reprinted it on its front page despite a wave of global outrage.

The Herald Sun, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, ran the image again along with a handful of other illustrations of world leaders and the country's own politicians.

Mark Knight's racist cartoon of Serena Williams at the US Open final was put in the bottom right corner, beneath a headline which read: 'Welcome to PC World.'

On Serena's cartoon, it wrote satirically: 'Vetoed: Large hair and lips, too angry.'

Beneath it, the newspaper offered this commentary: 'If the self-appointed censors of Mark Knight get their way on his Serena Williams cartoon, our new politically correct life will be very dull indeed.'

This is The Herald Sun's shocking front page on Wednesday which complains about the global outrage over its Serena Williams cartoon. It included depictions of Kim Jong-Un and complained that 'Asian stereotypes' weren't allowed in the 'PC World' of anyone who deemed the Williams' cartoon racist

The newspaper's editor Damon Johnston proudly shared a photograph of it on Twitter.

Cartoonist Mark Knight said he drew Williams 'as she is'; a 'powerfully built', 'African American woman'

Knight, who deleted his own account after being inundated with complaints from around the world, has not commented on it.

The newspaper claimed on Tuesday that the illustration, which depicts Williams as an overgrown baby having a tantrum with exaggerated lips, nose and muscles, had 'nothing to do with race'.

It said its only commentary was on her behavior on the court and Knight, before deleting his social media presence, went on a local radio show to say he had drawn the 36-year-old 'as she is', a 'powerfully built', 'African American woman'.

The image also depicts Naomi Osaka, the Haitian-Japanese 20-year-old who defeated Williams, as slender, white and blonde.

Both Knight and the newspaper were slammed by the international community.

Knight faced a tsunami of criticism on Twitter where users likened his cartoon to Jim Crow-era illustrations of black women

Among their celebrity critics is Nicki Minaj, J.K. Rowling, Kathy Griffin.

The Washington DC-based National Association of Black Journalists denounced it as 'repugnant'.

'There is nothing about the cartoon that is agreeable. I think the entire cartoon is just over the top, but the racism aspect of it is really what makes it repugnant.

'To deny Osaka color, is really shocking.

The Rupert Murdoch-owned newspaper tweeted this on Tuesday in defense of the image. It also ran three articles which claimed Knight's image had 'nothing to do with race' and was instead only taking aim at Williams' behavior on the court. News Corp has said nothing

'There's intent there. To depict Serena not looking like herself, and her features to be overdrawn and over-exaggerated in such a way that evokes some of the historical negative images of black people over the last century.

'It speaks volumes. It sends a message,' the association's president told ABC Radio Melbourne.

News Corp has offered no comment on it.

Among the complaints were that the cartoon was reminiscent of Jim Crow-era representations of black women.
The widow of a slain ex-bikie has spoken out about life after the loss of her husband when he was gunned down in broad daylight.

Carolina Gonzalez was married to ex-Comanchero boss Mick Hawi for 23 year, after they met in high school, and remained by his side up until his death in February.

Miss Gonzalez sat down with The Daily Telegraph for an exclusive interview about life married to a notorious gangster and life after his violent death.

Carolina Gonzales (pictured right), the widow of a slain ex-bikie Mick Hawi (pictured left) has continued to speak out about her life after the loss of her husband after he was gun dunned in broad daylight

'Look, Im not painting a picture of Mike as a saint, Mike made a mistake choosing the Comancheros, he was with them for six years and that doesnt define all of him,' she said.

Hawi was shot repeatedly as he sat in his car outside a gym in Sydney's south-east on February 15, being pronounced dead a short time later.

When Hawi was jailed for murder over a 2009 Sydney airport brawl, which was later downgraded to manslaughter, Miss Gonzalex visited him every day for six years.

She said if the charge hadn't have been downgraded she would have done the same every day for 28 years.

When Hawi was jailed for murder over a 2009 Sydney airport brawl, which was later downgraded to manslaughter, Miss Gonzalex visited him every day for six years

Hawi was reformed in jail she claims, saying he had severed ties with the Comanchero and was making inroads into a better life with his family.

'When he came out he did a 360 and was done. And when he was done he was done. Even before jail he changed his circle of friends and grew out of life with the Comanchero,' she said.

She said the shooter had not just killed Hawi that February day, but had destroyed the lives of her and his three son's in the process.

Lone wolf bikie members Ahmed Doudar, 38, and Yusaf Nazlioglus, 37, were arrested in August and charged over their alleged roles in the daylight execution of Hawi (pictured)

Lone wolf bikie members Ahmed Doudar, 38, and Yusaf Nazlioglus, 37, were arrested in August and charged over their alleged roles in the daylight execution.

The love in a 23 year partnership that leads to marriage and three young boys is one that can't be understated and Miss Gonzalez said she knew the man she loved and was always aware that he could be taken from her at any time.

'Id lie awake at night with my head on Mikes chest listening to his heart, to memorise the sound, Id trace his fingers  I feared one day hed be taken,' she told The Daily Telegraph.
Hurricane Florence could destroy thousands of homes in the poorest towns, leaving residents homeless and unable to rebuild, experts have warned.

The 'monster' storm's predicted path means trouble for low-income communities in eastern North Carolina and South Carolina, which were historically built on lower, flood-prone land while the rich took the higher ground.

The town of Princeville was recently battered by Hurricane Matthew in 2016, and many of its 2,300 residents fear they will have to abandon the town for good if Florence causes similar devastation

The 'monster' storm's predicted path means trouble for low-income communities in eastern North Carolina and South Carolina. Pictured: People line up to enter a hurricane shelter on Tuesday at Trask Middle School in North Carolina

'It's scaring me to death,' said James Howell Jr. 'If I lose my place, I ain't coming back. I'm not coming back to Princeville no more.'

He still has furniture wrapped in tarpaulin on his porch because he is still rebuilding his living room after the damage caused by Hurricane Matthew, which left two feet of standing water in his house.

Howell figures he has two options if he needs to flee. His daughter lives about 30 miles west, away from the river. That's certainly where his most prized possessions loaded aboard his pickup are likely going Wednesday, he said.

And his granddaughter is staying in a secure motel through her retail employer's largess, so maybe Howell and his wife could rest there, he said.

The rich have long claimed higher ground along waterways, and that left freed slaves to claim bottom land that made Princeville into the country's first town incorporated by black Americans.

Many people with limited means like the disabled Howells will struggle to escape Florence, or build back when its damage is done.

The median household income of Princeville's is about $28,000 a year compared to the statewide $48,000, and almost six out of ten town residents have public health insurance coverage like Medicare, Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program in 2016, according to the US Census Bureau.

Florence's predicted path means trouble for some of the poorest communities in eastern North Carolina and South Carolina, said Susan Cutter, director of the Hazards and Vulnerability Research Institute at the University of South Carolina.

James Howell Jr. sizes up how to protect his home on Tuesday in Princeville, North Carolina. The house was damaged by Hurricane Matthew in 2016. Howell said the furniture on his porch is there because he had to go out and rebuild the living room

Dorothy Pope, 78, and her sister Clydie Gardner, 71, settle in to the home they share in Princeville, after a normal grocery run on Tuesday. They are keeping an eye on the storm but have no plans to leave unless they are threatened by flooding

Dozens of poor black communities like Princeville across the region will have a harder time coping with Florence 'partly because of the historic inequality that was there,' she said.

'What I'm fearful about is there are a lot of people who are not going to be OK because they don't have elevated structures,' Cutter said.

'They're in low-lying flood prone areas and they didn't leave because they had nowhere to go and no resources to get there.'

Smaller and economically struggling communities across eastern North Carolina from Seven Springs and Windsor near Virginia's border to Lumberton along the South Carolina line continue working to recover from Matthew.

But Gov. Roy Cooper, who was elected weeks after that hurricane hit, promised Tuesday that low-income people won't be left to fend for themselves.

The state is using detailed mapping to pinpoint where potential flooding could occur and will share that information with local governments who will warn people they must move.

'The idea is to have those shelters available to people on higher ground, and no matter what their income, we want to get people out of places that may be flooding,' Cooper said.

A satellite image taken on Tuesday shows Hurricane Florence in the Atlantic Ocean as it moves towards the East Coast

In Beaufort County, more than 100 miles east of Raleigh, emergency management officials will use school system buses on Wednesday to move residents living in flood-prone areas to higher ground in Washington, the county seat.

There, the local high school will shelter up to 500 people. The county is split by the broad Pamlico River and some of the 45,000 residents lack vehicles to reach the shelter on their own.

'We are trying to provide transportation where they do not have transportation,' said Carnie Hedgepeth, the county's emergency services director.

Retired sisters Clydie Gardner, 71, and Dorothy Pope, 78, ran in 2016 from the flooding spreading toward the home their shared before a massive oak tree, its roots loosened by Matthew's rain, toppled onto the building.

They'll flee again to an aunt's home on higher ground across the river. For now, there's nothing to do but wait to see if Florence threatens them again.

'They're saying it's 400 miles wide. There's no telling what it might do,' Pope said. 'When the water starts coming and I see it coming, I'm moving.'

At least 25 million residents on the East Coast are at risk from the hurricane, which is expected to deliver a 'direct hit' this week, bringing 157 mph winds, devastating flooding and even the threat of a tainted water supply.

The 'life-threatening' hurricane has sparked mass evacuations with as many as 1.5 million people warned to seek shelter from the potentially catastrophic storm, while five million are under a direct hurricane warning.

'This will likely be the storm of a lifetime for portions of the Carolina coast,' the National Weather Service said.

Many low-income communities in the Carolinas are still recovering from the effects of Hurricane Matthew in 2016. Pictured: Flooded homes in Lumberton, NC, on October 10, 2016

The service added that it 'couldn't emphasize enough the potential for unbelievable damage'.

Hurricane Florence suddenly changed course overnight promising to bring even worse devastation to the Carolinas and even parts at Georgia  with the Michigan-sized storm now set to linger for days and cause catastrophic flooding with up to four feet of rain and 13-foot storm surges.

Florence remained a dangerous Category 4 hurricane on Wednesday morning after slowing slightly to 130mph overnight and it is predicted to stall even more off the coast of the Carolinas before scraping down the US east coast and moving inland before the weekend.

The new trajectory means the storm will idle at sea for longer creating even heavier and prolonged rains and storm surges for the Carolinas and possibly northern parts of Georgia.

Hurricane Katrina in 2005 became the most devastating hurricane in US history when in struck Florida and the central Gulf Coast in 2005, causing $108 billion worth of damage.
Mach Three colt Century Farroh circled to the front as the odds-on favourite past the half and progressed to a one-and-a-half length victory in the second of three divisions of the Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) Grassroots for two-year-old colt pacers on Tuesday (Sept. 11) and won in 1:53.2.

Positioned third at the quarter from post one, Century Farroh sat off a :27 first quarter set by Excaliber Seelster on the lead before Thisishowwedoit took control. Driver Trevor Henry sent the Dr. Ian Moore trainee first over heading to the half and swiftly brushed to the top following a :55.1 half.

Carlisimo, gapping but tracking the favourites backside swoop, edged closer to the new pacesetter rounding the final turn. Century Farroh held a two-length lead by three-quarters in 1:24.4 and paced through the stretch ahead of Carlisimo chasing in second. The favourite maintained his advantage while Carlisimo slowly cut into it, finishing one-and-a-half lengths behind the winner at the wire. Wager On Me, from second over, finished two lengths back in third.

From the Real Desire mare Beachy Girl, Century Farroh races for the Ratchford Stable NS. The $3.60 winner earned his second victory from eight starts and has earned $31,383.

Closing from 13 lengths off the lead, Chanting Hanover launched from the long shot catapult and snagged a half-length victory in the first OSS frosh colt pace in 1:54.3.

Face The Challenge parked for the lead to the quarter as Pure Sunshine took the pocket and Prairie Midnight floated into position second over. Through the quarter in :27, Face The Challenge cleared command but soon yielded to Prairie Midnight to the half. Big Kiz, wide from the start, rushed first over and pressured new leader Prairie Midnight to the half in :56.3 before clearing control.

Race-favourite Boys Turn tracked Big Kiz second over and paced uncovered into the final turn. Boys Turn moved up to match strides with Big Kiz through three-quarters in 1:25.3 all while Chanting Hanover sat on cover third over into the stretch. The Colin Johnson-trained son of Sportswriter kicked off his cover into the stretch and mowed by Boys Turn into the final eighth to pull a 26-1 upset. Prairie Midnight, shuffled at the rail, held third.

Paying $55.90 to win, Chanting Hanover, out of the Rocknroll Hanover mare Clef Sign Hanover, won his first race in seven starts, earning $19,950 for owners Colin Johnson, Paul Johnson, William Greenhorn and Andrew Dick. James MacDonald sat in the bike.

Aaron Lambert trainee Jms Delight pulled pocket midway into the final turn and held off late bids from Bueller and Better Moonon Over to win the third OSS frosh colt pace in 1:54.

Favourite Better Moonon Over paced to the quarter in :26.4 before taking pocket to Moonshine Kisses brushing to the front into the backstretch. Moonshine Kisses led to half under no pressure through a :55.3 clip while Jms Delight sat third three-and-a-half lengths from the lead.

Driver Louis Philippe-Roy popped out of third into the final turn and crept toward Moonshine Kisses. Following a 1:25.1 third-quarter, Jms Delight took a half-length lead as Moonshine Kisses retreated towards the rail. Better Moonon Over shot through a gap towards the pylons while Bueller weaved off the rail full of pace and in pursuit of Jms Delight. Bueller found room too late and finished a neck behind Jms Delight while Better Moonon Over took third.

Owned by Gregory Merton, Jms Delight, from the Rocknroll Hanover mare Dreaming Aliina, won his third race in seven starts, earning $23,360. He paid $9.20 to win.

Splurge On Me travelled wire to wire as the 2-1 favourite to win the first of three frosh filly trot splits for the OSS Grassroots in 1:58.4.

The Bob McIntosh-trained daughter of Kadabra shot to a two-length lead from post eight with Knickers sitting the pocket and Pyrrha in third through a :28.2 opening quarter. Unchallenged to the half in :59.4, Splurge On Me marched into the far turn pursued by Pyrrha advancing first over tracked by P L Molly on cover.

Ahead by two lengths by three-quarters in 1:29.3, Splurge On Me kicked away from P L Molly taking second four lengths behind. Trevor Henry cruised to the wire behind Splurge On Me winning by three-and-a-half lengths over P L Molly and Pyrrha.

Owned by Robert McIntosh Stables Inc. and C S X Stables, Splurge On Me, out of the Cash Hall mare Urge To Splurge, won her second race in eight starts, collecting $29,952. She paid $6.50 to win.

Driver Scott Young and trainer Paul Reid took the rail route to upset city in the second OSS frosh filly trot as the two teamed up to nab American Pageant a 2:01.3 victory at odds of 22-1.

Away sixth to the quarter, American Pageant stalked an early battle for the lead between Warrawee Ultra and Galaxy Seelster. Warrawee Ultra cleared control past the :29.4 opening quarter and opened a three-length lead on Galaxy Seelster crossing the half, timed in 1:00.1.

Club Belvedere edged off the rail from fourth and charged toward Warrawee Ultra rounding the final turn. Taking a narrow lead by three-quarters in 1:31.1, Club Belvedere soon lost the lead to Tymal Royalty, from second over, kicking off cover while American Pageant angled off the rail and began her bid through the center of the course. American Pageant stuck a half length in front at the wire while Tymal Royalty held second and Galaxy Seelster shot back through the inside for third.

Returning $46.00 to win, American Pageant, by Angus Hall out of the American Winner mare American Miss K, broke her maiden in her fourth start career and cashed her first check for owner Rob Key, collecting $9,575 with her victory.

Kadabra-filly At Will brushed to the top past the half and took the final OSS frosh filly trot as the 8-5 favourite in 1:58.4.

Lady Gabbie shot through the rail to lead by five lengths while At Will floated into second through the :29.1 opening quarter. Driver Sylvain Filion tipped the Julie Walker trainee out of the pocket heading to the half and cleared command past a :59.4 half.

Rebellious Lady, positioned fourth, angled wide circling the final turn as At Will kicked to a three-length lead. Past three-quarters in 1:29.2, At Will maintained and extended her advantage over Rebellious Lady chasing in second and Nifty Trick, from second over, in third. At Will hit the wire three-and-a-quarter lengths ahead of Rebellious Lady.

Winning her first race in six starts, At Will, from the Balanced Image mare Excuse My Face, has collected $20,995 in earnings for owners Layhoon Chan Brunner, Julie Walker and Ronald Piers. She paid $5.40 to win.

To view Tuesday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Tuesday Results - Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Politicians and journalists in Canberra rarely see eye to eye - but it was a different story at Wednesday night's annual Midwinter Ball.

Regarded as the biggest social event of the year in the nation's capital, guests began arriving at Parliament House from 5pm.

Usually staged in the middle of winter, the gala evening was delayed until spring this year due to renovations which closed the Great Hall at Parliament House.

Australian music darling Jessica Mauboy was the star performer, with the healthy crowd also entertained by veteran comedian Bob Downe.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison with his wife Jenny after arriving at Parliament House

Leader of the Opposition Bill Shorten with his wife Chloe on Wednesday night in Canberra

Labor Senator Kristina Keneally and her husband Ben Keneally at Parliament House

Shadow Minister for Infrastructure Anthony Albanese and his wife Carmel Tebbutt

As part of some of the auction items on display, Prime Minister Scott Morrison agreed to prepare and serve a dinner at Kirribilli House with Opposition Leader Bill Shorten offering a chat over a glass or two of wine alongside deputy leader Tanya Plibersek.

Other guests who dusted off their tuxedos and cocktail dresses included actor Sam Neill, deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack, Labor Senator Kristina Keneally, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure Anthony Albanese and Sky News presenter Peta Credlin.

In a move which sent tongues wagging, Australian foreign minister Julie Bishop was a no show.

In previous years, the cost of the Liberal party deputy leader's extravagant dress was often a talking point.

High profile couple Barnaby Joyce and Vikki Campion also chose to stay at home.

Sky News presenter Peta Credlin with her husband Brian Loughnane

Deputy Leader of the Opposition Tanya Plibersek with husband Michael Coutts-Trotter

Respected New Zealand actor Sam Neill hamming it up for the cameras
The family of William Tyrrell have been given new hope after police investigating the missing boy's disappearance made a stunning breakthrough.

The three-year-old was playing in his grandmother's yard at Kendall on the New South Wales mid-north coast when he vanished on September 12, 2014.

Investigators have discovered a burnt-out car that was left deep in the bush near where William disappeared.

It is believed the vehicle belonged to Tony Jones, who was at one point a person of interest in Tyrrell's disappearance.

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The three-year-old was playing in his grandmother's yard at Kendall on the New South Wales mid-north coast when he vanished on September 12, 2014

Investigators revealed a burnt-out car (pictured) which was left deep in the bush, near where William disappeared

Mr Jones has previously denied any involvement in the missing child's case, A Current Affair reported.

The vehicle resembled the same make and model Mr Jones used to drive, according to the person who discovered the vehicle.

Police were informed of the vehicle hidden in bushland, but once they arrived at the scene they found the car had been flipped over and set alight.

A woman who had been living with Mr Jones at the time William vanished, told the publication she would 'not be surprised' if he burnt his car.

It is the first time this line of inquiry, which will be part of the coroner's inquest into William's disappearance, has been revealed.

This new piece of information will be part of the inquest into the disappearance of young William.

The person of interest is Tony Jones (pictured), who has previously denied any involvement in the missing child's case

William has not been seen since, despite a large-scale search and one of the biggest manhunts in Australia's history

William has not been sighted since his disappearance, despite a large-scale search and one of the biggest manhunts in Australia's history.

On Wednesday his family said the day marked: 'four years of heartache and four years of endless tears for everyone who held him dear - not knowing where he is or what has happened to him.'

That same day investigators announced they would be requesting an inquest, Deputy NSW Coroner Harriet Grahame said.

It is expected to be held next year and could be the last hope of piecing together who was responsible for the boy's abduction.

NSW Police said investigators in the case 'would like to acknowledge the continued strength and courage of William Tyrrell's families.'

'Over the past year, investigators have continued to explore lines of inquiry in an effort to find out what happened to William, including a large-scale forensic search,' a statement said.

'William's families have been informed of this development and have requested their privacy at this time.'

'William's families have been informed of this development and have requested their privacy at this time'

'Today marks four tragic years since we last saw little William. Four years of heartache and four years of endless tears for everyone who held him dear'

Following the police announcement, a statement was posted to the 'Where's William Tyrrell? Bring Him Home - Official' Facebook page.

'Today marks four tragic years since we last saw little William. Four years of heartache and four years of endless tears for everyone who held him dear - not knowing where he is or what has happened to him,' the post read.

'Today also marks the gift of unending love, hope and support from across Australia and around the globe.

'To all those who have cared; to all those who have supported William's loved ones in our quest to find him... our sincerest thanks for not giving up on our boy... you have our complete trust and our deepest gratitude for your continued commitment to finding out what has happened to William. Our heartfelt thanks to you all.'

The deputy coroner has requested a brief of evidence, the police statement said, which would be provided by the end of the year.

The inquest will be an opportunity to test information and evidence gathered by Strike Force Rosann and further the investigation

The inquest will be an opportunity to test information and evidence gathered by Strike Force Rosann and further the investigation.

'This is another step in ensuring answers are provided to William's loved ones,' the statement said.

Across June and July, police spent three weeks trawling through dense, remote bushland on the New South Wales mid-north coast desperately searching for any signs of the toddler, as part of Strike Force Rosann.

Ms Grahame had visited the street in Kendall where little William disappeared and toured the area where police were carrying out their search.

A $1 million reward remains in place for information that leads to William's recovery.
Simon Lyons, 37 (pictured outside court today) is the chief executive of investment firm Enstar Capital, and is accused of attacking Giles Mackay, 56, on a night out on October 20

A property developer was convicted yesterday of hitting one of Britain's richest men in a Mayfair bar.

Simon Lyons, 38, claimed he had lashed out because Giles Mackay had called him 'a lying shyster Jew'.

But a judge ruled that the assault at the MNKY HSE bar was unprovoked. She found Lyons guilty of common assault.

CCTV showed the Canadian-born entrepreneur hitting Mr Mackay, 56, before he was pulled away by door staff at the venue popular with celebrities such as Kate Moss. Mr Mackay is seen kicking out to protect himself as Lyons tried to continue the attack.

The conviction follows a legal battle between the feuding tycoons to prevent damaging personal allegations being made public. In pre-trial hearings, Lyons made a number of claims about Mr Mackay, who dropped out of the court case in an apparent effort to prevent the slurs being made public.

When the case was originally scheduled to take place in March, Mr Mackay withdrew a harassment claim against Lyons and initially refused to take part in the prosecution.

Then, when the Crown Prosecution Service proceeded in his absence, Mr Mackay appeared at City of London Magistrates Court mid-way through legal argument to offer to give evidence.

The judge said this development was unprecedented.

Mr Mackay spent six months trying to gag the Press and prevent the allegations made by Lyons being aired in the trial. In the end the judge ruled them inadmissible.

Lyons, who runs Enstar Capital, and Mr Mackay, who has a 100million house in Kensington, had known each other for around four years, the court heard.

Their friendly relationship had broken down after Lyons allegedly made rude comments about Mr Mackay during family court proceedings with Lyons' ex-partner.

Lyons was fined 3,000, ordered to pay 5,956 in costs and given a one-year restraining order for the attack last October.

Pictured: Giles Mackay, who once appeared on the Sunday Times Rich List, claims he did not call Mr Lyons a 'lying shyster Jew'

Judge Sandhu told him: 'You have lost your good character  the facts and stark reality remains that your relationship obviously deteriorated to such an extent that it culminated in the events of October 7.

'I only hope, in relation to your personal life, that you are able to put these matters behind you.'

A spokesman for Mr Mackay said: 'He is pleased with today's verdict. He was subjected to an unprovoked attack in full view of other clientele at the venue.

'He is pleased the judge said that she was sure Mr Mackay made no anti-Semitic comments to Mr Lyons.

'To be clear, Mr Mackay is not anti-Semitic and would never use a phrase like this. He is repulsed by the claim that he did.'

Mr Mackay is the founder of Hometrack, a property market analytics company, which was sold to Zoopla for 120million.

Mr Lyons attended Charing Cross police station that night and claimed in an interview he was provoked.

He told police Mr Mackay said to his girlfriend, Andrea: 'Would you please get Mr Lyons out of my face.'

Pictured: The exchange between the two businessmen took placet at MNKY HSE - a private members club in Mayfair, London

Mr Lyons claimed Mr Mackay then told him: 'You're a lying shyster Jew.' He said that Mr Mackay 'looked crazed, like he had taken drugs.'

But Mr Mackay strenuously denied saying anything to Mr Lyons and said he wasn't confrontational.

'I did not say 'get Simon Lyons out of my face. I absolutely did not call him that [shyster Jew], at that point in time I didn't even know what the word shyster meant.

'In fact I had to go look it up in a dictionary; I was engaged with a Jewish girl for two years, 30 per cent of my friends are Jewish.

'I was not angry at Mr Lyons - I was distressed about his behaviour and was worried about what he could do.

'I'm a 56-year-old man and a serious businessman; I do not go out looking for fights, trust me.'

But giving evidence Mr Lyons maintained he was provoked and said he was 'scared for his life.'

'I saw people walking in and suddenly saw Mr Mackay,' he said.

'It made me feel very nervous, I got myself up, walked over and waited by the DJ booth.

'I was scared for my life, I did not know what Mr Mackay was capable of.

'I used the reasonable force necessary; it was a deterrent because I feared for my life. He was being very menacing.

'I am not proud [of my behaviour. I don't advocate violence of any kind, I wish I never had the year that I've had.'

But Prosecutor William Davis accused Mr Lyons of lying about 'fearing' for his life.

He said: 'Mr Lyons, this is all a lie isn't it? You were not concerned for your or Andrea's life were you?

'He's not paying any attention to you. He was not the person seeking the confrontation was he?'

Mr Lyons replied: 'He was paying attention to me via via his phone, I believed he was planning something - maybe some kind of retribution.'

Mr Davis suggested Mr Mackay never made an anti-Semitic remark.

'Isn't the truth Mr Lyons that Mr Mackay said no such thing to you. It was you who in fact leant over the table and hit him in the face didn't you? It was an unprovoked attack wasn't it?'

Mr Lyons reiterated it was 'self-defence' to 'restrain him from attacking me.'

'I'm not a thug, I don't behave like that,' he added.

His firm Enstar hit the headlines in 2015 when it was revealed the bathrooms in its new office in Mayfair were lined with floor-to-ceiling 'gold' mosaic.

Last year it emerged the firm was developing a Soho office block with 'push for champagne' buttons so hedge fund workers could celebrate with a glass of fizz after a good day.

Mr Mackay is believed to have served as an adviser to several House of Commons inquiries.

Mr Lyons, of Marylebone, London, denies common assault.
A man faces jail time after being charged with the mass poisoning of 136 wedge tailed eagles in eastern Victoria.

Wildlife investigators have laid two initial charges against the man, for allegedly poisoning the protected birds over 18 months in East Gippsland.

The man was arrested, charged and bailed on Tuesday on conditions he surrender his passport.

A man mass killed 136 wedge tailed eagles with bait impregnated with poison in Victoria.

Department of Environment Land Water and Planning investigators say their investigation is ongoing and evidence seized during recent property searches is being forensically examined.

It's alleged the birds were killed through the use of bait impregnated with poison between October 2016 and April 2018.

Late June, native skulls, traps, chemicals, ammunition and a four-wheel drive were seized during property raids in what authorities hailed the biggest case of wedge-tailed eagle deaths ever seen in Victoria.

The man who mass poisoned the protected birds will face jail time after charges were laid.

Four properties in Victoria were searched as investigators hunted for the man who killed the birds.

Four East Gippsland properties near Tubbut and Orbost were searched as investigators hunted for who was behind the killing 136 of the birds.

The raids were carried out over several hours in a blitz by 45 officers from police and government agencies.

All native wildlife is protected in Victoria under the Wildlife Act 1975.

Deliberately killing wedge-tailed eagles carries a maximum penalty of $7928, and/or up to six months imprisonment, plus an additional penalty of $792.85 for each bird destroyed.
Hungary has denounced a vote by the European Union to take action against the country's populist government as 'pretty revenge by pro-immigration politicians.'

European Union lawmakers voted on Wednesday to launch action against Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government for allegedly undermining the bloc's democratic values and rule of law.

The lawmakers voted 448-197 in favor of a report recommending the launch of a so-called Article 7 procedure, which could lead to the suspension of Hungary's European Union voting rights.

But Hungary called the vote fraudulent and vowed to challenge it.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, echoing Orban's longtime position, called the Wednesday's vote 'petty revenge' against Hungary for its tough anti-migration policies.

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Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto (pictured) called the Wednesday's vote 'petty revenge' against Hungary for its tough anti-migration policies

'The EP's decision today is nothing less than the petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians against Hungary,' Szijjarto said, shortly after the Strasbourg-based parliament approved the motion that could see Budapest hit with unprecedented sanctions.

It is the first time in EU history that the European Parliament had initiated and approved such a motion, which needed a two-thirds majority to pass and was approved by 69.4 percent of the lawmakers.

For years, Orban had been able to deflect much of the international condemnation thrown his way.

Critics say that Hungary's electoral system is disproportionate; media freedoms and judicial independence are dwindling; asylum-seekers and refugees are mistreated and there are limits placed on non-governmental organisations.

Szijjarto also claimed that the vote involved 'massive fraud' since abstentions weren't counted into the final tally, which made it easier to reach the needed majority.

There were 48 abstentions, so the 448 in favor exceeded the two-thirds needed only because it was based on 645 votes.

Members of the European Parliament take part in the vote in Strasbourg, France, on Wednesday

If the abstentions were counted into the final tally, there would have been a total 693 votes, so the 448 in favor wouldn't have reached two-thirds.

Szijjarto said Hungary was considering legal options to appeal the result because of the way the vote was tallied.

But Judith Sargentini, who presented the report prepared by the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, welcomed the outcome.

'Viktor Orban's government has been leading the charge against European values by silencing independent media, replacing critical judges, and putting academia on a leash,' Sargentini said.

'The Hungarian people deserve better. They deserve freedom of speech, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice and equality, all of which are enshrined in the European treaties.'

'This is a historic result for Hungarian citizens and for European citizens everywhere, that the European Parliament has voted by a large majority to stand up for the values we all hold dear,' Sargentini said.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban holds a document of the Motion For a European Parliament Resolution, Article 7, during his speech at the European Parliament on Tuesday

The move saw some members of the European People's Party bloc - of which Orban's Fidesz movement is a member - vote against their ally in Budapest.

Even EPP leader Mandred Weber, who earlier was supportive of Orban and is seeking to become the European Commission president next year, said he had voted for triggering Article 7.

'I have always been in favor of building bridges and I want to continue to do so, but yesterday (Tuesday) I didn't see any readiness from the Hungarian PM to make a move towards his EU partners and address our concerns,' Manfred tweeted.

While Weber had called on Orban to show a willingness to compromise on some of the most high-profile issues - like an agreement being delayed by the Hungarian government for the Central European University, founded by George Soros, Orban's ideological opponent, to remain in Budapest and recent laws criminalising the work of civic groups working with asylum-seekers and refugees - Orban remained steadfast that his policies wouldn't change.

'I have nothing to compromise about since the questions they objected to were decided by the Hungarian people,' Orban said Tuesday in Strasbourg, France, after the debate in the European Parliament on the report on Hungary.

'There is nothing to talk about.'

Orban, who was re-elected in April to his third consecutive term in office, fourth overall also said Tuesday that he expected lawmakers to approve the motion with the support of some EPP lawmakers.

'The order has arrived from Berlin and they will vote accordingly,' Orban said, in reference to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose governing Christian Democratic Union is the largest party in the EPP.

Orban has insisted that all of the criticism against his government is based on Hungary's tough anti-immigration policies, which include fences built in 2015 on Hungary's southern borders with Serbian and Croatia to divert the flow of migrants and very restrictive asylum rules.

He has also expressed his desire to remain within the EPP, which he said was 'deeply divided' on the issue of migration.
Heartwarming footage shows an animal lover rescuing a hawk that flew head-first into a car and became stuck in the radiator grille.

Ryan Jensen was driving along a highway in Arcata, California, when he noticed the red-tailed hawk trapped in Lynzee DeSantis' white Honda.

The former US Marine pulled over to help the terrified bird, and a video filmed by Ms DeSantis shows Mr Jensen, who is also an artist, gently pry the hawk from the car and release it back into the wild.

Father-of-two Mr Jensen said: 'I was just driving along, looking for a place to paint and I see a girl parked on the side of the road with a bird sticking out of the front of her car and I decided to turn around and try to help her.

'I had to see if the bird was okay.'

He told Mother Nature Network he had rescued birds in the past which had flown into windows or had fishing lines stuck in their throats.

'I have a soft spot for birds for sure,' he said.

Stuck: The red-tailed hawk after it flew into Lynzee DeSantis' car in Arcata, California

As a child Mr Jensen drew birds obsessively and read several books on birds of prey - he even once nursed a hawk with a broken wing back to full health.

He joined the United States Marine Corps aged 21 and served eight years, including three combat tours to both Iraq and Afghanistan.

After an honorable discharge he studied Fine Arts and took up painting.

Ms DeSantis said she was travelling at around 55mph when the bird struck her car, even though she had swerved in an attempt to avoid it.

After freeing the hawk with a paintbrush Ryan Jensen uses it to stop the bird biting him

She said: 'I can't believe a hawk hit my car.

'I'm just happy it's alive.'

As Mr Jensen figured out a way to free the hawk he went to his vehicle, hoping to find a towel to cover the bird and calm it, but found only a hat.

'In shock': The terrified red hawk is apparently unharmed after its ordeal

He knew that the frightened bird could turn around and attack him with its sharp beak once freed, but he said he was wasn't worried about himself.

Mr Jensen said: 'I knew the bird was under a lot of stress, so my main priority was to get the bird out.

'I wasn't too concerned about my safety. I knew if I held it behind the wing and wrapped it in a towel, it couldn't turn around and bite me.'

Mr Jensen gets the hawk to perch on his brush and then launches it into the air and it flies off

Finally, he used a thin paintbrush to gently pry the hawk's head out from the grille.

Mr Jensen was 'super happy' that the bird flew away without suffering any injuries.

As the bird is pulled safely from the Honda he flaps his wings and Ms DeSantis says 'holy cow, he's beautiful!'

After the incident Mr Jensen painted a red-tailed hawk - which is available for sale on his website.



The rescue video has scored millions of views and earned praise for Mr Jensen.

'I stop all the time when people are stuck on the side of the road,' he said.

'That's the kind of guy I am. I would like to see the world take care of its own a little bit better and help each other out.'
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Hurricane Florence's path suddenly shifted overnight and is promising to bring even more devastation than first predicted to the Carolinas and parts of Georgia - with the Michigan-sized storm now set to linger for days and cause catastrophic flooding with up to four feet of rain and 13-foot storm surges.

Florence became a dangerous Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday afternoon after slowing to 130mph and shifting south overnight and it is predicted to stall even more before scraping down the US east coast and moving inland before the weekend.

The new trajectory means the storm will idle at sea for longer, creating even heavier and prolonged rains and storm surges for the Carolinas and possibly northern parts of Georgia. Forecasters say those areas could be battered with hurricane conditions for at least 24 hours.

At least 25 million residents are at risk from the storm and experts predict its current path could cause up to $170 billion worth of damage, hit up to 759,000 homes and businesses and become the costliest storm to ever hit the U.S.

Hurricane-force winds will reach the Carolina coasts late Thursday or early Friday and more than 1.7 million people were warned to evacuate and get out of the way of the 'life-threatening' storm's path.

'This storm is a monster. It's big and it's vicious. It is an extremely, dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane,' said North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper. 'The waves and the wind this storm may bring is nothing like you've ever seen. Even if you've ridden out storms before, this one is different. Don't bet your life on riding out a monster.

'North Carolina, my message is clear: Disaster is at the doorstep, and its coming in.'

The storm was already generating 83-foot waves at sea on Wednesday and roads on some Carolina islands were already flooding, making evacuations more difficult.

Rainfall predictions are expected to be higher because of the weakening wind speeds and longer duration of the hurricane and parts of North Carolina are bracing for up to 40 inches of rain, which is similar to the catastrophic flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey in Houston last year.

Hurricane Florence's path suddenly shifted overnight and is promising to bring even more devastation than first predicted to the Carolinas and parts of Georgia

More than 1,000 flights to and from the region had been cancelled with thousands suffering delays. Charleston International Airport - the busiest in the region - is expecting to close on Thursday and not resume until Saturday at the earliest.

Amtrak has also cut service to the region with no trains running to Virginia and stops south of D.C. until Monday.

The storm has sparked mass evacuations with as many as 1.7 million people warned to seek shelter from the catastrophic storm, while five million are under a direct hurricane warning.

Georgia was the latest to declare a state of emergency on Wednesday - a day after North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Maryland.

The National Weather Service described Florence as 'the storm of a lifetime for portions of the Carolina coast'. It said the hurricane's center would approach the coast of North Carolina or South Carolina on Thursday and Friday before moving slowly near the coastline through Saturday.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency warned that Wednesday was the last day for people to safely evacuated before the hurricane hit.

'This is not going to be a glancing blow,' Jeff Byard, a FEMA administrator, said. 'This is going to be a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolina coast.'

'This storm is going to knock out power days into weeks. It's going to destroy infrastructure. It's going to destroy homes.

'We cannot stress the importance to our citizens that are in evacuations to heed the local and state warnings. This storm will and has the potential to cause loss of life, and we cannot emphasize the importance to take action now.'

FEMA said the biggest danger and cause for potential destruction was the storm surge - a wall of water from the sea which could reach 13 feet high.

Parts of North Carolina could get 20 inches of rain, with as much as 10 inches elsewhere in the state and in Virginia, parts of Maryland and Washington, D.C, according to forecasters.

But the European simulation, a trusted computer model, predicted Florence could bring more than 45 inches in parts of North Carolina. The model was accurate in predicting the 60 inches brought by Hurricane Harvey last year.

Florence is the strongest storm to hit the Carolinas and Virginia region 'in decades', according to FEMA.

People fleeing coastal North and South Carolina clogged highways early Wednesday. The eastbound lanes of several major highways were shut down to allow traffic to flow inland, but the exodus was slow along roads jammed with outward-bound vehicles.

Supermarket shelves were also stripped bare by those hunkering down outside the mandatory evacuation zones. Some inside the zones, are defying orders and choosing to stay in their properties, regardless of the danger posed.

At 11am on Wednesday, the storm was centered 485 miles southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina and moving at 15 mph.

Forecasters and politicians pleaded with the public to take the warnings seriously and minced no words in describing the threat for what could become one of the most catastrophic hurricanes to hit the Eastern Seaboard in decades.

President Donald Trump has declared states of emergency for North and South Carolina and Virginia, saying the US government is 'absolutely, totally prepared' for Florence.

'We'll handle it. We're ready. We're able. We've got the finest people, I think, anywhere in the world  FEMA and first responders are out there. They're going to stand through the dangers of this storm. Get out of its way. Don't play games with it. It's a big one. It may be as big as they have seen. And tremendous amounts of water,' he said.

'Bad things can happen when you're talking about a storm this size, it's called Mother Nature, you never know, but we know. We love you all. We want you safe. Get out of the storm's way.'

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said: 'We're not going to gamble with the lives of the people of South Carolina. Not one.'

Bobby Vorn (top left) and Butch Beaudry (top right) prepare to attach wooden planks over the windows of an oceanfront home, less than two days before Hurricane Florence is expected to strike Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina

Sand bags surround homes on North Topsail Beach, North Carolina on Wednesday as Hurricane Florence threatens the coast

The bread aisle at Walmart is empty two days before Hurricane Florence is expected to strike in Wilmington, North Carolina

People line up outside a Home Depot for a new supply of generators and plywood in Wilmington, North Carolina on Wednesday

More than 1.5 million people were ordered to evacuate their homes in preparation. Vehicles lined up in heavy traffic (above) in Wallace, North Carolina on Tuesday

South Carolina has reversed the flow of traffic on some of the state's busiest highways after more than a million people were ordered to evacuate ahead of Hurricane Florence

Paula Baker carries flowers she'll leave on her son's grave that she plans on visiting after evacuating her home in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina on Wednesday

Hog farmers along the East Coast were scrambling to drain their waste pools ahead of the storm. Hog farms each have open-air 'lagoons' filled with manure - which turn bright pink due to the bacteria festering in them.

Florence and the coastal dilemma: How long will it hover? There is still uncertainty about the future of Hurricane Florence as it continues to inch closer to land. Usually, forecasters can tell exactly where it will hit and who will get walloped. But in this case, the weather systems that push and pull a storm disappear as Florence nears land around the border between North and South Carolina. The storm is expected to slow down, stall and then perhaps wander just off the Carolina shore as it nears the coast Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The more Florence stalls, the more it rains. The National Hurricane Center is calling for 20 to 30 inches of rain in North Carolina, with spots up to 40 inches. The more it hovers just off shore - a distinct possibility - the more potentially deadly storm surge it pushes on-shore. The storm has pretty much followed the forecast track through now, but the issue will be Thursday or Friday as it nears the coast and the steering currents collapse. There's "a huge difference" in the size and type of damage Florence inflicts if it stays 50 miles off shore versus heading inland immediately. Advertisement

If lagoons overflow, it could put drinking water sources and public health at risk.

Flooding could also lead to the deaths of thousands of animals if they cannot be evacuated in time.

Marlowe Vaughan of Ivy Spring Creek Farm in Goldsboro, has spent most of day pumping liquid waste from her lagoons to make more room for incoming rainfall.

'We try to pump down as much as we can, but after that, it's kind of in God's hands. We're kind of at the mercy of the storm.'

The hurricane is expected to pass over six nuclear power plants in North Carolina and South Carolina.

Duke Energy operates 11 reactors at six sites in the Carolinas, including the Brunswick Nuclear Plant. The company is also preparing for potential shutdown of nuclear reactors at least two hours before the arrival of hurricane-force winds.

The Brunswick plant's two reactors are of the same design as those in Fukushima, Japan, that exploded and leaked radiation following a 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

Despite the evacuation order, South Carolina Department of Corrections decided not to remove inmates at the Ridgeland Correctional Institution.

SCDC spokesman Dexter Lee said: 'In the past, it's been safer to leave them there'.

Some inmates and staff at North Carolina prisons were being moved to safety on Wednesday. Officials would not reveal which prisons or where they were being evacuated too, citing security reasons.

Several interstates will close from Wednesday as will state offices - including the University of South Carolina - and schools across 26 counties in the eastern part of the state. Some schools will be used as evacuation shelters officials said Monday.

'We don't want the school children in harm's way,' McMaster told The State. We know it's going to hit somewhere where it's going to have a dramatic impact on South Carolina. We're going to get a whole lot of water that we haven't seen in some time.'

McMaster previously issued a mandatory medical evacuation of 177 hospitals and medical facilities, including nursing homes, in the eight coastal counties.

Chuck Ledford (L), watches Looney-Tunes with his daughter Misty as they evacuate ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence as they seek shelter at Trask Middle School in Wilmington

At least 25 million residents on the East Coast are at risk from Hurricane Florence which is expected to deliver a 'direct hit' this week. Pictured, people gather at a Wilmington middle school seeking shelter

The 'life-threatening' storm has sparked mass evacuations with as many as 1.7 million people warned to seek shelter from the potentially catastrophic hurricane. Some are pictured gathering at Trask Middle School in Wilmington

A McDonald's is fitted with corrugated metal shutters as it sits empty in Cedar Point, North Carolina on Wednesday

Highway 12 in the village of Rodanthe on Hatteras Island, North Carolina was a ghost town on Wednesday following mandatory evacuations

Sandbags sit in doorways as water floods outside buildings in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia on September 11

People cross the street as water floods outside buildings in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia on September 11, where more than a million people were under evacuation orders in the eastern United States Tuesday

North and South Carolina and Virginia have all ordered mass evacuations along the coast after declaring states of emergency. South Carolina's governor said more than 300,000 people had already evacuated the state's coasts on Wednesday.

Virginia issued a mandatory evacuation order for about 245,000 residents in flood-prone coastal areas beginning at 8am.

Getting out of harm's way could prove difficult and officials are already predicting the financial toll could reach $170 billion, according to real estate data firm CoreLogic. They calculated the cost of rebuilding entire properties for 12 metro areas in the Carolinas and Virginia.

Florence is so wide that a life-threatening storm surge was being pushed 300 miles ahead of its eye, and so wet that a swath of states from South Carolina to Ohio and Pennsylvania could get deluged.

People across the region rushed to buy bottled water and other supplies, board up their homes or get out of town.

Chaos broke out at one Walmart in Durham, North Carolina as customers pushed and shoved in order to buy water.

A line of heavy traffic moved away from the coast on Interstate 40, the main route between the port city of Wilmington and inland Raleigh, on Tuesday.

Between the two cities, about two hours apart, the traffic flowed smoothly in places and became gridlocked in others because of fender-benders.

Only a trickle of vehicles was going in the opposite direction, including pickup trucks carrying plywood and other building materials. Service stations started running out of gas as far west as Raleigh, with bright yellow bags, signs or rags placed over the pumps to show they were out of order.

Chaos broke out at one Walmart in Durham, North Carolina as customers pushed and shoved in order to buy water

A gas station in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, alerts motorists that it is out of gas due to the heavy demand caused by Hurricane Florence

Tarek Elshik, left, fills gas cans to fuel a generator to refrigerate insulin for his 10-year-old daughter Yasmeen Elshik's Type 1 diabetes treatment in case power goes out during Hurricane Florence

Wood boards and cardboard boxes block the entrance to a Walmart store in Kill Devil Hills in the Outer Banks of North Carolina on September 11

A man uses a drill to install storm shutters on a home in Kill Devil Hills in the Outer Banks of North Carolina on September 11

Florence could hit the Carolinas harder than any hurricane since Hazel packed 130 mph winds in 1954. That Category 4 storm destroyed 15,000 buildings and killed 19 people in North Carolina. In the six decades since then, many thousands more have moved to the coast.

The storm's first effects were already apparent on barrier islands as dangerous rip currents hit beaches and seawater flowed over a state highway - the harbinger of a storm surge that could wipe out dunes and submerge entire communities.

Authorities warned of life-threatening coastal storm surges and the potential for Florence to unleash prolonged torrential rains and widespread flooding, especially if it lingers inland for several days.

National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham warned of 'staggering' amounts of rainfall that may extend hundreds of miles inland and cause flash flooding across the mid-Atlantic region.

'This one really scares me,' Graham said.

The Navy started moving people and ships ahead of the hurricane and the Air Force and Army were flying advanced aircraft elsewhere as a safeguard.

Airlines, including American, Southwest, Delta and JetBlue, have begun letting affected passengers change travel plans without the usual fees.

American and Southwest Airlines were among the carriers canceling flights to and from the hurricane zone starting Wednesday. More than 1,000 flights were canceled within the US on Wednesday. Charleston International Airport in South Carolina tweeted that it expected to close runways by midnight Wednesday.

Amtrak trains are also being canceled or face schedule modifications from Wednesday to Sunday. The company is also waiving charges for reservation changes.

At 11am on Wednesday, the storm was centered 485 miles southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina and moving at 15 mph. This Nasa photo shows the hurricane on Wednesday morning

A high definition camera outside the International Space Station captured a NASA view of the eye of Hurricane Florence at 7.50am on Wednesday

This remarkable satellite image shows Hurricane Florence is one of just nine potentially dangerous storms currently circling around the world

Florence travel nightmare: Hundreds of flights are cancelled as Amtrak pulls trains Hurricane Florence was already causing travel chaos on Wednesday, with hundreds of flights and train journeys cancelled and roads gridlocked with evacuees. A total of 1055 flights were cancelled over the next three days as of 4.30pm (ET) - 248 on Wednesday, 511 on Thursday and 296 on Friday. That is in addition to more than 2,000 delays on Wednesday, according to Flight Aware. Charleston International Airport - the busiest in the Carolinas - is set to close at midnight on Thursday and not resume until Saturday at the earliest. Amtrak has stopped trains running to Virginia and stops south of Washington, DC, until Monday. Charleston International Airport in South Carolina is expected to close runways by midnight Wednesday. RaleighDurham International Airport said it expected flights to operate on Thursday after the storm shifted track further south. Airports in the Washington, D.C., area are no longer in the storm's direct path. People fleeing coastal North and South Carolina clogged highways early Wednesday. The eastbound lanes of several major highways were shut down to allow traffic to flow inland. Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Escape has diverted from the Bermudas to the Bahamas after leaving New York on Sunday. Royal Caribbean's Grandeur of the Seas and Carnival Cruise Line's Carnival Pride are also re-routing to the Bahamas after leaving Baltimore. Advertisement

Coastal residents fleeing a potentially devastating blow from Hurricane Florence encountered empty gasoline pumps and depleted store shelves as the monster storm neared the Carolina coast.

While some said they planned to stay put despite hurricane watches and warnings that include the homes of more than 5.4 million people on the East Coast, many weren't taking any chances.

In Columbia, South Carolina, Barry Sparks, a 66-year-old retiree, was thinking of getting out after the path of the storm shifted somewhat to the south.

'If I need to evacuate I can go to my son's house,' Sparks said as he carted a load of water bottles to his car. 'He lives in North Carolina. He was thinking of coming here until this morning, and now he asked me if I wanted to come up there.

'I do worry though about people here because many didn't prepare, you know, because originally they didn't think it was going to be so bad here.'

Kevin Miller, a 50-year-old electrician, said he planned to ride out the storm at his home near Charleston.

'I rode out Hugo,' Miller said of a 1989 hurricane that caused widespread damage. 'The water level will get a little high but we'll be fine. Hugo was a direct hit. I was in the same house and it stood fine. We have everything. We're ready.'

Liz Browning Fox, 65, is also planning on riding the storm out in the Outer Banks village of Buxton, North Carolina, despite the mandatory evacuation order. Her 88-year-old mother refused to evacuate and will stay with her.

'Everyone who is staying here is either a real old-timer, someone who doesn't know where would be better, or someone involved in emergency operations one way or another,' Fox said.

Michelle Stober loaded up valuables on Tuesday at her home on Wrightsville Beach to drive back to her primary residence in Cary, North Carolina. Finding fuel for the journey was tough.

'This morning I drove around for an hour looking for gas in Cary. Everyone was sold out,' she said.

Gerry and John Leighton were among those to flee their home in Myrtle Beach, South Caronlina. They moved to the state from New Jersey in 2012 after Hurricane Sandy destroyed their home.

'It's devastating,' Gerry told ABC News. 'I want to sit down and sob but I have to get packing.'

At this height of the Atlantic hurricane season, Florence was being trailed on east-to-west paths by two other storms, Hurricane Helene and Tropical Storm Isaac.

The NHC said Helene was weakening, however, and posed no danger to land. Isaac could bring heavy rainfall to Martinique, Dominica and Guadeloupe.

Larry Lynch selects a can of Armour Vienna Bites while grocery shopping in preparation for Hurricane Florence on Tuesday

Irene McNeil selects canned vegetables while grocery shopping in preparation for Hurricane Florence

An auto parts store has wood paneling installed over the windows in New Bern, North Carolina on Tuesday

Ashley DeGroote and husband Jeff DeGroote remove the awning at South End Surf Shop in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, in preparation for Hurricane Florence

Just months ago, disaster planners simulated a Category 4 hurricane strike alarmingly similar to the real-world scenario now unfolding on a dangerously vulnerable stretch of the East Coast.

A fictional 'Hurricane Cora' barreled into southeast Virginia and up the Chesapeake Bay to strike Washington, D.C., in the narrative created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Argonne National Laboratory.

The result was catastrophic damage, which has some experts concerned that Hurricane Florence could produce a disaster comparable to 2005's Hurricane Katrina and in a part of the country that is famously difficult to evacuate.

The simulated hurricane knocked out power for most gas stations in the Mid-Atlantic region, damaged a nuclear power plant and sent debris into major shipping channels, among other problems, according to a Department of Energy simulation manual.

'What they were trying to do was create a worst-case scenario, but it's a very realistic scenario,' said Joshua Behr, a research professor at Virginia's Old Dominion University who is involved in disaster modeling and simulations.

Senior leaders from the White House, along with more than 91 federal departments and agencies, participated in the 'national level exercise' in late April and early May, FEMA said.

The fictional storm made landfall in the heavily populated Hampton Roads region, bringing a 15-foot storm surge and up to 9 inches of rain to some areas within the first six hours. That cut off main routes - used for escape as well as for rescuers - in the Hampton Roads area and elsewhere.

In the scenario, Cora also slammed hurricane-force winds into three nuclear power stations. One was damaged. Thirty-three major power substations were at risk from storm surge and major flooding.

Key roads and bridges were also damaged, and debris blocked the Newport News Channel and other waterways. Coast Guard Station Cape Charles lost power, and Coast Guard Station Chincoteague was severely damaged by high winds. The ferocious fictional storm also damaged and closed Reagan National Airport in Washington.

The make-believe hurricane threatened hundreds of cell towers, and the area where power was knocked out included 135 data centers in Virginia and another 60 in Maryland.

The Cora scenario projected hurricane-force winds inflicting 'catastrophic damage' to homes and significant damage to critical infrastructure within a 50-mile radius of the hurricane's center.

The manual makes no mention of deaths and injuries, focusing instead on infrastructure.
A Colorado couple have pleaded guilty to animal cruelty charges after they had sex with their dog in a backyard motorhome that they converted into a sex chamber.

Frederick Blue Manzanares, 51, and his ex-girlfriend Janette Eileen Solano, 49, were arrested in March and charged with four counts of cruelty to animals.

Manzanares pleaded guilty to two counts of animal cruelty after admitting to having sex with their dog Bubba.

He will be sentenced in October and faces up to 18 months in jail on each count.

Solano pleaded guilty to one count of animal cruelty. She negotiated a deferred judgement and sentence.

Frederick Manzanares, 51, and his ex-girlfriend Janette Solano, 49, have pleaded guilty to animal cruelty after they had sex with their dog Bubba in a motorhome sex chamber

A judge will decide whether to accept her plea deal next week, according to the Denver Post.

As part of the plea agreement, Manzanares and Solano have forfeited custody of Bubba.

Bubba, a male Akita mix, is currently living at the Auroa Animal Shelter and will need to undergo a behavior assessment.

Officials will then decide what will be the next best place to take him, according to the Arapahoe County District Attorney's Office.

Police began investigating in March 2017 after Solano reported a domestic violence incident involving Manzanares.

She later told an officer that they only had an argument, but that she was leaving Manzanares because he pressured her into having sex with their dog.

The couple had sex with Bubba (pictured) inside a motorhome that Manzanares outfitted with a customized red padded bench to make it easier to copulate with the dog

Solano claimed that she first discovered pictures of bestiality on the couple's shared laptop and confronted Manzanares about them, according to the Denver Post.

She said he told her to have an open mind and then began introducing her to bestiality videos, forums and literature.

The couple then began having sex with Bubba, which Solano said occurred inside a motorhome that Manzanares outfitted with a customized red padded bench to make it easier to copulate with the dog.

Manzanares used dog hormone spray to arouse Bubba and would take pictures and videos while they had sex with him.

Footage of the couple having sex with Bubba was later discovered by police.

Solano said she started to become 'somewhat jealous' of her boyfriend's relationship with their dog and that it would often lead to arguments.

When the couple were first arrested, authorities could not locate Bubba. Manzanares then forfeited his rights to the pet and officers were able to recover the poor pup.

Bestiality only became illegal in Colorado in 2007.
Police have found the belongings of a missing associate of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange at sea in northern Norway more than three weeks after he disappeared.

Arjen Kamphuis, 47, has been missing since August 20, when he left his hotel in the northern Norwegian town of Bodoe, where he had been on holiday.

He had been due to fly home to Amsterdam two days later, but never made his flight.

The Dutch cybersecurity expert's belongings were found by a man out fishing on Tuesday in an area to the east of Bodoe.

The objects were found near Kvaenflaget, some 30 miles east of Bodo, in the waters of a fjord. Police and emergency crews have now begun searching the water and land in the area.

WikiLeaks associate Arjen Kamphuis (pictured) has been missing since August 20, when he left his hotel in the northern Norwegian town of Bodoe, where he had been on holiday

Police confirmed the items 'belong to the missing person' but provided no details about them due to the ongoing investigation.

'Due to the ongoing investigation the police do not at this time wish to release any information about which specific items that have been found,' Norwegian police said in a statement on Wednesday.

Investigators searched the area with assistance from local Red Cross and a rescue vessel.

The disappearance, described as 'strange' by WikiLeaks, has sparked numerous conspiracy theories on social media.

WikiLeaks has previously said he had a ticket for a flight on August 22 departing from Trondheim, a town located more than 700km south of Bodo, but he did not board the plane.

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

Police are asking the public for any information about his movements in the area.

The Dutch cybersecurity expert's belongings were found by a man out fishing on Tuesday in an area to the east of Bodoe. Pictured, a missing person's poster about Kamphuis

They have previously said there was no indication as to whether Kamphuis was the victim of a criminal act.

Now, police said they were examining three theories: a voluntary disappearance including a possible suicide, an accident, or a crime.

'We haven't made enough progress in the case to be able to eliminate or confirm any of these three theories,' inspector Bjarte Walla told AFP. 'We are keeping all options open.'

A friend of Kamphuis, Ancilla van de Leest, told AFP there were 'absolutely no signs he wanted to disappear.'

'Quite the contrary, he made many plans, privately and professionally.'

According to investigators, the Dutchman is believed to have taken a train from Bodo to the town of Rognan on August 20.

The cybersecurity expert's disappearance, described as 'strange' by WikiLeaks, has sparked numerous conspiracy theories on social media

Adding to the mystery, a phone linked to Kamphuis sent a signal in an area near the southwestern city of Stavanger, located 1,600km from Bodo, late on August 30, police said.

But they could not confirm if it was Kamphuis who had switched the phone on. German and Dutch SIM cards were used that day.

Two Dutch investigators have been in Norway since Monday to assist in the search for Kamphuis, who in photos circulating on social networks can be seen wearing glasses with half-long blond hair and a thin beard.

Van de Leest said the ties between Kamphuis and WikiLeaks have been 'strongly overblown in the press.'

'He helps organisations with infosecurity advice,' his friend said.

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.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange (pictured in May last year) has been holed up at Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012

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.'

WikiLeaks was launched in 2006 as a web-based outlet for would-be leakers.

In July 2010, it released more than 90,000 classified U.S. military documents on the war in Afghanistan and before publishing 400,000 more secret U.S. files on the Iraq war.

The two leaks represented the largest security breaches of their kind in U.S. military history.

It followed these up with the release of 250,000 secret diplomatic cables from U.S. embassies around the world, angering U.S. politicians and military officials, who said the unauthorised dissemination would put lives at risk.

Assange, a founder of WikiLeaks, 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.
President Donald Trump's Homeland Security Department shifted nearly $10 million from FEMA to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, it was revealed on Tuesday evening.

Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley is exposing documents he claims shows the money going from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's fund to pay for disaster relief to support Trump's immigration policy.

But FEMA, while not disputing the transfer, says the money came from the agency's 'routine operating expenses' and not from disaster relief funds.

Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley claims the money came from FEMA's fund to pay for disaster relief

Department of Homeland Security spokesman Tyler Houlton says the money was not from disaster relief funding

DHS houses both FEMA and ICE

'Under no circumstances was any disaster relief funding transferred from FEMA to immigration enforcement efforts,' Department of Homeland spokesperson Tyler Houlton said on Twitter Tuesday. ICE is an agency within that department, as is FEMA.

'This is a sorry attempt to push a false agenda at a time when the administration is focused on assisting millions on the East Coast facing a catastrophic disaster,' Houlton wrote.

'The money in question  transferred to ICE from FEMA's routine operating expenses  could not have been used for hurricane response due to appropriation limitations. DHS/FEMA stand fiscally and operationally ready to support current and future response and recovery needs,' he added.

Merkley posted a Transfer/Reprogramming document from DHS that shows $9,755,303 from FEMA to ICE out of FEMA's nearly $1 billion operating budget.

The senator claims the money will support immigration detention programs.

'It means just as hurricane season is starting, and it usually starts June 1, the administration is working hard to find funds for additional detention camps and it's all part of the child separation policy. And that's how these documents came into my hands because of my work trying to stop the child separation policy,' Merkley, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said on MSNBC's 'Rachel Maddow Show' on Tuesday night.

'$10 million comes out of FEMA when we're facing a hurricane season knowing what's happened last year,' he added.

Last year the U.S. dealt with multiple hurricanes making landfall and causing destruction in their wake.

Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico last fall, leaving 2,975 people dead and the island without fresh, running water and no electricity for 11 months. Additionally, Hurricane Harvey struck Texas in August and Hurricane Irma struck Florida in September, leaving FEMA stretched thin.

But Merkley did concede that the transfer of funds was legal.

'I believe this movement of funds was within the flexibility the administration has,' Merkley noted. 'I think this is probably within the law.'

Merkley's office gave the 39-page budget document to The Washington Post. It shows $9.8 million was transferred to ICE, specifically underwriting 'Detention Beds' and the agency's 'Transportation and Removal Program.' The U.S. Secret Service also received some funds.

It was taken from various places within FEMA, USA Today reported, including training, preparedness and protection, and response and recovery operations.

Without the transfer of funds, the document notes, 'ICE will not be able to fulfill its adult detention requirements in FY 2018.'

Trump said the government will spare no expense in preparing for Hurricane Florence

Merkley posted the funds transfer document

Money was also taken from other agencies, such as Transportation Security Administration and the U.S. Coast Guard, and given to ICE as part of a $201.88 million shift in money to pay for immigration detention facilities.

'ICE must have sufficient detention bed capacity to detain illegal aliens when necessary as it enforces the Nation's immigration laws as fairly and effectively as possible,' the document states. 'Ensuring adequate funding for the detention beds requires projecting an Average Daily Population (ADP) for adult detainees as well as the daily costs incurred in keeping a detainee in custody.'

But it's unclear exactly when the money from FEMA was reallocated as the document simply notes Fiscal Year 2018 but does not include an exact date.

The documents surfaced, however, just as Hurricane Florence is bearing down on the American coast and is expected to make landfall on Thursday night at North Carolina and South Carolina.

Trump on Tuesday claimed the U.S. government is 'as ready as anyone has ever been' for Hurricane Florence and no expense is being spared.

'The safety of the American people is my absolute highest priority. We are sparing no expense,' said the president.

At least 25 million residents on the East Coast are at risk from Hurricane Florence which is expected to deliver a 'direct hit' this week

President Donald Trump listens as FEMA Administrator Brock Long, center, talks about Hurricane Florence in the Oval Office with Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen

Florence was upgraded to a Category 4 hurricane on Tuesday and was packing deadly winds of 130 miles per hour, but it is expected to strengthen and turn into 'an extremely dangerous major hurricane' on Thursday night before making landfall.

FEMA said the biggest danger was the storm surge - a wall of water from the sea which could reach 20ft high. Some areas could get deluged with 20 inches of rain.

'It's tremendously big and tremendously wet,' Trump said during a briefing in the Oval Office by FEMA Administrator Brock Long and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen.

It is estimated that Hurricane Harvey, a Category 4 storm, had total costs of $125 billion while Hurricane Irma had costs of $50 billion and Hurricane Maria cost $90 billion, according to The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The mainstream media has reported that 29-year-old Cody James, the son of horseman Todd James and grandson of longtime trainer Bill 'Jesse' James, passed away on Monday afternoon (Sept. 10) after succumbing to a gunshot wound.

According to a report by Global News, Cody was shot inside his home on Old Scugog Road, which is north of Hampton, Ont.

Durham Police are currently conducting a homicide investigation. They do not believe that the shooting was a random incident, and they are currently searching for two male suspects in connection with Codys death.

Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the friends and family of Cody James.

(With files from Global News)
Barely more than a tenth of the country agrees with President Donald Trump's assertion that his administration is running like a 'well-oiled machine.'

A new survey reveals a solid majority of the country has seen media reports of a New York Times op-ed and a bombshell book by Bob Woodward that each describe chaos in emanating from the White House.

Just 11 per cent of those surveyed in a new Politico / Morning Consult poll said the administration was running 'very well.' Meanwhile, 43 per cent said it was running 'very chaotically.' Twenty-one percent said it was running 'somewhat well,' while 18 per cent said it was running 'somewhat chaotically.'

Sixty-one percent of those surveyed said the Trump White House was running chaotically, according to a Politico / Morning Consult poll. Here President Donald Trump gestures after arriving at John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport in Johnstown after arriving in Pennsylvania to take part in the 17th annual September 11 observance at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Somerset County, Pennsylvania

That yields a total of 61 per cent who think the administration is running very or somewhat chaotically, two months before an election shaping up to be a national referendum on Trump, who won't technically be on the ballot.

Less than a third of those surveyed, 27 per cent, think Trump has a staff that serves him well, compared to 33 per cent who think it does not.

When it comes to hiring and retaining qualified people, 24 per cent said it had done an excellent or good job. But 66 per cent said it had done a fair or poor job.

President Donald Trump listens as FEMA Administrator Brock Long speaks during a meeting with Long and Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen in the Oval Office September 11, 2018 in Washington, DC about Hurricane Florence

White House Chief of Staff John Kelly walks with White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter to depart with U.S. President Donald Trump aboard the Marine One helicopter from the White House in Washington, U.S. November 29, 2017. Each man issued a statement pushing back against Woodward's book. Porter left his post after allegations of spousal abuse

President Trump urged Americans in the path of Hurricane Florence to heed evacuation orders

Longtime Trump lawyer Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to eight counts of federal charges

Former Director of Communications for the White House Public Liaison Office Omarosa Manigault blasted the administration in her own new book, 'Unhinged'

Bob Woodward's new bombshell includes stories of aides swiping letters off Trump's desk and trying to contain his impulses

Bob Woodward's 'Fear' hit shelves this week

The results come after publication of Bob Woodward's new bombshell book,' Fear,' that includes stories of senior aides swiping letters off Trump's desk, as well as a New York Times op-ed by an anonymous senior administration official claiming here was an internal 'resistance' working to thwart Trump's 'worst inclinations.'

Fifty-seven per cent had heard a lot or somewhat about Woodward's book, which has received wall-to-wall media coverage. Sixty five per cent had heard a lot or some about the New York Times op-ed.

Trump told Fox News in an interview conducted at his Montana rally following publication of the damning op-ed that his administration was running like a 'well-oiled machine.'

'We have a lot of love in the administration. The White House is truly, as you would say, a well-oiled machine. It is working so well.'
An angler reeled in a monster bluefin tuna weighing 225lbs off the Jersey coast worth thousands - but eschewed the cash so he could share it with his family and friends.

Chris Chatfield, 35, hauled in his impressive catch of the day using a rod and line at the same spot near Jersey where French crews netted 44 of the critically endangered specimens earlier this month.

He and three other amateur fishermen were surrounded by a 'feeding frenzy' of around 200 of the valuable fish and each got a bite - but only Mr Chatfield was able to haul his aboard.

Missed oppor-tuna-ty? Chris Chatfield, 35, hauled in his impressive catch of the day using a rod and line. But he eschewed the cash value so he could share it with his family and friends

Despite a catch of this size being worth thousands of pounds, Mr Chatfield opted to shared the fish with his fellow anglers and then serve up the tuna for supper.

Mr Chatfield, a boat repairman from St Saviour, Jersey, said: 'We had four, one on each rod - I had to cut the rest loose because we couldn't bring in four.

'It would have been possible to catch a lot more than four. We were in a feeding frenzy of 200.

'I could have made thousands, they work out at about 2,000 per fish, maybe more.

'But I gave half to the people on the boat and kept half for myself. I just ate it with family and friends.

'It's the biggest thing I've ever caught in the UK. I couldn't believe it. I couldn't sleep after - it was a dream come true.'

Catch of the day: He and three other fishermen were surrounded by a 'feeding frenzy' of 200 of the valuable fish and each got a bite - but only Mr Chatfield was able to haul his aboard

The presence of the tuna added a fresh twist to the Anglo-French scallop war last week when two fishermen from France netted 44 of them in the same stretch of water.

The haul angered professional fisherman in Britain as they don't have a quota to catch them.

The French brought the haul ashore at the nearby port of Granville in France to be sold.

The continued presence of the tuna has prompt the fishing authorities in Jersey to warn that even hobby anglers shouldn't target the tuna as they are an endangered species.

Despite a catch of this size being worth thousands of pounds, Mr Chatfield opted to shared the fish with his fellow anglers and then serve up the tuna for supper

But Chris added: 'I don't think there's a problem with one fisherman catching one fish when the French are trawling and catching 44 in our waters.'

A spokesman for Jersey's States Fisheries and Marine Resources said: 'During the past two weeks, shoals of bluefin tuna (BFT) have been sighted in Jersey waters.

'BFT are categorised on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List as endangered as they have been heavily overfished across their range.

'Severe restrictions are in place internationally in order to preserve the remaining wild stock.

'This includes strict quotas, which in the case of the UK is zero, which means BFT cannot be caught in UK waters by British commercial or recreational vessels.'

The presence of the tuna added a fresh twist to the Anglo-French scallop war last week when two fishermen from France netted 44 of them in the same stretch of water

However, the spokesman added that the fish could legally be caught by recreational fishermen in Jersey waters.

He continued: 'We are requesting that anglers do not target bluefin tuna, even on a catch-and-release basis.

'They are an endangered species and the prolonged struggle will kill most individuals, even if they are alive when released.

'It can take hours to land a tuna and by that point the animal will be exhausted and overheated to the point of no return.

There are several species but the Atlantic bluefin can reach 10ft in length and weigh as much as 1,500 lbs, more than a horse, and can swim up to 43 miles per hour across long distances

'The dispersal of muscle heat is a particular issue and can lead to the animal, in effect, cooking itself from the inside out.

'While recreational fishing measures are being considered we remind anglers that this is an endangered species and it should not be targeted.'

Bluefin are one of the largest species of tuna and can live up to 40 years.

The World Wildlife Fund says that if tuna were a car they would be the Ferrari of the ocean because they are sleek, powerful, and made for speed.

There are several species but the Atlantic bluefin can reach 10ft in length and weigh as much as 1,500 lbs, more than a horse, and can swim up to 43 miles per hour across long distances.

They can be worth hundreds of thousands of pounds on the black market and one sold for a record 1.09 million at a Tokyo auction in 2013.
The holiest day in the Jewish year has arrived.

Yom Kippur, a time to reflect and repent, begins on the evening of Tuesday, September 18. During this somber observance, Jews abstain from eating, drinking, washing and wearing leather, to name a few things.

Additionally, no work is done during the 26-hour Yom Kippur period.

Yom Kippur, considered the holiest day of the Jewish year, will be observed from September 18 to September 19

In the days leading up to this particular holiday, its customary to seek forgiveness from those youve wronged throughout the year. Good deeds, or mitzvahs, are also carried out throughout this period.

On the day before the Yom Kippur fast begins, two large meals are prepared and shared among family and friends.

What else do you need to know about Yom Kippur? Find out below.

What is Yom Kippur and how is it celebrated?

Yom Kippur is also known as the Day of Atonement. On the Jewish calendar, it always falls sometime after Rosh Hashanah.

A majority of the holiday is spent in synagogue praying. During the 26-hour period no food is eaten and no water is consumed. Jews also avoid bathing and wearing leather on Yom Kippur.

Jews do not work or do anything that could be considered work on Yom Kippur.

The focus of Yom Kippur is forgiveness. More specifically seeking forgiveness from God so that you may begin the New Year with a clean slate and be sealed in the coming year.

Before Yom Kippur begins, families and groups of close friends gather for two traditional pre-fast meals. When it ends, the fast is broken either in the synagogue or at home with loved ones.

A final shofar blast at the synagogue signals the end of Yom Kippur. The shofar, a rams horn thats blown into, is traditionally associated with Rosh Hashanah, but is integral to both holidays.

Why is Yom Kippur important?

Yom Kippur is considered the most important holiday in the Jewish calendar. The introspective holiday sets the tone for the coming year by encouraging those observing it to seek forgiveness and atone for all that theyve done.

Story of Yom Kippur

Per tradition, the first Yom Kippur was celebrated after the Israelites fled Egypt. Upon arriving at Mount Sinai, God presented Moses with the Ten Commandments.

Armed with the tablets, Moses made his way down the mountain where he found his people giving worship to a golden calf. In a fit of rage, Moses smashed the tablets.

The Israelites atoned for what theyd done  worshipping a false idol  and God forgave them. He then presented Moses with a second set of Ten Commandments.

Jewish texts dictate that Yom Kippur was the only time the high priest was able to enter the inner sanctuary of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. Once inside, he performed different rituals to ask God to forgive the people of Israel.

This ritual is said to have continued until 70 AD when the Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans.

Its the inspiration for modern day Yom Kippur services and traditions.

Yom Kippur 2018 dates

This year, Yom Kippur begins on Tuesday, September 18 and ends on Wednesday, September 19.

What time does Yom Kippur start?

Start times for Yom Kippur will vary depending where you are. In New York, Yom Kippur will begin at 6:42pm ET on Tuesday and end at 7:39pm ET on Wednesday.

In Los Angeles, California Yom Kippur will start at 6:43pm ET on Tuesday and end at 7:37pm ET on Wednesday.

Yom Kippur will begin at 6:50pm BST on Tuesday in London, England and end at 7:56pm BST on Wednesday.

In Australia, Yom Kippur begins at 5:30pm AEST Tuesday and ends Wednesday at 6:26pm AEST.

Dont see your location above? Click here to find out the exact moment Yom Kippur begins for you.

Yom Kippur greetings

On Yom Kippur, people are greeted with G'mar Hatima Tova, meaning 'May you be sealed in the Book of Life.' G'mar Tov or simply wishing someone an east fast are also acceptable.

Is their school on Yom Kippur?

New York City public schools are closed on Wednesday for Yom Kippur. Check your local school board website to find out whether your school is open or closed.

Yom Kippur for kids

Children arent held to the same strict guidelines as adults on Yom Kippur. Children should participate in festive pre-fast meals, light candles to usher in the holiday and abstain from wearing leather and bathing.

Children are permitted to eat during Yom Kippur, but should avoid eating sweets and other treats in observance of the solemn holiday.

They should also attend synagogue services. Many shuls offer services tailored to children and families.

Jews, if you're planning to taper down your caffeine intake before Yom Kippur you maybe want to start tomorrow (or maybe not, whatever, you do you.)

Thread on this and other fasting-related miscellany: https://t.co/MJku2v92BV  Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg (@TheRaDR) September 12, 2018

Yom Kippur dinner ideas

Many people break the Yom Kippur fast with breakfast foods. Bagels, coffee, fruits and cinnamon buns are favorites in many Jewish households.

There are no specific rules as to what you must eat after the Yom Kippur fast. That said, many prefer to have food on-hand that was prepared ahead of time and can be quickly heated up or served room temperature and are easy on the stomach.
Official figures show the number of Christian refugees given entry to the US has fallen despite Donald Trump's promise to help them.

The number of Christian refugees has fallen by 40 percent over the past year, equivalent to a decline of almost 11,000 people.

Experts sat they have been caught in the crossfire of the President's unilateral clampdown on immigration - meaning it has become harder and harder for them to get to the US.

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Christian people displaced from Telskuf by the conflict between the Kurdish Peshmerga and the Iraqi Forces and Iranian backed Hashd al Shaabi

Trump said in January 2017 it was 'at least very tough' for Christian refugees to enter the US

'Ironically, these policies, while clearly aimed at Muslim refugees, ensure that Christians and other religious minorities from many of the countries on Trump's list of suspect travel ban nations are also kept out,' Mary Giovagnoli of Refugees Council USA told NBC.

'It suggests that the president has no real interest in religious persecution or the tenets of religious freedom.'

Among those caught up in the President's complication immigration battle are a group of around 87 Iranian Christians stuck in Austria as they wait to find out if they will be allowed passage to the US.

On Wednesday this week they expect to learn whether the U.S. government will issue them visas - after a two-year wait.

The group applied for safe haven in the US under the Lautenberg-Specter program which allows persecuted religious minorities in Iran and Russia US residency.

Christian refugees from Syria and Iraq, receive communion during a Christmas mass at Saint Georges church, Beirut, Lebanon on December 15 2015

Up until this year the programme has had a near 100 per cent acceptance rate - but Trump's immigration plan has complicated matters.

In January 2017, Trump told the Christian Broadcasting Network it was 'at least very tough' for Christian refugees to enter the US and claimed it was much easier for Muslims to enter in comparison.

'If you were a Muslim you could come in, but if you were a Christian, it was almost impossible and the reason that was so unfair, everybody was persecuted in all fairness, but they were chopping off the heads of everybody but more so the Christians,' Trump said.

'And I thought it was very, very unfair. So we are going to help them.'
A Royal Navy sailor who was arrested after 3.1bn aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth docked in the US was allegedly tasered in his right thigh to stop him fighting, according to official documents.

Thomas Reffold was one of six Naval personnel arrested by police after the Navy's new 918ft-long warship arrived in Florida on its maiden voyage to the US.

Arrest reports reveal an officer stunned Reffold, 28, on the thigh after he was seen yelling and attempting to fight in a street in Jacksonville.

British sailors Thomas Reffold (left) and Ieuen Edwards (right) were tasered by police in Florida after a night of drunkenness following their ship's docking in Jacksonville

Steven Gorley (left) and Matthew Cotham (right) were also arrested after trouble flared

A second sailor, Ieuen Edwards, 21, also had a Taser gun used on him by officers after he allegedly punched a person and then resisted arrest.

After two and a half weeks at sea, the crew of 1,500 sailors, aircrew and marines descended on a coastal resort at Jacksonville Beach, Florida, on Wednesday night.

Locals saw British navy personnel kicked out of bars and fighting each other after HMS Queen Elizabeth arrived at Naval Station Mayport.

Jacksonville Police arrest records claim officers were forced to arrest a third sailor, Dominic Gregory, after he got into an argument with friends about returning to the ship.

Instead of boarding a bus to return the sailors to the aircraft carrier, the 19-year-old, who was arrested for disorderly intoxication, became 'verbally abusive' before lying down in the road and refusing to move.

Three further sailors were arrested after the night out; Steven Gorley, Matthew Cotham and Jamie Lutas.

Arrest reports reveal what US police had to deal with. Left: Jamie Lutas. Right: Dominic Gregory

The sailors had just got off the HMS Queen Elizabeth after it docked in the Florida port

All of the sailors were taken to Duval County Jail in Jacksonville, Florida, after police officers failed to make contact with HMS Queen Elizabeth.

Jacksonville Beach Police Department sergeant Larry Smith said the men were released on Thursday morning, adding: 'I think they learned their lesson.'

He said: 'The sailors seem to beat the mess out of each other and knock their teeth out, but once they pick up their teeth off the ground they hug and then are best friends again.'

The report on Reffold's arrest says: 'Reffold appeared extremely agitated and was yelling and pushing an individual who was attempting to calm him down.

'As [the police officer] approached them, Reffold continued yelling and appeared as though he was about to fight the individual.

'Reffold was still yelling and had taken up an aggressive stance. I grabbed his left arm to place him into custody, he pulled away from me and attempted to push me.

'After multiple failed attempts to gain compliance from Reffold, Officer S. Young delivered a drive stun with his agency-issued taser to Reffolds right thigh.'

Police were called to reports of trouble at this Irish bar in Jacksonville Beach

A Royal Navy spokesman said at the weekend: 'We can confirm that a number of naval personnel are assisting US police with their enquiries - it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.

'The Naval Service places great importance on maintaining the highest possible standards of behaviour from its personnel at all times.'

The ship's company is on an 11-week deployment, having left Portsmouth on August 18.
Washington Archbishop, Cardinal Donald Wuerl (pictured), said he will travel to Rome to ask Pope Francis to accept his resignation

The Archbishop of Washington has said he will travel to Rome to ask the Pope to consider accepting his resignation.

Cardinal Donald Wuerl was named in Philadelphia's grand jury report into sex abuse in the Catholic Church as someone who had allowed priests to continue working despite allegations of sexual assault during his time as Archbishop of Pittsburgh.

He told priests in his diocese through a letter he would be speaking to the Pope about his future 'so that this archdiocesan church we all love can move forward', CNN reported.

The note was sent on Tuesday, after Wuerl spent the week meeting with priests in his diocese about whether he should stand down or not.

Last week, one protester yelled 'shame on you' at him, and another turned her back during a service.

'It was clear that some decision, sooner rather than later, on my part is an essential aspect so that this archdiocesan Church we all love can move forward,' he wrote.

Wuerl submitted his resignation three years ago, but stayed on working at the Vatican's request.

All bishops are required to submit their resignation at the age of 75, but the Pope does not have to accept it.

Wuerl resigned three years ago when he was 75, as is customary in the church, but Pope Francis (pictured) is yet to accept

The Cardinal said the Pope had asked him to work out what he wanted to do 'as we face new revelations of the extent of the horror of the clergy abuse of children and the failures in episcopal oversight'.

'At issue is how to begin effectively to bring a new level of healing to survivors who have personally suffered so much and have questions about their bishop's ability to provide the necessary leadership,' he wrote.

He added he believed his decision would pave 'the way forward to bring healing and a new beginning at the service of this Church'.

The recently released grand jury report into sex abuse within the Catholic Church named Wuerl as someone who had allowed priests to continue their work despite allegations of abuse.

While Wuerl has argued parishioners should be allowed to know if a priest facing allegations of child molestation has been moved to another church, he allegedly engaged in the practice himself.

Moving priests who have been accused of child sex abuse is widely seen as a way to help them avoid facing any consequences.

Wuerl has also been embroiled in the allegations of molestation leveled at former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick.

McCarrick is accused of molesting an altar boy and having seminary students sleep in his bed with him. Many have suggested Wuerl must have known about the allegations, and intentionally did not act.

The current Washington Cardinal has remained adamant he had no idea until recently.

Wuerl has been accused of covering up child sex abuse in the church, and of knowing about allegations of molestation leveled at his predecessor, Theodore McCarrick (pictured). Wuerl denies this

The Cardinal has faced protests over the scandal and his handling of it, both in and out of his services (Pictured: teachers boycotting Wuerl's back to school mass on August 28)

Pope Francis has called a meeting for mid February with bishops from around the world to discuss preventing clergy sex abuse and protecting children - evidence he realizes the scandal is global and inaction threatens to undermine his legacy.

Francis' key cardinal advisers announced the decision Wednesday, a day before Francis meets with US church leaders, who are facing fresh accusations following the bombshell grand jury report.

The February 21-24 meeting is believed to be the first of its kind, and signals a realization at the highest levels of the church that clergy sex abuse is a global problem and not restricted to the Anglo-Saxon world, as many church leaders have long tried to insist.

Pope Francis will meet with top US church leaders and officials on Thursday to discuss the sex abuse scandal, and with Catholic leaders around the world in mid-February

But first Pope Francis will meet with the head of the US bishop's conference and other top US church officials on Thursday to discuss the sex abuse scandal.

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, head of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, has said he wants the Pope to authorize a full-fledged Vatican investigation into McCarrick, who was removed as cardinal in July after a credible accusation he groped a teenager.

DiNardo has also said recent claims McCarrick's misconduct was covered up - which have been made against top Vatican officials and the Pope himself - deserve answers.

Vatican spokesman Greg Burke said DiNardo would meet with Francis on Thursday in the Apostolic Palace, along with Cardinal Sean O'Malley, Francis' top sex abuse adviser.

Also involved are two officials from the conference, Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez and Monsignor Brian Bransfield.
Jon Christopher Clark was charged with murder in connection to his girlfriend's disappearance and death

The boyfriend of a woman found dead in an Arizona desert a month after she disappeared has been formally charged with her murder.

Jon Christopher Clark appeared before a judge on Tuesday night where he was charged with first-degree murder, improper removal of a body and evidence tampering in connection to the disappearance and death of 19-year-old Kiera Bergman.

Earlier on Tuesday, investigators said they had gathered enough information to charge the 23-year-old for his teenage girlfriend's murder.

Bergman was last seen alive on August 4 at her Phoenix-area apartment. According to reports, she had moved from San Diego to Phoenix in March to live with Clark but had moved out before her death.

Clark, who was arrested on August 31 on unrelated charges, had previously denied being involved in Bergman's disappearance.

The teen's father, Christopher Bragg, told KNXV on Tuesday that the family always suspected Clark had done something to Bergman.

'We believed from the beginning he was involved, but without any information we didn't want to put him out there as a bad person without knowing some facts,' he said.

Clark appeared in court on Tuesday. He was also charged with improper removal of a body and evidence tampering

Clark had initially denied his involvement in her disappearance saying she left their apartment after they got into an argument

A passerby found Bergman's remains in a rural desert area on September 3, a month after she vanished, and called police. Authorities have not said how she died or how long the body was in the desert.

Police also have not yet released a motive for the crime.

Kiersten Bragg, the teen's mother, told KNXV that she's 'relieved' Clark has been charged with murder.

'I would hate to see other parents have to go through this. It's the worst feeling in the world,' she said. 'I pray that the situation opens up a lot of especially young women's eyes to the dangers that are out there and that you think twice before you get involved with certain people.'

The family said Bergman met Clark last November on the dating app Tinder. They described the couple's relationship as 'volatile' and said Clark was 'controlling'.

The day Bergman disappeared she had gotten into an argument with Clark. A co-worker told media that the teen was noticeably upset when she left the store with Clark.

Clark told the Huffington Post last month that he had taken Bergman back to the apartment after picking her up from work. He said their argument was over finances and Bergman left the house around 1pm on August 4 to clear her head.

Clark told the outlet that the last time he saw his girlfriend was when she left but he wasn't concerned because they would often leave the apartment to get some space after a fight.

Bergman was last seen alive on August 4. Her remains were discovered on September 3 in a rural desert in Arizona

The 19-year-old had moved from San Diego to Phoenix in March to live with her boyfriend after meeting him on Tinder last year

Bergman's mother (right) said she had suspected Clark had something to do with Bergman's disappearance and death

'When she left there was no immediate concern because we have had arguments in past where either me or her have left for an hour or a couple at a time to go clear our head. I didn't really find it unusual until she wasn't in contact with me,' he said.

Bergman's family and friends, however, found it unusual that she had left her wallet, purse, and car at the apartment.

An Instagram account that appears to belong to Clark had several messages and videos denying his involvement in Bergman's disappearance. In one video, he flips through a photo album containing pictures they took together.

'I gave this to you on valentines day this year and i still can see the big smile you had on your face. i look at this album everyday and cry because i just want you to come home soo bad. I love you Kiera and we are going to find you and bring you home,' he captioned the video.

In another post roughly two weeks before her body was found, Clark lashed out at Bergman's family.

'I have been nothing but open and honest with investigators and Kieras family. However, I am still being looked at from her family as having something to do with this. ... It hurt me so deeply that I was not able to attend Kieras Vigil of Hope because her mom did not want me there,' he said.

Clark has not entered a plea and is being held on a $1million cash bond. He is due back in court on September 18

'If the police ever had a shred of evidence to say I had anything to do with this, they would not let me go. So to all of Kieras family that still wants to look at me negatively, you better have this same energy when Kiera comes home'.

Clark also posted that on the day Bergman went missing she had reportedly texted her friend that she went to meet up with a man she had just met at her job. Both the friend and Bergman's mom told media outlets that meeting up with strangers was out of character for the teen.

Clark was already in jail on identity theft and forgery charges when the charge of first-degree murder was added. His bond has been set at $1million cash. His next court date is scheduled for September 18. He has not yet entered a plea.
An Internet poll released Wednesday appeared to find that just 23 per cent of Americans want the Supreme Court to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion case 'and make abortion illegal,' at a time when conservative judge Brett Kavanaugh's elevation to the high court seems imminent.

Two Democratic Senate aides told DailyMail.com on Wednesday that the poll would figure prominently in Democrats' arguments that Kavanaugh's presumed position on reproductive rights is out of step with the nation and should keep him off the nation's highest court.

But following questions from DailyMail.com about the poll's wording, the news organization that commissioned it is walking it back, likely leaving President Donald Trump's Capitol Hill opponents without a much needed arrow in their quiver as they make a final anti-Kavanaugh case on the Senate floor.

The survey question left open the possibility that participants were voting against a scenario that would be constitutionally impossible.

Roe outlawed most abortion restrictions by taking away the states' authority to legalize the practice, establishing that a woman's right to privacy could only be curtailed in the case of abortion by a 'compelling state interest'.

Overturning it would not make abortions illegal: It would return the issue to the states for more localized decisions.

Abortion politics are on the front burner again as a poll purporting to show massive opposition to Roe v. Wade is being walked back after making a splash in Washington

Pro-choice Democrats had planned to use the survey in Senate floor speeches against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh but now they can't

The Axios/SurveyMonkey poll asked if Americans wanted to 'overturn' Roe v. Wade 'and make abortion illegal,' something overturning Roe would not do

Axios Editor-in-Chief Nick Johnston told DailyMail.com on Wednesday that his organization would be revising its conclusions.

'That question was not worded well and we missed it,' Johnston said in an email about the mistake.

Twenty-three per cent of participants agreed that they wanted the court to 'overturn' Roe 'and make abortion illegal.' Fully 71 per cent opted instead for: 'No, leave decision as is.'

A senior aide to a pro-life Republican congressman said Wednesday on background: 'That's such bulls***. What a stupid push-poll.'

The SurveyMonkey poll led Axios to conclude that '[t]he vast majority of Americans want to leave Roe v. Wade alone, a reality that Republicans will face if Brett Kavanaugh is confirmed.'

But Johnston said hours later: 'We're going to correct the story headline and body to say it's actually polling on whether abortion should be illegal, not strictly on roe v wade (because those are 2 separate things).'

Gallup's polling has consistently found a near-even split among self-described 'pro-life' and 'pro-choice' Americans, with each camp claiming about 48 per cent of voters in May.

That means that in order for 71 per cent to believe Roe should be left 'as is,' more than half of pro-life Americans would have to agree.

Concluding that fewer than one-quarter of Americans want all abortions outlawed is more in line with pro-life advocates' arguments that most of their followers want to leave options open for women who are victims of rape and incest, and whose pregnancies might endaanger their lives.

A similar Wall Street Journal poll in July confused the issue in July, telling respondents that Roe 'established a woman's constitutional right to an abortion' and asking if the Supreme Court should 'completely overturn' it.

In that survey, just 23 per cent said yes  possibly interpreting the question as a referendum on outlawing abortions entirely.

The polling controversy left the pro-life lobby incensed on Wednesday, and complaining about 'push-poll' language seemingly designed to throw reality to the dogs.

Susan B. Anthony List president Marjorie Dannenfelser told DailyMail.com that pro-life women are victims of a 'media-perpetuated misconception that overrunning Roe ends abortion. Not true.'

These results from a SurveyMonkey poll showed just 23 per cent wanted to ditch 'Roe,' but the question said that outcome would make all abortions illegal. It wouldn't.

Axios presented the poll as a referendum on Roe but concluded after DailyMail.com's questions that it really measured the small proportion of Americans who want all abortions outlawed

'Eroding or overturning Roe will simply allow the wheels of democracy to turn in every state. ... When voters are asked do they want courts or elected officials to determine abortion law, they choose their elected officials overwhelmingly,' she said.

In July Dannenfelser's group commissioned the independent McLaughlin & Associates firm to poll 1,000 likely voters. That survey found 58 per cent wanted their state legislatures to determine the future of abortion policy  not the Supreme Court.

The SurveyMonkey poll's unconventional method uses a broader than usual sample of Americans, but it is limited only to people who have already 'opted in' online.

While the company says it has access to a pool of more than 2 million Americans, it may not be a representative sample of U.S. voters since only about six-tenths of 1 per cent of the nation's population has any chance at all of being surveyed.
A 30lb cat named Meatloaf who was only adopted last month has died.

The kitty became quite the internet sensation with his tiny paws touching the hearts of people across the country.

The King's Harvest Pet Shelter in Davenport, Iowa posted a picture of the chunky cat on Facebook and it didn't take long before Meatloaf was adopted.

Steve Gusman and Mary Armstrong of Moline saw him and thought he would be ideal to serve as a therapy cat for Gusman who had returned from the Iraq War post-traumatic stress disorder.

Meatloaf, a 12-year-old, 30-pound cat has died from liver failure and jaundice

Steve Gusman and Mary Armstrong of Moline saw him and thought he would be ideal to serve as a therapy cat for Gusman who had returned from the Iraq War PTSD

But being a bigger cat meant Meatloaf had a few health problems and he ended up dying just weeks later from jaundice and liver failure, which is not uncommon in bigger cats.

The feline reached his supersize due to overfeeding  including human food and despite the cuteness of his extra curves, his weight was unhealthy.

'They were going to heal each other,' Rochelle Dougall, assistant director of King's Harvest Pet Shelter said. 'We're grateful they took him in and gave him a loving home, even in his last few weeks.'

Last Saturday afternoon, he was rushed to a vet hospital where he passed away after he had begun 'acting funny' and appearing jaundiced.

Gusman is said to be devastated that the cat died so soon after it came to live with the pair

'It was liver disease from the human food he ate before being adopted,' Armstrong said to KWQC.

The shelter have sent the couple a condolence card and invited Gusman to return and get another cat for free when he's ready.

'I know it took a long time for him to even be ready to adopt a cat after his last cat,' Dougall said.

Although Meatloaf's time with his family is short, his story has given homes and lives to other animals at the shelter.

Dougall said that because of the overwhelming amount of attention the shelter received due to Meatloaf, many more people ended up adopting other pets when they came in to take a look.

'More than I could probably count on both hands,' Dougall said about the adoptions. 'We had people come in just to look at him, but leave with dogs and other cats.'

'He was a majesty just to look at. If you were here and you could have see him, it's wonderful,' Dougall said. 'It's kind of wild and crazy  how did he get to 30 pounds in the first place?'
At least nine people died and 46 were injured after a car ploughed into a crowded square in southern China on Wednesday.

The car drove onto the square in Hengdong county, part of Hengyang city in Hunan province, shortly before 8pm local time, the Hengyang government said in a statement.

The driver then started to slash passersby, according state-run People's Daily Online. Police have detained the driver, who they say had a criminal record.

Videos carried on Chinese media, such as Btime, showed several bodies on the ground as bystanders tended to some of them in Mishui town of Hengyang city, China's Hunan Province

Police have detained the driver of the car, who they say had a criminal record, according to the local government. The incident took place shortly before 8pm local time on a busy square

The driver deliberately rammed his car into pedestrians on the Mijiang Square, said the statement posted by the Hengyang government on the official social media account.

It is said that police were immediately sent to the scene to detain the suspect, known by his surname Yang.

According to People's Daily Online, 54-year-old Yang is a local resident who had been arrested and jailed multiple times.

A car ploughed into a crowded square in southern China's Hengyang city on Wednesday

Videos carried on Chinese media, such as Btime, showed several bodies on the ground as bystanders tended to some of them.

Nine people have been confirmed dead and 46 others injured by the government as of writing. Three people are said to be seriously wounded.

All of the victims are treated in the hospital.

Police are investigating the case further.

There was no indication in the government statement or state media reports that the incident was terror related.
Trot Insider compiled this comprehensive report from Day 3 of the proceedings in regard to the civil lawsuit that a group of Ontario Standardbred breeders have filed against the Province of Ontario and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation over the cancellation of the former Slots at Racetracks Program.

Monday (Sept. 10) marked the first day of court hearings in the civil suit (Seelster Farms Inc. v Her Majesty The Queen In Right Of Ontario) which is taking place at the A. Grenville and William Davis Courthouse, located at 7755 Hurontario St. in Brampton, Ont.

One of the Plaintiffs lawyers, Jonathan C. Lisus, of Lax OSullivan Lisus Gottlieb LLP, has been presenting the Plaintiffs Factum as part of their Motion for Summary Judgment since Monday.

To view the recap of Trot Insiders Tuesday coverage, click here.

The court case reconvened on Wednesday (Sept. 12) at 10:00 a.m. with Jonathan Lisus returning to discuss the review that the OLG was undergoing in 2011. Here, the OLG was characterizing SARP revenue in these internal documents as a "special interest payment" for horse racing and not a commission of services rendered as initially stated in the letter of intent government signed with the industry. Thus, according to Lisus, the OLG was fundamentally rewriting the nature of its obligations while simultaneously encouraging breeding and continuing positive messaging.

Lisus pointed out what he termed as "crystal clear evidence of foreseeability of harm" in further OLG documents in June 2011 that note a change in SARP will cause harm to the racing industry.

The evidence then shifted to Don Drummond, the author of the commissioned Drummond Report. Admitting he didn't evaluate the harm of removing SARP, Drummond maintained that was neither his recommendation nor mandate. He merely suggested an evaluation, while Finance (Shortill and Duncan) changed 'evaluated' to 'eliminated' in messaging from government.

Lisus cited examination of Elizabeth Yeigh that confirmed OLG had full control to deal with concerns of its agreement with the horse racing industry, yet did not deal with the issues.

The main crux of the morning dealt with policy. The assertion from the defendants state that this was a policy decision. Through emails and cross-examination of a number of individuals  including Dalton McGuinty, Kathleen Wynne, Shortill, Rod Phillips and Ted McMeekin  Lisus reinforced his assertion that the decision was made to go from a three-year transition to 'zero for horse racing' without any new studies or consultation. Shortill himself stated he had "general knowledge" of racing and made his recommendations to align, in his words, with government priorities.

After a short recess, Lisus continued his evidence by trying to show how government made the decision they did regarding horse racing, and with what information.

Shortill admitted to Lisus that the recommendations he made regarding the horse racing industry didn't involve him reviewing the siteholder agreements. Further, he wasn't aware of the Letter of Intent he was effectively cancelling  not even prior to his examination for this case. He did say that he was aware of SARP in 2012, and aware of a "negative impact" this would have on the racing industry. However, Shortill said that no degree of impact regarding the decision was provided to him. It was also his self-informed opinion that horse racing received what he termed a subsidy from government.

It wasn't clear if these views and information were factors in the final decisions. Shortill did state that in his role that it would be expected that the Minister of Finance would take and follow his advice in this matter as well as others.

Lisus then presented evidence from Dwight Duncan, the former Minister of Finance. In this discussion, Duncan made reference to the government's consolidated revenue fund as though racing received funding from this public money, which Lisus was quick to point out is not accurate as the nature of the funds were an operating expense and determined by public records and laws.

In cross examination of Dalton McGuinty, the former Premier stated there was a sense going into the February 3 cabinet meeting that there would be a three-year phase down for the industry and that advice would have been provided by staff. At this point, the OLG proposal and the Drummond Report would have been presented to him. McGuinty said that he would have been told that support for racing was more than other jurisdictions. Here, again, Lisus pointed out the incorrect information provided to the decision makers, as this was never a support program for racing. McGuinty also stated that Finance would have come to him with the recommendations, and that the process frequently follows a pattern of head staff from a department (like Finance) making recommendations to his own chief of staff. He confirmed that his understanding based on the information provided to him was that racing was getting public funds, and in the recent cross-examination admitted that the consultation and study that went into this decision before it was presented to him was less than he assumed.

Where exactly this decision was made remains unclear, as Lisus has been continuously blocked from getting more details on the cabinet meeting and who was involved. These questions, according to Lisus, were refused in cross examination of Dwight Duncan, Kathleen Wynne and Ted McMeekin. Both Wynne and McMeekin found out about the decision to "go to zero" for horse racing after the cabinet meeting, but when asked if they were present for the meeting, those questions were denied by the defense citing privileged information.

Not knowing what was discussed in that cabinet meeting, Lisus pointed out that according to an agenda with five items that horse racing was the fifth and final item to be discussed in a truncated meeting  2.5 hours instead of the usual three. Speaking points prepared for ministers in advance of the meeting misrepresented the government's agreement with horse racing in a number of ways:

the agreement was compared to "other economic development programs" involving government

it was characterized as a "subsidy" for horse racing

the decision was said to have the full support of the OLG board, but they were informed of it days later

it stated that the yet-to-be released Drummond Report recommended eliminating SARP

Were these speaking points discussed at cabinet? Lisus was refused the details of the cabinet meeting.

Lisus said, given that he's been blocked on the specifics for that decision, the defense has to rest on this record.

The presiding judge asked Lisus what it would mean if he determined the decision to terminate the agreement with horse racing was made in cabinet with the bad information he's presented. Lisus quickly replied with compensation, paraphrasing a quote that John Snobelen provided to him that government pays for the privilege of being able to do what they want and that it's important for public authorities to be liable for their negligent conduct.

The third Wednesday session continued the discussion of Lisus being denied information on the cabinet meetings, with the defense claiming that was privileged information. He maintained his assertion that the cabinet minute regarding horse racing has "zero evidentiary value."

In multiple emails, Ted McMeekin stated that the decision was made by Finance and that he found out about it just days before it went public. Those statements, according to Lisus, again reinforce that the decision could not have been a well thought-out policy decision if this was the case. He also noted that McMeekin stated he was led to believe that the OLG Board supported the slashing of SARP and confirmed that would be a factor in any decisions as he was aware that OLG was undergoing a review.

The issue of assurances was raised, and how the breeders continued with their business given the assurances of a viable industry from government. The consultations with the OLG and ORC gave the impression of a stable environment. Further, statements from both Rod Seiling and Yeigh confirm that breeders were intended beneficiaries of SARP.

Lisus then referred to the speech that Dwight Duncan gave on February 13, in which he said that "the government had been subsidizing horse racing for too long."

And then, the attack ads hit the radio.

No one from government could say where the attack ads came from, although an email blast shared by Minister of Education Laurel Broten touted the ads and more money for education. When Broten was asked a question in legislature about the ad, she referred the question to Duncan and he replied, "I'm pleased to take the question for which I have responsibility."

The fourth session concluded motions for Wednesday, with Lisus continuing to present evidence. Emails regarding the preparation of Duncan's speech were presented, with Ministry of Finance staffers discussing the tone and strength of the messaging regarding horse racing in that speech. Part of the email thread stated that the OLG was not "operationally ready" to discuss the impact of the decision. This statement, according to Lisus, showed just how disjointed and divorced the decision was from the process.

It also sent shockwaves through the party, according to Lisus. Internally, McMeekin was looking for an impact analysis on this decision but one couldn't be produced. Lisus also stated that McMeekin fought for the transition panel, and that Finance resisted such a move.

These actions evolved into a "turf war" of sorts within government, most notably between OMAFRA and Finance. As Kathleen Wynne became Premier, she fired Paul Godfrey from the OLG and the entire board resigned. Wynne was asked under cross-examination why she axed Godfrey; she stated that it was because of the decision to cut off horse racing.

As the industry received some news regarding funding structures in late 2013 and into 2014, the lack of an agreement with Standardbred breeders was notable. A letter to Premier Wynne from John Snobelen confirmed increased funding to thoroughbred and Quarter-Horse sectors. Lisus noted that Snobelen told Trot Insider the next day that the litigation filed by the province's Standardbred breeders was a factor.

To reinforce his point, Lisus referenced a meeting between Elmer Buchanan and the Standardbred breeders where Buchanan stated that the Breeders would get funding if the lawsuit was dropped.

Lisus concluded the session by highlighting the number of decisions made by government along the way over the course of this process where it seemed they had a chance to step back and reconsider their course of actions, but did not.

The case returns to Brampton court on Thursday at 10:00 am.
US border patrol arrested 131 illegal immigrants, including 22 unaccompanied children, in a single day - officials have revealed.

Officials said in a press release that all 131 of the immigrants were being processed by Border Patrol after they were picked up in a 24-hour period in the in the Rio Grande Valley, Texas.

According to authorities, the arrests stem from two separate incidents in a span of just over 24 hours.

A U.S. Border Patrol agent monitors a group of apprehended males who crossed the border on July 2016 (file photo)

Weslaco agents first arrested 66 illegals from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras on Monday. The group comprised 20 families and 11 unaccompanied minors.

Then on Tuesday, Weslaco agents arrested an additional 65 illegal immigrants from Guatemala and El Salvador. That group was made up of 25 families and 11 unaccompanied children.

The news comes just a week after Border Patrol agents rescued 55 illegal immigrants from a sweltering tractor-trailer in Texas.

Agents broke the seal to the vehicle after a service canine was alerted to the odour of concealed humans.

The immigrants were found hidden amid the commodity being transported at the Border Patrol checkpoint on Interstate Highway 35, north of Laredo, on September 5.

Inside the trailer, officers were met with conditions that were potentially lethal with an internal temperature of nearly 100 degrees and limited airflow.

The illegal immigants inside were sweating profusely and immediately evaluated by an emergency medical technician.

The male driver, who was a United States citizen, was arrested and the tractor-trailer was seized.

Agents from Border Patrol rescued 55 illegal immigrants from a checkpoint on the Interstate Highway 35, north of Laredo, on September 5
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Britain's spice crisis is reaching 'epidemic' levels, it is claimed, as pressure mounts on police and paramedics to clear the streets of 'zombies' hooked on the synthetic drug.

The drug which is smoked by users can be bought for as little as 5 per bag and is causing shocking scenes on the streets of Britain as those on the drug appear 'possessed'.

Because it is cheap and highly addictive, spice has wreaked chaos within prisons and placed huge pressures on the emergency services.

Unison rep Richard Bentley from Leeds told the Mirror: 'It's getting worse and worse, reaching epidemic proportions.'

A group of spice users in Doncaster where the problem has become so bad police and the council are offering mental health help and accommodation advice instead of arrest

Every day people in the town are seeing the impact of the spread of the cheap drugs as men and women pass out in the road

Spice users resemble 'zombies' as they convulse and twist their bodies - and many end up zoned out while still on their feet

One man was seen passed out in the road with what appear to be slippers still on his feet after using the synthetic drug

'Recently, the first two hours of my shift were taken up dealing with people smoking spice and in a zombie-like state.

'They are using it as escapism.'

One town currently blighted by the drug is Doncaster  the South Yorkshire town which some locals have taken to calling 'spice-caster'.

Shop owner Zara Elliott, 31, told a Mirror investigation the area can be 'terrifying'.

She said: 'It's been terrifying. I see it day in day out. There was a guy foaming at the mouth, looking possessed and shouting nonsense.

'This woman and her two children were walking past. One child starts crying and was asking, 'Mummy, mummy, is that a monster?' We see them slumped to the floor all the time and it puts shoppers off. I live above a shop, so I can't escape.'

Frenchgate Cafe worker Jay Pearman, 20, added: 'There was a man who put up a hammock outside. He tied it between two trees.

Rubbish, mattresses and alcohol bottles are strewn around the area in Doncaster as the spice problem in Britain reaches ' epidemic' levels

A man leans on a post after taking drugs in the centre of the South Yorkshire town where police are trialling a new response0 which does not include arrest

'Escapism': Experts say people using the cheap and highly addictive drug are trying to take their minds off of other problems

'He's rolled a joint and was like a zombie for 20 minutes. It's horrendous. It's driving us mad. In the end he was chased off by a pensioner.'

Images have shown men and women laying across the street, passed out or stumbling around.

Last month, Police chiefs tore into the Government's over its 'woefully inadequate' response to the epidemic of the zombie drug Spice.

A group of 20 Police and Crime Commissioners backed a letter warning the drug represents the 'most severe public health issue' the UK has faced in decades.

And they are urging ministers to upgrade it from a Class B to Class A drug so that dealers peddling it face far stiffer prison terms.

A man who has been using spice leans up against a post as the drugs take hold of him. Some parents said their children confused users for 'monsters'

Needles are frequently spotted in Doncaster according to local people who are having to endure the problems caused by the drug spice

Large piles of needles are strewn across the floor as well as other drug paraphernalia in Doncaster where a new trial has started to try to get people off drugs

Drugs and broken bottles all over Doncaster as residents begin reporting incidents on Facebook pages to try and get spice users the help they need

Do not give the beggars money: Frustrated locals have urged people not to give beggars cash because it can be used on spice

Alleyways around the town are littered with rubbish while users can be seen passed out during the day on benches and pavements

The Government reclassified some legal highs as 'Class B' drugs to stem the problem  but their attempt appears to have failed.

Experts say the spice epidemic spread from the north west. Photos from Manchester, Liverpool and Blackpool showed spaced-out users laying lifeless in the middle of streets with vomit all over their clothes.

But the drug has now made its way through central England and into Wales.

Sad images have emerged from Cambridge, Wolverhampton and Lincoln showing debilitated users hunched over benches and lying stiff on busy high streets.

Spice on the rise in Wales, with Public Health Wales revealing the synthetic drug has led to more hospital admissions and more deaths.

The most recent figures showed that 123 people died in Wales and England in 2016 using the drug.

Last month six pupils at a Cambridgeshire secondary school were hospitalised after vomiting and fainting while high on spice.
Dozens of residents have vowed to ride out Hurricane Florence when it smashes into the Carolinas on Friday despite authorities warning that people will die.

One woman told MSNBC she would be staying at home in Wilmington, NC with her two children despite the storm.

While a man who gave his name as Joe, a contractor from Carolina, admitted he was 'scared' but said he had survived storms before and was determined to make it through this one.

Another resident staying put despite evacuation orders to over 1 million people throughout the Carolinas and Virginia is Jon Wright, a retired firefighter.

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One woman told MSNBC from the beaches of North Carolina she and her three kids were planning on staying put

A man named Joe, a local contractor, also said he wasn't planning on getting away from the hurricane

He plans to board up his windows, hunker down and ride out the Category 4 storm - according to USA Today.

'I'm not going to panic. I was a firefighter for 42 years. I believe in preparation,' Wright said. 'It is what it is. We live in a wonderful place but that's the cost of living here.'

He said he already has wooden boards cut to the right sizes and said the task should only take him about 30 minutes. The 63-year-old said he lives 'right smack in the middle' of Cape Fear River but is prepared with pre-cooked meals, water, a rain barrel and other essentials.

Governor Roy Cooper urged residents to prepare now, calling the storm 'a monster,' and warned that people should not count on being able to ride it out.

Power in some areas is likely to be out for several days, and storm surge is expected to flood widespread areas, he said, including inland regions of the state. Forecasts predict as much as 20 inches of rain in some places but one computer model warned there could be up to 45 inches, nearly four feet.

'Wherever you are in North Carolina, get ready for Florence now,' Governor Cooper said. 'It is big and it is vicious.'

Hurricane Florence is expected to strengthen to Category 5 status on Tuesday with more than 1.5 million people ordered to evacuate as the powerful storm barrels towards North and South Carolina

The National Hurricane Center expects Florence to turn into 'an extremely dangerous major hurricane' on Thursday night before making landfall

Florence is already a Category 4 storm with 130mph winds. It changed course overnight promising to bring even worse devastation to the Carolinas and even parts at Georgia  with the Michigan-sized storm now set to linger for days and cause catastrophic flooding with up to four feet of rain and 13-foot storm surges.

It is predicted to stall even more off the coast of the Carolinas before scraping down the US east coast and moving inland before the weekend.

The new trajectory means the storm will idle at sea for longer creating even heavier and prolonged rains and storm surges for the Carolinas and possibly northern parts of Georgia.

At least 25 million residents are at risk from the storm and experts predict its current path could cause up to $170 billion worth of damage, hit up to 759,000 homes and businesses and become the costliest to ever hit the U.S.

Hurricane-force winds will reach the Carolina coasts late Thursday or early Friday.

President Trump issued a warning from the Oval Office on Tuesday, saying the storm is 'tremendously big and tremendously wet'
Medic Tony Adkins really does believe laughter is the best medicine - and entertains his seriously ill young patients with slick dance moves.

The neurosurgery physician assistant, 42, cheered up one of his patients post-op by spontaneously breaking into a dance.

Since then, Adkins, from Orange County, California, has made his enthusiastic boogying part of the youngsters treatment.

Tony Adkins, 42, dances with his patients at the Children's Hospital of Orange County

Insisting that smiling and being more interactive is 'more powerful' than some pain medication, the 'dancing doc' bops and shimmies with all of his patients at the Children's Hospital of Orange County (CHOC), earning him the nickname 'Dancing Doc'.

Hoping to protect the 'magic of childhood' in all of his patients, despite some of their conditions, he pledges to continue dancing throughout his medical career.

Mr Adkins, who is also an Army veteran, said: 'Dancing with patients is important because it adds levity and joy to the hospital experiences.

The 'dancing doc' said 'nothing is more important' than looking after children

'What I'm doing is right in with CHOC's commitment to preserving the magic of childhood and ensuring patients don't have to put their childhoods on pause.

'Studies show that when people laugh, smile and become more interactive, the effect on the brain is more powerful than some pain medications.

'It has a clinical value as it allows me to assess a patient's physical abilities, mobility and recovery process.

Never too young to dance: Mr Adkins says patients don't have to put their childhoods on pause

'There's nothing better than seeing a smile on my patients' faces,' Mr Adkins said

'I recently had a patient who was reluctant to get out of bed after surgery, but when I came in one morning to see him, an invitation to dance got him out of bed and moving.

'After we finished dancing, he kept going and starting doing laps around the hospital floor - it was awesome to see.'

Mr Adkins has proven to be a favourite among patients, with many specifically requesting him for treatment.

He said: 'Nurses have told me that when patients get admitted to the unit, they will ask for me specifically.

'I'm not formally trained in dance, but I've always loved music and movement.

The 'dancing doc': Mr Adkins has been told that patients ask for him specifically

'If I can help to instill a love of music and dance in my patients, in addition to improving their outcomes and outlooks, that's a wonderful thing.

'There's nothing better than seeing a smile on my patient's faces or to hear them laugh - it's self-care for me too.

'I will definitely continue to dance with my patients - it's become an integral part of my treatment and care for children.

'Nothing is more important than the health of a child, and I am so lucky to play an integral role in that.'
A Californian knifeman screaming 'f*** Trump' allegedly threatened to kill a Republican congressional candidate with a switchblade before fleeing after it failed to open.

Licensed security guard Farzad Vincent Fazeli, 35, allegedly ran towards Rudy Peters, who is a Navy veteran, in an 'aggressive manner' and threw a glass mug at him, prompting the 56-year-old candidate to wrestle the attacker to the ground.

Fazeli then stood up and reached into his pocket to reveal a switchblade before shouting 'I'm going to kill you motherf*****! a court affidavit said. He retreated after realizing the knife would not open and was arrested at a nearby bank.

Farzad Vincent Fazeli, 35, (left, in a mug shot) allegedly ran towards Rudy Peters (right) in an 'aggressive manner' and threw a glass mug at him, prompting the 56-year-old Navy veteran to wrestle the attacker to the ground

Fazeli in court on Wednesday a day after he was charged with making criminal threats and possessing a deadly weapon

The alleged incident began inside Peters' vendor booth at the Castro Valley Fall Festival at around 3.45pm on Sunday, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

'All of a sudden we hear someone screaming, 'f*** Trump, f*** Trump!'' Peters remembered. He said Fazeli moved to the entrance of the booth and raised his middle finger.

Peters, who was sitting next to Republican state assembly candidate Joseph Grcar, said Fazeli appeared to be walking off but, 'turned round and said, 'I'll show you' before running at the booth.''

After Peters knocked Fazeli to the ground he clambered to his feet and got out his switchblade.

'He's screaming, 'I'm gonna kill you, motherf*****!' Peters said. 'He had the knife, but the blade wouldn't shoot out.'

Peters, a Trump loyalist who uses the president's Make America Great slogan on his campaign homepage, grabbed a sign from a cupcake stall to use as a shield, but Fazeli then left. No one was hurt.

The suspect regularly ranted about Trump on Facebook and posed for a photo wearing a 1996 Bill Clinton t-shirt in 2013

Peters' opponent, incumbent Democrat Representative Eric Swalwell, tweeted his concern about the incident

Peters' campaign rival, incumbent Democrat Representative Eric Swalwell, tweeted his concern about the incident.

'On Sunday, my opponent @PetersCongress was attacked at his campaign booth in Castro Valley. I'm glad to hear Mr. Peters is okay. But it's NEVER okay to use violence to settle political disagreements (or any disagreement). Fortunately, @ACSOSheriffs arrested the suspect.'

Fazeli was licensed to work as a security guard in California but had previous convictions for battery and burglary

Peters told the Chronicle: 'It's a shame. People are just polarized right now, and this country's divided and it's just a mess. It shouldn't be that way.'

Fazeli, from Castro Valley, was charged on Tuesday with making criminal threats, possessing a switchblade, and exhibiting a deadly weapon. He had previous convictions for battery and burglary.

His sister, Natasha, gave offered an alternative account of what happened on Sunday, claiming her brother was 'attacked' by Peters.

'My brother was attacked by Republican candidate Rudy Peters who threw my brother to the ground which caused him to bleed,' she said.

'Peters is trying to spin this as a political attack against him when he was the one who started the violence.'

Fazeli was licensed to work as a security guard in California and recorded his jobs on Facebook as 'security guard at Costco' and 'assistant manager at Shell gas station'. It was unclear where he was working at the time of his arrest.

The suspect regularly ranted against Trump on Facebook.

In September 2017, Hurricane Irma had killed 134 people after ravishing Florida and Puerto Rico when he posted it was 'payback for voting Donald Trump'.

Fazeli had railed against Trump's approach to gun control and referred to him as a 'white militia spokesman'. He also posed in a photo shared in 2013 wearing a Bill Clinton t-shirt touting his successful 1996 presidential run.
Geoffrey Owens may not have received a dime of Nicki Minaj's promised $25,000 check, but he's still landing plenty of Hollywood gigs.

Owens, 57, was offered a guest star role on NCIS: New Orleans just two weeks after photos of him working at Trader Joe's were published.

The former Cosby star, who took the Trader Joe's job after the show was pulled from syndication, has also booked a 10-episode stint on The Haves And the Have Nots.

Owens will play a character called Commander Adams in the sixth episode of NCIS: New Orleans, which will air in late October.

Geoffrey Owens may not have received a dime of Nicki Minaj's promised $25,000 check, but he's still landing plenty of Hollywood gigs after being photographed working at Trader Joe's

Owens, 57, was offered a guest star role on NCIS: New Orleans, executive producer Christopher Silber excitedly revealed on Twitter

The former Cosby star has also booked a 10-episode stint on Tyler Perry's hit OWN drama The Haves And the Have Nots

Commander Adams will be an old friend of the character Pride - played by series lead Scott Bakula - who will reach out to him for 'medical and spiritual advice', according to Deadline.

Pride, who nearly died in last season's finale, will talk to Commander Adams about 'what could be causing his current symptoms and what his next course of action should be'.

NCIS: New Orleans executive producer Christopher Silber said the show wanted someone with 'compassion, competence, and heart' to play Commander Adams.

Sources told TMZ that Minaj and her team have not even contacted Owens after she pledged to donate $25,000 to him

'That's Geoffrey in a nutshell,' he told the site. 'An accomplished actor who seemed like the perfect fit to add to our extended repertory company.

'We're lucky to have him on the show.'

Silber also tweeted news that Owens would appear on the show, writing: 'So excited he'll be joining our extended family! Class act!'

Last week director Tyler Perry offered Owens a role on his hit OWN drama The Haves And the Have Nots.

'#GeoffreyOwens I'm about to start shootings OWN's number one drama next week! Come join us!' Perry wrote on Twitter Tuesday morning.

'I have so much respect for people who hustle between gigs. The measure of a true artist.'

Perry is the creator and director of the show, which is based on his own 2011 play.

The soap opera, which premiered in 2013, follows two powerful rich families and one poor family as their lives intertwine in Savannah, Georgia.

Perry's offer came soon after Owens spoke out about his job at Trader Joe's, revealing that he wasn't ashamed of working hard.

His story prompted Minaj to claim she was going to send Owens a $25,000 check to help him through the tough times.

'They took a picture of Geoffrey Owens and put this motherf***ing man on the motherf***in' internet while he was f***ing baggin up some f***ing groceries to feed his muthaf***ing family,' Minaj said on her Queen Radio show last week.

'I personally want to donate, on behalf of Queen Radio, $25,000 to Geoffrey Owens today.'

But sources tell TMZ that Minaj and her team haven't even contacted Owens yet.

Owens revealed earlier this week that he took the Trader Joe's job after The Cosby Show was pulled from syndication when dozens of women accused Bill Cosby of rape

On Monday Minaj said she was having a difficult time getting in touch with Owens and his representatives, but sources claim his team haven't heard a word from her despite being easy to contact.

The actor has made it clear he's not looking for pity or charity - whether it be acting roles or bank checks - and sources said it is likely he would have donated Minaj's contribution to his favorite charities.

Owens revealed earlier this week that he took the Trader Joe's job after The Cosby Show was pulled from syndication when dozens of women accused Bill Cosby of rape.

Cosby was found guilty of drugging and sexually assaulting fellow Temple alum Andrea Constand in 2004. He is expected to be sentenced later this month.

Owens attends the 9th Annual TV Land Awards at the Javits Center on April 10, 2011 in New York City

With re-runs of the show no longer on the air, royalty checks for the comedian's former co-stars suddenly dried up.

'Yes, it impacted me financially,' Owens told People. 'At the time that the show was pulled, that did make a difference in our income.

'That was one of the elements that led to my getting to the place where I said to myself, ''I have to do something'' and I was thinking, ''What can I do?''

'The answer ended up being Trader Joe's, which is actually a wonderful situation for me in many ways. But I got to the point, I just had to do something to support myself and my family.'

Owens, who played Elvin Tibideaux on the show from 1985 to 1992, said he was 'hurt' by the reports on his job at Trader Joe's, as well as the unflattering photo that was used of him bagging groceries.

'The words they used to describe me were so demeaning. It hurt,' he said.

Owens, who had to quit his Trader Joe's job due to the overwhelming media coverage, said he never expected to be set for life after The Cosby Show.

With re-runs of the show no longer on the air, royalty checks for the comedian's former co-stars suddenly dried up. Owens is pictured here in a fourth series promotional image

'I always expected that one way or another I would work and make a living,' he said.

'Whether it was teaching, directing, acting, little job here and little job there, then I'd patch it together.

'I didn't foresee working at a place like Trader Joe's, as great as that place is. I didn't foresee going out of the business for work, but I thought that within the business, I would patch together a modest living, at least enough to get by.'

But Owens said acting remains his 'calling', and he will do whatever it takes to keep following his passion.

'I'm going to keep pursuing it. I'm going to persevere,' he said.

'And even if that means, that eventually when all this hoopla dies down, I might need to take another job outside of the business. I'm still willing to do that.'
One of the little girls allegedly murdered by their father in a family massacre has been remembered at her preschool as a 'popular girl with the big bubbly personality'.

Charlotte Harvey, 3, her twin sisters Beatrix and Alice, 2, their mother Mara, 41, and their grandmother, Beverley Quinn, 74 were allegedly murdered by Anthony Harvey, 24, at their Bedford home in Perth's north-east on September 3.

On Wednesday, Shirley Oswald, one of Charlotte's teachers at Ballajura's Kingfisher Park pre-school added Charlotte's preschool class photo to the a memorial outside the family home, with the handwritten message 'your laughter and smile forever in our hearts'.

Charlotte Harvey (right) has been remembered by her teachers at Ballajura's Kingfisher Park pre-school

The last time she saw Charlotte was on September 3, the day she died.

'Everyday she arrived it was just smiles and laughter,' Ms Oswald told 9 News.

'We said she was going to grow up to be an ambulance because she sang so loud.

She added that Charlotte's family were just as cheery and happy.

Teacher Shirley Oswald remembered Charlotte Harvey as little girl with the big bubbly personality and beautiful singing voice

Charlotte's absence hasn't gone unnoticed by her preschool friends.

'They're all asking where she is and it's so senseless, it's too hard to process especially in my field where those children are so precious and to have them taken away is so unfair,' Ms Oswald said.

She hopes the family will eventually get in contact so they can hand over Charlotte's precious mementos and belongings, including her favourite bunny.

Charlotte's mother Mara was murdered only minutes after her late-night shift at a local Coles ended, police will allege.

Charlotte Harvey (pictured) has been remembered for her smile and laughter

The Coles where Mrs Harvey worked is only a three-minute drive from their Coode Street home.

Mara and Anthony Harvey (pictured) were franchisees for Jim's Mowing, with emails revealing quotes were sent to clients hours before the alleged murder

Mr and Mrs Harvey ran a Jim's Mowing franchise.

Mrs Harvey's friend told Fairfax Media on Wednesday the 41-year-old had supported her husband financially while they started the venture.

Mr Harvey appeared to carry on with business as usual in emails sent from his work account just hours before the alleged murders.

Quotes sent to the couple's clients at 6:21pm and 6:37pm on September 3 were signed off from both Mr and Mrs Harvey.

Police allege Charlotte (left), 3, and Beatrix and Alice (second left, right), 2, their mother Mara, 41, and grandmother, Beverley Quinn (centre), 74, were allegedly murdered by Anthony Harvey

The backyard (pictured) where Anthony Robert Harvey, his wife Mara and their three children celebrated Father's Day - just 24 hours before Mr Harvey allegedly murdered them all

Neighbours of the suburban Perth family recalled hearing the children 'giggling and playing' in the yard the day before they were allegedly murdered (pictured)

'Everything seemed normal - we said hello and they were happily playing in the backyard,' neighbour Richard Fairbrother said (pictured are floral tributes outside the home)

Neighbours of the suburban Perth family recalled hearing the children 'giggling and playing' in the yard the day before they were allegedly bludgeoned to death.

'We had someone minding our house who said everything seemed normal... they said they heard the kids and their parents playing a lot in the backyard on the Sunday, which was Father's Day,' neighbour Richard Fairbrother said.

They had lunch, played in the sunshine and the children ran between a backyard swing set and a slippery dip, neighbours report.

But late the next evening, police allege Mr Harvey murdered his wife and daughters inside the Bedford home with 'a blunt object and knives.'

The following morning he then allegedly murdered Ms Harvey's mother, Beverley Quinn, 74, when she arrived to help get the children ready for the day, as she did most mornings.

Mr Harvey then allegedly stayed at the house with all five bodies for up to six days before he drove 1,500km to Pannawonica, where he then went to police.

Neighbours on Coode Street said they recall seeing Mr Harvey's Toyota Landcruiser coming and going from the house during the week, up until Thursday.

Whether he continued his Jim's Mowing work that week is not known.

Mr Fairbrother said Mr Harvey sometimes complained about money problems and the struggles of owning his own business.

On Father's Day the Harveys had lunch, played in the sunshine and the children ran between a backyard swing set and a slippery dip, neighbours said (pictured is the backyard)

'Your loss is a matter of great sorrow, your pain and heartache cannot even [be] imagined,' one card left outside the Harvey family home read (pictured)

Outside the family home floral tributes (pictured) continue to grow as people stop to pay respects

Police allege Mr Harvey murdered his wife, daughters and mother-in-law inside the Bedford home with 'a blunt object and knives' (pictured are Anthony and Mara)

For the past nine months, Mrs Harvey had reportedly been struggling to sell an investment unit she owned in a nearby suburb, possibly to ease their financial woes.

The unit, in Maylands, which she purchased in 2005 for $125,000, had been on the market since January.

'You will be impressed with this neatly presented 2 bedroom unit on first floor and at the rear of the complex, nice and quiet,' the real estate advertisement reads.

'Upgraded kitchen has gas appliances, nice sunny lounge, dining area and bathroom has been re-furbished.'

She also owns a second investment unit in the same suburb, which she bought in 2010 for $265,000, and is currently rented out.

Mr Harvey allegedly murdered his mother-in-law, Beverley Quinn (pictured), 74, when she arrived the following morning to help get the children ready for the day

For the past nine months, Mrs Harvey had reportedly been struggling to sell an investment unit (pictured is the unit building) she owned in a nearby suburb, possibly to ease their financial woes

Jim's Mowing managing director Jim Penman said they had some trouble getting Mr Harvey to return phone calls, but he was not aware of Harvey's financial woes.

'Anthony was a well-respected and well-liked franchisee who had given no hint of financial or emotional problems in the many contacts we had with him over the past few months,' he said.

'The only suggestion of trouble was his failure on several occasions to respond to phone calls, made as part of our effort to keep in regular contact with franchisees.'

Mr Fairbrother and his partner Rebecca Della recalled the last conversation they had with the Harveys before the alleged murder, when they handed back a ball which had gone over the fence.

The unit in Maylands (pictured), which Mrs Harvey purchased in 2005 for $125,000, had been on the market since January

'I went over a few times, most recently last month, and they always seemed very close and were always together.

'It's quite shocking.'

Ms Della also said she never saw any signs of tension or cracks in the couple's relationship.

'Even the week before - they seemed happy and cheerful, I never heard them have any fights,' she said.

'They were quiet, except for their kids always playing in the backyard. We never expected anything was wrong.'

Outside the family home, floral tributes continue to grow, as people stop to pay respects.

A member of the public lays flowers outside the Harvey family home after the massacre

'Your loss is a matter of great sorrow, your pain and heartache cannot even [be] imagined,' one card read.

'Our love and thoughts go out to you and your family.'

Vince Garcia said he was so shocked and angry about the murders he felt compelled to leave a bunch of flowers.

'My heart is broken. I couldn't believe it when I heard it on the radio,' he said.

'I have two kids of my own, so it really hits home. It's hard to put into words how devastated I am for them.'

Friends and former colleagues of Mara and Beverley also paid tribute to two loving mothers who adored their children.

'Bev and Mara are the kindest of souls. I break down every time I think of how they passed,' one said.

Flowers left by a member of the public are seen outside a property on Coode Street, Bedford

The longtime family friend said they were caring people who would help everyone.

'Bev would knit and crochet a lot. She would be making things all the time. Bev was very talented in the craft way,' she said.

'She was a dedicated mother and grandmother. Bev ran the Morley Primary School canteen to be as close to her girls' education as possible.

Mara's former mining colleague Bjorn Karason said: 'She was a wonderful, caring person with a fabulous outlook on life. Nothing ever got her down.

'She had a cracking sense of humour and I valued my time working with her tremendously.'
An undocumented immigrant son who was separated for almost three months from his mother was thrilled to finally hug her when their small family was reunited at a Miami airport.

Antonio joined his mother Morena Mendoza, 30, on a life-changing voyage in April 2017 when his mother decided it was time to flee the violence in El Salvador.

The family set course for the Mexico-United States border and finally crossed it the night of April 27, 2017 before they and five others were detained by US immigration officials and separated that same night before they were reunited just two and a half months later.

A confused Antonio, then 12, was led into a car the morning after he was split from his mother while Border Patrol agents questioned her in room.

As he sat in the back of a car, he thought he'd never see her again and spend the rest of his life living with an adoptive family.

'I was disheartened, sad,' Antonio recently told the El Nuevo Herald.

WATCH NOW: Mom and son are being reunited at the Miami Airport!!! Morena was one of the first women prosecuted by Sessions's Zero Tolerance policy, but she FOUGHT BACK!  After two months & 22 days she will hug her son again!! We stand with her and everyone who is fighting back against this system #FreeOurFuture #AbolishICE #ShutDownSessions #ChingaLaMigra Posted by Mijente on Saturday, July 21, 2018

Morena Mendoza is reunited on July 21 with her son Antonio. They spent almost three months separated after crossing the Mexico-US Border on April 27

Antonio recalled breaking down in tears throughout the car ride before arriving at an airport to hop on a plane was awaiting to take him to a New York City shelter for immigrant children.

Mendoza who was transferred to a detention center in San Diego, wasn't given an update of son's location until the following month when they were able to talk during the Salvadoran mother's court appointment.

"I asked and asked and no one would tell me anything,' Mendoza said.

While in detention with several other undocumented children that were facing the same predicament, Antonio struggled getting a good night of sleep.

The idea of never seeing his mother again would creep in constantly.

'I thought that if she had left, I was going to be adopted by another family,' Antonio recounted.

Their path to a reunion was made possible in late June 2017 when US prosecutors dismissed her misdemeanor case, after Mendoza's legal team was able to prove Border Patrol agents did not explain her Miranda rights during a video interrogation, according to court documents.

Under the strict immigration measures imposed by Trump's White House, Mendoza was arrested for illegally crossing the border, four miles from the San Ysidro, California entry point, and but Border Patrol agents failed to follow protocol during the video interviewing.

On July 21, Mendoza and Antonio, who risked their lives trekking through Mexico in hopes of being allowed into the United States, finally were embracing inside Miami International Airport.

Wishing to start a new life anywhere but in her native homeland - one of the most dangerous in Latin America - and tagging alongside a caravan of almost 1,000 migrants before they were separated on the American side of the Tijuana-San Diego border crossing, nearly destroyed Antonio's mother's heart.

'It's the worst thing that's happened in my life,' Mendoza said.



Morena Mendoza awaits the arrival of her Antonio at Miami International Airport

Morena Mendoza embraces her son Antonio. In late June, US prosecutors dropped the case because Border Patrol officers refused to explain the mother her Miranda rights

Miranda has gone forward with her asylum request with the assistance of Mi Jente, who reached out to Mendoza while she was held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego, and American Friends Service Committee, who set her up with a lawyer, a place to live in and financial assistance.

And also tablet that's brought instant joy to Antonio's newfound childhood.

'Listen to him laugh, he's spent the entire day with that thing,' Mendoza said.
Hanoi officials urged residents on Tuesday to ease off eating dog meat, saying the popular dish is tarnishing the city's image and risks spreading rabies.

Hanoi Vice Mayor Nguyen Van Suu said on Tuesday that slaughtering and consuming dog and cat meat are disturbing to foreigners and 'negatively impact the image of a civilized and modern capital'.

Suu instructed local governments to raise awareness of the risk of rabies when raising dog and cat meat.

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Hanoi officials urged residents on Tuesday to ease off eating dog meat, saying the popular dish is tarnishing the city's image and risks spreading rabies

The move is part of a national program to stamp out rabies by 2021.

Roasted, boiled or steamed, dog meat can be found in markets and food shops across the capital city famed for its tasty street food, and the meat is traditionally eaten with rice wine or beer.

But Hanoi People's Committee on Tuesday warned residents to lay off canine meat to prevent the spread of rabies and other animal-borne diseases.

It also urged them to stop eating cat meat, often dubbed 'little tiger' on Vietnamese menus, which is less popular than dog but still readily available in rural areas.

The practice of killing the animals is often cruel and the city government hopes it can be gradually phased out, it said in a statement.

It said it was a matter of preserving Hanoi's reputation as a 'civilised and modern capital' among foreigners, many of whom consider eating the meat of animals commonly kept as pets taboo.

'The trading, killing and use of dog and cat meat has brought on a negative reaction from tourists and expatriates living in Hanoi,' the statement said.

There are about 493,000 dogs and cats in the city, the vast majority of which are kept as domesticated pets, and about 1,000 shops open for selling the animal meat.

Hanoi Vice Mayor Nguyen Van Suu said on Tuesday that slaughtering and consuming dog and cat meat are disturbing to foreigners

Three people have died from rabies in Hanoi since the beginning of this year, and two others were confirmed infected with the disease, according to official figures.

Vietnam's capital city is renowned globally for its street food, and its culinary staples such as pho noodle soup and pate banh mi sandwiches have reached menus around the world from Paris to Pittsburgh.

Hanoi city is also a playground for more adventurous diners who can sample fried frog meat, fertilised duck embryo or hotpot turtle meat.

Dog meat is traditionally eaten with rice wine or beer in Hanoi and can be found across the city and is often dubbed 'little tiger'

Not everyone is in agreement with the decision though.

Nguyen Thi Minh, who has run a dog meat restaurant in Hanoi for more than 20 years, said there are no risks of rabies because her restaurant selects healthy dogs and the meat is properly cooked.

'People eat dog meat and there's no problem,' she said.

'I serve customers from South Korea, the United States and other countries.'

Officials say there are 493,000 dogs and cats in Hanoi, of which more than 10 percent are raised for commercial purposes.
Theresa May has memorably said the naughtiest thing she has ever done was run to run through a field of wheat - so she may have been having flashbacks in Parliament today.

MPs proudly wore the crop pinned to their suit jackets as they packed into the House of Commons Chamber for PMQs today.

They included Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, the SNP's Westminster leader Angus Robertson, and many Tory MPs.

Tory MP James Cleverly remarked on Twitter: 'Lots of Conservative MPs wearing heads of wheat on the benches around Theresa May at PMQs today. Almost makes it look like she's in a field.'

The politicians were wearing the ears of wheat to show their support for the Back British Farming day, run by the National Farmers' Union.

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Over 100 MPs proudly wore the crop pinned to their suit jackets as they packed into the House of Commons Chamber for PMQs today (pictured). One of her MPs pointed out that she looked like she was in a field of wheat

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and shadow equalities secretary Dawn Butler were among those wearing the pins, given out by the national Farmers' Union

The SNP's Westminster leader Angus Robertson (pictured in the Commons today) also wore the crop on his suit. The politicians were wearing the ears of wheat to show their support for the Back British Farming day, run by the National Farmers' Union

The union said that by their counting some 140 politicians wore the badge today.

NFU President Minette Batters said: 'Back British Farming Day is a celebration of our wonderful farmers and all they do to feed the nation, look after our iconic countryside and sustain our rural economy.

'With only six months to go until we leave the EU, it's fantastic to see so many MPs actively supporting the farming industry and helping to put food and farming at the forefront of activity in Westminster.

'Food production impacts on every section of society and the NFU is working to ensure all MPs have a thorough understanding of farming and its value to the country, so that farmers are able to continue to produce food which is safe, traceable and affordable to all.'

Tory MP James Cleverly jokingly said the Commons Chamber resembled a field of wheat

Mrs May, 61, revealed in an interview during last year's election campaign that running through a field of wheat was the naughtiest thing she had ever done.

The PM - who is famously awkward, garnering her the nickname the Maybot - was widely mocked for the revelation.

Mrs May, a vicar's daughter, said the farmers 'weren't too pleased' about her exploits when pressed on what was the naughtiest thing she had ever done.

Asked about her childhood exploits with ITV's Julie Etchingham last June, she struggled to find a response, saying: 'Oh goodness me. Well I suppose, gosh, do you know I'm not quite sure.

'Nobody is ever perfectly behaved, are they?

'I have to confess when me and my friends used to run through the fields of wheat, the farmers weren't too pleased about that.'
Local Foundation Weighs in Against Civil Forfeiture

Contact: John Eidsmoe, Foundation for Moral Law, 334-262-1245, info@morallaw.org

MONTGOMERY, Ala., Sept. 12, 2018 /Standard Newswire/ -- The Foundation for Moral Law, an Alabama-based nonprofit organization, filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court case of Timbs v. Alabama, arguing that civil forfeiture is unfair and unconstitutional.



Timbs had been convicted of selling drugs valued at $225 and was sentenced to a year of house arrest, five years probation, and payment of fees and fines totaling about $1,200. But then the State of Indiana seized his Land Rover, valued at about $42,000, as a civil forfeiture because the vehicle had been used in the sale of the drugs. The Foundation's brief argues that this seizure violates the Excessive Fines Clause of the Eighth Amendment.



Foundation President Kayla Moore explained that "The Foundation believes in law and order and we support law enforcement. But we are a government of laws and not of men, and government officials must follow the Constitution just like the rest of us."



Foundation Senior Counsel John Eidsmoe added, "After gaining a conviction and a fair sentence, the State of Indiana now wants a second bite of the apple through civil forfeiture, all without any of the protections guaranteed criminal defendants in the process of criminal justice. Civil forfeiture is an added punishment that improperly mixes criminal law and civil law. We are asking the Supreme Court to put a stop to this injustice."


The Southaven police officers involved in the fatal shooting of a man during a bungled arrest last year will walk free, even though his death was ruled a homicide.

Mississippi man Ismael Lopez was killed by a shot to the back of the head on July 23 2017, his recently released autopsy report reads.

The 41-year-old was shot at four times by police when they appeared on his doorstep to execute an arrest warrant intended for the man who lived across the street. His dog was also shot and killed, WREG reported.

Both officers have been identified, with Zachary Durden listed as responsible for firing at Lopez, and Maze responsible for firing at his dog Coco.

Ismael Lopez, 41, was shot and killed by police who were supposed to be raiding the house of a man who lived across the street last year. His death has been ruled a homicide

Police officers Samuel Maze and Zachary Durden were present at the bungled arrest, which saw Maze shoot and kill Lopez's pit bull Coco, and Durden shoot and kill Lopez. Neither officer will be charged

A grand jury in July declined to indict Durden on murder or manslaughter charges.

District Attorney John Champion has said Lopez refused commands to put a rifle down, but the family says that's not what happened.

Champion said officers were executing a warrant when a pit bull dog charged at them, causing them to open fire.

He said the officers then saw a gun being pointed out of the house and started shouting 'drop your weapon'.

When that did not happen multiple shots were fired at the doorway, fatally wounding Lopez.

He added it was 'possible' the officers responded to the wrong address, and confirmed that Lopez's name was not the one listed on the warrant.

Bullets were fired by Durden through Lopez's front door (pictured). Some hit a back wall and went out the back of the house. The officers were sent to arrest Samuel Pearman (right) for a domestic violence incident

The officers were actually looking for a Samuel Pearman, who was wanted for domestic violence.

Champion told WREG he had sent a homicide charge to a grand jury, but they had declined to approve an indictment.

'From my perspective, the case is closed now at this point,' he said.

Attorney for the Lopez family, Murray Wells, alleges officers shot through a closed door and hit the man in the back of the head.

Durden quit the police force on October 9, nearly three months after the shooting, and moved into private sector work.

Maze was placed on desk duty on November 27, and returned to active duty in July after it was confirmed neither of the pair would face any charges, FOX reported.

The two officers involved in Lopez's death have not been identified. Since the shooting, one officer has since resigned from the Southaven Police Department and the other officer is assigned to desk duty.

Officers shot Lopez dead in the doorway of his home (left), saying he ignored orders to drop a gun. His wife claims he was unarmed. Court documents show police were actually supposed to be raiding the house opposite (right)
This is the bizarre moment traffic was brought to a complete standstill as motorists stopped to watch a fight - between a snake and a mongoose.

A video captured by a bystander shows the two animals grappling in the middle of the road, with the reptile snapping at the furry creature which tries to pin its opponent to the ground.

The mongoose tries to pull the snake away in a bid to escape its jaws, before pouncing on its neck in a bid to make a kill.

This is the bizarre moment traffic was brought to a complete standstill as motorists stopped to watch a fight - between a snake (right) and a mongoose (left)

A video captured by a bystander shows the two animals grappling in the middle of the road, with the reptile snapping at the furry creature which tries to pin its opponent to the tarmac

But the snake refuses to give up and the pair wrestle off the road, striking at each other in what appears to look like a dance.

The audacious mongoose seems to make a grab at the snake's head, successfully pulling it into a nearby bush, out of sight, in Uttar Pradesh in India.

An onlooker said: 'The mongoose doesn't want to give it even a single chance to attack back.

'It pulled the snake from the bush to the edge of the road and back again to the bushes as the mongoose clutched it and refused to leave.'

Indian mongoose often take on venomous snakes due to their thick skin and agility.
Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull has boldly tweeted his successor Scott Morrison urging him to refer Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton's eligibility to the High Court.

The recently deposed Liberal leader sent the new PM a social media message as he was at Canberra's Midwinter Ball, arguing Mr Dutton should be referred like former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce was.

Mr Dutton's eligibility to sit in Parliament became a hot topic when Turnbull's leadership position was under threat last month.

Mr Turnbull's supporters publicly raised the issue in August after Mr Dutton, a former Queensland police officer, pushed for a second leadership challenge only two days after being narrowly defeated in a leadership ballot.

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Malcolm Turnbull boldly tweeted Scott Morrison telling him to refer Peter Dutton to the High Court.

Peter Dutton's eligibility was under fire when he challenged Turnbull and Morrison for PM.

The Home Affair Minister's eligibility issues surrounded two Brisbane childcare centres run by Mr Dutton's wife with the constitution banning federal politicians from holding office if they profit from the commonwealth.

Fairfax Media revealed a childcare company operated by Mr Dutton's family trust had received more than $5.6 million since 2014, prompting questions about his eligibility from Attorney-General Christian Porter, who then referred the matter to the Solicitor-General.

Mr Dutton's eligibility was politically exploited by Labor when they questioned the Home Affairs Minister's decision to overturn visa decisions by immigration officials three years ago.

A motion to bring Mr Dutton's eligibility to the High Court was voted down 68-69 in the House of Representatives.

The Morrison Government, which has a bare one-seat majority, could lose power if Dutton's eligibility was referred to the High Court, and sparking a by-election in his marginal outer northern Brisbane seat of Dickson, which he holds by 1.6 per cent margin.
Some Americans are shifting the ways they define and identify themselves to better match their political ideologies, according to a new paper.

While the common notion is that the ways in which people identify  by race, religion and sexuality, for instance  are immutable facts that influence their political ideology, a researcher at New York University has found evidence that the opposite is true for a 'small but significant' number of Americans.

'What's happening now is that political identifies are at the forefront, and are in some sense helping lead people to adjust their other identities to be in better alignment with their political identities,' NYU Professor Patrick J. Egan told DailyMail.com.

Egan used the General Social Survey for his research, pulling together data on public opinions on politics and social issues to examine the extent to which people become more or less religious, or identify as gay versus straight, as their political ideologies evolve and solidify.

A congregation in Hixson, Tennessee kneels in prayer in September 2017. A new paper by an NYU researcher finds that some Americans change how they identify on issues like religion based on their political leanings. For example, conservatives are much more likely than liberals to redefine themselves as born-again Christians, while liberals are more likely to leave the church

He used survey data that was gathered from the same set of 3,900 people, starting in 2006, 2008 and 2010, to see how those identities changed over time and how their political ideologies ultimately dovetailed with those changes.

Respondents to the survey rated themselves on a seven-point scale from extremely liberal to extremely conservative, and then answered questions about how they identify based on religion, ancestry, and even sexual preference.

In his draft paper, first reported on by FiveThirtyEight, Egan found a portion of respondents experienced shifts in how they self-identified. He also found correlations between those shifts and the overarching political views that people held.

'We have ideas of what the prototypical liberal Democrat looks like in terms of race, religion and otherwise, and we have similar ideas for Republicans,' Egan said. 'A small but significant share of Americans are shifting their identities to match the prototypes.'

For example, conservatives were much more likely than liberals to redefine themselves as born-again Christians or to stop identifying as non-religious, while the inverse was true of liberals: they were more likely to abandon religion and stop describing themselves as Christian.

Liberal Democrats were significantly more likely that conservative Republicans to change their responses over time to newly identify as Latino, or to say they had African, Asian or Hispanic ancestry.

In addition, conservatives were more likely than liberals to stop identifying as lesbian, gay or bisexual over time, while liberals were more likely to newly define themselves in one of those ways.

What people increasingly want to hear is that they're great and the other side is awful. -Lilliana Mason, University of Maryland

Polarization between the two political parties is likely a culprit in this emerging pattern  and those divisions appear to be getting deeper, Egan said.

'We are at a post-World War II high in the extent to which Americans are polarized in respect to politics and ideology,' he said. 'There are so many aspects of our current political situation that continue to heighten polarization and heighten all the social practices that go with it.'

University of Pennsylvania Professor Michele Margolis had similar findings in her book, 'From Politics to the Pews,' which found that church attendance among Democrats shrank from 2002-2004  a time when former President George W. Bush was emphasizing his own religion in the context of debates on abortion and gay marriage.

'Your partisanship is, in part, affecting your level of religiosity,' Margolis told DailyMail.com. 'Whether you're a member of a church, whether you're are religious non-identifier, or how religious you are in your church  that's a function of your politics.'

People listen to a prayer as anti-abortion activists from around the U.S. gathered on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. in January 2018 for the annual 'March for Life.' Abortion has long been a highly divisive political issue, one in which opponents frequently invoke religion

The shift toward political parties becoming more fully formed American identities has been taking place since the 1980s, said Lilliana Mason, an assistant professor at the University of Maryland and author of 'Uncivil Agreements: How Politics Became Our Identity.'

Both major American political parties used to have politicians who represented a spectrum of partisan ideas within their own party, for example: liberal Republicans and conservative Democrats.

But leaders in each party have been going through a decades-long period of sorting themselves into more narrowly defined political identities that prioritize winning above all else - which Mason said can make it more difficult to reach agreements across the aisle.

'A lot of this is (resulting in) the lack of compromise that we see in the government, the gridlock that you see in Congress, a general hardening of party identities,' Mason told DailyMail.com. 'Both sides think the other side is more extreme and think of their own party as not very extreme at all. Both sides think that compromise means their side getting what they want.'

The shift is not a good thing she said, adding that media have contributed to the evolution of party as identity and the news has become more partisan as media outlets seek to cater to one audience or another.

News outlets 'have to choose a certain group of people (to target), because most people don't want to read news that reflects badly for their party,' Mason said. 'What people increasingly want to hear is that they're great and the other side is awful.'
A Florida woman was arrested on Monday on a domestic battery charge after allegedly pouring hot sauce into her husband's eyes.

Esmerelda Lopez, 41, is accused of striking her husband in the face and dousing his eyes in a spicy sauce, Pasco County Sheriff's Office deputies told Fox 13.

Lopez has denied the allegations, while admitting to arguing with her husband.

Lopez's husband received treatment for injuries at a hospital.

Esmerelda Lopez, 41, was arrested in Lacoochee, Florida on Monday morning on a domestic battery charge after allegedly pouring hot sauce into her husband's eyes during an argument

The chemical in peppers that causes spiciness is called capsaicin, and can be used topically to relieve nerve pain, according to the US National Library of Medicine's Open Chemistry Database.

But when it gets into a person's eyes, it can be very painful.

'Among other things, capsaicin is an eye irritant,' the foundation wrote in a post from February. 'If capsaicin gets on a persons hands and they rub their eyes, it can cause a burning sensations and pain in the eyes.'

If capsaicin gets into the eyes, through touching a pepper and rubbing the eye, or allegedly in this case, if hot sauce is poured into the eyes, it's recommended to aviod pressing or rubbing the eye.

'Gently flush the affected eye with lukewarm water or a saline solution for up to 15 minutes,' Medicaldaily.com recommends, citing the Nemours Foundation.

If that isn't helpful, whole milk may also be used to neutralized the sting caused by the naturally occurring chemical.

Florida investigators said the alleged attack by Lopez 'was done against the victims will and without his consent,' according to the arrest affidavit.

Deputies said the incident occurred at the couple's home in Lacoochee, on Floyd Road between Center and Pine Products roads.
Britain is in heightened cyber-defensive mode to guard against 'serious and sustained' attacks from Russia in the wake of the Salisbury attack, a top security official has revealed.

A number of 'protective' measures have been put in place as Russia poses a threat that pre-dates the nerve agent poisoning earlier this year, said Ciaran Martin, chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

He said: 'We've been on heightened alert since the horrors of Salisbury and have put in place various protective measures.

Ciaran Martin, chief executive officer of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), said 'we remain on high alert'

Ruslan Boshirov (left) and Alexander Petrov (right) are wanted by police in connection with the Salisbury spy poisoning in March. The pair were caught on CCTV at Salisbury train station shortly after 4pm on March 3, the day Mr Skripal was poisoned

President Vladimir Putin said that that Russian authorities knew the identities of the two men accused of carrying out the nerve agent attack

'I can't really go into the detail of the day-to-day intelligence picture of what we are spotting, but let me be clear  we remain on high alert.'

Mr Martin maintained that Russia poses a 'serious and sustained' threat that pre-dates the nerve agent poisoning earlier this year, involving two Russian novichok assassins accused of targeting a former Russian double agent and his daughter.

'Russia has been a serious threat to our cyber security interests for a considerable period of time and continues to be so,' he said.

During an interview on BBC Radio 4's Today programme Mr Martin said: 'Let's not get too hung up on the cyber dimension to the Government's response'

Mr Martin noted that Russia has tended to target 'critically important' national assets rather than mounting 'consumer or citizen-facing' attacks.

The UK's relationship with Moscow has been in crisis since former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were left critically ill after being poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok in March.

Last week police identified two men, using the names Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, as suspects in the attempted murder of the Skripals.

New guidance for corporate leaders The NCSC has published new guidance for corporate leaders to help them come to grips with the threats their firms face in cyber space. It recommends boards ask five questions about their company's IT security: 1. How do we defend our organisation against phishing attacks? 2. What do we do to control the use of our privileged IT accounts? 3. How do we ensure that our software and devices are up-to-date? 4. How do we ensure our partners and suppliers protect the information we share with them? 5. What authentication methods are used to control access to systems and data? Advertisement

The pair, who are said to be operatives of the country's GRU military intelligence service, entered the UK from Russia via Gatwick Airport in March  smuggling the nerve agent into the country by using a perfume bottle.

Yet today President Vladimir Putin said that that Russian authorities knew the identities of the two men accused of carrying out the nerve agent attack, but he added that they are civilians and there is 'nothing criminal' about them.

British authorities believe the men smeared the highly toxic chemical on a door handle at the Wiltshire home of Mr Skripal, leaving him and his daughter critically ill.

The revelation sparked suggestions that the UK could mount retaliatory cyber strikes.

During an interview on BBC Radio 4's Today programme Mr Martin said: 'Let's not get too hung up on the cyber dimension to the Government's response.

'There's a full range of tools available to the state.

'And you would never comment on sources and methods that might be used by intelligence services because, naturally, that detail is sensitive.'

The NCSC, which is part of intelligence agency GCHQ, was established in October 2016 to spearhead efforts to counter the mounting danger from cyber-criminals and hostile states.

Mr Martin explained: 'Our job is to make the UK the hardest target possible and the most resilient target possible  whether that's from a Russian attack, another state attack, or from criminal groups who are going to damage the economy.'

However he emphasised that the Russian cyber threat is only one part of a multi-dimensional risk picture.

In its first year, the NCSC registered 590 'significant' cyber incidents across the UK.

Attack targets included key national institutions, businesses and other organisations.

Launched in October 2016, the NCSC has headquarters in London. In its first year, the centre registered 590 'significant' cyber incidents across the UK

Cases ranged from 'deeply covert' hostile state acts to criminal attacks that, while not particularly sophisticated, can have 'huge public impact', he said.

Speaking at the CBI Cyber Security Conference today, Mr Martin said: There is a lot more to the cyber security challenge facing the UK than just Russia  serious and sustained though that threat is.

There are other nation states attacking us too. And large-scale criminal activity is, sadly, ubiquitous.

Over the past two years, the NCSC has seen attacks on online and physical retailers, which resulted in the theft of millions of items of personal data; a major systemic attack on IT service providers  and through them clients; and attacks on the financial system, he added.
A French art school is under fire for a photo of their students that was used as an advertisement for their upcoming US institution in which some students were darkened to look black.

The bizarre before and after-alteration shots show some students with vastly darker skin, presumably in an effort to make the student body at the Emile-Cohl drawing school in Lyon appear more diverse.

The school, however, is shirking the responsibility for the altered image- placing the blame on the advertising company they hired for the Los Angeles promotion of its upcoming new branch there.

A spokesman for the art school denied 'any intention to manipulate reality,' according to The Local Fr.

Before: The Emile-Cohl school photo to be used for US advertising for a Los Angeles school

After: The photo was photo-shopped, making some students appear significantly darker

One Twitter user called out the school for what they say was 'blackwashing' to appear diverse

The school apologized to the students for the altered images that were intended to promote what the Emile-Cohl hopes will be a new branch in Los Angeles.

Part of the target of the school's US promotion was in hope to bid for funding for the school from animation studios in the US.

Some people accused the school of 'blackwashing' or making someone who is not black appear as if they are in an attempt at maintaining the appearance of diversity.

The school denied allegations of blackwashing.

The school spokesman also said the 'course' touch-ups that were made by the communications agency that was hired to produce the promotional website for the Los Angeles school has been fired.

Access to the website has been suspended. The school maintains they hope to open the new branch in the next two years.



The publicity agency did not offered any explanation as to why the photo was changed.
Hurricane Florence was already causing travel chaos on Wednesday, with hundreds of flights and train journeys cancelled and roads gridlocked with evacuees.

A total of 967 flights were cancelled over the next three days as of 2.30pm (ET) - 230 on Wednesday, 504 on Thursday and 233 on Friday. That is in addition to more than 1,600 delays on Wednesday, according to Flight Aware.

Charleston International Airport - the busiest in the Carolinas - is set to close at midnight on Thursday and not resume until Saturday at the earliest. Amtrak has stopped trains running to Virginia and stops south of Washington, DC, until Monday.

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Motorists, air passengers and train users were all suffering delays or cancellations to their journey on Wednesday as Georgia and the Carolinas made preparations for the hurricane to come inland. Pictured: A gridlocked interstate in Savannah

Charleston International Airport - the busiest in the Carolinas - is set to close on Thursday and not resume until Saturday at the earliest

Hurricane Florence remained a category 4 hurricane on Wednesday morning as it shifted across the Atlantic towards the Carolinas and parts of Georgia. Up to 25 million people are at risk from the storm, which could cause $170bn of damage.

The storm shifted slightly south overnight as its winds slowed to 130mph. It is expected to stall even more before scraping down the US east coast and moving inland before the weekend.

Airlines, including American, Southwest, Delta and JetBlue, have begun letting affected passengers change travel plans without the usual fees.

American and Southwest Airlines were among the carriers canceling flights to and from the hurricane zone starting Wednesday.

Motorists drive down a busy I-40 westbound on Wednesday as the eastbound road is empty in advance of Hurricane Florence

Police stop cars at a checkpoint a day before the arrival of Hurricane Florence near Wrightsville beach on Wednesday

The rush of people evacuating from the Carolinas has led to congestion of the interstate roads. This sign was up in Wrightsville Beach, NC, on Wednesday

Charleston International Airport in South Carolina tweeted that it expected to close runways by midnight Wednesday.

'We expect those numbers to rise significantly over the next 24 hours, as the storm approaches and airlines finalize their operations plans,' FlightAware spokeswoman Sara Orsi said in a statement seen by USA Today.

'It's really difficult to speculate this far out  however, based on current models, it's likely that the biggest impact will be to the Charlotte airport, which is an American Airlines hub. If the storm continues its path inland, we could see disruption at Hartsfield-Jackson Intl (ATL).'

RaleighDurham International Airport said it expected flights to operate on Thursday after the storm shifted track further south.

Airports in the Washington, D.C., area are no longer in the storm's direct path.

This map showing planes flying over the United States at 2.30pm on Wednesday give an idea of the potential for disruption when the storm hits

Airlines, including American, Southwest, Delta and JetBlue, have begun letting affected passengers change travel plans without the usual fees

People fleeing coastal North and South Carolina clogged highways early Wednesday.

The eastbound lanes of several major highways were shut down to allow traffic to flow inland, but the exodus was slow along roads jammed with outward-bound vehicles.

Supermarket shelves were also stripped bare as more than one million people in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia were ordered to flee their homes as the hurricane churns across the Atlantic Ocean towards the coast.
A New York social studies teacher has been sentenced to 10 years of probation after pleading guilty to performing oral sex on a 14-year-old boy.

Dori Myers, 29, will not spend a day behind bars and will retain her teaching license after taking a plea deal last month.

Myers taught at The New School of Leadership and The Arts in The Bronx, and while prosecutors argued she should spend two years in jail, her defense attorney successfully argued she should be able to teach again, The New York Post reported.

Former high school social studies teacher Dori Myers, 29, has been sentenced to 10 years probation after pleading guilty to performing oral sex on a 14-year-old male student

'There is a possibility that she could teach adults now or in the future and we want to preserve that possibility,' Andrew Stoll told the court last month.

'She still is a talented teacher and has those skills, and I don't see any reason to destroy her ability to make a living and to contribute to society in a positive way.'

The former high school teacher has been fired by the New York Department of Education, and will not be eligible to teach at city schools again.

As part of her punishment, she must also register as a level one sex offender.

Myers wore a spotted, sleeveless dress and flat white shoes to court on Wednesday, and appeared unimpressed as she sat down to be sentenced.

Myers has been banned from teaching at New York city schools in the future but has retained her teaching license. She will have to sign on to the sex offenders register

Myers is pictured here with her husband, Rockland County Sheriff's Deputy Matt Myers

Matt Myers was not in court on Wednesday, but has been present at her other hearings

Surrounded by police officers, she was seen staring at the judge with a straight face.

Her husband, a Rockland County Sheriffs deputy, was absent at Wednesday's sentencing, despite being a figure of support at her previous court hearings.

Myers was arrested on January 19 after a friend of the victim, who is believed to have been in her class, told school administrators, who called the police.

At the time, she pleaded not guilty.

A co-worker also claimed to have seen her massaging the alleged victim.

The criminal complaint claims the assault took place somewhere in Upper Manhattan on November 1, 2017.

Myers (pictured) was arrested in January after her victim told a classmate, who alerted school administrators
CBS continues to clean house, with Jeff Fager following in the footsteps of both Les Moonves and Charlie Rose.

The longtime executive producer for 60 Minutes has been forced to resign after CBS executives learned that he had violated the company's policy.

Fager responded by claiming his termination had nothing to do with the allegations in a recent New Yorker story about himself and Moonves, and instead stemmed from a text message he sent to an employee.

Nineteen women have come forward to detail what they claim was a hostile environment at 60 Minutes where harassment was condoned, with some detailing specific incidents involving Fager.

Sarah Johansen said that when she was an intern Fager allegedly groped her buttocks at a party, and she was later told this move was referred to as the 'Fager arm.'

Tick, tock: A memo set to CBS employees on Wednesday afternoon revealed that Jeff Fager had been forced to resign as executive producer of 60 Minutes (Fager above in 2017)

High praise: Bill Whitaker, Lesley Stahl and Fager with the Institutional Award at the 2018 Peabody Awards (above)

'Jeff Fager is leaving the company effective immediately,' read a memo sent to CBS staff on Wednesday afternoon.

'Bill Owens will manage the 60 Minutes team as Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews and I begin the search for a new executive producer of the program.'

That memo went on to state: '60 Minutes is the most significant news broadcast on television. We are fortunate to have incredibly talented journalists in place whom we know will continue to deliver our defining investigative work.'

It was shortly after outlets began to pick up the news of Fager's exit that he released a statement of his own, in light of CBS News refusing to comment on his specific violation.

'The companys decision had nothing to do with the false allegations printed in The New Yorker,' said Fager.

'Instead, they terminated my contract early because I sent a text message to one of our own CBS reporters demanding that she be fair in covering the story. My language was harsh and, despite the fact that journalists receive harsh demands for fairness all the time, CBS did not like it.'

He added: 'One such note should not result in termination after 36 years, but it did.'

CBS News president David Rhodes confirmed part of this as well in his memo, writing: 'This action today is not directly related to the allegations surfaced in press reports, which continue to be investigated independently.'

It was then noted: 'However, he violated company policy and it is our commitment to uphold those policies at every level.'
Maryknoll's 'Among The People' Podcast Shares Personal Reflections from Overseas Mission

Contact: Mike Virgintino,914-941-7636 ext 2219MARYKNOLL, N.Y., Sept. 12, 2018 / Standard Newswire / -- The people among us who serve exploited populations in foreign lands rarely receive recognition for their decades of dedication and sacrifice. Their names often remain unknown along with their achievements. Their tales about serving the poor, sick and marginalized rarely generate media headlines. Now, for the first time, the new podcast "Among The People" is providing overseas missioners with the opportunity to share their inspiring and impactful mission stories."Among The People" is produced by the 107-year-old Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America that is popularly known as the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers. Maryknoll missioners follow Jesus in serving people in need in more than 20 countries. They share God's love and the Gospel in addressing poverty, providing healthcare, building communities and promoting human rights.This new series of interviews has been introduced during the centennial year of Maryknoll's first mission sending, a tradition of "Called~Sent~Transformed"Called by name in community through baptism, Sent by the Catholic Church in the U.S. in missionary discipleship and Transformed by love through relationships and thankfulness. After receiving Vatican approval to begin missionary work in China, four Maryknoll priestsFather Thomas F. Price (Maryknoll co-founder), Father James E. Walsh, Father Francis X. Ford and Father Bernard F. Meyerdeparted for China on September 7, 1918."Among The People" delivers personal stories that provide the transformational experiences of life found in, or connected to, overseas mission. The Maryknoll podcast is hosted by Maryknoll missioner Father Joseph Veneroso, reporter Megan Fleming and producer Adam Mitchell. The interviews are available on the Maryknoll website ( MaryknollSociety.org/podcast ), iTunes, Google Play, Soundcloud and Spreaker.Archbishop Romero Inspired InterviewsThe October 14 canonization of Archbishop Oscar Romero, the Archbishop of San Salvador martyred during 1980 as he celebrated Mass, inspired two specific "Among The People" interviews. The first podcast, released on August 31, features Franciscan Brother Octavio Duran discussing the ways his life and work have been inspired by Archbishop Romero. A corresponding article appears in the September/October issue of "Maryknoll" magazine ( MaryknollSociety.org/publications ). The second interview, with Maryknoll's Father John Spain, will recall the priest's experiences of working closely with Archbishop Romero in San Salvador. It will debut on October 5.Other missioners featured in the series include Maryknoll priests and brothers who discuss their lifetime work in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Their stories include a description about serving in mission with Mother Teresa and the tale of a priest who sees the face of Jesus in an elderly woman. Another missioner conveys his frightening experience of becoming a prisoner of gangs roaming the jungles of Guatemala while a 91-year-old priest takes listeners on a journey to Chile at a time when he traversed the dirt roads and mountain trails to share the Gospel with poor farmers.Besides Catholic clergy, "Among The People" also features the faithful from the pews who share interesting stories that are weaved into the church and mission experience. A leader in pastoral music offers a brief history about sacred music and discusses the shifts within the church, including the trend toward a more traditional celebration of worship. A woman lay missioner who has served incarcerated women in the United States, Brazil and Kenya documents her experiences to conclude that women generally are overlooked in prison policy and advocacy."Among The People" features the men and women from across the U.S. whose lives have witnessed or touched mission. From New Jersey, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, California and other states, their stories finally are heard by their neighbors and others of all faiths and beliefs back home.
Shyheim Adams, 18, has been charged with first-degree manslaughter for the death of his classmate Justin Brady

The arraignment of a Connecticut teen accused of murdering a classmate turned chaotic when the suspect collapsed in court and family and friends of both teens got into a massive brawl.

Shyheim Adams, 18, made his first court appearance in Enfield on Tuesday on charges of manslaughter in the first degree in connection to the stabbing death of 16-year-old Justin Brady.

During the hearing, family members and friends of Brady shouted obscenities at Adams as the teen trembled and cried. Marshals were forced to remove several people from the courtroom so the arraignment could proceed, The Hartford Courant reports.

Video shows an emotional Adams wavering at one point during the hearing and then collapsing to the ground. According to the outlet, Adams said: 'I'm a good soul, Jesus please' and blocked his face with his hands.

WTNH reports that Adams appeared to mumble prayers before he fainted.

As marshals helped Adams up, people in the courtroom continued to scream at him.

Adams collapsed during his arraignment on Tuesday as family and friends of the victim screamed at him

'I'm a good soul, Jesus please', local media outlets reported hearing Adams say as he fainted and fell to the ground

He sat on the floor and was attended to by a court marshal after his collapse

He was surrounded by court marshals as they look towards the screaming coming from some of the people in the court

Judge Sheila Prats halted the arraignment and cleared the courtroom. The Courant reports that yelling and screaming continued in the hallway before spilling outside in the parking lot, where several people got into a massive fist fight.

Enfield police were called to the scene and arrested 30-year-old John Moran for disorderly conduct and third-degree assault. Moran told NBC Connecticut following his release that he was at the arraignment to support his friend Adams.

'He's a good kid,' he said. 'There's facts that haven't been stated to the public, but I think that everyone is innocent until proven guilty. I was there to support my friend and I was attacked for it.'

Ten people had to be kicked out of the courtroom on Tuesday before the hearing could resume. Once things calmed down, a bail commissioner recommended Judge Prats reduce Adams' $1million bond to $500,000.

Prosecutors argued that given how 'disturbing' the allegations are the bond should remain the same.

Nearly 10 people had to be kicked out of the courtroom for yelling at Adams. Outside a massive fight broke out involving friends of both teens

Several people were seen crying and hugging outside the courtroom after police broke up the fight

John Moran (pictured) was arrested on disorderly conduct. He said he was at the arraignment to support Adams

Senior Assistant public defender Ann Guillet told Prats that Adams' family wanted the bond reduced to $50,000. She argued that the teen had no past criminal record and had been the victim of an alleged assault that resulted in him being hospitalized.

Guillet also said Adams had been bullied so bad at Enfield High School, where Brady also attended, that he was forced to leave the school. Prats settled on a new bond of $750,000 and transferred the case to Superior Court in Hartford, which handles more serious crimes.

As Guillet spoke on Adams behalf, the teen sat in a chair shaking and crying, the Courant reports. As marshals led him out of the courtroom he told his family: 'I love you. I promise I'm not a bad person'.

Police were called to a home on Hoover Lane in Enfield early Monday morning for a 'disorderly in progress' call. An arrest warrant affidavit states that Brady had been stabbed multiple times and his white shirt was almost completely covered in blood.

The teen was still breathing when police arrived, but died around 1.30am on Monday.

Brady, 16, was stabbed to death outside a home in Enfield on Monday morning after getting into a fight with Adams

The fight happened outside 15 Hoover Lane in Enfield. The home (pictured) is owned by the town's assistant town attorney Mark Cerrato

According to local media, the son of Cerrato was hanging out with Adams before the stabbing. Pictured above is assistant town attorney Mark Cerrato

Records show that Brady and Adams had been arguing over Snapchat on Sunday night before meeting up outside 15 Hoover Lane to fight. Records show that the home belongs to Enfield assistant town attorney Mark Cerrato, the Courant reports.

Neither teen lives at the home. Fox 61 reports that Cerrato's son Michael was reportedly hanging out with Adams. Cerrato has not yet returned DailyMail.com's request for comment.

Witnesses reported that when Brady arrived to the home he and Adams were standing in the street yelling at each other. Things quickly turned physical and the witness told police he saw Adams repeatedly stab Brady.

Once on the ground, Adams allegedly continued to stab Brady before running into the town attorney's home.

According to the affidavit, items like 'clothing with blood-like stains, cellular telephone and two knives' were found inside the home. One of the knives was located between the box spring and mattress in a bedroom.

Adams is due back in court on September 24.
A snubbed student who was banned from a college course because of his dwarfism is set to make his debut as a chef.

Louis Makepeace will start his career as a chef tomorrow, in one of London's longest standing Michelin-starred restaurants, Pied a Terre.

18-year-old Louis from Worcester, was thrown into the spotlight last month after he had been refused a place on a hospitality and catering course at the Heart of Worcestershire College.

Louis (left) pictured with Pied a Terre's head chef Asimakis Chaniotis (right)

Louis (right) had previously been in to visit the team at Pied a Terre

He has since told the college, who branded him a health and safety risk, that he no longer wishes to attend the course.

Louis who stands at a just 3ft 10in, will join the team at Michelin star restaurant Pied a Terre with head chef Asimakis Chaniotis. Louis will be tasked with preparing and serving a selection of canapes as part of the F'EAT event in London's Fitzrovia.

Facilitated by The Fitzrovia Partnership, F'EAT is a one-off event where food lovers can eat and drink their way around Fitzrovia.

The owner of Pied a Terre, David Moore (left) was moved by what happened to Louis

Louis Makepeace, 18, claimed Heart of Worcestershire College discriminated against him after retracting his offer to study catering. The teen said he was told he'd cause too much disruption

Owner of Pied a Terre, David Moore, expressed his delight as Louis gears up to join the team.

'We're delighted that Louis will become part of the family.

'It's a great opportunity for him to learn new culinary skills and get a real feel for what it takes to make it in the industry; we have no doubt that he'll do a great job under the wing of our head chef Akis.'

Louis (left) felt his dreams were over after the humiliating ordeal with Heart of Worcestershire College. His Mum Pauline (right), said she was also told by the course leader there was no point him doing the course as he would never be allowed to work in a restaurant kitchen

Mr Moore, who owns Pied a Terre, in London's West End, previously said he felt disgusted by the treatment Louis received and wanted to give him his big break.

'He has huge enthusiasm and passion and I think he would do really well here. The door is open for him to come and do whatever he likes.

'Whether that be work experience, an apprenticeship or hopefully at some point a full time job - we just wanted to give him an opportunity to do what he loves.

Louis is set to make his debut tomorrow at the infamous Pied a Terre, in London's West End

'It sounds like he has been really unfairly treated. I was shocked to hear what he had been through and felt it was massively harsh.

'We have a young team and I'm sure he would fit right in.

Following the initial snub by Worcestershire College, celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay had tweeted his support for Louis, as he blasted the college for refusing him a place.

Ramsay tweeted: 'Disgusting attitude, I'd offer him an Apprenticeship any day.'

Since then Louis said Gordon Ramsay's agent has been in touch.
Millions of water bottles meant for Hurricane Maria victims have been found on tarmac in Puerto Rico almost a year after the disaster occurred.

In a series of striking photographs, huge portions of a runway at La Ceiba on the island are completely covered by bottles in boxes and covered in a blue tarp under which lies pallets containing bottles of fresh drinking water.

The pictures emerged on Tuesday after President Donald Trump began praising the government's response to Maria during a meeting with top DHS and FEMA officials.

One year on and in the middle of hurricane season once again, the federal response to Hurricane Maria has come under further scrutiny.

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Millions of water bottles meant for the victims of Hurricane Maria are still lying on a runway

One year on and in the middle of hurricane season once again, the federal response to Hurricane Maria has come under further scrutiny

So far, there has been no logical explanation as to why the bottles were not distributed to those who needed it most

On Wednesday he doubled down, blaming the 'totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan' for the slow recovery

So far, there has been no logical explanation as to why the bottles were not distributed to those who needed it most.

'Although you don't believe it almost a million boxes of water that were never delivered to the villages,' posted Abdiel Santana, a photographer working for a Puerto Rican state police agency who took the pictures.

'Is there anyone who can explain this?'

Marty Bahmonde, a senior official at FEMA, told CBS News that after the agency delivered the water to the island, it's not clear what became of it after that point.

Bahmonde said that specific shipments of water bottles are not tracked.

Many of the almost 3,000 deaths due to Maria were attributed to power failures and a lack of access to healthcare and clean water which makes the massive stockpile of water bottles all the more puzzling and frustrating.

Trump was mocked for tossing rolls of paper towels into a crowd at Calvary Chapel in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, during his visit in October 2017

Abdiel Santana, a photographer working for a Puerto Rican police agency took the pictures

Marty Bahmonde, a senior official at FEMA, said that after the agency delivered the water to the island, it's not clear what became of it after that point

FEMA provided the water to the central government in response to Maria in 2017 and US Military personnel was supposed to help organize aid and supplies for residents affected

Santana took the photos on Tuesday and posted them to his Facebook because he was angry to still see the bottles still there which had been at the same location since last October of last year.

The General Services Administration (GSA) says it requested excess water inventory from FEMA through the United States GSA Surplus Property program.

The GSA Administrator for Puerto Rico, Ottmar Chavez, said FEMA 'reported that it had an excess of bottled water in May 2018, before I became the agency's administrator.'

Chavez said he only became aware of the bottled water on Tuesday and did not know why it was there or how long it had been sitting for.

He did however state that a couple of complaints had been received over the taste and smell of the water.

Last month, Puerto Rico's governor raised the US territory's official death toll from Hurricane Maria from 64 to 2,975 making it the second-deadliest storm in the US.

The storm, which devastated the territory last September, is also estimated to have caused $100billion in damage.

It is unclear what kept the water from being distributed to those who needed it
John Wesley Patton, 54, was arrested after allegedly trapping the woman in his home, forcing her into oral sex then chasing her with a knife after she bit his genitals

A woman in Louisiana fended off an alleged rapist by biting his genitals after he forced her to perform oral sex on him when he couldn't get aroused enough to rape her.

John Wesley Patton, 54, was arrested on Saturday in Westwego, Louisiana.

According to his alleged victim, who has not been identified, Patton trapped her in his home on Friday night after convincing her to visit so that she could meet his sister.

The pair met on the dating website Plenty of Fish and had been speaking for about a week before agreeing to meet face-to-face.

When the woman arrived at his home, he beckoned her into a hallway where he said his sister was waiting.

He then put one hand over her mouth, she said, and dragged her into a bedroom where he demanded sex.

Terrified that she would be hurt if she did not comply, the woman agreed but Patton was not aroused enough to perform.

She seized her opportunity to escape, biting him in the genitals then fleeing as he winced in pain.

Once she got out of the bedroom, however, she realized all the doors in the houses had been locked.

With no key to unlock them, she then evaded Patton, she said, for hours as he chased her around the house with a kitchen knife.

Patton, the woman said, trapped her in a bedroom and tried to rape her but could not get aroused enough to asked her to perform oral sex on him

For hours, the pair were locked inside his home while she hid behind a table in the kitchen and he tried to stab her. Eventually, he let her go and she called 911

He suffered defensive wounds when she was able to claw it off of him once, according to police reports, but he picked up another knife.

The pair were locked in a standoff in his kitchen, where she hid behind a table and used it as a shield, for hours.

The pair met on Plenty of Fish and had been chatting for around a week

It ended when she convinced him to bring her her clothes from the bedroom.

He had been telling her to go to collect them but she was afraid to go back into the room in case he trapped her again, she said.

Eventually, she got out of the house and called 911.

Patton, who is a carpenter foreman, was arrested on Saturday night after police deployed gas into his home to get him out.

He remains in custody on charges of second-degree rape, aggravated sexual battery and false imprisonment.
Bob Woodward's 'Fear' has become the fastest-selling adult book since the release of Harper Lee's Go Set A Watchman in July 2015, Barnes & Noble revealed on Wednesday.

The Watergate journalist's evisceration of Trump as erratic and ill-informed had sold 750,000 copies as of Tuesday, the first day it went on sale, according to publishers Simon & Schuster. That figure included pre-orders and audio books.

Barnes and Noble, the world's largest retail bookseller, refused to release its own sales figures, but it confirmed the book was flying off the shelves.

Bob Woodward's (right, on Monday) evisceration of President Trump (left, in the Oval Office on Tuesday) as erratic and ill-informed had sold 750,000 copies as of Tuesday, the first day it went on sale, according to publishers Simon & Schuster

'Fear had amazing first-day sales and is in high demand across our stores and online,' said Liz Harwell, senior director of merchandising, Trade Books at Barnes & Noble.

'We haven't seen an adult title sell this quickly in over three years, and are working with Simon & Schuster to keep our shelves stocked to meet what we expect will be continued demand.'

Simon & Schuster President Jonathan Karp said: 'Based on immense pre-publication and ongoing interest, the reading public clearly has an enormous appetite for what we believe, as Woodward says, is a pivot point in history.'

Readers have gouged on the raft of embarrassing revelations in Fear, while sales have no doubt been helped by President Trump's regular tweets expressing fury at its contents.

On Amazon, it has outsold all but three books so far this year. Fire and Fury, another book about Trump's White House, by Michael Woolf, is top, in front of a motivational title and a parody of a children's book.

Woodward describes the White House as a 'nervous breakdown' of the executive branch.

Fear: Trump In The White House portrays Trump as an angry man becoming increasingly paranoid about Robert Mueller's Russia investigation

His book portrays Trump as an angry man becoming increasingly paranoid about Robert Mueller's Russia investigation.

Woodward describes the operations inside the White House as an 'administrative coup d'etat' with aides around Trump 'conspiring' to remove papers from the President's desk so that he can't sign them.

Other details concern Trump's 'lack of curiosity and knowledge' about global affairs.

In one part, Woodward writes that his Defense Secretary James Mattis, 'was particularly exasperated and alarmed, telling close associates that the president acted like  and had the understanding of  'a fifth- or sixth-grader.'

In another, Woodward recounts how White House Chief of Staff John Kelly frequently became angry and told colleagues that he thought the President was 'unhinged'. In one meeting, Kelly allegedly described Trump as 'an idiot', whom it would be 'pointless to try' convince of anything.

'He's gone off the rails. We're in Crazytown. I don't even know why any of us are here. This is the worst job I've ever had.'

Trump has repeatedly dismissed the book as a 'hoax' and claimed Woodward had made up quotes.

He has frantically retweeted statements from a raft of close advisers mentioned in the book who claim quotes attributed to them were incorrect.

High-piled copies of Fear are displayed at a Barnes and Noble bookstore on Wednesday in Corte Madera, California

On Tuesday, Gary Cohn and Rob Porter both issued statements taking some issue with Woodward's depiction of the White House as wracked by instability and paranoia.

'This book does not accurately portray my experience at the White House,' Cohn said in a statement he sent to the political news site Axios.

'I am proud of my service in the Trump administration, and I continue to support the president and his economic agenda.'

Porter said he was 'struck by the selective and often misleading portrait it paints of the president and his administration.'
Two married church workers have been convicted of battering children because they failed to get top grades at their school.

The male and female assaulted their son a daughter, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, for not receiving top marks in school reports.

The girl was six years old when she was first attacked and was also hit for being awarded a 'straight face' rather than a 'smiley one'. She was left bleeding when the man hit her so hard the his ring caught her skin.

When the boy was just eight the woman restrained him while the man smacked him because he obtained a B grade.

The attack occurred in spite of the boy telling them he couldn't breathe properly while he was pinned down.

The husband and wife denied the assaults but were found guilty at Hamilton Sheriff Court after beating the boy and girl over school grades

The husband and wife are heavily involved in a church operating in Motherwell, Lanarkshire, and Dundee. The man is associate pastor and the woman leads worship and sings.

The couple went on trial at Hamilton Sheriff Court and denied the allegations against them but were found guilty.

Both children gave evidence against them by video link, revealing how they were beaten for unsatisfactory grades. Sheriff Shiona Waldron praised their remarkably consistent accounts.

The youngsters were beaten on several occasions between January and February this year.

They told how they were forced to remove their clothing before being smacked on the buttocks.

In evidence, the male worker said he had done nothing wrong and suggested the children had made up the allegations, referring specifically to the incident in which the boy could not breathe properly.

The boy and girl were punished if they obtained a 'straight face' instead of a 'smiley face' or a grade B from school teachers (file photo)

'It was quite clear that he could breath, his lungs were full of air and there was nothing to suggest there was anything wrong other than he was just trying to get out of it,' he said.

'He did get a B around that time but that is not the reason, we would never smack them for a below average grade.'

But Sheriff Waldron told the couple: 'I found the children to both be credible and reliable witnesses and that their evidence was remarkably consistent.

'They were both physically punished and you provided no reasonable excuse for this level of chastisement.

'Assault is a crime of intent and there could have been no doubt what went on had been discussed and planned.'

Each were convicted of one assault on the boy and one assault on the girl. Sentence on the couple has been deferred until next month for reports and they were both granted bail.
An inquest into the death of an elderly patient who drank Flash floor cleaning fluid was told that another patient may have previously drunk toilet cleaner at the same hospital.

Joan Blaber, 85, from Lewes, East Sussex, died in September last year six days after drinking Flash at the Royal Sussex County Hospital.

The retired shopkeeper drank the noxious cleaning liquid from a bedside jug normally used for water and an inquest in Brighton is attempting to establish how the cleaning fluid came to be in her green water jug.

Joan Blaber, 85, died in September last year six days after drinking Flash at the Royal Sussex County Hospital

But the hearing was told another patient at the same hospital may have accidentally drunk toilet cleaner in an earlier incident.

Daniel Gonzales, a housekeeper and cleaner, was working at the hospital on the day of the incident and had helped served breakfast on the Baily ward.

He said that although there were strict guidelines regarding the use of concentrated Flash liquid trolleys containing cleaning products were often left unattended.

Mr Gonzales said he had heard about one alleged incident when a dementia sufferer drank toilet cleaner.

Solicitor Jonathan Austen -Jones (pictured right) arrives at day two of the inquest into the death of Joan Blaber

He said: I heard a story that someone had nearly drunk some cleaner. Apparently they used to keep a toilet cleaner and a patient who has dementia took it and drank it but it just a story, Im not sure if its true.

He said he did not understand how undiluted Flash detergent could have got into a water jug as the cleaning equipment and liquid were kept in secure cupboards protected by a code.

He said the five-litre undiluted detergent bottle was too heavy to transport around by hand and would never have been taken onto a ward.

Mr Gonzales said the liquid was diluted in toilets before being placed into buckets to take to the wards. He said: No theory makes any sense at all.

The retired shopkeeper drank the noxious cleaning liquid from a bedside jug normally used for water at the hospital (pictured) and an inquest in Brighton is attempting to establish how the cleaning fluid came to be in her green water jug

No-one would carry the bottle because it was a very heavy bottle.

No further evidence was heard about the alleged previous incident but another cleaner said she was surprised at the lack of training at the hospital.

Kayleigh Regan, a cleaner at Green Mop - an agency employed by the hospital - said there was no official training in how to clean from the hospital.

I was surprised there was no real structure to the cleaning process, she added.

Earlier a pathologist told the inquest in Brighton that Mrs Blaber could well have lived a few more years if she had not accidentally drunk the noxious detergent.

Dr Mark Howard, a consultant pathologist at Kings Hospital in London, said: I believe that without this incident Joan had months to maybe a few years to live.

He said that given she already suffered from two strokes, an enlarged heart and chronic health problems she would most likely have gone into a steady decline and eventual death.

But he said: In my opinion I think that could have been a few months to a few years.

The inquest was also was also told Mrs Blaber, may have been suffering from confusion when she drank the Flash detergent.

The jury heard she may have been confused after opoid-based pain relief patches were left on her body longer than they should have been.

Two patches of buprenorphine had been put on her back to give her pain relief but should have been removed on September 12.

However both patches were still in place on September 19 - two days after she drank the cleaning fluid.

Coroner Veronica Hamilton-Deeley questioned why the two patches had been left on her back and said a failure to remove them was sloppy.

She said leaving them on could possibly cause an overdose of the opoid drug and said the jury will need to decide whether the two patches had caused confusion which led her to drink the cleaning fluid in her water jug.

The coroner said: Did the fact she had two buprenorphine patches on the 19th which should have come off on the 12th cause confusion contributing to not realising the jug was the wrong colour and causing her to drink something she wouldnt have?

Dr Alex Harrison, a critical care consultant at the hospital, was asked whether he thought the patches could have caused the confusion.

He said: There are lots of reasons why she could have been confused. I dont believe the presence of patches caused that confusion on the balance of probability.

The inquest heard the cause of death was respiratory failure due to pneumonia caused by ingesting the cleaning fluid.

The hearing continues.
One of the most successful women in the history of television is detailing the years of bullying she endured while working under Les Moonves.

Linda Bloodworth was coming off the massive success of her Emmy-winning show Designing Women when she met Moonves, who she claims stopped her career dead in its tracks.

It would be seven years before she worked again she writes in The Hollywood Reporter, as Moonves passed on every pilot she wrote while dialing back on the female-focused shows that had become a staple of the network.

'Thanks to Les Moonves, I can only guess they all became vaginal swabs in crime labs on CSI Amarillo,' writes Bloodowrth.

Bloodworth also claims that one of the biggest stars in television told her Moonves forced himself on her one day after bring her to tears.

Those tears were the result of Moonves telling her she was too old for her own show says Bloodworth, who described the newly-ousted CEO's philosophy by stating: 'Why would I wanna cast em if I dont wanna f*** em?'

Moonves has denied having any relations with women against their will as well as ever sexually harassing any employee.

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Speakig out: Linda Bloodworth (above in 2014) said that Les Moonves stared her down like Charles Manson when she first met him, and stopped her career dead in its tracks

Fall from grace: Moonves was a misogynist says Bloodworth, who after once telling an actress she was too old for TV then forced his tongue down her throat while she cried (Moonves and wife Julie Chen above in July)

Bloodworth, who started out as a writer on the iconic series M*A*S*H*, had a $50 million deal with CBS when Moonves took over as president of the network.

Moonves was temperamental claims Bloodworth, and enjoyed screaming: 'I will tear off the top of your head and piss on your brain!'

She had also heard he was a 'fan of topless bars' when she first met the new president at a table read for her new pilot.

Bloodworth sat across from Moonves at the table she writes, with the star of the show by her side - future-accuser Illeana Douglas.

'I had not experienced such a menacing look since Charles Manson tried to stare me down on a daily basis when I was a young reporter covering that trial,' writes Bloodworth.

'As soon as the pilot was completed, Moonves informed me that it would not be picked up. I was at the pinnacle of my career. I would not work again for seven years.'

She was in good company though, as she writes that Bette Midler was once rebuffed by Moonves when she approached him about doing a show for the network.

Bloodworth eventually left, unwilling to write the kind of show that Moonves wanted she explains, with characters that said: 'Is that a missing breast implant, lieutenant?' and 'Yes sir, we also found playing cards in her uterus.'

Her agent told Moonves the news, and after being told the network would be taking a large penalty payout, he asked the president if he had any message he should pass along to Bloodworth.

'Tell her to go f*** herself,' said Moonves.

'The truth is, Les Moonves may never be punished in the way that he deserves. He will almost certainly never go to jail,' writes Bloodworth.

'And he has already made hundreds of millions of dollars during his highly successful and truly immoral, bullying, misogynist reign.'

She later added: 'We dont care anymore if you go to jail or go to hell. Just know at some point that you are leaving.'

Bloodowrth also had a thought for the departed executive who made her life hell, saying: '[I]n spite of the fact that I was raised to be a proper Southern female, and with your acknowledgement that I have never, in my life, spoken a single cross word to you, despite the way you treated me, may I simply say, channeling my finest Julia Sugarbaker delivery: "Go f*** yourself!"'

Just like the night that the lights went out in Georgia.

Sugarbakers: She got her start in TV as a writer for M*A*S*H* and went on to create shows including Designing Women (l to r: Delta Burke, Annie Potts, Meshach Taylor, Jean Smart and Dixie Carter)

Exit: W hen she finally left CBS, Moonves asked Bloodworth's agent to 'tell her to go f*** herself' she claims while also taking a large penalty payment (Bloodworth with Jamie Lee Curtis on left and Markie Post on right)

Moonves may have been forced to resign as the CEO of CBS Corporation, but he is not going to be leaving the company despite the allegations of sexual assault that have been made by 13 women.

A filing submitted by CBS to the United States Securities and Exchange Committee obtained by DailyMail.com on Monday revealed that Moonves would be staying on for up to two years to help advise the company in order to ensure a smooth transition.

That filing also revealed that in his position Moonves would be given his own office and a security detail, paid for by CBS.

CBS will also place $120 million into a grantor trust that will be given to Moonves pending the outcome of two investigations into these allegations.

And the $20 million that Moonves was said to be donating to various #MeToo charities is actually coming out of the pocket of CBS Corporation.

'Mr. Moonves has agreed to perform transition advisory services for the Company for one year following his resignation (or, if earlier, until the date the Board determines the Company is entitled to terminate his employment for cause) in order to provide for a smooth transition of his duties,' reads the filing.

'In order to facilitate such transition services, the Company will provide Mr. Moonves with office services and security services for up to two years following his resignation.'

The filing also goes over Moonves' compensation package, though does not get into great detail regarding how it might be impacted by the investigations other than to note if he is cleared he will receive the full amount due to him under his contract.

'Within thirty (30) days following the Termination Date, the Company will also contribute $120,000,000 to a grantor trust,' it reads.

'In the event the Board determines that the Company is entitled to terminate Mr. Moonvess employment for cause under his employment agreement and Mr. Moonves does not demand arbitration with respect to such determination, the assets of the grantor trust will be distributed to the Company and the Company will have no further obligations to Mr. Moonves.'

Just before that the company reveals that they will cover the charitable donation.

'Within thirty (30) days following the Termination Date, the Company will make contributions in the aggregate amount of $20,000,000 to one or more charitable organizations that support the #MeToo movement and equality for women in the workplace, which organizations have been designated by Mr. Moonves in consultation with the Company,' states the filing.

That line seems to contradict the statement made just one day prior by the company in a press release.

'Moonves and CBS will donate $20 million to one or more organizations that support the #MeToo movement and equality for women in the workplace,' read the release.

'The donation, which will be made immediately, has been deducted from any severance benefits that may be due Moonves following the Boards ongoing independent investigation led by Covington & Burling and Debevoise & Plimpton.'
Justin Sanderson, 33, was found guilty of rape, kidnapping and gross sexual imposition during a bench trial in late August

A former police officer in an Ohio village was sentenced Wednesday to 43 years in prison for sexually assaulting four women while on duty, including two women he had taken to the police station.

The crimes of Justin Sanderson, 33, are 'reprehensible and disturbing,' Montgomery County prosecutor Mat Heck Jr. said in a statement after the sentencing.

Sanderson, an officer in the Montgomery County village of Phillipsburg, said in court that he still considers himself innocent, the Dayton Daily News reported.

Judge Steven Dankof, who found him guilty of rape, kidnapping and gross sexual imposition during a bench trial in late August, said it was the court's 'darkest voyage' into a man's actions. In total, he was charged for 19 counts, according to WHIO.

Sanderson, of Huber Heights, won't be eligible for parole for 33 years. He resigned from the A person who answered the phone at his attorneys' office said no one was available to comment.

Sanderson, an officer in the Montgomery County village of Phillipsburg, said in court that he still considers himself innocent

According to prosecutors, Sanderson was arrested in July 2017 after two women told police they had agreed to have sex at a motel with someone they had connected with on Backpage.com, a classified ad website shut down this year by federal authorities. The women said Sanderson came to their room in uniform, told them he was investigating human trafficking and prostitution, and gave them a warning.

The Huber Heights resident was arrested in July 2017 after two women told police they had agreed to have sex at a motel with a person from Backpage.com

They said Sanderson left, returned a short time later and had sex with them. They told police they thought they had no choice because he was a police officer, prosecutors said.

His arrest prompted two other women to step forward, prosecutors said. One woman said Sanderson stopped her for drunken driving in May 2017 and forced her to have sex at the police station, while a second woman said she was forced into sexual conduct after her arrest on a warrant.

Sanderson resigned from the department in July 2017, the prosecutor's office said.

'This defendant used his authority as a police officer to force four victims into sexual activity,' Heck said. 'Not only will he never be in a position of authority in the future, but he will be unable to victimize anyone else.'

A 2015 investigation by The Associated Press found about 1,000 officers nationwide who lost their licenses in a six-year period for sexual crimes and misconduct.
Omarosa Manigault Newman shared her own insightful guess as to who the author of the damning anonymous New York Times op-ed is that has enraged the president.

'I took some time and went back and looked through all of my emails, particularly emails out of the vice president's office, because the first time I read the op-ed, it just seemed kind of familiar to me,' Manigault Newman told Yahoo Finance on Tuesday.

'After looking at memos and correspondence from the vice president's office, I'm pretty convinced that it came from that way. Not just because of the term "lodestar", but because of the style and tone of it.'

However, she says she doesn't believe the 'Resistance' article came directly from Vice President Mike Pence, but rather has narrowed down to someone extremely close to him.

Omarosa says she believes the Vice President's political strategist Nick Ayers wrote the op-ed

Omarosa says considering communications she has had with Pence's office, she believes the author of the infamous 'Resistance' op-ed is Pence's political strategist Nick Ayers (pictured)

She believes Pence's wonder-boy political strategist Nick Ayers is the likely culprit.

The former White House aide made a similar suggestion on The View this week, but elaborated by saying it is Ayers has the 'most to gain'.

The piece suggested there is a secretive movement from within the White House of people who have banded together to thwart the president's worst impulses.

'All of these guys work in these groups together and could see themselves as some sort of hero trying to save the country from Donald Trump, but to me Nick Ayers is the one who has the most to gain from writing this,' she continued.

Ayers is a relatively young- 36- powerful political strategist who served as Pence's chief of staff and is one of hos most trusted aides.

Pence has vehemently denied that he, or anyone from his office had anything to do with the op-ed, even going as far to say this week that he would take a lie detector test to prove that he is not undermining the presidency.

'Let me be very clear. I'm 100 percent confident that no one on the vice president's staff was involved in this anonymous editorial. I know my people,' Pence said Sunday during an interview on CBS' Face the Nation.

Witch hunt: President Trump has been actively working on smoking out the author of the 'Resistance' op-ed in the New York Times that says people in the White House are actively undermining the president

'They get up every day and are dedicated, just as much as I am, to advancing the president's agenda and supporting everything.'

Immediately after its publication, senior White House officials in quick succession denied being behind the explosive missive.

Last week Trump said he wanted Attorney General Jeff Sessions to investigate the editorial, declaring it a breach of 'national security.'

He also likened the article to a treasonous act over Twitter.

DailyMail.com reached out to Pence's office for comment, but have not received a response.
A student who killed herself was forced to wait weeks for help when campus mental health advisers went on strike, a report has revealed.

Ceara Thacker, 19, had turned to University of Liverpool staff in February after attempting to overdose on painkillers.

But because of planned industrial action and staff shortages, there was no adviser to respond to her emails or organise an appointment for almost five weeks. Ceara eventually saw someone at the end of April  but was found hanged at her halls of residence less than three weeks later.

The troubled teenagers parents yesterday hit out at the delays  and at the failure of university staff to tell them of her previous suicide attempt. Cearas father, Iain Thacker, 55, said his daughter had been let down by the university.

The philosophy student (pictured) attempted suicide and was granted an appointment with mental health workers but died weeks later

He said he only learned of his daughters previous suicide attempt two days after she died and claimed there were missed opportunities to save her because staff wrongly believed her parents could not be informed of her declining mental health because of data protection rules.

He pointed to a clause in the universitys code of practice which states that confidentiality rules can be ignored if there are serious grounds for concern about the students mental well-being.

She was absolutely let down by the university, he said. If only we had known, we could have helped.

The retired company director said the family only found out about her previous suicide attempt when someone blurted it out as they were clearing her room.

He added: [Universities] are taking thousands and thousands of pounds off their parents in fees, paying vice-chancellors vast sums, but students arent getting the welfare services they deserve.

An inquest into Cearas death is due to take place later this year. Internal reviews ordered by the coroner reveal a disjointed approach to care by both the university and Mersey Care  the NHS mental health trust that helped Ceara after previous visits to her GP and A&E.

An internal review by the University of Liverpool (pictured) revealed how the student's cry for help went unanswered

On top of the strike action, an appointment was cancelled due to a power cut and notes of meetings Ceara had with hospital and university staff were not sent to her GP.

The first-year philosophy student had a history of anxiety and self-harm dating back to when she was around 13. She had also undergone therapy following a sex assault aged 16.

Ceara Thacker (pictured) died suddenly at her accommodation at the University of Liverpool

Within a few weeks of starting university last September, the Bradford teenager went to A&E in Liverpool after having suicidal thoughts.

She was referred to Mersey Care and was seen by a GP, but secretly stopped taking her anti-depressants.

By February her condition had worsened and she took an overdose.

Ceara contacted the universitys mental health service, but a period of extended industrial action and staff shortages meant nobody looked at her email for more than a month.

The student eventually met an adviser on April 24, who noted her suicidal thoughts.

He was due to set up another appointment but none had been made by the time she was found dead a week later.

According to the most recent figures, more than 140 students killed themselves in 2016. Ten took their own lives in Bristol alone over the past two years.

Liverpool University and Mersey Care NHS Trust both declined to comment until after the inquest.
Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward said a 'key' person in President Donald Trump's administration called him to privately confirm the details in his book 'Fear' are '1,000 percent true' - and then later publicly trashed the tome.

Woodward recounted the story in an interview for The New York Times' podcast 'The Daily.'

'After the information in 'Fear' started breaking last week, one key person who's in office called and said 'Everyone knows what you said here is true. It's 1,000 percent correct,' Woodward said. 'And then this person has said some public things that contradict that.'

Bob Woodward said a 'key' person in Trump's administration called him to privately confirm the details in his book 'Fear' are '1,000 percent true'

The newly released book 'Fear' by Bob Woodward is displayed at a Barnes and Noble bookstore

President Donald Trump has called Woodward a 'liar'

He declined to name a name but said he wasn't happy about the situation.

'And I'm not happy but I have a smile on face because the truth in all of this is going to emerge,' Woodward said. 'There's too much evidence, too many witnesses.'

Trump and many of his senior aides have publicly condemned the book, which paints a picture of a chaotic White House where staff will go as far as to steal a letter off the president's Oval Office desk to keep him from implementing a harmful policy.

Vice President Mike Pence, White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, Defense Secretary James Mattis, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders, Counselor Kellyanne Conway, former White House staff secretary Rob Porter, and former top economic adviser Gary Cohn have all criticized the book.

'Fear' has become the fastest-selling adult book since the release of Harper Lee's Go Set A Watchman in July 2015, Barnes & Noble revealed on Wednesday.

Vice President Mike Pence and former economic adviser Gary Cohn have denounced the book

White House Chief of Staff John Kelly and former White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter have also denounced 'Fear'

Sarah Sanders and Kellyanne Conway have criticized the book

It had sold 750,000 copies as of Tuesday, the first day it went on sale, according to publishers Simon & Schuster. That figure included pre-orders and audio books.

Simon & Schuster had printed 1 million copies of the book.

Woodward was asked on NBC's 'Today Show' on Monday about senior White House aides who have publicly decried his book.

'They are not telling the truth,' he said.

'These are political statements to protect their jobs,' he continued. 'Totally understandable.'

Trump has called Woodward a 'liar' and threatened to write his own book.
The private weekly meeting of the arch-Brexiteers European Reform Group usually struggles to attract more than 25 MPs and peers. But Tuesday night was different  it was crowded to the rafters.

It was not because everyone had suddenly demanded more detailed discussions on the latest stage of the Governments complex Brexit negotiations.

The reason was that the group had been told in advance to arrive early and in strength, because a BBC camera crew would be filming the first part of the proceedings for a TV documentary on our departure from the EU.

Supporters of Mrs May will be relieved that some of the biggest cats in the Tory Brexit jungle were conspicuously absent

One MP said: I looked around and saw people who hadnt been at an ERG meeting for weeks. Some of my colleagues will do anything to be on the TV.

The familiar figure of Laura Kuenssberg, the BBC political editor, was at the back of the room for the first five minutes of the gathering.

During that time, as the cameras were whirring, there wasnt a hint of what was to come. It was all sweetness and light as the MPs and peers talked about their hopes and aspirations for Britain after leaving the EU.

Secretary, Owen Paterson (2L), Britain's former Northern Ireland Secretary, Theresa Villiers (2R), and Britain's former Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union (Brexit Minister) David Davis (R) arrive to attend a meeting of the pro-Brexit European Research Group

To the obvious disappointment of the film crew there was not even a single disobliging comment about Theresa May or her much vaunted Chequers compromise plan. The criticism would come when the cameras were no longer there.

After five minutes the BBC was asked to leave. It did not take long for the mood to become ugly about the Prime Minister.

Usually, Jacob Rees-Mogg, nicknamed the MP for the 18th century because of the way he radiates old-school courtesy and charm, chairs the meetings. He has a firm rule: the ERG discusses policy detail and personal criticism of the Prime Minister is never permitted.

Who are the key rebels? Pictured left to right: Anne Marie Morris, Andrew Bridgen and James Duddridge Anne Marie Morris: The MP for Newton Abbott was suspended from the Conservative Party by Mrs May last year after using the N-word in a speech to the East India Club. Now we get to the real n***** in the woodpile, which is, in two years what happens if there is no deal? she said. Reacted furiously to Chequers, saying it failed to meet Tory manifesto commitments to take Britain out of the single market, customs union and jurisdiction of the European Court. What she said: This has gone on too long. When is the exit date?

The MP for Newton Abbott was suspended from the Conservative Party by Mrs May last year after using the N-word in a speech to the East India Club. Now we get to the real n***** in the woodpile, which is, in two years what happens if there is no deal? she said. Reacted furiously to Chequers, saying it failed to meet Tory manifesto commitments to take Britain out of the single market, customs union and jurisdiction of the European Court. What she said: This has gone on too long. When is the exit date? Andrew Bridgen: The arch-Brexiteer sent his no confidence letter shortly after Chequers, in which he claimed Britains position amounted to a complete capitulation and accused Mrs May of insulting the intelligence of the British public. The 53-year-old Leicestershire MP, whose constituency voted 61 per cent leave, has made no secret of his disdain for Mrs May ever since. What he said: Theresa May leading the Tories into the next election would be like asking a survivor of the Charge of the Light Brigade to have another go.

The arch-Brexiteer sent his no confidence letter shortly after Chequers, in which he claimed Britains position amounted to a complete capitulation and accused Mrs May of insulting the intelligence of the British public. The 53-year-old Leicestershire MP, whose constituency voted 61 per cent leave, has made no secret of his disdain for Mrs May ever since. What he said: Theresa May leading the Tories into the next election would be like asking a survivor of the Charge of the Light Brigade to have another go. James Duddridge : A leading voice in the ERG meeting calling for a move against the PM now, Mr Duddridge, 47, was highly critical of Chequers. He called the proposal deeply disappointing and would leave Britain as a supplicant puppy and rule taker. The MP for Southend once said ministers should tell the European Commission to sod off rather than pay benefits to Romanian and Bulgarian migrants. Refuses to say if he has put a no confidence letter in to the 1922 Committee. What he said: Were being boiled alive here. Advertisement

But Mr Rees-Mogg had a pressing alternative engagement. A group from the Class War action group had gone to his 4.5million home in the shadow of the Palace of Westminster to mount a protest, hurling vile verbal attacks at his family.

Understandably, the MP decided he could not attend the ERG meeting under such circumstances and, in his absence, the meeting was chaired by Steve Baker  who quit as a minister when his boss the Brexit Secretary David Davis left the Cabinet in July in protest at the Chequers compromise deal.

The door had barely closed behind the BBC crew before Anne Marie Morris, the MP for Newton Abbot since 2010, shredded the negotiating position of the Prime Minister. This has gone on too long, she said. When is the exit date?

The mood darkened further when Andrew Bridgen, a long-standing critic of the EU and Mrs May, invoked images of the Charge of the Light Brigade in the Crimean War of the 1850s  a senseless slaughter immortalised in Tennysons poem about the valley of death.

By drawing parallels between Mrs Mays approach to Brexit and this national catastrophe caused by incompetent leadership, Bridgen could not have made his feelings more apparent.

The thought of Theresa May carrying on fills me with dread, he said, according to MPs present. Its like telling a surviving member of the Charge of the Light Brigade, who knows whats in store, to go back and make another heroic charge into the valley of death knowing this time they wont get back.

Andrea Jenkyns, who defeated Labours Ed Balls in Morley and Outwood in 2015, repeated her call for Mrs May to stand down or be replaced, a sentiment endorsed by Rochford and Southend East MP James Duddridge who said the Chequers plan was not one his constituents voted for. One unnamed MP said: Everyone I know says shes a disaster. Shes got to go. Ominously, not one single MP, of the 30 or so who spoke, defended the PM. Whether by accident or design, the meeting took place in the Thatcher Room in the Commons. With a portrait of Lady Thatcher  Britains first woman prime minister and no fan of the EU  gazing down on them, MPs demanded a timetable for the departure of Britains second woman Prime Minister.

How they could trigger a vote Tory MPs wanting to oust Theresa May as party leader probably have the numbers to force a ballot - but not the numbers to actually unseat her. Under party rules, which were adopted in 1998, a leadership challenge will be triggered if just 15 per cent of Tory MPs submit letters of no confidence. However, Mrs Mays critics would then need more than half of the partys MPs to back removing her in a subsequent confidence vote. The Conservatives currently have 315 MPs so 48 of them would need to write letters to the chair of the 1922 backbench committee, who is responsible for overseeing the process, to start a challenge. Sir Graham Brady, who has held the post since May 2010, is the only person who knows at any time how many letters have been sent. Andrew Bridgen and Andrea Jenkyns are so far the only two MPs to publicly declare that they have written letters. At a meeting of the 1922 committee before the summer, fellow MP Simon Clarke said he also had submitted a letter but had decided to retract it. Should 48 letters be received, then Sir Graham would stage a confidence vote in which all Tory MPs would be invited to take part. If the leader fails to get a majority of votes, he or she resigns and cannot stand in the subsequent contest. However, if they win, they are protected from facing another leadership challenge for a year. When a leadership challenge last happened in October 2003, the ballot was held a day after the 1922 chairman announced he had received enough letters of no confidence in Iain Duncan Smith. Mr Duncan Smith gave a half-hour long speech to MPs in appealing for them to keep him as leader, but he lost with 75 votes for him and 90 votes against. If Mrs May lost a no confidence vote then there would be a leadership contest. Tory MPs need two nominations from colleagues to put themselves forward. A series of votes would then be held among Tory MPs to whittle down the number of candidates to two to go on the ballot paper for the membership. Following David Camerons decision to step down as Tory leader after losing the 2016 Brexit referendum, five candidates were nominated. The field was narrowed to Mrs May and Andrea Leadsom, but the latter pulled out of the race before members voted, leaving Mrs May to become leader unopposed. Anyone who has been a Tory member for more than three months can vote in a leadership contest. The pro-Brexit group Leave.EU, run by businessman Arron Banks, has been encouraging its supporters to join the party now so they can take part if a vote is held. Advertisement

A no-confidence debate over Mrs Mays premiership  almost certainly resulting in a leadership election  would be triggered if 48 MPs, or 15 per cent of the parliamentary party, write private letters to Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 committee of Tory MPs. Some have already been lodged, but only he knows how many.

Despite the noises off in the Thatcher Room, supporters of Mrs May will be relieved that some of the biggest cats in the Tory Brexit jungle were conspicuously absent. There was no Boris Johnson  he currently has other issues to contend with. No David Davis or Iain Duncan Smith  he was ousted as leader in 2003 and would not be associated with any public plot to undermine another one.

Downing Street insists that Mrs May will see off any challenge. Even if a no-confidence motion is tabled, they say, her critics will have to win the support of up to 158 MPs to be certain of ousting her.

After the meeting broke-up some of the MPs went to a dinner at 10 Downing Street, part of an attempt by Mrs May to try to win them over to her Chequers plan.

Downing Street chief of staff and arch Remoaner Gavin Barwell fielded MPs questions but Mrs May never even stuck her head around the door to say hello.

One MP said: It might have helped if they had at least sent a senior Cabinet minister to talk to us. But at least the food was good.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton fired at Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh Wednesday for using the term 'abortion-inducing drugs'  although like several other critics she left out a key part of Kavanaugh's quote.

Clinton called the language alarming and a 'dog whistle to the extreme right.'

'I want to be sure we're all clear about something that Brett Kavanaugh said in his confirmation hearings last week. He referred to birth-control pills as 'abortion-inducing drugs.' That set off a lot of alarm bells for me, and it should for you, too,' Clinton tweeted to her 23 million followers.

California Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris also tore into Kavanaugh for using the term during his Senate confirmation hearing last week.

Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton blasted Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh for using the term 'abortion-inducing drugs,' although a fact-checker says he was quoting the view of a group during his answer about it

However, nonpartisan fact-check site Politifact chided Harris for taking Kavanaugh's comment 'out of context.'

'We're not sure what he believes. He hasn't said so in the confirmation hearings,' the group concluded.

Harris tweeted out a clip of Kavanaugh at the hearing, where he said: ''Filling out the form would make them complicit in the provision of the abortion-inducing drugs that they were, as a religious matter, objected to,' Kavanaugh said.

Clinton joined other Kavanaugh opponents who have pointed to the term

WHICH CAME FIRST? Clinton posited that Kavanaugh does understand the basic science involved

Democrats fear Kavanaugh will flip the balance on the Court and overturn Roe V. Wade, though the conservative Kavanaugh, like predecessors, didn't say how he would vote

Clinton picked up an attack begun by California Democrat Sen. Kamala Harris

However, as the site noted, the clip leaves out two words that indicate Kavanaugh was describing the position of an outside group, in this case Priests for Life, who was party to a lawsuit where the group sought relief from Obamacare's mandate to provide contraception coverage.

'They said filling out the form would make them complicit in the provision of the abortion-inducing drugs that they were, as a religious matter, objecting to,' Kavanaugh said under questioning from Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.

A dissent Kavanaugh authored in the case states that the Catholic groups party to the case believe contraceptives cause miscarriage.

'They complain that submitting the required form contravenes their religious beliefs because doing so, in their view, makes them complicit in providing coverage for contraceptives, including some that they believe operate as abortifacients,' he wrote.

Clinton and abortion rights advocates fear that Kavanaugh if confirmed will swing the balance to overturn Roe v. Wade, and then chip away at protections for contraceptives. President Trump nominated him to fill the seat of former swing Justice Anthony Kennedy.

The pill prevents an egg from being fertilized, even before the moment of conception.

In a series of linked tweets, Clinton wrote: 'Kavanaugh didn't use that term because he misunderstands the basic science of birth controlthe fact that birth control prevents fertilization of eggs in the first place. He used that term because it's a dog whistle to the extreme right.'

She added: 'When Kavanaugh called birth control 'abortion-inducing drugs,' he made it clear that safe and legal abortion isn't the only fundamental reproductive right at grave risk if he is confirmed. Access to birth control is, too,' Clinton wrote.

Harris' office has also complained that Kavanaugh used the term 'uncritically,' when he had an opportunity to correct the notion.
Seven members of the New York Police Department have been arrested for allegedly running a prostitution and gambling ring, it has been announced.

The suspects include three sergeants, two detectives, and two officers in addition to more than 40 civilians who have been taken into custody, according to the New York Post.

The NYPD personnel who were arrested have been stripped of their badges and guns, the New York Daily News reported.

They have been identified as Sgt. Carlos Cruz of the 69th Precinct in Brooklyn; Sgt. Louis Failla of the Queens South Evidence Control Team; Sgt. Cliff Nieves of the Transit Bureau investigation unit; Police Officer Steven Nieves of the 84th Precinct in Brooklyn Heights; Police Officer Giancarlo Raspanti of the 109th Precinct in Flushing, Queens; Detective Gionanny Rojas-Acosta of the NYPDs Criminal Investigations Division; and Detective Rene Samaniego of the Brooklyn South Vice Squad.

All seven face charges of official misconduct and enterprise corruption, according to New York City Alerts.

The retired vice detective and his wife are suspected of operating multiple brothels on Roosevelt Avenue in Queens as well as in the Sunset Park section of Brooklyn.

Seven members of the New York Police Department have been arrested for allegedly running a prostitution and gambling ring, it has been announced. The above stock image shows an NYPD car in Manhattan

The arrests are the culmination of a years-long investigation involving 'hundreds of hours of surveillance and multiple (wiretaps),' sources told the Daily News.

The investigation was supervised by the NYPDs Internal Affairs Bureau.

Investigators reportedly raided the 72nd Precinct stationhouse in Sunset Park.

Once inside, the desk supervisor was told to take the investigators to the locker belonging to a detective.

Internal Affairs personnel then busted open the lock and removed evidence from the locker, the Post reported.

Investigators then went to the home of the detective and detained him.

The NYPD officers arrested in the case are accused of providing protection for a prostitution, drugs, and gambling ring.

IAB reportedly received a tip from another officer three years ago, triggering the investigation.

This was an investigation that was initiated by a member of the service, followed through by Internal Affairs and it came to this conclusion, a source told the Daily News.

We're cleaning our own house. This was literally a member of the department calling IAB and saying he didn't like what was going on here.

The investigation was supervised by the NYPDs Internal Affairs Bureau. Investigators reportedly raided the 72nd Precinct stationhouse in Sunset Park, Brooklyn (seen in the above stock image)

The NYPDs top cop, Commissioner James ONeill, released a statement which read: Today, those who swore an oath and then betrayed it have felt the consequences of that infidelity.

The people of this Department are rightly held to the highest standard, and should they fail to meet it, the penalty will be swift and severe.

'I thank Deputy Commissioner Joseph Reznick for the thorough investigation performed by the Internal Affairs Bureau, in partnership with the Queens District Attorney's Office, in rooting out this illicit activity.

His unit initiated this probe and in doing so, has sent a clear message: there is no place in the NYPD for criminal or unethical behavior.

The officers will be prosecuted by the Queens District Attorney's Office.
Jeremy Corbyn was facing an investigation last night after it emerged his private secretary has not passed security checks needed to work in his Parliamentary office.

In what appears a clear breach of Commons rules, Iram Awan has worked for the Labour leader for the past nine months  despite not being granted a full pass.

Instead, the pro-Palestinian activist is apparently coming into Parliament every day as a visitor before being escorted to Mr Corbyns office by Labour staffers.

Iram Awan (right with Corbyn), a British-born national, has allegedly not been granted a pass because of concerns over her known associates

Working on the estate on a visitor pass is strictly forbidden under House of Commons regulations.

In a further twist, it also emerged yesterday that Andrew Murray, one of Mr Corbyns closest advisors and a former Communist, has also still not had his pass approved  despite applying more than a year ago.

Every Parliament staffer needs a Commons pass and is required to pass a counter-terrorist check (CTC) into their background and associates.

It normally takes a matter of weeks at most to process.

Brandon Lewis said the 'breach of security not only puts Parliament at risk, it raises questions about Jeremy Corbyn's judgment'

However, Miss Awan has not yet had her application approved by the authorities despite taking up the role with the Labour leader more than nine months ago.

It is not known why it has taken so long, but it is not thought to be connected to anyone she is associated with.

The British-born activist, whose role includes providing strategic advice to Mr Corbyn, has previously posted a series of pro-Palestinian tweets.

She appeared to support a protest at a Barclays branch in Wales over the banking giants holdings in Elbit, Israels largest military company.

Commons authorities are now investigating whether Parliamentary rules have been broken by Mr Corbyns office in allowing Miss Awan to work in Parliament.

Tory MPs have also written to the Serjeant-at-Arms, who is responsible for order and security in the Commons, to demand he also investigates the affair.

Tory Party chairman Brandon Lewis said last night: This clear breach of security not only puts Parliament at risk, it also raises serious questions about Jeremy Corbyns judgment and integrity.

Tory MP Leo Docherty added: We all know how the security of Parliament is a matter of the utmost importance and Jeremy Corbyn has put this at risk.

Commons authorities were facing questions last night about the apparent breach of basic security rules.

Mr Corbyn had a run-in with the Commons authorities in 1987 after Ronan Bennett, who worked as a temporary research assistant, had his pass suspended

Security at Parliament is supposed to have been stepped up since the 2017 Westminster terror attack, but passholders can still escort anyone on to the estate as a visitor.

According to reports in the Huffington Post, Miss Awan is being escorted into Parliament every day by Labour staffers after queuing up to enter as a visitor.

Mr Corbyn is said to be aware she does not have the required security clearance. Mr Murray, one of the Labour leaders closest advisers, is said to have applied for a pass more than a year ago and is believed to have worked part-time since February.

A former co-chairman of the Stop the War Coalition alongside Mr Corbyn, he is chief of staff at the trade union Unite.

It is understood Mr Murrays links to communism may have been raised as an issue which could be delaying the process.

Yesterday, a spokesman for the Commons authorities said: An investigation into an alleged breach of Parliamentary rules has been launched and so we will not be commenting further.

A Parliamentary spokesman said: Visitor passes are for visitors only; they cannot be used to carry out work on the Parliamentary estate.

The spokesman added: Anyone carrying out work on the estate must have been through the vetting process and hold a Parliamentary pass. Anyone working on the estate on a visitor pass would be in breach of this rule.

Applicants are asked to provide information about themselves, family members and other associates, which may be checked against data held by MI5 and third party references. It is not uncommon for the process to take up to a year.

Every Parliament staffer needs a Commons pass and is required to pass a counter-terrorist check (CTC) into their background and associates

Mr Corbyn had a run-in with the Commons authorities in 1987 after Ronan Bennett, who worked as a temporary research assistant, had his pass suspended.

The novelist was convicted of murdering a policeman in 1975, but the verdict was later overturned.

Mr Corbyn, a backbench MP at the time, accused the security services in October 1987 of smearing his assistants character.

A spokesman for Mr Corbyn said last night: We dont comment on staffing matters.

A Labour source added: We have not been told that any member of staff has been refused a pass or any reasons for why any pass may not have yet been granted.

A vocal backer of anti-Israel boycotts

By Emine Sinmaz and Miles Dilworth

Iram Awan is an activist who has previously appeared to support the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions campaign, which encourages consumers not to buy Israeli goods.

The 39-year-old worked for the London director of the Open Society Foundations until she joined Mr Corbyns office.

She has previously said that she has never been aligned to any political party and was an activist with Left Unity, the group founded in 2013 as an alternative to Labour.

The activist appeared to support a protest at a Barclays branch in Wales

Miss Awan appears to have deleted her social media profiles but there are traces of her activism online.

Posting under the username Girl-Paradox, she tweeted a series of pro-Palestinian remarks in 2014.

She appeared to support a protest at a Barclays branch in Machynlleth, Wales, over the banking giants holdings in Elbit, Israels largest military technology company.

Protesters shut down the branch on August 8, 2014, and held signs reading: Barclays is closed due to investment in Israeli arms companies.

Miss Awan tweeted that day: What an amazing action in Machynlleth! Barclays is a major shareholder in Elbit. 

Last year she bought a one-bedroom flat in west London with Ian Chamberlain, 34, an activist involved in the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and the Stop the War Coalition.

Ally was Communist until 2016

Andrew Murray is one of Jeremy Corbyns closest allies.

But the senior union figure is a controversial figure, only quitting the Communist Party in 2016 and once expressing solidarity with North Korea.

He is chief of staff to Unite boss Len McCluskey  another key ally of Mr Corbyn  and was seconded to the party leaders office during last years election.

Mr Murray works one and a half days a week for Mr Corbyn and is one of his key advisers. Both are former chairmen of the Stop the War Coalition.

Mr Murray is also a close friend of Seumas Milne, Labours head of communications.

Yesterday it emerged Mr Murray has been working in Mr Corbyns office since February, despite not having a parliamentary pass. Labour sources told the Financial Times that he applied for a pass 12 months ago.

One said: Its not been rejected, nor has it been accepted  it is an extraordinary delay.
Politicians in Canberra rarely see eye to eye - but it was a different story on Wednesday night as they posed for photos together at the annual Midwinter Ball.

Regarded as the biggest social event of the year in the nation's capital, guests began arriving at Parliament House from 5pm.

Usually staged in the middle of winter, the gala evening was delayed until spring this year due to renovations which closed the Great Hall at Parliament House.

Australian music darling Jessica Mauboy was the star performer, with the healthy crowd also entertained by veteran comedian Bob Downe.

Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull was absent from the event, deciding instead to spend the night sending a snide tweet about Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, while former foreign affairs minister Julie Bishop was also not present.

Greens deputy leader Adam Bandt's wife Claudia Perkins made a statement with her appearance, shaving a protest message into the side of her head.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison holds the hand of his wife Jenny after arriving at Parliament House

Leader of the Opposition Bill Shorten with his wife Chloe on Wednesday night in Canberra

Sky News presenter Peta Credlin poses for a photo with her husband Brian Loughnane

Greens deputy leader Adam Bandt with his wife Claudia Perkins, who shaved a protest message into the side of her head

Shadow Minister for Infrastructure Anthony Albanese and his wife Carmel Tebbutt

As part of some of the auction items on display, Prime Minister Scott Morrison agreed to prepare and serve a dinner at Kirribilli House with Opposition Leader Bill Shorten offering a chat over a glass or two of wine alongside deputy leader Tanya Plibersek.

Other guests who dusted off their tuxedos and cocktail dresses included actor Sam Neill, Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack, Labor Senator Kristina Keneally, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure Anthony Albanese and Sky News presenter Peta Credlin.

Mr Turnbull stayed away from the event, deciding instead to call out his leadership challenger Mr Dutton on Twitter.

The former Liberal leader said Mr Dutton's eligibility to sit in parliament should be referred to the High Court.

'The point I have made to Scott Morrison and other colleagues is that given the uncertainty around Peter Dutton's eligibility, acknowledged by the Solicitor General, he should be referred to the High Court, as Barnaby (Joyce) was, to clarify the matter,' Mr Turnbull said.

Mr Dutton's eligibility to serve as an MP was questioned after it emerged two childcare centres owned by his family trust had received more than $5.6million in subsidies.

Ms Bishop's absence came after she stepped down from the Liberal frontbench amid claims of bullying during the party's leadership crisis.

Deputy Leader of the Opposition Tanya Plibersek with husband Michael Coutts-Trotter

Respected New Zealand actor Sam Neill hamming it up for the cameras (left), with Senator Derryn Hinch (right)

In previous years, the cost of the Liberal Party deputy leader's extravagant dress was often a talking point.

High profile couple Barnaby Joyce and Vikki Campion also chose to stay at home.

Their decision comes after Mr Joyce and his now-estranged wife Natalie appeared at the ball together last year, with the former deputy prime minister cracking his whip for the cameras.

Greens MP Adam Bandt attended with his wife Claudia Perkins, just days after he was criticised for describing her as 'hot' in a Facebook post.

Anne Aly, Labor MP, arrives at the Midwinter Ball at Parliament House in Canberra

Attorney-General Christian Porter poses for a photo while his wife Jennifer holds his arm

Liberal MP for Goldstein Tim Wilson waves to the camera with husband Ryan Bolger

Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack stands arm-in-arm with his wife Catherine at the Midwinter Ball

Pictured from left: Opposition leader Bill Shorten, Chloe Shorten, Jenny Morrison, and Prime Minister Scott Morrison

Ms Perkins shaved an anti-coal message reading 'COAL KILLS' into the side of her head, as well as wearing a necklace with the same words.

On Thursday night, Mr Bandt posted a photo of himself and Ms Perkins on a night out, describing her as his 'hot wife'.

The couple were attending a dance adaptation of Dark Emu in Melbourne.

He copped a barrage of criticism on social media after posting the photo.

'Women in the public eye are sexually objectified enough and you are alienating your progressive support base by contributing to that. Be more measured in your social media posts. This is not a public statement, it is a private one,' one person commented.

Another added: 'Sounds like you are objectifying your wife for public consumption. Be proud of her, call her lovely or intelligent or even beautiful, but why promote her in this way in public? Undignified, disappointing.'

Ms Perkins also commented on the photo to defend her husband.

'It's OK everyone, I'm completely fine with this post! It was just a reference to how hot we are for each other even after 11 years together,' she said.

Scott Morrison kisses his wife Jenny on the cheek as the pair arrive for the Midwinter Ball
A row broke out over fuel duty yesterday after petrol prices hit a four-year high.

Chancellor Philip Hammond suggested on Tuesday that an eight-year freeze in the levy was coming to an end.

But motoring groups warned such a move would harm businesses, hit families and damage Conservative Party fortunes.

Chancellor Philip Hammond (pictured) suggested that an eight-year freeze in the levy was coming to an end.

They said drivers were already paying 40billion in taxes for Third World roads. And they pointed out that pump prices have risen for ten weeks in a row.

It is thought Mr Hammond, who needs 20billion for an NHS spending boost, could unveil a duty rise in his autumn budget.

The freeze has been saving the typical motorist around 160 a year.

Former minister Robert Halfon (pictured) warned plenty of Tory MPs would block a duty hike if it was tabled in the budget

With the oil price surging  it hit a 2018 high of $80 a barrel yesterday  the cost of unleaded has risen to 1.30 a litre and 1.34 for diesel.

Filling up the average tank now costs more than 70  the most since July 2014 and up to 18 more than just two years ago.

Howard Cox, founder of FairFuelUK, claimed a duty hike would be seen as opportunism from an out-of-touch Chancellor. He added: Mr Hammond is playing Russian roulette with his partys electoral fortunes by threatening a duty hike on hard pressed drivers.

Steve Gooding of the RAC Foundation said: It wasnt just a long, hot summer for drivers, it was also an expensive one with pump prices rising relentlessly to the four-year high we see today. The last thing tens of millions of drivers need is a jump in fuel duty. A hike wont just hit motorists.

Fuel is a huge expense for many businesses whether they run cars, vans or lorries, and any additional cost will ultimately be passed on to consumers.

Whether you drive or not you will pay the price as goods and services become increasingly dear.

Fuel duty has been frozen since 2011 at 57.95p per litre for both petrol and diesel. In the last budget, Mr Hammond said the decision to freeze it would save drivers 160 a year on average.

Fuel duty raised almost 28billion during the 2017/18 tax year, according to official estimates.

Mr Hammond said the freeze had cost the Exchequer around 46billion.

But campaigners have pointed out that motorists in Britain were still among the most heavily taxed in the world.

At 1.30 a litre for unleaded, 57.95p goes on fuel duty and around 22p on VAT  a total of 80p.

Fuel duty raised almost 28billion during the 2017/18 tax year, according to official estimates

Drivers must also pay road tax  Vehicle Excise Duty  as well as insurance premium tax. Motoring journalist and broadcaster Quentin Wilson said: UK drivers already pay 40billion a year in motoring taxes for shocking Third World roads. Raising fuel duty with Brexit, oil at close to $80 and slow consumer spending is arrogant and reckless  and the way to lose the next election. Why doesnt Westminster understand how important the road economy is to all our lives?

A Treasury study in 2014 concluded that freezing fuel duty helped the economy to the extent of almost offsetting the tax lost to the Exchequer.

Tory MP Robert Halfon said: Any tax hikes on drivers will impact badly on business, the economy and push up prices we all pay in the shops.

According to Robert Halfon, pump prices are already rising rapidly

Pump prices are already rising rapidly now, being 15p up on last year.

A fuel duty hit will slow growth and cripple many small businesses. We must keep the freeze in this levy for the whole of this Parliament.

The former minister warned plenty of Tory MPs would block a duty hike if it was tabled in the budget.

It is also thought that the DUP, which keeps the Conservatives in power, would not support a rise.

Before the last budget, six of the partys ten MPs wrote to the Chancellor urging him to keep the fuel duty freeze.

Since April, the cost of filling up a typical family car that runs on unleaded or diesel has risen by around 6. The rising cost of fuel has become one of the main household expenses that has been driving up the cost of living. Last night the price of oil was approaching a four-year high.
Halle Williams, 14, has been missing since last Wednesday

The parents of a teenage girl missing for more than a week have made a desperate plea for her to come home.

Halle Williams, 14, has not been seen since skipping her final class at Safety Bay High School in Perth's south last Wednesday.

Her distraught mother and father believe the Year 9 student is in the nearby suburb of Coolongup with a boy she met recently.

'I do believe someone is hiding her and I do believe that she is under the influence of someone else,' her mother Maxine told Seven News.

'Just come home. It doesn't matter what you've done. We can fix it. Just come home and be safe.'

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Halle Williams (pictured) has not been seen since skipping her final class at Safety Bay High School in Perth's south last Wednesday

The parents (pictured) of a teenage girl missing for more than a week have made a desperate plea for her to come home

Police said the missing teenager may have been at the Waikiki Village Shopping Centre on Sunday.

Her parents sounded the alarm days before when they arrived to pick her up from school but were told she had not attended her last class.

But days of frantic searching have turned up no trace of the 14-year-old.

Her parents said they just want to know she is safe.

'I've walked the streets. I've drove around all the areas every day. I've missed work,' Ms Williams said.

She and her husband Ceri Williams have now turned to social media, scouring their daughter's profiles for any sign she is okay.

Police are urging anyone who has seen Halle or who has information to contact them on 131 444.
President Donald Trump is using an event honoring Congressional of Medal Honor winners - the nation's highest military honor - to praise their strength courage while joking it shows his own ego 'is not that big.'

'The supreme symbol of American courage,' Trump said, praising the 33 Medal of Honor recipients in the East Room of the White House on Wednesday evening.

'It is the ultimate tribute to American valor. You are the strongest, the bravest and the finest among us. See? My ego's not that big.'

President Donald Trump used an event honoring Congressional of Medal Honor winners to praise their strength courage while joking about his own ego

First daughter Ivanka Trump attends a reception for the Congressional Medal of Honor Society

President Donald Trump greets people as he leaves a Congressional Medal of Honor Society reception

He added: 'I admit it!' as people in the room laughed and applauded.

Trump often praises himself as a 'very stable genius' and touts his ability to make amazing deals.

In January, he defended his mental fitness for office, calling himself a 'very stable genius' and 'like, really smart.'

'Actually, throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart,' Trump tweeted after the release of 'Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House,' by author Michael Wolff. The book contained several explosive claims, including doubts among Trump's senior aides about his mental fitness for office.

During the 2016 campaign, Trump released a letter from his doctor saying he'd be the 'healthiest individual' to ever serve as president.

Questions were raised about the lack of medical details offered about the 70 year old.

First daughter Ivanka Trump wore a black bedazzled headband with a chic black ensemble

In July he tweeted 'Wow, highest Poll Numbers in the history of the Republican Party. That includes Honest Abe Lincoln and Ronald Reagan.'

Polling hadn't been invented when Abraham Lincoln was president and historians typically rank Lincoln as the best president in history.

Just this week Trump was criticized for claiming the U.S. response in Puerto Rico after it was devastated by Hurricane Maria was an 'unsung success.'

Trump made the remark on Tuesday after being asked what lessons he had learned from the destruction caused by Hurricane Maria.

He said: 'The job that FEMA and law enforcement and everybody did, working along with the governor in Puerto Rico, I think was tremendous.

'I think that Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success. Texas we have been given A-pluses for. Florida we've been given A-pluses for.

Puerto Rico's death toll was 2,975 in the storm's wake. The island was without power for 11 months.

Trump is hosting Medal of Honor recipients and their families for a reception on Wednesday evening honoring them for their dedication and service to America.

Several members of his administration were present, including first daughter Ivanka Trump, chief of staff John Kelly, Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, Transportation Department of Secretary Elaine Chao, and Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie.

President Donald Trump listens to President of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society Drew Dix deliver remarks during a reception for the Congressional Medal of Honor Society

Trump's past claims about himself include that he is a 'very stable genius,' the 'healthiest individual' to ever be president and more popular than Lincoln

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway attends the White House reception for Congressional Medal of Honor recipients

White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, a veteran, arrives at a White House reception for Congressional Medal of Honor recipients

Adviser to the President and first daughter Ivanka Trump listens to remarks during a Congressional Medal of Honor Society reception

There have been 77 recipients of the medal in U.S. history.

'We are loving our veterans, I think honestly, even more than before. We respect them so much. There is a whole different spirit over our country. We respect our veterans more than we have ever respected our veterans,' he said. 'We are working so hard on that.'

And while he used the occasion to praise them, he also took a moment to discuss Hurricane Florence, which is expected to make landfall Thursday.

'Residents in the path of these storms should comply with all evacuation orders and other emergency instructions. Protection of life is the absolute highest priority, and that is what we are doing,' he said.
The Brexit Secretary (pictured) will today tell the EU that Britain will refuse to pay a 39billion divorce bill if there is no deal

The Brexit Secretary will today tell the EU that Britain will refuse to pay a 39billion divorce bill if there is no deal.

Dominic Raab is meeting EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier in a bid to persuade him to accept Theresa May's Chequers plan.

He will tell him that Britain won't pay the financial settlement if an agreement isn't reached, saying: 'There is no deal without the whole deal.'

The EU has already has said it will not accept the Chequers plan because it effectively keeps British goods in the single market without accepting freedom of movement.

But writing in The Daily Telegraph, Mr Raab insists that Britain will not compromise further.

'We want a good deal that benefits the UK and EU,' he writes.

'It remains our overriding priority, but it will require our EU friends to match the ambition and pragmatism we have demonstrated.'

He also writes that Britain has nothing to fear from a no deal scenario and dismisses 'scaremongering nonsense' about the country falling short of medicine and food.

'If that doesn't happen, regrettable and unlikely as it may be, the UK will manage the challenges of 'no deal' so that we make a success of Brexit,' he writes.

His comments echo Theresa May's stark warning on Wednesday that Britain's 39billion divorce offer to Brussels will be slashed if the EU fails to grant a comprehensive trade deal.

The Prime Minister insisted it was a 'specific offer' made on the expectation of an acceptable agreement.

She warned the bloc that without a deal 'the position changes'. Mrs May stressed that the UK was 'a country that honours our obligations'. But sources suggested the divorce payment could be slashed by more than half if there is no deal.

Dominic Raab, UK exiting the European Union secretary, left and Michel Barnier, chief negotiator for the European Union, shake hands following a news conference in Brussels, Belgium, on 31 August

Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab warned last month that the final payment could be cut  and could also be delayed, causing problems for the EU's budget process.

Yesterday Mrs May said: 'The specific offer was made in the spirit of our desire to reach a deal with the European Union and on the basis, as the EU itself has said, that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. Without a deal, the position changes.'

A second set of 'technical notices' outlining the preparations for a no-deal exit will be published today. In a series of announcements:

Ministers will say that holidaymakers will not be hit with mobile phone roaming charges when travelling in Europe  even if Britain leaves without a deal;

The no-deal notices will warn that drivers would need a new international licence to use their cars in the EU in the event of no deal;

They will also warn that anyone with less than six months to run on their passports would have to renew before travelling to the EU.

The 24 notices will also cover public procurement, vehicle standards and the future of co-operation with EU space programmes.

On mobiles, ministers will announce they have struck an agreement with the major mobile phone operators that will avoid a return to the exorbitant charges of the past.

Whitehall sources said Vodafone, Three, EE and O2, which account for 85 per cent of the market, have agreed the deal following months of talks with ministers. 'Market forces suggest the others will follow suit,' a source said last night.

Mr Raab will also issue a pledge today that the 45-a-month cap on mobile data in the EU will also remain, even if talks collapse.

Jean-Claude Juncker (pictured address the European Parliament Wednesday) has insisted Britain cannot stay in only parts of the EU's single market after Brexit in a new blow to Theresa May's plans

On driving licences, motorists will need a new international licence to use their cars in the EU in the event of no deal. The EU is likely to refuse to recognise UK driving licences if Brexit talks collapse, a Department for Transport document will state.

An international driving licence will be needed for anyone driving in the EU after March 29, for hiring or obtaining insurance, unless Brussels or individual member states waive the rules. To complicate matters, there are two types of permit and different versions could be needed for different countries.

An EU notice issued last month said: 'A driving licence issued by the UK will no longer be recognised by the member states.'

Ministers say the UK will continue to recognise EU licences.

Government sources said a Cabinet meeting today  the first of its kind  will be told that ministers will have to begin activating the no-deal contingency plans in November in order to have them up and running in time for the UK's departure from the EU in March next year.

The timescale will intensify the pressure on both sides to strike a deal at a special EU Brexit summit now being pencilled in for the middle of November.

Brussels is sceptical about Mrs May's willingness to leave without a deal. The new technical notices are designed to demonstrate to both Brussels and the public that the Government will be ready to leave at the end of March.

Mr Raab said: 'We are stepping up our no-deal preparations so that Britain can continue to flourish, regardless of the outcome of negotiations.'

The EU Commission President (pictured making his State of the Union address) said the EU would work 'day and night' for a close relationship after the UK quits the bloc

Questioned in the House by Tory Chris Philp on whether the 39billion divorce bill would be withheld if there was no deal with the EU, Mrs May said Britain was a 'country that honours our obligations'.

But she insisted it was 'very clear that we need to have a link between the future relationship and the withdrawal agreement'.

'The specific offer was made in our desire to reach a deal with the European Union,' she said.

'And on the basis, as the EU themselves have said, that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, without a deal the position changes.'

The Prime Minister's (pictured today in Downing Street) Brexit blueprint imagines Britain following EU rules on goods to maintain existing trade, while striking out in other areas such as services
Former President George W. Bush is hitting the fundraising trail for Republican candidates even as he stays silent about the biggest elephant in the election: President Donald Trump.

Bush is re-emerging as party leaders are sounding the alarm that Republicans may lose both chambers of Congress in November's midterm election.

The former president will look to boost both House and Senate candidates in races that could make or break Republicans' chances of keeping Congress.

But while he'll be publicly supporting GOP contenders, he's been tight-lipped about the party's current leader: Trump.

Bush started his campaign swing in his home state of Texas Wednesday morning, Politico reported, with an event in Fort Worth Republican Congressman Will Hurd, who's running for re-election in a district that Trump lost in 2016.

Former President George W Bush is hitting the campaign trail to help Republicans in the midterms

Bush has been quiet on President Trump

On Friday, Bush heads to Florida to hold a couple of events for Republican Rick Scott, who's challenging Democratic Senator Bill Nelson in one of the most competitive and expenses Senate contests this cycle.

Next week Bush will hold a fundraiser in Fort Worth for North Dakota Senate candidate Kevin Cramer on September 19 and, the next day, he'll hold a Dallas fundraiser for Texas Republican Congressman Pete Sessions.

Sessions' House district is one of the most competitive this fall and Bush has a personal, vested interest: Sessions is his congressman as he lives in the district and it's where his presidential library is located.

Next month, Bush will host fundraisers for two GOP Senate contenders  Josh Hawley of Missouri and Mike Braun of Indiana.

'While he prefers to consider himself retired from politics, President Bush recognizes how important it is to keep the Senate and decided to help a few key candidates,' said Freddy Ford, a Bush spokesman, to Politico.

His return comes as Republicans are publicly fretting about their party's chances in November.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell warned Tuesday the midterms will be 'very challenging' forRepublicans and is raising the alarm that they could have difficulty holding onto the Senate.

Independent political prognosticators are giving Democrats strong odds of retaking control of the House but Republicans were believed to be in a good position to keep the Senate.

The political winds have been changing, however.

Bush's re-emergence comes as former President Barack Obama is returning to the campaign trail to boost Democrats, who are bullish on their chances of retaking Congress.

McConnell, seen here with fellow GOP Leaders President Donald Trump and Speaker Paul Ryan, is concerned about his party's chances in the November election

Speaking out: Obama acknowledged that he was setting aside 'a wise American tradition' by speaking about his successor in the Oval Office nut said: 'This time's different.'

Traditionally former presidents don't criticize the current office holder.

Obama made an exception however.

'You should still be concerned with our current course. You should still want to see a restoration of honesty and decency and lawfulness in our government,' the former president said.

'We're supposed to stand up to discrimination, and we're sure as heck supposed to stand up clearly and unequivocally to Nazi sympathizers. How hard can that be? Saying that Nazis are bad,' he said.
Theresa May has told allies she will not resign even if Tory plotters force a vote of no confidence in her leadership this autumn.

Senior MPs yesterday rounded on Eurosceptic rebels who discussed plans to oust the Prime Minister at a meeting of the European Research Group.

Anger at Mrs Mays Chequers deal boiled over at the meeting in Westminster attended by 45 Conservative MPs on Tuesday night.

Mrs Mays Chequers deal boiled over at the meeting in Westminster attended by 45 Conservative MPs on Tuesday night

Stunned sources said half a dozen hardline Eurosceptics called for Mrs May to go and discussed tactics for removing her. No one spoke up to defend the PM.

Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith yesterday accused the rebels of indulging in stupid personality nonsense.

He said he opposed the Chequers deal but talk of a coup was totally overblown and he would stamp on any that he found.

Iain Duncan Smith yesterday accused the rebels of indulging in stupid personality nonsense

Mr Duncan Smith, who was not at the meeting, added: You get 50 MPs of any political party together and youre always going to get some that are going to start arguing the toss about ridiculous issues.

All I would say to them is: Stop it, its just stupid. If youve got nothing better to do, go and find yourself some work, because thats the best cure for stupid personality nonsense.

Downing Street played down the significance of the plot yesterday.

ERG chairman Jacob Rees-Mogg, who was not present at the meeting, insisted he was seeking a change of Government policy, not a change in leadership

Privately, aides to the Prime Minister are resigned to the possibility of a challenge from the Eurosceptic wing this autumn.

But sources said Mrs May had made it clear in private she would stand and fight if rebels manage to gather the 48 signatories needed to spark a vote of no confidence.

Allies said Mrs May would fight on even if a significant number of MPs voted against her. She feels a deep sense of duty about leading the country through this period and delivering Brexit, one said.

We are not complacent about the risk of a challenge. But those who are attacking her should not underestimate her determination to see the job through.

The ERG has led Tory opposition to the Chequers deal and claims as many as 80 MPs will vote against it if Mrs May tries to push it through Parliament.

But the group is divided over tactics. While its leaders want to force Mrs May to back down and pursue a straightforward free trade deal with Brussels, some members want to remove her and replace her with a Brexiteer.

Rebel MP Andrea Jenkyns (left) told the meeting 'Chequers is going to happen unless we act'. While James Duddridge (right) said 'we are being boiled alive'

Rebel MP Andrea Jenkyns told the meeting: Chequers is going to happen unless we act. The PM is the problem. Former whip James Duddridge said: Were being boiled alive here.

One MP is said to have told the meeting: We have to make sure we get a clean kill.

Another said: This is a fight to the death. I would be amazed if a leadership contest is not triggered straight after [the Tory] conference unless she backs down.

When discussion turned to the Conservative conference slogan Opportunity 2022, one MP shouted out: Opportunity Corbyn more like. But others at the meeting claimed only a minority were involved. Tory MP Michael Fabricant said: I attended. Reports of Theresa Mays demise are greatly exaggerated.

Of the 40 to 50 there, only five or six people discussed letters to the chairman of the 1922 [Committee] and they wrote ages ago. The rest of us sat in uncomfortable silence, though most of us are unhappy with Chequers.

Michael Gove yesterday warned rebels they would put Brexit in jeopardy if they destabilised Mrs May. The Environment Secretary said: This is loose talk. The critical thing is to ensure we deliver on that Brexit mandate.

Any diversion or any distraction from that mission means our ability to ensure that the referendum mandate that we were given is delivered, is undermined.

ERG chairman Jacob Rees-Mogg, who was not present at the meeting, insisted he was seeking a change of Government policy, not a change in leadership.

I have long said, and repeated again and again, that the policy needs to be changed but I am supporting the person, he said.

Former Brexit secretary David Davis, who quit the Government over the Chequers plan, also insisted he would play no part in a coup attempt against Mrs May.

I disagree with her on one issue  this issue. She should stay in place because we need stability, he said.

Former Brexit minister Steve Baker, who presided over Tuesdays ERG meeting, insisted the group was trying to stay off the leadership issue.

It capped a difficult week for the ERG, which was forced to abandon plans to publish a 140-page alternative blueprint for Brexit because of fears it would not stand up to scrutiny.

Yesterdays headlines also overshadowed a bid to get on the front foot by publishing a paper setting out the groups proposals for resolving the Irish border problem.
A clumsy attempt to show diversity among its students has ended in disaster for a French art school, which resorted to blacking up teenagers in an advertisement to attract American pupils.

The Emile Cohl School in Lyon was accused of blackwashing a photo after some white pupils in the original group picture were digitally modified to appear with darker skin, and black people were inserted in the shot.

The offensive before and after images caused an uproar on social media, with people slating the art school for discrimination and racism on Twitter.

The original and photoshopped versions of the art college's group photo, which was edited to appeal to American students

When the different versions were exposed on Twitter, people criticised the college for 'discrimination and racism'

Emile Cohl, a privately-owned institution, intends on expanding to Los Angeles by opening a new branch in America within the next four years, reports Rue89Lyon.

To help it drum up interest in enrolling, it started a promotional campaign via a new website for future American students.

The school forwarded the original group photo  snapped by a pupil  to an unnamed communications agency based in California, which then edited the picture before it was published on the website.

Sharp-eyed French pupils, however, quickly spotted the differences  four students have had their skin blackened, and two young black women have been integrated in the photo  and uploaded both images to Twitter.

The person posting the photos explained: For the opening of Emile Cohls new wing in Los Angeles they fiddled the class picture by adding students and retouching some skin colours to simulate a class of more varied origins.'

Reactions to the before and after images ranged from those describing it as racist and shameful, to others who slammed the altered version as poor quality photoshopping.

The Emile Cohl School in Lyon is an art college which was founded in 1984

The before and after versions were shared on Twitter. The advertisement for the schools branch in Los Angeles was part of its bid to secure money from American animation studios

Emile Cohl, a privately-owned institution in Lyon, France, intends on expanding to Los Angeles

Antoine Riviere, the schools director, has denied any intention to manipulate reality and  although apologising for causing offence  also dismissed accusations on social media that the edited photo had been blackwashed.

Blaming the public relations failure on the Californian communications agency, he said: This is an initiative of US providers; its something that has completely escaped us.

'As soon as we learned [of] the manipulation, we deleted the publication. We are well aware of the problem.

The advertisement for the schools branch in Los Angeles was part of its bid to secure money from American animation studios, reports The Local.
The loss of a single gene millions of years ago may have helped human ancestors make the change from a forest environment to life as hunter-gatherers on the African savannah, according to a new study.

And this, in turn, may have contributed to modern humans unmatched abilities as long-distance runners.

A mutation linked to the lack of a gene called CMAH lines up with the emergence of several key changes in early hominids bodies, such as long legs and more powerful gluteal muscles, all of which helped to drive our species physical endurance.

The loss of a single gene millions of years ago may have helped human ancestors make the change from a forest environment to life as hunter-gatherers on the African savannah, and ultimately contributed to modern humans unmatched abilities as long-distance runners

In the new study, researchers from the University of California, San Diego examined mice who were engineered to lack this gene.

The loss of CMAH has previously been tied to modern humans fertility rates and even cancer risk from red meat.

And, it sets humans apart from our closest living ancestors, who have this gene.

We discovered this first clear genetic difference between humans and our closest living evolutionary relatives, the chimpanzees, more than 20 years ago, said senior author Ajit Varki, MD.

In the study, the researchers constructed running wheels and a mouse treadmill, and investigated the differences between those with and without the gene.

According to the team, mice lacking the gene were more resistant to fatigue, had increase mitochondrial respiration and hind-limb muscle, and benefited from increased blood and oxygen supply.

We evaluated the exercise capacity (of mice lacking the CMAH gene), and noted an increased performance during treadmill testing and after 15 days of voluntary wheel running, said Okerblom, the study's first author.

A mutation linked to the lack of a gene called CMAH lines up with the emergence of several key changes in early hominids bodies, such as long legs and more powerful gluteal muscles, all of which helped to drive our species physical endurance, researchers say. File photo

Similar improvements may have occurred in human ancestors, too, the researchers say.

And if the findings translate to humans, they may have provided early hominids with a selective advantage in their move from trees to becoming permanent hunter-gatherers on the open range, Varki said.

According to the researchers, the CMAH gene was lost about 2 to 3 million years ago in the Homo genus as a result of mutations.

WHEN DID HUMAN ANCESTORS FIRST EMERGE? The timeline of human evolution can be traced back millions of years. Experts estimate that the family tree goes as such: 55 million years ago - First primitive primates evolve 15 million years ago - Hominidae (great apes) evolve from the ancestors of the gibbon 7 million years ago - First gorillas evolve. Later, chimp and human lineages diverge A recreation of a Neanderthal man is pictured 5.5 million years ago - Ardipithecus, early 'proto-human' shares traits with chimps and gorillas 4 million years ago - Ape like early humans, the Australopithecines appeared. They had brains no larger than a chimpanzee's but other more human like features 3.9-2.9 million years ago - Australoipithecus afarensis lived in Africa. 2.7 million years ago - Paranthropus, lived in woods and had massive jaws for chewing 2.6 million years ago - Hand axes become the first major technological innovation 2.3 million years ago - Homo habilis first thought to have appeared in Africa 1.85 million years ago - First 'modern' hand emerges 1.8 million years ago - Homo ergaster begins to appear in fossil record 800,000 years ago - Early humans control fire and create hearths. Brain size increases rapidly 400,000 years ago - Neanderthals first begin to appear and spread across Europe and Asia 300,000 to 200,000 years ago - Homo sapiens - modern humans - appear in Africa 50,000 to 40,000 years ago - Modern humans reach Europe Advertisement

This mutation changed the way we use sialic acids, or a family of sugar molecules that coat animal cells.

And, if affects nearly every cell type in our bodies.

The loss of the CMAH gene wasnt all good, though. While it may have turned us into better runners and boosted immunity, this change may have increased the risk of certain types of cancer and diabetes.

They are a double-edged sword, Varki said.

The consequence of a single lost gene and a small molecular change that appears to have profoundly altered human biology and abilities going back to our origins.
Your Google Home may soon be able to help you fall asleep at night.

The search giant is planning to introduce its suite of Digital Wellbeing features to Google Assistant and Home smart speakers, according to 9to5Google.

Google unveiled the Digital Wellbeing tools at its annual I/O developers conference earlier this year as a way for users to cut down on smartphone use each day.

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Your Google Home may soon be able to help you fall asleep at night. The firm is planning to introduce its suite of Digital Wellbeing features to Google Assistant and Home smart speakers

Details in application package kit (APK) associated with the latest Google app for Android revealed that such features were coming to its voice-activated devices and as a skill for its digital assistant.

There now includes a 'Digital wellbeing' setting, as well as another setting called 'Downtime,' 9to5Google noted.

It's unclear what the Downtime feature would entail, but it could be similar to Google's 'Wind Down' feature, which 'gets your phone ready for bed.'

It could could mean that Google will allow parents to block certain users from operating a Google Home or Assistant-equipped device during certain hours of the day.

9to5Google found that tapping the Family Tools menu even opens the Google Home app.

Another feature called 'Filters' could attempt to manage what kinds of topics kids can search for using Google Home or Assistant.

Details in application package kit (APK) related to the latest Google app for Android revealed that Digital Wellbeing features were coming to its voice-activated devices

Google has yet to release the Digital Wellbeing features to the public, as they'll arrive with the latest version of Android.

However, with Silicon Valley's increasing focus on device usage and social media addiction, it seems like a natural extension that these features would land on smart speakers as a further set of controls.

What's more, the parental control features also make sense, given that Google, Amazon and other tech giants have been trying to make smart speakers more family friendly.

Along with the Wind Down feature, Google's Digital Wellbeing tools include a slew of other controls.

A new dashboard tool will show you how much time you've spent on specific apps, which could be a major wake up call for some Instagram or Twitter addicts.

HOW SEVERE IS SMARTPHONE ADDICTION? With the average age for a child to get their first phone now just 10, young people are becoming more and more reliant on their smartphones. Worrying research from Korea University suggests that this dependence on the technology could even be affecting some teens' brains. The findings reveals that teenagers who are addicted to their smartphones are more likely to suffer from mental disorders, including depression and anxiety. Other studies have shown people are so dependent on their smartphone that they happily break social etiquette to use them. Researchers from mobile connectivity firm iPass surveyed more than 1,700 people in the US and Europe about their connectivity habits, preferences and expectations. The survey revealed some of the most inappropriate situations in which people have felt the need to check their phone  during sex (seven per cent), on the toilet (72 per cent) and even during a funeral (11 per cent). Nearly two thirds of people said they felt anxious when not connected to the Wi-Fi, with many saying they'd give up a range of items and activities in exchange for a connection. Sixty-one per cent of respondents said that Wi-Fi was impossible to give up  more than for sex (58 per cent), junk food (42 per cent), smoking (41 per cent), alcohol (33 per cent), or drugs (31 per cent). A quarter of respondents even went so far as to say that they'd choose Wi-Fi over a bath or shower, and 19 per cent said they'd choose Wi-Fi over human contact. Advertisement

If you notice that one app is becoming a particular problem, Google's new App Timer feature might be able to help.

It sets time limits on apps, so that after a certain amount of time, the app icon will go gray and be set to do not disturb.

Similarly, Google's new Wind Down feature is meant to tackle toxic phone use before bedtime.

Users tell Google Assistant when they want to go to bed, and it will switch to Do Not Disturb mode, as well as adjust all the phone's display colors to greyscale.

All the colors return to the phone when you wake up.

Google said these wellbeing features are expected to hit phones coming this fall.
A champagne bottle has been designed to enable wealthy tourists travelling to space to drink fizz in zero gravity.

Future space tourists will be able to toast the view of the Earth from orbit with a high-tech bottle of Mumm Champagne, the company claims.

The champagne, which is being promoted by Usain Bolt, is being released this month under the name Mumm Grand Cordon Stellar.

The space age bottle is the result of a new collaboration between the Mumm Champagne house and designer Octave de Gaulle.

A champagne bottle has been designed to enable wealthy tourists travelling to space to drink fizz in zero gravity. The champagne, which is being promoted by Usain Bolt, is being released this month under the name Mumm Grand Cordon Stellar

HOW CAN PEOPLE DRINK CHAMPAGNE IN ZERO GRAVITY? The space age bottle is the result of a collaboration between the Mumm Champagne house and designer Octave de Gaulle. The Champagne is in the upper portion of the bottle. Below that is a finger-controlled valve which people can squeeze when they want to release a globule of Champagne. With the help of natural gas in the bottle, small globules of the liquid are released, emerging as foam. Designers had to stop the wine from streaming across the cabin. In order to do this they created an aluminium strip that forms a ring over the bottle's top. This means the liquid does not come out all at once. Drinkers can then scoop the wine out of the air using a tiny long-stemmed glass that resembles an egg cup. Advertisement

The champagne will be tested during an upcoming flight from Reims, in the heart of France's Champagne country, today.

A specially-equipped Airbus A300 Zero-G plane (sometimes nicknamed the 'Vomit Comet') will make a series of parabolic maneuvers, climbing steeply before plunging down to create 20-second bursts of weightlessness.

Despite undergoing the same zero-gravity training that Nasa requires for its astronauts  the champagne's target audience is not scientists, as they are not allowed to drink alcohol aboard the International Space Station.

Instead, the bottle is aimed at the forthcoming wave of suborbital and orbital space tourism promoted by private operators like Virgin Galactic and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin.

'They won't have to be performing any professional tasks on board, so they'll probably be able to drink a bit of alcohol,' said astronaut Jean-Francois Clervoy, who heads the company that operates the Airbus Zero-G.

In zero gravity, the challenge is to get wine out of the bottle.

'You could imagine drinking it with a straw,' said physicist Gerard Liger-Belair from the University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne, who consulted on the project.

In search of a more elegant solution, the Mumm team turned to Mr De Gaulle  a great-grand-nephew of the French wartime leader Charles de Gaulle  who came up with a bottle divided into two chambers.

The Champagne is in the upper portion of the bottle.

Below that is a finger-controlled valve that uses the Champagne's carbon dioxide to eject small amounts of wine, which emerges as foam.

Designers had to stop the wine from streaming across the cabin. In order to do this they created an aluminium strip that forms a ring over the bottle's top

The Champagne is in the upper portion of the bottle. Below that is a finger-controlled valve which people can squeeze when they want to release a globule of Champagne

The space age bottle is the result of a collaboration between the Mumm Champagne house and designer Octave de Gaulle (pictured). The Champagne is in the upper portion of the bottle

However, designers had to find a way to stop the alcoholic foam from streaming across the cabin as soon as it was poured in space.

'The bubbles of carbon dioxide in carbonated beverages aren't buoyant in a weightless environment, so they remain randomly distributed throughout the fluid, even after swallowing,' says Nasa.

'This means that carbonated beverages including soft drinks and beer may become a foamy mess during space travel.'

In order to do this, Mr De Gaulle created an aluminium strip that forms a ring over the bottle's top to capture a sphere of bubbly.

Designers had to find a way to stop the alcoholic foam from streaming across the cabin as soon as it was poured in space

The futuristic bottle uses the natural gas in Champagne to expel the liquid into a ring-shaped frame'. In zero-gravity the droplets are concentrated into droplets of bubbles

The futuristic bottle uses the natural gas in Champagne to expel the liquid into a ring-shaped frame'.

'Then you rotate the bottle and the foam sphere is released,' he said in his Paris workshop.

The bottle has has a mechanism inside that means the champagne comes out in droplets of bubbles.

Drinkers can then scoop the wine out of the air using a tiny long-stemmed glass that resembles an egg cup.

Clervoy said the moment the foam turns to liquid in the mouth is a sensation that can't be matched on Earth.

The bottle is aimed at the coming wave of suborbital and orbital space tourism promoted by private operators such as Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic (pictured)

'It's really magical because the Champagne lands not just on your tongue but on the palate, the cheeks  the gastronomic sensations are magnified,' said Professor Clervoy.

Mumm is now looking to partner with a public space agency or one of the private space tourism start-up in order to promote their product.

Mr De Gaulle says he plans to refine his prototype, and may be one day astronauts might be able to ring in a new year while on a mission.

'There has always been a bit of alcohol in space, even if it's officially prohibited,' he said
Google is facing fresh legal action over claims it recorded users' locations, even after they had switched off its optional 'Location History' setting on their device.

The company is under investigation by Arizona's attorney general, who is looking into whether the search firm deceived its users.

Google could face huge fines  up to $10,000 (7,770) per violation  if the claims are confirmed by a team of lawyers assembled by the state of Arizona.

This could lead to unprecedented penalties in the United States, potentially prompting similar moves elsewhere in the world.

Google previously claimed it did not mislead customers over its location tracking.

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Google is facing fresh legal action over claims it recorded peoples' locations, even after they had turned off its optional 'Location History' setting. The company is under investigation by Arizona's attorney general, who is looking into whether the search firm deceived its users

The investigation was launched by Republican Mark Brnovich, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke to the Washington Post under the condition of anonymity.

A public filing dated August 21  one week after an explosive report revealed the extent of the location tracking undertaken by Google  has recently come to light.

The redacted document reveals Brnovich's office has hired a team of lawyers to look into an unnamed technology company.

The team are investigating its 'storage of consumer location data, tracking of consumer location, and other consumer tracking through . . . smartphone operating systems, even when consumers turn off "location services" and take other steps to stop such tracking.'

A spokesman for the Arizona attorney general's office has since released a statement on the matter.

'While we cannot confirm the company or companies at the center of this probe, we decided to move forward and retain outside counsel after a series of troubling news reports, including a recent story that highlighted Google's alleged tracking of consumer movements even if consumers attempt to opt out of such services,' Katie Conner told ZDNet.

'General Brnovich has prioritized consumer data privacy and cybersecurity since taking office. This investigation shouldn't surprise anyone who knows him well.'

Google clarified its position on tracking in a statement to the Washington Post.

Google spokesman Aaron Stein said location data 'helps us provide useful services when people interact with our products, like locally relevant search results and traffic predictions.'

MailOnline has contacted Google for further comment but had not received a response at the time of publication.

Google could face huge fines - up to $10,000 (7,770) per violation - if the claims are confirmed by the US lawyer and politician's team. This could lead to unprecedented penalties in the US and encourage similar moves elsewhere in the world

Google has previously claimed it did not mislead its customers over its location tracking policies (pictured)

This is not the first time that Google has had to fend off legal action over the decision to continue to track users who switched off the 'location history' setting.

Google is already embroiled in a California court case.

According to a complaint filed in August, Google falsely assured people they would not be tracked if they turn the 'Location History' feature on their phones to 'off,' and instead violates their privacy by monitoring and storing their movements.

It alleged that Google is in violation of California's Invasion of Privacy Act.

'Google represented that a user can turn off Location History at any time. With Location History off, the places you go are no longer stored,' the complaint filed in San Francisco federal court stated. 'This simply was not true.'

The plaintiff, Napoleon Patacsil of San Diego, is seeking class-action status on behalf of every US-based user of Android and iOS smartphones who turned the tracking feature off.

He is seeking unspecified damages for Google's alleged intentional violations of California privacy laws, and intrusion into people's private affairs.

HOW DOES GOOGLE TRACK ITS USERS' LOCATIONS OUTSIDE OF 'LOCATION HISTORY'? A new investigation led by the Associated Press found that some Google apps automatically store time-stamped location data without asking - even when you've paused Location History. The investigation found, for example: Google stores a snapshot of where you are when you open its Maps app

Automatic daily weather updates on Android phones pinpoint where you are each time the forecast is refreshed

Simple searchers, such as 'chocolate chip cookies,' or 'kids science kits,' pinpoint your precise latitude and longitude  accurate to the square foot - and save it to your Google account This information is all logged as part of the 'Web and App Activity feature, which does not specifically reference location information in its description. This is enabled by default, and stores a variety of information from Google apps and websites to your Google account. When paused, it will prevent activity on any device from being saved to your account. Leaving 'Web & App Activity' on and turning 'Location History' off only prevents Google from adding your movements to the 'timeline,' its visualization of your daily travels. It does not stop Google's collection of other location markers. Advertisement

The move follows an explosive report by the Associated Press, which revealed that several Google apps and websites store user location even if users turned off Location History.

For the investigative report, Princeton postdoctoral researcher Gunes Acar carried an Android smartphone with the 'Location History' setting turned off.

Despite the setting purportedly preventing data collection, researchers discovered Google had kept records of Dr Acar's train commute on two trips to New York and visits to the High Line park, Chelsea Market, Hell's Kitchen, Central Park and Harlem.

Researchers then plotted the locations on a map. They found that Google keeps track of your current location each time you open Google Maps.

The daily weather updates on Android phones also provided another way to track movement.

Google altered its website so that it says turning Location History off 'does not affect other location services' in phones and that some location data may be saved through other services, such as Search and Maps.

Previously, the page stated: 'With Location History off, the places you go are no longer stored.'

Google acknowledge the change in a statement to reporters.

'We have been updating the explanatory language about Location History to make it more consistent and clear across our platforms and help centers,' Google said in a statement to the Associated Press at the time.

Privacy experts have assailed Google's policy of saving user location data that it doesn't technically classify as 'location history.'

Additionally, a privacy group stated in a letter to the Federal Trade Commission that Google violated the terms of a 2011 settlement by collecting users' data even when their Location History was turned off.

In that settlement, Google said it wouldn't misrepresent its practices related to '(1) the purposes for which it collects and uses covered information, and (2) the extent to which consumers may exercise control over the collection, use, or disclosure of covered information.'

As part of the settlement, Google also agreed to a 20-year monitoring regimen.
Amazon has ditched nine books by 'pro-rape' campaigner 'Roosh' who boasts about sexual assault in his vile 'pick-up manuals'.

The retail firm took the rare step of banning self-published books by Daryush 'Roosh' Valizadeh, which detail confessions of rape.

That includes his most recent book, published last week, which had already sold 1,000 copies before it was removed from the online store.

Valizadeh, who is also a virulent homophobe, still regularly promotes his racist, sexist and anti-semitic views on Twitter, where he has more than 40,000 followers.

He is also still allowed to publish videos on YouTube where his viewers can make financial donations  contributing to the $60,000 (46,000) he takes home a year.

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The firm took the rare step of banning self-published books by Daryush 'Roosh' Valizadeh (pictured) which detail confessions of rape. He is pictured here in 2016

Amazon took down the books after it was contacted by Huffington Post for comment on an article around whether Valizadeh's content violated their guidelines.

Valizadeh is on record as advocating women be banned from voting, describing a woman's value as dependent on her 'fertility and beauty', and stating that women with eating disorders make the best girlfriends.

He left a job at a pharmaceutical company to become a 'game teacher' which involves describing how he picks up women.

Amazon has banned a number of books from its site over the years, many of which have been written by holocaust deniers.

The firm confirmed to MailOnline it had removed the books but did not comment on specific reasons for removing the products.

Valizadeh graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in microbiology and soon after started a local blog called DC Bachelor.

By 2007, he felt he had established a considerable following and decided to pen his first book, called 'Bang'.

Inside the book, he described the 'ruthlessly optimised process' that 'enabled me to put my penis inside' various women.

He later travelled abroad researching a slew of other titles that include Bang Colombia, Bang Iceland, Don't Bang Denmark, Bang Poland and Bang Lithuania.

Valizadeh caused outrage after saying he wouldn't respond to female journalists because he didn't 'respect' them. He also angered people when he tweeted a sexist message with a picture of anchor, Candice Wyatt

He has more than 15 self-published books, many of which have been widely condemned as 'rape guides' by media, residents and politicians who live in the countries he is writing about.

He once said: 'My default opinion of any girl I meet is worthless dirty wh**e until proven otherwise.'

In October 2012, Valizadeh decided to expand his online presence by creating the website 'Return of Kings'.

The website publishes a string of 'neomasculine' articles which claim women should not work, women should have their behaviour and decisions 'controlled by men' and has even encouraged males to record consensual sex with a hidden camera to ensure they are not 'falsely accused of rape'.

Other articles claim that one in four women are 'certifiably mentally ill' and should not be unable to live autonomously in today's society.

In 2015, Valizadeh wrote one of his more offensive and reviled articles  'How to Stop Rape'  in which he claims the US government should legalise rape on private property.

He has also started to tour countries where he tries gives speeches to an often small band of followers.

Despite a 42,500-strong petition calling for his entry to be blocked, he made his way to Montreal, in Canada, last August.

In the city he and his 34 supporters were met with a mob of angry protesters who threw beer in his face and chased him into a building as his followers scurried away.

Fearful he would be swamped by angry protesters again, the 'anti-feminist' hired extra security for an appearance in Toronto, which according to the Huffington Post , only had around 50 attendees.

In September 2016, a petition was also launched to have Valizadeh's self-published 'pro-rape' books removed from the online retail giant Amazon.

The self-styled pick up artist is now facing backlash in Australia over proposed 'tribal meetings', where his followers can meet in a bid to connect with 'like-minded men'.

A petition - similar to the one in Canada - was launched soon after he started tweeting about a possible appearance, which demanded the police and government work together to stop him from gaining a visa.

He has revelled in the media attention, telling female journalists that he would give them an interview if they performed fellatio on him.
The European Parliament has approved a controversial copyright law that threatens to 'destroy the internet as we know it', according to digital rights groups.

The rule intends to update copyright for the internet age, and hands more power to news and record companies against Internet giants like Google and Facebook.

But it also allows companies to make sweeping blocks of user-generated content, such as internet memes or reaction GIFs that use copyrighted material.

The tough approach could spell the end for internet memes, which typically lay text over copyrighted photos or video from television programmes, films, music videos and more.

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EU lawmakers have approved the Copyright Directive, which says providers should 'take measures to ensure the functioning of agreements concluded with rights-holders for the use of their works'. This could mean the end of popular internet memes

Following months of talks, two key changes to the EU's the Copyright Directive were approved Wednesday by MEPs voting in Strasbourg, France.

Officials voted 438 in favour of the measures, 226 against, with 39 abstentions.

The vote introduced Articles 11 and 13 to the directive, dubbed the 'link tax' and 'upload filter' by critics.

Article 13 in the revised EU Copyright Directive could affect memes and music remixes shared online.

This portion of the legislation puts the onus of policing for copyright infringement on the websites themselves.

This forces web giants like YouTube and Facebook to scan uploaded content to stop the unlicensed sharing of copyrighted material.

Critics have warned that this rule threatens to kill off the internet meme - images or videos that spread 'virally' online, often accompanied by a witty snippet of text.

The legislation could cause internet platforms to filter user-generated content, including text, audio, photos and video to protect copyrighted works. Pictured: a Meghan Markle meme

It could also It could mean the end of reaction GIFs, music remixes, and other user-generated content that routinely brings joy to the internet.

Speaking in June, Copyright 4 Creativity, a campaign against the proposed article, said: 'Should Article 13 of the Copyright Directive be adopted, it will impose widespread censorship of all the content you share online.'

The second amendment to the directive, Article 11, is intended to give publishers and newspapers a way to make money when companies like Google link to their stories.

Search engines and online platforms like Twitter and Facebook will have to pay a license to link to news publishers when quoting portions of text from these outlets.

It is hoped the changes will both financially support online publishers and drive more traffic their way.

The European Parliament voted on Article 13 Wednesday. Critics argue it would be an excessive restriction on free speech. Pictured: A Lebron James meme

Following Wednesday's vote, EU lawmakers will now take the legislation to talks with the European Commission and the 28 EU countries.

The next step is negotiations will reconcile their different positions before updating the existing copyright laws.

It remains unclear if the changes will affect Britain following Brexit in March 2019, though the UK parliament could vote to copy the EU's changes as and when they come into effect.

Backing the draft were traditional media, in urgent search of revenue at a time when web users no longer turn to TV or newspapers and advertising revenue is siphoned away by internet platforms.

But while the directive includes a great deal of useful legislation to update copyright law that better reflect modern technologies, Article 13 has proved controversial.

In December, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) repealed Obama-era 'net neutrality' rules, junking the longtime principle that all web traffic must be treated equally. Pictured: A popular Spongebob meme

In an open letter to the President of the European Parliament in June, 70 leading internet figures, including Sir Tim Berners-Lee, said the risks outweigh the benefits when it comes to the new EU law.

'We support the consideration of measures that would improve the ability for creators to receive fair remuneration for the use of their works online,' the open letter reads.

'But we cannot support Article 13, which would mandate Internet platforms to embed an automated infrastructure for monitoring and censorship deep into their networks.'

It added that Article 13 'takes an unprecedented step towards the transformation of the Internet from an open platform for sharing and innovation, into a tool for the automated surveillance and control of its users.'

'Article 13 effectively deputizes social media and other Internet companies as copyright police, forcing them to implement a highly invasive surveillance infrastructure across their entire service offerings,' cryptographer and security specialist Bruce Schneier, one of the letter's signatories, said.

'Aside from the harm from the provisions of Article 13, this infrastructure can be easily repurposed by government and corporations  and further entrenches ubiquitous surveillance into the fabric of the Internet.'
A piece of computer history that helped launch a trillion dollar company is hitting the auction block and is expected to fetch $300,000 (230,500).

A rare, fully-functioning Apple-1 being auctioned by Boston-based RR Auction in September is one of only 60 or so remaining computers from the original 200 made.

The machines were designed and hand-built by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in 1976 and 1977 and originally sold for about $666 (511) to local enthusiasts.

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A piece of computer history that helped launch a trillion dollar company is hitting the auction block and is expected to sell for $300,000 (230,500)

The Apple-1 was restored to its original, operational state by expert Corey Cohen.

The system operated without fault for approximately eight hours in a recent test and will even ship with its original keyboard designed and built during the 1970s.

Apple co-founder Wozniak and Jobs only produced 150 models of the Apple-1 to sell to their friends and family.

The par started marketed the computer system to the electronics chain Byte Shop in 1976, after the retailer bought the first 50 units.

They originally went on sale for $666.66 as Wozniak liked repeating numbers.

Despite the Apple-1 being famed for being the first consumer PC to ship ready to use with monitor and keyboard, it was delivered as just the motherboard.

This meant users had to get hold of a power pack, keyboard, monitor, and cassette recorder of their own before they could use the device.

A fully functioning Apple-1 being auctioned by Boston-based RR Auction in September is one of only 60 or so remaining of the original 200

The machines were designed and built by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in 1976 and 1977 and originally sold for about $666 (511)

WHAT IS THE APPLE 1? Apple co-founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak created the Apple-1 personal computer in 1976 and presented it at a computer club in Palo Alto. However, there were few takers at the time. Paul Terrell, owner of a retail chain called Byte Shop, placed an order for 50 of the machines and sold them for $666.66 (420) retail - once Mr Wozniak and Mr Jobs agreed to assemble the circuit boards rather than offer them as kits. The usual price tag is believed to have been chosen because Mr Wozniak liked repeating digits. Wozniak and Jobs hand-crafted 150 more Apple-1 machines and sold them to friends and other vendors. Fewer than 50 original Apple-1s are believed to have survived, with only eight known to be in working condition. The Apple 1 did not have a keyboard or monitor, meaning users had to supply their own before they were able to use the computer. It also had a tiny 8K memory  minuscule by today's standards. Jobs sent them direct to buyers from the garage of his parents' house. It is not known how many were sold during 1976, but by April 1977 the price had been dropped to $475 (300). The first Apple computer helped kick-start a technological revolution that brought affordable computers out of science labs and into people's homes. The Apple II was introduced in April 1977 with an integrated keyboard, sound, a plastic case, and eight internal expansion slots. By the time it was discontinued in October 1977, around 200 Apple 1s had been produced. It is thought that only 30 to 50 of the computers still exist today. Advertisement

Most early computers used different motherboards for each component within the computer, however, Wozniak decided to put them onto a single board.

Wozniak chose to use a keyboard instead of the front panel switches featured on other early computers to make it easier to use.

A cassette recorder was used to store and load software onto the machine.

The screen was slow by today's standards  displaying some 60 individual characters per second.

It only shipped with around 8K of in-built memory. For reference 8K, is just enough to save a 1,000 word document.

It shows the humble beginnings of Cupertino, California-based Apple, which recently became the world's first publicly traded company to be valued at $1 trillion (0.8 trillion).

It was restored to its original, operational state by Apple expert Corey Cohen. The system was operated without fault for approximately eight hours in a test and even includes the original keyboard from the 1970s

The pair only produced 150 models to sell to their friends and family. Wozniak began marketing it along with Jobs through the electronics chain Byte Shop in 1976, after the retailer bought the first 50 units

They originally went on sale for $666.66 as Wozniak liked repeating numbers

Last year, it was revealed a 30-year-old Mac SE had been revived.

Ewen Rankin, a photographer from Birmingham, brought a 30-year-old Mac SE into the store in Solihull, in the hopes of reviving the retro device.

Amazingly, five members of staff were able to work together to resurrect the computer, which was built in 1987.

Mr Rankin's computer is one of five prototypes made by Apple in California for development purposes, and was then shipped to the UK in 1987.

For the past 25 years, the Mac SE had lay dormant in Mr Rankin's house, before he became interested in testing whether it would still work today.

Despite it being the first PC ever that was ready to use with monitor and keyboard access, it was delivered as just the motherboard

This meant users had to get hold of a power pack, keyboard, monitor, and cassette recorder of their own

Most early computers used different motherboards for each component, but Wozniak decided to put them onto a single board. Pictured is the operation manual

Speaking to Apple World Today, Mr Rankin said: 'I could have tried myself but I thought it was more fun to put Apple to the test and see if they were willing to try and help the 30 year old machine come back to life...and they did.'

In the Solihull store, the staff were able to boot the computer using OS 3.3, but the old mouse refused to work.

Mark Sisson, who helped Mr Rankin on his quest to fix the computer, told Apple World Today: 'The original prototypes were fitted with 20MB Sony disk drives and these were prone to 'stiction' as we called it where the read/write head would become stuck on the platters.'

'The solution was to take out the drive and then forcefully spin the hard drive back and forth in your hand to try and loosen the platters before putting it back in, where it would often work just fine.

'Apple subsequently replaced these for the 40MB Quantum drives.'
The earliest evidence of art made by humans - dating back 73,000 years - has been discovered inside an African cave.

Scientists say the drawing, which consists of three red lines cross-hatched with six separate lines, was 'intentionally created' on a smooth piece of rock.

The latest find predates previous drawings from Africa, Europe and Southeast Asia by at least 30,000 years, scientists say.

The earliest evidence of art made by humans - dating back 73,000 years - has been found in an African cave. Scientists say the drawing, which consists of three red lines cross-hatched with six separate lines, was 'intentionally created' on a smooth fragment of rock (pictured)

An abstract pattern has been engraved on this piece of ocher found at Blombos Cave, among the same layers of rock that yielded the new find

The discovery was made by archaeologist Dr Luca Pollarolo, of the University of the Witwatersrand, at the Blombos Cave in the Southern Cape area of South Africa.

He painstakingly sifted through thousands of similar rock fragments that were excavated from the site while in the lab.

Blombos Cave has been excavated by leading archaeologists Professor Christopher Henshilwood and Dr Karen van Niekerk since 1991.

It contains material dating from 100,000 to 70 000 years ago, a time period referred to as the Middle Stone Age, as well as younger, Later Stone Age material dating from 2,000 to 300 years ago.

Realising that the lines on the flake were unlike anything that the team had come across from the cave before, they set out to answer the questions it posed.

They concluded that the markings were made on purpose.

Professor Henshilwood said: 'Before this discovery, Palaeolithic archaeologists have for a long time been convinced that unambiguous symbols first appeared when Homo sapiens entered Europe, about 40 000 years ago, and later replaced local Neanderthals.

'Recent archaeological discoveries in Africa, Europe and Asia, in which members of our team have often participated, support a much earlier emergence for the production and use of symbols.'

The find predates previous drawings from Africa, Europe and Southeast Asia by at least 30,000 years. This silcrete flake displays a drawing made up of nine lines traced on one of its faces with an ocher implement

WHAT EXAMPLES OF EARLY HUMAN ART HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED WORLDWIDE? It seems that humanity and its ancestors have been driven to create patterns, abstract images and representations of the world around them for thousands of years. The earliest known engraving, a zig-zag pattern, incised on a fresh water shell from Trinil, Java, was found in layers of sediment dated to 540,000 years ago. A recent article proposed that painted representations in three caves of the Iberian Peninsula were 64,000 years old and therefore produced by Neanderthals. The oldest known shell (top) to have been engraved by an early human has been uncovered in a Dutch museum collection, where it remained unnoticed since the 1930s. Pictured here is its polished edge (bottom) Lifelike images found at sites such as the famous Lascaux Cave in south-west France, which date to around 30,000 years ago, are said to demonstrate an ability to depict animal movement superior to that seen today. In 2018, experts uncovered evidence of art made by humans dating back 73,000 years in an African cave. Scientists say the drawing, which consists of three red lines cross-hatched with six separate lines, was 'intentionally created' on a smooth silcrete flake. That makes the drawing, found in the Blombos Caves site in South Africa, the oldest drawing by Homo sapiens ever found, experts say. Advertisement

Under the guidance of study second author Professor Francesco d'Errico, of the University of Bordeaux in France, the team examined and photographed the piece under a microscope to establish whether the lines were part of the stone or whether it was applied to it.

To ensure their results, they also examined the piece by using Raman spectroscopy and an electron microscope.

After confirming the lines were applied to the stone, the team experimented with various paint and drawing techniques and found that the drawings were made with an ochre crayon, with a tip of between one and three millimetres thick.

They said the abrupt termination of the lines at the edge of the flake also suggested that the pattern originally extended over a larger surface, and may have been more complex in its entirety.

The amazing discovery was made by archaeologist Dr Luca Pollarolo, of the University of the Witwatersrand, at the Blombos Cave in the Southern Cape area of South Africa. This image shows the exterior the Cave

Blombos Cave has been excavated by leading archaeologists Professor Christopher Henshilwood and Dr Karen van Niekerk since 1991

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THE STONE AGE? The Stone Age is a period in human prehistory distinguished by the original development of stone tools that covers more than 95 per cent of human technological prehistory. It begins with the earliest known use of stone tools by hominins, ancient ancestors to humans, during the Old Stone Age - beginning around 3.3 million years ago. Between roughly 400,000 and 200,000 years ago, the pace of innovation in stone technology began to accelerate very slightly, a period known as the Middle Stone Age. By the beginning of this time, handaxes were made with exquisite craftsmanship. This eventually gave way to smaller, more diverse toolkits, with an emphasis on flake tools rather than larger core tools. The Stone Age is a period in human prehistory distinguished by the original development of stone tools that covers more than 95 per cent of human technological prehistory. This image shows neolithic jadeitite axes from the Museum of Toulouse These toolkits were established by at least 285,000 years in some parts of Africa, and by 250,000 to 200,000 years in Europe and parts of western Asia. These toolkits last until at least 50,000 to 28,000 years ago. During the Later Stone Age the pace of innovations rose and the level of craftsmanship increased. Groups of Homo sapiens experimented with diverse raw materials, including bone, ivory, and antler, as well as stone. The period, between 50,000 and 39,000 years ago, is also associated with the advent of modern human behaviour in Africa. Different groups sought their own distinct cultural identity and adopted their own ways of making things. Later Stone Age peoples and their technologies spread out of Africa over the next several thousand years. Advertisement

The earliest known engraving, a zig-zag pattern, incised on a fresh water shell from Trinil, Java, was found in layers dated to 540,000 years ago.

A recent article proposed that painted representations in three caves of the Iberian Peninsula were 64,000 years old and therefore produced by Neanderthals.

That makes the drawing on the Blombos silcrete flake the oldest drawing by Homo sapiens ever found.

The researchers said that the archaeological layer in which the Blombos drawing was found also yielded other indicators of 'symbolic thinking' - including shell beads covered with ochre - and pieces of ochres engraved with abstract patterns.

They said some of the engravings 'closely resemble' the one drawn on the silcrete flake.

Prof Henshilwood added: 'This demonstrates that early Homo sapiens in the southern Cape used different techniques to produce similar signs on different media.

'This observation supports the hypothesis that these signs were symbolic in nature and represented an inherent aspect of the behaviourally modern world of these African Homo sapiens, the ancestors of all of us today.'

The findings were published in the journal Nature.
Drug addicts have been taking advantage of a scheme to replace ageing phone boxes with new high tech 'digital kiosks'.

The touchscreen kiosks are intended to replace 1,000 payphones in cities across the UK and 200 have already been installed nationwide.

However, installation of the LinkUK booths by BT has now been halted after one council found 90 per cent of callers were using the booths to organise drug deals.

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Drug addicts in London have been taking advantage of a scheme to replace ageing phone boxes with high tech 'digital kiosks'. The touchscreen kiosks (pictured above) are intended to replace 1,000 payphones in cities across UK and 200 have already been installed nationwide

Police purportedly intervened to stop the London Borough of Tower Hamlets granting permission to install any further kiosks, preventing the installation of eight additional machines, after evidence of how the booths were being used emerged.

Each LinkUK kiosk gives users access to a number of free services, including up to 1Gbps Wi-Fi, two USB charging ports, a touchscreen tablet for accessing maps, directions and local services, as well as free UK landline and mobile phone calls.

The cost of the services is funded by adverts screened on two 55 inch (139.7cm) high-definition digital displays.

Council officials say that of the 80 people who used the free telephone service in one day  72 were calls to buy drugs, according to a new report published in Engineering and Technology (E&T).

BT is said to have placed restrictions on free phone calls from machines where drug dealing was reported.

'People get 30 seconds of free calls  it allows people to phone their dealer and say, "two browns and one white, please",' slang terms for crack and heroin, a council spokesman told E&T.

'They have been used in similar ways across the UK. Theres quite a lot of drugs in inner cities.'

Installation of the LinkUK booths from BT has now been halted after one council found 90 per cent of users were using them to organise drug deals. BT is said to have placed restrictions on free phone calls from machines where drug dealing was reported (stock image)

WHAT ARE BT DIGITAL KIOSKS? People across the UK were promised they would benefit from free public Wi-Fi, calls to landlines and mobiles, as well as a slew of other digital services thanks to BT's Digital Kiosks. The service, known as LinkUK from BT, saw the introduction of ultramodern kiosks rolled out to major high streets across the capital from 2016 onwards. They resulted from a partnership between BT and urban innovation company Intersection, which is behind LinkNYC, a similar scheme in New York, USA. Each LinkUK booth gives users access to a number of free services, including up to 1Gbps Wi-Fi, two USB charging ports, a touchscreen tablet for accessing maps, directions and local services, and free UK landline and mobile calls. The cost of the services is funded by adverts screened on two 55 inch (139.7cm) high-definition digital displays. The touchscreen kiosks are intended to replace 1,000 payphones in cities across the UK and 200 have already been installed across the country. Advertisement

The kiosks have even been involved in court proceedings, with one case dealing with a gang of drug pushers in Whitechapel.

They were said to be operating five sales lines for addicts, making 1.28 million worth of sales  many of them from the kiosks.

However, BT says that the claims relating to widespread drug dealing in Tower Hamlets outline in E&T are inaccurate.

'Any claims about the InLinks and antisocial behaviour are isolated to a handful of units within the borough and we take such reports very seriously,' a spokesman told The Times.

'Despite the lack of evidence, weve therefore taken the precautionary measure of temporarily restricting calls in the evening on some InLinks in the area.'
Apple has finally unveiled its highly-anticipated trio of new iPhones, including its most expensive handset to date.

The 6.5-inch iPhone XS Max will start at $1099, and boasts a Super Retina Display that now stands as the biggest iPhone display yet.

Apple revealed the new handset alongside its new $999 iPhone XS - a 5.8-inch device CEO Tim Cook says is 'by far the most advanced iPhone we have ever created.'

Both, Apple says, are 'more waterproof' than their predecessor, with the ability to survive 30 minutes underwater at up to two meters deep.

Apple's newest phones are equipped with faster processors and better memory capacities than ever before, relying on Apple's new A12 Bionic chip.

According to Apples Phil Schiller, the XS lineup is the most beautiful iPhone weve ever made.

The firm also unveiled a cheaper model in a bid to ensure their devices 'reach even more customers,' with the 6.1-inch iPhone XR shipping at $749.

CEO Tim Cook took to the stage in front of around 1,000 people at the Steve Jobs Theater at Apples new spaceship HQ in Cupertino, California shortly after 10 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. ET).

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Apple has finally unveiled its highly-anticipated trio of new iPhones, including its most expensive handset to date. The firm introduced the iPhone XR, XS, and the XS Max

CEO Tim Cook took to the stage in front of around 1,000 people at the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple's new 'spaceship' HQ in Cupertino, California shortly after 10 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. ET). Cook kicked off the event by introducing the new Series 4 Apple Watch

IPHONE XS MAX SPECS Display: 6.5-inch OLED screen Cost: From $1,099 (1,099) Ships: September 21 Battery life: 1.5 hours longer than the iPhone X Cameras: Dual 12MP rear-facing, dual 7MP front-facing Powered by: A12 Bionic chip Memory: 64GB, 256GB or 512GB Colours: Gold, silver and space grey Waterproof rating: Up to 2 meters (6.5ft) deep for several minutes Improved augmented reality tools Advertisement

'Things certainly do get hectic around here leading up to days like this,' Cook said, to applause, as he kicked off the event.

'But they're also magical days. As you know, Apple was founded to make the computer more personal, he said.

The CEO started off the product announcements with what he says are 'two of our most personal products,' beginning with the latest Apple Watch.

In the new Series 4 Apple Watch, 'everything has been redesigned and re-engineered,' said Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams.

Weve pushed the screen right to the edges, over 30 percent larger, with minimal changes. The Series 4 is actually thinner,' Williams said.

Not only has the firm overhauled its design, but the new Apple Watch can even look out for its wearer's safety.

According to Apple, the watch can detect falls and send alerts to emergency contacts.

And, in what's said to be an industry first, it's equipped with an FDA-approved electrical heart sensor that can take an electrocardiogram.

In the new Series 4 Apple Watch, 'everything has been redesigned and re-engineered,' said Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams. Weve pushed the screen right to the edges,' Williams said

The latest Apple Watch features a new screen design that displays up to eight separate pieces of information, according to the firm

'Its a feature we hope you never need, but its really nice to know its there,' Williams said of the new fall-detecting tool.

The Series 4 Watch is equipped with an accelerometer and gyroscope, to 'power all-day activity tracking.'

It features a new screen design that displays up to eight separate pieces of information, according to the firm.

You'll even be able to add pictures of your contacts to make calls with a single tap.

The firm also redesigned its Watch faces to suit the bigger display, Williams said, and the Digital Crown has been 'overhauled' to provide haptic feedback to the wearer.

The watch speaker is also 50 percent louder than previous models.

The Series 4 watch has three new heart features, including notifications for low heart rate and screening for irregularities that appear to be atrial fibrillation.

Apple has finally unveiled its highly anticipated new iPhone XS - a 5.8-inch waterproof, stainless steel device CEO Tim Cook says is 'by far the most advanced iPhone we have ever created.' The firm revealed the device alongside the iPhone XS Max

The iPhone XS and larger XS Max are Apple's latest flagship devices. The pair have a similar design and features to the existing iPhone X - including its much-hyped Face ID unlock system - with a few key additions

IPHONE XS SPECS Display: 5.8-inch OLED screen Cost: From $999 (999) Ships: September 21 Battery life: Half an hour longer than the iPhone X Cameras: Dual 12MP rear-facing, dual 7MP front-facing Powered by: A12 Bionic chip Memory: 64GB, 256GB or 512GB Colours: Gold, silver and space grey Waterproof rating: Up to 2 meters (6.5ft) deep for several minutes Improved augmented reality tools Advertisement

It also has a built-in electrical heart sensor that will allow users to take an electrocardiogram.

Apple's newest iPhones look a lot like the iPhone X, which the firm released last year.

But, they feature an array of improvements.

Like the iPhone X, the XS and XS Max have dual 12-megapixel rear cameras and a dual 7-megapixel selfie camera.

Both are loaded with Apple's new A12 Bionic chip, which Apple claims runs run 15 percent faster than the A11 chip in the iPhone X.

And, they'll have much better storage capacity.

The iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max are shipping in 64GB, 256GB or 512GB  the largest in-built storage ever shipped on an Apple-branded smartphone.

Steve Nash, an ex NBA player showed off a new game called Homecourt that uses the iPhone camera to train basketball players.

Schiller also revealed a third iPhone, a series of colourful lower cost handsets called the iPhone XR. It will be the cheapest of the lineup, at $749. We hope it reaches even more customers, he said

The iPhone XS is equipped with what's said to be the 'most durable glass ever in a smartphone.' It will come in three finishes - gold silver and space grey. It's also 'more waterproof' than the iPhone X

The app can recognize and track players and the ball, analyzing their game.

Atli Mar of Directive games showed off a new AR game that recreates retro arcade games, placing a virtual console on tables which can then explode to allow players to try and shoot objects all around them.

According to VP of Marketing Phil Schiller, the new iPhone's camera can carry out a trillion operations on every photo.

This is a new era of photography, said Schiller. This is making images possible that werent before.'

Apple has also boosted the battery life, with the 10X Max having 1.5 hours longer, and the 10s 30 minutes longer than previous versions.

Its the biggest battery weve ever put in a phone said Schiller.

The XR has a 6.1inch LCD display, rather that the more expensive OLED used in the other models, which Apple has called Liquid Retina. Its a bigger display than the iPhone 8 Plus, in a smaller case,' Schiller said

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE APPLE IPHONE XR? Apple has announced a new smartphone model  iPhone XR  that sits alongside its new flagship iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max. The all-new smartphone is made from aerospace-grade aluminium that ships in six new colours, including Black, White, Yellow, Coral, Blue and Product Red. The iPhone XR sports the same edge-to-edge industrial design as the iPhone X, with a small notch at the top of the display to house the FaceID system. However, the 6.1-inch display on the iPhone XR uses cheaper LCD screen, rather than OLED  like the iPhone X, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max. Apple called it 'the most advanced LCD ever in a smartphone'. Powering the iPhone XR is the same flagship A12 Bionic chip that powers the top-of-the-line iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max. Despite only having a single rear-facing camera, the iPhone XR is capable of taking Portrait Mode shots with artificial bokeh blur to the background. To differentiate between the iPhone XR and the iPhone XS and XS Max, the company has included a number of coloured panels on the back of the phone. The coloured aluminium finishes are Black, White, Yellow, Coral, Blue. There is also a Product Red version of the phone, which sees some of the profits donated to combat AIDS worldwide. iPhone XR includes Apple's custom facial recognition system, FaceID. The updated A12 Bionic chipset allows this to process your likeness to unlock the smartphone and authenticate payments faster than before. iPhone XR will be available in either 64GB, 128GB or 256GB models. Unlike the flagship iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, the new iPhone XR is not available with a 512GB storage configuration. iPhone XR starts from $749 for the 64GB model. Pre-orders for the iPhone XR will begin October 19, with the first handsets shipping October 26. Advertisement

Apple also revealed the iPhone will support dual SIM cards for the first time.

It will use Apples eSIM, a built in electronic sim card that works alongside the primary sim card,, and Apple said it will be available later this year.

In China, a special version of the phone will have two SIM cards.

These are incredible new iPhones, Schiller said. The best iPhones weve ever made by a long shot.

Schiller also revealed a third iPhone, a series of colorful lower-cost handsets called the iPhone XR.

We hope it reaches even more customers, he said.

The aluminium handset is available in white, blue, black, coral and yellow, along with a special Product Red version.

The XR has a 6.1inch LCD display, rather that the more expensive OLED used in the other models, which Apple has called Liquid Retina.

Its a bigger display than the iPhone 8 Plus, in a smaller case,' Schiller said.

The new lower cost iPhone will also use FaceID, and the same A12 Bionic chip and its new siblings.

In what's said to be an industry first, the new watch is equipped with an FDA-approved electrical heart sensor that can take an electrocardiogram

WHAT IS NEW IN THE APPLE WATCH SERIES 4? Apple says its smartwatch range has become an indispensable part of the daily lives of millions of people across the world. Jeff Williams, Apple Chief Operating Officer, unveiled the latest generation of the new smartwatch on-stage at a media event at the Steve Jobs Theatre. Known as Apple Watch Series 4, the company claims the new wearable has been rebuilt from the ground-up. The digital crown, which is used to scroll through lists, has been overhauled to include haptic feedback. The LTE red dot indicator is now a small ring. Apple says the speaker included on the Apple Watch Series 4 is now 50 per cent louder thanks to a redesign. The Apple Watch Series 4 has a 30 per cent larger display than its predecessor, with the screen now extending to the very edge of the device. The updated Digital Crown now includes haptic feedback, offering a more mechanical and responsive feel through the sensation of incremental clicks Apple says the OLED display curves around the edge of the wearable to ensure the physical footprint did not increase too much compared to previous generations. The Watch will be available in two sizes  40mm and 44mm. For comparison, the previous generation Apple Watch range was available in 38mm and 42mm variations. The larger display on the Series 4 allows the operating system, watchOS 5, to show more information through Apples built-in app complications. These have been redesigned to include more information, including photographs of favourite contacts. Powering the Apple Watch Series 4 is the custom dual-core 64-bit processor, known as the S4, which is designed and created by Apple. This is coupled with a new GPU. According to the company, these internal improvements result in performance that is twice as fast as previous generations. Jeff Williams, Apple's chief operating officer, speaks about the Apple Watch Series 4 at the Steve Jobs Theatre, during an event to announce new Apple products A new built-in accelerometer and gyroscope track motion data eight times faster than Apple Watch Series 3. These new sensors allow Apple to track unintentional falls for the first time. The Apple Watch Series 4 analyses trajectory and detects when the wearer brings up their arms to protect themselves during a fall, surfacing a shortcut to quickly allow people to call for help. If the smartwatch senses the wearer has been immobile for one minute, it will automatically initiate a call and send a message to your emergency contact. Apple Watch Series 4 lets users take an ECG reading from the wrist using the new ECG app, which takes advantage of the electrodes built into the Digital Crown and new electrical heart rate sensor in the back crystal. To take an ECG, users only need to open the app and put their fingers on the crown to take a reading. This takes around 30 seconds to complete. It is the first ECG product to be offered to consumers over the counter. It can classify whether the heart is beating in a normal pattern or whether there are signs of Atrial Fibrillation (AFib), a heart condition that could lead to major health complications. All recordings, their associated classifications and any noted symptoms are stored in the Health app in a PDF that can be shared with physicians. Apple Watch Series 4 lets users take an ECG reading from the wrist using the new ECG app, which takes advantage of the electrodes built into the Digital Crown Despite the larger display, and thinner profile, Apple says the Series 4 has the same 18-hour battery life as its predecessor. Apple Watch Series 4 with GPS will start from $399, with pre-orders available on Friday September 14 2018. There is a version of the smartwatch with cellular connectivity that starts from $499 for the 40mm model. Both new smartwatches will ship on September 21 2018. The previous version of the Watch  known as Series 3  will still be available from Apple priced at $279, the company says. Advertisement

It has a single 12mp camera, but Apple has developed software for it to use the firms portrait mode.

Apple also said it will give users 1.5 hours battery more that the firms 8 Plus.

This is a huge day for iPhone, Schiller said.

The new handsets will be available for pre-order starting Friday Sept 14, with devices expected to begin shipping September 21st.

During the announcement, the firm also took a moment to hail its recent achievement of becoming powered entirely by renewable energy.

We hope to one day eliminate our need to mine new materials from the Earth, said Apples Lisa Jackson.

The CEO started off the product announcements with what he says are 'two of our most personal products,' beginning with the latest Apple Watch

The event was held at the Steve Jobs Theater in the firm's spaceship-like Apple Park headquarters in Cupertino, California at 10 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. ET)

She revealed the new iPhones will use recycled tin in their logic board,which will reduce the need for freshly mined ore by 10,000 tons a year.

She also said Apple was working to make its phones last longer. Keeping using them is the best thing for the planet, she said.

Jackson also revealed Daisy, a new robot that can disassemble nine types of iPhone to help the firm recycle as much as possible.

As the event wrapped up, CEO Tim Cook also announced a slew of updates heading to Apple's current devices.

iOS 12 will become available on September 17th, and the Mojave MacOS update will be released September 21st.

The Homepod is getting an upgrade as well; soon, the firm says it will be able to make and receive phone calls. You'll also be able to use it to ping your phone to locate it.
Apple's HomePod smart speaker is stealing some features from the iPhone.

The tech giant announced that users will soon be able to use their HomePod to make and receive phone calls, just by asking Siri.

HomePod owners will have to wait a little longer to do so, however, as the updates aren't available just yet.

Many expect the updates will arrive September 17th, the same day iOS 12 will officially debut.

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Apple's HomePod smart speaker is stealing some features from the iPhone. Users will soon be able to use their HomePod to make and receive phone calls, just by asking Siri

The updates were snuck in by CEO Tim Cook at the end of Apple's big hardware event at the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino, California, after the firm revealed an entirely new lineup of smartphones, including the iPhone XR, XS and XS Max.

Apple says the HomePod's new calling feature delivers 'crisp and clear audio quality.'

'To make a call, simply ask Siri to call someone from Contacts or say the number to call,' Apple said in a statement.

'Incoming calls are automatically directed from iPhone to HomePod  just ask Siri to answer the phone  and for missed calls, its as easy as asking, Hey Siri, who just called?

'Using the audio picker on iPhone, calls can be moved from HomePod to iPhone at any time,' the firm added.

And that's not the only feature pegged to arrive as part of the update.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said on stage that this update will also let users set multiple timers and use the HomePod to help you find your iPhone or iPad if it gets lost around the house

The updates were snuck in by CEO Tim Cook at the end of Apple's big hardware event at the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino, California, after the firm revealed an entirely new lineup of smartphones, including the iPhone XR, XS and XS Max (pictured)

The HomePod will also include support for Siri Shortcuts, which allow users to set custom commands for apps.

'For example, "Hey Siri, good morning" could run a morning routine and order coffee from the coffee shop's app, turn on the kitchen lights from the Home app and share the first few calendar appointments for the day - all with one simple, customizable command,' Apple explained.

Cook said on stage that this update will also let users set multiple timers and use the HomePod to help you find your iPhone or iPad if it gets lost around the house.

'Set a timer for the cake, another one for lasagna and another one as a reminder to dim the lights - using just your voice,' Apple said.

The Find My iPhone feature is also available on the Apple Watch.
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From majestic cone peaks, to piercing blue crater lakes, this gallery of images showcases some of the world's most dramatic volcanic landscapes.

Italian photographer Luca Micheli took an incredible aerial shot of a grass-covered volcano crater while travelling around Iceland, with the black, scorched earth peeping through the turf.

Meanwhile, 'Chase O' took a breathtaking image of the saucer-shaped Diamond Head crater on the island of Oahu in Hawaii, which was formed around 300,000 years ago.

Today the area is popular with hikers, with trails running around the rim offering breathtaking views of the rugged coastal scenery.

Indonesia proves to be one of the best spots in the world for otherworldly volcanic landscapes - it has more active volcanoes than any other country, with some 127 cones bubbling away.

Scroll down for some sizzling shots that are sure to fire up your wanderlust...

Photographer Chase O took this breathtaking shot of the 762ft-high Diamond Head crater on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. It was formed over 300,000 years ago and the area is now popular with hikers

A stunning aerial view of the Taal Volcano complex in the Philippines. It is the second most active volcano in the area with more than 30 recorded eruptions

A golden view of Mount Vesuvius near Naples in Italy, which is extremely popular with tourists. A car park and footpath can be seen running around the cone up to the crater

Italian photographer Luca Micheli took this stunning aerial shot of a grass-covered volcano crater while travelling around Iceland

A drone flies over the steaming Ijen volcano complex in East Java, Indonesia, during the early hours of the morning

Tianqi Zhang took this dramatic image of a grass-covered crater in south-central Inner Mongolia. People can be seen walking on the rim

Yosh Ginsu took this dramatic photo of smoke and ash belching forth from Mount Sinabung in Indonesia. The volcano erupted in February this year

An aerial view of an active volcanic range in Sulawesi, Indonesia, with a community seen within close proximity

A tarmac road leads to a magnificent volcanic mountain range in the distance, within Iceland's stunning Snfellsjokull National Park

Another aerial photo of active volcano Ijen in East Java. It has the largest highly acidic crater lake in world and contains turquoise sulphuric water

An aerial view of the patchwork of fields covering the Chu Dang Ya mountain in the Gia Lai province of Vietnam. The soils surrounding the dormant volcano are rich in minerals and perfect for growing crops

A beautiful star-lit shot of Batur volcano from the peak of Mount Agung, which is the highest point in Bali, Indonesia, at 9,944ft

This golden shot of a volcanic peak was taken in Bali, Indonesia. A village can be seen on the rim of the peak with trails zigzagging up the steep slopes

Marc Szeglat shot this fiery picture in 2014 during an eruption of Mount Sinabung in West Sumatra, Indonesia. It erupted after a centuries-long hiatus in August 2010, and has been continuously active since September 2013

A view of the volcanic landscape around Mount Rinjani on the Indonesian island of Lombok. The piercing blue waters of the crater lake and reddish rock around the active mountain peak are visible
If customers want cheap fares, they'll have to accept strikes, the boss of Ryanair has claimed.

Chief executive Michael O'Leary insisted industrial disputes with the airline's staff have caused 'minimal disruption' as he pledged not to 'roll over'. And he added that his airline would rather accept strikes than be forced into meeting demands and raising costs.

He made the comments after Ryanair cancelled 150 out of 400 flights scheduled to fly to and from Germany on Wednesday due to a 24-hour strike by pilots and cabin crew.

Ryanair staff members take part in a demonstration at Frankfurt Airport today during a 24 hour strike

The striking staff waved placards and also held up a banner saying 'Ryanair stop squeezing our crew'

Striking Ryanair staff tape pictures of the airline's CEO Michael O'Leary to their faces during the strike. He said that he rather accept strikes than raise fares

German unions claim the Dublin-based airline is not offering satisfactory deals on pay and working conditions, but this is denied by Ryanair.

The carrier's pilots in several countries staged a strike last month, and there have been a series of walkouts by flight attendants.

Speaking at a press conference in the City of London, Mr O'Leary said: 'We will not roll over every time we're threatened with a strike and concede some higher cost basis.

'If you threaten us with a strike and we think your reason for that is unreasonable, then we will take strikes and we will manage our way around those strikes, as we've done successfully in Ireland when we had five days of strikes by just 25 per cent of pilots.

A Ryanair aircraft is sat parked on the tarmac at Frankfurt-Hahn Airport after pilots and cabin crew in Germany went on strike

'It resulted in 20 flight cancellations a day for five days, out of a total of 300 flights that we operate daily to and from Ireland.

'We don't want strikes but we are willing to accept strikes, put up with them, if it means defending our cost basis and our ability to offer low fare air travel to our customers.'

The Irish budget carrier has said it may have to close some bases and slash jobs in Germany if the stoppages there drag on.

Germany's Cockpit pilots' federation and the Verdi service workers' union called the 24-hour strike after they said talks with Ryanair management over pay and conditions were deadlocked.

Verdi spokesman Andreas Splanemann, who was part of a demo at Berlin's Schoenefield airport, said: 'We hope that this strike shows a significant effect, that the company realises the employees won't accept rotten working conditions and bad pay any longer.'

But with affected passengers largely warned off in advance, there were few stranded travellers to see the workers with their placards reading 'no rights, no flights'.

The strike comes as Ryanair is already bracing for a mass coordinated walkout by cabin crew in Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.

Union leaders are expected to announce details of the stoppage in Brussels on Thursday.

They have vowed to stage 'the biggest strike action the company has ever seen'.

Ryanair has been clashing with worker representatives ever since it took the unprecedented step last year to start recognising trade unions in a bid to avert widespread Christmas strikes.

Striking Ryanair workers in Berlin hold up placards reading 'no rights, no flights'

Last month, Ryanair pilots in five European countries including Germany held their first-ever simultaneous walkout, causing some 400 flight cancellations and travel chaos for 55,000 passengers.

The airline has however struck some labour agreements since then, reaching its first-ever union deal with Italian pilots in late August.

In Ireland, pilots voted to accept an agreement on improved working conditions last week.

The breakthrough prompted Ryanair to back down from an earlier threat that it would move several aircraft and 300 jobs from Ireland to Poland.

Germany's Cockpit and Verdi unions, which represent some 400 Germany-based Ryanair pilots and 1,000 flight personnel, condemned the airline's attempt to squeeze them with a similar threat.

Cockpit's vice president Markus Wahl told AFP: 'This is how Ryanair deals with its employees: putting pressure on them, scaring them and threatening job losses.'

However, Ryanair's chief marketing officer Kenny Jacobs told a Frankfurt press conference: 'We are not making a threat.

'If you have ongoing strikes, that's the economic impact.'

After 150 out of 400 Ryanair flights to and from Germany were cancelled, check-in desks at Frankfurt airport were empty

Germany's Cockpit pilots' federation and the Verdi service workers' union called a 24-hour strike after they said talks with Ryanair management over pay and conditions were deadlocked

The no-frills airline boasts lower costs per passenger than its competitors and is eyeing profits of around 1.25 billion euros ($1.45 billion) this year.

But staff have long complained that they earn less than counterparts at rival airlines.

Another key gripe of workers based in countries other than Ireland is the fact that Ryanair employs them under Irish legislation.

They say this creates huge insecurity for them, blocking their access to state benefits in their country.

Unions also want the airline to give contractors the same work conditions as staff employees.

Ryanair counters that it has already offered significant pay increases and steadier contracts.

It said German pilots can make 'up to 190,000 euros a year'.

But Cockpit's Mr Wahl said that only applies to 'a handful' of people, with starting salaries around 39,000 euros (35,000) and the most experienced fliers taking home around 110,000 euros (98,000) a year in fixed pay, which can be topped up depending on flight hours.

Ryanair passengers gather at Berlin's Schoenefield Airport. The strike comes as Ryanair is already bracing for a mass coordinated walkout by cabin crew in Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain

Mr Wahl said pilots were fighting for more pay overall, and specifically a higher fixed-rate salary.

The Verdi union said Ryanair cabin crew earn a basic gross salary of 800 to 1,200 euros (712 to 1,000) a month on average, far below what rival easyJet pays.

'The wages are so low that they are insufficient to ensure a decent living standard,' Verdi board member Christine Behle said.
An online fraudster who sold fake TripAdvisor reviews to hospitality businesses has been jailed after a 'landmark ruling'.

The owner of PromoSalento, which sold fake review packages to firms in Italy, was sentenced to nine months in prison and ordered to pay 8,000 euros (7,100) in costs and damages at the Criminal Court of Lecce.

It was ruled that writing fake reviews using a false identity is a crime under Italian criminal law. And TripAdvisor says the case could now see people writing fake reviews in other countries face similar legal action.

An online fraudster who sold fake TripAdvisor reviews to hospitality businesses has been jailed in a 'landmark ruling' in Italy

Paid review fraud  when companies or individuals 'sell' fake reviews to business owners  is a violation of the law in many jurisdictions.

TripAdvisor confirmed that it supported the prosecution of PromoSalento by sharing evidence from its in-house fraud investigations and providing support from its Italian legal counsel.

And the online review site says it is working with the UK's Competition and Markets Authority as well as the US Federal Trade Commission to share information and support its efforts to tackle online fake reviews.

Brad Young, VP, associate general counsel at TripAdvisor, said: 'We see this as a landmark ruling for the Internet.

'Writing fake reviews has always been fraud, but this is the first time we've seen someone sent to jail as a result.'

'We invest a lot in fraud prevention and we're successful at tackling it  since 2015, we've put a stop to the activity of more than 60 different paid review companies worldwide.

'However, we can only do so much alone, which is why we're eager to collaborate with regulators and law enforcement authorities to support their prosecutions.'

TripAdvisor employs a dedicated team of investigators, who use advanced tracking technology to catch paid review companies and prevent them from operating on the site.

Pascal Lamy, the chairman of the world committee on tourism ethics at the UN World Tourism Organisation, added: 'Online reviews play a major role in tourism and consumer purchasing decisions, but it's important everyone plays by the rules.

TripAdvisor says the case could now see people writing fake reviews in other countries face similar legal action

'Fake reviews clearly contravene the World Committee on Tourism Ethics guidelines, which we published last year to guide the responsible use of ratings and reviews on digital platforms.

'The recommendations were developed in collaboration with TripAdvisor, Minube and Yelp and we know that industry collaboration has an important role to play in tackling review fraud.

'The global travel community is a vital partner in the fight against paid review fraud and evidence shared by business owners approached by paid review companies is particularly valuable.'

TripAdvisor says that anybody who is approached and offered fake reviews should contact the site immediately at paidreviews@tripadvisor.com.

The review firm addes that all reports are investigated by its content integrity team and new information has been issued on where people can learn more about how the company moderates reviews.

In addition, Tripadvisor says new articles will be added regularly addressing popular topics such as how it determines whether a review is biased.

The site also features a behind-the-scenes series profiling the work of review fraud investigators.
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The hunt is now on to find the next Travel Photographer of the Year.

And judging by some of last year's stunning images, the standard will be high in this tough contest.

Travel Photographer of the Year is an annual competition that is judged by a panel of photographers and imaging experts and attracts entries from over 140 countries each year.

Pictures are judged across several categories including Travel, Faces, People, Cultures and Natural World as well as 'One Shot', Beauty of Light, Hot, Cold and Tranquillity'.

For 2018 there are also prizes for the Young Travel Photographer of the Year, for those under 18, and a New Talent award for images taken on a smartphone or tablet.

Scroll down to see some inspiration from some of last year's most impressive entries....

A lion cub peers out from behind a tree in the Serengeti in Tanzania. Photographer Panos Laskarakis was highly commended in the 'wildlife' category for this image

In the new talent 'destination' category, photographer Alexey Suloev from Russia was highly commended for this image

A young girl runs around the pillars of the Thirumalai Nayak Palace in India in a shot taken by Paul Sansome, who was last year's winner of the 'celebration of humanity' category

People gather round to load their bowls with noodles in Shanxi, China. The stunning picture was taken by photographer Jaihui Liao, who came out top in the 'food' category of the contest

An elderly woman holds a snap of herself in a striking image taken by Portuguese photographer Ana Abrao. The snap was named the best single image in the 'celebration of humanity' category

A close up shot of a Terracotta Army warrior snapped in China. The photographer, Wenbin Gong, was runner-up last year in the 'tales of adventure' category

This fascinating snap of a Portuguese man of war was snapped by Enrico Villa in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of the Azores. He was highly commended last year in the 'primary colours' category
Hotels on Spain's Costa Blanca have stopped installing minibars in rooms after accusing 'mostly British' tourists of refilling bottles with urine.

A recent survey found that one-in-three tourists admitted having drunk bottles from the minibar and then refilling them with water or other liquidas to avoid paying over-inflated prices for them.

And according to Hosbec, a hotel association for Costa Blanca and Benidorm, Brits are among the biggest culprits.

Hotels on Spain's Costa Blanca, pictured, have stopped installing minibars in rooms after accusing 'mostly British' tourists of refilling bottles with urine

A spokesman for the group told local media: 'It may seem ridiculous, but I can assure you it is true.

'We have had people filling bottles with pee, and thank God that staff have always detected it.'

It comes as recent changes in local laws means that Costa Blanca hotels are no longer obliged to provide minibars in rooms.

Recent law changes have meant that hotels on the Costa Blanca are no longer obliged to provide minibars in rooms

Rule changes in 2015 declared them as an optional service, although smaller hotels of three stars or lower were previously exempt from providing minibars.

However, they were not considered a cost-effective service and 90 per cent of hotels in the region stopped providing them as a result.

Many now just offer complimentary water or juice to welcome visitors and some establishments have opted to install vending machines in the reception and certain corridors.

Refilling bottles is considered one of the most common offences committed by hotel guests, along with stealing towels and food from the buffet, and allowing undeclared guests to stay in the room.




Today is the anniversary of the brutal death while in police custody of Steve Biko in South Africa. He was only 30. Biko was an anti-apartheid activist and leader in the Black Consciousness Movement. After his death he became an icon for the movement, perhaps made most famous in the movie Cry Freedom and Peter Gabriels song about him, Biko. I did not realise it at the time, and I am more an admirer of Gabriels work than a fan, that this song might have impacted my life more than any other.

In July 2002, in a Church on the Guguletu township on the Cape Flats of Western Cape, I was asked without warning to explain to the congregation why I had brought 25 white Irish students to worship. In the few seconds that I had to make my way to the pulpit I had to think very quickly what had brought not only me to South Africa but a gang of young people along with me.

The answer opened up a profound truth to me. I wasnt there because I had heard about the injustice of apartheid from the pulpits of my Presbyterian Churches. I told the congregation that I was there because rock musicians like Peter Gabriel had sparked a Biblical passion for justice in general and their people in particular and that these rock prophets had profoundly changed my life. I went on to tell them that though many of the musicians were not Christians they forced me back to the Old Testament prophets and I was there with my students because we wanted to bring Gods Kingdom to Cape Town as it was in heaven.

The Biko song changed my life in that it fuelled me, with many other God induced serendipities, to become involved in the transformation of South Africa. I became part of Habitat For Humanitys house building programme in the Western Cape which has been one of the most privileged and moving episodes of my life. Along with my students we raised funds and physically helped to build 40 houses for former shack dwellers.

When you hand people the key to their first brick house it is an amazing feeling. As well as Habitat For Humanity my student teams got to engage in Peace projects, AIDS visitation, school projects and a Fair Trade initiative. It did not change the entire world in an instant but it did change the world a little, bit at a time.

As well as all of that, my students came home transformed and many changed their vocations or became campaigners, changed the way they looked at the world and led other such teams themselves. I can think of a number who have spent time in Africa as part of their work. Mark Drennan works in Sierra Leone with Children of the Nations. Justin Zoradi set up an NGO These Numbers Have Faces that has helped countless young Africans to get to college and just published his book Made For These Times.

Soul Surmise readers will be aware of continued love for Africa that now focuses more in Uganda than South Africa. Without question my first interest in what was happening anywhere in Africa was Peter Gabriels Biko.

Today I listened to my favourite version of Biko, a cover by Paul Simon. Its more acoustic, more melancholic, more my style. Later this evening I will listen to my favourite version by Gabriel, when he plays the song at the 46664 Concerts in Cape Town in 2003. By then South Africa was a very different place than when he wrote the song.

As I listen, I will remember Steve Biko and some of his writings that have inspired me. I will remember driving down Steve Biko Road into Khayelitsha back in the early Noughties. I will remember a man who gave his life for a fairer world and who touched mine through all kinds of circumstances, one of them very tragic.

During these reflections today I was drawn to a few lines from one of my favourite bands Over The Rhine. In maybe my favourite song of theirs, Jesus In New Orleans they sing:

Oh, ain't it crazy

What's revealed when you're not looking all that close?

Oh, ain't it crazy

How we put to death the one's we need the most?

The song is very much about Jesus and we did indeed put him to death. Often though I wonder did they also mean Dr Martin Luther King and since the first listen I have thought how much South Africa could do with a Steve Biko type leader today.
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Turkish Airlines has unveiled its new cabin crew uniforms to mark the opening of Istanbul's new airport - and they've gone down a treat with one fashion expert, who described them as 'chic and smart'.

The Turkish flag carrier says the new outfits have been inspired by the colours and shapes of Istanbul, which marks the intersection between east and west, while the photographer who snapped them for the launch said they 'hark back to a golden age of couture fashion from the 1950's'.

Milan-based haute couturier Ettore Billotta created the uniforms, which use a deep red and anthracite grey palette, and include hats, gloves, dresses, bags and other accessories.

The red and grey dresses that form part of Turkish Airlines' new cabin crew uniforms that have been unveiled to mark the opening of Istanbul's new airport

The garments were also rigorously tested on long-haul trial flights in different climates to make sure they are comfortable and practical for the crew.

As well as cabin crew, the new uniforms will also be distributed to cockpit crews, flying chefs and ground services staff.

Mr Billotta, the fashion designer behind the uniforms, said: 'When I started to design for Turkish Airlines, the first thing that inspired me was Istanbul. This city has been a melting pot for art and civilisation for centuries and has a rare richness as a common heritage of many cultures.

'I wanted to bring elements from traditional calligraphy and mosaics together with the new interpretations of Turkish motifs, which emphasize modern lines, into foulards and ties to reflect a contrast and duality.'

Milan-based haute couturier Ettore Billotta created the uniforms, which are said to have been inspired by the shapes and colours of Istanbul

The garments were also rigorously tested on long-haul trial flights in different climates to make sure they are comfortable and practical for the crew

To launch the new look, Turkish Airlines teamed up with British photographer and artist Miles Aldridge, who shot the new cabin uniform collection in Istanbuls unique spots.

He added: 'I was really inspired when I saw the uniforms as they hark back to a golden age of couture fashion from the 1950's, but with a very contemporary twist.

'Again, it's very much like my own work, which is always referencing the past but very much being in today.'

And after casting his eye over the new designs, fashion blogger Simon Glazin also said he liked the outfits, on the whole.

The uniforms use a deep red and anthracite grey palette, and include hats, gloves, dresses, bags and other accessories

To launch the new look, Turkish Airlines teamed up with British photographer and artist Miles Aldridge, who shot the new cabin uniform collection in Istanbuls unique spots

As well as cabin crew, the new uniforms will be distributed to cockpit crews, flying chefs and ground services staff

He told MailOnline Travel: 'Gone are the days when just a nice crisp white shirt will do for crew. Its all about making air stewards look as chic and smart as possible.

'The colours compliment each other perfectly, the red and grey look great together, and I love how the waists are cinched in and the suit jackets are sharply tailored.

'The industrial grey looks like it represents the cold metal of a plane, and the matching bags and shoes are a nice touch.

'I dont particularly love the off-skin tone-coloured tights, and the hats look slightly too military for a commercial flight, but its an A for effort!'
She's a known activist.

And on Tuesday, Amber Heard, with sign in hand, called the people of NYC to 'vote on Thursday' in the primary election.

The 32-year-old actress donned a high-waisted leather skirt and plaid crop top by alice + olivia as she made the public statement.

Social activist: On Tuesday, Amber Heard, with sign in hand, called the people of NYC to 'vote on Thursday' in the primary election

Heard was dressed to the nines for lunch at Cookshopan American eatery in Chelsea.

She paired her chic ensemble with heeled mules and a plethora of gold jewelry.

The Aquaman star, who walked with determination, wore a bright red lip and her hair in messy beach waves.

So chic: The 32-year-old actress donned a high-waisted leather skirt and plaid crop by alice + olivia as she made the public statement

Out and about: Heard was dressed to the nines for lunch at Cookshopan American eatery in Chelsea. She paired her chic ensemble with heeled mules and a plethora of gold jewelry

Earlier in the day, Heard attended the Oscar de la Renta NYFW runway show at Chelsea Pier.

She wore a black and red crochet dress as she sat front row alongside Kate Beckinsale and Sofia Richie.

Amber also made an appearance at Cantor Fitzgerald's annual charity event.

NYFW: Heard attended the Oscar de la Renta runway show at Chelsea Pier on Tuesday

Celeb status: Amber wore a black and red crochet dress as she sat front row alongside Kate Beckinsale and Sofia Richie

The financial services firm lost two-thirds of its employees in the September 11 attacks back in 2001.

'Honored to be in NYC today. Every year Cantor Fitzgerald commemorates the anniversary of 9/11 and honors its fallen colleagues by donating one hundred percent of global revenue to charity,' Amber wrote on Instagram.

'Today I visited the Cantor Fitzgerald office and lent a helping hand in an effort to raise more money for charity including the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS), which provides free medical care to Syrian Refugees around the world.'

Giving back: Amber also made an appearance at Cantor Fitzgerald's annual charity event in an effort to raise funds for Syrian American Medical Society
Russell Crowe reportedly lost his temper while filming his new movie The True History of the Kelly Gang in Victoria last month.

An insider told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday that the 54-year-old was left frustrated and 'stormed off' after learning that catering had run out of rice.

But the actor isn't alone in his moment of fury, as fellow celebrities such as George Calombaris and Gordon Ramsay have also thrown epic tantrums in public.

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Annoyed: Russell Crowe reportedly lost his temper while filming his new movie The True History of the Kelly Gang in Victoria last month. Pictured on June 5, 2018 in Rome, Italy

Last year, George Calombaris, 39, was charged with assault after a physical altercation with a Sydney FC fan at the A-League Grand Final.

Video footage showed the Network Ten star shaking his Victory scarf at a 19-year-old before shoving him in the chest.

In a statement to News.com.au at the time, he said: 'I am disappointed that I let it get to me, and I sincerely apologise for offending anyone.'

Fuming: Last year, George Calombaris, 39, was charged with assault after a physical altercation with a Sydney FC fan at the A-League Grand Final

In May this year, Gordon Ramsay, 51, snapped and threw salmon at the wall during a guest appearance on MasterChef Australia.

'Come here!' he yelled at contestants after sampling their fish. 'That's raw! I could put that back in the f**king sea and it'd start swimming!'

The following month, former Big Brother contestant Skye Wheatley, 24, raged that her entire McDonald's breakfast was 'f**king ruined' after realising there was no barbecue sauce or extra cheese in her Bacon and Egg McMuffin.

Unimpressed: In May this year, Gordon Ramsay, 51, snapped and threw salmon at the wall during a guest appearance on MasterChef Australia

The social media influencer munched her way through several hash browns, but became furious when she unwrapped her McMuffin and realised what was inside.

In a YouTube video, she fumed: 'Have they f**king given me extra cheese? No they f**king didnt! Ive only got one square of cheese on there.

'Did they give me barbecue sauce? Oh, they f**king didn't! Every time, that f**king Maccas! I hate that Maccas. Oh my God, I'm calling them.'

Rage: The following month, former Big Brother contestant Skye Wheatley, 24, raged that her entire McDonald's breakfast was 'f**king ruined' after realising there was no barbecue sauce or extra cheese in her Bacon and Egg McMuffin

Fellow reality star Keira Maguire, 31, was left sobbing after a 'painful' challenge on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! in 2017.

The challenge involved Keira removing a star from a tank full of chilli. The star itself, which she had to pick up with her mouth, was covered in hot chilli sauce.

'That was so bad. Like worse than any treatment I've had on my face and that's painful,' she wept.

Tears and tantrums: Fellow reality star Keira Maguire, 31, was left sobbing after a 'painful' challenge on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Outta Here! in 2017

Last week, The Bachelor's Tenille Favios stunned viewers when she dramatically ripped off her microphone, unzipped her dress and stormed off set.

The 25-year-old was embroiled in a dispute with fellow contestants on the show and abruptly walked away when it all became too much.

The Bachelor Australia continues Wednesday at 7:30pm on Network Ten
She relocated from her native Australia to the US when she was just 16 years old to pursue a rap career.

And now Iggy Azalea has delivered a blow to her Australian fans, revealing that she won't be touring Down Under anytime soon because it is too expensive.

The 28-year-old Fancy hit maker announced her Bad Girls US tour this week and admitted that a tour in Australia is 'hard to profit from' and her native country is 'too far' away.

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'It's a hard one to profit from and it's far': Iggy Azalea reveals why she WON'T tour her native Australia... as she announces new dates for the US

The singer's made the surprising statement when she replied to a fan's comment on Twitter.

'When is Australia getting a tour,' one of her followers asked.

'I'm not sure, it's a hard one to profit from honestly, it's far, and would have to be part of a bigger group of shows in Asia etc etc,' she replied.

'I'm not sure': The 28-year-old Fancy hit maker announced her Bad Girls US tour this week and admitted that a tour in Australia is 'hard to profit from' and her native country is 'too far' away

'I'm not sure, it's a hard one to profit from honestly, it's far, and would have to be part of a bigger group of shows in Asia etc etc,' she stated

'So that's why I've never been able to make it work in the past although I'd love to do it.

'Hopefully one day!' she exclaimed.

The Black Widow rapper will be hitting the road in the US from late October, stopping at cities including Nashville, New York, Detroit and LA.

She will also perform a show in Canada.

The curvaceous star was born in Sydney, but grew up in Mullumbimby in New South Wales before she moved to the US.

One for her North American fans: The Black Widow rapper will be hitting the road in the US from late October, stopping at cities including Nashville, New York, Detroit and LA

In 2016, Iggy returned to Australia to work on The X Factor Australia as a judge.

That same year she made headlines when she said that Australia is no longer her home.

Speaking to The Herald Sun, she said: 'To be honest with you, my home is in America.'

'I've lived there for a decade, that's where I live. It's great to come back and visit my grandparents, but there is no home connection.'
She's known for her stunning sartorial choices on the red carpet.

And Katie Holmes was in classic form on Tuesday as she cut an elegant figure on the carpet of the Alice + Olivia show.

The 39-year-old actress stunned in a long white halterneck dress as she sauntered into the New York Fashion Week event.

Callisc: Katie Holmes was in classic form on Tuesday as she cut an elegant figure on the carpet of the Alice + Olivia show

The shoulderless dress pulled up to the collar and was clasped behind her neck, with the bottom following to shin length.

The Batman Begins star painted her lips Corvette red adding an electric touch as she attended the fashion bash, which was held on a specially-designed boat and co-sponsored by Booking.com.

She kept things on edge by letting her wavy brown locks fall messily to just above her shoulder, and added beige heels.

Elegant: The 39-year-old actress stunned in a long white dress as she sauntered into the New York Fashion Week event

Gorgeous: The shoulderless dress pulled up to the collar and was clasped behind her neck, with the bottom following to shin length

Chic: The Batman Begins star painted her lips Corvette red adding an electric touch to the tasteful frock

Caitlyn Jenner arrived with Sophia Hutchins, 22, at the show, sporting a black-and-white plaid dress with a matching jacket.

The 68-year-old former Olympian let her long blonde locks tumble across her shoulders.

She completed the look with black heels and painted her lips a rosy red.

Sophia matched her close friend in a black-and-white outfit of her own, but opted for pants and a shoulderless top.

Plaid: Caitlyn Jenner arrived with Sophia Hutchins, 22, at the show, sporting a black-and-white plaid dress with a matching jacket

Black and white: The 68-year-old former Olympian let her long blonde locks tumble across her shoulders

Chelsea: She completed the look with black heels and painted her lips a rosy red

Matching: Sophia matched her close friend in a black-and-white outfit of her own, but opted for pants and a shoulderless top

Amber Heard, 32, also went with a plaid look, but opted for a yellow-and-black pattern that was cropped just above her waist, exposing a hint of her taut stomach.

A shin-length, black, leather skirt and bright red lipstick added an extra bit of edge to her ensemble, and she completed the look by letting her blonde locks fall in messy waves down her shoulders.

Karrueche Tran, 30, meanwhile, was all class in a red wrap dress with her dark tresses pulled into a tight bun; she accessorized the look with jewelry from Jen Hansen and Parpala.

Nicky Hilton, 34, opted for a sparkling, striped number with a black top and matching heels.

Buzz: Amber Heard, 32, also went with a plaid look, but opted for a yellow-and-black pattern that was cropped just above her waist, exposing a hint of her taut stomach

Class: Karrueche Tran, 30, meanwhile, was all class in a red wrap dress with her dark tresses pulled into a tight bun

Sparkles: Nicky Hilton, 34, opted for a sparkling, striped number with a black top and matching heels

Victoria Justice donned an all-blue ensemble that featured an off-the-shoulder top, a shimmering pencil skirt, and booties.

The 25-year-old actress bared more than a hint of midriff in the outfit, and her chocolate-colored locks cascaded in waves across her chest.

Kelly Rutherford, 49, donned black leather pants with a matching jacket, and added a white t-shirt.

Tinsley Mortimer, 43, showed off her stunning stems in short plaid shorts, and tucked in a button down white top.

Simmering: Victoria Justice donned an all-blue ensemble that featured an off-the-shoulder top, a shimmering pencil skirt, and booties

Shimmering: The 25-year-old actress bared more than a hint of midriff in the outfit, and her chocolate-colored locks cascaded in waves across her chest

Feeling blue: Victoria stood out in her all-blue outfit

Brunette beauty: The actress sparkled in her shiny skirt

Fashion fans: Madison Reed caught up with Victoria at the presentation

Hell for leather: Kelly Rutherford, 49, donned black leather pants with a matching jacket, and added a white t-shirt

Stems: Tinsley Mortimer, 43, showed off her stunning stems in short plaid shorts, and tucked in a button down white top
Dorit Kemsley is in the doghouse.

Lisa Vanderpump is 'furious' with her Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills co-star after she dumped one of her rescue dogs back at a shelter.

According to RadarOnline, Dorit adopted the chihuahua mix from Lisa's dog charity  but handed it off to a different animal shelter shortly afterward.

Doghouse: Lisa Vanderpump is 'furious' with RHOBH co-star Dorit Kemsley for dumping one of her rescue dogs back at shelter

The 'return' was discovered at the second shelter, when they discovered the poor unwanted creature was already microchipped to Vanderpump Dogs.

However Kemsley reportedly made the decision after the mutt 'nipped' at her kids.

'To say Lisa is pissed is an understatement,' a source told the site. 'Having one of her dogs ends up in a shelter places her rescue organization in jeopardy because its a new business.

'She doesnt want to be known for placing dogs in unsuitable homes.'

Busted: The 'return' was discovered at the second shelter, when they discovered the poor unwanted creature was already microchipped to Vanderpump Dogs

Unsurprisingly, the drama unfolded as Bravo cameras were rolling , and will likely feature on the upcoming season.

'She got the dog out of the shelter and has just been so upset about it,' the source added.

A second source close to dorit claimed the reality star had 'really no explanation' as to why she didn't simply return the dog to Lisa, or at least inform her about it.

'It has really strained their friendship,' the added.

Lisa is a huge lover of and advocate for dogs, and an outspoken opponent of China's Yulin Dog Meat Festival.
Fred Durst is gonna have to start looking for his nookie somewhere else, as he is about to have more divorces than he does number one albums.

On Tuesday, TMZ revealed that the 48-year-old Limp Bizkit frontman and his third wife Kseniya Beryazina are getting divorced.

The now former couple are calling it quits after about six years of marriage according to documents filed in Los Angeles.

Trouble in paradise: Fred Durst is gonna have to start looking for his nookie somewhere else, as he is about to have more divorces than he does number one albums

Durst and the Ukrainian makeup artist famously kept their marriage under wraps for three years, before finally announcing in 2015 they had tied the knot.

The terms of the divorce remain unknown at this time.

The now ex-couple don't have any children together.

On Tuesday, TMZ revealed that the 48-year-old Limp Bizkit frontman and his third wife Kseniya Beryazina are getting divorced

Durst has been married twice before, the first time to Rachel Tergesen from 1990 to 1993.

The couple has one child together, Adriana.

The Longshots director also has son Dallas with Jennifer Thayer, but the two never married.

In 2009, he was married Esther Nazarov, but the two split up after only three months together.

Over: The now former couple are calling it quits after about six years of marriage according to documents filed in Los Angeles

Durst had a string of hits with Limp Bizkit in the late 90s and early 2000s, topping the U.S. Billboard 200 twice in a row.

The band split in 2006, but got back together in 2009 and released a new LP, Gold Cobra, in 2011, which topped out at number 16 on the chart.

For the last several years, they've been working on the follow up, currently titled Stampede of the Disco Elephants, but there remains no timetable for its release.

As of 2015, Durst has been banned from entering Ukraine, and sales of the band's music is prohibited.
She described Nick 'The Honey Badger' Cummins as a 'prawn' after he rejected her advances on The Bachelor Australia.

And Cat Henesey, 24, was spotted getting cosy with a man whose looks she clearly approves of on Tuesday, while on a night out in New Farm, Brisbane.

The sharp-tongued reality TV 'villain' cuddled up to her suit-clad companion while sipping from a wine glass at The Smoke BBQ restaurant.

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That didn't take long! Bachelor 'villain' Cat Henesey (right) cuddled up to a mystery man (left) in Brisbane on Tuesday... after she labelled Nick Cummins a 'prawn' when he rejected her kiss

Despite revealing on The Project last week that she had received death threats over her 'mean girl' antics on The Bachelor, the fashion designer appeared to be in good spirits as she flirted up a storm with the mystery man.

At one point, Cat's dapper friend cheekily placed his hand on her bottom which prompted her to giggle, lean in closer and place her arm around him.

She opted to wear a quirky outfit consisting of a loose-fitting floral red midi dress, black leather-look jacket and white socks with sneakers.

Getting cosy: At one point, Cat's suit-clad companion cheekily placed his hand on her bottom which prompted her to giggle, lean in closer and place her arm around him

Quirky: She opted to wear a quirky outfit consisting of a loose-fitting floral red midi dress, black leather-look jacket and white socks with sneakers

Last week, the Bali-based socialite was unceremoniously kicked off The Bachelor after former Wallabies star Nick Cummins condemned her behaviour in the mansion.

In an interview on The Project, she appeared emotional as she revealed she had been targeted by trolls since getting sent home.

'I'm getting death threats, I'm getting told to kill myself, all sorts of insults to my appearance...' she said while sitting alongside fellow 'villain' Romy Poulier.

Rejected: Nick Cummins (right) previously rejected Cat's kiss on The Bachelor. Last week, he booted her off the show over her 'mean girl' antics in the mansion

'But yes, we have got a great support network and we have got each other, so it's definitely been a challenging week, that's for sure.'

Last month, Cat took a swipe at Nick's appearance while speaking to The Daily Telegraph.

'I feel like it is more of a prawn situation,' she sniped, using a slang term that refers to a person with a good physique but an unattractive face.

Backlash: Cat recently revealed that she has been targeted by trolls since leaving the show

The terms derives from the fact you eat the body of a prawn and throw away the head.

'I am serious, it is more of a good body but anything shoulder up is debatable [situation],' she added.

'I am going to say no curls, I don't like his hair. I never told him that  but I told him with my eyes.'
Annaliese Puccini and Kamil Nicalek left Bachelor In Paradise in each other's arms  but on Tuesday's 'After Paradise' show he made a public display of dumping her.

The show opened with a post-Fantasy Suite flashback to the last day in Mexico, with the remaining three couples: Annaliese and Kamil, Chris Randone and Krystal Nielson and Jordan Kimball and Jenna Cooper.

Annaliese told Kamil she had fallen in love with his 'soul' as well as his 'good looks and charm.'

Televised split: Annaliese Puccini was shocked as Kamil Nicalek publicly dumped her on Tuesday's season finale of Bachelor In Paradise

He told her he loved her, but wasn't ready for an engagement.

When they reunited in the studio Annaliese said they were in a 'good spot', but Kamil disagreed.

'I think I might not be the guy for youI lost that spark we had in paradise after leaving,' said Kamil, a 30-year-old 'social media participant' from New York.

Annaliese, a 33-year-old event designer from California, said she felt 'empty' and left the stage.

Spark lost: Kamil broke it to Annaliese that he lost the spark they had in Mexico

Fantasy suite: Annaliese and Kamil spent their last night in Mexico in the Fantasy Suite together

Long distance: Kamil told Annaliese that he wasn't the guy for her

Getting emotional: Annaliese was stunned into silence by the breakup

She re-entered in a fury, yelling: 'I sent your mom flowers, I booked your flight back to New York, and now you're breaking up with me, in front of everyone.'

Kamil was booed off the stage while Annaliese hugged her BIP girlfriends for comfort.

'So I'm going to look like a douchebag again on TV,' Kamil muttered backstage.

Taking off: The event designer left to gather herself and was hugged by her friends

Candid conversation: Kamil and Annaliese talked backstage about it

Bad impression: The televised breakup left Kamil looking bad

In Mexico, Jordan Kimball admitted he wasn't sure if he was ready for engagement either, but moments later he dropped to one knee with the Neil Lane engagement ring.

'I got exactly what I wanted,' beamed Jenna, a 29-year-old North Carolina resident.

Back in the studio Jordan and Jenna were still going strong, after making a glittery 'vision board' of their 'journey.'

One knee: Jordan Kimball dropped to a knee to propose to Jenna in Mexico

Going strong: Jenna and Jordan were going strong after paradise

'If I could have 10 kids I would,' said Jordan, a 26-year-old model from Florida.

Chris also proposed in Mexico, telling Krystal she'd changed his life and made him a 'better man'.

'I'm going to be Mrs. Goose!' she yelled.

The moment: Chris Randone also proposed to Krystal in Mexico

In the studio, Chris was still smitten, sobbing about what an 'incredible woman' he'd found.

'This is my Goosey,' cooed Krystal, who had decided that her dogs would be the ring bearers at their wedding.

'We're moving in together,' announced Chris, a 30-year-old sales trainer and fitness fanatic from Florida.

Cute couple: Krystal and Chris remained smitten with each other at the reunion

Show host Chris Harrison, 47, gave them a goose made of crystal as a housewarming present.

John Graham, the Venmo 'kissing bandit,' had supposedly split with Olivia Goethals after paradise due to the distance, but she'd found out he'd also been courting Chelsea Roy, a 30-year-old mother from Maine.

'That was a slap to my face,' said Olivia.

Parting gift: Chris Harrison gave the couple a gift

Split up: John Graham split with Olivia Goethals after paradise

Angela Amezcua criticized Eric Bigger for dumping her out of the blue.

'I felt like you were blocking me,' he explained.

Benoit Beausejour-Savard said Jordan talks about women like they are 'snacks or meals.'

Canadian contestant: Benoit Beausejour-Savard returned for the finale

'You were a fly in my face,' said Jordan, who had been furious in Mexico when Benoit pursued Jenna.

Astrid Loch and Kevin Wendt also reunited, after he unexpectedly dumped her before the Fantasy Suites.

The Canadian firefighter said he was 'scarred' by his Fantasy Suite experience with two-timing Ashley Iaconetti on Winter Games, and had projected it onto Astrid.

Together again: Kevin Wendt and Astric Loch were reunited after breaking up in Mexico

'That was a mistake,' he said.

Astrid said the 'trust' was broken with Kevin, but she'd try to make it work regardless.

Kendall Long said her 'fear and insecurity' had prevented her from progressing with Joe Amabile, aka Grocery Joe, in Mexico.

Trying again: The Florida resident decided to give it another shot with Kevin

Sealed it: Astrid and Kevin sealed it with a kiss

'I just let him walk away and that is one of the biggest things that I regret,' cried Kendall, a 26-year-old set dresser in Hollywood.

After paradise Kendall had flown to Chicago to express her regret to a very hurt and apprehensive Joe.

In the studio they kissed and professed their love for each other once more.

Big regret: Kendall Long said she regretted breaking up with Joe Amabile

Chris Harrison offered Joe a spot on Dancing With The Stars next season - so he could be in the same city as Kendall.

'Ok, I'll do it,' he cringed.

The Bachelor returns on January 7, 2019 on ABC.
Paddy McGuinness has clashed with wife Christine over her decision to appear in ITVBe reality series The Real Housewives of Cheshire.

According to The Sun, the The Take Me Out host is said to be 'concerned' that her participation on the show would reflect badly on their family.

Tempers are reportedly frayed between the two, who wed in 2011 and have three children together, as the former Miss GB refused to turn her back on the series because 'it's a great move for her career'.

Reports: Paddy McGuinness has clashed with wife Christine over her decision to appear in ITVBe reality series The Real Housewives of Cheshire

A source told the publication: 'Paddy and Christine have had a series of disagreements about her desire to be on The Real Housewives Of Cheshire. She really wants to be famous in her own right and believes the show is a stepping stone.

'But Paddy has serious reservations. None of the people from the programme have come out of it that well and it seems to involve lots of rows and fights.

'He doesnt see how its fun to have a load of women talking about her behind her back and is worried about the possibility of Christine exposing too much of their home life. He is concerned about how it reflects on their family.

MailOnline have contacted Christine McGuinness representatives for comment.

Decisions: According to The Sun, the The Take Me Out host is said to be 'concerned' that her participation on the show would reflect badly on their family

Christine first appeared on the much-loved show in series seven earlier and has made the occasional appearance in season eight.

It's been a tough time for the couple after a theft at the family home she shares with husband Paddy and their three children.

Money and other high-value items have gone missing from the family's sprawling 2million estate in recent weeks, prompting them to go to the police.

Tough: It's been a tough time for the couple after a theft at the family home she shares with husband Paddy and their three children

It was reported last week that the theft at Paddy and Christine's home took place 'over a matter of weeks' - suggesting someone with access to the house may be involved.

The thefts were initially thought to have been the result of a burglary, but police confirmed they took place over a long period of time, and they do not believe other homes in the wealthy Cheshire village are at risk.

The police announcement suggests the criminals either had access to McGuinness' home or broke in a number of times. Neither Christine or Paddy have commented.
The incidents the officers were involved in were tied to drugs or alcohol, the Hermosa police chief said.
Kate Bosworth rocked a red jumpsuit on Tuesday while attending the Calvin Klein Collection fashion show in New York City.

The 35-year-old actress stood out in the shiny one-piece that was buttoned up in the front for the event at New York Stock Exchange as part of New York Fashion Week.

The Blue Crush star completed her outfit with open-toed heels.

Lady in red: Kate Bosworth rocked a red jumpsuit on Tuesday at the Calvin Klein Collection fashion show in New York City

Kate had her copper tresses pulled back into a high bun and accessorized with a white handbag.

She accentuated her natural beauty with light makeup that highlighted her flawless complexion.

Kate was joined at the fashion show by her 47-year-old director husband Michael Polish.

Michael kept it casual in a grey T-shirt, blue jeans, sneakers and black jacket.

Sizzling star: The 35-year-old actress sizzled in the one-piece outfit

Runway ready: Kate looked ready for the runway herself in the shiny jumpsuit

All smiles: The actress posed with Jeff Goldblum and Sofia Sanchez de Betak inside the high-profile fashion event

He accessorized with a dark cap and sunglasses.

The cute couple sweetly held hands as they left their hotel and headed to the fashion show together.

Kate and Michael have been inseparable since meeting in 2011 and have collaborated on six different film projects together.

Holding hands: Michael Polish held hands with wife Kate as they left their hotel

She received the Pioneer Award earlier this year at the 2018 Sun Valley Film Festival in Idaho.

Kate was honored for producing and starring in the 2017 sex-trafficking drama Nona directed by her husband.

She last starred in the horror thriller The Domestics that was released in June.

Work together: Kate and Michael have collaborated on six film projects together
As a former Victoria's Secret model she has a body to die for.

And Jessica Hart flaunted her rock hard abs as she made her way to the Alice + Olivia show at New York Fashion Week on Tuesday.

The statuesque blonde opted for a vintage Pink Floyd T-shirt, cut off to bare her flat tummy, teamed with black velvet cropped hoodie that also drew attention to her toned torso.

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Rockin' it! Australian model Jessica Hart flaunts off her toned tummy in a Pink Floyd crop top as she heads to fashion show in New York

Jessica also slipped on a pair of red low-rising flared trousers, accentuating her long legs.

She added extra height with a pair of peep toe heels under the flares.

The Luma Beauty founder accessorised her ensemble with futuristic sunglasses and a small black handbag.

Edgy: Jessica also slipped on a pair of red low-rising flared trousers that accentuated her long legs. She added extra height with a pair of peep toe heels under the flares. Pictured: Jessica with friend Chantelle Waters

Mixing it up: The Luma Beauty founder accessorised her ensemble with a pair of futuristic sunglasses and a small black handbag

For makeup, she went for a natural look with a light flush of pink on her cheeks and similar hue on her pout.

Keeping with the minimal-effort style, Jessica let her straight sandy tresses cascade down her shoulders.

Inside the event, she took to her Instagram Stories to share a snap of herself with friend Chantelle Waters, which featured Caitlyn Jenner and Sophia Hutchins in the background.

Photo bomb: Inside the event, she took to her Instagram Stories to share a snap of herself with friend Chantelle Waters which featured Caitlyn Jenner and Sophia Hutchins in the background.

Busy gal: For the past week, Jessica has been busy racy around New York City to attend a slew of fashion shows. On Monday she attended the Zimmerman show wearing a sleek all-black outfit

For the past week, Jessica has been busy racy around New York City to attend a slew of fashion shows.

On Monday she attended the Zimmerman show wearing a sleek all-black outfit.

At the end of the event, she posed for a group photo with American model Christie Brinkley, her daughter Sailor Brinkley-Cook and Czech model Karolina Kurkova.
Hilary Swank's upcoming film, What They Had, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival over the weekend.

And on Tuesday, the 44-year-old actress was invited to give a special keynote address.

Swank, who wore her hair in soft curls, stunned in a sheer lace dress and black pump for the afternoon sit-down.

Leading lady: Hilary Swank's upcoming film, What They Had, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival over the weekend. And on Tuesday, the 44-year-old actress gave a special keynote address to festival attendees

Swank, best known for her role in Million Dollar Baby, stars in What They Had alongside Michael Shannon, Robert Forster, Blythe Danner, and Taissa Farmiga.

The drama follows Bridget, played by Swank, as she returns home to care for her elderly mother who suffers from Alzheimer's.

Bridget then comes face to face with the reality that her marriage is nothing like the one her parents share.

So chic: Swank, who wore her hair in soft curls, stunned in a sheer lace dress

Monochromatic moment: Hilary paired her ensemble with black pumps

In an interview with Red Carpet Report, Swank talked about Bridget's emotional journey throughout the film.

'I think that my character has always been a caretaker and what she's avoided is care taking herself,' she said. 'I think a lot of women find themselves in that position.

'We're nurturers by nature but we don't always nurture ourselves. I think that's [Bridget's] lesson that she learns throughout the film. She wants to be there for the people that she loves, but she also has to show up for herself.'

What They Had hits select theaters October 19.

Drama: What They Had follows Bridget, played by Swank, as she returns home following her elderly mother's Alzheimer's diagnosis. Bridget then comes face to face with the reality that her marriage is nothing like the one her parents share

In an interview with Red Carpet Report, Swank talked about Bridget's journey throughout the film. 'I think that my character has always been a caretaker and what she's avoided is care taking herself,' she said. 'I think a lot of women find themselves in that position'

Hilary took a hiatus from acting back in 2014 when her dad, Stephen Swank, underwent a lung transplant.

'I was my dad's health advocate for three years,' she told AP. 'It's hard when anyone is struggling through an ailment like that, something that can take your life. You've got to show up for one another and be there the best you can through something so difficult.'
Modelling is just a side gig for both of them.

But Paris Hilton and Teyana Taylor looked like full-time pros as always as they stalked the runway for Namilia on Tuesday night.

The duo looked both angelic and demonic as they donned striking red and black ensembles at Spring Studios Gallery II during New York Fashion Week.

That's hot: Paris Hilton and Teyana Taylor stalked the runway for Namilia on Tuesday night

Paris looked ethereal in a scorching red outfit that boasted 6ft quilted angel wings perched on her back.

A cut-off crop-top unveiled her taut tummy while dangerously low flared trousers sat well below her hips in a tantalizing display.

Trailing strips of black, linking chains and a fiery emblem on her chest tied up the devilish look.

Angelic: Paris looked ethereal in a scorching red outfit that boasted 6ft quilted angel wings perched on her back

Phew! A cut-off crop-top unveiled her taut tummy while dangerously low flared trousers sat well below her hips in a tantalizing display

Demonic: Trailing strips of black, linking chains and a fiery emblem on her chest tied up the devilish look

Rocking the rock: Her massive engagement ring was hard to miss

Teyana put on an equally scintillating display in an all black ensemble, with similar wings arched behind her.

Her crop top was un-zipped almost all the way, her incredible assets almost spilling out.

Her black PVC trousers were even more flared than Paris's, with cutaways revealing the curve of her hips, while the outfit also showcased her ridiculously toned abs.

Magnificent: Teyana put on an equally scintillating display in an all black ensemble

Soaring: She had similar wings arched behind her

Wow: Her crop top was un-zipped almost all the way, her incredible assets almost spilling out

Fit: Her black PVC trousers were even more flared than Paris's, with cutaways revealing the curve of her hips, while the outfit also showcased her ridiculously toned abs

Paris also re-emerged in an all-black ensemble of her own, shedding her wings and replacing them with a long trailing coat, hips and tummy on show once again.

Less than 24 hours earlier Paris was a short flight north across the border in Toronto, where she attended the premiere of fiance Chris Zylka's latest film The Death & Life Of John F. Donovan.

My #MCM (man crush monday) So proud to be with you here at The Toronoto Film Festival for the premiere of your new film #TheDeathAndLifeOfJohnFDonovan directed by @XavierDolan,' she posted on Instagram. 'Love you handsome.'

Open and close: Paris also re-emerged in an all-black ensemble of her own, shedding her wings and replacing them with a long trailing coat, hips and tummy on show once again

Artists: The dou joined designers Emilia Pfohl (L) and Nan Li on the catwalk
Tammy Hembrow enjoyed her moment in the spotlight on Friday when her activewear label Saski Collection was showcased at New York Fashion Week.

But following her return to the Gold Coast, it seems the fame-hungry Instagram model has become suddenly shy.

The 24-year-old bizarrely tried to hide her identity by throwing a pink towel over her head while leaving a yoga studio in Surfers Paradise on Wednesday.

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Why suddenly shy? Tammy Hembrow bizarrely covered her face with a towel at the gym in Surfers Paradise on Wednesday... after basking in the spotlight at New York Fashion Week

Despite posing up a storm in NYC last week in a variety of skimpy outfits, Tammy appeared more reserved during her outing.

The social media sensation, who flaunted her figure in skintight leggings and a black crop top, seemingly tried to keep a low profile.

Leaving the building with a towel concealing her face, the mother-of-two looked frankly bizarre as she carried a pink yoga mat.

Getaway car: After a hot yoga session, the 24-year-old was spotted climbing into her $330,000 Mercedes Benz AMG GT-C and driving away

Trying to keep a low profile? Leaving the yoga studio with a towel concealing her face, the mother-of-two looked frankly bizarre as she carried a pink yoga mat

Going makeup-free for the workout session, she finished off her look with a pair of comfortable, black and white slides.

She was then spotted climbing into her $330,000 Mercedes Benz AMG GT-C and driving away.

Tammy recently flew home after spending several days in America, where her activewear label Saski Collection was showcased on the NYFW runway.

Businesswoman: Tammy recently flew home after spending several days in America, where her activewear label Saski Collection was showcased on the NYFW runway

Saski was one of a handful of local brands featured at NYFW by the agency Fashion Palette, which was founded by former My Kitchen Rules star Sonya Mefaddi.

Ranked as one of Westpac's 200 Businesses of Tomorrow, Saski Collection has brought in a revenue of of $3.6million, and made its Fashion Week debut on Friday.

At the conclusion of the runway show, a jubilant Tammy stepped out in a pantsuit and perspex heels as the crowd applauded her designs.
She is the Australian actress making waves in Hollywood.

And Elizabeth Debicki dressed to impress at the premiere of her film Vita and Virginia at the Toronto International Film Festival on Tuesday.

The 28-year-old showcased her statuesque physique in a cream, satin gown by Schiaparelli.

Stunner: Elizabeth Debicki dressed to impress at the premiere of her film Vita and Virginia at the Toronto International Film Festival on Tuesday

Her dress featured unusual embellishments, including green, leaf-like detailing along the neckline and a multitude of black spots down the front.

The Melbourne-raised star posed for the cameras by the media wall, at one point turning to reveal the backless V-cut of her frock.

Elizabeth's cropped blonde hair was styled in loose waves that were swept away from her flawless complexion.

All in the details: The Melbourne-raised star posed for the cameras by the media wall, at one point turning to reveal the backless V-cut of her Schiaparelli frock

For makeup, she opted for a lilac eye shadow, lashings of mascara and defined brows, pink blush cheeks and a nude pink lip.

Vita and Virginia centres on the romantic affair between Virginia Woolf, played by Elizabeth, and socialite Vita Sackville-West, played by Gemma Arterton, in the 1920s.

The British biopic is not the only premiere the actress attended at this year's Toronto International Film Festival.

Period drama: Vita and Virginia centres on the romantic affair between Virginia Woolf, played by Elizabeth, and socialite Vita Sackville-West, played by Gemma Arterton, in the 1920s

Joining forces: On Monday, Elizabeth promoted action-thriller Widows, alongside co-star Viola Davis. The actress oozed old Hollywood glamour in a plunging black gown by Armani Prive

On Monday, she stepped out to promote action-thriller Widows, alongside co-star Viola Davis.

Elizabeth oozed old Hollywood glamour in a plunging black gown by Armani Prive.

It was recently announced that she would be reprising her role as the golden-skinned high priestess of the Sovereign, Ayesha, in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3.
The Bachelor's Romy Poulier has hit back at claims she's undergone cosmetic enhancements, including fillers and Botox, after a doctor claimed she may have had some subtle tweaks.

Speaking to Daily Mail Australia on Wednesday, Romy insisted she's au natural as she took a swipe at her former love rivals on the show.

'I actually haven't had any work done! I'm one of the few in the mansion [that hasn't],' Romy proclaimed.

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'I'm one of the few in the mansion that hasn't had any work done!' The Bachelor's Romy Poulier hits back at claims she's had cosmetic enhancements and takes a swipe at her former love rivals

'It's very flattering people think I have, I suppose'.

It comes after Dr. Jack Zoumaras told New Idea he believes the 30-year-old actress had a few 'nip and tucks' to enhance her facial features.

Claims: It comes after Dr. Jack Zoumaras told New Idea he believes the 30-year-old actress has had a few 'nip and tucks' to enhance her facial features (she's pictured with a friend)

'Romy has great cheek bone structure,' Jack told the publication.

'However it is likely she has had some lip filler, Botox to open her eyes up and possible cheek filler,' the medical expert claimed.

While Romy has insisted she hasn't gone under the knife, leading Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Randal Haworth has claimed it is quite obvious that fellow Bachelor contestant Blair Thomas, 27, had undergone breast augmentation.

She's a stunner! 'Romy has great cheek bone structure,' Jack told the publication. 'However it is likely she has had some lip filler, Botox to open her eyes up and possible cheek filler,' the medical expert claimed

Busty! It comes after leading Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Dr. Randal Haworth claimed it was quite obvious that contestant Blair Thomas, 27, (pictured) had undergone breast augmentation

Older photos dating back to February 2013 show Blair with a significantly flatter chest when compared to her appearance today.

'The abrupt edge of her breasts as they transition from her chest wall indicate to me she had breast implants likely placed over her pectoralis major muscle,' Dr. Haworth told Daily Mail Australia.

'Implants placed over the muscle are more likely to give this "bolt-on" appearance not normally seen in nature. However, when a patient has little body fat or breast tissue, implants placed under the muscle can occasionally give the same appearance.'

Voluptuous! Older photos (L) dating back to February 2013 show Blair with a significantly flatter chest when compared to her appearance today (R)

Further possible evidence that Blair may have had a breast augmentation can be found in the comments section of one of her throwback photos.

A picture taken in 2011 showed her with smaller breasts, which prompted one female friend commenting below: 'Pre boobies?'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Blair for comment.

Meanwhile, Russian personal trainer Dasha Gaivoronski recently revealed to NW that she had a breast enlargement to boost her confidence after having a child.

Sophie Tieman also told WHO magazine that she's had lip fillers.

Changes: Meanwhile, Russian personal trainer Dasha Gaivoronski (pictured) recently revealed to NW that she had a breast enlargement to boost her confidence after having a child
Tensions are flaring among the cast of Love Island Australia now that the Spanish villa is a distant memory.

According to a source close to the reality stars, not everyone is getting along two months after the Channel Nine series wrapped up.

The insider claimed winner Grant Crapp and male stripper Jaxon Human are baring the brunt of the animosity at events.

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EXCLUSIVE 'The hatred is intense': Love Island Australia stars turn on love rat Grant Crapp (left) while the girls of the show mysteriously 'ice out' Jaxon Human (right) at events

One recent paid club appearance in Melbourne saw many of the female Islanders attempting to avoid Jax, claimed the spy, but the reason behind the unfriendliness remains unclear.

'Jax was totally iced out by the girls,' the source revealed.

'I don't know what has changed but Cassidy (McGill) said "nah, we won't go over to the other side of the bar... Jax is there" and they all rolled their eyes.'

And it seems it wasn't just a once-off incident, with the source continuing: 'At two other events it was the same, the (girls) on one side of the room, then Jax'

'They all rolled their eyes': The source claimed Cassidy and several of the Love Island stars avoided going anywhere near Jaxon at a recent event - but the reason behind the apparent animosity remains a mystery

Also facing heat is Grant Crapp, who has been no stranger to criticism after controversially looking for love on the show despite already dating 'secret girlfriend' Lucy Cartwright.

'The hatred of Grant was intense,' the source spilled. 'Everyone is p**sed at Grant for lying to them all.'

When approached by Daily Mail Australia, Grant hit back at his co-stars saying there's a 'real boys club mentality'.

'They all feel better attacking someone in a group. I've honestly felt like I've done nothing wrong to any of them personally,' he said.

'I'm just unsure as to why they are being like this but it comes across as really unfair and childish from majority of the cast.'

'Everyone is p**sed at Grant for lying to them all' Grant controversially took part in Love Island after while dating 'secret girlfriend Lucy Cartwright, and it is claimed he is now facing 'intense hatred' from his fellow Islanders (Pictured: Grant with Lucy)

Feud finished! The source also claimed that former love rivals Tayla Damir (left) and Cassidy McGill (right) have genuinely patched things up

The original source also confirmed the 23-year-old Grant's former love interests Cassidy and Taylor Damir have genuinely patched things up.

'Cassidy and Taylor are also now totally fine and friends,' they added.

Cassidy was simultaneously 'loved and hated' during her stint on the racy dating show after forcing Grant to 'recouple' with her after he had moved on with Tayla.

And apparently the blonde bombshell is hoping to leave her time in the spotlight behind her.

The source claimed Cassidy 'keeps running from the photographers' at events she attends, possibly in a bid to avoid negative press.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Grant, Jax and Cassidy for comment.
Nicole Kidman shut down a reporter at the Toronto International Film Festival this week.

The 51-year-old was taking part in a question and answer session to promote her new film Destroyer, when she refused to answer a rather bizarre question.

The Academy Award winner was asked to rank all the wigs she's ever worn throughout her career, and she swiftly branded the question 'awful'.

'That's awful!' Nicole Kidman shut down a reporter at the Toronto International Film Festival this week (pictured on the Graham Norton show recently)

According to a tweet shared by journalist Mark Olsen, who attended the event, Nicole politely told the reporter that she would not be giving them an answer.

Olsen claimed the actress said 'That's an awful question. I am shutting that question down.'

'Nicole Kidman, lightly but genuinely (said), to an audience question asking how she ranks the wigs in DESTROYER on the scale of her many movie wigs. #TIFF18,' the Los Angeles Times reporter recalled.

But one fan tweeted that it would have been good to have heard the Nicole's response.

Not impressed! The 51-year-old was taking part in a question and answer session to promote her new film Destroyer, when she refused to answer a rather bizarre question. The Academy Award winner was asked to rank all the wigs she's ever worn throughout her career, and she swiftly branded the question 'awful' (pictured talking to E! News, who did not ask the question)

In character: Nicole has worn a number of wigs throughout her career (pictured with a long grey curly wig on in Top of the Lake)

Awkward! According to a tweet shared by journalist Mark Olsen, who attended the event, Nicole politely told the reporter that she wouldn't be giving them an answer

'I mean! That actually woulda (sic) been a cool question to answer. She has every right to not answer it but c'mon! That coulda (sic) been fun,' they wrote under his post.

Nicole has worn a number of wigs throughout her career and dons a grey hairpiece in Destroyer.

She also wears a long red wig in her hit HBO series Big Little Lies, has worn a grey curly hairpiece in Top of the Lake and has faux tresses in the films Lion and How to Talk to Girls at Parties.

Another look: Nicole wore a curly short wig in the film Lion back in 2016

Natural-looking: She also wears a long red wig for her hit HBO series Big Little Lies (pictured)

Meanwhile this week, Nicole's husband Keith Urban revealed that constant 'split rumours' about the happily married couple give him the 's**ts.'

Speaking to The Kyle and Jackie O Show on Monday, the 50-year-old rocker said he is sick of explaining the 'fake news' to their children, Sunday Rose, 10, and Faith Margaret, seven.

'Yeah it does give me the s**ts. When you have kids it changes, you know because that's really hurtful to kids because they don't quite understand,' he explained to fill-in host Beau Ryan.

'They go ''well, why are they saying that?" and we have to say "because it sells magazines, that's the only reason they're doing it.''

'That part of it is a bit rough, but I find it more absurd that you'll see a pic of Nic and I in Telluride where I just was with her, and then youll have something tiny next to it that's false and you just think, "what a bunch of w**kers."

'I always laugh when they say some "inside source", because anybody who's the closest to us knows how bu***t all these reports are,' he laughed.
She became one of the most hated women in Australia last week after she was accused of 'bullying' Tenille Favios on The Bachelor.

But Romy Poulier has claimed she's the real victim because producers misrepresented the explosive scene that saw Tenille storm out of the mansion in tears.

The reality TV villain, 30, alleged the scene was edited so it looked like she and Cat Henesey had 'ganged up' on Tenille when, in fact, 'all the girls' drove the flight attendant to breaking point.

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'She didn't run because of me at all': Bachelor 'villain' Romy Poulier (right) has claimed the REAL reason Tenille Favios fled the cocktail party in tears on Wednesday's episode was edited out. Pictured with Alisha Aitken-Radburn (left) and Cat Henesey (centre)

'The reason she ran away was actually because all the girls chimed in, then she obviously freaked out and ran away,' Romy told Josiah and Elly this week.

'She actually didn't run away because of me at all. It looked like I went up to her twice and then she ran away, but actually, the second time I went up to her was when she'd come back and I asked if she was OK.'

Romy claimed the 'whole house' took issue with the fact Tenille, 25, boasted about kissing Nick Cummins on their solo date despite previously saying she would never kiss on the first date.

Drama: Last week, Queensland flight attendant Tenille Favios fled the set in tears after a clash with other contestants

'I think she was feeling a bit ostracised, but to be fair, it wasn't a very nice thing [for her] to do. It was insensitive and it upset a lot of the girls,' Romy said.

Romy, Cat, 24, and Alisha Aitken-Radburn, 25, were widely criticised by viewers last week for their 'bullying' behaviour in the Bachelor mansion.

Shortly after the incident with Tenille, all three women left the competition.

'We just don't condone bullying': After their spectacular exits on Thursday's episode, Cat and Romy said they were feeling remorseful about their behaviour. Appearing on The Project on Friday, the reality stars appeared tearful and fragile as they offered up an apology to viewers

After their spectacular exits on Thursday's episode, Cat and Romy said they were feeling remorseful about their behaviour.

Appearing via video link on The Project on Friday night, the 'mean girls' appeared tearful and fragile as they offered up an apology to viewers.

'We do apologise for offending people and we do regret some of the things we did in there,' said Cat.

'We just don't condone bullying, it's not in either of our nature,' Romy added.

However, it appeared The Project's studio audience may not have found their sentiments sincere, as they were heard laughing in the background.

Contrite: Cat and Romy apologised for their on-air behaviour and claimed they 'don't condone bullying'

Romy added: 'The last couple of episodes have certainly been quite shocking and questionable and uncomfortable to watch at the best of times, that's for sure'.

The two women both agreed their behaviour was worse than they realised.

An emotional-looking Cat then revealed she had been attacked by social media trolls since the show went to air.

Sent packing: A teary Cat was kicked off The Bachelor by Nick Cummins for her bad behaviour on Thursday's episode

'I'm getting death threats, I'm getting told to kill myself, all sorts of insults to my appearance but yes, we have got a great support network and we have got each other, so it's definitely been a challenging week, that's for sure,' she said.

Both women have limited comments on their social media accounts.

On Thursday's episode of The Bachelor, Nick Cummins sent Cat home after learning about her 'mean' and 'bullying' behaviour.

Alisha did not receive a rose during the subsequent Rose Ceremony, and Romy walked out on the rugby star when he offered her the chance to stay.
They're some of Hollywood's youngest but brightest imports.

But it was UK actresses Millie Bobbie Brown, Saoirse Ronan, 24, and Australia's Katherine Langford, 22, that led the pack of stars at the Calvin Klein New York Fashion Week event on Tuesday.

All sporting unique ensembles, the 14-year-old Stranger Things star was oozing with style in a youthful knit and denim combo.

Stunner: Millie Bobbie Brown was oozing with style in a youthful knit and denim combo at the Calvin Klein NYFW show on Tuesday night.

Millie's orange sweater featured a ribbed pattern and was of a turtleneck style.

She paired the look with short sleeved denim button-up dress that fell to just above her knees.

At the bottom of one side of the ensemble, a blue patch read: 'Calvin Jeans'.

Fashion-forward: Millie's orange sweater featured a ribbed pattern and was of a turtleneck style

Beauty: The young teen completed her look with orange pointed toe boots and had her brunette locks styled into a fun up-do with wavy tresses hanging down to frame her face

Fashionista! She paired the look with short sleeved denim button-up dress that fell to just above her knees

Pose: The actress struck a series of poses before making her way into the exclusive event

The young teen completed her look with orange pointed toe boots and had her brunette locks styled into a fun up-do with wavy tresses hanging down to frame her face.

Her glam was simple, letting her fun outfit do the talking.

Saoirse Ronan was another head turner at the runway event.

Beauty: Saoirse Ronan was another head turner at the runway event

Model in her own right! The Lady Bird actress put on quite a leggy display and completed her look with unique yet simple black strappy heels

Stylish: She too opted for a mini dress that featured a black panel with baby pink shoulder blades and trim

She too opted for a mini dress that featured a black panel with baby pink shoulder blades and trim.

The Lady Bird actress put on quite a leggy display and completed her look with unique yet simple black strappy heels.

On the band of one foot, the heel was embellished with a diamonte design - which was seen on the other shoe's band.

Popular choice! Katherine Langford was seen wearing the same heels as Saoirse on Tuesday evening

Her own style: A completely different outfit and style however, the 13 Reasons Why star opted to mismatch patterns and textures with a statement shirt and printed skirt

New look: The Love Simon star accessorised with a green clutch and had her brunette locks dip-dyed pink at the ends

Saoirse kept the remainder of her look minimal with her blonde locks slicked back into a low ponytail.

Her makeup featured a luminous complexion with emphasis on her rosy pink cheeks and highlighted cheekbones.

Katherine Langford was seen wearing the same heels as Saoirse on Tuesday evening.

Matching with Millie! Noah Schnapp dressed in a navy sweater with a flag on it and paired the top with orange trousers

Reunited: The front row saw Stranger Things Noah Schanpp sit next to his co-star Millie

Youthful: Millie's glam was simple, letting her fun outfit do the talking

A completely different outfit and style however, the 13 Reasons Why star opted to mismatch patterns and textures with a statement shirt and printed skirt.

Katherine's T-shirt was of a monochrome shot of two people in a passionate embrace, which she tucked into a animal printed pleated midi-length frock.

The Love Simon star accessorised with a green clutch and had her brunette locks dip-dyed pink at the ends.

Making heads turn: Disney star Rowan Blanchard also got heads turning during the Spring/Summer 2019 unveiling on Tuesday

Comfortable! The 16-year-old opted for a yellow turtleneck paired with a green mini skirt and wore the same shoes as Saoirse and Katherine

All dressed up: Jake Gyllenhall looked uber dapper on Tuesday night

Front row: The star settled into his front row seat among a host of VIPs, including Stefano Tonchi, Rami Malek, Mia Goth, and Odell Beckham Jr

Katherine's tresses were styled into a wave and effortlessly placed over one shoulder.

The rising star was seated in the front row next to Millie and her Stranger Things co-star Noah Schanpp.

Noah dressed in a navy sweater with a flag on it and paired the top with orange trousers.

Stylish: Fellow actor Rami Malek looked dapper in a plain shirt and plaid overcoat over the top

Friends: Also in the front row was ASAP Rocky and Odell Beckham Jr

Covered up: The chart-topping rapper arrived at the event wearing a ski mask over a durag

Disney star Rowan Blanchard also got heads turning during the Spring/Summer 2019 unveiling on Tuesday.

The 16-year-old opted for a yellow turtleneck paired with a green mini skirt.

The Girl Meets World star was also seen in the same heels as both Saoirse and Katherine.

Classic look: Jake kept it simple in a white T-shirt and a dark overshirt

Dazzling: Kate Bosworth stunned in a red leather jumpsuit for the event on Tuesday evening

Beauty: She had her light tresses slicked back into a high top knot and accessorised with a cream colored cross-body bag

Rowan's brunette locks were styled into a high-ponytail with her statement smudged smokey eye taking centre stage.

Also joining the beauty on the front row was Jake Gyllenhall, Rami Malek, ASAP Rocky and Odell Beckham Jr.

Jake kept it simple in a white T-shirt and a dark overshirt.

Sheer beauty: Big Little Lies and Academy Award winner Laura Dern also got heads turning at the show

Always glamorous: Laura's blonde locks were in loose waves and her makeup featured a subtle red lip

Ready for bed? But it was Game Of Throne's Gwendoline Christie's look that really got show-goers talking for her pajama inspired look

He styled his hair with a spiked crown and sported a minimal amount of stubble.

Fellow actor Rami Malek looked dapper in a plain shirt and plaid overcoat over the top.

One shot saw him pose with Saoirse, Jake and UK actress Mia Goth.

Putting on a show: Models were seen strutting their style down the red carpet while the A-listers seated in the front row watched on

Enjoying their time: Meek Mill and James Harden were spotted at the show

She knows style! Naomi Campbell stepped out in a monochrome printed overcoat and matching boots

ASAP Rocky had his dark hair in his signature braids and opted for a blush pink turtle neck sweater.

Sitting with his arm around pal Odell Beckham Jr., the pair looked as though they were thoroughly enjoying the show and their time together.

Odell sported a cartoon printed sweater and had his blonde dyed hair swept to one side.

Fan of Calvin Klein! Jeff Goldblum opted for burgundy pants and a black and white shirt

Gorgeous: Judith Light kept her look streamlined at the show

Creative star: Meek Mill appeared to be having a great time on the carpet ahead of the presentation

Kate Bosworth stunned in a red leather jumpsuit for the event on Tuesday evening.

She had her light tresses slicked back into a high top knot and accessorised with a cream colored cross-body bag.

Her shoes were covered by her statement ensemble and her makeup incredibly radiant.

Stunner: Kaia Gerber was one of the models who strutted down the catwalk on Tuesday night

Wouldn't miss it for the world! Anna Wintour was also at the runway show

Something for everyone! Models were seen in various ensembles from animal print, to pleated skirts to leather jumpsuits

Kate's glowing complexion shone through with highlighted and rosy cheekbones.

Big Little Lies and Academy Award winner Laura Dern also got heads turning at the show.

The actress stunned in a sheer black top and wore a bra underneath to remain modest.

Exit: Kaia was spotted in more casual gear as she made her exit following the hot-ticket show

Surrounded: The rising model was surrounded by a host of excited fans as she stepped out

Stylish figure: Luka Sabbat cut a stylish figure in his suit as he made his way to the after-party

Shoulder pads: Camila Coelho brought back shoulder pads for her big night on the town

She paired the look with straight cut pants and red pumps.

Adding a splash of color, she showcased her style with a pink overcoat that was effortlessly thrown over her shoulders.

Laura's blonde locks were in loose waves and her makeup featured a subtle red lip.

Coat: Basketball player James Harden added a sleek white coat to his trendy look

Angles: Rapper ASAP Rocky posed up a storm for the cameras as he arrived at the venue

Style stripes: He carried a large striped burgundy jacket as he made his way into the venue

Come in peace: He flashed the peace sign and fans and photographers while making his way in

But it was Game Of Throne's Gwendoline Christie's look that really got show-goers talking.

She opted for a purple set the resembled a pair of satin pyjamas.

The beauty paired the look with the same heels as Saoirse, Katherine and Rowan and had her blonde hair in tight ringlets.

Cool: Jake Gyllenhaal looked casually cool in his outfit of choice as he arrived at the after-party

All smiles: British supermodel Naomi was all smiles as she posed for waiting photographers

Love: Amid all of the excitement, Kate Bosworth only had eyes for her husband Michael Polish

Other attendees included Vogue's Editor-In-Chief Anna Wintour, Naomi Campbell, Tavi Gevinson, Meek Mill, Judith Light and Jeff Goldblum.

The star-studded line up saw an array of models including Kaia Gerber strut down the catwalk.

The 17-year-old was seen dressed in a school girl look with a blazer and a graduation cap on her head.

Glamorous: Actress Judith Light looked effortlessly glamorous as she posed outside the venue

All things bright and beautiful: Actress Indya Moore stepped out in colourful style, teaming her eye-catching ensemble with cobalt blue heels

Flair for fashion: (L-R) Irene Kim and Soo-Joo Park displayed their flair for fashion at the event
Osher Gunsberg's wife Audrey Griffen has spoken candidly about the Bachelor host's mental health struggles.

In a piece penned for Ten Daily on Wednesday, the celebrity makeup artist said at times during their marriage she felt like she was living with two different people and things got so bad that the TV presenter once contemplated suicide.

Osher has previously been open about his struggles with depression, social anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and periods of psychosis.

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'I'm so very lucky that he resisted suicide': Osher Gunsberg's wife Audrey Griffen reveals Bachelor host once contemplated ending his own life due to mental health struggles

'Despite having the knowledge of what Osher was going through, some days I felt like I was living with another man, a man whose every thought seemed to cause him pain, a man trying to push me and my love for him away,' she wrote.

'I had to remember his actions were being driven by something else, his anxiety, fears and trauma.'

She added: 'I'm so very lucky that Osher resisted the alluring seduction of that mistress, suicide. I'm so grateful he had the self-awareness to seek professional help, to take his medication, to talk to his psychologist, to talk to me.'

Support system: Osher and Audrey pose with her daughter Georgia, 13. Osher is a stepfather to the teen. Pictured on February 15, 2018 in Sydney

Osher married stylist Audrey in 2016 and he is a stepfather to her 13-year-old daughter, Georgia.

They met in 2015, while filming season four of The Bachelor Australia, where Osher worked as a host and Audrey was a stylist - and the pair were married in the Hunter Valley in January 2017.

Last week, Audrey revealed the depths of the issues her husband suffered as he struggled with his mental health issues.

Appearing on Osher's podcast, during which he interviews his own wife, Audrey admitted that even sunshine could send The Bachelor host into a panic.

'If we walked outside and you felt warmth on your skin you'd hit the fear button:' Last week, Audrey revealed the depths of the issues her husband suffered as he struggled with his mental health issues

'I remember those days. I remember when if we walked outside and the sun was shining and you felt warmth on your skin, you'd hit the fear button,' she said in a clip from the episode, which Osher shared to Instagram on Tuesday.

She went on: 'It would be intense and it would be hard to talk you back into the room. And you would retreat yourself'.

Audrey says that she pushed hard to reach the man she loved when he was having an episode, which Osher described as 'being gone for hours'.

Hard times: Appearing on Osher's podcast, during which he interviews his own wife, Audrey admitted that even sunshine could send The Bachelor host into a panic

Struggles: 'I don't know if I did the right hing but I used to just bully my way back into your space and try and bring you back,' Audrey said

Osher replied: 'I'm bloody grateful you did because I wouldn't be able to do it by myself' to which Audrey gently said, 'Sometimes we can't do things by ourselves'

'I don't know if I did the right thing but I used to just bully my way back into your space and try and bring you back,' Audrey said.

'I'm a make-up artist, I'm not a trained professional. But I could see you could see that it was going to be hard for you to come out on your own'.

Osher replied: 'I'm bloody grateful you did because I wouldn't be able to do it by myself' to which Audrey gently said, 'Sometimes we can't do things by ourselves'.

Angel: The TV host celebrated his first wedding anniversary with Audrey in January. He's admitted the makeup artist, who he met on the set of The Bachelor, 'absolutely saved my life'

In captioning the video of the podcast, Osher wrote: 'I'm alive because of this woman, and this week I'm grateful you get the chance to hear why.'

The TV host celebrated his first wedding anniversary with Audrey in January.

He's often said Audrey 'saved him' when she came along at a dark time in his life.

He previously told Stellar magazine: 'She absolutely saved my life. She was the first person who told me I'd be OK and I believed her.'

Osher has been open about his battles with alcohol abuse and mental health issues, which he details in his autobiography, Back After the Break.

If you or anyone you know is struggling, call Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636.
She is well-known for her kooky style.

And Madonna's daughter Lourdes Leon was flaunting her funky tastes once more on Monday as she tore up the runway for the Gypsy Sport Spring Summer 2019 showcase during New York Fashion Week.

The 21-year-old superstar offspring was showing off her perky assets in a bra-style top complete with chain adornments with just shells covering her modesty.

Oh my! Madonna's daughter Lourdes Leon was flaunting her funky tastes once more on Monday as she tore up the runway for the Gypsy Sport Spring Summer 2019 showcase during New York Fashion Week

Lourdes has been forging her path in the fashion world after scooping a host of high-profile modelling jobs including a job for powerhouse Stella McCartney.

She proved her fashionista prowess as she scowled her way down the runway while wearing the bralet which was made up of shells, chains and pearls.

Keen to show off her stunning frame, she paired the look with tattered jeans which were slashed from the knee down to display her legs - which were unshaved.

She pulled the waistband of her black lingerie up to her hips to ensure she was baring as much as possible with the low-ride jeans.

Strutting her stuff: The 21-year-old superstar offspring was showing off her perky assets in a bra-style top complete with chain adornments with just shells covering her modesty

Strutting her stuff: Lourdes has been forging her path in the fashion world after scooping a host of high-profile modelling jobs for powerhouse Stella McCartney

Back in the day: Madonna welcomed Lourdes after a three-year relationship with Carlos Leon, 52, whom she split with in 1997 (pictured together at the Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire London 2005 premiere in London)

Strutting her stuff: Lourdes has long been a proud advocate of female body hair and frequently flaunts her armpit hair and on the runway she was showing off her unshaven legs

With the kooky nature of the shoot, it is little wonder the funky style did not end at her clothes but also with her wild hair do.

Her lengthy tresses were volumunious and styled from a centre parting with thick strips of blonde worked throughout with slight roots on show.

Lourdes has long been a proud advocate of female body hair and frequently flaunts her armpit hair and on the runway she was showing off her unshaven legs.

Elegant and wild: The styles on the runway combined punky, earthy and sporty all in one

Wow! A number of the models on the runway went topless beneath barely-there sheaths of material and crop tops - all with the same tattered styling

A number of the models on the runway went topless beneath barely-there sheaths of material and crop tops - all with the same tattered styling.

Her runway trip comes ahead of her return to the University of Michigan, with the beauty coupling her education with her successful modelling career.

Madonna welcomed Lourdes after a three-year relationship with Carlos Leon, 52, whom she split with in 1997.

Kooky: In a coordinating ensemble, one pregnant model sported a near-identical bralet to Lourdes however she wore a caged shield around her bump

Strutting her stuff: One of the models was clad in a stylish bleached look while also giving a glimpse of her bare assets

Cropped: A bold model rocked a white two-piece which showed off a hint of her stomach

Ahem... It was not just the women baring all as one of the male models was also just about hiding his privates with a shell thong

The Like A Prayer hitmaker went on to have son Rocco, 17, with husband Guy Ritchie, with the couple later going on to adopt their Malawian son David in 2006.

After their split in 2008, the Queen of Pop went on to adopt Mercy James in 2009, and twins Esther and Stella Mwale in 2017.

The Papa Don't Preach songstress recently went the extra mile for her loved ones, putting them up in the luxury hotel Riad el Fenn in Marrakesh, which is owned by Richard Branson's sister Vanessa, during her 60th birthday celebrations in Morocco.
Star of Australian Survivor Monika Radulovic has hit out at producers of the show, saying she's disappointed she didn't get enough airtime.

On Tuesday, the former Miss Universe Australia, 27, did a candid Instagram Q&A, in which one fan asked about her 'lack of screen time.'

'What do you think of your lack of screen time on the show?' one fan asked, adding, 'they never let you speak?'

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'I'll have my fingers crossed I'll be able to speak tonight': Survivor Australia's Monika Radulovic, 27, has blasted producers over her lack of screen time on the reboot

The question prompted the brunette beauty to shoot back, saying it was 'disappointing' due to viewers not able to see her strategy.

'It's really disappointing because I was actually involved in some much more strategy and alliances than what's been show,' she wrote, adding a sad face emoji.

Monika, who gained fame when she won the Miss Universe Australia title in 2015, has had a trying time on the Channel Ten reality show.

'Disappointing': Monika said viewers didn't get to see her 'strategy and alliances', which she was involved in on the show

Last month, she was forced to do a tower jump which left the brunette bombshell frozen with fear, before going on to do three cringe-worthy belly flops.

In the same Instagram Q&A, Monika addressed the jump, and spoke of her shocking injuries from the tough challenge.

A fan asked: 'On a scale of 1-10 how bad did your nose hurt after face-planting three times in the water?'

How much did it hurt: Monika let fans know she had to be checked over for a concussion, after she completed a trying tower jump which saw her do three cringe-worthy belly flops

'It was so painful - I had a busted lip, bruises down the front for 2 weeks,' she begun, 'I had to get checked out to make sure I didn't have a concussion.'

It comes after newlywed Monika, who recently tied-the-knot with her artist beau Alesando Ljubicic, revealed they are getting a new addition.

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph in August, the model admitted while she wasn't ready for children, the pair are looking for a puppy.

Tough: Monika has been involved in a number of tough challenges on the show, being on the Champions side in the reboot of the popular show

'We're focusing on our careers and just enjoying being together, but I would love a dog though, that would be the dream,' she told the publication.

The comments came after the pair married in March.

The pair were engaged for four years before they got married.

Monika previously told The Daily Telegraph that she knew early on that he was 'the one.'

'It's like my heart knew he was the one before my head did. Cheesy I know, but it's completely true,' Monika said.
They became husband and wife when they tied the knot in Bidard, south-west France, last month after two years together.

And Vincent Cassel, 51, and his new bride, model Tina Kunakey, 21, were seen for the first time since their French wedding as they attended Longchamp's 70th Anniversary Celebration at Opera Garnier in Paris on Tuesday.

The actor looked smitten as he posed outside the iconic event with his arm tenderly wrapped around his stunning partner's waist.

Bride and groom: Vincent Cassel, 51, and new wife Tina Kunakey, 21, were seen for the first time since their wedding at Longchamp's 70th Anniversary Celebration in Paris on Tuesday

Tina looked stylish in a sleek, black overcoat, which she cinched at the waist with a large statement belt.

Her raven curls were styled into a glamorous mane, which she had pinned back so that her locks framed her pretty face.

The beauty completed her look with a black top and skinny jeans, while she added to her statuesque figure in a pair of stylish heels.

Vincent opted for a more casual look, wearing a black polo shirt and beige chinos for the high-fashion celebration.

Stunning: The actor looked smitten as he posed outside the iconic with his arm tenderly wrapped around the model's waist

Chic: Tina looked stylish in a sleek, black overcoat, which she cinched at the waist with a large statement belt

The Ocean's Thirteen star complemented his outfit with black slip-on shoes, while covering his salt-and-pepper tresses with a black flat cap.

He held a beige jacket in one hand and used his other to hold onto his wife's hand while they walked along the streets of the French capital.

The couple got married in a private ceremony at the city hall in Bidart, south-west France on August 24.

Tina looked breathtaking in a strapless ivory gown, which had a plunging strapless sweetheart neckline and a full princess skirt.

Stylish: Her raven curls were styled into a glamorous mane, which she had pinned back so that her locks framed her pretty face

Model moment: The beauty completed her look with a black top and skinny jeans, while she added to her statuesque figure in a pair of stylish heels

Here comes the bride! The couple became husband and wife when they tied the knot in Bidard, south-west France , last month after two years together

The couple, who live in Brazil, were first linked back in July 2016 when Tina, then 19, shared a social media snap of herself cuddling up to the then 49-year-old actor while smoking a cigarette.

Vincent rose to fame in Matthieu Kassovitz's 1995 film La Haine (Hate) and starred in Ocean's Twelve and Ocean's Thirteen, as well as Eastern Promises and Black Swan.

He married Italian actress Monica Bellucci, 53, in 1999 after meeting on the set of their 1996 film The Apartment.

The couple welcomed two daughters, Deva, 13, and Leonie, eight, before divorcing in 2013 after 14 years of marriage.

Happy couple: Vincent opted for a more casual look, wearing a black polo shirt and beige chinos for the high-fashion celebration

Finishing touches: The Ocean's Thirteen star complemented his outfit with black slip-on shoes, while covering his salt-and-pepper tresses with a black flat cap
She welcomed her first child, baby son Ennis Howard, into the world in May.

And Kirsten Dunst seemed to be well-adjusting to new motherhood as she headed out to buy an iced coffee with her little one near her home in the Toluca Lake area of Los Angeles on Tuesday.

The actress, 36, looked happy and relaxed as she wandered through the streets with her son in a black stroller on the sunny day.

Mommy and me: Kirsten Dunst seemed to be well-adjusting to new motherhood as she headed out to buy an iced coffee near her home in the Toluca Lake area of Los Angeles on Tuesday

The Fargo star opted for a casual look, pairing a striped long-sleeved top with a round neck with a pair of classic boyfriend-fit jeans.

The mother-of-one wore Birkenstock-style sandals in washed out beige that featured two adjustable straps.

Kirsten sheltered her eyes from the Californian sunshine with a pair of clear nude frame shades, and she wore her blonde locks in loose waves.

The actress completed her low-key daytime look by going make-up free to display her naturally radiant complexion.

Stylish: The actress, 36, looked happy and relaxed as she wandered through the streets with her son in a black stroller on the sunny day

Kirsten welcomed son Ennis with fiance Jessie Plemons, 30, on May 3 at Providence St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California.

The couple met as co-stars on the FX show Fargo, in which they played husband and wife named Ed and Peggy Blumquist.

Jesse and Kirsten announced their engagement in early 2017.

The actress revealed she was pregnant in true Hollywood fashion, debuting her baby bump in Rodarte's Fall/Winter 2018 portrait series in January after months of speculation.

Happy couple: Kirsten welcomed son Ennis with fiance Jessie Plemons, 30, on May 3 at Providence St. Johns Health Center in Santa Monica, California (pictured October 2015)

Speaking to Marie Claire magazine in June 2017, Kirsten admitted she felt ready to settle down and start a family.

She said: 'Its time to have babies and chill. I wasn't one of those "I need a baby!" people until my goddaughter was born. I love her so much.

'That love is just like you can't experience that unless you have a kid. I put her to bed last night and she woke up this morning and said to her mom, "Where's Kiki?" I just love that love. That's what I want.'

Kirsten is set to star in a new show about the dark side of the 1990s Orlando water parks called On Becoming a God in Central Florida.

She is also listed as a co-producer alongside George Clooney and the dark comedy is expected to premiere on YouTube Premium next year.
They have been together for more than four decades, after tying the knot back in 1977.

And Jeff Bridges and Susan Geston looked a picture of marital bliss as they stepped out in New York City on Tuesday.

The actor, 68, sat next to his producer wife at the entrance of their hotel as they chatted away while waiting patiently for their car.

Happy couple: Jeff Bridges and his wife of over 40 years Susan Geston looked a picture of marital bliss as they stepped out in New York City on Tuesday

The True Grit star cut a casual figure in a navy jacket, matching trousers, black slip-on loafers, and a light blue button-up shirt.

Jeff wore his long locks slicked back over his ears, while also sporting a bushy beard.

Susan wore a white jacket and pashmina over a black dress, teamed with a string of large pearls and matching earrings.

The producer wore her hair in a ponytail and accessorised with dark shades and a slick of red lipstick.

Love at first sight: The actor, 68, sat next to his producer wife at the entrance of their hotel as they chatted away while waiting patiently for their car

Elegant: Susan wore a white jacket and pashmina over a black dress, teamed with a string of large pearls and matching earrings

Jeff and Susan met while he was filming the 1975 Western flick Rancho Deluxe, in which he played a cattle rustler alongside Sam Waterston in Montana.

The actor saw his future wife whilst shooting scenes in the sleepy town of Livingston, where she was living at the time.

Speaking about how they met in an interview on Oprahs Master Class, he recalled being captivated by her as he said: 'We're sitting there doing this scene and I can't stop looking at this gorgeous [woman].

'I didn't know if she was a guest at the hotel, a waitress, a maid. I couldn't figure out what she was.'

Dapper: The True Gritt star cut a casual figure in a navy jacket, matching trousers, black slip-on loafers, and a light blue button-up shirt

Sweet story: Jeff and Susan met while he was filming the 1975 Western flick Rancho Deluxe, in which he played a cattle rustler alongside Sam Waterston in Montana

Susan had only recently been in a car accident at the time, and although the incident left her with 'two black eyes and a broken nose' Jeff admitted he 'couldn't take [his] eyes off her'.

'Finally, I get the guts to go ask her out,' he explained. 'I go, "Would you like to go out tonight?"'

Susan turned The Big Lebowski star down but on one fateful evening a few nights later the two crossed paths again in a local bar.

Jeff: 'We danced, and that was about it, man. I mean, I was head over heels. I was head over heels the first time I saw her.'

The couple married in 1977, and welcomed their first daughter Isabelle Annie in 1981, before having Jessica Lily in 1983, and Haley Roselouise in 1985.
Celebrity Big Brother winner Ryan Thomas has revealed he dreams of making millions and has learnt 'to pay the taxman' after his bankruptcy hell five years ago.

Speaking on Channel 5 chat show Jeremy Vine on Wednesday, the 34-year-old former Coronation Street star, who netted a reported 500,000 appearance fee on the show, discussed his 2013 financial crisis and what he has learnt.

Ryan admitted his huge generosity after finding fame aged 16 was the main reason for his troubles, before he was shown a MailOnline headline about making millions - as he admitted he 'hopes those dreams come true'.

Candid: Celebrity Big Brother winner Ryan Thomas has revealed he dreams of making millions and has learnt 'to pay the taxman' after his bankruptcy hell five years ago

Back in 2013, Ryan, who starred as Jason Grimshaw on the soap from 2000 to 2016, filed for bankruptcy after a petition from HMRC over an alleged 40,000 tax bill.

His salary at the time was said to be worth around 90,000 after which he was given extra time to payback the taxman. Reports claim he was doing 2,000 a night club appearance at the time to contribute to his bill.

While chatting to Jeremy, with the focus of the conversation being 'Punchgate', the TV host held up the Mail headline reading: 'Celebrity Big Brother winner Ryan Thomas 'set to make MILLIONS'... after being declared bankrupt five years ago'.

As he laughed at the story, the star, who shares nine-year-old daughter Scarlett with former Corrie star Tina O'Brien, admitted: 'That's the best headline I've ever read'.

Hell: Speaking on Channel 5 chat show Jeremy Vine on Wednesday, the 34-year-old former Coronation Street star, who netted a reported 500,000 appearance fee on the show (pictured), discussed his 2013 financial crisis and what he has learnt

Hell: Back in 2013, Ryan, who starred as Jason Grimshaw on the soap from 2000 to 2016, filed for bankruptcy after a petition from HMRC over an alleged 40,000 tax bill. His salary at the time was said to be worth around 90,000 after which he was given extra time to payback the taxman

The story detailed that it has been claimed that he has been inundated with TV offers, which could see him rake in millions - five years after he went bankrupt.

He went on to discuss his financial woes, as he said: 'It's not something I'm proud of but when i was 16, I had so much money and I was spending it all on my friends...

'I was so generous and I thought it grew on trees and times have changed and it's a big responsibility. I want to provide for Scarlett and I've learnt to put the money away for the taxman and I hope my dreams come true.'

According to The Sun, Ryan - who played Jason Grimshaw in Corrie between 2000 and 2016 - will be a busy man, with the many lucrative offers on the table for him including a reality-style documentary travel series and several acting roles.

Hope: Ryan admitted his huge generosity after finding fame aged 16 was the main reason for his troubles, before he was shown a MailOnline headline about making millions - as he admitted he 'hopes those dreams come true'

Tough: During Monday night's final of the show, Ryan won huge praise as he admitted he would Roxanne for the incident that left him feeling 'broken'

And, the money he will earn in the coming months and years, will be on top of the soap star's rumoured 500,000 fee for his time in the Celebrity Big Brother house.

A TV insider told the publication: 'It didn't matter what happened in the final. Ryan was already the winner as TV bosses want him, there have been several offers.'

Ryan's time in CBB was marred with controversy after he was accused of 'deliberately and repeatedly punching' his co-star Roxanne Pallett.

The incident, which came to be known as 'Punchgate', led to Ryan feeling like 'a broken man' and Roxanne quitting the show - after which she confessed to feeling like 'The Most Hated Woman In Britain'.
She recently confirmed she'll be joining her pal Declan Donnelly as a host of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! to fill in for embattled Ant McPartlin.

And Holly Willoughby has now insisted she doesn't know if she'll be paid the same as Declan, 42, for her stint on the ITV jungle competition.

When grilled by Keith Lemon about her rumoured pay packet on This Morning on Wednesday, the 37-year-old squirmed and declared laughing: 'I don't know!'

Awkward! Holly Willoughby has insisted she doesn't know if she will be paid the same as Declan Donnelly when she joins him as co-host of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!

Keith, who appeared on the show to promote a special anniversary episode of Celebrity Juice, asked his pal: 'Are you getting paid the same as Dec? Equal rights and stuff?'

Holly blushed and hit him playfully with a stack of papers as she said: 'I should hope so. I hope so.'

But Keith persevered with his line of questioning, asking: 'How much are you getting?'

Holly hid her face in her hands, before dropping her head dramatically on her lap and groaning: 'I don't know! Oh God. Instant sweat.'

Hmm: When grilled by Keith Lemon about her rumoured pay packet on This Morning on Wednesday, the 37-year-old squirmed and declared laughing: 'I don't know!'

Not letting up: But Keith persevered, asking: 'How much are you getting?' as Holly dropped her head dramatically on her lap and groaning: 'Oh God. Instant sweat'

Lemon then put on a serious face and told her sincerely: 'No, I actually think youre the perfect person for the job.'

Holly will be filling in for Ant McPartlin on I'm A Celeb while the embattled star takes some time out of the limelight following his drink driving conviction.

The presenter revealed she would be taking her children Harry, nine, Belle, seven, and Chester, three, out of school to join her in Australia when filming for the new series starts in November.

The show traditionally runs for three weeks - meaning that her kids could be missing up to a month of school.

Time out: Holly will be filling in for Ant McPartlin on I'm A Celeb while the embattled star takes some time out of the limelight following his drink driving conviction

Big move: The presenter revealed she would be taking her children Harry, nine, Belle, seven, and Chester, three, out of school to join her in Australia when filming for the new series starts in November

New horizons: The show traditionally runs for three weeks - meaning that her kids could be missing up to a month of school

Elsewhere during the show, Keith had Holly in hysterics as he made fun of an unfortunate slip-up which made it sound like she was talking about losing her virginity.

While describing Celebrity Juice's anniversary episode, Holly said: 'We're also celebrating 10 years since I appeared on Celebrity Juice.'

However, she stuttered while saying 'since I appeared' in a way that sounded like she was saying 'since I lost my virginity'.

Not missing a trick, Keith quipped: 'I thought you were about to say something else there!'

You said what? Elsewhere during the show, Keith had Holly in hysterics as he made fun of an unfortunate slip-up which made it sound like she was talking about losing her virginity

Blunder: Holly appeared to say '10 years since I lost my virginity' - prompting Keith to quip: 'You've had that your whole life, haven't you Holly?!'

Holly cracked up laughing and protested: 'I didn't!' as Phillip Schofield sniggered guiltily beside her.

Keith reduced the duo into utter hysterics as he added: 'You've had that your whole life, havent you Holly?!'

Holly and Phillip finally managed to pull themselves together enough in time to introduce an advert break.

Proving Keith's appearance on the show had taken its toll, after the interview, Holly put her head in her lap and groaned: 'Oh God, I'm worn out!'

As Keith grinned at her, she threw cushions at him, jokily telling him to 'leave her alone'.
After Ryan Thomas was named the winner Celebrity Big Brother, fans of the Channel 5 show will be excited to hear Big Brother will be returning to our screens just days after the celeb version ended.

Despite rumours that the show could be axed, Emma Willis and Rylan Clark-Neal will be back with the longest series yet, with housemates apparently signing up to be locked in for a potential 14 weeks.

Heres everything you need to know about Big Brother 2018, when it starts, why it was pushed back, who will host the show and who the new contestants are.

Emma Willis and Rylan Clark-Neal will be back with the longest series of Big Brother yet

Big Brother

Big Brother will return for another series that follows housemates who have been isolated from the world in a custom-built house, who will fight to remain in the house at regular evictions and hope to reach the end of the competition to win the cash prize.

However, as reported by BBC, the Channel 5 show may be in a spot of trouble after local councillors decide on the future of the Big Brother house this week, which could see production company Endemol Shine lose the house.

While the company have applied to Hertsmere Borough Council to keep the house at Elstree Studios in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire for the next three years, current permissions expire on September 30, weeks after the new series will begin.

Endemol has asked to continue staging 32 eviction shows a year, in addition to other corporate events and have said that nearby residents will be taken into consideration.

180 residents were notified of the application and while only two responded, only one was against the proposal and the other just made general comments.

The report states that keeping the Big Brother house at the site would help to support the vitality and viability of the Borehamwood town centre as it continues to provide a level of employment and brings visitors to Borehamwood when the eviction shows are aired.

Winner Ryan Thomas leaves the house during the live final of Celebrity Big Brother at Elstree

When does Big Brother start?

Big Brother will return to our television screens on Friday, September 14 at 9pm this year and will again be presented by Emma Willis, with the spin-off show, Big Brothers Bit on the Side, returning as well with Rylan Clark-Neal.

After fans spotted that the show application form stated that applicants had to be 18 by July 31 to be in with a chance of entering the house, it was rumoured that Big Brother could start much later this year.

Traditionally, applicants have to be 18 between December and February to be able to audition, as reported by The Sun.

Contestants have also been told to keep 14 weeks free as the series may be the longest since 2007, which lasted for 13 weeks. Another rumour revealed that bosses had pushed back the launch date so that it would not clash with Love Island.

Speaking about Big Brother's future, Channel 5's current boss Ben Frow said: We're going to have a discussion about it. I need to know, like I would with any commission, What are the plans for the future? How will it be creatively renewed? How is it still important to me?

It's a very established brand, a very successful brand but there's a big shiny new show on the block called Love Island. We need to take a good long look at Big Brother and go, What does it look like for the future?

2018 Big Brother cast

While the Big Brother lineup has not been revealed, Big Brother Creative Director Paul Osborne has said: Following the buzz around Celebrity Big Brother: Year of the Woman in January we are looking for stand-out personalities who may be inspirational to our viewers, who have something to talk about and who will spark discussion both inside and outside of the house.

We are searching all over the UK and Ireland for the best housemates leaving no stone unturned, he said.

Who won Big Brother 2017?

Isabella Warburton took home the cash prize of 65,000 after winning Big Brother in 2017, making history by becoming the first woman to enter the house late and win the show, after Brian Belo became the first man.

As reported in The Mirror, she was up against Deborah Agboola , Raphael Korine and Tom Barber and during an interview with Emma Willis, said she felt awkward when first arriving in the house, but powered on.

I felt uncomfortable. I thought just power through and not feel ungrateful for the position I was given. You have to think on your feet. The bedrooms being divided didn't help. She added: I'm obsessed with my tan and my looks and it doesn't mean anything. I just want to have fun with no make-up on.
Viola Davis has regrets about starring in the 2011 film The Help.

The 53-year-old told The New York Times she really enjoyed working with her co-stars, which included Emma Stone and Octavia Spencer.

But the Oscar winner felt there was not enough there: 'At the end of the day it wasnt the voices of the maids that were heard,' she explained.

Bad move: Viola Davis has regrets starring in the 2011 film The Help, she told the NYT

She added, 'I know Aibileen. I know Minny. Theyre my grandma. Theyre my mom. And I know that if you do a movie where the whole premise is, I want to know what it feels like to work for white people and to bring up children in 1963, I want to hear how you really feel about it.

'I never heard that in the course of the movie.'

Davis received a nomination for the Academy Award for best actress for her role. She won a Screen Actors Guild award for outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role.

Pals: The 53-year-old said she really enjoyed working with her co-stars, which included Emma Stone and Octavia Spencer (pictured)

Also in the interview she said she only looks for roles that are 'worthy of my potential and talent.'

And she brought up her pal Meryl Streep, who she worked with on Doubt.

She said starring with Meryl was 'absolutely terrifying, but not because of anything that she was projecting. She could not be any less intimidating,' said Viola.

'Everything was coming from me, 100 percent. It was a rehearsal. We rehearsed it first because its based on a play.

Ms David in not pleased: But the Oscar winner felt there was not enough there: 'At the end of the day it wasnt the voices of the maids that were heard,' she explained

'So I showed up an hour early, and I just stared at the door waiting for her to come in. And I think I probably ran up to her when she first came through the door, which Im sure shes used to, but when I look at it in hindsight Im very embarrassed.'

Davis was also asked which role was toughest for her to play. She said Fences.

'Annalise Keating is tough because I have to go into a realm that is not me. She has a very colorful sexual life. I would not describe myself as being that person.

'And Veronica [in Widows] was very difficult because shes got a vulnerability that cost me something as Viola.

Complaints: She added, 'I know Aibileen. I know Minny. Theyre my grandma. Theyre my mom. And I know that if you do a movie where the whole premise is, I want to know what it feels like to work for white people and to bring up children in 1963, I want to hear how you really feel about it. 'I never heard that in the course of the movie'

'That has something to do with images onscreen. How many movies have you seen where you see a dark-skinned woman of 53 with her natural hair in bed with Liam Neeson? But I had to get past the fact of what the outside world has not seen, and focus on what the world was.

'All of my characters cost me something. I feel like if they dont cost me anything, then Im not doing my job.'

Davis will next stars in the crime drama Widows, which is in theaters November 16.
The first promo video for The Bachelorette was released this Wednesday, featuring Ali Oetjen re-enacting a scene from classic Marilyn Monroe film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, while performing the song Can't Hurry Love.

And while Channel 10 pulled out all the stops to produce the colourful teaser, some fans were left less-than-impressed.

Many fans flocked to Twitter to weigh in on the teaser immediately after it hit screens.

Scroll down to video

'That new promo was pure cringe...Nooo #BACHELORETTEAU,' one viewer Tweeted.

Another added: 'This clip gave me severe second hand embarrassment lollllll what a mess.'

'Hahahahaha....What was that #BacheloretteAU commercial. Is Ali hoping to score a recording contract after this,' laughed another.

Some fans took issue with the choice of the song, given that Ali will be appearing on a fast-paced reality show.

'You Can't Hurry Love...Unless you're on #BacheloretteAU in which case it has to be done and dusted in 6ish weeks,' one fan Tweeted.

The Bachelorette will screen after Nick Cummins season of The Bachelor.

Can't hurry love? Fans poked fun at the fact Ali was singing 'Can't Hurry Love' despite the reality show only airing for two months

Found love? Ali Oetjen sported a smile when she made her return to Instagram on Saturday, sharing a snap of herself on an Adelaide walking trail

It comes after Ali returned to Instagram on Saturday following a three-month filming stint.

Details of the production have been highly secretive, but it appeared the blonde may have found love after she brandished a huge smile and raised her arms in the air in the Instagram snap.

'Saturday feels, creating trails!' Ali captioned the snap, which saw her posing on a seaside walking track at Adelaide's Hallet Cove.

Unfortunate! The promo also seems to reference cheating, which is unfortunate given Ali was embroiled in a 'cheating scandal' earlier this year with her ex Grant Kemp (pictured)

While it's Ali's first Instagram post since June 18, she's been spotted filming The Bachelorette over the past few months.

The show is set to air on Channel Ten in the coming months, and promises plenty of drama and hunky men.

The Adelaide-based blonde initially shot to fame after appearing as a contestant on the inaugural season of The Bachelor in 2013.

She placed second runner-up while competing for the heart of Tim Robards.
She is starring alongside her real-life husband Javier Bardem in new psychological thriller Everybody Knows.

And Penelope Cruz looked sensational as she attended the Madrid photocall for her latest film Everybody Knows on Wednesday

The Oscar-winning actress, 44, exuded elegance in a stylish halterneck monochrome gown, which showcased her toned figure as she posed.

Monochrome magic: Penelope Cruz looked sensational as she attended the Madrid photocall for her latest film Everybody Knows on Wednesday

Waving it up: The Oscar-winning actress, 44, exuded elegance in a stylish halterneck monochrome gown, which showcased her toned figure as she posed

The top portion of the gown featured black and white chevrons before flowing in a chic tailored black skirt.

The Spanish beauty added height to her look with black stiletto sandals.

The Vanilla Sky star's caramel flecked tresses were styled in bouncy waves while her pretty features were enhanced with smoky kohl liner, mascara and a glossy taupe lipstick.

She also joined the film's cast, including beau Javier,49. and director Asghar Farhadi for a snap to promote the film, known as Todos Lo Saben in Spain.

Penelope and her husband have been busy promoting their new drama, directed by two-time Academy Award winner Asghar.

Stylish: The top portion of the gown featured black and white chevrons before flowing in a chic tailored black skirt

Radiant: The Vanilla Sky star's caramel flecked tresses were styled in bouncy waves while her pretty features were enhanced with smoky kohl liner, mascara and a glossy taupe lipstick

Spanish siren: The brunette beauty added height to her look with black stiletto sandals

In the layered, psychological film Penelope plays Laura, a mother who travels with her young son and teenage daughter to her sister's wedding.

Having left her husband Alejandro (Ricardo Darin) in Argentina, tensions begin to rise as feelings for her old boyfriend Paco (Javier) resurface when they cross paths.

But things take a dramatic turn when the power cuts out during the wedding, and Laura finds that her daughter has gone missing when they come back on.

Swish: The beauty adjusted her glossy tresses before posing for another flawless snap

Smile: The star looked fabulous as she posed up with director and double Oscar winner Asghar Farhadi

Leading lights: Penelope's hunky husband and co-star Javier Bardem joined the duo

Line-up: (L-R) Inma Cuesta, Sara Salamo,Elvira Minguez, Javier, Asghar, Penelope, Barbara Lennie and Eduard Fernandez posed up at the photocall

As for their own romance story, the couple fell madly in love with each other when they starred in the Woody Allen-directed 'Vicky Cristina Barcelona' in 2008.

Penelope scooped an Academy Award for playing Javier's emotionally unstable love interest in the movie.

The married lovers tied the knot during the summer of 2010 in a private ceremony at a friend's home in the Bahamas.

They raise their five-year-old daughter Luna and seven-year-old son Leo at their home.

Ensemble: In the layered, psychological film Penelope plays Laura, a mother who travels with her young son and teenage daughter to her sister's wedding
After news that Nicki Minaj got into a physical fight with Cardi B at a New York Fashion Week event, the Barbie Dreams rapper has again garnered media attention after seemingly avoiding her promise to give Geoffrey Owens $25k.

Nicki Minaj took pity on former The Cosby Show star and discussed the issue on her Beats 1 radio programme on Queen Radio, calling out the woman who had taken pictures of him working at the New Jersey Trader Joes.

'They took a picture of Geoffrey Owens and put this motherf***ing man on the motherf***in' internet while he was f***ing baggin up some f***ing 'groceries to feed his muthaf***ing family. I personally want to donate, on behalf of Queen Radio, $25,000 to Geoffrey Owens today, she said.

Nicki Minaj attends as E!, ELLE & IMG celebrate the Kick-Off To NYFW: The Shows at The Pool

The Chun-Li hitmaker added: 'Let me tell you something: This man is a whole f***in' legend in these streets, and also said that the actor 'is getting so many opportunities' after he was job shamed for working at the supermarket chain.

Directing her anger at the woman named Karma Lawrence, she called her out for trying to embarrass this hardworking man. However, speaking to NJ.com, Lawrence revealed that she now regrets sending the pictures to the publication, because she is now experiencing the backlash for her decision.

She has been inundated with hate mail and after the news went viral, some even photoshopped devil horns on a picture of her. I dont know why I snuck a picture. I figured everybody does it. I dont know what possessed me.

I just did it. I didnt even think about it. I just did it on impulse and it was a bad impulse. Karma also said that she did not know what would happen and after doing a Google search, cried for 30 minutes. It wasnt malicious. Thats on my kids, my grandkids, my parents. Im not that type of person. Im not the monster theyre making me out to be.

Lawrence went on to say that when she saw him working there I thought maybe because of everything with Bill Cosby that his residuals got cut. And people have to take a normal job. But I didnt think anything bad about it. I work a normal job.

Geoffrey Owens went on Good Morning America to discuss being job-shamed for working

Adding: I actually wanted to go up to him and say something, but I thought, you might embarrass him. But then I did something that actually embarrassed him more. I didnt go with my first instinct, and I shouldve. I shouldve.

I would tell him, I am extremely, extremely apologetic about what has happened. And if I could take it back, I would. In fact, it was recently reported that this was indeed the reason for Geoffrey Owens having to work at the chain.

After Bill Cosbys scandal, The Cosby Show was pulled from syndication and led to royalty cheques drying up and Owens discussed how this had affected him financially. As reported by People, he explained: Yes, it impacted me financially. At the time that the show was pulled, that did make a difference in our income.

That was one of the elements that led to my getting to the place where I said to myself, ''I have to do something'' and I was thinking, ''What can I do?'' and the answer ended up being Trader Joe's, which is actually a wonderful situation for me in many ways. But I got to the point, I just had to do something to support myself and my family.'

He played Elvin Tibideaux, Bill Cosbys characters son-in-law, from 1985 to 1992. After the story went viral, Geoffrey Owens appeared on Good Morning America and said that he had been forced to quit working at Trader Joes because of the unwanted attention, but was glad for all the support he had received from other actors on social media.

Every job is worthwhile and valuable, and if we have a rethinking about that because of what has happened to me, that would be great. Following his appearance, Director Tyler Perry invited Geoffrey to star on OWNs The Haves and The Haves Not and said: I have so much respect for people who hustle between gigs. The measure of a true artist.

Owens went on to accept the role offered by Tyler Perry on the Oprah Winfrey Network and reports revealed that he will fly to Atlanta, where the show shoots and will start working on the sixth season. But did Nicki Minaj honour her pledge?

According to TMZ, Nicki Minaj has not donated the money she promised Geoffrey Owens after he was job-shamed for working at Trader Joes, as revealed by a source close to the situation. Despite making this promise on her Queen Radio show, The Cosby Show actor has not received anything.

However, the publication was also told that while Owens is not looking for donations, if Nicki was to send the cash, he would likely donate it to his favourite charities.
Brigitte Nielsen looked like one proud momma on Tuesday in a sweet new snap holding her newborn daughter.

It appears as though the new mom has already shed some of her her baby weight in the handful of months since she and husband Mattia Dessi, 39, welcomed their daughter Frida into the world.

The actress was in Los Angeles doing some press about her age defying pregnancy that led to her after giving birth in June for the fifth time at the age of 55.

Hey baby: Brigitte Nielsen looked like one proud momma on Tuesday in a sweet new snap holding her newborn daughter Frida

Fit momma: The 55-year-old looked fit after already shedding her baby weight

Baby talk: The actress has been making the media rounds talking about giving birth in her fifties

Baby makes five: Brigitte and her husband, Mattia Dessi, 39, welcomed Frida into the world in June

Holding her teeny infant, who was dressed in a pastel rainbow striped dress and a matching yellow headband, Brigitte showcased her toned arms in a handful of photos she posted on Instagram.

She wrote in the caption: 'She is my rainbow'

The working mom was sporting a pair of highwaisted baby pink trousers and a fringed cream colored short sleeve sweater for an appearance on Extra TV.

The Danish beauty copped a few sultry poses on social media as she proudly flaunted her postpartum physique.

One shot even gave a peak at a flat tummy to her nearly 150,000 Instagram followers.

Also on Tuesday, the Rocky star was spotted out doing a DIY photo shoot with her husband after a TV appearance.

Tummy time: Brigitte flaunted her flat postpartum abs on Instagram

Mom and dad: Matt and Brigitte looked happier than ever after the Rocky star filmed an interview with Extra TV

Husband of the year: Matt got down on the ground to help his wife of 12 years get a good photo angle

Approval time: The couple checked over the photographer's work on his cell phone

The couple smiled for the paparazzi together after cameras caught the dutiful husband on one knee trying to snap the perfect photo of his leggy blonde wife.

In the pose, Brigitte kicked one leg out and turned her head, with her striking platinum pixie cut, to the side.

And, photo approval was a must.

The Red Sonja star and her hubby spent a few minutes reviewing the pics on his phone.

The former girlfriend of Flavor Flav has been making the media rounds this week to discuss her newsworthy birth.

In just the last few days she's sat down with Extra and Good Morning America.

Little Frida was baby number five for Brigitte, who has children from previous relationships.

Brigitte, who has been married four times prior, tied the knot with Mattia in 2006.

She conceived her youngest child through in vitro fertilization, having had the foresight when she was 40 to have her eggs frozen.

Mommy moment: The mother of five looked young and fit in some modeling photos posted on her Instagram page for nearly 150,000 followers

Newsworthy: After a decade of IVF treatments, Brigitte has been speaking with reporters about giving birth in your mid-fifties
They're set to welcome their first child together in December.

And prior to the big arrival, Kris Smith and girlfriend Sarah Boulazeris have jetted away on a first-class holiday to the Greek island of Mykonos.

Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, Myer model Kris, 40 shared an image of the couple lounging on luxurious reclining airplane seats while travelling on Qatar Airways.

'Beyond excited for our babymoon!' Kris Smith, 40, and pregnant girlfriend Sarah Boulazeris have flown first class to Mykonos ahead of birth of their first child together

Flaunting his bulky frame in a blue shirt, Kris beamed while while Sarah, 27 kept it casual in a low-key black ensemble.

'Were beyond excited for our baby moon to Mykonos,' the British hunk wrote, 'thank you to everyone who made this possible for us!'

Document their epic voyage, Kris posted several posts including a shot of Sarah, who's now 29 weeks pregnant, enjoying a slap-up morning feed.

Mile fry club: Wearing a comfortable grey top, the fresh-faced brunette is seen feeding herself a grape while Kris captioned the shot: 'Romantic breakfast at 40,000 feet.

Wearing a comfortable grey top, the fresh-faced brunette is seen feeding herself a grape while Kris captioned the shot: 'Romantic breakfast at 40,000 feet.'

Finally arriving at the destination, the Myconian Ambassador, the father of one, who shares eight year-old son Ethan from his previous relationships with Dannii Minogue, cut a handsome figure as he posed on his hotel balcony.

With the Mediterranean providing a stunning backdrop, Kris donned a pair of pricey shades while humorously captioning the shot: 'get ready for the spam.'

Picturesque: Finally arriving at the destination, the Myconian Ambassador, the father of one, who shares eight year-old son Ethan from his previous relationships with Dannii Minogue, cut a handsome figure as he posed on his hotel balcony

The luxurious display comes after Kris showed off his paternal side at Myer's Spring Summer Launch in Sydney last month when he revealed that he's always wanted more children.

'Yeah, I have always wanted more kids and it's perfect timing!' he gushed to Daily Mail Australia.

Offering an update on Sarah's pregnancy, who is due to give birth in December, Kris continued: 'She's going really good...She's getting bigger now!'
She's been stunning red carpets since the 90s.

And Catherine Zeta-Jones commanded attention once again during Michael Kors New York Fashion Week show on Wednesday.

The Welsh actress, 48, looked ravishing in a sleeveless dress with white flowers at the event she attended alongside with her equally charming daughter Carys, 15.

Following in her footsteps: Catherine Zeta Jones looked marvelous in Michael Kors during the designer's New York Fashion Week show on Wednesday. The Welsh beauty was joined by 15-year-old daughter Carys

Catherine displayed her toned arms and a hint of cleavage in the sleeveless v-neck number, which hugged her hips and swept down to mid-calf.

Complementing her floral frock, the Feud actress wore contrasting white floral stilettos on foot.

She accessorized with a pewter baguette clutch and hoop earrings.

For beauty, the wife of actor Michael Douglas played up her God-given beauty with glowing skin, a bit of blush and pink lips.

Sweater weather: Catherine's daughter Carys looked stylish in an off-the-shoulder sweater with camouflage trousers that featured a stripe of gold down the side

Flower power: Complementing her floral frock, the Feud actress wore contrasting white floral stilettos on foot

Besides Catherine daughter Carys looked stylish in an off-the-shoulder sweater with camouflage trousers that featured a stripe of gold down the side.

She matched the sparkling stripe with a glittering clutch and chandelier earrings while vinyl platforms peeped out the bottom of her wide-legged pants.

Inside, Catherine and Carys caught up with model Iman.

Fashion pro: Model Gigi Hadid wowed the runway in a black gown with glittering bra-top bodice and flank-baring cut outs

Aye matey: Bella Hadid's runway outfit was perfectly fit for a stylish beach pirate

Standing tall: Inside, Catherine and Carys caught up with model Iman

The cat's meow! The original supermodel looked statuesque in a leopard print trench over plaid trousers and a turtleneck sweater

The supermodel looked statuesque in a leopard print trench over plaid trousers and a turtleneck sweater.

The wife of late rocker David Bowie kept on square shades and matched her coat with an animal-print doctor's bag.

Nicole Kidman looked to-die-for in long-sleeve polka dot number with yellow roses splashed across the fabric.

Dot's it! Nicole Kidman looked to-die-for in long-sleeve polka dot number with yellow roses splashed across the fabric

Front row friends: Nicole Kidman sat down with pal Tiffany Haddish in the front row

She sat down with pal Tiffany Haddish, who was sharp in a plaid blazer and flared denim.

The girls appeared close, as Nicole held onto Tiff's arm affectionately ahead of the show.

Rose Byrne looked darling in a plaid number with wide, ruffled skirt.

In good position: The stars all squeezed into the front row to get a good look at things

Blazer-ing trails! The Girls Trip favorite was sharp in a plaid blazer and flared denim

Fashionable: Judith Light was stylish in a polka dot top tucked into high-waisted jeans and with a yellow rose-adorned cardigan thrown around her shoulders

Rad in plaid: Rose Byrne looked darling in a plaid number with wide, ruffled skirt

Pals: As Tiffany sat down she chatted with Iman and placed a loving hand on Nicole's knee

Judith Light was stylish in a polka dot top tucked into high-waisted jeans and with a yellow rose-adorned cardigan thrown around her shoulders.

Shay Mitchell went for dark glamour in a lace and silk-heavy black look with sexy chest cut-out.

Hailee Steinfeld took the plunge in a red tartan suit worn sans shirt below.

Gothic glam: Shay Mitchell went for dark glamour in a lace and silk-heavy black look with sexy chest cut-out

Abs-olute stunner! Cynthia Erivo flashes her abs in a cropped argyle sweater paired with a gunmetal brocade skirt cut on the bias

Pop of color! Diana Agron charmed in a ruffle-heavy navy and red ensemble paired with crimson snakeskin boots and a scarlet purse

Cynthia Erivo flashes her abs in a cropped argyle sweater paired with a gunmetal brocade skirt cut on the bias.

Diana Agron charmed in a ruffle-heavy navy and red ensemble paired with crimson snakeskin boots and a scarlet purse.

On the runway model Gigi Hadid wowed in a black gown with glittering bra-top bodice and flank-baring cut outs.

Her sister Bella also made her mark in a sexy short and jacket set with stylish headscarf.

Chit chat: Carys Zeta Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Iman exchanged words before taking their seats at the show
Gina Rodriguez looked vibrant in Venice Beach, California on Tuesday.

The 34-year-old actress had just finished directing a forthcoming episode of her show Jane The Virgin when she was spotted in her stylish attire.

The Emmy favorite flashed her diamond engagement ring while looking trim in her in her Old Navy Rockstar Jeans.

Flaunting her figure: Gina Rodriguez looked vibrant in her Old Navy Rockstar Jeans while showing off her jaw-dropping engagement ring in Venice Beach, California

A closer look at her engagement ring

Gina added a n:PHILANTHROPY Harlow shirt and Vince Camuto booties.

Minutes after enjoying a ride on an electric scooter, the Hollywood star was seen laughing on the phone as she held on to her cup of coffee.

A standout amongst her accessories instantly pointed to her stunning engagement ring, which the Chicago native received from her fiance Joe LoCicero in July.

The two had initially met on the set of The CW hit show back in 2016.

But two years later, it appeared that both Rodriguez and her soon-to-be husband felt ready to take the next step with their relationship.

She made the announcement to PEOPLE magazine, telling the publication that she couldnt imagine settling down with anybody but Joe.

'I am [engaged]!' the Filly Brown star revealed.

Fun in Venice: Rodriguez appeared cheery in her secret-slim pocket jeans, while also sporting a camouflage shirt by n:PHILANTHROPY and black suede boots by Vince Camuto

That's a look! The 34-year-old actress had just finished directing a forthcoming episode of her show Jane the Virgin when photographers spotted the beauty in her stylish attire

Hes the best. Hes the f- best. Weve been engaged for like a month  Ive kept it a secret for a while. I dont even really want to say its happening.

Despite her excitement to walk down the aisle and tie the knot with her man, Rodriguez admits that she wont be revealing too much about her wedding.

She stresses that being in the limelight already prevents her from having a private life, affirming that she at least wants to keep her ceremony plans undisclosed.

Excitement! Despite her excitement to walk down the aisle and tie the knot with her man, Rodriguez admits that she wont be revealing too much about her wedding

I think theres a huge blessing in the fact that people care. Thats a beautiful thing, so that feels really good, she continued telling the magazine.

But another part of me wants to keep a little something thats just mine, cause theres not too many things I have like that anymore.

Rodriguez will be reprising her role as Jane Villanueva one last time when the show returns to The CW early January.

Showing off her curves! The actress stunned in her attire while walking through the streets of Venice Beach

Accessories: Gina donned a pair of earrings that fitted well with her sunglasses

A statement! Rodriguez's engagement ring was hard to miss from her finger

It was announced in May that network execs had wanted Jane the Virgin to reach a conclusive story by its fifth series, ultimately bringing one of its fan-favorite shows to an end.

Gina shares that shes very proud of the show and the social issues it tackled throughout its four-year run on the network.

For four years weve been blessed to have writers who are so socially conscious and aware and want to bring light and shed light on so many issues without judgment, without commentary  just a safe space, she tells Huffington Post.

Directing mode: Rodriguez is said to be directing several episodes for the forthcoming fifth series

Her next move: Jane the Virgin coming to an end won't have too much of an affect on Gina's career, however, as the actress has already inked deals to star in several new projects

Whether it be immigration, womens rights, inclusivity, weve been doing it on Jane. And God-willing, well continue to do that this last season.

While an official premiere date for the final series has yet to be confirmed, it is believed that the show will make its highly anticipated return to the network in January.

Jane the Virgin coming to an end won't have too much of an affect on Gina's career, however, as the actress has already inked deals to star in several new projects.

She's currently said to be voicing an animated character for the forthcoming TV series Carmen Sandiego, which is scheduled to premiere next year.

It's also been announced that the show will have a feature-length motion picture seeing its way to theaters by the end of 2019.

It appears that things are only looking up for the Annihilation star.
Evanna Lynch and Keo Motsepe are going to make magic in the ballroom on Dancing With the Stars in season 27.

The Harry Potter actress was announced as part of the cast during Good Morning America on Wednesday, September 12. Shell be joined by Tinashe, Nancy McKeon, Mary Lou Retton, Bobby Bones, Joe Amabile, Alexis Ren, DeMarcus Ware and more.

The full cast and their pro pairings were confirmed amid increasing speculation about who would be cast in season 27 of the ABC dancing competition. Rumors began swirling days before the official announcement, naming Jonathan Scott and Tod Chrisley as potential contestants.

Evanna Lynch, who played Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter film franchise, has been announced as part of the Dancing With the Stars Season 27 cast

Keo Motsepe and Evanna Lynch will team up to compete for the mirror ball trophy in season 27 of Dancing With the Stars

Neither wound up being confirmed in the end.

Evanna didnt immediately speak out about her participation in the upcoming season of Dancing With the Stars. She has, however, shared several Instagram posts about the show.

It appears that she and Keo are getting on well and are excited to compete.

What else do you need to know about Evanna Lynch before the Dancing With the Stars season premiere on September 24? Heres the scoop.

Who is Evanna Lynch?

Evanna Lynch was born August 16, 1991 in County Louth, Ireland. Shes an Irish actress, podcast host and narrator.

Shes best known for playing Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter franchise. Evanna had been a huge fan of the books and even corresponded with JK Rowling in letters while she was sick.

The Harry Potter author confirmed that Evannas Harry Potter film casting was purely coincidence and that she had no idea the decision had been made until a producer said her name.

Evanna appeared in four Harry Potter films, the video games and the Harry Potter parody musical, A Very Potter Senior Year.

Shes also appeared in Sinbad, Houdini, Dynamite: A Cautionary Tale, My Name is Emily, Disco Pigs and more.

Evanna is an outspoken advocate for eating disorder recovery after having suffered with one herself. She wrote about her own struggles in a post called Why the Body Bind Is My Nightmare.

In it, she wrote: This reality is why the physical body bind is my greatest fear and it is also why I think its so important that we love and care for our bodies as best as we can. Its true that the mind is where all ideas are born, but the body is the tool that translates and expresses those ideas to the wider world.

She continued: A few years ago I was haunted by destructive, negative thoughts like these. I used to get so angry and frustrated because I felt my mind didnt match up with my body and that it prevented me from things I knew I was capable of doing.

It took me a while to realise that all of this was an illusion. If I continued to abuse my body by giving in to my negative thoughts, I didnt deserve to have the health and fitness I was blessed with.

It is nothing but a vehicle for our greater creative purpose but if we dont give it fuel and keep it in good working order, it instead becomes another obstacle to transcend, a physical one, as well as the many million fictitious mental ones that society presents.

In addition to her eating disorder advocacy, Evanna raises money for the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Ireland regularly.

Shes also a member of the Harry Potter Alliances Board of Advisors. With that group, shes supported same-sex marriage in Maine, pushed a web fundraiser and written a book about body image.

Evanna also advocates for the rights of animals. Shes been vegan since 2015 and speaks about it on her podcast, The ChickPeeps, which is co-hosted by Harry Potter star Robbie Jarvis.

Evanna Lynch net worth

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Evanna Lynchs net worth is about $4 million (3m).

Evanna Lynch Instagram

Evanna Lynch has more than 1.5 million followers on Instagram. She has more than 1,000 posts.

The majority of her photos are of her cat, herself, and her friends. Her most recent posts, however, are Dancing With the Stars related.

New Dancing With the Stars cast

Evanna Lynch is one of several stars who was cast in season 27 of Dancing With the Stars. Shes partnered with Keo Motsepe.

Tinashe, Bobby Bones, Joe Amabile, Mary Lou Retton, DeMarcus Ware, Juan Pablo di Pace, John Schneider, Nikki Glaser, Alexis Ren, Milo Manheim and Danelle Umstead have also been confirmed as part of the cast.
Kendall Jenner got back in the saddle for a photoshoot in Paris after being savagely body-shamed for leaked photos of her riding a horse in the nude.

But the American model, 22, paid no attention to the haters as she put on a carefree display during the shooting of a commercial at Musee du Cheval (Horse Museum) at Chantilly Castle in France on Wednesday.

Despite being blasted by social media users for sitting naked on a horse in the leaked photoshoot by photographer Russell James, the brunette defiantly enjoyed another ride on a horse as she continued her work commitment.

Defiant: Kendall Jenner, 22, got back in the saddle for a photoshoot in Paris after being savagely body-shamed for leaked photos of her riding a horse in the nude

Taking in the glorious sunshine, Kendall arrived at the stunning photoshoot location in a pretty white dress.

The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star quickly changed into an equestrian inspired ensemble, consisting of a white blouse with a black bow-tie and riding boots.

For another look, she switched into a different white blouse, complete with chic trousers.

Clearly having had a whale of a time, Kendall took to her Instagram Stories to share a behind-the-scenes snippet of her time at the photoshoot.

Not a care in the world: The model put on a care-free display during the shooting of a commercial at Musee du Cheval (Horse Museum) at Chantilly Castle in France on Wednesday

Giddy up! Despite being blasted for sitting naked on a horse in the leaked photoshoot, the brunette defiantly enjoyed another ride on a horse as she continued her work commitment

The Los Angeles born beauty proved delighted as she rode on a horse in the short clip.

Ironically enough, Kendall has been trolled on social media for a series of leaked shoots from a nude photoshoot with Russell James for his upcoming book titled Angels.

Fans were buzzing on Twitter as images of the model completely naked running on the beach and riding a horse bareback circulated throughout social media.

Flocking to social media to offer their opinions, people tweeted:

'WHO THE F*** PUT KENDALL JENNER BUTT A** NAKED ON MY TL? I DID NOT WANNA SEE HER P***P*** AND NIPS EVER. PERIODT.'

Stylish: Taking in the glorious sunshine, Kendall arrived at the stunning photoshoot location in a pretty white dress

Hot to trot: The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star quickly changed into an equestrian inspired ensemble, consisting of a white blouse with a black bow-tie and riding boots

Silencing her neigh-sayers: Clearly having had a whale of a time, Kendall took to her Instagram Stories to share a behind-the-scenes snippet of her time at the photoshoot

She's not sad-dle! The Los Angeles born beauty proved delighted as she rode on a horse in the short clip

'Please get naked kendall jenner off my tl' and 'kendall jenner really put her BARE p**** on a horse saddle..................i have no words.'

'Why did i wake up to naked kendall jenner all over my tl' and 'Why is Kendall Jenner running naked on my timeline.'

'Why is kendall stick figure head*** on my tl smh y'all trynna ruin my morning??'

'Isn't kendall jenner embarrassed of the daily controversies and the dumb s*** she pulls? this photoshoot, the pepsi, and the degradation of hard working models are just too much, how is she even walking in public without getting embarrassed...

'Okay imma just pretend I didnt wake up to Kendall Jenner putting her bare p**** on a horse.

'Embarrassing': Kendall has been trolled on social media for a series of leaked shoots from a nude photoshoot with Russell James for his upcoming book titled Angels

'Imagine trying to enjoy your day at the beach and you look to your right to see kendall jenner riding a horse naked.'

While Kendall was shamed by many on social media for the naked shoot, other fans leapt to her defence:

'Ya women are really making fun of Kendalls body? ...sigh...'

'All of you who are making jokes about kendall's body from that photoshoot should be ashamed of yourselves. I don't even like her, but preaching about feminism then putting a woman down because of her physical appearance ain't cute

'So Kendall Jenner decided to run around the beach in her birthday suit, and people are acting like they've never seen the human body before.

Going viral: Fans were buzzing on Twitter as images of the model completely naked running on the beach and riding a horse bareback circulated throughout social media

'Please get her off my timeline': Flocking to social media, people continued to to offer their opinion

'Y'all are something else. If Kendall Jenner had breast implants you'd call her fake. She has natural breasts & you're saying she looks like a boy. Everyone's always criticizing the Kardashians saying they have fake bodies. Kendall's natural & y'all still body shame and criticize.

In terms of the leaked shoot, it seems as if the images were not supposed to be out for public consumption just yet.

Sources connected to the shoot told TMZ on Tuesday that the images were stolen from James and released without his permission.

Unexpected: Sources connected to the shoot told TMZ on Tuesday that the images were stolen from Russell James and released without his permission
The odds have never been better that Meghan Markle will announce shes pregnant.

According to Bookmakers.tv and Coral, its just about inevitable that the former actress and Prince Harry will welcome a Royal baby of their own in 2019. The former slashed their odds from 4/6 to 1/5 while the latter site has their odds down to one quarter.

Alex Kostin of Bookmakers told The Mirror: The odds of Meghan and Harry sharing some good news soon have taken another plunge.

Rumors have been swirling about Meghan Markle being with child since photos surfaced of her seemingly sporting a baby bump beneath a blue ruffled dress

The odds have never been lower that Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will announce that they're expecting a baby together

The latest betting definitely suggests there could be an announcement around the corner and when it comes, bookies should brace themselves for the biggest royal betting frenzy of all time.

Harry Aitkenhead, the head of Coral, told Express: Its Prince Harrys 34th birthday this weekend and with the couple making no secret of their desire to start a family, we think that its almost inevitable now that the latest Royal baby will be arriving in 2019.

Coral has even started taking bets on what Meghan and Harry will name their child. James is currently the top contender for the Royal couples baby name pick, but theres plenty of other options on the table.

Harry said: A Royal baby always prompts enormous excitement over what the name will be and at the moment our punters are backing a Prince James to be the latest to enter the family.

Fans were sure theyd have to wait a while before hearing any baby news from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. The couple are about to head out on a 16-day tour around Australia, Fiji, the Kingdom of Tonga and New Zealand, according to Kensington Palace.

During their busy tour theyll attend the Invictus Games, which are being hosted in Sydney, Australia this year.

A sure sign Meghans probably not pregnant just yet? Fiji and Tonga were recently hit with a Zika virus outbreak.

Pregnant women are to avoid Zika-prone areas and its unlikely she and Prince Harry would risk it.

Rumors have been swirling about the recently-crowned Duchess being with child since photos of her emerged wearing a ruffled blue dress and what appeared to be a small baby bump.

According to The Mirror, however, the dress simply didnt photograph well.
Katie Price has reportedly been banned from the school gates after screaming profanities at Kieran Hayler's new girlfriend Michelle Pentecost.

The former glamour is said to have left fellow parents shocked as she screamed 'are you enjoying f***ing my husband' to her estranged ex's new love as she arrived to pick up her children, Jett, 5, and four-year old Bunny.

With Katie's infamous recent rapping video scandal still causing worry, witnesses of the showdown raised their concerns with the school's headteacher, who in return asked for the bankrupt star to not return, according to The Sun.

'They politically suggested she stay away': Katie Price has reportedly been banned from the school gates after screaming profanities at Kieran Hayler's new girlfriend Michelle Pentecost

It seems as though Katie is none too pleased about her ex Kieran moving on with Michelle.

According to the publication, the Loose Women panellist approached the brunette a month ago at the school gates.

'Katie shouted "are you enjoying f***ing my husband" and some of the parents who were there were really shocked.

'Some of them went to the head teacher and asked them to ban her from the gates.'

Scandal: The former glamour is said to have left fellow parents shocked as she screamed 'are you enjoying f***ing my husband' to her estranged ex's new love as she arrived to pick up her children, Jett, 5, and four-year old Bunny

'Avoiding further incidents': With Katie's infamous recent rapping video scandal still causing worry, witnesses of the showdown raised their concerns with the school's headteacher, who in return asked for the bankrupt star to not return

It was continued: 'The school politely suggested that Katie stay away and get someone else to pick up Bunny and Jett from now on to avoid any further incidents.'

Describing the aftermath of the situation, it has been alleged that Katie was 'fuming.'

MailOnline has contacted representatives for Katie for further comment.

The reports have also suggested that the reality's star recent rapping video solidified the school's request to not have her return.

Katie was captured rapping about 'loving coke' after reportedly going to an after-party with two German men she met at a bar during a hen do in Mallorca.

Detailing the situation, it was continued: 'The school politely suggested that Katie stay away and get someone else to pick up Bunny and Jett from now on to avoid any further incidents'

'There's nothing she can do': Describing the aftermath of the situation, it has been alleged that Katie was 'fuming'

The video showed the mother-of-five appearing worse-for-wear as she danced next to a shirtless man and performed a rap at the revellers' apartment, in shocking footage from the end of August.

The party-goers, named as Lewis and Patrick, claimed they returned to the apartment to 'have a shower, get cosy and do drugs.'

Katie, who is fighting bankruptcy, was with friends in Mallorca for a hen do when she met the two party-goers, according to reports.

The star rapped: 'Made me do a line but I don't care, I love the coke, you know, it gets me in the air' in footage obtained by the publication.
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This magnificent Tudor mansion and 131-acre estate has just come on the market for a knock-down price of 3 million.

But on closer inspection, thick foliage is growing out of the windows of the derelict Dorset pile  for the house hides a terrible tragedy.

This was the former home of investment banker Michael Treichl which was destroyed by fire one year ago.

This magnificent Tudor mansion and 131-acre estate has just come on the market for a knock-down price of 3 million after it was burned down in a catastrophic fire in 2017

This was the former home of investment banker Michael Treichl who was investigated by police for starting the blaze

Treichl bought Grade I-listed Parnham in Dorset in 2001 for 4 million and spent 10 million restoring it.

Then in April last year it was burnt down  and police accused Treichl, 68, of starting the blaze.

Tragically, he committed suicide while on police bail.

Now the sale of the property is being instructed by receivers, acting on behalf of the mortgage lender, royal bank Coutts & Co.

Michael Treichl, pictured, was found dead two months after his home was gutted

The house suffered catastrophic fire damage in 2017 and is completely derelict, requiring total restoration, say agents Knight Frank.

They are selling the burnt-out facade, re-designed by 18th-century architect John Nash who worked on Buckingham Palace.

Austrian-born Treichls widow Emma, 55, has moved to a property nearby. She is quietly rebuilding her life, says a friend.

There was speculation Treichls hedge fund business was in trouble which led him to burn down the house. In 2014, he took out a mortgage on Parnham and last December probate documents revealed he left just 10,000 of assets.

It was never explained who had let thoroughbred horses belonging to his wife, a former Vogue model, out of their stables, allowing them to escape the blaze. Emma and their four children had been on holiday in France. Before his death Treichl said that it would cost a lot more than Parnham was insured for to rebuild it. But it is thought insurers will not pay a penny when there is a suspicion of arson.

Designer John Makepeace, who sold the house to Treichl, is not optimistic his former home will sell quickly. It was on the market for four years before I bought it, he said. Not many people need 80 rooms.

There was speculation Treichls hedge fund business was in trouble which led him to burn down the house

Treichl bought Grade I-listed Parnham in Dorset in 2001 for 4 million and spent 10 million restoring it

In 2014, he took out a mortgage on Parnham and last December probate documents revealed he left just 10,000 of assets

It was never explained who had let thoroughbred horses belonging to his wife, Emma, a former Vogue model, out of their stables, allowing them to escape the blaze
She's in the midst of the On The Run II Tour with husband Jay Z.

And during their Tuesday concert in Arlington, Texas, Beyonce reunited with her former Destiny's Child bandmate, LeToya Luckett.

LeToya, who flaunted her growing baby bump besides Beyonce, was kicked out of the band in 2000, right before they became household names.

No hard feelings: Beyonce reunited with her former Destiny's Child bandmate, LeToya Luckett, after her On The Run II Tour stop in Arlington, Texas Tuesday night

Beyonce, who sported a lace and beaded bodysuit, was snapped as she had her hand on LeToya's pregnant belly and her head resting on her shoulder.

She shared the image on her official website, Beyonce.com.

LeToya, 37, beamed ear to ear in her cheetah printed dress with a matching black blazer; she also had her hand on her bump.

The image comes 18 years after LeToya was seemingly kicked out of the girl group Destiny's Child.

Flashback: LeToya, who flaunted her growing baby bump besides Beyonce, was kicked out of the band in 200. right before they became household names; (from L to R) Kelly Rowland, Beyonce Knowles, LeToya Luckett and LaTavia Robertson in February 1998

Destiny's Child was formed in the early nineties with original members Beyonce, Kelly Rowland, LaTavia Robertson, Tamar Davis and Nikki and Nina Taylor.

Tamar, Nikki and Nina were cut from the band in 1993 by Beyonce's father and the group's manager at the time, Matthew Knowles.

The three former members were replaced by LeToya.

By February 1998, the quartet that was Destiny's Child released their self-titled album; it included the hit tune No, No, No.

Blast from the past: By February 1998, the quartet that was Destiny's Child released their self-titled album, it included No, No, No; from L to R: Kelly, LeToya and Beyonce in May 1998

However, mainstream success came after they released their second album, The Writing's On The Wall, which included Say My Name, and Bills, Bills, Bills.

In December 1999, members LaTavia and LeToya tried to split with Matthew as their manager because of allegations he favored Beyonce and Kelly.

Months later, the two women were replaced by Michelle Williams and Farrah Franklin in the group - as seen in the Say My Name music video.

New additions: Months later, the two women were replaced by Michelle Williams and Farrah Franklin - as seen in the Say My Name music video; from L to R: Beyonce, Kelly, Farrah and Michelle in 2000

In March of 2000, LeTavia and LeToya filed a lawsuit against Kelly and Beyonce as well as Matthrew.

Farrah left the group five months after she joined, leaving the girl group as it is today: Beyonce, Kelly and Michelle.

Last year, LeToya spoke to Pastor John Gray on his OWN show about the whole situation; she teared up as she spoke about it.

When asked how she felt in her heart after Destiny's Child went on to find worldwide success, money and accolades after she was kicked out, she said: 'I felt a few things. What do I do now? This is all that I know and I'm afraid to do something alone and these were my friends.'

Here they are: Farrah left the group five months after she joined, leaving the girl group as it is today: Beyonce, Kelly and Michelle; pictured February 2001 at the Grammy Awards (from L to R) Kelly, Beyonce and Michelle

Adding: 'We grew up together so I think that I felt at that moment like I'm about to lose my friends.'

LeToya is married to Tommicus Walker; they are expecting their first child together.

He has a daughter named Madison from a previous relationship.

The star, who put out her third solo album out last year - called Back 2 Life - is also an actress and a boutique owner.

Moving forward: Last year, LeToya spoke to Pastor John Gray on his OWN show about the whole situation; she teared up as she spoke about it; she is pregnant with her first child

Happiness: LeToya is married to Tommicus Walker; they are expecting their first child together; He has a daughter named Madison from a previous relationship; pictured June 14 at the Down For Whatever screening in Miami
To most of us it looks almost as hard as rocket science.

But to Rahul Mandal, creating showstoppers for the Great British Bake Off is far tougher.

As a research physicist, he finds equations much simpler than whipping up the perfect cake.

Bake Off viewers may find that difficult to believe after the 30-year-old quickly established himself as the star of this years series so far.

Scientific approach: research physicist Dr Rahul Mandal at his work laboratory

Brushing up: Sandi Toksvig inspects his Chelsea buns during the Great British Bake Off

He has gone from outsider to favourite for the Channel 4 competition after winning Star Baker twice in the first three weeks.

Yet Rahul took up baking only five years ago, to help him make friends. He had not made a cake until two years ago.

His shaking hands often betray his nerves  he even admitted: Inside me is like a pressure cooker. It can burst any time. And despite his scientific approach he always winces as he presents his creations to be judged.

Swanderful: despite his swan decorated korovai showstopper, Rahul took up baking only two years ago

Chubby face? Rahul's showstopper gingerbread selfie from week one of the show

He even apologised on Tuesday night for putting too much fruit on his Chelsea buns, only for Paul Hollywood to tell him they were baked to perfection and later describe him as a little genius for his korovai  a sweet Eastern European bread served at weddings  which he decorated with swans.

In week two, his collar cake with chocolate shards earned him a coveted Hollywood handshake, the first for a showstopper, perhaps to make up for earlier calling him chubby faced.

His spreadsheet recipes and timid nature have already won an army of fans on social media for Rahul, who moved to the UK from Kolkata in 2010 to do a PhD in optical metrology  precision measurement using light  at Loughborough University.

Having a laugh: Rahul said that he 'really had no idea about Bake Off' until five years ago

The boffin has been inundated with social media requests from viewers begging to be his friend

He also melted hearts by revealing in week one that he Skypes his parents in India every day.

This week he was seen carrying a giant sponge into work for his colleagues at the University of Sheffields Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre.

Rahul, who lives in Rotherham, admitted: Even as a child, rather than watching sports, I enjoyed watching cookery shows. I never baked when I was in India. My baking journey began in the UK about five years ago when I was feeling lonely.

The first cake I made was about two years ago, when my parents visited the UK for the first time.

'Even five years ago I really had no idea about Bake Off. One of my colleagues kind of pushed me to apply. I think pretty much everybody I know will be surprised.

After Tuesdays show he was inundated with social media requests from viewers begging to be his friend.

One wrote: Rahul bakes to make new friends could be the best line from Bake Off ever.

Another said: I want to adopt Rahul and fill him with self-confidence and for him to fill me with cake in return.

A third added: Rahul, I will be your friend.

While Rahul shone, Goldman Sachs worker Antony Amourdoux, 29, was the third baker to leave the tent after his garlic naan and tiered korovai failed to impress the judges.
She has been delighting fashion fans with her endlessly chic sartorial looks during NYFW.

And Sofia Richie, 20, was back to her old style tricks as she sported a beige check double-breasted blazer arriving to the Michael Kors New York Fashion Week runway show on Wednesday.

The daughter of crooner Lionel Richie teamed her on-trend blazer over a daring metallic silver mesh long-sleeved body which hugged her torso.

Fashion forward: Sofia Richie, 20, was back to her old style tricks as she sported a beige check double-breasted blazer arriving to the Michael Kors New York Fashion Week runway show on Wednesday

Keeping to her neutral theme, the model donned a pair of high-waisted beige flares which elongated her slender legs.

The American beauty, who is currently dating Scott Disick, 35, added inches to her petite frame with a pair of platform heels for the runway show.

Sofia slicked back her brunette tresses into a sleek ponytail, which highlighted her statement drop-earrings, and accentuated her flawless beauty look.

The Californian native has been a firm fixture at NYFW and has attended the runway shows of Australian duo Zimmerman, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Oscar De La Renta and Carolina Herrera.

Getting chic done: The daughter of crooner Lionel Richie teamed her on-trend blazer over a daring metallic silver mesh long-sleeved body which hugged her torso

Sofia's outing comes after her boyfriend Scott was confronted by ex Kourtney Kardashian on Sunday's episode of KUWTK.

Kourtney, 39, told Scott she felt blindsided that Scott had introduced Sofia to their three children - Mason, eight, Penelope, six, and Reign, three.

Scott lashed out, however, pointing out that their brood had already met her then-boyfriend, Younes Bendjima.

'The thought of my kids being introduced to another woman and having somebody else in their lives, it is hard for me and hard for them. There is a lot going on for them,' Kourtney told the cameras.

Runway ready: Keeping to her neutral theme, the model donned a pair of high-waisted beige flares which elongated her slender legs.

'I think it is just more of a principle that they made this rule and have been going to co-parenting therapy together, and I want to be there too support Kourtney and Scott, but it is really their thing and I do not get involved,' explained her sister Kim.

Scott then phoned momager Kris Jenner, 62, and explained how Kourtney had reacted badly to the news.

He told Kris that they had discussed the issue with the therapist and agreed to wait until after the holidays to do it.

'I don't understand why she can introduce her boyfriend to the kids but you can't introduce your girlfriend, because she is my daughter I don't want to go against her, but I see your point, too, so I would ask her why it isn't mutual,' said Kris.

Family feud: Kourtney confronted ex Scott over introducing their children to his girlfriend Sofia on Sunday's episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians
Eerie ghost story The Little Stranger has been met with positive reviews from critics.

And Ruth Wilson was joined by her co-star Domhnall Gleeson on Wednesday to promote the thriller in Dublin, arriving at The Lighthouse Cinema in style.

The Irish premiere was a low-key affair, with Ruth bringing a touch of glamour in an ethereal, rainbow hued dress.

Double trouble: Ruth Wilson was joined by her co-star Domhnall Gleeson on Wednesday to promote the thriller in Dublin, arriving at The Lighthouse Cinema in style

The 36-year-old actress looked lovely in the quirky frock, which featured a black panel running down the front and white strap detailing.

She matched her white heels to the satin ribbon detailing on the sleeves and wore her brunette locks down loose.

About Time star Domhnall was looking dapper in a dark suit and navy tie, posing alongside the Luther actress on the red carpet.

Chic; The Irish premiere was a low-key affair, with Ruth bringing a touch of glamour in an ethereal, rainbow hued dress

Smart: About Time star Domhnall was looking dapper in a dark suit and navy tie

Elegant: She matched her white heels to the satin ribbon detailing on the sleeves and wore her brunette locks down loose

Ruth recently teased viewers about whether her fan favourite character Alice will return to Luther during her appearance on Lorraine.

Asked if the creepy character will return, theactress said cheekily: 'Maybe, maybe not. You'll have to wait and see.'

The Affair actress added: 'She's fun. I've been playing her for eight years because every series there's about two years in between.

Getting the giggles: The pair put on an animated display on the red carpet

Main man: Director Lenny Abrahamson (centre) was surrounded by the cast, including Will Poulter (left)

Putting in an appearance: Brendan Gleeson was casually clad for the premiere

'I love playing her, she's crazy and mad. I find her really funny, other people don't! She has no conscience, so it's a great way to live.'

Ruth also responded to rumours her Luther co-star Idris Elba could be the next James Bond - saying she would like to play the villain opposite him.

'There should be a female Bond baddie, who is the evil nemesis and is in charge of everything,' she said.

Cheeky: Ruth recently teased viewers about whether her fan favourite character Alice will return to Luther during her appearance on Lorraine

Hmm: Asked if Alice (pictured) will return, the 36-year-old actress said cheekily: 'Maybe, maybe not. You'll have to wait and see'

Gripping role: 'I love playing her, she's crazy and mad. I find her really funny, other people don't! She has no conscience, so it's a great way to live'

She also spoke about her new projects, including her gothic horror movie The Little Stranger Ruth, alongside Domhnall Gleeson and Charlotte Rampling.

Luther fans were left with a major cliffhanger at the end of series four, in which Alice Morgan, appeared to have been killed off.

But the actress was seen pictured back on set for series five filming in January, which begs the question of whether or not she is actually alive.

Fans speculated that the scenes could be part of a dream sequence, in which she's seen furiously pointing a gun at DCI John Luther (Idris Elba).

Hmm: Alice appeared to have died in season four - but fans speculated that she will return when Ruth was spotted filming new scenes with co-star Idris Elsa in January

Ruth's character had apparently 'died' off screen on series four, and while fans were devastated at the loss they'll be happy to see that she's set to make her comeback.

After series four had aired, Idris spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about the show without Ruth's character and claimed it was possible for it to continue: 'The truth is, the show is called Luther. It's not called Alice, or The Bad Guys.

'It's about Luther and the people he comes across and the people he tries to bring down. I think that world still remains intact, but it takes on a slightly different spin.'

But he was quick to add that it wasn't necessarily the last time we'd see her: 'I'm not being deceptive or anything, but the truth is, John Luther isn't quite sure that she's dead!'
They recently purchased a huge $10.9million Hollywood home.

And it appears Lara Bingle, 31, and her husband Sam Worthington, 42, could be making room for another baby, with reports claiming she is pregnant with their third child.

Speaking to OK! magazine on Thursday, an insider said the couple - who are already parents to sons Rocket, three, and Racer, one - are thrilled by the news.

'She's desperately hoping for a girl': Lara Bingle is 'pregnant with baby number three' as insider claims model and Sam Worthington are 'over the moon'. The couple are pictured on November 15, 2017 in Hollywood, California

'Lara is pregnant with baby number three... [she's] desperately hoping for a girl,' the source claimed.

'Lara and Sam are both over the moon about the pregnancy, but it's only early days.'

The insider added: 'When Lara and Sam married they always had an agreement: they would try for four kids in fast succession.'

Motherhood: Lara and Sam are already parents to sons Rocket, three, and Racer, who turns two next month

The couple reportedly don't want to know the gender ahead of the birth.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Lara and Sam for comment.

Earlier this month, it was revealed that the model and the Avatar actor purchased a five-bedroom, eight-bathroom home, spanning 6,128-square feet.

New home: Lara and Sam recently splashed out on this $10.9 million Hollywood home

In July, the Cronulla native spoke to Sunday Life magazine about her four-year marriage to Sam.

She revealed the trait she finds most attractive in her husband  and it has nothing to do with his good looks.

The couple are very family-minded, and Lara admitted Sam's parenting style left her impressed.

'Parenting is challenging. You need a lot of patience and I'd say Sam is definitely more patient than me,' Lara said.

'He's just a really good dad and absolutely obsessed with the boys, so nothing comes between them  not work or anything else. And that, for me, is the most attractive thing about him.'

Candid: In July, the Cronulla native spoke to Sunday Life magazine about her four-year marriage to Sam. Pictured here on August 28, 2018 in Melbourne

Lara also opened up about the romantic surprise Sam planned for her 30th birthday last year.

Sam arranged for the kids to be looked after while he took Lara away on a mystery getaway.

With Lara in the dark as to where they were going, the couple travelled to Iceland's Blue Lagoon, then stopped by concerts in Dublin, Brussels, London and Toronto.

'Each night I'd go to bed in one country then wake up and open a new present which would be a T-shirt of the band I was going to see that night,' Lara explained.

Romantic! For her 30th birthday last year, Sam surprised Lara with a international mystery getaway, which included a stop at Iceland's Blue Lagoon (pictured)

Lara also added that these days, she loves nothing more than just being at home with her family - a far cry from her days as Sydney socialite when her personal life regularly hit headlines.

It's a remark that echoes many of the blonde bombshell's recent media interviews, in which she mentions she's increasingly craving privacy.

Earlier this month, Lara told Harper's BAZAAR Australia: 'I feel that as I get older, the less people know about me, the better.'

She continued: 'I still use Instagram, but I've stopped posting too much about my life  just work stuff. To be honest, I don't know if it bores me  maybe I'm over Instagram, or is it because I have my family and it feels like I'm wasting time?'
Toni Collette has been hit by claims that she has been causing a stir on the set of her latest drama, BBC's Wanderlust.

The Hollywood actress, 45, has allegedly shocked her fellow cast and crew members with her 'diva-like' antics while filming the raunchy show.

Toni was reportedly rude to producers while starring in the new drama and shouted at her PA for buying the wrong brand of organic vinegar.

Claims: Toni Collette has been hit by claims that she has been causing a stir on the set of her latest drama, BBC's Wanderlust

A source told the Sun: 'Toni is a star - but difficult to work with to say the least.

'She was rude to staff, belittled people, and acted like she ruled the roost.

'She would have heated disagreements with directors and even shouted at her PA in front of everyone because she bought the wrong brand of organic vinegar for her.'

'Shocked': The Hollywood actress, 45, has allegedly shocked her fellow cast and crew members with her 'diva-like' antics while filming the raunchy show

The show insider added that their were jokes among the crew about what sort of mood Toni would turn up in that day, which allegedly ranged from okay to moody.

Apparently while filming the actress was a true professional, however once the cameras stopped rolling she was hard to predict.

The source said that although drama is part and parcel of working with Hollywood stars, Toni was a whole other level in that respect.

They continued that sometimes she would also compare the set to Hollywood films she has starred in, in a negative way.

Spicing things up: Toni plays Joy Richards, who is struggling with her marriage and declares that they should sleep with other people in a bid to spice it up

Rauchy: The X-rated BBC programme, which has been dubbed the broadcasters steamiest series ever, was filmed from October to February in Manchester

A spokesman for production company Drama Republic told MailOnline: 'Toni Collette was a dream to work with. She was professional, fun, considerate and pivotal to the positive environment on set. As a result, Wanderlust could not have been a happier ship as a production.'

MailOnline has also contacted a representative for Toni for comment.

The X-rated BBC programme, which has been dubbed the broadcasters steamiest series ever, was filmed from October to February in Manchester.

Toni plays Joy Richards, who is struggling with her marriage and declares that they should sleep with other people in a bid to spice it up.

The first episode of the series included a romp and two scenes featuring masturbation in the first seven minutes of the programme.
She recently dropped stalking charges against her former lover to prevent details about their affair being exposed.

And Livia Firth was putting the incident behind her, attending a Lucia Magnani Skincare private dinner at Annabel's on Wednesday night in style.

Colin Firth's wife was dressed to impress in beautiful green co-ords featuring a striking geometric print.

Stylish: Livia Firth was attending a Lucia Magnani Skincare private dinner at Annabel's on Wednesday night in style

Livia, an eco-warrior ambassador, embraced the pyjama trend in her oversized separates.

She added a striking pair of beaded teal hoop earrings to complete her quirky yet fashion-forward look.

The star wore her long locks down loose and added a slick of ruby red lipstick.

Livia has been keeping a low profile since it was revealed in July she had dropped stalking charges against her former lover.

Glamorous as ever: Livia, an eco-warrior ambassador, embraced the pyjama trend in her oversized separates

Stunning: She added a striking pair of beaded teal hoop earrings to complete her quirky yet fashion-forward look

Dinner party: The star wore her long locks down loose and added a slick of ruby red lipstick

Livia Giuggiolo reported Italian journalist Marco Brancaccia to the police, claiming she was living in terror.

She later admitted she had embarked on a year-long affair during a brief separation with Firth, 57.

Brancaccia, 55, allegedly bombarded her with threatening phone calls and text messages after the relationship ended, as well as emailing compromising photographs to Firth.

The journalist, who works for Italian news agency Ansa, is a childhood friend of film producer Livia, 48.

He was said to have started harassing her in September 2016 because he could not face being cut out of her life.

Low profile: Livia has been keeping a low profile since it was revealed in July she had dropped stalking charges against her former lover

The journalist also threatened to write compromising articles about the couple, according to Italian newspaper La Repubblica.

Livia said she was living in terror and thought Brancaccia might be following her.

She reported him to police after their relationship ended in 2016. Prosecutors said he subjected them to a terrifying ordeal after Miss Giuggioli went back to her husband.

The court case in Rome was halted by a last-minute deal, The Sun reported.

Stalker hell: Livia reported her ex to police after their relationship ended in 2016. Prosecutors said he subjected them to a terrifying ordeal after Miss Giuggioli went back to her husband

In a joint statement, the couples lawyers said: In the best interests of their families, the parties have agreed a private settlement.

The parties have asked the court for a postponement of the preliminary hearing in order to formalise the agreement.

This agreement precludes any further public statement by any of the parties about this matter.

An anonymous source told the Sun that Brancaccia wanted to clear his name.

According to the source, it is also believed that Colin and Livia did not want any of their private details made public in court.

Threat: The journalist also threatened to write compromising articles about the couple, according to Italian newspaper La Repubblica

Italy introduced a law against stalking in 2009 following an increase in women being harassed and murdered, sometimes by former partners. If found guilty, Brancaccia could have faced up to four years in jail.

Livia has been married to Firth for more than 20 years and the pair have two sons.

She is an Oxfam ambassador and has travelled to Ethiopia, Kenya, Bangladesh and Zambia, and is a founding member of Annie Lennoxs The Circle, a womens advocacy group.

She also founded Eco-Age, a consultancy that advises fashion companies on environmental sustainability. Her husband thanked her for putting up with my fleeting delusions of royalty in his Oscar acceptance speech for his role in The Kings Speech.

Firth began to learn Italian after he started courting Livia and speaks the language fluently. He applied for Italian citizenship after describing Brexit as a disaster in an interview with an Austrian newspaper in 2016.
She's been a front row regular at many of the New York Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2019 collection shows.

And ahead of her next appearance, Kate Bosworth was spotted enjoying some down time with her husband Michael Polish in the Big Apple on Wednesday.

The 35-year-old flaunted her impeccable street style in a pair of baggy mom jeans while braving the chilly weather and light rain.

Detox: Kate Bosworth took a well deserved break from NYFW and was seen enjoying a stroll with husband Michael Polish on Wednesday

Kate teamed her denim trousers with a black scoop neck top.

She added a slightly transparent white rain jacket from Proenza Schouler over the top and covered her head with the hood attachment.

The actress completed her sightseeing ensemble with comfortable black sneakers and a pair of trendy designer glasses.

Dressing down: Kate wore a sheer white rain jacket from Proenza Schouler over the top of her casual ensemble and covered her head with the hood attachment

No fuss look: Kate's blonde locks were styled into a natural ponytail and she appeared to be wearing no makeup

Kate's blonde locks were styled into a natural ponytail and she appeared to be wearing no makeup.

Michael also kept a low profile for the morning walk in a pair of jeans and warm button-up jacket.

He carried his belongings in a backpack and added a dark newsboy hat.

Fashionista: Kate got all heads turning in a killer red jumpsuit at the Calvin Klein show on Tuesday night

Loved up: The Blue Crush actress celebrated her fifth wedding anniversary with her beau under two weeks ago on August 31

The duo's casual look was very different to their ensembles worn at the Calvin Klein show on Tuesday night.

Kate got all heads turning in a killer red jumpsuit while Michael flaunted his trendy fashion style in a blazer and pair of jeans.

The Blue Crush actress celebrated her fifth wedding anniversary with her beau under two weeks ago on August 31.

They met when he directed her in the film Big Sur shortly after her split from Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgard in mid 2011.

Kate and Michael announced their engagement the following year and married in August 2013 in Phillipsburg, Montana.
She has been fearless in her fight against sexual misconduct in Hollywood and has fought for justice against disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.

And Rose McGowan, 45, lent her support to artist Richard Hambleton as she arrived to his private exhibition Shadowman in London on Wednesday night.

The American actress made for a stylish appearance in a faux fur jacket as she posed alongside unlikely new pal, Jay Rutland, who owns Maddox Gallery where the event was held, which was co-hosted by Jay and Andy Valmorbida.

There she is! Rose McGowan, 45, lent her support to the movie Shadowman as she arrived to the red carpet premiere in London on Wednesday night

Rose looked sensational in the long black outerwear which she teamed with chunky black boots.

The former Charmed star opted for statement glossy red lipstick which complemented her short blonde locks.

Rose was one of the first to break their silence against Weinstein, claiming he had raped her.

As a result she was the first female recipient of GQ's Inspiration Award at the GQ Men of the Year Awards last week.

Mingling: The American actress made for a stylish appearance in a faux fur jacket as she posed alongside unlikely new pal, Jay Rutland, who owns Maddox Gallery - a sponsor of the event

Head-turner: Rose looked sensational in the long black outerwear which she teamed with statement red lipstick

Slick: Jay made for a very dapper appearance in a slick black suit and slightly unbuttoned white shirt

Meanwhile, Jay made for a very dapper appearance in a slick black suit and slightly unbuttoned white shirt.

Rosie Fortescue also stepped out as she flashed a peek of her stomach in a bralet and oversized blazer.

She teamed the look with a pair of colourful, striped trousers and a dainty gold body chain, as well as a blue quilted handbag.

Rosie was joined by her sister Lily, who also made for a sensational display in a lipstick print blouse.

Pals: Jay looked to be in a great mood as he posed with Tyrone Wood

Glam: Rosie Fortescue stepped out with sister Lily and flashed a peek of her stomach in a bralet and oversized blazer

Fashionista: She teamed the look with a pair of colourful, striped trousers and a dainty gold body chain, as well as a blue quilted handbag

Va va voom! Kimberley Garner was sure to command attention as she slipped her jaw-dropping body into a slinky cut-out metallic dress

Babe: The former Made In Chelsea star flashed a snippet of her envy-inducing, toned stomach, and boosted her height in a pair of towering high heels

Babe: The garment's low-cut neckline put focus on her busty cleavage as she posed up a storm

Kimberley Garner was sure to command attention as she slipped her jaw-dropping body into a slinky cut-out metallic dress.

The former Made In Chelsea star flashed a snippet of her envy-inducing, toned stomach, and boosted her height in a pair of towering high heels.

The garment's low-cut neckline put focus on her busty cleavage as she posed up a storm.

Loving it: Kimberley looked like she was having a whale of a time as she worked her angles

Wow: Kim lived up to her blonde bombshell reputation with a glossy blowdry and a glamorous slick of make-up

Green with envy: Tigerlily Taylor stood out from the crowd as she arrived in a bright green faux fur jacket

Animalistic: She stayed true to her style in a tiger-print dress

Hands on: The star got involved at the art exhibition

Tigerlily Taylor stood out from the crowd as she arrived in a bright green faux fur jacket.

Poppy Delevingne cosied up to husband James Cook as they arrived in style.

The model opted for a fashionable tweed blazer and chunky boots while her other half went for a baseball inspired jacket.

Lovebirds: Poppy Delevingne cosied up to husband James Cook as they arrived in style

Hot couple: The model opted for a fashionable tweed blazer and chunky boots while her other half went for a baseball inspired jacket

Mane attraction: Poppy showed off her striking features by piling her blonde locks up into a high topknot

Top of the crops: Frankie Herbert went for a trendy display in a white crop top and ankle-grazing jeans

Daring: Tomas Auksas flashed his torso in a semi-sheer top

Fun: Tallia Storm looked like she was loving life in a funky green patterned co-ord

In her element: Tallia lived up to her party girl status as he posed with pals
She's a regular on the London party scene.

And Kimberley Garner was turning heads when she attended the 'Shadowman' Richard Hambleton Private View and After Party in London on Wednesday night.

The 28-year-old star looked incredible in a slinky grey silk dress as she partied with a host of stars at the Maddox gallery.

Wow: Kimberley Garner was turning heads when she attended the 'Shadowman' Richard Hambleton Private View and After Party in London on Wednesday night

Kimberley showed off her slender physique in the form-fitting dress, which featured a cut-out panel at the waist.

The silver number made the most of her tiny waist and her cleavage, and was set off with barely-there metallic heels.

The one-time Made In Chelsea beauty wore her blonde locks down in loose waves and kept her make-up simple and natural.

Elegant: The silver number made the most of her tiny waist and her cleavage, and was set off with barely-there metallic heels

Striking: Kimberley showed off her slender physique in the form-fitting dress, which featured a cut-out panel at the waist

She posed up a storm inside the event, ensuring all eyes were on her as she made her grand entrance.

Kimberley's outing comes after she was forced to deny claims she had gone under the knife, recently taking to Instagram to share a sizzling bikini snap.

She wrote: 'For all the gossip, no I have not had a boob job, and no I have not had a butt job! (Which still comes as a very weird concept to me)'

Cut-out panel: The silver number made the most of her tiny waist and her cleavage

Model looks: The one-time Made In Chelsea beauty wore her blonde locks down in loose waves and kept her make-up simple and natural

'Womens bodys change, sometimes Im a little chubbier and sometimes too skinny, its just natural and so important to love our bodys, whatever the phase.

'But thanks for all the gossip I have heard over the past year, it has really made me laugh.'

She continued: 'ps I have been learning some butt exercises, will make a video, incase you want a fake butt ;) (sic).'
A fourth man has been charged over a Father's Day shooting murder north of Brisbane.

The 30-year-old was arrested at a Kippa-Ring home on Monday and charged with accessory after the fact to murder, police say.

Clinton Pollock, 35, was fatally shot in the chest after getting into an argument with a group of men in the front yard of his Deception Bay home about 11.30pm on September 2.

Police allege the man arrested at Kippa-Ring was in a vehicle that drove away from the Thompson Street house after Mr Pollock was shot.

He is due to appear in Brisbane Magistrates Court later on Tuesday.

Zachary John Hall, 28, and Justin Meale, 26, are both in custody charged with Mr Pollock's murder.

A 25-year-old man who allegedly drove the vehicle from the scene is on bail after he was charged with accessory after the fact to murder last Friday.
Residents across Adelaide's metro area are being warned of strong winds as a cold front crosses from Port Lincoln in the morning to Renmark late on Tuesday afternoon.

"Damaging north to northwesterly winds, with gusts to around 100km/h are possible over Eyre Peninsula from around sunrise, extending to central and eastern parts of the warning area during the morning, contracting to eastern and northern regions as the front moves east," the Bureau of Meteorology said.

Adelaide residents are warned the windiest period is expected in the late morning and early afternoon, with other locations expected to feel the effects including Port Lincoln, Whyalla, Port Pirie, the Adelaide Hills, Victor Harbor, Mount Gambier and Renmark.
A prisoner on the run from a NSW jail has been arrested after breaking into an elderly man's Queensland home and bashing him with a hammer.

Police say the 35-year-old, who'd been on the run since Friday, broke into a home at Clontarf north of Brisbane on Monday afternoon, and threatened the man and his wife with the hammer.

The 71-year-old suffered injuries to his legs before the prisoner stole the couple's car and fled. He was caught about two hours later and will appear in court on Tuesday.
A class action on behalf of millions of Australians with bank-owned super funds is being launched by lawyers Slater and Gordon.

The Get Your Super Back claim targets retirement savings may have been gouged by bank-owned super funds lining their pockets, in light of evidence from the banking royal commission, the law firm said on Tuesday.

The campaign will involve a series of class actions with Commonwealth Bank-owned superannuation fund, Colonial First State, and AMP super likely to be the first targets.
There's not a lot of grass on Peter North's drought-declared farm in Queensland's southwest.

But after 33 years on his 13,000-hectare property near Bollon, he knows the land and reckons his cattle should scrape through until the summer rains - if they come.

And if they don't, the wily 62-year-old says with a chuckle, there's always Thrushton National Park next door.

Thrushton - a 26,000-hectare former cattle station - has been locked up for years and is full of wild dogs, kangaroos and Mulga trees that could feed his hungry cattle.

"It's not a touristy park ... it's just a big square block with no facilities," he tells AAP.

Mr North says he's not desperate enough to jump the fence just yet but if the rains don't come, the gates should be unlocked to help him and other drought-ravaged graziers in the area survive.

About 100km south, Peter Cookson is desperate enough.

He pushed a big mob of his cattle out onto stock routes after the price of feed skyrocketed and the grass ran low on his 16,000-hectare property near Dirranbandi.

But after two and a half months droving, the roadside feed is almost gone and Mr Cookson has been forced to truck his cattle 1200km north.

At $100 per head, the third-generation farmer worries about what that cost burden will mean for his future, given the falling value of cattle and the stress it will put on his weakened animals.

And he admits it hurt that during his time on the stock routes, he had to push his herd past a national park full of feed.

"It seems such a pity not to be able to turn them out into it for two or three months, it wouldn't affect the park one bit," he says.

Mr Cookson recently rang local staff at the environment department, asking if he could let his cattle into the park to graze, but he was knocked back.

The Queensland government currently only allows grazing in national parks under very limited circumstances.

Desperate farmers have found an ally in state Opposition leader Deb Frecklington, who says they should be given access to suitable national parks during times of emergency.

"We won't stand by and watch while graziers are forced to destroy their own stock when we have land and feed available," she has told AAP.

"It is important that during dire animal welfare situations the state government does everything it can to support our graziers during drought."

A spokeswoman for Environment Minister Leeanne Enoch has told AAP the minister won't be commenting on the farmers' pleas.
South Australia's new mandatory reporting requirements for clergy will be toughened under legislation introduced to state parliament.

SA laws due to be enacted in October will require priests who hear a confession of child abuse to report it to police.

But SA-BEST spokeswoman Connie Bonaros said a clause in the legislation means the requirement could be reversed by the government of the day.

"It beggars belief that the exemption was part of the original legislation in the first place, so SA-BEST has introduced a bill to close the loophole as soon as possible," Ms Bonaros said on Tuesday.

"As a community, we simply and morally cannot allow a possible exception for priests to avoid the obligation to report suspicions of child abuse made at confession."

Ms Bonaros said the case of notorious paedophile priest Michael McArdle supported the need for reform.

McArdle admitted to more than 1500 instances of child sexual abuse and was jailed for six years in 2004.

"McArdle told no less than 30 different priests of his insidious offending, yet not one chose to break ranks, not one chose to protect children over the church," Ms Bonaros said.
Scott Morrison is no longer facing the threat of a Liberal Senator naming colleagues who bullied her in parliament.

But he's still faced with the daunting task of helping to boost the number of women in his party, amid a debate on how that should best be done.

South Australian senator Lucy Gichuhi had threatened to use parliamentary privilege to publicly out colleagues accused of bullying and intimidation during last month's Liberal leadership crisis.

She backed down from the commitment on Tuesday after speaking with the prime minister, saying she's left him to deal with the issue.

"Regarding bullying in my political career: Yesterday I had a discussion with Prime Minister Scott Morrison. The Prime Minister has taken up the issue," Senator Gichuhi posted to Twitter on Tuesday.

Mr Morrison says Senator Gichuhi has told him the leadership was not at the heart of the issue, but there were other issues at play such as how party divisions are handled.

"She made it very clear to me that in terms of the events in Canberra, and the spill of the leadership, she told me very plainly that she was not bullied by anybody here in Canberra in relation to that matter," he told ABC TV on Tuesday.

His comments come as discussion continues on how the party can boost the number of women in its ranks, with women currently making up less than a quarter of federal Liberal MPs.

Mr Morrison has conceded women are under-represented in the party, but doesn't think quotas will topple the obstacles that are keeping more women from advancing.

Whether or not quotas would be brought in is a matter for the Liberal's organisation wing, he noted.

But he is working with Minister for Women Kelly O'Dwyer on a "practical exercise", similar to training programs that helped a record number of Liberal women get pre-selected at the 1996 election.

Liberal Women's Council chair Helen Kroger says it's time for the party to acknowledge what they've done so far to recruit more women has not worked.

Former minister Craig Laundy has become the first male Liberal Party MP to come out in support of gender quotas, after it was first raised by Liberal frontbencher Sussan Ley, but ministers including Simon Birmingham, Steve Ciobo and Josh Frydenberg are all satisfied with the party's target of 50 per cent female representation by 2025.
US National Security Advisor John Bolton described the International Criminal Court as 'outright dangerous'

The United States threatened Monday to arrest and sanction judges and other officials of the International Criminal Court if it moves to charge any American who served in Afghanistan with war crimes.

White House National Security Advisor John Bolton called the Hague-based rights body "unaccountable" and "outright dangerous" to the United States, Israel and other allies, and said any probe of US service members would be "an utterly unfounded, unjustifiable investigation."

"If the court comes after us, Israel or other US allies, we will not sit quietly," Bolton said.

He said the US was prepared to slap financial sanctions and criminal charges on officials of the court if they proceed against any Americans.

"We will ban its judges and prosecutors from entering the United States. We will sanction their funds in the US financial system, and we will prosecute them in the US criminal system," Bolton said.

"We will do the same for any company or state that assists an ICC investigation of Americans."

Bolton made the comments in a speech in Washington to the Federalist Society, a powerful association of legal conservatives.

- Investigation into detainee abuse -

The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, The Netherlands

Bolton pointed to an ICC prosecutor's request in November 2017 to open an investigation into alleged war crimes committed by the US military and intelligence officials in Afghanistan, especially over the abuse of detainees.

Neither Afghanistan nor any other government party to the ICC's Rome Statute has requested an investigation, Bolton said.

He said the ICC could formally open the investigation "any day now."

He also cited a recent move by Palestinian leaders to have Israeli officials prosecuted at the ICC for human rights violations.

"The United States will use any means necessary to protect our citizens and those of our allies from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court," Bolton said.

"We will not cooperate with the ICC. We will provide no assistance to the ICC. We certainly will not join the ICC. We will let the ICC die on its own."

The ICC defended itself, noting it has the support of 123 member states and that even the United Nations Security Council has found it valuable, asking it in 2005 to investigate genocide in Darfur, Sudan.

"The ICC, as a judicial institution, acts strictly within the legal framework of the Rome Statute and is committed to the independent and impartial exercise of its mandate," it said in a statement.

- 'Threat' to US sovereignty -

Bolton said the main objection of President Donald Trump's administration is to the idea that the ICC could have higher authority than the US Constitution and US sovereignty.

"In secular terms, we don't recognize any higher authority than the US Constitution," he said.

"This president will not allow American citizens to be prosecuted by foreign bureaucrats, and he will not allow other nations to dictate our means of self-defense."

He also condemned the court's record since it formally started up in 2002, and argued that most major nations had not joined.

He said it had attained just eight convictions despite spending more than $1.5 billion, and said that had not stemmed atrocities around the world.

"In fact, despite ongoing ICC investigations, atrocities continue to occur in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Libya, Syria, and many other nations." he added.

Bolton was strongly criticized by rights groups. Liz Evenson, associate international justice director at Human Rights Watch, said Bolton's threats "show callous disregard for victims of atrocity crimes."

"The slaughter of civilians in Syria, Myanmar and elsewhere shows the ICC is needed more than ever to act where it can," Evenson added.

She said a move to block the complaints against US soldiers in Afghanistan and against Israel would show the US "more concerned with coddling serial rights abusers... than supporting impartial justice."
Korean People's Army soldiers stand beneath the entrance to a pavillion before the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) at the truce village of Panmunjom on the North Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating North and South Korea

UN military officials have met with North Korean counterparts to discuss the repatriation of additional remains of troops killed during the Korean War, US officials said Monday.

The meeting took place at the border truce village of Panmunjom in the DMZ on Friday, the US-led United Nations Command Korea said in a statement.

"Participants discussed military-to-military efforts to support any potential future return of remains," the statement read.

Pentagon spokesman Colonel Rob Manning said the UN delegation was led by US Air Force Major General Michael Minihan, who is chief of staff for the Command that fought alongside South Korea's troops during the war.

North Korea in July handed over what are thought to be the remains of 55 US servicemen who were killed during the Korean War.

The repatriation followed a summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, during which Kim agreed to send home some of America's war dead.
The second blast ripped through a congested street food stall

An Indian court Monday sentenced two members of a banned Islamist militant group to death for carrying out twin blasts in August 2007 in the southern city of Hyderabad that killed 44 people.

A third man was sentenced to life imprisonment for providing shelter to the bombers, the Press Trust of India reported.

One explosion went off in an auditorium packed with families watching a laser show. Minutes later a second blast ripped through a congested street food stall in another part of the city.

Aneeq Shafique Sayeed and Mohammed Akbar Ismail Choudhury were convicted on September 4.

The men belonged to the Islamic militant group Indian Mujahideen, which police say is an offshoot of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India.

In 2011 the US included Indian Mujahideen in its official blacklist of foreign terrorist organisations. The trial heard testimony from 170 witnesses before closing arguments were made last month.

Three others accused in the protracted case including the main conspirator Riyaz Bhatkal remain at large.
A landmark bill commits the state of California to 100 percent clean energy by 2045

California Governor Jerry Brown signed landmark legislation Monday committing his state to a 100 percent clean electricity grid by 2045.

"This bill and the executive order put California on a path to meet the goals of Paris and beyond," Brown said at a signing ceremony in state capital Sacramento.

"It will not be easy. It will not be immediate. But it must be done."

At least 20 countries and twice as many large cities have made similar pledges, but California -- the fifth largest economy in the world -- is by far the biggest jurisdiction to do so to date.

The electric sector represents 16 percent of the states greenhouse gas emissions. More broadly, California has set ambitious goals to slash greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent by 2030, compared to 1990 levels.

On the international stage, California has emerged as a leader on climate action as US President Donald Trump has opted out of the landmark 2015 Paris climate treaty and moved aggressively to dismantle the policies of his predecessor, Barack Obama.

"It's impossible to overstate how significant it is for a state as large and influential as California to commit to 100 percent clean energy," said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune.

"California is showing the world that a transition to 100 percent clean energy is within reach."

But Brown cautioned that reducing emissions enough to meet the Paris goal of capping global warming below two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) remains a daunting task.

"Have no illusions," Brown said. "California and the rest of the world have miles to go before we achieve zero-carbon emissions."

Scientist estimate that the global economy will have to become "carbon neutral" -- removing any additional CO2 put into the atmosphere -- by mid-century or shortly thereafter to keep under the 2 degree Celsius cap.

Brown first proposed renewable legislation 40 decades ago during his inaugural stint as California chief executive, earning him the nickname "Governor Moonbeam."

"Brown really launched the modern renewable energy industry when he was governor the first time," said Jim Williams, a professor of Energy Systems Management at the University of San Francisco and author of a seminal 2012 study that mapped the decarbonization of California's economy by mid-century.

Brown, 80 years old, will leave office in November.
In December last year Iraq declared "victory" over the Islamic State group after a three-year war against the jihadists who once controlled nearly one third of the country

Iraq executed by hanging seven of its citizens convicted of "terrorism", the head of the health ministry in the southern province of Dhi Qar said on Monday.

Doctor Abdel Hassan al-Jabri said the bodies of the seven men were handed over on Monday to the morgue of the state hospital of Nassiriya, the provincial capital.

They had been tried and convicted on charges of "terrorism", he said.

In December last year Iraq declared "victory" over the Islamic State group after a three-year war against the jihadists who once controlled nearly one third of the country.

In June, Iraq executed 13 jihadists after IS claimed responsibility for the murder of eight civilians.

Iraq has repeatedly faced criticism from international human rights groups over the high number of death sentences handed down by its anti-terrorist courts.

In 2017, at least 111 convicts were hanged in Iraq and this year 44 people have been executed.
US National Security Advisor John Bolton says President Trump is still holding a door open for denuclearization talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un

President Donald Trump has a door open for talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but is still waiting for action on denuclearization, his top security advisor said Monday.

"We're still waiting for them. The possibility of another meeting between the two presidents obviously exists," said White House National Security Advisor John Bolton.

"But President Trump can't make the North Koreans walk through the door he's holding open. They are the ones that have to take the steps to denuclearize. And that's what we are waiting for."

Bolton said in a speech to the Federalist Society that in their Singapore meeting in June, Kim committed to getting rid of his nuclear weapons, and later agreed with South Korean President Moon Jae-in that it could be done in one year.

"If they would denuclearize, as they committed to do in Singapore, they could have a very different kind of life in North Korea," Bolton said.

On Friday Trump said e was expecting a "positive" new letter from Kim, indicating that negotiations remain alive after weeks of apparent deadlock.

"I know that a letter is being delivered to me, a personal letter from Kim Jong Un to me, that was handed at the border," Trump told reporters traveling with him to North Dakota.

"I think it's going to be a positive letter."
This picture taken on September 6, 2018 shows smoke plumes rising from bombing by Syrian government forces on the town of Al-Tamanah on the southern edges of the rebel-held Idlib province. Turkey has renewed calls for a ceasefire.

Turkey on Monday urged Syria and Russia to halt all bombing on the Syrian province of Idlib, and called for a ceasefire in the region near its border.

"Our priority is to put an end as soon as possible to all the ground and air attacks and to ensure the implementation of a ceasefire and of stability," Turkey's Defence Minister Hulusi Akar was quoted as saying by the state-run Anadolu news agency.

The province of Idlib, in Syria's northwest, has been the target in recent days of artillery bombing by the regime forces of President Bashar al-Assad, as well as Russian airstrikes.

The United Nations warned Monday that a large-scale military operation against the rebel-held province could create "the worst humanitarian catastrophe with the biggest loss of life in the 21st century."

Violence has displaced 30,000 people in Idlib and the adjacent province of Hama this month alone.

Idlib is home to some three million people -- about half of them displaced by fighting in other parts of the country, according to the UN.

Turkey, fearing an influx of refugees in the event of a major assault, has repeatedly warned against a "massacre" in this last stronghold of the Syrian opposition.

On Friday at a summit in Tehran, the presidents of Russia, Iran and Turkey could not agree on staving off military action in the province.

Syria has been ravaged since 2011 by a complex civil war, implicating many foreign powers, that has claimed more than 350,000 lives to date.
North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump, pictured at the start of their historic US-North Korea summit, are preparing for a second meeting

US President Donald Trump has received a "very positive" letter from North Korea's leader seeking a second meeting, the White House said Monday, noting that coordination for the get-together was underway.

"The president has received the letter from Kim Jong Un. It was a very warm, very positive letter," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said, adding that the message showed Pyongyang's "continued commitment to focus on denuclearization" on the Korean Peninsula.

"The primary purpose of the letter was to schedule another meeting with the president, which we are open to and are already in the process of coordinating," she said at the first White House press briefing in nearly three weeks.

Sanders added that the letter was "further evidence of progress" in Washington's relationship with Pyongyang.

Trump and Kim held a historic summit in Singapore in June that raised prospects of a breakthrough on curtailing North Korea's nuclear program.

Despite follow-on negotiations on denuclearizing the peninsula hitting a snag leading to Secretary of State canceling a planned trip to the North late last month, the new letter showed signs that the discussions remain alive after weeks of apparent deadlock.

"We think it's important and we're glad that we're making progress," Sanders said, adding that Trump deserves the "credit" for bringing the two parties to the table.

"At the end of the day, ultimately, it's always going to be best when you can have the two leaders sit down," she added.

The White House has pointed to a series of accomplishments in recent months -- a release of US hostages, the repatriation of war remains believed to be of US service members, a pause in North Korea's missile and nuclear tests, and a recent military parade through Pyongyang that did not show off the country's intercontinental missiles -- to suggest progress between the foes.

Sanders was asked whether the next Trump-Kim meeting would take place in Washington, but she demurred, saying, "we'll let you know when we have further details."
"This issue has been discussed for many decades, and it would be naive to think that it can be solved quickly," Russian leader Vladimir Putin (l) said after meeting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (r) on the sidelines of an economic forum in Vladivostok

Russia's territorial dispute with Japan over the Kuril islands was unlikely to be settled soon, President Vladimir Putin said Monday, seeming to pour cold water on his Japanese counterpart's more optimistic forecast.

"This issue has been discussed for many decades, and it would be naive to think that it can be solved quickly," Putin said after meeting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of an economic forum in Vladivostok in the Russian Far East.

"But we are ready to look for resolutions that would work for both Russia and Japan, and which would be accepted by the people in both countries," he said, adding that he was sure relations would have "new impetus" following the talks.

Putin said Moscow and Tokyo have made some progress in building cooperation and economic ties on the four southernmost islands in the Kuril chain which the Soviet Union occupied at the end of World War II but are claimed by Japan.

The dispute kept the two countries from ever signing a peace accord.

After numerous meetings over the past few years between Abe and Putin, they have launched various economic projects on the islands in areas such as the farming of fish and shellfish, wind-generated energy, and tourism.

Since last year, the countries have also agreed on charter flights for former Japanese island inhabitants to visit family graves there.

"I will continue to make utmost efforts with President Putin to bring an end to the issue," Abe told a press conference after the summit, according to a report in Japan's Kyodo newswire.

Abe added that they had agreed a "road map" to realise the economic projects on the islands.

The summit came just ahead of huge Russian military drills, which are set to start on Tuesday in eastern Siberia, involving some 300,000 troops as well as Chinese soldiers.

While Moscow has said the drills will not take place on the contested islands, Abe told Putin that Japan is "keeping a close eye on" them, according to Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Kotaro Nogami quoted by Kyodo.

The two also confirmed that Putin will travel to Japan on an official visit next year, Abe said.
Amber Guyger, of the Dallas Police Department, was arrested Sunday and charged with manslaughter; she was later released on $300,000 bail

A Texas prosecutor said Monday a white cop could face murder charges for apparently mistaking a black man's apartment for her own, and shooting him dead before realizing her mistake.

The revelation came as criticism swirled over the police handling of the incident. The victim's family accused investigators of dragging their feet in arresting the officer and of not providing them with enough information.

Amber Guyger, of the Dallas Police Department, was arrested Sunday and charged with manslaughter. She was later released on $300,000 bail.

Guyger is accused of entering the apartment of her 26-year-old neighbor Botham Shem Jean on Thursday night, after she returned home at the end of her shift.

She allegedly mistook Jean's apartment for her own home, which was one floor below in the Dallas complex. Guyger fatally shot Jean thinking he was an intruder, police said.

The manslaughter charge came under scrutiny Monday, as Dallas's chief prosecutor hinted at potentially higher charges to come.

District Attorney Faith Johnson said a grand jury would be impaneled after the state-wide agency conducting the investigation, the Texas Rangers, hands the case over to prosecutors.

"The Texas Rangers made the decision to issue an arrest warrant for manslaughter," Johnson told a news conference, adding that there was a "spirited debate" Sunday between prosecutors and the Rangers over what charges to bring.

"The grand jury will be able to take a look at all aspects of this case, which will include anything from murder, manslaughter or what have you," she said.

- 'Too many questions' -

Jean was a black immigrant from the Caribbean island nation of Saint Lucia.

He had graduated from a private Christian college in the state of Arkansas in 2016 and had been working at the accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers in Dallas.

A number of his family members assembled in Dallas in the wake of the tragedy. A memorial service was planned for Thursday.

The family has been critical of the way the case has been handled so far.

"I have asked too many questions and I've been told that there are no answers yet," Jean's mother Allison Jean said at a news conference.

Jean family attorney Lee Merritt accused investigators of giving the officer "special treatment," because she was not arrested for days after the incident.

"She shouldn't have left that scene without being in handcuffs that day," Merritt said.

While there have been limited details made public about the case, it has quickly become embroiled in the politics of police brutality controversies in the US and taken on international relevance.

Protesters on Friday demanded Guyger's arrest.

Saint Lucia's prime minister Allen Chastanet arrived in Dallas on Monday to confer with authorities and family members, but said little publicly.

- Wrong floor, open door -

According to the Dallas Morning News, Guyger got off on the wrong floor of the building complex and approached an apartment exactly one floor above her own.

The door reportedly was unlocked and the lights were off inside the apartment. When Guyger saw a figure moving in the dark, she pulled out her pistol and opened fire thinking it was an intruder, the newspaper reported.

Video posted online showed Guyger still in uniform, pacing outside the apartment and crying, and paramedics conducting chest compressions as a patient was wheeled away on a gurney.

Dallas police said the 30-year-old officer has been with the department for four years. Local reports said she was involved in an earlier shooting in May 2017.

No date has yet been set for her to appear in court, as the grand jury will first have to issue an indictment.

The city's police previously have found themselves at the center of the nationwide debate over deadly interactions between officers and black civilians.

Five of the city's officers were shot and killed by a sniper at the end of a 2016 protest over police shootings.

The gunman Micah Johnson, who was African American and died in an ensuing standoff, told police he had targeted white officers.
Canada's Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland will again meet with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on the rewrite of the 25-year-old trade deal, Freeland's spokesman Adam Austen told AFP

Talks to bridge the differences between the United States and Canada to salvage the North American Free Trade Agreement will resume in Washington on Tuesday, a Canadian spokesman said Monday.

Canada's Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland will again meet with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on the rewrite of the 25-year-old trade deal, Freeland's spokesman Adam Austen told AFP.

The officials have held two weeks of talks but ended Friday afternoon without reaching an agreement that would keep Canada in the three-nation pact.

Washington had already reached a NAFTA agreement with Mexico in late August and has informed Congress it intends to sign a new treaty by November 30, including Canada if possible.

But talks still appear to be hung up on US objections to Canada's state control of the dairy market, as well as the procedures for resolving disputes.

US President Donald Trump on Friday said the NAFTA talks were "moving along" but again called the trade pact "one of the worst trade deals in history."

"Canada has been ripping us off for a long time. Now, they've got to treat us fairly," he told reporters, and again threatened to impose duties on cars produced in Canada.

Following the talks in Washington, Freeland will travel to Saskatoon, western Canada, on Wednesday to attend a meeting of Liberal members of parliament, which runs until Thursday, Austen said.
Bob Woodward's (L) book on the Trump White House has been denounced as a "joke" and a "scam" by US President Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump dismissed journalist Bob Woodward's bombshell book as a "joke" Monday, a day before readers get their first full look at his detailed account of a White House in disarray.

"Fear: Trump in the White House" hits US bookstores on Tuesday after a weeklong buildup, with published excerpts, leaks and interviews that portray Trump as dangerously erratic and uninformed.

On the eve of its release, the president took to Twitter with a preemptive round of attacks, denouncing as fiction Woodward's reconstruction of scenes in which frustrated aides scramble to contain the mercurial president's reckless impulses.

"The Woodward book is a Joke - just another assault against me, in a barrage of assaults, using now disproven unnamed and anonymous sources," Trump said in the first of a series of tweets.

"Many have already come forward to say the quotes by them, like the book, are fiction. Dems can't stand losing. I'll write the real book!"

Woodward is a famed chronicler of presidents, best known for his revelations in the Watergate scandal that proved the undoing of Richard Nixon in 1974.

Trump is quoted in "Fear" brutally insulting members of his own cabinet, referring to Attorney General Jeff Sessions as "mentally retarded" and former chief of staff Reince Priebus as a "little rat."

US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, in turn, is quoted as saying the president has the mental capacity of a "fifth or sixth grader," while Chief of Staff John Kelly is quoted as calling Trump "an idiot."

"We are in Crazytown," Kelly tells a small group of confidants, according to Woodward. "I don't even know why any of us are here. This is the worst job I've ever had."

Mattis, Kelly and other senior aides have denied making the remarks.

"I don't talk the way I am quoted. If I did I would not have been elected President. These quotes were made up," Trump said last week, calling the book a "scam."

The book's damning picture was reinforced last week with the publication of a New York Times op-ed written by an anonymous senior Trump administration official who portrayed fellow aides struggling to limit the potentially disastrous consequences of some of the president's rash decisions.

Infuriated by the unsigned missive, Trump on Friday urged Sessions to launch an investigation to uncover the author's identity, citing "national security" concerns.

The Times argued that such a probe would be a "blatant abuse of government power."

But on Monday, the White House reasserted its interest in studying whether any laws were broken by the explosive op-ed's author.

"It's (up to) the Department of Justice to make that determination and we're asking them to look into it," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters.

"If that individual is in meetings where national security is being discussed or other important topics, and they are attempting to undermine the executive branch, that would certainly be problematic."
Iran's ambassador in Iraq, Iraj Masjedi, gives a press conference outside his country's new consulate building in the southern city of Basra on September 11, 2018 after the old building was set ablaze by protestors a few days earlier

Iran's ambassador to Iraq opened a new consulate for his country in the southern city of Basra on Tuesday, four days after its old mission building was torched by protesters.

Basra has seen a surge in deadly protests in the past week, with demonstrators angry about poor public services setting alight several key buildings.

"I'm here to inaugurate the new premises of our Iranian consulate in Basra... because we don't want lose a single day of services for the people of Basra," said ambassador Iraj Masjedi.

The envoy was speaking at a news conference before the Iranian flag was hoisted outside the building now operating as the Islamic republic's consulate in the city.

Iran is one of two major powers present in neighbouring Iraq, along with the United States.

Many Shiite pilgrims from Iran are expected to travel to Iraq in around 10 days for the Ashura rituals and in October for the Arbaeen commemorations.

The Iranian consulate building in Basra was torched by demonstrators on Friday, with its documents and equipment going up in smoke. None of its staff were injured.

Iran said the responsibility for any negligence over the incident lies with the Iraqi government, which announced an investigation into the security forces responsible for protecting the mission.
Ebona is one of the ethnic Baka Pygmies in Gabon whose profound knowledge of the forest is their sole source of income

Just back from the hunt with a choice selection of plants, Ebona feels at home in the endless forest where many Gabonese fear to tread.

"Townsfolk paid me to find these leaves," the Pygmy says, setting the heap down outside his wooden hut, 500 metres (yards) from the rest of Doumassi village in north Gabon.

Ebona's people, the Baka, are held in folklore to be Africa's oldest inhabitants, living today in forests stretching from Gabon and Cameroon inland to the Congos and the Central African Republic.

The dense woods where national borders cease to exist hold no mysteries for the Baka.

"This is our first home," says another villager, who introduces himself as Jean, declining, like the other Pygmies, to divulge their Baka names, used only within the community.

"We sleep in it, we hunt in it, we live in it," he adds.

The ethnic Baka Pygmies often have a difficult relationship with their Fang neighbours, the main ethnic group in the area, who tend to treat them like children, leading to complaints by the Baka.

They also struggle to have a legal existence in Gabon, as they find themselves without identity cards, which complicates their lives.

"I am Gabonese, 100 percent, but I don't have an identity card. They promised us that we would have it, but we're still waiting...," says villager Christian, who, like other Baka, wants the same rights as other Gabonese citizens.

"How will I send my children to school?" he asks, in frustration. "How will I vote? How do I get medical care?"

- Dilemma -

Just weeks before parliamentary elections, the first round of which is planned for October 6 with a second round later next month, electoral officials have made little effort to put Baka adults on the voters' roll.

But many Baka steer well clear of national politics. They say they just want to "survive".

Jean-Baptiste Ondzagha-Ewak works for the Association for Family Mediation (AMF) that seeks to bring mutual understanding to the communities.

The NGO records Baka births to make them official so the children can go to school and receive health care.

For lack of access to health facilities, villager Norbert saw five of his seven children die prematurely, but he joyfully announces that his wife is pregnant once more.

For a long time, the ways of "city people" had a limited impact on communities of hunter-gatherers.

The Baka are still reluctant to go where "cars make a noise", except to buy goods such as "tobacco, soap, alcohol and petrol", according to Christian.

But the need for money has raised problems for Pygmies whose profound knowledge of the forest is their sole source of income.

Seen as one way to help their children go to school, the Baka hire themselves out like "integrated GPS" devices, ready to guide outsiders hundreds of kilometres (miles) into the wild to find game.

- 'They never miss' -

Despite their poor relations, the Baka are nevertheless prepared to hunt for their Fang neighbours, too.

The Baka Pygmy people struggle to have a legal existence in Gabon, without identity cards, and want the same rights as other citizens

While they tend to treat the Pygmies as "subhuman" purely on account of their short stature, the Fang acknowledge that there is no equal to a Baka hunter's skills.

"At close range, they never miss their shot," said Rigobert, a Fang who sent two Baka off to hunt for him. He gave them a dozen shells and an ancient gun and they returned in the morning with three prey.

Jean was one of the huntsmen. "The army offered to enlist me, but I said 'no'. I have my family, I'm a hunter. That's inside me, why should it change?"

"The only animal I fear is the gorilla, because he reacts like man," Jean added. "He's unpredictable."

- 'Always eaten elephant' -

International wildlife NGOs hire Baka guides, while urban residents pay them to fetch bushmeat and valued plants. But the Baka are also employed by ivory poachers to track elephants.

"With one cartridge, I can kill him (an elephant). If I hit here, behind the ear, I kill him," boasts Jean, who said he often goes into the forest with poachers from Cameroon.

"The gun and the shells belong to poachers," Jean says, well aware that their activity is outlawed in Gabon.

At the same time, he is the official tracker for an NGO dedicated to protecting the endangered beasts, but Jean has no love of the law.

"I've always eaten elephant, this is our home and that is our meat," he says.

Furthermore, helping poachers is lucrative. He says a single kill can earn him "200,000 or even 300,000 (CFA) francs (300 or 450 euros, $348 or $522), depending on the size of the tusks."

None of the Baka interviewed by AFP approved of the "law of the city" banning elephant hunting, despite the risk the animals may die out if nothing is done to stem the ivory trade.

In a single decade, 80 percent of the elephants have been slaughtered in the Minkebe National Park in northeast Gabon, the country's main forest sanctuary for elephants, according to park officials.

Melvin, one of Doumassi's most respected hunters, objects to what he terms "a bad law", but adds "we're obliged to respect it, we don't want to go to prison".
Thailand's south has been in the grip of a low-level but bloody insurgency for more than a decade

Two army rangers were gunned down and four more wounded in a night-time ambush by suspected militants in Thailand's Muslim-majority south, officials said Wednesday.

The region bordering Malaysia has been in the grip of a low-level but bloody insurgency for more than a decade as ethnic Malay militants battle the Buddhist-majority state for greater autonomy.

The rangers came under fire late Tuesday in Pattani, one of the provinces worst-hit by a conflict that has killed nearly 7,000 people, while patrolling Nongchik district on motorcycles.

"Two rangers were killed at the scene of the attack and four others were wounded," Captain Sarawut Nuchwang, deputy chief police investigator, told AFP.

The number of attackers and their identities remain unknown.

"We suspect it was the work of the same local group who are active in this district," southern army spokesman Colonel Pramote Prom-in said, in an apparent reference to a band of local militants.

"They want to create a situation to incite unrest."

Thailand's three southernmost provinces were colonised over a century ago.

But the majority Malay Muslim population have resisted Bangkok's rule, calling for greater autonomy or independence.

They accuse the state of railroading their distinct culture as well as carrying out routine abuses which go unpunished.

The latest round of insurgency broke out in 2004, marked by near-daily shootings or bomb attacks which have left civilians -- both Muslim and Buddhist -- bearing the brunt of the violence.

The shadowy rebels shun publicity, operating in small cells in remote forested border areas.

The main militant group the Barisan Revolusi Nasional are reluctant to commit to peace talks in public.

Since Thailand's ruling junta seized power in 2014, big attacks have become less frequent due to a combination of heightened security, arrests and intelligence work.

Last year a record low of 235 people were killed in clashes between insurgents and the military.

But in recent weeks violence has spiked with a series of shootings and small bombings, including targeted attacks on rubber farmers.
Malaysia's Anwar Ibrahim needs to be elected to parliament to qualify him to succeed Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad

Malaysia's Anwar Ibrahim moved a step closer to completing his comeback from prison to the country's top leadership Wednesday after a party-mate quit parliament, allowing him to contest a by-election.

Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who led Anwar's party to a shock victory in May against Najib Razak, has vowed to hand over power to Anwar within two years.

Anwar, 71, received a royal pardon and was freed from jail shortly after the victory, and needs to be elected to parliament to qualify him to succeed Mahathir, 93.

The resignation of lawmaker Danyal Balagopal Abdullah of the Port Dickson constituency south of the capital Kuala Lumpur allows Anwar to stand in a by-election to fill the vacated seat.

Poll officials have not stated when the by-election will be held, though it is expected to take place within months.

Danyal, in a speech announcing his resignation, said he had been informed that Anwar would run in the district.

"I am confident that Anwar Ibrahim will win the seat hands down and proceed to become the next member of parliament for Port Dickson, and God willing, eventually become our nation's 8th prime minister," Danyal said.

Once tipped as Mahathir's successor in the 1990s, ex-deputy premier Anwar fell out bitterly with his former boss, leading to his jailing on charges of sodomy.

The verdict was overturned in 2004 and Anwar was freed, enabling him to rise as the opposition's leader, but he was jailed again for sodomy in 2015.

He has dismissed both convictions as politically motivated.

As Najib became increasingly embroiled in a financial scandal, Anwar's party forged an unexpected alliance with Mahathir to challenge the then-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition.

Mahathir, who was prime minister from 1981-2003, had come out of retirement to lead the disparate opposition.

Penang Institute political scientist Wong Chin Huat told AFP "there is no evidence to suggest Mahathir is reneging on the pre-election promise of installing Anwar as his heir".

With 50 MPs, Anwar's party commands the lion's share of the ruling Pact of Hope coalition's seats in Parliament.

Until it was unseated in May, Najib's coalition led by the United Malays National Organisation ruled the country uninterrupted for six decades.

Najib now faces corruption charges over a massive financial scandal involving state fund 1MDB.
Nazik was captured in the Syrian city of Latakia -- a stronghold of support for Assad that has never slipped from his control

The Turkish secret service staged an operation deep in the heartland of the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad to capture and bring back to Turkey the prime suspect in a 2013 bombing, officials said Wednesday.

Turkish citizen Yusuf Nazik, who is accused of planning a bombing in a Turkish border town in May 2013, was apprehended in an operation carried out by the National Intelligence Organisation (MIT).

He was captured in the Syrian city of Latakia -- a stronghold of support for Assad that has never slipped from his control -- and then brought to Turkey, the Anadolu news agency said.

More than 50 people were killed in the bombing -- one of the deadliest in Turkey's modern history -- in Reyhanli, on the border with Syria in the southern Turkish province of Hatay.

Ankara at the time blamed the attack on the regime of Assad and allied groups. The Syrian government rejected the charges.

Anadolu published a video of Nazik, dressed in a tracksuit top and jeans and standing by a Turkish flag, giving what it described as a "confession", saying he was behind the attack and it had been ordered by the Syrian regime.

Ankara at the time blamed the bombing on the regime of Assad and allied groups

He said a man "working for Syrian intelligence" had given the order for the bombing and called on others in Syria to "return before it is too late", saying Turkey will "look after us".

Nazik, 34, from the Turkish southern city of Antakya, said he had been responsible for making contact with Syrian intelligence, bringing the explosives inside Turkey and obtaining the vehicles used.

Turkish Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul hailed the operation as "successful" and vowed Turkey's "independent judiciary will give the necessary punishment".

- 'Assad's bastion' -

A senior Turkish official, who asked not to be named, confirmed Anadolu's report and said the testimony of Nazik "confirmed long-standing rumours about the Assad regime's active role in the bombing".

Turkey has been an implacable foe of Assad throughout the over seven-year Syrian conflict and has repeatedly called for his ouster.

Yet Ankara has also been working in recent months more intensely with its main allies Russia and Iran on ending the conflict.

A handout photo released on September 12, 2018 by Demiroren News Agency shows Turkish citizen Yusuf Nazik, accused of planning the 2013 Reyhanli bombing

Attention is now focused on Turkey's reaction should the regime go ahead with a planned assault on the last rebel stronghold of Idlib, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warning such a move could lead to a humanitarian disaster.

That the operation to capture Nazik took place in Latakia is significant as the city has been a regime stronghold throughout the civil war and not an area where Turkey would usually have any influence.

Timur Akhmetov, Ankara-based researcher at the Russian International Affairs Council, said Russia was keen to channel Turkey's Syria policy towards security issues -- where Ankara could find common ground with Damascus -- rather than backing rebels.

"I think that the Yusuf Nazik operation was carried out within this intention of the Russia and Syrian authorities," he told AFP.

There were no further details on whether the operation had been carried out with or without the knowledge of the Syrian authorities or Russian forces who are present in the area.

But Anadolu said no logistical or intelligence support had come from "any foreign state" and the "detection, monitoring, operation and transfer" had been carried out entirely by MIT units.

"A giant operation in Assad's bastion," said the pro-government Hurriyet daily.

- 'Never stop hunting' -

Over 50 people were killed in the Reyhanli bombing, one of the deadliest in Turkey's modern history

The operation is the latest in a series of high-profile swoops by the MIT which is led by Hakan Fidan, a shadowy figure regarded as hugely loyal to Erdogan.

The intelligence service has brought back to Turkey in recent weeks suspects accused of links to preacher Fethullah Gulen, the accused mastermind of the 2016 failed coup seeking to topple Erdogan, from several countries including Kosovo, Gabon, Moldova and Ukraine.

"Nazik's capture and repatriation should serve as a reminder to all other criminals that we will never stop hunting them," said the senior Turkish official.

Ankara is keenly aware of the boost to public morale of successful secret service operations after the audacious 1999 nabbing in Kenya of Kurdish militant leader Abdullah Ocalan gave a huge boost to the government of the time.
Fire rips through the Iranian consulate in Basra on September 7, 2018, during protests over a crisis in public services and alleged corruption among Iraqi officials

Iran described as "astonishing" Wednesday accusations by the White House that Tehran's allies in Iraq were responsible for attacks on US diplomatic missions during deadly unrest last week.

Both the US consulate in Iraq's third city Basra and its embassy in Baghdad were in areas that came under attack.

But the main target of the unrest in Basra were the offices of political parties and militias backed by Iran, which saw its consulate in the city burnt to the ground.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi blamed the unrest on US support for "groups which have spread and promoted violence and extremism".

"The US government must be held accountable for its years of support for these groups," Ghasemi said, according to the semi-official ISNA news agency.

He was responding to a statement by the White House on Tuesday, which criticised Iran for failing to prevent the violence, particularly the attacks on the US diplomatic missions.

"Iran did not act to stop these attacks by its proxies in Iraq, which it has supported with funding, training, and weapons," the statement said.

Ghasemi described the statement as "astonishing, provocative and irresponsible".

"America should know that by playing such clumsy blame games, it cannot cover up the consequences of its wrong, fruitless and destabilising policies in the region," he said.

The rare attack on the US embassy in Baghdad came on Friday when three mortar rounds were fired at the capital's fortified Green Zone, though no casualties or damage was reported.

Bitter foes Iran and the United States are Iraq's principal allies and have long vied for political influence.

"A safe and developed Iraq has always been among the priorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran and conspiracies by third parties cannot prevent the enhancement of these long-standing and solid relations," Ghasemi said.
Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie (L) is seen at a news conference in Tehran on May 11, 2013 with Iran's then president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

A close ally of Iran's ex-president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was handed more than six years in prison on Wednesday for protesting against the system, Iranian media reported.

Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie, 57, was Ahmadinejad's chief of staff during his controversial two terms as president between 2005 and 2013.

He was given one year for propaganda against the state, five years for collusion with intent to commit a crime against national security, and six months for insulting judicial officials, said Gholamhossein Esmaili, head of the Tehran prosecutor's office, according to the conservative Tasnim news agency.

Mashaie was arrested in March for burning a copy of the chargesheet against another Ahmadinejad ally, former vice-president Hamid Baghaie, who had been sentenced to 15 years for embezzlement.

Ahmadinejad, who fell out with the hardline establishment towards the end of his tenure, says the cases against his allies are politically motivated.

Since being barred by the conservative-dominated Guardian Council from another run at the presidency last year, he has taken an increasingly radical position against the system, criticising corruption and political repression.

In a letter to Khamenei in February, Ahmadinejad called for "the immediate holding of free presidential and parliamentary elections -- of course without their being engineered by the Guardian Council and without interference by military or security bodies so that people have a free choice."

He remains a hate figure for many reformists, who associate him with the bloody crackdown on mass protests in 2009 and 2010 that followed his contested re-election.

But he remains popular particularly among poorer segments of society who recall the large-scale welfare schemes he implemented during his presidency.
President Paul Biya has ruled Cameroon for 35 years and is seeking a seventh straight term in the October 7 election

Cameroon's government vowed Wednesday that next month's presidential election will be peaceful and voting will take place nationwide, despite mounting bloodshed in the central African country's restive anglophone regions.

"The October 7 presidential election will be held in a calm and serene environment throughout our country," minister of territorial administration Paul Atanga Nji said on state radio, citing reports by regional governors.

Cameroon's two minority English-speaking regions -- the North-West and South-West -- have been hit by almost daily acts of violence that have left more than a hundred people dead and about 200,000 displaced since late 2016.

The anglophone separatists have said that voting will not take place in the two regions next month.

"The head of state has instructed the governors to take the necessary measures to ensure that the election goes ahead in all of Cameroon's 360 districts," Atanga Nji said after meeting with the governors of the country's 10 regions on Monday and Tuesday.

He added that President Paul Biya had instructed the governors to "ensure the protection of all the candidates".

Years of resentment at perceived discrimination at the hands of Cameroon's majority French speakers led to anglophone militants making a symbolic declaration of independence last October 1, which led to a government crackdown.

Since the start of the crisis, a total of 109 members of the police and security forces have been killed, according to government figures.

Even the start of the school year was marred by violence earlier this month, with the separatists calling for a boycott. Several teachers and students were abducted and one teacher was killed in Bamali in the North-West.

In the October poll, eight candidates will run against the 85-year-old incumbent Biya, who has ruled the country for 35 years and is seeking a seventh straight term in office.
U.S. News & World Report recently released their annual Best Colleges rankings, which, much like any poll or ranking involving colleges, is up for constant debate. Those who rank highly are happy, those who dont rank as high as they hoped are mad, and everyone just wants to know that they rank higher than their rival.

When it comes to FBS schools, theres obviously a gap between most of them and the top of the list (and then theres West Virginia). But almost every university in the Power Five conferences does appear in the Top 200 (and then theres West Virginia), so it does help to create a solid comparison between each conference when it comes to who ranks highest off the field.

The ACC is claiming victory with an average rank of 54.7, the highest of any FBS conference. Its also the only FBS conference to put six member schools among the top 35 and seven schools among the top 40 (#8 Duke, #18 Notre Dame, #25 Virginia, #27 Wake Forest, #30 UNC, #35 Georgia Tech, #38 Boston College). The league also made sure to note that it has led the FBS conferences in best average rank in each of the last 12 years. Just imagine how much more the conference would pull ahead without Louisville (#171) pulling down the average?

Can we get this average without Louisville? https://t.co/fR9jNyEHOy  Riley Johnston (@BSD_RaJohnston) September 11, 2018

The Pac-12 is the most top-heavy conference among the Power Five. Theyre the only conference to have more than two schools in the Top 25 (#7 Stanford, #19 UCLA, #22 Cal-Berkeley, #22 USC).

Meanwhile, the Big Ten and ACC both find themselves with the least number of schools in triple-digit rankings with one apiece (#129 Nebraska and #171 Louisville). The SEC leans into those triple-digits with ten of its 14 members ranked in the 100s. If youve ever found yourself wondering why they keep Vanderbilt around, the schools #14 ranking here is the reason why.

Check out the full rundown of the 2018 rankings below ordered by average rankings of school.

ACC 54.7

#8 Duke

#25 Virginia

#27 Wake Forest

#30 UNC

#35 Georgia Tech

#38 Boston College

#53 Miami

#53 Syracuse

#66 Clemson

#70 Florida State

#70 Pittsburgh

#76 VA Tech

#80 NC State

#171 Louisville

BIG TEN 57.21

#10 Northwestern

#27 Michigan

#46 Illinois

#49 Wisconsin

#56 The Ohio State

#56 Purdue

#56 Rutgers

#59 Penn State

#63 Maryland

#76 Minnesota

#85 Michigan State

#89 Indiana

#89 Iowa

#129 Nebraska

PAC-12 78.9

#7 Stanford

#19 UCLA

#22 Cal-Berkeley

#22 USC

#59 Washington

#96 Colorado

#102 Oregon

#106 Arizona

#115 Arizona State

#119 Utah

#140 Oregon State

#140 WSU

SEC 89.7

#14 Vanderbilt

#35 Florida

#46 Georgia

#66 Texas A&M

#106 South Carolina

#115 Auburn

#115 Tennessee

#129 Alabama

#129 Missouri

#140 LSU

#147 Kentucky

#152 Arkansas

#152 Mississippi

#177 Mississippi State

BIG 12 111.8

#49 Texas

#78 Baylor

#80 TCU

#119 Iowa State

#124 Oklahoma

#129 Kansas

#147 Kansas State

#157 Oklahoma State

#187 Texas Tech

#205 West Virginia

[U.S. News/Photo: ACC]
The Uganda navy regularly patrols Lake Edward in a bid to crack down on illegal fishing on the body of water which it shares with DR Congo

DR Congo's navy on Wednesday accused Ugandan troops of killing four Congolese fishermen, whose bound and bullet-riddled bodies surfaced on Lake Edward, which is shared by the two neighbouring countries.

Uganda denied the accusation, which is the latest sign of escalating tensions between the countries over the lake, the smallest of eastern Africa's Great Lakes, where the two sides engaged in deadly clashes earlier this year.

"The fishermen had been on the lake since Friday and had not returned. Yesterday (Tuesday) we saw their burnt and tied up bodies floating in the lake," said Jonas Kataliko, head of the fishermen's association in the lakeside village of Kyavinyonge.

Major Jean Tsongo, who heads Congolese naval forces in the area, blamed the Ugandan navy.

"It was Ugandan soldiers who killed these Congolese fisherman," he said.

"They burned their canoes and the bodies arrived here tied up, burnt and with bullet holes."

A Ugandan official confirmed that bodies had been seen floating in the lake but denied the country's troops were involved.

"We are not involving ourselves in DRC problems," the head of Uganda's fisheries protection force, Lieutenant Colonel James Nuwagaba, told AFP.

"That (killing) could be a cover-up for DRC fishermen to continue crossing to our side of the water to steal our fish," he added.

"We suspect the fishermen could have died as a result of fishermen fighting amongst themselves or some wrong elements operating from DRC killing the fishermen."

Strains between the two countries, who disagree over the sharing of energy resources, worsened in July, when 16 Congolese fishermen, four Ugandan military personnel and three civilians were killed in clashes between the Ugandan navy and DRC forces.
A Tanzanian soldier from the UN peacekeeping mission in the Central African Republic patrols the town of Gamboula on July 6

Six humanitarian groups working in the north of the troubled Central African Republic on Wednesday halted operations to protest violent attacks against their personnel.

Baptise Hanquart of the charities' umbrella organisation CCO said 32 incidents had been recorded, including 21 since June, in the market town of Kaga Bandoro alone.

Seven staff have been killed across the impoverished former French colony -- one of the most dangerous for aid workers in the world -- since the start of the year, according to the International NGO Safety Organisation (INSO).

Aid organisations present a "financial opportunity for armed groups", Hanquart said, while vowing they would not "abandon their commitment to the people" of the Central African Republic.

Hanquart described Wednesday's work stoppage -- also observed in other towns -- as a "day of indignation in the face of all that the people and the NGOs suffer."

The local UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said that since the end of June thefts, break-ins and lootings have surged in many towns including Kaga Bandoro.

One of the world's poorest countries, the CAR plunged into a religious-tinged conflict in 2013 when a mainly Muslim rebel alliance, the Seleka, overthrew the majority-Christian country's president, Francois Bozize.

France intervened to help remove the Seleka, and the following year the United Nations deployed a large military force on a peacekeeping and stabilisation mission.

However, the country remains violent and unstable. Most of its territory is in the hands of militia groups, many of them claiming to protect Muslims or Christians and fighting over resources.
Protesters marched in the "Rise For Climate" global action on September 8, 2018 in San Francisco

The United States will fall short on its Paris commitment to cut greenhouse gases, making the uphill battle to avoid runaway global warming that much harder, according to a report released hours ahead of a major, solutions-oriented climate summit in San Francisco.

As thousands of governors, mayors, CEOs and experts gathered for the Global Climate Action Summit, they were warned that a crescendo of efforts at the subnational level to shrink the US carbon footprint cannot overcome President Donald Trump's decision to scrap his predecessor's climate policies and promote the use of fossil fuels.

"The Obama target was always going to be a stretch," co-author Paul Bodnar, managing director of the Rocky Mountain Institute, told journalists.

"This work shows definitively that states, cities and businesses have the power to bring the nation to the brink of that ambitious target through their own authorities."

The three-day conference will see dozens of cities, provinces, states and multinational companies pledge to run on clean energy -- mostly solar or wind -- within a few decades.

Leading the way, outgoing California governor Jerry Brown signed legislation this week committing the state to purging greenhouse gases from its electricity grid by 2045.

"We all have the opportunity and the obligation to do our part to combat climate change," he told AFP after signing the bill into law.

- A monster hurricane -

Megacities will likely announce greenhouse gas emissions trending downward, and governors will unveil partnerships supporting indigenous efforts to sustainably manage tropical, carbon-dense forests.

Significant climate events in 2017

Nearly 1,000 institutional investors overseeing trillions in assets have, at least in part, turned their backs on planet-warming fossil fuels.

"This summit is going to be a showcase for the whole world in terms of climate action," said Ethan Elkind, head of the climate program at the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment at the University of California, Berkeley.

But "glass-half-full" optics cannot obscure the fact that global warming continues to outpace efforts to tame it, in the US and across the globe.

A monster hurricane threatening to unleash "catastrophic" flooding and storm surges on the US East Coast -- bearing the telltale fingerprint of climate change -- underscores that reality.

After remaining stable for three years, raising hopes that they had peaked, carbon dioxide emissions from human sources rose in 2017 to historic levels.

"If we do not change course by 2020, we risk missing the point where we can avoid runaway climate change," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said earlier this week, warning of a "dark and dangerous future."

The 196-nation Paris Agreement calls for capping global warming at "well below" two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and vows to strive for a 1.5 C limit if possible.

But even if all nations honor voluntary carbon-cutting vows submitted in an annex, we are trending toward a world at least 3 C warmer than the preindustrial era, a scenario scientists say would tug at the fabric of civilization.

- 'We Are Still In' -

Our planet is already coping with deadly droughts, erratic rainfall, and storm surges engorged by rising seas -- all made worse by climate change, according to scientists

With only a single degree Celsius of warming so far, our planet is already coping with deadly droughts, erratic rainfall, and storm surges engorged by rising seas -- all made worse by climate change, according to scientists.

Trump opted out of the Paris Agreement shortly after gaining office, and has hammered away at the domestic and international climate policies of his predecessor, Barack Obama.

Financed by former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, the "Fulfilling America's Pledge" report kicks off the three-day, solutions-oriented summit in the heart of Democratic America.

"Current federal and real economy commitments, combined with market forces, will drive US emissions to 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2025 -- roughly two-thirds of the way to the original US target," the report found.

Under the Paris deal, the United States committed to cutting its carbon pollution 26-28 percent by 2025.

The 2015 treaty marked the first time that all countries -- including emerging giants such as China and India -- laid out specific targets for greening their economies.

New record global carbon emissions in 2017

Trump wants to relax pollution rules for coal-fired power plants and roll back car-mileage standards, the twin pillars of Obama's Clean Energy Plan.

He has also challenged California's right to set its own vehicle fuel standards.

The transport sector is the single largest source of man-made greenhouse gases in the United States.

US mayors, governors and business leaders -- under the banner "We Are Still In" -- have pushed back by adopting more ambitious targets at the local level.

Taken together, these jurisdictions represent about half of the US economy, the equivalent of the third-largest country in the world, according to the report.
Morrocan protesters rally for gender equality as they mark International Women's Day on March 8, 2015

A law to combat violence against women in Morocco entered into force Wednesday, following years of heated debate and after thousands called for action in a recent gang-rape case.

For the first time women in Morocco have legal protection from "acts considered forms of harassment, aggression, sexual exploitation or ill treatment".

The new law also paves the way for victims of violence to be offered support.

Families minister Bassima Hakkaoui hailed the legislation as "one of the most important texts strengthening the national legal arsenal in the area of equality of the sexes," in an interview with the official MAP agency.

The text was first drafted five years ago and was adopted by parliament in February, following lengthy debate.

But the law has been deemed inadequate by some, with the former women's minister Nouzha Skalli arguing it fails to take into account "international definitions" of violence against women.

She has highlighted the example of marital rape, which is not criminalised under the new legislation.

In Morocco, media and rights groups regularly raise the alarm about endemic violence against women.

More than 40 percent of women said they had been "victims of an act of violence at least once", in a survey carried out by Morocco's High Commission for Planning which surveyed those living in towns and aged between 18 and 64.

The first woman to benefit from the legal change could be a 24-year-old who on Tuesday filed a complaint against three men for harassment, according to Moroccan media.

As authorities begin enforcing the law, a dozen suspects are being held over the alleged gang-rape of a teenage girl.

In a video posted online last month, 17-year-old Khadija Okkarou said she had been kidnapped, raped and tortured by a gang over a period of two months.

Okkarou's testimony triggered a petition signed by thousands of people urging King Mohammed VI to provide her with medical and psychological care.

The next hearing in the case is set for October 10.
BAMAKO, Mali (AP) - Mali's President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita has been sworn in to a new five-year term in the presence of former rebels and several other personalities although the opposition continues to dispute his election win.

Keita, 73, was inaugurated Tuesday following his August 20 election victory, which was later confirmed by the Constitutional Court.

"I reach out to all those who want Mali to succeed, all who want to believe in this beautiful nation, without exception," said Keita in his inaugural speech.

Keita vowed to maintain a secular state and to strengthen national security against extremist violence by improving the training and equipping of the national army.

Since 2012, Mali has faced attacks by Islamic extremist groups linked to al-Qaida and Tuareg separatist rebels. In 2015, a fragile peace agreement was signed between the Malian government and separatist groups but attacks by Jihadist rebels have intensified and spread from the north to the center of the country.

Keita was first elected president in 2013, a year after a military coup that ushered in a period of chaos that allowed the extremists to control parts of northern Mali. French and Malian forces regained control of the urban centers in the north in 2013 but the rebels continue to launch attacks in the area.

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CHICAGO (AP) - Jury selection began Monday in the murder trial of a white Chicago police officer who shot a black teenager, Laquan McDonald, 16 times. If the pace of proceedings on the first day was any indication, it could be a while before testimony begins.

By late afternoon, attorneys representing Officer Jason Van Dyke and prosecutors agreed on five people to sit on the jury so far. Three are women: a Hispanic mother of three young children who said she could be fair and respects police officers, a white woman who works as a record keeper and said she wanted to see evidence before forming an opinion, and a white woman who said she saw the video of the shooting but hadn't made up her mind.

Two men were selected: an Asian-American financial analyst who said on his questionnaire that everyone including police officers must abide by the law, and a white man who is gay and said he didn't know much about the case.

FILE - In this Thursday, Sept. 6, 2018, file photo, Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke, charged with murder in the shooting of black teenager Laquan McDonald in 2014, listens during a hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building in Chicago. Attorneys are expected to start questioning possible jurors in Van Dyke's trial on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune via AP, Pool, File)

Prosecutors and attorneys for Officer Jason Van Dyke agreed on two jurors, a white woman who said she worked as a record keeper and wanted to see evidence before forming an opinion and a Hispanic mother of three young children who said she could be fair and respects police officers.

"I think they just do their job," the Hispanic woman told the court.

Others, though, acknowledged that it would be difficult to be fair and impartial because of what they know about the 2014 shooting. The release of dashcam footage of Van Dyke repeatedly shooting McDonald that the police department and Mayor Rahm Emanuel fought to keep private sparked widespread outrage and led to large protests and the firing of Chicago's police superintendent.

And with attorneys and Judge Vincent Gaughan raising the possibility that the judge might sequester jurors during a trial that will last weeks, it also seems likely that the truck driver who told the judge that sitting on a jury would hurt his ability to make a living won't be the last would-be jurors to be dismissed for hardship reasons.

The question that most dominated Monday morning's proceedings was the one about fairness. One woman, for example, said she thought that after the shooting, there was a "cover-up and attempt to protect the police department and the mayor."

Though she didn't elaborate, Van Dyke wasn't charged with first-degree murder until the day the video was released, which was more than a year after the shooting. Since then, other officers at the scene have been charged with lying on their reports in what prosecutors say was an effort to cover up what happened to protect Van Dyke.

"With any other case I would say yes," she said, when asked if she could put her feeling aside and be fair to Van Dyke. "With this case, I'd have to say no."

A bartender who was dismissed for hardship reasons after explaining that he only gets paid when he shows up for work said he thought firing 16 times was "excessive." Another man, when asked if he could set aside what he knows about the case and be impartial, looked directly at Van Dyke, and simply said, "No."

Van Dyke's lead attorney, Dan Herbert, also suggested that jurors will be under intense public pressure. He asked one prospective juror about a possible reaction in her neighborhood if she voted to acquit Van Dyke, to which Gaughan quickly told Herbert to "knock it off." But the question does point to how stressful it might be to sit on a jury in a case that has elicited intense feelings in Chicago and across the nation.

To protect the jurors during the proceedings, which were being watched by a small group of reporters, the names, exact ages and hometowns of potential jurors weren't disclosed. And the judge warned attorneys that if they mention the name of a prospective juror, they could be fined or even jailed.

The tenor of Monday's proceedings also signaled that the trial will be contentious. When, for example, Herbert tried to bring up his pending motion to move the trial out of Chicago, the judge angrily told him to stop or he was going to hold him in contempt for "obstructing the administration of justice." When Herbert protested, saying he was only trying to get his comments "on the record," the judge angrily warned him, "You keep talking and you're going to have a record."
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - The Latest on the slaying of five people in Alabama (all times local):

12:45 p.m.

Court records show a Mississippi man charged with using an ax and a rifle to kill five people in rural Alabama has pleaded guilty.

Records show 29-year-old Derrick Dearman of Lucedale, Mississippi, signed a document last week saying he plans to plead guilty in the killings that occurred two years ago near Citronelle. A judge later accepted the pleas.

A trial still must be held under state law since the man pleaded guilty to a capital charge which carries a potential death penalty or life without parole.

Dearman was accused of killing the five people at a home where his estranged girlfriend was staying. Dearman has told reporters he was high on methamphetamine at the time.

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9:30 a.m.

A Mississippi man charged with using an ax and a rifle to kill five people in rural Alabama has signed a document saying he wants to plead guilty.

Court records show Derrick Dearman of Lucedale, Mississippi, signed a document last week saying he plans to plead guilty in killings that occurred two years ago near Citronelle.

The town is located in southwest Alabama about 35 miles (56 kilometers) from Mobile.

A trial would still have to be held under state law because the 29-year-old man plans to plead guilty to capital murder, which carries a potential death penalty.

Dearman is accused of killing the five people at a home where his estranged girlfriend was staying. Dearman has told reporters he was high on methamphetamine at the time.
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) - Republicans say in a television ad that Montana U.S. Sen. Jon Tester has taken more money from lobbyists than any other member of Congress this election cycle as he seeks to fend off a challenge from Republican State Auditor Matt Rosendale.

Tester, a third-generation farmer and former president of the Montana Senate, has a reputation as a populist. He frequently criticizes the U.S. Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling that allowed more money to flow into political campaigns. He was first elected in 2006 over former Republican U.S. Sen. Conrad Burns, whose defeat was attributed in part to a corruption scandal involving Burns' ties to "super-lobbyist" Jack Abramoff.

Republicans contend that over his two terms, Tester became enmeshed in the same corrupt Washington establishment that he promised as a candidate to fight. Asked about the allegation that he's the top recipient of lobbyist cash, Tester initially responded, "That's bull."

FILE - In this March 8, 2016, file photo, Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington. Republicans got it right that Tester for a time topped all other members of Congress in campaign contributions from lobbyists. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

A look at the claim:

NATIONAL REPUBLICAN SENATORIAL COMMITTEE: "Jon Tester was No. 1 in Cash from Lobbyists in 2018," in an advertisement released September 6.

THE FACTS: The Republican group got it right - Tester was the top recipient in Congress of money from lobbyists for a time, according to campaign contribution data compiled by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.

Similar claims against Tester have been made by others, including President Donald Trump at a Thursday campaign rally for Rosendale. Trump said Tester has "taken more cash from lobbyists than almost anyone in the entire Senate."

Rosendale tweeted last month that Tester was receiving "the most cash" from lobbyists and had "gone Washington."

When Rosendale posted his tweet on Aug. 24, representatives of the lobbying industry had contributed $394,478 to Tester's campaign during the 2018 election cycle, according to the center's website, opensecrets.org.

That made him tops among members of Congress receiving lobbying industry contributions, just ahead of U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, an Ohio Democrat who had $381,033.

The money includes donations from people who work in government relations firms or as government relation consultants, political committees acting on behalf of lobbying companies and state-level lobbyists.

Tester ranked No. 2 among members of the House and Senate receiving contributions from a second group, federally-registered lobbyists and their families. That group gave a combined $497,213 to the Democrat's re-election campaign.

When confronted with the Republican's claims by an Associated Press reporter, Tester initially sought to turn the discussion to Rosendale's use of a loophole in campaign rules to skirt limits on contributions from individuals.

The Democrat went on to say it was "a question of how you measure it."

"The reason you know that fact, if in fact it is true, which I very much doubt, is that all my money's transparent," Tester said. "The ads he (Rosendale) is putting up, we don't know who's paying for them. That's why we need campaign finance reform, by the way, which he opposes."

Tester campaign spokesman Chris Meagher added that the cash from lobbyists "pales in comparison to the $3.24 million Jon has received from Montanans this cycle."

For the 2012 cycle, Tester was also the No. 1 recipient of lobbyists' money, taking in $502,031, ahead of former House Speaker John Boehner, who was second with $423,750, according to the center.

Since Rosendale posted his tweet, the Center for Responsive Politics updated its numbers and Brown has overtaken Tester to move into first place with $430,226 from lobbyists. Tester is second with $401,478.

Another update to the tallies will be posted in coming weeks, said Douglas Weber, a senior researcher for the group.

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Associated Press writer Matt Volz from Helena, Montana contributed to this report.

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OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The operator of a Florida-based animal sanctuary says she was the target of an Oklahoma zookeeper who was indicted last week on federal murder-for-hire charges.

Carole Baskin of Big Cat Rescue said she's clashed in the past with Joseph Maldonado-Passage, who goes by the nickname "Joe Exotic."

"He's been threatening me for many, many years," Baskin told The Oklahoman after Maldonado-Passage's arrest last week.

This photo provided by the Santa Rose County Jail in Milton, Fla., shows Joseph Maldonado-Passage, an Oklahoma zookeeper, who was indicted on federal murder-for-hire charges. Carole Baskin, the operator of a Florida-based animal sanctuary, says she was the target of Maldonado-Passage, who goes by the nickname "Joe Exotic." Maldonado-Passage, who remains jailed in Florida, also ran unsuccessfully for Oklahoma governor as a Libertarian this year. (Santa Rosa County Jail via AP)

Prosecutors allege that Maldonado-Passage tried to hire two separate people to kill an unnamed woman, who wasn't harmed. One of the unidentified people he sought to hire connected him with an undercover FBI agent, who met with Maldonado-Passage in December 2017. The indictment was unsealed Friday and Maldonado-Passage remains jailed in Florida. He didn't reply to an email seeking comment and court records don't list an attorney for him.

Baskin told the newspaper that Maldonado-Passage had previously posted threatening videos online, including one in which he shot an effigy of her in the head.

"You want to know why Carole Baskin better never, ever, ever see me face to face ever, ever, ever again," he said in the video, just before firing a revolver.

Maldonado-Passage formerly ran a zoo in Wynnewood, Oklahoma, and both sides have sparred over the treatment of lions, tigers and other big cats there. Baskin's group, Big Cat Rescue, previously won $1 million in civil judgments trademark and copyright infringements against Maldonado-Passage.

Known for his blonde mullet and expletive-laden rants on YouTube, Maldonado-Passage finished third in a three-way Libertarian primary for Oklahoma governor in June.
TETERBORO, N.J. (AP) - An ailing blind and deaf dog that allegedly was abandoned by its owner along a New Jersey roadway is now being cared for by an animal rescuer who specializes in hospice care.

Bruna, a Boston Terrier believed to be at least 15 years old, was found Sept. 1 by a good Samaritan near Teterboro Airport. It initially was turned over to the Bergen County Animal Shelter.

Officials say the dog has dislocated knees, arthritis and an infected, open wound on her hindquarters.

The dog's owner faces an animal cruelty charge for allegedly pushing the dog out of a moving car, which she denies.

The owner says she didn't want to leave the animal in her hot car, so she left it in a grassy area while she went shopping. She said she intended to return for the dog.
Fighting back against invasive plant species DRYDEN TWP.  Lapeer County is home to a diverse range of native plant life. But its also become home to a number of invasive...

Election Day in Lapeer County Tuesday, Nov. 2 was Election Day in the city of Lapeer, as well as in townships served by the Brandon, Goodrich and Mayville school districts....
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - The Latest on California climate policy (all times local):

2:30 p.m.

California Gov. Jerry Brown says he hopes a law he's signed moving California toward eliminating fossil fuels for electricity will serve as a model for other state and national governments.

State Sen. Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, second from right, displays his environmental measure SB100 after is was signed into law by Calif., Gov. Jerry Brown front center, Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, in Sacramento, Calif. Brown, surrounded by lawmakers and activists including Assembly members Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, of San Diego, second from left, Ken Cooley, of Rancho Cordova, third from left and billionaire activist Tom Steyer, right, signed SB100 which sets a goal of phasing out all fossil fuels from the state's electricity sector by 2045. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

Brown is hosting a summit in San Francisco starting Wednesday that he hopes will "wake up the national leaders" on the need to confront climate change.

Brown's remarks came Monday during an interview with The Associated Press after he signed the bill setting a goal of generating all California electricity from clean sources by 2045.

He says California is doing the opposite of the federal government when it comes to climate policy.

Brown also says moving toward a regional electric grid is critical to California meeting its goals. A proposal to do so failed in the Legislature this year.

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12:35 p.m.

Not everyone is satisfied with Gov. Jerry Brown for setting a goal of phasing out fossil fuels from the state's electricity grid by 2045.

The bill would not affect in-state oil and gas drilling.

Some environmentalists are pushing Brown to end new drilling permits. They are pledging to disrupt an international climate summit Brown is hosting in San Francisco later this week.

Consumer Watchdog and Food & Water Watch say they'll air a television ad in which a young girl calls on Brown to shut down oil rigs.

Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration shows California is ranked sixth among states in crude oil production and 15th in natural gas, though production of both has declined since the mid-1980s.

Some business groups are also critical of the legislation, saying it sets impossible targets and could increase electric bills.

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11:10 a.m.

California Gov. Jerry Brown wants the state to remove as much carbon dioxide from the air as it emits.

An executive order signed by Brown on Monday directs the state to achieve "carbon neutrality" by no later than 2045. After that, he says the state should emit net negative greenhouse gas emissions.

Brown's order is part of a package aimed at reducing California's reliance on fossil fuels. A bill Brown signed Monday sets a goal of phasing out fossil fuels from the state's electricity sector by 2045.

Brown is preparing to host a global climate summit in San Francisco on Wednesday.

The order directs several state agencies to set targets for artificially removing carbon dioxide from the air through a process known as "sequestration."

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10:15 a.m.

California would set a goal of phasing out all fossil fuels from the state's electricity sector by 2045 under legislation signed by Gov. Jerry Brown.

Brown signed the measure Monday as he prepares to host a summit in San Francisco of climate change leaders from around the world later this week.

He has positioned California as a global leader in the effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The renewable energy measure also would require California's utilities to generate 60 percent of their energy from wind, solar and other specific renewable sources by 2030. That's 10 percent higher than the current mandate.

The state would then aim to use only carbon-free sources to generate electricity by 2045. It's merely a goal, with no mandate or penalty for falling short.
OSKALOOSA, Iowa (AP) - An 11-year-old Iowa boy who wanted racing stickers to cover his casket has died.

Michael Sytsma (SIHTZ'-muh), of Bates Funeral Chapel in Oskaloosa, says Caleb Hammond died Monday. He declined to say where.

Caleb's stepmother, Kaylee Hammond, posted a photo of the boy on her Facebook page and said in a post Saturday that he had taken a turn for the worse Friday.

FILE - In this Aug. 18, 2018, file photo, 11-year-old Caleb Hammond grins before heading out in a stock car designed for children on the Southern Iowa Speedway dirt track in Oskaloosa, Iowa. The Iowa boy with Leukemia who wanted racing stickers to cover his casket has died. Michael Sytsma of Bates Funeral Chapel in Oskaloosa confirmed that Caleb Hammond died Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. He declined to say where. (Angie Holland, Oskaloosa Herald via AP, File)

His family brought him home to Oskaloosa, about 55 miles southeast of Des Moines, after determining the painful leukemia treatments he'd been undergoing at a Des Moines hospital weren't working and other options offered little hope.

Race drivers and others answered his call for the stickers, and he was even given a chance to drive a race car at a local track, under the guidance of a 12-year-old racer.

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Information from: The Des Moines Register, http://www.desmoinesregister.com
BOSTON (AP) - Massachusetts Secretary of State William Galvin has ordered a district-wide hand recount in the state's 3rd Congressional District after U.S. House candidate Daniel Koh filed enough signatures to request the action.

The recount of the Democratic primary ballots comes after results certified by Galvin's office Monday show Koh lost the primary to fellow Massachusetts Democrat Lori Trahan by 122 votes out of more than 88,800 cast in the 10-way primary to replace Democratic Rep. Niki Tsongas, who's not running for re-election.

The difference between the two top candidates is less than one half of one percent, allowing Galvin to order a recount throughout the entire district.

Galvin, a Democrat, also announced Monday that he will be taking direct control of the election offices in the cities of Lawrence and Lowell. He said he will appoint officials to run upcoming recounts in those cities and to oversee the administration of the Nov. 6 general election.

Galvin said personnel changes in Lawrence and administrative problems in Lowell prompted his decision to take over the recount of votes in the district's two largest cities.

Galvin said the recount needs to happen quickly so ballots can be printed in time for the general election. He said representatives for Koh and Trahan can review the recount and can challenge votes.

"Hopefully the result is decisive enough that everyone is satisfied with it," he said.

Koh's campaign said he's committed to making sure all ballots are counted, given the narrow margin.

"The significant changes in vote counts in some communities, and the latest very serious concerns raised by Secretary of State Galvin make it abundantly clear that a recount is necessary," the campaign said in a statement.

The goal of the recount it to make sure every ballot is counted, provided the intent of the voter can be determined, Galvin said. If a voter circled the name of a candidate instead of filling in the oval next the candidate's name, the ballot may have initially been counted as "blank" but would be counted as a vote for a candidate during the recount.

Galvin said typically during a recount, votes that had initially been counted as blanks can be counted as votes for candidates.

There were 3,227 "blank" votes cast in the Democratic primary.

Lawrence Mayor Dan Rivera said he welcomes the help from Galvin's office.

"The only person that is going to benefit from this is the voters," Rivera said.

The winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican Rick Green in November.
ATHENS, Greece (AP) - The Greek air force says its sole surviving Supermarine Spitfire, a British fighter during World War II, is in England to be restored to airworthiness 65 years after its last flight.

The air force said Monday that the cost of the refurbishment will be covered by Greece's private Icarus Foundation, whose aim is to restore historic warplanes.

The single-seater Spitfire Mk IX, of which more than 5,000 were built, arrived in Britain in April and should be ready by early 2020.

The plane was produced in 1943 and took part in allied operations over France. In the Greek air force since 1947, it was used during the Greek civil war and later flew photo-reconnaissance missions before being put on ground display.

About 50 Spitfires worldwide are in flying condition.
MADRID (AP) - Spain says it is holding talks with Saudi Arabia to resolve differences over a shipment of bombs that, according to Spanish defense authorities, could end up targeting civilians in Yemen.

Defense Minister Margarita Robles told senators at a hearing on Monday that the decision wasn't final and that she expected that talks between the two trade partners would settle the dispute.

Her department had announced last week that it was halting the delivery of 400 laser-guided precision bombs ordered by Riyadh in 2015 and paid for.

Shipbuilders in southern Spain have protested in recent days over fears that Saudi Arabia could scrap a separate $2.1 billion purchase of warships in retaliation.

Robles has ruled out such a scenario.

The Saudi Embassy in Madrid has declined to comment.
WARRI, Nigeria (AP) - A gas depot exploded in central Nigeria, killing 18 people and leaving some burned beyond recognition, a witness said Monday.

More than 40 other people had burns after the blast in Lafia, the capital of Nasarawa state, taxi driver Yakubu Charles told The Associated Press. He said he helped to evacuate victims after more than a dozen occupied vehicles were set on fire. Victims had to be taken to hospitals on motorbikes as no ambulances were available, he said.

Both the Nigeria Police Force and Federal Road Safety Corps confirmed the blast but declined to give a number of casualties.

Nigeria's Senate president, Bukola Saraki, in a Twitter post called the explosion "horrific" and said he met with survivors. He offered prayers for families who lost relatives.

Many gas dealers operate mini-depots in Nigerian cities with no strong measures to regulate their activities, leading to frequent explosions. In January, 10 people died in a blast in Magodo in Lagos state.

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Follow Africa news at https://twitter.com/AP_Africa
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - The Catholic Diocese of Little Rock has released a list of 12 clergy who served in Arkansas and have had "credible" allegations against them of sexually abusing minors.

Bishop Anthony B. Taylor said the list released Monday was preliminary and the result of an internal review in the wake of a sweeping grand jury report on child sexual abuse by clergy in Pennsylvania. He says the list will be updated following an independent review of its files by an outside consulting firm.

The diocese named eight priests against whom credible allegations have been substantiated, and another four about whom it has received unsubstantiated though credible allegations. The diocese says it has offered or is offering assistance to their known victims.
WASHINGTON (AP) - A U.S. District Court judge has imposed a gag order on public statements from lawyers involved in the case of a Russian woman accused of working in America as a secret agent for Moscow.

Judge Tanya Chutkan on Monday ruled that Robert Driscoll, attorney for Maria Butina, had "crossed the line" in his frequent public comments about the case.

Chutkan also denied a defense request that Butina, 29, be released and placed under house arrest. The judge agreed with the prosecution's contention that Butina represented an extreme flight risk.

In this photo taken on Friday, Sept. 7, 2012, Maria Butina walks with Alexander Torshin then a member of the Russian upper house of parliament in Moscow, Russia. When gun activist Maria Butina arrived in Washington in 2014 to network with the NRA, she was peddling a Russian gun rights movement that was already dead. Fellow gun enthusiasts and arms industry officials describe the strange trajectory of her Russian gun lobby project, which U.S. prosecutors say was a cover for a Russian influence campaign. Accused of working as a foreign agent, Butina faces a hearing Monday, Sept. 10 in Washington. (AP Photo/Pavel Ptitsin)

The judge also chastised the prosecution for its initial allegation that Butina had offered sex in exchange for assistance and access. Prosecutors on Friday admitted this contention was based on a mistaken interpretation of one of Butina's text message exchanges.
WASHINGTON (AP) - America's long-running reluctant relationship with the International Criminal Court came to a crashing halt on Monday as decades of U.S. suspicions about the tribunal and its global jurisdiction spilled into open hostility, amid threats of sanctions if it investigates U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

National security adviser John Bolton denounced the legitimacy of The Hague-based court, which was created in 2002 to prosecute war crimes and crimes of humanity and genocide in areas where perpetrators might not otherwise face justice. It has 123 state parties that recognize its jurisdiction.

Bolton's speech, on the eve of the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, came as an ICC judge was expected to soon announce a decision on a request from prosecutors to formally open an investigation into allegations of war crimes committed by Afghan national security forces, Taliban and Haqqani network militants, and U.S. forces and intelligence in Afghanistan since May 2003. The accusations against U.S. personnel include torture and illegal imprisonment.

National Security Adviser John Bolton speaks at a Federalist Society luncheon at the Mayflower Hotel, Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

"The International Criminal Court unacceptably threatens American sovereignty and U.S. national security interests," Bolton told the Federalist Society, a conservative Washington-based think tank. Bolton also took aim at Palestinian efforts to press war crime charges against Israel for its policies in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza.

He said the U.S. would use "any means necessary" to protect Americans and citizens of allied countries, like Israel, "from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court." The White House said that to the extent permitted by U.S. law, the Trump administration would ban ICC judges and prosecutors from entering the United States, sanction their funds in the U.S. financial system and prosecute them in the U.S. criminal system.

"We will not cooperate with the ICC," Bolton said, adding that "for all intents and purposes, the ICC is already dead to us."

It was an extraordinary rebuke decried by human rights groups who complained it was another Trump administration rollback of U.S. leadership in demanding accountability for gross abuses.

"Any U.S. action to scuttle ICC inquiries on Afghanistan and Palestine would demonstrate that the administration was more concerned with coddling serial rights abusers - and deflecting scrutiny of U.S. conduct in Afghanistan - than supporting impartial justice," said Human Rights Watch.

The American Civil Liberties Union, which represents several people who claim they were detained and tortured in Afghanistan from 2003 to 2008 and could be victims or witnesses in any ICC prosecution, said Bolton's threats were "straight out of an authoritarian playbook."

"This misguided and harmful policy will only further isolate the United States from its closest allies and give solace to war criminals and authoritarian regimes seeking to evade international accountability," the ACLU said.

The ICC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Since its creation, the court has filed charges against dozens of suspects including former Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, who was killed by rebels before he could be arrested, and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who is accused of charges including genocide in Darfur. Al-Bashir remains at large, as does Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony, who was among the first rebels charged by the court in 2005. The court has convicted just eight defendants.

The court has been hobbled by the refusal of the U.S., Russia, China and other major nations to join. Others have quit: Burundi and the Philippines, whose departure, announced earlier this year, takes effect next March.

The Clinton administration in 2000 signed the Rome Statute that created the ICC but had serious reservations about the scope of the court's jurisdiction and never submitted it for ratification to the Senate, where there was broad bipartisan opposition to what lawmakers saw as a threat to U.S. sovereignty.

When George W. Bush took office in 2001, his administration promoted and passed the American Service Members Protection Act, which sought to immunize U.S. troops from potential prosecution by the ICC. In 2002, Bolton, then a State Department official, traveled to New York to ceremonially "unsign" the Rome Statute at the United Nations.

Bush's first administration then embarked on a diplomatic drive to get countries who were members of the ICC to sign so-called Article 98 agreements that would bar those nations from prosecuting Americans before the court under penalty of sanctions. The administration was largely successful in its effort, getting more than 100 countries to sign the agreements. Some of those, however, have not been formally ratified.

In Bush's second term, the U.S. attitude toward the ICC shifted slightly as the world looked on in horror at genocide being committed in Sudan's western Darfur region. The administration did not oppose and offered limited assistance to an ICC investigation in Darfur.

The Obama administration expanded that cooperation, offering additional support to the ICC as it investigated the then-Uganda-based Lord's Resistance Army and its top leadership, including Kony.

On Monday, Bolton effectively turned Washington's back on the court, accusing it of corruption and inefficiency. Above all, he took aim at the court's view that citizens of nonmember states are subject to its jurisdiction.

"The ICC is an unprecedented effort to vest power in a supranational body without the consent of either nation-states or the individuals over which it purports to exercise jurisdiction," Bolton said. "It certainly has no consent whatsoever from the United States."

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Associated Press writer Mike Corder in The Hague, Netherlands.

National Security Adviser John Bolton speaks at a Federalist Society luncheon at the Mayflower Hotel, Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

National Security Adviser John Bolton speaks at a Federalist Society luncheon at the Mayflower Hotel, Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

National Security Adviser John Bolton speaks at a Federalist Society luncheon at the Mayflower Hotel, Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

National Security Adviser John Bolton speaks at a Federalist Society luncheon at the Mayflower Hotel, Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

National Security Adviser John Bolton speaks at a Federalist Society luncheon at the Mayflower Hotel, Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

National security adviser John Bolton calls on a reporter during a news conference after speaking at a Federalist Society luncheon at the Mayflower Hotel, Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
HARTSELLE, Ala. (AP) - Wildlife authorities are asking for information after a red-tailed hawk was spotted in north Alabama with an arrow shot through its body.

The Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division says officials were notified after someone saw the injured bird, and a member of the Alabama Hawking Association tried to capture it.

The bird is still free. A Facebook message by the agency on Monday says it was last seen near Hartselle in Morgan County. A photo posted by wildlife officials shows the bird sitting upright on a utility wire with an arrow shot through its body pointing skyward.

The release says anyone with information can call Operation Gamewatch anonymously at 1-800-272-GAME.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - One Florida county has dumped more than 17 tons (15,420 kilograms) of dead fish collected since red tide algae crept up from South Florida into Tampa Bay.

Fish are dying off at such a rate that officials are seeking more commercial vessels to sift dead sea life from the Gulf of Mexico and haul it to a landfill.

Onshore in Pinellas County, many beach businesses say they aren't seeing dead fish and that tourists are getting spooked away despite clear waters. The last red tide report out of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on Friday said the bloom was still active in Southwest Florida and extended from Pinellas south to northern Collier County, a stretch of about 120 miles (193 kilometers) of coastline.

Crews clean up dead fish on the beach as they fill a pickup truck near Gulf Front Park, Treasure Island, Fla., Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. The smell of dead fish was strong. (Scott Keeler/The Tampa Bay Times via AP)

The lack of dead fish along the shore is at least partly because the county has been paying boat captains to capture the carcasses before they reach the shoreline, the Tampa Bay Times reported.

"This is massive," said Kelli Levy, Pinellas' director of environmental management. "We are ramping up."

From Friday through Monday morning, the county landfill received 17.35 tons (15,740 kilograms) of dead fish, Levy said.

Currently, two shrimp boats and three other pieces of commercial equipment are being used to collect the fish. But it is not enough. Contractors are being asked to bring in more equipment, including large beach rakes.

The rust-colored bloom could be seen from the air off Redington and Madeira beaches on Monday afternoon.

Curt Preisser, the Madeira Beach city spokesman, said the town was prepared for the bloom to spread. Officials first noticed it was 5 miles (8 kilometers) off the coast on Friday afternoon.

"But it's a big bloom," Preisser said. "And we're not getting all of them."

The fish getting through to the shoreline are being raked up once they reach the beach. Madeira had cleared up much of them by 10:30 a.m. Monday but continued work through the day as the smell of fish lingered in the air.

Just south, Treasure Island was experiencing similar conditions.

Workers there collected fish manually over the weekend and loaded them into a "hopper," or portable containers the size of a dumpster.

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Information from: Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, Fla.), http://www.tampabay.com.

Dead fish mixed in with seaweed on Treasure Island, Fla., Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. Crews filled a pickup truck with the fish and removed them near Gulf Front Park. (Scott Keeler/Tampa Bay Times via AP)
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A Mormon man facing church discipline for his public opposition to closed-door, one-on-one interviews of youth said Monday he thinks he might have helped his chances slightly during a disciplinary hearing but not enough to stave off excommunication.

Sam Young, 65, said local church leaders in Houston who held the Sunday night hearing told him they'll be sending their decision by mail in the coming days. They told him he's accused of apostasy, which refers to teaching inaccurate doctrine or publicly defying guidance from leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Young joked in a phone interview that his chances doubled from "one in a million" to "two in a million" following a 90-minute hearing in which he and his wife spoke after hearing the evidence against him, much of which was writings from his blog. He said they asked him if he believed the church was the one true church, if he believed in the law of chastity and why he wanted to still belong to the faith.

FILE - In this March 30, 2018, file photo, Sam Young, center, speaks to a group of people during a march to church headquarters, in Salt Lake City. Young, a Mormon who has led a campaign criticizing the church's practice of allowing closed-door, one-on-one interviews of youth by lay leaders, will have to wait to find out if he'll be kicked out of the religion. Young said late Sunday, Sept. 9, 2018, that local church leaders didn't make a decision following a disciplinary council at his congregation in Houston. Young says they didn't say when they will decide. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

Young said he told a panel of 15 men that he has always been confused by the "one true church" description but that he very much believes in the law of chastity. He said he wants to stay in the church because he has put his heart and soul into the faith and because his wife and six adult daughters are members. But he made clear he won't back down from what he believes is a campaign to protect children.

"If you choose to excommunicate, the world will not only see what Mormons do to their own children, but they will also see how we treat those who speak up to protect our little ones," Young said according to prepared remarks he shared. "That is the choice that this council comes down to: Protect the leaders or protect the children."

Eric Hawkins, a spokesman for the Mormon church, declined comment on Young's case. The faith doesn't generally comment on disciplinary hearings.

Mormon leaders have defended the youth interviews as an important way for bishops to get to know youth better and determine their religious habits and obedience to God. The church changed its policy earlier this year to allow children to bring a parent or adult with them.

While not a lifelong ban, excommunication is a rare move that amounts to the harshest punishment available for a church member.

If ousted, Young would become the third high-profile Mormon who led protests about church policy to be excommunicated in recent years.

The youth interviews usually happen twice a year starting at 12. One of the questions asked by men who are called bishops deals with sexual activity: "Do you live the law of chastity?"

"We have an institutionalized policy mandating bishops and their counselors to take minors behind closed doors all alone, and ask these children sexual questions," said Young, according to his prepared remarks. "Every one of you in this room has been groomed to accept this as a normal thing. It is not normal .... Everyone outside of the church recognizes that this is way beyond improper."

Young's supporters who include some Mormons and some ex-Mormons held rallies at spots around the West, including one in Mesa, Arizona, where 20 people gathered across from a Mormon temple, according to the Arizona Republic.

Earlier this year, about 1,000 people marched to church headquarters in Salt Lake City to protest the interviews.
DOTHAN, Ala. (AP) - Already facing a capital murder charge, the Rev. Al Sharpton's half-brother has been arrested again while free on bond in Alabama.

Media outlets report the Rev. Kenneth Glasgow of Dothan was arrested Monday after authorities say he put a stolen license plate on his vehicle. He's charged with possession of stolen property.

Glasgow was arrested while free on $75,000 bail after being charged in a March shooting death. Police believe the 53-year-old south Alabama pastor and voting activist drove a car from which another man shot and killed 23-year-old Breunia Jennings of Dothan.

Glasgow has said authorities are trying to punish him for what someone else did.

Glasgow worked for years in Alabama to register prisoners to vote, and he also started a ministry to help homeless people.
WASHINGTON (AP) - A federal judge imposed a gag order Monday on the lawyers involved in the case of a Russian gun rights activist accused of working in America as a secret agent for Moscow.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan also denied a defense request that the defendant, Maria Butina, be released on bail and placed under house arrest.

The gag order comes days after prosecutors admitted they were wrong to accuse Butina of trading sex for access, saying they misinterpreted one of Butina's text message exchanges. But the prosecutors said there is other evidence to support keeping Butina in custody.

In this photo taken on Friday, Sept. 7, 2012, Maria Butina walks with Alexander Torshin then a member of the Russian upper house of parliament in Moscow, Russia. When gun activist Maria Butina arrived in Washington in 2014 to network with the NRA, she was peddling a Russian gun rights movement that was already dead. Fellow gun enthusiasts and arms industry officials describe the strange trajectory of her Russian gun lobby project, which U.S. prosecutors say was a cover for a Russian influence campaign. Accused of working as a foreign agent, Butina faces a hearing Monday, Sept. 10 in Washington. (AP Photo/Pavel Ptitsin)

Chutkan said she was "dismayed" by the mistake and by the "rather salacious allegations" made by prosecutors. She said the joking nature of the text message exchange was immediately "apparent on their face" when she read them.

Prosecutors charge that Butina, 29, gathered intelligence on American officials and political organizations and worked to develop relationships with American politicians via her contacts with the National Rifle Association. They say her work was directed by a former Russian lawmaker who was sanctioned this year by the U.S. Treasury Department for his alleged ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Butina has pleaded not guilty to the charges of conspiracy and acting as an unregistered foreign agent for Russia. Her attorney Robert Driscoll has denied that Butina is a Russian agent, calling the case "overblown." He has said his client was merely a student who wanted to see a better relationship between the U.S. and Russia and sought to network with influential people in American politics.

In imposing the gag order, Chutkan determined that Driscoll had "crossed the line" in his frequent public comments about the case.

"Your work defending your client needs to happen in this courtroom, not on the public airwaves," she said.

Chutkan said the combination of the headline-grabbing erroneous sex allegations and Driscoll's frequent public criticisms will make it harder to organize an impartial jury in the District of Columbia, which has just over 700,000 residents.

"Our jury pool is relatively small," she said. "It really makes it very difficult to have a fair trial."

Despite the embarrassing government walk-back, Chutkan agreed with the prosecution's contention that Butina should be kept in custody. Prosecutors had raised the prospect of her being swept out of the country by Russians using their diplomatic immunity to shield her from U.S. law enforcement. The U.S. does not have an extradition treaty with Russia.

"The court finds that there are no conditions or combination of conditions that would ensure Ms. Butina's availability to this court," Chutkan said.

Driscoll responded that Butina could have fled the country multiple times as the investigation into her activities was ongoing. But Chutkan responded the flight risk possibility is even more serious now that Butina has been formally charged.

"She has now been indicted," Chutkan said. "She faces very serious criminal penalties."
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A section of a small town in western Alaska has long been known as "Lousetown," which some residents find insulting to the Alaska Natives who live there. But in Bethel, it's not just an unpleasant nickname with connotations of parasitic lice. It's in the municipal code.

Now an effort is underway to officially change the code and rename the area East Avenue, for the road traversing that part of the community of about 6,000. A final vote is set to take place Tuesday at the Bethel City Council meeting.

"I never did like it to be called Lousetown, but it sort of stuck," said 79-year-old Bea Kristovich, who lived there in her youth. Kristovich, who is part Yup'ik Eskimo, agrees with other locals that the area should be called one of various Yup'ik names.

A screen photo shows the municipal code for Bethel, Alaska, where the term "Lousetown" is used to describe a small section of the southwest Alaska community on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. Officials are considering a proposal to officially change the name of a section of the community that's been deemed offensive to Alaska Natives who live there. A final vote is set to take place Tuesday, Sept. 11, at the Bethel City Council meeting. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

The issue emerged when City Council member Thor Williams introduced a proposal to change the code to require visible addresses on buildings throughout the city, including Lousetown.

"It's a very bad term," Williams said. "And it's a very bad reference to a part of our community."

Williams didn't know when or why the area got its name, which is a common reference to it even though there are no signs in town with the name Lousetown. No one else seems to know the origin of the nickname either. Some longtime locals say it's always been known by that name, while others, such as traditional chief Louie Andrew, say it began only a few decades ago.

Either way, Andrew would be happy to see the end of Lousetown as a name of the area he calls home.

"It's offensive and demeaning," he said.

The word louse refers to unpleasant or contemptible people. But it's also the plural for lice - the parasitic insect known for infesting human hair. And in the past, lice infestations were a perennial problem in western Alaska, noted state historian Jo Antonson. Like many others, Antonson said he didn't know when and why that section of town got that moniker.

Granted, a reference to louse is not unique to Bethel, about 400 miles (640 kilometers) west of Anchorage. There is a Louse Creek elsewhere in the state.

In Nevada, there was once a community called Lousetown. A marker for the ghost town says it was Nevada's most unique town name.

"Fine springs, terminus of several wood roads, and a population of teamsters, stock and sheep men were found at Lousetown," the marker says.

Now the area is home to Lousetown Road, a scenic but bumpy drive 20 miles (32 kilometers) southeast of Virginia City, Nevada, the old historic Comstock town.

In Bethel, Alaska, Lousetown was formally added to the municipal code in 2001, according to Bethel City Clerk Lori Stickler.

Even though it's been known as Lousetown since 67-year-old Bethel resident local Bev Hoffman can remember, it's not a name she uses to describe the area because of its lice connotation. But it's not a burning issue for her, either.

"It's not anything I'm losing sleep over," she said.

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Associated Press writer Scott Sonner in Reno, Nevada, contributed to this report.

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Follow Rachel D'Oro at https://twitter.com/rdoro
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - More than 30 purported street gang members have been charged with stealing more than $1 million in what authorities said Monday was an unusually sophisticated credit card fraud scheme.

Members and associates of the BullyBoys and the CoCo Boys street gangs based in the suburbs east of San Francisco defrauded hundreds of victims by breaking into dozens of medical and dental offices to steal credit card terminals and patient records, said state Attorney General Xavier Becerra and police chiefs from three cities.

The 32 alleged gang members used the stolen terminals to process credit card returns, downloading them to debit cards, according to the 240-count indictment.

California Attorney General, Xavier Becerra, at podium, and other officials announce indictments of 32 members of purported street gangs on charges of stealing more than $1 million using an unusually sophisticated credit card fraud, at a news conference in Sacramento, Calif., Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. From left are Deputy Attorney General Tawnya Austin, who heads the attorney general's e-crimes unit; Walnut Creek Police Chief Tom Chaplin; Becerra; Sacramento Police Chief Daniel Hahn; and Vacaville Police Chief John Carli. Authorities said Monday that the BullyBoys and the CoCo Boys street gangs defrauded hundreds of victims across Northern California by breaking into dozens of medical and dental offices to steal credit card terminals and patient records. (AP Photo/Don Thompson)

"It is easier today and it is more rewarding today to engage in identity theft and financial fraud than it is to go out there on the street and commit physical, violent crime," Becerra said. "It pays more at lower risk," though he alleged the gangs used the money to fund other illegal activities that are not included in the indictment.

Defense attorneys did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

The investigation began in early 2016 when investigators noticed similarities between burglaries scattered across Northern California.

The indictment handed down last month by a special Sacramento County-based statewide grand jury includes counts of conspiracy to commit grand theft; hacking, computer access and fraud; grand theft; burglary; and identity theft.

"It may not be as physically harmful and dangerous as being accosted on the street, but I can guarantee you it hurts just as much" Becerra said.

Nearly 130 law enforcement officers fanned out last week to make 23 arrests, said Walnut Creek Police Chief Tom Chaplin. Another two were arrested over the weekend, while seven remain fugitives, said Deputy Attorney General Tawnya Austin, who heads the attorney general's e-crimes unit.

Investigators recovered about 40 stolen credit card terminals, dozens of fraudulent receipts, laptop computers and files including Social Security numbers or bank information.

Street gangs have become more mobile, picking targets over large regions and taking advantage of opportunities like unsecured or unencrypted files or financial equipment, said Sacramento Police Chief Daniel Hahn.

"We've all seen high tech crime become the new battleground," said Chaplin.
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Connecticut state officials say they're investigating reports of "racially offensive incidents," which a state senator says includes a noose looped around the head of a toy chicken that was found hanging in a black state worker's office.

Republican State Sen. Heather Somers of Groton told The Hartford Courant that she was informed the noose was found in the office of a worker at the Department of Development Services regional office in Torrington.

Somers provided photos of the fake chicken in the noose to the newspaper.

Department of Development Services officials said Monday that they're "actively investigating reports of racially offensive incidents," but declined to elaborate. The department's commissioner says in an email to employees that it takes "all allegations of this nature very seriously."

The department provides housing and other services to people with intellectual disabilities.

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Information from: Hartford Courant, http://www.courant.com
HONOLULU (AP) - A 92-year-old Native Hawaiian heiress doesn't have sufficient mental capacity to manage her $215-million trust, a judge ruled Monday in a bitter case that has raised allegations her wife is trying to wrestle control over her assets.

Abigail Kawananakoa inherited her wealth by being the great-granddaughter of James Campbell, an Irish businessman who made his fortune as a sugar plantation owner and one of Hawaii's largest landowners.

Native Hawaiians, who consider her a princess because she's a descendent of the family that ruled the islands before the overthrow of the Hawaiian kingdom in 1893, have been watching the case closely because they are concerned about the fate of the foundation she set up to benefit Hawaiian causes.

Abigail Kawananakoa, right, leans in to speak to her lawyer Michael Lilly as her wife Veronica Gail Worth sits next to her in state court in Honolulu on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. A judge has ruled that a 92-year-old Native Hawaiian heiress doesn't have sufficient mental capacity to manage her $215-million trust and is appointing First Hawaiian Bank to serve as her trustee. (AP Photo/Jennifer Sinco Kelleher)

The judge appointed First Hawaiian Bank to serve as trustee and removed Jim Wright, Kawananakoa's longtime former attorney who stepped in as trustee after she suffered a stroke last year.

Kawananakoa said she's fine, fired Wright and then married her girlfriend of 20 years. She attempted to amend her trust to remove Wright and replace him with three others, including her wife, Veronica Gail Worth.

Removing a trustee is less complex than replacing one, Judge Robert Browning said in not allowing her to select new trustees.

Browning said he spent many days pondering his decision, which he said didn't change after hearing arguments Monday.

It's an important decision, partly because Kawananakoa is revered, he said. "She is someone for who many years ... dedicated her life, energy and money to promoting and preserving Native Hawaiian culture," he said.

Wright's court filings raised allegations that Worth physically abused her. As trustee, Wright appointed Native Hawaiian leaders to serve as board members of Kawananakoa's $100-million foundation. Those members accused Worth of exploiting Kawananakoa.

Worth's attorney, Michael Rudy, denied the allegations. A special master's report found no evidence of undue influence caused by physical abuse, Kawananakoa's attorney, Michael Lilly, said.

Lilly said Kawananakoa intends to leave the bulk of her estate to Native Hawaiians. He argued that opponents have inaccurately portrayed the case as a controversy between Worth and Native Hawaiians.

Roseanne Goo, an attorney representing the foundation, cried as she urged the judge to consider what is right for Kawananakoa. Even though she doesn't have a relationship with her, she and others "hold her in this special place because she is a vulnerable kupuna," Goo said, using a Hawaiian word that can mean elder.

"We have to be concerned about Abigail Kawananakoa as a person before we even consider what should happen to what she has," Goo said.

Long before any controversy over her mental capacity, Kawananakoa selected First Hawaiian Bank to be trustee if Wright wasn't able or willing, Browning noted.

Wright, who didn't attend the hearing, said he offered having the bank step in early in the case.

"I promised Ms. Kawananakoa that I would defend her trust and legacy no matter what," he said after the ruling. "I am grateful that her gift to Native Hawaiians has been preserved."

Sitting next to Worth, Kawananakoa watched the hearing while her pet Chihuahua sat on her lap. The couple didn't comment as they left court.

Their attorneys said they are gratified Wright has been removed but are disappointed Kawananakoa can't select her own trustees.

They said they will consider next steps.

Browning, noting that case filings have "devolved into personal attacks," urged all involved to stop litigating: "It would be indeed a great tragedy for Ms. Kawananakoa to be forced to live her remaining years with the specter of further litigation."

Abigail Kawananakoa, center, and her wife Veronica Gail Worth, right, speak to Kawananakoa's attorney Michael Lilly in state court in Honolulu on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. A judge has ruled that a 92-year-old Native Hawaiian heiress doesn't have sufficient mental capacity to manage her $215-million trust and is appointing First Hawaiian Bank to serve as her trustee. (AP Photo/Jennifer Sinco Kelleher)

Abigail Kawananakoa, right, and her wife Veronica Gail Worth, appear in state court in Honolulu on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. A judge has ruled that a 92-year-old Native Hawaiian heiress doesn't have sufficient mental capacity to manage her $215-million trust and is appointing First Hawaiian Bank to serve as her trustee. (AP Photo/Jennifer Sinco Kelleher)

Abigail Kawananakoa, right, and her wife Veronica Gail Worth, appear in state court in Honolulu on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. A judge has ruled that a 92-year-old Native Hawaiian heiress doesn't have sufficient mental capacity to manage her $215-million trust and is appointing First Hawaiian Bank to serve as her trustee. (AP Photo/Jennifer Sinco Kelleher)
TORONTO (AP) - The short story that begat Angie Thomas' breakthrough young adult novel "The Hate U Give" was inspired by the shooting of Oscar Grant III, the Oakland, Calif., African-American 22-year-old who was shot by a white transit police officer in 2009.

In the years that followed, more shootings followed and Thomas kept on writing. Now, a year and a half after "The Hate U Give" became a bestselling phenomenon, Thomas' book has been adapted to the big screen by director George Tillman Jr. from a screenplay by Audrey Wells with just as much honesty and urgency as were in Thomas' first pages. And the tale's timeliness has painfully persisted.

"This film will empower a lot of people and give them hope," said Thomas in an interview shortly after the film's Toronto International Film Festival premiere. "It's going to explain some things to people who don't get it. I think it's going to open a lot of eyes and change a lot of perspectives, and hopefully help people understand why we say 'black lives matter' so that eventually we won't have to say it. It'll be understood."

Actress Amandla Stenberg poses for photographs on the red carpet after arriving for the new movie "The Hate U Give" during the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto on Friday, Sept. 7, 2018. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

In a wave of films, including a number at the Toronto Film Festival, the kinds of police brutality-inflicted tragedies that gave birth to the Black Lives Matter movement are being filtered into fiction film with anguished and stirring passion. They aren't the first movies to delve into such stories; Ryan Coogler, for one, told the story of Grant in 2013's "Fruitvale Station."

But many more filmmakers are seeking to capture the humanity beneath the headlines, explicitly confronting the racial fissures in American society while channeling the sorrow and outrage of generations of black Americans.

Reinaldo Marcus Green's "Monsters and Men," which played at Toronto before opening in theaters later this month, has similarities to the killing of Eric Garner, the Staten Island man who was choked and killed by New York police after being approached on suspicion of selling single cigarettes. Green's film, set in Brooklyn's Bed-Stuy neighborhood, is about a Nuyorican teenager who witnesses a police officer kill an unarmed man selling loose cigarettes on the street.

Released this summer, Carlos Lopez Estrada's "Blindspotting" stars Daveed Diggs as an Oakland mover who, while stopped at a red light, watches a black man gunned down by a police officer. While deciding to come forward, he's racked by nightmares and arresting visions, like of a cemetery populated by hooded black men standing over their graves.

Barry Jenkins' "If Beale Street Could Talk," is a period film, adapted from James Baldwin's novel and set in Harlem in the early 1970s. But its intimate tale of two black lovers, Tish and Fonny, whose young lives are wrecked by a racist police officer who frames Fonny for rape, has obvious reverberations today.

"Right now we're living in a time and a moment where so many things he was writing about are incredibly relevant to the American soul," said Jenkins in an interview ahead of the film's Sunday premiere in Toronto. "There's an ecstatic quality to the way Baldwin writes love, but yet there's this permanent dread that hovers around them because of the situation they find themselves in. But also, too, because of what Baldwin is saying about the condition of black folks in America at the time he wrote this."

Other films have come under criticism for not fitting with the times. Some questioned whether Kathryn Bigelow's "Detroit," about a hellacious night of police-inflicted torture during the Detroit riots was the ideal filmmaker to tell that story. Spike Lee's "BlacKkKlansman," about a black police officer who infiltrates a Ku Klux Klan chapter in 1970s Colorado, drew raves for its timely story about race and white supremacy. But it was criticized by "Sorry to Bother You" director Boots Riley for, at this moment, making a police officer "the protagonist in the fight against racist oppression."

"It's being put out while Black Lives Matter is a discussion, and this is not coincidental," argued Riley. He questioned the film's historical accuracy, claiming that its real-life police detective, Ron Stallworth, was really a "villain," since he may have helped destabilize black radical groups, not topple the KKK.

Real life also intruded on "The Hate U Give." One of its young white actors, Kian Lawley, was replaced by K.J. Apa after a video surfaced of Lawley using the n-word and making racist jokes. And while it was being prepped, Philando Castile, a 32-year-old black American, was pulled over while driving in Falcon Heights, Minnesota, and killed in a remarkably similar manner.

But part of what makes "The Hate U Give" so powerful is the way it takes such debate and disagreement around Black Lives Matter and compassionately distills it into a story about a 16-year-old girl (Amandla Stenberg) whose childhood best friend (Algee Smith) is shot and killed for reaching for a hairbrush after he's pulled over for not signaling a turn. The subsequent fallout is seen through the prism of family (it opens with a father's firm instruction on how motionless to act around police) and a community. It reserves empathy for all while not minimizing fury over such injustice.

"I really just want people to take a moment and just feel again. Everybody. We've become a cynical society. We've lost the idea of human interaction, communicating with each other," said Russell Hornsby, who memorably plays the father in the film. "I hope that people get that through this movie. And they can feel. However it pierces your heart, let it out. We're in a pressure-cooked society right now and I feel like, just for a moment, that this movie represents a release valve."

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Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP

FILE - In this Feb. 26, 2017 file photo, director Barry Jenkins arrives at the Oscars in Los Angeles. Jenkins has unveiled the teaser trailer for his anticipated "Moonlight" follow-up, "If Beale Street Could Talk," based on the 1974 novel by James Baldwin. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

Director George Tillman Jr. poses for photographs on the red carpet after arriving for the new movie "The Hate U Give" during the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto on Friday, Sept. 7, 2018. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)
WASHINGTON (AP) - House Republican leaders have unveiled their proposal to expand the massive tax law they hustled through Congress last year. They're aiming to make permanent the individual tax cuts and small-business income deductions now set to expire in 2026.

With midterm elections barely two months away, the second crack at tax cuts outlined Monday is portrayed as championing the middle class and small businesses. Republican Rep. Kevin Brady of Texas, who heads the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, is looking toward a vote on the legislation by the House this month. The solid Republican majority in the House nearly ensures passage before the November elections.

But prospects for the legislation in the Senate are weak, given the slim Republican majority and concern over the potential for further blowing up the deficit with a new tax cut - without corresponding new revenue sources. And even some House Republicans oppose a new tax bill.

FILE - In this Feb. 14, 2018, file photo, House Ways and Means Committee Chair Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, speaks during a committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. House Republican leaders have unveiled their proposal to expand the massive tax law they hustled through Congress last year. They're aiming to make permanent the individual tax cuts and small-business income deductions now set to expire in 2026. Brady is looking toward a vote on the legislation by the House this month. The solid Republican majority in the House nearly ensures passage before the November elections. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

The proposal also calls for new tax incentives for savings by creating a "universal savings account" for families that could be used for a range of purposes and would allow the tax-free earnings to be more easily withdrawn than is the case with existing retirement accounts. In addition, the Republican plan would allow the popular, tax-free 529 college savings accounts to also be used to pay for apprenticeship fees and home schooling expenses, as well as paying off student debt. Also, workers would be able to tap their retirement savings accounts without tax penalty to cover expenses from the birth of a child or an adoption.

Startup businesses would be permitted to write off more of their initial costs.

"This legislation is our commitment to the American worker to ensure our tax code remains the most competitive in the world," Brady said in a statement. Making the tax cuts permanent would build on the tax law's economic boost by adding 1.5 million new jobs and increasing wages, he said.

As the elections loom, polls are showing only lukewarm support among voters for the $1.5 trillion package of individual and corporate tax cuts that President Donald Trump signed into law in December as his signature legislative achievement.

Several Republican House members, facing tough re-election fights in high-tax, Democratic-leaning states like New York and New Jersey, voted against the tax legislation last year and would prefer to do without this new version as well.

The tax law that took effect Jan. 1, the most sweeping rewrite of the U.S. tax code in three decades, is estimated to add around $1.5 trillion to the ballooning deficit over 10 years. Deficit hawks as well as Democratic lawmakers - who were unanimous in opposing the tax legislation last year - are asking how the Republicans intend to pay for the extended tax cuts.

"After handing massive unpaid-for tax breaks to Big Pharma, Wall Street and the wealthiest 1 percent with the first GOP tax scam for the rich, House Republicans are here with more of the same," House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said Monday. "Republicans want to add even more to the deficit, and even more to the bank accounts of the wealthiest 1 percent."

The new tax law enacted in December provides steep tax cuts for corporations and the wealthiest Americans, and more modest reductions for middle- and low-income individuals and families.

While the law slashed the corporate tax rate permanently from 35 percent to 21 percent, its tax cuts for individuals and the millions of U.S. "pass-through" businesses expire in eight years. The "pass-through" businesses funnel their income to owners and other individuals, who then pay personal income tax on those earnings, not the corporate rate. They are allowed under the new law to deduct 20 percent of the first $315,000 of their earnings.

Also until 2026, the tax law ended the $4,050 personal exemption for individuals and capped at $10,000 the amount of property taxes or state or local taxes that consumers can deduct on their federal returns.

Early this year, millions of working Americans got a boost from the tax law as they saw increases in their paychecks with less tax withheld by employers. But as Trump's populist attacks against free trade have erupted into trade wars with China and U.S. allies, trade tensions have overshadowed the tax cuts in economically vulnerable areas of the country that depend on exports.
GILBERT, Ariz. (AP) - Thirty-five years after an Arizona man cared for his son when he was shot in their native Lebanon, the son is returning that devotion.

Both the Rev. John Ibraham Sabbagh and his 54-year-old son, Ebby Sabbagh, are celebrating one year of going strong since the elder Sabbagh received a crucial stem cell transplant. After undergoing chemotherapy for acute myeloid leukemia, the 88-year-old opted to undergo the transplant in September, 2017, at Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center in Gilbert, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) southeast of Phoenix.

It was Ebby, also the oldest son, who ended up being enough of a match and providing the stem cells.

The Rev. John Sabbagh, left, and his son Ebby Sabbagh hugs nurse practitioner Kim O'Riley, Friday, Sept. 7, 2018 in Gilbert, Ariz. Thirty-five years after a Mesa man cared for his son when he was shot in their native Lebanon, the son is returning that devotion. Both the Rev. John Ibraham Sabbagh and his 54-year-old son, Ebby Sabbagh, are celebrating one year of going strong since the elder Sabbagh received a crucial stem-cell transplant. (AP Photo/Terry Tang)

"We all have learned from this: Be a positive fighter," Ebby said Friday as he helped his father stand to look at the cake hospital staff provided for his transplant anniversary. "If he doesn't give up, we don't give up."

Dr. Rajneesh Nath has done stem cell transplants on several elderly patients. But never on one as old as John. Nath said he could tell after chemotherapy and other low-intensity therapies that the elder Sabbagh was strong for his age.

"He was walking the hallways and his ability to tolerate (treatment) was not any different than any of the younger patients we treated," Nath said.

It was ultimately John's decision and he wanted to take the most aggressive approach. The elder Sabbagh, who was a chaplain for Arizona Department of Corrections for 13 years, said he thinks of himself as a fighter.

"A fighter, but not in negative way," he said in a soft-spoken voice.

Dr. Andrew Yeager, director of the Blood and Marrow Transplantation Program at the University of Arizona Cancer Center, said he would give the transplant team "a bottle of good booze to say 'Boy, you had the guts to transplant to someone in their late 80s.'"

"It's really up there and atypical," Yeager said.

An elderly transplant recipient may have a harder time in some areas such as recovery. Donor stem cells can go on the attack post-transplant, a condition known as graft-versus-host disease. That can be debilitating even for a young patient. Also, Yeager said, patients ages 60 and older sometimes already have underlying issues with their major organs.

Ebby says their roles are now essentially reversed from when he was shot in Tripoli in 1983 during the Lebanese Civil War. Ebby had just turned 18. He was driving his dad's car to pick up ice cream after finishing exams. Several men sprayed his car with gunfire at a surprise checkpoint, Ebby said. Despite shrapnel wounds and part of his left leg getting torn off, he managed to drive away.

Eventually friends helped get him to a hospital. He was later transferred to a hospital in Beirut and spent more than three months there in recovery. John made the two-hour commute from Tripoli to stay in the hospital or with friends.

"Through this whole thing, Dad was right by me," Ebby recalled. "He refused to go home until he takes me with him."

The experience of helping his father through cancer has in some ways brought them closer.

"What I'm getting back is tons. Every moment I cherish," Ebby said. "We've really had some amazing moments together."

John will have to have another bone marrow biopsy this month to see if the cancer is still present or has grown. Even with that uncertainty hanging over the whole family, Ebby says they have no regrets.

"Having that opportunity to extend his life, to be able to counter this disease - was it worth it to do this? The answer is yes," he said.

Dr. Rajneesh Nath, left, watches the Rev. John Sabbagh blow out candles on his cake for his one-year transplant anniversary as Sabbagh's grandson John, right, looks on, Friday, Sept. 7, 2018 in Gilbert, Ariz. Thirty-five years after a Mesa man cared for his son when he was shot in their native Lebanon, the son is returning that devotion. Both the Rev. John Ibraham Sabbagh and his 54-year-old son, Ebby Sabbagh, are celebrating one year of going strong since the elder Sabbagh received a crucial stem-cell transplant. (AP Photo/Terry Tang)
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) - The Latest on a lawsuit over the Keystone XL Pipeline (all times local):

4:10 p.m.

Native American tribes in Montana and South Dakota say the Trump administration approved the Keystone XL oil pipeline without fully considering its potential damage to burial grounds and other cultural sites.

Attorneys for the Fort Belknap and Rosebud Sioux tribes sued the U.S. State Department on Monday, asking a court to rescind the line's permit.

The tribes argue that President Donald Trump ignored the rights of tribes when he reversed a prior decision by President Barack Obama and approved the project last year.

State Department spokeswoman Julia Mason says the agency is not commenting on the lawsuit.

The $8 billion TransCanada Corp. pipeline would carry up to 830,000 barrels of crude daily from Canada to Nebraska. It would pass through the ancestral homelands of the Rosebud Sioux in central South Dakota and the Fort Belknap tribes in Montana.

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11:30 a.m.

Native American tribes in Montana and South Dakota say the Trump administration unlawfully approved the Keystone XL oil pipeline without fully considering its potential damage to cultural sites.

Attorneys for the Fort Belknap and Rosebud Sioux tribes sued the U.S. State Department Monday, asking a court to rescind the line's permit.

The tribes argue President Donald Trump ignored the rights of tribes when he reversed a prior decision by President Barack Obama and approved the project last year.

The $8 billion TransCanada Corporation pipeline would carry up to 830,000 barrels of crude daily from Canada to Nebraska. It would pass through the ancestral homelands of the Rosebud Sioux in central South Dakota and the Fort Belknap tribes in Montana.

State Department representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Pentagon says that the State Department has approved the possible sale of up to nine early warning aircraft to Japan for about $3.1 billion.

The department says Japan will use the Navy's E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft to get greater awareness of activities in the air and sea in the Pacific region. It says the twin turboprop aircraft will also improve Japan's ability to defend itself.

Congress was notified of the potential sale on Friday. The price includes the aircraft, support systems and spare parts. Northrop Grumman Corporation Aerospace Systems in Melbourne, Florida, would be the main contractor.

The State Department says the aircraft is critical to help Japan, a staunch U.S. ally, develop a strong self-defense.
LOS ANGELES (AP) - A Canadian con man who bilked at least 60,000 U.S. residents through a cross-border telemarketing scheme has been sentenced to federal prison.

A judge in Los Angeles sentenced Mark Wilson on Monday to more than 11 years behind bars.

Prosecutors say the Vancouver man targeted mainly the elderly with a scheme that sold them a non-existent credit card protection service. The victims were charged about $300 for phony protection against - ironically - fraudulent credit card charges.

Authorities say the scam raked in about $18 million from people in 37 states.

Prosecutors say Wilson funded a lavish lifestyle that included luxury boats, a fleet of cars, Las Vegas gambling jaunts and an offshore bank account in the South Pacific.

In March, Wilson was convicted of mail and wire fraud.
DALLAS (AP) - Dallas police swiftly admitted that a white officer who shot a black man in his own apartment last week had made a mistake. They expressed contrition, turned the case over to independent investigators and reached out to the victim's family.

That proactive approach appeared to tamp down anger in the community in the first few days after the killing on Sept. 6. There have been protests but not large-scale unrest since the death of Botham Jean, a native of the Caribbean island of St. Lucia who went to a Christian university in Arkansas and worked in Dallas for accounting firm PwC.

The killing by officer Amber Guyger - who told officers she believed the victim's apartment was her own- could have led to an "explosive situation" on the streets, said Frederick Haynes, pastor of a Baptist church in Dallas and vice president of the African-American Pastors Coalition.

Protesters in the shooting death of Botham Jean, gather at the Jack Evans Police Headquarters, Monday, Sept. 10, 2018 in Dallas. Jean was shot Thursday by off-duty Dallas police officer Amber Guyger, who says she mistook his apartment for hers. (Shaban Athuman /The Dallas Morning News via AP)

Haynes praised the actions of Dallas Police Chief U. Renee Hall, who has been in her job only a year.

"She has gone out of her way to communicate not only to the family but also to community leaders," he said, "and as a consequence that has helped keep calm."

Killings of black men in recent years have prompted protests and sometimes violence in cities from Ferguson, Missouri, to Chicago and Baltimore. Police departments across the country have scrutinized how others have reacted to learn how to manage in such times of crisis.

University of Texas-Dallas criminologist and professor John Worrall said Dallas police officials have taken steps to keep their work and data open to the public.

"As big departments go throughout the country, I've been really surprised at how open they've been with their data," Worrall said Tuesday.

The shooting of Jean happened about 10 p.m. Thursday. Within seven hours, police released a statement that the officer erred by entering Jean's apartment. Hall then held a press conference early Friday afternoon during which she acknowledged that "there are more questions than we have answers," but also said authorities were seeking to arrest Guyger for manslaughter. She said the officer's blood was drawn at the scene to be tested for alcohol and drugs, and that the Texas Rangers would conduct an independent investigation. She added that she had spoken to Jean's sister to express condolences to the family.

Police released Guyger's name on Saturday after local media began reporting it, and she was charged with manslaughter Sunday. By Monday, four days after the shooting, Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson gathered at a news conference with members of Jean's family. "My commitment is that there's always going to be equal justice in this county," Johnson told reporters. She said a grand jury would hear the case and could decide on more serious charges.

Mayor Mike Rawlings also quickly reached out to community leaders about the killing of Jean.

Not everyone is pleased with the response in Dallas. Lee Merritt, an attorney for the Jean family, said Guyger should have been arrested the night of the shooting and she should have left the apartment complex in handcuffs. Guyger was free until her arrest on Sunday. She posted bond and was released.

Alex Piquero, professor of criminology at the University of Texas at Dallas, said investigations can be a lengthy, laborious process that may not bring an immediate arrest.

"Whether they charge the person five minutes after it happened, five hours or five days, the outcome is still the same, the charge happened," Piquero told The Associated Press.

The balance between police and the community is a delicate matter in Dallas, where five police officers were killed in 2016 by a gunman who was seeking revenge for police shootings elsewhere that killed or wounded black men. The shootings of the officers galvanized support for law enforcement.

Dallas County also prosecuted former Balch Springs officer Roy Oliver, who was sentenced last month to 15 years in prison in the shooting death of a black teenager. Oliver, a white officer who responded to a house party last year, fired into a car filled with 15-year-old Jordan Edwards and other teens. Oliver had said he feared the car was moving toward and endangering his partner, prompting him to fire. Edwards, who was in the front passenger seat, was shot.

Haynes, the Dallas pastor, said the Oliver case was an important step to instilling the notion that there's equal justice in Dallas County, but he remains cautious.

"I do believe we're finally moving in a positive direction."

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Associated Press writer Jamie Stengle in Dallas contributed to this report.

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Follow David Warren on Twitter: https://twitter.com/WarrenJourno

Brandt Jean, brother of Botham Jean, stands next to his mother, Allison Jean, during a press conference on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, at the Frank Crowley Courts Building in Dallas. Botham Jean was shot and killed by Dallas police officer Amber Guyger in his apartment on Thursday night. (Shaban Athuman/The Dallas Morning News via AP)
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - Five residents of a ramshackle desert compound were indicted Tuesday on firearms and conspiracy charges. Federal prosecutors in New Mexico say the group was preparing for violent attacks on government, military, educational and financial institutions.

Jany Leveille, 35; Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, 40; Hujrah Wahhaj, 37; Subhanah Wahhaj, 35; and Lucas Morton, 40, are scheduled to appear Wednesday in federal court in Albuquerque for arraignment and detention hearings, where public defenders are expected to be appointed to represent them.

The grand jury indictment alleges they transported firearms and ammunition from Georgia to New Mexico in December 2017.

FILE - This Aug. 10, 2018, file photo shows a ramshackle compound in the desert area of Amalia, N.M. Five former residents of the compound in northern New Mexico where a 3-year-old boy's body was found last month are scheduled to appear in federal court on firearms-related charges. A hearing Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018 focuses on allegations against Jany Leveille of illegal possession of firearms and ammunition linked to her unlawful immigration status and conspiracy accusations against the four other defendants. (AP Photo/Brian Skoloff, File)

Prosecutors said the five, all members of an extended family, established a training camp and firing range in Amalia, New Mexico, where they stored firearms and ammunition and engaged in firearms and tactical training "as part of their common plan to prepare for violent attacks."

Eleven children were removed from the squalid compound near the Colorado border during an Aug. 3 raid. Taos County authorities returned three days later and recovered the body of a severely disabled 3-year-old boy who they say was kidnapped by his father, Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, in Georgia.

Leveille is a native of Haiti and the mother of six children taken into state custody during the compound raid, according to authorities who said she has been in the U.S. for more than 20 years after overstaying her non-immigrant visitor visa.

The conspiracy charge alleges the four others conspired to provide Leveille with firearms and ammunition from at least November 2017.

Prosecutors have presented evidence that Siraj Ibn Wahhaj provided some of the children with firearms training, including tactical skills such as speed-loading guns and firing while in motion.

Along with rifles, handguns and ammunition, authorities said they found books on being effective in combat and building untraceable assault-style rifles during the compound raid.

Von Chelet Leveille has said his sister and the rest of the group at the compound were misunderstood and he disputed allegations that the children were being taught to commit school shootings.

He said the two older children asked to be taught to shoot, and that the family's use of firearms was legal and innocent. He also said the group went to the desert because they no longer wanted to live as American Muslims in a society mostly populated by non-Muslims.

FILE - In this Aug. 29,2018, file photo, Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, from left, and Jany Leveille talk with with attorneys Kelly Golightley and Tom Clark after a hearing on a motion to dismiss in the Taos County Courthouse. Federal prosecutors say the FBI has arrested five former residents, including Wahhaj and Leveille, of a ramshackle compound in northern New Mexico on firearms and conspiracy charges as local prosecutors dropped charges in the death of a 3-year-old boy at the property. Taos County District Attorney Donald Gallegos said Friday, Aug. 31, his office will now seek grand jury indictments involving the death. (Eddie Moore/The Albuquerque Journal via AP, Pool, file)

FILE - In this Aug. 13, 2018, file photo, Jany Leveille appears in court during a hearing in Taos, N.M. Five former residents of a ramshackle compound in northern New Mexico where a 3-year-old boy's body was found last month are scheduled to appear in federal court on firearms-related charges. A hearing Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018 focuses on allegations against Leveille of illegal possession of firearms and ammunition linked to her unlawful immigration status and conspiracy accusations against the four other defendants. (Roberto E. Rosales/The Albuquerque Journal via AP, Pool, File)

FILE - In this Aug. 29, 2018, file photo, Jany Leveille, from left, with her attorney Kelly Golightley, and Siraj Ibn Wahhaj with attorney Tom Clark listen to the prosecutor during a hearing on a motion to dismiss in the Taos County Courthouse. Federal prosecutors say the FBI has arrested five former residents, including Leveille and Wahhaj, of a ramshackle compound in northern New Mexico on firearms and conspiracy charges as local prosecutors dropped charges in the death of a 3-year-old boy at the property. Taos County District Attorney Donald Gallegos said Friday, Aug. 31, his office will now seek grand jury indictments involving the death. (Eddie Moore/The Albuquerque Journal via AP, Pool, File)
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A strange thing happened after Neil Armstrong and the Apollo 11 crew returned from the moon with lunar rocks: Many of the mementos given to every U.S. state vanished. Now, after years of sleuthing, a former NASA investigator is closing in on his goal of locating the whereabouts of all 50.

In recent weeks, two of the rocks that disappeared after the 1969 mission were located in Louisiana and Utah, leaving only New York and Delaware with unaccounted-for souvenirs.

Attorney and moon rock hunter Joseph Gutheinz says it "blows his mind," that the rocks were not carefully chronicled and saved by some of the states that received them. But he is hopeful the last two can be located before the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission next summer.

In this Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2018, photo, shows moon rocks encased in acrylic and mounted on a wooden plaque at the Clark Planetarium, in Salt Lake City. A former NASA investigator who has spent more than a decade tracking missing moon rocks is closing in on his goal of finding all 50 lunar samples gifted to U.S. states after Neil Armstrong's first steps on the moon. In recent weeks, two more of the moon rocks that dropped off the radar after the 1969 Apollo 11 mission have been located in Louisiana and Utah. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

"It's a tangible piece of history," he said. "Neil Armstrong's first mission ... was to reach down and grab some rocks and dust in case they needed to make an emergency takeoff."

President Richard Nixon's administration presented the tiny lunar samples to all 50 states and 135 countries, but few were officially recorded and most disappeared, Gutheinz said.

Each state got a tiny sample encased in acrylic and mounted on a wooden plaque, along with the state flag. Some were placed in museums, while others went on display in state capitols.

But almost no state entered the rocks collected by Armstrong and fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin into archival records, and Gutheinz said many lost track of them.

When Gutheinz started leading the effort to find them in 2002, he estimates 40 states had lost track of the rocks.

"I think part of it was, we honestly believed that going back to the moon was going to be a regular occurrence," Gutheinz said.

But there were only five more journeys before the last manned moon landing, Apollo 17, in 1972.

Of the Apollo 11 rocks given to other countries, about 70 percent remain unaccounted for, he said.

The U.S. government also sent out a second set of goodwill moon rocks to the states and other nations after the Apollo 17 mission, and many of those are missing as well, he said.

NASA did not track their whereabouts after giving them to the Nixon administration for distribution, said chief historian Bill Barry, but added the space agency would be happy to see them located.

Gutheinz began his career as an investigator for NASA, where he found illicit sellers asking millions for rocks on the black market. Authentic moon rocks are considered national treasures and cannot legally be sold in the U.S., he said.

He became aware while at NASA that the gifts to the states were missing, but only began his hunt after leaving the agency.

Now a lawyer in the Houston area, he's also a college instructor who's enlisted the help of his students. They record their findings of the whereabouts of the discovered moon gems in a database.

Many of the Apollo 11 rocks have turned up in unexpected places: with ex-governors in West Virginia and Colorado, in a military-artifact storage building in Minnesota and with a former crab boat captain from TV's "Deadliest Catch" in Alaska.

In New York, officials who oversee the state museum have no record of that state's Apollo 11 rock. In Delaware, the sample was stolen from its state museum on Sept. 22, 1977. Police were contacted, but it was never found.

The U.S. Virgin Islands territory, meanwhile, cannot confirm that they ever received a goodwill rock, though the University of the Virgin Islands later received Apollo 11 rocks for scientific research, said chief conservator Julio Encarnacion III.

In other states, though Gutheinz has recently hit paydirt. The Advocate newspaper in Baton Rouge located Louisiana's Apollo 11 moon rock in early August after a call from Gutheinz.

In Utah, the division of state history had no record of the sample, but The Associated Press confirmed it was in storage at Salt Lake City's Clark Planetarium.

Officials there may bring it out as part of celebrations recognizing the Apollo 11 anniversary next year, something Gutheinz hopes to see everywhere.

"The people of the world deserve this," he said. "They deserve to see something that our astronauts accomplished and be a part it."

In this Thursday, Aug. 23, 2018, photo, Lindsie Smith, from the Clark Planetarium, holds moon rocks encased in acrylic and mounted on a wooden plaque at the Clark Planetarium, in Salt Lake City. A former NASA investigator who has spent more than a decade tracking missing moon rocks is closing in on his goal of finding all 50 lunar samples gifted to U.S. states after Neil Armstrong's first steps on the moon. In recent weeks, two more of the moon rocks that dropped off the radar after the 1969 Apollo 11 mission have been located in Louisiana and Utah. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

In this Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2018, photo, shows moon rocks encased in acrylic at the Clark Planetarium, in Salt Lake City. A former NASA investigator who has spent more than a decade tracking missing moon rocks is closing in on his goal of finding all 50 lunar samples gifted to U.S. states after Neil Armstrong's first steps on the moon. Each state got a tiny sample encased in acrylic and mounted on a wooden plaque, along with the state flag. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) - Heads have been rolling in the Algerian army, the North African nation's most respected institution, and in other security services, with generals in top posts fired - without explanation - at a rate never before seen.

The across-the-board changes, and the silence, are highlighting the opaque nature of the nation's power structure.

Since late June, nearly all top officials in the security hierarchy have been replaced. The changes are especially dramatic in a country with the best-equipped military in North Africa and the Sahel that has honed its skills in fighting Islamic extremists. Today, Algeria is a bulwark against extremism for the West.

FILE - In this Nov. 21, 2005 file photo, Algerian National Popular Army Chief of Staff, General Salah Ahmed Gaid, right, gestures as he speaks with Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika in Hassi Bahbah, Algeria. Heads have been rolling in the Algerian army, the North African nation's most respected institution, and in other security services, with generals in top posts fired _ without explanation _ at a rate never before seen. (AP Photo/Ouahab Hebbat, File)

Yet the Algerian press, which habitually decodes the often inscrutable world of politics, has been unable to decipher the reason for the clearout.

FILE - In this Sunday, July 1, 2018 file picture Algerian chief of staff Gen. Ahmed Gaid Salah presides a military parade in Algiers, Algeria. Heads have been rolling in the Algerian army, the North African nation's most respected institution, and in other security services, with generals in top posts fired _ without explanation _ at a rate never before seen. (AP Photo/Anis Belghoul, File)
BRUSSELS (AP) - The Latest on Europe's response to mass migration (all times local):

4:30 p.m.

Malta is contesting the Italian premier's assertion that it had responsibility for a group of nearly 180 migrants eventually picked up by an Italian coast guard ship and brought to Italy.

FILE - In this Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017 file photo, a refugee stands next to a pool of mud at Moria refugee camp on the eastern Greek island of Lesbos. Greek regional authorities are threatening to shut an infamous migrant camp on the Aegean Sea island of Lesbos unless the government takes quick action to improve conditions there. The northern Aegean regional authority says the Moria camp is "unsuitable and a threat to public health and the environment." (Petros Tsakmakis/InTime News via AP, file)

The Maltese government called Giuseppe Conte's remarks while testifying before lawmakers on Wednesday "inaccurate."

It said in a statement: "The Italian government clearly bears full responsibility for the disembarkation" in Italy under international and European Union law.

The government says the boat carrying the migrants last month had refused assistance, and "given that it was on the high seas, Malta could not intercept the vessel with force."

It added that Maltese authorities continued to monitor it closely.

The migrants were blocked from getting off the boat until other EU nations agreed to take a number of them.

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10:25 a.m.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker wants to beef up the EU's coast guard and asylum agency to better police Europe's outside borders and speed the deportation of unauthorized migrants.

Juncker told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg, France, Wednesday that "external borders must be protected more effectively."

He says the executive Commission is proposing a standing corps for the border and coast guard agency numbering 10,000 staff, including guards and migration experts.

The force would be fully operational by 2020 and Juncker says it should be funded by some 2.2 billion euros in EU money.

EU nations still have to endorse the proposal. Many nations have expressed concern at the idea of having their borders policed by staff from other countries, even if they are European partners.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker delivers his State of Union speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France, Wednesday, Sept.12, 2018. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias)

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, center, delivers his State of Union speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France, Wednesday, Sept.12, 2018. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias)

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker delivers his State of Union speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France, Wednesday, Sept.12, 2018. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias)
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) - A visit to Guatemala's congress by President Jimmy Morales has been accompanied by a massive security deployment amid protests.

Thousands of police and at least 50 heavily-armed soldiers set a security cordon around the congress that greatly exceeded normal.

About 8,000 protesters had been calling for Morales' resignation, expressing discontent over his decision not to renew the mandate of a United Nation's-backed anti-corruption commission. The commission was investigating alleged campaign violations by Morales.

Police take position around Guatemalan Congress during a protest against the government of President Jimmy Morales, in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. President Morales had announced that he would not renew the U.N.-backed commission investigating corruption in the country for another two-year mandate, giving the commission until the end of its current term in September 2019 to transfer all its functions to Guatemalan institutions. The banner atop the doorway reads in Spanish "Quit now. Clean up congress." (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)

A day earlier, protesters confronted some government officials, which may have led to the tightened security Wednesday. Faced with the stronger security, protesters decided to move elsewhere.

Gilder Guzman, leader of Guatemala's largest farmworker organization, says the government's response was exaggerated, as protests were peaceful and this constitutes an abuse of power.

Demosntrators protest against the government of President Jimmy Morales and lawmakers, in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. President Morales had announced that he would not renew the U.N.-backed commission investigating corruption in the country for another two-year mandate, giving the commission until the end of its current term in September 2019 to transfer all its functions to Guatemalan institutions. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)

Women shout slogans against the government of President Jimmy Morales, in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. President Morales had announced that he would not renew the U.N.-backed commission investigating corruption in the country for another two-year mandate, giving the commission until the end of its current term in September 2019 to transfer all its functions to Guatemalan institutions. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)

Guatemalan Health Minister, left, Carlos Soto is escorted by his bodyguards as they are covered in some kind of liquid thrown by protesters at his exit from the Guatemalan Congress, during a protest against the government of President Jimmy Morales, in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. President Morales had announced that he would not renew the U.N.-backed commission investigating corruption in the country for another two-year mandate, giving the commission until the end of its current term in September 2019 to transfer all its functions to Guatemalan institutions. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)

Youths shout slogans against the government of President Jimmy Morales, in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. President Morales had announced that he would not renew the U.N.-backed commission investigating corruption in the country for another two-year mandate, giving the commission until the end of its current term in September 2019 to transfer all its functions to Guatemalan institutions. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)

Police take position around Guatemalan Congress during a protest against the government of President Jimmy Morales, in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. President Morales had announced that he would not renew the U.N.-backed commission investigating corruption in the country for another two-year mandate, giving the commission until the end of its current term in September 2019 to transfer all its functions to Guatemalan institutions. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)

Indigenous women shout slogans against the government of President Jimmy Morales, in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. President Morales had announced that he would not renew the U.N.-backed commission investigating corruption in the country for another two-year mandate, giving the commission until the end of its current term in September 2019 to transfer all its functions to Guatemalan institutions. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)

Youths shout slogans against the government of President Jimmy Morales, in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. President Morales had announced that he would not renew the U.N.-backed commission investigating corruption in the country for another two-year mandate, giving the commission until the end of its current term in September 2019 to transfer all its functions to Guatemalan institutions. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)

Youths shout slogans slogans against the government of President Jimmy Morales, in Guatemala City, Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018. President Morales had announced that he would not renew the U.N.-backed commission investigating corruption in the country for another two-year mandate, giving the commission until the end of its current term in September 2019 to transfer all its functions to Guatemalan institutions. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)
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The case against a white Dallas police officer who shot and killed a black neighbour in his own home will be presented to a grand jury, which could decide on more serious charges than manslaughter.

Dallas County district attorney Faith Johnson said her office will collect evidence surrounding Thursdays fatal shooting by officer Amber Guyger, who told authorities she mistook her neighbours apartment for her own.

Guyger was arrested on Sunday night and booked into jail in neighbouring Kaufman County before being released on bond.

Lawyers for the victims family questioned why it took three days for Guyger to be charged. One said she should have been in handcuffs on the night of the shooting instead of three days later.

The family of Botham Jean (Shaban Athuman/Dallas Morning News/AP)

They also wondered why, based on news reports, Guyger was so quick to use deadly force against 26-year-old Botham Jean.

Asked why Guyger was allowed to surrender somewhere other than Dallas Countys jail, Ms Johnson said the decision was made by the Texas Rangers, who are also investigating.

Guyger had just ended a 15-hour shift when she returned in uniform to the South Side Flats apartment complex.

She parked on the fourth floor instead of the third, where she lived, according to an affidavit filed for the officers arrest warrant, possibly suggesting she was confused or disoriented.

When she put her key in the apartment door that was unlocked and slightly ajar, it opened. Inside, the lights were off. Then she saw a figure in the darkness, the affidavit said. The officer concluded that her apartment was being burgled and gave verbal commands to the figure, which ignored them. She then drew her weapon and fired twice, the affidavit said.

When she turned on the lights, she realised she was in the wrong unit, according to the affidavit, which appeared to be based almost entirely upon the officers account.

Dallas County medical examiners office said Mr Jean died of a gunshot wound to the chest. His death was ruled a homicide.

His mother said investigators had not given her family an account of what happened. Allison Jean told a news conference that she asked many questions but was told there are no answers yet.

The family hired lawyer Benjamin Crump, best known for representing the families of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown.

Black people in America have been killed by police in some of the most unbelievable manners, Mr Crump said, citing driving while black in our cars and walking while black in our neighbourhoods.

Now, he said, we are being killed living while black when we are in our apartments.

On the day after the shooting, Police Chief U Renee Hall said her department was seeking manslaughter charges against Guyger, an officer for four year. But Mr Hall said on Saturday that the Texas Rangers asked her department to hold off because they had learned new information and wanted to investigate further before a warrant was issued.

The district attorney will also have the option of presenting more serious charges to the grand jury.

Guygers blood was drawn at the scene to be tested for alcohol and drugs, Ms Hall said, but authorities have not released results.

Allison Jean wondered whether race could have been a factor. Her son grew up in the Caribbean island nation of St Lucia before attending college in Arkansas.

If it was a white man, would it have been different? Would she have reacted differently? Ms Jean said.
Theresa Mays Chequers plan is a very serious breach of trust with the British public, a Tory grandee has claimed.

Leading Brexiteer Sir Bill Cash told MPs the Prime Ministers blueprint for Brexit succeeded only in undermining the referendum result.

The European Scrutiny Committee chairman made the comments in the Commons after former Brexit minister Steve Baker had warned the plan could cause a catastrophic split in the Conservative Party.

Mr Baker, a leading figure in the pro-Brexit Tory European Research Group, told the Press Association he was gravely concerned about a potential schism in Tory ranks if the Prime Minister did not change direction.

Sir Bill echoed the warning in the Commons, telling ministers: It was Chequers that did it, up to Chequers I was 100% behind the Government.

This is an unacceptable arrangement, he said. I regard this as a very, very serious breach of trust.

He added: I think a lot of people outside, what we call the punters, the real people of this country, know and understand it.

We decided on that 26 June 2016 to leave the European Union, we did not agree that we were going to come back in some form of legal reentry to satisfy the whims of the EU and particularity those who dominate it most, namely Germany itself.

Sir Bill Cash was critical of the plans (PA)

Conservative former cabinet minister John Redwood also raised concerns over the Chequers proposals, as MPs debated legislating for the withdrawal agreement.

Mr Redwood said the Government needed to make it absolutely crystal clear that theres no 39 billion unless something really impressive is available.

Mr Redwood added: When I go shopping, I dont go into the shop and put 39 down by the till and say very politely Oh, by the way, Ive got 39 there for you, I thought you might like it, is there something youve got I might like so I dont go out the loser from this shop?.

He said this is what the Government appeared to have done, noting: I am afraid when I look at what the EU has in their shop, I dont really see anything Id pay 39 billion for.

Mr Redwood said Canada did not pay anything for its free trade deal although SNP MP Philippa Whitford (Central Ayrshire) insisted the cash was the equivalent of ensuring you pay your tab before leaving.

In light of the comments from the ERG members Labour MP Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) questioned how any Brexit deal would proceed, saying: Isnt the reality the Prime Ministers Chequers deal is dead, were heading for a disastrous no deal and thats exactly why we need a peoples vote on the deal?

Brexit Minister Suella Braverman replied: I disagree with you on your suggestion for a second referendum  that would be a complete betrayal of the voters because we had that exercise and that was two years ago.

Im optimistic were going to strike a mutually beneficial free trade agreement with the EU which honours the result of the referendum, retains the territorial integrity of our country and which enables a smooth withdrawal from the EU.

Shadow Brexit minister Matthew Pennycook later demanded clarity over the final deal this autumn, instead of a blind Brexit.

He said: Theres every incentive, practically and politically, for the government to come back with a withdrawal agreement that contains political agreement thats highly ambiguous.

To do so would be unacceptable. A vague political declaration would not be a solution to the problems were grappling with, it would be tantamount to avoiding the problem altogether and would leave us in a far weaker position.

Mrs Braverman claimed the withdrawal agreement was part of the final deal package that would be put to parliament for the meaningful vote.

Arch-Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg, chairman of the European Research Group behind the chuck Chequers campaign, said the current deal left the UK like Gulliver tied down by Lilliputians.

It is absolutely the vassal state, he said. This great nation state tied down by the petty bureaucrats running all over us, tying us down with ropes, so we have to do whatever the EU says we have to do for an implementation period.

Our laws will be a made by a foreign body in which we have no say, no vote and no association.

Countries have become colonies before but normally it is with a little bit of encouragement, at the end of a bayonet or a spear or some such  its most unusual to volunteer to allow a foreign organisation to make your laws. Unprecedented.

Former Europe minister Chris Bryant later called on the Government to seek to extend Article 50.

The Labour MP said: They should certainly be getting on with doing that because Article 50 was crazy to have started it, but it would be even crazier to stick with that date if you cannot produce proper legislation so there is legal certainty in the United Kingdom.

Mr Bryant also spoke of his anger at David Cameron and what he described as the ex-prime ministers appeasement of the far right.

The Rhondda MP said: He appeased the far right in this country, of course lots of people are always tempted by appeasement of the far right  they make a lot of noise.

The message that weve known for centuries is surely if you try to appease somebody all they do is they consume you, and thats exactly what happened to David Cameron and thats why we had the referendum in the first place.
Businessman Sean Gallagher and Senator Joan Freeman have secured nominations to challenge in Irelands presidential election.

The two hopefuls have gained the required four nominations from local councils and now take their place on the ballot paper beside incumbent President Michael D Higgins in Octobers poll.

Leitrim, Mayo, Roscommon and Wexford county councils all backed Dragons Den star Mr Gallagher to run in the election.

The 2011 runner-up declared his intention to run again two weeks ago following weeks of speculation.

Senator Freeman secured the crucial fourth nomination from Galway City Council on Monday evening, having earned the backing of Fingal and Galway County councils earlier in the day.

She was nominated by Cork County Council last week.

Businessman Gavin Duffy, another star of Irelands version of Dragons Den, secured his second endorsement after Carlow County Council backed his bid on Monday.

Former Dragons Den star and businessman Gavin Duffy also secured his second endorsement (Niall Carson/PA)

As a sitting president, Mr Higgins was able to declare himself as a candidate, without the need to secure the backing of political representatives.

Senator Freeman appeared in Fingal County Council alongside artist Kevin Sharkey on Monday afternoon.

They were the only two candidates who appeared before the council after presidential hopeful Gemma ODoherty pulled out an hour before the session began.

She was due to face questions from Councillor Jimmy Guerin, brother of murdered journalist Veronica, after she suggested the state was involved in her killing.

Mr Guerin opened up the session by criticising Ms ODohertys comments as offensive and hurtful.

Veronica Guerin, who was shot dead in a gangland-style `execution killing (PA)

In a six-minute speech, Mr Guerin said: These hurtful, poisonous, unfounded allegations that Ms ODoherty makes insult not only Veronicas memory but the Gardai who literally put their lives on the line and challenged the gangs that were responsible for her killing.

It insults the thousands of ordinary people who contacted our family and were a great sense of support in a difficult time.

He said there was no conspiracy or state involvement in Veronicas murder, adding: Its 22 years since Veronica was brutally murdered.

Time doesnt make it easier, but it hurts when a presidential candidate, who in my view is going nowhere, for cheap publicity tries to speak ill of my sister and makes unfounded allegations against her and this state.

He added: For years I ignored Ms ODoherty, but now she is seeking a nomination to be president it makes it a lot more difficult to do.

I would rather Ms ODoherty use something else to gain publicity. I would ask her to allow my sister to rest in peace.

His speech was met with a rapturous applause from the council chamber.

In her address to the council, Ms Freeman spoke of her work at Pieta House and mental health.

I stood down from Pieta House three years ago  Ive served my country and I want to continue to serve it in the biggest possible way, she said.

Senator Joan Freeman is one step closer to joining Mr Gallagher on the ballot paper (Niall Carson/PA)

Kevin Sharkey spoke of immigration, homelessness and US President Donald Trump during his pitch to councillors.

Despite there being only two candidates who appeared before the council, Mr Sharkey failed to be backed by one councillor.

Ms Freeman said she had the energy and power to fight the election campaign, but added she will have to rely on donations to fund it.

People who believe in me will help me get over the finish line, she added.

I think President Michael D Higgins is my competitor, hes much loved and thats exactly right.

What Im saying is that maybe we should be changing our focus, Michael D Higgins brought dignity to this country and was perfect for the time but our electorate will always vote for the President that is needed for that time.

I put my head above the parapet simply because I believe in what I am trying to do, I know I will be scrutinised but I believe so passionately in what I am doing.
A man was shot at by a masked attacker as he walked in an area of east Belfast, police have said.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) are treating the incident as attempted murder.

The man had been walking along the Connswater Greenway between Orangefield and Clarawood when the shots are reported to have been fired.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland are treating the incident as attempted murder (Paul Faith/PA)

The incident happened on Sunday evening between 8pm and 8.30pm.

The man was not injured.

A spokesman for the PSNI said it is lucky that no one was killed or seriously injured in the incident.

Officers have urged any potential witnesses to come forward, particularly a woman they believe was walking her dog in the area at the time.

We received a report that as a man was walking along the Connswater Greenway last night between 8pm and 8.30pm, from the direction of Orangefield towards Clarawood, he was shot at by a masked male with what was described as a revolver. It was reported that two shots were fired, a police spokesman said.

The man was not injured and he was able to flee to safety.

The assailant was described as having dark bushy eyebrows and wore a dark-coloured snood that was covering his face.

This was a completely reckless attack, and we are lucky no-one was seriously hurt or killed.

We are treating this as attempted murder, and our enquiries are continuing.

We are keen to speak with a female who was walking with a dog on the Greenway around the time the incident occurred. She is described as walking what was described as a Bichon Frise-type dog. We would ask this woman to get in touch with us.

I also want to appeal to anyone who was in the area and saw what happened, or anyone who has information which may assist our investigation to contact detectives at Musgrave on 101.
A man has been arrested after a woman was stabbed in the back.

Peter Morley, 35, has been detained on suspicion of attempted murder and held in custody at a south London police station.

The victim, believed to be in her 30s, was left with multiple stab wounds after the attack.

Police wanted to speak to Peter Morley (Metropolitan Police/PA)

Her injuries were not life-threatening, Scotland Yard said.

Emergency calls were made following the attack on Anglesea Road, Woolwich, south-east London, at around 9.30am on Monday.

Police at the scene on Anglesea Road (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

The victim, who knew Morley, was treated by medical staff and then taken by Londons air ambulance to a major trauma hospital.

Officers closed off roads and stepped up patrols following the incident.

A police cordon in Anglesea Road (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

A spokeswoman for Londons air ambulance said: After treatment on scene the patient was transferred by air to a major trauma hospital in London.

Anyone with information is asked to call Greenwich CID by calling 101 and quoting reference CAD1905 of September 10.
Americas long-running reluctant relationship with the International Criminal Court has spilled into open hostility amid threats of sanctions if it investigates US troops in Afghanistan.

National security adviser John Bolton denounced the legitimacy of The Hague-based court, which was created in 2002 to prosecute war crimes and crimes of humanity and genocide in areas where perpetrators might not otherwise face justice.

It has 123 state parties that recognise its jurisdiction.

Mr Boltons speech, on the eve of the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, came as an ICC judge was expected to soon announce a decision on a request from prosecutors to formally open an investigation into allegations of war crimes committed by Afghan national security forces, Taliban and Haqqani network militants, and US forces and intelligence in Afghanistan since May 2003.

John Bolton speaks at a Federalist Society lunch (Andrew Harnik/AP)

The accusations against US personnel include torture and illegal imprisonment.

The International Criminal Court unacceptably threatens American sovereignty and US national security interests, Mr Bolton told the Federalist Society, a conservative Washington-based think tank.

He also took aim at Palestinian efforts to press war crime charges against Israel for its policies in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza.

He said the US would use any means necessary to protect Americans and citizens of allied countries, like Israel, from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court.

The White House said that to the extent permitted by US law, the Trump administration would ban ICC judges and prosecutors from entering the United States, sanction their funds in the US financial system and prosecute them in the US criminal system.

We will not co-operate with the ICC, Mr Bolton said, adding that for all intents and purposes, the ICC is already dead to us.

It was an extraordinary rebuke condemned by human rights groups who complained it was another Trump administration rollback of US leadership in demanding accountability for gross abuses.

Any US action to scuttle ICC inquiries on Afghanistan and Palestine would demonstrate that the administration was more concerned with coddling serial rights abusers  and deflecting scrutiny of US conduct in Afghanistan  than supporting impartial justice, said Human Rights Watch.

The American Civil Liberties Union, which represents several people who claim they were detained and tortured in Afghanistan from 2003 to 2008 and could be victims or witnesses in any ICC prosecution, said Mr Boltons threats were straight out of an authoritarian playbook.

This misguided and harmful policy will only further isolate the United States from its closest allies and give solace to war criminals and authoritarian regimes seeking to evade international accountability, the ACLU said.

The ICC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Since its creation, the court has filed charges against dozens of suspects including former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed by rebels before he could be arrested, and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who is accused of charges including genocide in Darfur.

Al-Bashir remains at large, as does Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony, who was among the first rebels charged by the court in 2005. The court has convicted just eight defendants.

The court has been hobbled by the refusal of the US, Russia, China and other major nations to join.
Donald Trump has received a request from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for a follow-up to their historic June summit, and planning is in motion to make it happen.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said no details had been finalised, but the US president had received a letter from Mr Kim which she described as very warm, very positive.

The White House will not release the full letter unless Mr Kim agrees it can be made public, she said.

The primary purpose of the letter was to request and look to schedule another meeting with the president, which we are open to and are already in the process of co-ordinating that, Ms Sanders said at her first press briefing in nearly three weeks.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders addresses the press at the White House (Evan Vucci/AP)

She cited the letter as further evidence of progress in relations between the leaders.

Relations between the two leaders have seemed to ebb and flow since Mr Trump became the first sitting US president to meet a North Korean leader.

Their historic one-day summit in June in Singapore was held to discuss denuclearising the Korean peninsula, and Mr Trump emerged from their talks full of praise for the authoritarian Mr Kim.

Mr Trump recently called off a planned visit by secretary of state Mike Pompeo to North Korea, citing lack of progress towards eliminating its nuclear arsenal.

But on Sunday the president offered fresh praise for Mr Kim following a North Korean military parade that, unlike past events, downplayed the missiles and nuclear weapons that brought North Korea to the brink of military conflict with the US just a year ago.

This is a big and very positive statement from North Korea, Mr Trump tweeted on Sunday about the parade.

Ms Sanders also cited the parade, saying: The recent parade in North Korea, for once, was not about their nuclear arsenal, characterising the event as a sign of good faith.

Mr Trump, she said, had achieved tremendous success with his policies so far towards North Korea and this letter was further evidence of progress in that relationship.
Endangered water voles are being brought back to a stretch of river where they have not been seen for more than 30 years, the National Trust said.

Some 150 of the mammals, immortalised as the character Ratty in Wind In The Willows, are being released on the River Aller in the National Trusts Holnicote Estate on Exmoor in Somerset, where they were last seen in the 1980s.

Their return to the estate is part of the charitys 10 million Riverlands project to restore five rivers across England and Wales, and it is hoped the voles will boost the wildlife of the waterways running through the Exmoor property.

The species is thought to have been decimated by mink (Ben Birchall/PA)

Water voles have seen numbers plummet across the country in the past few decades in the face of loss of suitable habitat and because they are preyed on by invasive American mink which escaped or were set free from fur farms.

They are thought to have vanished from Holnicote because of the mink, which then died out themselves because they had eaten all the available prey of water voles.

Surveying of the streams in the estate in the past few months has revealed no presence of mink, the National Trust said.

Mr Raeder said volunteers will help monitor numbers (Ben Birchall/PA)

The 150 water voles have been bred from British animals and are being released in groups of siblings and in breeding pairs at six sites on the river, from where they will be able to spread along the streams of the catchment.

A further 150 will be released in the spring.

Alex Raeder, National Trust South West conservation manager, said: I remember being enchanted by these creatures as a child, and hugely welcome their return.

They were once a vital part of the Holnicote ecosystem, and could be again.

A further 150 will be released in spring

This ambitious project not only brings back to its rightful home a much-loved small animal, which sadly became extinct due to human activity, but also adds to the whole wealth of wildlife and enjoyment of this wild and stunning estate.

In true Wind In The Willows-style, these voles should soon be busy burrowing into the muddy banks and creating more natural-looking edges to streams with shady pools that are great for so many other small creatures.

Rangers, vole-unteers, students and the public will help to monitor the new arrivals, which join wildlife such as otters, kingfishers, dippers and grey wagtails along the river.

The reintroduction is part of a scheme on the Holnicote estate (Ben Birchall/PA)

They will look out for and record tell-tale signs of the water voles, including the plopping sound of them jumping into water, droppings, burrows and grass blades nibbled off at a 45-degree angle.

The reintroduction is part of a scheme on the Holnicote estate by the National Trust and tenant farmers to improve agriculture for the benefit of wildlife and to use natural methods in the Porlock Vale catchment to reduce flooding.

It is the trusts first reintroduction of water voles in the South West, but follows a similar scheme by the charity to release hundreds of the mammals at Malham Tarn in the Yorkshire Dales over the past few years.
Researchers have found that many children are suffering from an undiagnosed developmental condition which impacts on their ability to learn mathematics.

Experts at Queens University in Belfast carried out the research on the prevalence of Specific Learning Disorder in Mathematics (SLDM), which is also known as dyscalculia.

Dr Kinga Morsanyi and the team from the School of Psychology studied the mathematics performance of 2,421 primary school children over a number of school years.

Researchers found the condition could impact on a childs ability to learn mathematics (Dave Thompson/PA)

The researchers said they expected the number of pupils with dyscalculia to be similar to those with dyslexia, however from the children studied, 108 children had received an official diagnosis of dyslexia, but just one child had officially been diagnosed with dyscalculia.

Based on the results of the study, the researchers found 112 children who are likely to have the condition.

Dr Morsanyi said: In society, there is sadly a widespread notion that you need a special talent to be good at maths, and that struggling with maths is normal for some people, but this is not the case and its not something we would accept if a pupil was unable to read.

The study, which was funded by The Nuffield Foundation, found that in almost all cases children who appear to have dyscalculia are not being diagnosed.

Dr Morsanyi added: Within the sample of children with dyscalculia, 80% of the children have other developmental conditions, such as dyslexia or speech and language difficulties.

As the current practice is to assign one diagnostic label to each child, this could partially explain why mathematics difficulties are so often ignored.

Based on our results, it seems likely that children with persistent, serious difficulties with mathematics, unlike children with dyslexia, do not receive specialist support.

A child with dyslexia is more than 100 times as likely to receive an official diagnosis and educational support.

Dr Morsanyi said the study shows that girls tended to have higher IQs and English performance than boys.

She added: So a similar performance in maths could actually be interpreted as a relative underperformance in the case of girls.

This raises the possibility that girls with maths difficulties are particularly likely to not receive sufficient educational support.

It is important to raise awareness of dyscalculia, as numeracy difficulties often lead to problems in later life, including greatly reduced employment opportunities, increased health risks and an increased risk of involvement with the criminal justice system.

For example, 65% of prisoners have number work difficulties, whereas the figure for literacy difficulties in the prison population is lower, at 48%.
Many patients with healthcare associated infections (HAIs) like MRSA have reported feeling like a leper or dirty after being diagnosed, according to a new study.

Researchers at Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) looked at 17 studies from five different countries during a major review.

They focused on the experiences of patients with five common types of HAIs, including Clostridium difficile (C. diff), MRSA and surgical wound infections.

Professor Kay Currie said patients with HAIs can feel isolated (GCU/PA)

They concluded that the consequences of HAIs reach well beyond patients physical health, affecting their relationships and social lives.

Some people have been left too scared to go to the hairdresser or the gym because they fear they may pass on the infection.

The researchers also found that some healthcare providers distanced themselves from patients who are carrying organisms that can lead to infections.

Lead study author Kay Currie, professor of nursing and applied healthcare research at GCU, said: Within the review we looked at the experiences of people who were ill with infections such as surgical wound infections or Clostridium difficile (C. diff), which was associated with 18 deaths at the Vale of Leven Hospital in Dunbartonshire between 2007 and 2008.

We also looked at people who are colonised  which means they are carrying antibiotic-resistant organisms such as Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), and Extended-Spectrum Beta-lactamases(ESBL) in or on their bodies but have no symptoms.

These people said they felt dirty, like a leper or having the plague because of the stronger stigma response from healthcare professionals  they get put into an isolation room and feel that everyone treats them as though they are really contagious and a real threat.

However, theyve probably had this organism sitting in their bodies for years at home with no ill-effects to themselves, and when they go back into the community they are not a significant risk.

The real threat is when they are in hospital and these resistant organisms spread to vulnerable patients who can get a really life-threatening infection.

They also reported leaving hospital with a lack of information about what level of precaution they needed to take.

Some people said they were scared to go to the hairdresser, the gym or swimming for fear of passing on the infection. It had a real impact on their lives. This fear also affected personal and workplace relationships.

The findings have paved the way for what is thought to be Scotlands first in-depth study into how patients across the country cope with HAIs and how they are treated by healthcare professionals.

Prof Currie is now leading a study which is part of the Evaluation of Cost of Nosocomial Infection (ECONI) study, led by Professor Jacqui Reilly at GCU, examining the hospital, community and wider societal cost of HAI.

The national point prevalence survey (PPS), published last May, indicated the prevalence of HAI in acute hospitals in Scotland was 4.5%, which was significantly lower than the previous five years but still represents one in 22 patients at any one time, or 55,500 infections every year, GCU said.

Prof Reilly said: Healthcare associated infections (HAI) are an unintended consequence of healthcare and represent a significant threat to patient safety and to safe care, wherever that is delivered.

There are also wider impacts for community care provisions and wider societal costs. The ECONI study is aiming to quantify these impacts and costs for the first time.
Supermarket Iceland has started selling pre-packaged bananas in a recycled paper band in a move it says will soon be saving 10 million plastic bags a year.

The new packaging has launched in three Iceland stores as an initial trial  and will extend to a further 120 stores later this week, before a national rollout by the end of the year.

The retailer said a total of 420 million packs of bananas were sold in the UK each year and urged other supermarkets to follow its lead.

Icelands new banana packaging. (Iceland/PA)

The newly packaged bananas are the first product in any major UK supermarket to bear the Plastic Free Trust Mark, launched by campaign group A Plastic Planet earlier this year.

Iceland said the move was part of its commitment to remove plastic from all of its own-label packaging by 2023.

Iceland managing director Richard Walker said: People have become so used to buying their products wrapped in plastic, or indeed using plastic bags for loose produce, and this has to stop if we are to turn down the tap on plastics.

This move alone will have a significant impact on our plastics consumption and is one of the first of many solutions that are in development. Our customers support our move to reduce single use plastic and we are pleased to share this important milestone, with many more to come.

Waitrose replaced plastic bags with a sticky band on its Duchy Organic brand of bananas last month, saying the move would save eight tonnes of plastic a year.

It said the band was a temporary step before it introduces compostable bags for Waitrose & Partners Duchy bananas in a few months.
On July 30, the Indian high commissioner to Guyana, V Mahalingam, visited the twin island country of Antigua and Barbuda for the third time to personally hand over the second extradition request against absconding diamantaire Mehul Choksi. Mahalingam met top representatives of the Antiguan government, including the Prime Minister, Antigua Gaston Browne.

For those who dont follow cases involving extradition procedures and multiple jurisdictions regularly, its not a usual affair for a high commissioner to meet a head of another state and hand over an extradition request in a closed door meeting  usually, these matters are handled between ministries at a bureaucratic level.

#WATCH Antigua: PNB Scam accused Mehul Choksi says, "all the allegations leveled by ED are false and baseless." pic.twitter.com/hkanruj9wl  ANI (@ANI) September 11, 2018

Since then, the request for Choksis extradition has been pending with the office of the director of public prosecutor of Antigua. Even a request by Indian agencies to issue an Interpol Red Corner Notice against Choksi has not yielded results.

As of now, Mehul Choksi is the only absconding major player in the Punjab National Bank fraud case who doesnt have an Interpol notice against his name, and the road to his extradition is going to be extremely tough for the Indian agencies.

Here is why:

His Antiguan citizenship: According to his appeal filed before a court in Antigua, Mehul Choksi claims that he acquired Antiguan citizenship following the Antiguan law, and hence, the Antiguan government is duty-bound to protect rights of its citizen, over a request made by a foreign government. This is something the Antiguan prime minister reportedly has also agreed with.

Learning from Mallya: The legal team representing Mehul Choksi has already made its representation before the Interpol, which has ensured that Choksi escapes a Red Corner Notice, despite a hard case put forward by Indian authorities. Among other arguments, Choksis legal team has picked a few leaves straight out of Vijay Mallyas books, where he had cited the poor condition of Indian jails, the alleged political motivation behind the charges and forceful seizure of assets as a defence argument.

Mehul Choksi seems to have borrowed a few tricks on how to escape extradition from Vijay Mallya. (Photo: Reuters/file)

Local laws: Choksi has even filed a preemptive petition before a court in Antigua and Barbuda. This makes sure that even if the Antiguan government agrees to extradite him, Choksi could take legal recourse under local laws.

Antigua and Barbudas economic concerns: A member of Choksis legal team recently told India Today that they have been assured that the government of Antigua would not take any adverse decision in this case. This confidence comes from the economic structure of Antigua and Barbuda. A large part of country's GDP relies on the investment made by foreign investors under Citizenship by Investment program. Mehul Choksi used the same scheme to get citizenship of the Caribbean island nation. If the Antiguan government doesnt appear to be protecting such investors, it will send the wrong signals to other potential foreign investors, affecting the economy.

Choksi could flee Antigua too: Choksis Antiguan passport makes sure that he can travel visa-free to 140 countries. In the absence of an Interpol Red Corner Notice, there is nothing that stops him from leaving Antigua at his will. This makes life more complicated for Indian agencies, considering that should a stage come where India convinces Antigua to deport Choksi, he may well fly out of there in time.

But all is not lost

The Indian government has realised the need for some out-of-the-box solutions in this case. While the Central Bureau of Investigation is trying hard to convince the Interpol to issue a Red Corner Notice against Choksi, diplomatic efforts are also on.

According to reports in the Caribbean media, Dominicas Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has been roped in by the Indian government as a mediator between India and Antigua. He is reportedly on good terms with the Antiguan PM and is helping the Indian government.

USA has a major influence on the Caribbean governments, and India could use its diplomatic proximity with Uncle Sam to convince the Antiguan government.

So, dont be surprised if you see a business agreement between India and Antigua and Barbuda in the near future  diplomacy and business are never mutually exclusive.

Elephant in the room

Even if the Indian authorities somehow manage to cross all these obstacles, there is another catch.

Mehul Choksi landed on Antigua's beautiful shores on July 8. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Consider this  Mehul Choksi landed at VC Bird International airport in Antigua for the first time on July 8. Prior to that, he had been staying in the US for seven months. Just 24 hours before Indian agencies officially approached the US authorities seeking his extradition, Choksi left the US and landed in Antigua. The obvious question here is: Was he tipped off, or was it just a lucky escape for Choksi?

The Indian authorities need to realise the existence of this big fat elephant in the room, and minimise chances for such lucky escapes in the future. Moreover, the officials need to go beyond the conventional approach. Maybe its time for them to put themselves in Choksis shoes and preempt his next move.

Also read: Why banks' bad loan mess has become murkier now
Chinese brutality towards the Uighur Muslim minority is not new but what is surprising is that nobody dares to question Beijing. Why these double standards?

Last week, Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a 117-page report titled, Eradicating Ideological Viruses  Chinas Campaign of Repression Against Xinjiangs Muslims, which gave fresh evidence of Beijings mass arbitrary detention, torture and mistreatment, and the increasingly pervasive controls on daily life, in the restive Province. The US based agency affirmed: Throughout the region, the Turkic Muslim population of 13 million, is subjected to forced political indoctrination, collective punishment, restrictions on movement and communications, heightened religious restrictions and mass surveillance in violation of international human rights law.

The HRW report is based on interviews with 58 former residents of Xinjiang, including five former detainees and 38 relatives of detainees. Bloomberg, citing a United Nations assessment, had earlier reported that the Chinese authorities have detained upwards of one million Uighurs: As its mosques are shuttered and travel across its borders restricted, Xinjiang  once at the intersection of ancient Silk Road trade routes  threatens to become a black hole in President Xi Jinpings effort to build new ones.

The fact that China would like Xinjiang to be the hub of its mega project compounds the issue. The Uighurs being badly treated by Beijing is, however, not new. In a report dated May 1950, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) states: On the pretense of suppressing guerrillas, the Chinese Communist troops have been going systematically from valley to valley, burning tents and looting cattle, thus depriving the inhabitants of the means of livelihood.

Another CIA dispatch from January 22, 1951, affirms: Muslims in Sinkiang [Xinjiang] are discontented with the Communist regime. Officially, there are no restrictions on prayers, but orchestras play for dancing at evening-prayer time to distract the young, and young men enlisted as soldiers have no time to attend religious services. Gatherings of more than four people are prohibited.

Interestingly, the Chinese propaganda kept repeating that the Communists had come only to help the Uighurs and once their economy was on track, they would withdraw. Sixty-eight years later, the Turkic population is still waiting for the Chinese withdrawal.

Incidentally, the same CIA report asserts: Propaganda in Sinkiang is stating that the Chinese ought to take the Ladakh airfield because the Americans intend to use it in their invasion of China via Kashmir and Tibet. The Ladakh road was closed in early December 1950. It was probably part of Maos plans to invade Ladakh.

Last month, The Global Times, the mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), admitted that the party imprisons extremists, to educate them and reform their religious thoughts in Xinjiang. It was a rare admission.

Ma Pinyan, a research fellow at the Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences and vice president of the Xinjiang Prison Association, told the party tabloid that the state had invited religious experts to reform the extremists thoughts. in prison [they] need to transform their thoughts.

Another expert, La Disheng, former vice president of the Xinjiang Academy of Governance remarked: As a multi-ethnic region, Xinjiang has proven that prosperous development can only be achieved through ethnic unity, while ethnic conflicts and separatism may lead to disasters.

Today, a large majority of the population of the restive Muslim Province is considered extremist. In an opinion piece in The New York Times, Rian Thum, a historian who has been conducting research in Xinjiang, observed: What does it take to intern half a million members of one ethnic group in just a year? Enormous resources and elaborate organisation, but the Chinese authorities arent stingy. Vast swathes of the Uighur population in Chinas western region of Xinjiang  as well as Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and other ethnic minorities  are being detained to undergo what the state calls transformation through education.

Since last year, a large number of studies detailed the proliferation of re-education camps in Xinjiang that appeared in the Western Press. China Digital Times, which collected information from different sources, explained: Ever since former Tibet Party Secretary Chen Quanguo was installed in Xinjiang to replicate his perceived successes [in Tibet where he was posted earlier], Xinjiangs re-education system alone grew to overshadow Chinas officially-abolished re-education through labor system. Individuals can land in the camps for reasons such as contacting friends or relatives abroad, worshipping at mosques, or possessing Quranic verses on their phones.

Even the Chinese Press realises that the situation is grim. On July 6, The Peoples Daily noted that Beijing has relocated 461,000 poverty-ridden residents to work in other parts of the region during the first quarter of the year, in a bid to improve social stability and alleviate poverty. The report asserted that the Xinjiang Government planned to further transfer 100,000 residents from southern Hotan and Kashgar prefectures by 2019, to get employed somewhere else.

Yu Shaoxiang, another expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told The Global Times: Poverty alleviation in Xinjiang is more difficult compared to other places because, aside from poverty, Xinjiang also faces ethnic issues.

In 2017, Xinhua announced occupational education programs covering 1.26 million people in Kashgar and Hotan, where 47,000 poor people found jobs while 317,400 individuals and 331 villages were lifted out of poverty. It is obviously an excuse in an area which is the heart of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

In June, Beijing had announced that the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Regions Government planned to teach standard spoken and written Chinese language to all 2.94 million students during their free and compulsory education period. Free and compulsory!

Is there a terrorist threat in Xinjiang? There is no doubt that China faces serious challenges not only from infiltration from its all-weather friend in the south, but also from the Syrian-trained Uighurs returning to Xinjiang.

It is, therefore, a legitimate concern for Beijing; some sources estimate that 5,000 Uighur jihadists were fighting in Syria. A Dubai-based media outlet reported that 10,000 to 20,000 Uighurs were supporting the Islamic State, mostly in Idlib Province.

Whatever the number is, the issue is that ferocious repression or forced assimilation, as it is happening today in the restive region, can only make the situation worse. The future of the Province is not bright, but the most surprising aspect is that Muslim nations around the world are keeping mum about the fate of their Uighur brothers and sisters; nobody dares to question China about its Muslim policy. Isnt it amazing? This is called double standards.

(The writer is an expert on India-China relations and an author)
Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on Tuesday reviewed the reports of four study groups set up to recommend ways to restructure the force to enhance its combat effectiveness and save money for capital expenditure. Apart from a proposal to reduce the 13 lakh strong army by at least 1,50,000 over the next few years, the commanders also discussed the possibility of increasing the pensionable tenure from the existing 15 to 20 years for jawans.

At present, the jawans are eligible for full pension after a service of 15 years. Given the improvement in life expectancy and enhanced levels of fitness over the last five decades, the Army feels a jawan can now go home after 20 years of service. It will save the government money in terms of pension and expenditure incurred on training a raw recruit into a fighting soldier, officials said here.

The four study groups to review the Army Headquarters, promotion of jawans, cadre review of officers and restructuring of various arms respectively gave their presentations to the Chief besides seven commanders. A much wider group will have final review during the Army Commanders conference next month and if the recommendations are approved then the proposals will be circulated amongst the army personnel for their feedback. The final nod will come from the Defence Ministry and officials said the proposals will be implemented early next year.

The proposed reduction in strength is expected to save at least Rs 5,000-7,000 crore annually and will add at least 20% to the existing capital expenditure of the budget, they said.

The Army is facing an increasing burden of revenue expenditure and pensions leaving very little funds for new purchases and modernisation. In this years defence budget, the Armys share was Rs 1,28,076 crore for revenue stream while Rs 26,688 crore was the capital allocation.. The current revenue to capital ratio is around 83:17 which is unviable. While the ideal ratio is 60:40, the target is 65:35 which itself will be a great achievement, officials said.

Apart from reducing the strength to make the force leaner and better equipped, the Army is also mulling doing away with the rank of Brigadier and brigade headquarters as part of the officer cadre review.

This is expected to free up significant number of officers who will be available for field duties. Army headquarters too is likely to see a major churn with several departments doing overlapping functions merged or off-loaded away from the headquarters.
The Tamil Nadu Governments decision to write to Governor Banwarilal Purohit asking him to release the seven assassins of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi who are serving life term in a Chennai jail has not gone down well with the families of persons who perished or seriously injured in the May 21, 1991 bomb blast perpetrated by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) terrorists.

The Edappadi Palaniswamy Government had written to the Governor last Sunday asking him to release Nalini, Suthendraraja (Santhan), Sreeharan (Murugan, who is also the husband of Nalini), A G Perarivalan (Arivu), Robert Payas, S Jayakumar, and Ravichandran, the seven assassins accused of providing logistic and other help to the LTTE executioners Sivarajan, Dhanu and Suba.

Dhanu was the human bomb who herself got blew up during the assassination while Sivarasan and Suba committed suicide to escape from the Indian Army commandoes who were deputed to catch them from their hide out in Bangalore.

Perarivalan had approached the apex court with a plea that though he had submitted a mercy petition to the Governor in 2015 seeking remission from the life term the latter had not taken any decision. The apex court had on September 6 asked the Governor to consider the mercy petition of Perarivalan though it has not directed him to set the assassin free.

Political parties in Tamil Nadu barring the BJP and the Congress welcomed the Supreme Court directive which led to the State Cabinet writing to the Governor invoking Article 161 of the Constitution.

All the accused were sentenced to death by the trial court which was upheld by the High Court as well as the Supreme Court. But the death sentences were commuted to life sentences following the clemency petitions filed by the assassins. It was Sonia Gandhi who gave clemency to Nalini.

Legal experts state that the advice by the Council of Ministers is binding on the Governor. But no time limit has been prescribed in the Constitution.

The Governor can also seek the opinion of the Centre with regard to the Tamil Nadu Governments advice.

The Congress in Tamil Nadu is of the view that the assassins had been given clemency in the past and they were saved from the gallows. But the demand to release them from prison is unreasonable and unjustifiable, said Vijayadharini, Congress MLA whose mother Bagavathy Padmanabhan suffered serious injuries in the May 21, 1991 blast at Sriperumbudur which killed Gandhi.

While the Dravidian fringe groups and pro-LTTE elements have gone gung-ho over the Supreme Court directive, the general public are reluctant to come out against the move lest they earn the wrath of extremist groups. What should the nation think of a wife and two children who forgive killers who join with anti Indian foreign terrorist organisation to brutally blow up Rajiv Gandhi and kill him in cold blood merely for following national interests as Prime Minister?, asked Subramanian Swamy, MP.

There is a fear among the people in the State that the same modus operandi could be deployed in future to set free Sasikala, Ilavarasi, and Sudhakaran serving imprisonment in the disproportionate asset case. Many Islamist organisations have asked the Government to release convicts in murder cases who have completed 20 years of sentence. This is not a good precedence, said a legal expert who did not want his name to be quoted. He said that action of the AIADMK in writing to the governor was with an eye on the vote bank.
The worst ever road accident in the history of Telangana and Andhdra Pradesh, which claimed 57 lives on Tuesday has drowned Jagtiyal district and surrounding areas into sea of tears and gloom.

More than 24 hours after the accident in which the Telangana Road Transport Corporation bus overturned and fell into a gorge near Jagtiyal town the people were yet to recover from shock as the bereaved families were cremating their near and dear ones.

The worst affected was Shanivarampeta from where the bus had originated. 15 people of this village were killed in the accident. Many other villages like Tirumalapur, Himmatraopet, Ramsagar and Dabbutimmayapally were also mourning their dead as the bodies were handed over by the authorities at Jagtiyal hospital to the kith and kin.

Facing an unprecedented tragedy neither the medical care facilities were equipped to face a disaster of this magnitude nor they had wherewithal to preserve so many dead bodies. The district ran out of the cold storage facility and the air conditioned coffins to keep the bodies. As a last resort the staff of Government hospital kept the bodies on the ice blocks to keep them safe till they were handed over for cremation.

The administration and the local people were extending a helping hand to the bereaved families in performing the last rites.

Meanwhile medical teams and experts were dispatched from various hospitals of Hyderabad to Jagtiyal and Karimnagar where more than 30 injured were being treated. These teams will help the local doctors in giving better treatment to the injured.

The mortuary at the Jagtiyal hospital was presenting a nightmarish picture as the air was thick with the wailing and cries of the family members of the victims. Thousands of people thronged the place ever since the dead bodies were brought there from the scene of accident on the Ghat Road coming from Kondagutta. Most of the victims were the pilgrims returning after performing puja at the Hanuman temple.

Majority of the victims were women, 23 of them in the age group of 50 to 75. Also a pregnant lady E Neeraja,25, succumbed to injuries at Karimnagar hospital. Another pregnant woman was also injured and she was undergoing treatment.

Meanwhile the worst accident has brought the State of affairs in the Telangana state road transport corporation in to sharp focus as the poor condition of the bus was also being blamed for the tragedy.

Those in the know of the happenings in the RTC allege that many buses were not fit to be run. While ultra modern and luxury buses are run on the major routes linking important cities and towns, the buses on rural routes are pathetic, admitted a retired official of RTC. Every part of such bus makes sound, he said.

While the top officials insist that buses were run only when they are certified as fit for operation, others allege that such certificates were managed.

Principal Secretary, RTC Sunil Sharma admitted that there were at least 1,000 buses which were a decade old but added that they were maintained regularly and run after they are certified as fit.

Another allegation was that duplicate, cheap quality and old spare parts were fitted in the buses on rural routes. Many drivers also complain of the condition of buses as well as the roads. Our complaints fall on deaf ears and are ignored, a driver said on condition of anonymity.

While the real cause of the accident was expected to come out in the probe which was underway, many in the RTC suspect that the brakes of the ill fated bus might not have worked effectively. The bus had started operating in 2007 and it had logged nearly 15 lakh kms against the maximum limit of 12 lakh kms.

The Ghat road from Kondagattu was also picture of apathy as there were no proper sign to warn about the condition and sharp turns. There were no barricade even where there were deep gorge and the speed breakers lacked proper color to highlight them.

Rules were frequently bent and corners were cut in the name of savings. With the fuel bill skyrocketing the bus on the particular route from Kondagattu was encouraged to take a detour. Instead of a safer bypass the bus was being routed through the Ghat road which was shorter by 5 kms and could have saved some fuel, drivers said.

Human error was also blamed for the Tuesday morning horror. It was said that the driver M Srinivas was inexperienced and recently transferred to the route.

Now it has turned out that he was a senior driver with 30 years experience and was recipient of Safety Award on Independence Day last month for his driving skills. Srinivas who had applied for leave on health ground could not get it sanctioned and attended the duty for the last time. He lost both his legs in the accident and later died in the hospital due to loss of blood.
Combinations involve risk to patients; 6K brands worth Rs 2,500 cr market size to vanish

Citing safety concerns, the Union Health Ministry on Wednesday announced ban on manufacturing, sale or distribution of 328 Fixed Dose Combinations (FDCs) drugs with immediate effect. This includes brands like Piramals Saridon, Macleods Pharmas Panderm Plus cream and Alkem Laboratories Taxim AZ.

The Ministry has also restricted the manufacture, sale or distribution of six FDC drugs subject to certain conditions. The ban follows recommendations from its technical advisory board Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB).

FDC drugs are two or more medicines combined in a fixed ratio into a single dosage form. Experts allege that FDCs are developed to escape price control measures.

Market players pointed out that the banned combinations on the list belong to several therapeutic areas like cough and cold syrups, gastrointestinal and anti-infective formulations, and dermatological medicines.

The respiratory portfolio will bear the highest impact, followed by anti-diabetic and anti-infective drugs.

They also said the move means that around 6,000 medicine brands belonging to different companies and with a combined market size of Rs 2,000-2,500 crore may soon vanish from the drug market in the country.

The Centre in March 2016 had prohibited the manufacture for sale and distribution of 349 FDC drugs. However, the move was challenged by the affected manufacturers in High Courts and the Supreme Court.

Complying with the December 2017 Supreme Court judgment, the DTAB examined the matter and in its report to the Centre recommended prohibition of the FDCs saying there was no therapeutic justification for the ingredients contained in them and that these FDCs may involve risk to human beings. Earlier, an expert committee appointed by the Centre had made similar observations.

Considering the recommendations of DTAB and the expert committee, the Health Ministry, through a gazette notification, banned the FDCs.

The ban has been called for by DTAB since the 328 combination of medicines, also known as FDCs, are unjustified as far as their therapeutic potential is concerned.

DTAB said these combinations may lead to overuse. According to the technical body, there is no need to expose the patients to that many ingredients when one will do the work.

The notification stated, Hence in the larger public interest, it is necessary to prohibit the manufacture, sale or distribution of this FDCany kind of regulation or restriction to allow for any use in patients is not justifiable.

According to the notifications, the Ministry also plans to clamp down on the manufacture, sale and distribution of six FDCs, two of which are used in the treatment of diabetes.

The 59th report of the Parliamentary Committee on Health and Family Welfare too had pointed out that in 2012 the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) had, by various acts of omission and commission, failed to restrict the number of irrational FDCs.

A glaring omission pointed out was that many FDCs were being marketed after receiving approval from State regulatory agencies, whereas marketing approval can only be provided by the CDSCO.

Amit Sengupta, national convener of Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, said that inappropriate use of FDC medicines poses a major threat to public health. The combinations can lead to additional toxicity, limit choice of prescribing physicians, increase treatment cost, lead to under or overdosing. In the case of antibiotics, FDC medicines can contribute to more rapid development of antimicrobial resistance, said the Jan Swasthya Abhiyan convener.
Killing oneself biggest cause of death in 15-39 age group in country

The number of suicides has risen in India over the years, but the trend of killing oneself is alarmingly higher among Indian women. India accounts for at least 37 per cent of global suicide deaths among women, according to a report published in the Lancet Public Health journal. India also accounts for 24 per cent global suicide deaths among men in 2016.

The report  The Global Burden of Disease Study 1990-2016  which was released on Wednesday, said the suicide death rate (SDR) for women in India is 15 every one lakh women, double than that of the global suicide rate for women in 2016, which was 7 every one lakh women.

Contrary to the popular belief, marriage was found to be less protective against suicide as married women account for the high proportion of suicide deaths in India, the study stated. The reason cited by author of the study, Professor Rakhi Dandona from Public Health Foundation of India, are arranged and early marriage, young motherhood, low social status, domestic violence, and economic dependence.

In what should come as a wakeup call for the health authorities, the report said suicide ranked first in India as the cause of death compared to its third rank globally in the 15-39 age group. At least 63 per cent of all suicide deaths reported in India were in this age group.

Dandona said there was an increase of 40 per cent in the number of suicide deaths between 1990 and 2016, with an estimated 2,30,314 deaths in 2016 indicating that disproportionately high suicide deaths in India are a public health crisis.

The study found wide variations in suicide death rate across States in India. Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal and Tripura had high suicide death rates for both men and women, in addition to Kerala and Chhattisgarh, which had high suicide death rates for men.

The trends in SDR in women in this study suggest the need to further assess the complex relationships between gender and suicidal behaviour to facilitate women-specific suicide prevention strategies, Dandona said.

At the same time, she stressed the high SDR among men in India has not changed over time and needs immediate attention.

For suicide among men in India, it appears young adults are a vulnerable group, and marriage does not seem to be protective for them either.

Personal and social reasons, financial problems, poor health are known as major reasons of suicide in India and the most-used means of suicide are poisoning, drug overdose and hanging, as known from previous research, Dandona said.

The study found that the suicide death rate is increasing in the elderly, especially among those above the age of 80 years, which will pose additional challenges.

For the elderly, social isolation, depression, functional disability, and the feeling of being a burden on their family have been cited as reasons for suicides globally, however, not much is known about reasons for suicides in the elderly in India, Dandona said.

With their increasing proportion in the population, the reasons for suicide and mental health issues in the elderly need to be explored urgently within the National Programme for Health Care of the Elderly in India to address the increasing suicide deaths in this age group, Dandona stated.

There is an urgent need for a national suicide prevention strategy that is data-driven, gender-specific and takes the state variations into account.

Professor Balram Bhargava, secretary, department of Health Research, Health Ministry and Director General, ICMR, expressed concern at the high contribution of India to the total suicide deaths in the world, especially among women. The ten-fold variation between the states in the suicide death rate for women emphasises the need to better understand the reasons behind these suicides and make concerted efforts to reduce this avoidable loss of predominantly young lives, he said.
Congress alleges Govt complicity

The claim of embattled liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya on Wednesday that before leaving India in 2016 he met the Finance Minister and offered to settle the debt issue with the banks has been rubbished by Arun Jaitely, who was Finance Minister at that time.

Jaitely said he never gave the businessman an appointment since 2014 but the fugitive liquor baron misused his position as Rajya Sabha member to accost him in Parliament.

Latching on to the Mallyas claim, the Congress has alleged that the Modi Government was fully complicit in the flight of people like Mallya and others from the country.

The party has also asked the Centre to explain how and why Mallya was allowed to leave India. Congress president Rahul Gandhi demanded an immediate probe into the extremely serious allegations.

Former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal too have jumped into the controversy. While Sinha has demanded that the entire BJP leadership, not just Jaitley, must come clean on its ties with the liquor tycoon, Kejriwal has termed Mallyas disclosure shocking.

News agency PTI reported from London that the 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss, who arrived to appear before the Westminster Magistrates Court in London, told reporters that he had met the Minister and offered to settle the issue with the banks.

I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the Finance Minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks), Mallya said, without naming the Minister.

Mallya has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year and is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore.

In a Facebook blog, Jaitley said Mallyas statement was factually false and does not reflect truth.

Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise, he wrote.

He ( Mallya) misused that privilege on one occasion while I was walking out of the House to go to my room. He paced up to catch up with me and while walking uttered a sentence that I am making an offer of settlement.

Having been fully briefed about his earlier bluff offers, without allowing him to proceed with the conversation, I curtly told him there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers, Jaitley said.

The Finance Minister said he did not even receive the papers that he was holding in his hand.

Besides this one sentence exchange where he misused his privilege as a Rajya Sabha Member, in order to further his commercial interest as a bank debtor, there is no question of my having ever given him an appointment to meet me, he added.

Joining the issue, the Opposition Congress said the Government must explain how and why Mallya was allowed to leave India. The Government, the party said, was fully complicit in the flight of people like Mallya and others from the country.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said the country wants to know what transpired during the meetings between Mallya and Jaitley.

The Government should now explain how and why he was allowed to leave and what transpired at, you are hearing everything in court, he added on further questions by the reporters.

Meanwhile, rebel BJP leader Sinha waded into the row by tweeting, Not only the Finance Minister, the entire BJP must come clean on its relations with Mallya.

Kejriwal described it as absolutely shocking the revelation by fugitive liquor baron Mallya that he met Jaitley before leaving India.

In a series of tweets, Kejriwal asked, Why did the Finance Minister hide this information till now?

Absolutely shocking,

PM Modi meets Neerav Modi before he flees the country. FM meets Vijay Mallya before he flees India. What transpired in these meetings? People want to know (sic), Kejriwal said.

Mallya, who is facing money laundering charges in multi-crore fraud case in India, also said he had made a comprehensive settlement offer before the Karnataka High Court that will help in paying off all his dues.

As far as I am concerned, I have . I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess thats the primary objective, said Mallya.
A two-day 6th All India Police Housing Conference will be organized by Haryana Police Housing Corporation (HPHC) in association with Bureau of Police Research and Development in Panchkula on September 13.

Chief Minister Manohar Lal will inaugurate the conference.

Managing Director, HPHC, AK Dhul on Wednesday said that all heads of State Police Housing Corporations, technical heads and other experts from across the country would participate in the conference.

He said that Chief Secretary, DS Dhesi would be chief guest at the valedictory session of the conference on September 14.

Giving details about the conference, Dhul said that all the delegates would deliberate upon technical sessions of Maintenance and Repair of Police Infrastructure and Uniformity in Construction Norms and Infrastructure on the first day of conference. Similarly, they would exchange views, share experiences and develop mutual understanding on the topic of Architecture Planning and PreFab Construction and new techniques on second day.

In addition, an open session to finalize the conference recommendation will also be organized, he said.

Dhul further said that the motive of the conference is to bring all Heads of State Police Housing Corporations and technical experts on a single platform where ideas and plans relating to modern low cost high quality infrastructure for creating a better living and working conditions to the members of police forces can be exchanged.
Union Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge) K J Alphons will inaugurate the Tribal Tourism Circuit at Gangrel in Dhamtari district of Chhattisgarh on September 14.

The Minister will be arriving at the Swami Vivekananda Airport in Raipur on September 14 at 8 am in a scheduled flight and later travel by car to reach Dangi Macha in Dhamtari district at 10.15 am. He will inaugurate the Tribal Tourism Circuit at 11 am at Gangrel.

The Minister will start from Dhamtari at 5 pm and reach Raipur by 7 pm before taking a scheduled flight for New Delhi at 8.05 pm.

Notably, the Central Government has put up the anticipated timeline for completion of the Tribal Tourism Circuit in Chhattisgarh to be 2019-20.

The Tribal Tourism Circuit will provide an opportunity to the tourists to witness and experience tribal culture and traditions in State,officials informed. The key components for development under the project are Ethnic Tourist Village and Ethnic Tourist Development, Destination Development and Wayside amenities.The project is being developed by Chhattisgarh Tourism Board.

The Tribal Tourism Circuit comprises Jashpur-Kunkuri-Mainpat-Ambikapur-Maheshpur -Ratanpur-Kurdar-Sarodadadar Gangrel- Kondagaon Nathyanawagaon -Jagdalpur Chitrakoot -Tirthgarh in Chhattisgarh under Swadesh Darshan Scheme. The Chhattisgarh Government had been making strenuous efforts to improve the quality of infrastructure and provide basic amenities in the tourism circuits, officials informed. Notably, the Union Tourism Ministry had allocated Rs 99.94 crore to develop Tribal Tourism Circuit to highlight tribal culture to the domestic and foreign tourists in the year 2015-16.

The districts to be developed are- Jashpur, Kunkuri, Maipaat, Ambikapur, Maheshpur, Ratanpur Kurdur, Sarodha Dadar, Gangrel, Kondagaon, Nathiyanwagaon, Jagdalpur, Chitrakoot and Thirthgad.

The Tribal Theme is being implemented in these districts and the project will be completed in a phased manner.

Similarly, other tourist circuits are also being developed.
During the 19-year tenure of the Naveen Patnaik Government, the Odisha State Cooperative Bank (OSCB) managing authorities have looted crores of rupees. There should be Vigilance as well as CBI probes into the scam and the guilty should be punished stringently, demanded the State BJPs Cooperative Cell here on Wednesday.

The BJP Cooperative Cell on the day held a demonstration before the State Cooperative Bank protesting against the irregularities committed in loan disbursal, management and the mega scam alleged to be of Rs 800 crore.

The State Cooperative Bank which does a business of nearly Rs 15,000 crore and on which lakhs of farmers and businessmen, the BJD Government is trying to loot the bank, alleged the speakers.

Instead of appointing an experienced and efficient Managing Director of the important financial institution, the State Government appointed an inexperienced, corrupt official like Tushar Kanti Panda as Managing Director for a long period and even after his superannuation he was reappointed twice.

This has exposed the State Government mask of corruption, said the BJP.
The State BJP is all set to make Swachhta Hi Sewa (Cleanliness is Service) programme being organised across the country from September 15 to October 2 a great success. State BJP president Laxman Gilua said on Wednesday that the party workers will run the programme from booth to State level to make it a success. The Prime Minister will launch the programme on September 15 and according to the programme one has to spend every day one hour, he said.

Addressing media persons in a press conference here on Wednesday Gilua said that for cleanliness in all areas of the State including villages, small colonies, dalit and tribal areas the programme has to be run effectively. He said that the PM has appealed to all citizens to participate in the programme and the party will do every bit to comply with the directions.

Also, Gilua said that from September 17 to 25 medical camps will be organised and free medical check up will be done in all areas with tribal, poor, dalits, subjugated classes populations. On the completion of one month of the demise of Atal Ji on September 16 Kavi Sammelans will be organised in Legislative Assemblies across the country, he added.

We are fortunate that PM Narendra Modi is coming on September 23 to Jharkhand to inaugurate the biggest health insurance scheme of the world at Prabhat Tara ground. Although the programme is totally a government programme the BJP workers have to give their hundred per cent to make it a huge success. In Jharkhand 57 lakh families will be brought under the scheme. Thousands of hospitals across the country will be connected through the scheme and people can get treatment in private as well as government hospitals, he said.

Talking about proposals on reduction on VAT in petroleum products in the State Gilua said that he will speak to the Chief Minister and will surely press for the demands that have been already adopted by certain states to provide relief to the common man from rising petrol prices.

Meanwhile, on the issue of coalition with the AJSU party in future elections he said, BJP is a national party and decisions are taken at the national level. Whenever we will decide about coalition it will be done at the national level in consultation with the State president and CM of the State. India is a country of diversities. Everyone has the right to think in their way and the coalition has been done at the national level, he added.
Cyber crime branch of Bhopal police with the help of Jaipur police busted a fake call centre in Jaipur and arrested 15 persons involved in operating the fake call center; technical master mind of fake call center operated in Indrapuri was nabbed who used to provide technical expertise to main accused arrested from the state capital.

The accused identified as Tikamjeet Thenua of Hatras in Uttar Pradesh was nabbed from Jaipur Rajasthan and 14 others who used to help in operating the fake call center.

Thenua was handed over to Shipra Path police station in Jaipur.

The accused used to operate fake call center in the same manner which was busted in the state capital in Indrapuri on September 6 and arrested 7 persons involved in operating the fake call center.
Following the assurance given by the Director General (DG) State medical health and family welfare department, the agitating specialist doctors of the State Health Services have taken back their work boycott stir. These 113 doctors would resume their work after two days of work boycott on Wednesday.

A delegation of the Provincial Medical Health Services (PMHS) met the DG health services, Dr T C Pant on Tuesday at the health directorate and discussed issue of the eligibility of the Post-Graduate ( PG) diploma courses of specialist doctors. Later on the assurance of the DG, the association took back the agitation. The president of the PMHS, Dr D P Joshi said that the association has suspended the agitation till the end of the ensuing monsoon session of Vidhan Sabha. He added that the PMHS is very serious on the issue as it is related to the future of the doctors.

Meanwhile, the work boycott of the specialist doctors affected the health services in the state for second consecutive day on Tuesday. In many hospitals, the operations remained suspended in the absence of surgeons and anaesthetists. The radio-diagnostic facilities like X -ray and ultra sound also remained affected as radiologists boycotted their work. In Dehradun, patients faced problems in the Coronation and Gandhi Centenary Eye Hospitals.

The Issue

As part of the state health department endeavour to provide super speciality training to the doctors of health department, 113 doctors had done diploma courses in the medical colleges of Uttar Pradesh over the past few years. It was later realised that the health department of UP had admitted these doctors in such courses which were not recognised by the Medical Council of India (MCI). Unaware of the eligibility issue, the health department had promoted these doctors and deployed them as specialists in various hospitals of the state. Only recently it became apparent that these doctors are now technically not eligible to be called as specialists.

In such a tricky situation, these doctors are facing prospects of demotion and reduction in salary.

PMHS, the association of doctors of state health services, argues that since the doctors were sent by the health department for the diploma courses in medical colleges of UP, it should now take up their case with the ministry of medical health and family planning and the Medical Council of India (MCI).
Gearing up for 2019 Lok Sabha and assembly polls in Haryana, the ruling Bhartiya Janta Party in the state on Wednesday asked its MLAs to stay in their assembly constituencies and organize various programmes to connect with people at grassroot level.

The directions were issued during the meeting of BJP MLAs chaired by Chief Minister Manohar Lal here.

During the meeting, the party also chalked out a plan to hold various programmes from September to October to reach out to the public.

The BJP led Haryana Government, which is set to complete four years in office in October, also decided to hold a rally in Karnal on November 1. Earlier, the rally was proposed to be held on October 28.

Discussions were also held on decisions taken during BJP national executive meet held recently in New Delhi.

Besides, the MLAs were asked to listen to Prime Minister Narendra Modis Mann ki Baat programme. They have also been asked to disseminate governments achievements among general public during various events.

Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala, while talking to the mediapersons after the meeting said that a mega rally is proposed to be held in Karnal on November 1 to celebrate four years anniversary of BJP led Haryana Government.

We will invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party national president Amit Shah and other central leaders for the rally, he said.

During the meeting, discussion was held on the past four years tenure of the BJP Government in Haryana, he added.

The first time MLA, Manohar Lal Khattar had taken oath as the first Chief Minister of the BJP Government in the state on October 26 in 2014.

Besides a mega rally, the completion of four years tenure of BJP in Haryana would also witness a whirlwind of activity including an ad blitzkrieg and big government events to highlight its achievements.

Barala also said that the party has planned to hold Kavyanjali, a poetry recitation programme on September 16 in all assembly constituencies to pay rich tribute to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Apart from this, Seva Saptah will be observed from September 17, the birthday of Prime Minister Modi to September 25, birth anniversary of Deendayal Upadhyaya. Various programmes will be organized across the state during the entire week, he said.

To celebrate 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, programmes will be held from October 2 to 22 across Haryana. For successful conduct of all these programmes, the MLAs have been asked to stay in their constituencies, Barala added.
A 35-year-old Delhi Police Head Constable, posted at Ambedkar Nagar police station, was shot dead at his residence in Jaitpur by unknown assailants on Tuesday night.

"The deceased, Ram Avtar Meena, left for his residence after finishing his duty on Tuesday at 8 pm. He was going to buy flour from near his house on his bike around 11. 30 pm when he was attacked by unknown assailants," said Chinmoy Biswal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), south east district.

"Hearing gunshots a neighbour raised an alarm. Neighbours rushed Avtar to hospital from there the police team took the victim to Apollo Hospital where he was declared brought dead. Doctors have said there was a bullet wound in the right side of Avtar's abdomen," said the DCP.

"A case under section 302 of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and 27 Arms act has been registered at police station Jaitpur. We are investigating the case with all possible angles including personal enmity. The place of crime has been inspected by crime team and FSL team as well. Intelligence is being gathered and budding criminals and ruffians are being questioned," said the DCP.

Avtar was native of Rajasthan and is survived by his wife and children who also used to live with him in Delhi. He had joined the Delhi Police in 2003 as a constable. "The post mortem of deceased was got conducted at AIIMS Hospital and body has been handed over to his family members," said the DCP.
KIIT skilled workers return from Kerala

Bhubaneswar: The 75-member team of skilled workers from the KIIT here returned from Kerala on Wednesday. The team was in Kerala since last one month to support flood-affected people of the State. They rendered services in different areas of Ernakulam, Alappuzha, Thrissur and Kottayam districts. They visited homes of the victims and helped them in repairing electricity and water connections and other household appliances. The people of Kerala appreciated their work and thanked them. Welcoming the team back, KIIT and KISS founder Dr Achyuta Samanta appreciated their enthusiasm for service to the people in distress.

Swachhata drive gains momentum at DAV, K Nagar

Bhubaneswar: The Swachhata Pakhwada programme gained momentum at the DAV Public School, Kainga Nagar with the presence of personalities from the Orissa Environmental Society (OES) on Wednesday. Dr Sundar Narayan Patra of OES said, A clean and balanced environment is the first prerequisite to build a healthy society. School Principal Bipin Kumar Sahoo, students and staffs took the pledge to create a healthy and friendly environment free from plastic. Dr Pradeep Kumar Rath of OES also spoke. The programme was presented and coordinated by senior teacher Minati Tripathy and Dr Prakash Chandra Panigrahi, respectively.

Blossoms School holds Swachhata exhibition day

Bhubaneswar: The Blossoms School observed Swachhata school exhibition day on Tuesday during the Swachhata Pakhwada (September 1-15) by showcasing artifacts made up of recycled domestic garbage to use it as dustbin. Students under the guidance of teacher Susmita Mitra prepared artistic dustbins using their innovative skills as a contribution to the Swachhata Pakhwada and to promote a clean and green India.

Ganesh Puja, Nuankhai celebrated at DAV CSpur

Bhubaneswar: Students of the DAV Public School, Chandrasekharpur here celebrated Ganesh Puja and Nuankhai with traditional fervour in the school premises on Wednesday in advance owing to holidays ahead.

COBB opens new store in city

Bhubaneswar: A new store of COBB was inaugurated by Padma Vibhushan Raghunath Mohapatra here on Wednesday in the presence of COBB Marketing (India) director general Mohsin Sheikh. The store is third in Odisha. The company announced its opening sale buy 2 get 6 offer. The COBB has planned to open another 50 new stores in the State in next one year with next in Jajpur, Angul, Talcher and Jharsuguda.
PPradesh Congress Committee Media Committee chairman Satya Prakash Nayak on Wednesday alleged that the Make in Odisha investors meet held in New Delhi on the day was nothing but anothe BJD campaign ahead of the elections in a bid to befool people.

Addressing a Press conference here, Nayak said that as many as 52 Government representatives people have visited 10 countries at the cost of State exchequer, but not a single company has come to the State for investment. There was a meeting of Ambassadors of 30 countries held in New Delhi by the State Government in 2016, but not a single company came to the State. Now again, a same flop show is being held in New Delhi, he said.
With a contribution of around 25 per cent of the countrys steel production, Odisha has transformed into the steel hub of India, said Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik while addressing an Odisha Investors Meet in New Delhi on Wednesday.

Highlighting various developments of the State, Patnaik said Odisha is the aluminium capital of South Asia accounting for over 54 per cent of the countrys production. It is also fast emerging as the manufacturing hub of eastern India.

During the last 18 years, the port capacity of the State has increased from 20.5 MMT to 190 MMT while power generation has increased more than three folds and stands at 17, 690 MW. Besides, there has been more than 50 per cent increase in road network of the State, he said.

Patnaik also invited investors to attend the second edition of the Make in Odisha conclave which will be held in Bhubaneswar from November 11 to 15.

Referring to the Make in Odisha Conclave, he said its theme I am Odisha would celebrate all successes of Odisha and people creating a vibrant ecosystem for business. The event will enable the investors to know more about the investment opportunities in Odisha, Patnaik added.

On the occasion, the CM launched the Invest Odisha website which would facilitate investors to get information related to policy, cost-of-doing-business and infrastructure.

Among others, Industries Minister Ananta Das and Chief Secretary AP Padhi were present on the occasion.
The suspension of two Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers for their alleged involvement in the National Highway-74 scam is a major step taken against corruption by the Government. Stating that the suspension is proof of the States zero tolerance for corruption, the Bharatiya Janata Party State president Ajay Bhatt said that other aspects including more serious anomalies in the scam are likely to be exposed in the future including aspects involving the Congress party.

Addressing the media at the BJP State office, Bhatt said that the public had voted the BJP to office believing that once in office, the Government would take stern action against corruption. Referring to the NH-74 scam, he said that so far 22 persons including seven Provincial Civil Service (PCS) officers have been arrested in the case.

This sends a clear message to all that the loot of Uttarakhands resources will not be tolerated. The BJP is fighting against corruption at the Centre under prime minister Narendra Modi and partys national president Amit Shah and in the State under Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat. In some other cases in Uttarakhand, the Government has formed special investigation teams and the probe into these cases will also be concluded as necessary.

He said, One important thing related to the NH-74 scam is that on the orders of the High Court the District Magistrate opened a Government account in which 24 farmers have deposited the amount they received in excess of the compensation they were eligible for. About Rs 2.31 crore has been deposited in this account so far which further substantiates orchestration of the scam.

The probe is progressing and many other things are likely to be exposed. The Congress leaders are questioning the investigation as they are worried. In this case, it has been revealed that there was an account of the Congress to operate which the officer on special duty (OSD) of the then Chief Minister was removed from that post and made an office bearer of the Congress to enable the desired use of the money deposited in that account.

The SIT has already questioned some Congress leaders in this regard. Regarding the Congress demand for probe by the CBI, Bhatt said that the State had recommended that but the department of Personnel and Training had did not permit that. The BJP State chief also mentioned that some Congress leaders are illogically linking the suspension of the two IAS officers to the Investors Summit since both subjects are separate.

He, further, said that the SIT was undertaking its task with honesty. It had submitted its report to the Government on July 10 after which necessary action was taken and the IAS officers concerned were also given an opportunity to clarify their stand. The BJP State media in charge Devendra Bhasin and party leader Ajendra Ajay were also present in the Press conference.
A proposal to set up the States second zoological park in Sambalpur district has been under the active consideration of the State Government for the last 18 years since 2000.

Forests and Environment Minister Bijayshree Routray informed this in the State Assembly in response to a question of BJD MLA Dr Raseshwari Panigrahi on Wednesday.
Vinoba Bhave University's department of English is organising a day-long Jharkhand English Author's Conclave on September19. Nilima Sinha, a well known writer and wife of former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha, will inaugurate the conclave. Additional Director General (Operations) RK Mallick will be present as the Guest of Honour in the programme.

Total 18 authors from across the country invited including one from Hazaribagh town who is a 15-years old student of DAV Public School. Fatma Johra, a 10th grader wrote a poetry book named Corous from Canary and published by her school. Even in an online competition organised by Delhi based company Pepper Script, Fatma selected as best writers in group of selected ten.

She said, Fatma said she was so happy to get invitation from university for such a big event. She said that she never thought of getting this recognition. Fatma said she got inspired from well known writer Kajol Aikat who was a student of her school only. Resident of Matwari, Fatma's father Mushtaq Ahmad is a government school teacher in Ramgarh and mother Kishwar Fatma is a housewife. Fatma said she started writing from Std-IV and got recognition of a writer in Std-VIII.

Vice Chancellor of Vinoba Bhave University, Ramesh Sharan said all 18- authors selected having connection from Jharkhand which was a must criteria getting selected for this conclave. Pro-VC Kunul Kandir will also remain present on the occassion. S.M Rizwan is the organising secretary of the conclave.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said North Korea must be given security guarantees in exchange for steps towards denuclearisation. North Korea, in return for its denuclearisation, was after all promised security guarantees. Clearly it is waiting for some sort of signal in response, Putin told an economic forum in the far eastern city of Vladivostok.

It seems to me counterproductive if we demand everything from the North Korean side and in response they are given nothing, he said at an event with Chinas Xi Jinping and Japans Shinzo Abe.

He said international guarantees will be appropriate along with US offers, following summit between Trump and Kim Jong Un in June. Then, Trump and Kim signed a vaguely worded agreement on denuclearisation butlittle progress has been made since then.
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Conagra Brands, Inc. engages in the manufacture and sale of processed and packaged foods. It operates through the following segments: Grocery and Snacks; Refrigerated and Frozen; International; and Foodservice. The Grocery and Snacks segment includes branded, shelf stable food products sold in various retail channels in the United States. The Refrigerated and Frozen segment comprises branded, temperature controlled food products sold in various retail channels in the United States. The International segment consists branded food products, in various temperature states, sold in various retail and foodservice channels outside of the United States. The Foodservice segment focuses in the branded and customized food products, including meals, entrees, sauces, and a variety of custom-manufactured culinary products packaged for sale to restaurants and other foodservice establishments in the United States. The company was founded by Alva Kinney and Frank Little in 1919 and is headquartered in Chicago, IL.

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Freeport-McMoRan, Inc. engages in the mining of copper, gold and molybdenum. It operates through the following segments: North America Copper Mines, South America Mining; Indonesia Mining, Molybdenum Mines, Rod and Refining, Atlantic Copper Smelting and Refining and Corporate, Other and Eliminations. The North America Copper Mines segment operates open-pit copper mines in Morenci, Bagdad, Safford, Sierrita and Miami in Arizona and Chino and Tyrone in New Mexico. The South America Mining segment includes Cerro Verde in Peru and El Abra in Chile. The Indonesia Mining segment handles the operations of Grasberg minerals district that produces copper concentrate that contains significant quantities of gold and silver. The Molybdenum Mines segment includes the Henderson underground mine and Climax open-pit mine, both in Colorado. The Rod and Refining segment consists of copper conversion facilities located in North America and includes a refinery, rod mills, and a specialty copper products facility. The Atlantic Copper Smelting and Refining segment smelts and refines copper concentrate and markets refined copper and precious metals in slimes. The Corporate, Other and Eliminations segment

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The following companies are subsidiares of Boston Scientific: 34 Biomedical Merger Corp., 9357-1867 Quebec Inc., Acurate Industria e Comercio Ltda., Advanced Bionics, Advanced Stent Technologies, American Medical Systems, American Medical Systems Europe B.V., Apama Medical, Apama Medical Inc., Asthmatx, Atritech, Augmenix, Augmenix Inc., Augmenix K.K., BSC International Medical Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BSC Medical Device Technology (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BTG, BTG Australasia Pty Ltd, BTG Europe B.V., BTG IM Holdings Ltd., BTG International (Holdings) Limited, BTG International Asia Limited, BTG International Canada Inc., BTG International Germany GmbH, BTG International Healthcare Inc., BTG International Healthcare LLC, BTG International Healthcare Limited, BTG International Inc., BTG International Limited, BTG Limited, BTG Management Services Limited, BTG Medikal Limited Sirketi, Bard Electrophysiology, Barosense, Biocompatibles Inc., Biocompatibles International Limited, Biocompatibles UK Limited, Boston Scientific (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Boston Scientific (South Africa) Proprietary Limited, Boston Scientific (Thailand) Ltd., Boston Scientific (UK) Limited, Boston Scientific AG, Boston Scientific Argentina S.A., Boston Scientific Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Boston Scientific Benelux NV, Boston Scientific Canada Limited, Boston Scientific Ceska republika s.r.o., Boston Scientific Chile SpA, Boston Scientific Colombia Limitada, Boston Scientific Comercial de Costa Rica BSCR S.R.L., Boston Scientific Far East B.V., Boston Scientific Gesellschaft m.b.H., Boston Scientific Group plc, Boston Scientific Hellas S.A., Boston Scientific Hong Kong Limited, Boston Scientific Iberica S.A., Boston Scientific India Private Limited, Boston Scientific International B.V., Boston Scientific International Finance Limited, Boston Scientific International S.A., Boston Scientific Israel Ltd., Boston Scientific Japan K.K., Boston Scientific Korea Co. Ltd., Boston Scientific Lebanon SAL, Boston Scientific Limited, Boston Scientific Ltd., Boston Scientific Medical Device, Boston Scientific Medical Device Limited, Boston Scientific Medizintechnik GmbH, Boston Scientific Middle East FZ-LLC, Boston Scientific Middle East SAL, Boston Scientific Nederland B.V., Boston Scientific Neuromodulation Corporation, Boston Scientific New Zealand Limited, Boston Scientific Nordic AB, Boston Scientific Peru S.A.C., Boston Scientific Philippines Inc., Boston Scientific Polska Sp. z o.o., Boston Scientific Portugal - Dispositivos Medicos Lda, Boston Scientific Pty Ltd, Boston Scientific Romania S.R.L., Boston Scientific S.A.S., Boston Scientific S.p.A., Boston Scientific Scimed, Boston Scientific Scimed Inc., Boston Scientific Services Private Limited, Boston Scientific TIP Gerecleri Limited Sirketi, Boston Scientific Technology & Engineering Services Private Limited, Boston Scientific Uruguay S.A., Boston Scientific Vietnam Company Limited, Boston Scientific de Costa Rica S.R.L., Boston Scientific de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Boston Scientific del Caribe Inc., Boston Scientific do Brasil Ltda., Bravo Bidco Limited, BridgePoint Medical, Cameron Health, Cardiac Pacemakers Inc., Cardiac Pathways Corp, Catheter Innovations, Claret Medical, Claret Medical Inc., Cosman Medical, Cosman Medical LLC, CryoCor, Cryterion Medical, Cryterion Medical Inc., Cryterion Medical Ireland Limited, EKOS LLC, EMcision, EMcision International Inc., EP Technologies, EP Technologies Inc., Electron Acquisition Corporation, EndoChoice, EndoChoice Holdings Inc., EndoChoice Inc., EndoChoice Innovation Center Ltd., EndoChoice Israel Ltd., Endotex, Enteric Medical Technologies, Galil Medical Inc., Galil Medical Ltd., Galil Medical UK Limited, Guidant, Guidant Delaware Holding Corporation, Guidant Europe NV, Guidant Puerto Rico B.V., Hong Kong Medtech Trading Limited, Intelect Medical, Millipede, Millipede Inc., NXT Merger Corp., Notebook Merger Sub Ltd., Novate Medical Limited, NxThera, NxThera Inc., PT Boston Scientific Indonesia, PneumRx GmbH, PneumRx LLC, PneumRx Liimited, Protherics Medicines Development B.V., Protherics Medicines Development Limited, Protherics UK Limited, Provensis Limited, RMI Acquisition Corp., Remon Medical Technologies, Rhythmia Medical, Robert S. Smith M.D. Inc., Roxwood Medical Inc., SNS Merger Corp, Sadra Medical, Sadra Medical Inc., Securus Medical Group, Securus Medical Group Inc., Special K Merger Corp., StarMedTec, Stream Enterprises LLC, Symetis, Symetis SA, Target Therapeutics, Target Therapeutics Inc., The LumenR Tissue Retractor System, Veniti, Veniti Inc., VertiFlex, Vertiflex Inc., Vessix Vascular, Xlumena, Zuma Investment Pty Ltd, iogyn, nVision Medical, and nVision Medical Corporation.
Superior Energy Services, Inc. engages in the provision of oilfield services and equipment. It operates through the following segments: Drilling Products & Services, Onshore Completion & Workover Services, Production Services and Technical Solutions. The Drilling Products and Services segment provides downhole drilling tools and surface rentals. The Onshore Completion and Workover Services segment offers pressure pumping, fluid management and workover services. The Production Services segment gives intervention services. The Technical Solutions segment involves in the products and services that address customer-specific needs with applications, which typically require engineering, manufacturing or project planning. The company was founded by Terence E. Hall in 1989 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.

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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.
The following companies are subsidiares of BlackRock: Acero Cooperatief U.A., Acero Holdings I B.V., Amethyst Merger Sub LLC, AnalytX Hosting LLC, AnalytX LLC, AnalytX Software LLC, Aperio, Aperio, Aquila Heywood, Asia-Pacific Private Credit Opportunities Fund I (GenPar) Ltd., BAA Holdings LLC, BFM Holdco LLC, BLK (Gallatin) Holdings LLC, BLK SMI LLC, BR Acquisition Mexico S.A. de C.V., BR Jersey International Holdings L.P., Beijing eFront Software Company Limited, BlackRock (Barbados) Finco 1 SRL, BlackRock (Channel Islands) Limited, BlackRock (Luxembourg) S.A., BlackRock (Netherlands) B.V., BlackRock (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BlackRock (Singapore) Holdco II Pte. Ltd., BlackRock (Singapore) Holdco Pte. Limited, BlackRock (Singapore) Limited, BlackRock AP Investment Holdco LLC, BlackRock Advisors (UK) Limited, BlackRock Advisors LLC, BlackRock Advisors Singapore Pte. Limited, BlackRock Alternative Advisors GP Holdings LLC, BlackRock Alternatives Management LLC, BlackRock Argentina Asesorias Ltda., BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited, BlackRock Asset Management Deutschland AG, BlackRock Asset Management International Inc., BlackRock Asset Management Investor Services Limited, BlackRock Asset Management Ireland Limited, BlackRock Asset Management North Asia Limited, BlackRock Asset Management Schweiz AG, BlackRock Asset Management UK Limited, BlackRock Australia Holdco Pty. Ltd., BlackRock Brasil Gestora de Investimentos Ltda., BlackRock Cal 1 Investor LLC, BlackRock Canada Holdings LP, BlackRock Canada Holdings ULC, BlackRock Capital Holdings Inc., BlackRock Capital Investment Advisors LLC, BlackRock Capital Management Inc., BlackRock Cayco Limited, BlackRock Cayman 1 LP, BlackRock Cayman Capital Holdings Limited, BlackRock Cayman Finco 2 Limited, BlackRock Cayman Finco 3 Limited, BlackRock Cayman Finco Limited, BlackRock Cayman West Bay Finco Limited, BlackRock Cayman West Bay IV Limited, BlackRock Cayman Z Limited, BlackRock Channel Islands Holdco Limited, BlackRock Chile Asesorias Limitada, BlackRock Colombia Holdco LLC, BlackRock Colombia Infraestructura S.A.S., BlackRock Colombia SAS, BlackRock Company Secretarial Services (UK) Limited, BlackRock Corporation US Inc., BlackRock Delaware Holdings Inc., BlackRock Enterprise Management Services (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BlackRock Europe Development Management Limited, BlackRock Execution Services, BlackRock Finance Europe Limited, BlackRock Financial Management Inc., BlackRock Finco LLC, BlackRock Finco UK Ltd., BlackRock First Partner Limited, BlackRock France SAS, BlackRock Fund Advisors, BlackRock Fund Management Company S.A., BlackRock Fund Managers Limited, BlackRock Funding International Ltd., BlackRock Funds Services Group LLC, BlackRock Germany GmBH, BlackRock Group Limited, BlackRock HK Holdco Limited, BlackRock Holdco 2 Inc., BlackRock Holdco 3 LLC, BlackRock Holdco 4 LLC, BlackRock Holdco 5 LLC, BlackRock Holdco 6 LLC, BlackRock Hungary Kft, BlackRock Index Services LLC, BlackRock Infrastructure Management I LLC, BlackRock Institutional Services Inc., BlackRock Institutional Trust Company National Association, BlackRock International Holdings Inc., BlackRock International Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (Australia) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (Dublin) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (Korea) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BlackRock Investment Management (Taiwan) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management Ireland Holdings Limited, BlackRock Investment Management LLC, BlackRock Investments LLC, BlackRock Japan Co. Ltd., BlackRock Japan Holdings GK, BlackRock Jersey Finco 2 Limited, BlackRock Latin America Holdco LLC, BlackRock Latin American Holdings B.V., BlackRock Life Limited, BlackRock Lux Finco S.a r.l., BlackRock Luxembourg Holdco S.a r.l., BlackRock Mexican Holdco B.V., BlackRock Mexico Infraestructura I S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Infraestructura II S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Infraestructura III S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Manager II S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Manager III S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Manager S de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Operadora S.A. de C.V. Sociedad Operadora de Fondos de Inversion, BlackRock Mortgage Ventures LLC, BlackRock Niagara LLC, BlackRock Operations (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., BlackRock Overseas Investment Fund Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BlackRock PC Holdings LLC, BlackRock Pensions Limited, BlackRock Peru Asesorias S.A., BlackRock Property Consulting (Beijing) Co. Ltd., BlackRock Property France S.a.r.l., BlackRock Property Lux S.a.r.l., BlackRock Property Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., BlackRock Realty Advisors Inc., BlackRock Saudi Arabia, BlackRock Scale Holdings LLC, BlackRock Services India Private Limited, BlackRock Singapore III Pte. Ltd., BlackRock Slovakia s.r.o., BlackRock Strategic Investors GP LLC, BlackRock Strategic Investors LP, BlackRock Trident Holding Company Limited, BlackRock UK (Alpha) Limited, BlackRock UK (Beta) Limited, BlackRock UK (Delta) LP, BlackRock UK (Gamma) Limited, BlackRock UK (Sigma) Limited, BlackRock UK 2 LLP, BlackRock UK 3 LLP, BlackRock UK 4 LLP, BlackRock UK A LLP, BlackRock UK Holdco 2 Limited, BlackRock UK Holdco Limited, Blackhawk Investment Holding LLC, CIE Automotive, Cachematrix Holdings, Cachematrix Holdings LLC, Cachematrix Integrations Private Limited, Cachematrix Software Solutions LLC, Cachematrix UK Limited, FutureAdvisor Inc., Glass Mountain Pipeline, Global Energy & Power Infrastructure Advisors LLC, Global Energy & Power Infrastructure II Advisors LLC, Grosvenor Alternate Partner Limited, Grosvenor Ventures Limited, HLX Financial Holdings LLC, MGPA (Bermuda) Limited, MGPA (Exec) Limited, MGPA Limited, Mercury Carry Company Ltd., Mercury Private Equity MUST 3 (Jersey) Limited, Object Capital Technology Inc., Phoenix Acquisition B.V., Phoenix Acquisitions Holdings LLC, Portfolio Administration & Management Ltd., Prestadora de Servicios Integrales BlackRock Mexico S.A. de C.V., SVOF/MM LLC, St. Albans House Nominees (Jersey) Ltd., State Street Research & Management, Tennenbaum Capital Partners LLC, Tennenbaum Capital Partners LLC, Tlali Acero S.A. de C.V. SOFOM ENR, Trident Merger LLC, eFront, eFront, eFront (Jersey) Limited, eFront DMLT Holdings LLC, eFront DMLT Holdings S.R.L, eFront DR S.R.L, eFront Do Brasil Solucoes Informaticas Para Sistemas Financeiros Ltda., eFront FZ-LLC, eFront Financial Solutions Inc., eFront GmbH, eFront Holding II SAS, eFront Holdings SAS, eFront Hong Kong Limited, eFront II SAS, eFront Kabushiki Kaisha, eFront Ltd, eFront SAS, eFront Singapore Pte. Ltd, eFront Software Luxembourg S.a r.l., eFront Solutions Financeieres Inc., eFront d.o.o. Beograd, iShares (DE) I Investmentaktiengesellschaft mit Teilgesellschaftsvermogen, and iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC.
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Xcel Energy, Inc. operates as a holding company, which engages in the generation, purchase, transmission, distribution and sale of electricity. It operates through the following three segments: Regulated Electric Utility, Regulated Natural Gas Utility and All Others. The Regulated Electric Utility segment generates, transmits and distributes electricity primarily in portions of generates, transmits and distributes electricity in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Texas and New Mexico. In addition, this segment includes sales for resale and provides wholesale transmission service to various entities in the United States. It also includes commodity trading operations. The Regulated Natural Gas Utility segment transports, stores, and distributes natural gas primarily in portions of Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Michigan and Colorado. The All Others segment engages in steam, appliance repair services, nonutility real estate activities, processing solid waste into refuse-derived fuel and investments in rental housing projects that qualify for low-income housing tax credits. The company was founded in 1909 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, MN.

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Black Diamond Group Limited rents and sells modular space and workforce accommodation solutions. It operates through two segments, Modular Space Solutions and Workforce Solutions. The Modular Space Solutions segment provides modular space rentals to customers in the construction, real estate development, manufacturing, education, financial, and resource industries, as well as government agencies in North America. Its products include office units, lavatories, storage units, large multi-unit office complexes, classroom facilities, banking and health care facilities, custom manufactured modular facilities, and blast resistant structures. This segment also sells new and used space rentals units; and provides delivery, installation, project management, and ancillary products and services. The Workforce Solutions segment provides workforce housing solutions, including rental of accommodations and surface equipment, and provision of turnkey lodging and travel management services in Canada, the United States, and Australia. This segment also provides associated services, such as installation, transportation, demobilization, and sale of used fleet assets. This segment primarily serves the resource, infrastructure, construction, disaster recovery, and education sectors. The company also provides specialized field rentals to oil and gas industries. Black Diamond Group Limited markets its rental assets, custom sales, and ancillary products and services through in-house sales personnel, its website, social media, web campaigns, and its digital marketplace. The company was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

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Raymond James Financial, Inc., a financial holding company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the underwriting, distribution, trading, and brokerage of equity and debt securities, and the sale of mutual funds and other investment products in the United States, Canada, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Private Client Group, Capital Markets, Asset Management, RJ Bank, and Other segments. The Private Client Group segment provides securities brokerage services, including the sale of equities, mutual funds, fixed income products, and insurance products to their individual clients; and borrowing and lending of securities to and from other broker-dealers, financial institutions, and other counterparties. The Capital Markets segment offers securities brokerage, trading, and research services to institutions with a focus on sale of the United States and Canadian equities and fixed income products; and manages and participates in underwritings, merger and acquisition services, and public finance activities. The Asset Management segment engages in the operations of Eagle, the Eagle Family of Funds, Cougar, the asset management operations of Raymond James & Associates, trust services of Raymond James Trust, and other fee-based asset management programs. The RJ Bank segment provides corporate loans, SBL, tax-exempt loans, and residential loans. The Other segment engages in private equity activities, including various direct and third party private equity investments; and private equity funds. Raymond James Financial, Inc. was founded in 1962 and is based in St. Petersburg, Florida.

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Brookfield Asset Management, Inc. engages in the management of public and private investment products and services for institutional and retail clients. It operates through the following segments: Asset Management, Real Estate, Renewable Power, Infrastructure, Private Equity, Residential Development, and Corporate Activities. The Asset Management segment includes the management of its listed partnerships, private funds and public securities. The Real Estate segment is comprised of the ownership, operation and development of core office, core retail, LP investments and other properties. The Renewable Power segment encompasses the ownership, operation and development of hydroelectric, wind, solar, storage and other power generating facilities. The Infrastructure segment consists of the ownership, operation and development of utilities, transport, energy, data infrastructure and sustainable resource assets. The Private Equity segment refers to the broad range of industries, and is mostly focused on business services, infrastructure services and industrials. The Residential Development segment represents homebuilding, condominium development and land development. The Corporate Activiti

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SunTrust Banks, Inc. operates as the holding company for SunTrust Bank that provides various financial services for consumers, businesses, corporations, institutions, and not-for-profit entities in the United States. It operates in two segments, Consumer and Wholesale. The Consumer segment provides deposits and payments; home equity and personal credit lines; auto, student, and other lending products; credit cards; discount/online and full-service brokerage products; professional investment advisory products and services; and trust services, as well as family office solutions. This segment also offers residential mortgage products in the secondary market. The Wholesale segment provides capital markets solutions, including advisory, capital raising, and financial risk management; asset-based financing solutions, such as securitizations, asset-based lending, equipment financing, and structured real estate arrangements; cash management services and auto dealer financing solutions; investment banking solutions; and credit and deposit, fee-based product offering, multi-family agency lending, advisory, commercial mortgage brokerage, and tailored financing and equity investment solutions. This segment also offers treasury and payment solutions, such as operating various electronic and paper payment types, which comprise card, wire transfer, automated clearing house, check, and cash; and provides services clients to manage their accounts online. The company offers its products and services through a network of traditional and in-store branches, automated teller machines, Internet, mobile, and telephone banking channels. As of December 31, 2018, it operated 1,218 full-service banking offices located in Florida, Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Maryland, South Carolina, and the District of Columbia. SunTrust Banks, Inc. was founded in 1891 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Oasis Petroleum Inc., an independent exploration and production company, focuses on the acquisition and development of onshore unconventional oil and natural gas resources in the United States. It operates through Exploration and Production(E&P), and Midstream segments. The E&P segment engages in the acquisition and development of oil and gas properties. The Midstream segment offers midstream services, such as natural gas gathering, compression, processing and, gas lift supply; crude oil gathering, terminaling, and transportation; produced and flowback water gathering, and disposal; and water distribution. As of December 31, 2020, the company had 401,766 net leasehold acres in the Williston Basin; and 24,396 net leasehold acres in the Permian Basin, as well as approximately 152.2 million barrels of oil equivalent of estimated net proved reserves. The company sells its crude oil and natural gas to refiners, marketers, and other purchasers that have access to pipeline and rail facilities. Oasis Petroleum Inc. was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

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CEMEX SAB de CV engages in the production, distribution, marketing, and sale of cement, ready-mix concrete, and aggregates. It operates though the following geographical segments: Mexico; United States; Europe; South, Central America and the Caribbean (SCA&C); Asia, Middle East and Africa (AMEA); and Others. The Europe segment covers United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, and Czech Republic, Poland and Latvia, as well as trading activities in Scandinavia, and Finland. The SCA&C segment includes Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Caribbean TCL, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Jamaica, the Caribbean, El Salvador, and Guatemala. The EMEA segment comprises of Egypt, Israel, the Philippines, and the United Arab Emirates. The Others segment refers to the cement trade maritime operations, information technology solutions business, and other corporate entities as well as other minor subsidiaries with different lines of business. The company was founded by Lorenzo Zambrano Gutierrez in 1906 and is headquartered in San Pedro Garza Garcia, Mexico.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Tenet Healthcare: 1 Subsidiaries of this entity in which Tenet Healthcare Corporation directly and indirectly held a 95% ownership interest at December 31 2020 are set forth in the table below., 25 East Same Day Surgery L.L.C., 300 PBL Development LLC, 45th Street MOB LLC, 601 N 30th Street I L.L.C., 601 N 30th Street II L.L.C., 601 N 30th Street III Inc., AHM Acquisition Co. Inc., AIG Holdings LLC, AIGB Global LLC, AIGB Group Inc., AIGB Holdings Inc., AIGB Management Services LLC, AMC/North Fulton Urgent Care #1 L.L.C., AMC/North Fulton Urgent Care #2 L.L.C., AMC/North Fulton Urgent Care #3 L.L.C., AMC/North Fulton Urgent Care #4 L.L.C., AMC/North Fulton Urgent Care #5 L.L.C., AMI Information Systems Group Inc., AMI/HTI Tarzana Encino Joint Venture, APN, ARC Worcester Center L.P., ASC Old Co. LP, ASC of New Jersey LLC, ASJH Joint Venture LLC, Abrazo Health Network EP Clinical Services LLC, Abrazo Surgical Outpatient Center LLC, Advanced Ambulatory Surgical Care L.P., Advanced Center for Surgery  Vero Beach LLC, Advanced Regional Surgery Center LLC, Advanced Surgery Center of Metairie LLC, Advanced Surgery Center of Sarasota LLC, Advanced Surgery Center of Tampa LLC, Advanced Surgical Care of St Louis LLC, Advanced Surgical Concepts LLC, Advantage Health Care Management Company LLC, Advantage Health Network Inc., AdventHealth Surgery Center Celebration LLC, AdventHealth Surgery Center Mills Park LLC, AdventHealth Surgery Center Wellswood LLC, AdventHealth Surgery Center Winter Garden LLC, AdventHealth Surgery Centers Central Florida LLC, AdventHealth Surgery Centers West Florida LLC, Adventist Midwest Health/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., Alabama Cardiovascular Associates L.L.C., Alabama Digestive Health Endoscopy Center L.L.C., Alabama Hand and Sports Medicine L.L.C., Alamo Heights Surgicare L.P., All Star MOB LLC, Allegian Insurance Company, Alliance Surgery Birmingham LLC, Alliance Surgery Inc., Alvarado Hospital Medical Center Inc., Ambulatory Surgical Associates LLC, Ambulatory Surgical Center of Somerville LLC, American Institute of Gastric Banding Ltd., American Institute of Gastric Banding Phoenix Limited Partnership, American Medical (Central) Inc., Amisub (Heights) Inc., Amisub (Hilton Head) Inc., Amisub (North Ridge Hospital) Inc., Amisub (SFH) Inc., Amisub (Twelve Oaks) Inc., Amisub of California Inc., Amisub of North Carolina Inc., Amisub of South Carolina Inc., Amisub of Texas Inc., Anaheim Hills Medical Imaging L.L.C., Anaheim MRI Holding Inc., Anesthesia Partners of Gallatin LLC, Arizona Care Network  Next L.L.C., Arizona Health Partners LLC, Arlington Orthopedic and Spine Hospital LLC, Arrowhead Endoscopy and Pain Management Center LLC, Asia Outsourcing US Inc., Aspen Healthcare, Atlanta Medical Center Inc., Atlanta Medical Center Interventional Neurology Associates L.L.C., Atlanta Medical Center Neurosurgical & Spine Specialists L.L.C., Atlanta Medical Center Physician Group L.L.C., Atlantic Coast Surgical Suites LLC, Atlantic Health-USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., Avita/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., BBH BMC LLC, BBH CBMC LLC, BBH DevelopmentCo LLC, BBH Imaging Jasper LLC, BBH NP Clinicians Inc., BBH PBMC LLC, BBH SBMC LLC, BBH WBMC LLC, BCDC EmployeeCO LLC, BHC-Talladega Pediatrics LLC, BHS Accountable Care LLC, BHS Affinity LLC, BHS Integrated Physician Partners LLC, BHS Physician Performance Network LLC, BHS Physicians Alliance for ACE LLC, BHS Physicians Network Inc., BHS Specialty Network Inc., BT East Dallas JV LLP, BW Cardiology LLC, BW Cyberknife LLC, BW Hand Practice LLC, BW Office Buildings LLC, BW Parking Decks LLC, BW Physician Practices LLC, BW Retail Pharmacy LLC, BW Sports Practice LLC, Bagley Holdings LLC, Baptist Accountable Care LLC, Baptist Diagnostics LLC, Baptist Health Centers LLC, Baptist Physician Alliance ACO LLC, Baptist Physician Alliance LLC, Baptist Plaza Surgicare L.P., Baptist Surgery Center L.P., Baptist Womens Health Center LLC, Baptist/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., Bartlett ASC LLC, Baylor Surgicare at Baylor Plano LLC, Baylor Surgicare at Blue Star LLC, Baylor Surgicare at Granbury LLC, Baylor Surgicare at Mansfield LLC, Baylor Surgicare at North Dallas LLC, Baylor Surgicare at Plano LLC, Baylor Surgicare at Plano Parkway LLC, Bear Creek Surgery Center LLC, Beaumont Surgical Affiliates Ltd., Bellaire Outpatient Surgery Center L.L.P., Berkshire Eye LLC, Bloomington ASC LLC, Blue Ridge/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Bluffton Okatie Primary Care L.L.C., Bluffton Okatie Surgery Center L.L.C., Bon Secours Surgery Center at Harbour View LLC, Bon Secours Surgery Center at Virginia Beach LLC, Bozeman Health/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., Bozeman MOB LLC, Briarcliff Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Bristol Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Broad River Primary Care L.L.C., Brookwood - Maternal Fetal Medicine L.L.C., Brookwood Ancillary Holdings Inc., Brookwood Baptist Health 1 LLC, Brookwood Baptist Health 2 LLC, Brookwood Baptist Health 3 LLC, Brookwood Baptist Imaging LLC, Brookwood Center Development Corporation, Brookwood Development Inc., Brookwood Diagnostic Imaging Center LLC, Brookwood Garages L.L.C., Brookwood Health Services Inc., Brookwood Home Health LLC, Brookwood Occupational Health Clinic L.L.C., Brookwood Parking Associates Ltd., Brookwood Primary Care - Homewood L.L.C., Brookwood Primary Care - Inverness L.L.C., Brookwood Primary Care - Mountain Brook L.L.C., Brookwood Primary Care - Oak Mountain L.L.C., Brookwood Primary Care - Vestavia L.L.C., Brookwood Primary Care Cahaba Heights L.L.C., Brookwood Primary Care Hoover L.L.C., Brookwood Primary Care The Narrows L.L.C., Brookwood Primary Network Care Inc., Brookwood Specialty Care - Endocrinology L.L.C., Brookwood Sports and Orthopedics L.L.C., Brookwood Womens Care L.L.C., Brookwood Womens Diagnostic Center LLC, C7 Technologies LLC, CGH Hospital Ltd., CHIC/USP Surgery Centers LLC, CHN Holdings LLC, CHRISTUS Cabrini Surgery Center L.L.C., CHVI Tucson Holdings LLC, CML-Chicago Market Labs Inc., CRNAs of Michigan, CS/USP General Partner LLC, CS/USP Surgery Centers LP, California Joint & Spine LLC, Camp Creek Urgent Care L.L.C., Camp Lowell Surgery Center L.L.C., Captive Insurance Services Inc., Cardiology Physicians Associates L.L.C., Cardiology Physicians Corporation L.L.C., Cardiovascular & Thoracic Surgery Associates L.L.C., Cardiovascular Clinical Excellence at Sierra Providence LLC, CareSpot of Austin LLC, CareSpot of Memphis LLC, CareSpot of Orlando/HSI Urgent Care LLC, Carmel Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Carondelet St. Marys-Northwest L.L.C., Cascade Spine Center LLC, Castle Rock Surgery Center LLC, Catawba-Piedmont Cardiothoracic Surgery L.L.C., Cedar Hill Primary Care L.L.C., Cedar Park Surgery Center L.L.P., Centennial ASC LLC, Center for Advanced Research Excellence L.L.C., Center for the Urban Child Inc., Central California Healthcare Holdings LLC, Central Carolina Physicians - Sandhills L.L.C., Central Carolina-IMA L.L.C., Central Jersey Surgery Center LLC, Central Texas Corridor Hospital Company LLC, Central Valley Quality Alliance LLC, Central Virginia Surgi-Center L.P., Centura Ventures Surgery Centers LLC, Centura/USP Colorado Springs Surgery Centers L.L.C., Chalon Living Inc., Chandler Endoscopy Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Charlotte Endoscopic Surgery Center LLC, Chattanooga Pain Management Center LLC, Chesterfield Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Chesterfield Anesthesia Associates of Missouri LLC, Chico Surgery Center L.P., Childrens Hospital of Michigan Premier Network Inc., Citrus Heights ASC RE LLC, Clarkston ASC Partners LLC, Clarksville Surgery Center LLC, Coast Healthcare Management LLC, Coast Surgery Center L.P., Coastal Carolina Medical Center, Coastal Carolina Medical Center Inc., Coastal Carolina Physician Practices LLC, Coastal Carolina Pro Fee Billing L.L.C., Coastal Endo LLC, Colorado GI Centers LLC, Commonwealth Continental Health Care Inc., Community Connection Health Plan Inc., Community Hospital LLC, Community Hospital of Los Gatos Inc., Conifer Care Continuum Solutions LLC, Conifer Ethics and Compliance Inc., Conifer Global Business Center Inc., Conifer Global Holdings Inc., Conifer Health Solutions LLC, Conifer Holdings Inc., Conifer Patient Communications LLC, Conifer Physician Services Holdings Inc., Conifer Physician Services Inc., Conifer Revenue Cycle Solutions LLC, Conifer Value-Based Care LLC, Conroe Surgery Center 2 LLC, Coral Gables Hospital Inc., Coral Ridge Outpatient Center LLC, Corpus Christi Surgicare Ltd., Covenant/USP Surgery Centers LLC, CreAtiv Management Company Inc., Creekwood Investors LLC, Creekwood Surgery Center L.P., Crown Point Surgery Center LLC, DH/USP SJOSC Investment Company L.L.C., DH/USP Sacramento Pain GP LLC, DMC Detroit Receiving Hospital Premier Clinical Co-Management Services LLC, DMC Education & Research, DMC Harper University Hospital Premier Clinical Co-Management Services LLC, DMC Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital Premier Clinical Management Services LLC, DMC Imaging L.L.C., Dallas Surgical Partners LLC, DeTar/USP Surgery Center LLC, Delray Beach ASC LLC, Delray Medical Center Inc., Delray Medical Physician Services L.L.C., Denton Surgicare Partners Ltd., Denton Surgicare Real Estate Ltd., Denville Surgery Center LLC, Des Peres Physician Network LLC, Desert Cove MOB LLC, Desert Regional Medical Center Inc., Desert Ridge Outpatient Surgery LLC, Desoto Surgicare Partners Ltd., Destin ASC RE LLC, Destin Surgery Center LLC, Detroit Education & Research, DigitalMed Inc., Dignity/Abrazo Health Network LLC, Dignity/USP Folsom GP LLC, Dignity/USP Grass Valley GP LLC, Dignity/USP Las Vegas Surgery Centers LLC, Dignity/USP Metro Surgery Center LLC, Dignity/USP NorCal Surgery Centers LLC, Dignity/USP Phoenix Surgery Centers II LLC, Dignity/USP Phoenix Surgery Centers LLC, Dignity/USP Redding GP LLC, Dignity/USP Roseville GP LLC, Dignity/USP/John Muir East Bay Surgery Centers LLC, Doctors Hospital of Manteca Inc., Doctors Medical Center Neurosciences Clinical Co-Management LLC, Doctors Medical Center Orthopedics Clinical Co-Management LLC, Doctors Medical Center of Modesto Inc., Doctors Outpatient Center for Surgery LLC, Doctors Outpatient Surgery Center of Jupiter L.L.C., EPHC Inc., EPIC ASC LLC, East Atlanta Endoscopy Centers LLC, East Cobb Urgent Care LLC, East Cooper Coastal Family Physicians L.L.C., East Cooper Community Hospital Inc., East Cooper Hyperbarics L.L.C., East Cooper OB/GYN L.L.C., East Cooper Physician Network LLC, East Cooper Primary Care Physicians L.L.C., East Portland Surgery Center LLC, East West Surgery Center L.P., Eastgate Building Center L.L.C., Effingham Surgical Partners LLC, Einstein Montgomery Surgery Center LLC, Einstein/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., El Mirador Surgery Center L.L.C., El Paso Center for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy LLC, El Paso Day Surgery LLC, El Paso Urology Surgery Center Curie LLC, Emanate/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Emanuel Medical Center, Emerson Surgery Center LLC, Encinitas Endoscopy Center LLC, Endoscopy Center of Hackensack LLC, Endoscopy Center of South Sacramento LLC, Endoscopy Consultants LLC, European Surgical Partners Ltd., Eye Center of Nashville UAP LLC, Eye Surgery Center of Nashville LLC, FMC Medical Inc., FMCC Network Contracting L.L.C., FPN  Frisco Physicians Network, FREH Real Estate L.L.C., FRS Imaging Services L.L.C., FSC Hospital LLC, FSH IT Services LP, First Choice Physician Partners, Flatirons Surgery Center LLC, Folsom Outpatient Surgery Center L.P., Fort Bend Clinical Services Inc., Fort Worth Hospital Real Estate LP, Fort Worth Surgicare Partners Ltd., Foundation Bariatric Hospital of San Antonio LLC, Foundation San Antonio Borrower Sub LLC, Fountain Valley Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Fountain Valley Surgery Center LLC, Franklin Endo UAP LLC, Franklin Endoscopy Center LLC, Fresno Surgery Center L.P., Frisco Medical Center L.L.P., Frontenac Ambulatory Surgery & Spine Care Center L.P., Frye Regional Medical Center Inc., FryeCare Boone L.L.C., FryeCare Morganton L.L.C., FryeCare Physicians L.L.C., FryeCare Valdese L.L.C., FryeCare Watauga L.L.C., FryeCare Womens Services L.L.C., GCSA Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Gamma Surgery Center LLC, Gardendale Surgical Associates LLC, Garland Surgicare Partners Ltd., Gastric Health Institute L.L.C., Genesis ASC Partners LLC, Geneva Surgical Suites LLC, Georgia Endoscopy Center LLC, Georgia Gifts From Grace L.L.C., Georgia Musculoskeletal Network Inc., Georgia North Fulton Healthcare Associates L.L.C., Georgia Northside Ear Nose and Throat L.L.C., Georgia Physicians of Cardiology L.L.C., Georgia Spectrum Neurosurgical Specialists L.L.C., Georgia Spine Surgery Center LLC, Glen Echo Surgery Center LLC, Golden Ridge ASC LLC, Good Samaritan Medical Center Inc., Good Samaritan Surgery L.L.C., Grapevine Surgicare Partners Ltd., Grass Valley Outpatient Surgery Center L.P., Graystone Family Healthcare - Tenet North Carolina L.L.C., Great Lakes Surgical Suites LLC, Greater Dallas Healthcare Enterprises, Greater Northwest Houston Enterprises, Greenville Physicians Surgery Center LLP, Greenwood ASC LLC, Greystone Internal Medicine - Brookwood L.L.C., Gulf Coast Community Hospital Inc., HCH Tucson Holdings LLC, HCN Emerus Management Sub LLC, HCN Emerus Texas LLC, HCN Laboratories Inc., HCN Physicians Inc., HCN Sunnyvale Holdings LLC, HCN Surgery Center Holdings Inc., HDMC Holdings L.L.C., HMA/Solantic Joint Venture LLC, HMH-USP Surgery Centers LLC, HMHP/USP Surgery Centers LLC, HNMC Inc., HNW GP Inc., HNW LP Inc., HPI Holdings LLC, HPI North LLC, HPI Physicians LLC, HSRM International Inc., HSS Palm Beach Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, HSS/USP Surgery Center LLC, HUG Services Inc., HUMC/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Hacienda Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Hagerstown Surgery Center LLC, Hardeeville Medical Group L.L.C., Hardeeville Primary Care L.L.C., Harlingen Physician Network Inc., Harper-Hutzel AHP Services Inc., Harvard Park Surgery Center LLC, Haymarket Surgery Center LLC, Hazelwood Endoscopy Center LLC, Health & Wellness Surgery Center L.P., Health Horizons of Kansas City Inc., Health Horizons of Murfreesboro Inc., Health Horizons/Piedmont Joint Venture LLC, Health Services CFMC Inc., Health Services HNMC Inc., Health Services Network Care Inc., Health Services Network Hospitals Inc., Health Services Network Texas Inc., HealthCorp Network Inc., Healthcare Compliance LLC, Healthcare Network Alabama Inc., Healthcare Network CFMC Inc., Healthcare Network DPH Inc., Healthcare Network Georgia Inc., Healthcare Network Holdings Inc., Healthcare Network Hospitals (Dallas) Inc., Healthcare Network Hospitals Inc., Healthcare Network Louisiana Inc., Healthcare Network Missouri Inc., Healthcare Network North Carolina Inc., Healthcare Network South Carolina Inc., Healthcare Network Tennessee Inc., Healthcare Network Texas Inc., Healthcare Partners Investments LLC, Healthmark Partners Inc., Healthpoint of North Carolina L.L.C., Heart and Vascular Institute of Michigan, Heritage Park Surgical Hospital LLC, Hershey Outpatient Surgery Center L.P., Hialeah Hospital Inc., Hialeah Real Properties Inc., Hickory Family Practice Associates - Tenet North Carolina L.L.C., Hill Country ASC Partners LLC, Hill Country Surgery Center LLC, Hilton Head Health System L.P., Hilton Head Regional Healthcare L.L.C., Hilton Head Regional OB/GYN Partners L.L.C., Hilton Head Regional Physician Network LLC, Hilton Head Regional Physician Network  Georgia L.L.C., Hinsdale Surgical Center LLC, Hitchcock State Street Real Estate Inc., Holston Valley Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Holy Cross Hospital Inc., Home Health Partners of San Antonio LLC, Hoover Doctors Group Inc., Hoover Land LLC, Horizon Ridge Surgery Center LLC, Hospital Development of West Phoenix Inc., Hospital RCM Services LLC, Hospital Underwriting Group Inc., Houston Northwest Partners Ltd., Houston PSC L.P., Houston Specialty Hospital Inc., Houston Sunrise Investors Inc., Hyde Park Surgery Center LLC, ICNU Rockford LLC, Imaging Center at Baxter Village L.L.C., InforMed Insurance Services LLC, Integris/USP Health Ventures LLC, International Health and Wellness Inc., Irving-Coppell Surgical Hospital L.L.P., JFK Memorial Hospital Inc., JFP UAP Sugarland LLC, Jackson Surgical Center LLC, Jacksonville Endoscopy Centers LLC, Journey Home Healthcare of San Antonio LLC, KHS Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, KHS/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Kingsport Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Laguna Medical Systems Inc., Lake Endoscopy Center LLC, Lake Health Care Facilities Inc., Lake Lansing ASC Partners LLC, Lake Surgical Hospital Slidell LLC, LakeFront Medical Associates LLC, Lakewood Regional Medical Center Inc., Lakewood Surgery Center LLC, Lancaster Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Lansing ASC Partners LLC, Lawrenceville Surgery Center L.L.C., Lebanon Endoscopy Center LLC, Legacy Warren Partners L.P., Legacy/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., Leonardtown Surgery Center LLC, Liberty Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Lifemark Hospitals Inc., Lifemark Hospitals of Florida Inc., Lifemark Hospitals of Louisiana Inc., Lone Star Endoscopy Center LLC, Longleaf Surgery Center LLC, Los Alamitos Medical Center Inc., Lubbock ASC Holding Co LLC, MASC Partners LLC, MCSH Real Estate Investors Ltd., MH Memorial City Surgery LLC, MH/USP Bay Area LLC, MH/USP Brazoria LLC, MH/USP Kingsland LLC, MH/USP Kingwood LLC, MH/USP Kirby LLC, MH/USP Main Street LLC, MH/USP North Freeway LLC, MH/USP North Houston LLC, MH/USP Richmond LLC, MH/USP Sugar Land LLC, MH/USP TMC Endoscopy LLC, MH/USP West Houston L.L.C., MH/USP Woodlands Parkway LLC, MSH Partners LLC, MSV Health/USP Surgery Centers LLC, MVH/USP Surgery Centers LLC, MacNeal Management Services Inc., MacNeal Medical Records Inc., MacNeal Physicians Group LLC, Magnetic Resonance Imaging of San Luis Obispo Inc., Magnolia Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Manchester Ambulatory Surgery Center LP, Maple Lawn Surgery Center LLC, Marion Surgery Center LLC, Mary Immaculate Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Mason Ridge Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Mayfield Spine Surgery Center LLC, McLaren ASC of Flint LLC, Meadowcrest Hospital LLC, Medical House Staffing LLC, Medical Park Tower Surgery Center LLC, Medplex Outpatient Medical Centers Inc., Medplex Outpatient Surgery Center Ltd., Memorial Hermann Bay Area Endoscopy Center LLC, Memorial Hermann Endoscopy & Surgery Center North Houston L.L.C., Memorial Hermann Endoscopy Center North Freeway LLC, Memorial Hermann Specialty Hospital Kingwood L.L.C., Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Surgical Hospital L.L.P., Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Brazoria LLC, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Cypress LLC, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Katy LLP, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Kingsland L.L.C., Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Kirby LLC, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Main Street LLC, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Memorial City L.L.C., Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Northwest LLP, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Pinecroft LLC, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Preston Road Ltd., Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Richmond LLC, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Southwest L.L.P., Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Sugar Land LLP, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Texas Medical Center LLP, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center Woodlands Parkway LLC, Memorial Hermann Surgery Center  The Woodlands LLP, Memorial Hermann Texas International Endoscopy Center LLC, Memorial Hermann West Houston Surgery Center LLC, Memorial Hermann/USP Surgery Centers II L.P., Memorial Hermann/USP Surgery Centers III LLP, Memorial Hermann/USP Surgery Centers IV LLP, Memorial Surgery Center LLC, Memphis Urgent Care #1 L.L.C., Memphis Urgent Care #2 L.L.C., Merced Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Mercy/USP Health Ventures L.L.C., Metro Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Metro Surgery Center LLC, MetroWest HomeCare & Hospice LLC, Metrocrest Surgery Center L.P., Metropolitan New Jersey LLC, Michigan ASC Partners L.L.C., Michigan Pioneer ACO LLC, Michigan Regional Imaging LLC, Mid Rivers Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Mid State Endo UAP LLC, Mid-State Endoscopy Center LLC, Mid-TSC Development LP, Middle Tennessee Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Midland Memorial/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Midland Texas Surgical Center LLC, Midwest Digestive Health Center LLC, Midwest Pharmacies Inc., Midwest Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Millennium Surgical Center LLC, Mobile Imaging Management LLC, Mobile Technology Management LLC, Modesto Radiology Imaging Inc., Monocacy Surgery Center LLC, Mountain Empire Surgery Center L.P., Munster Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Murdock Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, NHSC Holdings LLC, NICH GP Holdings LLC, NKCH/USP Briarcliff GP LLC, NKCH/USP Liberty GP LLC, NKCH/USP Surgery Centers II L.L.C., NKCH/USP Surgery Centers LLC, NMC Lessor L.P., NMC Surgery Center L.P., NME Headquarters Inc., NME Properties Corp., NME Properties Inc., NME Property Holding Co. Inc., NME Psychiatric Hospitals Inc., NME Rehabilitation Properties Inc., NSCH GP Holdings LLC, NSCH/USP Desert Surgery Centers L.L.C., NUCH of Georgia L.L.C., NUCH of Massachusetts LLC, NUCH of Michigan Inc., NUCH of Texas, Nacogdoches ASC-LP Inc., Name of Entity, National ASC Inc., National Ancillary Inc., National Diagnostic Imaging Centers Inc., National HHC Inc., National Home Health Holdings Inc., National ICN Inc., National Imaging Center Holdings Inc., National Medical Services II Inc., National Outpatient Services Holdings Inc., National Surgery Center Holdings Inc., National Urgent Care Holdings Inc., National Urgent Care Inc., Network Management Associates Inc., New Dimensions LLC, New England Physician Performance Network LLC, New H Acute Inc., New Horizons Surgery Center LLC, New Medical Horizons II Ltd., New Mexico Orthopaedic Surgery Center LLC, New Salem ASC RE LLC, Newhope Imaging Center Inc., North Anaheim Surgery Center LLC, North Atlantic Surgical Suites LLC, North Campus Surgery Center LLC, North Carolina Community Family Medicine L.L.C., North Central Surgical Center L.L.P., North Denver Musculoskeletal Surgical Partners LLC, North Fulton Cardiovascular Medicine L.L.C., North Fulton Hospitalist Group L.L.C., North Fulton Medical Center Inc., North Fulton Primary Care - Willeo Rd. L.L.C., North Fulton Primary Care - Windward Parkway L.L.C., North Fulton Primary Care - Wylie Bridge L.L.C., North Fulton Primary Care Associates L.L.C., North Fulton Pulmonary Specialists L.L.C., North Fulton Womens Consultants L.L.C., North Garland Surgery Center L.L.P., North Haven Surgery Center LLC, North Miami Medical Center Ltd., North Shore Medical Billing Center L.L.C., North Shore Medical Center Inc., North Shore Same Day Surgery L.L.C., North Shore Surgical Suites LLC, North State Surgery Centers L.P., NorthPointe Surgical Suites LLC, NorthShore/USP Surgery Centers II L.L.C., Northern Monmouth Regional Surgery Center L.L.C., Northridge ASC RE LLC, Northridge Surgery Center L.P., Northwest Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Northwest Georgia Orthopaedic Surgery Center LLC, Northwest Regional ASC LLC, Northwest Regional Surgery Center LLC, Northwest Surgery Center LLP, Northwest Surgery Center Ltd., Novant Health/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Novant/UVA/USP Surgery Centers LLC, OCOMS Imaging LLC, OCOMS Professional Services LLC, OLOL/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., Okatie Surgical Partners L.L.C., Oklahoma Center for Orthopedic and Multi-Specialty Surgery LLC, Old Tesson Surgery Center L.P., Olive Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Olive Branch Urgent Care #1 LLC, Ophthalmology Anesthesia Services LLC, Ophthalmology Surgery Center of Orlando LLC, Optimum Spine Center LLC, OrNda Healthcorp, OrNda Hospital Corporation, Orlando Health/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., OrthoArizona Surgery Center Gilbert LLC, OrthoLink ASC Corporation, OrthoLink Physicians Corporation, OrthoLink Radiology Services Corporation, OrthoLink/ Georgia ASC Inc., OrthoLink/Baptist ASC LLC, OrthoLink/New Mexico ASC Inc., Orthopedic Associates of the Lowcountry L.L.C., Orthopedic South Surgical Partners LLC, Orthopedic and Surgical Specialty Company LLC, PAHS/USP Surgery Centers LLC, PDN L.L.C., PHPS Inc., PHPS-CHM Acquisition Inc., PHS/USP Health Ventures LLC, PM CyFair Land Partners LLC, PMC Physician Network L.L.C., PPRE LLC, PSS Patient Solution Services LLC, Pacific Endo-Surgical Center L.P., Pacific Endoscopy and Surgery Center LLC, Pain Diagnostic and Treatment Center L.P., Paley Institute Global LLC, Palm Beach Gardens Community Hospital Inc., Palm Beach International Surgery Center LLC, Palm Valley Medical Center Campus Association, Palos Health Surgery Center LLC, Paramus Endoscopy LLC, Park Cities Surgery Center LLC, Park Plaza Hospital Billing Center L.L.C., ParkCreek ASC LLC, Parkway Recovery Care Center LLC, Parkwest Surgery Center L.P., Patient Partners LLC, Peak Gastroenterology ASC LLC, Pediatric Surgery Center  Odessa LLC, Pediatric Surgery Centers LLC, Physician Performance Network L.L.C., Physician Performance Network of Arizona LLC, Physician Performance Network of Detroit, Physician Performance Network of South Carolina LLC, Physician Performance Network of Tucson LLC, Physicians Performance Network of Houston, Physicians Performance Network of North Texas, Physicians Surgery Center at Good Samaritan LLC, Physicians Surgery Center of Tempe LLC, Physicians Surgical Center of Ft. Worth LLP, Physicians Surgery Center of Chattanooga L.L.C., Physicians Surgery Center of Knoxville LLC, Piccard Surgery Center LLC, Piedmont ASC LLC, Piedmont Behavioral Medicine Associates LLC, Piedmont Cardiovascular Physicians L.L.C., Piedmont Carolina OB/GYN of York County L.L.C., Piedmont Carolina Vascular Surgery L.L.C., Piedmont East Urgent Care Center L.L.C., Piedmont Express Care at Sutton Road L.L.C., Piedmont Family Practice at Baxter Village L.L.C., Piedmont Family Practice at Rock Hill L.L.C., Piedmont Family Practice at Tega Cay L.L.C., Piedmont General Surgery Associates L.L.C., Piedmont Internal Medicine at Baxter Village L.L.C., Piedmont Physician Network LLC, Piedmont Pulmonology L.L.C., Piedmont Surgical Specialists L.L.C., Piedmont Urgent Care Center at Baxter Village L.L.C., Piedmont Urgent Care and Industrial Health Centers Inc., Piedmont/Carolinas Radiation Therapy LLC, Placentia-Linda Hospital Inc., Pleasanton Diagnostic Imaging Inc., Point of Rocks Surgery Center LLC, Practice Partners Management L.P., Premier ACO Physicians Network LLC, Premier ASC LLC, Premier Adult and Childrens Surgery Center LLC, Premier Endoscopy ASC LLC, Premier Health Plan Services Inc., Premier Medical Specialists L.L.C., Prince William Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Professional Anesthesia Services LLC, Professional Liability Insurance Company, Pros Temporary Staffing Inc., Providence/UCLA/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Providence/USP Santa Clarita GP LLC, Providence/USP South Bay Surgery Centers L.L.C., Providence/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., Pueblo Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, R.H.S.C. El Paso Inc., RE Plano Med Inc., RHC Parkway Inc., RLC LLC, Reading Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Reading Endoscopy Center LLC, Reagan Street Surgery Center LLC, Redmond Surgery Center LLC, Renaissance Surgery Center LLC, Republic Health Corporation of Rockwall County, Resolute Health Physicians Network Inc., Resolute Hospital Company LLC, Resurgens East Surgery Center LLC, Resurgens Fayette Surgery Center LLC, Resurgens Surgery Center LLC, Rheumatology Associates of Atlanta Medical Center L.L.C., Richmond ASC Leasing Company LLC, Rio Grande Valley Indigent Health Care Corporation, River North Same Day Surgery L.L.C., Riverside Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Rock Bridge Surgical Institute L.L.C., Rock Hill Surgery Center LLC, Rockwall Ambulatory Surgery Center L.L.P., Rocky Mountain Endoscopy Centers LLC, Roseville Surgery Center L.P., Roswell Surgery Center L.L.C., SCNRE LLC, SFMP Inc., SFMPE - Crittenden L.L.C., SL-HLC Inc., SLH Physicians L.L.C., SLH Vista Inc., SLPA ACO LLC, SLUH Anesthesia Physicians L.L.C., SMSJ Imaging Company LLC, SMSJ Tucson Holdings LLC, SPC at the Star LLC, SRRMC Management Inc., SSI Holdings Inc., Sacramento Midtown Endoscopy Center LLC, Safety Harbor ASC Company LLC, Saint Agnes/Dignity/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Saint Agnes/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Saint Francis Cardiology Associates L.L.C., Saint Francis Cardiovascular Surgery L.L.C., Saint Francis Center for Surgical Weight Loss L.L.C., Saint Francis Hospital Billing Center L.L.C., Saint Francis Hospital Medicare ACO LLC, Saint Francis Hospital Pro Fee Billing L.L.C., Saint Francis Hospital-Bartlett Inc., Saint Francis Medical Partners East L.L.C., Saint Francis Medical Partners General Surgery L.L.C., Saint Francis Physician Network LLC, Saint Francis Quality Alliance LLC, Saint Francis Surgery Center L.L.C., Saint Francis Surgical Associates L.L.C., Saint Francis-Arkansas Physician Network LLC, Saint Francis-Bartlett Physician Network LLC, Saint Thomas Campus Surgicare L.P., Saint Thomas Surgery Center New Salem LLC, Saint Thomas/USP Surgery Centers II L.L.C., Saint Thomas/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., Saint Thomas/USP  Baptist Plaza L.L.C., Saint Vincent Physician Services Inc., Salmon Surgery Center LLC, Same Day Management L.L.C., Same Day SC of Central NJ LLC, Same Day Surgery L.L.C., San Antonio Endoscopy L.P., San Fernando Valley Surgery Center L.P., San Gabriel Valley Surgical Center L.P., San Martin Surgery Center LLC, San Ramon ASC L. P., San Ramon Ambulatory Care LLC, San Ramon Network Joint Venture LLC, San Ramon Regional Medical Center LLC, San Ramon Surgery Center L.L.C., Santa Barbara Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Santa Clarita Surgery Center L.P., Savannah Endoscopy Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Schertz Surgery Center LLC, Scripps Encinitas Surgery Center LLC, Scripps/USP Surgery Centers L.L.C., Seaside Surgery Center LLC, Shands/Solantic Joint Venture LLC, Shelby Baptist Affinity LLC, Shelby Baptist Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Shore Outpatient Surgicenter L.L.C., Shoreline Real Estate Partnership LLP, Shoreline Surgery Center LLP, Shrewsbury Surgery Center LLC, Sierra Pacific Surgery Center LLC, Sierra Providence Health Network Inc., Sierra Providence Healthcare Enterprises, Sierra Vista Hospital Inc., Silicon Valley Outpatient Surgery Centers LLC, Silver Cross Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Silver Cross/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Sinai-Grace Premier Clinical Management Services LLC, Siouxland Surgery Center Limited Liability Partnership, Solantic Corporation, Solantic Development LLC, Solantic Holdings Corporation, Solantic of Jacksonville LLC, Solantic of Orlando LLC, Solantic/South Florida LLC, South Carolina East Cooper Surgical Specialists L.L.C., South Carolina Health Services Inc., South Carolina SeWee Family Medicine L.L.C., South County Outpatient Endoscopy Services L.P., South Denver Musculoskeletal Surgical Partners LLC, South Florida Ambulatory Surgical Center LLC, South Fulton Health Care Centers Inc., SouthCare Physicians Group Neurology L.L.C., SouthCare Physicians Group Obstetrics & Gynecology L.L.C., Southeast Ohio Surgical Suites LLC, Southern Orthopedics and Sports Medicine L.L.C., Southern States Physician Operations Inc., Southwest Ambulatory Surgery Center L.L.C., Southwest Childrens Hospital LLC, Southwest Endoscopy LLC, Southwest Orthopedic and Spine Hospital LLC, Southwest Orthopedic and Spine Hospital Real Estate LLC, Southwestern Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Spalding Regional Medical Center Inc., Spalding Regional OB/GYN L.L.C., Spalding Regional Physician Services L.L.C., Specialty Surgery Center of Fort Worth L.P., Specialty Surgicenters Inc., Spinal Diagnostics and Treatment Centers L.L.C., Spine & Joint Physician Associates, Springfield Service Holding Corporation, St. Augustine Endoscopy Center LLC, St. Christophers Pediatric Urgent Care Center - Allentown L.L.C, St. Josephs Hospital Surgical Co-Management LLC, St. Josephs Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, St. Josephs Surgery Center L.P., St. Louis Physician Alliance LLC, St. Louis Surgical Center LLC, St. Louis Urology Center LLC, St. Lukes/USP Surgery Centers LLC, St. Marys Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, St. Marys Hospital Cardiovascular Co-Management LLC, St. Marys Hospital Surgical Co-Management LLC, St. Marys Levee Company LLC, St. Marys Medical Center Inc., St. Vincent Health/USP LLC, St. Vincent/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Stockton Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Subsidiaries of USPI Holding Company Inc., Suburban Endoscopy Center LLC, Summit View Surgery Center LLC, Sun View Imaging L.L.C., Sunrise Medical Group I L.L.C., Sunrise Medical Group II L.L.C., Sunrise Medical Group IV L.L.C., SurgCenter Camelback LLC, SurgCenter Northeast LLC, SurgCenter Pinellas LLC, SurgCenter Tucson LLC, SurgCenter at Paradise Valley LLC, SurgCenter of Deer Valley LLC, SurgCenter of Glen Burnie LLC, SurgCenter of Palm Beach Gardens LLC, SurgCenter of Plano LLC, SurgCenter of Southern Maryland LLC, SurgCenter of St. Lucie LLC, SurgCenter of White Marsh LLC, Surgery Affiliate of El Paso LLC, Surgery Center at Mount Pleasant LLC, Surgery Center at University Park LLC, Surgery Center of Atlanta LLC, Surgery Center of Canfield LLC, Surgery Center of Columbia L.P., Surgery Center of Coral Gables LLC, Surgery Center of Okeechobee LLC, Surgery Center of Pembroke Pines L.L.C., Surgery Center of Peoria L.L.C., Surgery Center of Richardson Physician Partnership L.P., Surgery Center of Santa Barbara LLC, Surgery Center of Scottsdale LLC, Surgery Center of Tempe Real Estate II L.L.C., Surgery Center of Tempe Real Estate L.L.C., Surgery Centers of America II L.L.C., Surgery Centre of SW Florida LLC, Surgical & Bariatric Associates of Atlanta Medical Center L.L.C., Surgical Clinical Excellence at Desert Regional LLC, Surgical Elite of Avondale L.L.C., Surgical Health Partners LLC, Surgical Institute Management LLC, Surgical Institute of Reading LLC, Surgical Specialists at Princeton LLC, Surgicare of Miramar L.L.C., Surginet Inc., Surgis Inc., Surgis Management Services Inc., Surgis of Chico Inc., Surgis of Phoenix Inc., Surgis of Redding Inc., Surgis of Victoria Inc., Sutton Road Pediatrics L.L.C., Sylvan Grove Hospital Inc., TENN SM LLC, TFPS IV L.L.C., TH Healthcare Ltd., TH International Services Florida LLC, THV Park Cities LLC, THVG Arlington GP LLC, THVG Bariatric GP LLC, THVG Bariatric L.L.C., THVG Bedford GP LLC, THVG Bellaire GP LLC, THVG DSP GP LLC, THVG DeSoto GP LLC, THVG Denton GP LLC, THVG Fort Worth GP LLC, THVG Frisco GP LLC, THVG Garland GP LLC, THVG Grapevine GP LLC, THVG Irving-Coppell GP LLC, THVG Lewisville GP LLC, THVG North Garland GP LLC, THVG Park Cities/Trophy Club GP LLC, THVG Rockwall 2 GP LLC, THVG Valley View GP LLC, TLC ASC LLC, TMC Holding Company LLC, TOPS Specialty Hospital Ltd., TPG Hospital LLC, TPR Practice Management LLC, TPS VI of PA L.L.C., TRMC Holdings LLC, TSPE LLC, Tamarac Surgery Center LLC, Tempe New Day Surgery Center LP, Templeton Imaging Inc., Tenet Business Services Corporation, Tenet California Inc., Tenet Central Carolina Physicians Inc., Tenet EKG Inc., Tenet El Paso Ltd., Tenet Employment Inc., Tenet Finance Corp., Tenet Florida Inc., Tenet Florida Physician Services II L.L.C., Tenet Florida Physician Services III L.L.C., Tenet Florida Physician Services L.L.C., Tenet Fort Mill Inc., Tenet Global Business Center Inc., Tenet HealthSystem Bucks County L.L.C., Tenet HealthSystem Graduate L.L.C., Tenet HealthSystem Hahnemann L.L.C., Tenet HealthSystem Medical Inc., Tenet HealthSystem Nacogdoches ASC GP Inc., Tenet HealthSystem Philadelphia Inc., Tenet HealthSystem Roxborough LLC, Tenet HealthSystem St. Christophers Hospital for Children L.L.C., Tenet Hilton Head Heart L.L.C., Tenet Hospitals Limited, Tenet Network Management Inc., Tenet Patient Safety Organization LLC, Tenet Physician Resources LLC, Tenet Physician Services - Hilton Head Inc., Tenet Rehab Piedmont Inc., Tenet Relocation Services L.L.C., Tenet SC East Cooper Hospitalists L.L.C., Tenet South Carolina Gastrointestinal Surgical Specialists L.L.C., Tenet South Carolina Island Medical L.L.C., Tenet South Carolina Lowcountry OB/GYN L.L.C., Tenet South Carolina Mt. Pleasant OB/GYN L.L.C., Tenet Unifour Urgent Care Center L.L.C., Tenet Ventures Inc., TenetCare Frisco Inc., Terre Haute Surgical Center LLC, Teton Outpatient Services LLC, Texan Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Texas Endoscopy Centers LLC, Texas Health Venture Arlington Hospital LLC, Texas Health Venture Baylor Plano LLC, Texas Health Venture Carrollton LLC, Texas Health Venture Centennial LLC, Texas Health Venture Ennis LLC, Texas Health Venture Fort Worth L.L.C., Texas Health Venture Granbury LLC, Texas Health Venture Heritage Park LLC, Texas Health Venture Keller LLC, Texas Health Venture Las Colinas LLC, Texas Health Venture Mansfield LLC, Texas Health Venture Plano Endo LLC, Texas Health Venture Plano LLC, Texas Health Venture Plano Parkway LLC, Texas Health Venture Texas Spine LLC, Texas Health Ventures Group L.L.C., Texas Orthopedics Surgery Center LLC, Texas Regional Medical Center LLC, Texas Regional Medical in Sunnyvale, Texas Spine and Joint Hospital LLC, The 6300 West Roosevelt Partnership, The Ambulatory Surgical Center of St. Louis L.P., The Healthcare Insurance Corporation, The Healthcare Underwriting Company a Risk Retention Group, The Huron Corporation, The Outpatient Center LLC, The Southeastern Spine Institute Ambulatory Surgery Center L.L.C., The Surgery Center at Jensen Beach LLC, The Surgery Center at Williamson LLC, The Tresanti Surgical Center LLC, Theda Oaks Gastroenterology & Endoscopy Center LLC, Titan Health Corporation, Titan Health of Chattanooga Inc., Titan Health of Hershey Inc., Titan Health of Mount Laurel LLC, Titan Health of North Haven Inc., Titan Health of Pittsburgh Inc., Titan Health of Pleasant Hills Inc., Titan Health of Princeton Inc., Titan Health of Sacramento Inc., Titan Health of Saginaw Inc., Titan Health of Titusville Inc., Titan Health of West Penn Inc., Titan Health of Westminster Inc., Titan Management Corporation, Titusville Center for Surgical Excellence LLC, Toms River Surgery Center L.L.C., Total Joint Center of the Northland LLC, Tower Road Real Estate LLC, Tower/USP Surgery Centers LLC, Treasure Coast ASC LLC, Trophy Club Medical Center L.P., True Medical Weight Loss L.P., True Medical Wellness LP, True Results Georgia Inc., True Results HoldCo LLC, True Results Missouri LLC, Tucson Digestive Institute LLC, Tucson Hospital Holdings Inc., Tucson Physician Group Holdings LLC, Turlock Imaging Services LLC, Turlock Land Company LLC, Tuscan Surgery Center at Las Colinas LLC, Twin Cities Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Twin Cities Community Hospital Inc., UAP Las Colinas Endo LLC, UAP Lebanon Endo LLC, UAP Nashville Endoscopy LLC, UAP Scopes LLC, UAP of Arizona Inc., UAP of California Inc., UAP of Missouri Inc., UAP of New Jersey Inc., UAP of Oklahoma Inc., UAP of Tennessee Inc., UAP of Texas Inc., UCC Tucson Holdings LLC, UMC Surgery Center Lubbock LLC, UMC-USP Surgery Centers LLC, USC/Norris Cancer Hospital, USP 12th Ave Real Estate Inc., USP Acquisition Corporation, USP Alexandria Inc., USP Assurance Company, USP Athens Inc., USP Atlanta Inc., USP Austin Inc., USP Bariatric LLC, USP Beaumont Inc., USP Bergen Inc., USP Bloomington Inc., USP Bridgeton Inc., USP Cedar Park Inc., USP Chesterfield Inc., USP Chicago Inc., USP Cincinnati Inc., USP Coast Inc., USP Columbia Inc., USP Connecticut Inc., USP Corpus Christi Inc., USP Creve Coeur Inc., USP Denver Inc., USP Des Peres Inc., USP Destin Inc., USP Domestic Holdings Inc., USP Effingham Inc., USP Encinitas Endoscopy Inc., USP Fenton Inc., USP Festus Inc., USP Florissant Inc., USP Fort Lauderdale Inc., USP Fort Worth Hospital Real Estate Inc., USP Fredericksburg Inc., USP Fresno Inc., USP Frontenac Inc., USP Gateway Inc., USP HMH Surgery Center at Shore LLC, USP Harbour View Inc., USP Houston Inc., USP Indiana Inc., USP International Holdings Inc., USP Jersey City Inc., USP Kansas City Inc., USP Knoxville Inc., USP Little Rock Inc., USP Long Island Inc., USP Louisiana Inc., USP Lubbock Inc., USP Maryland Inc., USP Mason Ridge Inc., USP Mattis Inc., USP Michigan Inc., USP Midland Inc., USP Midland Real Estate Inc., USP Midwest Inc., USP Mission Hills Inc., USP Montana Inc., USP Morris Inc., USP Mt. Vernon Inc., USP Nevada Holdings LLC, USP Nevada Inc., USP New Hampshire Inc., USP New Jersey Inc., USP Newport News Inc., USP North Carolina Inc., USP North Kansas City Inc., USP North Texas Inc., USP Northwest Arkansas Inc., USP OKC Inc., USP OKC Manager Inc., USP Office Parkway Inc., USP Ohio RE Inc., USP Oklahoma Inc., USP Olive Inc., USP Orlando Inc., USP Philadelphia Inc., USP Phoenix Inc., USP Portland Inc., USP Reading Inc., USP Richmond II Inc., USP Richmond Inc., USP Sacramento Inc., USP San Antonio Inc., USP Santa Barbara Surgery Centers Inc., USP Securities Corporation, USP Silver Cross Inc., USP Siouxland Inc., USP Somerset Inc., USP South Carolina Inc., USP Southlake RE Inc., USP St. Louis Inc., USP St. Louis Urology Inc., USP St. Peters Inc., USP Sunset Hills Inc., USP TJ STL Inc., USP Tennessee Inc., USP Texas Air L.L.C., USP Texas L.P., USP Torrance Inc., USP Tucson Inc., USP Turnersville Inc., USP Virginia Beach Inc., USP Washington Inc., USP Waxahachie Management L.L.C., USP Webster Groves Inc., USP West Covina Inc., USP Westwood Inc., USP Winter Park Inc., USP Wisconsin Inc., USP-HMH Surgery Center at Central Jersey LLC, USP/Carondelet Tucson Surgery Centers LLC, USP/SOS Joint Venture LLC, USPI Group Holdings Inc., USPI Holding Company Inc.1, USPI Holdings Inc., USPI Physician Strategy Group LLC, USPI San Diego Inc., USPI Stockton Inc., USPI Surgical Services Inc., Ulysses True Results NewCo LLC, Underwood Surgery Center LLC, United Anesthesia Partners Inc., United Real Estate Development Inc., United Real Estate Holdings Inc., United Surgical Partners Holdings Inc., United Surgical Partners International, United Surgical Partners International Inc., Universal Medical Care Center L.L.C., University Surgery Center Ltd., University Surgical Partners of Dallas L.L.P., Upper Bay Surgery Center LLC, Upper Cumberland Physicians Surgery Center LLC, Urgent Care Centers of Arizona LLC, Utica ASC Partners LLC, Utica/USP Tulsa L.L.C., VB Brownsville LTACH LLC, VBOA ASC GP LLC, VBOA ASC Partners L.L.C., VHM Services Inc., VHS Acquisition Corporation, VHS Acquisition Partnership Number 1 L.P, VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 1 Inc., VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 11 Inc., VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 12 Inc., VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 3 Inc., VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 4 Inc., VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 5 Inc., VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 6 Inc., VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 7 Inc., VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 8 Inc., VHS Acquisition Subsidiary Number 9 Inc., VHS Arizona Heart Institute Inc., VHS Brownsville Hospital Company LLC, VHS Chicago Market Procurement LLC, VHS Childrens Hospital of Michigan Inc., VHS Detroit Businesses Inc., VHS Detroit Receiving Hospital Inc., VHS Detroit Ventures Inc., VHS Harlingen Hospital Company LLC, VHS Harper-Hutzel Hospital Inc., VHS Holding Company Inc., VHS Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital Inc., VHS Imaging Centers Inc., VHS New England Holding Company I Inc., VHS Outpatient Clinics Inc., VHS Phoenix Health Plan Inc., VHS Physicians of Michigan, VHS Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan Inc., VHS San Antonio Imaging Partners L.P., VHS San Antonio Partners LLC, VHS Sinai-Grace Hospital Inc., VHS University Laboratories Inc., VHS Valley Health System LLC, VHS Valley Holdings LLC, VHS Valley Management Company Inc., VHS West Suburban Medical Center Inc., VHS Westlake Hospital Inc., VHS of Anaheim Inc., VHS of Arrowhead Inc., VHS of Huntington Beach Inc., VHS of Illinois Inc., VHS of Michigan Inc., VHS of Michigan Staffing Inc., VHS of Orange County Inc., VHS of Phoenix Inc., VHS of South Phoenix Inc., Valley Baptist Lab Services LLC, Valley Baptist Physician Performance Network, Valley Baptist Realty Company LLC, Valley Baptist Wellness Center LLC, Valley Health Care Network, Vanguard ASC LLC, Vanguard Health Financial Company LLC, Vanguard Health Holding Company I LLC, Vanguard Health Holding Company II LLC, Vanguard Health Management Inc., Vanguard Health Systems, Vanguard Health Systems Inc., Vanguard Holding Company I Inc., Vanguard Holding Company II Inc., Vanguard Medical Specialists LLC, Vanguard Physician Services LLC, Ventana Surgical Center LLC, Veroscan Inc., Victoria Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Virtua-USP Princeton LLC, WHASA L.C., Walker Baptist Affinity LLC, Walker Street Imaging Care Inc., Warner Park Surgery Center LLC, Watermark Physician Services Inc., Webster Ambulatory Surgery Center L.P., Wellington Endo LLC, Wellstar/USP Joint Venture I LLC, Wellstar/USP Joint Venture II LLC, West Boca Health Services L.L.C., West Boca Medical Center Inc., West Boynton Urgent Care L.L.C., West Bozeman Surgery Center LLC, West Palm Healthcare Real Estate Inc., West Suburban Radiation Therapy Center LLC, Westgate Surgery Center LLC, Westlake Hospital LLC, Westlawn Surgery Center LLC, Westminster Surgery Center LLC, Westminster Surgery Centers LLC, White Fence Surgical Suites LLC, Willamette Spine Center Ambulatory Surgery LLC, Wilmington Endoscopy Center LLC, Wilshire Rental Corp., Winter Haven Ambulatory Surgical Center L.L.C., Wisconsin Specialty Surgery Center LLC, Wymark Surgery Center LLC, and YNHHSC/USP Surgery Centers LLC.
DeNA Co., Ltd. engages in the development and operation of mobile and online services including games, e-commerce and entertainment content distribution. It operates through the following segments: Games, Electronic Commerce (EC), Sports, Automotive, Healthcare, and New Businesses and Others. The Games segment offers mobile games such as DeNA games, mobage, and AndApp. The EC segment provides e-commerce services such as Mobaoku. The Sports segment handles Yokohama DeNA Baystars, Yokohma DeNA Running Club, and Kawasaki Brave Thunders. The Automotive segment manages transportation applications such as MOV, Anyca, SOMPO DE NORU, Easy Ride, and Robot Shuttle. The Healthcare segment deals with digital healthcare services such as DeNa Healthcare, MYCODE, kencom, and Aruite Otoku. The New Businesses and Others segment includes products such as Strategic Investment Office and Delight Ventures. The company was founded by Tomoko Namba and Masayuki Watanabe on March 4, 1999 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

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Kodal Minerals Plc engages in the exploration and evaluation of mineral resources in the United Kingdom and West Africa. The company explores for lithium and gold deposits. Its flagship project is the Bougouni Lithium project located in southern Mali. The company holds 100% interest in the Bougouni West lithium project, which covers an area of 200 square kilometers located in southern Mali; and holds 100% interest in the Nangalasso project located in southern Mali, the SLAM Project located in Mali, the Dabakala project located in central Cote d'Ivoire, and the Korhogo project located in north central CAte d'Ivoire. Kodal Minerals Plc was incorporated in 2010 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.

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Manx Telecom plc provides a range of telecommunications services to consumers, businesses, and the public sector in the Isle of Man and internationally. It operates through five segments: Fixed Line, Broadband and Data; Mobile; Global Solutions; Data Centre; and Other. The Fixed Line, Broadband and Data segment offers fixed line, broadband, and connectivity services to approximately 37,000 homes and 4,000 businesses. It provides ADSL and VDSL, fixed line, and private circuit rental and connection services. The Mobile segment offers pre-paid and post-paid tariffs to various market segments; supports inbound roaming traffic; and sells mobile handsets, laptops, and accessories. It provides mobile calls, SMS, data, and mobile rental services. The Global Solutions segment offers wholesale SMS and voice, international traveler market, machine to machine, and signal mobile services, as well as mobile termination products, such as Chameleon. The Data Centre segment offers co-location, managed hosting, cloud, storage, disaster recovery, and business continuity services to corporate clients through three data centers. The Other segment provides phone book and business directory services; and operates MTTV, an online news channel, as well as manx.net portal. It also sells hardware equipment; and offers managed and interconnection services. The company was formerly known as Trafford Equityco Limited and changed its name to Manx Telecom plc in February 2014. Manx Telecom plc is headquartered in Braddan, the Isle of Man.

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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..
The following companies are subsidiares of Abbott Laboratories: 3A Nutrition (Vietnam) Company Limited, ABON Biopharm (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd., AGA Medical Belgium, AGA Medical Corporation, AGA Medical Holdings Inc., ALR Holdings, AML Medical LLC, APK Advanced Medical Technologies LLC, ATS Bermuda Holdings Limited, ATS Laboratories Inc., Abbott, Abbott (Jiaxing) Nutrition Co. Ltd., Abbott (UK) Finance Limited, Abbott (UK) Holdings Limited, Abbott AG, Abbott Asia Holdings Limited, Abbott Asia Investments Limited, Abbott Australasia Holdings Limited, Abbott Australasia Pty Ltd, Abbott B.V., Abbott Bahamas Overseas Businesses Corporation, Abbott Belgian Investments, Abbott Bermuda Holding Ltd., Abbott Biologicals B.V., Abbott Biologicals LLC, Abbott Bulgaria Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Capital India Limited, Abbott Cardiovascular Inc., Abbott Cardiovascular Systems Inc., Abbott Delaware LLC, Abbott Diabetes Care Inc., Abbott Diabetes Care Limited, Abbott Diabetes Care Sales Corporation, Abbott Diagnostics GmbH, Abbott Diagnostics International Ltd., Abbott Diagnostics Technologies AS, Abbott Doral Investments S.L., Abbott Equity Holdings Unlimited, Abbott Equity Investments LLC, Abbott Established Products Holdings (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Finance Company SA, Abbott Financial Holdings SRL, Abbott France S.A.S., Abbott Fund Tanzania Limited, Abbott Gesellschaft m.b.H., Abbott GmbH & Co. KG, Abbott Health Products LLC, Abbott Healthcare (Puerto Rico) Ltd., Abbott Healthcare B.V., Abbott Healthcare Costa Rica S.A., Abbott Healthcare LLC, Abbott Healthcare Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Healthcare Private Limited, Abbott Healthcare Products B.V., Abbott Healthcare Products Ltd, Abbott Holding (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Holding GmbH, Abbott Holding Subsidiary (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Holding Subsidiary (Gibraltar) Limited Luxembourg S.C.S., Abbott Holdings B.V., Abbott Holdings LLC, Abbott Holdings Limited, Abbott Holdings Poland Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Hungary Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Abbott Iberian Investments (2) Limited, Abbott Iberian Investments Limited, Abbott India Limited, Abbott Informatics Asia Pacific Limited, Abbott Informatics Canada Inc, Abbott Informatics Corporation, Abbott Informatics Europe Limited, Abbott Informatics France, Abbott Informatics Germany GmbH, Abbott Informatics Netherlands B.V., Abbott Informatics Singapore Pte. Limited, Abbott Informatics Spain S.A., Abbott Informatics Technologies Ltd, Abbott International Corporation, Abbott International Enterprises Ltd., Abbott International Holdings Limited, Abbott International LLC, Abbott International Luxembourg S.ar.l., Abbott Investments Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Ireland, Abbott Ireland Financing Designated Activity Company, Abbott Ireland Limited, Abbott Japan Co. Ltd., Abbott Kazakhstan Limited Liability Partnership, Abbott Knoll Investments B.V., Abbott Korea Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Bangladesh) Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Chile) Holdco (Dos) SpA, Abbott Laboratories (Chile) Holdco SpA, Abbott Laboratories (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Abbott Laboratories (Mozambique) Limitada, Abbott Laboratories (Pakistan) Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Philippines), Abbott Laboratories (Puerto Rico) Incorporated, Abbott Laboratories (Singapore) Private Limited, Abbott Laboratories A/S, Abbott Laboratories Argentina Sociedad Anonima, Abbott Laboratories B.V., Abbott Laboratories C.A., Abbott Laboratories Finance B.V., Abbott Laboratories GmbH, Abbott Laboratories Inc., Abbott Laboratories International LLC, Abbott Laboratories Ireland Limited, Abbott Laboratories Limited, Abbott Laboratories Limited - Laboratoires Abbott Limitee, Abbott Laboratories NZ Limited, Abbott Laboratories Pacific Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Poland Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Laboratories Products B.V., Abbott Laboratories Residential Development Fund Inc., Abbott Laboratories S.A., Abbott Laboratories SA, Abbott Laboratories Services Corp., Abbott Laboratories Slovakia s.r.o., Abbott Laboratories South Africa (Pty) Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Trustee Company Limited, Abbott Laboratories Uruguay S.A., Abbott Laboratories Vascular Enterprises, Abbott Laboratories d.o.o., Abbott Laboratories de Chile Limitada, Abbott Laboratories de Colombia S.A., Abbott Laboratories de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Abbott Laboratories druzba za farmacijo in diagnostiko d.o.o., Abbott Laboratories s.r.o., Abbott Laboratories(Hellas) Societe Anonyme, Abbott Laboratorios S.A., Abbott Laboratorios S.A., Abbott Laboratorios del Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Abbott Laboratuarlari Ithalat Ihracat ve Ticaret Ltd.Sti, Abbott Laboratorios Lda, Abbott Laboratorios do Brasil Ltda., Abbott Limited Egypt LLC, Abbott Logistics B.V., Abbott Management GmbH, Abbott Management LLC, Abbott Manufacturing Singapore Private Limited, Abbott Mature Products International Unlimited Company, Abbott Mature Products Management Limited, Abbott Medical (Hong Kong) Limited, Abbott Medical (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Abbott Medical (Portugal) Distribuicao de Produtos Medicos Lda, Abbott Medical (Schweiz) AG, Abbott Medical (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Abbott Medical (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Australia Pty. Ltd., Abbott Medical Austria Ges.m.b.H., Abbott Medical Balkan d.o.o. Beograd (Novi Beograd), Abbott Medical Belgium, Abbott Medical Canada Inc./ Medicale Abbott Canada Inc., Abbott Medical Danmark A/S, Abbott Medical Devices Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Espana S.A., Abbott Medical Estonia OU, Abbott Medical Finland Oy, Abbott Medical France SAS, Abbott Medical GmbH, Abbott Medical Hellas Limited Liability Trading Company, Abbott Medical Ireland Limited, Abbott Medical Italia S.p.A., Abbott Medical Japan Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Korea Limited, Abbott Medical Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Abbott Medical Laboratories LTD, Abbott Medical Nederland B.V., Abbott Medical New Zealand Limited, Abbott Medical Norway AS, Abbott Medical Overseas Cyprus Limited, Abbott Medical Sweden AB, Abbott Medical Taiwan Co., Abbott Medical U.K. Limited, Abbott Medical spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Middle East S.A.R.L., Abbott Molecular Inc., Abbott Morocco SARL, Abbott Nederland C.V., Abbott Nederland Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Netherlands Investments B.V., Abbott Norge AS, Abbott Nutrition Limited, Abbott Nutrition Manufacturing Inc., Abbott Operations Singapore Pte. Ltd., Abbott Operations Uruguay S.R.L., Abbott Overseas Cyprus Limited, Abbott Overseas Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Overseas S.A., Abbott Oy, Abbott Point of Care Canada Limited, Abbott Point of Care Inc., Abbott Poland Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Procurement LLC, Abbott Products (Philippines) Inc., Abbott Products (Spain) S.L., Abbott Products Algerie EURL, Abbott Products B.V., Abbott Products Distribution SAS, Abbott Products Egypt LLC, Abbott Products Limited, Abbott Products Limited Liability Company, Abbott Products Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Products Operations AG, Abbott Products Operations LLC, Abbott Products Romania S.R.L., Abbott Products Tunisie S.A.R.L., Abbott Products Unlimited Company, Abbott Resources Inc., Abbott Resources International Inc., Abbott S.r.l., Abbott Saudi Arabia Trading Company, Abbott Scandinavia Aktiebolag, Abbott Sociedad Anonima de Capital Variable, Abbott South Africa Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Strategic Opportunities Limited, Abbott Trading Company Inc., Abbott Universal LLC, Abbott Vascular Devices (2) Limited, Abbott Vascular Devices Limited, Abbott Vascular Inc., Abbott Vascular Instruments Deutschland GmbH, Abbott Vascular International, Abbott Vascular Japan Co. Ltd, Abbott Vascular Limitada, Abbott Vascular Netherlands B.V., Abbott Vascular Solutions Inc., Abbott Ventures Inc., Abbott West Indies Limited, Abbott drustvo sa ogranicenom odgovornoscu za trgovinu i usluge, Advanced Neuromodulation Systems Inc., Alere, Alere (Shanghai) Diagnostics Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Healthcare Management Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Medical Sales Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Technology Co. Ltd., Alere A/S, Alere AB, Alere AS, Alere AS Holdings Limited, Alere BBI Holdings Limited, Alere Bangladesh Limited, Alere China Co. Ltd., Alere Colombia S.A., Alere Connect LLC, Alere Connected Health Limited, Alere Connected Health Ltd., Alere Diagnostics GmbH, Alere DoA Holding GmbH, Alere GmbH, Alere GmbH (Austria), Alere GmbH (Germany), Alere HK Holdings Ltd., Alere Health B.V., Alere Health BVBA, Alere Health Corp., Alere Health Sdn Bhd, Alere Health Services B.V., Alere Healthcare (Pty) Limited, Alere Healthcare Connections Limited, Alere Healthcare Inc., Alere Healthcare Nigeria Limited, Alere Healthcare S.L., Alere Holdco Inc., Alere Holding GmbH, Alere Holdings Bermuda Limited, Alere Holdings Pty Limited, Alere Home Monitoring Inc., Alere Inc., Alere Informatics Inc., Alere International Holding Corp., Alere International Limited, Alere Lda, Alere Limited, Alere Limited (New Zealand), Alere Medical BVBA, Alere Medical Co. Ltd., Alere Medical Pakistan (Private) Limited, Alere Medical Private Limited, Alere North America LLC, Alere Oy Ab, Alere Philippines Inc., Alere Phoenix ACQ Inc., Alere Pte Ltd, Alere S.A., Alere S.r.l., Alere S/A, Alere SAS, Alere San Diego Inc., Alere Scarborough Inc., Alere Spain S.L., Alere Switzerland GmbH, Alere Technologies GmbH, Alere Technologies Holdings Limited, Alere Technologies Limited, Alere Toxicology AB, Alere Toxicology Inc., Alere Toxicology S.r.l., Alere Toxicology Services Inc., Alere Toxicology plc, Alere UK Holdings Limited, Alere UK Subco Limited, Alere ULC, Alere US Holdings LLC, Alere s.r.o., Alisoc Investment & Co, Amedica Biotech Inc., Ameditech Inc., American Generics S.A.S., American Medical Supplies Inc., American Pharmacist Inc., Antares S.A., Apica Cardiovascular Limited, Aquagestion Capacitacion S.A., Aquagestion S.A., Arriva Medical LLC, Arriva Medical Philippines Inc., Arvis Investments Limited, Atlas Farmaceutica S.A., Avee Laboratories Inc., Axis-Shield AD III AS, Axis-Shield AD IV AS, Axis-Shield AS, Axis-Shield Diagnostics Limited, Axis-Shield Ltd., BBI Animal Health Limited, BBI Diagnostics Group 2 Public Limited Company, Banco de Vida S.A., Bioabsorbable Vascular Solutions Inc., Bioalgae S.A., Biohealth LLC, Biosite Incorporated, Bosque Bonito S.A., Branan Medical Corporation, Brandex Europe C.V., British Colloids Limited, CFR Chile S.A., CFR Interamericas EL Salvador Sociedad Anonima de Capital Variable, CFR Interamericas Nicaragua Sociedad Anonima, CFR Interamericas Panama S.A., CFR Pharmaceuticals, California Property Holdings III LLC, CardioMEMS LLC, Caripharm Inc., Cephea Valve Technologies, Cephea Valve Technologies Inc., Colibri Medical Aktiebolag, Comercializadora y Distribuidora CFR Interamericas Honduras S.A., Concateno South Limited, Concateno UK Limited, Consorcio Tecnologico en Biomedicina Clinico-Molecular S.A., Continuum Services LLC, Cozart Limited, Dextech S.A., Diagnostik Nord GmbH, Distribuciones Uquifa S.A.S., Domesco Medical Import-Export Joint-Stock Corporation, Duphar International Research B.V., Endocardial Solutions, Epocal (US) Inc, Esprit de Vie S.A., European Chemicals & Co, European Drug Testing Service EDTS AB, European Services S.A., Evalve Inc., Evalve International Inc., FARMINDUSTRIA S.A., Fada Pharma Paraguay Sociedad Anonima, Fadapharma del Ecuador S.A., Farmaceutica Mont Blanc S.L., Farmacologia Em Aquicultura Veterinaria Ltda., Farmacologia en Aquacultura Veterinaria FAV Ecuador S.A., Farmacologia en Aquacultura Veterinaria FAV S.A., Fernwood Investment S.A., First Check Diagnostics LLC, Focus Pharmaceutical S.A.S., Forensics Limited, Forestcreek Overseas S.A., Fournier Pharma Corp., Fournier Pharma GmbH, Fournier Pharmaceuticals Limited, Framed B.V., Gabmed GmbH, Garden Hills LLC, Global Analytical Development LLC, Globapharm & CO LP, Glomed Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Golnorth Investments S.A., Gynocare Limited, Gynopharm Sociedad Anonima, Gynopharm de Centroamerica S.A., Gynopharm de Venezuela C.A., Hi-Tronics Designs Inc., IDEV Technologies Inc., IG Innovations Limited, IMTC Finance B.V., IMTC Holdings B.V., IMTC Technologies Inc., Ibis Biosciences LLC, Igloo Zone Chile S.A., Igloo Zone S.L., Inmobiliaria Naknek S.A.C., Innovacon Inc., Instant Tech Subsidiary Acquisition Inc., Instant Technologies Inc., Instituto de Criopreservacion de Chile S.A., Integrated Vascular Systems Inc., Inverness Canadian Acquisition Corporation, Inverness Medical (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Inverness Medical Innovations Australia Pty Ltd., Inverness Medical Innovations Hong Kong Limited, Inverness Medical Innovations SK LLC, Inverness Medical Investments LLC, Inverness Medical LLC, Inverness Medical Shimla Private Limited, Inversiones K2 SpA, Inversiones Komodo S.R.L., Ionian Technologies LLC, Irvine Biomedical Inc., Kalila Medical, Kangshenyunga S.A., Knoll UK Investments Unlimited, LLC VeroInPharm, Laboratoires Fournier S.A.S., Laboratorio Franco Colombiano Lafrancol S.A.S., Laboratorio Franco Colombiano del Ecuador S.A., Laboratorio Internacional Argentino S.A., Laboratorio Synthesis S.A.S., Laboratorios Lafi Limitada, Laboratorios Naturmedik S.A.S., Laboratorios Pauly Pharmaceutical S.A.S., Laboratorios Recalcine S.A., Laboratorios Transpharm S.A., Laboratory Specialists of America Inc., Lafrancol Dominicana S.A.S., Lafrancol Guatemala S.A. Sociedad Anonima, Lafrancol Internacional S.A.S, Lafrancol Peru S.R.L, Lake Forest Investments LLC, Lightlab Imaging Inc., Limited Liability Company Abbott Laboratories, Limited Liability Company Abbott Ukraine, Limited Liability Company VEROPHARM, Lung Fung Hong (China) Limited, Mansbridge Pharmaceuticals Limited, MediGuide LLC, MediGuide Ltd., Medscreen Holdings Limited, Metropolitana Farmaceutica S.A., Midwest Properties LLC, Murex Argentina S.A., Murex Biotech Limited, Murex Biotech South Africa, Murex Diagnostics Inc., Murex Diagnostics International Inc., Natural Supplement Association LLC, Negocios Denia Sociedad Anonima, Neosalud S.A.C., Nether Pharma N.P. C.V., NeuroTherm LLC, Normann Pharma-Handels GmbH, North Shore Properties Inc., Novamedi S.A., Novasalud.com S.A., Nutravida S.A., OJSC Voronezhkhimpharm, Omnilab Iberia Sociedad Limitada, OptiMedica, Orgenics France SAS, Orgenics International Holdings B.V., Orgenics Ltd., PBM-Selfcare LLC, PDD II LLC, PDD LLC, PT Alere Health, PT. Abbott Indonesia, PT. Abbott Products Indonesia, Pacesetter Inc., Pantech (RF) (PTY) LTD, Pembrooke Occupational Health Inc., Penagos S.A., Pharma International Sociedad Anonima, Pharmaceutical Technologies (Pharmatech) S.A., Pharmatech Boliviana S.A., Polygon Labs S.A., Quality Assured Services Inc., RF Medical Holdings LLC, RTL Holdings Inc., Ramses Business Corp., Recben Xenerics Farmaceutica Limitada, Redwood Toxicology Laboratory Inc., Rich Horizons International Limited, SC VEROPHARM, SJ Medical Mexico S de R.L. de C.V., SJM International Inc., SJM Thunder Holding Company, SPDH Inc., Saboya Enterprises Corporation, Salviac Limited, Scanax AS, Sealing Solutions Inc., Selfcare Technology Inc., Shandong Abbott Dairy Product Co. Ltd., Shanghai Abbott Medical Devices Science and Technology Co. Ltd., Shanghai Abbott Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Shanghai Si Fa Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Sinensix & Co., Spinal Modulation LLC, St. Jude Medical, St. Jude Medical AB, St. Jude Medical ATG Inc., St. Jude Medical Argentina S.A., St. Jude Medical Asia Pacific Holdings GK, St. Jude Medical Atrial Fibrillation Division Inc., St. Jude Medical Brasil Ltda., St. Jude Medical Business Services Inc., St. Jude Medical Cardiology Division Inc., St. Jude Medical Colombia Ltda., St. Jude Medical Coordination Center, St. Jude Medical Costa Rica Limitada, St. Jude Medical Europe Inc., St. Jude Medical Export Ges.m.b.H., St. Jude Medical GVA Sarl, St. Jude Medical Holdings B.V., St. Jude Medical India Private Limited, St. Jude Medical International Holding, St. Jude Medical LLC, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings II, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings NT, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings SMI S.a r.l., St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings TC S.a r.l., St. Jude Medical Mexico Business Services S. de R.L. de C.V., St. Jude Medical Middle East DMCC, St. Jude Medical Operations (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., St. Jude Medical Puerto Rico LLC, St. Jude Medical S.C. Inc., St. Jude Medical Systems AB, St. Jude Medical Turkey Medikal Urunler Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Standard Diagnostics Inc., Standing Stone LLC, Swan-Myers Incorporated, TC1 LLC, Tendyne Holdings Inc., Tendyne Medical Inc., Thoratec Delaware LLC, Thoratec Europe Limited, Thoratec LLC, Thoratec Switzerland GmbH, Tobal Products Incorporated, Topera GmbH in Liquidation, Topera Inc., Tremora S.A., Tuenir S.A., TwistDx, UAB Abbott Laboratories, UAB Abbott Medical Lithuania, Union-Madison Realty Company Inc., Unipath Limited (dba Alere International/aka Cranfield), Unipath Management Limited, Unipath Pension Trustee Limited, Veropharm, Veropharm Limited Liability Partnership, Vida Cell Inversiones S.A., Vida Cell S.A., Vivalsol, W&R Pharma Handels GmbH, Western Pharmaceuticals S.A., X Technologies Inc., Yissum Holding Limited, ZonePerfect Nutrition Company, eScreen Canada ULC, eScreen Inc.,      ( ), and Abbott Laboratories Baltics.
Mettler-Toledo International, Inc. is a supplier of precision instruments and services. The firm manufactures weighing instruments for use in laboratory, industrial, packaging, logistics, and food retailing applications. It also manufactures several related analytical instruments and provides automated chemistry solutions used in drug and chemical compound discovery and development; and also, metal detection and other end-of-line inspection systems used in production and packaging and provides solutions for use in certain process analytics applications. Its operations are conducted by the following segments: U. S. Operations, Swiss Operations, Western European Operations, Chinese Operations and Other. The U.S. Operations segment represents certain of the company's marketing and producing organizations located in the United States. The Swiss Operations segment includes marketing and producing organizations located in Switzerland, as well as extensive R&D operations that are responsible for the development, production, and marketing of precision instruments, including weighing, analytical, and measurement technologies for use in a variety of industrial and laboratory applications. Th

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The following companies are subsidiares of Mohawk Industries: A&S Energie NV, A&U Energie NV, Aladdin Manufacturing Corporation, Aladdin Manufacturing Of New York LLC, Aladdin Manufacturing of Alabama LLC, Alsace Logistique S.A., Avelgem Green Power CVBA, Avon Pacific Holdings Ltd, B&M NV, BGE Mexico S. de R. L. de C.V., Berghoef GmbH, Berghoef-Hout B.V., Bienes Raices y Materiales del Centro S. de R.L. de C.V., C.F. Marazzi S.A., Canterbury Spinners Ltd, Carpet Foundation Ltd, Cevotrans BV, Ceramus Bahia S/A  Produtos Ceramicos, DT Mex Holdings LLC, DTM/CM Holdings LLC, Dal Italia LLC, Dal-Elit LLC, Dal-Tile Chile Comercial Limitada, Dal-Tile Colombia S.A.S., Dal-Tile Distribution Inc., Dal-Tile Group Inc., Dal-Tile I LLC, Dal-Tile Industrias S. de R.L. de C.V., Dal-Tile International Inc., Dal-Tile Mexico Comercial S. de R.L. de C.V., Dal-Tile Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Dal-Tile Operaciones Mexico S. De R.L. De C.V., Dal-Tile Peru SRL, Dal-Tile Puerto Rico Inc., Dal-Tile Services Inc., Dal-Tile Shared Services Inc., Dal-Tile Tennessee LLC, Dal-Tile of Canada ULC, Daltile, Daltile, Dekaply NV, Durkan, Dynea NV, Eliane Argentina Sociedad Anonima, Eliane S/A - Revestimentos Ceramicos, Emilceramica India Pvt Ltd., Emilceramica S.r.l, Emilgermany GmbH, Emilgroup Asia Ltd, Explorer S.r.l., F.I.L.S. Investments Unlimited Company, Feltex Carpets Ltd, Feltex Carpets Pty Ltd, Feltex New Zealand Ltd, Fibremakers Australia Pty Ltd, Flooring Foundation Ltd, Flooring Industries Limited S.a r.l., Flooring XL B.V., Floorscape Limited, Godfrey Hirst & Co Pty Ltd, Godfrey Hirst (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Godfrey Hirst Australia Pty Ltd, Godfrey Hirst Group, Godfrey Hirst NZ Ltd, Hytherm (Ireland) Limited, IVC BVBA, IVC Far-East Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., IVC France S.a r.l., IVC GROUP LIMITED, IVC Green Power NV, IVC Group, IVC Group GmbH, IVC Luxembourg S.a r.l., IVC Rus OOO, IVC US Inc., International Flooring Systems S.a r.l., International Vinyl Company - Vostok OOO, KAI Group, KAI Keramica Ltd, KAI Mining EOOD, KERAMA CENTER OOO, Kerama Baltics OOO, Kerama Export OOO, Kerama Marazzi OOO, Kerampromservis (LLC), Khan Asparuh - Transport EOOD, Khan Asparuh AD, Khan Omurtag AD, Koninklijke Peitsman B.V., Kraj Kerama OOO, MG China Trading Ltd., MI Finance SRL, MUD (Holding) Brazil Ltda., Management Co EAD, Marazzi Acquisition S.r.l., Marazzi Deutschland G.m.b.H., Marazzi France Trading S.A.S., Marazzi Group, Marazzi Group F.Z.E., Marazzi Group S.r.l., Marazzi Group Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Marazzi Iberia S.L.U., Marazzi Japan Co. Ltd., Marazzi Middle East FZ LLC, Marazzi Schweiz S.A.G.L., Marazzi UK Ltd., Mohawk Assurance Services Inc., Mohawk Australia Pty Ltd, Mohawk Canada Corporation, Mohawk Capital Finance S.A., Mohawk Capital Luxembourg SA, Mohawk Carpet Distribution Inc., Mohawk Carpet Foundation Inc., Mohawk Carpet LLC, Mohawk Carpet Transportation Of Georgia LLC, Mohawk Commercial Inc., Mohawk ESV Inc., Mohawk Europe BVBA, Mohawk Factoring II Inc., Mohawk Factoring LLC, Mohawk Finance S.a r.l., Mohawk Foreign Acquisitions S.a r.l., Mohawk Foreign Funding S.a.r.l, Mohawk Foreign Holdings S.a r.l., Mohawk Foreign Investments Inc., Mohawk Global Investments S.a r.l., Mohawk Holdings International B.V., Mohawk Industries Inc., Mohawk International (Europe) S.a r.l., Mohawk International (Hong Kong) Limited, Mohawk International Capital N.V., Mohawk International Financing S.a.r.l, Mohawk International Holdings (DE) LLC, Mohawk International Holdings S.a r.l., Mohawk International Luxembourg S.a r.l., Mohawk International Netherlands B.V., Mohawk International Services BVBA, Mohawk KAI Luxembourg Holding S.a r.l., Mohawk KAI Luxembourg S.a r.l., Mohawk Luxembourg Capital S.A., Mohawk Luxembourg Financing S.a r.l., Mohawk Luxembourg Holdings S.a r.l., Mohawk Luxembourg Investments S.a r.l., Mohawk Luxembourg Pacific S.a r.l., Mohawk Marazzi International BV, Mohawk Marazzi Russia BV, Mohawk New Zealand Limited, Mohawk Operaciones Mexicali S. de R.L. de C.V., Mohawk Operations Luxembourg S.a r.l., Mohawk Pacific Investments S.a r.l., Mohawk Resources LLC, Mohawk Servicing LLC, Mohawk Singapore Private Limited, Mohawk Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Mohawk Unilin Luxembourg S.a r.l., Mohawk United Finance B.V., Mohawk United International B.V., Mohawk Vinyl Financing S.a r.l., Molber Beheer B.V., Monarch Ceramic Tile Inc., P.F. Onroerend Goed B.V., PF Beheer B.V., Pergo, Pergo (Europe) AB, Pergo Holding BV, Pergo India Pvt Ltd, Polcolorit S.A., Premium Floors Australia Pty Limited, RR Apex LLC, Rata International Pty Ltd, Recubrimientos Interceramica S. de R.L. de C.V., Riverside Textiles Pty Ltd, S.C. KAI Ceramics SRL, Sibir Kerama OOO, SimpleSolutions USA LLC, Soft Step (Australia) Pty Ltd, Spano Group, Spano Invest BVBA, Spano NV, Stroyagromekhzapchast ChaO, Stroytrans OAO Orelstroy, Summit Wool Spinners Ltd, The Flooring Federation Ltd, Tiles Co OOD, Unilin (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Unilin ApS, Unilin Arauco Pisos Ltda., Unilin BVBA, Unilin Beheer BV, Unilin Distribution Ltd., Unilin Distribution Ukraine LLC, Unilin Finland OY, Unilin Flooring India Private Limited, Unilin Flooring SAS, Unilin GmbH, Unilin Holding BVBA, Unilin Insulation BV, Unilin Insulation SAS, Unilin Insulation Sury SAS, Unilin Italia S.R.L., Unilin North America LLC, Unilin Norway AS, Unilin OOO, Unilin Panels SAS, Unilin Poland Sp.Z.o.o., Unilin SAS, Unilin Spain SL, Unilin Swiss GmbH, Unilin s.r.o., World International Inc., Xtratherm, Xtratherm Limited, Xtratherm S.A., and Xtratherm UK Limited.
Centrica plc operates as an integrated energy company in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Norway, North America, and internationally. The company operates through British Gas, Energy Marketing & Trading, Centrica Business Solutions, Bord GAis Energy, and Upstream segments. It supplies gas and electricity to residential customers, as well as offers energy-related services; and generates power from combined cycle gas turbines and nuclear assets. The company also provides installation, repair, and maintenance services for domestic central heating, plumbing and drains, home electrical, and gas and kitchen appliances; and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning equipment, as well as offers breakdown services. In addition, it is involved in the procurement, trading, and optimization of energy; procurement and sale of LNG; and supplies energy efficiency solutions and technologies to residential customers. Further, the company produces and processes gas and oil; develops new fields to maintain reserves; constructs, owns, and exploits infrastructure; and engages in the social enterprise investment fund activities. Additionally, it provides vehicle leasing, commercial, and insurance services, as well as energy management products and services; and operates a gas storage and franchise network. The company was formerly known as Yieldtop plc and changed its name to Centrica plc in December 1996. Centrica plc was incorporated in 1995 and is based in Windsor, the United Kingdom.

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National Grid plc transmits and distributes electricity and natural gas. It operates through UK Electricity Transmission, UK Gas Transmission, US Regulated, and National Grid Ventures (NGV) and Other segments. The UK Electricity Transmission segment owns and operates electricity transmission networks, which comprise approximately 7,236 kilometers of overhead lines. The UK Gas Transmission segment owns and operates gas transmission systems, as well as third-party independent systems and liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage facilities. The US Regulated segments owns and operates transmission facilities across upstate New York, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; and electricity distribution networks in upstate New York, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Its assets comprise 14,439 kilometers of overhead lines; an electricity distribution network of approximately 117,498 circuit miles; and a network of approximately 57,551 kilometers of gas pipeline. The NGV and Other segment engages in the energy metering business; transporting renewable energy long distances through its electricity interconnectors; and storing LNG, as well as commercial property and insurance activities in the United Kingdom. The company was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

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Novan, Inc., a clinical development-stage biotechnology company, provides nitric oxide-based therapies to treat dermatological and oncovirus-mediated diseases. Its clinical stage dermatology drug candidates include SB204, a topical monotherapy for the treatment of acne vulgaris; SB206, a topical anti-viral gel for the treatment of viral skin infections; SB208, a topical broad-spectrum anti-fungal gel for the treatment of fungal infections of the skin and nails, including athlete's foot and fungal nail infections; and SB414, a topical cream-based gel product candidate for the treatment of inflammatory skin diseases. The company also develops SB207, an anti-viral product candidate for the treatment of external genital warts; WH602, a nitric oxide-containing intravaginal gel to treat high-risk human papilloma virus (HPV); WH504, a non-gel formulation product candidate to treat high-risk HPV; and SB019 for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2. Novan, Inc. has a license agreement with Sato Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.; and a strategic alliance with Orion Corporation. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in Morrisville, North Carolina.

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Wells Fargo & Co. is a diversified, community-based financial services company. It is engaged in the provision of banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance. It firm operates through the following segments: Community Banking, Wholesale Banking, Wealth & Investment Management, and Other. The Community Banking segment offers complete line of diversified financial products and services for consumers and small businesses including checking and savings accounts, credit and debit cards, and automobile, student, and small business lending. The Wholesale Banking segment provides financial solutions to businesses across the United States and globally. The Wealth and Investment Management segment includes personalized wealth management, investment and retirement products and services to clients across U.S. based businesses. The Other segment refers to the products of WIM customers served through community banking distribution channels. The company was founded by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo on March 18, 1852 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.

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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..
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 following companies are subsidiares of Rite Aid: 1515 West State Street Boise Idaho LLC, 1740 Associates LLC, 4042 Warrensville Center RoadWarrensville Ohio Inc., 5277 Associates Inc., 5600 Superior Properties Inc., Advance Benefits LLC, Apex Drug Stores Inc., Ascend Health Technology LLC, Bartell Drugs, Broadview and WallingsBroadview Heights Ohio Inc., Design Rx Holdings LLC, Design Rx LLC, Design Rxclusives LLC, Drug Palace Inc., EDC Drug Stores Inc., Eckerd Corporation, Edgehill Drugs, Elixir Insurance Company, Elixir Pharmacy LLC, Elixir Rx Options LLC, Elixir Rx Solutions LLC, Elixir Rx Solutions LLC, Elixir Rx Solutions of Nevada LLC, Elixir Savings LLC, Envision Pharmaceutical, Envision Pharmaceutical Holdings LLC, EnvisionRx Puerto Rico Inc., First Florida Insurers of Tampa LLC, GDF Inc., Genovese Drug Stores Inc., Gettysburg and Hoover-Dayton Ohio LLC, Grand River & Fenkell LLC, Harco, Harco Inc., Health Dialog, Health Dialog Services Corporation, Hunter Lane LLC, ILG  90 B Avenue Lake Oswego LLC, JCG (PJC) USA LLC, JCG Holdings (USA) Inc., K&B Alabama Corporation, K&B Incorporated, K&B Industries, K&B Louisiana Corporation, K&B Mississippi Corporation, K&B Services Incorporated, K&B Tennessee Corporation, K&B Texas Corporation, LMW  90B Avenue Lake Oswego Inc., Lakehurst and Broadway Corporation, Laker Software LLC, Maxi Drug Inc., Maxi Drug North Inc., Maxi Drug South L.P., Maxi Green Inc., Munson & Andrews LLC, Name Rite LLC, P.J.C. Distribution Inc., P.J.C. Realty Co. Inc., PCS Health Systems, PDS-1 Michigan Inc., PJC Lease Holdings Inc., PJC Manchester Realty LLC, PJC Peterborough Realty LLC, PJC Realty MA Inc., PJC Revere Realty LLC, PJC Special Realty Holdings Inc., PJC of Massachusetts Inc., PJC of Rhode Island Inc., PJC of Vermont Inc., Perry Distributors Inc., Perry Drug Stores Inc., RCMH LLC, RDS Detroit Inc., READs Inc., RediClinic, RediClinic Associates Inc., RediClinic LLC, RediClinic US LLC, RediClinic of DC LLC, RediClinic of DE LLC, RediClinic of Dallas Forth-Worth LLC, RediClinic of MD LLC, RediClinic of PA LLC, RediClinic of VA LLC, Richfield Road  Flint Michigan LLC, Rite Aid Drug Palace Inc., Rite Aid Hdqtrs. Corp., Rite Aid Hdqtrs. Funding Inc., Rite Aid Lease Management Company, Rite Aid Online Store Inc., Rite Aid Payroll Management Inc., Rite Aid Realty Corp., Rite Aid Rome Distribution Center Inc., Rite Aid Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Rite Aid Transport Inc., Rite Aid of Connecticut Inc., Rite Aid of Delaware Inc., Rite Aid of Georgia Inc., Rite Aid of Indiana Inc., Rite Aid of Kentucky Inc., Rite Aid of Maine Inc., Rite Aid of Maryland Inc., Rite Aid of Michigan Inc., Rite Aid of New Hampshire Inc., Rite Aid of New Jersey Inc., Rite Aid of New York Inc., Rite Aid of North Carolina Inc., Rite Aid of Ohio Inc., Rite Aid of Pennsylvania LLC, Rite Aid of South Carolina Inc., Rite Aid of Tennessee Inc., Rite Aid of Vermont Inc., Rite Aid of Virginia Inc., Rite Aid of Washington D.C. Inc., Rite Aid of West Virginia Inc., Rite Investments Corp., Rite Investments Corp. LLC, Rx Choice Inc., Rx Initiatives LLC, Rx USA Inc., The Bartell Drug Company, The Jean Coutu Group (PJC) USA Inc., The Lane Drug Company, Thrift Drug Inc., Thrifty Corporation, and Thrifty PayLess Inc..
RPC Group Plc operates as a plastic product design and engineering company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Packaging and Non-Packaging. The Packaging segment designs plastic packaging for end markets, including the food, beverage, personal care, and healthcare markets; and designs and manufactures other plastic products, such as containers for surface coatings comprising paint pots and vaping accessories. It sells its products directly to the brands, as well as to retailers or fillers. The Non-Packaging segment designs and manufactures a range of plastic products that include temporary storage systems for waste and recycling; and technical components for the automotive and heavy vehicles industries. It also makes moulds, which are used to make plastic components and packaging products. This segment sells its products to intermediaries. The company was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Rushden, the United Kingdom.

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Schaeffler AG, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells precision components and systems for automotive and industrial applications in Europe, the Americas, China, and the Asia Pacific. The company's Automotive OEM division offers engine systems, including rolling bearing solutions, belt and chain drive products, valve train components, and systems for variable valve trains; and transmission systems, such as torsion and vibration dampers, clutches and double clutch systems, torque converters, CVT components, lightweight differentials, bearing solutions, and synchronizing and gearshift components. This division also provides chassis systems comprising wheel bearings, bearing solutions, steering components, electromechanical actuators for roll stabilizers, and power-assisted steering systems; and hybrid and electrical drive systems that include hybrid modules, electrical axle drives, and electrical wheel hub drives. Its Automotive Aftermarket division offers repair solutions for passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, heavy commercial vehicles, and tractors, as well as supporting services. The company's Industrial division provides components and systems. This division serves customers in the mobility, energy and raw materials, production machinery, aerospace, and industrial distribution. It has a strategic partnership with Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. The company was formerly known as INA Beteiligungsgesellschaft mit beschrAnkter Haftung and changed its name to Schaeffler AG in October 2014. The company was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Schaeffler AG is a subsidiary of IHO Verwaltungs GmbH.

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The following companies are subsidiares of The Sherwin-Williams: Acquire Sourcing LLC, CTS National Corporation, Comex North America Inc., Compania Sherwin-Williams S.A. de C.V., Contract Transportation Systems Co., Dongguan Lilly Paint Industries Ltd, Duron, EPS (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., EPS B.V., Geocel Holdings, Geocel Limited, Guangdong Valspar Paints Manufacturing Co Ltd., Inver East Med S.A., Inver France SAS, Inver GmbH, Inver Industrial Coating SRL, Inver Polska Spoka Z O.O, Inver Spa, Invercolor Bologna Srl, Invercolor Ltd, Invercolor Roma Srl, Invercolor Torino Srl, Invercolor Toscana Srl, Isocoat Tintas e Vernizes Ltda, Isva Vernici Srl, Leighs Paints, M.A. Bruder & Sons, Omega Specialty Products & Services LLC, Oy Sherwin-Williams Finland Ab, PT Sherwin-Williams Indonesia, PT Valspar Indonesia, Paint Sundry Brands, Pinturas Condor S.A., Pinturas Industriales S.A., Piton Paints Limited, Plasti-Kote Co. Inc., Plasti-kote Limited, Productos Quimicos y Pinturas S.A. de C.V., Quest Automotive Products UK Limited, Quetzal Pinturas S.A. de C.V., Ronseal (Ireland) Limited, SWIMC LLC, SWIPCO  Sherwin Williams do Brasil Propriedade Intelectual Ltda, Sherwin Williams Colombia S.A.S., Sherwin-Williams (Australia) Pty. Ltd., Sherwin-Williams (Belize) Limited, Sherwin-Williams (Caribbean) N.V., Sherwin-Williams (Ireland) Limited, Sherwin-Williams (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Sherwin-Williams (Nantong) Coatings Technology Co. Ltd., Sherwin-Williams (Nantong) Company Limited, Sherwin-Williams (S) Pte. Ltd., Sherwin-Williams (Shanghai) Limited, Sherwin-Williams (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Sherwin-Williams (Vietnam) Limited, Sherwin-Williams (West Indies) Limited, Sherwin-Williams Argentina I.y C.S.A., Sherwin-Williams Aruba VBA, Sherwin-Williams Automotive Mexico S.de R.L.de C.V., Sherwin-Williams Balkan S.R.L., Sherwin-Williams Bel Unitary Enterprise, Sherwin-Williams Benelux NV, Sherwin-Williams Canada Inc., Sherwin-Williams Cayman Islands Limited, Sherwin-Williams Chile S.A., Sherwin-Williams Coatings India Private Limited, Sherwin-Williams Coatings S.a r.l., Sherwin-Williams Czech Republic spol. s r.o, Sherwin-Williams Denmark A/S, Sherwin-Williams Deutschland GmbH, Sherwin-Williams Diversified Brands Limited, Sherwin-Williams France Finishes SAS, Sherwin-Williams Italy S.r.l., Sherwin-Williams Norway AS, Sherwin-Williams Paints Limited Liability Company, Sherwin-Williams Peru S.R.L., Sherwin-Williams Pinturas de Venezuela S.A., Sherwin-Williams Poland Sp. z o.o, Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine Coatings, Sherwin-Williams Realty Holdings Inc., Sherwin-Williams Services (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Sherwin-Williams Spain Coatings S.L., Sherwin-Williams Sweden AB, Sherwin-Williams UK Coatings Limited, Sherwin-Williams do Brasil Industria e Comercio Ltda., Spanyc Paints Joint Stock Company, Syntema I Vaggeryd AB, Taiwan Valspar Co. Ltd., The Sherwin-Williams Acceptance Corporation, The Sherwin-Williams Headquarters Company, The Sherwin-Williams Manufacturing Company, The Sherwin-Williams US Licensing Company, The Valspar (Asia) Corporation Limited, The Valspar (Australia) Corporation Pty. Ltd., The Valspar (Finland) Corporation Oy, The Valspar (France) Corporation S.A.S., The Valspar (France) Research Corporation SAS, The Valspar (Malaysia) Corporation Sdn Bhd, The Valspar (Nantes) Corporation S.A.S., The Valspar (Singapore) Corporation Pte. Ltd, The Valspar (South Africa) Corporation (Pty) Ltd, The Valspar (Spain) Corporation S.R.L., The Valspar (Switzerland) Corporation AG, The Valspar (Thailand) Corporation Ltd., The Valspar (UK) Corporation Limited, The Valspar (Vietnam) Corporation Ltd., The Valspar Corporation, The Valspar Corporation Limitada, UAB Sherwin-Williams Baltic, Valspar (India) Coatings Corporation Private Limited, Valspar (Shanghai) Management Co. Ltd., Valspar (Uruguay) Corporation S.A., Valspar (WPC) Pty Ltd, Valspar Aries Coatings S. de R.L. de C.V., Valspar Automotive (UK) Corporation Limited, Valspar Automotive Australia Pty Limited, Valspar B.V., Valspar Coatings (Guangdong) Co. Ltd., Valspar Coatings (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Valspar Coatings (Tianjin) Co. Ltd, Valspar D.o.o Beograd, Valspar Industries (Ireland) Ltd., Valspar Industries (Italy) S.r.l., Valspar Industries GmbH, Valspar LLC, Valspar Mexicana S.A. de C.V., Valspar Paint (Australia) Pty Ltd, Valspar Paint (NZ) Limited, Valspar Powder Coatings Limited, Valspar Rock Company Limited (Japan), Valspar Specialty Paints LLC, and ZAO Sherwin-Williams.
Toyota Motor Corp. engages in the manufacture and sale of motor vehicles and parts. It operates through the following segments: Automotive, Financial Services, and All Other. The Automotive segment designs, manufactures, assembles and sells passenger cars, minivans, trucks, and related vehicle parts and accessories. It is also involved in the development of intelligent transport systems. The Financial Services segment offers purchase or lease financing to Toyota vehicle dealers and customers. It also provides retail leasing through lease contracts purchase by dealers. The All Others segment deals with the design and manufacture and sale of housing, telecommunications and other businesses. The company was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda on August 28, 1937 and is headquartered in Toyota, Japan.

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The Southern pays an annual dividend of $2.64 per share and currently has a dividend yield of 4.22%. SO has a dividend yield higher than 75% of all dividend-paying stocks, making it a leading dividend payer. The Southern has been increasing its dividend for 20 consecutive years, indicating the company has a strong committment to maintain and grow its dividend. The dividend payout ratio of The Southern is 81.23%. Payout ratios above 75% are not desirable because they may not be sustainable. Based on earnings estimates, The Southern will have a dividend payout ratio of 74.58% next year. This indicates that The Southern will be able to sustain or increase its dividend.

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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..
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..
Medtronic Plc is a medical technology company, which engages in the development, manufacture, distribution, and sale of device-based medical therapies and services. It operates through the following segments: Cardiac and Vascular Group; Minimally Invasive Technologies Group; Restorative Therapies Group; and Diabetes Group. The Cardiac and Vascular Group segment consists of products for the diagnosis, treatment, and management of cardiac rhythm disorders and cardiovascular disease. The Minimally Invasive Technologies Group segment focuses on respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, renal system, lungs, pelvic region, kidneys, and obesity diseases. The Restorative Therapies Group segment comprises of neurostimulation therapies and drug delivery systems for the treatment of chronic pain, as well as areas of the spine and brain, along with pelvic health and conditions of the ear, nose, and throat. The Diabetes Group segment offers insulin pumps, coninuous glucose monitoring systems, and insulin pump consumables. The company was founded in 1949 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.

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The sextoy market is growing quite rapidly in India right now.

Although it is not a big trend, it is a hot topic on the internet as it is secretly expanding its market.

In this article, we will focus on sextoy and introduce recommended sextoy for Indian beginners of sextoy by gender.

India, the birthplace of the Kama Sutra, is very strict about sex.

Also, premarital sex is basically not allowed. Therefore, there are many people who are sexually restricted.

But what happens when you continue to be sexually restricted?

Frustration may build up and you may end up taking your sexual stress out on your partner.

If you are able to adopt sextoy in a timely manner, you can get rid of those problems.

I want to have more exciting sex than Im having now.

I want more variation in masturbation

I want to get even stronger pleasure than I do on my own.

If you have any of these problems, please stay with me until the end.

What is sex toys for Indian?

Sextoy, as the name implies, is a toy used during sex and masturbation.

It is a generic term for vibrators, Egg-vibrators, Electric massagers, dildo, handcuffs and condoms.

They are used to make regular sex more exciting or to make masturbation more pleasurable.

Because sextoy is very stimulating, it can help you to get rid of the problems and frustrations of being in a rut of sex with your partner for a long time, or if you are unhappy with the lack of pleasure in sex with your partner.

The ability to satisfy your desires with movement, texture, and size, which cannot be done by a normal human being, can help you to be satisfied with sex and, as a result, improve your relationship with your partner.

It is also said to help improve sexual dysfunction (inability to get an erection or ejaculate) and difficulty in feeling during sex (insensitivity), which is attracting more attention than in the past.

In recent years, the demand for sextoy has increased due to the spread of smartphones and the Internet and the increasing number of people using online shopping.

Even those who are concerned about the appearance of sextoy (and find it difficult to purchase) can now easily obtain it by using mail order.

In the case of online shopping, most of the stores have taken steps to ensure that the contents of the products delivered to you are not revealed, so you can purchase them without your family members knowing.

Until a while ago, you had to go to the store where the adult goods were sold to buy them, so it was quite a hurdle to overcome.

Also, many people may have an image that sextoy is somehow embarrassing to own.

But nowadays, some of them are so stylish and cute that you cant believe they are sextoy at a glance.

More and more people are using them for travel and outdoor use because they are not too bulky and are suitable for carrying around.

Sextoy situation in India

Before introducing the recommended sextoy for Indians, lets talk about one of the sextoy situations in India in recent years.

In India, due to the high concentration of population, the following six cities have particularly high sales of sextoy in India.

Mumbai

Kolkata

Bangalore

Delhi

Chennai

Hyderabad

These cities account for roughly 70 percent of sextoy sales in India.

In the future, the percentage of sextoy use will gradually increase in other cities in India as well.

If you never talk about sextoy publicly, that girl in your neighborhood might be a sextoy user too.

If you are interested in sextoy, you dont have to suppress your desire for it.

What are Sextoys for beginner?

Among all sextoys, sextoy for beginners are vibrators, dildo, masturbators, Sex Lubricants, and condoms.

Sex Lubricants and condoms, which are familiar to people who have had sex, are also a great beginners sextoy.

I will explain the details of each toy later, but there are many sextoy products that are painful to use and can only be used after some anal expansion.

I assume that the Indian readers of this article are people who have not had much experience with sextoy.

If such people use professional sextoy suddenly, they are at risk of injury or trauma.

Therefore, to introduce sextoy, you need to start with a beginners version and gradually become familiar with it.

Advantages of using sextoy for Indians

There are three advantages of using sextoy for Indians

You can masturbate in a wide variety of ways.

Can have stimulating sex

Can develop new sexual zones

If you try to masturbate with your own fingers or hands, it tends to be a pattern.

However, with sextoy, you can easily masturbate in a variety of ways.

You will definitely be fascinated by the attraction of new stimulation.

Also, your daily sex life will be more exciting than ever.

There are many things in sextoy that are visually stimulating and give you a strong and intense feeling of pleasure.

This allows you to see your partners promiscuity in a way that you wouldnt normally see it.

When you are in a relationship, sex with your partner may become a pattern, but it can also eliminate these problems.

It can also lead to the development of new sexual zones (which is the training of sexual stimulation to allow you to feel orgasms).

For more information on the development of new sexual zones, see the following articles

[Women's Erogenous Zone]How to find and develop, 7 hidden sexual zones !![In India] In this issue, we will dissect the female erogenous zone! ..." Many of you may be like that. Men, in particular, shou...

Thus, the use of sextoy can only be a good thing for the men and women of India.

Sextoy for beginner men in India

So, lets continue with the recommended goods for Indian sextoy beginners.

For ease of understanding, we will introduce them by gender. Lets start with the men!

The following five goods are recommended for novice Indian sextoy men

Masturbator

Cock rings

Love Doll

Sex Lubricants

Toys for the prostate

Lets check each one in detail.

Masturbator

The masturbator is a sextoy for men that elaborately reproduces a womans vagina, mouth, and anus, and is one of the most popular sextoy products.

It is used by men to masturbate, and it is popular because it provides stronger stimulation and pleasure more easily than using hands.

Most are made of good quality silicone, and their softness is something that cannot be achieved with ones own hands.

They can provide stronger pleasure than a real womans vagina, so be careful not to overuse them. (You wont be able to have an orgasm in a womans vagina anymore.)

Again Male masturbators are a wonderful toy. I do not need any favourite timing, bothersome bargaining. You do not have to worry too much.

Revolutionize your masturbation time! ! !

Made in Japan is a wonderful kinky toy.#sextoysindia #SexToyIndia #Japanhttps://t.co/4k70QGzoTP pic.twitter.com/tRVdxTKPpa   SEXToys India PR  (@SextoysIndia) November 12, 2018

Some of them are disposable, while others can be washed and used over and over again, so its fun to buy a few to use depending on your mood.

If you want to know more about masturbator, please click here

Really pleasant male masturbation and how to do it Are you in a rut with your daily masturbation routine? I'm going to show you five ways men masturbate that you might ...

[For Beginners] How to choose and use a male masturbator without fail Gentlemen.Have you ever used a masturbator? The person who sees this article is probably the one who has not experien...

Cock Ring

A cock ring is literally a ring-shaped sextoy that is worn on a mans penis.

It maintains an erection by binding the penis with a ring of rubber and blocking blood flow.

It is sometimes used as an accessory to be worn on the penis, and may be made of metal or plastic as well as rubber.

In some cases, cock rings have parts or vibrators attached to them that stimulate the vagina, so they kill two birds with one stone, giving a woman pleasure while maintaining an erection.

Cock rings are also sometimes used to treat erectile dysfunction.

It can help with erectile dysfunction, where the penis doesnt get hard when you get an erection or doesnt last long when you try to insert it.

Men who are prone to breakage or who are unsure of the hardness and size of their erections can use a cock ring to increase the size of their penis and maintain an erection for a longer period of time.

Cock rings vary in price from around RS700 to over RS2000 with a vibrator function.

Some of them do not fit your penis, so you should check the size of the cock ring before you buy.

You should know the size of your partners or your own penis when it is erect.

[Penis enlargement] What is a cock ring? Types and usage Cock rings can make your penis bigger and harder. It also makes sex with women more fulfilling and increases your sat...

Love Doll

Love dolls, also known as Dutchwives, are dolls with the appearance of a woman who can experience simulated sex.

There are dolls that look like a woman, but they have no face and only have their breasts and lower torso cut off, and some dolls are so realistic that they can actually be mistaken for real women.

Some expensive dolls can cost more than 1 million yen, and the quality of the doll is easily influenced by the price.

The higher the price, the higher the quality of the doll will be, the closer it will be to the real woman, and the cheaper the doll will be, the less elaborate it will be, making it look like a real doll! Something is wrong! That is also true.

You cant go wrong if you choose a balance between price and taste.

There are stores that allow you to make custom-made love dolls, so you can create a girl of your choice.

You can make a girl of your choice. You can start with inexpensive love dolls at first, and once you get used to it, you can try custom-made love dolls.

If you want to know more about Love doll, please click here

Thorough explanation of the charm of sex dolls! Have you ever heard of sex dolls that are used primarily for pseudo-sex purposes? It is a doll that is quite close to...

Sex lubricants

Sex lubricants are used as a substitute for lubricating fluid during sex or as a lubricant for men to use masturbator rules.

It is not uncommon for women to have difficulty getting wet, depending on their physical condition, or to have difficulty getting wet due to their constitution.

Forcing the penis into the vagina at such times can cause painful intercourse.

There are various types of Sex Lubricants, some with a warming effect, some with a cooling effect, and some with a scent.

Changing the Sex Lubricant used during play is recommended as a good sex accent.

If you want to learn more about Sex Lubricants, click here.

What is sex lubricant?Explain the difference and usage of each ingredient The word "sex toy" may seem like a hurdle to overcome, but lotion is actually one of the most familiar sex toys. Many...

Toys for the Prostate

Another sextoy for men is prostate toys.

The most famous prostate toys include Enemagra, which was originally a prostate massager developed by an American urologist to treat an enlarged prostate line.

Modern prostate toys are imitations of Enemagra that have spread as sextoy for men.

Many people think of prostate toys as being used by gay men, but in fact they are often used by straight men.

What is the prostate?

The prostate is an organ found only in men. It is a walnut-sized organ located deep in the pelvis, just below the bladder, and its primary role is to protect and nourish sperm.

You cannot touch the prostate gland from outside the body, but you can touch it by inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus.

By inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus and touching the prostate and developing it, you can feel intense orgasms.

Orgasms felt in the prostate are mainly dry orgasms, which are orgasms that do not involve ejaculation. (You can also feel orgasms with ejaculation through prostate stimulation.)

The prostate is called the male G-spot, and dry orgasms can be much more intense than ejaculation.

Therefore, men who are able to develop a prostate can become addicted to the pleasure.

sextoy for beinner women in India

The following are the recommended goods for Indian women who are new to sextoy.

The following three are recommended for use by women who are new to sextoy.

Vibrator.

Dildo

Electric Masserger

Lets check out what each one is in detail.

If you want to check out womens toys, click here.

[BEST25]Sex Toys for Women in IndiaThat Can Help You Have an Orgasm There are many women who pretend to feel orgasm during sex. But don't worry, you don't have to pretend to feel orgasm...

Vibrators

A vibrator is a sextoy that vibrates with an Egg-Vibrator to provide stimulation and is often referred to simply as a vibrator.

Some vibrate as well as rotate, and there are many variations of sextoy.

It is quite a popular sextoy, and is well recognized by people who do not know much about sextoy.

Its usage is similar to that of a massager, but it is more compact and easier to carry than a massager, and many of them look as cute as a lipstick or a macaroon, so they are popular among women.

For a while, a famous influencer on twitter said, This is good! You may have heard of the topic of this article by introducing the recommended vibrators.

Vibrators are great for women to use on their own, but they are also recommended for men who have difficulty satisfying women with sex.

Since it is powered by electricity, it is far less tiring than moving your hands by yourself.

This makes it easier to satisfy a woman with sex because you can caress her for longer than usual.

Vibrators are mainly used on the female side, but they can also be used on men.

When used on men, they are used to attack the nipples and glans, and in both cases it is recommended to wear a condom for hygiene reasons.

Introducing how to use the vibrator, its purpose, and how to choose it! Vibrator uses the vibrations caused by the rotation of the motor to provide stimulation. It is one or two of the most...

Dildo

A dildo is a model sextoy made to mimic a male penis.

It can be made of silicone, elastomer (think of it as a material similar to PVC), metal or glass.

A dildo can be used by a man for his female partner during sex, or by a woman for masturbation to get pleasure from it.

They are mainly inserted into women, but some can be used in the male anus as well.

It is sometimes used synonymously with vibrators, but the vibrator is not the same thing as a vibrating device.

A model of a penis that does not vibrate is a dildo.

Some of them have suction cups that can be attached to the floor or wall so that you can enjoy realistic masturbation without using your hands.

For fun, there is a dildo made in the shape of your partners penis.

This one is also popular as a gift, and if youve been together for a long time and are having trouble finding a gift for your partner, you might want to pick one.

To learn more about dildo, please click here.

What is Dildo: Orgasms with Dildos for Men and Women A dildo is a model of a male organ that is used by women for masturbation and by men to stimulate the prostate gland. Th...

Electric Masserger

A Electric Masserger is a hand-held electric massager, also known as a handheld massager, and can usually be purchased at electronics stores.

It was originally designed to relieve stiff shoulders and back pain, so the hurdle of buying one in a physical store is quite low.

Many people may have seen or used it in some form or another, as it is often installed in leisure hotels.

Such a massager is highly recommended for beginners because it is easy for women to get pleasure from it when they use it during masturbation.

It is larger than Egg-Vibrator and vibrations are stronger than those of Egg-Vibrators and vibrators, so even just hitting the clitoris can give you a great deal of pleasure.

For those women who have never had an orgasm during sex with their man, the massager may be a good way to get a feel for what it feels like to have an orgasm.

It looks and feels like an electric massager, so you wont have to feel awkward if your roommate finds out.

If you are in a rut of having sex with your partner, if you want to feel an orgasm through masturbation, or if you are thinking of using a sextoy, why dont you try it from a simple massager?

To learn more about Electric Masserger, click here.

What is a massager? Introducing types, selection methods, and usage Originally, the Magic-wand vibrator and the massage machine were sold as a home massage machine used for the back and th...

How to choose a sextoy for Indian

Now that weve covered the different types of sextoy, heres how to choose one.

Especially if you are trying sextoy for the first time, pay attention to the following three points:  Does the size fit you (the partner)?

Does the size fit you (your partner)?

Is the environment able to produce sound without problems?

Price range

First of all, the choice of size is quite important.

Most sextoy are used against or inserted into the genitals, but the genitals are very delicate organs for both men and women.

For this reason, using an inappropriate size may cause damage.

Secondly, the environment should be able to produce sound without problems.

Some sextoys not only wear, but also rotate and vibrate. Its easier to get pleasure from something that moves than something that doesnt, but the fact that it moves means that the internal rotors make some noise.

If you live in a house with thin walls or if you have roommates, you may not be able to concentrate because of the noise, so it is best to choose one that is silent or has a low noise level.

Especially in India, where many people live with their families, it is very important that you dont have to worry about sound when you use it.

Finally, there is the price range.

The price range of sextoy ranges widely, from around RS500 at the cheapest to RS10,000 or more at the highest.

Its good to consider how much money you can afford and how much you want to buy.

Do you want your family to not find out about sextoy?

I live with my family and want to use sextoy without them finding out! If you are a man, you should buy a camouflage sextoy that does not look like a sextoy at first glance.

For men, there are many masturbators that do not look like a sextoy, and for women, there are vibrators that only look like cosmetics.

If you choose such a type, youll be safe in case your family members find out.

How to buy sextoys in India

The best way to purchase sextoy is through online shopping.

For more information on how to purchase sextoy, please see the article below.

Sextoy is one of them.

Therefore, you can easily get sextoy in India by using online shopping.

SexToysINDIA is a long established and stable sextoy store and you can have sextoy delivered to any place in India.

They also offer cash on delivery, so those who are worried about shopping with a credit card do not have to worry.

Of course, the latest security is in place, so your information will not be taken out when you use your credit card.

To begin with, many people may be concerned about whether they are legally allowed to purchase sextoy.

ikmAs it turns out, its not illegal.

Right now, it is not open to the public because the Indian adult market is still in the development stage, but it will gradually spread from now on.

Take advantage of sextoy and open the door to new pleasures and culture.

Cautions for Indians using sextoy

When using sextoy, keep the following three things in mind

Keep sex toys clean

Watch out for electrical leakage

Beware of the heat generated by the body while using a sex toy

As I mentioned earlier, many sextoy products are used for the delicate zone.

Therefore, it is most important to keep the sextoy itself clean. It is very important to keep the sextoy itself clean, because if a slight scratch is created by friction, bacteria can enter and breed there.

It is safe to wear a condom when using the masturbator, just in case.

In addition, many sextoy devices are powered by a power source, so if they are not waterproof, there is a possibility of electric shock or malfunction due to wetness.

Some may even develop heat during continuous use. If the fever becomes too much, you may get burned, so be careful.

If you get a fever during use, stop driving the sextoy immediately and refrain from using it.

You will enjoy sex more if you keep it safe and use it correctly.

Summary

What did you think?

In this article, we have introduced the recommended sextoy for the beginners of sextoy in India.

The sextoy market is growing rapidly in India and it will continue to grow steadily in the future.

As India is a rather closed-minded country, it can be difficult to be open about ones sexual habits and values.

However, being faithful to ones desires by properly dissolving ones sexual desire is very effective for ones physical and mental health.

If this is your first time to learn about sextoy, or if you are interested in using sextoy, why not give it a try?

Indian Sextoys for ur best! will introduce you to sextoy and other trivia about sextoy, sexuality, and sexuality for men and women.

I want to read more! If you think its a great idea, please bookmark it.
PRESIDENTIAL DUOLOGUE. President Rodrigo Duterte fields questions from Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo during a conversation, beamed nationwide from Malacanang, Tuesday where he discussed a wide range of issuesloose conspiracy to oust him from power, the issue of amnesty, rice stocks, and martial law in Mindanao.

President Rodrigo Duterte said Tuesday he has a record of conversations to prove a loose conspiracy to oust him, involving the opposition Liberal Party, Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, and the communist rebels, and warned the Armed Forces of the Philippines against siding with them.We have the evidence and we have the conversation provided by a foreign country sympathetic to us, said Duterte as he addressed the nation with his live dialogue with Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo Tuesday afternoon. We do not have that sophistication, but the connection will be shown maybe any day now, said the President, emphasizing the groups were in contact with each other. I asked that it be declassified, and we will show it [to the public], he said, adding it might be loose conspiracy, but emphasized that the three groups are simultaneously planning it. This is my message to the Armed Forces: Just be careful. Just be careful of your connivance with the Magdalo [group of Trillanes]. Because Magdalo is not all in agreement to destabilize or overthrow the government, he said. I said my clear stand on the matter. If the Armed Forces think that I am not competent, that I am not qualified to be sitting here as President, I have discussed this matter with them in a command conference. You are on your own, he said. If you want another President, fine. I will not allow you to fight your own soldiers... I would not allow my soldiers to kill another soldier or a policeman shooting another soldier. Thats crazy, he added. He then called on the soldiers, who believe Trillanes fights for their welfare, to join the opposition senator. To those who see that Trillanes made a difference for your well-being, go to them and stage a mutiny or revolution. You are free to do that. As a matter of fact, I am encouraging you, so we could end this, Duterte said. I am challenging Magdalo to start now. If you think the soldiers are yours, its fine. If the generals [think of the same], so be it. Lets show the Filipino people what you really want. Duterte then hit Trillanes for not doing anything for the benefit of the soldiers. You were a mess. You committed a ruckus in Makati. You went to jail, cursed all the people in the government. Now that you have been pardoned by President Aquino, and you were in government, what have you done? What have you done, even in little ways, that helped the soldiers? asked the President, criticizing the senator for not showing up as the soldiers sacrificed their lives during the Marawi siege. Did I ever have the occasion to see you there? You were not there. Your group is only for sympathy. But you never really cared for the poor soldier, the President said.In his arrival speech on Saturday morning, Duterte said Trillanes, LP, and the Communist Party of the Philippines are praying for his ouster. Duterte warned the public to closely watch the three groups as they have been plotting his ouster. Magdalo Party-list Rep. Gary Alejano on Tuesday denied that Magdalo is involved in any oust plot against the President. The Magdalo is performing its mandate as members of the opposition under the check and balance system of our democratic government. The essence of this is to strengthen democracy and not to destabilize it. Further, since the onset of the Duterte administration, the actions of Magdalo have shown respect of the Constitution and the legal processes it provides, Alejano, a staunch Duterte critic and a former coup leader, said. We continue to trust our government institutions despite being abused right now by certain leaders in order to advance their own interests, Alejano added. He also dismissed the allegation that the Magdalo is behind the destabilization against the President and his administration, saying it was merely a product of the administrations paranoia. This is only meant to divert the attention of the people from the present economic woes they themselves have failed to address. If there is someone destabilizing the present government, they should not look beyond themselves for they are ones destabilizing it, Alejano said. Senator Panfilo Lacson, meanwhile, said members of the AFP should maintain their allegiance to the Constitution and the people. More than who authored the bills, the members of the AFP can best show their appreciation by serving the country and the Filipino people, said Lacson, a member of the Philippine Military Academy Class 1971. Besides, he said the passage of such laws benefiting the AFP is not just a matter of authoring bills, but also taking part in other stages, including holding committee hearings and sponsoring the measure. Lacson cited the Revised AFP Modernization Act (Republic Act 10349), which stemmed not only from the efforts of Trillanes but of Senator Ralph Recto and himself. Aside from authoring the bill that was consolidated into the measure, Lacson also delivered the sponsorship speech for the measure and defended it on the Senate floor.
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Higher coal prices and carbon prices will continue to support the gas demand in Europe, said Murray Douglas, Research Director, European Gas.

"Europes gas demand has undergone a renaissance in the last years. Gas demand growth has returned since 2014 and has been underpinned by the power sector. Higher coal prices and carbon prices will continue to support the gas demand," he said.

Douglas noted that on the supply side, with Europe's largest gas field set to be shut-in by 2032 and new supply getting more costly as developments become deeper, remoter and more complex, Europe's dependency on imports will grow.

And while the Southern Corridor unlocks a new import source, challenges remain to sustain other pipe supplies from the south, he said.

"National coal phaseout policies are being enacted across Europe and will continue to support gas demand through to mid-2020s. Europes largest gas field Groningen in the Netherlands will be shut-in wiping 18 percent from Europes indigenous production by 2025," he said.

Douglas pointed out that Europes 2010-2017 average import dependency stood at 254 bcma (51 percent). The 2020 import dependency will be 326 bcm (63 percent) and 2025 import dependency is expected to stand at 369 bcm (69 percent).
By Azernews





By Naila Huseynli

In January-August 2018, Georgia imported 106,800 tons of gasoline and diesel from Azerbaijan, which is 14.6 percent of the Georgian oil imports.

In total, within this time period Georgia imported 733,200 tons of gasoline and diesel fuel. This is 56,100 more than in the same period of 2017.

Georgia's Union of Petroleum Products Importers says that 362,600 tons of imported fuel is gasoline and 370,600 tons of diesel fuel.

During the reporting period, Georgia imported 191,400 tons of Russian oil, 187,000 tons from Romania, 122,900 tons from Turkmenistan, 80,300 tons from Bulgaria and 44,600 tons from Greece.

Georgia mostly imported from Azerbaijan oil and oil products, electricity, cement and gypsum, anhydrite and gypsum binders.

Diplomatic ties between Azerbaijan and Georgia were established in 1992.

The two countries broadly cooperate in regional energy development, transportation and economic partnership projects such as Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline (BTC), Kars-Tbilisi-Baku railway (BTK), the TRACECA, and the BSEC.

Georgian exports to Azerbaijan include cement, locomotives and other railway vehicles, mineral and chemical fertilizers, mineral waters, strong drinks, glass and glass wares, and pharmaceuticals, among other things.

Azerbaijani mainly exports to Georgia oil and petroleum products, natural gas, plastic
The Government of Canada has officially launched DeepSense, the Dalhousie-based world-class big ocean data innovation environment.

DeepSense is a unique ocean research partnership between industry, academia and government that will enable companies to benefit from technology solutions for real-world ocean related data challenges to help them make sustainable and better-informed commercial decisions.

World-class to world-leading



The Honourable Scott Brison, President of the Treasury Board and Minister of Digital Government, was on campus Monday to officially launch DeepSense. Joining Minister Brison was Andy Fillmore, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Affairs and Member of Parliament for Halifax, and the Honourable Stephen McNeil, Premier of Nova Scotia.

Hosted by Dalhousies Faculty of Computer Science, DeepSense bolsters the growing expertise at Dalhousie and in Atlantic Canada in ocean research and innovation, with industry and researchers collaborating on commercially-focused big data analytics projects. DeepSense will also create a pool of highly qualified people with the expertise and skills to contribute to further growth in Canadas ocean economy.

IBM Canada is providing the high-performance computing infrastructure and personnel support that DeepSense will use to develop products and services for ocean industries, an in-kind contribution valued at $12.6 million. The Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agencys (ACOA) Business Development Program has provided $6.9 million in funding to help establish DeepSense and fund operations for five years. Dalhousie and the Ocean Frontier Institute (OFI) are also investing a total of $2,133,151.

Additional partners include the Province of Nova Scotia and the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship (COVE).

These are exciting times for ocean sciences and the ocean sector in Canada, said Minister Brison, launching DeepSense on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development.

As Minister Brison noted in his remarks, DeepSense will continue the wave of investment to take Canadas world-class ocean research and sector to world-leading.

This is an important partnership of academia, industry and government focused on the ocean sector that will help transform the ocean economy into a digitally powered knowledge economy, said Minister Brison, who was introduced at the event by Andy Fillmore, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Affairs and Member of Parliament for Halifax. DeepSense is where big data meets big ocean research. It supports intensive data science research that drives innovation and new business opportunities.

We know that improving our use of data can help our region and our country become a global leader in the knowledge-based ocean economy. DeepSense helps Atlantic Canada lead the way in data analytics for the new blue economy, assisting companies to expand their product lines, increase export opportunities, reach new customers and hire more people.

Connections across the ocean sector



Mondays announcement at the Steele Ocean Sciences Building saw speakers from Dalhousie including President Richard Florizone and DeepSense partners including Premier McNeil, representing the Province of Nova Scotia. Both stressed the importance of the ocean opportunity and collaboration, and thanked DeepSense partners.

Ayman Antoun, president of IBM Canada, took time to reflect on the companys 65+ year relationship with Nova Scotia as DeepSense launches.

I bring you the great and deep privilege and honour of 12,800 IBMers that are just as excited as I am for giving us the opportunity to be part of todays announcement, said Antoun. DeepSense is a classic example of extending our partnership. Its not about the $12.6 million investment, even though thats important. I want you to know that the IBM company is into this heart and soul and money, and everything in between. This is going to be a relationship that I hope will be talked about for quite some time.

Over the next five years, it is estimated that DeepSense will be involved in 60 to 100 projects that address data analytics challenges faced by industry in the ocean economy. This includes a partnership with Irving Shipbuilding through an investment of $750,000 for projects that will use the vast amounts of maintenance and logistics data from its shipbuilding and ship repair operations. This funding is part of Irving Shipbuildings Value Proposition commitment under the National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS).

Kevin McCoy, president of Irving Shipbuilding, spoke to how DeepSense will help the company to reach its goals and the goals of its customers.

Every day we are using data analytics to optimize or processes and our planning, which will lead to shipbuilding and ship repair efficiencies but there is much more that can be done to ensure the data we collect is used to its full potential, said McCoy. The research and projects with DeepSense will have a significant impact on shipbuilding and the marine industry, and also on our primary customer the Royal Canadian Navy.

The power of an idea

Both Kevin Dunn, Interim Executive Director of DeepSense, and Jim Hanlon, CEO of COVE, thanked Andrew Rau-Chaplin, Dean of the Faculty of Computer Science, as a key driving force behind DeepSense. Hanlon noted the power of an idea that stood the test of time as he recollected the birth of DeepSense, two years ago in Rau-Chaplins office.

Dalhousies Faculty of Computer Science will be the lead DeepSense academic research partner, in collaboration with the Nova Scotia Community College and the Collaboration for Analytics Research, Education and Technology (CARET), and its member institutions to discover and attract academic research expertise, and develop curriculum and customized industry training.

Dalhousie is proud to be part of this unique ocean research partnership, says Alice Aiken, vice-president reserach and innovation at Dalhousie and master of ceremonies for Mondays event. By providing a platform that can be used by universities, industry partners, and government to support intensive ocean data science research, DeepSense will help position Atlantic Canada as a leader in the ocean economy for years to come.

Following the formal portion of Tuesdays event, Minister Brison and others had a chance to explore first-hand how DeepSense will support industry and research with demonstrations from RealTime Aquaculture and Dalhousies Department of Oceanography. Demonstrations gave interactive examples of the amount, and types, of ocean data being captured. DeepSense will provide the technology and expertise to manage and use this data more effectively.
Wasitha Thilakarnathnas dreams of becoming a food scientist are one step closer to reality thanks to the recent launch of Dals new PhD in Agricultural Sciences  the first of its kind in Atlantic Canada.

I am really excited to be the first PhD student of the Agricultural Faculty, says Wasitha, a PhD candidate through the Department of Plant, Food, and Environmental Sciences. Becoming a PhD student is a big milestone of my life! Being the first PhD student of Dal AC makes it extra special.

The PhD program will allow students to pursue advanced-level knowledge in agriculture and undertake independent research to generate new knowledge, both of which are imperative to the future of sustainable farming. With agriculture currently representing 7 per cent of Canadas gross domestic product, the need for high-level research of farming, food production and agricultural sustainability is at an all-time high.

Originally from Sri Lanka, Wasithas academic journey began at Wayamba University of Sri Lanka where he completed a BSc in Food Science and Nutrition. Soon after graduation, he became a teaching assistant at the university and was shortly promoted to a lecturer.

In January of 2016, he made the move to Truro to the Dal Agricultural Campus to pursue a masters degree under the supervision of Vasantha Rupasinghe. The completion of his masters this summer aligned perfectly with the launch of Dal ACs PhD program. Wasitha set his sights on completing his PhD under the continued supervision of Dr. Rupasinghe.

Dal AC maintains an attractive agri-food-based multi-disciplinary research portfolio, Wasitha says. The facilities at Dal AC match with achieving my expectations through the Doctorate studies. My supervisor, Dr. Vasantha Rupasinghe, is a well-renowned researcher and an excellent mentor.

Extensive research



Wasithas research is focused on the role of plant-food flavonoids of cool climate fruits which are naturally occurring plant chemicals, in reducing the risk of lung and liver cancers. Specifically, he is focused on understanding how these plant chemicals interact with probiotic bacteria, the health-promoting bacteria in the human gut. Wasitha has found that probiotic bacteria can transform these plant chemicals into molecules with higher bioavailability, meaning these bioactive molecules easily enter the bloodstream when introduced to the body at a more active rate.

Using some advanced cell-based biochemical assays, I have demonstrated some probiotic metabolites of these food molecules could even reduce the DNA damage caused by well known carcinogens, Wasitha explains.

So far, Wasithas biggest challenge has been identifying suitable probiotic bacteria and establishing proper parameters for the biotransformation. With the extensive support of his knowledgeable supervisor, Wasitha was able to overcome the time-consuming challenge and has wielded favourable results through his masters research.

During my MSc studies, I generated promising results in demonstrating the potential of naturally occurring plant chemicals in cancer risk reduction, Wasitha says. I was awarded the Cancer Research Trainee Program fellowship of the Beatrice Hunter Cancer Research Institute, with funds provided by the Saunders-Matthey Cancer Prevention Foundation to support my M.Sc. studies.

With such promising results from his Masters research, Wasitha certainly couldnt stop there. With the introduction of Dal ACs PhD program, Wasitha was accepted into the program and will continue on the same research track. His ultimate goal is to collect more evidence to support his hypothesis and develop a synbiotic functional food - a mixture of fruit-derived naturally occurring plant chemicals and suitable probiotic bacteria, capable of cancer risk reduction in certain risk groups. He hopes his research will help the local agri-food industry to develop many probiotics-based functional foods.

My research will be an important invention to utilize phytochemicals for cancer prevention, Wasitha says. The research approach is novel and will change the course of scientific studies trying to utilize certain food molecules for disease prevention.

A program of graduate scholarship



While funding can often be a significant barrier for students wishing to pursue advanced level studies, the Faculty of Agriculture has announced new graduate scholarship support made possible by generous support from the BMO Financial Group.

The BMO Financial Group Graduate Scholarship in Agriculture supports the attraction and retention of top graduate students to the Agricultural Campus. This scholarship support of $250,000 will be instrumental in the development of the next generation of researchers in agriculture.

BMO is proud to be Canadas leading agriculture bank and to partner with Dalhousie University for The BMO Financial Group Graduate Scholarship in Agriculture, says Lynda Taylor, senior president, Atlantic provinces division, North American personal & business banking. These scholarships will support exceptional students working in the agricultural field that will transform agricultural research for the whole region and beyond,

Graduate students Amy Harrington and Katie McCallum are the inaugural recipients of this support. Amys research is focused on biomedical scent detection with dogs and their use for ketosis detection in dairy cattle while Katie will focus on best management practices for silage production with a focus on mycotoxins.

To support his studies on plant-food flavonoids in reducing the risk of lung and liver cancers, Wasitha will receive the Dr. A. David Crowe Graduate Scholarship, established by Dr. Crowe to encourage higher education in the field of agriculture.

Dr. Crowe received doctoral training at Cornell University and later spent a 40-year career at the Kentville Research Station where he enjoyed a robust research career contributing greatly to the field of pomology.

The Dr. A David Crowe Graduate Scholarship, valued at $25,000 per year, supports PhD students who have the intention of living and working in Atlantic Canada.

I am thankful to Dal AC and the sponsors of graduate scholarship and especially the Crowe Family for making my dream true, Wasitha says. Immediately after the PhD I will seek a postdoctoral opportunity to establish myself as an independent researcher. My ultimate goal is to become a professional food scientist.
Dubai Chamber has signed an agreement with the Shanghai Federation of Industry and Commerce aiming to facilitate bilateral trade and investment, build bridges between the UAE and Chinese business communities and encourage knowledge sharing.



The agreement was reached when a high-level delegation from the Shanghai Federation of Industry and Commerce (SFIC) led by Zhao Fuxi, executive vice chairman, SFIC visited the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry.



The visiting delegation, joined by 12 representatives from the Shanghai Federation of Industry and Commerce, was received by Hamad Buamim, president and CEO, Dubai Chamber, and Omar khan, Director on International Offices, Dubai Chamber.



Addressing the delegation, Buamim elaborated on the unique trade relationship between Shanghai and Dubai, which has strengthened in recent years thanks to high-level visits from both sides. He explained said the Chinese delegations visit was a positive step which built on progress achieved during Dubai Chambers delegation visit to Shanghai earlier this year.



Buamim noted that China remains Dubais top trading partner with $48 billion in bilateral non-oil trade accounted for in 2017, and added that the number of Chinese companies registered with Dubai Chamber has increased steadily to exceed 3,400 today.



In addition, Buamim explained that Dubai Chambers representative office in Shanghai is actively promoting Dubai as an attractive investment destination, and identifying new opportunities in China which offer the most potential for Dubai Chamber members and businesses in Dubai.



Zhao Fuxi welcomed recent efforts to boost economic cooperation between Dubai and Shanghai, and lauded Dubai's leadership and proactive approach to building international partnerships and diversifying its economy. He stresses the important role that Dubai Chambers Shanghai office is playing in guiding and assisting Chinese companies that are keen to trade with Dubai, and expand their global reach through the emirate.



Fuxi also noted that companies in Shanghai are very interested in the Dubai market and participating in Expo 2020 Dubai, which he described as an important platform that Chinese companies can leverage to boost their global profile.



Earlier this year, a high-level delegation led by Dubai Chamber visited Shanghai and met with stakeholders from the citys public and private sectors to discuss new cooperation opportunities within the aviation, logistics and e-commerce sectors.  TradeArabia News Service
The confirmation came from SAIC president Chen Zhixin at the first-ever MOVE Global Mobility Summit which was held by the government in New Delhi recently.

Chinese auto giant SAIC, which is set to launch its Morris Garages (MG) brand in India, has confirmed that it will launch an internet SUV as well as an electric SUV soon. The confirmation came from SAIC president Chen Zhixin at the first-ever MOVE Global Mobility Summit which was held by the government in New Delhi recently. While the internet SUV is set to arrive by mid-2019, the e-SUV is expected to follow later.

SAIC has been testing a couple of SUVs from two of its brand in India  the Roewe RX5 and the Baojun 530  for a while now. Now it seems that it could be the Roewe that will make it to the Indian market with an MG logo to take on the Jeep Compass. Thats because the Roewe RX5, which is already on sale in China and UAE, was SAICs first-ever internet-based car.

In China, every Roewe RX5 comes with a unique ID and offers payment solutions that allow drivers to pay for fuel, parking, repairs and maintenance through the SUVs built-in internet technology. It also comes with a voice assistant to control functions like audio playback and navigation, while searching for points of interest, making phone calls and checking the weather. The RX5 also features a Tesla-like vertically placed 10.4-inch touchscreen infotainment system, an electric parking brake, a cabin air purification system and a panoramic sunroof.

The RX5 also lets owners connect the SUV to drones and sport cameras wirelessly for capturing pictures and videos of the vehicle. Needless to say, the SUV is always connected to your smartphone via an app too. The Baojun 530, on the other hand, doesnt come with such functionality, and thats why it is unlikely to come to India.

The upcoming e-SUV from MG for the Indian market could probably be the Roewe ERX5 (pictured above) which was showcased at the MOVE Summit. In China, it is powered by an electric motor that produces 115PS of power and 255Nm of peak torque. Powering the motor is a decently-sized 48.3kWh lithium-ion battery pack that offers a range of over 400km.

The electric RX5 looks identical to the standard model, which will be heavily localised in India. Once thats done, MG Motor could offer the SUV with a competitive price tag ranging between Rs 25 lakh and Rs 30 lakh as it's usually the platform that makes up the major chunk of a vehicles cost. This will let MG Motor take on the upcoming 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric in India.

Disclaimer: This article has not been edited by Deccan Chronicle and is taken from a syndicated feed. Photos: CarDekho.
Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) has completed the electrical connections and installation of smart metres at four projects, an electric vehicle charging station, and a Manarati smart pole at the Al Marmoom Reserve.



The completion of the work supports Dubais efforts to preserve the environment and promote sustainable development. The Al Marmoom Reserve, which provides a natural reserve for plants, animals, and local and migratory birds, aims to become the UAEs largest environmental tourist destination, attracting one million visitors annually. It features over 20 projects being implemented by nine government organisations.



Dewa is participating in the development of the Al Marmoom Reserve through six projects. The first will supply clean energy from the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park to help protect the environment and promote sustainable development. The second project involves the installation of solar panels on the rooftops of the Reserves facilities and connecting them to Dewas grid as part of the Shams Dubai initiative.



The third is the installation of electric vehicle charging stations as part of the Green Charger initiative to promote an uptake of electric vehicles. Another project provides state-of-the-art smart meters with advanced features that contribute to a smart and eco-friendly lifestyle.



The fifth project involves the installation of Manarati smart poles with innovative applications including charging electric vehicles, interactive screens, smart environmental sensors, and Internet access. The final project involves the development of an advanced water infrastructure at the Al Marmoom Reserve that meets the highest global standards, to ensure the readiness of Dewas network to provide water for all the projects in the Reserve.



Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of Dewa highlighted that the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, located within Al Marmoom Reserve, is the largest single-site solar project in the world with a total planned capacity of 5,000 MW by 2030. The Park is part of a three-dimensional approach towards achieving economic, social and environmental sustainability.



The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park will contribute to enhancing the efficiency of our natural resources and reducing the environmental footprint through the reduction of over 6.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year upon completion. The Solar Park also demonstrates Dewas absolute commitment to governance, work ethics, social responsibility and providing work opportunities for citizens and residents, he explained.



The Solar Park is likely to create 1,100 green jobs by 2020. Companies established by Dewa and private sector partners will focus on employing and educating Emirati youth, to directly benefit the community.



Dewa signed several agreements with different local and international bodies, institutions, and companies in research and development to establish the latest developments in energy, water and environment. These institutions include the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) of the US Department of Energy, the Spanish National Renewable Energy Center (CENER), Kipco Korea, the United Arab Emirates University and Khalifa University, said Al Tayer.  TradeArabia News Service


The Japanese carmaker plans to launch a new SUV in India but which of these three would it be?

The compact SUV space is all the rage these days with the Hyundai Creta topping the sales charts. The mid-size SUV segment, which comprises of SUVs larger than the Creta, has also picked up pace ever since the introduction of the Jeep Compass in 2017. Meanwhile, Toyota, which leads the full-size premium SUV space with the Fortuner, doesnt have any SUV in the Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh space. With a strong brand loyalty and booming SUV segments, Toyota could gain a lot by introducing more SUVs in its portfolio. Here are a few options that Toyota could introduce in the Indian market in the coming years.

Toyota Rush

The Rush might look ready for its India innings, but if you ask us, the second-generation Rush is unlikely to make it to India. First-off, it looks like a beefed-up MPV and such vehicles are not favoured here. Case in point: the Honda BR-V. The Honda SUV resembles the now-discontinued Mobilio MPV in more ways than one. It earlier looked like that Toyota would launch the Rush in India, but its body-on-frame set up puts it at a slight disadvantage when compared to monocoque SUVs such as the Hyundai Creta when it comes to fuel-efficiency (since it will be heavier), refinement and driveability, among others.

Get a detailed look of the Toyota Rush here: In Images: 2018 Toyota Rush

With the Rush out of the equation, Toyota still has a couple of interesting options up its sleeve. However, it all depends on the localisation of its new modular platform, Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA), in India.

TNGA

The TNGA platform debuted with the Prius in 2015. Currently, only the Prius plug-in hybrid, the India-bound eighth-gen Camry and the C-HR compact SUV are based on this platform. The next-gen Corolla hatchback is also based on the TNGA platform. So, expect a majority of Toyotas future models to be based on this platform.

As a result, it would certainly be wise for Toyota to localise the TNGA platform in India as it would open the doors for more global models to be introduced here at a later stage. Take Volkswagen, for instance. Volkswagen Group tried to tie up with Tata Motors to utilise the latters new modular platform. However, the plan failed to materialise due to unknown reasons. Now, its Indian subsidiary will reportedly receive fresh investments to localise the MQB-A0 platform to drive in future models in the market. Like Toyotas latest platform, VWs MQB platform too is modular in nature.

Toyota CH-R

Being one of the very first products to be based on TNGA, the C-HR (Coupe High-Rider) could become a Hyundai Creta-slayer for Toyota in India. It has got the style, substance and a hybrid powertrain as well! It might appear too busy to some, but it is certainly not boring to look at. With the C-HR, Toyota has made it clear that it doesnt make boring cars for retired people anymore!

Toyota C-HR Hyundai Creta Length 4360 4270mm Width 1795 1780mm Height 1565 1630mm Wheelbase 2640 2590mm

Once TNGA has been localised, it would become fairly easy for Toyota to introduce the C-HR in India. It is roughly the same size as the Creta and the swooping roofline will undoubtedly make it stand out in the segment. In Europe, it is powered either by a 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol or a 1.8-litre hybrid powertrain.

Toyota FT-AC Concept

The Toyota FT-AC (Future Toyota Adventure Concept) concept made its world debut at 2017 Los Angeles Auto Show in November. According to the automaker, it was a design study and was conceptualised on an outdoor-inspired theme. While Toyota has not officially confirmed if the SUV will enter production, it is speculated that the FT-AC previews the design cues of the next-gen RAV4 mid-size SUV, which is expected to be revealed later this year. And indeed, the test mule of the 2019 RAV4s, which was spotted for the first time in January 2019, carries design elements from the FT-AC. Like the C-HR, the RAV4 will also be based on the TNGA platform.

While Toyota hasnt introduced the RAV4 nameplate in the country so far, it is certainly the right time to do so. With the launch of the Jeep Compass, which is the highest selling SUV in this space (~ 2K monthly sales), the segment has picked up pace like never before. Later this year, we will witness the launch of the Skoda Karoq (Yeti replacement) and the fifth-gen Honda CR-V too. So, its quite evident that the segment is gaining momentum here.

Let us know which Toyota SUV would you prefer in India in the comments section below.

Check out: Top 5 SUVs At Auto Expo 2018: Tata H5X, Mahindra Rexton And More

Disclaimer: This article has not been edited by Deccan Chronicle and is taken from a syndicated feed. Photos: CarDekho.
Washington: A US regulator said on Tuesday it would launch an investigation into an off-road utility vehicle produced by Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd following a complaint by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV that it infringed upon the intellectual property rights of its Jeep design.

The US International Trade Commission (ITC) said in a statement that it was launching a patent-related investigation into the Indian automakers ROXOR vehicle.

The ITC said the complaint was related to the import and sale in the United States of certain motorized vehicles and components that Fiat Chrysler had alleged infringed on its trademarks. The agency said it would aim to complete its probe within 45 days.

The ITC has indicated it will begin an investigation of Fiat Chryslers complaint and that it will also be conducting a 100-day expedited consideration of the 2009 agreement and its effect on the investigation, said Rich Ansell, vice president of marketing, Mahindra Automotive North America.

Fiat Chrysler could not immediately be reached for comment.

Last month, Mahindra said that Fiat Chrysler had filed a patent violation complaint with the ITC against the company and called the complaint without merit.

Mahindra said that it and its North American unit had filed a public interest statement with the ITC and had begun proceedings in a Michigan court to enforce a design agreement that it had executed with Fiat Chrysler in 2009.

Mahindra was seeking an injunction against Fiat Chrysler from proceeding with the complaint, it added.

Fiat Chrysler had not made a monetary claim in the complaint but was seeking to block Mahindra Automotive from importing any parts or components into the United States that infringe upon Fiat Chryslers intellectual property rights, it said.
The government on Wednesday approved an over 25 per cent hike in the price of ethanol produced directly from sugarcane juice for blending in petrol in a bid to cut surplus sugar production and reduce oil imports. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: The government on Wednesday approved an over 25 per cent hike in the price of ethanol produced directly from sugarcane juice for blending in petrol in a bid to cut surplus sugar production and reduce oil imports.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs raised the procurement price of ethanol derived from 100 per cent sugarcane juice to Rs 59.13 per litre from the current rate of Rs 47.13, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan told a news conference.

The price for ethanol produced from B-heavy molasses (also called as intermediary molasses) was hiked to Rs 52.43 a litre from the current Rs 47.13 but that for ethanol produced from C-heavy molasses was reduced marginally to Rs 43.46 from Rs 43.70.

Diverting sugarcane juice for directly making ethanol, which can be doped in petrol, is common across the major sugar producing nations. Brazil tops the list where all the ethanol produced is directly made from sugarcane juice.

The move would help sugar mills quickly release arrears of cane farmers, which stands at over Rs 13,000 crore. As much as 40 per cent of these dues are in Uttar Pradesh alone.

Ethanol so extracted would be doped in petrol to cut reliance on imports. The government is looking at scaling up the blending to 10 per cent in the next couple of years from 4-5 per cent now.

Molasses is a viscous product resulting from refining sugarcane or sugar beets into sugar.

"Oil marketing companies (OMCs) are advised to prioritise ethanol from 100 per cent sugarcane juice, B-heavy molasses / partial sugarcane juice, C-heavy molasses, and damaged food grains/other sources, in that order," he said.

Also, OMCs will pay GST and transportation charges.

Pradhan said the decision will reduce excess sugar in the country, increase liquidity with the sugar mills for settling cane farmer's dues and make higher ethanol available for Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme.

"Remunerative price to ethanol suppliers will help in reduction of cane farmers' arrears, in the process contributing to minimising the difficulty of sugarcane farmers," he said.

The government had launched the programme EBP in 2003 on pilot basis which was subsequently extended to 21 states and four Union Territories to promote the use of alternative and environment-friendly fuels.

But the target of 10 per cent blending of ethanol in petrol was never met.

Since 2014, the government notified an administered price for ethanol. The move significantly improved the supply of ethanol during the past four years.

The ethanol procured by public sector OMCs has increased from 38 crore litres in ethanol supply year 2013-14 to estimated 140 crore litres in 2017-18.

In the 2018-19 ethanol production season, which starts from December 2018, an estimated 200-225 crore litres of ethanol is expected to be supplied by sugar factories to OMCs against a total requirement of up to 340 crore litres. One-fourth of the supplies are expected to be produced from B-heavy molasses while the rest would come from the conventional C-heavy molasses.

Pradhan said surplus sugar production has been depressing sugar prices. Consequently, sugarcane farmers' dues have increased due to the lower capability of the sugar industry to pay the farmers.

Previously, the government had allowed diversion of B-heavy molasses/sugarcane juice for production of ethanol to limit sugar production in the country.

As the ex-mill price of sugar rose from the earlier estimated price, there was a need to revise price of ethanol, he said.

Sugar mills are incurring losses as prices have fallen below production cost on account of record output of 31.5 million tonnes in the 2017-18 season as against the annual domestic demand of 25 million tonnes.
Actor Arjun Kapoor is currently shooting for director Raj Kumar Guptas film Indias Most Wanted, in which he plays a dedicated RAW agent. And apparently, it was Ajay Devgn who recommended him for the role.

A source in the know reveals, When Raj Kumar Gupta was shooting Raid with Ajay Devgn, he mentioned Indias Most Wanted, and Ajay thought that Arjun would be the best person for the role. Thats why he was brought in.

And the goodwill doesnt end there. It seems Devgn also intends to bring Arjun on board for one of his own productions. Talks are underway, and Kapoor is expected to sign on the dotted line soon.

HT16
Tiger Shroff became the common point in the controversy as both Hrithik Roshan and Disha Patani are close to him.

Mumbai: Actor Tiger Shroff has said the reports of his rumoured girlfriend Disha Patani walking out of a project because Hrithik Roshan flirted with her were extremely 'silly', and there is no truth to that.

There were reports that Disha walked out of Hrithik and Tiger's next film as the former allegedly flirted with her.

When asked about it, Tiger told reporters, "It's part and parcel. Not just Hrithik sir, every star faces that. Once in the limelight, you become an easy target. It was a very silly rumour. I know both of them very well, they are nothing like that. They are lovely human beings."

Disha Patani had earlier rubbished the reports as "childish and irresponsible gossip" and called Hrithik a "dignified" person.

Tiger was speaking at the launch of new range of Macho.

The Baaghi 2 actor said it was too early to speculate whether Hrithik and he would have a dance-off in their untitled movie backed by Yash Raj Films.

"It's too early to talk about that because we haven't created that song yet. But there's an interesting situation in the film where we come together on the dance (floor).

"It has been my lifelong dream to work with him. He's everything for me. I look up to him as an actor, human being. I am his big fan. I'll get to learn a lot from him. We begin shooting from October," he added.

At the event, he also brushed aside rumours that he will be collaborating with Sanjay Leela Bhansali and said the filmmaker was 'kind enough' to meet him for a courtesy meeting.

Tiger will be seen next on screen in Student of the Year 2, in which, it was reported that the actor has put a no-kissing clause.

When asked about it, the actor said, "It's just a rumour. If you've seen any of my films (you'd know). Not that I have deliberately done it (kiss) but every one of my films has had a kiss. If the story demands, I don't have a problem. As actors we have to be open things.
Actor Aari, who has been very vocal about several issues  from his pro-Jallikattu stance to creating awareness about the use of traditional and native seeds  is at it again. Through his Maaruvom Maatruvom Foundation, the actor is urging Tamilians to start signing their names in Tamil. It is not a shame. Signing in Tamil expresses your identity, he asserts, having kicked off his campaign with 1,119 signatures at the Tamil Sangam conclave held in Dallas a few months ago.

At an event held in the city, Aari released a poster that read Nam Tamil Mozhiyil Kaiyezhthiduvom and requested the actors and politicians of Tamil Nadu to change their signature to Tamil on all official communications. I have changed my official signature on all bank-related documents and at my office. Now, I am touring through Tamil Nadu to spread awareness about this issue, he said.
After being part of the royal experience on Kannada television with the hit saga Aramane, she impressed the audience with her beautiful role in Ondu Motteya Kathe and then followed it up with Katheyondu Shuruvaagide. In between, she did a brief appearance on the small screen with the multilingual mega venture Nandini. Actress Shreya Anchan who is basking on her success on both the small and silver screen, is travelling to Kollywood to shine in a brand new tele-serial Thirumanam which translates to married on Colors Tamil. The serial is the remake of Kannadas most popular tale Agnisakshi. The Mangaluru hudugi speaks to Bengaluru Chronicle about her recent successes, and her latest TV venture in the neighbouring state.

While I was doing movies, I was a part of the popular serial Nandini which is being made in other languages, including Kannada. I balanced both television and movies even though there was a lot of difference in the work. My mother tongue is Tulu, and my native language is Kannada. Tamil is new to me, but as an artist, there is no escaping the fact that I have to learn and understand it. I am in the process of learning Tamil. Working for the serial which is the remake of the Kannada serial Agnisakshi has been great so far, says Shreya Anchan.

Unlike many actors who do not wish to return to the small screen after finding a foothold in the film industry, Shreya who has has been a part of two back-to-back successful movies, explains that portraying a well-rounded character is the more important than taking up any lead role in a movie. I have been getting several offers as a heroine in films but I wish to take up only roles which appeal to me as an artiste, and also to the audience. For instance, though my role in Ondu Motteya Kathe was shorter, it had a greater impact on the audiences mind and that earned me appreciation as well as recognition. So is the case with Katheyondu Shuruvaagide which was again a different tale from the regular genre of movies, she says, adding that she would much rather play sensible character roles than glam lead ones that have little relevance.

About carrying on with her work on the small screen, she shares that despite differences in the two mediums, work remains the same, and at the end of the day, it is about pleasing the audience. A serial involves working for more than a year, but cinema is a different ball game, where each and every minute detail is worked carefully before the film is wrapped up in three to four months. Right now, I am concentrating on a Tamil serial and would like to take up something interesting if it comes up, Shreya wraps up adding that all the juggling between Mangaluru, Bengaluru and Chennai has kept her busy, and she has been managing to dance only during her leisure time. The Tamil serial is set to air from October 8, and we wish the kudla girl all the best for it.
Nearly one in 10 suicide deaths in the U.S. occurs in people with chronic pain, a new study indicates.

The finding suggests chronic pain may be a risk factor for suicide, the study authors say.

While the study cant prove that chronic pain contributed to peoples decisions to kill themselves, we did see that mental health issues, such as depression and anxiety were more common among those with chronic pain, said lead author Dr. Emiko Petrosky, a medical epidemiologist with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta.

Its estimated that 25 million U.S. adults have some level of daily pain and 10.5 million of them have considerable pain every day, Petrosky and colleagues note in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Health care providers caring for patients with chronic pain should be aware of the risk for suicide, Petrosky told Reuters Health. Chronic pain is a huge public health problem. Its essential that we improve chronic pain management through integrated patient centered management that includes mental health care in addition to medications for these patients.

Data for the study had been collected from 18 states between 2003 and 2014 by the CDCs National Violent Death Reporting System. Out of 123,181 suicide deaths in the study, the records for 10,789, or about 9 percent, included notations by officials - such as coroners, medical examiners and law enforcement officers - that indicated evidence of chronic pain.

The proportion of suicides committed by people suffering from chronic pain increased during the study, rising from 7.4 percent in 2003 to 10.2 percent in 2014. But Petroskys team also underscored the fact that the percentage of people battling chronic pain also rose during the same time period.

Back pain, cancer pain and arthritis pain accounted for a large proportion of the chronic pain conditions.

More than half of the people with chronic pain who killed themselves died from firearm related injuries, while 16.2 percent died from opioid overdose. Still, chronic pain sufferers were three times as likely as others to have tested positive for opioids when they died.

Thats an important stat, said Dr. Paul Nestadt of the department of psychiatry and behavioral health at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore. Opioids are depressants and they increase the risk of depression, said Nestadt, who is not affiliated with the new research. Depression is one of the highest risk factors for completing suicide.

The new study cant say anything about the state of chronic pain management in this country, said Dr. Michael L. Barnett, a health policy and management researcher at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and a primary care physician at Brigham & Womens Hospital in Boston

But we do know there arent any medications that seem to be particularly effective for chronic pain, said Barnett, who is not affiliated with the new study. Both opioids and NSAIDs are pretty effective in treating acute pain, but not chronic pain. While people often want a pill that will fix things, comprehensive pain management is proven to be pretty effective.

A problem with this kind of study is you dont know what other risk factors people had, said Dr. Ajay D. Wasan, vice president for scientific affairs at the American Academy of Pain Medicine and a professor of anesthesia and psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Chronic pain is certainly an important risk factor, but we dont know how important it is compared to other risk factors, said Wasan, who was not affiliated with the new research. Also, since chronic pain is not really coded well at the time of a suicide, this is probably an underestimate of the proportion of people who had chronic pain. We do know that chronic pain can be a deadly disease.
She was arrested along with a constable from Byculla by Indore police (Photo: Pixabay)

People in several parts of the world have different set of beliefs as well as superstitions. Reincarnation is something that has been portrayed in fiction but claims of rebirth have led to astonishing tales in real life.

A woman from Mumbai was arrested along with a police constable by authorities in Indore for trying to forcibly take a girl with them. The 40-year-old woman named Kiran claimed that the girl was her sister in the previous life.

The two had met when the girls mother was undergoing treatment in Mumbais Tata Memorial Hospital. They became friends and she gave Kiran her mobile number following which she called the girl regularly.

Kiran later started claiming that Shivani was her sister from another life and harassed her on social media as well. She finally reached the girls house with a constable from Byculla following which the family sought help from police.
In all four cases the accused were detained and were seized of the smuggled gold and foreign currencies. (Representional Image)

Chennai: Customs officials at Chennai international airport detected four cases of smuggling of foreign currencies and gold worth Rs 21 lakh here on Wednesday.

According to airport sources, officials stopped Eshwaran (52), who arrived at Chennai airport from Kuala Lumpur, in the wee hours of Wednesday. On suspicion, the officials stopped him and searched his baggage. During the search, they found two gold pieces weighing 350 grams inside a hidden column in a pouch he brought, a source said.

The officials seized the gold pieces worth Rs 10.5 lakh and detained him.

Officials also searched a passenger named Hussian (42) who arrived from Colombo in Sri Lankan Airlines flight. The officials seized 150 grams of gold valued at Rs 4.6 lakh.

He had coated the golden buttons into silver one and stitched them in his suit.

His suit was seized and he was taken into custody, one official said.

In the third case, the officials searched a passenger named Bhisnu (36) who had arrived at Chennai international airport in Gulf Airlines flight on the wee hours of Wednesday.

While initially they found nothing dubious, later the officials found two gold pieces weighing 200 grams in his inner garments.

In another incident, the customs officials stopped Hussian (32) when he was trying to board a Malaysia-bound Spice Jet flight on Wednesday morning. Officials searched him and found US Dollars worth Rs 5 lakh that was concealed in his rectum.

In all four cases the accused were detained and were seized of the smuggled gold and foreign currencies.
UAE-based Aldar Properties has announced the launch of Aldar Investment Properties, the regions largest diversified real estate investment company, which has been mainly designed to drive greater operational and capital efficiencies that will unlock value for shareholders and create the foundation for a new phase of accelerated growth.



This comes following the recent Abu Dhabi Executive Council decree, extending full onshore real estate ownership rights to Aldar Properties and its subsidiaries in the emirate. The company will take ownership of some of Abu Dhabis highest quality, revenue-generating real estate assets, valued at Dh20 billion ($5.4 billion).



The creation of Aldar Investments allows Aldar to spin off its recurring-revenue assets into a 100 per cent-owned separate entity, with greater independence, focused governance and a more efficient cost structure, said a statement from the UAE developer.



Aldar Investments operates under the direction of its own Board, allowing greater transparency, governance and clarity around its cash flows, profit and dividends, while reducing operating and capital costs to enhance profitability, it stated.



Incorporated through Abu Dhabis international financial centre, Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Aldar Investments features attractive recurring revenue assets including over 5,000 residential units and over 500,000 sqm of prime retail and commercial space, said the Emirati developer.



These include some of Abu Dhabis most recognized assets such as Yas Mall, Aldar HQ and The Gate Towers & Arc, and over 2,400 hotel keys, predominantly on Yas Island, it added.



As an immediate endorsement of its financial strength, Aldar Investments has been assigned a Baa1 rating by Moodys  the highest rating for a non-government corporate in the region and one notch above Aldar.



Aldar Investments can access capital on more favourable terms, independently of Aldar, and intends to issue a new sukuk in the near term. Aldar Investments has set formal debt and dividend policies consistent with the current asset management business providing further clarity for investors, said the company statement.



Commenting on the move, Chairman Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, said: "Since its establishment in 2004, Aldar has made significant contributions to the development and maturation of Abu Dhabis real estate industry, developing and managing some of the emirates most iconic properties."



"Today, it is an honour to announce another significant milestone in Aldars history, the launch of Aldar Investments - the regions largest diversified real estate asset investment company. As the owner of Dh20 billion of prime real estate assets, Aldar Investments provides an opportunity for investors to benefit from Abu Dhabis AA rated economy," he added.



According to him, Aldar Investments strategy was to deliver attractive returns to shareholders through investing in a diversified portfolio of real estate assets across the UAE.



"It will achieve this by maximising the performance and value of its portfolio, pursuing investment opportunities by acquiring income producing assets, and redeploying capital in higher yielding assets where it can drive value. Aldar Investments will actively assess opportunities to expand its asset base beyond traditional real estate asset classes to ensure it leverages key real estate market trends," he stated.



CEO Talal Al Dhiyebi said: "Aldar Investments allows us to accelerate growth opportunities and unlock value for shareholders. It is the latest of a series of initiatives that demonstrates Aldars leading role in Abu Dhabis real estate industry and builds on significant milestones including the strategic partnership with Emaar and acquisition of assets from TDIC."



"Building on this positive momentum and the maturity of our portfolio, we have now created a highly attractive real estate investment vehicle. We believe Abu Dhabis real estate industry offers a compelling investment case, bolstered by a strong macroeconomic backdrop, commitment to growth and attractive real estate yields," noted Al Dhiyebi.



Ahmed Al Sayegh, the chairman of ADGM, said: "We are pleased to welcome Aldar Investments, the Middle Easts largest diversified real estate investment company to its extensive and growing ecosystem. The launch of Aldar Investments marks a milestone for Abu Dhabis real estate investment sector and strengthens the UAE and wider regions progress towards economic diversification and growth."



"We are delighted that ADGM is continuing to be utilised not only as a platform for international business, but also to support our domestic businesses in their ongoing development and expansion," he noted.



Aldar said the creation of the investment firm comes at a time when the Abu Dhabi government is demonstrating its commitment to adding fresh impetus into the economy through the recently announced Dh50 billion economic stimulus package.



This is set to make Abu Dhabi even more attractive by accelerating the economy, providing further momentum in the UAEs capital and making business easier, it added.-TradeArabia News Service


The 25-year-old quota agitation leader was admitted to a hospital after his health deteriorated last Friday. (Photo: File | AP)

Ahmedabad: Quota spearhead Hardik Patel ended his indefinite fast on Wednesday after 19 days, even as there were no talks between him and the Gujarat government over the leader's demands for reservation to Patidars and farm loan waiver.

Hardik broke the fast by having lemonade from the hands of Patidar community leaders Naresh Patel and C K Patel. After ending his fast, the quota leader said, "The fight for quota for my community and farm loan waiver will continue".

Hardik had begun his indefinite hunger strike on August 25 at his residence near Ahmedabad, demanding reservation for Patidars under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category and loan waiver for Gujarat farmers. Later, a demand for the release of his aide Alpesh Katheria, who was arrested on charges of sedition, was also added.

The 25-year-old quota agitation leader was admitted to a hospital after his health deteriorated last Friday - the 14th day of his fast. After spending two days in hospital, he had returned to his house and continued the hunger strike.

While he had started taking liquids and was administered glucose at the hospital, the Patidar leader claimed he did not take any solid food during the fast.

On September 4, the BJP-led Gujarat government had reacted to the agitation and claimed that Hardik's quota movement was a "politically-motivated" agitation with the backing of the Congress.

State Energy Minister Saurabh Patel had then said that the government's door were open for talks, but no negotiations were held.
The RSS had indicated that it would invite Congress president Rahul Gandhi, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and the leaders of all the political outfits of different ideologies. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: Religious leaders, film stars, sportspersons, business tycoons, retired judges, former chiefs of the armed forces, ambassadors of over 60 countries, besides the leaders of all the major political parties are expected to attend a three-day lecture series of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, scheduled to be held here next week.

Senior functionaries of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) said a list of about 500 dignitaries was prepared for the event -- "Future of Bharat: An RSS perspective" -- a three-day series of lectures of Bhagwat from September 17-19.

An interactive session will also be held on the third day of the event. It will be a first-of-its-kind event to explain the Sangh's perspective on various issues and clear misconceptions about its working and ideology.

Therefore, it was felt that people from all walks of life should be invited to it, a Sangh functionary said.

"The list includes the names of religious leaders from all religions, film stars, sportspersons, media personalities, retired judges and former chiefs of the armed forces. The invitations are being sent to all these dignitaries," another Sangh functionary involved in the process of sending the invitations said.

The ambassadors of more than 60 countries would also be invited, he added. The RSS had indicated that it would invite Congress president Rahul Gandhi, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and the leaders of all the political outfits of different ideologies.

Earlier, RSS prachar pramukh Arun Kumar had said the lecture series was being organised in the context of the future of India and Bhagwat would present the Sangh's views on various contemporary issues of national importance.

Sources also said the decision to organise the event was taken at an All India Prant Pracharak meeting held at Somnath in July.

The event is part of the Sangh's outreach activity that was started by Bhagwat three years ago to meet the renowned personalities from different walks of life and share the Sangh's views with them on contemporary issues.
Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in his Facebook blog. (Photo: File | PTI)

Mumbai: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley termed the statement made by Vijay Mallya on having met him with an offer of settlement before leaving the country as factually false.

The statement is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth. Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise, Jaitley said in his Facebook blog.

The finance minister said since Mallya was a member of Rajya Sabha and he occasionally attended the House, he misused that privilege on one occasion while Jaitley was walking out of the House to go to his room.

Jaitley said Mallya paced up to catch up with him and while walking uttered a sentence that he is making an offer of settlement.

Having been fully briefed about his earlier bluff offers, without allowing him to proceed with the conversation, I curtly told him there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers, Jaitley said.

Jaitley added that he did not even receive the papers that Mallya was holding in his hand.

Besides this one sentence exchange where he misused his privilege as a Rajya Sabha Member, in order to further his commercial interest as a bank debtor, there is no question of my having ever given him an appointment to meet me, the finance minister added.

#WATCH Finance Minister Arun Jaitley says, "I never gave him an appointment" on Vijay Mallya's claim that he met the Finance Minister before he left. pic.twitter.com/aGxlD69NHY  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Fugitive liquor baron and boss of defunct Kingfisher Airlines, Vijay Mallya, on Wednesday told reporters outside Londons Westminster Magistrate Court, where his extradition case is being heard, that he that he had met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to settle matters with the banks before leaving India.

"I left because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva, I met the finance minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks... that's the truth," Mallya said.

Also Read: Met Arun Jaitley to 'settle matters' before leaving India: Vijay Mallya

After Mallyas statement, Congress and other opposition parties hit out at the government demanding the details of Vijay Mallya and Finance Minister Arun Jaitleys meeting.
Vijay Mallya is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores. (Photo: Twitter | ANI)

Mumbai/London: A defiant Vijay Mallya, who is facing money laundering charges in multi-crore fraud case in India, said on Wednesday that he had made a "comprehensive settlement" offer before the Karnataka High Court that will help in paying off all his dues.

The remarks by Mallya came as he arrived at the Westminster Magistrates' Court for a hearing in his extradition case, during which the judge is expected to review a video of the Mumbai jail cell prepared by the Indian authorities for the embattled liquor tycoon.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April 2017, responded to the swarm of reporters gathered outside the court in his characteristic manner, saying the "courts will decide".

"As far as I am concerned, I have. I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess that's the primary objective, said Mallya, who is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.

According to Mallya, he and the United Breweries Group (UBHL) have filed an application in the Karnataka High Court on June 22, 2018, setting out available assets of approximately Rs 13,900 crores.

They have asked the court for permission to allow the sale of assets under judicial supervision and repay creditors, including the Public Sector Banks such amounts as may be directed and determined by the Court.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4, 2017, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya.

It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of over Rs 9,000 crores in loans from a consortium of Indian banks.

In separate legal proceedings, the businessman lost his appeal in the UK's Court of Appeal against a High Court order in favour of 13 Indian banks to recover funds amounting to nearly 1.145 billion pounds.

The High Court order in favour of the State Bank of India (SBI) led consortium had reinforced a worldwide freezing order against Mallya's assets. It was followed by a related enforcement order in June, granting permission to the UK High Court Enforcement Officer to enter Mallya's properties in Hertfordshire, near London, where he has been based since he left India in March 2016.
New Delhi: A Delhi court Wednesday granted bail to former Air Force Chief S P Tyagi and others in a money laundering case related to the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam.

Special judge Arvind Kumar granted bail to Tyagi and his cousins involved in the case and asked them to furnish a bail bond of Rs 1 lakh with one surety of the like amount.

The bail was granted after they appeared before the court in pursuance to the summons issued against them. The court had on July 24 summoned former AgustaWestland and Finmeccanica directors Giuseppe Orsi and Bruno Spagnolini, Tyagi and others as accused in the case.

The court had asked the accused to appear before it today, while issuing fresh non-bailable warrants against Italian middlemen Carlo Gerosa and Guido Haschke and Dubai-based businessman Rajeev Saxena in the case.

Besides the six, the court also summoned as accused 28 Indian and foreign individuals and companies, including lawyer Gautam Khaitan, AgustaWestland and its parent company Finmeccanica SPA.

The court had passed directions after taking cognisance of the charge sheet, saying there was enough evidence against the accused in the matter relating to the alleged money laundering to the tune of around Euro 28 million.

However, foreign individuals and firms failed to appear before the court today.

The ED, in its charge sheet, has alleged that money was laundered through multiple foreign companies which were used as fronts to park alleged kickbacks.

On January 1, 2014, India had scrapped the contract with Finmeccanica's British subsidiary AgustaWestland for supplying 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF over alleged breach of contractual obligations and charges of kickbacks of Rs 423 crore paid by it to secure the deal.

Those summoned by the court include Tyagi and his cousins, Khaitan and his wife Ritu, Rajeev Saxena and his wife Shivani, both directors of two Dubai-based accused firms UHY Saxena and Matrix Holdings, O P Khaitan and Co, International Mediterranean Consulting, Tunisia and Infotech Design Systems Gordian Services.
Speaking to reporters in Jalandhar, the Bishop had said, 'If I am found guilty, which I am not, I am likely to be punished... I will appear before police if I am summoned. I am a law abiding citizen.' (Photo: File | ANI)

Kochi/Kottayam: Amid mounting pressure on the police to initiate action against a Roman Catholic Bishop accused of raping a nun, a meeting was held Wednesday to review the progress made in the case even as a clergyman of an influential Kerala diocese slammed the public trial in the matter.

Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar, Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash, who is heading the special investigation team, and other officials attended the review meeting chaired by Ernakulam Range IG Vijay Sakhare in Kochi.

Before the meeting, being held amid allegations of attempts to sabotage the case, Subhash told reporters that a notice may be issued to Bishop Franco Mulakkal of Jalandhar diocese to appear before the investigating team.

Harisankar, however, said the meeting was held to finalise the affidavit to be filed before the high court in this connection on Thursday.

On Monday, the Kerala High Court had directed the state government to inform it of the steps taken by the special investigation team probing the case of alleged rape of the nun by the Bishop.

Read: Inform about steps taken by SIT probing rape of nun by Jalandhar bishop: HC to Kerala

While considering a plea filed by George Joseph K of the Kerala Catholic Church Reformation Movement seeking a court-monitored probe into the case, the court had said, "Law is above all other things and it will take its own course."

Slamming the public outcry over the alleged delay in action against Jalandhar Bishop, Auxilary Bishop of Changanassery Archdiocese, Thomas Tharayil sought to know whether declaring a person guilty without an investigation and trial was also a new Kerala model.

Tharayil said he had learnt that one should be treated as innocent till his crime was proved before the Court of law.

"If an accused is a priest or a Catholic Bishop, he will be treated as a guilty till his innocence is proved," he added.

Meanwhile, agitation of various Catholic reformation organisations in Kochi seeking justice for the nun entered the fifth day Wednesday. Many cultural icons in Kerala including noted poet Balachandran Chullikkad have supported the protest.

Leaders of the Mahila Congress, BJP and various rights organisations expressed solidarity with the protesters.

The nun had on Tuesday shot off a letter to the Vatican representative in India to sack the Bishop, claiming he was using "political and money power" to bury the case.

Also Read: Kerala nun abused by Jalandhar Bishop writes to Vatican seeking justice

Making a fervent plea for urgent intervention, the nun, in a scathing letter, also sought to explain her silence before coming out against the bishop, saying she had "tremendous fear and shame" and wondered why the church was "closing its eyes towards the truth".

Speaking to reporters in Jalandhar, the Bishop had said, "If I am found guilty, which I am not, I am likely to be punished... I will appear before police if I am summoned. I am a law abiding citizen."

Also Read: Didnt rape Kerala nun, falsely implicated by anti-church elements: Jalandhar Bishop

Senior Kerala minister E P Jayarajan has rejected allegations of attempts to sabotage the case and asserted that the probe was proceeding in the "right direction."
The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April 2017, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores. (Photo: File | AFP)

Mumbai/London: Vijay Mallya will appear before a London court on Wednesday for a hearing in his extradition case, during which the judge is expected to review a video of the Mumbai jail cell prepared by the Indian authorities for the embattled liquor tycoon.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April 2017, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.

At the previous hearing in July in the Westminster Magistrates' Court in, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

Read: UK court asks India for Arthur Road jail video where Vijay Mallya will be kept

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, had agreed to the request and the video has since been submitted to the court. Mallya's defence team had demanded an inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets the UK's human rights obligations related to extradition proceedings.

The CPS stressed that the Indian government had provided adequate material which rendered the need for an inspection unnecessary, leading to the demand for a video recording to be reviewed by the court. The judge is also expected to hear the final closing arguments in the case, after which a timeline for her ruling is likely to become clearer.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4, 2017, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya. It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of over Rs 9,000 crores in loans from a consortium of Indian banks.

Also Read: Jail cell for Vijay Mallya in India has western toilet, 40-inch LCD TV, courtyard

The CPS has argued that the evidence they have presented establishes "dishonesty" on the part of the businessman and that there are no bars to him being extradited from the UK to face Indian courts.

Mallya's defence team has deposed a series of expert witnesses to claim he had no "fraudulent" intentions and that he is unlikely to get a fair trial in India.
A suicide note purportedly written by Harde was found in his pocket, the police said. (Representational Image)

Aurangabad: A 26-year-old man allegedly committed suicide over the Maratha reservation issue here in Maharashtra, police said Tuesday.

The man, Kishor Shivaji Harde, was found hanging from a tree in his farm in Galle Borgaon village under Khuldabad tehsil of this district in central Maharashtra, they said.

A suicide note purportedly written by Harde was found in his pocket, the police added.

In the note, Harde has said he was taking the extreme step because the Maratha community is not being provided reservation in government jobs and educational institutions, they said.

This is not a suicide but the government has "murdered" him, the police said, quoting from the note.

After the suicide came to light, villagers sat on a dharna at the tehsil office in Khuldabad. Harde was working with a finance company in Yeola tehsil of Nashik district, the police said, adding a case has been registered and further probe was on.

A similar incident took place on Monday in Ahmednagar district, where a 16-year-old girl allegedly committed suicide by hanging over the Maratha reservation issue.

Also Read: Class 11 girl commits suicide over Maratha quota in Maharashtra

Around eight people had committed suicide in the last two months where the deceased linked their decision to end life to the Maratha quota demand.

Marathas, a politically influential community that constitutes around 30 per cent of the state's population, have been demanding 16 per cent reservation in government jobs and education.

The community had organised statewide protests in July and August in support of their demand.
Appearing before London court, Vijay Mallya on Wednesday said he had met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to settle matters before leaving India. (Photo: File | PTI)

Mumbai: Fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya on Wednesday said that he had met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to settle matters with the banks before leaving India.

Mallya, who appeared for a hearing of his extradition at London's Westminster Magistrate Court, added that the banks in India had filed objections to his settlement letters.

"I left because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva, I met the finance minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks... that's the truth," Mallya told reporters outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court, where his extradition case is being heard.

#WATCH "I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks", says Vijay Mallya outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court pic.twitter.com/5wvLYItPQf  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Later Mallya clarified his statement and said that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving India. "I happened to meet Mr. Jaitley before in Parliament and told him that I am leaving for London... I did not have formal meetings scheduled with him," he said.

#WATCH: Vijay Mallya outside London Court clarifies on his statement that he met Finance Minister before leaving from the country, says "I happened to meet Mr Jaitley in Parliament & told him that I am leaving for London... I did not have any formal meetings scheduled with him." pic.twitter.com/U0ZnbKXrnM  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

When reporters asked Mallya whether he met any other BJP leader before he left India for London, he said, "Over a period of time, I have met many colleagues in Parliament and expressed to them my desire to settle with the banks. I don't believe I owe any further details."

Also Read: Jaitley refutes Mallya's claim; says never gave appointment for meeting

When asked if he was tipped off by someone to leave India, Mallya said, "I can confirm to you that nobody tipped me off. There was no need to run and the allegations are media created allegations."

After Mallya's claims, Congress and other opposition parties targeted the government for "hiding" the information.

Demanding the details of Mallya's meeting with the finance minister, the Congress said, "Mallya's comment he met Jaitley confirms our assertion that government was fully complicit in flight of people like him and others. The government must explain how Vijay Mallya was allowed to leave India".

The Congress also asked the government to reveal the details of Mallya's meetings with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, in a tweet said, "Why did the Finance Minister hide this information till now?"

"PM Modi meets Nirav Modi before he flees the country. FM meets Vijay Mallya before he flees India. What transpired in these meetings? People want to know," Kejriwal tweeted.

CPM General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said, "It's a fact that all of us had known earlier. Whatever denials government may issue, it confirms that all those who looted public money by taking loans from banks and absconded, not one of them happened to leave the country without knowledge of the government,"

"They (govt) have to own up to the fact that they allowed this loot to happen and the fact that they are allowing this loot to happen, more are looting," Yechury added.

The 62-year-old boss of the defunct Kingfisher Airline, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April 2017, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.
The nun who is in her later 40s alleged that she was sexually abused by Franco Mulakkal 13 times between 2014 and 2016. (Photo: File)

Kochi: The brother of the Kerala nun who has accused the bishop of rape alleged that he was offered a bribe of Rs 5 crore if the complaint is withdrawn, according to an NDTV report.

According to a report, a relative of Franco Mulakkal and two other priests approached the brothers friend and conveyed the message that they are willing to pay Rs 5 crore if the nun withdraws her complaint.

According to police sources, a high-level meeting will be held today ahead of hearing in Kerala High Court tomorrow. A notice is likely to be issued to summon the bishop and decision about his arrest will be taken in the meeting.

The Kerala High Court has asked the police for details on the steps taken as part of the investigation in the rape case.

The court has also sought to ask the details of the provisions made for the protections of the nuns.

The nun has also petitioned the Vatican alleging that the bishop is using political and money power to bury the case.

Read: Kerala nun abused by Jalandhar Bishop writes to Vatican seeking justice

The nun, in her letter to Giambattista Diquattro, Vaticans Apostolic Nuncio alleged that by continuing as Jalandhar diocese bishop, Franco Mulakkal and his associates are using the wealth of the diocese to divert the police investigation.

The nun who is in her later 40s alleged that she was sexually abused by Franco Mulakkal 13 times between 2014 and 2016.

However, all the allegations have been denied by the bishop.
Leading architects and interior designers will be showcasing their innovative designs and products in front of major retail buyers and students at an upcoming industry event in Dubai.



Index, the Middle East's premier interior design exhibition, will kick off on September 16 and run till September 18 at Dubai World Trade Center.



The eclectic show is also the soft launch for its new September dateline, said the event organiser dmg.



The show, which will be running alongside Furniture Interiors Manufacturing Show, is a must-visit for manufacturers, architects, interior designers, project managers, and buyers from all parts of the world, especially those with a keen interest in the Middle Easts burgeoning interiors manufacturing sector, it stated.



Samantha Kane Macdonald, the event director said: "We are thrilled with the quality and variety of designs and styles from Europe, the Middle East, and Asia that our many exhibitors will be showcasing at Index as well as the stellar line up of speakers that we have on board."



"The Silk Road is renowned for enabling transcontinental cultural interaction for many centuries. Index has endeavoured to present a one-stop interior design event featuring components, materials, designs, from Europe to Asia along with industry experts in order to kick-start an era of global design interaction. I am confident that the visitors will thoroughly enjoy the show," stated Macdonald.



To catch up on the latest and forecasted trends, the Index Design Hub will be the must-visit zone for architects, interior designers, retail buyers and students attending the show, she noted.



The Future Design Trends seminar by Victoria Redshaw from Scarlet Opus will inform the audience of the key colors, materials, patterns, textures and shapes for 2019. She will relate these to residential, workplace, hospitality and educational interiors.



The panel discussion by Interface will explore the importance of biophilic design for all interiors as well as how it can be applied in the Middle East, and Katherine Bruce from AESG will discuss how interior design can either improve or harm the health of end users/consumers, she added.



"Did you know that wool is one of the Worlds most sustainable and eco-friendly materials that is able to bring health benefits to interior furniture and furnishings?," queried Macdonald. "Visitors get to hear more on this at the Wool Seminar," she stated.



There will also be a series of talks dedicated to discussing all things design in, for and from the UAE hosted by Tashkeel an art-enterprise that provides a nurturing environment for the growth of contemporary art and design practice rooted in the Nation, she added.



The opening day will see Dubai host its first-ever sleep challenge, sponsored by DeRucci, which will pit four expert snoozers against one another to see who can enjoy the longest, most peaceful nap right in the middle of the exhibition floor.



The four contestants were selected from an overwhelming number of entries that were submitted on Indexs Facebook page narrating the most bizarre sleep stories.



Appealing to the Picasso in all visitors at the show will be the Artist Avenue showcasing the captivating artistry of famous, and budding international as well as local artists, said the organiser.



The art catalogue features Iruvan Karunakarans Bull that portrays its majestic beauty all donned up in local attire, Lion and the Sheikh by Dheeraj, Jesno Jacksons Blue Series - a contemporary cubism artwork based on love and music, and Fahr AlSalihs unique mosaic work made of sponges, acrylic, paint, ink and resin to name a few, it stated.



Visitors will see showcases from exhibitors from all over the World along with leading names such as Crate & Barrel, Maisons du Monde, Miotto, VG New trend, and De Rucci, it added.-TradeArabia News Service
Kochi: The Kerala police on Wednesday summoned Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mulakkal, accused of raping a nun following a meeting to review the progress made in the case.

The Roman Catholic Bishop has been asked to appear before the police on September 19, Inspector General of police Vijay Sakhare said.

"There are a lot contradictions in the case. This is an old case based primarily on oral evidence. We have verified a lot of contradictions. It's our duty to protect the victim and witnesses," Sakhare said.

Earlier on Wednesday, a meeting was chaired by Sakhare IG (Ernakulam range), which was also attended by Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar and Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash as pressure mounted on the police to take action against Bishop Mulakkal.

On Tuesday, the Kerala nun had written to the Vatican seeking an urgent intervention and demanded the Bishop's removal as the head of the Jalandhar diocese.

The nun further questioned why the church was "closing its eyes to the truth" when she gathered courage to bring forth her sufferings to the public.

Read: Kerala nun abused by Jalandhar Bishop writes to Vatican seeking justice

A 46-year-old nun alleged that she was sexually assaulted 13 times from 2014 and 2016.

However, the Bishop has refuted the allegations and accused 'anti-church elements' of falsely implicating him.

Also Read: Didnt rape Kerala nun, falsely implicated by anti-church elements: Jalandhar Bishop
The SP-level official of the Maharashtra police SIT threatened the accused and said if they don't confess their role in the Pansare murder case they would face 'worse torture', claimed Punalekar. (Photo: File)

Mumbai: An SIT official, probing the killing of Communist leader Govind Pansare, allegedly "assaulted and threatened" two accused arrested for the killing of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar when they were in the CBI's custody, a right-wing outfit claimed Tuesday.

Sanjiv Punalekar, an advocate and secretary of the Hindu Vidhidnya Parishad (HVP), made this allegation while addressing a press conference here.

The HVP calls itself a "voluntary organisation of nationalist and devout Hindu advocates". The alleged incident took place on September 8, when the two accused in the Dabholkar case -- Rajesh Bangera and Amol Kale -- were in the CBI's custody, he said.

The SP-level official of the Maharashtra police SIT allegedly assaulted the duo. He threatened them and said if they don't confess their role in the Pansare murder case they would face "worse torture" when the SIT takes their custody, Punalekar said.

Police believe the killing of Dabholkar at Pune in 2013 and of Pansare at Kolhapur in 2015 are linked. The CBI is probing the Dabholkar case, while the state police are looking into Pansare's killing.

Bangera, during his production, told a Pune court Monday that he was assaulted by a police official while he was in the CBI's custody, Punalekar said. Bangera was later remanded in judicial custody by the court.

"When we talked to Kale, he, too, revealed he was subjected to assault by the official," Punalekar claimed. "Following which we gave a written application to the court about the incident and the matter is slated for hearing of September 14," he added.

Another accused in the Dabholkar case, Sachin Andure, who is judicial custody and lodged in Pune's Yerwada Jail, also claimed the same SIT officer had brutally assaulted him when he was in the CBI's custody, Punalekar said.

The alleged incident had taken place in presence of a CBI officer, who, too assaulted Andure, he said. Both the officers claimed they had the "blessings" of higher authorities, he said.

Punalekar demanded that the officers be subjected to narco test to bring out the truth. He said his organisation has written to Prime Minister, Maharashtra Chief Minister and Union Home Minister about the incident and demanded a probe.
Speaking to reporters outside the court, Mallya said, 'The prosecution has argued their case. It's now for judges to decide.' (Photo: File)

New Delhi: A UK court on Wednesday said that it will deliver the verdict on whether fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya will be extradited to India or not on December 10.

During the previous hearing, Londons Westminster Court had asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the fugitive businessman is likely to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

Speaking to reporters outside the court, Mallya said, "The prosecution has argued their case. It's now for judges to decide.

Earlier, the defence team of Vijay Mallya, branded the evidence presented by the Indian government during the hearing at a London court as "utterly unfounded".

However, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, countered with arguments that Mallya had intended "from the outset" never to repay the loans he sought for his struggling airline and misrepresented its profitability. "

Mallya's defence team also rubbished the video of Barrack 12 at Arthur Road Jail, where the businessman is to be held on being extradited to India, as having been freshly painted to give the perception of brightness that did not exist.

However, the video, submitted by the CBI on Judge Emma Arbuthnot's direction at the last hearing, was not played in open court as the judge said she had already reviewed it three times.

(With PTI inputs)
The first policeman immediately collapses and the second tries to stave off the blow but fails and crashes to the floor. (Photo: ANI | videoscreengrab)

Madhya Pradesh: A 25-year-old man, Vishnu Rajawat who was held for violating peace caused mayhem inside a police station in Madhya Pradesh on Sunday. He managed to escape with his accomplice after knocking two policemen at the station unconscious but was arrested again after several hours.

According to ANI video, the escape was caught on CCTV which shows man, armed with a spade, moving quietly down a corridor and hitting the policemen on the head from behind. The first policeman immediately collapses and the second tries to stave off the blow but fails and crashes to the floor.

#WATCH Dramatic visuals of an undertrial prisoner viciously attacking two prison guards at a police station in Bhind on 9th September. One police personnel has been referred to Delhi for treatment, another is under treatment at a district hospital in Bhind (Source: CCTV footage) pic.twitter.com/eXEQ5eH51y  ANI (@ANI) September 11, 2018

According to reports, Umesh Babu, the head constable and one of the victims has been seriously injured.

Rudolf Alvarez, Superintendent of Police said, He has been referred to Gwalior and from there to Delhi for better treatment. He is critical. The other policeman has been admitted to a hospital in Gwalior.

Rajawat and his friend Mansingh were arrested on Sunday from Bhind district. Instead of keeping them in lock-up, they were made to sit outside. After a short interaction with policemen and realising that there is no one on guard, Rajawat attacked the policemen and fled but were caught on Sunday night itself.

Both the accused were arrested under Section 151 for disturbing the peace. In order to escape, accused attacked with a spade lying there for some construction work, SP Alvarez added.

According to a police source, Rajawat was also involved in illegal mining.

Caught after three hours, Rajawat said, They (the policemen) just made me sit inside the police station. So I just thought I would escape. That's why I attacked them".

Rajawat claims that he was a farmer and had come to meet a friend in that area. After the escape attempt, he has been charged with attempt to murder and causing hurt.
Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu had allegedly hit a 65-year-old man, Gurnam Singh, on the head during an argument in a road in Patiala on December 27, 1988. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: In a huge set back to Punjab minister and Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu, the Supreme Court has issued notice on a question of enhancing his punishment in a road rage case, in which a 65-year-old man died in 1988.

In May this year, a bench headed by Justice J Chelameswar (since retired) set aside the Punjab and Haryana High Court judgment awarding three years imprisonment to Sidhu treating it as culpable homicide not amounting to murder. The court acquitted him by imposing a fine of Rs 1,000.

Aggrieved by this order, Jaswinder Singh, the legal representative of the victim moved the court seeking review of the verdict. It was submitted that the judgment acquitting Sidhu had resulted in the miscarriage of justice and that the punishment should be enhanced.

A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and Sanjay Kishan Kaul after perusing the materials in the chamber issued notice and said it is restricted to the quantum of sentence qua respondent no. 1  Navjot Singh Sidhu.

Sidhu had allegedly hit a 65-year-old man, Gurnam Singh, on the head during an argument in a road in Patiala on December 27, 1988. Gurnam Singh died of a haemorrhage in hospital.

In 2007, the Supreme Court suspended Sidhu's sentence and granted him bail after he appealed his conviction by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The suspended sentence enabled him to contest the Lok Sabha by-polls from Amritsar.

Giving the benefit of doubt, Justice Chelameswar had held that the evidence on record indicated that the assault of Sidhu resulted in very minor abrasion over the left temporal region. The material on record leads us to the only possible conclusion that Sidhu voluntarily caused hurt to Gurnam Singh punishable under IPC Section 323 and this was not the reason for the death.

The top court said it is very difficult to come to the conclusion that the victim died not because of heart attack but only because of haemorrhage.

The apex court observed that the high court had rendered a finding that haemorrhage is the cause of death, which is not correct. Therefore, Sidhu cannot be held responsible for causing the death of Gurnam Singh.

For the offence of voluntarily causing hurt, the bench slapped a fine of Rs 1000 on Sidhu.
Hyderabad: In a respite to Anrak Aluminum Limited, the Hyderabad High Court on Wednesday directed the Reserve Bank of India and the State Bank of India to withdraw their petition moved before the National Company Law Tribunal seeking liquidation of the petitioner company.

Justice A. Rajasheker Reddy, while allowing the petition of the company, found fault with the State Bank of India moving the NCLT even after the company agreed to pay Rs 1,275 crore to the Consortium of Banks as one time settlement.

The judge noted that the Andhra Pradesh government has rejected the supply of bauxite to the company which has dented flow of investments into the company, but the company has come forward for the one-time settlement.

The judge pointed out that it would not be proper for the SBI not to consider the fact that Andhra Pradesh government had rejected the supply of bauxite to the company.
Chennai: The 17 men arrested in July for alleged gang rape of a 11-year-old hearing impaired-girl in an apartment in Chennai could even face death sentences as the police have arraigned them under the new Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2018, which increased the maximum punishment for rape from life imprisonment to death. This is the first time that the prosecution in Tamil Nadu has included this amendment to ask the maximum punishment for the guilty in this horrid rape case that sent shock waves through the city.

On Wednesday, Special Public Prosecutor N Ramesh filed the charge sheet before the special court for cases under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The court will take up the matter for hearing shortly. After filing the charge sheet, Ramesh recounted that the 17 men were allegedly involved in the repeated rape of an 11-year-old girl in an apartment complex at Ayanavaram over a period of seven months. The incident came to light on July 13, when the victim, a Class VII student, informed her elder sister that she was suffering from stomach pain. She told her sister that she was raped, sometimes even gang-raped, by the men working in the apartment they lived in. Subsequently, the sister informed the parents who lodged a complaint with the police.

The Ayanavaram All Women police went on to arrest 17 people, including the buildings security guard and water supplier, between the ages of 25 and 66. The girl was allegedly sedated by giving spiked soft drinks and was also blackmailed.

In the charge sheet filed before the special court, the prosecution registered case against them under sections 354-B, 366, 376-AB, 376-DB, 506 (i) and 506(ii) of IPC and section 5 and 6 of POCSO Act. Among others the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018, which came into force from April 21, had inserted two new sections  376-AB and 376 DB, to provide maximum penalty of death sentence to the convicts of rape of minor girls below 12-years.

In April this year the Centre had approved an ordinance Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance 2018 to amend the POCSO Act to provide death penalty for the rape of children below the age of 12 following public outrage over the Kathua rape-and-murder case, where the victim was 8-year old minor girl, in Jammu and Khasmir in January this year. Subsequently, the Centre enacted The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018 in August. The Act came into force from April 21.

The Section 376 AB of IPC (punishment for rape on woman under twelve years of age), which was inserted by Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2018, enables whoever commits rape on woman under 12-years of age shall be punishable with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than 20 years, but which may extend to imprisonment for life, which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of the persons natural life and with a fine or with death.



Section 376 DB of IPC (punishment for gang rape on woman under twelve years of age). The section enables where a woman under twelve years of age is raped by one or more persons constituting a group or acting in furtherance of a common intention, each of those persons shall be deemed to have committed the offence of rape and shall be punished with imprisonment for life, which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that persons natural life, and with fine, or with death.

Ramesh said since the incident took place in April, May, June and July, they could be punished under the amended Act.
Chennai: In a rare gesture in these times of India-Pakistan tension, Chennai based craniomaxillofacial surgeon, Prof. Dr. S. M. Balaji has been honoured with the Pakistan Dental Association's Humanitarian Award. Years ago, in an international meeting organised by Asia Pacific Dental Federation, the PDA, with a membership of over 1,000 dentists, had invited Prof. Balaji to lecture in Pakistan. Since 2010, PDA has been regularly referring patients with complex craniofacial developmental abnormalities to the doctor in Chennai.

The children are usually from low socio-economic category and the association would pool in resources for arranging the treatment and travel to Chennai. Prof. Balaji has been providing free surgical treatment to such needy patients from overseas. Over the last several years, scores of poor, young Pakistani children have immensely benefited from this endeavour.

In recognition of the humanitarian service rendered, the PDA leadership felicitated Prof. Balaji in a special award ceremony held along the sidelines of the 40th Asia Pacific Dental Federation 2018 meeting in Manila. The PDA President, Dr. Mahmood Shah, Vice President, Dr. Asif Arain and Secretary General Dr. Nasir Ali Khan presented Prof. Balaji with the award.

Prof. Balaji is the first Indian to receive such an honour from the Pakistan Dental Association. He is an expert in the field of craniomaxillofacial surgeon through which he has changed the lives of many patients who have come in with problems like hare lip and other facial deformities. In fact, the award winning short film Smile Pinki portrays well the kind of service rendered to such people in terms of their gaining self-confidence by surgeons like Prof. Balaji.
Coimbatore: CBCID sleuths have moved court for taking the 44-year-old bomb blast offender under seven days custody to start an interrogation with him. Rashidh, the accused, was on the run for 20 years. He was the brain in the Coimbatore serial bomb blast case.

A few days ago, Rashidh landed at Chennai airport. During passport verification, police under suspicion detained him. After confirming his involvement in the bomb blast case, Rashidh was handed to the CBCID officials.

Sleuths brought him to Coimbatore after producing him before the court on Tuesday. He was taken in judicial custody till September 24, but CBCID sleuths have moved the court demanding seven days police custody for further investigation, added the official.
IPv6 is the successor of IPv4 which set the rules for IP address when communicating on the internet.

Hyderabad: India is the largest adopter of Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) across the world with 242 million users followed by the US. Reliance Jio has the most IPv6 users followed by Idea and Vodafone in India, according to APNIC Labs. Reliance Jio was built using IPv6 while Airtel continues with both IPv4 and IPv6. Despite having a huge customer base of 7.9 crore, only 67 lakh users of Airtel use Ipv6.

IPv6 is the successor of IPv4 which set the rules for IP address when communicating on the internet. IPv4 has only 4.1 million addresses which are not enough to cater to the worlds needs of internet communication. So giving one IP to a device forever is difficult, especially considering the number of smart devices coming out each day. To overcome this problem of shortage of IP addresses, IPv6 was developed, which improves on the addressing capacities, thereby practically making available an almost infinite pool of IP addresses.

Experts noted that currently the IPv6 populace are the smart phone users in our country but with Internet of things (IoT) coming into play through smart TV, smart phone, smart watches, gadgets and connected devices the country will see huge increase in adoption of this protocol.

Mr Sridhar Nallamothu said, Mobile usage is increasing especially with the usage of two-three devices. Especially connected devices like IOT devices like the smart TV have separate IP addresses. Demand is increasing, IPv6 is being used. Lot of people are using static IP which Internet service providers can give, through which the world will know about our connection. This demand of static IP can be catered using IPv6, so there is an increase in India.

If there is static IP address and you want to check on CC cameras being used at home or some location, you can connect to it using your unique IP address. If it keeps changing one cannot connect every time.

Mr Srinivas Kodali independent security researcher said, The real reason India has got a large chunk of Ipv6 is because India doesn't have a significant number of IPv4. We couldnt buy more of those. Also large chunk of IPv6 were bought by Jio, because it wanted to expand its market.

He added that surveillance happens because you get identified by your networks IP and if you have a larger number of IPs, it can be used to identify a person in more ways.

Mr Kodali said, For instance, the entire household might have one IP because of the Wi-Fi, but each device can be assigned a new IP. It could allow tracking of devices in a unique way but directly protocol itself has nothing to do with surveillance.

Compatability issues slow down adoption rate

The pace of adoption of IPv6 across the world has slowed down over the past year. Despite the buzz around Internet of Things (IoT)/M2M Communications increasing to a din and IPv6 being the enabling platform, the adoption is slow. According to APNIC Labs, Weve exhausted the IPv4 address pool, yet IPv6 is deployed across less than 20 per cent of the Internet globally.

National IPv6 Deployment Roadmap v-II was released by Department of Telecommunications in March, 2013 for IPv6 transition in the country in a phased and time bound manner. According to a DoT representative, Although considerable progress has been made in IPv6 transition across various stakeholders, there are segments where the transition is taking a longer time due to the legacy networks and complex nature of the issue.

All mobile phone handsets, data card dongles, tablets and similar devices used for internet access supporting GSM/CDMA version 2.5G and above sold in India are capable of carrying IPv6 traffic either on dual stack (IPv4v6) or on native IPv6.

Experts opine that this slowdown is because of the lack of backward compatibility and people are not ready to change their working systems immediately. Mr Sridhar Nallamothu, founder of Computer Era magazine, said, Due to backward compatibility issues, such technology adoption is less. Even in technology, a lot of people feel comfortable with existing infra and do not want to upgrade fearing compatibility errors. They will try to run on old protocols for years and it is merely the insecure feeling of encountering issues in their day to day operations that stops them from venturing further.

Consequently Internet Service Providers with high growth in their customer base are now under high IPv4 address stress.

Often with Ipv4, people tend to faces errors like IP address conflict. There are a lot of attempts being made to adopt ipv6 but a lot of companies are not able to move. Either ways, browsers will be able to identify the connection and will allow you to connect. According to the DoT representative,

Government organisations are on the path to transit to IPv6. NIC is working to transit the websites of all government organisations hosted on their server. As per industry association, the mobile handsets (2.5G and above) are IPv6 (dual stack) ready. So there are many areas of the Internet which are yet to experience major pressures to deploy IPv6.
Epson, a global market leader in SCARA robots and provider of automation solutions, has launched a Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Russia-wide (EMEAR) competition with three robots as prizes.



As automation continues to expand, many new and innovative applications for robots are being developed. Revolutionising industry and other sectors, they have the potential to radically improve the quality of our working lives, said a statement from the company.



Epson is placing latest technology in the hands of the future: universities, colleges and research institutions across EMEAR, in order to support the growth, development and competitiveness of industry and automation, it said.



For the contest:

Applicants are invited to submit a proposal before December 15, for the opportunity to win up to three Epson robots to support their project;

Applications will be judged on a set of criteria including innovation, education, skills development, unique robot usage and sustainability;

Shortlisted applicants will be invited to present their application in front of a panel of judges.



Jason Whiley, director of sales, Epson Middle East, said: Skills and creativity are at the heart of innovation. We recognise the need to promote and support talent and skills development.



Millennials, who make up 50 per cent of the worlds population, will face a radically different working world to now. We know that young people have the potential, so our competition is designed to place the technology of the future in their hands, he added.



The number of industrial robots deployed worldwide is expected to increase to around 2.6 million units by 2019, it said.



Across Central and Eastern Europe especially, robot adoption is set to grow by up to 20 per cent year-on-year over the next two years, the highest growth rate globally after China, it added.



This growth places robotics as central to the future of manufacturing, healthcare, and many other sectors. Robots can also help in training, waste reduction and reducing energy consumption. Epson is providing an opportunity for young people in EMEAR to imagine a better world with robots.



Applicants can enter the competition online through (https://www.epson.co.uk/robot-contest) from September.  TradeArabia News Service
Hyderabad: Ahead of the Assembly elections, old cases have started haunting the Congress leaders. The State Government is revoking decades old cases against Congress leaders. After former MLA Jagga Reddy, now it is the turn of Congress MLA A Revanth Reddy and former MLA Gandra Venkata Ramana Reddy.

Jubilee Hills police has issued a notice to Congress MLA A. Mr Revanth Reddy on Wednesday, asking him to attend to the enquiry within 15 days. The charge against Revanth Reddy is that in 2002 he had sold seven plots of Jubilee Hills Cooperative Housing Society with fake documents. The complaint was filed in 2002 and after 16 years, the TRS government had revoked this case.

In another incident, a case was registered against Congress former MLA Gandra Venkata Ramana Reddy and his brother Mr. Gandra Bhupal Reddy on Tuesday night by Warangal police under relevant sections of the Arms Act. A few days ago a case was filed against Gandra Venkata Ramana Reddy after a woman accused him of sexual harassment.

It may be recalled that recently, the police arrested Mr Jagga Reddy in a passport fraud case. With the Pandora's Box being opened, the Congress leaders are lying in fear now wondering what other cases may be unearthed.

A vindictive person should not be caretaker CM, said Mr Jaipal Reddy, former Union Minister and AICC spokesperson. Mr. Reddy condemned the cases that were being registered against Congress leaders. Speaking to the media, Mr. Reddy alleged that all these cases were politically motivated.

Congress government won't spare officers, said TPCC Chief Mr. N. Uttam Kumar Reddy. He warned the officials that if cases were booked on Congress leaders on the directions of TRS Government, the Congress Government which would come to power in the next two months will not leave the officers and take action against them. He said that the TRS leaders who harass the Congress leaders and workers will also face action. TPCC Chief said that they were preparing the list of officials who were harassing Congress leaders and workers and action would be taken against them after coming to power.

He further said that in the 2004 fake passport case, in the FIR, Mr K Chandrasekhar Raos and Mr T Harish Raos names were there but Mr Jagga Reddys name did not figure in the complaint. He demanded the arrest of Mr Chandrasekhar Rao and Mr Harish Rao in this case.

Caretaker CM is targeting Congress leaders, said Mr Revanth Reddy.

Mr Reddy alleged that the caretaker Chief Minister had started a political hunt. He said in the fake passport case Mr Chandrasekhar Rao and Mr Harish Raos names were there but after coming to power The CM had removed his and Mr Harish Raos names. He alleged that Jagga Reddys name was included though he was not related in this case. He demanded that the Governor order a probe in the fake passport case with a sitting High Court Judge.
Chennai: Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Wednesday written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging the Centre to confer the country's highest civilian honour 'Bharat Ratna' on late J. Jayalalithaa and Dravidian stalwart C. N. Annadurai.

In his letter, the CM said, "Conferring Bharat Ratna would be a step in the right direction to recognise the extraordinary public service, phenomenal achievements and the remarkable life of one of the most influential political leaders of independent India." The CM also recounted former CM Jayalalithaa's achievements.

He also remembered a letter that was written to the PM on December 18, 2016, in which he had said that the state government was recommending the award to former chief minister Jayalalithaa posthumously.

Palaniswami, in the letter, hailed the Dravidian figure and former chief minister Annadurai, stating that the leader stood for a politics and social cause that fore grounded social equality, self-respect and linguistic pride.

Annadurai was a great social reformer, writer, orator, litterateur and a tall Dravidian leader, Palaniswami mentioned in the letter.

Recalling another Cabinet decision in the last week he urged the Centre to rechristen the Chennai Central railway station after 'Puratchi Thalaivar Dr MG Ramachandran' in view of his birth centenary celebrations.
Chennai: The government has sent the jail records of all the seven Rajiv Gandhi convicts along with the prison department's recommendations to Governor Banwarilal Purohit to back up the communication of the Cabinet recommendation of their release, senior minister D Jayakumar said here Wednesday.

The jail records were meant to show to the Governor that the seven convicts had been maintaining good conduct throughout their 28 years of incarceration following the 21 May 1991 assassination of Rajiv Gandhi at his election rally at Sriperumbudur.

Speaking to reporters here, he reiterated the government desire, which he insisted was in consonance with the sentiments of the entire Tamil people, the minister said, "We are confident the Governor will take a good decision expeditiously".

Disposing off a petition from the Centre, challenging the state government decision to release all these seven convicts, the Supreme Court had on Sept 6 said that the TN Governor under Art 161 of the Constitution was at liberty to decide on the mercy petition from Perarivalan. The TN Cabinet met on Sept 7 under Chief Minister K Palaniswami and passed resolution requesting the Governor to release all the seven under the same Art 161.

There is a raging debate in the various forums if Governor Purohit must, in a mechanical manner sans any independent thought, order the release of the seven convicts or if he must consult legal expert and the Centre. Legal pundits have argued that he cannot decide without referring the issue to the Centre as per Sec 435(1)(b) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) that says the Centre would have to intervene if there is any destruction to property of the Central Government or loss of life of its official. Apart from Rajiv Gandhi, several police officials and security personnel were killed in that blast set off by the LTTE woman suicide bomber.

When a reporter asked him if the state government would be able to cut the tax on fuel, Jayakumar said that could be considered in future when TN receives its pending devolution from the Centre.

To a question on Sterlite Copper moving court for reopening of its plant in Tuticorin, the minister shot back, "Let the company go wherever it wants, we will face it. We shut down the plant in keeping with people's wish".
The dissidents of these TRS candidates are holding meetings and opposing the party candidates.

Hyderabad: In many constituencies, TRS candidates particularly the defected MLAs in the dissolved assembly are facing rough weather from their own party.

The dissidents of these TRS candidates are holding meetings and opposing the party candidates. Some dissident leaders are leaving the party and some have decided to work against party candidates if the high command does not change the TRS candidates. In some constituencies, TRS leaders are preparing to contest as rebels.

In Maheswaram assembly constituency, the TRS ticket was announced to Tigala Krishna Reddy, the defected TRS MLA from Telugu Desam in the dissolved assembly. Local TRS leaders are opposing his candidature and staged a dharna under the leadership of TRS leader K Manohar Reddy. TRS leaders have demanded that the high command give the Maheswaram ticket to Manohar Reddy, threatening that otherwise he would contest as an independent candidate.

In Palakurthi assembly constituency of Warangal district, the TRS defected MLA from Telugu Desam in the dissolved assembly Errabelli Dayakar Rao is also facing heat from strong TRS leader T Ravinder Rao who is TRS state General Secretary. Ravinder Rao held a meeting with his followers and demanded that the high command give the Palakurthi ticket to him. In protest against Errabellis candidature, some TRS leaders have joined the Congress.

In Qutbullapur, TRS Corporators are opposing KP Vivekanandas candidature. Viveka-nanda won from TD in the previous elections and later joined the TRS.

In Serilimgampally, TRS leaders are opposing the party candidate A Gandhi and holding meetings against him. Local TRS leaders have given an ultimatum to the leadership to announce the party ticket to Jagadiswar Goud within one week. They said that if the high command does not give in, Jagadiswar Reddy will contest as an independent candidate.

In Kukatpally assembly constituency TRS candidate Madhavaram Krish-na Rao, in Jubilee Hills constituency Maganti Gopinath, in Uppal B Subhash Reddy, in Malkajgiri Vijayashanthi and others are also facing dissidence from party leaders. In Karimnagar, Adilabad, Warangal districts also TRS candidates are facing the same problem.

To convince the dissident leaders has become a huge problem for TRS leaders and candidates. IT Minister KT Rama Rao and Irrigation Minister T Harish Rao have taken the initiative to convince the dissident groups.
New Delhi: The Election Commission is looking at the possibility of holding Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Telangana state together and the poll process in the five states could be completed by the second week of December, a senior poll panel functionary said on Wednesday.

Going by past poll schedules, while Chhattisgarh could have polls in two phases, in the remaining states the exercise could be completed in a single phase, he said. Stepping up preparations for conducting assembly elections in Telangana, the Commission had announced on Saturday that the final voter list will be published on October 8.

The poll panel has suspended an ongoing process of revision of electoral rolls in the wake of premature dissolution of the state Assembly and declared a new schedule for revision. Under the new schedule, integrated draft electoral roll will be published on September 10. Claims and objections can be filed from September 10 to September 25 while disposal of claims and objections will be taken up on October 4. Updation of database and printing of supplement will be completed before October 7. October 8 will be the date for final publication of the electoral roll, which means elections may be held any time after that date.

After the new roll is published, the EC is legally ready to announce the poll schedule, the functionary said. The Telangana cabinet had on Thursday last recommended the dissolution of the state Assembly. The term of the House was to otherwise end in June 2019.
Last month, Samsung showed off its latest flagship  the Galaxy Note 9 and while its still hot on the shelves, rumours about next Galaxy Note series has already started surfacing on the web.

According to the Korean website named TheBell, the South Korean giant has already started working on the Galaxy Note 10 and has codenamed it as 'Da Vinci.' The report further predicts that by labelling the smartphone after the famous painter, Samsung could be focusing on improving the performance of 'S Pen,' which is the symbol of the Note series. Additionally, the report also quotes a previous statement from Samsung's CEO, DJ Koh where he said, "We have about two-three years roadmap for the evolution of the pen."

While the report doesn't reveal any major details of the device, it does hints that the design will be identical to the Galaxy Note 9 and would sport an Infinity Display and no home button  further ditching the rumours of a foldable Galaxy Note 10 next year. While it's still early to predict anything, Samsung was previously rumoured to release its first foldable phone and three variants of the Galaxy S10 in 2019.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Toronto: In 2014, Anand Patwardhan says the election result proved him wrong. He had never, in his wildest imagination, thought that India would vote Narendra Modi to power.

Four years later, just as the war machinery is beginning to acquire a life of its own, Patwardhan is not taking any chances. He wants to ensure Modis defeat this time, and his weapon of choice is the truth, with a dash of the activists rage.

Reason (Vivek) is an investigation into the systematic assassinations that were taking place of people, of the idea of equality, of rights, of a secular nation for years, but have gained momentum and become audacious under the benign eye of the BJP government.

Patwardhan has meticulously researched and documented the Hindutva brigades intrinsic hatred for anything that challenges the brahminical setup or their version of history, and their response to ideas they loathe is always the same. Murder.

That, Reason argues, goes back 150 years, but more profoundly to whats called the first act of terror in Independent India the murder of Mahatma Gandhi by Nathuram Godse. Refuting the fact that Gandhis assassination was all about the Partition of India, Reason argues that the first attempt on Gandhi was made by men belonging to Hindu Mahasabha in 1934.

The film then shifts a gear and chronicles the governments attacks on government-funded institutions where education is subsidised, making it affordable for Dalit students, while, simultaneously, chronicling the rise of resistance. Patwardhan hopes that people will watch his film, see things more clearly, and vote rationally.

But at almost 300 minutes, Reason is a daunting test of patience and commitment.

So, FTII, Hyderabad University, JNU, Rohit Vemula, public flogging Dalits in Una, lynching of Muslims in the name of gau raksha. But also the raised fists of student leaders like Kanhaiya, Dalit leaders like Jignesh Mewani, offering hope by fighting back, for a secular India.

In between, a long portion is devoted to Jayant Balaji Athavale, a hypnotist who founded the Sanatan Sanstha, a radical Hindu group, and whose Spiritual Science Research Foundation in Goa speaks of curing people possessed by ghosts.

The film also shows Hindu terror as a real threat and then shows how charges against its main accused from Mecca Masjid to the Malegaon blasts -- have been diluted. Here the film embarks on a needless detour to the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, trying to link the murder of Hemant Karkare to his investigations into the Malegaon blasts case based on rather flimsy evidence.

Apart from this segment, Patwardhan cannot be flawed on his rigorous research and cinematic narrative that brings backs to life slain men who were engaged in simply enlightening and empowering the dispossessed. Even if it gets a Censor certificate, which it is not likely to, it will speak mostly to the converted.

Anant Patwardhan, who returned one of the several national awards he had received as a mark of protest against the governments tacit support for right-wing mob rule, should have done us all a favour and engaged an editor.

Reason could then have been saved from the activists anger and angst.
Washington: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has written a very warm letter to US President Donald Trump requesting him for a second meeting, the White House has said, asserting that it is open to the idea and is already in the process of preparing ground for the high-profile summit.

The first meeting between the two leaders was held in Singapore in June. Talks between the US and North Korea have stalled since the leaders shook hands at the summit hailed as historic.

President has received a letter from Kim Jong-un. It was a very warm, very positive letter. We won't release the full letter unless the North Korean leader agrees that we should, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters on Monday.

The primary purpose of the letter was to request and look to schedule another meeting with the President, which we are open to and are already in the process of coordinating that, she said.

Last month, Trump directed his secretary of state Mike Pompeo to delay a planned trip to North Korea, saying he felt we are not making sufficient progress with respect to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.

But on Monday, Sanders called the letter further evidence of progress in the relationship between the two leaders.

She said the White House wanted the meeting to take place.

The letter from Kim Jong-un to the President certainly showed a commitment to continuing conversations, continuing to work on the progress that they have had since their meeting just a few months ago. And also, a continued commitment to focus on denuclearization of the Peninsula, Sanders said. PTI
According to Woodward, Donald Trump made this comment during a Situation Room meeting in the White House on July 19 last year, nearly three weeks after he had a very successful meeting with PM Modi at the White House on June 26. (Photo: File)

Washington: US President Donald Trump described Prime Minister Narendra Modi as his friend who told him that the US has got nothing out of Afghanistan, according to Bob Woodward's latest book that hit stores on Tuesday.

"Prime Minister Modi of India is a friend of mine. I like him very much," Donald Trump is quoted as saying by renowned journalist Bob Woodward in his book 'Fear: Trump in the White House' which has portrayed a dysfunctional Trump administration.

The book has caused controversy as it reportedly portrays Donald Trump as chaotic, mercurial and uninformed.

The White House has described the book as "reckless" and a work of fiction with the president calling it a "joke".

According to Woodward, Donald Trump made this comment during a Situation Room meeting in the White House on July 19 last year, nearly three weeks after he had a very successful meeting with PM Modi at the White House on June 26.

"He (Modi) told me the US has gotten nothing out of Afghanistan. Nothing. Afghanistan has massive mineral wealth. We don't take it like others - like China," Donald Trump is quoted as saying during the July 19 situation room meeting."The US needed to get some of Afghanistan's valuable minerals in exchange for any support. I'm not making a deal on anything until we get minerals. And the US 'must stop payments to Pakistan until they cooperate'," President Trump said.

Six months later Donald Trump in a new year tweet on January 1 announced to stop all military aid to Pakistan arguing that it is not taking action against terrorist groups operating from its soil.

President Trump told his national security aide that US is losing in Afghanistan.

"We're losing big in Afghanistan. It's a disaster. Our allies aren't helping. Ghost soldiers - those paid but not serving - are ripping us off. NATO is a disaster and a waste, he said. The soldiers had told him that NATO staff were totally dysfunctional," the book says.

"Pakistan isn't helping us. They're not really a friend," despite the USD 1.3 billion a year in aid the US gave them, President Trump said.

Donald Trump refused to send any additional aid. The Afghan leaders were corrupt and making money off the US, Bob Woodward writes in the book.
The statement by the White House press secretary accused Iran of not preventing attacks in recent days on the US Consulate in Basra and the American Embassy compound in Baghdad. (Photo: File)

Washington: The United States warned Iran on Tuesday it will "respond swiftly and decisively" to any attacks by Tehran's allies in Iraq that result in injury to Americans or damage to US facilities.

The statement by the White House press secretary accused Iran of not preventing attacks in recent days on the US Consulate in Basra and the American Embassy compound in Baghdad.

"Iran did not act to stop these attacks by its proxies in Iraq, which it has supported with funding, training, and weapons," the statement said.

"The United States will hold the regime in Tehran accountable for any attack that results in injury to our personnel or damage to United States Government facilities. America will respond swiftly and decisively in defence of American lives," the statement said.

On Friday, three mortar bombs landed inside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, where the US Embassy is located, but they caused no casualties or damage, the Iraqi military said.

The mortar attack was the first such one in several years on the Green Zone, which houses parliament, government buildings and many foreign embassies.

The US Consulate in Basra is near the airport, which was attacked by rockets on Saturday. No damage or casualties were reported.

Protesters in Basra angry over political corruption ransacked and torched Iraqi government buildings last week. The Iranian consulate was set alight by demonstrators shouting condemnation of what many see as Iran's sway over Iraq's affairs.
Honeywell Process Solutions (HPS) revealed that it was recently named Best Instrumentation & Electrical Material Partner by global technology licensor and engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor Maire Tecnimont Group.



Honeywell was recognised for results across six areas of its work with Maire Tecnimont, which included early engagement, competitive total costing, risk sharing and impeccable execution, said a statement from the company.



The award was presented to Honeywell at a ceremony during the SEENERGY event, dedicated to the groups supply chain. More than 70 chief executive officers of partner companies attended the event in Milan, Italy, representing about 900 billion ($1,041.9 billion) of revenue and almost four million workers, it said.



John Rudolph, president of HPS, said: We are honoured to be recognized as a valued partner to Maire Tecnimont.



The award acknowledges the contribution of EPCs to our success in the market, and the consistent and excellent results our joint teams deliver, he added.



Honeywell has had a long and successful relationship with Maire Tecnimont, which encompasses 50 operating companies and more than 8,500 professionals. Working across the hydrocarbon processing value chain, namely oil and gas refining, petrochemicals and fertilisers, Maire Tecnimont manages large turnkey EPC projects in more than 40 countries, it added.



Pierroberto Folgiero, chief executive officer, Maire Tecnimont Group, said: A new proactive and collaborative approach with businesses partners is a core part of our strategy and is already showing measurable results on our projects.



Honeywell has collaborated with the group to deliver numerous projects, providing and implementing automation controls, safety and cybersecurity solutions. It also has recently started to develop innovative business models with the group around its Honeywell Connected Plant solutions, which is a suite of applications that delivers higher levels of safety, reliability, efficiency and profitability, it stated.  TradeArabia News Service
The attack came hours after a double bombing in front of a girls' school in the provincial capital Jalalabad, which killed a boy and wounded four others.(Representional Image)

Jalalabad: A suicide attack on protesters in eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday killed at least 19 people, officials said, as an uptick in violence across the country dampens hopes for peace talks and elections.

Another 57 people were wounded in the blast in Nangarhar province, where demonstrators had blocked a highway in protest over the appointment of a local police chief, provincial governor spokesman Ataullah Khogyani said.

Provincial health department spokesman Inamullah Miakhil confirmed the number of dead and wounded.

Dozens of wounded people have been brought to Jalalabad hospitals so far, Miakhil added.

The attack came hours after a double bombing in front of a girls' school in the provincial capital Jalalabad, which killed a boy and wounded four others.

The first explosion happened in front of Malika Omaira girls' school at around 8:30 am (0400 GMT), Khogyani told AFP earlier.

A second bomb went off as students from a neighbouring boys' school and locals gathered at the scene, he added.

There has been no claim of responsibility for any of the attacks, but the Taliban and the Islamic State (IS) group are active in Nangarhar, which borders Pakistan.

A wave of violence across Afghanistan in recent weeks has claimed the lives of hundreds of civilians and security forces.
As the Opposition unity lies in tatters in Telangana following CPM's reluctance to join hands with the anti-BJP and anti-TRS parties, the Congress central leadership is reaching out to the party to reason with it on why its presence is important in the coalition.

If the CPM Telangana unit sticks to its decision, the Left Front in the state could be in tatters even as the CPI has decided to back the grand alliance proposal floated by the TDP and Congress.

The grand alliance backers want CPM, CPI and Telangana Jana Samiti to be part of the Congress-TDP plans and the CPI has already given its nod.

Sources said the senior Congress leaders have discussed the issue with CPM central leadership to impress upon the party why a united face must be put up against the BJP.

TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu has left it to his party's state unit to decide on how to build a broad alliance with the Congress and others.

With buzz gaining ground that the TRS could eventually land up in the BJP stable, Congress leaders and a section in the Left are of the view that a broad coalition was needed to tackle the K Chandrasekhar Rao-led ruling party, which advanced the Assembly polls by dissolving the House.

The Telangana CPM state committee, which has floated a Bahujan Left Front (BLF), will be meeting next week, where it will prepare its report on possible coalition partners for the central leadership.

The CPM Polit Bureau is meeting on September last week and the Central Committee will be held in the first week of October to take a final call on the issue.

The CPM state unit's move has its genesis in the factional fight in the party over the relationship with the Congress even as Hyderabad Party Congress has opened doors for the Left party to have a pragmatic electoral understanding with it.

Polit Bureau member B V Raghuvulu, who is aligned with former CPM General Secretary Prakash Karat who takes a strident anti-Congress line, has a say in how the Telangana unit swings and most of them in the state unit feel that a tie-up with TDP and Congress is not going to help their cause.

Sources said the anti-Congress camp in the CPM believes that it is too early to say that Rao will go the BJP way as he may join the UPA camp if it has numbers in post Lok Sabha polls.

However, the opponents counter it saying that the Opposition could get numbers only if it fights jointly while Rao has given ample indications of his BJP inclination by preponing the Assembly elections.

While a section in the CPM wants TDP as an ally, the dominant faction in the Telangana unit is in favour of aligning with actor-turned-politician Pawan Kalyan's Jana Sena Party, keeping in mind its influence in Andhra Pradesh.

The backers of the pro-Congress, pro-TDP alliance feel that their alliance is a formidable opposition to the TRS, which may extend a hand of friendship to Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM with an eye on minority votes, while the BJP is a minor player in the state.

"We could squeeze TRS if we form a grand coalition," a senior Opposition leader told DH.
The Congress on Tuesday hit back at the BJP government over revelations by former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan over NPAs of banks accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of inaction over high-profile cases of fraud that were brought to his notice.

The Congress said the BJP was misreading Rajan's report which clearly stated that the RBI had set up a fraud monitoring cell in the central bank in 2016 to coordinate early reporting of such cases with the investigating agencies.

Congress spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala said Rajan had sent Modi a list of high-profile cases with a request for coordinated action to bring atleast one or two to book.

Raghuram Rajan has also indicted the Prime Minister of India and the Prime Minister's Office on the fraud being committed and fraudsters who were escaping, Surjewala said, seeking to link the matter to the escape of PNB scam accused Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi to foreign shores.

The Congress leader also claimed that when the UPA demited office, the NPAs of banks stood at Rs 2.83 lakh crore which he contended was a controllable situation.

Surjewala said the bad loans under the Modi government ballooned by Rs 9.17 lakh crore to Rs 12 lakh crore.

Who is responsible? Naturally, the failure of Modi-nomics and Jaitley-nomcis has decimated Indias economy, the banking system and peoples faith in the economy, he said.

Surjewala also countered the Prime Minister's 'dial a loan' charge against the UPA. He claimed that the Prime Minister had devised a new formula called wink a loan.

He looks and the banks grant loan to his crony capitalist friend. This Rs 9.17 lakh crore NPA is a result of wink a loan formula, the Congress leader charged.
Recently, the Gandhi family suffered a setback in the National Herald case against them when the Delhi High Court dismissed a plea by Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi against a reassessment notice from the Income Tax department.

The BJP was quick on its feet, as usual, saying that the Bharat Bandh that was called out for yesterday was to 'divert attention' from the matter itself rather than to protest the rising fuel prices as the Congress claimed.

But what of the paper and what led to this situation? To know that, read on for a bit of history and an introduction to the political tug-of-war between the Congress and the BJP.

National Herald was created during the later parts of the Freedom Movement in September 1938 and was started by Jawaharlal Nehru, with K Rama Rao being the first editor of the paper. Nehru was a member of the Board of Directors till his appointment as the first PM of Independent India.

Following the Quit India resolution in 1942, the British government clamped down on the press of the country, and many were shut down, including the National Herald. The paper was revived in 1945. In 1946, Manikonda Chalapathi Rau was made the editor of the Herald, with Nehru reportedly giving him free reign and complete editorial independence.

Nehru continued to be a member of the Herald and served as its international corrsespondent. He was said to use the paper to sidestep the existing press to convey his thoughts to the public, such as in the case of his 1954 editorial where he penned a scathing piece on the Bikini Atoll tests, calling it 'The Death-dealer'.

For over 50 years after the editorial, the paper continued to circulate, until 2008, when it was shut down after the paper failed to modernise its print technology and was a loss-making enterprise.

Then, in 2012, talks of National Herald being revived took steam when the Congress gave an interest-free loan to the Associated Journals. Amdist a petition by Subramanian Swamy, who was the Janata Party chief at the time, to derecognise the Congress over the move, the party's general secretary Janardan Dwivedi termed National Herald's revival as 'an emotional issue'.

In 2014, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were summoned by a local Delhi court as accused in a criminal complaint lodged by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy for alleged cheating and misappropriation of funds in acquiring ownership of National Herald., but in August, the Delhi High Court stayed the criminal proceedings against Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandi the case.

In 2015, the Enforcement Directorate stepped into the National Herald case shortly after a senior official said there was no case to be made out against Sonia and Rahul, suggesting the body may file a money laundering complaint against the duo.

In November 2015, BJP spokesperson M J Akbar said the reports on Robert Vadra's land transactions involving shell companies had "rattled" top party leaders and as such, the party was raising "slogans" of "intolerance" to divert attention from that and the National Herald case.

Then in December, the Delhi High Court dismissed pleas from Sonia and Rahul, challenging summons issued to them in the National Herald case in which they have to appear before the trial court and also refused to give them an extension.

Undeterred from all the legal issues surrounding its leaders, the Congress attacked the BJP head-on, with its spokesperson Randeep Surjewala terming the case a "vendetta politics" tactic from the saffron party.

Around the time the Delhi HC dismissed the Gandhis' pleas, Shanti Bhushan said he will intervene in the National Herald case and described the transfer of shares to Young Indian Limited as "illegal".

Former Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu ridiculed the Congress for dragging the PMO in the National Herald issue and accused it of fighting a legal battle in Parliament.

In less than a week of the Delhi HC verdict, Himanshu Kumar Lal, the ED officer who had recommended closure of National Herald case, was shifted from the organisation and appointed as Deputy Secretary in the UIDAI under the Department of Electronics and Information Technology. The change followed a complaint by Swamy to Narendra Modi.

In January 2016, The EGM of the Associated Journals Ltd, the publishers of the National Herald, Navjivan and Quami Awaz newspapers, decided to re-launch the three dailies.

On February 5, Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi approached the Supreme Court to quash a complaint filed by Subramanian Swamy in the National Herald case and to set aside the December 7 order of the Delhi High Court directing them to face the criminal prosecution for the offences of cheating, breach of trust, misappropriation of funds and criminal conspiracy.

In November, National Herald staged a comeback with a digital version. The Associated Journals Limited, mired in legal hassles over its assets, announced the launch and claimed that the printed version of its newspaper will also see a rebirth soon.

In December 2016, it was Swamy's turn to face a setback when a Delhi court rejected his plea to direct Congress and Associated Journals to produce certain papers, saying that he "seemed to enlarge" the scope of the proceedings.

In January 2017, Swamy produced an Income Tax assessment order against the Young Indian company, in which majority shares were held by Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi and accused the Gandhis and others of conspiring to misappropriate funds by paying just Rs 50 lakh, through which YI obtained the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore which Associate Journals Ltd owed the Congress.

In April 2018, Senior Congress leaders, including Motilal Vora and Oscar Fernandes told a Delhi court hearing the National Herald case that Subramanian Swamy was trying to defame them and vilify their party.

And finally, in August, Sonia Gandhi told the Delhi HC that the debt of Rs 90 crore of the Young Indian company, when converted into equity, would not result in any income for levying tax.

Which brings us to the setback the Gandhis faced from the Delhi HC yesterday.
The Election Commission on Tuesday wrote to the Chief Electoral Officers of all the States not to print the NOTA option on the ballot papers for the elections to Rajya Sabha and state Legislative Councils, DHNS reports from New Delhi.

The Supreme Court on August 21 last directed that None of the Above (or the NOTA) option should not be made applicable for elections to the Rajya Sabha. The apex court ruled that the NOTA should be provided only in direct elections, like the ones to Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies.

The EC sent out communiques to the CEOs asking them to adhere to the Supreme Court's order.

The poll panel said that the NOTA option would no longer be applicable in Rajya Sabha election and Legislative Council election.
India must maintain healthy scepticism while dealing with China, a parliamentary panel advised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Government, which claimed that Chinese People's Liberation Army posed no direct threat at Doklam in Bhutan presently.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs cautioned the government against lowering the guard along China-India border, particularly on the scene of the June-August, 2017, military face-off between Indian Army and Chinese People's Liberation Army at Doklam in western Bhutan. The recommendation came after Modi Government told the parliamentary panel that the status quo had continued at the site of the face-off after it had been restored following the withdrawal of troops by both sides on August 28, 2017.

The committee took note of the government's position that deployment of Chinese PLA soldiers at present did not pose any direct threat to India. It, however, opined that it was always better for India to have a sense of healthy scepticism while dealing with China.

It also noted that while the government categorically denied reports of Chinese PLA's build-up near the scene of the face-off, it expressed an ambivalent view while confirming such activities for other areas in Doklam Plateau.

The purported build-up by Chinese PLA in and around Doklam Plateau even after the end of the face-off in August 2017 was a subject of a political debate, with the opposition Congress accusing the BJP Government of trying to play down the security threat China continued to pose to India, particularly near the China-India-Bhutan trijunction point of the boundary.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs last year started studying Sino-India relations, including the face-off at Doklam, the boundary dispute, the situation along the Line of Actual Control and the cooperation between the two nations in the international organizations. It was close to submitting its report to Lok Sabha during the last monsoon session of Parliament, but could not, as the Congress and the BJP members differed over its content. Its chairman, Shashi Tharoor, the Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram, finally submitted the report to Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan on September 4 last.

The panel noted that even if the Chinese PLA had withdrawn troops from Doklam Plateau for the time being, New Delhi should not take Beijing's strategic intentions casually. The committee urged Modi Government not to let its vigil down in order to prevent any untoward incident in future.

Defence Secretary Sanjay Mitra deposed before the committee in October 2017 and stated that the Chinese PLA troops were well within the territory of China. He noted that the deployment of the Chinese PLA soldiers was not unusual, given the training and exercise schedules at that point of time in the year.

S Jaishankar, the then Foreign Secretary, also deposed before the committee in October 2017 and conveyed that the Chinese PLA had not made any effort to build roads at and in the vicinity of the face-off site in Doklam Plateau after both sides had withdrawn troops. Jaishankar's successor, Vijay Gokhale, told the committee in February this year that Indian Army had intervened and stopped the Chinese PLA from constructing a road in Doklam Plateau in June 2017, because it would have prejudiced the determination of India-China-Bhutan trijunction boundary point and resulted in serious security implications for India.
Soon after assuming office Prime Minister Imran Khan constituted his Economic Advisory Council (EAC), appointing to it leading Pakistani economists from the academia and industry, from within and outside the country. Pakistans government finances and its foreign exchange reserves are in crisis. Khan has necessarily to give top priority to improve the countrys economy, and he needs all the sound professional advice he can get to do so. Hence, his alacrity in putting together this council was understandable and commendable.

Among others, Princeton University economist Atif Mian was appointed to the council. He is a young, celebrated professional, called Pakistans pride by some. Khans decision to include him was wise. Indeed, in 2014, Imran Khan had publicly said that when he became prime minister, he would appoint Atif Mian as finance minister. He had then taken a dig at Nawaz Sharifs finance minister Ishaq Dar, hinting that the appointment was on account of personal reasons; Dars son is married to Sharifs daughter. If there was a problem regarding Atif Mian, it was not on account of his professional credentials but his faith.

He belongs to the Ahmadi sect, which has always been targeted by Pakistans religious parties. Thus, in 2014, Khan back pedalled when he was informed of Atif Mians Ahmadi faith. He did not say much on him but emphatically asserted that anyone who questioned that Prophet Mohammad was Allahs last prophet could not be a Muslim.

In view of that 2014 background, it was encouraging that Khan did go on to appoint Atif Mian to the EAC. It seemed that Khan would be guided by merit and professional competence in his choice of officials and experts. This hope was strengthened when Pakistans minister of information and broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry called those who opposed Atif Mians appointment extremists. Chaudhry said that it was the religious obligation of all Muslims to defend the minorities; that the minorities had as much claim on Pakistan as the majority community.

However, as the religious parties and some opposition parties, including Sharifs Pakistan Muslim League (N), opposition to the appointment gathered strength, religious affairs minister Noorul Haq Qadri advised Khan to retract Atif Mians appointment. Khan, who wants to follow the ideals of Pakistans founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah, beat a hasty retreat and accepted Qadris suggestion. He dropped Atif Mian from the EAC. Khans decision is significant for an understanding of Pakistani society and polity and of the trajectory that he is likely to take as prime minister.

Pakistans religious parties and groups have a special antipathy towards the Ahmadis. The sect was founded in 1889 in Qadian in Gurdaspur district of Punjab by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. The sect considers itself as belonging to the Islamic faith but also believes that Ghulam Ahmad was a Mahdi and Messiah.

Pakistani religious groups hold the Ahmadis as heretics, for the Ahmadis do not subscribe to the belief that Mohammad was Allahs last Prophet. In 1953, these groups raised the demand that the Ahmadis be declared as non-Muslims. The Pakistani state resisted it, but in 1974, then prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto declared Ahmadis non-Muslims.

President Zia ul Haq went further to legally bar Ahmadis from calling themselves Muslims or their places of worship as mosques on pain of prosecution and imprisonment. Further, the societal persecution of the Ahmadis in the 1980s and later is well documented, as is the killing of some of them with the police standing idly by.

The fact is that contemporary Pakistan is steeped in prejudice against the Ahmadis and other minorities. By invoking Jinnahs ideals, appointing Atif Mian and then doing a complete volte-face, Khan has exposed his true colours. He has disappointed many Pakistani liberals who had pinned hopes that he would take Pakistan to a fairer path.

Not a reformer

Among those who have criticised Khan for removing Atif Mian from the EAC is his first wife, Jemima Goldsmith. She tweeted that the decision was indefensible and very disappointing. She went on to recall that Jinnah had appointed Zafrullah Khan, an Ahmadi, as his foreign minister.

History records that he did a good job for his country in presenting the Pakistani case on Jammu and Kashmir before the United Nations Security Council in 1948 and later. She should have also mentioned that Pakistans lone Nobel laureate physicist Abdus Salaam was an Ahmadi. He was badly treated and his memory has been deliberately allowed to fade in Pakistan. Khan has shown that he is no reformer and does not have the stomach to take bold steps.

Will Khan, who has faltered in the first challenge he faced, be able to take on Pakistans entrenched landed and industrial classes and bring about structural changes in the countrys economy to take it on the path of progress? It seems unlikely.

For the time being, he is indulging in public austerity measures. He has not moved to the prime ministers house, has ordered that luxury vehicles belonging to the government should be auctioned and that all government officials and ministers should travel in economy class. These steps are measures to identify the government with the masses, but they are easy to take. The difficulty will arise when he wants to, if he does at all, to take on the expenditure of the army.

At this time, there is a cosy relationship between Khan and the army, which had paved the way for his victory. Both he and the generals are attempting to show that they are on the same page. The difficulty is that the army is an institution committed to maintaining the status quo. It wants a more efficient Pakistan, not a naya Pakistan. If the Atif Mian case is anything to go by, the Pakistani public will only get Imran Khans tall claims and rhetoric but not a naya Pakistan.

(The writer is former Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs)
A long haul came to an end on September 6 when a five-judge Constitution Bench decriminalised part of the 158-year-old Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) with regard to consensual gay sex, saying that it was irrational, indefensible and manifestly arbitrary, and violative of the fundamental rights to equality, life with dignity, personal liberty, non-discrimination, privacy and expression under Articles 14, 15, 19, and 21 of the Constitution.

The political undertone, bordering on apprehension, was not to be missed when the apex court said it was duty-bound to strike down the law and not to leave it to majoritarian government, which was morally opposed to gay sex on the erroneous assumption of homosexuality being against Bharatiya culture, to address it. It is our duty to strike down a law the moment we find it to be in conflict with fundamental rights. We dont leave it to the majoritarian government, which may or may not act, the court said, mindful of the dictates of vote-bank politics.

There have been legal vacillation earlier. In 2009, the Delhi high court ruled Section 377 which prohibited carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal as unconstitutional and lifted the ban for consenting adults, raising hope. But the Supreme Court bench of Justices Singhvi and SJ Mukhopadhyay in 2013 reversed the Delhi HC verdict and held that Section 377 does not suffer from the vice of unconstitutionality, and surprisingly came on the side of the regressive view that homosexuality was a crime against nature.

However, the court said it had upheld the constitutionality of Section 377 on the ground that the LGBT community comprised only a minuscule fraction of the total population and that the mere fact that the said Section was being misused is not a reflection of the vires of the Section.

While we must hail the apex courts verdict, we must be wary of the excesses of the new-found freedom. The added danger for a country like India is that legal progress is often not in tune with social progress. One may call it the Gurgaon (now Gurugram) Syndrome.

Gurugram is full of swanky malls and posh office complexes, but it is surrounded by people with landed, feudal and patriarchal mindset and entitlements who find the entire edifice of development somewhat alien to their hidebound culture. For a people who have for ages prided themselves on a sexist culture, of which heterosexuality, the male-female distinction and patriarchy are core to the belief system, it will take a long time to become really respectful about a parallel sexual culture of homosexuality, fresh out of the closet.

Constitutional morality cannot be martyred at the altar of social morality and it is only constitutional morality that can be allowed to permeate into the Rule of Law, Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra ruled significantly, adding that societal morality cannot overturn the fundamental rights of even a single person. This societal conflict might easily pose a threat, as in his separate judgement, Justice DY Chandrachud conceded that due to Section 377, the LGBT people were forced to live in hiding.

What is more important is that the State must not capitulate to the popular whims based on majoritarian sexual orientation. The bench did remind the State that it cannot persecute people and decide the boundaries of what is permissible and what is not, holding that Section 377 was based on deep-rooted stereotypes of the society that were violative of the fundamental rights to equality and life with dignity. To fight the stereotypes is the major challenge, as legal redress is not readily forthcoming. Unfortunately, constitutional safeguards without the right means to access them render them ineffectual. Simply put, mere goodwill is not enough without the zealous mechanism to protect it.

Centuries of suffering

That it took nearly a century and a half to undo a colonial legacy prompted Justice Indu Malhotra to rightly say that history owed an apology to the members of the LGBT community and their families for the delay in providing redressal for the ignominy and ostracism that they have suffered through the centuries. While we try to grapple with the pulls of a new India and ancient Bharat, we are to yet unshackle ourselves from Thomas Macaulays legacy, that continues to exist 68 years after the coming of a liberal Constitution.

In an open letter to the government in 2006, author Vikram Seth had claimed that Section 377 had been used by homophobic officials to suppress the work of legitimate HIV-prevention groups, leaving gay and bisexual men in India defenceless against HIV infection since by not recognising them, the fight against AIDS was incomplete. It further made the availability of sexual health services for prisoners difficult.

Justice Chandrachud rejected the contention of some of the respondents that decriminalising the same sex relationships amongst the LGBT community would have a cascading effect on other statutes, including the spread of dreaded diseases like AIDS with the counter-argument that the cause of the sexually transmitted diseases was not sexual intercourse but unprotected sex. Sexual hygiene is thus really an important area of public health that must not be brushed under the carpet.

The Commission on Review of Administrative Laws in a 1998 report had identified 1,300 outdated statutes, calling for their repeal. The report had come down heavily on the bureaucracy, not only for its failure to reduce the legislative burden but also for adding to it. We must understand that 21st century India cannot be governed by 19th century laws. Decriminalising homosexuality is thus an important exercise of spring-cleaning.
Dubais Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has launched a new service enabling clients to pay RTA fines, for all the vehicles registered under the federal traffic system across the UAE, in easy instalments using credit cards.



Offering the service is part of RTAs strategic goals aimed at achieving people happiness and financial sustainability.



RTA has launched this service to enable clients to pay fines due to RTA in easy instalments through credit cards over a period of one year without incurring bank interests, said Ahmed Al-Kaabi, executive director of Finance at RTAs Corporate Administrative Support Services Sector.



The service is currently available for clients holding credit cards of seven banks namely, Mashreq Bank, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Dubai Islamic Bank, Emirates NBD, Noor Bank, Emirates Islamic Bank and Commercial Bank International. More banks will be added in future, and the payment process is required to be completed through RTA DUBAI App, he added.



The service is offered to all vehicles in the UAE and has no limit on amounts due to RTA. It is contrary to the conventional cheque payment system; which is restricted to vehicles registered in the Dubai traffic system, and allows instalments only if the accumulated fines amount to Dh5,000 ($1,360) for individuals and Dh20,000 for companies.



The launch of this service contributes to RTAs third, sixth and seventh strategic goals i.e. People Happiness, Financial Sustainability and RTA Excellence respectively. Needless to say that facilitating customers procedures is an overriding priority of RTA Agenda, concluded Al-Kaabi.  TradeArabia News Service
ABB, a leading technology company, said its new shore-to-ship technology minimises environmental impact and secures reliable electricity to Her Majestys Naval Base (HMNB) Portsmouth in the UK.



The naval base in Portsmouth is spread over 150 hectares, with 10 km of waterfront, and is home to almost two-thirds of the Royal Navys surface fleet, including frigates, vessels, the Fishery Protection Squadron and the Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers, said a statement from the company.



Now BAE systems, the contractor responsible for the dockyard electrical systems, is installing ABBs new shore-to-ship power solution to energise high power consumption vessels in a pioneering project, it said.



Port operators in different parts of the world are adopting shore-to-ship power connections that enable berthed vessels to shut down their diesel engines and plug in to the port-side network to power their onboard loads. This offers a number of benefits, including saving fuel costs, cutting emissions and reducing the impact of noise and vibration on the local environment, it added.



Previously, frequency conversion in the power supply at Portsmouth was carried out by rotary frequency converters (RFCs) - complex mechanical systems that combine motors, generators, drives and ancillary regulation and control equipment. As the RFCs in Portsmouth were nearing the end of their service life, BAE Systems turned to ABB for new solid-state power electronics technology.



ABB responded by developing a new solution based on medium voltage static frequency conversion (SFC) technology. Unlike the RFC, the SFC has no moving parts, apart from its cooling fans, ensuring a high level of reliability with minimum maintenance requirements.



Lower costs per MVA, proven technology and higher SFC efficiency (over 98 per cent) allow a clear reduction in the total cost of ownership for end users, allowing savings of up to 25 per cent.



ABB is supplying the SFC as part of a complete package including a dry-type 11 kilovolt (kV) to 6.6 kV transformer and control equipment to interface with the dockyards electrical management system. The project is scheduled for completion in 2019.



Patrick Fragman, head of ABBs grid integration business, a part of the companys power grids division, said: Providing Portsmouth Navy Base with a state-of-the-art shore-to-ship power solution will help enhance overall efficiency while minimizing environmental impact.



This project is another example of our commitment to sustainable transportation and reinforces our position as a partner of `choice for a stronger, smarter and greener grid, he added.  TradeArabia News Service
SALT LAKE CITY  Playwright J.T. Rogers resume now includes the words Tony Award-winning, but getting to this point hasnt always been an easy road.

In the early 2000s, Rogers  whose play Oslo won the 2017 Tony Award for best play  was a fledgling playwright, totally unknown, as he puts it, working temp jobs in New York City as a copy editor and cater waiter.

Its very few people that ever get to  make a living as a playwright, Rogers said in an interview with the Deseret News. It can become soul crushing, to be frank, working multiple jobs and toiling away.

Luckily for Rogers, a little ray of sunshine helped keep his momentum during this arduous time: being a playwright-in-residence at the Salt Lake Acting Company.

From 2000-2009, SLAC produced four of Rogers works  including staging two world premieres  and from 2004-2005 he was the companys resident playwright.

It was that rare thing very few playwrights get where (SLAC) was my home, Rogers said. I knew how the theater was going to do my work, I could envision the space it would be done in, and it was transformative for me.  The fact that you had a place where you knew you were actually going to have existence as a playwright, its the difference between continuing on and  giving up.

From Sept. 14-29, Rogers will enjoy a homecoming of sorts  not to SLAC specifically but to Salt Lake City  as Oslo makes its regional premiere at Salt Lakes Pioneer Theatre Company.

Ive seen many shows in that grand Pioneer Theatre, so Im tickled to actually have one of my plays done in that space, Rogers said. As a living American playwright, you think the big houses, as it were, are for the dead playwrights, so its surprising and fun to find thats not always the case.

Oslos path from the Tony Awards to PTC started in a New York restaurant.

He was staging one of his plays, Blood and Gifts, at New Yorks Lincoln Center Theater  a playhouse he said is serving a similar role for him that SLAC once did  when the shows director, Bartlett Sher, introduced Rogers to a Norwegian diplomat named Terje Rod-Larsen. The two went out for a drink after Rod-Larsen saw Blood and Gifts, and Rogers learned more about the diplomat's past.

Many have heard of the Oslo Accords, an historic turning point in Arab-Israeli relations, according to PBS, but the backstory of how the accords came to be is lesser-known, and is the basis of Oslo. Rod-Larsen and his wife, Mona Juul, herself a diplomat, were present in 1993 during a secret meeting between Israeli, Palestinian and Norwegian officials to try to reach peace.

Rogers compared the explosive stakes of such a meeting to if the public theoretically discovered the Trump administration and ISIS had been secretly meeting in a castle in Norway in private rooms, talking about their children and eating pancakes and drinking whisky together.

I realized (by talking to Rod-Larsen that) theres this incredible, stupefying, thriller-like story that, in this country, almost nobody knows  myself included, and I consider myself a politics junkie, Rogers said.

Having found the basis for his next play, Rogers began researching the situation and interviewing those involved.

Having combined investigative zeal and theatrical imagination with insider access, Mr. Rogers now invites you into the chambers where the Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization were forged during nine fraught months in 1993, The New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley wrote in his praising review of Oslo.

The play opened at the Lincoln Centers off-Broadway space in July 2016, and after an overwhelmingly positive reception transferred to the centers Broadway space the following spring.

Through no planning of his own, Rogers said his play has become increasingly relevant in todays political landscape.

Its a play about mortal enemies fearfully sitting across from each other in secret and discovering that they see the humanity in the other side and they find themselves changed by seeing the humanity in the other side, he said. I think however that resonates in individual audience members, through no magic or brilliance of my own, but in timing, its taken on a level that I think is very resonant and sparks questions.

Some of these questions will be discussed during a talkback event at PTC on Sept. 22 when Rogers joins KUERs Doug Fabrizio to discuss Oslo.

Having a long history with Salt Lake, I think Ive been on Dougs show three times over the years, Rogers said. I really have never found anyone more interesting to talk to in there than he is, so Im kind of geeked out and excited to talk to him again because he always has such good questions.

Rogers looks forward to visiting Utah to see PTCs production of Oslo and returning to a town where he said he learned important lessons about how to be a better playwright.

I spent a lot of time in Salt Lake. It took me a while but I learned the grid, and I have a great affection for the city and the theater community there, he said. It was a very important place and (SLAC was a) very important theater to me.

Content advisory: According to PTCs website, Oslo contains strong language, including several instances of the F-word, that would make it consistent with an R-rated film.

If you go 

What: Pioneer Theatre Companys production of Oslo

When: Sept. 14-29, 7 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Saturday matinee

Where: Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre, 300 S. 1400 East

How much: $30-$45

Web: pioneertheatre.org

Phone: 801-335-4565

Also 

What: Oslo talkback with J.T. Rogers and Doug Fabrizio

When: Sept. 22 following the matinee performance of Oslo

Where: Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre, 300 S. 1400 East
VERNAL  A 42-year-old man suffered severe cuts from a propeller Tuesday at Red Fleet State Park, about 10 miles north of Vernal.

The man was trying to get out of the water and back into the boat when he was cut by a propeller about 2:15 p.m., said Eugene Swalberg, public information officer for Utah State Parks.

Park workers provided first aid before an ambulance arrived and took the man to a local hospital, Swalberg said. He was later airlifted to another hospital.

Swalberg said the man was in serious to critical condition after the incident. He did not know what type of activity the man was involved in when the accident occurred.

The accident is under investigation.
SALT LAKE CITY  This week in 1982, President Ronald Reagan visited Utah. He toured Welfare Square, run by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Then he spoke in Hooper, where thousands of people turned out despite cold temperatures and lots of rain.

The Weber County Sheriffs Mounted Posse gave him a badge, which, he joked, would help him, stop some of the highway robbery thats going on in Washington. He ended the speech on a serious note, calling for a spiritual renewal nationwide.

Did you catch that? It was cold and raining  this exact time of year.

Look outside. See anything like that now? I thought so.

Life in the West  even in the era of tap water, air conditioning and plentiful supermarkets  is a constant struggle against natural forces that test the limits of endurance. Often, nature here acts as a huckster or a carnival barker, making things appear differently than they really are. We trust nature too much, never suspecting her of affinity fraud.

That may be why, as the website ilovehistory.utah.gov notes, the Cumsee family decided to buy land in Iron County back in 1912, after seeing it for the first time. Rain had been plentiful that year. The grass was green. Wild horses frolicked. Pools of fresh water shimmered. What could go wrong?

Experts say conditions are particularly harsh all over the West because the climate is changing. Im not going to get into the causes. But I am going to get into what we ought to do about it.

You could answer that, Im sure. Not long after they signed the deed, a drought settled in. Their diamond investment turned to paste, and then to dust.

Were turning to dust again. Experts say conditions are particularly harsh all over the West because the climate is changing. Im not going to get into the causes. But I am going to get into what we ought to do about it.

Simply put, we have to get people to start paying the actual cost of the water they use. Its the only way to make sure we still have enough of it as millions more people move in.

The Utah Drought Review and Reporting Committee met this week. That, in and of itself, is not a good sign. According to law, the committee meets only when drought conditions reach a critical level. It hadnt met in almost 10 years.

Six counties in Utah have declared disasters due to a lack of rain, qualifying them for some federal assistance. Farmers and ranchers are suffering huge financial losses. Grazing land is disappearing. Trout are being moved to hatcheries because natural streams are dry. Fires this summer cost millions more than state officials had budgeted. Reservoirs are at 65 percent of capacity statewide.

That could change with a few good storms and a heavy white winter. Or we could find ourselves in an even worse circumstance next spring, with runoff at a trickle and a heavy sun pounding down.

The prudent thing, of course, is to pray for the former and plan for the latter. The meeting didnt focus on it, but sooner or later water officials are going to have to address ways to get people to use less of a dwindling resource. The most common fallback strategy is to impose water restrictions, force people to ration and do as California did a few years ago  encourage people to shame water wasters on social media.

That would be the wrong approach.

Right now, a lot of water districts receive a good deal of money from property taxes. This allows them to keep water rates artificially low. Even though some of them charge people higher rates the more water they use, those rates still dont reflect the true cost.

When something is inexpensive, people tend to use more of it. We travel more when gas is cheap. We buy more clothes than our ancestors could have dreamed of, among other things, a good pair of jeans cost about $20 on Amazon.

Get rid of the tax subsidies, then raise everyones rates to reflect the precious resource theyre buying.

Charge people less for drinking and showering than for watering lawns. Build smartphone apps that alert them when their monthly usage is about to bump them into a higher rate category.

If we want to be able to drink no matter what the clouds decide to do, conservation has to become something people cant afford to ignore.

Reagans speech all those years ago came near the start of a water year so wet State Street became a river in the spring.

A visitor might have seen that and figured Utah to be a lush, green oasis. Those of us who live here shouldnt be so easily fooled.
SALT LAKE CITY  Volunteers and workers from Utah are on their way to the east coast to prepare for relief and rescue efforts as Hurricane Florence approaches.

A team of 16 firefighters left Utah early Tuesday morning for a specialized water rescue mission. They were selected from Utah Task Force 1  coordinated by the Unified Fire Authority and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The team  one of 28 FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Task Forces  will drive to Bowling Green, Virginia, and will likely arrive on Thursday morning, said Unified Fire Authority spokesperson Ryan Love.

"We'll have guys pre-positioned for when the storm hits and people need evacuating," Love said.

Residents in the area have been told to evacuate, but the task force will be there to rescue those who didn't get out.

The specialized task force, known as a "mission ready package," can be more mobile and respond more quickly, due to only having to transport specialized equipment for the sole purpose of water rescue.

"Many people think hurricanes are more of a wind event, but we look at it more as a water event," Love said. "That's what causes the most damages and rescues."

Volunteers and staff from the American Red Cross in Utah are also on their way, and many more are expected to go as the storm develops.

As of Tuesday morning, four volunteers and two staff members were on their way or processed and ready to go, said Rich Woodruff, American Red Cross communications director for Utah and Nevada.

"It's inevitable that we'll send more," Woodruff said. "We just don't know where they're going to be sent yet."

As the storm develops, relief teams will have a better idea of what and where the worst damage will be and where the most help will be needed. Around 50 people from the American Red Cross in Utah went to aid Hurricane Harvey relief efforts in 2017, he said.

Most will fly, and some will drive emergency response vehicles.

Woodruff said Red Cross helpers  mostly volunteers, some staff  will primarily be helping at temporary shelters for thousands of evacuated residents.

After taking care of hurricane victims' immediate needs, Woodruff said volunteers and staff will help with assessing damage and helping with recovery efforts.

Donations to the Red Cross' relief efforts can be made by texting the word FLORENCE to 90999 to make a $10 donation, calling 1-800-RED CROSS, or online at redcross.org.
SALT LAKE CITY  Social media may not be ruining your kid after all, although teens who struggle offline may struggle more online, according to a new survey of teens and technology released Monday.

The survey by Common Sense Media, an independent nonprofit organization focused on teens and technology, presents a nuanced picture about teens' thoughts and responses to social media  one that acknowledges the pros and cons, especially for the most vulnerable kids  but one that's still rosier than most parents envision.

"Overall, the news is really positive," said Sierra Filucci, executive editor of parenting content for Common Sense Media. "Despite the increase in the amount of social media that kids are using, there's not an increase in negative experiences. They're using it more and they're doing fine. I think it can put the brakes on some of our parental worries a little bit."

In fact, 21 percent of teens felt more popular, 20 percent more confident and 18 percent felt better about themselves after using social media, while the percent of teens who reported feeling less popular, less confident or worse about themselves didn't rise above 5 percent for any category. The remainder of teens said social media had no impact on their feelings. The survey asked about frequency of use, not total time spent online.

"I really loved that it wasn't all dire," said Janell Burley Hofmann, an educational consultant and speaker on digital well-being who has talked with thousands of teens across the country. "There was space for positive response from young people, which I think is omitted from  the narrative when adults talk about young people using technology."

The power of social media

Emily Rose Ross has been on social media since fifth grade, when she and her friends got into Pokemon GO, but lately, she's been capitalizing on social media connections to spread the word about her book.

Published when she was 13, "Blue's Prophecy" is a sci-fi/fantasy tale about genetically altered dogs and their conflicting missions, and the book's Facebook page has more than 1,600 followers.

Seeing "likes" come in from Paris was cool, but even better was meeting Sophie, a "super fan" who lived just a few miles away from Emily in East Cobb, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta. Sophie had devoured the book, liked all of Emily's Facebook posts and even arranged to have Emily come speak at her school's club for fledgling writers.

"It was social media that did all that," said Emily, now 15. "As long as you're not posting horrible, horrible things, it's usually a positive thing to be on social media."

In 2012, when Common Sense Media asked teens about how often they use social media, 34 percent said more than once a day. By 2018, it had risen to 70 percent of teens. Sixteen percent of teens say they're on it almost constantly.

And they're most often on Snapchat, as teens reaffirmed that Facebook is no longer their platform of choice, dropping from 68 percent of teens who use it most in 2012 to 15 percent of teens in 2018.

Emily agreed that Facebook "feels too old," and though she maintains her book page, spends more time on Instagram and YouTube where she also posts videos about her art, animation and painting  like the recent portrait of Frankenstein's monster.

She knows social media's the place to get advice on how to improve her shading or color balance, but she's well aware that if she's looking for constructive criticism of a sketch, there's plenty of that too  and not always so constructive.

"It's not perfect at all," Emily says of social media, noting that when she wants to talk with friends in real life and they're distracted by their phones, it "just gets awkward (and) annoying."

According to the survey, only 16 percent of teens say they put their phone away when they're hanging out with friends. More than half say they hardly ever or never silence it or put it away when with friends.

And more than half of teens say social media distracts them from paying attention to the people they're with.

Because of that, there's no longer the expected "non-stop chatter" when girls are together, says Emily's mom, Diane Lore.

"They all huddle together sharing memes and that's their form of communication," she says. "They don't seem to be really as engaged (with) the social skills, like face-to-face (communication) like I'd expect, because they're always on their phones."

In 2012, 49 percent of teens told Common Sense Media they preferred to talk in person, but by 2018, it had dropped to 32 percent.

Vulnerable teens

Adults are almost hard-wired to worry about how kids are spending their time  previous generations of parents worried about comic books, rock 'n' roll and the television, says Candice Odgers, a professor of psychological science at the University of California Irvine.

For several years now, society has blamed smartphones for the many challenges facing youth, from mental health struggles like anxiety and depression, to a lack of social skills, resilience and even getting enough sleep.

Yes, many kids are struggling, Odgers says, and yes, the phone may be playing a role, but it's a "big mistake to look at these associations and (say) the phones are causing the mental health problems and leave it at that."

In scientific terms, just because there's correlation, or a relationship between the behaviors, doesn't mean there's causation, or that one predicts another.

Despite concerns to the contrary, Common Sense Media's survey found no causal relationship between the frequency of social media use and negative social-emotional health; the difference in social-emotional wellness between heavy, moderate and light users was negligible, according to the report.

However, teens who scored lower on a social-emotional well-being scale reported more intense feelings about social media than their peers.

"'Is social media bad or good for kids mental health?' This is one of the most common questions that parents and educators ask the child psychologists and psychiatrists at the Child Mind Institute," wrote Child Mind Institute president Harold S. Koplewicz in the report's introduction. "The honest answers are 'both' and 'it depends on the child.' "

For resilient kids, social media can help them form friendships, connect with others, learn new skills and express themselves creatively.

Yet for vulnerable teens  those with mental or physical health challenges, family turmoil, adverse childhood experiences or family financial strain, among others  social media plays a "heightened role  both positive and negative" in their lives, according to the report.

Among the 1,141 teens surveyed, 17 percent of teens fell into the category of low social-emotional well-being, determined by them agreeing with phrases like, "I often feel rejected by people my age," "I get into trouble a lot," "I often feel sad or depressed," and disagreeing with sentences such as, "I like myself," "I have lots of friends," "There are lots of things I can do well."

These vulnerable teens were more likely to say social media is extremely or very important in their lives, more likely to feel excluded on social media, more likely to have been cyberbullied and more likely to delete social media posts if they get too few "likes."

They're also more likely to say they're less depressed, more confident, less lonely and both more and less anxious than their peers in the high social-emotional well-being group.

While those results may sound contradictory, they're really not, experts say.

"If you think about it, any social interaction can cause feelings of elation, inclusion, satisfaction or rejection and isolation," wrote Jenny Radesky, an assistant professor of developmental behavioral pediatrics at the University of Michigan in an e-mail to the Deseret News. Social media may amplify those dynamics because there are no face-to-face clues to help teens resolve conflict, she said.

The power of social media to both increase and decrease anxiety can be seen in the experiences of a teen on the margins  perhaps someone on the autism spectrum or someone who identifies as LGBTQ who has been bullied online, yet also found a group of friends online who understand them, said Filucci, and helped remind them "that theyre not alone."

Hang in there

Hoffman remembers finishing a parent workshop and being approached by a mother who looked exhausted.

"I thought you were going to tell me something easy," the woman said. "Really, what you said is this is just like parenting  it's going to take effort and action and mistakes and hard work."

That's true, but Hoffman reassured the woman that parenting in the era of smart technology doesn't require expertise in video games or social media platforms  just a willingness to talk openly with their kids and practice parenting skills that have been used for generations.

If a teen's bedtime is 11, but they've snuck their phone into bed and are using it late into the night, that's not a phone issue, Hoffman says, that's a sneaking and lying issue and "we know how to parent that," she said.

Parents can also check in with their teens about social media, just like they check in with anything else in their life, and help their teens learn to recognize their own "social or emotional vulnerabilities," says Radesky.

"If a teen knows that they tend to have big emotional reactions and strong opinions, they might want to learn how to pause and self-regulate before impulsively posting in reaction to their feelings," she wrote.

Or if teens tend to dive into their phones when stressed, parents can help teens recognize that and work to develop other coping mechanisms that address the root causes of stress, she said.

Today's teens are also becoming savvier to the pull that tech companies are trying to exert on them  72 percent of teens believe that "tech companies manipulate users to spend more time on their devices," according to the report.

And because parents aren't immune from companies' "persuasive design" either, experts say it's important for parents to acknowledge their own tech habits, and for families to work together to set boundaries, not default to top-down parental mandates.

Teens also want their parents to acknowledge there are good things about tech  even if it's different than how they grew up, says Hoffman.

"Different isn't bad," she says, "it's just new."
SALT LAKE CITY  Former state Sen. Chris Buttars, a lightning rod for controversy who adamantly opposed gay rights and championed drug offender treatment programs, died Monday at age 76.

Buttars, a Republican from West Jordan, served in the Utah Senate for 10 years before abruptly retiring at the end of the 2011 legislative session. A lifelong diabetic, he cited his poor health and that of his wife, Helen, for stepping down.

Blunt and outspoken, Buttars didn't hesitate to say what was on his mind.

When first running for the Senate, he told voters where he stood on issues but didn't want to hear their views.

"It served me well," he said in his resignation speech. "But I've sure been in a hell of a lot of trouble."

In the 2008 session, he was accused of making a racist statement on the Senate floor when he used the word "black" to negatively describe the "baby" being divided in a bill.

"This baby is black, I'll tell you. This is a dark and ugly thing," he said. He apologized, and won re-election to a third term in November 2008.

Buttars co-sponsored Amendment 3, Utah's constitutional amendment that banned same-sex marriage. A federal court struck down the law in 2013, paving the way for way for gay and lesbian couples to marry.

Buttars also sponsored legislation against gay-straight alliances in public schools, introduced a resolution urging stores to have employees say "Merry Christmas" rather than "Happy Holidays" to customers, and promoted an intelligent design bill.

Senate leadership removed Buttars as chairman of two judicial committees in February 2009 after he made anti-gay comments to a filmmaker making a documentary on California's Proposition 8. He continued to chair the Senate Health and Human Services Committee and co-chair the Public Education Appropriations Subcommittee.

For years he worked with troubled and drug-addicted youth as director of Utah Boys Ranch, which later became West Ridge Academy. He championed the Drug Offenders Reform Act, or DORA, which funded rehabilitation as an alternative to prison for substance abusers. He also supported assisting child crime victims and raising the minimum wage.

Buttars' journey into state politics all started in the '70s with sidewalks in West Jordan  or more accurately, the lack thereof. "It made me so angry," he said. He ran for City Council and won, and worked to put more than 100 sidewalks in the then-sleepy west-side town.

A father of six children, Buttars decided not seek a second term and thought his political career was over. But 17 years later, the GOP asked him to run for state Senate, which he did under the theme of defending traditional values.

"I'm going to tell you how I stand and I don't want to hear how you stand, and you may not agree with me, but you'll know where I stand," Buttars said he told voters in 2000.
SALT LAKE CITY  President Donald Trump went too far in calling news reporters the enemies of the people Sen. Orrin Hatch suggested Tuesday in an essay about tolerance.

The retiring Utah Republican also defends the Colorado cakeshop owner who refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple in the op-ed that appears online for Time.

Though he doesn't mention Trump by name, Hatch, one of the president's staunchest supporters, said conservatives have every right to decry journalistic bias.

"But we go too far when we call reporters 'the enemy of the people' in an effort to delegitimize the news establishment as a whole. One botched story doth not a media conspiracy make. While portraying the press as a bogeyman might score short-term political points, it does lasting damage to our democracy," he said.

Trump has repeatedly attacked the media during his presidency and called the press the "enemy of the people."

Hatch said tolerance has become a tool of convenience  expedient only insofar as it protects the people and principles we already agree with.

"Beyond that, it becomes a nuisance. Thats why, on both the left and the right, we are quick to demand tolerance but loath to extend it to others," he wrote.

Masterpiece Cakeshop owner Jack Phillips made thousand of enemies overnight when he declined on religious grounds to make a cake for a same-sex wedding.

"For the crime of following his conscience, Phillips was labeled a 'bigot,' a 'hatemonger' and even a 'Nazi' by progressives who, in the same breath, claimed to champion inclusivity and understanding," Hatch said.

Phillips' case went all the way to U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that the Colorado Civil Rights Commission failed to respect his religious rights.

"But the damage to his reputation had already been done," Hatch wrote. "A good mans character had been tarnished, his business nearly destroyed  and all of this in the name of  tolerance?"

Hatch said Phillips' story shows the popular understanding of tolerance is deeply flawed. "All too often," he said, "tolerance is used to justify intolerance, as Phillips and his family experienced firsthand."

Pluralism, which seeks to accommodate different conceptions of the good rather than pitting them against each other, is the way out of polarization, Hatch said.

The senator cited Utah's 2015 anti-discrimination law that strengthened religious freedoms and offered housing and workplace protections for the LGBTQ community as an example.

The legislation, Hatch said, satisfied the demands of both liberty and equality, without favoring one over the other.
SALT LAKE CITY  There's renewed talk of holding a special legislative session on medical marijuana, likely after voters decide in November whether or not to pass a ballot initiative legalizing its widespread use by patients.

But Gov. Gary Herbert is not ready to call lawmakers into special session to consider expanding legislation passed earlier this year allowing the terminally ill to use marijuana grown in the state.

"The idea was floated for all of a couple of minutes," the governor's deputy chief of staff, Paul Edwards, said. "He expressed no opinion about it. He was interested in hearing some of the ideas that are being shared."

Edwards said the brief discussion came during a Monday evening meeting between Herbert and members of his staff, who have heard from lawmakers "floating some trial balloons" about possible special session legislation.

Herbert is headed on a trade mission to South Korea followed by a trip to Washington, D.C., so a more in-depth discussion about session prior to the 2019 Legislature will have to wait until his return on Sept. 27, Edwards said.

"This has not been part of the governor's plan," he said. "He's always interested in hearing consensus recommendations from the Legislature. We'll look closely at what makes the best sense for good marijuana policy in the state."

Late last month, Herbert pledged to use his office's "bully pulpit" to ensure lawmakers take action on medical marijuana no matters what happens with Proposition 2, the initiative to legalize its use.

The governor said while he will vote against the ballot measure, he intends to help lawmakers reach a compromise on a "common-sense position" that would permit marijuana to be used to relieve pain and suffering, but not recreationally.

DJ Schanz, director for the Utah Patients Coalition political issues committee behind Proposition 2, said there has been talk for months about a special session on medical marijuana.

"There's nothing new about any of this," Schanz said. "We've known from the very beginning of this process that the Legislature has the ability to change, modify or undermine the initiative."

But Schanz said some "tightening up" by lawmakers may be acceptable. "They're going to do what they're going to do. We feel like we have a highly regulated, conservative approach to medical cannabis in the state," he said.

It's not clear how much support there is among lawmakers for a special session.

House Speaker Greg Hughes, R-Draper, who is not running for re-election this year, said he has "not had any conversations with the governor and there are no plans for a special session."

Amid reports that a special session could come as soon as next month, Hughes said that "over the years, there have been more rumors of special sessions than there have been actual special sessions called by the governor. This year is no exception."

Senate Majority Whip Stuart Adams, R-Layton, was more optimistic.

"I personally would like to see a special session in November," said Adams, who is running for Senate president. Adams said the Senate's GOP majority still need to discuss the issue but their next caucus won't be until the October interim meetings.

"I'm very adamant in favor of trying to do something," he said. "I think the Legislature, there's no secret about it, will do a better job. There's real flaws in the initiative."

But Adams said he was concerned about the impact on the election.

"I don't want to upstage the initiative process," he said. "We don't want to make a political decision."

House Minority Leader Brian King, D-Salt Lake, has already opened a "Medical Marijuana Modifications" bill file for the 2019 Legislature to address "problematic aspects" of Proposition 2 if it passes, or to enact "meaningful" legislation if it fails.

King said holding a special session before the November election is "a stupid idea" that would appear to voters as an attempt by lawmakers to preempt their will at the ballot box.

Lawmakers "ought to have the decency, have the respect for the process, to let this go forward," the Democratic leader said. "I'm frustrated by this kind of talk. I just think it's ridiculous."

Although he didn't feel as strongly about holding a special session after the election, King said he'd rather wait until the 2019 Legislature begins meeting in late January to deal with the issue.

"I'm not sure you can quickly come up with a consensus that I would feel comfortable with just a week or two after the vote," King said. "There are a lot of moving parts here."

Still, he said, if voters don't pass Proposition 2, it may be difficult to get a majority of lawmakers to agree on the best way to move forward on legalizing medical marijuana.

A coalition of religious, civic, business and law enforcement officials, including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, have come out against the ballot initiative.

Elder Craig C. Christensen, a General Authority Seventy and president of the Utah Area of the church, sent an email to church members urging them to vote against Proposition 2.

Members were also asked in the email to join "in a call to state elected officials to promptly work with medical experts, patients and community leaders to find a solution that will work for all Utahns, without the harmful effects that will come to pass if Proposition 2 becomes law."
SALT LAKE CITY  The group Alliance for a Better Utah on Tuesday called on Salt Lake County Councilman Michael Jensen to step down from his post on the Utah Inland Port Authority board.

The call comes after the release of an investigative report from the Utah Attorney General's office detailing prosecutors' investigation into Jensen's time as Unified Fire Authority's chief, as well as other former fire officials.

Prosecutors said the investigation revealed "troubling" behavior  including using taxpayer money for "exorbitant bonuses, reimbursement for personal vacations attached to official travel, purchase of electronic equipment for personal use, and the hiring of close family members"  but resulted in no charges because prosecutors believed criminal convictions would be unlikely.

In the 196-page report, prosecutors' interviews with dozens of witnesses also detailed not only questions of misuse of public funds, but also claims Jensen and his former deputy, Gaylord Scott, created a "culture of fear" by being "vindictive" and "intimidating," one employee said in an interview with prosecutors.

"(Jensen) basically had the track record of betraying public trust and making amoral decisions for his own personal gain," Katie Matheson, spokeswoman for the left-leaning Alliance for a Better Utah, said Tuesday. "Most worrying is the culture of fiscal irresponsibility and nepotism that seemed to thrive while (Jensen) was at UFA."

Matheson said such behavior is "antithetical to the culture Utahns want from any kind of body that's going to be making huge decisions" and therefore is "certainly not the kind of culture that Utahns would want on the inland port authority."

The Utah Inland Port Authority  created by the 2018 Utah Legislature amid a firestorm of controversy between state and city officials  is tasked with creating and overseeing a global trade hub in about 16,000 acres in Salt Lake City's northwest quadrant, the city's last swath of undeveloped land.

The board has the power to control what amount of tax dollars generated from development in the area is used to incentivize projects.

"Almost every step thus far (of the port authority) has felt corrupt or underhanded in some way, and now the presence of Jensen on the board is yet a furtherance of that," Matheson said. "To be frank, how hard is it to have a board that doesn't have a history of corruption or conflicts of interest?"

Yet neither Jensen, nor the man who appointed him to the port authority board, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams, say they'll listen to Alliance for a Better Utah's call.

"I'm going to continue to serve Salt Lake County on the inland port board," Jensen told the Deseret News on Tuesday, declining to elaborate.

Under the state law creating the inland port authority, McAdams was given an appointee on the 11-member board, for which he selected Jensen.

In response to a request for comment Tuesday, McAdams indicated in a prepared statement he's sticking by Jensen, noting the councilman was elected by voters in his district and is currently serving his fourth term on the County Council.

"He understands issues important to Magna, which is a community that will be directly affected by the Inland Port," McAdams said. "Because of his years serving on the County Council, he also understands regional issues. His unique position to understand these issues was the reason I proposed his name to Gov. Herbert to represent the west side of Salt Lake County on the board."

Asked if anything in the attorney general's investigative report impacted the mayor's decision to appoint Jensen to the board, McAdams' spokeswoman, Michelle Schmitt, replied: "The mayor believes that as the elected representative in the area, Councilman Jensen is appropriate to serve on the board."

Matheson said Alliance for a Better Utah "would love to see him ultimately step down from the County Council" as well, "but at this time the most important thing is the inland port authority board" because it's a "huge project" that's moving forward now.

Matheson said that although prosecutors declined to file charges because the threshold for a conviction would be high, "that doesn't mean that what (Jensen and other Unified Fire Authority officials) did wasn't wrong."
COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS  Neighbors in a Cottonwood Heights apartment complex called police early Wednesday believing that a unit was being burglarized.

But rather than a burglary, arriving officers discovered that a man was actually trying to pack up a drug lab and drive off, said Cottonwood Heights Police Lt. Dan Bartlett.

When detectives obtained a search warrant to go through the vehicle, they reported finding a variety of drugs, precursor chemicals and an entire clandestine lab.

"Oh my gosh, it's like a pharmacy in here. There's heroin, there's meth, there's suboxone, there's testosterone. There's a myriad of drugs in this kit. Unbelievable pills. A ton of pills," Bartlett said.

Detectives were still looking Wednesday into how so many pills were obtained.

The odd string of events began just after midnight when tenants at the Waterside Cove apartment complex, near 7200 South and Union Park Drive, called police believing that someone was burglarizing an apartment.

Officers found Daniel Jeffrey Orton, 37, of Salt Lake City, and another woman who is six months pregnant. Orton tried to run as police approached, throwing methamphetamine and heroin out of pockets as he ran, according to Bartlett. He was quickly tracked down and arrested for investigation of having a drug lab and drug distribution.

"Daniel repeatedly lied to officers and hid his vehicle on the other side of the condo complex, stating he had no vehicle and that his friends took it," officers noted in a Salt Lake County Jail report.

When officers found Orton's car, they had a police K-9 sniff it for drugs. The dog indicated there were drugs in the car, Bartlett said. The officers then obtained a search warrant for the vehicle.

"They opened up the car, started going through it  started getting a feeling in their throat, burning in their eyes, burning in their nose, really bad headaches. They thought, 'It's a meth lab,'" the lieutenant said.

A hazardous materials team was called out to decontaminate the officers who had been in the car. Tests showed that rather than meth, Orton had a lab in his car that was producing DMT, a kind of LSD that is produced through an extraction process using chemical solvents, Bartlett said.

"It's like if you were in a closed car with a bunch of paint thinner. They just thought initially it was a meth lab," Bartlett said of the headaches the officers experienced.

Detectives ended up collecting three large bags full of finished DMT product, in addition to the precursors, he said.

Detectives also learned that the man who was living in the apartment was not only in the process of being evicted due to drug-related issues, but he had recently been arrested and was in jail. Orton apparently knew the tenant was in jail and started crashing in the apartment a couple of days ago, he said.

Investigators have dealt with the apartment and the man who lives there in the past, but not Orton, Bartlett said, adding that there were frequently different people who slept in the unit.

Orton has a long history of drug-related crimes, according to court records, including charges that were filed Wednesday in Midvale Justice Court for an incident on Monday.

In 2014, Orton was one of six people charged with operating a clandestine lab. He pleaded guilty to felony drug possession and was sentenced to probation. He was also convicted of felony drug distribution in 2012, court records state.

The pregnant woman was taken to a local hospital to be checked.
Dubai-based Emirates has suspended all flights to Osaka, Japan, after the strongest typhoon to have hit Japan in 25 years made landfall, said a report.



The storm, which brought heavy rain and winds of up to 172kmph, has already claimed six lives and caused injuries to 160 others. Japan officials have ordered more than a million people to evacuate their homes amid warnings of high waves, flooding and mudslides, said a report in Khaleej Times.



Customers are advised that due to Typhoon Jebi, all flights into/out of Osaka Kansai International Airport on September 4 and 5 have been cancelled due to the airport closure and heavy flooding," the report cited an Emirates spokesperson as saying.



"Customers connecting onto affected flights to Osaka will not be accepted at the original point of departure until further notice," the spokesperson said.
MOAB  The state liquor store will be closed until Thursday afternoon, or possibly Friday morning, after a van crashed into the front of the store on Monday, damaging a support beam.

The Utah Division of Facilities Construction and Management, along with a consulting engineer, inspected the building and concluded it is structurally sound and can be repaired, said Terry Wood, director of communications for the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.

A white van crashed into the store, 55 W. 200 South, at about 11:30 a.m. According Wood, the driver forgot to put the vehicle in park. Neither the driver or the store employees were hurt.

While the store is closed to the public, Wood said it is able to fill orders for area restaurants and bars. The nearest stores to Moab are privately contracted stores in Monticello and Green River.
SALT LAKE CITY  Prescription painkillers would include a warning label that opioids may cause dependence, addiction or overdose under a bill introduced in the U.S. Senate on Wednesday.

Sens. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Edward Markey, D-Mass., are sponsoring the legislation that would make those additions to the warnings already required on opioid drug labels.

"These warnings will be a simple but important part of our broader response to the nations opioid crisis, spurring much-needed dialogue between doctors and patients about the potential harms of prescription opioids," Hatch said in a statement.

More than 40 percent of opioid deaths in the U.S. in 2016 are linked to prescription drugs, according to the senators. About half the cases of opioid dependence begin with prescription painkillers.

The bill, titled Lessening Addiction By Enhancing Labeling, would require the Food and Drug Administration to issue regulations providing for a warning label to be affixed directly to the opioid prescription bottle that a pharmacist hands to a patient.

The label would directly inform patients of the potential risks of the drugs and help spur conversations between patients and their providers about appropriate use and disposal of opioids, the senators said.

Utah, Arizona and Hawaii have passed state laws requiring labeling of prescription opioids, and legislation has been introduced in New Jersey and New York. Canada has issued regulations to require opioid labeling nationally.
SALT LAKE CITY  Gov. Gary Herbert, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Sydnee Dickson and the CEO of Envision Utah Robert Grow issued a plea Wednesday to Utah educators currently not teaching to return to the profession to help address the state's teacher shortage.

A collaboration with Envision Utah hopes to re-engage former teachers who may be interested in returning to the classroom. They are asked to complete a questionnaire at returntoteaching.org to gauge their interest in rejoining the teaching ranks and to find out what it would take to get them to return to Utah public schools.

"Whether you're a former teacher who left for any reason, if you once thought about being a teacher or you're a current teacher, our students need and deserve you, each student needs and deserves you. We all need you. To those of you who left the profession, I invite you to return," said Dickson.

According to Dickson, there are about 30,000 Utahns who have teaching credentials who are currently not in the classroom.

"The survey will help us determine the reason behind it (not currently teaching) and if there is a desire to come back to the classroom and if they have desires, how we might help mitigate those issues," Dickson said.

Dickson said Utah's Return to Licensure pathway allows teachers to come back into the teaching system without taking additional courses.

Aaryn Birchell, Utah's 2018 Teacher of the Year, said she took a nontraditional path to the classroom. She teaches Advanced Placement English at Uintah High School, which is her alma mater.

After high school, she attended Utah State University in Logan but didn't complete her teaching degree until years later at USU's branch campus in the Uinta Basin.

"I substituted for 12 years while I primarily stayed at home with my kids and taught piano lessons in the afternoons. I renewed my license every three years for 12 years," she said.

She eventually accepted a part-time teaching position at Uintah High School, which later evolved into a full-time teaching job.

It took supportive administrators "who let me have some flexibility as I balanced life demands and navigated my nontraditional path," she said.

Birchell recounted looking out the window of her classroom one day and wondering to herself if she could continue to teach for 20 years.

But as in parenting, the journey cannot be judged by one bad day.

"We find what we look for. We have to look for those star moments in every day," she said.

Creating teaching conditions where teachers thrive will benefit students, she said.

"If we take care of the teachers, the teachers are going to take care of our kids," Birchell said.

Herbert likewise extended an invitation to teachers to return to the classroom, describing teaching as "a noble profession."

His fourth-grade teacher taught him a love of reading "and it changed my life. I love to read and I have a large library because of a fourth-grade teacher," he said.

While there are shortages of other professionals in Utah's growing economy, "the one that's got us most concerned is the shortage of teachers," he said.

"We need to recruit and retain the best and the brightest of society to be those that impact the rising generations and the outcomes of tomorrow. That's teachers," Herbert said.

Forty-two percent of teachers who enter the profession leave within five years, Herbert said.

"More than half leave in eight years. There may be a variety of reasons for that with the culture of Utah. Nevertheless, we need to address what we can do," he said.

Herbert said voters' support of the Our Schools Now compromise ballot question on the November ballot would help provide much needed resources in Utah's education system.

"This is an opportunity for us to make a big bump at one time. We'll continue to grow the economy and add to the resources out there, but this is a one-time opportunity," he said.

Utah voters will be asked a nonbinding question whether they support a 10-cent-per-gallon hike in state gas tax. The revenue would replace general fund dollars currently used for transportation needs and thereby make a corresponding amount available for spending on public education. The Utah Legislature would have to approve any increases in fuel taxes.

Heidi Matthews, president of Utah Education Association, said Question 1 will go a long way to ensure "we have the best and brightest teachers in our classrooms and recruiting, retaining and reclaiming teachers requires resources and those resources are not currently available. We have this opportunity to make a difference by voting for Question 1."

Grow said Envision Utah's "Your Utah, Your Future" effort identified education as their No. 1 priority, according to 52,000 Utahns who responded to the survey.

"It was their top priority and they have ambitious dreams. They want our students to lead the nation. They want the education of our students to be the drivers of a great economy and for our students to become the beneficiaries of that economy. They believe that when every child has a chance for a great education all of our communities benefit," he said.

That takes parents being their children's first teacher, attending preschool, providing the means to help students from every background to succeed and encouraging more students to pursue postsecondary education, he said.

"Finally and most importantly, it means we need to support our teachers, those who are in the classrooms, those within the walls of those schools, who have the biggest impact on all of our children," Grow said.

The returntoteaching.org questionnaire will also connect inactive educators to teaching positions that match their skills or interests.

Matthews said is it highly important that the questionnaire determine why people left teaching and there are targeted efforts to help address those issues.

"If you don't change the conditions that forced them to people leave in the first place, what's going to entice them to come back?" Matthews said.
Being A Villian In Dhoom 4 Is Not Robin Hoods Style

Salman khan who was supposed to play a villain in Dhoom 4 has just rolled back out of this project. Soon after the news came about the fourth sequel, rumors were abuzz that the actor was not ready to share screen with Abhishek Bachchan, due to his past differences with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. However, recent reports claim that the actor doesnt want to portray his negative image on screen.





As per a DNA report, Salman Khan has made revelations about the say he is not comfortable playing a villain on screen. His films always contain a message which is an inspiration to his huge fan followers. Therefore, the actor doesnt want to convey any wrong message to the masses by playing any negative role.





The famous saying, As busy as a bee is just going right with actor, Salman Khan this year. The actor is packed with his new projects along with his TV host commitments in 2018. Salmans next big project is Abbas zafars Bharat





With every sequel Dhoom movie has raised the bar of action and somehow its fan following as well. Reports are also doing the rounds that the makers are planning to bring Shah Rukh Khan and Ranbir Kapoor in the role. However, Yash Raj films has ignored such statements and clarified that Dhoom 4 work has not yet started.





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Source: Catchnews.com
Dehradun International Film Festival Announces its Fourth Edition

Dehradun International Film Festival has announced its fourth edition scheduled to be held from 21st to 23rd September 2018 in Dehradun at Silver City, Rajpur Road. The festival will showcase a wide array of regional films, short films, documentaries and national & international award-winning films like The Saviour, Noorie: The Light, Pankhuri, Kismat, Raja Bajrangi, to name a few.





The fourth edition will not only witness the renowned people from the International and National film industry like Ramesh Sippy, Sharman Joshi, Vivek Vaswani, Hemant Pandey, etc but will also showcase distinguished writers, literates, literary and contemporary guests from the domain of art, culture and other social segments.





The mission behind Dehradun International Film Festival is to offer a platform to the local talent to showcase their works and to screen the movies which are rich in content and deliver a strong message. The festival is aimed at bringing the aspiring talent of Uttarakhand and the renowned names of the film industry on one common platform, thus facilitating a dialogue between them and eventually opening a door of opportunities for the film industry and for the aspiring talent.





The last three years drew eminent celebrities from Bollywood like Subhash Ghai, Prem Chopra, Raza Murad, Dr. Mohan Agashe, Sagar Sarhadi, Preeti Jhangaini, Payal Rohatgi, Divya Dutta, Pravin Dabas, Satyajeet Dubey to the city of Dehradun and had witnessed the immense hidden talent of Uttarakhand in the domain of films and theatre. Some of the award-winning and critically acclaimed movies showcased in the previous editions were The Japanese Wife, Bandit Queen, Brick Lane by Satish Kaushik, Everlasting Regret (Critically acclaimed Taiwanese Film), The Silent Heroes (based on specially-abled children in adventure sports), Pashi, Barsaat Ki Ek Raat, The Beginning. Retro cinema like Ram Teri Ganga Maili, Do Anjaane, Noorie, Bazaar, Prem Rog etc was also been showcased.





As per Rajesh Sharma, Festival Director, "DIFF aims at creating a culture of appreciating cinema and makes an honest attempt to provide a platform that connects rich and great content with the local audiences. It also offers a platform to the aspiring talent to give them the best of the cine vision of the globe. With Bollywood celebrities like Subhash Ghai, Prem Chopra, Divya Dutta, Ranvir Shorey et al supporting us tremendously; our vision of making Uttarakhand a natural hub for celebrating cinema, art, and culture through DIFF shall come true".





DIFF shall conclude with an Award Function to honor the winners of the short film (fiction and non-fiction), feature film (fiction and non-fiction) and to facilitate the Lifetime Achievement Award. The award ceremony will also appreciate the contribution of various performers and other associates.





For latest movie reviews, ratings and trailers, download the Desimartini App.





Source: Starkhabar, Mid- day
Vodacom Group has deployed commercial 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) in Lesotho, with the operator claiming the launch as a first for the continent.

The 5G network in Lesotho is provided via 3.5GHz spectrum which was allocated by the countrys regulator to offer fibre-like speeds. Vodacoms 5G offering has already attracted two enterprise customers.

With a population of around 2.3 million, Lesotho is one of Vodacoms smaller markets, meaning that the 5G FWA launch will likely act as a trial run for larger scale deployments across the groups African markets. The groups CEO Shameel Joosub said that the technology is ready to launch in South Africa as soon as spectrum is allocated.

Joosub stated: What weve accomplished in Lesotho is an example of what can be achieved in Africa, should the requisite spectrum also be made available. Vodacom will be able to make 5G services available to its customers in South Africa once requisite spectrum is assigned.

Global technological advancements are evolving at a rapid pace and South Africa cant afford to be left behind, particularly when we look at some of the potential use cases for 5G to support critical sectors of our society such as healthcare and education, he added.

While Vodacom has demoed its 5G technology in South Africa using a temporary licence, the 3.5GHz spectrum required to offer the service commercially has not yet been released by South African regulator ICASA (Independent Communications Authority of South Africa), and no auction date is forthcoming.
Thai operator dtac could launch a legal challenge against the countrys regulator if it is prevented from using the 850MHz spectrum band following the expiration of its concession with CAT Telecom on 15th September.

dtac has asked the NBTC (National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission) for indefinite permission to continue delivering services over the 2G spectrum while it transfers its customers onto different networks, in line with the terms of its concession with CAT.

However, the Bangkok Post reports that this is unlikely to be granted, as the regulator could be accused of giving preferential treatment to dtac by its main rivals AIS and True Move. This could result in either of them filing lawsuits of their own against NBTC.

In July this year, the NBTC offered dtac an extension to its concession on the condition that it lodged a bid in the upcoming 900MHz spectrum auction; however, dtac declined the proposal, which resulted in the NBTC scrapping the sale as no other operators were keen to bid.

All of dtacs 21 million subscribers could have their service interrupted if the operator is prevented from using its 850MHz network, as it uses the spectrum to enable roaming onto rival networks. The operator  Thailands third largest  delivers services to around 380,000 subscribers on its 850MHz network.

The only two blocks of spectrum sold in Thailands recent sale of 4G spectrum were acquired by dtac and market leader AIS. Both operators paid THB12.5 billion ($375 million) for a 10MHz block of 1.8MHz spectrum.
Ahead of their now completed merger, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular reportedly reduced their combined workforce by nearly a third.

Data cited in Indian newspaper Business Standard notes that the operators had around 25,000 employees between them when their proposed merger was announced in March 2017. The deal finally closed last week, and in the intervening 17 months this number had dropped to 17,000.

Indias Economic Times reported in April this year that the merger would likely lead to around 5000 members of staff being laid off by the two operators. However, they had estimated the original employee base at 21,000  significantly lower than the 25,000 claimed by Business Standard.

However, not all of these employees have necessarily been made redundant  Ideas former parent company Aditya Birla Group is active in many industries across India. Staff cut from Idea Cellular have reportedly been transferred to subsidiary units of the group active in different sectors.

Vodafone India and Idea Cellular have now merged to create Vodafone Idea, the new Indian market leader. The final hurdle in the process was a demand from Indias Department of Telecommunications (DoT) for a payment of INR73 billion ($1 billion) related to unpaid spectrum charges from Vodafones 2015 merger of its local units.

The Economic Times has separately reported that Vodafone Idea will launch a legal challenge against the DoT in an attempt to win back this fee  indeed, they only agreed to pay the sum on the basis that they would have the right to contest it in court.
MTN Group has hit another setback in Nigeria after the countrys government demanded that its local unit hand over $2 billion in unpaid back taxes.

The office of Nigerias attorney general reached this sum after concluding that MTN had failed to pay adequate supplier fees and import taxes for telecoms equipment for its Nigerian operations across the past decade.

In response to a request by the attorney general, MTN completed a self assessment of its finances and concluded that it had already paid the $700 million that it owed. The findings were rejected by the attorney generals office.

Bloomberg quoted an anonymous MTN source as saying that the discrepancy in the final bills arose as the government had failed to account for various VAT exemptions and variable import rates, and had also assumed a flat rate on withholding tax. Additionally, it had not taken local supply into account.

The bill comes hot on the heels of MTN being ordered to refund $8.1 billion that the Central Bank of Nigeria claims was illegally repatriated from the market. MTN has dismissed both charges, saying: We remain resolute that MTN Nigeria has not committed any offenses and will vigorously defend its position.

Ron Klipin, a Johannesburg-based analyst at Cratos Wealth, said: This could be an economic and political play by Nigeria. The Nigerian economy is looking for additional sources of revenue and at the same time the government wants to be seen as tightening up the regulatory framework in the country.

Indeed, despite MTN protesting its innocence, its shares fell by 17% to a low of almost 12 years. This suggests that its investors arent convinced that the operator can avoid paying some or all of both the fine and the tax bill in Nigeria (which is the groups largest market).

Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari is currently seeking re-election in February, and has made stamping out corporate corruption a core pillar of his campaign. In particular, he has turned his attention towards tax avoidance and other unscrupulous behaviour by overseas companies  hence the particular scrutiny on MTNs actions.
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In celebration of 85 successful years, Turkish Airlines has unveiled a fresh look with a new uniform specially designed for its cabin crew.



The new uniforms will begin to be used following the opening of the Istanbul New Airport, the new home of the flag carrier.



Inspired by many classic elements of Turkish design and culture, the new uniforms incorporate traditional patterns found in artisanal glassware, ceramics and calligraphy with contemporary textures and details. The collection combines shapes and colours found in Istanbul Bosphorus with a new flow detail, created to symbolise the effortless and dynamic energy flowing through Turkeys most dynamic city as an intersection between East and West.



The airline paired up with Milan-based Haute Couturier Ettore Bilotta to create the dynamic new uniform design heralding a new era and brand identity for the national flag carrier.



Unique and recognisable with a deep red and anthracite grey palette, the collection includes hats, gloves, dresses, bags and accessories. Another key aspect of the project is that the uniforms of cabin, cockpit, flying chefs, and ground services will be streamlined under a single design approach to offer the passengers to live a holistic brand experience. Bilottas designs bring together the form and function, an essential consideration for an airline that flies to most international destinations in the world. New designs were not only conceptualised in consultation with fashion leaders and Turkish Airlines own team of cabin crew, but tested rigorously on long-haul trial flights in different climates.



M. Ilker Ayc, Turkish Airlines chairman of the Board and the Executive Committee, commented: Turkish Airlines is always thrilled to collaborate with such creative and distinctive talents which blend elegant and practical design. While maintaining traditional elements of Turkish design and culture, our new uniforms are professional and stay true to a culture of hospitality, just like our airline.



Ettore Billotta, the fashion designer behind the uniforms, said: When I started to design for Turkish Airlines, the first thing that inspired me was Istanbul. This city has been a melting pot for art and civilisation for centuries and has a rare richness as a common heritage of many cultures. I wanted to bring elements from traditional calligraphy and mosaics together with the new interpretations of Turkish motifs, which emphasize modern lines, into foulards and ties to reflect a contrast and duality.



To launch the new look, the national carrier teamed up with globally renowned British photographer and artist, Miles Aldridge to shoot the new Turkish Airlines cabin uniform collection in Istanbuls unique spots. - TradeArabia News Service
Indian regulator TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) has fined several of the countrys largest operators for falling short of their service quality commitments, with Reliance Jio receiving the steepest penalty.

The disruptive player was fined INR3.4 million ($46,933) for failing to meet stipulated service quality benchmarks for the first three months of 2018, according to The Times of India. TRAI introduced these metrics in October 2017.

Former market leader Bharti Airtel received a notably lower INR1.1 million penalty, while former second and third placed operators Vodafone India and Idea Cellular  who have now merged to lead the market as Vodafone Idea  were respectively fined INR400,000 and INR1.25 million.

TRAI slammed Jio for inadequate customer support, noting that customer calls were being answered too slowly and claiming that not enough staff were made available to resolve issues. The operators network also suffered from congestion at interconnection points.

Airtel also came under fire for its poor management of customer enquiries, and was also criticised for dropping calls and taking too long to shut down accounts following customer requests. Vodafone was also guilty of this latter charge, but its fine also took into account an overall poor response to customer calls and various prepaid billing issues. Ideas rap sheet was broadly similar to Airtels.

While no statements have been issued by the operators in question, Indian media has reported that they have begun paying the fines.
Sky and Space Global, which works to provide affordable communications to the world's equatorial regions, has expanded its reach into Indonesia and Suriname.

The UK-based company has signed a binding memorandum of understanding agreement with Cendrawasih Teknologi Nusantara (CTN) to provide the Indonesian company with nanosatellite connectivity services. The agreement will enable CTN to offer the services to its individual and small business customers throughout the island nation.

A successful collaboration with CTN will provide SAS with initial access to the fast-growing Indonesian market, says Meir Moalem, Managing Director and CEO of SAS. CTN is an Indonesian based provider of data connectivity services via satellite for the cellular, banking, plantation, farming, oil and gas and government sectors of the countrys economy. CTN also provides data connectivity to institutions and retail customers throughout Indonesia.

With a population of over 260 million spread out over thousands of islands, Indonesia is an ideal market for SAS nanosatellite technology. Moalem notes that the agreement with CTN will enable SAS to leverage and expand its existing connectivity services across the entire Asia Pacific region.

In addition to the MoU in Indonesia, SAS has also signed a binding MoU agreement with Surinamese ISP Foundation Busie Suriname, which was granted an Internet Service Provider (ISP) license in 2016 by the Telecoms Authority Suriname (TAS) and provides internet service solutions to individuals and businesses in rural Suriname, South America. Due to the geographic location and number of inhabitants outside of large cities, internet and online connectivity services are unreliable and expensive.

The binding MoU formalises the commercial and technical cooperation between SAS and FBS and marks the commencement of discussions for the provision of SAS affordable and reliable connectivity services to the country. The agreement is the first of its kind to be signed with a provider in the region, and validates the SAS nano-satellite narrowband connectivity platform.

Referring to the agreement in Suriname, Moalem said: "After a successful demonstration in Guyana last month I am pleased to announce we have secured an agreement with a Surinamese local internet provider.

SAS is the first company to successfully use narrowband connectivity provided by nanosatellites to deliver a voice call, text messaging and financial transactions capabilities. The cost is a fraction of traditional communications providers.

In 2017, SAS successfully launched its 3 Diamonds nanosatellites as a proof of concept. The launch of the first batch of nanosatellites remains on track for 2019. The timetable calls for launching a constellation of 200 nanosatellites beginning next year when partial service is due to begin. Full scale deployment is scheduled for 2020.
The second quarter of 2018 saw renewed growth in the Philippines smartphone market, with Chinese brands increasing their share of this market.

Data from Counterpoint Research saw smartphone shipments increase by 9% year-on-year  accounting for 76% of device shipments in Q2 - despite the overall market for handsets contracting by 6%. The drop was caused by a sudden decline in feature phone shipments.

The research firms director, Tarun Pathak, noted that Chinese brands now held around 45% of the market, noting: Chinese brands such as Oppo, Vivo and Huawei, with their lean portfolio and focused marketing, have gained significant consumer mind share.

However, Samsung and Cherry Mobile still have a very strong hold on the local market, especially in rural areas, he added. Analyst Hanish Bhatia noted that around 75% of smartphones sold in the quarter had cost less than $200, which he described as the sweet spot for the market and the key focus of leading brands.

Local players such as Cherry Mobile and MyPhone are now solely targeting the sub-$99 price segment, primarily due to the aggressive approach of Chinese OEMs in the mid-tier price segments, said Bhatia.
Columbia River closes to all salmon fishing after Wednesday

September 11, 2018

CLACKAMAS, Ore.  With fall Chinook salmon returns to the Columbia River tracking well below preseason predictions, fishery managers announced today the Columbia River from the mouth at Buoy 10 to the Hwy 395 Bridge near Pasco, Washington will close for angling and retention of all salmon and steelhead at 12:01 am Thursday, Sept. 13.

As of Sept. 10, a total of 105,795 adult fall Chinook had passed Bonneville Dam, 75 percent of expectations based on preseason forecasts. The upriver bright Chinook return, which includes ESA-listed Snake River fish, are currently projected to return at 69 percent of expectations which means if left open fisheries could exceed the allowable harvest rate. In response, Oregon and Washington managers decided today to close all salmon fisheries until further notice.

According to Tucker Jones, ODFW Columbia River Program manager, if the return continues on this track, this could be the lowest fall Chinook return to the mouth of the Columbia since 2007. 2018 is a pretty bad year for Columbia River salmon returns, said Jones, Except for upper Columbia sockeye most runs will come in at 30 percent or less of pre-season forecast.

Steelhead fishing closed on the Columbia River Aug. 27, also due to poor returns, and will also remain closed until further notice.

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By Nikhat Fatima, TwoCircles.net

Hyderabad: Firoz Bakht Ahmed, newly appointed Chancellor of MANUU ((Maulana Azad National Urdu University) has stated to the media and also on his Facebook page that Vice Chancellor, Dr. Aslam Parvaiz has restricted his entry in the MANUU campus. The reason, Bakht says is that the VC does not like the reforms initiated by him.

Firoz Bakht claims that the university is in a very sorry state and badly needs reformations in not one but many aspects. And accordingly, Bakht in the capacity of the Chancellor had tried to initiate setting up of Maulana Azad Center for Composite Culture and Progressive Studies, Model Madrasa, Center for Empowerment of Muslim Women, Course for the Development of Legal Vocabulary and Legal Consciousness in Urdu and constructive seminars on a variety of topics.

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But, says the Chancellor, Parvaiz did not like these reforms and tried to create hurdles in his path.

Taking serious note of this rude behavior on the part of the VC, Firoz Bakht Ahmed wrote a letter to Parvaiz reprimanding him and reminding him that as chancellor he has unlimited powers whereas, he, the vice chancellor has limitations and hence has no authority to stop him from entering the Urdu university or making any reform that is for the betterment of the students.

The chancellor has also marked copies of this letter to the Honble President of India, the prime minister, HRD minster, the UGC and the registrar of MANUU.

In his letter he has also mentioned the various incidents in which the vice chancellor has allegedly been rude and even sent threatening SMS to him on his phone. He has gone on to state that the VC might well be having a hidden agenda in stopping the visit of the chancellor. Firoz Bakht also alleged that the VC has changed the prestigious Urdu university into his personal fiefdom.

Atyab Siddiqui, an eminent legal expert in the field of university, former chief legal adviser of Jamia Millia Islamia and author, Law of Education expressed his dismay and surprise at the myopic interpretation of the duties of the Chancellor and the Vice Chancellor. According to him, the Chancellor is the statutory head and the guardian of a university. He is all powerful and the VC is subservient to him.

When TwoCircles.net contacted Dr. Parvaiz, he responded simply, I am sorry I do not believe in taking internal issues to the media while all Central Universities have proper Redressal mechanism even for Chancellor. Hence I have no comments to offer for public consumptions.
Syrian War study yields new predictive model for attrition dynamics in multilateral war

Unless there is a player so strong it can guarantee a win regardless of what others do, the likely outcome of multilateral war is a gradual stalemate that leads to mutual annihilation of all players.

Three researchers have conducted a study of war, specifically the current conflict in Syria that's been raging since 2011, to arrive at the creation of a new predictive model for multilateral war, which is called the Lanchester multiduel.

The research, published in the August edition of the INFORMS journal Operations Research, is titled The Attrition Dynamics of Multilateral War, and is authored by Moshe Kress and Kyle Lin of the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, and Niall MacKay of the University of York in the United Kingdom.

The researchers found that by studying the conflict in Syria using existing attrition models, certain factors were lacking that required the creation of a new model.

Legacy combat models focus on scenarios where only two players battle to defeat the other. In those models it is assumed that 100 per cent of the effort is focused on defeating one other opponent. In this new predictive model, scenarios are considered where three or more players are engaged.

In the new Lanchester multiduel model, each player's objective is to maximise its surviving number after defeating all others  if it can achieve a victory  or minimise the eventual victor's surviving number. In creating this new attrition model, the researchers have shown that unless there exists a player so strong that it can guarantee to win regardless of what the others do, the outcome is a gradual stalemate that culminates in mutual annihilation of all players.

"This new predictive model takes into consideration that there can be three or more players, a truel, which stands in contrast to a range of results for sequential-engagement scenarios," said Niall MacKay.

The researchers used the war in Syria since 2011 as the "motivating example" of their model because it offered a different paradigm than typical two-side, force-on-force engagements. Several players  the Assad regime and its Iranian and Hezboulla affiliates, Free Syrian Army, Kurdish militia, ISIS, and Jabhat al-Nusra  all have been fighting for dominance over territory and population.

"Based on our study of this conflict and our new multiduel attrition model, we cautiously speculate that absent an overall agreement among the various players, the war in Syria will prolong toward mutual annihilation," said Moshe Kress. "The one thing that can change this prolonged stalemate is if a significant and largely invulnerable external force, such as Russia, intervenes to make one player dominant."

"We say one player is dominant if it can defeat the alliance of all other players," added Kyle Lin. "In other words, a dominant player can guarantee a win regardless of what the other players do. A player is pseudodominant if it can guarantee a tie for itself, where no others can win, regardless of what they do."
Russia kicks off largest-ever war games with China and Mongolia

Russia on Tuesday kicked off its largest-ever military exercise, mobilising hundreds of thousands of troops and thousands of armoured vehicles and fighter jets, in the Siberian and the Far Eastern regions of Russia.

The military exercise, dubbed `Vostok-2018 (East-2018), participating China and Mongolia in a diplomatic pivot to the east, has, however, been dubbed as a rehearsal for large-scale conflict by NATO.

China and Mongolia are sending several thousands of their troops to participate in some of the week-long military exercises.

Moscow has invited Chinese president Xi Jinping as one of its prominent guests, news agency AFP reported.

The Russian defence ministry released video footage showing the movement of 3,00,000 soldiers, 3,600 military vehicles, 80 ships and 1,000 aircraft besides helicopters and drones.

Close to 3,500 Chinese troops would be participating in the military games, which prompted President Putin to comment, the "friendship is getting stronger all the time."

Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu said all military exercise are being conducted in conditions as close to a combat situation as possible.

An AFP report said the Russian Army has mobilised some of its most modern platforms such as the Islander missiles that can carry nuclear warheads, T-90 tanks and Sukhoi-34 and 35 fighter jets. While Wednesday will witness the anti-aircraft technology, Thursday is slated to be the most important day during the exercise.

"The main objectives of the maneuvers are: to check readiness of command and control bodies when planning and regrouping troops, cooperation of ground forces and the Navy, improve skills of commanders and staff in command and control when preparing and conducting combat actions," Russia's defense ministry said.

NATO is watching the war games clearly as the Russians have been investing in some fairly sophisticated and troublesome systems,. They have also been looking at the growing access to the Arctic and developing submarines.

Also, since Russia has an experienced military that understands expeditionary operations the joint operations with China and Mongolia assumes significance.

However, the war games come at a time of economic recovery rather than robust growth for Russia. Despite a recovery in the oil price, which has been vital for the major oil-exporter, the country is still operating under economic sanctions over its annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Afghan mega trade show opens in Mumbai

India is hosting a four-day mega trade expo of Afghan products in Mumbai from today as part of its commitment to help the war-ravaged nation stand on its own feet.

The second annual Passage to Prosperity: India-Afghanistan International Trade and Investment Show is jointly organised by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Government of India and the Government of Afghanistan.

The expo is taking place two days after foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale visited Kabul and reiterated Indias firm support to Afghanistan in further enhancing development cooperation with the war-torn country.

The first such trade show was organised in New Delhi last year. Indian buyers and Afghan vendors signed over $27 million in contracts for raw and processed agricultural products, and a number of Indian buyers and Afghan vendors signed memorandums of understanding valued at nearly $214 million at that expo.

The Mumbai trade show will feature Afghanistans finest textiles, carpets, gems, and jewellery. More than 600 representatives from Afghanistan, India and international businesses are expected to attend the event.

Afghan producers and exporters of fresh dry fruits, nuts, spices and juices will be showcasing their high value products to develop partnerships with Indian importers, whole-sellers and supermarket chains.

In addition to product sales, the event provides an opportunity for businesses to develop partnerships, identify investment opportunities, and engage in business-to-business matchmaking in a range of sectors.

While Kabul and New Delhi shared trade ties for generations, Mumbai was less familiar to Afghan businesses and vice versa. The objective of bringing the expo to Mumbai this year was to link Kabul to Mumbai and the rest of the world.

By 2020, bilateral trade between India and Afghanistan is expected to reach more than $2 billion. The expo would help develop economic ties between Afghanistan and international markets, and further advance trade integration.

By creating meaningful partnerships, economic ties will be strengthened and employment opportunities will increase. The deals and connections that result from this trade show will have long-term impacts on both Afghanistan and India, the USAID said.

In preparation for the event, USAID, in cooperation with several of its partners, will identify Afghan traders, develop business profiles, and facilitate pre-matching with international businesses and buyers.
European Commission chief Juncker wants EU to fill vacuum left by US

The European Union should show off its potential strength as a world economic power as the United States under President Donald Trump pulls back from international engagement, President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker said on Wednesday.

Delivering a speech during a debate on `The State of the European Union at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, today.

Junker had, in his annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, said that when united, the EU was a force to be reckoned with.

Whenever Europe speaks as one, we can impose our position on others, Juncker said.

Hurt by Britains withdrawal and Swedens demand for an exit from the European Union, amidst rising nationalism elsewhere, and feuding over immigration and democratic values, Juncker insisted the bloc was more united than it might seem and could use that to shape the world to its tastes.

With many countries questioning Washingtons role as the global economic leader, Juncker also said the euro should be better promoted as a world currency. He also cited the anomaly of EU energy imports getting priced mostly in dollars when almost none of them come from the United States.

Juncker, who begins a final year in office ahead of the European Parliament election due in May next year, has the credit of successfully talking Trump out of an immediate tariff war in July and working with China to keep world trade flowing free.

The Commission hopes to complete an EU trade pact with Japan by May, one of several deals that is consolidating the EU as the hub of global agreements on standards.

He also announced the launch of a new trade relationship with Africa.

Africa does not need charity, but a true and balanced partnership, he said, proposing a new alliance that would create 10 million jobs in Africa over five years and help African students and researches go on exchange programmes in Europe.
Govt's high credit targets to blame for most NPAs: Rajan

Governments in their enthusiasm to push up credit flows to growth sectors set up ambitious credit targets, undermining banks prudential norms and vitiating the credit culture, giving rise to huge non-performing loans, former governor of the Reserve Bank of India suggested in a report to the Parliaments Estimates Committee on NPAs.

In a 17-page note on NPAs of public sector banks, Rajan said at a time of global slowdown, project cost overruns and policy indecision, governments should have refrained from setting ambitious credit targets or waiving loans.

Rajan said a large number of bad loans or NPAs originated in 2006-2008 while the economic growth was strong as the banks made mistakes.

Rajan has tried to explain the reasons that led to a large build up of non-performing assets in Indias banking system, the regulators actions and what needs to be done to prevent a recurrence. Rajan has also flagged concerns on current vulnerabilities.

Unscrupulous promoters who inflated the cost of capital equipment through over-invoicing were rarely checked. Public sector bankers continued financing promoters even while private sector banks were getting out, suggesting their monitoring of promoter and project health was inadequate. Too many bankers put yet more money for additional balancing equipment, even though the initial project was heavily underwater, and the promoters intent suspect. Finally, too many loans were made to well-connected promoters who have a history of defaulting on their loans.

Unfortunately, until the Bankruptcy Code was enacted, bankers had little ability to threaten promoters, even incompetent or unscrupulous ones, with loss of their project. Writing down the debt was then simply a gift to promoters, and no banker wanted to take the risk of doing so and inviting the attention of the investigative agencies. Stalled projects continued as zombie projects, neither dead nor alive.

He said the RBI had set up a fraud-monitoring cell during his governorship to ensure early reporting of such cases. I sent a list of four high-profile cases to the PMO for coordinated action to bring at least one or two offenders to book. I am not aware of the progress. It should be addressed with urgency, he said.

Frauds are different from normal NPAs in that the loss is because of a patently illegal action, by either the borrower or the banker. Unfortunately, the system has been singularly ineffective in bringing even a single high-profile fraudster to book. As a result, fraud is not discouraged, he said.

Fraudsters are even testing the Bankruptcy Code with continuous and sometimes frivolous appeals. Also, some promoters try to regain control of these bankrupt assets cheaper through the IBC process by using proxy bidders, Rajan pointed out.

On reasons for rising NPAs, he said, global slowdown, project cost overruns and government decision-making were among the factors that contributed to the process. A larger number of bad loans originated in 2006-2008 while economic growth was strong, and previous infrastructure projects had been completed on time and within budget. It is at such times that banks make mistakes. They extrapolate past growth and performance to future.

The former RBI governor also struck a note of caution in lending to medium, small and micro enterprises (MSME).

The SIDBI run credit guarantee scheme for medium and small enterprises is a growing contingent liability and needs to be examined with urgency, Rajan said in his note.

Both MUDRA loans as well as the Kisan Credit Card, while popular, have to be examined more closely for potential credit risk. The Credit Guarantee Scheme for MSME (CGTMSE) run by SIDBI is a growing contingent liability and needs to be examined with urgency, said Rajan.

Launched in 2000 the CGTMSE, now known as UDAAN, has recorded over 25 lakh cumulative guarantee approvals in 2016-17 with an aggregate loan amount of over Rs1,25,000 crore, according to information on its website.

Agriculture, he said, needs serious attention, but not through loan waivers. He suggested a political consensus through an all-party meeting to this effect, given the impending elections.

On mounting NPAs, Rajan said, as NPAs age they need more provisioning and that a fair amount of the increase in NPAs may be due to ageing rather than as a result of a fresh lot of NPAs.

He blamed the delay in project revivals to risk averseness of bankers and governments that drag their feet from taking a decision.

At the same time, he noted that the bankruptcy process is also being tested by some large promoters, with continuous and sometimes frivolous appeals.

Banks and promoters may strike deals outside of bankruptcy, but if promoters prove uncooperative, bankers should have the ability to proceed without them.

And, since the judicial system is not equipped to deal with every bad loan, Rajan said much of the loan renegotiations should be done under the shadow of the Bankruptcy Code.

Rajan has offered several suggestions on how such a NPA recurrence can be avoided, including the adoption of a new approach to NPA resolution, cautioning against old ideas such as bad banks and mergers.
Health ministry bans 328 fixed dose combination drugs

The ministry of health and family welfare has prohibited the manufacture for sale, sale or distribution for human use of 328 fixed dose combinations (FDCs) with immediate effect. It has also restricted the manufacture, sale or distribution of six FDCs subject to certain conditions.

Earlier, the central government had, through a Gazette notifications on 10 March 2016, prohibited the manufacture for sale, sale and distribution for human use of 344 FDCs under section 26 A of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.

Subsequently, the government had prohibited five more FDCs in addition to the 344 under the same provisions.

However, the matter was contested by the affected manufacturers in various high courts and the Supreme Court of India. In compliance with the directions given by the Supreme Court of India in its judgment dated 15 December 2017, the matter was examined by the Drugs Technical Advisory Board constituted under section 5 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, which furnished its report on these drugs to the central government.

The Drugs Technical Advisory Board recommended, amongst other things, that there is no therapeutic justification for the ingredients contained in 328 FDCs and that these FDCs may involve risk to human beings. The board recommended that it is necessary to prohibit the manufacture, sale or distribution of these FDCs under section 26 A of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 in the larger public interest.

With regard to six FDCs, the board recommended that their manufacture, sale and distribution be restricted subject to certain conditions based on their therapeutic justification. Fifteen FDCs out of the 344 prohibited on 10 March 2016, which were claimed to be manufactured prior to 21 September 1988, have been kept out of the purview of current notifications.

Earlier, an Expert Committee appointed by the central government had also examined these FDCs and made recommendations in line with those of the board.

The government considered the recommendations of the expert committee and Drugs Technical Advisory Board, and based on such consideration, it was concluded that it is necessary and expedient in public interest to prohibit the manufacture for sale, sale and distribution for human use of these 328 FDCs in the country.

Accordingly, the ministry of health and family welfare has, in exercise of powers conferred by section 26A of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, prohibited the manufacture for sale, sale or distribution for human use of 328 FDCs through its gazette notifications dated 7th September 2018; it has also restricted the manufacture, sale or distribution of six FDCs subject to certain conditions. These notifications will take immediate effect.
Sensex end 300 points higher, Nifty ends at 11,370

Market at Close: A dramatic recovery in the rupee has helped benchmarks surge to the high points. The Indian currency surpassed the level of 72 per US dollar-mark, leading to a massive buying among investors. The Sensex managed to end over 300 points higher, while the Nifty rose above 11,350-mark.

Sharp buying among major sector such as banks, FMCG, infrastructure, metals, and pharmaceuticals led to the upmove on Sensex and the Nifty. The Nifty Midcap index rose over one-third of a percent. The likes of HDFC Bank, Reliance and ITC, among others, rallied and helped the indices have a strong close.

At the close of market hours, the Sensex ended higher by 304.83 points or 0.81% at 37717.96, while the Nifty soared 83.40 points or 0.74% at 11370.90. The market breadth is negative as 1,123 shares advanced, against a decline of 1,503 shares, while 200 shares were unchanged.

Power Grid, Adani Ports and ITC were the top gainers, while Axis Bank and Tata Motors lost the most.

Oil hits OMCs, aviation cos: Shares of the state-run oil marketing companies Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) fell more than a percent each on rising crude oil prices and sustained volatility in the Indian rupee against the US dollar.

Aviation companies such as Jet Airways and InterGlobe Aviation also corrected over a percent as oil constitutes bigger portion of their operating expenses.

Crude oil prices have gradually been rising on reports of decline in US crude inventories and likely supply tightening ahead of US sanctions on the Iranian oil which will come into effect from November this year.

KIOCL soars 11%: Shares of KIOCL soared over 11 percent after the company said it will be considering a buyback proposal at its Board Meeting on September 18, 2018. The Board of Directors will be meeting on that day to discuss the issue.

Rupee continues to surge: Rupee is trading near the day's high point, as it recovered 80 paise from its record low of 72.91 per dollar.

Currenly it is trading at 72.19 per dollar after hitting a day's high of 72.11 per dollar.

HSBC maintains buy on Oil India, ONGC: Research house HSBC has maintained buy rating on Oil India with a potential upside of 33 percent. The firm raise target to Rs 270 from Rs 253 per share.

It also maintained buy on ONGC with a target of Rs 240. It sees potential upside of 43 percent.

The upside from higher oil is to be offset by risks of higher costs and subsidy burden.

Market Update: A major recovery in the Indian rupee, following reports that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be holding a meeting over the weekend to review the economic situation and the rupee condition as well. Further, the reports add that there could be measures rolled out after the meeting as well. The Indian currency is massively off its lows and has recovered over 57 paise.

Buying counters are buzzing in the afternoon trade, with gains seen in FMCG, metals, pharmaceuticals, and energy names. The Nifty Midcap index is back in the green as well, up over quarter of a percent.

The Sensex is up 240.98 points or 0.64% at 37654.11, while the Nifty is higher by 65.90 points or 0.58% at 11353.40. The market breadth is negative as 923 shares advanced, against a decline of 1,538 shares, while 161 shares were unchanged.

OMCs, AIRLINES TAKE A HIT POST SURGE IN CRUDE PRICES: Shares of oil marketing companies and airlines were hit on Wednesday as oil prices inched up towards USD 80 per barrel.

High prices imply higher fuel costs for airlines, while in case of OMCs, the procurement costs go up, leading to a surge in input cost for them.

HPCL and BPCL are down over 3 percent, while carriers such as Jet Airways and InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo) have lost up to 3 percent as well. SpiceJet is seeing a shade of green.

Oil prices rose on Wednesday following a report of declines in US crude inventories and as looming sanctions against Iran raised expectations of tightening supply, while top producer Russia warned of a fragile global crude market.

Market Update: Some sluggishness is visible on the market on Wednesday afternoon, with the Nifty hovering around 11,250-mark. The Sensex is down around one-tenth of a percent.

Banks, automobiles, and pharmaceuticals are weighing on the indices. A fall in HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries, two big index heavyweights, is also slightly weighing on the market.

The Sensex is down 61.99 points or 0.17% at 37351.14, while the Nifty is lower by 29.70 points or 0.26% at 11257.80. The market breadth is negative as 739 shares advanced, against a decline of 1,676 shares, while 133 shares were unchanged.

Power Grid and ITC are the top gainers, while Axis Bank, M&M, HPCL and BPCL have lost the most on the back of higher crude prices.

Buzzing stock: Shares of Diligent Media Corporation rose 3.7 percent intraday Wednesday as company executed an agreement for sale of its non-core assets.

The company executed an agreement to assign, for sale/ assignment of company's non-core assets comprising of leasehold land admeasuring approximately 13,803 square meters adjacent to the company's Printing press at Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, along with building and fixtures thereon and rights attached thereto to Pioneer eLabs or any other entity owned or controlled (with majority beneficial interest) by P. Sridhar Reddy at a consideration of Rs 54.44 crore.

The above sale / assignment shall be subject to the approval of the shareholders of the company at the ensuing annual general meeting scheduled on September 21, 2018 and shall require further approval of or no-objection from the lessor viz. Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC).

JUST IN: After seeing a good recovery, the Indian currency has erased most of its gains and is inching towards the low points. The rupee is trading around 72.82 per US dollar. It had touched a record low of 72.92 per US dollar in morning trade.

Market Update: The benchmark indices are trading flat to positive in the afternoon sessions with Nifty trading below 11,300.

The Sensex is up 45.40 points at 37,458.53, while Nifty is up 2 points at 11289.50. About 775 shares have advanced, 1569 shares declined, and 117 shares are unchanged.

HDFC Bank, HDFC, Infosys, ITC and TCS are the positive contributors to the Sensex.

Buzzing: Shares of Diligent Media Corporation rose 3.7 percent as company executed an agreement for sale of its non-core assets.

The company executed an agreement to assign, for sale/ assignment of company's non-core assets comprising of leasehold land admeasuring approximately 13,803 square meters adjacent to the company's Printing press at Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, along with building and fixtures thereon and rights attached thereto to Pioneer eLabs or any other entity owned or controlled (with majority beneficial interest) by P. Sridhar Reddy at a consideration of Rs 54.44 crore.

Rupee Update: Indian rupee is trading around 72.71 per dollar, recovered 20 paise from a record low of 72.91 tested in the morning trade.

It opened 11 paise lower at 72.80 per dollar versus previous close 72.69.

UBS maintains buy on Tata Steel, neutral on JSW Steel: Foreign broking house UBS has maintain buy rating on Tata Steel with a potential upside of 27 percent. It raised target to Rs 750 from Rs 710 per share.

Research house maintain neutral call on JSW Steel and raise target to Rs 425 from Rs 360. It sees potential upside of 8 percent in the company's share price.

According to UBS, India volume and price environment are strong, while external pressures look to be limited for now.

It still see Tata Steel as an attractively valued relative to peers.

A2Z Infra Engineering bags order: The company has been awarded a contract by Nepal Electricity Authority, a Government of Nepal Undertaking for execution of the design, supply, Installation/Erection, Testing and Commissioning of 11/0.4 kV distribution system in Nepal for an aggregate of USD 11,651,643.11 and NPR 160,028,901.60 including custom duty and VAT, in aggregate equivalent to approx. value of Rs 94,87,00,000.

At 11:40 hrs A2Z Infra Engineering was quoting at Rs 19.50, up Rs 0.55, or 2.90 percent.

Kolte-Patil Developers has received massive response from the home buyers for its newly launched project ORO Avenue at Life Republic.

The project witnessed a sales of 500 units with booking value of Rs 186 crore since its launch in August 2018.

Kolte-Patil Developers has received massive response from the home buyers for its newly launched project ORO Avenue at Life Republic.

The project witnessed a sales of 500 units with booking value of Rs 186 crore since its launch in August 2018.

Buzzing stock: Shares of Idea Cellular added 3 percent intraday Wednesday as research firm Deutsche Bank maintained buy on company with potential upside of 116.5 percent.

Research house keep a target of Rs 100 per share.

According to the firm, leverages are remain the key concern for the merge company.

It expect funding gap on a cash flow basis to be around Rs 7100 crore, while funding gap to increase net debt by Rs 3600 crore.

Crude at $100Global research firm HSBC is not ruling out Brent crude prices touching USD 100 per barrel as well. This, it said, is due to lack of global scare capacity.

It observed that crude market risks still look skewed to the upside. Based on these, it has raised price assumptions from USD 70 per barrel to USD 80 per barrel in 2019 and USD 85 per barrel in 2020.

Having said that, it has a target of USD 75 per barrel on the Brent crude for 2021 and beyond.

M&M falls: Shares of Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) fell as much as 2.86 percent after a US regulator announced a probe into a complaint filed by Fiat Chrysler.

The stock touched an intraday high of Rs 951.00 and an intraday low of Rs 913.50.

The US International Trade Commission (ITC) on September 11 said it will investigate the patent of M&M's ROXOR vehicle following Fiat Chrysler's complaint.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV has filed a complaint alleging that M&M infringed upon the intellectual property rights of its Jeep design.

Kolte Patil gains: Shares of real estate firm, Kolte Patil, rose around 3 percent on Wednesday morning as ivnestors cheered good sales in its Pune project.

The company informed the exchanges that it sold 500 units in its Pune project, ORO Avenue, from its launch in August 2018.

Market Update: Pharmaceuticals have reversed their losses and trading in the green, while FMCG and IT sectors are also seeing a rally. The positive moves in these sectors, along with a rally in index heavyweights such as ITC, HUL and HDFC Bank are helping the indices stay in the green zone.

The Sensex is up 75.45 points or 0.20% at 37488.58, while the Nifty is higher by 15.00 points or 0.13% at 11302.50. The market breadth is negative as 768 shares advanced, against a decline of 1,374 shares, while 106 shares were unchanged.

Buzzing stock: Shares of Wipro rose 1 percent intraday Wednesday as company announced partnership with Duck Creek Technologies, the P&C insurance industry's leadinSaas software provider.

Wipro and Duck Creek Technologies announced a relationship whereby Wipro will be able to offer a broad array of implementation services and related software and data solutions for its insurance industry customers around the world.

Wipro will offer systems integration, configuration, and support services for the Duck Creek Platform, which includes solutions for policy, rating, billing, claims, data insights, and digital engagement.

Market Update: Volatility has continued on D-Street on Wednesday morning. The Nifty is hovering around 11,300, while the Sensex is marginally higher.

The Sensex is up 57.50 points or 0.15% at 37470.63, and the Nifty up 14.30 points or 0.13% at 11301.80. The market breadth is negative as 666 shares advanced, against a decline of 1,334 shares, while 96 shares are unchanged.

Power Grid and HUL are the top gainers, while M&M, Tata Motors and HPCL have lost the most.

Buzzing stock: Shares of SME Marshall Machines gained almost 5 percent after investor Ashish Kacholia raised his stake in the small medium enterprise (SME).

The stock hit a 52-week high of Rs 43.35 on the NSE, up 4.96 percent from the previous close.

Kacholia increased his stake in the firm to 8 percent from 3.2 percent.

The investor has bought 6,99,000 shares of the company at Rs 41.88 per share through open market transactions, on top of his holding of 4.65 lakh shares as of September 7.

Airtel falls 2%: Shares of Bharti Airtel was down nearly 2 percent intraday Wednesday after the company received a demand notice towards penalties for March quarter.

The telecom operator confirmed that company has received demand notices towards penalties totalling to a sum of Rs 11 lakh in respect of 6 circles namely, Maharashtra, Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kolkata and Gujarat for the quarter ending March 2018.

These penalties are towards routine parameters such as accessibility of call center, percentage of calls answered by the operators and metering and billing credibility, company said in release.

Market update: Equity benchmarks have seen another bout of selling and have given up all of their gains. Weakness is visible among all sectors, with banks, auto, metals and pharmaceuticals seeing a big fall. The midcap index is also trading lower, adding to the sentiment. The Nifty FMCG and Nifty IT index are the outliers and are trading in the green.

The Sensex is up 8.64 points or 0.02% at 37421.77, while the Nifty is down 3.80 points or 0.03% at 11283.70. The market breadth is negative as 696 shares advanced, against a decline of 1050 shares, while 84 shares were unchanged.

Take a look at the Sensex's heatmap.

Buzzing stock: Shares of IRB Infra rose over 2 percent after reports indicated that toll collection on Mumbai-Pune Expressway will continue for another 12 years. The company is the contractor to collect the toll and maintain the highway. Take a look at the stock's one-year chart.

Market Update: Support from a rally in index heavyweights such as ITC, HUL, Infosys and HDFC is helping the market trade higher, even as other sectoral indices are trading in the red.

The Sensex is up 114.17 points or 0.31% at 37527.30, while the Nifty is up 24.90 points or 0.22% at 11312.40. The market breadth is negative as 723 shares advanced, against a decline of 859 shares, while 79 shares were unchanged.

Rupee outlook: Irene Cheung of ANZ Research believes a further downside could be possible on the rupee. The market is paying attention to data which is coming up in the next couple of days, she told CNBC-TV18. Until there is some weakening of dollar or data starts to improve in India, relief may not be likely, she further told the channel.

Buzzing stock: Shares of Sun Pharmaceuticals are down over a percent after the company clarified on its inspection at its Mohali plant.

In an exchange filing, it said, that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is conducting an inspection and it began on September 10, 2018.

Market opens: Equity benchmarks have begun the day on a flat note, with the Nifty trading below 11,300 in the opening tick. The Sensex is trading marginally higher. Banks are taking a hit this morning, with the Bank Nifty trading lower by one-third of a percent. Pharmaceuticals are also trading in the red. Meanwhile, after days of a fall in FMCG names, the Nifty FMCG index is up around one-third of a percent. Meanwhile, in the broader markets, Nifty Midcap is trading flat with a negative bias.

The Sensex is up 37.83 points or 0.10% at 37450.96, while the Nifty is down 0.70 points or 0.01% at 11286.80. The market breadth is narrow as 422 shares advanced, against a decline of 408 shares, while 46 shares are unchanged.

Rupee at another record low: Another record low for rupee as it opened 11 paise lower at 72.80 per dollar on Wednesday versus previous close 72.69.

On Tuesday, after a positive start the rupee touched a new record low of 72.73 before it settle at 72.69 per dollar, down 24 paise from the Monday's close of 72.45.

The fall in the rupee is mainly due to rebound in oil prices, and capital outflows on the back of worries over global trade war.

Market at pre-open: Pre-opening rates indicate that the Nifty is trading currently above 11,300-mark, while the Sensex is higher by over 100 points.

The rupee at a fresh record low of 72.75 per US dollar and has extended its fall to 72.8675/USD.

Ten-year benchmark government bond yields are trading at 8.21 percent.
New York pips London as world's top financial centre: survey

New York has overtaken London as the worlds most attractive financial centre as Britains decision to leave the European Union prompted banks to shift jobs out of the city to preserve access to Europes single market, a survey has revealed.

Since Britain voted to leave the European Union common market more than two years ago, several finance companies, including some of the worlds most powerful ones, have been looking for ways to preserve the existing cross-border flow of trading after the UK leaves the bloc in 2019.

New York took first place, just two places ahead of London, followed by Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai, Tokyo, Sydney, Beijing, Zurich and Frankfurt among the top 10 financial centres as per the Z/Yen- CDI index of financial centres released today.

The 24th report - Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI 24) - published by Z/Yen Partners and the China Development Institute (CDI) ranks 100 financial centres on factors such as infrastructure and access to high quality staff.

Shanghai overtook Tokyo to move into fifth place in the index gaining 25 points in the ratings. Beijing, Zurich, and Frankfurt moved into the top ten centres, replacing Toronto, Boston, and San Francisco.

Today Z/Yen Partners and the China Development Institute (CDI) publish the twenty-fourth Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI 24). We are holding the launch Conference in Guangzhou. The GFCI rates 100 financial centres. The top ten are shown to the right. Full details are available here.

The main headlines are shown below:

Not for the first time, New York took first place in the index, just two points head of London. However both centres fell slightly in the ratings. Hong Kong is now only three points behind London. Shanghai overtook Tokyo to move into fifth place in the index gaining 25 points in the ratings. Beijing, Zurich, and Frankfurt moved into the top ten centres, replacing Toronto, Boston, and San Francisco.

In Western Europe, Zurich, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Vienna, and Milan moved up the rankings significantly. These centres may be the main beneficiaries of the uncertainty caused by Brexit. Surprisingly, despite some evident success in attracting new business, Dublin, Munich, Hamburg, Copenhagen, and Stockholm fell in the rankings, reflecting respondents views of their future prospects.

The leading Asia/Pacific centres performed well, closing the gap on London and New York at the top of the rankings. Centres in the Asia/Pacific region generally rose in the ratings, continuing the trend which has been apparent over several years. There were steady increases for Shanghai, Sydney, Beijing, and Guangzhou.

GIFT City (Gujarat) and Hangzhou entered the index for the first time.

North American centres fell back in the rankings and ratings overall. However, Los Angeles and Washington DC gained places in the index, with Washington DC reversing the fall it experienced in GFCI 23.

In Eastern Europe and Central Asia, there were significant gains for Astana, Budapest, St Petersburg, and Tallinn. Astana only officially launched their financial centre in July, and it is unusual for such a new centre to perform so strongly. The strong performance of Tallinn may reflect Estonias development of the e-society, including digital identity and smart ledger development, providing an alternative focus for Tallinns competitiveness. Cyprus and Warsaw fell significantly in the ratings and rankings. Sofia was a new entrant to the index.

The Middle Eastern centres Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha all rose significantly reversing the trend from GFCI 23. Cape Town is the highest new entrant to the index, ranking 38th in its first entry.

There were mixed results in the Caribbean and Latin America. Bermuda, Sao Paulo, Mexico City, and Rio de Janeiro performed strongly, while other centres fell in the rankings.

Island centres fell in the index, with the exception of Bermuda, which rose six places. The British Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey, and the Isle of Man all fell significantly in the rankings, with the Isle of Man dropping 27 places in the index.

Mark Yeandle, Director of Z/Yen and the author of the GFCI, said: "In GFCI 23 the leading centres all rose and the lower ranked centres fell. There is a much less clear pattern in GFCI 24. London and New York both few slightly, Asian centres did well and the North American centres fell back a little. Europe continues to interest us with potential beneficiaries of Brexit such as Frankfurt and Zurich doing well.

Professor Michael Mainelli, Executive Chairman of Z/Yen, said: "Far too much attention is focused on the top centres and the blow-by-blow rankings they have. The long-term trend since our first published edition in 2007 has been the consistent and persistent rise of Asian centres while the press and pundits focus on brief headlines about London and New York City.
Army research takes proactive approach to defending computer systems

A team of researchers from the US Army Research Laboratory, the University of Canterbury (UC) in New Zealand and the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology in the Republic of Korea have taken a step toward the development of moving target defence techniques in software-defined networks. This is a demanding cybersecurity research topic, scientists said.

This collaboration grew out of efforts of ARL researchers Dr. Jin-Hee Cho (now at Virginia Tech in the Department of Computer Science), Dr Terrence J Moore and Dr. Frederica Nelson reaching out to researchers in Asia Pacific regions through the international collaborative program administrated by the US Army International Technology Center-Pacific.

Cyberattacks on computer systems are becoming more common. Any company with information on a computer system connected to the internet might become a victim from someone or some group who wants to steal or destroy the company's data for their own use, or for ransom.

This is possible because of the way the Internet is set up, researchers said. In order to access content on a website, a computer needs to know where to ask for the information. Websites have an address, what is known as an internet protocol, or IP, address; however, these are not just used for websites. Every computer connected to the internet has an IP address.

Cyber attackers have time to discover the IP addresses of the computers they think might have valuable information and attack them using code that is more commonly known as computer viruses or worms.

If the computer or system being attacked has a security system, such as a firewall or anti-virus software, it might be able to recognise some code as being bad and prevent itself from being infected.

What cyber attackers do is slightly modify their bad code so it is not recognised until the computer's security system is updated or patched.

Essentially, the typical defensive response to these attacks is passive, the researchers said. The attackers have time to prepare, plan and execute their attacks, whereas the potential victims are left reacting only after an intruder breaks into a computer system.

Recently, a new proactive type of defence is being considered to protect important information in computer systems. This approach is known as moving target defense, or MTD.

"The concept of MTD has been introduced with the aim of increasing the adversary's confusion or uncertainty by dynamically changing the attack surface, which consists of the reachable and exploitable vulnerabilities," Cho says. "MTD can lead to making the adversary's intelligence gained from previous monitoring no longer useful and accordingly results in poor attack decisions."

The basic idea as it applies to IP addresses on computer networks is this: Change the IP address of the computer frequently enough so the attacker loses sight of where his victim is; however, this can be expensive, so the approach taken by the researchers in the collaboration here uses something known as software-defined networking.

This lets computers keep their real IP addresses fixed, but masks them from the rest of the internet with virtual IP addresses that are frequently changing.

Moore added that as the adage suggests, it is harder to hit a moving target.

"MTD increases uncertainty and confuses the adversary, as time is no longer an advantage," Moore says. "The adversary has to expend more resources, such as time and / or computational power, to discover vulnerabilities of a target system, but will experience more difficulty in exploiting any vulnerabilities found in the past since their location or accessibility is constantly changing."

According to Professor Hyuk Lim at GIST in the Republic of Korea, this proactive defense approach provides defense services before attackers get into a target system.

"Taking actions proactively requires extra overhead to add another layer of defense strength," Kim says. "Hence, deploying the proactive defense and security mechanisms is not for free, but brings a cost because the system needs to constantly change the attack surface such as IP addresses. This cost can be mitigated to some extent by leveraging the technology called 'Software-Defined Networking'. The SDN technology provides highly efficient programmatic and dynamic management of the network policy by removing the network control from individual devices in a network to a centralised controller. The network configuration can be defined by the SDN controller, enabling more reliable and responsive network operations under variable conditions."

Nelson explains the reason why these SDN-based MTD techniques are critical to supporting the vision of the Army and warfighters.

"The key technology of SDN-based MTD techniques, under development by the research team, is highly relevant to support the warfighters' mission execution by proactively thwarting potential attacks, which can protect the defence system so that the warfighters can properly execute the mission in the presence of highly dynamic, hostile and innovative adversaries within contested tactical environments," Nelson said.

The UC team in New Zealand led the effort of developing the MTD technology called the Flexible Random Virtual IP Multiplexing, namely FRVM.

"In FRVM, while the real IP address of a server-host remains unchanged but stays hidden, a virtual IP address of the server-host keeps being randomly and periodically changed where the IP mapping/remapping (i.e., called multiplexing/demultiplexing) is performed by an SDN controller," says Dilli P. Sharma, a doctoral student in Prof. DongSeong Kim's cybersecurity research group at UC, New Zealand.

"This effectively forces the adversary to play the equivalent of an honest shell game. However, instead of guessing among three shells (IP addresses) to find a pea (a running network service), the adversary must guess among 65,536 shells, given address space2^16. This MTD protocol is novel because it provides high flexibility to have multiple, random, time-variant IP addresses in a host, which implies the adversary will require more time to discover an IP address of the target host."

In this research, the team formulated the architecture and communication protocols for the proposed IP (de)multiplexing-based MTD to be applied in SDN environments.

The team also validated the effectiveness of the FRVM under various degrees of scanning attacks in terms of the attack success probability.

The preliminary results evaluating the FRVM were presented at the 17th Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers International Conference on Trust, Security and Privacy in Computing and Communications, or TrustCom'18, held in New York in August.

"Our next step is to study the trade-off in the FRVM between the dual conflicting goals of system security and performance, as proactive defense may introduce adverse effects when running MTD techniques while achieving enhanced security," Kim said.
Newborns with congenital heart disease have enlarged kidneys

The hearts and brains of babies born with congenital heart disease are not the only organs affected by this common medical condition. Surprisingly, their kidneys tend to be enlarged at birth, says Gemma Scholes of the University of Melbourne in Australia, who is lead author of a study in the Springer Nature-branded journal Pediatric Research.

The research is the first of its kind to investigate the renal development of newborn babies with congenital heart disease.

Congenital heart disease encompasses a range of heart defects and is the most common medical condition occurring in newborns, affecting around nine in every 1,000 babies born. Congenital heart disease not only causes defects in the heart, but subsequently may also impair the growth of a baby's brain and body in general. This is due to the "brain-sparing phenomenon", in which the body protects the brain at all costs. In fetuses with congenital heart disease, this means that blood flow is prioritized towards the growing brain, having adverse effects on other organs and the general development of the baby.

Scholes and her colleagues started their study with the hypothesis that fetuses with congenital heart disease will have smaller kidneys. To test this they measured the kidney length of 452 newborn babies by looking at ultrasounds taken before children with congenital heart disease were first operated on.

Surprisingly, the results showed that the kidneys of babies with congenital heart disease are significantly enlarged and were on average 4.5 centimeters long. The kidneys of children who have left heart obstruction were consistently larger than normal. Those with cyanotic heart disease (a range of defects that alter the way in which blood flows through the heart and lungs) tended to have either normal or enlarged kidneys.

"It is still unclear what the nature of this size discrepancy is, or how it will influence the future health of the child," says Scholes, who explains that this study is the first study to provide an indication that renal alterations exist at the time of birth.

Even patients who were born small for their gestation age because of the presence of too little amniotic fluid in the placenta had enlarged kidneys. This contrasts with observations that fetal growth restriction due to placental insufficiency or preeclampsia results in smaller kidneys.

The study further showed that the type of congenital abnormality that a baby is born with influences the subsequent size of its kidneys differently. The kidneys of newborns with cyanotic congenital heart disease tended to be smaller than those with left heart obstruction, but still larger than what is considered normal.
Donegal county councillor John ODonnell allowed his public responsibilities to be merged to a significant degree with his personal business interests, a public hearing into alleged breaches of ethics legislation has heard.

Barrister for the Standards in Public Office Commission (Sipoc) James Doherty made the claim at a public hearing in Dublin into allegations that the Kilmacrennan independent councillor breached the Ethical Frameworks for the Local Government Service when he was secretly filmed in an RTE Investigates programme which was broadcast in December 2015.

A complaint was made by Donegal County Council against the county councilor to Sipoc following the broadcast of the RTE Investigations Unit programme to the Standards in Public Office Commission in December 2015.

Audio and video recordings of conversations between the independent councillor and the undercover researcher have been played at the hearing.

In the recordings Ms Carlson said the company she was representing had no experience of investing in Ireland and she was seeking assistance with the planning process from the councillor. Mr O'Donnell was secretly recorded on camera during the undercover investigation where a researcher, using the name Nina Carlson, posed as a representative of an investment company interested in possible wind-farm ventures.

Mr O'Donnell said "we would need to work very quietly on this" as he is a public representative.

He offered to work tirelessly on behalf of the investors but stressed that he would have to be paid through a business partner as he did not want to be seen to be associated with a controversial wind-farm.

At one stage during the recording, Mr O'Donnell told Ms Carlson, I'm a mover and a shaker.

Mr Doherty said: It appears to a very great extent that councillor O'Donnell allowed his public responsibilities to be conflated to a significant degree with his personal business interests.

He said the apparent conflation of the public obligations he has as an elected official and the business interests he had are very clear.

Barrister for Mr ODonnell, Mark OConnell, said his client had been negligent but had not sought to enrich himself.

My client was a businessman, he said. He was seeking to promote a commercial project in Donegal, which he believed in and thought was a good idea. Obviously, the issue is that there are demarcation lines with his role as a councillor.

I dont believe its fair to say he was intentional or reckless in his disregard for that demarcation. I think his role as a businessman was probably mixed up with that as a councillor. I dont think theres a doubt about that.

But I think his overall intention was to be as open as he could. The demarcations between his roles as a businessman and a politician were clearly blurred. I believe this was negligence and nothing more than that.

Cllr ODonnell did not seek money. He did not exact money, and he did not accept money.

Submissions will be heard on October 5.


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.
Half of all 9-year-olds in Ireland and 70% of 8-13-year-olds are using social media despite the fact that most social media sites have age restrictions in place.

The digital age of consent in Ireland was recently set at 16 years. One-fifth of Irish children talk to strangers every day online and that one in three children never talk to their parents about online safety.

These statistics were published in the third Annual Report from CyberSafe Ireland last week and this report is essential reading for parents and schools alike.

It paints a picture of widespread social media and online use among children with 13% of children spending more than four hours a day online, which seems an astonishing figure.

Lets be clear here, technology is not the bad guy. Technology has transformed the lives of our children and will more than likely shape their future.

According to an IBEC report released in July, 60% of children in schools today will end up working in jobs that do not currently exist.

Their social, cultural and economic landscape will be utterly transformed by technology so they need to be comfortable and competent in the digital space.

However, the reality is that not all of their time spent online is positive. The CyberSafe Ireland report a revealed that children are talking to strangers online and that in some cases, young children are being exposed to content that is not appropriate for their age group.

CyberSafe Ireland points out that we need to educate our children to be digitally savvy as well as computer literate and to empower them to learn how to manage to assess risk online.

In order for this to happen, parents and educators needs to step up to the mark and spend time looking at the digital world through the eyes of children and then take steps to educate them about life in that space.

Doing so will equip children for life in the world they live in today and will live in tomorrow. See www.cybersafeireland.org to view the report and read advice on keeping kids safe online.


With just over a week to go until this year's Culture Night, An Tain Arts Centre in Dundalk has shared their events line up, with something taking place for all the family.

The night kicks off at 6 pm with live music in the foyer until 8 pm.

From 6-7 pm, there is a Family Hangout with free face painting for all the family with Linda McConville. Adults face painting is very much encouraged here!

Action drawing with artist in residence Sean McGuill takes place from 6 to 8 pm - this is suitable for ages 6+.

The Family Hangout from 6-9 pm also includes Backstage tours, with An Tain Arts Centre's Director Paul Hayes giving tours of the theatre.

Here audiences will have the opportunity to learn about the heritage of the building and get a glimpse behind the scenes of a working arts space.

The tours are free but tickets must be booked in advance. Go here to book tickets.

From 7.00pm - 8.00pm a Writing Workshop, with Rachel Mulholland takes place. The facilitated writing group with local writer Rachel Mulholland is based on Michael Hardings book "On Tuesdays Im a Buddhist".

Go here to book tickets for the writing workshop.

Then from 7.30pm - 8.30pm there is natural crafting, with Linda McConville. Suitable for ages 8+, you can make your own mobile or windchime with found and natural materials.

Finally from 8.00pm - 11.00pm there is an open studio and reception, with artist in residence Sean McGuill.

Sean McGuill will host an open studio in September, displaying some work in progress and artwork made during his Summer residency.

Sean McGuill is a visual artist from Bellurgan who recently graduated from Limerick School of Art and Design with a degree in

Printmaking abd Contemporary Practice.

His work has been exhibited in a number of locations across Ireland as well as internationally.

He has been selected for various awards including the John Shinnors Selection at the 2017 LSAD Drawing Awards and was

shortlisted for the 2017 Hennessy Portrait Prize.

His practice is based on themes relating to visual culture and mass media, working with a variety of processes including

printmaking, painting, drawing and collage.

To find out more go to An Tain's website here
Woolworths is facing a potential $100 million class action launched on behalf of investors whose shares lost value following a shock 2015 profit downgrade by the supermarket giant.

The class action, brought by lawyers Maurice Blackburn, alleges Woolworths breached continuous disclosure obligations and engaged in misleading conduct by giving profit guidance that couldnt be met.

Woolworths advised the market in February, 2015, that it would not meet its 2014/15 profit guidance, wiping nearly nine per cent, or $3.03 cents, off its share price on one day of trading.

The company downgraded its profit growth forecasts from a range of four to seven per cent to a much lower 1.8 to 6.6 per cent, on the back of plans to boost investment in its core supermarkets business.

Shares slid another seven per cent over two days in May when Woolworths revealed it would have to invest an additional $500 million in lowering its prices to meet heightened competition, including from newcomer Aldi.

Lead plaintiff in the class action Norman Wills, in a statement issued by Maurice Blackburn, said he used to think Woolworths was one of the most reliable businesses on the ASX.

It looks like (Woolworths) has failed to inform the market of what was going on within the company. Im really disappointed in the way the company behaved and Woolworths needs to be held to account, Willis said .

Maurice Blackburn announced it would pursue a class action on behalf of shareholders back in April 2017 but it was delayed after financial backer IMF Bentham pulled out.

It filed the case with the Federal Court on Monday supported by International Litigation Funding Partners.

In a statement to the ASX, Woolworths said it would thoroughly defend itself against any proceedings.

Woolworths shares were up 22 cents, or 0.8 per cent, to $28.46 at 1311 AEST.

Woolworths Group Limited (Woolworths) said it notes media reports that law firm Maurice Blackburn yesterday filed class action proceedings in the Federal Court to be funded by what it understands to be an off-shore litigation funder.

Woolworths notes that a proposed class action was previously announced by IMF Bentham and Maurice Blackburn on 11 April 2017. Following that announcement, Woolworths corresponded with IMF Bentham. On 24 January 2018, IMF Bentham announced that it had decided not to proceed with funding the claim as it considered that the proposed class action did not meet its investment criteria.

Woolworths said it has received no further correspondence from Maurice Blackburn following IMF Benthams announcement prior to media reports.

Woolworths said it will consider any proceedings once served, but otherwise anticipates that they will be thoroughly defended.

With AAP.


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Leaders from Human Rights Watch and Harvard Law School's International Human Rights Clinic last week issued a dire warning that nations around the world haven't been doing enough to ban the development of autonomous weapons -- so-called "killer robots."

The groups issued a joint report that calls for a complete ban on these systems before such weapons begin to make their way to military arsenals and it becomes too late to act.

Other groups, including Amnesty International, joined in those urgent calls for a treaty to ban such weapons systems, in advance of this week's meeting of the United Nations' CCW Group of Governmental Experts on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems in Geneva.

This week's gathering is the second such event. Last year's meeting marked the first time delegates from around the world discussed the global ramifications of killer robot technologies.

"Killer robots are no longer the stuff of science fiction," said Rasha Abdul Rahim, Amnesty International's advisor on artificial intelligence and human rights. "From artificially intelligent drones to automated guns that can choose their own targets, technological advances in weaponry are far outpacing international law."

Last year's first meeting did result in many nations agreeing to ban the development of weapons that could identify and fire on targets without meaningful human intervention. To date, 26 nations have called for an outright killer robot ban, including Austria, Brazil and Egypt. China has called for a new CCW protocol that would prohibit the use of fully autonomous weapons systems.

However, the United States, France, Great Britain, Israel, South Korea and Russia have registered opposition to creating any legally binding prohibitions of such weapons, or the technologies behind them.

Public opinion is mixed, based on a Brookings Institution survey that was conducted last week.

Thirty percent of adult Americans supported the development of artificial intelligence technologies for use in warfare, it found, with 39 percent opposed and 32 percent unsure.

However, support for the use of AI capabilities in weapons increased significantly if American adversaries were known to be developing the technology, the poll also found.

In that case, 45 percent of respondents in the survey said they would support U.S. efforts to develop AI weapons, versus 25 who were opposed and 30 percent who were unsure.

The Latest Weapons of Mass Destruction

The science of killing has been taken to a new technological level -- and many are concerned about loss of human control.

"Autonomous weapons are another example of military technology outpacing the ability to regulate it," said Mike Blades, research director at Frost & Sullivan.

In the mid-19th century Richard Gatling developed the first successful rapid fire weapon in his eponymous Gatling gun, a design that led to modern machine guns. When it was used on the battlefields of the First World War 100 years ago, military leaders were utterly unable to comprehend its killing potential. The result was horrific trench warfare. Tens of millions were killed over the course of the four-year conflict.

One irony is that Gatling said that he created his weapon as a way to reduce the size of armies, and in turn reduce the number of deaths from combat. However, he also thought such a weapon could show the futility of warfare.

Autonomous weapons have a similar potential to reduce the number of soldiers in harm's way -- but as with the Gatling gun or the World War I era machine gun, new devices could increase the killing potential of a handful of soldiers.

Modern military arsenals already can take out vast numbers of people.

"One thing to understand is that autonomy isn't actually increasing ability to destroy the enemy. We can already do that with plenty of weapons," Blades told TechNewsWorld.

"This is actually a way to destroy the enemy without putting our people in harm's way -- but with that ability there are moral obligations," he added. "This is a place where we haven't really been, and have to tread carefully."

Less Massive Destruction

There have been other technological weapons advances, from the poison gas that was used in the trenches of World War I a century ago to the atomic bomb that was developed during the Second World War. Each in turn became an issue for debate.

The potential horrors that autonomous weapons could unleash now are receiving the same level of concern and attention.

"Autonomous weapons are the biggest threat since nuclear weapons, and perhaps even bigger," warned Stuart Russell, professor of computer science and Smith-Zadeh professor of engineering at the University of California, Berkeley.

"Because they do not require individual human supervision, autonomous weapons are potentially scalable weapons of mass destruction. Essentially unlimited numbers can be launched by a small number of people," he told TechNewsWorld.

"This is an inescapable logical consequence of autonomy," Russell added, "and as a result, we expect that autonomous weapons will reduce human security at the individual, local, national and international levels."

A notable concern with small autonomous weapons is that their use could result in far less physical destruction than nuclear weapons or other WMDs might cause, which could make them almost "practical" in comparison.

Autonomous weapons "leave property intact and can be applied selectively to eliminate only those who might threaten an occupying force," Russell pointed out.

Force Multiplier

As with poison gas or technologically advanced weapons, autonomous weapons can be a force multiplier. The Gatling gun could outperform literally dozens of soldiers. In the case of autonomous weapons, one million potentially lethal units could be carried in a single container truck or cargo aircraft. Yet these weapons systems might require only two or three human operators rather than two or three million.

"Such weapons would be able to hunt for and eliminate humans in towns and cities, even inside buildings," said Russell. "They would be cheap, effective, unattributable, and easily proliferated once the major powers initiate mass production and the weapons become available on the international arms market."

This could give a small nation, rogue state or even a lone actor the ability to do considerable harm. Development of these weapons could even usher in a new arms race among powers of all sizes.

For this reason the cries to ban them before they are even developed have been increasing in volume, especially as development of the core technologies -- AI and machine learning -- for civilian purposes advances. They easily could be militarized to create weapons.

"Fully autonomous weapons should be discussed now, because due to the rapid development of autonomous technology, they could soon become a reality," said Bonnie Docherty, senior researcher in the arms division at Human Rights Watch, and one of the authors of the recent paper that called for a ban on killer robots.

"Once they enter military arsenals, they will likely proliferate and be used," she told TechNewsWorld.

"If countries wait, the weapons will no longer be a matter for the future," Docherty added.

Many scientists and other experts already have been heeding the call to ban autonomous weapons, and thousands of AI experts this summer signed a pledge not to assist with the development of the systems for military purposes.

The pledge is similar to the Manhattan Project scientists' calls not to use the first atomic bomb. Instead, many of the scientists who worked to develop the bomb suggested that the military merely provide a demonstration of its capability rather than use it on a civilian target.

The strong opposition to autonomous weapons today "shows that fully autonomous weapons offend the public conscience, and that it is time to take action against them," observed Docherty.

Practical Uses of Autonomy

However, the calls by the various groups arguably could be a moot point.

Although the United States has not agreed to limit the development of autonomous weapons, research efforts actually have been focused more on systems that utilize autonomy for purposes other than as combat weapons.

"DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) is currently investigating the role of autonomy in military systems such as UAVs, cyber systems, language processing units, flight control, and unmanned land vehicles, but not in combat or weapon systems," said spokesperson Jared B. Adams.

"The Department of Defense issued directive 3000.09 in 2012, which was re-certified last year, and it notes that humans must retain judgment over the use of force even in autonomous and semi-autonomous systems," he told TechNewsWorld.

"DARPA's autonomous research portfolio is defensive in nature, looking at ways to protect soldiers from adversarial unmanned systems, operate at machine speed, and/or limit exposure of our service men and women from potential harm," Adams explained.

"The danger of autonomous weapons is overstated," suggested USN Captain (Ret.) Brad Martin, senior policy researcher for autonomous technology in maritime vehicles at the Rand Corporation.

"The capability of weapons to engage targets without human intervention has existed for years," he told TechNewsWorld.

Semi-autonomous systems, those that wouldn't give full capability to a machine, also could have positive benefits. For example, autonomous systems could react far more quickly than human operators.

"Humans making decisions actually slows things down," noted Martin, "so in many weapons this is less a human rights issue and more a weapons technology issue."

The Role of Semi-Autonomous

Where the issue of killer robots becomes more complicated is in semi-autonomous systems -- those that do have that human element. Such systems could enhance existing weapons platforms and also could help operators determine if it is right to "take the shot."

"Many R&D programs are developing automated systems that can make those decisions quickly," said Frost & Sullivan's Blades.

"AI could be used to identify something where a human analyst might not be able to work with the information given as quickly, and this is where we see the technology pointing right," he told TechNewsWorld.

"At present there aren't really efforts to get a fully automated decision making system," Blades added.

These semi-autonomous systems also could allow weapons to be deployed at a distance closer than a human operator could go. They could reduce the number of "friendly fire" incidents as well as collateral damage. Rather than being a system that might increase causalities, the weapons could become more surgical in nature.

"These could provide broader sensor coverage that can reduce the battlefield ambiguity, and improved situational awareness at a chaotic moment," Rand's Martin said.

"Our campaign does not seek to ban either semi-autonomous weapons or fully autonomous non-weaponized robots," said Human Right Watch's Docherty.

"We are concerned about fully autonomous weapons, not semi-autonomous ones; fully autonomous weapons are the step beyond existing, remote-controlled armed drones," she added.

Too Little, Too Late

It's uncertain whether the development of autonomous weapons -- even with UN support -- could be stopped. It's questionable whether it should be stopped entirely. As in the case of the atomic bomb, or the machine gun, or poison gas before it, if even one nation possesses the technology, then other nations will want to be sure they have the ability to respond in kind.

The autonomous arms race therefore could be inevitable. A comparison can be made to chemical and biological weapons. The Biological Weapons Convention -- the first multilateral disarmament treaty banning the development, production and notably stockpiling of this entire category of WMDs -- first was introduced in 1972. Yet many nations still maintain vast supplies of chemical weapons. They actually were used in the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s and more recently by ISIS fighters, and by the Syrian government in its ongoing civil war.

Thus the development of autonomous weapons may not be stopped entirely, but their actual use could be mitigated.

"The U.S. may want to be in the lead with at least the rules of engagement where armed robots might be used," suggested Blades.

"We may not be signing on to this agreement, but we are already behind the limits of the spread of other advanced weapons," he noted.

It is "naive to yield the use of something that is going to be developed whether we like it or not, especially as this will end up in the hands of those bad actors that may not have our ethical concerns," said Martin.

During the Cold War, nuclear weapons meant mutually assured destruction, but as history has shown, other weapons -- including poison gas and other chemical weapons -- most certainly were used, even recently in Iraq and Syria.

"If Hitler had the atomic bomb he would have found a way to deliver it on London," Martin remarked. "That is as good an analogy to autonomous weapons as we can get."

Peter Suciu has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2012. His areas of focus include cybersecurity, mobile phones, displays, streaming media, pay TV and autonomous vehicles. He has written and edited for numerous publications and websites, including Newsweek, Wired and FoxNews.com. Email Peter.




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If you're a technologist, you've probably noticed (or have been asked about) a few new things associated with Chrome 68's release last month. One of the more notable changes is that it now uses a "not secure" indicator for any site not using HTTPS. So instead of providing a notification when a site is HTTPS, it now provides the user with a warning when it isn't.

This change has been quite a long time in the making. Google spelled out the details earlier this year. Following quite a bit of feedback, discussion and gnashing of teeth, the change finally arrived. Predictably, not everyone was prepared -- and a subset of website users now get the "not secure" warning for sites that, prior to the change, seemed hunky-dory.

One of those groups is users of U.S. state and local government websites. For example, the front pages of 14 states (including, for example, California, Florida and Ohio) do not have encryption enabled and are therefore have been generating a "not secure" warning for site visitors, according to the Center for Digital Government.

Likewise, four of the 10 biggest U.S. cities do not have it enabled as yet. The warning itself represents an arguably somewhat minor user interface issue, though it's one that nevertheless is important to address. Users receiving those warnings, particularly those who are less technology-savvy, may have legitimate concerns about a site now can be classified as "not secure."

The UI impact is important to note and subsequently address. The shift itself is a good one, as it incentivizes enhanced security of websites. Neither of those things is why I'm calling it to your attention, though. Instead, I'm mentioning it because it puts into sharp relief another issue that may seem unrelated at first blush. However, it is important to address it generally and to view it as a useful earning moment for enterprise security practitioners. Specifically, the issue is election security -- that is, ensuring secure, reliable, free and fair elections.

A Learning Moment?

This may strike some as a contentious thing to say at first. After all, the front page of a municipality, state, or even a civilian federal agency almost certainly is not a participant in the election process in any real or direct way.

For example, the server that runs California's homepage (www.ca.gov) is almost certainly not used to directly support any election in California. It is unlikely to be part of the same infrastructure, and it's a good bet it's not even in the same datacenter.

Still, looking at the Chrome 68 HTTPS notification change could be a useful learning moment. Why? Because, despite a significant amount of time to prepare -- and vocal warnings from the technology community at large -- not every state was able to prepare equally.

This is in part because there's a sizable surface area involved: Each state and municipality is responsible for ensuring that its own resources are taken care of and moved to HTTPS within the time window. Because that responsibility is distributed, each set of personnel is responsible for getting learning about the change, understanding its significance, and taking the right action to address it.

This is, in fact, similar to where the U.S. is with election security. I've made the point in the past that election security is a fairly asymmetric contest from a security perspective. Meaning, on offense you have one or more nation states that are well funded, that operate around the clock, that are sitting on a stockpile of zero-day vulnerabilities, and that have dedicated engineering staff that are among the best in the world at breaking into stuff.

On defense you have a state or municipality -- say for example Manchester, New Hampshire. Is it reasonable to expect an individual state or city to defend against a dedicated target attack under the circumstances outlined? It's difficult, because responsibility and resources for defense are spread thin and are distributed, while the offense is centralized and coordinated.

What I think really drives the point home is that replacing a certificate on a website is a relatively trivial affair, while securing the technology side of a major election is anything but. The fact that the U.S. demonstrably has been having challenges doing the easy part doesn't inspire confidence about the ability to do the hard part down the road. When the stakes involve a minor website UI issue, maybe that's OK. When it's instead the fundamental principle on which your system of government rests, maybe it's less so.

Adapting for Businesses

Of course, while election security is interesting from a theoretical point of view, the more salient point for security practitioners is how we can adapt these implications and lessons into securing our businesses.

There are, after all, situations that occur in business that have similar dynamics to both election security and the HTTPS issue. For example, you may have multiple business units that are distributed. You may work for a holding company or other organizational structure where distributed security-relevant tasks need to be performed by multiple different people throughout the organization. If so, there are a few things you can do to help ensure a positive and consistent outcome.

First is to improve communication. Having a reliable mechanism for sharing information about security-relevant tasks -- both what needs to be done and how to do them -- is a useful starting point.

Second, establishing clear accountability and ownership for security tasks ensures that as staff members become alerted to what they need to do and how to do it, they can be chartered with executing to make sure it happens.

Third, where there's asymmetry -- for example situations in which individual business units or departments are likely to be attacked by adversaries that disproportionately are better equipped than they are -- introducing an element of standardization or centralization can help offset an attacker's advantages.

At the end of the day, we can take away quite a few lessons. Paying attention to how these two issues interrelate both informs us about the seriousness of election security and gives us information that we can adapt for defending the organizations we're chartered to protect.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ECT News Network.

Ed Moyle is general manager and chief content officer at Prelude Institute. He has been an ECT News Network columnist since 2007. His extensive background in computer security includes experience in forensics, application penetration testing, information security audit and secure solutions development. Ed is co-author of Cryptographic Libraries for Developers and a frequent contributor to the information security industry as author, public speaker and analyst.


Is it hot enough for you? Five of the hottest years on record have occurred in the last eight years . Its not just temperature. This summer, the Mendocino Complex Fire became the largest in recorded California history. From simple increases in temperatures to complex feedback effects on ocean currents, weather patterns, and hydrological cycles, the consequences of human-driven climate change are no longer distant theoretical threats, but the subject of near-daily headline news. And yet far too many students are still not learning about this urgent problem in their science classrooms.

The consequences of global warming shouldnt have come as a surprise. The recognition that carbon dioxide in the atmosphere keeps our planet warm dates back to the 19th century. As early as the 1950s, scientists warned that the release of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels would increase Earths temperature. In 1995, the international climate science community concluded that the impact of human activities on the climate was unequivocal.

Yet many Americans do not accept the scientific consensus that the world is warming owing to human activity. According to a March 2018 survey, only 58 percent of Americans agree that global warming is mostly human-caused . Alarmingly, public opinion is sharply divided along political lines: According to the same survey, 84 percent of liberal Democrats accept that climate change is caused mostly by human activities, compared to 26 percent of conservative Republicans.

The divergence between public opinion and scientific consensus on climate change is political also in its causethe result, at least in part, of a well-funded campaign to dispute the scientific findings and discredit the climate science community, fueled by a toxic combination of ideology, politics, and corporate self-interest. Dismayingly, the campaign to cast doubt on the scientific evidence for human-caused climate change echoes loudly in our nations science classrooms.

In just the past three years, the legislatures in state after stateincluding Idaho, Iowa, Nebraska, New Mexico, and West Virginiahave launched attacks on the treatment of climate change in state science education standards. My organization, the National Center for Science Education, has worked with local educators, scientists, and concerned citizens to successfully thwart most of these attacks. Every year, we win battle after battlebut we see little sign that the war is over.

The campaign to dispute the scientific consensus has been effective even among those who are responsible for teaching the next generation about the nature of science and evidence. In the 201415 academic year, NCSE and researchers at Pennsylvania State University conducted a rigorous national survey asking secondary public school science teachers a series of detailed questions about what they know, and what they teach, about climate change.

When asked, What proportion of climate scientists think that global warming is caused mostly by human activities? only about 40 percent of the responding teachers chose the correct answer: 81 to 100 percent. Its not surprising then that nearly 60 percent of teachers report encouraging their students to debate the causes of climate changea topic no more scientifically controversial than photosynthesis.

It would be unfair to blame teachers for this sorry state of affairs. The sources of information on which they relytextbooks, state science standards, and professional developmentlag behind the scientific consensus. In the NCSE/Penn State survey, 57 percent of teachers reported having received no formal instruction in climate change whatsoever; only 11 percent reported having completed one or more courses entirely focused on climate change.

Inadequate training deters teachers from presenting climate change in accordance with the scientific consensus. But so does the ideological polarization of public opinion on climate change. Many educators teach in communities where fear of conflict with their students, colleagues, or other community members is reasonable. Such concerns result in the adoption of teaching practices aimed at defusing potential conflicts that are nevertheless scientifically or pedagogically problematic.

In light of all these obstacles to teaching climate change, its easy to feel discouraged. But three facts offer hope for the future:

1. Science teachers are hungry for more information on climate change. Two thirds of the teachers in the NCSE/Penn State survey said that they would be interested in a professional-development course focused on climate change. As more and more states adopt the Next Generation Science Standards, which cover climate change thoroughly, science teachers will increasingly receive training on climate change, boosting their knowledge and confidence.

2. There is an abundance of available evidence. There are so many different lines of evidence for climate change, and the evidence is so clear, that it is entirely feasible to develop inquiry-based climate change lessons for any middle or high school science class: general science, biology, chemistry, physics, environmental science, or Earth science. Once science teachers have the knowledge and confidence to teach climate change, they will be able to find opportunities to do so.

3. Teaching climate change is compatible with different religious and political positions. With the help of gifted climate change communicators like Katharine Hayhoe and Kerry Emanuel, who show that it is possible to accept the science of climate change while being a devout evangelical or a firm conservative, science teachers and the general public can come to appreciate that scienceand science educationisnt partisan. In fact, there is overwhelming, if unheralded, public support for teaching about climate change .

At NCSE, we are working with teachers, scientists, and climate change communications experts to develop lessons that address the most common misconceptions about climate change by engaging directly with the relevant scientific data. Early results suggest the lessons are effective, even in communities in which acceptance of climate change is low. We are now also supporting teacher ambassadors who will provide local peer-to-peer training in the use of these lessons.

It can be discouraging to recognize that the scientific consensus on climate change that emerged more than 30 years ago is not yet accepted by the American public. But if we work together to help teachers learn and confidently teach the science, the next generation not only will be fully informed, but also will have gained the experience of scientific thinking and problem-solving that will help them meet the challenges they will face in a warming world.
Researchers in Israel have conducted the first systematic study of hydrogen detection through Extraordinary Hall Effect in CoPd alloy thin films. The technique could improve hydrogen's safety and efficiency as a clean energy source.

WASHINGTON, D.C., September 12, 2018 -- Researchers looking to hydrogen as a next-generation clean energy source are developing hydrogen-sensing technologies capable of detecting leaks in hydrogen-powered vehicles and fueling stations before the gas turns into an explosion. The most common type of hydrogen sensors is composed of palladium-based thin films because palladium (Pd), a silvery-white metal resembling platinum, readily absorbs hydrogen gas. However, Pd also readily absorbs other gases, decreasing the overall efficiency of these sensors.

Alexander Gerber's research team at Tel Aviv University recently conducted a systematic study of hydrogen detection using the Extraordinary Hall Effect (EHE) to measure the hydrogen magnetization response in cobalt-palladium (CoPd) thin films. The team reports the findings in the Journal of Applied Physics, from AIP Publishing.

"We found that detection of hydrogen by EHE really works with very high sensitivity," said Alexander Gerber, an author on the paper. "A goal would be to develop a compact EHE device compatible with a standard four-probe resistance measuring method to enhance gas detection through a magnetic type of sensor using the spintronics effect."

The burgeoning field of spintronics exploits an electron's spin and its resulting magnetic properties. In essence, EHE is a spin-dependent phenomenon that generates voltage proportional to magnetization across a current-carrying magnetic film.

Otherwise known as the anomalous Hall effect, EHE occurs in ferromagnetic materials and can be much larger than the ordinary Hall effect. Although palladium has high hydrogen absorption capacity, it's not ferromagnetic by itself. So, the researchers added cobalt, a ferromagnetic material whose magnetic properties are affected by the hydrogen absorption in CoPd alloys to induce EHE.

The researchers prepared four sets of samples with thicknesses of 7, 14, 70 and 100 nanometers with varying cobalt concentrations and tested them in an atmosphere with different levels of hydrogen up to 4 percent. They found that the thinnest films demonstrated the largest absolute response to hydrogen: The signal changes by more than 500 percent per 1 percent of hydrogen.

"In practical terms, we identified the sensitive range of compositions, how the response to hydrogen depends on composition, and what the options are to operate the sensor," Gerber said.

Gerber's research team is now in the process of recording response times and exploring the ability to release hydrogen after exposure so sensors can be reused. The researchers also plan to explore ways to improve selectivity of hydrogen and adapt their technique for selective detection of other gases.

###

The article, "Detection of hydrogen by the extraordinary Hall effect in CoPd alloys," is authored by Sudhansu Sekhar Das, Gregory Kopnov and Alexander Gerber. The article appeared in the Journal of Applied Physics Sept. 11, 2018 (DOI: 10.1063/1.5049647). After that date, it can be accessed at http://aip.scitation.org/doi/full/10.1063/1.5049647.

ABOUT THE JOURNAL

The Journal of Applied Physics is an influential international journal publishing significant new experimental and theoretical results of applied physics research. See http://jap.aip.org.
A Norwegian-Danish study shows that breast cancer mortality is indeed declining, but not due to screening for breast cancer. Associate Professor Henrik Stvring from Denmark thinks it is time to consider alternatives to mammography screening.

Fewer and fewer women die from breast cancer in recent years but, surprisingly, the decline is just as large in the age groups that are not screened. The decline is therefore due to better treatment and not screening for breast cancer.

This is shown by a major Danish-Norwegian study, Effect of organised mammography screening on breast cancer mortality: A populationbased cohort study in Norway, which has just been published in the scientific journal International Journal of Cancer.

In the study, the researchers followed all Norwegian women aged 30-89 and identified those who developed breast cancer in the period 1987-2010, before subsequently comparing the number of deaths before and after the screening programme was introduced.

As Associate Professor Henrik Stvring from Aarhus University, Denmark, notes, the result does not favour the breast cancer screening programme. This conclusion can also be transferred directly to Denmark (and elsewhere), where all women aged 50-69 are offered mammography screening - which is an X-ray examination of the chest - every second year. The Danish screening programme was progressively introduced from the early 1990s and was offered nationally to everyone from 2007, three years after the Norwegians, who have supplied data for the Danish-Norwegian research project.

"The important result is that we do not find a beneficial effect of breast cancer screening any longer. The original randomised trials examining breast cancer screening were conducted way back in the 1980s, and they showed an effect, but the fact is that the better the treatment methods become, the less benefit screening has," says Henrik Stvring, who is associate professor at the Department of Public Health with biostatistics and screening programmes as his particular areas of expertise.

Here he points towards one of the paradoxes of screening - the popular but erroneous belief that if breast cancer patients who have been screened 'live longer' than other breast cancer patients, then screening works. The problem is that with screening, medical doctors detect cancerous tumours earlier than they would otherwise have done, and thus move the point of diagnosis forward in time. But even if someone who has been screened lives longer as a patient, it is not certain that their life as a whole will be longer. It is important to account for this fact, and the new study shows that screening does not lead to women living longer overall - and this is the study's most important finding.

"The women who are invited to screening live longer because all breast cancer patients live longer, and they do so because we now have better drugs and more effective chemotherapy, and because we have cancer care pathways, which means the healthcare system reacts faster than it did a decade ago. But it does not appear that fewer women die of breast cancer as a result of mammography screening," says Henrik Stvring.

He also points out that it is not always beneficial for a woman to be diagnosed with a tiny cancerous growth of e.g. a millimetre in diameter at a mammography. Some of these small nodules are so slow-growing that the woman would have died a so-called natural death with undiagnosed cancer, if she had not been screened.

"Now what happens is these women are instead given a diagnosis which isn't going to make anyone happier. Such a breast cancer diagnosis both makes life more difficult and costs a lot of money, but does not ultimately make a difference. The problem is that we are not currently able to tell the difference between the small cancer tumours that will kill you and those that will not," says Henrik Stvring.

Here he addresses the issue of overdiagnosis which is a growing problem in all Western countries where the approach to medicine and examinations is extensive and where national screening programmes are prevalent. A problem that was last week discussed in Copenhagen, Denmark, where 450 researchers from thirty countries attended the Preventing Overdiagnosis 2018 conference.

Even though the research results challenge the current health policy in Denmark, Norway and the rest of the Western world, Henrik Stvring is not in the business of telling Danish politicians that they should stop the national screening programme here and now:

"It's certainly not my task to decide how the research results should be used, but my suggestion would nonetheless be that we should get together and begin to investigate whether it would beneficial to do something other than screening and whether this could have a better effect. If a doctor could instead examine women's breasts with his or her hands, what is known as palpation, at regular intervals, then we would avoid much of the overdiagnosis," says Henrik Stvring.

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The research results - more information

The study is a cohort study with follow-up of all Norwegian women aged 30-89 in the period 1987-2010.

Henrik Stvring's collaborators have been: Mette H. Mller, MSc in Public Health, Aarhus University; Mette Lise Lousdal, PhD student, Department of Public Health, Aarhus University; and Professor Ivar S. Kristiansen, Oslo University in Norway.
Summary of scientific evidence available to inform governments and businesses on Natural Capital approach

Four new reports on Natural Capital published today will enable governments and businesses to take an evidence-based approach to valuing the UK's natural assets.

Natural Capital refers to the assets within our natural environment that provide benefits for humans. Plants, animals, freshwater, soil, minerals, air and oceans all contribute to Natural Capital.

The concept lies at the heart of the UK Government's recently published 25 Year Environment Plan and is set to play an increasingly influential role in public policy and business decision-making.

The new reports, published by the Valuing Nature Programme, which is co-ordinated by the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH), summarise the science available to inform a Natural Capital approach in four key areas:

The Natural Capital valuation of floodplains in relation to preventing floods, storing carbon, and supporting biodiversity.

The Natural Capital valuation of soil in relation to producing food, storing carbon and regulating water supply.

Natural Capital trade-offs from the afforestation of peatlands in relation to the effect on storing carbon, controlling water supply, supporting biodiversity, providing recreational spaces and preserving a record of the past.

How businesses are using Natural Capital assessments in practice.

A fifth report, on the Natural Capital of temporary rivers, has already been published, highlighting their varied benefits including supporting biodiversity plus drought and flood control.

The reports, funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), also identify evidence gaps and make recommendations for further collaborative action by government, business and academia.

For example, the authors recommend further research into the effect of changes in land use and climate on soil, and identify the need for better datasets to enable monetary assessments of Natural Capital.

Dr Anita Weatherby of CEH, who manages the Valuing Nature Programme said: "The Valuing Nature Programme works to make knowledge from diverse research disciplines easier for decision-makers to use.

"These reports summarise the evidence available to inform a Natural Capital approach, and show some of the challenges where further research is needed."

Dr Peter Young, chair of the Business Interest Group for the Valuing Nature Programme, said "The UK has a world-class research capability in understanding and valuing the natural environment, but outputs are often hard for mainstream business to access and interpret.

"These reports provide accessible and authoritative knowledge which can be readily applied by all who impact on relevant natural assets as part of their core activities."

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Contact information:

For interviews with Dr Anita Weatherby or the reports' authors, please contact Simon Williams, Media Relations Officer at the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, on 07920 295384 or simwil@ceh.ac.uk

The reports:

Soil Natural Capital valuation in agri-food businesses

Authors: Victoria Janes Bassett and Jessica Davies, of Lancaster University http://valuing-nature.net/SoilNC

The Natural Capital of floodplains: management, protection and restoration to deliver greater benefits

Authors: Clare Lawson, Emma Rothero and David Gowing of The Open University; Tom Nisbet, Nadia Barsoum and Samantha Broadmeadow of Forest Research; and Ann Skinner of the River Restoration Centre http://valuing-nature.net/FloodplainNC

Natural Capital trade-offs in afforested peatlands: Evidence synthesis and needs for the future of peatland forestry and forest-to-bog restoration

Authors: Richard Payne and William Jessop, of the University of York http://valuing-nature.net/ForestedPeatNC

Monetary Natural Capital assessment in the private sector: A review of current status and research needs

Authors: Rose Pritchard and Dan van der Horst, of the University of Edinburgh http://valuing-nature.net/PrivateSectorNC

The Natural Capital of temporary rivers: Characterising the value of dynamic aquatic terrestrial habitats

Authors: Rachel Stubbington, of Nottingham Trent University; Judy England, of the Environment Agency; Mike Acreman, of the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology; Paul J. Wood, of Loughborough University; Chris Westwood, of Environmental Research Associates-UK; Phil Boon, Freshwater Biological Association; Chris Mainstone, of Natural England; Craig Macadam, of Buglife; Adam Bates, of Nottingham Trent University; Andy House, of Wessex Water; Didac Jorda-Capdevila, of the Catalan Institute for Water Research http://valuing-nature.net/TemporaryRiverNC

Notes for editors

The Valuing Nature Programme is a five-year 7m initiative funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). Its aim is to improve understanding of the value of nature both in non-economic and economic terms, and to improve the use of these valuations in decision making. Co-ordinated by a multidisciplinary team and led by the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, it funds research and also support researchers in making links with policymakers, businesses and practitioners through the Valuing Nature Network. http://valuing-nature.net Twitter @ValuingN

Funding. These reports were funded by NERC, the UK's main agency for funding and managing research, training and knowledge exchange in the environmental sciences. Its work covers the full range of atmospheric, Earth, biological, terrestrial and aquatic science, from the deep oceans to the upper atmosphere and from the poles to the equator. NERC co-ordinates some of the world's most exciting research projects, tackling major issues such as climate change, environmental influences on human health, the genetic make-up of life on Earth, and much more. NERC is part of UK Research & Innovation, a non-departmental public body funded by a grant-in-aid from the UK government.
Nat Fisch, associate director for academic affairs at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), and professor of astrophysical sciences and director of the Program in Plasma Physics at Princeton University, has received a 2018 Distinguished Career Award from Fusion Power Associates (FPA). The FPA is a research and educational foundation that provides students, media and the public with information about the status of fusion development and other applications of plasma science. It will present the award to Fisch at its 39th annual meeting and symposium in Washington, D.C., in December.

The award recognizes Fisch, whose research has opened new paths in the study of controlled fusion energy and plasma science, for his "many years of dedication to plasma science and its applications in many fields, and to advancing the prospects for fusion power." It especially notes his "decades of career contributions as a scientist" and "role as an educator of a generation of younger scientists, upon whose shoulders the future of plasma science and fusion depends."

Fisch expressed gratitude for the recognition and said, "I am honored to receive this award, yet the notion of a career award carries for me a scary connotation of finality or completion for which I am hopelessly unready. Hence, I was particularly heartened by the example set by Steve Cowley, who, having received this award in 2017, then went on to undertake ever grander professional challenges including becoming this year the director of PPPL."

Fisch joined PPPL in 1978 after earning his doctorate from MIT. "It is, indeed, time for Nat's third career," said Cowley. "Nat is one of the most original thinkers in plasma science and he has made a huge contribution to our laboratory."

The FPA recognition is the latest for Fisch, a fellow of the American Physical Society (APS) and former Guggenheim fellow. His past honors include the APS Award for Excellence in Plasma Physics in 1992; the DOE Bronze Medal for Outstanding Mentor in 2002; the DOE Ernest O. Lawrence Award in 2004; the APS James Clerk Maxwell Prize for Plasma Physics in 2005; and the European Physical Society's Hannes Alfven Prize in 2015.

At Princeton, Fisch enjoys teaching the first-year introductory graduate course in plasma physics. As director of the Program in Plasma Physics, he takes pride in the varied accomplishments of graduates of the program. "It is a source of great satisfaction to me that many of our students have gone on to become leaders in the field of plasma physics and also that many have gone on to a variety of successful careers in other fields as well," he said.

PPPL, on Princeton University's Forrestal Campus in Plainsboro, N.J., is devoted to creating new knowledge about the physics of plasmas -- ultra-hot, charged gases -- and to developing practical solutions for the creation of fusion energy. The Laboratory is managed by the University for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science, which is the largest single supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit science.energy.gov.

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Evidence suggests that stone mortars from Raqefet Cave, Israel, were used in brewing cereal-based beer millennia before the establishment of sedentary villages and cereal agriculture

Amsterdam, September 12, 2018

A new study published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports suggests beer brewing practices existed in the Eastern Mediterranean over five millennia before the earliest known evidence, discovered in northern China. In an archaeological collaboration project between Stanford University in the United States, and University of Haifa, Israel, archeologists analyzed three stone mortars from a 13,000-year old Natufian burial cave site in Israel. Their analysis confirmed that these mortars were used for brewing of wheat/barley, as well as for food storage.

Alcohol making and food storage were among the major technological innovations that eventually led to the development of civilizations in the world, and archaeological science is a powerful means to help reveal their origins and decode their contents, said Li Liu, PhD, Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures, Stanford University, USA. We are excited to have the opportunity to present our findings, which shed new light on a deeper history of human society.

The earliest archaeological evidence for cereal-based beer brewing even before the advent of agriculture comes from the Natufians, semi-sedentary, foraging people, living in the Eastern Mediterranean between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic periods, following the last Ice Age. The Natufians at Raqefet Cave collected locally available plants, stored malted seeds, and made beer as a part of their rituals.

The Natufian remains in Raqefet Cave never stop surprising us, said Prof. Dani Nadel, Zinman Institute of Archaeology, University of Haifa, Israel, who was also an excavator of the site. We exposed a Natufian burial area with about 30 individuals; a wealth of small finds such as flint tools, animal bones and ground stone implements, and about 100 stone mortars and cupmarks. Some of the skeletons are well-preserved and provided direct dates and even human DNA, and we have evidence for flower burials and wakes by the graves.

And now, with the production of beer, the Raqefet Cave remains provide a very vivid and colorful picture of Natufian lifeways, their technological capabilities and inventions.

After five seasons of excavations and a wide range of studies, the current study employed experimental archaeology, contextual examination, use-wear and residue analyses. The results indicate that the Natufians exploited at least seven plant types associated with the mortars, including wheat or barley, oat, legumes and bast fibers (including flax). They packed plant-foods in fiber-made containers and stored them in boulder mortars. They used bedrock mortars for pounding and cooking plant-foods, and for brewing wheat/barley-based beer, likely served in ritual feasts 13,000 years ago.

The use-wear patterns and microbotanical assemblage suggest that two of the three examined boulder mortars were used as storage containers for plant foods  including wheat/barley malts. Likely, they were covered with lids, probably made of stone slabs and other materials. The foods are likely to have been placed in baskets made of bast fibers for easy handing. The deep narrow shafts may have provided cool conditions suitable for storing food, especially for keeping cereal malts.

Combining use-wear and residue data, the third mortar studied was interpreted as a multi-functional vessel for food preparation, which included pounding plant foods and brewing wheat/barley-based beer, probably with legumes and other plants as additive ingredients.

The evidence of beer brewing at Raqefet Cave 13,000 years ago provides yet another example of the complex Natufian social and ritual realms. Beer brewing may have been, at least in part, an underlying motivation to cultivate cereals in the southern Levant, supporting the beer hypothesis proposed by archaeologists more than 60 years ago.

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Notes for editors

The article is "Fermented beverage and food storage in 13,000 y-old stone mortars at Raqefet Cave, Israel: Investigating Natufian ritual feasting," by Li Liu, Jiajing Wang, Danny Rosenberg, Hao Zhao, Gyorgy Lengyel, Dani Nadel (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2018.08.008). It appears in Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, volume 21 (October 2018), published by Elsevier.

Copies of this paper are available to credentialed journalists upon request; please contact the Elsevier Newsroom at newsroom@elsevier.com. Journalists who wish to interview Dr. Li Liu should contact Melissa De Witte, Stanford University at mdewitte@stanford.edu or +1 650 725 9281. To interview Prof. Dani Nadel, journalists should contact the University of Haifa Communications at press@univ.haifa.ac.il or +972 54 219 39 69.

About Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports

The Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports is aimed at archaeologists and scientists engaged with the application of scientific techniques and methodologies to all areas of archaeology. The journal focuses on the results of the application of scientific methods to archaeological problems and debates. It will provide a forum for reviews and scientific debate of issues in scientific archaeology and their impact in the wider subject.

The Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports will publish papers of excellent archaeological science, with regional or wider interest. This will include case studies, reviews and short papers where an established scientific technique sheds light on archaeological questions and debates.

About Elsevier Elsevier is a global information analytics business that helps institutions and professionals advance healthcare, open science and improve performance for the benefit of humanity. Elsevier provides digital solutions and tools in the areas of strategic research management, R&D performance, clinical decision support and professional education, including ScienceDirect, Scopus, SciVal, ClinicalKey and Sherpath. Elsevier publishes over 2,500 digitized journals, including The Lancet and Cell, more than 38,000 e-book titles and many iconic reference works, including Gray's Anatomy. Elsevier is part of RELX Group, a global provider of information and analytics for professionals and business customers across industries. http://www.elsevier.com

Media contact

Marina Spasov, Global Communications

Elsevier

newsroom@elsevier.com
SEATTLE -- September 12, 2018 -- Researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have found a specific strain of Helicobacter pylori strongly correlated with stomach cancer. The research, published in the journal PLOS ONE, could eventually be used to shape treatment and screening strategies for patients.

Collaborating with researchers at Zhengzhou University, the Fred Hutch team ran tests on 49 patients' stomach endoscopy and stool samples, looking for H. pylori with a variant of the cagA gene, known as EPIYA D. They found 91 percent of the patients with the EPIYA D strain also had cancer.

"We've known the H. pylori bacterium has a strong correlation to stomach cancer, but it's been difficult to pinpoint why certain patients, especially in areas like Northeast Asia, are more susceptible to stomach cancer," said Dr. Nina Salama, senior author of the study and a member of Fred Hutch's Human Biology and Public Health Sciences divisions. "While it's preliminary in nature, these results could be the first step towards identifying the highest risk groups and improving screening and treatment plans."

H. pylori is a spiral-shaped bacterium that grows in the mucus layer that coats the inside of the human stomach and causes ulcers. More than 50 percent of the world's population is believed to have the infectious disease, which is the primary identified cause of stomach cancer. According to the World Health Organization, stomach cancer was the fourth most common cause of cancer death in 2015, killing over 750,000 people globally.

"Unfortunately, infections like H. pylori directly or indirectly, cause up to 20 percent of cancers worldwide," added Salama. "But knowing the cause gives us a clear target to develop vaccines for prevention or tools to better recognize risk."

The research team acknowledges the small number of participants in the study and limits the conclusions that can be drawn. The research teams from Fred Hutch and Zhengzhou University are hopeful to collaborate further on a much larger study.

The full study can be found here: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0202925

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At Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, home to three Nobel laureates, interdisciplinary teams of world-renowned scientists seek new and innovative ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer, HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening diseases. Fred Hutch's pioneering work in bone marrow transplantation led to the development of immunotherapy, which harnesses the power of the immune system to treat cancer. An independent, nonprofit research institute based in Seattle, Fred Hutch houses the nation's first National Cancer Institute-funded cancer prevention research program, as well as the clinical coordinating center of the Women's Health Initiative and the international headquarters of the HIV Vaccine Trials Network.

CONTACT

Tom Kim

206-667-6240

tomkim@fredhutch.org
WASHINGTON, DC, Sept 13th, 2018 - Pharmaceutical R&D efficiency has declined to a stall, as clinical trial failure rates for new drug IND's top out over 90%, and the cost to bring one new small molecule drug to market now exceeds $2.5 billion. In parallel, healthcare costs in developed countries are steadily increasing as a result of rapidly aging populations and multiple inefficiencies in the healthcare system. Recent advances in artificial intelligence research and development hold the potential to resolve these ominous trends. As a sign of the growing interest in AI based healthcare solutions, over 100 startup companies utilizing AI to develop biomedical products have emerged since 2014, with almost all existing large cap companies initiating AI development programs in order to keep up.

"We are on the cusp of major breakthroughs in the application of machine learning, computational science, and artificial intelligence, which carry the potential to dramatically improve the quality and affordability of healthcare globally and look forward to participation in AAIH as a mechanism to foster continued growth," says Brandon Allgood, CTO and Founder of Numerate Inc.

To accelerate the adoption of AI in healthcare, improve transparency and promote collaboration, leading members of the AI community have come together to collaborate and establish the Alliance for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare (AAIH), an industry-wide research collaboration platform. The founding members of the Alliance for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare (AAIH) met on September 6th during Boston Biotech Week (Boston, MA), and are meeting on September 13th during the Basel Life Congress (Basel, Switzerland) to finalize plans for the activities for the first 12 months of AAIH operations. The AAIH will officially launch in January 2019 during the week of the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco. The AAIH will foster research collaborations, improve data sharing, and promote key research results to accelerate biomedical research while implementing and adhering to high standards.

The potential of Artificial Intelligence to positively impact all aspects of healthcare has become an international discussion. The AAIH will be a key industry advocate, driving public policy, appropriate regulation, and market access for the products developed by the AI in healthcare industry. "If we are to build upon our recent industry success, and realize the true potential of AI, it is crucial that the sector organize immediately to enact policies and practices that will enable efficient adoption, integration, and commercialization," said Alex Zhavoronkov, CEO of Insilico Medicine.

The membership of AAIH includes the following areas of AI infrastructure and applications in healthcare: Biomedical discovery, Clinical Research, Diagnostics and Devices, and Precision Medicine. "It is the privilege of AAIH to unify and amplify the voice of companies and organizations from all sectors utilizing AI in healthcare," said Annastasiah Mhaka from Adjuvant Partners.

The list of AAIH Founding Members include:

AI Infrastructure developer (to be announced)

Benevolent AI

BlackThorn Therapeutics

The Buck Institute for Research on Aging

Cyclica

Envisagenics

BioPharma 1 (to be announced)

GE Healthcare

Insilico Medicine

BioPharma 2 (to be announced)

NuMedii

Numerate

OWKIN

Recursion

University of Pittsburgh

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Media Contacts

Dan Eramian

Opus Biotech Communications

danieleramian@comcast.net

425-306-8716

Charles Craig

Opus Biotech Communications

Charles.s.craig@gmail.com

404-245-0591

About Insilico Medicine, Inc

Insilico Medicine, Inc. is an artificial intelligence company headquartered at the Emerging Technology Centers at the Johns Hopkins University Montgomery County campus in Rockville, with R&D and management resources in Belgium, Hong Kong, Ukraine, Russia, UK, Taiwan, and Korea sourced through hackathons and competitions. The company and its scientists are dedicated to extending human productive longevity and transforming every step of the drug discovery and drug development process through excellence in biomarker discovery, drug development, digital medicine, and aging research.

Insilico pioneered the applications of the generative adversarial networks (GANs) and reinforcement learning for generation of novel molecular structures for the diseases with a known target and with no known targets. In addition to working collaborations with the large pharmaceutical companies, the company is pursuing internal drug discovery programs in cancer, dermatological diseases, fibrosis, Parkinson's Disease, Alzheimer's Disease, ALS, diabetes, sarcopenia, and aging. Through a partnership with LifeExtension.com, the company launched a range of nutraceutical products compounded using the advanced bioinformatics techniques and deep learning approaches. It also provides a range of consumer-facing applications including Young.AI.

In 2017, NVIDIA selected Insilico Medicine as one of the Top 5 AI companies in its potential for social impact. In 2018, the company was named one of the global top 100 AI companies by CB Insights. In 2018 it received the Frost & Sullivan 2018 North American Artificial Intelligence for Aging Research and Drug Development Award accompanied with the industry brief. Brief company video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l62jlwgL3v8.
An international group of researchers (the first author is Nikita Kalinin, Higher School of Economics - Saint-Petersburg, the last author is Ernesto Lupercio, CINVESTAV, Mexico) has presented the first continuous model describing self-organised criticality. The proposed solution is simpler and more universal than the classical sandpile model: it integrates areas as remote from one another as economics, developmental biology and gravity in the context of tropical geometry. The paper was published in PNAS: http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2018/08/14/1805847115.

A system is said to be in a critical state if an external force, however small, can produce an avalanche effect causing a change in the system's behaviour. These include, for example, phase transitions: once a single ice crystal emerges in the water cooled to zero degrees Celsius, an ice cluster will immediately begin to form.

There are certain dynamical systems which tend towards a critical state; earthquakes are an illustrative example. While a certain temperature and pressure are required for water to freeze, no precise parameters need to be met for an earthquake to happen. The main cause of earthquakes is the continuous movement of tectonic plates, and predicting the exact moment when the system will achieve a critical state and produce an avalanche is virtually impossible.

Many researchers have attempted to solve the mystery of earthquakes. In the mid-Twentieth century, American seismologists Gutenberg and Richter showed a relationship between the magnitude and total number of earthquakes in any given region. This relationship is described by the power law expressed as a straight line on a double logarithmic scale.

Phenomena sharing this characteristic have since been found in geophysics, cosmology, economics, risk management theory and other fields. All of them can be described by the theory of self-organised criticality (SOC).

The concept of SOC was introduced by Per Bak, Chao Tang and Kurt Wiesenfeld in 1987. In their seminal paper, they put forward the archetypical example of a SOC system: the Sandpile Model. Imagine a square grid with sand grains in each of its vertices, where new grains are falling on the grid at a certain frequency. It is assumed that if there are no more than three sand grains in each vertex, the system will remain stable. But as soon as a fourth sand grain falls on top of a vertex, it topples, and the sand slides down this peak and gets redistributed to neighbouring vertices. The toppling will continue in an avalanche until the system returns to equilibrium. The physicists' key discovery was that the number of vertices which topple (i.e. the size of the collapsed region) satisfies a power-law distribution.

The sandpile model has long been the classical model describing SOC. However, it describes the dynamics of critical systems only at the phenomenological level and cannot be used to simulate an earthquake or predict the behaviour of a real sandpile.

"The old sandpile model, being purely combinational, stands somewhat apart from the big world of mathematics. Our model is a step forward, because it has all the advantages of the sandpile model but it is also geometric and continuous, making it much easier to use", explains the author Nikita Kalinin, Senior Research Fellow of the HSE International Laboratory of Game Theory and Decision Making. "We have shown that power law correlations can be obtained in a continuous system which is not a cellular automaton with the help of tropical geometry that has many applications today".

"Tropical geometry is a XXI century branch of geometry inspired by classical algebraic geometry that has flourished because of it connections to many fields of science, primarily string theory", says Dr. Ernesto Lupercio from the CINVESTAV.

Instead of the grid used in the classical sandpile model, the new tropical sandpile model considers a tropical curve -- a planar graph with rectilinear edges -- enclosed in a square. The curve divides the square into polygonal regions, each containing a randomly chosen set of points. When a new point is added, the tropical curve tries to pass through it, and the polygonal region containing the point is pulled together via a parallel transfer of its edges. As soon as one of the edges hits the point, the process stops. A new point is then added, and it starts all over again. The previous point may be off the curve again, and the system will start moving towards it.

This convergence process is a finite variant of adding sand grains to a sandpile. In the new model, the avalanche size corresponds to the area swept by the converging regions in the process initiated by adding a random point.

The scientists hope that their model will help clarify the relationships between different phenomena manifesting SOC properties.

"We can observe similarities in different phenomena seen through the lens of mathematics. Tropical geometry has applications in string theory, economics and developmental biology. The value of our work lies precisely in finding connections in unexpected places. It means that the methods applied to one area can be applied to another one. You only need to take the next step", according to Kalinin.

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Article looks at the tobacco industry's master settlement agreement and what lessons can be applied to the opioid crisis, gun violence

Gun violence, obesity, and the misuse of opioids and alcohol are responsible for roughly 374,000 deaths--15 percent of all deaths--each year in the United States. To protect the public from harmful products, legal action can be used against industries, one example of which--a settlement with the tobacco industry--offers useful lessons for confronting several of today's public health epidemics.

In an article published Sept. 13 in the New England Journal of Medicine, Cheryl Healton, dean of the NYU College of Global Public Health, discusses the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement between the tobacco industry and 46 state attorneys general, five territories, and Washington, D.C. As the largest legal settlement ever executed in the United States, the Master Settlement Agreement reduced smoking rates, saved lives, and was deemed a victory for public health.

"Given its success, the agreement has enormous promise as a model for similar litigation or settlements that could hold industries accountable when they knowingly deceive and injure consumers with their products," Healton writes.

Prior to becoming the dean of the NYU College of Global Public Health, Healton was the founding president and CEO of the American Legacy Foundation, the tobacco control organization created by the Master Settlement Agreement. She guided the national youth tobacco prevention counter-marketing campaign, truth, which has been credited with reducing youth smoking prevalence to record lows. Healton's NEJM Perspective encourages similar mass education campaigns to address other major public health problems.

As states' chief legal officers, attorneys general are most often elected by voters, but in some states and territories are appointed by the governor, state legislature, or state Supreme Court. 2018 is a critical year for attorneys general: 30 states are holding elections and several others will appoint new attorneys general.

Attorneys general are responsible for protecting the public and can intervene--individually or collectively--through litigation when public health is threatened. Healton writes that several of the country's most serious public health problems are and should be targets for state attorneys general, including the opioid epidemic, gun violence, excessive consumption of fast food and sugar-sweetened beverages, alcohol use, and fossil fuel effects on climate and air quality. For instance, 41 attorneys general are currently suing or poised to sue opioid manufacturers or distributors, claiming that the companies violated laws by making false claims about opioids' addictiveness and safety, failing to monitor or report excessive deliveries, and allowing fraudulent prescriptions to be filled.

"The trajectory of these major public health problems could be altered by reducing industry manipulation of science and lobbying for policies against the public interest; compensating public coffers for money spent combating these epidemics and redirecting funds to prevention; and using public education, product warnings, and price increases to reduce use of harmful products," writes Healton.

An increasingly vexing epidemic--that of gun violence, including suicide--is difficult to address through action by state attorneys general as a result of the 2005 Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which shields the gun industry from litigation and, along with other state legislation, give attorneys general few avenues to pursue legal action.

"In light of this onerous, near-blanket indemnification, not afforded any other industry, education is especially critical to ensure the public is aware of and can combat this special protection which provides the gun industry a 'pass' on protecting consumers and the public at large from the untoward impacts of its products," said Healton.

Healton concludes that by using legal action to hold industries accountable, state attorneys general can and should "strengthen their roles as guardians of the health of the public."

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To read the full NEJM Perspective, visit http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1802633.

About NYU College of Global Public Health

At the NYU College of Global Public Health (NYU GPH), we are preparing the next generation of public health pioneers with the critical thinking skills, acumen, and entrepreneurial approaches necessary to reinvent the public health paradigm. Devoted to employing a nontraditional, inter-disciplinary model, NYU GPH aims to improve health worldwide through a unique blend of global public health studies, research and practice. The College is located in the heart of New York City and extends to NYU's global network on six continents. Innovation is at the core of our ambitious approach, thinking and teaching. For more, visit: http://publichealth.nyu.edu/
Quantum particles can be difficult to characterize, and almost impossible to control if they strongly interact with each other -- until now.

An international team of researchers led by Princeton physicist Zahid Hasan has discovered a quantum state of matter that can be "tuned" at will -- and it's 10 times more tuneable than existing theories can explain. This level of manipulability opens enormous possibilities for next-generation nanotechnologies and quantum computing.

"We found a new control knob for the quantum topological world," said Hasan, the Eugene Higgins Professor of Physics. "We expect this is tip of the iceberg. There will be a new subfield of materials or physics grown out of this. ... This would be a fantastic playground for nanoscale engineering."

Hasan and his colleagues, whose research appears in the current issue of Nature, are calling their discovery a "novel" quantum state of matter because it is not explained by existing theories of material properties.

Hasan's interest in operating beyond the edges of known physics is what attracted Jiaxin Yin, a postdoctoral research associate and one of three co-first-authors on the paper, to his lab. Other researchers had encouraged him to tackle one of the defined questions in modern physics, Yin said.

"But when I talked to Professor Hasan, he told me something very interesting," Yin said. "He's searching for new phases of matter. The question is undefined. What we need to do is search for the question rather than the answer."

The classical phases of matter -- solids, liquids and gases -- arise from interactions between atoms or molecules. In a quantum phase of matter, the interactions take place between electrons, and are much more complex.

"This could indeed be evidence of a new quantum phase of matter -- and that's, for me, exciting," said David Hsieh, a professor of physics at the California Institute of Technology and a 2009 Ph.D. graduate of Princeton, who was not involved in this research. "They've given a few clues that something interesting may be going on, but a lot of follow-up work needs to be done, not to mention some theoretical backing to see what really is causing what they're seeing."

Hasan has been working in the groundbreaking subfield of topological materials, an area of condensed matter physics, where his team discovered topological quantum magnets a few years ago. In the current research, he and his colleagues "found a strange quantum effect on the new type of topological magnet that we can control at the quantum level," Hasan said.

The key was looking not at individual particles but at the ways they interact with each other in the presence of a magnetic field. Some quantum particles, like humans, act differently alone than in a community, Hasan said. "You can study all the details of the fundamentals of the particles, but there's no way to predict the culture, or the art, or the society, that will emerge when you put them together and they start to interact strongly with each other," he said.

To study this quantum "culture," he and his colleagues arranged atoms on the surface of crystals in many different patterns and watched what happened. They used various materials prepared by collaborating groups in China, Taiwan and Princeton. One particular arrangement, a six-fold honeycomb shape called a "kagome lattice" for its resemblance to a Japanese basket-weaving pattern, led to something startling -- but only when examined under a spectromicroscope in the presence of a strong magnetic field, equipment found in Hasan's Laboratory for Topological Quantum Matter and Advanced Spectroscopy, located in the basement of Princeton's Jadwin Hall.

All the known theories of physics predicted that the electrons would adhere to the six-fold underlying pattern, but instead, the electrons hovering above their atoms decided to march to their own drummer -- in a straight line, with two-fold symmetry.

"The electrons decided to reorient themselves," Hasan said. "They ignored the lattice symmetry. They decided that to hop this way and that way, in one line, is easier than sideways. So this is the new frontier. ... Electrons can ignore the lattice and form their own society."

This is a very rare effect, noted Caltech's Hsieh. "I can count on one hand" the number of quantum materials showing this behavior, he said.

The researchers were shocked to discover this two-fold arrangement, said Songtian Sonia Zhang, a graduate student in Hasan's lab and another co-first-author on the paper. "We had expected to find something six-fold, as in other topological materials, but we found something completely unexpected," she said. "We kept investigating -- Why is this happening? -- and we found more unexpected things. It's interesting because the theorists didn't predict it at all. We just found something new."

The decoupling between the electrons and the arrangement of atoms was surprising enough, but then the researchers applied a magnetic field and discovered that they could turn that one line in any direction they chose. Without moving the crystal lattice, Zhang could rotate the line of electrons just by controlling the magnetic field around them.

"Sonia noticed that when you apply the magnetic field, you can reorient their culture," Hasan said. "With human beings, you cannot change their culture so easily, but here it looks like she can control how to reorient the electrons' many-body culture."

The researchers can't yet explain why.

"It is rare that a magnetic field has such a dramatic effect on electronic properties of a material," said Subir Sachdev, the Herchel Smith Professor of Physics at Harvard University and chair of the physics department, who was not involved in this study.

Even more surprising than this decoupling -- called anisotropy -- is the scale of the effect, which is 100 times more than what theory predicts. Physicists characterize quantum-level magnetism with a term called the "g factor," which has no units. The g factor of an electron in a vacuum has been precisely calculated as very slightly more than two, but in this novel material, the researchers found an effective g factor of 210, when the electrons strongly interact with each other.

"Nobody predicted that in topological materials," said Hasan.

"There are many things we can calculate based on the existing theory of quantum materials, but this paper is exciting because it's showing an effect that was not known," he said. This has implications for nanotechnology research especially in developing sensors. At the scale of quantum technology, efforts to combine topology, magnetism and superconductivity have been stymied by the low effective g factors of the tiny materials.

"The fact that we found a material with such a large effective g factor, meaning that a modest magnetic field can bring a significant effect in the system -- this is highly desirable," said Hasan. "This gigantic and tunable quantum effect opens up the possibilities for new types of quantum technologies and nanotechnologies."

The discovery was made using a two-story, multi-component instrument known as a scanning tunneling spectromicroscope, operating in conjunction with a rotatable vector magnetic field capability, in the sub-basement of Jadwin Hall. The spectromicroscope has a resolution less than half the size of an atom, allowing it to scan individual atoms and detect details of their electrons while measuring the electrons' energy and spin distribution. The instrument is cooled to near absolute zero and decoupled from the floor and the ceiling to prevent even atom-sized vibrations.

"We're going down to 0.4 Kelvin. It's colder than intergalactic space, which is 2.7 Kelvin," said Hasan. "And not only that, the tube where the sample is -- inside that tube we create a vacuum condition that's more than a trillion times thinner than Earth's upper atmosphere. It took about five years to achieve these finely tuned operating conditions of the multi-component instrument necessary for the current experiment," he said.

"All of us, when we do physics, we're looking to find how exactly things are working," said Zhang. "This discovery gives us more insight into that because it's so unexpected."

By finding a new type of quantum organization, Zhang and her colleagues are making "a direct contribution to advancing the knowledge frontier -- and in this case, without any theoretical prediction," said Hasan. "Our experiments are advancing the knowledge frontier."

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The team included numerous researchers from Princeton's Department of Physics, including present and past graduate students Songtian Sonia Zhang, Ilya Belopolski, Tyler Cochran and Suyang Xu; and present and past postdoctoral research associates Jiaxin Yin, Guoqing Chang, Hao Zheng, Guang Bian and Biao Lian. Other co-authors were Hang Li, Kun Jiang, Bingjing Zhang, Cheng Xiang, Kai Liu, Tay-Rong Chang, Hsin Lin, Zhongyi Lu, Ziqiang Wang, Shuang Jia and Wenhong Wang.

The paper, "Giant and anisotropic spin-orbit tunability in a strongly correlated kagome magnet" was published in the Sept. 12 issue of Nature (DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0502-7). The work at Princeton was primarily supported by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation's Emergent Phenomena in Quantum Systems Initiative (grant no. GBMF4547) and the U.S. Department of Energy's Basic Energy Sciences Division (grant no. DE-FG-02-05ER462000).
Spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB), a phenomenon where the symmetric system produces symmetry-violating states, exists ubiquitously in diverse fields of modern physics. Recently, extensive study shows that the parity-time symmetry breaking in open systems leads to exceptional points, promising for novel applications leasers and sensing.

In this work, the researchers have theoretically demonstrated the spontaneous time-reversal symmetry (T-symmetry) breaking in a cavity quantum electrodynamics system. The system is composed of an ensemble of 2-level atoms inside a cavity. The atoms are kept near their highest excited states and act like an oscillator with a negative mass. The researchers utilize the dipole interaction between the atoms and the cavity mode to induce the T-symmetry breaking and to obtain exceptional points (EPs).

"The dipole interaction provides a linear coupling between the collective motion of the atoms and the cavity mode," said Yu-Kun Lu, who is an undergraduate at Peking University. "For small coupling strength, the system undergoes harmonic oscillation which is invariant under time-reversal operation. When the coupling strength reaches a threshold, the system becomes unstable against the pair-production (annihilation) process, and the excitation number of the cavity mode and the atoms will increase (decrease) with time, thus leading to the spontaneous T-symmetry breaking." The critical point between the T-symmetric and T-symmetry broken phase is proved to be an EP.

"To demonstrate the existence of EP, we showed the dependence of the eigenfrequencies as well as the eigenmode on the cavity-atom detuning, and we found they coalesce at the critical point, thus proved it to be an EP," said Pai Peng, a former undergraduate in Prof. Xiao's group and now a Ph.D. at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Moreover, due to the singular topology of the EP, the dynamics in the vicinity of the EP is robust.

"After encircling a whole loop around EP, the final state only depends on the direction of the loop but not its shape, and thus the result is topological protected," said Qi-Tao Cao, a Ph.D. at Peking University.

"EPs used to be studied exclusively in open systems. The demonstration of EP in the present system broadens the understanding of SSB and singularities in physics," said Prof. Xiao. "Apart from its fundamental interest, spontaneous T-symmetry breaking without gain or loss also provides a new platform for various applications, such as sensing and quantum information processing."

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This project is supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (Grant No. 2016YFA0301302), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grants No. 61435001, 11654003, 11474011, and 11527901), and High-performance Computing Platform of Peking University.

Yu-Kun Lu, Pai Peng, Qi-Tao Cao, Da Xu, Jan Wiersig, Qihuang Gong, Yun-Feng Xiao. Spontaneous T-symmetry breaking and exceptional points in cavity quantum electrodynamics systems. Science Bulletin, 2018, 63(17): 1096-1100. Doi: 10.1016/j.scib.2018.07.020 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095927318303724
A new study outlines a sustainable path forward for the second most biodiverse country in the world

More than 50 years of internal conflict in Colombia have left behind roughly 8 million victims, including 220,000 dead. Now the country is in the midst of a tenuous ceasefire, thanks to a November 2016 peace treaty between the Colombian government and the largest group of rebels, formerly known as Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC). The second largest group of guerrillas, the Ejercito de Liberacion Nacional (ELN), is also interested in putting an end to the fighting. As a result, Colombia's 2018 elections were its most peaceful in decades.

If the peace holds, the end of the decades-long conflict would promise many political and socio-economic benefits for the South American nation. Unfortunately, the conflict's end may also create new threats to the natural environment according to a paper, led by Alejandro Salazar from Purdue University, published today in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (FiEE).

"The peace agreement is of course good for the country," says co-author Daniel Ruiz Carrascal, an adjunct researcher at Columbia University's International Research Institute for Climate and Society and associate professor at EIA University in Colombia. "But in the aftermath of this conflict, we expect to see an increase in the degradation of pristine environments."

Governments tend to focus on social and economic growth after a war ends, while environmental protections fall by the wayside. In their paper, Ruiz-Carrascal and his colleagues from many institutions outline the threats to Colombia's ecosystems, and suggest ways to avoid the worst of the damage.

"The decisions made at this crucial moment in time will likely reverberate through the lives of present and future Colombian generations," they write, "and have ecological, climatic and biogeochemical consequences with global implications."

Triple Threats to Colombia's Biodiversity

Colombia is the world's second most biodiverse country. Its terrain--which varies from Amazonian rainforests to cloud forests, open savannas, and mountainous terrain in the Andes--supports about 10 percent of all the planet's species, including hundreds of animals that are found nowhere else on Earth.

In some areas, the conflict unintentionally preserved habitats for the 51,000 different types of plants and animals in Colombia. Because FARC tended to inhabit rural and forested areas, it drove a mass migration to the cities. As a result, large forested areas remained unharmed during the armed conflict. The forests thrived, and even reconquered abandoned farmlands.

Now, somewhat paradoxically, the more stable socio-political conditions that could come along with peace are putting those untouched environments at risk. The threats could come in three forms:

1. Deforestation

Deforestation isn't a new problem for Colombia. The country loses more than 2,300 square kilometers (888 square miles) of forest per year to rangeland, farmland, mining operations, and more. Forest loss may even be getting worse since the signing of the peace agreement.

"Sadly, we've seen a significant increase in the deforestation rates of pristine, remote areas that used to be controlled by the FARC rebels," says Ruiz-Carrascal. Colombia's forest loss rates are even starting to surpass those of Brazil, previously the record-holder in South America, he says. "It's starting to affect places that have the highest biodiversity levels in Colombia."

2. Climate Change

While no area of the planet will be left untouched by climate change, mountain ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to rising global temperatures.

High up in the Andes, Colombia's glaciers are shrinking. This could put drinking water supplies in jeopardy for communities in the mountains and the foothills. Rising temperatures also spell trouble for isolated mountain ecosystems, forcing Andean species to move higher and higher up the mountains in pursuit of cold conditions. Eventually, they'll have nowhere left to go.

"Colombia has many endemic species that cannot be found elsewhere in the world," says Ruiz-Carrascal. "If they disappear, they could become extinct."

Colombia is already witnessing a significant increase in temperatures, and its future looks hotter and drier. By the 2050s, the average temperatures could increase by 3 to 4 degrees Celsius. At the same time, climate models predict precipitation will decline in some areas. This could impair crop productivity and the ecosystem's capacity to store carbon, as well as injure Colombia's natural ecosystems.

3. Mining

Mining--for minerals such as gold and emeralds--is an important driver of the Colombian economy, and it's expected to continue growing in the future.

With mining can come a slew of environmental problems. Forests may be clear cut to make way for mining equipment and roads, and mountains leveled. Illegal mining activities convert drinking water into sulfuric acid and cyanide-contaminated runoff. They leave behind massive piles of waste rock, and tailings that can leak mercury and other toxic metals into the environment.

"On top of deforestation rates that are surpassing what has been taking place in Latin America, you have global warming, and you have these titles that allow the mining companies to explore and exploit our natural resources," says Ruiz-Carrascal. "It's going to be a very critical issue in the decades to come."

Protecting Colombia's Natural Areas

Colombia's biodiversity provides food, timber, and medicine for the local people. It draws in tourists, and helps to moderate the water supply and absorb carbon. Through a number of international policies, Colombia has committed to protecting this biodiversity and slashing carbon emissions. By 2020, the country hopes to achieve a net deforestation rate of zero, with new seedlings replacing trees that get chopped down. By 2030, Colombia aims to cut its carbon emissions to 20 percent below the business-as-usual projections. Whether it meets these goals will depend on how rural areas are developed, managed, and conserved, the authors write.

To help protect biodiversity, Ruiz-Carrascal and his colleagues suggest the government could prioritize development in non-forested regions. These areas already cover half of the country.

The group also calls for more extensive and continuous monitoring of the climate, water levels, species distribution, and more. Several institutions and organizations are already collecting this type of data independently. Ruiz-Carrascal and his colleagues are launching a network called PEACE, the Plataforma de Estudios y Analisis sobre Colombia y sus Ecosistemas (Platform for Studies and Analysis of Colombia and its Ecosystems), to share monitoring information across institutions. They will combine satellite information with on-the-ground data, and use remote sensing technologies in difficult-to-reach places to track how ecosystems are responding to climate and land-use changes. So far, a few local branches of the Colombian government--including the Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute--have signed on, as have researchers in other nations, including the Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry in Germany.

At the same time, the FiEE paper also calls on scientists to engage more with policymakers, victims of the conflict, and even former FARC rebels. "We need to sit with these people and show them what we know. We need to show them the basic science behind climate change, the basic science behind deforestation," says Ruiz-Carrascal. With more information, he reasons, people and policymakers will be better equipped to make decisions that help to avoid negative environmental impacts.

Colombia faces many challenges going forward. But these challenges also present an opportunity to shift to a more green economy. Sustainable development that preserves biodiversity would also help to protect Colombians against drought and flood, and to secure food and energy into the future.

With improved monitoring, science-based decision-making, climate policy implementation, and natural resource protection, "this peace transition could not only improve the quality of life for millions of people," the authors write, "but serve as a historic example of how a society can end a war without endangering its own environment and ecosystems."

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Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee from the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at KAIST will be awarded the 2018 Eni Advanced Environmental Solutions Prize in recognition of his innovations in the fields of energy and environment. The award ceremony will take place at the Quirinal Palace, the official residence of Italian President Sergio Mattarella, who will also be attending on October 22.

Eni, an Italian multinational energy corporation established the Eni Award in 2008 to promote technological and research innovation of efficient and sustainable energy resources. The Advanced Environmental Solutions Prize is one of the three categories of the Eni Award. The other two categories are Energy Transition and Energy Frontiers. The Award for Advanced Environmental Solutions recognizes a researcher or group of scientists that has achieved internationally significant R&D results in the field of environmental protection and recovery. The Eni Award is referred to as the Nobel Award in the fields of energy and environment.

Professor Lee, a pioneering leader in systems metabolic engineering was honored with the award for his developing engineered bacteria to produce chemical products, fuels, and non-food biomass materials sustainably and with a low environmental impact. He has leveraged the technology to develop microbial bioprocesses for the sustainable and environmentally friendly production of chemicals, fuels, and materials from non-food renewable biomass.

The award committee said that they considered the following elements in assessing Professor Lee's achievement: the scientific relevance and the research innovation level; the impact on the energy system in terms of sustainability as well as fairer and broader access to energy; and the adequacy between technological and economic aspects.

Professor Lee, who already won two other distinguished prizes such as the George Washington Carver Award and the PV Danckwerts Memorial Lecture Award this year, said, "I am so glad that the international academic community as well as global industry leaders came to recognize our work that our students and research team has made for decades."

Dr. Lee's lab has been producing a lot of chemicals in environmentally friendly ways. Among them, many were biologically produced for the first time and some of these processes have been already commercialized. "We will continue to strive for research outcomes with two objectives: First, to develop bio-based processes suitable for sustainable chemical industry. The other is to contribute to the human healthcare system through development of platform technologies integrating medicine and nutrition," he added.

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LANSING, Mich, (Sept. 12, 2018) - The weather plays a significant role in how a wildfire grows, how fast it spreads, and how dangerous it can become for firefighters, but few tools exist to help fire managers anticipate days when weather conditions will have the greatest potential to make wildfire erratic or especially dangerous. The USDA Forest Service is expanding the options with the Hot-Dry-Windy Index (HDW), a new fire-weather prediction tool based on the key atmospheric variables that affect wildland fire: temperature, moisture, and wind.

"Predicting fire conditions is important and extremely difficult," said Joseph Charney, a research meteorologist with the Forest Service's Northern Research Station in Lansing, Mich., and a member of the research team behind HDW. "By focusing on just temperature, moisture and wind, we created a tool that works with the same weather models that are used every day in fire weather forecasts, and thus can be applied anywhere in the world, regardless of fuel conditions or topography."

Alan Srock of St. Cloud State University is the lead author of a study describing HDW and its performance; co-authors include Charney, Brian Potter of the Forest Service's Pacific Northwest Research Station, and Scott Goodrick of the Southern Research Station. The study was published in the journal Atmosphere and is available through the Northern Research Station at: https://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/pubs/56562

To test how accurately HDW predicts dangerous fire days, the scientists compared its predictions with fire behavior recorded during four recent wildfires in Minnesota, Texas, New Jersey and California. Researchers found that HDW performed better than an existing fire weather index called the Haines Index in identifying the day during each fire that was the most difficult to manage.

One caveat the researchers make is that HDW is designed to anticipate when large-scale weather can affect a wildland fire; it is not designed to account for fine-scale weather, topography, and fuel conditions that affect fire behavior and can contribute to major management difficulties.

As an aid to giving fire officials context for HDW values, the research team collaborated with Jessica McDonald of Texas Tech University to develop a 30-year HDW climatology that establishes locally and seasonally high HDW values for specific locations. These climatological values provide insight that can help fire managers who may not be from the local area evaluate whether temperature, humidity or wind speed are normal or not.

While its performance so far is promising, more research is needed before HDW is ready to be used on an operational basis. "The HDW Index was designed to address the needs of the wildland firefighting community, and our early results show that HDW has the potential to help users make better decisions," Srock said.

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The mission of the Northern Research Station is to improve people's lives and help sustain the natural resources in the Northeast and Midwest through leading-edge science and effective information delivery.

The mission of the U.S. Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is to sustain the health, diversity and productivity of the nation's forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, and maintains world-renowned forestry research and wildland fire management organizations. National forests and grasslands contribute more than $30 billion to the American economy annually and support nearly 360,000 jobs. These lands also provide 30 percent of the nation's surface drinking water to cities and rural communities; approximately 60 million Americans rely on drinking water that originated from the National Forest System.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Stop 9410, Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call toll-free at (866) 632-9992 (English) or (800) 877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 377-8642 (English Federal-relay) or (800) 845-6136 (Spanish Federal-relay).
CHAPEL HILL -- Researchers from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center have made important discoveries that could lead to better treatment for a rare blood cancer in children that has features of both myeloid and acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

In the journal Nature, UNC Lineberger's Thomas Alexander, MD, MPH, along with co-first authors Zhaohui Gu, PhD, and Ilaria Iacobucci, PhD, of St. Jude, and corresponding authors Charles Mullighan, MBBS, MD, and Hiroto Inaba, MD, PhD, also of St. Jude, and colleagues reported findings about the genetics of mixed phenotype acute leukemia (MPAL), a type of cancer with features of both acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

Their data, generated and analyzed at St. Jude, sets the stage for research into better treatment of this rare and high-risk blood cancer that accounts for approximately 3 percent of childhood acute leukemia cases in the United States.

"Before now, no one has comprehensively studied the biology of this cancer. We were able to compile a large group of samples to characterize the genetics in these high-risk cases with features of both acute myeloid and acute lymphoblastic leukemia," said Alexander, who is an assistant professor in the UNC School of Medicine Division of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, and was formerly a clinical fellow at St. Jude.

Studies report a range of survival rates between 47 and 75 percent for children with mixed phenotype acute leukemia, which also occurs in adults. There is no consensus on the best way to treat the disease.

"ALL and AML have very different treatments. But MPAL has features of both, so the question of how best to treat patients with MPAL has been challenging the leukemia community worldwide--and long-term survival of patients has been poor," Mullighan said.

Since the disease is rare, researchers worked with collaborators from around the world to gather samples from 115 cases to comprehensively study the biology of the disease. They analyzed the DNA and other genetic features to better understand how the disease evolved, and to reveal treatment insights.

They found the phenotypic subtypes of this disease had different genetic features that could have treatment implications. The T/myeloid subtype shared similarities with early T-cell precursor ALL, a finding that could inform the best treatment approach. The B/myeloid subtype often had a change in the ZNF384 gene that is also found in B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, leading researchers to believe that ALL treatment may be the best approach initially.

"That is biologically and clinically important," Mullighan said. "The findings suggest the ZNF384 rearrangement defines a distinct leukemia subtype and the alteration should be used to guide treatment."

The researchers also discovered that within individual cases, the lymphoid and myeloid components of these tumors contain the same genetic alterations, suggesting that the mutations arose early and before the blood cells had matured into distinct types. This finding may help explain how the cancer evolves.

"One previous theory was that the reason you have two different cancer types within the same patient is that they acquire different mutations that drive them to become AML or ALL, with genomically distinct tumors within the same patient," Alexander said. "That doesn't seem to be the case from our data. Our proposed model is that the mutations occur earlier in development in cells that retain the potential to acquire myeloid or lymphoid features."

The researchers say the next step is to determine if the laboratory insights can translate into improving clinical outcome for patients with mixed phenotype acute leukemia.

"On this basis of this data and other recent publications, the Children's Oncology Group is in the final stage of planning a protocol that will enroll patients with mixed phenotype leukemia on a prospective trial for the first time ever," Alexander said.

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In addition to Alexander, Gu, Iacobucci, Mullighan, and Inaba, other authors include: Kirsten Dickerson, John K. Choi, Beisi Xu, Debbie Payne-Turner, Hiroki Yoshihara, Mignon L. Loh, John Horan, Barbara Buldini, Guiseppe Basso, Sarah Elitzur, Valeri de Haas, C. Michel Zwaan, Allen Yeoh, Dirk Reinhardt, Daisuke Tomizawa, Nobutaka Kiyokama, Tim Lammens, Barbara De Moerloose, Daniel Catchpoole, Hiroki Hori, Anthony Moorman, Andrew S. Moore, Ondrej Hrusak, Soheil Meshinchi, Etan Orgel, Meenakshi Devidas, Michael Borowitz, Brent Wood, Nyla A. Heerema, Andrew Carrol, Yung-Li Yang, Malcolm A. Smith, Tanja M. Davidsen, Leandro C. Hermida, Patee Gesuwan, Marco A. Marra, Yussanne Ma, Andrew J. Mungall, Richard A. Moore, Steven J.M. Jones, Marcus Valentine, Laura J. Janke, Jeffrey E. Rubnitz, Ching-Hon Pui, Liang Ding, Yu Liu, Jinghui Zhang, Kim E. Nichols, James R. Downing, Xueyuan Cao, Lei Shi, Stanley Pounds, Scott Newman, Deqing Pei, Jaime M. Guidry Auvil, Daniela S. Gerhard, and Stephen P. Hunger.

The study was supported by Cookies for Kids' Cancer, St. Baldrick's Foundation, the Robert J. Arceci Innovation Award, Henry Schueler 41&9 Foundation, St. Jude Physician Scientist Training Program Fellowship, the National Cancer Institute, the National Institutes of Health, and ALSAC.
Two decades ago, a book by Black studies scholar and sociologist George Lipsitz fueled national discussions of race in America. Twenty years later, the conversation continues, and a new edition of the book, "The Possessive Investment in Whiteness: How White People Profit from Identity Politics," highlights how far we as a country have come -- and, more important, how far we have yet to go.

"In some ways the circumstances to be addressed have changed, and in some ways they've gotten better because there is a greater understanding of structural and institutional racism rather than merely private, personal and individual prejudice," said Lipsitz, a professor of Black studies and of sociology at UC Santa Barbara.

"Much of the book's argument was based on empirical data collected in the 1990's, so people could say, 'Well, that might have been true when this was put out two decades ago, but certainly things have progressed and these figures would look better today.'"

As Lipsitz points out, however, the education inequality, wealth gap, health gap and employment discrimination that linger long after -- and despite -- the Civil Rights Act and other legislation outlawing legal discrimination -- paint a picture that in 2018 still looks bleak.

Where We Were and Where We Are

In this 20th anniversary edition, published by Temple University Press, Lipsitz offers, in addition to updated statistics, analyses of defining issues and events, including the nature of anti-immigrant mobilizations; police assaults on Black women; the killings of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Freddie Gray and others; the legacy of the Obama administration and the emergence of President Donald Trump; the Charlottesville mob action and killing of protester Heather Heyer and other hate crimes; and the ways in which white fragility, fear -- and failure -- are driving a new ethno-nationalism.

The book, he said, identifies ways in which power, property, and the politics of race in our society continue to contain unacknowledged and unacceptable allegiances to white supremacy.

"The default fallback position in this society is to blame people of color themselves and say they were unfit for freedom," Lipsitz explained. "And that ignores all of the direct and second-, third- and fourth-generation indirect forms of discrimination, exclusion and subordination. My job, first of all, was to update the facts and figures to point to the fact that violent incidents like Dylann Roof walking into a church in Charleston and gunning down nine people is only the tip of the iceberg. Some 60,000 Black people die prematurely every year because of the stress caused by discrimination and by place-based impediments to medical care, healthy food and clean water and air."

The Strength of the Black Freedom Tradition

But Lipsitz also is quick to point out that while much of the book is an indictment of racism and the mindset that allows it to flourish, its subtext is that the Black freedom tradition is alive and well, and not solely the provincial particular concern of Black people. Rather, it offers a path toward justice, a way of expanding democracy for everyone.

"This is the other side of America's racial nightmare," he explained, "that even in the face of this catastrophe, the Black freedom tradition has called to its side principled people of every background and every religion, every race, every gender identity and every sexual identification. Not everyone gives in, not everyone gives up, not everyone knuckles under. And in the face of this, I feel that there's a mobilization constantly going on in this society."

Lipsitz said he's not surprised by the current state of politics and race relations in America. "Read W.E.B. Du Bois's 'Black Reconstruction in America' talking about the 1860's and 70's. Read Ida B. Wells's autobiography of her life from the 1860's to the 1930's -- everything that's happening today is in those books," he noted. "It's daunting to see how deeply rooted these practices are.

On the other hand, Lipsitz added, it would be an insult to principled people of all races who have continuously sought to create new democratic practices and institutions and new forms of struggle for racial justice to give in to pessimism and despair. "Part of what I tried to say in the introduction of the book is that I feel joyful in confronting some of these realities not because the problems have anything pleasant about them, but because it's humbling and inspiring to see people organizing, mobilizing and engaging in litigation, legislation, organization and education around these issues," he said.

The Role of Social Media

And how has social media impacted the situation? People fight with the tools they have in the arenas that are open to them, said Lipsitz. "The combination of mass media by corporations and multinational conglomerates leaves very little room for the average person to speak up and speak out, to be seen and to be heard," he explained. "So social media was tremendously attractive to a lot of people who felt it gave a public space that took the place of what used to be done in trade unions, in community neighborhoods, and in political parties."

Social media, he went on, created a whole new public sphere. "In some cases, as in the responses to Ferguson, to the killing of Michael Brown, no one really would have known about the incident if it hadn't been for Black Twitter," Lipsitz said. "The politicians didn't speak up; the preachers didn't speak up. But young Black people, using the one tool available to them, broadcast it all over the world."

But visibility isn't necessarily viability, according to Lipsitz, and social media has its downsides. Much of social media reflects the meanness, the mendacity the callousness and the cruelty of the broader society. "It's no substitute for humble, friendly, reciprocal, deliberative dialogue among citizens. When anti-racism is at its best, it comes out of that.

"I don't rule out any terrain," he continued. "I think social media is important, but there's no magic bullet, no technology, no leader, no generational change that's going to do for us what we need to do for ourselves."

The Scholarly Perspective

Lipsitz is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the American Studies Association's most recent Carl Bode-Norman Holmes Pearson Prize for career distinction and that organization's Angela Y. Davis Prize for Public Scholarship. Yet his research proceeds from the premise that scholarship needs to draw on the profound knowledge that emanates from aggrieved communities in struggle.

This edition of "The Possessive Investment in Whiteness" draws on Lipsitz's 20 years of participation with the African American Policy Forum, the National Fair Housing Alliance, the Woodstock Institute and the New Orleans-based organization Students at the Center. "My point of entry has been fair housing, educational equality and economic and environmental justice," he said, adding that there are longstanding and emerging forms of insight and critique all around us. "You look at the movements of indigenous people pointing out the continuing consequences of their dispossession and what it's meant for the environment and for the nation, for example. The answers are all around us, just as the problems are all around us. And it's up to us to listen to whoever talks and talk to whoever will listen."

Becoming Agents of Change

So what's the key to creating change? Action, Lipsitz said. "When asked about the secret of organizing, the great Ella Baker, who was Martin Luther King, Jr.'s secretary with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and later the guiding adult force behind the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, said, 'Find somebody who's doing something and help them.'

"And I believe that," he added. "You can't invent a solution in your office or at the library or at your computer. You have to put on your shoes and go out and find people who are doing things. This is how abolition democracy came about in the 1860's and 70's. This is how democratic and egalitarian movements of the 1960's and 70's happened. When things change, it's because ordinary people find a way to make things happen."

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A new wearable ultrasound patch that non-invasively monitors blood pressure in arteries deep beneath the skin could help people detect cardiovascular problems earlier on and with greater precision. In tests, the patch performed as well as some clinical methods to measure blood pressure.

Applications include real-time, continuous monitoring of blood pressure changes in patients with heart or lung disease, as well as patients who are critically ill or undergoing surgery. The patch uses ultrasound, so it could potentially be used to non-invasively track other vital signs and physiological signals from places deep inside the body.

A team of researchers led by the University of California San Diego describe their work in a paper published Sept. 11 in Nature Biomedical Engineering.

"Wearable devices have so far been limited to sensing signals either on the surface of the skin or right beneath it. But this is like seeing just the tip of the iceberg," said Sheng Xu, a professor of nanoengineering at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering and the corresponding author of the study. "By integrating ultrasound technology into wearables, we can start to capture a whole lot of other signals, biological events and activities going on way below the surface in a non-invasive manner."

"We are adding a third dimension to the sensing range of wearable electronics," said Xu, who is also affiliated with the Center for Wearable Sensors at UC San Diego.

The new ultrasound patch can continuously monitor central blood pressure in major arteries as deep as four centimeters (more than one inch) below the skin.

Physicians involved with the study say the technology would be useful in various inpatient procedures.

"This has the potential to be a great addition to cardiovascular medicine," said Dr. Brady Huang, a co-author on the paper and radiologist at UC San Diego Health. "In the operating room, especially in complex cardiopulmonary procedures, accurate real-time assessment of central blood pressure is needed--this is where this device has the potential to supplant traditional methods."

A convenient alternative to clinical methods

The device measures central blood pressure--which differs from the blood pressure that's measured with an inflatable cuff strapped around the upper arm, known as peripheral blood pressure. Central blood pressure is the pressure in the central blood vessels, which send blood directly from the heart to other major organs throughout the body. Medical experts consider central blood pressure more accurate than peripheral blood pressure and also say it's better at predicting heart disease.

Measuring central blood pressure isn't typically done in routine exams, however. The state-of-the-art clinical method is invasive, involving a catheter inserted into a blood vessel in a patient's arm, groin or neck and guiding it to the heart.

A non-invasive method exists, but it can't consistently produce accurate readings. It involves holding a pen-like probe, called a tonometer, on the skin directly above a major blood vessel. To get a good reading, the tonometer must be held steady, at just the right angle and with the right amount of pressure each time. But this can vary between tests and different technicians.

"It's highly operator-dependent. Even with the proper technique, if you move the tonometer tip just a millimeter off, the data get distorted. And if you push the tonometer down too hard, it'll put too much pressure on the vessel, which also affects the data," said co-first author Chonghe Wang, a nanoengineering graduate student at UC San Diego. Tonometers also require the patient to sit still--which makes continuous monitoring difficult--and are not sensitive enough to get good readings through fatty tissue.

The UC San Diego-led team has developed a convenient alternative--a soft, stretchy ultrasound patch that can be worn on the skin and provide accurate, precise readings of central blood pressure each time, even while the user is moving. And it can still get a good reading through fatty tissue.

The patch was tested on a male subject, who wore it on the forearm, wrist, neck and foot. Tests were performed both while the subject was stationary and during exercise. Recordings collected with the patch were more consistent and precise than recordings from a commercial tonometer. The patch recordings were also comparable to those collected with a traditional ultrasound probe.

Making ultrasound wearable

"A major advance of this work is it transforms ultrasound technology into a wearable platform. This is important because now we can start to do continuous, non-invasive monitoring of major blood vessels deep underneath the skin, not just in shallow tissues," said Wang.

The patch is a thin sheet of silicone elastomer patterned with what's called an "island-bridge" structure--an array of small electronic parts (islands) that are each connected by spring-shaped wires (bridges). Each island contains electrodes and devices called piezoelectric transducers, which produce ultrasound waves when electricity passes through them. The bridges connecting them are made of thin, spring-like copper wires. The island-bridge structure allows the entire patch to conform to the skin and stretch, bend and twist without compromising electronic function.

The patch uses ultrasound waves to continuously record the diameter of a pulsing blood vessel located as deep as four centimeters below the skin. This information then gets translated into a waveform using customized software. Each peak, valley and notch in the waveform, as well as the overall shape of the waveform, represents a specific activity or event in the heart. These signals provide a lot of detailed information to doctors assessing a patient's cardiovascular health. They can be used to predict heart failure, determine if blood supply is fine, etc.

Next steps

Researchers note that the patch still has a long way to go before it reaches the clinic. Improvements include integrating a power source, data processing units and wireless communication capability into the patch.

"Right now, these capabilities have to be delivered by wires from external devices. If we want to move this from benchtop to bedside, we need to put all these components on board," said Xu.

The team is looking to collaborate with experts in data processing and wireless technologies for the next phase of the project.

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Paper title: "Monitoring of the central blood pressure waveform via a conformal ultrasonic device." Co-authors include joint co-first authors Xiaoshi Li and Hongjie Hu, Lin Zhang, Zhenlong Huang, Muyang Lin, Zhuorui Zhang, Zhenan Yin, Hua Gong, Shubha Bhaskaran, Yue Gu, Mitsutoshi Makihata, Yuxuan Guo, Yusheng Lei, Yimu Chen, Yang Li, Tianjiao Zhang, Albert P. Pisano and Liangfang Zhang, UC San Diego; Chunfeng Wang, Zhengzhou University, China; and Zeyu Chen and Qifa Zhou, University of Southern California.

This project was supported by the National Institutes of Health (grant R21EB025521) and the Center for Wearable Sensors at UC San Diego.
Up to 30 per cent of coastal wetlands could be lost globally by the year 2100 with a dramatic effect on global warming and coastal flooding, if action is not taken to protect them, new research warns.

The global study, led by researchers at the University of Lincoln, UK, suggests that the future of global coastal wetlands, including tidal marshes and mangroves, could be secured if they were able to migrate further inland.

Geographers examined localised data from around the globe on coastal elevation, tides, sediment availability, coastal population and estimates of sea level rise to assess whether coastal wetlands are likely to have enough sediment to increase their elevation at the rate sea levels will rise, or whether there is enough space to establish themselves further inland.

The results show there could be global coastal wetland gains of up to 60 per cent if more than a third of the areas had space to move inland. The use of more localised data provides more accurate global results than previous estimates which warned of catastrophic losses of up to 90 per cent - but scientists say action must be taken now to save coastal wetlands from ever increasing sea levels.

The findings of the study have important implications for the future development of public policies, with the authors calling for an upscale in current efforts for coastal wetland restoration.

Coastal wetlands have a direct impact on global warming levels by helping to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. They are also an important form of coastal protection, reducing the energy of waves and the intensity of storm surges, thereby reducing coastal erosion and coastal flooding.

The research was led by Dr Mark Schuerch from the University of Lincoln's School of Geography in collaboration with the universities of Cambridge and Southampton in the UK; University of Antwerp in Belgium; Christian-Albrechts University of Kiel and Humboldt-University in Germany; Monash University in Australia; Virginia Institute of Marine Science in the USA; the UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre; and the Global Climate Forum.

Dr Schuerch said: "Rather than being an inevitable consequence of global rising sea levels, our findings indicate that large-scale coastal wetland loss might be avoidable if sufficient additional space can be created by increasing the number of innovative 'nature-based adaptation' solutions to coastal management. These enable coastal wetlands to migrate inland through displacement of coastal flood defences and the designation of nature reserve buffers in upland areas surrounding coastal wetlands. If these are strategically scaled up they could help coastal wetlands adapt to rising sea levels and protect rapidly increasing global coastal populations."

Further research is now needed to improve understanding of the adaption mechanisms of coastal wetlands to see level rise, particularly their ability to migrate inland.

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The full paper, Future responses of global coastal wetlands to sea level rise, has been published in the scientific journal Nature and is available to read online at https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-018-0476-5.
Do the defence mechanisms employed by seedlings to avoid being eaten by herbivores vary according to their location?

That is the question being asked by scientists at the University of Plymouth as part of a new three-year project funded by the Leverhulme Trust.

Previous studies have demonstrated that seedlings use a variety of means, including odours - or volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) - to ward off potential predators.

However, researchers from the University's School of Biological and Marine Sciences and the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) in Leipzig, want to focus on whether these various chemical defences vary between populations and geographical regions.

Specifically, they will assess whether latitude and altitude make any difference to the plants' resistance, with research being planned in areas across north and western Europe.

The study is being led by Dr Mick Hanley, Associate Professor (Reader) in Plant-Animal Interactions, who has been studying in this field for more than two decades.

It will focus on the feeding behaviour of snails, who will be presented with seedlings from different regions to see which they prefer.

Researchers will examine the snails' choices against patterns of chemical compounds present in the seedlings, and then rank the plants according to their acceptability to a generalist herbivore.

They hope this will enable them to identify and quantify population and regional-level variation in the metabolic products associated with various biological processes, including plant defence and variation in local climatic conditions.

Dr Hanley said: "As with many aspects of plant-herbivore interactions, previous studies have focused solely on the relationships between established plants and their herbivores, which seldom results in plant mortality. For seedlings, however, escaping herbivory is usually a life-or-death issue, and the selective consequences for the individual much more extreme.

"As a result, we might expect to see clearer geographical patterns in the effects of herbivore activity and expression of seedling defence than has been evident for mature plants. But an understanding of population-specific responses will demonstrate by what means, and how consistently, the seedlings avoid or cope with being eaten by herbivores. It may also shed light on recent failures to corroborate theories predicting changes in plant defence across broad geographical ranges."

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How did Steve Jobs do it? What about Whole Foods Market and Starbucks? These kinds of "breakout" success stories show what is possible when business leaders imagine into the future rather than re-enacting the past -- a strategy that a new study says is crucial for business success in a rapidly changing world.

Luis Martins, director of the Herb Kelleher Center for Entrepreneurship at The University of Texas at Austin's McCombs School of Business, and co-author Violina Rindova of the University of Southern California argue in a paper published in Advances in Strategic Management that the key to revolutionary business strategy lies in the strategist's ability to use a future-focused kind of imagination. They say that this kind of thinking can be taught, and they call on other business academics to test and validate their theory and methods.

"If Whole Foods were a replication of the past, it would be one more small health food store," Martins says. "It required a different imagination of the future to combine an organic farmers market with a big grocery store, and a strong focus on conscious capitalism. That's the kind of thing that changes the mold within any given industry and comes up with a whole new space.

"You couldn't get a Cirque du Soleil by just trying to make another circus," Martins says.

Martins, who is also chairman of the McCombs School's Department of Management, says that the current standard curriculum in even the top-tier business schools places too little emphasis on strategic imagination. The accepted methodology teaches students how to analyze the past and adapt to the present, which Martins says are crucial components of strategy, but without future-focused imagination, he says, they won't lead to breakthrough business achievements. The few courses that do offer students forward-thinking strategic business frameworks are usually electives, not requirements.

Anticipatory thinking, analogical reasoning and design thinking are all techniques that can catalyze strategic imagination, Martins says. In his classes, students follow technological, economic and social trends that may come together in the future to brainstorm new goods that could, in some cases, open entirely new markets.

He also encourages thinking about how established business models can be used in new market spaces the way the company Rent the Runway did when it began offering a way for shoppers to borrow clothing instead of buying. They effectively created "the Netflix for high-end dresses," Martins says.

Martins says design thinking -- the process of using design to create new offerings and improve the user experience -- also has the capacity to revolutionize a business, noting Apple's attention to the appearances of its products as an example of how design can transform an entire industry.

"I think we are running out of runway for mass market thinking and just low-price thinking," Martins says. "So, increasingly, as markets fragment and as people desire something more than just low cost, I think strategic imagination will become an ever-more-important aspect of the strategist's job."

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To view the McCombs feature story and video about this study, click here.

"The Three Minds of the Strategist: Toward an Agentic Perspective on Behavioral Strategy" was published Sept. 10 in Advances in Strategic Management.

For more information, contact: Molly Dannenmaier, McCombs School of Business, 512-232-6779.
September 13, 2018 - A major US children's hospital introduced a first-of-its-kind project to eliminate or reduce pain from elective needle procedures in all infants and children, reports a study in PAIN Reports, part of a special issue on research innovations in pediatric pain. The official open-access journal of the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), PAIN Reports is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

"This is the first report of a successful system-wide protocol implementation to reduce or eliminate needle pain, including pain from vaccinations, in a children's hospital world-wide," write Stefan J. Friedrichsdorf, MD, FAAP, Donna Eull, RN, and their colleagues of Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, Minneapolis.

Four Proven Strategies to Reduce Needle Pain in Children "Pain remains common, under-recognized, and under-treated in children's hospitals and pediatric clinics," the researchers write. At their hospital, over 200,000 patients experienced unrelieved needle pain annually due to vaccinations, blood tests, injections, and other procedures. While patient surveys found that needle procedures were "the single greatest source of pain and anxiety for our patients and families," staff surveys surprisingly gave a low priority to reducing needle pain.

In response, pain medicine specialists and hospital leadership designed and implemented a quality improvement project to eliminate or reduce needle pain. Developed using the "Lean" improvement methodology, the "< a href="https://www.childrensmn.org/services/care-specialties-departments/pain-program/childrens-comfort-promise/">Children's Comfort Promise" project vowed "to do everything possible to prevent and treat pain." Frontline staff were trained to always, without exception, offer four research-proven strategies:

Numbing the skin with topical anesthetic (4% lidocaine cream, available over-the-counter)

Giving sucrose (sugar water) or allowing breastfeeding in infants younger than 12 months

Using age-appropriate methods of "comfort positioning" (for example, sitting upright on the parent's lap for preschoolers, swaddling for infants), and never holding down or restraining children

Age-appropriate distraction (toys, books, games, smartphones, virtual reality)

Between 2014 and 2016, the project was implemented in staggered fashion across the hospital and clinics. As use of the four strategies increased, patient satisfaction with pain management significantly improved. In surveys, families who felt their child's pain was "always well-controlled" rose from 60 to 72 percent. As the project was rolled out, staff concerns about implementation were allayed. Follow-up suggested that pain reduction strategies in infants actually saved time, compared to time spent comforting infants after painful needle procedures, and reduced staff turnover.

"The Children's Comfort Promise has become our institution's new standard of care for needle procedures," Dr. Friedrichsdorf and coauthors write. They note that progress is still needed in some areas - for example, increasing the appropriate use of lidocaine. The strategies are now being introduced and refined at four other North American children's hospitals (Montreal, Toronto, Kansas City and Atlanta), thanks to a grant by the MAYDAY Fund.

The study represents a "real-world" application of research to improve pediatric pain care, according to an introductory editorial by Guest Editor Christine T. Chambers, PhD, RPsych. The special issue presents nine original papers highlighting innovations in pediatric pain research and care. Topics include factors associated with the development of pain in children; new research methods in pediatric pain, including culturally sensitive approaches; new theories that point the way toward future advances in controlling pain in children; and abstracts from a recent state-of-the-art conference on pediatric pain management.

Pediatric pain care has made "tremendous progress" since the 1970s and 1980s, when it was widely believed that babies couldn't feel pain and shouldn't receive anesthetics. However, Dr. Chambers writes, "Inadequate pain management continues to be reported for children experiencing painful procedures, after surgery, and in the context of chronic pain."

Groups such as the IASP's Special Interest Group on Pain in Childhood actively promote education, research, and advocacy about pain in children. Dr. Chambers concludes, "We all must work hard to push ourselves...to address the problem of poorly managed pediatric pain and ensure that all children and their families receive the pain care they deserve."

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Click here to read "A hospital-wide initiative to eliminate or reduce needle pain in children using lean methodology"

DOI: 10.1097/PR9.0000000000000671

is an official publication of the IASP. An open access multidisciplinary journal,promotes a global, rapid, and readily accessible forum that advances clinical, applied, and basic research on pain. The online journal publishes full-length articles as well as brief reports, reviews, meta-analyses, meeting proceedings, and selected case reports. PAIN Reports gives special attention to submissions reporting the results of enterprising and high-risk research and pilot studies as well as locally developed clinical guidelines from scientists and clinicians in developing countries. IASP also publishes the journal

About the International Association for the Study of Pain IASP is the leading professional forum for science, practice, and education in the field of pain. Membership is open to all professionals involved in research, diagnosis, or treatment of pain. IASP has more than 7,000 members in 133 countries, 90 national chapters, and 20 special interest groups (SIGs). IASP brings together scientists, clinicians, health-care providers, and policymakers to stimulate and support the study of pain and translate that knowledge into improved pain relief worldwide.

About Wolters Kluwer

Wolters Kluwer is a global leader in professional information, software solutions, and services for the health, tax & accounting, finance, risk & compliance, and legal sectors. We help our customers make critical decisions every day by providing expert solutions that combine deep domain knowledge with specialized technology and services.

Wolters Kluwer, headquartered in the Netherlands, reported 2017 annual revenues of 4.4 billion. The company serves customers in over 180 countries, maintains operations in over 40 countries, and employs approximately 19,000 people worldwide.

Wolters Kluwer Health is a leading global provider of trusted clinical technology and evidence-based solutions that engage clinicians, patients, researchers and students with advanced clinical decision support, learning and research and clinical intelligence. For more information about our solutions, visit http://healthclarity.wolterskluwer.com and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter @WKHealth.
A DNA-based analysis of blood cells soon after a stem cell transplant can predict likelihood of disease recurrence in patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), a group of cancerous disorders characterized by dysfunctional blood cells, according to new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Such a practice could help doctors identify patients at high risk of disease recurrence early after a transplant and help guide treatment decisions.

The study is published Sept. 13 in The New England Journal of Medicine.

"The way doctors usually monitor the severity of this cancer is by looking at the blood cells under a microscope and deciding what percentage of them appear abnormal -- it's very subjective," said senior author Matthew J. Walter, MD, a professor of medicine. "A genetic analysis is a much more precise method of measuring how many blood cells are cancerous. It also lets us find abnormal cells at earlier time points after a stem cell transplant, when there are fewer cancerous cells to find. The earlier we can detect that the cancer is coming back, the more time we may have to intervene."

MDS is difficult to diagnose. Symptoms often are related to low blood cell counts. Many people with the disease may never know they have it because they may experience only nonspecific symptoms such as fatigue or shortness of breath. But others may have a more aggressive form that is eventually fatal. About one-third of MDS patients progress to acute myeloid leukemia, a fast-growing blood cancer that also can be fatal.

The only treatment that has the potential to cure MDS is a stem cell transplant, which involves clearing the cancerous cells from the body and replacing the blood-forming cells with those of a healthy donor. To prepare for transplantation, doctors first clear the cancerous blood cells from patients with radiation and chemotherapy. Doctors may choose to reduce the aggressiveness of this regimen for older patients who have other medical conditions and are more likely to die from complications of the transplant. But the reduced intensity regimen also is more likely to leave some of the cancer behind, increasing the risk of disease recurrence.

In this study, the researchers performed DNA sequencing to identify mutations in the cancerous cells before stem cell transplantation in 86 patients with MDS. Of these patients, 35 experienced disease recurrence at a median of 141 days after transplant, and 51 did not develop a recurrence within a median follow-up of about one year.

Mutations found before the transplant established a genetic "fingerprint" of each patient's cancer. About one month after a stem cell transplant, the researchers sequenced each patient's blood cells again to see if they could still detect the cancer's fingerprint. The patients whose cancer fingerprints could be detected 30 days after the transplants had about four times the risk of disease recurrence in the first year after their transplant compared with patients with no genetic sign of cancer cells (53 percent versus 13 percent recurrence, respectively), according to the researchers, including co-first authors Eric J. Duncavage, MD, an associate professor of pathology and immunology; Meagan A. Jacoby, MD, PhD, an assistant professor of medicine; and Gue Su Chang, PhD, a senior scientist.

To identify cancer fingerprints, the investigators first used a broad sequencing approach to detect mutations in over 20,000 genes. Because this approach would be impractical in the clinical setting, the researchers then narrowed their analysis to include only 40 genes. Though the 40-gene test was not able to identify a cancer fingerprint in as many patients as looking at all genes, it still identified most high-risk patients and demonstrated that a similar test could be practical for future use in patients. A 40-gene test is available to patients at Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine.

"Using our sequencing method, we're identifying residual tumor cells before a pathologist could see them under the microscope and before a patient develops symptoms," said Walter, who sees patients at Siteman Cancer Center. "At that moment, there may be time to intervene in ways that could delay the cancer from coming back or potentially prevent it completely.

"Now that we have detected mutations early and shown that it predicts a higher risk of recurrence, we want to determine the best course of action for those high-risk patients," Walter added.

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This work was supported by a Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Quest for Cures and Scholar Award; the Edward P. Evans Foundation; the National Cancer Institute, grant number R33CA217700; a Specialized Program of Research Excellence in AML of the National Cancer Institute, grant number P50CA171963; the Washington University Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences, grant number UL1TR002345; the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) of the National Institutes of Health, grant number TL1TR002344; an American Society of Hematology Scholar Award; Gabrielle's Angel Foundation; and the Lottie Caroline Hardy Trust. Support for procurement of human samples was provided by the Genomics of AML Program Project of the National Cancer Institute, grant number P01 CA101937; and a Specialized Program of Research Excellence in AML, grant number P50CA171963. Assistance was provided by the Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center Tissue Procurement Core and Biostatistics Shared Resource Core supported by the NCI Cancer Center, grant number P30CA91842.

Duncavage EJ, Jacoby MA, Chang GS, et al. Mutation clearance after transplant for myelodysplastic syndrome. The New England Journal of Medicine. Sept. 13, 2018.

Washington University School of Medicine's 1,300 faculty physicians also are the medical staff of Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's hospitals. The School of Medicine is a leader in medical research, teaching and patient care, ranking among the top 10 medical schools in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Through its affiliations with Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's hospitals, the School of Medicine is linked to BJC HealthCare.
Analysis of bones, from what was once the world's largest bird, has revealed that humans arrived on the tropical island of Madagascar more than 6,000 years earlier than previously thought - according to a study published today, 12 September 2018, in the journal Science Advances.

A team of scientists led by international conservation charity ZSL (Zoological Society of London) discovered that ancient bones from the extinct Madagascan elephant birds (Aepyornis and Mullerornis) show cut marks and depression fractures consistent with hunting and butchery by prehistoric humans. Using radiocarbon dating techniques, the team were then able to determine when these giant birds had been killed, reassessing when humans first reached Madagascar.

Previous research on lemur bones and archaeological artefacts suggested that humans first arrived in Madagascar 2,400-4,000 years ago. However, the new study provides evidence of human presence on Madagascar as far back as 10,500 years ago - making these modified elephant bird bones the earliest known evidence of humans on the island.

Lead author Dr James Hansford from ZSL's Institute of Zoology said: "We already know that Madagascar's megafauna - elephant birds, hippos, giant tortoises and giant lemurs - became extinct less than 1,000 years ago. There are a number of theories about why this occurred, but the extent of human involvement hasn't been clear.

"Our research provides evidence of human activity in Madagascar more than 6,000 years earlier than previously suspected - which demonstrates that a radically different extinction theory is required to understand the huge biodiversity loss that has occurred on the island. Humans seem to have coexisted with elephant birds and other now-extinct species for over 9,000 years, apparently with limited negative impact on biodiversity for most of this period, which offers new insights for conservation today."

Co-author Professor Patricia Wright from Stony Brook University said: "This new discovery turns our idea of the first human arrivals on its head. We know that at the end of the Ice Age, when humans were only using stone tools, there were a group of humans that arrived on Madagascar. We do not know the origin of these people and won't until we find further archaeological evidence, but we know there is no evidence of their genes in modern populations. The question remains - who these people were? And when and why did they disappear?"

The bones of the elephant birds studied by this project were originally found in 2009 in Christmas River in south-central Madagascar - a fossil 'bone bed' containing a rich concentration of ancient animal remains. This marsh site could have been a major kill site, but further research is required to confirm.

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For more information on the work ZSL is doing to conserve Madagascar's wildlife, visit http://www.zsl.org

J. Hansford, P. C. Wright, A. Rasoamiaramanana, V. R. Perez, L. R. Godfrey, D. Errickson, T. Thompson, S. T. Turvey, Early Holocene human presence in Madagascar evidenced by exploitation of avian megafauna. Science Advances. 4, eaat6925 (2018). http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/4/9/eaat6925

Notes to editors

Media contact

Emma Ackerley, emma.ackerley@zsl.org / +44 (0)20 7449 6288

Related images available here: https://zslondon.sharefile.com/d-s33e3cbc1aa84e64b

Madagascan Elephant birds (Aepyornis and Mullerornis)

The extinct elephant birds were flightless megafaunal birds, which were once widespread on Madagascar. They weighed at least 500kg and stood at around 3m tall. It is thought that one of their giant eggs could have fed an entire family.

The elephant bird bones from Christmas River were dated using AMS radiocarbon dating (Accelerated Mass Spectrometry Radiocarbon dating). They are now held at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC.

ZSL

ZSL (Zoological Society of London) is an international conservation charity working to create a world where wildlife thrives. From investigating the health threats facing animals to helping people and wildlife live alongside each other, ZSL is committed to bringing wildlife back from the brink of extinction. Our work is realised through our ground-breaking science, our field conservation around the world and engaging millions of people through our two zoos, ZSL London Zoo and ZSL Whipsnade Zoo. For more information, visit http://www.zsl.org.

Stony Brook University

Stony Brook University, widely regarded as a SUNY flagship, is home to an exceptionally diverse student body of more than 25,700 high-achieving students. Stony Brook offers more than 200 undergraduate programs, more than 100 master's programs and more than 40 doctoral programs. Innovative programs include a combined-degree fast-track MBA program and the award-winning Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (URECA) program, which involves undergraduates in research in nearly every discipline and has produced Fulbright, Beckman, Goldwater, Marshall and Truman scholars. For more information visit https://www.stonybrook.edu/

Use of ZSL Images and Video

Photographs, video or graphics distributed by ZSL (Zoological Society of London) to support this media release may only be used for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the persons in the image or facts mentioned in the media release or image caption. Reuse of the picture or video requires further permission from the ZSL press office.

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If you have any further questions, please get in touch.
US President Donald Trump commented that trade talks with Canada are going very well.

Technical conditions exacerbate the extreme fall in price.

Trump comments spur strength in the Looney, weaken USD exchange rates

After some dull range trading and price action since Friday, September 7th, there was finally some action and activity in the market. The US President announced that the trade negotiations between Canada and the US are going well (Reuters). This news has seen the Looney catch a bid across a number of pairs and cause drastic movements across the entire Forex market. At the time of writing this article (1545 CST), some of the following CAD pairs are displaying the following values:

AUDCAD: -0.71%

USDCAD: -0.83%

GBPCAD: -0.77%

EURCAD: -0.77%

The positive news on the US and Canadian trade deals has breathed a sigh of relief to a great many traders and investors. The fear, uncertainty, and doubt that has plagued the markets and created low volume conditions over this major trade deal have finally given way to some positive news and clues to very near resolution. The DXY (Dollar Index) has also experienced the side effect of showing a strong selloff, testing the $95 support zone and approaching the neckline of a head and shoulders pattern.

Above: Market geometry, time cycles and new coincide to create strong selling pressure.

Positive trade new provides accelerant to important technical levels

The selling pressure of the USDCAD FX pair comes after a Labor Day trading week that saw the USDCAD rise over 300pips with little in the form of retesting and pullbacks. Price action has been forming a bullish flag pattern that began on September 6th and extended to September 11th. Resistance has been around the 1.32 value area, which coincides with multiple geometric resistance levels: inner harmonic value of 1.324, Gann 1x3 angle and the top of a Head-and-Shoulders pattern. Additionally, and perhaps more importantly, the USDCAD FX pair failed to show support within the bull flag and saw price drop below that supportive channel.

The near-term support zone rests below at the 1.3021 value area. This zone is an important and strong support zone that should prove difficult for price to penetrate and close below. However, an important time cycle has acted as a resistance in time to the trend in force and could signal a new bear move in the USDCAD FX pair that could last between 45-90 days. Considering that prices in the USDCAD have been trading at or near yearly highs, there is a strong probability of prices seeing a strong sell-off below the 1.30 value area.
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Bexar County commissioners have adopted a $1.7 billion budget for the next fiscal year that slightly reduces the property tax rate and eliminates planned cuts to the constables offices and justices of the peace.

The commissioners unanimously approved the spending plan Tuesday. The fiscal year begins Oct. 1.

I think we had a good budget, County Judge Nelson Wolff said. Weve been able to fund a few things that we didnt think wed be able to because weve got a good, booming economy.

The county effectively reduced the property tax rate, but rising property values mean that many homeowners bills will still increase. Although the rate is now 30.1097 cents per $100 valuation (down from 30.4097 cents last year), the county will collect 4.7 percent  or roughly $19 million  more in property tax revenue.

About $10 million of that additional revenue comes from new construction, county budget officials said.

The effective tax rate  the rate the county would need to charge to bring in the same amount of money as last year, without accounting for new construction  would have been 29.6862 cents per $100.

The county budget also included $19.6 million to tackle road projects in the next year, but Commissioner Kevin Wolff said that amount only accounts for the projects that the county is funding exclusively. Larger projects are handled by the Metropolitan Planning Organization.

The countys projects often address connectivity issues or plugging in holes for MPO ventures, Kevin Wolff said.

Of the $157.4 million in road projects the county has identified as necessary, $91.2 million will be covered by other entities.

Here are some of the other highlights from the budget:

The countys general fund will have a balance of more than $71 million, which commissioners said was in line with recommendations to keep the countys AAA bond rating.

The county restored 15 positions in constables offices and eight positions from justices of the peace staff that it had proposed cutting. Commissioner Paul Elizondo has said he wants to commission a task force to study those officials workloads. Judge Wolff said he supports establishing that task force because the countys data shows constables workloads, at least in regard to serving warrants, is decreasing. Constables have said there has been no decrease.

But they also do patrol work, so what we need to understand better is  Are they doing a good job with that? What specifically are they doing? he continued. So we want to get a good solid policy on that before we start up the next budget.

One late addition to the budget was another $118,000 for the Bexar County Sheriffs Office, which will use the money to hire a psychologist after 18 deputies have been arrested this year, including 10 accused of violent crimes. Sheriff Javier Salazar said the psychologist will screen future applicants and help deputies manage stress. Judge Wolff said they may add more positions in the future if it proves successful. The BCSO will also get funding for 10 deputies to form a full-time SWAT team and two more investigators.

County employees got a raise, which added almost $8 million to the budget. Employees who bargain collectively received a 3 percent bump ($3.1 million). The commissioners also raised the minimum or livable wage to $15 ($1 million) and gave a 2 percent cost-of-living adjustment to all other employees who make more than $15 an hour (3.81 million).

Dylan McGuinness covers county goverment and local politics for the Express-News. Reach him at dylan.mcguinness@express-news.net and follow him on Twitter at @DylMcGuinness.
AUSTIN  The latest Alamo battle was over in a few hours Tuesday.

A curriculum advisory group had recommended the State Board of Education remove the words all the heroic defenders from the Texas social studies curriculum to describe those who fought at the Alamo, setting off a barrage of criticism and drawing more than 60 people to the board meeting.

But by midmorning, the board indicated it would be keeping heroic in the curriculum while a member of the advisory group said nobody had intended to minimize the deeds of the Alamo defenders.

The short-lived battle over the Alamos role in the states social studies curriculum is emblematic of the culture wars that are often fought in the panels board room.

RELATIVE: Alamo plan approved by management committee

The boards authority over school curriculum in Texas made it ground zero for a clash in 2017 over creationism in science textbooks. Earlier this year, hundreds of people held a rally to protest the boards reluctance to create a Mexican-American studies course.

At Tuesdays meeting, the board also discussed the possibility of removing the words Moses and Judeo-Christian values from the high school social studies curriculum, and debated over how the Civil War is described, but those topics took a back seat to the Alamo outrage.

The advisory group initially sought to strike the word heroic because it is value charged and had argued that all defenders is a term too vague to be part of a history lesson.

Whats more, the group recommended eliminating from the curriculum a specific reference to William B. Travis letter addressed to the People of Texas and All Americans in the World, commonly referred to as the victory or death letter.

Texas lawmakers led the charge against the proposals.

Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called it political correctness. Rep. Ted Poe, R-Atascocita, even showed up at the meeting to speak out against the changes, a move that surprised board members who said theyd never seen a member of Congress at a meeting before.

Stephen Cure, a member of the committee that recommended changes to the Alamo curriculum, said in an interview that the advisory group never intended to remove the Travis letter from the classroom or to discourage teachers from describing the defenders as heroic.

RELATIVE: Our chance to restore the 'lost' Alamo

The majority of the work group felt it didnt need to be said because it had always been taught that way for the past 30 plus years, Cure said.

Cure presented the board with a revised standard, which board members will discuss today.

It says teachers should explain issues surrounding significant events of the Texas Revolution, including the heroism of diverse defenders who gave their lives at the Alamo.

Board members appeared to support the change, but the board will not take any final action on the standards until November.

The board already had signaled it would walk-back the original proposal by the time Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, weighed in with an op-ed for Fox News denouncing the board for considering the changes.

He said the classroom is not supposed to be a place without values. It must be a place with the right values.

The troubling implication here  in addition to scrubbing patriotism from our schoolbooks  is that our children cannot be taught history with a sense of value and valor, Cruz said. This is an absurd claim.

RELATIVE: Alamo defenders acted heroically

With the Alamo matter nearly settled for now, the board moved on to the other social studies standards, including how educators teach the founding of the country and the Civil War.

Several people spoke out against the long-standing Texas curriculum, which teaches the Civil War was caused by sectionalism, states rights and slavery (in that order), a teaching that historians and teachers repeatedly have refuted. Still, the advisory group did not recommend any changes to that standard.

Ron Francis, a middle school social studies teacher, told the board he teaches his students the state-mandated lesson on the Civil War  that it was sparked by a dispute over state rights. But then he asks them to prove it.

We start gathering primary source documents. As we do that, it becomes pretty clear that slavery was the cause of the Civil War, Francis said. You just cant find evidence to prove that anything else was.

He and others urged the board to change the standards to reflect that slavery was the only cause for the war.

As for Moses, he may be on the way out.

The advisory group recommended removing references to Moses as an individual whose principles of laws and government influenced Americas founding. The advisory group wrote that Moses is too removed from time period the U.S. Constitution was authored and beyond time scope.

Several historians and teachers also urged the board to heed that recommendation, noting theres little to no proof that Moses principles influenced Americas founding documents.

No verdict from the board on that one yet.
Journalist Bob Woodwards much-quoted book about President Donald Trump went on sale Tuesday, and in a half-hour, four customers in a San Antonio bookstore ponied up $25.98 for copies of Fear.

The fear is real, deadpanned Michelle Madison, manager of Barnes & Noble near Loop 410 and San Pedro Avenue.

The store received 150 copies of the book and already half were spoken for, she said. Another 60 copies are on order.

Its selling better than Unhinged but not as good as Fire and Fury, said bookseller Nicollette Tercilla, referring to books by former Trump employee Omarosa Maingault Newman and by author Michael Wolff.

RELATED: Transcript: Phone call between President Trump and journalist Bob Woodward

Trump has slammed both books and called Woodwards fiction and claims that the quotes are made up.

With all the advance media hoopla about the book, people might be forgiven for feeling theyve already read it all.

But for some, the tales of chaos and covert administrative finagling in the White House just werent enough.

One lady said she bought it not because she doesnt like Trump, but she just wants to be in the know on what everyones talking about, Madison said.

Gloria Sanchez stood at the counter and wrapped the two copies she bought in colorful gift paper. Shell give them to friends as birthday presents, she said.

Were all into politics in my family and we have all kinds  Democrats, Republicans, independents  but we dont get into nasty arguments, she said. We have civil debate. Our friendship is more important than politics.

That said, she cant countenance all the lies coming from the White House, she said. Especially when it comes to respecting the service men and women of the country.

I voted for McCain, she said. Twice.

Frances and Raul Alvarez, carrying their copy in a plastic bag, said they didnt vote in the last presidential election. Theyre not going to make the same mistake twice. They said they dislike Trump, but we want to read deeper.

RELATED: Trump rips searing Times op-ed from unnamed senior official

Una Russell, a retiree who sat buttering a bagel in the Starbucks at the store, planned to get her copy as soon as she was done eating.

Everyone has written their book, but Bob Woodward is just a very credible reporter, she said. Ive waited for this one. I havent bought any of the others. She called ahead to make sure copies were still available.

Ive heard a lot already, but I want to read the book to get more of an understanding of (the) guys, meaning Trumps cabinet members like Secretary of Defense Gen. James N. Mattis, she said. He said, I never said that, but that sounds like a cover-up job to me.

In the same rack, underneath Fear, the face of astrophysicist and vocal progressive Neil deGrasse Tyson peered out, as if to mock his bunk mate.

Monica Lynn, stopping off to get a chocolate/vanilla frappe after buying her copy, said she was going to pass the book to her father after she finished reading it.

Trump goes on and on about fake news, when most of the things he says are false, she said. Im just astounded hes still the president.

Melissa Fletcher Stoeltje is a staff writer in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read her on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | mstoeltje@express-news.net | Twitter: @mstoeltje
Stan Bates, the fast-talking mastermind of a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors in a startup oil field services company and toppled the career of longtime state Sen. Carlos Uresti, was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years behind bars.

That was just shy of the maximum penalty under sentencing guidelines.

FourWinds was a fraud from the very day the doors were opened on May 5, 2014, U.S. District Judge Ezra said, calling it a shameful scam.

Ezra also ordered Bates to pay more than $6.3 million in restitution and to serve three years of federal supervision once hes released from prison.

Bates, 46, had argued for a sentence of four years, far lower than the recommended sentencing guideline range of 12 years and 7 months to 15 years and 8 months.

He cited his extraordinary service in the Marine Corps, and claimed that if given leniency, he would try to repay the millions he bilked from the people who invested in FourWinds Logistics.

For many reasons I failed, Bates told the court Tuesday, tears flowing as he apologized to his victims.

But he stopped short of accepting full responsibility.

I failed for reckless spending, he said. The (oil) market crashed, I took bad advice. Bad decisions led to worse decisions. I let peoples greed, corruption and my own vision turn my integrity and my honor into lies.

Ezra wasnt swayed, and was particularly incensed that Bates and Uresti, also a veteran of the Marines, touted their military credentials to lure investors.

To use the name, the honor and the dignity of any branch of service for purposes of presenting oneself as being a person of honor and therefore trusted, when they knew they were in fact the opposite, is an unfortunate shame upon themselves, said Ezra, who also served in the Marines. Its a serious, serious shame that they did such a thing.

Bates, who served 12 years in the Marines, claimed he was a scout sniper and had parachuted into Albania where he shot a general in the head.

His military service record makes no mention of him ever serving as a sniper, attending airborne school or even being in a combat zone. It says he served as an artillery cannoneer and as a mortarman.

The judge also said Bates brought Uresti into the company in part because he believed Uresti  who served more than 20 years as a lawmaker  brought an air of respectability over a rotten core of corruption.

Its like getting a  rotted board and placing a mahogany veneer and claiming its quality wood, Ezra said. The first time you put weight on it, it crumbles. Thats what happened here.

Bates pleaded guilty in January to eight felonies that included wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and aiding and abetting securities fraud so he wouldnt stand in Februarys salacious trial with Uresti and company consultant Gary Cain.

Bates lead lawyer, Assistant Federal Public Defender Kurt May, argued that Bates accepted responsibility by pleading guilty and offered to cooperate, but prosecutors ultimately chose not to call him as a witness in the Uresti trial.

Testimony established that Bates, as CEO and majority owner of the startup FourWinds, told investors there were riches to be made in the buying and selling of sand used in fracking for oil production, which he called more valuable than gold.

He projected sales of $1.2 billion within 18 months. Instead, the company was out of business and headed for liquidation less than a year later.

Bates blew investor money on personal expenses, expensive gifts, exotic car rentals and a wild lifestyle, that included whiskey at office meetings and cocaine. His company had a reputation as a brothel that flew in prostitutes dubbed packages.

Three of his victims scolded Bates in impact statements to the court Tuesday. Richard and Sharlene Thum, who have run a San Antonio dry-cleaning business for 38 years, said they had many sleepless nights and even cried after realizing Bates had swindled them out of a hard-earned $1.4 million.

Richard Thum said Bates has no idea what honor and integrity are.

Im convinced you dont have a conscience, Thum said, looking at Bates. You believe its everyone elses fault but your own.

Sharlene Thum said Bates and Uresti could not get enough jail time as far as shes concerned.

When you listen to what they say, they dont have any remorse, she said. In fact, they dont see that they did anything wrong. I want them to know that Richard and I will always be watching to see if they get an early release because we will fight it every single day.

Denise Cantu , who invested $900,000  part of a settlement that Uresti helped her obtain after the traffic death that killed two of her five children, said she had to relive the painful memories of that 2010 crash, and the legal battle that ensued. Cantu said she trusted both Uresti and Bates, but both lied and used her.

Trial testimony established she ended up in sexual relationships with both Uresti and Bates, and prosecutors said they took advantage of her because she was vulnerable. She lost $800,000 of her investment.

What I cant comprehend is how these men can be so cruel-hearted, said Cantu, who was unable to attend Urestis earlier sentencing because she sat in jail over unrelated criminal assault charges. I could have used that money to help my kids have a better life. Not only did they take the money, they disrespected my angels in Heaven who left us that blessing.

Bates is the last of six defendants to be sentenced in the FourWinds saga. Uresti, a Democrat who resigned from the state Senate in June, was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison. Cain received a sentence of five years and eight months. Both are appealing their convictions.

Shannon Smith, who was FourWinds co-owner, was sentenced to five years of probation. Laura Jacobs, the companys comptroller, received a years sentence in a womens prison camp. Eric Nelson, the companys marketing director, was sentenced to four years of probation. Smith, Jacobs and Nelson cooperated with investigators.

Uresti, meanwhile, still faces a separate federal trial in October on an unrelated bribery case. He is also facing a civil lawsuit from Cantu. Trial in that case could take place early next year, according to her lawyer, Oscar Alvarez.

Patrick Danner is a San Antonio-based staff writer covering banking and civil courts. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | pdanner@express-news.net | Twitter: @AlamoPD
Private insurers in Texas and across the country have entered the public fight against opioid addiction, with some now outright denying coverage of OxyContin, the most notorious of drugs linked to the crisis.

But the move has unleashed a clash of opinion over its wisdom.

The insurance industry defended the crackdown as an important deterrent.

People in the field of drug abuse treatment and pain management call it an overreaction and question the effectiveness of taking a stand against one drug.

Everyone has a role to play in preventing the misuse of prescription pills, including insurance companies, said T.J. Mayes, a spokesman for Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff.

RELATED: $11M grant to combat opioid crisis could put naloxone in hands of more first responders, civilians

James Langabeer, professor of emergency medicine at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth in Houston, said while its good that the insurance industry is weighing in, I dont believe we should be isolating one category of opioid versus another.

The worry is that those already addicted wont be stopped if their drug of choice becomes harder to get. They simply may turn to another prescription opioid or a street drug, such as heroin, which sometimes can be cheaper and easier to get.

OxyContin, manufactured by Purdue Pharma, is the brand name for oxycodone, a narcotic drug used to treat moderate to severe pain.

The drugmaker has been at the heart of scandal and litigation in recent years amid allegations it intentionally misled doctors about the safety of ratcheting up doses.

In May, Texas sued Purdue Pharma contending that deceptive marketing helped fuel the opioid crisis.

Drawing a line

Last week, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Tennessee, that states largest insurer, became the latest company to announce it will stop covering OxyContin prescriptions beginning Jan. 1.

The announcement follows a nationwide halt by two national insurance giants, Cigna and UnitedHealthcare, which together have millions of Texas members.

RELATED: Federal grant would fund next chapter of San Antonio area's opiod task force

Cigna grabbed headlines last fall when it announced it was dropping coverage of OxyContin from its list of preferred medications for employer-sponsored health plans beginning this year. About 1 million Texans have such plans, a Cigna spokesman said.

Cigna customers who already are taking the drug for hospice or cancer treatment will be covered through the end of this year, the company said. After that, the insurer will consider approving coverage for Oxycontin if a customers doctor feels that treatment with OxyContin is medically necessary, the company said in an email.

UnitedHealthcare more quietly stopped covering OxyContin in its employer-sponsored plans on Jan. 1, 2017. More than 3 million Texans have those plans.

There are therapeutically equivalent, covered alternatives that can be used for pain indications, a spokesman for UnitedHealthcare said in an emailed statement.

Those include nonopioid prescriptions as well as other pain management treatments such as chiropractic services and physical therapy, the insurer said Monday, although it wasnt clear what alternatives will be covered.

Florida Blue, the largest insurer in Florida, also stopped covering OxyContin for its group and individual plan members at the start of this year.

Cigna and Florida Blue will replace Oxycontin as a preferred medication with Xtampza, an oxycondone substitute that is said to be harder to abuse.

RELATED: US hospitals grapple with prolonged injected opioid shortage

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Tennessee will encourage doctors to prescribe Xtmapza or Morphabond, also an opioid. The insurers have said doctors can continue to write prescriptions for the drug but it will not be routinely covered.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, the states largest insurer, said Monday it will continue to cover OxyContin for its members, but the company has instituted a series of safeguards to spot and curtail potential overuse.

On Aug. 1, the company launched a program that will scrutinize quantity and dosage of prescriptions for opioids and check the number of doctors writing similar prescriptions for one patient, the insurer said.

The companys prescription drug list is routinely reviewed to determine which medications are safe, effective and affordable. Updates to the drug list  such as removing/adding drugs  are made based on these guidelines and other changes in the pharmaceutical market, the insurer said in a statement.

OxyContin maker responds

Purdue Pharma has reacted strongly to the coverage ban.

It said it already has taken steps to make its product harder to abuse by changing the formula. It also accused insurers of backing competitors for financial gain.

RELATED: Bexar County files lawsuit against opioid companies, including Purdue Pharma

These recent decisions by insurance companies limit prescribers options to help address the opioid crisis, a company spokesman said in an email, adding that the alternative medications are no safer or more abuse-proof.

Unfortunately, these decisions appear to be more about pharmaceutical rebates, the statement said.

The United States now is seeing the highest drug overdose death rate ever recorded, according to officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In 2016, there were 42,000 drug overdose deaths involving opioid prescription painkillers. Thats 116 people dying per day.

And while Texas hasnt seen the opioid ravages of some other states, it has been flagged as showing a significant increase in drug overdose deaths, climbing to 2,831 in 2016 from 2,588 deaths in 2015, the CDC reported.

Mayes, the spokesman for Wolff, said the Bexar County Opioid Task Force that has been examining ways to battle the opioid epidemic locally will present its full report to the San Antonio City Council soon.
Kelly Cross wants voters to believe that she was thoroughly justified in her firing of Oscar Kazen.

Cross, the Bexar County Probate Court No. 1 judge, dismissed Kazen in July 2016 from his position as an associate probate judge. It was a move that shook up the courthouse, given that Kazen had spent more than nine years helping to build a mental-health docket often cited as a national model.

Kazen, a Democrat, is now challenging Cross, a Republican, for her probate-court seat and the central issue in the race is that 2016 firing. Its the fulcrum upon which every topic in this campaign rests.

In a visit last Friday to the Express-News editorial board, Cross justified the firing by arguing that she inherited a broken court from her predecessor, Polly Jackson Spencer and had long-standing conflicts with Kazen.

The problem is that the Cross of 2018 contradicts the Cross of 2016.

READ ALSO: Tax cut becomes a campaign issue for Jones, not Hurd

Specifically, the Cross who filled out an employee performance appraisal for Kazen in February 2016, five months before she terminated him.

In her appraisal, Cross gave Kazen perfect scores in every category, including quality of work, employee relations, initiative and application of job knowledge.

In the comments section of the form, Cross wrote, Hard working, knowledgeable and exception(ally) skilled in mental health.

When asked about that glowing appraisal, and the chasm between what she conveyed then and what she now says about Kazens job performance, Cross brushed off her own written words.

Im gonna write good reviews about everybody, Cross said.

In other words, Cross argued, she was just spewing out some phony compliments for someone she couldnt stand and who she considered to be an ineffective judge.

Its an odd defense strategy, but Cross puts it across with the same cavalier assurance that she has brought to her various controversies.

READ ALSO: Why primary voters shouldn't pick party county chairs

One of those controversies involved her 2015 decision to allow local attorney Marcus Rogers, whose area of specialty involves probate cases, to remodel her courthouse.

We all went to her and said, You cant do this, you cannot accept that kind of gift from an attorney that appears before your court, Kazen told the editorial board. She accepted it nonetheless.

Cross thinks its no big deal.

Cross said she and Rogers talked about doing some sanding and staining work together on the wood paneling, which she said Spencer disfigured by using Scotch tape on it.

Hes a wood guy. I thought it would be fun to do a little sanding, Cross said.

When Cross found that she didnt have time to do it, Rogers hired contractors to do the work.

He didnt do my house, Cross said, with a whats-the-big-deal grimace that characterizes so many of her rationalizations.

I heard that same tone two months ago when I asked her why she was four months late filing a campaign finance report that should have been submitted eight days before the March 6 primary election. It marked the third campaign-reporting violation from Cross in the span of a year and a half.

In April, the State Commission on Judicial Conduct admonished her for courtroom misconduct that including referring to a proposed ward as Mr. Maggot and comparing a disabled childs IQ to that of a ballpoint pen.

READ ALSO: Local coalition pushes for return to paper voting

A little self-examination or contrition might have been nice, but Cross doesnt do contrition. She dismissed the allegations against her as politically motivated.

By all accounts, the conflict between Cross and Kazen was personal, stylistic and substantive.

For more than nine years, Kazen presided over the countys Involuntary Outpatient Commitment Program, a program which the Boston Globe cited in 2016 as a model that Massachusetts should follow.

Sources in the mental-health industry dispute Crosss assertion that the program was broken when she took office. The lone qualm expressed is that Kazen was so sympathetic to parents who had a child grappling with mental-health challenges that occasionally he might have been too willing to commit kids for outpatient treatment.

Praise for Kazens mental-health work, however, is easy to find.

In a June 1, 2017 recommendation letter, former Sheriff Susan Pamerleau lauded Kazen for his unique insight as well as his ability to bring diverse stakeholders together.

Wilfredo Ortiz, with the San Antonio Counseling and Behavioral Center, said, in a written statement provided to the Express-News, that the countys outpatient program succeeded because of Kazens sincere commitment and desire to help those individuals.

The Kelly Cross who filled out Kazens 2016 appraisal would have agreed. But the Kelly Cross running against Kazen in 2018 wants us to believe that she didnt mean a word of it.
A veteran Texas Congressman says he misspoke when he wrongly told a crowd that the 9/11 terrorist attack was carried out by terrorists from Pakistan.

Speaking to an almost exclusively Indian-American audience last month, U.S. Rep. Pete Olson, R-Sugar Land, said he was trying to draw a parallel between 9/11 and a 2008 terrorist attack in Mumbai that was carried out by Pakistanis when he blamed Pakistanis for the attacks on the World Trade Center.

Olson knows that it was not Pakistanis who were responsible for 9/11.

The congressman made the mistake while speaking at India House in Houston on Aug. 15. Olson was one of the invited speakers to celebrate Indias Independence Day. His district is one of most diverse in America and has a large Indian-American population. Olson has twice visited India while in Congress and during his speech talked up his meetings with India Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

September 11th, 2001: 3,000 innocent Americans were killed by terrorists from Pakistan, Olson told the audience. 26 November 2008, Mumbai: Two solid days of killing by people trained in Pakistan.

None of the 19 al-Qaeda hijackers on September 11 were Pakistani. Fifteen were from Saudi Arabia, two from the United Arab Emirates, and one each from Egypt and Lebanon. The 9/11 Commission in its report faulted Pakistan for not doing enough to thwart al-Qaida and the Taliban in Afghanistan.

RARE IMAGES: 9/11 photos from Pentagon show aftermath of terrorist attack

Olsons Democratic opponent, Sri Preston Kulkarni, says he sees something more cynical in Olson blaming Pakistan while speaking to a predominately Indian-American crowd. Pakistan and India have had decades of tension over disputed territory between the two countries.

September 11 was one of the defining moments in American history, said Kulkarni, a former foreign service worker for the U.S. State Department. Pete Olsons statement about this attack is incorrect and inflammatory. When our elected officials do not understand the basic facts of foreign policy, we divide our citizens and risk the lives of our troops.

Olson says Kulkarni is just trying to score political points.

It was clear in the full context of my conversation that I was relating the terror attacks on 9/11 in America, to the terror attacks our Indian friends suffered at the hands of terrorists trained to kill in Pakistan, Olson said. Both events were horrific, pivotal moments in our shared democracies. Taking one sentence where I accidentally transferred the dates in India to the events in America out of context  does not change the fact that radical Islamic terrorists were successful in attacking both of our nations.

Olson, 55, is a 5-term member of the U.S. House and is seeking another 2-year-term this year. He represents the 22nd Congressional District, which includes Fort Bend, Brazoria and part of southern Harris County.

Olson has easily one his last four re-elections. But Kulkarni has relied heavily on his ability to connect with the districts diverse population to give Democrats hope that he could pull off an upset in the district. About 20 percent of the population in the district is of Asian heritage  more than any other district in Texas. About 25 percent of the districts population is foreign born, according to U.S. Census records.

jeremy.wallace@chron.com
Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport has secured a number of new flights for the upcoming winter season with Etihad Airways and AlMasria Universal Airlines becoming the latest to announce additional services to the Serbian capital. The national carrier of the United Arab Emirates will maintain double daily flights between Abu Dhabi and Belgrade during the busy holiday season, between December 20 and January 13, up from the daily service it operated last winter. It comes after the airline ran twelve weekly rotations between the two cities over the peak summer months.





Egypt's AlMasria Universal Airlines, which has been operating two weekly flights between the holiday resort town of Hurghada and Belgrade with its Airbus A330-200 aircraft throughout the summer, has upgraded the service to year-round operations. It will become the second carrier to maintain services between the two cities throughout the year, with Egypt Air's subsidiary Air Cairo also operating on the route. AlMasria will run two weekly rotations from Hurghada to Belgrade this winter. Last week, the Egyptian Ambassador to Serbia, Amr al Jowaily, said the number of Serbian nationals visiting Egypt increased 60% this year, with 90% of all travellers heading to the Red Sea resort. Earlier this year Mr al Jowaily said the two countries were working on the resumption of flights between Cairo and Belgrade.





Austrian Airlines, Aeroflot, Belavia, easyJet, LOT, Norwegian Air Shuttle, TAROM and Transavia will all introduce additional frequencies this winter when compared to last. Aeroflot will add a third daily service to Belgrade for a total of 21 weekly flights, LOT Polish Airlines will boost operations, from daily last winter, to ten weekly starting October 28, while Belavia will maintain its third weekly service from Minsk to Belgrade launched this summer (two via Budapest and one nonstop). Austrian Airlines and TAROM will introduce an extra weekly service to the Serbian capital for a total of nineteen from Vienna and nine flights per week from Bucharest. Iran Air has filed its scheduled from Tehran for the winter, with the airline to operate two weekly flights. Air Serbia will increase its frequencies to Zurich with an additional three weekly services for a total of seventeen, add an extra weekly rotation to Stockholm for a total of four per week and upgrade its seasonal Larnaca service to year-round operations.





Low cost airlines will also be adding frequencies. easyJet will maintain all three of its routes to Belgrade - Geneva, Basel and Berlin - on a year-round basis, with the latter two to be operated for the first time. Furthermore, Transavia will run five weekly services between Amsterdam and Belgrade for the entire season, whereas additional flights were introduced last winter from February onwards. Norwegian Air Shuttle plans to boost its frequencies from Oslo to Belgrade from two to three per week, while it will also maintain its Stockholm service throughout the winter with one weekly flight. Wizz Air, which will downgrade its Belgrade - Larnaca route from year round to seasonal summer operations will compensate by adding additional frequencies on its existing services. On the other hand, Flydubai will decrease its flight offering from daily to five weekly.





EX-YU Aviation News will publish all winter network changes for the former Yugoslavia's capital city airports, as well as national airlines, over the coming month.
BRIDGEPORT  A Monroe heroin dealer has become the first person convicted in Fairfield County of causing an overdose.

Nicholas Ludwig, 22, of Block Farm Road, pleaded no contest Tuesday before Superior Court Judge Robert Devlin to first-degree assault, sale of narcotics and possession of narcotics with intent to sell. The judge then found him guilty of the charges.

Ludwig faces a maximum prison term of four years, His lawyer, Eugene Riccio, retains the right to argue for a lesser term when Ludwig is sentenced on Nov. 16.

Riccio and Supervisory Assistant States Attorney C. Robert Satti Jr. declined comment following the hearing.

While there have been a number of drug dealers accused by both state and federal authorities of causing overdoses, few dealers have been convicted of doing so. Court records show this is the first in the Fairfield Judicial District.

Ludwig was arrested July 1, 2017, after Monroe police said they caught him in the act of selling heroin on East Village Road. He was charged with possession of narcotics with intent to sell and possession of narcotics.

The following day, Monroe officers were dispatched to Maple Drive for a possible overdose. When officers got to the scene, they found an unconscious young woman lying on a bedroom floor, police said. It took four doses of an anti-overdose drug to bring the woman back to consciousness, police said, and she was taken to St. Vincents Medical Center.

Police said the woman later told them she had snorted heroin at Ludwigs house after purchasing five bags from him for $40. She recalled her boyfriend driving her home, but nothing after that.

Police said Ludwigs mother told them she remembered the young woman coming to her home the evening of July 2 and that the woman appeared fine and normal before going into Ludwigs bedroom.

After a few minutes of her being in Nicholas room, she was coming downstairs all disoriented and unsteady on her feet, as if she was drunk, police said Ludwigs mother recounted.
BRIDGEPORT  A day after Hearst Connecticut Media reported that Bridgeport States Attorney John Smriga delayed his hate-crime investigation of retired police Capt. Mark Straubel because police had not turned over evidence, it was supplied.

I have discussed the matter with the chief (Armando Perez) and he is in the process of providing me with the material I requested, Smriga said on Wednesday. He declined further comment.

On Tuesday, Smriga said he requested the information from Perez two weeks ago.

I have asked Chief Perez for a copy of the Bridgeport Police Departments office of internal affairs report regarding the matter which he has agreed to provide, Smriga said. I have also asked that a forensic analysis of the phone that was the source of the messages be conducted.

Perez said Tuesday that he was also frustrated that Smriga did not have the information. Perez said the Straubel case file was being reviewed by Bridgeports City Attorney and he hoped it would be in Smrigas hands this week.

In June, a Stratford police officer who had retired from the Bridgeport Police Department filed a complaint with the Office of Internal Affairs after intercepting texts written by Straubel to a third person.

In those texts, obtained by Hearst, Straubel made racial slurs against an African-American police captain and advocated starting a race war.

The Bridgeport and state chapters of the NAACP urged the States Attorneys Office to investigae whether hate-crime charges would be warranted in the case.

City Attorney R. Christopher Meyer told Hearst his office recommended full compliance with the states attorney. Straubel, who was the chiefs aide, retired Aug. 13 while being investigated by the Internal Affairs.
FAIRFIELD  It was 17 years ago that the planes flew into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania.

And in the 16 years since the terrorist attack, town officials, first responders and community members have gathered in the driveway of fire headquarters on Reef Road to remember the victims, including the first responders who have since died from cancers.

Deputy Police Chief Chris Lyddy he remembers not only the days grief, but also the frustration, as first responders gathered at the downtown train station, ready to aid the injured getting off the train. Were standing on the railroad platform, and train after train passed by and so few people got off the train, Lyddy said. It dawned on them, he said, that in this attack, you either survived, or you didnt.

But there was also fear  would there be more attacks  and anger at those responsible, Lyddy said. The anger, he said, became a resolve that continues today.

First Selectman Mike Tetreau said he was in a commercial real estate office in Shelton, when the rumors began to circulate. They rushed down to the first floor, where the fitness center had a television set. He worked at one point in the Twin Towers.

I think its important as we remember where we were when the towers fell, Tetreau said, how we felt after, and how it brought our country together.

We should use that feeling, he said, of knowing what our country stood for and take that forward.

Fire Chief Denis McCarthy said on a wall at the footprint of the Twin Towers hangs a sign that reads, No day shall erase you from the memory of time.

That is why we are here today, McCarthy said. This past year, another 182 names, he said, were added by the New York Fire Department to the list of those killed in the 9-11 attacks. These dead are firefighters who died as a result of cancers linked to their time working at Ground Zero. There were 18 that died just this year, McCarthy said. It is possible, he said, that one day the number that have succumbed to cancer will be higher than the 343 killed that day.

There are positives from that day, McCarthy said. It brought out our best in human nature, he said. For the emergency service, McCarthy said, failure is not an option.

So we will always look forward, but we will never forget, he said.
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KAZ Minerals PLC, together with its subsidiaries, engages in mining and processing copper and other metals primarily in Kazakhstan, Russia, and Kyrgyzstan. It operates through Bozshakol, Aktogay, East Region and Bozymchak, and Mining Projects segments. The company operates the Aktogay and Bozshakol open pit copper mines in the east region and Pavlodar region of Kazakhstan; three underground mines in the east region of Kazakhstan; and the Bozymchak copper-gold mine in Kyrgyzstan. It also develops greenfield metal deposits; operates Koksay deposit in Kazakhstan, and the Baimskaya licence area in the Chukotka region of Russia; and produces and sells various by-products, such as gold, silver, molybdenum, and zinc. In addition, the company supplies and distributes heat, water, and electricity; and offers construction, project management, financing, management, sales and logistics, and repairs and maintenance services. The company was formerly known as Kazakhmys PLC and changed its name to KAZ Minerals PLC in October 2014. KAZ Minerals PLC was founded in 1930 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.

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In what can arguably be called a strategic geopolitical gesture toward France, Irans oil minister Bijan Zanganeh said on Saturday that the country would refund French oil major Total for its investment in the South Pars natural gas field. As Oil Price writes in the article Can Irans Gas Sector Thrive In The Face Of Fresh Sanctions?, that assurance comes with a caveat, the refund wont be issued until phase 11 of the massive gas field becomes operational. France, for its part, had been one of the main EU members that had lobbied, unsuccessfully albeit, for Trump to reconsider his pledge to reimpose sanctions on Iran.

Total is not supposed to pay a sum as a penalty to Iran, but the money that this company has invested in phase 11 of South Pars until now will not be reimbursed until the time of operation and production, Zanganeh said.

In July 2017, Total signed Irans first major energy deal since sanctions had been removed the previous year. Under terms of the 20-year deal, Total agreed to invest an initial $1 billion for the first stage of the project, taking a 50.1 percent interest, while its total investment would eventually reach $5 billion. Chinese National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) was slated to own 30 percent and Iran's Petropars a 19.9 percent share.

However, shortly after President Trump announced that he would reimpose sanctions against Iran over its nuclear development program in May, Total once again had to rethink its Iranian oil and gas sector policy. Last month, the company officially pulled out of Iran and exited the South Pars Deal. The first series of reimposed U.S. sanctions were reinstated in early August and target the country's automotive sector, issuance of debt and metals trade. More sanctions are to come on November 4, that will directly target the countrys oi and gas sector, shipping industry and financial institutions.

Sanctions and gas

The problem for Total and other foreign firms that were ramping up deals with Iran include the possibility of so-called secondary sanctions leveled against them for continuing to cooperate with Iran. The Total pullout was a major blow for Iran which has been trying for years to jump start its fledgling natural gas production to help meet domestic demand as well as the possibility of restarting its mothballed liquefied natural gas (LNG) project that had also been canceled due to earlier Western sanctions.

As recently as last November, it appeared that Iran could be set to export its first LNG cargoeswithin a year or two as the country pressed ahead with its proposed floating LNG (FLNG) production project. National Iranian Oil Co (NIOC) signed a contract with joint venture company IFLNG. At the time analysts said the $600 million project would be insignificant in terms of volume but would nonetheless help Iran to deepen its integration with partners in Asia and Europe and build up the countrys experience in LNG trade and marketing.

However, Irans natural gas supply deals already in place will not suffer the brunt of upcoming sanctions as much as its oil sector. As much as 1 million barrel per day (bpd) of Iranian oil will be removed from global markets, with that number likely to increase as sanctions take hold.

Iranian gas sector for its part, though a considerably smaller part of the countrys total energy sector, should see a number of key gas supply agreements remain in place despite sanctions.

Turkey, which obtains around 40 percent of its electricity from natural gas, is due to buy 9.5 million cubic meters (bcm) of gas from Iran in a contract which runs through 2026. In a speech in July, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan asked: Who will heat my country throughout the winter?

Iran and Turkey's ability to continue with their gas contract has also been helped by an agreement signed last October when the two sides agreed to allow their own currencies to be used for bilateral trade instead of U.S. dollars. Tehran has tried to set up similar arrangements with other governments including Russia. If deals go ahead on that basis, it will effectively remove one of Trumps main leveraging tools by allowing Iran and its partners to bypass the U.S. financial system. Other major gas clients, especially Armenia and Azerbaijan, are likely to continue their gas deals with Iran as well despite sanctions.
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The day is not far when Ayushmann Khurrana will don the hat of the King of quirk in Bollywood as the star is always experimenting with the kind of content his films carry. From being a sperm donor in his debut film to dealing with infertility in Shubh Mangal Savdhaan, the actor makes sure he normalizes unconventional things through his films. Talking about it during a recent interview while promoting his upcoming film Badhaai Ho, where the parents of his character conceive a child when they are middle aged, the actor said,  I often wonder if I attract such scripts or vice versa, but I am not complaining. I love these kind of stories, we need to present something unconventional as completely normal. The content cant be vanilla anymore.Speaking about any such incidents that he has witnessed in his life, like his character goes through in Badhaai Ho, the actor smiled and continued saying, One of my closest friends in Chandigarh is my age but his parents must be in their 80s now. I am sure his siblings would have experienced something similar back when he was born."Ayushmann was also quizzed about being nervous as Badhaai Ho clashes with Namaste England, to which the actor confidently replied, We recently saw a clash on Independence Day, when both Gold and Satyameva Jayate did really well. If the content is good, all films will do well. Our films are different from each other, plus it is holiday season, so its going to be a win-win situation for both the films. Well, thats a good answer Ayushmann. We wish the entire team of Junglee Pictures Badhaai Ho all the best for its release.
Salman Khan in big TROUBLE, FIR against Loveratri | FilmiBeat

A court in Mumbai on Wednesday directed the police to lodge an FIR against actor Salman Khan and the cast and crew of upcoming Bollywood film Loveratri on the basis of a complaint that the title and contents of the movie had hurt the Hindu sentiments.

Sub Divisional Judicial Magistrate (East) Shailendra Rai directed the Mithanpura police station in the town to lodge an FIR, based on a complaint filed in the court by advocate Sudhir Kumar Ojha.

Ojha has taken exception to the title of the film, alleging that it is meant to make fun of the holy festival of Navaratri. He has also claimed that he film's scheduled release on October 5 is likely to hurt the Hindu sentiments.

In his complaint, in which Khan, who is the producer of the film, its director and actors have been made parties, Ojha has claimed that he has watched the promos of the film and they contained a lot of vulgarity.

Akshay Kumar Shares New Posters Of Kesari & 2.0

The complaint was lodged before the court last week under IPC sections 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class), 298 (uttering words etc. with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person), 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) 153B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integrity) and 120B (criminal conspiracy).
As you all know, Mohanlal has some big projects in the offing, which have the capability to take Malayalam cinema to a whole new level. At the same time, he will also be seen making a comeback to the Tamil film industry with another big-budget movie. Yes, we are talking about Suriya-KV Anand movie, of which Mohanlal is also a part of.

Now, according to the reports that have been doing the rounds on social media, Mohanlal has joined the second schedule of shoot of the movie. Earlier, the actor had joined the first schedule of shoot of the movie, which was held in the UK. Reportedly, the second schedule of shoot is in Chennai, and the actor is in the city for the shoot of the film.

A video has been doing the rounds on social media, which has reportedly been taken from the location of the film. Mohanlal can be seen getting a big reception by the audiences out there and he can be seen waving hands to all who're present there. It seems like Mohanlal will sport the stylish beard look for the film.

Apart from Mohanlal and Suriya, this yet-to-be-titled film will also feature actors like Arya, Boman Irani, Samuthirakkani, etc., in lead roles. Reportedly, the film will be shot in multiple locations.
Esha Responds

While talking to Mumbai Mirror, Esha and husband Bharat expressed their fondness towards Ekta's iconic love saga. When asked if she is doing a cameo in the reboot version, Esha said, "That only time will tell,". Does that mean she will be seen in the later stages of the show? Well, you never know. Ekta Kapoor is known for surprising her fans!

She Grew Up Watching The Show

Esha also told she grew up watching the original Kasautii Zindagi Kay. "I remember when I started my career, this serial has just come out. It was the talk of town and I managed to watch it," she added.

Esha Wants Lovers To Pose Before The Statue

Talking about the iconic pose Esha said, "This pose along with the red dupatta is a symbolic pose of love and the makers chose the perfect spot for the installation. Until now, people came here to click pictures of Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan's house, now they will click photographs of this statue. I hope, going ahead, lovers make complete use of this installation and propose here."

Ekta Is Under A Lot Of Pressure!

Ekta posted a video of the unveiling of the statue and in the caption she revealed that the intense promotions for her forthcoming show are scaring her. She wrote, "23 feet installations all over india in ten cities ! @starplus ur promotions r d pressure that's scaring me." - (sic)

Fans Congratulate Ekta!

Upon seeing the video of the inauguration, the excited fans commented, "all d best dont worry @ektaravikapooor maam this will creat history and good luck.. show hit hai already maam  awaited" and "Can't wait for this show m so excited about this show bas ab toh jaldi se 25th aa jaaye and the epic saga is back yeah yipee?" - (sic)
Teejay Says They Have Two Little Kids To Take Care Of!

Teejay was quoted by IE as saying, "We have two little kids to take care of. I cannot leave them behind and head for the show for three long months. The kids are too young, dependent and vulnerable. Bella and Vienna both are very well connected to my parents and his but they will need their parents to be around."

She Reveals She'd Do Bigg Boss If The Show Is Happening 10 Years From Now!

She further added, "I would not like to comprise on my duty of being a mother to them and not cherish time with them. Maybe 10 years from now, when the two will grow up and be a mouthful, a show like Bigg Boss can be a great break. And for Karan, he is so attached to them!"

Danny & Mahika Are Not A Part Of Bigg Boss 12!

A source close to Danny was quoted by India-forums as saying, "Danny and Mahika were to be an integral part of the show. However, Danny was of the impression that this show is like Big Brother and that there won't be commoners. Given their reluctance, the makers also tried to increase their amount to Rs 1.25 Crore per week. But both he and Mahika opted out."

Danny D & Mahika Were To Enter Under The Extra-Marital Affair Category

Apparently, Danny D and Mahika's jodi was set to enter the show under the extra-marital affair category of this season's theme 'vichitra jodis'. Both of them deny any extra-marital affair however!

Mahika Clarifies Danny D Is Just A Friend!

Mahika was quoted by the website as saying, "Danny and I share a healthy relationship. We are working together. We are not into any love relationship. Danny is happily married to his wife and actress Sophia Knight. The duo is welcoming their first child in next 6 weeks. And I'm also waiting to play with my friends' kid."

Danny Too Echoes The Same

While Danny said, "Mahika and I are good friends and will be always. We don't have any extra marital affair nor I will tell she is my fan. Our relationship is pure."

Why Danny D Doesnt Want To Do Bigg Boss?

He further added that he and his wife are starting a new phase and he doesn't want to be away from her. He added, "Be it any case, money is not a big deal. I am for sure not a part of any reality show as of now."
Yesterday in Vladivostok, on the margins of the Eastern Economic Forum, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping met with participants of the roundtable on the Russian-Chinese interregional cooperation.

According to Putin, an important role in the expanding of the interregional relations is played by the Intergovernmental Commission for Cooperation and Development of the Far East and Baikal Region of Russia and Northeast China. On August 21, the second meeting of the commission was held in Dalian. Now the major joint investment, infrastructure and transport projects are being implemented: the Skovorodino-Mohee oil pipeline, which already supplies Russian hydrocarbons to Chinese consumers; laying of the The Power of Siberia gas pipeline. Opportunities are being explored for increasing the volume of transportation of Chinese goods through the Trans-Siberian railway and the ports of the Russian Far East, the Northern Sea Route is being used; two bridges and a ropeway through the border Amur are being built. The cooperation within the framework of the Volga-Yangtze format was established by the subjects of the Volga Federal District and the provinces of the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River. Airplanes from more than 20 Chinese cities fly to Moscow. The direct flights also connect many Chinese cities with St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk. In the near future, regular flights to Kazan and Sochi will be established.

As Global Times writes in the article Far East vital to China-Russia cooperation, on the same day, Russia launched the biggest military drills Vostok-2018 (East-2018) since the fall of the Soviet Union in the Russian Far East. The People's Liberation Army sent over 3,000 troops, more than 900 pieces of military hardware and a combined total of about 30 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters to participate. This is an unprecedented scene in the history of Sino-Russian military exchanges.



The two major events sent clear signals - the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination has been further consolidated and there will be broad prospects for cooperation between the two in the Far East.

Comprehensive strategic cooperation between Beijing and Moscow attracted tremendous worldwide attention and is constantly developing even as the West keeps bad-mouthing it. So far the Sino-Russian relationship has formed a strong strategic stability. Mutual political trust has reached an unprecedented high and economic cooperation has been steadily expanding.

Needless to say, Washington has actually promoted China-Russia ties by strategically squeezing the two countries. But it is quite naive for the White House to treat Beijing-Moscow strategic cooperation as an appendage of US policies toward China and Russia. An internal constructive force has long existed in Sino-Russian ties and surpasses their respective relations with the US. The bilateral relationship has become one of the cornerstones of the two nations' global diplomatic strategies.



There are advantages for China and Russia to develop more economic collaboration in the Far East. But joint works there will also test the trust and patience of the two countries. Those who tend to stir up trouble can also find a way to bad-mouth the bilateral cooperation in the region through hyping historical memories of the two in the area or the gap in population density between the Russian Far East and Northeast China.



Yet the general trend is for Sino-Russian collaboration in the Far East to move steadily forward. China remains the largest trading partner and has for many years been the biggest source of foreign investment in the Far East. A total 28 Chinese projects have been implemented in the region.



China's total investment there is worth $4 billion. The Tongjiang-Nizhneleninskoye railway bridge, the Primorye-1 and Primorye-2 international transport corridors are all under construction.

Both China and Russia are major powers. Their support and coordination with each other, which stemmed from protecting their own core interests, are powerful. They can also create a vital influence when adopting a unified stance on a global issue. This is the core significance of the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination. It is not only crucial to the two countries, but also to the global strategic balance.
Siddhant & Drashti Recall Their Ek Tha Raja Ek Thi Rani Days

Siddhant shared a memory from their show and revealed how the actress is a professional no matter what! He expressed his admiration for her openly. Drashti too responded to the message. Read to know what the actor wrote!

No Actor Looks Forward To A Day When We Have To Get Wet

Siddhant shared a picture from ETRETR snapped with Drashti and wrote, "Came across this picture thanks to @anuppama.. thought I would share a memory with you from this shoot day.. No actor looks forward to a day when we have to get wet.. its not the getting wet that is the bother.. its the getting ready quickly part again that is painful." - (sic)

Siddhant Praises Drashti

"And the actresses, in this case @dhamidrashti had to change many things.. and generally it takes longer for actresses to get ready because they need to not only do their make up.. but hair and heavy jewelery too.. we men have it relatively easier." - (sic)

How Siddhant Tried To Protect Drashti While Shooting For A Scene!

"The water we had to jump into wasn't the cleanest.. its India afterall..but the good people at production @sphereorigins had clean water ready for us to bathe in. in the scene the crowd is pelting her with stones.. made of thermacoal ofcourse.. but in between the few takes the same rocks were being used again.. however in those retakes.. one of the crowd picked up a real stone.. and threw it at us.. I was shielding Drashti in the scene so it came and hit me in the arm as I was trying to protect her." - (sic)

The Actor Writes

"It was a sharp pain.. but nothing too bad.. I carried on with the shot.. finished it and then complained to production what had happened.. we couldn't figure out who had thrown it.. but it didn't happen again.. these kind of things really piss us actors off.. it was a hot day.. we were wet to our chaddies.. and had a longer day ahead.. these kind of incidents flare up an actor's temperament and can test the best in their patients..." - (sic)

The Actor Praises Drashti!

"Again, I give it to @dhamidrashti. the pro that she is.. told off the crowd.. explained it to them in a professional manner and carried on with the day and getting ready much before me. good days. fond memories. #ektharajaekthirani #etr #shooting #bloopers #boom." - (sic)

Drashti Misses Shooting & Fighting With Siddhant!

Drashti replied to Siddhant's message saying, "Wowwwww !!!! Sid !!!! I remember tht day !!!!! And I hv sooo many moments and memories of ETR!!!! Wht an amazing time we hv had !!!! I think it was the same day tht I had a big insect on my face n before I could scream u removed it !!!!! I think I and the entire cast of ETR can go on and on and on abt all the mad n fun moments we had on set !!!! I truly miss shooting wit u and out fights too!!! P.S. sorry for the late reply !!! Such with no telecast." (sic)
A Shocking Post!

Sri Reddy took to the social media and posted screenshots of a message she recently received from someone. The sender of the message claims that director Raghava Lawrence was once seen with 'more than 10 girls' near a resort. The sender also thanks Sri Reddy for 'exposing' the noted film-maker.

Was The Sender From Dubai?

While posting the message, she also said that the sender had invited her to visit Dubai and this indicated that the person was from Dubai. She went on to add that only 'god knows' whether the latest claims about the Don director are true or not.

The Background

The Sri Reddy-Raghava Lawrence issue started when the actress claimed that the director had once exploited her and asked her to 'tempt'. She also claimed that he had promised to cast her in a film.

Her Exact Words

"He asked me to show my belly,that nd this..strange part is stand nd tempt ur self in the mirror,do some romantic moves,do romance with the mirror..wats wrong wt him).. after dat he did a ride on .. ..he said immediately ur offer is confirm..but end part is very sad..I continued the friendship for some time,but bellamkonda became a villain in...". (sic)

aghava Lawrence's Response

Responding to these claims, Raghava Lawrence had asked the actress to prove her acting talent and added that he would cast her in a film if she impressed him.

The Way Ahead...

Sri Reddy's recent actions prove that she is not done with Raghava Lawrence yet. As such, she might make some more scandalous claims about him in the future. This is a volatile situation and it will be worth watching on what happens next.
SmartStream Technologies, the financial Transaction Lifecycle Management (TLM) solutions provider, today announced the appointment of TGT Chibo Data Service, one of the leading technology services and payment solution providers in China, as an official distributor partner for SmartStream's TLM solutions in the Mainland market. This new agreement will allow TGT Chibo Data Service to initially market SmartStream's reconciliations solutions to the financial sector in China, including banks, asset managers and third party administrators.

TGT Chibo Data Service will provide the local infrastructure and local representation, whilst SmartStream will provide proven post-trade processing technology for the local market. The addition of SmartStream's solutions will enable TGT Chibo to provide a full suite of back-office operational capabilities to the Chinese banking market.

"For the past year, we have received many requests from Chinese banks wanting help in streamlining their back-office operations and maintaining regulatory compliance. The strategic partnership with TGT Chibo Data Service is a natural one which complements our work in the region, we are already working together to play an important role in supporting the local banks. In addition, having a regional partner will enable us to extend our value to the market and to strengthen our position in Asia", said Mark Taylor, Regional Director Asia Pacific, SmartStream.

Ends

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180911005803/en/

Contacts:

Dina Communications, UK

Shamira Alidina

Media Relations Director

Tel +44 (0) 7801 590718

Email: shamira@dinacomms.com

or

SmartStream

Lisa Susanto

Marketing Manager, Singapore

Tel: +65-62247689

Email: lisa.susanto@smartstream-stp.com
NAVI MUMBAI, India, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

A recent circular issued by the Chinese State Drug Administration (SDA), has opened up a large market for Contract Research Organizations (CROs) across the world. The circular (referred to as No. 52 of 2018) allows Chinese pharmaceutical companies to use clinical trial data from studies conducted outside China for their drug submissions to the SDA.

Global CROs have long been keen to enter the growing Chinese market for pharmaceutical drug testing. Sharing his views on the development, Dr. Satish Sawant, the Founder and CEO of Accutest Research Laboratories said, "In the current market context, it is critical for pharma companies in China to accelerate their speed-to-market. This is a challenging problem given the high cost of clinical studies in China and the shortage of high-quality CROs. Accutest has successfully partnered with leading pharma companies in China to achieve these goals. With this announcement, we will finally be able to collaborate with Chinese pharma players for their pivotal study submissions to the SDA."

Highlighting the features of recent guidelines, Dr. Sawant elaborated stating, "Clinical study needs to be compliant with ICH GCP requirements and the design must be in line with the requirements of the Drug Evaluation Centre of SDA. Among other requirements, the circular specifies that submissions should include biopharmaceutical, clinical pharmacology, efficacy and safety data and confirm the validity of the study drug as a whole."

This announcement is especially beneficial for CROs like Accutest which have an early mover advantage in the Chinese market. Dr. Sawant outlined Accutest's work experience in China, "Over the past 5-6 years, Accutest has conducted more than 250 Bioequivalence (BE) clinical trials for Chinese clients, including 150+ pre-BE studies for the SDA. Accutest has also supported Chinese clients by conducting BE studies for global submissions for regulators like the US Food & Drug Administration, the World Health Organization and the European Medicines Agency. With more than 30 active clients in China, we are definitely a preferred choice as a strong and reliable CRO for SDA submission studies."

About Accutest Research Laboratories Pvt Ltd:

Accutest is a leading Contract Research Organization headquartered in Mumbai (India). The company works with leading pharmaceutical players to conduct clinical studies for drug testing. The company's facilities and operations are spread across three sites in India - Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Vadodara - housing over 425 beds. Accutest has over 700 well qualified and trained employees out of which more than half are PhDs or have Master's degrees. The company's service offerings include Bioavailability/Bioequivalence services (BA/BE), Clinical Development Services (CDS), Biologics and Biosimilars services. Accutest has successfully conducted more than 3,000 BE studies and has been successfully inspected by global regulatory agencies on more than 100 occasions through its history, including 30+ inspections by the US-FDA and inspections by other regulatory agencies like WHO, ANVISA, EMA, DCGI, MCC, NPRA-Malaysia, MOH-Turkey, MOH-UAE, ISP-Chile and many more.

For more information, please visit http://accutestglobal.com/

Contact

Vivek Singh

Email: vivek.singh@accutestglobal.com

Phone: +91-9820367708 / Wechat ID: vivek061982

Tejali Rane

Email: tejali.rane@accutestglobal.com


Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - September 11, 2018) - Centurion Minerals Ltd. (TSXV: CTN) ("Centurion", or the "Company") is pleased to announce that its joint venture operating partner ("Demetra Fertilizantes S.A." or "DFSA) has confirmed receipt of a "follow-on" purchase order for export totaling 7,500 tonnes of agri-gypsum fertilizer products processed at the Joint Venture's Ana Sofia project, Argentina. Additional domestic and export orders are currently in negotiation and will be announced as they are finalized. Preparations have commenced to fulfill the above-mentioned purchase order and the Company anticipates completion of delivery within the first half of its fiscal year. The purchase order consists of both premium powder and granular materials, as well as a blended product having a total value of approximately C$650,000.

Centurion's President & CEO, David Tafel, commented: "We are pleased to see the efforts of DFSA to expand its customer base, have started to yield repeat business. This purchase order represents a tonnage increase 4 times larger than the client's initial filled order."

Demetra's President, Sebastian Cattaneo, also commented: "With export sales priced in USD, we've limited our risk associated with Argentina's present currency fluctuations. In fact, we're selling fertilizer in USD, while our production costs are largely denominated in Argentine Pesos."

ABOUT THE ANA SOFIA PROJECT

The Ana Sofia Project includes an agri-gypsum open pit mine and processing facility having a current design capacity of 4,000 tonnes/month. Gypsum is extracted from near-surface, flat-lying beds within the sedimentary formation that extends throughout the Ana Sofia Property, located in Santiago del Estero Province, Argentina. The gypsum rock is fed into primary and secondary crushers, then screened and sorted into two agri-gypsum fertilizer products. The plant is designed to produce a pellet-sized granular product and a fine powder product (comprised of a minimum 85% gypsum content) that are each packaged into one tonne tote bags. Agricultural gypsum (calcium sulfate dihydrate) is a valuable plant nutrient and plays a vital role in maintaining soil structure and nutrient balance in South American soils, resulting in enhanced crop yields.



The Project comprises two mining concessions totalling 50 hectares (ha) in size within a larger (approximately 600 ha) exploration permit area. The Project is well situated within a region where other small producers are currently extracting agricultural gypsum and selling to fertilizer distributors and farmers. An initial inferred gypsum resource for the Project was estimated (news releases - October 31, 2016 and December 16, 2016) to comprise 1.47 million tonnes averaging 94.1% gypsum, using an 85% cut-off grade that is the minimum required gypsum content for commercial-quality agricultural gypsum products in Argentina.

For additional updates, follow our operations at:

Centurion Minerals - Twitter Account and Demetra Fertilizantes - Instagram Account

ABOUT CENTURION

Centurion Minerals Ltd. is a Canadian-based company with an international focus on the development of agri-mineral fertilizer projects. For additional information on the Ana Sofia project and applications of agri-gypsum, visit our website: www.centurionminerals.com

"David G. Tafel"

President and CEO

For Further Information Contact:

David Tafel

604-484-2161

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains forward looking statements concerning future operations of Centurion Minerals Ltd. (the "Company"). All forward-looking statements concerning the Company's future plans and operations, including management's assessment of the Company's project expectations or beliefs may be subject to certain assumptions, risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's control. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and that actual performance and exploration and financial results may differ materially from any estimates or projections. Such statements include, among others: possible variations in mineralization, grade or recovery rates; actual results of current exploration activities; actual results of reclamation activities; conclusions of future economic evaluations; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; failure of equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; accidents and other risks of the mining industry; delays and other risks related to construction activities and operations; timing and receipt of regulatory approvals of operations; the ability of the Company and other relevant parties to satisfy regulatory requirements; the availability of financing for proposed transactions, programs and working capital requirements on reasonable terms; the ability of third-party service providers to deliver services on reasonable terms and in a timely manner; market conditions and general business, economic, competitive, political and social conditions.

The Ana Sofia project has not been the subject of a feasibility study and as such there is no certainty that a potential mine will be realized or that the processing facility will be able to produce a commercially marketable product. There is a significant risk that any production from the project will not be profitable with these risks elevated by the absence of a compliant NI 43-101 feasibility study. A mine production decision that is not based on a feasibility study demonstrating economic and technical viability does not provide adequate disclosure of the increased uncertainty and specific risks of failure associated with such a production decision. The Company has undertaken market research and studies to try to mitigate these risks. The work carried out to date is of a preliminary nature to assist in the determination as to whether the mineral product is suitable for sale and if there are markets for the mineral product. General risks inherent in the Project include the reliance on available data and assumptions and judgments used in the interpretation of such data, the speculative and uncertain nature of exploration and development costs, capital requirements and the ability to obtain financing, volatility of global and local economic climates, share price volatility, estimated price volatility, changes in equity markets, exchange rate fluctuations and other risks involved in the mineral exploration and development industry. There can be no assurance that a forward-looking statement or information referenced herein will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements or information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. We undertake no obligation to reissue or update any forward-looking statements or information except as required by law.

The Ana Sofia mineral resource estimate is reported in accordance with the Canadian Securities Administrators National Instrument 43-101 and has been estimated using the CIM "Estimation of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Best Practice Guidelines" dated November 23rd, 2003 and CIM "Definition Standards for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves" dated May 10th, 2014. Due to the relatively wide spacing of the historical quarries and the 2016 test pits, which varies between 40 m and 300 m, the Ana Sofia 2 resource described herein is categorized entirely as an inferred mineral resource. Inferred Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves. Mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. There has been insufficient exploration to define the inferred resources as an indicated or measured mineral resource, however, it is reasonably expected that the majority of the Inferred Mineral Resources could be upgraded to Indicated Mineral Resources with continued exploration. There is no guarantee that any part of the mineral resources will be converted into a mineral reserve in the future. The estimate of mineral resources may be materially affected by geology, environment, permitting, legal, title, taxation, socio-political, marketing or other relevant issues.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - September 12, 2018) - GLOBAL BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGIES CORP. (CSE: BLOC, BLOC.CN, BLOC.CNX) (FSE: BWSP) (OTC: BLKCF) ("BLOC" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it will be hosting an AMA (Ask Me Anything) on Reddit on Thursday, September 13th, 2018 from 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM EDT.

The AMA comes on the heels of several recent announcements which include:

the Company's initiation of the Laser network equity crowdsale through its Cayman Island based subsidiary Laser Technologies Corp.;

Hyperion Crypto Exchange Inc.'s investment into the Delaware Board of Trade ("DBOT"), which will enable BLOC to leverage DBOT's SEC-registered Alternative Trading System ("ATS") for trading tokenized securities; and

the Company's spinout of its mining division, Global Blockchain Mining Corp. and the subsequent listing of its common shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) under the ticker symbol "FORK" on July 18, 2018.

The Company plans to discuss overall blockchain investment opportunities, the future of digital assets and decentralized technologies as well as provide clarity to its current investment strategies and partnerships. The Company will also be answering questions with regards to Global Blockchain Mining Corp. and our subsidiaries. If you would like to participate in the AMA, please log into your Reddit account to submit your blockchain related questions on September 13th in the AMA subreddit, at the following location: https://goo.gl/gkmZBa

On behalf of the Company:

Shidan Gouran, President and CEO

info@globalblockchain.io

For more information, please contact:

IRTH Communications, LLC

ir@globalblockchain.io

800-689-8089

About Global Blockchain Technologies Corp.

The Company provides investors access to a basket of direct and indirect holdings within the blockchain space.

The Company is focused on streamlining the currently arduous, lengthy, and complicated process that interested investors must undergo to gain exposure to the blockchain space, with a view to becoming the first vertically-integrated originator and manager of top tier blockchains. BLOC is listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE") and its common shares trade under the ticker symbol "BLOC."

BLOC is listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE") and its common shares trade under the ticker symbol "BLOC." Additional information relating to BLOC is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com, the CSE at www.theCSE.com, as well as on the Company's website at www.globalblockchain.io.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Generally, any statements that are not historical facts may contain forward-looking information, and 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 indicates that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be" taken, "occur" or "be achieved". Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to the Company's goal of streamlining the current arduous, lengthy and complicated process that interested investors need to undergo in order to gain exposure to the cryptocurrency space with a view to becoming the first vertically integrated originator and manager of top-tier blockchains and digital currencies. The Company has no assets and its business plan is purely conceptual in nature and there is no assurance that it will be implemented as set out herein, or at all. Forward-looking information is based on certain factors and assumptions the Company believes to be reasonable at the time such statements are made, including but not limited to: statements and expectations regarding the ability of the Company to (i) successfully engage senior management with appropriate industry experience and expertise, (ii) gain access to and acquire a basket of cryptocurrency assets and pre-ICO and ICO financings on favourable terms or at all, (iii) successfully create its own tokens and ICO's, and (iv) execute on future M&A opportunities in the cryptocurrency space; receipt of required regulatory approvals; the availability of necessary financing; permitting and such other assumptions and factors as set out herein. 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 the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to: risks related to changes in cryptocurrency prices; the estimation of personnel and operating costs; general global markets and economic conditions; risks associated with uninsurable risks; risks associated with currency fluctuations; competition faced in securing experienced personnel with appropriate industry experience and expertise; risks associated with changes in the financial auditing and corporate governance standards applicable to cryptocurrencies and ICO's; risks related to potential conflicts of interest; the reliance on key personnel; financing, capitalization and liquidity risks including the risk that the financing necessary to fund continued development of the Company's business plan may not be available on satisfactory terms, or at all; the risk of potential dilution through the issuance of additional common shares of the Company; the risk of litigation. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking information set out in this presentation, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as required by laws. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements.

Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - September 11, 2018) - PORTOFINO RESOURCES INC. (TSXV: POR) (POT: FSE) ("Portofino" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has executed a Definitive Agreement with a private Argentine concession owner to acquire a 100% interest in the Rio Grande Sur lithium brine project in Catamarca, Argentina. This agreement supersedes the binding agreement announced in November 2017.

The concession area comprises approximately 8,500 hectares and consolidates the southern extension of the Rio Grande salar in Catamarca. The property is adjacent to the Rio Grande concessions held by LSC Lithium Corp. ("LSC") and Enirgi Group Corp. wherein LSC has reported an initial Mineral Resource estimate* which included a total of 2,190,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) equivalent in the Inferred Mineral Resource category with the top 50 meters ("m") of the deposit amounting to 1,375,435 tonnes grading 338mg/l Lithium and the lower 50m to 100m amounting to 814,582 tonnes grading 410mg/l Lithium.

*LSC Lithium Corp. "Technical Report on the Salar de Rio Grande Project, Salta Province, Argentina" dated March 28, 2018 and authored by Hains Engineering Company Limited.

To acquire a 100% interest in the properties, Portofino has agreed to make annual escalating payments to the vendor over a four-year period totalling US$780,000 and 840,000 common shares as follows:

a) US$14,000 on signing (paid), $26,000 within 14 days, b) 120,000 shares upon TSX-V Exchange approval, c) By the 1st anniversary of approval- US$80,000 and 160,000 shares, d) By the 2nd anniversary of approval- US$120,000 and 160,000 shares, e) By the 3rd anniversary of approval- US$240,000 and 400,000 shares, f) By the 4th anniversary- US$300,000.

The transaction is subject to TSX-V exchange approval.

The Company has completed an initial due diligence sampling program on the Rio Grande Sur property and anticipates releasing the results shortly.

Qualified Person

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Andrew J. Turner, B.Sc., P.Geol. of APEX Geoscience Ltd., who is the Company's Geological Consultant and is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

About Portofino Resources Inc.

Portofino is a Vancouver-based Canadian company focused on acquiring, exploring and developing mineral resource projects in the Americas. The Company holds interests in over 17,000 hectares covering several prospective lithium salar properties in Catamarca, Argentina.

On Behalf of the Board,

"David G. Tafel"

Chief Executive Officer

For Further Information Contact:

David Tafel

CEO, Director

604-683-1991

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release may contain forward looking statements concerning future operations of Portofino Resources Inc. (the "Company"). All forward- looking statements concerning the Company's future plans and operations, including management's assessment of the Company's project expectations or beliefs may be subject to certain assumptions, risks and uncertainties beyond the Company's control. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and that actual performance and exploration and financial results may differ materially from any estimates or projections.
Successful applicants as part of "Best in Breed 8" will receive significant funding and support from Europe's leading IoT investor

Breed Reply, a leading active operational investor in early-stage Internet of Things (IoT) businesses, has today launched "Best in Breed 8", its latest Europe-wide search for IoT investment opportunities.

The "Best in Breed" programme is where start-ups with exciting IoT innovations and products are invited to apply to Breed Reply with their investment cases. Successful applicants will pitch to a team with significant experience in scaling up early-stage businesses, in-depth understanding of different markets, proven track record in sales channel development and strong technological DNA.

The programme has been a great success since it was first launched in 2014, with Breed Reply's portfolio now having grown to more than twenty innovative IoT businesses. Each company has benefitted from funding along with active operational support and advice, including strategy, commercial, marketing, technical and finance.

Providing support as well as funding is a crucial part of Breed Reply's commitment to companies when it invests. As an active operational investor, Breed Reply's role is to work closely with early stage businesses and help with their development and readiness for scaling and future funding. Since the beginning of 2017, Breed Reply's portfolio has raised more than $70m in follow-on funding.

Emanuele Angelidis, CEO of Breed Reply, said: "Successful Best in Breed applicants typically have a combination of great people, a technology that actually solves a market problem along with a sustainable and scalable business model. The programme has helped us meet exciting and innovative IoT businesses which have the potential to create real disruption in a variety of industries. We are looking forward to the opportunity to help more companies accelerate their growth."

Companies with an innovative product or service in the IoT space are invited to submit an application to Best in Breed 8 via the Breed Reply website at www.breedreply.com. The closing date for submissions is 26th October 2018.

-ENDS-

Many of Breed Reply's growing portfolio of investments across a range of sectors and countries were discovered through previous "Best in Breed" programmes, first launched in 2014, including:

Canard Drones (Drones, Spain) Inova Design (Health Wellness, UK) Connecterra (AgriTech, The Netherlands) Kokoon (Wellness, UK) enModus (Smart Buildings, UK) RazorSecure (Cybersecurity, UK) FoodMarble (Health Wellness, Ireland) Senseye (Industrial IoT, UK) Gymcraft (Wellness, Spain) Sentryo (Industrial Security, France) Iotic Labs (IoT Platform, UK) Wearable Technologies (Industrial Health &Safety, UK)

About Breed Reply

Breed Reply, Reply's active operational investor, funds and supports the development of early-stage companies in the Internet of Things (IoT) in Europe and the USA. Based in London, with operational offices in Milan, Breed Reply supports entrepreneurs and young talent by quickly bringing new ideas to the market. This is done via three fundamental services: funding at early-stage level; active operational involvement with significant know how transfer of business, managerial and technological expertise; and go-to market support through the extensive Reply network. Breed Reply's focus is the Internet of Things over all markets, with their current portfolio in Fitness Wellness, Smart Building Cities, Security, Industrial IoT and Platforms.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005065/en/

Contacts:

Redleaf Communications

Robin Tozer Ian Silvera

020 3757 6865

breed@redleafpr.com
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.
STOCKHOLM, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

sk:n, the UK's leading skincare clinic group specialising in medical aesthetics and dermatology in 49 award-winning clinics and Kleresca, an innovative Danish/Irish med-tech company focusing on fluorescent light energy in skin treatments, have announced a comprehensive partnership making the innovative biophotonic technology of Kleresca available nationwide in the UK.

The partnership makes gentle treatments that stimulate the skin's own healing processes with high efficacy and safety accessible to clients with both therapeutic and medical needs across the UK.

There is growing consumer appetite in the UK for non-invasive skin treatments that can be administered quickly by medical professionals yet require little to no downtime and have very few side effects.

"sk:n offer a wide range of dermatology and aesthetic treatments across our growing network of clinics. The partnership with Kleresca further enhances our treatment portfolio with a new and innovative treatment we're confident our clients are going to love," says Lisa Mason-Poyner, Director of Medical Services at sk:n clinics.

"It is my great pleasure to announce that we have partnered with sk:n. It is an excellent platform for Kleresca to gain a solid footing across the UK and to position our technology as the new gold standard in dermatology. The partnership offers strong support for our business," says Mikkel Shoedt, CEO of Kleresca.

With more than 25 years of experience and over 2 million customers treated, sk:n is known for its excellent medical standards and client safety record. Practical and scientific training in Kleresca of the sk:n nurses and practitioners commenced 1 August 2018 and 17 clinics will pilot the technology. Roll out is planned to be completed by 1 November 2018 by which the Kleresca biophotonic treatments will be available in all 49 clinics across the UK.

The United Kingdom Health & Beauty market is forecast to grow by 21.1% over the next five years*.

* Analysis Report "The UK Health & Beauty Market 2017-2022"

Contact:

Nadia Vega Vasiljev

Global PR and Communication

nvv@kleresca.com

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

http://news.cision.com/kleresca/r/sk-n-clinics-and-kleresca--announce-national-partnership-making-the-kleresca--biophotonic-technology,c2616352

The following files are available for download:
The tragicomic post-revolutionary situation in new Armenia, as it is now fashionable to call it, after the people's prime minister Nikol Pashinyan came to power in May this year, continues to be in the highlight throughout the post-Soviet space. Pashinyan seems to have got into his role of the good wizard Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings novel by Tolkien. Today he is seriously discussing the struggle between the good and evil forces in modern Armenia. The enemies are defined quite specifically - Robert Kocharyan, Serzh Sargsyan, Yuri Khachaturov, Mikael Harutyunyan, supporters of the Republican Party of Armenia - in short, the entire former ruling team.

Also, any other political forces daring to oppose the good forces or support them with insufficient zeal are automatically ranked among the evil forces henchmen, also called counterrevolutionaries. It is not necessary to stand upon ceremony with them, the head of the Armenian government thinks. "The Republicans were perfectly aware that if they did not elect me as a prime minister they would not get back to their houses alive," the prime minister said at the September 11 rally, once again confirming his sincere commitment to the liberal democratic values. Today, when Pashinyan ordered to free from imprisonment the pacifists from the Sasna Tsrer group, no doubt left on the seriousness of his words.

The outrageous scandal over the telephone conversation between Sasun Khachatrian, the head of the Special Investigative Service (SIS) and Arthur Vanetsyan, the director of the National Security Service of Armenia, also can not become an obstacle to the victorious march of the revolution. Whether you want it or not, but you must ensure the arrest of [Kocharyan]," Vanetsyan demanded from the frightened judge. But (and this is obvious to any sincere supporter of the revolution) such actions are not at all a gross pressure on the judiciary of a person accountable directly to the head of the government and the law enforcement department acting on his orders. The head of the Armenian special services, like his boss in his struggle against the evil forces can afford to neglect the norms of legislation. If one case against Kocharyan failed, it is not a problem. After all, another criminal case will be instituted against him - on a suspicion of money laundering. Kocharyan will certainly be in prison - where the evil forces should stay. But the wiretapping by the henchmen of the counter-revolution acting in the interests of Kocharyan and Sargsyan is an excellent occasion to start a new stage of the fight against evil and to clean up the entire internal political circle.

However, Moscow's reaction may turn out to be somewhat unpleasant, as it does not want to understand that Robert Kocharyan and Yuri Khachaturov, citing the words from the conversation, should be caged by the new Armenian authorities. Nevertheless, the revolutionary government took the prudent measures. For example, Pashinyan has already called on Russians to adapt to the new realities in Armenia, and during his third working visit to Putin, he publicly said the Russian president about the principle of non-interference in each other's internal affairs. After all, Armenia is a sovereign country. Its borders with Iran and Turkey are protected by Russian soldiers, and it receives preferential military loans from Russia, and therefore, has absolute freedom to ensure that Moscow does not interfere in its affairs.

Kremlin understood and accepted this powerful message of the Armenian prime minister and did not extradite the ex-Minister of Defense of Armenia at the request of the countrys authorities, because his extradition would have become an interference. So, from the Russian side, the adaptation is in full swing.

Now Azerbaijan has to adapt to the new realities. Through the Russian newspaper Kommersant, (Ilham Aliyev for some reason does not hurry to meet with Pashinyan) the people's prime minister made it clear that the country should expect neither the return of the Nagorno-Karabakh, nor the adjacent seven regions, and in general, the negotiations should be carried out with the authorities of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, not recognized even by Armenia. Pashinyan, however, did not specify the topic of the negotiations.

In general, Pashinyan's revolutionary train moves forward in full steam. Only some trifles are left - to defeat poverty, corruption and migration, cage Kocharyan and Sargsyan, to make Russia adapt and Azerbaijan forget about the occupied territories. The newly-sprung Armenian Great Helmsman will surely cope with this task- just do not interfere and let him work.




London, December 5, 2018

CNH Industrial N.V. (NYSE: CNHI / MI: CNHI) today announced that Linda Knoll, Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO), and Alessandro Nasi, President, Specialty Vehicles, will step down from their positions early in the new year. Knoll and Nasi are the two longest-serving members of the Company's Group Executive Council (GEC), the operational decision-making body which is responsible for reviewing the operating performance of the Company's global business activities.

Ms. Knoll will leave in late January 2019 to focus solely on her role in Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (FCA). She has concurrently served as CHRO in both companies since 2011.

In a distinguished career spanning nearly 25 years with CNH Industrial, Ms. Knoll has served in a number of wide-ranging senior leadership roles.

"Linda has been a highly valued business partner, guiding her CNH Industrial colleagues through numerous changes over the years. She has been an instrumental leader and mentor to many," said Hubertus Muhlhauser, Chief Executive Officer, CNH Industrial. "I thank both Linda and Alessandro for their many contributions to the Group during their long tenures and for their valuable support and guidance as I have onboarded into the Company in recent weeks."

Mr. Nasi will step down in late Q1 2019 from his position as President of Specialty Vehicles, a role he has held since 2013. He has also served as Secretary and Coordinator of the GEC since 2009. The Board anticipates recommending to the Company's shareholders that Mr. Nasi be appointed to the Board at the 2019 AGM.

Alessandro Nasi joined CNH Industrial from Fiat Powertrain Technologies in 2008 as Senior Vice President of Business Development and has since held a number of positions of increasing responsibility, including Senior Vice President of Network Development and Chief Business Development Officer.

"Linda remains near to us while she dedicates herself to FCA and we look forward to Alessandro joining the CNH Industrial Board. His long tenure in Fiat Group companies, coupled with his early career background in firms such as PricewaterhouseCoopers, Merrill Lynch and JP Morgan, uniquely position him to provide us with extensive insight and guidance," added Suzanne Heywood, Chairperson, CNH Industrial.

CNH Industrial

N.V.

Contacts:

Corporate Communications

Email: mediarelations@cnhind.com

Investor Relations

Email: investor.relations@cnhind.com

Attachment
Strong educational focus on best practices, security, staffing, emerging tech, and more

LONDON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Managed services providers (MSPs) and others who attend the 2018 CompTIA EMEA Member and Partner Conference next month will have access to comprehensive educational programming that can help them run their technology business more efficiently and profitably.

CompTIA, the leading technology industry association, and its UK Channel Community have revealed additional details of the content scheduled to be offered at the annual member and partner conference.

The theme for this year's event, set for 16th and 17th October in London, is "The Business of Technology."

"Technology businesses face a host of challenges and opportunities in today's marketplace," said Kelly Ricker, executive vice president for events and education at CompTIA. "Whether it's evaluating new and emerging technologies; keeping pace with the latest cybersecurity threats; or strategizing on how to stay fully staffed with the right mix of people, it's a lot for any business to contend with."

"At our EMEA Member and Partner Conference we intend to bring a sense of order and understanding to these discussions," she continued. "Attendees will leave the conference equipped with actionable advice and prescriptive solutions that they can ingrain into their business and position themselves for greater success."

Conference sessions in the Business of Technology track include:

MSP Best Practices with Robert Gibbons , director, Think4 IT Solutions Ltd.





with , director, Think4 IT Solutions Ltd. MSP to MSSP , presented by Ian Thornton-Trump , cyber vulnerability and threat hunting lead for Ladbrokes Coral Group PLC.





, presented by , cyber vulnerability and threat hunting lead for Ladbrokes Coral Group PLC. Making Sense of the Skills Gap , featuring Tim Herbert , CompTIA's senior vice president for research and market intelligence, who'll discuss new research and approaches to tackling the tech skills gap.





, featuring , CompTIA's senior vice president for research and market intelligence, who'll discuss new research and approaches to tackling the tech skills gap. Your MSP Exit Strategy: Maximising Valuation





The Impact of Emerging Technologies on Security, led by Scott Barlow , vice president of global MSP for Sophos Inc., and Chris Ward , director, Vermont Systems. They will lead an engaging discussion on how technologies, such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, autonomous vehicles, and the Internet of Things are impacting the approach IT security.

The CompTIA EMEA Member and Partner Conference is intended for anyone involved in the business of technology; whether it's selling technology solutions or training and teaching tech skills. Executives from technology solution provider companies, vendors, distributors, training companies, academies, and content publishers will meet for two days of discussions, learning and networking.

For training and academic partners, the conference will include a comprehensive update on CompTIA's market-leading certification program for IT professionals.

To register for the 2018 CompTIA EMEA Member and Partner Conference, or for more information, visit https://www.comptia.org/emea/home.

About CompTIA

The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is a leading voice and advocate for the $4.8 trillion global information technology ecosystem; and the more than 35 million industry and tech professionals who design, implement, manage, and safeguard the technology that powers the world's economy. Through education, training, certifications, advocacy, philanthropy, and market research, CompTIA is the hub for advancing the tech industry and its workforce. Visit www.comptia.org to learn more.

Contacts:

Anna Brown

AprilSix Proof (for CompTIA)

anna.brown@aprilsixproof.com

+44(0)20 3141 2986

Steven Ostrowski

CompTIA

sostrowski@comptia.org

00 1 630 678 8468

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MELBOURNE, Australia, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The United Kingdom sets the benchmark among first world Commonwealth countries when it comes to workplace safety, with the chances of an Australian being fatally injured in the workplace three times higher than a counterpart in Britain.

This was the finding of research conducted by Australian Accident Helpline, a national compensation firm from Down Under that specialises in workers compensation claims.

Australian Accident Helpline compared work fatalities among the following peer group Commonwealth countries; Australia, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and Singapore. Due to the incomplete figures or a total absence of WHS (workplace health and safety) records, it was not possible to extend the study to Commonwealth countries outside of this group.

The results were conclusive: Britannia may no longer rule the waves, but it does reign over its former Empire as the flagbearer of workplace safety - with 0.45 deaths per 100,000 workers arising from 144 fatalities during the period April 2017 to March 2018 setting the standard for others to follow.

Singapore, with a rate of 1.2 fatalities per 100,000 workers, is the next safest. The Asia-Pacific island country recorded its lowest worker death toll in 14 years during calendar year 2017, reducing the number of workers killed by 36 per cent from 66 in 2016 to 42.

Australia follows with its latest Safe Work figures for 2016 reflecting a rate of 1.6 fatalities per 100,000 workers during a 12-month period in which 191 workers were killed.

In the same window, Canada's fatality figures released by the Centre for Occupational Health and Safety revealed that 905 workplace deaths occurred in 2016 at a rate of 2.56 per 100,000.

Worksafe New Zealand has recorded a mortality rate of 2.89 per 100,000 over the past three years up until August 2017, marginally better than the United States, which is not a member of the Commonwealth and tallied 2.9 deaths per 100,000 workers in 2016.

This was in stark contrast to the United Kingdom, where the Health and Safety Executive said in statistical terms fatalities had remained broadly constant, with the number of workers killed in the past five years averaging 141.

HSE said: "In 2015 the standardised rate, at 0.51 per 100,000 employees, was one of the lowest of all European countries and compares favourably with other large economies such as France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Poland. Similarly, the UK three-year average rate for 2012-2014 (0.50 per 100,000 employees) was the lowest of all EU member states."

The 191 worker fatalities recorded in Australia in 2016 were, according to Safe Work, the lowest since 2003. To date 83 workers have lost their lives in the workplace in Australia this year.

Australian Accident Helpline managing director, Liam Millner, said that Britain had achieved WHS success due to the consistently high standards enforced on all worksites, which Australia would battle to match until it had applied similar safeguards across the board.

"The problem in Australia is the huge contrast between work environments. On the one hand we have union led workplaces that subscribe to excellent standards of safety, but on the other, workplaces with no union presence have in some cases, a complete absence of WHS protocol and safety standards drop off the cliff," Mr Millner said.
12

September 2018

Acron (Veliky Novgorod) Announces Extraordinary General Meeting





Acron's Board of Directors resolved to convene an extraordinary general meeting in the form of absentee voting on 19 October 2018.

In accordance with the approved agenda, the general meeting is to consider distribution of Acron's retained earnings for previous years (including payment (declaration) of dividends).

The recommendations of the Board of Directors on dividend amount and record date will be considered and disclosed on or before 27 September 2018.

The record date for the list of persons entitled to attend the extraordinary general meeting is end of day 24 September 2018.





Media

contacts:

Sergey Dorofeev

Anastasiya Gromova

Tatiana Smirnova

Public Relations

Phone: +7 (495) 777-08-65 (ext. 5196)

Investor contacts:

Ilya Popov

Investor Relations

Phone: +7 (495) 745-77-45 (ext. 5252)





Background Information

Acron Group is a leading vertically integrated mineral fertiliser producer in Russia and globally, with chemical production facilities in Veliky Novgorod (Acron) and Smolensk region (Dorogobuzh). The Group owns and operates a phosphate mine in Murmansk region (North-Western Phosphorous Company, NWPC) and is implementing a potash development project in Perm Krai (Verkhnekamsk Potash Company, VPC). It has a wholly owned transportation and logistics infrastructure, including three Baltic port terminals and distribution networks in Russia and China. Acron's subsidiary, North Atlantic Potash Inc. (NAP), holds mining licenses for 13 parcels of the potassium salt deposit at Prairie Evaporite, Saskatchewan, Canada. Acron also holds a minority stake (19.8%) in Polish Grupa Azoty S.A., one of the largest chemical producers in Europe.

In 2017, the Group sold 7.3 million tonnes of various products to 65 countries, with Russia, Brazil, Europe and the United States as key markets.

In 2017, the Group posted consolidated IFRS revenue of RUB 94,342 million (USD 1,617 million) and net profit of RUB 14,260 million (USD 244 million). Acron's shares are on the Level 1 quotation list of the Moscow Exchange and its global depositary receipts are traded at the London Stock Exchange (ticker AKRN). Acron employs approximately 11,000 people.

For more information about Acron Group, please visit www.acron.ru/en.
NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Nielsen's Board of Directors has expanded the scope of its previously announced strategic review of the company's Buy segment to include a broad review of strategic alternatives for the company and its businesses. The expanded strategic review, undertaken after consultation with management and the company's financial and legal advisors, is being led by James Attwood, Executive Chairman of the Board. The company has engaged J.P. Morgan Securities LLC and Guggenheim Securities LLC as financial advisors, and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz as legal counsel in connection with the review.

"The Board continues to support the company's strategic priorities, including Total Audience, the Connected System and our operational transformation, including cost out initiatives and consolidations designed to increase agility. However, the Board believes that a broad review of strategic alternatives is in the best interest of the company and its shareholders," said James Attwood. "As the Board conducts its review, we and our valued associates remain focused on providing clients with the most complete understanding of what consumers watch and buy with mission critical data that enables markets around the world to act faster, more efficiently and with greater confidence."

The expanded review includes an assessment of a broad range of options, including continuing to operate as a public, independent company; a separation of either Nielsen's Buy or Watch segment; or a sale of the company. There can be no assurance that this review will result in a specific transaction or other alternative.

The Board is proceeding expeditiously but has not set a timetable for completion of this review. The company will provide updates on the review at such time as it determines that further disclosure is appropriate or required.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes information that could constitute forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include those pertaining to the review of all strategic alternatives for Nielsen and its businesses, as well as those that may be identified by words such as "will," "intend," "expect," "anticipate," "should," "could" and similar expressions. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results and events could differ materially from what presently is expected. Factors leading thereto may include, without limitations, uncertainties as to the structure, terms and timing of any strategic transaction resulting from the strategic review and whether it will be completed, the impact of any such strategic transaction on Nielsen and the Watch and Buy businesses, whether the strategic benefits of any such strategic transaction can be achieved, general economic conditions, conditions in the markets Nielsen is engaged in, behavior of customers, suppliers and competitors, technological developments, as well as legal and regulatory rules affecting Nielsen's business and specific risk factors discussed in other releases and public filings made by the company (including those found under the section entitled "Part I-Item 1A. Risk Factors" of the company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, as such factors may be updated in other filings with the SEC). This list of factors is not intended to be exhaustive. Such forward-looking statements only speak as of the date of this news release, and we assume no obligation to update any written or oral forward-looking statement made by us or on our behalf as a result of new information, future events, or other factors, except as required by law.

About Nielsen

Nielsen Holdings plc (NYSE: NLSN) is a leading global performance management company that provides clients with a comprehensive understanding of consumers and consumer behavior. We deliver critical media and marketing information, analytics and industry expertise about what consumers buy (referred to herein as "Buy") and what consumers read, watch and listen to (consumer interaction across the television, radio, digital and mobile viewing and listening platforms referred to herein as "Watch") on a global and local basis. Our measurement and analytical services help our clients maintain and strengthen their market positions and identify opportunities for profitable growth. Nielsen, an S&P 500 company, has a presence in more than 100 countries, including many emerging markets, and holds leading market positions in many of our services and geographies. For more information, visit www.nielsen.com

From time to time, Nielsen may use its website and social media outlets as channels of distribution of material company information. Financial and other material information regarding the company is routinely posted and accessible on our website at http://www.nielsen.com/investors and our Twitter account at http://twitter.com/Nielsen.

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IRW-PRESS: Naturally Splendid Enterprises Ltd.: Naturally Splendid meldet Hohepunkte von HempOmega

Naturally Splendid meldet Hohepunkte von HempOmega

Vancouver (British Columbia), 7. November 2018. Naturally Splendid Enterprises Ltd. (TSX-V: NSP, OTCQB: NSPDF, Frankfurt: 50N) (Naturally Splendid, NSE oder das Unternehmen) freut sich, ein Unternehmensupdate hinsichtlich der jungsten Entwicklungen von HempOmega bereitzustellen.

Das von Naturally Splendid entwickelte HempOmega ist ein eigenes homogenes Pulver, das aus mikroverkapseltem Hanfsamenol hergestellt wird. Es handelt sich um eine hochwertige und nachhaltige Omega-Fettsaure-Alternative zu Fischol fur die Omega-Anreicherung. Aufgrund seines einzigartigen Pulverformats wird die Herausforderung bei der Formulierung gemeistert, die sich den Herstellern stellt, wenn sie versuchen, Omegas zu bestehenden Produkten hinzuzufugen, und es erhoht nachweislich die Bioverfugbarkeit von essentiellen Omega-Fettsauren.

Hohepunkte von HempOmega

- Naturally Splendid USA Ltd. und NeutriSci International Corporation (NeutriSci) haben die verbindlichen Bedingungen der bereits zuvor gemeldeten Absichtserklarung des Unternehmens erweitert und erganzt. Diese neue verbindliche Absichtserklarung regelt das beiderseitige Einvernehmen hinsichtlich der Herstellung einer sublingualen HempOmega-Tablette unter Anwendung des geistigen Eigentums und der Technologie von NeutriSci und ermoglicht daruber hinaus eine sublinguale Tablette, die HempOmega und CBD (Cannabidiol) kombiniert. Dies unterliegt jedoch einer Lizenzierung sowie einer Genehmigung der Aufsichtsbehorde und beider Parteien.

- Dies folgt auf die Absichtserklarung von NSP mit Crop Infrastructure Inc. (CROP) (siehe Pressemitteilung des Unternehmens vom 14. August 2018) hinsichtlich der Bereitstellung der Kosten fur Weiprodukt-Hanfsamen, -Proteinpulver und -Hanfol, wobei manche dieser Produkte HempOmega enthalten, die CROP uber seine Marken The Hempire Company und Tiffany CBD erwerben kann. Im Rahmen der Absichtserklarung plant CROP, das eigene HempOmega-Pulver von Naturally Splendid in seiner in Entwicklung befindlichen funktionalen Getrankeproduktreihe CannaDrink zu verwenden. Laut CROP ist sein neues Softdrink-Sortiment auf Cannabisbasis eine kalorienfreie, nicht gentechnisch veranderte, ketogenfreundliche Produktreihe von Limonaden-, Tee- und Kaffeevariationen (siehe Pressemitteilung von CROP vom 3. Oktober 2018).

- Naturally Splendid Enterprises Ltd. hat ein exklusives Vertriebsabkommen mit Sipp Industries Inc. (Sipp) unterzeichnet, um HempOmega als Inhaltsstoff an Bierhersteller in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Kalifornien und Texas zu verkaufen. Daruber hinaus hat Sipp in den Bundesstaaten Colorado und Illinois die Zulassung erhalten, um HempOmega als Inhaltsstoff seines eigenen individuellen Hanfbiers hinzuzufugen, einschlielich Major Hanf Brown Ale und der kurzlich entwickelten Marke Major Hemp H-IPA, die an mehreren Standorte in Colorado und Illinois vertrieben wurden.

HempOmega-Initiativen

- NSE hat bereits auf HempOmega basierende Protein- und Energie-Snackriegel sowie andere Snacks formuliert und getestet. Das Unternehmen geht davon aus, dass es diese Produkte Anfang 2019 unter seinen Hausmarken und fur Eigenmarkenkunden auf den Markt bringen wird.

- NSE hat ein Team aus Mitgliedern des Managements und des Advisory Boards dieser Branche zusammengestellt, um die Entwicklung von Biotech-Moglichkeiten fur HempOmega in Nordamerika und international voranzutreiben.

- NSE arbeitet weiterhin intensiv an der vollstandigen Kommerzialisierung von HempOmega zur Belieferung der globalen Markte. In den vergangenen Monaten hat das Unternehmen Gesprache mit einer Reihe von Parteien aus allen Teilen der Welt gefuhrt, die daran interessiert sind, HempOmega in einer Reihe von Produkten zu verwenden - ebenso wie Gesprache hinsichtlich Lizenzierungsmoglichkeiten.

Douglas Mason, CEO von Splendid, sagte: Wir sind mit den jungsten Fortschritten bei der Vermarktung unseres HempOmega sehr zufrieden. Das unternehmenseigene Produkt HempOmega, das fur ein zukunftiges Wachstum gerustet ist, wird nun in Konsumartikeln in funf Kategorien eingesetzt, einschlielich Bier, funktionaler Getranke, sublingualer Tabletten, Proteine und medizinischer Formulierungen. Laut ArcView Research und einem Bericht von BDS Analytics (2. Juni 2017) wird auf dem Markt fur auf Hanf basierende Lebensmittel ein weiteres Wachstum erwartet. Es wurde berichtet, dass sich die Verbraucherausgaben fur auf Cannabis basierende Lebensmittel und Getranke im Jahr 2017 in den USA und Kanada auf etwa eine Milliarde US-Dollar beliefen. ArcView berichtet, dass Esswaren bis 2022 einen Wert von uber 4,1 Milliarden Dollar aufweisen konnten - eine Zahl, die mit Blick auf die Zukunft nach der Legalisierung zweifelsohne globale Lebensmittel- und Getrankehersteller anziehen wird. NSE wird weiterhin an neuen Moglichkeiten fur HempOmega als Nahrungserganzungsmittel und als Quelle fur zusatzlichen Nahrwertgewinn in neuen und bestehenden Produkten arbeiten.

Im Jahr 2017 ergab eine eigene Untersuchung der Global Organization of EPA and DHA Omega-3s (die GOED), dass die umfassendste Anwendung von Nahrungserganzungsmitteln in den USA, China und Australien stattfindet. Statistica 2018 schatzte, dass der globale Markt fur Omega-3-Nahrungserganzungsmittel im Jahr 2025 57 Milliarden US-Dollar erreichen wird - im Jahr 2016 waren es noch 33 Milliarden US-Dollar. Dies ist in der Tat ein betrachtliches Wachstum fur ein einzelnes Nahrungserganzungsmittelsegment.

Weitere Informationen uber HempOmega finden Sie unter: www.hempomega.com

https://www.irw-press.at/prcom/images/messages/2018/45122/NSPnr 20181106 Provides Hemp_DEPRcom.001.png

Uber Naturally Splendid Enterprises Ltd.

Naturally Splendid ist ein auf Biotechnologie und Konsumprodukte spezialisiertes Unternehmen, das eine vollkommen neue Generation von bioaktiven, nahrstoffreichen Nahrungsmitteln auf pflanzlicher Basis und damit in Zusammenhang stehenden Produkten entwickelt, produziert, kommerzialisiert und lizenziert. Naturally Splendid ist darum bemuht, sein Portfolio an (erteilten und angemeldeten) Patenten sowie geistigen Eigentumsrechten, welche auf die kommerziellen Anwendungen von Cannabinoid-Wirkstoffverbindungen in Industriehanf in einem breiten Anwendungsspektrum fokussiert sind, stetig zu erweitern.

Nahere Information erhalten Sie per E-Mail (info@naturallysplendid.com) oder uber das Anlegerservice (Tel. 604-673-9573).

Fur das Board of Directors:

Douglas Mason

CEO, Director

Kontaktdaten

Naturally Splendid Enterprises Ltd.

(NSP - TSX Venture; NSPDF - OTCQB; 50N Frankfurt)

#108-19100 Airport Way

Pitt Meadows, BC, V3Y 0E2

Buro: (604) 465-0548

Fax: (604) 465-1128

E-Mail: info@naturallysplendid.com

Webseite: www.naturallysplendid.com

Zukunftsgerichtete Aussagen

Die Informationen in dieser Pressemitteilung enthalten zukunftsgerichtete Aussagen, die auf den Annahmen zum Zeitpunkt dieser Pressemitteilung basieren. Diese Aussagen spiegeln die aktuellen Schatzungen, Ansichten, Absichten und Erwartungen des Managements wider. Sie stellen keine Garantie fur zukunftige Leistungen dar. Naturally Splendid weist darauf hin, dass samtliche zukunftsgerichteten Aussagen grundsatzlich ungewiss sind und die tatsachlichen Leistungen von einer Reihe bedeutsamer Faktoren beeinflusst werden, auf die Naturally Splendid grotenteils keinen Einfluss hat. Dazu zahlt auch, ob Naturally Splendid in der Lage sein wird, mit groen Lebensmittel- und Getrankeunternehmen zu konkurrieren; ob der Verkauf potenzieller Produkte Gewinne abwerfen wird; ob sich der Verkauf von geschalten Hanfsamen so weiterentwickelt wie bisher oder ansteigt; ob das Unternehmen in der Lage sein wird, alle Groauftrage fur Hanfsamen zu bedienen; sowie das Risiko, dass nicht fur alle potenziellen Anwendungen - einschlielich des Antrags auf Gewahrung einer Handlerlizenz - die erforderlichen behordlichen oder gesetzlichen Genehmigungen erteilt werden. Demnach konnen die tatsachlichen und zukunftigen Ereignisse, Bedingungen und Ergebnisse erheblich von den Schatzungen, Ansichten, Absichten und Erwartungen, die in den zukunftsgerichteten Informationen zum Ausdruck gebracht oder impliziert werden, abweichen. Naturally Splendid ist nicht verpflichtet, zukunftsgerichtete Informationen offentlich zu berichtigen, es sei denn, dies wird in den geltenden Wertpapiergesetzen vorgeschrieben.

DIE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE UND DEREN REGULIERUNGSORGANE (IN DEN STATUTEN DER TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE ALS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER BEZEICHNET) UBERNEHMEN KEINERLEI VERANTWORTUNG FUR DIE ANGEMESSENHEIT ODER GENAUIGKEIT DIESER MELDUNG.

Die Ausgangssprache (in der Regel Englisch), in der der Originaltext veroffentlicht wird, ist die offizielle, autorisierte und rechtsgultige Version. Diese Ubersetzung wird zur besseren Verstandigung mitgeliefert. Die deutschsprachige Fassung kann gekurzt oder zusammengefasst sein. Es wird keine Verantwortung oder Haftung fur den Inhalt, die Richtigkeit, die Angemessenheit oder die Genauigkeit dieser Ubersetzung ubernommen. Aus Sicht des Ubersetzers stellt die Meldung keine Kauf- oder Verkaufsempfehlung dar! Bitte beachten Sie die englische Originalmeldung auf www.sedar.com, www.sec.gov, www.asx.com.au/ oder auf der Firmenwebsite!

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ISIN CA63902L1004

AXC0258 2018-11-07/13:37
Investment fuels company leadership in delivering converged security and monitoring solutions for enterprises adopting containers and microservices

Sysdig, Inc., the cloud-native intelligence company, today announced it raised $68.5 million in series D funding, led by Insight Venture Partners, with participation from previous investors, Bain Capital Ventures and Accel. This round of funding brings Sysdig's total funding to date to $121.5 million. Sysdig will use the funds to extend its leadership in enabling enterprises to operate reliable and secure containerized infrastructure and cloud-native applications.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005308/en/

Sysdig closes $68.5 million in series d funding to enable enterprises to secure and monitor containers and cloud-native applications (Graphic: Business Wire)

Suresh Vasudevan, CEO at Sysdig, authored a blog post with more information on Sysdig's funding.

Sysdig offers enterprises the first unified approach to container security, monitoring, and forensics. Unlike traditional approaches, the Sysdig Cloud-Native Intelligence Platform was built with an understanding of the modern DevSecOps workflow across Kubernetes, Docker and both private and public clouds. Sysdig's open source forensics technology, Sysdig, and its open source security project, Sysdig Falco, have a community of millions of users, and provide the foundation for a rich, commercial product set. Dozens of Global 2000 enterprises are Sysdig customers today, including many of the world's largest financial institutions, media companies, cable companies, technology companies, and government agencies.

451 Research predicts the cloud-enabling technology market to grow to $39.6B through 2020, and containers are predicted to be the fastest growing segment of that market at 40%. Gartner predicts that "by 2020, more than 50% of global organizations will be running containerized applications in production, up from less than 20% today."1

"As enterprises accelerate their move to cloud-native applications, they recognize the need for a new breed of solutions that will enable them to meet performance, reliability, security, and compliance requirements," said Richard Wells, Managing Director at Insight Venture Partners. "Sysdig's novel approach of tapping an entirely new data source that provides both security and monitoring for container-based applications has proven more effective, more scalable, and higher ROI. That significant technological advantage combined with an experienced management team led by CEO Suresh Vasudevan gives Sysdig a strong position in the marketplace and we are excited to welcome them to the Insight portfolio."

Sysdig launched Sysdig Secure in October of 2017, cementing the Sysdig Cloud-Native Intelligence Platform as the only solution to offer unified security, monitoring, and forensics with native Kubernetes and Prometheus integration for containers and microservices. Last quarter, Sysdig expanded on the deep container visibility Sysdig provides to create Sysdig Secure 2.0, which brings vulnerability management, more than 200 compliance checks, and security analytics to cloud-native environments and microservices for enterprise customers. Sysdig Secure is the first container security offering to take a data-driven approach across all aspects of the container lifecycle.

"Enterprises are adopting cloud-native technology for its speed of development, multi-cloud scaling capabilities, and lower total cost of ownership," said Suresh Vasudevan, CEO at Sysdig. "But, they are hitting roadblocks with old school security and monitoring products. To be successful, these organizations need new solutions that are cloud-native. Sysdig has emerged as the only solution that delivers enterprises the complete set of capabilities needed to protect an environment, ensure that it is running smoothly, and meet compliance requirements. Sysdig delivers it all, both in the cloud and on-premise, in order to grow with companies as they undertake this journey."

This round of funding further accelerates the strong momentum and rapid growth Sysdig has experienced over the last year. Downloads of Sysdig Falco have roughly tripled over the last 12 months and active users of the Sysdig SaaS offerings have grown nearly six times year over year. Last month, Sysdig opened a second headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina to keep up with company growth while the company also continues to scale its offices in San Francisco, Belgrade, and London.

In addition to its global growth, Sysdig has expanded its executive team with the hiring of Suresh Vasudevan as CEO in April and Larry Castro as VP of finance and corporate operations last month. Sysdig continues to deliver on its commitment to leading the industry by collaborating with the Cloud-Native Computing Foundation, the PCI Security Council, and industry partners and by contributing to the development of security recommendations for modern infrastructure.

About Sysdig

Sysdig is the cloud-native intelligence company.

We have created the only unified platform to deliver container security, monitoring, and forensics in a microservices-friendly architecture. Our open source technologies have attracted a community of over a million developers, administrators and other IT professionals looking for deep visibility into applications and containers. Our cloud-native intelligence platform monitors and secures millions of containers across hundreds of enterprises, including Fortune 500 companies and web-scale properties. Learn more at www.sysdig.com.

About Insight Venture Partners

Insight Venture Partners is a leading global venture capital and private equity firm investing in high-growth technology and software companies that are driving transformative change in their industries. Founded in 1995, Insight currently has over $20 billion of assets under management and has cumulatively invested in more than 300 companies worldwide. Our mission is to find, fund, and work successfully with visionary executives, providing them with practical, hands-on growth expertise to foster long-term success. Across our people and our portfolio, we encourage a culture around a core belief: growth equals opportunity. For more information on Insight and all its investments, visit www.insightpartners.com or follow us on Twitter @insightpartners.

About Bain Capital Ventures

Bain Capital Ventures partners with disruptive founders to accelerate their ideas to market. The firm invests from seed to growth in enterprise software, infrastructure software, crypto, and industries being transformed by data. Bain Capital Ventures has helped launch and commercialize more than 200 companies since 1984, including DocuSign, Jet.com, Kiva Systems, LinkedIn, Rapid7, Redis Labs, Rent the Runway, SendGrid, SurveyMonkey, SysDig, Taleo, and Turbonomic. Bain Capital Ventures has approximately $3.9 billion in assets under management with offices in San Francisco, Palo Alto, New York and Boston. Follow the firm via LinkedIn or Twitter.

About Accel

Accel partners with exceptional founders with unique insights, from inception through all phases of growth. Atlassian, Braintree, Cloudera, Crowdstrike, DJI, DocuSign, Dropbox, Etsy, Facebook, Flipkart, Jet, Pillpack, Qualtrics, Slack, Spotify, Supercell, Tenable, Venmo and Vox Media are among the companies the firm has backed over the past 35 years. The firm seeks to understand entrepreneurs as individuals, appreciate their originality and play to their strengths. Because greatness doesn't have a stereotype. For more, visit www.accel.com, www.facebook.com/accel or www.twitter.com/accel.

____________________________________

1 Gartner, Smarter with Gartner, 6 Best Practices for Creating a Container Platform Strategy October 31, 2017, https://www.gartner.com/smarterwithgartner/6-best-practices-for-creating-a-container-platform-strategy/

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005308/en/

Contacts:

280blue, Inc.

Amanda McKinney

amanda@280blue.com
12 September 2018

Clear Leisure Plc

("Clear Leisure" or the "Company")

Result of Bondholder Meeting

Clear Leisure is pleased to announce that, at the meeting of its bondholders held today at the Company's registered office at 22 Great James Street, London WC1N 3ES, the resolution announced on 6 August 2018 in respect of its 9.9 million Bond (the "Bonds") was passed.

Eufingest SA, which holds 43.48% of the issued Bonds, is a substantial shareholder of the Company's issued share capital as defined by the AIM Rules for Companies, voted in favour of the resolution. The amendments to the terms of the Bonds is therefore a related party transaction pursuant to Rule 13 of the AIM Rules for Companies.

The directors of the Company (each of whom is independent of Eufingest), having consulted with the Company's Nominated Advisor, consider the alteration of the terms of the Bonds to be fair and reasonable insofar as shareholders are concerned.

-ends-

For further information please contact:

Clear Leisure Plc +39 335 296573

Francesco Gardin, CEO and Executive Chairman

SP Angel Corporate Finance (Nominated Adviser & Broker) +44 (0)20 3470 0470

Jeff Keating / John Mackay

Leander (Financial PR) +44 (0) 7795 168 157

Christian Taylor-Wilkinson

About Clear Leisure Plc

Clear Leisure plc (AIM: CLP) is an AIM listed investment company with a portfolio of companies primarily encompassing the leisure and real estate sectors mainly in Italy. The focus of management is to pursue the monetisation of all of the Company's existing assets, through selected realisations, court-led recoveries of misappropriated assets and substantial debt-recovery processes. The Company has recently launched a joint venture initiative in the cryptocurrency mining sector. For further information, please visit, www.clearleisure.co.uk
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - September 12, 2018) - Fremont Gold Ltd. (TSXV: FRE) (FSE: FR2) (OTC Pink: USTDF) ("Fremont" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has staked additional claims in the Gold Bar District, Eureka County Nevada:

The Roberts Creek claim block comprises 132 mining claims in the Gold Bar District one km south of McEwen Mining Inc's Gold Bar development project;

The claim block covers a structurally permissive zone on a horst that strikes south from the McEwen's Gold Bar development project. Based on gravity data, this horst is under shallow cover, is parallel to, and similar in shape and orientation to the horst which hosts the original Gold Bar deposit held by Fremont;

Within the Roberts Creek claim block jasperoid occurs as outrop and abundant float. Jasperoid is often associated with Carlin-style deposits and was one of the vectors used to discover the original Gold Bar deposit;

A recent Fremont ground magnetic survey at Roberts Creek highlights a magnetic low trough, which may indicate hydrothermal alteration;

Three significant structural trends intersect at Roberts Creek: a north-northwest striking fault that transects McEwen's Cabin Creek gold deposit (the Cabin Creek fault), a very prominent northeast fault/topographic lineament that transects the Mount Hope porphyry molybdenum deposit, and the magnetic low trough.

The acquisition of these claims brings Fremont's total land holdings in the Gold Bar District to 5,348 ha. Fremont recently announced drill results of 25.9m @ 4.66 g/t Au (within 41.2m @ 3.08 g/t Au) at Gold Bar and 16.8m @ 1.9 g/t Au, at the nearby Gold Canyon project. See Fremont Gold news releases dated June 27, 2018 and July 25, 2018 respectively.

Figure 1: Roberts Creek location in relation to McEwen's and Fremont's properties



To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

http://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/3169/38608_a1536704049030_3.jpg

Dennis Moore, Fremont's President and CEO explains, "Results of a recent ground magnetic survey conducted by Fremont at Roberts Creek delineates probable fault boundaries and magnetic low zones, the latter which may indicate hydrothermal alteration in a structurally permissive zone under shallow cover. The new frontier for gold discoveries within the basin and range of Nevada and Utah, is in the basins and under cover. The ranges have been fairly well prospected since the initial gold discoveries in the 1800s, while in the past 30 years most of the large, world-class discoveries were made under cover - starting with Pipeline and Sleeper in the 1980's and more recently Barrick Gold Corporation's 8M ounce Gold Rush deposit. Future discoveries will likely be revealed beneath gravel in the basins or under post-mineral volcanic rocks. Fremont management is at the leading edge of this understanding and very excited about the possibilities for discovery of new gold deposits under shallow cover in the Gold Bar District and elsewhere."

Next Steps:

A soil survey will be conducted to confirm structure interpretations and highlight drill targets.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

"Dennis Moore"

President and CEO

Telephone: +351-9250-62196 or 778-772-9892

Email: dennis@fremontgold.net or info@fremontgold.net

www.fremontgold.net

About Fremont Gold Ltd.

Fremont holds exclusive rights to the Gold Bar-Gold Canyon and Hurricane Projects, located respectively in Eureka County and Lander County, Nevada. Fremont also holds rights to the North Carlin Project in Elko County and the Goldrun Project in the Adelaide mining district, Humboldt County, Nevada. The Company's strategy is to conduct exploration leading to discovery on its existing projects using the collective exploration expertise of the management team. Further information regarding the Gold Bar, Gold Canyon, Hurricane, Goldrun and North Carlin Projects are available at www.sedar.com.

1McEwen Mining website: www.mcewenmining.com

2Internal report, Atlas Precious Metals, Mines, Dec 13, 1995, prepared by Pincock, Allen & Holt,

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release contains "forward-looking information" that is based on the Company's current expectations, estimates, forecasts, and projections. This forward-looking information includes, among other things, statements with respect to the Company's proposed use of proceeds. The word "intends" or other similar words and phrases are intended to identify forward-looking information. There is no guarantee that the Company's planned drill program will proceed as stated. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the Company's actual results, level of activity, performance, or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information.
This year at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, BIOCAD and Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to create two joint ventures for production, clinical development, registration, and marketing of several high-cost medicines based on monoclonal antibodies in the People's Republic of China.

The signing ceremony took place on September 12, 2018 at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF). The MoU was signed by Mr. Dmitry Morozov, BIOCAD's founder and CEO, and Mr. Jun Zhou, Board Chairman at Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding Co.Ltd. The ceremony was attended by Denis Manturov, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation.

These Russian-Chinese joint ventures will be established with the main purpose of development, manufacturing, authorization, and marketing of at least six BIOCAD products used in advanced therapy of cancer and autoimmune diseases (chronic lymphpatic leukemia, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, psoriasis, ankylosing spondylitis, etc.).

"We believe that transferring BIOCAD's technologies to a jointly-owned manufacturing facility in China will boost our pharmaceutical exports,' said Dmitry Morozov commenting the Memorandum, "It will also allow our Chinese partners to acquire the platform and valuable experience that is necessary manufacturing other mAb-based biological therapeutics. This will provide a new venue for cooperation between Russia and China." Dmitry Morozov added that these joint ventures are unique and that this is the first massive Russian-Chinese cooperation project in pharmaceutical industry. Construction of jointly-owned production facilities for monoclonal antibody APIs in China start as early as 2019.

The development of international economic activities is an essential area of BIOCAD's focus. The overall value of export contracts signed in the last few years is over $850 million, and currently BIOCAD supplies its medications to 14 countries.

According to Evaluate Pharma, a global analytical company, the $165 billion pharmaceutical market in China is the second-largest in the world. At the same time, the share of foreign suppliers does not exceed 25%. Since drug coverage expences are drastically increasing, the Chinese government is interested in cutting the costs of high-tech medicines, which gives promising opportunities to international biotech companies.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005507/en/

Contacts:

BIOCAD

Irina Kenyukhova, PR Director

Tel.: +7 (812) 380 49 33 (ext.. 632)

Cell: +7 (921) 376 05 77

E-mail:kenyukhova@biocad.ru
September 8 marked 95th anniversary of birth of one of the most famous poets of the Caucasus, Rasul Gamzatov. His memory lives in the hearts of millions of people around the world. In honor of this date, Moscow hosted an evening dedicated to this great creator. It was held on the Yauzsky Boulevard near Rasul Gamzatov's monument.

"He had his own picture of the world in mind. As an artist of the century he managed to descrive this picture of the world with his poems, which are about universal values - friendship, peace, women, love, patriotism," Dagestani envoy in Russia Izumrud Mugutdinova said.

The Republic of Komi envoy, Grigory Sarishvili, said that monument of the Avar poet will soon be erected in Syktyvkar on the Rasul Gamzatov Street.

The event was attended by public and political figures, writers, descendants of Rasul Gamzatov and his fans.

First deputy chairman of the Union of Writers of Russia, historian, Igor Yanin, said in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza: "Rasul Gamzatova is called a poet, writer, journalist, but his main quality is that he was like Foreign Minister of all peoples. People stopped to quarrel after they met him. We really miss him."

The evening continued in the Permanent Mission of Dagestan, where Obuyev family performed a literary and musical composition based on the works of Rasul Gamzatov.
Newron Pharmaceuticals S.p.A. ("Newron") (SIX: NWRN), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapies for patients with diseases of the central and peripheral nervous system, today announced that its 2018 R&D Day will be held in New York City on October 31, 2018, from 10:00AM to 1:00PM EDT.

Stefan Weber, Chief Executive Officer, Ravi Anand, CMO, and other senior members of Newron's management team will host the event, which will focus on the Company's clinical and commercial pipeline, regulatory updates and financial outlook.

In addition to presentations by Newron's management team, the R&D Day will feature presentations from leading experts in the fields of schizophrenia, treatment resistant schizophrenia and Rett syndrome.

Institutional investors, analysts and media representatives interested in attending can email newron2018rdday@lavoiehealthscience.com to register and to receive additional details. Please note that pre-registration is required to attend in person. The R&D Day will also be accessible via live webcast on Newron's website.

About Newron Pharmaceuticals

Newron (SIX: NWRN) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapies for patients with diseases of the central and peripheral nervous system. The Company is headquartered in Bresso near Milan, Italy. Xadago (safinamide) has received marketing authorization for the treatment of Parkinson's disease in the European Union, Switzerland and the USA, and is commercialized by Newron's Partner Zambon. US WorldMeds holds the commercialization rights in the USA. Meiji Seika has the rights to develop and commercialize the compound in Japan and other key Asian territories. In addition to Xadago for Parkinson's disease, Newron has a strong pipeline of promising treatments for rare disease patients at various stages of clinical development, including sarizotan for patients with Rett syndrome and ralfinamide for patients with specific rare pain indications. Newron is also developing Evenamide as the potential first add-on therapy for the treatment of patients with positive symptoms of schizophrenia. For more information, please visit: www.newron.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005355/en/

Contacts:

Newron

Stefan Weber, +39 02 6103 46 26

CEO

pr@newron.com

or

UK/Europe

FTI Consulting

Julia Phillips Natalie Garland-Collins, +44 20 3727 1000

SCnewron@fticonsulting.com

or

Switzerland

IRF Communications

Martin Meier-Pfister, +41 43 244 81 40

martin.meier-pfister@irfcom.ch

or

Germany/Europe

MC Services

Anne Hennecke, +49 211 52925222

anne.hennecke@mc-services.eu

or

USA

LaVoieHealthScience

Paul Sagan, +1 617-374-8800, Ext. 112

psagan@lavoiehealthscience.com
Red Team Level Cyber Security Company to Resell CipherLoc Security Encryption Solutions

AUSTIN, TX / ACCESSWIRE / September 12, 2018 / CipherLoc Corporation (OTCQB: CLOK), a leading provider of highly-secure data protection technology, today announced the signing of an agreement allowing Hippogriff Computer Technology Protection Services to resell CipherLoc security encryption solutions.

Hippogriff helps clients worldwide, of all types, strengthen cyber defenses via their Tri-Aspect solutions involving Hardware, Software, and Human Domain capabilities.

"Founded by private sector and former military professionals, Hippogriff helps clients secure legacy and emerging technologies through access to top security talent worldwide. Our clients receive the same capabilities used by our internal specialists to safeguard sensitive and confidential information. We benevolently act to reduce data security exposures where needed so that true results are achieved," said the Hippogriff Team.

"Hipporgriff is an ideal reseller partner for CipherLoc's data security and encryption solutions," said Dr. Milton Mattox, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at CipherLoc. "Hippogriff works with their clients to prevent and correct the consequences of malicious incidents. CipherLoc's unique polymorphic solution platforms align with Hippogriff's focus to help secure critical and sensitive data as a preventative measure. Additionally, in the event of a data breach, CipherLoc solutions render the stolen data useless to unauthorized parties, reducing the opportunity for sensitive data to fall into the wrong hands."

About the Hippogriff, LLC.

Hippogriff is an agile information security firm, whose primary goal is to help companies defend themselves against ever increasing cyber threats around the world via research, advisement, counseling, and preparedness. They help companies protect against malleable and well-financed cyber attackers by providing dynamic training, threat visibility, and remediation responsiveness. The company thrives to provide private sector organizations the same level of cyber security defense capabilities that the best-protected institutions enjoy.

Read more about Hippogriff SP/SMB at www.Hippogriff.IO and Hippogriff Enterprise at www.Hippogriff.TECH.

About CipherLoc Corporation (OTCQB: CLOK)

CipherLoc Corporation is a data security solutions company whose vision is simple - Protect the World's Data. Our highly innovative solutions are based on our patented Polymorphic Cipher Engine, which is designed to enable an ironclad layer of protection to be added to existing products, services, or applications. We deliver solutions that are highly secure, synergistic, and scalable. In short, we keep information safe in today's highly dangerous world.

Read more about CipherLoc at https://cipherloc.net/.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain as they are based on current expectations and assumptions concerning future events or future performance of the Company. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are only predictions and speak only as of the date hereof. In evaluating such statements, prospective investors should review carefully various risks and uncertainties identified in this release and matters set in the Company's SEC filings. These risks and uncertainties could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements.

The information found in this Press Release does not and shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction based upon the information found in this Press Release.

Investor Contact:

Matt Kreps

Darrow Associates Investor Relations

214-597-8200

mkreps@darrowir.com

SOURCE: CipherLoc Corporation

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/511737/Hippogriff-to-Resell-CipherLoc-Security-Encryption-Solutions
SATO Corporation, Press Release, 12th Sep 2018 at 2:15 pm

SATO Corporation and Nordea Bank AB (publ), Finnish Branch, signed an agreement on a loan of 100 million without asset based securities in Helsinki on 12 September 2018. The funds will be used for refinancing of loans with asset security and for the Group's general financing needs.

- This financing agreement between SATO and Nordea is a consistent step towards our goal. The financing agreement now signed substantially contributes to the further expansion of our financing base towards increased use of financing agreements without asset based securities, in which we have made good progress. The agreement follows on from loans previously agreed with, for example, OP, Aktia, Swedbank and the European Investment Bank (EIB), SATO President and CEO Saku Sipola says.

At the end of the first half of the current year, interest-bearing debt without asset based securities accounted for around 63% of SATO's debt portfolio, and the unencumbered assets ratio on the balance sheet was around 73%.

For more information please contact:





SATO Corporation

Markku Honkasalo, CFO, phone: +0201 34 4226 or +358 50 598 8728

Janne Runsamo, Group Treasurer, phone +358 201 34 4009 or +358 45 671 3567

www.sato.fi/en (http://www.sato.fi/en)

SATO is one of Finland's leading rental housing providers. SATO aims to offer a comprehensive choice of rental housing and an excellent customer experience. At year-end 2017 SATO owned around 25,800 apartments in Finland's largest growth centres and in St. Petersburg.

We promote sustainable development and initiative through our operations and work in open interaction with our stakeholders to generate added value. We operate profitably and with a long-term view. We increase the value of our housing stock through investments, divestments and repairs.

The SATO Group's net sales in 2017 were EUR 280 million, operating profit EUR 231 million and profit before taxes EUR 185 million. The value of SATO's investment assets is roughly EUR 3.8 billion.

This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients.

The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.

Source: SATO Oyj via Globenewswire


CoreMedia Content Cloud Will Integrate with Spryker's commerce OS to Provide Advanced Experience Orchestration

BERLIN and HAMBURG, Germany, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- CoreMedia, global provider of a best-of-breed content management platform - the CoreMedia Content Cloud - today announced a strategic partnership with Spryker Systems, a disruptor for eCommerce platforms. As a first step in their collaboration, the two companies have produced a seamless integration of their products.

"We're excited about the advantages this partnership will deliver," said Jorg Schaffer, Director Product Marketing at CoreMedia. "Spryker brings a completely new approach to the market with their modular platform. This is a great combination with CoreMedia's open, cloud-based approach for Experience Orchestration. The unique combination of back-end flexibility and front-end creativity will provide global brands with everything they need to deliver iconic brand experiences."

The CoreMedia Content Cloud provides the "missing piece" for headless eCommerce customers looking to create and preview front-end customer experiences. This integration allows users to access products and transactional data from Spryker in real-time, seamlessly blend it with branded content stored in CoreMedia, personalize it, preview it, and deliver it to any digital channel or device in any region or language.

Patrick Kleine-Albers, Director Industry Partnerships of Spryker Systems, also commented: "As the retail industry enters a new era of digital commerce, companies must co-innovate to answer the increasing need for valuable content across multiple customer touchpoints. Using our "Spryker Commerce OS" companies can focus on executing and innovating the end-customer facing App-level providing desktop, mobile, embedded, voice and bot-based user experiences with no effort. This is why we're working with CoreMedia, as this opens our customers the possibilities of advanced content management and experience orchestration for iconic customer experiences."

Both companies will be exhibiting at DMEXCO 2018 in Cologne, September 12-13. Visit CoreMedia in Hall 7.1, Aisle C, Booth C-018 to learn how to create and preview iconic customer journeys for your brand - in real time, across all channels and devices from a single place.

About CoreMedia AG

Based in Hamburg, Germany with offices worldwide, CoreMedia is the strategic content management and experience orchestration engine behind today's most iconic online brands. Leading global B2C companies (Deckers, Luxottica, PVH Corp, Finnair, T-Mobile) and B2B firms (Continental, Claas, Emerson, DMG-Mori) create world-class digital experiences powered by CoreMedia. A company of visionaries, trusted advisors, and passionate experts, CoreMedia takes brands to the next level of digital experiences. We're about dialogue, so let's talk. For more information or to set up a demo, visit www.coremedia.com or follow us on Twitter @contentcloud.

About Spryker

Spryker Systems is the innovator behind the unique commerce operating system called "Spryker commerce OS". This commerce operating system allows companies to now reach customers through every conceivable digital touch point. In response to continuous changes in user expectations and new perceptions of what is perceived as a frontend, "Spryker Commerce OS" helps businesses implement new user interfaces (Apps) at speed. These interfaces encompass applications such as desktop shops, mobile apps, IoT scenarios, chatbot and voice integrations. Subsequently, opening new sources of revenue without long lead times. The Spryker Systems team is based in Berlin and Hamburg. Find out more at spryker.com and on Twitter: @sprysys.

Contact: Doug Heise

Phone: +1.415.794.0964

Email: doug.heise@coremedia.com
Best-of-breed content experience and commerce platforms align so companies can monetize amazing customer experiences

HAMBURG, Germany and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- CoreMedia, global provider of best-of-breed content management platform, CoreMedia Content Cloud, today announced at DMEXCO a strategic global partnership with Elastic Path, a pioneer of API-first headless commerce for enterprises. A seamless integration of their products now enables global enterprises to successfully meet customer expectations in a rapidly evolving digital economy.

"We're excited about the advantages this partnership will deliver," said Knud Kegel, SVP Marketing and Business Development at CoreMedia. "Elastic Path's flexible, API-driven platform is the perfect complement to CoreMedia's open, cloud-based approach to content management. The unique combination of back-end flexibility and front-end creativity will provide global brands with everything they need to deliver iconic brand experiences."

CoreMedia Content Cloud users can create and preview front-end customer experiences. Elastic Path commerce provides businesses the ability to monetize these experiences and maximize the value of each customer touchpoint. Customer experience designers can leverage these capabilities in real time to access product, promotion, pricing and transactional information from Elastic Path Commerce. That data, combined with branded content stored in CoreMedia, allows designers to seamlessly personalize, preview and deliver engaging content to any digital channel or device in any region or language.

From full stack to open, headless platforms

Top-performing companies must continuously innovate to maintain their advantage. Inflexible, full-stack legacy commerce systems can no longer keep up with the growing number of devices and emerging sales channels. Instead, legacy systems stifle innovation and grow increasingly costly over time. Top brands are abandoning siloed, single-stacks for more flexible, headless content and commerce solutions that scale with their business needs, offer a competitive edge, and provide the opportunity to monetize and reinvent customer experiences.

"We've found that companies simply can't continue to use legacy commerce systems to solve the modern-day challenge of presenting consumers with personalized, rich content and allowing them to make purchases through any channel, whether via a website, on a mobile phone, through a chat, or social media," said Peter Lukomskyj, Senior Vice President Products, Elastic Path. "With this partnership, we can deliver to our combined customer a solution that not only solves the omnichannel puzzle in a very elegant way, but also future-proofs commerce systems to ensure that any upcoming channels can easily be leveraged."

The CoreMedia Content Cloud and Elastic Path Commerce Integration

Allows customer experience designers to seamlessly blend extraordinary content-driven experiences with product pricing, promotion and transactional capabilities.

One experience can drive any touchpoint without extra work.

Consistent, content-led experiences including shopping cart and check-out processes with no "switching over" to a new experience for payment.

Makes it easy for business users to create and edit content in real time.

Allows customer experience designers to create commerce banners and clickable image maps to link products to images.

Takes advantage of "shoppable" video - shoppers can purchase products featured in a video directly from the video.

Personalization of both content and commerce elements for improved customer intimacy and better customer service.

Both companies will be exhibiting at DMEXCO 2018 in Cologne, GermanySeptember 12-13. Visit CoreMedia and Elastic Path in Hall 7.1, Aisle C, Booth C-018 to learn how to create and preview iconic customer journeys for your brand - in real time, across all channels and devices using this new unified platform.

About CoreMedia AG

Based in Hamburg, Germany with offices worldwide, CoreMedia is the strategic content management and experience orchestration engine behind today's most iconic online brands. Leading global B2C companies (Deckers, Luxottica, PVH Corp, Finnair, T-Mobile) and B2B firms (Continental, Claas, Emerson, DMG-Mori) create world-class digital experiences powered by CoreMedia. A company of visionaries, trusted advisors, and passionate experts, CoreMedia takes brands to the next level of digital experiences. We're about dialogue, so let's talk. For more information or to set up a demo, visit www.coremedia.com or follow us on Twitter @contentcloud.

About Elastic Path

Defining the future of commerce, Elastic Path pioneered the world's leading API-oriented commerce solution for enterprises. The company's flagship product, Elastic Path Commerce, has helped the world's top brands generate over $60 billion in over 170 countries. Customers from industries as diverse as travel, telecoms, publishing, software, and retail enjoy the benefits of a flexible, open architecture that monetizes brand-defining customer experiences, facilitates business agility and eliminates commerce system silos. Elastic Path is a private company based in Vancouver, Canada with offices in the UK and US. For more information, visit www.elasticpath.com.

Media Contact

Kate Nettenstrom

kate.nettenstrom@walkersands.com

224-489-3437

Doug Heise

Phone: +1.415.794.0964

Email: doug.heise@coremedia.com
With the appointment of industry veteran, John Frijters, a distribution partnership with Bandagist Jan Nielsen, and assistance from The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Myomo, Inc. (NYSE American: MYO) ("Myomo" or the "Company"), a wearable medical robotics company, today announced continued momentum across Europe with the appointment of John Frijters as Business Development Manager for EU, a distributor agreement with Bandagist Jan Nielsen to deliver MyoPro to patients across Denmark and the first screening day in the United Kingdom.

"We estimate the number of patients in the EU who could benefit from MyoPro is well over a million people," says Jon Naft, Myomo VP and General Manager. "We believe that the European market will be an important part of the MyoPro business in the long term, so we are establishing these strategic footholds."

Paul R. Gudonis, Chairman and CEO of Myomo, said, "This announcement reaffirms Myomo's commitment to helping restore function in the arms and hands of individuals who are suffering from the effects of a neuromuscular disease or injury. We are looking forward to providing more individuals a chance to improve their quality of life."

Background on John Frijters

Myomo announces the appointment of John Frijters as Business Development Manager for Europe. John will be responsible for managing Myomo's relationship with existing distribution partners and establishing additional distributors throughout the EU.

Prior to joining Myomo, John Frijters worked for ReWalk Robotics in the position of V.P. Sales Business Development Europe from 2010 to 2018. Before ReWalk, John served as V.P. of Global Sales and Marketing at Stryker-Berchtold, and spent most of his professional career in various roles with Ottobock, a manufacturer and supplier of a range of healthcare products including prosthetics, orthotics, rehabilitation technology and mobility products.

"I am honored to join the Myomo team as Business Development Manager," said John Frijters. "Throughout my career, I've enjoyed working with multi-national teams in the field of non-invasive medical devices and medical products, and I am looking forward to bringing my knowledge, network and expertise to Myomo."

Distribution Contract

Bandagist Jan Nielsen and Myomo have signed a distribution contract to help bring MyoPro to patients in the Nordic region. Headquartered in Copenhagen Denmark, Bandagist Jan Nielsen was founded and is currently owned by Jan Nielsen (CPO). Nielsen has a team of bandagists, physiotherapists, specialized technicians, (CO, CPO's) and shop assistants that manage the patient care needs on orthosis and prosthesis and other medical aids. The team also offers patients in-home visits.

"Myomo's leading technology is now available in Denmark, and the MyoPro completes our offer to the many Danish people that lost the capability to use their hand and arm following a stroke or a brachial plexus injury," said Jan Nielsen, CPO and CEO of Bandagist Jan Nielsen. "Myomo's products together with Bandagist Jan Nielsen A/S presents a great solution for the many Danish people that need this innovative orthotic technology."

The company employs 45 employees at two locations in Kopenhagen (Frederiksborggade and Sundholmsvej) and has clinic sessions at satellite clinics in Sjland and Fun.

Bandagist Jan Nielsen and Myomo attended the 11th Nordic Prosthetist and Orthotist Conference in Copenhagen September 6-8, 2018.

First Screening Day in the United Kingdom

Myomo conducted the first ever MyoPro free screening day in the United Kingdom with Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Hobbs Rehabilitation. Held on September 4, 2018, the screenings gave potential users a convenient chance to be evaluated by clinical specialists to determine if the MyoPro might help them overcome upper-limb paralysis caused by stroke, brachial plexus injury or other neuromuscular disease or injury. Ten attended and eight were qualified. Myomo has seen good success with screening days across the United States and is continuing to educate and assist more individuals, families, physicians, and therapists about the benefit of the MyoPro myoelectric orthosis.

"We have spent ten years looking for a myoelectric elbow brace to restore arm and hand function to our paralyzed patients and have finally found it in MyoPro" said Mr. Simon Pickard, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon at Robert Jones Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic District Hospital NHS Trust. "These screening days make it very convenient for clinicians to evaluate patients and prescribe the device."

About Myomo

Myomo, Inc. is a wearable medical robotics company that offers expanded mobility for those suffering from neurological disorders and upper limb paralysis. Myomo develops and markets the MyoPro product line. MyoPro is a powered upper limb orthosis designed to support the arm and restore function to the weakened or paralyzed arms of patients suffering from CVA stroke, brachial plexus injury, traumatic brain or spinal cord injury, ALS or other neuromuscular disease or injury. It is currently the only marketed device that, sensing a patient's own EMG signals through non-invasive sensors on the arm, can restore an individual's ability to perform activities of daily living, including feeding themselves, carrying objects and doing household tasks. Many are able to return to work, live independently and reduce their cost of care. Myomo is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with sales and clinical professionals across the U.S. and distribution partners in Europe. For more information, please visit www.myomo.com.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding the Company's future business expectations including with respect to the Company's plans and expectations for the European market, which are subject to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and may differ materially from actual results due to a variety of factors. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward looking statements for many reasons, including, without limitation, risks related to regulatory approval and market acceptance of our products, and the other risk factors contained in our filings made with the Securities and Exchange Commission. More information about factors that potentially could affect Myomo's financial results is included in Myomo's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company cautions readers not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. The Company disclaims any obligation subsequently to revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such statements or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005211/en/

Contacts:

Investor Relations:

PCG Advisory

Vivian Cervantes, 646-863-6274

vivian@pcgadvisory.com

or

Public Relations:

Matter Communications

Meredith Krim, 617-874-5203

myomo@matternow.com
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - September 12, 2018) - StrikePoint Gold Inc. (TSXV: SKP) (OTCQB: STKXF) is pleased to announce that it has increased its land position by acquiring the Big, Bada and Boom Properties adjacent to its Porter Idaho Project near Stewart, British Columbia. This is in addition to the acquisition of the Handsome Jack property from Trifecta Gold on August 16th, 2018.

The Big, Bada and Boom Properties

This collection of property represents an area of newly staked ground to the east and contiguous to the Porter Idaho and Handsome Jack properties. These new blocks of claims total 20.5 square kilometers and bring the entire property to 33 square kilometers.

The additional ground secures StrikePoint's exploration potential in the area, including straddling what is locally known as "The Red Line". This is a geological contact between Triassic and Jurassic aged rocks which is a key marker for copper and gold mineralization, and most of the deposits within the "Golden Triangle" area are found within 2 kilometers of this contact zone. This increases the commodity potential within the property portfolio in British Columbia from silver to include a potential for gold and copper discoveries.

Acquiring this additional property also gives StrikePoint access to all the major exposures of rocks around the periphery of this section of the Cambria Icefield. Ice cover in this area has reduced by 30 to 40 percent since the 1980's, and so many of these exposures have never been prospected. Geologists are currently on site and are positioned to explore these new areas of ground during the 2018 field season.





Porter Silver Project



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/5044/38610_figure1.jpg

Exploration Update

Exploration activities are progressing with earnest on the Porter Idaho project. The exploration camp is well established, and all facilities have been installed and passed a Mining Inspector visitation. Geological teams have collected over 300 surface samples to date which are currently being analyzed by the assaying labs, the first results being expected imminently. Samples have been collected from the Porter-Prosperity, Silverado and Handsome Jack properties, and will now be expanded to include the Boom property.

Diamond drilling is also progressing, and to date around 60% of original planned holes have been completed (1,350 meters completed of 2,150 meters planned). Strikepoint is currently looking at options to expand this program to capitalize on the remaining field season.

About the Golden Triangle

The Golden Triangle is an area of northwestern British Columbia that has seen extensive historic mining and prospecting activity, and has recently been the site of modern discoveries, including the Premier Gold, Snip and Eskay Creek Mines. The area has seen a resurgence in infrastructure investment which supports exploration activities, including upgraded transmission lines supplying clean, affordable and reliable hydroelectric power. Other recent improvements include highway upgrades, new ocean port infrastructure at the ice-free port of Stewart and the commissioning of three hydroelectric facilities.

StrikePoint Gold is a well-financed gold exploration and development company. The company controls a portfolio of gold properties in the Yukon and throughout Canada.

The technical information contained in this news release has been approved by Andy Randell, P. Geo., Vice President, Exploration of StrikePoint Gold. Mr. Randell is a qualified person as defined in NI 43-101.

For further information please visit our website: www.strikepointgold.com

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD of STRIKEPOINT GOLD INC.

Shawn Khunkhun - CEO and Director

For more information, contact:

Shawn Khunkhun

604-602-1440

sk@strikepointgold.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
LONDON and NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Exiger, the award-winning provider of technology-enabled regulatory, financial crime, risk and compliance solutions, announced today that Transparency International UK will adopt its industry-first artificial intelligence (AI) solution, Exiger Insight 3PM powered by DDIQ.

Transparency International is the world's leading anti-corruption NGO. Their UK chapter's integration of DDIQ firmly demonstrates technology's critical role in reforming corporate ethics and bringing transparency to the market to root out corruption. Through DDIQ's proprietary cognitive computing engine, Transparency International UK will automate comprehensive open-web and database research on its potential partners and third parties to help provide it with the assurance that they are partnering in the fight against corruption with the right organizations. The platform will also enhance Transparency International UK's research capabilities for its widely respected thought leadership and advocacy work.

Exiger's AI-powered solutions are moving global corporations and financial institutions to a more sustainable compliance environment. By combining multi-disciplinary subject matter expertise with disruptive, purpose-built technology, Exiger is accelerating decision-making and bolstering accountability in large global organizations, enabling them to interact with the world in a more ethical way that raises the standard for anti-bribery and corruption risk management.

"Exiger is proud to team up with Transparency International UK to help fight corruption because we align on the vision of a more ethical world driven by technology," said Aaron Narva, Exiger Vice President and Global Head of Insight 3PM. "Risk professionals are inundated with data, and as access to data continues to increase, organizations are faced with a new challenge: How do you find the most important pieces of information to drive the right decisions? Transparency International is leading by example. They can see firsthand the proven results of using DDIQ, appreciating that it fundamentally transforms the way organizations understand and mitigate risk."

DDIQ streamlines comprehensive public records research and the due diligence processes needed to identify and mitigate corruption, sanctions violations and other third party risks. Leveraging natural language processing and machine learning, DDIQ analyzes public records to automatically identify and escalate risks, mimicking human research methods. By using Exiger's technology in the same way as many of today's leading-edge compliance programs, Transparency International UK will deepen its understanding of its third parties, increase coverage and eliminate its reliance on slower manual processes. This utilization is the latest example of how Exiger's technology-enabled solutions are progressing global organizations towards solving their biggest compliance challenges smarter, faster and with greater confidence.

"We believe in the mission of Transparency International," added Narva. "Transparency International UK's decision to deploy Exiger's platform is a recognition of the importance of emerging technologies in anti-corruption and ethical business practices."

Contacts:

Europe

Laurence Reid

lreid@exiger.com

+44 (0) 207 516 5954

U.S.

Kody Gurfein

kgurfein@exiger.com

+1 212 455 9408

About Exiger

Exiger is a global regulatory and financial crime, risk and compliance company. Exiger arms financial institutions, multinational corporations and governmental agencies with the practical advice and technology solutions they need to prevent compliance breaches, respond to risk, remediate major issues and monitor ongoing business activities. Exiger works with clients worldwide to assist them in effectively managing their critical challenges while developing and implementing the policies, procedures and programs needed to create a sustainable compliance environment. A global authority on regulatory compliance, the company also oversees some of the world's most complex court-appointed and voluntary monitorships. Exiger has four principal business units being: Exiger Advisory; Exiger Diligence; Exiger Government Services; and Exiger Tech, including AI-powered automated due diligence solutions DDIQ and Insight 3PM. Exiger operates through offices in London, New York City, Silver Spring (DC Metro), Toronto, Vancouver, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/378374/Exiger_Logo.jpg
NEW YORK, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

CannabisNewsWire Editorial Coverage

After years of wrangling, the U.S. Congress stands on the verge of legalizing the cultivation of industrial hemp.



Hemp is a variety of the cannabis sativa plant that doesn't generate a psychoactive effect.

Traditionally used to produce cloth and rope, hemp can also now be used in wellness products and food.

Competing legislations by the House and Senate are being aligned with an anticipated September 30 deadline.

deadline. The legalization of hemp has cross-party support and appears likely to pass.

The expected change in U.S. law will be beneficial for companies such as Marijuana Company of America, Inc. (OTC: MCOA) (MCOA Profile), which is already invested in industrial hemp and support for hemp growers. Across the border, Canopy Growth Corp. (NYSE: CGC) has established acres of Canadian hemp cultivation and gained financial backing that would support huge growth. Aurora Cannabis, Inc. (OTC: ACBFF) has also received substantial funding in the past few months, which will help its ongoing expansion effort. Hemp cultivation will provide plentiful CBD to be used by companies such as CV Sciences, Inc. (OTC: CVSI) as an ingredient in a wide and growing range of health and wellness products. All this growth is aided by support companies such as Terra Tech Corp. (OTC: TRTC), which provides equipment for cannabis cultivators.

Hemp: Caught Between Politics and Business

Industrial hemp is a crop with a strange history in the United States. For centuries, it was used to produce products such as ropes and sails, playing an integral part in the economy. This ended in the twentieth century when hemp was caught up in a broad ban on the cannabis family of plants, despite the fact that hemp itself is not usable as a recreational drug. Now its tentative return depends upon the outcome of a far broader agricultural bill.

Because it doesn't share the psychoactive properties of marijuana, hemp has potential to be regulated and grown separately. Early tests in restoring this industry have produced significant profits for farmers. If the political will can be found to change its status, it could create great opportunities for businesses and their suppliers.

Hemp Cultivation Project in the United States

Several companies, including Marijuana Company of America (OTC:MCOA), are already growing hemp in the United States with their Scio, Oregon Cultivation Project, in conjunction with their joint venture partner Global Hemp Group Inc.

Under their high-yielding CBD hemp cultivation projects, the two joint venture partners have formed Covered Bridge Acres, LTD. The key to the project was the acquisition of a 109-acre agricultural property in Scio, Oregon, with a history of hemp cultivation over the past few years. In July 2018, 40,000 hemp clones were planted on the property for Cannabidiol (CBD) propagation on approximately 33 acres of the property.

MCOA and GHG are now in the process of evaluating different harvesting, drying, storage and processing strategies in preparation of an early October harvest. The joint venture partners are also in negotiations with guaranteed offtake agreement offers and are considering strategies involved with selling the attained biomass from harvest in bulk.



When Is a Drug Not a Drug?

Hemp is one of a range of different cannabis plants. Unlike the versions smoked by recreational users, it doesn't contain significant quantities of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the chemical that gets smokers high. It does contain the active ingredient cannabidiol (CBD), which has been widely reported to have medicinal value - reports that now have been substantiated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Importantly, hemp also contains fibers that can be used for a wide range of purposes.

In the twentieth century, cannabis plants were banned as the U.S. government and others worldwide cracked down on drug use. Though hemp doesn't get drug users high, the governments apparently banned the cannabis plant because of the difficulty of distinguishing between the plant varieties. The decision to include hemp in a list of banned drugs was based on political expediency rather than science.

Fast forward to the twenty-first century and the rules surrounding hemp have started to change, allowing the creation of companies such as MCOA. Hemp has a huge number of potential uses, including the manufacture of cloth and paper and the processing of food. Under licenses designed to cater to research and the medical market, farmers have begun growing industrial hemp with expectations of earning up to 150 times as much money per acre of land as they would growing alfalfa.



The Great Agricultural Debate

Farm bills are an important part of how the U.S. government establishes policy around food and agricultural production and how that policy is enshrined in law. Roughly every five years, Congress creates a bill covering a wide range of agricultural topics. With its huge financial implications and many different political angles, passing the bill can be a messy business.

Following a pilot research program for hemp growers created in the 2014 Farm Bill, the current Farm Bill includes the legalization of industrial hemp. There's a lot at stake for hemp growers as well as those hoping to enter and establish a foothold in the industry. The U.S. Hemp Roundtable has gone so far as to hire attorney Daniel Cameron, an experienced Washington legal counsel, to lead its advocacy on the bill.

The House and Senate have both passed versions of the 2018 Farm Bill that support the legalization of the hemp industry without drug enforcement oversight. On Sept. 5, the first bicameral conference committee on this Farm Bill began meeting in an attempt to resolve competing elements between the two bills, with a deadline to present the president with an agreed-on final version of the bill by the end of the month.



The good news for companies such as MCOA is that the hemp element of the Farm Bill has cross-party support. Hemp's potential to revive the fortunes of American farmers makes it a potential vote-winner for rural politicians nervously eyeing up the polls. The bad news is that in a bill affecting everything from agricultural subsidies to environmental conservation to food stamps, there's plenty for politicians to disagree over.

Hemp Products

Sail cloth and rigging were enough to make hemp profitable in the eighteenth century, but the world has changed since then. So what sort of products can the world expect to see from a resurgent hemp market?

Many products will undoubtedly be targeted towards the health and wellness market, using CBD as an active ingredient. A leading example of these types of products is MCOA's hempSMART line, including hempSMART Brain, which is developed to help with alertness and concentration; hempSMART Pain Capsules and Pain Cream, formulated to be an effective product combination for the temporary relief of minor pain associated with physical activity; hempSMART Full Spectrum Drops; and hempSMART Face, a nourishing facial moisturizer infused with Ayurvedic herbs and botancials.

A Growing Industry

Many companies already engaged in the cannabis market are exploring ways they may be able to benefit from the growing popularity of hemp. Canopy Growth Corp. (NYSE: CGC), one of Canada's foremost cannabis companies, has a hemp division with expertise in this area and acres of hemp production already under way. The company also recently received a $4 billion investment from Constellation Brands, a leading beverage company, to help it expand within the fast-growing cannabis market. With such levels of investment, Canopy Growth will be in a strong position to increase production as the market for hemp products grows.

The medical use of CBD is a major area of interest for Aurora Cannabis, Inc. (OTCQX: ACBFF), which is developing different strains of cannabis to benefit from their different medical properties. Like Canopy Growth, Aurora has an eye to expansion while the market is still young. Its recent takeover of MedReleaf appears to be just one step in a far bigger plan. The company has just taken out a $150 million loan with the Bank of Montreal, betting on the power of a short-term financial boost to make it a market leader, more than capable of repaying the debt when the time comes.

Another company exploring the medical potential of CBD is CV Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB: CVSI). CV Sciences has a strong focus on research, with a division devoted to developing new drugs that use CBD as an active ingredient. Its consumer products division works through health care providers, health food shops and online sales to market CBD-based wellness products.

The increasing number of growers is good news for supporting companies such as Terra Tech Corp. (OTCQX: TRTC). Terra Tech produces growing systems - including moving tables and hydroponics - for cannabis farmers. These products are designed to increase the productivity of indoor cannabis cultivation, which is where a lot of CBD and marijuana plants are grown. The company's environmentally friendly systems can reduce waste and thereby cut costs while also increasing productivity.

The anticipated changes in the U.S. laws governing hemp cultivation signal implications for a large number of companies in the wider cannabis sector as well. If the Farm Bill gets through Congress as expected this month, it could open up a sea change in agricultural production and U.S. wellness industry products.

For more information about Marijuana Company of America, please visit Marijuana Company of America (OTC:MCOA).

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Regional and federal elections were held in Russia last Sunday. Highest officials of the regions and deputies of the State Duma in single-mandate electoral districts.

Summarizing results of elections, Igor Borisov, chairman of the board of the Russian Public Institute of Electoral Law, said that Russian electoral system reached a high level of stability: "Right course for its further development has been chosen. Population in its majority supports strategic course aimed at further development of democracy in conditions of optimization of the voting process and increase of transparency."

According to Igor Borisov, it is shown by the number of citizens' appeals in the course and after elections: "Compared to 2017, there were much less complaints from citizens. But the number of fake appeals increases. Institute for monitoring electoral procedures is used for political purposes. Some people that work during elections try to use fake reports about violations for political purposes."

Borisov argues that fake appeals must be handled by civil society: "National Public Monitoring is workign on it. They reviewed all reported violations, including on social networks, various blogs, media, and confirmed whether there were any violations or not. If there were violations, then they work with relevant authorities and take measures to restore violated rights. This work is very positive and it demostrates what kind of goal we are pursuing - development of Russian electoral system."
POINT PLEASANT BEACH, NJ and PISCATAWAY, NJ / ACCESSWIRE / September 12, 2018 / Hammer Fiber Optic Holdings Corp d/b/a Hammer Communications (OTCQB: HMMR) announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the stock of Open Data Centers, LLC, Endstream Communications, LLC and 1stPoint Communications, LLC and its subsidiaries. 1stPoint has strong intellectual property in over-the-top services such as SMS/texting and collaboration tools, virtual desktop and managed hosting services. Its subsidiaries have multiple CLEC licenses and a mobile operator license. Endstream Communications offers wholesale voice services worldwide. Open Data Centers operates a carrier neutral colocation facility in Piscataway, New Jersey and an edge data center in Homewood, Alabama. The acquisitions are accretive to Hammer and provide operating synergies. The details will be described further in an upcoming 8K filing.

The Mobile Network Service Provider program, announced jointly by Hammer and 1stPoint, exemplifies how Hammer will use its existing capabilities and those of each of the acquired entities to operate and maintain managed wireless networks both domestically and Internationally. The offering will include wireless networking equipment, an over the top platform for value added services, 24x7 remote NOC and deployment services, sales and marketing support as well as project management. Open Data Centers will provide the infrastructure and personnel to facilitate the NOC for remote management capabilities.

"Using the proprietary Air Technology, complemented by the intellectual property and operations of the acquired entities, Hammer now has the ideal solution to cable network extension, wireless service expansion or an opportunity for DSL replacement," said Mark Stogdill, Hammer's Founder. Today Hammer provides triple-play services to retail customers in its operating market and intends to deliver that service nationwide alongside its operator partners.

Erik Levitt, the Managing Member of 1stPoint, Endstream and Open Data Centers immediately assumes the roles and responsibilities of Hammer's Chief Executive Officer. "The acquisitions create a strong management team, all of whom individually possess a long history of success in the industry," said Levitt. "We are all dedicated to executing on the vision that has been created for Hammer since inception. We are focused on delivering on projects that will grow the company's agenda aggressively."

Mark Stogdill will assume the role of Chief Technology Officer of Hammer. Kristen Vasicek, 1stPoint's Director of Marketing, has been appointed as Hammer's Chief Operating Officer. "We are looking forward to rolling out Hammer's strategy and to further position the company to provide high speed triple play services, Smart City, M2M and IoT products to consumers through our MNSP program and our Everything Wireless approach," added Vasicek.

About Hammer Fiber

Hammer Fiber Optic Holdings Corp. (OTCQB: HMMR) is a telecommunications company investing in the future of wireless technology whose holdings include Hammer Fiber Optic Investments, Ltd. D/B/A Hammer Fiber, a New Jersey-based Internet Service Provider (ISP) that offers internet, voice, video and data services in New Jersey, as well as carrier services in Philadelphia and New York. Hammer Fiber serves residential and small business markets with high capacity broadband, voice and video through both direct fiber as well as its wireless fiber platform, Hammer Wireless AIR technology. For more information visit http://www.hammerfiber.com or contact Frank Pena at fpena@hammerfiber.com .

About 1stPoint Communications

1stPoint Communications provides integrated messaging, voice, data and mobile services for small businesses, enterprises and carriers. 1stPoint is committed to delivering all of the services businesses need to interact with their customers, employees and suppliers, providing its clients with A New Way to Work. For more information visit www.1pcom.net.

About Endstream

Endstream is a wholesale voice operator, providing voice termination, toll origination and toll free origination services to other carrier clients. For more information visit www.endstream.com.

About Open Data Center

Open Data Center is a carrier neutral colocation facility in Piscataway, NJ. It provides services to 1stPoint Communications, Core Technology Services, Endstream Communications and is a utility data center for over 20 other clients. It is a 2N+1 design with an array of nine fiber providers and 26 resident carriers make it an ideal platform for HMMRs activities. For more information visit www.opendatacenters.net.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains projections and other forward-looking statements regarding future events or our future financial performance. All statements other than present and historical facts and conditions contained in this release, including any statements regarding our future results of operations and financial positions, business strategy, plans and our objectives for future operations, are forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended). These statements are only predictions and reflect our current beliefs and expectations with respect to future events and are based on assumptions and subject to risk and uncertainties and subject to change at any time. We operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Actual events or results may differ materially from those contained in the projections or forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

SOURCE: Hammer Fiber Optic Holdings Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/511806/Hammer-Communications-Announces-Definitive-Agreement-to-Acquire-Open-Data-Centers-LLC-Endstream-Communications-LLC-and-1stPoint-Communications-LLC-and-Its-Subsidiaries
Hamilton, Bermuda, September 12, 2018

We had a conference call for shareholders/investors on Monday September 10, 2018.

Attached please find the transcript of the conference call.

Link to: NAO Ltd: Status and prospects call (http://hugin.info/159489/R/2215728/865155.pdf)

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts.



The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "forecast," "project," "plan," "potential," "may," "should," "expect," "pending" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, our management's examination of historical operating trends, data contained in our records and other data available from third parties. Although we believe that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond our control, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Important factors that, in our view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand in the PSV market, as a result of changes in the general market conditions of the oil and natural gas industry which influence charter hire rates and vessel values, demand in platform supply vessels, our operating expenses, including bunker prices, dry docking and insurance costs, governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities as well as potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents or political events, the availability of financing and refinancing, vessel breakdowns and instances of off-hire and other important factors described from time to time in the reports filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Contacts:

Gary J. Wolfe

Seward & Kissel LLP

New York, USA

Tel: +1 212 574 1223

Bjrn Giver, CFO

Nordic American Offshore Ltd.

Tel: +1 888 755 8391 or +47 91 35 00 91

Herbjrn Hansson, Executive Chairman

Nordic American Offshore Ltd

Tel: +1 866 805 9504 or +47 90 14 62 91

Web-site: www.nao.bm (http://www.nao.bm)

Press release (PDF) (http://hugin.info/159489/R/2215728/865152.pdf)



This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients.

The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.

Source: Nordic American Offshore Ltd via Globenewswire


LONDON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Kimble, a global leader in professional services automation, is delighted to announce that it has been named as one of the fastest-growing technology companies on the prestigious Sunday Times Hiscox Tech Track 100 list for the second year running.

Kimble - founded in London in 2010 - is expanding internationally and now has four offices in North America where it now does more than half of its business. Earlier in 2018, Kimble secured significant investment from Accel-KKR, a leading Silicon Valley-based technology-focused investment firm.

Kimble CEO Sean Hoban said: "These are exciting times for Kimble. We are building momentum in both Europe and North America. I am proud to see our achievements recognized with our appearance on the Tech Track 100 list for the second year in a row. We are very focused on continuing to deliver value to our customers, fueling growth while reducing the administrative burden."

The 18th annual Sunday Times Hiscox Tech Track 100 league table ranks Britain's private technology, media and telecoms (TMT) companies with the fastest-growing sales. Steve McGerr, head of direct commercial at Hiscox Insurance UK, commented: "Tech businesses in Britain are thriving thanks to the fearlessness and determination of those that run them. We have great admiration for the talented entrepreneurs that make up the companies on this year's Tech Track 100."

CONTACT: Tanner Spear, tanner.spear@kimbleapps.com, 801-722-5433
LONDON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- This week, London-based startup Clippings, the platform transforming the interior design industry, announces their Series B round of funding, raising $15.4 million. Advance Venture Partners (AVP), which has previously backed global powerhouses and industry innovators including Farfetch, Moda Operandi and Rent the Runway, lead the round. Existing backer C4 Ventures furthered their investment. Founded in 2014 by architecture-trained entrepreneurs Adel Zakout and Tom Mallory, Clippings has seen more than 400% growth every year since its founding. This latest funding will be used to roll out in new geographies including the United States, accelerate technology development and launch major new categories.

Currently, the furniture industry is worth 96 billion in Europe, and around $120 billion in the US, but only 6% of this spend is online. Using their proprietary software platform, Clippings is revolutionising the design industry from within by delivering a new way to create, source and manage interior design projects. Clippings is working to streamline the industry and fundamentally transform the way interior designers work, allowing them more time to do what they do best - make amazing places.

Clippings provides unique solutions for interior design projects, including:

Aggregating data on over 7 million products from over a thousand brands to simplify discovery

Interactive mood boards that replace Pinterest to identify and buy any product in the world

Efficient collaboration and communication with team members at every stage of the project

Consolidating multiple quote requests, orders, invoices and timelines into one convenient place

One point of contact to answer questions, find solutions and manage delivery and installation

A community of nearly 50,000 people including teams designing for WeWork, Citroen and British Land, are already using Clippings to reduce cost, improve efficiency and deliver outstanding projects.

"We are thrilled about this new chapter for Clippings, and excited to deliver transformative technology to the design industry through our platform," said Adel Zakout, co-founder and CEO of Clippings.

In addition to completing their Series B funding round, Clippings welcomes Courtney Robinson, Partner at AVP, to their Board of Directors. With her extensive background in working with emerging technology companies, including overseeing AVP's investments in Modsy and Curology, she brings expertise in global growth for design-led companies.

"We believe Adel and Tom have the unique appreciation of brand and technology, as well as an insider's understanding of the design industry, that has enabled Clippings to build the platform to bring the design industry online," said Courtney Robinson of AVP.

"Since we first invested in Clippings a year ago, we have witnessed the team challenging the status quo in the interior design industry and delivering on their vision to become the go-to destination for interior designers," said Pascal Cagni, founder & CEO at C4 Ventures.
The company's European expansion opens an additional $121 billion annual market opportunity.

Remitly, the largest independent digital remittance company in North America, today announced its expansion to 11 new send countries across Europe giving millions of customers access to a modern and convenient remittance experience.

"In one year, we've expanded from three send countries to now serving 15, representing over $121 billion in remittance flows annually. This expansion brings Remitly's world-class product and technology to even more immigrant communities with the need to send money to their loved ones back home," said Karim Meghji, Chief Product Officer at Remitly.

Remitly launched its service in the United Kingdom last year and has now expanded into additional send countries across Europe. Customers across Europe can use Remitly's reliable and easy-to-use mobile app that makes the process of sending money faster, easier, more transparent and less costly by eliminating the forms, codes, agents, extra time and fees typical of the traditional, century-old money transfer process.

Customers in Europe will also experience one of Remitly's most popular features, the Perfect Delivery Promise, an exact date and time promise of when a customer and their recipient can expect the funds to arrive. Once the Perfect Delivery Promise is provided to a customer, Remitly tracks the movement of funds to its destination, updating customers and recipients each step of the way.

Remitly's global network of partners supports money transfers into bank accounts, home delivery or cash pick-up, to help reach recipients anywhere they live from big cities to remote, rural areas around the world. Remitly is now available in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Outside of Europe, Remitly is also available to customers in Australia, Canada, and the United States.

The company partnered with payment processing platform Stripe to help process transactions in various European currencies while minimizing customer friction. This partnership also enables Remitly to quickly expand its payment mechanisms on a global basis and beyond Europe.

"As a global remittance company, we focus on providing customers with the most trusted financial services," said Meghji. "Stripe was a natural partner choice, given their global, robust and high-quality payment processing platform and its ability to support our mission to serve immigrant communities. Our strong global platform can help immigrants do more to manage their full financial lives and we're excited to serve these communities in new transformative ways."

"As one of the world's largest platforms for online businesses, we're excited to work with Remitly and support their expansion into new markets, reaching new customers, and helping more communities around the world," said Richard Alfonsi, Head of Global Revenue Growth at Stripe.

For more information visit remitly.com.

About Remitly

Remitly is an independent digital remittance company that transfers over $6 billion in annualized volume through its proprietary global money transfer network across Africa, Asia, Central, and South America. Its reliable and easy-to-use mobile app makes the process of sending money faster, easier, more transparent and less costly by eliminating the forms, codes, agents, extra time and fees typical of the traditional, century-old money transfer process. Remitly is backed by industry-leading investors, World Bank's International Finance Corporation (IFC), Naspers' PayU, Silicon Valley Bank, Stripes Group, DFJ, DN Capital, QED Investors, Trilogy Equity Partners, Bezos Expeditions, Founders' Co-Op, and TomorrowVentures. The company is headquartered in Seattle, with additional offices in London, the Philippines, and Nicaragua. For more information, visit remitly.com.

About Stripe

Stripe is a technology company that builds economic infrastructure for the internet. Businesses of every size-from high-growth technology companies like Deliveroo and Kickstarter to public companies like Salesforce and Sage-use the company's software to accept online payments and run technically sophisticated financial operations in more than 120 countries. Nearly half of U.K. internet users made a purchase on Stripe in the past year. Headquartered in San Francisco, with nine global offices in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia, Stripe helps new companies get started and grow their revenues, and established businesses accelerate into new markets and launch new business models. Over the long term, Stripe aims to increase the GDP of the internet.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005227/en/

Contacts:

Remitly

Britta Gidican, 206-535-6152 ext. 213

Press@remitly.com

or

Stripe

Eleanor McGrath, +353 8724-83230

eleanor@stripe.com
Worlwide expansion, product launches, new services

Groupe PSA is continuing to roll out its multi-brand Aftermarket strategy, one of the pillars of its Push to Pass strategic plan.

Regulatory News:

Groupe PSA's (Paris:UG) aim in the aftermarket segment is to fulfil all customers' aftersales expectations worldwide, regardless of their purchasing power and the make and age of their vehicle.

Distrigo is the Group's multi-brand spare parts distribution label. In Europe, its marketing and logistics offensive has led to the opening of a competitive, new operational network of 130 distribution hubs, which make the banner a "one stop shop" for the distribution of spare parts to both accredited and independent auto repair shops.

The Group is also rolling out the multi-brand distribution offering in other parts of the world such as Latin America, through joint ventures with SK in Brazil and the Etman group in Argentina, as well as China, through the acquisition of spare parts distributor Jian Xin in early 2018 and the opening of its first distribution hub with DPCA.

Distrigo markets an extensive range of spare parts including original parts, the multi-brand Eurorepar range, as well as multibrand supplier parts. Distrigo's offering covers virtually all the needs of auto repair shops, with more than 100,000 parts stored at Groupe PSA's master warehouses and 29 renowned suppliers working alongside the Group to deliver the offering, which is unprecedented among carmakers. After launching in Germany in July 2018, the label is now available in 10 countries.

In early 2018, Distrigo extended its offering to include tyres, which are now stored at Groupe PSA's Master Warehouse in Vesoul, France. This storage strategy has enabled the Group to maximise the number of brands in its offering, with 220,000 Eurorepar or other brand tyres currently stored at Vesoul for rapid daily delivery to Distrigo hubs.

By January 2020, the Opel and Vauxhall brands will be fully integrated in the Distrigo distribution system. Distrigo's hubs will market original Opel and Vauxhall parts.

Distrigo is also a highly competitive logistics system offering new tools aimed at constantly improving service quality. These include Service Box, the comprehensive, multi-brand order portal (covering all types of parts, equipment, accessories, Products for Professionals) that is both detailed (providing in-depth technical information) and easy to use (with a single URL and basket).

In July 2018, the OEM parts offering was launched in Germany, whereit is being rolled out at six hubs over the second half of the year, and nine additional hubs in 2019.

As in France, Distrigo hubs in Germany have been working with the Autobutler platform to develop the independent repair shop business, in particular Euro Repar Car Service.

Eurorepar is Groupe PSA's range of multi-brand spare parts and accessories for maintenance and wear and tear.

Eurorepar has recently expanded its product range and significantly enhanced its visibility, with:

the world premiere of a large number of new products: new range of gearbox and engine oils, rounded out with the launch of the Eurorepar 0W30 oil, wider brakes range pads and discs now cover more than 90% of European vehicles, new clutch range, new starter/alternator range, new mini-range of front windscreen wiper blades, with 11 products covering 95% of European vehicles, new range of wheel bearing kits, range of Eurorepar Reliance summer tyres, and Eurorepar Reliance winter tyre range announced for mid-2019, extended range of accessories, including covers, mats and wheel trims, range of handheld tools for the Eurorepar tool trolley;

investment in product quality as well as quality and comprehensiveness of technical data about the range, now available in TecDoc.

The Eurorepar range demonstrates Groupe PSA's commitment to protect its brands and combat counterfeiting. Sixty percent of its parts are now fitted with the security label introduced by the Group in 2017. The label gives each product a unique, traceable identity and features an individual QR code that can be scanned to verify the product's authenticity.

In Germany, Eurorepar's sales growth has been driven by a strong B2B and B2C marketing offensive involving a variety of initiatives, including an email campaign launched in partnership with Autoscout24.

Euro Repar Car Service, Groupe PSA's multi-brand maintenance and repair network, is continuing its expansion in France and the rest of the world. In just one year, the network has opened locations in Algeria, Turkey, Russia, Bulgaria, Greece, Morocco, Sweden and Saudi Arabia, bringing its total number of host countries to 22.

At the Automechanika trade show, the network is aiming to recruit new partner garages and will be presenting its enhanced range of licence services, including its used vehicle offering available in France, Belgium, Portugal and Germany, and its partnership with Autobutler.

The network will take advantage of Automechanika to celebrate the opening of its 400th partner garage in Germany, highlighting its rapid pace of expansion in the country. The new marketing campaign, "Awareness Boost" is designed to improve recognition of the network among the general public. A broad range of online and offline initiatives have been launched with the help of racing driver Cyndie er brand the network's new ambassador.

In parallel, the banner is continuing to extend its offering, with new partnerships aimed at helping members grow their business:

warranty programme with the ADAC;

used car label (sourcing and warranty with CarGarantie);

partnership with developer Werbas to market an affordable, high-performance dealership management system (DMS);

partnerships with Autobutler and Autoscout24.

Forwelt is aconsumables brand for bodywork professionals. The brand's compact range, which is structured around repair shop requirements, has been developed to meet the needs of the entire bodywork repair process. It improves the performance and productivity of professionals while offering high-quality products at affordable prices.

Forwelt was launched in Germany in summer 2018. Automechanika therefore marks the start of the marketing offensive for the brand, which broadens the Group's offering for garages with a more extensive one stop shop solution.

Autobutler, an online quote platform, was created in Denmark in 2010. It has since been rolled out in four countries, including France and Germany. Groupe PSA acquired Autobutler in 2016 with the aim of stepping up its rollout internationally and helping it to become a European leader. Autobutler is designed to ensure smooth, straightforward relations between drivers and mechanics.

Come and see us at our stand (Hall 9, C06).

About Groupe PSA

Groupe PSA designs unique automotive experiences and delivers mobility solutions to meet all customer expectations. The Group has five car brands, Peugeot, Citroen, DS, Opel and Vauxhall and provides a wide array of mobility and smart services under the Free2Move brand. Its 'Push to Pass' strategic plan represents a first step towards the achievement of the Group's vision to be "a global carmaker with cutting-edge efficiency and a leading mobility provider sustaining lifetime customer relationships". An early innovator in the field of autonomous and connected cars, Groupe PSA is also involved in financing activities through Banque PSA Finance and in automotive equipment via Faurecia.

Media library: medialibrary.groupe-psa.com @GroupePSA_EN

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005651/en/

Contacts:

Groupe PSA

Germany: Sabine Weber, +49 (0)176 1344 3759

sabine.weber@mpsa.com

or

France: Cecile Damide, +33 (0)6 77 14 53 75

cecile.damide@mpsa.com
PARIS, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

The sun is one of the most dangerous carcinogens, yet people who work outdoors are inadequately protected. 8,831 new cases of occupational skin cancer were reported in Germany in 2017, although Germany is not even one of the most sun-drenched regions of Europe. The majority of cases involve non-melanoma ("white") skin cancer, and these are far from being as harmless as commonly assumed. White skin cancers are a form of chronic disease that generally requires far more than just a single intervention. The EADV Congress in Paris has opened today with an appeal from experts: "In our opinion, non-melanoma occupational skin cancer has already reached epidemic proportions that we can no longer ignore."

The sun is one of the most dangerous carcinogens, yet people who work outdoors are inadequately protected. Since 2014, data on the UV exposure of outdoor workers (such as farmers, road workers, seasonal harvest workers, building workers, roofers, etc.) have been collected in Germany as part of the GENESIS-UV project - with alarming results. Sewer technicians' exposure to sun amounted to 581 SED (standard erythemal doses), for example, and 494 in the case of facade construction workers [1]. The SED ('standard erythemal dose') has been developed as an erythemally weighted measure of radiant exposure. The SED is independent of skin type, and the WHO has set a daily limit of 130 SED [2]. It is now becoming apparent that this limit is routinely exceeded almost five-fold among outdoor workers in Germany, and yet Germany is not even one of the most sun-drenched regions of Europe. Nor do the figures relate to 2018 and its record-breaking summer, which also produced extremely high temperatures and much sun in Nordic climates, but rather to the previous, moderate summer.

Recent statistics for skin cancer [3] show that exceeding the limit by a factor of five in a 'normal summer' is not without its consequences - 8,831 new cases of occupational skin cancer were reported in Germany in 2017. "A further increase in the future can be expected because of the sunniest summer in a century," explains Professor Dr Swen Malte John, MD, Ph.D., Chairman Dept. of Dermatology, Environmental Medicine at the University of Osnabrueck (Germany), Chairperson of the EADV Media & PR Committee.

The majority of cases involve non-melanoma ("white") skin cancer, i.e. basal cell carcinomas, squamous cell carcinomas and actinic keratoses. Approximately 300,000 cases are registered per year in Germany. According to Professor John, these are far from being as harmless as commonly assumed. "These types of cancer, too, can form metastases and result in death. However, even if that is rarely the case, white skin cancer is a disease that places a severe burden on those affected." Basal cell carcinoma, which is classified only as 'semi-malignant' and the commonest form of skin cancer in Germany, at 180,000 new cases per year, can have serious consequences. "It often appears on the face. Although it spreads very slowly, tumor removal can involve disfiguring surgery if it affects deeper layers of tissue, or nasal bone. For that reason, it is essential to remove lesions as early as possible. Squamous cell carcinomas often occur in the ear region and on lips, where a partial resection is necessary in advanced stages. The burden of suffering for patients is then enormous, of course."

The expert also emphasises that white skin cancers are a form of chronic disease that generally requires far more than just a single intervention. "If a lesion is removed, there is a 30% likelihood that another one with appear within a year," explains Prof John. "I have patients who come to me every two to three weeks with a new lesion. White skin cancer is then a highly chronic disease that cannot be healed."

Outdoor workers are a special high-risk group. It is well known that their risk of contracting a basal cell carcinoma increases by 43% and that their risk of contracting a squamous cell carcinoma is doubled. Compared to indoor workers, people who have worked outdoors for more than five years are exposed to three times the risk of developing a basal cell carcinoma, a squamous cell carcinoma or actinic keratosis [4]. But that is not all - one study shows that outdoor workers also contract particularly aggressive forms of white skin cancer in many cases [5].

Professor John continues by saying that the lack of information among the public is extreme. Most of those affected complain that they had not been informed either about the dangers of UV radiation or about 'white skin cancer' as a disease - neither by their employers nor by their GP. 'White skin cancer has long been underestimated in the medical field as well, as can also be seen from the fact that the new ICD-11 catalogue, the international classification of all diagnoses, only now distinguishes between basal cell carcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas. This ICD-11, released by WHO in June 2018, will now for the first time allow to earmark skin cancer as occupational.

The problem Europe-wide is that most cancer registries do not even register and analyse white skin cancer - and where such analyses are conducted, physicians do not report cases in accordance with the rules. In Italy, for example, a mere 96 cases of occupational skin cancer were reported between 2010 and 2014, which is remarkable because 15% of the population in Italy works in agriculture and exposure to sun is much higher on average than in Germany, for example. "The EADV therefore advocates standardized registration of all cases of white skin cancer and precise details of those cases that qualify as occupational disease. Only then can we determine the full extent and successfully establish preventive measures and regular health screenings of workers that are binding throughout Europe," says Prof John. Such preventive measures could be easily established and in the view of experts should be integrated as a compulsory element of health and safety at work. Examples include: mounting sun shields at the workplace, avoiding outdoor work between 11 am and 2 pm, providing sun protective clothing and sunblocks (SPF 50+), and facilities for spending breaks indoors.

The EADV Congress in Paris has opened today with an appeal from experts: "In our opinion, non-melanoma occupational skin cancer has already reached epidemic proportions that we can no longer ignore. Policymakers must urgently take action to counteract this development."

About EADV

Founded in 1987, EADV is a non-profit association whose vision is to be the premier European Dermato-Venereology Society, with the key aims of improving the quality of patient care, providing continuing medical education (CME) for all Dermato-Venereologists in Europe, and advocacy on behalf of the specialty and patients.

For further information about the Academy, please contact us under +32-2-650-00-90 or visit www.eadv.org.

Media Contact

Ruel Jacob, Media Coordinator - EADV Office

+32-485-477478



References

[1]https://www.dguv.de/de/mediencenter/pm/pressemitteilung_131586.jsp

[2] INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION ON NON-IONIZING RADIATION PROTECTION

[3]https://www.dguv.de/medien/inhalt/mediencenter/pm/pressearchiv/2018/3_quartal/berufskrankheiten_2017.png

[4] John SM et al. CONSENSUS REPORT: Recognizing non-melanoma skin cancer, including actinic keratosis, as an occupational disease - A Call to Action. JEADV 2016, 30 (Suppl. 3), 38-45

[5] Apalla Z et al. Farmers develop more aggressive histologic subtypes of basal cell carcinoma. Experience from a Tertiary Hospital in Northern Greece. JEADV 2016, 30 (Suppl. 3), 17-20
Acclaimed SaaS expert joins customer engagement leader, launches bold branding campaign

SAN BRUNO, California, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Freshworks, a global leader in customer engagement software, announced today the appointment of veteran Software as a Service (SaaS) executive David Thompson as chief marketing officer. As one of his first initiatives, Thompson has launched an aggressive brand advertising campaign that positions Freshworks as the smart, friendly alternative in a bloated SaaS market.

Recognized as a pioneer in SaaS marketing and sales, Thompson comes to Freshworks with a deep background in developing best practices for the industry. As WebEx CMO, Thompson launched WebEx and helped build it as the first global SaaS brand, positioning it for IPO and subsequent buyout by Cisco. As CEO and founder of Genius.com/LeadRocket, he grew the marketing automation provider to No. 150 on the Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies, successfully positioning it for purchase by CallidusCloud. More recently, he served as CMO at Auction.com/Ten-X and as CSO/acting CMO at Domo.

"Freshworks represents a giant, new wave of global SaaS companies on the verge of totally disrupting the current SaaS leaders," Thompson said. "Twenty years after the launch of the industry, SaaS platforms have become bloated, and the products have become too hard to use. By catering almost exclusively to the needs of very large enterprises, the current leaders have failed to meet the broader needs of SMBs and medium-sized enterprises. With over 150,000 organizations already using its platform worldwide, Freshworks is well-positioned to lead this next wave of SaaS companies to bring the power of customer engagement to the 'Global 10 Million' rather than just the Global 2000."

Thompson's appointment comes less than two months after Freshworks secured a $100 million investment led by Accel and Sequoia.

"This is an extraordinarily exciting time for everybody on the Freshworks team," said Girish Mathrubootham, Freshworks CEO. "David is a true visionary, strategic thinker and leader with energy and competitive fire. He has a proven history in SaaS marketing and has created collaborative working environments that bring out the best in every employee. We're already seeing impressive results with our new advertising campaign and look forward to reinvigorating our marketing strategy with David at the helm."

The brand advertising campaign, launched in August and called "Hit Refresh," features a colorful cast of animated SaaS office workers revolting against their employers' current SaaS solutions - and demanding they be replaced with refreshingly simple customer engagement software from Freshworks. The advertising campaign has been rolled out on billboards, radio, online banner and online video advertisements.

"Freshworks was built to accomplish serious work, but at its core, it's remarkably easy to use. The products offered by Freshworks' chief competitors were built from the top down - with management essentially forcing clunky, difficult solutions on their employees," said Paul Charney, founder and CEO at Funworks, the creative agency working with Freshworks on the campaign. "Freshworks users actually love using their products. They're happy employees, which means Freshworks customers are happy customers. Our campaign is based on those ideas."

In the coming weeks, Freshworks will launch a separate ambitious branding effort that builds upon the themes of the "Hit Refresh" campaign.

About Freshworks

Freshworks provides organizations of all sizes with SaaS solutions that make it easy for customer support, sales and marketing professionals to communicate effectively with customers for better service and collaborate with team members to resolve customer issues. The company's products include Freshdesk, Freshservice, Freshsales, Freshcaller, Freshteam, Freshchat and Freshmarketer. Founded in October 2010, Freshworks Inc., is backed by Accel, Tiger Global Management, CapitalG and Sequoia Capital India. Freshworks' headquarters are located in San Bruno, Calif., with global offices in India, UK, Australia and Germany. The company's cloud-based suite is widely used by over 150,000 businesses around the world including the NHS, Honda, Rightmove, Hugo Boss, Citizens Advice, Toshiba and Cisco.

Media Contact

Victor White

Method Communications for Freshworks

victor@methodcommunications.com

415-891-4907

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Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - September 12, 2018) - KWG Resources Inc. (CSE: KWG) (FSE: KW61) ("KWG" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the results of the annual and special meeting of shareholders (the "Meeting") held September 11, 2018. Shareholders holding an aggregate of 410,411,070 votes (40.32% of the outstanding votes) were present or represented by proxy at the Meeting.

The shareholders voted in favour of four of the items tabled at the Meeting, namely: (i) the re-appointment of UHY McGovern Hurley LLP as auditors of the Company, which was approved by 98.58% of the votes cast by shareholders present in person or represented by proxy at the Meeting, (ii) setting the number of directors (between the minimum and maximum prescribed by the Company's articles) at five (5), which was approved by 89.30% of the votes cast by shareholders present in person or represented by proxy at the Meeting; (iii) the amendment to the Company's stock option plan, which was passed by 55.39% of the votes cast by shareholders present in person or represented by proxy at the Meeting; and (iv) the election of the five nominees listed in the management information circular dated August 7, 2018 as directors of the Company for the ensuing year or until their successors are elected or appointed.

The shareholders adjourned the meeting to allow the solicitation of additional votes to be received with respect to the fifth item tabled at the Meeting, namely a special resolution to create a new class of shares issuable in series and to be designated as "preference shares". While the proposed fifth resolution would have received the approval of a majority of the votes which could have been cast by shareholders present in person or represented by proxy, an approval of at least two-thirds of the votes cast was necessary in order for the resolution to be passed. Accordingly, the Meeting was adjourned to reconvene at 199 Bay Street, Suite 2200, Toronto, Ontario, at 11:00 p.m. (Toronto time) on Friday, October 12, 2018, or such earlier date and time as may be announced by news release at the direction of the Chief Executive Officer.

About KWG:

KWG is the Operator of the Black Horse Joint Venture ("JV") after acquiring a vested 50% interest through Bold Ventures Inc ("Bold") from Fancamp Exploration Ltd ("Fancamp"). KWG funds all JV exploration expenditures and Bold is carried for a 20% interest in KWG's interest. KWG has a 30% interest in the Big Daddy Joint Venture of which Noront Resources Inc is the operator.

KWG also owns 100% of Canada Chrome Corporation which has staked claims and conducted a surveying and soil testing program, originally for the engineering and construction of a railroad to the Ring of Fire from Aroland, Ontario.

KWG subsequently acquired intellectual property interests, including a method for the direct reduction of chromite to metalized iron and chrome using natural gas and an accelerant. KWG subsidiary, Muketi Metallurgical LP, is prosecuting two chromite-refining patent applications in Canada, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, and USA. The national phase filings are under review in each of those jurisdictions, save that Canada, South Africa and Kazakhstan have now each issued a Patent for the direct reduction method.

For further information, please contact:

Bruce Hodgman, Vice-President: 416-642-3575 ~ info@kwgresources.com

Forward-Looking Statements: Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made as of the date of this document and KWG disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable securities legislation. Although management believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy any securities that may be described herein and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
65 Georgian citizens have been deported from Germany. According to German media, the Georgian citizens were seeking asylum in Saxony, a landlocked federal state of Germany, but their applications had been rejected, 1tv.ge reports.

This is the first case when Georgian citizens were deported by a charter flight. The German media reports that 510 Georgian citizens were asked to leave Georgias territory at the end of July of 2018. 214 Georgian citizens were deported from Germany in 2017.
Anaplan's Connected Planning capabilities along with Wipro's strong consulting and execution expertise will simplify and automate core enterprise functions for clients

SAN FRANCISCO and BANGALORE, India, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT, BSE: 507685, NSE: WIPRO), a leading global information technology, consulting and business process services company, and Anaplan, a pioneer in Connected Planning, today announced a partnership to deliver cloud-based Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) solutions that will simplify and automate core enterprise functions for clients, across industry sectors.

As part of this alliance, Wipro will leverage its strong consulting and execution expertise to deploy Anaplan's Connected Planning platform across customers' business functions.

Organizations, across industry sectors, are under pressure to upgrade their legacy EPM solutions to cloud-based solutions for faster decision-making to fuel business growth. However, the migration of enterprise applications from multiple legacy systems to cloud is cumbersome, and a resource and cost intensive process, if done manually or with several extract, transform and load (ETL) products.

Using the Wipro Enterprise Cloud Accelerator (ECA), a one-click transformation solution, customers will be able to efficiently migrate their business applications from their existing on-premise solutions to the cloud-based Anaplan Connected Planning platform.

Wipro in collaboration with Anaplan recently implemented the cloud-based, in-memory Anaplan Connected Planning solution for a leading European multinational energy management corporation. Leveraging this solution, the client achieved significant productivity gains and better utilization of their field-force through improved integration of data across different functions of their organization. The solution also helped them identify emerging business opportunities faster and thereby, strategize their investments and resource allocation more effectively.

"At Wipro, we harness leading-edge technologies to help accelerate our clients' digital journey," said Pallab Kumar Deb, Vice President and Global Head, Analytics, Wipro Limited. "Leveraging Anaplan's flexible, scalable, and collaborative Connected Planning platform, we have helped our clients make informed decisions, and develop faster and more effective business planning processes. We look forward to building on our partnership with Anaplan to help our customers meet their enterprise planning objectives."

"Companies make better business decisions when they connect data, people, and plans across the company," said Steven Birdsall, Chief Revenue Officer, Anaplan. "As business process experts, Wipro understands the digital transformation process and together, we see immense opportunity to transform how closer connections between finance and operations can drive faster, more insightful decision making and concrete business impact for our customers."

About Anaplan

Anaplan is pioneering the category of Connected Planning. Our platform, powered by our proprietary Hyperblock technology, purpose-built for Connected Planning, enables dynamic, collaborative, and intelligent planning. Large global enterprises use our solution to connect people, data, and plans to enable real-time planning and decision-making in rapidly changing business environments to give our customers a competitive advantage. Based in San Francisco, we are a privately-held growth company with 18 offices globally, 175 partners, and more than 900 customers worldwide. To learn more, visit anaplan.com.

About Wipro Limited

Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT, BSE: 507685, NSE: WIPRO) is a leading global information technology, consulting and business process services company. We harness the power of cognitive computing, hyper-automation, robotics, cloud, analytics and emerging technologies to help our clients adapt to the digital world and make them successful. A company recognized globally for its comprehensive portfolio of services, strong commitment to sustainability and good corporate citizenship, we have over 160,000 dedicated employees serving clients across six continents. Together, we discover ideas and connect the dots to build a better and a bold new future.

Forward-looking and Cautionary Statements

Certain statements in this release concerning our future growth prospects are forward-looking statements, which involve a number of risks, and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties relating to these statements include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties regarding fluctuations in our earnings, revenue and profits, our ability to generate and manage growth, intense competition in IT services, our ability to maintain our cost advantage, wage increases in India, our ability to attract and retain highly skilled professionals, time and cost overruns on fixed-price, fixed-time frame contracts, client concentration, restrictions on immigration, our ability to manage our international operations, reduced demand for technology in our key focus areas, disruptions in telecommunication networks, our ability to successfully complete and integrate potential acquisitions, liability for damages on our service contracts, the success of the companies in which we make strategic investments, withdrawal of fiscal governmental incentives, political instability, war, legal restrictions on raising capital or acquiring companies outside India, unauthorized use of our intellectual property, and general economic conditions affecting our business and industry. Additional risks that could affect our future operating results are more fully described in our filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. These filings are available at www.sec.gov. We may, from time to time, make additional written and oral forward-looking statements, including statements contained in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and our reports to shareholders. We do not undertake to update any forward-looking statement that may be made from time to time by us or on our behalf.

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Washington, D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - September 12, 2018) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a New Jersey-based broker with misusing his access to customers' brokerage accounts to enrich himself and family members at the expense of his customers, many of whom had entrusted him with their retirement accounts. The SEC uncovered the alleged fraud with data analysis used to detect suspicious trading patterns.

The SEC filed fraud charges in federal district court against Michael A. Bressman of Montville, New Jersey, alleging that he misused his access to an omnibus or "allocation" account to obtain at least $700,000 in illicit trading profits over a six-year period ending in February. The SEC's complaint alleges that Bressman placed trades using the allocation account and cherry-picked profitable trades, which he then transferred to his own account and the account of two family members, while placing unprofitable trades in other customers' accounts.

In a parallel action, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts today announced criminal charges against Bressman.

"SEC data analysis played an important role in identifying the alleged securities law violations," said Joseph G. Sansone, Chief of the SEC Enforcement Division's Market Abuse Unit. "We will continue to develop and use data analytics to root out cherry-picking and other frauds."

The SEC's complaint, filed in federal court in Massachusetts, charges Bressman with violating antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws and a related SEC antifraud rule. The SEC is seeking return of allegedly ill-gotten gains, plus interest, penalties and a permanent injunction.

The SEC's investigation was conducted by Vanessa De Simone and Charles Riely of the Market Abuse Unit in the New York Regional Office with assistance from Jonathan Hershaff and Mark Kaplan in the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis and Hugh Beck in the Market Abuse Unit. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts and the Boston field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
In  thousand H1 2018 H1 2017 (*) Change Revenue 197,346 169,012 +16.8% Recurring operating income 17,457 14,003 +24.7% As a % of revenue 8.8% 8.3% Other operating income and expenses (1,428) 420 Operating income 16,029 14,423 +11.1% Financial income (155) 115 Tax 4,847 4,402 Net income from consolidated companies 11,027 10,136 +8.8% As a % of revenue 5.6% 6.0% Group net income 11,027 10,136

(*) Restated for IFRS 15

Aubay's Board of Directors which met on September 12, 2018 under Chairman Christian Aubert has approved the consolidated financial statements for the first six months of 2018. The Group has delivered another half-year of growth and profitability and substantially outperformed its benchmark market.

Aubay Group posted revenues of 197.3 million for the first half of 2018, up 8.9% like-for-like on the previous financial year.

Recurring operating margin of 8.8% and strong increase in recurring operating income

Aubay's productivity rate also improved over the first six months of 2018, increasing to 93.1% from 92.8% for the first half of 2017.

The Group's recurring operating margin came in at the higher end of the Group's target range, increasing to 8.8% after 8.3% in 2017, and amounting to 9.2% for France and 8.4% worldwide.

Operating income shot up 24.7% to 17.5 million, which is higher than the increase in revenue.

Half-yearly net income of 11.0 million

After extraordinary expenses which were primarily tied to the cost of free shares and other non-recurring expenses, Group net income for the period increased 8.8% to 11.0 million.

Net debt of 10.9 million

Group cash flow increased to 17.6 million, up 23% on the 14.3 million recorded for the same period in 2017.

Cash flow linked to operations amounted to 1.5 million as against 5.7 million the year before. The 10.6 million reduction in Aubay's working capital is principally due to an unfavorable seasonal effect (as was the case in 2016 when it fell 12.0 million), the consolidation of the Group's acquisition in Italy and the improvement in organic growth. The second half of the year is expected to be much more upbeat and the Group can look forward to a substantial improvement in its cash position at the end of the year.

Over the period, Aubay acquired the remaining capital (12.5%) of its subsidiary Cast Info, taking its total stake to 100%. All subsidiaries are now wholly-owned by the Group.

Shareholder dividends paid amounted to 3.2 million, and net debt amounted to 10.9 million at June 30, 2018

Outlook for 2018: upward revision of organic growth and revenue targets

Aubay's business indicators for the third quarter are in line with the first half of the year, with activity riding a high of strong demand from Aubay's main clients.

The Group has increased its organic growth target for 2018 to between 7% and 9% from the initially announced 5% and 7%, taking its target revenue to 400 million.

Its recurring operating margin for the year is expected to be between 9.5% and 10.5% as previously announced.

Interim dividend of 0.27

In light of the Group's excellent half-yearly results and strong prospects, Aubay's Board of Directors has approved the payment on November 12 of an interim dividend of 0.27 per share for 2018. As a reminder, the interim dividend paid in November was 0.23 per share.

Glossary

Organic growth in revenues: this refers to growth calculated for a constant scope of activity for a given period, excluding revenues from companies that were acquired or sold during the period. As Aubay conducts most of its business in the euro zone, any impact from changes in exchange rates is minimal.

Recurring operating income: this indicator corresponds to operating income before the cost of free shares and other income and expenses that are unusual, significant or infrequent and that are booked separately in order to facilitate understanding of an entity's recurring operating performance.

Recurring operating margin: this indicator, which is expressed as a percentage, is the ratio of recurring operating income to revenue.

Net debt or net cash: this indicator represents the difference between an entity's cash and financial debt. If the result is negative, it is referred to as net debt. If it is positive, it is referred to as net cash.

About AUBAY Group

Aubay is a digital services company working alongside some of the biggest names in the Banking, Finance, Insurance, Manufacturing, Energy, Transport and Telecoms sectors. At June 30, 2018, the Group had 5,913 employees across 7 countries (France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy, Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom). It generated revenues of 353.6 million in 2017.

NYSE Euronext, Compartiment C - ISIN FR0000063737-AUB - Reuters AUBT.PA - Bloomberg AUB:FP

Contacts

Alexandra Prisa - Actus Finance - Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 67 35 79 - Email: aprisa@actus.fr

Nadia Morales - Communication Aubay - Tel. 01 46 10 68 60 - Email: nmorales@aubay.com

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ZUG, SWITZERLAND / ACCESSWIRE / September 12, 2018 / The ASQ Protocol - part of the ASKfm network - has taken its token into the troposphere with its most recent airdrop for users and the wider crypto community. The campaign which is set to begin September 14, 2018, will last until September 30, 2018. Unlike most airdrops which are digital, however, ASQ has taken its strategy to new heights.

The company's airdrop is quite literal, as ASQ has launched a rocket into the skies above Scotland loaded with a Ledger Nano S that was dropped somewhere in the countryside. The launch vehicle, operated by Edinburgh-based space technology firm Skyrora, reached Mach 1.45 and a maximum altitude of over 6 kilometers before unloading its precious cargo into the world. The launch was part of Skyrora's bid to build a commercial rocket launch site in the area.

The ledger has landed somewhere in Scotland, and the company will provide a geolocation for users to find and recover the wallet. Seekers have time until September 30th to uncover the ledger, and whoever reaches it first will receive $100,000 worth of ASQ tokens once they are released to the public. To learn more about the rocket's launch and the ledger's geolocation, the company encourages users to visit their website and follow further announcements.

To participate, users must meet the following conditions:

Join the company's whitelist

Join ASQ's Telegram chat

Share the company's pinned message found on their official Facebook page

Fill in the form in the telegram bot @airdropbot

About ASQ Protocol

The ASQ Protocol is designed to empower content creators to monetize their passion. The project will allow creators to produce, store, share, and monetize their content in a fair and transparent manner while removing intermediaries from the equation. ASQ Protocol aims to provide the foundation for a new content economy where creators can exercise complete control over their content while gaining the tools to reach a broader audience. More importantly, they will have the ability to earn money for their skills without a third party and be compensated equitably for their efforts.

Led by CEO Max Tsaryk, ASQ Protocol relies on a strong advisory team that includes a broad range of backgrounds and expertise. With advisors in Asia, the Middle East, the United States, and more, the company's internal advisory board includes members from several collaborating sister projects. This allows for easy integration into a variety of sectors from gaming to social media, dating, and more.

The company is launching a token sale with a goal of raising $21 million. It will officially kick off its airdrop rocket campaign on September 14, 2018.

Contact:

pr@ask.fm

+37125628875

Maxim Tsaryk

SOURCE: ASQ Protocol

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/511826/ASQ-Protocol-and-Skyrora-Launch-100000-Into-the-Troposphere
Regulatory News:

Korian (Paris:KORI):

Acceleration of revenue growth to 6.0%, driven by:

The first benefits of the plan initiated in France in 2017 to boost growth momentum

The continuation of an active Buy and Build strategy in the four countries, which contributed to a network increase of over 1,100 beds in the first half and to the offer diversification

Operating margin (EBITDA) up 40 basis points notably due to:

The strong operational performance in the four countries (Group EBITDAR margin stable at 26%)

The positive contribution of the "asset smart" real estate strategy implemented over the past year

Current net profit (Group share) up 26.3%

A favourable financial position with a stable debt ratio compared to its level at end-December 2017 (3.2x)

Leadership strengthened in Belgium: exclusive negotiations to acquire an additional portfolio of c. 1,800 beds from Senior Assist

Upward revision of 2018 annual objectives: revenue growth close to 6% and stable operating margin (EBITDA)

Sophie Boissard, Chief Executive Officer of the Korian Group, made the following comments: "Thanks to the exemplary mobilisation of its teams in its four countries, Korian is beginning to reap the benefits of the fundamental actions undertaken over the past two years pursuant to the Korian 2020 plan. Korian is now in an excellent position to support the transformations of the European senior care market and to take full advantage of the dynamics of the four markets in which it operates in a leading position. The progress made in the first half of the year allows us to raise our revenue growth and margin objectives for 2018."

In millions H1 17 H1 18 Change Revenue 1,542 1,634 6.0% EBITDAR 401 424 5.8% as a of revenue 26.0% 26.0% EBITDA 209 228 9.2% as a of revenue 13.5% 13.9% Net profit, Group share 38 55 43.3% Net current profit, Group share 41 52 26.3%

Highlights

Continued active development strategy in the four countries

In the first half, the Group continued its active development strategy by opening or acquiring over 1,100 units over the period. The network expansion was balanced between organic development and selective acquisitions. This local development strategy enables the Group to increase the density of its network and augment its specialised expertise in order to propose complete care pathways in each country of operations. In January 2018, Korian acquired a 70% interest in Ages Vie, a young company in the Franche-Comte region, which has developed an innovative shared housing concept for seniors with decreasing independence. Korian also strengthened its presence in the hospital home care segment with the acquisition of CliniDom, which specialises in oncology. In Italy, the Group acquired a majority interest in San Giuseppe Hospital, an acute care and rehabilitation platform specialising in orthopaedics, thereby consolidating its presence in Tuscany area, where it now has over eight nursing home and post-acute care facilities that specialise in geriatric care. Furthermore, the Group accelerated its development in the home care sector in Germany in early July by finalising the acquisition of a first intensive care network focusing on highly dependent persons.

Plan to boost growth momentum in France

In France, Korian benefited from the initial impacts of the growth acceleration plan launched in early 2017. This plan includes an ambitious programme to develop and modernise the network, in order to make its offers more attractive, to relocate its facilities, particularly its healthcare facilities, closer to its main referring practitioners, and to develop additional capacity, especially in individual rooms and ambulatory care. 3 new facilities were opened in the first half pursuant to the programme. In the Healthcare division, a fourth clinic relocation project was successfully completed in Sainte Foy les Lyons, and 10 others will be carried out between 2019 and 2021. The Group also continued to develop its outpatient care activity by commissioning three new units in existing facilities. In the Senior division, 2 new facilities were delivered in the departments of Yvelines and Charente (expansion of an existing facility). The "Boost" plan, which aims to renovate all or part of over 50 facilities (rooms and common areas) by 2020, began to be deployed across the network, with a first set of 7 facilities delivered and 20 others in progress.

Ramp-up of the "asset smart" real estate strategy

The "asset smart" real estate strategy implemented since 2017 aims to actively manage the asset base, particularly during the development phase, selectively increase the rate of asset ownership and reduce the rental expenses through lease renegotiation.

The development partnership signed in September 2017 with Icade is rapidly expanding with seven projects initiated in France out of a total of 15 projects targeted. The first deliveries are scheduled as from 2019. Discussions are underway with other partners to increase the Group's capabilities in the expansion and reconfiguration of its network in its four countries, based on a pipeline of 50 real estate projects to be completed by 2020. Moreover, the rent renegotiation plan, initiated on a first portfolio of 150 leases, is advancing rapidly. 90 leases have been renegotiated, mainly in France and Germany, generating over 5 million in rent savings in 2019, two years ahead of the initial schedule set in the Korian 2020 plan.

Accelerating digital transformation

Korian sets up an internal digital agency called "Korian Solutions" to accelerate the digital transformation of its facilities, develop new services, in particular in the home care and outpatient sectors, and contribute to improving the quality of life of its customers, their families and its employees. After the launch in France in 2017 of the Korian Generations social network, developed with Famileo, new partnerships were entered into in the first half of the year, firstly with medGo to develop a platform for managing replacements for caregivers and accommodation service staff in each of its facilities, and secondly with Doctolib, which is developing a solution adapted to ambulatory care services. In addition, Korian announces the launch of 2 new development partnerships with Wellcoop and Patientys (a subsidiary of the Webhelp Group) to deploy innovative solutions along care path and contribute to support elderly at home. Finally, in November 2018, the Group will open a pilot long-term care nursing home in the Paris area, which will be the Group's first fully connected facility. The intent is to deploy these solutions across portfolio.

First-half 2018 results

Consolidated revenue for the first half of 2018 totalled 1,634 million, up 6.0% compared to the previous year. This performance reflects a clear acceleration in growth compared to the previous year (+4.9% in the first half of 2017). It is due to a more dynamic activity in France, resulting from the initial effects of the action plan started in 2017, and the pursuit of an active acquisition strategy.

In France, revenue was up 3.6%, driven primarily by organic growth of 2.5% and the selective acquisitions completed in 2017 and 2018.

Internationally, revenue growth continued at a sustained pace (8.4%), benefiting from recent acquisitions in Belgium and Italy. Organic growth stood at 3.2%.

The Group's EBITDAR1 (EBITDA before rent) totalled 424 million, up 5.8% compared to the first half of 2017. The margin rate was stable at 26% thanks to optimised operational management in all countries.

In France, rigorous management of costs, in particular the costs related to the ramp-up of restructured sites, made it possible to limit the unfavourable impact of the reduction in the CICE tax credit and lower rates in the post-acute care clinic sector. As a result, the margin fell by only 20 basis points.

In Germany, the margin increased by 10 basis points due to the initial effects of the Success 2020 plan. Central cost reduction is well underway, and the actions undertaken to optimise the management of schedules, combined with the implementation of a more active recruitment policy, have begun to reduce the use of temporary workers. The benefit of these various actions should be more broadly felt in the second half.

Belgium posted a margin increase of 50 basis points, reflecting the benefits of the active development strategy pursued in 2017 (economies of scale, ramp-up of sites that are not yet mature or reconfigured sites).

The margin in Italy increased by 10 basis points due to optimised cost management on a mature portfolio.

EBITDAR by country

In millions H1 17 H1 18 Change France 215 222 2.9% as a of revenue 27.5% 27.3% International 185 203 9.2% as a of revenue 24.5% 24.7% Germany 106 110 3.6% as a of revenue 24.4% 24.5% Belgium 43 52 21.6% as a of revenue 24.9% 25.4% Italy 37 41 11.2% as a of revenue 24.2% 24.3% Group 401 424 5.8% as a of revenue 26.0% 26.0%

EBITDA totalled 228 million, up 9.2% compared to the first half of 2017. The margin rate was 13.9%, up 40 basis points compared to its level in the first half of 2017. Half of the increase is due to the ramp-up of the "asset smart" real estate policy launched in 2017 while the other half corresponds to the favourable impact on real estate expenses of the recent acquisitions in Belgium and France (in accordance with the IAS 17 accounting rule).

The current operating profit was 143 million, or 8.8% of annual revenue (compared to 8.4% in the first half of 2017).

Other operating income and expenses include reorganisation costs, which were lower than in the previous year and were more than offset by reversals of provisions in Germany.

With net financial expense of 58 million and income tax expense of 33 million, net profit Group share totalled 55 million, an increase of 43.3% compared to the first half of 2017. Net current profit (Group share)2 was up 26.3%.

Financial situation

At 30 June 2017, net debt totalled 2,486 million, up 146 million from the level at 31 December 2017.

This increase, which is mainly due to real estate debt, reflects the increase in the percentage of real estate assets owned, in line with the Group's strategy, and the consolidation of recent acquisitions in Belgium and France (debt on rental commitments in accordance with IAS 17).

Net financial debt, excluding real estate debt, amounted to 1,228 million, compared with 1,209 million at 31 December 2017.

The restated debt ratio3 was stable compared to its level at 31 December 2017, at 3.2x, and well below the maximum authorised of 4.75x at 30 June and 4.5x at 31 December.

At 30 June 2018, the Group had unused confirmed bank facilities of 650 million, and available cash of 459 million.

Leadership strengthened in Belgium

The Group entered into exclusive discussions with Senior Assist to acquire an additional portfolio of 21 facilities representing an additional capacity of about 1,800 beds. This acquisition allows Senior Living Group to strengthen its leadership position on the Belgian market and, in particular, to continue expanding its national coverage, the majority of the acquired facilities being located in Wallonia where the Group is less present yet. This acquisition will contribute by about 65m to the Group's revenues on a full year basis.

Conclusion and outlook

In the first half, the Group delivered a solid performance, reflecting the ramp-up of the various actions initiated over the past two years pursuant to the Korian 2020 plan.

In the second half, Korian will continue the various restructuring and development actions launched on its network and open five additional new facilities ("greenfields"). The Group will also pursue an active strategy of selective acquisitions in order to consolidate its positions in its various business segments and to take full advantage of the strong growth potential in the four countries in which it operates.

The Group is now targeting revenue growth approaching 6% for the full year 2018 and expects a stable EBITDA margin over the fiscal year based on the rigorous cost discipline achieved in the first half of the year and the expected benefits of the "asset smart" real estate policy.

The Group has substantial assets to reinforce its position as the European leader in care and support services for seniors, and will continue to deploy its Korian 2020 strategic roadmap, which focuses on:

strengthening the Group's growth potential via the expansion of the portfolio, the modernisation and optimisation of the network and a broader service offer;

a more dynamic management of the real estate portfolio to create long term value;

operational excellence;

an active staff training and development policy, which supports the quality of care; and

accelerating innovation in digital technology.

Presentation of first half results

The results for the first half of the year will be presented live at 9 a.m. (Paris time) on Thursday 13 September, in the Investors section of Korian's website at www.korian.com. The presentation document will be available before the presentation.

A deferred version will be available online during the day.

You can also follow the presentation live by telephone:

In French: +33 (0)1 70 71 01 59 Code: 86149629#

In English: +33 (0)1 72 72 74 03 Code: 73263279#

Next event: 24 October 2018 after the close of trading

3rd quarter revenue

ABOUT KORIAN

Korian, the expert in providing care and support services for seniors, with nearly 780 facilities, operates Europe's largest network of long-term care nursing homes, specialised clinics, assisted-living facilities, and home care and hospital home care services. The Korian group's accommodation capacity totals over 76,000 beds in four countries (France, Germany, Belgium, and Italy) and it employs nearly 50,000 people.

For more information, please visit the website: www.korian.com

Korian has been listed on Euronext Paris Section A since November 2006 and is included in the following indices: SBF 120, CAC Health Care, CAC Mid 60, CAC Mid Small and MSCI Global Small Cap

Euronext Ticker: KORI ISIN: FR0010386334 Reuters: KORI.PA Bloomberg: KORI.FP

APPENDICES

The condensed consolidated financial statements for H1 2018 were approved by the Board of Directors on 12 September 2018 and were reviewed by the statutory auditors.

CONSOLIDATED REVENUE4

In millions 1st half Reported Organic 2017 2018 change change5 France 784 813 3.6% 2.5% as a of revenue 50.9% 49.7% International 758 821 8.4% 3.2% as a of revenue 49.1% 50.3% Germany 435 450 3.4% 3.7% Belgium 171 204 19.3% 4.0% Italy 152 167 10.6% 0.8% Group Total 1,542 1,634 6.0% 2.9%

CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT

In millions H1 17 H1 18 Change Revenue 1,542 1,634 6.0% Personnel expenses -850 -901 6.0% Other purchases, external costs and taxes -291 -308 6.0% EBITDAR 401 424 5.8% As a of revenue 26.0% 26.0% External rents -192 -196 2.2% EBITDA 209 228 9.2% As a of revenue 13.5% 13.9% 40 bp Depreciation/amortisation impairment -79 -84 7.3% Income from current operations 130 143 10.3% As a of revenue 8.4% 8.8% 40 bp Other operating income expenses -4 4 -192.8% Operating income 126 148 17.6% Net financial income -56 -58 3.9% Income tax -30 -33 13.1% Minority interests -2 -1 -40.8% Net profit, Group share 38 55 43.3% Current net profit, Group share6 41 52 26.3%

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET

In million 31.12.2017 30.06.2018 Non-current assets 6,185 6,350 Intangible assets 3,978 4,069 of which Goodwill 2,219 2,306 of which Other intangible assets 1,760 1,763 Property, plant and equipment 1,944 2,038 Financial assets 54 34 Deferred tax assets 209 208 Current assets 929 929 Inventories 10 14 Trade receivables and related accounts 191 218 Other receivables current assets 212 235 Financial instruments assets 5 4 Cash and cash equivalents 511 459 Assets held for sale 0 0 Total assets 7,115 7,278 Shareholders' equity (Group share) 2,462 2,469 Share capital 405 405 Premiums 860 860 Reserves and consolidated results 1,197 1,204 Minority interests 12 11 Total shareholder's equity 2,475 2,480 Non-current liabilities 3,355 3,413 Provisions for retirement benefits 70 73 Deferred taxes 633 630 Other provisions 154 136 Borrowings and financial liabilities 2,498 2,551 Other non-current liabilities 1 23 Current liabilities 1,285 1,386 Provisions for less than one year 12 11 Trade payables and related accounts 267 262 Other payables and accruals 640 704 Borrowings less than one year overdrafts 353 394 Financial instruments liabilities 18 14 Liabilities held for sale 0 0 Total liabilities 7,115 7,278 Net financial debt 2,340 2,486

CHANGE IN NET DEBT

In million H1 2017 H1 2018 Cash flow before cost of financial debt 162 171 Change in working capital -30 -36 Change in income tax 12 -12 Maintenance capital expenditure -42 -40 Financial expense -39 -43 Operating free cash flow 63 40 Development capital expenditure -5 -21 Bolt-on acquisitions (net of disposals) -57 -57 Free cash flow 2 -38 Dividends paid -5 Real estate investments -35 -24 Capital increase 60 Impact of changes in the consolidation scope and other changes on net debt -29 -79 Change in net debt -2 -146 Opening net debt 2,315 2,340 Closing net debt 2,317 2,486

1 EBITDAR is the interim management indicator selected by the Korian Group to monitor the performance of its facilities. EBITDAR represents earnings from operations (EBITDA) before rental expense.

2 Net current income: net income (Group share) (other operating income and expenses gain/(loss) on acquisitions and disposals of consolidated investments) (1 standard corporate income tax rate of 34%)

3 Restated debt ratio: (net debt real estate debt)/adjusted EBITDA (6.5% real estate debt).

4 Revenue and other income

5 Organic revenue growth includes: a) year-on-year change in revenue (year "N" vs. year "N-1") of existing facilities; b) revenue generated in year "N" by facilities created in year "N" or year "N-1"; c) the change in revenue (year "N" vs. year "N-1") of facilities that were restructured or expanded in year "N" or year "N-1"; and d) the change in revenue, in year "N" compared to the equivalent period in year "N-1", of facilities recently acquired.

6 Net current income: net income (Group share) (other operating income and expenses gain/(loss) on acquisitions and disposals of consolidated investments) (1 standard corporate income tax rate of 34%)

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005892/en/

Contacts:

Korian

INVESTOR RELATIONS

Nadine Coulm

VP Investor Relations Financing

nadine.coulm@korian.com

Tel.: +33 (0)1 55 37 53 55

or

PRESS CONTACT

Marjorie Castoriadis

Medias manager

marjorie.castoriadis@korian.fr

T +33 (0)7 63 59 88 81
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / September 12, 2018 / FIORE GOLD LTD. (TSX-V: F) (OTCQB: FIOGF) ("Fiore" or the "Company") wishes to correct an error in its press release of September 12, 2018 entitled "Fiore Gold Provides Baseline Mineral Resource Estimate For Its Gold Rock Project In Nevada". While the information regarding the new Gold Rock resource estimate is fully correct, two tables under the heading 'Fiore's Reserve and Resource Inventory' showed short tons rather than metric tonnes for the reserve and resource figures for Fiore's Pan Mine.

The corrected tables are provided below.

Fiore's Reserve and Resource Inventory

With the newly updated Gold Rock mineral resource estimate, Fiore's Reserve and Resource Inventory now consists of:

Mineral Reserves



Project Tonnes Gold Grade

(g/t) Gold Grade

(oz/st) Contained Gold

(oz) Pan - Proven 6,740,000 0.62 0.018 137,000 Pan - Probable 12,264,000 0.45 0.013 182,000 Total Proven + Probable 19,004,000 0.51 0.015 318,000

*Reserves at Pan are as at March 16, 2017 and have not been adjusted for mining depletion

*Numbers in the table have been rounded to reflect the accuracy of the estimate and may not sum due to rounding.

Mineral Resources



Project Tonnes Gold Grade

(g/t) Gold Grade

(oz/st) Contained Gold

(oz) Measured & Indicated Pan - Measured 8,184,000 0.62 0.018 159,000 Pan - Indicated 19,091,000 0.45 0.013 275,000 Gold Rock - Indicated 9,006,900 0.82 0.024 238,700 Total Measured + Indicated 36,281,900 0.58 0.017 672,700 Inferred Pan 5,144,000 0.45 0.013 72,000 Gold Rock 7,787,500 0.72 0.021 180,900 Total Inferred 12,931,500 0.61 0.018 252,900

*Resources at Pan are as at February 10, 2017, are inclusive of Pan Mineral Reserves, and have not been adjusted for mining depletion.

*Numbers in the table have been rounded to reflect the accuracy of the estimate and may not sum due to rounding.

*Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves. Mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.

Qualified Persons and Technical Reports

A technical report, which will include the new Gold Rock resource estimate, will be posted on the Company's website at www.fioregold.com and filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com within 45 days.

Michael B. Dufresne, M.Sc., P.Geol., P.Geo., a Principal in APEX Geoscience Ltd. and a 'Qualified Person' for the purpose of National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects of the Canadian securities administrators ("NI 43-101") has approved the disclosure of, and is the qualified person responsible for, the scientific and technical information regarding the Gold Rock project in this news release inclusive of the resource estimate information. He has verified the data disclosed.

Other scientific and technical information referred herein has been extracted from and is hereby qualified by reference to the technical reports for our other projects. The technical reports referenced herein are as follows: (1) the report titled " NI 43-101 Updated Technical Report, Pan Gold Project, White Pine County, Nevada", with an effective date of June 30, 2017, which was prepared by J. B. Pennington, M.Sc., C.P.G., Kent Hartley, P.E., Justin Smith, P.E., RM-SME., Deepak Malhotra, RM-SME, Valerie Sawyer, RM-SME, and Brooke J. Miller, M.Sc., C.P.G.; and (2) the report titled "Midway Gold Corp.: Golden Eagle Project, Washington State, USA, Technical Report" with an effective date of August 4, 2009, which was prepared by Eric Chapman, B.Sc. (Geology), M.Sc. (Mining Geology), C.Geol.,Consultant, Snowden Mining Industry Consultants and Dr. Thom Seal, Ph.D., P.E., Principal and Chief Metallurgist, Differential Engineering Inc. Each of the persons named as having prepared the technical reports listed above is a "Qualified Person" under National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101").

Corporate Strategy

Our corporate strategy is to grow Fiore Gold into a 150,000 ounce per year gold producer. To achieve this, we intend to:

grow gold production at the Pan Mine from a planned 35-40,000 ounces in fiscal 2018

advance exploration and development of the nearby Gold Rock project

acquire additional production or near-production assets in Nevada and surrounding states

On behalf of FIORE GOLD LTD.

"Tim Warman"

Chief Executive Officer

Contact Us:

info@fioregold.com

1 (416) 639-1426

www.fioregold.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note on Forward Looking Statements

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" and "forward looking information" (as defined under applicable securities laws), based on management's best estimates, assumptions and current expectations. Such statements include but are not limited to, statements with respect to the expected timing of the Record of Decision and completion of the federal permitting process for the Gold Rock Mine project, milestones regarding the Gold Rock Mine project, future technical development of the Gold Rock Mine project, future drilling at the Gold Rock property, prospective geologic characteristics and trends of the Gold Rock property, expectations regarding drilling results and objectives, providing a new Gold Rock resource update, potential to grow resources, potential to convert inferred mineral resources, future metallurgical testing, developing a Preliminary Economic Assessment, all of the future planned development, construction and operations described in the FEIS for the Gold Rock Mine project, expectations to grow gold production at Pan for fiscal 2018 and 2019, goal to become a 150,000 ounce producer, goal to grow production at the Pan Mine, goal to acquire additional production or near production assets, and other statements, estimates or expectations. Often, but not always, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "expects", "expected", "budgeted", "targets", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", "scheduled", "estimates", "aims", "will", "believes", "projects" and similar expressions (including negative variations) which by their nature refer to future events. By their very nature, forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, some of which are beyond Fiore's control. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results. Forward looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made, as well as a number of assumptions made by, and information currently available to, the Company concerning, among other things, anticipated geological formations, potential mineralization, future plans for exploration and/or development, potential future production, ability to obtain permits for future operations, drilling exposure, and exploration budgets and timing of expenditures, all of which involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievement of Fiore to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to vary materially from results anticipated by such forward looking statements include, but not limited to, risks related to the Pan Mine performance, risks related to the company's limited operating history; risks related to international operations; risks related to general economic conditions, actual results of current or future exploration activities, unanticipated reclamation expenses; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; fluctuations in prices of metals including gold; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; increases in market prices of mining consumables; possible variations in ore reserves, grade or recovery rates; uncertainties involved in the interpretation of drilling results, test results and the estimation of gold resources and reserves; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; the possibility that capital and operating costs may be higher than currently estimated; the possibility of cost overruns or unanticipated expenses in the work programs; availability of financing; accidents, labour disputes, title disputes, claims and limitations on insurance coverage and other risks of the mining industry; delays in the completion of exploration, development or construction activities; the possibility that required permits may not be obtained on a timely manner or at all; changes in national and local government regulation of mining operations, tax rules and regulations, and political and economic developments in countries in which Fiore operates, and other factors identified in Fiore's filing with Canadian securities authorities under its profile at www.sedar.com respecting the risks affecting Fiore and its business. Although Fiore has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The forward-looking statements and forward-looking information are made as of the date hereof and are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Fiore disclaims any obligation to revise or update any such factors or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking statements or forward-looking information contained herein to reflect future results, events or developments, except as require by law. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and information.

SOURCE: Fiore Gold, Ltd.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/511827/Fiore-Gold-Corrects-Minor-Error-in-Todays-Gold-Rock-Resource-Estimate-Press-Release
The Highly-Anticipated Venue Becomes Playboy Club's North American Flagship Location

NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Merchants Hospitality and Playboy Enterprises announce today the opening of Playboy Club New York in midtown Manhattan, Playboy's North American flagship location.

Embodying the sophisticated life made famous by one of America's most iconic brands, Playboy Club New York celebrates all things provocative, playful, and exclusive. Located steps north of Hudson Yards, and designed by the globally renowned boutique design studio, Cenk Fikri, Playboy Club New York features four distinct environments that reveal exciting one-of-a-kind experiences as guests access the passages within. Unlike anything else in Manhattan, Playboy Club New York offers a luxuriant cocktail and culinary destination for after-work drinks, dinner, and late-night entertaining alike that caters to a new generation of guests who appreciate a refined culinary experience and highly curated and sophisticated nightlife.

"Our guest experience will set a new benchmark and resonate with our discerning members and guests," says the Playboy Club's Creative Director and legendary 'Master of Ceremonies,' Richie Notar, of Nobu fame. "From the moment our guests arrive, they will experience an unprecedented level of service, environment, food and exclusivity."

"Having the Playboy Club return to New York City, in partnership with Merchants Hospitality as best-in-class operators, is another great opportunity for people to experience the sophistication and playful side of our brand," said Ben Kohn, CEO of Playboy Enterprises. "The environment we create at Playboy Club New York, our other Playboy Clubs and events, along with our media content and global consumer products business continue to expand the world-wide touchpoints of our brand."

Guests arrive through an ornate entrance into the Playboy Gallery, passing walls lined with never-before-seen Playboy images before stepping into the Playboy Bar. Serving as the room's focal point, a large opulent oval bar is set around an array of spirits, and glows under a collection of artwork from the Playboy archives that spans more than 65 years. Lighting is low and moody, and black wooden panels with gold accents serve as the backdrop for the room. A gold, embroidered wall draws eyes towards an elaborate DJ booth, surrounded by multiple lounge tables furnished with plush sofas and velvet seating.

From there, guests pass a glass champagne display case before venturing further into the Club to discover the Playboy Lounge, inspired by the heritage of the world-renowned Playboy Mansion. Nothing here is minimal, with four distinct lounges, aptly named the Mansion Lounge, Grotto Lounge, Bunny Lounge and Royal Salute Lounge, that all harken back to the celebrated Mansion's quintessential design elements. Baroque ceilings, large leather couches and acclaimed Playboy artwork fills the room, enhanced by luscious textiles, bold color palates and whispering patterns throughout. Guests will find a curated collection of literature that pays homage to past Playboy magazine writers, as well as a custom built 600-gallon exotic aquarium boasting a hand-sculpted, bunny head reef at the tank's center. A one-of-a-kind masterpiece backgammon table has been installed into one of the Lounges for Playboy's monthly member tournaments.

At the center of the Playboy Club experience, the beloved Playboy Bunnies are dressed in their iconic costume and outfitted with accessories designed by Roberto Cavalli. Famed Playboy events previously held at the Playboy Mansion, such as Playboy's Midsummer Night's Dream, and other iconic Playboy Events will now take place at Playboy Club New York. Other special occasions planned for the club include Playboy's Masquerade Night as well as Oscar, Grammy and Super Bowl celebrations.

A limited number of privileged guests will be able to continue deeper into the Playboy Black Box, by following the bottom lit marble runway, into a vast space that will host the iconic Playboy-themed events. The state-of-art lighting and sound system amplifies the spirit of Black Box to an incomparable level optimal for unrivaled nightlife affairs perfect for private and corporate events.

Hidden to all, save those who know where to look, is the Rabbit Hole, a highly exclusive speakeasy lounge, accessible only to select VIP Playboy Club Members. A secret leather-tufted door slides open to a hidden walkway surrounded by alternating walls of pearl-covered gold and black beveled glass, leading to three subterranean levels that provide the ideal backdrop for the ultimate elite entertaining and imbibing. Throughout the three levels, guests will find multiple secluded tables to enjoy a night in the extravagant and playful world of Playboy, surrounded by a level of sophistication unseen anywhere.

"We are excited to enter the new era of the Playboy brand and introduce the new Playboy Club to New York City and the rest of the world," says Merchants Hospitality's Abraham Merchant. "We have created an electric and epic atmosphere at the Playboy Club. From the music to the luxurious interior, the design to the savory menu, it will be an experience our guests will never forget."

Playboy Club New York's epicurean offering was created by Nobu Veteran Richie Notar. Notar has developed a menu with "gastronomic attitude" for the Playboy Club with carefully curated dishes that use the absolute best ingredients possible and apply crafted skills to mirror the luxurious and exclusive nature of Playboy Club New York. From indulging in light lounge bites to a full course meal, guests are able to enjoy highlight dishes as Yellowfin Tuna with crispy rice, spicy mayo, roasted sesame, Spanish Turbot Meuniere with capers, brown butter and Wagyu Miyazaki Steak with toast, tomato jam, butter. The menu culminates with a series of tempting desserts including the Playboy Gold Bar with crispies, hazelnut, and cherries.

The Playboy Club also features a phenomenal sushi menu created by Tabitha Yeh, Playboy Club's Executive Chef. Yeh's Playboy House Roll filled with Toro, Salmon, Caviar, and Crispy Shallots wrapped in cucumber is just one of several creations she has put forth. Yeh is considered a new rising star in the Chef's world with recent openings in San Francisco and Shanghai.

Accompanying the culinary journey, Playboy Club New York's beverage program is led by seasoned Mixologist Fred Dex. Dex is one of only 236 Master Sommeliers in the World as well as one of the United States' leading wine, cocktail & beverage consultants and education experts. With a career that spans two decades, Dex has spearheaded the Mixology programs for BLT Restaurant Group, Tao Group, Motorino Pizzeria, Max Brenner Chocolate, The Grand Hyatt NYC, and many more. Dex's innovative, artful menu is highlighted by signature cocktails such as Careless Whisper, a take on the classic cosmopolitan with Grey Goose Vodka, Combier Pamplemousse, St. Germain, Cranberry and the Q, named after the debonair James Bond character, inspired by the classic martini, with Belvedere Single Estate Rye Vodka, Dolin Dry, Lillet, Sea Salt and Orange Bitters. The cocktail menu is accompanied by an impressive selection of high-end spirits, plus a prominent wine and champagne collection curated by Wine Director and Sommelier, Andrew Bell, one of the foremost Sommeliers in the country and Co-Founder and President of American Sommelier.

Playboy Club New York has also launched a premier, ultra-luxurious private membership program inclusive of customized and curated experiences, as well as granting the exclusive access and VIP treatment synonymous with the Playboy brand. The Playboy Club Membership is organized in membership tiers that include varied access to private areas of the club, invitations to members-only events, access to signature Playboy worldwide events, and much more. All members receive a personalized titanium membership card and modernized version of the iconic Playboy key.

Playboy Club New York is located at 512 West 42nd Street between Tenth and Eleventh Avenue in New York City. The club is open daily from 5:00 P.M. - 4:00 A.M. To learn more about Playboy Club New York, visit playboyclubnyc.com and follow on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @playboyclubnyc.

PRESS CONTACT:

Erin Brunner | Jocelyn Scanlon, LFB Media Group

646-455-0042 | PCNY@LFBMediaGroup.com

About Merchants Hospitality

Founded 31 years ago, Merchants Hospitality and its Principals have owned, operated, and developed some of the most luxurious destinations in the country and Caribbean. Properties have included Hotels, Residential Condominiums, Office Buildings and Restaurants including 485 Fifth Avenue, currently home to the Hyatt Andaz, the Beekman Hotel at UN Plaza, 237 Park Avenue, 260 Park Avenue South Luxury Condominium, Aruba Starwood Hotel, Resort & Time Share, Z NYC Hotel, NYC's famous Pier 15 at South Street Seaport, and 350 Madison Avenue to name a few. Merchants also owns 21 premier restaurants in NYC including Treadwell Park, Industry Kitchen, and the world-famous Philippe Chow on 60th and Madison Avenue. www.MerchantsHospitality.com
Weekly net asset value ("NAV") is calculated as of the close of business on each Tuesday and posted on the following business day. In the event that Tuesday is not a business day, the Company will calculate the close-of-business NAV as of the business day immediately preceding that Tuesday. The end-of-month NAV is calculated as of the close of business on the last day of the month and posted on the following business day. For weeks that include a month-end NAV report, PSH will provide only the month-end NAV and not report the Tuesday NAV. Monthly NAVs are published in accordance with the Decree on Conduct of Business Supervision of Financial Undertakings under the Wft (Besluit Gedragstoezicht financiele ondernemingen Wft).

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.
(ASX:SVH)

Hello, I'm Rachael Jones for the Finance News Network. Joining me from Silver Heritage Limitedis CEO, Mike Bolsover. Mike, welcome to FNN.Thanks so much for having me.So, first up Mike, could you start by giving us an introduction to your company?So, Silver Heritage Limitedis a listed company here in Australia. We listed in August, 2016. We run three separate casinos, two in Nepal, one in Vietnam, including one in Nepal where we actually own the license, the underlying land, and the casino operations themselves. So in total, we have 74 gaming tables and it's over 350 gaming machines. Principally, all of our growth from now onwards is through our own integrated resort on the border with India.So now, let's talk about your first half 2018 results. What were the highlights?So, the highlights really in the first half in 2018 were moving from operating losses into operating profits. So that transition is actually happened just after the first half. And then, the first two months of the third quarter, indeed, we're tracking to be about AUD$3.5 million of annualiszed Earnings before Interest, Depreciation and Amortization ( EBITDA).Thanks, Mike. Now before we talk about your operations, can you tell us about your gaming operations and why you've chosen Nepal?Sure, thanks. The company itself grew up from 2003 to 2013 with casino partners all over the region, from Macao to Vietnam to Nepal and the Philippines. So we've really leveraged our experience gained in all of those countries and put that to work in Nepal. So what we've seen in Nepal is a favourable foreign direct investment market, fairly new casino regulations, and of course, a huge, burgeoning middle class in India and also in China to the north. So, it's really using all of our experience in the past 10 years and putting that to work in an area of high growth from a demographic and also from an economic perspective.And Mike, can you give me more detail about Tiger Palace Hotel?Sure, so the resort itself is situated in 10 hectares or 22 acres of land. We've built on only 50% of that, so there's a lot area for expansion. The casino itself is obviously doing extremely well. Outside of that, we have Nepal's largest swimming pool. We have two fantastic villas and a hundred rooms and suites. We have food and beverage facilities in five separate locations. And we also have great meetings, incentives, convention, and exhibition facilities adjoining the resort. So, we really can cater to both gamers and non-gamers alike, and both Nepal, India, and international travellers.Very good. Now to your operations. Can you tell us more about your three revenue lines starting with Vietnam?Sure, so Vietnam, we have a casino management contract. We're currently operating there with 15 gaming tables and 94 electronic gaming machines. That's a contract that we've had already for eight years now, and we have great experience in Vietnam. That current management contract goes until March of 2025, although we've had a history of re-signing contracts to manage casinos.So, from Vietnam we move across to Nepal, where as part of our strategy, our long-term strategy has really been to integrate vertically into the casino business itself. So the first project that we have is in Kathmandu, where we lease the property and we have a casino license which we own, and also a casino management contract that we own. In there, we have 15 tables and 38 gaming machines. So, a fairly similar size to what we have in Vietnam.And thirdly and most excitedly, we now own our own integrated resort project on the border with India, again where we own the land, the license, and also the management contract. So, this is really a perfect scenario for us, where we have total control over the property. Currently there, we have 45 tables and 216 gaming machines with a lot of space for expansion.Excellent. So to the last question now, Mike. What can investors look out for in terms of news flow over the next 12 months?Sure, so we've just released our first half results and a trading update. As you've heard, last week we've announced a capital raise and a successful renegotiation of the bond terms. So this really puts the company in a fantastic situation with respect to its balance sheet, very manageable covenants, very manageable payback and amortization of that debt. So, we're very excited again now to have redone the debt package, to have had support from shareholders old and new, and also for the business itself to be trending so well. And we're very confident again moving forwards that we'll be able to both service the debt and also make additional earnings over and above that to fund expansion or for whatever strategies that we end up deciding as a board.Mike Bolsover, thanks for the update.Thanks very much for having me.
Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya, seeking to 'clarify' the remarks he made outside London's Westminster Magistrate's Court on Wednesdayin which he said he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving India called the controversy a media creation.

Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya, seeking to clarify the remarks he made outside London's Westminster Magistrate's Court on Wednesdayin which he said he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving India called the controversy a media creation.

"I was standing here during the lunch break and I happened to answer a question on the circumstances under which I flew out," Mallya said. "I said, 'I happened to meet Mr Jaitley in Parliament and I told him I was leaving for London, that I want to settle with the banks and would he please facilitate these discussions. I did not have any formal meeting scheduled with him. I met him often enough in Parliament and the House and I have expressed my willingness to settle on many an occasion. I don't understand what this controversy is all about.'"

According to a report by ANI, when asked if he'd met any other BJP leaders before he left for London, Mallya replied, "Over a period of time, I met many colleagues in Parliament and expressed to them my desire to settle with the banks. I don't believe I owe you any further details." When asked if he was tipped off by someone, Mallya added, "I can confirm to you that nobody tipped me off. There was no need to run and the allegations are media created allegations", ANI further reported.

Earlier on Wednesday, speaking to reporters outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court, Mallya said, "I met the finance minister to settle matters before I left. The banks had filed objections to my settlement letters." The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss reached the Westminster Magistrates' Court for a hearing in his extradition case at around 2 pm IST.

A London court has set 10 December, 2018, as the date for the verdict on Vijay Mallya's extradition from the United Kingdom, according to a media report.

Vijay Mallya's extradition case verdict on December 10, says British court pic.twitter.com/ZVUY5Fd6Rb  NDTV (@ndtv) September 12, 2018

Mallya, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year, responded to the swarm of reporters gathered outside the court in his characteristic manner, saying the "courts will decide". "As far as I am concerned, I have made a comprehensive settlement offer before the Karnataka High Court. I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess that's the primary objective, said Mallya, who is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore.

When asked if he has convinced the court that he has the means to pay what he said he will, Mallya said, "Obviously, that is why a settlement offer has been made. The hearing is on 18th September." Mallya's lawyer told Westminster Magistrates Court that IDBI bank officials were well aware of losses at Kingfisher. "E-mail from IDBI officials show that govt accusation that Vijay Mallya hid losses, is baseless," the lawyer was quoted as saying by ANI. The lawyer further said, "There is no evidence that Mallya or Kingfisher applied for bank loans with bad intent."

At the previous hearing in July in the Westminster Magistrates' Court in, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, had agreed to the request and the video has since been submitted to the court.

Mallya's defence team had demanded an inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets the UK's human rights obligations related to extradition proceedings. The CPS stressed that the Indian government had provided adequate material which rendered the need for an inspection unnecessary, leading to the demand for a video recording to be reviewed by the court. The judge is also expected to hear the final closing arguments in the case, after which a timeline for her ruling is likely to become clearer.

In a high court ruling dated 8 May, Judge Henshaw had refused to overturn a worldwide order freezing Mallya's assets and upheld an Indian court's ruling that the consortium of 13 Indian banks - State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Corporation Bank, Federal Bank Ltd, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu and Kashmir Bank, Punjab and Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co. Pvt Ltd were entitled to recover funds amounting to nearly 1.145 billion pounds

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on 4 December last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya. It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of over Rs 9,000 crore in loans from a consortium of Indian banks. The CPS has argued that the evidence they have presented establishes "dishonesty" on the part of the businessman and that there are no bars to him being extradited from the UK to face Indian courts. Mallya's defence team has deposed a series of expert witnesses to claim he had no "fraudulent" intentions and that he is unlikely to get a fair trial in India.

With inputs from agencies
A delegation led by Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman will arrive in Azerbaijan on an official visit on Sept.13, Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said in a message Sept. 12, AzerNews reported.

Meetings of the Israeli delegation in the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense and other governmental institutions are envisaged to be held during the visit.

During the meetings, aspects of regional security, prospects for development of military cooperation between Azerbaijan and Israel and other issues of interest will be discussed.
Patel said Gujarat is planning to have four to five solar parks with an installed capacity of 5,000 MW

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat government is planing to start projects to store solar energy produced during the day and use it at night time, energy minister Saurabh Patel said Tuesday.

He told this to a delegation from Colorado, a western US state, which is visiting Gujarat. Patel said the state is planning to have four to five solar parks with an installed capacity of 5,000 MW, of which the state has already invited "expression of interest" for installations for 1000 MW solar power.

"Gujarat is an ideal place for solar energy as it has a wide track of unproductive land available with it," Patel told the delegation which consisted of representatives from the energy sector of Colorado.

"The state government is planning to set up four to five solar parks with an installed capacity of 5,000 MW," Patel said, adding this will be a great opportunity for the energy sector of Colorado to invest here.

"Gujarat Energy Development Agency (GEDA) has already invited expression of interest for installation of 1000 MW of solar power," he said.

"We intend to use solar energy at night by establishing projects to store such energy produced during the day," he informed the delegation.

Solar panels can not produce energy at night. But rechargeable batteries can store electricity produced by photovoltaic panels. The electricity produced during the day

charge the battery and this power can be used during nights, the minister said.

Patel told the delegation that there is a huge scope for the US industry to have strategic business partnerships for production of electric vehicles in India.

The delegation will visit and interact with various stakeholders of renewable energy during its three days stay in Gujarat, an official release said.

As per reports, Gujarat stands sixth in the production of solar energy in the country. Karnataka, Telangana, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are ahead of Gujarat in solar energy production.
Many shareholders sought stern action from the bank on any misdoings on the part of Chanda Kochhar, while some also called for a restructuring of the top leadership given the allegations and questioned the board for initially backing her.

Vadodara: The Chanda Kochhar saga dominated the annual general meeting of ICICI Bank here on Wednesday, with shareholders seeking clarity on the allegations of impropriety against the MD & CEO who is on an indefinite leave since June apart from demanding action against her.

Some shareholders, who spoke at the 24th AGM, also questioned the corporate governance practices and standards at the bank, while some rallied in support saying it is just a phase which shall pass.

Kochhar has been away from office following an enquiry initiated under the retired Supreme Court judge BN Srikrishna late May, but continues to hold onto her position as the managing director & chief executive, was absent at the AGM.

Government nominee on the board Lok Ranjan was also absent at the hour-long AGM chaired by newly-appointed chairman GC Chaturvedi.

Last month's reappointment of Kochhar on the board of the bank's broking arm ICICI Securities despite she being under probe also peeved many shareholders, who questioned the decision.

Many shareholders also spoke against the core issue of sanctioning loans to the Venugopal Dhoot-run Videocon Industries, which is currently facing bankruptcy proceedings.

Many shareholders also sought stern action from the bank on any misdoings on the part of Kochhar, while some also called for a restructuring of the top leadership given the allegations and questioned the board for initially backing Kochhar.

In March, on the eve of publishing of a news report alleging improprieties and lack of disclosure against Kochhar, the board backed her in a public statement and said loans to Videocon was part of a consortium and ICICI Bank was not the lead banker.

However, more reports came out showing Kochhar's immediate family members, including her husband Deepak and his brother, had allegedly benefitted from ICICI Bank's borrowers like Videocon and also the Ruias-promoted Essar group. This led to the launch of a multi-agency probe into the matter.

Later, the bank also disclosed the receipt of an internal complaint against Kochhar but did not divulge its content. This led it to the appointment of Srikrishna to carry out an independent probe in the matter.

While the Srikrishna panel report is still awaited, Kochhar's term expires on 31 March, 2019.

Replying to the concerned shareholders, Sandip Bakhshi, the newly-appointed chief operating officer who is overseeing the day-to-day affairs in Kochhar's absence, said the bank has been taking necessary steps and also pointed to good numbers in the first quarter.

"The bank is able to perform and will come out of this," he said, expressing his inability to take any decision on Kochhar pending the Srikrishna panel report.

Some shareholders also questioned the reasons for a jump in legal expenses and rued that this comes even as it has reduced the dividend payout.

All the 14 ordinary resolutions and four special resolutions put up by the management were passed at the AGM.
Vijay Mallyas lawyer Clare Montgomery told Londons Westminster Magistrates Court that India had failed to provide enough evidence to form a 'prima facie' case against him necessary to warrant his extradition

London: The Indian government has failed to provide any substantial evidence to justify extraditing tycoon Vijay Mallya from Britain to face fraud charges, his lawyer told a London court on Wednesday.

India wants to extradite 62-year-old Indian businessman from Britain to face criminal action relating to loans taken out by his defunct Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) and Indian authorities want to recover about $1.4 billion they say Kingfisher owes.

In her closing submission, Mallyas lawyer Clare Montgomery told Londons Westminster Magistrates Court that India had failed to provide enough evidence to form a "prima facie" case against him necessary to warrant his extradition. Its undermined and set to nought by their own evidence, she said.

The Indian government says Kingfisher took out a series of loans from Indian banks, in particular the state-owned IDBI, with the aim of palming off huge losses which Mallya knew the failing airline was going to sustain.

It argues Mallya, who moved to Britain in March 2016, had no intention of repaying money it borrowed from IDBI in 2009 and the loans had been taken out under false pretensions, on the basis of misleading securities and with the money spent differently to how the bank had been told.

Montgomery said the evidence she and the Indian government had provided showed KFA had been clear about what the loans were for - to secure the airlines viable future - and that it had been open about its losses.

"Full and complete and accurate information was provided and I can demonstrate that," Montgomery said, saying suggestions that there was a "secret package of knowledge" about Kingfishers financial position which was not provided to IDBI were "utterly unfounded".

She said the Indian authorities had relied on testimony from people who were not involved at the time of the loans and they had failed to show any false statements had been made.

"The idea that this was a carefully thought out dishonest strategy promoted by him in the knowledge that KFA was bound to fail is just nonsense," Montgomery told Englands Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot who will decide the case.

"This is a financial disaster for him as much as the banks," said Montgomery.

The Indian governments Enforcement Directorate (ED), which fights financial crimes, is seeking to declare Mallya a "fugitive economic offender" and to confiscate 125 billion rupees worth of his assets.

Mark Summers, the lawyer acting for the Indian government, said it was not their case that Mallya had taken out the loans intending that the airline should fail, but his intention was if it did, he would not have to repay them.

He said the optimistic message Kingfisher had given the bank about its future when it took out the loan was not even vaguely consistent with a much more downbeat internal assessment. The case is due to conclude on Wednesday with Arbuthnot expected to deliver her decision at a later date.
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Economy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will likely hold a second round of trade talks on Sept. 21 in the United States, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Economy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will likely hold a second round of trade talks on Sept. 21 in the United States, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.

Their meeting is planned to precede an expected summit between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Donald Trump on the sidelines of a U.N. General Assembly General Debate starting Sept 25, the source said.

Tokyo wants to avert steep tariffs on its car exports and fend off U.S. demands for a bilateral free trade agreement as Japan is wary such an agreement would increase pressure the Japanese government to open sensitive markets such as agriculture.

Motegi and Lighthizer acknowledged the importance of expanding trade between the two nations at their first round of meeting in August, and explore ways to bridge their differences.

(Reporting by Yoshifumi Takemoto, writing by Kaori Kaneko; Editing by Eric Meijer)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Stephanie Kelly NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose more than 2 percent on Tuesday as U.S. sanctions squeezed Iranian crude exports and after U.S.

By Stephanie Kelly

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose more than 2 percent on Tuesday as U.S. sanctions squeezed Iranian crude exports and after U.S. crude oil production in 2019 was forecast to grow at a slower rate than previously expected, prompting supply concerns.

Since spring when the Trump Administration said it would impose sanctions on Iran, crude traders have priced in a risk premium reflecting the supply shortages that may occur when exports from the third-largest OPEC member are cut. As the Nov. 4 date for imposing sanctions draws nearer, the premium has increased.

Brent crude futures rose $1.69, or 2.2 percent, to settle at $79.06 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude settled $1.71, or 2.5 percent, higher at $69.25 a barrel.

Prices extended gains in post-settlement trade after industry data from the American Petroleum Institute showed U.S. crude inventories slumped 8.6 million barrels last week, versus analysts' forecasts of a 805,000-barrel decrease.

Official U.S. government data is due to be released on Wednesday.

Washington has told its allies to reduce imports of Iranian oil and several Asian buyers, including South Korea, Japan and India appear to be falling in line.

But the U.S. government does not want to push up oil prices, which could depress economic activity or even trigger a slowdown in global growth.

U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry met Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih on Monday in Washington, as the Trump administration encourages big oil-producing countries to keep output high. Perry will meet with Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak on Thursday in Moscow.

(GRAPHIC: Iran oil exports to Asia - https://tmsnrt.rs/2CEzade)

Russia, the United States and Saudi Arabia are the world's three biggest oil producers by far, meeting around a third of the world's almost 100 million barrels per day (bpd) of daily crude consumption.

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Tuesday that Russia and a group of producers around the Middle East which dominate the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries may sign a new long-term cooperation deal at the beginning of December, the TASS news agency reported. Novak did not provide details.

A group of OPEC and non-OPEC producers have been voluntarily withholding supplies since January 2017 to tighten markets, but with crude prices up by more than 40 percent since then and markets significantly tighter, there has been pressure on producers to raise output.

U.S. crude production is expected to rise 840,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 11.5 million bpd next year, lower than a previous expectation for a rise of 1.02 million bpd to 11.7 million bpd, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a monthly report.

"Market participants are now evaluating this development in conjunction with potential for further declines in oil output from Iran and Venezuela, which portrays a significantly bullish picture on prices," said Abhishek Kumar, senior energy analyst at Interfax Energy in London.

(GRAPHIC: U.S. crude oil exports to Asia - https://tmsnrt.rs/2CJ69gA)

On Monday several armed men attacked the headquarters of Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) in the capital Tripoli on Monday.

The NOC has continued to function relatively normally amid chaos in Libya. Oil production has been hit by attacks on oil facilities and blockades, though last year it partially recovered to around one million barrels per day.

As Middle East markets tighten, Asian buyers are seeking alternative supplies, with South Korean and Japanese imports of U.S. crude hitting a record in September.

U.S. oil producers are seeking new buyers for crude they used to sell to China before orders slowed because of the trade disputes between Washington and Beijing.

(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly in New York, Christopher Johnson in London and Henning Gloystein in Singapore; Editing by Marguerita Choy and David Evans)

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Rajan's letter on NPA is a big eye-opener on the Indian economy; blaming the mess on Modi will be Congress' mistake

The political controversy over Raghuram Rajans note to Parliament committee chaired by Murli Manohar Joshi on the bank NPA problem is designed to divert the attention from the very problem itself to a useless mud-slinging show.

Looking beyond the political optics of it, the Rajan letter is a clear-cut condemnation of the UPA-era mistakes that created one of the biggest bad loan mess in the country, when, in Rajans own words, banks chased promoters waving cheque books, asking him to name the amount he wanted. Thats where the problem began, slowly evolved to an accepted systemic ill that no one (including regulators) dared to question for long. The very concept of professional accountability was laughed at and the problem finally returned to haunt the very banks with hellish might.

Looking at the facts, there is a big irony in the Congress blaming Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the NPA mess and inaction over corporate loan fraud alert because it was during UPA I and II that all the alleged fraudsters were welcomed wholeheartedly with the blessings of the political leadership and went to on do business, be it Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi or Mehul Choksi or anyone else. That none of them could be caught so far and dragged into Indian jails even after the Modi-government came into power is no exoneration for the Congress and UPA to pass the buck shamelessly to the NDA; at least not on this issue.

As Rajan said, the seeds of the present bad loan crisis were planted between 2006-08, when the UPA functioning led to increased NPAs in India's banking structure. In fact, the analogy Modi used once, 'phone banking' is apt to describe this era. It was not uncommon in those days for banks to get calls from North Block and the aides of other political bosses -- be it big or small, directing banks to give loans to a specific promoter or group.

The banking system, with 70 percent of the assets under government control, had to religiously follow the unofficially official diktats both during UPA I and II and give away the money. This led to banks being infected with the NPA illness' to its present critical state, all under the watch of the Congress government. The Congress could have corrected the problem, but no one acted because state-run banks were deemed to be piggy banks of politicians. Some bankers received kickbacks ranging from something as small as a watch or a gold ornament to a few who got promises of post-retirement berths.

In fact, there was hardly any need of political nudging for public sector bankers to open their doors for unworthy borrowers; they were willing anyway. The high economic growth phase, as Rajan said, had made most bankers blind about hidden future risks. They merely looked at past performance of companies and extrapolated it to the future to decide on loans. Also, they expected the then near double-digit economic growth to continue forever creating enough cash flows for all firms to pay back loans. In many instances, most bankers only looked at the names and sanctioned loans -- Vijay Mallya is one big example.

When the Kingfisher Airlines fraud broke out, this writer recalls a banker who was formerly with the State Bank of India (SBI) mentioning: Who could have said No to someone like Mallya?

Remember, this was when even a child with some sense of airline business knew Kingfisher has no future and its finances were in an incurable state. Bankers even accepted goodwill and brand name in the list of collateral, Mallyas personal guarantee was enough to give away a few thousands of crores. Besides all this, there was a mad competition between bankers to show a bigger loan book to the government.

Flashing total business figures in the mastheads of major newspapers was a common sight (which by the way offered no indication of the quality of business of the bank but just a ballooned figure). Every banker wanted a bigger share of the corporate loan at the first indication of the demand. Golden rules of lending were given a convenient back-burner space and prudence went missing for many years. This is what the promoter who spoke to Rajan might have meant when he said bankers were chasing him waving blank cheque books.

When such serious lapses were permitted and colluded to build up a major banking NPA crisis, it is ironical for the Congress-UPA to pass the buck to Modi. What is even more ridiculous is the Congress party blaming the sharp surge in NPAs during Modi-rule. This is another serious case of misunderstanding of the issue or confusing tactics on the NPA problem.

NPAs spiked sharply because finally, after a decade of lazy and irresponsible banking and constant ever-greening of loans, banks were made to call a spade a spade and state bad loans as bad loans.

Just merely putting on a nice outfit to hide the rot beneath won't make anyone healthy; thats what precisely banks did all the time till Raghuram Rajans Reserve Bank of India (RBI), with the backing from the Modi-government, unleashed the biggest-ever bad loan clean-up process in 2014-15 with the introduction of a paper on early identification of stressed assets and eventually setting a deadline for banks to declare all their NPAs . Of course, this was a shocker and a deep surgery but much-needed for a deeply ill banking system. This is what made it appear that there was a sudden spurt in NPAs.

But, for the sake of economy, this clean-up had to happen at some point. Hence, it is illogical for Rahul Gandhi and P Chidambaram to blame Modi for the spike in NPAs. In fact, it is during the Modi-rule that the Indian banking system was witness to some of the biggest steps to correct the long-standing ills of the sector by bringing in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) and making corporate loan frauds a central issue. It didnt choose to hide the problem and adopt the typical bureaucratic approach but decided to take the bull by the horns. The tools for bad loan recovery and identification of stressed assets sharpened.

Tackling corporate loans could not have been conducted by way of government orders but only through bank-specific investigations, courts and IBC courts. Rajans letter to the panel on NPAs is a big condemnation of the UPA-era bad loan-making programme and the Congress party blaming Modi for the NPA problem is bunkum.
A bench headed by Justice R F Nariman also asked the banks not to file any insolvency cases till November when the apex court would hear the matter.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked banks to maintain status quo and not to initiate insolvency proceedings against loan defaulting power companies in the country.

A bench headed by Justice R F Nariman also asked the banks not to file any insolvency cases till November when the apex court would hear the matter.

It also agreed to transfer to itself 12 cases pending before different high courts related to this issue.

The issue pertains to the Reserve Bank of Indias (RBI) revised framework introduced on 12 February this year which has provisions to declare a company bankrupt even on a one-day overdue.

The RBIs new framework provides that lenders have to provide for resolution plan within 180 days in case of large account of Rs 2,000 crore and above.

In its circular, the RBI has said that if a resolution was not found by 27 August, NPA accounts should be sent to bankruptcy courts.

Banks have exposure of around Rs 1.74 lakh crore to stressed power assets.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. regulator said on Tuesday it would launch an investigation into an off-road utility vehicle produced by Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd following a complaint by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV that it infringed upon the intellectual property rights of its Jeep design.

The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) said in a statement that it was launching a patent-related investigation into the India automaker's ROXOR vehicle.

The ITC said the complaint was related to the import and sale in the United States of certain motorized vehicles and components that Fiat Chrysler had alleged infringed on its trademarks. The agency said it would aim to complete its probe within 45 days.

Representatives of Mahindra and Fiat Chrysler could not immediately be reached for comment.

Last month, Mahindra said that Fiat Chrysler had filed a patent violation complaint with the ITC against the company and called the complaint without merit.

Mahindra said that it and its North American unit had filed a public interest statement with the ITC and had begun proceedings in a Michigan court to enforce a design agreement that it had executed with Fiat Chrysler in 2009.

Mahindra was seeking an injunction against Fiat Chrysler from proceeding with the complaint, it added.

Fiat Chrysler had not made a monetary claim in the complaint but was seeking to block Mahindra Automotive from importing any parts or components into the United States that infringe upon Fiat Chrysler's intellectual property rights, it said.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey; additional reporting by Nick Carey in Detroit, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Vijay Mallya is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.

A London court has set 10 December, 2018, as the date for the verdict on Vijay Mallya's extradition from the United Kingdom, according to a media report.

Vijay Mallya's extradition case verdict on December 10, says British court pic.twitter.com/ZVUY5Fd6Rb  NDTV (@ndtv) September 12, 2018

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, a defiant Mallya, facing money laundering charges in a multi-crore fraud case in India, said he met the finance minister before leaving the country, media reports stated.

Talking to reporters outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court, Mallya said, "I met the finance minister to settle matters before I left. The banks had filed objections to my settlement letters."

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss reached the Westminster Magistrates' Court for a hearing in his extradition case at around 14:00 hrs IST.

Mallya, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year, responded to the swarm of reporters gathered outside the court in his characteristic manner, saying the "courts will decide".

"As far as I am concerned, I have made a comprehensive settlement offer before the Karnataka High Court. I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess that's the primary objective, said Mallya, who is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore.

When asked if he has convinced the court that he has the means to pay what he said he will, Mallya said, "Obviously, that is why a settlement offer has been made. The hearing is on 18th September."

Mallya's lawyer told Westminster Magistrates Court that IDBI bank officials were well aware of losses at Kingfisher. "E-mail from IDBI officials show that govt accusation that Vijay Mallya hid losses, is baseless," the lawyer was quoted as saying by ANI. The lawyer further said, "There is no evidence that Mallya or Kingfisher applied for bank loans with bad intent."

At the previous hearing in July in the Westminster Magistrates' Court in, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, had agreed to the request and the video has since been submitted to the court.

Mallya's defence team had demanded an inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets the UK's human rights obligations related to extradition proceedings.

The CPS stressed that the Indian government had provided adequate material which rendered the need for an inspection unnecessary, leading to the demand for a video recording to be reviewed by the court.

The judge is also expected to hear the final closing arguments in the case, after which a timeline for her ruling is likely to become clearer.

In a high court ruling dated 8 May, Judge Henshaw had refused to overturn a worldwide order freezing Mallya's assets and upheld an Indian court's ruling that the consortium of 13 Indian banks - State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Corporation Bank, Federal Bank Ltd, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu and Kashmir Bank, Punjab and Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co. Pvt Ltd were entitled to recover funds amounting to nearly 1.145 billion pounds

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on 4 December last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya.

It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of over Rs 9,000 crore in loans from a consortium of Indian banks.

The CPS has argued that the evidence they have presented establishes "dishonesty" on the part of the businessman and that there are no bars to him being extradited from the UK to face Indian courts.

Mallya's defence team has deposed a series of expert witnesses to claim he had no "fraudulent" intentions and that he is unlikely to get a fair trial in India.

With inputs from agencies
Vijay Mallya is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.

London: Vijay Mallya arrived at a London court on Wednesday for a hearing in his extradition case, during which the judge is expected to review a video of the Mumbai jail cell prepared by the Indian authorities for the embattled liquor tycoon.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss reached at the Westminster Magistrates' Court at around 2 pm IST.

Mallya, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year, responded to the swarm of reporters gathered outside the court in his characteristic manner, saying the "courts will decide".

"As far as I am concerned, I have made a comprehensive settlement offer before the Karnataka High Court. I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess that's the primary objective, said Mallya, who is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.

At the previous hearing in July in the Westminster Magistrates' Court in, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, had agreed to the request and the video has since been submitted to the court.

Mallya's defence team had demanded an inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets the UK's human rights obligations related to extradition proceedings.

The CPS stressed that the Indian government had provided adequate material which rendered the need for an inspection unnecessary, leading to the demand for a video recording to be reviewed by the court.

The judge is also expected to hear the final closing arguments in the case, after which a timeline for her ruling is likely to become clearer.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4 last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya.

It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of over Rs 9,000 crores in loans from a consortium of Indian banks.

The CPS has argued that the evidence they have presented establishes "dishonesty" on the part of the businessman and that there are no bars to him being extradited from the UK to face Indian courts.

Mallya's defence team has deposed a series of expert witnesses to claim he had no "fraudulent" intentions and that he is unlikely to get a fair trial in India.
The Japanese government intends to conduct negotiations with Russia to sign a peace treaty after resolving the territorial issue, this stance has remained unchanged, TASS reported citing a source in the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

"We are determined to continue intense negotiations in accordance with our policy, which is aimed at signing a peace treaty, while resolving the issue of the ownership of four northern islands (thats what Japan calls Russias southern Kuril Islands - TASS). Our stance on that score has remained unchanged," the source noted.
The Special Leave Petition stands disposed of accordingly,' the bench said. The case, according to the police, pertains to a 2007 incident in the Gorakhpur district in Uttar Pradesh when Adityanath was a Member of Parliament.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed a magistrate in Uttar Pradesh to pass appropriate orders in accordance with law in a rioting case allegedly involving chief minister Yogi Adityanath.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud disposed of a petition challenging the Allahabad High Court order dismissing a plea filed by one Rasheed Khan in the case.

"We only direct the Magistrate (in Gorakhpur), as the High Court has remitted the matter to him, to pass appropriate orders keeping in view the law laid down. The Special Leave Petition stands disposed of accordingly," the bench said. The case, according to the police, pertains to a 2007 incident in the Gorakhpur district in Uttar Pradesh when Adityanath was a Member of Parliament.

The FIR said that on 27 January 2007, on the occasion of Satvi Moharram, on a call was given by Adityanath, following which members of right-wing outfit Hindu Vahini, traders and businessman started assembling and raising slogans. It said that at about 10 am that day, the agitators set several properties ablaze, damaged religious books and indulged in destructive activities at the Imam Chowk in Gorakhpur. To disperse the agitating mob, the police fired several rounds in the air.

The FIR was lodged on charges of rioting, outraging religious feelings, trespassing on burial places and promoting enmity between groups. On completion of the investigation, a chargesheet was filed on June 14, 2007 against all the accused and the cognizance of final report was taken by the Chief Juidicial Magistrate.

The order of cognizance was challenged before the Sessions Judge, Gorakhpur. The Sessions Judge, by its order of January 28, 2017, allowed criminal revision and set aside the cognizance order of Chief Judicial Magistrate.

The court, however, remitted back the matter to the trial court with a direction to the magistrate to pass a fresh order in accordance with law on the issue of taking cognizance. The order of Sessions Judge was challenged before the Allahabad High Court which upheld it, saying no interference is warranted. The high court had said "by way of abundant caution, CJM, Gorakhpur, is directed to decide the matter afresh, pursuant to the impugned order of remand strictly in accordance with law and in the exercise of his unfettered independent discretion, without being influenced by observations, if any, made by the revisional court in the impugned order."
A suicide note purportedly written by Harde was found in his pocket, the police added. In the note, Harde has said he was taking the extreme step because the Maratha community is not being provided reservation in government jobs and educational institutions, they said.

Aurangabad: A 26-year-old man allegedly committed suicide over the Maratha reservation issue here in Maharashtra, police said Tuesday. The man, Kishor Shivaji Harde, was found hanging from a tree in his farm in Galle Borgaon village under Khuldabad tehsil of Aurangabad district in central Maharashtra, they said.

A suicide note purportedly written by Harde was found in his pocket, the police added. In the note, Harde has said he was taking the extreme step because the Maratha community is not being provided reservation in government jobs and educational institutions, they said.

This is not a suicide but the government has "murdered" him, the police said, quoting from the note. After the suicide came to light, villagers sat on a dharna at the tehsil office in Khuldabad. Harde was working with a finance company in Yeola tehsil of Nashik district, the police said, adding a case has been registered and further probe was on.

A similar incident took place Monday in Ahmednagar district, where a 16-year-old girl allegedly committed suicide by hanging over the Maratha reservation issue. Around eight people had committed suicide in the last two months where the deceased linked their decision to end life to the Maratha quota demand.

Marathas, a politically influential community that constitutes around 30 percent of the state's population, have been demanding 16 per cent reservation in government jobs and education. The community had organised statewide protests in July August in support of their demand.
Multiple sightings of non-native predator fish have been reported, but the ecological impact of such an invasion remains uncertain.

After the catastrophic floods in Kerala last month that led to massive loss of lives and property, the state is now probably staring at another crisis that is likely to threaten the ecological balance of its waterbodies. Although it is too early to gauge what the ultimate outcome might be, the sightings of predatory, alien fish species in large numbers that appear to have found their way into the state's waterbodies, are turning out to be a cause of concern for the state.

A team of researchers from the University of Kerala, the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, and National Institute of Advanced Studies in Bangalore carried out a quick initial assessment of the state's waterbodies to find 11 alien species in all  four of which are invasive, a report in The Hindu says.

Globally, floodwaters have proved to be a major route for the spread of invasive species," A Biju Kumar, a professor at the Department of Aquatic Biology and Fisheries, University of Kerala told The Hindu. "Therefore, a precautionary approach is warranted while farming potential invasive (fish) along floodplains.

The school of alien fish appear to have washed into Kerala from ornamental and commercial fish farms in the state, said an India Times report. Farming certain predator fish species like piranhas are banned in the state, however, commercial dealers continue to rear them illegally.

Some photographs of these non-native fish have been circulated on social media over the past few days. One even shows a few men grinning at their luck after having caught a fish the size of a full-grown human.

Another point of concern, the report cited, is the fitness of some of the foreign species, particularly the species known as the African catfish. This particular type of fish can grow over 50kg in size by feasting on other fish and has no known natural predators.

In the weeks since the flood, the red-bellied piranha  one of the deadliest freshwater fish known to man  has also been reported by fishermen. Another new species spotted in Kerala's newly-calm waters is the Arapaima (pictured), a vicious predator of Brazilian origin known to survive out of water for a considerable amount of time.

While the sightings continue to raise concerns among Keralites, the ecological impact of having a sea of non-native, predatorial fish remains an uncertainty for now.
The militaries of BIMSTEC member nations, barring Nepal and Thailand, began a week-long anti-terror exercise at Aundh near Pune on Monday to enhance cooperation in dealing with the challenge of terrorism in the region.

New Delhi: After Nepal decided to skip the first ever BIMSTEC military exercise in India, its newly appointed Army Chief Purna Chandra Thapa has declined an invite by the Indian Army to attend a conclave of army chiefs of the grouping on 16 September, official sources said.

The militaries of BIMSTEC member nations, barring Nepal and Thailand, began a week-long anti-terror exercise at Aundh near Pune on Monday to enhance cooperation in dealing with the challenge of terrorism in the region. Each participating country has sent its troops as well as a three-member team as observers. Though Nepal and Thailand are not participating in the exercise, both the countries sent observers for it.

The Indian Army has organised a conclave of army chiefs of the participating countries on 16 September, and barring Nepal, all the countries have accepted the invitation. They said Nepal's Gen. Thapa conveyed to the Indian Army his inability to attend the conclave as he has prior engagements including ceremonial events to attend in his country, the sources said. General Thapa was sworn in as Nepal's Army Chief on Sunday.

The development comes in the backdrop of China's growing overtures towards Nepal for deeper economic and security cooperation. Last month, Nepal had announced that it would participate in a military exercise with China. The sources said that Thailand conveyed to India that it will send a senior military official to attend the conclave.

The BIMSTEC is a regional grouping comprising Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal. The grouping accounts for 22 percent of the global population, and has a combined gross domestic product of $2.8 trillion. Indian Army officials said the exercise is focused on boosting inter-operability among the forces and exchanging best practices to contain terror-related activities.

They said the long-term goal of the initiative is to explore possibility of creating a viable regional security architecture to deal with the challenge of terrorism and transnational crimes. The exercise is taking place nearly two weeks after leaders of the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) countries, in their summit talks in Kathmandu, resolved to join hands to combat the scourge of terrorism effectively.

India has been pushing for making the BIMSTEC a vibrant form for regional collaboration as cooperation under the SAARC (South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation) framework was not moving forward. Citing continuing support to cross-border terrorism from Pakistan, India has been maintaining that it was difficult to proceed with SAARC initiative under current circumstances. BIMSTEC excludes Pakistan. During the Kathmandu summit, the leaders deliberated on a range of issues including ways to effectively deal with terrorism and radicalisation.
The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday told the police that they could not arrest four people booked for assaulting a Dalit woman and her daughter without following the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) provisions.

Lucknow: The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday told the police that they could not arrest four people booked for assaulting a Dalit woman and her daughter without following the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) provisions endorsed by the Supreme Court (SC) in an order in 2014.

Though the case was registered under Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act  as well as under IPC sections  the court prevented the police from making an immediate, routine arrest.

The ruling was given by Justices Ajai Lamba and Sanjay Harkauli of the high court's Lucknow bench. In 2014, the SC had endorsed guidelines on arresting the accused in the Arnesh Kumar case. Sections 41 and 41A of the CrPC stipulate that an accused facing a jail term of up to seven years would not be arrested unless the police record elaborate reasons for the need of an arrest.

The high court ruling comes soon after Parliament passed a Bill overriding a Supreme Court judgment to prevent the misuse of the SC/ST law, particularly on arrests without a preliminary investigation.

Tuesday's ruling was on a bail plea by a Gonda resident Rajesh Kumar and three members of his family, who were accused by a Dalit woman of abusing and assaulting her and her daughter. The family members were booked for various penal offences besides the stringent provisions of the SC/ST Act.
In UPs Mahoba, Chitrakoot and Varanasi districts, upper class Hindus have taken to the streets in huge numbers demanding that the amendments to the SC/ST Act be reversed, calling it a grave atrocity on the non-SC/ST populace of the country. Though the protests are somewhat peaceful at the moment, the protesters have vowed to continue till their demands are met  with some calling for a pan-Indian Bharat Bandh. As Anil Singh of Varanasi put it, Unless this black law is repealed by Modi ji, these protests will go on. We will call for an even bigger revolution.

The Constitution might be drawing up to almost seven decades, but the Ambedkarite vision of an India free of caste hostility remains a distant, if not downright impossible, vision. In what has been a reign dotted by innumerable hate crimes against Dalits, Muslims, and other minorities, this time, it is the so-called upper-caste Hindus who are enraged by the actions of the incumbent government. Amendments made by the Modi government to the Schedule Castes and Schedules Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (SC/ST Act) have sparked off a series of protests across various districts of U.P. and other parts of the country as well.

In March this year, in response to a complaint of ostensible misuse of the SC/ST Act, the Supreme Court had passed an order to the effect that the prior approval of a senior superintendent of police be taken to arrest a person accused of an offence under the act, and that a preliminary inquiry be conducted to ascertain whether a prima facie case has been made against the accused before an FIR is filed. However, in the following monsoon session, the Parliament amended the SC/ST Act dispensing with the requirement of a preliminary inquiry, allowing arrest of an accused on the receipt of a complaint, as well as prohibiting anticipatory bail in such cases  thereby nullified the Supreme Court order in effect. This hurried albeit imperative amendment, while undeniably prompted by the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, has left Modis conventional fanbase seething with anger.

In UPs Mahoba, Chitrakoot and Varanasi districts, upper class Hindus have taken to the streets in huge numbers demanding that the above amendment be reversed, calling it a grave atrocity on the non-SC/ST populace of the country. Though the protests are somewhat peaceful at the moment, the protesters have vowed to continue till their demands are met  with some calling for a pan-Indian Bharat Bandh. As Anil Singh of Varanasi put it, Unless this black law is repealed by Modi ji, these protests will go on. We will call for an even bigger revolution.

Last week, the residents of Chitrakoots Mau did not get to witness the colourful hustle-bustle of the Thursday special market. Instead, they woke up to the cries of SC/ST Murdabad! (Down with SC/ST Act) resounding in the streets. Arvind, all fired up, is of the view that politicians are pursuing a politics motivated by selfish interests. Gross injustice is being done to 78% of the population, merely to please the other 22% and win their votes. These politicians dont seem to care whether the 78% live or die. But we, the 78%, are and will remain united as one.

Not surprisingly, misinformation and rumours are being circulated to sway people. For instance, Abhishek Dwivedi, said, Earlier, one at least got the chance to defend himself before being arrested, a proper investigation would be carried out. But now, even if someone wrongly accuses you of an offence under the SC/ST Act  he merely has to say it  and you can be put in jail for 6 months, and only after that will there be a hearing! Even the presumption of innocence has been reversed. Instead of the state proving the guilt of the accused, now he has to prove that he is innocent. Modis dictatorial rule has wreaked havoc in the country. People are being turned against each other in the name of caste and religion  and now they are trying to drive a wedge amongst the Hindus. This is nothing but vote-bank politics. This, however, is factually incorrect. The presumption under the law is that if an accused person was previously acquainted with the victim or the victims family, it will be presumed that the accused was aware of the victims caste or tribal identity. Otherwise, the presumption of innocence continues to operate until the offence is proved by the prosecution, only after which can the accused be awarded the prescribed punishment of six months.

In Mahoba, the bandh wielded least control, with shops, courts and offices open through the day. The local police were deployed across the district to maintain public order, and the Commanding Officer informed us that people had been cooperating.

However, the situation was all the more worse in Varanasi. Not only were all shops closed by the angry crowds, they also broke through the gates of the compound housing the local court and administrative offices and staged a protest in front of the D.M.s office. The logic of the demonstrators reeked of insecurities peculiar to the privileged classes that feel instantly threatened by any kind of affirmative action taken in the interests of poor and marginalised sections. Dev Bahadur Singh complained of the way meritorious upper-caste children suffer at the hands of reservation. Considering the dearth of jobs in our country, even a well-educated person feels conned looking at his degree. Our children study so hard to secure a good rank in competitive exams but they still are not able to get jobs anywhere in the public sector. Despite this, they are introducing reservation in jobs, promotions, practically everything. And now we have heard that there will be reservation in the private sector too.

On the other hand, Gopichand Singh applauded the apparently huge sacrifices made by upper-caste Hindus for the welfare of backward classes. Since before independence, no one has had to make the kind of self-sacrifice that upper caste Hindus have. We readily gave up all our land and property for the unity of the nation on Sardar Vallabhbhai Patels request. And today, injustice is being done to us again and we are being cast down to favour 28% of the population.

Mahendra Verma, a Dalit resident of Mahoba, laments the idea behind the ongoing protests. Those who are against this law and are doing this facade of a Bharat Bandh are entirely wrong. Dalits live in a state of extreme penury, and have been systemically kept away from the education system and all other human development activities since forever. Not only is this law supremely necessary, it must be enforced with full force.

Khabar Lahariya is a women-only network of rural reporters from Bundelkhand.
The apex court will resume the hearing on the on the arrests of five activists who were held by Pune police last month for their alleged role in the Bhima Koregaon violence.

The petitioners of the Bhima Koregaon violence case on Wednesday have sought for hearing in the Supreme Court to be held after 12 pm, reports have said. The apex court will resume the hearing on the on the arrests of five activists who were held by Pune police last month for their alleged role in the Bhima-Koregaon violence.

On 4 September, a Pune-based man, Tushar Damgude had filed a plea in the Supreme Court seeking to be made a party in the case stating that it was he who had lodged the FIR in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence.

The top court had earlier ordered that the five human rights activists would be kept under house arrest till 6 September observing that dissent was the "safety valve" of democracy.

While granting relief to activists Varavara Rao, Arun Farreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Sudha Bhardwaj and Gautam Navalakha, the top court did not consider the vehement opposition of Maharashtra government challenging the locus of the petitioners, Thapar and four others, seeking relief on their behalf, and calling them "strangers".

The Maharashtra Police had arrested them in connection with an FIR lodged following a conclave  'Elgaar Parishad'  held on 31 December, 2017 that had later triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village. The state had challenged the petitioners' locus, dubbing them as "strangers".

The plea, by Romila Thapar, economists Prabhat Patnaik and Devaki Jain, sociology professor Satish Deshpandey and human rights lawyer Maja Daruwala, has sought an independent probe into the arrests and their immediate release.

Prominent Telugu poet Varavara Rao was arrested from Hyderabad, while activists Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Farreira were arrested from Mumbai, trade union activist Sudha Bhardwaj from Faridabad in Haryana and civil liberties activist Gautam Navalakha was arrested from New Delhi.
The report also mentioned a letter sent in May 2018 to the Government of India by the special rapporteur concerning the updating of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in which attention was drawn towards heightened concerns of the Bengali Muslim minority.

New Delhi: E Tendayi Achiume, the special rapporteur appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), in her report on 'Contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia', has said that the BJP has been linked to incidents of violence against members of the Scheduled Castes (SC), Muslim, tribals and Christian communities.

She has mentioned that reports have documented the use of inflammatory remarks by BJP leaders against minority groups, and the rise of vigilantism targeting Muslims and SCs.

Her report also mentioned a letter sent in May 2018 to the Government of India by the special rapporteur concerning the updating of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in which attention was drawn towards heightened concerns of the Bengali Muslim minority.

The special rapporteur mentioned several examples in her report that were drawn from different sources, including submissions received by her in response to the call for input for the present report. Referring to racist, xenophobic violence, hate crimes and hate speech, the report pointed out instances of several countries where politicians in the government have made racist and xenophobic statements.

About India, the report said: "In India, the election of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been linked to incidents of violence against members of Dalit, Muslim, tribal and Christian communities. Reports document the use of inflammatory remarks by BJP leaders against minority groups, and the rise of vigilantism targeting Muslims and Dalits" while quoting Human Rights Watch submission to the Human Rights Council universal periodic review of India.

While talking about institutionalisation of structural and other forms of exclusion, the report mentioned that "nationalist populist parties" in some places have implemented administrative and other rules leading to the exclusion of minority groups from official citizen registries on the basis of claims that they are irregular migrants, notwithstanding evidence showing that they are entitled to citizenship.

In this context, the report said: "In May 2018, the special rapporteur addressed a letter to the Government of India concerning the updating of the National Register of Citizens, a process governed by local authorities in the state of Assam. The letter drew attention to the heightened concerns of the Bengali Muslim minority, who have historically been portrayed as foreigners despite having lived in India for generations, even preceding the colonial era. Since 1997, the Election Commission of India has arbitrarily identified a large number of Bengali people as so-called "doubtful or disputed voters", resulting in their further disenfranchisement and the loss of entitlements to social protection as Indian citizens.

While many have affirmed that the updating process is generally committed to retaining Indian citizens on the National Register of Citizens, concerned parties fear that local authorities in Assam, who are deemed to be particularly hostile towards Muslims and people of Bengali descent, may manipulate the verification system in an attempt to exclude many genuine Indian citizens from the updated register."

The special rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance is an independent human rights expert appointed by the UNHRC. The United Nations secretary general's secretariat has sent this report to the UN General Assembly for discussion.

The report also mentioned several other countries like Australia, the United States and Europe where politicians in government have used print and social media to make racist and xenophobic statements that have included promises to adopt policies targeting specific racial, ethnic and religious groups, even when such policies would violate existing laws.
Political channels of dialogue with the United States on Syria should help in finding common ground on settlement in the Arab republic, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday, TASS reports.

"Im satisfied by the fact that we have a very professional channel of communication with the United States between our militaries on problems of the Syrian crisis," Lavrov said during the forum of young diplomats from the Asia-Pacific region, held as part of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF). "Yes, we were invited by Syrias legitimate government, and the US came without invitation. But this is the reality on the ground. We are pragmatic, not dogmatic."

"I assume that the contacts on Syria that we still keep via political channels will help us find mutually acceptable approaches, acceptable first of all from the point of view of the Syrians themselves," he added.

He urged Western nations to team up against the threat of terrorism of extremism instead of using the situation to achieve timeserving goals.

"Right now we are facing the threats of terrorism, drug trafficking, organized crime, and I hope that the understanding of the need to jointly fight this evil will prevail, instead of playing against each other in this or that situation - like in Syria, for example - and to use the threat of extremism to achieve timeserving goals," Russias top diplomat said.

"After Iraq was occupied under a trumped-up pretext, the Islamic State [terrorist organization, outlawed in Russia] emerged there. After Syria was attacked by extremists, supported by regional countries and Western nations, Jabhat al-Nusra [terrorist group, outlawed in Russia], one of the most efficient and evil terrorist groups, came into existence," he said. "Expectations that one may use those people to achieve goals today and control them tomorrow, are nothing but illusion, this will never happen.".
While the Trinamool Congress supremo had made all the preparations for the Chicago visit, the organisers of the event had in a letter in June informed her that the scheduled programme was cancelled.

Belur Math: In an apparent reference to the Narendra Modi government at the Centre, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday described the cancellation of her proposed trip to Chicago as an "unholy conspiracy".

Addressing a gathering at Belur Math, the global headquarters of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission, to mark 125 years of Swami Vivekananda's historic speech at the Parliament of Religion, Chicago, Banerjee expressed disappointment over not being able to commemorate the occasion in the US. "I wanted to go to Chicago... I could not go there because of an unholy conspiracy hatched by certain people," Banerjee said without naming anybody. "This incident has given me a lot of pain," she added.

While the Trinamool Congress supremo had made all the preparations for the Chicago visit, the organisers of the event had in a letter in June informed her that the scheduled programme was cancelled. Banerjee, without taking the prime minister's name, criticised his leadership abilities.

"Everybody can't be a leader. A good leader must learn how to sacrifice. A leader must be dedicated to his or her own country and for the cause of people. Tolerance is essential and Hinduism has taught us this," the chief minister said. "I shall not take any lesson on Hinduism from anyone. I know enough about my own religion. It's a matter of shame when somebody dictates on what to eat, where to stay and what to do," she added.

There should not be anything communal, and everybody should learn to be tolerant and secular for the unity, amity and integrity of the country, Banerjee added.

Meanwhile, the chief minister also announced Rs 1.5 crore for Vivekananda University, and Rs 10 crore for setting up a centre the for excellence of Ramakrishna Math and Mission at New Town.
Father Alfons Aind is also the accused of an incident related to the Kochang gang-rape case, where the abducted women were allegedly forced to drink urine.

Khunti: A local court on Tuesday rejected the bail petition of Father Alfons Aind, who is the accused in two cases of the Kochang gang-rape case, as well as a related incident. The principal district and sessions judge rejected Aind's bail plea, who is the head of a missionary school at Kochang village where five women working with an NGO were allegedly abducted and gang-raped on 19 June.

He is an accused in the gang-rape case, registered with the Women Police Station in Jharkhand's Khunti district. He is also the accused of a related incident of the women's assault after their abduction, where they were allegedly forced to drink urine. The second case was registered with Arki police station in Khunti district.

Earlier, the court of chief judicial magistrate had rejected Aind's bail petition in the cases on 26 June.

Aind was arrested on 23 June, four days after the five women were allegedly raped at gunpoint by a group of at least five men. The women had gone to the Arki police station to create awareness on migration and human trafficking.
A Dalit leader's head was allegedly peeled off by three men from the Gurjar community. The incident took place on 3 September in Mahoba village, about 50 kilometres from here, police said.

Shivpuri: A Dalit leader from a village in Madhya Pradesh's Shivpuri district is battling for life after his scalp was allegedly ripped off with a knife by three men of the Gurjar community, police said on Tuesday.

Sardar Singh Jatav, 45, a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) worker, was scalped because he was wearing a turban, the party has alleged. The incident took place on 3 September in Mahoba village, about 50 kilometres from here, police said. Police registered a case against three persons on Tuesday and is investigating the matter, an official said.

The three men allegedly called Jatav to the residence of Surendra Gurjar, one of those accused, on some pretext. They abused him and then peeled off his scalp using a knife, the official said. "Jatav alleged in his statement that Gurjar and two others removed the skin of his head with a knife," said Narwar police station in-charge Badam Singh Yadav. Jatav was seriously injured in the attack and is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Gwalior, he further said.

No arrests have been made so far and efforts are on to trace the accused, Yadav added. A case of attempt to murder was registered against the three men under relevant sections of the IPC and the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, he said.

Shivpuri district BSP president Dayashankar Gautam claimed on Monday that Jatav was attacked for "wearing a turban". He claimed the accused tied up Jatav, who always wore a blue turban, after he reached Gurjar's residence and thrashed him. They took objection to Jatav wearing the turban.Gautam claimed that the accused allowed Jatav to go after a while.

He alleged that the police initially refused to accept Jatav's complaint against the Gurjars. A delegation of the BSP submitted a memorandum to Shivpuri superintendent of police on Monday.
The much talked-about Delhi University Students Union Elections, which are being fought among four large student parties (or coalition of parties) this year, is underway. The frontline contestants include the 'Left Unity' (a coalition of four left parties), the Dalit-centric Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students' Association (BAPSA), the Congress-affiliated National Students' Union of India (NSUI), and the right-wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

"The battleground may be this campus, but the battle doesn't seem to be about the campus at all. We need to change that," argues 26-year-old Saib Bilaval, one of the two independent candidates for the President's post in this year's students' union elections at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

The much talked-about polls, which are being fought amongst four large student parties (or coalition of parties) this year, will take place on 14 September. The frontline contestants include the 'Left Unity' (a coalition of four left parties), the Dalit-centric Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students' Association (BAPSA), the Congress-affiliated National Students' Union of India (NSUI), and the right-wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

Fighting sectarian campus politics

Saib, who is currently a doctoral scholar of modern Indian history at the university's Centre for Historical Studies (CHS), remains firmly out of the partisan rubric. In terms of the conventional political spectrum, he sits far into the left and vehemently opposes the politics of the Right, particularly the belligerent campus politics of the ABVP, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's (RSS') student wing.

Saib has been in JNU since 2013. He first arrived in CHS as a Masters student, and four years later, submitted an MPhil thesis on the 'propaganda of the Hindu Far Right' in early postcolonial India  an academic background that arguably positions him well to criticise the current political dispensation at the national level.

However, more than the national politics, Saib is most concerned about the "sectarian" and "anti-student" politics practiced by dominant student parties within the campus, who according to him, have collectively kept the focus away from day-to-day issues plaguing the student community.

Between flicking his hair and kicking a post-rock riff on his Carvin TL-60 in his boxy Jhelum Hostel room, he tells me, "JNU's politics is heavily misdirected. Whether Left, Ambedkarite, Centrist, or the Ultra Right or Ultra Left, the mainstream student parties have one foot in national politics and the other in campus. Where is that genuine representation that students here need to address immediate campus-level priorities?"

Saib is confident that he can fill this void as an independent candidate who doesn't have to toe party lines while taking decisions on key issues.

"The common students will be my party," he quips.

But, he also reminds me how he's been persistently pressured to drop out of the Presidential race. In a university where mainstream parties with solid cadre bases and political capital, like the All India Students' Association (AISA), All India Students' Federation (AISF), the Students' Federation of India (SFI), NSUI, and ABVP, have dominated student union elections year after year, the President's post can indeed be a tall summit to scale for an independent candidate.

Yet, Saib, who idolises American social democrat and frontrunner in the last Presidential primaries, Bernie Sanders, is hopeful of making it through as he believes that only a popular agenda like his can restore the original mandate of the students' union i.e. working for student welfare.

Restoring the popular agenda

From installing more street lights in the campus roads to making sure common rooms remain open through the day, Saib's manifesto is replete with agenda points that aim to make a difference in the everyday life of an ordinary student. In that sense, his political blueprint is heavily set around popular agendas that all but appear radical within the prevailing context. The frustration against elitist, high-horse politics by dominant Left parties is palpable.

"JNU students are educated and aware enough to not be patronisingly schooled by parties on how authoritarian or communal or anti-student the ABVP/BJP/RSS is. Voters want their issues addressed," he says.

One key component of Saib's campaign is gender justice. In fact, his first tete-a-tete with electoral campus politics was when he independently contested last year's Gender Sensitisation Committee Against Sexual Harassment (GSCASH) elections as the sole male candidate. This year, Saib hopes to revive the GSCASH, which was replaced by the administration-driven Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) last year September. More importantly, he aims to gender sensitise all party cadres and students.

Saib, who has a penchant for making political memes and has established himself as one of the most-published student commentators in JNU over the past two years, is also unapologetically critical of how dominant student parties have traditionally treated the wider fraternities they claim to represent.

"Parties tend to invisibilise the role of the common student in their movements, so that only their people are tagged as "activists" when election time comes. If we don't ask the common students of JNU for solutions, then our "movement" is fatally flawed," he says.

This is a daunting argument, one that has the potential to challenge the very foundations of JNU's mainstream, traditionalist politics. But, it is also an ambitious brief: for an independent like Saib, negotiating the massive political capital that parties like AISA and SFI enjoy within the campus can be a herculean task.

After all, a fight against the establishment is almost always an implausible battle against Goliath. Saib certainly hopes the story gets the end as we know it.

What is it like to run as an independent for the President's post in an university traditionally dominated by mainstream cadre-based student parties?

It is certainly an uphill task. Big parties often call their senior leaders as their 'star campaigners' on campus. For example, this year, the ABVP invited three sitting Chief Ministers from the northeast to address the students, and the NSUI invited P Chidambaram and Shashi Tharoor. So, of course, its not an equal battle.

Besides, this is a massive campus; it is spread out over a large area. So distributing parchas (pamphlets) and campaigning requires solid manpower, in which the big parties obviously have an advantage.

What does an independent election campaign like yours mean for the campus and the common students?

It means that there is someone who is not ready to stand for the sectarianism of party politics. Whenever a movement comes knocking, the parties begin to bicker amongst themselves, and the students get left behind. People are sick and tired of vested political interests sabotaging movements.

What are your key sources of inspiration in politics?

I have many - Bernie Sanders, Subhadra Joshi, BR Ambedkar, P Sundarayya (leader of the Telangana peasants' struggle). I particularly don't think that there can be any critique of the Indian society and caste system without falling back to Ambedkar's contributions. I even somewhat admire Mani Shankar Aiyar as a minister.

What is the biggest concern for you this election season?

Student unity in the face of a repressive administration.

In the past few years, we have seen that the mainstream parties have been unable to achieve that because most of their priorities are 'national', and not campus-level. We need to ensure unity of common students in the face of any attacks by the administration and thus, reform campus politics as a whole.

Where do you think JNU stands today, particularly with regard to the current political dispensation and narrative?

JNU used to be the main academic centre of Delhi, and now it has become the main political centre of the city in many ways. That's because the media and government chose to label it as the 'anti-national university'; that's because the left still has a bastion here; that's because the sharpest academic and political critiques of the BJP government tend to come from JNU, its alumni, and the larger circle of activism that it fosters.

We have seen some prominent faces emerge from the campus over the past four years. How have they fared in representing the university's interests?

Yes, we have seen several prominent faces using the university as a political launchpad. They ask for votes in the name of opposing fascism and then go ahead to praise the same people they once branded as fascists. These people have conducted national-level politics in the name of campus politics.

While that isn't wrong, since JNU is an university with a strong focus on the social sciences and we are allowed to have bigger ideological debates about national-level politics, you no more remain union leaders if securing tickets for the next Lok Sabha elections and appearing on TV debates is your priority. You are just politicians then.

What do you think is the future of student politics (or student-led politics) in this country?

The future of student politics in this country will be decided by how ordinary students align with student leaders, and not by any party per se. But of course, big parties like the ABVP and NSUI won't fall in this trajectory.

That is because: one, they follow larger political interests (like the orders of the BJP and Congress); and two, the fact that they don't need popular student support as most of their political influencing is achieved through lobbying and lumpenism. So, in fact, these parties will continue to thrive on reducing student participation.

Disclosure: Saib Bilaval has contributed for Firstpost
DUSU election 2018 LIVE updates: It was raining pamphlets in Delhi University, and quite litterally. Both, NSUI and ABVP supporters were seen throwing pamphlets in air at the campus, while SUVs full of election material were parked outside the varsity.

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The elections to the Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) are scheduled for Wednesday, with voting set to begin at 8.30 am and will end at 1.00 pm. The votes will be counted on Thursday (13 September) from 8:30 am at the Community Hall in Police Lines in Delhi's Kingsway Camp area.

The DUSU elections is a triangular contest this year, with the entry of the alliance of the All India Students' Association (AISA) and the Aam Aadmi Party's student wing, Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS). The alliance is expected to divide the votes that may have gone in favour of either of the two major student bodies  the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the National Students' Union of India (NSUI).

The night before polls, the Congress put out a tweet calling BJP-backed ABVP members goons, whereas the ABVP urged its voters to vote for a new dawn.

The Delhi University student body polls are never contested lightly: stakes are usually high and the campaigns, bitter. This time too, the round of campaigning involved candidates reaching out to current students and alumni with their poll pitch, while was also a common phenomenon.

In this year's DUSU polls, issues of infrastructure are repeatedly raised  like more hostels, metro passes, 24x7 libraries, subsidised food and laws against caste and gender discrimination in party manifestos. However, several key issues like the non-representation of research scholars in the polling process and women's representation in the student body, funding and autonomy of university remained missing from the discourse.

Another community which is isolated from the election scene comprises of students from the North East. Students point out that nobody questions the fact that why is Hindi is a qualifying subject when students from the North East arent familiar with it.

At Delhi University (DU), the romance of politics precedes the purpose of politics. The reason for this is two-fold. Firstly, student parties at DU align their agendas with those of national politics, and in the process of doing that, stop innovating and discovering the lesser visible problems within their own campus. Just like the elections at national stage, student politics at DU seems vote-bank driven. Research scholars, whose numbers are around 5,000, are left out of the polling process.

Voting is set to begin at 8:30 am, with heavy security at Zakir Husain Delhi College and around the main University campus to conduct peaceful elections. Around 100 police personnels deployed.

Last year, as many as 29,765 students used the None of the Above (NOTA) option, a 12,000 increase in NOTA votes over the previous year. The massive increase in the vote share of NOTA indicates what the common DU students think of the acrimonious campaigning and the student leaders, backed by various national political parties.

Abhigyan, a first year student from Ramjhas College who is from Jaipur, Rajasthan chose AISA when he came to Delhi. He talks about CYSS-AISA alliance. And also why he chose AISA.

Watch: An AISA-CYSS supporters talks about why he chose to support the alliance

The Delhi Police have placed barricade at the entrance of the college road. Only students and election officials are being allowed to enter. These arrangements have been made in view of peaceful completion of the polling exercise. On Tuesday, the last day of election campaign, violence had broken out at the Zakir Hussain College in which some female students were also injured.

The violent incident at Delhi Universitys Zakir Husain Post-Graduate Evening College during Delhi University Student Union (DUSU) Election 2018 campaign is unfortunate and should be condemned in all possible ways. This incident has not only caused a good amount of damage to college property but many students including female got injured in college premises and many got terrified, who may rethink about their participation in such collective democratic endeavour.

Mohd. Saddam, who is a presidential candidate for Zakir Husain Delhi College, student union elections speaks on the violence that broke out on college campus on Monday.

The voting has started at the Delhi University and affiliated colleges for the student body polls. The polling will continue until 1.00 pm today, and the counting will take place on 13 September.

Here's a list of candidates along with their ballot numbers and the post they are contesting for. Students are advised to carry their university ID cards which are to be reproduced before the polling officers, before anyone can caste their votes.

Ramanjot Anand of Moti Lal Nehru College says the NSUI has worked for the students in its last tenure. He says that the party has ensured 24x7 access to library in North Campus and has also worked for the safety and security of female students

Ramanjot Anand of Moti Lal Nehru College says that strong security measures have been imployed this time to rule out the possibility of foul play in student body polls. First two candidates were called up as witness to confirm that zero votes had been cast, and the witnesses were also made to sign an affidavit to that effect. This move is appreciated by students as it rules out doubts that EVM machines have been altered.

As many as 1.35 lakh students will decide the fate of 23 candidates in the Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) polls on Wednesday. Five candidates each are in fray for the post of DUSU president, vice-president and joint-secretary, whereas eight candidates are contesting for the post of secretary.

After the AAP came to power in Delhi in February 2015, its students wing had unsuccessfully contested the DUSU polls. It has promised to ensure installation of CCTV cameras, setting up of police booths on campus, ending the "culture of hooliganism" and opposing commercialisation of education.

The Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) student wing, the Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS), and left-wing students' outfit All India Students Association (AISA) are jointly contesting the DUSU polls.

While the National Students' Union of India (NSUI) has promised the "Institute of Eminence" tag for Delhi University and thalis for Rs 10, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has promised to spend 50 per cent of the union's budget on women and social justice-related activities, along with a special attention to promoting sports and installing sanitary pad vending machines on college campuses.

From subsidised food, to promotion of sports, agendas that ruled the DUSU poll campaign this year

According to PTI, around 700 electronic voting machines (EVMs) have been installed at 52 centres to conduct the polling. Over 100 policemen have been deployed to oversee the election process. The polling in the morning colleges will be held between 8 am and 1 pm, while in evening colleges, it will commence at 3 pm and end at 7.30 pm.

Lola Gaidhane, of the Motilal Nehru College, acknowledges that some of the candidates are handing out freebies and gift coupons to convincevoters. She says a friend her was given a voucher for an amusement park by an independent candidate in order to influence her to vote in favour of him.

Lola Gaidhane of the Motilal Nehru College would be voting in favour of NSUI. She says the violence that ABVP created last year in North Campus should not happen again. She said that one of her friends was also harassed by the ABVP activists and claims that the outgoing NSUI president and vice-president had worked a lot for the welfare of the students.

Condition outside Zakir Hussain College remained tensed, even as polling continued without any disruptions. According to some reports, some NSUI supporters who were not from the university gathered are around the college and started throwing pamphlets. As the news spread, a large number of ABVP supporters also gathered around the college. The candidates said that the mob of outsiders can cause harm and disrupt piece.

Former BJP MLA from RK Puram, Anil Sharma has come in support of the ABVP panel. He said that he has come to make sure that elections are conducted peacefully and in a fair manner.

Women constables of the Delhi Police have been deployed outside the South Campus to control any situation that may involve tackling a crowd of female students.

While the official campaigning had ended on Monday, ABVP supporters aboard SUVs were seen scaling the roads outside the Delhi University. They were distributing pamphlets of the ABVP panel.

Meanwhile, a comic irony in this situation was that one of the children was wearing a ABVP candidate's t-shirt and distributing NSUI pamphlets and manifestos.

Children from nearby slums were being employed near the North Campus to influence voters and distribute pamphlets in exchange of money. They were found distributing NSUI Pamphlets. When asked to come on camera, the children either refused or demanded money.

The Delhi Police has issued an advisory stating that strict action will be taken against all those who are found influencing voters in an anlawful way. Any appeals made in the name of caste or any gesture that may hurt feelings of any community will be dealt with seriously by law.

Police conducted an inspection around the North Campus of the Delhi University after reports surfaced that outsiders are canvassing for candidates in the student polls. The police dispersed the crowd that consisted of people from outside the university. The and could be seen checking people sitting in parked cars around the campus as well. They also collected pamphlets and election material from these people.

Both NSUI and ABVP were heard canvassing on the issue of women's security on campus. However, the representation of women in student's body continues to be low. This time too, out of the 23 candidates, only five are women. Preeti Chauhan of the Indian National Students' organisation is the only woman nominated for the post of DUSU president this year.

Kunal Ahlawat, who passed out from College of Vocational Studies, said that this year the turnout has been very low. He blamed it on the violence created by ABVP last year in Ramjas College and the scuffle reported on Monday in Zakir Hussain college.

Chandramani Dev, a Law Center-II Second Year student who is contesting for General Secretary post reports an incident at Aditi Mahavidyalay and said such incidents of campus violence create tension and fear among students due to which less students turn up for voting.

Ankiv Baisoya, presedential candidate for the post of president from ABVP, says he is confident that ABVP will win the elections. He also said that the violence that occurred on Monday was due to the fault of NSUI. "Their supporters stopped ABVP candidates from entering the college due to which violence broke out," he said.

Deepak Chauhan, a third year BSc student at Ramjas College, says that the violence that erupted during Umar Khalid's event at his college has led to a disenchantment with DUSU politics. Students are more interested in college elections because there's a connect with the candidate and the issues are more focused.

All India Students Federation, President, Syed Valiullah Khadri said, low vote rate could favour left unity (AISF and SFI) in DUSU polls, it could be a game changer for major contenders.

These polls persistent with previous ones in wastage of paper, say students

Pinjra Tod, a women-oriented student's group pointed out that hardly 5 of 17 women's college participate in the Delhi University polls. Besides, this year, only five of 23 candidates this year were female, none contending for the top position.

Even as polls in Delhi University are fought on women's issues  from security on campus to installation of sanitary pad vending machines  the representation of women remains dismal.

"Voting Percentage of Zakir Hussain Delhi College increased this year because of increased in-take of first year students. Also, girls turned up more than boys", HOD English Department Abdul Hameed said.

Also, we are hoping voting percentage will gain momentum in second half and reasons of low rate vote are still unknown, said Monika Chaudhary.

ABVP media convenor, Monika Chaudhary has stated that voting rate has declined in some colleges of Delhi University like CMC and Miranda house, but on the other hand voting rate was much higher in Law Faculty, which would compensate the whole equation.

A Kashmiri student made history in the campus by winning the post of President in College of Vocational Studies, Delhi University. This will definitely boost the morale of other Kashmiri students.

Deepak Chauhan, a third year BSc student at Ramjas College, says that the violence that erupted during Umar Khalid's event at his college has led to a disenchantment with DUSU politics. Students are more interested in college elections because there's a connect with the candidate and the issues are more focused.

All India Students Federation, President, Syed Valiullah Khadri said, low vote rate could favour left unity (AISF and SFI) in DUSU polls, it could be a game changer for major contenders.

These polls persistent with previous ones in wastage of paper, say students

This exclusion is glorified by the administration & often even agreed to by many students given the hostile nature of the dominant representation of #DUSU politics.What it does though is further isolate students & on the other hand make DUSU unaccountable towards them. #DUSU2018

Pinjra Tod, a women-oriented student's group pointed out that hardly 5 of 17 women's college participate in the Delhi University polls. Besides, this year, only five of 23 candidates this year were female, none contending for the top position.

Even as polls in Delhi University are fought on women's issues  from security on campus to installation of sanitary pad vending machines  the representation of women remains dismal.

"Voting Percentage of Zakir Hussain Delhi College increased this year because of increased in-take of first year students. Also, girls turned up more than boys", HOD English Department Abdul Hameed said.

Also, we are hoping voting percentage will gain momentum in second half and reasons of low rate vote are still unknown, said Monika Chaudhary.

ABVP media convenor, Monika Chaudhary has stated that voting rate has declined in some colleges of Delhi University like CMC and Miranda house, but on the other hand voting rate was much higher in Law Faculty, which would compensate the whole equation.

A Kashmiri student made history in the campus by winning the post of President in College of Vocational Studies, Delhi University. This will definitely boost the morale of other Kashmiri students.

DUSU election 2018 LATEST updates: It was raining pamphlets in Delhi University, and quite litterally. Both, NSUI and ABVP supporters were seen throwing pamphlets in air at the campus, while SUVs full of election material were parked outside the varsity.

Deepak Chauhan, a third year BSc student at Ramjas College, says that the violence that erupted during Umar Khalid's event at his college has led to a disenchantment with DUSU politics. Students are more interested in college elections because there's a connect with the candidate and the issues are more focused.

One of the students said that this year the turnout has been very low. He blamed it on the violence created by ABVP last year in Ramjas College and the scuffle reported on Monday in Zakir Hussain college.

The 'nationalist ABVP' has promised to fight for NSS, NCC and Yoga to be introduced as electives, apart from campaigning for a similar fees structure for the same course across colleges. The party also promises to build a wall of heroes, featuring martyrs of the nation.

Police could be seen conducting a checki around the North Campus of the Delhi University. The police dispersed the crowd that consisted of people from outside the university.

Children from nearby slums were being employed near the North Campus to influence voters and distribute pamphlets in exchange of money. They were found distributing NSUI Pamphlets.

Condition outside Zakir Hussain College remained tensed, even as polling continued without any disruptions. According to some reports, some NSUI supporters who were not from the university gathered are around the college and started throwing pamphlets. As the news spread, a large number of ABVP supporters also gathered around the college. The candidates said that the mob of outsiders can cause harm and disrupt piece

Ramanjot Anand of Moti Lal Nehru College says that strong security measures have been imployed this time to rule out the possibility of foul play in student body polls. Around 700 electronic voting machines (EVMs) have been installed at 52 centres to conduct the polling. Over 100 policemen have been deployed to oversee the election process.

The voting has started at the Delhi University and affiliated colleges for the student body polls. The polling will continue until 1.00 pm today, and the counting will take place on 13 September.

In this year's DUSU polls, issues of infrastructure are repeatedly raised  like more hostels, metro passes, 24x7 libraries, subsidised food and laws against caste and gender discrimination in party manifestos. However, several key issues like the non-representation of research scholars in the polling process and women's representation in the student body, funding and autonomy of university remained missing from the discourse.

The elections to the Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) are scheduled for Wednesday, with voting set to begin at 8.30 am and will end at 1.00 pm. The votes will be counted on Thursday (13 September) from 8:30 am at the Community Hall in Police Lines in Delhi's Kingsway Camp area.

As many as 1.35 lakh students will decide the fate of 23 candidates in the Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) polls on Wednesday.

While the National Students' Union of India (NSUI) has promised the "Institute of Eminence" tag for Delhi University and thalis for Rs 10, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has promised to spend 50 percent of the union's budget on women and social justice-related activities, along with a special attention to promoting sports and installing sanitary pad vending machines on college campuses.

The Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) student wing, the Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS), and left-wing students' outfit All India Students Association (AISA) are jointly contesting the DUSU polls.

After the AAP came to power in Delhi in February 2015, its students wing had unsuccessfully contested the DUSU polls. It has promised to ensure installation of CCTV cameras, setting up of police booths on campus, ending the "culture of hooliganism" and opposing commercialisation of education.

Around 700 electronic voting machines (EVMs) have been installed in 52 centres. The polling in the morning colleges will commence at 8 am and end at 1 pm, while in evening colleges, it will be held between 3 pm and 7.30 pm.

The results will be announced on 13 September. In 2017, the polls saw a 43 percent voter turnout.
One in three married Indian women in the 15-49 age group resorts to sterilisation, often in areas where facilities are scarce and risk to their health high.

A dozen women are sitting on the floor. Some of them are teenage mothers with young ones on their laps. Others are matriarchs of their families who will make decisions on behalf of their young daughters-in-law.

They are all in a two-room village at a health sub-centre in the Rama Kheda Kalan village in southern Madhya Pradesh. 5,000 people rely on this sub-centre for basic healthcare in this tribal area of Burhanpur district. There is no doctor or a nurse. There is one Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) worker who is responsible for delivering healthcare schemes of the government. Today she is advising the women about the benefits of the operation.

It can be done this Monday if you agree. You will get money from the government too, she informs them. It is not just important to give birth to the children but one also has to give them a good quality of life, she counsels.

Many heads nod.

According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) data, close to half of the married women in rural Burhanpur in the age group of 15-49 have undergone female sterilisation. The percentage for men: zero.

Across the country, one in three married women between 15 and 49 years of age will undergo a sterilisation while only 0.3 percent of men will undergo a vasectomy.

When gone wrong, female sterilisation is an operation that can lead to complications like ectopic pregnancy (fertilisation outside the uterus) and in some cases, even death. It needs a sterilised environment and competent health workers  both of which tribal areas like that of Burhanpur lack.

In fact, India has one of the highest rates of female sterilisations in the world according to a United Nations report published in 2015. The report adds that while as a trend it is not something to be worried about if women are substituting more effective methods for lesser ones, it is important that they get information about the different options depending on their needs.

Women also suffer due to the poor quality of care during the procedure. It is not just about mortality post the procedure but many also see a rise in morbidity. They could have life-long gynecological problems or even mental health issues emerging from the experience, explains Alok Vajpeyi, head of knowledge management at Population Foundation of India, an NGO that works to address issues like family planning, maternal and child health, among others.

Women normally get a tubectomy done following a delivery, especially when the desire for the male child has been met, explained Kavya P, SBI Youth for India fellow working in tribal Burhanpur on maternal health. Post the operation though, women go back to rigorous household work or working in the fields. They lose weight, complain of headaches and are constantly tired, she said. Low hemoglobin is another common complaint.

What about the men's role in family planning?

Only 4 percent of married women in the 15-49 age group turns to pills for family planning and 5.6 percent turn to condom, apart from the 36 percent who opt for female sterilisation.

Over half the population does not use any modern method of contraception.

Whats more, a vasectomy procedure costs less, can be done under local anesthesia and almost never causes death.

We ran a campaign to push the number of vasectomies up in the region but we did not get any response for it, said Sachin Lad, block programme manager for Khaknar area of Burhanpur.

The officials acknowledge that it is not fair to the women but in tribal areas, they point out, if the women keep getting pregnant it is worse for their health. Annually, of every 1,00,000 live births, 173 women will die in Madhya Pradesh. The average maternal mortality for India stands at 130, an improvement from 254 a decade back.

And so, despite the risks, sterilisation is pushed because men would not come forward to get a vasectomy done  a much simpler, almost risk-free procedure.

The cash incentive for women and men differ too. While women get Rs 3,000 for a tubectomy, the men will be given Rs 2,000 post a vasectomy procedure.

India has been at the receiving end of criticism for running a family planning programme that interacts very little with men. This despite the fact that men often decide when to have sex and the family size, something international human rights organisation Human Rights Watch has been drawing attention to for years.

There is not much contribution as far as the male engagement concerned. It is always women who have to be bothered about family planning in the country, added Vajpeyi.
The Madras High Court on Wednesday directed the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption to file a report on the day-to-day preliminary investigation conducted by it against Chief Minister K Palaniswami.

Chennai: The Madras High Court on Wednesday directed the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption to file a report on the day-to-day preliminary investigation conducted by it against Chief Minister K Palaniswami on a corruption complaint filed against him in award of contracts.

It asked the state government whether DVAV officials have concluded that no offence was made out in the corruption plaint filed by DMK organising secretary and Rajya Sabha MP RS Bharathi.

Passing an interim order, Justice AD Jagadish Chandira directed the DVAC to file the comprehensive report on the day-to-day preliminary investigation conducted by it.

"So, your officers have come to the conclusion that there is no cognizable offence made out," the judge asked while hearing the matter.

"Let the report be filed in a sealed cover and also explain why the complainant has not been inquired by the investigating officer," Justice Jagadish Chandira said.

The judge passed the interim order on the plea by Bharathi who alleged that Palaniswami had abused his power and allotted highway projects worth Rs 3,500 crore to his relatives and 'benamis'.

Bharathi wanted the court to direct the DVAC to conduct a preliminary inquiry and register an FIR.

On Tuesday, the DMK leader moved an additional plea seeking to transfer the probe to an independent investigating team, since DVAC was technically under the chief minister.

When the plea came up on Wednesday, senior counsel for petitioner NR Elango submitted that the cost of projects that would ordinarily not exceed Rs 8 to 10 crore has escalated to Rs 21 crore and above.

Citing a manual of the World Bank for projects funded by it, Elango said according to the document "the tender issuing authorities should not have any conflict of interest with the firms to which such contracts are awarded".

Refuting the allegation, advocate general Vijay Narayan submitted that the chief ministers son got married to the daughter of one such contractor only in 2014. But the contractor is in the business since 1991.

"In view of such marriage they cannot become ineligible to get such contracts," Narayan contended.

When the judge raised a specific allegation of crony capitalism and "what kind of investigation has been done on the allegations of cost escalation? the DVAC refuted it.

"There is no enhancement of cost at all. These are all 'annuity contract' projects completely monitored by the World Bank. At this stage court must only see whether process of law is followed," Narayan said.

Technically, the plea has become infructuous since DVAC has completed the preliminary investigation and forwarded its report to the Vigilance Commissioner, Narayan submitted.

When the judge asked if the DVAC officers have come to a conclusion that no offence was made out, he said a report has been sent to the commissioner based on the inquiry.

"The commissioner can reject the report or direct us to proceed further. It is up to the commissioner."

The judge posted the plea to 17 September for further hearing.
Hardik Patel broke the fast by having lemonade from the hands of Patidar community leaders Naresh Patel and CK Patel.

Ahmedabad: Quota spearhead Hardik Patel ended his indefinite fast on Wednesday after 19 days, even as there were no talks between him and the Gujarat government over the leader's demands for reservation to Patidars and farm loan waiver.

Hardik broke the fast by having lemonade from the hands of Patidar community leaders Naresh Patel and CK Patel. After ending his fast, the quota leader said, "The fight for quota for my community and farm loan waiver will continue".

Hardik had begun his indefinite hunger strike on 25 August at his residence near Ahemdabad, demanding reservation for Patidars under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category and loan waiver for Gujarat farmers. Later, a demand for release of his aide Alpesh Katheria, who was arrested on charges of sedition, was also added.

The 25-year-old quota agitation leader was admitted to a hospital after his health deteriorated last Friday - the 14th day of his fast. After spending two days in hospital, he had returned to his house and continued the hunger strike. While he had started taking liquids and was administered glucose at the hospital, the Patidar leader claimed he did not take any solid food during the fast.

On 4 September, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Gujarat government had reacted to the agitation and claimed that Hardik's quota movement was a "politically-motivated" agitation with the backing of the Congress. State Energy Minister Saurabh Patel had then said that the government's door were open for talks, but no negotiations were held.
Many believe that the fundamental role of the State is to administer the rule of law -- the principle that laws, and not people, should govern a society.

By 11 September 2018, Bihar had seen six lynchings in five days, only adding to the number of lynchings which have come to the forefront of national issues.

Speaking to Asian News International (ANI), a kin of one of the victims from Bihar said, What kind of law is it to beat someone to death just because you think he is [a] criminal? People are being killed on roads now, people are losing faith in [the] judiciary.

In India, procedural justice isnt always the favoured route and a part of the reason is the lack of faith in civil and criminal justice systems.

The resolution of disputes in a fair, efficient and reasonably quick manner and through an open process is critical to the functioning of a society, says Harish Narasappa, the founding partner of the law firm, Samvad Partners, headquartered in Bengaluru.

But the lack of faith in the justice system is just one side of the argument. Such instances of lynching also point directly at the failure of the State in enforcing the rule of law and noting the same. Narasappa says, The core of the law is in ensuring that liberties are protected and those who violate such liberties are punished and the State, either by keeping quiet or by tacitly encouraging certain groups, is causing an erosion of the rule of law.

Narasappa also wrote a book titled Rule of Law in India - A Quest for Reason which traverses topics of society and politics and addresses the dichotomy in the rule of law in India where the framework of law and institutions exist on paper but suffers from dysfunction owing to lack of efficient systems and processes.

What is the rule of law and how does it figure in the Indian context?

Many believe that the fundamental role of the State is to administer the rule of law -- the principle that laws, and not people, should govern a society. In India, however, the rule of law is marred by systematic inefficiencies.

On 31 January, 2018 the World Justice Project (WJP), an independent organisation which works towards advancing the rule of law across the globe, published the Rule of law Index 2017-18. Factoring in eight components: constraints on government powers, the absence of corruption, open government, fundamental rights, order and security, regulatory enforcement, civil justice, and criminal justice, the index measured country-wise adherence to the law of the land.

Overall, India ranked midway at 62, on the list of 113 countries.

On analysing each of the factors listed on the rule of law Index individually, we see that the ranks which drag down the average and highlight causes for concern are on scales of order and security and civil justice where India stands at 98 and 97, respectively. The scale of order and security measures the prevalence of civil conflict and common crimes and tracks the realisation of the rights and freedoms that the rule of law seeks to advance; civil justice refers to the reach of civil courts and the access to legal representation.

The system exists but it doesnt function well, so I suppose we could say that our country is middling on the scale of rule of law since we are neither a completely lawless country nor are we a shining example of the rule of law, Harish says.

The extrajudicial status of the Indian economy is also evident in the manner in which businesses function in India.

Bharadwaj Sheshadri, a practising chartered accountant and a student of law, says, India largely operates extra-legally. Even in business circles, the sanctity of contracts depends not on the strength of the contract itself, but on the strength of the relationship between the contracting parties.

"Trust and comfort between contracting parties definitely play a significant role while entering into transactions with each other," says Priyadarshini, a former partner of a law firm and an independent legal consultant.

"Obviously, the goal is to draft contracts carefully, clearly lay out rights and liabilities of parties in order to reduce dispute situations as much as possible," she adds.

Judicial reforms to tackle delays and more clarity in laws and policies are definitely the need of the hour, she continues, referring to the cases of Vodafone and Tata Docomo and the controversy surrounding certain provisions of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act as examples. While certain steps have been taken, she stresses a lot more needs be done to improve the faith of contracting parties in the ability of our legal system to enforce contracts and deliver timely judgments.

Indian law, in its present form, is a relatively new phenomenon. While ties such as religion, community and language have been in place for ages. Loyalty to Indian law, therefore, is overshadowed by loyalty to traditional ties. Even an officer of the law is first examined for his or her origins rather than the rank accorded by law, says Aparna Krishna, a lawyer and a presently a student at NMIMS, Mumbai.

The reasoning which draws from values  or lack thereof  of interpersonal relationships also holds good when seen in light of the traction which mediation processes have been gaining of late and the legislative impetus provided to the same by including mediations processes in the Companies Act, the Consumer Protection Bill and the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act.

The flip-side of that coin is that even as India climbs up the ease of doing business ranking, the one sub-index on which its performance is poor, is the enforcement of contracts index where it is ranked 164, Sheshadri adds.

India for the first time moved into the top 100 in the World Banks Ease of Doing Business global rankings on the back of sustained business reforms over the past several years the World Bank noted in a report titled India Jumps Doing Business Rankings with Sustained Reform Focus. The report, however, went on to add While there has been substantial progress, India still lags in areas such as Starting a Business, Enforcing Contracts, and Dealing with Construction Permits. In fact, the time taken to enforce a contract is longer today, at 1,445 days, than it was 15 years ago (1,420 days), placing the country in 164th place in the global ranking on the Enforcing Contracts indicator.

The report by the World Bank on ease of doing business is a sign that businesses in India are not stifled by red tape. However, it also shows that while the economy is doing well, it is probably doing so by working outside the law and this again corroborates the low-ranking on the civil justice sub-index detailed in the Rule of Law Index 2017-18.
Kashmiri journalist Asif Sultan has been charged by the local police with harbouring militants months after he wrote a story in a local magazine Kashmir Narrator about Burhan Wani

He was wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the message "journalism is not a crime". Bearded and donning a skull cap, a policeman led him away in handcuffs after he was produced before a local court. Kashmiri journalist Asif Sultan has been charged by the local police with harbouring militants months after he wrote a story in a local magazine Kashmir Narrator about how Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani inspired hundreds of youths into militancy, after speaking with his associates.

Asif worked as an assistant editor with Kashmir Narrator and wrote a widely-acclaimed piece on Burhan, whose death led to months of protests in Kashmir and forced Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to reach out to the separatists this year. The police said it had the evidence to link the scribe with the militants.

Editor of Kashmir Narrator Showkat Ahmad Motta questioned the timing of the raids. "It came only after we published the report on Burhan. We have applied for bail with the district court and the state has been asked to file objections to our application and we are contesting the charges that have been levelled by the police," said Motta. The report on Burhan headlined 'The Rise of Burhan' appeared in the magazine on 1 July, nearly two years after the death of militant that had spurred an agitation and saw people hitting the streets in the thousands in protest. The forces had launched a massive crackdown in the months after the killing and turned to the heavy use of pellet guns and bullets on protesters in a move that also drew international reprobation.

But it was the first time in Kashmir that any journalist quoted the associates of Burhan. Asif had talked to the overground workers (OGWs) of the militant, to write the story  all previous reports about the militant were based on police revelations and accounts of his friends and family members. Journalists in Kashmir have been protesting the arrest of Asif and see it as "an assault" on the press. The police however didn't bring on record that Asif was arrested for the story and said that it had evidence about his links with militants.

Police officials said they have recovered "incriminating" materials from Asif, but have not disclosed what they meant by "incriminating".

Deputy Inspector-General of Police Vidhi Kumar Birdi said that the matter is under investigation, but added that the police have the concrete evidence about Asifs involvement. He however didnt disclose the nature of evidence. Motta said that Asif has been "booked in the same case that was registered in an encounter at Batamaloo earlier". On 12 August, one policeman was killed and four members of CRPF personnel were injured in an encounter with militants who managed to escape from the cordon in Batamaloo.

"The encounter in which Asif has been implicated took place nearly a kilometre from our home," said Mohammad Sultan, Asifs father, and a retired government employee. Recounting the arrest of his son, he said that he and his other family members were alerted by the loud roar of vehicles outside his house and policemen pounded on his door after they had climbed the main gate on 27 August. As they unbolted the door, Sultan and Asif were confronted by police and paramilitary personnel.

"It was at around 11.15 pm that the forces began the searches. They searched our wardrobes and left only after 1.45 am. There were around 50 members of police and paramilitary force personnel and we were terrified," said Sultan, who was puzzled at the manner of his son's detention. "Our neighbours didn't dare venture out of their homes. We were terrified as well. The forces carried out searches in Asifs reading room and also took away his laptop and mobile phone," he added.

Asif is now in jail and the police at first, declined to disclose the charges, so that the family could not have mounted a legal defence, added Sultan. Motta said that since the case was an assault on his magazine, he will also be petitioning the high court about the treatment that was meted out to his reporter. "He was hounded and led away in handcuffs which is in violation of Supreme Court guidelines. We will file a case over it,: he said.

Sultan said that police has no evidence against his son and it is claiming the recovery of international magazines and Asifs cell phone and that of his wife and brother, besides a laptop as incriminating evidence. About the police charge of Asif harbouring militants, Sultan said, "It only betrays the machinations of the cruel and brutal regime that is in place in Kashmir... The police even seized his brother's mobile phone."

Spokesperson of the Kashmir Journalist Association (KJA), Manzoor-ul-Hassan said that the arrest of Asif shows that the "authorities want journalists to be handcuffed and muzzled". On Monday, he along with scores of other scribes protested in Srinagar's Press Enclave seeking Asif's release.

An elected body of Kashmiri newspaper editors, Kashmir Editors Guild, earlier put the blame on Governor Satya Pal Malik. It said in a statement that "freedom of speech cannot be suspended even if the Legislative Assembly is in suspended animation". The guild also took offence to the notices being issued by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to some newspaper editors asking them to explain the reporting of their staff.
Russia, Iran and Turkey are planning to convene an international conference on the return of Syrian refugees, Russias Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said at a UN Security Council meeting dedicated to the results of the September 7 summit of the three nations leader in Teheran, TASS reports.

"A major item on the summits agenda was discussion of efforts to facilitate the return of Syrian refugees and internally displaced persons. We are convinced that an international conference Russia, Iran and Turkey are planning to convene will make a big contribution to these efforts," he said, adding that the Syrian government has guaranteed security to returning refugees.

"One of the major results of the Teheran summit is that its participants unanimously recognized the efficiency and topicality of the Astana format," he said. "Russia, Iran and Turkey have demonstrated, not on paper but in real life, that they can find compromise solutions in the most difficult situations. It was agreed in Teheran that such joint efforts will be continued and expanded on a wide range of Syria-related problems."
For mainstream parties in general, their once vote banks are now oppositions -- not just that, but protesters.

With two major political parties of Jammu and Kashmir  National Conference (NC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)  announcing a boycott of the upcoming panchayat and Urban Local Body elections, the message being sent out is that the situation in Kashmir has slipped into chaos. Moreover, the political instability will be exacerbated as the militancy has already grown deep roots among the general masses.

The reason given by both the parties is the ongoing court case over the possible revocation of Article 35A, which gives special status to the state subjects. But taking a look at developments in the region, the main reason is that the space for mainstream politics, especially in the Valley, has eroded since the 2016 civilian uprising. For the PDP, which was in power with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) till last June, its very own bastion of South Kashmir has turned into its main opposition.

In the past two years, mainstream political leaders and activists have not been able to visit the South, with many of them not even visiting their homes. During the PDP-BJP rule, over 300 civilians and more than 450 militants were killed, and "Operation All Out" was also launched last year. The coalition government couldnt even hold the Lok Sabha elections for its vacant Anantnag seat, where the PDP created an example of nepotism by fielding Tassaduq Mufti, brother of the then chief minister Mehbooba Mufti. These are the blots on the political fabric of the PDP, which used to take pride in its support from the South.

For mainstream parties in general, their once vote banks are now oppositions -- not just that, but protesters. It is this change in the past two years that has led both parties to boycott elections, follow the Hurriyat policy, and prove mainstream politics has lost the war in Kashmir.

Boycotting elections over Article 35A

On 5 September, 2018, the National Conference vice-president and former chief minister, Omar Abdullah said that the Centre was using the upcoming elections as a tactic to delay the proceedings in the court over Article 35A. "It is now for the Central government to clarify where it stands with regard to Article 35A. It's not enough to use panchayat and municipal elections simply to delay proceedings in court, Abdullah had tweeted.

However, on the ground, the political picture indicates an entirely different reality. Even if the NC cited Article 35A as the reason for boycott, the truth is for political parties across ideologies, there is a very limited space left for propagating the idea of "Jammu and Kashmir as an integral part of India", which they have always guarded and strengthened.

Following up on their rivals, the PDP a few days later passed a resolution, deciding to stay away from the elections. It wasn't surprising for anyone as the PDP has lost its ground heavily. It will take them time and rigorous policy shift to get back to normality on their own scale.

In the resolution, the PDP said, It was felt that any attempt to impose any electoral exercise in the current atmosphere of fear and apprehension would erode the credibility of the process and intuitions. It would defeat the very purpose of it."

Even though on paper the party gave Article 35A as the primary reason for boycotting the polls but from the atmosphere of fear that the PDP has referred to, it is clear that it is actually the fear of losing the polls is what the party is truly worried about. It is the response they got after being thrown out of the coalition government by the BJP that has shaken the party's confidence. People are not only angry but they want revenge against the party for being in power when people were either being killed or blinded. The PDP, while in power, only proved they want to be in power at the cost of peoples lives. The party's approach was quite similar to what the NC had done in the late 90s.

The ever-strengthening militancy in Kashmir

When the armed militancy was at its peak, but slowly getting weaker by infighting and alleged human rights violations by the troops in mid-90s, it was Farooq Abdullah who was brought back to active politics. The idea was to make NC fight 1996 elections and get back the control. The main force that brought Farooq back as chief minister was Ikhwaan or counter-insurgents  he even rewarded some by making them members of the Assembly.

The return of Farooq, with the bloodied help of Ikhwaan, costed lives of pro-freedom people. Today, Kashmir is back almost at the same square where elections are a strategy to get back lost control and space in the Valley. If Omar had Ikhwaan he may not have called for the boycott or even if PDP had some backdoor help (like in 2002) they may have too not boycotted. But the situation has changed to an extent where none of the wildcards is left anymore.

A Jammu and Kashmir Police report last August revealed that 327 militants are active, among which 211 are locals and 116 are foreigners. The report noted that 166 local militants are active in four districts of South Kashmir only.

There is no doubt about the changing situation in the Valley as one gets a sense clearly from the recent abduction of relatives of policemen in southern districts, which resulted in the transfer of Director General of Police SP Vaid. For political workers, the sense of urgency has been lost and parties can hardly go to campaign today. This scenario has developed two things: one that the mainstream politics has been brought to a halt and that the situation will likely go from bad to worse if the elections are held.

The author is editor of The Kashmir Walla. He tweets @pzfahad
The Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) will send a team to New Delhi to brief the party leadership on the issue, Congress state unit president GA Mir said at a press conference here. He said the team of senior state leaders will also hold deliberations on whether to participate in the polls.

Srinagar: The Congress's Jammu and Kashmir unit Wednesday accused the Centre and the state government of creating "uncertainty" over the panchayat and local bodies polls, saying it will decide on participation once the "confusing" is cleared. The elections in the state are scheduled to be held from next month.

The Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) will send a team to New Delhi to brief the party leadership on the issue, Congress state unit president GA Mir said at a press conference here. He said the team of senior state leaders will also hold deliberations on whether to participate in the polls.

"There is a lot of confusion over the issue of conduct of these elections. Both the Centre and the state government have created the confusion. There is no clarity on part of both of them. "The stand of the state government on the issue seems to be fluctuating with every passing hour," he said.

Mir said the party had raised certain questions on the issue when it met Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik and it seemed the government was only testing waters and not serious on the issue. We have called on the governor twice in the last 10 days. Yesterday, also we met him. We had raised certain question on the preparations for these polls, but the concerns have not been addressed. The polls were announced without taking anyone onboard. It seems that the government is only testing the waters, he said.

The JKPCC president said the party is minutely watching the situation and wants the Centre and the state government to clear their stand on whether to conduct these polls or not. They have themselves created an uncertainty here. We want them to clear the confusion and come out with their stand on whether to conduct the polls or not.

"The state administration should put up a credible person before the people and ensure them that it is ready for the polls. Once the confusion is cleared, the Congress party will take a decision on whether to participate," he said. On whether the situation was conducive or not for conducting the polls, Mir said, Even a blind person will tell you that the situation is not fit for elections in Jammu and Kashmir right now.

To a question of the announcement of boycott of the polls by the the National Conference and the PDP over the issue of legal challenge to the Constitution's Article 35A, he said every party in entitled to its opinion, but linking the panchayat and local bodies polls with the hearing on the article in the Supreme Court by the government is wrong". This creates apprehensions in the minds of people, Mir said.
K Palaniswami drew Narendra Modi's attention to a letter of 18 December, 2016 of the state government recommending the award to the former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa posthumously

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami Wednesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging the Centre again to confer the country's highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna on late J Jayalalithaa and Dravidian icon CN Annadurai.

The Bharat Ratna "would be the most fitting way to recognise the extraordinary public service, phenomenal achievements and the remarkable life of one of the most influential political leaders of independent India," Palaniswami said in the letter to Modi, recalling Jayalalithaa's welfare measures and initiatives.

The chief minister drew Modi's attention to a letter of 18 December, 2016 of the state government recommending the award to the former chief minister posthumously.

"The Tamil Nadu Cabinet resolved on 9 September to reiterate to the Centre its decision taken in the Cabinet meeting on 10 December, 2016," he said.

Hailing former chief minister Annadurai as "the ideological fountainhead of major Dravidian parties," Palaniswami said the late leader stood for a "politics that foregrounded social equality, self-respect and linguistic pride."

"Annadurai was a great social reformer, writer, orator, litterateur and a tall Dravidian leader," he said.

Palaniswami highlighted another Cabinet decision taken last week urging the Centre to rename Chennai Central Railway Station after "Puratchi Thalaivar Dr MG Ramachandran," in view of his birth centenary celebrations. Ramachandran, popularly known as MGR was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna in 1988.

On 24 August, AIADMK's executive committee meet renewed its demand for conferring the Bharat Ratna on Jayalalithaa, who passed away on 5 December, 2016.

Also, it sought the highest civilian honour for late Dravidian stalwarts EV Ramasamy 'Periyar' and Annadurai. AIADMK first made the demand for honouring Jayalalithaa with Bharat Ratna months after her demise in December, and the move to seek the honour for Periyar and Annadurai comes decades after their death.
The fire at two rooftop restaurants  Mojo's Bistro and '1Above'  at Kamala Mills Compound in central Mumbai on 29 December, 2017 claimed 14 lives.

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court-appointed judicial committee inquiring into the fire at Kamala Mills Compound in Mumbai in 2017 has recommended action against a co-owner of the premises and owners of the two restaurants, blaming them for the incident.

The fire at two rooftop restaurants  Mojo's Bistro and '1Above'  at Kamala Mills Compound in central Mumbai on 29 December, 2017 claimed 14 lives.

The three-member committee submitted its report to the high court on Monday. It was made available on Wednesday evening.

The committee recommended "appropriate punitive action" against co-owner of Kamala Mills Compound Ramesh Gowani and owners of the two restaurants.

Gowani, who holds 95 percent stake in the Kamala Mills property, permitted the restaurant owners to make unauthorised additions to the structures, it said.

"The owners of both the restaurants committed flagrant violations in converting the entire open terrace into two full-fledged restaurants divided by a partition of highly combustible material and covered by equally inflammable material, such as cotton curtains, plastic covers, etc.

"To make the situation... fatal for the patrons who died due to asphyxia...there was no trained staff or security personnel to guide them in case of emergency," it said.

One of the waiters of 1Above directed 13 patrons to illegally constructed toilet block which had no exit or ventilation, and as a result all 13 and the waiter himself died of suffocation, the report noted.

"The rear side of the terrace was blocked, and the terrace area was used for stocking inflammable material such as liquor, kerosene and coal. Also, the terrace was used for serving hookah. All of these were in violation of the licence terms and the fire norms," the committee said.

Superintendent of State Excise A B Chaksar and Excise Inspector Sandeep More and Vijay Thorat ignored apparent violations of licence terms at the two restaurants, it claimed.

To avoid such tragedies in future, better coordination between government departments and implementation of "stricter checks and balances" to ensure there is no violation of construction or safety norms in commercial areas are needed, the committee said.

The three-member committee headed by Justice (retired) AV Savant and including architect Vasant Thakur and former municipal commissioner K Nalinakshan was set up by the high court in April.

The panel was formed by a bench headed by Justice Bhushan Gavai in response to a public interest litigation filed by former Mumbai police commissioner Julio Riberio demanding safety audit of all restaurants and pubs in Mumbai. Gowani and six owners of the two restaurants were arrested by police after the fire.
The flood that caused massive devastation across Kerala has left behind several scars that will impact the people and their lives for a while yet

The flood that caused massive devastation across Kerala has left behind several scars that will impact the people and their lives for a while yet. The immediate worry is the drop in water levels of rivers, the sudden drying-up of wells and a dip in groundwater levels.

People fear that the drop in water level of rivers and other water bodies may trigger a severe drought and drinking water shortage in the coming months, adding to the miseries of the flood-hit people. A sudden rise in mercury levels have compounded the fears. The Periyar river, which was in spate during the flood, is now flowing well below its earlier levels. According to a report in Malayala Manorama, the water level in the state's largest river has dropped 10 centimetres below the September 2017 level. The river meets the irrigation and drinking water needs of lakhs of people throughout its course from Idukki to Ernakulam.

The water level in Pampa that drowned the entire Kuttanad region has gone back to the December-January 2017 level. The Bharathapuzha river, which is the second largest river in the state, is also becoming dry with floods depositing sand mounds, shrubs and weeds all over the place. The river caters to a large number of people in Palakkad, Thrissur and Malappuram districts.

The water level of the Kabani river, which is one of the major tributaries of Cauvery, is also found to have decreased abnormally raising concerns among people in the hilly district of Wayanad, devastated by the flood as well as a slew of landslides during and after the deluge. Several other rivers in the flood-hit areas have also shrunk similarly. Another phenomenon baffling the people is the drying-up of wells. Curiously, its the wells on the river banks that have gone dry. Water levels of several wells on the banks of Periyar, Pampa, Bharathapuzha and Kabani have dipped drastically.

Apart from this, the phenomenon of wells caving in has also been widely reported. Reports in this regard have come up from not only landslide hit areas like Idukki and Wayanad, but also flood-hit districts like Ernakaulam and Alappuzha. Many wells in these places have sunk.

State water resources minister Mathew T Thomas said that the government has been receiving field reports about the sudden drop in levels in water bodies. He said that the strange occurrences had caused apprehension among people and added that the government would assess the situation with the help of scientific agencies and take measures to alleviate the miseries of the people.

The flood has also left deep fissures on land in many places. The topography of the land has been altered beyond recognition in several places in Idukki, Wayanad, Kozhikode and Kannur districts, which were hit by a series of landslides. Deep fissures have formed in many mountainous areas in these districts damaging houses and crops. A two-kilometre-long crack has appeared in Idukkis Mavadi, where 15 landslides have occurred.

Many of the people from these areas have been shifted to safer places while others are living in fear of further landslides. Continued living and farming in these places may not be possible as the earth can cave in any time. The flood has also brought a bacterial disease to the paddy fields. The disease called leaf blight has spread in large extent of paddy fields in Palakkad and Thrissur districts. The pathogenic fungus that cause the disease grows mostly during flooding and it can lead to 70 percent yield loss.

The farmers in the drought-prone Palakkad district have already started facing drought conditions. Paddy crops in hundreds of hectares of fields in Kuzhalmandam, Alathur and Chittur blocks are likely to perish if water from the Malampuzha dam is not released within a week.

Drought conditions have also become visible in Wayanad and Idukki districts with earthworms dying en masse. The phenomenon started after day time temperature started rising over the past 10 days with no rain. Experts have attributed excess heat and increase in the temperature of the sandy soil for the mass death of the worms, which help in improving farm productivity.

Agriculture Minister VS Sunil Kumar said that the government would conduct a detailed study to examine the phenomenon. Farmers see this as a strong sign of drought gripping the district after the deluge. They said earthworms were breaking dying in the open after coming out of the soil due to a lack of enough water. A drought after the devastating flood is unthinkable to the government, which is struggling hard to mobilise resources to reconstruct the lost assets. The government has appointed the Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (CWRDM) to study the water-related issues.

AB Anita, executive director of the agency, said that an expert panel of hydrologists and geologists has been constituted to study the phenomenon. She said that a detailed, location-specific geographical investigation was necessary to establish the exact cause for the shrinking of water bodies. "Heavy run-off of the top soil in the upland areas and the siltation in the rivers could be the reasons for the falling water level in the rivers. The natural blocks in the rivers that hold water may also have been washed away by the flood," Anita said.

She said that the floods had removed the top soil in the hills and upland areas to a depth of up to two metres in many places that received heavy rainfall during the monsoon. The hills lost their natural capacity to sponge in rainwater when the top soil was washed away by the rain water, she added.

Anita went on to say that the major reason for the massive soil run-off was the ecological destruction caused by deforestation, indiscriminate land use and granite quarrying in the upland areas. The siltation on the other hand was caused by sand-mining in streams and rivers. Geologists said that the huge pressure exerted by the volume of water that flowed into the rivers after the dams were opened might have led to a readjustment of hydrogeological properties of the aquifer leading to fall in water levels in rivers.

"The lowering of water levels in the river will indirectly affect the groundwater level. When the river turns effluent, it draws in water from the ground level that in turn leads to drop in the groundwater table and wells," PK Sabu, a retired geologist, told The New Indian Express.

Experts said that the loss of water in rivers and other water bodies could be made up if the state receives normal north-east monsoon (NEM) beginning next month. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) is yet to come out with the prediction for the second phase of the monsoon.

However, atmospheric scientists say a normal NEM may only be a brief respite as the state has been witnessing two extreme climatic conditions-floods during monsoon and drought during summer over the years. Abhilash S, assistant professor of Atmospheric Studies at the Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT), said that the two extremes are the result of climatic variations induced by global warming as well as local factors.

The local factors responsible for the climatic variations, according to Abhilash are massive forest encroachment, tree felling, mindless quarrying, sand-mining and increased human intervention in floods planes. The reduced capacity of the atmosphere is induced by global warming.

"The calamity will recur if factors responsible for climatic variations aren't assessed scientifically and steps aren't taken to address them," Abhilash said.
The affidavit was filed by the investigating officer in the Kerala High Court on 10 August.

In the Kerala nun sexual abuse case, the affidavit filed by the state deputy superintendent of police K Subhash states that Bishop Franco Mulakkal had committed unnatural sex against the consent of the nun, reported India Today.

The affidavit, filed in the Kerala High Court on 10 August by the investigating officer, states, "(D)uring the course of investigation so far conducted and the available evidences collected so far, it is revealed that the accused committed unnatural offences and committed rape repeatedly on different dates between 5/5/2018 and 23/09/2016 on the victim, against the will and consent of her by abusing his dominance over her as Bishop of Jalandhar after confining her in room number 20 of St Francis Mission Home Kuravilangad." (sic)

Despite protests by the nuns against the investigation of the case, the police has been saying that there is no concrete, scientific evidence to arrest the accused bishop. It is unclear as to why the accused has not been arrested despite the findings stated in the affidavit filed by the investigating officer.

Meanwhile, the Missionaries of Jesus congregation has released a fresh statement saying that it will approach the Kerala DGP with a complaint that a conspiracy is being hatched by external forces and the nun to malign the bishop and the Church, reported CNN-News18. This is the third statement released by the congregation in three consecutive days and the congregation in its complain, will ask the DGP to look into the conspiracy angle.

On Tuesday, the bishop had denied all allegations made against him, he said there was a "conspiracy" against him and that the case was a tactic to pressure the Kerala government.
The Kerala Police sent a notice to controversial Bishop Franco Mulakkal of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Jalandhar, asking him to appear before them on 19 September.

The Kerala Police has asked Jalandhar diocese's Bishop Franco Mulakkal, accused by a nun of raping her multiple times between 2014 and 2016, to appear before the investigating team on 19 September.

The decision to summon the clergyman was taken after a meeting chaired by Sakhare, Inspector General (Ernakulam range), which was also attended by Kottayam district superintendent of police Harisankar and Vaikom deputy superintendent of police K Subhash amid mounting pressure on police to initiate action against Mulakkal.

"We reviewed the entire case today (Wednesday) and there are contradictions in the statements of the victim, the accused and the witnesses. So, we have asked the bishop to appear before us on 19 September, when the Investigation Officer would question him.

"The contradictions in the statements have to be cleared, or else there could be issues," Inspector General of Police (IGP) Vijay Sakhre told the media in Kochi soon after a review meeting on the case.

"Security to the complainant and the witnessess is there and we have registered cases against the death threats that the nuns have allegedly received," he added.

Industries Minister EP Jayarajan, deputising for Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who is off to the United States for treatment, told the media in the state capital that the government is with the victim.

"No one needs to be worried for anything and it's unfortunate that nuns have had to stage protests. We all know that the probe has been going on for a while now, but since it has to be submitted to the court, there just can't be any errors," Jayarajan was quoted as saying by IANS.

The nun had recently sought urgent intervention of the Vatican for justice and demanded the bishop's removal as the head of the Jalandhar diocese, questioning why the church was "closing its eyes to the truth" when she mustered courage to make public her sufferings. In a scathing letter to the Vatican that was made available to the media Tuesday, the nun also asked will the Church be able to give back what she has lost.

She alleged that Bishop Franco Mulakkal was using "political and money power" to bury the case against him. She had accused the clergyman of sexually assaulting her repeatedly between 2014 and 2016. The bishop had, however, dismissed the allegations as "baseless and concocted", insisting she levelled those as the Catholic order had rejected her demand for favours.

Mulakkal, on the other hand, has denied all allegations made against him, claiming there was a "conspiracy" against him and that the case was a tactic to pressure the government.

On Wednesday, a day-long protest before the state secretariat in Kochi was organised by the Joint Christian Council, whose indefinite relay fast at in the state capital entered its 5th day.

In the Kerala capital, joining the protesters was former state Congress president VM Sudheeran, who said the protests should not be mistaken as one against the Christian community.

"The police itself said that all the evidences are there with them in the case, then why are they hesitant to go forward? The state police chief is unable to go forward in this case and it's most unfortunate," said Sudheeran.

In Kochi, Wednesday saw more and more leaders  political and otherwise  visiting to the protest venue. They included top political leaders from various parties, civil society members and film personalities.

Coming to the defence of Mulakkal was his own diocese, which in a statement said that this is nothing but a conspiracy hatched against the bishop.

"This is just an allegation... The bishop had visited the nun's home for a function and she looked very happy also. According to her complaint, the previous day the bishop had abused her. If that were the case, could she be happy? Moreover, all the complaints surfaced after a lady came with a complaint against the nun," said the statement.

Popular Malayalam film personality Joy Mathew led a protest in Kozhikode against the callousness of the authorities in the case as the nun is yet to get justice.

Incidentally, the Kerala High Court will on Thursday look into an affidavit that it asked the state government to file detailing the steps taken on the complaint of a nun alleging that a bishop sexually abused her for three years.

"All the details in the case would be presented before the high court on Thursday in the affidavit," said Kottayam Superintendent of Police who is leading the probe.

It was in June that the victim alleged that Bishop Franco Mulakkal of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Jalandhar had sexually abused her several times between 2014 and 2016.

An FIR was registered against the bishop and a 114-page detailed statement was taken from the nun and other inmates of the convent. However, Mulakkal has denied any wrongdoing.

With inputs from agencies
The Bhopal Police team caught serial killer Aadesh Khamra in the jungles of Sultanpur in Uttar Pradesh after a three day chase. He has confessed to 33 murders.

When the Bhopal Police arrested Aadesh Khamra on 7 September, they thought they had arrested a tailor turned petty criminal. But they were left stunned after the 48-year-old Madhya Pradesh resident confessed to having murdered more than 30 people, reported The Hindustan Times.

Last week, the police arrested Khamra after a three-day chase in the jungles of Sultanpur in Uttar Pradesh, reported The Times of India. It was Superintendent of Police Bittu Sharma who took down Khamra at gunpoint at night. She said that neither she nor Superintendent of Police Rahul Lodha Kumar realised that they had nabbed a notorious killer.

The police also arrested Khamra's accomplices Jaikaran Prajapati from Bhopal and Tukaram Banjara from Nagpur.

Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Dharmendra Chaudary told reporters on Wednesday that Khamra had confessed to three additional killings, making the tally 33, reported The Free Press Journal. In his latest confession, Khamra admitted that he had killed two brothers and a truck driver in the Gwalior-Chambal region in 2010.

Chaudary added that the Madhya Pradesh Police are in touch with the police teams of six other states, as it is suspected that either Khamra's gang may have committed murders in other states, or vital clues related to his crimes could be recovered.

According to Dainik Bhaskar, giving details of the crime, the DIG also said that in 2010, Khamra gave sedatives to a truck driver and a cleaner, robbed their truck and then murdered them. He dumped one body in Biaora-Rajgarh and the other in Malanpur. A missing persons report for the two victims was registered at a police station in Betul district.

According to The Times of India, Khamra and his gang had an effective modus operandi, wherein they would befriend truck drivers, sedate and murder them, strip their bodies to prevent identification and dump them in culverts or on roads in hilly areas. This method of dumping the bodies made them turn up in other states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra and Jharkhand, leaving the police struggling to make a connection.

According to reports, Khamra's family in Mandideep in Madhya Pradesh were as shocked by his crimes as the police. Relatives and friends were stunned to discover that a "well-behaved and quiet man" could be responsible for such murders.

The Bhopal Police claim that the murders started around 2010, the first being in Amravati in Maharashtra and the other in Nashik. Soon, bodies began to appear in other parts of Madhya Pradesh and some in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. The police could not find any connection in these cases, except that all the victims were truckers and their helpers. It did not occur to them that a quiet tailor from Madhya Pradesh was responsible for such gruesome deaths.

A Special Investigation Team has taken up Khamra's case and will scan call his details to ascertain the locations he has been to and his involvement in crimes.

There are conflicting reports on why Khamra committed these murders. Some claim he was influenced by another killer, while others claim that money was the motive as Khamra would kill truckers and then loot their cargo.

Reports said he was influenced by one Ashok Khamra, who had admitted to killing 100 truckers in 2010 after his arrest. However, he escaped police custody while being brought to Bhopal and has reportedly been absconding since.
The Maharashtra cabinet Tuesday approved several sops for setting up institutions of eminence deemed to be universities (IEDUs).

Mumbai: The Maharashtra cabinet Tuesday approved several sops for setting up institutions of eminence deemed to be universities (IEDUs).

The cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, gave its in-principle approval to the proposal during a meeting held in Mumbai. As per the cabinet decision, IEDUs can be set up in the state on any land under the jurisdiction of the approved regional plan. They will be provided floor space index (FSI) of 1 on the gross area of the plot.

The other benefits include deemed permission for use of land for non-agriculture purposes and exemption from the Agriculture Land Ceiling Act. If terms and conditions to get the FSI concession are not fulfilled within specific time-frame, these institutions will be penalised. Promoters of IEDUs will be able to purchase agriculture land. They will have no concessions from stamp duty.

A committee will be set up under the chairmanship of Higher and Technical Education Minister Vinod Tawde for implementation of the decision. An official from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said, the decision to set up IEDUs was a revolutionary step to ensure that youths get access to world class higher and technical education.

As per the Centre's decision to set up IEDUs, 20 exisiting public and private educational institutions as well as new institutions will be accorded the IEDU status.
The villagers suspected him as the victim had asked the name of a girl child he came across in Jharkhand's Dumka district, police said.

Dumka: A 35-year-old man was injured after a mob beat him up on suspicion of being a child-lifter in Dumka district on Tuesday, police said.

The villagers tied the hands of Sonu Yadav and assaulted him after in Bogli village under Jermundi police station. The villagers suspected him as the victim had asked the name of a girl child he came across, police said.

Yadav, a driver by profession and a resident of Banka police station area, was going to respond to nature's call when the incident occurred. The police rescued him and admitted him to a hospital and his condition was stated to be stable.
A Turkish intelligence agency has captured in Syria the chief suspect in the 2013 twin bomb attack in the border town of Reyhanli, BBC reported citing Turkish media.

State-run Anadolu news agency said the National Intelligence Organisation had apprehended Yusuf Nazik, a Turkish citizen, in the port city of Latakia.
Alleging Narendra Modi's 'personal culpability' in the Rafale jet purchases, former BJP Ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie on Tuesday accused the Prime Minister of 'compromising national security'.

New Delhi: Alleging Narendra Modi's "personal culpability" in the Rafale jet purchases, former BJP Ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie on Tuesday accused the Prime Minister of "compromising national security" by unilaterally finalising the deal, shunning every rule of military procurement.

Addressing the media, both Sinha and Shourie said the government had "spun a web of lies to protect Modi's culpability in the largest defence scam" the country had ever seen.

The two dismissed all the explanations given by the Modi government and the ruling BJP in justifying the deal as "blatant lies" and said Modi "usurped the authority" and unilaterally cancelled the original deal for the sake of his "crony capitalists".

"In so far what has transpired, it directly reflects Modi's personal culpability, there is no escaping that fact. Every explanation they put out ensnares the government in the web of lies they have spun. This means they have a lot to hide," said Shourie. They said that Modi kept the Indian Air Force (IAF), the Defence Ministry and the External Affairs Ministry in the dark about the new deal before making a sudden announcement in April 2015.

"National security has been compromised by Modi and every rule of procurement flouted to unilaterally reduce the number of planes from 126 to 36 and remove Make in India under Transfer of Technology by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) despite the fact that IAF, Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) and MoD had come to a reasoned conclusion that 126 aircraft were required for the long term needs and security of the country," said Shourie.

Citing procedural requirement of DAC's approval being a condition precedent for finalising a new deal, they pointed to the fact that the approval for Modi's deal was given by DAC on 13 May, 2015, more than a month after Modi had already announced the new deal. Shourie along with Sinha and lawyer-activist Prashant Bhushan also claimed that the choice of a private party as offset partner rejecting HAL was a "result of Modi's personal decision".

In the wake of the government recently rejecting a proposal by Russia to make Adani Group a partner for a joint venture to manufacture the modern AK-series assault rifles, both Shourie and Bhushan said "MoD's total abdication of duty while granting approvals for offset contracts in the Rafale deal was exceptional".

"The question is how the price of Rs 670 crore per aircraft went up to Rs 1,670 crore. The government has been hiding behind the confidentiality clause. If it is confidential, then how come (former defence minister) Manohar Parrikar and then (Minister of State for Defence) Subhash Bhamre had quoted the price of the jets," asked Shourie.

Parrikar in 2015 told Doordarshan that the UPA-negotiated price for 126 Rafale combat aircraft would have been Rs 715 crore apiece while a year later Bhamre told the Lok Sabha that the NDA-negotiated price would be approximately Rs 670 crore.

"Each new invention shows that all these arguments are an afterthought to justify the scam through which the price per aircraft has been increased from Rs 670 crore to Rs 1,660 crore approximately," said Sinha.
Blinded or bullied by huge investments and easy loans from Beijing, Kathmandu is playing with fire.

Few Indians will recall with clarity how swiftly and easily the Chinese annexed Tibet and set up a puppet government under the Dalai Lama. It was 1950. India was still a weak new born kitten, unused to the weight of sovereignty, so China just decided Tibet was theirs: And thus it was. There was not even a whimper of protest.

Nine years later, when Tibet rose up in rage, the conflict cost the lives of 87,000 Tibetans as Peking (Beijing) quelled the uprising with a grim bloodletting. Tibet and Nepal have often been compared: in terms of being landlocked and having a distinct culture. Even 70 years later, Tibetans are reluctant to refer to themselves as Chinese and fervently believe that the exiled Dalai Lama would one day produce a miracle in liberty. It never happened.

The same scrawl is on the wall again: this time for Nepal. Blinded or perhaps bullied by huge investments and easy loans from Beijing, Kathmandu is playing with fire. It can't decipher the script that China is putting down in big, bold letters.

With India and Nepal sharing tradition, culture, language, religion and even blood, one would imagine that would slow down the Nepalese embrace of China's mandarins. If Nepal is tired of India's 'big brother' mindset, it has no idea how suffocating the Chinese smother can be.

The recent snub by the Nepal army chief General Purna Chandra Thapa declining India's invitation to the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) military exercise and its decision to stay away from the conclave of army chiefs, which is designed to collectively tackle terrorism, could have been explained away as pressure from the exigencies of a new appointment.

But the enthusiasm with which the incumbent has okayed the ongoing second edition of the Nepal-China military manoeuvres called the Sagarmatha-Friendship exercise on 17 September (just a day after (BIMSTEC) in Chengdu is suspect.

The change in priorities is tangible and deliberate and New Delhi must pump the brakes on Prime Minister KP Oli's little two-step with China before it turns into a whirling dervish and Nepal goes the way of Tibet.

It's all about the money. This year alone, China invested $29.8 billion into 108 projects in Nepal. Meanwhile, India hasin the same time frameinvested only Rs 8.22 billion in 18 projects. The plan to create a rail link from Kathmandu to Gyirong in Tibet and then use the transmodal option to mainland China is not seen as commercially viable for goods, but it certainly adds a major stitch to the buying up of Nepal: pretty much like what happened in Sri Lanka.

What can India do about the cold shoulder from Kathmandu? Precious little at this juncture, but it cannot afford to pretend the stink will go away on its own.
When the plea by Advocate Elephant Rajendran came up on Tuesday before a division bench of Justices R Mahadevan and PD Audikesavalu, the counsel for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said the agency has not taken any decision so far in this connection.

Chennai: The CBI has informed the Madras High Court that it has not taken any decision so far on the Tamil Nadu government order transferring all idol theft cases to the agency.

When the plea by Advocate Elephant Rajendran came up on Tuesday before a division bench of Justices R Mahadevan and PD Audikesavalu, the counsel for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said the agency has not taken any decision so far in this connection.

Meanwhile, the state government filed a miscellaneous petition seeking the court's permission to provide the details of the cases to the Prime Minister's Office as requested by it.

"We wanted the permission of the court to send the details since the court has stayed the operation of the GO transferring the probe to CBI," additional advocate general PH Arvind Pandian said.

Declining to grant any relief, the court said it will decide after the CBI informs its decision. The petitioner intervened and said though the court had directed the state government to furnish all documents relating to the order, it has not filed any till now. Recording the submission, the court posted the matter to 24 September for further hearing.

Last month, the High Court had stayed the 1 August order issued by the government to transfer all idol theft cases in the state to the CBI from idol wing police, and lambasted it for its "hurried" action when the matter was already pending before the court.
Apart from senior serving officers, retired air chiefs too have lent their voice, expressing anguish that India cannot afford to target defence acquisitions to settle narrow political scores and harm countrys security interests.

It is a little heartbreaking and depressing to see men in uniform come out in numbers to defend the Rafale and issue a clarion call not to ground the contract. Heartbreaking, because it couldnt have been easy for former and serving air chiefs and other high-ranking officers  all accomplished and disciplined men  to wade into a political dogfight at the risk of being made into a target.

I shouldn't comment but I can tell you all this discussion going on Rafale, because we know a lot about how everything went, we find people dont have information. We're waiting for the aircraft. Rafale is beautiful & capable aircraft: Vice Chief of Air Force, Air Marshal S B Deo pic.twitter.com/OCvMGVSx31  ANI (@ANI) September 5, 2018

That they felt compelled to do so points to the cynicism and wretchedness of our political discourse where a government-to-government deal  a result of tough negotiations by senior officers of the Indian Air Force  has fallen prey to political opportunism. And since the IAF was fully involved in the process and led the negotiations any smear campaign against the deal also calls into question the honour and integrity of these officers. It calls into question their commitment to the nation.

Equally worrying is the possibility that this campaign of misinformation may delay the delivery of aircraft or complicate the proceedings. That may serve to deplete the morale of our armed forces and exacerbate the vulnerability of Indias security architecture in a complex and volatile neighbourhood.

Officer after officer, some involved in the negotiation that went on for months, are expressing their anguish and giving a vote of confidence to the deal. And true to the depressing public discourse around Rafale, they are being targeted and maligned. It is being suggested that the IAF top brass is lying under pressure. This is tragic and unacceptable.

Last Thursday, Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar, Deputy Chief of Air Staff, dismissed allegations that there was any cost escalation in the NDA government-brokered Rafale deal  the core charge levelled by Congress against Narendra Modi.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi has alleged that the price per fighter aircraft magically jumped from Rs 540 crore under UPA to Rs 1,600 crore under the NDA government. The Gandhi dynast has in his accusations quoted four different Rafale prices in five months. On 29 April at the Jan Akrosh rally in New Delhi, Rahul quoted Rs 700 crore as the price per jet under Manmohan Singh government. On 20 July, during his no-trust motion speech in Parliament, the cost of each Rafale (under UPA) came down to Rs 520 crore. More than a couple of weeks later in Raipur, the Congress president revised the price to Rs 540 crore. On 11 August, he quoted two different prices  Rs 520 crore and Rs 540 crore  in two minutes. Two days later in Hyderabad, the price of each jet became Rs 526 crore during Rahuls rally in Hyderabad, as India Today points out in a fact-checking report.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a seminar in New Delhi, Air Marshal Nambiar said: This, who are claiming such numbers, I think they are misinformed and probably not aware of the facts that are known to us in the Indian Air Force As we are the ones who were very much part of the negotiations with the French government. And we have the facts with us. He also held that the Rafale we have gone for is substantially lower than the price that was on the table in 2008 and refuted claims that there was an irregularity in offset contract procedure, saying that there is no truth in those allegations.

On Wednesday, Air Marshal SBP Sinha, chief of the IAFs Central Command, who was closely involved with negotiations in his capacity as Deputy Chief of Air Staff, reiterated that India has got the deadly fighter aircraft at the best price. He also said that terms of the deal include the latest weapons, sensors, a better price and delivery terms from Dassault and it will overwhelm our adversaries.

Shiv Aroor reports in Livefist that Air Marshal Sinha offered 10 reasons why the current deal is cleaner, better and more economical than any earlier one during Wednesdays formal presentation. Incidentally, Air Marshal Sinha was the point man for negotiations from Air Force Headquarters during the collapsed earlier negotiations, adds the report.

And on Wednesday, Air Force chief BS Dhanoa issued a reminder that India is facing a grave threat from its adversaries and backed the governments actions. By providing the Rafale and S-400 (Russian surface-to-air missile defence system), the government is strengthening the IAF to counter the shortfalls of our depleting numbers, he told reporters on the sidelines of an IAF seminar.

Air Chief Marshal Dhanoa also refuted Opposition allegations that the government has shortchanged the armed forces by settling for 36 aircraft instead of the planned 126 (part of UPA-era negotiation that remained stalled).

Whenever there is an inter-governmental agreement (IGA), always two squadrons (are) bought, he told reporters, adding that emergency purchases of aircraft are done through the IGA route to mitigate crises. In January 1983 Pakistan bought F-16s and we got two squadrons of Mig-21 from Russia. We also bought two squadrons of Mirage 2000 from France, he was quoted, as saying.

Apart from senior serving officers, retired air chiefs too have lent their voice, expressing anguish that India cannot afford to target defence acquisitions to settle narrow political scores and harm countrys security interests.

In a recent piece titled Dont ground the Rafale, published in Indian Express, former Chief of Air Staff S Krishnaswamy writes: The Opposition is dragging the government to make a public statement knowing well that secrecy clauses in inter-governmental agreements do not permit such disclosure. The government cannot get into a dispute by public disclosure of information they had agreed to protect.

He proposes that Oppositions demand to know the cost details could be met by holding a secret session in Lok Sabha under clause 245-252 of Rules of Procedure without divulging the details in public and dishonoring the contract. The former air chief also clarifies that UPA did not sign the deal, Dassault Aviation refused to take responsibility for the work-share of HAL and the resultant delay pushed the Air Force into a corner and harmed its operational efficiency. Under the circumstances, writes Chief of Air Staff (Retd) Krishnaswamy, the IAF projected an urgent need to procure two squadrons of advanced fighter aircraft and the government got a comprehensive package in the quickest possible way to operationalize a new induction.

The former air chief signs off with a warning that arguments devoid of merit have an adverse effect on our credibility but for Congress, some disgruntled, superannuated BJP members and others with vested interests, national security and Indias credibility are negotiable components in the existential need to target the prime minister.

Not even the head of a foreign state has been spared. French president Emmanuel Macrons name was dragged through the political dirt in India despite France issuing an official rebuttal to claims that there were no secrecy clauses in the pact.

Congress desperation is understandable. Despite its sustained and concerted efforts, Modis shield of incorruptibility appears impregnable. He is not seen as a corrupt leader. In fact, by taking some tough measures, the prime minister has reinforced his tough-on-corruption image. His popularity may have taken a dip but even after four years at Centre, Modi still stays comfortably ahead of his nearest competitor.

This is particularly inconvenient for the Congress because scams were the only talking points in the last few years of UPA regime and these allegations were thought to have contributed to its defeat. The party still suffers from the memory of these scams and appears at a permanent disadvantage in taking the moral high ground on corruption. For these various reasons, it is important for the Congress to sort of level the playing field by dragging Modi down several notches from his perch of incorruptibility.

This is why Congress has been so vocal about Rafale scam. Trouble is, its allegations have so far lacked credibility and the partys campaign is not getting enough traction. Even its allies are not particularly enthusiastic about this so-called scam.

As Union finance minister Arun Jaitley said in a recent interview to ANI, They do not have a single charge with any form of evidence or material, not a shred of it, as far as any wrong practices or corruption is concerned. So they manufacture a charge. And if you have no facts, just keep repeating a false quote. Amid this political game, the men in uniform are taking the hit.
In July last year, Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa, during his visit to France, flew a Rafale jet at the Saint-Dizier airbase to gain a first-hand experience of the aircraft.

Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa on Wednesday said that no country in the world is facing the kind of grave threat that India is confronted with and by providing the Rafale jets and S-400 the government is strengthening the Indian Air Force to counter the short falls of our depleting numbers.

Speaking days after vice-chief of the Indian Air Force Air Marshal SB Deo gave a strong endorsement to the Rafale fighter jets, saying it will give India an 'unprecedented' combat advantage, Dhanoa said intentions of adversaries can change overnight and the Air Force needs to match their force level.

The air chief also said that India's neighbours are not sitting idle and countries like China are modernising its air force significantly. Speaking at a seminar on 'IAF's force structure, 2035', the air chief said the government is procuring Rafale fighter jets and S-400 missile systems to enhance IAF's capability. He also justified procurement of only two Rafale jet squadrons, saying there were example of similar purchases.

Deo had described Rafale as a 'beautiful' aircraft. The vice-chief had said those criticising the deal must understand the procurement norms.

Deo had said "all discussions on the deal" were taking place as people do not have adequate information about the procurement procedure. "We are waiting for the aircraft to come. It is a beautiful aircraft. It is a very capable aircraft. It is a capability that we need quickly," he said on the sidelines of an event when asked about the controversy surrounding the Rafale deal.

In the midst of a political firestorm over the Rafale jet deal, the Indian Air Force is quietly making preparations, including readying required infrastructure and training of pilots, to welcome the fighter aircraft, official sources said to PTI. They said the IAF is sending a batch of pilots by the end of this year to France for training on Rafale jets.

A number of IAF teams have already visited France to help Dassault Aviation, the manufacturer of Rafale, incorporate India-specific enhancements on-board the fighter aircraft.

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  capable of carrying a range of potent weapons and missiles  is scheduled to begin from September next year. In July last year, Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa, during his visit to France, flew a Rafale jet at the Saint-Dizier airbase to gain a first-hand experience of the aircraft.

With inputs from PTI
Fake news - the phrase of the times we live in. So much so that it is the one dominant phrase even in the limited vocabulary of a sitting US president.

Fake news - the phrase of the times we live in. So much so that it is the one dominant phrase even in the limited vocabulary of a sitting American president. At a recent rally in Montana, Donald Trump said even Honest Abe (Abraham Lincoln) was a victim of fake news.

What is truth? Why do we believe in the things we do? Whom do we believe and why? When faced with questions like these, it is prudent to ask ourselves another question - What would Foucault say?

Michel Foucault is one of the most cited and influential thinkers and philosophers of the 20th century, and his work seems particularly relevant now.

Unlike some major names in philosophy who believed in all-embracing theories to explain the world, Foucault believed that life and the world around us were far too complex and nuanced, and argued that language and the structures that underpin it help shape the way we see things.

Words matter - they frame the debate and how we understand the world. He once said, Not everything is bad, but everything is dangerous. The choice we have to make every day is to determine which the main danger is. That is the question we are going to address today. When it comes to news and fake news, when do we know which is which and how do we know which is a greater danger.

Fake once meant counterfeit or inauthentic, like a fake Hussain or a fake birth certificate or a fake drivers license. These days, it is used to essentially denounce another persons reality. But fake news as a phenomenon is not new. The first newspaper published in North America got shut down in 1690 after printing fabricated information. But the challenges we face in the now, in 2018, are unique and uniquely different, thanks to the rise of technology and with it, the rise of the modes in which information (and misinformation) is generated.

A massive new study conducted by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and published in the journal Science analysed every major contested news story in English across the span of Twitters existence  some 1,26,000 stories, tweeted by 3 million users, over more than 10 years  and found that the truth simply cannot compete with hoax and rumor. By every common metric, falsehood consistently dominated the truth on Twitter, the study finds: Fake news and false rumors reach more people, penetrate deeper into the social network, and spread much faster than accurate stories.

The spread of false news stories is sowing distrust, empowering the fringes, discrediting the fourth estate, and poisoning democracies across the world. And that is what we dig deep into today.

Vladimir Nabokov once said reality is the only word that means nothing without quotation marks. He was, of course, making a sardonic point about relative perceptions. But politicians have taken the philosophical point about the lack of an objective truth and run with it to the polling booths, in the process, creating alternate facts, creating discord hardly seen before.

Richard Nixon may have labelled media members as nattering nabobs of negativism, but it would take Donald Trump to tag the media with a name straight out of Stalins playbook - enemy of the people.

In a recent development, IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, after meeting WhatsApp head Chris Daniels, said the Facebook-owned messaging app has contributed significantly to India's digital story but it needs to find solutions to deal with "sinister developments" like mob lynching and revenge porn.

Even before we dive deep into what the above news could lead to and discuss the events leading up to it, let us just explore a little bit, this phenomenon that we know today as fake news and which sometimes causes, "sinister developments.

Writer Jonathan Swift quipped as far back as in 1710, "Falsehood flies, and the truth comes limping after it.

Well, in 2018, we know exactly what he meant. But let us go back a bit to 2014 when a viral quote was attributed to Meryl Streep on the internet and later, it was learnt that the quote summing up a personal disenchantment with inauthentic experiences, was actually first published by motivational figure Jose Micard Teixeira on his social media account.

There was no particular reason to misattribute the quote except that Streep was better known than Jose and a confessional statement from her mouth was likely to travel faster and so it did. Much before the advent of the internet, tabloids across the world misattributed and even sometimes cooked up quotes and even entire incidents to sell copies.

The internet, in any case, is not designed like a gated community where information, trivial or important, can be first verified and then allowed in. That is its greatest asset and its greatest flaw.

Hence, unverified reports of Princess Diana's last words and Jennifer Aniston's secret meetings with ex-husband Brad Pitt and other assorted odds and ends have been floating around for ages because they carry within, the potential of being true even if they are not and have a raging curiosity value. But fake news has consequences.

The United States election, anyone? Brexit, anyone? Lynchings here in India, anyone? Even countries where the media are heavily regulated have suffered in the age of fake news. Take China, for example. In 2008, rumours about maggots found in Sichuan-grown tangerines hurt sales nationwide in China.

In 2011, following an earthquake and nuclear meltdown in Japan, as the Wall Street Journal reported, unverified messages circulated on the social media platform QQ about the magic power of salt in protecting against radiation and a possible salt shortage, pushing large crowds to grab the mineral from markets. Some rumors even touched high-level politics. As The Atlantic reported, in the aftermath of the 2013 trial of Bo Xilai, a former Politburo member, rumors of a pro-Bo coup being in the works spread quickly.

Since eyeballs and shares drive virtual traffic, a lot of stuff is created for clickbaits and usually tailored to tap into the bubbles right at the top of the mass culture cauldron. As academician Simeon Yates said, the economics of social media favour gossip, novelty, speed and shareability. And as has been documented by novelist Yuval Noah Harari in his book Sapiens, the one thing that has helped humans stick together is  gossip.

Hard news is or should be a different cup of tea. As a media study class will tell us, news at its purest is about the where, how, when, who and why of current events unfolding in all the directions that we know as north, east, west and south.

How this news is delivered may or may not have an obvious or latent political slant. A recent article in Scroll went viral as it featured the memorable faces of Doordarshan News who delivered information with a deadpan expression, absolute absence of emotion and the only irrelevantly interesting bit in the broadcast was if Salma Sultan would ever repeat her sarees. And if the rose tucked behind her ear was real or fake.

News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different media: word of mouth, printing, postal systems, broadcasting, electronic communication, and also on the testimony of observers and witnesses to events. It is also used as a platform to manufacture opinion for the population. The last line about manufacturing opinion is at the heart of the rise of fake news in recent times.

The Telegraph UK noted that "fake news" was not a term many people used two years ago, but it is now seen as one of the greatest threats to democracy and free debate. "As well as being a favourite term of Donald Trump, it was also named 2017's word of the year, raising tensions between nations, and may lead to regulation of social media," said The Telegraph.

And as you know, regulatory measures have already begun to unfold globally and in India particularly in the aftermath of numerous episodes of lynching triggered by WhatsApp forwards.

The dispersion of fake news

News or something dressed up as news is delivered to us today via not just mainstream media outlets across various platforms but also through websites with no known experience in serious reporting, via viral memes and doctored videos and images that blur the line between the real and the manufactured and at times create paranoia, fear, polarisation and conflict.

A recent report by IndiaSpend, that calls itself the country's first data journalism initiative based on, among other things, the content analysis of news reports, said that in the first six months of 2017, 20 cow-vigilantism related attacks were reported  this was more than 75 percent of the 2016 figure, which was the worst year for such violence since 2010. IndiaSpend said, "The attacks include mob lynching, attacks by vigilantes, murder and attempt to murder, harassment, assault and gang-rape.

A July report in The Hindu, however, attributes the spate of mob violence from April this year to rumour mongering on social media around child abduction.

The report said, "Rumours spread like wildfire on instant messaging platforms such as WhatsApp about children being kidnapped from neighbouring villages and killed for organ harvesting, leading to mob violence in many parts of the country. The origin of the rumour was believed to be a video circulated on Whatsapp purportedly showing motorcycle clad men abducting a child playing in an avenue. This has led to over 20 murders and a spate of mob violence in several parts of the country including the southern states, Maharashtra, Gujarat, West Bengal, Assam and Tripura."

Why was the video circulated though? It wasn't reported as news in any major media platform, so who picked it up and from where and why? The video in question was in fact created as a public service video and filmed on the streets of Karachi by a Pakistani NGO to warm people of the dangers of child abductions.

Since Whatsapp was the medium via which this video was circulated along with other provocative messages, it became the hub of the controversy surrounding the role that messaging platforms can play in the spread of fake news.

But really, what exactly is fake news?

Fake news. Isn't the word itself a kind of an anomaly? How can news be fake? And if it is fake, how can it be called news?

The Telegraph article has opined that governments and powerful individuals have used information as a weapon for millennia, to boost their support and quash dissidence and traces its origin back to the Roman times when statesman and military leader Octavian famously used a campaign of disinformation to aid his victory over Marc Anthony in the final war of the Roman Republic.

We can also go back to the Nazi propaganda machinery that infamously swayed mass opinion against the Jews leading to catastrophic consequences and genocide.

Post the 11 September attacks on the twin towers in the US, a perception was created that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and that resulted in not just a war with Iraq but to the end of the Saddam Hussain regime. No weapons were ever found.

"In the 20th century, new forms of mass communication allowed propaganda's scale and persuasive power to grow, particularly during wartime and in fascist regimes. This sort of propaganda was largely funded and controlled by governments, but the blatant bias it carried waned as the ideological struggles became less apparent. Added to that, as populations became more used to mass communication, they could more easily see through it, The Telegraph reported.

Ironically though, it is the mass communication conduits that have now become purveyors of both propagandist agendas as well as fake news.

And we are not talking about inevitable political slants in news reporting but a complete and total misrepresentation of facts as when the US-based InfoWars, a self-styled conspiratorial channel now banned on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, claimed that people in school shootings are crisis actors. He even sold testosterone boosting supplements on his site, that he said were needed to fight globalist powers!

Post the rise of Donald Trump to the highest office in America, terms like fake news have acquired a new meaning. One that derides all fact-based data and reporting if it is uncomplimentary and a "deep state" conspiracy is also being endorsed by Republican and conservative media pundits to suggest that influential decision-making bodies believed to be within the government are working to destabilise Trump.

An article in www.webwise.ie describes fake news as stories or hoaxes created to deliberately misinform or deceive readers. It says, "Usually, these stories are created to either influence peoples views, push a political agenda or cause confusion and can often be a profitable business for online publishers. Fake news stories can deceive people by looking like trusted websites or using similar names and web addresses to reputable news organisations."

According to media literacy expert Martina Chapman, there are three elements to fake news; Mistrust, misinformation and manipulation. Webwise.ie says, "Traditionally we got our news from trusted sources, journalists and media outlets that are required to follow strict codes of practice. However, the internet has enabled a whole new way to publish, share and consume information and news with very little regulation or editorial standards. Many people now get news from social media sites and networks and often it can be difficult to tell whether stories are credible or not. Information overload and a general lack of understanding about how the internet works by people have also contributed to an increase in the fake news or hoax stories. Social media sites can play a big part in increasing the reach of these type of stories."

A recent article in Time though points at how tech companies have long maintained the position that they are platforms that facilitate the sharing of content, not publishers who are responsible for the billions of posts, videos and documents uploaded by users each day.

And that brings us back to the central theme of this podcast. The role that platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp can play both in the propagation and curtailment of fake news. Will it be profitable for them to monitor their traffic in order to control fake news? And if platforms like Twitter and Facebook and YouTube weed out certain polarising, rumour dispensing voices, will they be accused of suppressing free speech? It is a double-edged sword.

This accusation has already been levelled by Trump who is particularly upset that InfoWars is no longer available on media sharing platforms. On 18 January, 2018, Trump announced the winners of what he called were the "Fake News Awards", intensifying his unending attacks on a number of major US media outlets like CNN and New York Times that have contrarian views. His administration also coined the term "alternative facts" which speaks for itself.

How is fake news created?

According to www.webwise.ie, fake news is created with the raw material of clickbaits, stories that are deliberately fabricated to gain more website visitors and increase advertising revenue for websites.

The Telegraph piece distinguishes a commercially-driven sensational content from state-sponsored misinformation, "The goal here isn't revenue, but influence. Outlets in Russia or elsewhere might produce content to swing public opinion, sow division or give the illusion of support for a particular candidate or idea, either domestically or abroad. Fabricated stories can often be mixed with true or sensationalised ones. Highly-partisan news sites can conflate fact and opinion, are nakedly supportive of one political viewpoint or party, and often position themselves as alternatives to the mainstream media."

The Telegraph piece adds to the mix, swarms of Twitter bots posting doctored or misleading photos, adverts on Facebook, fake videos on YouTube and more. And propaganda that deliberately misleads audiences, to promote a biased point of view or particular political cause or agenda.

The 2016 US election has been a case study of the dispersion of fake news on Facebook about political rivals as well as the entrenched partisanship that compels people to share stories tailored to their beliefs and prejudices.

The Telegraph UK piece cites headlines such as "Pope backs Trump", "Hillary sold weapons to ISIS", "FBI Agent Suspected in Hillary Email Leaks Found Dead" as examples of how in the run-up to the election, sensational posts like these garnered thousands of shares.

Freedom House, an independent watchdog organization dedicated to the expansion of freedom and democracy around the world, says that over 30 governments have been identified in recent times as opinion shapers" to promote propaganda online.

Social media does its bit to feed personal biases as our news feed is dominated by articles based on our personalised searches. Media personality Hugh Linehan noted some time back, Media is no longer passively consumed  its created, shared, liked, commented on, attacked and defended in all sorts of different ways by hundreds of millions of people. And the algorithms used by the most powerful tech companies  Google and Facebook in particular  are brilliantly designed to personalise and tailor these services to each users profile.

WhatsApp's easy sharing and mass messaging format further narrows down our interaction with opposing views and voices and isolates us in what webwise.ie calls as a filter bubble where we only respond to and share stuff that reflects our own likes, views and beliefs.

The Webwise piece also discusses the obvious role that sloppy journalism plays in this scenario when media houses may publish a story with unreliable information or without checking all of the facts which can mislead audiences.

Mirror Now has recently started a new campaign of debunking fake news circulating in the social media and it is a healthy sign that not just Facebook and WhatsApp but mainstream journalism is looking at ways misinformation can be sifted from real news. Not too long ago, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation focused on media literacy, and it can be a beginning for other newsrooms across not just Australia but globally as to how they can help the consumer to check just exactly what she or he is consuming.

How do we manage fake news?

Globally, Google and Facebook have introduced reporting and flagging tools and there are many fact-checking sites. On the other end of the spectrum, says webwise, is the critical importance of digital media literacy on the part of the consumer and the need to inculcate skills that can help people to critically evaluate information while navigating the internet.

Checking the source of the story and if it is being widely reported elsewhere is a good start.

The Telegraph says, "It takes a fraction of the effort to spread a falsehood than it does to fact-check and issue a correction. Few industries are as sensitive to changes in technology as journalism, and the advent of social media has wrought havoc on reporting and, by extension, the truth. We've moved beyond the digital age and into the information age; the former was defined by access, but the latter is about excess. If we treat fake news like a virus and assume it spreads and replicates in the same way, then the best approach might be inoculation. When enough people are vaccinated against a disease to prevent it from spreading."

This could mean, says the piece, that instead of trying constantly to break news, news organisations could do faster, real-time fact-checking, publish post-mortem articles about a news event, noting how disinformation was triggered and shared. They could hold public figures to account for their role in spreading unverified and unfounded falsehoods and train journalists to identify bad information and issue corrections, early and often.

And most importantly, do everything to give the audience the tools to critically analyse news as it unfolds.

As The Guardian editor Katherine Viner puts "The role of a news organisation is to exist as the line of demarcation between an informed public and a misguided mob."

The accountability of social networks

This week, Time Magazine reported on the grilling by Capitol Hill lawmakers of social networks like Facebook and Twitter in an ongoing process to question the two about their accountability and this is the third such interaction that the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence has hosted.

"Google, which has dealt with foreign meddling in phishing attacks and on video platform YouTube, was also invited to send a top executive to appear before the Senate. Though Congress has long been loath to craft legislation that reins in Big Tech, as problems have dogged the powerful industry, talk of regulation has become more widespread in Washington. The Senate forum follows one with security and technology experts in early August, where witnesses raised the alarm about an ongoing high-stakes information war and said that the government and private industry need to step up their collective game in order to protect national security, says Time Magazine.

This process, says Time Magazine, will be an opportunity for top brass from Facebook and Twitter to show a willingness to work with lawmakers on solutions, in ways that may make legislation seem less necessary or give the industry greater influence in shaping eventual rules.

According to Time Magazine, "Senate aides say that the integrity of the upcoming U.S. midterms is just one item on the agenda. Foreign actors in countries such as Iran have been using media to sow discord in ways that ripple beyond election cycles, trying to manipulate sentiment around Palestinian politics, for example."

The measures being discussed closer home

In a previous podcast, we have already discussed with you how the Indian government has asked WhatsApp to adopt measures to deal with potentially harmful fake news and has now also asked that the messaging giant set up a corporate entity in India, appoint a grievance officer and find a technical solution to tracing the origin of fake messages on its platform.

IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad's meeting WhatsApp Head Chris Daniels may lead to far-reaching changes in the way the platform operates in India. He also indicated that WhatsApp could face abetment charges if no action is taken.

WhatsApp has already started a radio campaign to address the fake news menace during which 30-second radio messages will air as ads on various channels where users will be urged to be cognizant of the messages they receive and be mindful before forwarding. The tagline being, of "mil kar mitaayein afwaahon ka bazar" (let's together eradicate the rumours in the market).

In another statement, the messaging platform said, "WhatsApp stands committed in its efforts to address these issues jointly with civil society, stakeholders and the government."

WhatsApp kicked off the first phase of its radio campaign on 29 August in seven states including Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

A Moneycontrol report informs that the second phase of the campaign started on 5 September with radio ads across 83 radio stations of AIR across the states of Assam, Tripura, West Bengal, Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, Orissa and Tamil Nadu.

These campaigns will run in eight regional languages, ie, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Marathi, Telugu, Oriya and Tamil and will go on for a 15-day duration.

WhatsApp states that the campaign has been designed in an easy-to-understand format to help users spot misinformation. The idea is to further sensitise them about the challenges of fake news and addressing these collectively as a society.

The company has, however, not accepted the government's demand for traceability of messages, saying that creating such a software will go against the idea of user privacy and end-to-end encryption.

For WhatsApp, India is its biggest market with more than 200 million users and one where people forward more messages, photographs and videos than any other country. In July, WhatsApp said, however, that message forwards will be limited to five chats at a time, whether among individuals or groups and said it will remove the quick forward button placed next to media messages.

A Moneycontrol report says that with general elections slated to be held next year in India, the government is taking a tough stance on the use of social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp for the spread of misinformation.

Moneycontrol has also previously reported that the Election Commission is planning to crack down on fake news circulated on social media to influence voters. It is planning on treating Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp and other social media platforms as potential carriers of fake news that can influence polls. It may also bring these platforms under the ambit of paid news.

"At present, the country has no specific law against 'paid news'. However, the EC is now planning to make it applicable by resorting to invoking Section 10A, read with Section 77 of the Representation of Peoples Act (RPA) dealing with misreporting of funds, to treat publication of 'reports' as political advertising. If the practice works out, every promoted tweet, post and video by political parties on any social media platform would be treated as paid news," said the report.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) OP Rawat told Mint, "There are several allegations in the world against social media platforms and they are subject to many probes. We are taking all steps to contain this so that our elections do not get influenced by it."

An expert committee of EC has also held a meeting with officials of major social media platforms, Rawat said, where a commitment was sought that any such material that can adversely affect elections will not be put upon their platforms.

What is disturbing though is the government's call to telecom operators to find ways to block Facebook, WhatsApp in case of misuse. This may be the classic case of throwing the baby with the bathwater because social networking sites are also tools of authentic information, communication, social initiatives and a lot more, and blocking these platforms when many mainstream news channels and outlets are pushing slanted views, can be a bit short-sighted.

In what seems like a clarification, India's department of telecommunication said the letter was aimed at finding ways to block such apps during "emergency situations".

"There is a need for a reasonably good solution to protect national security," said the official, who declined to be named in the report by Mint.

India has also begun probing Cambridge Analytica's misuse of Facebook user data, which it suspects included information on users and it remains to be seen if the Indian consumers of information feel more confident about the security of their own data or if they are reduced to just pawns in the cat and mouse games between lawmakers and content purveyors. And just who wins the war on fake news and how.
A three-judge bench headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi, asked the states to file the complete data of pending criminal cases against former and sitting MPs and MLAs, as well as setting up of special courts to handle their cases.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the chief secretaries of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and others to file the complete data of pending criminal cases against former and sitting MPs and MLAs, as well as setting up of special courts to handle their cases.

A three-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi, asked the registrar generals of the High Courts of states, including Chhattisgarh and Odisha, as to how many of these criminal cases were referred to the Fast Track Courts (FTCs) to complete the proceedings within a time-bound manner.

During the course of the hearing in the Supreme Court on Wednesday, the petitioner's lawyer, Sajan Poovaya, informed the court that one Union Territory and as many as 10 states have submitted their detailed replies with respect to the setting up of special courts for speedy disposal of pending criminal cases against sitting and former lawmakers.

The ten states, which have submitted their replies to the apex court and already set up a special court, are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal, while Delhi has set up two such courts.

The bench asked why the remaining states have not filed their responses yet. "We seek complete information on the next date with respect to the setting up of special courts and pending cases against sitting MLAs and MPs in the states," the bench said.

The apex court was hearing a petition filed by Bharatiya Janata Party leader Ashwini Upadhyay seeking a speedy disposal of pending criminal cases against MLAs and MPs. The Supreme Court will conduct hearings on the matter after the second week of October.
For queer activists, it's been a long and arduous journey that led to the historic 6 September ruling scrapping Section 377

By Chandni Shah

On 6 September 2018, the Supreme Court read down Section 377 to decriminalise consenting sexual acts between homosexual adults. On the day, we asked people where they were and what they were doing when they heard the verdict for the history books. The answers were wonderful, full of a sense of what huge moment it was.

In the spirit of the long and arduous journey that led to that moment, we tried to trace a small, informal history of LGBTQ+ activism by speaking to queer activists about significant memories of in the run-up to the verdict.

For some, despite the jubilation of the verdict, the systemic oppression and harassment they faced at the hands of the state is fresh in their minds.

Rumi Harish from LesBiT, a Bengaluru-based community support collective, talks about a painful experience that had three villains working together  politicians, police and prejudice. I had a close friend called Pamela, a trans woman. Pamela and I used to work together. Way back in 2002, when we had an office in Shivajinagar, an MLA lived in the same building. He and some others decided that we were unnatural people who should not be using the building, even though we were paying rent. So they called the police who threw us out and barred us from entering our own space. That night, Pamela and I were sitting somewhere and getting drunk. She told me, 'If Section 377 was not there, we too would have had our own office and it would have been rightfully ours. We wouldnt have been thrown out like this'.

Another incident that encapsulates the bittersweet nature of the 6 September ruling was recalled by Vinay Chandran, LGBT rights activist, counsellor and founder of Benaluru-based Swabhava Trust. I remember when the 2009 judgement from the Delhi High Court (scrapping Section 377) came in, I walked into the office and I got two calls in succession. The first one was to tell me that the High Court had ruled in favour of Naz Foundation so it was a very celebratory occasion. A few minutes later, I got a call from an engineering student who had gone on a date. He had a shoulder bag with a laptop in it and they had gone to a hotel room. When he was in the bathroom, the other man took his belongings and made away with it. This person wouldve let it go if it wasnt a college laptop. So he filed a police complaint and they told him to come back a few days later. When he went back, the police said 'We know what you were doing in this hotel with this person. If you want your laptop back, pay Rs 25,000'. This person called us in a panic, so we sent a lawyer with him. This was the day that the judgement came out.

Pawan Dhall, founding trustee of Varta Trust, a Kolkata-based gender and sexuality publishing non-profit agency shared his story. In 1997, I was part of a support group called Counsel Club (one of the first Indian queer support groups started in 1993 that continued till 2002). We used to receive copies of a journal called Trikon from the oldest South Asian queer support group in the US, to distribute in India. This arrangement was working quite well but the Customs Department happened to open a parcel with about 50 copies. So I got a show cause notice as to why I should be penalised  the magazine had 'immoral content' so I was corrupting the morals of the nation by distributing it. The notice was very unnerving because the support group was just four years old and although we knew supportive doctors and social workers, we didnt know any supportive lawyers.

Dhall notes that Even after Section 377 is gone, there is always the fear of the obscenity laws. The obscenity laws, 377, all these also inform the Customs laws.

These accounts are a reminder that while the judgement is a big victory, there is still much work ahead to undo the effects of years of stigma.

For me, this is the beginning of a bigger battle. Its not the culmination of 20 years (of struggle), its the beginning of god knows how many more because were fighting discrimination in the minds of people now. We fought it in the courts, but theres a lot more work to do, Chandran says.

Other LGBT activists spoke of how activism brought them closer to others in the community.

Anirudh, the co-founder of Q&A: The Queer and Ally Network, shared a happy memory from the groups early days. I remember getting together with my college friends in Manipal and trying to get an LGBTQ+ support group afloat. Four very, very different people, coming together, united by the need to do something for the community, the need to create a space where people could be themselves without fear. And my god, getting it going was hard. There were problems from the ground up. But we managed to get the group running in a Hindutva-influenced, narrow-minded, small place like Manipal. That was a huge success. and evidence that activism can actually work.

For some, there are years worth of memorable experiences that make it difficult to pick just one or two. Nitin Karani, a key member of Humsafar Trust and an activist for about 20 years, recounts: Starting from the first Gay Mens Conference held in India in December 1994 and the first pride walk I attended in Kolkata on 2 July 1999., there were so many things (along this journey)  setting up of Humsafar Trust, the revival of Bombay Dost, I could just go on and on. When asked about his first thoughts when the verdict came out, he compared it to the 2013 judgement. This time, I was not emotional at all. The last time, it was a complete shock and total disappointment but this time it was very much expected. I was more keen on knowing the contours of the LGBT equality they would spell out, he said.

Rashid (name changed), a student and activist, recalled his foray into activism. This was in 2013 when I was in Class 1o. I was being trained under a special UN programme on LGBTQ+ rights when we heard the news about the recriminalisation of 377. When I returned home from school, I found an email that said Do not look back from today. Fight towards equality... Breathe a sense of relief only when you are done fighting [sic]!

For Romal Laisram, founder of the Queer Arts Movement India, and so many others like him, this is a promise of better times. As the news broke, something within me didn't want to believe it. Memories of the recriminalisation came back. I remember the mad joy I had felt in 2009, and how my world broke when the SC recriminalised us just a few years later. I remembered all the tears and all I wanted was to cry again. It took a while to let it sink in. This was an SC judgement and it wasn't going to be so easily contested. Like an adorable policeman at one of the Bengaluru Prides said, "Navidde alva?" (we're here, no?), here's hoping that more heterosexual allies join the movement to make us as accepted as anyone else. I can now actually dream of that day.

The Ladies Finger (TLF) is a leading online women's magazine
The Shiv Sena on Wednesday launched an attack on the Congress party, saying that the Rahul Gandhi-led party needs their support for making the Bharat bandh successful in Maharashtra.

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Wednesday launched an attack on the Congress party, saying that the Rahul Gandhi-led party needs their support for making the Bharat bandh successful in Maharashtra.

Through its mouthpiece, Saamana, the Uddhav Thackrey-led party said that the Bharat bandh was not successful in Maharashtra, adding that it would have been successful, had the Sena supported it. They further stated that the Congress did not support them when needed during the Palghar elections.

"In Palghar, the Congress and other left parties gave their candidates against Shiv Sena and the BJP won the elections. If Congress would have supported Shiv Sena candidate against BJP, Palghar result would have been different, like Bhandara Gondia," the Sena wrote.

The Sena also said that they would have been happy had the Bharat Bandh been successful as it was in the interest of the common man, adding that former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan alleging the Sena of double standards was wrong. On Tuesday, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray compared Shiv Sena to a dog after the latter claimed that the 'Bharat Bandh' failed in the state.

"There is a breed of dog which doesn't know which way to look at. Same is Shiv Sena's situation. When their money gets stuck, they talk of stepping out of the alliance, when their work is done, they go silent," the MNS chief said. The MNS had supported the strike that was held in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Pune, Nashik and others areas of Maharashtra.
The Bombay High Court upholding the discharge of DG Vanzara and others in the case is just the latest twist in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case.

On Monday, the Bombay High Court upheld the discharge granted by a trial court to former chief of the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad DG Vanzara and four others  all police officers from Gujarat and Rajasthan  in the alleged fake encounter case of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, his wife Kausar Bi in 2005 and aide Prajapati in 2006. This is just the latest twist in the 13-year-old case, which has seen a number of developments delaying its closure.

How it began

According to Outlook, Sheikh  a criminal who allegedly had links with the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)  was shot dead by the Gujarat Police in an alleged encounter on the outskirts of Ahmedabad. Vanzara, the former ATS Deputy Inspector General, said that Sheikh was suspected to be in the city on behalf of the LeT and ISI to assassinate a top political figure, presumed to be then chief minister Narendra Modi.

According to the report, the Gujarat Police claimed that Prajapati was killed in another genuine encounter with the Rajasthan Police in December 2006 when he tried to escape from custody while returning to Udaipur from Ahmedabad after another hearing in the case.

The Supreme Court had ordered the Gujarat Police to investigate the matter after Sheikh's brother Rababuddin wrote to the Chief Justice of India a few weeks after the 2005 encounter, saying he was unconvinced about the Gujarat Police's version of how his brother was killed. He had said he was also concerned about the "disappearance" of his sister-in-law, The Quint reported. The task of investigating the case was given to Geeta Johri, the first female officer of the Gujarat Police and the then Inspector General of the CID (Crime), who submitted her report to the top court in September 2016.

According to The Hindu, in 2006, Johri had recommended to the Supreme Court that the investigation be entrusted to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) "at once". She also spoke of the "collusion of the state government in the form of Shri Amit Shah, MoS for Home Affairs". In her report, Johri added that the episode "makes a complete mockery of the rule of law and is perhaps an example of the involvement of the state government in a major crime".

Then, in November that year, journalist Prashant Dayal, who worked for newspaper Divya Bhaskar, purportedly plied Gujarat Police officers with liquor until they bragged about "eliminating anti-national elements", Scroll reported. After further investigation, Dayal reported that two men and a burqa-clad woman were confined at a farm house, which led to the arrest of senior police officials, including Vanzara and Rajkumar Pandian of the Gujarat Police and MN Dinesh Kumar of the Rajasthan Police, for the murder of Sheikh and others, the report added.

CBI takes over

The CBI named 37 accused in its chargesheet, including BJP president Amit Shah, who was the home affairs minister of Gujarat when these encounters took place. Several police officers were also accused in the two cases. The CBI concluded that Sheikh, Kausar Bi and Prajapati were abducted on 23 November, 2005, when they were travelling from Hyderabad to Sangli in Maharashtra in a luxury bus.

The agency claimed that Sheikh was killed on the spot, Kausar Bi a few days later and Prajapati, who was an eyewitness to the two killings, was initially let off, but later arrested and killed by a team of the Rajasthan Police at the behest of Vanzara and the other officers now discharged in the case. The CBI claimed that Sheikh and Prajapati were extortionists who targeted marble traders in Rajasthan and Gujarat, and also did extortion work for the local police. But when the relationship turned sour, the Gujarat Police decided to take them out.

Charges dropped, acquittals galore

In 2014, a special court in Mumbai dropped all charges against Shah. "I am of the opinion that the inference drawn by CBI is not accepted in totality and he (Shah) cannot be charged as an accused," special CBI judge MB Gosavi said in the brief order pronounced in the court.

Between August 2016 and September 2017, the special court in Mumbai, where the case was shifted from Gujarat on the Supreme Court's orders, discharged 15 of these 37 accused, including 14 police officials.

Witnesses turn hostile

Two of three 'panch' witnesses in the 2005 case were declared hostile after they failed to identify accessories seized before them from Sheikh's body before it was taken for autopsy, The Asian Age reported.

In March this year, two more witnesses turned hostile by denying parts of the statements they had recorded 13 years ago. Of the 53 witnesses summoned, 35 have, so far, been declared hostile in the trial on Sheikh's alleged fake encounter, reports said.

In February, a roadside hotel owner, failing to support the prosecution's case, was declared hostile, joining a series of other witnesses who retracted their statements.

Since 29 November, 2017, when the CBI examined its first witness in the case, dozens of eyewitnesses who gave statements to investigators earlier, have said they never saw Sheikh with Kausar Bi and Prajapati being abducted from a bus in November 2005.

These include Misbah Hyder, who was driving the bus in which Sheikh was allegedly travelling. Hyder had earlier claimed that an SUV had stopped the bus, and the police had taken away three persons. But he now denies such an incident had taken place.

Another eyewitness, Amit Sharad Apte, who was also travelling on the same bus, retracted his earlier statement, in which he said he saw Sheikh, his wife and Prajapati.

Protection for witnesses

On 12 February, after two more witnesses had turned hostile, the Bombay High Court sought to know from the CBI the steps it was taking to ensure that the witnesses were able to testify "fearlessly". The high court posed the question to the agency after noting that several of the witnesses in the case examined by a special court had turned hostile. It maintained that the premier investigative agency cannot be a "silent spectator".

"Is it not the CBI's responsibility to ensure that its witnesses are protected so that they can depose against the accused fearlessly?" the court asked. "Considering that several witnesses have turned hostile before the special CBI court, are you providing any protection to them? Your responsibility does not end simply at filing the chargesheet. It is your duty to protect your witnesses," the bench said.

The observations came while the court was hearing an appeal filed by the CBI challenging the discharge of former Gujarat IPS officer NK Amin, one of the 15 accused discharged in the case by the special court. The CBI has charged Amin with being a part of the conspiracy to kill Sheikh, Kausar Bi and Prajapati.

Media gagged

On 29 November, 2017, as the CBI began its examination of eyewitnesses, a defence advocate moved an application seeking to ban the media from reporting the case. The court passed an order the same day, restraining the media from reporting the case "till further orders".

However, on 24 January, the Bombay High Court quashed and set aside the trial court's order prohibiting journalists from reporting on or publishing the proceedings of the case trial. Justice Revati Mohite-Dere minced no words in holding that the special CBI court overreached its powers in issuing the order.

"The rights of the press are intrinsic with the constitutional right that guarantees freedom of expression. In reporting from an open trial, the press not only makes use of its own right, but serves the larger purpose of making such information available to the general public," she said.

Such an order could be issued only in rare cases and for a limited period of time, Mohite-Dere said, adding that mere apprehension of sensationalism by the accused was not a sufficient ground for such a gag order.

With inputs from PTI
The irony in the Bhima Koregaon case is that the Supreme Court did not trust the lower judiciary, which has the power to deal with the activists' arrests.

Editors Note: This article was originally shared on Quora on 29 August and updated on 2 September. Firstpost has edited the story for style.

***

If lesser mortals like you or me are arrested, the hearing takes place in a magistrates court. But if those with alleged links with Naxalites are arrested, the hearing takes place directly in the Supreme Court.

Thousands of people are arrested every day in the country. These arrested persons are produced before a magistrate court or trial court (if it is a case before a special judge). Such a magistrate would examine in detail the grounds for arrest and either grant bail or allow further custody of the accused, depending on the merits of the case. If the accused is not satisfied with the order of the magistrate, he can challenge the order before a sessions court, high court or even the Supreme Court, in that sequence.

There is even a provision for obtaining anticipatory bail (pre-arrest bail), but that too can be obtained from a sessions court and/or high court, and there is an appeal procedure here, too. So an elaborate procedure has been laid down in the criminal laws of the country to take care of the rights of the person arrested.

But wait. These procedures are only for lesser mortals like you and me. These procedures are not meant for VVIPs.

When the five activists (alleged to have connections with Naxalites) were arrested yesterday (on 28 August) by the Maharashtra Police in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence, this morning (29 August), a battery of senior lawyers mentioned the matter directly before the Supreme Court.

Moreover, this matter was mentioned before a Constitution bench of the Supreme Court directly. You are generally not allowed to mention a matter before the Constitution bench.

This matter was mentioned by several senior lawyers, including Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Indira Jaising, Dushyant Dave, Raju Ramachandran and Amarendra Sharan, along with advocates Vrinda Grover and Prashant Bhushan.

Now, Singhvi would usually charge about Rs 10 lakh for a single appearance. The other senior lawyers mentioned above would also charge in lakhs of rupees per appearance in court.

So does this mean that these activists have such financial resources to put up so many seniors at the same time? Or do the people supporting them have such resources? Or do these people have such high connections that such influential lawyers would appear for them for free?

But the moot question is, why should the matter be mentioned directly in the Supreme Court, when the arrested persons had yet to be produced before a magistrate court or a special judge, as the case may be? Does the Supreme Court have no faith in the lower judiciary? There is nothing to show in this case that the lower judiciary failed to take corrective action, which would have warranted direct action from the highest court of the land.

In fact, media reports also suggest that this matter was also mentioned before one or two high courts at the same time.

Yes, personal liberty is very important. It is a fundamental right. But then personal liberty is important for thousands of ordinary persons, too, who are arrested daily in India. I am personally handling (and have handled in the past) several cases where accused persons are in jail for years and not days, that too during trial period, or even during the investigation period.

I agree that there are merely allegations against these arrested activists at this stage, and the case has yet to be proved. But this is the situation for thousands of persons arrested every day in India  those persons were also merely facing allegations at the time of arrest.

Why there are different standards for different sets of people?

Merely because there are certain VVIPs? People who can manage to get big lawyers who charge in millions or lakhs of rupees per appearance? Or who are influential?

It is noteworthy that the Maharashtra Police was not hasty in arresting these activists. The Bhima Koregaon incident took place several months ago. In the meantime, the Maharashtra Police was collecting evidence while investigating the matter. As per media reports, it was only after evidence could be collected against these activists that the arrests were made.

Even otherwise, given the influence of such activists (the whole of the mainstream media was with them), the police would not dare to arrest these activists without there being sufficient evidence on record.

Why was such evidence not judged by the magistrate court in the first instance as per the laws applicable to ordinary citizens? Why directly the Supreme Court?

While I write this, I can see a news report that the Supreme Court has asked the Pune Police to keep these activists under house arrest till 6 September. I would like to be enlightened about where in law there is a provision for house arrest. Was the order passed under Article 142 of the Constitution? This is absolutely abnormal.

The biggest irony here is that the Supreme Court itself did not trust the lower judiciary, which has the power to deal with such arrests. Did the lower judiciary commit any mistake in this regard that the Supreme Court was directly involved?

What about the rights of the thousands of people  the ordinary people who are arrested every day in India?

It is for the trial court to decide whether the arrest of these five activists is legally valid. It has to be done on the basis of the evidence on record. This is what I feel about their arrest.

But the law is not equal for everybody. Every person does not get equal protection before the law. Some get special protection, and that is evident.

Postscript (update on 2 September):

Some esteemed readers have tried to point out that under Article 32 of the Constitution, the Supreme Court has the power to directly handle such a matter. With all humility at my command, let me point out that holding a PhD in constitutional law, I am not unaware of the provisions of Article 32.

The issue I have raised is slightly different. In fact, for the past 30 to 40 years, the Supreme Court has not generally been entertaining most Article 32 petitions, including important matters involving serious violations of fundamental rights, even though Article 32 is itself a fundamental right. I have faced this in some of my cases.

The question is about differential treatment meted out to some over others. Will the Supreme Court directly entertain Article 32 petitions of millions of ordinary citizens who are arrested every year in India, instead of sending them first to a magistrate court?

The author is a Supreme Court advocate and former Indian Police Service officer.
The 'Queer Collective' group of gay members at the TISS alleged that the comment was directed at the cultural secretary of the students' union during a gathering last Friday.

Mumbai: Days after the Supreme Court legalised consensual gay sex, the LGBTQ community of Mumbai-based Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) has alleged that a student passed certain unpleasant remarks against one of its members.

Such a behaviour does disservice to the cause of creating a safe space for students, the 'Queer Collective' group of gay members at the TISS said in a statement issued on Tuesday.

The group alleged that the comment was directed at the cultural secretary of the students' union during a gathering last Friday. "The personal attack by a research scholar included references to the person's family, caste and economic background," the statement said.

"There was lack of acknowledgement of the student's identity as an openly queer person, besides using an aggressive manner of speech and violently occupying the space and disrupting scope for meaningful engagement," it said.

The alleged remark was passed during a students' general body meeting organised for making various budgetary allocations, sources said.

"This is a classic case of cisgender heterosexuality oppressing people who do not bow to the binaries of gender," the Queer Collective group said in the statement.

"We firmly believe that such behaviour does disservice to the cause of creating a safe space for students for practising their politics," it added.

TISS officials were not available for comments on the matter.

Notably, the Supreme Court ruled last Thursday that consensual gay sex is not a crime, and struck down a British era law that it said violates the right to equality.

Parts of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which criminalised consensual unnatural sex, are "irrational, indefensible and manifestly arbitrary", the apex court said in its historic ruling that made India the 26th country in the world where homosexuality is legal.
The US will be 'very supportive' if conditions can be created for productive talks between India and Pakistan, a senior Trump administration official said.

Washington: The US will be "very supportive" if conditions can be created for productive talks between India and Pakistan, a senior Trump administration official has said, underling that Washington understands New Delhi's position that "demonstrable reduction" in cross-border terrorism would create the confidence for such a dialogue.

The US welcomes the positive messages that were exchanged between Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and "how the two governments can build on what is already existing structures, whether it's the national security advisor dialogue or the DGMO channel or the people-to-people ties that have been sustained through the bus service," Alice Wells, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, told reporters during a conference call on Monday.

On 20 August, Prime Minister Modi had sent a letter to Khan, conveying that New Delhi was looking for constructive and meaningful engagement with Islamabad.

Khan also expressed Pakistan's willingness to re-start the stalled India-Pakistan peace process and said the two countries must engage in dialogue to resolve their differences, including on the Kashmir issue, and start trade.

Responding to a question, Wells said in general, the US supports a dialogue between India and Pakistan that can reduce tensions.

"We understand and have had frequent conversations with our Indian partners on the expectations that there would be a demonstrable reduction in cross border terrorism or infiltration that will help create the confidence for a dialogue to take place," she said.

"If conditions can be created for a productive bilateral conversation, obviously we would be very supportive," Wells said.

Wells said the US had sent a two-pronged message to Pakistan: a desire to engage constructively and an emphasis on the need for Pakistan to implement its promises to fight all terrorist groups.

The India-Pakistan ties nose-dived in recent years with no bilateral talks taking place.

The ties between the two countries had strained after the terror attacks by Pakistan-based groups in 2016 and India's surgical strikes inside Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The sentencing of alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav to death by a military court in April last year further deteriorated bilateral ties.

The two sides often accuse each other of ceasefire violations along the Line of Control, resulting in civilian casualties.
There are 13 medical colleges in Uttar Pradesh, including seven new ones, where there is shortage of staff.

Uttar Pradesh cabinet on Tuesday decided to utilise the services of retired professors of medical colleges, institutes and universities on a contractual basis to meet the shortage of senior teachers in newly set-up and upcoming super-speciality blocks in four hospitals.

The state cabinet, in a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, decided to take the services of retired professors of various government medical colleges in the country on a contract basis as professor consultants at a monthly remuneration of Rs 2,20,000, an official spokesman said.

There are 13 medical colleges in the state, including seven new ones, where there is a shortage of staff, he said. The super-speciality blocks are to be established at four other medical colleges in Gorakhpur, Meerut, Jhansi and Allahabad under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana.

The proposal was made as the retirement age of medical teachers in Uttar Pradesh is 65 years while the Medical Council of India approved retirement age is 70 years, reported The Indian Express.

The cabinet also decided to implement recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission benefits for employees of Industrial Development Authorities in Uttar Pradesh from 1 January, 2016. The respective authorities will bear the additional burden incurred because of the implementation of the new pay commission recommendations and the government will not extend any assistance in this regard, an official spokesman said.

It also approved the financial assistance scheme for the ambitious "One district-One product" scheme of the state government which promotes traditional industries in every district, a government spokesman added.

With inputs from PTI
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday reacted to embattled liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya's claim that he met him before leaving India.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday reacted to embattled liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya's claim that he met him before leaving India and said that "the statement is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth."

"My attention has been drawn to a statement made to the media by Vijay Mallaya (sic) on having met me with an offer of settlement," Jaitley said in a Facebook post.

The finance minister said that Mallya "misused" his privilege of being a member of the Rajya Sabha and "paced to catch up" with him while he was walking out of the Rajya Sabha.

"I had never given him an appointment, never at my office and never at my residence, nor have I ever offered to meet him," Jaitley further told ANI.

#WATCH Finance Minister Arun Jaitley says, "I never gave him an appointment" on Vijay Mallya's claim that he met the Finance Minister before he left. pic.twitter.com/aGxlD69NHY  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Apart from the encounter which Jaitley claimed to have described in his Facebook post, the finance minister said, "There is no question of my having ever met him, spoken to him. I even did not receive any paper from him at that time. And therefore, to convey an impression that he met me with an offer of settlement is factually not correct.

The finance minister also lashed out at the Congress for its remarks over the issue and said, "They (Congress) cannot even understand the kind of honest politics practised by people like us."

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss, who arrived to appear before the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, told reporters that he had met the minister and offered to settle the issue with the banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving, I met the finance minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks), Mallya said, without naming Jaitley.

Jaitley was the finance minister in 2016 when Mallya left India.

Mallya also said that he had made a "comprehensive settlement" offer before the Karnataka High Court that will help in paying off all his dues.

The former Kingfisher Airlines boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest last April, responded to the swarm of reporters gathered outside the court in his characteristic manner and said the "courts will decide".

"I hope the honourable judges will consider it favourably; everybody gets paid off and I guess that's the primary objective, said Mallya, who is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore.
Before attending a programme of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in Betul district, police allegedly took away black scarves of a few college students.

Betul: Amid a series of incidents of showing black flags to the political leaders in Madhya Pradesh, police allegedly took away black scarves of a few college students before attending a programme of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in Betul district on Tuesday.

About half a dozen women students of the Mahatma Gandhi Chitrakoot Gramodaya Vishwavidyalaya had reached Multai town  around 220 km south of Bhopal  to attend the event. They were in their uniforms.

Narrating the incident, one of the women said, "When we reached the venue, a woman police officer told us to remove our black dupattas and keep it in the bag. Later, they took it away, saying that it would be given back after the end of the chief minister's programme."

She said they were told that the scarves would be returned from the Multai police station. "When we reached the police station, the officers there again told us to reach the venue to collect it, but still we are not getting our scarf."

Hitting out at Chouhan over the incident, former Multai MLA and state Congress general secretary Sukhdev Panse said, "The chief minister is afraid. He is afraid even of the uniforms of the girl students. This has never happened in the state's history when the police took away the chunnis of the girls due to fear of protest."

Local BJP MLA Chandrashekhar Deshmukh denied having any knowledge about the incident. "This is serious if such things have happened. I am immediately going to talk to police officers as to why this has happened."

On the other hand, Multai police station in-charge Ram Snehi Chouhan also expressed ignorance about the incident. "I was on duty at other place to arrest the protesters." Earlier, the Congress leaders staged a protest with black flags and courted arrest near the venue.

Of late, several incidents had taken place in the state in which the people protesting against the recent amendments to the SC/ST Act had shown black flags to the political leaders of all parties.
Yogi Adityanath said that cultivating crops other than sugarcane and different types of vegetables will be beneficial for Uttar Pradesh.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday asked farmers in the state to grow crops other than sugarcane, claiming that excessive production of the crop will lead to excess consumption, which could cause diabetes.

While speaking at a road inauguration programme in Baghpat, where sugarcane is the key crop grown, Adityanath was quoted as saying by The Indian Express: "The market in Delhi is good for you people. I would like to make an appeal to you that if you will cultivate other crops and different types of vegetables, it will be beneficial for the state."

The chief minister also lauded his government for clearing dues worth Rs 26,000 crore, so far. He was quoted as saying by Times Now: "We have paid Rs 26,000 crore to sugarcane farmers this year, and the remaining Rs 10,000 crore will also be released soon by sugar mills. We have made adequate arrangements for the same."

According to News18, the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Uttar Pradesh has been concerned about the clearance of dues in the state, as it recently lost the Kairana by-election to a Rashtriya Lok Dal candidate by 44,000 votes, in which pending dues was one of the most important poll issues.

Opposition parties seized the opportunity to target the Yogi Adityanath government for allegedly not helping the farmers of the state, Times Now reported.

Now, with its focus on the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP-led government in June brought out a comprehensive package of more than Rs 8,000 crore to cover all the sugarcane-related arrears of more than Rs 20,000 crore, IANS reported.
Located at the east bank of the Hooghly river, the beautiful city of Kolkata has earned the title Cultural Capital for its rich culture, artistic heritage and festivals. Every lane of Kolkata is intriguing and full of its exclusive traditions and art. Being popular for their delectable delicacies, Mishti Doi, vibrant Bengali sarees, music and festivals, Kolkata is also called the City of Joy.

Fashion in Kolkata has created an indelible mark. Kolkata is home to some of the greatest fashion designers in India. Sabyasachi Mukherjee is one of the finest and most sought-after fashion designers. He has designed costumes for many Bollywood movies and fashion shows. Kolkata has always been the inspiration behind his work. Sabyasachi believes that Clothes should be an extension of ones intellect. He is commended for using unconventional fabrics, detailing, textures, and vibrant colours in his work.

Anamika Khanna who also belongs from Kolkata has revolutionized the fashion world with her contemporary designs. She has blended the traditional textiles with the western style. She is one of the first designers to have an International label. She is renowned for creating remarkable designs for red carpet events, Bollywood movies, ramp walks, celebrity weddings, etc.

Being the hub for trendy ensembles and fashion designers, Kolkata is full of designer boutiques and stores. One interesting fact is that the blouse was originated in Kolkata.

Kolkata is brimming with budget markets and old bazaars in every nook and corner. However, one market which distinguishes itself from the rest is the New Market. Contrary to the name New Market, it is one of the oldest markets in Kolkata. The grand gothic edifice exhibits the rich heritage of the place. The New Market has an extensive assortment of products to shop from. From raw materials to Bengali sarees and trendy shoes, you name it, you get it.

With more than two thousand shops, the New Market has something for everyone at a reasonable cost. New Market not only fascinates the locals but also attracts international visitors. Owing to the variety presented and the shops grouped together according to the products being sold, it is considered as Indias first mall.

Sneha Ghosh, runway model and fashionista from Kolkata, confesses that she grew up around the elements of New Market. She states that Bengali women are fashionable in a unique way. She emphasizes the fact that the New Market has always stood strong and been an important part for the various festivals.

Snehas message to women is to redefine beauty and fashion and look at it in a holistic way. She firmly advices that one should believe in themselves and in what they buy. She advised to love yourself and be yourself.

Pallavi Singhis brand VERB strongly promotes and believes in the idea of free fashion. Her brand is available in boutiques in France, Spain and Nigeria. She advises that do not try to copy someone elses style, what works for others may not work for you. Pallavi accentuates the fact that aping is a complete no-no in her fashion ideologies.

Looking at the diverse and ever-changing fashion trends in India, Flipkart strives to bring the best and latest styles at an affordable cost.

Arief from Flipkart says that affordability is a constraint in India for the common people. Flipkart's main objective is to make fashion brands affordable for everyone. Prahlad from Flipkart shares that concepts like Cash On Delivery and Buy First And Pay Later has made a lot of differences. People like to wear and feel the products before buying them and they have introduced features to cater to this need.

Overflowing with history, fascinating people and art, Kolkata might be the favourite place for your shopping. Experience the artistic city of Kolkata and get acquainted with their fashion culture through this short video. India ka Fashion Capital  Powered by Flipkart Fashion will let you experience the fashion scenes in the metropolitan cities in India.

This is a partnered post.
A Congress MLA was suspended from Haryana Assembly on Tuesday for one year after the legislator and the Leader of Opposition, Abhay Singh Chautala, hurled abuses and charged at each other with a shoe in their hand, prompting the Speaker to summon marshals.

Chandigarh: A Congress MLA was suspended from Haryana Assembly on Tuesday for one year after the legislator and the Leader of Opposition, Abhay Singh Chautala, hurled abuses and charged at each other with a shoe in their hand, prompting the Speaker to summon marshals. A resolution to suspend Karan Singh Dalal, which was supported by main opposition INLD, was moved by finance minister Capt Abhimanyu over alleged use of derogatory language and misconduct by the Congress MLA and passed by voice vote in the House.

During the first half of the day's proceedings, the firebrand Congress MLA from Palwal had a heated exchange with Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leader Chautala and both stopped short of exchanging blows. Chautala held a shoe in his hand as he advanced aggressively towards Dalal who too took out his shoe as both hurled abuses at each other. The Speaker summoned House marshals to form a human chain around the two legislators. Congress MLAs including Hooda held Dalal's hands in a bid to prevent the situation from escalating further. Later, the Assembly was adjourned briefly.

The Congress protested against the suspension of its MLA, alleging that the BJP was misusing its majority in the House. Dalal said he would move the court against his suspension and questioned why no action was taken against Chautala. However, during second sitting of the Assembly in the evening, the House passed another resolution to condemn alleged objectionable behaviour and language of both Dalal and Chautala and for not maintaining decorum of the House, inviting objection from Congress and INLD MLAs. Amid the din, the House had to be adjourned briefly for third time over the issue.

Earlier, the trouble started when Dalal expressed his unhappiness over a minister's reply to his supplementary questions on the Calling Attention motion over alleged deletion of some ration cards belonging to the poor. The government, in its reply, denied the allegation. But dissatisfied with Minister Karan Dev Kamboj's response, Dalal accused the government of snatching the rights of the poor and used a word which angered the ruling benches. Ministers Anil Vij, OP Dhankar, Manish Grover and Capt Abhimanyu hit back at Dalal, asking him how could he use word which "brings disrepute for Haryana". They claimed that Dalal has not only insulted the House, but entire 2.5 crore population of the state, which the Assembly represents. Dhankar slammed Dalal for using "insulting words for the motherland". Dalal tried to clarify, saying he had said that government is insulting the poor by snatching their rights.

As the ruckus continued, Dalal sought a ruling from deputy speaker Santosh Yadav, who was in the Chair at that time, on whether such a word could be used. He later also sought ruling from Speaker Kanwar Pal when he resumed the Chair. However, amid the din, Yadav adjourned the House for 10 minutes. As the House re-assembled, Dhankar and some other ruling BJP members raised the demand that Dalal be suspended from the House. The Speaker urged both the ruling and opposition MLAs to refrain from using unparliamentary language in the House, telling them otherwise it will be difficult to run Assembly. Capt Abhimanyu said the Leader of Opposition Abhay Singh Chautala too should express his views on Dalal's matter. Chautala said "the kind of language used by Dalal, who is a five-time MLA, was unacceptable". Seeking an apology from Dalal will not serve the purpose, he said and asked the treasury benches to move a resolution for Dalal's suspension, adding the INLD will support it. Soon, Chautala and Dalal were involved in a slanging match and Speaker Kanwar Pal adjourned the House for 15 minutes.

As the House re-assembled once again, Capt Abhimanyu moved the resolution that condemned the use of derogatory word by Dalal for Haryana and his conduct "unbecoming of a member" and suspended him from the House for one year. Hooda took strong objection to the resolution, saying the BJP was misusing its majority in the House to suspend opposition MLA without allowing him an opportunity to give a proper explanation. The former chief minister even apologised on Dalal's behalf, but at the same time said that he had never seen such a situation where an opposition MLA was suspended without being given a chance to explain his side. Congress MLAs led by Hooda and CLP leader Kiran Chowdhary sought a review of the decision and asked under what rule Dalal had been suspended for a year. However, Speaker Kanwar Pal told them that the decision was taken by the House. "The decision of the House is final," he told the Congress members. He disallowed a demand of Congress members to allow them to move a motion against the resolution which had been passed.

Later, opposition Congress staged a walkout from the Assembly. Later talking to reporters outside the Assembly, Dalal termed his suspension as "illegal" and said he would move the court in this regard. Hitting out at Chautala, Dalal said, "why was he not suspended for taking out a shoe and charging at me".
The government must explain how and why Vijay Mallya was allowed to leave India, the Congress said on Wednesday.

New Delhi: The government must explain how and why Vijay Mallya was allowed to leave India, the Congress said on Wednesday after the liquor baron claimed in London that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country.

The government, the party said, was fully complicit in the flight of people like Mallya and others from the country.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said the country wants to know what transpired during the meetings between Mallya and Jaitley.

"The government should now explain how and why Mallya was allowed to leave and what transpired at those meetings. The nation wants to know," he said.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss told reporters in London that he met the minister and offered to settle with the banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the finance minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks), Mallya said, without naming the minister.
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The Congress plans to go in for a broad based alliance in the Telangana assembly polls in line with its efforts to forge opposition unity at the national level, a senior party leader has said.

Hyderabad: The Congress plans to go in for a broad based alliance in the Telangana Assembly polls in line with its efforts to forge opposition unity at the national level, a senior party leader has said. The party was trying to unite the opposition in the state and was in contact with all parties, including CPI, Kondaram (of TJS) and TDP, AICC in charge of Congress affairs in Telangana RC Khuntia said. "We are not averse to having an alliance with TDP," he told PTI.

Citing the example of Karnataka, where Congress allowed JD(S) to take the chief minister's post despite having more number of seats,he said the idea in Telangana was in line with it's efforts at the national level to unite the opposition. The proposal was however at a preliminary stage and seat-sharing had not yet been discussed, Khuntia said. "This is only the preliminary stage. We have not discussed seat sharing. But we are formulating a broad-based alliance, including the TDP also, on the basis of the Common Minimum Programme," he said.

Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president N Uttam Kumar Reddy has already urged all political parties, including TDP and non-political forces, to join hands with Congress to 'end the misrule' of TRS in the state. "There can only be TRS and anti-TRS blocks (other BJP) in the state," Khuntia claimed.

On how Congress would justify an alliance with TDP,which has always been opposed to it, he said Congress does not harbour any bitter feelings towards the TDP. He said the TDP opposed the NDA government, as seen in the no-confidence motion, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman election and the 'Bharat Bandh' against the fuel price hike, he said. The Congress aimed at defeating the 'communal forces' and wanted to take along opposition parties, he said.

The party would highlight the 'failure' of TRS to implement its promises, including increase in reservations for minorities and STs and double bedroom housing for the poor, with emphasis on the door-to-door campaign, he said. It would also focus on what Congress wished to do in the event of coming to power, he said. The state Congress has already announced certain promises to the people.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi would be urged to address a public meeting in at least 10 places in the state. UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi would also be requested to participate in the campaign, he said. The assembly polls in Telangana were originally scheduled to be held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections in 2019. However, the assembly was dissolved last week as per the recommendation made by the TRS government, necessitating elections ahead of schedule.
The move comes as major political parties in Jammu and Kashmir, such as the PDP and National Conference, have announced their boycott of the elections.

The Jammu and Kashmir municipal body elections, which were scheduled to be held in the first week of October, are likely to be deferred, sources have said. A formal decision is likely to be taken by the State Advisory Council (SAC) headed by Jammu and Kashmir governor Satya Pal Malik on Wednesday.

The elections for urban local bodies will be deferred to January, sources were quoted as saying by NDTV. No changes have been made in the Panchayat election schedule, which is to be held in November and December, India Today reported.

The move comes as major political parties in the state, such as the People's Democratic Party (PDP) and the National Conference, have announced their boycott of the local polls.

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti on Monday said that that linking panchayat polls to the pending case in the Supreme Court on Article 35A has created apprehensions in minds of people. Mufti said that the ground situation is not conducive for panchayat polls and the PDP, therefore, urges the government to review its decision to hold polls at this juncture. Referring to the panchayat polls, Mufti further added that looking at the situation, PDP has decided to stay away from the process.

According to NDTV, the Centre wants to give time to the mainstream parties to review their decision to boycott the elections, a move which is seen as defeating the very purpose of holding the elections. The boycott is seen as a watershed development in the state's political landscape because it is the first time when the two parties have found a common cause.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has said that it will contest these elections and termed the National Conference and the PDP as opportunistic parties for boycotting polls. BJP general secretary and in-charge of Jammu and Kashmir, Ram Madhav, met with Malik on Tuesday and also held meetings with party office bearers in Srinagar.
In Telangana, it is a fight for existence for the TDP that has lost 12 of its 15 MLAs to the TRS in the last four years. For the Congress, it is an effort to ensure K Chandrasekhar Rao does not gain by the split in the anti-TRS vote. The hope is that alliance arithmetic plus anti-incumbency against KCR will have a reasonable chance to cause an upset in Telangana.

In March 2016, the Opposition parties in Telangana revisited the adage they had learnt in school  'United we stand, divided we fall'. The civic elections to the newly-formed Achampet Nagara panchayat in Mahbubnagar district was selected as the battlefield where they would come together to fight the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS). But Achampet did not buy into the grand alliance. It turned out to be a grand failure, with the TRS winning all the 20 wards.

Undeterred by the thumbs down, two months later, the Telugu Desam and the YSR Congress decided not to field a candidate in the byelection to Palair assembly constituency in Khammam district, that had been caused by the death of the sitting Congress MLA and instead supported the Congress candidate. Yet, the TRS that had finished a poor fifth in 2014, netting just 4,035 votes, won by a margin of over 45,000 votes this time. Which is why fingers are crossed over whether the opposition will be third time lucky with its Mahakutami (grand alliance).

The Congress, TDP and the CPI have, in principle, decided to fight the elections together to defeat the TRS. Leaders of the three parties discussed the contours of the alliance in Hyderabad on Tuesday, after TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu on paper allowed the Telangana unit to take the decision in its best interest and ensure opposition votes are not split. This is because Naidu does not wish to be seen as the architect of the alliance and be accused of diluting the anti-Congress DNA of the TDP.

But it will not be smooth sailing. For close to four decades now, the two parties have been each other's principal rivals in united Andhra Pradesh. The emergence of two powerful regional parties - the TRS in Telangana and the YSR Congress in Andhra - has forced them to do business with each other. Which is why the big challenge will be to ensure effective vote transfer from the TDP cadre to a Congress candidate and vice versa.

In Telangana, it is a fight for existence for the TDP that has lost 12 of its 15 MLAs to the TRS in the last four years. For the Congress, it is an effort to ensure K Chandrasekhar Rao does not gain by the split in the anti-TRS vote. The hope is that alliance arithmetic plus anti-incumbency against KCR will have a reasonable chance to cause an upset in Telangana.

The hurdles, however, go beyond the headache of ensuring smooth coordination on the ground. The TDP is asking for close to 25-30 seats but the Congress won't part with more than 15. Already in many seats, Congress aspirants are formulating their Plan B in case the constituency they nurtured is allotted as part of seat sharing to the TDP.

The Congress also wants the TDP to contest mostly in urban constituencies, especially in and around Hyderabad, where there is a significant Andhra settler population. The argument is that TDP's tag of being an Andhra party will work to its advantage in Hyderabad as opposed to seats in the countryside where it will be labelled as anti-Telangana. Apart from the settler vote, this is also to ride on the positive sentiment that the TDP believes exists for Chandrababu Naidu. The Andhra CM never tires of reminding people that he created the modern part of Hyderabad though this did not help the TDP do well in both 2004 and 2009.

The only problem with this prognosis is that names of 20 lakh voters have been removed from the electoral rolls, taking the total number of votes in Telangana down from 2.81 crore in 2014 to 2.61 crore now. The Election Commission claims this is because many of those hailing from Andhra but working and living in Telangana have opted to move their vote to their home district in the neighbouring state. If this is true, this will dent the TDP's ability to make a significant dent in a city like Hyderabad.

Then there is trust deficit as well. Revanth Reddy who moved from the TDP to the Congress has reportedly asked for 15 seats for his camp followers. The apprehension is that if this lot and the TDP win even 12 to 15 seats and go on to join hands with a section of the TRS, they could bring down the Congress-led government if indeed the opposition comes to power. So a jostling is already going on to ensure no one is in a position to blackmail the party at a later date.

Another headache is the number of CM claimants from the Congress camp. In the absence of a towering personality, everyone fancies his or her chances for the top job, spending much time undercutting a rival's claim. The joke doing the rounds is that the Congress has 31 chief ministerial candidates, one from each district. The Kaun Banega Mukhyamantri obsession among Congress leaders may well prevent the party from hitting the jackpot.
The Congress, TDP and CPI held preliminary talks on Tuesday on forming a 'grand alliance' to take on the TRS in the assembly polls

Hyderabad: Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader and Telangana Minister KT Rama Rao, popularly known as KTR Wednesday slammed the proposed alliance between the Congress and Telegu Desam Party (TDP) for the coming assembly elections in the state as 'unholy', recalling that the regional party was founded by NT Rama Rao to 'bury' the Congress.

"Elections have come and some strange news are appearing. I have seen yesterday... Uttam Kumar Reddy (state Congress president), Chandrababu Naidu (TDP Chief) have come together," Rama Rao, son of Caretaker Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, said.

Taking a dig at Naidu, the TRS leader said the former chief minister, NT Rama Rao had launched the TDP to 'bury' the Congress and the credit for making it a 'junior partner' would go to him.

"The abominable and unholy alliance gave a clear choice to the people between the Congress and TRS in the elections," he claimed.

The Congress, TDP and CPI held preliminary talks on Tuesday on forming a "grand alliance" to take on the TRS in the assembly polls.

Alleging that farmers faced misery during the long rule of Congress and TDP in undivided Andhra Pradesh, KTR said the choice is clear for the people to choose between those who were allegedly anti-farmer and those who are farmer-friendly.

KTR was speaking at a meeting where senior Congress leader KR Suresh Reddy, who had served as Assembly Speaker in undivided Andhra Pradesh, joined the TRS.

Meanwhile, former MLA A Rajender, who had quit the Congress, returned to the party fold on Wednesday in the presence of Uttam Kumar Reddy.
Embattled liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya on Wednesday created a political storm, saying he had met the finance minister, Arun Jaitley, before leaving India.

Former Kingfisher Airlines chairman and embattled businessman Vijay Mallya on Wednesday created a political storm when he claimed he had met the finance minister before leaving India.

Reporters asked the 62-year-old, who appeared before the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London in the case regarding his extradition to India, whether he was "tipped off" to leave the country. "I left because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the finance minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks. That is the truth," he responded, without naming the minister.

India has requested Mallya's extradition from the United Kingdom so he can face trial on fraud and money laundering charges.

Jaitley's response

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley did not waste time in responding to Mallya's claim. He said Mallya's "the statement is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth".

In a Facebook post, Jaitley said that Mallya had "misused" his privilege of being a member of the Rajya Sabha and "paced to catch up" with him while he was walking out of the Rajya Sabha.

"I had never given him an appointment, never at my office and never at my residence. Nor have I ever offered to meet him," Jaitley told ANI.

Apart from the encounter that Jaitley described in his Facebook post, the finance minister said: "There is no question of my having ever met him or spoken to him. I even did not receive any paper from him at that time. And therefore, to convey an impression that he met me with an offer of settlement is factually not correct."

Mallya clarifies

After the hearing in the Westminster Magistrates' Court, reporters asked Mallya for details of his meeting with Jaitley. The businessman then said: "I'm afraid this is a controversy created by my friends in the media. I was standing here during lunch and I happened to answer a question on the circumstances under which I flew out. I said that I happened to meet Mr Jaitley in Parliament, and I told him that I was leaving for London, and that I want to settle with the banks."

"I did not have any formal meetings scheduled with him. I met him often enough in Parliament, in the House and in central hall," Mallya said. "I don't understand what this controversy is all about."

On being asked whether he had met any other BJP leaders, Mallya said: "Over a period of time, I have met many colleagues in Parliament and expressed to them my desire to settle with the banks. I don't believe I owe you any further details."

"I can confirm to you that nobody tipped me off. There was no need to run and the allegations are media-created allegations," he also said.

Opposition lashes out

The Congress was not convinced by Jaitley's response.

Before Mallya's clarification came in, party spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said the country wants to know what transpired during the meetings between Mallya and Jaitley.

"The government should now explain how and why he was allowed to leave and what transpired at those meetings. The nation wants to know," he said, adding that the government was fully complicit in the "flight" of people like Mallya and others from the country.

On Jaitley's response to Mallya's remarks, Singhvi was quoted by ANI as saying: "Phrase used by Mallya today is that 'he met the finance minister'. But 'met the finance minister' doesn't suggest a passing, casual, walking meeting inside the House of Rajya Sabha. I think a more categorical and detailed response must be given. The question remains that how could he have left after everyone knew of debts and NPAs."

Congress leader Anand Sharma said: "Vijay Mallya has run away after looting money from banks. The government had this information. So when the finance minister gave statements in Parliament on the Vijay Mallya issue, he should have mentioned this meeting with Mallya. Only the finance minister can tell why he didn't tell (anyone) about it."

Party chief Rahul Gandhi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should "immediately order an independent probe", given the "extremely serious allegations" Mallya made in London. "Arun Jaitley should step down as finance minister while this probe is underway.

Given Vijay Mallyas extremely serious allegations in London today, the PM should immediately order an independent probe into the matter. Arun Jaitley should step down as FInance Minister while this probe is underway.  Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) September 12, 2018

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal also criticised the government over this issue.

PM Modi meets Neerav Modi before he flees the country. FM meets Vijay Mallya before he flees India. What transpired in these meetings? People want to know.  Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) September 12, 2018

Former BJP leader Yashwant Sinha said the party "must come clean on its relations with Vijay Mallya".

Not only the finance minister, the entire BJP must come clean on its relations with Vijay Mallya.  Yashwant Sinha (@YashwantSinha) September 12, 2018

Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury suggested that there were "other facts" that were being hidden now.

As with the Rafale scam and Choksi scam, this latest revelation by Mallya puts Modi govt in the dock. It is not the finance minister alone, we cannot be sure what other facts are being hidden even now. #Mallya #Modi #Scams  Sitaram Yechury (@SitaramYechury) September 12, 2018

"It's a fact that all of us had known earlier. Whatever denials the government may issue, it confirms that all those who looted public money by taking loans from banks and absconded, not one of them happened to leave the country without knowledge of the government," ANI quoted Yechury as saying. The Congress also had its own unique way of hitting out at the government on Twitter.

Tough question! Were opting for an audience poll. Rs 9000 crore at stake! pic.twitter.com/AlyNZ6L6dB  Congress (@INCIndia) September 12, 2018

Other Congress leaders also posted tweets against the government.

After Mallya reveals his consultation meetings before his smooth escape, with Fiscal Mismanagement Blog Minister Sh Jaitley - one thing is clear - BJP is running tour travels & immigration agency for loot scoot & settle abroad brigade. https://t.co/n39NfDw0rS  Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) September 12, 2018

Dear Mr @arunjaitley : Perhaps it is time to resign!  Met Finance Minister To "Settle Matters" Before Leaving: Vijay Mallya https://t.co/NtbsKnbNtY via @ndtv  Sanjay Jha (@JhaSanjay) September 12, 2018

Now that it is confirmed that Mallya and Jaitley ji met to try and settle issues before Mallya escaped the clutches of law, does the FM have any moral authority to continue in his post? #SuitBootSarkar  Priyanka Chaturvedi (@priyankac19) September 12, 2018

Why did @arunjaitley not share a Facebook post on his meeting with Vijay Mallya who had come to settle matters before he absconded to the UK? Why do we need to hear this from a fugitive? Why is the Modi govt hiding key information from citizens? This is a very serious matter!  Salman Anees Soz (@SalmanSoz) September 12, 2018

Mehul Chowksi is referred as Bhai by our Honble PM #Modiji while FIRs r pending against him; Now Mallya reveals he met Blog Minister Sh Jaitley before he fled-does the country need anymore proof that #BJP runs a personalized Conceirge Service for Loot & Scoot brigade !!  Jaiveer Shergill (@JaiveerShergill) September 12, 2018

BJP comes to Jaitley's defence Leaders of the saffron party came to Jaitley's defence on Twitter and re-shared the finance minister's statement on the controversy.

Both Vijay Mallya and @INCIndia stand exposed. It is pity that the Congress is depending on the falsehood of a fugitive. pic.twitter.com/ij8Z51kDGf  Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) September 12, 2018

FM @arunjaitley ji dispels the false assertion regarding Vijay Mallya. Mallya's statement does not reflect the truth, and there is no question of him being given any appointment by the FM.https://t.co/VAe2dKLEaZ  Rajyavardhan Rathore (@Ra_THORe) September 12, 2018

People who are going gaga over Vijay Mallya's false claims are the same people who believed in 'phone banking' i.e. getting loans arranged for their friends and cronies through phone calls bypassing all systems of due diligence. https://t.co/IkN1PYGzSp  Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) September 12, 2018

Mallya's claims about a meeting with FM Shri @arunjaitley have been nailed by FM as lies. Mallya wrote letters to @PChidambaram_IN & former PM Dr.Singh about his meetings with them & thanked help in getting (bad) loans.UPA facilitated fraud; NDA nailed it. https://t.co/b4DWmmNSSC  GVL Narasimha Rao (@GVLNRAO) September 12, 2018

The statement (Vijay Mallyas) is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth. Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise. - Read Finanance Minister Arun Jaitleys full statement. https://t.co/XYdHrAsy0i  Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) September 12, 2018

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has yet to comment on the Mallya-Jaitley controversy.

With inputs from PTI
tech2 News Staff

The big day is almost here. Like you would already know by now, Apple is hosting its annual launch event today. The events called Gather Round, and from what the rumours suggest, this special event will see most of the Apple product lines being refreshed. So if you want to be a part of the Apple event, heres all you need to know.

When does the event start?

The special event kicks off on 12 September, which is today. The pre-show of the event starts at 9.00 am Pacific Time, which is 9.30 pm Indian Standard Time. And the event starts at 10 am, which would be 10.30 pm for people watching from India.

Where can I watch the event?

To watch the event live, you can head to Apples website, and stream the video on your iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks. Make sure your MacBook is running macOS Sierra 10.12 or later, while the iOS devices need to be running iOS 10 or later.

In case you are a Windows 10 PC user, you can do also watch the live stream via the Edge browser, and for others, there is Internet Explorer, Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox.

How can I get real-time updates from the event?

Additionally, in case you dont have the time to sit through the event but still want all the updates from tonight, just make sure you have a Twitter account, then you head to Apples official page, and youd see this (see below) tweet on the account. Like the tweet, and Apple will send you notifications on when the event begins and about everything that is launched.

Join us September 12 at 10 a.m. PDT to watch the #AppleEvent live on Twitter. Tap  below and well send you updates on event day. pic.twitter.com/i9mGHTKhvu  Apple (@Apple) September 10, 2018

Tech2 will also be doing an overnight coverage of the event, with blow by blow updates from the event on both, our website and on our Twitter page.

To keep up with all the latest updates regarding the Apple launch, head to our Apple 2018 page.
Reuters

Former Volkswagen boss Martin Winterkorn was slow to address emissions test cheating that led to huge US fines, a judge hearing a damages case brought by investors against the German carmaker said on Tuesday.

The question of who knew what, and when, will be vital in determining the outcome of the suit in which investors are seeking 9.2 billion ($10.6 billion) in damages for share price losses suffered when the scandal became public.

Separately, a consumer rights group said it would file a class-action lawsuit on Wednesday against VW over the manipulation of emissions software, seeking compensation for up to 2 million owners of affected diesel models.

The plaintiffs in the first case say Volkswagen (VW) failed in its duty to inform them about the financial impact of the scandal, which broke when the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a so-called notice of violation on 18 September 2015.

Judge Christian Jaede said then-CEO Winterkorn had dragged his feet after a top-level management meeting two months earlier discussed how to deal with US regulators who were threatening to ban VW because of excessive pollution levels. The plaintiffs say that from this moment, Winterkorn was aware of the cheating.

Anyone acting in good faith would have followed up on this information, Jaede said on the second day of hearings into the case at the Braunschweig higher regional court. This appears not to have happened.

It was not clear, the judge added, why the company had not put out a statement after establishing that engine software had been manipulated to get around emissions tests.

The judge also said it was reasonable to take the view that Winterkorn knew about the emissions cheating far earlier. However, Thomas Liebscher, a lawyer for VW, said it would be unfair to assume the chief executive knew how the companys engine management software worked.

Winterkorn resigned in the days after the scandal broke. He told German lawmakers in early 2017 that he did not find out about the cheating any earlier than VW had officially admitted. His lawyer was not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.

The 71-year old faces US criminal charges, filed in May, accusing him of conspiring to cover up the dieselgate scandal. VW has also said it may seek damages from him.

Public duty

The plaintiffs say VW failed in its duty to inform investors about the potential financial implications of the emissions test cheating, which has cost the company 27.4 billion euros in penalties and fines so far.

Had investors known about VWs cheating, they might have sold shares earlier or not made purchases, thereby avoiding losses on their holdings, the plaintiffs argue. VW shares lost up to 37 percent in value in the days after the scandal broke.

The company has argued it did not inform investors of the issue because it did not want to endanger the chance of reaching a settlement with the US authorities.

Jaede said this would only have been legitimate if a settlement could have been reached quickly and VW had cooperated with the US authorities to the best of its efforts.

The judge told the opening day of the trial that VWs decision between 2005 and 2007 to install cheating software in diesel vehicles was illegal, but it was not clear that the intent was to deceive investors.

Fund manager Deka Investment brought the case, known in German as a Musterklage, or specimen claim. The outcome of the case could apply to a further 1,670 similar shareholder claims.

Its possible that claims covering incidents prior to 2012 may not be valid under the statute of limitations, the judge said on Monday. The case is expected to continue into next year and may end up before a higher court.
Scores of demonstrators had blocked the highway between Afghanistan's Jalalabad and a major Pakistan border crossing, in protest over the appointment of a local police chief when the suicide bomber blew himself up.

Jalalabad: The death toll from a suicide attack on Afghan protesters has soared to 68, officials said on Wednesday, as violence flares across the country ahead of elections and a key Islamic holy day.

The bombing on Tuesday in the eastern province of Nangarhar was the latest in a wave of deadly insurgent attacks which has claimed the lives of hundreds of civilians and security forces across Afghanistan. The blast wounded another 165 people, provincial governor spokesman Ataullah Khogyani said. The Nangarhar health department confirmed the toll.

There has been no claim of responsibility for the massacre, but the Islamic State group, which has carried out most of the recent suicide bombings in Afghanistan, is active in the province.

Scores of demonstrators had blocked the highway between the provincial capital of Jalalabad and a major Pakistan border crossing in protest over the appointment of a local police chief when the suicide bomber blew himself up. The dead and wounded were rushed to several hospitals in the back of pickup trucks and ambulances, overwhelming doctors and nurses as they struggled to cope with the huge number of casualties. It was the deadliest attack since an ambulance packed with explosives detonated in a crowded street in the heart of Kabul in January, killing more than 100 people, mostly civilians. That bombing was claimed by the Taliban.

Violence across the country has intensified in recent weeks as the Taliban make gains on the battlefield and IS launches deadly urban attacks. The fighting has tempered optimism that had been tentatively growing as Afghan and international players ratchet up efforts to convince the Taliban to negotiate an end to the 17-year conflict.

An unprecedented ceasefire in June followed by talks between US officials and Taliban representatives in Qatar in July raised hopes that peace negotiations could bring an end to the fighting. There has been speculation the two sides will meet again this month.

The Taliban have long insisted on direct talks with Washington and refused to negotiate with the Afghan government, which they see as illegitimate.

The intensified fighting has also fuelled speculation over whether Afghanistan's long-delayed parliamentary elections will go ahead on 20 October. The country's already stretched security forces will be tasked with protecting thousands of polling stations around the country at a time when they are already struggling to beat back insurgents. Delivering ballot papers and monitoring the vote, which is seen as a test run for next year's presidential election, will be challenging, officials have warned. There are already concerns about widespread fraud.
By Tom Polansek and P.J.

By Tom Polansek and P.J. Huffstutter

CHICAGO (Reuters) - As powerful Hurricane Florence advanced towards the southeastern United States, farmers in North Carolina rushed to harvest corn and tobacco and stock up on pig rations, while the danger of sustained rain and deadly flooding threatened a state where millions of farm animals are housed.

"The governor said that North Carolina is the bulls eye of this hurricane," said Larry Wooten, president of the North Carolina Farm Bureau. "Ill tell you, agriculture is in the heart of that bull's eye."

Hog producers were also lowering levels of liquid manure in outdoor storage pits in an effort to avoid a repeat of Hurricane Floyd, which overwhelmed hog farms and pits in 1999 contaminating waterways with animal carcasses and waste.

North Carolina is the country's leading producer of tobacco, second biggest producer of hogs and a major poultry producer. Its crops include corn, soy and cotton, making agriculture the state's No. 1 industry, valued at $87 billion. It is home to the world's largest hog processing plant, run by WH Group Ltd's Smithfield Foods in Tar Heel, North Carolina.

Florence, a Category 4 storm with winds of 130 miles per hour (210 kph), was expected to make landfall on Friday, bringing heavy, sustained rain and potentially deadly flooding to the U.S. southeast coast. Some 1 million people have been ordered to evacuate.

Two-thirds of North Carolina's farm income comes from poultry and livestock, including hogs and dairy cattle, according to Wooten. The state has 8.9 million swine, 12 percent of the U.S. herd, U.S. Agriculture Department data showed.

In 2017, its farmers raised 830.8 million chickens for meat, 9 percent of the U.S. flock, the data showed

Wooten said it was unclear how many farm animals were in the storm's path.

As much as 20 inches of rainfall or more is possible across eastern North Carolina, said Don Keeney, senior agricultural meteorologist for weather forecaster Radiant Solutions.

Neither Smithfield nor Prestage Farms, which raises hogs and turkeys, responded to questions about whether they had emergency plans to relocate livestock in the event of severe flooding.

Bo Stone, who raises corn and hogs in Rowland, North Carolina, said he worked into the night to harvest his crop. On Tuesday, rain halted his progress. "We've been running as hard as we can go," Stone said.

Stone said that relocating animals in the storm zone was not an option for many farmers. "Nobody would have the capacity to handle your animals," Stone said. "That's not really an option."

Last year, North Carolina farmers raised 32.5 million turkeys, or 13 percent of the U.S. total, according to USDA data. The North Carolina Poultry Federation said it did not know how many of the birds were in the storm's path.

More than a million poultry birds died two years ago when floodwaters from Hurricane Matthew covered areas across central and eastern North Carolina. Carcasses were composted inside the houses where the birds were being raised.

In 2016, Smithfield closed its Tar Heel facility because of Hurricane Matthew.

CORN 'ROUND THE CLOCK

Tall corn and tobacco crops are most vulnerable to wind damage and difficult to harvest if knocked down, said Rhonda Garrison, executive director of the Corn Growers Association of North Carolina.

"They're around the clock on corn," said Andy Curliss, chief executive officer for the NC Pork Council, an industry group.

North Carolina's corn crop was 43 percent harvested as of Sunday, while the type of tobacco most commonly grown in the state was 67 percent harvested, according to USDA data.

North Carolina has waived transportation rules to help farmers move crops and livestock ahead of the most severe storm to threaten the U.S. mainland this year. "During harvest, time is of the essence," Governor Roy Cooper said in announcing a state of emergency.

British American Tobacco's Reynolds American, parent of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco, declined to comment on any risk to tobacco crops or plans to keep supplies flowing.

Commodity handler Cargill Inc said it planned to close meat processing plants in West Columbia, South Carolina, and Dayton, Virginia, on Friday.

North Carolina hog farmers have lowered levels of manure in storage pits, known as lagoons, by using it as fertilizer on farmland, said Andrea Ashby, spokeswoman for the state's Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

"The levels are in pretty good shape to handle the rain, but it all depends on how much rain we get," Ashby said.

Most manure pits could handle up to 25 inches of rain, Curliss said.

Smithfield Foods said in a statement that it has been lowering waste levels as necessary on its farms and encouraging farmers from whom it buys hogs to do the same.

(Reporting by Tom Polansek and P.J. Huffstutter; Editing by Toni Reinhold)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Hallie Gu and Dominique Patton HARBIN, China (Reuters) - Even after 14 outbreaks of African swine fever across China in just over a month, pig farmer Wang Wu does not believe the threat to his livelihood is real.

By Hallie Gu and Dominique Patton

HARBIN, China (Reuters) - Even after 14 outbreaks of African swine fever across China in just over a month, pig farmer Wang Wu does not believe the threat to his livelihood is real.

"I heard about the African swine fever thing. But then people said it was just rumour. It was fake news," said Wang, who raises about 60 pigs in a village near Harbin, capital of China's northeastern Heilongjiang province.

In any case, the disease was only present in the south, added Wang. In fact, the first outbreak was reported in Shenyang, also in the northeast. And Harbin is only 500 kilometres from Russia, where African swine fever (ASF) has been spreading for years.

The farmer's lack of awareness of the virus highlights the scale of the challenge Beijing faces in controlling the highly contagious disease, which has spread rapidly among the world's largest hog herd since it was first detected in early August.

There is no vaccine for ASF and mortality rates can be as high as 100 percent. The virus is also hardy, surviving for months in pork, feed or swill. It is not harmful to humans.

(Graphic: Swine fever in China - https://tmsnrt.rs/2PDt6Ud)

In an effort to check the spread of the virus, authorities have banned the transport of live hogs from and through affected areas, sending prices in some regions soaring.

But while industrialized pig producers in China have locked down their farms, cancelling leave for staff who live onsite and reducing feed deliveries and outside visitors who risk spreading the virus to their pigs, many small pig farmers interviewed by Reuters in the past week have done nothing to keep the disease at bay.

That is likely a major reason for the number of outbreaks on farms of a similar size to Wang's, say experts.

"You have to know what the risks are," said an animal health expert at one of China's biggest pig producers. "If a small farmer isn't aware, he can't manage those risks."

NOT GETTING THROUGH

Farmers producing fewer than 500 pigs a year accounted for 42 percent of China's production in 2016, according to a research report from Rabobank. In eastern Anhui province, which has reported the most cases to date, there are still few large farms compared with other regions, said Pan Chenjun, senior analyst at the bank.

Beijing said last month it had launched a major education campaign on how to prevent the spread of the disease. It also collaborated with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization from 2014 to 2015 on a project to develop prevention and control strategies for African swine fever.

That included awareness-raising in rural communities, and in particular in Heilongjiang province, where Wang lives. Booklets on the virus were also distributed to farmers and vets across the country, according to the project details.

But the rapid spread of the disease in recent weeks raises questions about how effective those efforts were.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs did not respond to a fax seeking comment on the issue.

Wang, who raises his pigs in open pens and buys feed from door-to-door salesmen, did not require any disinfecting on a recent visit, a standard measure for preventing the spread of disease on farms.

Another farmer near Harbin, 65-year-old Zhang Chao, also knew little of the swine fever outbreaks. Local authorities recently supplied several bottles of disinfectant to his farm of several dozen pigs, said Zhang, and asked him and his wife to carry out thorough disinfection. But the couple did not know why.

"I am just a small pig farmer. What difference does it make if I know about it or not? What can I do?," asked Zhang.

CONSOLIDATION OPPORTUNITY?

Bigger farmers appear better informed. At a farm with 400 sows on the outskirts of Beijing, owner Ma said she had attended a government meeting on the disease several weeks ago. She declined to give her full name.

An official poster on her farm wall showed pictures of symptoms to watch out for, and described measures to prevent its spread.

Those included preventing pigs from coming into contact with infected feed, meat products and equipment, and raising pigs far from areas with wild boars.

"This disease is really terrifying," said Ma's farm technician Wang Liang. "For ourselves, we make sure we disinfect everything when we arrive, and the less contact with outsiders the better."

Reaching and educating China's millions of backyard farmers in remote regions, including the many operating under the government's radar, may be an impossible task, said experts.

"They're firefighters," said Pan at Rabobank, referring to the authorities' efforts to control the outbreak. "They'll go to the affected regions first but they don't have so much manpower. They can't cover everywhere immediately."

African swine fever may also push Beijing to shut down more small farms and further promote large players with a better grasp of biosecurity and the resources to invest in such systems, said industry participants, a push already under way.

"My clients are still expanding," said a Shanghai-based farm management consultant who advises large producers in China. "They think this will be a good opportunity."

(Reporting by Hallie Gu and Dominique Patton; Editing by Alex Richardson)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
The United Nations has been waiting for access to the epicentre of the military's 'clearance operations' against the Rohingya minority since June.

Yangon: The United Nations (UN) began work on Wednesday inside Myanmar's violence-torn northern Rakhine State, the first time its agencies have been granted permission to operate there since more than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims fled the area last year.

The UN has been waiting for access to the epicentre of the military's "clearance operations" against the Rohingya minority since June when its refugee and development agencies signed a deal with the government. Its work is highly sensitive inside Rakhine State, a state cut deep with ethnic and religious hatred and where Buddhist locals stand accused of helping the army chase out their Muslim neighbours.

Many Rakhine accuse international aid groups, including the UN, of a pro-Rohingya bias and that foreign aid groups have been granted very limited access to the state. The task is complicated further as the UN's rights arm is expected to heavily censure Myanmar again in the coming days when it publishes in full the findings of its investigation into atrocities against the Rohingya.

On Friday, specialists from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and UN Development Programme (UNDP) agencies were finally given permission to enter northern Rakhine State before work began on Wednesday to assess local conditions.

"The team is on the ground and commenced with the first assessments today," UNHCR spokeswoman Aoife McDonnell told AFP. This first step of the UN's "confidence-building measures" is expected to take two weeks and will cover 23 villages and three additional clusters of hamlets. It was not immediately clear which villages they will visit or which communities the UN teams will consult.

The expectation is this "very initial and small step in terms of access will be expanded rapidly to all areas covered" by the agreement, McDonnell said. The stateless Rohingya are widely seen as illegal immigrants by Myanmar's majority-Buddhist population, complicating the repatriation of those who fled to Bangladesh.

Last August's crackdown by Myanmar Army pushed hundreds of thousands of Rohingya across the border. Refugees have carried accounts of rape, murder, arson and torture perpetrated by the military and buttressed by Rakhine State mobs.

The northern part of Rakhine State has been locked down since then, with journalists and observers only allowed to visit on short, chaperoned trips. The deployment of the two UN agencies comes as Myanmar faces growing demands for accountability over its treatment of the Rohingya.

A UN-led report two weeks ago called for the prosecution of Myanmar Army Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and five other top-ranking generals for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. That was swiftly followed by a ruling by the International Criminal Court (ICC) that it has jurisdiction to open a probe into "deportations" of the Rohingya, saying it was a cross-border crime.
The Imran Khan government plans to auction eight buffaloes kept by Nawaz Sharif at the Prime Minister's house for his 'gastronomic requirements'.

Islamabad: The Pakistan government plans to auction eight buffaloes kept by Nawaz Sharif at the Prime Minister's house for his "gastronomic requirements", a close aide of Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan has said. The cash-starved Pakistan government led by Khan has launched an austerity drive. Under this, more than 80 luxury cars would be auctioned.

Naeem-ul-Haq, the prime minister's Special Assistant for Political Affairs, said the government will auction luxury cars parked at the prime minister's house. It will also sell the four surplus helicopters lying unused with the Cabinet Division.

The senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader also alerted the potential buyers to get ready for the auction of eight buffaloes kept by Sharif, the former prime minister and PML-N leader at the Prime Minister's house.

"After the surplus car auction, four surplus helicopters will be sold which are lying unused with the cabinet division. Plus, now listen to this, 8 buffaloes which Nawaz kept at the Prime Minister's house for his gastronomic requirements. So all potential buyers please get ready," Haq tweeted on Tuesday.

The helicopters and buffaloes will be sold after the auction of luxury and surplus vehicles on 17 September, Geo News reported. Sharif, a three-time prime minister, was sentenced to 10-years in jail in a corruption case in July.

On Monday, Khan suggested that government-owned land lying as 'dead capital' could be used to generate income instead of resorting to foreign aid to shore up the country's finances. The prime minister said that just the urban portion of the government-owned land was worth Rs 300 billion while Pakistan's daily interest payment amounts to Rs 5 billion.
US President Donald Trump has identified India along with 21 other countries as among the major illicit drug producing or transit nations.

Washington: US President Donald Trump has identified India along with 21 other countries as among the major illicit drug producing or transit nations. Other Asian countries identified as major drug transit or major illicit drug producing countries are Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Myanmar.

The Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela, are other countries listed in the group, as per a presidential determination. "A country's presence on the foregoing list is not necessarily a reflection of its government's counternarcotics efforts or level of cooperation with the United States," Trump said.

The reasons countries are placed on the list is the combination of geographic, commercial, and economic factors that allow drugs to transit or be produced, even if a government has engaged in robust and diligent narcotics control measures, he said.

Simultaneously, Trump designated Bolivia and Venezuela as countries that have failed demonstrably during the previous 12 months to adhere to their obligations under international counter-narcotic agreements. He also determined that support for programs to aid the promotion of democracy in Venezuela are vital to the national interests of the United States.

Asserting that combatting the ongoing United States opioid epidemic is one of his administration's most urgent priorities, Trump said his government has dedicated nearly USD 4 billion in additional funding to confront this national crisis.

The Trump administration is committed to addressing all factors fueling the drug crisis, which is devastating communities across America, including steps to curb over-prescription, expand access to treatment and recovery programs, improve public education programs to prevent illicit drug use before it begins, and to strengthening domestic drug enforcement at the borders, he said.

"Alongside these massive and historic United States efforts, I expect the governments of countries where illicit drugs originate and through which they transit to similarly strengthen their commitments to reduce dangerous drug production and trafficking, Trump said.

In his presidential determination, Trump expressed his deep concerns that illicit drug crops have expanded over successive years in Colombia, Mexico, and Afghanistan, and are now at record levels. Drug production and trafficking in these three countries directly affect the US national interests and the health and safety of American citizens, he said.

"Heroin originating from Mexico and cocaine from Colombia are claiming thousands of lives annually in the United States. Afghanistan's illicit opium economy promotes corruption, funds the Taliban, and undermines that country's security, which thousands of United States servicemen and women help defend," Trump said.
India, Iran and Afghanistan held their first tripartite meeting on Tuesday in Kabul during which implementation of the Chabahar port project and a host of other issues including ways to deepen counter-terror cooperation were discussed

India, Iran and Afghanistan held their first tripartite meeting on Tuesday in Kabul during which implementation of the Chabahar port project and a host of other issues including ways to deepen counter-terror cooperation were discussed, officials said. The Indian delegation was led by Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale while the Iranian team was headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Afghan deputy foreign minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai chaired the meeting.

"The meeting focused on consolidating economic cooperation, including Chabahar, as well as enhancing cooperation on counter-terrorism, counter-narcotics, and continuing support to the peace and reconciliation process that is led and owned by Afghanistan," the three countries said in a joint-statement. It said the three sides agreed to hold the next round of consultation at an appropriate time in India in 2019. Sources said the possible impact of the US sanctions on the Chabahar port project also figured in the meeting. The port in the Sistan-Balochistan province on Irans southern coast is being developed by India and Iran are also coming under the US sanctions on Iran.

During the two-plus-two talks in Delhi last week with the US, India apprised the American delegation about the strategic importance of Chabahar, particularly for enhancing trade with war-ravaged Afghanistan. The port is easily accessible from Indias western coast and is increasingly seen as a counter to Pakistans Gwadar Port, which is being developed with Chinese investment and is located at distance of around 80 km from Chabahar. The first phase of the Chabahar port was inaugurated by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in December.

According to Afghan president Ashraf Ghani's spokesman Haroon Chakhansuri, a series of discussions have been held over the past few months with Iranian and Indian officials regarding the possibility of a waiver on a section of Chabahar Port. In the second phase of sanctions, scheduled to come into effect in November, Iran's ports and crude oil exports will be affected. Both the countries will also draw hope from the fact that the US last month granted a waiver for the Azerbaijan natural gas pipeline, DNA reported.

The Chabahar port is being considered a gateway to golden opportunities for trade by India, Iran and Afghanistan with central Asian countries besides ramping up trade among the three countries in the wake of Pakistan denying transit access to New Delhi. Under an agreement signed between India and Iran in May 2016, India is to equip and operate two berths in Chabahar Port Phase-I with capital investment of $85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of $22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

The discussions come against the backdrop of proposed US sanctions on investments in Iran following Washingtons pull-out from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. Alice Wells, principal deputy assistant secretary for the bureau of South and Central Asian affairs had said in Washington on Monday that the US would continue discussions on the Iran sanctions with India, Mint reported.

"An informational conversation was held during the 2+2 dialogue in New Delhi last week on Chabahar and the US has taken it under advisement. Talks on the matter between the two sides were ongoing and no decision had been taken on the matter," Wells said, according to the report. The sanctions put into effect from 4 November were designed to bring Tehran to book and not penalize India, she clarified.

According to Indian officials, India was also looking at Iran handing over the Shahid Beheshti port to it for operation in the coming weeks. India is also looking at supporting the development of Chabahar- Zahedan Rail line that will aid the transport of goods to the Afghan border. India plans to use the port as a gateway to the International North-South Transport Corridor.

Meanwhile, earlier on Monday, India and Afghanistan agreed to enhance cooperation under the New Development Partnership as part of which New Delhi had announced taking up 116 "high impact community developmental projects" in the war-torn country. The decision to scale up cooperation and collaborate on infrastructure and high impact community development projects was taken at the third meeting of the Joint Working Group on Political and Security Cooperation (JWGPSC) between India and Afghanistan in Kabul, a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) statement said.

India had announced taking up 116 "high-impact community developmental projects" in 31 provinces of Afghanistan after a meeting between External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Ghani in New York in September 2017. The outcome of the first and second meetings of the were also reviewed and assessed positively on Monday at the meeting co-chaired by Karzai and Gokhale.

"Both sides stressed the need to continue working together towards a stable, peaceful and prosperous region that is free from terrorism and extremism," the statement said. Both sides discussed Indian assistance to Afghanistan and regional issues of mutual interest, and agreed that bilateral cooperation strengthens political and economic stability in the region. India and Afghanistan also agreed to strengthen security cooperation and the Indian side reiterated its support for an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace and reconciliation process, the statement said.

The two sides also expressed satisfaction over the successful completion of several development projects such as the Afghan Parliament building, Storay Palace, and Afghan-India Friendship Dam. It was also decided that the fourth meeting of the JWGPSC would be held in New Delhi on mutually convenient dates in 2019.

With inputs from PTI
The 'highly successful' first 2+2 dialogue between India and the United States was a 'defining moment' and the defence co-operation between the two countries is on the right track, US Defence Secretary James Mattis said.

Washington: The "highly successful" first 2+2 dialogue between India and the United States was a "defining moment" and the defence co-operation between the two countries is on the right track, US Defence Secretary James Mattis said on Tuesday.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held the crucial talks with Mattis and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New Delhi on 6 September.

"Last week I did go to India for what could only be considered highly successful consultations between the world's two largest democracies. There was no difficulties that we uncovered there in moving forward on a number of pragmatic steps to draw ourselves closer together in terms of security," Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon.

"It was a very heartening trip, historic I'd even say, as you look at where we've been over so many years as we've grown closer and closer together," Mattis said.

He specifically pointed to the COMCASA agreement, the communications compatibility and security agreement, which he said opens a lot of doors in "terms of defense cooperation".

"Probably we will look back on the 2+2, where Secretary Pompeo led the two of us in there as our senior diplomat. Probably a defining moment for the relationship between the US and India, and one that we think is absolutely on the right track in terms of defense cooperation, Mattis said. Mattis was echoed by the US State Department later on Tuesday.

"Last week's 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue was a historic milestone in the US-India relationship and an indication of the deepening strategic partnership between the United States and India, and India's emergence as a global power and net security provider in the region," a State Department spokesperson told PTI.

Asserting that the two countries want to grow their trade relationship in a fair and reciprocal manner, the spokesperson said at the 2+2 dialogue, both sides acknowledged that expanding fair and reciprocal trade was in their shared interests and would contribute to the prosperity of both "of our peoples".

"Both sides committed to further expanding and balancing the trade and economic partnership consistent with their leaders' 2017 joint statement, including by facilitating trade, improving market access, and addressing issues of interest to both sides," the spokesperson said.
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Jailed former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva stepped aside on Tuesday to allow his running mate Fernando Haddad to stand for the presidency in next month's election, ending his legal battle against a ban on his candidacy.

BRASILIA (Reuters) - Jailed former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva stepped aside on Tuesday to allow his running mate Fernando Haddad to stand for the presidency in next month's election, ending his legal battle against a ban on his candidacy.

Workers Party president Senator Gleisi Hoffmann announced the decision to Lula's supporters outside the federal police headquarters in Curitiba where he has been jailed since April, serving a 12-year sentence for corruption.

Haddad, a former Sao Paulo mayor, has surged in polls and is tied in third place for the Oct. 7 vote, according to a Datafolha survey published on Monday that has spooked markets.

(Reporting by Anthony Boadle, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

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Kulsoom, the wife of Sharif, died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68. Her body will be brought back here and buried in Jati Umra Lahore residence of the Sharif family.

Lahore: Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and son-in-law Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar reached Lahore in early hours of Wednesday after they were released from Adiala Jail Rawalpindi on a 12-hour parole to attend the funeral of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz.

Kulsoom, the wife of Sharif, died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68. Her body will be brought back here and buried in Jati Umra Lahore residence of the Sharif family. Sharif and two others were transported to Jati Umra in a special plane from Nur Khan Airbase Rawalpindi in early hours of Wednesday after the Punjab government home department issued their release order for a 12-hour parole. The trio arrived at Lahore at 3.15 am Wednesday.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Maryam Aurangzeb told PTI that Shahbaz Sharif had filed an application with the Punjab government requesting to release his elder brother Nawaz, niece Maryam and Safdar for five days on parole so that they could attend the last rituals of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz who died of cancer in London on Tuesday.

She said the Punjab government did not entertain Shahbaz's request for five days and only granted their release for 12 hours. "We are hopeful that the government will extend the parole till the funeral of Begum Kulsoom to be held on Friday in Lahore," Aurangzeb said, adding Shahbaz Sharif will leave for London on Wednesday to bring Kulsoom's body back.

A senior official of the Punjab government also confirmed to PTI that the parole period would be extended till the last rituals of Kulsoom are performed in Lahore. "Since Kulsoom' body is scheduled to arrive here on Friday there is no point of not extending the parole period. The government has allowed Mr Sharif to attend the funeral prayer of his wife purely on humanitarian grounds," the official said.

According to a notification of the home department, "In pursuance of rule 545-B of Pakistan Prison Rules 1978, permission granted to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar, confined at central prison Rawalpindi, to attend the funeral prayer of Kulsoom Nawaz. The duration of permission granted shall not exceed 12w hours. Police will be responsible for their security and safety. They will not leave the place (Jati Umra) specified in the permission order.

Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered to facilitate the Sharif family regarding bringing back the body of Kulsoom and matters related to their parole.

Heavy contingent of police has been deployed at the Jati Umra to provide security to the Sharif family. Kulsoom, who had been battling with lymphoma (throat cancer) for over a year, breathed her last at the London's Harley Street Clinic.

"Begum Kulsoom's condition deteriorated early in the morning on Tuesday. Doctors tried their best but couldn't save her life," Marriyum Aurangzeb said. To a question whether her sons  Hasan and Hussain  would return to Lahore to attend her funeral prayer, she said: "No decision has been taken as yet." It is likely that both sons may not return to Pakistan as they have been declared absconders by an accountability court in the off-shore properties case. The former first lady was diagnosed with lymphoma (throat) cancer in August last and had been in London since, where she underwent multiple surgeries and at least five chemotherapy sessions.

She was placed on a ventilator in June following a cardiac arrest. Her family reported a slight improvement in her condition on July 12, a day before her husband Sharif and Maryam were set to return to Pakistan after the accountability court sentenced them to jail. She served as the first lady of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms from 1990-1993, 1997-1999 and 2013-2017.

She also served as the president of the PML-N from 1999 to 2002, after her husband's government was toppled by former military dictator Gen. Pervez Musharraf in a bloodless coup. She was also placed under house arrest following Sharif's ouster by Musharraf in 1999. She led defiant, lonely protests against the Musharraf regime to get her husband freed from prison.

Kulsoom was elected to Lahore's NA-120 constituency in a by-poll after her husband was disqualified from the seat by the Supreme Court last year. Due to her illness, she was unable to return and formally take oath for the seat. She was born in 1950 in Lahore to a Kashmiri family. She graduated from the Forman Christian College in Lahore and received a Master's degree in Urdu from Punjab University in 1970.

From her maternal side, she was granddaughter of famous wrestler of the sub-continent Gama Pehlwan. Kulsoom married Sharif in April 1971 and they have four children - Hassan, Hussain, Maryam and Asma
Yang Zanyun, the driver, was detained by the police, who said he has a criminal record and has been jailed several times in China.

Beijing: Nine people were killed and 46 others injured when a man drove his SUV into a crowd and later went on a stabbing spree in China's Hunan province on Wednesday evening. The attack took place as people had gathered in a square by the river in Hengdong county.

The driver, Yang Zanyun, 54, first ploughed through the people with his vehicle and later got out of it and went on a rampage attacking people with a knife.

Nine people were killed and 46 others were injured, state-run Global Times reported. Yang was detained by the police, who said he has a criminal record and has been jailed several times.

Knife attacks by disgruntled people in public places and schools to highlight their grievances periodically occur in China.

Several bystanders posted graphic video footage shortly after the incident on Chinese social media. In the videos, dozens of people can be seen lying on the ground, some in pools of blood, while panicked crowds and emergency services personnel gather around them, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

Local media reports quoted a restaurant manager in the vicinity of the attack as saying that he saw a red Land Rover suddenly ploughing through a crowd of people at a high speed after 7 pm.

A large number of mostly elderly people were dancing or walking in the square after dinner, at that time. Many fell to the ground after they were hit by the speeding SUV.

Uyghur militants from Xinjiang from the East Turkestan Islamic Movement have also, in the past, attacked crowds with speeding cars.
By Asif Shahzad and Kay Johnson ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - U.S.

By Asif Shahzad and Kay Johnson

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo assured Pakistan last week that Washington would not try to block any request for a bailout from the International Monetary Fund, Pakistani Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Tuesday.

The remarks, which Chaudhry said Pompeo made during his visit to Pakistan on Wednesday, come in stark contrast to Pompeo's warnings in July that the United States had serious reservations about the IMF giving money to Pakistan due to concerns Islamabad would use the cash to pay off Chinese loans.

Those comments rattled Islamabad, which is facing a currency crisis and may have no option but to turn again to the IMF for a rescue if staunch allies China and Saudi Arabia do not offer more loans to prop up its foreign currency reserves.

Chaudhry told Reuters that relations between the United States and Pakistan were "broken" before Pompeo's trip to Islamabad but the visit had "set many things straight" and reinvigorated ties.

"He assured Pakistan that ... if Pakistan opted to go to IMF for any financial help, the USA will not oppose it," Chaudhry said in the capital, Islamabad.

Responding to request for comment on Chaudhry's remarks, a spokesman for the U.S. State Department said Washington wanted to see "a prosperous Pakistan that contributes positively toward regional stability and security."

The spokesman added: "We understand that Pakistan has not requested assistance from the IMF. If they do request assistance, as we do in all cases in evaluating any loan program, we will examine closely all aspects."

The new government of Prime Minister Imran Khan, who took office in August, is trying to avert a currency crisis caused by a shortage of dollars in an economy hit by a ballooning current account deficit and dwindling foreign currency reserves.

Pakistani officials say they are discussing taking drastic measures to avert seeking a bailout from the IMF, which has come to Pakistan's rescue 14 times since 1980, including most recently in 2013.

Pakistan's relations with the United States have soured in recent years over the war in Afghanistan and Islamabad's alleged support for Islamist militants. They reached a new low when President Donald Trump in January accused Pakistan of lies and deceit by playing a double game on fighting terrorism.

Islamabad denies aiding insurgents in Afghanistan and lashed out against Trump's remarks, which were followed up by Washington suspending U.S. military aid.

At Washington's urging, a group of Western countries in February convinced a global body to put Pakistan on a terrorism financing watch list, a move that triggered concerns the United States may also seek to block Islamabad in other forums.

In July, Pompeo said there was "no rationale" for the IMF to bail out Pakistan if Islamabad uses the IMF money to pay off Chinese loans, echoing concerns by other U.S. officials that China is saddling many emerging-market countries with too much debt. Beijing staunchly denies such claims.

But during last week's visit, Pompeo said he was hopeful of "a reset of relations" long strained over the war in Afghanistan.

(Reporting by Asif Zhazhad and Kay Johnson in Islamabad; Additional reporting by David Brunnstrom in Washington; Writing by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by Nick Macfie and Peter Cooney)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Jonathan Landay WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday that he certified to Congress that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were working to reduce civilian casualties in Yemen, avoiding a limitation on U.S.

By Jonathan Landay

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday that he certified to Congress that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were working to reduce civilian casualties in Yemen, avoiding a limitation on U.S. help for its ally Saudi Arabia.

Without the certification, U.S. tanker aircraft would have been restricted in the refuelling of Saudi-led coalition aircraft conducting strikes against Houthi rebels backed by Iran.

Pompeo's decision drew the derision of critics of the Saudi-led air campaign, which has long been denounced even by Western allies for causing massive civilian casualties and driving Yemen to the brink of famine.

The 3-year-old war in Yemen, widely seen as a proxy battle between regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran, has killed more than 10,000 people.

Pompeo said in a statement he advised Congress on Tuesday that "the governments of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments."

He provided no details of the measures taken by Saudi Arabia and the UAE that underpinned his decision.

Last month, a Saudi airstrike on a bus killed dozens of people, including 40 children.

"Pompeos certification is a farce. The Saudis deliberately bombed a bus full of children. There is only one moral answer, and that is to end our support for their intervention in Yemen," Democratic U.S. Representative Ro Khanna said in a post on Twitter.

Republican Representative Justin Amash said the United States should stop selling weapons and providing military assistance to Saudi Arabia.

"This war in Yemen is unconscionable, and the United States should not be a party to it," Amash said on Twitter.

U.S. lawmakers, concerned about a growing humanitarian disaster in Yemen, required Pompeo to certify by Wednesday that the Saudis and the UAE were taking meaningful measures to reduce civilian casualties and allow humanitarian aid deliveries.

Without the move by Pompeo, U.S. aircraft would have been barred from refuelling Saudi-led coalition aircraft in mid-air except when they were striking Yemeni factions of al Qaeda and Islamic State, the Houthis' use of ballistic missiles, or protecting U.S. military units and international commercial shipping.

Larry Lewis, a former State Department adviser to Saudi Arabia on reducing civilian casualties, called Pompeos statement "objectively false."

"Theres more that can be done," Lewis, now the director of the Center for Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence at the CNA, a Washington think tank, wrote in an email. "Whether the U.S. government is willing to do more is another matter."

U.S. Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said he backed Pompeo's finding.

Saudi Arabia is leading a Western-backed alliance of Sunni Muslim Arab states to try to restore the internationally recognised government of Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, ousted from the capital Sanaa by the Iran-aligned Houthis in 2015.

An attempt to convene U.N.-mediated peace talks in Geneva collapsed last weekend after the Houthi delegation failed to show up for three days.

The United States and other Western powers provide arms and intelligence to the alliance. Human rights groups have criticized them over coalition air strikes that have killed hundreds of civilians at hospitals, schools and markets.

The Pentagon believes that its assistance, which includes refuelling coalition jets and training in targeting, helps reduce civilian casualties.

(Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu and Idrees Ali; Editing by Alistair Bell and Bernadette Baum)

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Pope Francis will meet leaders of the US Catholic Church on Thursday, the Vatican announced, after a high profile accusation that the pontiff covered up sexual abuse allegations against an American cardinal.

Vatican City: Pope Francis will meet leaders of the US Catholic Church on Thursday, the Vatican announced, after a high profile accusation that the pontiff covered up sexual abuse allegations against an American cardinal.

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, the president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, will attend the meeting after saying last month he was eager to meet the pope following the scandal. Two other conference officials will be at the meeting, as will Cardinal Sean O'Malley, the head of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, Vatican spokesman Greg Burke said on Tuesday.

Conservative Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano sparked a firestorm in August when he claimed Francis had personally ignored abuse allegations against prominent US cardinal Theodore McCarrick for five years. Vigano, a former Vatican envoy to Washington, also called on the pope to step down. Francis has so far refused to respond to the allegations.

The Vatican did not detail what the topic would be for the Thursday meeting, however DiNardo said on August 27 that the questions raised by Vigano "deserve answers that are conclusive and based on evidence". The affair has exposed a rift in the Church between some ultra-conservative Catholics and a pope they see as a dangerous progressive more interested in social issues than traditional Church matters.

The church was also rocked in August by a devastating US report into child sex abuse accusing more than 300 "predator" priests of abusing more than 1,000 children over seven decades in the state of Pennsylvania. On Sunday, O'Malley said the fight against child abuse must be the priority of the Church, otherwise "all of our other activities of evangelisation, works of mercy, education, are all going to suffer".
According to an NGO, a large number of people, mostly political activists and intellectuals, from Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and PoK have been forcefully abducted by the Pakistan Army and intelligence agencies.

Geneva: Banners have been put up in front of the United Nations office in Geneva to highlight the grim issue of enforced disappearances in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The European Organisation for Pakistani Minorities, an NGO, has highlighted the issue during the ongoing 39th session of the UN Human Rights Council.

As per the NGO, a large number of people, mostly political activists and intellectuals, from Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and PoK have been forcefully abducted by the Pakistan Army and intelligence agencies. Many of these activists have been falsely booked under the country's Anti-Terrorism Act.

Some of the prominent activists who are missing include Nawaz Atta Baloch (Secretary of Baloch Human Rights Organisation), Sagheer Baloch (student activist), Rafaqat Ali Jarar (journalist),

Zahid Baloch (Former chairman of Baloch Student Organisation -Azad), Iftikhar Kanbalai (Human Rights Activist) and Baba Jan (Human Rights Activist from Gilgit Baltistan).

The European Organisation for Pakistani Minorities sought the help of the United Nations to send a fact-finding team to Pakistan and help in release of the victims of enforced disappearances, who are allegedly lodged in secret detention centers.

Pakistan's Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances, or CoIoED, reports that through June of this year, there were 5,213 missing person cases and of that number, 2,000 remained unsolved. The number of enforced disappearances, however, is commonly believed to be underreported.

In 2017, five bloggers disappeared and later reappeared after a national and international uproar. The released bloggers later accused the Inter-Services Intelligence for abduction and torture.

In January this year, award-winning journalist Taha Siddiqui narrowly avoided abduction by armed men in Rawalpindi. He is now living in exile in Europe.

There are numerous cases of enforced disappearances which are not reported. In many cases, the victim's mutilated body found in an isolated place.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Russia is the main suspect in U.S. agencies' investigation of mysterious illnesses in American personnel in Cuba and China, NBC News reported on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Russia is the main suspect in U.S. agencies' investigation of mysterious illnesses in American personnel in Cuba and China, NBC News reported on Tuesday.

Evidence from communications intercepts has pointed to Moscow's involvement during the investigation involving the FBI, CIA and other agencies, NBC reported, citing three unidentified U.S. officials and two other people briefed on the probe.

The evidence, however, is not conclusive enough for the United States to assign blame publicly to Moscow, according to the NBC report.

The FBI said it did not have a comment on the NBC report. A U.S. government source familiar with official assessments said intelligence agencies would not confirm the report.

U.S. officials said in July that they are still investigating health problems at the U.S. Embassy in Cuba, and do not know who or what was behind the mysterious illnesses, which began in 2016 and have affected 26 Americans.

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told Reuters on Tuesday, "We have made no determination on who or what is responsible for the health attacks."

Symptoms have included hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, headaches and fatigue, a pattern consistent with "mild traumatic brain injury," State Department officials have said.

The State Department said in June it brought a group of diplomats home from Guangzhou, China, over concern they were suffering from a mysterious malady resembling brain injury.

Cuban officials, who are conducting their own investigation, have denied involvement.

The United States believes sophisticated electromagnetic weapons may have been used on government workers, possibly in conjunction with other technologies, NBC reported.

The U.S. military has been trying to reverse-engineer the weapon or weapons used to harm the diplomats, including by testing various devices on animals, NBC said, citing Trump administration officials, congressional aides and others.

Part of the work is being done at the directed energy research program at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, where the military has giant lasers and laboratories to test high-power electromagnetic weapons, including microwaves, NBC said.

(Reporting by Doina Chiacu, Lesley Wroughton, Mark Hosenball; Editing by Susan Thomas and Dan Grebler)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
The Taliban have sought direct talks to settle US concerns about its participation in Afghanistan's future as well as the presence of NATO and the US in the country.

Islamabad: The Taliban are ready for a second round of talks with the US, possibly this month, which is likely to focus on prisoner exchange, confidence-building measures, and ways to move from back-door meetings to formal negotiations, said Taliban officials in separate interviews in recent days.

Speaking on condition of anonymity because they are not authorised to speak to the media, Taliban officials recounted details of a meeting held in July with Alice Wells, Washington's top envoy to the region. One of the officials said the meeting ended with a plan to meet again in September. The US has refused to confirm or deny that meeting.

Both the US and Afghanistan governments have insisted that talks on Afghanistan's future would be Afghan-led, while direct talks between Washington and the Taliban  which the insurgents have long demanded  are said to be a stepping stone toward Afghan-to-Afghan talks.

The Taliban have sought direct talks to settle US concerns about its participation in Afghanistan's future as well as the presence of NATO and the US in the country. The official, who spoke to The Associated Press from Qatar, where the Taliban maintain a political office, said they are waiting on Washington for a second meeting date.

During the July meeting, the Taliban asked for recognition of their political office in the Qatar capital of Doha as well as an end to restrictions against its top leaders before the start of the formal negotiations, they said. It repeated their longstanding demand for the release of its prisoners in jails in Afghanistan, claiming as many as 2,000 are being held. Washington has long been demanding the release of prisoners held by the Taliban including American Kevin King and Australian Timothy Weeks, two professors at the American University in Kabul who were kidnapped in August 2016 as they returned to their compound.

In a statement posted on its official website, the Taliban last month took the unusual step of withdrawing security promises to the International Committee of the Red Cross, saying the ICRC had failed to help prisoners in Afghanistan's Pul-e-Charkhi jail who were on a hunger strike to protest prison conditions. The statement was unusual in that it was a rare time that the insurgent group threatened punitive action for alleged behaviour that was not Taliban-specific, but rather a general condemnation for a job it said was being poorly done.

The same statement warned all international organisations operating in Afghanistan to "understand that if they indulge in trivial or other irrelevant activities instead of focusing on the main needs of the oppressed people, the Islamic Emirate will treat them in a similar fashion as the decision taken against the Red Cross."

Meanwhile, Taliban officials said talks with the US are at a preliminary stage, still sorting out the simplest of details such as an agenda of formal talks, where those talks might be conducted and who would participate. Still, officials said the July meeting covered a gambit of issues ranging from a US request for a two-month cease-fire to allow for peaceful parliamentary elections scheduled for next month in Kabul, to a visit by Taliban officials to prisoners in government custody. No agreement was reached on either.

Taliban officials said the details of the July meeting were shared with the leadership council representative Nooruddin Turabi, who travelled to Qatar for the briefing. It wasn't clear from where Turabi travelled but the leadership council is believed to be headquartered in Pakistan, even as Islamabad denies providing the insurgents with safe havens.

During the Taliban rule that ended in 2001 with the US-led invasion, Turabi served as justice minister as well as the much-feared Minister of Protection of Virtue and Suppression of Vice.
The system was created by The Ocean Cleanup, an organization founded by Boyan Slat, a 24-year-old innovator from the Netherlands who first became passionate about cleaning the oceans when he went scuba diving at age 16 in the Mediterranean Sea and saw more plastic bags than fish.

San Francisco: Engineers are deploying a trash collection device to corral plastic litter floating between California and Hawaii in an attempt to clean up the world's largest garbage patch in the heart of the Pacific Ocean.

The 2,000-foot (600-meter) long floating boom is being towed from San Francisco to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch  an island of trash twice the size of Texas.

The system was created by The Ocean Cleanup, an organization founded by Boyan Slat, a 24-year-old innovator from the Netherlands who first became passionate about cleaning the oceans when he went scuba diving at age 16 in the Mediterranean Sea and saw more plastic bags than fish.

"The plastic is really persistent and it doesn't go away by itself and the time to act is now," Slat said, adding that researchers with his organization found plastic going back to the 1960s and 1970s bobbing in the patch.

The buoyant, U-shaped barrier made of plastic and with a tapered 10-foot (3-meter) deep screen, is intended to act like a coastline, trapping some of the 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic that scientists estimate are swirling in that gyre but allowing marine life to safely swim beneath it.

Fitted with solar power lights, cameras, sensors and satellite antennas, the cleanup system will communicate its position at all times, allowing a support vessel to fish out the collected plastic every few months and transport it to dry land where it will be recycled, said Slat.

Shipping containers filled with the fishing nets, plastic bottles, laundry baskets and other plastic refuse scooped up by the system being deployed Saturday are expected to be back on land within a year, he said.

Slat said he and his team will pay close attention to whether the system works efficiently and withstands harsh ocean conditions, including huge waves. He said he's most looking forward to a ship loaded with plastic coming back to port.

"We still have to prove the technology... which will then allow us to scale up a fleet of systems," he said. The Ocean Cleanup, which has raised $35 million in donations to fund the project, including from Salesforce.com chief executive Marc Benioff and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, will deploy 60 free-floating barriers in the Pacific Ocean by 2020.

"One of our goals is to remove 50 percent of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in five years," Slat said. The free-floating barriers are made to withstand harsh weather conditions and constant wear and tear. They will stay in the water for two decades and in that time collect 90 percent of the trash in the patch, he added.

George Leonard, chief scientist of the Ocean Conservancy, a nonprofit environmental advocacy group, said he's skeptical Slat can achieve that goal because even if plastic trash can be taken out of the ocean, a lot more is pouring in each year.

"We at the Ocean Conservancy are highly sceptical but we hope it works," he said. "The ocean needs all the help it can get." Leonard said 9 million tons (8 million metric tons) of plastic waste enter the ocean annually and that a solution must include a multi-pronged approach, including stopping plastic from reaching the ocean and more education so people reduce consumption of single-use plastic containers and bottles.

"If you don't stop plastics from flowing into the ocean, it will be a Sisyphean task," Leonard said, citing the Greek myth of a task never completed. He added that on 15 September about 1 million volunteers around the world will collect trash from beaches and waterways as part of the Ocean Conservancy's annual International Coastal Cleanup. Volunteers last year collected about 10,000 tons of plastics worldwide over two hours, he said.

Leonard also raised concerns that marine and wildlife could be entangled by the net that will hang below the surface. He said he hopes Slat's group is transparent with its data and shares information with the public about what happens with the first deployment.

"He has set a very large and lofty goal and we certainly hope it works but we really are not going to know until it is deployed," Leonard said. "We have to wait and see."

The system will act as a "big boat that stands still in the water" and will have a screen and not a net so that there is nothing for marine life to get entangled with. As an extra precautionary measure, a boat carrying experienced marine biologists will be deployed to make sure the device is not harming wildlife, Slat said.

"I'm the first to acknowledge this has never done before and that it is important to collect plastic on land and close the taps on plastic entering into the ocean, but I also think humanity can do more than one thing at a time to tackle this problem," Slat said.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said on Tuesday he would visit Macedonia before a Sept.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said on Tuesday he would visit Macedonia before a Sept. 30 referendum on changing the country's name, also expressing concern about suspected Russian interference in the vote, which Moscow denies.

Macedonia scheduled the referendum on the government's deal in June with neighbouring Greece to change its name to the Republic of North Macedonia which would open the door for it to join NATO and the European Union.

"I am concerned about it... The kind of mischief that Russia has practiced from Estonia to the United States, from Ukraine and now to Macedonia, it always has adapted to the specific situation and it's always beyond the pale," Mattis, who will visit Macedonia over the weekend, told reporters.

Mattis said he wanted to make it clear the United States supported the Macedonian people.

NATO invited Macedonia to begin accession talks with the alliance, but said it would have to change its constitution and adopt the new name first. The EU has also said it would set a date for Macedonian accession talks pending implementation of the name deal.

Moscow's ambassador to Skopje has criticized Macedonia's ambitions to join NATO, saying it could become "a legitimate target" if relations between NATO and Russia deteriorate further.

Greece, a member of both NATO and the EU, has refused to accept the Balkan country's name, saying it implies territorial claims on the Greek province of Macedonia and amounts to an appropriation of its ancient civilization.

Prime Minister Zoran Zaev's government, elected in 2017, pushed for an agreement with Greece. Nationalists, including President Gjorge Ivanov, oppose the deal saying it is against the constitution.

In July, Greece expelled two Russian diplomats and barred two other people from entering the country, accusing them of having meddled by encouraging demonstrations and bribing unidentified officials to thwart the Macedonia agreement.

Russia has denied wrongdoing and responded in kind with expulsions of Greeks.

(Reporting by Idrees Ali; editing by Grant McCool)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Voters who matter most to Donald Trump are the ones pulling his approval numbers down and voters in at least 25 American states out of a total 50 states are more susceptible to changes in national politics with exactly two months to go for midterm elections 2018, two recent polls by FiveThirtyEight and The Economist are showing.

New York: Voters who matter most to Donald Trump are the ones pulling his approval numbers down and voters in at least 25 out of a total 50 American states are more susceptible to changes in national politics with exactly two months to go for midterm elections 2018, recent polls by The Economist and FiveThirtyEight are showing. There's never been a president this unpopular with an economy this good, reports Bloomberg Business.

Polls that dont favour him and dont speak to the white voter have rarely mattered to US President Donald Trump but the Economist-YouGov poll numbers go straight to the heart of the Trump base and the trend is looking awful, reports the Economist.

The midterm election data crunch season going full steam ahead. The headline takeaways are along these lines: the House looks like its leaning Democrat while the Senate might just stay with the Republicans. But polls that delve deeper into subplots have also begun to trickle in and layer our understanding of the shifts in voter tendencies.

Here's how the fight for control of Congress is shaping up: Democrats need a net gain of 23 seats to take control of the House. Operatives in both parties believe at least 40 seats will be competitive in November. This is how tough the Senate race looks: Democrats will still need to win the lion's share of West Virginia, North Dakota, Missouri, Montana, Indiana, and Florida plus Republican-held seats in Nevada, Arizona, and maybe even Tennessee or Texas  to get to the 51 seats they need. Democrats always had an uphill climb for retaking the Senate. Ten Democrats are up for reelection in states that Donald Trump won in 2016. Republicans are clinging to a razor thin 50-49 majority in the Senate after Senator John McCain's demise.

Like Barack Obama, now back on the campaign train, is imploring voters, the resistance to Trump is framing this as the most consequential election at a charged time in US politics. The result is a Democratic field with more women and minorities on the general-election ballot than ever before, several of whom are poised to make history if elected.

The Economist-YouGov poll says 49% of college-educated whites support Democratic candidates for the House and 40% support the Republicans.

In effect, what would it mean for Republicans to lose the House? An unending series of investigations for the next two years, is what most Congress insiders expect - not very different from the final days of the Nixon presidency.

The under-40 percent Trump approval numbers are par for the course across other pollsters too: An Emerson College survey pegs Trumps support at 38%, polls from ABC News and Investors Business Daily are lower - at 36%.

What's more, the share of voters who say they strongly disapprove of Trump has increased by five points, from 37% to 42%, over the past few weeks - an all-time low for Trump.

Could the sum of all of these possibly affect the hardcore 20-30% of Americans who refuse to leave Trumps side. The Economist says yes. Those who are sceptical of this possibility are "missing the forest for the trees", says the newspaper.

If you insert the concept of the elastic state into this mix of poll numbers, it makes for a striking pre-poll landscape.

FiveThirtyEight's Nate Silver explains the concept the elastic state as a swing state turbocharged by its elasticity number. For every 1 percentage point the national political mood moves toward a party, the more elastic states move more than 1 percentage point towards that party. Based on this, individual elastic disctrics could vote differently in every election and year to year, says Silver.

The FiveThirtyEight team has bunged in elasticity scores of all 435 congressional districts in the United States, using data derived from a 60,000-plus person survey by Harvard University and YouGov.

The website has modelled the scores based on the probability of a Democratic or Republican voter and how much that same probability would shift based on a change in national politics. Those on the extremes - 0 percent or a 100 percent chance of voting for one of the parties - are less likely to swing compared with those down the middle.

No matter which poll you go by, history is not on Trump's side but Trump doesnt seem to care about such details; his aides say he'll spend much of the Fall holding rallies in swing states. The president's party typically suffers big losses in the first midterm election after taking office. Both the dominant trends - white voters pulling away and the longlist of 'elastic' states aren't looking good for the Republicans. Real Clear Politics which collates poll of polls trends is also reflecting this mood, at least so far.

Real Clear Politics' House map has at least 42 seats listed as toss-ups and 202 seats likely or leaning Democratic. The battle for the Senate has been defined quite clearly across polls - 10 seats will decide the winner.
The British government has said Putin is ultimately responsible for the nerve agent attack on Sergei Skripal, a claim the Kremlin has strongly denied.

Vladivostok: Russian president Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that the two men whom Britain suspect of poisoning former spy Sergei Skripal with a military-grade nerve agent, are not criminals and have been identified as civilians.

Speaking at an economic forum with Japan's Shinzo Abe and China's Xi Jinping in the far eastern city of Vladivostok, Putin urged the men to address the media and said: "There is nothing special there, nothing criminal, I assure you. We'll see in the near future."

"We know who they are, we have found them," Putin said. "They are civilians, of course," he added, apparently responding to a claim by the British authorities that the two suspects are members of Russia's military intelligence agency.a

Putin urged the two men to speak to journalists. "I hope they will turn up themselves and tell about themselves," he said.

British authorities have issued European arrest warrants for Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, two suspected members of Russian military intelligence, the GRU. They are accused of trying to kill former Russian spy Skripal and his daughter Yulia with the Novichok nerve agent in the English city of Salisbury on 4 March, in an attack London believes was sanctioned by the Kremlin.

The British government has said Putin is ultimately responsible for the attack, a claim the Kremlin has strongly denied.
Aadhaar breach is yet again back in the news, this time it is said to be compromised by a software patch that disables critical security features of the software used to enroll new Aadhaar users thus allowing hackers to generate unauthorized Aadhaar numbers.

Furthermore, the patch is said to be freely available for as low as Rs. 2,500 allowing unauthorized persons anywhere in the world to generate Aadhaar number at their will. The patch is a bundle of code that is used to alter the functionality of a software programme. It lets users bypass critical security features such as biometric authentication of enrolment operators to generate unauthorized Aadhaar numbers, disables the enrolment softwares inbuilt GPS security feature, and reduces the sensitivity of the enrolment softwares iris-recognition system.

so that their enrolment/updation is done only on authorized machines and their efforts do not get wasted because of rejection of their enrolments or updates . (The list of authorized Aadhaar Kendra is available on UIDAI website https://t.co/Sy2gBGp78t).

#####

24/24  Aadhaar (@UIDAI) 11 September 2018

This vulnerability is said to be linked to the technology choice made at the inception of the Aadhaar programme, meaning fixing this and other vulnerabilities would require altering Aadhaars fundamental structure. Gustaf Bjorksten, Chief Technologist at Access Now, a global technology policy and advocacy group said: Whoever created the patch was highly motivated to compromise Aadhaar.

The primary cause for the hack lies in the decision made in 2010 to let private agencies enroll users to the Aadhaar system in order to speed up enrolments. Mindtree, a Bengaluru-based company, won a contract to develop an official, standardized enrolment software  called the Enrolment Client Multi-Platform (ECMP).

The report comes at a time when UIDAI mandates new facial recognition for all Aadhaar authentications. HuffPost who broke the news claims to have gained access to the patch and said to have verified by multiple experts. It also disables the enrolment softwares pre-installed GPS security feature that is used to help UIDAI identify the physical location of enrolment centers. The removal of the GPS requirement would allow patch users to generate numbers from anywhere in the world.

The new software patch doesnt give read access to the Aadhaar database instead enables the addition of new information to the Aadhaar system. HuffPost India claims that it provided a copy of the patch to National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) earlier this year, but the government entity declined to comment on the findings.

The claims lack substance and are baseless. UIDAI further said that certain vested interests are deliberately trying to create confusion in the minds of people which is completely unwarranted. 2/n  Aadhaar (@UIDAI) September 11, 2018

UIDAI responding to the findings said that:

Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) hereby dismisses a news report appearing in social and online media about Aadhaar Enrolment Software being allegedly hacked as completely incorrect and irresponsible. The claims lack substance and are baseless. UIDAI further said that certain vested interests are deliberately trying to create confusion in the minds of people which is completely unwarranted.

Source
Verizon has launched Verizon 5G Home, the worlds first commercial 5G broadband internet service. Users in the USA can sign up to be a First On 5G Member. Verizon 5G Home will initially be available in parts of Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, and Sacramento. It is built on Verizons Ultra-Wideband 5G network.

Verizon says that 5G Home customers can expect typical network speeds around 300 Mbps and, depending on location, peak speeds of nearly 1Gbps, with no data caps. Verizon 5G Home customers will also get YouTube for TV free the first three months and a free Apple TV 4K or Google Chromecast Ultra device at installation.

Verizon 5G Home is built on Verizons 5G Ultra Wideband network Verizons 5G Ultra Wideband network is the only 5G network that combines End-to-end deep fiber resources throughout the network, a large deployment of small cells, critical, and best-in-class spectrum holdings, particularly in the millimeter wave bands.

Users who sign up for Verizon 5G Home will get free three months complimentary as part of a special introductory offer. After the introductory period, current Verizon Wireless customers will have to pay $50 per month for the service, while non-Verizon Wireless customers will pay $70 per month.

Verizons 5G broadband internet service will roll out starting from October 1 in the U.S.

Hans Vestberg, CEO of Verizon Communications said:

To be first, we encouraged others in the ecosystem to move more quickly at every step. We appreciate the partnership of network equipment makers, device manufacturers, software developers and chip makers in reaching this critical milestone. The entire wireless industry gets to celebrate.

Ronan Dunne, head of Verizons wireless business said:

We spent the last three years driving the industry to bring 5G to consumers as soon as possible. We developed early standards that allowed the industry and hardware and software manufacturers to build solutions more quickly. As a result of this initiative and ongoing collaboration, we will rapidly deliver the promise of 5G to our customers.

Source
Xiaomis sub-brand POCO launched the POCO F1, the companys first smartphone in India last month at a competitive price tag of Rs. 20,999. Today the company has confirmed that the smartphone is certified splash resistant by P2i, which is popular for its liquid repellant nanotechnology, so it is fine with everyday splashes and spills, but you cant immerse it in water.

Step into monsoon with the #MasterOfSpeed. #POCOF1 is certified splash resistant by P2i (@P2iLabs)  the global leader in liquid repellant nanotechnology. Grab yours in the sale today at 12 noon. Register now: https://t.co/reU6ntL9gy pic.twitter.com/CpqCHAyb7L  POCO India (@IndiaPOCO) September 12, 2018

The company has reiterated that the phone comes with support for Qualcomm Quick Charge 4.0 out of the box, however it only includes 9V/2A (18W) Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 fast charger in the box.

Be up to speed with the #MasterOfSpeed! Comes inbuilt with @Qualcomm Quick Charge 4.0 support. Goes on sale tomorrow, 12 noon on https://t.co/DREiXV90LG and @Flipkart. Register now: https://t.co/reU6ntL9gy pic.twitter.com/NvAczgzlIb  POCO India (@IndiaPOCO) September 11, 2018

Jai Mani, Head of Product, POCO Global said that the company is planning to roll out a new OTA update for other regions for face unlock, which can be enabled by setting it to India. He also clarified that the phone has 2x smart power amps offering stereo-like effect from the bottom speaker, and the phone doesnt have stereo speakers, as mentioned at the launch.

Two small things: 1. Were planning to OTA face unlock for other regions, you can enable by setting it to India 2. Its more of a stereo-like effect. Main audio is the bottom speakerits crazy loud b/c we have 2x smart power amps. We made a mistake not clarifying at launch.  Jai Mani (@jaimani) September 12, 2018

However he is yet to answer regarding the screen-bleeding issues that several users are reporting, which might be a hardware issue in select devices.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau's world population clock, there are currently more than 7.3 billion people on the planet. Among those more than 7.3 billion people sit just 1,810 billionaires with a combined net worth of $6.5 trillion, according to Forbes' most recent rankings of the richest people in the world. Your chances of becoming a billionaire, based on this data, are only about 0.00002% .

Despite being such a small portion of the global population, billionaires are some of the most closely monitored people in the world. They've achieved a few lifetimes' worth of success, and some in a very short amount of time -- and the average Joe or Jane would love the opportunity to share in the success they've had by following their example.

Here's how billionaires build and retain wealth

Unfortunately for middle-class America, there is no concrete formula to becoming a billionaire. What we do have are a handful of billionaire secrets that the rich have used to build and retain their wealth over time that, when implemented, can make a substantial impact on your own personal finances over the long-term.

Here are three of the most important billionaire secrets to building and retaining wealth.

1. Minimize your tax liability

According to Forbes' billionaire list, self-made billionaire Warren Buffett, who runs conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A)(NYSE:BRK.B), is the third-richest person in the world as of 2016. Yet, based on an op-ed article written by the Oracle of Omaha in The New York Times in 2011, Buffett claims to have paid only a 17.4% effective tax rate, which was actually much lower than that of many of the people he worked with in his office, including his secretary. How does Buffett get away with paying such a low tax rate despite being worth so much? The answer can be found in his investment timeframe.

You may have run across a popular Buffett quote stating that his "favorite holding period is forever." Buffett has made it clear that when he buys stock in a business, he intends to hold it for years or decades to come. Doing so provides a substantial advantage come tax time.

Short-term investments, which are defined as assets sold within 365 or fewer days, get taxed at a rate commensurate with your ordinary income tax bracket. Ordinary income tax brackets in the U.S. are progressive, meaning the richest Americans with short-term capital gains would owe 39.6%. Ouch!

Comparatively, long-term capital gains, or assets held for at least 366 days, get taxed at a much lower rate. Instead of paying 39.6%, the highest-income individuals owe just 20% on long-term capital gains. That's a massive difference that can allow wealthy people to keep a big portion of their gains to reinvest for the future.

Buffett, for his part, also pays a low tax rate because he tends not to sell much of what he owns. There's been no big picture change in the investment thesis for Coca-Cola or Wells Fargo, two core Berkshire Hathaway holdings for more than 25 years. As such, Buffett and his company reap the rewards of slow and steady growth without having any tax liability on the investment gains.

Two smart ways you can minimize your own taxes are to 1) hold your investments for the long-term to take advantage of lower long-term capital gains tax rates, and 2) seek out tax-advantaged retirement tools that can give you an edge. A Roth IRA, for example, allows your investment gains to grow tax-free for the life of the account as long as you don't make any unqualified withdrawals. You're probably not going to become a billionaire by investing in a Roth IRA, but you could very well save four-, five-, or six-digits in taxes that you won't have to pay come retirement.

2. Live within your means

One of the more interesting traits of some billionaires is that they tend to live well below their means. Just because they have more money than they'll probably ever need doesn't mean they're in a rush to see how much of it they can spend.

Two perfect cases in point are Warren Buffett and the fourth-richest person on Forbes' list, Mexican telecom mogul Carlos Slim. Combined, the two have a net worth in excess of $110 billion -- yet Buffett lives in the same house that he purchased in 1958 for $31,500, while Slim has lived in the same house in Mexico City for more than four decades. These two could buy their own islands and not even blink, but they understand the value of a dollar and prudent budgeting, which is what keeps them from foolishly burning through their fortunes.

The billionaire secret here is pretty straightforward: live within your means.

Amazingly, though, this can be a problem for many Americans. The U.S. personal savings rate is an appallingly low 5.3% as of June 2016, which means far too many Americans are adjusting their spending habits to align with their income rather than finding ways to creatively save money and invest for the future. In other words, too many people are putting current pleasure ahead of future comfort, which is not how Warren Buffett or Carlos Slim operates.

A 2013 poll from Gallup found that only around a third of U.S. households keep detailed monthly budgets. If you don't keep a budget, it can be impossible to understand your cash flow; and if you don't understand your cash flow, you won't be able to optimize your ability to save, or to gauge how well or poorly you're doing with regard to meeting your retirement goal. Formulating a budget is easier than ever with online tools at the ready. The real challenge these days is staying accountable to your plan and surrounding yourself with people that have like-minded goals of saving and retiring comfortably.

3. Follow the beat of your own drum

Finally, billionaires have demonstrated that they're leaders. In nearly all instances they became industry leaders or investment moguls by following the beat of their own drum rather than following in the footsteps of someone else.

Instead of trying to identify the drugmaker with the next breakthrough cancer drug, or which fiber-optics provider would have the next game-changing product, Warren Buffett went against the tide by purchasing some of the most tried-and-true, and borderline boring, companies on the planet. Over time, with the help of dividend reinvestment and compounding, he's turned his investments into a fortune.

Carlos Slim beat his own drum in much the same way when he took the risk of purchasing the Mexico telephone monopoly from the government in the 1990s. The move allowed Slim's fortune to explode higher, with Telmex still in control of around 70% of all fixed and mobile lines in Mexico as of today. Slim's willingness to take risks and head into areas where other investors have avoided has been his key to success.

The key point here is that you have to be willing to take risks if you want the possibility of a reward. One of the best ways to do this is by choosing to invest in the stock market.

A Bankrate Money Pulse survey last year found that 52% of Americans don't have any money in the stock market, which is sort of maddening given that stocks, over the long run, outperform practically all other asset classes. Historically, the stock market tends to increase in value by 7% per year, including dividend reinvestment, which would allow you the opportunity to build real wealth over time. If you're among these aforementioned 52% of Americans with $0 in stocks, perhaps now is the time to start marching to the beat of your own drum by investing in stocks.
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Poco F1 supports HDR playback

The Poco F1 supports native HDR (High Definition Ranging) playback on YouTube. The Poco F1 is the only smartphone under Rs 25,000, that supports HDR playback in India, which makes it a true multimedia smartphone, as the Poco F1 can stream up to 1080p videos on YouTube.

So, if you need a smartphone with high fidelity YouTube experience under Rs 25,000 price tag, then the Poco F1 is the smartphone to consider.

How to Play HDR videos on Poco F1?

Search for HDR videos in YouTube (not every video available on YouTube is an HDR video) and select the resolution up to 1080p to play HDR video on the Poco F1

An HDR video will offer more vivid, bright, and, crisp video footage, which will improve the overall YouTube experience. This feature is mostly reserved for the high-end smartphones and the Poco F1 is an exception, as the device has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC.

Xiaomi Poco F1 specifications

The Xiaomi Poco F1 has a 6.18-inch IPS LCD screen with a maximum brightness of 500 nits. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC powers the smartphone with 6/8 GB RAM and 64/128/256 GB internal storage with a dedicated micro SD card slot for additional storage expansion.

The smartphone has a polycarbonate unibody design with a plastic casing on the back and a 2.5D curved Corning Gorilla Glass 3 on the front. Overall, the Poco F1 is the unique looking flagship smartphone of 2018.

The phone has a dual camera setup with a 12 MP primary camera (IMX 363 sensor) with an f/1.9 aperture and 1.4-micron pixels, which will help the camera to capture beautiful photos even in the low lighting condition. The phone also has a 20 MP front-facing camera with support for Face Unlock, which even works in pitch dark conditions, as the smartphone has an IR blaster to assist low-light face to unlock. The main camera can record 4K videos, whereas the secondary camera can only record 1080p videos @ 30fps.

Lastly, the Poco F1 has a massive 4000 mAh battery with support for Qualcomm Quick Charge 4.0 capability, and the retail package also bundles a Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 enabled charger, which can charge the device from 0 to 100% in less than 2 hours via USB type C port. The phone also has a dedicated 3.5 mm headphone jack, which is not usually seen on the modern 2018 smartphones.
Nokia 9 to use a 4150mAh battery, hints leaked image News oi-Abhinaya Prabhu Nokia 9 leaks once again.

Nokia 9 is hitting the rumor mills often in the recent times making us believe that its launch is not going to be a long wait. Though the launch date of the device is yet to be announced by the company, it has leaked frequently revealing a lot of details. Today, we have some interesting details, thanks to an image that has emerged online.

We already know that the upcoming Nokia flagship smartphone will flaunt a penta-lens camera at its rear. Now, the latest image leak confirms the same once again. It also confirms the battery capacity of the upcoming device.

Penta-lens camera

According to the image leaked by NokiaPowerUser, there will be seven cutouts positioned to form a hexagon at the rear. The Zeiss branding is also seen clearly and it looks like five of these will be for the camera sensors while the sixth one will be the Xenon flash. There is no word regarding the seventh cutout for now.

If this camera arrangement turns out to be authentic, then the Nokia 9 will be the first smartphone to arrive with such a camera setup. These lenses from Zeiss are said to use the Miniature zoom camera technology patented by Zeiss. Going by the patent, a mechanism will make the primary wide-angle lens act as an image sensor while the others will revolve around it to give a zoom effect. With the recent image showing five sensors in a fixed position, there are claims that it could provide variable focal lengths.

Nokia 9 battery capacity

Apart from the camera arrangement, the recent image leak shows that the smartphone will arrive with a massive 4150mAh battery. If this battery capacity turns out to be true, we can expect the smartphone to last for a considerable time without any battery life concerns.

Storage variants leak

Lately, we came across a report citing the Samsung buyback program shedding light on the variants of the Nokia 9. It showed that the smartphone could be launched in both single SIM and dual-SIM variants and arrive with either 64GB or 128GB of storage space. The other specifications of the smartphone remain a mystery for now but we can expect the details to come to light soon.

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First Minister leads historic summit on Precision Medicine

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon on Monday, 10 September, convened industry, academic and clinical experts in Precision Medicine from across Scotland and across the globe, bringing together the sector to declare its intention to lead the world in this exciting new development.



Scotlands Precision Medicine Summit, which was held in Perth, was co-chaired by University of Glasgow Vice-Principal Professor Dame Anna Dominiczak and Professor David Crossman, Chief Scientist-Health with the Scottish Government. The summit heard from academics, clinicians and major industry partners and involved high-level discussions on how to ensure Scotland capitalises fully on its current strengths in the field.



The centrepiece of the days debate was the Science and Innovation Audit Precision Medicine Innovation in Scotland: Accelerating Productivity Growth for Scotland and the UK, which is due to be unveiled in the near future. This report, commissioned by the UK Government and led by the University of Glasgow, sets out in detail the ways in which Precision Medicine can lead to better outcomes for patients, potentially save billions of pounds for the NHS and contribute strongly to economic growth and job creation in Scotland.



The First Minister said: Scotland has all of the potential to be a world leader in developing precision medicine. I saw that back in April when I visited Hong Kong and China. I spoke to a number of companies there about precision medicine, and they showed real interest in the Triple Helix  the three key strengths which Scotland has to offer.



First, theres the quality of our academic research. We lead every other part of the UK in attracting research and development projects. And our universities boast particular specialisms in the areas most relevant to precision medicine  such as genomics, data and informatics, and clinical medicine.



Second, Scotland is more successful than any other part of the UK in setting up businesses to commercialise our research. Thats one of the reasons why we have such a thriving life sciences sector. Scotland is home to more than 700 life sciences companies - and over 200 of them are involved in precision medicine.



Third, our single unified health service  NHS Scotland  maintains healthcare data of unparalleled quality. For example, through our Community Health Index we have a comprehensive source of patient, clinical and demographic information  covering a population of over 5 million people. As precision medicine is data-driven  and depends on information about patient genetics, environment, and lifestyle  thats a huge asset. And  together with our academic and industrial strengths  its one on which were absolutely determined to capitalise.



The Precision Medicine work undertaken by the University of Glasgow and the eco-system centred around the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital are key assets for Scotlands Precision Medicine ambitions, and will be vital as we seek to capitalise on our current position, and cement ourselves as the international leaders in the field.



Professor Dame Anna Dominiczak, Vice-Principal and Head of the College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences at the University of Glasgow said: Scotlands Precision Medicine Summit has been a historic opportunity for the health sector in Scotland to speak with one voice  with government, academia, industry and our NHS coming together to declare our intention that Scotland will lead the world in Precision Medicine, an industry projected to be worth $134bn by 2025.



We stand on the brink of leading a genuine revolution in how we practise medicine  promising not just better outcomes for patients, but upwards of 70bn in savings for the NHS, contributing to inclusive economic growth and supporting thousands of new jobs in Scotland.



The commitment the Scottish Government has already demonstrated over the last few years has put Scotland in pole position to lead the way  and the progress we have made at this historic summit has put not just international leadership but a transformation in health treatment well and truly within our grasp.

As well as keynote addresses from the First Minister and Dame Anna, the summit heard from experts from across academia and industry, including President of the US National Academy of Sciences, Professor Victor Dzau; Dr Ken Sutherland, President of Canon Medical Research Europe Ltd; and Jeane Freeman, Cabinet Secretary for Health.



It has been estimated that the implementation of Precision Medicine could see the financial burden of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, lung disease and musculoskeletal issues reduced by 73bn over the next 50 years.



The global Precision Medicine market value was estimated at around $43bn in 2016 and is projected to rise to around $134bn by 2025.



Scottish Enterprise estimate that there are around 230 companies already undertaking Precision Medicine activity in Scotland.
Phase 3 of Operation Roundup Starts in Syria

Sept. 11, 2018

From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release

SOUTHWEST ASIA -- Syrian Democratic Forces initiated ground operations for Phase Three of Operation Roundup yesterday.

The ground offensive, supported by coalition cross-border air and artillery strikes, will clear remnants of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria from northeastern Syria along the Middle Euphrates River Valley toward the Syria-Iraq border.

Operation Roundup began May 1. Phase One successfully cleared ISIS from areas near Baghuz in northeastern Syria on May 15. Phase Two cleared ISIS forces from Dashisha, Syria, on July 20. Shaping operations for phase three began Aug. 4, and ground operations will clear ISIS remnants from Hajin and the remaining Dayr Az Zawr countryside east of the Euphrates River.

Syrian Democratic Forces have proven themselves reliable, effective combat soldiers who abide by the law of armed conflict.

Support for SDF Partners

"We will continue to support our SDF partners in our shared fight against ISIS in Syria, and we thank the SDF for the incredible contribution and sacrifices they have made on behalf of the international community," said Army Maj. Gen. Patrick Roberson, commander of Operation Inherent Resolve's Special Operations Joint Task Force.

SDF operations, with coalition support, have been instrumental in defeating ISIS and liberating millions of Syrians from brutal terrorist rule, OIR officials said. The removal of ISIS from the battlefield has also thwarted the terrorist organization's ability to recruit, train, equip, finance, inspire, plan and execute attacks throughout the region and the rest of the world.

"The multi-ethnic Syrian Democratic Forces remain committed to liberating the people of northeastern Syria from ISIS's control and putting an end to the human suffering in the area," Roberson said. "Moving forward, we will continue coordination with the SDF and other partners to promote regional security and stability that will ensure a lasting defeat of ISIS."

Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve remains committed to defeating ISIS in designated parts of Iraq and Syria, and to helping set conditions for follow-on operations to increase regional stability.

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ICC responds to threat of US sanctions

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Sept 11, IRNA -- International Criminal Court (ICC) said on Tuesday that it would continue to act without fear and concern in response to a US threat to the boycott of the court.

The response came in response to US National Security Advisor John Bolton's threat that the US would boycott it if the tribunal investigates US activities in Afghanistan.

The International Court of Justice, located in the Hague, the Netherlands, issued a statement adding that the tribunal is an independent and impartial body backed by 123 countries.

The ICC, as a court of law, continues its actions without fear and in accordance with the prevailing principles of the rule of law.

On Monday, the United States threatened to impose sanctions against ICC if investigations were initiated about the country's war crimes in Afghanistan, by adopting an offensive against the Hague International Criminal Court.

The request is part of Bolton's first important speech since his appointment in the new cabinet, a draft which saw by Reuters. 'The United States will protect with all the means necessary to protect its citizens and allies against the unfair trials of this court,' the speech said.

According to Reuters, Bolton acknowledged in this speech that the US will 'confront them' if International Criminal Court officially opens a case for investigating US war crimes in Afghanistan.

9455**2050

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Suicide attack kills 19, injures 57 in eastern Afghanistan

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Kabul, Sept 11, IRNA -- Afghanistan Health Ministry spokesman announced that the suicide attack on Nangarhar Province has claimed the lives of 19 people and injured 57 more.

Speaking to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) on Tuesday, Vahid Majrooh said the injured people were transported to hospital.

Nangarhar governorate spokesman Ataollah Khogiani earlier announced the accident killed 5 and injured 30 others.

The explosion happened as a result of a suicide attack among protestors to police performance, he said, adding that the casualties are to grow.

Meanwhile, Nangarhar Education office spokesman Mohammad Asif Shginvari told local reporters that explosion of a bomb in Jalal Abad City resulted in injury of one person.

Two other blasts also happened in Behsud Town that claimed life of a student and injured four more.

No individual or group has claimed the responsibility for the deadly attacks.

9376**1420

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NATO welcomes new Supreme Allied Commander Transformation

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

11 Sep. 2018

General Andre Lanata took over as Supreme Allied Commander Transformation (SACT) today (11 September 2018) from General Denis Mercier at a change of command ceremony at Allied Command Transformation in Norfolk, Virginia.

NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, congratulated General Lanata on his appointment to his new command. "General Lanata's record is second to none, and he is the right person to lead the Command in the years ahead," said Mr Stoltenberg.

General Lanata, former Chief of Staff for the French Air Force, began his career as a fighter pilot. He has flown more than 140 combat missions, including over Chad and Iraq, and with NATO operations over Bosnia and Kosovo.

The Secretary General also thanked General Mercier for his leadership over the last three years. He said, "Innovation is a fundamental part of NATO's mission. Disruptive technologies such as the use of Big Data, Artificial Intelligence and robotics are leading to a revolution in military affairs. General Mercier's focus on innovation and new technologies has helped to keep NATO at the forefront of this revolution."

The Secretary General said, "It has been NATO's privilege to have General Mercier serve as Supreme Allied Commander Transformation. His time as SACT has made an indelible impression on this Alliance. On behalf of all Allies and all NATO staffs, I would like to thank him for his outstanding contribution to our Alliance."

General Mercier is also a fighter pilot, with over 180 combat missions, and a former Chief of Staff for the French Air Force.

The Supreme Allied Commander Transformation is one of NATO's two strategic commanders. Allied Command Transformation (ACT) is responsible for promoting and overseeing the continuing transformation of Alliance forces and capabilities. ACT ensures that NATO's war fighting capabilities remain relevant, provides an indispensable understanding of current and future security challenges, and contributes to the development of NATO doctrine, concepts and interoperability standards. The Command is also responsible for NATO's training and education programmes.

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U.S. closes PLO office, adding pressure on Palestinians

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 13:38, September 11, 2018

WASHINGTON, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Trump administration on Monday announced its decision to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)'s office in Washington, a move to further press the Palestinians into peace talks with Israel while invoking strong objections.

The U.S. State Department unveiled the decision in a statement released Monday, citing the Palestinians' lack of "steps to advance the start of direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel."

"PLO leadership has condemned a U.S. peace plan they have not yet seen and refused to engage with the U.S. government with respect to peace efforts and otherwise," said U.S. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert in the statement.

The Palestinian officials denounced the U.S. decision as "reckless" and "bullying."

"We don't think this is just about bullying ... we believe this is about the implementing of Israel's grocery list," said Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian representative to Washington, told reporters on Monday. Senior Palestinian officials have been informed earlier by the Trump administration about the closure of the mission.

Zomlot also described ties between the United States and the Palestinians as at a "historical low."

Meanwhile, the Trump administration still voiced optimism about the long stalled Middle East peace process. "We are very much committed to the process, and we're still hopeful we can get there," said White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders in a daily briefing Monday.

The U.S. government gives a waiver to the Palestinian mission in Washington every six months to keep it function normally.

Heather also noted in the statement that the decision was linked with U.S. concerns with Palestinian attempts to prompt an investigation into Israel by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The Palestinians have requested the ICC to investigate Israel on various issues including disputed settlement buildings in the occupied West Bank, the civilian casualties in the 2014 Gaza war and others.

Despite having opened a preliminary probe in 2015, the court has yet to move to the next stage.

The Palestinian officials have pledged to push forward their efforts at the ICC unwaveringly.

Shortly after the State Department announcement, John Bolton, the U.S. national security advisor, followed up in his speech at a think tank in Washington.

"The Trump administration will not keep the office open when the Palestinians refuses to take steps to start direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel," he said.

Bolton also threatened to impose sanctions against judges and prosecutors of the ICC if it pursues investigation against the United States, Israel or other U.S. allies.

Bolton said the Trump administration will "fight back" if the ICC proceeds with opening an investigation into alleged war crimes committed by U.S. military members and intelligence personnel in Afghanistan.

"The ICC prosecutor has requested to investigate these Americans for alleged detainee abuse, and perhaps more," said Bolton, describing it as an "utterly unfounded, unjustifiable investigation."

"We will not cooperate with the ICC. We will provide no assistance to the ICC. We will not join the ICC. We will let the ICC die on its own," said Bolton in his harshly-worded remarks.

The ICC's aim is to bring to justice the perpetrators of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

"Their (the ICC) announcement that they would consider opening an investigation into -- among other parties -- U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan is a threat to American sovereignty," said Sanders.

"If they proceed with that, then the United States would consider those options that Ambassador Bolton laid out today," the White House spokeswoman added.

"What Trump is doing is nothing really different than Bush," Ford O'Connell, a Republican and news commentator who frequently shows up on TV, told Xinhua.

The United States did not ratify the Rome treaty that established the ICC in 2002, as then U.S. president George W. Bush voiced objection to the court.

"Overusing tools like sanctions runs the risk of other nations finding and bolstering alternative financial arrangements that would then reduce the leverage that the United States has as the global financial leader," Dan Mahaffee, senior vice president and director of policy at the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, told Xinhua.

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U.S. announces closure of PLO office, threatens sanctions against ICC

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 07:17, September 11, 2018

WASHINGTON, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Trump administration announced the closure of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)'s office in Washington on Monday and threatened sanctions against the International Criminal Court if it pursues investigations against the United States, Israel, or other allies.

Despite Palestinian objection, the U.S. State Department unveiled the decision to the Palestinian diplomatic mission in a statement released Monday noon, citing the lack of "steps to advance the start of direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel."

The decision was also linked with U.S. concerns with Palestinian attempts to prompt an investigation of Israel by the International Criminal Court (ICC), according to the statement.

Shortly after the State Department announcement, John Bolton, the U.S. National Security Advisor, followed up in his speech at a conservative think tank in Washington.

"The Trump administration will not keep the office open when the Palestinians refuses to take steps to start direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel," he said.

Bolton also threatened to impose sanctions against judges and prosecutors of the ICC if it pursues investigation against the United States, Israel or other U.S. allies.

In his harshly-worded remarks, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations called the Hague-based international body "ineffective, unaccountable" and "outright dangerous," threatening to block the ICC personnel from entering the United States and even prosecute them if it charges U.S. military members serving in Afghanistan over war crimes.

"We will do the same for any company or state that assists an ICC investigation of Americans," Bolton added.

In his speech, which has been earmarked as his first major public address after taking the post, Bolton also reaffirmed the U.S. full support for Israel, a stance which has been widely seen as seriously undermining Washington's credibility as a mediator for the stalled Israel-Palestinian peace talk.

Senior Palestinian officials, who have been informed earlier by the Trump administration about the decision to the office, have strongly condemned the U.S. latest move, calling it "reckless" and "bullying."

"We don't think this is just about bullying ... we believe this is about the implementing of Israel's grocery list," said Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian representative to Washington, in an interview.

Zomlot also described ties between the United States and the Palestinians at a "historical low."

U.S. media reported on Saturday that the Trump administration "will be redirecting approximately 25 million U.S. dollars originally planned for the East Jerusalem Hospital Network. Those funds will go to high-priority projects elsewhere."

In response, the Palestinian side denounced the move as "an act of political blackmail," saying it would cause "serious instability and grave harm" to thousands of patients and their families across the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The upcoming U.S. decision will be the latest in a trove of U.S. funding cuts against the Palestinians.

In August, the U.S. State Department announced a decision to "redirect" economic aid to the Palestinians that are worthy of more than 200 million dollars.

Later, it announced it would not provide assistance funding any more for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

Palestinian officials have said that the U.S. move comes in line with Trump's attempt to ignore the final issues of the Palestinian-Israel peace process and remove the issues of Jerusalem and refugees "off the table."

The United States recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December last year, sparking global outcry.

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Palestinians renew ICC push against Israel over West Bank village

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 09:44PM

A high-ranking Palestinian official says the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority has submitted a new complaint over an Israeli "war crime" against a village in the occupied West Bank at the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Saeb Erekat, Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), said on Tuesday that the dossier "included a focus on the war crimes facing Khan al-Ahmar, specifically the crimes of forcible displacement, ethnic cleansing and the destruction of civilian property," Erekat said.

He added that the PLO had also asked ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda to expedite a preliminary probe into other Israeli war crimes.

"We hope that an official judicial investigation can be opened as soon as possible," Erekat noted.

Last week, the Israeli High Court approved plans for the demolition of Khan al-Ahmar village east of Jerusalem al-Quds. It could be razed within the coming days.

The European Union has warned against the consequences of tearing down the village's tents and tin shacks.

French Foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said his country was "paying particular attention to the case of Khan al-Ahmar given its location in an area of strategic importance for the contiguity of a Palestinian state and for the viability of a two-state solution with Jerusalem (al-Quds) as the capital."

He also he warned "of the potential humanitarian as well as political consequences of the demolition of this village and the displacement of its inhabitants."

Meanwhile, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom have issued a joint statement in support of the village.

The five countries have called upon the Tel Aviv regime to cancel its plan to demolish Khan al-Ahmar, stressing that it demolition and displacement of its residents will have serious repercussions on the locals, especially on children.

Human rights organizations have warned that the demolition of Khan al-Ahmar village could enable the Israeli regime to press ahead with its land expropriation and settlement expansion policies in Palestinian territories irrespective of international law and regulations.

The Palestinians' decision to bring the issue of Khan al-Ahmar before the ICC came a day after the administration of US President Donald Trump announced that it was closing the PLO's diplomatic mission in Washington.

Back in July, Palestinians had turned to the ICC over Israel's plan to demolish Khan al-Ahmar.

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End of US funding to UNRWA; attack on international law: Palestine's FM

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 03:20PM

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki says a decision by the administration of US President Donald Trump to halt funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) was an attack on international law.

"The US administration has begun to attack the rights of the Palestinian people and international law," Maliki said at a meeting of the Arab League in Cairo on Tuesday convened to discuss the issue.

Late last month, the Trump's administration decided to cancel all US funding to the UNRWA, part of a policy to impose maximum pressure on the Palestinians to satisfy the Israeli regime's interests and Zionist constituencies in the US.

The US administration has already announced a steady stream of cuts in aid for Palestinians. The US State Department announced in January that it would withhold $65 million of a $125 million aid installment to UNRWA.

The State Department also announced that Washington has canceled over $200 million in funds for the Palestinian Authority, leading Palestinian officials to denounce the move as "blackmail."

A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on August 31 that the recent US decision in freezing the funding of the UNRWA is a "flagrant assault" against Palestinians.

"The consecutive American decisions represent a flagrant assault against the Palestinian people and a defiance of the UN resolutions," Nabil Abu Rdainah said, adding, "Such a punishment will not succeed to change the fact that the United States no longer has a role in the region and that it is not a part of the solution."

Ties between the US and Palestine have sharply deteriorated since Trump sparked international outrage on December 6, 2017 by declaring that Washington was recognizing Jerusalem al-Quds as the "capital" of Israel and that he had instructed his administration to begin the process of moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to the ancient city.

The announcement prompted harsh international warnings that it would bring more chaos to the Middle East region. Several protests have been held in many countries over the past days against the US and Israel.

The political situation in Palestine has deteriorated after Trump took office in 2017 as Washington has been pursuing policies that favor the Israeli regime.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has broadly welcomed Trump's support.

US end to UNRWA funding fuels radicalism: Jordan

Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi also said that the US decision to stop funding the UNRWA would only fuel radicalism and harm prospects for Middle East peace.

Safadi, whose country is a key US ally, said at the Arab League that Jordan would hold a meeting "in cooperation with Sweden, Germany, Japan, the European Union and Turkey" on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting later this month "in an effort to get more aid."

The top Jordanian diplomat did not give more details.

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Video shows first Yemeni drone attack on Saudi-led forces in Hudaydah

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 03:19PM

Yemeni army soldiers, supported by allied fighters from Popular Committees, have reportedly carried out an airstrike against a strategic military target in the country's western coastal province of Hudaydah in retaliation for the Saudi-led devastating military aggression against their impoverished homeland.

The Houthi Ansarullah movement announced in a statement that Yemeni troopers and their allies attacked a command center of Saudi-led forces using a domestically-built long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle on Tuesday afternoon.

There were no immediate reports about possible casualties and the extent of damage caused at the site.

Scores of Saudi-sponsored militiamen loyal to Yemen's former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi were killed and injured when Yemeni troops and fighters from Popular Committees targeted their camps in the northern and southern sectors of the Hays district in Hudaydah province.

On August 27, Yemeni soldiers and their allies struck Dubai International Airport with a domestically-manufactured Sammad-3 (Invincible-3) unmanned aerial vehicle.

Yemeni army forces and Popular Committees fighters targeted Abu Dhabi International Airport in the United Arab Emirates on July 26, using the same type of combat drone.

Abdullah al-Jafri, a spokesman for Yemeni air force and air defense, said at the time that the drone attack had halted flights to and from the airport, adding that this was the first time that Yemeni forces used a drone to attack the airport.

He said Yemeni forces will target the infrastructure of countries that have taken part in the aggression against Yemen in future attacks.

The UAE is Saudi Arabia's key ally in its deadly war against Yemen.

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.

The aggression has killed some 15,000 people and injured thousands more. More than 2,200 others have died of cholera, and the crisis has triggered what the United Nations has described as the world's worst humanitarian disaster.

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Afghan Taliban set to hold new round of talks with US

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 01:14PM

The Taliban militant group is preparing to send a delegation for further talks with US officials in an attempt to end a 17-year-old war in Afghanistan.

Two officials involved with the process said on Tuesday that Taliban leaders were meeting to discuss the makeup of the three- or four-person delegation.

The Taliban delegation at the planned meeting would be led by Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanakzai, the interim head of the group's Qatar-based political office.

However, they said the high command was planning to replace Stanakzai with a new permanent head of the Qatar office. "You may know Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanakzai was deputed in the Qatar office on acting charge basis. The top leadership is now planning to appoint someone else in his place."

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the meeting could address a possible prisoner swap. "We would hand over a list of prisoners languishing in jails across Afghanistan. If they set free our prisoners then we would meet again for another great cause."

They said the Taliban would welcome another meeting soon if the United States showed seriousness in talks by releasing prisoners. "This meeting will determine the future talks and we would see if the US is serious and sincere in negotiation."

The latest meeting would follow an earlier round of talks in Doha in July, where Taliban officials met Alice Wells, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asia at the US State Department.

An assault by the Taliban on the strategic city of Ghazni last month that killed hundreds of soldiers, police and civilians underlined the militants' determination to increase pressure on the US and its Western-backed government in Kabul.

Back in February, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani called on the Taliban to join peace talks "without preconditions."

The Taliban refuse to negotiate directly with the internationally recognized Afghan government and say they will only talk to the United States.

The United States has agreed to participate directly and has appointed former US Ambassador to Kabul Zalmay Khalilzad as the special envoy to reinforce the effort.

Taliban's five-year rule over at least three quarters of Afghanistan came to an end when the United States and its allies invaded the Asian country on October 7, 2001 as part of Washington's so-called war on terror. The offensive removed the Taliban regime from power, but ever since, the group has been involved in widespread militancy, killing thousands of civilians as well as Afghan and American forces and displacing tens of thousands of people across the country.

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Ethiopia, Eritrea reopen border; celebrate Ethiopian New Year together

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 10:20AM

The leaders of Ethiopia and Eritrea have reopened border crossing points and celebrated the Ethiopian New Year together on their shared frontier, where a fierce war had taken place two decades ago.

Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki and Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali "officially opened the Debay Sima-Burre border point between the two countries for road transport connectivity," Eritrea's Information Minister Yemane Meskel said in a tweet on Tuesday.

According to footage on Ethiopia's state TV, the two leaders then opened the Serha-Zalambesa crossing in a second ceremony.

Fitsum Arega, Ali's Chief of Staff, said the leaders also celebrated the Ethiopian New Year together at the border.

"PM Abiy Ahmed and President Isaias Afwerki are visiting Bure Front along Ethio-Eritrea border to celebrate the New Year with members of the Ethiopian & Eritrean Defense Forces following the full normalization of the relations between the two countries. #Ethiopia #Eritrea," Arega tweeted.

Arega also posted pictures showing Ali and Isaias walking side by side on his Twitter account.

The Horn of Africa nations had been at loggerheads since Ethiopia rejected a United Nations ruling and refused to cede land to Eritrea along the countries' border following the 1998-2000 war.

However, in June 2018, Ali announced that his country would abide by the 2002 ruling requiring it to cede territory, including Badme, and withdraw its forces.

In July, the two parties inked an agreement on resuming diplomatic and commercial relations, signaling an end to almost two decades of hostility.

Back then, Eritrea reopened its embassy in Ethiopia, and Addis Ababa reciprocated last week.

The two nations have also resumed flights.

Asmara has agreed to open up its ports to its landlocked neighbor, and last week declared plans to improve transport connections with Ethiopia by upgrading a road between them.

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About 60 Afghan forces killed in clashes with Taliban

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 07:01AM

Scores of Afghan security forces and Taliban militants have been killed in separate clashes in northern Afghanistan, officials say.

Fighting reportedly raged in four provinces early on Monday, leaving as many as 60 Afghan forces and dozens of militants dead.

Sar-e Pul's provincial Governor Zahir Wahdat told reporters on Monday that Taliban militants had seized a checkpoint in a district near the provincial capital of the same name and set it ablaze, killing at least 17 security forces.

He added that air support had been called in. Nearly 39 Taliban militants were killed and 14 injured in those strikes, he said.

"The fighting is still ongoing near the city and the central government is going to send more reinforcements soon," Wahdat added.

The provincial police chief, Abdul Qayom Baqizoy, said Sar-e Pul City had been threatened by the militants after they seized a military base in the province, warning of a "disaster" if reinforcements were not sent.

Baqizoy compared the threat to the Taliban's recent raid on the provincial capital of Ghazni. Taliban last month briefly seized the major city of Ghazni, located just two hours from the capital Kabul.

In neighboring Jawzjan Province, hundreds of Taliban militants stormed Kham Ab district center, bordering Turkmenistan, killing at least eight security forces and seizing control of government headquarters, according to provincial deputy police chief Abdul Hafeez Khashi. Thirteen security personnel were reportedly wounded in that attack.

Elsewhere in northern Afghanistan, the Taliban killed at least 19 police officers and injured around 20 others in attacks on several police posts in Kunduz, said Dasht-e-Archi district chief Nasruddin Saadi.

Northern Afghanistan police spokesman Sarwar Hussaini also said that Taliban militants had raided two police checkpoints in the Dara-e-Suf district of Samangan Province, killing 14 officers.

More blasts & civilian casualties

Meanwhile, twin explosions were reported outside a girls' school in the restive eastern province of Nangarhar on Tuesday, killing a boy and injuring four others.

The first bombing occurred in front of the Malika Omaira girls' school in the provincial capital, Jalalabad, at around 8:30 am (0400 GMT), provincial governor spokesman Ataullah Khogyani said.

A second bomb detonated as students from a nearby boys' school and locals gathered at the scene, Khogyani added. According to witnesses, a number of students from the boys' school were injured.

"We went with other boys to see what had happened after we heard an explosion near the girls' school," 12-year-old Elyas said from his hospital bed, adding, "Another explosion hit us and I was wounded (in the leg)."

Earlier in the day, a bomb had gone off outside the Biba Hawa girls' school in the nearby Behsood district, but no casualties were reported as students had not arrived for class, Jalalabad education department spokesman Asif Shinwari said.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the latest attacks in Nangarhar, but the Taliban and the Daesh terrorist group are active in the region.

The Taliban were ousted from power in 2001 following a US-led invasion. That war, which continues to this day, has failed to bring stability to the country despite the presence of thousands of foreign forces.

The militants have recently stepped up their attacks in Afghanistan. While they have rejected an offer of talks from the Afghan government, they have been holding negotiations with the United States.

Taliban 'to send delegation for further talks with US'

Separately, the Taliban say they plan to send a delegation for further talks with US officials, two militant sources claimed on Tuesday.

The sources, who spoke anonymously, said Taliban leaders were meeting to discuss the makeup of the three- or four-member delegation and the issues to be discussed, Reuters reported.

They said that the militant group would like to discuss a prisoner swap, adding that more meetings could be held if the US showed seriousness.

"This meeting will determine the future talks and we would see if the US is serious and sincere in negotiations," one source said. "We would hand over a list of prisoners languishing in jails across Afghanistan. If they set free our prisoners then we would meet again for another great cause."

Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanakzai, the head of Taliban's Qatar-based political office, is reported to lead the delegation at the upcoming meeting.

There has been no immediate confirmation from the United States.

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At Least 32 Killed In Suicide Attack On Protesters In Eastern Afghanistan

RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan September 11, 2018

At least 32 people have been killed and around 130 wounded in a suicide attack on a gathering of protesters in eastern Afghanistan, officials say.

Attaullah Khogyani, spokesman for Nangarhar Province's governor, told RFE/RL on September 11 that the death toll could increase as some of the wounded were in serious condition.

The attack took place on the main highway between the provincial capital, Jalalabad, and the Torkham border crossing with Pakistan.

Khogyani said it targeted a gathering to protest against the appointment of a local police chief and that hundreds of people were present when a suicide attacker detonated explosives.

The attack came hours after smaller bombs targeted at least three schools in and around Jalalabad, killing a boy and wounding four people.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for any of the bombings, which came as Americans were set to mark the 17th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terror attacks in New York and Washington.

In a statement, President Ashraf Ghani strongly condemned the suicide attack against the demonstrators and the bomb blasts near the schools, saying that "attacks on civilian facilities, mosques, women, children, are all crimes against humanity."

The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan also condemned the series of bombings, and expressed its "mounting concern at the pattern of attacks targeting civilians and schools" in Nangarhar and its capital.

The statement said Nangarhar had seen an "increased spate of threats and attacks" against schools by militants fighting against the Western-backed government since June in retaliation for operations by pro-government forces in the area.

Jalalabad has been in recent months the scene of multiple suicide bombings and attacks that have killed dozens of people.

Both the Taliban and the extremist group Islamic State are active in the area.

Afghan government forces have struggled to counter attacks from both the Taliban and the IS group since the withdrawal of most NATO combat troops in 2014.

With reporting by Reuters, AP and AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/suicide-attack-bombings-strike- eastern-afghanistan/29483707.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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Explainer: Why Does U.S. Have It Out For International Criminal Court?

Ron Synovitz September 11, 2018

John Bolton, U.S. President Donald Trump's national-security adviser, threatened on September 10 that Washington would impose sanctions against judges and prosecutors of the International Criminal Court (ICC) if they proceed with an investigation into war crimes allegedly committed in Afghanistan by Americans.

"We will ban its judges and prosecutors from entering the United States," Bolton said. "We will sanction their funds in the U.S. financial system, and, we will prosecute them in the U.S. criminal system. We will do the same for any company or state that assists an ICC investigation of Americans."

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said Bolton's remarks came after the ICC told Washington it was "on the verge" of announcing a decision about possible Afghanistan investigations.

"We're letting them know our position ahead of them making that decision," Sanders told journalists on September 10.

In fact, the pending decision is expected to authorize an investigation into alleged atrocities by Taliban and Afghan government forces.

But it also could cover cases where U.S. interrogators are accused of torturing detainees within Afghanistan and at "black sites" in Poland, Romania, and Lithuania.

Bolton said Trump's administration "will use any means necessary to protect our citizens and those of our allies from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court."

"This president will not allow American citizens to be prosecuted by foreign bureaucrats, and he will not allow other nations to dictate our means of self-defense," Bolton said.

What Exactly Is The International Criminal Court?

The ICC is the world's first permanent judicial institution that claims jurisdiction to prosecute individuals under international law for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.

It was established as an intergovernmental organization at The Hague, Netherlands, in 2002 under a treaty known as the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

The court is overseen by an assembly of the 123 countries that have ratified the Rome Statute. Those member states include all of South America, almost all of Europe, most of Oceania, and about half of Africa.

Another 31 countries have signed but not ratified the Rome Statute.

Four of those signatory states -- the United States, Russia, Israel, and Sudan -- have informed the United Nations they no longer intend to become state parties.

Forty-one UN member states have not signed the Rome Statute. They include China and India, which have both been highly critical of the ICC.

How Is The International Criminal Court Structured?

The ICC comprises four branches -- the presidency, a judicial division, the prosecutor's office, and the registry.

Three judges form the ICC presidency, which is responsible for the court's administration. Each member of the presidency is elected by the court's judges for a maximum of two terms, each lasting three years.

The judicial division has 18 judges who sit in the ICC's three chambers: a pretrial chamber, a trial court, and an appeals court.

The prosecutor's office of the ICC investigates cases referred by state parties, by the UN Security Council, or by judges in the pretrial chamber. In cases that reach trial, it also conducts the legal proceedings against defendants.

The ICC's registry is responsible for nonjudicial matters such as legal aid, court management, witnesses and victims, a detention unit, and traditional administration services.

What Is The History Of U.S. Opposition To The International Criminal Court?

The United States never joined the ICC and has consistently opposed the empowerment of an international court that could try U.S. military and political leaders under international law.

That's largely because of concerns that U.S. soldiers and civilian leaders might be put on trial, without U.S. constitutional protections, by an anti-American prosecutor in a court with non-American judges.

Instead, war crimes and crimes against humanity are prosecuted in U.S. courts under the War Crimes Act of 1996 -- a law that applies if either a victim or the perpetrator of an alleged war crime is a U.S. citizen or a member of the U.S. military.

During the 1990s, before the ICC was established, negotiators from U.S. President Bill Clinton's administration sought to give the UN Security Council the power to screen ICC cases. Such a safeguard in the Rome Statute would have given the United States and other permanent Security Council members the ability to veto cases they opposed.

But other countries refused to agree to those measures.

Global Policy Forum, a nongovernmental policy watchdog monitoring the work of the UN, said that is when Washington began "campaigning to weaken and undermine the ICC."

President George W. Bush's administration actively sought to keep the ICC from attaining jurisdiction over the United States or its citizens.

It did so by negotiating bilateral agreements with about 100 other countries to ensure U.S. citizens would have immunity from prosecution by the ICC.

President Barack Obama's administration took steps to engage with the ICC by participating with that court's governing bodies and providing support for its ongoing prosecutions.

Why Has The ICC/Washington Dispute Suddenly Escalated?

Bolton's threat to impose sanctions against ICC judges and ICC prosecutors comes just days before an expected decision by ICC pretrial judges on whether an ICC prosecutor should conduct a formal investigation into possible war crimes in Afghanistan during the past 15 years, possibly including by Americans.

The ICC in 2016 said members of the U.S. military and the CIA may have committed war crimes by torturing detainees in Afghanistan.

In November 2017, ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced she would request authorization from ICC judges for an investigation into the situation in Afghanistan.

Since Afghanistan is a state party of the ICC, the court can claim jurisdiction over any war crimes, genocide, or crimes against humanity committed in Afghanistan after May 1, 2003.

In fact, the ICC has had a preliminary examination open in Afghanistan for more than 10 years to determine if there is a reasonable basis for a formal investigation.

But the government in Kabul has not asked for such an investigation, nor has the UN Security Council.

That means the only way for a formal probe to go ahead is for the ICC prosecutor to receive authorization from the ICC's pretrial chamber.

Bolton said the Trump administration objected to the idea that the ICC could have higher authority than the U.S. Constitution and U.S. sovereignty.

Bolton also vowed that Washington "will not cooperate with the ICC."

"We will provide no assistance to the ICC," Bolton said. "We will let the ICC die on its own. After all, for all intents and purposes, the ICC is already dead to us."

Following Bolton's remarks, ICC spokesman Fadi El Abdallah told RFE/RL on September 11 that the ICC "as a court of law will continue to do its work undeterred" as an "independent and impartial institution backed by 123 countries."

Abdallah told RFE/RL those 123 countries "believe that the court is a key to ensure accountability for crimes that shock the consciousness of humanity."

What Is The Expected Outcome Of An ICC Investigation?

Alex Whiting, a Harvard Law School professor who worked in the ICC prosecutor's office in 2010-13, says the ICC has "extremely limited investigative powers and is almost entirely dependent on cooperation" from member states to gather information.

In his Just Security blog, Whiting says ICC investigators will receive "no cooperation from the Afghan government, the Taliban, or the United States."

Whiting also notes that the American Service-Members' Protect Act also prohibits U.S. officials from voluntarily cooperating. He predicts that if an Afghanistan investigation is approved by the ICC's pretrial chamber, "expect the investigation to last for years, with very uncertain results."

"While some alleged victims will be available to be interviewed in other locations, and some evidence of the alleged crimes in Afghanistan and the black sites has been developed and made available by other inquiries, there is no question that it will be extremely difficult for the ICC to develop evidence to prove culpability beyond a reasonable doubt."

Whiting says he also sees three outcomes stemming from Bolton's threats against ICC judges and prosecutors.

He predicts a greater willingness by the ICC's critics to spread disinformation about "the scope of the ICC prosecutor's discretion, the basis for the court's jurisdiction, and the definitions of crimes."

"The continued embrace, if not expansion, of such propaganda tactics to delegitimize judicial institutions can only further erode and undermine the rule of law at home and around the world," Whiting says.

He also predicts the current dispute will result in a far weaker ICC. "The risk is that U.S. pressure to de-fund the court or limit its activities could have real consequences this time with even friends of the court willing to sacrifice the institution to focus on other goals," Whiting says.

He also says that the Trump administration's turn against a legacy of supporting institutions to "achieve accountability for international crimes" is likely to remain in place "for many years to come."

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/explainer-why- does-u-s-have-it-out-for-international -criminal-court-/29484529.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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International Criminal Court Says It Is Undeterred By U.S. Threat Of Sanctions

RFE/RL September 11, 2018

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has said it will "continue to do its work undeterred," responding a day after U.S. national security adviser John Bolton threatened sanctions if the tribunal investigates alleged war crimes by U.S. personnel in Afghanistan.

A spokesman for The Hague-based court, which investigates genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, told RFE/RL on September 11 that it was an "independent and impartial judicial institution" with the backing of 123 countries.

"The ICC, as a court of law, will continue to do its work undeterred," Fadi El Abdallahhe added.

France issued a statement in support of the court, with a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman saying it "must be able to act and exercise its prerogatives without hindrance."

The United States is among dozens of countries that have not ratified the Rome Statute that established the ICC in 2002.

In remarks on September 10, Bolton called the ICC "unaccountable" and "outright dangerous" to the United States and Israel and other allies.

"For all intents and purposes, the ICC is already dead to us," he told the conservative Federalist Society in Washington. "If the court comes after us, Israel or other U.S. allies, we will not sit quietly," he warned.

The U.S. national security adviser said Washington was prepared to slap financial sanctions and criminal charges on ICC officials if they proceed against any Americans.

"We will ban its judges and prosecutors from entering the United States. We will sanction their funds in the U.S. financial system, and we will prosecute them in the U.S. criminal system," Bolton said.

An ICC prosecutor requested in November 2017 to open an investigation into alleged war crimes committed by the U.S. military in Afghanistan, especially over the abuse of detainees.

Bolton said neither Afghanistan nor any other government party to the ICC's Rome Statute has requested an investigation. But he said the ICC could formally open the investigation "any day now."

The head of Afghanistan's Human Rights Commission suggested that Bolton's criticism of the ICC could strengthen a climate of impunity in the war-torn country.

"It's very unfortunate because delivering justice to victims will help to facilitate the peace process in Afghanistan," Sima Samar told AP on September 11. "Justice is not a luxury. It is a basic human right."

With reporting by Reuters, AP, and RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/international -criminal-court-says-it-is-undeterred-by -u-s-threat-of-sanctions/29483601.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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Hungary's Orban Defiant As EU Debates Disciplinary Action

Rikard Jozwiak September 11, 2018

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban accused the European Parliament of attempting to "blackmail" Budapest, as lawmakers began considering disciplinary action against his country.

Dutch lawmaker Judith Sargentini, who wrote a report into Hungary and Orban's Fidesz party, told parliament in Strasbourg on September 11 that the document "comprehensively lists" attacks on the media, minorities, and the rule of law.

These attacks were "a clear breach" of EU values, she said.

Orban, a Eurosceptic, denounced the report as an "abuse of power," said it contained "serious factual misrepresentations," and vowed that Hungary "will not accede to this blackmail."

The report "insults Hungary and insults the honor of the Hungarian nation," he said.

Fidesz won two-thirds of parliamentary seats earlier this year after campaigning on an anti-immigration platform.

For disciplinary proceedings against Hungary to go ahead, they need the backing of two-thirds of European lawmakers in a vote set for September 12.

In December, the European Commission took the step of launching proceedings against Poland, but this is the first time the European Parliament has tried to use the power, known as Article 7.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/hungary-s-orban-defiant-as-eu -debates-disciplinary-action/29484499.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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Armenia's 2008 Crackdown Probe Hit By Wiretapping Scandal

RFE/RL's Armenian Service September 11, 2018

Armenian authorities say they have opened a criminal case into the wiretapping of telephone conversations between the chiefs of the National Security Service and the Special Investigation Service in which they discussed an ongoing investigation into the 2008 postelection violence.

National Security Service Director Artur Vanetsian said on September 11 that the Prosecutor-General's Office will investigate the wiretapping, after audio of conversations between himself and Special Investigation Service head Sasun Khachatrian that took place in late July was leaked to the media and published by several news websites earlier in the day.

Both Vanetsian and Khachatrian confirmed the authenticity of the recording at a joint news conference in Yerevan.

In the secretly recorded audio, the two officials discuss the case against former President Robert Kocharian, who has been charged over his alleged involvement in the 2008 postelection violence in Yerevan in which 10 people were killed, including two police officers.

Kocharian has denied the charges and accused the country's new leadership of pursuing a "vendetta" against him.

Responding to accusations that his government had reneged on its pledge not to interfere in the work of the judiciary, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian condemned the wiretapping and the leak, and reiterated that he was not giving instructions to the judiciary.

"The case of March 1, 2008 must be disclosed, the murderers must be brought to justice," Pashinian said in a live Facebook broadcast.

Pashinian became prime minister after leading a wave of antigovernment protests in May.

At a rally in Yerevan later in the day, he described the wiretapping as a "conspiracy and crime against Armenia's statehood."

The prime minister also said he had instructed law enforcement agencies to "find those who organized the conspiracy within the shortest possible period of time and hold them accountable in the strictest terms."

At the September 11 news conference, Khachatrian disclosed some details of the investigation into the 2008 violence, saying that investigators had proof that special army units "fully participated" in the crackdown.

Armenian leaders at the time "turned soldiers into mercenaries and used them against the people," he added.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/armenia-2008 -crackdown-probe-hit-by-wiretapping- scandal/29484354.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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U.S. Blacklists Bosnian Serb Over Involvement In 'Significant' Corruption

RFE/RL's Balkan Service September 11, 2018

The United States has imposed sanctions on Nikola Spiric, an ethnic Serb deputy in Bosnia's national parliament, over what the State Department says is his involvement in "significant" corruption.

"Mr. Spiric engaged in and benefited from public corruption, including the acceptance of improper benefits in exchange for the performance of public functions and interference with public processes, during his tenure as a member of the House of Representatives in Bosnia and Herzegovina," the State Department said in a statement issued on September 10.

The statement said that in addition to the designation of Spiric, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was also publicly designating Spiric's wife, Nada Spiric, his son, Aleksandar Spiric, and his daughter, Jovana Spiric.

The sanctions are being imposed under Section 7031(c), a provision that enables the secretary of state to bar foreign officials and their immediate families from entry to the United States if there is "credible information that [the officials] have been involved in significant corruption or gross violations of human rights."

Spiric, who has been investigated for corruption by state prosecutors but never indicted, has dismissed the graft allegations.

"I have always answered to my people and was always at the disposal of all investigative and judicial institutions in my country," he was quoted as saying a statement to Bosnian Serb news agency Srna.

Spiric, a former prime minister of Bosnia, is the vice president of the Republika Srpska's ruling SNSD party, whose president, Bosnian Serb nationalist Milorad Dodik, was also sanctioned by the United States in 2016 for actively obstructing efforts to implement the 1995 Dayton accords that ended the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

With reporting by Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/u-s-blacklists- bosnian-serb-over-involvement-in- significant-corruption/29483994.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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White House: ICC Investigation Comprises a 'Threat to American Sovereignty'

Sputnik News

03:48 11.09.2018

WASHINGTON (Sputnik)  The Trump administration's hard-line stance against the International Criminal Court (ICC) stems from the court's announcement that it is considering opening investigations into US soldiers in Afghanistan, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a press briefing.

"Their [the ICC's] announcement that they would consider opening an investigation into, among other parties, US soldiers in Afghanistan is a threat to American sovereignty. And if they proceed with that, then the United States would consider those options that Ambassador [John] Bolton laid out today," Sanders said when asked whether the administration was shifting toward a more hard-lined stance on the ICC.

Earlier on Monday, National Security Ambassador John Bolton announced that the United States would not cooperate with, provide assistance to or join the ICC.

Bolton's announcement came after the court notified the US government that it was on the verge of making a decision about a potential investigation of US troops in Afghanistan, Sanders said.

President Donald Trump is committed to defending the national sovereignty of the United States and all of its security interests, and the US will use any means necessary to protect Americans and citizens of allied countries from unjust prosecution by the ICC, Sanders said.

When making his announcement earlier Monday, Bolton also said the United States would ban ICC judges and prosecutors from entering the country and launch legal proceedings against them if the court seeks to prosecute Americans or citizens of allied countries.

The United States will also negotiate more bilateral agreements to prevent countries from surrendering US citizens to the ICC, Bolton said, adding that Washington would also consider taking steps at the UN Security Council in order to constrain the international court's powers.

Bolton also said United States would take note of any countries that cooperate with ICC investigations into citizens of the United States or allied countries, and would remember that cooperation when allocating US foreign assistance and military aid, as well deciding on intelligence sharing.

The ICC's chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda of Gambia requested last month that the court open an investigation into alleged war crimes committed by the US military and Central Intelligence Agency officials in Afghanistan between 2003 and 2004, particularly the abuse of detainees.

The ICC, which began its work in July 2002, includes 124 participating countries and is the only permanent international judicial structure that is competent to hear cases of crimes against humanity and war crimes.

 Sputnik

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Afghanistan: UN condemns latest school bombings as 'repulsive acts of terrorism'

11 September 2018 - Amidst mounting concern over what appears to be a pattern of attacks targeting civilians and schools, a series of bombs on Tuesday morning in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province left more than 21 dead and some 60 others injured, drawing condemnation from the United Nations Assistance Mission in the country (UNAMA).

Within a 15-minute period on Tuesday morning, at least three schools were targeted in Nangarhar's capital, Jalalabad.

As children recently returned to school after their summer vacation, two girls' high schools were targeted. While first responders and families rushed to the scene, a second improvised explosive device (IED) was detonated, killing a 12-year-old boy and injuring several other children, and men. Meanwhile, explosive experts located and diffused an IED placed by terrorists next to a third school.

In a statement, UN chief Antonio Guterres condemned the bombings and said the Organisation "stands with the people and Government of Afghanistan as they strive for peace and reconciliation".

"Our deepest sympathy is with the victims, families and the Afghan people," said Tadamichi Yamamoto, the UN Special Representative for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA.

"The bombings of schools and the killing of children are among the most egregious and repulsive acts of terrorism which violate international humanitarian law," Mr. Yamamoto underscored.

The blast came less than a week after a suicide attack killed more than 20 people in the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Most of Tuesday's civilian casualties occurred in the Mohmandara district of Nangarhar when a suicide attacker detonated explosives among a crowd demonstrating against a local Afghan police commander. At least 20 died at the scene, and more than 60 were injured.

Jalalabad and other parts of Nangarhar have recently witnessed multiple deliberate attacks against civilians. Since June, Nangarhar schools have been pointedly targeted in retaliation for operations by Government and allied forces in the area.

"I feel profound indignation at this latest wave of attacks deliberately targeting civilians," asserted the Special Representative. "The planners must face justice."

UNAMA reminded all warring parties to uphold their obligations to protect civilians and called upon them to comply with international humanitarian law and immediately cease targeting civilians, including schools.

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Zambia Continues to Borrow as China Debt Concerns Rise

By Salem Solomon September 11, 2018

Zambia's government has denied that the country faces an economic crisis, despite widespread concerns that the money it owes China is reaching unsustainable levels.

Speaking from Lusaka, Amos Chanda, spokesperson for President Edgar Lungu, told VOA's Daybreak Africa that, while Zambia may have economic challenges, it's far from a debt crisis.

"The economy is going at four percent. But that is not to say there is no economic problem. There are economic problems, but you can't call them a crisis," Chanda said.

He also denied reports that Chinese companies were taking over public assets.

"There is no single Chinese company taking over," he said.

Zambia secured a $30 million interest-free loan and $30 million grant at the recent Forum for China-Africa Cooperation, held last week in Beijing, Chanda added.

Chinese takeover?

Concerns remain high that China is pursuing debt-trap diplomacy with the aim of taking over Africa's strategic assets. One such example comes from Africa Confidential, which, earlier this month, concluded that "the state-owned TV and radio news channel ZNBC is already Chinese-owned."

Based on investigative reports from local media, however, the reality appears more complicated.

In 2017, the Zambian government created a joint venture, TopStar Communications Limited, to digitize its broadcast infrastructure, Tumfweko, a local news site, reported last year.

The Chinese firm Start Times owns 60 percent of TopStar, and ZNBC, a Zambian state broadcaster, owns 40 percent. The company is overseeing the distribution of some 1.25 million set-top boxes throughout the country, while generating revenue to repay a $273 million Chinese loan for the project.

Nick Branson, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies, told VOA rumors and ongoing conversations can't easily be separated from facts in countries like Zambia, where few decisions happen transparently. And although the government would be very reluctant to sell assets, it isn't in complete control of its public finances, and it's struggling to manage debts that were acquired in the last three years.

"The sale of a strategic national utility, obviously, while not desirable, is a plausible response - whether it's an advised one or not, really, is a different matter," Branson said.

Dynasty ties

China's longstanding ties to political dynasties in Africa, while touted as a sign of Beijing's loyalty to the continent, often do more harm than good. That's because African leaders, emboldened by these connections, pursue so-called "vanity projects" that benefit only the elite. These countries tend to face few protests from opposition, civil society, or China itself, Branson said.

Governments with well-defined national planning documents, meanwhile, have had better success converting Chinese pledges into realized deals and then servicing their loans. Insight into their countries' infrastructure needs has allowed these governments to enter negotiations with more bargaining power and approach multiple donors to help finance their development, Branson said. And that often leads to better deals for debtor countries.

"When there are multiple partners at play, it's a lot easier to come up with a concrete proposal and play different potential funders off against each other and try to gain more concessions," Branson said.

A lack of transparency also leads to problems, Branson said. Neither China nor African countries want the specifics of their deals subjected to public scrutiny, and those political factors will prevent clarity of the exact extent to which pledges are being fulfilled, Branson said.

"I think it suits all actors from all sides to keep matters as opaque as possible," he added.

'Negotiating capital'

Resource-rich countries like Angola, a longtime China partner, have benefited from being able to export raw materials that China wants, making it straightforward to service loans. In Angola's case, that's translated into oil for infrastructure.

But for smaller countries, repayment strategies become tricky. East African nations, for example, may struggle to repay multi-billion-dollar loans for railway projects that will take many years to pay for themselves.

As for the possibility that China might seize African assets, Branson said it's a risk, albeit not an imminent one. Still, nations unable to export commodities will likely struggle to service their debt in the long term.

"The level of negotiating capital that a lot of these African nations have is relatively constrained," Branson said.

James Butty contributed to this story.

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Attorney General Jeff Sessions Delivers Remarks on the 17th Anniversary of the 9/11 Attacks

Washington, DC

~ Tuesday, September 11, 2018

Remarks as prepared for delivery

Thank you Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein and Acting Associate Attorney General Panuccio.

Thank you to Rhea Walker for once again lending your beautiful voice to this ceremony.

And thank you all for being here.

At this very hour 17 years ago, our country was changed forever.

We had been struck with the deadliest attack on American soil since Pearl Harbor.

Nearly 3,000 people lost their lives. More than 1,300 children became orphans and more than a dozen unborn children lost fathers they would never meet.

The magnitude of this evil was overwhelming. And it is still overwhelming to think about.

But in response to this great evil, the American people responded as they always dowith greater goodness, with heroism, and with determination.

Nineteen terrorists infiltrated our borders and targeted innocent people for death. But hundreds of Americans worked together to save lives.

First responders performed one of the most heroic rescue missions in our history.

Hundreds of them gave their lives, saving others, including 72 law enforcement officers from 10 different agencies.

The brave men and women on Flight 93 prevented another target from being hit that day and saved lives.

I was across the street at the Supreme Court that morning, attending the annual judicial conference as I will again this Thursday morning. Those Flight 93 heroes may well have saved our lives.

Over the following months, people gave billions of dollars, thousands joined the armed forces and went off to war. Thousands of them gave their lives. We must remember them today, too.

We should also remember that the Department of Justice was at the center of much of the country's response. The country faced unpresented security and legal challenges.

At the time, we had no National Security Division. Much of the work was done by the Criminal Division. Some of you here this morning were here on 9/11, too. You participated firsthand. We are grateful for the work that you did in the difficult days that followed.

Today we are better equipped, better prepared and better organized. We have better laws. But there is more to be done as our adversaries have not abandoned their goals.

The terrorist threat did not begin on 9/11. Neither did it end on September 12th. Over the last 17 years, terrorists have been able to inflict other, smaller attacks upon us and our allies, from San Bernardino to Orlando to Brussels.

But, I am exceedingly proud of the relentless and effective work of our National Security Division and the entire Department of Justice. Since 9/11, this Department has secured the convictions of over 580 defendants for terrorism or terrorism-related charges.

Over the last five years, we have charged more than 160 foreign fighters, homegrown violent extremists, and ISIS supporters in more than 45 districts. This past Christmas, the FBI arrested a man who wanted to conduct a terrorist attack in San Francisco.

And we are not letting up: the FBI currently has ongoing investigations in all 50 states.

I am amazed at how effective our team has been in preventing attacks and prosecuting terrorists before they can carry out their murderous aims. Seventeen years ago, few would have predicted that we would go so long without another attack on the scale of what happened on 9/11.

I meet with the FBI Director, his Counterterrorism team, and our National Security Division three mornings a week to discuss the terrorist threat and how it has changed. Today it is often online. A terrorist in Alexandria, Egypt can contact a sympathizer in Alexandria, Virginia in a matter of seconds.

They can plot attacks that can be carried out in a matter of hours.

And sonow more than everwe have to stay one step ahead of the terrorists at all times.

After all, they only have to succeed once. We have to succeed every time.

It is not enough to prosecute terrorism or punish terrorist acts after the fact. The national, post-9/11 goal is to prevent terrorism.

We must be vigilant. The terrorists are still targeting us. Some seek to infiltrate this country. Others plot from afar. They all want to intimidate us and control us. They reject our cultureour free speech, our freedom of religion, and our democratic republic.

They seek acquiescence and inaction. But we will meet them with resolve.

They seek to impose on us their speech codes, their religion, and their ideology. But they will fail.

We will not yield. We will never yield our freedom, our individual moral autonomy, or our country. We will steadfastly defend our institutions and our way of life.

And so, as we return to our work at the Department today, this anniversary should remind us how important our work is. There is no higher secular calling than to protect the safety, lives and the rights of its citizens. All rights depend upon that.

As we continue our efforts, let us also remember the example of service and dedication that so many law officers and first responders set 17 years agoas they lay down their lives for their neighbors.

And it is appropriate on this day of remembrance to pause to consider the role and importance of this historic and great Department of Justice in the life of the nation we serve. And we serve more than a nationwe have a duty to millions of Americans.

We have been given a legacy, a trust, from the American people. Those here and serving 17 years ago understood and rose to the occasion.

With dedication and long hours, facing great uncertainty, with judgment and courage, they met the challenge of their time. They held our banner high. Let us do likewise today and every day that we are honored to serve this great nation. Thank you.

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US Pushes NATO States to Renege on Outer Space Agreements  Moscow

Sputnik News

13:49 11.09.2018

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The United States is exerting pressure on the NATO countries so that they roll back previously reached agreements on outer space, the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control said.

"The United States is exerting tremendous pressure on its NATO partners and other so-called allies who are circumventing previously reached agreements, including with us," Vladimir Ermakov told at the first UN conference on space law and policy on Tuesday.

The diplomat noted that Russia was discussing with the United States the issue of security of space operations and believed that Washington was aware of the seriousness of the problem.

"We have been engaged in a dialogue with the United States on the security of space operations for many decades, and we believe that our US partners understand the gravity of the problems that are facing the entire international community," Ermakov said.

Last week, the Pentagon released new report where it identified Russia and China as key threats to US space capabilities. Prior to that, Moscow and Beijing have both declared their commitment to the use of space for peaceful purposes and are members of the United Nation's Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space.

According to earlier reports citing the Missile Defense Agency's director, Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves, the Pentagon and Congress were pushing for a possible deployment of missile defense interceptors in space.

At the end of June, the US House of Representatives passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for the 2019 fiscal year that stipulates "the development and deployment of persistent space-based sensor architecture" by the end of 2022 to ensure the effectiveness of the country's missile defenses.

As a response to the move, the Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the US military space program noting that it may have "the most negative impact on the state of international security."

 Sputnik

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China sends 165 peacekeepers to South Sudan

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 16:27, September 11, 2018

ZHENGZHOU, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- A group of 165 Chinese peacekeepers left Zhengzhou, the capital city of central China's Henan Province, for South Sudan Tuesday on a one-year mission.

The peacekeepers, consisting of a sapper team of 133 and a medical unit of 32, are the first group of a 331-strong battalion sent by China for the mission.

The team will be tasked with repairing roads, bridges, and airports, constructing and maintaining barracks and shelters, building facilities for water, power and heating supplies, and providing engineering support in mission areas.

The medical unit will carry out tasks including treating common and infectious diseases and performing operations and vaccinations.

The second group of the battalion are scheduled to depart on Sept. 23 from Zhengzhou.

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Chinese troops take part in Russia's huge military exercise

People's Daily Online

(Chinadaily.com.cn) 08:49, September 11, 2018

Russia's largest military drills in over three decades, also attended by the Chinese military forces, kicked off at the Tsugol training range in Russia's Trans-Baikal region on Tuesday.

Codenamed "Vostok-2018", the drills are said to be the largest military exercises since the "Zapad-1981", which was held in 1981 by the Soviet Union and involved about 100,000 to 150,000 troops.

About 3,200 troops, along with over 1,000 pieces of weaponry and 30 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters from the People's Liberation Army (PLA)'s Northern Theater Command, are scheduled to conduct combat training together with the Russian troops from Tuesday to Thursday.

All Chinese troops participating in the drills were moved to the region by railway and highway before the end of August and immediately started prepairing in the field.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said earlier that the drills involve nearly 300,000 Russian troops, about 36,000 military vehicles, more than 1,000 aircraft and around 80 ships.

Shoigu said the drills "will be unprecedented in terms of geographic scope and the strength of command and control centers and forces due to participate".

In the strategic drills, the PLA and Russian armed forces have formed a joint operational commanding system, under which military forces from the two countries will hold joint exercises including mechanized defensefire strike and counter-attack training.

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Beijing rebuts human rights allegation

People's Daily Online

(China Daily) 08:33, September 11, 2018

Beijing said on Monday that the Human Rights Watch NGO has always been full of prejudice against China and distorted the facts when it accused the Chinese government of suppressing Uygurs.

The organization said in a report on Monday that the Chinese government conducts mass arbitrary detention, torture, mistreatment and daily pervasive controls on Uygurs.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a daily news briefing that he will not give a detailed response to such accusations and remarks.

The current situation in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region is stable, economic growth has maintained good momentum and all ethnic groups are living in harmony, Geng said.

He added that social stability and lasting peace in Xinjiang is the common wish of the people of all ethnic groups and is in line with their fundamental interests.

Policies and measures that are carried out in Xinjiang aim to "promote stability, development, unity and ensure better livelihoods", Geng said.

They are also carried out to crack down on ethnic separatism and violent and terrorist criminal activities in accordance with the law, safeguard national security and protect people's life and property, he said.

The Chinese government protects citizens' right to freedom of religious belief in accordance with law, and the people of all ethnic groups have the right to enjoy full freedom of religious belief, he added.

A Chinese delegation gave a detailed account of China's new progress in protecting the rights of ethnic groups to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in August in Geneva.

The committee affirmed the efforts and achievements made by the Chinese government, and spoke in praise of China's legislative, policy and administrative measures in protecting the rights and interests of ethnic groups, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said earlier.

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S. Korea, DPRK to hold working-level military talks on Sept. 13

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 13:37, September 11, 2018

SEOUL, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- South Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) agreed to hold the working-level talks on military affairs later this week, Seoul's Defense Ministry said Tuesday.

The ministry said the two sides agreed to hold the 40th round of inter-Korean working-level military talks on Sept. 13 at Tongilgak, a DPRK building at the border village of Panmunjom.

The DPRK side proposed the military dialogue, accepted by the South Korean side, according to the ministry.

The military talks would come ahead of the summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and DPRK top leader Kim Jong Un, scheduled to be held in Pyongyang for three days from Sept. 18.

The colonel-level military officers from the two sides were forecast to discuss ways to ease military tensions between the two Koreas, including the withdrawal of a part of guard posts inside the demilitarized zone (DMZ), which divides the two sides, on a trial basis.

Also on the dialogue agenda would be ways to disarm the Joint Security Area (JSA) inside the Panmunjom and the joint excavation of the remains of fallen soldiers during the 1950-53 Korean War.

Those issues were agreed upon by the two sides during the general-grade military talks in late July.

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White House confirms receiving letter from DPRK's Kim about arranging another meeting

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 07:18, September 11, 2018

WASHINGTON, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- The White House said on Monday that it has received a letter from Kim Jong Un, the top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), about requesting another meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Describing the letter as "warm" and "positive," the White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters in a briefing Monday afternoon that the primary purpose of the letter was to look to schedule a second meeting between the two leaders.

The White House was "open to" the meeting and is already "in the process of coordinating that," Sanders added.

The U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton said earlier in the day that the possibility of another meeting between the leaders of Washington and Pyongyang "obviously exists."

At the conclusion of the historic Trump-Kim summit in June in Singapore, the two sides issued a joint statement, in which they agreed to improve bilateral relations and work together to build a lasting and stable peace regime on the peninsula.

However, the current DPRK-U.S. talks have been stuck in an impasse due to their differences in the scale of denuclearization, U.S. sanctions, and whether to issue a war-ending declaration.

Kim told South Korea's envoy on Wednesday that he firmly supports and will be devoted to completely removing the danger of armed conflicts and the horrors of war from the Korean Peninsula and turning it into a cradle of peace without nuclear weapons and free from any nuclear threat.

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India, Afghanistan Seek Ways to Obtain US Waiver on Trade Via Iranian Port

Sputnik News

18:06 11.09.2018(updated 18:09 11.09.2018)

As the November 4 deadline for the actualization of US sanctions on Iran nears, India and Afghanistan have held their first tripartite meeting with Iran to devise a strategy to secure a sanctions waiver to carry out unhindered trade through Iran's Chabahar Port.

New Delhi (Sputnik)  Officials of India, Afghanistan, and Iran met in Kabul on Tuesday to discuss ways to impel the US to provide India with a waiver for trade carried out with Afghanistan through Iran's Chabahar Port. The meeting comes after the US refused to make any commitments for sanctions waiver to India during the much anticipated 2+2 ministerial dialogue in New Delhi. The US instead reiterated its wish to see India "zero out" oil imports from Iran.

While the Indian delegation for the meeting held in Kabul was led by Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale, Afghanistan was represented by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Hekmat Khalil Karzai. The Iranian delegates were led by Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

The Indian government had argued in favor of the Chabahar Port project before US officials during the 2+2 meeting in New Delhi last week and said that since the project was primarily aimed at providing humanitarian assistance to the war-affected people of Afghanistan, it should be out of the purview of the US sanctions.

The US mainly fears that the Chabahar Port could facilitate a payment window that would be used by companies to skirt the sanctions that come into effect on November 4.

Meanwhile, India and Iran are also considering roping in India's UCO Bank and Iranian Bank Pasargad to provide a payment mechanism that would help circumvent US sanctions on Iran.

 Sputnik

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Iran's Nuclear Chief Vows to Accelerate Atomic Program if JCPOA Collapses

Sputnik News

11:41 11.09.2018(updated 13:01 11.09.2018)

Speaking in an interview with AP, Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, blasted the Trump Administration for withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal, also known as JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action), adding that the US President's decision to do so "put him on the loser's side."

Salehi, who warned earlier this summer that Tehran was enhancing its uranium enrichment capabilities, said Tuesday that while the Islamic Republic hopes that the nuclear deal would survive the US withdrawal, Iran's nuclear program would come out stronger than ever if it didn't.

The nuclear chief also warned that the "consequences" would be "harsh" if the country's nuclear scientists, often believed to be targeted by Israeli intelligence in recent years, continued to be attacked. Iran's nuclear scientists have faced over half a dozen assassination attempts between 2007 and 2015; five of them were successful.

Commenting on President Trump's decision to withdraw from the JCPOA, Salehi said Trump was "on the loser's side" of history, adding that "that deal could have paved the way for building the trust and confidence that we had lost."

According to the Iranian nuclear chief, although Trump "thinks he can, you know, continue for some time but certainly I do not think he will benefit from this withdrawal, certainly not."

Ultimately, speaking about Iran's uranium enrichment capacity, including the construction of a new facility at the Natanz uranium enrichment center, Salehi emphasized that the country would come out stronger than where it was before the JCPOA if the nuclear deal collapsed. "If we have to go back and withdraw from the nuclear deal, we certainly do not go back to where we were before. We will be standing on a much, much higher position," the official stressed.

On Sunday, Reuters reported, citing Iranian media, that Iran had completed "a very advanced hall for the construction of modern centrifuges" at Natanz in central Iran. In July, Tehran reported the completion of a rotor plant which would allow the country to produce about 60 IR-6 centrifuge machines. Salehi stressed at the time that the factory did not break the terms of the JCPOA.

On May 8, US President Donald Trump announced that the United States would withdraw from the JCPOA, a landmark nuclear deal signed in 2015 by Iran, the US, Russia, China, France, the UK and Germany. After withdrawing, Washington announced the introduction of several increasingly harsh waves of sanctions, including restrictions against Iran's financial sector, energy, ports and shipping, and threats of secondary sanctions against foreign companies and financial institutions doing business with the Islamic Republic. With energy sanctions set to step into effect in November, the remaining signatories of the JCPOA have been scrambling to try to salvage the deal and preserve economic ties with the country.

Last week, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Iran's enemies of waging an "all-out economic" and "media and propaganda" war against the country, and urged Iranian government institutions to do everything in their power to preserve Iranians' confidence in their government.

 Sputnik

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S. Korea's Moon Calls for 'Bold Decisions' by US and N. Korea

By VOA News September 11, 2018

South Korean President Moon Jae-in is calling for the United States and North Korea to "make bold decisions" to achieve the goal of "complete denuclearization" of the Korean peninsula.

During a meeting with his cabinet in Seoul Tuesday, President Moon said convincing the North to abandon its nuclear weapons program is "an issue that should fundamentally be resolved through negotiations" between Washington and Pyongyang.

U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed an agreement during their historic summit in Singapore in June for the North to dismantle its nuclear program. But the two sides are at an impasse over the pace of North Korea ending its nuclear and missile development programs, prompting President Trump to cancel Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's trip to North Korea last month.

Moon told his cabinet that Seoul must serve as an intermediary between the United States and the North "until talks and communication...become more active," adding that Trump and Kim have asked him to serve in this role.

The South Korean president's comments come a day after the White House said it has begun planning another summit between Kim Jong and President Trump, after Kim Jong Un sent a letter requesting a second meeting with the president.

Moon will fly to Pyongyang next week for his third summit with his North Korean counterpart. The three-day summit will focus on specific measures to achieve denuclearization.

During their first summit in April, Moon and Kim agreed to seek a formal end to 1950-53 Korean War, which ended with a truce rather than a peace treaty, leaving the sides in a technical state of war. But Washington is demanding that Pyongyang completely abandon its nuclear weapons program ahead of any formal peace deal, while North Korea wants the United States to remove all its troops from the Korean Peninsula.

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Russia to kick off largest drill in decades; China, Mongolia to participate

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 05:51AM

Russia is set to kick off its largest military maneuver in almost four decades in the country's Far East, with forces from China and Mongolia also participating.

The five-day military drill, dubbed "Vostok-2018" (East-2018), is to start on Tuesday in eastern Siberia, with the involvement of almost 300,000 Russian troops, more than 1,000 planes, drones, and helicopters, and up to 36,000 military land vehicles.

According to Russian military officials, armored personnel carriers and other vehicles, as well as up to 80 ships and other vessels will also be involved in the drill.

"Imagine 36,000 military vehicles moving at the same time: tanks, armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles  and all of this, of course, in conditions as close to a combat situation as possible," said Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, trying to convey the feel of the drill.

The exercise will be conducted across four airbases, five army training grounds, and areas in the Sea of Japan, the Bering Straits, and the Sea of Okhotsk.

President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to inspect the drill later on.

He is currently hosting world leaders  including his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping  at an economic forum in Russia's Far Eastern port city of Vladivosto.

China, Mongolia to participate

The massive drill will also involve contingents from China and Mongolia  both being Russia's neighbors to the southeast.

According to the Chinese Defense Ministry, some "3,200 troops, and more than 900 pieces of military hardware, as well as 30 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters" will be involved in the drill with Russia.

Mongolia has not given details of its involvement.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov explained earlier that the military cooperation between China and Russia was an indication that the two were cooperating in all areas.

Meanwhile, the Western military alliance of NATO has boosted its presence in Eastern Europe for the duration of the Russian drill.

Russian officials say they briefed NATO about the exercise several months ago.

NATO, a 29-member military alliance, is dominated by the United States, whose relations with both Beijing and Moscow have been fraying.

NATO has often held military maneuvers near Russia's western borders, stationing advanced military hardware. It has also been trying to co-opt more countries from near Russia.

Those moves alarm Moscow, which takes its own measures to guarantee its security.

An annual NATO military exercise was conducted in Baltic states and Poland  neighboring Russia  in June.

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Russia Holding Massive Military Drills, As Putin Meets Xi

RFE/RL September 11, 2018

Russia has begun massive military exercises across its central and eastern regions, starting weeklong war games the Defense Ministry says will involve some 300,000 personnel -- twice as many as the biggest Soviet maneuvers of the Cold War era.

The September 11-17 exercises, called Vostok-2018 (East-2018) and billed by Moscow as its biggest in decades -- or in history -- come amid persistently high tension between Moscow and the West and are being closely watched by NATO.

The war games demonstrate "Russia's focus on exercising large-scale conflict," NATO spokesman Dylan White said in late August, stating that the Western alliance had been briefed about Vostk-2018 and would monitor it.

"It fits into a pattern we have seen over some time -- a more assertive Russia, significantly increasing its defense budget and its military presence," White said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the opening day of a September 11-13 economic forum in the Far Eastern port city of Vladivostok, is expected to observe the exercises briefly during his trip.

Chinese and Mongolian troops are taking part, amid ongoing Kremlin efforts to pursue closer ties with Beijing and other Asian capitals.

"We have a trusting relationship [with China] in the spheres of politics, security, and defense," Putin said at the start of his meeting with Xi.

At a news conference after their talks, Xi also touted the relationship between Russia and China, which has a far larger population and an economy several times the size of Russia's.

Xi, whose country is locked in a tense confrontation with the United States over trade and tariffs, said that Russia and China should work together to oppose protectionism and what he called unilateral approaches to international problems.

He said that an increasingly unpredictable geopolitical climate made partnership between Russia and China particularly important.

Up to 3,500 Chinese military personnel will take part in the "main scenario" of the drills at the Tsugol proving ground, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on September 4.

Alex Kokcharov, a Russia analyst at the London-based risk assessment firm HIS Markit, said that China has never before participated in war games on Russian soil that were not under the auspices of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

"Fundamentally, the goal of this specific exercise is to project Russian military power in the Asia-Pacific region," Kokcharov said. "If Russia had not invited China, that would have been viewed by Beijing as a potentially dangerous activity by Russia."

Russian officials have said that the war games are not meant as a threat to any particular country but are justified by what Putin's spokesman described on August 28 as a hostile international environment.

Russia's "ability to defend itself in the current international situation, which is often aggressive and unfriendly to our country, is justified, essential and without alternative," Peskov said.

On September 10, Peskov called Vostok-2018 part of "a regular, routine training process aimed at improving skills and coordination in our armed forces."

"This is a very important exercise, but it is still part of the annual routine development of the Russian armed forces," he said.

Relations between Russia and the West have been severely strained by Moscow's actions in Ukraine and Syria and its alleged interference in elections in the United States and European countries.

The war games demonstrate "Russia's focus on exercising large-scale conflict," NATO spokesman Dylan White said in late August, stating that the Western alliance had been briefed about Vostok-2018 and would monitor it.

"It fits into a pattern we have seen over some time -- a more assertive Russia, significantly increasing its defense budget and its military presence," White said.

Shoigu said that about 300,000 military personnel would take part, twice as many as the largest war games conducted by the Soviet Union: the Zapad-81 exercises in 1981.

"In some ways (Vostok-2018) will repeat aspects of Zapad-81, but in other ways the scale will be bigger," Shoigu said.

He said it would involve more than 1,000 warplanes, helicopters, and drones; up to 80 combat and logistics ships; and up to 36,000 tanks, armored personnel carriers, and other vehicles.

"Imagine 36,000 military vehicles moving at the same time: tanks, armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles -- and all of this, of course, in conditions as close to a combat situation as possible," Shoigu said.

The drills are being held in Russia's Eastern and Central military districts, which encompass more than half of the country's territory.

With reporting by Reuters, AFP, dpa, RIA, and TASS

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-holding-massive-military- drills-as-putin-meets-xi/29483536.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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Spain to hold talks with Saudi Arabia on differences over bomb deal: Defense chief

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 06:44AM

Spain says it will discuss with Saudi Arabia ways to resolve their differences over the sale of laser-guided bombs to the kingdom just days after blocking the shipment, in a move observers say is aimed at appeasing the Riyadh regime and maintaining other lucrative contracts with it.

Last week, Spain's Defense Ministry said it was halting a 2015 deal to sell 400 laser-guided precision bombs to Saudi Arabia due to Riyadh's role in the Yemen war.

The decision enraged Saudi Arabia, which is already under international pressure over rising civilian deaths amid its brutal military campaign on Yemen.

Then reports emerged that the kingdom was, in response to Mardid's move, planning to scrap a $2.2-billion contract to purchase five Corvette warships from Spanish state-owned military shipbuilder Navantia, a deal that involves 6,000 jobs in a country with one of Europe's highest unemployment rates.

On Monday, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles told a parliamentary commission that the issue would be resolved "amicably" based on a bilateral framework.

"Decisions will be made according to a bilateral framework between two countries that are partners and have signed a contract and it will be resolved amicably," Robles said in the Spanish Senate.

She said the contract was under revision, and that Madrid would respect the Charter of the United Nations regarding human rights.

Robles further said that the warship deal, which was signed in April, was in no danger as it was "not linked to any other contract."

Analysts, however, said Madrid decided to leave the door open to the bomb deal just to avert a row with Riyadh similar to the one unfolding between the kingdom and Canada over human rights issues.

Eduard Soler, an analyst at the CIDOB international affairs think-tank, said any break in Madrid-Riyadh relationship could endanger a series of lucrative contracts for Spain.

"It's a textbook case in which we find that internal politics affect foreign politics and defense," says Soler.

The bomb deal had been negotiated and finalized by former Spanish defense ministers Pedro Morenes Eulate and Maria Dolores de Cospedal.

Robles announced the decision to halt the sale of bombs to Saudi Arabia shortly after the Riyadh-led coalition of invaders launched a deadly air raid on a bus carrying Yemeni students, killing 51 people, including 40 children.

On Monday, Amnesty International urged Madrid to stop supplying weapons to Riyadh, warning that bombs, such as the ones Spain plans to sell to Saudi Arabia, have been used in "dozens of war crimes in Yemen."

Spain is the fourth country on the list of major arms exporters to the Riyadh regime, according to the rights group.

Citing the Amnesty, media reports say between 2015 and 2017, Spain reportedly exported 1.2 billion euros worth of military equipment to the Saudi-led military coalition.

The European Parliament has urged its member states to halt these sales on numerous occasions, admitting that the alliance led by Saudi Arabia violates international humanitarian law by using this weaponry in attacking the civilian population and bombing hospitals, markets and schools.

Saudi Arabia and its allies launched the war on Yemen in March 2015 to reinstall its former Riyadh-allied government. The military aggression has so far killed over 14,000 Yemenis and put millions on the verge of famine. It has also caused a deadly outbreak of cholera.

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Terrorists begin filming staged chemical attack in Syria's Idlib: Russian MoD

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 03:22PM

Russian Defense Ministry says foreign-sponsored terrorists have started filming scenes of a staged chemical attack in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib to facilitate the implication of Syrian government forces and invent a pretext for the United States and its allies to launch airstrikes on army troops.

The Russian Center for Syrian Reconciliation said in a statement on Tuesday that cameramen from several Middle Eastern television networks and an American news channel arrived in the city of Jisr al-Shughur in the morning to produce the footage needed for the provocation.

The statement added that a Takfiri militant outfit has been provided with two canisters of a "chlorine-based chemical" for the purpose of the operation.

It further noted that the footage would include scenes of members of the so-called civil defense group White Helmets helping and treating the residents of Jisr al-Shughur after an alleged barrel bomb chemical weapon attack by the Syrian army.

"All the footage of the staged provocation is to be delivered to the newsrooms of TV channels, which are to broadcast it after its publication on social media," the statement pointed out.

Local sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Lebanon-based Arabic-language al-Mayadeen television news network on August 30 that terrorists had kidnapped 20 children over the past weeks in a bid to use them in the expected chemical farce.

The sources noted that the attack would be carried out in Jisr al-Shughur, emphasizing that toxic materials have recently been transferred to the designated site through the al-Hassaniyah border crossing, which links the city to Turkey.

The crossing is controlled by the Western-backed White Helmets aid group, which has been repeatedly accused of cooperating with Takfiri terrorists and staging false flag gas attacks.

Meanwhile, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has censured the US threats to use military force against Syria as part of Washington's blackmail policy.

"Unlike the United States, Britain and their allies, Russia provides particular facts on a daily basis through its Defense Ministry, the Foreign Ministry as well missions in New York, The Hague and Geneva. We particularly name geographical points, where preparations are underway for certain terrorist groups backed by the US and its allies to carry out provocations," Ryabkov emphasized.

The top Russian official noted, "Our military has been assessing the military situation on a round-the-clock basis, without any breaks. Constant information exchange is going on with our colleagues in Turkey and Damascus. We have also established secure channels with the US military in order to prevent the repletion of such incidents. We cannot let Idlib remain a terrorist stronghold."

The US has warned it would respond to a chemical weapons attack by Syrian government forces with retaliatory strikes, stressing that the attacks would be stronger than those conducted by American, British and French forces back in April.

On April 14, the US, Britain and France carried out a string of airstrikes against Syria over a suspected chemical weapons attack against the city of Douma, located about 10 kilometers northeast of the capital Damascus.

Washington and its allies blamed Damascus for the Douma attack, an allegation rejected by the Syrian government.

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US in talks with UK, France for 'much stronger' attack on Syria: Bolton

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 06:53AM

US National Security Adviser John Bolton says his country has been in talks with Britain and France to orchestrate a military strike on Syria that will be "much stronger" than the joint operation the three allies carried out earlier this year.

Fielding questions after a policy speech in Washington on Monday, Bolton said the Western alliance was ready to pound Syria in case the government of President Bashar al-Assad resorted to what he claimed was a "third use" of chemical weapons.

"We've tried to convey the message in recent days that if there's a third use of chemical weapons, the response will be much stronger," Bolton said.

The US has so far conducted two separate attacks against Syrian Army positions under the pretext that Damascus was using chemical weapons against civilians.

The first attack came in April 2017, when US President Donald Trump ordered US Navy warships in the Mediterranean to fire a total of 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at a Syrian airbase that the Pentagon had claimed was used to carry put a deadly chemical attack against the people of Khan Shaykhun, in the country's northwestern province of Idlib.

Roughly a year after that attack, Trump along with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Theresa May authorized a joint missile attack against alleged chemical weapons manufacturing sites inside Syria.

The attack, which came in response to what the US and its allies insisted was another chemical attack in Douma, on the outskirts of Damascus, saw 105 cruise missiles being fired from sea and air at Syrian government targets.

Now, as Syria gears up for an attack to retake Idlib, the last major bastion of terrorists in the country, Washington is threatening a third strike.

"I can say we've been in consultation with the British and the French, who joined us in the second strike, and they also agree that another use of chemical weapons will result in a much stronger response," Bolton warned Monday.

Syria has firmly denied claims that it's behind the attacks and instead blamed them on militant groups and foreign agents who are in Syria as aid workers.

The aim, Damascus argues, is to get the West involved in a fight that the Assad government has already won.

Russia, which has been assisting Assad in purging the terrorists since 2015, has echoed the same point, specifically naming the White Helmets activist group as the real perpetrators of the Douma attack.

Moscow has also warned that terrorists are getting prepared to stage another chemical attack in Idlib to give US enough evidence to attack.

In 2014, Syria finished dismantling its stockpiles of chemical weapons under a joint mission led by the UN and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

Bolton's remarks follow controversial revelations by an incendiary book on machinations of the Trump White House.

Dubbed Fear, the book by Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward claims that Trump had once told his Defense Secretary James Mattis that he wanted to assassinate Assad.

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Erdogan: Idlib liberation battle could pose risks to Turkey, Europe

Iran Press TV

Tue Sep 11, 2018 06:05AM

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned against what he called "the security and humanitarian risks" of an upcoming Syrian army operation to liberate Idlib Province, which holds the largest concentration of militant groups, including those backed by Ankara.

In an article published in The Wall Street Journal on Monday, Erdogan called on the international community to intervene as Syrian forces are gearing up for the Idlib liberation battle.

"All members of the international community must understand their responsibilities as the assault on Idlib looms. The consequences of inaction are immense," he said.

Syria has the backing of Russia, Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah resistance movement in its bid to rid the strategic province bordering Turkey of terrorists.

Idlib hosts several militant groups backed by Turkey and other foreign parties  especially Western states, Israel and their regional allies.

Erdogan warned that the planned counter-terrorism campaign in Idlib "would also create serious humanitarian and security risks for Turkey, the rest of Europe and beyond," apparently referring to a fresh influx of Syrian refugees in the wake of the Idlib battle.

"If the international community, including Europe and the US, fail to take action now, not only innocent Syrians but the entire world stands to pay the price," he added.

Erdogan further stressed that not only the West, but also Turkey's partners Iran and Russia are responsible for stopping a humanitarian disaster in Idlib.

Turkey on the one side and Iran and Russia on the other support opposite sides of the Syria conflict, but they have been mediating a diplomatic process between the warring parties since January 2017 aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the conflict.

Erdogan's comments came as his country has been deploying heavy artillery tanks, howitzers and commandos to the Syrian border.

Last week, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani hosted his Russian and Turkish counterparts for a trilateral summit on Syria.

In a joint statement, the participants at the Tehran summit said the Syria crisis could only be resolved through a negotiated political process, and has no military solution.

The trio also "emphasized strong and continued commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria, as well as to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and highlighted that they should be respected by all."

During the event, Erdogan called for a ceasefire in Idlib, but Russian President Vladimir Putin said that it would be pointless as it would not involve the militant groups that Moscow regards as terrorists.

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UN Chief: Idlib Must Not Be Transformed Into a 'Bloodbath'

Sputnik News

23:02 11.09.2018(updated 01:13 12.09.2018)

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters Tuesday at UN headquarters that an all-out assault on Idlib "would unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict."

Antonio Guterres also appealed Tuesday to Russia, Iran and Turkey to "spare no effort to find solutions that protect civilians" in Syria's Idlib and said it was "absolutely essential" a full-scale battle was avoided.

In late August, Russia warned that terrorists operating in Idlib were staging a false-flag chemical attack set to provoke Western states' intervention. On Monday, US National Security Adviser John Bolton announced that Washington, London and Paris would give a "strong and united" response in case of chemical weapons' use by the Syrian government.

Antonio Guterres said that the Syrian ceasefire guarantors, Russia, Iran and Turkey, should continue working in the Astana format to prevent escalation of the situation in Idlib.

"I think it is absolutely essential [for] Russia, Iran, and Turkey, not to mention other countries directly or indirectly involved in this situation, to really come together at the present moment more than ever because Idlib is such a mess that, without a strong commitment of all these parties, we could be moving into a situation that would lead to the kind of massive battle that would have unpredictable consequences," Guterres said at a UN stakeout, answering a question on whether there was still need to continue efforts in the Astana format.

The presence of terrorist groups in the Idlib de-escalation zone remains a pressing issue, while Damascus has managed to eliminate militants from most of its country's territories following years of armed conflict.

Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia said during a UN Security Council meeting on Tuesday that UNSC member states should not confuse anti-terrorist operations with armed involvement. The Russian envoy also said the threats by Western countries against Syria's sovereignty continue and they are no longer linked only to a possible chemical attack.

Turkey, Russia and Iran are the guarantors of the ceasefire regime in Syria. The leadership of the three countries is constantly engaged in dialogue on the situation in Syria. Most recently, on September 7, a trilateral summit, uniting the presidents of Russia, Turkey and Iran, was held in Tehran, during which the three leaders called on the militants operating in Idlib to join the nationwide truce regime.

The Idlib province is one of Syria's de-escalation zones and a remaining stronghold of terrorist insurgency in the country. Under ceasefire agreement, brokered between Syrian government troops and armed opposition, military activities are prohibited in the area, but the ceasefire guarantors, which include Russia, Turkey and Iran, repeatedly record truce violations.

Meanwhile, the Russian Center for Syrian Reconciliation said earlier in the day that the filming of a staged provocation with the alleged use of chemical weapons had begun in Idlib.

 Sputnik

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UK Promises Harsh Response in Case of Chemical Weapons Use by Damascus

Sputnik News

19:56 11.09.2018

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has promised a "strong and united" response in case chemical weapons are used by Syrian government forces.

"If the regime in Syria repeats its horrible use of chemical weapons then our response will be strong and united," Hunt said on Twitter.

Earlier the day, the Russian Center for Syrian Reconciliation said the filming of a staged provocation with the alleged use of chemical weapons had begun in the Idlib province. A Syrian human rights activist later told Sputnik that Dozens of White Helmets arrived from Turkey to Idlib in order to conduct the false flag operation. He said they had tanks containing an unknown gas with them. The Russian military said that the gas was a chlorine-based toxic substance.

Prior to that, Russia has warned of the planned false flag operation since late August. Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said that terrorists of the Tahrir al-Sham group (affiliated with the Jabhat Fatah al-Sham terror organization, banned in Russia) were preparing the false flag chemical attack to provoke foreign intervention in the country.

On Monday, US National Security Adviser John Bolton said that the United States, Britain and France have agreed that any use of chemical weapons by the government of Syria would result in a much stronger response than in previous incidents. The last Western attack on Syria took place after April's chemical incident in Duma, which was blamed on Damascus by Syrian militants and Western governments. Syria called the Duma incident a false flag operation, stressing that it got rid of its chemical weapons stockpile with the oversight of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

 Sputnik

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US-backed Militants Start Op Against Last Daesh Terrorists in Northeast Syria

Sputnik News

15:04 11.09.2018(updated 15:15 11.09.2018)

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces have launched offensive against the remaining Daesh* terrorists (banned in Russia) in northeast Syria, the International Coalition for Operation Inherent Resolve said Tuesday.

"Syrian Democratic Forces initiated ground operations for phase 3 of Operation Roundup. It will be supported by #Coalition cross-border air & artillery strikes to #defeatISIS remnants from northeastern Syria, along the Middle Euphrates River Valley toward the Syria-Iraq border," the coalition tweeted.

The reinforcement of US bases in Deir ez-Zor comes amid deteriorating situation between Washington and Damascus with regards to a planned military operation in Idlib province against militants.

Earlier, Russia's Defense Ministry has warned Western countries about terrorists in Idlib staging provocations with the use of chemical weapons. Moscow has provided the underlying proof for that to the UN and OPCW.

Russia believes the militants will try to accuse Damascus of committing a false flag attack in order to force the West to launch airstrikes against Syrian forces.

*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist organization banned in Russia and many other countries.

 Sputnik

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Staged Filming of Mock 'Chemical Attacks' Has Begun in Idlib - Russian MoD

Sputnik News

14:25 11.09.2018(updated 15:41 11.09.2018)

As the Russian Center for Syrian Reconciliation reported, all the fake footage of "chemical attacks," designed to facilitate the implication of Syrian government forces, is expected to be sent to different TV channels before the end of the day.

"According to the information received from inhabitants of Idlib province, militants are now filming a staged provocation in the city of Jisr al-Shugur, where "chemical weapons" are depicted as being used by the Syrian army against civilians. The film crews of several Middle Eastern TV channels arrived in Jisr al-Shugur in the morning, as well as the regional affiliate of one of the main American television news networks," the Reconciliation Center said.

The Russian military added that the militants had brought two containers loaded with a chlorine-based toxic substance to Jisr al-Shughur to make the provocation seem "natural."

"The plot envisages staged scenes showing 'activists' from the Civil Defense ("White Helmets") 'helping' the residents of Jisr al-Shughur after the Syrian army allegedly used the so-called barrel bombs with poisonous substances," the center said.

According to the center, all videos of provocations shot in Jisr al-Shughur will be handed to broadcasters by the end of the day after being released via social media.

Later in the day, Syrian human rights activist and public figure Ammar Jamal has confirmed to Sputnik that a group of 30 representatives of the White Helmets had arrived to Idlib to organize a provocation. According to human rights activists, the White Helmets arrived on Tuesday morning with tanks with an unknown gas. At the moment, they are located on a grain storage site.

The information follows Sunday's Wall Street Journal report that the US Defense Department might be mulling the idea of striking Russian or Iranian military forces aiding the Syrian government if they were to launch an assault on Idlib. The report added that the United States would specifically decide whether to strike Russian air defense installations.

Meanwhile, the Syrian government has pledged to drive the remaining terrorists out of Idlib and has begun taking steps toward full-scale military operations in the territory.

The Russian Ministry of Defense warned about the forthcoming false flag provocation, which will involve a staged chlorine gas attack, on August 26. Later, the ministry said that the results of this provocation could be used by the Western coalition forces as an excuse to launch another missile strike against the Syrian government. The United States, the Russian Defense Ministry noted, has been deploying the relevant forces to Syria. In late August, the American destroyer USS The Sullivans arrived in the Persian Gulf carrying 56 cruise missiles, and a US Air Force B-1B strategic bomber, equipped with 24 air-to-surface JASSM cruise missiles, was redeployed to El-Udeid Airbase in Qatar.

If coalition forces strike, it won't be the first time they will have targeted Syrian government positions after citing alleged chemical attacks by the Syrian government. On April 14, the United States, the United Kingdom and France launched over 100 missiles at multiple targets in Syria in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack in the Eastern Ghouta city of Douma that reportedly took place on April 7. The Syrian government has denied using chemical weapons and said that the Jaish al-Islam terror group staged the attack in order to summon a foreign intervention in the country.

 Sputnik

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Attack on Syria's Idlib Risks a Severe Security Crisis - Erdogan

Sputnik News

02:04 11.09.2018(updated 02:16 11.09.2018)

In an article published Tuesday in the Wall Street Journal, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on the international community to take action to prevent an attack on Idlib, the last rebel enclave in Syria, and warned that "the entire world stands to pay the price" otherwise.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Sputnik on Sunday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan have agreed to maintain their dialogue focusing on the conflict in Syria and the situation in the country's Idlib de-escalation zone, following the Russia-Turkey-Iran summit in Tehran.

On Sunday, the Wall Street Journal reported that the US Defense Department may be mulling the idea of striking Russian or Iranian military forces aiding the Syrian government if they were to launch an assault on Idlib. The report added that the United States would specifically decide whether to strike Russian air defense installations.

A Pentagon official told Sputnik that the United States is prepared to take action in response to any alleged chemical weapons use in the Syrian province of Idlib, however, did not confirm media reports about possible US strikes against Iranian or Russian forces.

"Syria, Russia and Iran should know that the United States and the rest of the world are watching very closely and will take appropriate action if there is a new slaughter in Idlib," Pentagon spokesperson Commander Sean Robertson told Sputnik on Monday.

The commander said the United States is closely monitoring the situation in Idlib and has engaged the Russian government and military at the most senior level to make clear that the United States and its partners will respond swiftly to any verified chemical weapon use in the province or elsewhere in the country.

US National Security Adviser John Bolton said earlier on Monday that the United States, Britain and France have agreed that any use of chemical weapons by the government of Syria would result in a much stronger response than in previous incidents.

On April 14, the United States, the United Kingdom and France launched over 100 missiles on multiple targets in Syria in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack in the Eastern Ghouta city of Duma that reportedly took place on April 7. The Syrian government has denied using chemical weapons and said that the Jaish al-Islam terror group staged the attack to justify foreign intervention in the country.

Senior Russian defense officials have warned since late August that Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an alliance of radical jihadis led by the Jabhat al-Nusra terror organization, was preparing a false-flag attack in Idlib to later accuse Damascus of using chemical weapons.

The Syrian government has pledged to drive the remaining terrorists out of Idlib and has begun taking steps toward full-scale military operations in the territory.

 Sputnik

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Save Idlib from 'transforming into a blood bath', UN chief Guterres urges fighters and their allies

11 September 2018 - A full-scale battle for Idlib must be avoided at all costs, the United Nations Secretary-General has stressed, warning that failure to do so would unleash "a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict" so far.

Speaking to the press at UN Headquarters in New York on Tuesday afternoon, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the situation in Idlib is not sustainable and underscored that the presence of terrorist groups sheltering in the enclave cannot be tolerated.

"But fighting terrorism does not absolve warring parties of their core obligations under international law."

He called on all parties, and in particular Iran, Russia and Turkey  the three guarantors of the "de-escalation zones", of which Idlib is the last  to "spare no effort" in protecting civilians.

"Preserve basic services and hospitals. Ensure full respect for international humanitarian law," he urged.

The UN chief also cautioned against any use of chemical weapons, warning that, beyond the immediate human toll, such use would lead to the situation "spiralling out of control."

Mr. Guterres also highlighted the urgent need for greater progress in the Geneva process, and the creation of a constitutional committee as part of the overall political package.

"There is no military solution to the conflict. The solution must be political," he said.

We as humanitarian advocates must raise our voice  UN aid agencies

Earlier in the day, UN relief agencies warned the situation in Idlib risks creating the worst humanitarian tragedy of the 21st century, amid concerns that a severe funding shortfall threatens the "most vulnerable" victims of the conflict.

"We as humanitarian advocates must raise our voice," said Jens Laerke from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). "We are saying that this has the potential to be the worst crisis - humanitarian crisis - in the 21st century, because that is frankly what it looks like, if it goes ahead with a full-scale military operation."

Since 4 September, an uptick in violence has killed scores of civilians and displaced more than 30,000 people, Mr Laerke said.

Reading a statement from Panos Moumtzis, Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Syria Crisis, the OCHA spokesperson noted that aerial and ground-based bombardment had struck northern rural Hama governorate and southern rural Idlib, and had been accompanied by an increase in retaliatory rocket and mortar attacks.

The resulting impact on civilians has been "dramatic", Mr. Laerke said, his concerns echoing those of UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock, who a day earlier had issued a warning about a military escalation in Idlib, after a recent meeting with Syria government officials in the country's capital.

"As the Emergency Relief Coordinator mentioned, he was recently in Damascus", noted Mr. Laerke, adding that the Syrian Government had indicated it would pursue a military solution "which is very, very scary from a humanitarian perspective."

"They have this capacity to kill and destroy," Mr Laerke said. "We have seen it in use before, and we strongly advise that it does not happen in this enclosed area, where the population has, I think, almost doubled by the influx of evacuees and IDPs from other parts of the country."

In the space of less than a week, four hospitals have been hit in southern Idlib and neighbouring Hama governorate.

This is contrary to international humanitarian law, the OCHA spokesperson said, adding that one of the hospitals was also in a protected "deconfliction zone", whose coordinates had been given to the warring parties to spare it from attack.

"Our fear as humanitarians is that the worst may be ahead of us," the statement from Panos Moumtzis read. "The safety and protection of some 2.9 million civilians residing in Idlib and surrounding areas is at risk."

As UN agencies and their partners prepare to help those fleeing a full-scale military attack, UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, warned that $270 million is urgently needed to help Syria's most vulnerable people inside and outside the war-torn country.

Of more than 5.6 million Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt, 2.6 million are children.

UNHCR's total funding needs for the Syria crisis amount to nearly $2 billion. So far, only 31 per cent of this has been provided.



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UN Chief Appeals to Parties to Protect Civilians in Syria's Idlib

By Margaret Besheer September 11, 2018

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed Tuesday for the parties in Syria to avoid a full-scale battle for Idlib.

Idlib is the last so-called "de-escalation zone in Syria," Guterres told reporters. "It must not be transformed into a bloodbath."

Some 3 million civilians are living in the northwestern governorate, and the U.N. has repeatedly warned that there will be a humanitarian catastrophe if there is a military escalation there.

Russia, Iran and Turkey are known as the Astana guarantors  they oversaw the creation one year ago of four de-escalation zones in Syria that were supposed to be safer for civilians. They included parts of Idlib, Hama, eastern Ghouta and southern Syria. Only Idlib remains, the others have been militarily brought back under regime control.

Guterres appealed directly to the troika.

"It is important that those  especially the three guarantors of the Astana process  find a way in which it is possible to isolate terrorist groups. And it is possible to create a situation in which civilians will not be the price paid to solve the problem of Idlib."

He said he understood that the situation in the governorate is unsustainable  the U.N. estimates some 15,000 terrorists are mixed in among Idlib's residents  but that "fighting terrorism does not absolve warring parties of their core obligations under international law."

De-escalation zone

Earlier, the U.N. Security Council met at Russia's request so it could be briefed on the outcome of last Friday's summit of the presidents of the Astana group. It was the third meeting on Idlib in the past week.

Turkey's U.N. ambassador renewed his president's calls to preserve the Idlib de-escalation zone and called for an immediate cease-fire.

"There is no doubt that an all-out military operation would result in a major humanitarian catastrophe," Ambassador Feridun Hadi Sinirlioglu told the council. "Such an operation would trigger a massive wave of refugees and tremendous security risks for Turkey, the rest of Europe and beyond."

Turkey already hosts 3.5 million Syrians, and its hospitality has been stretched to its limit.

He urged the international community to support Turkey's call for a cease-fire.

U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley said the United States would consider any large-scale military assault on Idlib as a "reckless escalation" and called on Russia to prevent it.

"Russia has the power to stop the catastrophe looming in Idlib," Haley, a member of President Donald Trump's cabinet, told council members. "They have the power to stop the killing."

She said the Astana process had failed to stop the violence or promote a political solution.

"Russia, Iran and (Bashar al-) Assad are demolishing Idlib and asking us to call it peace," Haley said. "But here's the reality: Astana has failed."

She warned of potential military escalation and said that if the Assad regime, backed by Russia and Iran, continue on this path, "the consequences will be dire."

Haley also repeated her warning that Washington would not tolerate the use of chemical weapons.

For weeks, the Russians have been accusing the West of conspiring to carry out a chemical weapons attack through rebel groups and the civil society first responders, the White Helmets, and then blaming the Assad government for it as a pretext for military intervention.

Moscow's U.N. envoy fired back, accusing some council members of escalating rhetoric.

"The wordings started sounding basically along the lines that saying force against a sovereign state  Syria  can be used, and not only related to alleged use of chemical weapons, but basically also if there is a military operation in Idlib," Vassily Nebenzia said. "We are not talking about a military operation. It's an anti-terrorist operation."

The Russian ambassador noted that de-escalation zones were created as "temporary entities," not permanent ones.

"Sooner or later, they were to be replaced, first by local truces. And in those cases where that did not take place, by an anti-terrorist operation, which happened in other de-escalation areas, which are currently under the control of Syrian authorities."

Nebenzia dismissed plans by the Syrian regime to use chemical weapons, saying they no longer had any, and if they did use them, it would be an "invitation" to Britain, France and the United States to strike the country. He also claimed to have "irrefutable proof" that the Syrian opposition was planning a chemical attack, but he did not offer it.

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Taiwan concludes 4-day national security drill

ROC Central News Agency

2018/09/11 19:00:46

Taipei, Sept. 11 (CNA) A four-day national security exercise that simulates various emergency scenarios, including protection of the country's key infrastructure, came to an end in Taipei on Tuesday.

President Tsai Ing-wen () went to the Yuanshan Command Center in Taipei to oversee the last day of the drill, which was led by the National Security Council (NSC).

This year's security drill, which began Sept. 8, included the simulation of a crisis that forces the president, vice president and important ministers to be escorted by security personnel to the command post no matter where they are.

According to Presidential Office spokesman Sidney Lin (), the drill involving Cabinet ministries and the military tested how the core functions and operations of the government will continue to work in a military crisis and how well crucial infrastructure is protected.

(By Matt Yu and Ko Lin)

Enditem/pc

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Analysts: Looming Idlib Conflict Threatens Turkey's Syria Strategy

By Dorian Jones September 11, 2018

Turkey is urging the international community to intervene to prevent Syria from launching an offensive in Syria's last remaining rebel-held Idlib enclave. The latest call for action comes as Syrian government forces mass around Idlib ahead of an expected assault for control of the enclave.

"I call on everyone to raise their voices against the Syrian regime's aggression and find a peaceful solution," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Tuesday in Romania, where he held talks with his Romanian and Polish counterparts. His comments echoed recent remarks by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In an article posted Monday in The Wall Street Journal, Erdogan warned, "The consequences of inaction are immense," and "a regime assault would also create serious humanitarian and security risks for Turkey, the rest of Europe and beyond."

Separately, the head of the U.N. humanitarian agency, Mark Lowcock, has warned that a ground offensive in Idlib could lead to the biggest loss of life this century has seen.

Ankara fears a refugee exodus from the bordering Idlib enclave. Turkey already hosts more than 3 million Syrian refugees, with Erdogan warning that his country can take no more.

More than half of Idlib's refugees are already displaced from other parts of Syria, along with tens of thousands of rebel fighters. Syria, backed by Russia, accuses many of the rebels of belonging to terrorist groups.

Turkish intentions

Ankara is one of the backers of rebels fighting the Syrian government, including groups based in the enclave. Analysts say that along with humanitarian concerns, the survival of Idlib as a rebel base is key to Ankara's broader strategic Syrian goals.

"Turkey needs to hold some portion of Syria and pose a credible threat to [Syrian President Bashar al-]Assad and force Assad into a peace agreement that would accept refugees" to return from Turkey, said political analyst Atilla Yesilada of Global Source Partners. "Keeping parts of Idlib and Afrin and the al-Bab region is a crucial component of this game plan."

In the last 18 months, Turkish-led rebel groups have taken control of the Afrin and al-Bab regions. Ankara justified the cross-border operations to deal with the twin threats of the Islamic State group and the Kurdistan Workers' Party fighters, or PKK. The PKK, which Ankara considers a terrorist group, has been waging a long-running insurgency in southeast Turkey for greater Kurdish rights.

Ankara, however, is concerned that if Idlib were to fall to Syrian government forces, Turkey's broader military presence in Syria would be next in Damascus' sights, according to analysts.

"If Bashar al-Assad secures his power all around Syria, with the exception of those pockets controlled by Turkey, this means we are on a collision course with Damascus," said former Turkish diplomat Aydin Selcen, who served widely in the region.

"What Ankara said about Turkey's operations into Syria is to keep the PKK away from the Turkish borders," he said, adding, "The unsaid objective is to keep Assad far from Turkey's borders."

Given Erdogan's strong support of the Syrian rebels and commitment to bring down the Syrian leader, Ankara fears a victorious Assad could be tempted to extract revenge on Turkey. In the past, Damascus allowed the PKK to use Syria as a base to attack Turkey.

"Turkey's end goal  it wants to create a situation in Syria  is that these neighboring Syria regions to Turkey continue to be controlled by pro-Turkish elements so that there is no security threat to Turkey," said Sinan Ulgen, head of the Turkey-based Edam research institution.

Military buildup

Turkish reinforcements continue their buildup along the border of the Idlib enclave, with long-range artillery among the deployments with a range of 40 kilometers (25 miles). Local reports say some military forces have entered Syria to support 12 Turkish observation posts across the enclave.

"Turkey can resist quite plausibly the Assad regime. Turkey can deal with Assad. Idlib can be defended against the regime," Selcen said.

Other analysts say they are not completely convinced. Soli Ozel, an international relations expert with Istanbul's Kadir Has University, asked how Turkey could "have a war with the Syrian regime, if the Syrian regime is being supported by the Russians to the bitter end, and the Russians control the airspace?"

Russian warplanes are already bombing rebels across Idlib, a bombardment predicted to intensify ahead of the widely expected offensive.

For the past 18 months, Russian President Vladimir Putin has been cultivating a deepening relationship with Erdogan, much to the angst of Turkey's NATO allies. Ankara is likely to be banking that Moscow will be careful to avoid any confrontation in Syria.

"We cannot envisage Russia bombing Turkey's military presence in Idlib," Selcen said.

Analysts suggest Erdogan could be engaging in a high-stakes gamble, betting that Moscow and Damascus aren't ready to risk a clash with Turkey and could yet seek a last-minute diplomatic settlement over Idlib.

Last week, Erdogan met with Putin, along with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, at a trilateral summit in Tehran. The talks appeared to end in deadlock over efforts to avert conflict in Idlib. Tehran also backs Damascus in Syria's seven-year-old civil war.

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VANCOUVER, August 29, 2018 - Nevada Clean Magnesium, Inc. (TSX-V:NVM; Frankfurt-M1V; OTCQB:MLYFF) (the "Company") announces that it has issued 50,000 shares to Lodestar Management Group, LLC. ("Lodestar") for the completion of their corporate services agreement for the month of July 2018.

Terms of the Lodestar agreement were previously announced May 24th, 2018 and are detailed in the paragraphs below.

Under the terms of the agreement Lodestar will provide advisory, consulting, negotiation and other management services relating to corporate management, administrative and/or operational activities of Nevada Clean Magnesium USA, Inc. ("NCMIUSA"), (a 100% owned US subsidiary of Nevada Clean Magnesium Inc.), managerial oversight, strategic planning, financial and compulsory oversight and compliance including, advisory and consulting services in relation to the selection, retention and supervision of independent contractors, required to implement and execute the intentions and objectives and to forward the pace and progression of the business affairs of NMI.

The term of the contract is for one year retroactively commencing January 1, 2018. The Company has agreed to compensate Lodestar in the amount of $2,500 CDN per month by arrangement of the issuance of shares. The number of shares issued will be based on the share price on the day of issuance that is not lower than the $0.05 per share minimum requirement, and will not exceed $2,500 CDN in value. The shares will be issued on the last working day of each month for a period of twelve (12) months.

The issuance of these shares has received final approval by the TSX Venture Exchange.

About Nevada Clean Magnesium, Inc.

Nevada Clean Magnesium is focused on becoming a major U.S. producer and distributor of primary, high grade, low cost magnesium metal extracted from its 100% owned Tami-Mosi property located in North Central Nevada. Based on the Company's NI 43-101 Preliminary Economic Assessment Report published in September 2011 and amended in July 2014, the Tami-Mosi Project has an inferred resource of 412 million tonnes with an average grade of 12.3% Mg for a contained metal content of 111 billion pounds of magnesium using a 12% cut-off grade contained within a high purity dolomite block. For more information, please visit www.nevadacmi.com.

The technical portion of this press release was prepared under the supervision and review of James Sever, P. Eng., and COO for Nevada Clean Magnesium. Mr. Sever is a non-independent qualified person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 standards.

Forward-Looking Statement

Statements in this news release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements in this news release include that we can become a major U.S. producer and distributor of primary, high grade, low cost magnesium metal; that we will be able to close on our agreements with BBT; and that we can develop a clean, commercially viable, cost-effective process for the production of magnesium from dolomite, and the opportunity to commercialize and start sales. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors, including that the TSXV may not approve the agreement, the Company's dolomite resource may not be mined because of technical, regulatory, financing or other obstacles, the market price for magnesium may make our resources uneconomic, the Process may not be able to be commercially developed, none of our processes may result in cost-effective magnesium production, we may not be able to protect our intellectual property and keep out competition, we may not be able hire and retain skilled employees, no market for our process may develop from other resource owners, and other general risks associated with being a mineral exploration and development company. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information except as required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To Reach Nevada Clean Magnesium Please Contact:

Edward Lee, CEO at (604) 210-9862

For additional information please visit our website at

http://www.nevadacmi.com or view our profile at http://www.sedar.com.

You may also follow us on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Copyright (c) 2018 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.


Vancouver, September 12, 2018 - Klondike Silver Corp. (the "Company") (TSX.V: KS) -the company that has created the first real opportunity to invest in and properly explore a sizeable portion of one of the most historic mining camps in British Columbia; will be presenting at the 2nd Annual RAI$E on the WEST COAST Small-Cap Investing Conference in Vancouver, BC, September 14. The Company will be in Meeting Area #2, meeting investors & brokers for back-to-back meetings. Investors & brokers can register online here: www.westcoast2018.eventbrite.ca

About RAI$E on the WEST COAST Small-Cap Investing Conference:

September 14-15 | Fairmont Hotel Vancouver | Vancouver, BC

RAI$E on the WEST COAST is a two-day conference connecting small-cap companies with funds, finance professionals and investors for a full day of scheduled meetings on Friday and a networking day of world class salmon fishing on Saturday.

About Klondike Silver

Klondike Silver's Royalty Free SILVER LEAD ZINC land package (100 km2) is located in the SLOCAN MINING CAMP (Southeast British Columbia - 138 km North of Teck's Silver Lead Zinc smelter (Trail B.C.)). Based on the British Columbia MINFILE mineral database, sixty eight (68) of the one hundred and seventy three (173) past producing Silver Lead Zinc mines in the Slocan Mining Camp are located in the Klondike Silver land package. Klondike Silver has created the first real opportunity to invest in and properly explore a sizeable portion of one of the most historic mining camps in British Columbia. Klondike likes to think of the Slocan as the last best under explored Silver Lead Zinc camp in Canada. For additional information please visit the company website www.klondikesilver.com.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Corporate Inquiries:

Dale Dobson: (604) 682-2928

Email: dale.dobson@klondikesilver.com

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Klondike Silver Corp.

"Thomas Kennedy"

Thomas Kennedy, B.Comm., J.D.

CEO, Director

This news release contains certain forward looking statements which involve known and unknown risks, delays, and uncertainties not under the control of Klondike Silver Corp. which may cause actual results, performance or achievements of Klondike Silver Corp. to be materially different from the results, performance or expectation implied by these forward looking statements. By their nature, forward looking statements involve risk and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on factors that will or may occur in the future. Actual results may vary depending upon exploration activities, industry production, commodity demand and pricing, currency exchange rates, and, but not limited to, general economic factors.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Copyright (c) 2018 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
Toronto, Ontario (FSCwire) - Rockcliff Metals Corp. (Rockcliff or the Company) (TSX.V: RCLF) (FRANKFURT: RO0, WKN: A2H60G) today announced that it has acquired through map staking a 100% interest in 2 separate land packages and now controls approximately 169,000 hectares making it the largest landholder in the Snow Lake portion of the world-class Flin Flon  Snow Lake greenstone belt (Belt).

Rockcliffs President & CEO Ken Lapierre stated: The Belt has been home to over 30 base metal mines and 8 gold mines. Having worked there for over 13 years, we felt the time was right to acquire key land positions in an evolving new mining camp south-southeast of Snow Lake. We acquired the VMS #1 Property and the VMS #2 Property for their potential to host significant new high-grade mineral discoveries. With land covering 80 km of collective strike length, we are now in a position of beginning the compilation of all available data and are planning to complete an airborne geophysical survey with the ultimate goal of identifying drill targets. We will also continue to look at strategic opportunities to monetize Rockcliffs extensive base metal and gold assets and advance our portfolio of high-grade properties in the camp.

Please review the image on the following page which highlights the strategic location of the VMS #1 Property and the VMS #2 Property.

About the newly acquired VMS #1 Property and VMS #2 Property

The VMS #1 Property and the VMS #2 Property (the Properties) host a total of 8 Mineral Exploration Licenses (MEL) totalling over 115,452 hectares and are located in what is termed the Snow Lake South Emerging Mining Camp. The Properties strategically cover an underexplored area hosting the southeast extension of the world-class and prolific Belt. A minimum of 7 known base metal deposits from 250,000 tonnes up to 6.0 million tonnes in size are located along strike of both Properties and host the same juvenile arc rocks associated with all of the VMS mines and deposits in the Belt. The Properties are covered by a thin veneer of limestone progressing from nothing up to 100 metres thick in a southward progression. This cover impeeded historic exploration efforts but advances have present geophysical surveys allow a windowing effect through the limestone cover so metal bearing targets can be identified.

Rockcliff now controls 100% of the Properties with no outstanding royalties and has unfettered access to explore and discover mineralization within the property limits. Yearly escalating expenditures must be completed and submitted to the Government to maintain the property in good standing. The first years exploration commitment is $144,315 to maintain the MEL claims. A winter airborne geophysical program is planned on the Properties in 2019 to define drill targets that warrant follow-up.

Figure 1: Rockcliffs VMS #1 Property and VMS #2 Property (To view the graphic in its original size, please click here)

Ken Lapierre P.Geo., President and CEO of Rockcliff, a Qualified Person in accordance with Canadian regulatory requirements as set out in NI 43-101, has read and approved the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for the disclosure contained in this press release.

About Rockcliff Metals Corporation

The Company is a well-funded Canadian resource exploration company focused on exploration and the potential to generate cash flow from future royalty payments on its base and precious metal assets located in Snow Lake, Manitoba, Canada. Rockcliffs extensive portfolio of properties, totalling approximately 169,000 hectares, is located in and around the 100-year-old Snow Lake mining camp and hosts the VMS #1 Property, the VMS #2 Property, NI 43-101 compliant resources at the Talbot Copper deposit and the Rail Copper deposit and historical zinc and zinc-copper deposits (the Lon Zinc-Copper deposit, the Bur Zinc-Copper deposit, the Morgan Zinc deposit and the down-dip continuation of the Pen Zinc deposit). The Companys properties also include Manitobas first lode-gold producer (Laguna Gold Property optioned to Kinross), four additional gold-rich properties (the Lucky Jack Gold Property optioned to Kinross, the SLG Gold Property, the DSN Gold Property and the Berry Creek Gold Property), a Net Smelter Royalty on the Tower Property slated for production in 2020 (the Tower Copper deposit) and the MacBride Zinc deposit (optioned to Nevada Zinc) located near Leaf Rapids, Manitoba. For more information, please visit http://rockcliffmetals.com/.

For further information, please contact:

Rockcliff Metals Corporation CHF Capital Markets Ken Lapierre, P. Geo Cathy Hume, CEO President & CEO Off: (416) 868-1079 ext. 231 Cell: (647) 678-3879 cathy@chfir.com Off: (416) 644-1752 ken@rockcliffmetals.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: This news release includes forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause the actual results of the Company to be materially different from the historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. All statements contained in this news release, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward-looking. Although Rockcliff believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

To view the original release (with media), please click here

Source: Rockcliff Metals Corp. (TSX Venture:RCLF, OTC Pink:SVVZF, FWB:RO0)

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Ratings giant Nielsen disclosed Wednesday it is weighing a sale of the company, which lists its headquarters in New York City while maintaining a large office in Wilton for CEO Mitch Barns and other senior executives.

Barns announced in July plans to leave Nielsen by years end, with Nielsen not naming immediately a replacement for the Westport resident who received compensation of $10.2 million last year. Board chairman James Attwood has taken an executive role in the interim, with Attwood a partner at the private equity firm Carlyle Group.

On Monday, Nielsen installed a new chief financial officer in Dave Anderson, who replaces Jamere Jackson who left to become CFO of Hertz. Anderson most recently was CFO of Alexion Pharmaceuticals, which announced last year the move of its headquarters to Boston from New Haven. Before that, Anderson spent more than a decade as CFO of Honeywell International.

The company has hired JPMorgan Chase, Guggenheim Securities and the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to advise the board of directors.

Nielsen said the decision to consider a sale was the result of a strategic review of a business unit that collects information on retail sales, with the company known best for its TV audience ratings. Arthur C. Nielsen founded the company in 1923, with Nielsen acquired in 2006 by a consortium of private equity firms that included Carlyle Group.

In 2011, Nielsen went public with an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, with Capital Research Global Investors and Vanguard Group the two largest stockholders as of March with more than 10 percent of shares outstanding. In June, New York City-based Elliott Management announced it had acquired stock amounting to 8 percent of shares, with the firm promising to press Nielsen to consider a sale.

Nielsen did not rule out remaining independent in a Wednesday press release, and gave no timeline for the process except to say the board is proceeding expeditiously. Nielsen was scheduled to participate Wednesday morning at an investment conference in New York City sponsored by Goldman Sachs.

In the second quarter, Nielsen earnings were down 45 percent from a year earlier to $72 million, with revenue flat at $1.6 billion due to a 5 percent decline in its retail data service that Nielsen put on the auction block in July. At the time, Nielsen forecast a 1 percent decline in overall revenue this year.

Nielsen has been cutting jobs in response, earmarking $65 million in the second quarter for severance and other restructuring expenses, largely for the retail business, while keeping another $93 million in reserve for planned future cuts.

Nielsen has not stated how many jobs have been affected, with the company entering the year with a global workforce of 46,000 people. In March, the company notified Florida regulators of plans to cut 725 jobs in the Florida towns of North Venice and Oldsmar, with those layoffs now under way.

Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-842-2545; @casoulman
Artificial Intelligence (AI) -- and its growing impact on and applicability for individuals and businesses alike -- is one of todays most widely discussed topics. From virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa, to chatbots created by Facebook and Drift, AI is having a significant impact on the lives of consumers.

Related: #Five Technology Trends That Will Disrupt Your Banking Style

A study from Statista showed that the number of consumers using virtual assistants worldwide is expected to exceed one billion in 2018. Additionally, a 2018 survey by Accenture projected that 37 percent of U.S. consumers will own a digital voice assistant (DVA) device by the end of 2018.

It is readily apparent how AI-powered technology is making inroads into everyday life through DVAs and other consumer products, but AI is also having a transformative effect on an industry that impacts virtually all consumers and businesses: banking. Here are five ways that AI is already transforming the banking industry.

Customer service automation

As natural language processing technology evolves, consumers find it increasingly difficult to distinguish between a voice bot and a human customer service representative. This stems from improved abilities on the part of voice and chatbots to resolve customer issues without human intervention.

The benefits to banks of customer service automation are obvious: AI could lead to significant cost reductions. A recent study by Autonomous predicted that AI could lead to 1.2 million jobs being cut in the banking and lending industry, resulting in up to $450 billion in industrysavings by 2030.

Despite the potential rewards customer service automation promises, banks and other businesses need to proceed with caution in relying too heavily on voice and chatbots. The popularity of GetHuman illustrates this: It's a website that connects consumers with human CSRs to resolve their issue. In fact, voice and chatbots often work best when augmenting rather than replacing humans. At a minimum, the option to speak to a human, if necessary, should be readily available.

Related: This Banker Explains Why Confluence of Fintech and Banks is Unavoidable

Want an example of how banks are creatively employing AI to serve customers? The Swiss bank UBS, ranked number 35 globally for its volume of assets, according to Accuitys August 2018 global bank rankings -- has partnered with Amazon to incorporate its Ask UBS service into Alexa-powered Echo speaker devices.

Ask UBS, which is aimed at UBSs European wealth management clients, enables users to receive wide-ranging advice and analysis on global financial markets just by asking Alexa. Ask UBS also acts as a teaching resource, offering definitions and examples of acronyms and jargon related to the financial industry.

While Ask UBS can make a call from a UBS financial advisor to a customers phone upon request, it is not yet able to access individual portfolios, execute trades or perform other transactions; it can't offer personalized advice based on a clients holdings and goals. According to the Wall Street Journal, the reason is primarily security and privacy concerns. More in-depth and personalized service through a DVA may not be far off, though. In the article, a UBS spokesman stated that the company's aim is to make Ask UBS and similar tools secure, compliant, and trustable for clients.

Personalization

Banks have access to a wealth of customer data, including detailed demographics, website analytics and records of online and offline transactions. By utilizing machine learning to integrate and analyze information from multiple, discrete databases to form a 360-degree customer view, banks are better positioned to personalize products, services and interactions based on the behavior of individual clients.

According to James Eardley, global director of industry marketing for enterprise software giant SAP, The next step within the digital service model is for banks to price for the individual, and to negotiate that price in real time, taking personalization to the ultimate level.

While personalized pricing of this kind may only become prevalent in the future, banks are already utilizing AI-processed behavioral data to advise individual clients on appropriate credit and savings products, based on their goals and habits. Santander, the worlds 14th largest bank, measured by its current assets, even hosted a competition, with a prize of $60,000, on the machine learning crowdsourcing site Kaggle, encouraging data scientists to write code that better pairs products with people.

Security

In the banking and payments industry, personalization extends far beyond marketing and product customization, into security. A growing number of banks are utilizing biometric data, like fingerprints, to replace or augment passwords and other forms of client verification.

A report by Goode Intelligence forecast that 1.9 billion bank customers will be using some form of biometric identification by 2021. The Guardian reported that U.K. bank Halifax even experimented with Bluetooth wristbands that identified a clients unique heartbeat to authenticate account access.

In a widely discussed innovation to its popular iPhone, Apple has evolved its Face ID so that it now uses AI-powered facial-recognition technology to unlock the device as well as validate purchases using Apple Pay, its digital wallet service. As facial recognition and other biometric authentication techniques become more sophisticated and secure, they are poised to become increasingly commonplace.

Process Optimization

One of the most promising applications of AI in banking comes from automating high-volume, low-value processes. In one example, reported by McKinsey, JPMorgan began using bots to process internal IT requests, including employees' attempts to reset their work passwords.

Up to 1.7 million requests were expected to be handled by the bots in 2017, doing the work of 40 full-time employees.

Pattern recognition and fraud prevention

The ability of AI to sift through massive amounts of data and identify patterns that might elude human observers is one of its greatest strengths. One area where this capacity is particularly relevant is in fraud prevention.

According to McAfee, cybercrime costs the global economy $600 billion. AI and machine learning solutions are being deployed by many financial service providers to detect fraud in real time. An additional benefit of improved fraud prevention technology is that legitimate activity is flagged as fraudulent less often.

According to Tech2, Mastercard was able to reduce false declines for its customers by 80 percent using AI technology.

Final thoughts

The fintech revolution is still in its infancy, but alongside AI, it has already had a substantial impact on the way traditional banks do business. This presents digital entrepreneurs and investors with myriad opportunities for improvement.

Related: #5 Vital Points for Creating a Banking Chatbot

According to CB Insights, the first quarter of 2018 alone saw a global record $5.4 billion in funds raised by VC-backed fintech companies. Having a high-level understanding of the goals big banks are looking to achieve with AI -- including customer-service automation, personalization, improved security, process optimization and pattern recognition -- hopefully provides food for thought and inspiration for digital entrepreneurs attracted to the fintech space.

Related:

5 Ways Artificial Intelligence Is Already Transforming the Banking Industry

What You Can Expect From the Intercreditor Agreement

Broxel entra al mercado de los vales de despensa



Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
Editors Note: In this series, The Way We Work, Entrepreneur Associate Editor Lydia Belanger examines how people foster productivity, focus, collaboration, creativity and culture in the workplace.

Amy Wan started off her law career in Washington, D.C., where she quickly realized that working for the federal government fulfilled its stereotype of being slow and bureaucratic. So she decided to take online courses to learn how to code.

One coding assignment was to create a website to exchange bitcoin. This was in 2012, in the cryptocurrencys nascent days before what Wan calls Crypto Winter, when interest in the blockchain-based technology weaned for a few years. Right before that downturn in bitcoin buzz, Wan left her job, moved to L.A. and joined a legal hackers meetup.

Crypto Winter diverted her career path toward crowdfunding and securities law temporarily, until activity in the space picked up again and she saw there were numerous regulatory and security holes to fill.

If you analogize it back to the 90s, there was a time when people were afraid to buy things online, because you didn't know if you would get that widget that you paid 40 bucks for, Wan said. She saw an opportunity to build a company that would build solutions to address the transactional confidence problem that plagues blockchain.

Related: 15 Crazy and Surprising Ways People Are Using Blockchain

She co-founded her company, Sagewise, to this end. This week, the company is launching a product called Blokusign, a blockchain-powered, Gmail-integrated digital signature software designed to minimize and resolve disputes.

In many lines of work, contract signing is a major time-suck. While there are already plenty of electronic signature apps out there (such as Docusign or HelloSign), Blokusign has an added layer of decentralized authentication. If someone tampers with a contract (say, adds a 0 to a monetary amount), the Blokusign ledger will reveal which one is the original.

Wan spoke with Entrepreneur about blockchains potential as an invisible workplace tool.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

It seems as though, in this era of blockchain, contracts are one of the most logical use cases. It's crazy that we still do things like sign receipts when we buy something.

Before starting this company, I was working at a fintech startup. We had to have the notary come over all the time to physically notarize documents. An in-person notary is no better than some other sort of authentication method.

Now, with all our technology around Adobe and all of that kind of stuff, its so easy to just take a document and doctor it. Im a former attorney, and I cant tell you how many times Ive come across a case where loan documents were doctored, or payoff documents were doctored.

What does Blokusign look like to the user?

What we envision one day is that, if there are two parties that have competing versions of documents, all youll have to do is upload the document that you're claiming is the authentic one onto a website with a user friendly interface and it'll give you a red check or green check. The green check says, yes, this is the authentic version, the hashes match or, no, it isnt. And it does that by reading the metadata of the document. It cuts out the middleman and it allows the parties themselves to go and authenticate the documents.

What does that dispute process involve now?

Today, if you go e-sign something, you don't have blockchain-powered authentication, then you're going to end up having two parties with different documents. First they have to give statements to the court about, we believe this is the authentic one, and then they might have to produce evidence. And if that isn't good, than they'd probably have to go subpoena [the e-signature company.] [With Blokusign], you're not dependent on some third party that either won't cooperate or maybe one day they're out of business or they're very slow to respond.

How specifically do you foresee Blokusign boosting efficiency for companies?

If you can efficiently and easily prove which document is authentic, its not so much that youre cutting down costs. Youre actually deterring bad behavior of people going and doctoring documents. And then secondly, the cases never even get that far. If you are able to promote a better culture of authenticity in real estate, in wills and trusts, in things of that sort, you decrease the caseload in courts over those types of issues, because people are going to be less inclined if its easy to prove them wrong.

What are the biggest problems with companies experimenting with blockchain technology that youve seen?

I have very strong opinions on this. Often, a lot of these things are just, we took an existing business and slapped it on blockchain, and thats a terrible idea. Blockchain technology makes things very complex and can bring a lot of security vulnerabilities into a business, as well as high costs. In order to effectively use the technology, you have to understand its advantages but also its limitations. A lot of companies are using blockchain technology when regular database technology would suffice.

I also think theres a huge user-friendliness issue. No one goes around saying, "Im using TCP/IP." You use the internet and you dont think about it. But right now in the blockchain space, its like, "Oh, Im using blockchain." If youre using blockchain, you should never know that youre using blockchain. Thats one thing thats preventing mass adoption of blockchain.

I dont think you should have to understand blockchain technology. You should just be able to use it. If my mom cant understand, then I dont think it can ever take off. Were not programming here for the crazy developers of the world, because then its a niche technology. We have to design for the other 98 percent of the population who doesnt know how to code and isnt technologically savvy.

Did you decide to launch Blokusign as a Gmail plugin to help with adoption?

As an attorney, I have used e-signature technology a lot. But its still not easy, and Ill still get annoyed because someone will email me something, and then I have to download it and e-sign it and upload it again or attach it to an email -- its a process. Or you have to download, print it out, sign it, scan it, upload it. It clutters up my desktop, and I end up with all of these files in my downloads folder that Im never going to look at again.

You shouldnt have to ever download a document. You should be able to do that preview thing and sign something with one click. Although Gmail isnt accessible everywhere, it brings us one step closer to, how can we make e-signature as intuitive and easy as possible?

Related: Is Bitcoin Going to Crash the Internet? These Experts Think So.

Beyond Blokusign, what is Sagewises broader, long-term vision?

Blockchain technology and smart contract technology provides a unique opportunity to shift the paradigm of how things work today. With these technologies, we could basically create alternative legal systems -- ones where, if I have a dispute, I dont have to spend a ton of time, and money, and go hire an attorney, and sit in court for two years. Most of the population doesnt have access to justice, because you pretty much have to be a large corporation or a wealthy individual to efficiently take advantage of a legal system.

Our world has changed so much over the past couple of decades. We dont just have blockchain technology that allows for decentralization, we have social media, we have the rise of stateless organizations. Youre starting to see the geophysical nation-state become a little bit less relevant. But our legal infrastructure has not caught up and does not reflect how the global economy works today. If we can have more more efficient and effective dispute resolution for these transactions in the blockchain ecosystem, then it will provide greater access to justice for most people.

Related:

Don't Understand Blockchain? It Can Work for You Anyway, This Founder Says.

Freelancers Will Soon Be Able to Buy Short-Term Disability Insurance Through This Startup

Netflix-Like Recommendations May Be in Store for Workplace Benefits



Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
WESTBURY, N.Y. - Gov. Andrew Cuomo had a problem: He couldn't settle on a nickname for President Donald Trump.

At a Saturday rally on Long Island, Cuomo first labeled the president "Mr. Tough Tweeter," a bully who "cowered to the NRA." Then he was "Mr. Macho Man," who was afraid of New York's diversity. Finally, he became "Macho Man Mr. President Tough Tweeter," whose bluster did not scare the two-term governor of New York.

"He's a big man on the other side of a Twitter account," said Cuomo. "Let's see how he is in person."

Cuomo has thrived in part by positioning himself as the president's mocking foe, answering a demand by party activists, and is likely to ride that to the Democratic nomination for governor in Thursday's primary.

But the messiness of his expected win demonstrates the political upheaval centered in his state, one that in an earlier federal primary in June claimed Rep. Joseph Crowley, the top House Democrat in New York.

Cuomo's campaign to defeat challenger Cynthia Nixon has suffered from stumbles, from a party-funded mailer linking the challenger to anti-Semitism to a rushed ceremonial opening for a bridge named after his father, former governor Mario Cuomo - hours before engineers closed it again due to safety concerns. What had been a show of political strength, with Hillary Clinton taking the stage next to the governor, transformed into a story of misused clout.

While that story may fade, Cuomo has had to contemplate a new Albany where Democratic insurgents replace some of his political allies.

Cuomo's lieutenant governor and his preferred nominee for attorney general are facing primaries against left-wing challengers.

Cuomo dismantled the "Independent Democratic Conference," eight senators who voted to keep Republicans in charge of the state Senate, after liberal anger at the arrangement boiled over, but all of them are facing a challenger, some backed by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and other Democrats who see where their party is heading.

Zellnor Myrie, one of the "anti-IDC" candidates who's attracted mainstream party support for his campaign, began as a hopeful insurgent candidate; by this past weekend, he was in a Brooklyn bar listening to Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., and Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., explain they were backing him over a veteran IDC member.

"We're going to come in with a progressive mandate," said Myrie. "That's going to change the machinations in Albany."

For years, those machinations largely benefited Cuomo - if not always Democrats. When he took office in 2011, defeating a right-wing Buffalo businessman by 30 points, Cuomo said he'd improve the state economy even if it meant bucking the labor unions that endorsed him.

"I've played with them; I've played against them," Cuomo said before the election.

With Republicans in command of the state Senate, Cuomo slashed spending on health care and education while lowering most income taxes. He delivered for liberals on social issues - he legalized same-sex marriage, and signed the sort of gun laws that have won him endorsements years later.

That was not nearly enough for the left, whose prominence has grown dramatically in recent years, as the candidacy of attorney general candidate Zephyr Teachout demonstrates.

In 2014, Teachout launched a no-hope primary campaign against Cuomo, arguing that his deals with Republicans had smothered the Democratic agenda. Cuomo fought back and secured the party's endorsement.

"The only issue was how dangerous it was to be seen near me," recalled Teachout in an interview this week.

Four years later, Teachout's challenge looks like the opening shot of the left's insurgency. She won 34 percent of the Democratic primary vote and carried much of rural upstate, in part due to her campaign against fracking - which Cuomo banned shortly after he won reelection.

Cuomo did not invest in electing a Democratic state Senate and did not dismantle the moderate Democratic conference - both campaign promises - until this year, after a Republican-run Senate already passed a budget. His approach, however, has gained him broad support among voters.

The result has been a strangely bifurcated primary, with Democratic voters largely backing Cuomo while they flirt with electing more left-wing candidates to change how he governs. Cuomo's own $25 million primary campaign is the juggernaut many Democrats expected, emphasizing his fights against Trump and the National Rifle Association and portraying Nixon as a naif seeking a job too big for her.

The strength of Cuomo's message was evident in Westbury, where more than a hundred voters - and rows of elected officials - piled into the "Yes We Can" rec center, opened six years earlier by Cuomo himself. As they waited to hear the governor, Jon Bon Jovi's voice poured out of a sound system, asking "Who's gonna work for the working man?" In interviews, voters veered between polite dismissal of Nixon's challenge and contempt that she would try to unseat their governor.

"I'm so insulted by her lack of qualifications," said Lisa Broughton, 55, a clean energy specialist who wondered if Nixon even understood her industry.

"I think she makes a lot of good points, but Cuomo's done a good job, and she has said she'd raise property taxes," said Gail Gertrude, 65. "I have younger nieces and nephews who can't afford to buy homes right now."

Nixon, who in ads and stump speeches notes that the polling has badly missed upsets all year, has not conceded anything to Cuomo. But her campaign has increasingly emphasized the insurgents running up and down the ballot - especially Teachout.

At a Friday fundraiser at a bar in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood, Nixon urged supporters to get behind the "uncorruptable" Teachout and other "people like me, who are not accepting a dime of corporate money."

That included Jumaane Williams, the New York City Council member challenging Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul from the left - and who won his first race by ousting a Democratic incumbent. On Monday, both he and Teachout were endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who had appeared with Cuomo in January 2017 to promote a college tuition initiative and has stayed out of the governor's race this year. In an interview after Saturday's unity rally, Williams said that while he was running on a quasi-ticket with Nixon, if he served with Cuomo, he'd consider it part of the job to check him.

"Most lieutenant governors believe their job is to be the eyes and ears of the governor; I believe it's to be the eyes and ears of the people," Williams said. "When the lip service is not backed up by action, I want to sit with the governor and correct that - and if they can't, the people need to come first."

Cuomo's support for Hochul and Letitia "Tish" James, the Democrats' endorsed candidate for attorney general, is reflected in TV ads that promote the entire ticket; but he has also won endorsements that escaped his running mates.

The race for attorney general might have the greatest impact on Cuomo's prospective third term. Teachout, who won Cuomo's support in a 2016 bid for Congress, is now running explicitly as the candidate who would investigate his administration - and not just investigate Wall Street and the Trump administration.

In TV ads, which portray Teachout as a lecturer in a classroom, the Trump administration's "corruption" is front and center. On the stump, Teachout expands the spotlight to cover Cuomo, reminding voters that she once ran against him and blistered him for creating then closing - after it made some recommendations - a public corruption commission.

Last week, at a rally that could not have differed more from Cuomo's, Teachout said that developers and business interests had bought the state and its governor away from its citizens.

"As attorney general, I will investigate, and I will prosecute, and I will look into all accounts," Teachout said. "You know I will, because I've always been independent of the governor."
In the Women Entrepreneur series My Worst Moment, female founders provide a firsthand account of the most difficult, gut-wrenching, almost-made-them-give-up experience theyve had while building their business -- and how they recovered.

Jess Liberi is head of product at eMoney, a financial planning software company based in Pennsylvania. Almost 10 years ago, she experienced the worst moment of her life: finding out about the death of her mother. The tragedy came right after Mothers Day, amidst Liberis wedding preparations and her sisters graduation, and Liberi took a month off of work. Later, the experience inspired her to take career risks and make changes she may not have otherwise. Liberi tells her story.

What follows is a first-person account of this persons experience. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

My mom died suddenly from a brain aneurysm. While learning of her death was easily the worst moment of my life, it was the living that I was supposed to do afterward that was extremely difficult. At the time, I was working as a sales executive at a financial services company based in Pennsylvania. Somehow, I moved forward with something new: perspective.

My mom and I had a great relationship. I know its cliche, but she was one of my best friends. In preparation for my wedding in June 2009, my mom and I met at the gym every morning around 5:30 a.m. On May 11, 2009, the day after Mothers Day and a month before my wedding, I called my mom to wake her up as I was leaving for the gym. She said she was tired and didnt think she was going to make it. I went without her, went to work and thought nothing of it. Later that evening, my sister called me, and my life changed forever. My sister still lived at home and found my mom when she got in from work. The whole evening from that point on was a blur -- the longest drive ever from my house to her house, the ambulances, the phone calls, the range of emotions.

The hardest part was leaving the house that night. It was symbolic in a way. Leaving meant going back to our normal lives, which felt anything but normal at that point. How could we go home to go to sleep like we did on any other night? How could we just leave? So we didnt. We spent the night and the days following at my aunts house. I was an adult, but losing a parent made me feel like a child all over again. I felt lost, afraid, uncertain. We were making funeral arrangements, and suddenly, I was an executor of an estate. We buried my mom in the dress she had bought to walk me down the aisle.

I thought about postponing the wedding, but my mom would have hated if I had done that. So we didnt. And it was great. There was so much love at our wedding. Our hearts actually felt full again. My husband and I had never been closer. Going through life changes like that can really test the limits of a relationship, but my husband, his family and his friends were all so supportive.

In terms of work, it took me a while to return. Between the funeral, graduation, wedding and honeymoon, I was out for about a month. Returning to work was another big step because it meant adjusting to normal life when life wasnt normal. But somehow, day by day, it got easier, and I actually had more motivation to work harder and do better.

When I was in a sales organization -- and most sales organizations are like this -- we were incentivized to bring money in. But after thinking more critically about my future, I wanted to know I was making a difference. The financial services company I was at had great solutions and products for the advisers we worked with, but I wasnt able to see the connection to the 'greater good.' I made several changes there seeking the best fit, moving from sales to relationship management and ultimately to product and technology. In February 2014, I moved to eMoney.

Building financial planning software that helps individuals better achieve their goals -- and focus on what they want to accomplish with their wealth -- helped me get a better line of sight into the greater good I had been thinking about ever since my mothers death. I wanted to help people achieve their financial goals regardless of how many assets were under management or how big a companys sales accounts were. I finally felt good about meeting the needs of all different types of people and helping the mass market.

A big part of this was feeling like I was capable and deserving. I think thats what often holds people back when they dont have the job they want. When I was brought in at eMoney, I didnt care about my title; I cared that I was coming in to a place where Id have the opportunity to leave my mark. Id been here for a year when we were acquired by Fidelity and a year and a half when our then-CEO and founder resigned. There was a lot of uncertainty, so it was another turning point, but again, I had been through uncertainty before with my mothers passing. I wasnt running scared from the uncertainty, I was looking for opportunity. That was my path to a leadership position.

Losing a parent gives you a different perspective on life and everything in it, including your career. Before my worst moment, I dont know if I wouldve been as open to the changes -- or as willing to make the changes -- I made in my career. I started to put things in perspective and really thought about what I wanted from my career and from the path I was on. I asked myself if I was truly happy and what happiness looked like for me. Sometimes its easy to get comfortable where you are. But life events like that make you uncomfortable and can also push you to make changes you wouldnt otherwise have made.

From the tragedy, I learned that life is too short, fragile and unpredictable not to take risks and go after what you want and what makes you happy. I learned that offering support to people in times of need goes so much further than you might think. I remember each letter, email, note and call I received during that time. It meant so much more to me than others will ever know. And I hope to pay it forward.

I hate to be cliche, but when it comes to where I am now, I can almost hear my mother laughing and telling me shes proud but that she always knew I could do it. She always challenged us. Shed say, I always knew it -- it was you who didnt think you could!

Related:

This Executive's Mother Passed Away Right Before Her Wedding. Here's How She Moved Forward -- and How the Tragedy Inspired a New Career Trajectory.

When This Woman's Business Partner Passed Away, She Learned She Didn't Have to Carry on His Legacy Alone

How the Co-Founder Behind the Famous Vegan Restaurant Chain By CHLOE. Moved Forward After a Lawsuit, Online Harassment, and a Miscarriage



Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
Xiaomi is launching the Mi 8X / Mi 8 Youth next week in Chengdu, China. The phone already appeared on TENAA with a notched display on the front and a horizontal dual camera on the back, but now the company officially showed on of the color options of the device.

The Mi 8X will arrive in Twilight Gold gradient which will likely mimic the colors of the sky in the minutes before the sun rises over the horizon.

Xiaomi plans to launch the Mi 8X / Mi 8 Youth in a few other colors too. According to TENAA, it will also arrive in Black, Rose Gold, Gold, White, Blue, Red, Pink, Gray, Silver, Green, Blue-Violent gradient and another color overflow that is yet to receive a marketable name.

Leaked live image of Xiaomi Mi 8X / Mi 8 Youth

The known specs include a Snapdragon 710 chipset, 4/6/8 GB of RAM and a tremendous 24 MP selfie camera. The OS will be Android Oreo, likely with MIUI 9.6 on top and a battery with at least 3,250 mAh capacity.

Source (in Chinese) | Via
Press release

Farm Bureau, at both the state and national level, offers excellent opportunities for young farmers and ranchers to hone their knowledge about agriculture and win prizes. The Young Farmers and Ranchers competitive events include the Achievement Award, Excellence in Agriculture Award and the Discussion Meet.

The Achievement Award recognizes Young Farmers and Ranchers who have excelled in their farm or ranch and have honed their leadership abilities to superiority. Participants are involved in production agriculture with a majority of their income subject to normal production risks. Judges evaluate competitors excellence in management, growth and scope of their enterprise and self-initiative that have been displayed throughout the farm or ranch.

The Excellence in Agriculture Award spotlights young Farm Bureau members who are agricultural enthusiasts but have not earned a majority of their income from an owned production agriculture enterprise in the past three years. Competitors are evaluated on their understanding of agricultural issues, leadership experiences and achievement, and their ability to communicate their agricultural story.

The Discussion Meet competitive event simulates a committee meeting where discussion and active participation are expected from each participant. This competition is evaluated on an exchange of ideas and information on a pre-determined topic. Participants build basic discussion skills, develop a keen understanding of important agricultural issues and explore how groups can pool knowledge to reach consensus and solve problems.

In 2019, the national winners of the Achievement Award, Excellence in Agriculture Award and Discussion Meet will receive a new Ford truck. The three runners-up will receive a Case IH Farmall 50A tractor. Third place finalists will receive a Case IH 40 Combination Roll Cabinet & Top Chest and a $500 parts card, as well as $2,000 of Stanley Black & Decker merchandise. Fourth place finalists will receive a Case IH 40 Combination Roll Cabinet & Top Chest and a $500 parts card.

These national YF and R competitions allow you to participate at the Farm Bureau Annual Convention. This is a great program with a lot of value, said Montana Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers Chair Gil Gasper. The competitions can be difficult and rigorous, but if youre interested, you will gain so much knowledge by putting in an application and going through these competitive events.

Farm Bureau representatives urged young farmers and ranchers to fill out the applications at the state level and participate in the events. The Montana Farm Bureau will hold their Discussion Meet Thursday, Nov. 8, during their annual convention in Billings. The winner of the MFBF Discussion Meet not only receives an all-expense paid trip to compete in the American Farm Bureau Discussion Meet in January in New Orleans, but a new Polaris Ranger.

For more information contact Sue Ann Streufert, 406-587-3153, [email protected] or visit https://mfbf.org/programs/Young-Farmers-Ranchers/.
Havre Police Department

Janel Mignon Russette of Havre, 31, was arrested during a Tuesday 8:24 a.m. vehicle stop on Second Street on charges of driving with a suspended or revoked driver's license, seat belt violation and driving while using an electronic communication device.

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Anthonio Uriah Valdez of Box Elder, 22, was arrested on charges of obstructing a peace officer or other public servant and violation of conditions of release and on a Justice or City court warrant on Third Street Tuesday at 11:14 a.m.

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A disturbance was investigated at Havre High School Wednesday at 12:35 p.m. when a caller reported two juvenile females were fighting in a classroom.

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Patrick Charles Ziemann of Havre, 56, was arrested on charges of selling an imitation of dangerous drugs, resisting arrest and having an open container in city limits after a First Street caller reported suspicious activity Tuesday at 1:51 p.m.

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Savana Hope Kannberg of Havre, 18, and Alexis Rose Flansburg of Havre, 19, were each issued a summons on a charge of minor in possession during a Tuesday 7:26 p.m. vehicle stop on 12th Avenue after a First Street caller reported at 7:15 p.m. a family member was intoxicated and drove off with friends.

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Edward James Lewis of Havre, 67, was arrested on charges of driving under the influence and driving with a suspended or revoked driver's license after a caller reported Tuesday at 8:09 p.m. that a drunk driver had left a First Street business.

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Jacob William Rowin of Havre, 26, was arrested on charges of failure to carry or produce proof of insurance, fleeing or eluding a peace officer, obstruction of a peace officer or other public servant, open container in vehicle while on the highway, DUI, careless driving and failure to stop at a traffic control sign, during a vehicle stop on First Street Wednesday at 1:36 a.m.

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An arrest was made after three Seventh Avenue callers reported a domestic disturbance today at 4:41 a.m., the first caller reported a woman screaming, yelling and fighting, and the second reported a woman had broken a window and hit him in the face. No additional information as provided on the arrest.

Hill County Sheriff's Office

An assault was investigated at Hill County Detention Center Tuesday at 10:21 a.m.

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Adrian Moses Shawl of Chinook, 26, was arrested at the detention center Tuesday at 1:50 p.m. on a state District Court warrant.

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Tuesday at 8:50 p.m., a caller at a U.S. Highway 2 business reported finding a wallet.

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Edward James Lewis of Havre, 67, was arrested at the detention center Tuesday at 9:17 p.m. on charges of possession of dangerous drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia after deputies found drugs on the inmate.

Havre Fire Department

Emergency medical personnel responded to one call Tuesday.

Havre Animal Shelter

This morning the shelter held six medium-hair kittens and one short-hair cat with gender listed as unknown, one long-hair female cat and one medium-hair female cat.

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The shelter also held this morning a 1-year-7-month-old male German shepherd, a 1-year-old male German shepherd-Labrador retriever cross, a 2-year-2-month-old female pit bull terrier-German shepherd cross, a 2-year-1-month-old male Pekingese-dachshund cross, one male and one female 21-week-old mix-breed puppies, a 7-month-old female mixed breed puppy and a 1-year-10-month-old female Australian cattle dog-blue heeler-German shepherd cross. The shelter also listed four 14-week-old Rottweiler-shepherd cross puppies.
The Havre Public School Board at its meeting Tuesday unanimously approved the first reading of a proposed policy to adjust outdoor activities for students depending on air quality.

Havre High School math teacher Kurt Leeds, who presented the proposal to the board, and Superintendent Andy Carlson said the policy is not mandated but it is recommended.

We really want to  protect those kids as best we can, Leeds said.

He said implementing air quality policies is recommended by the National School Board Association and the Montana High School Association, but few districts  Missoula County Public Schools is one  have implemented policies yet.

Going forward, I would say there will be more and more, Leeds added.

He said Havre just put in an air quality monitor, giving a chance to better monitor what the air quality is.

Hill County Public Health Director Kim Larson and Havre City-County Airport manager Tony Dolphay this year requested an air quality monitor for Havre, and in August Montana Department of Environmental Quality installed a seasonal or temporary monitor on the roof of the Hill County Courthouse Annex, which houses the health department.

The monitor, which is temporary, was installed at the Hill County Courthouse Annex above the County Health Department.

Carlson said previously the district had to use the closest monitors  the closest are in Malta, Great Falls and Cut Bank at the moment  which made knowing Havres air quality essentially a best guess.

Carlson said the county is hoping to get a permanent monitor.

I dont know if our putting the policy in will help in getting a permanent monitor, but if it does, thats probably a good thing, Carlson said.

Leeds said the policy is in two parts, creating a stricter policy in place for Havre Middle School and a less-strict policy at Havre High School, where the older students can better handle minor air-quality issues.

The policy will use guidelines developed by the state Department of Environmental quality to restrict outdoor recesses, practices and competitions depending on the air quality.
People go through the food line at Head Start's Lincoln Center in Highland Park during Head Start Family Day Tuesday.

The District 4 Human Resource Development Council Head Start program held an event Tueday at Lincoln Center for parents of kinds in the program to meet the teachers and ask the faculty any question they may have.

District 4 HRDC's Head Start program is the oldest in Montana and one of the oldest in the country, HRDC Executive Director Carilla French said.

She said that HRDC, the oldest human resources development council in the state, started serving Hill, Liberty and Blaine counties in 1965, providing Head Start low-income housing programs.

HRDC Program Service Director Samantha Clawson said the agency provides a wide span of opportunities for these communities, a "one-stop shop" for low-income families providing assistance with employment, education, housing, energy, weatherization, Head Start and other services.

Head Start provides a safe environment for kids ages from 0- to 5-years-old, Clawson said. She added that Head Start provides healthy meals and snacks for kids as well and helping prepare the kids for kindergarten, such as pre-literacy, pre-math and pre-language classes for children.

All teachers in the program either have associate degrees in early child development or are working toward their degrees, Clawson said.

"The teachers we have are amazing," she added.

The program is also expanding, she said, with two seven-hour classes now available at the HRDC building for ages 3 to 5, one four-hour class at the Hillview Apartments location for ages 0 to 3, and three four-hour classes at the Lincoln Center in Highland Park for ages 0 to 3.

The program is not exclusive to low-income families, but the selection process does look at income and the family environment. It is free for qualifying families.

Clawson added that 12 slots are still available for low-income families.

She said a major goal of the program is helping families, adding that Head Start is big on parental involvement, with many volunteering for field trips or working at the program to be with their kids.

"Parents are the original teachers," Clawson said.

Teachers Jen Graham, who has worked for HRDC Head Start for 22 years, and Michael Hulett, who will be celebrating her 25th year next month, were both parents who had their children in the program before beginning their careers at the HRDC.

"You expect a little and you get so much," Hulett said.

Both of them agreed that family involvement and getting the parents involved in their children's lives is the biggest thing for the program.

"We keep coming back," Graham and Hulett said.

Hulett said the program keeps people bringing their kids back.

She said she taught classes for kids ages 3 and 4 and the class size varies due the age groups, but she loves teaching and seeing how it helps the kids and the families.

Graham, who teaches the 4-year-old kids, said she teaches them a little bit of everything, such as self-help skills, social skills, literacy concepts, math and language.

Havre Daily News/Derek Hann Rayden Cowan, left, and Slevin Fox-Malley play Tuesday on the playground at the Lincoln Center in Highland Park during Head Start's Family Day.

She said one of her favorite parts about teaching is seeing how the kids' minds worked, adding that the children get excited about certain things and she takes what interests them and makes it a learning experience, such as a rock or tree projects.

"Kids figure out what they like," she said.

The family day also included a dinner for families, who sat at the tables out by the playground to eat. Their kids quickly ate their food so they could run and play on the playground with their friends while their parents watched them and socialized with each other.

Parent Athena Fox said the Head Start program is great and has helped many families in the community. Her son likes going because of the social interaction with the other kids, he is able to see his friends and the teachers at the program are amazing. He even calls them his best friends., she said

HRDC Family Advocate Alisha Gruszie said the program is family-oriented, and it has helped many families over the years.

"It is the perfect head start for children," Gruzie said.
The Wild Horse Border Committee Monday talked about trying to improve Montana Secondary Highway 232 - Wild Horse Road - to increase safety and try to get the Wild Horse Port between Montana and Alberta Canada, upgraded.

Havre Mayor and Wild Horse Border Committee co-chair Tim Solomon said perhaps one of the best ways to facilitate more traffic through the port and change the port's designation is to improve the highway.

The Wild Horse Border Committee is made up of Montana and Canadian politicians, economic developers, property owners, coalition member and community members, and has been in existence for the past 15 years.

The goal of the committee is to upgrade the Wild Horse Port north of Havre to operate for longer hours and to increase commercial traffic, re-designating the port to operate every day for commercial vehicles.

The port now is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the winter and 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the summer. Commercial vehicles must receive a permit to take freight through the port.

Solomon said if Wild Horse expands hours it would help relieve the stress the Coutts-Sweetgrass port north of Shelby is receiving from high commercial traffic numbers.

A study the Van Horne Institute, a Canadian think tank focusing on transportation, trade and resource development, conducted for the Wild Horse Border Committee and released in 2015, was discussed at Monday's meeting.

"Expanded hours and improvement of commercial operations at the port of Wild Horse will result in economic benefits from more efficient trucking services; expanded tourism; and additional family and business automobile traffic opportunities and more efficient use of current infrastructure," the study said.

Hill County Commissioner Mark Peterson said improving Highway 232 would encourage more commercial vehicles to use the port and increase safety.

The process of improving the highway has already started on the Montana side of the border, he said, with Montana Department of Transportation approving work on Highway 232 for almost 10 miles of the road, adding the work is needed for safety reasons.

In 20 years, Peterson said, Highway 232 has had 159 accidents, 54 of them rollovers and seven of them sideswipes, resulting in seven fatalities. He added that with 54 rollovers it is lucky there weren't more fatalities. The high number of rollovers is due to deep trench off the sides of the road, he said; if a vehicle goes off road it is highly likely to roll over. He added there has been on average 6.6 accidents per mile on Highway 232 in 20 years.

Highway 232 has been designated narrow and dangerous for years, Peterson said, with Hill County trying to get improvements going for close to 20 years. The process will start late this year, he added, with MDT open to improvements throughout the entire stretch of the highway in the future.

"They like to finish what they started," Peterson said.

Solomon added that this could facilitate more commercial traffic through the port and encourage the Canadian government to follow suit.

Canada's main hurdles

Jim Turner, city of Medicine Hat councillor and committee co-chair, said getting more commercial traffic is one of the main hurdles to improving the Wild Horse Port. He added that because the port is only open to commercial traffic four days a week, it is hard to encourage companies to use to port because of the inconsistency for commercial use.

Walter Valentini, executive director of Alberta's Palliser Economic Partnership, agreed that only being open four days for commercial traffic is a problem. Drivers won't go to Sweetgrass on some days and Wild Horse on others, he said. Companies find it more efficient to send vehicles through the Sweetgrass-Coutts port.

Medicine Hat District Chamber of Commerce Business Advisor Tracy Noullett said even if commercial traffic is restricted to four days a week, if Wild Horse port is easier and safer companies will use it because it is closer and would be cheaper. She added that if commercial traffic is not improving neither the United State or the Canadian government will move to change the designation. The committee needs to be more aggressive in approaching companies to use the port, Noullett said.

Committee member and Highway 2 Association President Bob Sivertsen of Havre, who is facing incumbent Rep. Jacob Bachmeier, D-Havre, and Havre Libertarian Conor Burns in a race for the Montana House of Representatives, agreed that the committee will need to have more of an aggressive approach to companies, encouraging use of the port.

The board also discussed other improvements that could be made to Wild Horse.

Turner said one of the hurdles that needs to be fixed is the lack of training port authorities have in Wild Horse to inspect some commercial vehicles and the lack of technology available to the port, such as electronic permitting.

The board agreed to do some research to resolve these issues.

Turner said there are many hurdles on the Canadian side of the port due to very little progress being made in the Canadian government with the port. Valentini and he met with American and Canadian official last spring and both countries' official said they felt that there was no justification for expanding the hours of the port. He added that there is no political will to expand Wild Horse and for the effort to work it needs to operate on all levels.

Valentini added that if the port was open longer people would take advantage and use it.

Unified message and other items

The board discussed unifying their message about the port.

Turner said one of the reasons the effort doesn't have much traction is that different interest groups are approaching it different ways, adding that the scope of the committee should be expanding the hours and services.

The problem of inconsistent port permitting was also brought up to the committee, with several people reporting commercial vehicles were able to use Wild Horse on certain occasions but not on others and some companies are encouraging truckers to use Sweetgrass-Coutts rather than Wild Horse. These concerns were agreed by the board to be further investigated.

Bob Kaul of Havre told the board he has concerns with a lack of traffic data being received from Wild Horse, saying it has been six months since he last received numbers. Kaul said that 1992 was when he first requested these numbers from the American side of the port. He then received a debriefing and after that had received traffic data for the port once a month.

Other members of the committee said they also had not been receiving the data recently.

Solomon said Havre had also not received any reports or data for the port in the past months.

The committee agreed to further investigate this matter.

Tariffs and the future

Bear Paw Development Corp. Executive Director Paul Tuss said tariffs also are factor in the future of this port. Trade between Canada and the U.S. is uncertain due to the tariffs, said Tuss, a Havre Democrat who is challenging incumbent state Sen. Russ Tempel, R-Chester, in this year's election. Tuss added that trade between Havre and Canada, Medicine Hat, is important for the well-being of both communities.

Peterson said Canada is an important trade partner with Havre. With the possibility of natural disasters, such as the Milk River flooding the area, Canada would be one closest that could assist with supplies, he added.

He added that the communities are closely linked to each other.

"We don't need lines," Peterson said.

Turner agreed that tariffs are disruptive to trade between the two counties and that the matter rests on political will what the future of these trade agreements will be, although Canada is very reliant on South America for crops and that won't change.

During the committee meeting it was also agreed that Owner of Brand Spanking Marketing Therisa Hardiker will be in charge of finding a third party to facilitate the committee's next meeting that will be held in Alberta, Canada before the spring of next year.

Solomon said Wild Horse is important for both communities and both communities need to make sure they continue communicating. The biggest problem, Solomon said, are the hours, adding that there have been many things done to help the numbers and there has been progress made, such as the commitment to the road improvements on Highway 232. He added that the Wild Horse on the U.S. side of the port is ready and able to handle higher level of traffic.

"Keep on the fight," Solomon said, "keep both communities alive."
Montanans have a 70-year tradition of investing in state higher education. Nov. 6, voters across the state will again have the opportunity to renew that economic and societal investment by voting for the 6 mill levy.

Public colleges and universities are a key conduit for the states workforce. Generations of graduates of the Montana university systems 11 campuses have benefited from the 6 mill levy. Voters have a chance to renew that support for future generations. The return on this investment manifests itself in the 69 percent of graduates who are fully employed in communities across the state.

The 6 mill levy accounts for 10 percent of the Montana university systems total annual funding. With the decline in the legislative share of funding in the last 25 years, 60 percent of the current cost of a college education has fallen upon students, more than double from a generation ago. Failure to pass the 6 mill levy could result in a tuition increase of up to 18 percent according to projections made by the Montana university system. This would hamstring students ability to better themselves and their communities through a college education.

Like other graduates, I personally have benefitted from the 6 mill levy. Born and raised in Kalispell, I am the son of a third-generation logger and travel agency small business owner. I became the first person in my family to attend college and earn a degree. Upon graduating from Montana State University in Bozeman, I returned to my hometown community where I was hired full-time as a teacher in Kalispell public schools.

I recently became a first-time homeowner. On my home valued at $200,000, $24 of my annual property tax statement will go to the states public colleges and universities. In my mind, that is small price to pay to ensure that the high school students I now teach have access to the same affordable and excellent education in Montana that I had.

Voting for the 6 mill levy is not voting for a tax increase, but honoring a Montana promise we have upheld for 70 years, a promise built on the belief that education coupled with hard work is the greatest means to rise above your circumstance.



Levi Birky is a former student regent of the Montana University System Board of Regents, 2016-2017; student body president of Montana State University, 2015-2016; and Montanas 2016 Truman Scholar. He is a 2017 MSU graduate working as a social studies teacher at Glacier High School in Kalispell.
With school back in session and fall just around the corner, we at the Havre-Hill County Library would like to congratulate our student patrons on starting a new school year and extend our thanks to the community for their participation in this years Summer Reading Program.

We had 217 participating readers, who read a total of 69,670 minutes. This is equal to 1,160.2 hours, 4,180,200 seconds, 48.4 days or 6.9 weeks. To break up all that reading, participants were able to attend a Tuesday Movie Matinee, Wednesday Story Time Thursday afternoon Lego Time, and Friday Block Party. A family karaoke night was well-attended, and we were visited by the Kilted Man, Matthew Gurnsey, who performed traditional Irish and Scottish music.

Top readers in each age category were:

Ages 0-3, Luna Evans, 1,680 minutes; James Williams, 1,625 minutes; and Katie Matakis, 1,470 minutes.

Ages 4-6, Thane Lake, 1,910 minutes; Gillian Matakis, 1,780 minutes; and Miles Matakis, 1,690 minutes.

Ages 7-9, Ashlynn Matakis, 3,705 minutes; Aubrey Kalk, 2,071 minutes; and Camryn Spring, 1,550 minutes.

Ages 10-13, Emily Marsh, 3,617 minutes; Kylie Greenwood, 2,640 minutes; and Lyvia Little, 2,449 minutes.

18-plus, Rachel Rawn, 3,780 minutes; Annie Marks, 2,673; and Denise Haugen 2,025 minutes.

These readers all received a prize for their diligence. Additionally, Ashlyn Matakis, Emily Marsh and Kylie Greenwood received a ukulele for reading the most overall in the under-18 categories.

Readers who completed their reading goals received a certificate of completion, a rockstar keychain and a copy of Apples to Zebras.

Thank you to Betty Billmayer for generously donating copies of Apples to Zebras. All other prizes and programs were made possible by the generosity of the Friends of the Library.

Just because summer is ending doesnt mean the fun has to end. The library invites the community to participate in a citywide scavenger hunt Wednesday, Sept. 19, through Wednesday, Sept. 26.

Books and Babies is every Wednesday at 10:15 a.m., followed up by Story Time at 10: 30 a.m. with an encore at 3:30 p.m. This includes stories and a weekly craft.

Lego time takes place every Thursday 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Thank you, everyone, and have a great school year!

Ashley Martin

Havre-Hill County Library childrens librarian
You notice people just disappear if they dont reach their pick rates, one worker told Fairfax Media. Everyone works hard anyway but sometimes you have a bad day, and you could lose your job for that.

The workers, who asked not to be named for fear of being dismissed, said they avoid drinking water before their shift and skip going to the bathroom outside of designated breaks so as not to fall behind.

Its a hellscape, one worker said. Ive never worked anywhere as harsh, and its frustrating because the head of Amazon is the richest man on the planet.

However an Amazon spokesperson said the claims are not an accurate portrayal of how things work in the building.

The spokesperson said the recent accusations are intentionally sensational and are demeaning to the hard working dedicated people who work at Amazon fulfilment centres and do a great job.
The blaze reportedly grew quickly, burning through the third and fourth floors of the 700,000 square-foot facility and engulfing 7.3m worth of goods.

Other Amazon employees attempted to extinguish the flames but were eventually evacuated by the rescue team.

This was a serious fire, which has destroyed millions of pounds of stock, but we are glad that no one was harmed that day. Ali can now reflect on his actions in prison, said Detective Constable Andrew Shorthouse of the Staffordshire Police.

Reconstruction amounted to 745,000, the prosecution said.

Amazon officials were able to pinpoint Ali as the culprit after examining staff assignments. The defendant admitted to the misdeed immediately after his arrest and later pleaded guilty in court.
A company owned by comedian Mario Rosenstock has made a settlement of more than 118,000 with the Revenue Commissioners as part of the taxman's latest swoop on defaulters.

The company, called Blue Elf, and which is solely owned by Mr Rosenstock, made the settlement in relation to the under-declaration of PAYE, PRSI and USC taxes, on foot of an audit by the Revenue Commissioners. Mr Rosenstock is not a director of the company, but his wife, Blathnaid, is.

The latest haul by the Revenue Commissioners also includes a 701,000 settlement made by a company called Gaiety Investments, which is controlled by music promoters Denis Desmond and Caroline Downey.

Largest

That was the single largest settlement made in the three months to the end of June this year.

His Gaiety Investments group sold a 50pc stake in music promoter MCD to Live Nation, the global music company.

The total amount secured through settlements by the Revenue Commissioners came to almost 8.9m in the latest quarter.

Of the 66 cases in the period, 29 were for settlement amounts exceeding 100,000.

Those making settlements included medical consultants, company directors, fishermen, landlords and publicans.

Another company to fall foul of the taxman was Dublin-based Dawson Jewellers, which is based on Dawson Street.

The company's directors are Kenneth and Fiona McDonagh, who are also its owners.

The company made a more than 113,000 settlement with the Revenue Commissioners in relation to the under-declaration of VAT. The jewellers was the scene of a dramatic attempted armed heist in 2009.

Mr McDonagh tackled a raider who had grabbed his wife by the throat and threatened her at gunpoint. During the struggle, he disarmed the gunman and, while defending himself, struck the assailant with the weapon on the head.

The Revenue Commissioners also secured fines through the courts totalling almost 495,000 against people who had committed a tax or duty offence, such as failing to file a tax return or using marked fuel.

Those fines include the 15,000 fine that was levied against Independent TD Michael Lowry after he was found guilty during the summer of a tax offence and failing to keep proper books of an account between 2002 and 2007.

His refrigeration company, Garuda, was fined 10,000. The charges relate to a payment of around 372,000 from Finnish company Norpe.

Mr Lowry avoided a custodial sentence and was handed the fine at the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin.

The Revenue Commissioners said that 17 of the cases, in which settlements were made in the quarter, were not fully paid as of the end of June. The total outstanding amount totalled 2.6m.

The single largest unpaid amount, 440,000, is owed by a Co Galway company called Vehicle Wholesalers.

The firm is owned by Oliver Walsh and Thomas Walsh. The settlement emerged from a Revenue audit case and is related to the under-declaration of VAT.

"Revenue vigorously pursues collection/enforcement of unpaid settlements," the Revenue Commissioners said yesterday.

"In some cases, collection/recovery of the full unpaid amount will not be possible," it added.
The chief suspect for the brutal murder of Limerick pensioner Rose Hanrahan remains on the run, her inquest has heard.

The 78-year-old was found murdered in her home shortly before Christmas last year.

Her inquest was opened and adjourned yesterday.

Ms Hanrahan's body was discovered by relatives in her bungalow in New Road, Thomondgate, on December 15, 2017.

Gardai have not officially disclosed how she died. However, it is understood she was strangled.

Last December, the Sunday World revealed that the chief suspect has a conviction for a serious sexual offence in another jurisdiction.

It is believed the criminal, who is from Eastern Europe, fled the country in the days following Ms Hanrahan's shocking murder.

He is reported to have taken a ferry to France, but his exact whereabouts are not known.

Gardai, who have spoken to more than 1,300 people during the nine-month murder investigation, are now liaising with Interpol and Europol as they hunt for the killer.

Investigators are also said to be using facial recognition technology across Europe in an attempt to identify the suspect's location.

It is understood that Ms Hanrahan was killed during a botched attempted robbery at her home.

According to reports, gardai have identified her killer on CCTV.

A forensic sweep for clothing fibres as well as DNA was also carried out at Ms Hanrahan's home by specialist gardai.

Detectives would not comment on reports that they have CCTV footage of the killer stalking Ms Hanrahan while she was doing her shopping at a supermarket in Limerick on the day she was murdered.

Followed

It is suggested that gardai believe the killer was after the PIN for her ATM card and may have followed her to her home.

Limerick city coroner John McNamara told Ms Hanrahan's family members, including two of her sisters, a niece, and a brother-in-law: "I know it's difficult for any family to come to inquests, to hear details surrounding the death of a loved one."

Explaining the process to the family, Mr McNamara said: "An inquest is a public inquiry into a person's death.

"You are entitled to ask questions; it's not a court as such.

"If you have any questions, feel free to ask them."

Inspector Paul Reidy, who is based at Henry Street Garda Station in Limerick, formally requested that the inquest be adjourned, pending the results of the investigation into Ms Hanrahan's murder.

"There is a criminal investigation ongoing at the moment," Insp Reidy said.

Mr McNamara said "under the Coroner's Act, I'm obliged to grant the [adjournment]".

He told Ms Hanrahan's family: "We don't want to give evidence that might have an impact on, or compromise, the ongoing garda investigation."

Adjourning the inquest, the coroner told the family: "I'm sorry, I don't have an exact date for you. We'll have to wait until there are developments in the garda investigation."

Garda sources said the investigation was progressing and they would keep Ms Hanrahan's family up to date with any developments.
A farming chief has condemned an unprovoked attack on a farmer in north Dublin as "disgraceful and very worrying" and called for a greater garda presence in rural areas.

Patrick Walsh (47) was kicked unconscious when he came across four men trespassing on his land at Lispopple, Swords, Co Dublin, on September 2.

The father of three young children suffered four cracked ribs, a dislocated shoulder and needed stitches to his face after he was kicked repeatedly on the ground.

Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) deputy president Richard Kennedy said Mr Walsh could have been seriously injured or killed.

"The hunting of hares is illegal and gangs with their dogs are trespassing on farmlands across the country, and when approached by farmers and landowners are met with hostility and in some cases violence," he said.

"They worry livestock, damage fences and leave gates open and animals distressed.

"This is the third such serious attack in the past year in north Dublin."

He revealed that last month a farmer in St Margaret's who discovered men illegally dumping on his land went to ring gardai, but was run over by the intruders' van.

Luckily, he was found by a neighbour but he had to spend a period of time in hospital with two broken legs and a broken collarbone.

Some months earlier in the same area, another farmer was also assaulted and threatened at knifepoint when he approached men with dogs on his land.

"The IFA has been proactive in the fight against rural crime and is calling for greater garda presence in the troubled areas of north Co Dublin and across all rural communities," Mr Kennedy added.

Lurchers

"Lurching or hare coursing by various groups must be targeted by gardai in a unified approach across all divisions."

Mr Walsh was watching TV with his wife and children, aged two, four and six, when he spotted two men with lurchers walking through his herd of suckler cows along with another two men close by.

He got into his SUV and went after them but was attacked when confronting them over trespassing, receiving numerous kicks to his head and body.

Mr Walsh said: "When I woke up 15 minutes later, I didn't know where I was and then a neighbour arrived on the scene and I was taken to Connolly Hospital, where a doctor told me I was lucky my injuries were not more serious."

Three of his attackers were aged in their 20s and the fourth in his late 30s or early 40s.

Mr Walsh said the gang was running a campaign of intimidation throughout north Co Dublin and many farmers were too frightened to report the threats to gardai.

Officers say several crime gangs are involved and confirmed that they are investigating all incidents.

The IFA plans to call a public meeting in Fingal in the coming days in a bid to stop what it calls "lawless actions".
The child was rushed to Cork University Hospital

A toddler has died after a freak accident in her home.

The 13-month-old girl died despite frantic efforts to save her after she was apparently strangled when the string from a curtain or blinds assembly got wrapped around her neck while she was playing.

The child was named locally last night as Leah Troy, the youngest child of Mike and Alice Troy who live at Del- aney Park, just off Dublin Hill, Cork.

They have lived in the area for a number of years.

Little Leah celebrated her first birthday only last month.

It is understood that the child was found unconscious by her mother, who had gone to check on her as she played.

She raised the alarm, and she and neighbours desperately tried to revive her.

Leah was rushed to Cork University Hospital (CUH), where doctors tried to save her.

However, they were unable to revive her and she was pronounced dead a short time later.

The family, who are from the Cork area, were being comforted last night by relatives, friends and neighbours.

"It's just heartbreaking. Everyone is totally devastated by what happened," one distraught neighbour said.

Escape

A file on the incident will be prepared by gardai for a coroner.

A number of such curtain cord tragedies have hit Ireland in the past decade or so.

Toddlers have died in Dublin, Kilkenny and Cork since 2005 after they became accidentally entangled in curtain cords.

Four years ago, a three-year-old Donegal boy had a lucky escape when he was found entangled in a curtain cord, but doctors managed to revive him.

In 2014, two-year-old Roisin Redmond, of Graiguenamanagh, Co Kilkenny, died after getting caught in a looped blind cord at a relative's house.

Her mother, Lynda, later issued an emotional safety appeal.

"Maybe I can save someone's life by talking about this. If this can happen to us, it can happen to anyone," she said.

"If 10 people check their blinds, then I've made a difference."

A near-identical tragedy in February 2009 claimed the life of two-year-old Arran Malley, who died after becoming entangled in a cord while playing in the upstairs bedroom of his home in Carrigtwohill, Co Cork.

Arran's parents, Shane and Gillian, launched a campaign for greater safety systems on curtain and blind systems.
A proposal to unite three Orem marching bands is met with pushback

When the Timpanogos High School Marching Band takes the field for the Redrocks Marching Band Competition on Nov. 5, it may be the last time they perform under that name. For a while, anyway. If a new proposal is agreed to, the Timpanogos marching band may join with the bands from Orem High School and Mountain View High School by the 2022-2023 school year. The trio would combine for one unified marching band. What this proposal would do is it would bring the three band directors together in an awesome collaboration to be able to learn from each other, and be able to produce a show ...
Global Memory Slot Industry

New Study On 2018-2025 Memory Slot Market Global Key Player, Demand, Growth, Opportunities and Analysis Forecast Added to Wise Guy Reports Database

Global Memory Slot Industry

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This report studies the global Memory Slot market status and forecast, categorizes the global Memory Slot market size (value & volume) by manufacturers, type, application, and region. This report focuses on the top manufacturers in United States, Europe, China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan and other regions.

The global Memory Slot market is valued at xx million US$ in 2017 and is expected to reach xx million US$ by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of xx.x % between 2018 and 2025.

The major manufacturers covered in this report

HARTING

Yamaichi

ERNI

Fujitsu

International Electrotechnical Commission

MicroTCA

TE

Samtec

Amphenol

Molex

Hirose

Amphenol FCI

JAE

JST

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Geographically, this report studies the top producers and consumers, focuses on product capacity, production, value, consumption, market share and growth opportunity in these key regions, covering

United States

Europe

China

Japan

South Korea

Taiwan

Other Regions

The regional scope of the study is as follows:

North America

United States

Canada

Mexico

Asia-Pacific

China

India

Japan

South Korea

Australia

Indonesia

Singapore

Rest of Asia-Pacific

Europe

Germany

France

UK

Italy

Spain

Russia

Rest of Europe

Central & South America

Brazil

Argentina

Rest of South America

Middle East & Africa

Saudi Arabia

Turkey

Rest of Middle East & Africa

On the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split into

SIMM

DIMM

RIMM

On the basis of the end users/applications, this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, consumption (sales), market share and growth rate for each application, including

Notebook

Desktop

The study objectives of this report are:

To analyze and study the global Memory Slot capacity, production, value, consumption, status (2013-2017) and forecast (2018-2025);

Focuses on the key Memory Slot manufacturers, to study the capacity, production, value, market share and development plans in future.

Focuses on the global key manufacturers, to define, describe and analyze the market competition landscape, SWOT analysis.

To define, describe and forecast the market by type, application and region.

To analyze the global and key regions market potential and advantage, opportunity and challenge, restraints and risks.

To identify significant trends and factors driving or inhibiting the market growth.

To analyze the opportunities in the market for stakeholders by identifying the high growth segments.

To strategically analyze each submarket with respect to individual growth trend and their contribution to the market

To analyze competitive developments such as expansions, agreements, new product launches, and acquisitions in the market

To strategically profile the key players and comprehensively analyze their growth strategies.

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Some Major Points from Table of content:

Global Memory Slot Market Research Report 2018

1 Memory Slot Market Overview

1.1 Product Overview and Scope of Memory Slot

1.2 Memory Slot Segment by Type (Product Category)

1.2.1 Global Memory Slot Production and CAGR (%) Comparison by Type (Product Category)(2013-2025)

1.2.2 Global Memory Slot Production Market Share by Type (Product Category) in 2017

1.2.3 SIMM

1.2.4 DIMM

1.2.5 RIMM

1.3 Global Memory Slot Segment by Application

1.3.1 Memory Slot Consumption (Sales) Comparison by Application (2013-2025)

1.3.2 Notebook

1.3.3 Desktop

1.4 Global Memory Slot Market by Region (2013-2025)

1.4.1 Global Memory Slot Market Size (Value) and CAGR (%) Comparison by Region (2013-2025)

1.4.2 United States Status and Prospect (2013-2025)

1.4.3 Europe Status and Prospect (2013-2025)

1.4.4 China Status and Prospect (2013-2025)

1.4.5 Japan Status and Prospect (2013-2025)

1.4.6 South Korea Status and Prospect (2013-2025)

1.4.7 Taiwan Status and Prospect (2013-2025)

1.5 Global Market Size (Value) of Memory Slot (2013-2025)

1.5.1 Global Memory Slot Revenue Status and Outlook (2013-2025)

1.5.2 Global Memory Slot Capacity, Production Status and Outlook (2013-2025)

2 Global Memory Slot Market Competition by Manufacturers

2.1 Global Memory Slot Capacity, Production and Share by Manufacturers (2013-2018)

2.1.1 Global Memory Slot Capacity and Share by Manufacturers (2013-2018)

2.1.2 Global Memory Slot Production and Share by Manufacturers (2013-2018)

2.2 Global Memory Slot Revenue and Share by Manufacturers (2013-2018)

2.3 Global Memory Slot Average Price by Manufacturers (2013-2018)

2.4 Manufacturers Memory Slot Manufacturing Base Distribution, Sales Area and Product Type

2.5 Memory Slot Market Competitive Situation and Trends

2.5.1 Memory Slot Market Concentration Rate

2.5.2 Memory Slot Market Share of Top 3 and Top 5 Manufacturers

2.5.3 Mergers & Acquisitions, Expansion

3 Global Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue (Value) by Region (2013-2018)

3.1 Global Memory Slot Capacity and Market Share by Region (2013-2018)

3.2 Global Memory Slot Production and Market Share by Region (2013-2018)

3.3 Global Memory Slot Revenue (Value) and Market Share by Region (2013-2018)

3.4 Global Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

3.5 United States Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

3.6 Europe Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

3.7 China Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

3.8 Japan Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

3.9 South Korea Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

3.10 Taiwan Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

4 Global Memory Slot Supply (Production), Consumption, Export, Import by Region (2013-2018)

4.1 Global Memory Slot Consumption by Region (2013-2018)

4.2 United States Memory Slot Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2013-2018)

4.3 Europe Memory Slot Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2013-2018)

4.4 China Memory Slot Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2013-2018)

4.5 Japan Memory Slot Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2013-2018)

4.6 South Korea Memory Slot Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2013-2018)

4.7 Taiwan Memory Slot Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2013-2018)

5 Global Memory Slot Production, Revenue (Value), Price Trend by Type

5.1 Global Memory Slot Production and Market Share by Type (2013-2018)

5.2 Global Memory Slot Revenue and Market Share by Type (2013-2018)

5.3 Global Memory Slot Price by Type (2013-2018)

5.4 Global Memory Slot Production Growth by Type (2013-2018)

6 Global Memory Slot Market Analysis by Application

6.1 Global Memory Slot Consumption and Market Share by Application (2013-2018)

6.2 Global Memory Slot Consumption Growth Rate by Application (2013-2018)

6.3 Market Drivers and Opportunities

6.3.1 Potential Applications

6.3.2 Emerging Markets/Countries

7 Global Memory Slot Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis

7.1 HARTING

7.1.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.1.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.1.2.1 Product A

7.1.2.2 Product B

7.1.3 HARTING Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.1.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.2 Yamaichi

7.2.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.2.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.2.2.1 Product A

7.2.2.2 Product B

7.2.3 Yamaichi Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.2.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.3 ERNI

7.3.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.3.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.3.2.1 Product A

7.3.2.2 Product B

7.3.3 ERNI Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.3.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.4 Fujitsu

7.4.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.4.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.4.2.1 Product A

7.4.2.2 Product B

7.4.3 Fujitsu Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.4.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.5 International Electrotechnical Commission

7.5.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.5.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.5.2.1 Product A

7.5.2.2 Product B

7.5.3 International Electrotechnical Commission Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.5.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.6 MicroTCA

7.6.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.6.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.6.2.1 Product A

7.6.2.2 Product B

7.6.3 MicroTCA Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.6.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.7 TE

7.7.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.7.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.7.2.1 Product A

7.7.2.2 Product B

7.7.3 TE Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.7.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.8 Samtec

7.8.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.8.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.8.2.1 Product A

7.8.2.2 Product B

7.8.3 Samtec Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.8.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.9 Amphenol

7.9.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.9.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.9.2.1 Product A

7.9.2.2 Product B

7.9.3 Amphenol Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.9.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.10 Molex

7.10.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors

7.10.2 Memory Slot Product Category, Application and Specification

7.10.2.1 Product A

7.10.2.2 Product B

7.10.3 Molex Memory Slot Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2013-2018)

7.10.4 Main Business/Business Overview

7.11 Hirose

7.12 Amphenol FCI

7.13 JAE

7.14 JST

Continued..

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All gave some; some gave all. Here's how to honor veterans this year


Grant of Mining Leases at the Lake Wells Sulphate of Potash Project

Perth, Sep 12, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Australian Potash Limited ( ASX:APC ) (APC) is pleased to advise that Mining Leases have been granted at the Lake Wells Sulphate of Potash project (see Figure 1 in link below). The Mining Leases cover an area in excess of 30,000 hectares of the Lake Wells playa and underlying palaeochannel system.Highlights:- Major milestone achieved with the grant of Mining Leases required to develop and operate the Lake Wells SOP Project- Grant of the Mining Leases is a significant achievement in the Approval work stream being finalised through the Definitive Feasibility Study- Mining Leases cover the development area required for Stage 1 (150,000 tonnes per annum SOP production) and Stage 2 (+150,000 tpa SOP)(see Note i below)The Lake Wells SOP project currently carries a 2012 JORC Compliant Mineral Resource Estimate of 14.7 million tonnes of recoverable SOP, with a sector high 12.7Mt in the Indicated categoryi, which reflects the long (+55 kilometres), deep (+174m) and wide (+4 kilometres) palaeochannel that APC has delineated at the Project (see Figure 2 in link below).The area of the granted Mining Leases covers the proposed brine bore-field, evaporation ponds, processing plant, and associated infrastructure including accommodation village, airstrip and power station.APC's Lake Wells SOP Project development includes an all-weather bore field brine abstraction network developed into the extensive palaeochannel identified. Test-pumping results from the existing 5 production wells developed into the palaeochannel at Lake Wells have yielded very high long-term pump test flow rates in excess of 15 litres per second (see Note ii below). Stage 1 of the Lake Wells SOP project calls for a bore-field comprising approximately 35 bores, with 20% of this capacity to be built, commissioned and pump-tested prior to the completion of the DFS.All of the brine SOP projects being proposed in Australia source their brine from a playa (or lake surface) which by definition means they are at the bottom of regional catchment areas, which is where water flows in flood. APC's exclusive use of bores to recover brine will mitigate to a very large extent the construction and operational risks associated with weather events. In addition, as the depth of the bores developed at Lake Wells are up to 174 metres, the bore network will be able to access the entire brine resource, which commences at surface and extends to the very bottom of the palaeochannel.Managing Director Matt Shackleton commented: "This is a major milestone on the approvals pathway and a significant step towards completion of the Definitive Feasibility Study."We've always been very confident in our resource, with our palaeochannel modelling being based on nearly thirteen hundred drill holes, over fifty two thousand metres of drilling and in excess of 300 kilometres of ground based seismic lines. Having access to this massive palaeochannel mitigates several areas of risk around brine abstraction."We have some additional work to do around a reserve estimate, which combined with our geotechnical program will form the basis of the field work over the next quarter."With the grant of these mining leases, the next two quarters are shaping up to deliver some of the most significant de-risking events for the Lake Wells project's development cycle. We look forward to providing regular updates to shareholders on our progress as we achieve further milestones."Mining Leases granted are M38/1274, M38/1275 and M38/1276.Notes:i. Refer to ASX announcement 23 March 2017 'Scoping Study Confirms Exceptional Economics of APC's 100% Owned Lake Wells Potash Project In WA'. That announcement contains the relevant statements, data and consents referred to in this announcement. Apart from that which is disclosed in this document, Australian Potash Limited, its directors, officers and agents: 1. Are not aware of any new information that materially affects the information contained in the 23 March 2017 announcement, and 2. State that the material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning the estimates in the 23 March 2017 announcement continue to apply and have not materially changed.ii Refer to ASX announcement 21 November 2017 'Pumping Test Confirms Drainage from Entire Palaeochannel Sequence into Basal Production Aquifer'. That announcement contains the relevant statements, data and consents referred to in this announcement. Apart from that which is disclosed in this document, Australian Potash Limited, its directors, officers and agents: 1. Are not aware of any new information that materially affects the information contained in the 21 November 2017 announcement, and 2. State that the material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning the estimates in the 21 November 2017 announcement continue to apply and have not materially changed.To view figures, please visit:About Australian Potash Ltd

Australian Potash Limited (ASX:APC) is an ASX-listed Sulphate of Potash (SOP) developer. The Company holds a 100% interest in the Lake Wells Potash Project located approximately 500kms northeast of Kalgoorlie, in Western Australia's Eastern Goldfields.

Following the release of a Scoping Study in 2017, APC has been conducting a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) into the development of the Lake Wells Potash Project. The Company is aiming to release the findings of the DFS in H2 2019.

The Lake Wells Potash Project is a palaeochannel brine hosted sulphate of potash project. Palaeochannel bore fields supply large volumes of brine to many existing mining operations throughout Western Australia, and this technique is a well understood and proven method for extracting brine. APC will use this technically low-risk and commonly used brine extraction model to further develop a bore-field into the palaeochannel hosting the Lake Wells SOP resource.

A Scoping Study on the Lake Wells Potash Project was completed and released on 23 March 2017. The Scoping Study exceeded expectations and confirmed that the Project's economic and technical aspects are all exceptionally strong, and highlights APC's potential to become a significant long-life, low capital and high margin sulphate of potash (SOP) producer.


Billy Hills Zinc Project Underway

Adelaide, Sep 12, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Mithril Resources Ltd ("Mithril") ( ASX:MTH ) is pleased to advise that two tenements (EL's 04/2497 and 2503) at its 100% - owned Billy Hills Zinc Project (located adjacent to the former Pillara Zinc Mine, 25 kms southeast of Fitzroy Crossing in the West Kimberley region of Western Australia - see Figure 1 in link below) have been granted and four initial targets have been prioritised for field follow-up.- Four initial targets prioritised for follow-up on newly granted tenements- Targeting large scale zinc + lead + silver deposits similar to the nearby Pillara deposit and along strike from known mineralisation- Target prospectivity highlighted by elevated rock chip results up to 14.24% zinc + lead, an untested IP geophysical anomaly and broad zones of bedrock anomalism in historic drill intercepts;o 3.0m @ 4.41% zinc + lead from 77 metres,o 5.0m @ 1.4% zinc + lead from 274 metres including 3m @ 1.88% zinc + lead from 277 metres,o 14.90m @ 1.0% zinc + lead from 179.10 metres, ando 5.80m @ 1.04% zinc + lead from 225.20 metresAt Billy Hills, Mithril is targeting large scale zinc + lead + silver deposits within NNE - NNW orientated fault zones immediately along strike from elevated rock chip samples and historic drill intercepts.The targets are under-explored with the bulk of historic drilling and geophysical testing carried out on the adjacent Pillara Mine Lease (ML04/118) which is not owned by Mithril. The pre-mine resource of 18.05 million tonnes at 7.7% Zn and 2.4% Pb and produced 10.3 Mt @ 6.9% Zn, 2.3% Pb from June 1997 to October 2003 (See Mithril's ASX Announcement dated 21 August 2017).Management CommentMithril's Managing Director Mr David Hutton said that the Company was looking forward to commencing field work at Billy Hills."We are pleasantly surprised by how many prospective areas remain to be tested at Billy Hills, given the amount of exploration that has previously taken place at Pillara. Our review of the historic exploration data has highlighted four initial targets and we're confident that further targets will emerge as exploration progresses"."Along with our Kurnalpi Nickel Project, near Kalgoorlie and the new Bangemall Base Metal Project, north west of Meekatharra, Billy Hills is an immediate priority for the Company".Target Details (see Figures 2 - 5 in link below)Target A (1.8 km2 area) lies over the northern end of a soil - covered NNW trending fault zone (which is developed parallel to the main Pillara controlling fault zone). Prospectivity is highlighted by elevated rock chip samples (up to 14.24% zinc + lead - see Table 2) and broad zones of anomalism in reconnaissance drill holes undertaken in the southern target area, i.e.;- 3.0m @ 4.41% zinc + lead from 77 metres in PD508,- 5.0m @ 1.4% zinc + lead from 274 metres in PLR0510 including 3m @ 1.88% zinc + lead from 277 metres,- 14.90m @ 1.0% zinc + lead from 179.10 metres and 5.80m @ 1.04% zinc + lead from 225.20 metres in PLR0509, and- 1.7m @ 1.39% zinc + lead from 215 metres, 6.0m @ 0.68% zinc + lead from 249 metres, and 9.0m @ 0.57% zinc + lead from 268 metres in PD646.An untested Induced Polarisation ("IP") chargeability anomaly overlying the NNW fault within the northern target area also strengthens the prospectivity of Target A.IP is a geophysical technique that was used extensively at Pillara in the past to identify the presence of marcasite (iron sulphide) mineralisation which typically forms a halo around economic zinc + lead mineralisation.Target B (0.7km2 area) is located 3.5 kilometres south along strike of the Pillara deposit and includes numerous anomalous rock chip samples (up to 9.3% zinc + lead - see Table 2) which have been taken at surface from gossanous outcrops within a major fault system. The majority of the target is under cover and has not been previously drilled or subject to geophysical surveying.Target C (0.2km2) is located in the central project area, south along strike from Target A and covers a 150 metre - long zone of surface mineralisation (rock chip sampling up to 7.26% zinc + lead - See Table 2) present within the same major NNW fault zone that hosts Target A. A shallow diamond drill hole (PD510) beneath the rock chip samples returned 2m @ 0.59% zinc + lead from 22 metres and has not been followed up.Targets D (1.3km2) is located in the southern project area and covers a 1 kilometre - long NNE trending mineralised fault zone (rock chip samples up to 10.98% zinc + lead and 98 g/t silver - see Table 2) that has been poorly drill tested with only three wide-spaced drill holes, two of which returned anomalous mineralisation;- 2.0m @ 1.05% zinc + lead from 39 metres in PD514, and 4.0m @ 0.71% zinc + lead from 89 metres in PD512.The fault zone extends under cover and has not been the subject to any follow-up drilling or geophysical surveying.Next StepsMithril plans to follow-up the targets with a combination of geophysics (Induced Polarisation - "IP") and diamond drilling and the Company is currently negotiating a Heritage Protection Agreement with the Gooniyandi Aboriginal Corporation (the Registered Native Title Claimants for the project area) to establish protocols for on-ground exploration activities at Billy Hills.At the time of writing, negotiations were progressing well with the expectation that an agreement will be reached during September or early October 2018 and Mithril will provide further updates as new information comes to hand.About the Pillara Deposit and Pillara West Prospect (located on ML04/118 which is not owned by Mithril)At the Pillara Deposit, zinc + lead +/- silver mineralisation is hosted by structurally controlled zones of breccia and vein development which are spatially associated with a series of large scale NNE - NNW orientated fault zones that cut a sequence of Devonian-age limestones.The mine had a reported pre-mine resource of 18.05 million tonnes at 7.7% Zn and 2.4% Pb and produced 10.3 Mt @ 6.9% Zn, 2.3% Pb from June 1997 to October 2003 (See Mithril's ASX Announcement dated 21 August 2017). Mining briefly resumed during 2007 / 2008 and the mine site is now closed.The area's prospectivity is further enhanced by the Pillara West Prospect which is located 300 - 500 metres west of existing underground workings at Pillara and 300 metres from Mithril's tenement boundary. The prospect was discovered in 2006 by Lennard Shelf Pty Ltd, the owners of the mine who conducted multiple drilling programs at Pillara West right up to the mine's closure in 2008.Mineralisation at Pillara West occurs within a shallow-dipping zone of mineralised (zinc-lead-marcasite-calcite) rubble limestone breccias and veining, drilling of which has returned multiple intercepts including;- 15.8m @ 6.80% zinc, 3.05% lead, 30g/t silver from 399.8 metres in PD785 including 3.3m @ 11.10% zinc, 5.30% lead, 66g/t silver,- 19.1m @ 7.60% zinc, 2.10% lead, 17g/t silver from 385.4 metres in PDD796 including 11.9m @ 10.40% zinc, 3.20% lead, 25g/t silver, and- 11.0m @ 8.20% zinc, 8.80% lead, 26g/t silver from 347.0 metres in PD802 including 4.0m @ 11.80% zinc, 17.20% lead, 45g/t silver.Historic information, including IP geophysical surveys and drill intercepts referred to in this Report have been sourced primarily from the following open file Exploration Reports available from the WA Department of Minerals and Energy via their WAMEX system;o Progress Report on the Lennard Shelf Lead Zinc Project, West Kimberley Goldfield, WA. Amax Exploration (Australia) Inc. March 1973. WAMEX Report No. A3915o 1993 Annual Report for the Pillara Joint Venture, BHP Minerals. January 1994. WAMEX Report No. 40657o Partial Relinquishment Report for EL04/601. Western Metals April 1995. WAMEX Report No. 44156o 1996 / 1997 Annual Report Group Report Lennard Shelf Project. February 1997. Western Metals Ltd. WAMEX Report No. A50329o 1999 Annual Report Group Report Lennard Shelf Project C326/1997. March 2000. Western Metals Ltd. WAMEX Report No. A60289o 2001 Annual Report Group Report Lennard Shelf Project C326/1997. February 2002. Western Metals Ltd. WAMEX Report No. A64395o Annual Report Group Report C27/2006 Lennard Shelf Project for the period 01 January 2006 to 31 December 2006. February 2007. Lennard Shelf Pty Ltd. WAMEX Report No. A74569. Details of the 2006 Pillara IP surveys have been sourced from this Report.o Annual Report Group Report C27/2006 Lennard Shelf Project for the period 01 January 2007 to 31 December 2007. February 2008. Lennard Shelf Pty Ltd. WAMEX Report No. A77687. Details of the 2006 Pillara IP surveys have been sourced from this Report.o Annual Report Group Report C27/2006 Lennard Shelf Project for the period 01 January 2008 to 31 December 2008. February 2009. Lennard Shelf Pty Ltd. WAMEX Report No. A80938WAMEX can be accessed via: http://www.abnnewswire.net/lnk/89398PGI To view tables and figures, please visit:About Mithril Resources Limited

Mithril Resources Limited (ASX:MTH) is an Australian resources company whose objective is the creation of shareholder wealth through the discovery of mineral deposits.

The Company and its exploration partners are actively exploring throughout the Kalgoorlie, West Kimberley and Murchison Districts of Western Australia for economic nickel, copper, zinc, and vanadium deposits.

In the Kalgoorlie District, Mithril is exploring for nickel on the Kurnalpi, Lignum Dam and North Scotia Projects which lie along strike from, or adjacent to previously mined high-grade nickel at the Silver Swan and Scotia Nickel Deposits.

In the West Kimberley, Mithril is exploring for zinc on the Billy Hills Project which lies adjacent to the previously mined Pillara Zinc Deposit.

In the Murchison, Mithril is exploring for copper, nickel and zinc mineralisation on the Nanadie Well Project and for copper, silver, zinc and lead on the Bangemall Base Metal Project. Mithril's exploration partner  Monax Mining Ltd is also exploring for vanadium on the Limestone Well tenements.
US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley warned Russia and Iran of "dire consequences" if they continue airstrikes against the last rebel-held area in Syria and said the US would respond to any use of chemical weapons.

Russia's ambassador to the UN met Haley's threat with a denial that Syria has any chemical weapons, as the UN secretary-general warned of a potential "bloodbath" during Tuesday's UN Security Council meeting on the crisis in Idlib, Syria.

Biological and chemical weapons Continents and regions Eastern Europe Europe Government organizations - Intl Idlib International relations and national security Middle East Middle East and North Africa Military Military weapons National security Russia Syria Syria conflict Terrorism Terrorism and counter-terrorism United Nations United Nations Security Council Unrest, conflicts and war Weapons and arms Weapons of mass destruction Government and public administration Government bodies and offices Government departments and authorities International relations Military operations Nikki Haley North America Political Figures - US State departments and diplomatic services The Americas United States Iran Armed forces Bashar al-Assad James Mattis Political Figures - Intl

During what was the second session on Idlib in four days, Haley told the council that "the world has seen a clear military escalation" this month by Russia and the Syrian regime, whose forces have conducted more than 100 airstrikes, using "barrel bombs, rockets and artillery" in an attempt to retake the last rebel holdout after more than seven years of war.

Haley accused Russia and Iran of having little interest in a political solution and called their actions those of "cowards interested in a bloody military conquest."

"If Assad, Russia and Iran continue down the path they are on, the consequences will be dire," she said.

"I also want to reiterate what I said last week to the Assad regime and anyone else contemplating the use of chemical weapons in Syria," Haley added. "The United States followed through when we said that we would respond to the use of chemical weapons. We stand by this warning."

Secretary of Defense James Mattis declined to say Tuesday whether the US would take military action against the Syrian regime should it use chemical weapons, but he did say Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad has "been warned."

"I'm not going to tell the world ahead of time what we're going to do. It's just not my style," Mattis said when asked if and what kind of retaliation the US military would carry out should the regime use chemical weapons in its offensive against Idlib.

"I never talk about what would come next," Mattis said. "But I think that you do have to look at the fact that we will abide by the chemical weapons prohibition and support it."

When asked what the US has done to prevent their use, Mattis referred to US, UK and French strikes on Syria after a chemical weapons attack in April. Assad "has been warned," Mattis said. "The first time around he lost 17% of his pointy-nosed air force airplanes. He's been warned. And so we'll see if he's wised up."

'A humanitarian nightmare'

Mattis declined to confirm whether he has been in consultations with the UK or France on any military response.

The crisis in Idlib has the potential to "unleash a humanitarian nightmare unlike any seen in the blood-soaked Syrian conflict," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Tuesday, noting that there are close to 1 million children in Idlib, part of the wave of internally displaced Syrians who fled there to escape violence elsewhere. "Idlib is the last so-called 'de-escalation zone' in Syria," Guterres said. "It must not be transformed into a bloodbath."

The Russian and Syrian strikes have already displaced more than 30,000 people, and forces are targeting hospitals and other medical facilities, Haley said, adding that pro-regime forces are also "conducting ruthless 'double tap strikes' on civilian volunteers like the White Helmets," in which they "strike an area, wait a few moments for first responders to arrive and then strike again."

"The United States is long past taking Russia and Iran at their word that they are genuinely interested in protecting civilians in Idlib from further violence," Haley said. "No matter what type of weapons or methods are used, the United States strongly opposes any escalation of violence in Idlib."

No absolution

During his remarks, Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia repeated the claim that "Syria has no chemical weapons," and said it would be folly on a humanitarian and political basis for the Assad regime to use chemical weapons, as it would prompt the US and others to attack inside Syria.

He also blamed terrorists for forcing the government to move on Idlib, a claim rejected by the US and other nations, which argue that Russia and the Assad regime are using that label to justify the military offensive.

"Fighting terrorism does not absolve warring parties of their core obligations under international law," said Guterres, who directly appealed to Iran, Russia and Turkey to spare no effort to protect civilians, "preserve basic services such as hospitals, ensure full respect for international humanitarian law."

CNN reported last week that US officials have grown worried that an assault on Idlib could involve the use of chemical weapons if the rebels are able to slow regime advances.

The Assad regime has moved armed helicopters closer to Idlib in recent weeks, according to two defense officials. The US is concerned they could eventually be used to launch another chemical attack as well as a conventional assault.

Nebenzia, the Russian diplomat, also summed up last week's summit among Russia, Turkey and Iran as "a major milestone in restoring peace and ensuring lasting settlement in Syria." The three countries had failed to reach an agreement for a ceasefire, however, prompting Sweden and other nations to again warn of a "humanitarian catastrophe" should the Syria government, backed by Russia, wage a military offensive on Idlib, where millions are at risk.

Haley said the failed summit was another indication that Russia, Iran and the Assad regime are not interested in a political solution, telling the council that those parties have "had every opportunity to demonstrate their credibility as constructive actors in Syria."

"Russia, Iran and Assad are demolishing Idlib and asking us to call it peace," she said. "We will know that the Assad regime and its enablers are serious about a political process for peace in Syria not when they repeat their empty promises, but when they act."
Chico, Calif. - "It's like a small town, you have 1,850 kids," said Officer Peter Durfee of the Chico Police Department, as we walk across the Chico High campus before school starts for the day.

He stops to chat with a few students on their way to class.

"You want to give me some love?" Durfee jokes warmly. "You having a good day?" The student nods and says 'hi' with a bright smile.

Durfee is about a month into the very big role he's taken on as the School Resource Officer for all of Chico High.

Previously a detective for the ChicoPolice Department, he says it's been a bit of an adjustment.

"Kids on campus use foul language a lot," Durfee said. "I think it's this age. They think it's cool. I have to put them in check."

What's surprised him so far has been the fast pace of the job.

"You're kind of patrolling?" I asked.

"I am but, it's really about getting to know kids, relationship building," Durfee said.

Competing with Snapchat and Instagram, he says sometimes it's tough to get through to students.

"When they're all on their phones, I like to interact with them. Sometimes I'll go stand right in the middle of them and start talking, just to get them to interact with me," Durfee said.

So far, it seems like he does have a good rapport with many of them.

"I did a debate project on armed teachers last year and this is something that came up - I think it's a security thing and I feel a bit safer now that we have an armed officer just in case anything happens," said one student.

"And I liked seeing him come to our classes," said another student.

"I introduced myself so they know that I'm just a normal person just like there parents," Durfee said.

Durfee wants to do away with that fear that a lot of students have of law enforcement.

"We don't have bad kids, we have kids that make bad choices because they're kids and they're going to do that until they're caught," Durfee said. "And sometimes that teaching method is a suspension, or if it's criminal they have to deal with me."

But he's a real-life policeman, and school resource officers are becoming the norm these days.

The shooting last February in Parkland Florida was the 17th school shooting in the U.S. within the first 45 days of 2018.

"We didn't have cops on campus 25 years ago, but we didn't any of these really bad incidents 25 years ago either," Durfee said. "I want kids to come to school and just worry about school. That's hard enough."

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CHICO, Calif. - A local study is out on Chico's sit-lie ordinance and who it impacts. The study released by Chico State faculty found arrests of homeless people increased significantly after the 2013 sit-lie ordinance was passed.

The hotly-contested sit-lie ordinance passed in 2013 and expired in 2016. It restricted individuals from sitting or lying on public sidewalks, curbs or streets adjacent to commercial properties.

The sit-lie ordinance expired in January 2016. Chico Police presented a proposal earlier this month to reinstate the ordinance at a Chico city council meeting.

The study uses data from the Chico police department from January 2010 to June 2016.

The faculty argues the ordinance was the city council's way of showing it wanted the homeless to be policed.

"I would argue that homeless people are disproportionately affected by this type of law because they don't have an alternative place to sit-lie or store their property. So it's likely it's having a higher impact on our homeless population," said Jennifer Wilking, Associate Professor of Political Science at CSUC.

On Sept. 4, the city council voted to have the city attorney re-draft the ordinance. The attorney will also examine the 9th circuit court of appeal's decision that it was unconstitutional to ban people from sleeping outside if there was no shelter nearby.

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UPDATE 12:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018 - In a new release, the Yuba County Sheriff's Office states that a 15-year-old boy was shot around 8 a.m. on the block of 4300 Martel Drive in Olivehurst.

When police arrived at the scene, they found the boy suffering from gunshot wounds to his arm and abdomen. He was transported to a Sacramento-area hospital and was to undergo surgery for potentially life-threatening injuries.

A suspect, a 17-year-old boy from Olivehurst, is currently in custody.

UPDATE 1:06 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018 - The Yuba County Sheriff's Office has informed the Marysville Joint Unified School District that the precautionary school lock-downs in Olivehurst have been lifted.

Detectives are investigating the shots fired this morning, as one teenage boy has been transferred to a Sacramento-area hospital to be treated for a single gunshot wound.

The Sheriff's Office has confirmed that the shooting did not take place on a school campus. The incident took place away from campus, but a precautionary lock-down was in place this morning to ensure the safety of students.

Stay with KHSL Channel 12 and actionnewsnow.com for the latest updates as they become available.

OLIVEHURST, Calif. - Some schools in Olivehurst are on a precautionary lockdown after police received a report of shots fired nearby.

The Yuba County Sheriff's Department received calls at approximately 8 a.m. this morning of shots fired in the area of Martel Drive in Olivehurst.

The lockdowns at this point are only precautionary due to the proximity of the reported shots to the location of the schools.

Lindhurst High School and Johnson Park Elementary are still on lockdown according to the Yuba County Sheriff's Office.

Stay with KHSL Channel 12 and actionnewsnow.com for the latest updates as they become available.
REDDING, Calif. - Shasta High School in Redding was on high alert on Sept. 10 after receiving an email about a possible school shooting threat.

The threat came from a website used to send anonymous emails.

In a communication sent out to parents, principal Leo Perez said Shasta High was not mentioned specifically.

But they take every possible threat seriously and reported it to police who concentrated their presence on campus today.

We knew this was anonymous, said Redding Police chief Roger Moore. We knew this quite often ends up in a hoax. But we take it very seriously because we don't want the kids to panic. We certainly don't want the parents to panic. And we want people to know that we will treat this seriously. What we did this morning is we assigned our day shift to head out to the school and just provide that blanket of security for folks as they're dropping off their kids.

Moore said these kinds of threats have unfortunately become more and more common locally and across the nation.

Perez said the website used to send the anonymous email was also used to try and shut down schools in Los Angeles and New York City.
It should not be very hard to believe but actor Alia Bhatt cannot stop admiring her handsome boyfriend and actor Ranbir Kapoor. She has posted yet another picture of herself clicked by him on Instagram.

In the picture, Alia is seen having a good time with Ranbir in Bulgaria where they are shooting for their upcoming film, Brahmastra. She is seen in a striped sweater, riding a scooter (childrens toy) and turning around to give the cameraman, Ranbir, a sweet smile. Keep your eyes lifted high upon the sun and youll see the best light in everyone, she captioned the photo and gave credit to RK for clicking it, which we have learnt by now is an acronym for Ranbir.

Ranbir has made Alia his muse in Bulgaria and she regularly shares his clicks on her social media. A few days ago, he took a beautiful picture of her in a red dress. When the angle is right, you gotta do what you gotta do, she had captioned the photo. Alia shared a black and white photo on August 1 which was also clicked by him. & into the forest I go,to lose my mind and find my soul (amaze photographer RK), she had captioned it.

Ranbir has also previously clicked pictures of Alia and her friend Akansha Ranjan Kapoor when she came visiting on their film Bharamastras sets in Bulgaria.

Recently, in an interview with Hindustan Times, Ranbir also spoke about his feeling for Alia and said, Honestly, I am not playing hide-and-seek. I am in a happy, positive and beautiful phase of my life. But you can talk about your personal life only to a degree. Otherwise, it becomes the forerunner of your life and your work takes a back seat. There is always excitement to know about someones personal life. But you want to give the relationship respect so that people dont malign it in a gossipy way. It is something beautiful, sacred and really important to you, so you want to deal with it in a nice manner.

In an interview to GQ in May, Ranbir has revealed for the first time that he is indeed dating Alia Bhatt. Its really new right now, and I dont want to over speak. It needs time to breathe and it needs space. As an actor, as a person, Alia is  whats the right word?  flowing right now. When I see her work, when I see her act, even in life, what she gives is something that Im aspiring to for myself. Its new for us, so let it cook a bit.

In a recent chat with Mumbai Mirror, Ranbirs father Rishi Kapoor spoke about his son and his relationship with Alia. Its Ranbirs life. Who he wants to get married to is his prerogative, he said. Neetu likes her, I like her, Ranbir likes her. Get it? I cant be judgmental. After all, my uncles Shammiji (Shammi Kapoor) and Shashiji (Shashi Kapoor) and I chose our life partners. Ranbir is entitled to choose his, Rishi added

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Amitabh Bachchan is an actor exceptional but when he is seeing other actors work, the viewer in him comes out to the fore. Something similar happened after he watched Anurag Kashyap directorial, Manmarziyaan. The actor has dashed off a letter of appreciation each to two of the films leading actors -- Vicky Kaushal and Taapsee Pannu. The film is Abhishek Bachchans first film after two-year sabbatical.

A DNA report says that Amitabh was so overcome with emotion after seeing Abhisheks performance in the film to give him a feedback. When Abhishek asked his father for his reaction, the veteran actor apparently told him, I will speak to you later. On the same night, he tweeted, There are times when you are so choked with emotion that it is impossible to speak .. or say and express anything .. I am such now .. and there shall be occasion to find out why soon .. !! While Amitabh is yet to give his feedback, others in the fraternity have applauded Abhisheks fine turn in the film.

T 2927 - There are times when you are so choked with emotion that it is impossible to speak .. or say and express anything .. I am such now .. and there shall be occasion to find out why soon .. !!  Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) September 9, 2018

Amitabh, in his letter to Vicky, wrote: I have always admired your work, your versatility in Manmarziyaan is exceptional. He also sent a bouquet of lovely lilies. Sharing the letter on his social media handle Vicky wrote: This means the world to me! Thank You @SrBachchan Sir for this hand written letter of appreciation and bouquet #Manmarziyaan.

This means the world to me! Thank You @SrBachchan Sir for this hand written letter of appreciation and bouquet  #Manmarziyaan pic.twitter.com/TL3wYZvVwO  Vicky Kaushal (@vickykaushal09) September 11, 2018

Taapsee, who has worked with Amitabh in Shoojit Sarkars Pink in the past and is working with him again in Sujoy Ghoshs Badla, was ecstatic to get one as well. Sharing a picture of her with the letter and a bunch of flowers, she wrote: Finally! This letter! A milestone achieved. In it, she can be seen lying on the floor with the letter in her hand wearing a smile on her face.

Finally !

THIS LETTER !

A milestone achieved ! pic.twitter.com/RnmqgkFEJ2  taapsee pannu (@taapsee) September 10, 2018

Manmarziyaan, set is small town Punjab, is the story of love, lust, marriage and ex-lovers, all rolled into one heady mix. Manmarziyaan is a love triangle, a genre that Anurag isnt associated with. After the films preview in Mumbai Kalki Koechlin, who was married to Anurag in the past, tweeted that she could hardly believe that Anurag had directed a romantic comedy. While called Vicky and Taapsee, lightning, she had dubbed Abhishek as Mr Darcy.

Sharing her disbelief, she had tweeted: I cant believe you made a rom-com @anuragkashyap72 @vickykaushal09 and @taapsee are lightning and @juniorbachchan is the modern day Mr Darcy. #releasing14thSep.

In the past too, he has shown his appreciation for the work of other actors and sent letters to Ayushmann Khurrana, Kangana Ranaut, Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Randeep Hooda.

Amitabh has many interesting films in his kitty -- he will be seen in Badla and is also a part of Ayan Mukerjis Brahmastra. Taapsee, whose work in Mulk has been appreciated, has Badla and Tadka in her kitty. Vickys graph, which has only seen an upward swing after the successes of Raazi, Sanju and Lust Stories, will prepare for his next, Takht, the ambitious new project of Karan Johar. He will also be seen in Uri.

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Shahid Kapoor on Wednesday said that he has had to pull out of his upcoming film, Batti Gul Meter Chalus promotions because of the recent birth of his son and the his daughter Mishas ill health. The actor took to Twitter to share that he puts his family and children above all else and hopes to resume promotions for the film.

The last few days have been tough, he wrote. Misha running very high fever and Zain just came home. Have had to miss some promotions. Just 9 days to go for Batti Gul Meter Chalu to release but being a parent is above all else. Hope to resume promotions very soon.

The last few days have been tough. Misha running very high fever and Zain just came home. Have had to miss some promotions. Just 9 days to go for Batti Gul meter chalu to release but being a parent is above all else. Hope to resume promotions very soon.  Shahid Kapoor (@shahidkapoor) September 12, 2018

Shahids wife, Mira Rajput, gave birth to their son last week at Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai. The couple was photographed taking the newborn, named Zain Kapoor, home a few days later. Several visitors including Shahids immediate family were spotted visiting them at their home. Shahids mother, Neelima Azim, half-brother Ishaan Khatter, father Pankaj Kapoor and his wife Supriya Pathak paid a visit to the new parents.

The couple also has a two-year-old daughter Misha, who Shahid said was also running a fever. Grandmom Neelima spoke to SpotboyE about Zain and said, Shahid and Mira now have a complete family. I am in the best phase of my life. Misha has been the love of my life ever since she was born. And now, Zain joins her. He is a beautiful child. We all have toiled very hard in our lives and now just reaping happiness.

She continued, He is gloriously good-looking. I see a bit of everyone in him. He will turn out to be as handsome as his father and chacha (Ishaan).

Talking about Misha, she added, Misha and I form a great energetic team, we have so much of We time together. Misha is also learning dancing, kathak seekh rahi hai. And after Misha and now Zain, I have so much of love, gratitude and forgiveness in my heart. I feel so good and happy.

Meanwhile, Batti Gul Meter Chalu, directed by Shree Narayan Singh and co-starring Shraddha Kapoor, will release on September 21.

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Before we debate the human or legal aspects of the Tamil Nadu governments recommendation to free those convicted for Rajiv Gandhis assassination, we must understand their reasons for doing so. They have no sympathy in their heads, nor any bleeding hearts. They are playing cynical, awful, ethnic politics. It borders on being anti-national.

To begin with, its an obscene notion that Indian Tamils somehow sympathise with Rajiv Gandhis assassins, or see them as victims. There was a radical stream of Dravida politics in India when the LTTE ruled Jaffna, with notions of pan-Palk Strait Tamil nationalism. It was small, but noisy. The two Dravida parties, especially the DMK, willingly courted them for votes. The viciously competitive ethnic politics of Sri Lanka played out in India.

Soon enough, though, leaders of both ADMK and DMK started fearing Prabhakaran and the LTTE. A series of murderous terror attacks, including on Meenambakkam airport, Madras, (in 1984, 33 killed), were carried out by these terrorists from Sri Lanka. Nobody would, however, question them.

The lowest point came when Karunanidhi refused to welcome the IPKF soldiers returning by ships to (then) Madras port. He said he couldnt go to welcome the killers of his Tamil brethren. The Indian state had the weakest interlude in its post-Independence history then, with V.P. Singhs daily-wage government dependent on the DMK. It also needs to be noted that it was during this period that a senior RAW officer in Colombo, caught spying for Indias adversaries, was mysteriously freed. The belief is that V.P. Singhs government succumbed to DMK pressures. That character was played by Prakash Belawadi in Shoojit Sircars Madras Cafe.

Rajivs assassination, in the summer of 1991, came when the entire Tamil Nadu establishment was under LTTEs sway. In one of those awful, awful ironies, by choosing the place and the manner of his death, Rajiv Gandhi destroyed any sympathy for the Lankan Tamil cause. Henceforth, both DMK and ADMK made occasional noises, but both really wanted Prabhakaran dead. Thats why both made a few perfunctory protests but quietly applauded  with great relief  as Mahinda Rajapaksa concluded his brutal destruction of LTTE in the summer of 2009 even as the Indian election campaign was on.

It was on Indias request (on the suggestion of the TN government) that Rajapaksa delayed the news of Prabhakarans death till the Indian vote count was over. With Prabhakaran and the LTTE, one of the gravest terror threats to the subcontinent had ended. Remember, the cult of the suicide bomber was invented by that evil man decades before al-Qaeda or ISIS were even born. And he made ordinary Tamils, including young women and children  even pre-teens  blow themselves up to assassinate the enemies of their living God, Prabhakaran himself.

That is precisely how he killed Rajiv Gandhi and 14 other innocent Indians with him. Besides a tragedy for the families, it was a great humiliation for India that a malevolent terrorist cult from overseas could assassinate a recent former prime minister of India in the course of an election campaign he was set to win, because he had a score to settle with him.

The entire Indian system, all parties, BJP included, buried all differences on that day and decided to work for the LTTEs destruction. No sovereign nation can survive if it allows foreign terrorists to walk in and assassinate its key public figures. It will then be impossible for its future leaders to decide fearlessly in the national interest.

No political party has also politicised that assassination except, sadly, the Congress itself. The late Arjun Singh persuaded the Gandhi family to believe that without Sonia Gandhi, the Congress under Narasimha Rao and later Sitaram Kesri was not interested in unravelling the larger conspiracy behind the assassination, with the DMK then an ally in the United Front government supported by the Congress. He used a dim-witted judicial commission report, loaded with insinuations and no evidence, to get Sonia Gandhi to bring down that government. Of course, soon enough, it was forgotten. The Congress and the DMK were back to being friends and coalition partners. They still are.

The woman human bomb in the Rajiv case died. Some other conspirators were killed in a later encounter. The rest of them, convicted through a due process of trial and appeals, are serving life sentences. If anybody now raises questions about their conviction, as the usual suspects did with Afzal Guru and Yakub Memon, they ought to be ignored, as in the past. If you lay such store by due process, you must respect it too. Or, you strengthen the case for capital punishment and even encounter killings.

These jailed conspirators are fortunate to escape hanging. They should remain in jail. The Gandhi family may or may not forgive them, but they have no locus standi. We are a constitutional state, not a feudal or tribal one with blood money justice.

I am quite sure the BJP government at the Centre will toss this recommendation back with contempt. Because if it doesnt, it will no longer be able to call itself a nationalist government. Not with a clear conscience or a straight face.
Day Two of Delhi governments doorstep delivery of services scheme saw some improvement in quality of facility, with over 11,000 people managing to get their calls connected, against Mondays 2,728 callers.

From 11am on Monday to 5pm on Tuesday, the total number of calls connected stood at 13,783. However, the count of callers who actually managed to speak to a customer executive remained low at 4,758.

This prompted chief minister Arvind Kejriwal to direct the project team to further increase operators and phone lines of the number 1076, calling on which the service can be availed. From Wednesday, the number of operators will be 150 who will man 200 phone lines. We launched the service on Monday with 40 operators and 50 phone lines, which was increased to 80 and 120 respectively on Tuesday, said an advisor to the CM.

To ensure timely delivery of services, Kejriwal told officers and ministers that any violation of time limits prescribed in the scheme will be taken very seriously and disciplinary proceedings will be initiated against the guilty officer and even the head of the department in some cases.

Government data stated that compared to the first day, when 2,728 calls got connected, Tuesday was better with 11,055 calls getting connected. But, the rate of success in these calls remained low. Out of the 11,055 calls only 3,472 were answered. On Monday, 1,286 such calls were answered. Rest of the calls were on waiting and are being called back. SMS were sent to a total of 8,101 callers whose calls were not answered and are in the process of being called back, the government said in a statement.

The total number of appointments fixed for different services to be availed by Delhiites was 624 till 5pm. Of these, the doorstep delivery team already visited 74 households till Tuesday evening.

For the second consecutive day, the maximum request (302) came for services under the revenue department. Caste, domicile, income and marriage registration certificates, which the scheme covers, fall in the purview of the revenue department.

However, there was no data available on which service was the most sought-after. Transport (289) and food and civil supplies (102) followed the revenue department in popularity.

Kejriwal on Tuesday held a review meeting . The chief minister said no request should be rejected without the authorisation of the minister concerned, the government said in a statement.
A Delhi Police head constable was shot dead near his house in southeast Delhis Jaitpur late Tuesday. Police are yet to make an arrest in the case, officials said.

According to senior police officers, beat constable Ram Avtar, who was posted at Ambedkar Nagar police station, had returned home around 8:30 pm after his duty.

Locals say Avtar left his home for some work around 11:40 pm A few unidentified men shot him. He was rushed to a hospital by local men but died during treatment, said a senior police officer.

Avtar lived in Shakti Vihar of Jaitpur with his family.

Police are scanning CCTV footage from the neighbourhood to identify the accused. They are also investigating whether Avtar had enmity with anyone in the area and are questioning family members and colleagues, the officer said.

A case of murder has been registered under section 302 Indian Penal Code.
The fate of 23 candidates will be decided on Wednesday when Delhi University (DU) students cast their votes for this years students union elections. The DU Students Union (DUSU) polls are critical for all political student groups as it sets the stage for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

DUSU elections are contested for four posts  president, vice president, secretary and joint secretary. This year, the Congress student wing National Students Union of India (NSUI) is hoping to improve its last years tally of two  it got its candidates elected to posts of president and vice-president.

Meanwhile, RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP), which won the lower slots of secretary and joint secretary last elections, is pushing hard to regain lost ground.

At least 2.5 lakh students are registered to vote this year. However, the polls saw a 43% voter turnout last year.

Members of both the groups confirmed that through the DUSU polls they have been trying to set the electoral mood among the youth before 2019 elections. While the NSUI said it is considering the DUSU polls as election of prestige, the ABVP also using the polls to promote the ongoing schemes of the BJP such as the Ek Bharat Shresth Bharat programme at the campus.

The DU has also witnessed a new alliance of the Left-backed All India Students Association (AISA) and the Aam Aadmi Partys students wing Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS). This alliance has promised to ensure installation of CCTV cameras, setting up of police booths on campus, ending the culture of hooliganism and opposing commercialisation of education.

Launched in 2014, CYSS had contested the DUSU elections in 2015, but could not win even a single post. Since then it had opted out of DU politics the last two elections. In their manifestos, both ABVP and NSUI appear to have raised more national issues rather the campus centric issues.

For instance, NSUI has campaigned around its demand for an Institute of Eminence status for the DU. NSUI had, however, opposed the move when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre granted it to other six educational institutions.

Similarly, ABVP has also promised a Bharat first agenda in its manifesto. The student group also promised to convince the DUs teaching community to introduce special lectures and programmes to promote nationalism among students.

The DU has installed around 700 electronic voting machines (EVMs) across 52 colleges and departments affiliated with the DUSU. While, the polling at morning colleges will be held between 8am and 1pm, evening colleges will vote from 3pm to 7:30pm. The results will be announced on Thursday.

Officials at the university, however, said that the timing might be extended if the voter turnout is low.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Police on Tuesday registered a case against unidentified persons in connection with a vandalism incident at Zakir Hussain (evening) College, a day ago.

DCP (central) Mandeep Singh Randhawa said they received a complaint from NSUI alleging that a group of students forcefully entered the college premises and created ruckus on Monday. We have registered a case under section 427 (mischief causing damage) of IPC against unknown persons and investigations are under progress, he said.
Chico, Calif.- "She likes to hold hands," said Nevada County dog-owner Cassidy Fisher. "She'll come and find us on the sofa and we just hold paws."

Arbor has an amazing life these days. But the 10-month-old Alaskan Malamute has a pretty scary back-story.

Arbor was one of 70 puppies - 97 total dogs - rescued from a home in Yankee Hill last January.

"I saw a video of all the puppies in one cage - they were dirty, really sick," Fisher said. "Luckily she was young enough when they pulled her out that they were able to bring her back to health."

Butte County Animal Control turned the dogs over to the Northwest SPCA in Oroville while they conducted an animal cruelty investigation.

So many dogs had been living confined in a small space. Many were sick with Giardia or Coccidia - diseases an animal gets from consuming feces.

Now, Arbor is recovering and full of life.

"The day we got her they told us she was gaining a pound a day," Fisher said. "We got her and she was eating fine. [She was] happy, healthy, a normal little puppy. I think she was just really wanting to be loved."

Of course, she still carries some scars from her past.

"She's really food-aggressive," Fisher said. "She'll go and bury her food. Not that she's aggressive with us, but she seems to be afraid that the food will go away."

The investigation outraged animal lovers and made news across the state. Pro-surfer Kelly Slater spread the word about the puppies' plight on social media.

Butte County Public Health says Slater played a huge role in raising money for their care and in getting them adopted.

Authorities collected what they needed to bring charges against the original owner, Crisitina Tosi, Butte County resident.

Tosi now faces six counts of animal cruelty, her trial date pending a psychological evaluation.

"This was such a sad thing," Fisher said. "I know a lot of dogs died, so I think there should be some sort of justice taken in that sense, but there's only so much you can do when someone's mentally ill."

Tosi failed to appear in court at the initial hearing, then last week when she was scheduled to be arraigned, her defense attorney asked for a 5-week evaluation period to determine her "mental and cognitive abilties."

The Butte County Deputy District Attorney says Tosi will appear back in court on Oct. 18.

If she's found unfit to stand trial, they'll get her the help she needs to become fit. That means she will be prosecuted, eventually.

Butte County Animal Control say this story may be shocking, but it's not that uncommon, so if you see or suspect something, report it!
A group of parents held a protest outside a private school in north Delhi on Tuesday over the alleged sexual assault of a three-and-half-year old nursery student last week, which they alleged was committed by someone at the school.

Around 100 protesters, including the girls family members, demanded the arrest of the principal and other school officials over their alleged negligence. More than 50 police personnel were deployed at the site to maintain law and order.

According to the parents, on September 4, the mother noticed a blood stain on the childs undergarments after she came back from school. She immediately informed the father and they took the child to a hospital.

The hospital confirmed that my daughter was sexually assaulted. She did not go anywhere other than the school. We raised the matter with the school and have informed the police. But, nobody listened to us, the father said.

The girls family alleged that the police have been trying to shield the school. The police have not arrested anyone from the school as of now. They do not understand the trauma we are going through, the girls father said.

School authorities, meanwhile, denied any involvement in the incident.

We have examined the CCTV footage of the day and the girl was looking happy and cheerful throughout the day. Her father had dropped and picked her from the classroom itself. There was no sign of disturbance on her face. The allegations against the school are absolutely baseless. We have sympathy with the parents. She is our child as well, said the schools spokesperson.

Deputy commissioner of police (northwest) Aslam Khan said a case under section 6 (sexual assault) of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act was registered on September 5, the same day the girls parents filed their complaint. The FIR, however, does not name the accused.

We checked the CCTV footage of the school and spoke to the staff. Nothing suspicious has been found against them. As of now, we have not given a clean chit to the school or to anybody in the girls family, her relatives or neighbours. Our investigation is underway, said Khan.
A leopard may not to able to change its spots, but the same cannot be said about its microchip.

An exchange of animals between the National Zoological Park in Delhi and Naya Raipurs Nandan Van zoo has gone horribly wrong, with the Delhi zoo alleging that the two leopards it got from Chhattisgarh are not the two it had been promised, according to officials familiar with the developments.

The Raipur zoos response is that the leopards are the same, but they were just marked with the wrong microchips.

We got the wrong leopards. The numbers on the microchips that were inserted in the animals tails for identification are different from the ones that were specified in the exchange programme. The leopards also seem to be younger than the ones we had selected. We are planning to identify their exact age through a DNA analysis, said RA Khan, curator of Delhis National Zoological Park. The leopards are the same as was mentioned in the agreement. Only that they were marked with the wrong microchips, asserted JK Jadia, assistant veterinary surgeon of Nandan Van zoo, who was part of the team that brought the leopards to Delhi.

Carnivores such as lions, tigers and leopards and big herbivores such as elephants have microchips inserted in their bodies for identification purposes  like an Aadhaar number for animals.

This is not the end of the problems between the two zoos.

The Raipur zoo has said five out of the 50 blackbucks that were sent to it from Delhi in August, in exchange for the leopards, had died within three days of reaching their new home. We had loaded the blackbucks onto a truck, and they reached the Raipur zoo three days later. Five of the antelopes died because of heavy rain. The rest reached safely, said Jadia.

Both blackbucks and leopards are given the highest level of protection in India  like tigers and elephants  and are listed under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act.

Following the confusion, the Central Zoo Authority (CZA), the apex body for monitoring zoos across India, in a letter addressed to the authorities of the Delhi zoo, threatened to put on hold all approved animal exchange programmes. The letter, a copy of which is in possession of Hindustan Times, alleged the Delhi zoo violated guidelines and protocols laid down by the CZA for transporting captive wild animals.

We are not at fault for the wrong leopards coming in. We had followed all guidelines. The Raipur zoo officials had all of a sudden come down to Delhi with the leopards. We have already replied to the CZA, said Renu Singh, director of the National Zoological Park.

HT tried contacting DN Singh, the member-secretary of CZA, but calls and messages went unanswered.

The Delhi zoo recently got an approval from CZA to undertake one of the largest animal exchange programmes. Nearly 200 animals, including tigers, hippos, rhinos and various species of birds, are listed for exchange.

The National Zoological Park in Delhi is the only zoo in India to be directly administered by the Union government. It has already come under the scanner of the Delhi high court after a PIL was filed mentioning a series of irregularities and controversies, including suppression of animal deaths, illegally capturing animals to replace the dead, expired drugs being administered to animals, illegally procuring Ketamine and portions of a rhino horn going missing. The PIL was filed based on at least eight reports by the CZA and other agencies filed since 2016. Rajesh Gopal, a former member of secretary of CZA, said: The authority has laid down guidelines, which are also available on their websites, and should be strictly followed.
Less than a week after the inaugural 2+2 dialogue between New Delhi and Washington, India participated in a key meeting with Iran and Afghanistan in Kabul on Tuesday that focused on consolidating economic cooperation, counterterrorism and the Afghan peace and reconciliation process. The meeting, at which India was represented by foreign secretary, Vijay Gokhale, was held a day after the third meeting of the India-Afghanistan joint working group on political and security cooperation.

Both meetings were significant for a number of reasons. India has already signalled it intends to play a key role in the reconstruction of Afghanistan without putting any boots on the ground. It has pledged more than $3 billion in aid since the ouster of the Taliban regime in late 2001 and is implementing several development projects across Afghanistan that have earned it tremendous goodwill among ordinary Afghan citizens.

New Delhi has also overturned its policy of not supplying lethal military equipment to Kabul and has provided or underwritten deals for providing gunship helicopters. Clearly, India is in for the long haul in Afghanistan, as it needs to be, to keep an eye on and counter the machinations of Pakistan which eyes the war-torn nation as key to its flawed strategic depth policy.

Equally significant was the first tripartite meeting of India, Afghanistan and Iran, coming as it did in the immediate aftermath of the 2+2 talks, during which New Delhi and Washington discussed the American sanctions on Iranian oil imports that will kick in on November 4. Top US officials have said no decision has been made as yet by the Trump administration on India-specific waivers to these sanctions.

However, the tripartite meeting in Kabul, though scheduled much in advance, can be perceived as signalling by India and Afghanistan of the importance they attach to their ties with Iran, as well as the strategic significance of the Chabahar port. Iran is expected to hand over control of a part of Chabahar to India within a few weeks, following the resolution of certain technical issues, and the port is already playing a key role in Indias efforts to access Afghanistan by bypassing Pakistan.

If nothing else, these meetings indicate India is willing to forge an independent path in its relations with Afghanistan and Iran, even as it continues its engagement with the US, especially in defence and strategic matters. A closer embrace of the US does not necessarily mean India will align its foreign policy with the priorities of the Trump administration. That, ultimately, will best serve Indias interests.
When Madhya Pradesh police arrested him from Bhopal last week, they thought they had detained a tailor-turned-petty criminal. But soon the man confessed to having killed at least 33 truck drivers over the past eight years in his quest to make more money, police claimed on Sunday.

Not just that Aadesh Khambra, 48, claimed he had carried out contract killings too and had worked with more than half a dozen inter-state gangs.

Khambra was arrested two weeks ago near Bhopal, police officer Rahul Kumar Lodha said Wednesday.

On August 12, a truck laden with 50 tonnes of iron rods left the Mandideep industrial area for Bhopal but it was reported missing. A private company lodged a complaint in this regard. Later, police found the body of the truck driver Makhan Singh in Bilkhiriya area and also recovered the empty truck from Ayodhya Nagar in Bhopal on August 15. Police arrested seven people, who sold and purchased the iron rods. The arrested persons told the police about Jaikaran Prajapati who in turn named Khambra as the brain behind the crime. Police arrested Khambra from Mandideep, said Lodha.

Khambra told police he would befriend drivers in roadside eateries and slip drugs into their food so they would fall asleep, Lodha said. He would then drive their trucks to isolated areas, strangle them and their helpers, and dump the bodies in forests.

He and his accomplices would then sell the trucks and their goods, Lodha said.

Bhopal police has written to its counterparts in the other three states to get information about blind murder cases involving truck drivers and cleaners.

The state police also sent teams to Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and other parts of MP to track down the gangs with which Khambra was involved.

According to police, Khambra started out as a tailor in the Mandideep Industrial area, 25 km from Bhopal. In 2010, he came in contact with a gang from Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, and joined them for earning more money. Initially, his work was just to befriend truck drivers and invite them to a roadside liquor party. Later, he started killing the drivers and cleaners by giving them sedatives. He was arrested by the Nagpur police in 2014 but was released on bail, police said.

Khambra told police that he used to get Rs 50,000 for every case. When he joined the gang, his motive was to earn money but a few years ago his son met with an accident and he had to take loans for his treatment. He got involved in more crimes to repay the debt, as per his confession, said Lodha.

Other than truck drivers and cleaners, he also killed a man from Hoshangabad at the behest of a contractor who paid him Rs 25,000, police said.

The SP said the police were cross-checking all his claims.

Khambras family, which lives in a shanty in Mandideep, did not visit him on coming to know about his arrest.

Initially, we didnt think that Khambra was a serial killer given his calm and composed nature. But later, his revelations were shocking to us. He has no regret for what he has done. We are interrogating him with the help of a psychologist, Bhopal (south) superintendent of police Rahul Lodha said.
A 45-year-old businessman found dead in his home in a posh Ahmedabad neighbourhood on Wednesday left a three-page suicide note blaming dark forces for his death and that of his wife and teenage daughter, police said.

Kunal Trivedi was found hanging from the ceiling while his wife Kavita (45) and daughter Shreen (16) were found lying on the floor in one of the bedrooms, said Naroda police inspector and investigating officer HB Vaghela.

Trivedis mother Jayshreeben, 75, was also found unconscious in the house when police broke open the door of their flat Avni Sky apartment on Wednesday morning after being alerted by the familys relatives. The relatives, police say, got suspicious when their repeated calls to the Trivedis went unanswered.

Investigators are trying to determine if Trivedi killed his wife and daughter before hanging himself or if the deaths are the result of a suicide pact.

The bodies have been sent for post-mortem. And we are also waiting for the forensic science laboratory reports to reach any conclusion, Vaghela said. Trivedis mother, who was admitted in a hospital, is in critical condition.

The three-page suicide note was written in Hindi and addressed to Jayshreeben in which Trivedi blames dark forces for the tragedy, Vaghela said. Everyone called me alcoholic ... I never drank out of my will  the dark forces took advantage of my weakness ... but mother you did not understand me  If you would have understood on the very first day then my life would have been different today  word suicide was never found in my dictionary  many a times I told you about dark forces  but you did not believe me, Trivedi had written in the note, according to police.

Trivedi also said the family wasnt in any debt or facing any financial issues in the note, Vaghela said, adding that there was no mention of a tantric.

A case of accidental deaths has been registered.

According to police, Trivedi earlier worked with private sector insurance companies, but recently started his own cosmetic products business.
Finance minister Arun Jaitley dismissed fugitive tycoon Vijay Mallyas claim that he had met the minister before flying out of the country in March 2016 and offered to settle his unpaid loans.

The minister said Mallyas version is factually false and does not reflect the truth.

In a Facebook blog, the minister described his only interaction with him as a one sentence exchange when the liquor baron misused his privilege as a Rajya Sabha member in parliament complex.

He paced up to catch up with me and while walking uttered a sentence that I am making an offer of settlement, the minister recalled, adding that he did not allow Mallya to proceed with the conversation as he had been briefed about his earlier bluff offers.

I curtly told him there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers, the minister said, underscoring that he had never given an appointment to Mallya after 2014.

Arun Jaitleys rebuttal comes hours after Mallyas claim that he had met the minister before leaving the country in 2016 triggered a political firestorm.

The opposition quickly interpreted the statement to imply collusion between the government and the business tycoon.

But after the ministers strong denial, Vijay Mallya started back peddling.

This is a totally unnecessary controversy created by friends in the media. I met Mr Jaitley in Parliament and told him I was leaving for London, that I want to settle loans and would he facilitate. Mr Jaitley did not say anything, Mallya said.

Vijay Mallya, 62, is wanted in India for defaulting on loans worth crores and money. The liquor baron who founded the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines, fled to the UK in 2016 when a group of banks launched efforts to recover around Rs. 9,000 crore from him.

Outside the Westminster Magistrates court where he is fighting Indias request to the UK, Vijay Mallya said he left the country for Geneva for a scheduled meeting and wasnt escaping the law.

Inside, the embattled businessman has repeatedly disputed the fraud allegations and claimed that it was the governments decision to seize his assets that prevented him from settling the loan.
Congress general secretary Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday hit out at Amit Shah over the language the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief used in his address to a gathering in Jaipur on Tuesday. Gehlot asked Shah to set his house in order.

Shah had attacked the Congress in poll-bound Rajasthan over its criticism of the draft National Register of Citizens in Assam. He had said that the criticism showed the Congress is more concerned about its vote bank rather than the countrys security. Shah also said the Congress did not have a leader in Rajasthan.

He (Shah) is a national party chief but despite announcing and using all his force to make Gajendra Singh Shekhawat the BJP state president, he had to go back on his decision, said Gehlot. He claimed that Shah had to bow down to Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje. What right does such a person have to tell the Congress what to do?

Gehlot called Shahs language cheap. He is not aware of the Rajasthani culture. Such language is not used here... When the national party chief uses such language, what can we expect from the others?

Referring to Shahs statement on winning the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and remaining in power for the next 50 years, he said, They have no faith in democracy... Win one more time, change and slay the constitution and rule for 50 years like in China and Russia. The statement shows their fascist thoughts.

Gehlot said the mood was in favour of the Congress.

BJP state spokesman Mukesh Pareek said Shahs statement on ruling for 50 years was made in the context to the partys success in elections across the country. He rejected Gehlots objection to Shahs language.
The Cabinet on Wednesday unveiled three policy options to ensure farmers get federally determined minimum support prices (MSPs) for their produce, a move critical to the governments efforts to check rural angst due to poor agricultural returns, ahead of crucial state elections later this year and a general election next year.

The schemes are essentially designed to effectively intervene in agricultural markets by way of procurement, which refers to the governments purchase of commodities at prices profitable to farmers in situations when markets fail them.

The policies also envisage, for the first time, the role of private firms in acting as a buyer on behalf of the government on a trial basis. The government has branded the schemes PM Annadata Aay Sangrakshan Abhiyan  PM Aasha (PMs food producers income protection campaign).

The government has faced a challenging situation brought on by poor prices of items such as pulses, soya, milk and oilseeds, arising from bumper produce and the collapse of food prices around the world, hurting farmers in many states. Ahead of crucial elections in Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and MP slated for November-December, the schemes announced Wednesday are aimed at reinforcing the governments assurance, made in the 2018-19 Budget, that it would guarantee farmers profitable prices anchored in MSPs.

This is a historic step and demonstrates our commitment to farmers, agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh said.

The government sets MSPs for 24 crops that are meant to act as a profitable, base price. However, over the past two years, market prices have trended well below these benchmark thresholds in many crops  the root cause of farm distress. In July, the government sharply hiked MSPs for 14 crops, setting each of these at a minimum of 1.5 times the cost of cultivation, the highest increase under the present governments tenure.

The first policy option announced Wednesday is the so-called price support scheme, an ongoing programme, which will now receive more funding. Under it, the government procures farm produce directly from farmers at MSP rates when market prices dip below MSP. The second option is the so-called price deficiency scheme, which MP experimented with as the Bhavantar scheme. Now this will be replicated nationally. Under this, if the selling price of a farm produce goes below the modal price  a kind of an average price  then farmers are paid the difference between MSP and the actual price, subject to a ceiling. The third proposal, called the private procurement stockist scheme, is to deploy private firms to buy farm produce at MSP, store them and sell them on behalf of the government when markets crash. The government will pay the firms a service charge of up to 15% of the MSP for a specified crop. The rules and modalities of this scheme have yet to be made public.

According to official data, Nafed, the central agency tasked with procuring directly from farmers at MSP, purchased 6.34 million tonnes of pulses and oilseeds from about 3.5 million farmers till June. To undertake these operations, the agency needs bank guarantees, essentially lines of credit from public sector banks. The agriculture minister said for 2018-19, the government has guaranteed 16,500 crore, taking up the total amount in the past four years to about 45,550 crore. How much each of the three schemes will receive in funding is yet to be decided.

It is a step in the right direction. But the government must manage the risks... the Bhavantar scheme has been found to be manipulated by traders to suppress prices artificially. So, district collectors have to be robust in cracking down on potential cartelization, said economist T Haque, former chairman of the Commission for Agriculture Costs and Prices.
Despite a debt of Rs 49,000 crore, the Himachal Pradesh government plans to buy six sport utility vehicles (SUV) worth Rs 34 lakh each for its ministers and upgrade the governors Mercedes Benz car to Rs 76-lakh executive class model.

The Jairam Thakur government, which had pledged to observe austerity after inheriting a debt of Rs 46,000-cr nine months ago, will start by phasing out six of the 12 Camry cars being used by its ministers and replace them with the Toyaota Fortuners.

An official of the general administration department (GAD), requesting anonymity, said the 12 Camry cars worth Rs 23 lakh each, bought for ministers during the previous Congress government led by Virbhadra Singh, are now worn out. Six ministers have written to the GAD demanding SUVs as they are better suited for hill roads than luxury cars, the official said.

The ministers said the Camry cars had exceeded the mileage of 2 lakh kilometres fixed by the government and were not fit for kutcha stretches. On official trips, they said, they had to visit villages connected with kutcha (unpaved) stretches and Camry cars had low ground clearance.

The six ministers who wrote to the government are tribal affairs minister Ram Lal Markanda, social justice minister Dr Rajiv Saizal, education minister Suresh Bhardwaj, urban development minister Sarveen Chawdhary, rural development minister Virender Kanwar and health minister Vipin Singh Parmar.

The terrain in my constituency is tough and a luxury car is unfit for it. I have asked the state government to replace it with a Fortuner, says Markanda, who represents Lahaul and Spiti.

The decision to replace the cars was taken when Saizals car broke down while he was touring Kasauli recently, another government official said.

Besides CM Jairam Thakur, who rides a Fortuner, the government provided SUVs to transport minister Govind Singh Thakur, power minister Anil Sharma and food minister Kishan Kapoor last month. Irrigation and public health minister Mahender Singh and industries minister Vikram Singh Thakur use the Fortuners the government inherited from the Virbhadra Singh regime.

The Congress government had a fleet of 12 Camry cars, two SUVs for ministers and two Toyota Fortuners for Virbhadras cavalcade.

Arun Sharma, the principal secretary to governor Acharya Devvrat, says the Mercedes, bought in 2013, has run its stipulated 2 lakh km and needs to be replaced. It is proposed to replace it with the executive class variant that costs Rs 76 lakh.

Meanwhile, it has been learnt that the GAD had placed the matter before the state cabinet recently, however it was not taken up for discussion in the meet held last week . Now, the matter is expected to be brought up for discussion again in the next cabinet meet.
The Congress on Wednesday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government over reports suggesting that the Army may cut 1.5 lakh jobs to save between Rs 5,000 crore and Rs 7,000 crore and divert that towards capital expenditure for modernising the armed forces.

Hindustan Times had reported on Monday that the Indian Army was likely to cut more than 1.5 lakh troops over the next four to five years under an overarching cadre review that seeks to sharpen the forces effectiveness and prepare it for future wars.

Four concurrent studies are underway in the army covering wide-ranging issues including downsizing, improving the armys tooth-to-tail ratio, revamping different verticals, cutting down the size of the army HQs, enhancing career prospects and other organisational reforms. Currently, the armys revenue expenditure stands at 83%, leaving only a measly 17% available for modernisation.

If it is true that the defence ministry has a proposal that it wants the Indian Army to shed 1.5 lakh jobs, then isnt the Modi government guilty of destroying more jobs ? 1.5 lakh families will be severely affected by this decision, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi told reporters.

Questioning the proposal, he said it was in the BJPs DNA to seek political mileage from martyrdom of soldiers.

If the government can spend Rs 5,000 crore in the last 4.5 years on publicity of the Prime Minister, why cant it spend that same amount for weaponry and ammunition for our armed forces? Singhvi asked.

The government, however, rebutted the allegation, calling it unfortunate. An official said, No proposal for reducing the strength of the defence forces, as alleged by the Congress, is under the governments consideration. Unlike its predecessor, this government has taken specific and decisive steps to translate into action its commitment to ensuring the countrys defence and security.

Government has attached the highest priority to modernising armed forces, the official added.
DEPOE BAY, Oreg. - Two people were killed after two massive waves swept them into the ocean at Depoe Bay in Oregon on Sept. 9.

Authorities say that a man, woman and their 10-year-old child climbed down a cliff to lower rocks. The husband was posing for a photo when a wave snuck up on him and swept him out to sea.

Minutes later, another wave hit pulling his wife into the ocean.

None of the victims survived. Their 10-year-old daughter was able to safely climb back up the cliff and was not hit by the wave.

State police say that this sort of incident occurs more often than it should, and they are issuing a warning for people living nearby.

"Always know the ocean conditions," said lieutenant Cari Boyd of the Oregon State Police Department. "Don't go out into rock outcroppings like this because the water is incredibly unpredictable and a wave can come up at any time."
A Mahadalit man in Bihars Madhepura district was forced to bury his wife inside his house after his neighbours did not allow him to cremate her on their land in the village where there is no community crematorium.

Harinarayan Rishidev, a landless daily wage earner in Kewatgama village under Kumarkhand block, said his wife Sahogiya Devi, 35, fell ill on Sunday and died a day after.

She was suffering from diarrhoea. When no villager was ready to allow cremation on their land, I decided to bury her in my house, the 40-year-old said.

The incident highlights the plight of Indias most backward and marginalised minority, who were previously known as untouchables and many continue to suffer social deprivation and economic exclusion.

Mahadalit is a special category created by the Nitish Kumar government in the state comprising the poorest among the Dalits.

Harinarayan said landless people are denied a life with dignity and even in death they are deprived of a dignified cremation or a burial.

I do not want this to be repeated with my other landless brethren, he said demanding a separate community cremation ground in every panchayat.

Former village head Bechan Rishidev echoed Harinarayans grievances.

The oppressed, landless Scheduled Caste people cant rest in peace even after death. Harinarayans agony should move the government and they should immediately come up with corrective measures else we would be forced to launch a peaceful agitation, he said.

Karo Devi of the same village said by burying his wife in his house, Harinarayan has exposed the plight of millions of Scheduled Caste people in the country where they are denied their basic rights.

Madhepuras sub-divisional officer (SDO) Brinda Lal, who along with Kumarkhand circle officer rushed to the village after being informed about the incident. We are going to the village and after holding talks with the villagers and panchayat mukhiya, a piece of land will be identified for a cremation, Lal said.

The assurance, however, did little to pacify the agitated locals. Kailash Rishidev of the same village felt a concerted effort is needed to protect the basic minimal rights of the dead.

I fail to understand why the government till now has failed to take a substantial step to give honour and dignity to our dead, he questioned.

The government claims that it will provide us land and jobs but we are sceptic about their hollow claims and false promises, the former village head Bechan said.
A Dalit watchman was on Monday allegedly beaten to death in Madhya Pradeshs Shivpuri district by a group of 13 people who had encroached upon a plot land allotted to him by the state government in 2002. All the accused are absconding, a police official said.

The crime took place at village Khislauni in Bamorkala police station in Shivpuri, 312 kilometers north of Bhopal.

The police station in charge RR Tiwari said Ramsevak Parihar, 50, who happened to be a village kotwar (watchman) was on his way to his agriculture field from his house when the accused attacked him with sharp edged weapons and lathis. Parihar, who was injured in the attack, was rushed to the district hospital at Shivpuri by his son Dharmsingh and other family members but he was declared brought dead.

The police officer said, Son of the deceased told us that the state government had allotted 10 bigha of land to his father in 2002. In 2005, the accused, including Kallu Yadav, Kashiram Yadav, Punjab Singh, Dasiram, Mahesh, Shankar, Santram, Rajkumar and others, encroached upon the land. His father lodged a complaint with the revenue court, which decided the case in his favour in 2012. The encroachers, however, didnt vacate the land.

The victims son told reporters that his father had been facing a threat to his life. He claimed that his father had also complained to several authorities in the district against the accused but didnt get any help.

However, the police officer said it was only last month that the police arrested two of the accused under section 151 of IPC on the complaint of the victim and asked them to submit bonds stating that they would not indulge in any crime against the victim. Police have registered an FIR against the 13 accused under various sections of the IPC and the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Facing life threats to pay up the money he owed for a heroin consignment, a 25-year-old man in a village in West Bengals Murshidabad handed his father to the narcotics dealer to extract ransom, police said.

The incident took place in Ganeshpur village, about 270 km to the north of Kolkata. Though officers of Lalgola police station in Murshidabad managed to rescue abducted Motiur Rahaman (45) on the night of September 7, his son Senjarul Sheikh is on the run.

According to locals, Senjarul Sheikh, who is associated with peddling heroin for a long time, took a consignment from Mahasin Sheikh, a resident of Baishnabnagar in the neighbouring Malda district about six months ago. He was supposed to pay Rs 4.5 lakh for the drug, but could not pay up.

After ducking payment for a few months, Senjarul Sheikh got life threats from the network. Then he allegedly hatched a plan to pawn his father and extract ransom to pay off the drug dealers.

Accordingly, in the last week of August, he took his father to Baishnabnagar in the pretext of filling up a form to build a mosque in his native village and handed him over to the members of the racket.

On August 31, Rahamans family lodged a complaint with Lalgola police station. On September 2, his wife got a ransom call demanding Rs 15 lakh to release her husband.

Police, which registered an abduction case against some unknown persons, found out that the son was directly associated with the planning of the crime but he and his associates managed to flee when police raided the hideout where Rahaman was held captive.

We have rescued Motiur Rahaman from Panchitola village under Baishnabnagar police station area from the den of the narcotics dealers on September 9. However, he isnt ready to lodge any complaint against his son for abducting him to extract ransom, Biplab Karmakar, the officer-in-charge of Lalgola police station, said.

The officer said the father is a pious man and though he is unhappy, he is ready to forgive his son.

On Monday, Rahaman was produced before a Lalbagh court and later handed over to his family.

However, he isnt ready to comment on the episode. You have heard everything. I have nothing else to add, he said.

Karmakar said that police were conducting raids for Senjarul Sheikh and others who were connected with the abduction.

Lalgola is known as the hub of heroin in West Bengal. In the last one year, more than 50 kg of heroin has been seized from different spots under Lalgola police station area.

The heroin trade in the area has its origins more than two decades ago when there was no fence along the India-Bangladesh border close to Lalgola. Local narcotics dealers used to supply heroin to links in Bangladesh and several other areas of India.

Later a crackdown from police forced the trade to gradually shift to Kaliachak and Baishnabnagar in neighbouring Malda.
Six people were killed and eight critically injured when a liquid methane tanker exploded at a petrochemical factory in the Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday, the police said. One person was reported missing after the explosion.

Bijnor superintendent of police (SP), Umesh Kumar Singh, said the incident took place at Mohit Petrochemicals factory on Nagina road under the Kotwali city jurisdiction when workers were repairing the tank.

The impact of the blast was so intense that bodies of the victims flung several metres away, eyewitnesses said.

Singh said six labourers died on the spot while eight others were rushed to the district hospital where their condition is said to be critical.

Those killed have been identified as Kamalveer, Lokendra, Ravi, Chetram, Vikrant and Bal Govind.

The SP said a first information report (FIR) was registered against the factory owner and management under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code and other sections on a complaint by family members of the dead workers.

A separate inquiry is being conducted into the cause of the accident and possible lapses on the part of the factory management, the SP said.

Singh said rescue operation was already underway and a heavy police force has been deployed at the site to avert any trouble as hundreds of people, including locals as well as the labourers families, gathered at the spot after the incident.

Locals alleged the accident took place as the labourers were asked to repair a leak in the tank without emptying it first. They demanded action against the factory owners for risking the labourers lives.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, condoled the deaths and directed the officials to make necessary arrangements for those injured in the incident.

In November last year, 29 people were killed and over 100 injured after a boiler unit of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) exploded in the states Rae Bareli district.

The owner of the petrochemicals factory, Kuldeep Jain, termed the deaths in the tanker blast unfortunate.

Jain said he, along with factory officials, were doing everything possible to help the families of the workers killed or injured in the incident. He said the officials were in touch with the families.

Suresh Panwar, the plant head, said the factory had been closed for the last three months for repair and maintenance. The staff doing the repair work on Wednesday morning were professionals, he said.

They had carried out similar repair and maintenance works many times in the past. But what happened today is still a matter of investigation, said Panwar.

Mohit Petrochemicals was incorporated on July 21, 2003. The factory is located in the Firojpur Hafiz village of Mohammadpur Deomal tehsil in Bijnor district.

The plant manufactures extra neutral alcohol (ENA), special denatured spirit and rectified spirit from molasses.

Kuldeep Jain and his family are promoters of the company. The family is also involved in manufacturing rubber tubes and paper. It is also engaged in the field of education. The board comprises two active directors, Kuldeep Jain and Anjali Jain.
Former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa on Wednesday said much water has flown under the bridge since certain foreign powers and domestic forces played a part in his electoral ouster in 2015. He underscored the importance New Delhi held for Colombo in a lecture he delivered here on India-Sri Lanka ties.

Later in the day, Rajapaksa met Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Rajapaksa did not name any foreign power. He had earlier blamed Indias external intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing, for conspiring with Western agencies to rally the opposition under incumbent President Maithripala Sirisena against him.

Rajapaksa had said he did not believe Modi or his government played a role in his ouster. The Modi government had been in power for less than a year when Rajapaksa lost the 2015 election. Rajapaksa had said the plan to bring opposition together might have been hatched long ago.

The manipulative dimensions of foreign powers and domestic forces played a part in the change. Then, much water has flown under the bridge, he said. Rajapakasa, who had maintained close ties with China, had famously said that India is a relative while others are mere friends. He rejected the allegations that the war his government had fought against the LTTE targeted the minority Tamil community. There have been propaganda and misrepresentation of facts. Let me make it very clear that the war my government had led was against terrorism. It was not aimed at targeting any community, he said. It was aimed at total eradication of terrorism. It was for making the country better, safe and prosperous for everyone. Rajapaksa claimed the loss of human lives in the military conflict was exaggerated. Had we not cared for the human lives, we could have finished the war much earlier. In that case, we could also have saved the lives of many of our soldiers.

He thanked India for its moral support for the fight against terrorism that had spread beyond the shores of the island nation and claimed former Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhis life. In May 2009, Rajapaksas government brought an end to the three-decade-old civil war in Sri Lanka amid allegations of rights abuse. The LTTE fought to create an independent Tamil state called Tamil Eelam in the north and the east of Sri Lanka that led to the bloody civil war.
Bihars deputy chief minister, Sushil Kumar Modi of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), spoke to Kumar Uttam about the perception of a decline in governance standards in the state, the BJPs balancing act between different caste groups, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) challenge, and the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Excerpts:

There is a perception that governance has taken a hit in Bihar in recent years. Is this true?

The blackboard was blank when we came to power for the first time. There was no governance. Even a small achievement looked big. Now people dont compare this government with Lalu Prasads. They compare us with our first tenure. The perception problem is because of this. The image of the government got affected because of incidents such as the shelter home scandal and the topper scam. But people know the government is not involved, and there is not a single case where an accused has been protected. Governance was affected during the four years when the BJP was out of power. Now, it is getting back on the track. The BJP and the JD(U) (Janata Dal-United) are natural allies.The Lalu-Nitish alliance was unnatural, and died naturally.

Why has Bihar lagged on the industrialisation front?

It was always a challenge in Bihar because of land. The state has the highest population density in India and land holdings are small. Law and order, electricity or incentives were not the problem. Land will always remain a challenge in Bihar. We are promoting agro-based industry.

Has prohibition added to your governance woes?

No, there is a huge positive impact of prohibition. No government in future can afford to roll it back. Any government that will dare to reverse the decision will have to go. There is revenue loss, but crime has dropped. Women are happy. A marriage procession, which earlier used to take four hours, is now over in 45 minutes. We have an open border with other states. We will have to remain vigilant.

Is there a challenge for the government on the job-creation front?

The impression about jobs is about getting a government job. They are limited. No country can absorb everyone in government. If you provide jobs to 70 people, there will be 30 others who will be left out. The way this government has taken up skill development programmes and self-employment promotion has never happened before. Job opportunities have increased over the last few years.

An effort is being made by the Opposition to cobble up a grand alliance. How will it impact the 2019 elections?

The grand alliance crumbled in Bihar after Nitish Kumar joined us. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has 65% votes and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)-led alliance has just 35%. Narendra Modi and Amit Shah have weaved a perfect social equation. The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) account for 70% of population. They were not our traditional supporters, but they voted for Modi in 2014 and subsequent elections. The steps taken by Modi have benefitted this segment. The next fight is going to be, Modi versus who? There was a grand alliance against Indira Gandhi in 1971, but it did not succeed. I believe 71 will be repeated in 2019.

Do you see Tejashwi Yadav emerging as a challenge for the NDA in Bihar?

Tej Pratap Yadav (Lalus elder son) is emerging as a more powerful leader than Tejashwi (younger son). The way Tej Pratap talks and makes a speech, he gets more applause than his brother. Tej Pratap is the natural political heir to Lalu Prasad. Tejashwi Yadav is embroiled in several cases. The family feud you saw in Mulayam Singh Yadav family in Uttar Pradesh, it is happening in Bihar too. A fight is bound to happen between the children of Lalu Prasad.

While the BJP has got support from new segments, there is a fear that its traditional voters might drift away because of the governments decision to restore provisions of the SC/ST act.

Cognisance should be taken about the concerns and confusion among the upper castes. The SC/ST act is the mask -- the real issue is reservation. The upper castes feel it is eating into their job opportunities. Can the Congress say that it is against the SC/ST act?

Has the BJPs political expansion scared its allies?

Chandrababu Naidu left the NDA because of local compulsions. Why would Nitish join us if allies had problem with the BJP? Some join, and some leave. It is a natural phenomenon. Some people also left the NDA during Atal Bihar Vajpayees government. Some of them returned.

Is seat sharing among NDA allies going to be a problem in Bihar?

The JD(U) has said the discussion is going on in an amicable environment and it will be concluded soon.
A gold tiffin box and other antiques stolen from Nizams Museum in Hyderabad were recovered on Tuesday by Hyderabad police and two persons were arrested, Police Commissioner Anjani Kumar said on Tuesday.

The artefacts belonging to Mir Osman Ali Khan, the last Nizam of the erstwhile Hyderabad state were stolen from the Nizam Museum at Purani Haveli in the old city in the early hours of September 3.

Among the recovered items were a gold tiffin box studded with diamonds, a cup and saucer, and a spoon studded with rubies, diamonds and emeralds. The two robbers were tracked in Mumbai, where they were staying in a luxury hotel.

Interrogation of the accused revealed that one of them used the golden tiffin box weighing more than two kg for having food every day. Interestingly, they have not made any attempt to sell the stolen goods, which would have fetched more than 50 crore in the international market for their antique value, sources in the Hyderabad police said.

We have arrested two persons who had resorted to theft and recovered the entire stolen property this morning, Hyderabad police commissioner Anjani Kumar told HT.

The arrested were identified as Mohd Ghouse Pasha alias Khooni Ghouse (25), a construction labourer, and Mohammad Mubeen (24), welder, both relatives from Rajendranagar area.

The commissioner said 15 special teams were formed to probe the theft and track the whereabouts of the culprits.

The Nizam Museum, established in the year 2000, comprises more than 450 artefacts which were gifted to the seventh Nizam during the coronation of his silver jubilee in 1937. It also houses some other valuable objects belonging to his father Mir Mahboob Ali Khan, the sixth Nizam.

The museum is also home to Nizams cars including 1930 Rolls Royce, a 150-year-old manually operated lift and wardrobe of seventh Nizam, who was the richest man in the world in 1930s.

The police said burglars broke open the wooden ventilator of the museum and got into the hall using a rope. The closed circuit television camera (CCTV) near the ventilator, which was meant for keeping a surveillance on the museum shelves, appeared to be deliberately twisted to ensure that nothing was recorded.

However, the police recovered the footage from the CCTV cameras outside the museum, which showed two masked persons coming out of the adjacent building and riding a bike. The cops tried to track them down with the help of the mobile phone data collected from the nearby towers, as the pillion rider on the bike was found speaking on his mobile with someone.

A couple of days later, the police found an abandoned bike at Zaheerabad on Hyderabad-Mumbai highway. Subsequent enquiries in Mumbai led to the whereabouts of the two accused who were staying at a star hotel in Mumbai.

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Five years ago, I woke up in a government hospital in Kolkata with a dull pain in my stomach. I realized it wasnt a physical ailment that was causing this, but a kind of hollow emptiness. I had failed my fourth attempt at taking my life. Since I was discovered by the police, a case was filed. Luckily, it wasnt pursued and my frail parents were spared further harrowing times, and unpleasant legalities. Instead, I was asked to undergo counselling. The advice that I was given was both, mundane and puerile. I was told to adopt a baby, as that would solve my clinical condition. Hearing this, barely a week after I had survived an attempt, made me feel worse.

Till recently, suicide attempts were considered a crime as per section 309 of the Indian Penal Code. In 2011, the Supreme Court recommended that the Parliament should consider deleting this section. Though IT still remains, the new Mental Healthcare Act 2017, which was notified in May, has decriminalised suicide attempts. The new Act is a step in the right direction, as it normalizes a suicide survivors condition by not putting them in the way of the police and such traumatic situations.

Being a survivor, I am particularly happy about this, as I do not think of suicide as a crime. This notion in fact, comes from a religious-moralistic view that looks at suicide as an act of criminal intent against ones own self, which in turn, is seen as a crime against God. But what this viewpoint ends up doing is creating an artificial binary, between a criminal self and a victim self and this is certainly not helpful for suicide survivors.

I have been hospitalized for six attempts since I was 36; twice, Ive missed death by a fraction. Some suicide attempts may be spontaneous responses to events like failing an exam, or facing abuse over a period of time, but that is not my story. In my opinion, a definitive cure does not exist. Suicide attempts are mostly born out of long-standing ideations.

This is why it is very important that a survivor visit a psychiatrist, because the diagnosis of any underlying condition, if there is one, is the first step towards healing. Taking proper medication for it is the second. I have been a dysthymic (now referred to as Persistent Depressive Disorder) and bipolar patient with pronounced suicidal tendency for almost 18 years. Without psychiatric help I would have not been able to function as normally as I do now.

Of course, while professional help is important, long-term treatment depends on those who live with you: close friends, family, parents, or partners. For them to just being there, not advising/ sermonising to you, but listening to you, is a great source of support. The best sort of counselling is when family and close friends are also included in the process. It is here that they can learn to identify tell tale signs in the survivor, like if they are always feeling like crying, getting irritated easily, behaving erratically, or suddenly going completely quiet.

There is a mistaken assumption that attempting suicide is a kind of attention-seeking. This is a harsh and inhumane assessment. Sometimes, taking ones own life could even be a sign of protest against a prevailing socio-political condition. The cases of self-immolation during the Mandal agitation or, more recently, the extremely tragic suicide of Dalit student activist Rohith Vemula, are cases in point.

Surviving a suicide may bring relief to family members, but the survivor often feels remorse. On top of that is the burden of shame and stigma. Ive found that talking about being a survivor, especially with others who are survivors too, is helpful to counter such stigma. In Kolkata, I was part of a survivors group: we all felt that we understood each other, even when we werent being rational. Listening to someones experiences is therapeutic too. Survivors need to talk about their experiences because sharing helps them unburden themselves and feel less alone. When people really understand you, you feel happy.

Personally, I have also learnt to make a habit of not thinking about some things. At first this was not easy, especially if something that I found very painful happened. For me, suicidal ideation has also declined after finding romantic love. Feeling responsible for someone, caring for someone else, has certainly helped me. We all need to learn that there is a point to living, and all of us are worthy, in whatever way it takes.

(The author, 54, is a professor of history at Rammohan College, University of Calcutta)

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Months before the assembly elections in Rajasthan, ticket seekers have started plastering constituencies with their posters to draw the attention of leaders who will decide their fate for the party ticket.

There are 11 assembly constituencies in Alwar district. In 2013, BJP won nine of them, while Congress and independent candidates won one each.

In Thanaghazi, posters of Alok Sharma, national spokesperson of the Congress, are dotting the constituency. Sharma is from Bhiwadi and has an engineering degree besides Masters in business management, his posters mention.

I have been working in Thanaghazi for two months. I have got good response during my visits. People are fed up with Meena and Gujjar candidates and are looking for a change, Sharma said.

Among other ticket seekers from the constituency are Sunil Bohra, Kailash Sharma and Urmila Yogi, who lost the assembly elections.

Former additional chief secretary Ashok Sampat Rams wife, Simrat Kaur, is the new entrant in the politics of Kishangarh Bas. Her father-in-law, Sampat Ram, represented the constituency many times. My father-in-law was instrumental in building infrastructure in Alwar post 1952, Kaur said. I accompanied him during the election campaigns and looked after the constituency under his guidance. The constituency was then called Khairthal. I have been in touch with people even after his death, she added.

Among other contenders from Kishangarh Bas are former MLA Mahendra Shastris son Manish Chaudhary, Balram Yadav and Bharat Yadav. However, Kaur said she has the best chance for a Congress ticket from here due to her political background.

Simran Kaur hopes to get a Congress ticket from Kishangarh Bas constituency. (HT )

The poster war for the Congress ticket appears to be the strongest in Tijara, where former minister Taiyyab Hussains son Fazal Hussain has been active in the constituency for five years and could offer a challenge to former health minister AA Khan alias Durru Mian.

In Mundawar, after the death of Major OP Yadav, who was elected MLA from the constituency in 2013, his wife Kavita Yadav is seeking the Congress ticket. She is pitted against Rohitash Chaudhary, Rajendra Yadav and Neemrana Panchayat Samiti pradhan Savita Chaudhary for the ticket.

In Behror, Baljit Yadav, who recently joined the Congress, is leading the poster war. Youth Congress president Sanjay Yadav, Saroj Yadav and Suman Yadav are also the potential candidates.

In Alwar City, Shweta Saini, who lost the municipal council polls by a narrow margin, could be the partys bet. However, political experts believe giving ticket to a Saini (Mali) could garner the communitys support for the party in all 11 constituencies.

Candidates put up posters for Eid and Raksha Bandhan wishes.

All India Congress Committee secretary Jitendra Singh said the party cannot stop people from putting up posters to stake claim for the party ticket. Pradesh election committee will decide the criteria for candidates. Some agencies are doing surveys about the candidates and this will also be taken in consideration. But tickets will be given on merit only, he said.
Amid the rising clamour on the Rafale deal, the Indian Air Force Chief, Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa, on Wednesday said by acquiring the French fighters the IAF was strengthening its depleting fleet.

By providing the Rafale and the S-400 (anti-missile system), the government is strengthening the Indian Air Force to counter the shortfall of our depleting numbers of aircraft, he said at an event here.

#WATCH What we do not have are the numbers, against a sanctioned strength of 42 squadrons, we are down to 31. Even when we do have 42 squadrons, we will be below the combined numbers of two of our regional adversaries:Air Force Chief Birender Singh Dhanoa in Delhi pic.twitter.com/DKa6sQHDva  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Pointing to IAFs strength coming down to 31 squadrons from the sanctioned strength of 42, Dhanoa said India faced a shortage of fighter aircraft despite the threat of a two-front war with Pakistan and China.

Very few countries are facing challenges like us. We have two nuclear-armed neighbours.We have to match neighbours Pakistan and China to tackle a two-front war, he said.

The IAF chiefs comments come a day after former Bharatiya Janata Party ministers Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie alleged Prime Minister Narendra Modis personal culpability in the Rafale deal which they dubbed as the countrys biggest defence scam.

Earlier this month, the IAF Vice Chief, Air Marshal S.B. Deo too, had endorsed the Rafale, deal saying the aircraft will give India unprecedented combat capabilities.

Besides BJP rebels Sinha and Shourie, the Congress led by its President Rahul Gandhi has been relentlessly attacking the Modi government over the jet deal that was announced by the Prime Minister in 2015.
India and Russia are expected to hammer out a deal for four more Krivak/Talwar class stealth frigates for the navy in October when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and president Vlamidir Putin meet in New Delhi for an annual summit between the two countries,two senior officials familiar with the matter, said on Tuesday.

Two of the warships will be constructed at the Yantar Shipyard in Kaliningrad and the remaining two at the Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL).

GSL chairman Shekhar Mita, a retired rear admiral, said the two countries have completed the groundwork for signing the deal.

After the contract is signed, Russia will take four years to deliver the two warships. We will take six years to build the first warship and one more year to deliver the second, said Mital, who was part of an Indian delegation that visited the Yantar Shipyard in August.

India inked an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) with Russia for the four frigates in 2016. The navy currently operates six stealth frigates  three Talwar class and three Teg class  bought from Russia and inducted between 2003 and 2013.

The new Grigorovich-class Project 1135.6 frigates will be powered by gas turbine engines to be supplied by Ukrainian firm Ukroboronproms Gas Turbine Research & Production Complex Zorya-Mashproekt.

Several Russian delegations have visited GSL and are satisfied with the facilities there.

The two countries are also likely to sign a Rs 39,000-crore deal for the supply of the Russian S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems to India during the summit, brushing aside Washingtons concerns about the purchase. The S-400 is capable of destroying jets, missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles at a range of 400km.

Washington has already flagged concerns about the S-400 purchase, saying it complicates interoperability between Indian and American forces, amid US sanctions against Russia.

India is in talks with the US to secure a sanctions waiver as its military is heavily dependent on Russian equipment. The US understands our concerns. They know there are legacy issues, said an official on condition of anonymity. India and Russia are also exploring ways to bypass the American sanctions.
A businessman in Ahmedabad allegedly killed his wife, teenage daughter and poisoned his 75-year-old mother before committing suicide late last night. Kunal Trivedi, 45, in a three-page suicide note blamed dark forces for his extreme step, police said.

Kunals mother Jayshreeben, who is battling for life in a hospital, was found in an unconscious state when police broke open the door of their flat in upscale highrise  Avni Sky.

In one of the bedrooms, bodies of his wife Kavita(45) and daughter Shreen(16) were lying on the floor. The body of Kunal was hanging from the ceiling, said police officials, who were called by the relatives of the Trivedi family.

The relatives, police say, got suspicious when their repeated calls to family members were not answered.

In Kunal Trivedis three-page suicide note, he said that he wanted to give up alcohol but couldnt as he was under the influence of dark forces. His letter also said that he was taking the lives of his family members under the influence of the same energies.

I never drank out of my will. The dark forces made me drink. I tried to surrender myself to our deity, but it didnt help, the note said.

Police have registered a case of murder and suicide against Kunal and began the investigation.
A 19-year-old student of the Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University allegedly committed suicide by hanging herself in her hostel room on the campus, police said Wednesday.

Alinkrita Kashyap, a resident of Kannauj and a student of second year B.Sc (Biotechnology), was found hanging in her hostel room, Station House Officer, Kalyanpur, Satish Singh said.

According to preliminary investigation, the girl was depressed after failing to clear an exam, police said.

The SHO said a suicide note has been recovered from the hostel room.

According to Kashyaps roommate, she left the hostel at 6.00 PM Tuesday to get water. When she returned, she found the door locked from inside and informed University authorities.

In the suicide note, the girl had stated that no one was responsible for the extreme step taken by her and none should be harassed by police, the SHO said.

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In the wake of a countrywide outrage against his remark calling a nun who accused the Roman Catholic Bishop of Jalandhar Franko Mulakkal of sexual assault a prostitute, Kerala legislator PC George on Wednesday withdrew his statement saying it was an emotional outburst but did not apologise for it.

I deal with issues emotionally. It was a slip on my part and I should not have used the word and withdraw summarily what I said in the press conference in Kottayam a couple of days back, he said. George however added he will stick to other charges he raised against the nun of Jesus of Missionary Congregation.

While defending the accused bishop, the Kerala lawmaker had verbally abused the victim and cast aspersions on her. Terming her a prostitute, he had asked why she had waited till the 13th attempt before complaining. In her police complaint, the nun had said she was raped and forced to unnatural sex by the bishop 13 times between 2012 and 2014.

Taking exception to his remarks, the National Commission for Women had asked him to appear before it on September 20, but George had brushed aside the summons. He said he will appear before it in Delhi if the commission gives him travel allowance, otherwise the chairperson can come and meet him in Kerala.

Angry over Georges comments, some social activists have started a #Vaaymoodal (Shut Your Mouth) Campaign on Facebook, urging people to send cellophane tape to the legislator so he can keep his mouth shut. Many took to it on social media in a big way, making it viral in a short span of time.

Later, some more belligerent ones started another campaign #VaayaMoodeadaPC and it also turned a bit hit. Many actors, activists and leaders trolled George, who is notorious for his controversial outbursts, with some saying his gutter mouth needed a thorough cleaning to check foul smell.

Meanwhile, the investigating team probing the nun assault case met in Kochi and reviewed the investigation progress and the course ahead. The high court had directed it to furnish all details of investigation. While hearing the case, a bench headed by Chief Justice Rishikesh Roy had observed that the investigating officer had filed an affidavit in the court on August 13 saying an initial inquir, had shown the allegations against the bishop were true and asked the government what actions were taken after this.

Facing much criticism for delaying the arrest of bishop, police are likely to summon him for questioning in Kerala. Attacking the police for favouring the accused, the victim had said though she was questioned at least seven times by the police, the bishop was questioned only once.

The Kerala Regional Latin Catholic Council has disowned the Jalandhar bishop. We wish he should have quit long back. Allegations against him are personal in nature and not against the church. By sticking to his position, he is inviting enough shame for the whole community, said council spokesman Shaji George in a statement.
Sadasivan Nair borrowed an old tyre tube from his truck driver friend and rushed to help people as flood waters inundated many areas of Chengannur in Keralas Alappuzha district last month.

Nair, a lottery-seller-and tea stall worker, saved at least 30 people with the help of the tube. The 58-year-old, however, suffered an injury to his right eye during one of the missions while removing a branch of a tree entangled with the rescue vehicle.

Nair is undergoing treatment at the Alappuzha medical college and hospital and doctors say he might lose vision in at least one of his eyes. He has undergone a minor surgery but doctors say he needs another to help regain his vision. Since the infection has spread to the other eye, he has to undergo the surgery right away, they say.

While getting operated at a government hospital is an option, he will have to wait for his turn and the surgery in a private hospital is likely to cost Rs 150,000 and he cannot simply afford to pay. Nair says he is the only bread-earner of the family and now seeking the help of good Samaritans.

Read: For 8 days IAS officer toiled at Kerala relief camp without revealing who he was

He owns just a small parcel of land and his main income comes from selling government lottery tickets. Nair has three children, two boys and a girl, and his second son has a speech impairment.

The ones whom he saved are equally poor like him with all their worldly possessions destroyed in the worst-flood of the century that claimed more than 400 lives last month, destroyed thousands of homes and caused at least Rs 20,000 crore worth of damage. The floods were very severe especially in Chengannur and Pandanad areas where Nair rescued most of the people.

Doctors say that his condition has aggravated as he delayed getting a treatment. However, his family members say he was in slushy floodwaters helping others despite receiving injuries thus aggravating his wounds.

A good swimmer, he was in the water for two days. He got himself admitted to the hospital on the third day when the pain aggravated. The injured eye is partially blind now and doctors said the other eye has also been infected, says his son Anukrishnan.

Read: Kerala pens history by writing notebooks for flood-hit children

The former legislator of Chengannur PC Vishnunath said Nairs situation has come to their notice and the administration will help him out.

I was really moved after hearing his plight. A committed man, I know him for many years. His selfless service wont go unnoticed. We will help him in whatever way is possible, Vishnunath, who is also a All India Congress Committee secretary, said
After Nepal decided to skip the first ever BIMSTEC military exercise in India, its newly appointed Army Chief Purna Chandra Thapa has declined an invite by the Indian Army to attend a conclave of army chiefs of the grouping on September 16, official sources said.

The militaries of BIMSTEC member nations, barring Nepal and Thailand, began a week-long anti-terror exercise at Aundh near Pune on Monday to enhance cooperation in dealing with the challenge of terrorism in the region.

Each participating country has sent its troops as well as a three-member team as observers. Though Nepal and Thailand are not participating in the exercise, both the countries sent observers for it.

The Indian Army has organised a conclave of army chiefs of the participating countries on September 16, and barring Nepal, all the countries have accepted the invitation.

They said Nepals Gen. Thapa conveyed to the Indian Army his inability to attend the conclave as he has prior engagements including ceremonial events to attend in his country, the sources said. Gen. Thapa was sworn in as Nepals Army Chief on Sunday.

The development comes in the backdrop of Chinas growing overtures towards Nepal for deeper economic and security cooperation. Last month, Nepal had announced that it would participate in a military exercise with China.

The sources said hat Thailand conveyed to India that it will send a senior military official to attend the conclave.

The BIMSTEC is a regional grouping comprising Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal. The grouping accounts for 22 per cent of the global population, and has a combined gross domestic product of USD 2.8 trillion.

Indian Army officials said the exercise is focused on boosting inter-operability among the forces and exchanging best practices to contain terror-related activities.

They said the long-term goal of the initiative is to explore possibility of creating a viable regional security architecture to deal with the challenge of terrorism and transnational crimes.

The exercise is taking place nearly two weeks after leaders of the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) countries, in their summit talks in Kathmandu, resolved to join hands to combat the scourge of terrorism effectively.

India has been pushing for making the BIMSTEC a vibrant form for regional collaboration as cooperation under the SAARC (South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation) framework was not moving forward.

Citing continuing support to cross-border terrorism from Pakistan, India has been maintaining that it was difficult to proceed with SAARC initiative under current circumstances. BIMSTEC excludes Pakistan.

During the Kathmandu summit, the leaders deliberated on a range of issues including ways to effectively deal with terrorism and radicalisation.
The Indian government has failed to provide any substantial evidence to justify extraditing tycoon Vijay Mallya from Britain to face fraud charges, his lawyer told a London court on Wednesday.

India wants to extradite 62-year-old Indian businessman from Britain to face criminal action relating to loans taken out by his defunct Kingfisher Airlines and Indian authorities want to recover about $1.4 billion they say Kingfisher owes.

In her closing submission, Mallyas lawyer Clare Montgomery told Londons Westminster Magistrates Court that India had failed to provide enough evidence to form a prima facie case against him necessary to warrant his extradition.

Its undermined and set to nought by their own evidence, she said.

The Indian government says Kingfisher took out a series of loans from Indian banks, in particular the state-owned IDBI, with the aim of palming off huge losses which Mallya knew the failing airline was going to sustain.

It argues Mallya, who moved to Britain in March 2016, had no intention of repaying money it borrowed from IDBI in 2009 and the loans had been taken out under false pretensions, on the basis of misleading securities and with the money spent differently to how the bank had been told.

Montgomery said the evidence she and the Indian government had provided showed Kingfisher (KFA) had been clear about what the loans were for  to secure the airlines viable future  and that it had been open about its losses.

Full and complete and accurate information was provided and I can demonstrate that, Montgomery said, saying suggestions that there was a secret package of knowledge about Kingfishers financial position which was not provided to IDBI were utterly unfounded.

She said Indian authorities had relied on testimony from people who were not involved at the time of the loans and they had failed to show any false statements had been made.

The idea that this was a carefully thought out dishonest strategy promoted by him in the knowledge that KFA was bound to fail is just nonsense, Montgomery told Englands Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot who will decide the case.

This is a financial disaster for him as much as the banks.

The Indian governments Enforcement Directorate, which fights financial crimes, is seeking to declare Mallya a fugitive economic offender and to confiscate 125 billion rupees worth of his assets.

Mark Summers, the lawyer acting for the Indian government, said it was not their case that Mallya had taken out the loans intending that the airline should fail, but his intention was if it did, he would not have to repay them.

He said the optimistic message Kingfisher had given the bank about its future when it took out the loan was not even vaguely consistent with a much more downbeat internal assessment.

The case is due to conclude on Wednesday with Arbuthnot expected to deliver her decision at a later date.

(This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.)
Nearly two decades after the launch of the Kaladan multi-modal link project, president Ram Nath Kovind will hand-over the India- developed Sittwe port in Rakhine to a state-designated operator in Myanmar in December, a move that opens Indias landlocked north-east to the Bay of Bengal through Mizoram as well as provide alternative connectivity to Kolkata without goods taking the circuitous route through the Siliguri corridor.

Senior South Block officials told Hindustan Times on condition of anonymity that the Sittwe port will allow Indian goods to be taken through the Aizawl-Zorinpui-Palletwa axis to the navigable part of the Kaladan river. It is from Palletwa that the barges will be used to ferry Indian goods to the Sittwe port. The Indian plan to develop Sittwe port was conceived during the previous NDA regime with then Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh piloting the project. The port will be handed over to Myanmar by President Kovind, who is scheduled to travel to Myanmar in second week of December.

The port is part of Indias larger efforts to develop its North-East by simultaneously developing its neighbouring countries particularly Bangladesh and Myanmar. After the decision to link Agartala and Akhaura in Bangladesh by rail line this month, New Delhi and Dhaka are now working towards extending this link to Chittagong port so that Indian goods are exported to other destinations much faster and at a cheaper transportation costs. Another aspect of Indias support to development in Bangladesh will be the September 18 announcement of a 130-km kilometer high speed diesel pipeline from Numaligarh refinery unit in Silliguri to Parbatipur deport in Bangladesh.

Costing ?346 crore, the HSD pipeline will be constructed in 30 months and transport up to one million metric of diesel a year to Dhaka. Although India has been supplying HSD through rail rakes to Bangladesh since 2017, the pipeline will reduce transportation costs and make diesel cheaper in Bangladesh.
Indian Air Force chief BS Dhanoa on Wednesday firmly backed the Rs 59,000 crore Rafale deal, saying the fighters would significantly enhance the IAFs capabilities at a time when Indias two nuclear-armed adversaries (China and Pakistan) are swiftly modernising their air forces. Such emergency procurements have been made under government-to-government agreements in the past, too, he said. By providing the Rafale and S-400 (air defence missile systems, which are being bought from Russia), the government is strengthening the IAF to counter the shortfall of our depleting numbers, he said.

Dhanoa said different governments of the day had ordered two squadrons each of MiG-23s, Mirage-2000s and MiG-29s for the IAF in response to Pakistan upgrading its air combat capabilities since 1983.

Addressing a seminar, IAF Force Structure: 2035, he said, These procurements were made under the umbrella of the Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA). The air chief marshal stressed such deals speed up procurement and are the quickest route to upgrading operational capabilities. The Opposition has sharply attacked the government over its decision to order two Rafale squadrons (36 planes) through a government-to-government deal with France by scrapping the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regimes decision to buy 126 Rafale aircraft in a deal where 18 would be brought outright and 108 assembled in India by state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. India and France signed the deal in September 2016 as an emergency purchase to arrest a worrying slide in the IAFs capabilities.

Dhanoa said India has to match the force levels of its adversaries so that it can fight a two-front war with China and Pakistan. What we do not have are the numbersEven when we do have 42 fighter squadrons, we will be below the combined numbers of the two regional adversaries, the air chief said. The count of Indias fighter squadrons has reduced to 31 compared to an optimum strength of 42-plus units. Dhanoa said India needed to induct modern fighters to win the high-end fight and the proposed induction of high-end fighters (Rafale) fitted the bill.

The governments decision to enter a $8.7 billion deal with France to buy the 36 Rafale warplanes was announced in 2015. The deal has become controversial with the opposition, claiming that the price at which India is buying Rafale aircraft now is 1,670 crore for each, three times the 526 crore, the initial bid by the company when the UPA was trying to buy the aircraft. The NDA government has not disclosed details of the price, but former defence minister Manohar Parrikar previously said the UPA deal, struck in 2012, was not viable. The UPA was not able to close the deal till 2014, over discussions on pricing of items not included in the bid. The NDA has said that the current deal also includes customised weaponry. The deal has become controversial over the fact that one of the offset deals is with the Reliance Group of Anil Ambani. The Congress says the earlier deal was scrapped and a new one signed to provide Ambani the opportunity. The government and Reliance Group have denied this.
An important urban assembly area of western Rajasthan, Sardarpura, was wrested by the Congress in the past four assembly elections, with the winning candidate being Ashok Gehlot. In the previous assembly election in 2013, he defeated BJP candidate Shambhu Singh Khetasar by 18,478 votes.

Gehlot who is the general secretary of All India Congress Committee and was the chief minister of Rajasthan twice, could possibly be the partys CM candidate in the upcoming assembly elections as well. The Congress has not projected any CM face so far. Since Gehlot started contesting from the constituency, no other candidate has ever demanded a ticket.

The caste equation of Sardarpura assembly constituency helped Gehlot in the past four elections. It is a different matter that when he won the seat for the first time in the by-election after becoming the chief minister in 1999, he got record number of votes. But the margin of victory fell in the subsequent elections.

According to political observers, the majority of voters in Sardarpura belong to the Mali community, followed by Muslim and Rajput voters. Jats, other OBCs and general caste voters also influence the victory. They believe that Mali and Muslim vote banks play an effective role in the result.

It will be challenging for the BJP to win this safe seat of the Congress that banks on Gehlots personal influence in the area. The BJP has fielded different candidates in the past four elections and is yet to announce its candidate for the upcoming elections.

The BJPs candidate in the previous elections, Shambhu Singh Khetasar, says that the elections will be fought on the issue of development in Sardarpura. The construction of a road overbridge has been completed and the work of a second one has started. In the assembly area, the hospital located at BZS Colony has been upgraded. The mood of the people is in favour of the BJP, he says.

Congress district president (city), Sayeed Ansari, says, If the BJP is eyeing the Sardarpura assembly constituency, it is a mistake. He claimed that in the upcoming elections, the BJP will face defeat in other seats of Jodhpur city as well.

In the past four-and-a-half years, the BJP government ignored the entire Jodhpur city, not just Sardarpura. Jodhpur was deprived of the smart city scheme due to being the hometown of the former CM. The public knows the truth and will teach them a lesson in the elections, he says.
A team of functionaries from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) will soon turn up at the offices of Congress president Rahul Gandhi and other Opposition leaders with an invitation to attend the upcoming three-day lecture series by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, in an attempt to clear the air about the Sangh, which Gandhi recently compared to the Muslim Brotherhood.

According to Sangh functionaries aware of the developments, and who asked not to be identified, the RSS will send its functionaries to personally deliver the invitation to leaders of Opposition parties, including those from the Left and the BSP, to hear Bhagwat put forth his views on contemporary issues.

He will take questions about the Sangh and its vision for the country.The invitations for the series Future of Bharat: An RSS perspective are being delivered in person as per the tradition of the Sangh, said one functionary aware of the development.

The Sangh has underlined that it wants the Opposition leaders to hear Bhagwat articulate the organisations vision, even as most Opposition leaders blame it for fostering anti-minority sentiments and influencing government policies.

The Congress presidents comparsion of the RSS to the brotherhood, the Egyptian Sunni Islamist organisation, during an address at the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) in London recently was vehemently criticised by the Sangh.

The Sangh responded by saying that the Congress chief did not understand either the RSS or India. No invite has been received so far. This is a fake news being circulated by the BJP and RSS for self propaganda, said Congress partys chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala. The three-day lecture series that aims at propagating the Sanghs ideology and reaching out to the masses, including its political opponents, is a mammoth exercise of meticulous planning and detailing. Referring to the issues that are likely to be part of the Sangh chiefs speech, a functionary said: The idea is to set the agenda and not just react to what the opponents say. Therefore, the Sarsangachalak (RSS chief) will speak about the ideology on day one; he will then speak on contemporary issues such as the ongoing discussion about reservation and caste-based conflict, and women and the youth.
A high-powered steering committee of Hindu saints called the Ucchadhikar Samiti will meet in Delhi in the first week of October to draft an action plan for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya even as it becomes clear that the legal route will not immediately facilitate this .

According to functionaries in the VHP, an offshoot of the RSS, there is disappointment that a legal decision on the contentious issues is unlikely to be announced anytime soon; and the saints have now been mandated to come up with an alternate plan of action. The VHP had pinned its hopes on the Supreme Court delivering a judgment that would be acceptable to all sections.

There was expectation that the outgoing chief justice would deliver a judgment before he demits office on October 2; with that unlikely to happen, it has been decided to let the saints take a call, said a functionary who asked not to be identified. Thats because, in the course of arguments, the three judge bench headed by the chief justice that is hearing the case first decided to see whether a five-judge bench should consider whether a mosque is integral to Islam (as ruled by the apex court itself in 1994). The actual title dispute will be heard later.

While VHP functionaries will attend the October meeting, there is no confirmation on whether RSS functionaries will be present for the decision-making process.

VHP working president Alok Kumar confirmed the meeting. He said that while day-to-day hearings were going on in the case pertaining to conspiracy charges against senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharti and others in the demolition of Babri Masjid, the case pertaining to the construction of a temple is still pending.

In 2017, the court used the idiom Let justice be done, though the heavens fall, to invoke its extraordinary constitutional authority to transfer the trial of a case against Advani ji from Rae Bareli court to a Lucknow court for joint trial of two sets of cases arising out of the demolition of the Babri Masjid. The Ram temple issue, which has an effect on communal harmony, is not being decided, so the saints have been requested to take a call, he said.

The construction of a Ram temple at the disputed site has been on the agenda of the RSS and the VHP. The VHP has ruled out allowing a mosque to come up there, and had earlier suggested paving the way for the construction of a temple by way of a legislation passed by Parliament.

Political analyst Shirish Kashikar said the meeting was VHPs way of sending a message to society at large that it has not given up on the Ram Temple issue. They cannot pressurise the judiciary, but this is their way of creating some kind of pressure to keep the issue alive. They want a message to go out that the VHP is committed to the cause of the temple, he said.
The Supreme Court is expected to hear on Thursday charges against five prominent activists who were arrested by the Pune police in raids in five cities on August 28.

Lawyer and trade union activist Sudha Bhardwaj, Telugu poet P Varavara Rao, activist Gautam Navlakha, and lawyers Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves were arrested for alleged links with left-wing rebels called Naxals or Maoists.

Police said the arrests were part of their probe into an event called Elgar Parishad in Pune on December 31, 2017, when activists and Dalit organisations came together. The next day, violence broke out at Bhima Koregaon, about 40 km from Pune, as tens of thousands of Dalits celebrated the 200th anniversary of an 1818 war between the British army, manned mainly by Dalits, and the states Peshwa rulers.

The police crackdown was condemned by opposition leaders and other public figures as an attack on civil rights. Dissent is the safety valve of democracy... the pressure cooker will burst if you dont allow the safety valves, the Supreme Court had observed on August 29, questioning the arrest of the activists nearly nine months after the violence. It ordered the Pune police to put the activists under house arrest and not jail them.

On September 6, the court extended their house arrest and pulled up Pune police officers for speaking publicly about their investigation against the activists.

The Maharashtra government and the police have argued before courts the activists were arrested because evidence linked them with the banned CPI (Maoist) group, and not because of their dissenting views. The states lawyer has argued that keeping the activists under house arrest would hamper police investigation against them.

Bhardwaj is under police guard at her home in Delhi, Rao in Hyderabad, Navlakha in Delhi, Ferreira in Mumbai and Gonsalves in the same city.
Ayushman Bharat, the governments flagship health insurance scheme, has rekindled the hope for moving towards universal coverage of hospitalisation costs in India, but the initial spark was ignited by Yeshasvini, the health insurance scheme for rural farmers and peasants, initiated on a modest scale in Karnataka in 2003.

During its first year, the scheme covered about 1.6 million rural poor with a premium as low as Rs 90.

In 2007, the then undivided Andhra Pradesh launched an ambitious health insurance programme paid by the government, covering over 70 million people or nearly 70% of the state population, and became the first state to move towards universal coverage.

In Tamil Nadu, a similar approach was followed where 42 million people (more than 55% of the population) were covered by a scheme where the government paid the premium for hospitalisation for medical procedures and clinical interventions.

Recognising the limitations of targeting, Kerala initiated its own Chief Ministers Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme, besides the centrally initiated Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY).

Karnataka, which initiated the first state-funded health insurance scheme in India, had to gradually accommodate three other similar schemes, administered and paid for by different units of its government.

Political commitment

The political commitment demonstrated in these health insurance schemes is clearly reflected in the annual allocation of funds. The Tamil Nadu health insurance scheme spent about Rs 225 per enrollee in 2016, while Andhra Pradesh and Telangana spent an average of Rs 140 per enrollee, as against the Centres RSBY, which spent about Rs 80 per enrollee.

The health insurance provided by Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnatakas Vajpayee Aarogyasree schemes essentially covers tertiary-care medical procedures and interventions, which are considered catastrophic in nature if the families have to pay on their own.

The Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh medical insurance schemes cover about 1,016 and 1,044 medical procedures respectively, with 56 and 133 high volume medical procedures reserved for provision only in public healthcare facilities respectively.

Unlike RSBY or the other southern schemes, beneficiaries in Tamil Nadu and Kerala utilised public facilities to a large extent. Available evidence suggests that over 43% of all hospitalisation, under the health insurance scheme in Tamil Nadu, took place in government hospitals in 2016.

Hospitals often complain that a pan-India package rate for similar procedures is irrational since it doesnt take into account quality and cost variation in providing hospital services. A distinguishing feature of the Tamil Nadu scheme is that hospitals in the higher-grade categories have higher package rates for similar procedures. Such variation in package rates creates an incentive for hospitals to fulfil the criteria for moving up to higher grades.

Stopping fraud, ensuring quality

The southern states, especially Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, were the early ones to establish mechanisms for effective control of fraud and abuse of the insurance system. Cost containment measures and fraud control were achieved through pre-authorisation of procedures, pre-agreed package rates according to hospital categories, surveillance and medical vigilance teams for fraud control. These schemes extensively utilised information technology (IT) applications, beginning from application of biometric smart cards for enrolment and identification of beneficiaries.

Routine disempanellment of hospitals involved in fraud acted as a deterrent for other hospitals to avoid performing unnecessary procedures. In order to reduce potential uncertainty in payment to hospitals, claims are settled within one week of claim submission from the hospital, making it attractive from the perspective of private healthcare providers.

Funding

A key feature of government supported health insurance scheme has been the involvement of health insurance companies as financial intermediaries to pool risk and purchase health care services from both government and private health care facilities. Experience of the last one decade demonstrates that risk bearing capacity of the financial intermediary has remained low as it raised the yearly premium rate when claims ratio rose over 100%, as in Kerala. The Tamil Nadu scheme managed to circumvent this scenario by negotiating a stable premium rate, set for four years.

In the southern states, the utilisation of health services has been high and increasing over the years. This has resulted in the claims ratio breaching the 100% mark. Multiple administrative machineries, including health insurance companies and third party agencies have added to the administrative cost, besides profits made by insurance companies.

Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh were the pioneers in moving towards a Trust Model of administering the scheme, avoiding or removing the role of insurance companies. This achieved cost savings by keeping administrative costs at the minimum. Recent reports suggest that most states are moving towards a Trust Model for administering the national health protection mission (Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana) under Ayushman Bharat.

As these newly formed Trusts look to design their administrative framework, they can learn from the experience of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Their experience offers valuable lessons for Ayushman Bharat that go beyond financing mechanism. While hospitalisation costs were partially or substantially covered, financial burden of out-of-pocket expenditure was not significantly dented since outpatient care and long-term medication was not covered. Strengthening primary care and provision of free drugs and diagnostics in public facilities must accompany cost coverage of hospitalised care.

(Dr Srinath Reddy is the president, Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), and Dr Sakthivel Selvaraj is director, health economics, financing and policy, PHFI.)

Views expressed are personal
The Indian Army soldiers used leopard urine and faeces to keep off dogs during the 2016 surgical strikes in Pakistani territory, former Nagrota Corps commander Lt Gen Rajendra Nimborkar said in Pune on Tuesday, reports ANI.

There was a possibility of dogs in villages barking at us on the route. I knew they are scared of leopards. We carried leopard urine with us and that worked and dogs didnt dare to come forward, Lt General Nimborkar said.

Nimborkar was speaking in Pune at an awards presentation ceremony organized by the city-based Thorle Bajirao Peshwe Pratishthan.

In September 2016, troops from Indian army crossed the Line of Control and destroyed militant camps in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. The operation was said to be in retaliation to a militant attack on the army at Uri on September 18 that left 19 soldiers dead.
A policeman, who was attacked by an undertrial prisoner with a spade in Madhya Pradeshs Bhind, died on Wednesday at a hospital during treatment in New Delhi, reports said.

Constable Umesh Babu and his colleague were attacked at a police station in Bhind on September 9 and the incident was captured on CCTV camera. Babu was referred to a hospital in Gwalior and from there he was sent to Delhi for better treatment. The other policeman has been admitted at a district hospital in Bhind, ANI reported.

The footage shows the man, armed with a spade, moving quietly down a corridor and hitting the policemen on their head from behind. The first policeman immediately collapses and the second tries to stave off the blow but fails and crashes to the floor.

The accused managed to escape with his accomplice but was caught several hours later.
The US will be very supportive if conditions can be created for productive talks between India and Pakistan, a senior Trump administration official has said, underling that Washington understands New Delhis position that demonstrable reduction in cross-border terrorism would create the confidence for such a dialogue.

The US welcomes the positive messages that were exchanged between Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and how the two governments can build on what is already existing structures, whether its the national security advisor dialogue or the DGMO channel or the people-to-people ties that have been sustained through the bus service, Alice Wells, the principal deputy assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia told reporters during a conference call on Monday.

On August 20, Prime Minister Modi had sent a letter to Khan, conveying that New Delhi was looking for constructive and meaningful engagement with Islamabad.

Khan also expressed Pakistans willingness to re-start the stalled India-Pakistan peace process and said the two countries must engage in dialogue to resolve their differences, including on the Kashmir issue, and start trade.

Responding to a question, Wells said in general the US supports a dialogue between India and Pakistan that can reduce tensions.

We understand and have had frequent conversations with our Indian partners on the expectations that there would be a demonstrable reduction in cross border terrorism or infiltration that will help create the confidence for a dialogue to take place, she said.

If conditions can be created for a productive bilateral conversation, obviously we would be very supportive, Wells said.

Wells said the US had sent a two-pronged message to Pakistan: a desire to engage constructively and an emphasis on the need for Pakistan to implement its promises to fight all terrorist groups.

The India-Pakistan ties nose-dived in recent years with no bilateral talks taking place.

The ties between the two countries had strained after the terror attacks by Pakistan-based groups in 2016 and Indias surgical strikes inside Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The sentencing of alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav to death by a military court in April last year further deteriorated bilateral ties.

The two sides often accuse each other of ceasefire violations along the Line of Control, resulting in civilian casualties.
HDFC Bank executive Siddharth Sanghvi was an incidental target and a victim of sheer bad luck as the accused, a 20-year-old contract labourer, had two other people as his potential victims, a source has said.

The official, privy to the murder investigation, said Sanghvi was one of three executives Sarfaraz Shaikh had selected as possible victims. He may have gone after any one of them if the banker had not turned up in the parking lot marked for HDFC Bank employees on September 5. He refused to identify the other two.

He (Sanghvi) just happened to be at that place when Sheikh was on the prowl for a prospective victim, the official said.

The 39-year-old bank executive went missing on September 5 and the police found his body in Haji Malang area of Kalyan in Thane district on Monday. Following Sanghvis disappearance and the missing persons complaint, more than half a dozen people, including some HDFC Bank employees as well as his family and acquaintances, were questioned by the police.

Shaikh had worked in the Kamala Mills compound as a fabricator on more than one occasion over the past three years. He was familiar with the layout, including details such as the guards timings and the location of CCTV cameras. The police believe he had also worked on a project in the HDFC Banks office.

Read: In Mumbai HDFC executives murder, missing 3 hours crucial to case

Shaikh was not the polices first suspect in the case and even after he confessed his role, they probed other possibilities. It was hard to trust his [Shaikhs] confession as we had suspected the involvement of more than one person in the murder, the official said.

Shaikh, who lives in Kopar Khairane, was brought in for questioning more than once and was eventually arrested on September 9, when the police got all the details from him, including the location of Sanghvis body in Kalyan.

The official said Shaikh was questioned by three interrogators. Two of the polices top interrogators, inspectors Sukhlal Varpe and Dinesh Kadam, were drawn from other police stations (Worli and Byculla) to assist the officers at NM Joshi Marg police station.

This was done in order to find out discrepancies, if any, in Shaikhs narration of the events separately before the three teams. However, Shaikhs narration remained the same before all. Only then we were convinced that he was the solitary assassin and produced him in the court, the official said.

The interrogations established that Shaikh had been waiting for one of his three targets to appear on the third-floor parking lot. The parking lot was empty and deserted by then and Shaikh took advantage of the situation. It was sheer bad luck for Sanghvi to be there at that time, said the official.

Read: Neighbours describe accused Sarfaraz Shaikh as loner, nice guy

Shaikh told his interrogators that Sanghvi tried to resist and screamed when he got hold of the banker from behind and put a knife to his throat. His neck was slit when he moved his head while putting up resistance, said the official, adding that a panicked Shaikh went on to stab Sanghvi 14 times.

Sanghvi tried to get away as he was being stabbed leaving blood stains in the parking lot that the police found a few days after his disappearance. Police believe Sanghvi was killed between 8pm and 8.30pm, after which Shaikh waited for more than three hours because he didnt want to run the risk of being caught in the traffic. There is a CCTV footage of Shaikh driving Sanghvis car out of the parking lot at around 11.20pm.

Also he was aware that people at Haji Malang would be sleeping when he dumped the body, the official said.

Shaikh then abandoned the car, which had the knife that he had used to kill Sanghvi, near his residence in Kopar Khairane. During his interrogation, Shaikh allegedly confessed to the crime and denied anyone elses involvement. He told the police that he had to pay off the loan for a motorcycle he had bought.

Unaware of how the legal system works, when Shaikh was presented before the magistrate on Monday, he confessed his crime in court. He thought he would probably be asked what he had been asked beforeif anyone else was involved, the official said.

The police have been granted the Shaikhs custody till September 19 by the court and the investigation into Sanghvis death is still underway.
Three Class 11 students were detained on Monday afternoon when they fired 10 rounds in the air outside their school in Modinagar, police said.

Hours after their arrest, the police said, three men reached the local police station with as many as nine guns, to allegedly pressure the police into releasing the minors. They were also arrested under different charges.

Police said the gun used by the students to fire outside their school belonged to one of the three arrested men.

A senior police officer familiar with the investigation said the three Class 11 students had an altercation with some Class 12 students during a Teachers Day function. They said the junior students raised some religious slogans during the event to which the senior secondary students objected. This led to a heated argument.

The altercation was settled after some teachers intervened. In order to take their revenge, the three Class 11 students reached outside the school and fired 10 rounds in order to threaten their seniors. They tried to flee on a bike but were chased and apprehended by the police, said AK Maurya, superintendent of police (rural).

The matter seemed to have been put to rest but by Monday night three men, one of whom claimed to be the Mahamantri of Hindu Yuva Vahini, reached the police station seeking the students release. The three were identified as Amit Tyagi, his brother Jitender Tyagi and their private guard, Umesh Kumar.

Jitendra Tyagi, district president of Hindu Yuva Vahini, however, clarified that Amit Tyagi is not an office bearer of the organisation. He is just a member and will be expelled, Jitendra Tyagi said.

Vaibhav Krishna, senior superintendent of police (SSP), said they had reached the local police station in two cars. They were threatening the police to release the three students, he said. However, a search of their cars led to recovery a cache of illegal arms and bullet.

The police found three factory made pistols, costing around Rs 3-4 lakh each, six countrymade pistols along with 100 live rounds of different calibre. Rounds of self loading rifles were also recovered from the Scorpio and Verna cars of the three accused, police said.

Amit has nine criminal cases registered against him, including four cases of murder. He also has a history sheet in his name at Muradnagar police station. He is a member of Ravinder Bhaneda gang. A revolver licensed under his gunner Umeshs name is being verified, Krishna said.

Police sources said that the weapons were allegedly procured by Amit a year ago from two people in Meerut who were stated to be suppliers of illegal arms and are currently absconding. Jitender has three cases, including cases of murder and Gangster Act, against him, said officials.

The police have booked the three students under charges of attempt to murder, rioting and provisions of the Arms Act and Criminal Law Amendment Act.

Amit Tyagi and his aides were booked under an FIR carrying IPC sections for rioting, preventing government servant from discharging his duties and also under the provisions of the Arms Act and the Criminal Law Amendment Act.

In both cases, the police registered the FIR on their own as no private person came forward with a complaint, the SSP added.
SS Virk, former director general of police, Maharashtra on Tuesday said that right wing extremism was on the rise and that there was a need to be vigilant in the wake of their alleged involvement related to killing of rationalists Narendra Dabholkar, MM Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh coming to light.

Virk said that the future seemed to be scary with the more violence expected. Right wing terrorism is a security threat to the country and this is on the rise. I feel that violence will escalate further and there is a need to be socially alert on this issue , he said. He was speaking to the reporters on the security challenges before India, in an event organised by the Pune union of working journalists (PUWJ).

The former DGP came in support of the five activists arrested in connection with the Bhima Koregaon riots on January 1 and said that there was no enough evidence against them with the police.

Activist Sudha Bharadwaj is an accomplished human rights activist and cannot be branded as an urban guerrilla. The word -urban guerrilla - has been used by the investigating agency in the report on the five activists. For being an urban guerilla, you require a weapon. In their case, they are activists who have sympathy for a particular cause but that does not make them guerrillas or one of them , he replied to a specific question on the topic.

Making a passionate appeal for right to dissent, the former top cop said that right to dissent has been guaranteed to each and every citizen under the constitution.  If there is an ideological disagreement between two persons, then it does not mean that one kills. Right to dissent needs to be protected and promoted in the society, he said. He also said that criminal and fraudulent system in banking must be made accountable to law.
A Nepalese couple working as domestic helps at a house in the posh Sector 7 here has been booked for fleeing with 5 lakh and gold jewellery, police said on Wednesday.

House owner Anuradha Aggarwal, 38, told police that she had gone to the market in Sector 11 while her son and daughter were on the first floor of the house when the crime took place around 7:30pm on Tuesday. The domestic helps  Raju and Maya  had been staying on the top floor of the house for the past three months and had recently returned from a visit to their native place in Nepal.

When I was on my way home around 9pm, I received a call from my daughter. She told me that the lock of my room on the ground floor was broken and the room had been ransacked, Aggarwal submitted in her complaint.

Her daughter then informed her that the couple was also missing. Upon returning, Aggarwal found that the locks of dressing room and main almirah were also broken.

Following this, she called her husband and relatives.

Aggarwal told police that 5 lakh besides a gold chain and ring and some other items were missing from the house. Police said there is a closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera installed in the house, but it was not functional.

Inspector Arvind Kumar, station house officer (SHO), Sector 5, said: The domestic helps went missing after the theft. Even the maids phone is switched off. A case has been registered under section 381 (theft by clerk or servant of property in possession of master) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and investigation has been initiated.
Bigg Boss, a reality show that thrives on controversies and chaos, is all set for its twelfth season, which will premiere on Sunday, September 16. Salman Khan will return as the host for the sixth time and he will bring with him a group people ready to lock horns with each other.

Bigg Boss has welcomed some of the most colourful characters in the past. From Swami Om to Rakhi Sawant, they came in all shapes and sizes. Here we list some of the most controversial people who appeared in the last eleven seasons of Bigg Boss.

Zubair Khan

Zubair Khan is one of the many controversial contestants to have taken part in the show. In February 2018, Zubair was arrested on the charges of extortion, according to a report in India Today. Inside the Bigg Boss 11 house, Zubair was warned by Salman Khan regarding the use of foul language on the show. Zubair was reported to be related to the Mumbai underworld and had claimed that he participated in the show to make up with his wife and children who had left him.

Swami Om

Swami Om was a contestant on Bigg Boss 10.

Swami Om emerged as arguably the most controversial figure in the entire history of Bigg Boss. The Bigg Boss 10 contestant not only had verbal fights, he often had physical brawls during his stay too. He had ugly fights with Bani, Monalisa, Manu, Manveer, Priyanka and literally every one else in the house. Perhaps his worst fights inside the house were with Rohan Mehra and Bani. He even tried to choke Rohan during a task, who, in turn, had slapped him. He crossed all limits when he threw his urine on Bani during a task. Bigg Boss had to throw him out of the house for his disgusting behaviour.

Priyanka Jagga

Priyanka Jagga was also a part of Bigg Boss 10.

Priyanka Jagga had differences with almost every one inside the house. She was the first person to be voted out but only after she had managed to create enough controversies just within a week. After she returned as a wild card entry, she often locked horns with Monalisa (Antara Biswas) and Bani. She even had war of words with good friend Manu Punjabi and her adopted dad Swamiji.

Dolly Bindra

Dolly Bindra got into a physical tussle with Shweta Tiwari inside Bigg Boss house.

She made the baap pe mat jaana threat world famous in the Bigg Boss house. Known for her aggressive attitude, Dolly was the controversy during her stay in the house. A fight over eggs aggravated into an ugly spat between Dolly and Bhojpuri superstar Manoj Tiwari. Later, Dolly got into a physical tussle with TV actor Shweta Tiwari.

KRK

Kamaal R Khan carried his reputation to Bigg Boss house.

The weird attitude, abusive behaviour and cheap language - Kamaal R Khan did it all inside the Bigg Boss house. KRK had an infamous fight with co-contestant Rohit Verma when he threw glass bottle at him but it hit Shamita Shetty instead. KRK was thrown out of the house as he flouted an important rule of the house - contestants must not get physical.

Imam Siddique

Imam Siddique claimed he had lent money to Salman Khan that he never got back.

From stripping naked on television to hurling verbal abuses at one and all, Imam Siddique did all he could to remain the biggest controversy creator on the sixth season of Bigg Boss. Apart from his tall claims of making stars out of Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta and the like, he even claimed to have lent money to Salman and said that he never paid him back!

Rakhi Sawant

Rakhi Sawant was the controversy queen of Bigg Boss.

The controversy queen of showbiz was in her element inside the bigg boss house, too. She appeared on the first season of the show and is still remembered for her fight with Kashmira Shah where she took jibes at the actors personal life.

Akashdeep Sehgal

Akashdeep Sehgal had a face-off with Salman Khan during his Bigg Boss stay.

Of all people, Akashdeep decided to fight with host Salman Khan himself in Bigg Boss 5! Later, he claimed Salman destroyed his career.

Kushal Tandon

Kushal Tandon was the enfant terrible inside Bigg Boss house.

He was the controversial figure inside the house that season - from randomly hurling abuses at almost everyone to his attempts to jump off the fence in Bigg Boss 7 house, Kushal was the enfant terrible that season. He even attacked and hurt VJ Andy and had an infamous fight with Tannisha Mukerji.

Ali Quli Mirza

Ali Quli Mira even tried leaving the Bigg Boss house.

In season 8, Ali was infuriated when Sonali Raut slapped him after he made derogatory comments. He ran around the house and even tried leaving the house.

Prince Narula

Prince Narula and Kishwar merchant were frenemies inside the Bigg Boss house.

Perhaps the least violent of the lot, Prince got into an ugly fight with Rishabh Sinha as he was upset with the latters behaviour with Kishwar Merchant. The duo continued their fight till the end of Bigg Boss 9.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
India has conceded to Chinas request to jointly implement a limited capacity building project in Afghanistan instead of a large-scale venture in the infrastructure or energy sectors, leaving Kabul underwhelmed, people familiar with the latest developments have said.

Beijing seemingly convinced New Delhi to opt for a smaller project in Afghanistan, possibly to assuage the misgivings of its close ally Islamabad.

Three months after the project was announced  preceded by several months of trilateral discussions  diplomats here are tight-lipped about how much progress has been made in its implementation, or how much Pakistan was a factor in scaling down the venture.

The decision has left Kabul dismayed, as the Ashraf Ghani government -- part of long-drawn discussions on the venture -- had expected a bigger project, one that could directly benefit the citizens of the war-torn country, people familiar with the discussions said.

Kabul was disappointed given New Delhis long history of being a more effective donor which addressed Afghanistans critical needs, they said.

Given that China is the worlds second largest economy and Afghanistans strategic partner since 2012, it was expected that Beijing would be more ambitious, they added.

India and Chinas first third-country project was announced after the informal summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in April. Xi brought up the prospect of a trilateral project in Afghanistan and Modi agreed.

Later, Indias foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale shared an outline. The two countries will undertake a capacity-building project in Afghanistan, Gokhale said after the two leaders met again on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in the coastal city of Qingdao in June.

The announcements were made at Wuhan and Qingdao, but the groundwork was done earlier. Discussions between New Delhi, Beijing and Kabul on the project had begun in 2016.

Several rounds of talks were held between Chinese, Indian and Afghan diplomats to frame a strategy and to analyse the feasibility of such a project. Equally crucial was the diplomatic message it would send out internationally  Pakistan was bound to be annoyed.

India initially agreed to implement a joint project in agriculture, infrastructure or energy and New Delhi told Kabul as much. The expectation was China would agree as well.

Days before the Wuhan summit, China floated the idea of a capacity building project. Such a venture will be valuable but a trilateral project in Afghanistan had  and still has - the potential and capacity to be more effective and useful, the people said.

It is now expected that the modest start will develop into something more substantial in later stages, they added.

However, the expectation for a big project was high, for one, as Kabul is already involved in other trilateral capacity building projects. Afghanistan and China are involved in projects with the US, the UK and Germany, involving the training of diplomats and mining experts and doing business.

Chinas foreign ministry had a generic response when asked about the project and whether Beijing convinced India to scale it down. During the informal summit in Wuhan, President Xi Jinping and PM Narendra Modi agreed on strengthening policy coordination in surrounding regions, and discussed about developing Sino-India-Plus cooperation, said an email response from the ministry.

Leaders of both countries also agreed on keeping in contact and coordinating over the issue of Afghanistan, in order to jointly promote peace, stability and development in Afghanistan. The two sides are maintaining communication on the implementation of the consensus made by two leaders, it added.

There is a rationale behind India and China opting for a low-profile project in Afghanistan, said Barnett Rubin from New York University. It is a first step. Both are cautious. We should encourage bigger things. They are talking about them but not yet ready to move, Rubin said, adding that expectations must be realistic.

For a disappointed Afghanistan, thats the reality.
The death toll from a suicide bomb attack at a protest gathering in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar on Tuesday has risen to 68, with 165 wounded, a government official said.

The bombing on Tuesday in the eastern province of Nangarhar was the latest in a wave of deadly insurgent attacks which has claimed the lives of hundreds of civilians and security forces across Afghanistan.

The blast wounded another 165 people, provincial governor spokesman Ataullah Khogyani said.

There has been no claim of responsibility for the massacre, but the Islamic State group, which has carried out most of the recent suicide bombings in Afghanistan, is active in the province.

The Nangarhar health department confirmed the toll.

Scores of demonstrators had blocked the highway between the provincial capital of Jalalabad and a major Pakistan border crossing in protest over the appointment of a local police chief when the suicide bomber blew himself up.

The dead and wounded were rushed to several hospitals in the back of pickup trucks and ambulances, overwhelming doctors and nurses as they struggled to cope with the huge number of casualties.

Zar Khan, one of the injured, told AFP he saw a young man get out of a car and run towards the protesters shouting Allahu akbar (God is greatest).

Then the explosion happened and I found myself surrounded by blood and flesh, Khan said from his hospital bed.

It was the deadliest attack since an ambulance packed with explosives detonated in a crowded street in the heart of Kabul in January, killing more than 100 people, mostly civilians. That bombing was claimed by the Taliban.

Violence across the country has intensified in recent weeks as the Taliban make gains on the battlefield and IS launches deadly urban attacks.

It comes as Afghanistan enters a typically violent period of the year -- the holy month of Muharram, which began on Tuesday.

Ashura, the most important Shiite observance, falls on the 10th day of Muharram and is often marred by deadly attacks.

- Peace hopes fading -

The fighting has tempered optimism that had been tentatively growing as Afghan and international players ratchet up efforts to convince the Taliban to negotiate an end to the 17-year conflict.

An unprecedented ceasefire in June followed by talks between US officials and Taliban representatives in Qatar in July raised hopes that peace negotiations could bring an end to the fighting.

There has been speculation the two sides will meet again this month.

The Taliban have long insisted on direct talks with Washington and refused to negotiate with the Afghan government, which they see as illegitimate.

The intensified fighting has also fuelled speculation over whether Afghanistans long-delayed parliamentary elections will go ahead on October 20.

The countrys stretched security forces will be tasked with protecting thousands of polling stations around the country at a time when they are already struggling to beat back insurgents.

Delivering ballot papers and monitoring the vote, which is seen as a test run for next years presidential election, will be challenging, officials have warned.

There are already concerns about widespread fraud.

In recent days, Taliban fighters killed nearly 60 members of the security forces in a spate of attacks in the countrys north, and threatened a provincial capital for the second time in as many months.
Highways clogged with people fleeing North and South Carolina early Wednesday as monstrous Category 4 Hurricane Florence rumbled toward the eastern US as the biggest storm there in decades.

While many coastal residents heeded mandatory evacuation orders, others boarded up homes and businesses and chose to brave the storm, which is forecast to trigger severe flash flooding as it dumps as many as three feet (almost a meter) of rain in some areas. Life-threatening storm surges of up to a staggering 13 feet in some places were also forecast.

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper warned that staying put would be a grave mistake and said people in evacuation zones need to get out now.

This is not a storm that people need to ride out, Cooper told reporters. This is a storm that is historic, maybe once in a lifetime.

Up to 1.7 million people in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia have been given voluntary or mandatory evacuation orders, according to emergency management officials, as the storm churned across the Atlantic Ocean towards the coast.

The eastbound lanes of several major highways have been shut down to allow for a smooth flow of traffic inland.

We are already experiencing heavily impacted traffic on some of the evacuation routes, said Jeff Byard, the associate administrator for response and recovery at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Forecasters are predicting that Florence will make landfall in the Carolinas late Thursday or early Friday as a still powerful Category 3 hurricane.

As of 11:00 pm (0300 GMT Wednesday), Florence was a Category 4 hurricane packing sustained winds of 140 miles per hour (220 kilometers per hour), the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

It was located 670 miles (1,075 kms) east-southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, and moving at 17 mph (28 kph) in a west-northwest direction.

Briefing from the Oval Office, President Donald Trump urged people to heed orders to evacuate, saying if you are asked to leave, get out.

This will be a storm thats going to be far larger than we have seen in perhaps decades, Trump said.

Direct hit

Speaking in the Oval Office alongside Trump, FEMA administrator Brock Long said Florence may be a very devastating storm.

The power will be off for weeks, Long said. Youre going to be displaced from your home in coastal areas. There will be flooding in inland areas as well.

Byard, the FEMA official, said this storm is not going to be a glancing blow.

This storm is going to be a direct hit.

Hurricane Florence is the strongest storm to target the Carolinas and this part of our country in decades, Byard said.

The NHC said Florence is expected to be an extremely dangerous major hurricane when it makes landfall in the Carolinas late Thursday or early Friday, bringing life-threatening storm surge to coastal areas.

A state of emergency has been declared in Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington amid concern over potential torrential rain and flooding.

The last time the US capital declared a state of emergency was in January 2016 when a winter storm dubbed Snowzilla blanketed the capital region in knee-deep snow.

In Charleston, South Carolina, some residents were making preparations to leave Tuesday while others planned to ride out the storm.

Streets were quiet with schools and many offices and businesses closed.

Michael Kennedy, an engineer at Boeing, said he planned to leave on Tuesday for his parents home in Atlanta, Georgia.

But his partner, Emily Whisler, said she will remain behind at the university where she is a resident in the psychiatry program.

They told me to bring a pillow and blanket, Whisler said. Ill be living there for a few days.

Charleston, resident William Belli said he would not be among those joining the exodus.

Been through it! Belli said, referring to Hurricane Hugo, which caused widespread damage in South Carolina in 1989. Not worried in the least.

Walking his dog along empty streets, Belli said hes well stocked with food and water.

I will enjoy the quiet, he said.

Potential for catastrophic damage

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster on Monday ordered the mandatory evacuation of one million coastal residents. Schools in 26 of the states 46 counties were ordered closed from Tuesday.

Cooper, the governor of neighboring North Carolina, ordered an evacuation of the Outer Banks, barrier islands that are a popular tourist destination, and parts of coastal Dare County.

In Virginia, 245,000 coastal residents were ordered to evacuate including from the Eastern Shore, another popular beachfront destination.

In neighboring Maryland, Governor Larry Hogan said his state was readying for potentially historic and catastrophic rainfall, life-threatening flooding, and high winds.

On the five-level Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale Florence is a Category 4, meaning it is capable of causing catastrophic damage.

By Saturday, total rainfall could accumulate to 20 inches (51 centimeters) -- or even 30 inches in places -- in parts of the Carolinas and Virginia, the NHC said.

Fort AP Hill and Fort Bragg were selected as FEMA Incident Support and Federal Staging Area to assist in the response, the army said.

The Virginia National Guard is planning to initially bring up to 1,500 soldiers and airmen to offer help in the states response operations.

Some 7,000 guard members are ready to mobilize in North Carolina, while 1,100 will be activated in South Carolina.

At this height of the Atlantic hurricane season, Florence was being trailed on east-to-west paths by two other storms, Hurricane Helene and Tropical Storm Isaac, but neither packs the deadly punch of Florence.
Pakistans jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar reached here early Wednesday from Rawalpindi after they were released from Adiala Jail on a 12-hour parole to attend the funeral of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz.

Kulsoom, the wife of Sharif, died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68. Her body will be brought back here and buried in the Jati Umra Lahore residence of the Sharif family.

Sharif and two others were transported to Jati Umra in a special plane from Nur Khan Airbase Rawalpindi in the early hours of Wednesday after the Punjab governments home department issued their release order for a 12-hour parole. The trio arrived in Lahore at 3.15 am Wednesday.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Maryam Aurangzeb told PTI that Shahbaz Sharif, had filed an application with the Punjab government requesting the release of his elder brother Nawaz, niece Maryam and Safdar for five days on parole so that they could attend the last rituals of Kulsoom who died of cancer in London.

The Punjab government did not entertain Shahbazs request for five days and only granted their release for 12 hours, she said.

We are hopeful that the government will extend the parole till the funeral of Begum Kulsoom to be held on Friday in Lahore, Aurangzeb said, adding Shahbaz will leave for London on Wednesday to bring Kulsooms body back.

A senior official of the Punjab government also confirmed to PTI that the parole period would be extended till the last rituals of Kulsoom are performed in Lahore.

Since Kulsoom body is scheduled to arrive here on Friday there is no point of not extending the parole period. The government has allowed Mr Sharif to attend the funeral prayer of his wife purely on humanitarian grounds, the official said.

According to a notification of the home department, In pursuance of rule 545-B of Pakistan Prison Rules 1978, permission granted to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar, confined at central prison Rawalpindi, to attend the funeral prayer of Kulsoom Nawaz. The duration of permission granted shall not exceed 12 hours. Police will be responsible for their security and safety. They will not leave the place (Jati Umra) specified in the permission order.

Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered to facilitate the Sharif family regarding the bringing back of body of Kulsoom and matters related to their parole.

Heavy contingent of police has been deployed at the Jati Umra to provide security to the Sharif family.

Kulsoom, who had been battling with lymphoma (throat cancer) for over a year, breathed her last at the Londons Harley Street Clinic.

Begum Kulsooms condition deteriorated early in the morning on Tuesday. Doctors tried their best but couldnt save her life, Aurangzeb said.

To a question whether her sons - Hasan and Hussain - would return to Lahore to attend her funeral prayer, she said, No decision has been taken as yet.

It is likely that both sons may not return to Pakistan as they have been declared absconders by an accountability court in the off-shore properties case.

The former first lady was diagnosed with lymphoma (throat) cancer in August last and had been in London since, where she underwent multiple surgeries and at least five chemotherapy sessions.

She was placed on a ventilator in June following a cardiac arrest. Her family reported a slight improvement in her condition on July 12, a day before her husband Sharif and Maryam were set to return to Pakistan after the accountability court sentenced them to jail.

She served as the first lady of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms from 1990-1993, 1997-1999 and 2013-2017.

She also served as the president of the PML-N from 1999 to 2002, after her husbands government was toppled by former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf in a bloodless coup. She was also placed under house arrest following Sharifs ouster by Musharraf in 1999.

She led defiant, lonely protests against the Musharraf regime to get her husband freed from prison.

Kulsoom was elected to Lahores NA-120 constituency in a by-poll after her husband was disqualified from the seat by the Supreme Court last year. Due to her illness, she was unable to return and formally take oath for the seat.

She was born in 1950 in Lahore to a Kashmiri family. She graduated from the Forman Christian College in Lahore and received a Masters degree in Urdu from Punjab University in 1970.

From her maternal side, she was granddaughter of famous wrestler of the sub-continent Gama Pehlwan.

Kulsoom married Sharif in April 1971 and they have four children - Hassan, Hussain, Maryam and Asma.
US authorities can now reject a visa application, petition or request  including possibly for H-1B visas  over mistakes and missing documents without offering the applicant a chance to correct the error.

Other applicants affected are those want to stay in the US as lawful permanent residents (on a Green Card) or immigrants, those who wish to stay temporarily and work as non-immigrants, or those who are applying for US citizenship.

Around seven million such applications are filed and adjudicated every year. However, applicants for short-term visas for travel or business are not expected to be affected.

The new rule, which went into effect on Tuesday, has been called a major shift by immigration lawyers, activists and those likely to be impacted. They say the new rule could make the procedure more expensive, lengthy, and may even lead to deportation, if an applicant already in the US fall out of status during the process.

It will impact Indians on H-1B or other short-term stay and work non-immigrant visas, who plan to seek permanent residency on the Green Card  an estimated 9,800 Indians obtain work-related Green Cards a year.

All applications, petitions, and requests received after the effective date will be subject to the new policy, except for DACA adjudications, said a US official on background, referring to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals programme that protects from deportation people who illegally arrived in the US when they were minors.

This policy change is part of an ongoing effort to help faithfully execute and protect the integrity of our laws, cut down on frivolous applications, reduce waste, and help ensure legitimate, law abiding petitioners seeking greater safety, security and prosperity arent undermined by those able to game our system, said Michael Bars, spokesperson for US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

In June, the USCIS had said that the new rule intended to discourage frivolous or substantially incomplete filings intentionally filed as placeholder, essentially to book their place in the queue and start a conversation through the back and forth ensued with a Request For Evidence (RFE) and a Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID).

It is not intended to penalise filers for innocent mistakes or misunderstandings of evidentiary requirements, the agency had said.

It replaces an Obama-era rule from 2013 that mandated adjudicating officials of the USCIS to issue REF or NOID in all cases of errors and missing documents unless the applicant was prohibited under law from being advanced to the next stage.

An activist working with an advocacy group that speeds up the process for Indians waiting in queue for their Green Card, who did not wish to be named, said the new rule is a major and dramatic shift.

More than 3,00,000 primary visa-holders India are in that queue, with the number going up to 1.5 million if one includes dependents and those in the process of applying. According to one estimate, their wait time is 151 years, at the current rate of clearance of cases.

The net takeaway (of this measure) is that this is fundamentally a series of connected events that are designed to disadvantage lower-income families and increase deportations, said Xiao Wang of Boundless Immigration, a company that deals marriage Green Card services.
President Donald Trump, an opponent of the involvement of US troops in Afghanistan, was apparently influenced by a remark from Prime Minister Narendra Modi while aides debated the administrations policy for the war-ravaged country in the summer of 2017.

He was leaning towards leaving, or a change in strategy if the decision was to stay. As he grilled his top officials  defence secretary James Mattis, then secretary of state Rex Tillerson, then National Security Adviser HR McMaster and others  at a White House meeting on July 19, he brought up Modi, according to Bob Woodwards new book Fear: Trump in the White House.

It was also at this National Security Council meeting that Trump suggested cutting off all security-related aid for Pakistan  nearly six months before he actually suspended funding on January 1  saying Islamabad wasnt helping Washington in the Afghan war.

Trump pivoted, Woodward writes. Prime Minister Modi of India is a friend of mine, he said. I like him very much. He told me the US has gotten nothing out of Afghanistan. Nothing. Afghanistan has massive mineral wealth. We dont take it like otherslike China. The US needed to get some of Afghanistans valuable minerals in exchange for any support. Im not making a deal on anything until we get minerals. And the US must stop payments to Pakistan until they cooperate.

Trump may have been referring to his conversation with Modi during their first meeting in Washington in June 2017. Never has a country given so much away for so little in return as the US had in Afghanistan, Modi had said to Trump, according to The Washington Post.

Nothing of significance has emerged from the efforts to exploit Afghanistans minerals, but Trumps Afghanistan-centric South Asia strategy, unveiled in August 2017, said the US would stay with additional troops. It accorded a larger role to India in reconstructing Afghanistan and put Pakistan on notice.

During the meeting, according to Woodwards book, Trump said: Pakistan isnt helping us. Theyre not really a friend despite the $1.3 billion a year in aid the US gave them. He refused to send any additional aid. The US, Trump said, must stop making payments to Pakistan until they cooperate.

In January, Trump raged about Pakistans lies and deceit and the administration announced the suspension of nearly $2 billion in security-related aid.

Woodward cites another conversation about India between former chief of staff Reince Priebus and McMaster, who discussed Modis then upcoming visit. Woodward writes that Modi wanted to go to Camp David, the presidential retreat located a short distance from DC, have dinner, bond with Trump.

Priebus wouldnt have any of it and said there will be a dinner in the White House. Its what the president wants.

McMaster had exploded. What the f? McMaster blew up. Its India, man. Its f India. The visitors had to settle for a cocktail reception hosted by First Lady Melania Trump and dinner.
A widow of the late King Fahd Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud of Saudi Arabia can retain a mansion on one of Londons most expensive roads, after a UK judge rejected a claim against her by the familys foundation.

Deputy Master Edward Cousins on Tuesday struck out a lawsuit by the Asturion Foundation, which manages the Fahd bin Abdulaziz familys global assets. That suit, filed in 2015, claimed the ownership of Kenstead Hall, in the capitals affluent Highgate neighbourhood, was unlawfully transferred to King Fahds widow, Al Jawharah bint Ibrahim Abdulaziz Al Ibrahim, from the foundation in 2011. King Fahd died in 2005.

This is a proper case for the claim to be struck out in its entirety on the grounds of abuse of process, the judge said in his ruling, adding that the foundation had had a long period of inactivity after first filing the suit. Lawyers for the Liechtenstein foundation had failed to deal constructively with requests for information about the nature and location of its assets, the judge said.

Asturions attorney Graham Shear said Tuesday that the foundation would likely try to challenge with the ruling.

We do not agree with the judgment of the Deputy Master and we will almost certainly be seeking permission to appeal on behalf of the foundation, Shear said by email. Al Ibrahims lawyer didnt immediately comment.

The lawsuit gives a rare window into an inheritance dispute within the Saudi royal family, which is typically tight-lipped about wealth and keeps internal discord private. Al Ibrahim was widely believed to be King Fahds favourite wife and once held great sway in the kingdom. However other branches of the royal family have seen their influence wane as King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, have centralized power.

The London court judgment doesnt say who controls the Asturion foundation.

The house was worth 28 million pounds ($36.4 million) in 2011, according to documents from the UK Land Registry. Its on The Bishops Avenue, known as Billionaires Row in north London, and is listed on the property website Zoopla as a 10-bed home.

The case is Asturion Foundation v Aljawarah Bint Ibrahim Abdulaziz Al Ibrahim in the UK High Court of Justice, case no HC-2015-001414.

--With assistance from Vivian Nereim.

To contact the reporters on this story: Kaye Wiggins in London at kwiggins4@bloomberg.net;Jonathan Browning in London at jbrowning9@bloomberg.net
A Brazilian boarding school on the edge of the Amazon, an innovative Hungarian university campus, a 'living' Italian high-rise tower in Milan and an open-plan Japanese music school are in the running to be named the world's best new building.

The biennial international prize awarded by the Royal Institute of British Architects is judged by a group of leading global architects, is given to a building that exemplifies design excellence and architectural ambition while also impacting meaningfully on its local community.

The shortlist of four has been selected from the 20 winners of the RIBA Awards for International Excellence, announced earlier this year . The buildings came from 16 countries around the world, but no British buildings were included.

The prestigious prize is due to be awarded in late November. Here are the final contenders:

1. Children Village, Brazil, by Aleph Zero + Rosenbaum

This new boarding complex on the edge of the Amazon provides accommodation for 540 senior school pupils, all of whom are the children of rural farm workers.

Largely made from locally-sourced timber, its Brazilian architects made best use of the plentiful natural resources surrounding the site, promoting both economic and environmental sustainability.

The students helped design the interacting spaces - from dormitories and reading spaces to balconies and hammocks - to improve their quality of life and connection with their school. It's a fine example of how architecture can stimulate those its designed for.

2. Central European University, Budapest, by ODonnell + Tuomey

The architects of this new university campus in the heart of the Hungarian capital have linked a new limestone-clad building to several historical buildings and courtyards, creating vibrant internal spaces for studying and relaxing.

The project has brought 35,000m to the inner-city campus, including a new library, auditorium, study rooms, teaching and learning facilities and a cafe.

3. Il Bosco Verticale, Milan, by Boeri Studio

Living walls: Il Bosce Verticale is helping with urban reforestation (Giovanni Nardi)

This is the second of two residential towers in Milan that encourage humans to coexist with trees, helping to "greenify" high-density urban housing.

Translating to Vertical Forest, the towers have been planted with nearly 17,000 trees, shrubs and plants, equating to about 20,000m of forest and undergrowth.

Their environmental benefits are wide-reaching, from repopulating the city's flora and fauna to creating their own air purifying microclimates.

4. Toho Gakuen School of Music, Tokyo, by Nikken Sekkei

Let the light in: the new music hall has a bright open-plan layout / Harunori Noda

The aim of this new musical school in suburban Tokyo was to connect practising musicians visually, rather than isolate them in gloomy cellular rooms. The open-plan campus is filled with natural light and has a village-like quality.

The lesson rooms have been designed in accordance to the proportions demanded by each instrument and are acoustically separated by corridors. This means music can be heard in the corridor but there is silence in the rooms.

The marker of a truly successful building is the positive contribution it makes to its local context and people.

Ben Derbyshire, Riba president, praised the shortlisted buildings for "demonstrating visionary, innovative thinking and excellence of execution".

He said: "The marker of a truly successful building is the positive contribution it makes to its local context and people.

"While these four buildings are in different time zones and continents, like all great architecture they share common qualities.
A defense attorney told a Criminal Court jury on Tuesday that a woman who was killed at an apartment building in Highland Park pulled a knife on the man who is charged with her murder.

Attorney Andrew Childress said Ashley Cates was holding a knife at the top of the stairs when Tyrone Murphy came up them on the night of June 4, 2017. He said there was a struggle, then Murphy took the knife and stabbed her.

Prosecutor Cameron Williams, who is asking the jury in the courtroom of Judge Barry Steelman to find Murphy guilty of first-degree murder, said the victim was stabbed over 15 times. He told the panel, "He drove one blow in with such force that the top of the knife broke off in her head."

The prosecutor said Ms. Cates was a "sweet and kind" 30-year-old woman who was timid and was living on her own for the first time.

She had moved into the second floor of an apartment house at 1512 Bailey Ave. just a short time before. Prosecutor Williams said, "She had been told it was a safe place."

He said her mother, Janice, had stayed with her until about midnight on June 4 and had left at that time because Ashley seemed to be doing okay.

The family became worried when Ms. Cates did not show up for an appointment to take care of a friend's pets and when she did not answer phone calls or texts. The mother went to check on her along with her husband, Tim Mosteller, Ashley's step-father.

Prosecutor Williams said they became more concerned when they saw her car outside the apartment building. They had trouble getting into the house, then spent a long time getting inside the door to her unit. There was no response to their knocking and shouts.

He said when the door was finally pried open they could see her dead body in the floor.

Prosecutor Williams said police found Murphy in his room nearby. They had to force their way in and found him in his bed with the covers over him and his eyes closed.

It was found that he had a cut hand and went to the hospital to get it tended to on the day the body was found.

The prosecutor said a bag of clothes was found in a basement laundry room. It contained bloody towels and mats along with Ms. Cates' purse, wallet and driver's license. He said blood found on the license carried the DNA of Murphy.

Tim Mosteller said Ms. Cates had lived in his residence on Hillcrest Road for about two years. He said she was a lovely girl who was sometimes sweet, but could be contrary. He said, "Ashley wanted to do what Ashley wanted to do when she wanted to do it."

He said she moved out at one point to live with a boyfriend in Red Bank, but she said he was abusive. He said she moved back in with them, then he had to tell her to leave when she would not quit smoking in her room.

The witness said he felt the Highland Park apartment was a safe location, noting that mostly UTC students were living in that section.

He told of going with his wife to find out why Ashley could not be contacted. He said they tried several tools to get the door pried open and finally succeeded. He said Ashley's body could be seen from outside the door.

He said his wife, who had been banging on the door and shouting for her daughter to respond, began screaming when she saw the body. She then ran down the stairs.

He said, "I went down and held her. I didn't know what else to do or say."

A UTC student who was one of the four second-floor residents told of hearing the banging on the door and the shouting. He said he came out and began trying to help get the door open.

He said the previous early morning - around 3 or 4 a.m. - he was half asleep when he heard a "blood-curdling, high-pitched scream." He said it was a woman's voice. He said by the time he got up to turn off some music, the screaming was over and he did not venture out.

Donna "DJ" Weaver, another second-story resident, said she saw Murphy coming from the laundry room area about 8 a.m. on the day the body was found. She said he was "the same old happy-go-lucky Tyrone."

She said she noticed that his left hand had a blue bandage or towel. She said she asked about it and he said he cut his hand at work.

A little while later, she said Murphy offered her some cigarettes, but she declined.

She said she also came out when there was a commotion about getting in Ms. Cates' room. She said the mother "kept calling over and over for her to open the door." She said when the body was spied "she screamed and ran down the stairs. I ran after her and just held onto her."

DJ said she did not know that Murphy was in his room when all the uproar was going on. She said, "He had a second job and I thought he was there."

Officer George Romero, who was nearby when the "unknown trouble" call went out, said he went upstairs and noticed a spot of blood on the hall floor. He said he then noticed a bloody smudge on the door of Murphy's apartment.
Supplier News

12 September 2018

Cendyn, the leading provider of hotel CRM and hotel sales platforms in the hospitality industry, has been nominated for four World Travel Awards; World's Leading Hotel CRM Technology Provider, World's Leading Data Driven Marketing Agency, World's Leading Hotel Sales Proposal Platform 2018 and World's Leading Hotel Event Management Platform.



The World Travel Awards recognizes companies, organizations, and brands that push the boundaries of industry excellence.



"We are extremely honored to have been nominated across all these awards on a global basis," says Charles Deyo, CEO & President at Cendyn. "The hospitality industry is evolving at a remarkable pace and our software, that stretches across both marketing and sales departments within a hotel, is paving the way for their future. It's incredible to see the rate that hotels, large and small, are now adopting CRM and data-driven digital marketing, to improve how they engage with, and acquire their guests. Not only do we see an increase in uptake of these technology solutions, we also see continued growth and footprint in our Hotel Sales Suite solutions which are also used across the globe."



This nomination follows Cendyn's win of Leading Hotel CRM Technology Provider in Europe and Leading Data Driven Marketing Agency in Europe and Asia 2018.



Cendyn's CRM Suite caters to every hotelier from large brands to small boutique properties. Using multiple integrations, Cendyn consolidates multiple data points from disparate data transactions to engage with travelers throughout the guest journey. Business rules-based automation combined with dynamic personalization and upsell opportunities drive revenue through multiple channels and helps hotels acquire new customers.



eInsight CRM provides enterprise marketing automation and guest intelligence for multi-property/multi-brand hotels and Cendyn's Guestfolio CRM provides intuitive marketing automation and guest intelligence for boutique and independent hotels.



Cendyn's unique Data-Driven Digital Marketing Suite enables hoteliers to learn about and target their most valuable guests more than ever before. By targeting the right guests, at the right time, with the right message, hoteliers are able to cut through the noise of the crowded hospitality industry with personalized multi-channel campaigns that showcase and drive awareness of your brand.



Cendyn's eProposal software allows hoteliers to respond to RFPs in minutes and seize their first-responder advantage to dramatically increase group bookings. Cendyn's award-winning eProposal is built to deliver personalized, media-rich RFP replies on a branded microsite. Real-time alerts of interactions with proposals also allow hotel sales reps to react immediately before their competition does.

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Press Release

12 September 2018

This pioneering new approach from AccorHotels aims to make the continent more accessible and open for not only international travellers, but for Africans and the diaspora to rediscover and celebrate fashion, art, dining, modernity, design, adventure in addition to driving social discourse

CASABLANCA, Morocco, September 12, 2018/  Fashion, art, travel, food, design, adventure, architecture, hi-tech/hi-touch and creativity, Africa is positively brimming with new and undiscovered experiences. AccorHotels invite guests, travelling nomads and the curious-at-heart to rediscover the continent through a completely new lens - MyChicAfrica (MyChicAfrica.accorhotels.com)- featuring inspiration insights, newfound narratives, and visually arresting content.

Following the immensely successful #MyChicAfrica social media campaign, which paired prominent African influencers together to provide an 'off the beaten track' look at their locales, AccorHotels in Africa is now ready to venture even further. The launch of its lifestyle media platform - MyChicAfrica.AccorHotels.com - a depository of material named after this culturally curated campaign, features a dedicated editorial team providing fresh insights and new travel itineraries for the culturally curious.

"Since our earliest days in Africa over 40 years ago to our operations across over 20 countries today, we have unearthed a positive yet realistic picture of Africa as a modern and daring continent, steeped in creativity, unmasked landscapes and offering a treasure trove of cultural gems - past, present and future," said Souleymane Khol, Vice President, Sales, Marketing, Distribution & Revenue Management at AccorHotels Africa & Indian Ocean.

MyChicAfrica - Showcasing the Continent

MyChicAfrica.AccorHotels.com is a showcase of Africa - a diversity of landscapes and cultural richness, making it one of the most beautiful travel destinations in the world. This pioneering new approach from AccorHotels aims to make the continent more accessible and open for not only international travellers, but for Africans and the diaspora to rediscover and celebrate fashion, art, dining, modernity, design, adventure in addition to driving social discourse.

According to the hospitality report from Jumia Travel, tourism in Africa has the potential to be the leading contributor to the continent's total GDP. Moreover, the digital eco-system in Africa is undergoing tremendous growth, making this the opportune time for AccorHotels to showcase, catalogue and reveal the continent in a dramatically visual and editorial way through this online media platform - MyChicAfrica.AccorHotels.com.

MyChicAfrica - A Gateway to African Experiences

MyChicAfrica.AccorHotels.com is an exciting account of the African way of life through four different areas: Innovation & Creativity, Travel & Experience, Lifestyle & Luxury, Culture & Discovery.

A selection of topical stories include:

Kimono making using indigenous African cloth instead of traditional Japanese silk.

A new era for African photography with Kenyan photographer Osborne Macharia, renowned for his work with the world's biggest brands and breaking barriers in the process.

The best surfing spots are not in Hawaii, California or even Australia, they are in Senegal with 1.5 - 2 metre high to 4-metre high waves.

The overwhelming success of Marvel's Black Panther movie has reinvigorated the conversation on AfroFuturism. Read about how modern Africa is reclaiming itself.

Cameroon is not typically seen as a travel destination, yet it encapsulates Africa in a nutshell.

"AccorHotels has always believed in Africa's future and is now sharing its appreciation and knowledge of the continent with others. In addition MyChicAfrica, we have ventured into other areas close to African consumers, including a mobile payment solution and complimentary mobile phone usage in order to provide a seamless and connected experience in our hotels as well as contribute to the growing digital eco-system in Africa." concluded Souleymane Khol.

Join #MyChicAfrica community on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/MyChicAfrica/),Instagram (www.Instagram.com/mychicafrica/) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/MyChicAfrica1)
Mosul Will Rise Again As a Symbol of Hope and History

There will be some for whom the drive to repair the historic fabric of Mosul, torn apart in the struggle against ISIS, might appear premature at a time when bodies are still being recovered from beneath the rubble of this once vibrant city, more than a year after it was liberated. But nothing could be further from the truth. Iraq's second city, once the capital of the Assyrian empire, stands at the very nexus of human
Opinion Article

12 September 2018

Let's consider a scenario. You're out shopping for a few household items at a local Target or Costco, but while you cross those items off your list, you come across some tempting, unrelated deals. Maybe a great deal on a new TV or electronic, a decorative item for the house, a luxury skincare item, or a gift for a loved one. In the first scenario, you fill up your cart and head for an open check-out lane. In the span of a few short minutes, you're out the door and unloading your haul into the trunk of your car. In the second scenario, you fill up your cart and head for the check-out  only to be met with a massive line. After 10-15 minutes of standing, elbows perched on the cart while staring at its contents, you start to second guess that impulse item. Do you really need it? Is it worth the additional cost to your total spend when you just came here for a few things? With time still left to spare, you decide to ditch that item and limit your purchase to the products that you came for initially.



Sure, this may not be a perfect science, but it's a typical scenario explored as we consider the psychology behind impulse buying. In fact, this is a concept that modern ventures (such as the Amazon GO stores popping up throughout the U.S.) are capitalizing on, by making the check-out process as fast and seamless as possible to ensure customers don't have any time to second guess their buying decisions. When customers don't have to worry about lines, pulling out cash or plugging in their pin numbers, the shopping experience becomes a process of harmonious, instant gratification. Think of it this way  is an individual more likely to make it from point A to point B if the distance between those points is short, or long? The easier the path to purchase is, the easier purchasing becomes. And it's not just about a seamless purchase process  it's also about the way items are sold to the consumer. Most of us are, consciously or not, driven by loss aversion and the desire to save. Not only do we not want to miss out on a great product/experience or perceived value that may be fleeting or limited in nature, but we love a good deal. If we see a bottle of shampoo listed for $5, that offer in itself might not peak our interest. However, if we see that same shampoo bundled as 2 for $10 (for a limited time only), that messaging is much more likely to trigger our desire to capitalize on a deal. This is what we like to call "opportunistic purchasing."



According to a recent survey of 2,000 people, the average U.S. consumer makes three impulse purchases a week, adding up to $450 a month and $5,400 per year. Of those surveyed, 85% said their impulse purchase involved taking advantage of a deal or discount. Further, the average person (over the course of a lifetime) will reportedly spend over $110,000 on impulsive purchases. Of course, the concept of impulsive buying behaviors isn't solely tied to retail environments; rather, it touches almost every industry  the hospitality realm included. With the strategic implementation of mobile-centric technology and the prioritization of operational automation, hoteliers can groom the opportunity to use impulse buying to their advantage, but unfortunately, many are still missing out. The StayNTouch, Travel Tripper and TrustYou 2018 Guest Experience Assessment Report Study revealed some surprising findings:

41% of respondents do not offer their guests a choice of check-in method

70% of respondents never or only sometimes convert upsells or upgrades at check-in

68% of respondents recognize the need to improve their use of mobile technology to improve the guest experience.

The good news is that the trend for impulse booking has seen a recent surge as consumers search for last-minute deals on flights and hotels. With online booking platforms and the option to view virtual tours, chat with hotel representatives online and book instantly, the hospitality industry has seen a 150% surge in travel-related searches for "today" and "tonight" in the past two years. Not only that, but more than 60% of U.S. travelers would consider an impulse trip based on a good hotel or flight deal, according to a study that Google conducted with Phocuswright.

What does this all mean? With technology catered to the needs of impulse-driven consumers, the travel and hospitality industry is in a position to generate more revenue than ever before  and that opportunity continues far beyond the initial booking.

Consider this  the primary pillars in the creation of a successful and profitable guest experience are the provision of value and personalization, and the ability to provide an experience that is efficient and seamless. The modern, digital-savvy guest expects to engage with platforms and businesses that are, too - digital and catered to quick, efficient service. With the help of modern tools for automation and personalization (machine learning and AI, insight-driven PMS and CRM), hoteliers can simplify and streamline the pre-stay and on-property experience like never before.

While legacy PMS systems were often burdened with platform limitations, complicated upgrades and manual processes, modern PMS systems enable hoteliers to effectively automate their operational model. With insight-driven, cloud-based technology acting as the backbone of your hotel's day to day operations, your team can easily offer appealing upgrades, add-ons and upsells at each guest touch point. Hoteliers no longer have to push their staff to sell, because modern PMS technology automatically provides them with the tools to better engage with guests, individualize their experience and drive revenue.

Photo: stayntouch

Hoteliers need to take advantage of point of sale opportunities like event tickets, spa treatments, happy hour, upgraded room type, breakfast or spa packages, early check-in or check-out later for a nominal fee. For those guests who prefer an efficient, low-touch experience and opt for a self-service kiosk, automated upgrade and offer prompts will become available to them throughout their navigation of that platform. This allows them to consider that purchase opportunity without any pressure from hotel staff, and within a process that is as quick and seamless as the tap of their finger. Why is this so effective? Because the offer is not only incentivized to their experience, but it is entirely convenient and accessible in nature.

At the end of the day, upselling/cross-selling isn't just a sales tactic; it's a guest happiness tactic that can help you build deeper relationships with guests by delivering more value. Impulse purchases account for a significant chunk of the consumer spending pie - so hoteliers should invest in tools that encourage merchandising strategies to guests that not only enhance the guest journey - but also boost the hotel's bottom line. Sounds like a real win-win for everyone, doesn't it?
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Home2 Suites by Hilton MontrAal Dorval complements the region's booming tourism, where 11.1 million travelers visited in 2017 - a 5.1 percent increase over 2016.

Home2 Suites by Hilton, part of Hilton's (NYSE: HLT) All Suites portfolio, announced last week its newest property, Home2 Suites by Hilton Montreal Dorval. The hotel features 106 suites and a range of value, tech-focused and eco-conscious amenities. Home2 Suites by Hilton Montreal Dorval complements the region's booming tourism, where 11.1 million travelers visited in 2017 - a 5.1 percent increase over 2016.

"As a convenient and flexible extended-stay lodging option, Home2 Suites by Hilton offers guests a modern experience that provides value-added incentives, spacious suites, unique amenities and access to main attractions in the area," said Adrian Kurre, global head for Home2 Suites by Hilton. "Montreal's growing tourism sector underscores its strong economy, and we're excited to expand our brand footprint into the Canadian market with our all-suite accommodations that will appeal to both business and leisure travelers."

The new six-story hotel will be managed by Alba Hospitality of Montreal. Home2 Suites by Hilton Montreal Dorval offers all-suite accommodations with fully-equipped kitchens and modular furniture, providing guests the flexibility to customize their suite to their style and preference. The hotel also features complimentary Internet, inviting communal spaces, and trademark Home2 Suites amenities such as Spin2 Cycle, a combined laundry and fitness area, Home2 MKT for grab-and-go items, and the Inspired Table, a complimentary daily breakfast that includes more than 400 potential combinations. Guests can also enjoy an indoor pool, secure indoor parking, outdoor fire pit and grill area. Home2 Suites by Hilton Montreal Dorval is pet-friendly.

Built to serve the growing extended-stay market in Montreal's West-Island suburbs, Home2 Suites by Hilton Montreal Dorval is conveniently located at 1855 Route Transcandienne on Autoroute 40 between Boulevard Des Sources and Boulevard Henri-Bourassa. The property is near MontrealPierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, Fairview Pointe-Claire shopping center and many corporations, such as Bombardier, CAE and ABB.

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Amber Rose is keen on building a tightly knit community. Her efforts extend past her annual SlutWalk. The social media star is now giving her fans direct access to her through a mobile application.

Rose announced her new initiative on Instagram in a short clip. Her following is invited to call and text her through the Collide app.

"So I just started on this new app called Collide. So if you wanna text or call me, make sure you download the app right now and subscribe. And I will get your text messages and phone calls straight to my phone."

https://www.instagram.com/p/BnkcPpun8UA



Although her Collide profile welcomes users with a message that states that Amber Rose is "bored" and yearning for company, the phone calls and text messages entail fees. Still, this is just one of the elements that comprise her connection to her growing fanbase.

The model is also offering financial assistance to women of ambition. She promises financial support for those who are working towards specific projects that will benefit them long-term.

Her honesty about her own struggles in another factor that attracts stans. She recently opened up about overcoming trauma caused by abusive relationships. After experiencing three toxic romantic connections, Amber Rose warns others of the red flags they can be aware of in order to avoid the same cycle of abuse. She is here for y'all, mind, body and soul.
The late Paul Walker would have celebrated his 45th birthday today. In honor of the late actor, his brother Cody and fans from all over the world celebrated his life by posting beautiful messages on Twitter and Instagram. As a tribute to the actor who was tragically killed five years ago, we have gathered a list of his top five fan-favorite movies.

For those looking to contribute to Paul Walker's memory, the Fourth annual #Game4Paul online stream set releases on October 11th. Donations help carry out Paul's legacy through the disaster relief organization he founded, Reach Out WorldWide.

The Fast And The Furious (2001)

When the sun goes down, Another world comes to life

Paul Walker played an undercover police officer named Brian OConnor, sent to investigate and eventually implode the street racing world in Los Angeles. He becomes faced with hard decisions when he falls in love with the crew, the racing, and especially a woman named Mia.

Furious 7 (2015)

One last ride

Brian OConnors serene life and family get shaken up when he's attacked by shady government and a computer terrorism program named Gods Eye. The crew have to face their demise and decide whether to fight and rise from it, once again.

Running Scared (2006)

It's not how far you go for the truth It's how fast you get there.

Walker plays a low-rank thug under the charge of a one-track minded boss who forces him to dispose of a gun responsible for killing corrupt cops. The gun manages to fall into the hands of Walkers neighbor, who ultimately uses it to kill his abusive father. In short, Walker has some cleaning up to do.

Joy Ride (2001)

How much fun can you have when the joke is on you?

Walker is one of three young adults on a road trip from Colorado to New Jersey. His brother, Fuller, turns his pranks on a hundred and pisses off a truck-driver over their CB radio. The truck-driver turns out to be a psychotic killer.

Shes All That (1999)

These two opposites attract... but EVERYONE'S trying to keep them apart!

Walker plays the high school jocks best friend who dares him to transform a dorky girl into the next prom queen. This lighthearted typical high school movie is a classic.
LeBron James and Channing Tatum made an appearance on The Ellen Show today in promotion of the animated "Smallfoot" film coming out later this month, and to raise some money for Bron's I Promise School in Akron, Ohio.

To make their charitable efforts more entertaining for the studio audience and those watching at home, Ellen challenged the four-time MVP and his co-star to a series of dares. Walmart pledged to donate $10,000 to the I Promise School for each completed dare, which consisted of drinking a shot of tequila with no hands, licking a mystery object while blindfolded and eating vanilla ice cream mixed with tabasco sauce.

In the end, LeBron and Tatum completed enough dares to raise $50,000, but Walmart wound up donating $100,000 anyway. Also, LeBron has begun tucking his tie into his short suit pants.

Check out footage from Wednesday's episode of The Ellen Show in the video embedded below.
Travis Scott's always had a strong emphasis on keeping his fans happy. Although they were a bit frustrated with him for how long it took for Astroworld to drop, the rapper undoubtedly lived up the high expectations set for the project. Earlier today, a student from a Houston high school asked the rapper on Twitter if he could give them permission to use elements of the "Watch" cover art for their grad sweater. Instead of simply granting them permission to use the artwork, the rapper offered to he design it himself and send a box to the school.

The 2019 graduating class of Eisenhower High School in Houston are about to have some of the freshest grad sweaters ever made. A fan drafted a design of the potential sweater and tweeted it to Travis Scott asking for permission to use the design.

"Ill just design them for u guys and send a box thru how about that. ?" he replied back to the fan.

Despite the kind act, several fans were a little agitated by the fact that they haven't received their own orders from the Astroworld merch. One fan wrote, "so you out here designing shirts and cant send me my merch i paid for[?]" While another fan chimed in and said that it's been over a month and a half since they ordered their merch.

Aside from potentially designing Eisenhower High School's grad sweaters, the rapper was recently in Houston shooting the music video for the Drake-assisted single, "SICKO MODE." It's unsure when it'll be released but we're excited to see what Scott has up his sleeves.
It looks like Travis Scott is looking to expand his business venture. Riding off the success of his Astroworld campaign, the Houston rapper has filed the paperwork to acquire the rights to S.P.A.C.E., which looks to be the name of his new brand.

According to the documents obtained by TMZ, Travis has plans to produce a bunch of items branded with the term S.P.A.C.E. on it, including clothes, jewelry, cosmetics, fragrances, non-alcoholic beverages and an online retail store to where everything will be sold from.

In addition to S.P.A.C.E., Travis has also filed documents to lock down the rights to "S.P.A.C.E 1991" and "S.P.A.C.E 2001." However its completely unknown as for what those acronyms stand for.

This report comes just weeks after Travis rolled out a slew of other merchandise for only 24 hours, including Astroworld t-shirts, hoodies, hats, and more.

Well continue to keep you posted moving forward on his new S.P.A.C.E brand as more on it surfaces. In the meantime, if you're interested in seeing LaFlame live in person, you're in luck, the Houston rapper is about to hit the road for his upcoming "Astroworld World Tour," which you can peep dates for right here.

[Via]
A Washington investment firm is partnering with Diamondback Energy in a $620 million deal to finance Midland oil and gas driller's development of the Southern Delaware Basin.

The Carlyle Group will fund up to 85 percent of Diamondback energy's development of oil and gas assets in the San Pedro area of Pecos County in the Permian Basin over the next five years. The money will come from Carlyle Energy Mezzanine Opportunities Fund II L.P.
Francescas sales and profits plummeted during its second quarter as the Houston retailer struggled to attract customers amid changing fashion and shopping preferences.

The womens apparel chain said Tuesday that its profit plunged to $454,000 in the three months ending Aug. 4, compared to $7.3 million during the same period last year. Same-store sales fell 13 percent from a year earlier amid weak foot traffic to stores. The company operates 742 stores in 48 states.

Francesca's shares plunged on the news, losing one-third of their value by the end of trading Tuesday. The company's stock fell $2.03 to $3.86 a share.

Francescas disappointing second quarter performance represents a setback for the retailer, which earlier this year said it was banking on a strong back-to-school shopping season to propel sales through the holidays. In 2016 and 2017, the retailer posted strong back-to-school sales when it sold merchandise aimed toward the younger end of its 18- to 35-year-old target shoppers.

The company, however, shifted its apparel and accessory mix to attract older millennials and young professionals with more buying power, which, CEO Steve Lawrence conceded in a call with analysts, did not resonate with younger customers. Still, Lawrence said he expected the change in strategy under chief merchandising officer Ivy Spargo to pay off.

What is clear from the second quarter results is that its taking us longer than anticipated to turn the corner, Lawrence said. But we think that was the right move and we think were heading in the right direction.

Francescas Facts Headquarters: Houston Store Count: 742, about half in malls Net income, second quarter 2018: $454,000 Net income, second quarter 2017: $7.3 million Same-store sales, second quarter 2018: 13 percent decline year over year See More Collapse

The lackluster summer traffic forced the company to lower its financial projections for the rest of the year, anticipating same-store sales to decline 8 percent to 10 percent.

Francesca's reported $23.4 million cash on hand at the end of the second quarter, compared to $33.3 million at the same time last year. The company has no outstanding debt, and has a $28.4 million revolving line of credit.

Francescas is facing changing tastes in womens fashion. Women now prefer jumpsuits, rompers and separates over dresses and tops. Dresses represent about 40 percent of Francescas apparel sales, Lawrence said.

Francescas last month relaunched its Harper Heritage line of jeans, and plans to introduce jumpsuits in the fall and rompers in the spring, Lawrence said. The company expects its distressed jeans, which are made to look like theyre worn, to become a hot commodity when the weather cools, he said.

Josh Orr, a retail analyst with the Houston consulting firm Streamline, said rompers and jumpsuits have become trendy in recent years, but skeptical Francescas could capitalizeon the trend as fashion fads fade quickly.

If youre not ahead of a trend, Orr said, its incredibly difficult to play catch-up and be competitive in that space.

To draw shoppers to its stores, Francescas plans to increase its marketing budget by 20 percent for the remainder of the year. Leading up to Thanksgiving and Christmas, the company will invest in online advertising, social media and brand influencers, who have a large social media following, to encourage sales, Lawrence said.

The company already has invested $300,000 to launch a Fran Rewards customer loyalty program, which has signed up 2.1 million shoppers so far. Francescas plans to launch its first free gift promotion over the next few weeks to promote the program, Lawrence said.

Francesca's is also remodeling stores, spending $4.2 million this year on updating floor layouts and designs. The company is on track to remodel 85 stores, or about 15 percent of its locations.

In addition, Francescas hired a consultant to study ways the company can bolster its e-commerce business, which has grown by double-digits as its brick-and-mortar sales lagged. The company this year installed a new point-of-service system, which allows customers to shop in store and have their purchases shipped home, or shop online and pick up their purchases in stores.

Still, Francescas online sales are less than 10 percent of the retailers business, compared to 20 percent to 40 percent at its competitors, Lawrence said.

Theres definitely more of a flight to digital, Lawrence said. Weve got to dramatically ramp up our marketing and dot-com business.

paul.takahashi@chron.com

twitter.com/paultakahashi
The Roman Catholic church is not the only institution that has a history of protecting and concealing sexual predators; corporate America is also guilty.

Readers have been sharing their experiences and complaints. Unsurprisingly, they mirror a grand jury report in Pennsylvania, which described senior clergy shielding serial harassers and rapists by moving them to different workplaces and cloaking their behavior in secrecy.

People with authority have leveraged their power to impose themselves on others throughout human history. Societies periodically denounce such behavior, and the latest iteration, calling itself the #MeToo movement, turns a year-old next month.

We must not tire. There is still too much work to do.

RELATED: United Airlines' wrongheaded fight against attendants sexual harassment claims

Corporate leaders still protect perpetrators rather than victims. Sometimes the calculus is financial, as when an administrative worker complains about a top performer. In others, managers worry about reputational risk and demand coverups.

In a lawsuit filed in San Antonio, two women allege that M7 Aerospace retained and protected an employee with an acknowledged history of sexual harassment.

Ann Cantu was making photocopies last year when she allegedly caught a co-worker secretly taking photographs up her skirt. Cantu immediately reported him to a human resources officer, who seized the phone and called the police.

Before they arrived, the man confessed he had a problem, according to court papers. HR then allowed him to leave before police arrived. Instead of giving the phone to police, they sent it to corporate headquarters in Fort Worth where top leaders reviewed the photos, which included close-ups of employees body parts.

This was not the first time the women at M7 had complained about this individual. In 2011, a woman filed a sexual harassment complaint, but the companys managers decided only to reprimand him and move him. As soon as that woman left the company, managers moved him back to the original office.

There was an analysis after the first complaint, and the risk-reward analysis for them fell on the side of placing other women at his mercy, said Carlos Solis, Cantus attorney from Hilley and Solis. She shouldnt have to endure what she endured, and every person needs to be working to end sexual harassment.

A spokeswoman for Elbit Systems of America, which owns M7 Aerospace, declined to comment.

Many cases, though, never reach the public. Private employers require about half of the nonunion workers in the U.S. to sign arbitration agreements as a condition for employment, according to the Economic Policy Institute, a workers rights think-tank.

These agreements require employees to take workplace disputes, including sexual harassment allegations, to an arbitrator hired by the company. The arbitration is confidential, allowing companies and their problem employees to avoid exposure.

RELATED: Papa Johns founder proves arrogance and overconfidence are seeds of destruction

This is another reason why one out of four women will endure sexual harassment at work, according to the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

There are countless cases where companies immediately want to sweep everything under the rug and keep the bad guy, said Todd Slobin, a Houston-based employment attorney. One of his clients is worried about future employees.

Stefani Bambace was hired by Berry Y&V Fabricators in 2016 to work as a private tutor at the home of the CEO, Allen Berry. Soon after, she became the personal assistant to Berrys wife, Danielle.

Bambace alleges that Danielle Berry created a hyper-sexualized workplace by exposing Bambace to nudity, inappropriate images and sexual propositions. After Bambace complained, Berry fired her in July 2017. Her employment agreement requires mandatory and confidential arbitration.

Attorneys for the Berrys did not respond to requests for comment.

Slobin filed a lawsuit in April, arguing that there is a public interest in hearing sexual harassment cases in public, not behind closed doors where predators can get away with a slap on the wrist. His reasoning is sound. Fifty-six state attorneys general, including Texas Ken Paxton, have signed a letter calling for laws exempting sexual harassment cases from mandatory arbitration.

There is no such law in Texas, though, so Slobin will need a novel argument to convince the judge to throw out the employment agreement.

We told our client this will be an uphill battle, but she is willing to be the poster child for this issue because of what happened to her, Slobin said.

Ultimately, though, it is up to state and federal lawmakers to make it impossible for corporations to protect sexual predators. Companies will only act against powerful bosses if the alternative is public shaming and expensive litigation.

Weve made progress in enabling women to speak out, but now we need accountability and transparency in every workplace to ensure that no one feels safe mistreating a co-worker.

Chris Tomlinson writes commentary about business and economics.

chris.tomlinson@chron.com

twitter.com/cltomlinson
Qasim Basirs melancholic mood piece, A Boy. A Girl. A Dream., certainly has its pretensions, starting with its punctuation-heavy title and running through its real-time story line that leads viewers to believe that it was all done, Birdman-style, in one, long, uninterrupted take.

But to get caught up in its impressive stylishness  all the more striking as A Boy is a low-budget indie  is to miss the larger point of finding strength through human connection, especially when things seem to be at their bleakest.

Set on the night of the presidential election in 2016, the film focuses on a group of young, mostly African-American creative types in LA out for a night on the town. Cass (Omari Hardwick, from the series Power) is a club promoter and filmmaker hanging out with his friends, including a good buddy, Roc (Jay Ellis, Insecure), who are grabbing some food from a West Hollywood food truck before heading out for an evening of clubbing.

But Cass notices an attractive young woman by herself, eating her food-truck sandwich and looking like she could use a friend. Thats Frida (Meagan Good, Star), Free for short, an attorney visiting from the Midwest. Their initial awkward conversation turns into flirtation, misunderstanding, revelations and, ultimately, trust.

A Boy. A Girl. A Dream Unrated Running time: 89 minutes 3.5 (out of five) See More Collapse

Much like Richard Linklaters Before Sunrise, A Boy is built around a couples conversation about their lives and dreams, except with a few nods to the fact that Los Angeles in 2016 is not Vienna, Austria 1995. Ethan Hawkes Sunrise character didnt have to deal with two cops throwing him up against a wall because they believe he is the attacker after he gets into a fight with two white guys who are aggressively hitting on Free.

Eventually, Cass and Frida take a Lyft up into the Hollywood Hills to an election-night party to which he had been invited. But as the results roll in, the gathering turns into more of a wake. Its safe to say there are no Trump supporters at this party.

Yet Cass and Free find hope in each other, realizing that  no matter the outside forces  they cant let that ground them into emotional surrender.

Beautifully shot with a nighttime luminescence by Steve Holleran, A Boy. A Girl. A Dream. indeed has a dreamlike quality. The nitty-gritty of the election, heard softly on TVs in the background, often seems slightly out of earshot, like a half-heard conversation.

The dream is made real by strong performances from Hardwick and Good, who are in nearly every frame.

Ultimately, A Boy. A Girl. A Dream. has enough substance to back up its considerable style.

cary.darling@chron.com
Kin Man Hui /Staff file photo

As controversy brewed over proposed Alamo-related changes to the seventh-grade Texas history curriculum, registration began Friday for the State Board of Educations public hearing Tuesday on social studies standards.

Working groups of teachers and historians have proposed eliminating the words all the heroic defenders who gave their lives at the Alamo from a state standard governing instruction on the Texas war of independence from Mexico, calling heroic a value-charged word and saying the reference to all defenders is too vague and covers too many individuals.
A Harris County womans DWI conviction in 2014 was reversed Tuesday because a Houston crime lab analyst and her supervisor did not report shoddy evidence labeling that was required to be disclosed to defense lawyers, the court ruled.

The reversal by the 14th Court of Appeals in Houston is the latest in a series of missteps by the city-funded Houston Forensic Science Center, which took over operations of the Houston Police Department crime lab. The ruling involves the jury trial of Lesley Esther Diamond, who was convicted of a Class A misdemeanor largely on the testimony of city crime lab analyst Andrea Gooden.

Gooden was suspended in April 2014 after alerting her supervisor, William Arnold, that she mistakenly analyzed a blood sample that had been submitted with label errors by a Houston police officer. She was suspended from casework reports while the agency investigated. Gooden continued to testify in three trials, including Diamonds, about other samples without informing prosecutors or the defense about her suspension, the court found.

Arnold did not document or disclose this action to the Harris County District Attorneys Office because he did not want to damage Goodens career or subject her to harsh cross-examination by a defense lawyer, the appeals court ruled. There was no other testimony regarding (Diamonds) blood alcohol level from any other witness other than Gooden.

Diamond was convicted of driving while intoxicated and jurors agreed to a more severe conviction after Gooden testified that Diamond had a blood alcohol level of .193, more than twice the legal limit of .08. That enhancement allowed the jury to convict Diamond for a more serious crime, subjecting her to the possibility of a year in jail, double what her maximum sentence would be on a Class B misdemeanor.

The court ruled that defense attorneys for Diamond should have been told about the suspension, which could have provided grounds for questioning Goodens testimony.

Evidence that can help the defense is known as Brady material, named for a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case, and must be divulged by prosecutors.

The ruling makes it clear that the lab withheld Brady material, said Diamonds attorney, Josh Schaffer.

He said the case is test for district attorney Kim Oggs administration, and argued they should not challenge the court ruling and dismiss his clients case.

(Former DA) Devon Andersons administration opposed this and was complicit in the ongoing attempt to cover up the wrongdoing at the crime lab, he said. With todays decision, Kim Oggs administration has the opportunity to put their money where their mouth is when it comes to transparency and criminal justice reform and improving forensic science.

Schaffer said the ruling could affect two other trials in which Gooden testified. He also said other defense attorneys may want to look at her work in an estimated 1,500 other cases that she had handled prior to her suspension, according to official records.

She returned to labwork on July 28, 2014 and is currently an analyst in the toxicology section.

The director of city lab noted Tuesday that Gooden reported the mislabeling herself, and the situation led to improvements at the lab.

HFSC believes the analyst, Andrea Gooden, did the right thing by coming forward with the error and believes we have stronger systems in place now to help ensure errors are caught and a culture that encourages transparency internally and externally, said Dr. Peter Stout, CEO and HFSC president in a written statement. Following this incident, HFSC implemented a policy to reject for toxicology analysis any improperly labeled or packaged evidence. It also took steps to simplify the submission process for requests for toxicology testing.

He said the lab has invested time and money to become more transparent and make information available on its website. In addition, he said, changes and improvements have been made to processes, training and personnel to ensure that similar mistakes do not occur again.

He noted that any errors that occur and are investigated and documented by HFSC are then made publicly accessible on the website.

Stouts comments come after a January 2015 report from the Texas Forensic Science Commission, which included harsh criticism of the citys forensic science lab that said Arnold, Goodens supervisor, intentionally failed to document the suspension.

The report described the interim lab manager as professionally negligent.

Arnold is now the labs information technology director, a move Schaffer questioned.

Ive consistently praised Ms. Gooden for her willingness to come forward and expose what happened, he said. It was Will Arnolds role, who was at the time the director of toxicology, to keep it quiet and not tell the DAs office about it because he wanted to protect her and their cases and their reputation.

Schaffer said Arnold was at the center of a system of withholding information from defendants.

He knew that if he told the DAs office about it, everything could blow up, Shaffer said. That is a culture of corruption.

A report from the citys Office of Inspector General in December 2014 found that Arnold knew Gooden was scheduled to testify less than 10 days after being suspended and noted, like the appeals court did, that he wanted to protect her from cross examination.

Late Tuesday, the Harris County District Attorneys office filed an appeal to the ruling arguing that the 14th Court of Appeals did not address their argument that Diamonds grounds for appeal changed midway through the process, and therefore her claims were not valid.

Earlier, prosecutor Clint Morgan had noted the procedural weirdness of the Diamond case and argued that her appeal should be dismissed without comment.

When she was originally convicted, in 2014, the jury agreed that Diamond was guilty of a Class A misdemeanor because Gooden testified her blood alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit. But the judge inaccurately wrote down that she was guilty of the less serious offense of a Class B misdemeanor.

After the appeals court dismissed her first appeal, Diamond had the record changed to accurately show that she was convicted of a more serious crime. She then filed her appeal again, protesting the lack of disclosure which led the appeals court to rule that Goodens testimony was material to the conviction.
At least nine children and five adults were hospitalized after a gas leak was reported near the KIPP Nexus school and St. Ambrose Catholic School in northwest Houston, according to the Houston Fire Department.

The students and adults felt ill and were taken to local hospitals "in an abundance of caution," KIPP school officials said.

"Fortunately, the gas leak was capped shortly after being reported and those who felt better were cleared to return to normal activities," said Daniel Caesar, KIPP Texas Public Schools Regional Superintendent.

It's unclear whether those nine hospitalized children were part of a group of 20 children who voluntarily evacuated St. Ambrose Catholic School on Wednesday morning. It's also unclear exactly where the gas leak was reported.

The fire department has not immediately responded to requests for additional information. Department spokeswoman Sheldra Brigham said in a text message that an initial investigation by the Houston Fire Department indicated zero levels of natural gas or carbon monoxide inside St. Ambrose, located in the 4200 bock of Mangum Road.

KIPP students and staff did not have to be evacuated, the department said in the tweet. All KIPP students have since been released because it was a regularly scheduled half day, school officials said.

Meanwhile, St. Ambrose posted a notice on its Facebook page saying it will be closing for the day.

RELATED: New law targets natural gas leaks

"Parents please come to the school to pick up your children as soon as possible," according to the post. "Grades 4-8th will be in the Gym, Pk3 -3 grade will be in the cafeteria."

Julian Gill is a digital reporter in Houston. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, houstonchronicle.com. | julian.gill@chron.com
Harris County Commissioners Court on Tuesday approved raises for deputies and detention officers, the same day it agreed to outsource some inmates to the Fort Bend County Jail.

The pay increases for around 5,300 sheriff and constable deputies, jailers and communications staff will cost the county $17.8 million annually, while the Fort Bend deal will push the sheriffs inmate outsourcing costs toward $1 million per month.

Neither addresses the causes of Harris Countys jail overcrowding, and will leave Sheriff Ed Gonzalez shuffling inmates between six jails in Texas and Louisiana.

Outsourcing is never our preferred practice, Gonzalez said. Unfortunately, due to Harvey and the slowing down of jury trials, we didnt have a choice but to start outsourcing again.

EARLIER: Harris County mulls deal to outsource inmates to Fort Bend County Jail

The sheriff said he hopes the pay bumps will help lure better candidates and cut down on attrition, particularly among jail employees.

Effective September 29, detention, communications and law enforcement officers up to the rank of captain will receive 3 percent raises. Senior deputies with more than 20 years of experience will see an additional raise of $0.50 per hour. The raises also apply to deputies in the countys seven constable precincts.

The changes also eliminate the first pay scale step across all employment categories, raising the starting pay for jailers and communications staff by 12.3 percent and deputies by 13.3 percent. Rookie jailers and communications staff now will earn $39,395 per year, while deputies will be paid $50,814.

The raises will be paid for with higher property tax revenues, county budget analyst Kevin Seat said.

Precinct 2 Commissioner Jack Morman said he hopes the raises are the first of several to make Harris County law enforcement pay comparable to that in other counties. He added that employees in the county fire marshal's office should receive raises, too.

Gonzalez said that in the 20 months since he took office, recruiting job candidates has become more difficult. As the economy has improved, he said, the sheriffs office must compete with other police agencies, as well as the private sector.

The sheriffs office currently has 20 vacancies for communications staff, 51 for detention officers and 318 for deputies, according to spokesman Jason Spencer.

Attrition is a particular problem for detention officers, Gonzalez said. On average, 23 leave the county each month, pressing the sheriff to find replacements to staff the filled-to-capacity Harris County Jail.

Its difficult work and its not for everyone, Gonzalez said. Better pay always helps in that situation.

On the transfer of prisoners to Fort Bend, Gonzalez, County Judge Ed Emmett and the four commissioners agreed that outsourcing inmates is undesirable, but called it necessary given that Harris County has hundreds more inmates than its jail can handle.

As of Tuesday, Harris County had around 10,100 inmates. Of those, 719 have been outsourced to other jurisdictions, including 550 at the Jackson Parish Correctional Facility in northern Louisiana, nearly 300 miles from Houston.

The agreement with Fort Bend County will allow Gonzalez to move as many as 224 inmates from Louisiana, but will cost Harris County more. Housing inmates in Jackson Parish costs the county $29.33 per inmate per day, with transportation included. Fort Bend is charging Harris County $55.00 per day, and will not provide transport.

Harris County Sheriff's Maj. Greg Summerlin told Commissioners Court that housing inmates in Louisiana is far cheaper because those facilities do not have to comply with Texas' minimum jail safety standards and because prison firm LaSalle Southwest Corrections pays its employees less than what they would earn in the Houston area.

MORE: State finds Harris County jail out of compliance after 2nd suicide in a month

Defense attorneys said the Fort Bend deal is progress, but urged Harris County to bring all inmates back to the Houston area.

Public defender Amalia Beckner said defendants held in Louisiana are less likely to receive adequate counsel, as lawyers are unable to make the 10-hour round trip to Jackson Parish for a brief jailhouse meeting. Beckner said one of her clients was shipped out of state without warning.

There was significant evidence I needed to review with him in person, Beckner said. I cant show him video surveillance footage over the phone.

Precinct 3 Commissioner Steve Radack said the fact that Beckners client faces a serious felony was important to note. He also took issue with Fort Bend Countys daily inmate rate.

Radack suggested Sheriff Gonzalez should have received a better price because the Harris County hospital system has provided millions of dollars in services to Fort Bend County without being reimbursed. Radack asked County Auditor Michael Post to calculate the sum of those benefits.

Its time for us to take a stand. Its time to get our money, Radack said.

Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls said the $55.00 per diem is less than he charges the federal government for prisoners, and said Radack should find a different home for Harris County inmates if he objects.

Zach Despart covers Harris County for the Chronicle. You can follow him on Twitter or email him at zach.despart@chron.com.
AUSTIN  The latest Alamo battle was over in a few hours on Tuesday.

A curriculum advisory group had recommended that the State Board of Education remove the words all the heroic defenders from the states social studies curriculum to describe those who fought at the Alamo, setting off a barrage of criticism and drawing more than 60 people to Tuesdays board meeting.

But by mid-morning, the board appeared poised to keep heroic in the curriculum after a member of the advisory group said nobody had intended to minimize the deeds of the Alamo defenders. The advisory group had initially sought to strike the word because it is value charged, and had argued that all defenders is a term too vague to be part of a history lesson.

Whats more, the group recommended eliminating from the curriculum a specific reference to William B. Travis letter addressed to the People of Texas and All Americans in the World, commonly referred to as the victory or death letter.

Texas lawmakers led the charge against the proposals. Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called it political correctness. Rep. Ted Poe, R-Atascocita, even showed up at Tuesdays meeting to speak out against the changes, a move that surprised board members who said theyve never seen a Congress member at a meeting before.

The short-lived battle over the Alamos role in the states social studies curriculum is emblematic of the culture wars that are often fought in the SBOE board room. The boards authority over school curriculum in Texas made it ground-zero for a clash in 2017 over creationism in science textbooks. Earlier this year, hundreds of people held a rally to protest the boards reluctance to create a Mexican-American studies course.

At Tuesdays meeting, the board also discussed the possibility of removing the words Moses and Judeo-Christian values from the high school social studies curriculum, and debated over how the Civil War is described, but those topics took a backseat to the Alamo outrage.

Now its the heroism of diverse defenders

Stephen Cure, a member of the committee that recommended changes to the Alamo curriculum, said in an interview that the advisory group never intended to remove the Travis letter from the classroom or to discourage teachers from describing the defenders as heroic.

The majority of the work group felt it didnt need to be said because it had always been taught that way for the past 30 plus years, Cure said.

MORE POLITICAL NEWS: Subscribe to the Texas Take newsletter

Cure presented the board with a revised standard, which board members will discuss Wednesday. It says that teachers should explain issues surrounding significant events of the Texas Revolution, including the heroism of diverse defenders who gave their lives at the Alamo.

Board members appeared to supportive the change, but the board will not take any final action on the standards until November.

The board had already signaled it would walk-back the original proposal by the time Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, weighed in with an op-ed for Fox News denouncing the board for considering the changes. He said the classroom is not supposed to be a place without values. It must be a place with the right values.

Related: Beto O'Rourke's F-bombs are highlighted in new Cruz campaign video

The troubling implication here - in addition to scrubbing patriotism from our schoolbooks - is that our children cannot be taught history with a sense of value and valor, Cruz said. This is an absurd claim.

On to Moses and the Civil War

With the Alamo matter nearly settled for now, the board moved on to the other social studies standards, including how educators teach the founding of the country and the Civil War. Several people spoke out against the longstanding Texas curriculum, which teaches that the Civil War was caused by sectionalism, states rights and slavery (in that order), a teaching that historians and teachers have repeatedly refuted. Still, the advisory group did not recommend any changes to that standard.

Ron Francis, a middle school social studies teacher, told the board that he teaches his students the state-mandated lesson on the Civil War  that it was sparked by a dispute over state rights. But then he asks them to prove it.

We start gathering primary source documents. As we do that, it becomes pretty clear that slavery was the cause of the Civil War, Francis said. You just cant find evidence to prove that anything else was.

He and others urged the board to change the standards to reflect that slavery was the only cause for the war.

As for Moses, he may be on the way out.

The advisory group recommended removing references to Moses as an individual whose principles of laws and government informed Americas founding. The advisory group wrote that Moses is too removed from time period the U.S. constitution was authored and beyond time scope.

Several historians and teachers also urged the board to heed that recommendation, noting there is little to no proof that Moses principles influenced Americas founding documents.

No verdict from the board on that one yet.
In 2012, I was 29, had an associates degree in teaching and dreamed of working with disadvantaged elementary school students. But as an undocumented immigrant from Mexico  and unable to work legally  this goal proved completely out of reach. I got by cleaning houses and selling fruit at a small produce stand.

Then in June of that year, the Department of Homeland Security created the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), which allows undocumented immigrants who came here as children, as I did, to live and work here legally.

After I received my DACA paperwork, I enrolled in the University of Houston-Downtown and subsequently got a student-teaching position at Johnson Elementary School in Houston, where I now work with bilingual first graders. I adore these kids, most of whom are growing up in low-income families like I did. I love that I can lead by example: If they work hard, they can grow up to achieve their dreams.

But now I my future as a teacher is uncertain. Last year, Trump administration officials announced plans to end DACA, and ever since, Dreamers like myself have been caught in a cycle of hope and fear. On August 3, we received good news, when D.C. District Court Judge John Bates ordered the administration to fully restore the DACA program, calling the decision to revoke it arbitrary and capricious. Then right here in Houston, Judge Andrew Hanen of the Southern District of Texas said DACA is probably illegal, though he declined to shut down the program at this time.

Im relieved by last months ruling, but the overall uncertainty persists. Despite a lot of talk, Congress has failed to take action on this issue, leaving Dreamers like me feeling helpless and overwhelmed. Will I be able to keep teaching? Will I be subject to deportation? What will happen to my young students and their parents, many of whom are DACA recipients, too?

We came here through no choice of our own. In fact, when my mother told me wed be immigrating to the United States, I begged her to let me stay behind. I was 15 years old and said I could take care of myself. But she told me that Mexico wasnt safe for us, and of course, a mother could not abandon her child.

I didnt speak a word of English, so those first years were tough. But one teacher changed everything for me. Ms. Jimenez was my senior year algebra teacher at MacArthur High School in Houston. She always took time for me, sometimes skipping her lunch hour just to give me advice or encouragement. When I was feeling frustrated or sad, she told me that I could do anything I put my mind to. I decided I wanted to be just like her. When I grew up, Id be a teacher, one who went the extra mile for her students. When you consider that Texas has a teacher shortage, especially in bi-lingual education, it doesnt make sense to push out college-educated DACA recipients like me, as so many of us are filling that vital need. In fact, according to New American Economy research, Texas has an outsized need for bilingual workers across the board  a total of 70,000 in 2015.

My dream is to change childrens lives the way Ms. Jimenez changed mine. I want to help the kids in my school and give them hope for a bright future. But I cant do that if I dont have a future myself.
Twenty-seven years ago, I was in Afghanistan to watch the Russians cut and run from a military quagmire and failed occupation that helped bring down the Soviet Union. In 2018, America is ready to walk away from a similarly failed military adventure. As Lt. Col. John W. Nicholson Jr., the exiting American and NATO forces' commander in Afghanistan put it: "It is time for this war in Afghanistan to end."

He's right.

Our longest war drags on, and President Trump's instincts and inclinations tell him to learn from the Soviet Union's mistake a generation earlier: Get out of Afghanistan. ASAP. With Chief of Staff John Kelly's policy role diminished and a refreshed national security team, the White House has quieted support for a continued large U.S. military presence in Afghanistan.

Echoing instead in the president's ears are the distant voices of Steve Bannon and Erik Prince, who would replace American armed forces with other countries' NATO troops and, potentially, private armies. The United Kingdom is already expected to double its troop size and, despite Pakistan's certain objections, Trump would also appreciate an Indian military presence. America could use the break and needs the help.

Recently, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo went to visit Pakistan's new Prime Minister Imran Khan to tell him - diplomatically, of course - that he needs to bring his domestic Taliban-friendly ISI intelligence service to heel and to cut off all aid and escape routes for Afghan insurgents and Taliban fighters. Pompeo assuredly made the case to Khan that America is the prime minister's best bet for political survival and success. Or that America could potentially be his worst nightmare.

NATO and the U.S. Defense Department continually affirm their commitment to the Afghan mission, known as "Resolute Support". In reality, however, America's military is going to be sticking it out just long enough to call it a win, hand it over and get out.

Western pressure on Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to conclude a peace accord with the Taliban is increasing, and a recent short-lived Taliban ceasefire was enough to give the White House an argument for the Afghan leadership to close a deal. An Afghan-signed peace means the United States gets to wash its hands of the quagmire so that, as Pompeo recently reminded the world, what comes next is "Afghan-led and Afghan-owned."

America is fast approaching year 17 of this seemingly endless war, and it's only getting dirtier and more expensive. This is the fifth presidential term that a commander-in-chief has not only failed to end the war, but instead has added more troops, dropped more bombs and made sure to keep the carnage and nastiness out of public sight. The only people who seemingly are aware of the NATO-inherited and managed war are soldiers, their families and Afghans.

In its early days, the Trump administration was either as unwilling or unable, as were previous administrations, to end the Afghan war. But things have changed.

A successful withdrawal from Afghanistan now would be positive news for the president, of course, but also be welcomed both by America's military and citizens. Peace usually is. The affected country, however, will continue to suffer long after our troops are gone - especially as a mutating ISIS has found a new Afghan home.

I was a reporter in Afghanistan when there was no ISIS or Taliban - just an American-aligned and supported anti-Soviet Mujahedeen that eventually turned its strategy and guns against Kabul and the West. Back then, some Afghan warlords, particularly the rabid Jalalaluddin Haqqani, who died recently at age 71, did not want to share power with others. Instead he allied with an up-and-coming Taliban terror group to take over the country.

In 1991, my reporting team met with the grizzled, opium-running Haqqani whose American-supported, valium-sucking and gun-crazed anti-Soviet Mujahedeen fighters made clear that when Moscow was tamed and expelled, they were next coming after the United States. Haqqani's fighters recklessly shot around the compound, and Haqqani himself spit out his dark contempt with physical threats against my colleagues. Unsurprisingly, it was Haqqani and the Taliban government in Afghanistan that eventually provided Osama bin Laden's al Qaida a haven and a base for launching the attacks on America on Sept. 11, 2001.

In the 20th century, America helped oust the Soviets from Afghanistan. It helped win that war and end the occupation, but then lost both its interest and the peace in Afghanistan. U.S. arms and training were partly responsible for creating the conditions that brought the Taliban's rise and, now, for ISIS to find fertile ground. As the United States further pushes Afghanistan to sue for peace and for others to take its place, we must remember that the American sacrifices made in that war cannot be completely ignored or forgotten as we move on to the next tweetstorm or international crisis.

Out of sight must never be entirely out of mind. Gold Star families and military personnel must know that soldiers, like nonstop-deployed U.S. Army Command Sergeant Major Timothy A. Bolyard, the latest American casualty in Afghanistan, are both honored and not forgotten. For this to be true, America's resolute support must be for our troops and not a lost cause. It's time for Americans to turn out the lights in Afghanistan.

Kounalakis, Ph.D., is a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution and author of "Spin Wars & Spy Games: Global Media and Intelligence Gathering."
Flag Of Ireland

To begin with, Great Britain is part of Europe. This is a cartological fact which anyone with a grade-school grasp of geography knows. One is a subset of the other. Three countries (England, Wales, and Scotland) make up the island of Great Britain, and when you add in Northern Ireland (more on them in a moment), you get the United Kingdom. All are located on islands, but those islands are undoubtedly part of the continent of Europe. While Britain may leave the European Union political federation, they will always remain European.

You might think I'm stating some fairly obvious facts here, but an astounding poll appeared in the midst of the run-up to the Brexit vote -- only one in seven Brits considered themselves "European." Even in the middle of a hard-fought and emotional political campaign, that's a pretty jaw-droppingly low percentage.

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I have first-hand experience with this attitude, both from visits to Britain over the last quarter-century and from when I lived in Europe in the early 1990s. I'd listen to BBC radio in the mornings back then (for news in English) and encounter this strange attitude on a daily basis. News, for example was either local (British) or "...from Europe today...." In subtle and not-so-subtle ways, the British considered Europe to be a completely separate entity from them. This was back when the idea of consolidating Europe financially and economically was still very much a work in progress (the Euro wouldn't appear for years). Time and time again, the British essentially wanted an outsized amount of control before agreeing to any new political unification of Europe. Britain was only ever half-heartedly in the European Union, to put this another way. The best example of this was the fact that Britain never adopted the Euro at all, retaining their Pound instead. And even back then, the "Eurosceptic" faction already existed in British politics.

Historians would no doubt ascribe at least some of this attitude to the "hangover of empire." Britain used to "rule the waves," and they used their military might to carve out the biggest empire of all -- indeed, one "the sun never set on." They haven't forgotten those halcyon days, to put it mildly. But the depth of these feelings differs across the four countries which make up the United Kingdom. In England, the feelings run highest, which is why the vote there was no real surprise. Everyone knew the "Leave" faction would do best in England, to put it another way. Scotland, however, is already on the brink of declaring its independence from the other three countries, and now may hold a second referendum on the issue. The Scots have their own long and storied history, and much of that history involves fighting with the English. If the economic fallout from Brexit gets worse (or continues without end in sight), the Scottish people may very well vote themselves out of the United Kingdom to rejoin the European Union as an independent country instead.

What interests me more, however, is what Northern Ireland will do. Because if Scotland bolts, Ireland may actually unite once again as well. I have no idea what the chances of this actually happening really are, but the least you can say is that the chances would certainly be higher if Scotland does decide to go its own way.

This involves another short detour into geography, since most Americans are fuzzy (at best) on what these labels mean. The island to the west of the island of Great Britain (across the Irish Sea) is known as Ireland (or, more properly, "Eire"). However, the label "Ireland" is also loosely used to describe the Republic of Ireland, which is the part of the island that is independent from Britain. It is, in fact, now the centennial of the start of their successful war of independence (see: 1916 Easter Rising). There are six counties on the north end of the island of Ireland, however, which were retained by Great Britain when the Republic of Ireland became an independent state. These six counties (of the province of Ulster) became Northern Ireland, a country within the United Kingdom. The Brits essentially wanted to keep their heavy industry in Belfast (the Titanic was built in Belfast shipyards). Of course, there is more to it than that, and a full history of the Irish-British relationship would fill many volumes. But for now, picture two countries ("Ireland" and "Northern Ireland") on the same island. Northern Irish citizens are British, and follow British laws and use the Pound Sterling. Ireland (the Republic) is an independent country that fully adopted the European Union and uses the Euro. As of the moment, there are no border controls between the two entities -- a remarkable victory for peace, after all the guerrilla warfare over the past 50 years or so.

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Many in Northern Ireland are fiercely British. Most in the Republic are fiercely Irish. But they finally settled their differences enough for peace to take hold in the Good Friday Agreement (a lot of important history in Ireland has happened around Easter, for some reason), which was signed in 1998. Since that point, militant groups on both sides have lain down their arms and differences are now peacefully worked out through the political process (for the most part). But part of this historic agreement concerned the future of Northern Ireland. If, at some future point, a majority of people in both the Republic and Northern Ireland vote to unify, then that is what will happen. Britain will finally give up all claim to any part of the island, and they will be one single nation. When the accords were signed, it was assumed this wouldn't happen for many generations. A week ago, I still would have thought another generation's time would have passed before Ireland ever voted to reunify.

Now, though, it looks like it may happen a whole lot sooner -- especially if Scotland votes for independence first. The possibility that Northern Ireland will vote to exit the United Kingdom is now within the realm of conceivability. The political calculus has shifted, in a big way. Previous to Brexit, the Republic of Ireland's best argument for reunification was one of shared history and ethnicity. Now, however, the Republic might have a much more convincing economic argument to make. The prospect of using Euros and enjoying all the benefits of being part of the European Union is a huge enticement that might look better and better to Northern Ireland, especially if the E.U. takes a hardline stance towards Brexit. If the British economy takes a big hit as a direct result, reunification might become a much more popular idea in Northern Ireland -- especially if the Scottish economy has already benefited from leaving Great Britain.

There is already one sign (anecdotal, admittedly) that attitudes might have begun to shift. It seems there has been a flood of applications for Irish passports from the Republic of Ireland. Part of the Good Friday Agreement gave citizens of Northern Ireland the choice -- they could get British passports or Irish passports. Up until now, this has largely been an academic choice, since both passports guaranteed the same rights in the E.U. However, after Brexit they will indeed be different. Which is why post offices in Northern Ireland have been swamped with requests for forms since the Brexit vote.

The real impetus for reunification might be border controls, though. Right now, travel is free and unrestricted (and without customs duties) between Ireland and Northern Ireland. If Brexit changes this situation (it'd be hard to avoid -- the border between the two is the only land border the United Kingdom has with anyone else in Europe, unless you count the Chunnel), then reunification might become even more appealing.

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The question of laws and governance would be a dicey one, and how it would be settled will affect the outcome of any referendum. The Republic of Ireland was for a very long time the closest thing in Europe (outside of the Vatican, at any rate) to a theocracy. The Catholic Church had an enormous influence over the Irish government, and this has only begun to change in meaningful ways in the past few decades. Divorce, for instance, was flat-out illegal until 1995 -- when a very close referendum changed the law. Abortion is restricted more than any law any state in America's Deep South has ever passed (saving the life of the mother is the only allowable reason, and even this isn't perfect -- mothers still occasionally die because abortions are so restricted). But the times, even in the Republic, are changing (to understand this swift change, check out this article written on Irish marriage laws). Ireland became the first country in the world to pass gay marriage by referendum, a little over a year ago. The holds the Catholic Church used to have over Irish politics are fast losing their grip, and the population is now the youngest in Europe. Meaning the populace might be open to their laws becoming even less theocratic, especially if that was the price to pay for reunification. Alternatively, Ulster could be given a large degree of autonomy from Dublin, and be allowed to operate under their own laws (they already have their own parliament -- another thing the referendum would have to address).

Again, this is all nothing but the sheerest speculation on my part, and I have no way of measuring how likely any of this will be. The reunification of Ireland would be historic, but even if Northern Ireland does hold a referendum within the next few years, it's impossible to predict how they'd vote. Feelings run deep, and the history of animosity stretches back centuries. An Irish reunification vote would likely be even more contentious than the Brexit vote or a Scottish independence vote. Such a vote would probably only happen if Scotland successfully paved the way by cutting ties with Britain first. The only thing you can predict with any certainty is that the people of the Republic of Ireland would likely vote overwhelmingly to reunify with the six counties of Northern Ireland (both countries would have to hold votes on the issue). A united Ireland, free forever from Britain, has been the dream of Irish rebels for hundreds of years. Brexit may actually have moved things one step closer to this dream becoming a reality a lot sooner than most would have predicted -- even last week.

Chris Weigant blogs at:
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The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is calling for applications to the 2019 Young Aviation Professionals Programme (YAPP) today.

The Programme, which is managed under ICAO's leadership, is a joint initiative with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and Airports Council International (ACI). It provides a unique professional development opportunity, as selected candidates will contribute to one or more of ICAO's Strategic Objectives under the mentorship of an ICAO subject-matter expert. Focusing on the inter-relationships between the work of ICAO and that of the airline and airport industries, they will also work in close collaboration with IATA and ACI experts. Talented professionals embarking on their aviation careers from around the world are invited to apply.

Applicants must hold an advanced university qualifications and have already acquired a minimum of two years of employment in the aviation industry or in aviation-related regulatory activities. Due consideration will be given to gender equity and geographic diversity as part of the selection process.

Interested candidates who meet the selection criteria are invited to submit their application at ICAO's employment site (icao.int/careers) by the deadline date of 30 September 2018. The target date for the commencement of the programme, and the reporting of the selected candidates to ICAO Headquarters in Montreal, will be towards the middle of February 2019.
Imperial Valley News Center

USDA and FDA Announce Joint Public Meeting on Use of Animal Cell Culture Technology to Develop Products Derived from Livestock and Poultry

Washington, DC - U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, DVM and U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D. today announced a joint public meeting to be held on Oct. 23-24, 2018 to discuss the use of cell culture technology to develop products derived from livestock and poultry.

The joint public meeting, hosted by the USDAs Food Safety and Inspection Service and the FDA, will focus on the potential hazards, oversight considerations, and labeling of cell cultured food products derived from livestock and poultry.

This is an important opportunity to hear from the agricultural industry and consumers as we consider the regulatory framework for these new products, said Secretary Perdue. American farmers and ranchers feed the world, but as technology advances, we must consider how to inspect and regulate to ensure food safety, regardless of the production method.

The FDA knows just how vital it is to ensure the safety of our nations food supply and the critical role science-based, modern regulatory frameworks are to fostering innovation. Recent advances in animal cell cultured food products present many important and timely technical and regulatory considerations for the FDA and our partners at USDA, said Commissioner Gottlieb. We look forward to the opportunity to hold a meeting with our USDA colleagues as part of an open public dialogue regarding these products.

The first day of the meeting will focus primarily on the potential hazards that need to be controlled for the safe production of animal cell cultured food products and oversight considerations by regulatory agencies. The second day of the meeting will focus on labeling considerations.

Representatives of industry, consumer groups and other stakeholders are invited to participate in the meeting. Attendees are encouraged to pre-register to attend the meeting. Pre-registration is available at the Meetings and Events page on the FSIS website. The meeting will be held on Oct. 23 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Oct. 24 from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Jefferson Auditorium in the U.S. Department of Agriculture South Building, 1400 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC, 20250.

Anyone who wishes to submit written comments prior to the public meeting or after the meeting may do so by submitting comments on regulations.gov by Nov. 26, 2018. Comments previously submitted to FDA in regard to the July 12, 2018 public meeting will also be considered.

For further information on the joint public meeting and to register to attend the meeting, please visit the Meetings and Events page on the FSIS website. Attendance is free.
Imperial Valley News Center

Attack on Libya's National Oil Corporation

Washington, DC - The United States strongly condemns todays terrorist attack against Libyas National Oil Corporation in Tripoli, an assault against one of the countrys most vital economic institutions. We offer condolences to the families of the victims and wish a quick recovery for those injured. We commend the efforts of the Government of National Accord to restore security and ensure that the National Oil Corporation is able to fulfill its mandate on behalf of all Libyans.

We stand in solidarity with the National Oil Corporation and all Libyans as they fight against terrorism and for a better and prosperous future. Libyan oil facilities, production, and revenues belong to the Libyan people. The National Oil Corporation and all sovereign state institutions must be allowed to work on behalf of all Libyans, free of threat and intimidation. Libyas oil resources must remain under the exclusive control of the legitimate National Oil Corporation and the sole oversight of the Government of National Accord, as outlined in UN Security Council Resolutions 2259 (2015), 2278 (2016), and 2362 (2017).
Imperial Valley News Center

Governor Brown Meets with International Climate Leaders on Eve of Global Climate Action Summit

San Francisco, California - Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. met with international climate leaders, including fellow Summit co-chair, Chinas Special Representative for Climate Change Minister Xie Zhenhua, today  the eve of the Global Climate Action Summit  and highlighted the importance of Californias landmark cap-and-trade program in keynote remarks at an event co-hosted by the by the European Commission, Government of Canada and State of California.

This is a global challenge that requires a global response with many, many elements. And one of those elements is carbon pricing. Carbon pricing is an elegant pathway that produces real results, both in reduced emissions and in increased revenues to be directed at a more environmentally friendly economy, said Governor Brown during his keynote remarks at the Carbon Pricing Delivering Climate Ambition event. You have to be warriors and innovators and missionaries to keep at it. Climate change, global warming waits for no one.

Todays event brought together senior government officials, business leaders and academics from around the world to discuss the key aspects of carbon pricing, which continues to gain momentum as an important tool for addressing climate change. Californias well-established cap-and-trade program, strengthened andextended to 2030 last year by Governor Brown and linked with Quebecs program in 2014, sets a declining limit on carbon pollution and creates a market to achieve the states bold emission reduction targets in the most cost-effective manner. Governor Brown also blasted the Trump Administrations proposal to roll back methane regulation at todays event.

Later in the day, Governor Brown met Minister Xie Zhenhua, who is leading Chinas 120-plus person delegation at the Summit  building on significant diplomatic and environmental exchanges between California and China. Governor Brown and Minister Xie discussed Chinas progress in meeting its goals under the Paris Agreement and California and Chinas efforts to strengthen their climate initiatives through subnational collaboration. Last year, Governor Brown and Minister Xie hosted a dialogue between Californian and Chinese policymakers and business leaders in Beijing during the Governors California-China Climate Mission, and met at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany, where the Governor served as Special Advisor for States and Regions.

Governor Brown meets with Minister Xie in San Francisco.

Additionally today, Governor Brown met with Governors Climate and Forests Task Force members from Acre, Brazil; San Martin and Ucayali, Peru; North Kalimantan, Indonesia; Caqueta, Colombia; and Pastaza, Ecuador, as well as Norways Minister of the Environment Ola Elvestuen. The Governor also met with indigenous community leaders from across the globe to discuss the Task Forces commitment to working with local communities to develop strategies to address climate change and deforestation. Governor Brown delivered welcoming remarks at the National Governors Associations Water Policy Institute conference, where top state officials from across the nation gathered to exchange best practices and discuss new technologies and policies for the wise management of water resources.

Reaffirming Californias global climate leadership in the lead-up to the Summit, Governor Brown yesterday signed legislation setting a 100 percent clean electricity goal for the state, and issued an executive order establishing a new target to achieve carbon neutrality  both by 2045. Late last week, Governor Brown also signed legislation to block new federal offshore oil drilling along Californias coast and announced the states opposition to the federal governments plan to expand oil drilling on public lands in California. The entirety of the states coast has been off-limits to new oil and gas leases for more than 30 years, and the state has not issued a lease for offshore oil or gas production since 1968.

Californias Leadership on Climate Change

California continues to lead the world in adopting innovative policies to fight climate change. Last week, the Governor issued an executive order to safeguard Californias unique plants, animals and ecosystems that are threatened by climate change and last month, the state released its Fourth Climate Change Assessment, which details new research on the impacts of climate change and provides planning tools to support the states response.

Earlier this year Governor Brown issued executive orders to improve the health of the states forests and help mitigate the threat and impacts of deadly and destructive wildfires, and get 5 million zero-emission vehicles onto Californias roads by 2030. Under Governor Brown, California has established the most ambitious greenhouse gas emission reduction targets in North America; set the nations toughest restrictions on destructive super pollutants; and will reduce fossil fuel consumption up to 50 percent and double the rate of energy efficiency savings in buildings by 2030. The state has met its 2020 target four years early, reducing emissions 13 percent while growing the economy 26 percent. From 2015 to 2016 alone, emissions reductions were roughly equal to taking 2.4 million cars off the road, saving 1.5 billion gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel.

In addition, Governor Brown has helped establish and expand coalitions of partners across the nation and globe committed to curbing carbon pollution. The Under2 Coalition, which originated from a partnership between California and the German state of Baden-Wurttemberg, now includes 206 jurisdictions on 6 continents that collectively represent 1.3 billion people and $30 trillion in GDP  equivalent to 17 percent of the global population and 40 percent of the global economy. Members of the coalition make a number of key commitments, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 80 to 95 percent below 1990 levels or to less than 2 annual metric tons per capita by 2050.

Last year, California joined Washington and New York to form the U.S. Climate Alliance, which now includes 17 U.S. states  led by both Democrats and Republicans representing 40 percent of the U.S. population  committed to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement and meeting or exceeding the targets of the federal Clean Power Plan. Governor Brown also partnered with Michael Bloomberg to launch Americas Pledge on climate change, an initiative to compile and quantify the actions of U.S. states, cities and businesses to drive down their greenhouse gas emissions consistent with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Earlier this year, California and 17 other states collectively representing more than 40 percent of the U.S. car market sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to preserve the nations uniform vehicle emission standards that save drivers money at the pump, cut oil consumption, reduce air pollution and curb greenhouse gases.
Imperial Valley News Center

What the World Learned on September 11, 2001

Washington, DC - Seventeen years ago, America and the world were forever changed. More than a decade and a half before his election as President, Donald Trump was in New York City the day an unprecedented act of terror unfolded across our country.

In 2016, then-candidate Trump recalled what he and other Americans witnessed on September 11, 2001. When the World Trade Center came down, I saw something that no place on Earth could have handled more beautifully, more humanely, he said. Ive never seen anything like it. And the people in New York fought and fought and fought.

That same resilience played out in two other communities that endured attacks that day: Shanksville, Pennsylvaniawhere United Flight 93 went down after the heroic actions of its passengers and crewand Arlington, Virginia, home of the Pentagon.

Today, President Trump, the First Lady, Vice President Mike Pence, and the Second Lady honored these two communities in separate ceremonies, while U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley attended a commemoration at Ground Zero in New York.

Were gathered together on these hallowed grounds to honor the memory of nearly 3,000 souls who were murdered on this day 17 years ago, President Trump said at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania. Were here to pay solemn tribute to the 40 passengers and crewmembers on Flight 93 who rose up, defied the enemy, took control of their destiny, and changed the course of history.

Since September 11, 2001, nearly 5.5 million Americans have enlisted in the U.S. Armed Forces. Today, we also think of the more than 200,000 service members now serving overseas, the President said. We think of every citizen who protects our Nation at home, including our state, local, and federal law enforcement.

Speaking at the Pentagon, Vice President Pence echoed those thoughts, reminding Americans of another important reason to come together today. While many of us remember that day like it was yesterday, a growing number of Americans have no living memory of what happened here. Roughly one-quarter of our people were born after September the 11th, 2001, he said.

We also gather here to ensure that each succeeding generation knows the story of what happened that dark day and understands why we must learn the lessons of 9/11.

In his official Patriot Day Proclamation for September 11, 2018, President Trump highlighted a few of those important lessons.

We come together, today, to recall this timeless truth, the President writes. When America is united, no force on Earth can break us apart. Our values endure; our people thrive; our Nation prevails; and the memory of our loved ones never fades.
Governor Brown Signs 100 Percent Clean Electricity Bill

Sacramento, California - Reaffirming Californias global climate leadership, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today signed Senate Bill 100, authored by Senate President pro Tempore Emeritus Kevin de Leon, setting a 100 percent clean electricity goal for the state, and issued an executive order establishing a new target to achieve carbon neutrality  both by 2045.

This bill and the executive order put California on a path to meet the goals of Paris and beyond. It will not be easy. It will not be immediate. But it must be done, said Governor Brown.

In California, Democrats and Republicans know climate change is real, its affecting our lives right now, and unless we take action immediately  it may become irreversible, said Senator de Leon. Today, with Governor Browns support, California sent a message to the rest of the world that we are taking the future into our own hands; refusing to be the victims of its uncertainty. Transitioning to an entirely carbon-free energy grid will create good-paying jobs, ensure our children breathe cleaner air and mitigate the devastating impacts of climate change on our communities and economy.

SB 100 advances the states existing Renewables Portfolio Standard, which establishes how much of the electricity system should be powered from renewable energy resources, to 50 percent by 2025 and 60 percent by 2030. It also puts California on the bold path to implement a zero-carbon electricity grid by 2045.

"California is committed to doing whatever is necessary to meet the existential threat of climate change," said Governor Brown in his SB 100 signing message. "This bill, and others I will sign this week, help us go in that direction. But have no illusions, California and the rest of the world have miles to go before we achieve zero-carbon emissions."

To further ensure California is combatting global warming beyond the electric sector, which represents 16 percent of the states greenhouse gas emissions, the Governor issued an executive order directing the state to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045 and net negative greenhouse gas emissions after that. This will ensure California removes as much carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as it emits  the first step to reversing the potentially disastrous impacts of climate change.

The state will reach its goals with continued significant reductions of carbon pollution and increased carbon sequestration in forests, soils and other natural landscapes and programs focused on improving air quality and public health, especially in Californias most impacted communities.

With Governor Browns order, California establishes the most ambitious carbon neutrality commitment of any major economic jurisdiction in the world  of more than 20 countries and at least 40 cities, states and provinces planning to go carbon neutral by mid-century or sooner.

This action comes days before grassroots activists, mayors, governors, heads of industry and international leaders convene in San Francisco for the express purpose of mobilizing climate action at the Global Climate Action Summit. Late last week, Governor Brown also signed legislation to block new federal offshore oil drilling along Californias coast and announced the states opposition to the federal governments plan to expand oil drilling on public lands in California. The entirety of the states coast has been off-limits to new oil and gas leases for more than 30 years, and the state has not issued a lease for offshore oil or gas production since 1968.
CDFA Takes Action to the Next Level with Scaling-Up Climate Smart Agriculture

Sacramento, California - On September 11-12th CDFA will bring together state and local government leaders, businesses, and citizens from around the world to share innovative and transformative achievements related to climate health and food production.

The Scaling-Up Climate Smart Agriculture event connects farmers and ranchers; multinational corporations; foreign governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to further the role that food and agriculture have in climate discussions. The event will combine panel discussions and tours related to soil health and climate smart agricultural practices and the role of sustainable procurement, technical assistance, and policy to help farmers rapidly scale up practices. Californias uniqueness as a specialty crop producer makes these discussions all the more important.

Day One (Sept 11) will focus on farming practices, land conservation, sustainable sourcing and public policy. Notable international and national speakers include Jimmy Emmons; Emmons Farms; Zwide Jere, Total LandCare (Malawi); John Piotti, American Farmland Trust; Keith Kenny, McDonalds; Jerry Lynch, General Mills; Tina May, Land OLakes; Tom Rosser; Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada; and Paul Luu, 4 per 1,000. These speakers will be joined by a host of Californias voices including: Diana Dooley, Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr.; Jocelyn Bridson; Rio Farms; Soren Bjorn, Driscolls; Glenda Humiston, University of California; Katie Jackson, Jackson Family Wines, Richard Rominger, former CDFA Secretary and many others. Notable guests include Senator Bill Dodd.

A California Conversation Tuesday evening will bring together Ann Veneman, former Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and past Executive Director of UNICEF; A.G. Kawamura, former CDFA Secretary; Kat Taylor, founding director of TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation; Don Cameron, president of the California State Board of Food and Agriculture and CDFA Secretary Karen Ross. Other notable guests include Assemblymember Marc Levin; Caroline Beteta, Visit California; and David Festa, Environmental Defense Fund.

Day Two (Sept 12) brings the attendees to the farm, with tours of climate smart agricultural practices at work. Bordessa Dairy and Stemple Creek Ranch will be profiled operations where carbon farm plans, sustainability metrics and management practices will be discussed. Speakers include: Jarrid Bordessa, Organic Valley; Loren Poncia; Stemple Creek Ranch; Wayne Honeycutt, Soil Health Institute; Nick Goeser, National Corn Growers Association; Gabriele Ludwig, Almond Board of California; and Adam Kotin, Wine Institute. Notable guests include Sonoma County Supervisor James Gore.
Assistant Secretary Marie Royce Travels to the United Kingdom, Greece, and Finland

Washington, DC - Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs Marie Royce will travel to the United Kingdom, Greece, and Finland, September 1019, to promote and strengthen the State Departments cultural and educational diplomacy efforts in Europe.

While in the United Kingdom, Assistant Secretary Royce will provide remarks at the House of Commons on September 12 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the U.S.-U.K. Fulbright Commission. She will also meet with government officials, academic leaders, and alumni of the Fulbright, International Visitor Leadership Program, and other State Department-sponsored exchange programs.

In Greece, Assistant Secretary Royce will deliver closing remarks to the Digital Communications Network Influencers Forum at the Thessaloniki International Fair, where the United States is being recognized as the Honored Country. She will also speak about the 70th anniversary of the U.S.-Greece Fulbright Commission at a Greek-American Relations conference, and will meet with Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund grantees, as well as government officials.

Finally in Finland, Assistant Secretary Royce will visit the European Center for Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats, engage with Fulbright Finland Foundation and the Finnish National Agency for Education, meet with government officials, and provide opening remarks at the Institute of International Education Generation Study Abroad Symposium, an initiative launched in 2014 to double and diversify the number of U.S. students studying abroad by the end of the decade.
The De-sciencing of American Medicine and What It Means to You

Tucson, Arizona - With all the talk about evidence-based medicine, you might think that doctors were becoming much more focused on rigorous science. But like the names attached to bills in Congress such as the Affordable Care Act, which outlaws affordable insurance, the language used in the movement to fundamentally transform America and American medicine usually means the opposite of what it suggests.

Are older doctors uneducated in science, and do they base their treatments on opinion, intuition, or outdated dogma, while younger doctors use objective observations and analysis?

Consider the kind of medical student our prestigious medical schools are now seeking. In former years, premeds were notorious nerds, usually science majors, constantly studying to make grades in hard subjects. High scores on the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) required ability for quantitative thinking and a foundation of factual scientific knowledge.

Since 2015, the new MCAT includes situational judgment tests. The president of the entity that makes the test, Darrell Kirch of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), intends to redefine what makes a good doctor. I believe it is critical to our future to transform health care. I am not talking about tweaking it. I am talking about true transformation.

Ezekiel Emanuel asks in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA, Feb 20, 2018), Does Medicine Overemphasize IQ? A high IQ is no guarantee that a physician can lead a multidisciplinary health team or effectively help patients change their behavior in ways that tangibly improve their health outcomes. Instead, reformers advocate eliminating the irrelevant premed requirements of organic chemistry, physics, and calculus, while requiring training in psychology and leadership. A model negotiating session might be included in the interview process. Of course, the physician must be able to sensitively discuss end-of-life care preferences. Emanuel has promoted the view that people have lived long enough at age 75.

The curriculum must now have social justice as a core tenet of medical ethics, teach about unconscious racism, and include 30 core competencies for caring for LGBT patients. Certain propositions are assumed to be true, and evidence that contradicts them is flushed down the memory hole, while supporting data is accepted without question. For example, if a suspect group earns less, it must be because of discrimination.

Some cant wait for dissenters in the older generation to retire or die. Physicians who reveal an improper attitude are being purged now. Recently, a respected physician was kicked out of leadership positions for an opinion he wrote in a Big and Bright Ideas feature published by the Dallas County Medical Society about the alleged gender gap in physician pay. He suggested there might be an explanation for differences in earnings other than bigotry, sexism, misogyny, and exploitation. Within days, he was pilloried in the Washington Post, The Hill, CNN, Fox News, and social media, and even by the American Council on Science and Health.

A scientific approach to the question of why Group A makes more money than Group B would compare the two groups for years of experience, level of responsibility, hours worked, desirability of work environment, ability to enjoy flexibility in scheduling, etc. Psychologist Jordan Peterson suggested that women might be more agreeable than men and less aggressive about demanding pay raises. But social justice demands outrage about presumed unfairness, and identification of oppressors and victims. (Of course, if men earned less, it would be fine.)

So where does this leave patients? They might lose their trusted, highly skilled physician, who was dedicated to making them well but who revealed a politically incorrect belief that is irrelevant to their care.

Their new physician will be chosen for being a social justice warrior. The doctor might not be able to understand human metabolism or drug effects (thats biochemistry, a branch of organic chemistry), but who needs that? Doctors will be following best practices downloaded from their smart phones. Doctors may not have skills in independent or quantitative thinking, developed by problem-solving in disciplines like calculus, but they will be accustomed to working in groups.

There will be numerical goals to meet, related to eliminating disparities, but that involves simple counting, and paying attention to classification by identity politics.

Your doctor might not be dedicated to (or skilled at) finding the correct diagnosis or best treatment for you. That might even be contrary to her duty to improve population health or cosmic justice.

But the world will be fairerin the view of our self-appointed guardians.
FTC Gives Final Approval to Settlement with Phone Maker BLU

Washington, DC - The Federal Trade Commission has given final approval to a settlement with mobile phone manufacturer BLU Products, Inc. and its co-owner over allegations that they deceived consumers about the disclosure of their personal information and BLUs data security practices.

In its complaint, the FTC alleges that BLU and its co-owner and President Samuel Ohev-Zion falsely claimed that they limited third-party data collection from BLU device users to only information needed to perform requested services. They also falsely represented that they had implemented appropriate procedures to protect consumers personal information, according to the complaint.

The FTC alleges, however, that BLU and Ohev-Zion failed to implement appropriate security procedures and to oversee the practices of their service providers. As a result, a third party, retained by BLU to provide security and operating system updates, collected far more information from consumers devices  including the full contents of their text messages  than was needed for the job, according to the complaint.

Under the settlement with the FTC, BLU and Ohev-Zion are prohibited from misrepresenting the extent to which they protect the privacy and security of personal information. They also must implement and maintain a comprehensive security program that addresses security risks associated with new and existing mobile devices and protects consumer information. In addition, BLU will be subject to third-party assessments of its security program every two years for 20 years, as well as record keeping and compliance monitoring requirements.

The Commission vote to give final approval to the settlement and responses to the six commenters was 5-0.
Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Andrea L. Thompson Travels to Tbilisi, Georgia

Washington, DC - Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Andrea L. Thompson will travel to Tbilisi, Georgia September 10-12, 2018. Under Secretary Thompson will meet with senior officials to discuss bilateral issues, regional security, and how the Departments T Family  the Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance; the Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation; and the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs  contribute toward long-term security and stability in a critical region.

Additionally, Under Secretary Thompson will join the Georgian Minister of Defense on a panel at the 2018 Tbilisi International Conference to discuss Global Security. Finally, Under Secretary Thompson will visit with officials at the Richard G. Lugar Center for Public Health Research.
Assistant Secretary Mitchell Travel to Tbilisi and Skopje

Washington, DC - Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs A. Wess Mitchell will travel to Europe from September 11 to 14.

On September 11, he will arrive in Tbilisi, Georgia, where he will meet with senior officials, other political leaders, and civil society representatives to discuss U.S.-Georgian cooperation on a range of global issues. He will also address the 2018 Tbilisi International Conference to reinforce U.S. support for Georgias sovereignty and territorial integrity, continued democratic development, and aspirations to integrate into Western institutions.

Assistant Secretary Mitchell will then travel to Skopje, Macedonia on September 13, where he will meet with Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and other senior officials to discuss U.S. support for the Prespa Agreement between Macedonia and Greece and the upcoming September 30 referendum. He will also meet with business leaders and members of parliament to exchange views and underscore our support for the country as it moves forward to take its place in the Western family.
Insurance Planning & Service Company, LLC has hired Katie Landers as employee benefit specialist. Mrs. Landers assists employers with implementing attractive, well designed benefit packages that meet their distinct needs and budget, said officials.

Her career started in 2007 as an Aflac associate earning the Presidents Club and Million Dollar Club awards. She later worked for Aflac Corporates Broker Solutions Team as broker sales consultant.

On her reason for joining IPSCO, Mrs. Landers said, Employers are increasingly becoming fed up with the 'pay more, get less' trend in health insurance. Guiding clients toward higher-performing plans while providing creative solutions to finance out of pocket healthcare expenses is what excites me. Education and communication of these benefits can be a challenge, I am focused on delivering a streamlined enrollment experience using face-to-face consultations and the latest technology. Through IPSCO, I will have the backing of a team of experts, while providing personal, local service right here in the Chattanooga area.

IPSCO Vice President of Employee Benefits Buck Orrison, said, Katies unique background brings strategic advantage to our team as the health care industry continues to face challenges. Now more than ever, it is imperative employers not only attract great employees-but also retain them. Providing sustainable solutions that fit the changing needs of todays evolving workforce is critical. Our clients not only rely on our expertise but have come to expect cutting edge solutions and exceptional customer service from IPSCO. Katie joining our team is another example of our commitment to excellence.

For more information about this topic, please call Mrs. Landers at 629-2400 ext. 232, or email katie@assoc-admin.com.






To put it mildly, Facebook has experienced has a lot of ups and downs over the past year. Most notably, the security and privacy concerns which arose as a result of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, made this year nothing short of a roller coaster ride for the social media giant.

Yet, despite this controversy, most people would agree that Facebook's power within the social media space would allow this scandal to be nothing more than a hiccup with no real impact on the company's success.

Well, according to a study conducted by Pew Research Center, it's time to reconsider the toll these events have taken. Many Facebook users have begun to rethink their relationship with the app. In fact, the report shows as many as 40-percent of U.S. users have taken a break from checking the app for several weeks on end. Additionally, 44-percent of younger users in the United States have deleted the app off of their phone entirely, a software company's worst nightmare in the mobile-friendly world we live in.

Here's what these shifts mean for you as an entrepreneur, plus what you can do to avoid being effected by the exodus.

Users of All Ages Value Privacy

From the findings gathered by Pew Research Center, it's clear users of all ages were put off by the way Facebook handled their personal data. With just over half of all Facebook users in the US having adjusted their privacy settings in the past year, most including younger users, it's clear just how much users value their privacy today.

Keep this in mind when making decisions at your own company. Take the time to be 100 percent sure that all of your marketing materials, databases and more are compliant with the law. To further increase trust between your company and your customers, go the extra mile by making your Terms and Conditions as clear and comprehensible as possible. No matter what business you have, taking the privacy of your users into consideration, both online and offline, will pay off big-time in the long run.

Begin Investing in Other Social Media Platforms

If one thing can be taken away from this shift, it's as an entrepreneur, it's you need to begin investing in advertising platforms that aren't Facebook (if you don't already). With the cost of Facebook ads increasing year after year, coupled with many users limiting their time on the platform, other apps will provide fresh opportunities for your brand to be seen.

This year, begin testing targeted ads on Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat and Pinterest against the results you typically drive with Facebook ads. There's a very good chance these platforms will yield even better results for your business.

Even the Giants Can Fall

We are living in the age of technological disruption. Let's not forget that just a decade ago, Yahoo was still considered "cool", MySpace was still kicking and Netflix was largely known only for delivering DVDs to your house in an envelope. The marketplace moves at breakneck speed. New companies quickly become the old, even those as massive as Facebook.

Today, no company is bulletproof, so be sure and take extreme caution when acting on behalf of your business. As daunting and dramatic as it sounds, one wrong move, whether that be a misguided Tweet or insensitive Facebook post, could have huge consequences. Always be innovating and mindful of what you're putting out into the world.

This Goes Beyond Cambridge Analytica

Over the past year, 44-percent of younger users have deleted Facebook off their phones, but Facebook's problem with gaining traction popularity among younger generations goes far beyond privacy. The app, by its very nature, is less appealing to younger users. Why? Well, any platform that has your parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents actively using it is a repellant for engagement for younger users. This leads to them either not posting on Facebook at all, flocking to other apps where they can be themselves, or deleting their profiles altogether. This is one of the biggest reasons platforms like Snapchat have spread like wildfire across this age group.

If your target audience skews younger, begin testing advertising on other platforms like Snapchat, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter.
In this satellite image provided by U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Hurricane Florence churns through the Atlantic Ocean toward the U.S. East Coast on September 12, 2018. Getty Images

Hurricane Florence, the first major hurricane of 2018, is set to make landfall on the East Coast Thursday evening. More than one million people have been ordered to evacuate the coastal areas of Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. The category 4 hurricane packs winds of up to 130 mph, a strength not seen since Hurricane Hazel descended on the region in 1954. Understandably, business owners are on edge.

"We are boarding up our locations, storing our boats indoors. The ones we cannot fit indoors we are prepping the best we can," says Jason Ruegg, founder and CEO of Off the Hook Yacht Sales, a boat store chain based in Wilmington, North Carolina. "I am not really sure what we will come back to. My house is right on the [Intracoastal Waterway] and already the tides were almost in my backyard" on Monday, he says, adding that he's never experienced anything like it before. "Hoping to get back to Wilmington next week with intact inventory and a home that didn't float away."

No one wants to have to deal with a natural disaster, but with hurricane season now under way and storms Isaac, Helene, and Olivia looming, now's the time to review and possibly revise your contingency plans. Here are four top disaster preparedness tips, from coastal business owners who are used to battening down the hatches.

1. Alert your customers.

"When you're under the gun trying to get prepared, it's a lot of all hands on deck," says Shelley McPhatter, founder and CEO of BridgePoint General Contracting, a general contractor company based in Durham, North Carolina. Her business is only six years old, and this is the first time it's facing major disaster.

Since BridgePoint's projects involve construction, which you can't safely do if there are riotous winds and a raging storm outside, McPhatter is alerting her customers about how Hurricane Florence will impact planned schedules. She has also been in touch with her contractors, so they can work out how to continue the projects once the storm has passed. "We're going to have to be flexible; our clients are going to have to be flexible," McPhatter adds.

2. Devise an action plan.

Even so, you'll want to keep delays to a minimum. Elizabeth Gush, founder and CEO of Source Ortho, an online medical supplies and equipment seller based in Charleston, South Carolina, has plans in place for expedited shipments. She also has a backup system ready to drop-ship items in case FedEx and USPS stop running.

In addition, take steps to prep your warehouse and offices for potential weather incursions. Make sure computers are stowed far away from windows and products are secured on plastic bins and pallets. Gush further provides company phones to her employees so they can stay in touch during the storm and work remotely if possible.

"I hate this time of year; it is very stressful," she sighs. But planning is key. It helps to go through all of the logistics so you know what needs to be dealt with, she says.

3. Check your coverage.

Go over your insurance policy to make sure you know what it covers, and how much you're going to have to pay before it kicks in. "We have insurance with high deductibles," says Ruegg from Off the Hook Yacht Sales. With a $10,000 deductible per location, and four locations in North Carolina at risk, he's looking to shell out, at minimum, $40,000.

You may also want to take photos and video of all the measures and precautions you've put in place, McPhatter suggests. She adds that her teams are doing it on all of her jobsites. This way you will have evidence of your preparedness, should your insurance company request it later.

4. Expect widespread disruptions.

Even if your business is based far from Hurricane Florence's path, you may still feel its effects. Evan Cramer, co-founder and CEO of UCW Logistics, a Greenville, South Carolina-based third-party logistics provider, says this level of service disruption will have effects nationwide. "A shock like this to the system is going to push trucking rates up, across the board," he says, adding that he saw it happen after Harvey hit Houston last year. "What we thought was just going to be a week or two impact to [trucking] rates ended up lasting pretty much through the rest of the year. It ended up being a three- or four-month impact." Hurricane Irma, as well, he says, changed the national freight market and drove costs up.
Think back to the last time you received a delivery from Amazon. Did the driver who handed it to you look happy? That driver was quite possibly subjected to an inhuman work schedule and may have been cheated out of some pay as well. At least, that's how things appear based on interviews with 31 drivers published by Business Insider. These drivers did not work directly for Amazon, but for the many shipping contractors the company hires to handle its logistics.

One driver described being mocked when he wanted to seek medical attention for a work-related injury without finishing his deliveries first. Others said they were refused overtime pay although they worked well over 40 hours in a week. Some said expected paychecks failed to arrive, or that they were fired right before they reached the 90 days' employment that would let them qualify for health insurance.

And many said they were expected to adhere to impossible schedules, for instance delivering 200 to 300 packages during a nine-hour shift that was supposed to include a half-hour lunch break and two 15-minute bathroom breaks. Simple math will tell you it can't be done: To deliver even 200 items during eight hours of work (subtracting an hour for breaks) you would have to deliver a package every 2 minutes and 24 seconds. All day.

Faced with the expectation to meet schedules like these or risk losing their jobs, drivers say they not only skip stopping for lunch, but also for bathroom breaks. Instead, they commonly urinate into bottles or (for women) buckets rather than spend the time to seek out a rest room. They also say the brutal schedule leads to dangerous driving habits such as speeding and running stop signs. One driver said he almost hit a child while trying to keep to his Amazon schedule. He slowed down after that--and fell behind on his deliveries.

But even using tactics like these, many drivers can't complete their deliveries in a nine-hour shift, they said. (Even with no breaks at all, you'd still need to deliver a package every 2 minutes and 42 seconds to reach 200 in a nine-hour shift.) Instead, they report working extra hours, sometimes as much as 15 or 16 hours in a day.

Asked to respond to these accounts, Amazon's Amanda Ip told Business Insider, "While it is impossible to characterize a network of thousands of delivery drivers based on anecdotes, we do recognize small businesses sometimes need more support when scaling fast." Fair enough: 31 people, some of whom have moved on to other jobs, is not a representative sampling of Amazon's vast array of worldwide delivery drivers.

As to the tight schedules, Ip said, "The majority of drivers complete their daily routes in under nine hours, which factor in breaks, traffic patterns, and more." But she apparently did not confirm or deny that drivers were expected to deliver 200 or more packages per shift, nor did she explain how it might be possible to do that within eight or even nine hours.

Amazon invites drivers to report problems.

To Amazon's credit, it has not sought to disavow responsibility for how its contractors treat their employees. In fact, the company told Business Insider that any driver experiencing mistreatment from a logistics company should report that mistreatment directly to Amazon and has several options for doing so, including using its chat support service. The company said it takes such reports seriously and will investigate any contractor that may not be following its rules about reasonable wages and schedules. And several lawsuits by drivers that named both the contractors they worked for and Amazon have been settled, although Amazon admitted no wrongdoing.

At the heart of the issue is Amazon's Delivery Service Partners program which recruits entrepreneurs to start delivery companies that will transport Amazon products. According to Amazon, entrepreneurs can start up with as little as $10,000, using Amazon-branded vehicles leased on favorable terms. The retailer will even provide training for entrepreneurs joining the program. It's a great way for a new entrepreneur without a lot of capital to start a company, but it's also a great way for those with a questionable past to start over. For instance, one of the logistics companies serving Amazon is headed by a former stockbroker now barred from the securities industry as part of his settlement with the SEC over a fraud case. It perhaps isn't surprising that multiple employees reported this same entrepreneur often did not pay drivers on time.

But the bigger problem is the expectation Amazon has created among customers that they can have anything they want within 48 hours without paying for expedited shipping. More than 100 million people have signed up for Amazon's Prime service which costs $119 a year and provides free two- or one-day shipping on a huge array of items. Customers can use this free shipping as often as they like, and they do. This is why, according to Amazon's financial filings, annual delivery expenses have risen from $1.2 billion to $21.7 billion over the past decade.

That rising cost is a problem for Amazon, one that the Delivery Service Partners program is intended to solve. Amazon has expressed worry over the power that Federal Express and UPS can wield over it. Having hundreds of small companies whose only customer is Amazon competing to win its favor puts the retailer in the driver's seat.

That's something the logistics companies are well aware of, drivers and managers told Business Insider. They know that Amazon can reduce or terminate deliveries with them at any time. So when Amazon managers track delivery drivers via their handheld devices and call to ask why a driver has paused during his or her route, that driver's boss will take that question very seriously.

In the end, it's a system that benefits almost everyone. Amazon wins because it can deliver more products at lower cost, becoming more profitable and reducing its dependence on the established shipping giants. Logistics entrepreneurs taking part in the program win because they get to start a business with a minimum investment, and as my colleague Bill Murphy noted, could wind up making a lot of money. And Amazon Prime customers win because we can keep buying products at attractive prices and receiving them in one or two days without having to pay for shipping.
Isabelle Huppert doesnt consider herself scary  though thats how just about every interviewer describes her. One recent article wrote of the French actors reputation as a chilly, forbidding figure; another of her haughty froideur. In 2010, a writer for this publication described an assistant knocking on her dressing room door with the kind of nervous deliberation traditionally inspired by royalty. Its a narrative that feels entirely alien to Huppert.

I feel so far from being an intimidating person! she says today. I mean, when I hear that, I dont even understand who they are talking about.

The only explanation, according to Huppert, is that people confuse her with the roles she plays. There have been more than 120 of them over the course of her nearly 50-year career  each as complicated and ambiguous as the next. She played a quiet, masochistic musician in Michael Hanekes acclaimed The Piano Teacher; an impulsive nihilist in David ORussells I Heart Huckabees, and earned her first Oscar nomination in 2016 for Paul Verhoevens brilliant, controversial Elle.

In that, she played a video-game executive determined to exact revenge on her rapist  though her intentions gradually transformed into something murkier and more troubling. Hupperts poised, unflappable manner, combined with her strikingly tiny frame, resulted in a character who seemed at once vulnerable and deeply resilient. But she wouldnt describe that role as intimidating either.

Its a way of... misnaming the true nature of my roles, she says, grappling for the right words. Though her English is conversationally fluent, she often launches into intricate thoughts and concepts before realising her internal translator cant keep up. A few times, after circling around what shes trying to say, she lets out a frustrated Comment ca se dit?, before offering a far simpler answer than shed like. Sometimes, her brevity is just because she doesnt believe the subject warrants much of her time: she answers several questions with an affirmative, a silence, and then an mm hmm to confirm that shes finished. But catch her on something she cares about and shes warm and engaged.

I just think in my roles I try to explore as many complexities as possible in feminine behaviour, she elaborates, carefully. But theyre not intimidating, not harsh. These kinds of adjectives are slightly deceptive, and reductive. Its a way of simplifying the reality. But never mind!

Huppert in Paul Verhoevens 2016 thriller Elle (Sony Classics)

I wonder whether male actors come up against the same issues. No thats certainly... she says, pausing to think. Yes. If I really wanted to push it  maybe this is dangerous what Im going to say  but there is a slight misogyny in this perception. Because you wouldnt say that for a man.

Perhaps Hupperts latest role, in Anne Fontaines Reinventing Marvin, can set the record straight. Huppert plays herself (albeit a version written by Fontaine) in the film, which was loosely inspired by Edouard Louiss bestselling 2014 autobiography The End of Eddie. It follows the life of Marvin Bijou, a gay man who moves to Paris from rural France, where he endured an oppressive, violently homophobic childhood, to become an actor. Through an older man with whom hes been sleeping  a man who collects young proteges like stray cats  he meets Isabelle Huppert, who becomes something of a mentor.

Its a really beautiful and interesting relationship  the way that this young, aspiring actor meets this, lets say, famous actress, explains Huppert (given that shes widely regarded as the French Meryl Streep, that probably isnt an excessive claim). There was a kind of generosity and special attention that she gives to this young person.

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Theres no instant connection between the pair, though  Fontaines script, and Hupperts performance, is too subtle for that. When Marvin, whose bruising childhood has rendered him extremely timid, is first introduced to Huppert at a party, he is dumbstruck. Just as he finally takes a breath to say something, she turns to talk to someone else.

Its a little heartbreaking. Does Huppert, in her real life, often find that people are overawed by her? Oh yes, of course, of course. All the time. This is Hupperts first time playing herself, though she doesnt see much of a difference from her other roles.

Even if you play yourself, she says, you still play a fictional role. Its not like being in a documentary. Also if you play a fictional role, you always play a little bit of yourself, you know what I mean? So at the end of the day, it doesnt really make any difference because you always play yourself.

This makes sense coming from Huppert, who brings a naturalistic but inscrutable quality to every character she plays, and refuses to paint her emotions in anything but the finest of strokes.

Her preparation for such roles is effectively nonexistent  she simply steps into them, always bringing something unwritten and unexpected in the process. In a recent interview, she described Daniel Day-Lewiss famous method acting approach as so much the opposite of the way I relate to my work. Is she cautious about such an approach because it might kill the spontaneity? No, no, no, Im not cautious! she says, half a decibel away from shouting. I dont put a hierarchy between the two processes. Certainly not. This isnt the first time Ive been put in my place. Huppert might not be intimidating, but she certainly doesnt suffer fools  or foolish questions  gladly. Daniel Day-Lewis is probably one of the greatest actors ever! That is not my point. No, no, no.

Huppert with Finnegan Oldfield in Reinventing Marvin. She plays a version of herself in Anne Fontaines movie (Peccadillo Pictures)

The fact is, she says, its simply not my way of doing it. Maybe the roles dont really necessitate it. Shes open to the possibility, though. Yesterday, she was watching a documentary on TV about an auctioneer. All of a sudden I thought, Oh, it must be really interesting to play a role like this. If I was going to do a role like this, then Im sure I would have this kind of very... complete approach. Shes also been thinking about playing a politician. You have to talk publicly. Its the kind of role Ive never really done before.

Still, if she did turn her hand to such roles, it would be as much to explore their inner psyche as to learn their trade. Whatever her characters profession, she relishes the chance to really explore complex theories of mankind and human behaviour, and any kind of relationship  power, sexual. Once you start exploring these kinds of things, of course, it doesnt go without very dark edges, and a lot of complexity. Although, I always try to put a little bit of humour in it. It makes the whole thing more bearable, I think.

Does Huppert ever learn anything about her own psyche through exploring human behaviour in this way? No. I dont think so. I dont think I learn anything, no. Fair enough. Because its just imagination. A little bit imagination, a little bit your own conclusions, but I never can say that I learn something.

Its also a game, she continues. Even though, for me, acting is about bringing as much truthfulness as possible, its a game. Thats why acting is really fascinating, because its always ambiguous. Its always difficult to tell the difference between something completely imaginary and something really true. At least, the spectator is always wondering.

The actor, of course, she adds with a conspiratorial chuckle, knows perfectly.

Reinventing Marvin opens in UK cinemas on 14 September
Keira Knightley and the period drama are the dearest of companions. They have been since her international breakout in 2003s Pirates of the Caribbean, as damsel-turned-pirate Elizabeth Swann. Next came her Oscar-nominated take on Elizabeth Bennet in Pride & Prejudice, then roles in Anna Karenina, The Duchess, The Imitation Game  the list goes on.

Her fondness for the genre has also made her an increasingly staunch defender of its merits. While attending this years Toronto International Film Festival to promote her latest foray, Colette, she remarked of the period drama: Theres a negativity around them, because predominantly theyre female.

Knightley has always had a front row seat to the denigration of the period drama: an entire genre routinely diminished, mocked either as blatant Oscar bait or air-headed fantasy. And its hardly a coincidence that its one of very few genres that routinely puts women at the centre of its stories.

Why else have Knightleys career choices remained under siege like this, if not for the insidious hands of cultural double standards? Accused of an addiction to period drama, her motivations continue to be routinely interrogated by the press  so much so that she felt guilt over her preferences in the past.

When I was younger, I felt like I really was doing something wrong for doing period films, she said in a 2014 interview. I think Ive now got to where I can stop apologising for that bit, and go, I love them, Ive always loved them, I loved doing them.

Have we asked Arnold Schwarzenegger to explain his career in action films with quite such breathless urgency? Are we cornering Will Ferrell to beg him to try out a horror flick once in a while? To ridicule Knightley for her choices is to lambast the period drama as an inherently unworthy pursuit, while continuing to dismiss fiction aimed primarily at women as slighter, lesser fare.

This is the mindset thats routinely haunted Jane Austens legacy. Despite being one of the greatest ever literary minds, she is often reduced to the writer of lovey-dovey romances, her acute sense of social satire cast aside. Or well be told, in an attempt to reclaim the humour in her work, that she didnt write love stories at all. According to the cultural gatekeepers  who are largely men  the femininity of her work must either be abandoned or relegated strictly to swooning. Those two things cannot possibly be allowed to co-exist.

Keira Knightley in The Duchess (2008) (Rex Features)

Austens treatment may betray, in fact, why we separate period drama  which is considered synonymous with feminine frivolity  from the somehow more reputable literary adaptation or historical drama. Theres an underlying assumption that period dramas act purely as a form of escapism, incapable of any insight into the period they take place in.

When ITVs Victoria aired in 2016, The Spectators James Delingpole expressed unfettered rage at the series inclusion of an imagined romantic incident, in which Prince Albert saved the Queens favourite spaniel, berating some imagined MillsandBoonification of history.

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Is he unaware that one of the great macho-historical epics of the modern age, Ridley Scotts Gladiator, credits the fictional Maximus Decimus Meridius with the death of the real Emperor Commodus, who died not in the gladiator ring, but in the bath, strangled by a wrestling partner?

It is assumed, too, that the period drama is pure pageantry, utterly incapable of artistry. Rarely considered is how often the genres boundaries have been expanded: from Andrea Arnolds raw, minimalist adaptation of Wuthering Heights to Yorgos Lanthimos The Favourite, which fires up a feverish reimagining of the reign of Queen Anne.

And though the period drama is still plagued by an almost singular focus on white narratives, not nearly enough importance has been placed on Amma Asantes Belle, which brought to life the story of Dido Elizabeth Belle, the mixed-race daughter of an 18th-century aristocrat. Boundary-breaking for historical film at large, it confronts how narrow our vision of historical narratives has been so far, and how many stories remain untold.

Keira Knightley in Colette (2018) (Lionsgate)

Knightleys own roles also bear a richness thats often overlooked. 2008s The Duchess, for example, served a reminder that its subject, Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, was much more than a renowned beauty and fashion icon: she was an ardent activist, at a time when it was unheard of for women to stand at the frontline of politics. Her latest, Colette, casts her as the great French novelist, known for her novella Gigi, less so as a political and sexual revolutionary.

The strongest characters Ive found have been in period roles, Knightley said of her career. The great irony is that in being dismissed as feminine fluff, the period drama has somewhat avoided the controlling male gaze. Women are allowed complexity and agency. They can be the heroes  not the wives and girlfriends of the heroes.

Ignore the negativity, and the corset can actually be quite freeing.

Colette hits UK cinemas 25 January. It will screen at the London Film Festival on 11 October.
Henry Cavill is leaving his role as Superman after talks with the studio Warner Bros broke down, according to a new report.

The Hollywood Reporter states that Cavill was prevented from making a cameo appearance in the upcoming DC film Shazam! starring Zachary Levi, due to scheduling conflicts.

Contract discussions between the actor's representatives and the studio apparently slowed down as a result, meaning future opportunities for Cavill to play the role appear slim.

With appearances in 2013's Man of Steel, 2016's Batman v. Superman, and last year's Justice League already under his belt, the conflict over Shazam! has coincided with the studio's shift of focus away from Superman and towards Supergirl.

An origin film for a teenage Supergirl is currently in the works, which would prevent Cavill's participation, since the source comics depict Superman as an infant at this point in the story.

The studio is also unlikely to make another solo Superman film for several years, with a source explaining: "Superman is like James Bond, and after a certain run you have to look at new actors."

It is a decision which aligns naturally with the new direction Warner Bros has been intent on taking as the studio looks set on shedding more of its DCEU (DC Extended Universe) past. Ben Affleck is also expected to step down from his role as Batman in Matt Reeves's upcoming standalone film.

33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 Show all 34 1 /34 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 1. Captain America: Civil War Release date: 6 May 2016. Iron Man and Captain America are set to face off in this superhero blockbuster that will feature nearly all the Avengers but wont be an Avengers film. It will also mark the first time Spider-Man will feature in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with Sony having made a deal with Marvel Studios. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 2. X-Men: Apocalypse Release date: 27 May 2016. Following the success of Days of Future Past, Apocalypse will follow the young X-Men team as the battle against Oscar Isaacs titular villain as he gathers his four horsemen; Magneto (Fassbender), Angel (Hardy), Storm (Shipp), and Psylocke (Munn). Expect carnage and no Wolverine. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 3. Suicide Squad Release date: 5 August 2016. The first supervillain film, Suicide Squad is also based in the DCEU (DC Extended Universe, where Batman and Superman live) and will introduce the world to Margot Robbies Harley Quinn and Jared Letos Joker. One of the more exciting upcoming DC films thats for sure. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 4. Doctor Strange Release date: 4 November 2016. Benedict Cumberbatch will debut in the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe, where Captain America and Iron Man live) as the Sorcerer Supreme. The film already has an incredible cast, including Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachael McAdams and Tilda Swinton. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 5. Untitled Lego Batman film Release date: 20 February 2017. Kicking off 2017 is the Lego version of Batman, who will lead his own spin-off, having already featured in the amazing Lego Movie. Will Arnett voices the titular character, while Zach Garfianakis - from the Hangover - will voice The Joker. But will he better than Leto? 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 6. Untitled Wolverine film Release date: 3 March 2017. Having not starred in X-Men: Apocalypse, Wolverine will return to the big screen in a solo film which was recently made R-Rated following the success of Deadpool. It is expected to be Hugh Jackmans last outing as the titular character. Fox 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 7. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Release date: 5 May 2017. Chris Pratt and the crew are returning to space in the sequel to the surprisingly successful Guardians of the Galaxy. According to director James Gunn, the film will not feature Thanos, even though he will to play a major role in phase MCU Phase 3. Cast includes newcomers Kurt Russell and Pom Klementieff, as well as, rumour has it, Sylvester Stallone. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 8. Wonder Woman Release date: 23 June 2017. Gal Gadot is returning to the DCEU in her very own film, marking the first female-led superhero film on this list. Chris Pine is on board to play Wonder Womans love interest. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 9. Untitled Spider-Man reboot Release date: 7 July 2017. Yes, it is another Spider-Man reboot, having previously been redone with Andrew Garfield as the lead. However, this time it is part of the MCU, with Tom Holland as the titular character, and a heavily rumoured cameo by Iron Man could be in the pipeline. We can dream. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 10. Untitled Fox film Release date: 6 October 2017. In a strange announcement, Fox decided to withhold the release of Gambit until a future, as-yet unannounced date, which could be here, or this could be a completely separate project. Many suspect Deadpool 2 could nicely fit here, Fox capitalising on the success of the first film. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 11. Thor: Ragnarok Release date: 3 November 2017. Chris Hemsworth will be returning as the Norse God in his third solo MCU film. Flight of the Conchords Taika Waititi is on board to direct, and promises a fun adventure that will likely lead into Marvels next project, Infinity War. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 12. Justice League Part One Release date: 17 November 2017. Hot on the heals of Thor comes Justice League Part One, the first DCEU team-up flick which will see Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Aquaman and Cyborg work together to fight bad guys. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 13: Untitled Fox film Release date: 12 January 2018. Kicking off 2018 will likely be the second Deadpool film, but then again, this could very well be another X-Men team-up. Theres also talk of an X-Force film, with Deadpool and other mutants teaming up to fight evil. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 14. Black Panther Release date: 16 February 2018. The first non-white male-led superhero film in the MCU comes in the form of Black Panther, with Chadwick Boseman reprising the titular role, having also starred as the Panther in Civil War. Creeds Ryan Coogler is on to direct what could be a very exciting film. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 15. The Flash Release date: 16 March 2018. The Flash will be the first DCEU film since Justice League, and sees Ezra Miller take the lead. Phil Lord and Chris Miller were supposed to pen the film before Disney snapped them up for the Han Solo-film, leaving Seth Grahame-Smith to take charge. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 16. Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 Release date: 4 May 2018. And so, we finally get to the point of all these Infinity Stones! Thanos will be the big bad, with the Avengers needing to team up to defeat their biggest foe yet. It has previously been described as the end of the Avengers as we know it. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 17. Ant-Man and The Wasp Release date: 6 July 2018. Peyton Reed will be back to direct this surprise sequel to one of the better received MCU films. While the name is ridiculous, at least Marvel are finally having a leading female superhero. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 18. Untitled Fox film Release date: 13 July 2018. Again, not much word on this one except it is thought to be X-Men spin-off New Mutants, something Josh Boone has been hit up to write. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 19. Animated Spider-Man Film Release date: 20 July 2018. Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, and Amy Pascal - the team behind the live-action Spider-Man films - are producing this unrelated animated adaptation of the hero. Because you can never have too much Spider-Man, right? 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 20. Aquaman Release date: 27 July 2018. Another Justice League spin-off, Jason Momoa plays the leading man. Furious 7s James Wan is on to direct, but little else is known about the film. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 21. Captain Marvel Release date: 8 March 2019. Weve hit 2019, and the first confirmed superhero film will be the first proper female-led MCU film. No-one is confirmed to be in the titular role of Carol Danvers just yet. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 22. Shazam Release date: 5 April 2019. Dwayne Johnson stars as the villain in this DCEU film which will be somewhat separate to the other DC films. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 23. Avengers: Infinity War Part 2. Release date: 3 May 2019. The conclusion to the long drawn MCU saga. Expect a big finish with at least a few planets being destroyed. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 24. Justice League Part Two Release date: 14 June 2019. Soon after the Infinity War story reaches its conclusion, so will the Justice Leagues. Not much is known, except Darkseid will likely be the villain for at least one of the parts. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 25. Inhumans Release date: 12 July 2019. The concept of Inhumans (or Marvels mutants) has already been introduced in TV, through Marvels Agents of Shield, yet the film is expected to introduce the Royal Family who have yet to be seen in the show. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 26. Cyborg Release date: 3 April 2020. Having debuted in Justice League Part One three years previously, Cyborg will finally be making his own outing, with Ray Fisher as the titular character. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 27. Untitled MCU film Release date: 1 May 2020. The first of three untitled Marvel films. There are a couple of contenders, the first is a likely sequel to Spider-Man with Sony, or a third Guardians of the Galaxy film, thus finishing the trilogy. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 28. Green Lantern Corps. Release date: 19 June 2020. Before you start to worry, this has nothing to do with the Ryan Reynolds-starring flick that hit cinemas a little while ago. Instead, this will be another DCEU film that will likely spin-off from Justice League after the Green Lantern Corps cameo in one of the parts. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 29. Untitled MCU film Release date: 10 July 2020. As well as Spider-Man or Guardians of the Galaxy sequels, a Doctor Strange or Black Panther one could fit in nicely here. Or perhaps Black Widow may finally get the solo-film she deserves. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 30. Untitled MCU film Release date: 6 November 2020. Some speculators also think a Blade film could fit in here, marking over 20 years since the first Blade. But many believe the character may be better suited to a Netflix series, as with Daredevil and Jessica Jones. Theres also talk of a Runaways film reaching cinemas at some stage. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 31. Untitled Ben Affleck Batman film Release date: TBA. Now were onto the TBA release dates, the first of which is a Batman solo film, written and directed by Ben Affleck. When this is due, no one is quite sure but expect it sooner rather than later if Batman v Superman is a success. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 32. Suicide Squad 2 Release date: TBA (rumoured 2017). A sequel to Suicide Squad is expected to come in 2017 according to recent reports, but nothing has been confirmed. If the first is successful, it should come as no surprise for Warner Bros to rearrange their schedule to fit in this surefire hit. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 33. Venom Release date: TBA. This is an odd one, as it has been confirmed Sony are wanting to release a Venom film completely unrelated to the upcoming Spider-Man reboot. Venom, as you may know, is a Spider-Man villain, intrinsically linked to Spider-Man, so it seems odd they would release a film unrelated to the rebooted project and not linked to the MCU. 33 Superhero films set for release between 2016 and 2020 Anything else? Well, now you mention it, theres also that sequel to Fantastic Four that has seemingly been dropped by Fox. Plus, theres the Gambit film which has been put on hold (but will likely fill an untitled Fox slot so we havent added it extra). Then again, it could be shoehorned in somehow Marvel



However, still to be released are the films Wonder Woman 1984 (starring Gal Gadot) Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and The Flash (Ezra Miller). Aquaman will be the first released, set to hit UK cinemas 14 December.

There is yet to be any official confirmation of Cavill's departure, either from the actor's camp or the studio.

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Dir Director X, 116 mins, starring: Trevor Jackson, Jason Mitchell, Lex Scott Davis, Michael Kenneth Williams, Jennifer Morrison, Kaalan Walker, Esai Morales, Brian Durkin

Superfly is a remake of an old blaxploitation classic from the 1970s. It is a cheerily amoral affair in which sex, money, violence and designer watches are to the fore. The early scenes are so full of bling and macho posturing that you half suspect the film must be intended as a spoof.

Sadly the director, who goes under the moniker Director X, isnt Mel Brooks in disguise. He turns out to be in deadly earnest.

The film reaches its absolute nadir in the slow-motion-threesome-in-the-shower scene but there are plenty of other almost equally absurd moments. Our hero is Priest (Trevor Jackson), a remarkably laid back Atlanta drug dealer who, in spite of his ostentatious shopping habits and love of fast cars, has stayed under the radar as far as the dimwitted local police are concerned.

He is the type who likes to wrestle, Mixed Martial Arts style, with his business associates when discussing new deals. Apparently, he wants to quit the criminal life but he doesnt give any indication of what he might do instead. Priest, who has come up from the streets, isnt exactly admirable. If Mexican narcos offer him the chance to distribute their merchandise, he will betray his oldest mentor at the drop of a hat.

At least, he isnt as reckless as trigger-happy lieutenant, Eddie, who starts a civil war with rival gang, the Snow Patrol (so-called because all its members dress in white). There is already bad blood between Juju, a young Snow Patrol member, and Priest after a shootout at a nightclub in which a passerby was almost killed in the crossfire.

Predictable mayhem follows. Priest is put through the wringer  shot at, almost thrown out of a plane, blackmailed by corrupt cops and chased around town. He even falls out with Eddie at one stage. Nothing that happens, though, comes close to putting his immaculately coiffed hair out of place.

The sexual politics here are on the prehistoric side. Women tend to strippers, pole dancers or gangsters  and sometimes they are all three at once. The Mexican kingpins sweet-natured mother turns out to be an ogre, ready to incinerate her own children if they betray her. Superfly suffers from the complete absence of any positive figures. Everybody is a villain here. Priest is just a bit sleeker and cleverer than his adversaries.

Alex Tses simple-minded screenplay borrows ideas from Brian De Palmas Scarface as well as from blaxploitation pictures but doesnt dig beneath the surface in its treatment of any of its themes or characters. The result is a film that is cartoonish, gaudy, silly, with a ridiculous crime pays storyline, but without any emotional traction whatsoever.

'Superfly' is in cinemas from 14 September
Dir Shane Black, 107 mins, starring: Boyd Holbrook, Jacob Tremblay, Olivia Munn, Sterling K Brown, Keegan-Michael Key

Aint nobody gonna believe this one, someone observes early on in Shane Blacks very tongue-in-cheek new sci-fi extravaganza. The film serves up a few chuckles along the way. It offers plenty of gore and slimy green goo too, but is neither funny nor horrific enough overall to justify the rebooting of the franchise.

Boyd Holbrook, the laid back DEA Agent from Netflix drama Narcos, plays the hero Quinn  a retired special forces army ranger now working as a mercenary. He first encounters the alien creature when a spaceship crashes in the Mexican wilderness just at the moment he is about to shoot some drug dealer/kidnapper-type in the head.

Unlike almost everybody else in the vicinity, Quinn escapes being bitten in half or trussed upside down from a tree as his guts spill out. For reasons that arent entirely clear, he swallows a silver bauble that can make him invisible and then posts some of the aliens armour to his autistic son back home in the US.

The alien wants the equipment back and seemingly has an affinity with the kid. (Autistic children, we are told, are the next step on the evolutionary chain).

Writer-director Black quickly sketches in Quinns family details. We learn that he is a lousy husband (now separated from his long-suffering wife) but a damned good soldier, even if he is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

In somewhat haphazard fashion, he is thrown together with the loonies, a collection of fellow misfits and military rejects who turn out to be almost as selfless and heroic as he is. He is also joined by the glamorous biologist Dr Casey Brackett (Olivia Munn).

The scientists have ascertained, to their evident amazement, that there is human DNA in the makeup of the monsters. The main creature is looking forward to some old-fashioned bloodsport. Once it has upgraded itself and learnt to talk in Dalek-like English, it tells the humans they have time advantage  in other words, a few minutes of a head start, before it comes to devour them.

As he has shown in his screenplays for everything from Lethal Weapon to The Last Boy Scout and The Nice Guys, Shane Black has few peers when it comes to writing mainstream movies with a self-mocking, ironic wit about them. The problem with The Predator (which Black co-scripted with Fred Dekker) is that we are watching three separate films, joined together like unwieldy pieces of Lego.

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One is a Hogans Heroes-like action-comedy in which every event, however violent or unfortunate, is a source of immense, joshing mirth. Another is a full-blown horror picture, with its fair share of entrails dangling from corpses, blood and general havoc.

The third is a Spielberg-like fable in which a kid communicates with another world. Black struggles to combine the different elements. It remains to be seen if audiences still have the appetite for such random, back to the Eighties-style hocus pocus.

The Predator is in cinemas from 14 September
Psychologists are calling for the smacking of children in the family home to be outlawed due to the effect it can have on their mental health.

A motion has been put forward to the Trades Union Congress (TUC) from the Association of Educational Psychologists (AEP) urging the government to acknowledge that physical punishment can have negative long-term effects on a childs development.

Parents and carers are currently legally allowed to smack children lightly if it can be described as a reasonable punishment, as outlined in section 58 of the Children Act 2004.

However, psychologists who have backed the ban state that hitting is never an effective method of disciplining a child, no matter the circumstances.

Corporal punishment became illegal in British state schools in 1986, but remained legal in private schools until 1998 in England and Wales, until 2000 in Scotland and until 2003 in Northern Ireland.

John Drewicz, president of the AEP, is due to speak today at the annual TUC Conference in Manchester.

He'll outline how smacking impacts a childs mental health and perpetuates damaging messages about violence.

His speech will discuss how smacking a child can negatively impact their mental health and can encourage them to behave in a more aggressive and violent manner.

Furthermore, he'll reference several countries where a full ban on smacking children is already in place, including Sweden, Ireland, Spain, Germany and Portugal.

The motion being put forward by the AEP references similar initiatives in Scotland and Wales.

Recommended Welsh plan to ban smacking children goes to public consultation

Earlier this year, it was announced that the Welsh government was proposing to ban smacking children by asking the countrys population for its views on the issue.

Furthermore, earlier this week Green MSP John Finnie put forward a bill in Holyrood to outlaw the smacking of children, which received the backing of the Scottish government and numerous MSPs from different political parties.

Childrens charity Save the Children states that all children have a right to protection from violence, exploitation, abuse and neglect, and describes the act of smacking a child as a form of child abuse."
London has been replaced by New York as the worlds most attractive financial centre, a survey has indicated, as Brexit prompts banks to shift jobs out of the city to keep access to Europes single market.

Britains decision to leave the EU poses the biggest challenge to the City of Londons finance industry since the 2007-2009 global crisis, since it may mean banks and insurers lose access to the worlds biggest trading bloc.

New York took first place, followed by London, Hong Kong and Singapore in the Z/Yen global financial centres index, which ranks 100 centres on factors such as infrastructure and access to quality staff.

Londons score fell by eight points from six months ago, the biggest decline among the top contenders. The surveys authors said this reflected the uncertainty around Britains departure next year.

We are getting closer and closer to exit day and we still dont know whether London will be able to trade with all the other European financial centres, Mark Yeandle, co-creator of the index, said.

The fear of losing business to other centres is driving the slight decline and people are concerned about Londons competitiveness.

Since Britain voted in 2016 to leave the EU, some of the worlds most powerful finance companies have started moving staff from London to countries that will remain in the bloc to preserve the existing cross-border flow of trading.

 200 days until Brexit: The key dates

Financial services firms, which account for about 12 per cent of Britains economic output and pay more tax than any other industry, potentially have a lot to lose from the end of unfettered access to the EU.

About 5,000 roles are expected to be shifted from London or created in the EU due to Brexit by March, a Reuters study published earlier this year found.

The head of the City of London predicted in July that 3,500 to 12,000 financial jobs would go because of Brexit in the short-term and more might disappear later.

Asian competitors are closing in, with Hong Kong only three points behind London, the survey found.

Many London executives have warned the biggest threats to London are not from other European centres but from global competitors, such as New York and Hong Kong.

The rankings, which are based on nearly 2,500 respondents working in the industry, provide a twice-yearly guide to the relative performance of financial centres globally.

Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Show all 14 1 /14 Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Internal divisions in the Conservative Party have exploded into a bitter public row over Boris Johnsons disgusting criticism of Theresa May. Some senior Tories furiously denounced the former foreign secretary after he accused the prime minister of having wrapped a suicide vest around Britain Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Sajid Javid, Home secretary Sajid Javid, the home secretary, rebuked his former cabinet colleague and said: I think there are much better ways to articulate your differences. He told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show that the public wanted politicians to use measured language BBC/PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide But other MPs leapt to Mr Johnsons defence, as dividing lines ahead of a possible leadership contest begin to take shape. The Uxbridge MP has repeatedly criticised Ms Mays Chequers plan and used a newspaper article on Sunday to suggest it amounted to wrapping a suicide vest around the British constitution. His latest salvo at the prime minister prompted immediate condemnation, with one minister publicly vowing to end Mr Johnsons career over the matter PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alan Duncan, Foreign minister Alan Duncan, a foreign minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team for two years, wrote on Twitter: For Boris to say the PMs view is like that of a suicide bomber is too much. This marks one of the most disgusting moments in modern British politics. Im sorry, but this is the political end of Boris Johnson. If it isnt now, I will make sure it is later. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide James Brokenshire, Housing secretary Housing secretary James Brokenshire added his voice to the criticism, calling Mr Johnsons comments wrong He said: I think he is wrong on this...I think the tone that he has used isnt right and I think that we just need to be very focused on actually moving forward with the Chequers plan. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Zac Goldsmith But as Tory hostilities spilled over into open public warfare, Richmond Park MP Zac Goldsmith, an ally of Mr Johnson, hit back at Mr Duncan. He wrote: There are a number of possible motives behind this tweet, but given its author, we can be certain principles arent one of them. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Jacob Rees-Mogg Senior Tory Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg told The Independent he thought Mr Johnsons suicide belt accusation was little more than a characteristically colourful catchphrase. He added: I agree with the sentiment. The criticism of Boriss wording merely serves to highlight his point. It means more people hear of Boriss criticism of Chequers and many will agree with him. Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Nadine Dorries Nadine Dorries, another Brexit supporter, said Mr Johnsons opponents were terrified of his popular appeal, adding: Dont underestimate the vitriol thatll be directed towards Boris today. He delivered the Leave vote, Remainers and wannabe future PMs hate him. If Mr Johnson became leader and prime minister he would deliver a clean and prosperous Brexit, she said Rex Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Andrew Bridgen Andrew Bridgen said Ms May was to blame for her leadership problems. Asked if Mr Johnson had put a bomb under her leadership, Mr Bridgen said: I think that Theresa May did that herself when she put forward the Chequers proposals without consulting widely prior to that. Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Steve Baker, former Brexit minister Steve Baker, the former Brexit minister, warned Ms May the Conservatives faced a "catastrophic split" if she did not jettison her Chequers plan. Mr Baker, who quit the government in July over the scheme, said: When negotiating, the prime minister needs to demonstrate her intent and also her power to deliver. "If we come out of conference with her hoping to get Chequers through on the back of Labour votes, I think the EU negotiators would probably understand that if that were done, the Tory party would suffer the catastrophic split which thus far we have managed to avoid. But he insisted he did not want a change in the Conservative leadership, saying Brexiteers did not want to be in a position of conflict with our own prime minister Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Tom Tugendhat The deep divisions on the Tory benches were laid bare as Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the Commons foreign affairs committee and is a possible leadership rival to Mr Johnson, also hit out at the former foreign secretary. Recalling how he encountered a suicide bomber in Afghanistan during his time in the army, Mr Tugendhat told Mr Johnson to grow up. He said: A suicide bomber murdered many in the courtyard of my office in Helmand. The carnage was disgusting, limbs and flesh hanging from trees and bushes. Brave men who stopped him killing me and others died in horrific pain. Some need to grow up. Comparing the PM to that isnt happy. PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alistair Burt Alistair Burt, another Foreign Office minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team, said: Im stunned at the nature of this attack. There is no justification for such an outrageous, inappropriate and hurtful analogy. If we dont stop his extraordinary use of language over Brexit, our country might never heal. Again, I say, enough. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide It comes amid that Ms Mays former aides drew up a dossier on Mr Johnsons sexual encounters with the aim of undermining his leadership prospects. The document was compiled in 2016, when the Uxbridge and South Ruislip MP was seen as the main rival to Ms May in her bid to enter No 10. Downing Street and Conservative Campaign Headquaters (CCHQ) both denied having leaked the 4,000 word memo after it was circulated around Westminster AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Mr Johnson confirmed that his 25-year marriage to wife Marina had ended AP

The number of banks saying they plan to set up new EU subsidiaries after Brexit has picked up in the past year. Most major US, British and Japanese banks said they would build up operations in Frankfurt, Paris or Dublin.

Other European centres moved up in the global rankings. Zurich rose to ninth place from 16th six months ago and Frankfurt to 10th from 20th, while Amsterdam climbed to 35th place from 50th.

London and New York have long vied for the top spot of this index and the uncertainty around the future shape of Brexit is likely to be a factor in their latest switch in positions, said Miles Celic, chief executive of the lobbying group TheCityUK. In a competitive world we cannot afford complacency.

A Bank of England official expressed optimism on Wednesday about the future.

The big point...regardless of what happens with Brexit is that Britain will remain a global financial centre, Alex Brazier, the central banks executive director for financial stability, told WalesOnline.

There may be some jobs moving as firms execute their contingency plans, but I dont expect the big picture to change.
Free-to-use cash machines are closing at a record rate, leaving communities without access to cash, the network operator Link has revealed.

Between the end of January and the start of July 2018, the number of free-to-use ATMs fell from 54,500 to 53,200 as operators close down unprofitable machines, Link said.

In response, the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) is calling for more protection for free cash machines in remote rural areas.

Hannah Nixon, the PSRs managing director, said: The requirements we intend to place on Link will help ensure that Link achieves their commitment to protecting the geographic spread of free-to-use ATMs across the UK.

PSR had earmarked 2,365 machines that it wanted kept open because they are more than half a mile from the nearest alternative free ATM. However, 76 of those have closed in just six months, along with 1,200 others.

The closures come after banks reduced the fees they would pay operators for each transaction, making some machines no longer economic to run.

Operators have also been hurt by the fact people are using cash for a smaller proportion of transactions and instead favouring other payment methods such as contactless cards.

The number of cash machine withdrawals peaked at 2.9 billion in 2012 and has since fallen to roughly 1.8 billion, but an estimated two million people still rely on cash for their day-to-day spending.

Nicky Morgan, chair of the Treasury Committee, said that the closures were worrying and warned that regulators actions may be too little too late.

Todays figures show that, even before the interchange fee changes took effect, one protected ATM closed every other day, she said.

The PSR is rightly concerned by the closures, but I fear its regulatory intervention may be too little, too late. It must ensure that Link is held to its commitment to maintain the broad geographic spread of free-to-use ATMs.

Cash machine operators and Link have a duty to act to ensure consumers dont lose out, Ms Morgan added.

David Clarke, head of policy at Positive Money, said the rate of closures was deeply concerning.

These closures risk leaving whole communities without access to cash, harming the over two million people who are wholly reliant on cash for their day-to-day shopping.

Banks have pressured Link to reduce the fees they pay towards the cash network, and the result has been to make hundreds of machines unprofitable.

The PSR must urgently step in to prevent any further cuts to the interchange fee, and ensure that a widespread network of free machines is preserved.
Lloyds Banking Group topped the table of the UKs most complained about financial businesses in the first half of this year, mainly due to PPI issues, according to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

The latest figures show Lloyds-owned Bank of Scotland racked up 23,552 complaints in the six months to 30 June, with 19,589 of those pertaining to PPI, while Lloyds Bank was the subject of 19,996 cases the FOS dealt with.

The lender could not be reached for comment.

Recommended Banks are partly to blame for Ombudsman PPI mistakes

Barclays was the third most complained about bank, with 14,085, followed by HSBC, with 7,981, and Santander, with 7,223. PPI was the reason for most complaints for all these lenders.

Meanwhile, payday loan company Casheuronet, which owns QuickQuid and Pounds to Pocket, was the subject of the most banking and credit-related complaints, with 4,692, an increase of 200 per cent.

It marks the first time the company received more complaints than former rival Wonga, which recently collapsed into administration, was the subject of 4,520 complaints.

Wonga said claims management companies were to blame for a rapid increase in claims which ultimately led to its financial ruin, and analysts said it was to be expected that the same firms would now be focusing on other payday lenders.

Casheuronets UK managing director Nick Drew said: Our business is profitable and growing, and we remain excited about the opportunities, especially in light of the diminished competition in the market.

Casheuronet is owned by US firm Enova International, which has previously warned that it had incurred significant costs as a result of the increase in complaints, and said the FOS had been strict in its interpretation of the rules.

If the FOS continues to issue findings in this manner, and we are required to continue making significant payments to resolve complaints, such findings could again have a material adverse effect on our business, the group said.

Commenting on the latest complaints data, the Consumer Finance Association said: The figures released today are very disappointing and point to the impact of Claims Management Companies on the complaint numbers. Unfortunately, we are seeing some worrying tactics being deployed that are not always in the interests of customers.

Short-term lending has seen considerable change, and these are largely historic complaints. Most customers borrow without any problems. Customers can now borrow at reduced cost and most avoid incurring any additional fees.

We would always advise that if customers do have a problem, or a complaint, they should get in contact with their lender as soon as possible. Lenders will look at the individual merits of every case and try to help wherever they can.

Additional reporting by newswires
Two alleged Russian spies who launched the Salisbury attack smuggled novichok into the UK through Gatwick Airport, the security minister has confirmed.

Ben Wallace told the House of Commons there was clearly some form of attempt to create a legend to make sure that they circumvented our checks.

No doubt at the other end of that aeroplane journey [in Russia] there was some, I should think, the baggage checks weren't probably as good as they might be, he added.

[The novichok], we believe, in a counterfeit Nina Ricci perfume bottle. That bottle was then recklessly discarded on the streets of Salisbury, and had the potential to kill or injure hundreds and hundreds of people.

Prosecutors have charged two Russian men using the suspected aliases Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov with attempting to assassinate Sergei Skripal in a reckless poisoning that later caused the death of Dawn Sturgess.

They flew into Gatwick Airport from Moscow on 2 March, using legitimate business visas and genuine government-issued Russian passports.

Mr Wallace said there was no health risk to their fellow air passengers or those who travelled on the public transport they used to travel around London and onwards to Salisbury.

When a hostile state is determined to try and use its full resources to penetrate another state the challenge is much greater, he added.

Vladimir Putin has called on the two suspects to appear in Russian media and claimed they are 'civilians' (Metropolitan Police)

The logistical support of that state in assisting its agents is significant and that means for example that these two individuals travelled on a genuine Russian passport, making it harder to spot.

The British government has said the two suspects were members of the GRU military intelligence agency, where Mr Skripal served as a colonel before passing secrets to MI6 that unmasked undercover Russian spies in Europe.

The poisoning led to a wave of diplomatic expulsions in the UK and by its allies, and retaliation by Russia as its government denied any involvement in the attack.

Asked whether there would be any further expulsions during a parliamentary debate on the Salisbury incident, Mr Wallace said: We will keep all options on the table.

"For now we are working on a number of measures to push back Russia's activities and do our best to degrade their intelligence services."

Vladimir Putin claimed there was nothing criminal about the two named suspects on Wednesday and claimed they were civilians.

In an address to the Easter Economic Forum in Vladivostok, he said: Of course, we looked who these people are. We know who they are, we have found them already.

He added: There is nothing special and nothing criminal about it, Im telling you.

Mr Putin called on Petrov and Boshirov to appear in public to tell all about themselves and Russian state media suggested interviews would appear next week.

Dawn Sturgess, a mother-of-three, died in hospital days after being poisoned with novichok (Metropolitan Police)

Mr Wallace said requests for Russia to account for what happened in Salisbury had been met with obfuscation and lies, saying their response merely reinforces their guilt.

Sajid Javid has vowed that Britain and its allies will catch the pair if they ever leave Russia again, but admitted the scenario is unlikely.

If they ever step out of the Russian Federation, Britain and its allies will get them and we will bring them to prosecution, the home secretary said on Saturday, claiming the GRU was getting its instruction directly from the highest level of the Russian government.European Arrest Warrants and Interpol red notices have been issued for the men, who fled back to Moscow on the day they allegedly poisoned Mr Skripal.

Mr Javid admitted that we will probably never see them in the UK, adding: The Russians will probably never let them leave the Russian Federation.

Flight records showed the suspects have travelled extensively around Europe from when the passports were issued in September 2016, to locations including Geneva, Paris, Amsterdam and Milan.

Investigators caught the pair on CCTV near Mr Skripals house at the time when novichok was spread on his front door, causing him and his daughter to fall critically ill hours later.

They are believed to have used the same counterfeit perfume bottle that later poisoned Charlie Rowley and killed Ms Sturgess.

Police found traces of novichok in the London hotel room used by the two suspects before they left Britain on a Moscow-bound flight on the evening of 4 March.

Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Show all 19 1 /19 Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack CCTV  Salisbury train station The two suspects charged in relation to the attack on Sergei and Yulia Skripal at Salisbury train station at 16:11hrs on 03 March 2018 Metropolitan Police Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Suspects Suspects Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov, Russian nationals, approximately 40 years old, who travelled on a Russian passport. It is likely that they were travelling under aliases and that these are not their real names Metropolitan Police Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Evidence Bottle and applicator recovered by police from Charlie Rowleys address in Muggleton Road Metropolitan Police Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Evidence A counterfeit perfume box that was discovered by nerve agent victim Charlie Rowley, who later gave it, and the bottle inside, to his girlfriend Dawn Sturgess Metropolitan Police/AFP/Getty Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Rowley has previously said he felt lucky to be alive after giving a perfume bottle that contained the nerve agent Novichok to his girlfriend Dawn Sturgess, who later died Metropolitan Police/AFP/Getty Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Suspeccts The CPS has issued European Arrest Warrants for the extradition of 'Boshirov' and 'Petrov' in connection with the Novichok poisoning attack on Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in March Metropolitan Police/PA Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack CCTV  Boshirov' at Gatwick airport Movements in detail - At 3pm on Friday, 2 March, the suspects arrived at Gatwick airport, having flown from Moscow on Aeroflot flight SU2588 Metropolitan Police Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack CCTV  Petrov at Gatwick airport From the airport it is believed that they travelled by train into London, arriving at Victoria station at approximately 5.40pm Metropolitan Police Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack CCTV  Salisbury train station, 11:48hrs on 4 March 2018 They then travelled on London public transport to Waterloo station and were in the area between approximately 6pm and 7pm. They travelled to the City Stay Hotel in Bow Road, East London, where they stayed on Friday, 2 March, and Saturday, 3 March. On Saturday, 3 March, they left the hotel and took the underground to Waterloo station, arriving at approximately 11.45am, where they caught a train to Salisbury, arriving at approximately 2.25pm Metropolitan Police Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack City Stay Hotel in Bow Road Police officers stand outside the City Stay Hotel in Bow where on Sunday, 4 March, 'Boshirov' and 'Petrov' made the same journey from the hotel as they did the previous day, again using the underground from Bow to Waterloo station at approximately 8.05am, before continuing their journey by train to Salisbury Getty Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack CCTV  Wilton Road, Salisbury, 11:58hrs on 4 March 2018 CCTV shows them in the vicinity of Mr Skripals house and we believe that they contaminated the front door with Novichok Metropolitan Police Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack CCTV  Fisherton Road CCTV image of both suspects on Fisherton Road, Salisbury at 13:05hrs on 4 March, 2018 Metropolitan Police Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack CCTV  Salisbury train station, 13:50hrs on 4 March 2018 They left Salisbury and returned to Waterloo Station, arriving at approximately 4.45pm and boarded the London Underground at approximately 6.30pm to London Heathrow Airport Metropolitan Police Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack CCTV  Heathrow airport security, 19:28hrs on 4 March 2018 From Heathrow Airport, they returned to Moscow on Aeroflot flight SU2585, departing at 10.30pm Metropolitan Police/PA Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Scene investigations The police investigation was carried out over 6 months. Ex-Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found on March 4 in a critical condition on a bench outside the Maltings shopping centre in Salisbury AFP Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Victims Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, right, and his daughter Yulia Rex Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Victims Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey who rushed to the aid of the Skripals was also taken to hospital in a serious condition after falling ill when attempting to help them PA Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Victims Dawn Sturgess, a 44-year-old mother of three, died after falling ill when partner Charlie Rowley gave her a perfume bottle that contained the nerve agent Novichok Facebook/AFP/Getty Police release images of suspects in connection with Salisbury attack Scene investigations The home of Charlie Rowley in Muggleton Road, Amesbury, where he and Dawn Sturgess were exposed to the deadly nerve agent Novichok PA

Prosecutors have charged them with conspiracy to murder Mr Skripal, attempted murder, using novichok and other offences, but have not sought an extradition warrant from Russia because its constitution forbids handing over criminals to other countries.

The case echoes that of Alexander Litvinenko, a former FSB agent who was assassinated using polonium in London in 2006.

British investigators identified Andrey Lugovoy as the chief suspect after he left a radioactive trail right up to the plane he boarded back to Russia, but he has never been prosecuted and Russia refused an extradition request from the UK.

Theresa May has vowed that Britain will wage an international campaign to disrupt malign Russian activity and dismantle spy networks.

British and Russian officials attacked each other at an intense UN Security Council meeting held over the Salisbury attack last week, where the UK accused the Kremlin of playing dice with the lives of the people of Salisbury and demanded accountability.

The Russian ambassador, Vasily Nebenzya, responded by angrily accusing the UK and its allies of spreading repeated lies about Russias development of novichok, and called the case Petrov and Boshirov an unfounded and mendacious cocktail of facts.

Mr Nebenzya claimed the investigation was motivated by Russophobia and intended to unleash disgusting anti-Russian hysteria.

Earlier this year, the UKs national security advisor revealed that Russia had been spying on Sergei and Yulia Skripal for at least five years before the attempted assassination.
Islamist fighters are making their final stand in the Syrian battleground on two fronts. But the most senior British military officer in the coalition against Isis has warned that violent jihad is far from over and threats of attacks remain potent in the region and beyond it to the west, including Britain.

As well as an impending offensive by Russian, Iranian and Assad regime forces on the rebel enclave of Idlib, a second operation is under way by US and European backed forces to reclaim Hajin, the last area remaining under Isis control.

However Major General Felix Gedney, the deputy commander of the American led Inherent Resolve mission, cautioned that the fall of the two remaining strongholds will not mean that the danger of Islamist terrorism is over.

We have caused huge damage to the leadership of Daesh [Isis] and we have crushed much of it. But we have not destroyed Daesh totally and the terrorist threat remains in Syria, Iraq and our country, he said. We need to remain committed to ensure that this organisation, an evil organisation, does not continue to inflict bloodshed and suffering.

Maj Gen Gedney acknowledged that despite experiencing losses, the whereabouts of some of the Isis hierarchy, including the head, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, remains unclear. Baghdadi remains very important, he popped up a little while ago, we dont know where he is at the moment, he said. Daesh is changing and adapting, it is becoming more of an insurgency, carrying out terrorist attacks, bombings, and we can expect this to continue.

 Eyewitness of deadly ISIS suicide attack in Afghanistan describes the event

He acknowledged that foreign fighters seeking to return to the West, including the UK, continue to pose a grave danger. Hundreds remain in Syria and Iraq, said Maj Gen Gedney, the numbers of British citizens among them remain unclear.

We dont know the exact number from here; some who were UK citizens are no longer so because their citizenship has been revoked, he said. But they are present and it is obviously a problem. It is not for me to say how we deal with them, but we do need to deal with them, otherwise they would be after us again and try to carry out terrorist attacks.

Ministry of Defence handout stills of a strike by two Tornados demolishing a terrorist command post south of Hajin (PA)

A group of foreign fighters, including British nationals, are known to be in the Hajin area, said Maj Gen Gedney. There is also evidence that other Isis foreign jihadists are heading for Idlib, which is held at present by rebel groups including the al-Qaeda linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which previously called itself Jabhat al-Nusra, and Turkish organised National Liberation Front.

There have been repeated warnings from the US and other Western states as well as the UN that a full scale military assault on Idlib would result in severe suffering for civilians. Maj Gen Gedney said: We are obviously looking out for impact on coalition areas on the humanitarian aspect of this. We are also aware of foreign fighters and need to interdict them there and in Hajin, this is extremely important.

Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures Show all 8 1 /8 Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures Syrian Democratic Forces fighters celebrate victory in Raqqa atop of military vehicles REUTERS Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures Fighters of Syrian Democratic Forces march past destroyed buildings as they celebrate victory REUTERS Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures Fighters of Syrian Democratic Forces gesture the "V" sign in Raqqa REUTERS Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures Fighters of Syrian Democratic Forces evacuate a civilian from the stadium REUTERS Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures A civilian prays after she was rescued by fighters of Syrian Democratic Forces from the stadium REUTERS Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures Syrian Democratic Forces fighters ride atop of military vehicles as they celebrate victory in Raqqa REUTERS Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures Syrian Democratic Forces fighters celebrate victory in Raqqa REUTERS Syrian Democratic Forces take Raqqa from Isis  in pictures A fighter of Syrian Democratic Forces celebrates in Raqqa Reuters

The international forces had been criticised for allowing the evacuation of Islamist fighters, including foreign jihadis, after the fall of Raqqa, the capital of the so-called Islamic State.

But Maj Gen Gedney maintained: The tribal elders at the time made a strong pitch for the Arab population to be able leave and the UN was asking for a humanitarian effort. We had to go along with it. Many of those who left were civilians, but yes there were some fighters among them. We subsequently killed or captured many of them, some of them are now wallowing in [penal] institutions in northern Syria.
The UKs spending watchdog has slammed inadequate planning at a Brexit-critical Whitehall department, warning it has put at risk billions of pounds in exports and damage to key industries.

The scathing report said the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has no clear vision of its own role after Brexit and that in many areas its efforts were of poor quality and lack maturity.

The National Audit Office (NAO) warned that key elements of its Brexit preparations would not be ready by March next year when the UK is set to drop out of the bloc.

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Elements highlighted as being at risk include:

17bn of chemical exports to the EU

Britains ability to protect its fishing waters

Farm exports to dozens of countries

The NAO report said that Defra, run by cabinet minister and prominent Leave campaigner Michael Gove, had achieved a lot under difficult circumstances, but highlighted how it had still missed a large number of its own milestones, and that the risk of the department failing to deliver all plans and legislation needed for Brexit was high.

Looking at preparations in all of its areas of policy, the NAO commented that Defras plans in many were of poor quality and lack maturity.

 Tony Blair says Brexit could lead UK down 'dark path'

In a damning section, it added: Defra does not have a clear vision either for the new services and functions it has to introduce or for the organisation as a whole post-EU Exit, and it therefore has limited understanding of future costs.

In the case of a no-deal Brexit the UK will have to come up with its own regime for regulating the chemicals trade, including with the EU where the UK exports 17bn of goods each year  60 per cent of the industrys global total.

Defra does not have a clear vision either for the new services and functions it has to introduce or for the organisation as a whole post-EU exit The National Audit Office

British manufacturers currently use the EU system of registration that took 14 years to develop and runs to 200 pages, but the NAO report said: [Defra] has not yet started to consider in detail what the future regulatory function will look like nor how it will be managed.

The report warns that UK chemical manufacturers would simply no longer be able to export their products to the member states without a negotiated settlement, because registrations of products would cease to be recognised by the EU, while re-registering products in Europe is a lengthy process.

The government said it had tasked the Health and Safety Executive as the lead regulatory authority and that work is ongoing to fully assess the resource requirements.

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

Labour MP Angela Smith, a leading supporter of the Peoples Vote campaign, said the report was confirmation that the government is unprepared for a no-deal Brexit.

She added: Chemicals manufacturers, who stand as our second biggest manufacturing sector, have been left in the dark and as a consequence the entire sector is at risk.

The symbolic nature of the UKs fishing industry to the Brexit debate means the section of the report on marine control and enforcement is likely to be particularly difficult for the government.

Ministers want to increase its capacity to guard Britains waters to avoid clashes like those with French vessels recently seen in the so-called scallop wars.

But the report said that because of time taken to develop and submit its funding plans, that in a no-deal scenario, Defra will not reach its preferred level of control and enforcement capacity by March 2019.

The government said it had now submitted funding plans to the Treasury, but its own outline business case submitted in August accepted that even if they are eventually adopted, it will at that point take eight months to procure and implement a contract for the enforcement needed  with Brexit day just six month away.

 Conservative politician Steve Baker says that he doesn't foresee any change in the Brexit strategy

The report also highlighted how some firms selling food and animal products may simply be unable to, once 29 March passes, because there has not been enough time to negotiate new export health certificates.

Defra needs to negotiate with 154 non-EU countries to agree acceptance of UK versions of more than 1,400 certificates, and is focusing on 15 that account for 90 per cent of total exports to those countries.

But the report highlighted how the department is not expecting to be able to complete negotiations with all the remaining 139 countries by March next year.

The report said: Defra has accepted the risk that firms currently exporting to those countries where agreement is not reached may not be able to do so for a period after EU exit.

It also hit out at the departments failure to provide timely or adequate advice to UK firms in relevant sectors, pointing out how some had to rely on EU websites.

A Defra spokesperson thanked the NAO for the report, and pointed out that it had taken on new staff, started to build new IT systems and develop new services to replace those currently provided by the EU.

It went on: Since the report was written, we have continued to reprioritise our resources, expanded our workforce and made further progress on our extensive programme of work focused on preparing for a range of Brexit scenarios.

Our work will mean that environmental, welfare and biosecurity standards will continue to be met in a way that supports trade and the smooth flow of goods.
The government has appeared to backtrack on a key post-Brexit suggestion to ban the export of live animals for slaughter, angering politicians and animal rights campaigners.

Michael Gove launched a consultation into a ban earlier this year, promising to deliver policies that respect and care animals and raising the prospect of ending the export of thousands of live farm animals to mainland Europe.

But on Wednesday the environment secretary would only commit to restrictions on the practice.

I am minded to restrict them yes, and Im looking at the evidence to see how we can make appropriate, or take appropriate steps, Mr Gove told BBC Radio 4s Today programme.

Asked directly whether he was still minded to ban it, he said: Im minded to take every step we can in order to ensure that we restrict animal exports and that we safeguard animal welfare.

Pressed on the issue, the environment secretary insisted all options are on the table, without ever using the word ban.

 Sheep forced into dire conditions aboard transit ship to Middle East

Caroline Lucas, MP and former leader of the Green Party, accused the Tories of delivering a Brexit built on lies.

Brexiteers promised a ban on live animal exports, she wrote on Twitter. Now Michael Gove says it wont happen.

This Tory Brexit is built on lies.

James West, senior policy manager at Compassion in World Farming, said he was concerned Mr Gove appeared to be backtracking on his live export commitment.

On numerous occasions, Michael Gove has spoken about how the government are considering stopping live exports for slaughter, he said. This morning, when pressed, he repeatedly used the word restrict. The campaign to stop live exports is one that has run for many years, and an issue people feel very strongly about.

It will be a major disappointment to the majority of British citizens if the government abandon their plans.

Labour's shadow environment minister, David Drew, said: Michael Gove is back pedalling on his promise to ban live exports. We are demanding that Michael Gove now clarifies the governments position on banning live exports.

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

A Conservative Party spokesperson told The Independent it had "consistently" said it will control live animal experts after Brexit.

Earlier this year we called for evidence on restricting and potentially banning live exports. As the environment secretary said, all options are on the table and a ban remains a possibility," the spokesperson added.

Labours hypocrisy is breathtaking. Unlike the Conservatives, their manifesto had nothing to say on this vital issue and now they are desperately playing catch-up.

Official figures show that each year at least 4,000 sheep are transported from the UK to Europe for slaughter, with an estimated 6,000 calves exported from Northern Ireland, despite government documents admitting all forms of transport may have negative effects on the animals welfare.

Current European single market rules currently prevent the UK from banning the live export of animals, which accounts for only a small proportion of Britains 2.4bn trade in meat and livestock with the EU.

Campaigners celebrated when in April, Mr Gove held a public consultation on the proposed live export ban. They had battled for years to highlight the cramped, unnatural conditions on export trucks during long journeys with insufficient water in often sweltering temperatures.

Mr Goves about-turn came after environment and food officials asked advisers on the Farm Animal Welfare Committee (FAWC) to review the conditions animals are subjected to during long-distance live transport and to make recommendations on improving them.

Campaigners said this raised suspicions the government may be backing away from a ban on the cruel and completely unnecessary practice.

Ministers are also facing pressure from the Scottish government, which opposes a ban. Scottish farmers regularly send young, unweaned calves to countries such as Spain on journeys lasting 100 hours or more, and Scotlands rural economy secretary Fergus Ewing says a ban would cause substantial harm to the nations livestock sector.
Claims by pro-Brexit Tories to have found a solution to the Irish border controversy were undermined when they admitted there was nothing new in their proposals.

The European Research Group (ERG) piled pressure on Theresa May to ditch her Chequers plan, insisting new technology and inspections far from the frontier could meet EU demands to avoid a return to border posts.

Significantly, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP)  which is propping up the prime minister in power  hailed the sensible practical measures.

But David Davis, the former Brexit secretary, acknowledged the ideas were a return to the max fac plan dumped by the prime minister, after a warning it would cost businesses up to 20bn a year.

He also argued it was part of a trend towards streamlined crossings across the world, including between the US and Canada  even though that border has guards carrying guns.

Theres nothing new in here, its actually quite boring, admitted Owen Paterson, a former Northern Ireland secretary.

The 19-page  hastily-stapled together  paper proposed initial regulatory alignment between the UK and the EU, with a common biosecurity zone to allow the smooth movement of agricultural goods.

Larger companies would use trusted trader schemes to clear their goods for export and import, with standards checks at the point of sale, rather than the border.

The plan would clear the way for a Canada-style trade agreement, the group claimed  ditching the Chequers proposals to adopt a common rule book with the EU after Brexit.

Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Show all 14 1 /14 Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Internal divisions in the Conservative Party have exploded into a bitter public row over Boris Johnsons disgusting criticism of Theresa May. Some senior Tories furiously denounced the former foreign secretary after he accused the prime minister of having wrapped a suicide vest around Britain Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Sajid Javid, Home secretary Sajid Javid, the home secretary, rebuked his former cabinet colleague and said: I think there are much better ways to articulate your differences. He told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show that the public wanted politicians to use measured language BBC/PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide But other MPs leapt to Mr Johnsons defence, as dividing lines ahead of a possible leadership contest begin to take shape. The Uxbridge MP has repeatedly criticised Ms Mays Chequers plan and used a newspaper article on Sunday to suggest it amounted to wrapping a suicide vest around the British constitution. His latest salvo at the prime minister prompted immediate condemnation, with one minister publicly vowing to end Mr Johnsons career over the matter PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alan Duncan, Foreign minister Alan Duncan, a foreign minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team for two years, wrote on Twitter: For Boris to say the PMs view is like that of a suicide bomber is too much. This marks one of the most disgusting moments in modern British politics. Im sorry, but this is the political end of Boris Johnson. If it isnt now, I will make sure it is later. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide James Brokenshire, Housing secretary Housing secretary James Brokenshire added his voice to the criticism, calling Mr Johnsons comments wrong He said: I think he is wrong on this...I think the tone that he has used isnt right and I think that we just need to be very focused on actually moving forward with the Chequers plan. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Zac Goldsmith But as Tory hostilities spilled over into open public warfare, Richmond Park MP Zac Goldsmith, an ally of Mr Johnson, hit back at Mr Duncan. He wrote: There are a number of possible motives behind this tweet, but given its author, we can be certain principles arent one of them. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Jacob Rees-Mogg Senior Tory Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg told The Independent he thought Mr Johnsons suicide belt accusation was little more than a characteristically colourful catchphrase. He added: I agree with the sentiment. The criticism of Boriss wording merely serves to highlight his point. It means more people hear of Boriss criticism of Chequers and many will agree with him. Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Nadine Dorries Nadine Dorries, another Brexit supporter, said Mr Johnsons opponents were terrified of his popular appeal, adding: Dont underestimate the vitriol thatll be directed towards Boris today. He delivered the Leave vote, Remainers and wannabe future PMs hate him. If Mr Johnson became leader and prime minister he would deliver a clean and prosperous Brexit, she said Rex Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Andrew Bridgen Andrew Bridgen said Ms May was to blame for her leadership problems. Asked if Mr Johnson had put a bomb under her leadership, Mr Bridgen said: I think that Theresa May did that herself when she put forward the Chequers proposals without consulting widely prior to that. Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Steve Baker, former Brexit minister Steve Baker, the former Brexit minister, warned Ms May the Conservatives faced a "catastrophic split" if she did not jettison her Chequers plan. Mr Baker, who quit the government in July over the scheme, said: When negotiating, the prime minister needs to demonstrate her intent and also her power to deliver. "If we come out of conference with her hoping to get Chequers through on the back of Labour votes, I think the EU negotiators would probably understand that if that were done, the Tory party would suffer the catastrophic split which thus far we have managed to avoid. But he insisted he did not want a change in the Conservative leadership, saying Brexiteers did not want to be in a position of conflict with our own prime minister Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Tom Tugendhat The deep divisions on the Tory benches were laid bare as Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the Commons foreign affairs committee and is a possible leadership rival to Mr Johnson, also hit out at the former foreign secretary. Recalling how he encountered a suicide bomber in Afghanistan during his time in the army, Mr Tugendhat told Mr Johnson to grow up. He said: A suicide bomber murdered many in the courtyard of my office in Helmand. The carnage was disgusting, limbs and flesh hanging from trees and bushes. Brave men who stopped him killing me and others died in horrific pain. Some need to grow up. Comparing the PM to that isnt happy. PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alistair Burt Alistair Burt, another Foreign Office minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team, said: Im stunned at the nature of this attack. There is no justification for such an outrageous, inappropriate and hurtful analogy. If we dont stop his extraordinary use of language over Brexit, our country might never heal. Again, I say, enough. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide It comes amid that Ms Mays former aides drew up a dossier on Mr Johnsons sexual encounters with the aim of undermining his leadership prospects. The document was compiled in 2016, when the Uxbridge and South Ruislip MP was seen as the main rival to Ms May in her bid to enter No 10. Downing Street and Conservative Campaign Headquaters (CCHQ) both denied having leaked the 4,000 word memo after it was circulated around Westminster AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Mr Johnson confirmed that his 25-year marriage to wife Marina had ended AP

But the event was overshadowed by the revelation that up to 50 Tory MPs, at a weekly meeting of the ERG, openly discussed how to topple the prime minister.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the ERGs chairman, disowned the plotters, insisting they had been reflecting private views and not the policy of the ERG.

I have long said, and repeated again and again, that the policy needs to be changed but I am supporting the person, he said.

Theresa May has enormous virtues, she is a fantastically dutiful prime minister and she has my support. I just want her to change one item of policy.

Mr Davis added: I have made very plain from when I resigned and thereafter that I think we have got a very good prime minister and, like Jacob, I disagree with her on one issue  this issue.

She should stay in place because we need stability and we need decent government as the backdrop to what we are doing in the coming six months.

Nigel Dodds, the DUPs deputy leader, said the paper accurately reflects the fact that the border issue is no impediment to the negotiation by the UK of a comprehensive trade deal with the EU.

Owen Smith, Labours former Northern Ireland secretary and a supporter of the anti-Brexit Best or Britain campaign, said the DUPs support had put Ms Mays position in peril.

The new Brexiteer plan for the Irish border simply moves it and its new infrastructure 20 miles north  so that new intelligence-led checks can be carried out, he said.

What should worry everyone is that the DUP have rushed out with full-throated support for it. For a prime minister who relies on DUP support to survive, this puts her government in potential peril.
Open plotting by up to 50 Tory MPs who discussed how to topple Theresa May has been dismissed as loose talk by leading Brexiteer Michael Gove.

The environment secretary rejected any immediate threat to the prime ministers position, insisting Conservative MPs should throw their weight behind her plan to deliver EU withdrawal next March.

I think this is loose talk  you always have loose talk, said Mr Gove, who backed the Chequers plan when other ministers resigned in the summer.

The threat was dismissed despite the open revolt at a 50-strong meeting of the anti-Brexit European Research Group (ERG), in a parliamentary committee room.

Dozens of MPs were said to have openly debated how to topple their own leader  with comments that shes a disaster and this cant go on made, in front of witnesses.

The discussion is believed to have centred around the timing of triggering a vote of no confidence in the prime minister, which requires the support of 48 Tory MPs.

However, only around 35 names have been submitted to Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 backbench committee  still well short of the threshold to trigger the contest.

Asked about the threat, Mr Gove told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: There are always people who want to write stories about leadership speculation.

Mr Gove also rejected suggestions that it would be better for Ms May to tackle the leadership threat head-on, saying: The critical thing is to ensure that we deliver on that Brexit mandate.

Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Show all 14 1 /14 Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Internal divisions in the Conservative Party have exploded into a bitter public row over Boris Johnsons disgusting criticism of Theresa May. Some senior Tories furiously denounced the former foreign secretary after he accused the prime minister of having wrapped a suicide vest around Britain Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Sajid Javid, Home secretary Sajid Javid, the home secretary, rebuked his former cabinet colleague and said: I think there are much better ways to articulate your differences. He told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show that the public wanted politicians to use measured language BBC/PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide But other MPs leapt to Mr Johnsons defence, as dividing lines ahead of a possible leadership contest begin to take shape. The Uxbridge MP has repeatedly criticised Ms Mays Chequers plan and used a newspaper article on Sunday to suggest it amounted to wrapping a suicide vest around the British constitution. His latest salvo at the prime minister prompted immediate condemnation, with one minister publicly vowing to end Mr Johnsons career over the matter PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alan Duncan, Foreign minister Alan Duncan, a foreign minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team for two years, wrote on Twitter: For Boris to say the PMs view is like that of a suicide bomber is too much. This marks one of the most disgusting moments in modern British politics. Im sorry, but this is the political end of Boris Johnson. If it isnt now, I will make sure it is later. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide James Brokenshire, Housing secretary Housing secretary James Brokenshire added his voice to the criticism, calling Mr Johnsons comments wrong He said: I think he is wrong on this...I think the tone that he has used isnt right and I think that we just need to be very focused on actually moving forward with the Chequers plan. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Zac Goldsmith But as Tory hostilities spilled over into open public warfare, Richmond Park MP Zac Goldsmith, an ally of Mr Johnson, hit back at Mr Duncan. He wrote: There are a number of possible motives behind this tweet, but given its author, we can be certain principles arent one of them. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Jacob Rees-Mogg Senior Tory Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg told The Independent he thought Mr Johnsons suicide belt accusation was little more than a characteristically colourful catchphrase. He added: I agree with the sentiment. The criticism of Boriss wording merely serves to highlight his point. It means more people hear of Boriss criticism of Chequers and many will agree with him. Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Nadine Dorries Nadine Dorries, another Brexit supporter, said Mr Johnsons opponents were terrified of his popular appeal, adding: Dont underestimate the vitriol thatll be directed towards Boris today. He delivered the Leave vote, Remainers and wannabe future PMs hate him. If Mr Johnson became leader and prime minister he would deliver a clean and prosperous Brexit, she said Rex Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Andrew Bridgen Andrew Bridgen said Ms May was to blame for her leadership problems. Asked if Mr Johnson had put a bomb under her leadership, Mr Bridgen said: I think that Theresa May did that herself when she put forward the Chequers proposals without consulting widely prior to that. Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Steve Baker, former Brexit minister Steve Baker, the former Brexit minister, warned Ms May the Conservatives faced a "catastrophic split" if she did not jettison her Chequers plan. Mr Baker, who quit the government in July over the scheme, said: When negotiating, the prime minister needs to demonstrate her intent and also her power to deliver. "If we come out of conference with her hoping to get Chequers through on the back of Labour votes, I think the EU negotiators would probably understand that if that were done, the Tory party would suffer the catastrophic split which thus far we have managed to avoid. But he insisted he did not want a change in the Conservative leadership, saying Brexiteers did not want to be in a position of conflict with our own prime minister Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Tom Tugendhat The deep divisions on the Tory benches were laid bare as Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the Commons foreign affairs committee and is a possible leadership rival to Mr Johnson, also hit out at the former foreign secretary. Recalling how he encountered a suicide bomber in Afghanistan during his time in the army, Mr Tugendhat told Mr Johnson to grow up. He said: A suicide bomber murdered many in the courtyard of my office in Helmand. The carnage was disgusting, limbs and flesh hanging from trees and bushes. Brave men who stopped him killing me and others died in horrific pain. Some need to grow up. Comparing the PM to that isnt happy. PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alistair Burt Alistair Burt, another Foreign Office minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team, said: Im stunned at the nature of this attack. There is no justification for such an outrageous, inappropriate and hurtful analogy. If we dont stop his extraordinary use of language over Brexit, our country might never heal. Again, I say, enough. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide It comes amid that Ms Mays former aides drew up a dossier on Mr Johnsons sexual encounters with the aim of undermining his leadership prospects. The document was compiled in 2016, when the Uxbridge and South Ruislip MP was seen as the main rival to Ms May in her bid to enter No 10. Downing Street and Conservative Campaign Headquaters (CCHQ) both denied having leaked the 4,000 word memo after it was circulated around Westminster AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Mr Johnson confirmed that his 25-year marriage to wife Marina had ended AP

Any diversion or any distraction from that mission means that our ability to ensure that the referendum mandate that we were given is delivered, is undermined.

He twice refused to say he would serve under Boris Johnson  while insisting he had the highest regard for him  saying: At the moment, the prime minister is Theresa May.

Despite the rebellion, it still appears unlikely that the ERG can muster the numbers to bring down the prime minister, even if they can secure 48 letters to trigger the contest.

Ms May  at least at present  can be expected to win comfortably if all 315 Conservative MPs are given a chance to cast their vote.

Crucially, if there is a vote of no confidence and she wins it, there could be no further contest for another year, part of the reason her opponents have pulled back so far.

The ERG is far more confident of winning the so-called meaningful vote this winter, on the Brexit agreement if one can be reached  a crushing defeat which could force her out of No 10.

Steve Baker, the former Brexit minister, has claimed 80-plus Brexiteer Tories are ready to vote the deal down, although the Tory whips insist the number is significantly lower.

Splits are appearing in the ERG over how strongly to oppose the Chequers plan - forcing the group to pull back from publishing its own promised Brexit blueprint.
 Close May pouring petrol on burning injustices with universal credit rollout, says Corbyn

Jeremy Corbyn has clashed with Theresa May over failings related to the governments flagship welfare programme, claiming the prime minister is pouring petrol on the burning injustices she set out to resolve.

As the roll-out of universal credit accelerates, the Labour leader criticised the highly-contentious policy, saying that it is forcing more children into poverty and driving claimants to use food banks in greater numbers.

"The prime minister is not challenging the burning injustices in our society, she's pouring petrol on the crisis. When will she stop inflicting misery on the people of this country," Mr Corbyn said.

It came as speculation swirled around Westminster over a plot to oust Ms May as prime minister from her own backbenchers.

Members of the European Research Group (ERG), an influential group of Tory Eurosceptics, spent nearly an hour war-gaming plans to oust the prime minister over her Brexit blueprint at a meeting on Tuesday night.

However senior figures, including ex-Brexit secretary David Davis and Jacob Rees-Mogg, distanced themselves from reports of plans to oust Ms May from Downing Street.

See below for live updates
Conservative MEPs have given their support to the authoritarian government of Viktor Orban in a crunch vote in the European Parliament.

Almost all of the politicians representing Theresa Mays party voted against a motion to censure the Hungarian leader, which in the end was overwhelmingly passed.

Their support for the right-wing leader  accused of violating press freedoms, undermining judicial independence and waging an antisemitic campaign against a leading Jewish businessman  was attacked by Ms Mays critics in the UK.

Recommended Orban says EU bid to censure his government is plot by liberals

But her spokespeople attempted to distance the prime minister from the move by claiming on Wednesday afternoon that she had not been consulted in advance how her MEPs would vote.

Politicians from across the EU voted by a two-thirds majority 448-197 in favour of starting the Article 7 process  which could ultimately see Hungary stripped of its voting rights at the European Council.

As well as undermining civil rights, the judiciary and attacking Jewish businessman George Soros, Mr Orbans government is subject to allegations of corruption relating to the alleged misspending of EU funds by his friends and family.

Mr Orban himself has described refugees as Muslim invaders and been accused of being deeply Islamophobic.

 200 days until Brexit: The key dates

Ahead of the vote, Tories claimed the process had been politicised and was counterproductive  putting them at odds with the continents mainstream.

Conservative sources in Strasbourg denied the vote had anything to do with Brexit  after they were accused by some opponents of allying with the populist government in a frantic search for allies.

We would like to have a fair Brexit because we love the British and because we cooperated always well Viktor Orban

However, Mr Orban had arrived at the meeting of the European Parliament saying: We would like to have a fair Brexit because we love the British and because we cooperated always well  and you deserve a good deal, a fair deal.

MEPs at the European Parliaments seat in Strasbourg cheered and applauded in celebration after it was announced that the motion had passed.

On Tuesday Mr Orban himself travelled to Strasbourg in a last-ditch attempt to make his case.

Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Show all 14 1 /14 Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Internal divisions in the Conservative Party have exploded into a bitter public row over Boris Johnsons disgusting criticism of Theresa May. Some senior Tories furiously denounced the former foreign secretary after he accused the prime minister of having wrapped a suicide vest around Britain Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Sajid Javid, Home secretary Sajid Javid, the home secretary, rebuked his former cabinet colleague and said: I think there are much better ways to articulate your differences. He told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show that the public wanted politicians to use measured language BBC/PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide But other MPs leapt to Mr Johnsons defence, as dividing lines ahead of a possible leadership contest begin to take shape. The Uxbridge MP has repeatedly criticised Ms Mays Chequers plan and used a newspaper article on Sunday to suggest it amounted to wrapping a suicide vest around the British constitution. His latest salvo at the prime minister prompted immediate condemnation, with one minister publicly vowing to end Mr Johnsons career over the matter PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alan Duncan, Foreign minister Alan Duncan, a foreign minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team for two years, wrote on Twitter: For Boris to say the PMs view is like that of a suicide bomber is too much. This marks one of the most disgusting moments in modern British politics. Im sorry, but this is the political end of Boris Johnson. If it isnt now, I will make sure it is later. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide James Brokenshire, Housing secretary Housing secretary James Brokenshire added his voice to the criticism, calling Mr Johnsons comments wrong He said: I think he is wrong on this...I think the tone that he has used isnt right and I think that we just need to be very focused on actually moving forward with the Chequers plan. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Zac Goldsmith But as Tory hostilities spilled over into open public warfare, Richmond Park MP Zac Goldsmith, an ally of Mr Johnson, hit back at Mr Duncan. He wrote: There are a number of possible motives behind this tweet, but given its author, we can be certain principles arent one of them. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Jacob Rees-Mogg Senior Tory Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg told The Independent he thought Mr Johnsons suicide belt accusation was little more than a characteristically colourful catchphrase. He added: I agree with the sentiment. The criticism of Boriss wording merely serves to highlight his point. It means more people hear of Boriss criticism of Chequers and many will agree with him. Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Nadine Dorries Nadine Dorries, another Brexit supporter, said Mr Johnsons opponents were terrified of his popular appeal, adding: Dont underestimate the vitriol thatll be directed towards Boris today. He delivered the Leave vote, Remainers and wannabe future PMs hate him. If Mr Johnson became leader and prime minister he would deliver a clean and prosperous Brexit, she said Rex Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Andrew Bridgen Andrew Bridgen said Ms May was to blame for her leadership problems. Asked if Mr Johnson had put a bomb under her leadership, Mr Bridgen said: I think that Theresa May did that herself when she put forward the Chequers proposals without consulting widely prior to that. Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Steve Baker, former Brexit minister Steve Baker, the former Brexit minister, warned Ms May the Conservatives faced a "catastrophic split" if she did not jettison her Chequers plan. Mr Baker, who quit the government in July over the scheme, said: When negotiating, the prime minister needs to demonstrate her intent and also her power to deliver. "If we come out of conference with her hoping to get Chequers through on the back of Labour votes, I think the EU negotiators would probably understand that if that were done, the Tory party would suffer the catastrophic split which thus far we have managed to avoid. But he insisted he did not want a change in the Conservative leadership, saying Brexiteers did not want to be in a position of conflict with our own prime minister Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Tom Tugendhat The deep divisions on the Tory benches were laid bare as Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the Commons foreign affairs committee and is a possible leadership rival to Mr Johnson, also hit out at the former foreign secretary. Recalling how he encountered a suicide bomber in Afghanistan during his time in the army, Mr Tugendhat told Mr Johnson to grow up. He said: A suicide bomber murdered many in the courtyard of my office in Helmand. The carnage was disgusting, limbs and flesh hanging from trees and bushes. Brave men who stopped him killing me and others died in horrific pain. Some need to grow up. Comparing the PM to that isnt happy. PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alistair Burt Alistair Burt, another Foreign Office minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team, said: Im stunned at the nature of this attack. There is no justification for such an outrageous, inappropriate and hurtful analogy. If we dont stop his extraordinary use of language over Brexit, our country might never heal. Again, I say, enough. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide It comes amid that Ms Mays former aides drew up a dossier on Mr Johnsons sexual encounters with the aim of undermining his leadership prospects. The document was compiled in 2016, when the Uxbridge and South Ruislip MP was seen as the main rival to Ms May in her bid to enter No 10. Downing Street and Conservative Campaign Headquaters (CCHQ) both denied having leaked the 4,000 word memo after it was circulated around Westminster AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Mr Johnson confirmed that his 25-year marriage to wife Marina had ended AP

He accused liberals, socialists, and forces supporting immigrants and migrants against Hungary and the Hungarian people of being jealous of his partys success and framed the motion as an attack on the Hungarian people, rather than his government.

Speaking before the Wednesday vote, Conservative home affairs spokesman Dan Dalton said: This report crosses a boundary by politicising what should be a purely legal matter.

If the EUs treaties have been breached by any member state, it is for the European Commission to build a legal case against it.

MEPs have no role to play in the process and their involvement leaves any subsequent legal action open to the accusation that it is politically motivated. This report is misguided, counterproductive and sets a dangerous precedent. I hope parliament votes against.

Tory sources in Strasbourg said the vote was not a comment on the situation in Hungary.

In London, Ms Mays officials were apparently unaware of the way the vote had gone when asked about it by The Independent, saying: We werent consulted in advance.

Jeremy Corbyns Labour party reacted with anger however, at the governing partys support for a leader who has become something of a poster-boy for far-right European populism.

The Labour leaders spokesman said: Viktor Orbans government in Hungary has clearly attacked judicial and media independence and denied refugee rights and pandered to antisemitism and islamophobia and it was absolutely right that motion of censure and investigation under the disciplinary process of the European Union was launched, and was voted on just now by the European Parliament.

Its absolutely shocking that the Conservative MEPs voted against that motion.

The Conservatives isolation in Strasbourg was underlined after Sebastian Kurz, the Austrian conservative who is himself in a coalition with the far-right, ordered his MEPs to vote in favour of the sanctions. Manfred Weber, the Bavarian who leads the main conservative group in the Parliament, also said he would back the motion, as did most centre-right delegations from other countries.

Supportive MEPs from across the parliaments political groups cheered and gave a standing ovation when the motion passed during the Wednesday session. The vote followed Commission President Jean-Claude Junckers annual state of the union address.

Article 7 of the Lisbon Treaty, under which the vote was brought, says a member state can be sanctioned if there is a clear risk of a serious breach of the European values all EU members signed up to when they joined. The values, which are spelled out in Article 2 of the same treaty are respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities.

The treaty also enforced a society in which pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity and equality between women and men prevail. The European Council, made up of member state governments, will have to agree with the Parliament before any significant action is taken against Hungary.
A British couple who died in a holiday hotel in Egypt were killed by E coli, according to the authorities.

John and Susan Cooper, who were staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in Hurghada with their daughter and grandchildren, passed away within hours of each other on 21 August.

The Egyptian prosecutor general said they perished as a result of infection from the bacteria.

Recommended High level of E coli found at Egyptian hotel where UK couple died

A week ago, the holiday company, Thomas Cook, revealed a high level of E coli had been found in the food served at the hotel.

The firm said at the time that the independent experts it commissioned did not believe that the results shed any light on the cause of the couples deaths.

Two days after Mr and Ms Cooper died, Thomas Cook announced the evacuation of more than 300 holidaymakers from the hotel because of a raised level of illness among guests.

The company sent in independent investigators to check the safety of food, water and air in the hotel. It said afterwards: The tests on the food and hygiene standards identified a high level of E coli and staphylococcus bacteria.

 Egyptian hotel evacuated after British couple found dead

The investigators were not allowed in the room where the couple died, as it was sealed off by the Egyptian authorities.

Prosecutor Nabil Sadek said forensic tests showed that Mr Cooper suffered acute intestinal dysentery caused by E coli, and Ms Cooper suffered Hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS), likely because of E coli.

He said the couples bodies showed no criminal violence and other tests on air and water at the hotel found nothing unusual.

Thomas Cook is paying compensation package to holidaymakers who reported falling ill during August while staying at the hotel.

A spokesperson for the firm said: Thomas Cook notes the announcement today by the Egyptian prosecutor on the results of the autopsies of John and Susan Cooper following their deaths at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic in Hurghada on 21 August 2018.

We have not yet seen the full report and we will need time for our own experts to review it.

We are deeply saddened by the tragic deaths of John and Susan Cooper. We will continue to offer every support to their daughter Kelly and the rest of their family.
Residents on the US eastern seaboard scrambled to evacuate as government officials warned that Hurricane Florence would deliver a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolinas.

With up to 1.7 million people under mandatory evacuation orders in South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia, Donald Trump urged people to take seriously the threat of what may be the biggest storm to hit the USs East Coast in decades. Get out of its way, he said at the White House. Dont play games with it. Its a big one.

With the potentially deadly conditions of Florence around 500 miles away from land, North Carolina residents who decided to stay at home made last minute preparations by stocking up on dwindling emergency supplies.

Recommended Florence generates 83ft waves on projected path to East Coast chaos

My message is clear: disaster is at the doorstep and is coming in, North Carolina governor Roy Cooper said on Wednesday morning. The waves and the wind this storm may bring is nothing like youve ever seen. Even if youve ridden out storms before, this one is different. Dont bet your life on riding out a monster.

At the headquarters of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) in Washington, officials were asked about a report that revealed the Trump administration had shifted nearly $10m (7.7m) from Fema to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. But Jeff Byard, associate administrator for the Office of Response and Recovery, said they had all the resources required.

He said: This is not going to be a glancing blow. Its going to be a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolina coast.

Less than 24 hours before the first signs of the severe winds were expected, people flocked to hardware and food shops to stock up on supplies they hope will help them and their families survive through the worst of the storm, which has shifting between being a category 3 and 4 storm. It was downgraded to category 2 at 11pm on Wednesday night (local time), but forecasters said it would still bring winds of 110mph and a life-threatening storm surge.

Teacher Melissa Powell managed to get the last generator at Fayetteville Home Depot, where a line of cars had formed in the hope of picking up one of the last few on sale in the event of power loss to the region.

Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Show all 20 1 /20 Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Barmen protect their business from the storm and the opportunists Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Many supplies have run out as Hurricane Florence approaches in Nichols, South Carolina AP Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Hurricane Florence seen from space on September 12 AP Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Students of East Carolina University's Coastal Storms class use anemometers to measure wind speeds at Union Point Park in New Bern, North Carolina AP Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Rescue workers are on the scene in James City, North Carolina Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Sixteen hours before Florence even hits land, the Neuse River bursts its banks and floods New Bern, North Carolina Alamy Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Volunteer rescue workers help three children out of their flooded home in James City, North Carolina Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast A boardwalk is damaged in Atlantic Beach on North Carolina's coast Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Union Point Park in New Bern is closed Reuters Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast A child sits in Conway High School, which is being used as an evacuation centre in South Carolina AFP/Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Locals voice their disapproval of the storm in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Volunteer rescue workers help children from their flooded home in James City Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast A man floats down his street in a metal tub after the Neuse River burst its banks in New Bern, North Carolina Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Electric lines are affected in Wilmington, North Carolina Alamy Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Floods in New Bern, North Carolina as Florence approaches Alamy Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Waves crash over a pier on Atlantic Beach in North Carolina as Hurricane Florence approaches AP Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Hurricane Florence is seen from the International Space Station as it churns in the Atlantic Ocean towards the east coast of the US NASA/Reuters Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast This NOAA/RAMMB satellite image taken on September 10, 2018, shows Hurricane Florence off the US' east coast in the Atantic Ocean AFP/Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast In this NOAA satellite handout image, Hurricane Florence is shown travelling west and gaining strength in the Atlantic Ocean southeast of Bermuda on September 10, 2018 Getty Hurricane Florence hits the US East Coast Firefighters rescue people by boat in New Bern, North Carolina Getty

We got flooded with Hurricane Matthew. It was bad  we watched all the floodwater build. It was scary, said Ms Powell, who is evacuating to Georgia but bought the generator for her husband, who is staying to help the elderly at their church.

As the hurricane barrelled towards the United States this week, governors, mayors, and county leadership in states from South Carolina up to Maryland, began issuing evacuation orders and declaring states of emergency.

More than 1.7 million people have been ordered to evacuate, and broader emergency efforts have included moving prisoners from detention centres considered at risk, and keeping an eye on Superfund sites in the area that could be hit by the storm and spread dangerous chemicals.

Fema has sent officials to embed with state responding offices to ensure that federal efforts to help are coordinated and effective. Mr Trump, after a series of increasingly stern statements on the storm, declared a state of emergency in North Carolina and Virginia, freeing up federal funds to help in the storm preparation efforts.

Hurricane Florence is looking even bigger than anticipated, Mr Trump tweeted on Wednesday. It will be arriving soon. Fema, First Responders and Law Enforcement are supplied and ready. Be safe!

But, in spite of the warnings that flooding could wash through North Carolina, posing dangerous risk to life and property, many seem unconcerned.

 Donald Trump on Hurricane Florence: 'We'll handle it. We're ready'

Basically this is going to be  I just cant describe it, Kevin Lynn, of Fayetteville, said.

Mr Lynn said that Hurricane Matthew felled trees and flooded his community, leading to lost power and long commutes home. This time he hopes he learned the lesson.

You go, OK  this time were prepared. This year we learned from previous hurricanes, Mr Lynn said. Im not worried at all... if its flooded, people need to stay home. Its not worth risking your life.

Sergeant Cisco Ramirez, who is stationed at Fort Bragg, had also picked up a generator on Wednesday and said he has no worries about the coming storm. He, his wife, and his two children have fortified their house with sandbags, and stocked up on essentials.

Ive been through worse Im not worried about it, Mr Ramirez said. Its just a little rain. Maybe an excessive amount.

But for those further towards the coast, the storms impact meant packing up and heading inland. This storm might prove too much to survive if they stay too close to the shores.

Shirley Reber, a retired marriage and family therapist from Wrightsville, North Carolina, heeded the warning from state officials and evacuated her coastal community on Tuesday, and said she made the trip to Fayetteville on back roads with her three cats in tow.

If its a category 2 then Ill stay. 3, its like missiles. 4, its Katrina, she said, referring to the storm that hit New Orleans in 2005 and left more than 1,800 people dead. Its gonna be major, this one is.

She added: Well see what I have to go home to  if anything.
Xavier Cunningham survived being attacked by insects, falling from a tree and landing head-first on a meat skewer that penetrated his skull  all in the same day.

The 10-year-old Missouri resident was playing in his tree-house on Saturday afternoon when a swarm of yellow jacket wasps caused him to fall, landing on the inconveniently placed skewer outside of his home. The bar had effectively went through his entire head, with several inches still sticking out of his face, when his mother found him screaming.

"Im dying, mom," the little boy reportedly said on his way to the hospital.

Gabrielle Miller, the boy's mother, told the newspaper she "heard screaming, and I went running down the stairs".

He came in and he had this thing just sticking out," she continued.

However, doctors described the injury as a miracle, saying the skewer didn't do any damage his eye, spinal cord, brain or any major blood vessels.

In this Monday, 10 September 2018 photo provided by Shannon Miller, his son Xavier Cunningham, of Harrisonville, Mo., gives a thumbs up while recovering at the University of Kansas Hospital in Kansas City, Kan., after surgery to remove a meat skewer that penetrated his skull from his face to the back of his head. (Associated Press)

A photo of the 10-year-old shows him sitting up in his hospital bed with a grin and a thumbs-up, as doctors expect a nearly complete recovery from the traumatic injury.

"You couldnt draw it up any better, Koji Ebersole, endovascular neurosurgery director at the University of Kansas Hospital, told the Kansas City Star. "It was one in a million for it to pass five or six inches through the front of the face to the back and not have hit these things.

 Missouri soy farmers fear the implications of a trade war with China after Trump announces trade tariffs

"I have not seen anything passed to that depth in a situation that was survivable, let alone one where we think the recovery will be near complete if not complete, the doctor continued, describing the event as "miraculous".

The doctor described the 10-year-old as remarkably resilient and brave after deciding to wait overnight for a medical team to gather Sunday morning, after scans showed there wasnt any active bleeding making surgery an urgent requirement.

Missouri winner usually takes it all Show all 6 1 /6 Missouri winner usually takes it all Missouri winner usually takes it all 64734.bin Leonard Doyle Missouri winner usually takes it all 64735.bin Leonard Doyle Missouri winner usually takes it all 64736.bin Leonard Doyle Missouri winner usually takes it all 64737.bin Leonard Doyle Missouri winner usually takes it all 64738.bin Leonard Doyle Missouri winner usually takes it all 64740.bin Leonard Doyle

It required Xavier being on board with that plan, he said. Because if he was going to get anxious or nervous and start moving around, he could move the device and cause significant injury that he had not yet incurred.

Doctors performed surgery to remove the skewer from the boys skull at a perfectly straight angle, working carefully to ensure the square, sharp edges didn't create potentially severe damage to the surrounding area.
The number of Christian refugees admitted to the US has plummeted under Donald Trump, along with the rates of other persecuted religious minorities attempting to enter the country.

The president repeatedly vowed to defend vulnerable international Christians while on the campaign trail, but his hard-line immigration policies appear to have impacted the group he hoped to protect.

A new report indicated there were nearly 11,000 fewer Christian refugees admitted to the US in the past fiscal year than in 2017. Meanwhile, dozens of Iraqi Christians living in the US have reportedly been detained, as Mr Trumps administration continues to ramp up deportations nationwide.

Religious and immigrant activist groups have condemned the White Houses ongoing immigration crack down and reduction of refugees admitted to the US.

Ironically, these policies, while clearly aimed at Muslim refugees, ensure that Christians and other religious minorities from many of the countries on Trumps list of suspect travel ban nations are also kept out, the Refugees Council USA said in a statement. It suggests that the president has no real interest in religious persecution or the tenets of religious freedom.

Overall, the number of Christian refugees admitted in 2018 plunged from 25,162 the year prior to just 14,289, according to State Department data.

 Donald Trump attacks Angela Merkel for giving sanctuary to refugees

However, the administration has continued its rhetoric towards defending Christian refugees, with Mike Pence saying the US was ready to stand with those persecuted in the middle east during a rally last year.

The reality is, across the wider world, the Christian faith is under siege, the vice president said. And nowhere is this onslaught against our faith more evident than in the very ancient land where Christianity was born.

The federal government scrapped Obama-era deportation guidelines last year in an effort to speed up the process and rate of undocumented immigrants being removed from the US, despite several clashes in the courts.

Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women Show all 15 1 /15 Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women A Migration Blanket created by women from Somalia, Yemen, Syria, Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and Senegal Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women The piece aims to show the challenges these women face with integration in the UK as well as their ambitions Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women This shows the hardship faced by an African asylum seeker who was imprisoned while being pregnant. She described it as one of the worst experiences of her life and says she doesnt know how she got through it Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women Memories of war still fresh in the mind of a Yemini refugee fleeing conflict  she says its a daily struggle to deal with war memories and bloodshed Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women Salma Zulfiqar worked with the women as part of the project Creative Expressions by Women on the Move Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women This is created by an asylum seeker from Asia who wants to be free of being moved constantly by authorities to different housing. She was moved at least half a dozen times since arriving in the UK, but was recently granted asylum Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women The finished Migration Blanket Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women This was created by a Somali refugee and expresses how she feels Muslim women wearing the hijab are portrayed in society Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women Created by a South Asian asylum seeker who wanted to show that she has been separated from her parents and loved ones, having left her homeland. She said the loss of family and extended family has left her heartbroken Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women A selection of the pieces created Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women Journalist, author and anti-racism campaigner, Yasmin Alibhai-Brown addressed the women during a creative session and inspired their artwork by sharing her personal stories of integration Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women This creation shows the threat of being moved constantly when living in a temporary house as an asylum seeker Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women This piece represents the cultural image for theatre and shows the cultural divide for many migrant and refugee women in Birmingham Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women Many of the women taking part in the project have had tragic journeys and have recreated them on canvas Ashley Carr Migration Blanket: struggles, hopes and dreams of refugee women Shows the journey of a Yemeni refugee fleeing conflict in her homeland Ashley Carr

In 2017, the American Civil Liberties Union won an emergency injunction for hundreds of Iraqis  many of whom were Christian and had been living in the country for years  who were subject to a scheduled mass deportation. Those Iraqis were then provided the opportunity to have their separate cases heard by a judge, which would not have happened without the courts injunction.

The administration was also forced to remove language about prioritising religious minorities from an executive order restricting travel from several Muslim-majority nations.

Still, the White House has defended its immigration policies, with an administration spokesperson telling NBC News, The administration has made helping persecuted religious minorities in the Middle East a top priority.

The White House did not respond to requests for comment.
A US senator has released internal government documents showing the Trump administration transferred millions of dollars from its disaster relief agency to fund increased immigration enforcement.

The documents, released by senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, show the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) took approximately $9.8m (7.5m) from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) to fund more transportation and removal efforts, as well as more detention beds, for suspected undocumented immigrants.

The release of the documents comes after the administrations much-criticised decision to separate immigrant children from their families when they were caught crossing the border between checkpoints. It also comes as several US states are bracing for what could be one of the worst hurricanes in decades  a crisis that will primarily fall to Fema to tackle.

Mr Merkley called the funding transfer a scandal in a statement.

It wasnt enough to rip thousands of children out of the arms of their parents  the administration chose to partly pay for this horrific programme by taking away from the ability to respond to damage from this years upcoming and potentially devastating hurricane season, he said.

Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy Show all 8 1 /8 Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy Mishawaka, Indiana AP Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy Washington DC AFP/Getty Images Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy New York Mayor Bill De Blasio speaks in Tornillo, Texas alongside the many other US mayors who have called for detained immigrant children to be reunited with their families AP Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy Albuquerque Mayor Tim Kelle leaves a teddy bear as a gift for detained immigrant children in Tornillo, Texas AP Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti leave sandals as gifts for detained immigrant children in Tornillo, Texas AP Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy San Diego, California EPA Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy US embassy, Mexico City AFP/Getty Images Families belong together protests over Trump immigration policy San Diego, California EPA

The funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) came primarily from Femas training, travel, and public engagement budget, according to the documents.

DHS spokesman Tyler Houlton said that no disaster relief funding had been transferred from Fema to ICE, and that the money in question could not have been used for hurricane response due to appropriation limitations.

This is a sorry attempt to push a false agenda at a time when the administration is focused on assisting millions on the East Coast facing a catastrophic disaster, he wrote on Twitter.

 Donald Trump on Hurricane Florence: 'We'll handle it. We're ready'

The documents, obtained by CNN, show the transfer made up less than 1 per cent of Femas total $1.03bn budget. Nine other agencies saw similar proportions of their budget taken this year to fund ICEs need for increased transportation and removal activities and detention beds.

Without the transfers and reprogramming identified in this notification, ICE will not be able to fulfil its adult detention requirements in FY 2018, the documents state, adding that insufficient funding could require the agency to release any new detainees.

ICE will not be able to deport those who have violated immigration laws, the documents continue. ICE could also be forced to reduce its current interior enforcement operations, curtailing criminal alien and fugitive arrests, which would pose a significant risk to public safety and national security by permitting known offenders to remain at large.

The number of ICE arrests increased more than 40 per cent during Mr Trumps first year in office, according to agency records. The increase was driven largely by a nearly 200 per cent increase in the number of immigrants without a criminal record arrested by the agency.

At the same time, the White House released a budget proposing a 9 per cent cut for disaster-relief programme funding. Congress rejected a plan to cut hundreds of millions of dollars from Femas budget after a devastating hurricane hit Texas last year.
A man held under arrest at a police station in India briefly escaped custody by knocking two officers unconscious with a pick axe.

Police had arrested 25-year-old Vishnu Rajawat and his friend for violating the peace in the Bhind district of Madhya Pradesh on 10 September.

The men were not locked up and police instead let them sit outside the cell without handcuffs.

Recommended India bus crash kills at least 55 people as vehicle plunges off road

Footage shows Mr Rajawat approaching two constables, Umesh Babu and Gajraj Singh, from behind with a pick axe.

The weapon had been left behind by workmen renovating the police station,

Mr Rajawat can be seen using the axe to knock the officers unconscious before escaping from the police station with his friend.

The pair were caught around three hours later.

20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling Show all 20 1 /20 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling Someone celebrates underneath a rainbow-coloured flag as the Supreme Court in India rules that gay sex is longer a crime. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling People celebrate in the street following the ruling. The Chief Justice of India stated that the outlawing of gay sex had been "irrational, arbitrary and indefensible". AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling Up until now, gay sex in India had been punishable by up to 10 years in prison under Section 377 of the Indian constitution. AFP/Getty 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling The law was originally imposed during the Victorian era while India was still under the rule of the British Empire. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling "Any consensual sexual relationship between two consenting adults - homosexuals, heterosexuals or lesbians - cannot be said to be unconstitutional," said Dipak Misra, Chief Justice of India. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling Members and supporters of the LGBT+ community in India were overjoyed by the decision, with the celebrations awash with rainbow-coloured paraphernalia. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling "They have opened the door to discussing rights," Anjali Gopalan, founder of the Naz Foundation charity that has been fighting against Section 377 told The Independent. "They have apologised to the gay community, and they have said copies of the judgement will be handed to every police station. It is the best judgement we could have hoped for." AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling People were dancing and smiling as the Supreme Court's ruling was announced. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling Bismaya, an activist with the Delhi brand of LGBT+ advocacy group Impulse, told The Independent: "I'm so happy, it's overwhelming. I cried when we heard the news. I'm gay and I'm not afraid of that. It's something I used to say, but now for the first time I have the legal backing." AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling The rain did little to dampen people's spirits as they celebrated the historic ruling in New Delhi. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling A woman exclaims with joy as she holds hands with others on the day of the ruling. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling Members of the LGBT+ community in India hold a placard reading "Love is genderless" while standing outside the Supreme Court in New Delhi. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling The celebrations in India were bright, colourful and full of happiness. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling Bismaya, activist for LGBT+ advocacy group Impulse, said: "It's great for me but it's also a great day for the whole of India. Acceptance in wider society will take time, because we cannot expect change overnight. It has been a battle for two decades for this judgement. If now we get full acceptance in a couple of years, that would be great." AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling Members and supporters of the LGBT+ community in member celebrate the landmark ruling in Siliguri with a cake and confetti. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling People join in the jubilant festivities in Kolkata. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling A woman cries with happiness in Chennai as the ruling made by the Supreme Court in India is announced. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling The celebrations in Kolkata were full of happiness and energy. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling A group of people stand in heavy rainfall in New Delhi as they celebrate the outlawing of the outdated ban on gay sex in India. AFP/Getty Images 20 best pictures of India celebrations following gay sex court ruling The movement to reconsider Section 377 started in 2001 with a legal challenge made to the Delhi High Court from the Naz Foundation. AFP/Getty Images

"The accused attacked the two constables using a tool lying there for some construction work," Rudolf Alvarez, the superintendent of police, said.

Umesh Babu, who is seriously injured, has been referred to a Delhi hospital for better treatment. Gajraj has been admitted in a hospital in Gwalior."

Mr Rajawat will now face fresh charges of attempted murder and causing hurt, officials said.

Agencies contributed to this report
Officials in Vietnam's capital are urging residents to avoid eating dog meat, as part of a move to eradicate rabies.

Hanoi's vice mayor Nguyen Van Suu also said that slaughtering dogs and cats for their meat was disturbing to foreigners and would "negatively impact the image of a civilized and modern capital."

His message was published on the city's website.

Suu also instructed local governments to raise awareness of the risk of rabies when consuming dog and cat meat.

His move is part of an effort to stamp out rabies in Vietnam by 2021. The move is a contentious one as many Vietnamese believe that eating dog meat increases stamina and the dish is thought of as a delicacy.

There are 493,000 dogs and cats in Hanoi, of which 10% are raised for commercial purposes, including for their meat.

"People eat dog meat and there's no problem," said Nguyen Thi Minh, the owner of a dog meat restaurant in Hanoi.

"I serve customers from South Korea, the United States and other countries."

She added that her restaurant cooked dog meat properly so there was no risk of rabies.

Associated Press contributed to this report.
An armed British man has been killed by Spanish police officers in the Costa del Sol after he began shooting at them, officials said.

Sean Hercules was initially seen fleeing the scene of a car accident with a weapon. Witnesses said Mr Hercules had left the site of the crash, near Puerto Banus, on Monday morning.

Police then traced him to a hotel in the resort town of Estepona near Malaga.

Officers confronted Mr Hercules and he opened fire on them, police said.

A shoot-out followed and the 39-year-old, originally from Leeds, was killed, according to Spanish national police.

Two firearms and four cartridges were found with his body.

The police statement said Mr Hercules had a history of drug trafficking and weapons possession.

He was a convicted robber who shot a man with a double-barrelled shotgun in Leeds city centre in 2005, weeks after being released early from prison, according to the Yorkshire Post.

The attack, which was compared to the "Wild West" by the presiding judge, left the victim with more than 250 gunshot pellets in his body, the report added.

A judicial investigation has been ordered into the shooting, Spanish police said.

"Our staff are in contact with the family of a British man following his death in Spain and have offered them support and advice on bereavement abroad," a spokesperson from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said.

Agencies contributed to this report
Forces loyal to president Bashar al-Assad fired banned chemical weapons at Syrian rebel enclaves at least three times this year, bringing the total number of such incidents to more than 30 confirmed by United Nations investigators since the start of the seven-year conflict, according to a new report.

In one incident, government helicopters fired two barrel bombs on a district of Saraqeb in February, a town in the rebel-controlled province of Idlib, which is now in the midst of a fresh government offensive. The munitions gave off a strange smell, said the report of the independent commission convened by the the UNs Human Rights Council to probe human rights violations and deprivations suffered in the Syrian war.

Victims described symptoms consistent with the use of chlorine, including shortness of breath, a burning throat, coughing, dilated pupils and chest pain, and also recalled a smell similar to household detergents, said the report.

The findings in the 24-page report cover January to July of 2018. The conclusions are based on 402 interviews, as well as satellite imagery, photographs, videos, and medical records, along with consultations with aid organisations and government officials.

The findings of chemical weapons use come as Syrian government forces, allied Iranian-backed militias, and Russian pilots and advisers prepare an all-out offensive against Syrias last major rebel enclave in the Idlib province.

The Commission of Inquiry demands that all parties to the conflict and those states who support them do everything in their power to prevent a massacre in Idlib, the war crimes investigators said in a statement read out by panel chairman Paulo Pinheiro to a news conference.

 Airstrikes in in Idlib, northwestern Syria

The report comes at a diplomatically sensitive time. The US, France, and other countries have warned Syria and its backers not to use chemical weapons in the Idlib offensive. The Kremlin has repeatedly warned that the Syrian rebels are preparing to attack themselves with chemical weapons in order to trigger airstrikes by the west. Citing unnamed residents, Russias ministry of defence claimed that film crews from Middle East television channels had arrived to film staged scenes of people suffering from chemical weapons attacks.

But the UN report says at least two of incidents it documented in Syria follow a pattern previously documented by the commission concerning the use of chemical weapons by government forces and consistently observed since April 2014.

On 22 January and 1 February chlorine loaded onto rockets struck the eastern Ghouta district on the eastern outskirts of Damascus. UN investigators said the missiles used in those attacks have been used only by government forces or allied militias.

Specifically, the munitions documented were built around industrially produced Iranian artillery rockets known to have been supplied to forces commanded by the government of the Syrian Arab Republic, said the report.

Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive Show all 13 1 /13 Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive A Syrian protester waves a flag of the opposition as during a protest against the regime and its ally Russia, in the rebel-held town of Maaret al-Numan in the north of Idlib province AFP/Getty Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive Syrian rebel fighters from the recently-formed "National Liberation Front" stand guard over a trench as rebels prepare defensive positions in anticipation for an upcoming government forces offensive AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive Syrian rebel fighters pile-up sandbags AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive A Syrian rebel fighter looks through an embrasure in a make-shift bunker AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive Syrian rebel fighters walk through a trench AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive A Syrian protester waves a flag of the opposition AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive A Syrian rebel fighter stands guard over a trench AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive AFP/Getty Images Fears for 3m people in rebel-held Idlib ahead of regime offensive AFP/Getty Images

Despite claims by some western officials that the war in Syria in winding down, the report described a particularly ferocious stretch of fighting this year in which one million people were displaced. The report says that 5.5 million Syrians have fled the country, and 6.5 million displaced inside the country.

It is completely inexcusable that no party to this conflict adhered to their obligations towards civilians displaced by their military operations, Mr Pinheiro, the Brazilian jurist who chairs the investigative commission, said.

The report also directed criticism at Turkey, which launched military operations against the Kurdish-controlled Afrin enclave, for inflicting civilian casualties, displacing thousands, and unleashing unruly allied militias on people in the countrys northwest Afrin district. The commission accused anti-Assad rebels, including some that are extremists, of abuses within their areas of control and indiscriminate attacks on civilians in loyalist enclaves.

But the report reserved the bulk of its criticism and attention on the regime, which it bluntly accused of violations of international law.

The commission finds that pro-government forces committed the war crimes of deliberately attacking protected objects, intentionally attacking medical personnel and using prohibited weapons, the report said. On four occasions, pro-government forces did not direct attacks at a specific military objective, which amounted to the war crime of launching indiscriminate attacks in civilian areas.
Finland celebrated 100 years of independence from Russia in 2017, but its only recently that its capital has begun to carve out an identity as a weekend destination to rival other top European cities. Come for the eclectic architecture  from the sparkling white Lutheran cathedral to the icy marble of Finlandia Hall  and stay for late nights at the sauna and the citys thriving club scene, where Finns gather to drink and chat long after the sun has set over the Baltic Sea.

What to do

Heat up in the sauna

No trip to Finland is complete without a visit to a sauna. There are plenty to choose from  80 per cent of Finns are said to have a sauna in their homes but few are like the state-of-the-art ones at Loyly, where sleek lines and sustainable wood combine to create the illusion that the building blends seamlessly into the coastline. Two hours costs 19, which includes a towel, seat cover and soap for the shower  there is no charge for the customary cold dip in the ocean. Many chose to stay on after the sauna, for an Aperol Spritz with ocean views.

Loyly sauna blends into the landscape (Getty Images)

Next to the market square, Allas is a family-friendly sauna with three open air pools  one in the sea, and two heated options. Entry costs 14 for a wristband that doubles as a locker key, but bring your own towel.

Soak up the architecture

More than 30 architectural styles crowd Helsinkis city streets, which are made for walking. Spot gargoyles spying on passersby from ornate, neoclassical buildings; then head to Toolonlahti Bay to gaze at Finlandia Hall, a concert hall designed by masterful Finnish architect Alvar Aalto. The Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art is unusually sleek in comparison  it was designed by a foreigner, the American architect Steven Holl in the 90s. A segway tour (75 for 90 minutes) covers the main sites if youre pressed for time.

Take in the city's architecture, such as Finlandia Hall (Getty Images)

Island hopping

The archipelago of Helsinki consists of around 330 islands, including Pihlajasaari, famous for its sandy beaches; and beautiful Lonna, once a base for storing mines and now home to an a magnificent restaurant of the same name, specialising in Finnish and seasonal fare. Boats leave regularly from the market square. The JT-Line Island Hopping route allows you to spend a whole day travelling between Lonna, Suomenlinna and Vallisaari. The latter is a good spot for a hike and a pleasant picnic.

Where to stay

Hotel F6, a central, boutique-style hotel, is just around the corner from the market square, with stalls selling fresh berries and fried fish. Yet, it feels pleasantly set apart thanks to a central courtyard reminiscent of a Moroccan riad, with seating areas and blankets for cooler evenings. Doubles from 250, including a delicious Finnish breakfast of rye breads, smoked fish and boiled eggs.

Suomenlinna Maritime fortress is home to a great-value hostel (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A 15-minute ferry from Helsinki takes you to Suomenlinna, an island hostel in a fortress that is also a Unesco World Heritage Site. The hostel itself is just a short stroll from the beach, in a former Russian elementary school from the 1900s, offering dorm beds from 24 and private rooms from 65. Breakfast is provided for an extra 7.90.

Where to eat

Finland has a reputation for being expensive, and while the city now offers a plethora of fine dining options, sometimes its handy to know where to get the best cheap bites. Fafas is that place  a chic falafel bar serving stuffed pitta breads from 8.90 at multiple locations around the city.

Helsinki has five Michelin-starred restaurants including Gron, which adapts traditional Scandinavian dishes, jazzing them up with plant-based innovations. The chefs menu costs 49 for four courses and showcases local fruits and vegetables, including wild mushrooms, nettles, flowers and dried berries.

Gron is one of the city's five Michelin-starred restaurants (Gron)

Put a hangover to bed with another pint and the all-you-can-eat brunch at Fat Lizard (36 excluding drinks). This newly opened restaurant is steps from the Aalto-yliopisto stop on the metro and gives a foodie base to the Fat Lizard breweries, whose ales are on tap alongside other Finnish craft beers behind the bar. Brunch, while not cheap, is excellent quality and runs the gamut from pizza, ribs and salmon to piles of salads, plus plenty of cream-based desserts.

Where to drink

Finns are regularly named the biggest coffee drinkers in the world, but it's only recently that the quality coffee scene has exploded here. Good Life, based in up-and-coming Kallio, serves coffees mostly by three Finnish roasters: Kaffa Roastery, Turun Kahvipaahtimo and Helsinki Coffee Roastery. They also serve eggs, if you can bag a table in the cosy interior.

Finns love to get their caffeine fix from The Good Life (The Good Life)

Late night spot Kaiku is a club with two different rooms, typically catering for fans of hip hop and techno in the same place. The 400-capacity venue in an old matchstick factory retains its industrial character, leaving a wide open space for dancing in the main room and a massive terrace for cooling off with a Long Drink, a can of fizzy gin and grapefruit that is popular with locals.

Where to shop

Helsinki Design District is home to more than 200 boutiques and ateliers catering for fans of the functional Scandinavian aesthetic, from the pleasingly minimal homewares at Lokal, to the muted colours and fine tailoring of Samuji. Pick up a Design District Helsinki map to find the shops and cafes spread across Kaartinkaupunki, Kamppi, Punavuori and Ullanlinna. Look out for open studios where you can meet the artists in their own workrooms, which typically double as stores.

Made famous when Jackie O wore it for the 1960 presidential campaign, Marimekko remains Finlands most famous export. Marimekkos designers favour bright colours and flower patterns to keep the wearer cheerful through the long Finnish winters. Spot the branded totes worn by Finns as you travel the city and try on the iconic poppy dress at one of the many stores.

Amox Rex is Helsinki's futuristic new gallery space (Amox Rex)

Architectural highlight

Contemporary art gallery Amox Rex opened its doors to the public after a full renovation in August 2018. Inside it is all sleek curves and sans serif fonts, with underground galleries lit by circular portals to the sky.

Nuts and bolts

What currency do I need?

Euros.

What language do they speak?

Finnish.

Should I tip?

Tipping is not expected.

Whats the time difference?

GMT+2.

Whats the average flight time from the UK?

Two hours and 50 minutes. A handful of airlines fly direct to Helsinki from the UK, including Norwegian, Finnair and British Airways.

Public transport

Helsinki has one metro line and a comprehensive system of buses and trams. One travel card can be used across all three; buy from the blue machines and tap in when you board (single trip 2.90, day pass 11).

Best view

Take a winding spiral staircase up from the 12th floor of the Sokos Torni Hotel to find the Ateljee Bar, where you can drink in views of the city on all sides while sipping cocktails.

Insider tip

Warm up from the inside on a cold Finnish day with the traditional seafood soup at Soppakeittio, a soup restaurant in the Old Market Hall, where an enormous serving plus unlimited bread costs around 10.
Ryanair has cancelled 150 flights to and from Germany today, due to a pilot and cabin crew walk-out.

The budget carrier, Europes largest, has 400 scheduled flights to and from German destinations today. Ryanair flies to 16 destinations in Germany, including the major cities of Hamburg, Frankfurt and Berlin.

Earlier this week, German pilots union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) called on all Ryanair pilots working at German airports to walk out from Wednesday 12 September at 2.01am BST to Thursday 13 September 1.59am BST.

Separately, the German cabin crew union Vereinte Dienstleistungsgewerkschaft (ver.di) called for a one-day strike for all cabin crew working on Ryanair flights.

Ryanair said that all affected passengers have been contacted by email and text message, and have been offered a refund or a free move to another flight. Passengers who have not been contacted should travel to the airport for their flight as scheduled.

In a statement, Ryanair labelled the German strike a surprise and unnecessary.

Both the pilots' union VC and cabin crew union ver.di are pushing for better pay and working conditions.

In an interview published this morning in Airliners.de, VC vice president Markus Wahl said that further strikes are possible if a deal cannot be reached.

Ryanair passengers have suffered months of misery thanks to ongoing strike action. In August, 450 flights were cancelled in a one day strike  affecting an estimated 75,000 passengers  when pilots in Germany, Belgium, Ireland and Sweden staged coordinated walkouts. It was the worst day for strike action in Ryanairs history.

At the end of August, Ryanair pilots in Ireland settled a dispute over seniority issues and base transfers throughout the summer. Earlier this summer, they staged five one-day strikes, resulting in dozens of flight cancellations between Ryanairs home base, Dublin, and UK airports.
At the third meeting in 24 hours of Jacob Rees-Moggs European Research Group, the man himself was incredibly keen to stress that the European Research Group is a research group. So keen, in fact, that he said these exact words four times, which may be sufficient repetition for alternative conclusions to be drawn as to whether European research is in fact the principal interest of the European Research Group.

There are some people out there, you see, who think that the European Research Group is mainly just a bloc of hard Brexit MPs whose principal interest is in holding the prime minister ransom to get the hardest Brexit possible. These people think that MPs like Nadine Dorries or Andrea Jenkyns or Andrew Bridgen may not, in fact, be there just for the research.

I can offer only anecdotal evidence by way of context, but not so long ago, I attended a talk by representatives of the National Farmers Union. It did not begin with anyone feeling the need to make clear, several times over, that the National Farmers Union is a union for farmers. I also dimly recall an incident in my late teens, when a friend showed me a training manual from his first shift at PC World. At no point, to the best of my knowledge, was he expected to explain to shoppers that they had just entered a world of PCs.

There are some mitigating circumstances however. What hadnt helped Mr Rees-Moggs cause was that details of one of these three meetings, the one that had happened in private, late on Tuesday night, had been leaked. And it turned out that the subject members of Jacob Rees-Moggs European Research Group had been researching was the most effective way to get rid of the UK prime minister, which, being a purely domestic matter, should naturally be beyond the scope of a European Research Group.

Indeed, because How to Sack the Prime Minister is not a question of European Research, the groups organiser, Steve Baker had been well within his rights, on Tuesday lunchtime, to angrily tell a journalist that he doesnt care who the prime minister is, he cares about the substance of the issue, and the members of the European Research Group, including David Davis, Boris Johnson, Iain Duncan Smith, Bill Cash and others, were well within their rights to applaud with great passion. (What also hadnt helped Mr Bakers cause at the time was that the substance of the issue was, and I do mean this, the most laughable piece of research in all the political history of this or any nation, but well come on to that again shortly).

That, a short few hours later, in a room with no journalists or cameras, it turned out that the European Research Group did in fact care who the prime minister was, and to the extent that they were actually gaming out the various scenarios in which the prime minister could be changed for a different one, is not something you should read too much into.

Which is not to say you cant read more into it than you can read into the research of the European Research Group, though it is improving. Tuesdays research, on how the catastrophe of a no-deal Brexit could first be re-badged as a World Trade Brexit and then claimed to be worth 1.1trn to the UK economy was rejected within seconds by anyone not very obviously insane. Wednesdays research, on how to solve the Northern Ireland border issue was less far fetched, and only mildly undermined by the fact their proposals have already been rejected by both the government and the European Union.

Theyd learnt their lesson, in a way. Theyd been made to look stupid on Tuesday, with research that was very obviously untrue, which was not a charge that could be levelled at Wednesdays research.

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

In fact, Owen Paterson, the former secretary of state for Northern Ireland, said in his short few words, Theres nothing new in here.

Which there wasnt. As far as the European Research Group is concerned, the way to solve the Irish Border issue is to go back to Brussels and keep asking them to say yes to something theyve already rejected. As this went on, Davis nodded sagely. Hed been doing this for almost two full years before quitting the government over their frankly short-sighted refusal to carry on doing the same.

Still, Paterson was on a roll. Traditionally, on such complex subjects as trade and customs, Patersons job is to pop up on the Today Programme and tell CEOs of multinational car manufacturers how they should be running their businesses. To tell them all of the wondrous opportunities he has created for them that, mystifyingly, they do not want.

This time it was Guinnesss turn to reap the benefits of the great Paterson wisdom on how Brexit is just one big opportunity they never asked for. Guinness has large breweries on both sides of the border. For some reason, the company is yet to request Mr Paterson take any role in organising anything in them.

At the end, the pesky media were still more interested in the research the European Research Group has been doing in private, not public. You know, the non-European stuff. Today is about the Irish issue, Mr Rees-Mogg demanded, by way of introduction to the sixth time he would say, The European Research Group is a research group.

The conclusions of its private research are obvious for all to see, by the way. The European Research Group just doesnt have enough researchers to force the wider party to research itself a new leader. Theresa May might not have seen this research itself, but you can be sure shes got the gist of it.
Theresa May faces a leadership challenge within days, according to excitable but anonymous Conservative MPs after Tuesday nights meeting of about 50 hard Brexiteers. The MPs were in open revolt against the prime minister and, with Boris Johnson prowling the Palace of Westminster on Tuesday, the atmosphere seemed combustible.

But wait a moment. According to Robert Pestons report, the dissident MPs in the European Research Group, led by Jacob Rees-Mogg and Steve Baker, had a really, really detailed discussion of the leadership election rules on Tuesday night. In which case they ought to know that launching a challenge to May is the last thing they should do.

Journalists have been told that 35 letters have now been submitted to Sir Graham Brady, the chair of the backbench 1922 Committee. The rules require Sir Graham to hold a vote of confidence in the party leader if he receives 48 letters from Tory MPs (15 per cent of the total).

So if Sir Graham already has 35 letters  and because he wouldnt disclose that information until the figure hits the magic 48 anyone is free to make up any number they like  then he would be bound to make an announcement when he received 13 more.

Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Show all 14 1 /14 Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Internal divisions in the Conservative Party have exploded into a bitter public row over Boris Johnsons disgusting criticism of Theresa May. Some senior Tories furiously denounced the former foreign secretary after he accused the prime minister of having wrapped a suicide vest around Britain Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Sajid Javid, Home secretary Sajid Javid, the home secretary, rebuked his former cabinet colleague and said: I think there are much better ways to articulate your differences. He told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show that the public wanted politicians to use measured language BBC/PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide But other MPs leapt to Mr Johnsons defence, as dividing lines ahead of a possible leadership contest begin to take shape. The Uxbridge MP has repeatedly criticised Ms Mays Chequers plan and used a newspaper article on Sunday to suggest it amounted to wrapping a suicide vest around the British constitution. His latest salvo at the prime minister prompted immediate condemnation, with one minister publicly vowing to end Mr Johnsons career over the matter PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alan Duncan, Foreign minister Alan Duncan, a foreign minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team for two years, wrote on Twitter: For Boris to say the PMs view is like that of a suicide bomber is too much. This marks one of the most disgusting moments in modern British politics. Im sorry, but this is the political end of Boris Johnson. If it isnt now, I will make sure it is later. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide James Brokenshire, Housing secretary Housing secretary James Brokenshire added his voice to the criticism, calling Mr Johnsons comments wrong He said: I think he is wrong on this...I think the tone that he has used isnt right and I think that we just need to be very focused on actually moving forward with the Chequers plan. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Zac Goldsmith But as Tory hostilities spilled over into open public warfare, Richmond Park MP Zac Goldsmith, an ally of Mr Johnson, hit back at Mr Duncan. He wrote: There are a number of possible motives behind this tweet, but given its author, we can be certain principles arent one of them. Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Jacob Rees-Mogg Senior Tory Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg told The Independent he thought Mr Johnsons suicide belt accusation was little more than a characteristically colourful catchphrase. He added: I agree with the sentiment. The criticism of Boriss wording merely serves to highlight his point. It means more people hear of Boriss criticism of Chequers and many will agree with him. Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Nadine Dorries Nadine Dorries, another Brexit supporter, said Mr Johnsons opponents were terrified of his popular appeal, adding: Dont underestimate the vitriol thatll be directed towards Boris today. He delivered the Leave vote, Remainers and wannabe future PMs hate him. If Mr Johnson became leader and prime minister he would deliver a clean and prosperous Brexit, she said Rex Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Andrew Bridgen Andrew Bridgen said Ms May was to blame for her leadership problems. Asked if Mr Johnson had put a bomb under her leadership, Mr Bridgen said: I think that Theresa May did that herself when she put forward the Chequers proposals without consulting widely prior to that. Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Steve Baker, former Brexit minister Steve Baker, the former Brexit minister, warned Ms May the Conservatives faced a "catastrophic split" if she did not jettison her Chequers plan. Mr Baker, who quit the government in July over the scheme, said: When negotiating, the prime minister needs to demonstrate her intent and also her power to deliver. "If we come out of conference with her hoping to get Chequers through on the back of Labour votes, I think the EU negotiators would probably understand that if that were done, the Tory party would suffer the catastrophic split which thus far we have managed to avoid. But he insisted he did not want a change in the Conservative leadership, saying Brexiteers did not want to be in a position of conflict with our own prime minister Reuters Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Tom Tugendhat The deep divisions on the Tory benches were laid bare as Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the Commons foreign affairs committee and is a possible leadership rival to Mr Johnson, also hit out at the former foreign secretary. Recalling how he encountered a suicide bomber in Afghanistan during his time in the army, Mr Tugendhat told Mr Johnson to grow up. He said: A suicide bomber murdered many in the courtyard of my office in Helmand. The carnage was disgusting, limbs and flesh hanging from trees and bushes. Brave men who stopped him killing me and others died in horrific pain. Some need to grow up. Comparing the PM to that isnt happy. PA Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Alistair Burt Alistair Burt, another Foreign Office minister who worked in Mr Johnsons team, said: Im stunned at the nature of this attack. There is no justification for such an outrageous, inappropriate and hurtful analogy. If we dont stop his extraordinary use of language over Brexit, our country might never heal. Again, I say, enough. AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide It comes amid that Ms Mays former aides drew up a dossier on Mr Johnsons sexual encounters with the aim of undermining his leadership prospects. The document was compiled in 2016, when the Uxbridge and South Ruislip MP was seen as the main rival to Ms May in her bid to enter No 10. Downing Street and Conservative Campaign Headquaters (CCHQ) both denied having leaked the 4,000 word memo after it was circulated around Westminster AFP/Getty Boris Johnson 'suicide vest' Brexit jibe causes Tory divide Mr Johnson confirmed that his 25-year marriage to wife Marina had ended AP

Then all Tory MPs would take part in a secret ballot on whether or not they have confidence in May as leader. There are 315 Tory MPs (Charlie Elphicke and Andrew Griffiths are currently suspended) so, to remove her, the hard Brexit bunch would need 158 MPs to vote to do so.

However fevered the micro-climate in Westminster is, that seems starkly implausible. Why would the majority of Tory MPs who voted Remain take the risk of getting Johnson or Rees-Mogg as prime minister?

All the chuck Chequers lot would achieve would be to secure Mays position, because the leadership election rules  that were the subject of the really, really detailed discussion  also say that once a vote of confidence has been triggered, a further vote cannot be held for at least a year.

In any case, the parliamentary timetable is against the rebels. The House of Commons goes into recess on Thursday, and does not return until 9 October. The Tory party rules say nothing about how soon Sir Graham has to announce that he has 48 letters, and if he received them during the recess he would probably wait until MPs reassemble in Westminster before making the announcement.

Reports of Tuesday nights European Rebellion Group meeting sound more like an attempt to destabilise the prime minister, or to wind up some of the waverers in the hard Brexit cause, than a serious leadership challenge. Note that several hard Brexiteers are beginning to express doubts about the ERGs tactics.

John Hayes, a former transport minister, told The Times that he would give the prime minister his reluctant support: If Chequers represents the final offer then through gritted teeth I could wear it. And others accused the ERG of taking a nothing is ever quite enough approach.

It may be that 48 Tory MPs are so annoyed by what they see as the prime ministers sellout of Brexit  a sellout, incidentally, that happened 10 months ago when she agreed the backstop terms for keeping an open border in Ireland  that they behave irrationally. But if they do, they will only strengthen her.
The European Union should scrap some national vetos on tax, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has said.

Mr Juncker was delivering his annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg this morning.

He said that the EU should move to a system of majority voting.

And Juncker also called for the EU to promote the euro as a global currency to challenge the US dollar.

"We must do more to allow our single currency to play its full role on the international scene," Juncker told the European Parliament in Strasbourg as he presented his annual programme.

"It is absurd that Europe pays for 80 percent of its energy import bill  worth 300bn a year  in US dollars when only roughly 2pc of our energy imports come from the United States," he said.

"It is absurd that European companies buy European planes in dollars instead of euro," he added.

Read More

While Norway prices its substantial supplies to the EU in euros, an EU official said, other countries use dollars. Among the most important of these are Gulf states and Russia.

"The euro must become the face and the instrument of a new, more sovereign Europe," Juncker said, as he called for the bloc to become more of a global player and exert more influence internationally with a unified stance.

In his speech, the EU chief also proposed fining Google, Facebook, Twitter and other online platforms if they fail to remove extremist content within one hour.

Brussels gave internet firms three months in March to show they were acting faster to take down radical posts, but EU regulators say too little is being done without legislation forcing them to do so.

If authorities flag it, the European Commission wants content inciting or advocating extremist offences, promoting extremist groups, or showing how to commit such acts to be removed from the web within a hour.

"One hour is the decisive time window the greatest damage takes place," Jean-Claude Juncker said in his annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament.

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Meanwhile, Juncker said that solidarity with Ireland over tough Brexit talks will remain a priority for the EU.

He said the EU including the European Commission and all member states will show loyalty and solidarity with Ireland over the Irish border.

He said Europe will find a solution to avoid hard border in Ireland and defend all elements of the Good Friday Agreement.

But he pointed that it was Brexit, and "not the EU making the border an issue.

Crucially, Mr Juncker  who is in his final year as president of the commission  issued a veiled rejection of the UKs recent Brexit plan, also knowns as the Chequers proposal.

He said someone who leaves the EU, cannot be in the same privileged position as it once was while a fully-fledged member.

You are not in our Single Market and you are certainly not in parts of it said Mr Juncker.

He was referring to the central part of Ms Mays proposal which calls for Britain remaining in the single market for goods alone.

But he said he Britain would remain a close ally of Europe, and urged both the government and EU negotiator Michel Barnier to negotiate a strong trade partnership.

Additional reporting from Reuters
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker delivers a speech during a debate on The State of the European Union at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, September 12, 2018. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has unveiled plans to recruit 10,000 staff to the EU's coastguard and asylum agency to improving border policing and speed up the deportation of illegal immigrants.

The proposals come as EU nations argue over who should take responsibility for people rescued in the Mediterranean Sea trying to seek better lives in Europe.

"External borders must be protected more effectively," Mr Juncker told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg in a state of the European Union address.

He said the EU Commission is proposing a standing corps for the border and coastguard agency numbering 10,000 staff, including guards and migration experts, to be up and running by 2020.

Mr Juncker said the corps should be funded by some 2.2 billion euros in EU money from the bloc's next long-term budget.

But EU nations still have to endorse his plans. Beyond that, the Commission's idea of what the 2021-2027 budget should look like and what its priorities should be are certain to differ from that of member states.

The border and coastguard staff would be able to check ID papers and stamp travel documents, detain people who are crossing the border without authorisation, and help ensure those not eligible are deported.

Read More

Many nations have expressed concern about having their borders policed by staff from other countries, even if they are European partners.

In recent months, Italy's new anti-migrant government has refused to allow some ships carrying rescued people to enter its waters, routinely leaving the boats stranded at sea for days while a short-term solution is found. Austria, France and Malta have argued over who should take charge.

"With every new ship we can't be talking about ad-hoc solutions for the people on board," Mr Juncker said. "We need a lot more. We need more solidarity, and solidarity must be lasting and organised."

EU leaders meet in Salzburg, Austria, next week to thrash out better ways to manage the arrivals, many reaching Italy from lawless Libya.

Mr Juncker's proposals also include a plan to help countries deport people who do not qualify for asylum because they do not face the threat of death or violence in their home countries. Just over one in three people denied international protection are actually sent home.

The border and asylum agencies would help identify those to be returned, obtain travel documents - often a time-consuming business - and prepare the paperwork so countries can send them back.

Mr Juncker noted that one of the jewels in Europe's crown - the passport-free Schengen travel area - is under threat due to barriers and tougher border ID checks being imposed by some countries. He branded such obstacles "an unacceptable backward step in Europe".
A trade deal between the UK and the EU could take up to seven years to negotiate, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has warned.

Mr Varadkar said the Government would hold firm on key issues and bring home the best deal possible as Brexit negotiations reach a crucial phase.

Speaking at a gathering of business people in Co Donegal organised by the local chamber of commerce, which sounded alarm bells at the potential risks posed by Brexit, Mr Varadkar committed to holding firm on key Irish issues, including the Border, the Common Travel Area and protecting the Good Friday Agreement.

"It's going to take many years to negotiate a new trade agreement with the UK and a new security partnership. It took seven years to negotiate it with Canada, for example, so we can't assume that a two-year transition period can be enough time to negotiate that new treaty between the UK and the EU. That's why we have to have the backstop, assuring us that, no matter what happens, we won't see the emergence of a hard Border on our island," he said.

His comments come amid a wave of speculation that the UK will eventually agree to a similar, but enhanced, trade deal as that between the EU and Canada after negotiations are complete. The Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement is the favoured option of Brexiteers.
Another round of Mercosur and EU trade talks begins this week in Uruguay, with trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom on stand-by to attend (she will be in the region at a G20 meeting).

But little progress is expected, particularly after Brazils foreign minister told the Financial Times in an interview that the EUs offer was not generous enough.

Agriculture commissioner Phil Hogan last week hit out at what he called megaphone diplomacy by the Mercosur side, saying it will not help produce the right result.

Mr Hogan said the EU has made a genuine offer to Mercosur on beef, sugar and ethanol, but has yet to get a proper response. The EU is looking for increased access to South American auto, ship and dairy markets, and protections for specialty produce such as feta and Prosecco.

If we cannot achieve a good and balanced outcome in respect of all these issues, there cannot be a deal that will get the support of our Member States, our farmers and our citizens, Mr Hogan said in a written statement.

The Mercosur talks, which have been going on for more than 20 years, have been marred by stops and starts. Several EU countries, particularly France and Ireland, object to what they see as an over-generous offer on beef. The EU insists any new import quota will not go beyond 99,000 tonnes.

IFA President Joe Healy said the time has come for EU Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan put his foot down and tell Trade Commissioner Malmstrom enough is enough.

Joe Healy said, With major uncertainty over Brexit and only contempt being shown by Brazil in their failure to meet EU standards on imports, the time has come for Commission Hogan to shout stop on Mercosur.

Joe Healy said EU Commission President Jean Claude Juncker and Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan must deliver on their commitment to put Ireland first in Brexit and ensure that there is no Mercosur deal on beef while Brexit remains unsorted.

The IFA President said the Mercosur negotiations lack credibility and are taking place against a background where there are major political scandals and unrest in Brazil and economic meltdown in Argentina.

He said these are the big two Mercosur member states the EU are relying on to pull off a deal. Elections are set to take place in Brazil in October against a background of massive political corruption, deep economic recession and rising unrest.

The IFA President said the economic collapse in Argentina has seen the currency devalue in the last 12 months from 20.25 ARS to the Euro down to 44.98 ARS last week.

"This is a devaluation of 125pc and shows how ludicrous it would be for the EU to agree to any type of a trade deal with such an unstable economy.

"He said with this type of devaluation Argentina could flood the EU with cheap substandard beef and other agricultural products. In addition he said the Brazilian real (BRL) has devalued by 33pc from 3.68 to 4.90 against the uro in the last year and the Uruguayan Peso (UYU) has devalued by 12pc from 33.80 to 37.80 to the uro," he said.

Win tickets to the 2018 National Ploughing Championships!

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FarmIreland.ie is giving 5 readers the chance to win a pair of tickets to this year's National Ploughing Championships in Sereggan, Tullamore, Co.Offaly.

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Farmers are today protesting the forced sale of lands in Co Meath by vulture fund Promontoria, which it claims is trying to force a family to sell some of their land to settle debts.

The land is due to be sold by online auction in the coming weeks.

Irish Farmers Association (IFA) Farm Business Chairman Martin Stapleton said IFA would oppose the sale as it says the family is willing to implement a credible solution.

Martin Stapleton said he would be asking the farming community to stand together with the McCann family and stand back from any forced sale.

Our debt support team has looked at this case in detail, we have sought professional advice and we are firmly of the view that this farmer has put a very credible proposal to make structured repayments.

Martin Stapleton said farm families should be given time to repay their debts over a longer term to keep the farm intact and IFA is standing behind farmers who are committed to implementing a credible solution.

Expand Close Brendan Stafford, Gerry McCann, Meath IFA Chairman John Curran, Michael McCann, David Farrell & Farm Business Chairman Martin Stapleton putting up a sign on the McCann farm in Meath, opposing the forced sale of the farm which is due to take place in the coming week. Picture: Finbarr O'Rourke / Facebook

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Whatsapp Brendan Stafford, Gerry McCann, Meath IFA Chairman John Curran, Michael McCann, David Farrell & Farm Business Chairman Martin Stapleton putting up a sign on the McCann farm in Meath, opposing the forced sale of the farm which is due to take place in the coming week. Picture: Finbarr O'Rourke

Vulture funds have no understanding of the family farm and they are focused only on getting their money. It is not acceptable for vulture funds to force a sale of land and cash in debts they have bought from a bank when there is a viable alternative.

Farmer warned he would be jailed

It comes as a High Court Judge in a separate case recently warned a West of Ireland farmer that he will be jailed for a third time for contempt unless he removes his cattle from lands that are up for sale.

Mr Justice Michael Twomey found Mr Eugene Costello that he will be jailed for three weeks due to his ongoing failure to remove cattle from 90 acres of farmland at Coolfree, Taughmaconnell, Ballinasloe, Co Roscommon.

However, the Judge placed a stay on the committal order and adjourned the case to October to allow Mr Costello time to remove the cattle from the lands.

Carlisle Mortgages Ltd brought proceedings against the farmer claiming he was trying to obstruct the sale of the land by placing his cattle on it.

Carlisle wants to sell the lands because Mr Costello has failed to repay monies he borrowed from it in 2004 when Mr Costello was advanced 440,000 by Carlisle.

The land was put up as security, and 91,000 was repaid by Mr Costello.

Carlisle, which obtained a possession order in respect of the property in 2006, claims some 1.4m remains outstanding.

In a long-running battle, Mr Costello has raised issues about the loan and has claimed it was fraudulent, which Carlisle denies.

Win tickets to the 2018 National Ploughing Championships!

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Whatsapp Photo: Gerry Mooney.

FarmIreland.ie is giving 5 readers the chance to win a pair of tickets to this year's National Ploughing Championships in Sereggan, Tullamore, Co.Offaly.

Tickets are valid for any day of the Championships (18th, 19th or 20th September).

To be in with a chance of winning click follow this link
Mondelez owns a large number of brands, such as Oreo, Halls, Toblerone and Ritz

The Irish arm of Mondelez - the international group whose brands include Cadbury and Kraft - has warned that the trading environment here continues to be challenging and that it was hit last year by commodity and foreign exchange headwinds.

Revenue at the Irish division fell to 180.1m last year from 190.1m in 2016, but its operating profit soared to 1.5m from 1.1m a year earlier.

It was helped by a reduction in its administrative expenses, from 17.9m in 2016 to 13.8m last year.

The accounts for Mondelez Ireland show that it had accumulated profits of 18.7m at the end of 2017.

"The market conditions continue to be challenging in all the categories we operate in - confectionery, cheese and grocery," according to the directors in the latest set of accounts for the company.

"In addition, the business had to manage commodity and forex [foreign exchange] headwinds," they added.

"The business looks to drive performance by launching new product innovation, building brand awareness through media campaigns, increasingly using new social media platforms."

The said that they expect Mondelez Ireland to continue to expand its presence in the market.

It was reported yesterday that Mondelez's European division has been stockpiling ingredients and finished goods in case of a hard Brexit.

Mondelez owns a large number of brands, such as Oreo, Halls, Toblerone and Ritz.

While a hard Brexit now looks increasingly unlikely, Mondelez confirmed that it's preparing for the worst-case scenario.

"Like all businesses we're monitoring the political decision-making process and preparing for a number of potential outcomes," said a spokeswoman for the group

Mondelez would prefer a good Brexit deal that would allow free flow of products, Hubert Weber, the president of Mondelez Europe, said in the UK media.

"However, we are also preparing for a hard Brexit and ... we are stocking higher levels of ingredients and finished products," Mr Weber told 'The Times'.

The company has a contingency plan in place as UK is not self-sufficient in terms of food ingredients.

"We stand by Hubert Weber's comments and have nothing further to add at this time," said he Mondelez spokeswoman.

Food industry executives have been warning that the UK could be left short of food if a hard Brexit materialises.

"We at Greencore are not really concerned about tariffs at all, our issue is the logistics and administration of getting fresh food in and out of the UK," Greencore CEO Simon Coveney said last week.

He added: "If you end up with 50-mile tailbacks in Calais and corresponding tailbacks in Dover, it won't really matter whether there is a 15pc or 20pc surcharge on lettuce and fruit and vegetables coming from southern Europe. It will all rot in containers."

Additional reporting: Reuters
The former head of the Department of Finance, Kevin Cardiff, has been appointed as a non-executive director of KBC Bank Ireland, according to a company filing.

Mr Cardiff took up the position on August 3, papers lodged with the Companies Registration Office (CRO) state. The paper work is dated August 31, and was received by the CRO on September 6.

Appointment to such a senior position at an Irish bank requires clearance from the Central Bank under so-called fitness and probity rules.

Kevin Cardiff was a relatively high profile figure during the financial crisis.

He was in key positions at the times of both the bank guarantee and the EU/IMF bailout, as secretary general of the Department of Finance - from 2010 - and before that as second secretary general at the Department and head of its banking unit from 2006.

His subsequent promotion to a senior EU job in 2011 sparked a public controversy after MEPs initially rejected the Irish nomination.

Ironically, having been the most senior official in the Department of Finance when the so-called Troika arrived in 2010, Mr Cardiff is now also chairperson of the Board of Auditors that oversees the Luxembourg-based European Stability Mechanism (ESM), the rescue fund that emerged out of the euro crisis.

He was appointed to the ESM job on nomination by the European Court of Auditors, the EU's independent external auditor.

He'd been named to the Court of Auditors back in 2011, but was initially rejected by a non-binding vote of the European Parliament Budget Control Committee after being questioned on his role in the banking crisis, the bank guarantee and a 3.6bn accounting error that had been uncovered in his Department.

Despite the committee vote, the European Parliament as a whole later approved Mr Cardiff's appointment.

During his stint in Europe, Mr Cardiff returned home to give evidence at both the Banking Inquiry and the so-called Anglo trial in 2014 in relation to his knowledge of the banking crash.

On the night of the bank guarantee - almost exactly 10 years ago - Mr Cardiff was head of the Department of Finance banking division and he was one of a number of key civil servants present when the major decision was taken to issue a blanket guarantee for all of the Irish banks.

In four hours of evidence to the Banking Inquiry in 2015, and in a subsequent book, Mr Cardiff gave evidence that he argued against the blanket guarantee option and pushed for an early nationalisation of Anglo Irish Bank instead - with initial support from the late Brian Lenihan, as Finance Minister.

However, then Taoiseach Brian Cowen vetoed the idea, Mr Cardiff told the Inquiry.
A company owned by comedian Mario Rosenstock has made a settlement of more than 118,000 with the Revenue Commissioners as part of the taxman's latest swoop on defaulters.

The company, called Blue Elf, and which is solely owned by Mr Rosenstock, made the settlement in relation to the under-declaration of PAYE, PRSI and USC taxes on foot of an audit by the Revenue Commissioners.

Mr Rosenstock is not a director of the company, but his wife, Blathnaid, is.

The latest haul by the Revenue Commissioners also includes a 701,000 settlement made by a company called Gaiety Investments, which is controlled by music promoters Denis Desmond and Caroline Downey.

That was the single largest settlement made in the three months to the end of June this year.

His Gaiety Investments group has sold a 50pc stake in music promoter MCD to Live Nation, the global music company.

The total amount secured through settlements by the Revenue Commissioners came to almost 8.9m in the latest quarter.

Of the 66 cases in the period, 29 were for settlement amounts exceeding 100,000.

Those making settlements included medical consultants, company directors, fishermen, landlords, publicans and farmers.

Another company to fall foul of the taxman was Dublin-based Dawson Jewellers, which is based on Dawson Street. The company's directors are Kenneth and Fiona McDonagh, who are also its owners.

The company made a settlement of more than 113,000 with the Revenue Commissioners in relation to the under-declaration of VAT.

The jewellers was the scene of a dramatic attempted armed heist in 2009. Mr McDonagh tackled a raider who had grabbed his wife by the throat and threatened her at gunpoint. During the struggle, he disarmed the gunman and, while defending himself, struck the assailant with the weapon on the head.

The Revenue Commissioners also secured fines totalling almost 495,000 through the courts against people who had committed a tax or duty offence, such as failing to file a tax return or using marked fuel.

They include the 15,000 fine that was levied against independent TD Michael Lowry after he was found guilty during the summer of a tax offence and failing to keep proper books of an account between 2002 and 2007.

His refrigeration company, Garuda, was fined 10,000.

The charges related to a payment of commission of around 372,000 from Finnish company Norpe to Garuda.

Mr Lowry avoided a custodial sentence and was handed the fine at the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin.

The Revenue Commissioners said 17 of the cases in which settlements were made in the quarter were not fully paid as of the end of June. The total outstanding amount totalled 2.6m.

The single largest unpaid amount, 440,000, is owed by a Co Galway company called Vehicle Wholesalers.

The firm is owned by Oliver Walsh and Thomas Walsh. The settlement emerged from a Revenue audit case and is related to the under-declaration of VAT.

"Revenue vigorously pursues collection/enforcement of unpaid settlements," the Revenue Commissioners said yesterday.

"In some cases, collection/recovery of the full unpaid amount will not be possible."

Such instances typically involve a situation where a company has gone into liquidation, for example.
Ryanair's decision to ban media from attending its upcoming annual general meeting "further weakens the company's standing in the eyes of the public", the boss of a leading UK shareholder advisory firm has claimed.

Alan MacDougall is managing director of PIRC (Pensions & Investment Research Consultants), which advises shareholders on how they should vote at annual general meetings of stock market-listed companies.

This advice is based on corporate governance issues related to a range of matters such as director remuneration and the independence of directors.

PIRC advises institutional shareholders and other clients.

Ryanair announced on Monday that it would not permit media to attend its annual general meeting next week, and would not hold a press briefing afterwards.

"We have learnt with great disappointment of the company's decision to exclude the press from the meeting," Mr MacDougall told the Irish Independent. "This further weakens the company's standing in the eyes of the public and its shareholders at a time when it needs all the friends it can get."

PIRC has advised Ryanair shareholders to oppose most of the resolutions to be put before them at the annual general meeting, including the re-election of chief executive Michael O'Leary and chairman David Bonderman. Two other influential shareholder advisory groups, Glass Lewis and ISS, have also advised shareholders not to vote to re-elect Mr Bonderman.

Ryanair has insisted the decision to bar media at the AGM will allow shareholders to discuss "all matters freely".
Newstalk has announced that broadcaster Pat Kenny has signed a new two-year contract with the station.

The move means Kenny (70) will remain with the station until at least late 2020.

The former RTE host presents The Pat Kenny Show from 9am to 12pm, with the most recent JNLR figures revealing the show enjoyed its highest listenership yet at 152,000.

For the past five years, the show has examined the main issues in Ireland and around the world and I am looking forward to providing the same forensic analysis and insight for our listeners in the future.

In Newstalk, I am lucky to have a brilliant, dynamic team behind me and we will strive to continue making fresh and compelling radio, said Pat.

It has been an eventful and exciting five years at Newstalk, which has flown past. The team has put together a show of the highest quality, and their success has been mirrored in great listenership figures.

I look forward to more radio adventures and bringing the Newstalk audience the latest news and insights.

Patricia Monahan, Managing Editor at Newstalk said: Since joining Newstalk, Pat has shown why he is one of Irelands most respected broadcasters.

With a presidential election, the on-going Brexit negotiations and a possible general election all in sight, listeners can look forward to hearing Pats expertise and knowledge in dealing with these issues and more.

Kenny also presented The Pat Kenny Show on TV3, however it was announced at the stations rebranding as Virgin Media One the show is being reduced, with only a handful of debate-style episodes airing each year.
Every once in a while, a television programme comes along that manages to become a water-cooler topic long before it's even begun. Sometimes it's gratuitous violence that starts tongues wagging. Sometimes - all right, one time - it's a publicity photo of some shirtless scything. But in this country, there is one subject guaranteed to get people going like none other: sex, and exactly how much of it others are having.

Steven Mackintosh has noticed. The 51-year-old actor stars in Wanderlust, a new six-part BBC drama that one tabloid has already branded the corporation's "filthiest to date".

In the programme, a co-production with Netflix, the Australian Oscar winner Toni Collette plays Joy, a middle-aged relationship counsellor who desperately tries to revive her sex life with her husband, Alan (played by Mackintosh), after recovering from a life-changing accident. The couple, who have two teenage sons, try everything from lacy lingerie to role play, but nothing reignites the spark. Soon, they're faced with temptation away from home, prompting the series' central question: is monogamy really compatible with the modern world?

It's true, there are a lot of sex scenes. There's also some masturbation. And yes - brace yourself - there's even an orgasm. (This week Collette claimed she is the first woman to have one on BBC One, which isn't strictly true, as viewers of 1993's Lady Chatterley's Lover or even last year's Apple Tree Yard have pointed out.) But Mackintosh hopes we can all get past that.

"Sex, I know," he sighs, when we meet for a quite unsexy afternoon tea in a central London hotel. "It's easy for people to focus on that word and think that's what it's all about, but really the programme is about relationships, love, family and our perceptions of what's to come. But obviously sex is important because sex is a big part of their marriage."

Filming the intimate scenes wasn't uncomfortable in the slightest, he says. Not like they can be. In fact, the sex shown in Wanderlust isn't of the kind we're generally treated to on television - either two young stars in an overly choreographed, long night of passion or two young stars in an uncomfortable power imbalance. It's awkward and error-strewn, all fumbled clasps and miscommunications. It's real, and it's between people over the age of 40.

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"That's what I loved about it. It's not a generic, air-brushed version of sex, it's not tied up in a box and presented to people because that doesn't appeal to me. That would push me away. There's an awkwardness, and often it's the moments in between, the pauses, the physical struggling - that's what makes it so lovely," he says. "It's always in character too. Sometimes intimate scenes take you out of it and you realise you're now just watching the actors, but this really is Alan and Joy."

The questions that Wanderlust raises haven't often been explored in such a frank way on television before. Most notably, it touches on the idea that it's perfectly possible to be in a happy, stable marriage and simultaneously wish for more: that even with the best will in the world, the flame in the bedroom can dwindle.

"Joy loves Alan, and is committed to a fantastic life together, with a great home and great children, but it's about whether we can feel more alive. The day-to-day stuff is all well and good, but she's searching to feel passionate again," Mackintosh says. "Alan is invested in the marriage too, but while he doesn't want to break things up, he's feeling the same things. Intimacy has never been more difficult for them. It's about the journey of rediscovering each other."

Mackintosh knows it may prompt some awkward glances across sofas, but he doesn't necessarily see that as a bad thing. "It could start some conversations, and that will be interesting" he says, arching an eyebrow.

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"We're talking about regular people with regular lives, and that question [about monogamy] is brave to be challenged.

"There's much food for thought, and potential for people to be sitting on the sofa having a conversation in their heads that they can't quite bring themselves to have out loud."

For Mackintosh's part, he "knows where he stands" on the question, and has been happily married for 29 years to the actress Lisa Jacobs, with whom he has two daughters (Martha, 26, and Blythe, 22).

"My wife has seen it all and loved it. Fortunately, she's incredibly insightful, so she was able to see it for what it is, but she said herself that it might create some honest chats," he says. How about the girls? "Oh, my daughters haven't seen it yet, so I don't know how they'll deal with it. I would imagine they'll find certain scenes... challenging to watch, but they'll appreciate the humour."

To some, the issues Wanderlust puts forward can be bracketed under the term 'midlife crisis', but Mackintosh believes they could affect anyone.

"I think that's just a general term for existential angst that can happen to people at different times in life, but midlife is chosen because people might be juggling a lot - dealing with children and older parents with health issues, and reflecting on where they are in all this, and whether they've achieved what they want. And, in reality, that could be any age."

Wanderlust is on BBC One Tuesdays at 9pm.
A Donegal county councillor is said to have paid "a very high price" after being subjected to an 'RTE Investigates' sting in 2015.

Independent councillor John O'Donnell appeared before the Standards in Public Office (Sipo) commission yesterday over alleged breaches of conduct.

He was one of three councillors secretly filmed as part of the undercover investigation when a reporter posed as a representative from a London-based windfarm investment company. Mr O'Donnell was filmed saying he won't require payment for his help, but insists a third-party would need to be involved in the project, adding "I'll get paid through him".

The Letterkenny representative has maintained he had been speaking in his capacity as a businessman and not as a local councillor when the recordings were made.

However, Mr O'Donnell's barrister, Mark O'Connell, said the communication between these two roles was "clearly blurred".

"He did not seek money, he did not accept money. Clearly there was a blurring in the lines between his role as a businessman and as a politician. He's already apologised for that and has paid a very high price for it.

"As a result of this, financial institutions have withdrawn their support for him, he's gone through insolvency and has suffered an ongoing campaign of abuse on social media which has caused him huge distress," he said.

Recordings of conversations between Mr O'Donnell and the undercover researcher were played at the hearing. The commission will deliver its submissions to Mr O'Donnell's legal team by October 5.
A student whose Leaving Cert marks were wrongly totted up by an examiner could lose her chance of a place on a veterinary medicine course, the High Court has heard.

Rebecca Carter (18) is suing the State Examination Commission (SEC), legally challenging its decision not to recheck her results before mid-October, effectively costing her a place at UCD which decides its student allocation by the end of September.

Mr Justice Richard Humphreys was told UCD had agreed not to allocate her potential place until September 30, allowing the court to deal with her judicial review.

Ms Carter, of Ardcolm Drive, Rectory Hall, Castlebridge, Co Wexford, is also suing the Central Applications Office, which processes applications for undergraduate courses, and UCD seeking to restrain it from refusing her a place on the course.

Micheal P O'Higgins SC, who appeared for Ms Carter, told the judge she had repeated her Leaving Certificate exams in May 2018 and received 554 points, six points short of the required number for veterinary medicine in UCD.

"The points required for the course dropped to 555 in the second round offers and she was then only a point short," Mr O'Higgins said. "She was not satisfied that her results accurately reflected her exam performance and took part in a review."

Mr O'Higgins said the review revealed that in Ms Carter's business exam script the examiner had given her 17 plus 19 plus 30 but had then wrongly totted up the marks to 56 instead of 66. Had the error not occurred her final points total would have surpassed what was required for veterinary medicine.

She contacted the SEC and was told it could not correct the error until mid-October. If the mistake was not corrected until then she will have to wait until 2019 to start the course.

Barrister Aoife Carroll, counsel for the SEC, said there were more than 9,000 issues to be determined by the commission on appeal relating to more than 5,000 candidates.

She was granted an adjournment to allow her to file opposition papers to Ms Carter's application.
A man is to be sentenced next month for preventing the burial of an elderly neighbour, whose body lay undiscovered in her Belfast home for around two years.

Robert Sharkey (24) appeared at Belfast Crown Court yesterday, where he admitted all but one charge against him following the discovery of the remains of Marie Conlon (68).

The charges include breaking into her home and stealing a bank card, then using the card to pay bills and buy food - including spending almost 6,000 (6,700) in Domino's Pizza.

The remains of Ms Conlon were found in the bedroom of her Larkspur Rise flat last October, and Sharkey - who at the time of the discovery was a neighbour of hers - was arrested and subsequently charged with preventing the lawful burial of a corpse on dates between August 2015 and October 2017.

When the charge was put to him in court yesterday, he replied: "Guilty." He also entered guilty pleas to breaking into his neighbour's home and taking batteries, tools and a coffee mug, and also of stealing both 50 in cash from her, and a First Trust debit card.

Sharkey, with an address at Grays Hill in Bangor, Co Down, also entered guilty pleas to six separate counts of fraud by false representation - namely using Ms Conlon's bank card without authority.

He admitted using her bank card to buy food totalling 5,988.39 from Domino's Pizza over a period from October 2015 to 2017 and buying goods from Sainsburys to the value of 3,279.80 from July 2016 to October 2017.

The only charge he denied was breaking into the flat between June and October 2015 and stealing a Bank of Ireland debit card.

After pleas were entered to all 11 charges, both the crown and defence asked for time to consider the remaining charge.
A man who trespassed into one of Ireland's most prestigious girls' secondary schools and then made "sexual and suggestive" comments to a shocked teenage girl near a toilet cubicle was jailed for ten months.

Tadhg Hopkins (40) was sentenced after pleading guilty before Judge Olan Kelleher at Cork District Court to two charges in relation to incidents at Scoil Mhuire on June 6 last, the opening day of the Leaving Certificate examinations.

Judge Kelleher was told that Hopkins of Nash's Boreen halting site, Fairhill, Cork had walked into a secure area of the fee-paying Cork school by following someone with a security pass card.

Once inside the school at Sidney Place on Wellington Road, he wandered around until he came to the girls toilet block.

A Leaving Cert student later said she got the fright of her life when, on emerging from a toilet cubicle, she saw a middle-aged man unzipping his trousers and chatting to her in a sexual way.

The court heard there was absolutely no suggestion that Hopkins had attempted to make any type of physical contact with anyone on the date in question.

The girl had prepared a victim impact statement for Judge Kelleher but had specifically requested that it not be read out in open court.

It was acknowledged that the incident had an impact on the girl who was sitting her first Leaving Cert exam that day.

"This young woman was starting her Leaving Cert," Judge Kelleher said.

"It is not what you would hope to deal with when doing a State examination. It (clearly) had such consequences for her."

"She did observe him (Hopkins) undoing his zip in front of her and she got the fright of her life."

Hopkins admitted that he trespassed at the school without reasonable excuse in such a manner as caused or was likely to cause fear in another person.

He also admitted that he intentionally engaged in offensive conduct of a sexual nature.

Judge Kelleher was told the Director of Public Prosecutions only agreed that the matter could be dealt with before the district court on the basis of a guilty plea.

Inspector Ronan Kennelly that Hopkins went into the school shortly after 1pm on June 6 after following a person inside who had used their valid security pass card.

The individual was apparently unaware that Hopkins was following closely behind them.

He later spoke to two girls in an elevator," Inspector Kennelly said.

The conversation with the girls was both sexual and suggestive in nature.

One of the girls involved was preparing to start her Junior Cert examinations.

Later, Hopkins wandered to the girls toilet block.

A Leaving Cert student, on exiting a cubicle, was confronted by Hopkins who had opened his trousers and had his hand inside his pants.

The girl immediately left the toilet block and notified the school authorities.

Hopkins was then escorted off the school premises by staff members.

Gardai were notified and complaints were investigated on foot of statements from the girls involved.

Hopkins had been remanded in custody for a week since he first entered his guilty plea.

Judge Kelleher was told Hopkins has a total of 101 previous convictions.

However, none involved any offence of a sexual nature.

A total of 13 of the 101 convictions were for various forms of assault.

Defence solicitor, Frank Buttimer, said his client was deeply sorry for what had happened.

He had believed the premises involved was a college rather than a secondary school.

The court heard that for years Hopkins has suffered from a serious alcohol problem.

Judge Kelleher noted the defendant's remorse and his guilty plea.

He sentenced him to 10 months in prison.

Hopkins was advised to seek help for his alcohol problem on his release.
Parents of celebrating Junior Cert pupils have been urged to talk to them about the dangers of alcohol.

As more than 62,000 secondary students receive their results at schools around the country today, Miriam Taber, chief executive of Drinkaware, said alcohol should have no place in their celebrations.

"The Junior Cert results are a fantastic achievement and of course should be celebrated. But these young people are about 15 years old, which is too young to be drinking alcohol and we should not accept alcohol is synonymous with these events," she said.

"Our research highlights a worrying trend: an increasing number of parents now find it acceptable for their children to drink at home before 15 years."

A recent survey of 500 parents revealed two in five believe it is a good idea to introduce children to alcohol at home before the age of 18.

"International research shows people who start drinking alcohol before the age of 15 years are four times more likely to experience alcohol-related issues later in life than those who begin at age 20 or older," said Ms Taber.

Clive Byrne, director of the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals, urged schools to give out results as late in the day as possible. "We discourage schools from issuing them immediately because that encourages students to be out around the town or village or city."
More than 62,000 Junior Cert students are celebrating their results today, although many middle-ground students will be disappointed there is no repeat of the bumper share-out of "honours" grades that marked the introduction of the new-style English written exam last year.

At English higher level, there was a slight increase in the proportion of candidates achieving a "distinction" - the equivalent of a traditional A - while the number awarded a "higher merit" (75-90pc) is broadly similar to last year.

But there has been a big fall in the "merit" category, which covers the 55pc-75pc marks range, with a corresponding increase in the numbers in the new "achieved" grade, which runs from 40pc-55pc. In the traditional ABC system, 55pc is the starting point for a C grade.

After a good year for English candidates in 2017, the inaugural year of the new assessment system, when almost 82pc scored 55pc or above, the pattern is back in line with the traditional "bell curve" distribution of grades in the subject, with 75-76pc at 55pc or above. In the new regime, students also do in-school assessments.

Junior Cycle reforms mean candidates can no longer take 12 subjects and, this year, there are 47 students who achieved 11 As for all subjects including a "distinction" in English and the common level Civic Social and Personal Education (CSPE).

In line with high birth rates since the late 1990s, the overall numbers sitting the exam increased by 1.5pc on last year, to 62,562. The proportion of 'return to education' candidates dropped slightly to 0.9pc.

A marked trend in recent years of increasing numbers of students taking subjects at higher level appears to be levelling off, and in some subjects the proportion taking the "honours" paper, including in science, dipped.

There is a particular focus on encouraging students to take higher level maths, in particular, and 57pc of maths candidates did so this year, close to the target of 60pc set for Junior Cycle for 2020. That is up from 45pc in 2010 and 48pc in 2012, no doubt spurred by the introduction of 25 CAO bonus points for a minimum 40pc in higher level maths at Leaving Cert. English is the first Junior Cycle subject to undergo reform. In 2019, students will also sit new-style exams in business studies and science,

Next year is the last for an exam in CSPE. The rollout of revised subjects is continuing.

Congratulating students receiving results today, National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals director Clive Byrne said new senior cycle pupils were beginning their Leaving Cert study at an exciting time, with the education system "undergoing positive and much-needed reform".

Mr Byrne said the new Leaving Cert grading scheme, introduced in 2017, had helped ease the points race and encouraged more to take up higher level papers and "the introduction of subjects like computer science and politics and society, are making our education system more accessible and internationally competitive".

Although students get results in school today, candidates can access results online from 4pm, at examinations.ie.

Junior Cert candidates may appeal a grade, or grades, and any such applications must be made through their school and be with the State Examinations Commission no later than Friday, October 12.
Junior Certificate results Donabate Community College. Jenny Thompson (16) gives the good news of her reults with her mother Frances Thompson. Picture; Gerry Mooney

Junior Certificate results Donabate Community College. Friends Sinatalahi Badmus (15) and Elizabeth AkinWande (15) after they got their results. Picture; Gerry Mooney

Junior Certificate results Donabate Community College. Leah Nolan (15) celebrates the results with her parents Nicola and Bryan Nolan. Picture; Gerry Mooney

Junior Certificate results Donabate Community College. Students Alanna France and Matthew Crowe who achieved the highest results in the college. Picture; Gerry Mooney

Junior Certificate results Donabate Community College. Friends Maria Doyle (15), Ella O'Callaghan (15) and Alanna France (16) after they got their results. Picture; Gerry Mooney

There were jubilant scenes this morning at Gaelcholaiste Luimnigh, Limerick City, where six Junior Certificate students achieved a remarkable 10 As, across all higher level subjects.

Principal, Donnacha OTreasaigh, said he was thrilled for all of the 103 Junior Cert students attending the school, who received their results, Wednesday.

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We have an excellent cohort of pupils and we are thrilled with all of them. They all worked extremely hard, OTreasaigh added.

We are a school that uses one-to-one devices, and we believe technology has a very important role to play in how young people learn in this day and age, he said.

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There were smiles all around, especially for the six students who achieved top marks, Ide Ni Ifearnain, Joe Tanner, Eve McMahon, Muireann Ni She, Seoda Ni Chaoimh, Emily Calton OKeeffe.

A further 24 students attending the school achieved As and Bs in all higher level subjects.

Ni Ifearnain, from Lisnagry, was awestruck as she stared down at her 10 As.

It feels great to see the work you put in come good. I didnt expect to do that well in English so I'm really happy, she said.

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Tanner, also from Annacotty, who has aspirations to be an engineer, was cool and calm as he reflected on his results.

It wasnt too bad, and it worked out in the end anyway, he quipped.

His mother, Mary Tanner, said she was extremely proud of him.

He worked hard and steady since last September, so he deserved his results.

I'm not that surprised, he's been good and steady the whole way along, and I knew he'd do well.

You never know whats going to happen on the day, so this is a bonus.

Whatever he got, we would have been delighted for him, she added.

Eve McMahon, from Ardnacrusha, Co Clare, couldnt hide her emotions.

It hasn't really sunk in yet to be honest; It's unbelievable, she admitted.

My mum is picking me up; I still haven't told her.

She didnt expect as many high marks as she got: Absolute not expecting all these As. I was hoping for a couple of As in the subjects that I liked, but, not this, to be honest.

Muireann Ni She, from Ruane, Co Clare was also so shocked.

I cant stop smiling. I really did not expect to get an A in Art, because it's marked very hard, she said.

I put as lot of work into it and Im really glad that paid off.

I'm very happy.

She joked: Put the hard work in and it really will pay off in the endThats what my teachers have been telling me, and, now I actually really believe them.

Her father Michael said: I am proud of her. She worked very hard.

There's no substitute for hard work and it seems to me that all the kids here today are happy, he added.

Her mother, Marie Slattery, added: Im delighted for her. I didnt mind what she got, because I knew she had given it (her) best shot.

After securing top marks across the boards, Seoda Ni Chaoimh joked she was looking forward to a bit of a rest: It was hard when my brother and sister were watching movies and I had to do my homework, but I can watch all those movies now.

Emily Calton OKeeffe, was also ecstatic with her 10 As: I'm over the moon. I told my mum Anne and she just couldnt believe it.

It was also a busy morning in Donabate Community College in Dublin as 146 students lined up to get their Junior Cert results.

While many were undoubtedly nervous as they waited outside their principals office to receive their results, the atmosphere in the school quickly turned to one of excitement as the majority of students were thrilled with their grades.

Matthew Crowe (15) and Alannah France (16), both from Donabate, received the highest marks in the year, receiving an impressive 6 As and 2 Bs each.

The mocks were harder. I took a break on the weekends but I would study an hour, maybe two every day after homework, said Matthew, of the work he put in.

Im really happy, said Alanna, after she was congratulated by family members who came along to the school with her.

I did a lot of study. Were going for breakfast and then dinner with all my friends (to celebrate), she said.

Jenny Thompson (16) from Swords said the majority of her classmates were nervous before they sat their exams, but reckons the thought was far worse than the reality.

Im really happy. I put in a consistent effort. Generally, everyone was quite nervous I think. It was more the idea around it rather than the exam itself, she said.

There was universal agreement among the students that the mock exams they sat in January were harder than the Junior Cert, meaning they were well prepared for what to expect.

Im delighted, said Sinadalahi Badmus (15) from Donabate.

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I thought I would fail a lot of the subjects, but I got really good. The mocks were definitely harder.

The Junior Cert I was like, oh, this is actually pretty easy. The mocks were preparing you. Im pretty proud of myself, she said.

Proud mum Nicola Nolan from Donabate teared up when she saw her daughter Leah (15) open her results.

So proud, so emotional. Im delighted for her, she said.

Many students told how they were planning to hit the dancefloor at The Wright Venue in Swords later this evening to celebrate.

Principal Anthony Creevey said the students had worked very hard over the last year.

Were very happy with the results overall. The trend seems to be very good. We have a lot of very happy students and very happy parents, he told Independent.ie.

We had 146 students this year. They all worked hard and they are a great bunch. Theyre very well-behaved and Im delighted they got their rewards here today.
Spending on education in Ireland has not kept up with the rising number of students, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Most countries in the developed world are spending more per student than at the start of the financial crisis, but Ireland is one of the small number that is not.

Spending per student in Ireland from primary to third-level was only around the OECD average in 2015.

Meanwhile, Irish teachers are generally paid more than the OECD average, according to the OECD's Education at a Glance 2018.

The report compares education systems in more than 40 countries, using a range of measures including spending, teacher salaries, class size and student achievement.

To even out differences and allow for real comparisons between countries, the OECD converts expenditure and salary figures into purchasing power. The report bases its spending comparisons on 2015 figures and, while there has been some improvement since then, there would be no dramatic change.

Between 2010 and 2015, spending per student dropped by 22pc, and by 29pc at third-level. The cut in spending came at a time of rising student numbers.

Fianna Fail education spokesperson Thomas Byrne said the Budget has to make progress on bridging the funding gap between Ireland and other countries.
Activists subsequently stood outside the building to chant in protest at the eviction, before marching down OConnell Street towards Store Street Garda station.

Five people were arrested yesterday evening after housing activists were removed from a vacant house on North Frederick Street in Dublin.

The house had been occupied by 'Take Back the City', a network of 18 grassroots activist groups who are "working together to take direct action" against property owners across the capital.

This evening, the activists were removed from the property at 34 North Frederick Street, as they had been defying a court order to remain in the building for a number of weeks.

Expand Close Activists subsequently stood outside the building to chant in protest at the eviction, before marching down OConnell Street towards Store Street Garda station. / Facebook

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Whatsapp Activists subsequently stood outside the building to chant in protest at the eviction, before marching down OConnell Street towards Store Street Garda station.

The order was issued on 28 August, when the High Court ordered that all persons occupying the house vacated it by 2pm the following day.

A garda spokeswoman has confirmed that four men and one woman were arrested at the scene.

In a statement on Facebook previously, the Take Back The City group, featuring a coalition of various housing groups, said the aim of the protest was to highlight the housing crisis.

We want to continue to highlight the causes of this crisis  one of which is land hoarding & speculation by private owners, a spokesperson said.

"Instead of this becoming yet another hotel for short-term residents, we will continue to demand that Dublin City Council place a compulsory purchase order on the property, so it can be returned to the community for use as permanent public housing or as a community resource," Dublin Central Housing Action said in a statement.

In a list of demands posted by the housing activists, they request that the house should be given back to the community and turned into public housing and community facilities.

This is the second occupation of its kind recently, as the same group of activists took over a property in Dublin's Summerhill Parade in early August.
A former judge has been questioned by detectives in relation to an allegation of sexual assault.

The retired judge was interviewed under caution by gardai and a file is expected to be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions in the next few weeks.

An investigation into the matter has been ongoing for several months.

It was launched after a woman made a formal complaint against the man last year. She made a statement alleging inappropriate behaviour of a sexual nature by the former judge.

Independent.ie understands the man against whom the claims have been made was not arrested.

However, he voluntarily presented himself for interview a number of weeks ago.

It is also understood that the woman's version of events is being disputed.

Dealings

The investigation is being conducted by officers from Garda Headquarters.

None of the detectives involved has had any previous dealings with the former judge in the course of their duties.

The Department of Justice is aware of the investigation, but has no role to play in it.

Although the man at the centre of the case is retired, the matter highlights the need for improved mechanisms for dealing with alleged misconduct by members of the judiciary.

An impeachment procedure does exist, but it has never been used. It requires resolutions to be passed by the Dail and the Seanad.

Various proposals to address some of these accountability concerns are contained in the Government's Judicial Council Bill.

However, it remains in the early stages of its passage through the Oireachtas.
Activists subsequently stood outside the building to chant in protest at the eviction, before marching down OConnell Street towards Store Street Garda station.

Protesters outside Store Street garda station and inset, injuries sustained by one of the activists

Conor Reddy was admitted to the Mater hospital as he suffered head injuries and a concussion and inset, injuries sustained by another activist

A British-registered van used by a "group of heavies" who removed activists from a building was previously used by Greater Manchester Police, a spokesperson for the force confirmed.

When asked about how the vehicle came to be involved in a Dublin eviction, a garda spokesperson said:

"An Garda Siochanas role at such events is to facilitate peaceful protest while protecting the rights of individuals to do their lawful work safely  in this case carrying out an order of the High Court.

"Our objective with any such operation is to ensure the safety of the public."

Expand Close One of the activists had to be hospitalised last night / Facebook

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Whatsapp One of the activists had to be hospitalised last night

The white Mercedes Sprinter parked outside 34 North Frederick Street just before 7pm yesterday evening.

A number of men wearing balaclavas then forced their way into the property to remove activists who have been occupying it for the last two weeks, despite the High Court ordering them to vacate the premises.

Expand Close Conor Reddy suffered a concussion and neck injuries / Facebook

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Whatsapp Conor Reddy suffered a concussion and neck injuries

According to a UK vehicle checking website, the van is listed as untaxed since August 2014.

"An Garda Siochana is satisfied that the vehicle in question is tax and insurance compliant," gardai said in a statement.

Earlier, gardai insisted that the removal of protesters from the building by men wearing balaclavas was "a peaceful eviction".

Activists who were defying a High Court order to vacate 34 North Frederick Street in Dublin city centre were forced out by a group of unidentifiable men.

Gardai have come under criticism as members of the public order unit - who also had their faces covered - stood in front of the building while the group carried out the eviction.

A garda spokesman said gardai's "only role in the proceedings was to prevent a breach of the peace", adding that the "eviction itself was peaceful."

Five activists were arrested for public order offences, with two due to appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice on October 2.

Gardai advised that members of the public order unit usually cover their faces.

Expand Close Conor Reddy's medical reports / Facebook

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"These are fire retardant hoods and are part of the safety equipment provided to members of the public order unit. Garda numbers identifying the gardai are visible on their uniform," the statement said.

They did not respond to queries about who the men in balaclavas were working for.

Four people were later hospitalised following the incident, according to a statement released by Take Back the City, a network of 18 grassroots activist groups who are "working together to take direct action" against Ireland's housing crisis.

One man sustained injuries to his hand and had to be treated in the Mater Hospital.

"My experience last night was a microcosm of the deep-crisis now facing the state and the political establishment," Aindriu de Buitleir told Independent.ie.

"I was taken to a packed A&E in the Mater and told that due to the shortage of staff I would be waiting 13 hours to receive four stitches in my hand."

Another man suffered a head injury and concussion.

The group of heavies arrived at 34 North Frederick Street at around 7pm yesterday evening in a van with no front number plate and a UK registration at the back.

Dozens of activists gathered outside the building to protest against the eviction. They then marched to Store Street garda station following the arrests of four men and a woman.

The activists were removed from the property at 34 North Frederick Street, as they had been defying a court order to remain in the building for a number of weeks.

The order was issued on 28 August, when the High Court ordered that all persons occupying the house vacate it by 2pm the following day.

Mr Justice Michael Quinn granted Patricia Ni Greil, the owner of 34 North Frederick Street, Dublin 1, injunctions requiring persons unknown to vacate and cease trespassing at the four-storey building.

In an affidavit posted on the door of the house, Mr Colm McGreal, the father of the owner, said they intend to transform the property into a guest house.

Mr McGreal has not responded to repeated requests for comment.

Take Back the City has organised a rally to take place at 5.30pm this evening outside the property.

The group has now occupied three properties in Dublin city centre.

On Saturday, at least 100 people gathered on O'Connell Street in the city centre and marched towards a vacant property in Belvedere Court.

The property has now been occupied with banners and posters hanging from the windows.

A legal notice was today served on protesters, ordering them to vacate the property by 6pm tomorrow.

The notice was issued on behalf of the company MJH Property Management Ltd.

Activists also took over a property in Dublins Summerhill Parade in early August in response to the eviction of up to 120 tenants with only 48 hours notice.

They were told they had to leave a number of houses on Summerhill Parade in May for "fire safety reasons".

The properties are owned by Pat O'Donnell & Co Ltd Retirement and Death Benefit Plan, the trustees of which are PJ O'Donnell and Peter McLornan, who were granted a High Court injunction to have the property vacated.

Activists then turned their attention to 34 Frederick St, which has no connection to the Summerhill properties.

Organisers of the protests say they want: "To continue to highlight the causes of this housing crisis, one of which is land hoarding and speculation by private owners."

A spokesperson for the Irish Council for Civil Liberties has said its "demanding answers" from An Garda Siochana over the tactics used during the eviction.

"ICCL is calling for a swift public report from the Garda Commissioner regarding the Gardais decision-making in advance of last nights operation, and the reasons for and circumstances of the arrests and alleged injuries sustained by protesters," it said in a statement.
A lab used by CervicalCheck in Texas up to 2013 out-sourced tests to Las Vegas, Hawaii and Florida without telling the HSE, the Scally report revealed today.

The CPL lab in Austin is now to be the focus of a further investigation to see if safety was put at risk.

The revelations emerged in the report of Dr Gabriel Scally who spent months investigating the CervicalCheck scandal.

He found a system beset with failings and found nobody was in charge at CervicalCheck.

He concluded the system was doomed to fail.

The scandal emerged earlier this year after it was revealed 221 women who developed cervical cancer had their test results audited by CervicalCheck but the majority were never told.

The audits found their test results were wrong.

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Dr Scally is scathing about the failure to disclose the results to women for several years.

The audits only came to light after Vicky Phelan, the Limerick mother-of-two who is fighting advanced cancer took a High Court case.

In recent months some women and bereaved families who were given the reports by doctors were poorly treated.

When one woman asked how she would find out more information she was told watch the news.

Dr Scallys 170 page report contains fifty recommendations for an overhaul of the screening programme.

He said the existing laboratories used by CervicalCheck all met quality assurance standards and should continue to be used.

Health Minister Simon Harris said the catalogue of failings in the Scally CervicalCheck report amounted to a breach of trust.

Failure to disclose audits of test results after they developed cancer caused huge distress and was due to various reasons including confusion on the part of doctors .

But he insisted the failings did not put women having tests at risk of harm.

The current labs meet quality assurance standards and women can trust them.
Hospital consultants are threatening to take industrial action in an unprecedented move over pay.

The president of the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO), Dr Peadar Gilligan, said the union is calling on the Government to immediately engage in talks to end the unfair treatment of senior hospital doctors employed since 2012.

The IMO said it was conducting a national survey among consultants to ascertain the level of industrial action which may be taken in the event the Government did not engage constructively.

"Consultants working beside each other and doing the same job with the same level of responsibility and qualifications are being paid significantly poorer rates of pay for the same work," he said.

"The pay difference will rise to 50,000 in the coming months following an agreement to finally pay the correct salary to consultants recruited before 2012. The HSE is struggling to fill consultant posts and this will continue to be the case.

"There are now almost 500 unfilled consultant posts, which is directly impacting on patient care as manifested by the growing waiting lists for hospital care (more than 700,000 now on waiting lists)."

Expand Close Pressure: Nurses and midwives protesting outside Cork University Hospital yesterday. Photo: Michael Mac Sweeney/Provision / Facebook

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Dr Gilligan welcomed an acknowledgement in the report by the Public Service Pay Commission which said the reductions in pay which were applied to consultants appointed since 2012 were "particularly severe", and the differential in pay between the pre-existing cadre of consultants and these new entrants is greater than for other categories of public servants.

The pay commission went on to recommend the parties to the Public Service Stability Agreement jointly consider what measures could be taken to address this difficulty.

The IMO "on behalf of doctors employed in the health services, demand Government immediately engage", Dr Gilligan said. The pay commission highlighted that the lack of applicants for consultant posts is indicative of an ongoing problem in regard to the recruitment of consultants.

"Consultant posts are failing in many cases to attract a single applicant - this would have been unheard of even a decade ago when there was fierce competition for every post."

Dr Gilligan said doctors in general had not traditionally tended to engage in industrial action to resolve matters.

"However, the frustration and anger at this issue, which has been long-running, makes that prospect more likely.

Meanwhile, nurses have found an unexpected ally in Tanaiste Simon Coveney who has acknowledged the difficult and stressful conditions they have been working under across Irish hospitals.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) staged protests in Cork and Limerick yesterday - and vowed that rolling protests would continue over what the union slated as chronic under-recruitment of nursing staff at Irish hospitals.

The INMO warned that the Health Service Executive (HSE) had failed to properly act over record overcrowding last summer across Irish hospitals - with some hospitals now entirely dependent on the 11th-hour recruitment of nursing staff from countries outside the EU such as India.

However, Mr Coveney said he understood their concerns.

"I have family members who work in the health system and have done in Ireland for a number of years now," he said. "It can be very difficult - there are some parts of the health system that are working really well. Others are putting staff under real stress."
Activists subsequently stood outside the building to chant in protest at the eviction, before marching down OConnell Street towards Store Street Garda station.

Conor Reddy was admitted to the Mater hospital as he suffered head injuries and a concussion and inset, injuries sustained by another activist

Protesters both young and old gathered outside 34 North Frederick Street

Take Back the City has now occupied three properties in Dublin city centre. Pic: Tony Gavin

Up to 200 people gathered for a rally to protest housing eviction in Dublin city centre. Pic: Tony Gavin

Protesters now sitting down at the top of OConnell Street Photo: Amy Molloy

Hundreds of people marched through the streets of Dublin on Wednesday evening in a rally organised to protest against the removal of housing activists from a city centre property.

A number of men wearing balaclavas, understood to be working for a private security firm, forced their way into 34 North Frederick Street on Tuesday night.

Dozens of housing activists had been defying a High Court order to vacate the property for the past two weeks.

In response to their removal from the property, they took to the streets in a bid to highlight Ireland's ongoing housing crisis.

Protesters now sitting down at the top of OConnell Street #TakeBackTheCity pic.twitter.com/FAGww1Czcc  Amy Molloy (@AmyMolloyIndo) September 12, 2018

Buses, the Luas and all traffic came to a standstill in the city centre as protesters sat down on the intersection of O'Connell Street and Parnell Street yesterday evening.

Following a half an hour sit-in on Parnell Street, protesters began marching towards 41 Belvedere Place, which they have been occupying since Saturday.

Expand Close Protesters both young and old gathered outside 34 North Frederick Street / Facebook

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Whatsapp Protesters both young and old gathered outside 34 North Frederick Street

The protest grew much larger as they made their way up Gardiner Street and through Mountjoy Square, with some estimating between 500-1000 people were present.

A solicitor's letter was sent on Wednesday advising activists to leave the 41 Belvedere Place before tomorrow, stating the property is not compliant with fire safety regulations and warning that legal action will be taken unless they vacate.

Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Protesters block the tramway at Parnell Square during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin Protesters stage a sit down on the Luas line at Parnell Square during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin Protesters stage a sit down on the Luas line at Parnell Square during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin Emily Tracey, Soso Kelly, Clara Tracey and Jeanne Castegnier-Mainville sing songs outside the formerly occupied property on North Fredrick Street during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin Protesters stage a sit down on the Luas line at Parnell Square during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin TD Richard Boyd Barrett outside the previously occupied building in North Frederick Street during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin Protesters stage a sit down on the Luas line at Parnell Square during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin Protesters during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin Protester in the occupied building in Belvedere Place. Photo: Tony Gavin Protesters stage a sit down on the Luas line at Parnell Square during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin Protesters stage a sit down on the Luas line at Parnell Square during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin A protester climbs the Parnell monument at Parnell Square during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin / Facebook

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Whatsapp Protesters block the tramway at Parnell Square during the Take Back the City Rally. Photo: Tony Gavin

Protesters are now staging a sit-in outside the building and are insisting "we will not be moved".

Pictures of the men wearing balaclavas were being held aloft by protesters as they shouted chants of "shame, shame, shame".

Expand Close Up to 200 people gathered for a rally to protest housing eviction in Dublin city centre. Pic: Tony Gavin / Facebook

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Whatsapp Up to 200 people gathered for a rally to protest housing eviction in Dublin city centre. Pic: Tony Gavin

One of the protesters who was arrested and brought to Store Street Garda station on Tuesday night said he decided to join the 'Take Back the City' movement as hes sick of paying half my income in rent.

We will take on landlords and we will win, he shouted to cheers from the crowd.

Expand Close Take Back the City has now occupied three properties in Dublin city centre. Pic: Tony Gavin / Facebook

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Whatsapp Take Back the City has now occupied three properties in Dublin city centre. Pic: Tony Gavin

People travelled from all over Dublin and beyond to take part in the protest.

A woman in her 60s, who asked not to be named, said she drove up from Kilkenny after seeing pictures of what happened at 34 Frederick Street on social media.

"I think it's just disgraceful and I agree with what these people are doing. Ireland is screwed and we need action now."

Earlier, gardai insisted that the removal of protesters from the building by men wearing balaclavas was "a peaceful eviction".

Gardai have come under criticism as members of the public order unit - who also had their faces covered - stood in front of the building while the group carried out the eviction.

A garda spokesman said gardai's "only role in the proceedings was to prevent a breach of the peace", adding that the "eviction itself was peaceful."

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Five activists were arrested for public order offences, with two due to appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice on October 2.

Gardai advised that members of the public order unit usually cover their faces.

"These are fire retardant hoods and are part of the safety equipment provided to members of the public order unit. Garda numbers identifying the gardai are visible on their uniform," the statement said.

"A small number of the crowd outside subsequently were arrested for a breach of the peace. One Garda was assaulted and subjected to racist comment."

They did not respond to queries about who the men in balaclavas were working for.

Four people were later hospitalised following the incident, according to a statement released by Take Back the City, a network of 18 grassroots activist groups who are "working together to take direct action" against Ireland's housing crisis.

One man sustained injuries to his hand and had to be treated in the Mater Hospital.

"My experience last night was a microcosm of the deep-crisis now facing the state and the political establishment," Aindriu de Buitleir told Independent.ie.

"I was taken to a packed A&E in the Mater and told that due to the shortage of staff I would be waiting 13 hours to receive four stitches in my hand."

Another man suffered a head injury and concussion.

The group of heavies arrived at 34 North Frederick Street at around 7pm yesterday evening in a van with no front number plate and a UK registration at the back.

Dozens of activists gathered outside the building to protest against the eviction. They then marched to Store Street garda station following the arrests of four men and a woman.

The High Court order to vacate was issued on 28 August and activists were to be out of the premises by 2pm the following day.

Mr Justice Michael Quinn granted Patricia Ni Greil, the owner of 34 North Frederick Street, Dublin 1, injunctions requiring persons unknown to vacate and cease trespassing at the four-storey building.

In an affidavit posted on the door of the house, Mr Colm McGreal, the father of the owner, said they intend to transform the property into a guest house.

Mr McGreal has not responded to repeated requests for comment.

Take Back the City has now occupied three properties in Dublin city centre.

On Saturday, at least 100 people gathered on O'Connell Street in the city centre and marched towards a vacant property in Belvedere Place.

A solicitor's letter was issued today on behalf of the company MJH Property Management Ltd, advising members of Take Back the City to leave the property by Thursday.

These occupations began with a property in Summerhill Parade in early August in response to the eviction of up to 120 tenants with only 48 hours notice.

The tenants, many of whom were foreign nationals, were told they had to leave the houses on Summerhill Parade in May for "fire safety reasons".

The properties are owned by Pat O'Donnell & Co Ltd Retirement and Death Benefit Plan, the trustees of which are PJ O'Donnell and Peter McLornan, who were granted a High Court injunction to have the property vacated.

Activists then turned their attention to Frederick St, which has no connection to the Summerhill properties.

Organisers of the protests say they want: "To continue to highlight the causes of this housing crisis, one of which is land hoarding and speculation by private owners."
The operation is a culmination of an investigation by An Garda Siochana into the illegal streaming of TV content including pay per view products (stock image).

Four people have been arrested in an operation targeting illegal TV streaming across the country.

Two women aged 37 and 40, and two men aged 42 and 45 were arrested in Dublin and Meath yesterday morning and were later released.

A total of 84,000, in six bank accounts and two credit union accounts, was frozen.

Nine other third party payment accounts were identified and limited, and it is believed that over 700,000 in total has been paid into these accounts in the last 3 years.

They were arrested for offences by Gardai from The Intellectual Property Crime Unit (IPCU) of the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, under the Copyright and Related Rights Act, 2000, and the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) Act, 2010.

In conjunction with police forces in England and Scotland, the operation is a culmination of an investigation by An Garda Siochana into the illegal streaming of TV content including pay per view products.

Europol provided assistance yesterday and are on the ground with Gardai, with further support given by some of the major TV companies and the Motion Picture Association.

The Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation stressed the importance of the consequences of illegal streaming, describing it as a criminal enterprise.

This is an organised criminal enterprise where consumers are funding criminality and depriving genuine industry of legitimate revenue, Detective Superintendent George Kyne of the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation said.

Consumers are providing their payment details to unknown individuals and leaving themselves open to being the victims of fraud and/or data theft.

The security around these devices and illegal streaming platforms exposes customers and leaves their home systems vulnerable. It is important that the public is aware of the impact of illegal streaming and its consequences.
Jordan Murphy (18) was described by friends and family as a

A young man who died following a collision with a car has been remembered as a "true gentleman" who was "incredibly loved by everyone."

Jordan Murphy (18), who was from Tullamore in Co Offaly, died following the collision outside Athlone IT at around 9am yesterday morning.

He was brought to Midlands Regional Hospital, Tullamore but was pronounced dead a short time later. The driver of the car was uninjured.

Jordan's devastated girlfriend Aoife Moloughney told Independent.ie that he will be missed by his friends and family.

"He was incredibly loved by everyone who knew him and he will be missed dearly by all of us," she said.

The Irish Pipe Band Association shared a touching tribute to Jordan, who was a member of St Colmcilles Pipe Band in Tullamore, Co Offaly.

Jordan was a much-loved member of the St Colmcille Pipe Band from Tullamore. Our condolences to his family, friends and band members, they said in a statement.

Tributes have also poured in online for the Jordan, who was a higher cert business student at Athlone IT.

"RIP to one of the sweetest nicest people I have had the pleasure of meeting and sharing time with.. To say you brought joy to everyone you met is an understatement, one devastated friend said.

Your smile and just love for life was so infectious. Even after a long crazy night you were still bopping around the place. A true gentleman has been taken too soon.

A post on RIP.ie said that Jordan is survived by his heartbroken parents, brothers and sister, step parents, his loving girlfriend, relatives and many friends.

They said that he was a huge fan of Liverpool FC fan and they've asked that friends and family attending the funeral wear the club's jerseys in his honour.

Gardai are appealing for witnesses to contact Athlone Garda Station on 090 6492600, The Garda Confidential Telephone Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar branded the leaking of details of the Scally report into the CervicalCheck scandal as "disgusting", as if his Government has nothing to do with the controversy which has been branded appalling by victims.

By saying it was "not a normal story, this is not some sort of scoop", the Taoiseach seemed to suggest the news agencies who published some of Dr Gabriel Scally's findings share the blame for elements of the report leaking.

But the reality is keeping the highly sensitive report confidential was the responsibility of his Government. Health Minister Simon Harris ordered the scoping exercise by Dr Scally.

Minister Harris has said he was not responsible for the leak which revealed Dr Scally believed the controversy did not merit the establishment of a Commission of Investigation.

Minister Harris and the Taoiseach promised victims they would be informed of the doctor's findings before his report was published.

Instead, women and the families of victims who have been failed by the State find themselves again struggling to understand why they are the last to find out about their health. To say the victims were disappointed is a huge understatement.

Yesterday, a heartbroken and still very sick Vicky Phelan took to social media to say she planned to spend the day with her children, but because of the leak she had to cancel those plans.

Instead of spending time with her children, the woman who first exposed the scandal was forced to attend a meeting with Dr Scally where she would be told details of the report.

"I find myself in the same position as I did a few months ago when I found out that I had not been informed about my own health," she wrote.

Another victim of the awful tragedy, Lorraine Walsh, said the leak was "heartbreaking and disappointing". Stephen Teap, whose wife Irene died of cervical cancer after getting incorrect test results, said it was "very upsetting" to wake up hearing details of the report on the news.

Harris has spent the last number of months building relationships with the victims. He is especially close to Vicky Phelan who he regularly calls and texts.

However, the victims of one of the worst medical scandals to grip this country will understandably now question their feelings towards the minister and the Taoiseach after the latest episode in this ongoing and very sad controversy.

Predictably, Opposition politicians rounded on the minister over his handling of the CervicalCheck scandal. Mr Harris was accused of orchestrating the leak and letting down the victims.

Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin said the leak was "cynical and cruel behaviour" and showed the Government was obsessed with spin.

Labour Party health spokesman Alan Kelly said the leaking of the report was the "worst example" he had seen of a government trying to control a message.

All the while Minister Harris and the Taoiseach denied they had anything to do with the hurt caused to the victims. And perhaps the minister and Taoiseach did not personally leak details of the Scally Report.

It would be harsh to suggest they purposely sought to cause such distress. However, they are responsible for ensuring sensitive files do not leak. They are in charge and if they can't manage this perhaps they should question their ability to hold power.
The chief economist to the White House said he is not convinced that the planned visit of US President Donald Trump to Ireland has been cancelled.

Yesterday, sources said that the controversial trip, planned for November 12, would no longer go ahead.

A Government spokesperson confirmed to Independent.ie that the trip wouldnt go ahead for scheduling reasons but the White House said it has not yet made a final decision on whether US President Donald Trump will make a stop in Ireland as part of his trip to Paris later this autumn.

"The president will travel to Paris in November as previously announced. We are still finalizing whether Ireland will be a stop on that trip. As details are confirmed we will let you know, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters.

Expand Close Kevin Hassett, who will address business executives in Dublin this week, said President Donald Trump was right to call out the Irish trade deficit. Photo: Getty Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp Kevin Hassett, who will address business executives in Dublin this week, said President Donald Trump was right to call out the Irish trade deficit. Photo: Getty Images

And Kevin Hassett, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors (CEA), told RTE Radio Ones Morning Ireland today that Mr Trump is very eager to visit Ireland.

I know the President and General Kelly are very eager to come to Ireland. I think we view Ireland as one of our closest and dearest allies, and if it doesnt work out this time Im sure something will work out soon, Mr Hassett said.

The thing I can say is that its election season in the US and the visit - which Im not convinced it absolutely won't happen yet, I checked into it last night - the visit was scheduled for right after the elections and there are a bunch of things that might have to happen that involve foreign trips for negotiating reasons and so on that are all budding up against how much he can spend coming to Ireland and Paris.

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I think its something of a work in progress and even if that trip doesnt work out Im highly confident that everybody in the White House is quite motivated to come visit Ireland.

When asked about the controversial anonymous op-ed in the New York Times last week, Mr Hassett, who will address the US Embassy-sponsored US-Ireland business summit this week, denied rumours that staff are obsessed with finding out who wrote it.

I show up every day, I go to work, Im surrounded by people that I really love to work with and that have my back. Were pretty well organised, we know whats going on, he said.

I can also say the humour is quite good and the notion were obsessed with whos the anonymous leak is just incorrect, people show up to do their jobs.

He added that John F. Kelly, White House Chief of Staff, made a joke about it at a recent meeting, saying: If theres anyone here that doesnt like working here, the exits are well marked.

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The Taoiseachs Office has said they were informed that US President Donald Trump was postponing his visit to Ireland by the Irish Ambassador to the US Dan Mulhall.

In a statement tonight, the Taoiseachs spokesperson said the Government note White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders suggestion that Trump administration are still finalising whether the President will travel to Ireland or not.

Our Statement reflects what the Irish Ambassador to the US was informed by US authorities, the Taoiseachs spokesperson said.

We note the statement from Sarah Sanders. If there are further developments we will let you know, he added.

The US President had been due here on 12 November, something which Taoiseach Leo Varadkar admitted earlier this month wasn't expected.

Speaking on The Marty Squad on RTE Radio One on 2 September, the Taoiseach explained: "It came a little bit out of the blue.

"There is an open invitation to the US President to visit Ireland at any time, I think they've all visited since Reagan, if not before and obviously there's an open invitation for me, or any future Taoiseach, to attend Washington in March.

"We hadn't known until just a couple of days ago that he was going to take the opportunity of his visit to Paris for the Armistice commemorations, commemorating a hundred years of the end of the First World War, to visit Dublin, and also he's going to go to Doonbeg too.

"We've got to work out on a programme and all the rest of it but I think any programme we will have will have to respect the fact that we will inaugurating our own President on the 11th of November.

"And also will have to make sure that we have enough time and space to commemorate the Armistice because bear in mind hundreds of thousands of Irish people, including a lot of people from this city, fought in the first world war. We need to make sure that's appropriate and fits around that as well."
The Cabinet will today approve the appointment of Edward F Crawford as US Ambassador to Ireland ending months of speculation over who will fill the role.

The move follows confusion over whether US President Donald Trump will visit Ireland when he travels to Europe in November.

Despite being in office almost two years, Mr Trump delayed appointing an ambassador to Ireland.

However, White House will announce the appointment of Mr Crawford as the US Ambassador to Ireland later today, the Cabinet is set to approve it.

Mr Crawford, a leading businessman from Ohio and a long-time donor to the Republican Party, has been seen as the frontrunner since Brian Burns, a friend of Mr Trump, pulled out of the running in the summer. of 2017.

Mr Crawfords grandparents are from Cork, and he has a strong involvement in the Irish community in Ohio.

It is understood the appointment process has been in train for some time and is unrelated to the postponement of Mr Trump's visit to Ireland.

Reece Smyth has been the charge d'affaires of the U.S. Embassy in Ireland during the appointment process.

Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin said the confusion over Mr Trumps visit showed the need for the appointment of a US ambassador to Ireland.
Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin speaks to the media at the Fianna Fail think in at the Grand Hotel, Malahide. Photo: Tony Gavin

Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin is denying the party is "getting it in the neck" on doorsteps for propping up the Fine Gael-led minority Government.

He also insisted Fianna Fail has shown "backbone" in holding the Government to account in response to criticism made by party colleague John McGuinness.

Mr McGuinness has publicly raised questions about the future of the deal that facilitates the Government.

Other TDs have privately said they were being criticised, both by the party grassroots and while out canvassing, for their continued facilitation of Taoiseach Leo Varadkar's Government.

Speculation on the future of the confidence and supply deal gained new impetus when Mr Varadkar wrote to Mr Martin asking for talks on extending the arrangement to begin before the Budget. He also sought an agreed election date in the summer of 2020.

Mr Martin has ruled out beginning talks before the Budget and last night insisted: "nobody's getting anything in the neck" on the issue.

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He said he's been out on doors canvassing, and claimed voters were "impatient" and "angry" with Fine Gael, adding: "That's what we're getting on the ground."

In recent days, Carlow-Kilkenny TD Mr McGuinness told RTE that the confidence and supply agreement "has not served the country well".

He also claimed people were suffering because of the "poor policies of this Government" and that Fianna Fail was "condoning it" due to the deal.

Mr McGuinness added: "I believe people want to see Fianna Fail having a backbone being in Opposition and confronting the Government where it fails."

Mr Martin said he disagreed with Mr McGuinness's remarks. He argued it was because of Fianna Fail's input that there was a "fundamental turnaround in budgetary direction" after it insisted on a 2:1 split between investment in services and tax measures.

He also pointed to education measures, such as reducing the pupil-teacher ratio, as well as increases in the State pension.

"These are very practical achievements where we have shown backbone and where we have said these things have to happen in Budgets," he said.

Asked if he would encourage Mr McGuinness to stop making such remarks and trust his judgment, Mr Martin replied: "I encourage healthy debate in the party."

He added he knows Mr McGuinness well and said it "wouldn't be the most optimal approach to take".

Mr Martin was speaking at his party's think-in meeting in Malahide. He said the main issues they were focusing on were housing and health.

Mr Martin hit out at Mr Varadkar for what he described as his "famous letter", claiming it contained "un-costed" promises for what Fine Gael and Independents would deliver in government if the deal is extended.

He said Fianna Fail would honour the current agreement, and wanted to negotiate a third Budget and deal with the "real issues" people are facing. He rejected the use of Brexit as a rationale for renegotiating the confidence and supply deal now

He said Fianna Fail's commitment to support the Budget includes the finance and social welfare bills which won't pass until January.
Micheal Martin has rejected the suggestion Sean Gallagher is a proxy Fianna Fail candidate in the presidential election, calling it "ridiculous".

Businessman and former 'Dragons' Den' star Mr Gallagher will be on the ballot paper to take on President Michael D Higgins after winning the support of four local authorities. He did so with the backing of some Fianna Fail councillors.

Mr Gallagher's 2011 bid for Aras an Uachtarain floundered amid questions about past links to Fianna Fail and the subsequent "Tweetgate" incident.

Fianna Fail leader Mr Martin welcomed the fact that Mr Gallagher and other candidates had entered the race but reiterated his support for Mr Higgins, who he argued had "performed very well on behalf of the country" at home and abroad.

He said his party's councillors were free to nominate other candidates. Pressed on whether Mr Gallagher was a proxy candidate for Fianna Fail, he replied: "That's ridiculous. Clearly not."

Separately, another presidential hopeful, businessman Peter Casey, conceded that his use of a helicopter to get to three council meetings in quest of a nomination on Monday was wrong on environmental grounds.

But he insisted he could also win the support of the four councils needed to get on the ballot paper. Mr Casey, also a former 'Dragons' Den' panellist, told Kildare County Council members his need to deploy a helicopter was partly caused by Mr Higgins's delay in stating his intentions about standing again.

Mr Higgins has previously rejected claims the timing of his announcement affected other candidates.

"I used a helicopter, at my own expense.... I did it because I said I was serious about standing for the presidency and I want to show that," Mr Casey told the Irish Independent. He added that, if elected president, he would avoid using Air Corps helicopters or the government jet.

Kildare councillors heard presentations from other hopefuls Sarah Louise Mulligan and Gemma O'Doherty.

Mr Gallagher addressed the council and another likely candidate, Gavin Duffy, was present to canvass the councillors, with a vote not expected until September 24.
Home comfort: Single mum Sandra Farmer is delighted with her new home in Weavers Wood, Clonsilla. Photo: Colm Mahady

After living in a hotel for six months with her two young children, Sandra Farmer finally has a home to call her own.

The single mother (33) from north-west Dublin became homeless after her landlord sold her rental home.

Ms Farmer suffers from ulcerative colitis, while her son Kai (11) is recovering from early childhood cancer.

It meant she had additional worries about living in cramped and less than sterile conditions in emergency accommodation.

But all of that is behind her after she moved into her new home at Weavers Wood in Clonsilla last month.

It is one of 33 new family homes that came on stream as part of a social housing scheme between Fingal County Council and Co-operative Housing Ireland.

"Every night since I moved in, I'm thinking 'this is mine - this is my forever home and I'll never have to move out again'," she said.
A fertility expert has said women are being given a false notion if they're advised to freeze their eggs close to the age of 40.

Egg freezing (oocyte cryopreservation) is a medical procedure where a number of a womans eggs are extracted from the ovaries and frozen for use in the future.

Fertility declines at a more accelerated pace after the age of 35, and while older women have options available to them, egg freezing isn't the 'insurance policy' that it has been marketed as.

Fewer than five per cent of women are able to have an IVF baby with their own eggs past the age of 44.

But some middle-aged women are still freezing their eggs as a back-up plan.

Dr Phil Boyle from Neo Fertility in Dublin tells Independent.ie: Most people would agree its a bad idea doing egg freezing any time close to 40.

The numbers with egg freezing alone are quite depressing. You could have the false notion that youre freezing your egg and you have a high chance of pregnancy.

But he added: The percentages are a bit depressing. The challenge is [for a clinic] to say, heres what the figures are.

Roughly one in every four fresh IVF cycles results in a live birth.

However, Dr Boyle adds: If you subdivide that into the over 40 age group, its coming in at 13 per cent.

Meanwhile, Richard Anderson, professor of clinical reproductive science at the University of Edinburgh, told the Daily Mail today: The chances of having a baby from egg-freezing in a womans late forties are very slim and clinics need to be clear that they are acting in a responsible manner.

It is difficult to see how someone freezing their eggs close to their 50th birthday is advisable, and it is absolutely essential that women doing so have full knowledge of the likely success rates.

With more Irish women delaying having a baby and being at increased risk of fertility problems, Dr Boyle led an important new peer-reviewed study which offers fresh hope for older women experiencing fertility problems.

The study highlighted how restorative reproductive medicine (RRM), is opening the doors to parenthood for couples even when IVF has failed for them. The study highlighted how one in three couples who completed Dr Boyle's form of RRM, gave birth to full-term healthy babies, despite having two or more failed IVF treatments.
Andrew McCarthy talking about his travel book "The Longest Way Home" at Barnes & Noble in LA, 2012. Photo by Victor Decolongon/FilmMagic

The February/March edition of National Geographic Traveler features a spectacular cover shot of Ross Castle in Killarney.

It's not every day that one of the world's most celebrated travel publications opens its cover story in Lacca West.

Nor is it every day that the writer of that cover story is Hollywood actor, and acclaimed travel writer, Andrew McCarthy.

Welcome to the February/March edition of National Geographic Traveler.

Currently hitting newsstands across the US, the cover features a spectacular shot of Ross Castle in Killarney, accompanied by the headline: 'Return to Ireland - A Journey Home'.

Inside, McCarthy describes a trip through the Kingdom over the course of an 11-page spread featuring mouthwatering images of Kerry and its "lyrical hills".

"Several miles from the sea in the west of Ireland, outside the market town of Listowel, along county road 555, a path cuts into the overgrowth and up the hillside," he writes.

"I almost miss it."

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National Geographic Traveler, Feb/March 2015

The author visited Kerry Kingdom in search of his roots, ultimately tracing his ancestors to a small farm in the parish of Duagh, a few miles south of Listowel.

"Id be able to go and walk the land that my great-grandfather had walked before he left Ireland for good and came to America," he writes.

"The idea suddenly thrilled me."

Over the course of his visit, he climbs Carrauntoohil (People die up there, Andrew," his father-in-law says. "Are you sure youre fit enough?), visits Kenmare and Ballinskelligs, and journeys out onto the Dingle Peninsula.

"You dont get to Dingle by accident; it is on the way to nothing but itself."

McCarthy's wife is from Dublin, and he is a regular visitor here.

As an actor, he is best known for his roles in 1980s movies Pretty in Pink and St Elmos Fire, but has latterly forged a reputation as a travel writer.

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Andrew McCarthy, photographed in 2012.

The story will delight Tourism Ireland, which is rolling out an extensive programme of promotions in the United States for 2015, hoping to build on a record year for transatlantic visits.

2014 was the best year ever for tourism from the United States, with visitor numbers increasing by 13pc over 2013  134,000 additional American visitors during the year.

The Wild Atlantic Way and Northern Ireland's Causeway Coastal Route will continue to be a major focus of promotional activity this year, as will the new Dublin Discovery Trail.

McCarthy's feature is adapted from Journeys Home, a book of essays featuring 26 authors, and published by National Geographic Books this month.

"I can feel my resistance softening to the idea of Kerry as my homeland," he writes.

"How can it not feel right to be connected to all this?"

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Pictured at the launch of new routes in Dublins Iveagh Gardens were Aer Lingus cabin crew Muriel Cooke; Chief Executive Stephen Kavanagh and cabin crew David Kennedy. Photo: JULIEN BEHAL PHOTOGRAPHY

Pictured at the launch of new routes in Dublins Iveagh Gardens was Aer Lingus cabin crew Muriel Cooke. JULIEN BEHAL PHOTOGRAPHY.

Aer Lingus will fly direct from Dublin to Montreal and MinneapolisSaint Paul from summer 2019, it has announced.

The Montreal route will operate daily on a new Airbus A321 neo long-range aircraft from August 8 of next year, with fares from 239 each way.

It will compete with existing seasonal services by Air Canada and Air Transat.

Fares on the new daily route to MinneapolisSaint Paul start from 249. It takes off on July 8, 2019, operated on a Boeing 757 aircraft.

Together, the two routes will add 250,000 seats to the airline's transatlantic network (currently, Aer Lingus offers around 2.8 million annual seats to North America).

Expand Close Pictured at the launch of new routes in Dublins Iveagh Gardens were Aer Lingus cabin crew Muriel Cooke; Chief Executive Stephen Kavanagh and cabin crew David Kennedy. Photo: JULIEN BEHAL PHOTOGRAPHY / Facebook

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Whatsapp Pictured at the launch of new routes in Dublins Iveagh Gardens were Aer Lingus cabin crew Muriel Cooke; Chief Executive Stephen Kavanagh and cabin crew David Kennedy. Photo: JULIEN BEHAL PHOTOGRAPHY

'Largest-ever transatlantic expansion'

Aer Lingus is in the midst of what it terms "the largest-ever transatlantic expansion in the airline's history", with CEO Stephen Kavanagh today describing its mission "to be the leading value carrier across the North Atlantic".

Since its acquisition by IAG in 2015, it has taken delivery of several new long-haul aircraft and launched eight new transatlantic services - including Seattle, Philadelphia and Miami in the past year alone.

Together with other recent additions like LA, Newark and Hartford, Connecticut, today's announcement brings its total number of North American services to 15.

IAG plans to further boost the airline's fleet in the coming years, with 12 new Airbus A321 Neo long-range (LR) aircraft due to arrive from 2019 to 2022.

A 'game-changer' aircraft

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Montreal is the first route to be announced with the new aircraft (above), which uses 20pc less fuel and can fly over 900km further than comparable predecessors.

Aer Lingus will have 168 economy and 16 business class seats on the A321LRs, using the same seat products as its current long-haul fleet.

Speculation had been rife about the latest routes, with Pittsburgh, Dallas Fort Worth and a seasonal service to Las Vegas among those mentioned before today's announcement.

The Montreal and Minneapolis-St Paul routes will further drive the growth of Dublin and Aer Lingus as 'gateway' airport and airline for connecting passengers.

Dublin Airport recently opened a 16 million transfer hub, and an EY Advisory report released today concludes that further investment in hub infrastructure could add 18.6bn and 33,950 jobs to the Irish economy over the next 15 years.

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Eight Irish entrepreneurs have been chosen to receive a business masterclass from Coca-Cola and Enterprise Ireland after being selected for the 2018 Thrive Project.

Now in its third year, the innovative initiative offers start-ups a chance to undergo an accelerated learning programme with industry experts over six months. Its part of a joint project by Coca-Cola and Enterprise Ireland thats designed to support Irelands fastest-growing food and drinks start-ups.

This years participants include biscuit and cake makers, Brogans Bakery, artisan cheese producers, Cahill Farm Cheese, craft beer brewers, The White Hag, frozen dessert company, Couverture, high-protein yogurt makers, Pow-Cow, frozen foods company, Strong Roots, natural health supplement producer, Revive Active, and Walshs Bakehouse, who make the Waterford Blaa range of bread.

The chance to get insights, advice and ideas on branding, packaging and marketing from the drinks giant is obviously a dream come through for the eight lucky participants. The Thrive Project kicked off with an introductory session at the Coca-Cola offices. The entrepreneurs were then flown over to the Coca-Cola headquarters in Atlanta for an intensive business boot camp.

Once there, they received a crash course in business strategy from the companys senior executives. It was an invaluable chance to absorb strategic lessons from some of the industrys leading figures and to get practical advice on how to boost their own business efforts. That was just the start of the process for the businesses, who will also get a package of supports from Enterprise Ireland.

The official launch of this years Thrive Project was welcomed by Petre Sandru, Country Manager of Coca-Cola Ireland.

Coca-Cola is one of the worlds best loved brands and one of the most successful food and drink companies on the planet, said Mr Sandru. As a leader in the industry we want to share our experience and expertise with the next group of companies who all have the opportunity to become global brands.

I am delighted that we are in a position to partner with Enterprise Ireland to give these eight great start-up businesses a boost. Ireland plays a special role in Coca-Colas global system through manufacturing, R&D, sales, and corporate offices in Dublin, Ballina, Drogheda and Wexford. The Thrive Project allows us to leverage this special relationship between Ireland and Coca-Cola to help a new generation of local food and drink companies to grow.

Enterprise Ireland will offer each of the eight participants access to a mentor and help them to develop a robust business plan that can help them to grow and expand as a company. Amanda Ward, Programme Manager, Food Division, Enterprise Ireland explained what the Thrive Project was designed to achieve.

Enterprise Irelands strategy is to support Irish businesses to build scale and expand their reach into international markets. This is our third year working in partnership with Coca-Cola and we have received excellent feedback from the participating companies from the previous intake on how the programme encouraged them to innovate to compete and succeed in global markets. The programme combines Coca Colas market and global insights with Enterprise Irelands expertise in business development, allowing the entrepreneurs to gain invaluable knowledge on how to go about scaling businesses and operations.

We wish all eight companies taking part in the programme the very best and look forward to learning more and supporting them throughout the project.

The project is specifically designed to encourage fast-growing companies with plans for international expansion. This years participants are all strong brands with a unique selling point and the desire to bring their businesses to the next level. The programme will give them the necessary tools to achieve those goals, offering them mentorship and practical insights to help them expand and grow.

One of the participants from last years programme spoke at the launch and talked about how the Thrive Project helped her business.

The Thrive Project for me last year was an incredible experience, said Roisin Hogan, Thrive Project Graduate and CEO of HIRO. There were really motivational and inspirational as well as tangible takeaways around the whole sampling and tasting process that I could easily apply to my small Irish business. I wish this years group starting out on their Thrive journey the best of luck.

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Senior White House Advisers Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump arrive for the State Dinner in honor of French President Emmanuel Macon at the White House in Washington, U.S. April 24, 2018. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

Presidential Advisors Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump walk the Colonnade at The White House while attending a state visit by French President Emmanuel Macron on April 24, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chris Kleponis-Pool/Getty Images)

In this file photo taken on June 1, 2018 Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump walk to Marine One prior to departing from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC

(L-R) Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump and Joshua Kushner attend The New York Observer 25th Anniversary at Four Seasons Restaurant on March 14, 2013 in New York City. (Photo by Patrick McMullan/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)

Joshua Kushner and Karlie Kloss attend the Cleveland Cavaliers vs New York Knicks game at Madison Square Garden on March 26, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by James Devaney/GC Images)

Karlie Kloss and Josh Kushner at 2018 US Open on September 6, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Jackson Lee/GC Images)

After six years, an engagement and endless speculation, Karlie Kloss has finally spoken about in detail about her relationship with Joshua Kushner.

The former Victoria's Secret model (26) is famous for keeping her cards close to her chest with her long-term romance, but with rumours abound about her political alliances, she set the record straight with Vogue in an uncharacteristically candid interview. Kushner's brother Jared is one of US President Donald Trump's senior advisers and his wife, Ivanka, was one of the first people to congratulate Karlie and Jared on their engagement on social media, affectionately referring to her as a "sister".

And while most people's complicated relationships with their in-laws occur behind closed doors, Kloss' decision to remain so tactile with her brother-in-law and sister-in-law to be retaining such powerful positions in the White House has been somewhat unusual. Even more jarring was the fact that she and Joshua were among the thousands protesting at March for Our Lives in Washington D.C. earlier this year.

"At the end of the day, Ive had to make decisions based on my own moral compass - forget what the public says, forget social media. Ive chosen to be with the man I love despite the complications," she told Vogue. "Its frustrating, to be honest, that the spotlight is always shifted away from my career toward my relationship. I dont think the same happens in conversations with men."

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"Josh and I share a lot of the same liberal values that guide our lives and the things we stand for. Weve really grown together personally and professionally. Josh knows that Im just a nerdy, curious human being. I think thats why he loves me. We have each others back."

Although she wouldn't be drawn on details about the proposal, she did reveal it was "romantic and sweet" in upstate New York.

In an interview with Porter magazine in April, Kloss said she wasn't intentionally secretive about her private life, but heeded legendary designer Carolina Herrera's advice.

"Its not like Ive ever wanted to be so secretive about my private life, Carolina Herrera always says, A woman whos an open book is boring'. Theres no mystery anymore," she explained. "I know in my life what really matters to me. Im not trying to hide that from the world; I just really like having a more private private life. Ive got nothing to hide, though."
White House senior advisor Jared Kushner (R) and Ivanka Trump, the daughter of the US president, stand on the runway at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, on May 23, 2017, prior to boarding Air Force One for Rome. / AFP PHOTO / Jack GUEZJACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images

White House senior advisor Jared Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump arrive at the Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy, May 23, 2017. REUTERS/Remo Casilli

White House senior adviser Ivanka Trump and her husband senior adviser Jared Kushner walk along the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, U.S., as they accompanied U.S. President Donald Trump before his departure to New York May 4, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Ivanka Trump, daughter and assistant to U.S. President Donald Trump, walks with her husband, White House senior adviser Jared Kushner, on the South Lawn prior to their departure from the White House May 19, 2017 in Washington, DC

Joshua Kushner and Karlie Kloss attend the Cleveland Cavaliers vs New York Knicks game at Madison Square Garden on March 26, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by James Devaney/GC Images)

Karlie Kloss has shared a rare gushing caption about her boyfriend of five years.

The supermodel (24) has been dating the billionaire businessman (32) for the last five years and while she normally avoids speaking about her long-term beau, she made an exception for his birthday.

"My atoms love your atoms," she wrote on Instagram.

"Happy birthday to my best friend and partner in crime. The past 5 years of our adventures together have been some of the best memories of my life. I love you @joshuakushner."

The former Victoria's Secret Angel first met Kushner in 2012 at a time when she says she was "definitely not planning on falling in love" and prefers to only give soundbites about their romance, previously describing him as a "super solid dude".

Joshua definitely keeps a lower profile than his older brother Jared (36), who is one of US President Trump's closest aides and is currently under FBI investigation for potential collusion with Russia.

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And Joshua has made his political alliances clear - he was even pictured pictured at the Women's March in Washington DC in January, but maintains that he speaks to his brother every day, describing him as his best friend.

"It is no secret that liberal values have guided my life and that I have supported political leaders that share similar values," he told Forbes in April.

"But neither political party has a monopoly on the truth or on constructive ideas for our country. It's important to be open minded and learn from differing opinions."
Penneys is once again closer to their ever ambitious goal of world domination.

Everyone's favourite bargain retailer, which operates under the name Primark outside of Ireland, is celebrating its third anniversary in New York with a suitable aplomb - an open-door party during New York Fashion Week. Since its 2015 launch, the retailer has stores on Staten Island and now in Brooklyn, but opened the doors to its Soho showroom for customers and influencers like for a peek behind the velvet curtain.

Selected looks from yesterday's impromptu in-store fashion show were also put together by Irish stylist Lorna Claire Weightman.

They are one of a handful of forward thinking brands allowing public access during a week which is normally comprised of invite-only affairs, paparazzi and literal parades of supermodels flooding the city. Their American dream is fast becoming a reality as a report by the National Retail Federation's Stores magazine earlier this year declared Primark to be the fastest growing retailer in the US.

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Americans paying their respects on the anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks witnessed a poignant moment as a bald eagle landed on a fire engine involved in a memorial service.

Andover Fire Station Chief Jerry Streich took to Facebook Live to share the remarkable moment, after the American symbol landed on the truck  which was being used to hold up a US flag.

An eagle landing on the Aerial truck during our 9/11 display! Media: Please feel free to share (Not edit) this video. The video was captured by Fire Chief Jerry Streich, Andover Fire Department #ATeam and has gone viral with millions of views on CNN, ABC, NBC, and many more. It has also been placed on the Ellen D list. Share for others to see. To reach Chief J.Streich, contact at 763.767.5192 Posted by Andover Fire Department, MN on Tuesday, September 11, 2018

Look what landed on top of the aerial on 9/11, said Streich in Minnesota. Isnt that unbelievable?

The eagle flew off shortly afterwards, but the remarkable moment has been viewed millions of times on Facebook.
Theresa May could have been forgiven for having flashbacks to her naughtiest childhood moment when she appeared at the despatch box to find herself surrounded by wheat.

The Prime Minister raised eyebrows during last years general election campaign when she told how her most mischievous exploit growing up had been to run through fields of the crop.

Arriving at Prime Ministers Questions, Mrs May found MPs across the House, including Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, had pinned ears of wheat to their tops.

The unusual accessory was adopted by many in a show of support for the Back British Farming campaign to raise awareness about the industry.

Lots of @Conservatives MPs wearing heads of wheat on the benches around @Theresa_May at #PMQs today. Almost makes it look like she's in a field.  James Cleverly (@JamesCleverly) September 12, 2018

But Conservative party deputy chairman James Cleverly could not resist gently teasing the PM about her previous revelation.

He tweeted: Lots of @Conservatives MPs wearing heads of wheat on the benches around @Theresa_May at PMQs today. Almost makes it look like shes in a field.

We are incredibly proud to #BackBritishFarming and show our support for all of the amazing British farmers and producers out there! pic.twitter.com/FbDgpuL1um  NFU Mutual (@nfum) September 12, 2018

The NFU (National Farmers Union) said the campaign was a celebration of our wonderful farmers and all they do to feed the nation.

President Minette Batters said: With only six months to go until we leave the EU, its fantastic to see so many MPs actively supporting the farming industry and helping to put food and farming at the forefront of activity in Westminster.

Food production impacts on every section of society and the NFU is working to ensure all MPs have a thorough understanding of farming and its value to the country, so that farmers are able to continue to produce food which is safe, traceable and affordable to all.

It is vital that the support and commitment shown by politicians today continues after Back British Farming Day, both in their decision-making over the next few months and beyond our departure from the EU.
Russia began its largest war games since the Cold War yesterday, drilling hundreds of thousands of troops alongside forces from its growing ally China.

With 300,000 soldiers, 36,000 vehicles, 1,000 aircraft and 80 ships, the Vostok exercises in eastern Russia will be even bigger than the Zapad training conducted by the Soviet Union in 1981, according to the defence minister.

They will last five days and take place across nine training grounds, the Sea of Japan and the Bering Strait.

It will be a triumphant moment for Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has made the military's modernisation a top priority following its post-Soviet stagnation and highlighted fantastic-sounding new nuclear weapons in his state-of-the-nation speech in March.

Preliminary manoeuvres have involved launching dummy torpedoes at warships in the Sea of Okhotsk and shooting down cruise missiles and drones in Tajikistan.

Coming a week before a summit between the leaders of North and South Korea, the war games will reiterate Moscow's bid to be a major military and diplomatic player in the region. Some are speculating that one of the scenarios to be trained for will involve a nuclear conflict on the Korean peninsula.

Vostok, however, is not only a display of Russia's fighting power, but also a promotion of its warming ties with eastern neighbour and former foe China. President Xi Jinping met with Mr Putin yesterday at the eastern economic forum in Vladivostok. The Russian president is also expected to make an appearance at the Vostok manoeuvres.

Although China has previously joined Russia for drills in the Baltic Sea last year, this is the first time it will participate in Moscow's annual strategic exercises, which practice the management of far-flung forces in a large-scale conflict.

The People's Liberation Army and air force sent 3,200 troops and 30 aircraft to the Tsugol training grounds east of Lake Baikal.

Russia has said it will train methods developed during its military intervention in Syria, giving Chinese forces - which haven't fought in a war since 1979 - a glimpse of real combat skills.

The unprecedented manoeuvres are being seen as a warning to Washington not to further strain relations with Russia or provoke it militarily.

"It's clear that such efforts can be directed at only one country, and that's United States, because they're so massive," said Vasily Kashin, an expert in Russia-China relations at the Higher School of Economics. "At this moment, Russia and China both see the United States as the main potential military adversary."

In light of successive waves of US sanctions against Russia and Donald Trump's trade war with China, America is now the main political adversary for both countries as well.

They have frequently voted together against US resolutions in the UN security council in recent years, and Russia has increasingly sought Chinese credit and investment after being cut off from US financing.

Having overtaken Saudi Arabia as China's largest oil supplier in 2016, Russia is building the Power of Siberia pipeline in hopes of beginning gas deliveries there by the end of next year.

In some ways, Mr Putin's pivot east at the expense of the US looks like a final reversal of Richard Nixon's 1972 rapprochement with China, which was meant to unsettle the USSR. The Kremlin's spokesman said last month the manoeuvres showed the "expansion of co-operation in all spheres between two allies".

While the term may be overstated given Moscow and Beijing's stated aversion to binding alliances, the quickening development of relations could eventually lead to a formal agreement, according to Mr Kashin.

"Every year steps are taken, and that will continue until it reaches its logical conclusion, probably some military pact that has obligations in case war arises," he said.

But independent defence analyst Alexander Golts argued that China's invitation to participate was mainly to allay concerns that these enormous Cold War-style exercises on its border would otherwise raise.

"These manoeuvres aren't just unprecedented for Russia. No one is doing exercises of this size today," he said.

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021]
Retailer Dunelm has blamed management upheaval, a hit from a recent acquisition and difficult trading conditions for its second year in a row of falling profits (PA)

Retailer Dunelm has blamed management upheaval, a hit from a recent acquisition and difficult trading conditions for its second year in a row of falling profits.

The home furnishing group posted a 6.7% fall in underlying pre-tax profits to 102 million for the year to June 30.

Its figures were knocked by an 8.4 million hit from the Worldstores takeover, which it completed in November 2016.

The year under review was complicated by a combination of management changes, the integration of Worldstores and a fragile economic environmentDunelm chairman Andy Harrison

Chairman Andy Harrison admitted the group had let some of our basic retail disciplines slip due to management changes and the distraction of its Worldstores acquisition.

Like-for-like sales rose 4.2%, with stores seeing growth of 1% and online up 37.9%.

Mr Harrison said: The year under review was complicated by a combination of management changes, the integration of Worldstores and a fragile economic environment.

However, the appointment of our new chief executive, Nick Wilkinson, in February brought cohesion and impetus to our strategic thinking and as a board we are pleased with the immediate progress he has achieved.

Shares lifted 3% after the figures. On a reported basis, pre-tax profits rose 0.8% to 93.1 million.

The group has seen shares come under pressure after a series of profit warnings since spring, with falling consumer confidence and challenging trading adding to its woes.

It also endured a shake-up at the top, with Mr Harrison forced to step in last year after former chief executive John Browett stepped down at the end of August for personal reasons after a brief stint in charge.

Recently-appointed boss Mr Wilkinson, who started in February, said the group was acting to shore up profits and boost sales with a further push online, including a new IT system for Dunelm.com.

He said: Following healthy sales growth over the past year, we are now taking steps to simplify the business under the core Dunelm brand, with one web platform and an integrated supply chain. This will allow us to respond more quickly to the changing consumer environment and drive future profitable growth.

He added trading conditions remained difficult but said the group was trading in line with its expectations in the new financial year so far.

Neil Wilson, chief market analyst for Markets.com, said Dunelm was battling against a number of headwinds, including a stalling housing market.

UK retail market remains tough, especially physical stores, whilst the softer property market undoubtedly means people are updating soft furnishings less often, he said.
Undated handout photo issued by Northumbria Police of Alice Ruggles as Lance Corporal Trimaan "Harry" Dhillon, 26, has been convicted of murdering her and leaving her to bleed to death on her bathroom floor in Gateshead last October. Photo credit should read: Northumbria Police/PA Wire

Two police officers will be given further training following an investigation into how they handled complaints from a woman who was subsequently murdered by her jealous ex-boyfriend.

Alice Ruggles, 24, had told Northumbria Police about unwanted contact from Trimaan "Harry" Dhillon, a Scotland-based soldier who made repeated, disturbing visits to her flat in Gateshead after they split.

Expand Close Undated handout photo issued by Northumbria Police of Trimaan "Harry" Dhillon, 26, who has been jailed at Newcastle Crown Court for life with a minimum term of 22 years for murdering his ex-girlfriend Alice Ruggles after he stalked her and then cut her throat. Photo credit should read: Northumbria Police/PA Wire / Facebook

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Whatsapp Undated handout photo issued by Northumbria Police of Trimaan "Harry" Dhillon, 26, who has been jailed at Newcastle Crown Court for life with a minimum term of 22 years for murdering his ex-girlfriend Alice Ruggles after he stalked her and then cut her throat. Photo credit should read: Northumbria Police/PA Wire

He was jailed for life at Newcastle Crown Court in April 2017 after being convicted of stalking his former partner, breaking into her home and cutting her neck open from ear to ear.

After the trial, Northumbria Police conducted an internal review and identified potential misconduct by officers which was referred to the Independent Office of Police Conduct.

The watchdog found that a sergeant and a constable had a case to answer for misconduct and there was evidence of unsatisfactory performance by another constable.

Ms Ruggles had called police and asked for advice from a call handler at 12.40am on October 1 2016, when she reported seeing Dhillon outside her home and was told she could report this as harassment the next day.

The IOPC found details Ms Ruggles gave about her stalker knocking at her door and a text message confirming he had been outside her home were not recorded by the call-handler, who has since left the force.

A Pc visited her on October 2 for two hours and took a statement in which Ms Ruggles said Dhillon left her chocolates and flowers on her bedroom window ledge in the middle of the night and had left a voicemail saying he did not want to kill her.

Dhillon was issued with a police information notice (PIN) for harassment to warn him that he could be arrested if he contacted Ms Ruggles again.

It was arranged for his major at the Edinburgh barracks to issue the PIN, although national guidance was that this should be done by a police officer in person unless in exceptional circumstances.

Ms Ruggles contacted police again on October 7 after he sent her a letter and photos, and it was recorded as a non-emergency breach of a PIN.

She was asked if she wanted him arrested but she said she did not.

The IOPC said guidance states that the decision to arrest a suspect lies with the officer, and they should not ask victims this question.

She was murdered five days later and her body was found by her flatmate.

A sergeant and constable were dealt with via management action in the form of words of advice, and further training to develop their awareness when dealing with stalking and harassment.

IOPC regional director Miranda Biddle said: "Our thoughts have remained with Alice's family during our investigation.

"Their ongoing efforts to highlight the dangers of stalking, via the Alice Ruggles Trust, is testament to their strength and positivity in the face of such a tragic and needless loss."

Assistant Chief Constable Rachel Bacon said: "Since Alice's death it has been recognised nationally that changes need to be made in how police respond to reports of stalking and harassment to ensure officers understand the heightened risks associated with stalking behaviour.

"With the help of Alice's family, who I have to commend for their continuing dignity and determination, significant improvements have been made in the way we deal with these types of offences.

"Their support and input has been vital in developing training that is now being used by other police forces and partners and for that I can't thank them enough."

Her parents Clive Ruggles and Sue Hills said: "We have never wanted this to be turned into a blame game.

"What has to come out of this is that lessons are learned, procedures improved, and training implemented."
Sergei and Yulia Skripal, who were victims of a nerve agent attack in March

Yulia Skripal, contaminated with the nerve agent Novichok along with her father Sergei

Handout photo issued by the Metropolitan Police of Alexander Petrov (left) and Ruslan Boshirov. Metropolitan Police/PA Wire

Russian president Vladimir Putin has escalated the war of words over the Salisbury nerve agent attack by claiming there is nothing criminal about Britains prime suspects.

UK Police and prosecutors last week said Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov had been identified as members of the GRU, Russias military intelligence service.

Authorities believe the pair smeared the highly toxic chemical Novichok on a door handle at the Wiltshire home of former GRU officer Sergei Skripal, leaving he and his daughter Yulia critically ill in March.

The allegations are staunchly denied by the Kremlin and on Wednesday Mr Putin said the men had been discounted as members of his shadowy security network.

In an address to the Easter Economic Forum in Vladivostok, he said: Of course, we looked who these people are. We know who they are, we have found them already.

He added: There is nothing special and nothing criminal about it, Im telling you.

Questioned on whether the pair were civilians, he replied: Of course they are civilians.

The Russian president also made the bizarre move of asking Petrov and Boshirov to appear in public to dispel doubt about their true identity.

I hope that they will emerge (in public) themselves and tell about themselves. It will be better for everyone, he said on Wednesday.

Mr Putins intervention risks widening the gulf between Russia and the UK over the attempted assassination, which triggered a wave of diplomatic expulsions by both sides.

His hint that the men could soon break their cover recalls memories of the assassination of former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko on British soil, when killers Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitry Kovtun publicly refuted the allegations from Russia.

Detectives believe it is likely the two Salisbury suspects, thought to be aged around 40, travelled under aliases and that Petrov and Boshirov are not their real names.

Prosecutors deem it futile to apply to Russia for the extradition of the two men but a European Arrest Warrant has been obtained and the authorities are also seeking the assistance of Interpol.

Officers formally linked the attack on the Skripals to events in nearby Amesbury when Dawn Sturgess, 44, and her partner Charlie Rowley, 45, were exposed to the same nerve agent.

Ms Sturgess died in hospital in July, just over a week after the pair fell ill.

A police officer who visited the home of the Skripals shortly after the attack, Nick Bailey, was also left critically ill from exposure to the substance.
Hurricane Florence has more than 10 million people in its crosshairs as the monster storm closes in on the US East Coast with uncertainty over its projected path spreading worry across a widening swathe of the country.

Faced with new forecasts that showed a more southerly threat, Georgias governor joined his counterparts in Virginia and North and South Carolina in declaring a state of emergency, and some residents who had thought they were safely out of range boarded up their homes.

The National Hurricane Centres best guess was that Florence would blow ashore as early as Friday afternoon around the North Carolina-South Carolina line, then push its rainy way westward with a potential for catastrophic inland flooding.

Florences winds in the afternoon were down to 120mph from a high of 140mph, and the Category 4 storm fell to a Category 3, with a further slow weakening expected as the storm nears the coast.

Based on the latest 11 a.m. forecast for the southward track of Hurricane Florence after making landfall and acting on a recommendation from @GeorgiaEMA officials, I have issued an emergency declaration for all 159 counties in Georgia. Read more here: https://t.co/FmO4iELdYq  Former Gov. Nathan Deal (@GovernorDeal) September 12, 2018

But authorities warned it will still be an extremely dangerous hurricane.

Do you want to get hit with a train or do you want to get hit with a cement truck? said Jeff Byard, an administrator with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Tropical storm-force winds extended 195 miles from Florences centre, and hurricane-force winds reached out 70 miles.

The National Weather Service said 5.25 million people live in areas under hurricane warnings or watches, and 4.9 million live in places covered by tropical storm warnings or watches.

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At the White House, President Donald Trump both touted the governments readiness and urged people to get out of the way of Florence.

Dont play games with it. Its a big one, he said.

As of 5pm, the storm was centred 385 miles southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina, moving northwest at 16mph.

The hurricane centre said Florence will approach the coast on Friday and linger for a while before rolling ashore.

As of Tuesday, more than 1.7 million people in the Carolinas and Virginia were warned to clear out.

Airlines had cancelled nearly 1,000 flights and counting.

Home Depot and Lowes activated emergency response centres to get generators, rubbish bags and bottled water to stores before and after the storm.

The two hardware chains said they sent in a total of around 1,100 vehicles.

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Duke Energy said Florence could knock out electricity to three-quarters of its four million customers in the Carolinas, and outages could last for weeks.

Workers are being brought in from the Midwest and Florida to help in the storms aftermath, it said.

Boarding up his home in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Chris Pennington watched the forecasts and tried to decide when to leave.

In 12 or 18 hours, they may be saying different things all over again, he said.

Computer models of exactly what the storm might do varied, adding to the uncertainty.

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In contrast to the hurricane centres official projection, a highly regarded European model had the storm turning southward off the North Carolina coast and coming ashore near the Georgia-South Carolina line.

Reacting to the possibility of a more southerly track, Georgia governor Nathan Deal declared an emergency but did not immediately order any evacuations.

I ask all Georgians to join me in praying for the safety of our people and all those in the path of Hurricane Florence, Mr Deal said.

The shift in the projected track spread concern to areas that once thought they were relatively safe.

In South Carolina, close to the Georgia line, Beaufort County emergency chief Neil Baxley told residents they need to prepare again for the worst just in case.

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Weve had our lessons. Now it might be time for the exam, he said.

Their entire neighbourhood evacuated in Wilmington, North Carolina, David and Janelle Garrigus planned to ride out Florence at their daughters one-bedroom apartment in Charlotte.

Unsure of what they might find when they return home, the couple went shopping for a recreational vehicle.

Were just trying to plan for the future here, not having a house for an extended period of time, David Garrigus said.

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Melody Rawson evacuated her first-floor apartment in Myrtle Beach and arrived at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia, to camp for free with three other adults, her disabled son, two dogs and a pet bird.

We hope to have something left when we get home, she said.

Forecasters worried the storms damage will be all the worse if it lingers on the coast.

The trend is exceptionally bad news, said University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy, since it smears a landfall out over hundreds of miles of coastline, most notably the storm surge.

With South Carolinas beach towns more in the bulls-eye because of the shifting forecast, Ohio vacationers Chris and Nicole Roland put off their departure from North Myrtle Beach to get the maximum amount of time on the sand. Most other beachgoers were long gone.

Its been really nice, Nicole Roland said. Also, a little creepy. You feel like you should have already left.
Almost two decades have passed since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, but the sign on the wall as you walk into the CIA's Mission Centre for Counterterrorism still reads, "Today is September 12, 2001."

Almost two decades have passed since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, but the sign on the wall as you walk into the CIA's Mission Centre for Counterterrorism still reads, "Today is September 12, 2001."

The sign represents the sense of urgency that the officers who work there still bring to the job of protecting the United States, every day, from terrorism. The effort has been a remarkable success, considering that extremist terrorists have repeatedly attempted to attack the US homeland.

International terrorism is by no means abolished; vigilance is still required. But America is much safer today than it was before 9/11, in no small part because people put their political differences aside in the interest of national security.

That solidarity has been shaken by rising political polarisation in recent years - a dangerous development because, today, the United States faces staggering global security challenges. National unity is essential as the United States responds to myriad threats, including Russia's attempts to weaken it at home and abroad, Iran's military adventurism and support for terrorism, and North Korea's continuing nuclear threat.

Beyond wanting to restore its place as Asia's dominant nation, China is seeking to become the most powerful and influential country in the world. Moreover, its economic success is allowing its authoritarian political system and mixed economic system to become a model for other countries. For the first time in decades, there is a worldwide debate about the best form of government and economic system.

China's People's Liberation Army is on a path to becoming a military power stronger than any the United States has encountered since the days of the Soviet Union. Beijing knows that any contest in Asia between China and an adversary, including the United States, would first be a naval- and air-combat engagement, and the Chinese have prepared accordingly, developing sophisticated capabilities at sea, in the air - and even in space. Beyond its growing military, China makes a particularly challenging adversary because it deploys legitimate economic and diplomatic tactics, such as free-trade agreements and development assistance, and illegitimate ones, such as intellectual property theft, economic coercion and the seizure of contested islands in the South China Sea. The US hasn't yet found a long-term strategy. But the status quo is not an option because, every day, China grows in confidence that it can go its own way. ( Washington Post)
A man helps board up Aussie Island surf shop in Wrightsville, North Carolina yesterday in anticipation of Hurricane Florences high storm surge. Photo: Getty Images

Hurricane Florence is churning towards the US east coast, prompting authorities to order more than a million people to evacuate the path of the extremely dangerous storm, which forecasters said could soon intensify.

Residents scrambled to flee as the category four storm, with winds of 225kmh, approached.

"This is one of the worst storms to hit the east coast in many years," President Donald Trump warned on Twitter. "Please be prepared, be careful and be SAFE!"

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster ordered as many as a million residents of the state's eastern coast to leave their homes ahead of the storm's predicted arrival tomorrow. Schools in 26 of the state's 46 counties were to close from yesterday.

The governor of neighbouring North Carolina ordered an evacuation of the Outer Banks, barrier islands that are a popular tourist destination, and parts of coastal Dare County, while a state of emergency was declared in Virginia.

"This is a very dangerous hurricane," Mr McMaster said, adding that the evacuation order for coastal counties was "mandatory, not voluntary".

"We do not want to risk one South Carolina life in this hurricane," the governor added. "We're liable to have a whole lot of flooding."

Hours later, Mr Trump approved emergency declarations for both coastal states, a move allowing the release of federal funds and equipment to help protection and recovery efforts.

The US president said he had spoken to governors of threatened states, adding that the "federal government stands by, ready to assist 24/7".

Hurricane Florence has the potential to bring catastrophic flooding to areas of the eastern US already soaked by heavy rain and it may be the strongest storm to hit the region in decades.

A category four on the five-level Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale, Florence was 750km south-south-east of Bermuda and the centre of the hurricane was forecast to pass between Bermuda and the Bahamas yesterday and today, the US's National Hurricane Centre (NHC) said.

Forecasters expected some strengthening today, as Florence marches west-north-west at around 13kmh.

The US Navy said it was preparing to send about 30 ships stationed in Virginia out to sea.

At a hardware shop in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, store manager John Johnson said the rush on batteries, torches, plastic tarpaulins and sandbags began late last week.

"From 8am until 2pm we were slammed," said Johnson, who sold scores of bags of sand over the weekend, saving just a few to barricade the store's own doors. "We were non-stop."

Nurse Barbara Mack was using a small shovel to fill sandbags at a public works facility in Charleston, but she saw a silver lining in the hurricane preparations. "This is probably the only exercise I get this week," she said.

Half her supply was going to barricade a basement soup kitchen she manages and the other half was going to protect her own home on nearby Johns Island.

On its current track, Florence is expected to hit the Carolinas and Virginia the hardest, the NHC said.

"Don't concentrate on the exact forecast track of Hurricane Florence," the National Weather Service warned. "Significant effects will extend outside the cone, and will arrive at the coast sooner than the eye."

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam's office predicted "catastrophic inland flooding, high winds and possible widespread power outages", cautioning that the deadliest risk would come from flooding.
U.S. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk with park superintendent Stephen Clark at the Flight 93 National Memorial near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Photo: Reuters

US President Donald Trump marked 17 years since the worst terrorist attack on US soil by visiting the Pennsylvania field that became a September 11 memorial.

Mr Trump and his wife, Melania, were participating in the sombre remembrance in Shanksville, where a California-bound commercial airliner crashed on September 11, 2001, after the 40 passengers and crew members learned what was happening and attempted to regain control of the aircraft. Everyone on board was killed.

Nearly 3,000 people died on 9/11 when other airplanes were flown into New York's World Trade Centre and the Pentagon in an attack planned by al-Qa'ida leader Osama bin Laden. Nearly a decade later, bin Laden was killed in May 2011 during a US military operation ordered by President Barack Obama.

Mr Trump, a New York native making his first visit as president to the Shanksville site, focused on honouring the lives that were lost that day. "Certainly the focus will be on remembering that horrific day and remembering the lives that were lost, and certainly honouring the individuals who were not only lost that day, but also put their lives of the line to help in that process," White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said.

Mr Trump observed the anniversary for the first time as president last year. He and the first lady led a moment of silence at the White House accompanied by administration officials at the exact time that hijackers flew the first of two airplanes into the World Trade Centre's Twin Towers.

Mr Trump was in his Trump Tower penthouse, 6.5km from the World Trade Centre, during the 2001 attacks.

He has a mixed history with September 11, often using the terrorist strikes to praise the response of New Yorkers but also making unsubstantiated claims about what he did and saw that day.
Under fire over his handling of Russian election meddling, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday meant to make U.S. elections more secure by slapping sanctions on any foreigners trying to interfere in the political process.

The order, signed by Trump only eight weeks before congressional elections on Nov. 6, met immediate criticism from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers as too little, too late.

Sanctions could include freezing assets, restricting foreign exchange transactions, limiting access to U.S. financial institutions, and prohibiting U.S. citizens from investing in companies involved, national security adviser John Bolton told reporters.

Bolton said sanctions could be imposed during or after an election, based on evidence gathered. The State and Treasury departments would decide on additional sanctions to recommend and impose, he said.

U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that entities backed by the Kremlin had sought to boost Republican Trump's chances of winning the White House in the 2016 election against his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton. But Trump in July publicly accepted Russian President Vladimir Putin's denials at their joint press conference in Helsinki after a summit meeting.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller and congressional panels are investigating Russian interference, which Moscow denies. Mueller is also looking into any coordination between the Trump campaign and Russian officials. Trump dismisses the investigations as a political witch hunt.

"Today's announcement by the administration recognizes the threat, but does not go far enough to address it," said Republican Senator Marco Rubio and Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen in a joint statement.

The order represents an effort by the administration to look tough on election security before the voting in November, which will decide if Trump's Republicans hold their majorities in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate.

Bolton said criticism of the president's comments in Helsinki and in numerous tweets on the long-simmering issue played "zero" role in driving the issuance of the executive order.

"The president has said repeatedly that he is determined that there not be foreign interference in our political process," Bolton said on a conference call.

The order would direct intelligence agencies to assess whether any people or entities interfered. The information would be provided to the Justice and Homeland Security departments, and then based on their assessment of the validity and impact, trigger automatic sanctions, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats said.

Intelligence agencies would have 45 days to make an assessment. Then the two departments would have 45 days to determine whether action is required, Coats told reporters.

Bolton said the order was necessary to ensure a formal process and authorization for sanctions. He said he was in talks with lawmakers about possible legislation.

Senator Mark Warner, a Democrat who is vice chairman of the intelligence committee, said, "Unfortunately, President Trump demonstrated in Helsinki and elsewhere that he simply cannot be counted upon to stand up to Putin when it matters."

"While the administration has yet to share the full text, an executive order that inevitably leaves the president broad discretion to decide whether to impose tough sanctions against those who attack our democracy is insufficient," Warner said.

DNI Coats said the measure was being put in place as part of government efforts to report on any suspicious activity between now and November's elections and to do a full assessment after the election that would trigger sanctions if necessary.

U.S. lawmakers have introduced various pieces of Russia-related legislation urging punishments for election meddling.

Congress passed a Russia sanctions bill more than a year ago. Some lawmakers have chafed at what they saw as the administration's reluctance to implement it.

Trump signed the bill into law only after Congress passed it with huge majorities. Acting on the law, the Treasury Department has imposed sanctions against 24 Russians, striking at allies of Putin.
North Koreas leader Kim Jong-Un with US President Donald Trump at their historic US-North Korea summit in Singapore this summer. Photo: Reuters

Kim Jong-un, the leader of nuclear-armed North Korea, has written to US President Donald Trump requesting a second meeting, according to the White House.

Sarah Sanders, the president's press secretary, characterised the letter as "very warm" and said talks had started over another summit.

Hopes had begun to wane that Mr Trump's historic meeting with Mr Kim in June had yielded progress on removing North Korea's nuclear threat.

However, Ms Sanders said Mr Trump's approach had already yielded results but said she could offer no specific information about the time or place of a second meeting.

"The primary purpose of the letter was to request and look to schedule another meeting with the president, which we are open to and are already in the process of coordinating," she said. "The recent parade in North Korea for once was not about their nuclear arsenal. The president has achieved tremendous success with his policy so far and this letter was further evidence of progress in that relationship."

American nerves have on edge since North Korea tested an inter-continental ballistic missile suggesting it had the capability of striking US soil.

A string of tests suggested the secretive state had made rapid progress in its weapons technology and, in April, Mr Kim announced his nuclear capability to be "complete".

The two leaders met in June and issued a joint communique reaffirming North Korea's previously stated intention to work towards "complete denuclearisation" -without specifying a timeline or what that might even look like.

On Monday, three US officials told NBC they believed that rather than curtailing its nuclear activity, North Korea had instead begun to conceal its weapons programme, building structures to hide the entrance to at least one warhead storage facility.
Nancy Crampton-Brophy, 68, of Oregon, is suspected of killing her husband Photo: Portland Police Bureau

A romance novelist who penned an essay titled How To Murder Your Husband has been charged with murdering her husband.

Nancy Crampton-Brophy, 68, is the author of pulp-style books including The Wrong Husband and The Wrong Lover whose covers feature dashing and occasionally shirtless men.

Police in Portland, Oregon, said she was arrested last week on suspicion of shooting dead her husband, Daniel Brophy, in June.

Mr Brophy, a chef, was found dead at the Oregon Culinary Institute where he worked.

Authorities have said he was alone at the school when he was discovered by students and staff.

Mr Brophy, 63, had worked at the school since 2006.

Ms Crampton-Brophy announced the death of her husband on Facebook a day after the killing, saying she was struggling to make sense of everything right now.

She was booked into jail on accusations of murder and unlawful use of a firearm.

On her blog, See Jane Publish, Ms Crampton-Brophy wrote a post describing five main motives she could use in stories about women killing their husbands in a novel, as well as a series of murder weapons.

Poison was not a good idea, she wrote, because who wants to hang out with a sick husband?

Nor was paying an assassin, because an amazing number of hitmen rat you out to the police, she wrote, according to The Washington Post.

The author is being held in jail without bail, the paper reported.

Mr Brophys mother, Karen, told the Post: Its a big shock. But were not making any statements.
Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park will host 30-minute artillery demonstrations on Chickamauga Battlefield on Saturday, Sept. 29 at 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m.,1:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. These programs will be presented near the Chickamauga Battlefield Visitor Center.

"Come experience the power and sound of Civil War artillery, as a park ranger and living historians tell the story of Fowlers Battery on the battlefield.

"The battle was something out of a nightmare for the soldiers who experienced it in 1863. The forest was the last place a Civil War battle was supposed to be fought, making it impossible to see, for commanders to lead and, in the case of the artillery, impossible to fight the way they were intended.

"Civil War cannons were weapons of mass destruction, designed to deliver death and destruction over long distances, which proved to be impossible in all but a few situations.

"One of those exceptions was the McDonald Farm where, on the afternoon of Sept. 20, Captain William Fowlers Alabama Battery went into action as the final hours of the battle ticked away.

"Chickamauga is largely a soldiers story, and we invite you to learn about the story of Captain Fowler, his men and what they did here 155 years ago," officials said.



For more information about upcoming programs at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, contact the Lookout Mountain Visitor Center at 423- 821-7786 or the Chickamauga Battlefield Visitor Center at 706-866-9241, x123.
Pope Francis has faced criticism over the cover-up of sex abuse by priests (Alessandra Tarantino/AP)

Pope Francis is summoning leading bishops from around the world for a February summit to discuss how to prevent sexual abuse by priests.

The summit involving the presidents of every bishops conference was announced a day before Francis meets US church leaders hit by fresh accusations over the cover-up of sex abuse in the Catholic Church.

The February 21-24 meeting at the Vatican is believed to be the first of its kind, and signals a realisation at the highest levels of the church that clergy sex abuse is a global problem.

Earlier this year, Francis faced what was then the worst crisis of his papacy when he repeatedly discredited victims of a notorious Chilean predator priest.

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He eventually admitted to grave errors in judgment and has taken steps to make amends, sanction guilty bishops and reform the Chilean episcopacy.

More recently, Franciss papacy has been jolted by accusations from a retired Vatican ambassador that he rehabilitated a top American cardinal from sanctions imposed by Pope Benedict XVI for having molested and harassed adult seminarians.

The Vatican has not responded to the accusations by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano but has promised clarifications that presumably will come some time after Franciss meeting on Thursday with the US delegation.

The Vatican said the meeting would be headed by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, head of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, and also include Franciss top sex abuse adviser, Cardinal Sean OMalley.

Mr Di Nardo has said he wants Francis to authorise a Vatican investigation into ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who was removed as cardinal in July after a credible accusation that he groped a teenager.

The Vatican has known since at least 2000 that McCarrick would invite seminarians to his New Jersey beach house and into his bed.

St John Paul II made him archbishop of Washington and a cardinal in 2001, presumably because Vatican officials were impressed by his fundraising prowess and considered his past homosexual activity a mere moral lapse and not a gross abuse of power.

Mr DiNardo has said recent accusations that top Vatican officials  including the current pope  have covered up for McCarrick since 2000 deserve answers.
A Russian soldier stands in front of a radar deployed in a forest during the military exercises (Sergei Grits/AP)

Moscow and Beijing plan to conduct regular joint war games similar to massive ones being held this week, Russias defence minister said.

Sergei Shoigu and his Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe have visited the Tsugol firing range in eastern Siberia where nearly 300,000 Russian troops and about 3,200 Chinese troops are participating in joint exercises.

The week-long Vostok (East) 2018 manoeuvres launched on Tuesday span vast expanses of Siberia and the Far East, the Arctic and the Pacific Oceans.

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They involve 1,000 Russian aircraft and 36,000 tanks.

China sent 900 combat vehicles and 30 aircraft to join the drills at Tsugol.

The deployment reflects its shift towards a fully-fledged military alliance with Russia amid tensions with the United States. Mongolia has also sent a military contingent.
Actors Rajkummar Rao and Boman Irani on Tuesday started shooting for "Made In China", which is being directed by Mikhil Musale whose "Wrong Side Raju" bagged the National Award for Best Feature Film in Gujarati.

"A new beginning. 'Made In China' starts filming today. Mark the date, releases on August 15, 2019," Rajkummar tweeted.

His co-star Boman also tweeted the commencement of the film's shooting.

The upcoming film is a hilarious take on a struggling Gujarati businessman and the bizarre journey he undertakes to become a successful entrepreneur.

It also stars Mouni Roy. It is being produced by Dinesh Vijan under the banner of Maddock Films.




Protecting heritage is a human right

The Conversation

Technological advancements in archaeology in recent decades have produced amazing insights into the lives of ancient peoples. These range from uncovering lost Mayan cites in Guatemala to identifying Neandertal-Denisovan offspring to recovering early Native American DNA.

Discoveries continue to reveal unexpected details about our shared human past. But the new information also brings new responsibilities and concerns about the political, ethical and social dimensions of archaeological research and heritage management. This is especially true for Indigenous peoples for whom heritage is about more than objects of scientific study or items to preserve in museum displays.

Western ways of thinking about heritage seek universal truths about human behaviour and tend to focus on the material manifestations of the past. Indigenous conceptions of heritage, in contrast, are inclusive and include not only objects and places, but also customs, practices, relationships, stories, songs and designs. These are passed between generations and contribute to a persons or groups identity, history, worldview and well-being.

One Yukon elder defined heritage this way: It is everything that makes us who we are.

Indigenous perspectives of heritage have become widely known over the past 30 years, and are being integrated into research projects and management practices. In some cases, divisive relationships between Indigenous and Native American communities and archaeologists, (sometimes labelled grave robbers), have been transformed into collaborative, mutually beneficial relationships.

Read more: It's taken thousands of years, but Western science is finally catching up to Traditional Knowledge

More importantly, a growing number of Indigenous archaeologists and anthropologists are discovering, interpreting and protecting their own ancestral sites. And there is a growing recognition of the legitimacy of Indigenous traditional knowledge. For example, the Nyungar Cultural Rangers program in Western Australia is a community-driven program, in which Indigenous men and women train others in the traditional ways of caring for their own lands.

Despite these incremental changes, Indigenous peoples continue to press for meaningful engagement with those controlling their heritage. Current policies in settler countries like Australia, Canada and the United States still provide only limited room for Indigenous input into decision-making on issues of heritage.

The influence of economic development

Development projects are claiming ancestral sites at alarming rates. This ineffective protection of Indigenous heritage is a violation of human rights, while the continued destruction of ancient sites, burial grounds and sacred places can be considered a form of violence.

While heritage is essential to all peoples, Indigenous peoples in colonized lands have historically had the least control over theirs. State-controlled heritage policies are a source of regular conflict, with substantial social, political and economic consequences.

Read more: Threats to Bears Ears and other Indigenous sacred sites are a violation of human rights

Fundamental differences in how heritage is valued raise tremendous challenges to establishing respectful, ethical and effective policies to protect objects, practices and places of local significance.

In the U.S., there is extensive federal legislation, but archaeological sites on private land receive little protection. This is not the case in Canada, where most heritage legislation is provincial but no less problematic.

Economic pressures strongly influence heritage policies. Today, heritage site protection is largely the domain of professional cultural resource management, a $1-billion-a-year industry. Some critics say this profession helps commercial projects comply with heritage laws and effectively facilitates development more than it protects heritage.

Furthermore, protecting heritage sites may pit Indigenous peoples against private landowners and other interest groups.

In British Columbia, private landowners wishing to build are responsible for the cost of archaeological testing, as required by provincial legislation, raising loud complaints about protecting a bunch of stones and bones.

At the same time, the public sees tax dollars being spent to rectify poor, ad hoc decisions regarding heritage preservation, for example, when threatened Indigenous burial grounds or sacred sites, such as Grace Islet in B.C., slated for destruction and development, are eventually purchased by the province.

In South Dakota in 2016, the Standing Rock Sioux tribe led the resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline not only over lack of adequate consultation, but also failure to recognize the impact of the pipeline on the cultural, spiritual and environmental dimensions of the land and water.

Grace Islet in British Columbia is the home to a sacred burial ground. Photo: Stephen Hinde

Ancestors vs. scientific specimens

The unequal protection under the law for settler vs. Indigenous human remains is especially problematic, with the latter often considered to be scientific specimens.

In B.C., human remains dating before 1846 (the date of Confederation)  predominantly ancestral First Nations  are considered part of the archaeological record, which is protected by the Heritage Conservation Act. Those dating after 1846  predominantly white  are protected under the much stronger Cemeteries Act.

Not surprisingly, it has proven very difficult to redress the types of inequalities faced by Indigenous peoples because of Western notions of heritage and the guiding principle of stewardship. There is a lack of neutrality, with heritage management policies operating from a privileged, largely Western-centric position.

There is now some accommodation of Indigenous knowledge, but with limited credence given to oral histories, except when it concurs with archaeological sources. Some scientists have concerns of relinquishing any significant control over decisions about archaeological projects and policy development  lest the integrity of the archaeological record be diminished.

These concerns include fear of an anything goes non-scientific approach to heritage. The idea is that if we protect Indigenous heritage we will only operate from a stance of political correctness and will no longer engage in science. Yet this is challenged by recent studies that demonstrate the complementarity of Western science and Traditional Knowledge.

Andrew McGregor on YouTube: Nyungar Cultural Rangers - Caring for Country

Working together

Despite these hurdles, there is increasing acknowledgement worldwide that protection of everyones heritage needs to be a fundamental human right.

Government agencies and NGOs are increasingly joining with universities and Indigenous organizations to develop solutions. Protecting Indigenous cultural heritage is more than an issue of academic interest, however.

We urgently need a set of practical guidelines for addressing and preventing heritage loss by Indigenous peoples.

Significant strides have been made. The United Nations adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in 2007. In Australia, the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation was established in 2001.

Canadas Truth and Reconciliation Commission was created in 2008. The U.S. established its commission in 1998 but with a much broader mandate and has yet to address specific Native American concerns.

It is another matter to transition these ideas from theory to practice to policy. There is uncertainty about what the acceptance of UNDRIP means and what the steps are for implementation, especially for Canada, the U.S. and New Zealand, the three countries that initially voted against it.

Only months after Canada officially removed its objector status to the UNDRIP Declaration, Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould said, while speaking to the Assembly of First Nations, that its adaptation into Canadian law was unworkable. In the U.S., there is much uncertainty about what will happen under the Trump administration.

The various initiatives launched in recent years offer at least nominal restitution for past harms suffered by Indigenous peoples, including the loss of land, language, cultural traditions and sovereignty due to colonialism.

But no matter how well-meaning sorry may be, reconciliation needs to involve changing how things are done. That change must extend to how heritage sites, especially burial grounds and sacred sites, are protected.

A totem in Duncan, British Columbia. Photo: Russell McNeil

Being hopeful, not fearful

The passage of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act in the U.S. in 1990 sent shock waves through the discipline of archaeology, but the world did not end as some archaeologists feared.

Instead it has contributed to new and productive relationships with Native Americans. It created opportunities for scientific research on the ancestors that has revealed their life histories, as well as connections between past and present-day communities.

Some Indigenous Elders believe the ancestors let themselves be found so they can teach todays Native youth about their history.

Herb Joe, a member of the Sto:lo House of Respect Caretaking Committee, said:

What comes to mind for me is the gift of knowledge [and] awareness that is happening for us [in working] with the ancestors. The amount of knowledge that were acquiring and will continue to acquire with the DNA samples and all that, thats going to be a gift to the Sto:lo people  our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, theyre going to be healthier people with the gift of this knowledge about who they are and where they came from.

There can be no argument that colonialism robbed First Nations of much of their heritage. As a society today, we must support the restoration and protection of their cultural heritage beyond lip service.

George Nicholas is Professor of Archaeology at Simon Fraser University. He has received funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council to support the research conducted by the Intellectual Property Issues in Cultural Heritage (IPinCH) project (2008-2016).

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Timing is everything or so they say in life, right? Well, your internal body clock (circadian rhythm), controls a whole lot of functions in your body, like when you feel sleepy to when you feel hungry to when you feel the most productive in the day.

The fact that it plays such a vital role in your life makes your internal body clock a critical part of your health and well-being.

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In fact, if it is disturbed for prolonged periods of time it can lead to diseases such as diabetes, heart issues and mental ailments.

Thats why understanding how ones internal body clock works can help people customize medications and a health and lifestyle one needs to follow. The predictions made using these learnings can help identify and track the risk of diseases.

The problem is that the current methods available are time to consume, not comprehensive, expensive and inaccessible to most people at this point. For most people even understanding the relevance of their internal body clock is a struggle, let alone trying to get it evaluated.

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Fortunately, a simple blood test may now be able to measure a persons internal body clock, according to a recent study.

A team of researchers at Northwestern University said Monday they have designed a blood test that can measure a person's inner body clock within 1.5 hours, an advance that may help personalize medical treatments in the future.

Three US geneticists won the Nobel Prize for Medicine last year for discovering the molecules that drive the process. And a study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer-reviewed US journal.

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The study revealed that the scientists were able to identify if a persons body clock was off by up to two hours.

The algorithm developed by the scientist was able to reveal patterns in the people they studied. "What the algorithm told us, is that there were a small set of about 40 markers that could predict the time of day with great accuracy," said Braun.

This biological clock regulates "all sorts of biological processes, when you feel sleepy, when you feel hungry, when your immune system is active, when your blood pressure is high, when your body temp changes," said lead author Rosemary Braun, assistant professor of biostatistics at Northwestern University.

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When the clock is not regulated properly, research has shown a link to diseases like Alzheimer's, heart problems and diabetes.

Importantly, the scientists only need to take two blood draws to have enough information to decipher a person's body clock.

It opens a "whole range of possibilities in terms of investigating how precisely the circadian clock is related to all sorts of health outcomes," she said.

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The circadian rhythm governs all cells in the body and is a burgeoning field of research. There is more research needed, however before the study can be made widely available.
Just a few months ago The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare had informed the Delhi High Court that its going ahead with the process of formally banning e-cigarettes as the nicotine can be addictive and cause a plethora of diseases.

Now the ministry has asked states to ban all forms of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS), including e-cigarettes, Vape, e-Sheesha, e-Hookah etc.

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This was done in a move to protect health risks to children, adolescents and women of reproductive age.

As such, the states/Union Territories are advised, in larger public health interest and in order to prevent the initiation of ENDS by non-smokers and youth with special attention to vulnerable groups, to ensure that any Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) including e-Cigarettes, Heat-Not-Burn devices, Vape, e-Sheesha, e-Nicotine Flavoured Hookah, and the like devices that enable nicotine delivery are not sold (including online sale), manufactured, distributed, traded, imported and advertised in their jurisdictions, except for the purpose & in the manner and to the extent, as may be approved under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Rules made thereunder, the ministry said in an advisory issued to all states on Tuesday.

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The move comes in the wake of the Delhi HC recently taking strong exception to the Centre for the delay in coming up with regulatory measures to tackle the new emerging threat of e-cigarettes in the country.

Studies say ENDS have cancer-causing properties, are highly addictive and do not offer a safer alternative to tobacco-based products. Experts say e-cigarettes are just a mechanism to deliver nicotine in an attractive format.

The World Health Organization (WHO) in August called for stiff regulation of e-cigarettes as well as bans on indoor use, in the latest bid to control the booming $3 billion global market.

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Such devices use battery-powered cartridges to produce a nicotine-laced vapour but there is a lack of long-term scientific research that confirms they are safe. Some critics fear they could lead to nicotine addiction and tobacco smoking.

"We see it as a backdoor entry, it doesn't have tobacco, but it has nicotine," said the official, who declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter.

"Expert panels have recommended regulation or a ban. India cannot regulate easily," the official added, saying that the government would consider the ban in the next month or two.

Up to 900,000 Indians die every year from tobacco-related diseases, and that number could reach 1.5 million by 2020 if users do not kick the habit, the International Tobacco Control Project estimates.

AFP

In lieu of this fact, the Modi government is taking several steps to curb India's tobacco consumption. It has increased taxes on tobacco products and ordered companies to print more health warnings on packages.

India has also proposed a ban on the sale of single conventional cigarettes in the past.

Indians smoked more than 100 billion cigarettes in 2012, according to Euromonitor International, and it is common for vendors to sell them individually.

AP

The WHO's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control states that countries "shall endeavour" to prohibit such sales as it makes them more affordable for minors. India is a party to the convention.

The Tobacco Institute of India (TII), an industry body, said the proposed law would not be easily enforceable and would lead to retailers being harassed.
In the era of social media, creativity is all we hunt for and it is everywhere. From posts to tweets - the wittiest of the lot drive home the underlying messages the best.

It has become an undeniable fact that Mumbai Police's Twitter account is by far the quirkiest, most creative and fun handles on the platform. They have the knack of driving home their point in a way that makes people smile. With the increasing cases around cyber attacks and cyberbullying, they put out something on the subject. Needless to say, they nailed it.

This is not the first time that Mumbai police tried to give away the message in the most creative way and here are a few examples:

When they spoke about personal safety

Section 336, Indian Penal Code: Act endangering life or personal safety of others #IfItWasntForReel pic.twitter.com/phJ10hDFsc  Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) January 18, 2018

When they talked about quitting drugs:

Quit before its too late for you to say, I wish the ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened. #BookOfLaw pic.twitter.com/IfqcjamP9b  Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) March 21, 2018

It's important to stay safe:

We are very taken with friends such as these! #SafetyFirst pic.twitter.com/0BYplw3xYm  Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) March 5, 2018

It is very easy to hide behind your screens and abuse someone. If you do not like something and if it is not morally incorrect, you can always just scroll past it. Before you leave a nasty comment or send an inappropriate message, ask yourself "Would I say this to his/her face?"
Let me give you a riddle that once my friend asked me to solve but I couldnt.

A police officer was walking outside a restaurant, he heard someone yell, No, Ramesh, not the gun, followed by a gunshot. He immediately ran inside and found a milkman, a doctor, a lawyer and a dead body. The police officer arrested the milkman. How did he know the milkman did it?

If you are wondering whats the answer, fret not. Youll find it towards the end of this article. Until then, let me take you through the bizarre phenomenon of gendered language.

What is gendered language?

Gendered language is a language that has a bias towards a particular sex or a social gender. Chances are you are still clueless with this one line definition of a term youve probably never heard before. Here are some examples: Mankind, manpower, manmade. Do you notice the word man in each of these words, specifying and focusing only on one of the many genders that exist in our society? If yes, youre getting the drift.

Irrelevant Project

We live in a patriarchal society with roots so deep, it becomes tough to notice the things we dont even realise are problematic. Gendered language has been a concern since 1970s and still more than 90 per cent of Indians havent even heard of it. UNESCOs guidelines on gender-neutral language came into existence in 1999 and it took almost 30 years for feminists to bring that change. But as it turns out, not much has changed 18 years post the release of these guidelines. Were still stuck with using traditional gender-biased vocabulary and its high time we take notice of it.

Here are a few common examples:

Gendered Nouns and Professions

Freshman, chairman, mailman, businessman, spokesman are examples of gendered nouns that can be easily replaced with words like first year student, chairperson, postal worker, spokesperson, respectively. Whereas, there are certain professions that have gender associated to them. For example a teacher is not always a female. Similarly, a nurse is not always a female. Terms like male nanny are against gender-neutral language too and shouldnt be used. A pilot, an engineer, a doctor or a lawyer doesnt necessarily have be a man.

Cameron Airen

Titles

Even though, we found a way out in terms of gendered language when it comes to titles, there are still people whod ask if a woman is Miss or Mrs in order to understand her marital status. Whereas, when it comes to men, its always Mr irrespective of their marital status. A simple alternative when addressing or referring to a woman is Ms (which doesnt indicate marital status) and should be followed universally.

Pronouns

Masculine pronouns like he, him or his are commonly used to refer a general statement that doesnt involve one particular gender and thats whats wrong. Example: Mans search for knowledge has led him to improve scientific methodology. Technically, this sentence means that only Mans search has led the change and the use of the pronoun him further emphasises on this gendered biased statement. It is not inclusive of women and is highly misleading. Instead, if we just say, The search for knowledge has led us to improve scientific methodology, wouldnt it make more sense? Think about it.

pintrest

Phrases

Have you ever watched a movie where a couple is getting married at a church and its all romantic? I am sure you must have. Well, I love watching such romantic, mushy movie scenes too, except when one day I noticed something completely gender-biased. Its when the priest says, You may now kiss the bride. It made me question, who gave the right to the priest and the groom to kiss the bride? Why cant he just say You may now kiss each other?

You see, its these tiny, everyday nouns, pronouns, titles and phrases we use that combine to become gendered language.

We Cant Have Gender Equality If We Still Use Gendered Language

At no cost can we achieve utmost gender equality, if we are still using gendered language. If we cant respect and treat all genders equally in the language we are using, how on earth do you think well be more inclusive of all genders in our everyday lives and activities? Almost never.

Casey Miller and Kate Swift, Writers, Editors and Feminists, back in 1977 wrote in their book Words and Women, In any social movement, when changes are effected, the language sooner or later reflects the change. Our approach is different. We are changing language patterns to actively effect changes. Clearly, that language pattern still persists.

The Ivory Bower

We need to become more aware about what we say on a daily basis, how we communicate with our peers and even our children. We need to understand that demeaning any gender by not including them in our language is pushing that genders contribution and role in the society, down the drain. Using gendered language defeats the purpose of creating a respectable and equal place in society for all other genders. Language is how we express ourselves and in order to encourage inclusivity of all genders, we should perpetuate and practice gender-neutral language.

I am consciously making an effort towards eradicating gendered language, are you?

P.S. - The milkman was the only man in the restaurant and since the police officer heard the word, Ramesh, he realised it was a mans name and so he arrested the milkman. The doctor and the lawyer were females.
Just weeks ago, Kerala was battling the worst floods in the century in the state. Now, it is battling dry spell. Drying groundwater has now become a cause of concern for the state.

Kerala has received hardly any rain since the beginning of this month. According to a report by Indian Express, Weekly rainfall for the whole of Kerala from August 30 to September 5 was a mere 7.9 mm as against 56 mm, the normal figure during the same period. Although Kerala has got 33 per cent excess rainfall in the three months of monsoon, there is a deficiency of 86 per cent in the first week of September.

afp

IMD, Thiruvananthapuram, director S Sudevan told Indian Express that rain would only pick up in the state after September 17.

Due to no rain, the temperature has increased in Kerala.

However, the dry spell is not limited to Kerala alone. Other parts of the country except for the north-eastern region and some parts of north India are witnessing a dry spell.

Reuters

There is an unusual fall in the groundwater level in wells even in the flood-hit areas.

The water department has received complaints from villages where groundwater has gone down following floods.
In yet another case of mob justice, a 20-year-old man, believed to be a thief, was battered to death by a group of people after he allegedly tried to loot over Rs 24 lakh from a railway employee in Bihars Rohtas district.

One of the two staff members of Sasaram railway station was assaulted by robbers. Police said Booking Assistant Ashok Singh had gone to bank to deposit the amount collected from the sale of tickets at Sasaram station. Three men came on motorcycle and tried to snatch the bag containing Rs 24.78 lakh. When he resisted, one of the snatchers beat him up while one of his associates opened fire to scare away people. However, the bullet hit a woman.

This angered people at the scene and sensing danger, two of the three men fled the scene. One was captured by people. The snatcher was beaten up by people. He was later admitted to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

In a spate of mob lynching incidents, six people have been killed so far in five days in Bihar.

AFP/ Representational Image





On September 9, 24-year-old Rupesh Jha was lynched by a mob following allegation of a pick-up van driver that he tried to steal money from him. Jha was assaulted by a group of villagers near Ramnagra village in the Riga police station area in Sitamarhi district.

He was admitted to a hospital and later shifted to Patna Medical College and Hospital. He died there a day later.

The Bihar Police have registered an FIR against 150 people in the case.

On September 7, three suspected kidnappers were beaten to death in Bihars Begusarai district. The three lynched persons were allegedly looking for a school girl with a motive to kidnap her when the mob took justice in their own hands and attacked them, eventually leading to their death.

Bihar Police claimed that the lynching took place in the presence of 5,000 people.

According to a report by News 18, an elderly woman was also beaten to death in Sasaram for practising witchcraft.

The Supreme Court has condemned the incidents of lynching and mob violence asking the Parliament to pass law stabling lynching as a separate offence with punishment.

The apex court, in a list of directives, added that Central and the state governments should broadcast on radio and television and other media platforms including the official websites that lynching and mob violence shall invite serious consequence.

The spate of lynchings and emboldening of mobs is a law and order issue which much be addressed quickly.
In what could be a new twist in the tale of fugitive Vijay Mallya's extradition case, the liquor baron has told the media that he was offered a settlement by home minister Arun Jaitley.

"I met the Finance Minster before I left," Mallya claimed outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court, where his extradition case is being heard.

When Mallya left India in March 2016, Arun Jaitley was holding the post of Union Finance Minister.

Meanwhile, the finance minister, Mr Arun Jaitley, has reportedly denied any scheduled meeting with Mallya ever since he has been a finance minister.

To a reporter's question that if somebody tipped him off, Mallya said: "I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks."

Mallya is sought by India for allegedly defaulting on bank loans to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore.

There could be an enormous political uproar to the claims made by Mallya as the government's claim of bringing him back will be questioned by the opposition parties and the people alike.
The Indian Army troops used leopards urine and faeces to throw off dogs while carrying out surgical strikes, 15 km inside Pakistan territory in 2016, former Nagrota Corps commander Lt Gen Rajendra Nimborkar said on Tuesday.

The city-based Thorle Bajirao Peshwe Pratishthan awarded Nimborkar for his contribution to the strikes. The award was given away by former chief minister Manohar Joshi who was chief guest.

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Nimborkar, who served as brigade commander in Nowshera sector, had studied the biodiversity of the area minutely. While in the sector, we had experienced that leopards often attack dogs in the areas. To save themselves from the attack, dogs prefer to stay in the locality during night, Nimborkar told TOI.

While devising the operational strategy, we were aware about possible dogs barking and attacking while crossing villages on the route. To counter it, our troops carried leopards urine and faeces. They used to spray it outside the village. This worked well and the dogs left them alone, he said.

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Nimborkar said the Army had maintained highest secrecy. Then defence minister Manohar Parrikar had told us to execute the operation in a week. I had discussed this with our troops a week in advance but didnt reveal the exact location. They came to know about it a day prior to the attack, he said.

To execute the operation, Lt Gen Nimborkar said, we had chosen early morning. We had identified the terrorists launch pads. We had studied their timings and got to know that 3.30am was perfect to attack. Before that, our troops had to reach a safe location. They had successfully crossed difficult terrains and mine fields. They destroyed three pads and killed 29 terrorists, he said.

Post operation, Nimborkar said the surprise factor had stunned the Pakistan armys military leaders.
A consumer court has directed an airline to pay a compensation of Rs 65,000 to a passenger for serving him non-vegetarian food though he had ordered a vegetarian meal.

The passenger, Banuprasad Jani of Rajkot, had sued Jet Airways for making him  a pure janeu-dhari Brahmin  eat non-vegetarian food. He affirmed that he had never tasted even eggs in his life.

Accepting Janis contention that serving non-vegetarian food to him was unfair trade practice, the Rajkot District Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum last week ordered the airlines to pay him compensation. Mental agony, harassment, and legal expenditure have also been factored into the compensation.

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Jani was flying from Chennai to Mumbai on his way home to Rajkot on August 20, 2016. He had ordered Asian vegetarian meal, but was served non-vegetarian food. He said that he ate some of it, fell sick, and vomited. He took photographs and videos of the food item and the events that followed on the flight.

Jani sued the airline for Rs 7.25 lakh compensation. He told TOI, Since I have never eaten non-vegetarian food, I cannot say whether they had served me chicken or mutton.

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The airline contended that Jani had ordered Asian vegetarian meal first, but later changed his order. The airline said the food packet delivered to him had the non-veg label. It also said that the photographs taken by Jani showed that he had not eaten anything from the packet.

Janis advocate insisted on compensation for the troubles caused to the passenger. He said Jani even had a quarrel with his wife after the incident later in the day. The court rejected the airlines defence and ordered it to pay Rs 50,000 for unfair trade practice, Rs 10,000 for mental harassment, and Rs 5,000 for legal expenditure.
Mob lynching incidents related to cow vigilantism do not seem to stop anytime soon. While Prime Minister Narendra Modi has earlier condemned cow vigilantism, he once again clarified that such incidents will not be tolerated.

In an interview to The Times Of India, PM Modi said that it is extremely disheartening to hear about such incidents taking place on a regular basis.

Even if one incident occurs in the country, it is very sad and needs to be condemned in the strongest voice. My government is committed to upholding the rule of law and protecting the life and liberty of every citizen. Let there be no shade of doubt on this account, Modi said.

According to the report by IndiaSpend, 61 mob attacks have taken place sparked by rumours of child lifting circulated on social media since the beginning of this year.

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In 2018 so far, 24 people have been killed such mob attacks. In all the cases, victims were assaulted on mere suspicion and no evidence of child lifting was found.

Numerous killings by Gau Rakshaks have been registered across the country. According to IndiaSpend, cow-related mass violence has amplified manifold  97 per cent of the attacks since 2010 took place after BJPs ascent to power in 2014. The self-proclaimed cow vigilantes are committing these crimes on the pretext of safeguarding Hindu values.

Modi said that the government has issued very clear advisories to states on this issue. I want to make it clear that mob lynching is a crime, no matter what the motive. Mo person can, under any circumstances, take the law into his or her own hands and commit violence, he added.

Reuters

He added that the state governments need to adopt effective measures to prevent mob violence, protect innocent citizens irrespective of caste, creed, place, time and religion and take quick action as per the law.

I also expect that everyone  society, people at large, government and government functionaries and political parties  have a duty to fight this menace, he asserted.

The government has set up a high-level committee chaired by the Union Home Secretary to deliberate in the matter and make recommendations.
Provoked by villagers, a heavily drunk man in UPs Amroha district ate a live snake he found alongside road. After reaching home, the 40-year-old man, identified as Mahipal Singh, fell ill and died four hours later due to poisoning. A video of him playing with the snake has gone viral on social media groups.

According to local residents, Singh, a labourer, was heavily drunk when he spotted a small snake alongside the road and picked it up. Meanwhile, a few locals gathered at the spot and started provoking him to play with the snake as they recorded the incident on their mobile phones.

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Encouraged by the attention, Singh picked up the snake and hid it in his fists and put it on his head. At this juncture, somebody asked him to put it in his mouth, which he did.

Even before he could realize what was happening, the snake slipped from his hands and made its way down his trachea. He felt sick and began to vomit but the snake didnt come out, a local said.

He was rushed to a local hospital but died four hours later. He is survived by his wife, a son and three daughters.

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Rajbpura kotwali station house officer Dharmendra Singh said, We have taken note of the incident and are trying to verify the viral video where the man is seen making mischief with the snake. We are trying to ascertain if he was provoked or not. His family has not approached us so far.
The European Union today voted on a copyright reform law, for the second time in the past few months. Unfortunately, members of the European Parliament this time voted in favour of some very controversial articles that could change how we use the Internet.

The Copyright Directive, as its called, was first suggested back in 2016, to update copyright protection for issues faced in the digital age. Unfortunately, Article 11 and 13 of the just-approved law are divisive to say the least, with many calling their approval catastrophic.

Article 11, also called a link tax is supposedly aimed at helping publishing houses. According to this, platforms like Google and Facebook would have to pay media companies to be able to link to their content on their sites. Not only is this kind of tax a stupid idea thats been tried and failed before with Google News, it also opens up the floodgates for copyright trolls.

Article 13 meanwhile is also called the upload filter, because thats exactly what it entails. It basically directs sites to proactively fight content on their platforms that violate copyrights. The only way to do this would be to scan all content directed for upload. Not only would this put an intense burden on the infrastructure of smaller websites, its also just asking to be abused as a censorship tool.

After all, if every YouTube video, Facebook post, meme, or blog you want to upload is going to be monitored first, its not a big step to have governments co-opt that to blanket ban certain keywords or sentiments on frivolous grounds.

Obviously, these parts of the bill have met with strict opposition from digital rights activists, computer scientists, researchers and more, but to no avail. At least, the timeline of events have been confusing. After being narrowly passed by the EU parliament's legal affairs committee in June, the parliament itself rejected it a month later. Now, that same parliament has voted a second time and approved it.

And the voting isnt technically done yet. The bill will, after further discussion between politicians and EU members, go into vote again in January. But if Article 11 and 13 make it through that final approval, theres no telling how it could affect the rest of the world. Come 2019, the Internet could look like a very different place.
Andrew Wardle, now 44-years-old, was born with bladder exstrophy. To move past the medical jargon, he was born without a penis.

Only recently, he underwent surgery at the United College Hospital London to get a penis surgically implanted on his body. The surgery cost him a good  50,000 (Rs 4690046). To recover from the surgery, he had to wait for six weeks before he could actually make use of his new organ.

Since this was a pretty big occasion that marks a milestone in one's life, Wardle and his girlfriend, 28-year-old Fedra Fabian, decided to go to Amsterdam for a romantic time.

This Morning

Talking about his lovely and romantic vacation, he told The Sun "I'm so pleased with it. It's fantastic. Fedra had booked a romantic trip to Amsterdam for my birthday, but I felt that would have been too much pressure. I had to test out the function every morning and night and leave it erect for 20 minutes. So one morning, two days before we went away, it just happened. It was nice and natural - and that's how I wanted it to be. After what Fedra and I have been through, it's the cherry on the cake."

My Medical Mantra

His supportive girlfriend added that "It was a celebration of our love. His penis looks normal, it's just operated a little bit differently. When you say Andrew lost his virginity, that's not really the case because you think of someone who doesn't know what they're doing. Andrew knew what he was doing. It's fantastic - no need to worry about Viagra or getting old. He can do it when he's drunk too!"

"Sex isn't the only way to have pleasure. We'd done everything else we were able to. But there was always a point where we had to stop. Now we have that freedom to carry on - it's taken our relationship to a different level."

someecards

The bionic penis is attached to Andrew's testicles which means that it might be possible for the couple to have kids in the future even though Andrew hasn't gotten his fertility tested as of now.
Aircraft carriers are floating runways that are used to project firepower and dominate the whole spectrum of conflict. With arsenal including fighter jets, missiles and bombs, an aircraft carrier can tilt the scales in favour of those who have one in the armada. Only a handful of countries operate these sea faring fortresses, including India.

Reuters

But the country that has stolen everyones thunder is the United Kingdom. The Royal Navys flagship  aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth, a 65,000-tonne machine that will have a flying component made up of F-35 stealth fighter  has something that no other aircraft carrier can claim to have  a pub! Yes, thats no typo - one of the worlds deadliest ships has a pub on-board.

Youtube

The pub is named Queens Head and boasts of a portrait of Queen Elizabeth I. Apt, since the ship has been named after the last Tudor monarch who ruled during the sixteenth century. Theres a select range of ales on offer in the pub. These include the award winning 6X Ale, Swordfish Ale (a blend of beer and navy rum) and Carrier Ale (designed for the aircraft carriers 2017 commissioning).

With 1,600 personnel on-board, the pub will be a busy place no doubt.
LGBTIQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/transsexual, intersex and queer/questioning) supporters celebrate after the Supreme Court in a landmark decision decriminalized homosexuality by declaring Section 377, the penal provision which criminalized gay sex, as "manifestly arbitrary, in New Delhi on Sept. 6, 2018. (IANS photo)
Indian American physician Dr. Sampat Shivangi (center), seen here between former U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint, R-SC, and Joel Anand Samy, co-founder of the International Leaders Summit, has joined the International Leaders Summits executive advisory board, the summit announced in an Aug. 30 news release. (photo provided)
Tajender Pal Singh and Satnam Singh were acquitted of the charges of waging war against the government of India and conspiracy to commit certain offenses against the state) relating to the Sept. 29, 1981, hijacking of an Air India plane en route to Srinagar from New Delhi. (representational image/airindia.in photo)
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Insurance Business spoke to Margo Lydon, chief executive officer and company secretary of SuperFriend. SuperFriend is a national mental health organisation focused on creating positive, healthy and safe working environments where every employee can be well and thrive.

Mental health and wellbeing is a multi-billion dollar challenge for society, says Lydon. Given the amount of time people spend in the office, its crucial to have a supportive network  and were seeing a real shift in this direction as more workplaces are embracing a holistic view of mental health.

Given the unique pressures brokers face, Lydon suggests that there are a number of ways to assess the current state of their workplace if they have concerns.

We outline 38 indicators of a thriving workplace, says Lydon. These can be used as a checklist to give an idea of the overall culture of a mentally healthy workplace, which in turn can help identify the areas that need to be worked on.

On paper, its sometimes easier for larger organisations to establish detailed policies and procedures around bettering employee mental health; typically, they have access to resources such as HR departments or outside consultants that can enable workplace initiatives and provide support to staff as necessary.

However, Lydon stresses that smaller firms need not feel left out and can definitely contribute to the betterment of the mental health of their employees.

Small businesses may not formally codify these practices but are often good at encouraging a culture of care, says Lydon. Business owners are close to staff and working directly alongside them, enabling a more humanistic approach.

However, small business owners themselves often face unique challenges around the issue  being aware of these challenges can help catch them before they become serious issues.

Small brokerages are often juggling managing their business, their people and other things before looking after themselves, says Lydon. However, there are resources to help  industry peak bodies or chambers can often provide assistance for those in need, as well as websites such as Heads Up and SuperFriend.

R U OK? Day was first held in 2009, and now falls on the second Thursday of each September.

Free resources for promoting positive mental health in your workplace can be found on the Heads Up (www.headsup.org.au) and SuperFriend (www.superfriend.com.au) websites.
Of particular note was the case of a man who was denied cover for a heart attack on the basis of specific chemical levels in his blood, post-event.

CommInsure had been the subject of an ASIC report during 2017, which highlighted a number of issues with the company but did not find specific instances of the law being broken. Of particular concern for consumers was the finding that: CommInsure had trauma policies with medical definitions that were out of date with prevailing medical practice, specifically for heart attack and severe rheumatoid arthritis. However, this was not against the law.

According to the ASIC website, this is due to insurers being able to utilise such medical definitions, as long as these are clearly disclosed in the policy.

The decision has since raised serious questions about the incentive insurers have to stay up to date with current medical definitions, and whether many current policyholders have adequate coverage.

During Question Time in Parliament yesterday, Labor took the opportunity to criticise the current Prime Ministers previous opposition to the Royal Commission.

The Guardian reported that Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen asked whether the Prime Minister was aware that this week the royal commission heard that one insurance company broke the law over 300,000 times?

Bowen also reportedly asked whether Prime Minister Scott Morrison would apologise to Australians for running a protection racket over bad behaviour and voting against the royal commission 26 times?

In response, Morrison expressed his deep regret and that he was pleased the royal commission is now proceeding.

Speaking on ABCs News Breakfast yesterday, stockbroker Marcus Padley described the Royal Commission as a bloody good thing and expressed his own frustrations with the insurance industry. He suggested that the current round of inquiries could remove all the shonks out of the industry.

Padley also noted that he had taken out an insurance policy for his motorbike with ClearView insurance, which was scrutinised during Mondays and Tuesdays hearings.
Meanwhile also coinciding with the week-long gathering was the release of Unfriend Coals report Reinsuring Climate Chaos, which examined the coal policies of the firms controlling nearly half of the global reinsurance market. According to the campaign group, the response from reinsurers as far as climate change efforts are concerned has been much weaker compared to actions by direct insurers.

Unfriend Coal, which cited policy loopholes, believes reinsurers are uniquely placed to drive the transition from coal to clean energy.

Coal companies need insurance coverage to operate their coal mines or build new power plants, read the briefing seen by Insurance Business. But because the risks associated with the coal sector are many, varied, and important, with the sums insured for a single project reaching billions of dollars, insurers tend to cede a part of the risks to a reinsurer.

Moreover, with a growing number of major insurers pulling out of the coal sector, smaller insurers might have to cede a bigger share of the risks to reinsurers, increasing the role of these very last managers of risks. But reinsurers can decide to stop underwriting and investing in the coal sector.

The report said it would only need the withdrawal of the biggest among the reinsurers who are active in the coal market  which arent many  to challenge the sectors expansion and hasten its phase-out.

Reinsurers have warned about the risks of runaway climate change for decades, commented Lucie Pinson, Unfriend Coals European coordinator and author of the briefing. It is unconscionable that, at a time when they could help push destructive coal plants over the edge and develop innovative insurance solutions for the low-carbon economy, these companies continue to prop up climate-destroying fossil fuel projects.

Meanwhile Regine Richter, a campaigner with Unfriend Coal partner Urgewald, said global reinsurers need to close loopholes and stop catering to the coal sector ahead of the COP24 conference happening in Poland later this year.
Lexington Herald Leader reported that while the initial indictment said the loss amounted to $169,000, court documents filed prior to the sentencing said Muse produced falsified documents and reports in an attempt to force the government to pay $5,917,515 in crop insurance indemnity payments to producers who did not deserve that money between 2013 and 2014.

An indictment in 2017 noted that Muse had conspired with tobacco farmers to not only fraudulently claim on crop insurance, but to also profit from the sale of the unreported hidden tobacco.

The case has raised concerns that it could be a symptom of an even larger crop insurance fraud issue.

This investigation has revealed that the abuse of the crop insurance program is pervasive and severe, a government sentencing memorandum stated. Like any government benefit program, people find a way to abuse and unjustly benefit from the system designed to help those that need it.

Muse has been ordered to report to prison on October 01; she was also ordered to pay $1.6 million in restitution.
A half-decade of growth for the North Carolina Insurance Underwriting Association could come to a catastrophic climax this week, with the impending arrival of Hurricane Florence. Packing 140 mph winds as it moves over warmer waters and heads toward a Thursday night landfall somewhere on the Carolina coast, the storm could easily deplete the roughly $3.3 billion the association has to pay claims.

Better known as the Beach Plan, the association is a pool of private property insurers that was created to provide windstorm coverage to residents of 18 wind-and-hail zone districts along the coast. As of 2017, it had 205,958 policies and $76.7 billion of total exposure.

While those totals represented a 5.8 percent drop from the plans 2016 levels, according to data from the Property Insurance Plans Services Office, the Beach Plan has more than doubled as a proportion of the states residential property insurance market from 3.37 percent in 2011, the year Hurricane Irene struck the state, to 7.23 percent in 2016.

Troublingly, the Beach Plan isnt North Carolinas only residual market insurance mechanism to expand in recent years. The North Carolina Joint Underwriting Authority, better known as the FAIR Plan (for fair access to insurance requirements) has seen similarly fast growth. The FAIR Plan, which insures property owners anywhere in the state who are unable to find coverage in the regular admitted market, has grown from 0.62 percent of the market in 2011 to 2.42 percent in 2016.

Whats notable is that this growth has come even as other major residual property insurance markets across the country have mostly been shrinking. As a point of comparison, Floridas state-run Citizens Property Insurance Corp. wrote 14.28 percent of that states residential property insurance market in 2011, but as of 2016, was down to just 4.28 percent.

Though the FAIR Plan doesnt have the concentration of exposed coastal properties that the Beach Plan does, both entities could find it challenging to pay all of the claims Florence is expected to produce. Under the FAIR Plans financial structure, the first $30 million of losses are paid out of retained earnings followed by a $100 million assessment layer on member companies. Should losses exceed $130 million, the plan would then tap up to $151 million of reinsurance. Any losses in excess of $281 million would have to be financed by further member company assessments, which are theoretically unlimited.

The Beach Plan has a slightly more complex financial structure, including a firm cap on its claims-paying capacity. Out of its first $1.69 billion of losses, $1.59 billion are to be paid out of retained earnings, with a $100 million reinsurance layer that kicks in at $1 billion of losses. Losses between $1.69 billion and $2.69 billion are paid out of a $1 billion member company assessment layer, followed by a $250 million reinsurance layer that kicks in above $2.69 billion.

Current law limits insurer assessments at $1 billion, regardless of whether they are levied directly on the member companies or simply collected from them. Once the association knows that it has exhausted its $2.94 billion of combined surplus, reinsurance and member assessments, its required to notify the state insurance commissioner, who can authorize up to $326 million of catastrophe recovery charges  that is, assessments levied on every residential and commercial property insurance policy in the state.

What happens if and when losses exhaust the Beach Plans total $3.266 billion of claims-paying capacityas it looks possible claims from Florence might dois something of an open question. Legislation filed in several recent sessions, including the current one, proposed to create a North Carolina Recovery Finance Authority that would be able to issue tax-exempt bonds on behalf of the plan in the event its resources were completely spent. But since those bills havent advanced, this could be a question the General Assembly will be asked to answer soon rather than later.

While state lawmakers are at it, it is long past time that North Carolina look to modernize its antiquated regulatory system, which is the root cause of its abnormally large residual markets in both home and auto insurance. North Carolina is the only state in the nation where personal insurance rates are still set collectively by a rate bureau  effectively, a cartel that makes true competition just about impossible.

Moving to an open, competitive insurance market where rates truly reflect risk would encourage companies to return to the coastal communities theyve exited. It also would allow North Carolina consumers to finally have the choice and product innovation they deserve.

Topics Legislation Reinsurance Property Market North Carolina
A Massachusetts woman whose 2-year-old child was injured when a tree branch fell on her SUV has filed a lawsuit alleging utility Eversource and the town of Southampton, Mass., knew of dangerous tree limbs yet didnt cut them down.

The lawsuit filed by Erica Menard seeks medical and legal costs and other unspecified damages.

The branch fell on Menards SUV in March and struck the back of her childs head. The child was treated at the hospital for cuts, abrasions and bruises.

Menards attorney tells The Republican newspaper the family had complained to town officials about dangerous limbs, but was told there wasnt enough money to remove them.

Southamptons town administrator did not respond to a request for comment. An Eversource spokeswoman said the company cannot comment on pending litigation.

Information from: The Springfield (Mass.) Republican

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Lawsuits Massachusetts
A 45-year-old Rhode Island woman has been charged with forging business checks and stealing as much as $400,000 from a Cranston, R.I., auto dealership where she worked.

Federal prosecutors say Michelle Saritelli of South Kingston is charged with bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. She has pleaded not guilty.

Her lawyer, Olin Thompson, tells The Providence Journal that shes innocent and looks forward to that coming out in court.

Prosecutors say Saritelli was an office manager and bookkeeper at the Stamas Auto and Truck Center.

Saritelli is accused of depositing non-payroll checks into her personal bank accounts, providing fraudulent checks to her husband and stealing portions of cash payments made by customers, among other things.

Prosecutors say bank ledgers missing from the business were found in Saritellis home.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Auto Fraud Abuse Molestation
While Ohio blew past the deadline Saturday for rolling out its medical marijuana program, the pot industry is confident greener days are coming soon.

Its not uncommon for states marijuana programs to be delayed, sometimes for years, by legal, regulatory or logistical snags, said Tom Rosenberger, executive director of the National Cannabis Industry Association of Ohio.

When you think about it, youre starting the most regulated industry the state probably has from scratch, he said. So getting that right takes a little bit of time.

Licensees will combine to invest more than $100 million in Ohio even before sales have begun, Rosenberger said.

The three offices that share responsibility for Ohios Medical Marijuana Control Program  the Commerce Department and the state medical and pharmacy boards  say Ohios two-year implementation schedule was aggressive.

They emphasized the progress thats been made, including certifying about 250 doctors and provisionally licensing 26 large and small growers, four testing labs, 40 processors, and 56 dispensaries.

The state patient registry also is ready to go live when the time is right, said Tess Pollock, a spokeswoman for the state Medical Board.

Ohio native Jill Lamoureux, whose company Pure OH LLC has received a provisional small grower license, lives in Colorado and has been involved in the medical marijuana business since 2009. She said delays are to be expected.

Ohio has done a good job, she said.

Mel Kurtz, the owner of Grow Ohio Pharmaceuticals LLC, a large cultivator in central Ohios Muskingum County, also has had a positive experience. His facility was scheduled to be inspected this past week and he expects to have marijuana available for processing as soon as December.

As with any new venture, you have a substantial learning curve, Kurtz said. I think (Commerce) wanted to get it right. Measure three times and cut once.

Still, some are frustrated. Parents of children with epilepsy, veterans with PTSD and other prospective medical marijuana patients have watched in frustration as neighboring Pennsylvania has gotten ahead of Ohio on implementation, said Rob Ryan of the Ohio Patient Network.

It will happen; thats a given, he said. But I think the initial reluctance has had quite a retarding effect on the whole program.

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, signed his states bill 51 days before Ohios  at a public ceremony with hundreds of advocates present. Medical marijuana was available to patients this February, about 22 months later.

Ohio Senate Minority Leader Kenny Yuko, a Cleveland Democrat who co-sponsored the medical marijuana bill, said theres no excuse for patients not having access to product.

He said he entered the debate holding stereotypes about marijuana that he believes continue to play a role in the fits and starts Ohios medical cannabis program has experienced. He said some state policymakers still argue marijuana has no medicinal value.

People dont want to believe it, because they have that perception in their mind the jokes with Cheech and Chong and Willie Nelson and George Carlin, he said. And the fact of the matter is thats not true anymore.

No two states are the same, said Jacqueline Williams, Ohio Commerce Department director.

I feel very confident with the direction that weve gone, she said. Has everything always worked smoothly and has it been perfect? No. But its been a good process, its been a thorough process, its been unbiased.

Republican Gov. John Kasich signed Ohios medical marijuana law in 2016  but in private and without comment. One of his first acts afterward was to appoint a leading opponent of legalization to the advisory committee.

Heres the problem, he told the Rubin Report in March. You cant tell kids dont do drugs but, by the way, this drugs okay. So its a problem.

Williams said she takes very, very seriously her connection to the Kasich administration, but the governors personal beliefs have not influenced how her department proceeded to build Ohios fledgling marijuana industry.

Kasich spokesman Jon Keeling rejected the premise Ohio has missed any deadline.

The law required a regulatory system to be up and running by Sept. 8th. We have more than met that deadline, he said.

AP Reporter Mark Gillispie in Cleveland contributed to this report.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Cannabis Ohio
Donegal Mutual Insurance Co. is exiting the personal lines business in seven of the 22 states in which it does business and will transfer those personal lines accounts worth $25 million in premium to Safeco Insurance.

Safeco will assume Donegals personal lines business in the states of Alabama, Maine, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina and South Dakota. Donegal said the transfer to Safeco will give its independent agents in those states an option for those policyholders.

Donegal said it did not have enough personal lines business in those seven states to make it profitable. The approximately $25 million of personal lines premiums in those states represented approximately 2.6 percent of its overall premium writings.

The company stressed that it is looking to grow its commercial lines business in all of its states as well as its remaining personal lines business. The company sells through 2,400 independent agents.

While we are actively seeking growth in our commercial lines of business throughout our operating regions, Donegal also remains solidly committed to maintaining and expanding our personal lines of business in markets where we have sufficient scale and spread of risk to achieve profitability. This transfer represents an opportunity for us to exit seven states where we have been unable to achieve that objective and to enable us to focus our efforts on our personal lines operations in other states, said Kevin G. Burke, president and chief executive officer of Donegal, in prepared remarks.

In its 2017 annual report, the company cited disappointing results in its auto business, both personal and commercial, and said it had begun taking steps to curtail new business growth in underperforming states and to improve the loss experience in those lines. Its total (auto and homeowners) personal lines combined ratio in 2017 was 108.5; in 2016 it was 101.8.

We are taking measures in 2018 to mitigate the adverse loss trends we, along with many of our peer companies, have experienced as a result of a combination of factors, such as increasing repair costs, distracted driving and an increase in driving activity, the report said. While we recognize that these efforts will require focused attention and resolve in 2018, we are committed to taking the necessary actions to restore our automobile business lines to profitability.

Safeco said it will give Donegals agents an opportunity to build their partnership with Safeco.

The deal marks the second personal lines transaction for Safeco in as many months. In August, Safeco bought QBE North Americas personal insurance independent agency policies in 47 states, representing $230 million in gross written premium.

Donegal Mutual offers personal and commercial property/casualty insurance in 22 Mid-Atlantic, Midwestern, New England and Southern states. as well as commercial lines in four Southwestern states. In May 2017, Donegal Mutual completed the merger of Mountain States Mutual Casualty Co. into Donegal Mutual, which gives it four Southwestern states New Mexico, Colorado, Texas and Utah for selling commercial insurance products. Donegal sees entrance into the Southwestern region as a future growth opportunity.

Safeco is a Liberty Mutual Insurance company that sells personal automobile, homeowners and specialty products through 10,000 independent insurance agencies.
There will soon be a new specialty insurance site that promises to quicken and simplify transactions for U.S. insurance brokers who are serving small and medium sized businesses.

Vindati, a New York-based managing general agency (MGA), will be offering brokers across the country a way to access specialty products and market analytics through either traditional or digital channels.

Vindati is focused on delighting the broker as the customer like never before, said Hugh Burgess, CEO of Vindati, and a former executive with Allianz.

The platform is backed by Innovisk Capital Partners in which Willis Towers Watson is a majority investor.

The vindati.com website is not yet running but is expected to be soon.

Vindatis first products will be contractors equipment, builders risk and farm/ranchowners packages. It is planning to later add commercial auto, motor truck cargo and warehouse legal.

The founders say the platform will be open to any broker in the U.S.  traditional or digital  that is looking for a better way to transact business. Brokers can bypass old technology and data to quote an entire portfolio of insurance clients instantaneously.

This is a really important shift, Burgess told Insurance Journal. Servicing large businesses is increasingly complex, which requires a personal touch, but for small business, the trend is simple, tech-driven automation  which is exactly what we set out to create with Vindati.

Brokers may choose how to connect and place business with Vindati  either through emailed ACORD forms, digital broker channels such as Ask Kodiak, or directly on the Vindati shopping platform.

Whichever way a broker connects, Vindati promises instant customizable and bindable quotes as well as proposals and policies on demand.

Burgess says that Vindati is bringing together the best combination of insurance and technology expertise, along with distribution channel and data and analytical experts, to uncomplicate processes and deliver outstanding user experiences.

The backer, London-based Innovisk, was launched in June as a limited liability partnership with a plan to seed a number of start-up underwriters in personal and specialty commercial lines business. David Thomas is CEO of Innovisk. Thomas is a former executive with Willis and was CEO of London-based Acapalla, a venture with Pembroke.

Innovisk already has several underwriting partners including New York-based program manager Freberg Environmental and Florida-based Vertus in the U.S and PFLA and Aqueous in the UK.

Technology and data are fundamentally reshaping the value chain in insurance and bringing risk closer to capital, said Thomas. Historically the industry has often been costly, and inflexible data flows tend to be poor. New solutions and new thinking are required. Innovisk has been created to do just that.

Willis Towers Watson is a majority investor in Innovisk. Carl Hess, head of Investment, Risk and Reinsurance, Willis Towers Watson, said his firm sees tremendous change in the industry value chain driven by technology and data and views Innovisk as an opportunity to take on a role in that shift as an arms-length investor.

The Vindati company name is derived from the Italian words Vincente (winning) and Dati (data). As defined in Hindi, Vindati also means to find. Finding winning data: thats what Vindati says it does for its broker customers.

Topics Agencies Tech
In an online discussion on agency errors and omissions (E&O) exposures following Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, Florida Association of Insurance Agents (FAIA) David Thompson, insurance educator for more than 20 years, and Dan Britto, professional liability attorney with the law offices of William W. Price, P.A. of West Palm Beach, Fla., offered tips on what not to do following a catastrophe.

Below are excerpts from the hour-long discussion. The full discussion, moderated by Insurance Journals Academy Director Patrick Wraight, can be accessed here for free: After the Storm: Preventing Agent E&O Claims in a Disaster.

Patrick Wraight: What coverages, if left unaddressed, can create some of the bigger E&O exposures for an agent?

David Thompson: The top three things that we most commonly see are business income and extra expense, especially relating to utility failure, which is always our top E&O driver, and screened enclosures over pools, or what we would call a pool cage in Florida.  Those three categories probably make up 30-40 percent at least of our typical E&O claims.

Wraight: How should coverage conversations be handled with an agent and insured following a catastrophe?

Dan Britto: After the storm, I tell agents to keep their conversations about whats covered to an absolute minimum. I see a lot of agents post-storm basically make a coverage opinion in writing whether it be in an email to the customer or theyre arguing with an adjuster thinking the adjuster is wrong.

If it turns out the insurance carrier is right and something is not covered, the agents email, where hes trying to help out his customer, basically is an admission that he or she did not know what the coverages were in the policy that he was selling. The time to have that conversation with your customer is obviously before the storm hits.

Afterwards youre going to have a lot of phone calls saying, Is this covered? Is it not covered? My advice to agents is report the claim. Let the insurance adjuster do their job. Do not put on an adjusting hat and try to play adjuster because it can only end bad.

Wraight: When it comes to business income (BI) and extra expense (EE) coverage related to off-premises utility loss of power, a lot of times that cause of loss is not going to be covered, right?

Thompson: Correct. There are three endorsements to fix that. One is the direct, one is the time element and one is for spoilage.  A lot of folks, anything dealing with food, flowers, pet shops, those are critical endorsements that need to be on a policy.

Wraight: What advice do you have for an agency that cant locate the off-premises BI and EE?

Britto: If they feel like its an important coverage, and I would say it is, have that discussion ahead of time. My caution would be to say, My agency cant get this particular type of coverage for you. But we think its an important coverage and you may want to consider. That might steer someone to get a quote from one of your competitors. But the case law in Florida is if you tell a customer that a particular type of coverage is not available, and it turns out it is, even if its on a surplus lines market and the premium is pretty high, youre still on the hook for giving bad advice and you could have an E&O claim. 

Be very careful using definite (language) like, This coverage is simply not available. What youre representing is its not available anywhere in the insurance universe. A sophisticated plaintiff lawyer will find it somewhere, even at a ridiculous price and I can assure you in the plaintiffs deposition theyll say, I absolutely would have bought it if I wasnt told it didnt exist.

Wraight: Should all losses be reported to the carrier no matter what?

Britto: From the E&O ivory tower, the answer is yes. I know the reality, especially with agencies that do a lot of residential work, its a volume practice and you dont want to lose a bunch of clients because they get canceled because they had a claim and they never got the first dollar for that claim.

The attorney answer is yes. If I take off my attorney hat and say, From a practical matter, what do you do in that situation? You educate your customer and say, This is your deductible. If you have a contractor that says this is a minor fix, then the decision is yours whether to report it or not. Here we recommend that you report all claims.

You have to advise your customer to report it. If they choose not to report it and you have that documented in an email or in your agency activity notes, I can run with that but you better make sure that the customer understands that youre recommending all claims be reported.

Thompson: Not picking on our industry, but sometimes we do it to ourselves. The policy says, practically report all losses. We do that. We do what we are supposed to do and then we get nonrenewed. Thats the problem. I dont have the solution and its a horrible position to be in.

Watch the free webinar: After the Storm: Preventing Agent E&O Claims in a Disaster.

Related:

Topics Agencies Claims Florida Professional Liability
U.S. regulators have rejected Wells Fargo & Co.s plan to repay customers who were pushed into unnecessary auto insurance, telling the bank it must do more to ensure it has found and compensated every affected driver, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Wells Fargo gave regulators the plan in June, as required by a $1 billion settlement the bank reached with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in April.

After reviewing the plan  which could involve contacting some 600,000 drivers  the OCC told Wells Fargo it needed more assurances that the bank would find and repay everyone who was overcharged, said the sources, who were not authorized to speak publicly about the rejection.

The rejection is the latest wrinkle in Wells Fargos long-running sales scandal, which began in September 2016 with revelations that the bank had opened perhaps millions of accounts in customers names without permission to hit aggressive sales targets.

Since then, Wells has disclosed more customer abuses in businesses including mortgage lending, wealth management and the auto loans at issue here.

Representatives for Wells Fargo, the OCC and the CFPB declined to comment.

Drivers who bought a car through Wells Fargo and let their insurance lapse could be charged for forced-place policies. Wells enrolled about 2 million drivers into such policies and more than a quarter of those were not needed, officials have said.

Customers who were charged for unneeded insurance could face overdraft fees, damaged credit or vehicle repossession. As part of its settlement agreement, Wells Fargo had to review several years worth of bank and insurance paperwork for those customers.

Although Wells Fargo gave regulators details on the number of customers harmed, what financial consequences they suffered and how the bank planned to compensate them, the OCC wants to see work behind the calculations before it will approve the plan, the sources said. The regulator also wants an explanation of how workers are performing day-to-day remediation tasks, they said.

The OCC does not have a deadline for when it must approve the plan, but Wells Fargo cannot finish its work without that all-clear from regulators.

It is not unusual for banks and regulators to haggle over the fine print of a settlement, and large banks tend to satisfy regulator demands quickly after a large penalty, said the sources and former officials.

Last year, Wells Fargo estimated that it would need $64 million to pay back customers but lawyers representing drivers say that estimate is way too low.

(Reporting by Patrick Rucker Editing by Lauren Tara LaCapra and Lisa Shumaker)
A proposed $6.95 million settlement has been filed to end a class-action lawsuit alleging Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy co-founders Aubrey McClendon and Tom Ward conspired to rig bids on leases for land to explore for oil and natural gas in northwestern Oklahoma and southwestern Kansas.

The proposal filed in federal court calls for thousands of people in Oklahoma and Kansas to share in the settlement proceeds, and said it comes after two mediation sessions conducted earlier this year by a retired federal judge in Oklahoma City.

By reaching a favorable settlement at this time, Plaintiffs seek to avoid significant expense and delay, and instead ensure a favorable recovery for the class as soon as possible, and without the need to incur millions of litigation expense and the uncertainty of a better recovery down the road, according to the proposal.

McClendon, a part-owner of the NBAs Oklahoma City Thunder, left Chesapeake in 2013 over differences with the companys board of directors and died when the vehicle he was driving crashed into a concrete bridge embankment at nearly 89 mph in March 2016. His death occurred a day after he was indicted by a grand jury on bid-rigging allegations related to the lawsuit and a day before the lawsuit was filed.

Ward, who left Chesapeake in 2006 and later formed now-bankrupt Sandridge Energy, denied the conspiracy allegation.

Mr. Ward denies that any such communications (with McClendon) related to those purchases violated the antitrust laws in any way, the proposed settlement said.

The lawsuit alleges McClendon and Ward conspired from 2007 to 2012 for Chesapeake and Sandridge to not bid against each other in order to suppress prices for leases and royalties.

An attorney for Ward and a spokesman for Chesapeake did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the proposed settlement.

The filing said a claims administrator will attempt to contact those with claims in the case via mail, in newspaper advertisements and in news releases in Kansas and Oklahoma, and that the proposal will be available on the website www.anadarkosettlement.com .

Online court records do not indicate when a hearing might be held to consider the proposed settlement.

Topics Lawsuits Oklahoma Kansas
The Director for Theological Education in the Anglican Communion, the Revd Canon Dr Stephen Spencer, reviews The Lambeth Conference: Theology, History, Polity and Purpose, edited by Paul Avis and Benjamin M Guyer.

Preparations for the next Lambeth Conference in 2020 are moving forward with gathering pace. The venue is booked (University of Kents campus at Canterbury), invitations will be sent out shortly, the outline structure of the week is in place, a group of scholars from across the globe are about to begin work on the Bible studies and many bishops have already said they will be attending.

But what is the Lambeth Conference and where does it come from? A number of books will be published to help answer these questions and at the head of the pack is The Lambeth Conference: Theology, History, Polity and Purpose  a substantial and fascinating volume on the history and theology of the Lambeth Conference, which begins with the first conference in 1867.

The chapters range from ecclesiology, starting with a nuanced essay by Stephen Pickard on the place of the conference within Anglican doctrine of the church, through to history, beginning with an engaging overview by Paul Avis of the different conferences and the role of the Archbishops of Canterbury. Avis prefers to speak of one Lambeth Conference that has met on different occasions rather than of many conferences, showing connectivity and continuity over the last 150 years.

It is helpful to be reminded that self-absenting bishops seems to be a recurrent feature of the conference. Benjamin Guyer does this when he describes how the first conference was perceived to be challenging the supremacy of the monarch over the Church of England, because it suggested Anglicanism was greater than its mother church and its Supreme Governor. This was the reason why a number of northern English bishops, including the Archbishop of York, stayed away.

Some conferences have made important contributions to Anglicans understanding of their churches. In a sympathetic portrait of the American Episcopalian theologian William Reed Huntington from Mark Chapman we learn of his role in producing what became known as the Chicago-Lambeth quadrilateral, a general formula which has taken on a defining role within Anglican ecclesiology at the same time as the Articles of Religion (from Tudor times) have declined in influence. The conference is part of a general shift from authoritarian forms of leadership to conciliar forms, especially shown by Jeremy Morris in his description of changing patterns of episcopal leadership within the Church of England.

Another key moment was the 1920 Appeal to All Christian People, calling for Christian unity after the devastation of the First World War. The way in which it was agreed is described in vivid detail by Charlotte Methuen. The 2020 conference will commemorate its centenary and hopefully renew Anglican commitment to Christian unity in mission.

There are also informative articles reviewing developments on sex and marriage, and the Covenant, from Andrew Goddard and Gregory Cameron respectively.

It is undeniable that the first conference was called in response to sharp disagreement over the rise of biblical criticism and the stance of Bishop Colenso of Natal, but Ephraim Radner shows that the wider setting of the conference was much more positive, being the century-long missionary movement of Christian growth and expansion across the globe. The 1867 gathering, and many of the subsequent gatherings, were called to support this, not least through the 1920 Appeal and later on the 1988 commitment to a decade of evangelism.

This key insight is illustrated in other essays, such as by Cathy Ross, who quotes Archbishop Longleys letter of invitation to the first conference in which he invited his brother bishops to consider together many practical questions, the settlement of which would tend to the advancement of the kingdom of our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, and to the maintenance of greater union in our missionary work and to increased intercommunion among ourselves (page 298).

Among many other informative essays the one by Alyson Barnett-Cowan is important because it describes the different methodologies of the 1998 and 2008 conferences and the differing impacts that these had on the feel and outcomes of the meetings. It is already clear that Lambeth 2020 will be different from both of these, with study and reflection on 1 Peter setting the tone. Unlike 2008 it will also attempt to formulate and pass a number of resolutions reflecting the mind of the conference, hopefully avoiding the fractious polarisation of the 1998 conference.

But what is especially needed, if Lambeth 2020 is to make an impact in its own distinctive way, is for the original mission paradigm again to meld and mould the hearts and minds of participants and sending dioceses, and for the inspiring vision of the 1920 Appeal to be honoured and renewed, to create an outward looking, dynamic and diaconal temper for the Anglican Communion as a whole.
Wed., Sept. 12, 2018, 8:08 am  Florences track to the U.S. East Coast shifted slightly to the south and the storm is now threatening to batter the entire Carolinas coast, aiming for landfall near Myrtle Beach.

While Florence, still 530 miles (855 kilometers) away, is expected to lose wind speed the closer it gets to land, it remains a formidable threat to the coastline from Georgetown, South Carolina, to Wilmington, North Carolina. Peak winds could be between 100 and 120 miles per hour.

Florences huge size, potential for a 13-foot ocean surge and torrential rains augur significant damage from the most powerful hurricane to hit the region in decades. Wind speed isnt the only measure of danger from a storm like Florence, said Joel Myers, founder of AccuWeather Inc. in State College, Pennsylvania. The hurricane formed off Africa two weeks ago and has built up a wall of water on its trek that will now slosh against the Carolina coast.

History is full of storms that lost power before striking land and are still counted as among the most infamous  Katrina, Ike and Sandy are just three. They all stand as proof that ranking on the Saffir-Simpson windscale alone isnt a measure of power.

People worry about the winds on the Simpson scale, Myers said. But wind is on average the third cause of damage from a hurricane. First is flooding from heavy rain, then damage along the coast from the sea. They are focused on the wrong thing.

President Donald Trump said it may be one of the worst storms ever to strike the U.S., after getting briefed by the leaders of the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Were as ready as anybodys ever been, he said at the White House Tuesday.

Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center said the storm could undergo an eye wall replacement, which means it could weaken a bit as it comes near the coast, but at the same time it will swell in physical size.

Tropical storm force winds are reaching out as much as 175 miles, a sign it may devastate a broad swath of the region when it reaches land.

What we are learning now, what we have been learning over the years, is that it is the size that also matters, said Dan Kottlowski, meteorologist with AccuWeather Inc. in State College, Pennsylvania.

Unlike Hurricane Hazel, which made landfall near the North Carolina-South Carolina border in 1954 and quickly moved through the region, Florence is coming straight on and will stick around for days, AccuWeathers Myers said. He said the storm is bigger than average, and pegs the potential costs at $30 billion.

This is a slow-moving storm, Myers said. It is still going to be in western North Carolina on Monday.

In preparation for Florence, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler approved emergency fuel waiver requests on Tuesday as extreme and unusual fuel supply circumstances exist in portions of the Carolinas. The waiver will remain effective through Sept. 15 to help ensure a decent supply of gasoline.

To see a map of storms in the region, click HURR <GO>

As North Carolina residents brace for the storm, shelves at a Walmart Inc. store outside Raleigh, were cleared of supplies Tuesday. An Exxon Mobil Corp. station near Raleigh-Durham International Airport had cars lined up four deep at the pumps, before they were shut off later in the day.

Copyright 2021 Bloomberg.

Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Hurricane North Carolina Pollution
North Carolina corn farmer Darren Armstrong is racing to harvest as much as he can before potentially the worst storm in 64 years hits the state.

Its already one of the busiest times of the year for U.S. growers as they reap what they sowed in the spring. Now, Armstrong and scores of other crop, poultry and livestock farmers are even busier harvesting corn, stockpiling feed, moving livestock, hooking up generators and, most importantly, safeguarding their families from Hurricane Florence.

The storm is forecast to make landfall in the state Thursday night or early Friday. It may pound North Carolina with an ocean surge, winds over 100 miles an hour and five days of rain. Any flooding could compromise fields that havent been picked yet this season for crops including corn, soybeans, cotton, peanuts and sweet potatoes.

Florence Gets Bigger as It Heads Toward North Carolina Coast

Armstrong, 46, is battling to get as much corn as possible out of the fields and into bins. His family began harvesting their 4,500 acres in mid-August, a couple of weeks late because wet weather had delayed planting.

Were trying to finish, Armstrong said in a telephone interview on Tuesday from his combine while harvesting corn. We are probably not going to make it.

By the time the rain starts, roughly three-quarters of his corn should be harvested. Another 700 to 1,000 acres may be left standing, exposed to the belting wind and rain. His family has soybeans growing on another 4,500 acres, and that crop wont be ready to harvest for another month. His farm is in Hyde County, which is right on the coast, and his soybeans also may have to endure the salt spray the storm carries with it from the ocean.

While millions of residents are moving inland, Armstrong plans to stay on or near his farm with his family.

There is so much here to look after, he said. I feel safe at home. We have supplies. We have done it before.

Armstrongs experience appears to be similar to that of many other farmers across the state. They are taking steps to prepare for the storm but can do little as it passes over their fields, as well as pastures and barns with cattle, hogs and poultry. North Carolina is the top U.S. turkey producer, ranks third for chicken and is home to more hogs than any state other than Iowa, government data show. It is also among the major U.S. cotton producers.

About 43 percent of North Carolinas corn has been harvested as of Sept. 9, but none of its soybeans, cotton and peanuts were collected by that date, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture weekly crop progress report.

Farmer Alex Jordan has already gathered all his corn but wasnt planning to start harvesting his peanuts for another three weeks and soybeans for more than a month. His farm is located in the southeastern part of the state.

They are going to have to ride out the storm, Jordan, 60, said. I have been through a number of hurricanes but not one with 100 miles per hour winds.

He also raises about 40 head of cattle that hes moving to higher ground pastures. Hes put some of his equipment in shelters and is weighing down trailers and tractors by tying them together and filling fuel tanks up with water.

Across the state, livestock and poultry producers are working to get feed on site, move animals away from flood-prone areas and lower waste levels in outdoor lagoons, according to North Carolinas agriculture department. For tobacco, most of the crop has been collected, but power outages can impact the curing process.

Tobacco Crop at Risk as Florence Heads Toward North Carolina

Jan Archers 1,200-sow operation in Goldsboro, North Carolina, is working to fill all feed tanks and keep enough fuel on hand to run generators for ventilation systems in livestock houses. Two employees will stay at the farm to ensure animals are cared for and electricity is running. Waste-lagoon levels also have to be kept lower-than-normal during hurricane season, Archer said Monday in an interview.

Farmer Jay Sullivan, who operates in southeastern Sampson County, is also trying to harvest the last of his corn acres. Some of the elevators in his area are almost full and operating around the clock while feed mills rush to get supplies out.

Hes also a contract hog grower, operating a pig nursery and finishing barns. New piglets are arriving in his nursery this week earlier than expected because moving animals during the storm may not be possible, he said.

Sullivan, 56, said hes probably been through a dozen hurricanes. Safety of his family is his top concern as Florence bears down. But he feels better prepared than 25 years ago.

This aint our first rodeo, Sullivan said.

Copyright 2021 Bloomberg.

Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters USA Agribusiness Hurricane North Carolina
John Miller

Cuisine de France bakery owner Aryzta has agreed on an underwriting deal with five banks, setting the stage for raising 800m in new capital to strengthen its balance sheet.

Shares in the maker of McDonalds burger buns to Otis Spunkmeyer cookies rose as much as 18% in Dublin after the company named BofA Merrill Lynch and UBS as lead managers, and Credit Suisse, JP Morgan, and HSBC Bank as joint global coordinators of its capital raising. The shares are, however, down more than 66% this year.

The Irish-Swiss company has warned on its at least three times since 2017 due to rising distribution and pay costs in North America, problems with undocumented workers at a US bakery, high butter prices and weak consumer spending in some European markets, particularly Britain following its vote to leave the EU.

Aryzta, which said last month it needed a cash infusion following a net loss of more than 1bn in 2017, also said it had won the consent of a majority of its lenders to amend an existing facilities agreement.

As part of the deal the companys covenant, net debt to Ebitda  earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation  will rise to 5.75 times, from four times for January 2019 and to 5.25 times for July 2019 from 3.5 times. Analyst Andreas von Arx of Baader Helvea said the deal with banks and lenders shows Aryzta is making progress toward the capital increase and helped to reduce uncertainty.

The amended credit conditions should provide the flexibility to execute on the turnaround measures

- Mr von Arx wrote in a note to investors.

Even so, he is sticking with his hold rating, as Aryzta has failed repeatedly to deliver on priorities of selling assets or stabilizing results. For the time being there remain too many unknowns to credibly forecast a mid-term valuation, he said.

Chief executive Kevin Toland, whose company is best known in Ireland for Cuisine de France, is still hoping to unload at least 450m in assets, including its France-based Picard frozen food unit acquired during an ill-fated buying spree.

Aryzta also named new independent board members  former McDonalds US president Michael Andres, Green Chile Foods chairman Gregory Flack and Tim Lodge, a former chief financial officer at agribusiness company Cofco International  to stand for election at its coming AGM on November 1.

Each brings significant and diverse industry experience which will be invaluable... as we deliver on what is a multi-year turnaround, Aryzta chairman Gary McGann said. Director Charles Adair plans to retire.

 Reuters. Additional reporting Irish Examiner
The diocese of Kilmore has received 10 new allegations of clerical sex abuse against priests, with a report praising the way in which senior Church figures responded to the issue.

The Second Review of Child Safeguarding Practice in the Diocese of Kilmore was undertaken by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland and was published yesterday.

It paints an extremely positive picture of the work done by Church management in the diocese in relation to ensuring the safety of children and the management of those against whom allegations have been made.

The diocese of Kilmore covers most of Cavan, large sections of Leitrim, three parishes in Fermanagh, and parts of Sligo and Meath.

According to the report, allegations have been made with regard to 13 priests in the area since 1975, relating to 17 claims.

However, since the last review of the diocese, conducted in 2010, 10 allegations have surfaced in relation to six priests, four of whom are still living.

Regarding the status of the living, accused priests, one is still in ministry and three are out of ministry.

Of the 10 allegations that have been reported since 2010, four relate to one priest, who was later convicted in the courts, and two relate to another cleric. Regarding the cleric against whom four allegations have been made, the report states that he also faced allegations made prior to 2010.

As for the 10 allegations made in the last eight years, seven were reported to gardai and three were reported to the diocese by An Garda Siochana.

Eight allegations were also reported to Tusla, while one was reported to the diocese by Tusla. The report says Tusla was aware of another allegation since the 2010 review.

One priest has been convicted of offences since 2010 and one priest has been found guilty in a canonical process.

The report stresses that the response to the allegations was swift and comprehensive. Case files were extremely well documented, all allegations were reported promptly, and actions taken to restrict ministry were taken decisively by Bishop Leo OReilly.

Undoubtedly, the primary focus of diocesan interventions is on safeguarding children, states the report.

There is also evidence of compassionate responding to complainants, even when civil authority agencies do not take action.
Over 30,000 has been raised for a man who suffered a serious brain injury after a scrambler bike crashed into him in Dublin during the summer.

39-year-old Ilabek Avetian also lost his left eye after the bike ran into him and his wife in Darndale Park in June.
By Liam Heylin

The name of the terrorist organisation Isis was invoked by an Algerian man who threatened a nurse in a Cork hospital that he would cut her throat and cut off her head.

Abderhmane Doumandgi, of Mount Trenchard hostel, Foynes, Limerick, pleaded guilty to a charge of making a threat to kill at the Mercy University Hospital on May 10, contrary to the Non-fatal Offences Against the Person Act.

The 24-year-old wrote a letter of apology to the victim, who did not wish to make a victim impact statement or to attend Cork District Court for the case.

Inspector John Deasy said the injured party was working at the accident and emergency unit when she was subjected to the series of threats. The defendants partner was being treated in the hospital and he was present in a highly intoxicated condition.

Insp Deasy said he initially engaged in a tirade of abuse against her.

It then escalated into threats where he said he would bring weapons to the hospital and would bomb the building. He also said he was going to go away and get his machete. He then threatened to slit her throat. Mr Doumandgi referred to cutting off her head and the terror group Isis was mentioned, said Insp Deasy.

Eddie Burke, solicitor, said the defendant instructed him to enter a plea of guilty as soon as he was charged, whether the case was going to be dealt with at district or circuit court.

He has also written a letter of apology to the lady. He apologises for his inexcusable behaviour, said Mr Burke.

He was so intoxicated when arrested he could not be questioned for some time.

There was evidence that he drank a bottle of whiskey. He was so intoxicated he did not know where he was. His partner was in difficulty. Obviously he did not give her any help by causing this havoc.

He is ashamed of what has happened here.

Judge Olann Kelleher said he accepted that Doumandgi had shown some remorse. However, he said people seemed to think that medical staff were fair game for abuse, particularly when they turn up at hospitals drunk.

The judge said it was the most serious threat he had come across in a hospital and sentenced the defendant to ten months in prison, backdated to May.

Doumandgi gave the judge a thumbs-up sign as he was taken into custody and said: Thank you, judge.
Sean ORiordan

Cork County Council could end up in court, trying to recoup millions of euro, if Cork City Council decides not to pay compensation for land it will acquire in its boundary extension.

Nothing is written into the Local Government Act 2018, on the boundary extension, about how the city council would compensate its counterparts in the county.

County council officials estimate they could lose up to 70m in rates, as a result of the city council taking over Cork Airport, Glanmire, Blarney, Tower, and parts of Douglas, Grange, and Rochestown.

However, this will be offset by the county council saving the cost of providing services to those areas.

This would leave a deficit of anything between 25m to 30m.

Uncertainty over compensation could also leave the county council facing problems when putting together its annual budget.

The Irish Examiner has learnt that the Local Government Act 2018 says a review of the financial settlement arrangement must take place after no more than three years.

County councillors have been told by their officials that it could happen after six months and the compensation payable by the city could be reduced.

County council officials do not want any review to take place until after three years.

The act also states that the amount of compensation may vary each year and it has to be agreed by every August 31.

County councillors feel, as do their management, that compensation should be of a fixed amount, should apply in perpetuity, and be index-linked.

There is no legal obligation on Cork City Council to pay the county council.

In a document seen by this newspaper, county council officials have pointed out that if the city council decides it does not want to pay, the county council will be faced with the prospect of taking the city council to court, which has been described as a nonsense.

Instead, the county council is proposing that the act make statutory provision for the city council to pay up.

This would give some comfort and certainty to the county council, in preparing its budgets.

Also, the act makes no reference to a payments schedule. Therefore, it is unclear if the city council has to pay up-front, by instalment, or through a backdated arrears provision.

The county council wants the city council to pay upfront, in quarterly installments.

Another potential stumbling block to the handover of territory, next year, has also been identified by council officials.

In the document, they point out that the act allows for the transfer of assets to the city council, but, strangely, any liabilities associated with these assets would remain with the county council.

County council officials say this makes no sense and liabilities should be transferred, if assets are transferred.

Cllr Ger Keohane, who represents the Glanmire area, said Cork County Council cannot be left struggling with such uncertanties and with the possibility that the city council might decide not to pay anything.

The potential risk of a local authority bringing another local authority in the same area to court, for payments, is not healthy for economic growth and will send out a negative signal, nationally and internationally, Mr Keohane said.
Posted on: September 12, 2018 3:40 PM

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has used an address to Britains Trade Union Congress to speak of a society where church-run food banks and homeless shelters are no longer needed. Archbishop Justin delivered his address as the TUC gathered in Manchester for their annual conference in its 150th year, and told them that unions must have a vision of a just and a righteous society.

In 2014 Archbishop Justin lamented the existence of so-called payday lenders, which charge annual interest of several thousand per cent when providing short-term loans to vulnerable people. Referencing the largest of the companies, he said that he wanted to compete Wonga out of business through the creation and expansion of Credit Unions. Last week the company was placed in administration.

Five years ago, I said to the Chief Executive of Wonga that I wanted credit unions to compete him out of business. Well hes gone!, Archbishop Justin told the TUC during his speech. Today I dream that governments, now and in the future, put church-run food banks out of business.

I dream of empty night shelters. I dream of debt advice charities without clients. When justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream, the food banks close, the night shelters are empty, families and households are hopeful of better lives for themselves and their children, money is not a tyrant, and justice is seen.

He added: this not a vision for government alone. Governments of any party, all parties, will fail, act foolishly, be far away. Only partnership between governments, civil society  including unions and churches  business and community, can heal the sicknesses of society now and in the future.

He said that for people at lower income levels, real earnings were virtually the same as they were 20 years ago, having risen by just 1.7 per cent. This, he said, compared with a rise of 11 per cent of FTSE 100 chief executives pay in just the past year.

We need genuine living wages that enable people to save more than 10 [GBP] a month, if theyre lucky, and put an end to the days when replacing a fridge or a car tyre is a household crisis. Unions are crucial to achieving real living wages.

And he took a swipe at multi-national companies with aggressive tax-avoidance practices. Not paying taxes speaks of the absence of commitment to our shared humanity, to solidarity and justice, he said. If you earn money from a community, you should pay your share of tax to that community.

I was in business, and I know that, within limits, it is right and proper for people to arrange their tax affairs, and for companies to do so. But when vast companies like Amazon, and other online traders, the new industries, can get away with paying almost nothing in tax, there is something wrong with the tax system.

They dont pay a real living wage, so the tax payer must support their workers with benefits. And having leached off the tax payer once they dont pay for our defence, for security, for stability, for justice, for health, for equality, for education. Then they complain of an undertrained work force, from the education they have not paid for, and pay almost nothing for apprenticeships.

Those are only a fraction of the costs of aggressive tax management.

Archbishop Justin received a standing ovation at the end of his speech, which came shortly after he joined other leading figures in calling for a fundamental reform of Britains economy in a report published by the Institute of Public Policy Research.
Coroners have given their backing for a new proposal that would see the creation of a central database for unidentified bodies and body parts in the hope of speedier identification.

Fine Gael senator Colm Burke has sent the proposal, prepared by Rene Gapert, a forensic anthropologist and human remains specialist, to Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan.

It would mean a central location for the small number of unidentified bodies and body parts found around the country and which are currently held in different mortuaries, as well as links to agencies such as Forensic Science Ireland, which operates the countrys DNA database, An Garda Siochana, and the offices of coroners around the country.

Aspects of the proposal were discussed at the AGM of the Coroners Society of Ireland over the weekend, with the group then voting in favour of it.

Dr Gapert said that, in addition to the backing of the coroners, the idea had the support of the Missing Persons Unit in An Garda Siochana, the Office of the State Pathologist, and Forensic Science Ireland.

It concentrates all the information throughout the country in one place, said Dr Gapert, adding that it may help streamline investigations, particularly in instances where foul play may be suspected.

It is a central point. It is a place that gardai and coroners can contact to ask for advice on how to process unidentified remains.

The proposal argues that there is slow or non-existent communication between main stakeholders in human identification cases, inefficient information exchange on crucial case stages, and the lack of a centralised depository for unidentified human remains and forensic human tissue samples. It urges the minister to consider establishing a section for unidentified remains.

Dr Gapert is the only Irish practitioner asked to assist in identification of remains from the Grenfell Tower disaster in London.

He said missing persons agencies in Britain are also supportive of the proposal as they believe it would assist in any possible cross-border element with some finds.

We have to see how the minister will respond to it, he said.

In the letter to Mr Flanagan, Mr Burke wrote: There was a case over the last 12 months where a body was washed off the coast in Louth over 10 years ago but it was only identified within the last 12 months that it was the remains of a person who had been reported missing in Dublin some months beforehand.

Mr Burkes Missing Persons Bill, which could help families of missing persons who are presumed dead to settle their affairs, could become law by the end of the year. It has already received the backing of the Seanad.

Regarding the proposal for the central database, Denis Cusack, a coroner for Kildare, said coroners welcomed the proposal, adding that a specialised unit could help pull together all the expertise required and help the most important people in the whole process, the families of the missing people.
By Elaine Loughlin and Fiachra O Cionnaith

Dublin councils will robustly defend their record when they write to Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy today as both sides remain at loggerheads over the homelessness crisis.

Mr Murphy wrote to three of the four Dublin councils last week threatening to remove some of their powers if they do not take immediate action to increase provision of homeless family hubs.

A number of councillors have hit back at Mr Murphy, who is facing a Dail motion of no confidence.

Fingal County Council chief executive Paul Reid said he was shocked and surprised by Mr Murphys comments, claiming the authority had surpassed its targets.

Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin entered the fray by claiming it was shocking to see last week the minister and Taoiseach trying to blame local authorities for their own shortcomings in the housing crisis.

Mr Murphy set a deadline of today to reply to his ultimatum. Local authorities are expected to mount strong defences of their records.

Separately, Mr Murphy faced calls from Sinn Fein to step aside to allow for an entirely new approach to solve the housing crisis

Sinn Fein has published a motion of no confidence in Mr Murphy which calls for a dramatic shift in policy and an overhaul of the Governments Rebuilding Housing plan.

Housing spokesman Eoin O Broin said: Eoghan Murphy isnt up for the job. I believe he has shown himself to be out of touch and out of his depth.

Mr Murphy said Sinn Fein has spent months playing bad politics and that the motion was devoid of solutions and will not take a single person off our streets.

While the motion will be tabled and debated in the Dail on September 25, Fianna Fail has already said it will not support it, which Mr O Broin strongly criticised.

Meanwhile, Mr Murphy is to bring plans for a Land Development Agency in a bid to tackle the housing crisis to the Cabinet today.

The agency will be given 1.25bn to build social and affordable homes, as well as private housing and rental properties on both State and privately owned property.

At the Fine Gael think-in in Galway last week, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar described it as a step change in the Governments involvement in the housing market and, in time, would be seen as being as significant as the decision to establish the ESB, Aer Lingus, or the IDA.

It comes as the CSO Residential Property Price Index found that in the year to July, residential property prices increased by 10.4%. This compares with a rise of 11.9% in the year to June and an increase of 11.6% in the 12 months from July 2017.

Pat Davitt, chief executive of the Institute of Professional Auctioneers & Valuers, said there is still a shortage of homes.

He pointed to the CSO figures showing that of the 4,104 dwelling purchases filed with the Revenue Commissioners in July, only one in five was for a new dwelling.

Mr Davitt said: This is where the real problem is. There are simply not enough new dwellings available for purchase.
By Daniel McConnell and Fiachra O Cionnaith

Addressing the housing crisis dominated the second pre-budget meeting between Fine Gael and Fianna Fail yesterday, but the meeting ended without resolution.

Fianna Fail has demanded the Government build up to 4,000 new homes on State-owned land in the next 12 months as part of an ambitious 200m affordable housing scheme.

The party has called for the investment to be a cornerstone of next months budget in talks between Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe and his Fianna Fail counterpart, Michael McGrath.

Mr McGrath and party colleague Barry Cowen met with Mr Donohoe yesterday for the second time and talks over 800m in new spending for 2019 were described as constructive.

The parties are to meet again next week when detailed talks are set to begin.

Fianna Fail housing spokesman Darragh OBrien said the plan would involve a multi-year commitment to build new affordable homes on State land, possibly cutting house prices by 50,000.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner at the start of Fianna Fails two-day pre-Dail think-in, Mr OBrien said that while there are 2,000 hectares of State-owned land in local authorities across the country, most of it is not being used.

While the average price of a house is 380,000 in Dublin and 250,000 in the rest of country, Mr OBrien said using the currently empty State-owned land could reduce these figures by 50,000.

This is because the average cost of land to build a house on would not need to be included in any new homes built as part of the new scheme.

What were talking about is starting the affordable housing scheme again. It has been done before, and it can be done again, he said.

There is a real need for affordable homes for people across the country, because to repay a mortgage for an average house in Dublin at the moment you would have to be earning 90,000, which is out of reach for loads of people.

So this is about introducing a subsidy of 50,000 for homes that will be built on State-owned land, and its something we want to see started in this budget and then expanded on in future years.

The Irish Examiner also understands that public sector pay issues, particularly lower pay for new entrants, was raised by Fianna Fail, as was the proposal from Government to again raise the entry point at which people pay the higher rate of tax.

One source described the meeting as primarily an exercise in touching gloves and setting out the main demands ahead of more intense and specific discussions.

The talks were primarily on general terms for the most part. But we will have to get into the detail very soon as there is only three plus weeks to the budget, said one source familiar with the talks.

From the Government side, sources close to Mr Donohoe said the meeting between the parties was positive and constructive.

The meeting built on the initial meeting last week with Fianna Fail, which was constructive and where Minister Donohoe set out the broad parameters of the budget, said a source.
With less than 24 hours notice, thousands of Ryanair passengers flying to and from Germany found out yesterday afternoon that 150 flights were being cancelled due to a pilot strike which began in the early hours of this morning.

Pilot union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC), which only called the strike by the airlines directly employed pilots on Monday night, said that all flights scheduled to depart from German airports over the 24-hour stoppage would be affected.

While Ryanair said it had written to passengers yesterday morning advising it would try to run its full German schedule today, it later confirmed that 150 out of 400 scheduled flights were being cancelled.

VC said it had been demanding improvements on pay and working conditions for its members for many months but Ryanair management had not issued an improved offer and negotiations had come to a standstill.

The union said it had invited Ryanair management to arbitration talks but accused the company of only trying to stall by issuing vague and meaningless statements.

A major sticking point is the choice of arbitrator. The union said it has suggested several suitable individuals but they were rejected by management.

Ryanair said it had proposed Kieran Mulvey, the man who mediated an agreement with the airlines pilots here. It said he was familiar with all of the issues and was available to work immediately.

Kieran Mulvey

However, VC said an arbitrator must have sufficient knowledge of German law and, as Mr Mulvey could not be sufficiently informed in that regard, he was already not qualified to act in this case.

The union said agreements reached between Ryanair management and its Irish and Italian pilots could not be a blueprint for a solution in Germany.

Ryanairs Kenny Jacobs said it was unacceptable that VC, without consulting with Ryanairs pilots, threatened strikes and disruptions to its customers when Ryanair pilot pay and conditions are substantially better than at other VC airlines such as Eurowings.
Latest: Up to 1,000 protesters have taken part in a major housing demonstration during rush hour in Dublin city centre.

The protest has been organised by the Take Back The City group following an eviction at North Frederick Street last night.

Gardai have been criticised following last night's scenes on the streets where five activists were arrested and one was hospitalised.

Tonight's protest by the Take Back the City group in Dublin. Pic: Collins

Solidarity TD Ruth Coppinger is concerned that only rich people being protected.

She said: "The Gardai didn't cause the housing crisis, but it's about the way that they were used and who ther are used in the interests of.

"It's in the interests of landlords and very wealthy people.

"I put this at the door of the Housing Minister and the Government. What have they got to say? They've been completely silent on this."

Earlier: Housing activists stage major protest in Dublin

Take Back the City protestors are at the northern end of O'Connell St in Dublin.

They are staging a sit-down protest which has blocked several roads in the area and drivers have been advised to take an alternative route.

Activists say they will not be intimated and will continue to occupy vacant and derelict buildings.

Young people make up the majority of the crowd and some say it is unacceptable for the Government not to have made more progress in resolving the problem.

One protestor said: "I just feel like 105 years on from the Lockout of 1913 that there is still this incredible slumlandlordism in this area, and it's just insane."

Another said: "There has been plenty of time to make some headway on it, and there hasn't been.

"I think that housing is a human right and it's the responsibility of a government to look after its people, and it has not been doing so."

Tonight's protest in Dublin. Pic via @TBTCDublin

They began this evening's protest at the site of the eviction in response to last night's events.

The demonstration then moved to Parnell Square and O'Connell Street, where protesters began a sit-down protest.

Organisers of this evening's protest said they would be "taking to the roads, shutting down traffic in rush hour" to make a statement that last night's events "cannot and will not be tolerated".

Earlier: Amnesty concerned about 'possible excessive' force used by Gardai at Dublin housing protest

Amnesty International Ireland have said they are concerned about the reports and video footage from last night's eviction and protest at North Frederick Street.

The group identified what they called "excessive and unnecessary use of force" by Gardai and said they were especially worried about what appears to be private security service personnel not displaying identity badges

Fiona Crowley, Research and Legal Manager for Amnesty International Ireland, said: What we have seen raises concerns about possible excessive and unnecessary use of force against what appear to be largely peaceful protestors.

"Whenever the lawful use of force by An Garda Siochana is unavoidable, it must be used with restraint and in proportion to the seriousness of the law enforcement objective.

Gardai should only facilitate and support the actions of private security personnel where they are lawful and do not involve excessive force.

"In this regard, it is of concern that the private security personnel reportedly failed to display identity badges, as required under section 30 of the Private Security Services Act."

Earlier: GRA: Gardai showed restraint in face of provocation at Dublin housing protest

We urge that these events be investigated as a matter of urgency to ascertain if human rights abuses were committed, and if so, ensure appropriate action.

John O'Keeffe, Director of Communications for the GRA, has defended members of An Garda Siochana and the Public Order Unit who were involved in last night's protest at North Frederick Street.

Mr O'Keeffe said that certain members of the Public Order Unit were deployed to the scene after intelligence was received that they may need to employ gardai with specialist training.

The scene on North Frederick St last night. Pic: John Rooney

Responding to criticism of members of the gardai wearing balaclavas, he said: "The Public Order Unit uniform is designed to act as an optical deterrence to violence and on the vast majority of occasions this will be successful."

He added that members were still identifiable by the Reg Numbers on their shoulders.

The hood is flame retardant and in a time when horrific acid attacks are becoming more prevalent, it also offers some further protection from sprays or gases, or any other noxious substance, that may be used against our Members in this Unit.

Frontline members were praised by Mr O'Keeffe for doing "an incredible job protecting the general public".

"The Public Order Unit should be especially commended for the typical restraint they always exhibit and indeed showed, in the face of provocation in North Frederick Street.

"The arrests following assaults on gardai, show how important a presence they can be in certain situations."

Earlier: Gardai defend wearing of balaclavas at Dublin housing protest

Gardai have defended members wearing balaclavas at a housing protest in Dublin's North Inner City last night.

Images have surfaced following a demonstration by activist group Take Back The City.

Gardai attended the scene on North Frederick Street yesterday as people occupying a property were evicted.

Pic: John Rooney

They have been criticised for wearing balaclavas while attending the disturbance on the street.

Councillor Roderic O'Gorman, the Green Party's Justice Spokesperson, says he finds the images disturbing.

"I just think it's quite disturbing that we see a protest being policed in this particular way," said Mr O'Gorman.

I don't think it meets the criteria of transparency and openness that we would expect from policing.

Garda Press has confirmed the balaclava is made of the same fire retardant material as the rest of their uniform and is a worn for Health and Safety reasons.

They deny the balaclava is an attempt to conceal the identity of their members and confirmed their ID number is visible on the chest area of the uniform if they need to be identified.

They also confirmed they were not involved in evicting people from the property and only dealt with the ensuing disturbance on the street.

Two people are due in court next month after five arrests were made during the clashes.

Absolutely shocked and taken aback by the video and pictures coming through from the eviction of the #takebackthecity occupation. Sincerely hope everyone is ok. pic.twitter.com/kg1D53UZYL  Cllr Carly Bailey (@CarlyBee25) September 11, 2018

Earlier: Anti-homelessness activists say some 'pushed down stairs' during Dublin raid

Two people are due in court next month after five people were arrested during clashes in Dublin's north inner city over the housing crisis.

Another two of those arrested received adult cautions while the fifth was released without charge and a file is being prepared for the DPP.

People protesting outside Store Street Garda Station. Pic: Sam Boal/RollingNews.ie

The number of people reported to have been arrested was six but Gardai have since revised that number down to five.

Scuffles broke out when a group of activists were forcibly evicted from a vacant house on North Frederick Street yesterday evening.

The Take Back the City group has been holding sit-ins to highlight the number of homes sitting empty during the housing crisis.

Eoin from the group says a number of people were injured: "One person suffered concussion...someone else suffered serious shoulder injuries...someone else had very severe bleeding and cuts on their arm."

In a statement, the group also claimed that Gardai had used "physical force in the process".

Gardai have said that their only role in the eviction was to prevent a breach of the peace.

"The eviction itself was peaceful. However, a large crowd gathered on the street and five people (one woman and four men) were subsequently arrested for public order offences and assaults on Garda members," said the Garda Press Office.

Crowd at Store Street now! Shame! Shame! Shame on you! pic.twitter.com/LE7GOqK06L  Take Back The City - Dublin (@TBTCDublin) September 11, 2018

Earlier: Activists arrested during housing action protest have been released

Six people have been arrested after a large group of housing activists marched on Store Street Garda Station in Dublin last night.

All of those arrested were released late last night.

It followed an earlier protest at North Frederick Street, where some were arrested for public order offences, during an eviction at a building being occupied by the group 'Take Back the City'.

'Eoin' - a spokesperson for the group - said the trouble began earlier in the evening.

"When protestors mobilised outside 34 North Frederick Street during the protest a number of activists were arrested, injuries were sustained and a mobilisation happened outside Store Street Garda Station where between 150 and 200 people, activists and members of the community, protested outside Store Street Garda Station demanding the release of the activists," said Eoin.

In a statement released this morning Take Back the City said that "several of those arrested subsequently presented to hospital for treatment on injuries sustained before and during their arrests".

The property on North Frederick Street was taken over by a group last month.

It followed a 10-day occupation of a building at Summerhill Parade a short distance away which ended after the High Court ordered protesters to leave.

UPDATE:



All of the arrested activists have now been released. 4 are currently in hospital relating to injuries sustained earlier.



Shame on the Garda for not only defending goons in balaclavas against peaceful protesters, but for using violent force against them.



More to follow  Take Back The City - Dublin (@TBTCDublin) September 11, 2018

Those involved in the demonstrations have argued that houses should not be allowed to sit vacant during the housing crisis.

The group intend to hold a solidarity rally later today.

Digital Desk
By Catherine Shanahan and David Raleigh

The prospect of widespread industrial unrest in the health service is looming as both nurses and hospital consultants vent their frustration at Government failure to tackle concerns over pay and emergency department (ED) overcrowding.

Up to 250 nurses joined a protest at the main gates of Cork University Hospital yesterday and about 100 nurses protested outside University Hospital Limerick (UHL) demanding the HSE plan for an expected winter increase in patients.

Figures from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) show August was the worst on record for overcrowding with 7,911 patients on chairs or trolleys, an increase of 2% on last year.

In Limerick, nurses described hellish conditions inside UHL where 48 patients were on trolleys today.

A decade ago all 24-hour EDs in the Mid-West region  at Ennis General, St Johns Limerick, and Nenagh General  were reconfigured to UHL. A 24m ED opened at the hospital last year.

However, according to nurses, the trolley crisis has actually worsened, with patients being placed on trolleys in wards.

Under a nationwide escalation policy, hospitals can place extra patients on wards to take the pressure off EDs but it was only envisaged in extreme circumstances.

Mary Fogarty, INMO spokesperson in the Mid-West, said there were about 75 nursing vacancies in UHL.

In Cork, INMO spokesperson Liam Conway said the HSE, having exhausted all other avenues to recruit nurses, now needed to address pay. A report last week from the Public Service Pay Commission said there were no generalised recruitment and retention problems in the nursing and midwifery sectors.

However, the INMO disputes the claims and is planning a special delegate conference for September 26 to decide on a plan of action.

Separately, the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) is conducting a national survey of consultant members to see what level of industrial action may be undertaken if Government fails to address the pay inequality between consultants employed before, and after, October 2012. The latter were subject to a 30% pay cut.

IMO president Dr Peadar Gilligan said the differential in pay is greater than other categories of public servants (average pay cut of 10%) and consultants working beside each other and doing the same job with the same level of responsibility and qualifications are being paid significantly poorer rates of pay.

The pay difference will rise to about 50,000 in the coming months.

Dr Gilligan said doctors, in general, have not traditionally tended to engage in industrial action but that all recent efforts by the IMO to address the matter had been rejected.

The prospect of widespread industrial unrest in the health service is looming as both nurses and hospital consultants vent their frustration at Government failure to tackle concerns over pay and emergency department (ED) overcrowding.
By Jimmy Woulfe

As the Garda hunt for the killer of an elderly Limerick woman last Christmas continues, her inquest was adjourned yesterday.

The body of 78-year-old Rose Hanrahan was discovered in her bungalow, at New Rd, Thomondgate, on December 15, 2017, after relatives became concerned.

Ms Hanrahan, a widow, lived alone.

Gardai have not disclosed how she died, but it is understood she was strangled.

The chief suspect, believed to be from Eastern Europe, has not been tracked down. Gardai suspect he may have taken a ferry to France.

Gardai are liaising with Interpol and Europol as they hunt for the killer.

Investigators are said to be using facial recognition technology across Europe to try to identify the suspects location.

It is understood Ms Hanrahan was attacked and murdered during a botched attempted robbery at her home.

It is believed gardai have identified her killer on CCTV, and more than 1,300 people have been interviewed as part of the investigation.

A forensic analysis of clothing, as well as human DNA, was carried out at Ms Hanrahans home.

Gardai would not comment on reports that they have CCTV footage of the killer stalking Ms Hanrahan while she did her shopping at a supermarket in Limerick on the day she died.

Gardai believe the killer was after her ATM card passcode and may have followed her to her home.

At yesterdays hearing, Limerick City coroner John McNamara told Ms Hanrahans two sisters who were present: I know it is difficult for any family to come to inquests, to hear details surrounding the death of a loved one.

Inspector Paul Reidy, Henry Street Garda Station, formally requested the inquest be adjourned, pending the results of a murder investigation.

There is a criminal investigation ongoing at the moment, said Insp Reidy.

Mr McNamara explained that, under the Coroners Act, he was obliged to adjourn the hearing.

He told Ms Hanrahans family: We dont want to give evidence that might have an impact on, or compromise, the ongoing Garda investigation.

Im sorry I dont have an exact date for you. Well have to wait until there are developments in the Garda investigation.
By Ray Managh

An 18-year-old Wexford student, whose Leaving Certificate marks were wrongly totted up by an examiner, could lose her chance of a place in a college veterinary medicine course, the High Court was told yesterday.

Rebecca Carter is suing the State Examinations Commission, legally challenging its decision not to recheck her results before mid-October, effectively costing her a place at University College Dublin, which decides its student allocation by the end of September.

Mr Justice Richard Humphreys was told UCD had agreed not to allocate Ms Carters potential placing until September 30, allowing the court to deal with her judicial review of decisions to date relating to her exam results.

Ms Carter, of Ardcolm Drive, Rectory Hall, Castlebridge, is also suing the Central Applications Office, which processes applications for undergraduate courses in third-level colleges, and UCD seeking to restrain the college from refusing her a place on the course.

Micheal P OHiggins SC told Mr Justice Humphreys that Ms Carter had repeated her Leaving Certificate exams this year and received 554 points, six points short of the required number for veterinary medicine in UCD.

The points required for the course dropped to 555 in the second-round offers and she was then only a point short, said Mr OHiggins. She was not satisfied that her results accurately reflected her exam performance and took part in a review in the presence of two teachers.

Mr OHiggins said the review revealed that, in Ms Carters business exam script, the examiner had given her 17 plus 19 plus 30 but had then wrongly totted up the marks to 56 instead of 66.

He told Mr Justice Humphreys, in papers submitted to the court, that when the error was uncovered, she and her family contacted the commission to have matters put right so she could take up her place.

She was told the commission could not correct the error until mid-October, by which time she would have to wait until 2019 to commence the course.

He said Ms Carter and her family had made exhaustive efforts to resolve the matter but to no avail, despite it involving no more than a correction of a clear and obvious administrative error.

Aoife Carroll, for the commission, told the court there had been more than 9,000 issues to be determined by the commission on appeal relating to more than 5,000 examination candidates.

She told the judge that if this occurred they could find that next year there could be 5,000 applications for judicial review before the court. Ms Carroll asked for an adjournment for a week to allow her file opposition papers to Ms Carters application.

The judge told both the commission and UCD that by 11am on Monday, they should file opposition papers to Ms Carters proceedings. He suggested there could be a full hearing of the application by next Monday or Tuesday.
Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin has accused the Taoiseach of fabricating concerns about Brexit and instability while saying he believes there will be some fudge around an EU withdrawal agreement for Britain in November.

He also rubbished claims that party TDs are worried about recent opinion polls and was forced to deny that Fianna Fail has lost its backbone.

He was speaking at the Fianna Fails parliamentary party pre-Dail meeting in Malahide, Dublin.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has appealed to the opposition party to commence talks on possibly renewing the confidence and supply agreement  the support pact between the Government and Fianna Fail  ahead of Brexit negotiations.

Britain will leave the EU next March but a withdrawal deal, stalled due to disagreement about how to prevent a hard border in the North, has yet to be negotiated. Mr Varadkar said it was in the interest of stability that he wants talks with Fianna Fail to start immediately.

Mr Martin attacked the Taoiseachs stance on prioritising the support pact talks and said Fianna Fail will maintain the three-year, three-budget confidence and supply agreement.

He went as far as to claim the concern about agreeing a deal early because of Brexit was concocted.

Our confidence and supply deal was never about Brexit. The Taoiseach introduced this wrongly and falsely in my view.

The confidence and supply was signed off long before Brexit, so I think there was a deliberate attempt made to raise the spectre of Brexit and that oh there cant be any instability, we cant be looking over the shoulder week to week. When we said last March we would support the budget, that meant the finance bill and social welfare bill into January.

That... thing about Brexit was trumped-up  if you excuse the pun.

He argued that Brexit was not about when and the timing of a general election, adding: Brexit is about people who export beef to the European market, its about dairy markets.

Mr Martin visited officials in Brussels about the Brexit talks last week, including EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier.

He told reporters he now believes there will be some deal for Britains withdrawal agreed in November.

My own view is that there will be a resolution. Some people cant see it right now, but I think in the nature of European politics and the European Unions way of doing business I think it will come to a head.

Probably in November, and I think some fudge will be exercised to get over the line and get the withdrawal agreement in place.

Nonetheless, Mr Martin faces huge internal party pressures here amid dwindling poll figures and with disgruntled TDs pushing for an end to Fianna Fails support of the Government.

Party TD John McGuinness recently suggested the party was left with no backbone and should go for an election rather than continue the confidence and supply arrangement.

Mr Martin dismissed the claim about his party.

I dont agree with that, he said.

Furthermore, he dismissed claims the party has concerns about the low polling ratings.

Ive been through two general elections as leader of the party, so I know a thing or two about it, and the idea that Im or were somehow worried about polls is rubbish, pure and simple.
By Tommy Barker

A major planning approval this week brings to 300m the value of development set to flow onto Cork Citys north quays, by CIEs Kent railway station.

Penrose Dock,a new 125m office based development on Corks Penrose Quay near Kent rail station for developers John Cleary Developments (JCD)

Cork City Council has approved a planning application for a 125m office development, Penrose Dock on Penrose Quay, spanning 250,000 sq ft across two buildings. Proposed by John Cleary Developments, it says it has the capacity for 2,250 jobs when completed in 2020.

The decision to grant the permission comes shortly after BAM/Clarendon Properties got the green light to develop a 160m mixed-use scheme right alongside, called HQ on Horgans Quay, in conjunction with land owners CIE.

The HQ scheme includes 237 apartments for the letting market, a hotel, and 390,000 sq ft of offices, likely to take four years to complete.

Last night, JCD said it hopes to move on site as soon as next month, with 300 construction jobs via builders PJ Hegarty & Sons. It said the Wilson Architecture- designed scheme is seen as adding substantial momentum to Cork City Councils Docklands Development Strategy, by bringing balance to both the North and South Quays.

Chief executive John Cleary described the granting as a game-changer for the north quays. It also brings balance to the economic progress we have seen along the citys quays in recent years and is another positive step forward in the strategy for the overall development of Corks Docklands, he said.

The scheme can create another large employment centre in the city, with the potential for over 2,000 people to work there once its complete in the first half of 2020.

JCD representatives have been active in the US this month, over potential occupiers for Penrose Dock.

Last week it confirmed a letting at its 85 South Mall office scheme, currently under construction, to US-based cybersecurity firm Forcepoint, which will join KPMG there.

JCD buildings in Cork house more than 4,500 workers in projects from Mahons City Gate to One Albert Quay to The Capitol, spanning 850,000 sq ft.

Minister Simon Coveney hailed the swift planning approval as greatly helping to meet the massive demand for grade-A office space in metropolitan Cork.

Conor Healy of Cork Chamber of Commerce, said it was yet another huge boost for the business landscape, employment, and economic growth in Cork.

It faces the rapidly advancing OCallaghan Properties Navigation Square development across the River Lee, where a second office block start is imminent, likely to see tower cranes simultaneously on Corks north and south quays, as developers compete to capture FDI demand.
Posted on: September 12, 2018 1:42 PM

A number of staff changes have taken place at the Anglican Communion Office (ACO) in London, which serves as the secretariat for the Anglican Consultative Council. Two long-serving staff members have been made redundant and a number of new roles have been created; including some to support the forthcoming Lambeth Conference. One staff member has left to pursue theological training having been accepted as an Ordinand by the Church of England.

IT Manager Michael Ade is one of two staff members to be made redundant. He had served the Anglican Communion for 18 years before he left in July. In a message to staff, he said that his role had enabled him to meet some interesting people and . . . to visit some great places. IT support is now provided by a consultancy service.

Accounts Assistant Clara Giraldo has become a familiar face to the many thousands of visitors to the Anglican Communion Office over the past 14 years: in addition to her role in the finance department, she also serves as Reception Manager. She will be leaving her post this month following a change to the structure of the finance department.

Leaving is very hard, she said. The ACO has been like a second home and my colleagues are like family to me. I have really enjoyed my job. I have had the opportunity to meet so many people from all over the world. I am very grateful for the time that I have spent here. I wish my colleagues every success in the work they are doing for the Communion.

Amongst the new members of staff is Rachael Fraser, who was part of the Anglican Communions official delegation to the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) meetings in 2016 and 2017. She takes over from Chris Curry, as Administration and Research Assistant for the mission cluster: Mission, Women in Church and Society and the Anglican Communion Office in the United Nations. Curry left earlier this month to begin ordination training with the Church of England.

I got a glimpse of what the Anglican Communion Office was doing when I was at UN CSW in 2016 and 2017, she said, saying it was exciting to be able to live and breathe the life of the Anglican Communion in this office; and to work for three of the directors with very different remits but also ones that overlap.

She added: I am excited to get stuck in and be a part of it. It is very exciting.

Another new recruit is Lucy Cowpland, who now serves as Administrative Assistant for the Communications and Unity, Faith and Order departments. I am very excited to be part of two different departments in the ACO, she said. I think it will be a good opportunity for me to use the skills that I already have but also grow and learn a huge amount from two very different departments, but ones that work very closely together.

A Church of England priest, Jolyon Trickey, has joined the Anglican Communion as Co-ordinator of Intentional Discipleship. In 2016, the Anglican Consultative Council urged Provinces and Dioceses to adopt a decade-long Season of Intentional Discipleship; the new role is designed to encourage Churches in this work.

For 27 years I have been involved in trying to instil a culture of serious discipleship in the local church, and over the past year I have been particularly engaged in what God is doing across Asia, he said, so when this role came up with its international dimension I was really excited to be part of shifting the culture of Anglicanism to have a reputation of being serious in discipleship.

There have also been three new appointments to the Lambeth Conference Company, which exists to organise the once-a-decade gathering of Anglican bishops from around the world, on behalf of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Joining as Administrator, is Verity Sykes, who describes her involvement in the gathering, due to take place at the University of Kent in Canterbury during the summer of 2020, as exciting.

She said: It is a big opportunity to bring lots of people together and cast a vision for the Church. As a member of the Church it feels great to work as part of that and to see what will happen in the future.

Another new staffer is Brad Frey, who has been seconded by the ecumenical international development agency Christian Aid to work with the Lambeth Conference team for three-days a week between now and 2020. He describes the arrangement as positive, saying: I think it is quite exciting for Christian Aid and the Anglican Communion to be partnering together on this sort of thing; it is a good example of the kind of partnership we want to be building.

I think it works to a shared agenda  the fact that we are working to the same direction; and that the objectives of the Conference work really well with what Christian Aid wants to see from the Church. It speaks very positively about the kind of things that we have in common and that we share.

Rachel Westall joined the Lambeth Conference team a couple of months ago, having been Operations Manager to the Bishop of Islington at the Centre for Church Planting and Growth. She has worked in educational administration and the Fresh Expressions team, a project of the Archbishops of Canterbury and York. She knows the Church of England well  she is wife and daughter of vicars.

I am looking forward to learning about the Anglican Communion over the next two years in the run up to LC2020, she said.

Brad Frey and Rachel Westall.

Photo: ACNS

Phil George, the Chief Executive of the Lambeth Conference Company, commented: The additional LC2020 staff team have now been recruited. Rachel Westall and Brad Frey are helping project manage the event, Verity Sykes has joined as a vital administrator and we have Janice Price across at Church House overseeing the exciting hospitality initiative.

There is much to do and it is great to have the appropriate resource now to help focus our minds on the many tasks ahead. Please do continue to pray for the whole team.

There are also imminent changes to the senior leadership of the Anglican Alliance. Andy Bowerman, one of two Co-Executive Directors, will leave his current post next month to become Regional Director for the Middle East and South Asia for the Anglican mission agency Mission to Seafarers from his new base in the Arabian Gulf.

The Revd Andy Bowerman.

Photo: CMS

Its has been hugely stimulating & encouraging to serve the Communion through the Anglican Alliance, where I have witnessed first-hand the impact the Anglican family can have when it comes together to seek to empower and equip those at the margins, he said. I look forward to focusing now on the Middle East and South Asia serving with another Anglican agency, the Mission to seafarers.

With their focus on labour rights, trafficking and responding to injustice there is a good deal of overlap.
Latest: Victims and families of the CervicalCheck scandal have labelled the leaking of the Scally report as disgusting, and say there are fundamental problems in the HSE when it comes to womens healthcare.

Stephen Teap, whose wife Irene died on July 26, 2017, after two false negative tests, and Lorraine Walsh, who lost her chance to have children over a missed 2011 cancer warning, spoke to the media today, after a five-hour meeting on Tuesday with Dr Gabriel Scally about his report.

Although they said they were pleased with the detail of the report, they have major concerns with a number of his findings, including what they say is physicians operating with a God complex, and say the 50 recommendations in the report must be implemented immediately.

Whatever route is taken after this, whether it be a commission of investigation or an inquiry, it cannot delay the implementation of these very critical recommendations, Mr Teap said.

Ms Walsh, who had seven surgeries over five years to try and preserve her fertility, criticised the attitude of consultants who she says withheld critical information from her and other women about their cancer status.

When it was disclosed to me, the attitude I was given was; I didnt feel you needed to know, and in hindsight I should have told you, I dont know what youre making a big deal about, this is no big deal and that is something that has come out in Gabriel Scallys report; he has clearly shown that is a problem across the system.

This is a system that seems to be every single area of it, problematic, as we moved through the report last night, every area, every chapter, we were told there were fundamental problems, it was very hard to hear, especially the outsourcing to other labs, its unbelievable that CervicalCheck knew nothing about it.

Lorraine Walsh, who received an incorrect smear test, during a media briefing. Pic: PA

This cannot happen again, Stephen is here without his wife and has two small boys at home, I wish I had two small boys at home but I dont have it.

While the cervical screening system saved my life, it took a lot away from me and let me down badly.

Mr Teap, from Co Cork, lost his wife and mother of his two young sons, Oscar and Noah, last year and was told just months before her death that her smear tests from 2010 and 2013 were incorrect.

He said he found out parts of Dr Scallys report had been leaked from the media on Tuesday morning.

The initial plan was to meet Dr Scally at 11:30am on Wednesday, so I organised babysitters and taking day off work.

My alarm was due at seven, at 10 to seven a radio station phoned me looking for my reaction to the leaking of the Scally report.

Stephen Teap is the father of two young children. Pic: PA

I could not believe what I was being asked.

I was outraged, I was absolutely devastated when I went online and saw what was leaked.

Its not just me, 220 other families who have been through the worst pain and hurt, and given this whole scandal is based around victims finding out information from the media, the insensitivity from the person or people who leaked it is horrific.

Lorraine Walsh and Stephen Teap giving their reactions to the report today. Pic: PA

The amount of energy it takes to sit in front of you here today, even driving to Dublin to read through this inquiry, the emotional pain, its horrific for us to read.

The end of Irenes life, she did everything right, she put all her faith in the system, everything let her down, and for her to continue to be treated in that manner was absolutely disgusting.

I would like to see (the leak) investigated, there is so much hurt and pain involved.

Earlier: HSE accepts treatment of women at centre of CervicalCheck scandal was 'ill-judged'

The HSE has welcomed Dr Scally's report of the Scoping Inquiry, saying the "impact of this failure has been profound".

They acknowledged Dr Scally's patient-centred approach during his inquiry and their failure to communicate to the women affected.

The HSE statement said: "We are re-iterating our deepest apology to all those women and those families affected. At the centre of this issue was our failure to communicate with the women who were the subject of the audit.

"As Dr Scally noted, and with which we agree, these women should have been informed.

"The impact of this failure has been profound both for every single woman and all family members affected."

"We further accept that the manner in which women were told was inconsistent and in many instances ill-judged and poorly handled."

They said their priority is to support the women and families involved and to bring in the recommendations in Dr Scally's report.

They said: "We welcome confirmation by Dr Scally that the current laboratories have and continue to provide services in a quality assured manner.

"We are now moving swiftly to implement all 50 recommendations and are continuing to thoroughly examine the findings."

Earlier: Family told 'nuns don't get cervical cancer' by consultant

Dr Gabriel Scally says the current policy of disclosure to patients is deeply contradictory and unsatisfactory.

More than 200 women had their smear results read incorrectly.

Dr Scally outlined how one consultant delivered the news to a family whose mother was deceased.

"They said they went in for their disclosure meeting and the consultant said several times about the late woman's smoking habit and also told them that nuns don't get cervical cancer.

"Now if that isn't paternalism, verging on misogyny. If that isn't paternalism, what is?"

Dr Scally believes there is not a need for a commission of investigation but he has made 50 recommendations.

Representatives for the women involved have called for them to be implemented as soon as possible.

One of the women affected, Lorraine Walsh, says this can never happen again.

"We can't change what has happened to us but we've been working closely with the department, with all of the people in the HSE, CervicalCheck through the steering committee over the last number of months to try and push this forward, to try and change the system and to try and make sure this doesn't happen again.

"We cannot have this happen again."

This afternoon on @RTERadio1 - @PhelanVicky @Stephenteap & @LorcallWalsh react to The Scally Review live in studio. Join them with Ray after the 3 o'clock news. #CervicalCheck  Ray D'Arcy Radio (@RadioRayRTE) September 12, 2018

Earlier: 'It is horrific for us to read', says Stephen Teap

Stephen Teap, whose wife Irene died from cervical cancer, says the report was hard to read.

"You have absolutely no idea of the emotion and pain that we felt yesterday going through this inquiry," Mr Teap said at a press conference.

Stephen Teap and Vicky Phelan pictured earlier this year.

"It is horrific for us to read, particularly for myself when I see exactly how the ending of Irene's life now can be summed up in this.

"She did everything right. She got her smear test done. She put her 100% trust and faith in the system."

Stephen Teap says the priority is to ensure the immediate implementation of the recommendations from Dr Scally's report | https://t.co/HIEeBN6PPX pic.twitter.com/78EIPGGaxC  RTE News (@rtenews) September 12, 2018

Mr Teap said that he is very concerned with some of the findings within the report.

He said that the 50 recommendations proposed by Dr Scally need to be implemented immediately and cannot be delayed.

Vicky Phelan was not present today saying that "I need to ensure that I am alive to see all these changes implemented" but took to Twitter to support the statements made by Mr Teap and Lorraine Walsh.

I agree 100% with @Stephenteap and @LorcallWalsh Sorry I couldn't be at the press conference. I need to ensure that I am alive to see all these changes implemented #CervicalCheck https://t.co/BBxgXYUZQd  Vicky Phelan (@PhelanVicky) September 12, 2018

Earlier: Indications CervicalCheck system was 'doomed to fail'

The Scally Report into the CervicalCheck controversy has been published.

Dr Gabriel Scally says there were indications it was a system "that was doomed to fail".

Dr. Gabriel Scally, at the publication of his final report of the scoping inquiry into the CervicalCheck Screening Programme. Pic: Sam Boal/RollingNews.ie

He found there was a "whole systems failure" in the system but he said there was no evidence of a conspiracy, corruption or cover up.

More than 200 women were not told about an audit showing their smear results had been read incorrectly.

Dr Scally has heavily criticised the manner in which they were finally told about it.

"They have expressed very clearly their anger at not being told at the time when the information from the audit became available and they are equally as angry about how they were eventually told," said Dr Scally.

My view on the manner in which they were eventually told in many cases varied from unsatisfactory and inappropriate to damaging, hurtful and offensive.

Dr Scally also found there were problems in each and every one of the areas he looked at and how information should be disclosed to patients.

Health Minister Simon Harris acknowledges women have suffered because of this.

"Certainly harm was done to women in terms of the non-disclosure and Dr Scally has been very clear on that - that extra harm, extra pain, extra suffering was added to women who already had cervical cancer and in many cases a devastating diagnosis," said Minister Harris.

Minister for Health Simon Harris says the Scally report has found huge failings that need to be addressed | https://t.co/W6fZiExHnk pic.twitter.com/g2ONsU54lp  RTE News (@rtenews) September 12, 2018

"The inquiry finds no indication that my department was aware prior to April 2018 of the scale and the potential impact of the issues in respect to the handling of disclosure in relation to the CervicalCheck audit process," said Minister Harris.

"The report states that it would be unreasonable to expect senior management in the HSE and even moreso department officials to have intervened on foot of the briefing notes which it describes as largely reassuring notes.

"The report also finds no evidence that a briefing from me on the cervical screening audit was ever prepared or ever took place prior to April 2018 despite some political charges to the contrary."

Watch Dr Gabriel Scally give his statement on the findings below:

You can read the full report here.
A self-help group supporting families who have lost a loved one through illegal drugs or alcohol abuse has set up what is thought to be the first specialist bereavement service of its kind.

The National Family Support Network (NFSN) said it could not get State funding for the programme and was only able to go ahead thanks to funding for three years by the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin, Diarmuid Martin.

NFSN said its addiction-specific bereavement support group is the first in the country, but can only cater for families in Dublins north inner city.

Speaking at the announcement of the service, and the launch of research on the impact of drug-related deaths on families, NFSN chief executive Sadie Grace said the service is needed across the country.

We are well aware that private funding is not sustainable nor appropriate into the future, she said.

This service needs to be mainstreamed and receive core funding from a State department.

Further, we need to expand this beyond the north inner city. We need to roll this out to other parts of Ireland, to ensure that families everywhere can access this kind of service.

Drug-related death does not discriminate, it happens to families in every corner of Ireland.

She said the network is looking for somewhere to run the service.

At the launch of her research  the first in Ireland  Sharon Lambert, from University College Corks School of Applied Psychology, called for specialised bereavement support programmes to be provided on a long-term basis.

She recommended urgent investment in early intervention for children living with substance misuse and appropriate supports for bereaved children.

Dr Lambert, who interviewed 17 bereaved family members, called for a public health campaign to address stigma in order to educate the public and people working in services.

She said that while deserved resourcing had gone into tackling road deaths (196 deaths in 2015) and suicide (425 deaths), funding was desperately needed to tackle drug-related deaths (695 deaths in 2015).

Drug deaths: Grief, trauma, and fractured relationships - the pain of those left behind

- I would drive out to the grave, it was like I was making his bed, I would pat the whole thing down and fix it and everything.

- I seen him going from 22 stone to about 8 stone...like that [clicks fingers] and thats what the drugs were doing to him.

- Basically they brought him out to a woods, tied him to a tree, and beat him up, but they were also the gang that were ringing the phone, driving up and down the house... and threatening, there was a lot of intimidation going on.

- He wanted to die, I think, because his life was just destroyed. he had lost his family. He had no life at all, he had no legs, his arm was gone, he was angry, he just couldnt get himself together at all, do you know what I mean? It was a blessing for him, you know, that he passed on.

- The worst thing that can happen is wishful thinking, cos thats not reality and that will hit you like a brick wall. I went to Js grave every day for three years to remind myself t he was dead, cos every night I would sit here and wish that he would walk through that door and I went to bed like that so in the morning it was the worst, rawest pain in my stomach when I woke up and that was the reality kicking in and I never, never want to experience that again.

- I see the kids all the time, now his girlfriend is as bitter as the day he died. She never went for counselling, she never looked after herself, never did anything, and she thinks because I have moved on that I dont give a fuck about [my son]. She thinks because I have had counselling that I have worked on meself, so there can be a lot of arguing, so thats how I do me counselling, is through the family support. Thats where I am coming from to deal with her, to be honest.
Health Minister Simon Harris is to defy the view of the Scally Report and will press ahead with a Commission of Investigation into the CervicalCheck Inquiry.

Leaked details of the report, which were described as heartbreaking and disrespectful by the women and families directly impacted by the smear test scandal, show that Gabriel Scally does not believe that a promised commission of investigation is now required.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Mr Harris faced a barrage of criticism over the leaking of the document which had only been seen by a handful of top-level officials in both their departments as well as the Attorney Generals Office.

Dr Scally had today planned to brief Vicky Phelan, widow Stephen Teap, and patient Lorraine Walsh on the details of the 200-page document.

However, this meeting was hastily brought forward and Dr Scally travelled to Limerick yesterday afternoon to go through his findings with all three in person.

The report, which took Dr Scally and his team four months to compile with numerous difficulties in accessing HSE documents, contains 50 recommendations.

It is understood that these detailed recommendations take in the need to review other screening services; governance issues; the laboratory services that CervicalCheck use as well systems to make sure that any future issues would immediately dealt with through an open disclosure system.

It is expected that Mr Harris would move to implement these recommendations, which will be signed off on at Cabinet today, as quickly as possible and in tandem with a commission of investigation. However, some of the suggestions may take some time to put in place.

Reacting, the Taoiseach described the leak as disgusting.

Speaking in Co Donegal, he said: This is not a normal story, this is not a scoop. This is a very sensitive issue that affects some women who are very ill and a lot of families who are grieving  and this is something I am appalled to find out this has happened.

However, Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin claimed that the Government may have leaked recommendations not to hold a commission of investigation into the cervical cancer test scandal because they do not want any more questions on what happened.
By Liam Heylin

A passenger who assaulted a taxi driver in a dispute about a fare has been ordered to pay 1,300 for damage to the car to avoid spending five months in jail.

Damien Walsh, aged 33, who was living at 41 Henry St, Cork, and now living back in Tipperary town, pleaded guilty, yesterday, to charges that dated back four years.

Inspector John Deady said that on August 6, 2014, the defendant was involved in a disturbance with a taxi driver at Washington St, Cork.

On arrival at the scene, the taxi driver said the defendant caused damage to the interior of his taxi, after a dispute about the price of the fare. The driver also said he was assaulted by the male passenger. He pointed out where the digital meter on the dash had been pulled out of position and the windscreen was smashed at a particular spot.

The taxi driver said Mr Walsh tried to run away, on hearing that gardai had been called. On speaking to the accused, gardai found that his speech was slurred and he was incoherent.

He pleaded guilty to charges of being drunk and a danger, assaulting Emmanuel Osobase and causing criminal damage to the car.

Judge Olann Kelleher said he would jail the defendant for five months, if he did not bring compensation totalling 1,300 to court in two months.

The judge queried why the accused had done nothing in the past four years to gather compensation.

Defence solicitor, Diarmuid Kelleher, replied: Because his life has been a mess. He is behaving more responsibly and rationally now. He is a qualified hairdresser. He is from Tipperary town.

Mr Kelleher said the accused was planning to take up a hairdressing job in Tipperary.

He also pleaded guilty to stealing two shirts, at Penneys on St Patricks Street, on July 3, 2015, and being drunk and threatening, during an incident at Caroline St on March 6, 2015.
Gardai believe an incident in which a toddler died after becoming entangled in a window blind cord was a tragic accident.

The tragedy unfolded at a house in Delaney Park on Dublin Hill on the northside of Cork City yesterday afternoon.

It is understood the girl, aged 13 months, had been playing at home when she was found by her mother with a cord around her neck.

Emergency services rushed to the scene and ambulance staff attempted to resuscitate the child, before she was taken by ambulance, with an accompanying garda escort, to Cork University Hospital.

Medics at the hospital also attempted to resuscitate her, but she was pronounced dead a short time later.

Gardai are investigating the circumstances and remained at the scene for some time yesterday but believe it was a tragic accident.

The girls parents were being comforted by friends last night.

A file will now be prepared for the coroner.

Earlier this year, an inquest heard that a 17-month-old infant died of asphyxia in Dublin after he became entangled in a blind cord.

The child had been sleeping in a cot next to the window in an upstairs bedroom.

International studies have also indicated that window blind cords have been responsible for numerous deaths around the world while, more recently, the NSAI (National Standards Authority of Ireland) announced three new European Standards to protect children from window blind cords.

The NSAI also issued advice to parents of small children, including to cut the cord to get rid of the loop and install tassels, ensuring loops are at least 1.5m above the ground, and to replace cords with a curtain or blind wands.
As she prepares to read in Cork, Sylvia Linsteadt tells Marjorie Brennan how her love of nature informs her writing.

Fairytale and myth are the bedrock of our initial forays into reading, an enchanting gateway into the spellbinding world of literature.

But we tend to leave the fantastic realm of princesses, knights and trolls behind as we move onto adulthood and fare that is rooted in the real world. For writer Sylvia Victor Linsteadt, however, folklore and myth contain a truth that resonates beyond the nostalgic mists of our childhood.

They are obviously just stories but there is something in myth that touches something very true and deep in our psyche. I see mythology as a way of articulating our connection with the mystical, unseen, unknown magic of the world that we all recognise is there but that theres not a lot of room for in this scientific, technological, rational world. I think a big part of it too is that I feel in a mythic context, everything is alive and speaks, not just us humans.

Linsteadt, who is from California, knew she wanted to be a writer almost as soon as she started to read.

I was a voracious reader. When I was aged eight, in third grade, I decided the only thing that would be better than reading would be to write these magical stories. I never really wanted to do anything else and Ive been writing stories ever since

She graduated from Brown University with a degree in literary arts and got a job with a publisher in the California university town of Berkeley.

I very quickly realised I was on the wrong side of the fence, and I wanted to be writing books, not producing other peoples books. I took a big risk and left that job to try to make it as a writer.

Linsteadt took the somewhat unusual course of reworking old fairytales and myths in the form of a series called The Gray Fox Epistles, which she mailed to subscribers all over the world.

It was my attempt to democratise the arts in a way, to send these stories directly to readers. I made just enough to make a living but it was full-on.

I was writing an 8,000-word story a month, editing it, packaging it, sending it out in the mail. I did that for several years. I find that traditional publishing is quite a relief in comparison, she laughs.

The Cork International Short Story Festival website is now live! Tickets for evening events are only 5 and all library events are free. View our events and workshops for #CISSF18 12-15 September here: https://t.co/kDJdrJ3aAG @NanoNaglePlace @FirkinCrane @corkcitylibrary @rte  Munster Literature Centre (@MunLitCentre) August 2, 2018

Much of Linsteadts work is rooted in ecology and our relationship with the landscape and wildlife around us. She lives in Point Reyes, a stretch of protected coastline an hour and a half north of San Francisco. Her passion for wildlife is reflected in her interest in animal tracking, in which she has an official certification. It may not be an obvious connection, but Linsteadt says the parallels with reading and language were immediately clear to her.

Understanding the patterns that each different animal leaves, whether it is tracks or a feeding sign  suddenly I could read these stories in the landscape and it really brought it to life in real time. This was a specific coyote living its life from these tracks in the sand, you could see it going down to the tideline to look for crabs.

That tracking really informs a lot of my writing, just as a basic sub-stratum, I dont really even think about it, its just there.

Linsteadts most recently published book is a novel for younger readers called The Wild Folk, described by one reader on social media as a bit Hobbit, a bit Watership Down, a bit Narnia.

I'm so excited & a little weepy that my first middle-grade novel #TheWildFolk is published today! It's been such an honor to work with the team at @Usborne; the book truly could not have found a better home. Now I give it over to you, dear readers...! https://t.co/P7uIK9pH45 pic.twitter.com/R4xK1X89wh  Sylvia V. Linsteadt (@WildTalewort) May 31, 2018

She laughs when she hears the description but is humbled and flattered by the comparisons.

Watership Down, that was a profound book to me. I read that as an adult, not as a kid. I couldnt appreciate it at that age. It is just so beautifully written and powerful. I created The Wild Folk to be like something I would have wanted to read at that age, nine or ten, trying to put in all the things I loved in one place. The main theme in it is the deep interconnection of all life it is such an obvious thing but I dont think we necessarily see it in our stories any more.

It feels like there is this necessity of returning to a different kind of thinking about the world. I see these mythic stories and content as helping reorient me.

If you think of everything as living and animated, and not objects for us to use, we would treat the world and the land incredibly differently. As kin rather than raw material, resources.

Linsteadt has just spent two weeks on the Greek island of Crete, a site steeped in ancient tales and mythology.

It has been a really quite profound experience, she says.

Her visit to Cork for the Cork International Short Story Festival is her first visit to Ireland, where she has ancestral roots.

Im sure a lot of Americans say this but I have a fair number of Irish ancestors, she laughs. It will be great for me to see the land where they came from.

Cork International Short Story Festival Highlights

William Wall in conversation with Alannah Hopkin; 6.30pm, today, Nano Nagle Place (5)

Cork writer William Wall (below) has been acclaimed for his poetry, short stories and novels and won numerous literary prizes, including the Sean O Faolain prize for short fiction.

His most recent novel is Graces Day. He formerly taught at Presentation Boys College, Cork, where he inspired the actor Cillian Murphy among many others.

The Stinging Fly: Twenty Years, with Danielle McLaughlin, Eimear Ryan and Danny Denton; tomorrow, City Library, Grand Parade (free)

The Stinging Fly magazine was established in 1998 and has since provided a valuable platform to some of Irelands top literary talent.

Reading at this event to celebrate its two decades in existence will be Danielle McLaughlin, whose stories have appeared in numerous publications including The New Yorker, and whose debut collection of short stories, Dinosaurs On Other Planets, was published in 2015; Eimear Ryan, co-editor of the literary journal Banshee and winner of several awards for her short stories; and Cork writer Danny Denton, who published his first novel The Earlie King and the Kid in Yellow earlier this year.

Simon Van Booy in conversation with Billy OCallaghan, 10pm, tomorrow, Firkin Crane Theatre (5)

Simon Van Booy is the award- winning and best-selling author of seven books of fiction, and three anthologies of philosophy.

Reviving the Dead:Discussion on the work of Frank OConnor, MaeveBrennan and Norah Hoult, 3pm, Saturday, Firkin Crane Theatre (5)

Poet, novelist and essayist Thomas McCarthy will lead a discussion on the revival of forgotten literary reputations, with Patrick Cotter, Declan Meade and Sinead Gleeson, who have worked to bolster the public profiles of Irish writers Frank OConnor, Maeve Brennan and Norah Hoult.

Helen Oyeyemi in conversation with Patrick Cotter, 7.30pm, Saturday, Firkin Crane Theatre (5)

Helen Oyeyemi was one of Grantas Best Young British Novelists in 2013.

Visit the Cork International Short Story Festival website for more info.

Sylvia Victor Linsteadt is in conversation with Alannah Hopkin tomorrow at 8.30pm at the Firkin Crane Theatre as part of the Cork International Short Story Festival.
When I showed my aunt Assassins Creed Odyssey, she said: Its all Greek to me. For once, she and gaming were on the same page. The latest entry to Ubisofts seemingly perpetual series will take place in Ancient Greece, a setting fans have long anticipated.

Assassins Creed has taken some interesting turns during its ten-year history. The first entry was janky but promising,with excellent platforming sections but poor combat and a limited world to explore. The second game, however, delivered on all fronts, creating the open world historical toy-box we are still playing today. In Assassins Creed II, we were introduced to the Renaissance  not only in terms of the time period, but for the series itself too.

Rebirth has been a theme of Assassins Creed ever since, with the series taking us to Rome, the American Revolution, industrial London, the era of pirates and ancient Egypt.

Its not just the scenery that has changed, with gameplay evolving heavily too. Slowly but surely, the series has gone from a platformer to the leading template for open-world games everywhere, with naval battles, mini-games and a loot system all added over time

Assassins Creed Odyssey, which releases on October 5, continues that incessant journey of evolution, building on the advancements made by Origins in a number of ways. For a start, you can now choose between a male or female character, Alexios and Kassandra. While both characters will have the same story and general approach to gameplay, this is the first time Creed has given us the option to choose the face and voice of our hero, doubling down on the RPG elements.

Taking another cue from Mass Effect are the dialogue options now in play. You can choose how to respond in conversations, by getting angry, flirting, bartering, and so on. How you handle a situation will lead to different

outcomes, all of which tie into the overall theme of war between Sparta and Athens. Choosing a side will lead to bounties being placed on your head and different story paths.

With war serving as the backdrop, youll be spending plenty of time engaging in combat and it looks like the development team will further grow the role-playing features introduced in Origins. The loot and levelling

systems will return, but Ubisoft have also added special power slots that allow you to heal and perform special moves. Overall, it looks like the combat may finally be on a par with more standard action titles in terms of flexibility and choice.

It seems like Assassins Creed has been on a never-ending journey of improvement these last ten years. If the latest entry continues that odyssey, it could be a Greek classic.

LIFE IS STRANGE

Theres a different kind of journey on display in Life is Strange 2. The original game was a coming-of-age story with supernatural elements, largely set around a college campus and the character Maxine Caulfield. In the sequel, which features entirely new characters and plot, two young brothers go on the run after being implicated in a murder.

Developers Dotnod say that they have built the story around the themes of brotherhood and education, drawing heavily on the work of a photographer called Mike Brodie, who hopped from freight to freight across the US and recorded the lives of drifters.

In Life is Strange 2, the brothers Sean, 16, and Diaz, 9, must find their way home to Mexico from Seattle in a journey that is sure to be full of puzzles, exploration and top notch character development. Life Is Strange 2 travels to PC and consoles on September 27.

QUIET MAN

Finally, if youre looking for some quiet time away from the noise, Square Enixs latest experiment probably doesnt fit the bill. The Quiet Man  no relation to the film is a bizarre beat-em-up starring a deaf teenager on a revenge mission against Latino mobsters.

While weve only seen videos so far, The Quiet Man comes across as highly campy and almost entirely laden with non-interactive video cutscenes, which then transition into dodgy action gameplay. Its exactly the kind of game that would have been released 20 years ago as a gimmick. Well keep an open mind to what is a strange move from Square Enix, but The Quiet Man doesnt look like anything worth shouting about.
Throughout his visit to Ireland, many females rallied to help former slave Frederick Douglass in his campaign for abolition, writes Robert Hume.

This year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of the black abolitionist and civil rights activist who toured Ireland during the Great Famine.

Although slavery had been eliminated in the British colonies in 1833, it was still very much alive in the USA.

Born Frederick Bailey, Douglass grew up on a slave plantation in Maryland and was owned by Thomas Auld, a member of what he called: a band of successful robbers.

Encouraged by two Irish sailors, in 1838 he ran away to New York, where he married Anna Murray, a free black woman.

To avoid capture, he changed his name to Douglas, after a character in Sir Walter Scotts poem The Lady in the Lake  adding an extra s.

Thanks to local white children, who had secretly taught him to read and write, Douglass was familiar with the anti-slavery newspaper The Liberator. He spoke about his experiences as a slave, and toured the USA as a lecturer for the American Anti-Slavery Society.

Twenty-seven-year-old Douglass landed in Ireland in August 1845, after the publication of his memoir, Narrative of the Life of an American Slave, had propelled him onto the world stage. He sought refuge, and support for the abolition of slavery in the USA, but risked being seized and taken back to a life of bondage.

Frederick Douglass in his twenties.

For four months he toured Ireland, lecturing to audiences of men and women. He was a powerful orator, and newspapers complimented him on his speeches.

Many towns had anti-slavery societies. Far from being in the shadows, or ephemeral, as one writer puts it, women were actively involved. By the 1850s there were more womens societies than mens. Philanthropy and abolition were two social arenas where women could operate in the public sphere, says Christine Kinealy, author of a new book, Frederick Douglass and Ireland: In His Own Words.

A statue by English sculptor Andrew Edwards, representing Douglass in Ireland, aged 27

Dublin women urge boycott of slave sugar

In Dublin Douglass stayed with Richard and Hannah Webb, and their four children, on Pearse Street. The family were Quakers, known for championing humanitarian causes. Richard offered to print copies of Narrative..., priced 2s 6d, to give Douglass an income while in exile; Hannah, a skilled proof reader, helped organise Fredericks tour to Wexford, Waterford and Cork. Dublins Ladies Anti-Slavery Society had already distributed pamphlets and discouraged the purchase of sugar from West Indian slave plantations. Douglasss five lectures riveted the attention of audiences who wanted to know more about American slavery, reported the Freemans Journal.

A hundred thousand welcomes from the women of Cork

During his five-week stay in Cork, Douglass was hosted by Thomas and Ann Jennings at their fashionable house in Brown Street (now near Paul Street Plaza). Thomas, a Unitarian, owned a factory manufacturing non-intoxicating winter stout for teetollallers, like himself.

Their 32-year-old daughter Isabel, who said that Douglass felt like a friend, was secretary of the Cork Ladies Anti-Slavery Society, founded in 1826. Her sisters  Jane, Charlotte and Helen  also attended its weekly meetings.

A key activity of women abolitionists was to contribute to annual bazaars held by women abolitionists in the USA. Cork Societys president, Mrs Beamish, from the brewing family, urged women to keep knitting clothes to send to the Boston anti-slavery fair, until those that are now in bondage shall be freed.

Our friend Christine Kinealy #IrelandsGreatHungerInstitute will launch her publication 'Frederick Douglass and Ireland: In his own words' with partners @EPICMuseumCHQ @MakeAMovelk on Thursday, 20th September! pic.twitter.com/cNxWKSkdgv  Coming Home (@ComingHome_IGHM) September 10, 2018

Isabel Jennings priced the knitwear, and saved money by undervaluing items to pay as little tax as possible. With her help, sales of Narrative reached 600 copies. She also arranged many of Fredericks speaking engagements in October 1845.

During one lecture in the Independent Chapel, attended by the founder of the Cork Examiner, John Francis Maguire, he provided shocking examples of lashings and brandings meted out to slaves.

On October 23, Douglass spoke at the Imperial Hotel, where women had decorated the room with placards reading Cead mile failte, one of which he took home to his wife.

Large number of females present in Limerick

In November 1845 Douglass arrived in Limerick, and witnessed typhus fever and potato blight at first hand. ,For two weeks, he lodged at Lifford House with Benjamin Clarke Fisher, a successful linen merchant, and his wife Mary, both Quakers and founding members of the Limerick Anti-Slavery Society. At least four of their 11 daughters were also involved. With two of them, Susanna and Rebecca, Douglass struck up lifelong friendships.

During one of two lectures he gave in the Independent Chapel on Bedford Row  now the The Buttery cafe  he brandished a selection of instruments used to torture slaves: an iron collar, taken from the neck of a young woman; a set of leg irons; a pair of handcuffs; and a horrid whip, which was clotted with blood when he obtained it. Cries of Horrible! rang out. The Limerick Reporter observed that there were a large number of females present, who left the chapel incensed against the infernal traffic in human blood and flesh.

More than 400 people from all social classes attended an anti-slavery soiree at the Philosophical Rooms on Glentworth Street on 21 November. Douglass commented:

No one seemed to be shocked or disturbed at my dark presence. No one seemed to feel himself contaminated by contact with me

Belfast women form own anti-slavery society Douglass was a keen supporter of womens suffrage, and everywhere he lectured women came to hear him speak.

The Southern Reporter noted that when he spoke at Belfast courthouse the gallery was thronged with ladies, who seemed to take the liveliest interest in the proceedings.

At his final meeting it was announced that the women of Belfast were going to form their own anti-slavery society.

Campaigner Mary Ireland declared: I am convinced that there is scarcely a lady in Belfast who would not be anxious to join in any means calculated to promote the enfranchisement of the deeply injured Africans.

Another abolitionist, Mary Ann McCracken, 75, led the Womens Abolitionary Committee and wore the famous blue Wedgwood brooch depicting a kneeling, chained black slave. As a girl she had read the works of Tom Paine, and was concerned that: The world was going back, in place of advancing in just and liberal sentiments.

Mary Ann McCracken of Belfast supported a boycott of slave-produced sugar.

For years she had abstained from eating sugar to support anti-slavery. Even at the age of 89, she would be seen at the docks handing out anti-slavery leaflets to those boarding ships for the USA.

I have spent some of the happiest days of my life since landing in this country, wrote Douglass, just before leaving Ireland in December 1845. He felt like a man and not a chattel, and could walk through the streets without fear of attack.

A year later, two more women came to his aid. Upon learning that his master intended to reenslave him as soon as he returned to America, Ellen and Anna Richardson, Quaker abolitionists from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, raised 150 to buy his freedom. Anna Richardson appears to be the sister of Ann Jennings of Cork, Isabels mother.

Anna Richardson from Newcastle seems to have had family connections in Cork, and paid 150 to buy Douglass his legal freedom from slavery

On December 12, 1846, Frederick Douglass legally became a free man.

Prof Christine Kinealy is Director of Irelands Great Hunger Institute at Quinnipiac University, Connecticut, USA.

Her book, Frederick Douglass and Ireland: In His Own Words will be launched at EPIC: The Irish Emigration Museum, Dublin, on Thursday, September 20.
By Niall Murray, Education Correspondent

The Junior Certificates results being received by more than 62,500 students around the country today are largely in line with those of last year.

The numbers doing the exam in June are up 908, or 1.5%, on this time last year, and include nearly 600 people who returned to education.

The majority will get their grades this morning or early afternoon at schools where they are now in transition year or fifth year.

This year, for the first time, students were restricted to entering for no more than 11 subjects for Junior Certificate, to include civic, social, and political education.

The State Examinations Commission said 47 students got the highest possible grade in 11 subjects, including a distinction in English, which has been examined for the second year in a revised assessment and grading system. The number is much higher than the six who got 11 As and a distinction in English in 2017, which was before this years subject limit was introduced by the Department of Education.

The 79% of Junior Certificate students doing higher-level English is almost identical to the proportion a year ago.

Like last year, students marks are a combination of performance in the single written exam in June and an assessment task carried out in school earlier in the year. It was one of three classroom-based assessments required of junior cycle students in English, the first subject examined under the long-debated reforms. The associated marks are worth up to 10% of the final grade.

The results using new grades are largely similar to last year, but particularly at the higher achievement levels. Just over 22% of the 48,900 who did the higher-level English exams got a distinction (90%-100%) or higher merit (75%-90%), almost identical to the performance of last years students.

There was a drop in numbers getting a merit for 55% to 75%, with those awarded the achieved grade up from 16% to 20.5% this year. Partially achieved is the grade given to 3.8% of higher-level English students, an increase from 2.3% last year, and 0.2% (nearly 100) were not graded, having scored less than 20%.

Although the 35,443 students who did higher-level maths is over 600 more than a year ago, the proportional increase is similar to overall numbers doing Junior Certificate this year.

As a result, the 57% of maths students doing higher level is almost identical to last years record high.

The results achieved by those doing higher level are similar to last year, a slight difference being a dip from 14% to 12% in those who got an A. This year again, 4.5% or nearly 1,600 students, failed higher-level maths by getting 40% or less.

The uptake for higher-level Irish has also levelled off, as 58% out of nearly 54,400 students taking the subject did the harder exams  again the same proportion as in 2017s record high. For those who did the honours exams, over 84% got an honours grade with an A, B, or C.

Science and business studies were examined under the old format for the last time this summer, as they are the next subjects in which new courses are already being taught. The new assessment methods kick in for 2019.

Of the 80% of science students doing higher level, there is a slight increase to 79.7% in the proportion getting honours grades.

Nearly 34,850 students took business studies exams, with the proportion getting an A up slightly to 9.7%. There were increases, too, in numbers getting lower grades.

Students continue to move away from French as a language option, although numbers doing German or Spanish are up by around 700 since last year.

Mixed report card for education equality in Ireland

Education equality in Ireland gets a mixed report card in an international comparison on a range of learning benchmarks.

It shows a narrower gap here, than in most other developed countries, between the educational attainment of disadvantaged and other teenagers.

While children in second-level schools serving disadvantaged areas continue to perform less well than others in international maths tests, the gap is narrower in Ireland than across nearly 40 countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

The OECDs Education at a Glance 2018 report shows that the proportion of Irish teenagers in the lowest socio-economic category who achieved at least level 2 proficiency in the 2015 PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) maths test was 22% lower than that of children in the highest category. But this compared favourably to the OECD average, in which there was a 33% difference.

Across the OECD, 16% fewer children from rural backgrounds reached that basic level of maths proficiency than the proportion of urban students. But the gap was just 2% here in Ireland, the report shows.

Despite such good results, the rates for adult learning in Ireland are just half those of the rest of the developed world or in the EU. Only Greece had a lower rate than the 24% of participation by adults here in formal or non-formal education.

Although notes to the statistics say Irish data on this benchmark is from 2011, the rate here is still far behind the average for 2015 or 2016, of 47% in 22 EU countries and 49% across the OECD.

Education at a Glance also shows that Ireland continues to have a higher-educated young population than most other countries, the 53% of people aged 25 to 34 with a third-level qualification comparing well to a 44% OECD average.

But even though women are more likely to have a college degree, employment rates for third-level graduates are higher for men, at 90%, compared to 81% for women. The gap is the same as the OECD average, but narrows among younger age groups, with a 90%-85% split between male and female graduates aged 25 to 34.

Efforts to increase Irelands attractiveness as a study destination are also shown to be working, with a 40% rise in international students from 2013 to 2016. At the same time, Irish students enrolling on courses in other OECD countries fell by 10%.

Spending for each college student fell 29% from 2010

Irelands spending on third-level education continues to lag behind the rest of the developed world, the latest compendium of global education statistics reveals.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reports that third-level education was 85% of the average spend in more than 30 countries in 2015.

In its Education at a Glance 2018 report, the OECD shows the amount spent on each student at third-level colleges is down 29% since 2010. This was due to a combination of a 21% fall in spending at the same time as student numbers in the sector jumped 13%.

The revelation underscores the issues persistently being made by university presidents and other higher education leaders that the problem of under-investment needs to be urgently addressed by the Government. It has not acted on the report published over two years ago by Education Minister Richard Bruton in which an expert group, chaired by Peter Cassells, advised an extra 600m a year was needed for the sector by 2021, and 1bn per annum by 2030.

The OECDs general commentary on international debate on third-level funding includes analysis of the issues dividing opinion here the benefits of higher education to individual graduates but also to the wider economy, society, and industry.

While spending per student has also fallen for other levels of education here, it was not as pronounced as the drop for third-level colleges.

However, a 15% drop in schools spending and a 9% rise in enrolments led to a 22% fall in spend per student since 2010 across primary and second levels.

Although the 3.1% of Government spending dedicated to higher education is just above the 3% OECD average, the difference is not as high as in other education levels. Public spending in Ireland on primary to second-level, including further education, was 9.8% of Government spending in 2015 compared to an 8% OECD average.

The third-level spend per student may be less than at schools level due to the increased hiring of teachers during the cutbacks across most of the public service since the recession. But the third-level spending figures do not include the first increases in Department of Education budgets for the sector since the recession, which began last year and will see annual investment increased by 160m over three years.

Although Government investment is shown as lower than in most other countries when measured as a proportion of national income, a note from the OECD suggests this metric is skewed for Ireland because of a significant spike in gross domestic product here in 2015.

However, teacher unions have focused on that question in their responses to Education at a Glance 2018.

Irish National Teachers Organisation general secretary Sheila Nunan said Ireland was an exception to the finding that most countries are spending more per student than at the start of the global financial crisis in 2008.

Irish National Teachers Organisation general secretary Sheila Nunan

The report shows that Irish teachers starting salaries remain higher than most in Europe, despite ongoing industrial relations tensions over the reduced pay scales of those who started in the job since 2011. Teachers Union of Ireland president Seamus Lahart said salary figures only tell part of the story, as most second-level teachers here do not start their careers on full hours.

The 60,000 paid to Irish teachers with 15 years service last year was significantly higher than their European counterparts. It was 37% higher than the 44,500 for primary teachers across 22 EU countries and 23% higher than the second-level average in the EU.

However, time spent at teaching in Irish schools is also significantly higher than in other developed countries.

In 2017, the 722 hours of net teaching time by second-level teachers were 57 to 89 hours, or 9% to 14%, more than their EU23 counterparts, and 21 to 67 hours (3% to 10%) more than teachers across the OECD.
By John Fallon

Noel King confessed to feeling a sense of shame after his Republic of Ireland U21s were crushed by European champions Germany last night.

The Boys in Green needed a result at Tallaght Stadium against the group leaders to keep in the mix to reach next years Euros in Italy but were completely outclassed.

Three of the six goals came from the penalty spot yet Alexander Nubel in the visitors goal was never threatened over the 90 minutes.

Ireland will need to win their last two games next month, both away against Israel and Germany, to have any hope of finishing second and nicking a play-off route to Italy.

Germany are a superb side but we certainly contributed to our own downfall, said King after the heaviest defeat of his eight-year reign.

They were leading us 2-0 up until the final 25 minutes and I dont know what happened to our lads after that.

It was the weirdest game Ive ever been involved in because our players worked hard till the end and played well.

However, I definitely feel a shame about the scoreline.

It was all too routine for the Germans from the moment Aaron Seydel grabbed the lead after only six minutes by stroking the ball beyond Kieran OHara from the edge of the box.

Seydel missed a sitter to double the lead before Jake Mulraney committed a needless foul on Lukas Kolstermann to allow Cedric Teuchert convert a penalty on 22 minutes.

Ireland have lost debutant Sean McLoughlin at that stage to a foot injury and his replacement Shaun Donnellan did little to stem the tide rising against the home side.

Instead of Kings crew responding with any real intent, they were swept aside as Germany upped the gears in the second half.

After getting presented a third on 65 minutes when OHaras weak clearance was collected by Newhaus who teed up Teuchert to send a rising shot into the roof of the net, he notched his hat-trick eight minutes later.

Liam Kinsellas foul on Max Eggestein offered Teuchert another opportunity to hammer a penalty home, which he did with aplomb.

Two goals by half-time substitute Suat Serdar completed the rout.

On 82 minutes, he converted another penalty, with the hapless Mulraney once again tripping Lukas Kolstermann.

He then back-heeled in a second four minutes later to rubs Irelands nose in it.

Weve had a really good campaign up to this, with only one defeat in the previous seven qualifiers, reasoned King. The players will have to find a way to respond and I think they can.

King revealed that a virus sweeping through the squad have ruled Danny Kane out while Ryan Manning was forced to be substituted early in the second half due to the condition.

I dont want to make any excuses, he noted.

Germany were by far the better side and will win the group. We just need to get six points in our last two games to try get into a play-off.

IRELAND: K OHara; C Whelan, R Delaney, C Shaughnessy, S McLoughlin (S Donnellan 16); L Kinsella, J Cullen; H Charsley, R Manning (J McGrath 55 mins), J Mulraney (Quigley 88); R Greco-Cox.

GERMANY: A Nubel; L Kolstermann, T Baumgartl, W Anton, J Torunarigha (S Serdar 46); B Henrichs, E Lowen (A Maier 67), F Newhaus, M Eggestein; C Teuchert, A Seydel (M Richter 54).

Subs: S Serdar (Shalke 04) for Torunarigha (46 mins), M Richter (Augsburg) for Seydel inj (54 mins), A Maier (Hertha) for Lowen (67 mins)

Referee: A Hernandez (SPN)
Micheal Martins next move could make or break him, writes Political Correspondent Juno McEnroe

Micheal Martin is facing into some of the toughest months of his leadership of Fianna Fail. As party TDs last night dined in the salubrious coastal surrounds of Malahide in Dublin at a pre-Dail think-in, there was a nervous energy in the air.

The clock is ticking for the Fianna Fail leader. He knows it. And there are plenty of gambles and risks ahead.

The Fine Gael-led Government is enjoying a bounce in the polls under Leo Varadkars tenure. The opposite is the case for Martins disgruntled band of men and women. Fianna Fail is floating at around 24% in opinion polls, while Fine Gael is in the early 30s.

They may deny it but the increasing gap is worrying TDs, especially the more outspoken, seasoned ones.

In recent days, finance committee chairman John McGuinness claimed the party had no backbone as he called for an election. This was during the same week as the party boss was trying to bat away fears of a gallop to the ballot boxes.

McGuinness is not the only disgruntled TD.

Others worry Fianna Fails recent rejuvenation has reached its sell-by date and that being saddled with the confidence and supply deal  where it stands by the Government  is poisonous.

Fianna Fail TD Lisa Chambers among other members at the parliamentary party meeting in Malahide Grand Hotel yesterday. Picture: Sam Boal/RollingNews.ie

The decision to essentially offer support for Eoghan Murphy and not back a proposed Dail motion of no confidence in the embattled housing minister no doubt irks Fianna Fails frontbench.

Of course, the alternative is to collapse the Government support pact with Fine Gael and run to the polls. Even McGuinness must know Fianna Fails fortunes in such a scenario would be limited.

And this is Martins dilemma. He must hold fast to the dubious position of criticising the Government while also supporting it. How long does this torturous arrangement last?

The gamble will be Martins in the months ahead. If he and Fianna Fail stay, they risk looking irrelevant, stagnant, and pathetic. If the party breaks free, would it get a bounce with voters?

Fianna Fail is under pressure to agree on a budget and a renewal of the confidence and supply deal at a fragile time for Ireland, with stability the key concern as Brexit comes racing down the line. It is a political nightmare for Martin wherein he cannot gamble with the countrys future for political gain.

Of course, when in opposition, you are unlikely to gain from the spoils of an economic recovery. Maybe Fianna Fail will influence initiatives on housing and health but many voters dont even recognise the reasoning behind the confidence and supply agreement.

Fianna Fail TDs Billy Kelleher, Jim OCallaghan and Eamon O Cuiv at the parliamentary party meeting in Malahide, Dublin, yesterday.

On top of this, there is the fact that Fianna Fail will have almost zero presence in the upcoming presidential race. And this at a time when the party is trying to control the political agenda, with Sinn Fein gaining support and biting at its heels.

One chink of light for Martin in the months ahead will be his partys build-up to the local and European elections in May 2019.

Fianna Fail surpassed expectations and poll predictions for the last general election as well as the previous locals in 2014. The same could ring true next May.

Nonetheless, for the time being, Martin is tethered to Varadkars full sail, floating in the wind, unable to break free and at risk of going down when the tide turns.

His TDs admit it is Martins last chance.

One recently elected young blood yesterday confided: It is a make or break moment. Go large and flush or bust and go home. He has to be taoiseach.

It is the biggest gamble of Martins career. He will either be very successful in this risky voyage or potentially face into his last months at the helm of Fianna Fail.
If conservative Brett Kavanaugh is appointed, he could weave president Donald Trumps agenda into the fabric of American society for generations, writes Bette Browne.

We are currently consumed by US president Donald Trumps White House woes, but the congressional battle to confirm his nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, to the Supreme Court for a lifetime term, is far more significant. The new justice can sew Trumps legacy into the fabric of America for generations.

The court can be expected to weigh in on gun control, abortion rights, and even on the fate of Trumps presidency, if he were to challenge the powers of Robert Muellers investigation into any collusion with Russia by Trump or his campaign team. In all of these issues, Kavanaugh, who is on record as believing the US president is above investigation while in office, will play a key role in swinging the court in favour of his agenda.

Although justices are nominated by the president and confirmed by the US Senate, they do not represent or receive official endorsements from political parties. But they are informally categorised in legal and political circles as being judicial conservatives, moderates, or liberals. The Supreme Court is the final judge of the constitutionality of all legislation passed by the US Congress, but most cases that come before it involve interpreting the US constitution.

Conservative-leaning justices tend towards a literal interpretation of the document, while the liberal-leaning ones see it as a living document that impacts current issues. This is a court that, over the last two centuries, has changed the face of America by expanding rights or by curtailing them. It has decided the fate of presidents, weighed in on the enslavement of black Americans, and upheld free speech, among a host of historic rulings, and many future decisions can also be expected to have a major impact on the personal and political lives of Americans.

If, as expected in the November elections, Republicans lose control of Congress, then the make-up of the Supreme Court will be critical for them, because a conservative-leaning majority could be expected to come down on the side of rulings that would have the effect of boosting the partys political stance.

In that scenario, the battleground will move from Congress to the Supreme Court. This is why $10m has been invested in this nomination battle, with most of it coming from groups backing Kavanaugh. And, since Republicans have the numbers in the Senate to confirm him, his accession to the court is all but guaranteed. The US House of Representatives plays no role in the confirmation. All Democrats can do is to try to stall the process, but the Senates Republican leaders have vowed to have Kavanaugh in place before the courts new term begins in October, and well before the results of the November election that could alter the balance of power in the senate.

One group that plays a key role in the process is the conservative Federalist Society, whose membership has included Supreme Court justices Neil Gorsuch, who was Trumps first nominee to be confirmed in January, 2017, John Roberts, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and the late Antonin Scalia.

The society, which also supports Kavanaugh, believes in a more literal interpretation of the Constitution, declaring:

The duty of the judiciary is to say what the law is, not what it should be

The Supreme Court is made up of the chief justice, John Roberts, and eight associate justices. All of them  six men and three women  are there for life or until they choose to retire, as 82-year-old Anthony Kennedy did this year, leaving the vacancy that 53-year-old Kavanaugh now hopes to fill.

The justices are in their 50s, 60s, 70s, or 80s. The youngest is Gorsuch, who is 51. The oldest is 85-year-old Ruth Bader Ginsburg, dubbed the notorious RBG, because of her forthright views and scathing dissents. She insists she wont retire, because it would give Trump a chance to appoint another justice.

The court has delivered a number of momentous decisions that have had a profound impact on the country. Among the cases were two during the era of Richard Nixon, who resigned in 1974 to avoid presidential impeachment. When Nixon claimed executive privilege over taped conversations relating to the Watergate scandal, the Supreme Court ruled that he had to turn over the tapes and other documents, thus setting a precedent limiting the power of US presidents.

Another landmark ruling involved freedom of the press, after the leak of classified materials about the Vietnam War to The New York Times. Nixons team deemed it a breach of national security and attempted to censor the material, citing power vested in the executive branch. But the court upheld the right of the newspaper to publish what became known as the Pentagon Papers. In a dramatic ruling in 2012, the court voted 5-4 to uphold then president Barack Obamas Affordable Care Act, a law that helped to make healthcare affordable to millions of poorer Americans and which the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress still want to repeal.

In an earlier era, one of the most shameful decisions by the court was its upholding of the constitutionality of racial segregation in public facilities, in an 1896 decision, Plessy v Ferguson.

It said racial segregation laws for public facilities were constitutional, as long as the segregated facilities were equal in quality, a doctrine that came to be known as separate but equal.

Another infamous decision came four decades earlier, in 1857, involving the disenfranchisement of African-Americans, in a decision that held that blacks could not be American citizens. The opinion, in Dred Scott v Sandford, declared that slaves were not citizens of the US and could not sue in federal courts. But 100 years later, in 1954, in the Brown v Board of Education case, the court declared that state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students were unconstitutional.

The man who argued and won that case before the Supreme Court was Thurgood Marshall, the grandson of a slave. In 1967, Marshall went on to become the first African-American associate justice of the Supreme Court.

In 1973, in the landmark Roe v Wade decision, the court voted 7-2 in favour of a womans right to decide to have an abortion. The right of privacy was at the heart of the ruling.

In December 2000, in a dispute between Democrat Al Gore and Republican George Bush, over the counting of votes in Florida in the presidential election that year, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favour of Bush, who was then declared president.

Eighteen years later, Americans will be hoping that the court will not have to adjudicate in another presidential dispute  or, if it does, that it will rise above partisan politics and summon the wisdom and courage expected by the framers of the constitution.
The European Court of Human Rights is set to rule tomorrow on privacy rights and surveillance says Elizabeth Farries.

Tomorrow will bring a landmark decision from the European Court of Human Rights on privacy rights and mass surveillance.

The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has joined six other members of the International Network of Civil Liberties Organisation (INCLO) to challenge the lawfulness of the British governments mass surveillance regime.

Led by Liberty UK, INCLO is part of a coalition of NGOs awaiting the outcome in Strasbourg on the legality of British and US intelligence agencies intercepting private communications in bulk.

The case is the latest stage in a challenge to Britains wide-ranging surveillance powers. It builds upon previous findings by the Investigatory Powers Tribunal that South Africa-based Legal Resources Centre and Amnesty International were unlawfully spied on by British intelligence agencies.

It also challenges the tribunal ruling that these practices may comply with Britains human rights obligations. It argues that British surveillance practices, including hacking of computers, phones, and online devices on a massive scale, invade the privacy and rights of millions of people around the globe.

We know about these mass hackings because, in 2013, whistleblower Edward Snowden showed the world for the first time the full extent to which our governments are willing to spy on us without reasonable suspicion.

Snowden released documents revealing that state intelligence agencies intercept, store, and share our private phone and online activities with intelligence agencies overseas. By intercepting our communications, governments can easily see who we talk to, where we are going, and what interests we have, all without our knowledge and consent.

Defending against our challenge, the British state intelligence agency has rationalised this bulk interception on grounds of national security. They say the only way to identify terrorists or criminals is to collect large volumes of all our communications to later filter for specific targets.

INCLO members disagree. While there may be national benefits to international intelligence co-operation and communications interception, the industrial-scale level of spying foisted upon us by local and foreign governments are a gross intrusion upon our fundamental human rights.

It is not enough to reason if you have nothing to hide you have nothing to worry about. We all have something to hide  our enshrined human right to privacy

Recognised under numerous instruments and treaties, including article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, privacy is a foundational right upon which many of our associated freedoms operate, including our freedom of speech, of assembly, and the right to an unencumbered press.

It is our collective governments obligation to justify privacy encroachments according to strict legal tests. The

nothing to hide argument shifts that burden onto individuals shoulders. It threatens central values upon which our free societies stand and paves the way for more authoritarian regimes.

Britain takes part in intelligence-sharing agreements with other states. In an effort to learn more about national intelligence agencies deals with each other, INCLO launched the 2017 International Intelligence Sharing Project across our countries.

Using Freedom of Information requests, we asked our governments to provide details about a practice that historically has been shielded from accountability.

Our efforts have been met thus far with disappointing yet predictable results. Our requests are ongoing, but agencies have tended to delay, reject, or not respond at all.

In our 2018 report, Unanswered Questions, we reveal ongoing: Insufficient laws governing how intelligence sharing partnerships are formed or operate; Insufficient government oversight and review of agency agreements; Insufficient transparency and access to information about these agreements.

Ireland is a key example of insufficient legislation, oversight, and transparency in relation to the international intelligence sharing agreements.

The ICCL submitted Freedom of Information requests to An Garda Siochana, the Department of Defence, and Department of Justice and Equality. All requests were denied on legislative exemptions or security grounds.

While we know from Oireachtas records that there are intelligence liaisons between our Defence Forces Directorate of Military Intelligence and other countries regarding matters of State security, we still know alarmingly little about the nature of those interactions.

The outcome of our challenge at the European Court of Human Rights will have global significance. Our fundamental privacy rights should protect us from government spying and require that international intelligence sharing agreements are guided by adequate laws, oversight, and transparency.

As Martha Spurrier, director of Liberty has said Losing our privacy is the gateway to losing everything that keeps us free  the right to protest, to a fair trial, to practise our religion, to think and speak freely.No country that deploys industrial-scale state surveillance has ever remained a rights-respecting democracy. We now look to the court to uphold our rights where our Government has failed to do so.

Elizabeth Farries is the Information rights project manager for INCLO and the ICCL. She is a PhD candidate and adjunct lecturer in the School of Law at Trinity College Dublin.
Factiva Analysis: Party Says Govt Issuing Fake Kaman Citizenship Cards to Rohingya, Demands Probe

Ethnic Kaman university students in traditional costumes pose for a picture after a welcome event for Rakhine freshers at Dagon University in 2017. / A Tzar Moe / Facebook

YANGON  The Kaman National Progressive Party (KNPP) has lodged complaints with the Myanmar Presidents Office and State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi alleging that more than 3,000 National Registration Cards (NRCs) with ethnic Kaman status were inappropriately issued to Rohingya in southern Rakhine States Ramree Township.

The party has requested a review of the Immigration Departments issuance of the NRCs, which are also known as pink cards.

According to the KNPP, the department wrongly handed 3,306 Kaman IDs to non-Kaman Muslims from Ramree Townships Kyauk Ni Maw between December 2017 and August 2018. The Arakan League for Democracy (ALD) sent a letter making the same objection to the townships office of the General Administration Department (GAD), which is a branch of the Ministry of Home Affairs. It urged the authorities to revoke the IDs.

The Immigration Department denies that any NRCs have been wrongly supplied to Rohingya.

Who Are the Kaman?

The Kaman are classified as one of Burmas 135 officially recognized ethnic groups and one of seven ethnic subgroups of Rakhine State. Unlike the Buddhist Arakanese, the Kaman are Muslim. They have been residing in Rakhine for centuries.

During the Arakan Kingdom, the Kaman served as royal archers, but this profession vanished when the kingdom fell to the Burmese Konbaung Dynasty in 1784. Nowadays, there are about 45,000 ethnic Kaman Muslims across the country. They mostly live in Thandwe, Kyaukphyu, Ramree, Sittwe and Myaybon townships in Rakhine, as well as in Yangon and Mandalay.

Though they practice a different religion, the Kaman community is well integrated into Myanmar life; they speak the Arakanese language and share their traditional attire, used to wear ordinary Burmese garb in their daily lives, and enjoy taking part in Myanmars annual water festival.

Tragic Recent History

However, the good relations between the Arakan and Kaman peoples that have characterized the diverse Rakhine community were soured by sectarian violence in 2012. In May of that year, a young Arakanese woman, Thida Htwe, was raped and had her throat slit by three Rohingya men in Ramree Townships Kyauk Ni Maw village tract.

The following month, nine Muslims were killed in Taungup Township by an Arakanese mob seeking to avenge the death of Thida Htwe. Clashes broke out between the Rakhine and Rohingya communities across the state, leaving hundreds dead and more than 100,000 Rohingya in camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs).

Following the 2012 clashes, Kaman from Kyaukphyu, Ramree, Thandwe and Sittwe townships were targeted by the Rakhine population, who accused the Kaman of helping Rohingya Muslims obtain pink cards, which confer full Myanmar citizenship on the card holder. (Rohingya are not citizens of Myanmar.) Both the KNPP and community leaders have previously told The Irrawaddy that they believe the cards were improperly issued due to malpractice by government officials.

Coincidentally, the latest controversy involving the improper issuance of another 3,306 IDs to Rohingya by the Immigration Department also occurred in Ramrees Kyauk Ni Maw village tract.

KNPP secretary U Tin Hlaing Win said, I was really shocked at their [immigration officials] manner regarding this issue. They [the Rohingya holders of the improperly issued cards] have nothing to do with our community; we do not even have any mixed-race [Rohingya-Kaman] here.

Why Did the Kaman Object to the Immigration Dept?

Some Arakanese have commented that Ramrees current Kaman population totals fewer than 500 people. Kaman Social Network (KSN) founder U Tun Ngwe puts the townships total Kaman population, both rural and urban, at a mere 600.

Kyauk Ni Maw is home to about 300 Kaman out of a total population of 7,000, including Rakhine and Rohingya. U Tun Ngwe said his organization strongly objected to the Immigration Departments move, and had already notified government ministries and relevant organizations.

The Irrawaddy was shown an official household registration document dated 2013 issued by the GAD which shows the Kyauk Ni Maw population at that time as being 4,300 with the Kaman numbering a mere 500.

He said, I want to point out that the Immigration Department deliberately issued [mixed] Kaman-Bengali descent cards to some mixed-blood Kaman families in Ramree in the past. But this time, they gave ethnic Kaman IDs to all Kyauk Ni Maw [Rohingya] people, which is a very questionable matter for us.

U Tun Ngwe explained that both the Rakhine and Kaman communities in the area are strongly opposed to the project and have demanded that officials re-check the details. If the government fails to solve the problem, it could lead to conflict, he warned.

KNPP secretary U Tin Hlaing Win said immigration officers have been issuing the documents in secret, without informing either the Rakhine or the Kaman communities, since 2017.

We are not blocking the citizenship rights of other groups. We Kaman are talking about issuing IDs under ethnic status. Its about ethnic rights, not citizenship rights.

Political Influence

Than Maung Oo, an Arakanese lawmaker from Ramree Township posted that it is easy for a Bengali (as Rohingya are known to most people in Myanmar) to receive an official pink card if the applicant has a recommendation from two Kaman ID holders. He called on the government to take responsibility for wrongdoing in the matter.

The 3,306 IDs have become the focus of a public debate  and prompted hate speech  on social media. Some commenters say that as long as a person meets the conditions laid down in the 1982 law on the subject, there is no problem with the Immigration Department issuing them a citizenship card.

However, many strongly opposed the practice of creating fake Kaman and some blamed the Kaman community, describing them as a doorway for Ben-Kaman.

Some raised the specter of growing numbers of fake Kaman exerting a political influence within the wider Kaman community, pointing out that once any groups population reaches 0.1 percent of the national population of 51 million, they are eligible to contest regional elections and potentially be represented by an ethnic affairs minister.

Ramree resident Htin Lin Khine echoed this sentiment, saying, Yes, we are deeply concerned about Kaman identity being used as a tool to be exploited by other groups for their own political benefit.

However, he added that the Kaman and Arakanese communities have a strong relationship at the moment and have exchanged views on the issue.

Everyone in town knows all about these [pink card] irregularities. My Kaman friends [in Ramree] know every single Kaman person here by name, he said.

Both the Arakanese and Kaman sides are now investigating to find the root causes and the people responsible for the problem. A few people have been identified by locals and preparations are being made to take action against them through parliamentary channels.

Response from Naypyitaw

Immigration officials in Naypyitaw denied the assertions by the Kaman and Rakhine political parties that the department has erroneously delivered more than 3,000 NRCs with ethnic Kaman status to Rohingya Muslims in Ramree Township.

Department of National Registration and Citizenship Deputy Director General U Shein Win told The Irrawaddy over the phone on Monday evening that Kaman community leaders from Kyauk Ni Maw village in Ramree Township asked the Immigration Department for ID cards at the end of 2017.

He claimed that the pilot project was led by a district administrative officer based in Kyaukphyu, assisted by government officials from Ramree Township, along with Kaman community leaders from Kyauk Ni Maw village. He did not provide the names of the village trustees and community leaders.

The verification process started in January 2018 and examined the family backgrounds of each applicant, U Shein Win said, adding that the department had provided 3,306 IDs under the initiative so far. He said every single applicant requires a recommendation from the Kaman community leaders and must produce their parents IDs.

The applicant signs a notice swearing that he or she is really an ethnic Kaman and that they are aware of the legal punishments if his or her claims are found to be false.

When U Shein Win was asked by The Irrawaddy whether officials would review the newly issued IDs, he simply replied that they have already examined the applicants and issued the IDs in line with the 1982 Citizenship Law. There is no plan for a review, he said.

We will take action against responsible officers on a case-by-case basis if the [KNPP] provides concrete evidence [of wrongdoing] to us, he said.

Party secretary Tin Hlaing Win pointed out that issuing a false NRC card could be regarded as a violation of the 1982 Citizenship Laws Sections 18 and 19. The Kaman and Rakhine parties as well as residents of Ramree Township claim that the 3,306 IDs were granted to pure Rohingya, and that those on the list were not even of mixed Rohingya-Kaman descent.

Union Minister for Labor, Immigration and Population U Thein Swe was appointed by State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi when the National League for Democracy took office in April 2016. The Irrawaddy asked Immigration official U Shein Win whether the pilot projects in Rakhine were launched at the instruction of the state counselor. He replied simply that his ministry is doing its work in line the laws.

U Thein Swe, a member of the former military junta, served as minister for transport under ex-dictator Senior General U Than Shwe and is also a member of the NLDs rival, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP).

The immigration official repeatedly insisted that his ministry had acted in line with the law and documented every case handled by the township immigration department. However, he acknowledged that officials had failed to consult with the Kaman political party and civil society groups over the verification process.
In Person We Still Cant Build Trust: RCSS Spokesperson

Col. Sai Ngern at a Shan National Day event in Loi Tai Leng, RCSS headquarters in Shan State. / Sai Ngern / Facebook

CHIANG MAI, Thailand  Col. Sai Ngern, spokesperson for the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), spoke to The Irrawaddy reporter Nyein Nyein about the armed groups clashes with government troops as well as the Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA), one of the ethnic armed groups that have not yet signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).

Weve seen frequent clashes between RCSS troops and TNLA troops lately in Shan State. What is the RCSS doing to de-escalate clashes?

For the time being, there is no direct contact between us and the TNLA. There is a mediator group and were trying to hold talks with the TNLA. We tried to arrange informal talks with them in Feb. or March in order to solve the problems and arrange a meeting between senior leaders but,they still havent taken place for various reasons. We, on our part, are trying to hold bilateral talks with the TNLA.

There are difficulties with trying to hold talks while fighting. We need to stop the fighting if we are to hold talks. It is important to hold talks. We always believe that dialogue is the only answer to solve this problem so we always keep the door open to dialogue. We think that it is necessary to hold talks on this issue.

Locals in northern Shan State have to flee from their homes frequently because of clashes. They also feel unsafe because of the threat of forced recruitment. What is the RCSS doing to help the war refugees and those who face forced recruitment?

There are two points. We dont forcibly recruit; we only welcome those who want to join us of their own volition. We dont have a policy of that [kind of recruitment]. We only accept them according to our principles. We understand that people are experiencing considerable hardships because of the fighting, and we sympathize with them so we try to avoid clashes as much as possible. The only thing that can be done to avoid clashes is to hold a meeting between two sides as soon as possible. Only then, understanding and trust can be built and a solution found. If we continue fighting, it is the people of both sides who will bear the brunt of the fighting. We dont want that to happen. We take care of internally displaced persons as much as we can.

Which group is now acting as a mediator between you two? When did you, the RCSS, propose a meeting with the TNLA? How is the situation now?

I cant officially reveal the mediator; lets just call it an organization. We spoke with the mediator about our demands earlier this month. The mediator will convey our message and mediate [with the TNLA]. So far, there has been no progress yet.

Ethnic Shan woman Nang Mo Hom was abducted and is being detained by the TNLA. The TNLA has said that it put her on trial in its own court for allegedly obstructing troops as they performed their duties in July 2017. Shan groups and other organizations have called for her release. What is the RCSS doing to secure her release?

We are not doing anything specific but we do share the standpoint of the other Shan organizations and the family of Nang Mo Hom.

The RCSS is a signatory of the NCA, but it continues to clash with not only the non-signatory TNLA, but sometimes also with the Tatmadaw. Why do you think this happens?

There are sporadic clashes between the Tatmadaw and us. It can be said that among the NCA signatories, we clash most with the Tatmadaw. Why? Our assessment is that firstly, there is barely any trust between us. We still cant build trust [with them]. Secondly, we have different understandings of state-level and Union-level [ceasefire] agreements [signed] between us. For example, there are problems with troop deployment. Their understanding of troop deployment is different to ours so we dont have a common understanding in that regard. Finally, we have to see if there are weaknesses with the ceasefire monitoring mechanism. There are sporadic clashes between us because of these three reasons. Thats why we are planning to hold bilateral talks with the Tatmadaw.

The RCSS has long been trying to hold informal talks [with the government and Tatmadaw] but they still havent happened. Why?

We have had three-way talks with the government and the Tatmadaw once or twice but as Ive said, things didnt go well. We had a plan to meet them around this time but according to the current political landscape, the government and Tatmadaw are not yet ready. As everyone knows, the political landscape now is quite complicated. Government and Tatmadaw leaders are kept busy with other issues. For the time being, they are not yet ready.

What are the prospects of continued informal talks on political and security matters, known as a package deal, resolving this impasse?

It depends on the discussion. We, the RCSS, alone cant make decision regarding [the Tatmadaws principle of] non-secession from the country. We have to consult other people; we must know the opinion of the people. This is very important. We have history. We Shans were a signatory to the [1947] Panglong Agreement. We are different from other [armed ethnic] groups. One of the solutions is to work out a political agreement through talks between top leaders of the concerned organizations. Whether it will do well or not depends on those discussions.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.
News Activists Jailed for a Year for Protesting on Behalf of Ex-Child Soldier for Tatmadaw

Ko Naung Naung leaves the court on Tuesday. / Aung Kyaw Htet

MON STATE  A court in Yangon Divisions Dagon Seikkan Township yesterday sentenced two rights activists to a year in prison for protesting on behalf of a jailed former child soldier, their lawyer said.

Ko Naung Naung and Daw Lay Lay were jailed for participating in a protest in support of Aung Ko Htwe, a former child soldier for the Myanmar Army (or Tatmadaw) who was jailed for speaking to the media about his experiences.

The two activists were charged under the Penal Codes Article 505 (b), which prohibits defamation against the state, and Article 153, which proscribes provocation with intent to cause a riot. They received a one-year term for violating Article 505 and six months for the Article 153 conviction, lawyer U Zayar Aung said. However, the final sentence was only one year because the court combined the two cases, he said.

About a dozen people protested in support of Aung Ko Htwe shortly after he was charged over his comments to the media. They shouted slogans supporting the former child soldier in front of the court during his weekly appearances, but U Zayar Aung denied the two activists words were aimed at the authorities.

The two rights activists told the court that they were not on the list of protesters submitted to the local police station prior to the demonstration in accordance with the Peaceful Assembly Law, but their lawyer later said this statement was wrong, and therefore they were punished.

They would be free today if they had said they were on the list of protesters, but they made a mistake. If they had acknowledged that they were on the list, the court would not have punished them, U Zayar Aung said.

Ko Noung Noung and Daw Lay Lay were detained in January. The eight months they have already spent behind bars will count toward their sentence, leaving them another four months to serve, the lawyer said.
Burma Investor Interest Remains Steady as FDI Drops: MIC

The Myanmar Global Investment Forum 2018 kicked off in Naypyitaw on Sept. 11. / Htet Naing Zaw / The Irrawaddy

NAYPYITAW  The Rakhine issue has no impact on foreign investors interest in Myanmar, said U Aung Naing Oo, the secretary of the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC).

The interest of potential foreign investors in Myanmar has not declined, U Aung Naing Oo told reporters, citing the record turnout at the Myanmar Global Investment Forum 2018 held in Naypyitaw on Tuesday and Wednesday.

This years event attracted a record turnout. Last year, it attracted 1,200 people, which was a record turnout then. So, it is fair to say that the interest of foreign investors in our country has not declined. And we are amazed that the number increased by 300, U Aung Naing Oo told reporters.

The Rakhine issue, however, did impact foreign direct investment, which declined by some US$900 million in the 2017-18 fiscal year compared to the previous year. The MIC hopes that this can be offset when Myanmar restores political stability, U Aung Naing Oo said.

Lawmaker U Aung Kyaw Kyaw Oo, secretary of the Lower House Investment and Industrial Development Committee, said that the investment of EU countries has declined primarily due to the Rakhine issue and that Myanmar must look to the east to attract investors.

Meanwhile, a shortage of skilled labor, lack of infrastructure and legal restrictions also create barriers for foreign investment, he said.

The EU and the United States are planning to take action against Myanmar regarding the issues in Rakhine, which have impacted investment for political reasons, the lawmaker said.

The MIC targeted that it would receive US$3 billion in the six months transitional budget from April 1 to Sept. 30. But it only received only about US$1.48 billion through August 31. Though US$400 million more is set to be approved in September, the target will not be met, said U Aung Naing Oo.

The manufacturing sector received most of the investment, followed by the service industry, telecommunications industry and property development industry, according to the MIC.

We hope that the situation will improve in the next fiscal year. There are investors who are making inquiries with us. Some of them are big projects. So, we hope that we will be able to make a recovery next year, said U Aung Naing Oo.

However, he admitted that exorbitant land prices and land disputes are a major problem for foreign investors. A government committee led by the vice president is working to enact a national land law, and land problems will be overcome then, he said.

Myanmar approved investment from 28 countries in the 2017-18 fiscal year, and China, the Netherlands, Japan, Korea, Britain and the United States were the biggest investors.

Since foreign investment was allowed in 1988, China, Singapore and Thailand have been the biggest investors in Myanmar, said the MIC.

The Myanmar Global Investment Forum 2018 was attended by ministers, local and foreign businesspeople and Sean Turnell, the economic advisor to State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.
Burma Myanmar Army, Government Aim to Silence Independent Journalism: UN

Reuters journalist Wa Lone leaves after listening to the verdict at Insein court in Yangon, Myanmar, Sept. 3, 2018. / Reuters

GENEVA  Military and government officials in Myanmar have waged a political campaign to quash independent journalism, arresting and prosecuting many through the use of vague and overly broad laws, the UN human rights office said on Tuesday.

Its report examined five cases, including that of Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, found guilty last week of breaching the law on state secrets and sentenced to seven years in prison after investigating a massacre of 10 Rohingya men.

The UN report called it a particularly outrageous and high-profile example of judicial harassment against the media in Myanmar and illustrative of how arrests and prosecutions are conducted in violation of the right to freedom of expression.

Myanmar has said the court that convicted the two Reuters journalists under the colonial-era Official Secrets Act was independent and followed due process, after international calls for the pair to be released.

Ministry of Information spokesman Myint Kyaw declined to comment on the report when reached by Reuters on Tuesday. Yangon officials have rejected claims that press freedom was shrinking under the administration of Nobel laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kui.

The report refers to the instrumentalization of the law and of the courts by the Government and the military in what constitutes a political campaign against independent journalism, UN human rights spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told a Geneva briefing.

Laws on telecommunications, official secrets and import-export acts have been invoked against journalists, she said.

The group Reporters Without Borders estimates that around 20 journalists were prosecuted last year in Myanmar, Shamdasani said.

The UN report entitled The Invisible Boundary  Criminal prosecutions of journalism in Myanmar, which examined freedom of the press since Suu Kyis National League for Democracy (NLD) came to power in 2015, said it had become impossible for journalists do to their job without fear or favor.
Burma Analysis: Myanmars Independent Media Struggling to Survive

A man browses at a newsstand in Yangon in January 2014. / The Irrawaddy

YANGON  At one point in his inaugural speech in March, Myanmars newly elected President U Win Myint implored members of the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government to take seriously the role of the media as the eyes and ears of the people.

However, the sector he appeared to be supporting is in bad shape.

The sad truth is that independent media in Myanmar today are struggling to survive. And the print media have been hardest hit.

After allowing private dailies in 2013, the previous government approved 39, but only 19 saw the light of the day. Five years later, as of August this year, under the democratically elected government led by the National League for Democracy (NLD), there are only seven nationally distributed privately run papers left. Nearly all of them are in bad shape due to factors ranging from a drop in circulation to shrinking ads and high production costs, among others.

If you think of the private print media in Myanmar today as a patient, its in the Intensive Care Unit, said U Ko Ko, the editor of Democracy Today, which is among the seven struggling private dailies.

As these papers struggle for survival, the government is churning out an equal number of newspapers (the Ministry of Informations three dailies, two papers published by the Mandalay government, one by the Yangon City Development Committee and the military-run Myawaddy Daily) with state funding. Advocates of independent media have strongly criticized the government for its failure to reform the state-run media, which have served as the governments mouthpiece since the early 1960s.

Like their counterparts elsewhere, Myanmars state-owned media have a reputation for publishing nothing more than government press releases and a whos who of participants in state meetings.

Media analysts and journalists in Myanmar stress that the country needs independent news outlets more than ever as it undergoes a democratic transition while facing mounting problems ranging from weak rule of law and rampant bureaucratic corruption to the faltering peace process with ethnic armed groups and the presence of military-run ministries within the government.

The survival of private media is fundamental to democracy. Without them, there are no checks and balances on the government and other institutions, said U Kyaw Min Swe, the editor of The Voice weekly.

No Level Playing Field

During a discussion last month about the decline of private print media, panelists complained that the Ministry of Information sells its papers for less than 100 kyatsfar less than the actual cost of around 150 kyats. Publishing the papers costs the government 1 billion kyats a year.

U Kyaw Min Swe of The Voice said the practice is in breach of the countrys Competition Law, which forbids selling a product at below market price. Currently, the newsstand price for a privately published newspaper in Myanmar is 200-300 kyats.

Circulation is another concern. While the governments Kyemon (Mirror) publishes 200,000 copies per issue, Myanma Alin 150,000 and Global New Light of Myanmar 30,000, the circulations of the private dailies generally range from 10,000 to a bit more than 20,000.

Comparing the circulations of state-run and private newspapers is like comparing an ant and an elephant, U Ko Ko said during the discussion.

As a result, the government papers attract more advertisingstarving the private media of ad revenue.

U Ko Ko said private medias ad revenue dropped by more than 50 percent from 2017 to 2018, while U Kyaw Min Swe called on the government to limit advertising in state-run newspapers (mainly in the Burmese-language Kyemon and Myanma Alin).

Theyd better limit the ad pages. If you look at Kyemon, half of the paper is ads. As a state-run paper, its a shame, he said.

The Voice editor U Kyaw Min Swe said the government is playing a very unfair game against the private media.

They get a budget to publish the papers, use public transportation for distribution and sell them at a very low price. Its very unfair, he told the audience.

He also urged the MOI to liberalize the newspaper market by shutting down some of the government-run papers.

Doing so would allow them to save face. At the same time, it would make it a bit easier for private papers to survive, he said.

Information Minister U Pe Myint said in Parliament last week that his ministry sells the papers at affordable prices in order to better disseminate information to the public, not to make a profit. He was responding to a lawmakers question about the estimated 1.2 billion-kyat ($770,000) loss made by state-run newspapers in fiscal 2018-19.

He said that as part of its efforts to reduce the expected losses in the upcoming fiscal year, the ministry will expand circulation in order to reach more rural areas; reduce spending as much as it can; and seek to increase income from advertisements.

Repressive Laws

Under the democratically elected government, journalists in Myanmar are still vulnerable to lawsuits and arrest, for all their ethical professionalism. Two Reuters journalists were recently sentenced to seven years in prison under the British colonial-era Official Secrets Act over their reporting of security forces activities in Rakhine.

One of the most commonly used tools to muzzle the press is section 66 (d) of the Telecommunication Law, which allows anyone to sue the author of anything published on the Internet that they are not pleased with. Plaintiffs in cases filed against journalists range from military officers to regional chief ministers to ordinary citizens. There were at least three 66d cases filed against journalists last year.

Additionally, Section 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act prevents Myanmar journalists from gathering news. The arrests of The Irrawaddy and Democratic Voice of Burma reporters by the Army last year after they covered a drug-burning event by the Taang National Liberation Army, an ethnic armed group, exposed the fragility of press freedom in the country.

U Than Zaw Aung, a member of the Myanmar Media Lawyer Network, a pro bono legal aid group for journalists, said if the government genuinely respected the private media as societys Fourth Estate, it should at least do something to protect journalists who are doing their jobs, let alone scrapping repressive laws.

There should at least be a clear statement stipulating that journalists should be charged [only] under the Media Law for alleged wrongdoings, regardless of what other laws say. This could create some breathing space for journalists, he said.

But the current Media Law, enacted in 2014, only covers such transgressions as failing to publish corrections, plagiarism, doctoring pictures and videos, defamation and violating human rights when not in the public interest, leaving journalists vulnerable to prosecution under other laws.

Access to Information

While the Media Law clearly encourages the media to act as a Fourth Estate, and grants journalists rights and independence in news gathering, reporters on the ground struggle to access information.

Here again, the state-owned mediaespecially broadcasters and their partnerscontinue to have the upper hand in terms of access to national and state government information sources. The most recent example was the presidential meeting with representatives of the legislative, administrative and judicial sectors in Yangon last month. Already known for his blunt remarks on regional governments incompetence, President U Win Myint made interesting comments about the Yangon government, which has come in for public criticism over its controversial development projects and handling of judicial cases. But the Yangon Regional Government refused to allow private media to attend, limiting the coverage of the meeting to state broadcaster MRTV and its partner Sky Net, drawing the ire of independent journalists.

Broadcast Media Struggling

While the print media struggle for survival, private broadcasters arent doing much better.

U Toe Zaw Lat of Democratic Voice of Burma, a former exile media group based in Norway and one of the five new free-to-air digital TV channels permitted to launch in Myanmar early this year, said the broadcast sector in the country is facing two pressing issues: an unclear and unfair regulatory environment under the 2015 Broadcasting Law and a shrinking advertising market.

Including the five new digital channels, Myanmar now has more than a dozen free-to-air channelsall are state or military owned, or else are joint ventures with the Ministry of Information, and all are broadcast through the governments Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV) system. The new channels struggle to attract advertising, the lions share of which goes to the long-established existing broadcasters.

The Broadcast Law states that all channels currently on air will have to reapply for broadcast licenses once additional bylaws are passed. That could create fair competition among broadcasters by creating a level playing field, as licenses will only be granted to those deemed fit, said U Toe Zaw Lat.

U Ko Ko, the Democracy Today editor who also serves as vice president of the Myanmar Broadcasters Association, said the current legal limbo created a situation in which We know where to go but dont know how.

Broadcasting advertising revenue is shrinking due to the current economic slowdown in the country, he said.

Its a vicious cycle. Shrinking ads lead to a decline in income. If you cant spend, your content wont attract an audience. A smaller audience means fewer ads, he said.

Media We Can Trust

U Kyaw Min Swe of The Voice said media professionals themselves also need to be qualified in order to win the public trust.

But it is difficult to gauge how successful they have been in this regard, as there has been no proper survey on the issue yet.

The NLD is the most popular party in the country, and the general public seems inclined to read or hear something rosy about the party they support. Otherwise, youll be labeled as troublesome media professionals. Thats how most people react to the media these days, said U Ye Naing Moe, the founding director of the Yangon Journalism School.

The most glaring example is the case of the two Reuters journalists, who were sentenced to seven years in jail. According to the verdict in their case, they breached the Official Secrets Act. But it is an open secret that they were convicted for their story about the killing of a group of Rohingya men by security forces in northern Rakhine State. The Army later admitted the crime had taken place when it punished those involved with 10-year prison sentences.

But public opinion over the case is sharply divided. Some believe the journalists deserved to be punished as they shamed the country internationally by revealing the case, while others applauded them for doing their job and exposing extrajudicial killings by the security forces.

In this climate of hostility toward independent media, the government has offered journalists little support, despite the presidents assertion that the role of the media should be taken seriously. In order to support journalists here, there needs to be a culture that values the work of media professionals, even by the government, U Ye Naing Moe said.

To gain the public trust, he said, journalists need to stick to the fundamentals of their profession: accuracy, balance and fairness in reporting.

In the short term, it will be painful [as journalists will be attacked for publishing the truth] but in the longer term the independent media are the only ones who will be able to earn the public trust, he said.
Burma UNHCR and UNDP Teams in N. Rakhine to Assess Repatriation Process

MoU signing ceremony between the Myanmar government and the UNHCR and UNDP in Naypyitaw in June. / UNHCR

YANGON  The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) teams are on the ground in northern Rakhine State and commenced their first round of assessments on Wednesday, according to the UNHCR.

It has been three months since the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the UNHCR, the UNDP, and the Myanmar government to facilitate the voluntary, safe, and sustainable repatriation of Rohingya who fled Myanmar last year, and to facilitate the creation of improved and resilient livelihoods for all communities living in Rakhine State. The Rohingya fled the country in the wake of clearance operations by Myanmar security forces that came in response to Arakan Rohingya Salvation Armys (ARSAs) serial attacks on security outposts in northern Rakhine State in August 2017.

The agencys reporting officer Aoife McDonnell told The Irrawaddy that the assessment process will take some two weeks, and will reach 23 villages as well as three additional village tracts in the townships of Maungdaw, Buthidaung and Rathedaung as approved by the government.

The assessments begin based on the expectation that this very initial and small step, in terms of access, will be expanded rapidly to all areas covered by the MoU, she said.

The UNHCR said that by commencing with a needs assessment to identify and implement quick-impact projects, the UNHCR and the UNDP hope to jump-start confidence building measures aimed at rebuilding trust and social cohesion with those communities that remain in Rakhine State.
Burma US Senators Urge Pompeo to Press for Release of Reuters Journalists Jailed in Myanmar

US senators urge Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to press for the release of Reuters journalists jailed in Myanmar. / Reuters

WASHINGTON  Eleven Republican and Democratic US senators urged President Donald Trumps administration to use all tools at your disposal, including imposing more economic sanctions, to ensure the immediate, unconditional release of two Reuters journalists imprisoned in Myanmar.

We write today with great concern regarding the case of two Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who were wrongfully detained and sentenced to seven years in prison in Burma, the senators, led by Republican Marco Rubio and Democrat Jeff Merkley, both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, which was seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

The letter was signed by six Democrats and five Republicans.

The journalists were found guilty on official secrets charges and sentenced earlier this month in a landmark case seen as a test of progress toward democracy in Myanmar. The country, also known as Burma, was ruled by a military junta until 2011.

The government of Nobel laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has come under increasing diplomatic pressure over a security crackdown sparked by attacks by Rohingya Muslim insurgents on security forces in Rakhine State in west Myanmar in August 2017.

The journalists were investigating the killing of Rohingya villagers by security forces at the time of their arrest last December, and had pleaded not guilty.

Their imprisonment has prompted an international outpouring of support, including a call for their release by US Vice President Mike Pence.

The senators said they appreciated Pompeo raising the case in August with Myanmars minister of international cooperation, Kyaw Tin, and calling for their immediate release, but said there should be further action.

Last month, the United States imposed sanctions on four Myanmar military and police commanders and two army units, accusing them of ethnic cleansing against Rohingya Muslims and widespread human rights abuses.
News President Requests Approval of $298M Loan to Improve Electricity Network

Transmission towers link Sittwe, Rakhine State, to the national power grid. / Min Aung Khaing / The Irrawaddy

YANGON  President U Win Myint has asked Parliament to approve a $298.9 million loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to be used to improve the electricity network in seven of the countrys states and regions.

Deputy Minister for Electricity and Energy, U Tun Naing, told lawmakers during the parliamentary session on Tuesday that the loan is expected to fund a six-year project (2019-2025) that will be implemented in Yangon, Irrawaddy, Tanintharyi and Bago regions and Mon, Karen, and Rakhine states.

He said the project aims to meet an increasing level of power consumption, to electrify rural areas, as well as to improve the existing system.

The project will include two parts: electricity transmission and electricity distribution, he explained, including a computerized electricity management and bill-collection system.

It will increase electricity distribution to 84,850 households in Irrawaddy Region, more than 151,000 households in Bago Region, 42,757 households in Mon State, 27,820 households in Karen State and 36,694 households in Rakhine State, U Tun Naing said.

The six-year project is estimated to cost a total of $308.9 million, of which $10 million will be funded by the state budget.

Deputy Minister for Planning and Finance, U Maung Maung Win, seconded the plan to loan $298.9 million from the ADB.

The loan period is 32 years, including an 8-year grace period and a 24-year repayment period. Interest will be charged at 1 percent during the grace period and 1.5 percent during the repayment period.

U Maung Maung Win said the government had an outstanding foreign loan repayment of about $10.2 billion.

This is within the bearable debt burden and is also in accordance with the 2018 Union Budget Law, the Public Debt Management Law, the 2017 Mid-term Loan Management Strategy and the Development Aid Policy, he added.

Power consumption has been increasing by at least 15 percent annually and it is estimated for consumption to rise to 4,531 megawatts of electricity by 2020-2021, the Minister for Electricity and Energy U Win Khaing, told state media in January this year. He added that the current total electricity production rate is about 3,189 megawatts.

Lawmakers are set to discuss the motion in an upcoming session of parliament.
Guest Column Naga Peace Deal - Will the Framework Agreement Hold?

Members of "Naga Students Union Delhi" (NSUD) shout slogans and hold placards during a protest in New Delhi, Feb. 24, 2012. / Reuters

A settlement to the protracted Naga conflict is possible only with the finalization of a peace accord, but that does not seem to come even after three years of deliberations since the signing of the framework agreement. What is causing the delay when the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) government in New Delhi seemed confident of delivering on its promise of an acceptable solution for all to the Naga conflict before the next general elections?

India goes to the polls again prior to June 2019 and given the way things are, there appears to be little hope that the Naga peace deal will see the light of day.

On Aug. 3, 2015, the National Socialist Council of Nagaland Isak-Muivah or NSCN-IM and the Indian government signed the framework agreement that was meant to propel the peace process forward. The Indian government had shown its keenness to seal the peace deal before the Nagaland Assembly elections in February, which did not translate into action. The most recent talks of getting things moving before Parliaments monsoon session were also short-lived.

For the record, the Indian government and the NSCN-IM entered into peace negotiations on July 25, 1997, with the signing of a ceasefire agreement. The peace negotiations have over the years has had their share of ups and downs and since then, there have been more than 80 rounds of talks paving the way for a framework agreement.

Possible Reasons for the Delay

The ground situation is that of a growing sense of restlessness among the Nagas, and why not, as it concerns their lives and their future as a community. This growing frustration is palpable and more and more voices are now speaking out. I wonder why this delay in signing the peace agreement, asked the apex Naga tribal body Naga Hoho president P Chuba Ozukum. He told this writer that further delay would only complicate things and reiterated what he had said a couple of months earlier that people are fed up and are looking for a solution.

There seems to be no convincing reason for the unexplained delay. There have been speculations in several Indian news media reports attributing the delay to a lack of consensus among the Naga groups as to who should be a signatory to the final peace accord. Currently, the NSCN-IM and six other Naga groups under the banner of Naga National Political Groups (NNPGs) are in peace talks with the Indian government.

But many Naga intellectuals who wished not be named are of the view that the actual reasons are far too complex, embroiled in a mesh of contradictions. How can we have a peace accord when the core issue is still not addressed, reacted a scholar of conflict studies from Nagaland.

Interestingly, the common person on the street holds a similar view. Without settling the sovereignty issue, which is tied to the Naga integration issue, things will hit a roadblock, said a group of young Dimapur-based entrepreneurs.

Sources in the Home Affairs Ministry too have said it that the issue of integration of all Naga inhabited areas, is still sticking out as the thorn in the flesh. In fact, the fundamental demand  that of sovereignty, which is entwined with the integration of Naga-inhabited areas  remains unresolved and appears to be not in sync with how the framework agreement lays out the peace guidelines.

The protracted Naga conflict started with the demand for independence from India and over the years it has changed to what is now a demand for a separate Naga Homeland or Greater Nagalim, comprising all contiguous Naga-inhabited areas in neighboring Assam, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh, to unite 1.2 million Nagas.

In July this year, the NSCN-IM issued a statement that said the integration of all of the Naga-inhabited areas in the northeast was an integral part of the ongoing peace talks with the central government. The outfit asserted that the issue of integration of all the Naga territories is an integral part of the ongoing Indo-Naga political dialogue. In fact, one of the key demands of the NSCN-IM has been integration of the Naga-inhabited areas of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Manipur.

Most Naga groups like the Naga Hoho have categorically stated that integration is non-negotiable. The Naga civil society from Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Myanmar have also articulated their desire to remain united as one family. The Naga Tribes Council (NTC), an umbrella of 15 Naga tribes, has also been quoted in local media in Nagaland as saying that any efforts to integrate the Nagas emotionally or administratively without territorial integration cannot be considered a workable solution.

Meanwhile, the Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR), an umbrella association represented by various organizations have in a statement on Sept. 8 titled Declaration of the Naga Collective Spirit made a categorical mention that Nagas are in solidarity as one people on the issue of Naga Political and Historical Rights. Though there is no reference to the Naga peace process or the framework agreement, the timing of the statement and the emphasis that Naga Historical and Political Rights are the manifestation of our common hopes and dreams, is clearly in sync with the calls for respecting Naga sovereignty and rights to territorial integrity.

The FNR comprises top Naga religious and social organizations such as the Naga Joint Christian Forum representing all Naga churches, Naga Mothers Association, Naga Hoho, Naga Students Federation, United Naga Council, Naga Women Union Manipur, All Naga Students Association Manipur, Rengma Naga Peoples Council Assam, Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights, Consultative Committee for Just Peace, Naga Shisha Hoho, Peoples Democratic Alliance Legislators and Naga Peoples Front Legislators. All these groups have been active participants in the Naga peace process and have gone out of their way to reach out to various Naga armed groups to find a meaningful solution to the Naga conflict.

The FNR declaration said, In asserting the Naga political position, we do not oppose any of our neighbors, adding that honoring the Naga Historical and Political Rights is not at the expense of our neighbors rights. Similarly, upholding our neighbors rights cannot be at the expense of Naga rights.

Gaps in the Process and the Special Arrangements Formula

There are clear contradictions between what makes up the framework agreement and the demand of most Naga groups regarding integration of Naga-inhabited areas under the Greater Nagalim model. The framework agreement essentially highlights acceptance of the uniqueness of Naga history and culture by the central government and the acceptance of the primacy of the Indian Constitution.

The framework agreement pledges to restore pride and prestige of the Nagas and is based on the concept of a shared sovereignty between the Nagas and the Indian government. It is a policy of give and take between the government of India and the Naga groups. India though has made it clear what it will not do. It will not go against constitutional norms, which prevent it from declaring any state or granting people full sovereignty. It also will not redraw any state boundary to accommodate the Naga-inhabited areas (Naga homeland) demand or allow a separate defense (military) formed from within the ranks of former armed combatants.

Recently, some important details of framework agreement (which until now was kept a closely guarded secret) were revealed as part of the 213th report on the security situation in northeast India. The report tabled by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs in the Rajya Sabha (Upper House) claimed that the Naga groups involved in the peace talks had agreed for a settlement with the Indian federation with a special status. The report also said that the Naga groups had reached a common understanding with the government that boundaries of the states will not be touched and some special arrangements would be made for the Nagas, wherever they are.

The report cited Article 371(A) of the Constitution which indicates that Nagas ought to be treated as a special community and that a similar kind of status, with some local variation, and some change to the Nagas in the neighboring states can be explored.

However, the special arrangements, special status doctrine still comes across as vague to say the least, given that it still does not address the core issue of sovereignty. In fact, it has all the ingredients of triggering another conflict and with calamitous outcomes. The fact that organizations in Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh have vehemently opposed the move and termed it the creation of a state within a state are clear indications of the underlying tensions and the sensitivity of this issue.

Opposition to Extension of Special Status

Last month a meeting between officials of the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the NSCN-IM scheduled to be held in Deomali in eastern Arunachals Tirap district bordering Myanmar in Arunachal Pradesh had to be called off after objections from the All Arunachal Pradesh Students Union (AAPSU). The organization had petitioned State Chief Minister Pema Khandu to not allow the meeting in Arunachal. The student union was of the view that the government of India had made it clear that the (NSCN-IM) accepted the Indian Constitution to remain under Article 371 (A) and within existing Nagaland.

Since the very beginning of the peace talks the three states of Arunachal, Assam and Manipur have been opposed to the demand for integrating the Naga-inhabited areas from within their territories.

The central government has on its part tried to pacify the concerned states and its people that nothing of the sort would be allowed. Indian Home Affairs Minister Rajnath Singh had on Dec. 8 last year said in response to questions on the issue raised by the three states that the territorial integrity of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Manipur would not be compromised while inking the final Naga peace accord.

Finally, what perhaps assumes great significance is that even if the right-wing Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government in New Delhi wants to prove that it is serious about ending the decades-long Naga insurgency before the 2019 general elections, the big question is the peace deal itself and the response from the Naga civil society, parties that are in the peace process as well other states bordering Nagaland.

Lets also not forget that the peace process would still be somewhat incomplete without the inclusion of the NSCN-Khaplang or NSCN-K. There have been calls from many Naga groups that the inclusion of the NSCN-K is a core issue for a holistic peace process and it remains to be seen if New Delhi will reach out to the outfit before the peace accord is finalized.

The author is a former senior journalist who has worked for national and international news media in India and elsewhere. Currently he is a contributing editor for The Irrawaddy.
Office productivity suites have been a facet of the modern enterprise for so long that its hard to see how they can contribute any more to the business process. But the newest wave of solutions appears poised to launch another generational shift in the business world in the form of intelligent processes and smart digital assistants.

Both Google and Microsoft are leading this charge with new AI-driven features in their search, collaboration and analytics modules. The idea, of course, is to take even more of the rote functions of modern knowledge work away from actual workers so they can focus on the more creative aspects of their jobs. At the same time, new voice-driven applications and assistants will hopefully reduce all of that typing and clicking in favor of a more conversational style of human-computer interaction.

Google, for example, is rolling out new services at higher education facilities, sticking with the time-honored tradition of unveiling new technologies on younger minds who will then come to expect them in the working world. At Saint Louis University, the company is rolling out Echo Dot virtual assistant technology to campus housing, giving students the ability to find answers to standard questions like When does the library open? or How do I get to the physics lab?. At the same time, the company is looking to introduce similar technologies in the classroom and in administrative offices to streamline communications, conferencing, and a host of other functions.

All of this harkens back to the earlier days of office productivity when companies like Microsoft attempted to buttress their solutions with rudimentary assist-bots, says Quartz Oliver Staley. Remember Clippy? The annoying little paperclip would pop up at every new document or spreadsheet offering help with basic tasks like letter-writing or sending an email. Microsoft finally shelved Clippy in 2001 after a good five years of negative feedback from users, but now it seems ready to try again with a new generation of technology.

The key difference this time is that the new assistants are intelligent, so they will actually learn what you know and dont know to provide more targeted help toward greater productivity. A case in point is MyAnalytics, a recent addition to Office 365 that keeps track of time spent on given tasks, followed by nudges to help workers better organize their days. This can range from warnings about sending emails to co-workers in time zones that are after hours to scheduling time in between meetings for focus work.

This may sound a little onerous to some, but Microsoft says it has built in a number of features designed to conform to individuals workers styles. If you dont engage with the nudges, for example, the system will just leave you alone. Or you can turn if off completely, provided the boss is OK with it.

Intelligence in the office will arrive in numerous ways beyond talking software, and much of it will function behind the scenes in the form of data analytics, resource management and improved connectivity. Ideally, this will allow individuals to craft their workspaces around their needs and without having to rely on IT or communications specialists to set them up.

All of this may seem strange at first, but then again, many people reacted with trepidation when the first PC showed up on their desk in the 1980s. Ultimately, however, man and machine will reach some form of equilibrium as both learn from each other how best to get the job done.

Arthur Cole writes about infrastructure for IT Business Edge. Cole has been covering the high-tech media and computing industries for more than 20 years, having served as editor of TV Technology, Video Technology News, Internet News and Multimedia Weekly. His contributions have appeared in Communications Today and Enterprise Networking Planet and as web content for numerous high-tech clients like TwinStrata and Carpathia. Follow Art on Twitter @acole602.
Telecommunicatiions services group Vocus says its commitment to infrastructure will secure Australias digital future as it marks the completion of the US$170 million Australia Singapore Cable.

Vocus chairman Bob Mansfield said since 2013, the company, part of the consortium building the ASC, had deployed more than 23,000km of fibre optic networking across all of Australias mainland states and territories, as well as 11,500km of subsea cables.

The North West Cable System from Darwin to Port Hedland services our globally-scaled energy sector and is an international gateway to economic markets to Australias north, he said.

The ASC establishes strategic and trade links with South East Asia and is the largest infrastructure project ever delivered by Vocus. We have completed it on time and under budget, exceeding specifications.

We are immensely proud that we were able toearlier than scheduled last week to provide emergency connectivity services when the Sea-Me-We3 submarine cable between Perth and Singapore experienced another outage.

Mansfield was speaking at a parliamentary briefing in Canberra on Tuesday night attended by Communications Minister Mitch Fifield and Assistant Minister for Regional Development and Territories Sussan Ley, to mark the completion of the ASC.

The 4600km cable, stretching from Perth to Singapore via Indonesia, will also link Christmas Island, providing high-speed connectivity to regional geographical locations previously unable to cost-effectively and reliably access these services.

Mansfield also outlined the progress on the Coral Sea Cable system, which is being constructed on behalf of the governments of Australia, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, and referenced the work that Vocus was doing with the Northern Territory government to build a new submarine fibre optic cable to the Tiwi Islands.

These multi-million infrastructure projects represent our commitment to meeting customer demand and recognises the growing requirements for affordable and trusted connectivity with our closest Asian trading partners, he said.

With this new infrastructure capability, Australia moves from being an end point on the global telecommunications grid to a viable transit point between the networks of Asia and North America, bringing more opportunities for trade and making us more competitive as a nation.

Fifield congratulated Vocus on the delivery of a sophisticated and incredibly complex project.

Although many people probably dont know it, almost all of the Internet traffic from Australia to the world goes by subsea cables.

The ASC has tremendous capacity and its successful completion has put competitive pressure on international transit prices which is good for business, the markets and Australia.
There's no "deliportation" yet that allows deliveries between countries instantly via Star Trek technology, but Deliveroo's move into Taiwan continues the company's APAC and global expansion.

Deliveroo has announced the impending launch of its service in Taipei, Taiwan, in the coming weeks, marking the latest development in its rapid expansion across the Asia Pacific.

It now operates in 13 markets and in more than 500 towns and cities across the world, with Taiwan representing the fourth market in the Asia Pacific after Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong.

Deliveroo reminds us it was "founded on a passion for food, giving people around the world access to the very best selection of food in their area. Through its app and website, people can order their favourite food direct to their home or office in as little as 15 minutes".

The company says it "works with the best independent restaurants along with much-loved global chains like Nandos, KFC and Max Brenner", and "gives restaurants the ability to grow their businesses through an end-to-end service including a fleet of delivery riders, helping them reach new customers".

We're also reminded that the company's rapid expansion follows its "2017 Series F funding round, in which the company raised almost US$500 million and received a valuation of over US$2 billion".

At launch, Deliveroo said it would be "operating in Taipei, with plans to further expand across the market. Local favourites including beef noodle soup, Taiwanese fried chicken and Gua Bao will be available from Deliveroo at launch.

The company also stated it will "continue creating well-paid work for hundreds of local workers, both in restaurants and for those who wish to partner with Deliveroo as delivery riders", with the claim that "riding with Deliveroo gives people the freedom to choose when and where to work".

Deliveroo's Australian country manager Levi Aron said: Deliveroo aims to bring people amazing food whenever and wherever they want it and it is incredible that we are now able to do this in even more markets in the Asia Pacific. Were focused on becoming the definitive food company in the region and globally, and our launch in Taiwan brings us that one step closer.

We are constantly on the lookout for new opportunities, for new markets or new cities. We have wanted to move into Taiwan for a while as it has an exciting food market.

At Deliveroo, we are constantly refining our service and our offer, for example improving the way we work with riders. We will be taking our best practices from Australia and other markets to Taiwan.

In time we hope every restaurant, including those partnering with us in Australia, would have the chance to move into other markets like Taiwan through Editions, our innovative delivery-only kitchens."
If you know how many times Kim Kardashian was married, you could win a Nintendo in Catch Group's "revolutionary new way to shop online".

Combining quick-paced games with exclusive deals, the high energy show is the latest initiative from Catch.com.au, the company billing itself as "Australias largest independent online retailer".

Hosted by Brodie Young, of Quizmania fame, along with a changing roster of guests and guest hosts, Catch Live will "transform the online shopping process, giving viewers the chance to play to access exclusive offers and prizes."

Young said: Simply watching may not be enough to get your hands on the hottest items.

Viewers may have to use different skills like speed, guessing and general knowledge to unlock the deals. Well be almost giving away incredible products, like Apple Airpods  the prices will be unheard of.

Some of Australia's most-loved brands that will be up for grabs in upcoming shows include Nintendo, Loreal, Dyson, Maybelline, Nars, Apple, Google Home and Lego.

The content of the 10-minute show will vary each episode to create an element of surprise and delight, harking back to the brands founding philosophy.

The show will air on random days; viewers can register their interest at the Catch Live website to find out when to tune in.
Billed not only as the No.1 smartwatch in the world, but the No.1 watch in the world, Apple Watch Series 4 is louder, thinner, with a larger screen, new fitness and health capabilities and more.

It's a whole new watch from Apple with Series 4, and while you can say that for every new generation, Series 4 is noticeably different and better than its predecessors.

Series 4 is also more expensive in Australia than the previous Series 3 price, presumably not only because of the more advanced technology, but also due to our weaker Australian dollar compared to the US dollar, with the GPS and Cellular model starting at A$749, and the non-cellular/GPS model starting at A$599. The previous Series 3 model starts at A$399.

Watching the keynote, which you'll be able to watch at Apple.com today and is, as always, a must-see event, Series 4 of the Apple Watch looks like an amazing update that will only make Apple Watch even more popular.

There are also incredible new features like an electrocardiogram (ECG) feature as well as irregular rhythm notification, both FDA approved, but they're not available at launch (and are coming later this year), with US only availability to start with, although the keynote video said other countries were coming.

The rest of this article is Apple's media release, which explains everything so well, so please read on, and be sure to check out Apple online to see all the photos, videos and more.

Apple today inroduced Apple Watch Series 4, redesigned and re-engineered to help users stay connected, be more active and manage their health in powerful new ways. While retaining the original iconic design, the fourth-generation Apple Watch has been refined, combining new hardware and software enhancements into a genuinely singular, unified form.

The stunning display is over 30% larger and seamlessly integrates into the thinner, smaller case, while the new interface provides more information with richer detail. Apple Watch Series 4 with watchOS 5 brings advanced activity and communications features, along with revolutionary health capabilities, including an improved accelerometer and gyroscope, which are able to detect hard falls, and an electrical heart rate sensor that can take an electrocardiogram (ECG) using the new ECG app,(1) which has been granted a De Novo classification by the FDA.

Were thrilled Apple Watch has become an essential part of peoples lives, said Jeff Williams, Apples chief operating officer. The completely redesigned Apple Watch Series 4 continues to be an indispensable communication and fitness companion, and now with the addition of groundbreaking features, like fall detection and the first-ever ECG app offered directly to consumers, it also becomes an intelligent guardian for your health.

Beginning Friday 14, September, Apple Watch Series 4 (GPS) will be available to order in 26 countries and territories, and Apple Watch Series 4 (GPS + Cellular) will be available to order in 16 countries and territories. Both models will be available in stores beginning Friday 21, September.

Design

Apple Watch Series 4 is more than an evolution  it represents a fundamental redesign and re-engineering of Apple Watch. Its offered in two sizes, 40mm and 44mm. The speaker is 50% louder, optimised for phone calls, Siri and Walkie-Talkie, and the microphone has been relocated, to reduce echo for better sound quality. The device includes the next-generation S4 chip with a custom 64-bit dual-core processor, delivering twice the speed while maintaining the same all-day battery life.(2)

The back of Apple Watch Series 4 is composed of a gorgeous black ceramic and sapphire crystal, allowing radio waves to easily pass through the front and back for better cellular service. The Digital Crown now includes haptic feedback, offering a more mechanical and responsive feel through the sensation of incremental clicks.

The user interface is optimised for the larger display, allowing for app icons and fonts that are bigger and easier to read, while complications have been beautifully enhanced to be more precise and informative. New watch faces take full advantage of the Series 4 display, from the endlessly customisable Infograph face, to the Breathe face, where the animation is timed around a deep breath. Additionally, a suite of motion faces, including Vapour, Liquid Metal, Fire and Water react uniquely with the curved edges of the case.

Health

Apple Watch Series 4 enables customers to take an ECG reading right from the wrist using the new ECG app, which takes advantage of the electrodes built into the Digital Crown and new electrical heart rate sensor in the back crystal. With the app, users touch the Digital Crown and after 30 seconds, receive a heart rhythm classification. It can classify if the heart is beating in a normal pattern or whether there are signs of Atrial Fibrillation (AFib), a heart condition that could lead to major health complications. All recordings, their associated classifications and any noted symptoms are stored in the Health app in a PDF that can be shared with physicians.

With watchOS 5, Apple Watch intermittently analyses heart rhythms in the background and sends a notification if an irregular heart rhythm suggestive of AFib is detected.(3) It can also alert the user if the heart rate exceeds or falls below a specified threshold.

Fall detection utilises a next-generation accelerometer and gyroscope, which measures up to 32 g-forces, along with custom algorithms to identify when hard falls occur. By analysing wrist trajectory and impact acceleration, Apple Watch sends the user an alert after a fall, which can be dismissed or used to initiate a call to emergency services. If Apple Watch senses immobility for 60 seconds after the notification, it will automatically call emergency services and send a message along with location to emergency contacts.

Fitness

With watchOS 5, Apple Watch becomes an even better fitness and workout companion. Activity competitions allow users to challenge other Apple Watch wearers, automatic workout detection provides an alert to start a workout while giving retroactive credit, and Yoga and Hiking are new dedicated workout types that accurately track active calories burned and exercise minutes earned. Running enthusiasts can take advantage of extended battery life  which is increased to six hours  for outdoor workouts and enjoy high-performance features, including cadence for indoor and outdoor runs, pace alerts for outdoor runs and rolling kilometre pace, which shows pace for the immediately preceding kilometre.(2)

Staying Connected

Customers can reach their friends with just a tap of the wrist with Walkie-Talkie, a watch-to-watch connection that is an entirely new way to communicate around the world over Wi-Fi or cellular.(4) The Siri watch face is more predictive and proactive, offering shortcuts and actionable content from favourite third-party apps. watchOS 5 also lets users listen to their favourite podcasts on the go with Apple Podcasts on Apple Watch, and stream any podcast in the catalog by using Siri. With Apple Watch Series 4, enriched complications offer a more detailed view of helpful third-party apps like Dexcom, which allows for continuous glucose monitoring, or Streaks, which shows daily progress on tasks.

Apple Watch Line-Up

Apple Watch Series 4 (GPS) starts at RRP A$599 inc. GST and Apple Watch Series 4 (GPS + Cellular) starts at RRP A$749 inc. GST, both featuring the updated design and new health capabilities. Series 3 will be available at the new starting price of RRP A$399 inc. GST, making it even more accessible to customers. Along with the three aluminium finishes anodised in silver, gold and space grey, Apple Watch Series 4 now comes in a striking gold stainless steel with matching Milanese band, joining the silver and space black stainless steel models. A new collection of bands debut for autumn and all bands continue to work with any generation of Apple Watch.

Apple Watch Nike+ remains a customer favourite and the new collection features redesigned Nike watch faces that match the new band colours, including a Pure Platinum/Black Sport Band and a Summit White Sport Loop with reflective yarn. Apple Watch Hermes introduces an elegant assortment of colour-blocked bands and exclusive watch faces that shift from one colour to the other with the passage of the minute hand.

Pricing and Availability

Customers will be able to order Apple Watch Series 4 (GPS + Cellular) beginning Friday 14, September, with availability beginning Friday 21, September, in Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UAE, UK and US, with other countries later this year. For carrier availability, visit apple.com/au/watch/cellular.(5)

Customers will be able to order Apple Watch Series 4 (GPS) beginning Friday 14, September, with availability beginning Friday 21, September, in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Jersey, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UAE, UK, US and US Virgin Islands.

Apple Watch Nike+ will be available to order on apple.com/au and in the Apple Store app, beginning Friday 14, September, in select countries, with limited availability beginning on Friday 5, October in Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guam, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Macau, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UAE, UK and US. For more information, visit apple.com/au/apple-watch-nike or nike.com/applewatch.

Apple Watch Hermes will be available to order on apple.com/au and in the Apple Store app, beginning Friday 14, September, with availability beginning Friday 21, September, in Australia, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UAE, UK and US. For more information, visit apple.com/au/apple-watch-hermes or hermes.com/applewatchhermes.

New Apple Watch bands will be available to order on apple.com/au and in the Apple Store app, beginning Friday 14, September, with availability beginning Friday 21, September, at Apple Stores, as well as select Apple Authorised Resellers and carriers in the US and over 35 countries and regions.

With Apple GiveBack, customers in Australia can trade in their eligible device for an Apple Store Gift Card or a refund on their purchase. If their device isnt eligible for credit, Apple will recycle it for free.

Customers who buy Apple Watch from Apple will be offered free Personal Setup, in-store or online,(6) to help set up and personalise their new Apple Watch with calendars, notifications, apps and more.

(1) ECG app coming later this year (US only).

(2) Battery life depends on use and configuration.

(3) Irregular rhythm notification coming later this year (US only)

(4) Walkie-Talkie is not available in China, Pakistan or the UAE

(5) Apple Watch requires a compatible iPhone. iPhone service provider must be the same. Not available with all service providers. Roaming is not available.

(6) In most countries.
Apple's newest iPhones are its most impressive and powerful yet, starting at A$1229 for the 64GB iPhone XR, and going up to A$2369 for the 512GB iPhone XS Max.

The 2018 iPhone models have arrived, and the leaks proved to be mostly very accurate - a 5.8-inch iPhone XS with OLED display and a 6.5-inch iPhone XS Max with OLED display, in silver, gold an space grey.

There's also the 6.1-inch iPhone XR with LCD display, in white, black, blue, yellow, a coral colour that looks orange, and (PRODUCT)RED.

The phones are certainly impressive with upgrades across the board, from better cameras, more powerful 7nm A12 Bionic processor, up to 512GB storage on the XS and XS Max models, better cameras and so many more new features you can see at the specific iPhone pages linked above.

Watching the keynote in addition to checking out those product pages gives you the full effect of seeing everything in more detail, and as always, the keynote is a must-see experience, you truly are missing out if you don't watch!

The 64GB, 128GB and 256GB models of the iPhone XR are priced at $1229, $1299 and $1479 respectively, making you wonder why anyone wouldn't spend the extra $70 on at least the 128GB model.

The 64GB, 256GB and 512GB models of the iPhone XS are A$1629, $1879 and $2199 respectively, breaking the $2000 barrier in Australia for the first time, while Americans were complaining last year about iPhones breaking the US$1000 barrier.

The 64GB, 256GB and 512GB models of the iPhone XS Max are A$1799, $2049 and $2369 respectively.

Here's Apple's press release on the iPhone XS and XS Max for all the details, a separate article will cover the iPhone XR.

Apple today announced iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max, the most advanced iPhones ever, taking the vision for the future of the smartphone to a new level.

The 5.8-inch iPhone Xs and 6.5-inch iPhone Xs Max feature stunning Super Retina displays, a faster and improved dual camera system that offers breakthrough photo and video features, the first 7-nanometer chip in a smartphone  the A12 Bionic chip with next-generation Neural Engine  faster Face ID, wider stereo sound, a beautiful new gold finish and introduce Dual SIM to iPhone.

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max will be available for pre-order beginning Friday, September 14 and in stores beginning Friday, September 21.

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max come in gorgeous gold, space gray and silver finishes.

iPhone Xs is packed with next-generation technologies and is a huge step forward for the future of the smartphone. Everything is state of the art including the industry-first 7-nanometer A12 Bionic chip with 8-core Neural Engine, faster Face ID and an advanced dual camera system that shoots Portrait mode photos with Smart HDR and dynamic depth of field, said Philip Schiller, Apples senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.

iPhone Xs is not one, but two new iPhone models, and iPhone Xs Max offers the biggest display ever in an iPhone with the biggest battery ever in an iPhone, delivering up to an hour and a half more battery life in your day.

Two All-Screen Designs

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max build on the all-screen design of iPhone X and feature the sharpest displays with the highest pixel density of any Apple device. Now offered in 5.8-inch and 6.5-inch sizes,1 these Super Retina displays with a custom OLED design support Dolby Vision and HDR10 and have iOS system-wide colour management for the best colour accuracy in the industry.

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max offer a million-to-one contrast ratio with remarkable brightness and true blacks while showing 60 percent greater dynamic range in HDR photos. iPhone Xs Max delivers a more immersive experience with over 3 million pixels for videos, movies and games, offering the largest display ever in an iPhone in a footprint similar to iPhone 8 Plus.

5.8-inch and 6.5-inch Super Retina displays are the sharpest with the highest pixel density of any Apple device.

A surgical grade stainless steel band now in gold joins finishes in silver and space gray. Wider stereo playback creates a more immersive soundstage. The front and back glass design features the most durable glass ever in a smartphone with improved scratch resistance, while the glass back enables faster wireless charging.

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max reach a new level of splash and water resistance of IP68 for up to 2 meters for 30 minutes and protect against everyday spills including coffee, tea and soda.

A12 Bionic and Next-Generation Neural Engine

The Apple-designed A12 Bionic, the smartest and most powerful chip in a smartphone, features the first 7-nanometer chip ever in a smartphone that delivers industry-leading performance in a more power-efficient design.

A12 Bionic features a six-core fusion architecture with two performance cores that are up to 15 percent faster, four efficiency cores that are up to 50 percent more efficient, a four-core GPU that is up to 50 percent faster, powerful Apple-designed Image Signal Processor (ISP), video encoder and more. A fast storage controller can deliver iPhone storage up to 512GB.

All of this unlocks new experiences for games, photography, video editing and graphics-intensive apps. Even with all this power, iPhone Xs offers 30 minutes longer than iPhone X, and iPhone Xs Max offers an hour and a half longer than iPhone X, between charges.

The next-generation Neural Engine is built for advanced machine learning in everything from photography to augmented reality. A new eight-core design allows it to complete up to 5 trillion operations per second compared to 600 billion in A11 Bionic.

This enables new capabilities like faster plane detection for ARKit and new features that use real-time machine learning. For the first time the Neural Engine is open to Core ML, empowering developers to build apps that utiliSe this highly efficient machine learning engine. Core ML running on the A12 Bionic Neural Engine is up to nine times faster than on A11 Bionic, with as little as one-tenth the energy usage.

Breakthrough 12MP Dual Camera System

iPhone Xs continues to bring innovations to photography, things not possible before iPhone. Capabilities like advanced depth segmentation using the Neural Engine, Smart HDR creating photos with high dynamic range and great image detail, advanced bokeh quality in Portrait mode photos and dynamic depth of field that is user adjustable in the Photos app, are all huge improvements in state-of-the-art photographic techniques that everyone can use.

A breakthrough new 12MP dual camera system with 2x optical zoom and dual optical image stabilisation introduce a new era of iPhone photography.

The 12-megapixel dual camera system features dual optical image stabilisation with 2x optical zoom, while a new sensor is twice as fast. Smart HDR creates photos with more highlights and shadow detail. Larger and deeper pixels improve image fidelity and low-light performance.

Advanced Portrait mode comes to iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max for even more sophisticated bokeh.

New Depth Control allows users to dynamically adjust the depth of field in the Photos app both in real-time preview3 and post-capture to create portraits with a beautiful background blur. Portrait mode with Depth Control is also available on the TrueDepth camera for selfies, which includes Memoji and faster face tracking support for third-party ARKit apps.

Depth Control allows users to adjust the background blur in Portrait mode photos.

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max deliver the highest quality video capture in a smartphone. The larger pixels and larger, faster sensor enable improved low-light performance and video stabilisation, as well as extended dynamic range for more highlight and shadow detail in video modes up to 30 frames per second. Using the four built-in mics, users can also record stereo sound to get the most out of video recordings.

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max shoot the highestquality video of any smartphone with better low-light performance and extended dynamic range.

Advanced Technologies

Face ID, the most secure facial authentication system ever in a smartphone, is now even faster. The TrueDepth camera system uses precision depth-sensing technology that goes far beyond the capabilities and security of two-dimensional facial scanners and enables users to unlock iPhone, use Apple Pay, gain access to secure apps and many more features with a simple glance.

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max introduce Gigabit-class LTE for even faster download speeds4 and Dual SIM5 through the use of a nano-SIM and digital eSIM.

Face ID is the most secure facial authentication system ever in a smartphone.

Featuring iOS 12

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max come with iOS 12, the worlds most advanced mobile operating system. iOS 12 introduces new AR experiences, helps people rediscover and share photos, and makes communications more expressive and fun with new Animoji and Memoji. Screen Time helps customers understand and take control of the time they spend interacting with their iOS devices, Siri Shortcuts give any app the ability to work with Siri and new privacy features help protect users from being tracked on the web.
A survey of 1200 business and IT leaders across the Asia-Pacific region claims that Australian businesses are losing $4000 an hour on average due to loss of Wi-Fi connectivity.

The survey was conducted by Ruckus Networks and covered China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia, Japan, India, Singapore and Indonesia.

All survey respondents were from medium or large organisations with more than 250 employees, and are involved in decision-making and implementation of IT-related initiatives. The number of respondents by country was: Australia  200; China  200; Hong Kong  102; Taiwan  100; Japan  200; India  200; Singapore  100; and Indonesia  100.

Lack of connectivity was found to have affected the bottom line of business operations in APAC to the tune of A$70.5 million (US$51 million) over the past year. Almost all (98%) of Australian businesses experienced at least one downtime incident per month, and 43% experienced between two and five such incidents.

Slightly more than half (57%) of Australian businesses had an average connectivity downtime of at least an hour. Japan (64%), Singapore (57%) and Australia (56%) were the top three countries that required Wi-Fi connectivity for work purposes.

The survey also found that more than a third (35%) of Australian organisations needed to spend more than five days each month to manage Wi-Fi or network-related issues.

Almost all respondents (97%) were satisfied with the current state of Wi-Fi security in their organisations. But 19% of APAC respondents indicated they had an open Wi-Fi network with no secure login measures. In Australia, the figure was 20%.

When it came to connecting to unfamiliar Wi-Fi networks, business and IT leaders were more vigilant with 83% of APAC respondents indicating that insecure connections were one of the top three concerns they had when connecting to public Wi-Fi.

Wi-Fi is the foundation of Australias burgeoning digital economy. Not only is it a productivity tool to empower employees to work and collaborate better, it is also a platform that enables organisations to interact directly with their customers, said Carl Jefferys, country manager, Australia & New Zealand, Ruckus Networks.

Wi-Fi is often forgotten as the one instrumental element that breathes life to new digital initiatives and pushes growth opportunities in todays dynamic and competitive digital era.

"For example, Wi-Fi infrastructure is also the basis for a range of other radio frequency technologies used in Internet of Things applications. Understanding that Wi-Fi is indeed the backbone of digital transformation efforts will mitigate significant disruption, and in turn, losses in revenue."

Graphics: courtesy Ruckus Networks
The European Parliament will vote on Wednesday (Thursday, Australian time) to either pass or reject copyright guidelines that will make the online world a much fairer place.

But technology companies like Google and Facebook, which are parasites and use content produced by others without any payment and make billions out of it, are unhappy as this would make them a little more accountable. It would also make them pay for what they use.

The coverage of the vote is emotional, to put it mildly; the American news aggregation site Slashdot  an outlet that produces nothing of its own, but uses content from others to make money  has characterised it this way: "The EU Could Vote To Wreck the Internet Tomorrow".

A vote taken in July failed to put the law in place, with the parliament's plenary voting 318-278, with 31 abstentions, to reject the negotiating mandate that had been proposed by its legal affairs committee on 20 June.

There are two provisions which have caused the freeloaders to shout out against the law. One would make platforms like Google's YouTube legally liable for copyright violations, meaning that it would have to prevent copyrighted content from being posted without payment.

Google always ducks this issue, but it never hesitates to monetise copyrighted content until some company heavies it to take the content down. European news agencies recently joined hands to complain about the "plundering" of news.

The second provision in the copyright law that freeloaders are against would create a "neighbouring right" which means newspapers, magazines and news agencies would have to be paid when Google or other websites link to their stories. Exactly what is wrong with this is again difficult to say.

Considering the billions that some companies make from using others' content without so much as a link back to the original source, one finds it difficult to see what is wrong with that provision.

Just a few days back, several paragraphs published in an iTWire story  our own story  were lifted verbatim by the Daily Mail, which is a notorious plagiariser, and used without any attribution. When queried about this  the newspaper only has a Web form for correspondence, no media contacts at all  the only reply that could be squeezed out was: "We are looking into the concerns you have raised and will revert once our investigation is complete."

This is but the tip of the iceberg. Rewriting stories is not an issue, provided the original source is given credit. Everybody does it. As a rule of thumb, attribution should be given within the first three paragraphs, not in the last paragraph.

Will there be trolls who ask for content to be taken down, citing crazy reasons? There are more than enough of that category right now.

While some blame the EU for the law, in truth it is the big boys of the Internet  the Googles and the Facebooks  who have brought this on themselves by their cavalier attitude to everything but their own bottom lines.

There is plenty of money to be shared around. Google and Facebook, of course, would not agree with that as they cast their greedy eyes around looking for the next place to plunder.

Bring on the EU copyright law, is what I say. It will restore some order to what is a chaotic mess which benefits only the big tech companies.
Security firm RiskIQ has claimed that the breach of the British Airways website was carried out by a group known as Magecart which was also responsible for infiltrating the Ticketmaster UK website earlier this year.

RiskIQ's Yonathan Klijnsma said in a blog post on Tuesday that the BA report on the breach had mentioned the theft of customer data directly from payment forms and this was why his company had suspected Magecart.

He said BA had mentioned that payments to its main website and mobile app were both affected and the period when they were affected was from 22:58 BST 21 August (7.58am AEST 22 August) until 21:45 BST 5 September (6.45am AEST on 6 September).

British Airways disclosed last Friday that the financial and personal details of 380,000 customers had been stolen from its site. There have been reports from another researcher that claimed the break-in was through a cross-site scripting flaw, while a second researcher pointed out that BA appeared to have changed JavaScript code on its site just the reported start of payment theft.

To clear something up for those reporting on my latest story:



Yes Modernizr is a 3rd party library but it was self hosted on the BA servers. This means the actors modified a script on the server which makes this a direct compromise of BA infrastructure, not a 3rd party.  Yonathan Klijnsma (@ydklijnsma) September 11, 2018

In the case of the Ticketmaster UK breach, which wasin June, a third-party supplier, Inbenta Technologies, was blamed for the incident. Inbenta, in turn, said that the breach had been caused by Ticketmaster directly applying a customised piece of JavaScript without notifying its (Inbenta's) team.

Klijnsma said since 2016, RiskIQ had publicised the spread of devices known as card skimmers  hidden within credit card readers on ATMs, petrol pumps and other machines where people paid with credit cards  to steal credit card data. "Magecart uses a digital variety of these devices," he added.

RiskIQ has infrastructure set up to detect Magecart hits, but the BA breach did not register because the digital skimmer had been heavily customised. But after checking individual scripts on the BA website, Klijnsma said the RiskIQ researchers had found a modified version of the Modernizr JavaScript library, version 2.6.2.

The script was loaded from the baggage claim information page on the BA website; it had been changed right at the bottom in order not to break functionality. This made RiskIQ suspect that it could be the means of theft.

The modification dates of the two scripts  the original safe one and the newer malicious one  showed when people had started getting their payments stolen.

A ton of people have been asking us about confidence on Magecart for British Airways as it 'doesnt look like the older stuff'.



Magecart is not 1 group, Magecart is the umbrella name for multiple groups in fact. We'll have a large report in a month or so explaining the timeline.  Yonathan Klijnsma (@ydklijnsma) September 12, 2018

Outlining what the malicious script did, Klijnsma said:

"Once every element on the page finishes loading it will: "Bind the mouseup and touchend events on a button known as submitButton with the following callback-code; "Serialise the data in a form with id paymentForm into a dictionary; "Serialise an item on the page with id personPaying into the same dictionary as the paymentForm information; "Make a text-string out of this serialised data; and "Send the data in the form of JSON to a server hosted on baways.com."



He pointed out that on websites, mouseup and touchend were events for when someone let go of the mouse after clicking on a button or when someone on a touchscreen (mobile) device let go of the screen after pushing a button.

"This means that once a user hits the button to submit their payment on the compromised British Airways site, the information from the payment form is extracted along with their name and sent to the attackers server. This attack is a simple, but highly targeted approach compared to what weve seen in the past with the Magecart skimmer which grabbed forms indiscriminately.

"This particular skimmer is very much attuned to how British Airways payment page is set up, which tells us that the attackers carefully considered how to target this site instead of blindly injecting the regular Magecart skimmer."

Klijnsma suggested that those who suspected they were part of the 380,000 affected customers should obtain new credit cards right away.
Apple has removed a number of anti-malware apps, all made by cyber-security vendor Trend Micro, from its App Store after they were found to be export users' browser histories.

The Japanese multinational firm initially said these charges were "absolutely false", but admitted in the same statement that a number of apps were indeed uploading browser histories as Apple had claimed.

Later it decided that an apology was in order and said: "We apologise to our community for concern they might have felt and can reassure all that their data is safe and at no point was compromised.

"We have taken action and have three updates to share with all of you. First, we have completed the removal of browser collection features across our consumer products in question.

There was a time when vendors were allowed to completely lie and deny security issues in their products. We are still fighting with vendors to stop this stupid behavior in order of protect their even dumber investors.  Keith Makan (@k3170Makan) September 11, 2018

"Second, we have permanently dumped all legacy logs, which were stored on US-based AWS servers. This includes the one-time 24 hour log of browser history held for three months and permitted by users upon install.

"Third, we believe we identified a core issue which is humbly the result of the use of common code libraries. We have learned that browser collection functionality was designed in common across a few of our applications and then deployed the same way for both security-oriented as well as the non-security oriented apps such as the ones in discussion. This has been corrected."

The earlier statement said: "Dr Cleaner, Dr Cleaner Pro, Dr Antivirus, Dr Unarchiver, Dr Battery, and Duplicate Finder collected and uploaded a small snapshot of the browser history on a one-time basis, covering the 24 hours prior to installation."

The browser histories were uploaded to a server in the US, hosted by Amazon Web Services, and managed by Trend Micro.

Trend Micro attempted to justify the collection of browser histories by saying this was disclosed in the end-user licence agreements for the apps in question. But in the later apology there was no justification of this sort offered.

There is no sign yet that Apple has decided to reinstate the apps in question in the Mac App Store.
India's ambitious bid to collect the biometric details of its 1.3 billion people within a giant database - known as Aadhaar - appears to have gone off the rails, with reports that the software used has been compromised through use of a patch that disables a number of security features in the program used to enrol new users.

A report in the Indian edition of the Huffington Post said the patch in question was available for as little as 2500 Indian rupees (A$48.50) and could be used by anyone to generate Aadhaar numbers.

Every citizen is expected to have an Aadhaar number in order to obtain everything from a mobile phone to a bank account.

In January, when there were reports that personal details of Indian citizens were being sold cheaply online, police asked for an investigation into the newspaper that reported the story.

And a couple of months later, the semi-government organisation which manages the Aadhaar databaseto take legal action against the American technology website ZDNet over a report that claimed a new leak had hit the national ID database.

Huffington Post reporters Rachna Khaira, Aman Sethi and Gopal Sathe wrote that, following an investigation lasting three months, they had obtained the patch themselves and had it analysed by both Indian and foreign software experts.

Those who enrol new users have to use biometric authentication themselves, but the patch allows anyone to bypass this stricture, the trio wrote.

The patch also disabled the in-built GPS checks - which identified the location of an enrolment centre - meaning that anyone located anywhere could now enrol users.

A third thing that the patch did was to lessen the sensitivity of the enrolment software's iris recognition system. This meant that one could use a photograph of an operator and deceive the software; the physical presence of the operator could be avoided.

The experts consulted by the three reporters said that the patch was compromising fundamental attributes of the enrolment software and only a rewrite from scratch would fix it.

One of the experts, Gustaf Bjorksten, chief technologist at Access Now, a global technology policy and advocacy group, told the Huffington Post: "There are probably many individuals and entities, criminal, political, domestic and foreign, that would derive enough benefit from this compromise of Aadhaar to make the investment in creating the patch worthwhile.

"To have any hope of securing Aadhaar, the system design would have to be radically changed."

A cyber security analyst based in Bangalore, Anand Venkatanarayanan, said the patch was put together by using code from older versions of the enrolment software to newer versions.

The reporters said they had asked the Indian authorities for comment but had not received any response from either the Unique Identification Authority of India or the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre, the latter being the entity responsible for providing security for the database.
NBN Co, the company rolling out Australia's national broadband network, has given the competition watchdog a court-enforceable undertaking to improve its wholesale arrangements with retail service providers within three months.

The undertaking was given in the context of the ACCCs inquiry into NBN wholesale service standards which was begun in late 2017 to determine whether NBN wholesale service standards are appropriate, and to consider whether regulation is necessary to improve consumer experiences.

A statement from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said the company had offered the undertaking after being shown an interim access determination that the ACCC proposed to make.

As per the undertaking, NBN Co will pay a $25 rebate to RSPs for each late connection and fault that is fixed.

The company will pay the same fee to an RSP for any missed appointment.

And NBN Co has agreed to simplify the process for RSPs to get rebates and also remove some conditions for claiming the rebates.

NBN Co has also said it would improve its reporting to RSPs so they can track the company's performance more easily and better support consumers in congested fixed wireless cells.

The company has also agreed to add information about the level of congestion in its fixed wireless network to the customer experience dashboard that it publishes monthly.

"The undertaking will improve the rebates that NBN Co pays to RSPs for not meeting its service level timeframes for connections, fixing faults and meeting scheduled appointments," ACCC chair Rod Sims said.

"This will lead to improved NBN connections and fault services performance overall.

"Under the undertaking given to the ACCC, NBN Co will require the RSPs to continue to take reasonable steps to ensure customers receive a benefit from the improved rebates the service providers will receive from NBN Co.

"This could mean customers could receive rebates from RSPs or other benefits, such as providing a substitute service while a fault is being fixed.

"We have had constructive engagement with NBN Co and RSPs as part of our inquiry into NBN wholesale service standards. The undertaking provides stronger incentives for NBN Co to maintain a high standard of operational performance and so will result in a clear benefit to consumers."

Communications Minister Mitch Fifield said: Todays announcement is a win for customers on the NBN and follows extensive work by the Government to increase consumer protections and enhance user experience.

He said as a result of measures introduced by the government and NBN Co:

Congestion across the fixed-line network has plummeted from an average of about five hours a week in July 2017 to just 28 minutes a week;

Ninety-four percent of homes and businesses were being connected within NBN Cos timeframes; and

Ninety-three percent of homes and businesses now had their equipment installed right the first time.

Under the government, the NBN will be completed by 2020  six to eight years sooner and at $30 billion less cost than Labor," Fifield added.

Labor Shadow Communications Minister Michelle Rowland described the ACCC move as "a stinging rebuff of [Communications Minister] Mitch Fifield and his opposition to improving NBN wholesale service levels for consumers".

She said the Labor Party and the ACCC had been in the forefront of the policy debate "and Labor welcomes this result as a sensible first step".

The interim determination by the ACCC is an endorsement of the policy direction in Labors NBN Service Guarantee, which has been welcomed by industry and consumer groups, and is designed to improve accountability and reduce downtime on the NBN," Rowland said.
Today

Sunny skies this morning will give way to mostly cloudy skies during the afternoon. High 56F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph.

Tonight

Considerable cloudiness. Low near 35F. Winds light and variable.

Tomorrow

Sun and a few passing clouds. High near 65F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph.
At 18, Itzel Sanchez has already mapped out a thoughtful, practical career path. This fall, the recent high school graduate will attend El Centro College, the flagship school of the Dallas County Community College District, where she plans to spend two years working through the prerequisite classes for a nursing degree before transferring to a four-year university to finish. After that shell decide if she wants to go to medical school to become an obstetrician-gynecologist. All while living at home and working full-time.

It takes a lot of time and money to become a doctor. I need to start somewhere, explains Sanchez. Nursing is a good program because as soon as I have my degree I will be able to get a good, stable job.

Sanchez and her plan are proof of what can happen when a determined student with limited financial resources is not only encouraged to dream, but also provided the tools to translate those dreams into actionable plans. Thats where Dallas County Promise (the Promise) comes in. An initiative of the Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) Foundation and the Commit Partnership, the Promise provides a full-tuition scholarship for the first and second years of college to students in participating Dallas County Promise High Schools, regardless of grade point average or family income.

In addition to scholarships, the Promise promotes career pathway education in high schools with the goal of better aligning students career aspirations with the needs of area employers. By doing so, the Promise sets students on the path towards high-quality, well-paid, local employment, while simultaneously building a pipeline of skilled workers for area employers. Employers specializing in healthcare and technology are particularly well positioned to benefit, as they frequently struggle to fill open positions with qualified candidates.
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Ann Arbor (Informed Comment)  National Security Adviser John Bolton appears to be spiraling down into the same miasma of madness that possesses other members of the Trump administration perhaps caused by a microbe carried in Trumps sniffle. This week he threatened justices of the International Criminal Court in the Hague with physical abduction were they to dare indict an American for war crimes committed in Afghanistan.

The International Criminal Court was established by the Rome Statute, which went into effect in 2002 has been ratified by 123 nations of the world. Most of Europe and all of Latin America and half of African states have signed. Virtually the only deadbeats are countries whose officials are afraid of being indicted by the court for serious human rights crimes, such as Syria, China, India, Sudan, Israel, Russia and . . . the United States of America (actually the latter four signed but they pulled out when they realized that they had exposed their state officials to prosecution, what with the war crimes they are constantly committing).

The ICC undertook to try dictator Moammar Gaddafi, but he was killed before he could be brought before it; it still has an outstanding case against the dictators son Seif. For Bolton to menace it in this way makes clear that he is in the Gaddafi category, which is why he fears the institution.

Bolton has no particular expertise in anything at all, he is just an angry shyster lawyer picked up by the more insane elements of the Republican Party as their pit bull. He once denied that the United Nations exists, then tried to make him US ambassador to the United Nations (he wasnt confirmed, but served briefly on a sneaky Bush recess appointment).

So here are five crimes that I allege Bolton has committed, for which he by all rights should face justice at the Hague, at the hands of the same ICC judges that he just brutishly threatened:

1. Bolton played a key role in hoodwinking the American public into the 2003 US war of aggression on Iraq, for which there was no legitimate casus belli or legal basis for war. The UN Charter forbids the initiation of a war except where a country is attacked and responds in self-defense or where the UN Security Council designates a government as a threat to world order (as it did Gaddafis Libya). These attempts to outlaw wars of aggression were a reaction against the Nazi invasion of Poland, etc. People like Bolton, who dont want any constraints on his power from the international rule of law, are just trying out for the role of people like Nazi generals Gunther von Kluge and Gerd von Rundstedt, who led the assault on Poland. (Like Bolton in regard to Iraq, they maintained that they were only defending themselves from a menacing Poland, but nobody believed this lie).

Bolton is manifestly guilty of the crime of aggression under the Rome Statute and its 2010 enabling statutes adopted at Kampala: Article 8 bis, para 1, says: For the purpose of this Statute, crime of aggression means the planning, preparation, initiation or execution, by a person in a position effectively to exercise control over or to direct the political or military action of a State, of an act of aggression which, by its character, gravity and scale, constitutes a manifest violation of the Charter of the United Nations.

As Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security under Bush, Bolton was clearly a high executive officer of a government guilty of the crime of aggression.

2. As National Security Adviser, Bolton has supported the Apartheid policies of the far-right extremist government of Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu toward the Occupied Palestinians.

Apartheid is a crime under the Rome Statute:

The crime of apartheid means inhumane acts . . . committed in the context of an institutionalized regime of systematic oppression and domination by one racial group over any other racial group or groups and committed with the intention of maintaining that regime.

He also supports the transfer of Israeli citizens into the Occupied West Bank as squatters on Palestinian land.

8.2.b.viii stipulates as a war crime

The transfer, directly or indirectly, by the Occupying Power of parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies, or the deportation or transfer of all or parts of the population of the occupied territory within or outside this territory.

Bolton strongly supports and enables a whole range of war crimes of the Likud regime in Tel Aviv against the Palestinian people, above all keeping them in a condition of abject statelessness and continually stealing their property.

Under war crimes comes Extensive destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly.

It could be argued that Israel could not engage in these illegal violations of Palestinian rights save for the American veto, so that high US officials who conspire to enable crimes like Apartheid and usurpation of Occupied Territories are even more guilty than Israeli officials.

3. Bolton is in the back pocket of, has spoken for, and may have received significant monies from the Peoples Jihadis (Mojahedin-e Khalq), a group that has been on the US State Department terrorist watch list and which has killed civilians with bombings and attacks in Iran. They even had a base given them for these purposes by Saddam Hussein, in whose company Bolton has fallen, given their alliance with this same Iranian cult.

The MEK is guilty of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack, and under this heading, of murder. In fact, it has killed Americans. Bolton gets red in the face about threats to the US except that he pals around with people who have the blood of Americans on their hands.

How delightful it would be to see Bolton at the Hague, before the very judges he threatened to kidnap.



Bonus video:

VOA: Bolton Warns ICC Against Prosecuting Americans Over Actions in Afghanistan
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London (Middle East Monitors)  The United States warned Iran on Tuesday it will respond swiftly and decisively to any attacks by Tehrans allies in Iraq that resulted in injury to Americans or damage to US facilities, Reuters reports.

The statement by the White House press secretary accused Iran of not preventing attacks in recent days on the US Consulate in Basra and the American Embassy compound in Baghdad.

Iran did not act to stop these attacks by its proxies in Iraq, which it has supported with funding, training, and weapons, the statement said.

The United States will hold the regime in Tehran accountable for any attack that results in injury to our personnel or damage to United States Government facilities. America will respond swiftly and decisively in defence of American lives, the statement said.

On Friday, three mortar bombs landed inside Baghdads heavily fortified Green Zone, where the US Embassy is located, but they caused no casualties or damage, the Iraqi military said.

The mortar attack was the first such one in several years on the Green Zone, which houses parliament, government buildings and many foreign embassies.

The US Consulate in Basra is near the airport, which was attacked by rockets on Saturday. No damage or casualties were reported.

Protesters in Basra angry over political corruption ransacked and torched Iraqi government buildings last week. The Iranian consulate was set alight by demonstrators shouting condemnation of what many see as Irans sway over Iraqs affairs.

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Via Middle East Monitor

-

Relevant Tweet added by Informed Comment:

White House @PressSec condemns Iran for not acting to stop attacks on US consulate in the Iraqi city of Basra: "The United States will hold the regime in Tehran accountable for any attack  America will respond swiftly and decisively in defense of American lives." pic.twitter.com/eZNRTQ9NTD  Jack Detsch (@JackDetsch_ALM) September 11, 2018



Bonus video added by Informed Comment:

?? Iraqi protesters set fire to Iranian consulate in Basra | Al Jazeera English
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Evrim Resources Corp. (TSX.V:EVM) (Evrim or the Company) is pleased to announce new trench and soil results from the Phase 3 exploration program at its 100%-owned Cuale high sulphidation epithermal gold project in Jalisco, Mexico. The new trench results expand the La Gloria zone to the northwest and the east with consistent gold mineralization. Soil sampling indicates the La Gloria system footprint is measurably larger with the potential to host a significant deposit and/or additional mineralized centres within the La Gloria prospect.

Phase 3 Exploration Highlights

Trench 2 has been extended to 184.1 metres (from a previously reported 29.4 metres) and grades 0.85 grams per tonne (g/t) gold Includes 59.1 metres grading 1.79 g/t gold from 125 metres along the trench Including 21.6 metres grading 4.18 g/t gold from 162.5 metres along the trench



Trench 4 has been extended to 156.2 metres (from a previously reported 106.2 metres) and grades 9.57 g/t gold Includes 64.6 metres grading 20.85 g/t gold from 85.6 metres along the trench Including 7.5 metres grading 163.31 g/t gold from 100.6 metres along the trench



Trench 5 contains 174 metres grading 0.62 g/t gold Includes 70.0 metres grading 1.16 g/t gold from 96 metres along the trench Including 40.0 metres grading 1.45 g/t gold from 114 metres along the trench



The additional trenching at La Gloria significantly extends surface mineralization to the northwest by 120 metres and to the east, commented Charles Funk, Evrims Vice President of New Opportunities and Exploration. The soil survey has a distinctive high sulphidation signature centred on a large gold in soil anomaly that is approximately 2,300 metres by 800 metres. The results indicate a potential major system with significant upside for additional mineralized centres within the La Gloria prospect.

About the Phase 3 Exploration Program

Evrim excavated 760 metres over four new trenches (Trenches 5, 6, 7 and 8) and two extended trenches (Trenches 2 and 4). The results from trenches 6, 7 and 8 remain pending. Mineralization is hosted within a breccia unit that broadly varies from a matrix dominant in the west to a crackle breccia in the east. Clasts in the west are generally rounded and include lithic tuff, advanced argillic altered lithic tuff and rare pervasively silicified fragments in a hematite matrix. Towards the east the fragments become more angular and are dominantly pervasively altered to saccharoidal silica with little to no hematite matrix.

Trench From To Width Au (g/t) Cut Au

(g/t)

[Cut at

30.0 g/t] Comment Trench 1* 0 351.8 351.8 1.28 n/a Whole trench Including 44.6 307.8 263.2 1.67 n/a Including 92.3 285.8 193.5 2.09 n/a Including 113.8 121.8 8 5.77 n/a And 157.8 277.8 120 2.46 n/a Including 187.8 199.8 12 4.25 n/a Including 223.8 235.8 12 3.98 n/a And 269.8 277.8 8 5.22 n/a Trench 2 0 184.1 184.1 0.85 0.72 Whole trench Including 45 63 18 1.34 n/a And 125 184.1 59.1 1.79 1.39 Including 162.5 184.1 21.6 4.18 3.07 Trench 3* 0 53.7 53.7 0.28 n/a Whole trench Including 21.7 36.7 15 0.76 n/a Trench 4 0 156.2 156.2 9.57 2.90 Whole trench Including 29.4 150.2 120.8 12.30 3.67 Including 38.6 63.6 25 4.12 n/a And 85.6 150.2 64.6 20.85 4.71 Including 100.6 108.1 7.5 163.31 24.33 Trench 5 0 174 174 0.62 n/a Whole trench Including 96 166 70 1.16 n/a Including 114 154 40 1.45 n/a Table 1  Significant trench intersections. (*Trenches 1 and 3 have been previously reported on April 9, 2018 and Trenches 2 and 4 are extended from those reported on April 16, 2018)

A soil grid with 200 metre spacing was completed over the entire La Gloria prospect and revealed distinctive high sulphidation zonation. The survey defined a gold anomaly with grades greater than 0.01 g/t gold of 2,300 metres by 800 metres with a central corridor of 1,700 metres by 300 metres greater than 0.1 g/t gold extending north of the trenched area. The soil anomaly at higher elevation correlates with elevated silver, antimony, molybdenum, arsenic and low contents of manganese and zinc. At lower elevations gold correlates with elevated copper, tellurium, arsenic, bismuth and iron.

About the Cuale Project

The Cuale project is 100%-owned by Evrim and comprised of a 232 square kilometre early stage exploration property prospective for high sulphidation epithermal gold mineralization. The project is located 185 kilometres west of Guadalajara and 35 kilometres southeast of Puerto Vallarta in the Cordillera Madre del Sur.

Regionally, the project is located within the Talpa de Allende area of Jalisco near Agnico Eagle Mines' Barqueno project (645,000 ounces gold and 38 million ounces silver) and Endeavour Silver's Terronera project (436,000 ounces gold and 42 million ounces silver). The area is close to infrastructure with roads and powerlines crossing the property.

Locally, the project is situated within a complex accreted arc terrane that developed during the Mesozoic Era and hosts the majority of volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) deposits in Mexico. The accreted arc terrane comprises an interbedded sequence of rhyolitic volcanics and volcaniclastics that are only weakly deformed and were intruded by the Cretaceous Puerto Vallarta batholith. The La Gloria intrusives, volcanic units and high sulphidation alteration are presently interpreted as a younger event correlating with either the Sierra Madre Occidental or Trans Mexican Volcanic Belt events.

Cuale is subject to a 1.5% net smelter royalty ("NSR") for precious metals and a 1.0% NSR for base metals payable to Altius Minerals.

Qualified Person Statement

Evrim's disclosure of technical or scientific information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Stewart Harris, P.Geo. Vice President, Technical Services for the Company. Mr. Harris serves as a Qualified Person under the definition of National Instrument 43-101.

About Evrim Resources

Evrim Resources is a mineral exploration company whose goal is to participate in significant exploration discoveries supported by a sustainable business model. The Company is well financed, has a diverse range of quality projects and a database covering substantial areas of Mexico and portions of southwestern United States. The Companys projects are advanced through option and joint venture agreements with industry partners to create shareholder value. Evrims business plan also includes royalty creation utilizing the Companys exploration expertise and existing projects.

On Behalf of the Board

EVRIM RESOURCES CORP.

Paddy Nicol

President & CEO

To find out more about Evrim Resources Corp., please contact Paddy Nicol, President, or Charles Funk, VP New Opportunities and Exploration at 604-248-8648, or Donna Yoshimatsu at 416-722-2456.



Visit our website at www.evrimresources.com.

Forward Looking Information

This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward looking statements". All statements in this news release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that Evrim Resources Corp. (the "Company) expects to occur, are forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur.

Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward looking statements include market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, and continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Companys management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Figure 1

Figure 2
Vancouver, British Columbia (FSCwire) - FIORE GOLD LTD. (TSXV: F) (OTCQB: FIOGF) (Fiore or the Company) is pleased to announce an updated mineral resource estimate for its 100%-owned Gold Rock project in Nevada. The mineral resource is centered around the former Easy Junior open pit mine and covers approximately 3.1 km of a 12.9 km-long trend of prospective geology, structure, and alteration with pervasive gold and pathfinder element anomalies in soil and rock samples.

The new Gold Rock resource estimate is based solely on the available historical data and is intended to provide a baseline from which to grow the resource through continued drilling. The historical drill hole database was reviewed and audited by the Qualified Person (QP) and is deemed to be suitable for resource estimation. Drilling is currently underway to test three new targets to the north of the resource area with the aim of expanding the overall footprint of mineralization.

Relative to the previous 2012 historical resource estimate, the new resource estimate shows higher grades and a more tightly-defined zone of mineralization hosted primarily within the tightly folded and faulted Joanna Limestone with minor mineralization within the overlying Chainman Shale and the underlying Pilot Shale.

Results at a range of cut-off grades are as follows:

Resource Category

Cut-off Grade(g/t) Tonnes Gold Grade

(g/t) Gold Grade

(oz/st) Contained Gold

(oz) Indicated 0.1 9,586,000 0.78 0.023 241,700 0.2 9,006,900 0.82 0.024 238,700 0.3 7,954,500 0.90 0.026 230,300 0.4 7,098,700 0.97 0.028 220,700 0.5 6,432,000 1.02 0.030 211,000 Inferred 0.1 8,455,100 0.68 0.020 184,300 0.2 7,787,500 0.72 0.021 180,900 0.3 6,747,400 0.80 0.023 172,600 0.4 5,830,500 0.87 0.025 162,200 0.5 4.952,700 0.94 0.027 149,500

Mineral Resource Statement prepared by APEX Geoscience Ltd. in accordance with NI 43-101 with an effective date of July 1, 2018.

Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves. Mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. There has been insufficient exploration to define the inferred resources tabulated above as an indicated or measured mineral resource, however, it is reasonably expected that the majority of the Inferred Mineral Resources could be upgraded to Indicated Mineral Resources with continued exploration. There is no guarantee that any part of the mineral resources discussed herein will be converted into a mineral reserve in the future. The estimate of Mineral Resources may be materially affected by environmental, permitting, legal, marketing, or other relevant issues. The Mineral Resources have been classified according to the CIM Definition Standards for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (May 2014).

All figures have been rounded to reflect the relative accuracy of the estimates. Gold grades are shown both in grams per tonne (g/t) and troy ounces per short ton (oz/st)

The mineral resources are reported at a cut-off grade of 0.2 g/t gold, based on a gold price of US$1,350 per ounce. The resource estimate is relatively insensitive to gold price  using a US$1,250 per ounce figure at a 0.2 g/t cut-off reduces the in-pit mineral resource by 3,600 ounces in the indicated category and 10,800 ounces in the inferred category.

Tim Warman, Chief Executive Officer of Fiore, commented: Were very pleased with the new resource update, and particularly with the grades, which are excellent for an open-pit, oxide resource and significantly higher than at our adjacent Pan Mine. Our geological team has built a much more tightly-constrained geological and mineralization model that has resulted in less grade smearing and significantly higher average grades than were reported in previous resource estimates. The next steps will be to continue drilling along the approximately thirteen-kilometre-long trend, where multiple drill targets have been defined by gold and pathfinder element anomalies and the presence of promising lithological, structural and alteration features. Drilling has recently commenced on three new targets to the north of the current resource area, and were confident that the Gold Rock deposit will continue to grow as exploration continues along this promising trend.

The Gold Rock deposit is a Carlin-style, sedimentary rock-hosted, disseminated gold deposit within Mississippian limestone and siltstone units, namely the Joana Formation Limestone and the overlying Chainman Formation Shale, located along an eastern spur of the Pancake Range. The primary host is the Joana Limestone, but significant mineralization is also hosted in the overlying Chainman Shale with minor mineralization in the Pilot Shale. The currently identified resource occupies a N12E to N15E trend that extends from 300 m north of the Easy Junior pit to the lower reaches of Meridian Ridge to the south, a strike length of over 3.1 km. Altered bedrock and surface gold anomalies extend well beyond the mineralization envelope defined by drilling to the north and the south, extending nearly the entire 12.9 km length of the property.

Mineral Resource Estimate

The updated mineral resources for Gold Rock are reported at a 0.2 g/t Au cut-off with an effective date of July 1, 2018. The resource estimate is based solely on previous drilling, which includes approximately 94,919 m of reverse-circulation (RC) and 3,840 m of diamond core drilling completed between 1980 and 2013. The historical drill hole database was reviewed and audited by the Qualified Person (QP) and is deemed to be suitable for resource estimation.

A total of 785 drillholes are contained within the Gold Rock database, with a total of 486 drillholes in the area of the Gold Rock Deposit that were used to guide the interpretation of geology and gold mineralization and construct the Mineral Resource Estimate. This total comprises 17 diamond core holes completed by Midway in 2011 and 2012, a total of 61 reverse circulation (RC) drillholes completed by Midway in 2011 to 2013, and finally 408 historical RC drillholes that were completed from 1984 to 1994. Spacing between drillholes over the main Easy Junior open pit area varies from 6.5 to 98 ft (2 m to 30 m) but averages 100 ft (30 m) between sections and 50 ft (15 m) along sections. Away from the main open pit area, the drillhole spacing increases to 260 to 395 ft (80 to 120 m) spacing. Drilling has been completed on roughly east-west sections. All of the drillholes were used to guide the mineralization model that was ultimately used in the resource estimation calculation.

The resource has been estimated within three dimensional solids that were created from cross-sectional lode interpretation. The upper contact has been cut by the topographic/historical open pit surface. Grade was estimated into a block model with a parent block size of 8 m (X) by 16 m (Y) by 6 m (Z) and sub-blocked down to 4 m (X) by 8 m (Y) by 3 m (Z). A total of 197 bulk density samples were available for review. The 197 bulk density samples were examined by their position within the mineralized zones and their stratigraphic position. Depending on the number of measurements available by lode or formation, this average density was applied to all blocks within that lode. The average density for the lodes ranges from 2.386 g/cm3 to 2.514 g/cm3 with an overall average for the mineral resource of 2.49 g/cm3. Grade estimation of gold was performed using the Inverse Distance squared (ID2) methodology. The Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resources are constrained within a drilled area that extends approximately 1.96 miles (3.15 km) along strike to the north-northeast, 0.16 miles (0.26 km) across strike to the east and 820 ft (250 m) below surface.

The updated Gold Rock Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource comprises an Indicated Mineral Resource of 9.01 million tonnes at 0.82 g/t (0.024 oz/st) Au for 238,700 ounces of gold and an Inferred Mineral Resource of 7.79 million tonnes at 0.72 (0.021 oz/st) g/t Au for 180,900 ounces of gold, using a lower cut-off grade of 0.2 g/t (0.006 oz/st) Au (Table 1.1). The updated Gold Rock Mineral Resource Estimate is reported at a range of gold cut-off grades in the table above for both Indicated and Inferred categories. Other cut-off grades are presented for review ranging from 0.1 g/t (0.003 oz/st) Au to 0.5 g/t (0.015 oz/st) Au for sensitivity analyses. Resource blocks flagged as reduced were removed from the overall resource.

The Gold Rock Project

Fiore holds the Gold Rock Project through its wholly-owned subsidiary, GRP Gold Rock, LLC. The Gold Rock Project consists of a large 20,300-hectare contiguous land package on the Battle Mountain-Eureka Trend, anchored by the historic Easy Junior Mine, which reportedly produced approximately 2.6 million tonnes at a grade of 0.89 grams per tonne for 74,945 gold ounces in the early 1990s.

The mineralization at Gold Rock is hosted by the folded and faulted Joanna Limestone Formation, where the historical resource covers only approximately 3.1 km of a 12.9 km long belt. This belt contains the same folded and faulted Joanna Formation, displaying strong Carlin-style alteration (silica flooding, jasperoids, and argillization) and coincident gold and pathfinder element anomalies throughout its strike length. This area is considered highly prospective for additional discoveries. At least nine distinct drill-ready targets defined by Carlin-type structure, geochemistry and alteration have been located by surface sampling and mapping.

Future work on the Gold Rock project will include:

new drilling aimed at expanding the resource base, as well as infill drilling to confirm the geological controls and collect samples for density and metallurgical testing;

initiation of metallurgical and engineering studies to support a Preliminary Economic Assessment.

Fiores Reserve and Resource Inventory

With the newly updated Gold Rock mineral resource estimate, Fiores Reserve and Resource Inventory now consists of:

Mineral Reserves

Project Tonnes Gold Grade

(g/t) Gold Grade

(oz/st) Contained Gold

(oz) Pan - Proven 6,740,000 0.62 0.018 137,000 Pan - Probable 12,264,000 0.45 0.013 182,000 Total Proven + Probable 19,004,000 0.51 0.015 318,000

*Reserves at Pan are as at March 16, 2017 and have not been adjusted for mining depletion

*Numbers in the table have been rounded to reflect the accuracy of the estimate and may not sum due to rounding.

Mineral Resources

Project Tonnes Gold Grade

(g/t) Gold Grade

(oz/st) Contained Gold

(oz) Measured & Indicated Pan - Measured 8,184,000 0.62 0.018 159,000 Pan - Indicated 19,091,000 0.45 0.013 275,000 Gold Rock - Indicated 9,006,900 0.82 0.024 238,700 Total Measured + Indicated 36,281,900 0.58 0.017 672,700 Inferred Pan 5,144,000 0.45 0.013 72,000 Gold Rock 7,787,500 0.72 0.021 180,900 Total Inferred 12,931,500 0.61 0.018 252,900

*Resources at Pan are as at February 10, 2017, are inclusive of Pan Mineral Reserves, and have not been adjusted for mining depletion

*Numbers in the table have been rounded to reflect the accuracy of the estimate and may not sum due to rounding

*Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves. Mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.

In addition, Fiore Golds 100%-owned Golden Eagle project in Washington State hosts an historical resource estimate as follows:

Project Mass

(Mt) Gold Grade

(g/t) Gold Grade

(oz/st) Contained Gold

(oz) Golden Eagle  Indicated Historical Resource 28,500,000 1.89 0.055 1,744,000 Golden Eagle  Inferred Historical Resource 4,600,000 1.30 0.038 192,000

* Fiore reports these historical resources for illustrative purposes only. Although the estimates are believed to be reliable and relevant, a qualified person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimates as current mineral resources or mineral reserves, and the Company is not treating the historical estimates as current mineral resources or mineral reserves. The Company has not yet determined what additional work would be required to upgrade the historical mineral resource estimate to a current mineral resource estimate.

Qualified Persons and Technical Reports

A technical report, which will include the new Gold Rock resource estimate, will be posted on the Company's website at www.fioregold.com and filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com within 45 days.

Michael B. Dufresne, M.Sc., P.Geol., P.Geo., a Principal in APEX Geoscience Ltd. and a 'Qualified Person' for the purpose of National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects of the Canadian securities administrators ("NI 43-101") has approved the disclosure of, and is the qualified person responsible for, the scientific and technical information regarding the Gold Rock project in this news release inclusive of the resource estimate information. He has verified the data disclosed.

Other scientific and technical information referred herein has been extracted from and is hereby qualified by reference to the technical reports for our other projects. The technical reports referenced herein are as follows: (1) the report titled  NI 43-101 Updated Technical Report, Pan Gold Project, White Pine County, Nevada, with an effective date of June 30, 2017, which was prepared by J. B. Pennington, M.Sc., C.P.G., Kent Hartley, P.E., Justin Smith, P.E., RM-SME., Deepak Malhotra, RM-SME, Valerie Sawyer, RM-SME, and Brooke J. Miller, M.Sc., C.P.G.; and (2) the report titled Midway Gold Corp.: Golden Eagle Project, Washington State, USA, Technical Report with an effective date of August 4, 2009, which was prepared by Eric Chapman, B.Sc. (Geology), M.Sc. (Mining Geology), C.Geol.,Consultant, Snowden Mining Industry Consultants and Dr. Thom Seal, Ph.D., P.E., Principal and Chief Metallurgist, Differential Engineering Inc. Each of the persons named as having prepared the technical reports listed above is a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 (NI 43-101).

Corporate Strategy

Our corporate strategy is to grow Fiore Gold into a 150,000 ounce per year gold producer. To achieve this, we intend to:

grow gold production at the Pan Mine from a planned 35-40,000 ounces in fiscal 2018

advance exploration and development of the nearby Gold Rock project

acquire additional production or near-production assets in Nevada and surrounding states

On behalf of FIORE GOLD LTD.

"Tim Warman"

Chief Executive Officer

Contact Us:

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

1 (416) 639-1426

www.fioregold.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note on Forward Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward looking information (as defined under applicable securities laws), based on managements best estimates, assumptions and current expectations. Such statements include but are not limited to, statements with respect to the expected timing of the Record of Decision and completion of the federal permitting process for the Gold Rock Mine project, milestones regarding the Gold Rock Mine project, future technical development of the Gold Rock Mine project, future drilling at the Gold Rock property, prospective geologic characteristics and trends of the Gold Rock property, expectations regarding drilling results and objectives, providing a new Gold Rock resource update, potential to grow resources, potential to convert inferred mineral resources, future metallurgical testing, developing a Preliminary Economic Assessment, all of the future planned development, construction and operations described in the FEIS for the Gold Rock Mine project, expectations to grow gold production at Pan for fiscal 2018 and 2019, goal to become a 150,000 ounce producer, goal to grow production at the Pan Mine, goal to acquire additional production or near production assets, and other statements, estimates or expectations. Often, but not always, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as expects, expected, budgeted, targets, forecasts, intends, anticipates, scheduled, estimates, aims, will, believes, projects and similar expressions (including negative variations) which by their nature refer to future events. By their very nature, forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, some of which are beyond Fiores control. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results. Forward looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made, as well as a number of assumptions made by, and information currently available to, the Company concerning, among other things, anticipated geological formations, potential mineralization, future plans for exploration and/or development, potential future production, ability to obtain permits for future operations, drilling exposure, and exploration budgets and timing of expenditures, all of which involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievement of Fiore to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to vary materially from results anticipated by such forward looking statements include, but not limited to, risks related to the Pan Mine performance, risks related to the companys limited operating history; risks related to international operations; risks related to general economic conditions, actual results of current or future exploration activities, unanticipated reclamation expenses; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; fluctuations in prices of metals including gold; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; increases in market prices of mining consumables; possible variations in ore reserves, grade or recovery rates; uncertainties involved in the interpretation of drilling results, test results and the estimation of gold resources and reserves; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; the possibility that capital and operating costs may be higher than currently estimated; the possibility of cost overruns or unanticipated expenses in the work programs; availability of financing; accidents, labour disputes, title disputes, claims and limitations on insurance coverage and other risks of the mining industry; delays in the completion of exploration, development or construction activities; the possibility that required permits may not be obtained on a timely manner or at all; changes in national and local government regulation of mining operations, tax rules and regulations, and political and economic developments in countries in which Fiore operates, and other factors identified in Fiores filing with Canadian securities authorities under its profile at www.sedar.com respecting the risks affecting Fiore and its business. Although Fiore has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The forward-looking statements and forward-looking information are made as of the date hereof and are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Fiore disclaims any obligation to revise or update any such factors or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking statements or forward-looking information contained herein to reflect future results, events or developments, except as require by law. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and information.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is in the spotlights of global politics after John Bolton, the national security adviser of US President Donald Trump, lashed out at the court. He outlined a strategy to undermine the work of the ICC, but his attacks could also rally its supporters behind the institution.

If there were any doubts about the Trump administrations position towards the ICC, John Bolton cleared them up. The US presidents national security adviser said on Monday the United States will not cooperate with the ICC, will provide no assistance to the ICC and will not join the ICC. Bolton called the court ineffective, unaccountable, and indeed, outright dangerous.

While the Obama administration has taken a constructive approach and supported the work of the institution  for example by assisting in the arrest and transfer of two suspects , Trump is taking an aggressive stance. His government seems ready to block and undermine the ICCs activities in the coming years.

For a president who has declared US supremacy his foreign affairs doctrine and strongly opposes multilateralism, this move would only be consequent. In the past three months, the Trump administration withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council, threatened to leave the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and stopped funding UNRWA, the UN agency tasked with supporting Palestinian refugees.

From this perspective, Boltons remarks are not so much about the ICC but rather about the policy decisions of the US government. The opposition to the ICC follows logically from Trumps America First philosophy and the notion of US exceptionalism that has been shaping US foreign policy for many years  the idea that the United States is somewhat different from other countries. An independent international court is incompatible with this idea since the principle that there should be no differences and that no one should be above the law is deeply enshrined in the ICCs DNA. For hawks like Bolton and Trump, the ICC is therefore the embodiment of an international order they detest. The Guardian called the attack on the ICC the unacceptable face of US exceptionalism.

European states react

Most commentators focussed on the negative effects of Boltons speech for the ICC, for example because other states might take it as an excuse to reduce their support as well.)

In reality, however, the increasing disengagement and aggression of the US government often provoked a countermovement. When the Trump administration decided to stop funding sexual and reproductive health programmes for women in developing countries, a coalition of European and African states raised more than 300 million dollars. When it announced the decision to stop funding UNRWA, the European Union, Ireland, Jordan and Germany stepped in.

Similarly, Boltons attacks could rally supporters of the ICC behind the institution. Either because they fear finding themselves aligned with Trump, or because they genuinely support the court and the concept of international criminal justice. The first reactions are already indicating European governments are distancing themselves from the anti-ICC rhetoric. The German Foreign Office tweeted it is committed to the work of the ICC  in particular when it comes under fire. Alluding to US threats to undermine the ICC, France said that the court should be able to work without hindrance. Liechtenstein said on Tuesday it strongly supports the work of the ICC.

Boltons strong words could thus lead to a renewal of the support and commitment to the court. A welcome paradox for the ICC, which has never appeared so weak politically and was challenged from within, this very week, in The Hague, by Jordan and other member states on the scope of the courts powers.
Yemeni government forces, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, on Wednesday seized rebel supply routes into the key port city of Hodeida, military sources said, days after UN-brokered peace talks collapsed.

Hodeida province is a major battleground in the war between Yemens Saudi-backed government and Huthi rebels linked to Iran, which has been accused of supplying weapons to the insurgents.

Abdulrahman Saleh Abou Zaraa, head of the brigade fighting the Huthis in the province, told AFP his forces had taken the insurgents main supply route linking the port city to rebel-held Sanaa, known as Kilo 16.

The Saudi-backed forces also seized a second supply route around Hodeida, known as Kilo 10, military sources said.

Roads linking the port city to Sanaa  both controlled by the Huthi rebels  are also used for the transport of imports and aid, most of which enter Yemen through the rebel-held Hodeida port.

The Saudi-led coalition accuses the Huthis of smuggling arms from Iran through Hodeida and has imposed a partial blockade on the port, which the rebels seized in 2014.

 No plans to take the city 

A military source in the brigade fighting in Hodeida said Wednesdays operation aimed to cut off supplies to the rebels.

The government coalition did not have immediate plans to try to take the city, the source said.

Fierce clashes broke out Wednesday between the Huthis and pro-government forces on the east and south of rebel-held Hodeida city, leaving dozens of fighters dead, according to military and medical sources.

The Huthis have not yet commented on the status of Kilo 16 and Kilo 10.

Rebel TV channel Al-Masirah said four civilians had been killed in an air raid on Kilo 16, including one child.

The United Arab Emirates, a key member of the regional military alliance led by Saudi Arabia, provides boots on the ground for Yemeni troops fighting in the south, including in Hodeida province.

In June, the pro-government forces, led by the UAE, launched a major operation to retake both the city and port of Hodeida.

The troops, backed by coalition states air forces, have retaken a number of towns across Hodeida province but have not yet reached the city.

The coalition in July announced a temporary ceasefire in Hodeida to give a chance to UN-brokered peace talks.

But on September 6, UN attempts to hold peace talks between Yemens Saudi-backed government and the Huthis, linked to Saudi Arabias archrival Iran, were abandoned after the rebels refused to leave Yemen for Geneva.

 Pompeo defends Saudis, Emiratis 

The Huthis accused the UN of failing to meet their conditions  including a plane to transport their wounded to nearby Oman and a guarantee their delegation would be allowed to return to Sanaa.

The United Nations Yemen envoy, Martin Griffiths, has said he will be travelling to Oman, Yemen and Saudi Arabia next week in a bid to restart talks between the government and Huthis.

Saudi Arabia and its allies intervened in the conflict between embattled Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, whose government is recognised by the United Nations, and the Huthis in 2015.

Nearly 10,000 people have since been killed and the country now stands at the brink of famine.

All parties to the Yemen conflict, which the UN calls the worlds worst humanitarian crisis, have been accused of violations that may amount to war crimes by a panel of UN investigators.

The panel found the Saudi-led coalition responsible for air strikes behind most civilian casualties, sparking a denial by Riyadh and its allies.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday defended Saudi Arabia and the UAE as taking demonstrable actions to protect civilians in a statement to Congress.

The United States is a close ally of Saudi Arabia and provides arms sales, aerial refuelling and intelligence to Riyadh.
Children's classic 'Little Women' still relevant at 150, Alcott experts say

Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018



Kansas State University English professors Anne Phillips and Greg Eiselein are experts on author Louisa May Alcott and her classic book, "Little Women," which turns 150 during 2018-2019. | Download this photo.





MANHATTAN  At 150, Louisa May Alcott's classic book for girls, "Little Women," is not getting older  it just keeps getting better, according to two Kansas State University experts on the author and her most famous work.



Anne Phillips and Greg Eiselein, both professors of English, are co-editors of "The Louisa May Alcott Encyclopedia," released in 2001; "Norton Critical Edition of Alcott's Little Women," 2004; "Critical Insights: Little Women," 2015; and "Critical Insights: Louisa May Alcott," 2016. They also are teaching a course about Louisa May Alcott this fall, which examines the life and writings of the author.



The professors and the Kansas State University English department are marking the sesquicentennial of the novel during the 2018-2019 school year with a lecture series and other events, including hosting the yearlong blog, "Little Women 150," at https:/lw150.wordpress.com.



The first volume of the story of the March sisters  Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy  set during the Civil War, was released in September 1868, with the second volume, which focuses on the protagonists moving from home and family to other places and communities, released in April 1869.



Phillips first read "Little Women" in the fourth grade, using an edition of the book passed down from her mother and grandmothers. Eiselein discovered "Little Women" in graduate school.



"It's an astonishingly rich text, and Greg and I keep discovering new perspectives on it, often in conversation with students, fans and members of the general public," Phillips said.



From its initial publication, "Little Women" has been a success with readers young and old, female and male, domestic and international, Phillips said. But Alcott was reluctant at first to write a book for girls when asked to do so by an editor at a Boston publishing firm. Books for boys were doing well and the editor thought Alcott might have a lucrative niche writing for girls, Phillips said.



"Although she initially wasn't very excited about the prospect and took several months to get going on it, Alcott soon became much more enthusiastic about it, especially after she thought about it as a way to pay tribute to her sisters and family  and after the first draft of the novel was well received by her friends," Phillips said.



"'Little Women' is the quintessential coming-of-age novel, so it remains relevant, especially as it considers human ambitions, aspirations, challenges and sacrifices," Phillips said. "In depicting not only the March sisters' coming of age but also their neighbor Theodore 'Laurie' Laurence's maturation process, Alcott provided an especially well-rounded and compelling perspective on maturation."



Eiselein said the novel appeals to a wide variety of people. One example, he said, is parents seeking advice on raising their children and teaching them how to negotiate life's challenges and trials.

"It's also a novel about nostalgia and loss, about realizing that growing up also means letting go of childhood and the special bonds you maintain with siblings and parents before adulthood," Eiselein said. "While many adolescents, like Jo in the book, have such awareness, reading 'Little Women'as an adult provides a different perspective on what it means to lose the relationships of youth."



Phillips credits the long-running popularity of "Little Women" with readers to Alcott's distinctive, whimsical voice and sense of humor. She also said that the book was drawn from Alcott's direct experience and infused with an American sensibility and language.



"Most importantly, Alcott showed realistic characters with realistic emotions," Phillips said. "They played, they squabbled, they behaved badly, they atoned, and they had each other's backs  most of the time. They were such a striking contrast to the other books for young women available in the mid-19th century, in which pious, weepy girls read their Bibles and stitched their samplers and pined for husbands."



"Little Women" inspired other writers and their works, Phillips and Eiselein said, including "Anne of Green Gables," "Ballet Shoes" and "The Penderwicks," as well as many works for adults by authors such as Barbara Kingsolver and others. "Little Women" has been made into several films, including one due out in late September that is set in modern day and one that starts filming soon with an all-star cast that includes Meryl Streep and Emma Watson. Alcott's novel also has been adapted for TV, the stage and even in rap, which was performed at a Kansas City festival this summer.



"More than any one adaptation, though, I am most impressed by how various versions of the story  the quartet of four very close but very different women whose lives intersect and then diverge and then come together again  seem to live on in new forms," Eiselein said. "I think of all the television shows, to use one example, that seem to use this story structure: 'The Facts of Life,' 'Designing Women,' 'Petticoat Junction,' 'Desperate Housewives,' 'Girls,' 'Sex and the City' and the 'Golden Girls' to name a few."



While Alcott likely never envisioned the long success of "Little Women," Eiselein said the author did express a reservation about one of the plot twists. Before the second volume was released, readers were demanding that Jo should marry Laurie, but Alcott chose what she called a "funny match" for Jo instead.



"Later, it seems, Alcott may have felt some regret about marrying off her protagonist at all," Eiselein said. "She told a friend in a letter that 'Jo should have remained a literary spinster.'"

Facts about Alcott from Phillips and Eiselein:



 Alcott was the first woman in Concord, Massachusetts, to cast a vote. The poet Ralph Waldo Emerson lent Alcott books to read and author Henry David Thoreau took her on nature walks. Alcott's father was perhaps the most important educational theorist of his time. Her mother was a social reform activist, committed in particular to helping the poor, ending slavery and establishing equal rights for women.



 One of Alcott's primary reasons for writing was to try to make enough money to support her family, which she finally did with the success of "Little Women." She worked as a nurse in a Union hospital during the Civil War.



 A single, illustrated volume of "Little Women" was first published in 1880 with numerous changes to the text that cleaned up the grammar and, in some cases, made alterations involving the characters' appearances and perspectives. Marmee, for instance, was originally stout and particularly valued for her close connections with her daughters. In the revision, she is described as "a noble looking woman."



 Before "Little Women," Alcott wrote dozens of anonymous thrillers  popular stories filled with passionate language and lurid settings and twisty plots that feature disguise, madness, revenge, lust, drugs, murder and more. She also wrote her own account of being the target of sexual harassment at work, almost 150 years before the #MeToo movement.



 "Little Women" has a long list of famous fans: Sandra Day O'Connor, Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Hillary Clinton, Teddy Roosevelt, Laura Bush, Simone de Beauvoir, Gloria Steinem, Gertrude Stein, Ann Petry, Ursula LeGuin, Cynthia Ozick, J.K. Rowling and Patti Smith, among many others.






(ANSA) - Brussels, September 12 - The European parliament on Wednesday approved a report on the rule of law in Hungary, for the first time triggering Article 7 of its treaties which could lead to sanctions against Premier Viktor Orban's country. The next step is up to the European Council, that is the EU's heads fo state and government.

Italy's governing parties split on the issue.

The rightwing League, which is allied with nationalist Orban, voted against the report.

The anti-establishment 5-Star Movement voted in favour of the report.

It is the first time the legislature has triggered an article 7 procedure against an EU member state. The most severe punishment under article 7 is stripping a country of its voting rights in the EU.

The EP said the Hungarian government poses a "systematic threat" to democracy and the rule of law.

The vote was carried with the support of 448 MEPs, narrowly clearing the required two-thirds majority, after Orban was abandoned by his allies in the centre-right European People's party.

The outcome heightens the prospect of a split in the EU's dominant centre-right bloc - to which the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, also belongs - which has been riven by divisions over migration and the future of Europe.


(ANSA) - Vatican City, September 12 - Pope Francis said Wednesday that he would like to visit Japan next year. "Taking advantage of this visit, I'd like to announce my desire to visit Japan next year," the Argentine pontiff said during a meeting with the Japanese Tensho Kenoho Shisetsu Kenshokai Association before his weekly general audience.

"I hope I can do so".


(ANSA) - Rome, September 12 - Interior Minister and Deputy Premier Matteo Salvini said Wednesday that his policy of closing Italy's ports to ships carrying migrants after rescues at sea was legal. The minister's statement came after President Sergio Mattarella said earlier in the day that no one is above the law.

"Today President Mattarella recalled that no one is above the law and he is right," said Salvini, the leader of the rightwing League party. "That is why I, respecting the law, the Constitution and the commitment taken with respect to the Italian people, closed the ports to human traffickers.

"Investigate me and put me on trial, but I'll keep going".


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NT ranks in 73rd percentile of WalletHubs Top Small Cities list The City of North Tonawanda has made the list of WalletHubs Top Small Cities across the United States, ranking in the 73rd percentile of the approximately 1,300 small cities that...
(ANSA) - Rome, September 12 - Italy wants to organise a conference on Libya in Sicily in the first half of November, Foreign Minister Enzo Moavero Milanesi said Wednesday.

Briefing the parliamentary foreign affairs committees on Libya, he said Rome wanted to set up the conference there "symbolically", in a "land that means to symbolise the hand outstretched over the Mediterranean". Sicily has been one of the two suggested locations for the conference, along with Rome.

The conference will be organised according to the "Rome format", including not only the various actors on the Libyan scene but also European countries, neighbouring countries, the EU, the African Union, the Arab League and the UN, Moavero said.

"The November date is situated ahead of the month of December identified as the month of the elections," he said, reiterating that elections must take place in ways and timeframes decided by the Libyans. Italy is at the forefront of international efforts to bring peace and stability to Libya in the wake of recent militia attacks on the UN-backed government in Tripoli.


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Dear AMA and state medical boards,

The last few years have been a period of unprecedented change in the world of health care. The need to reign in costs, expand access, and ensure higher quality care  all at a time of rapid medical and technological advancements  has changed innumerable aspects of the practice of medicine.

Throughout this, one common theme has been the dedication and determination of hundreds of thousands of physicians across the United States, who on a daily basis work tirelessly for their patients. These physicians are among the most highly educated and trained professionals in the country, the majority having accumulated a substantial debt burden to become practicing physicians. At a time when most fellow professionals are starting families, buying homes, and getting settled in life, would-be physicians are still in education, sitting exam after exam to fulfill their dreams.

It is, therefore, a concern that another big paradigm shift in health care has been a push to no longer address physicians by their true job title, but by the word provider instead. This has occurred at all levels of administrative and electronic communication, and is now also being used with patients.

The word doctor is over 2,000 years old, aptly derived from the Latin doctus, meaning to teach or instruct. Physician was used traditionally to describe a medical doctor, and King Henry VIII granted the first charter to form the Royal College of Physicians in 1518. In almost every country in the world, a medical doctor is considered to be among the most noble and prestigious professions, the title only conferred after one of the most rigorous university courses in existence. It is a privilege and honor to be one.

Today, there are many different professionals caring for patients at the frontlines of medicine. More and more non-physicians who possess a doctorate degree are using the word doctor which the public understands to be a doctor of medicine. While many possessing doctorate degrees may legitimately refer to themselves as doctors, only doctors of medicine can legitimately refer to themselves as physicians. So let us further and appropriately begin to distinguish doctors of medicine as physicians.

The word provider is a non-specific and nondescript term that confers little meaning. We, therefore, call on the American Medical Association and all state medical boards to consider discouraging and terminating the use of the word provider in all administrative communication, in place of physician when addressing a medical doctor. If a more generic term is necessary, consideration to the term clinician should be given. We believe that this affords the courtesy and respect that is due to a hard working and dedicated profession.

Sincerely,

Suneel Dhand and William J. Carbone

Suneel Dhand is an internal medicine physician and author of Thomas Jefferson: Lessons from a Secret Buddha and High Percentage Wellness Steps: Natural, Proven, Everyday Steps to Improve Your Health & Well-being. He blogs at his self-titled site, Suneel Dhand. William Carbone is chief executive officer, American Board of Physician Specialties.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
CAIRO - Rockets were launched overnight on Libya's Mitiga airport, the only functioning airport in Tripoli, according to BBC online, citing an airport source.

There were no victims or damage, but a Libyan Airlines flight was diverted to the Misurata airport, about 200 km east of the capital, and other flights will also be diverted to Misurata.

The attack on the airport, which just reopened last Friday, was by the Harak Shabab Tarablus (Tripoli Youth Movement) militia, a new group opposing Prime Minister Fayez Al Sarraj, according to the site Al Motawaset. It said the group posted a video on its Facebook page, which was created just last Saturday, about an "operation to launch rockets on the airport", after having announced its intention to do so.

In a Facebook post from Saturday labeled "communique number 1", the group declared itself against "militias that dominate the people's wealth" and those "at the airport" acting as "a source of pressure, theft, and bribery to carry out foreign agendas and fundamentalist ideas of certain states, including Saudi Arabia".

The Movement, referring to a group that supports the prime minister, said it denounces the "hateful acts perpetrated by militias including the Rada".

It said it has no political target other than "the return of the State to the army, the police, and the judiciary" and said it "will not stop until the Mitiga airport militias are disbanded".

In a nod to warn airport workers of the impending strike, the Facebook post on the Harak Shabab Tarablus page said "our rockets and missile launchers will mercilessly hit any location these militias find themselves".

The UN announced that an agreement was made on Sunday to respect the September 4 ceasefire, following nine days of clashes between militias in Tripoli that resulted in nearly 80 deaths.
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As a physician in training, youre in the first quarter of your new position as an intern or resident. If you are an early career physician, you are adjusting to life as an attending.

What exactly does that mean for you? Are you moving from rotation to rotation hopeful that someone will show you the ropes? In the midst of change, thats usually what we do. We look at the schedule, show up on the floor and hope that a senior resident, a well-intentioned nurse or an experienced attending will provide the guidance and insight to navigate the routine and responsibilities while in the process glean some wisdom in patient care.

Its time to break that pattern and become a co-creator of your learning and professional development. Setting goals for what you want to accomplish during the next 30 days on the wards, the outpatient setting, the ER or the unit helps to direct your learning and minimize overwhelm.

Three questions to consider in directing your learning:

1. What procedures can you master during this month? How many times do you need to observe and participate in a procedure so that you raise your comfort level? Take the initiative and volunteer to participate in some manner.

2. What do you need to read to anchor the learning from the day? The demands of patient care and documentation in the EMR often limits time for reading. Reading about diseases and expanding the differential diagnosis solidifies your knowledge. Knowledge boosts your confidence and level of expertise. It aids in your ability to confidently and comfortably speak with patients and families and answer their questions. In the era of patient-centered and family-centered care, expanding your knowledge makes you a valuable resource for patients who have online access to the medical information.

3. Who can you partner with on your journey in medicine? The competitive nature of medicine tends to make physicians view their co-residents as competitors instead of colleagues who work in collaboration. The truth is that there is enough space in medicine for everyone. When we seek to work together, it becomes a universal win. Patients benefit from receiving the best outcomes. Physicians benefit from collegial discussions about diagnoses and management plans. The medical community benefits as physicians honor their unique gifts and talents brought to the profession.

When you have personal and professional direction, physicians are less likely to get derailed by the distractions that show up in the everyday operations of the medical team. Create your blueprint by setting specific, time-limited goals that create momentum and inspire you to achieve them.

Stephanie Wellington is a physician and can be reached at Nurturing MDs.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
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In November of 2015, Dr. Suneel Dhand and William J. Carbone penned, Physicians are not providers: An Open Letter to the AMA (American Medical Association) and medical boards. The authors ended their piece with the following plea: The word provider is a non-specific and nondescript term that confers little meaning. We, therefore, call on the American Medical Association and all state medical boards to consider discouraging and terminating the use of the word provider.

In Dr. Dhands follow up piece, he waves a white flag, as he recounts a conversation with a young resident. In this conversation, Dr. Dhand introduced himself as a patients attending physician. The resident translated this back to him by asking if Dr. Dhand was the patients main provider. Dr. Dhand writes, Alas, the term may have already filtered through to the future generation of doctors much earlier than expected.

Corporate influence

That future generation might be taking tips from a recent startup trend in the corporate world that aimed to get rid of titles within companies as a way to increase creativity (the idea was that eliminating hierarchy would lead to a more open idea forum within companies).

This concept largely failed and is slowly phasing out. In its place are companies allowing employees to develop titles that accurately reflect their training, tasks, and involvement within a team. Why? Because its a fact that employees are more engaged at work when their contributions are recognized.

Calling medical doctors providers does more than inflict eco-injury, It actually reduces morale, worth, purpose and results in already overworked doctors finding less meaning in the work that they do. A recent Pearl Meyer & Partners poll found that 92 percent of employers use job titles to define an employees role accurately, so why hasnt this trend found its way into the medical world and where did it come from?

Provider origins

Where did this term originate from and why has it been widely adopted across the medical landscape? The federal definition of the word provider is precisely the issue with this word. By law, the term refers to a doctor of medicine or osteopathy, podiatrist, dentist, chiropractor, clinical psychologist, optometrist, nurse practitioner, nurse-midwife or a clinical social worker who is authorized to practice by the State and performing within the scope of their practice as defined by State law, or a Christian Science practitioner.

These are all very distinct and unique professions that range broadly from a mental health expert to a Christian Science practitioner. Some of these professions do not require any medical training at all, but the term tries (and fails) to be all-encompassing. So where did the term come from and why has it been widely adopted? The term was adopted by federal law in the early 1970s and largely left festering amidst a tangle of professions that may or may not include the abbreviation MD after a persons name.

The term is insulting to other members of a medical team too. Theres nothing mid-level about a mid-level provider working long shifts and taking care of sick patients. The whole term (any way you put it) doesnt work and needs to be changed. I know that this is not a new fight amongst medical staff, but its one that needs to be re-addressed and reworked. Why is anyone on a medical staff still being termed provider if we know that titles matter, are used to accurately reflect a persons role within a company, and lead to better overall engagement in the workplace? Its not only nonsensical, but its also detrimental.

Jennifer Weiss is an orthopaedic surgeon and can be reached at her self-titled site, Jennifer Weiss MD.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
Kilkenny councillors heard presentations from two more Presidential hopefuls, last Monday afternoon.

Businessman Sean Gallagher and journalist Gemma ODoherty were the only two potential candidates to visit Kilkenny County Council. A number of people who had asked to make presentations cancelled or failed to turn up.

Local councillors had not planned to vote on who, if anyone, they will nominate, last Monday. Their usual monthly meeting will take place next Monday, when councillors will decide.

Three candidates have already been proposed by councillors to be voted on at next Monday's meeting - Sean Gallagher, Gavin Duffy and Joan Freeman.

Speaking to the council Sean Gallagher said as president he will champion those with disabilities and family carers, and his first overseas visit will be to the Irish Defence Forces.

Gemma ODoherty told councillors that she believes the Presidency should set standards for the country we want to live in, and that as a candidate she will further her desire for truth, honesty and integrity on behalf of the Irish people.
The Women's History evening at Kilkenny Archaeological Society will focus this year on the stories of some of the thousand Kilkenny women who protested against government plans to make their men join the British army in 1918. These stories will be accompanied by a talk on the social conditions of women in the period.



Ever since the project launched in June, stories have been coming in from all over the country. The women lived in Kilkenny in 1918. Many of their descendants have since left the city. Despite this, their grandmothers and great aunts are still remembered.



It's been fascinating to discover these young women, many in their twenties and thirties, others much older. Some were as young as eleven or twelve when they signed their names under

the names of their mothers or aunts. Some worked in shops; some were servants; some were teachers.



These were women like Anne Coogan (above) of Green Street. She was born in 1886, one of seven children of James Kavanagh and Mary Hayden who farmed at Coolcullen, Mothel. Anne's brother, James, helped organise the first Rural Feis at Coon in 1895. Anne danced hornpipes and reels there and Douglas Hyde attended. She corresponded with Douglas Hyde during the 1930s and played an active part in the Feis movement. Anne married Patrick Coogan in 1908 at Ballyfoyle. By 1918, the Coogan family was living at Troy's Orchard, Green Street (behind Mulhall's Bakery). Anne had a lodging house there afterwards. She was a member of the Gaelic League. She was famous for her roses (courtesy of Canice Coogan).



One of the youngest signatories was Kathleen Bollard. She was born in 1905 and was 12 years old when she signed beside her mother, Mary. Her parents were Mary (nee Morrissey) and Daniel W. Bollard. Her siblings were Paddy (later Fr. Paddy), Michael, Joe, Maisie, Rita, Christy and Des. She married Jack Feehan who worked in the bank. They had one child, Joan, in 1929. Kathleen went to Madrid in Spain sometime before the Civil War began there (i.e. before July 1936), a position having been found there for her by the Loreto Sisters as a companion to young ladies. She went on to become a teacher of English. She continued to live between Spain and Enniscorthy until the 1970s when she came to work in Dublin. She died in Enniscorthy at the age of 92 on 26 August 1997. Her family still remember her glamour on her trips home to Kilkenny and later to Enniscorthy (courtesy of Isabel Bennett).



Their stories will now permanently sit beside the La na mBan ledger in the archaeological society's archives at Rothe House.



On 19th September at 8pm more stories of the women will be told in Rothe House. There will also be a talk by Ann Murtagh : From tightening corsets to casting votes: a glimpse at women in Kilkenny in 1918.



For the full list of the women of 1918 see the Kilkenny Archaeological Society website.
It was a sad day on Monday last as supporters gathered in Kilkenny city to mourn their loss of the All-Ireland camogie final. Despite the players most valiant efforts, the Kilkenny Camogie team lost to Cork by a single point, with Cork scoring 0-14 to Kilkenny's 0-13 - a similar margin to last year.

The homecoming kicked off at half past five with a huge screen outside the Courthouse replaying the devastating match.

The weather was fitting for such a bittersweet event. Dark grey clouds hung heavily above the Courthouse as onlookers rewatched the girls' dreams being dashed in Croke Park.

Just before six o'clock, those looming clouds proved fatal as the rain began to pour. It didn't look hopeful that the team would have a huge crowd ready to greet them within an hour.

Thankfully, however, as the rain slowed to a drizzle, more supporters began to gather. By the time MC Brendan Hennessy appeared at half six, a crowd had gathered large enough in numbers that Hennessy must warn them to avoid spilling off the pavement and onto the road. Hennessy begins by thanking everyone for turning up on a "difficult evening to do so."

This sentiment was later repeated by Mayor Peter 'Chap' Cleere, who praised supporters for showing up despite the disappointing result and bad weather, stating that "it's very easy to support a victorious team but it's the real true supporters out here tonight".

The team were visibly moved by the cheering crowd's dedication as they emerged onto the balcony of Kilkenny Courthouse. Captain Shelly Farrell (of Thomastown) had unfortunately lost her voice after her gruelling efforts the day previous.

Kilkenny Camogie Chairman Martin Quilty made a short speech on her behalf, thanking all the players and management for "all their work and commitment to keep Kilkenny fighting" and of course thanking the "amazing supporters".

In his own speech, Quilty was candid about the "disappointment and heartbreak" endured by the team. He hinted towards the controversy surrounding referee Eamon Cassidy, who was even condemned by Kilkenny star Richie power after Sunday's game. However, Quilty declared that he "wouldn't blame any one individual for Kilkenny's loss".

Ann Downey's disappointment was palpable the second she took to the stage. She admitted that it had been "foremost in their minds that they would win". She praised the devastated players, describing them as an "incredible bunch of girls who are a credit to their clubs and families."

The evening ended on a more positive note as both Downey and Quilty promised to return to Croke Park next year. As the heartbroken ladies retreat back inside, fans can only hope they'll have better luck next time.
In our services to Children and Adults with Intellectual Disabilities, the Brothers of Charity Services Ireland - South East Region seek to provide an environment in which the dignity of each person is recognised, respected and valued and they are supported to live their lives in ordinary settings.

We are committed to a person centred approach to service delivery and to working with the people who use our Services to claim their rightful place in society as equal citizens. Inclusion underpins all aspects of our work and we endeavour to build inclusive and supportive networks that enable each individual to participate in, contribute to and enjoy all facets of community living.

The Brothers of Charity Services Ireland - South East Region are accredited by the Council on Quality and Leadership. Applications are invited for the following posts in Ballytobin Services:

A. Permanent Full Time Team Leader (CNM2 Grade/Social Care Leader Grade)

The successful candidate will be registered with An Bord Altranais R.N.I.D or a third level qualification in health or social care and have five years post registration experience. You will be required to have 3 years management experience and a relevant management qualification is essential to take on the role of Person In Charge (PIC). Innovation, creativity and a team approach to service delivery in a community setting are essential attributes for the individuals interested in this post.

B. Permanent Full and Part Time Social Care Workers

As a Social Care Worker, you will be involved in supporting individuals to achieve their personal outcomes to build on their potential and to develop positive roles within their home and in the community. Working hours will be variable including day shifts, sleepovers and weekends. A Social Care/third level health related qualification and experience of working with people with an intellectual disability are essential.

C. Permanent Part Time Support Workers (Care Assistant Grade)

The successful candidates must have a third level qualification relevant to the provision of services to individuals with intellectual disabilities or at a minimum a QQI Level 5 Major Award. Experience of working with people with intellectual disabilities is desirable. You must have excellent communication and problem solving skills.

D. Permanent Full Time Staff Nurse

Applicants must be registered by An Bord Altranais. RNID and 12 months post registration experience is desirable. You will be supporting adults with varying degrees of intellectual disability and complex health care needs. Student Nurse Interns who are due to qualify this year may apply for the above post. Candidates for all posts must be flexible in their approach to service provision and have the ability to work as a member of a team. Innovation, creativity and a team approach to service delivery in a community setting are essential attributes for the individuals interested in these positions.

*A full clean drivers licence is essential for all posts.

Informal enquiries for all of the above posts to Breda Gaffney 087-9058532. To view the job description and to make an application on-line, please log on to www.brothersofcharity.ie/southeast. The closing date is Friday, September 28.

The Brothers of Charity Services Ireland - South East Region is an equal opportunities employer.
The European Solidarity Corps is the new European Union initiative which creates opportunities for young people to volunteer or work in projects in their own country or abroad that benefit communities and people around Europe. It was adopted this week by the European Parliament.



The programme will allow 100,000 young Europeans, including young people from Kilkenny and Ireland, support communities in need between 2018 and 2020 through volunteering, traineeships and job placements.

The overall budget available for the implementation of the European Solidarity Corps is set at 376.5 million for this period. Another even larger EU programme will follow for the period after 2020.

Young people in Kilkenny can register for the European Solidarity Corps when they are 17 years old, but cannot start a project until they are over 18. European Solidarity Corps projects will be available to people up to the age of 30 years old.



Examples of what a person could be asked to do include:

Helping rebuild a school or community centre that has been devastated following an earthquake

Providing support to newly arrived asylum seekers

Clearing vegetation from forests to help prevent wildfires

Working with disabled people in a community centre.

Ireland South MEP, Deirdre Clune was involved in preparing the Employment Committees opinion on the matter.



MEP Clune said: This is such a fantastic initiative from the European Union which allows young people from across the EU to get involved in so many varied projects. I would encourage young people from Tipperary to get involved in this very worthwhile initiative."



When a person registers their details they will be held in the European Solidarity Corps system, and organisations will be able to search the database for people for their projects. Organisations will then ask selected participants to join these projects.
The Herald reports:

A vegan cafe owner who was issued an ultimatum to serve cows milk has generated 14,000 signatures of support, but will still close shop to walk the length of New Zealand barefoot in protest. Morgan Redfern-Hardisty roused controversy last week after he revealed the community trust that controls his Cool Beans Cafe in Mangawhai insisted he serve dairy options on the menu. Redfern-Hardisty had altered his menu on July 27 to exclusively plant-based products, including homemade oat milk for coffee, in an effort to reduce his environmental impact. But the Mangawhai Activity Zone (MAZ) Charitable Trust that owns the land, premises, and pays all the overheads for Cool Beans Cafe, said amid public complaints he must include some dairy options.

As the Trust owns the land, buildings and pays the overheads, it is really their business, which he managed for them on a profit share.

If he wants to run his own cafe, and carry all the risk, then great luck to him. If he thinks he can make a dairy free cafe work, then he needs to find one where hell have sole ownership or control.

Redfern-Hardisty confirmed last week he still plans to end his business this Labour Day, October 22, because he refuses to make the choice between taste and suffering. He did, however, raise questions over the true motives for the pro-dairy menu demands thrust on him, claiming MAZ only cited nine complaints.

Only nine complaints? Thats a lot of complaints, especially considering people would have had to contact MAZ to complain.

I suspect what many didnt like wasnt the fact there was no dairy but that he seemed to lecture people on their preferences. If you just had almond milk instead of dairy milk, and didnt make a bog fuss of it, I doubt many would care. But he was using the cafe as a campaign tool.

Mangawhais surrounded by dairy farms so theres heaps of suspicion around that, Redfern-Hardisty said. I dont think the trust has received any donations from dairy money but I dont know.

Oh please. I really dont think the dairy industry is worried if one small cafe stops using milk.

We have been extremely fair and generous and it is squarely his decision not ours that he changed from offering both dairy and vegan additives to coffee for our customers, to vegan only.

Choice is generally a good thing, If you dont want to give choice that is fine  but you need to have ownership and control of the business so all the risk is yours.

He says business is up 25 per cent since the menu vegan changes, and hes had no complaints to his face.

If if it that popular then he should set up his own exclusive cafe. The fact there were no complaints to his face suggests people were intimidated by his zealotry.

Redfern-Hardisty says he plans to walk the length of New Zealand barefoot, along the Te Araroa trail. He is calling it the barefoot walk for those who cant talk and hopes to raise funds to fight animal cruelty.

So hes going to walk barefoot the length of New Zealand, because he had to serve milk. Whatever.

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Richard Harman reports:

POLITIK understands that NZ First wants the right of employers to opt out of MECAs restored. However, it is apparently prepared to compromise and have the right limited to provincial employers.

Some employers exempted is better than none, but you cant really have employment law that discriminates based on where your business is located.

One political source told POLITIK that the dispute between Labour and NZ First over this could turn into a real shit fight.

Well if NZF roll over, they will struggle even more to make 5%.

In a lengthy and detailed submission to the Select Committee, the Council of Trade Unions said the ability of employers to opt out contravened International Labour Organisation conventions and was partly responsible for the decline in union coverage of workers in New Zealand.

So this isnt about workers. It is about increasing union membership which in turns increases their finances and allows them to donate more to Labour or campaign for them.

This is why Labour wont back down.

The Auckland Employers and Manufacturers Association in their submission complained that forcing multiple employers into what would in effect be a national award ignored the different characteristics of running a business in regional New Zealand compared with Auckland. There are many significant geographical differences within New Zealand,  their submission said. Thus rates and conditions for Auckland are profoundly different to Southland. If a MECA was agreed to the employer in Southland would be disadvantaged in having to pay Auckland rates and conditions. The cost of running a business in Southland is significantly different from the costs of running a like business in Auckland.

Yep. It punishes smaller employers by forcing them to agree to the same conditions as large employers in large cities.

But if you think this is bad, wait until Labour tries to bring back national awards.

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Cinema: 30th European film festival to kick off in Amman From Sept 19, event also includes performances and workshops

(ANSAmed) - AMMAN, SEPTEMBER 12 - The annual European Film Festival (EUFF) is scheduled to kick off its 30th edition in Amman from September 19 and 29, promising an array of award winning movies, concerts and interviews with top film makers, organizers said.



As many as 19 European productions will feature this year, coming from several European countries, most of which will have Arabic subtitles, the organisers highlighted in a press statement.



The festival is funded by the EU Delegation in Jordan and organised in partnership with the Royal Film Commission (RFC), the Ministry of Culture, the Jordan Tourism Board and the Greater Amman Municipality.



Viewing will be at Al Hussein Cultural Centre in Ras Al Ain during weekdays and at the Rainbow Theatre in Jabal Amman on Saturdays.



The event also includes performances, creative competitions and workshops. A question and answer session with producers, actors and industry executives will also be a main feature during the festival.



The festival will run its usual tour to several governorates across the Kingdom including Salt, Zarqa, Mafraq and Irbid, where movies will be screened in various RFC film houses.



EU officials told ANSA they hope interviews with film makers and actors will bring advantage to local film industry, inspire young artists and trigger improvement in film industry in the kingdom.



Jordan's audio visual industry has been having its ups and downs over the past decades due to economic and political challenges. During the 1970s and 1980s local drama was popular across Arab region in the gulf and the Middle East. The past several years saw an improvement in audio film industry following the success of low budget films depicting the unique aspects about Jordan, its paradoxes and story telling, let alone the arrival of Hollywood-based film makers to shoot blockbuster movies. (ANSAmed).




Chung Jae-suk, new Cultural Heritage Administrator / Yonhap



By Kwon Mee-yoo



Chung Jae-suk, the new head of the Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA), said cultural heritage can contribute to improving inter-Korean relations as the two Koreas join hands in excavating and preserving cultural assets together.



"There certainly is a gap in many aspects between the two Koreas after separation, but there's no such thing as a gap in heritage and cultural assets will contribute to exchanges between Pyongyang and Seoul," Chung said at a press conference in Seoul, Tuesday.



Chung, named as the CHA head on Aug. 30, brings 30 years of journalism experience as a culture reporter.



Chung is the first journalist-turned-cultural heritage administrator in Korea and third woman to assume the role, following Byun Young-sup and Rha Sun-hwa.



"I am really nervous to take the helm here since I was on the other side just a few days ago. I feel like I should be throwing questions to the new CHA head," Chung said. "What we do at CHA is not very visible and doesn't take effect immediately. However, cultural properties can never be restored to their original state once damaged, just like Brazil's recent National Museum fire. We will put top priority on the safety of cultural assets."



Along with the rapid diplomatic thaw between North and South Korea after the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games in February, the two countries are looking to work on cultural heritage projects together.



"Culture Minister Do Jong-whan announced last week that North and South Korea will resume the investigation on Manwoldae Palace in Kaesong, North Korea, starting later this month. This time, we will focus on the western embankment, which is said to have been collapsing," Chung said.



Chung named a few possible future projects between the two Koreas such as a castle from Taebong State (901-918) divided by the Military Demarcation Line between the two Koreas in Cheorwon, Gangwon Province, and royal tombs of the 918-1392 Goryeo Kingdom in Pyongyang.



Since the U.N. imposed sanctions against North Korea, some worry the joint cultural heritage excavation and restoration projects might violate the international sanctions.



"We consult with the Ministry of Unification and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to stick to U.N. sanctions. Basically, we only pay cash for food expenses of the laborers and all equipment we take to the North is brought back after the project," Chung explained.



Currently, North and South Korea separately submitted "ssireum," or traditional Korean wrestling, to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list, but Chung said the two Koreas are in talks to register ssireum together. If the negotiation goes well and both parties agree to register it on the list together, ssireum will be the first intangible heritage registered with UNESCO by both Koreas.



The new administrator said cultural heritage has no borders. "They are not just Korean cultural assets, but belong to all humankind. We will make the cultural heritage available for everyone, whether they make it to the UNESCO list or not," Chung said.






By Yi Whan-woo







The latest visit of Ecuador's Industries and Productivity Minister Eva Garcia Fabre to Korea is fueling optimism for economic cooperation, according to diplomatic sources.







The minister's Aug. 5 to 12 visit took place as President Moon Jae-in seeks to shift away from a chaebol-driven economy and foster small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups for innovative growth.







In this regard, Korea can learn from Ecuador considering SMEs account for 95 percent of all Ecuadorian firms. Garcia Fabre signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Korea's SMEs and Startups Vice Minister Choi Su-gyu accordingly.







For Ecuador, the visit offered the Ecuadorian delegation a glimpse into South Korea's successful economic development, which, according to Garcia Fabre, Ecuador wants to emulate.







The minister, who travelled here at the invitation of the Korea Foundation, a public diplomacy institution under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had a meeting on a Casa para todos (house for all) project with relevant Korean officials.







The project aims to provide houses for low-income people in Ecuador. The meeting involved officials from the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), an international development agency under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.







"KOICA showed an openness to collaborate on this project and showed its readiness to initiate conversations in that sense," the embassy said in a statement.







The two countries also share the goal of bolstering innovative technologies to cope with the Fourth Industrial Revolution.







During the MOU signing ceremony, Eva Garcia expressed hope that the agreement will boost bilateral cooperation in the advanced technologies, infrastructure and renewable energy fields.







"We aim to develop new technologies and create value-added products to target bigger markets," she said. "Our development goal is creating quality products through innovation."







She held a separate meeting on the Ecuadorian government's initiative of running electric buses on the Galapagos Islands. According to the embassy, executives from Hyundai Motor Group attended the meeting and showed "interest in collaborating with the Ecuadorian government."







Ecuador and Korea established diplomatic relations in 1962. They have had five rounds of talks on Strategic Economic Cooperation Agreement aimed at boosting cooperation and technical support between the two nations.


Former Korean ambassador to Ethiopia Kim Moon-hwan / Yonhap



The Seoul Central District Court sentenced a former South Korean ambassador to Ethiopia to one year in prison Wednesday on charges of using his position to have sex with a subordinate employee and sexually harassing two others.

Kim Moon-hwan, a career diplomat who served as ambassador to Ethiopia from 2014-2017, was immediately put in jail following the verdict. The court also ordered him to take 40 hours of a sexual violence treatment course and banned him from taking jobs at agencies dealing with children and youths for three years.

"Even though he, as chief of mission, was in a position responsible for protecting overseas citizens and raising the country's status in the host nation, he used this position to sexually assault or have sex with victims," the court said.

Kim was charged with having sex with the subordinate employee and sexually harassing two other women.

Kim denied the charges, claiming that the sex was consensual and that even though he patted the two volunteers on the hand and the shoulder as a gesture of encouragement, the contact was not sexual at all. (Yonhap)




By Jung Da-min, Park Si-soo







A South Korean businessman will stand trial on charges he sold spyware-embedded North Korean security software to public organizations, hospitals, telecom and power companies in the South.







The man, surnamed Kim, 46, was also charged with handing over the personal information of 6,000 South Koreans to the software's developers in the North.







Kim was arrested last month for alleged violation of the National Security Law and the prosecution recently took the case to the court. Kim claims his innocence, saying investigators "manipulated" evidence.







Kim's trial will soon begin at the Seoul Central District Court.







According to prosecutors, Kim imported facial-recognition technology-based security software from a North Korean company from the early 2000s. A Korean-Chinese, surnamed Yang, assisted the deal as a middleman. The deal itself was legal, which was done under the permission of South Korea's unification ministry.







Kim imported 313 units of the software between 2010 and June this year and sold them to major public and private organizations and companies here.







An investigation started after a research company detected malware posing a serious security threat in its operating system in March 2013. The investigation zeroed in on how the spyware got into the system. Last month authorities confirmed the connection between the malware and Kim's company.




Only 1% decline in Abu Dhabi's natural habitats in 5 years Over 3,600 known species in emirate include Sooty Falcon

(ANSAmed) - ABU DHABI, SEPTEMBER 12 - Abu Dhabi has detected a decline of less than one per cent of its natural habitats on average during the past five years, including the most critical and environmentally sensitive ones.



This was found, Gukf News reports, in a just completed assessment of the emirate's natural habitats, which evaluated their health and maintenance from 2013 until now, said the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (EAD). Areas assessed included the mountain and wadi habitats of Al Ain region, coastal and inland desert areas in Al Dhafra region and the mangroves of Abu Dhabi city.



"This is a very positive result for the emirate's environmentally critical terrestrial and coastal areas," said Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, EAD Secretary General.



Abu Dhabi is home to over 3,600 known species, with more being discovered each day by the scientists.



"The best way to ensure their continued protection is by safeguarding the habitats they rely on for food, shelter and survival. The majority of Abu Dhabi's key species such as the vulnerable Sooty Falcon and Arabian Oryx, the endangered Arabian Tahr, and the critically endangered Hawksbill Turtle depend on these habitats to survive," Al Mubarak said.



The mountains and wadis of Al Ain, the deserts in Al Dhafra and the Abu Dhabi mangroves were assessed. EAD EAD is responsible for managing and conserving the emirate's fragile habitats, and committed to achieving the Abu Dhabi Government's goal of protecting at least 80 per cent of all its natural terrestrial and marine habitats. Rapid industrial and urban development are drivers of habitat loss locally and globally, further exacerbated by the effects of climate change and significantly impacting biodiversity, the official noted.



(ANSAmed).




By Dr. Tony Docan-Morgan





Sungju Lee's "Every Falling Star: The True Story of How I Survived and Escaped North Korea" (2016, Amulet Books) is a unique addition to the growing genre of English language memoirs written by North Korean refugees.Lee, with Susan McClelland, tells his story about growing up in an elite Pyongyang family and then at the age of 11 losing almost everything. Lee's work is particularly valuable as it traces his experience living as a kotjebi, or homeless street child in North Korea.After providing a brief history of 20th century Korea, Lee describes childhood  living in a well-furnished home, idolizing Kim Il-sung, and attending school.Early on, he recalls the death of Kim Il-sung in 1994, as well as his family's "so-called northern holiday" (p. 22), where they board a train and enter a part of the country they had not seen before. Once they reach their new home in Gyongsong, Lee experiences many firsts  lack of electricity, vanishing food rations, pervasive starvation, and a public execution.For Lee and his family, survival in Gyongsong becomes grueling. He quits school and his parents stop showing up at their assigned work duties, as they must scavenge for food. Lee's father shares his plan to bribe his way across the Chinese border to trade goods, and departs from the family. Lee's mother also leaves, indicating that she's going to visit her sister in Wonsan to find food.Without family, Lee's nightmares, loneliness, and starvation worsen. With few options, he turns to a group of his classmates, all of whom become kotjebi. Young-bum, one of Lee's primary school friends, introduces him to the bustling market scene, and they team up to steal food and won.After some success, they form a larger group in hopes of working together to persist against rival kotjebi gangs. Lee weaves plentiful detail into his story, including the gang's chain smoking, drinking, occasional infighting, and conversations about death, family, and dreams. Further, Lee's narrative centers largely around the theme of brotherhood.Lee and his gang eventually leave Gyongsong. They sneak onto a coal train that takes them to the outskirts of Chongjin, where they survive by stealing food from the market.Lee remarks, "Death was all around us. We'd enter the market in the mornings to find women wailing and rocking in their arms children who had died during the night ..." (p. 175).Later, they reached a market in Rajin-Sonbong, where they were challenged to another battle and lose one of their brothers, Myeongchul, in a brutal fight.Lee's doubts about North Korea's leadership are sprinkled throughout the memoir.He hears fictionalized accounts from others about his gang, and mentions, "I'd laugh when I'd hear these stories but then later wonder: Was this how Kim-Il-sung's childhood snowball into such an epic? Myeongchul's words came back to me: Folklore has a funny way of becoming truth" (p. 211).Later, Lee and his gang make their way for Hwasong where they are caught stealing from a pear farm and taken to the guhoso (detention center). Lee details the dismal living conditions, witnessing various forms of abuse and the sight of dead children. They end up escaping, but soon after lose another brother from a horrid beating.Lee and his gang eventually return to Gyongsong. At the end of February 2002, a man at the train station approaches Lee, claims to be his grandfather, and convinces Lee to come to his house in the mountains.Once there, Lee is astonished when he sees pictures of his mother and father. After settling in with his grandparents, a man delivers a note from Lee's father, asking Lee to meet him in China.Soon after, Lee decides to accompany the broker. They cross the Tumen River on the outskirts of Hweryong, Lee meets with another guide in China, and he spends nearly a week waiting for the next move.Lee and his guide board a train in Yanji, and equipped with a passport, he is led to board an airplane. Amid his confusion, Lee's plane lands in South Korea, where he is investigated and finally able to meet his father.In the epilogue, Lee tells of his struggles to assimilate in South Korean society, his educational pursuits, and ongoing work with refugees' human rights."Every Falling Star" is a valuable read for both specialists and non-specialists on North Korea. Lee's memoir is particularly noteworthy as it offers detailed insight about life in North Korea, loss, and survival.In addition to the well-written prose, the book offers a high degree of narrative coherence and merit. Further, Lee appears to meet his objective to inspire hope. He ends with a note about his mother: "She is still missing. My father and I search for her ever day. I will never give up hope that we will be reunited" (p. 307).Dr. Tony Docan-Morgan ( tdocan@uwlax.edu ) is a professor in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, the U.S.


A still dreadful memory for the people is the shocking outbreak of the deadly virus causing Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2015 that killed 38 out of 186 infected patients and dealt a tremendous blow to the national economy, especially the tourism industry.



The dreadful disease resurfaced after three years last week with a 61-year-old Korean man confirmed to be infected with the virus after returning from Kuwait, putting the whole nation on special alert.



It cannot be overemphasized that the nation faces an emergency situation and the government and all parties concerned, including hospitals, ought to closely cooperate to prevent the spread of the disease that isolated or put under house quarantine 16,700 people who were in close contact with the quarantined patients in 2015.



However, consolation in the misfortune was the swift action of Samsung Medical Center, which was a dishonored hotbed of the MERS spread three years ago, to isolate and diagnose the man as being infected and move him to Seoul National University Hospital equipped exclusively to care for patients with the disease.



As was known in the wake of the first outbreak, the MERS virus has an incubation period of up to 14 days. So the first deadline for a possible spread of the disease is Sept. 21. So far, 22 people, confirmed to have had "close" contact with the man, including his wife, airport staff, cabin crew and medical staff members, have been put under house quarantine to be checked regularly. All the other 440 passengers on the same flight are being watched by the related local autonomous administrations.



But the health authorities should not rule out the possibility that there could be more people who contacted the patient because quarantine officials at Incheon International Airport let him go, even after he wrote on his arrival card that he had diarrhea 10 days earlier during his trip to the Middle Eastern country. He was free for about two-and-a-half hours until he arrived at Samsung Medical Center.



MERS has a fatality rate of more than 30 percent, and a cure has yet to be found. The best way, needless to say, is to prevent the spread. We should not forget the fact that MERS plagued the entire nation for seven months three years ago due to the failure to initially react.


Blue Bottle Coffee CEO Bryan Meehan





Gangnam N Tower in southeastern Seoul, where Blue Bottle will open its first store in Korea. / Courtesy of JLL
Euro-Med forum Thursday in Otranto castle Ambassadors, lower house deputy speaker and regional govt

(ANSAmed) - OTRANTO (LECCE), SEPTEMBER 12 - A workshop will be held at 9 AM on Thursday in the Aragonese castle of Otranto entitled 'Reinventing the Mediterranean: dialogue, challenges, and opportunities'. The workshop is part of the 10th edition of the Journalists of the Mediterranean Festival. Organizers say that participants include the ambassador of Morocco, Hassan Abouyoub, of Tunisia, Moez Eddine Sinaoui, and of the Sovereign Order of Malta, Gabriele Checchia, as well as Puglia regional councillor for studies and training Sebastiano Leo.



Concluding remarks will be made by Ambassador Enrico Granara, coordinator for multi-lateral affairs of the Euro-Mediterranean area of the foreign ministry, and Fabio Rampelli, deputy speaker of the Italian lower house of parliament. Opening remarks will instead be made by Otranto mayor Pierpaolo Cariddi and Massimo Salomone, secretary general of the Consular Corps of Puglia, Basilicata and Molise. Introductions will be made by Giuseppe Scognamiglio, editor-in-chief of the geopolitics journal "Eastwest".



Moderating will be ANSA deputy editor Stefano Polli and Paolo Di Giannantonio from TG1.



''The Euro-Mediterranean forum aims to foster dialogue between countries in the Mediterranean basin,'' said Tommaso Forte, head of institutional relations for the workshop, ''to build an integrated system of cooperation and to foster intercultural dialogue, peace, and social and political coexistence.'' The forum will include the presence of 25 authoritative experts from the economic, diplomatic, and academic worlds, serving as an institutional workshop for the exchange of ideas and proposals through reflecting on new models of territorial, national and international governance.'' The delegations will be welcomed on Wednesday evening by Mayor Cariddi.



Following a visit to the underground areas of the Aragonese castle and Torre Matta, the ambassadors will go to Berber tents set up in the historic center of Otranto, in Largo Porta Alfonsina.



The tents were a gift to the Puglia region from the ambassador of Morocco. (ANSAmed).




No one is above the law - Mattarella Magistrates legitimized by Constitution says president

(ANSAmed) - ROME, SEPTEMBER 12 - President Sergio Mattarella said no one is above the law on Wednesday, adding that Italy's judiciary is no less legitimate because its members are not elected. "No citizen is above the law," Mattarella said at the Lower House during an event celebrating the memory of former head of State Oscar Luigi Scalfaro.



"The republic and its democracy and presided over by rules, the respect of which is indispensable, always, no matter what the intention is of those of propose breaking them. "Elected judges do not exist in our system. Our magistrates derive their legitimacy and authoritativeness from the role given to them by the Constitution.



"So they are not called upon to following electoral orientations, they must apply the law and its rules".



Interior Minister and Deputy Premier Matteo Salvini was at the centre of controversy last week over statements he made after he was notified he was being probed for aggravated kidnapping for refusing to allow a group of migrants saved by the Coast Guard to disembark for 10 days and his comments about a ruling on the seizure of funds from his League party over a fraud case. (ANSAmed).




UNHCR concerned over lack of funds for Syrian refugees Appeal for more financing for agency programmes

(NSAmed) - ROME, SEPTEMBER 12 - The UN Refugee Agency UNHCR is expressing its concern for a "looming serious shortfall in financing" for its work and that of its partners to support millions of Syrian refugees and the internally displaced. "UNHCR needs 270 million US dollars to ensure that the most vulnerable Syrians uprooted by war do not go without vital protection and assistance this year," it said in a statement.



UNHCR's total funding requirements for 2018 for protection and assistance in Syria total 1.97 billion dollars. In September, only 610 million dollars were received, which is 31% of the total need. Currently, 196.5 million dollars would allow UNHCR to continue its essential programmes through the end of the year for Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. This includes cash assistance, protection, health, and shelter activities. Overall, there are more than 5.6 million Syrian refugees registered across the region - 2.6 million of whom are children.



"Without support, people resort to desperate measures such as going without adequate shelter, healthcare or education," UNHCR said.



As well as funding for refugees, UNHCR is also calling for 73 million dollars to help address the needs of displaced people inside Syria. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced since the start of the year, and many now rely on humanitarian support to meet basic daily needs. Part of funding both inside Syria as well as for neighbouring countries is needed to ensure that vulnerable families receive adequate support well before the arrival of winter. UNHCR estimates that 1.3 million vulnerable refugees are in desperate need of essential winter support. (ANSAmed).




New Delhi, September 12: How did the Indian Army keep away dogs from barking when they were on their route to carry out surgical strikes in Pakistan? Leopard urine is the answer to this. Former Nagrota Corps commander Lt Gen Rajendra Nimborkar has said that they carried leopard urine as they knew that dogs were scared of leopards and would not bark if they smell leopards around. Parrikar Attacks Opposition for Questioning Surgical Strikes.

"There was a possibility of dogs in villages barking at us on the route. I knew they are scared of leopards. We carried leopard urine with us & that worked & dogs didn't dare to come forward," Lt Gen Rajendra Nimborkar said.

Thorle Bajirao Peshwe Pratishthan in Pune on Tuesday awarded Lt Gen Nimborkar for his role in the strikes.

Nimborkar said as quoted by TOI that the Army had maintained highest secrecy. "Then defence minister Manohar Parrikar had told us to execute the operation in a week. I had discussed this with our troops a week in advance but didnt reveal the exact location. They came to know about it a day prior to the attack," Lt Gen Nimborkar said.

The surgical strikes were conducted by the Indian Army in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) in response to the Uri terror attack wherein 18 Army personnel were killed.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 12, 2018 02:08 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Uttar Pradesh, September 12: Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath has advised farmers to stop growing sugarcane as it leads to diabetes and urged farmers to sow vegetables and other crops. He made this statement after attending the foundation stone laying ceremony for developing the 154-km Delhi-Saharanpur Highway on September 11.

"Indulge in the habit of growing crops other than sugarcane. The excessive production of sugar leads to more consumption of the commodity and ultimately this leads to diabetes. Try sowing vegetables as well, as there is a huge market for these in Delhi. You are producing too much of sugarcane now, said Yogi Adityanath. Yogi Adityanath Claims Mughal Emperor Akbar Was Not Great, But Only Maharana Pratap Was!

#WATCH: "You must start growing other crops besides sugarcane. Excess production of sugarcane leads to its more consumption, which, in turn causes sugar (diabetes)," says CM Yogi Adityanath at a road inauguration programme in Baghpat.(11.9.18) pic.twitter.com/6dIVAiW9zj  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) September 12, 2018

Praising his government for clearing sugarcane dues of Rs 26,000 crore, Yogi Adityanath said, We have paid Rs 26,000 crore to sugarcane farmers this year and the remaining Rs 10,000 crore will also be released soon by sugar mills. We have made adequate arrangements for the same.

The highway for which the foundation stone was laid passes through Muzaffarnagar and Shamli and the area is considered as the major producers of Sugarcane. The highway is built at a cost of Rs 1,505 crore.

Union minister of Transport and Road highway Nitin Gadkari, who was also present in Bhagpat for the stone laying ceremony for the project, said," The situation will change very fast for farmers of the region. More ethanol will be made from molasses and mixed with petrol. There will be ready demand for their produce and therefore farmers will earn more.

"Meanwhile in Shamli, police detained 25 Bhartiya Kisan union activists at Shamli railway station who were on their way to Bhagpat to show black flag to CM Yogi Adityanath against non-payments of pending sugarcane dues. The activists were later released.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 12, 2018 10:23 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
University of Calgary student Carlos Zetina met a girl named Nicole at a bar and also dropped her home that night. Carlos returned home and wanted to talk to the girl but the number she gave him ended being a wrong one. With no way left, Carlos mailed 247 women named Nicole from the Canadian university's directory. His mail reads, "If your name is Nicole and you're from Holland and you think Nietschze is depressing then text me."

As Carlos sent a mass email, some professors and faculty members also received it. Carlos' email has now brought together all Nicoles in the University. The women even met and shared pictures on social media. One of their tweets read, "Some dude emailed every Nicole at U of C to try to find the girl he met last night and instead they formed a girl gang and I am legit DYING."

Here are their pictures:

Some dude emailed every Nicole at U of C to try to find the girl he met last night and instead they formed a girl gang and I am legit DYING @ucalgary #nicolefromlastnight pic.twitter.com/ql4sxuBADQ  sarah jurassic park (@ParisEsther) September 8, 2018

Seeing Carlos' efforts in finding the girl, one of the women he emailed set up a Facebook page named 'Nicole from last night'. The aimless work bore fruits when the real Nicole found out the man's pursuit of finding her. Turns out she's an exchange student she didn't have a University of Calgary email address, so she did not receive the email. And Nicole gave Carlos the wrong number by mistake.

to everyone who keeps trying to join our Facebook page: what's your name? there's only one right answer.#nicolefromlastnight pic.twitter.com/fR4C1WFkPQ  nickie (nicole) (@manaognickie) September 10, 2018

Here's what she had to say:

She responded to the Facebook page saying, "I'm the exchange student from Holland who got brought home by Carlos last night and thinks that Nietzsche is quite depressing. Don't have an u of c email so didn't get the beautiful email myself, but the powerful Nicoles helped me get in touch. Would love to meet all of you sometime in the future."

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 11, 2018 11:03 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Mumbai, September 12: RBI has filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court against cryptocurrency. According to a CNN News 18 report, RBI has clarified its stand and has said that RBI can't recognise bitcoins under the current legal regime. RBI has further said that virtual currencies are neither money nor currency. They cant even be considered as a valid payment system. How does the Cryptocurrency 'Bitcoin' work? How to Buy & Check the Rates of Virtual Digital Currency.

The Supreme Court will hear the matter on September 17 and it has previously cautioned banks and public at large against the potential risks. Indias crypto exchange operators have challenged the central banks notice across the countrys courts, arguing the RBIs chokehold is arbitrary, unfair and unconstitutional.

As per reports, the Central bank issued a prohibitive ban that directed banks and other regulated financial institutions to stop providing services to cryptocurrency exchanges and the wider industry within three months.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 12, 2018 11:52 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
A group of Indian-American organisations in the U.S. has launched a campaign seeking Indian citizenship to Hindu immigrants from Bangladesh who have been left out of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam.

The National Register of Citizens exercise puts the onus to prove citizenship on the citizens. They have to, through documentary evidence, show how they have come to be citizens of India living in Assam.

The group under the banner of organisations like SinghaBahini America, Global Hindu Heritage Foundation (GHHF) and NavaBanga are seeking support for the Citizenship Bill 2016, which seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to provide citizenship to persecuted minorities from India's neighbouring nations who have come to the country for safety.

The members of the group had met Indian leaders during the recently concluded World Hindu Congress in Chicago. "In the light of the well-intended NRC to help identify the illegal Bangladeshi immigrants who came as fortune seekers, it has come to light that a large number of Hindu population find themselves left out, said a media release issued by the group.

The final draft of the NRC in Assam released in the last week of July 2018 included over 28 million individuals, thus confirming their status as citizens of India, while excluding four million residents of the state. This draft is not final and those excluded have been given time to resubmit documentation. But the bill does include the provision that it will consider deporting anyone who has entered the State illegally post-March 24, 1971, irrespective of their religion.

This group based on these estimates says around 1.4 million to 2.5 million Hindus find themselves in a position to be stripped of their Indian citizenship, it said. "Forefathers of Hindu brothers and sisters had come to India because of the persecution they faced in Bangladesh, yet they had not given up their faith."

To ensure that the resources of India go to the citizens, NRC in every state is needed, but at the same time it is equally important that India protects poor Hindus from Bangladesh, the statement said.

"The Citizenship Bill, 2016 which seeks to provide Indian citizenship to persecuted minority Hindus, Sikhs and Jains who came from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till 2014 is thus a must to showcase a historic Hindu Unity to send a message to our own people, the group said.

Thus to counteract the impact of the NRC, the NRI Hindu group is pushing for the passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016. The Bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 15, 2016, seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to provide citizenship to illegal migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, who are of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian extraction. However, the Act doesnt have a provision for Muslim sects like Shias and Ahmediyas who are facing persecution in Afghanistan and Pakistan. (With wire inputs)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 12, 2018 04:25 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
San Diego, CA Bank fees are growing rapidly, and consumers are feeling the pinch. Furthermore, many customers feel that they are somehow being hoodwinked into paying hidden, undisclosed costs. On August 2, 2018, Reyna McGovern filed a class action Bank fees are growing rapidly, and consumers are feeling the pinch. Furthermore, many customers feel that they are somehow being hoodwinked into paying hidden, undisclosed costs. On August 2, 2018, Reyna McGovern filed a class action excessive bank fees lawsuit against U.S. Bank, N.A. (US Bank). Her lawsuit tackles two thorny issues: out-of-network ATM fees and overdraft fees charged when her account showed a sufficient account balance.

Out-of-Network ATM Fees

Surprise Overdraft Fees Hit Small Account Holders Especially Hard

US Banks Standardized Deposit Contract

Is Legislative Relief on the (Distant) Horizon?

These practices do not, at least today, seem to break federal banking law. But they are arguably deceptive, and ripe for California breach of contract and consumer law claims.US Bank is one of the nations very largest banks. Size, however, is not measured by branches, convenience or customer happiness. It is measured by revenue. At some larger regional banks, customer fees account for as much as 40 percent of total bank revenues.Customers who have checking accounts at US Bank can easily find themselves without an in-network cash machine nearby. Should they make a withdrawal at an out-of-network bank, they will pay at least two fees: first, a $2.95 fee to the non-bank affiliated owner that operates the out-of-network ATM; and second, a $2.50 fee to US Bank for the withdrawal.If they check their balance before making the withdrawal, there is a third $2.50 fee to US Bank. That totals $7.95. For an impulsive $20 cash machine run, the bank makes a profit of more than 25 percent. Small dollars multiplied many times mean big profits for the bank.The second, and more tangled situation involves overdraft fees. It is only complicated because of the fine distinction that US Bank and many other banks make between two terms: available balance and account balance.An account balance as defined in the US Bank customer agreement reflects a running total of funds in the account, including deposits and withdrawals. A customers available balance, however, will not reflect funds held from deposits and funds held for debit card authorizations.Here is the operational difference: Banking customers who check their balances to ensure that they will not over draw, see their account balance: Because of debit and deposit holds, however, the available balance may be less than the account balance; The bank assesses overdraft fees based on the available balance; Even careful, well-meaning customers who are working with small accounts can fall into overdraft because they relied on the wrong information; Banks practice of maintaining debit holds for as long as several days actually means that the available balance in an account may not be determinable until well after a debit card transaction occurs; In addition, because banks frequently re-order transactions from highest to lowest amount, one over-the-limit transaction can ultimately trigger several overdraft fees; Customers, especially those with limited funds, rarely sue big banks because of the cost of individual litigation, which is why class action litigation is essentially the only remedy in these situations today.Very few customers read the fine print on the deposit agreements they sign when opening a checking account, and even those who do can find these distinctions confusing.The essence of McGoverns lawsuit against US Bank is that its standardized customer deposit agreement is deceptive with respect to both the balance inquiry ATM fee and the way in which overdraft fees are assessed.The standardized contract allegedly describes only one out-of-network fee, not the additional fee charged for an out-of-network balance inquiry. Further, McGovern claims that customers are misled because experience has taught them to expect a free opportunity to check an account balance before proceeding with a cash withdrawal from an out-of-network ATM. ATM screens do not typically disclose that a balance inquiry alone will incur a usage fee, and few ATMs in the United States charge usage fees for balance inquiries.The dispute about overdraft fees is familiar from many bank overdraft fees lawsuits. McGoverns lawsuit makes the point that most banking customers reasonably assume that debit transactions are debited from their accounts immediately  not that they may be held for several days and then bundled in a way to maximize bank profits.Furthermore, the Consumer Financial Protection Board has flagged the practice of debit holds as deceptive when:a financial institution authorized an electronic transaction, which reduced a customers available balance but did not result in an overdraft at the time of authorization; settlement of a subsequent unrelated transaction that further lowered the customers available balance and pushed the account into overdraft status; and when the original electronic transaction was later presented for settlement, because of the intervening transaction and overdraft fee, the electronic transaction also posted as an overdraft and an additional overdraft fee was charged.U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) have introduced federal legislation that would regulate the overdraft fees that banks charge consumers. The Stop Overdraft Profiteering Act of 2018 would ban overdraft fees on debit card transactions and ATM withdrawals and limit fees for checks and recurring payments. It would also require banks to post transactions in a manner to minimize overdraft and nonsufficient fund charges. The bill is still in the very early stages of the legislative process, but might ultimately bring relief to bank customers, who currently have few remedies.
The mother of Antwan Washington's children sat across from him in court Wednesday and clearly said he was the man who shot her and two other people, killing a 16-year-old girl.

"Who was shooting? Antwan," Britney Garland testified. "He shot me! Me, of all people! Me!"

Washington, 36, is accused of shooting three people that day in the kitchen of the Allentown home he shared with Garland -- 31-year-old Garland, 19-year-old Adrian Welch and Welch's girlfriend, 16-year-old Carolina Monsanto.

"He just kept shooting," Garland testified.

Monsanto died from her injuries. Garland was shot seven times and Welch once, and both survived.

Following testimony from the two survivors, homicide, attempted homicide and aggravated assault charges against Washington were sent to Lehigh County Court.

Washington remains in county jail without bail. His attorney declined to comment following the hearing.

Lehigh County First Assistant District Attorney Steve Luksa said prosecutors have not made a decision yet on whether to seek the death penalty in the case.

Garland came into court on crutches, as she is still recovering from the seven gunshot wounds in her legs, back and wrist.

She testified she and Washington had argued earlier in the week, and Washington said he was moving out. Washington, who goes by the name Twiz, went to New York on July 29, and told Garland to sell his car.

Garland said she thought she had a buyer and let Washington know, but the buyer backed out. She said she was surprised when Washington came to her home the evening of July 31.

Washington came in, and Welch and Monsanto were sitting at a kitchen table while Garland cooked at the stove, witnesses said.

Welch greeted Washington, and Garland said Washington "flipped" and told Welch not to talk to him.

Washington went upstairs, then a few minutes later came back down to the first floor. Washington had two firearms in the house, a .380-caliber and a 9 mm, and a license to carry, according to Garland.

Garland said she kept cooking while Washington stood near her in the kitchen; witnesses testified Washington asked about being called a derogatory term for female anatomy.

Garland said she did not respond, and "that's when I heard the shots."

"He just kept shooting," she said, adding he shot "till the clip was empty."

Garland was shot first, and she fell to the floor, she said. Welch testified he was shot second and then Monsanto.

Welch said he ran to the basement and out the back door to get help, and told neighbors and passing drivers to call police.

Garland said a neighbor came into the house and was talking to her, trying to keep her from passing out as she began losing blood.

Garland said she could hear Monsanto gasping for air, and started calling her nickname, Carrie.

She was "breathing like she's losing her life," Garland said.

Garland sobbed and covered her eyes after seeing a police photo of Monsanto's body, and identified the shooting victim in the photo as the teen girl.

Garland, who had her phone in her hand, texted Washington's sister that he shot her, then called her mother to get the couple's children. Garland said she feared what Washington would do if he got the children.

Police were called for the shooting a little after 5 p.m. at Garland's home at 533 Harrison St.

An Allentown officer said when he arrived at the house, Monsanto did not have a pulse and he started CPR.

Shot numerous times in the body, Monsanto was pronounced dead at 5:55 p.m. in the emergency department at Lehigh Valley Hospital, Salisbury Township.

Lehigh County Coroner Scott Grim ruled Monsanto's death a homicide due to her wounds.

Washington fled after the shooting, but surrendered to authorities two days later.

Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
The Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts could have benefited from a loophole in state law when it built its $25 million school, the state auditor general announced this week.

Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts

Auditor General Eugene DePasquale discussed his audit Tuesday during a news conference at Northeast Middle School in Bethlehem. The review covered July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2017. It was brought on after Bethlehem Area School District officials about three years ago raised flags over the construction on the building, 321 E. 3rd St.

DePasquale said the company that sold Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts its land gave the charter a $570,000 loan toward the purchase. The principal of that real estate company is the president and vice president of the contracting company that was awarded the $17.6 million bid to build the school, Superintendent Joseph Roy previously said.

Public schools, according to Roy, must bid the four major components of a construction project separately and accept the lowest bid. That is for taxpayer protection and to keep costs down, he had said.

If one contractor is awarded the entire job, they can then hire subcontractors, who could potentially charge less than the bid award and a contractor could pocket that money, Roy had said.

Roy said Wednesday the school district is budgeting almost $30 million in charter tuition this school year. In June, the school board raised taxes by 2.5 percent.

Charter schools in Bethlehem are the reason behind the tax hike, he said.

"It's been a long road and I am pleased the auditor general recognized the same concerns the Bethlehem Area School District raised and that the auditor general is urging the legislature to close the charter construction loophole," Roy said.

The entire 29-page document can be found here.

'Accountability and transparency'

The audit illustrates "major accountability and transparency problems," showing why Pennsylvania's Charter School Law is the worst in the nation, DePasquale said.

The review found the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts building is owned not by the charter school itself, but by the school's foundation. According to DePasquale, charter school foundations and management companies are not subject to the same public bidding requirements and transparency rules that other schools must follow.

That loophole can leave the public in the dark over important business, the auditor general said.

"That simple paperwork maneuver could have allowed the $25 million school construction project to circumvent some of the public bidding requirements that a traditional school district would have to follow," DePasquale said, adding the school did nothing illegal. He added his team can audit charter school records, but does not have authority to access a charter foundation's records unless they are voluntarily provided.

While he commended the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts for voluntarily opening its foundation's records related to the construction project, DePasquale said taxpayers should be outraged that charter school foundations and management companies aren't subject to the same public bidding requirements and transparency rules other schools must follow.

The audit found

t

he charter school violated the Sunshine Act when it went into executive session at 30 out of 31 meetings and never announced the reason for each executive session, which is required. The board also failed to document when members abstained from votes, as required by the Ethics Act, according to the audit.

"The public has a right to know the topics that are discussed during those closed door sessions," DePasquale said. "Not recording the abstentions of board members could be hiding potential conflicts of interest from the public."

Additionally, the charter school was found not to have the right number of certified staff required by the Charter School Law. Administrators believed they were in compliance with the law, but they were using a different calculation method than the Pennsylvania Department of Education, DePasquale said.

However, DePasquale did praise the charter school for its above-average benchmarks on all standardized tests. And he said the charter school is willing to implement recommendations to fix these problems.

"That is a major step toward accountability and transparency and it shows the importance of why we do these audits," DePasquale said.

'Only option available'

Diane LaBelle, chief executive officer of the Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts, said in a released statement Wednesday the foundation was created by the charter so it would be able to raise money to fund the building, therefore saving taxpayers because the funds came from private sources.

The foundation conducted a competitive bidding process, she said.

"The auditor general's characterization that this loophole 'keeps the public in the dark' implies that a school is making a maneuver to deceive when the fact is that it is the only option available," LaBelle said.

Prior to and during construction, the Charter Arts school had several meetings with the Bethlehem Area School District and Bethlehem City Council to receive approvals on various grants, she said.

LaBelle went on to say the Charter Arts' relocation to the new facility -- twice the size of its previous building and outfitted to meet the needs of a school for the arts -- reduced the previous "rent per year" by replacing the set annual 3.6 percent rent increase with a fixed mortgage payment.

LaBelle added the school agrees with DePasquale about the state's Charter School Law and welcomes conversations to help further the progress to spend more time on education and less time with attorneys trying to decipher unclear laws.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Southern Lehigh High School senior Emelia Sargent was shocked to learn Wednesday not every student in Pennsylvania has their own "O. Mac" to turn to.

That's the nickname of Brian McLaughlin, SoLeHi's school resource officer with the Upper Saucon Township Police Department, Chief Thomas Nicoletti said.

"I look over at my fellow students and they're nodding in agreement," Sargent said. "He's a brave soldier to have in our community, and it's an honor to have him. I feel safe having him here. I respect him as a superior, but I also feel like I'm able to talk to him if I had any issues."

Sargent was among members of her school's student government taking part in a roundtable discussion on school safety, hosted by SoLeHi. It was organized by state Sens. Pat Browne, R-Lehigh, and David Argall, R-Berks/Schuylkill, chairman of the Senate Majority Policy Committee.

Having an armed officer or guard in a school is the No. 1 recommendation consultants gave to state lawmakers looking at ways to stem violence in schools, said state Sen. Mike Regan, R-Cumberland/York.

"Every one of them said, 'I'd put an armed, trained, vetted police officer, SRO, security officer in the school for the obvious reasons, you know: bad guy with a gun versus a good guy with a gun," said Regan, a former U.S. Marshal. It goes beyond matching firepower, though, he continued:

"They know whose parents are getting divorced, they know who's dating who, they know where the problems exist. They know why Johnny's wearing the same clothes for the last three days. They know why the good student ... from the family that's prominent in the neighborhood all of a sudden comes in with his head shaved. They know all that stuff, and that's all intelligence that can be passed along. So I think it is a vital cog."

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to school safety across Pennsylvania's 500 districts, Browne told the school leaders, architects and law enforcement officials from around Lehigh County who took part in the 90-minute discussion Wednesday afternoon.

"We at this point in time see this as really a first step," Browne said.

The senators sought to highlight new approaches to improving school safety included in Acts 39 and 44 of 2018. Participants in Wednesday's discussion described the need for a holistic approach, requiring effort from everyone from the architects who design school buildings, to the bus drivers who get students to school or off campus in the event of an emergency, to mental health professionals.

"The reality is no matter what you do, no school is going to be completely safe," Regan said. "Our goal here is to make schools safer."

New this year is the availability of $52.5 million in state School Safety and Security funds authorized by the Legislature and Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf. That's up from $8.53 million in the previous budget, Regan said.

Applications are due Oct. 12 for first-round grants of $25,000 and a competitive round of grants totaling $40 million of the $52.5 million, according to Browne's office. The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency is administering the grants, which can be used for a variety of school safety measures.

Lawmakers set aside $70 million for school safety initiatives in the $32.7 billion budget for the current fiscal year that runs through June 2019. That's after moves like expanding gambling and fireworks sales in the push to close a $2.3 billion budget shortfall.

The Feb. 14 shooting that left 17 dead at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, was the tipping point in the discussion surrounding the need to do more to protect students and staff.

"This was not an easy year to cobble together those dollars, but I think everyone understood that we didn't have a choice," Argall said Wednesday. "The House, the Senate, the Republicans, the Democrats, liberals, conservatives -- this issue transcends all of those traditional boundaries."

School safety is always near the forefront of students' minds, said SoLeHi junior Paige Zamichieli.

"I definitely think it's a big concern for people," she said. "I know a lot of my classmates, we make comments to each other like, 'Oh the door's open, we need to go close it.'

"Because we do have fear every day that something will happen. And I know some people won't even go to the bathroom during class because they're scared if there's a code, then what are they going to do, they're stuck in the hallway."

Here is more about state legislation recently signed into law, designed to improve school safety:

Act 39 of 2018, includes:

Senate Bill 35, requiring school security drills.

Senate Bill 1078, permitting school officials to plan, review or discuss matters related to safety behind closed doors.

Act 44 of 2018, includes:

Senate Bill 1136, allowing a school in a municipality without its own police department to contract for services with a department in an adjacent municipality.

Senate Bill 1142, creating a Safe2Say Hotline to report threats.

Senate Bill 1211, creating a School Safety & Security Committee at the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency to oversee required school security assessments, customizable school safety plans and safety and security training.

Senate Bill 1213, designed to get more mental health professionals like social workers, school psychologists and guidance counselors into schools.

Senate Bill 1218, requiring school employees to complete at least three hours of school safety and security training every five years.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A caretaker at a home for special needs individuals had sex with a man under her care, according to public records.

And a supervisor who knew about it failed to report it for a week and a half, according to a report on a Pennsylvania Department of Human Services online database.

The caretaker, whose name is being withheld by lehighvalleylive.com because she has not been charged with a crime, was terminated after the incident in 2017 at the home in Lower Saucon Township run by Person Directed Supports, Inc., of Whitehall, according to the state report and a police incident report obtained through a right-to-know request.

She sent a text message to a special needs client with the Batman character Harley Quinn in a provocative pose which said, "Wanna play with me," according to the human services department report.

The special needs client, an adult male, later texted back, "One more happy time," the report says.

The caretaker allegedly responded "No hunny I'm sorry" and "My conscience is saying this is wrong. I shouldn't have done it the 1st time."

The text messages were reported Aug. 16, 2017, according to the account of the incident in the Home and Community Services Information System.

The website run by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services lists certification and inspection records for hundreds of homes for special needs individuals run by private companies under state supervision.

According to the state report, a separate staffer at the house on Applebutter Road reported the sexual contact, but the person to whom the incident was reported failed to notify Person Directed Supports for a week and a half. All staff are duty bound to report sexual abuse allegations within 24 hours, according to Pennsylvania law.

Person Directed Supports acted immediately when notified of the abuse allegation, according to the company's attorney, Jeffrey Stewart. Police and various agencies were notified immediately, he said.

"Whenever any incident comes up they deal with it swiftly, promptly and always put the care of the individual first and foremost," Stewart said. "I think that was done here."

The 33-year-old caretaker was not charged with a crime because police determined the special needs person was able to consent to have sex with her, according to the police incident report.

The police report says the man with special needs was uncomfortable talking to officers. When police asked to look at his cell phone, he had a panic attack, the police report says. The police report says the man who had sex with the caretaker has a seizure disorder, needs crutches to walk and suffers from intellectual and developmental disabilities.

The employee who failed to report the allegation was initially suspended and later demoted, according to the online state records.

Person Directed Supports sent an attorney to train staff on abuse, neglect and exploitation and the duty of employees to report abuse, state records say. The company revised its annual training plan to include more instruction on appropriate boundaries between staff and residents, state records say. The new training was completed in September 2017, state records say.

According to police, the caretaker was already on leave at the time the text messages were reported because she was found sleeping on her shift.

She was later terminated, state records say.

Person Directed Supports runs more than 50 facilities and community homes for special needs individuals in Berks, Bucks, Franklin, Lancaster, Lehigh, Monroe, Northampton and York counties, according to the human services department website.

Stewart said he's not aware of any similar incidents at any other company home. He said the company has been a reputable provider of services for special needs individuals for 18 years.

"This is a company that does a lot of good work and helps people that in many ways that don't have any other help," he said.

"PDS continues to strive to make the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities better each and every day," read a statement from the company. "Earlier this summer, PDS was issued ZERO citations at its annual licensing audit by the Pennsylvania Office of Developmental Programs."

The only other infraction at the Lower Saucon Township home was a fire drill staff failed to properly document on July 27, 2017, according to state records. The drill was re-run and successfully documented in September 2017.

In 2014 a Person Directed Supports staffer ignored a "restrictive procedure plan" and wrestled with an agitated and delusional resident in a Lehigh County home, according to a report on the human services website. He allegedly said "if (the resident) comes near me again I will call 911, I will kill him."

That employee was immediately suspended and later resigned, according to a statement from Person Directed Supports. Staff was trained on how to react appropriately in similar situations, the statement says.

There were some other minor allegations concerning Lehigh County homes run by Person Directed Supports. According to state records:

2014: Cash in a resident's account wasn't properly logged

2015: Medication wasn't properly logged

2016: One home had four residents, one over the limit of three; a smoke detector was missing from a home's attic; staff ran out of medication for a resident twice in one home.

Each allegation was corrected and addressed with training when appropriate, records say.

Lehighvalleylive.com continues to review the inspection and certification records of community homes for special needs individuals in Northampton County. Look for a broader report on infractions discovered in the coming weeks.

STATEMENT

Person Directed Supports issued this statement on Tuesday, Sept. 11:

We have recently been made aware that the Easton Express-Times/Lehigh Valley Live are working on a story about an incident at a PDS home that occurred last year.

Person Directed Supports ("PDS") is a non-profit organization, started in 2000, and is viewed as a leading provider and supports people with some of the most challenging diagnoses. Through its over 400 employees, PDS supports many people that had nowhere to turn and were living in hospitals, as well as helping families in need that are no longer able to care for their sons or daughters or sisters or brothers. PDS has helped these individuals become involved in their communities, in some cases obtaining integrated employment.

With regard to the 2017 incident at Applebutter Road, when PDS learned of the incident, it acted immediately. PDS reached out to the Pennsylvania Office of Developmental Programs ("ODP"), the family of the individual involved as well as the Lower Saucon Police Department. PDS immediately suspended the employee accused of wrongdoing, pending investigation. Following the investigation, PDS terminated the employee and required all employees throughout the agency to attend mandatory training on abuse and neglect, as well as their responsibility to report any issues that they see. These remedial actions were approved by ODP as appropriate in this situation. It is our understanding that the Lower Saucon Police Department chose not to file criminal charges in this matter, and that is a decision that they made following their own investigation.

With regard to the 2014 incident, PDS also dealt with the matter swiftly once it learned of it. As per standard procedure, once the allegation of abuse was made, the employee was immediately suspended and an investigation was conducted by a state-certified investigator. Prior to the completion of the investigation into this matter, the employee resigned from PDS. In response to this incident, PDS conducted numerous trainings for all staff to attempt to avoid future incidents.

PDS continues to strive to make the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities better each and every day. Earlier this summer, PDS was issued ZERO citations at its annual licensing audit by ODP.

Additionally, PDS conducts full background checks and goes above and beyond when screening applicants. PDS also requires new employees to undergo a full two-week training program before working with any individuals, which is significantly more than the three-day minimum training the state requires. We do this to ensure the best care possible.

Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook.
A Czech national caught with an imitation firearm claimed he had the replica shotgun as he had been threatened over a drug debt.

At last weeks sitting of Portlaoise District Court was Martin Cermak (18), with an address at Hawthorn Way, Esker Hills, Portlaoise, charged with possession of an imitation firearm, at the Ridge Road, Portlaoise.

Sgt JJ Kirby gave evidence that on March 5 this year, a number of 999 calls were made concerning a male walking alongside a road in Portlaoise armed with a firearm.

Witnesses reported that the man was walking towards the Ridge Road and the gardai attended scene, where they located the accused in possession of a shotgun.

He was approached and told to drop the weapon, which he did, and was arrested.

Sgt Kirby said there was no sinister motive to the incident, with a ballistics report indicating that the item was a realistic imitation firearm, a replica pump action shotgun.

The accused had no previous convictions.

Defence, Mr Barry Fitzgerald admitted that the item could have been viewed as being real, which could have caused alarm.

The accused purchased the replica firearm, which was a pellet gun, in a local shop.

Mr Fitzgerald said that Cermak, a Czech national living in Ireland a number of years, had developed a serious cannabis addiction and ran up a debt, which led to threats being made against him so he bought the gun.

It was foolish, said Mr Fitzgerald, and the accused had cooperated with the gardai at the scene.

The matter was adjourned to November 8 next for a probation report.

A destruction order was also made by Judge Staines on the gun.
Mountmellick is the only town from Laois in a national competition to find the best enterprise town in Ireland.

Three judges were due to arrive in the town at 11am on Thursday September 13, for the Bank of Ireland National Enterprise Town Awards 2018. This has been rescheduled to to Monday, September 24 starting at 2pm.

The competition aims to boost enterprise by uniting business and communities to showcase their local areas.

There is a prize fund of 157,000 in many categories including national, regional and small town prizes.

Mountmellick Development Association applied on behalf of the town and event coordinator Paddy Buggy has enlisted a range of businesses and groups to make the pitch to judges throughout the day.

They start in the Forum Hostel with a five strong presentation of an overview of Mountmellick, what is involved in setting up a new business there, being a National Winner, foreign investment in the town and future sustainability and employment developments.

This will be followed by a Q&A session where other community members will answer judges' questions.

Next they will be invited to make some chocolates in Cocoa Couture, a newer business in the town.

The judges will each take guided walks of the town to meet businesses and groups.

They will visit the library, Wolfetone court, Bay Road industrial estate, the MDA business park and O'Connell House incubation hub.

The Hares Corner restaurant will host a wrap presentation.

This event is about show casing all that is good about Mountmellick, with 138 businesses, 40 community organisations, a rich heritage and the plans for exciting initiatives, said Mr Buggy.

The event is supported by the Business Support Unit of Laois County Council and Bank of Ireland Mountmellick. Laois County Council's Ger O'Mahony has coordinated the Tidy Towns, Anglers, CE Scheme, council staff and Cllr Paddy Bracken to help the town look its best.

We hope all the residents and businesses will do their bit to have the town looking spic and span, said Maura Reddin of the Tidy Towns.
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A total of 165 Intel employees based in Kildare took on a charity cycle in support of 2018 Intel signature charities Make a Wish and The Alzheimer Society of Ireland recently.

In its ninth year, Intel hosted their annual Charity Cycle on Friday 7 September 2018. All money raised by the event will go towards Intels signature charities  The Alzheimer Society of Ireland and Make-a-Wish Ireland.

Each year, Intel Ireland selects two signature charities  giving all at Intel the opportunity to centralise their efforts by offering volunteer time and in turn, the charities will receive donated funds. For 2018, Intel Ireland choose The Alzheimer Society or Ireland and Make a Wish Ireland. And over the course of the year Intel hosted a number of events such as a Lip Sync Battle, Colour Run and a Bake Sale.

In the annual Charity Cycle, participating employees took on the challenge of tackling routes of either 50km, 80km or 160km.

Employees left the Intel Ireland campus in Leixlip before taking on various parts of Kildare, Meath and Wicklow. Each of the routes factored in a lunch at Summerhill Community Centre in Co. Meath  were staff welcomed Intel cyclists and crew. During the well-deserved lunch, employees got the chance to hear from both Signature Charities, reminding Intel and its employees why they are carrying out their good work and the positive impact both Intel and the charities are having.

SEE ALSO: Intel donates school equipment

Employees, in their memorable blue jerseys set off for the final stretch of the challenge, passing through villages such as Kilcock and Moynalvey. Both cyclists and volunteers were lucky with the weather, with the rain staying away for the duration of the event.

In total, 200 employees took part in the event, either as a cyclist or a marshal taking to the roads to offer support and ensure the safety of the event. As per previous years, there was an overwhelming positive response to the event, with 16,000 raised for the signature charities. The total amount of monies raised by Intels charitable events will be donated to both signature charities.
A young man, who was before Athy District Court on Tuesday last for breaching a barring order against his mother, has since learned his lesson.

The man, with an address in the Athy area, breached the barring order on September 8 last. The court heard that his mother had applied for a barring order against her son "to teach him a lesson".

He had been drinking and smoking, the court heard, and his mother wanted him to stop. The son is due to go to Poland for work very soon and he has not done anything to upset his mother since.

The defendant's mother was in court last Tuesday, and she told Judge Zaidan that she thinks Poland will be a good experience for her son. The solicitor for the defendant, Conal Boyce, told the court that the defendant's parents are separated and that his client can not go to his mother's home, but must stay with his dad since the barring order was imposed.

The defendant, who was standing in the dock, then reached out to his mother and told her : "Mammy thank you so much. I am sorry and I love you to bits."

Judge Zaidan agreed that the defendant had learned his lesson.

"If you have forgiven your son and you need to vacate the barring order, you need to contact the Court Offices in Naas and it will be put back on my list to vacate."

The defendant's mother said that was what she wanted to do.
The Defence Forces has launched the second of this year's General Service Recruitment Campaigns for the Permanent Defence Force (PDF).

"The current recruitment competition is an opportunity for young people to serve their country in both the army and naval service. New recruits will receive first class training in weapons handling, military tactics, team work and physical fitness. On completion of their induction training our personnel will have opportunities to serve Ireland both domestically and on overseas missions, undergo leadership training and choose from a broad spectrum of educational opportunities," said the Defence Forces.

Read also: Latest list of Kildare tax defaulters revealed

Chief of Staff, Vice Admiral Mark Mellett DSM said that; "A career in the Defence Forces is an opportunity to serve Ireland, at home and internationally. It is a rewarding career that is an opportunity to serve Ireland and to receive world class training and education that will stand to you for the rest of your life. We hope to attract young men and women who want make a difference and to have an impact on the world.

On completion of an initial 17 weeks followed by a further 12 weeks training respectively, the Defence Forces said newly qualified 3 star Privates and their Naval Service equivalent, can expect minimum gross annual earnings of 27,000 (inclusive of military service allowance).

The current competition is for General Service in the Army and Naval Service and is open from Monday 10th September 2018 to Sunday October 7 and applicants can apply via http://www.military.ie/en/ home/

The Defence Forces are seeking to induct approximately 700 people across the Army, Air Corps and Naval Service this year through both of the General Service recruitment competitions, as well as Apprenticeships and Cadetships.

Check out the video below
Four people were arrested yesterday in connection with a Garda operation targeting illegal IPTV streaming services.

Gardai from The Intellectual Property Crime Unit (IPCU) of the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation carried out searches of two houses, in Crumlin and Ashbourne yesterday morning, September 11. Four people (two women aged 37 and 40 years and two men aged 42 and 45 years) were arrested and detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984 in Crumlin and Ashbourne Garda Stations, and were later released.



They were arrested for offences under the Copyright and Related Rights Act, 2000, and the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) Act, 2010.

This operation is the culmination of an investigation by An Garda Siochana into the illegal streaming of TV content including pay per view products. It has been carried out in conjunction with police forces in England and Scotland. Europol have provided assistance on this Day of Action and Europol officers are on the ground with Gardai in Ireland. Significant support is being provided by some of the major TV companies and the Motion Picture Association.

The operation yesterday is supported by the Criminal Assets Bureau, the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau and local Gardai in Crumlin and Ashbourne. Six bank accounts and two credit union accounts have been identified and freezing orders pursuant to Money Laundering legislation have been invoked, in total 84,000 has been frozen. In addition, nine third party payment accounts have been identified and limited. It has been established that over 700,000 in total has been paid into these accounts in the last 3 years.

Speaking yesterday, Detective Superintendent George Kyne of the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation said; "This is an organised criminal enterprise where consumers are funding criminality and depriving genuine industry of legitimate revenue. Consumers are providing their payment details to unknown individuals and leaving themselves open to being the victims of fraud and/or data theft. The security around these devices and illegal streaming platforms exposes customers and leaves their home systems vulnerable. It is important that the public is aware of the impact of illegal streaming and its consequences.
BoyleSports celebrated the opening of their 250th shop in Kilcullen today. Irelands largest independent bookmaker was founded in 1982 by John Boyle, who set out on the mammoth target of opening 250 BoyleSports shops across Ireland.

The momentous occasion for the bookmaker didnt go unmarked and saw BoyleSports shops nationwide treated to a party throughout the day, involving giveaways for staff and plenty of special offers for loyal customers, said a company statement..

The company's longest serving staff members were also rewarded to thank them for their fantastic service which is such an important part of the companys continuing success.

Conor Gray, CEO of BoyleSports, said: I am delighted we have reached the 250-shop target set by John Boyle, BoyleSports founder and we still feel there is plenty of room for BoyleSports to flourish. When a customer in Ireland wants to place a bet, they should have access to a BoyleSports store. We think 300 shops should help us meet that target.

Robbie Power, Gold Cup winning jockey and BoyleSports Horse Racing Ambassador said:Its fantastic to be here in Kilcullen to celebrate the opening.
ASTI President Breda Lynch has sent a message of congratulations to all students receiving their Junior Certificate results today.

You have passed a significant milestone in your life. Today you receive your first State-certified qualification: well done!

The ASTI President said the Junior Certificate is an independent, objective and fair statement of students efforts after three years of second-level education. It is valued by parents, students and teachers and assists students in making choices about their futures.

However the President said the ASTI is concerned that as the Framework for Junior Cycle enters its fourth year, schools are still struggling in substandard conditions and with inadequate resources.

The Framework for Junior Cycle requires school learning environments which are conducive to active-learning methodologies and collaborative work, yet schools and teachers are dealing with overcrowded classrooms, reduced teacher numbers, inadequate science facilities, lack of proper PE facilities and much more, said Breda Lynch.

We intend to pursue these issues vigorously with the Department of Education and Skills, along with our longstanding concerns about aspects of the Framework for Junior Cycle, including its impact on teaching time, increased workload pressures for teachers and our concern about maintaining education standards.

Finally, the ASTI President urged all students celebrating their Junior Cert results today to act responsibly: Today is a proud day for you, your parents and your teachers. In all celebrations, I urge you to be safe, act responsibly and keep your parents informed.
If you are planning an Autumn getaway this year then look no further than Autumn Breaks 2018 which is full of ideas and inspiration for that perfect Autumn Break.

This fantastic guide is brought to you by the teams behind 10 of Irelands leading local newspapers and websites. Published free with this weeks Dundalk Democrat and also available as an epaper HERE, this guide is packed with all the information youll need for that perfect break.

Within the pages of this very special publication, our dedicated team of local journalists have highlighted the very best things about their counties - the must-see attractions and the hidden jewels just waiting to be discovered.

There are also handy lists of places to stay and lots of great photographs depicting the various counties in all their splendour.

So before you take off this year, take some time out to read Autumn Breaks 2018 - your ideal break is between the pages!

There are some good ideas for things to do in Leitrim also - have you ticked off the Ten Things To Do?!

Also read: The Dock welcomes a brand new season
THE Tanaiste has said that he is hopeful that job prospects at Aughinish Alumina will not be affected by the US sanctions on its parent company, Rusal.

The sanctions, which were first announced in April, plunged the firm into uncertainty, and were a cause for concern for the nearly 1,000 direct and indirect employees.

But Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said that the US has been very helpful in the Governments efforts to keep the local jobs safe.

In a recent interview with the Irish Examiner, Minister Coveney said: We have been raising the Aughinish issue for months now, and our ambassador and our team in Washington are very active on it. I have also been active on it, as have Ministers Pat Breen and others.

He added: It is a really important issue for the Mid-West, it is a huge employer, and the impact of US sanctions on certain Russian individuals is, in turn, impacting of the future of Aughinish, and we are trying to resolve that issue.

I have to say, the US has been very helpful so far on trying to find solutions on that issue.

The sanctions, which would come into effect after October, would have an adverse effect on the companys prospects, said Rusal. As well as the financial price, the company would also be banned from dealing with any American suppliers, customers or stakeholders, effectively becoming cut off from the US market altogether.

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced the sanctions on Rusal in early April, and the company has a deadline of October 23 to wind down dealings with American businesses.

But the sanctions could be avoided if Mr Deripaska relinquishes control over the company, which he holds through EN+  a requirement he is reluctant to obey.

The punitive sanctions were imposed amid a series of scandals involving Russia, including alleged meddling in the US election and the poisoning of a former spy in Britain.
A CONVICTED criminal who is facing trial for a number of serious offences has failed in his bid to secure bail to attend the funeral of a close friend.

At Limerick District Court this Tuesday, the 20-year-old who was refused bail by the High Court earlier this year, applied for compassionate bail to allow him attend the removal and funeral of his friend later this week.

Solicitor Sarah Ryan told Judge Mary Cashin the deceased, who died in tragic circumstances in recent days, had lived across the road from her client.

The mother of the man who died told the court her son would have loved to have the defendant attend his funeral.

They were more like brothers than friends, she said during the in-camera (closed to the public) hearing.

The woman who was dressed in black while in the witnesses box added that all she wanted was for the defendant to be able to say goodbye to her son.

Opposing the application for bail, Detective Garda Paul Crowley said he knows both men and he accepted they would have been close associates and would have hung out together.

However, he said there are not related and that he had serious concerns in relation to the defendant and his likely behaviour if released.

He expressed concerns the 20-year, who is accused of threatening to kill another man earlier this year, would abscond and that he may engage in criminality if released  even for a short time.

After considering the matter, Judge Cashin indicated she was refusing the application.

In human terms the court would like to accede to the request, she said.

However, she added she was satisfied it was reasonably necessary to refuse bail in the circumstances.
MORE THAN 2,700 students across Limerick will receive their long-awaited Junior Cert results this Wednesday.

Results will be presented to students by their schools, with online results to be available from 4:00pm.

The president of the Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland (ASTI) has congratulated all students receiving their results this Wednesday.

You have passed a significant milestone in your life, ASTI president Breda Lynch said.

Best of luck to all students getting their Junior Cert results later on today. We hope the results are what you hoped for, and if they arent, its not the end of the world. Enjoy the celebrations, and celebrate responsibly! #juniorcert #resultsday2018 pic.twitter.com/SDAlf8MOWw  Limerick Fire (@LimerickFire) September 12, 2018

Today you receive your first State-certified qualification: well done!

Ms Lynch also urged all students celebrating their Junior Cert results today to celebrate responsibly.

Today is a proud day for you, your parents and your teachers. In all celebrations, I urge you to be safe, act responsibly and keep your parents informed.

As the Framework for Junior Cycle enters its fourth year, the ASTI is concerned that schools are still struggling in substandard conditions and with inadequate resources.

The Framework for Junior Cycle requires school learning environments which are conducive to active-learning methodologies and collaborative work, yet schools and teachers are dealing with overcrowded classrooms, reduced teacher numbers, inadequate science facilities, lack of proper PE facilities and much more, Ms Lynch said.

Students hoping to appeal their results must do so through their school, with all applications to be received by the State Examinations Commission before October 12.
THE UNIVERSITY of Limericks students union has been alerted to a serious incident in which women exercising on campus were harassed and intimidated by a group of men.

In a statement published on Facebook this Wednesday morning, UL Student Life condemned the incident, which occurred between the flagpoles and the courtyard at around 7pm this Monday night.

In the strongly worded statement, the students union said that this kind of sexual harassment and violence against women will not be tolerated in UL.

We want to make it very clear that this type of behaviour is completely unacceptable and an investigation is underway to identify the students involved. If anyone has any information about the incident, please report it to studentwelfare@ul.ie.

We would like to take this opportunity to reinforce that this kind of sexual harassment and violence against women will not be tolerated in UL.

Jeering, catcalling and intimidation are all forms of sexual harassment that exist on spectrum that paves the way for assaults and rape to happen, wrote the UL Student Life president, vice president and welfare officer in the statement.

They said that the organisation was taking a strong stance against sexual assault and rape on campus this year and is rolling out a large number of sexual consent workshops to first year students. It will also be organising events and campaigns highlighting violence against women.

It is important to highlight that these incidences are all too commonplace for female staff and students. They stem from a toxic masculine environment that perpetuates lad and rape culture and mob mentality.

"UL is seen as the sporting and exercise campus of Ireland and these types of incidences will discourage both women and men from exercising on our campus as they will not feel safe, the joint statement added.
MORE than 80 free events celebrating the arts and culture will take place across Limerick city and county for Culture Night.

Thousands of culture seekers are expected to turn out for the evening on Friday, September 21 as part of the nationwide celebration of arts and culture.

The depth and range of cultural offerings in Limerick will be on display at locations across the city and county, with all participating venues to open later than usual and for free on the night.

From International Living Statues at the Hunt Museum to going behind the scenes at one of Limericks busiest Garda Stations; there is something for all the family.

The gates and doors of some of Limericks famous landmarks will be opened to visitors including the North Munster Masonic Centre, Limerick Museum in the Old Franciscan Friary and Sarsfield Barracks.

Watch in awe as Zoltan Gere, an expert in the ancient martial art of ground archery and horseback archery brings them to life in the iconic surrounds of King Johns Castle.

Or why not taste Limericks food heritage at the Milk Market with the Pigtown food series and the unique Pigtown Parade.

Enter the spirit of the evening with a colourful taster of Limerick Culture at Bedford Row Bedlam with hip-hop performances, mini all ages dance classes, performances by Limerick Music Generation and the Mary Immaculate Community Choir.

There will also be caricature drawing, a photo booth with live projection, kids arts and crafts and street animators, ending the night with an LED performance.

Culture Night is an incredible way to celebrate culture and the arts in Limerick, said Mayor of the City and County of Limerick Cllr James Collins.

The number and type of events highlight the depth of talent that is in Limerick and the number of practitioners who are making our city and county a better place through their art.

Limerick has embraced Culture Night as it is an opportunity to sample bite-size portions. It is a smorgasbord of culture all in one evening. The initiative has captured both the public imagination and the enthusiasm of artists and cultural organisations, he added.

Events are taking place at various locations across the city and county including Limerick Gallery of Art, UL, Limerick Printmakers, Limerick Civic Trust, St. Moluas Church Ardagh, De Valera Museum and Bruree Heritage Centre, Friars Gate Theatre, Fab Lab and Narrative 4 to name a few.

In the county Culture Night events are taking place in Kilmallock, Kildimo, Newcastle West, Adare, Rathkeale, Abbeyfeale, Bruree, Garryspillane, Carrigkerry and a very special event in Ardagh as the 150 year celebrations of the Ardagh Chalice commence.

There are over 80 events to choose from and all events are free but may require booking.

Arts officer Sheila Deegan said Culture Night Limerick happens because many people share a vision and enthusiasm for enjoying, celebrating and promoting creativity and culture.

Limericks rich history, culture and strong heritage remain ever present in its structures, streets and people, from the historic towns of Kilmallock and medieval village of Askeaton, to the archaeological site at Lough Gur and Limericks churches which contain a rich cultural heritage of the work of such craftspeople as Wilhemina Geddes and Harry Clarke, a legacy of Irelands position as a centre for excellence in the design and manufacture of the highest quality of stained glass, she added.

For more details, see www.culturenight.ie.
SHANNON Airport is flying high after being shortlisted for a global aviation for the sixth year in a row.

Shannon is once again in the running for the airline industrys most coveted World Routes 2018 Marketing Award.

In 2016, it claimed the top prize for the Best Marketing of Airports for airports under four million passengers for the second time in three years.

And in 2017, Shannon triumphed over three other airports to be awarded the Highly Commended honour in the same category, just behind winners Nuremburg Airport.

The awards will be held on September 17 in Guangzhou, China where outstanding achievements in route development marketing and beneficence to the industry is celebrated.

Shannon Group CEO Matthew Thomas said: These awards are the most prestigious in the industry and to be recognised by the worlds leading airlines at this level six-years-in-a-row is a huge honour.

It also affirms the hard work, commitment and innovation of our staff and shows the high esteem Shannon Airport is held in by its airline partners, he added.

Meanwhile, Shannon Airport is also celebrating strong passenger numbers from the Central Statistics Office for the second quarter of 2018 and half year this week, with just short of 7% growth in Q2 and 5% growth overall in the first half of the year.

The CSOs statistics latest statistics confirm the very positive year weve been having here at Shannon, said Andrew Murphy, managing director at Shannon Airport.

This puts us on track by year end to have grown passenger numbers by almost 30% from what they were prior to separation from the state airports group.

Our growth this year was very much driven by additional and improved services, including a new Toronto flight with Air Canada and new services to Barcelona-Reus, Bristol and Liverpool with Ryanair, while the airline also increased Manchester frequencies.

We are looking forward also to the remainder of the year, with Norwegian Air International expanding its Shannon/New York service and Ryanair going year-round on Alicante, Spain from this winter.

All of this proves the strong market there is for Shannon and we want to build on that now and ensure that we command our share of the significant passenger growth nationally. If we grow, the region grows.
THE LIMERICK woman who first exposed the CervicalCheck scandal has called for the authorities to apologise following the findings published by Dr Gabriel Scally in his report this week.

Dr Gabriel Scally, who led the independent inquiry into the CervicalCheck scandal, concluded that the screening programme was doomed to fail at some point.

While he said he was satisfied with the quality of testing at the various CervicalCheck labs, he said how women and families affected by the scandal were told about the audit was damaging, hurtful and offensive.

Speaking on RTE Radio One, Ms Phelan said she was upset that she was one of the last to see the reports.

It is time for some people to eat some humble pie and perhaps apologise. I won't hold my breath though...

Cervical screening system was doomed to fail at some point, Scally report finds https://t.co/OgAYAOy4kr  Vicky Phelan (@PhelanVicky) September 12, 2018

[It was] another kick in the teeth really. Of all people. I was especially trying to push this with Gabriel Scally and Simon [Harris] on Thursday and Friday and said: Well, I am one of the terms of reference, really, I have a right to see this information before everybody else.

Annacotty woman Vicky Phelan received 2.5m in a High Court settlement against a United States laboratory after she was not informed of an audit into an incorrect smear test from 2011.

In January, she was told by experts that she had just months to live.

In a tweet this Wednesday afternoon, Dr Phelan said:

It is time for some people to eat some humble pie and perhaps apologise. I won't hold my breath though.
PALLAS Foods in County Limerick is to seek up to 55 voluntary redundancies at its Newcastle West facility following a review of its supply chain operations.

Irelands leading food service distributor in Ireland confirmed the move to the Limerick Leader this Wednesday evening.

Following the review, the business is to centralise its warehousing operations in Dublin. The business also confirmed that it is to invest 2m in its Newcastle West shared services facility.

As part of its plan to centralise warehousing operations in Dublin, the business will seek to redeploy some employees. The development will also necessitate a voluntary redundancy process that could be available to up to 55 colleagues at the Newcastle West warehouse facility, it said.

Commenting, Peter Jackson, CEO of Pallas Foods said: In a highly competitive marketplace, the development simplifies our supply chain and improves our service to our customers and allows us to continue to invest more in our businesses across Ireland.

As part of a continued investment programme in the business, Pallas Foods also confirmed a 2m investment programme to develop its national shared services centre in Newcastle West. The investment incorporates a new Customer Experience Centre for the West of Ireland that includes a new customer development kitchen and showrooms.

Mr Jackson said: The investment programme, which commences in early 2019, underpins our long-term commitment to Newcastle West - a site that employs upwards of 350 people and that continues to play a very important role within the growing Pallas Foods business.

Employing over 1,300 people across the island of Ireland, the investment by Pallas Foods in Newcastle West will assist our endeavours in the retention and attraction of employee talent.
A SINGLE mother-of-three claims she is being forced to burn fossil fuels in her home in Limerick after she was ordered to remove more than a dozen solar panels from the roof.

Asia Pasinska, who lives at Goulavoher Estate, Dooradoyle, is also challenging the decision of Limerick City and County Council to charge her 900 in legal fees and expenses.

Ms Pasinska, who is originally from Poland, is being prosecuted by the local authority for failing to comply with an Enforcement Notice which was served on her in March of this year.

The action was initiated in July and when the matter came before Limerick District Court on Friday, Judge Marian OLeary was told by solicitor Will Leahy that the central facts and timeline of events are not in dispute.

He said that Ms Pasinska had put 21 solar panels on the roof of the property without planning permission in 2017 and that she had been refused planning permission for their retention.

Planning inspector Michael OBrien said the 21 panels took up almost three times the roofspace as is permitted in the 2001 building development regulations.

He said an inspection was carried out after a complaint was recieved and that warning letter was sent in July 2017.

After Ms Pasinskas application for retention was refused, a further inspection was carried out and an enforcement notice served on her.

He confirmed that since the court action was initiated, 14 of the 21 panels have been removed and that the council does not have any further concerns.

According to planning documents, local authority planners refused the application for retention stating the solar panels create a serious visual intrusion and set an undesirable precedent.

In a detailed letter, more than a dozen of Ms Pasinskas neighbours objected to the application for retention of the solar panels.

In the four-page letter they stated the panels represented an eyesore and were likely to affect the value of their homes.

The letter, which was signed by 14 residents, also claimed the panels were unsightly, dirty and stained when erected.

During last weeks court proceedings, Ms Pasinka, who represented herself, said the councils decision to order the removal of two thirds of the panels contradicts Irelands policy on climate change.

The council made me burn fuel, I was a zero waste house (previously) now I am not, she said.

The mother-of-three, who has been living in Ireland for almost two decades said she had to spend more than 3,000 on a new boiler as the remaining seven solar panels do not generate enough energy for her needs.

The defendant told Judge OLeary she had been misled by the council and she questioned why she was being asked to pay 900.

Whatever they have asked me to do, I have done, she said.

Judge OLeary adjourned the matter to November for a full hearing.

A separate appeal is before An Bord Pleanala.
DAVID ODoherty is to play a two night run in Limerick in 2019, it has been announced.

Dolans have announced that the award-winning comedian will play two shows at the Warehouse on Friday and Saturday, March 8 and 9, 2019.

ODoherty returns to the Limerick stage with You Have to Laugh, a brand-new show made up of talking and songs played on a crappy keyboard from 1986.

The comedian, who appears occasionally on UK television on shows such as QI, Have I Got News For You, 8 Out of 10 Cats and Would I Lie to You, is the least famous person ever to have hosted an episode of Never Mind the Buzzcocks.

He is also the occasional third wheel on the 2 Episodes of Mash radio show on BBC Radio 4.

Tickets go on sale this Friday at 9am and are expected sell quickly so early booking is advisable.

Tickets can be purchased via www.dolans.ie.
LIMERICK'S Bottom Dog Theatre Company is to mark ten years of shows with a fundraising gala retrospective this weekend.

The award-winning company will mark its tenth anniversary with Bottoms Up this Saturday night at the Belltable.

The fundraiser will feature a two hour performance of Bottoms Dogs greatest hits including the international award winning Language UnBecoming A Lady, Drinking In America, The Bachelor of Kilkish, Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens and Killer Kabaret.

The 20-plus cast will see many cast members return to roles they created for the company such as Gene Rooney, Stephen Tadgh and Deirdre Monaghan, along with new performances of previous plays, while there will also be a number of musical performances. Bottom Dog founders Myles Breen and Liam OBrien will also feature.

Speaking at the launch of the show in the Commercial Bar, Myles Breen said: "It has not always been easy, and it has taken so much work from all of us, but this event is a time to look back and celebrate everything Bottom Dog has achieved - and thats largely down to the generosity of two important groups of people.

"Those whove helped us make the shows  the actors, directors, writers, designers and stage crew. And the second group our audience; the supporters and friends whove bought tickets whether it was a small show in the Loft or a rehearsed reading on a wet Sunday in Spring, to a fundraising gala such as this, that helped us bring home grown Limerick theatre to New York in 2015," he added.

Liam OBrien said: "We dreamt up Bottom Dog right here  in what was the basement of Daffys  at the start of a recession. With a city that had lost its only regularly funded theatre company and to date still doesnt have a single one.

"We have staged 14 shows, 7 tours, have worked with over 125 actors, been nominated for multiple awards. These are accolades yes, but its the work that we are most proud of. That we have told stories that may not have been otherwise told," he added.

Bottom's Up kicks off at 7pm at the Belltable with a wine reception and finishes with a VIP after party at the Savoy Hotel with canapes and a live performance by Liam OBrien and the Million Dollar Swing Band.

See www.limetreetheatre.ie for tickets.
May 4, 2021, 2 AM

This stamp for Canadian search and rescue experts was unveiled in Banff, Alberta, a town within Banff National Park located in the Rockies.

By Molly Goad

Canada Post revealed the third design in its Emergency Responders series this morning (Wednesday, Sept. 12) recognizing search and rescue professionals.

A new stamp design in the five-stamp set is being revealed every day this week, culminating on the Friday, Sept. 14, issue date. The nondenominated permanent-rate stamps pay Canadas basic domestic letter rate.

Today's design was unveiled in in Banff, Alberta, a town within Banff National Park located in the Rocky Mountains along the Trans-Canada Highway. The stamp shows a perilous rescue taking place high in the mountains.

In Details magazine, Canada Post relayed the importance of the country's search and rescue experts. These technicians are trained extensively in survival, first aid, parachuting, diving and mountain climbing.

"Whether from the Canadian Coast Guard, Canadian Armed Forces, Parks Canada or a provincial, territorial or volunteer organization, these elite experts do their best to find and save those who are lost, hurt or stranded," Canada Post said.

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The other stamps in the series recognize Canadian paramedics (revealed Monday, Sept. 10), Canadian Armed Forces (revealed Tuesday, Sept. 11), firefighters, and police officers. The unveiling schedule for the remaining stamps is as follows: firefighters, Thursday (Sept. 13) in Halifax, Nova Scotia; and police officers, Friday (Sept. 14) in Ottawa, Ontario. The final two stamps are currently grayed out on Canada Post's website. Visit Linns.com each day this week to view the new stamps as they are unveiled.

The stamps can be purchased in a booklet of 10 (two of each design), or a pane of five. Each stamp also has its own first-day cover. The stamps will be available for purchase on canadapost.ca and at postal outlets on Friday, Sept. 14.
An artist's impression of the view from Proxima Centarui b, a newly discovered Earth-sized planet just four light-years away. It is unclear if there is intelligent life in the universe, but searches continue to find Earth-sized planets in the habitable zones of their respective stars.

Just a cosmic hop, skip and jump away, an Earth-size planet orbits the closest star to our sun, Proxima Centauri.

Ever since the discovery of the exoplanet  known as Proxima Centauri b in 2016, people have wondered whether it could be capable of sustaining life.

Now, using computer models similar to those used to study climate change on Earth, researchers have found that, under a wide range of conditions, Proxima Centauri b can sustain enormous areas of liquid water on its surface, potentially raising its prospects for harboring living organisms. [9 Strange, Scientific Excuses for Why Humans Haven't Found Aliens Yet]

"The major message from our simulations is that there's a decent chance that the planet would be habitable," said Anthony Del Genio, a planetary scientist at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City. Del Genio is also the lead author of a paper describing the new research, which was published Sept. 5 in the journal Astrobiology.

Proxima Centauri is a small, cool red-dwarf star located just 4.2 light-years from the sun. Despite its proximity, scientists still know very little about Proxima Centauri's planetary companion, besides that its mass is at least 1.3 times that of Earth and that it goes around its parent starevery 11 days. Therefore, Del Genio and his colleagues had to make some reasonable guesses about the exoplanet Proxima Centauri b  namely, that it had an atmosphere and an ocean on its surface  for their work to proceed.

Proxima Centauri b orbits in its star's habitable zone, meaning it's at just the right distance to receive enough starlight to keep its surface above the freezing temperature of water. But this zone is extremely close to the star, Space.com, a Live Science sister site, reported. So it's likely that the planet has become tidally locked due to gravitational forces. This means that the same side of Proxima Centauri b always faces its parent star, much like how the moon always shows the same side to Earth.

Previous simulations published in a 2016 paper in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysicsmodeled a hypothetical atmosphere on Proxima Centauri b and suggested that the star-facing hemisphere of the exoplanet might be baked under an intense glare, while a space-facing ocean would be frozen over. Therefore, only a circle of warm sea might exist on Proxima Centauri b  a scenario Del Genio's team calls "eyeball Earth."

But the new simulations were more comprehensive than prior ones; they also included a dynamic, circulating ocean, which was able to transfer heat from one side of the exoplanet to the other very effectively. In the researchers' findings, the movement of the atmosphere and ocean combined so that "even though the night side never sees any starlight, there's a band of liquid water that's sustained around the equatorial region," Del Genio told Live Science.

He likened this heat circulation to our own planet's seaside climates. The U.S. East Coast is balmier than it would be otherwise, he said, because the Gulf Stream carries warm water up from the tropics. In California, by contrast, ocean currents bring cold water down from the North, and the West Coast is colder than it otherwise would be, Del Genio added.

The team ran 18 separate simulation scenarios in total, looking at the effects of giant continents, thin atmospheres, different atmospheric compositions and even changes in the amount of salt in the global ocean. In almost all of the models, Proxima Centauri b ended up having open ocean that persisted over at least some part of its surface.

"The larger the fraction of the planet with liquid water, the better the odds that if there's life there, we can find evidence of that life with future telescopes," Del Genio said.

Ravi Kopparapu, a geoscientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, who was not involved in the study, agreed.

"I think it's exciting that some of these climate outcomes can be observed," Kopparapu told Live Science. Next-generation facilities, such as the Extremely Large Telescope currently under construction in Chile, might be able to witness heat coming off Proxima Centauri b and differentiate its possible surface conditions, he added.

Originally published on Live Science.
Artist impression of a Fast Radio Burst (FRB) reaching Earth. The colors represent the burst arriving at different radio wavelengths, with long wavelengths (red) arriving several seconds after short wavelengths (blue).

Last year's mysterious outburst of deep-space light flashes was even more frenzied than previously thought, a new study reports.

On Aug. 26, 2017, astronomers with the Breakthrough Listen project  a $100 million effort to hunt for signs of intelligent alien life  spotted 21 repeating light pulses called fast radio bursts (FRBs) emanating from the dwarf galaxy FRB 121102 within the span of 1 hour.

Some scientists think FRBs come from fast-rotating neutron stars, but their source has not been nailed down. And that explains Breakthrough Listen's interest: It's possible that the bursts are produced by intelligent extraterrestrials, perhaps to blast space-sailing craft through the cosmos at incredible speeds, some folks have speculated. (Breakthrough Listen's sister project, Breakthrough Starshot, is developing a laser-based light-sailing system that aims to launch tiny probes toward alien solar systems in the next 30 years.) [13 Ways to Hunt Intelligent Aliens]

And FRB 121102, which lies about 3 billion light-years from Earth, is particularly intriguing: It's the only known "repeater" source of FRBs, which otherwise tend to be one-offs.

In the new study, Breakthrough Listen team members based at the University of California, Berkeley SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Research Center applied machine-learning techniques to the August 2017 data set, which was acquired by the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia and was originally analyzed using traditional methods.

The researchers, led by UC Berkeley doctoral student Gerry Zhang, trained an algorithm called a "convolutional neural network" to spot FRBs among the 400 terabytes of data. The strategy is similar to that employed by IT companies to optimize internet search results, Breakthrough Listen representatives said in a statement.

Zhang and his colleagues dug up an additional 72 light flashes, bringing the total number of FRBs detected on that day, from that single source (whatever it may be), to 93.

"Not all discoveries come from new observations," Breakthrough Initiatives Executive Director Pete Worden said in the statement. (Breakthrough Listen is part of the larger Breakthrough Initiatives program, which also runs Breakthrough Starshot, Breakthrough Message and Breakthrough Watch.)

"In this case, it was smart, original thinking applied to an existing dataset," Worden added. "It has advanced our knowledge of one of the most tantalizing mysteries in astronomy."

That mystery remains, of course; we still don't know what FRBs are. But the artificial-intelligence approach employed in the new study could lead to a variety of advances down the road, Zhang said.

"This work is only the beginning of using these powerful methods to find radio transients," he said in the same statement. "We hope our success may inspire other serious endeavors in applying machine learning to radio astronomy."

The new paper has been accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal. You can read a copy of it for free at the Breakthrough Listen FRB 121102 site.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
So, what's the worst that could happen?

Astronaut and geophysicist Alexander Gerst called Florence a "nightmare" after glimpsing its eye from the International Space Station this morning, saying in a tweet: "Get prepared on the East Coast, this is a no-kidding nightmare coming for you."

Despite the public's fascination with high winds, it turns out that most of the damage could come from the historic amounts of water the hurricane releases, climate and health experts told Live Science. [Hurricane Florence: Photos of a Monster Storm]

"This storm is about flooding," Perry Samson, a professor of climate and space science at the University of Michigan, told Live Science.

As of 2 p.m. EDT today (Sept. 12), Florence was a Category 3 hurricane with winds of 125 mph (205 km/h) at its location about 435 miles (700 kilometers) southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

Florence is expected to make landfall late Thursday or early Friday (Sept. 13 or 14), likely as a Category 3 hurricane, meaning it will have winds blowing at a minimum of 111 mph (178 km/h), Samson said.

As hurricane-force winds approach the coast, they'll push the ocean's waves ashore, causing storm surges of up to 13 feet (4 meters) in parts of North Carolina, the National Hurricane Center reported. Coastal North Carolina may receive up to 40 inches (100 centimeters) of rain, the National Hurricane Center said. (To put that number in perspective, the rainy city of Seattle gets just over 37 inches (94 cm) of rain each year.)

The predicted amount of rainfall that Florence will bring to the southeast. (Image credit: NOAA)

Then, as the high-pressure system steering Florence weakens, the hurricane is expected to hang out inland for days, showering the region with rain much like Hurricane Harvey did to Houston last year.

All that water is worrisome for a region that just had a rainy season, meaning the soil there is fairly saturated and the rivers there are already high. "So, there's not a lot of capacity to soak up the extra water," Samson said.

Moreover, high tides around noon and midnight these next few days will make the storm surges even worse, Samson said. "If you haven't already evacuated, shore up your house as best you can," Samson recommended. "I would go visit a relative somewhere away from the shoreline."

See more

What happens next

As for people staying put, the authorities used to advise that people get three days' worth of supplies, but now it's best to get two weeks' worth of supplies, Sue Anne Bell, an assistant professor of nursing at the University of Michigan, told Live Science.

The percentage of customers who may be affected by power outages following Hurricane Florence. (Image credit: Guikema Research Group/University of Michigan)

Thats because in addition to the extensive flooding, the hurricane is expected to knock out power along the coast, according to an analysis done by a team headed by Seth Guikema, an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Michigan. These power outages could last days to weeks, Brock Long, a spokesperson with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), told Reuters.

In anticipation of the winds and water, 1.7 million people living along the coasts of the Carolinas and Virginia were ordered to evacuate ahead of the storm. [The 20 Costliest, Most Destructive Hurricanes to Hit the US]

Meanwhile, some of North Carolina's 2,100 industrial-size hog farmers are scrambling to drain waste pools containing manure before the hurricane hits, according to NPR. These pools are full of poop-eating bacteria that help break down the manure, but farmers don't want to see animal waste get into drinking water supplies. So, they're pumping the liquid out of the lagoons and spraying them as fertilizer on fields, which gives the lagoons more capacity to hold rainwater, NPR reported.

Floodwaters could also spread mercury-containing coal ash that's held in pits operated by Duke Energy, the state's main electricity company, the AP reported. But the company reported that wastewater levels inside the pits were low, and that "were more prepared than ever," Duke Energy spokesman Bill Norton told the AP.

The blasting wind and surging water may also damage some of the 16 nuclear reactors located in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. Some of these reactors  including Duke Energy's Brunswick and Harris nuclear plants in North Carolina and Dominion Energy's Surry plant in Virginia  may be directly in the hurricane's path, Reuters reported.

However, since the Fukushima disaster in 2011, U.S. power plants have installed more safety equipment, such as waterproofing, portable pumps and generators, Duke Energy spokeswoman Mary Kathryn Green told Reuters. Some reactors are undergoing prestorm checks now, and their reactors will be shut down 12 hours before the hurricane arrives, Green said.

Original article on Live Science.
The world isn't feeling so hot  emotionally, that is.

A new survey of people's daily emotions found that, worldwide, reports of negative emotions  including sadness, worry and stress  have increased over the last decade, reaching a record high in 2017.

What's more, reports of positive emotions dipped slightly in 2017 compared with the previous year, according to the survey, from Gallup, the analytics and advice company.

The survey also revealed that, based on reports of positive emotions, the "happiest" country in 2017 was Paraguay, marking the third year in a row that the South American country has claimed the top spot. The least happy country was Afghanistan. [11 Tips to Lower Stress]

Feeling worried and stressed

For the survey, researchers interviewed more than 154,000 people in 147 countries throughout 2017.

Participants were asked whether they had certain positive or negative emotions or experiences the day before. For example, for positive experiences, they were asked whether they felt well rested, were treated with respect, smiled or laughed a lot or enjoyed themselves the day before. For negative experiences, they were asked whether they felt worry, sadness, stress, anger or physical pain on the previous day.

Gallup then used these responses to create an "index score" of positive and negative experiences for each country and for the world overall. The score has a cap of 100.

The 2017 survey found that, overall, people all over the world had a negative-experience score of 30, which is the highest negative-experience score measured by Gallup since the company began conducting the survey in 2006. (For comparison, in 2016, the global negative-experience score was 28; and in 2006, it was 24.)

"Collectively, the world is more stressed, worried, sad and in pain today than we've ever seen it," Mohamed Younis, Gallup's managing editor, said in the report.

The increase was driven by an uptick in reports of worry, stress, sadness and physical pain.

At a country level, most countries with high negative-experience scores were grappling with war or other turmoil in 2017.

The country with the highest negative-experience score, the Central African Republic (CAR), experienced renewed fighting between armed groups that forced thousands of people from their homes in 2017, Gallup said. CAR's score of 61 is the highest such score Gallup has recorded in the last decade. Other countries with high negative-experience scores include Iraq, with a score of 59; South Sudan, with a score of 55; and Chad, with a score of 54.

The United States had a negative-experience score of 32, which is slightly higher than the global average. Among high-income countries that are members of the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development), the U.S. had the fourth-highest negative-experience score, tied with two other countries (Chile and Turkey). About 49 percent of Americans said they had been feeling "stressed a lot" the previous day, which is higher than the global average of 37 percent.

Positive emotions

The global score for positive experiences in 2017 was 69 out of 100, which is down slightly from a score of 70 in 2016 and 71 in 2015. However, 2017's positive-experience score "is not out of line for scores in the past decade," Gallup said.

At a country level, Paraguay ranked first with a score 85, followed by Colombia, El Salvador and Guatemala, which all tied with a score of 82. Gallup noted that Latin American countries tend to dominate the list of "happiest" countries, which may partly be due to "the cultural tendency in the region to focus on life's positives," Gallup said.

The U.S. had a positive-experience score of 78, which is above the global average. That score places the United States fourth among OECD members, tied with Finland.

About 82 percent of Americans said they had "smiled or laughed a lot" the day before and 92 percent said they were treated with respect.

"Regardless of where a country may fall on the Positive or Negative Experience Indexes  all leaders need to be monitoring the emotional temperature of the people they lead," Younis said. "Leaders cannot effectively lead their societies, seek better opportunities for their citizens and ensure that future generations will live better lives than previous ones without closely tracking how citizens evaluate their lives and understanding the local realities they face."

Original article on Live Science.
In secret, behind locked gates, our Nation's Oldest City dumped a landfill in a lake (Old City Reservoir), while emitting sewage in our rivers and salt marsh. Organized citizens exposed and defeated pollution, racism and cronyism. We elected a new Mayor. We're transforming our City -- advanced citizenship. Ask questions. Make disclosures. Demand answers. Be involved. Expect democracy. Report and expose corruption. Smile! Help enact a St. Augustine National Park and Seashore. We shall overcome!
Former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer will be the featured speaker at Laredo's 16th Annual Stars Extravaganza.

This private event, set for Oct. 16 at the Laredo Country Club, is held for sponsors of the Stars Scholarship Fund, which provides academic scholarships for students at Laredo College and Texas A&M International University.

One hundred percent of donations to the fund are applied to scholarships. The event's operating expenses, such as Spicer's booking fee and travel expenses, are paid for by L&F Distributors, which is owned and operated by the LaMantia family. They founded the Stars Scholarship Fund in 2002.

In years past, speakers such as Seth Myers, Magic Johnson, Steve Forbes, Karl Rove and three former presidents of Mexico: Felipe Calderon, Vicente Fox and Ernesto Zedillo, have come to Laredo as headliners for the Extravaganza.

Steve LaMantia, who heads L&F Distributors in Laredo, said he prefers to bring in speakers for this event, rather than comedians or musicians, because they can touch on current events.

Spicer is no longer a member of the rather polarizing Trump administration, however he remains somewhat associated with it. Spicer's book "The Briefing," written on his time in the White House, came out in July.

Bringing in Spicer to Laredo is meant to foster a unique conversation in a small setting, LaMantia said.

"It gives you an opportunity, whether you agree or disagree, that you would never have," he said.

Spicer is free to talk about what's going on, and can offer insight, LaMantia said. It's not about Spicer himself, but about his job, he said.

"How many people can you meet where you can say, 'Tell me about Trump.' He actually sat in a room with him," LaMantia said.

For the Extravaganza, the Stars Scholarship Fund board has brought in speakers on either side of the aisle, LaMantia said. They aim to create a conversation attendees wouldn't have otherwise.

"Hopefully people who come to see this event are better off for it, in an educated way," he said.

Julia Wallace may be reached at 956-728-2543 jwallace@lmtonline.com
A man has been arrested following a recent domestic disturbance in south Laredo, police said.

Laredo police said Jose Grant Alvarado, 30, assaulted a woman and pointed a gun at her.

He was charged with aggravated assault of a date, family or household member with a weapon. Custody records showed he remained behind bars on Tuesday afternoon.

READ ALSO: LPD: Man arrested on charges of aggravated assault after drug deal goes bad

Officers said they responded to a report of a person with a gun at about 2 p.m. Sept. 3 in the 3200 block of Cuernavaca Drive. Police found Grant not far from the location and detained him.

A woman told police that Grant had assaulted her and pointed a black .40-caliber gun at her following an argument, LPD said.

RELATED: LPD: Man charged with aggravated assault with deadly weapon in shovel attack on brother

She said to officers that she wrestled the gun from him, according to police. The alleged incident deescalated when she told him she had called police.

When officers took him to LPD headquarters, Grant told an officer, "Give me back my gun, and I'll make it a felony," police said.

He was additionally charged with obstruction, retaliation. Police said they seized the handgun and a clip containing 10 live rounds.
The buck now stops on the desk of Tom Warner.

The former public works director for the city of Liberty was promoted to city manager after city council interviewed three candidates for the position left open by the departure and retirement of Gary Broz.

I cant turn around and try to blame it on anyone else, he laughed as he takes over the reins at the city.

When the position came open, he mulled over the decision and whether to throw his hat in the ring for the extended responsibilities.

I thought about it for awhile and I knew I wasnt going to move anywhere, let me give it a shot, he said.

He felt comfortable enough that he was qualified for the position and said he was fortunate to make it down to the final three interviews.

I got the news Wednesday night from [Interim city manager] Larry Shaw, he said.

Warner beat out a pool of 18 candidates including the final two, former Dayton city manager David Douglas and Stephen Ashley from Spring Valley Village in the Houston area.

Texas First Municipal Search Group supplied the list of candidates and two former city managers helped Interim City Manager Larry Shaw trim the list down to six, then to three.

My experience in Beaumont was a department where I had over 200 employees, much bigger than the staff at the city of Liberty, he said.

Warner oversaw an operating budget of $35 million and a capital improvements budget of more than $400 million.

The size really still seems like a department even though its a city, he said. Im excited to be here, he said.

Warner has been close to public service most of his life.

In third grade, his father was in the newspaper business and owned papers in Port Lavaca, Pecos, Mission, Bay City until the family settled in Austin where his father worked for the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT).

He attended McCallum High School in Austin and upon graduation, broke from family tradition.

Unlike his brothers and sisters who chose the University of Texas for their post-high school work, he defected and went to Texas A&M in College Station.

I was the black sheep of the family, he laughed.

He studied engineering and had ideas of following in his fathers footsteps at TxDOT where his father was in the travel and information bureau.

While at A&M, he met his future bride, who was also studying to be an engineer.

Following marriage, she wanted to come back home to Hardin where she was raised.

Her family, Warner said, goes back to the 1800s. Her great great great grandfather had an original Spanish land grant up to Clark off SH 146 and so the family has been in the area for more than a century.

At the time, both couldnt work for TxDOT, so she took the job working for the highway department and he was hired on by the city of Beaumont.

His wife, Charlotte, is now retired after 29 years at TxDOT. She taught a few years at Hull-Daisetta ISD as a math teacher. She was elected to be Pct. 2 Liberty county commissioner in 2011 and served one term.

Theyve been married 40 years with two children, Ann and Clayton.

Warner began his career in Beaumont as a transportation planner, operations engineer, traffic engineer, and in 1986 he became the public works director for the city until he retired in 2010.

They have lived here in Liberty 28 years.

While he was retired, there was an opening for an inspector at the airport for the new hangars being built.

I worked with a consulting firm for what I thought was a part-time job, he said.

Then Broz tapped him for his skills at the city as the new public works director and city engineer.

Thats really why I wanted to come back, he said. Ive been here and will still live here even after Ive retired for a second time, he said, keeping his roots in Liberty.

Hes done pretty much everything involved with a city outside of finance, purchasing, and recreation.

He couldnt have been more complimentary on the current staff. He hasnt met with them as a group just yet but has gotten around to most of the department heads.

There are a couple of pressing items on the horizon, he said, beginning with filling my former position as public works director that I want to fill as soon as possible.

Theres also a new position created in this years budget for an assistant city manager.

Its only funded for nine months, he explained but may take that long before he gets a job description ready and the job posted.

Warner said he wanted to be prepared for any growth that might come to the city with the new subdivisions coming into Dayton and Cleveland.

We dont have a lot of room for growth in the city proper except to the north, he said.

There is room for development on Wood Springs Drive and for commercial growth on the SH 146 bypass.

We can go as far as FM 2830 and expand back toward the east. Weve already annexed the airport property, so we do have some growth potential, he said.

Warner, who came to the city in 2012, will make $125,000 per year plus benefits and a car allowance.

dtaylor@hcnonline.com
Hurricane season is well underway, and one statewide organization is urging pet owners to make sure their evacuation plans include a plan for their pets.

The Texas Humane Legislation Network said Texas pet owners, especially those living in hurricane- and flood-prone areas, need to take their pets into account when devising a plan for hurricane season, which began June 1 and goes through the end of November.

We remember too well the heartbreaking stories that came out during Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, said THLNs executive director Laura Donahue Halloran. As their people fled for safety, many companion animals were left behind, sometimes chained up or caged without access to food, water, or shelter. They were left to die in agony as the waters rose around them with no hope of escape.

Tethering an animal in inclement weather is cruel and dangerous, she said, adding that all companion animals should be provided adequate shelter during such times.

Donahue Halloran said her organization has been working to encourage people to be more prepared.

THLN is asking pet owners to consider implementing a few simple steps to make sure their pets are part of their familys emergency plan, including:

1. Making sure your pet(s) wear collars and tags with up-to-date contact information and other identification.

2. Microchipping your pet(s) - or updating information if you have moved or changed phone numbers since they were microchipped -- is one of the best ways to ensure that you and your pet are reunited if you are separated. Always be sure to register the microchip with the manufacturer and keep your contact information up to date with the microchip company.

3. Get a portable pet carrier or crate and help your dog or cat get comfortable in it.

4. Know where you will go, how you will get there, and if your pet will be able to go with you.

5. Prepare a small travel bag with essentials, including food for several days and any medications and an extra leash.

In 2007, THLN helped pass Simbas Law in Texas, which directed local emergency management authorities to establish Animal Issues Committees through the Texas Animal Health Commission. THLN advises Texas residents to contact their local county commissioners office to find out whether their county has taken appropriate steps to accommodate companion and service animals during emergencies.
WASHINGTON - The last time Neamin Zeleke saw home was in 1986. He was 16, dressed in his only suit, waiting for a plane in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, that would take him to the United States for high school.

With a repressive communist regime running his country, he never returned. Instead, he settled in the Washington suburbs and remained there as the decades passed and the old dictatorship was replaced by a new one. He raised a family in Virginia and lost contact with relatives at home.

Then in February, after three years of mounting unrest, Ethiopia's prime minister resigned. Abiy Ahmed, an outspoken 42-year-old reformer, took office. Since then, there has been a wave of stunning change.

Abiy has lifted a long-standing state of emergency, ended a decades-old conflict with neighboring Eritrea and called for Ethiopia to transition into a multiparty democracy. For the many Ethiopians who fled the country during the long years of autocracy, the reforms have revived a dream they once thought impossible: going home.

It was particularly unlikely for people like Zeleke, a leader in a resistance movement who agitated for change from abroad. In 2013, he was branded a terrorist by Ethiopia's ruling party and sentenced in absentia to 18 years in prison. He decided that even calling his mother was too dangerous for her; they haven't spoken in six years.

But now Zeleke is dreaming. In August, he bought a plane ticket to Ethiopia, planning to surprise his mother, celebrate the Ethiopian New Year on Sept. 11 and visit relatives he hasn't seen since he was a child. But after years as an activist, he is also clear-eyed about the challenges that lie ahead.

Moves meant to expand political freedoms have also allowed old ethnic grievances to flare up, leading to a new spate of violence. The institutions that propped up the previous administration have been working to undermine Abiy's reforms. "Even though they have lost power, we know they have money and guns," Zeleke said.

But Zeleke is still eager to go back. "There's much to be done," he said. "We have a new nation to build."

That eagerness is common in the area around Washington, which is home to the largest Ethiopian community in the world outside Africa - and some of the fiercest critics of Ethiopia's rulers.

Whenever news of a brutal government crackdown emerged, groups of Ethiopians staged protests outside the State Department or the Ethiopian Embassy. In recent years, Washington-area Ethiopians led a growing movement to provide accurate information about what was going on in the country, launching blogs and online television stations.

"We were so mad for so long," said Kenfe Bellay, a 61-year-old who lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Bellay fled Ethiopia in 1976 after the communist regime confiscated his father's farm and family home. He eventually settled in the United States and has regularly attended protests and candlelight vigils in Washington, hoping to raise awareness of human rights violations in Ethiopia.

On a humid evening in July, Bellay shuddered as he recalled the stories he had heard over the years - dissidents jailed by the regime, opponents tortured and unarmed protesters massacred.

"It hurts, of course," he said. "It hurts no matter where you are."

Zeleke, as a member of a resistance group called Patriotic Ginbot 7, traveled throughout the United States and Europe to meet exiled political leaders and lobby international organizations to exert pressure on the Ethiopian government. He spoke regularly to PG7 members operating clandestinely in Ethiopia. When the group's secretary general, Andargachew Tsege, was abducted in Yemen in 2014, Zeleke flew to Eritrea for weeks and months at a time to mobilize armed resistance units.

Andargachew is now a free man - he and hundreds of other political prisoners were released by Abiy in May. Zeleke watched on television as his old friend was welcomed by rapturous crowds in the streets of Addis Ababa.

"I've invested so much time, energy and money on this," he said. "Now I feel, finally, I feel that part of what I've struggled and sacrificed for is in the process of materializing."

The optimism is deeply tied to the figure of Abiy, whose charisma and reforms have captivated many Ethiopians abroad. "You know, I used to watch movies after work. Now I just watch YouTube videos of Dr. Abiy," said Tibebu Hailemariam, 50, the vice president of the Ethiopian Community Center of Maryland.

Bellay admitted that he is also prone to flipping through news items about Abiy while he mans the counter at Sidamo Coffee & Tea, the coffee shop he owns in Northeast Washington. Everyone he knows, he said, has been talking about the new prime minister for months.

So when Abiy announced in July that he would tour the United States, his visit quickly dominated the attention of the community here. Ethiopians from as far away as Florida and Colorado booked tickets to Washington, where Abiy was scheduled to speak at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center on July 28. Hailemariam visited the embassy multiple times in the hope of finding a way to participate.

The excitement swelled during the week of Abiy's "grand rally." Groups crowded into the lobby of the Watergate Hotel, where Abiy was staying, hoping to get an early glimpse of the new prime minister. Dozens of Ethiopian restaurants in the region prepared their kitchens to host parties scheduled for Saturday night, while those at home pored over road maps to determine the best routes into the city.

When the morning of July 28 finally arrived, the line to see Abiy wrapped several times around the block. Families driving in from North Carolina and New Jersey honked their car horns and rolled down windows to high-five performers swaying their hips along Mount Vernon Place; those waiting in line cracked open plastic containers of curries and injera bread to share with neighbors.

"It's just like back home," said Fekadu Amanu, 46, who was standing near the front of the line with his three young children.

Abiy's speech, delivered that afternoon in a packed and raucous hall, called for unity and the support of the diaspora in rebuilding Ethiopia. But the words were seemingly less important than his presence and what it signified.

Bellay, stuck behind the counter at his shop, was not part of the jubilant crowd at the rally. But even at work, he said, the atmosphere felt different. Ethiopians streamed into the shop all afternoon to share stories of the speech and sip coffee; when Bellay traveled home to Silver Spring - the Washington area's "Little Ethiopia" - there were large groups of people celebrating in the streets.

"It was really exciting," Hailemariam said. "I'm 50 years old, and I've never seen people like this. It's pure love."

Even Zeleke's remaining doubts were erased after a two-hour meeting between Abiy and PG7 leaders in the evening following the rally. "The candor, the openness with which he shared details about the transition was astounding," Zeleke said.

"We're very happy with what they've managed to do in this 100 days. There's much to be done, but the progress has been very impressive."

For Washington's Ethiopian community, the rally weekend in July was an unbridled celebration. But in the days and weeks that have followed, many in the diaspora have been left wondering how they will fit into this new era of Ethiopian history.

Even with Abiy's open invitation, the path home is not straightforward. Zeleke hopes to return permanently someday. But with three school-age children who speak little Amharic, a visit of a few weeks is all he manage for now. Bellay, who has two daughters in college, is excited for his own trip back, but he believes there's nothing left for him in Ethiopia.

"I don't have a home anymore. It was taken. I don't have anywhere to go, and my family, we dispersed years ago," he said.

Hailemariam is more seriously considering the move back, but he also has worries. "Moving to Ethiopia is very exciting, but I have to find my place first," he said. "I can't go there and be a burden, so I need to see where can I contribute, what place and in what capacity."

As Ethiopians abroad plan their next steps, they will probably look to those who have already dared to leave the United States for good. One of them is 36-year-old Mohammed Ademo, who until recently was one of the most prominent government critics in the diaspora.

After spending 16 years in exile, Ademo saw Abiy's rise to power as an opportunity he couldn't miss. In June, just three months after Abiy took office, the journalist relinquished his status as an asylum seeker in the United States and booked a one-way ticket to Addis Ababa, leaving his wife and their 2-year-old son in Washington.

"The irony of it is I've been away from my immediate family for 16 years, and the only family I had in the U.S. was my wife and my son. Now I'm with my family, but my son and my wife are away," Ademo said by telephone from Addis Ababa. "It's hard, but this requires some level of sacrifice. If we want this country to change, we have to make these tough decisions."

There's a lot of work that needs to be done, Ademo admitted. But at least for now, he's taking a moment to relish being back.

"It feels finally like this is mine," he said, the sounds of rain and conversation humming in the background. "I enjoyed living in the U.S. . . . but I never really felt quite at home. Now I feel liberated. I truly, truly feel at home."
David Paul Morris / Getty Images

The U.S. Coast Guard rescued a boater who fell into the water just south of Alameda after his 14-foot sailing vessel capsized Tuesday afternoon, officials said.

The boater sent a mayday broadcast around 4 p.m. as the vessel starting taking on water, but Coast Guard officials said they could not get more information due to a language barrier.
The Trump administration faces a stark choice this week over the war in Yemen in what could be a defining moment for the president's foreign policy and U.S. ties with Middle Eastern allies.

Under a new law linking the actions of Persian Gulf countries to continued U.S. military support, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is required to inform lawmakers by Wednesday whether he thinks Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are doing enough to protect noncombatants in the two countries' war against Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Since the nations began a bombing campaign in 2015, the United States has provided limited aid to the operation, conducting aerial refueling for gulf warplanes, sharing intelligence and supplying partner militaries with sophisticated weaponry.

Now, aerial refueling is conditioned on the administration's ability to attest that those nations are taking meaningful steps to end the war and contain a massive humanitarian crisis.

A decision to declare full support for the Saudi-led coalition is certain to ignite a torrent of criticism from opponents of the war. A decision to withhold backing, on the other hand, would be seen as a slap in the face to close U.S. allies. Either way, the administration must declare in categorical terms its position on a campaign that has made even the gulf nations' most ardent supporters uncomfortable.

"The certification is an opportunity for the U.S. to give an honest assessment of the harm civilians are suffering in Yemen and the role the U.S. plays in supporting the Saudi-led coalition," said Andrea Prasow, the deputy Washington director for Human Rights Watch, which has criticized Saudi Arabia's conduct in the war.

Officials across the government have voiced support in the past week for continuing and even expanding U.S. assistance to the coalition. But others remain opposed to publicly backing the campaign at a time when its record has generated sharp controversy.

The deadline brings to a head an intense internal debate about the future of U.S. aid to the coalition. Officials across the government also have voiced exasperation over strikes that have killed dozens of Yemeni children in recent weeks, the latest in multiple attacks on civilian targets.

The humanitarian emergency in Yemen has left millions hungry and suffering from disease. Critics of the Saudi-led coalition say it has deepened the crisis by imposing severe restrictions at air and sea ports.

"We believe there is a moral imperative to do everything we can to ensure the Saudi-led coalition stops killing civilians," Sens. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and Todd Young, R-Ind., who championed the new certification measure, said in an opinion piece in The Washington Post on Tuesday.

"If that does not happen, support for the coalition in Congress may reach a breaking point as the world's worst humanitarian crisis deteriorates further," they wrote.

Defenders of the coalition say the criticism overlooks abuses carried out by the Houthis and, with their links to Iran and frequent missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, the threat they pose to the region. A recent U.N. report said all parties could be guilty of war crimes.

If Pompeo does not endorse the gulf nations' conduct, the administration would almost certainly use a waiver under the same law to allow military aid to continue. But even a decision to continue aid after that implicit rebuke could cause a rift with those allies at a time when the White House is seeking their support for a host of initiatives, including a new regional military alliance dubbed the "Arab NATO."

Since taking office, President Donald Trump has strengthened U.S. ties with Saudi Arabia and the UAE. While his administration has criticized the coalition periodically for its handling of the war, it has restored arms sales suspended under President Barack Obama and echoed gulf concerns about the Houthis' ties to Iran.

In an indication of that support, a senior administration official said the coalition's investigation into an Aug. 9 strike that killed more than 40 children showed the coalition's willingness to acknowledge mistakes, revise rules of engagement and hold personnel accountable. That, the official said, "is all evidence of progress that they're continuing to make."

The official, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, described a "Catch-22" surrounding U.S. assistance. "There's a logical flaw in the argument that the Saudis aren't as capable as the U.S. We want them to be as capable as the U.S., so we should withdraw assistance to compel them to increase their capability faster. That seems backwards," the official said.

"One could argue that they are best positioned to improve their conduct when engaged, when provided advice and assistance," he said.

Officials said the State Department had prepared a memo for Pompeo laying out options, from ending assistance to expanding it with the goal of ensuring more precise coalition air operations. It wasn't immediately clear whether Pompeo would make a decision this week only on the certification issue or a possible policy shift.

"It's an intense debate about what is a glaring problem about civilian casualties and whether we continue to work with the Saudis or whether we feel we have to put some distance" between the United States and the war, another official said. "A lot of us also feel that things are going to get worse if we're not even involved."

Officials at the Pentagon have consistently expressed support for continuing U.S. aid. But some lawmakers say even the current level of assistance could leave U.S. military personnel vulnerable to war crimes allegations.

"I believe it harms our national security more to be part of the kill chain that results in children, women and men being killed," said Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., a former Air Force lawyer. "It is a huge recruiting tool for terrorists."

- - -

The Washington Post's John Hudson and Carol Morello contributed to this report.
Two high-profile lawsuits filed against Houston ISD  one by former chief auditor Richard Patton, another involving former Furr High School principal Bertie Simmons  could soon be settled, according to district records and legal documents.

HISD trustees are scheduled to consider settlement agreements in the two cases during the closed session portion of Thursdays school board meeting. Board members could vote to approve the agreements during open session later Thursday.

Terms of the proposed settlements have not been released. HISD officials do not comment on pending litigation, and lawyers for the plaintiffs declined to comment this week.

Patton sued HISD in August 2016, alleging the district retaliated against him by not renewing his contract amid warring claims of misconduct tied to HISDs $1.9 billion construction bond program. Simmons and two co-workers sued the district in October 2017, alleging discrimination and retaliation after they were suspended or relieved of duties at the outset of an investigation into records manipulation.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Suspended HISD chief auditor: This district does not want the real dirt to be published

In Pattons case, HISD officials said the districts top watchdog made critical errors under his leadership. District officials alleged two audits conducted by Pattons department in 2015 drew faulty and improper conclusions and failed to apply the correct legal standards.

Patton responded that HISD officials retaliated against him after he criticized the districts handling of its $1.9-billion bond program and reported suspected illegal activity to law enforcement authorities. Patton determined HISDs poor bidding practices and inadequate oversight led to a $200 million shortfall in the bond program, an allegation HISD administrators called reckless. In one notable email exchange, dating to fall 2015, Patton told HISD administrators that the district does not want the real dirt to be published after they criticized him for using flawed methodology in the audit.

Patton was suspended for five months amid an outside investigation into his conduct. He was reinstated in early August 2016 after investigators found no evidence to warrant his firing, but trustees decided not to renew his contract later that month.

Pattons case is scheduled for trial in mid-October. The discovery period, during which both sides share evidence and conduct depositions, is set to end Friday.

Related: Furr High School principal to lose job after grade manipulation found

In Simmons case, the former Furr High School principal and two co-workers alleged HISD engaged in discrimination and retaliation amid an investigation into misconduct claims at the eastside school.

Simmons, who is 84 and white, alleged HISD officials engaged in age and racial discrimination from the outset of their investigation, which began in October 2017. She was fired in June. A grant administrator, Sharon Koonce, and HISD police officer, Craig Davis, were relieved of duties early in the investigation.

Outside investigators ultimately determined Furr High School administrators changed student grades without informing teachers, instructed educators not to assign grades below 50 percent, improperly altered attendance records and awarded credit to students with excessive unexcused absences. HISD officials have not publicly released underlying evidence to support the findings. District officials have not publicly alleged that Koonce and Davis participated in records manipulation.

The Houston Chronicle submitted a public records request for the investigators report, but HISD officials said the report was shielded from public disclosure by state law, largely because it constituted attorney-client communications. The Texas Attorney General's office ruled in mid-August that HISD had legal grounds to deny the Chronicle's records request.

Court records show the two sides mediated the case last Thursday and reached a settlement agreement.

jacob.carpenter@chron.com

twitter.com/chronjacob
Journalist Bob Woodwards much-quoted book about President Donald Trump went on sale Tuesday, and in a half-hour, four customers in a San Antonio bookstore ponied up $25.98 for copies of Fear.

The fear is real, deadpanned Michelle Madison, manager of Barnes & Noble near Loop 410 and San Pedro Avenue.

The store received 150 copies of the book and already half were spoken for, she said. Another 60 copies are on order.

Its selling better than Unhinged but not as good as Fire and Fury, said bookseller Nicollette Tercilla, referring to books by former Trump employee Omarosa Maingault Newman and by author Michael Wolff.

Trump has slammed both books and called Woodwards fiction and claims that the quotes are made up.

With all the advance media hoopla about the book, people might be forgiven for feeling theyve already read it all.

But for some, the tales of chaos and covert administrative finagling in the White House just werent enough.

One lady said she bought it not because she doesnt like Trump, but she just wants to be in the know on what everyones talking about, Madison said.

Gloria Sanchez stood at the counter and wrapped the two copies she bought in colorful gift paper. Shell give them to friends as birthday presents, she said.

Were all into politics in my family and we have all kinds  Democrats, Republicans, independents  but we dont get into nasty arguments, she said. We have civil debate. Our friendship is more important than politics.

That said, she cant countenance all the lies coming from the White House, she said. Especially when it comes to respecting the service men and women of the country.

I voted for McCain, she said. Twice.

Frances and Raul Alvarez, carrying their copy in a plastic bag, said they didnt vote in the last presidential election. Theyre not going to make the same mistake twice. They said they dislike Trump, but we want to read deeper.

Una Russell, a retiree who sat buttering a bagel in the Starbucks at the store, planned to get her copy as soon as she was done eating.

Everyone has written their book, but Bob Woodward is just a very credible reporter, she said. Ive waited for this one. I havent bought any of the others. She called ahead to make sure copies were still available.

Ive heard a lot already, but I want to read the book to get more of an understanding of (the) guys, meaning Trumps cabinet members like Secretary of Defense Gen. James N. Mattis, she said. He said, I never said that, but that sounds like a cover-up job to me.

In the same rack, underneath Fear, the face of astrophysicist and vocal progressive Neil deGrasse Tyson peered out, as if to mock his bunk mate.

Monica Lynn, stopping off to get a chocolate/vanilla frappe after buying her copy, said she was going to pass the book to her father after she finished reading it.

Trump goes on and on about fake news, when most of the things he says are false, she said. Im just astounded hes still the president.

Melissa Fletcher Stoeltje is a staff writer in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read her on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | mstoeltje@express-news.net | Twitter: @mstoeltje
A tent camp for migrant children in the desert outside El Paso will expand to accommodate a growing number of Central American children crossing the border, the Department of Health and Human Services said Tuesday.

HHS, the agency tasked with caring for migrant children and teenagers in U.S. custody, said it would more than triple the size of its camp at the Tornillo-Guadalupe Land Port of Entry from 1,200 beds to as many as 3,800.

The Trump administration established the camp in June as a temporary shelter because its facilities elsewhere were running out of space.

That occurred at the height of the White Houses zero tolerance prosecution initiative, a crackdown that separated some 2,500 migrant children from their parents.

RELATED: Authorities launch probe into reports of migrant child dying after stay at immigration facility

Widespread condemnation forced President Donald Trump to reverse course and stop the separations in June, but since then HHS has taken in greater numbers of underage migrants.

The number of families illegally crossing the border jumped again in recent weeks, border agents and administration officials report. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is scheduled to release its latest arrest totals today.

Kenneth Wolfe, a spokesman for HHS Administration for Children and Families, said the need for emergency capacity was the result of the latest surge at the border, not the administrations decision to separate families during the crackdown this spring.

Family separations resulting from the zero tolerance policy ended on June 20, 2018, and are not driving this need, Wolfe said in a statement.

HHS officials have worked round the clock to add beds or add shelters to avoid any backup at the border, Wolfe added.

He said the agency has 12,800 minors in its custody, the highest number ever. Minors spend an average of 59 days in HHS custody, up from 51 days in 2017.

RELATED: Feds move 16 fathers after "disturbance" at Karnes immigration facility

HHS has used the Tornillo site primarily to house older teens, channeling younger children in its custody to more permanent sites among the roughly 100 shelters where migrant children are housed.

At the Tornillo camp, teens sleep in large, climate-controlled canvas tents, and the site offers a full range of services including recreational and educational activities, HHS reports.

Wolfe said 1,400 of the 3,800 beds at the expanded site would remain on reserve status, so they could be brought online incrementally as needed. The camp will remain open at least through the end of this year, the HHS says.

Underage migrants who arrive without a parent may include teens traveling alone as well as younger children sent for by parents or relatives already living in the United States.

After crossing from Mexico, they typically turn themselves in to the U.S. Border Patrol, which is legally obligated to transfer minors to HHS within 72 hours.

Underage migrants who enter the United States often are seeking some form of humanitarian protection, citing threats to their lives and their families by gangs and lawlessness in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

For children in its care, HHS works to identify and vet an adult sponsor who can assume custody and ensure the minors comply with immigration proceedings and court appointments. In nearly 90 percent of cases, that sponsor is a parent or close relative.

A new information-sharing agreement between HHS and the Homeland Security Department has increased concerns that some potential sponsors living in the United States illegally will be too scared to come forward, knowing their information could be accessible to immigration enforcement agents.

To accommodate more migrant children and longer stays in U.S. custody, the Trump administration has asked the Pentagon to host additional camps and shelters on military bases, but Wolfe said the government has not broken ground on any new facilities.

Homeland security officials says immigration and asylum laws make it difficult to deport children who arrive illegally.

According to the latest homeland security statistics, 98 percent of the 31,754 unaccompanied minors from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador taken into custody during the 2017 fiscal year still were in the U.S. as of June 30.
Raja Rao had started his literary career at the age of 15 initially in Kannada and later in English.

It was a book that sparked off a historic meeting that laid the foundation of political and cultural ties between Indian and France. While imprisoned in Naini jail during the freedom struggle, Jawaharlal Nehru had read a review of La Condition Humaine in the New Statesman. The author was Andre Malraux and Nehru resolved to meet him whenever the opportunity presented itself.

While attending to an ailing Kamala in Switzerland, Nehru hoped he might get a little time to dash to Paris to meet Malraux. But first, a meeting had to be set up and who better to do this than Raja Rao the celebrated writer?

Raja Rao had started his literary career at the age of 15 initially in Kannada and later in English.

Though Kannada was his mother-tongue, he felt he could not express himself adequately in this. His knowledge of Sanskrit was not good enough and thus for Rao, English remained the one language, with its great tradition and its unexplored riches, capable of catalysing my impulses and giving them a near-native sound and structure. But Rao always acknowledged his early debt to Kannada. He had published his early stories in Kannada periodicals and this literary output enabled him to adopt a more vigorous and authentic style which stood him in good stead for writing in English as well.

His early writings impressed Patrick Geddes, the polymath scientist, sociologist and urban and town planner who later was to be involved in urban planning in India. Geddes invited Rao to the new international college he had started in Montpellier. Raos excitement at the invitation from Geddes was palpable. Many years later, he was to recall that the letter from Geddes had come to him in a blue-covered envelope. The move to Montpellier was the beginning of a journey that would eventually lead Rao to spend more years outside than in India. Though Rao was proud to be Indian, he felt his karma that had destined him to spend half his life outside his country.

In those early years, Rao found France much like India formal and informal, friendly and chaotic.

He was impressed by the self-reflectiveness of the French language and its musicality. He resolved to start learning it. He soon moved to Paris to continue his studies at the Sorbonne and later served on the editorial board of the Mercure de France a French periodical for seven years. It was during this time that he first met Andre Malraux. Raos published stories attracted the attention of writers like Romain Rolland and Stefan Zweig. But it was his writing of Kanthapura that was praised by Malraux and brought him his international reputation as a writer of stature. Kanthapura was written in a thirteenth-century castle of the Dauphine in the heart of the Alps. Both E.M. Forster and Malraux were lavish in their praise.

Though it was the engagement with the human condition that was the common link between Malraux and Rao, Malraux being more of an adventurer, engaged with it in a more direct, forthright manner. As Rao put it, Malrauxx love of revolution was spiritual, a love of pure greatness.

At the age of 21, he went to Cambodia to discover the Khmer temples. In 1925, he went to Saigon to join the Young Annam League fighting against French domination. He joined archaeological expeditions in Afghanistan and Iran and his explorations in the Arabian hinterland for the lost city of Sheba made him famous. Malraux fought for the Republicans during the Spanish Civil War. He organised the air force for the international brigade and was wounded twice. He was also one of the few persons allowed to be present in the room when Picasso worked on his famous painting Guernica.

In the second World War he led a French tank unit and twice managed to escape German captivity. Malraux was involved with the Chinese revolution in its early years but though he addressed the international progressive writers in Moscow, excesses under Stalin led to a disenchantment with Communism.

This was the man that Raja Rao had been tasked with arranging a meeting with Nehru. Malrauxs The Human Condition had won the prestigious Goncourt Prize in 1933, had been translated into a number of languages and he was the toast of Europe. The book is a novel based on the early days of the Chinese revolution, more specifically the Shanghai Uprising of 1927. The novel depicts characters including foreigners who lead the people to rise up against their colonial masters but are then finally betrayed and the uprising is put down. Its also Malrauxs account of the early years of Chiang Kai-shek who started as a heroic revolutionary but finally betrayed the cause and was forced into exile. The book generated widespread publicity with the Goncourt Prize and people began to identify with the struggle and with the main protagonists depicted in the book.

Raja Rao soon realised that arranging a meeting with Malraux was next to impossible. Malraux was then the tallest literary figure in Europe. In contrast, Nehru was almost a nobody. He was one of the leaders of a nation that was yet to gain freedom, and freedom from colonial seemed a long way off.

Nehru was still far from becoming the symbol of a leadership struggle that would inspire the liberation struggles of Afro-Asian nations everywhere and make him so well known internationally.

Raja Rao knew Malraux but not well enough to arrange the meeting. But as Rao said  for an Indian nothing ever seems impossible. The Gods always worked for you. Finally, the meeting was arranged by Jean Guehenno who edited the international literary magazine Europe to which Malraux had contributed. Guehenno had also published some of Raos early writings.

The historic meeting took place at a Chinese restaurant The Shanghai in Paris in January 1936.

Even at the restaurant, Malraux was besieged by patrons and serving staff for his autograph. At the meeting, it was Malraux who appeared more in command. Nehru appeared tentative and hesitant.

Nehru understood some French and Malraux some English. Rao was to be the interpreter but spoke so rapidly that it was almost impossible to translate. For Malraux ideas were supreme and if you could not die for an idea, it was not worth living.

Malrauxs first question was on Gandhism. I am as you know, interested in Gandhism. I can understand any intelligent mans aversion to violence. But I am an occidental man. I believe in action and in Europe, we are all in a hurry. But you, Monsieur Nehru, you are of the east. In India you have the window on eternity. You created the Upanishads and the Gita where Krishna, standing beyond duality says  Arjuna kill and be killed for in the end, there is neither the killer nor the killed. Nehru pointed to the various ways in which Krishna had tried to stop the war. As for Gandhi, the apostle of non-violence had even offered to raise volunteers for the British army during the first world war. And the fight against the British was to convert the enemy.

In the end, Malraux promised to visit India when it was free. And visit he did, in 1958 as De Gaulles minister of culture accompanied by Raja Rao. The Malraux-Rao visit helped to lay the foundation of a Franco-Indian cultural relationship that endures to this day.

The writer is a senior publishing industry professional who has worked with OUP and is now a senior consultant with Ratna Sagar Books
Local anglers, lamenting the 'death of a once great fishery' - the world renowned Lanesboro hot water stretch - are this weekend pleading with two Government Ministers to use their emergency powers to order remedial work to be undertaken before it's too late.

Philip Gordon, Secretary Lough Ree Angling Hub, made the impassioned plea in a letter to Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment Denis Naughten TD and Minister of State for the Office of Public Works and Flood Relief Kevin 'Boxer' Moran TD. He also sent photos of the hot water stretch to the pair.

ALSO READ: Fishing competitions in Lanesboro/Ballyleague hindered by hot water stretch issues

Mr Gordon stressed that it would be a huge blow to tourism in the region and cost the economy thousands of Euro if the Lanesboro hot water stretch isn't dredged.

The Lough Ree Angling Hub previously highlighted concerns about the hot water stretch to the Ministers when they attended a launch event, but a frustrated Mr Gordon said the situation now is much worse with no fish, heavy weed and pollution.

Mr Gordon wrote, "We are really at our wits end with this problem now and feel we have to take action to highlight the death of a once great fishery.

"Unless this stretch is dredged in the very near future the fishery is GONE for ever - a fishery that was worth thousands of euros to the economy here.

"We know there are protected species involved - but are the fish not the most important protected species of all??? They are leaving the area all the time."

Mr Gordon concluded with a stark warning, "This hot water stretch was once known all over the world - now it is DEAD. We would love to see it saved but unless you can help urgently that will not happen."

For more on this story, see www.longfordleader.ie.
A burglary gang believed to be the orchestrators behind a series of house break-ins across north Longford have been arrested following a garda operation in Galway.

The suspects which senior detectives are linking to reported burglaries in the Granard Garda District were detained for questioning last week, it has emerged.

ALSO READ: Gardai hunt burglary gang behind string of break ins across Co Longford

Superintendent Brian Mohan made the revelation at this weeks meeting of Longford County Councils Joint Policing Committee (JPC) as he touched on the sudden upsurge over the past three month period.

The apprehension of the people in Galway last week hopefully will see an end or at least a reduction in that type of activity as we believe it was the same people who were involved in all the ones that were happening on the edge of the N4, he said.

They were comments which were tempered somewhat by confirmation that both Edgeworthstown and Granard Garda Stations had been bolstered by a combined total of five additional gardai.

Supt Mohan said in spite of the additional resources and likely increased garda visibility in both locations, it was imperative homeowners and more pointedly retailers made every effort to secure their properties.

Our thefts are down, thefts from shop appear to be the biggest drivers and I would ask the business community to try and prevent thefts rather than let them occur, he asked.

Its a huge drain on garda resources to investigate even a small theft. I would ask shopkeepers to not have high value goods at the front entrances of shops and be aware of people coming into their shops.

Longford Superintendent Jim Delaney followed suit by insisting the onus was on businesses to reach out and work in tandem with law enforcement officials in a bid to stamp out incidents of shoplifting.

We are putting in the visibility and resources but it is up to people to secure their property, take advantage of any advice the Crime Prevention Officer gives to make it that bit more difficult for people involved in that type of crime, he said.

As someone who, by her own admission, has spent much of their working life in the retail industry, Cllr Peggy Nolan said shop owners shouldnt be put off from reporting thefts, however small or trivial they may seem.

The message has to go out that no crime is petty and that if you do the crime you will do the time, she said.
School & Education, Local News, Business & Finance, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: September 12 2018

This grant will provide students with mentoring, professional development training, and the teaching pedagogy skills.

Patchogue, NY - Sept. 12, 2018 - Congressman Lee Zeldin (R, NY-1) issued the following statement announcing a $1,349,533 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to Congressman Lee Zeldin (R, NY-1) issued the following statement announcing a $1,349,533 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to State University of New York (SUNY) at Stony Brook to research models to advance underrepresented minority STEM faculty at predominantly undergraduate institutions:

An education firmly rooted in the sciences has become essential in a 21st century economy, and providing Long Island students the opportunity to pursue the paths which lead to high paying jobs in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields begins with supporting students of all backgrounds to pursue STEM research and teaching careers. This grant will provide our students with mentoring, professional development training, and the teaching pedagogy skills necessary to succeed in academic faculty positions. Stony Brook University has earned a world renowned reputation for technological advancement and innovation and I look forward to the success of this collaborative research.

Stony Brook University Principal Investigator Dave Ferguson said, "The aim of the project is to build a comprehensive national model for preparing underrepresented minority doctoral students for faculty positions in predominantly undergraduate institutions. The applied research component of the project will offer insights into the mechanisms for preparing and supporting students for early faculty success in their STEM research and teaching."
Shares of Tata Motors opened on a weak note at Rs 269.80, then slipped to a low of Rs 259, down by 3.06 per cent.

Shares of Tata Motors on Wednesday slipped as much as three per cent in morning trade on bourses after the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) issued a warning to the UK government of massive losses if Britain was to leave the European Union (EU).

New Delhi: Shares of Tata Motors on Wednesday slipped as much as three per cent in morning trade on bourses after the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) issued a warning to the UK government of massive losses if Britain was to leave the European Union (EU).

JLR CEO Ralf Speth, who was speaking at the Zero Emission Vehicle Summit in Birmingham, on Tuesday said that fears of a so-called "no-deal" Brexit and lack of clarity over Britain's post-Brexit plans threatens the UK-based luxury carmaker's entire operational set up.

Following the development, shares of Tata Motors opened on a weak note at Rs 269.80, then slipped to a low of Rs 259, down by 3.06 per cent over its previous closing price. On NSE, the Tata Motors stocks opened at Rs 142.95, then lost ground and fell to a low of Rs 139.40, down 2.34 per cent over its last close.

"Just one part missing could mean stopping production at a cost of 60 million pounds a day. That is a huge risk. We depend on free, frictionless, seamless logistics," he said. Back in July, the JLR CEO had issued a similar statement warning the UK government against a "bad Brexit deal".

The UK's largest carmaker has witnessed a complete turnaround in its fortunes since, Tata Motors acquired the traditional British brands from Ford 10 years ago.
State refiners, however, have no advice from the government on Iranian imports yet, the official said.

Amid uncertainty over impending US sanctions against Tehran, Indian Oil Corp (IOC) has booked for import of usual monthly quantity of 0.75-0.8 million tonnes of crude oil from Iran in October but is unsure if the trade would continue thereafter, a senior official said.

New Delhi: Amid uncertainty over impending US sanctions against Tehran, Indian Oil Corp (IOC) has booked for import of usual monthly quantity of 0.75-0.8 million tonnes of crude oil from Iran in October but is unsure if the trade would continue thereafter, a senior official said.

While India wants to continue importing Iranian oil, albeit a reduced volume, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week stated that Washington would consider waivers on the embargo but made clear that these would be time-limited, if granted. State refiners, however, have no advice from the government on Iranian imports yet, the official said.

IOC, he said, had planned to import of 9 million tonnes of Iranian oil in the 2018-19 fiscal (April 2018 to March 2019). "This comes to a monthly volume of 0.75 million tonnes and we have been doing similar kind of import till now, including in September. We have booked a similar volume of 0.75-0.8 million tonnes in October".

US sanctions against Iran kick in from November, which will block payment routes. "We don't know yet what stance government of India will take. We have not been told to stop or cut down on imports from Iran as yet. We are importing oil on a monthly basis," the official said. "We don't know what will happen in November. Perhaps there will be clarity before that".

Indian refiners buying from Iran benefit from 60 days credit, terms not available from suppliers of substitute crudes  Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Nigeria, and the US. But, banks are unwilling to handle payments once sanctions are implemented in the first week of November. Also, the absence of payment mechanism may pose a challenge to the transportation of the oil as Iranian crude is bought on a CIF basis and shipped on Iranian tankers.

Under Cost, Insurance and Freight (CIF) mode of shipping, the seller assumes the responsibility of transportation and insurance. The liability and costs associated with successful transit are paid by the seller until the goods are received by the buyer. Other state refiners, Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) are not importing Iranian oil in October, industry sources said.

India had planned to import about 25 million tonnes of crude oil from Iran in the current fiscal, up from 22.6 million tonnes imported in 2017-18. While Iranian oil makes up for a very small volume in the basket of crude for HPCL, and BPCL has stopped buying Iranian oil but for a different reason.

It had contracted for around 4 million tonnes of Iranian crude for 2018-19. This included one million tonnes for its joint venture refinery at Bina in Madhya Pradesh. Of the remaining 3 million tonnes destined for Mumbai and Kochi refineries, one million tonnes was on a firm basis and the remaining was optional.

BPCL has taken all of the firm volumes already, as well as around 1.5 million tonnes of the optional volumes, officials said. Now, it has no need of the remaining 5,00,000 tonnes of optional crude because the hydrocracker unit was shut after a fire last month. And so, it has not booked any cargoes for October.

The hydrocracker will restart by December. Otherwise, Mumbai refinery is working at full capacity.
SPRINGFIELD -- Mountain Development Corp., owner of the Eastfield Mall, wants Eastfield Commons, the $200 million, open-air, mixed use development it plans for the site, to be unique, convenient and trendy.

But Mountain needs it to be, in the words of Chuck Breidenbach, managing director for MDC Retail Properties Group, "internet resistant."

"It's a problem everybody in brick-and-mortar retail is facing," Breidenbach said in a phone interview with The Republican on Tuesday. "We have a vision to make this into a large mixed-use site. We feel it is the best use for the location.

"(The Eastfield Mall property) is in a great position to turn into something new and different," he said.

Department stores -- like the JCPenney, Macy's and most recently Sears that have closed at Eastfield in recent years -- are struggling to compete against online retailers.

So developers like MDC Retail Properties Group, a unit of New Jersey-based Mountain Development Corp., are focusing on building for businesses that don't compete with Amazon. Think of restaurants, offices, apartments and condominiums.

"We can build a community within a community," Breidenbach said.

Imagine a young professional waking up in the morning, dropping the kids off at daycare, going to the gym, grabbing coffee and breakfast, going to the dry cleaner and then reporting for work at the office, Breidenbach said.

Then imagine all of it within the site of what today is Eastfield Mall, he said.

Mountain Development Corp. has been working on de-malling Eastfield since JCPenney announced it was closing its store there in 2011, Breidenbach said. They knew store closings would be a trend.

On Monday, Mountain Development said it hired real estate brokerage Cushman and Wakefield to find builders and development partners. At this point, Mountain doesn't plan to sell the property, only bring in partners to help finance and complete the redevelopment.

"We are long-term players," Breidenbach. "We want to stay with the property. We have a vision for it."

He said the nearest local property along the same themes is Blue Black Square in West Hartford, Connecticut, built in 2008. But Blue Black Square has taller buildings than he envisions in Springfield.

Breidenbach allowed that household incomes in Springfield are not what they are in West Hartford.

"But we hope to raise the average household income with our living options," he said. "We hope to capture a market that exists in Wilbraham, but today leaves Wilbraham to shop. We can capture a market in East Longmeadow that today leaves East Longmeadow."

He cited recent Springfield development success, like MGM Springfield, the renovation of Union Station and the CRRC MA passenger rail car factory in East Springfield.

According to preliminary plans included in the drawing Breidenbach released Tuesday, Mountain Development wants to create 450,000 to 500,000 square feet of remodeled and new construction that would include 100,000 square feet of climate-controlled self storage.

The mall would be demolished in phases. Stores that fit with the new identity would operate during construction and move into new spaces when they are completed.

Breidenbach has no time estimates but said he wants work to start as soon as it can. He plans to progress in stages, hopefully renting out new construction before it begins.

He said it is too early to know how many condominiums and apartments will be built, but the preliminary plans he shared indicate 23 buildings with 12 units each for a total of 276 units.

The business mix would include national, regional and local chains.

"We want it to have a special feel and not be like every place else around the country," Breidenbach said, describing Eastfield Commons as a community within the city.

Kevin Kennedy, the city's chief economic development officer, said he likes that description.

"Think of it as a village. A small village with places to live, work and shop," Kennedy said. "Frankly, if you picture that in that part of the city, I think it is very attractive."

The city's been working with Mountain Development for years, hoping to maintain a large property taxpayer as it deals with a changing retail environment.

The parcels Mountain Development owns at the 86-acre site are assessed at more than $15 million, according to city records.

That doesn't include about 24 acres and the 254,446 square-foot Sears store still owned by Sears and assessed at $5,737,500. At one time, all the Eastfield anchor retailers owned their buildings. Mountain Development bought the JCPenney and Macy's to facilitate the redevelopment.

"A lot of this hinges on the Sears property," Kennedy said. "Sears eventually will have to divest themselves of their real estate, given where they are going."

Breidenbach said his company is in talks with Sears.

The Sears store at Eastfield Mall closed over Labor Day weekend.

The mall still has a 16-screen Cinemark movie theater, Old Navy, Hannoush Jewelers, Ninety-Nine Restaurant & Pub, Donovan's Irish Pub and a flea market.

Eastfield Mall opened in 1967 as Greater Springfield's first enclosed mall. Back then it featured local favorites Forbes & Wallace and Steiger's along with Sears as anchors.
WILBRAHAM -- Friendly's CEO John Maguire, a former Panera Bread executive who took the helm at Friendly's just months after the chain emerged from bankruptcy, is leaving after more than six years with the Greater Springfield mainstay.

Maguire is leaving to take another job in the restaurant industry, which he said will be announced at a later date. Friendly's said Wednesday that George Michel, who served as CEO of Boston Market Corp. for eight years, will be interim CEO at Friendly's.

Michel also was CEO at Timothy's Coffees of the World, Inc., and at A&W Restaurants.

Maguire is also leaving his job as CEO of California-based Johnny Rockets Group.

Mike Nolan will take over as CEO of Johnny Rockets. Nolan has been serving as the organization's president for more than a year.

"I'm leaving things in good hands," Maguire said in an interview Wednesday afternoon. "I couldn't be more proud of the team at Friendly's and at Johnny Rockets and what we've accomplished."

The Friendly's restaurants, Johnny Rockets and Boston Market are all owned by Sun Capital Partners, an investment firm so diverse it also owns Ames Drywall Finishing Tools and Services and the British women's clothing chain Bonmarche.

Maguire took over Friendly's in April 2012, just four months after the chain emerged from federal bankruptcy protection. That bankruptcy wiped away $297 million in debt and closed more than 100 locations, nine of them in the Springfield area.

At the time, Friendly's had 254 restaurants -- 121 company-owned and 133 franchised.

Today, it's down to 230 locations evenly split between franchises and company-owned. Friendly's restaurants closed this year in Bourne, Gloucester, Ludlow, South Hadley and Westfield.

The company has 7,000 employees.

That doesn't count those who manufacture Friendly's Ice Cream. Friendly's sold its retail ice cream and manufacturing business to Dallas, Texas-based Dean Foods Co. in 2016 for $155 million. Dean sells ice cream to supermarkets and Friendly's restaurants.

Friendly's has opened new locations, including at the Apex Center in Marlborough and in Merrimack, New Hampshire. Friendly's hopes to add five to 10 stores by 2019.

This summer it renovated two Connecticut locations -- Manchester and Windsor Locks -- into a fast casual concept where customers order at the counter and then have their food brought to them.

"Those are experiments," Maguire said. "And, what we like to do with experiments is change things and tweak things as we go."

Maguire also spearheaded other changes, like the return of drive-thru windows at Friendly's and the Friendlier Prices menu in greater Springfield.

Brothers S. Prestley and Curtis Blake founded Friendly -- the apostrophe-s wasn't added until years later -- in 1935 in Springfield and grew the company quickly in the years following World War II. The brothers, both still living past their 100th year, sold to Hershey Foods in 1979.

The company changed hands a few times before becoming an independent corporation, and Pres Blake fought a long battle against a previous management regime he felt was destroying the brand and its legacy.

It was Pres Blake's activism that resulted in his opponents selling the company in 2007 to Sun Capital for $337.2 million.
MONTAGUE -- The 146,000-square-foot Southworth Paper Mill in Turners Falls -- built in 1896 and shut down abruptly in August 2017 -- has no heat, no power, no working sprinklers, no fire alarms and apparently no one to take care of it, the village's fire chief says.

"If there was a fire in that building, the only way we would know it is by someone driving past and seeing the flames coming out of the windows," said Turners Falls Fire Chief John Zellmann.

Zellmann said the mill still has materials like paper, fiber and chemicals stored within, and trespassers could easily break in and start fires either out of malice or to keep warm. He described the building's current condition in an interview with The Republican this week.

"And winter is coming," he said.

The Turners Falls Fire District and the town of Montague, the municipality that includes unincorporated Turners Falls, are suing what's left of the Southworth Co. to force someone to secure and maintain the building and protect it against fire.

The suit was filed last month in Franklin Superior Court in Greenfield. A hearing on a preliminary injunction is set for Friday.

Southworth CEO John S. Leness couldn't be reached at his home in Seattle for comment.

Zellmann said he took the issue to the town and urged litigation because he wanted to prevent a repeat of the 2007 fire that destroyed the former Strathmore Paper Co. mill, a property adjacent to the Southworth mill.

At the time of the fire the old Strathmore plant was being used to store recycled materials. The blaze burned for 36 hours over Memorial Day weekend and required firefighters from at least 35 departments.

No one was injured, Zellmann said. But he's fearful the village wouldn't be so lucky next time.

Strathmore had closed in 1994, and the town took ownership of the property because of nonpayment of taxes. The fire made it harder to redevelop the property, and the town has never found a new occupant.

"Here, with Southworth, we have a usable building," Zellmann said. "We need to preserve it."

Southworth also owes Montague $298,000 in unpaid 2017 and 2018 taxes and penalties, according to documents on file at the Franklin County Registry of Deeds.

In May, the town filed early-stage paperwork at the registry to take the property for back taxes. The property comes with the right to draw hydropower from the Turners Falls canal system.

But Zellmann said the town really doesn't want possession of the mill and all the responsibility that entails, and any tax-taking would take months.

Southworth Paper filed for bankruptcy protection about a month after shutting down its Turners Falls operations. It ended the bankruptcy process and did not complete liquidation.

Southworth's shutdown threw 120 employees out of work. When it filed for bankruptcy protection, Southworth told the court it had $9 million in underfunded pension liability.

In those bankruptcy papers, Southworth warned of the scenario Zellmann describes at the Turners Falls mill.

The company said earlier this year that expenses at the mill, including payroll, utilities, insurance and other operating expenses, exceeded $100,000 a month. The company didn't have money to keep up with those expenses for long.

Exhausting the company's dwindling cash meant, according to court papers, "utility service will be terminated, the boilers will fail, the pipes will freeze and the fire suppression system will fail." There would be no money to insure the building at 36 Canal St.

Southworth at one point had an auction scheduled for the Turners Falls property, and in late 2017 told the bankruptcy court it had a deal in place to sell it to a Maine-based paper manufacturer for $4 million.

But the deal with SBD Greentech fell through, and the auction was canceled and not rescheduled.

Southworth sold its plant on Main Street in Agawam to a group of Berkshire County investors in 2018 for $1.9 million.

Southworth bought the Turners Falls mill in 2006.

The building, long known as Esleeck Paper Co., was built as part of a planned industrial development taking advantage of the hydropower on this stretch of the Connecticut River. The business made onionskin paper for what was then a new technology, the typewriter.
The actor chats about Manto, commercial films and why being compared to Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni is an achievement.

Rarely has an Indian actor received as much praise from the hard-to-please foreign critics as Nawazuddin Siddiqui has for his performance in Nandita Dass Manto. The Hollywood Reporter writes of him, Here, the versatile Nawazuddin Siddiqui is transformed into an astounding resemblance of the writer, in what may well be Mantos definitive screen persona. Siddiqui hurls Mantos talent, wit, self-destructiveness and tragic gravity at the world like a punch in the stomach  in fact, very much like the stories he was writing after 1946, when the film takes place. The handsome Siddiqui, flashing the cleft chin and defiant gaze of an Indian Marcello Mastroianni, is riveting even when Manto enters a downward spiral of alcoholism in the final scenes.

The actor shares his thoughts on the all praise coming his way.

The Hollywood Reporter has called you handsome and compared you with Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni. How do you feel?

To be called handsome by one of the most authoritative publications on American cinema is something I value. I have never been called handsome in my own country, by the people I know, or by the critics who love my work. So it gives me a great kick. As for being compared with Marcello Mastroianni, oh my god, he is such a brilliant actor, so skilled and with such a riveting screen presence. When Id watch him in the films of Vittorio de Sica, Id wonder how a performance could be so natural.

Like Mastroianni and Manto, you never have to raise your voice to be heard.

Ive tried to keep my interpretation of Saadat Hassan Manto as quiet, restrained and controlled as possible. Manto never raised his voice, yet he never had a problem getting people to listen to him. The louder we speak, the more we expose our insecurities about losing our identity. We Indians speak too loudly.

You are getting there. Your performance in Manto is something Mastroianni would have recognized.

You know, when I was in Rome shooting for my friend Tannishtha Chatterjees film, I had the opportunity to visit a museum devoted to Marcello Mastroianni. Just to see artefacts from his films and savour experiences from his life gave me a tremendous high. Where are the museums dedicated to great Indian actors like Ashok Kumar and Dev Anand?

Which other actors do you admire?

I dont admire actors. I admire performances. I watched this film from Hong Kong called In The Mood For Love, and I was blown away by Tony Leungs performance in it. I thought Michal Keaton was mind-blowing in Birdman. But my favourite performance is Leonardo DiCaprio in Wolf Of Wall Street. He played the character as wildly as possible without bothering about pitch or rhythm. I like that sense of unpredictability in a performance.

Do you strive for it too?

I do. I dont care about any of the trappings of showbiz. But I wouldnt say that I dont care about the money that comes from big commercial films. The money I make from doing a film like Genius empowers me to do Manto for free.

Do you make enough money through commercial films?

Our film industry has a strange rule. They know your exact value and they pay you the amount you deserve. Not a penny more and not a penny less. So yes, Id say mainstream cinema pays me well.

You are being praised like no other actor in living memory. Does that make you vain?

I dont sit and think about the praise coming my way. I just move from one role to the next, looking for new challenges. I love looking for nuances in my characters.
A small greyhound shelter with a big reputation will not reopen in Hopkinton any time soon after town officials recommended it not receive a new kennel license.

A public hearing in Hopkinton turned tense Tuesday night as the town's board of selectmen hosted a discussion on Greyhound Friends Inc., a 35-year-old non-profit organization that rescues greyhounds and has been marred by controversy over the last few years and beyond.

Hopkinton Selectmen Chairwoman Claire Wright said the town received 1,800 pleas from "literally around the globe," referring to a petition that opposed Greyhound Friends' reopening.

"Would we expect or want something like that for little Hopkinton?" Wright asked.

"The level of resources, the number of professional and protection organizations that have had to come into our town to correct a 30-year problem...enough is enough. I cannot support this organization in this town," Wright added.

Greyhound Friends has faced accusations of hoarding dogs, neglecting their medical needs and housing them in unsanitary kennels and inhumane conditions. State-authored reports and personal accounts by volunteers tied many of the shelter's problems to the organization's founder and once proud advocate, Louise Coleman.

"The dogs [Greyhound Friends] accepts are generally refugees," Greyhound Friends' attorney Elizabeth Reinhardt told Hopkinton Board of Selectmen.

"Allegations of mistreatment have been swirling on social media...Greyhound Friends has and does adamantly denies any dog was mistreated in its care."

Greyhound Friends received its third cease-and-desist in January 2017 and has not operated since. It applied for a new kennel license in June 2018, and must receive approval from the town clerk. On Tuesday night, the Hopkinton Board of Selectmen listened to input from experts and the public.

Two lines formed at Hopkinton's HCAM-TV studio on Main Street Tuesday night -- supporters and opponents -- as each took turns giving their accounts.

Greyhound adopter Jackie Landry explained how she took in Diamond, now named Emma, after a volunteer told her the dog had been confined in a kennel for an average of 23 hours a day for 60 days. According to Landry, Coleman had said Diamond was difficult to handle, which was untrue.

"She was dirty, she had a wretched smell coming from her really small body. She was scratching her ears, she had a dry cough and it sounded like a choke, like she could not breathe," Landry said.

Landry soon learned the dog had a mess of health problems that were untreated at Greyhound Friends.

"My dog had to be rescued from a rescue. I don't get it," she added.

Former Greyhound Friends board members and whistleblowers Kathy Lundgren and Leslie Doyle also spoke to the board to express the persistent failings they observed of the shelter's board members.

"This is an organization that took in more than 3 million dollars over a five-year period," Doyle said. "And literally went through some days where there was no money for dog food."

Doyle said she is not opposed to Greyhound Friends opening under new management, but thinks current board members cannot handle the responsibility of operating the shelter.

Perhaps the most revealing testimony Tuesday night came from Hopkinton Police Lieutenant Joe Bennett, who said inspections over the last week revealed Greyhound Friends did not have cages big enough to allow an average adult greyhound male to properly stand up and turn around. The updated shelter also did not have air conditioning or running hot water, Bennett said, which were violations of town bylaws.

The shelter has undergone more than $50,000 in renovations after it was ordered to close for a lack of sanitary conditions: but according to Bennett, the renovated kennels still did not meet the town's standards for sanitary conditions.

"I'm disappointed they did not have all their ducks in order...it was mind-boggling to me," said greyhound adopter Steve, a Hopkinton resident and longtime Greyhound Friends supporter who wished not to share his last name for fear of harassment.

Louise Coleman, now a 74-year-old woman who lives in Sherborn, was ousted from Greyhound Friends in 2017 and no longer plays any role there.

She founded Greyhound Friends, Inc. in 1983 after rescuing a greyhound named "Boston Boy." But in recent years, Coleman's behaviors came under more intense scrutiny by state inspectors and the attorney general's office.

In 2017, Coleman resigned from her position as executive director, after the shelter received a cease-and-desist order due to what a health inspector described as unsafe conditions like cracked floors, rusted cages and clogged drains.

She has been brought to court for animal cruelty charge, which she was found not guilty of, and made a settlement with Attorney General Maura Healey's office after she was accused of taking tens of thousands of dollars of tax-exempt donated funds from Greyhound Friends for her own personal use.

The Greyhound Friends' board of directors has implemented staggered term limits as a result of the AG's investigation. But seven of the 10 existing Greyhound Friends board members were there when the shelter was ordered cease-and-desist last year.

"I'm hearing Louise [Coleman] is the sacrificial lamb here," said Hopkinton Board Selectmen John Coutinho. "Unless there's a full change of the people that were on board when all of this went down, I can't see how it could go forward."

Though Coleman is gone, many believe Greyhound Friends should not be allowed to re-open its doors. Numerous Facebook pages called on followers to attend Tuesday night's meeting to oppose the shelter's ability to open.

Coleman has accused whistleblowers of wanting the Hopkinton shelter's land for a separate dog charity in town, Baypath Humane Society. She also said many of the allegations -- including those coming from the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources and animal health inspectors -- stem from personal attacks.

"There are people with axes to grind, and I'm sort of a lightning rod," Coleman told MassLive in a recent interview.

"I am salvaging things as best I can and moving on. I'm very concerned about the dogs and I certainly hope Greyhound Friends goes on, but I'm headed elsewhere."
The Somerville Police Department is seeking information connected to a report of a man desecrating the American flag.

Somerville native George Gatteny said he was driving on Monday when he saw two people - a man and a woman - walk into Somerville Veterans Memorial Cemetery. While stopped in traffic, Gatteny reported seeing the pair pull four flags from the ground and put them in a pile.

Gatteny said he then saw the man urinating on the pile of flags, leading him to exit his vehicle and confront the man.

"I started yelling at them to stop, asking him as I approached 'what the hell he was doing,'" Gatteny said, of the encounter. "He stopped urinating, pulled up his pants and started walking out of the memorial."

Gatteny took photos of the pair as well as photos inside the cemetery.

Somerville Police are working to identify the individuals involved.

Police in Somerville are trying to identify a man they say is a person of interest in the desecration of American flags at a veterans cemetery.

"At that point I was outraged, I couldn't believe what I was seeing," said George Gatteny.

Insulted and infuriated, Gatteny says he witnessed the unthinkable act while sitting in his car in traffic by the Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Somerville. He says a man and a woman in their 20s walked into the cemetery and ripped four American flags out of the ground. The man then took the flags and walked behind the monument.

"He started undoing his pants, taking himself out, and making motions to appear to be urinating," Gatteny said.

George followed the couple and took photos of them on his phone and posted them on Facebook and shared them with police.
A Nigerian priest was held on $5,000 cash bail at his arraignment on child sexual assault charges Tuesday.

The Rev. Christian Ohazulume, 50, pleaded not guilty to three counts of aggravated assault and battery on a child under age 14 at his arraignment in Quincy District Court on Tuesday, WHDH reports.

Ohazulume, an extern priest from Nnewi, Nigeria, was removed by the Archdiocese of Boston Tuesday after the accusations surfaces. The alleged sexual abuse began while the priest was living with a family in the United States in 2007, according to a statement from the Archdiocese.

The Archdiocese of Boston said Tuesday Ohazulume had his faculties to minister removed as a result of receiving an allegation of sexual abuse of a child.

Ohazulume has been employed as a Chaplain at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center since 2010. He also resided at St. Mary of the Assumption Parish in Brookline since 2010 where he has assisted in celebrating Mass and hearing confessions.

If he posts bail Ohazulume will not be allowed to travel outside of Massachusetts, cannot have any unsupervised contact with minors, he must stay away from and have no contact with the victim or her family, and be subject to GPS monitoring, according to WHDH.

He is scheduled to return to court Nov. 13.
Police say a 25-year-old man may be responsible for at least seven purse snatchings and stabbings of women walking alone in Mattapan in recent weeks.

Boston police say Walker Browning is responsible for robberies and stabbings of several women. He was arrested Monday night after allegedly attacking a teenager, police said, and faces charges in connection with two of the alleged incidents.

NECN reports that Browning hid his face at his arraignment in Dorchester District Court Tuesday where he was charged with armed robbery, assault with a dangerous weapon, and intent to rob while armed.

At about 11 p.m. Monday night Browning allegedly stabbed a 16-year-old girl on Walk Hill Street, near his home.

"She said she was walking down the street and noticed a man walking in front of her, as she continued to walk down the street, the man kept looking back at her," a prosecutor said at his arraignment, according to NECN. "She stated all of the sudden the man turned around and rushed at her, grabbing her purse she was holding on her right shoulder."

When the 16-year-old screamed, Browning allegedly pulled out a knife and stabbed her in the thigh, the television station reports.

Police said they spoke to the teenager at the hospital and she provided a description of a man that matched Browning. Boston police detectives believe Browning is responsible for at least seven reported robberies in the area, NECN reports.

Browning allegedly targeted women who were walking alone, stealing their bags and stabbing several of them, police said.

Another woman who was walking on Blue Hill Avenue earlier this month identified Browning as the man who snatched her black tote bag, prosecutors said at the arraignment, according to NECN.

Browning's attorney told reporters that his client's father, cousins, and brother recently died and he is having a hard time coping.

His mother told NECN her son needs "mental help."

A judge ordered Browning held on $50,000 bail in connection with the two alleged robberies. He is being held without bail for a probation violation on a separate assault and battery case, NECN reports.
BY ELAHE IZADI

The Washington Post

Jeff Fager, the executive producer of the flagship CBS news program, "60 Minutes," has left the network.

His exit comes following a series of articles by Ronan Farrow in the New Yorker that included accusations that Fager inappropriately touched employees and that he also allowed harassment in his division.

"This action today is not directly related to the allegations surfaced in press reports, which continue to be investigated independently," CBS News President David Rhodes said in a memo. "However, he violated company policy and it is our commitment to uphold those policies at every level."

It is unclear what specific company policy the memo references.

CBS "terminated my contract early because I sent a text message to one of our own CBS reporters demanding that she be fair in covering the story," Fager said in a statement to CNN. "My language was harsh and, despite the fact that journalists receive harsh demands for fairness all the time, CBS did not like it."

Fager, a former CBS News chairman who was entering his 15th season as a "60 Minutes" executive producer, has denied the allegations in the New Yorker story, which include dissuading employees from reporting incidents to HR.

CBS had been under intense scrutiny for several weeks following the first New Yorker article, which largely focused on CEO Leslie Moonves. Outside law firms were brought in to conduct investigations.

Moonves -- once considered among the most powerful and well-compensated media executives -- resigned as chief of CBS on Sunday evening in light of a second New Yorker article detailing allegations of sexual assault, harassment and intimidation.

In a statement, Moonves said, "Untrue allegations from decades ago are now being made against me that are not consistent with who I am."

(CBS chief executive Les Moonves is departing amid probe into allegations of sexual misconduct)

Moonves is expected to receive millions from a settlement with the CBS board.

According to a company statement, Moonves and the company would be making a $20 million donation, taken from Moonves's severance, "to one or more organizations that support the #MeToo movement and equality for women in the workplace."

In November 2017, CBS News dropped Charlie Rose following a Washington Post investigation detailing allegations of unwanted sexual advances toward women. Rose had been a co-anchor since 2012 on "CBS This Morning" and a contributing correspondent on "60 Minutes."

"Despite Charlie's important journalistic contribution to our news division, there is absolutely nothing more important, in this or any organization, than ensuring a safe, professional workplace -- a supportive environment where people feel they can do their best work," Rhodes said in a memo last year. "We need to be such a place."
Officials with Western Massachusetts hospitals on Tuesday predicted passage of a statewide referendum requiring a fixed ratio of nurses to patients would cost hospitals upwards of $40 million locally, and would likely lead to a reduction of services for patients, and could even threaten the ability of smaller hospitals to remain open.

Separate announcements by several hospitals under the Baystate Health umbrella, including Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Baystate Noble in Westfield, Baystate Franklin in Greenfield and the Baystate Wing Hospital in Palmer and Mary Lane Outpatient Center in Ware, each sound a similar alarm: passage of Question 1 to set mandatory minimum nurse staffing ratios would have a devastating impact in the quality of care provided.

Baystate Medical Center estimates mandatory staffing ratios would cost the Springfield hospital $27 million annually, cause massive bed losses that could affect care for 4,000 patients per year and cause a large increase in emergency wait times.

Christine Klucznik, vice president of Patient Care Services and chief nursing officer at Baystate Medical Center, said medical staff at the Springfield facility want the ability to staff based on patient needs and changing circumstances.

"Question 1 would not allow us to do that," she said. "Real-time decision-making power would be taken away from care providers and put in the hands of a rigid government mandate."

A statement from Baystate Wing estimates the Palmer hospital would face additional costs of $4.8 million annually.

"Small, community hospitals will be hit especially hard by Question 1," said Michele Urban, chief nursing officer and chief administrative officer at Baystate Noble. "Hundreds of our patients will have to go elsewhere for care because of the impact this ballot question will have on our emergency services, medical and mental health care. Our region's most vulnerable patients deserve better."

Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton joined in with the Baystate facilities, issuing a statement that said passage of Question 1 could force the hospital to eliminate up to $9 million in spending on services to meet the mandated staffing demands.

The unified push by the hospitals comes one day after supporters of Question 1 issued a report saying that hospital administrators are "grossly exaggerating" the expected costs of enacting staffing ratios. The pro-Question 1 group -- the Committee to Ensure Safe Patient Care -- said the cost to acute care facilities across the state would be $47 million, and not the amounts estimated by the anti-Question 1 groups.

In contrast, the hospitals on Tuesday each cited a study by MassInsight and BW Research Partners that estimated passage of Question 1 could cost the state health care system $1.3 billion in year one, and $900 million each year afterward.

Question 1, which is on the Nov. 6 statewide ballot, sets limits for hospitals and health care facilities in the the number of patients each registered nurse could be assigned at the same time, depending on the nature of care.

According to the ballot question summary provided by the state Secretary of the Commonwealth, the mandated ratio would range from one nurse for every five to six patients in non-urgent care, like a rehabilitation facility or psychiatric ward, to a 1 to 1 ratio in critical-care situations, including urgent cases in the emergency room or post-surgery when the patient is still under anesthesia.

Angela Belmont, chief nursing officer at Cooley Dickinson, said one of the problems with Question 1 is it removes flexibility from the local hospital. "Government mandated, fixed approaches to meeting the changing needs of hospitalized patients would have severe consequences," she said.

Molly Gray, vice president and chief nursing officer at Baystate Wing and Baystate Mary Lane Outpatient Center, said, "The government cannot mandate decisions that are owed to our experienced and skilled professional nurses. This ballot question will negatively affect the quality of care we are able to provide, and seriously limit access to care throughout our community."
CHICOPEE - They called him their Martin Luther King and their Malcolm X, chanted for justice and praised his focus and success to make change.

More than 150 friends and family gathered at Szot Park and walked a mile to the Police Station to remember Jafet Robles on the anniversary of his fatal shooting. They carried signs and balloons and chanted "Justice for Jafet" and called for others to follow his example of leadership and focus on ensuring young people have opportunities for education and a future.

Robles was found around 7 a.m. in a grassy area of the park off Abbey Memorial Drive and Bemis Avenue by a parks employee on Sept. 11, 2017. He was shot to death and his homicide, which is being investigated by Chicopee Police and the Massachusetts State Police, remains unsolved.

"He was big into physical fitness and he believed in bringing the community together so I thought would be a good way to remember him," said Zulmalee Rivera-Delgado who organized the event with Jeannette Rivera.

His friends also wanted to remind people his crime is unsolved, she said.

"I want to bring a message of love and unity. That was my son's message," said Noemi Arguinzoni-Jimenez, Robles mother. "That and what can we do to stop the violence?"

This year has been very difficult and Arguinzoni-Jimenez said she appreciates the support she has gotten from her son's friends. But still it does not erase his absence which was illustrated two weeks before the anniversary of his death when his four children returned to school.

"The first day of school, it was always a celebration for him. This is the first year he wasn't here," she said.

Robles, a community organizer who worked for Neighbor to Neighbor, had spent time in jail for a non-violent crime. When he was released he was determined to become a productive citizen but found multiple roadblocks. He became an advocate for others who had a criminal record to make it easier for them to turn their own lives around.

Although he never graduated from high school, earning a GED instead, he believed strongly in education and pushed his children to learn not only in the classroom but to read, study and learn from their experiences, Arguinzoni-Jimenez said.

A lot of his advocacy started as he worked to improve his children's schools. That expanded as he pushed to improve the lives of neighborhood children, finding ways to keep them off the streets, active and successful in school and focused on the future, friends said.

Several of his friends wore T-shirts with his picture and a comment he often said, "What do you want to be remembered for." But Calvin Feliciano reminded people that Robles' legacy is the successful passage of a 121-page criminal justice reform bill that Gov. Charlie Baker signed in August.

The law included a myriad of policy changes that will divert more people to treatment and programming, make jails more humane and help people convicted of crimes move on with their lives and make it easier for them to get jobs. The effort also allows those with a record to work at the new MGM Casino.

Robles lobbied for the bill for more than three years, telling his story about how difficult it was for him to simply find a job when he was released from jail although he was determined to go straight.

In a rally in front of the Police Station, Feliciano took out a pen that he wrapped in a white cloth after Baker signed the bill with it and presented it to Arguinzoni-Jimenez.

"That was his life's work," he said. "This pen symbolizes that all the hard work didn't go in vain."

While people talked about the positive things Robles did they also aired their frustration that the murder has not been solved and questioned Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni's Office request for information to help identify the person who was driving an early 2000's GMC Envoy SUV that is silver, gold champagne or another light metallic color in the Szot Park area the night of his death.

Why did the request for help to identify the driver of the "flashy vehicle" come now? Why did it not come a day, two days after the crime while it was fresh in people's minds, asked Rev. Johnnie Muhammad, minister of Muhammad Mosque #13, in Springfield, and a friend of Robles.

"We have to stop being cowards. Someone knows something," he said. "Stay on this Police Department. Be a thorn in their side."

"We don't need street justice. God will see justice is served," he said.

Yolanda Cancel was one of the last people to see Robles, since he appeared on her radio program the night before he was killed. She called

for people to continue his work and demanded unity not bickering sometimes seen among community leaders.

"Jafet changed lives for people who didn't have hope, especially men with felonies," she said.

She said everyone is capable of being a leader and if they want to see something done, such as improve their child's education, they should get out and fight for what they believe is right and important.

While Cancel has seen a number of people killed over the years, she said Robles death hit her especially hard.

"We can't have closure until we find out what happened," she said.
HOLYOKE - In a 4-1 vote Tuesday, the Planning Board approved a zone change for the former John J. Lynch School from residential to highway-business.

The Colvest Group, a Springfield developer, proposes a 25,000 square-foot retail space, which drew praise or condemnation from residents during several public hearings, including a brief comment period Tuesday evening.

The project must gain special permit and other approvals from the City Council before it can proceed.

Planning Board member Mimi Panitch, the dissenting vote Tuesday, called the zoning change decision irresponsible. She said she wanted the board to consider the "highest and best use," and remained troubled by the proposal.

"This proposal has the same flaws as the 2016 Frontier proposal," she said, referring to a proposal that faced similar opposition from the community.

Frontier Development, a Florida concern, offered $750,000 for the site. That deal fell through and led to another request for proposals round, with the latest frontrunner being Colvest. The developer's retail plans call for a $7 million to $8 million investment.

Panitch questioned if highway-business was the correct designation for the property. Small, mall-type developments are no longer favored by communities, she said.

"Everyone agrees we need retail, we need business. The question is how we get there," Panitch said. She wanted a development that does not harm current businesses. "We're opening ourselves up to the good and the bad."

Member John Kelley said the property has been vacant for many years. He said the question before the board is the zoning change, which allowed the committee to gather a "wealth of information."

He added that city departments reviewed the zone change and received the support of the mayor's office. He called for a vote along with member Eileen Regan.

Panitch said she would write a dissent and called the process the "most irresponsible" she has seen.

The city's request for proposals prohibited projects that included a pharmacy or automotive business. Panitch questioned whether that restriction could be enforced.

Marcos Marrero, the city's executive director of planning and economic development, said a mayor would not possess unilateral power to change an original development agreement.

The sale to Colvest, according to Marrero, would need supermajority approval from the City Council. If approved, demolition would occur, followed by building retail establishments and a bank equipped with a drive-thru window.

The City Council approved Colvest's proposed purchase price of $250,000 in May.

The Lynch School educated generations of Holyoke middle and junior high school students from 1953 until it closed in 2009.

Residents offered the Planning Board letters for or against Colvest's plans, which are entered into public record.

In an email to The Republican, Arnold Jaffee, who spoke at length during an August hearing, said the Lynch School "drama" is unfolding as groups continue a fight to save Mater Dolorosa Church, which the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield shuttered.

The church closed in 2011, followed by around-the-clock vigils for months by parishioners. The matter was settled in the diocese's favor by the Vatican.

Arnold said the Holyoke Historical Commission "moved aggressively" to save the church and preserve a cornerstone in the city's Polish heritage.

But in late June, the City Council rejected a purchase-and-sale agreement with the diocese. The city offered $50,000 for the church property. Many of the councilors considered the sale a bad idea.

"This failure has left behind widespread anger, disillusionment with the city's elected officials, and a sense of betrayal," Arnold stated in the email.

Arnold said Lynch School is an example of Modern American architecture and wants it preserved. He added the area is "populated" with commercial and automotive businesses, which give the appearance of "urban deterioration."

He opposed a "low-end," poorly designed commercial structure. "This is an increasingly upscale community that neither want nor need the enterprises in the offering," he wrote.

Arnold forwarded a detailed letter to the City Council's Ordinance Committee.

Christian LaChappelle, the Planning Board chairman, limited the speakers Tuesday night to two minutes.

Resident Sara Krohn said she favored saving the building and asked for more transparency on future projects. She called the proposed zoning change a mistake, potentially creating a future "eyesore."

LaChappelle read several letters into the public record. One resident, who lives two blocks away, said the Lynch School was a substantial building worth preserving.

Real estate agent Craig Della Penna, in a letter to the board, asked why Lynch School could not host a rental or condominium project. He added the original request for proposals discouraged proposal from residential developers.
NORTHAMPTON -- Sept. 15 will be recognized in the city as Usher Syndrome Awareness Day following a proclamation from Mayor David Narkewicz.

Usher syndrome is a rare and incurable genetic disorder and is the leading cause of combined deaf and blindness. It can affect vision, hearing and balance. There are only about 50,000 cases in the U.S., but it affects people in Northampton.

"We want to spread awareness about this condition," Narkewicz told city councilors last week.

There's limited public awareness about Usher syndrome, but patients can also suffer from depression, isolation and loss of independence.

Narkewicz presented the proclamation to a Northampton resident whose son lives in McDonald House and has been diagnosed with Usher syndrome. Her family moved to Massachusetts from Florida when her son was 5 in order to attend the Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech. By age 12, he started to lose his sight as well, and by 24, he had lost most of his peripheral vision and now has only tunnel vision, leaving him legally blind.

"I'm so thrilled to be living in such a caring community where you all are willing to bring light to this affliction," she said. "It's rare, but I'm hoping that with more attention placed on it, the third Saturday of each September, maybe we can bring him some help, and to others like him."
SPRINGFIELD -- The City Council this week formally urged local officials to posthumously promote Police Lt. Robert L. Caulton, saying it was important to "right the wrong" of racial discrimination that unfairly obstructed his promotion during his lifetime.



"Today is an opportunity to right the wrongs of history," said Councilor Justin Hurst, the lead sponsor of the nonbinding resolution. "I think we can lead courageously on this."



As a black officer in Springfield, beginning in 1964, Caulton faced obstacles and discrimination that prevented his rightful promotion to captain, Hurst said.

Police Commissioner John Barbieri warned councilors in advance of Monday's meeting that he has significant concerns about the proposed promotion. He believes it will open a "Pandora's box" of other officers making claims of being unfairly denied promotion. He did say the city will fully research the issue.

"Posthumous promotions are typically if not invariably reserved for officer's killed in the line of duty and done immediately after their death as a tribute to their service and their family," Barbieri added in a statement Wednesday.

Caulton served 32 years on the police force. He retired in 1995 and died in 2003.

Council resolutions are nonbinding and reflect the opinion of the council. The council passed the measure by a voice vote Monday. Councilor Kateri Walsh was the only one to express reservations, echoing the concerns raised by Barbieri.

Helen R. Caulton-Harris, the daughter of Robert Caulton and the city's longtime health and human services commissioner, attended the meeting and said the promotion would properly honor an outstanding officer who loved serving and loved the men and women of the police department.



She praised Hurst, saying, "Thank you for the courage it takes to honor the legacy of my late father."



Barbieri did not attend the council meeting, citing the need to keep politics out of the promotion process.

Councilor E. Henry Twiggs, a longtime civil rights activist, said he knew Robert Caulton well, calling him a "fine gentleman," and recalled his fight to be promoted.

"To be a black in a community like this is a very difficult thing," Twiggs said. "You must have great strength."

The council resolution calls on Mayor Domenic Sarno, Barbieri and anyone else empowered, "to correct the record by by posthumously promoting Lt. Robert L. Cauton to Captain." It further states he was "unfairly denied his promotion even though he was more qualified than others who were promoted solely because of the race politics of his time."

Hurst said he is convinced that Caulton was the most qualified candidate and deserved to be captain.

Caulton was a candidate for promotion to captain in 1992, but two other supervisors, Paula Meara and Peter Dillon, were promoted to the two open positions. Dillon had the highest score on the promotion exam and Meara had the second highest score, followed by Caulton.

The 1992 promotions were made by a five-member citizen Police Commission chaired by Henry M. Thomas III. Thomas, who is black, said at the time that their high scores were not the sole factor in choosing Dillon and Meara as captains, but that the commission considered their service records and interviews, and both had "outstanding qualifications and great potential for leadership as captains."

Meara went on to serve as chief of police from 1996 to 2005.

Hurst said a 1973 court decree has required the Springfield Police Department to hire one minority police officer for every white officer hired due to department discrimination. Despite the difficulties faced, Caulton "still saw the value of joining the Police Department and being part of the same group who discriminated against people of color regularly," Hurst said.

"He wanted to change the system," Hurst said. "The only difference is he wanted to change it from the inside as opposed to what the peaceful protesters were doing from the outside. The courage he showed, he wanted to be part of the solution, as being police officer. It had to be difficult."

Councilor Marcus Williams thanked Hurst and Caulton-Harris for sharing stories about Caulton.

"It's exactly the reason why I feel I am here today," Williams said. "It serves as a reminder and source of inspiration for me when I hear stories of the past and not always a good thing, a past that was harder for some folks as the way they looked or the race they were."

Councilor Kenneth Shea said the council's duty is not just to handle routine business, but sometimes to "to shine the light on someone who has been wronged or perceived to have been wronged," and make corrections.

Walsh said she found it "extremely awkward" to raise concerns about the promotion when she is friends with Caulton-Harris and respects her father's "tremendous service to the city of Springfield."

She did have concerns about the issue opening the door to other post-promotion challenges, and about adding politics to the promotion process. In addition, she said she did not want to discredit the service of the two promoted officers, knowing the hardships faced by Meara, a woman, in advancing her own career.
The territorial jurisdiction of these courts would cover the entire state concerned.

New Delhi: The Centre on Tuesday informed the Supreme Court that so far 12 special courts have been set up in 11 states to try exclusively the pending 2,466 criminal cases against MPs/MLAs with a view to expediting the disposal within one year.

The Centre in an affidavit said one special court each has been established in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal and two courts in National Capital Territory of Delhi.

The affidavit was filed in response to the direction issued on August 30 when the court pulled up the Centre for not giving data as to the number of criminal courts/cases pending against MPs and MLAs in various courts despite repeated directions.

Acting on a PIL filed by BJP leader and advocate Ashwini Upadhyay seeking setting up of fast track courts to try criminal cases against politicians and to complete the trial within one year, the apex court in December 2017 directed setting up of special courts.

On August 21 the last date of hearing, the bench had directed the Centre to expedite setting up of special courts to exclusively try legislators  MPs and MLAs against whom criminal cases are pending and file a status report by Tuesday specifying the number of cases pending before the already set up courts.

The Centre said of the 12 special courts that have been set up, six are at sessions court level, five at magistrate level and as far as Tamil Nadu is concerned it has not indicated the status of the one court. The territorial jurisdiction of these courts would cover the entire state concerned. It said 2,466 cases are pending/disposed of in these courts.

It said in the remaining states where the criminal cases of MPs/MLAs are less than 65 and these cases will be tried in regular courts in fast track mode. The Centre has issued advisories to all these remaining states to dispose of the cases expeditiously. The Centre is regularly taking up the matter with the state governments and the high courts.

Regarding additional courts over and above those already set up, the Centre said the high courts of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Patna, Calcutta and Kerala have informed that there is no requirement of additional courts. Bombay high court has expressed the need for additional courts but had not specified the number. The high courts of Madras, Hyderabad (for the states of AP and Telangana) and Allahabad have not furnished information in this regard while Delhi high court has left the matter to be decided by the Centre.

The Centre said despite its constant efforts there are still some high courts and state governments who have not responded with the requisite information and data in time. Therefore the information, which is being presented, is not complete, the affidavit pointed out.

It sought a direction from the apex court to all the high courts and states to present up-to-date information regarding number of cases transferred to the special courts from regular courts; those being tried in district and subordinate courts; cases disposed off; conviction/acq-uittal as the case may be.
SPRINGFIELD - One person was injured in a shooting in the Forest Park neighborhood Tuesday evening.

The shooting happened at about 6:50 p.m. near the intersection of Fort Pleasant and Forest Park Ave. One male was taken to the hospital by ambulance with injuries, said Ryan Walsh, police department spokesman.

Police initially received calls reporting the shooting. When they arrived they found the victim, he said.

Officers remain on the scene investigating the crime. Walsh did not release the condition of the victim and did not say if there had been any immediate arrests.

This is the second shooting on Fort Pleasant Avenue in less than two weeks. On Aug. 29, Kevin Gonzalez, 21, was shot and killed less than a block away in front of 60 Fort Pleasant Ave. He was taken to Baystate Medical Center and died at the hospital.

Police have not made an arrest in the homicide. Anyone with information about either crime is asked to call the Police Detective Bureau at 413-787-6355. Those who wish to remain anonymous may text a tip via cell phone by addressing a text message to "CRIMES," or "274637," and then begin the body of the message with the word "SOLVE."
Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley announced he is resigning to take a job at Mintz Levin and ML Strategies, the lobbying firm.

According to Stephen Tocco, ML Strategies president, said Conley will be wearing "two hats." His formal title will be special counsel for Mintz Levin and senior adviser for ML Strategies.

Conley's resignation will take effect Sept. 26. Gov. Charlie Baker will appoint someone to serve out the rest of his term this year.

Conley, who said he had "no regrets" from his time in office, did not run for re-election this year. He was appointed to the job in 2002 by Acting Gov. Jane Swift and was later elected to the job.

Tocco said Conley has a "tactical mind." He'll focus on city-related issues, Tocco added.

Conley is a former Boston city councilor and prosecutor who oversaw 270 attorneys and staffers as district attorney. He unsuccessfully campaigned for the job of Boston mayor in 2013 when the late Thomas Menino said he would not run for another term.

His first day at Mintz is October 15.

Rachael Rollins, former general counsel for Massport and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, won the Sept. 4 Democratic primary in the race to replace Conley.

Conley, who had endorsed another candidate, Greg Henning, said Rollins has his support.

"If she's elected in November, I'm going to work with her 100 percent to get her off to the right start," he said.

Rollins faces independent Michael Maloney in the Nov. 6 election.

This post has been updated with additional information on Conley's departure.
WEST BROOKFIELD - Plans are underway to see if the former Converse Middle School in Palmer can be the temporary solution to the protracted mold problem that has prevented 620 students from starting the 2018-19 school year at Quaboag Middle/Senior High School in Warren.

Palmer officials are supporting the idea, but a number of issues must be worked out prior to re-opening the facility for students.

Quaboag officials are optimistic Converse could be ready sometime next week.

On Tuesday, Quaboag Superintendent Brett Kustigian met with more than 100 parents who packed the cafeteria at West Brookfield Elementary School to update them on the mold problem, and discuss the potential temporary solution.

In a letter to the community that was also released Tuesday night, he said the idea of using Converse was relayed to him by State Rep. Todd Smola, R-Warren.

Kustigian had contacted Smola Monday night when test results showed that the mold at Quaboag was much worse than first thought and would take longer to remediate than originally estimated.

At this point, there is no timetable on when the Quaboag building will be deemed safe, but Converse appears to be a temporary solution on the horizon that would allow pupils to finally begin class for the school year.

"(Converse) will be able to meet our needs for as long as it takes to remediate (Quaboag)," Smola said in an interview following the Tuesday night meeting. "The building is still in very good condition. We think this could work."

After learning of the test results Monday night, Kustigian called Smola. The representative then drove to Kustigian's office, where they huddled with members of the staff and school committee.

Smola that night contacted Palmer Town Council President Barbara Barry, who relayed that it was worth a try to use Converse.

"Palmer has been wonderful," Smola said.

Tuesday afternoon, Smola, Kustigian and Quaboag Principal Steve Duff met with Palmer Town Manager Charles Blanchard and the Palmer school district's facilities director Stephen Muniec, at Converse, and toured the building.

"It is the most viable option to accommodate the 620-student body," Smola said.

"Safety is the number one priority," he said.

Smola on Tuesday also had discussions with Palmer's police and fire chiefs and the building inspector.

In a letter to the Quaboag school community released Tuesday night, Kustigian wrote:

"After walking through the Converse Middle School today, we have determined that this is an ideal location to temporarily host our middle and high school students, while, at the same time, working to rectify the mold issue at QRMHS. We are collaborating with the Palmer Town Manager and the Palmer Town Council to work out the details of using Converse Middle School.

"Converse Middle School continues to be actively used by recreational teams in the town of Palmer, and up to July of 2018 hosted offices of the Palmer Superintendent and administrative staff," Kustigian wrote.

School officials including Kustigian have been meeting with the district's insurance carrier to discuss if insurance would cover all of the remediation efforts, with another meeting planned Wednesday.

The towns of West Brookfield and Warren comprise the Quaboag Regional School District.

Converse Middle School, built in 1923, was closed to students by the Palmer school committee in June 2017 after officials said the town didn't have the money to maintain it.

In an email statement Tuesday night, Blanchard said: "Palmer would really like to help if we can."
The man wanted in connection with the fatal shooting of a Worcester man over an alleged debt was arrested in New York and will be arraigned there Wednesday on a fugitive from justice charge.

Worcester police and the Dunkirk City Court confirmed authorities arrested 25-year-old Worcester resident Kennie Mota-Cruz Wednesday in Dunkirk, New York.

A clerk for the Dunkirk City Court said Mota-Cruz was expected to be arraigned on a fugitive from justice charge Wednesday.

A warrant was issued for Mota-Cruz out of Worcester Central District Court last week in connection with the Aug. 24 fatal shooting of Jose Ortiz. Police were called to 15 Everard St. in Worcester for a report of gunshots at an apartment.

When police arrived, they discovered Ortiz on the floor of the front porch with a "single gunshot" wound to his head.

Mota-Cruz is facing aggravated assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, armed assault with intent to murder and several firearms charges in connection with the killing.

Two men have been charged as accessories in the fatal shooting.

Jermaine Daye of Worcester was held on $5,000 cash bail in Central District Court Monday on a charge of being an accessory after the fact to aggravated assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

Authorities said that Mota-Cruz and 28-year-old Chayenne Markland of Worcester went to collect a debt from Ortiz, 42, on the night of the shooting.

Markland drove Mota-Cruz to the apartment in Daye's car, police say. Markland was held on $20,000 cash bail on Sept. 4 after he was arraigned on accessory charges, records show.

According to court documents, Daye was told his car had been used in the shooting but failed to notify police. Authorities said he was seen on surveillance video cleaning the inside of the vehicle on Aug. 26 and removing the floor mats.

Police searched the car and found stains believed to be blood, court records said.
A Worcester man admitted in federal court to having six sham marriages, a ruse he took part in to help women obtain immigration status.

Peter Hicks, 58, pleaded guilty to one count of marriage fraud in U.S. District Court Tuesday.

Authorities say Hicks had six fraudulent marriages in order to evade immigration laws.

Robert Rice, special agent for Homeland Security Investigations, wrote in a federal affidavit that Hicks was suspected of engaging in marriage fraud in 2014. The investigator found Hicks was married to six women from Africa.

The marriages were between 2003 and 2013, federal records said.

"All six of the women were foreign nationals from sub-Saharan Africa," Rice wrote. "I confirmed each of the six marriages with the city or town clerks where each marriage license was obtained. I have five of the marriage licenses and have requested the sixth from Connecticut."

Hicks filed for immigration benefits for four of his six wives.

"During a routine interview as part of his application for benefits for a non-citizen spouse, Hicks admitted to marrying three of the women solely to obtain immigration benefits for them," according to the U.S. Attorney's office. "During a second interview with immigration officials, Hicks admitted that he was paid to recruit people for fraudulent marriages."

Hicks claimed he was involved in marriage fraud for 13 years and received money to marry undocumented African women in order to help them establish legal status in the United States. He claimed two men arranged the marriages. The federal records did not list the two men's names.

Authorities say Hicks, on at least one occasion, was still married to one woman when he married another woman.

"Hicks also fraudulently claimed on an immigration form submitted on behalf of one of his spouses, that he had only one former spouse and that he had only petitioned for immigration benefits for the one former spouse, when, in fact, Hicks had actually been married five times and submitted requests for immigration benefits for a number of his former spouses," investigators say.

Rice further stated in his affidavit that Hicks showed investigators photographs of U.S. citizens and their foreign-born spouses. Hicks claimed all of the marriages were shams.

Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 4 in Worcester.
The candidates for Massachusetts governor in 2018 will be allowed to spend up to $20 million, while candidates for auditor will be capped at $375,000.

Massachusetts' public financing system sets spending limits in each election in which a candidate accepts public financing.

The limits are set by state law for candidates who take public money. But if one candidate in a race does not take public money, that candidate can set their own limit. The highest limit selected by a candidate then applies to all candidates running in that race, regardless of who accepts public funding.

In the governor's race, Democratic candidate Jay Gonzalez opted to accept public funding; Republican Gov. Charlie Baker did not. That allowed Baker to set the limit at $20 million, so both Baker and Gonzalez will be allowed to spend up to that amount. The $20 million also includes spending by the candidates for lieutenant governor - Republican Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and Democratic candidate Quentin Palfrey.

As of the end of August, Baker had $6.3 million in the bank and Polito had $3.7 million. Gonzalez had $188,000 and Palfrey had $27,000.

Spending limits in the other statewide races are:

In the race for Secretary of the Commonwealth, Democratic incumbent Bill Galvin, Republican Anthony Amore and Green-Rainbow candidate Juan Gabriel Sanchez will each be allowed to spend up to $2 million, which is the limit selected by Amore.

In the attorney general's race, Democratic Attorney General Maura Healey set the limit at $2.5 million for her race against Republican James McMahon.

Democratic Treasurer Deb Goldberg and Republican Keiko Orrall both selected a limit of $2 million in the treasurer's race, which will also apply to Green-Rainbow candidate Jamie Guerin.

Republican auditor candidate Helen Brady set the spending limit at $375,000 for her race against incumbent auditor Suzanne Bump, a Democrat, Libertarian Daniel Fishman and Green-Rainbow candidate Edward Stamas.
Massachusetts congressional lawmakers pushed back this week against President Donald Trump's assertion that his administration's response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico was an "incredible unsung success."

U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, Massachusetts Democrats who have criticized the Federal Emergency Management Agency's handling of the September 2017 hurricane, took issue with Trump's suggestion that the federal response in Puerto Rico was "incredibly successful."

"No, (Donald Trump,) the Hurricane Maria response was not an "incredible unsung success," Warren tweeted following the president's Tuesday Oval Office remarks. "Nearly 3,000 U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico died."

Noting that she has spent the last year pushing the administration "on its many failures there," Warren urged the president to "face reality and do your job."

No, @realDonaldTrump  the Hurricane Maria response was NOT an "incredible unsung success. Nearly 3,000 US citizens in Puerto Rico died. I've spent a year pushing your Administration on its many failures there. You need to face reality and do your job. https://t.co/0Uhf5gMRKL  Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) September 11, 2018

Markey agreed, offering that "3,000 dead Americans isn't an 'unsung success,' it's a national disgrace."

The senator added that the president's claim is "nothing by disrespect for the memory of those lost in Puerto Rico, torn from their homes and all those still struggling."

3,000 dead Americans isnt an unsung success, its a national disgrace. Just like Trumps comments about the federal response to #HurricaneMaria. Its nothing but disrespect for the memory of those lost in Puerto Rico, torn from their homes, and all those still struggling. https://t.co/GfEoppFjBs  Ed Markey (@SenMarkey) September 11, 2018

U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Worcester, contended that "bragging about the 'great job' (Trump) did in Puerto Rico is unbelievably offensive."

"Nearly 3,000 people died and all you could do was toss paper towels," the congressman tweeted, alluding to the president's visit to the island after the storm.

The Massachusetts Democrats also sent a letter to FEMA Administrator Brock Long and Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar this week questioning how the administration is ensuring Puerto Ricans get proper funding and assistance, particularly with reports finding that Hurricane Maria killed 2,975 people -- nearly 50 times more than the government's official death toll of 64.

They asked officials to respond by Sept. 24 on how the federal government "plans to reflect the higher fatality count in their current disaster mitigation and adaptation plans for the island and provision of funding assistance to Puerto Ricans."

U.S. Reps. Seth Moulton, D-Salem; Niki Tsongas, D-Lowell; and Katherine Clark, D-Melrose, joined Warren, Markey and McGovern, as well as other congressional lawmakers, in signing on to the letter.

Trump told reporters Tuesday that he believed the federal response to Hurricane Maria had been successful, arguing that problems related to the recovery effort were impacted by the fact that Puerto Rico is an island and pre-existing issues with the power grid.

"I think it's one of the best jobs that's ever been done with respect to what this is all about. ... I think that Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success," he said.

Trump continued to tout his administration's response on Twitter Wednesday morning.

"We got A Pluses for our recent hurricane work in Texas and Florida (and did an unappreciated great job in Puerto Rico, even though an inaccessible island with very poor electricity and a totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan)," he said.
A coalition of open government advocacy groups is recommending major changes to the rules governing Massachusetts' legislative process, in order to make the Legislature more accessible and open to the public.

The groups also recommend broadening the state's public records law to apply to the governor's office, the Legislature and the judiciary.

"There are a number of opportunities where we could make the legislative process both more accessible to the public and more transparent," said Dierdre Cummings, legislative director at MASSPIRG, a consumer group.

Gavi Wolfe, legislative director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, said the proposed changes are not radical. "They are ways that we can change our process to catch up with other states who already make information about the legislative process more accessible to the public as a matter of course," Wolfe said.

The groups -- which also include Common Cause Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association -- testified Wednesday before a Special Legislative Commission Regarding Public Records.

The commission was created by a 2016 overhaul of the state's public records law. It is charged with looking at the legality and the practicality of making the governor's office, the Legislature and the judiciary subject to the public records law. Those branches are currently exempt. It is also tasked with making recommendations on ways the state Legislature can be more transparent in its proceedings.

It will be up to the Legislature whether to adopt any reforms.

The major recommendations by the open government groups center on the legislative committee process, in which committees, divided by subject matter, hold hearings on bills, amend them and make recommendations on whether the bills should pass.

The groups recommend that committees should set a preliminary hearing calendar, divided by topic, early in each legislative session, then give two weeks' notice regarding what bills will be heard. Today, committees are only required to give 48 hours notice.

"It impedes meaningful public participation and comment because of the impracticality for many people of hastily rearranging one's work, school or personal schedule to attend a hearing," the groups wrote in joint testimony.

The groups also recommend ending the practice of holding one hearing on dozens of bills, which can result in hearings stretching up to 10 hours. They suggest directing committee chairmen to use their judgment to schedule bills in a way that results in hearings of no longer than four hours.

"We've all been to hearings when we want the public to participate but there's too many bills being heard on that day, and because the hearing is so packed on so many bills, it's almost impossible for everybody to have a meaningful opportunity to participate," Cummings said.

The groups are also recommending more transparency in the substance of what committees hear and discuss. Today, other than one public hearing, committee deliberations are held behind closed doors until a bill emerges with a recommendation. The way each committee member voted is often not made public, nor are records of the testimony they considered.

Wolfe called it "a black box kind of process."

The open government groups recommend that committees publish a list of everyone who testified, their affiliation and whether they support or oppose the bill. The committees would also be required to post online all written testimony.

The groups recommend making public the vote count on recommendations and how each member voted.

They also recommend that for every bill given a favorable report, the committee provide a bill summary and an explanation of changes made by the committee.

Wolfe said several states already do these things. For example, California and Illinois closely track each bill's substance and history, including committee votes and amendments.

Separate from the legislative process changes, the group is also recommending expanding the public records law to the governor, the judiciary and the Legislature.

For the governor's office, the law would be applied in the same way it applies to other state government agencies.

For the judiciary, it would not apply to case files, which are governed through other state laws, but to financial and administrative records. For example, this would cover payroll records, financial audits, employment policies or property leases.

The legislative recommendations relate to opening up things like financial records, hearing transcripts, records of votes, administrative policies, audits, reports that are submitted to the Legislature, session calendars, and other documents.

Other recommendations relate to live-streaming hearings, providing notice of legislative sessions, and publishing House and Senate roll call votes in a more accessible manner.

The special legislative committee is led by Rep. Jennifer Benson, D-Lunenburg, and Sen. Walter Timilty, D-Milton.

Some of the committee members pushed back at the recommendations. Benson said it is "extremely difficult" to estimate how long a hearing will be, so she would not want a rule codifying a four-hour target.

"I've been in hearings with 25 bills that lasted 15 minutes, I've been to hearings on one bill that last 10 hours. ... It depends on the committee, the day, what else is happening in the world," Benson said.

Benson said legislative staff would need to be trained and new technology would have to be bought to upload more documents to the committee website.

Bob Ambrogi, executive director of the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association, said the recommendations do not all need to be implemented immediately. "Let's get the ball rolling, let's get the parts in motion that will make this happen in five years," Ambrogi said.

Pam Wilmot, executive director of Common Cause Massachusetts, called the proposal a "starting point" for a conversation. "The public has come to expect a greater and greater level of transparency, because that is the world we live in today, yet our public institutions sometimes have a harder time adapting to that," Wilmot said.
It will be a first-of-its-kind event to explain the Sangh's perspective and clear misconceptions about its working and ideology.

The RSS had indicated that it would invite Congress president Rahul Gandhi, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and the leaders of all the political outfits of different ideologies. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: Religious leaders, film stars, sportspersons, business tycoons, retired judges, former chiefs of the armed forces, ambassadors of over 60 countries, besides the leaders of all the major political parties are expected to attend a three-day lecture series of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, scheduled to be held here next week.

Senior functionaries of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) said a list of about 500 dignitaries was prepared for the event -- "Future of Bharat: An RSS perspective" -- a three-day series of lectures of Bhagwat from September 17-19.

An interactive session will also be held on the third day of the event. It will be a first-of-its-kind event to explain the Sangh's perspective on various issues and clear misconceptions about its working and ideology.

Therefore, it was felt that people from all walks of life should be invited to it, a Sangh functionary said.

"The list includes the names of religious leaders from all religions, film stars, sportspersons, media personalities, retired judges and former chiefs of the armed forces. The invitations are being sent to all these dignitaries," another Sangh functionary involved in the process of sending the invitations said.

The ambassadors of more than 60 countries would also be invited, he added. The RSS had indicated that it would invite Congress president Rahul Gandhi, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and the leaders of all the political outfits of different ideologies.

Earlier, RSS prachar pramukh Arun Kumar had said the lecture series was being organised in the context of the future of India and Bhagwat would present the Sangh's views on various contemporary issues of national importance.

Sources also said the decision to organise the event was taken at an All India Prant Pracharak meeting held at Somnath in July.

The event is part of the Sangh's outreach activity that was started by Bhagwat three years ago to meet the renowned personalities from different walks of life and share the Sangh's views with them on contemporary issues.
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The boy was 15 years old when he had left his home in Hyderabad. He is now 23 and the police picked him up from Mumbai.

'The boys brother-in-law came across him on Facebook and sent a friend request but he was reluctant and didnt accept it.. later he changed his profile with different name after which the complainant intimated to Malkajgiri Police about his presence on the social networking site,' the Commissioner said. (Representational image)

Hyderabad: A 15-year-old boy who had gone missing from his house in Hyderabad in 2011 has been traced to Mumbai with the help of social networking site, Facebook and reunited with his family, a senior police official said Tuesday.

The boy, Sujeeth Kumar Jha, who is now a 23-year-old man, was picked up by a police team from Mumbai, Rachakonda Police Commissioner Mahesh M Bhagwat said.

The joy of the parents and relatives knew no bounds, when they met Kumar, who is presently working under a catering contractor in Mumbai.

On January 31, 2011 a complaint was lodged at Malkajgiri Police station stating that Kumar, then 15-year-old left his house at Moula Ali in Hyderabad without informing his caretakers (sister and brother-in-law) and did not return.

Kumar originally hails from Bihars Madhubani district.

Following the complaint, a missing case was registered and despite efforts police could not trace the boy and later they submitted a final report in October 2011. The boys brother-in-law came across him on Facebook and sent a friend request but he was reluctant and didnt accept it.. later he changed his profile with different name after which the complainant intimated to Malkajgiri Police about his presence on the social networking site, the Commissioner said.

Based on that information, the Cyber Crimes sleuths investigated the case and traced the missing Kumar to Mumbai, Bhagwat added.
Police said that 18-year-old Nagashree S C left behind a note stating that she wanted to be a teacher and not an engineer.

The students called hostel authorities and security guards, who spotted her from the outside the window, hanging from the ceiling fan. (Representational Image)

Guwahati: In yet another tragic incident, a first-year student from Karnataka pursuing BTech in mechanical engineering at Indian Institute of Technology -Guwahati committed suicide by hanging herself from a ceiling fan in her hostel room on Wednesday.

The incident took place on Wednesday morning when her roommates had gone for their classes and she was alone in the hostel room.

Police said that 18-year-old Nagashree S C who hails from Hosanagara near Shivamogga in Karnataka has left behind a note stating that she wanted to be a teacher and not an engineer.

The in-charge of Amingaon police station who visited the hostel said, She in her suicide note has written that it was better to die than fail to live up to the expectation of her parents and family members.

The incident came to light when her roommates came back from their classes at about 10:30 am and found the room locked from inside. The students called hostel authorities and security guards, who spotted her from the outside the window, hanging from the ceiling fan.

The institute doctor who also rushed to the hostel declared her dead.

In the morning she told her roommates that she was not feeling well and would skip the class. Her roommates left for the classes but after the first period when they came back, they found the room locked from inside. They informed the security guards who informed the police, said IIT-G spokesperson.

The IIT-G authorities said, We have informed the family members. They are coming but we are not sure when they will reach. The body of the student has been sent for post-mortem, police said.

In a similar incident earlier, at least three students have committed suicide for various reasons in the IIT-G.
Global Automated Suturing Devices Market  Dominant Players

Key players in automated suturing devices market are: Ethicon Inc. (U.S.), B. Braun Melsungen AG (Germany), Medtronic plc. (Ireland), DemeTECH Corporation (U.S.), Smith & Nephew plc (U.K.), Peters Surgical (France), EndoEvolution LLC (U.S.), Boston Scientific Corporation (U.S.) and Sutures India Pvt. Ltd. (India).

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Global Automated Suturing Devices Market  Highlights

Automated suturing devices are used for closing surgical site or wounds in order to avoid infection to the patients. Prevention of infection is the main objective of using sterile automated and disposable suturing devices. Demand of these devices are increasing withy an increase in number of surgical procedures performed in the hospitals across the world.

Demand for automated suturing is increasing due to an increasing emphasis on patient safety, quality control and quality assurance, reduce cost and to prevent surgical site infection. Technological advancement and increasing funding for innovative product development are driving the market. Major companies are investing in new product development to derive value product for the market. Cost of automated suturing devices acts as a restrain for this market.

Global Automated Suturing Devices Market  Competitive Analysis

For instance, in April 2017, B. Braun Melsungen AG launched a new home infusion therapy application that will help healthcare professionals and patients. This app allows infusion therapy nurses to educate the patients to use Easypump in their own homes.

In February 2017, Ethicon, Inc. entered into an agreement to acquire Torax Medical, Inc. for the manufacturing and marketing the LINX Reflux Management System, an innovative minimally invasive device for the surgical treatment of GERD. This acquisition will help the company to offer patients an effective alternative to the anatomy-altering laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication surgical procedure.

In October 2017, Boston Scientific Corporation has entered into an agreement to acquire Apama Medical Inc. who is developing the Apama Radiofrequency (RF) Balloon Catheter System for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF). This acquisition will help the company to invest in the electrophysiology category and to expand the product portfolio of differentiated arrhythmia solutions.

Global Automated Suturing Devices Market  Segmentation

Global Automated Suturing Devices Market has been segmented on the basis of type of suturing device which includes disposable and reusable suturing devices. On the basis of application, the market is segmented into cardiac, orthopedic, ophthalmic, dental, gynecological and other applications. End users are hospitals, clinics and other users.

Global Automated Suturing Devices Market  Regional Analysis

Globally, North America accounts for the largest market share in automated suturing devices. This is attributed to the replacement of manual suturing using needles by automated suturing devices. The demand for disposable suturing devices has outreached reusable suturing devices due to growing emphasis on hospital acquired infection and to reduce surgical site infection. Patients with surgical site infection require long recovery period thus increasing patients stay in the hospital. This may affect bed occupancy rate of hospitals thus increasing the chances of hospital acquired infection to the patient. Thus, preventions of infection is a major objective behind using disposable automated suturing devices. The market in America is also influenced by increasing number of surgical procedures performed thus requiring safe closure of surgical site.

Major Table of Content

Chapter 1. Report Prologue

Chapter 2. Market Introduction

2.1 Definition

2.2 Scope of the Study

2.2.1 Research Objective

2.2.2 Assumptions

2.2.3 Limitations

Chapter 3. Research Methodology

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Primary Research

3.3 Secondary Research

3.4 Market Size Estimation

Chapter 4. Market Dynamics

Continued.

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According to WHO, 8.8 million deaths occurred in 2015 due to cancer. Doctors all over the world generally base their cancer cure overtreatment, surgery and radiation, however, a new approach to the treatment of cancer has been developed  Immunotherapy. Immunotherapy uses the bodys own immune system to kill cancer cells. Cancer immunotherapy is designed to reactivate the bodys immune response to cancer.

This promising trend which has emerged recently has contributed effectively to the development of cancer treatment. The global cancer immunotherapy market has been growing impressively and is expected to maintain the same momentum during the forecast period. Market Research Future (MRFR) projects that the global cancer immunotherapy market is set to capture a CAGR of 14.8% during the forecast period 2017-2023. The market is expected to catapult from USD 36.8 billion in 2016 to USD 101.6 billion by 2023.

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Growing incidences of cancer all over the world is the principal reason for the growth of the cancer immunotherapy market. Cancer cases are anticipated to increase considerably in the coming years which might fuel the need for immunotherapy. Additionally, pricing trend and patent landscape are favorable for market participants. Lesser toxicity as compared to chemotherapy, long-time cancer remission, lesser side effects associated with immunotherapy, increased expenditure on healthcare facilities, growing acceptance of cancer immunotherapy, rising trend of preventive health care are some factors boosting the growth of the market. On the other hand, substantial costs associated with cancer immunotherapy, lack of awareness about immunotherapy, unknown long-term effects and effectiveness hinder the growth of the market.

The increasing adoption rate of advanced therapeutic procedures due to the rapid rise in incidences of cancer patients is one of the major factors driving the expansion of the global cancer immunotherapy market. The focus of healthcare providers in research and development in order to provide improved and highly effective treatments for cancer all over the world is propelling the growth of the global cancer immunotherapy market at a high pace.

Segmentation

The Global Cancer Immunotherapy Market has been segmented based on therapy types, application, and end-user. By type, the market has been segmented into monoclonal antibodies, cytokines, treatment vaccines, adoptive cell transfer, bacillus calmette-guerin, and others. The monoclonal antibodies sub-segment has been further segmented into naked monoclonal antibodies, conjugated monoclonal antibodies, and bispecific monoclonal antibodies. The cytokines sub-segment has been further segmented into interferon and interleukins. By application, the market has been segmented into liver cancer, childhood cancer, colorectal cancer, stomach cancer, lung cancer and others. By end-user, the market has been segmented into hospitals, clinics, and others.

Regional Analysis

The key markets of the global cancer immunotherapy market include North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and The Middle East and Africa. North America and Europe have remained the principal contributors to the market. Structured patent acquisition process and increasing government aid for R&D of cancer immunotherapy have spurred the growth in the region. The cancer immunotherapy market has potential growth opportunities in both Europe and North America, however, Asia-Pacific is projected to be the fastest growing market due to rapid advancements in healthcare, increasing healthcare expenditure, and rising population of cancer patients in the region. Additionally, demand for new and innovative therapies in countries such as India and Korea are likely to drive the market in the region. The Middle East and Africa market hold the smallest share of the market owing to factors such as poor socio-economic conditions and low per capita income, but this region too is expected to project fair growth in future.

Competitive Landscape

Immunotherapy is a promising cure for cancer and has attracted many players to space, however, factors such stringent regulatory approvals imposed by FDA, insufficient funds for Research & Development activities, and current active competitors are barriers to enter the market. Some of the established players of the market include Novartis International AG, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Seattle Genetics, Inc., GlaxoSmithKline Plc., F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, ELI Lilly and Company, Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Celgene Corporation, Merck & Co., and Amgen Inc.

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The Digital Pathology Market has been observing continued growth on account of the prevalence of chronic diseases such as cancer. Rising incidences of cancer require timely diagnosis and treatment, and digital pathology has the potential to improve accuracy and timeliness of cancer diagnosis and hence is extensively used which induces demand for digital pathology. Advancements in digital pathology technology such as digital imaging, robotic light microscopy, and multiple fiber optic communications are expected to up the level of efficiency of diagnosis and uplift the growth of the market. Additionally, the lack of skilled pathologists who can handle the growing complexities of diagnostics has surged the demand for digital pathology.

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Digital pathology finds its application in various fields such as education, tissue-based research and drug development which further drives the growth of the market. The rise in a number of clinical and pre-clinical trials have propelled the growth of the market. Digital pathology is setting new standards of practice in clinical trials with the introduction of new technologies such as virtual microscopy, and digital imaging which helps improve the outcomes of clinical trials.

Increasing adoption of advanced technologies to improve workflow and facilitate faster diagnostics is augmenting the market growth. Additionally, government initiative and support in various economies to strengthen the healthcare infrastructure in the form of funds and subsidies foster the growth of the market. Other market drivers include a rise in automation and improvements in healthcare infrastructure across the globe. However, the market growth might be hindered by lack of standardization in digital pathology and substantial initial cost of setup

Key Players for Global Digital Pathology Market

Some of the key players in this market are: microDimensions GmbH, Mikroscan Technologies, Inc., Q2 Solutions, Omnyx, LLC, GE Healthcare, Philips Healthcare, Huron Digital Pathology Inc, ViewsIQ Inc., 3DHISTECH Ltd, Apollo Enterprise Imaging Corp., Xifin, Inc., Definiens and others.

Global Digital Pathology Industry Updates

In July 2018, Enzyvant, a biopharmaceutical company, announced a partnership with Visikol, a contract research organization dealing with digital pathology and drug discovery. The partnership aims to develop a novel digital pathology approach to enable the development of a medicine for the treatment of DiGeorge Anomaly.

In July 2018, Royal Philips, a leading health technology company and Oxford University Hospitals joined forces to create a digital pathology network which will enable better diagnosis of diseases. Oxford University Hospitals have planned to install the Philips IntelliSite Pathology Solution at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford

Global Digital Pathology Market  Competitive Analysis

The global digital pathology market is fragmented and highly competitive with the presence of a multitude of well-established and small players. Owing to the lucrative growth opportunities offered by the market, there has been an influx of new players which further intensifies the competition. The notable players of the global digital pathology market include microDimensions GmbH, Q2 Solutions, LLC, Philips Healthcare, ViewsIQ Inc., Apollo Enterprise Imaging Corp., Definiens, Mikroscan Technologies, Inc., Omnyx, GE Healthcare, Huron Digital Pathology Inc, 3DHISTECH Ltd, Xifin, Inc., and others.

Global Digital Pathology Market  Segmentation

The global digital pathology market has been segmented based on types, products, application, and end-user. By types, the market has been segmented into human pathology and animal pathology. By products, the market has been segmented into scanners, storage server systems, software and others. By application, the market has been segmented into mHealth, telemedicine, disease diagnosis, drug discovery and others. By end users, the market has been segmented into pharmaceutical companies, hospital/clinics, reference laboratories, research institutes and others.

Global Digital Pathology Market  Regional Analysis

The key markets of the global digital pathology market include North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East & Africa. The global digital pathology market is dominated by North America owing to the prevalence of chronic diseases and technologically advanced healthcare sector in the region. Europe is the second largest market for digital pathology due to the presence of a robust healthcare sector and increased expenditure on healthcare facilities. Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest growing market on account of improvements in the healthcare sector, rising healthcare expenditure, and growing awareness. The Middle East & Africa market is projected to exhibit steady growth over the forecast period.

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Lancet and Pen Needles Market  Key Players

Some of the key players in this market are B. Braun Melsungen AG, Terumo Corporation, Becton Dickinson, Sanofi, F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, Bayer AG, Novo Nordisk A S, Eli Lilly and Company, Owen Mumford Ltd, Medtronic, Ypsomed Holding AG, Sarstedt AG & Co, Greiner Bio One, Abbott Laboratories, HTL-STREFA S.A, Improve Medical, UltiMed, Inc., Allison Medical, Inc., Artsana S.p.a., VOGT MEDICAL, Perrigo Diabetes Care, MedExel Co., Ltd, ARKRAY Inc., Simple Diagnostics, Stat Medical, Terumo, Trividia Health, and others.

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Lancet and Pen Needles Market  Insights

Lancets are one of the widely used alternative devices to obtain blood samples. Lancets are receiving global recognition and acceptance due to its several convenient characteristics which gives them an edge over the traditional methods for vein puncture. Some of the important features of the safety lancets are painless vein puncture, easy handling, and safety while using. The major applications of the safety lancets are capillary blood micro sampling, cholesterol test, hemoglobin (HBO) and HIV screening test, blood group test, coagulation tests, allergy tests, and many other blood-based tests.

Incidence of contagious diseases is increasing rapidly on a global level, some of these diseases include Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, HIV/AIDS, Lyme disease, hemolytic uremic syndrome, and others. The need to monitor these diseases along with the requirement of advanced techniques for drug delivery methods associated with the non-contagious diseases such as diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney diseases, lung disease, and some heart diseases are expected to impact the growth of global lancets and pen needle market. There are over 35 million healthcare workers globally. These workers face an increased risk of infection from blood-borne pathogens simply because of their exposure to blood and other bodily fluids (World Health Organization (WHO)). Infectious disease such as plaque (Black Death) reported an estimated 50 million deaths in the 14th century (WHO).

Lancet and Pen Needles Market  Segmentation

The Global Lancet and Pen Needles Market is segmented on the basis of type, application, and end user. On the basis the type, it is segmented into lancets and pen needles. The lancet segment is further segmented into safety lancets and regular lancets. The safety lancets is further sub-segmented into push button safety lancets, pressure activated safety lancets, and side button safety lancets. The pen needles are further sub-segmented into standard pen needles and safety pen needles. On the basis of the application, it is segmented into insulin, capillary blood sampling, hormones, GLP, skin testing, and others. On the basis of the end users, it is segmented into hospitals & clinics, diagnostic centers & medical institutions, home care & home diagnostics, research & academic laboratories, and others.

Lancet and Pen Needles Market  Regional Analysis

Europe dominates the global lancet and pen needles market owing to the increasing prevalence of patients, the presence of major market players. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the healthcare expenditure in Germany was EUR 321 billion in 2014 while France recorded the second highest level of current healthcare expenditure of EUR 237 billion.

The Americas hold the second position in the market owing to increasing support from the government, the presence of huge geriatric population, and high healthcare spending. Moreover, improvement in medical device regulation, the presence of a strong economic condition, and focus of research institutions on updating technology for new and advanced treatment methods for lancet and pen needles are some of the other factors contributing to the growth of this market in the region.

Asia Pacific is the fastest growing market owing to the presence of more number of developing nations such as India and China in this region. These countries are encouraging the growth of the lancet and pen needles market.

The Middle East & Africa is expected to hold the least market share due to less availability of medical facilities, and less development in the healthcare domain. However, countries such as Qatar and Kuwait are focusing more on the healthcare sector and developing medical facilities, which will boost the market of this region.

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Major Table of Content

Chapter 1. Report Prologue

Chapter 2. Market Introduction

2.1 Definition

2.2 Scope of the Study

2.2.1 Research Objective

2.2.2 Assumptions

2.2.3 Limitations

Chapter 3. Research Methodology

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Primary Research

3.3 Secondary Research

3.4 Market Size Estimation

Chapter 4. Market Dynamics

Continued.

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At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.

In order to stay updated with technology and work process of the industry, MRFR often plans & conducts meet with the industry experts and industrial visits for its research analyst members.

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Medical Suction Device Market  Key players

ATMOS MedizinTechnik GmbH & Co. KG (Germany), Allied Healthcare (UK), Drive Medical (US), INTEGRA Biosciences AG (Switzerland), Precision Medical, Inc. (US), Siemens Healthcare Private Limited (Germany), Olympus Corporation (Japan), Medico, Inc. (US), SSCOR, Inc. (US), ZOLL Medical Corporation (US), Labconco (US), Amsino International, Inc. (US), Welch Vacuum (US), and Laerdal Medical (Norway)

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Medical Suction Device Market  Insights

Medical suction devices clear the airway blocked by mucus or other secretions, which ease the breathing issue with the patient. The global medical suction device market will grow significantly during the review period. Currently, the Global Medical Suction Devices Market is undergoing a rapid change due to the technological developments. The medical suction machines are used for the dental, baby delivery, respiratory and many more. Rising number of patients with respiratory diseases, developing technology, and rising geriatric population, the market is experiencing a rapid growth. Furthermore, increasing birth rates and increasing demand for the different respiratory devices boost the demand for medical suction device. Conversely, poor reimbursement policies for the medical devices may restrained the growth of the market over the corresponding period.

Medical Suction Device Market  Competitive Analysis

Olympus Corporation a Japanese manufacturing company is specialized in optical and digital precision technology. It is a global leader in medical systems market. Olympus has several ranges of suction pumps available such as Olympus kv-5 suction Pump, Olympus kv-4 suction pump and Olympus ssu-2 suction pump. KV-6 pump is more popular because of its compact design, high suction performance as well as the maximal flexibility of use.

Weinmann Gerate fur Medizin GmbH + Co. KG is a company specialized on medical systems was founded on 1874. They have a robust suction design for cleaning of airways. They have a different range of suction pump; MANUVAC for manual suction, ACCUVAC Pro and ACCUVAC Lite for electric suction and oxygen or compressed gas-operated suction with OMNIVAC.

ATMOS MedizinTechnik GmbH & Co. KG is one of the global leaders in medical suction device. It has four different categories of suction devices for different applications i.e Respiratory tract suction, surgical suction. Thorax drainage, Wound&Vacuum extraction. ATMOS NPWT pump is a revolutionary product which enhances wound healing using negative Pressure therapy and has fewer side effects in comparison to its competitors product. Atmos 351 Natal is a suction device used for vacuum assisted normal delivery. It is faster safe and less painful in comparison to forceps delivery.

Medical Suction Device Market  Segmentation

The Global Medical Suction Device Market is segmented based on types, applications, suction parts and end users.

Based on types, the market is segmented: electric powered, battery-powered, dual, manual and others. Based on applications, the market is segmented into surgical, research and other. Surgical is further segmented into respiratory diseases, childbirth and others.

Based on suction parts, it is segmented: vacuum pump, bacterial filter, vacuum gauge, moisture or debris trap, suction catheter and others. Based on end users, the market is segmented into homecare, hospital, clinics, and others.

Medical Suction Device Market  Regional analysis

The America dominates the Global Medical Suction Device Market, which is followed by Europe. The Americas medical suction device market growth is attributed to increasing number of patients with respiratory diseases, large geriatric population, high healthcare spending, and well-developed healthcare sector.

The European medical suction device market is growing due to increasing government support to research & development, high healthcare expenditure, and increasing birth rate. According to the OECD, the healthcare expenditure in Germany was EUR 321 billion in 2014, which is followed by France with healthcare expenditure of EUR 237 billion. According to the Eurostat, in 2015, the average birth rate in Europe was 1.6 children per woman. Asia Pacific market shows the fastest growth owing to the presence of the huge patient population and rapidly developing economies. However, the Middle East & Africa region holds the least market share with a steady growth due to limited healthcare spending and less development in the medical sector.

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Major Table of Contents

1 Report Prologue

2 Market Introduction

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Scope of Study

2.3 Research Objective

2.4 Assumptions & Limitations

2.4.1 Assumptions

2.4.2 Limitations

3 Research Methodology

3.1 Research Process

3.2 Primary Research

3.3 Secondary Research

4 Market Dynamics

Continued

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by Alex Weprin , September 12, 2018

VidCon, the convention for YouTube and digital video creators, will hold its 10th annual event in July, 2019 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California.

VidCon has traditionally been held in June, but for 2019, it will be pushed to July 10-13 so as not to overlap with the Cannes Lion festival, per the company.

This years VidCon drew some 74,000 attendees seeking to hear from digital video creators. Another 15,000 or so attended a pair of VidCon offshoots in Austria and Amsterdam.

The company is adding another event in London next February.

Founded by YouTube creators Hank and John Green, VidCon was acquired by Viacom earlier this year. At the time, Viacom and the Green brothers said they hoped the corporate ownership would allow the company to expand globally.

Specifics on the 2019 conference are still to be determined, but executive producer of VidCon U.S. Julia Maes stated it will be a special blend of veteran and new rising talent from all the major platforms, throwback activations (the internet loves a remember when), and all the future-focused programming and conversations VidCon is known for.
by Wayne Friedman , September 12, 2018

Nielsen Holdings is considering a potential sale of part of its company, as its stock soared nearly 5% in early Wednesday trading.

Nielsen said it is now working with financial advisers J.P. Morgan Securities and Guggenheim Securities. Last week, the company named David Anderson its CFO.

In July, Nielsen said it was mulling strategic options for Nielsen's "Buy" segment, its data service for marketers that involves retail sales.

In mid-August, activist investor Elliott Management Corp. disclosed a large stake in Nielsen -- 30 million shares representing about 8.4% of the $9 billion company. Elliott said it planned to push the company for a sale. News of that disclosure had Nielsens stock rising 12%.

For its second quarter, Nielsen posted a 4.1% decline in revenues to $789 million for its Buy unit. Its media measurement division, Watch, grew 4.5% to $858 million.

Year-to-date, Nielsen stock is down 25% and off 31%, year-over-year.
by Steve McClellan @mp_mcclellan, September 12, 2018

Havas Group has acquired a major stake in independent multicultural shop agency Republica, the holding company confirmed today.

While the size of the stake has not been disclosed, it must be substantial, given that the Miami-based agency is being renamed Republica Havas and the agency is now part of Havas Creative North America, led by CEO Paul Marobella.

The agency will remain headquartered in Miami, with expansion plans to other key U.S. markets including New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.

Republica, currently with a staff of 120 works with clients such as Walmart, Toyota, Google, NBCUniversal, Telemundo, Goya Foods and others.

Yannick Bollore, CEO Havas Group, said: With multicultural consumers making up nearly 40 percent of the U.S. population and $3.4 trillion in spending , the current American landscape is the most culturally diverse and technologically fluent in history. Multicultural marketing intelligence needs to be in every brands DNA. Republicas industry-leading expertise further expands our multicultural capability and understanding. Miami is the right place to serve as our anchor.

advertisement advertisement

Republica was founded by chairman and CEO Jorge A. Plasencia and president Luis Casamayor in 2006. They will continue to run the agency.

Plasencia stated, This is the right partnership because it allows us to continue to do what we love, staying true to our culture and our people, while being able to offer our deep multicultural expertise to Havas many agency partners. Luis and I are thrilled to join the Havas and greater Vivendi family on this new chapter of our journey; and we extend our gratitude to both our extraordinary team and our incredible client partners for believing in us.
During the exercise, both sides will jointly train, plan and execute a series of well developed tactical drills.

Guwahati: In what may be called a significant way forward in enhancing military cooperation, the Indian Army on Tuesday started a joint military exercise between Indian Army and Mongolian Army at Mongolian Armed Forces (MAF) Desert Region Training Centre in Mongolia.

The joint exercise, which has been called Indo-Mongolia Joint Exercise Nomadic Elephant-2018, started in Umnugovi province of Mongolia in which Indian contingent is represented by 17 Punjab while the Mongolian contingent has been represented by Unit 084 of the Mongolian Armed Forces. Informing that exercise Nomadic Elephant is an annual, bilateral exercise designed to strengthen the partnership between Indian Army and Mongolian Armed Force, the public relation officer of the Indian Army at Kohima S.M. Singh said that the exercise would see them improving their tactical and technical skills in joint counter insurgency and counter terrorist operations in rural and urban scenario under UN Mandate.

Deputy Chief of Mongolian Armed Forces Maj Gen J. Badambazar, who welcomed the Indian soldiers, in his inaugural remarks highlighted the common shared beliefs of freedom, equality and justice that are precious to both nations. During the exercise, both sides will jointly train, plan and execute a series of well developed tactical drills. for neutralization of likely threats that may be encountered in urban warfare scenario, Mr Singh said that experts from both sides would also hold detailed discussions to share their experience on varied topics for mutual benefits. Exercise Nomadic Elephant-2018 will contribute immensely in developing mutual understanding and respect for each others military and also facilitate in tackling the world-wide phenomenon of terrorism, the defence PRO said. (EOM)
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, September 12, 2018

The Senate Commerce Committee will question executives from broadband providers as well as major tech companies at an upcoming hearing on privacy, the committee announced Wednesday.

Consumers deserve clear answers and standards on data privacy protection," Senator John Thune (R-South Dakota) stated. This hearing will provide leading technology companies and internet service providers an opportunity to explain their approaches to privacy, how they plan to address new requirements from the European Union and California, and what Congress can do to promote clear privacy expectations without hurting innovation.

Witnesses from AT&T, Amazon, Google, Twitter, Apple and Charter are expected to testify at the hearing, which will occur on September 26.

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The hearing comes several months after California enacted new privacy legislation that allows consumers to learn what personal information about them is held by businesses, and to opt out of the sale of that information. That law is slated to take effect in 2020.

Soon after California passed the law, tech companies reportedly began pressing Congress to develop a federal privacy law that would trump individual state laws.

The list of expected witnesses doesn't include any privacy advocates or consumer representatives -- an omission flagged on Twitter by Gigi Sohn, who served as counselor to former FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler.

"Big online companies & broadband & cable companies who think they can get national #privacy legislation without participation from privacy & consumer groups are sorely mistaken," she said on Twitter.

On Wednesday, the Silicon Valley trade group Internet Association endorsed the concept of a federal privacy blueprint, and weighed in with a set of proposed policy considerations for Congress.

"The time is right to modernize our federal rules and develop a national framework for consumer privacy," the Internet Association stated. "That framework should be consistent nationwide, proportional, flexible, and should encourage companies to act as good stewards of the personal information provided to them by individuals."

Among other recommendations, the Internet Association is backing a national data breach notification law that would preempt all state and local laws.

The organization is also proposing that privacy protections should be consistent online and offline, and "technology neutral."

In addition, the Internet Association says a privacy framework should take into account the sensitivity of the information, the context of its collection, and the risk of "tangible harm" if the data is misused.
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, September 12, 2018

New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas has sued mobile game developer Tiny Lab Productions, along with Google, Twitter and other tech companies, for allegedly violating federal and state children's privacy laws.

The Attorney General alleges that Tiny Lab, based in Lithuania, illegally gleans personal data from young users who download games like "Fun Kid Racing," and that Google's AdMob, Twitter's MoPub, and other tech companies facilitate the data transfers.

"When children play Tiny Labs gaming apps on their mobile devices, their geolocation, demographic characteristics, online activity, and other personal data, are inescapably -- and without verifiable parental consent -- exfiltrated to third parties and their marketing networks in order to target the children with advertisements based on their own personal information," Balderas alleges in an 85-page complaint filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in New Mexico.

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Google also allegedly duped parents by positioning Tiny Lab's apps as appropriate for children, despite being told by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley that the apps collected personal data. The complaint specifically alleges that 86 of Tiny Lab's gaming apps participated in Google Play's "Designed for Families" program.

"Google knows that Tiny Labs apps track children unlawfully," the complaint alleges. "Googles bad acts are compounded because it represents to parents and guardians that Tiny Labs apps are compliant with COPPA -- despite express knowledge that this is not true -- and safe for children. Indeed, Google itself is one of the ... defendants whose embedded coding tracks and profiles children."

This spring, researchers at the Berkeley's International Computer Science Institute reported that thousands of free children's apps for Android devices may be collecting data from children in violation of the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. That law prohibits app developers from knowingly collecting a host of data -- including names, email addresses, device IDs, geolocation information and other "persistent identifiers" -- from children younger than 13 without their parents' consent.

Tiny Lab allegedly instituted an age-gate that screened out users who said they were younger than 13. But the FTC has said that apps aimed at children can't comply with COPPA merely by attempting to ban users younger than 13.

A Google spokesman says the company doesn't serve any personalized ads in apps in its "Designed for Families" program.

The spokesman added that apps in the Designed for Families program "must comply with more stringent policies related to topics like age-appropriate ads and privacy disclosures, as well as COPPA and other applicable laws."

Twitter said Wednesday that it suspended Tiny Lab from the MoPub platform in September of 2017 for violating its policies regarding child-directed apps. "MoPub does not permit the MoPub services to be used to collect information from apps directed to children under the age of 13 for purposes of personalized advertising," a Twitter spokesperson said.

Balderas isn't the only state law enforcement official taking aim at Google. Arizona Attorney General is investigating the company over its location-tracking practices, Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley is probing whether Google violated state antitrust and consumer protection laws, and Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood is suing the company over allegations that it collects data from students who use its education apps.
A great number of healthcare practioners and patients alike remain wary of electronic health. Doctors claim that they dont have enough time, and patients are concerned about their data going awry. As such, the uptake of mobile health has been slow. In this Spotlight, we investigate its pros and cons. Share on Pinterest mHealth offers improved patient monitoring, among many other things. Given the scale and speed of our technological advancement during the past few decades, it is no surprise that around 4.68 billion people will use a cell phone by 2019. In the United States, just 40 percent [of general physicians] have evening and weekend working hours, which may isolate a great number of patients in the U.S. who work 95. However, in developing African countries such as Zimbabwe, the situation is much worse. There is just one doctor per 10,000 people. Similar scenarios present themselves in many other developing countries. According to the 2014 Information and Communication Technology Household Survey  by the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency  at national level, the proportion of households with at least one household member with a [cell phone] at home was about 89 percent compared [with] about 11 percent without. It may therefore appear intuitive to exploit the growing worldwide popularity of cell phones  and other such personal electronic devices  to create more convenient healthcare for all. Indeed, The proliferation of cell phones across the globe, even in locales without basic healthcare infrastructure, is spurring the growth of mHealth in developing countries, according to West Wireless Health. However, despite the global advent of electronic health (eHealth)  and, more specifically, mobile health (mHealth)  during the past couple of decades, many individuals remain unsure of its uses and benefits.

What is mHealth? The World Health Organization (WHO) have stated that no standardized definition of [mHealth] has been established. However, for the purposes of a survey that the Global Observatory for eHealth conducted in 2009, mHealth was defined as medical and public health practice supported by mobile devices, such as [cell] phones, patient monitoring devices, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and other wireless devices. With nearly 4.7 billion cell phone users around the world, using such devices as a way to aid health is surely a step toward achieving global wellness. As mHealth Alliance explain: [T]he ubiquity of mobile devices in the developed or developing world presents the opportunity to improve health outcomes through the delivery of innovative medical and health services with information and communication technologies to the farthest reaches of the globe. Since their introduction to the global market during the 20th century, mobile devices have aimed to improve connectedness  and perhaps the most recognized benefit of mHealth is its ability to keep us connected with our healthcare provider at all times and from all distances. How else can mHealth improve our wellness?

How might mHealth harm us? Human mistrust of technology is hardly new; for decades, weve been resisting any form of change or advancement that may take power away from us. In many ways, this is what mHealth apps do: take a great deal of responsibility out of the hands of healthcare professionals and assistants and deliver it straight to cyberspace. However, could this cause more harm than good? Lack of regulation Before a drug is allowed to go to market, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have to approve its safety. Without their approval, the drug cannot legally be sold. The FDA explain that they are  responsible for protecting the public health by ensuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, and medical devices. According to research2guidance, as of 2017, there were approximately 325,000 mHealth apps available. Though users have hailed many of these beneficial, the FDA have so far only approved a fraction of them. mHealth apps are perhaps not at the top of the FDAs priority list; they are considered by experts to be low-risk, meaning that the use of them is noninvasive and unlikely to cause considerable physical harm. For this reason, the FDA do not believe that they require regulation in the same way that drugs and other therapies do. Although this means that app development companies can roll them out to the paying public faster, it does also mean that there is little testing in patient communities to catch any issues the app may have, which could cause harm to the user further down the line. Interestingly, there have been hints that instead of the FDA working to approve apps themselves, entire app development companies could gain their approval. Too reliant Despite the fact that, as discussed above, the majority of mHealth apps have neither been tested in the patient community nor approved by regulatory bodies such as the FDA, many patients do rely on them in their everyday lives. Share on Pinterest Doctors fear patients becoming too reliant on their mHealth apps. Somewhat concerningly, many users of mHealth apps are choosing to use them instead of seeking professional help. This is problematic for several reasons  the most important being the fact that the vast majority of these apps are not regulated. In fact, in 2015, researchers at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA, conducted a study into symptom-checking websites and apps. The researchers discovered that, of the top 23 symptom checkers, correct diagnoses were listed first in only 34 percent of standardized patient evaluations. The analysis also revealed that the correct diagnoses were listed by the symptom-checking tools within the top 20 possible diagnoses in less than 60 percent of the evaluations. This has dangerous implications  especially the fact that receiving an incorrect diagnosis or not getting one at all could hinder proper treatment and possibly endanger life.
While some people have the freedom to wear ALMOST anything at work, the vast majority actually works at organisations that have a strict dress code in place. This makes things a bit complicated for those who want to look their fashionable best in office as the options tend to be limited to just formal wear.

But wanting to look your stylish and modish best is something you should never compromise on, and as it turns out, there are things you could do that will help you achieve that without having you flout your company's rules. So on that note, here are five ways you can look fashion-forward at your workplace WITHOUT breaking your organisation's dress code:

1) Get Creative With Your Choice Of Formal Shirts

 Instagram/Vicky Kaushal

A formal shirt is basically the go-to staple for all men who have to comply with a dress code policy at work. So when you can't get away from them, why not embrace them in a creative way? While you have to wear formal shirts to work, there are no restrictions at being a bit creative with your choices. So opting for unique colours, micro ditsy prints and checks and unique patterns, as long as they aren't completely overpowering, is highly advisable.

Pro tip: If you wanted to invest in new formal shirts, but happen to be on a budget, then here are some of the best formal shirts for men under Rs 1,499.

2) Go For Unique And Complementary Colour Combinations

 Instagram/ Vidyut Jamwal

As there are countless ways in which you can team up a formal shirt with a pair of formal trousers, going for unique but complementary colour combinations can never hurt you. So opting for combinations like navy blue and white, beige and sky blue, brown and pink (yes pink!) will surely make you stand out from the clutter of basic whites and blacks.

3) Get The Right Pair Of Formal Shoes

 Pexels

In many ways, having to wear formal shoes to comply with a dress code can actually be a blessing in disguise. After all, if worn in the right way, formal shoes can help you adorn an incredibly stylish and fashion-forward ensemble. As such investing in brown brogues, black derby shoes and even navy blue oxfords will give you the right footing (pun intended!) to look good.

Pro tip: You can never go wrong with brown shoes, so get as many brown shoes as you can and you'll be good to go.

4) Upgrade Your Beard Game

 Instagram/ Ranveer Singh

Unlike their female counterparts, men have the advantage of investing in their beard and mooch game to look good at their workplace without breaking or flouting the dress code. So get your hands on the best beard oils, the best beard trimmers and the best moustahce waxes out there to upgrade your beard game and become super desirable.

5) Minimalistic Accessorising Can Be A Boon

 Instagram/ Ranveer Singh

Understandably, you cannot over-accessorise at your workplace without flouting its dress policy. But minimalistic accessorising can actually be a major boon, especially if you're creative enough to do it the right way. So wearing a wrist watch that matches your shoes, a tie that compliments your shirt and trousers, and even the type of glasses you wear to work can make a huge difference in making you appear modish and super desirable.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Kotzias, will carry out a working visit to Israel on Thursday, 13 September, to participate in a trilateral meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Greece, Cyprus and Israel.

Following the trilateral meeting, Mr. Kotzias will have a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu.
While two others managed to escape from the crime scene the third one was caught and beaten up with wooden stick and belts.

The police said a woman was also injured when the criminals opened fire in order to disperse the crowd from the crime scene.

Patna: A group of people killed a man after he along with two accomplices allegedly tried to rob a railway employee outside a bank in Bihars Sasaram on Tuesday.

While two others managed to escape from the crime scene the third one was caught and beaten up with wooden stick and belts. The police said a woman was also injured when the criminals opened fire in order to disperse the crowd from the crime scene.

According to Rohtas additional SP Rajesh Kumar, the injured victim was rushed to a local hospital for treatment where doctors declared him dead.

The police investigating the incident said that footage from CCTV cameras installed in the area will be procured to find the identity of those who have been involved in the attack.

In the last five days, four incidents of mob lynching have rocked the state. On Sunday a person named Rupesh Jha was killed by an unruly mob in Sitamarhi after a van driver said that he stole money from him. The police later registered an FIR against 150 persons in connection with the case.

Another incident of lynching took place last week when a crowd caught three youths attempting to abduct a girl from her school.

Law and order have completely collapsed in Bihar. Incident of murder, rape and mob lynching has gone up ever since Nitish Kumar formed a government with BJP in Bihar, RJD MLA Bhai Virendra told reporters.
Thackeray, an ally of the BJP, said some 'rogue' elements engaged in violence during the state-wide agitation.

The Sena chief said the community took to the streets only after their long-pending demand for reservation was not accepted. (Photo: File)

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena asked Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Tuesday to fulfil his promise of withdrawing police cases filed against Maratha community members during their violence-marred stir for reservation.

Expressing solidarity with the Marathas who are seeking reservation in government jobs and educational institutions, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said some "rogue" elements engaged in violence during the state-wide agitation.

Thackeray, an ally of the BJP, was speaking to reporters at his residence 'Matoshree' in suburban Bandra after meeting convenors of the Maratha Kranti Morcha (MKM).

The morcha, one of the outfits that spearheaded the quota agitation, sought Thackeray's intervention in the withdrawal of police cases against Maratha protesters.

"The chief minister had promised that cases against Maratha youths will be taken back. He should keep his word now. The Sena stands firmly with the Maratha community," he said.

The Sena chief said the community took to the streets only after their long-pending demand for reservation was not accepted.

"The community came out on the streets after time and again demanding reservation along with other demands. Lakhs of people took part in the marches that were (earlier) carried out peacefully.

"However, they were not taken seriously and so they took out a 'thok morcha' (hit march)," he said. Thackeray said some unscrupulous elements took advantage of the Maratha protests and engaged in violence during the stir in July-August.

"Thus, if action is to be taken, it should happen justly," he said. The Sena chief said while those who engaged in violence were roaming free, those who did not commit any crime were being harassed.

"Arrest them only if there is proof against them. You (Fadnavis) had said cases will be taken back. However, no such directives have been issued to police stations (where such cases have been registered)," he said.

Fadnavis had earlier assured partial withdrawal of police cases filed against Maratha community members. Such cases related to damage caused to properties during the protests.

"However, criminal charges like assaulting police officials will not be withdrawn," the chief minister, who also holds the home portfolio, had said. The Shiv Sena is part of the BJP-led governments in Maharashtra and also at the Centre.
SC has issued notice on question of enhancing Sidhu's punishment in 1988 road rage case, in which a 65-year-old man died.

Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu had allegedly hit a 65-year-old man, Gurnam Singh, on the head during an argument in a road in Patiala on December 27, 1988. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: In a huge set back to Punjab minister and Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu, the Supreme Court has issued notice on a question of enhancing his punishment in a road rage case, in which a 65-year-old man died in 1988.

In May this year, a bench headed by Justice J Chelameswar (since retired) set aside the Punjab and Haryana High Court judgment awarding three years imprisonment to Sidhu treating it as culpable homicide not amounting to murder. The court acquitted him by imposing a fine of Rs 1,000.

Aggrieved by this order, Jaswinder Singh, the legal representative of the victim moved the court seeking review of the verdict. It was submitted that the judgment acquitting Sidhu had resulted in the miscarriage of justice and that the punishment should be enhanced.

A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and Sanjay Kishan Kaul after perusing the materials in the chamber issued notice and said it is restricted to the quantum of sentence qua respondent no. 1  Navjot Singh Sidhu.

Sidhu had allegedly hit a 65-year-old man, Gurnam Singh, on the head during an argument in a road in Patiala on December 27, 1988. Gurnam Singh died of a haemorrhage in hospital.

In 2007, the Supreme Court suspended Sidhu's sentence and granted him bail after he appealed his conviction by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The suspended sentence enabled him to contest the Lok Sabha by-polls from Amritsar.

Giving the benefit of doubt, Justice Chelameswar had held that the evidence on record indicated that the assault of Sidhu resulted in very minor abrasion over the left temporal region. The material on record leads us to the only possible conclusion that Sidhu voluntarily caused hurt to Gurnam Singh punishable under IPC Section 323 and this was not the reason for the death.

The top court said it is very difficult to come to the conclusion that the victim died not because of heart attack but only because of haemorrhage.

The apex court observed that the high court had rendered a finding that haemorrhage is the cause of death, which is not correct. Therefore, Sidhu cannot be held responsible for causing the death of Gurnam Singh.

For the offence of voluntarily causing hurt, the bench slapped a fine of Rs 1000 on Sidhu.
Vijay Mallya's defence team branded evidence presented by Indian govt during hearing at London court as 'utterly unfounded'.

Speaking to reporters outside the court, Mallya said, 'The prosecution has argued their case. It's now for judges to decide.' (Photo: File)

New Delhi: A UK court on Wednesday said that it will deliver the verdict on whether fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya will be extradited to India or not on December 10.

During the previous hearing, Londons Westminster Court had asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the fugitive businessman is likely to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

Speaking to reporters outside the court, Mallya said, "The prosecution has argued their case. It's now for judges to decide.
During the event, the Sangh will place its perspective on various issues and clear misconceptions about its working and ideology.

New Delhi: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has invited nearly 500 people from different fields, including ambassadors of over 60 nations, to its supremo Mohan Bhagwats three-day-long lecture series Future of Bharat: An RSS perspective from September 17.

While speculation is rife that the RSS will invite key representatives of major political parties, including Congress president Rahul Gandhi and CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, sources told this newspaper that the invitations have been sent only to non-political personalities for this first-of-its-kind event. While the RSS had claimed Mr Bhagwat will present the Sangh Parivars viewpoint on various contemporary issues of national importance during this event, in political circles it is being seen as an attempt by the Sangh Parivar to place it views or clarify allegations levelled against it by the BJPs opponents, especially with the Lok Sabha polls just around the corner.

Those invited for the event include religious leaders, filmstars, sportspersons, business tycoons, retired judges, former chiefs of the armed forces and ambassadors of over 60 countries. An interactive session will also be held on the third day of the event.

During the event, the Sangh will place its perspective on various issues and clear misconceptions about its working and ideology. Earlier, RSS prachar pramukh Arun Kumar had said the lecture series was being organised in the context of the future of India, and Mr Bhagwat would present the Sanghs views on various contemporary issues of national importance. Sources said the decision to organise the event was taken at an All-India Prant Pracharak meeting at Somnath in July.

The event is part of the Sanghs outreach activity that was started by Mr Bhagwat three years ago to meet renowned personalities from different walks of life and share the Sanghs views with them on major issues.
PORT HOPE - St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church in Port Hope will celebrate its 150th anniversary this weekend.

The celebration will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

On Saturday, a community festival will take place on the church's school building grounds at the corner of State and Second streets. There will be a bounce house, food, games and a history display.

At 3 p.m. Sunday, an anniversary worship service will take place followed by a catered dinner at the Port Hope AMVETS Hall. Former pastors will participate in the service, and the guest preacher will be Rev. Dr. Charles Gieschen, academic dean and professor of exegetical theology at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Former school principals will also be in attendance.

"We've adopted the hymn, 'O God, Our Help in Ages PastOur Hope for Years to Come!' as our theme verse for the year," said current Pastor Dave Dodge. "One of our denomination's most prolific hymn writers, Rev. Stephen Starke from St. John Lutheran Church in Bay City-Amelith, has also written an anniversary hymn specifically for us."

"God has blessed this congregation for 150 years, and we live in the certain hope that as we continue to preach, teach and practice His pure Word, He will continue to bless us into the future," he added.

Local German immigrant families established the St. John congregation in January of 1868. Numerous regular and vacancy pastors and principals, teachers and 150 years later, the congregation has grown to 700 members. The congregation's day school, established in the early 1880s, closed after the 2015-16 school year. The congregation is a member of the conservative The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the second largest Lutheran denomination in the United States, with 2.2 million members in 6,000 congregations.

All current and former members, as well as guests, are welcome to attend the anniversary service. The church is located at 4527 Second St. in Port Hope.

For more information, call the church office at 989-428-4140.
Tuesday marked the 17th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the United States of America.

To me, it doesnt seem like it was that long ago because I remember it well.

The image of the twin towers of the Word Trade Center burning and crashing down after being struck by passenger jets will be remembered forever by those who lived during that time.

Although those tragic Sept. 11, 2001, attacks happened in other states, it had a worldwide impact that still resounds today with those lived through it or saw news reports.

Because of Sept. 11, America and other counties went to war with Iraq.

For some, like myself, that day will always be remembered, but for many, Sept. 11 passed like any other day. I'm not pointing that out to be judgmental  it's a fact. A large segment of the population were not born yet or were just infants on that date.

Memorials were created in New York and in Pennsylvania to commemorate the tragic events.

On Sunday, a concrete-and-steel tower, called the Flight 93 National Memorial, was dedicated in memory of the 40 people on that fight who fought back and lost their lives. The monument is 93 feet tall, and will have 40 aluminum chimes that will sound with the with wind to represent the voices of those who perished.

Closer to home, there is an impressive memorial to that tragic day within easy driving distance. It is at the Frankenmuth Fire Department, located at 210 W. Genesee.

I wrote several news articles about the fire department getting a piece of the World Trade Center for their memorial from New York, transporting it to Frankenmuth, creating a base for it, and its dedication.

The city of Frankenmuth received a 10-foot long, 930-pound piece of twisted metal girder form the World Trade Center. When I heard they were transporting a large piece of damaged metal from the World Trade Center to create a memorial, I was very skeptical that it could be made into something that would create a moving sculpture much less something attractive.

I was wrong. Very, very wrong.

The metal girder is a dark copper color. To me, that thick piece of metal twisted is very symbolic of the event. The twisted metal shows how our county was betrayed by those who lived here among us. The twist shows the force of the jet's impact. The twist shows the struggle of those who fought to escape. The twist shows the horrific death of those who died that day.

The 10-foot long piece of twisted metal shows the strength of the first responders who rushed to help and who died helping others. It shows the cruel twist of fate of those who are suffering health issues from that day.

The 10-foot twisted section of girder shows how the lives of those personally impacted by the tragic event will never been the same. It also shows, how that one twisted act of violence made us all look at the world differently.

The base of the girder at the Frankenmuth Fire Department is impressive as well. The "9/11 Memorial" has a pentagon-shaped base. Each of the five sections outlines the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001.

Each panel explains the tragic events of that fateful day. Two sides commemorated the World Trade Center Towers. One section explains the: North Tower was hit by American Airlines Flight 11  and 87 passengers and crew perished. The crash happened at 8:45 a.m. and the tower collapsed at 10:28 a.m. Another section of the base explains: the South Tower was hit by United Airlines Flight 175 - and 60 passengers and crew perished. The crash happened at 9:03 a.m. and collapsed 9:59 a.m.

The other two sections explain the other events: the Pentagon was hit by American Airlines Flight 77  and 59 passengers and crew perished. The crash happened at 9:40 a.m. In Shanksville, P.A., United Airlines Flight 93 with 45 passengers and crew crashed 10:07 a.m.

The fifth panel explained the reason for the memorial: Steel Artifact - Sept. 11, 2001.

Let this twisted fragment of the World Trade Towers remind us that we must ever highly honor the brave and heroic public servants who sacrificed their lives on that fateful day, nor forget the innocent civilians whose lives were also brought to such a tragic end  2,752 victims.

The Steel Artifact - Sept. 11, 2001 memorial is something those in the area should see. Sept 11, 2001, is a date that should never be forgotten.

Mary Drier, a veteran journalist, writes a bi-weekly column for the Huron Daily Tribune.
Besides this, the states are given an option to rope in private players for oilseeds procurement on a pilot basis in eight districts.

The Cabinet has sanctioned Rs 15,053 crore to implement the PM-Aasha in the next two financial years, of which Rs 6,250 crore will be spent this year.

New Delhi: Ahead of the 2019 polls, the government Wednesday announced a Rs 15,053-crore procurement policy, allowing states to choose a compensation scheme and rope in private agencies for procurement to ensure a remunerative price to farmers.

The new umbrella policy, Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay SanraksHan Abhiyan (PM-Aasha), was approved in the Cabinet meeting headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi held here.

The PM-Aasha is aimed at ensuring remunerative prices to the farmers for their produce as announced in the Union Budget for 2018. This is a historic decision, agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh told reporters after the Cabinet meeting.

Under the PM-Aasha, states would be allowed to choose from three schemes  existing price support scheme (PSS), newly designed price deficiency payment scheme (PDPS) and pilot of private procurement stockist scheme (PPSS)  to undertake procurement when prices of commodities fall below the MSP level, he said.

The Cabinet has sanctioned Rs 15,053 crore to implement the PM-Aasha in the next two financial years, of which Rs 6,250 crore will be spent this year.

That apart, the credit line for procurement agencies has been enhanced by providing additional government guarantee of Rs 16,550 crore, taking the total to Rs 45,550 crore.

The government mentioned that the PDPS is on the lines of Madhya Pradesh governments Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana (BBY), but will protect oilseeds farmers only.

Under the PDPS, the government will pay to growers the difference between the MSP and monthly average price of oilseeds quoted in wholesale market. This would be implemented for up to 25 per cent of the oilseeds production in a state.

The price difference will be made to pre-registered farmers selling the produce in the notified market yard through a transparent auction process. This scheme does not involve any physical procurement of crops and the central government will give support for the PDPS as per the norms, the statement said.

Besides this, the states are given an option to rope in private players for oilseeds procurement on a pilot basis in eight districts.

Under the new policy, the states will also have an option to choose the existing price support scheme (PSS), under which central agencies procure commodities covered under the MSP policy when prices fall below the MSP.

The states can choose either PSS or PDPS or PPSS to ensure MSP to farmers, Mr Singh said, adding that this is an unprecedented step taken by the government to protect the farmers income which is expected to go a long way towards the welfare of farmers.

The other existing procurement schemes being implemented for procurement of paddy, wheat and nutri-cereals/coarse grains as well as commercial crops such as cotton and jute will be continued for providing MSP to farmers.

Mr Singh further said that the government is committed to realising the vision of doubling farmers income by 2022.

The emphasis is on enhancing productivity, reducing cost of cultivation and strengthening post-harvesting management, including market structure.

Several market reforms have been initiated by the government, he added. Under the MSP policy, the government fixes the rates for 23 notified crops grown in kharif and rabi seasons.
NEW HAVEN  A new study of almost 4,600 patients with a disease that causes a thickened heart muscle shows the genetically caused disorder is more dangerous than previously thought.

Dr. Daniel Jacoby, a co-author of the study, which is online and which will be published in the Oct. 2 issue of the journal Circulation, said the understanding of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy until now has underestimated how lethal a disease it can be if not monitored and treated. Jacoby is director of the Comprehensive Heart Failure Program at Yale New Haven Hospital and a co-author of the paper.

Its a totally different understanding of the condition, and the implication is pretty significant, Jacoby said of the study, which involved eight international medical centers over several years and was based on the Sarcomeric Human Cardiomyopathy Registry (known as SHaRe). People need to be monitored and we need disease-altering therapy. This is not a benign condition that can be managed adequately with current therapies.

Jacoby said HCM is the most common inherited cardiomyopathy, which refers to a group of diseases that makes it harder for the heart to pump blood. According to the Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Association, it affects one in 500 people or more than 700,000 Americans, but Jacoby said the rate may be as high as one in 350.

SHaRe was launched in 2014 by the biopharmaceutical company MyoKardia, which is developing a medication to treat the disease. Jacoby said all that can be done now is to limit the squeezing of the heart muscle, relaxing it with beta blockers or calcium channel blockers, and treating illnesses caused or exacerbated by cardiomyopathy: heart failure (a major symptom is shortness of breath), atrial fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia, which are forms of irregular heartbeat. According to the paper, sudden cardiac death is also a threat to those with the disease.

This is the first analysis of the SHaRe data to be published. The previous information had suggested that the mortality might be similar to the general population or even slightly lower than the general population, Jacoby said.

A normal heart muscle is 1 centimeter thick, but in a person with HCM it may be 50 percent thicker. It can be so thick that it can block blood flow out of the heart, Jacoby said. It can lead to increased stiffness of the heart.

He said the new findings were important because up until very recently, existing treatments were thought to be probably adequate to normalize quality of life and life expectancy with patients with HCM.

This publication confirms our clinical observations that more needs to be done to help patients with this condition in order to avoid complications from it later in life, he said.

According to the study, which examined more than 24,000 patient-years, the risk of death was three times greater among those with HCM than in those without the disease, at similar ages. And the younger a patient is diagnosed, the greater the chance of other illnesses occurring as the patient ages, so early diagnosis is vital, Jacoby said. Most complications appear between the ages of 50 and 70.

Atrial fibrillation is an irregular heartbeat coming from the top of the heart, which can result in palpitations and stroke, Jacoby said, while ventricular tachycardia is a very, very fast heart rhythm arising from the bottom chambers of the heart that makes it impossible for the heart to pump sufficient blood to the brain.

Most threatening is that, as a result of ventricular tachycardia, HCM is the No. 1 cause of sudden cardiac death in otherwise healthy young people, he said.

Jacoby said that for about half the patients, the genes causing the disease can be identified, but that there are multiple genes that can cause this condition. Someone with a family member who has HCM should see a heart specialist, he said.

One impact of knowing this is we can determine which patients need to be followed more closely and which dont need as close follow-up, he said.

There are other causes of a thickened heart muscle, such as uncontrolled high blood pressure, Jacoby said. Over time, the organ continues to remodel  to change and adapt to the condition, he said. That may involve progressive stiffening of the heart muscle or additional scarring of the heart.

Because of its seriousness, we need to monitor for development of new problems, treat them symptomatically, and we need to develop new medications to prevent this process from happening, Jacoby said. While there is no treatment for HCM itself, the related heart ailments can be treated.

If you have hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, there is no doubt that you [should] have a minimum yearly checkup at an expert center, such as Yale New Haven, he said. The hospital has been designated one of 29 Centers of Excellence by the Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Association, the only one in Connecticut to have earned the designation. We have reduced mortality in our program, Jacoby said.

At Yale New Havens Heart and Vascular Center, doctors will screen you and your family, help you understand the genetic impact of this condition on your family  and monitor for these complications and provide therapy when necessary, he said.

Signs that a person has hypertrophic cardiomyopathy are a heart murmur, an abnormal EKG, symptoms or a family member is affected by the condition, Jacoby said.

The drug that MyoKardia is testing in clinical trials is called mavacamten. Yale New Haven Hospital is one of the sites where the trial is being conducted. The aim is to normalize that squeezing power in the heart, Jacoby said. Mavacamten may slow or reverse this disease process and it certainly improves symptoms in some patients already.

The eight heart centers that participate in SHaRe are from the United States, Italy, the Netherlands and Brazil. The lead author is Dr. Carolyn Ho, medical director of the Cardiovascular Genetics Center at Brigham and Womens Hospital in Boston.

Clinicians around the world have always known that this is a serious condition, but it hasnt been until the international collaboration that came about through the SHaRe registry that we were able to understand the exact level of risk associated with this condition, Jacoby said.

edward.stannard@hearstmediact.com; 203-680-9382.
MIDDLETOWN  For seven decades, the family-run Didato Oil Service has treated its customers like trusted friends.

The late patriarch, Salvatore Didato Sr., who began the company in 1948 with $800 to his name, wouldnt have it any other way, said his daughter Kathleen, who now runs Didato Oil.

Her father was one of a kind, she said.

Every time the phone rings in the middle of the night, I have a stab of the heart but I grew up with it all my life, she said, recalling times, since she was very young, Salvatore Didato would go out even in the harshest of weather, to respond to heating emergencies.

Years ago, plowing roads took much longer than nowadays, she said.

One of the side streets (in the North End), the snow was so deep. They had a little baby, hadnt been plowed yet, they were out of oil. My father went to (the nearest cross street) Grand Street. Hed fill 5-gallon buckets in the snow.

Hed fill it on the main street so he could walk down Grove Street, and put enough oil in for the family to enjoy heat until they were plowed out, said Kathleen Didato, whose family grew up on South Main Street.

That type of service was her fathers trademark, she said.

It didnt matter. There was a baby there. The care was there. And he would go start the boiler. It doesnt start right up when you put oil in  you have to bleed it.

Salvatore Didato died in 2005, but the family continued his top-notch level of service, as well as his civic involvement and philanthropy.

His son, Paul S. Didato, took the family business to heart, learning much from his father, his widow Josie Didato said.

Josie Didato, Pauls widow, said her husband really cared about his customers, just like his father. His whole life was the oil company. He cared so much about those customers. It was more like family.

When the forecast was for snow, Paul S. Didato who managed the day-to-day operations, would bring an oil truck home so he could get out to customers homes faster when needed.

He worked for the company for 50 years and was ready to retire when he died at 71, three days after his mother passed away in June 2014. The two were very close, Josie Didato said. I think it was from a broken heart  from his mother, she said of his death.

He was always out, Josie Didato said, at all hours of the night during inclement weather. When there were blizzards and snowstorms, the answering service would call our home. There was always somebody who didnt have oil. He would deliver that oil. Hed never say no to a customer  never.

Holidays were important to Paul S. Didato, who would buy enough poinsettias to fill an entire van and have his crew deliver them to customers.

He had a particular fondness for the Lake Grove School of Durham, Josie Didato said about the former boarding school for children with emotional problems. On Easter, hed buy 125 chocolate bunnies to distribute to kids, and any time they had a heating problem, hed rush out there.

In celebration of 70 years of operation, Didatos is offering a $70 account credit on oil or service to automatic delivery customers who refer another individual who signs up for the service by Nov. 30.

Both customers will be added to a drawing for a free cleaning service, or heating system tune-up, valued at up to $425.

Non-automatic delivery customers who sign up by the same date will earn a $70 credit.

At 26, Kathleen Didato said her father was working two jobs, at the former National Paint and Wallpaper on Washington Street and Lyman Orchards in Middlefield.

The business had very humble beginnings: One oil truck and one employee. Now, Didatos offers oil delivery services, complete HVAC, and a retail showroom. The business also sells propane, equipment generators and fireplaces.

Customer Ed Dypa considered Salvatore Didato a friend. He said the family patriarch was a gentleman.

Dypa has been a customer for what seems like an eternity.

Anytime we had a problem, they were right here, he said. The service is fantastic, the servicemen are qualified, courteous, theyre neat. Its a pleasure to have a company that still provides a decent service.

Office manager Natalie Jarvis said the company also goes above and beyond for its employees. A year after she started working for Didatos, she experienced some health difficulties.

Jarvis employer allowed her to take time off while she was in and out of the hospital. While recuperating, the company has allowed her to take needed time off for doctors appointments and treatments.

Most companies would have let me go, but not only has Didatos helped me to keep this job, they have also treated me like family, making a rough time much more pleasant, she said.

Salvatore Didato Sr. was a very active member of St. Sebastian Church, volunteering at the annual Feast of St. Sebastian and other church activities. He was also a 45-year trustee.

He was Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus, Forest City Council No. 3, twice, as well as Faithful Navigator of the Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus, according to his obituary. He was also named Citizen of the Year by the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce in 1986 and Man of the Year for Kiwanis International, among other honors.

When Maria Didato died in 2014, her daughter sought out a partner to expand their customer base. They found that in Moodus-based Dutch Oil, another family-owned business. The merger allowed the Didatos to enlarge its fleet and deliver services and products to Middlesex County and surrounding towns. It also put them in the propane business.

Naturally, the busiest time of year is during the colder months, when there is a crazy rush for locking in rates because everyone thinks the rates go up in the wintertime, said Michelle Larson, who works in sales and marketing.

Customers are encouraged to sign up for automatic delivery, because the company bills monthly throughout the year, enabling households to budget payments.

In the past, whenever Dypa was in the area, he came in for a visit, even when he didnt need the companys services.

You were treated like family. It was stopping in to say hello, and spending a half-hour shooting the breeze.

Kathleen Didato has carried on her fathers work for the community. She sponsors Altrusa projects with drop-offs at the 151 William St. location, such as the annual baby food diaper and formula project for the needy, and collects hundreds of books for children and afghans for female veterans.

She recalled joining her father on deliveries since she was 5 . Id go with him in the truck and wed go customer to customer, she said. We always went together.

When dad died, it rained for 10 days. It was the rain that never stopped. I kept saying, the heavens are crying, said his daughter, who added there were more than 2,000 people at her fathers wake.

I had every denomination of people come through. People would say, I had no money. And hed say, Thats OK, youll pay me. 

For information, call 860-347-1764 or visit didatosenergy.com.

Managing Editor Cassandra Day can be reached at

cassandra.day

@hearstmediact.com or Twitter @cassandrasdis.
In a major reversal, the U.S. hotel industry is prepared to launch an employee safety initiative this week, after unions coast to coast pressured major brands to give panic buttons to their workers, the Hearst Television National Investigative Unit has learned.

Top executives of at least five of the biggest American hotel brands  Hilton, Hyatt, IHG, Marriott and Wyndham  are scheduled to hold a news conference Thursday afternoon in Washington to unveil their plans, which will go "far beyond" the slice of hotel workers who belong to unions and will impact "hundreds of thousands" of employees, sources say.

In addition, a representative of the Time's Up Legal Defense Fund, launched as part of the #MeToo movement combating sexual assault in the workplace, will also be part of the announcement from the American Hotel and Lodging Association.

Hotels in Las Vegas; New York; Washington, D.C.; and some properties in Los Angeles provide panic buttons as part of union contracts. Safety devices are required by law in Seattle; Chicago; the unincorporated parts of Sacramento County in California; and Miami Beach, Florida.

But not everyone supports them: the city council in Long Beach, California, has voted not to require them, and a bill in the California State Senate  which had already been approved in the Assembly  to require them statewide failed to move out of committee last month.

CalChamber, which represents businesses, did not object to panic buttons themselves, but warned some of the requirements of hotels were "unworkable" and once called the bill a "job killer."

'We need this'



When the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history occurred in October in Las Vegas, none of the unionized hotels provided panic buttons, including the Mandalay Bay, where the shooter rained down bullets and terror on the concertgoers gathered below. Now, less than a year later, almost all of the major hotels have agreed to give safety devices to their workers.

The union that represents 50,000 hotel workers in Las Vegas and in Reno, the Culinary Workers Union Local 226, did have one worry about panic buttons, however: digital snooping.

"It is a big concern," union leader Geoconda Arguello-Kline explained in an interview at the local union's headquarters off the Las Vegas strip recently.

She led negotiations with Sin City's most famous hotels, extracting a promise that they would not use panic buttons to continuously track workers. Members had voted in May to authorize a strike if they didn't get panic buttons.

Arugello-Kline said it amounted to an ultimatum.

"We say: 'We need this. We need this because it's protecting people's lives," she told Hearst Television.

Union member Dallamy Santos says a guest at the hotel where she's worked for 17 years once "offered me money" for a sex act. The hotel does not provide workers with panic buttons.

"If they would like to have their workers safe," Dallamy said in an interview, "they will do it."

'Protect their loved ones'



New, portable panic buttons  on an iPhone, keychain, or wearable device  use small Bluetooth beacons to overcome limitations in GPS.

The current GPS determines a person's location based on latitude and longitude, but not which floor of a high-rise hotel a person is on. Bluetooth beacons and other Bluetooth-enabled devices such as thermostats and smart door locks, can triangulate a person's position down to within 5 to 10 feet, allowing first responders to know which floor, and which room, a victim of a shooting, assault or medical emergency is in.

In an interview, Robb Monkman, the CEO of React Mobile, a provider of Bluetooth-enabled panic buttons, explained the sobering source of his inspiration for starting his Seattle-based company: a frightening home invasion.

"Two guys, who were armed with guns, broke through our front door, they ended up holding us up at gunpoint, they robbed us and they ended up taking one of our roommates hostage," Monkman recalled.

"I realized then that when you feel that steel of a gun pressed against [your] forehead, that it makes it just about impossible to reach for your phone to call for help."

"We want to give people a useful tool that can protect their loved ones," Monkman added.

He demonstrated for the National Investigative Unit the response times of the three main types of panic buttons his company sells to hotels, universities, railroads, and other industries. The cost to a hotel varies between $0.70 and $2.00 per room, depending on the size of the location and layout, Monkman said. There are many other companies that also sell Bluetooth-dependent safety devices.

"You can click this as many times as you want and the alert will go off," Monkman explained while pressing a keychain panic button.

A few seconds after he pressed the button, a siren wailed and a message box popped up on a laptop security monitor nearby that read, "SOS alert activated."
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. - Hurricane Florence will begin to lash the Carolinas with powerful winds and violent surf Thursday in what is shaping up as the most dangerous tropical cyclone to hit the region in a generation. Forecasters warn that when it nears land, it could shift to low gear and then meander unpredictably along the coast, sucking energy from the warm ocean as it pounds coastal communities.

Florence's maximum sustained winds weakened modestly Wednesday, taking it down to a Category 3 hurricane, but it simultaneously expanded in size. Its hurricane-force winds extend 70 miles from the center of the eye, and its cloud field is four times the size of Ohio. On Wednesday, a satellite detected an open-ocean wave generated by Florence that appeared to be at least 50 feet high.

The National Hurricane Center on Wednesday tweaked the projected track for Florence to show a turn to the southwest when the storm nears Cape Fear in extreme southeast North Carolina. Florence could potentially drift toward South Carolina while remaining just offshore, as if looking for a port. A long stretch of the Carolinas remains inside the storm track's "cone of uncertainty."

"It could sit there as a Category 3 or 4 hurricane right offshore for a day," said Brian McNoldy, a senior research associate at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and a contributor to The Washington Post's Capital Weather Gang. "That would not be good. If it gets close to the coast and just hits the coast or is just slightly inland, but then just sits there, it's like pressing pause at the most violent part of the landfall."

The storm might even reverse direction early next week and head north as a weakened but soggy system dropping rain on already saturated Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia and Pennsylvania. These areas are vulnerable to flooding and downed trees after heavy rains this summer.

The forecast calls for 20 to 30 inches of rain in parts of coastal North Carolina, with localized amounts of 40 inches or greater. The hurricane could generate a storm surge as high as 13 feet.

Here in Myrtle Beach, Sandra Lopez-Garcia can't believe her bad fortune. She survived Hurricane Maria when it hit her hometown of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, a year ago. She rode out the storm in her concrete home there, sheltering in a bathroom with her therapy dog.

Now she's in an emergency shelter - Conway High School - just outside of this South Carolina city.

"I really don't know what my luck is," she said. "I don't think this happens to someone very often."

She said she wishes she were back in her hometown in Puerto Rico.

"Because I would like to share with my people the anniversary. They'd been hungry for so long," she said, her voice shaking. "Our island is not the same. We don't have leaves on trees yet."

Lopez-Garcia said she's confident that local and state government officials have adequately prepared for Hurricane Florence. But when asked about President Donald Trump's assurance that the federal government is "totally prepared," she responded with open-mouth shock and shook her head.

Florence is poised to be the most devastating storm to hit this part of the coast since Hurricane Hugo in 1989. The National Weather Service office in Wilmington, North Carolina, wrote that this is likely to be the "storm of a lifetime" for stretches of the Carolinas, "and that's saying a lot given the impacts we've seen from hurricanes Diana, Hugo, Fran, Bonnie, Floyd, and Matthew."

The uncertainties gnaw at government officials who must decide where to order evacuations and where to dispatch emergency responders. The result can be mixed signals, as was the case here in South Carolina, where on Tuesday Gov. Henry McMaster, R, canceled mandatory evacuation orders for several counties along the state's southern coast. But then came the Wednesday revision in the storm track.

"As we have been predicting, this hurricane is unpredictable," McMaster said at a briefing. He said residents in low-lying areas should still leave, even without mandatory evacuation orders, and encouraged those already under such orders to flee.

"Once that hurricane hits, once those high winds get here . . . it will be very difficult if not impossible for anybody to come rescue you if you are in harm's way in one of those zones," he said.

That was echoed Wednesday by officials in Beaufort County, home to Hilton Head Island.

"Now is the time to move," Lt. Col. Neil Baxley of the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office said. He said that residents normally would evacuate to central South Carolina but that this time people should flee to the states to the south.

"Georgia and Florida, wide open, sunshiny, good shape," Baxley said.

But meanwhile, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal, R, declared an emergency in all of his state's 159 counties, citing the revised forecast of the storm.

Aside from the punishing winds that could strafe the coast for more than a day, the rains expected after landfall could inundate a massive area and trigger widespread flooding. Duke Energy estimated that as many as 3 million people could lose power in the Carolinas because of the storm.

"This is no ordinary storm, and people could be without power for a very long time," said David Fountain, president of Duke Energy North Carolina. "Not days but weeks. We won't even be able to get to some areas for several days."

Hurricane science, never exact, has improved dramatically in recent years, but storms still behave whimsically. Florence is riding along the south side of a high pressure system in the upper atmosphere. There is a second high pressure system further west. In effect, one system escorting the storm to land is going to hand the storm off to the next.

"You can start from the same set of initial conditions, and little changes can make the systems go off into a completely different direction," said Rob Young, a professor of coastal geology at Western Carolina University. "That's chaos theory."

Jeff Byard, an associate administrator at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said his agency has added resources to South Carolina because of the slight change in the storm's predicted track, but FEMA is keeping in place the resources already deployed in North Carolina and Virginia. He referred to Hurricane Matthew, which wandered up the southeast coast in 2016, causing flooding from which some areas have not recovered, as a potential model.

"One of the lessons learned going back to Hurricane Matthew: We can't necessarily chase the storm," Byard said.

Officials tend to err on the side of caution when deciding whether to order evacuations, said Kieran Shanahan, former secretary of North Carolina's Department of Public Safety, balancing the risks of moving millions of people with leaving them in a storm's potential path.

"Better to come back and clean up after the storm, cleaning up debris, than having to deal with human injury and fatalities," Shanahan said.

Hundreds of thousands of people have heeded the call to evacuate, including the residents of an elegant bungalow in historic New Bern, North Carolina, who wrote on the plywood covering their windows "Just say no 2 Flo."

By Wednesday morning, Myrtle Beach was a virtual ghost town but for police cars. Amusement parks were closed and boarded up. Most of the businesses were shuttered. Gas pumps were wrapped in plastic.

On the beach, Gabrielle Clarke took a final look at the deceptively calm waters. She and her boyfriend would soon drive home to Columbia, South Carolina, about 21/2 hours west. They came to Myrtle Beach on vacation a week ago with no idea that a storm might blow in. Her boyfriend, Lorenzo Brown, thinks local officials reacted too quickly.

"They got ready a little too early," he said, noting that all the grocery stores had closed. "People still need to buy food. We can't eat, so we got to go."

Tonya Eclebery was also taking one last look at the beach as she walked her 1-year-old Yorkie, Chloe, by the water. She said she and her husband plan to ride out the storm, hunkered down at Holiday Sands North hotel, right off the beach, where her husband works as a maintenance employee and where they have a supply of canned food and water. They live in a trailer nearby but decided the concrete hotel overlooking the beach is safer.

"We don't want to be stuck out of the area for two weeks," said Eclebery, a housekeeping supervisor. "We got to go to work."

At the Food Lion in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, one state to the north, heavy metal storm shutters covered the windows, and a few shoppers pushed overloaded carts along the almost-empty aisles.

"My family all wanted us to leave," said Robin Anderson, who lives in nearby Kill Devil Hills with her husband, two dogs and two cats. "But there's nowhere to go. Even if you can find a hotel, can you afford it?"

At the butcher's counter, Eugene McGirt picked out a package of chicken drumsticks to cook on the grill in case the power goes out. The construction worker, here to help build the Bonner Bridge that links two of the skinny strips of sand that constitute the Outer Banks, used to live in Miami. "I figure I can ride this one out," he said.

Nearby, an older couple in T-shirts consulted a shopping list, pondering a key question: One bottle of margarita mix or two? Two, they decided. Because no one knows how bad Florence will turn out to be.

- - -

Kaplan reported from the Outer Banks. Berman and Achenbach reported from Washington. The Washington Post's Lori Rozsa in Miami, Rachel Siegel in New Bern, North Carolina, and Ann Gerhart and Jason Samenow in Washington contributed to this report.

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Video: Hurricane Florence is forecasted to be a strong Category 4 storm by the time it makes landfall Thursday evening. Capital Weather Gang's Angela Fritz explains what that could mean for the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.(Joyce Koh/The Washington Post)

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Video: From the Outer Banks to Wilmington to Raleigh, people in North Carolina are boarding up or moving out as the arrival of Hurricane Florence looms.(Zoeann Murphy, Jorge Ribas, Whitney Shefte, Lee Powell/The Washington Post)

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Prime Minister Viktor Orban predicted European Union lawmakers would take the unprecedented step on Wednesday of threatening the EU's strictest sanctions against Hungary for the erosion of democracy.

After a heated debate at the European Parliament on Tuesday, Orban said he expected the assembly to muster the two-thirds majority needed for a proposal saying that Hungary poses a "clear risk of a serious breach" of EU values.

"They'll back the proposal," Orban told reporters in the EU Parliament's headquarters in Strasbourg, France. "We're not kids; we see what's going on."

The initiative would then land on the table of EU governments, which would have to decide whether to trigger a European treaty provision that could ultimately lead to the suspension of Hungary's voting rights in the bloc.

The clash is part of a battle in Europe between supporters of liberal democracy and populists inspired by Orban's anti-immigration stance and other EU-bashing habits. Sweden over the weekend became the latest country to see a surge in populist votes after similar forces pushed Britain onto the EU exit path and catapulted political bedfellows to power in Poland and Italy.

The European Commission, the EU's regulatory arm in Brussels, requested a parallel Article 7 process against Poland last December to check a political assault on judicial independence. The EU Parliament has never voted on such an initiative.

The outcome on Wednesday has for days appeared too close to call, in part because Orban's Fidesz party is allied to Europe's Christian Democrats, the biggest group in the 28-nation assembly. The faction, known as the European People's Party, also includes German allies of Chancellor Angela Merkel.

But, asked during a press conference on Tuesday how he expects the EU Parliament vote to go, Orban said the assembly would garner the two-thirds majority because of pressure by Merkel on German EPP members to act against Hungary.

"It's a done deal," said Orban, who also predicted that the EPP would then try to suspend or even evict Fidesz. He vowed to fight such a move while insisting he'd make no policy compromises to the group.

Wednesday's vote at around midday in Strasbourg will be a test of the EU's commitment to fundamental values before legislative elections in May, with populists angling for control over the bloc's direction. It also marks a landmark moment for the EPP, which has traditionally shielded Orban from criticism by other European parties.

Orban has named allies to head formerly independent institutions, rewritten the constitution and curtailed the power of the courts since returning to power in 2010. More recently, he's led a crackdown against non-governmental organizations, the press and universities, calling for the creation of an "illiberal state" with few effective checks on executive power.

Critics in the EU Parliament on Tuesday said Orban's threat to the rule of law marks a make-or-break moment for Europe.

"Stop this nightmare," said Guy Verhofstadt, leader of the Liberals in the chamber. He said Orban was bent on wrecking the EU in tandem with the likes of populist Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini.

Even as the most serious sanctions against Hungary would be unlikely -- Poland would be expected to wield its veto before that point -- a pariah status within the EU club would bring its own costs in terms of a leader's ability to influence European policies and appointments.

- - -

Bloomberg's Jonathan Tirone and Lyubov Pronina contributed.

- - -

Bloomberg's Jonathan Tirone and Lyubov Pronina contributed.
The court said dissent was the safety valve of democracy and couldnt be curbed by such arrests.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday extended till September 17 the house arrest of five human rights activists who were taken into custody over the Bhima-Koregaon violence in Maharashtra. Acting on a writ petition by Dr Romila Thapar and others challenging the arrest of Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves and P. Varahara Rao for their alleged Maoist links from Delhi, Faridabad, Mumbai, Thane and Hyderabad, the Supreme Court had on August 29 directed them to be kept under house arrest till September 6, and this order was extended till Wednesday. The court said dissent was the safety valve of democracy and couldnt be curbed by such arrests.

The Maharasthra government had said before a bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A.M. Kanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud that the five activists were arrested not for their dissent but for their active role in the conspiracy to create violence in Bhima-Koregaon. During the resumed hearing on Wednesday, a plea was made to adjourn the case as senior counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi was held up in another court. Accepting the plea, the bench adjourned the hearing till September 17 and clarified its interim order placing the five accused under house arrest would continue until the next date of hearing.

Senior counsel Anand Grover, appearing for lawyer Surendra Gadling, one of the accused, arrested in June this year, drew the courts attention to an additional document filed by him. The counsel said: It is the (Maharashtra) chief ministers speech... We have put it on affidavit that the advocate was threatened... You will be next, it was said... the lawyer is in hospital and wants to argue his case but is not being allowed. He is an advocate of 25 years experience. Gadling was arrested as he had appeared as a defence counsel for Delhi University professor and Maoist activist G.N. Saibaba.

Additional solicitor-general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state, said: When a lawyer is arrested, we know how to treat him. We know our responsibility. We will show relevant records. Please take it as a jurisprudential issue now. The affected parties have joined as intervenors here while their cases are also being examined by the jurisdictional courts... others (other activists) have also moved the high courts, like the Punjab and Haryana high court.

No, you do not! Just because he appeared for Saibaba, hes being treated like a third-grade criminal, argued Mr Grover, and said he would be filing additional materials. In their petition, Dr Romila Thapar and the others said the arrest of activists without any credible material was the biggest attack on freedom and liberty of citizens and the entire exercise was to silence dissent, stop people from helping the downtrodden. The timing of the arrests after nine months leaves much to be desired and appears to be motivated to deflect the peoples attention from real issues, they said, and prayed for a stay of the arrests and a probe by independent persons.

It may be noted that last week, four of the five accused  advocate Sudha Bharadwaj, Vernon Gonsalves, Varavara Rao and Arun Ferreira  have filed a supplementary affidavit seeking impleadment to the proceedings before the Supreme Court.

The state said this court was dealing with persons against whom cogent evidence had so far come on record, showing they were active members of a banned terrorist organisation, namely the Communist Party of India (Maoist), and were involved in not only planning and preparing for violence but were in the process of creating large-scale violence, destruction of property resulting in chaos in society as per the agenda prepared by the Communist Party of India (Maoist), which was banned as a terrorist organisation in 2009.

The five accused arrested by the Pune police in June this year for the Bhima-Koregaon violence had also moved the Supreme Court seeking their release on bail on the ground that they were in custody in the same FIR.

Minal Surendra Gadling, wife of Gadling, sought bail for her husband and four others  Dr Soma Sen, Mahesh Raut, Rona Wilson and Sudhir Dhavale  arrested by the Pune police in June. They said their arrest has shown to the court the manner in which dissent had been suppressed in the country.

They said the present petition arose out of the arbitrary arrests of activists and lawyers from various parts of the country, under the guise of fighting fictitious urban Naxals. They recalled that the Supreme Court, by an interim order on August 29, had put those arrested under house arrest. The bench posted all the petitions for hearing on September 17.
The commander of a North Carolina Marine Corps base in Hurricane Florence's path is hitting back against complaints that he declined to evacuate personnel ahead of the storm to save the military money.

Brig. Gen. Julian Alford, Camp Lejeune's commanding general, issued a series of social media responses Tuesday after troops and their families objected to his decision against a mandatory evacuation. At least five other military bases -- from Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island in South Carolina to Joint Base Langley Eustis in Virginia -- have begun evacuating personnel as Florence careens toward the East Coast.

Camp Lejeune and the Marines and sailors who will remain on duty are well-prepared to face the oncoming storm, Alford said, adding that money wasn't a factor when it came to deciding whether to evacuate the base.

"Federal funding was authorized prior to Tuesday to support IF a decision was made to evacuate the base," the general said on Facebook. "Let me be clear, the decision NOT to mandate evacuation was made after my assessment of the situation."

Alford's response followed a flurry of angry posts from military personnel and their families after it was announced Tuesday that some Lejeune troops would be allowed to take liberty through the weekend, but would not be under a mandatory evacuation order. That leaves those who choose to escape the storm's wrath paying for any travel, meals and lodging on their own.

Personnel at other bases are likely to see those expenses reimbursed if their commanders issued mandatory evacuation notices.

"Why is this not a mandatory evacuation yet?" a Marine field radio operator wrote on Facebook. "The leadership of [Lejeune] just keeps going downhill. This is why no one wants to re-enlist. We have 'leaders' who put money before personal safety."

"The fact that y'all haven't evacuated the entire base shows a blatant disregard for your Marines and their families," another commenter wrote.

Onslow County, which includes Camp Lejeune, ordered immediate mandatory evacuations on Tuesday. The area remains under hurricane and storm surge warnings.

Non-essential personnel at Camp Lejeune were released from duty Tuesday at 4 p.m. and granted special liberty status through the weekend. Anyone cleared by their command to leave base was given permission to relocate their families to a site within 500 miles of Jacksonville, North Carolina.

Travel to and from the area, both before and after the storm, could prove dangerous, Alford warned. Many evacuation routes are vulnerable to flooding, and hotels and fuel supplies are likely already overwhelmed, he added, "making it very dangerous to travel from and then back to Camp Lejeune."

"Camp Lejeune has endured countless destructive weather events over its 77-year history, and we will withstand the tough conditions ahead," Alford said.

Most of Camp Lejeune is not prone to floods, he said, adding that the base has hardened infrastructure, its own first responders, a naval medical center, emergency shelters and emergency supplies.

"And finally, we have Marines who will be ready to assist and take care of each other during this stressful time," Alford said. "... I give you my personal assurance we are going to take care of everyone on this base."

As of press time, Camp Lejeune was listed in Tropical Cyclone Condition II, which means destructive weather with sustained winds of 58 mph or greater are possible in the next 24 hours.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper issued a clear message to state citizens Wednesday morning.

"Disaster is at the doorstep and is coming in," he said. "If you are on the coast, there is still time to get out safely."

-- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @ginaaharkins.
According to the plan, the service must become an older, more agile and talent-driven force with more emphasis on retaining...
The Department of Veterans Affairs is evacuating hundreds of sick and disabled veterans from medical centers in the path of Hurricane Florence and readying mobile units to reach stranded veterans.

The department on Wednesday was also closing clinics in mandatory evacuation zones along the southeast coast and working on ways to get disability checks to veterans, should mail service be disrupted in what is expected to be widespread flooding.

Five VA hospitals and 18 community-based outpatient clinics have already closed or will be closed in the southeast coastal regions of South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia, the VA said in updates on its storm response.

About 1.5 million veterans, including more than 741,000 enrolled in VA health care, and more than 28,600 VA employees live in the affected areas, it said.

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VA facilities remaining open during the hurricane, particularly those taking in evacuated patients, have "topped off their energy and oxygen supplies, and have enough food until September 29," the department said.

The VA also listed a hurricane hotline number: 1-800-507-4571.

About 217 disabled patients are being transported from the Hampton, Virginia, VA Medical Center and moved to other facilities in Martinsburg, West Virginia; Salem, Virginia; Richmond, Virginia; and Salisbury, North Carolina, the VA said.

In a statement, the Hampton VA Medical Center said all of its in-patients were being evacuated and its Emergency Department would shut down Wednesday night and not re-open until Sunday. In addition, officials said they were making contact with homeless veterans to ensure theyd be safe during the storm. The VA provided a list of approved emergency storm shelters in the area.

However, the largest homeless shelter in the area, the Union Mission, is already full and not accepting any more admissions, the Hampton VA said.

The precautions taken by the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center in Charleston, South Carolina, are typical of others in the path of Florence.

The Charleston hospital's four outpatient clinics were closed from Tuesday through at least Saturday and all outpatient procedures were canceled. The in-patient units and Emergency Department at the Johnson Center are remaining open.

Once the main body of the storm passes, the VA is readying one mobile pharmacy unit, a mobile vet center, and a mobile emergency nutrition unit for dispatch to the Richmond, Virginia, VA Medical Center and the Salisbury, North Carolina, VA Medical Center.

The mobile units will "offer medical care, pharmacy assistance, counseling services and benefits referral to veterans and the community affected by the storm," the VA said.

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.
Army scientists are outfitting soldiers at one of the service's hottest training bases with wearable sensors in an attempt to better predict heat-related injuries.

Researchers from the Army's Research Institute of Environmental Medicine recently began collecting data from more than 2,000 soldiers in Ranger, Airborne and Basic Combat Training at Fort Benning, Georgia, who volunteered to wear real-time physiological status monitors, or RT-PSMs.

The study, in coordination with Fort Benning's Martin Army Community Hospital, began after the service's Public Health Center said soldiers have reported 480 cases of heat illness since January; 219 of those cases occurred at Benning, according to a recent Army news release.

"We are collecting data on soldiers during hot-weather training to determine if those who develop heat illness possess a unique physiological profile compared to their peers who perform the same training activities but do not develop heat illness," said Mark Buller, one of the investigators and a research physiologist at the institute.

The RT-PSM is a chest harness that tracks soldiers' core and skin temperatures and heart rates as they train by using an Estimated Core Temperature, or ECTemp, algorithm incorporated into the harness. The algorithm uses mathematics to provide accurate estimates of core body temperature by analyzing heart-rate changes over time, said Buller, who developed the ECTemp.

In July, 31 soldiers from the 75th Ranger Regiment, all from diverse climates, wore the harnesses while completing the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program, or Rasp, at Benning -- a program consisting of five-mile runs, road marches and other strenuous activities. Researchers also outfitted 162 soldiers with the devices while they participated in land navigation training at the Officer Candidate School.

Researchers hope to complete the study by the end of this summer, the release states.

"Real-time monitoring allows us to compare the core temperature and heart rate data in soldiers who did not get heat illness to the ones who did," said Beth Beidleman, another research institute investigator involved in the study. "We have actually been able to capture data on individuals who have suffered heatstroke. If our analysis shows there are physiological differences between soldiers who developed heat illness versus the ones who did not, this information could help us find heat illness predictors and establish thresholds for what is considered dangerous during training."

-- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com.
After sitting vacant in Detroit's Corktown neighborhood for nearly 30 years, the walls of the Michigan Central Station garnered quite a bit of graffiti and its new owners have found a way to even preserve fallen art from the historic building.

As Ford looks to make the iconic train station and Corktown neighborhood an "anchor" for Detroit's comeback it continues to search for ways to preserve as much of the past as possible.

The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker commissioned Rebel Nell to "repurpose layers of graffiti paint from inside the massive building into one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry."

Rebel Nell is based in Corktown, and works with the main mission of employing women transitioning from homelessness while educating them on issues such as budgeting, life skills, housing and legal aid, among others.

Amy Peterson, Rebel Nell's CEO and co-founder, said in an interview with MLive it means the world Ford picked a small business out of Corktown for this project as they "could've easily outsourced this."

"The first part is one of my favorites; the women we employ get to pick what color and shapes speaks to them (with a specific piece)," Peterson said. "Every piece is one of a kind because of where it came from and the women who made it.

"This is an amazing and incredible opportunity to preserve this legacy and history of the train station, especially for a small business like us to partner with Ford and the Ford fund. For Ford to even think to partner with us means a lot, and is a great symbol of how they're developing and getting ingrained in the neighborhood."

--

Workers with Rebel Nell toured the grounds as they searched for fallen art and graffiti inside Michigan Central Station, and then took it back to the shop to start the process of making the jewelry. Ford says in an email that only piece of fallen art and graffiti were used, "as they were respectful of the artists' works."

Shawn Wilson, manager of community management for Ford Fund, said in an interview that after getting to know Rebel Nell and its mission that they "loved their model and especially the empowerment of women."

"They utilize their resources to better these women's lives. We wanted to get behind that," he said. "The response that Ford received to opening up the train station really gave us a chance to see how important it was to the people of Detroit and Michigan.

"(Rebel Nell didn't) so much have free range of the train station, but they were looking for art, murals or graffiti that had already fallen or was in the process of falling. They have a good eye for what's going to make beautiful jewelry."

The limited-edition jewelry is already complete and ready for purchase on the company's website. Products include Rebel Nell's signature pendents, cuff links, pins, and items in the shape of Detroit and Michigan's mitten. The set is made up of 300 pieces, and prices range from $95 to $225.

The relationship between Ford and Rebel Nell first started when the Corktown-based company won the automaker's Ford Resource and Engagement Center accelerator competition for social entrepreneurs. The company won $50,000 toward its expansion for its efforts.

One-hundred percent of the proceeds will go to Rebel Nell, and four charities including Love Runs, Covenant House, among others. Wilson said Ford worked with the company to select the charities while sticking with the theme of empowering women and homeless shelters.

--

Peterson said that through this partnership with Ford, the company was able to hire two additional women from the Coalition On Temporary Shelter in Detroit. Since launching in 2013, the co-founder says Rebel Nell has hired 20 women from the COTS shelter.

"We have a lot of respects for the muralists in the city," Peterson added in a Ford news release.

"The Michigan Central Station collection is a cool way to preserve history. It's an iconic piece of Detroit's history. The jewelry encapsulates the history of Detroit and the train station. It's amazing project to be involved in."

Ford plans to spend about $740 million on renovations to buildings that will soon make up its Corktown campus, after purchasing the long-vacant Michigan Central Station for an undisclosed sale price.

The automaker plans to move about 2,500 employees into the once-doomed train station by 2022 after purchasing the train station-- built in 1913 -- from the Moroun family who has owned it since the early 1990s.

The process in turning the train station -- and neighborhood -- into a future centerpiece for the automaker won't happen overnight, as four years of stabilization, construction and modernization still has to occur.

In late 2017, Ford moved employees back into Detroit proper for the first time in years with a new center focused on autonomous and electric vehicle business and strategy. More than 200 employees moved into The Factory also in Detroit's Corktown neighborhood.

Those employees have been active and working in Detroit since May of this year, and Ford says they will help speed up the development of its hybrid F-150, Mustang, Explorer, Escape and Bronco models.

--
ANN ARBOR, MI - Nurses from the University of Michigan Professional Nurses Council are voting this week to consider a work stoppage in protest to what they say are "unfair labor practices" at UM hospitals, clinics and other health care facilities.

The UMPC believes the university is breaking both state and federal law by repeatedly violating the workplace rights of employees, provoking the union to take legal action before the Michigan Employment Relations Commission and in federal court.

Voting to consider authorizing a work stoppage in protest of unfair labor practices, which began on Monday, will continue through Sunday, Sept. 16.

If there are enough votes to legally declare a work stoppage, and the union wishes to proceed with a strike, Michigan Medicine and its members would be given 10 days notice to prepare for any staffing shortages, UMPNC/Michigan Nurses Association Chairwoman Katie Oppenheim said.

"At this point, we needed to file these unfair labor practice charges with the Michigan Employment Relations Commission in order to get the wall that's been placed up, down, in terms of the employer not being able to negotiate in good faith," Oppenheim said. "Until that wall comes down, we can't get to those issues that remain."

Nurses picket in Ann Arbor as negotiations with Michigan Medicine continue



In addition, the UMPNC and its more than 5,700 nurses at Michigan Medicine filed a lawsuit against the university in U.S District Court, stating that university officials are violating the U.S. Constitution by prohibiting nurses from exercising their right to free speech as expressed on T-shirts, buttons and through other means in the workplace.

The lawsuit states that prior to 2018, the University "did not censor, punish or otherwise direct the (Michigan Nurses Association)-represented nurses to remove any red apparel - the color of the MNA - while working in patient care areas," regardless of the message printed on the apparel.

Nurses have been threatened, however, with discipline for wearing apparel which supports their union, according to the lawsuit.

In addition, the lawsuit claims MNA-represented nurses at the university have worn other apparel that displayed support for, or opposition to, partisan political and social issues while working in patient care areas without any direction from Michigan Medicine to remove or conceal their apparel.

"Our nurse bargaining team believes it is time to hold management accountable for bad faith bargaining, making changes to our working conditions without any negotiations and discriminating against RNs for exercising our right to free speech," said Megan Duncan, a registered nurse at the University of Michigan Hospital and a UMPNC member.

The UMPNC continues to negotiate a new contract with Michigan Medicine officials after its contract deadline expired on June 30. Negotiations for the new contract began in January and the next bargaining session with Michigan Medicine was scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 12.

Oppenheim said key issues like retirement cutbacks, increased health care costs and guaranteed staffing levels remain unresolved for the two sides to reach a deal.

"This is not about the issues, this is about not being able to even get to the issues," she said. "That's why we needed to file these charges, as well as the suit."

The health system is confident all of its efforts during negotiations have been consistent with the First Amendment and putting patients first, Michigan Medicine Spokeswoman Mary Masson said.

"We will vigorously defend the university from this lawsuit that further hinders our ability to reach a contract agreement," Masson said. "We remain opposed to the union's efforts to bring labor negotiations into patient care areas. We stand ready to continue contract talks."



Michigan Medicine has offered the nurses a compensation package that includes competitive across-the-board increases of at least 3 percent and a competitive paid maternal/parental leave program that includes six weeks of paid leave for physiological recovery from birth of a child and six weeks of paid parental leave to employees after a birth, adoption or foster care and guardianship, Masson said.

Michigan Medicine's nurse-to-patient ratios are in the top 2 percent of all hospitals in the country, Masson said.

Nurses are critical to the delivery of safe patient care," Masson said. "The most critically ill patients in the state come to Michigan Medicine. If any of our nurses go out on strike, their absences may put patient safety at serious risk.



"Strikes are illegal for public employees in the state of Michigan," she added. "If an employee goes on strike, the employee is not paid for the time out on strike."
3 Jaish infiltrators escape into forest, villages being combed to nab them.

Srinagar/Jammu: A high alert was sounded on Wednesday in Jammu and Kashmirs garrison town of Udhampur and its neighbourhood after a 52-year-old civilian was injured when gunmen targeted a police party at Jhajjar Kotli along the Srinagar-Jammu highway.

It was suspected that three Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists, believed to be part of a suicide squad, had infiltrated into J&K on Wednesday and after firing at the police party on the highway, had escaped into a forest area near Jammu. The security forces were conducting a search operation in several villages along the highway to capture the assailants as reports last came in.

According to late-night reports from Udhampur, as the security forces zeroed in, the three quickly walked towards a cluster of houses, barged into the house of one Mr Khajuria and held his family hostage, forcing it to serve them water at gunpoint. Police sources said before leaving the house, the trio changed clothes and moved into the nearby maize fields. They forced the Khajuria family to provide them three pairs of shirt-trousers and after wearing them, fled towards the maize fields. We have surrounded the place to take them on, a police officer said over the telephone.

Earlier, the the police said the injured man, identified as J&K sericulture department employee Ganesh Dass, was immediately evacuated to the Government Medical College Hospital in Jammu. Police souces said the suspected Jaish gunmen were travelling in a truck, and opened fire when a police naka party signalled it to stop for checking at Jhajjar Kotli, 32 km north of Jammu. The truck sped away towards the Udhampur side.

Udhampur is situated about 30 km from Jhajjar Kotli, and apart from several important security installations, the Armys Northern Command headquarters is located there. Police sources said the security forces and the Army were immediately alerted about the incident.

The police later seized the truck and arrested three persons, including its driver and cleaner. Jammu SSP Vivek Gupta said a AK rifle sling with some ammunition was also seized from the vehicle. He added that a hunt was on for the absconding militants.

Panic gripped Jammu and its neighbouring areas as the three men fled into the forest between Jhajar Kotli and Nagrota on the citys outskirts. Additional checkpoints were erected at Katra, the base camp of the Mata Vaishno Devi cave shrine, visited by thousands of devotees. Drones were also deployed over the forest areas to locate the missing terrorists.

Piecing together the mornings events from the interrogation of the driver, from Budgam in central J&K, officials said the trio infiltrated from the Kathua-Sambha border early Wednesday. They boarded the truck at Chak Dayala, a village about 2-3 km from the international border. The special task force of the state police has taken the driver and cleaner to the place in Jhajar Kotli where they were picked up, the officials added.

The incident has come about seven months after three militants attacked Sunjwan military station in Jammu, killing half a dozen people, including five soldiers, before getting killed. In 2015, two militants had attacked a BSF convoy at Narsoo, near Udhampur, along the 294-km Srinagar-Jammu highway. In the subsequent encounter, one militant was killed and another was captured alive.
YPSILANTI, MI - Police arrested a man suspected of robbing a bank in downtown Ypsilanti two weeks ago, after he was spotted at the bank again on Monday.

With the assistance from Michigan State Police, Ypsilanti police officers identified and arrested the man Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 11. He is suspected of robbing the Citizens Bank in downtown Ypsilanti on Aug. 28, according to a statement from the Ypsilanti Police Department.

The man is currently lodged in the Washtenaw County Jail awaiting arraignment on bank robbery charges.

The robbery occurred at about 2 p.m., Aug. 28, at Citizens Bank, 123 W. Michigan Ave., in the heart of downtown Ypsilanti, police said.

The man entered the bank and handed a teller a note implying he had a weapon and to hand over cash, police said. He was given an undisclosed amount of money and left the scene on foot in an unknown direction.

The clothes the man was wearing during the robbery were found discarded near the bank, but the man was not found, police said.

On Monday, Sept. 10, the man was spotted returning to the bank but fled before police arrived, they said.

State police assisted in the investigation and were able to identify the man who was found walking down a street by patrol officers at 3:30 p.m., Sept. 11, police said.

The man was arrested without incident.
SANDUSKY, MI -- Two siblings facing a murder charge in the death of a woman they worked with on a Sanilac County dairy farm were in the country illegally.

So too was their victim.

Khaalid H. Walls, an official with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (or ICE), confirmed that Leobardo Torres-Castillo, 20, and Francisca Vargas-Castillo, 33, are citizens of Mexico and undocumented immigrants in the U.S.

The woman officials allege the two killed, 42-year-old Bricia Flores-Rivera, was also a Mexican citizen and in the U.S. illegally, Walls confirmed.

Torres-Castillo and Vargas-Castillo, who are brother and sister, were arraigned Sept. 3 in Sanilac County District Court on charges of open murder and concealing the death of an individual. Open murder contains both first- and second-degree murder.

Walls added that once the case is resolved, Torres-Castillo and Vargas-Castillo will be placed in removal proceedings. Walls added that should the defendants be convicted and be sentenced to life imprisonment, they will serve those terms.

Sanilac County Sheriff's deputies were sent out shortly after 3:30 a.m. on Sept. 1 to the 3900 block of Aitken Road in Flynn Township after a man reported Flores-Rivera, his girlfriend, was missing and that he found blood in their residence.

The Michigan State Police Crime Lab was called in to assist at the scene as well as at a vehicle located later that morning in Marlette from leads developed by investigators.

Police were eventually led to Buel Township, approximately 20 miles from the original scene, and found the Flores-Rivera's body.

An autopsy revealed Flores-Rivera's manner of death to be homicide, though police have not said how she was killed or what possible motives the alleged killers may have had.

Flores-Rivera and the suspects worked at Goma Dairy Farm in Flynn Township.

Sanilac County Undersheriff Brad Roff has said deputies arrested Torres-Castillo and Vargas-Castillo at the Aitken Road residence.

Both suspects remain in custody at Sanilac County Jail on a $1 million cash bond. Their cases are set for preliminary examinations on Sept. 18.
DETROIT - A Bloomfield Hills podiatrist was sentenced to more than two years in prison Tuesday, Sept. 11 for his role in a $1 million health care scheme, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

Lawrence Young, 70, pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud in January 2018, according to court documents.

Young admitted that from January 2010 through April 2017, he engaged in a scheme to defraud Medicare by submitting false claims for the application of an "Unna Boot," which is a type of medicated dressing typically applied after surgery to control swelling of the leg or foot.

Young billed Medicare for more than $1 million worth of Unna Boot and related services, even though he never provided anything more than an Ace-bandage to patients, according to federal prosecutors.

According to court documents, Young also told his patients that to prevent "hammertoe," they needed to schedule appointments on a weekly or biweekly basis to receive various types of injections and incisions, inflating Medicare billings.

Young was sentenced Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Judith Levy of the Eastern District, who also ordered him to pay more than $330,000 in restitution to the Department of Health and Human Services.
Amber Renee Guyger (Kaufman County Sheriff's Office via AP)

Dallas Police Chief Rene Hall, former Detroit deputy chief, is receiving a mix of criticism and praise for her handling of a fatal police-involved shooting in Dallas that has captured national attention.

While some say Hall didn't act quickly enough in ordering the officer's arrest, others, including the Dallas Morning News, applauded her steady, level-headed approach and decision to turn the investigation over to a third-party agency.

"For the sake of this community's healing, we praise Police Chief U. Renee Hall for bringing in the Texas Rangers to investigate," the Dallas Morning News wrote in an editorial published Monday, Sept. 10. "Only a fair and unbiased determination of the truth will assure our community that officers will be held accountable for their actions, especially when they have lethal consequences."

Others feel police are protecting their own, giving the officer special treatment and not pursuing charges the same way they might have if the roles were reversed.

The story involves Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger, who, while uniformed and returning to her apartment after a shift, fatally shot her neighbor, Botham Shem Jean, 26, on Thursday, Aug. 6.

Hall asked the community for patience as the investigation into the "very unique situation" unfolded and announced that in order to avoid any appearance of bias, the investigation had been turned over to the Texas Rangers.

Hall said during a press conference on Sept. 7 that an arrest warrant was being sought.

Based on the Rangers' investigation, Guyger was arrested Sunday, Sept. 9. The arrest affidavit, submitted predominantly based upon the officer's account of what happened, says she accidentally entered the wrong apartment, believed Jean was an intruder and opened fire when he refused her commands, the Associated Press reports.

Guyger has been released on bond pending further court hearings.

Hall, who served 18 years with the Detroit Police Department, was selected as the first ever woman to lead the Dallas Police Department in July 2017, beating out high-ranking officers from Seattle and Los Angeles, as well as other internal applicants.

Dallas, with about 1.3 million people and 4,000 sworn officers, has nearly twice the population and double the number of officers as Detroit, based on 2015 FBI data.
Update: Detroit Assistant Corporation Counsel Mark Toaz contacted MLive on the afternoon of Sept. 12 and said the Detroit Police Department is expected to make the dashcam video from this case available within the next couple days.

Detroit police, after some prodding, released hundreds of records related to the officer-involved fatal shooting of a 19-year-old man in the backyard of an abandoned home, but have ignored multiple requests for release of the associated dashcam video.

Raynard Burton, according to police reports reviewed by MLive, on Feb. 13, 2017 sped away from police, crashed into another car, smashed the side of a building and then ran away on foot with officers in pursuit.

Eventually cornered in the littered, overgrown backyard of a vacant home with a collapsed garage, police reports say former Detroit Police Officer Jerold Blanding fired a fatal shot into Burton's chest when Burton, who was unarmed, attempted to grab the officer's gun.

While the actual shooting wasn't captured on video, Detroit Police Chief James Craig shortly after Burton's death confirmed there was footage from the chase, which should also include audio and provide a better understanding of what led up to the fatal shooting.

Dashcam video was also mentioned in Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy's report clearing Blanding, who was initially suspended and later fired for an unrelated matter, and in multiple investigation documents obtained by MLive through a Freedom of Information Act request.

"Scout car video was operable," Worthy's Dec. 20, 2017 statement said.

Why the video is being withheld is unclear. Detroit Police Sgt. Nicole Kirkwood and Detroit Assistant Corporation Counsel Mark Toaz, despite saying they would provide an explanation in separate emails, have not responded to follow-up questions.

Investigators did release several videos found on Burton's cell phone. Their pertinence to the shooting investigation wasn't immediately evident.

Shortly after the shooting, police revealed Burton was driving a 1998 Pontiac Bonneville that had been stolen during a carjacking two days prior. Burton was subsequently identified as the culprit, according to police reports. Other police records indicate Burton was also a suspect in January 2017 armed carjacking.

Transparency in the Detroit Police Department is an "ongoing issue," said Detroit Police Commission Board Chair Willie E. Bell, a retired Detroit police officer.

The Detroit Police Commission is a citizen-run police police oversight board comprised of seven elected members and four mayoral appointees. It's tasked with helping to create department policy and deciding certain personnel and disciplinary issues, but Bell says the commission sometimes has trouble performing its duties due to the department withholding crucial information.

"They haven't been so forthcoming," Bell said. The department claims "we are not entitled in reference to certain information that we've requested, and they've taken that stand."

The Detroit Police Commission has continuously asked for and has been denied a full reporting of lawsuit settlements paid on behalf of the Detroit Police Department, along with a summary circumstances surrounding the lawsuits, Bell said.

In one commission meeting last year, Bell called for the elected body to use its subpoena power to request the settlement information.

"Enough is enough," he said at the time. "... We've been asking for this for 3 1/2 years."

Another year later, the commission still isn't being fully apprised of police settlements, and the board is "negotiating" with the Detroit Law Department on what information the commission is entitled to receive, Bell said.

Lawsuit settlement agreements made by municipalities have long been determined to be public information by numerous courts.

In a national story reported last year by VICE News, the Detroit Police Department didn't deny a request for records related to police-involved shootings tracking back to 2010, but issued a response that made obtaining the data cost and time prohibitive.

The Detroit Police Department's response, which was issued through the Law Department, estimated it would take 12 years and cost nearly $77,000 to produce those records.

The Detroit Law Department also fields FOIA requests for Mayor Mike Duggan's Office. When reporter Charlie LeDuff requested a summary of legal costs the city spent in response to an ongoing FBI probe into the city's demolition program, he was told it would cost $2,775 to tabulate the legal bills.

Police regularly deny record requests involving police shootings when an investigation is ongoing, which is allowed under Michigan law.

On the same day the prosecutor cleared Blanding in the shooting of Burton -- more than eight months after Burton died -- MLive filed a FOIA request for records in possession of the prosecutor's office.

In May, Wayne County assistant prosecutor and FOIA coordinator Suzy Taweel said she missed the original FOIA request, and expedited a response stating the video had been returned to the Detroit Police Department.

"The scout car video was provided on DVD," Wayne County Assistant Prosecutor Maria Miller told MLive. "This is typically how we receive it from (the Detroit Police Department).

"The evidence in the case is property of the police agency that submits the warrant request ... protocol is (to) return the evidence to the police agency once the formal decision has been made to deny a warrant request. It is not practical for us to retain complete files of denied warrants."

MLive on April 16 filed a request for the video and all other investigation records with the Detroit Police Department.

Police initially denied MLive's records request on May 8, stating there was an "open and active" investigation, but reversed its denial when MLive contested whether the investigation had concluded.

The department then released 715 pages of records, as well as some dispatch audio, scene photos and videos captured from Burton's social media accounts, but no dascham video.

Dozens of records were entirely redacted, and there were numerous duplicates of other records.

The Detroit Law Department estimated the cost to compile and redact the records was $207.11, but charged MLive $139.81, allowing a discount because the response wasn't provided within the time limits established under the state FOIA law.

Blanding, after being cleared in the Burton case, remained on restricted duty until April, when, police said, while off duty, intoxicated and armed with three guns, Blanding arrived at the scene of a crash involving a victim he knew and interfered with the investigation.

The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office charged Blanding with 19 crimes, including multiple counts of felony firearm possession, resisting police, obstruction of justice and possession of a firearm while under the influence of alcohol.

Blanding has been involved in at least two prior off-duty shootings, according to court records.

Blanding shot a man in 1998 when the victim accidentally opened the door to Blanding's vehicle, believing it was his own, after withdrawing cash from an ATM.

A recent lawsuit claiming the Detroit Police Department maintains a "culture of silence" in regard to problematic cops says Blanding told investigators the man was an armed robber, although a witness supported the victim's claim that he apologized before Blanding opened fire.

Three years before the ATM incident, Blanding shot a pigeon with his department-issued firearm, the lawsuit says.

Blanding is also one of three off-duty Detroit police officers accused in the shooting of Demar L. Parker, whose ex-girlfriend began dating a Detroit police officer in 2015. Blanding and two other off-duty officers responded to the woman's home during a domestic altercation between the former couple.

Parker claims he tried to flee in his car after he felt threatened by the armed off-duty officers.

In a police report filed in the civil lawsuit, Blanding wrote that Parker squealed his tires and sped towards officers while waving a gun and shouting.

Fearing for his life and those around him, Blanding wrote that he fired multiple gunshots at Parker -- up to 15, according to the lawsuit

The involved officers, including Blanding, were cleared of any wrongdoing, Detroit police told MLive in 2016.

A former Detroit police spokesman at the time denied that Parker was ever struck by gunfire.

The resulting civil lawsuit is scheduled for trial in December.
A 16-year-old high school student died after being stabbed by another student on Wednesday morning at Fitzgerald High School, according to police.

The victim and the 17-year-old suspect knew each other and were involved in a fight about a male student, Warren Police Commissioner William Dwyer said in a press conference. Police were continuing to investigate the details.

"The male student knew both the suspect and the victim and that might've been one of the reasons why this occurred," Dwyer said, later adding "all three of them had a relationship of some sort."

A student resource officer immediately began CPR on the victim in the classroom after being alerted by screams, Dwyer said.

The victim, who has not yet been named, was taken to St. John Hospital, where life-saving attempts were made, Dwyer said, but she was pronounced dead at 9:24 a.m.

Dwyer expects a warrant to be issued by the Macomb County Prosecutors Office charging the suspect with homicide, he said.

"In the past 50 years, the officers ... can't recall a case where a student was actually murdered or killed," Dwyer said. "This is our third homicide in Warren, Michigan this year."
Students at a Warren high school were dismissed Wednesday morning after a stabbing incident.

Police say a 17-year-old Fitzgerald High School student stabbed a 16-year-old, according to the Associated Press.

The school received notice at about 8:30 a.m. and noted online the attacker was arrested and in custody. The critically-injured student was taken to the hospital, AP reports.

At about 9:30 a.m., the school posted online that it was on lockdown "until further notice" and began dismissing students at about 10:20 a.m.

Attn FPS! The high school students have begun to be dismissed for the day. Posted by Fitzgerald Public Schools on Wednesday, September 12, 2018
(This story has been updated with additional comments.)

FLINT, MI -- The city can move ahead with plans to spend more than $18 million to replace home and business water meters, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says.

The EPA told the city and state of Michigan Tuesday, Sept. 11, that it will amend an award of $100 million in federal funds and $20 million in state funds to include the meter replacement program.

"As identified in the (intended use plan), all project categories require additional work between the city and (Michigan Department of Environmental Quality) before construction can begin," EPA Water Division Acting Director Linda Holst said a letter to Mayor Karen Weaver and DEQ Director Heidi Grether.

The state agreed to back Flint's water meter replacement proposal in May, saying the foundation of the financial stability of its water system depended on replacing defective, inaccurate customer meters.

New meters are expected to increase revenue to the city and reduce the potential for water theft, city and state officials have said.

"Without this additional revenue, the city will be unable to hire the proper staffing to reliably treat the purchased Great Lakes Water Authority water ... and monitor/maintain water quality in the distribution system," the DEQ said in a previous letter of support.

Flint Mayor Karen Weaver issued a statement, saying she is "pleased that the EPA has approved the necessary funds to implement the plan to restore infrastructure to bring about better water quality and quality of life for Flint residents.

"This award is a step in the right direction to help Flint recover from decisions made that ultimately created the Flint water crisis," Weaver's statement says.

DEQ spokeswoman Tiffany Brown said in a statement that her department supports the EPA's approval.

"The DEQ worked closely with the city of Flint in the development of the state's intended use plan for the utilization of (the) funds to improve infrastructure throughout the city," Brown said in an email to MLive-The Flint Journal. "The department advocated on the city's behalf for full support from EPA on all projects presented in the city's project plan and is pleased by the EPA's quick turnaround of the amended ... award. The DEQ looks forward to working with the city on the future infrastructure improvements to further protect public health."

Like other parts of the city's intended use plan, the meter replacement project has yet to take full shape and the city's plan estimates it will not start until January 2019.

City reports have described the project previously as including analysis of the more than 30,000 water meters currently in use in Flint and determining replacement needs beyond the 11,000 high-priority replacements already identified.

The draft project plan was submitted to the state by the city in March and an international engineering firm working for the city also identified it as a key to improving the city water system.

As EPA did in December 2017, Holst's new letter says federal officials "continue to be concerned about the city's pace of construction and requests for reimbursement of funds."

"The city should ensure that the projects remain on schedule or expedite the schedules," Holst's letter says. "Continued delays in project construction severely delays the public health benefits associated with WINN."

State officials have also pushed the city to seek reimbursements related to water service line replacements more promptly.

In addition to the water meter program, the city's plan for spending federal and state funds includes $40 million for service line replacement, $9.1 million for work needed to secure a secondary water source from the Karegnondi Water Authority, $68 million for water main replacement and $10.1 million for right-sizing pumps to improve operations and energy use at the Dort Reservoir and Cedar Street pumping stations.

The federal funds came from the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation bill signed by President Barack Obama in 2016.

The estimated total cost of water system work to be completed in Flint amounts to more than the $120 million available in WINN funds, and the EPA letter says approximately $54 million will be from other funding sources.
FLINT, MI -- Gov. Rick Snyder apologized for the Flint water crisis nearly three years ago, but filmmaker Michael Moore still hasn't forgiven him.

Speaking to reporters after taping an appearance on a special "All In With Chris Hayes" on Tuesday, Sept. 11, Moore said "it's his hope ... and belief" that Snyder will still be charged with crimes related to Flint's water problems, particularly if Democratic attorney general candidate Dana Nessel is elected.

The MSNBC program is scheduled to broadcast live from Churchill's Food & Spirits in Flint on Tuesday, and the special segment filmed with Moore and an audience at Factory Two is scheduled to run as an hour-long special program at 8 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 12.

Fifteen current and former city and state workers have been charged with crimes related to Flint's water, but the highest-ranking official charged to date has been Michigan Health and Human Services Director Nick Lyon, who remains on the job at the governor's request.

Moore has long advocated for Snyder to be charged with criminal wrongdoing and is back on the topic as he promotes his new film, "Farhenheit 11/9," some of which is dedicated to Flint's problems since its water source was changed to the Flint River while it was run by state-appointed emergency managers.

MLive-The Flint Journal could not immediately reach a spokeswoman for Snyder for comment on Moore's remarks, but on Monday, Sept. 10, Communications Director Ari Adler blasted the Flint native in an email to The Journal.

"As for the film in general, in no way, shape or form does it help the residents of Flint or Michigan," Adler wrote. "The only person who benefits from this is Michael Moore.

"I believe the people of Flint will quickly realize they are once again being played as pawns in an attempt to help one individual obtain personal fame and fortune."

Moore appeared with residents of Flint and from elsewhere in Michigan during the Taping of the Hayes' show.

Hayes and Moore spend the first segment of the show, speaking between themselves about the state of politics in Michigan and Flint before speaking to others.

"This is the site of one of the worst failures of governance," Hayes said early in the show. "You can't blame people for feeling jaded and cynical."

Moore said Snyder's use of emergency managers in Flint was part of a pattern that included similar actions in majority-black cities like Pontiac and Detroit as well.

"This governor came in and said ... 'I'm taking over' ... and installs his own cronies," he said. "Does this sound like a democracy?"
GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- A jury will be back in court Wednesday for a fifth day of deliberations in the murder trial of a woman accused in the neglect death of her baby.

Lovily Johnson, 23, is charged with felony murder and first-degree child abuse for the July 19, 2017 death of her 6-month-old son, Noah.

Police said she left her son in a car seat in a sweltering attic bedroom for more than a day.

The temperature in the apartment was 90 degrees, police say. The boy was in his car seat from late July 17, 2017, to early July 19, 2017, at the apartment in the 2600 block of McKee Avenue SW in Wyoming.

Defense attorney Jonathan Schildgen argued that Johnson was overwhelmed as a young, single mother - living in a home for victims of domestic violence - and caring for her younger sister and a 2-year-old daughter.

Deliberations began late Wednesday, Sept. 5 and have continued for four weekdays since then. Jurors have indicated they reached a decision on the child abuse charge, but not murder.

A jury foreperson on Tuesday, Sept. 11 said they were making progress and Judge Mark Trusock ordered them to continue deliberations Wednesday.

Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker said it's the longest jury deliberation in Kent County that he can recall.
Lucknow bench order could lead to a fresh tussle, adds new twist to SC/ST controversy.

Lucknow: In a major development, the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court has delivered a judgment over the SC/ST Act saying that no arrest can be made without giving a notice if the punishment, as per the relevant section, was less than seven years jail. The ruling makes it clear that in all cases where the arrest of a person is not required under Section 41(1) CrPc, the police officer in question will be required to issue a notice asking the accused to appear before him at a specified place and time.

This order by a division bench of the high court gives a fresh twist to the controversy over the SC/ST Act that had recently been amended by Parliament.

The division bench of Justices Ajay Lamba and Sanjay Harkauli said: If the accused complies with the terms of the notice, he shall not be arrested unless for reasons to be recorded, the police officer is of opinion that the arrest is necessary. At this stage also, the condition precedent for arrest as envisaged under Section 41 CrPc has to be complied (with) and shall be subject to the same scrutiny by the magistrate as aforesaid.

The judges further said that the Supreme Court had also given such instructions in the matter. The court ruling came on a petition filed by one Rajesh Misra of Gonda, who leaded that he should not be arrested before completion of investigation in the case against him. The case against him was filed by one Shivraji Devi under the SC/ST Act and she claimed the accused had attacked her family on August 18 and had made a casteist remark against her daughter.

The petitioner also demanded the quashing of the FIR which was filed against him under Sections 323, 452, 504,506 of IPC and the relevant sections of the SC/ST Act at the Khodare police station in Gonda.

The court said the counsel appearing on behalf of the state government had admitted the offences allegedly committed entail a sentence of up to seven years jail.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- If police officers better understand the cultural differences of Grand Rapids' diverse communities, they'll be better equipped to de-escalate situations and establish quality relationships with those they serve.

That's the idea behind the Grand Rapids Police Policy and Procedure Task Force's recommendation for the department's sworn officers to undergo further cultural competency training in partnership with local organizations.

Speaking on behalf of the task force Tuesday, Sept. 11, Ron Davis, principal for the Grand Rapids-hired 21st Century Policing Solutions firm, presented 38 recommendations to the city commission.

The goal of the policy review and subsequent recommendations is to reduce racial disparities in policing and to improve community-police relations, particularly in communities that have "a generational mistrust" and have "historically been disenfranchised by law enforcement."

"Cultural competence ... is the understanding that you're trying to provide officers information about a culture so it is competent on the culture and understands how to respond when getting calls for service to that culture," Davis said.

Davis said the competency training is different than cultural diversity training, which focuses on tolerance and discrimination. Instead, it focuses on discussion and understanding history going back to slavery and the civil rights movement.

"When you show a video tape of the 1960s, where you have the disenfranchisement of communities of color, the use of police force to stop voting and marching and demonstrating, that uniform is the same one you're wearing today," Davis said. "So if you're going into community and you're getting people my age or older, that's within our lifetime. And understanding history, you may understand the apprehension of why community members might have the initial distrust, because it's a generational mistrust that's continually validated by ongoing incidents."

The police department has been under scrutiny by some in the community in recent years, with racial disparities being at the center of those discussions. A traffic stop study published last year suggested racial bias in local policing, and three incidents of officers stopping black unarmed youth over an 18-month span raised public concerns regarding department policy.

On Tuesday, the task force's recommendations were presented in six categories: staffing and deployment, internal affairs, training, youth policy, and community policing and crime reduction.

Davis said training is usually the largest area for recommendations when his firm helps a police department review its policies. In Grand Rapids, it was the smallest.

"Your department is doing a tremendous job in this area," Davis said. "The Grand Rapids Police Department is considered one of the best in the state with regards to training. We felt the same thing -- very solid training, very progressive training."

In addition to establishing an annual training needs assessment, and including community members in the process of developing and presenting training practices, the task force asked the department to put its officers through more cultural competence training in partnership with community groups.

Third Ward Commissioner Nate Moody reiterated the importance of cultural training for police. He used "the expressive nature of African Americans" as his primary example.

"We like to express ourselves and sometimes we express ourselves loudly," Moody said. "We're not angry, we're not mad. It's just how we express ourselves. From some parts of police training -- the police have a job to do but sometimes their training doesn't allow them to understand I'm trying to express myself."

Davis echoed the commissioner. He said it's easy for people to say "simply comply and none of this would happen," without considering how often a person of color might be stopped.

"So when I ask you why I'm being blank-ing stopped, you have to give the space for the venting and understanding how people express themselves and that there's a difference between venting and being frustrated because of the conditions, versus the predicate to an attack," Davis said. "That's why when you get to de-escalation, it matters greatly so they don't misread those kinds of things."

Grand Rapids police officers underwent an eight-hour implicit bias training in May 2016 as part of the city's 12-point plan to improve community-police relations. The training, offered by Lamberth Consulting, also included cultural competency training.

Eight department employees were given additional training to become trainers on the topic. Those individuals have since trained the department's last six recruit classes on implicit bias, and in 2018 the department added a field trip to the Jim Crow Museum at Ferris State University.

In 2017, the department also contracted with Fair and Impartial Policing for a one-time implicit bias training session for police command staff and community members.

The police department is also preparing for its 2018-19 leadership institute, which it hosts every other year since 2004. The school is held for four weeks over a four-month span, and includes trips to the Museum of African American History and Holocaust Memorial Center, as well as a lecture focused on cultural competency.

To date, 172 police department employees have gone through the school.

On Tuesday, Commissioner Moody suggested that the police department also consider incorporating the East Lansing-based Cultural Intelligence Center in its future culture-based training.

The task force was created last year as a recommendation from Lamberth Consulting. The firm released its traffic stop study in April 2017, which found that black drivers were twice as likely to be stopped by Grand Rapids police than non-black drivers.

The 14-member body is made up of equal parts police and community representatives, including Marques Beene, Janay Brower, Sonja Forte, Ed Kettle, Maria Moreno-Reyes, Huemartin Robinson, Raynard Ross, Police Chief David Rahinsky, Deputy Chief Eric Payne, Capt. Michael Maycroft, Lt. John Bylsma, Sgt. Jana Forner, Sgt. Dan Adams and Officer Andrew Bingel.

Next month, the task force and 21st Century Policing Solutions will present the 38 recommendations during a community meeting. At that time, the consulting firm will provide their overall analysis of the police department.
The city of Grand Rapids is joining with the business community and a refugee resettlement agency to highlight the economic impact of immigrants and work toward making Kent County more welcoming to foreign-born residents.

Partnering with

, a bipartisan New-York based group focused on creating a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and promoting immigration policies that grow the economy, they

showing that foreign born residents contributed $3.3 billion to Kent County's gross domestic product in 2016.

The county's overall GDP is about $41 billion, according to figures provided by The Right Place, a local economic development group.

Immigrant households earned about $1.3 billion in 2016, with $101.5 million going toward state and local taxes, according to the report. Foreign-born residents include undocumented immigrants, refugees and immigrants who live in the U.S. legally.

"They are contributing to a lot of vital sectors in our community," said Joel Lautenbach, executive director of development at Samaritas, a Detroit-based social service agency that focuses on refugee resettlement. "They are a very important source of labor in an economy that has long talked about a shortage of labor."

In addition to Samaritas, which has a significant presence in Kent County, other organizations partnering on the effort include the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, the West Michigan Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and The Right Place.

The findings of the report, conducted by New American Economy, were released Wednesday morning at a business breakfast at the Goei Center, 818 Butterworth Street SW. They will also be shared at a 5 p.m. community meeting at Cesar E. Chavez School, 1205 Grandville Ave. SW.

Among the report's findings:

There were 50,176 immigrants living in Kent County in 2016, equal to about 8 percent of the population.

Foreign born residents contributed $124.6 million to Social Security and $33.3 million to Medicare. Twenty-six percent of residents in Grand Rapids received Medicare or Medicaid, compared with 31.3 percent of U.S.-born residents.

The report's authors estimated that immigrants had created or helped preserve 2,308 local manufacturing jobs.

There were an estimated 13,384 undocumented residents in Kent County in 2016. That's equivalent to 26.7 percent of the immigrant population.

The 2016 estimated median income of refugees in Kent County totaled $54,045. Nationally, median income among refugees varies based upon who long they have lived in the U.S. Those who have been in the country less than five years was estimated at $21,782, while those who have been here for more than 25 years totaled $67,000.

Moving forward, the groups will meet with the goal of developing recommendations aimed at making the county more welcoming to foreign born residents, Lautenbach said. Those recommendations will likely focus primarily upon actions that organizations in Kent County, including local governments and businesses, can do to accomplish that goal.

And while Lautenbach acknowledges the fractious debate over immigration - President Trump's push to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and crackdown on illegal immigration have generated significant controversy - he's hopeful "politics" can be left out of the discussion.

"The report seeks to lay out the case that we can't ignore the importance of immigrants," he said. "To have the response that 'well, that's fine as long as their legal,' is a pass at what we need to do as a whole community to make sure that we're positioned to welcome people from a very diverse background to participate in all aspects of our society."
CASCADE TOWNSHIP, MI - Speaking Wednesday at Mill Steel Company, Vice President Mike Pence touted the economic impact of federal tax cuts, praised the Trump administration's efforts to bolster domestic steel production and paid tribute to late Amway co-founder Rich DeVos.

"When it comes to small business America, when it comes to steel America, you have a champion in president Donald Trump," Pence said, later highlighting that Mill Steel doled out $1,000 bonuses to 400 employees following the passage of Republican-backed federal tax cuts in December.

Pence was in town Wednesday to pay homage to DeVos, an influential businessman, philanthropist, civic leader and Republican political contributor, who died last week following complications from an infection. He was 92.

DeVos left an "indelible" mark, both on Grand Rapids and the state of Michigan, and "literally embodied the American dream," said Pence, who was to meet privately with the DeVos family following his appearance at Mill Steel.

"Rich DeVos was a great American," he said. "He lived a great life, a life of family, of faith in America and faith in God, and Rich DeVos will be missed."

Pence took a jab at Michigan's "two liberal senators," and singled out Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow, who is up for reelection in November, for voting against Trump's tax plan.

"Sen. Debbie Stabenow said that our tax cuts were in her words 'a bad deal' for the people of Michigan," Pence said. "She said the proof would be in your paycheck. Well I expect that when you got that $1,000 bonus you saw the proof is in your paycheck and that is the tax cuts are working for the people of Michigan."

The new tax law will deliver big cuts to corporation and wealthy Americans and more modest reductions to other families, according to the Associated Press. The tax law is the largest since 1986, but far from the biggest in American history, as the president repeatedly claims.

Mill Steel CEO David Samrick, while introducing Pence, said Trump's tax cuts enabled his company to give out $1,000 bonuses to each of its 400 associates.

"I know my mother Edith and my father Harry, the founders of Mill Steel, are looking down and smiling right now, marveling at all of you and what we've all accomplished together," said Samrick, whose company was founded in 1959 and manufacturers flat-rolled steel.

Trump signed a proclamation in March to impose a 25 percent tariff on imported steel and a 10 percent tariff on imported aluminum, a move aimed at strengthening U.S. steel manufacturers that has drawn bipartisan criticism and stoked fears of a trade war. U.S. manufacturers, including numerous companies in West Michigan, say the tariffs will hurt their bottom line and drive up their production costs.

But during his speech, Pence touted the administration's approach.

"We've taken decisive action to protect against dumping by foreign countries impacting our steel industry," he said, adding that in "recent decades two-thirds of America's steel companies closed their doors" and a third of the industry's jobs "have disappeared."

"But under this administration, those days are over," Pence said. "American steel is coming back."

Gov. Rick Snyder was also in attendance Wednesday, and Pence praised the term-limited governor "for a job well done," highlighting the economic rebound Michigan has seen under Snyder's leadership.

"When I was governor for the state of Indiana, I had to compete with this governor everyday of the week for jobs," Pence joked. "I'm glad I'm not doing that anymore."

The Associated Press contributed to this report
GRAND HAVEN, MI -- A $2.9 million plan designed to ensure fair representation for impoverished defendants is underway in Ottawa County.

The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners recently approved hiring 17 attorneys, three legal secretaries and one office manager to establish a county public defender's office.

If all goes to plan, the new Ottawa County Public Defender's Office will begin handling some new indigent defendant cases by mid-January 2019 and all of those new cases the following month.

People accused of crimes but unable to afford an attorney already receive legal representation under the current system. Those attorneys are paid per hour by the county but aren't county employees.

Ottawa County Administrator Alan Vanderberg said he expects the public defender's office will provide the same level of quality representation.

The change, he said, isn't an indictment of the old system.

"We didn't want to change; the law forced us to," Vanderberg said. "Truly, I think we had an excellent system."

Ottawa County is adapting its indigent defense program to meet new state standards. Every county government in Michigan was required to submit a compliance plan and funding projections to the state by November last year.

Some counties, like Kent which already has a defender's office, will see little to no changes. Allegan and Van Buren counties are currently instituting a joint public defender's office.

The standards proposed by an advisory commission established by Gov. Rick Snyder in 2011 encompass topics from proper workload to training and education expected of public defenders.

Ottawa County's system did not meet the proposed state standard of having indigent representation separate from the judiciary. Judges currently appoint attorneys from a roster to defendants in need of representation but unable to pay.

The state is expected to cover the bulk of the $2.9 million to establish the office and run it the first year by providing a grant of around $1.95 million sometime in October.

Annual office costs are expected to run around $2.7 million, with the state paying $1.8 million of it and the county covering the remaining $923,000, according to cost projections.

Vanderberg said the $923,000 figure is roughly what the county is paying each year for its current system of indigent representation.

The Ottawa County Public Defender's Office will have two locations to serve the northern and southern halves of the county.

The northern office will be located in the Community Mental Health building at 1111 Fulton St. in Grand Haven. The southern office will be in the Ottawa County Department of Health and Human Services building at 12185 James St. in Holland.

Job postings for the public defender, as well as the two first assistant public defenders, are online now. A tentative hiring timeline is available here.
LANSING, MI -- Gov. Rick Snyder announced the establishment of an anti-fraud unit in the Department of Insurance and Financial Services on Tuesday, Sept. 11.

The unit is intended to "investigate acts of fraud in the insurance and financial sectors," according to a press release.

The unit will work with other law enforcement agencies to combat fraud in the auto insurance, health insurance and banking sectors, the release said.

Michigan has some of the highest auto insurance in the nation. Snyder said he hopes the unit will help bring costs down.

"Fraud in the system drives up the cost of insurance for all Michiganders, and we need to do everything we can to eradicate it," Snyder said.

An anti-fraud authority has been part of several legislative attempts at comprehensive no-fault changes. Those packages have failed based on disagreements about their other components, and none has reached Snyder's desk.

The new anti-fraud unit was created by executive order. According to the press release, the unit will be empowered to:

Conduct background checks on applicants for licenses and current licensees.

Collect and maintain claims of criminal and fraudulent activities.

Investigate claims of criminal and fraudulent activity in the insurance and financial services markets that, if true, would constitute a violation of applicable state or federal law.

Maintain records of its criminal investigations.

Share records of its investigations with other criminal justice agencies.

Review information from other criminal justice agencies to assist in the enforcement and investigation of all matters under the authority of DIFS.

Conduct outreach and coordination efforts with local and state law enforcement and regulatory agencies to promote investigation and prosecution of criminal and fraudulent activities.

DIFS Director Patrick McPharlin said the new unit is a step in the right direction.

"It will increase our ability to investigate fraud and will ultimately drive down the cost of insurance for Michiganders," he added.
A Republican lawmaker from Indiana has been hospitalized after he was involved in a serious motorcycle crash in Northern Michigan.

House Ways and Means Chairman Tim Brown, R-Crawfordsville is reportedly in a medically induced coma, his traveling companion Rep. Mike Speedy, R-Indianapolis told the Indiana Business Journal.

Speedy also told the publication the crash occurred near the Mackinac Bridge Wednesday morning.

US-2, one of the Upper Peninsula's main highways, was closed for more than two hours for a "major" crash on Wednesday, Sept. 12, although it is unclear if that closure is related to this incident.

In a statement, Republican Speaker Brian Bosma said that Brown was traveling on his motorcycle when he struck an SUV that pulled out in front of them.

Rep. Speedy, he was traveling nearby, was able to avoid the vehicle and was not injured, according to the statement.

"Out of respect for Tim's family, we cannot confirm any details about his condition at this time," the statement reads. "Tim is an invaluable member of our leadership team, a dedicated public servant and one of my most cherished friends. Our prayers are with him, his family and Rep. Speedy."

Brown, a retired emergency room physician, has served in the Legislature since 1994. He is a known motorcycle enthusiast who often posts photos to social media Harley Davidson.

Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said in a statement he is praying for Brown.

"In addition to being a public servant and an extraordinary leader, Rep. Tim Brown is a fighter," that statement reads. "Janet and I are praying for his recovery and ask Hoosiers across the state to join us."
LANSING, MI - Legislation passed in the wake of sexual abuse perpetrated by Larry Nassar does not allow all his victims to sue, including one who recently alleged Nassar drugged and forcibly raped her in 1992.

After ex-Michigan State University doctor Nassar was sentenced for criminal sexual conduct in an emotionally-charged hearing earlier this year, the legislature took up bills designed to prevent this type of decades-long abuse from happening again and give his victims access to the legal system.

But the legislation doesn't give people like Erika Davis, who in a new lawsuit filing says she was assaulted in 1992, an assured civil claim.

That's because the bill that extended the civil statute of limitations, Senate Bill 872, has a drop-dead date for retroactive lawsuit filings. They give Nassar victims who were minors at the time of the crime a right to sue if they were sexually assaulted after Dec. 31, 1996.

Sen. Margaret O'Brien, R-Portage, who spearheaded the legislation, said she went into it not wanting to include a date to cut off retroactivity.

"It's always hard to pick a date because a crime is a crime. But going retroactive, you know, to get the votes, you're going to have to find consensus ," O'Brien said.

The bill sponsor, Sen. David Knezek, D-Dearborn Heights, originally introduced the bill extending the statute of limitations for civil suits as retroactive back to Dec. 31, 1992, and even that likely wouldn't have covered Davis' claim. But as the bill moved through the legislative process, the date got pushed forward to Dec. 31, 1996.

The allegations made in a lawsuit filed by Davis on Tuesday are a startling break from those made by hundreds other women who say they were assaulted by Nassar, mainly through digital penetration. Davis in her suit claims Nassar drugged her and forced her into non-consensual sexual intercourse in 1992, prior to any of Nassar's other reported assaults.

The new law does extend the statute of limitations for new victims of sexual assault going forward, letting them file civil suits until they are 28 or until three years after discovering their injury as a result of criminal sexual conduct.

When it comes to criminal cases, there is no statute of limitations on first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving the rape of a minor.

On the civil side, O'Brien said even without the new law's protection, she hoped the university would consider Davis as a part of the settlement.

"I hope that Michigan State takes this seriously," O'Brien said.

The university on Tuesday released a statement saying in part "we are taking the allegations very seriously and looking into the situation."

The university declined to comment on a question about whether it considers Davis' claim to be inside the statute of limitations.
JACKSON, MI - Pearl Street will close this fall for electric system upgrades, but not without some compromises from Consumers Energy.

Originally, the entire street was going to close from Aug. 20 to Nov. 20, between Jackson and Mechanic streets.

The last-minute closure announcement sparked outrage among business owners and customers, and Consumers delayed the project.

Now, the work is scheduled to begin Oct. 15 and take place in sections along the stretch. One lane of traffic will remain open at all times, per Consumers.

The work won't all happen at once either, spokesman Brian Wheeler said. The first stage ends before Dec. 31, with crews finishing work in the spring.

Businesses along the stretch include Nite Lite, Collins Brothers Floor Covering and Schupbach's Sporting Goods.

Community members are invited to a public meeting from 12:30 to 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 19, to discuss the new plans and ask questions. The meeting is at the Consumers Energy Innovation Center, 165 W. Michigan Ave.

City Engineer Jon Dowling and Consumers representatives will be present.

In addition to thwarting local business, the initial announcement brought concern about how the closure would impact the Bright Walls mural festival. The festival, sponsored by Consumers, runs from Oct. 4-9 throughout the downtown area.
JACKSON, MI - Three Jackson police officers are being recognized at an awards ceremony later this month for their actions in saving a woman from an armed gunmen.

The Law Enforcement Education Program is presenting outstanding service awards to Jackson police officers Tom Tinklepaugh and Rachel Kuhn and Sgt. Tim Hibbard for their actions in saving the life of Heather Jurasek, according to a news release

They are being recognized for their bravery and putting their lives at risk while stopping armed gunmen from killing others, LEEP wrote.

The officers were called to a domestic assault on Easter Sunday, April 1, at Jurasek's home on Chittock Avenue where her boyfriend, Christopher Lamarr Hall, was beating and pistol whipping her.

As they arrived at the scene, Jurasek and Hall exited the home and Hall opened fire on police, shooting Tinklepaugh in the leg and striking the driver's side door of Kuhn's patrol vehicle.

The officers returned fire, killing Hall as he attempted to use Jurasek as a human shield. Jurasek suffered a gunshot wound in the incident.

The award is also being presented to Holland Public Safety Officer Joseph Slenk who saved Olive Township resident Mary Hartman from her husband, Matthew Hartman, who was holding her hostage at gunpoint after shooting two people in front of her, killing one.

During a standoff outside their Ottawa County home on April 22, Joseph Slenk shot and killed Matthew Hartman as he exited the home with a gun pointed at his wife's head.

Mary Hartman, who was not injured in the incident, told police her husband was going to kill her and he intended to die "suicide by cop."

The awards will be presented by the organization during a ceremony, Sept. 21, at the Police Officers Labor Council/General Employees Labor Council Conference in Traverse City.
KALAMAZOO, MI -- Speakers talked about how 9/11 changed people, and changed the country, during a remembrance ceremony held 17 years after the attacks.

The ceremony was held Tuesday, Sept. 11, at Bronson Park, to remember the day in 2001 when terrorists crashed two planes into the World Trade Center, causing both towers to fall.

Chaplain Roger Ulman of the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety said 9/11 "changed us individually and as a nation."

"Just as the bombing of Pearl Harbor did in that generation," he said.

"I encourage us all to remember and to meditate on how that day changed us. It changed me. It changed our culture. It changed how we did things. Community wise on up to our federal government, to our military to our law enforcement to our first responders. It changed everything."

He talked about the lessons learned from 9/11.

"As a nation we showed compassion and mercy to each other," Ulman said.

Wayne Rantz, 68 stood near the back of the crowd during the ceremony, watching. He remembers he had recently retired from a career in law enforcement when the attacks happened.

"I wanted to do something. There was nothing I could do," he said. "I felt helpless."

9/11 was the reason he decided to go back into the field, he said, signing on as a deputy at the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office. He's now retired after another decade of service, he said.

U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, said he remembers the moment he learned a plane had hit one of the towers, while he was in a meeting in Washington, D.C. He saw the building fully aflame on television, he said.

"All of the sudden it was a worldwide event," he said.

He thanked the first responders who continue to make sacrifices to protect others, and said the ceremony is meant to honor them, as well as the victims of 9/11.

"We learned a lot from that day," Upton said. "We as a country, we have to be lucky everyday. They, they, the terrorists have to be lucky just once.

"We needed to provide our first responders with every tool in the toolbox so that if that day comes again we can do better than we did that day when we lost thousands of folks. And we have."

Kalamazoo 9/11 Community Day of Remembrance Posted by Kalamazoo Gazette on Tuesday, September 11, 2018

The coordinated terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, killed nearly 3,000 people in New York as well as at the Pentagon and Pennsylvania, where hijackers crashed two other planes.

An crowd of an estimated 200 people gathered for the ceremony Tuesday.

The somber crowd of watched as the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office Honor Guard presented the colors. The national anthem rang out as large American Flags were hoisted at Bronson Park.

Members of the Portage Fire Department sounded the last alarm, ringing a bell nine times.

Members of the U.S. Marine Corps carried out the laying of the wreath, and the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety gave a 21-gun salute.

Patriotic songs were performed before the ceremony drew to a close.
The Privileges Committee had issued him a notice on a complaint by the Question and Reference (Q&R) Committee of the Assembly.

New Delhi: The Delhi Assemblys Privileges Committee, comprising AAP legislators, had a tough time on Tuesday in the high court which questioned the panel for changing its stand in the matter relating to chief secretary Anshu Prakash. Justice Vibhu Bakhru was hearing a fresh application by the committee seeking recall of the courts August 28 order in which the panel was directed to produce before it the verbatim records and video recordings of the panels proceedings in which Prakash was questioned over certain issues.

Senior lawyer K.V. Viswanathan, who represented the panel, submitted that filing of video recordings of the proceedings and providing its verbatim record of the chief secretary would be in violation of the doctrine of separation of powers. He said it would be beyond the powers of the court to direct the panel to produce the video records.

The court noted that earlier the committee had sought to invoke the jurisdiction of the court to get the order in July, compelling the Chief Secretarys appearance before the panel. Now, the panel has contended that the court has no jurisdiction to look into those proceedings.

The court also said that the earlier order was passed only after the counsel, who appeared for the panel that day, had said the verbatim records would be provided to the official as soon as it was authorised by the Speaker, who is in London and expected to return on September 16.

The lawyer had assured that the video records of the proceedings would be filed in court before the next date of hearing on September 18. Lawyer Vivek Chib, appearing for the chief secretary, opposed the submission of the panels lawyer on the doctrine of separation of powers.

He argued that the law is settled on the issue of courts jurisdiction to review any violation of a persons fundamental rights vis-a-vis the procedural Rules framed under the Constitution.The court said it would hear on September 18 the issue of jurisdiction.

The panels application was filed in a pending petition of Mr Prakash who had moved the high court in March after he was served a notice by the Privileges Committee for skipping a meeting on February 20. The meeting, in which he was asked to appear, was scheduled a day after he was allegedly assaulted by two AAP MLAs  Amanatullah Khan and Prakash Jarwal.

The court had earlier expressed displeasure with the panel for not completing its breach of privilege proceedings against the chief secretary despite questioning him for over four hours. After the panels advocate had said the officers presence was not required for now, the judge had made it clear no further hearing shall be scheduled by the panel till September 18. The high court on July 24 had told Prakash that he was adequately protected against any punishment by the Assembly committee. It had said that its order of July 13 was expressly clear that he would have to participate in the proceedings before the Privileges Committee and if any punishment was imposed on him, it would not be implemented till his plea against the panels notice to him was decided.

The Privileges Committee had issued him a notice on a complaint by the Question and Reference (Q&R) Committee of the Assembly. The high court had on March 9 asked the panels not to take coercive steps against the IAS officers. The committee had issued the notice after receiving a complaint against the chief secretary by the Q&R Committee. This panel had also served notice on two IAS officers  J B Singh, Registrar of Cooperative Societies, and Shurbir Singh, chief executive officer of the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board.
KALAMAZOO, MI -- A 1970s-era classroom building is now next in line for future renovations at Western Michigan University.

During the Board of Trustees' first meeting of the academic year, trustees voted to place the renovation of Dunbar Hall, a 75,0000-square-foot classroom building which sits north of Miller Auditorium, at the top of the Building Project Priority List.

The 5-Year Capital Outlay Plan 2020 was updated Wednesday, Sept. 12. With a unanimous vote from board members, renovations of Dunbar Hall were put first in line for the possibility of state funding.

The Capital Outlay Plan seeks a $40 million renovation of Dunbar Hall, originally built in 1971.

The renovations are "greatly needed," said David Dakin, director of planning, space management and capital projects.

Buildings used for academics are eligible for state funding, said Pete Strazdas, associate vice president of facilities management.

Every year the state helps fund only a portion of the projects needed at all 15 public universities in Michigan. When Western will be up for a paycheck from the state is unknown, he said.

In last year's capital outlay plan, a renovation and addition for the College of Aviation was top of the list. The majority of this $20 million construction was paid for by state funding. Once funded, the project was removed from the updated list.

The university will pay for $5 million of the total price tag for the construction at the College of Aviation, which has not yet began, according to Capt. Dave Powell, dean of the college.

Other projects near the top of the list include a new dining facility and student center for $85 million that is not eligible for state funding and $84 million of renovations to Waldo Library, which are eligible, according to the Capital Outlay Plan.
MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI - Muskegon County Prosecutor D.J. Hilson has been selected to lead the statewide organization of prosecutors.

Hilson was unanimously elected as president of the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan. He will serve a one-year term.

Hilson was elected prosecutor for Muskegon County in 2012. He previously worked for the office as an assistant prosecutor and senior assistant prosecutor.

"I am looking forward to representing our association and the men and women who work hard every day in their counties to fight for victims and justice in the courtroom and in the community," Hilson said.

St. Clair County Prosecutor Mike Wendling said Hilson is a "natural choice" to lead the association.

"He has the integrity, respect, and skill to form strong lasting relationships with our partners in the criminal justice system with which we have the common goal to enhance public safety and protect the victims of crime," Wendling said.

Shortly after being elected Muskegon County prosecutor, Hilson launched a major truancy initiative partnering with other agencies to work with parents whose children are chronically absent from school. Parents who are not compliant have been jailed.

Among defendants who Hilson has successfully prosecuted is Jeffrey Willis, convicted of murdering Rebekah Bletsch and Jessica Heeringa. While assistant prosecutors often argue cases in court, Hilson handled the Willis cases himself.

Hilson is a 1999 graduate of the Thomas M. Cooley Law School.
SAGINAW, MI -- The owner of a new bakery set to open in October hopes to bring French-style breads and pastries to Old Town Saginaw.

Mitch Delemeester, owner of The Bread Guy, 411 Hancock St., housed in the former Hamburger Hut, plans to offer baguettes, ciabatta, cold sandwiches, vegan breads, croissants, muffins and scones.

A soft opening for the business is slated for the first week of October and a grand opening on Saturday, Oct. 20.

Delemeester, 25, a self-taught baker, said he has always had a niche for cooking, but his interests were elevated after he studied abroad in France while attending Saginaw Valley State University.

"I've always been interested in cooking. Bread was just one of those things that I like how kinda simple it is and you only need just a few ingredients, but you can do so many things with it," Delemeester said.

The Bread Guy will join other bakeries in the area such as Spatz Bakery and Hamilton Home Bakery, but Delemeester said his business is a little different.

"I'm going to do more a European style bakery, with thicker, crustier breads," said Delemeester.

The ingredients for the bread will be sourced from businesses such as Oracle Brewery for grain. Delemeester said he plans to sell bread from the bakery at businesses like Dawn of a New Day, Jake's, Artisan Urban Bistro and Saigon Sandwich.

Prices for baked goods will run $2.50 - $3.50, sandwiches for $7 - $10, and bread for $3 - $8. Pop and coffee will also be available.

Delemeester holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering but, after getting into a career in his field, he realized the work he was doing wasn't for him.

"I wasn't invigorated by the fact that everything was production orientated," said Delemeester. "I also just like to be able to do things a little bit my way. Those things combined, me wanting to do my own thing and not really being satisfied by the job that I was doing, I just decided I was going to be happier making a whole lot less money, but doing my own thing."

Delemeester also saw an opportunity to partake in the revitalization of Saginaw and its growth.

"I'm putting up an old colorized photo of the Hamburger Hut, just to pay tribute to what the area has been," Delemeester said. "Also, try and provide a new quality and experience for something for people to kind of look forward to a more positive future."

The business will be open from 6:30 a.m. - 2 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
While the Orion spacecraft's mission of sending astronauts to Earth's moon and beyond still sits in the distance, NASA tested its parachute system for the final time Wednesday, Sept. 12.

The U.S. space agency says it tested the Orion's parachute system Wednesday morning from the U.S. Army's Proving Ground in Yuma, Arizona. Mark Kirasich, NASA's Flight Director and the Orion's project manager, tweeted that it was a "perfect test on perfect day" while congratulating the team.

Watched a perfect test on perfect day with @AstroKomrade and the parachute team! Congrats to all for the great work! pic.twitter.com/Ps4nAzcqyn  Mark Kirasich (@MarkKirasich) September 12, 2018

When the @NASA_Orion capsule returns following a mission, it'll use a complex system of parachutes, cannon-like mortars & pyrotechnic devices to slow its descent for a safe landing on Earth. We're testing it on Wed., Sept 12 starting at 10:15am ET: https://t.co/wUdDFIw2KW pic.twitter.com/bhbFIqeFCZ  NASA (@NASA) September 12, 2018

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As stated, this was the final and not the only parachute test as NASA reports it has previously evaluated Orion's performance in normal landing sequences, several failure scenarios and "a variety of potential aerodynamic conditions." With Wednesday's test, the space agency says it dropped the test capsule from a C-17 aircraft at an altitude of at least 6 miles "to verify the spacecraft's complex system of 11 parachutes."

The U.S. space agency has said it hopes to conduct an unmanned Space Launch System/Orion flight in 2020, with the goal to launch humans to the moon in 2023. In its 2018 to-do list, NASA said it would continue to ready the Space Launch System and Orion Spacecraft ahead of the hopeful unmanned launch.

Exploration Mission-1, is the first in a "broad series" of exploration missions aimed at taking humans deeper into space, and "eventually to Mars."

Exploded view of the Orion spacecraft with European Space Agency (ESA) Service Module.

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"Orion will serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry the crew to space, provide emergency abort capability, sustain astronauts during their missions and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities," NASA reports in the mission overview for the Orion spacecraft. "Orion missions will launch from NASA's modernized spaceport at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on the agency's new, powerful heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System.

"On the first integrated mission, Exploration Mission-1, an uncrewed Orion will venture thousands of miles beyond the Moon over the course of about three weeks. The mission will pave the way for flights with astronauts beginning in the early 2020s."

After it launches, the space agency says it will take several days to reach Earth's moon where the Orion will fly 62 miles above its surface while collecting data and assessing the performance of the crucial spacecraft.

Before it returns to Earth, NASA says the Orion will again fly above the moon from about 62 miles as it uses the lunar gravity to accelerate back toward our planet. NASA says the spacecraft will re-enter Earth's atmosphere at 25,000 mph while producing temperatures of around 5,000-degrees.

"After about three weeks and a total distance traveled exceeding 1.3 million miles, the mission will end with a test of Orion's capability to return safely to the Earth as the spacecraft makes a precision landing within eyesight of the recovery ship off the coast of Baja, California," the space agency says.

"Following splashdown, Orion will remain powered for a period of time as divers from the U.S. Navy and operations teams from NASA's Exploration Ground Systems approach in small boats from the waiting recovery ship. The divers will briefly inspect the spacecraft for hazards and hook up tending and tow lines, and then engineers will tow the capsule into the well-deck of the recovery ship to bring the spacecraft home."
The number of operators was increased to 80 and lines were increased to 120 on September 11, Tuesday.

New Delhi: A day after the launch of the doorstep delivery of services scheme, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal issued Tuesday stern directions on its implementation and said no request should be rejected without the authorisation of the minister concerned. According to the government, various cases might be rejected at lower levels on the pretext of discrepancy in the application in order to take bribe.

If any of the request/application is delayed under this scheme, it would be taken as an attempt to sabotage the pro-people scheme to further one's corrupt practices, the government said in a statement.

Mr Kejriwal said the violation of time limits prescribed in the scheme will be taken "very seriously" and a disciplinary proceeding will be started against the guilty officer. The head of the department would also be held responsible in such cases, he added.

In his directions to his cabinet ministers, Mr Kejriwal said the rejection of an application should have the approval of the minister-in-charge concerned and that the approval must be taken within 24 hours of such decision.

The government said that the response to the scheme remained overwhelming on the second day. Now for further smoothening up the system, the Chief Minister has directed to add more operators and lines from tomorrow September 12. From Wednesday, September 12, the number of operators would be 150 and phone lines will be 200, an official statement from the government said.

The number of operators was increased to 80 and lines were increased to 120 on September 11, Tuesday.

On Monday, the chief minister launched the scheme under which Delhiites can avail 40 services, including driving licence, ration card, caste and marriage registration certificates, at their doorstep.

The CM also directed that time limits prescribed for the delivery of the services under the scheme must be adhered to in totality and strictly. He has made it clear that no violation of time limits would be tolerated at any cost, according to the statement.

It stated that the heads of all departments have been directed to personally monitor and ensure strict adherence of the time limits in delivery of services. The chief minister also directed that a report of all such cases delayed must be reported to him on a daily basis.
Tiwari claimed that it has been stated in the circular that a data bank will be formed, but the purpose has not been disclosed.

New Delhi: Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari on Wednesday alleged that the Arvind Kejriwal government is trying to invade privacy of Delhiites by sharing their personal information like Aadhar or voter ID card number with third party.

Mr Tiwari was reacting to a Delhi government circular directing children to submit Aadhar/voter ID card number and phone number of their parents, along with permanent address, in their schools.

Mr Tiwari claimed that it has been stated in the circular that a data bank will be formed, but the purpose has not been disclosed. "It is to be considered that Delhi government has appointed a private company for the verification of the documents collected by the schools, which means that the personal information of parents of the children is being given to a private agency, said Mr Tiwari.

Mr Tiwari alleged that the Delhi government is violating the right to privacy and personal information of the parents and other family members of the children, it is a direct attack on the right to privacy. "Chief Minister Mr Kejriwal must clarify that in spite of the information collected at the time of admission what is the purpose behind verification by a private company," Mr Tiwari added.

Mr Tiwari has requested all the parents that they should not share any other information with the Delhi Government except the information given at the time of admission so that Kejriwal government may not misuse the information about the parents and the children.
Shaikh had been watching Sanghvi daily as he was working as a fabricator.

Mumbai: A day after arresting the man who allegedly murdered a senior banker, the N.M. Joshi Marg police is considering conducting a lie detector test on the accused, citing discrepancies during his interrogation.

Following his arrest, Sarfaraz Shaikh has been frequently changing his version during interrogation, the police said. Shaikh murdered Siddharth Sanghvi, vice-president of HDFC bank, by stabbing him multiple times and slitting his throat in the parking lot of Kamala Mills.

During interrogation, Shaikh has given statements ranging from him being the only perpetrator of the crime to being one of the persons among other conspirators. He has told the Navi Mumbai police about others who allegedly hatched the plot, later doing a U-turn when he was taken into custody by the N.M. Joshi Marg police.

The investigators are still unclear about certain aspects like how did Shaikh manage to unlock Sanghvis phone to contact his father and assure the latter of his safety.

A senior police officer said, We do not want to lose out on any information pertaining to the murder and hence, all steps, including conducting a lie detector test on Shaikh, are being considered.

The police is gathering more details about Shaikh from his family members based in Uttar Pradesh. The officials are also unclear about how did Shaikh manage to get inside the car, where he finally murdered Sanghvi.

Shaikh had been watching Sanghvi daily as he was working as a fabricator at a level lower to where Sanghvi used to park his car.

The officials said that there was no clarity on whether he attempted to attack Sanghvi before September 5 or there was ever any interaction between the two in the past. Shaikh has been remanded to police custody till September 19.
An official from the office of the Archbishop of Bombay said the Vatican could initiate an enquiry and take a decision on the matter.

Mumbai: The office of the Archbishop of Bombay, Cardinal Oswald Gracias, on Wednesday expressed that Fr. Franco Mulakkal, the bishop of the diocese of Jalandhar, should step down and let an inquiry against him unfold.

The Archbishop of Bombay says that the reputation of the church, not just in Kerala but all over the country, is at stake and stepping down would be the right thing to do, and if the bishop isnt guilty, then he can very well get back to his position.

Cardinal Gracias, Archbishop of Bombay and president, Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI), said in a statement on social media, The Archdiocese of Bombay cannot stay silent, while our brothers and sisters are going through harrowing times in Kerala.

An official from the office of the Archbishop of Bombay said the Vatican could initiate an enquiry and take a decision on the matter.

A source from the office of the Archbishop of Bombay said that there should be an unbiased inquiry into the authenticity of the claims of both parties, and if the bishop is found guilty, its a matter of a criminal act, and the court should take cognisance and act accordingly.

In June, a Kerala nun had filed a case against the bishop, accusing him of raping her at least 13 times. Since then, the police intervened and have been investigating the case. However, the nun has also written to the Vatican alleging that the bishop is using his power and money to silence her and other nuns who had also come forward accusing him of inappropriate behaviour.

Normally, the inquiry is initiated by the Vatican, which appoints a senior bishop to conduct the investigation. An inquiry team is constituted which would comprise persons from various fields such as legal experts, a retired police commissioner-level officer and experts on church law. There would also be people who are sensitive to women, in general, to ask the right kind of questions with the right kind of disposition so that the victim does not suffer more humiliation.

Cardinal Gracias is one of the nine cardinal advisers appointed by the Pope and so is currently in the Vatican. The Vatican is currently pondering over the accusations made by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, the former chief Vatican diplomat in the United States who has accused the Pope of covering up sexual abuse and giving comfort to a homosexual current in the Vatican.
The obvious alternative is a centrist coalition transcending the ideological divide.

Sweden, which was once almost a byword for European social democracy, flirting with the far right evokes a sense of despair.

During the summer, some opinion polls suggested that Sweden Democrats, an organisation with neo-Nazi origins including a co-founder who was a Waffen SS veteran, could win one-fourth of the vote and possibly emerge as the largest party in the Swedish parliament, or Riksdag.

Thankfully, that did not happen when Swedes voted last Sunday. The Social Democrats managed to maintain their century-old tradition of top-scoring at the ballot box, but with only 28.4 per cent of the vote, their least impressive tally since 1917. The mainstream conservative Moderates scored 19.8 per cent, not far ahead of the far-right Sweden Democrats 17.6 per cent. The result leaves the broadly left and right alliances, which include a number of smaller parties, with roughly 40 per cent each of seats in the Riksdag, and although both sides have balked at the idea of collaborating with the Sweden Democrats, the possibility of the latter informally backing a right-wing government may well come to pass. The obvious alternative is a centrist coalition transcending the ideological divide.

In several nations in the neighbourhood, meanwhile, conservative forces have been open to collaboration with the far right, and it would be disappointing if Sweden were to go the same way. Like many of their counterparts across Europe, the Sweden Democrats have relied on whipping up angst over the mid-decade influx of refugees. In 2015, the country accepted 163,000 asylum-seekers, which was more generous, per head of population, than any other European nation, including Germany.

The Sweden Democrats have sought to spruce up their image under the leadership of Jimmie Akesson, denying neo-Nazi links and decrying racism, but the white supremacism that underpins their ideas often proves hard to disguise. Inevitably, it often takes the shape of a particular bias against all manner of Muslims. Sweden began losing its reputation for relative egalitarianism some three decades ago, when both sides of politics opted for neoliberal orthodoxy, so its hardly surprising that inequality has seeped in. And its all too easy for the Social Democrats to blame it primarily on the level of immigration  which, mind you, has dwindled dramatically in the past couple of years.

In Germany, too, the rise of the far right  exemplified by the level of support that enabled Alternative for Germany to become the main opposition party in the Bundestag  has been based on fears over immigration. The eruption in Chemnitz late last month, which incorporated the Nazi salutes mentioned at the outset, came after an Iraqi and a Syrian were accused of stabbing to death a German-Cuban during an altercation. It is believed that the chargesheet against one of the culprits was leaked by the police. Not long afterwards, the head of Germanys domestic intelligence agency challenged chancellor Angela Merkels denunciation of neo-Nazis chasing suspected immigrants down the streets of Chemnitz by decrying it as deliberate misinformation. His intervention lends credence to the suspicion of surreptitious collaboration between the far right and elements in the police and other security agencies, as well as within Merkels Christian Democrats and some of their allies.

The worst aspects of Europe have for a while been in evidence in what was once the Eastern European bloc, not least in Hungary and Poland, but lately they have been spreading westwards, notably to Italy and France but also to Germany and Sweden.

Although previously totalitarian states have exhibited a greater eagerness to lean towards the far right, the contagion has spread far beyond the former Soviet satellites.

Sweden and Germany are not yet lost causes and may reclaim their better natures, but Europes direction cannot be dissociated from the Trump-Putin context.

By arrangement with Dawn
Early optics suggests a more collaborative and inclusive politico-military approach.

The deep state or establishment, as the Pakistani military is pejoratively referred to in that country, was supposed to have thrown its crucial weight behind Imran Khans recent electoral success. The lurking shadow of the Pakistani generals in the garrison city of Rawalpindi had always loomed large for the past 10 years, even as the civilian governments alternated between the PPP first, and then the PML(N). The facade of civilian control was maintained even as the generals routinely intervened to rap the knuckles of the politicians each time the Pakistani military felt that the politicos had overstepped the red lines, and particularly so on India, Afghanistan and on matters pertaining to admittance of sovereign complicities. The generals had also not shied away from propping up political alternatives, as the hand of Rawalpindi was visible during the politically crippling Azadi March, where the Pakistani military propped up, nudged and posited Imran Khans Tehreek-e-Insaf onto the centrestage of the public and political imagination.

Now Prime Minister Imran Khan has the delicate and onerous task of morphing from a rabid Opposition leader to a mature statesman, who must steer the crumbling Pakistani socio-economic destiny, while keeping the establishment on his side. Politically, Imran Khan has both the numbers in Parliament and a full five-year term ahead of him to effect changes. Unlike the PPP or the PML(N), he carries no personal baggage of institutional tensions with the Pakistani military. Psychologically and philosophically, Imran Khans pan-Pakistani persona and modernist moorings (irrespective of his public positions on some regressive matters like the blasphemy laws, Ahmediyas, etc) are more in tune with the westernised Pakistani military, as opposed to the feudal-regional appeal of the Sindh-centric PPP or the religious-conservatism of the PML(N). The real challenge for Imran Khan is therefore to reset (the term suggested by the recent American delegation) the Pakistani narrative, will depend on the dexterity, urgency and steadfastness in steering the societal, economic, civil, and even diplomatic changes, without touching the hyper-sensitive toes of the Pakistani generals.

Early optics suggests a more collaborative and inclusive politico-military approach. Unlike earlier times, when Pakistans civilian leaders and Army House held separate meetings with the visiting foreign delegations, Prime Minister Imran Khan held a joint meeting at his house, with the Army Chief in tow, for his first formal US-Pakistan engagement  with US secretary of state Mike Pompeo, chairman of joint chiefs of staff Gen. Joseph Dunford and US special adviser on Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad. Then for all his posturing on austerity and anti-ostentation declarations, Imran Khan was understandably silent on the second largest government expense  military budgets. Even with the recent spike of 20 per cent in its budgetary allocation a few months back, the undebated, disproportionately large and unaudited military budget remained strictly off limits for Imran Khans corrective discourse. For a country reeling under an unsustainable annual bill of $24 billion for sovereign debt servicing, the thriving civilian enterprises of the Pakistani military and the generals themselves that pay negligible taxes found no mention in the Prime Ministers national address.

The suggested reset, or recalibration, could take form of an inevitable quid pro quo, where Imran Khan could selectively and visibly pull back from meddling in Afghanistan affairs in order to pacify the Americans and reinstate US aid. ISI-patronised terror groups like the Haqqani Network, which have a specific Afghanistan mandate, have a residual, collateral and regressive impact of radicalisation and weaponsiation on the Pakistani side of the Durand Line that often spills violently onto its benefactors  the Pakistani military. Islamabad is already cornered by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) notices wherein it faces further punitive prospects by getting blacklisted. However, the same reset approach would not be extended to the India-focused terrorist groups in deference to the Pakistani militarys institutional necessity of retaining a formidable enemy and justifying its fat purse. But surrendering Pakistans strategic depth in Afghanistan could settle many issues immediately hounding Pakistan, and the generals too may not be averse beyond a point, given the circumstances and the known unreliability of terror groups, especially after the flush-out drives like Operation Zarb-e-Azb.

In enlisting support for this reset, Imran Khan may well find dealing with the generals a lot more straightforward than managing the ambitions and concerns of his own partymen and their agendas, most of whom are ship-jumping electables from other parties. Societally, conservative elements and the clergy too could put spokes in the plan, however much Pakistans military clamps down on any overt dissent in its inimitable manner. The Pakistani military and its generals in particular are used to a certain Western-style liberalism, freedom and luxury, which they know fully well will certainly not remain as forthcoming in case the Pakistani nation goes belly-up and in full control of the Chinese  with whom the Pakistanis have no civilisational, cultural or even religious commonality. The financially-powerful, historically benevolent and the still-very-relevant sheikhdoms of the Middle East would also be amenable to a thaw and re-engagement with the United States.

India in general and Kashmir in particular will remain the emotional epicentre and the coalescing factor for various Pakistani institutions, and beyond a point the Americans will restrict their aid-linked threats only to the Afghanistan theatre. Contrary to the promised reciprocity in if India takes one step, Pakistan will take two, any portents of peace in Kashmir would delegitimise Pakistans genealogical two-nation theory. Peace with India (especially after an imminent step-back in Afghanistan) would completely render the Pakistani military irrelevant and unnecessarily burdensome  a wholly unacceptable perception by Pakistans generals. Unfortunately, the tenor and approach of Pakistans new PM towards India is person-agnostic. However, the generals will support the anti-corruption, anti-feudal and socio-economic corrections that dont interfere with its military sensitivities. Imran Khan has visibly toned down his Opposition-leader spiels and avoided taking belligerent positions, as the writing of the unavoidable reset is on the wall, and the leeway to do so by the Pakistani generals will only be in parts.
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State-run Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), which had a string of fire accidents this year at all its facilities, including the recent blasts at its

flagship refinery here, is planning to shift the LPG facility out of the city to the nearby Rasayani, as part of its efforts to strengthen safety measures.

The second largest state-run refiner and oil marketer is also planning similar options for its other refineries in Kochi, and its joint venture refineries at Numaligarh in Assam and Bina in Madhya Pradesh as well, a top company official said here Tuesday.

"Will look at moving some of the related facilities, especially the LPG facility, to an alternate location for safety and commercial reasons," said D Rajkumar, chairman and managing director, BPCL.

The relocation of the LPG facility from the Mumbai refinery complex to Rasayani, which is around 60 km off the eastern waterfront, will be completed in the next two years, he said, adding this will help cut down truck movement near the refinery by as much as 43 percent.

But Rajkumar, addressing the media after the AGM here late last evening, was quick to add that there is no plan to move the refinery itself to any alternate location.

BPCL's director for refineries, R Ramachandran, said the Rasayani facility over the years will attract Rs 36,000-38,000 crore of investments over the next few years as the company is also planning a petchem facility there.

"The investment plans are still at the drawing board level, except for the LPG facility which is already underway. We already have taken 250 acres and the entire plan will involve taking in an additional 500 acres. And thankfully land acquisition will not be an issue as the land was earlier

an industrial plot," said Ramachandran.

The first phase will have the LPG bottling facility, followed by a poly-propylene block, and the second phase will have an enthoneyline plant, he added.

Rajkumar also said BPCL will invest around Rs 7,400 crore towards capital expenditure this fiscal year, of which around Rs 5,300 crore will be managed through internal accruals and the rest will be debt.

He said most of the capex will go into the upcoming petchem facility in Kochi as it will be focusing big on the petrochemicals sector going forward.

He also said the next focus area will be LNG and with the latest auctions, the company will have licences for 25 cities, up from the existing 14 cities. But he ruled out setting up an LNG terminal for now.

The Mumbai refinery had fire accident in July which left close to 50 employees injured, and a commercial loss of about Rs 97 crore. And the company attributed the incident to a material-related failure.

On the impending sanctions on Iran crude imports, Rajukumar said, the company has already sourced about 3.8 million tonne (mt) of the 4.2 mt contracted for this year, and if need be, will take in the balance of 0.5 mt.

Rajkumar also said the refiner has not booked cargo from Iran since August.

"Last year, we imported 4.25 mt. Till September, we have imported 3.08 mt, that is around 73 per cent of what we have imported last year. Even if we really want to import, we will end up importing 0.56 mt more. That is the shortfall we can think of. We are hopeful that now there are alternative

sources," he said.

He further said BPCL has already booked Louisiana crude recently and will continue to do so going forward.

"If it is going to work out economically for us to procure US crude, then we will do that. We believe that enough sources are available. Our refineries are versatile. We can process 108 types of crudes and we have 96 potential crudes in our baskets. I don't see any problem in sourcing crude even if

it not going to come from Iran," he said.

When asked whether any direction from government on freezing petrol and diesel prices which are at record high now, Rajkumar said, "There is no communication whatsoever from the government so far. We are passing on the spike in crude prices and there is no plan to absorb the hike at all."

BPCL is also developing an oil block in Brazil through a 50:50 joint venture with Videocon, which is at the bankruptcy court now. The chairman said the ongoing insolvency proceedings against Videocon will not have any negative impact on the future investments in this block.

On the Mozambique oil field joint venture, where the company has a 10 percent equity consideration and has already pumped in over $700 million so far, Rajkumar said, the firm have entered into a legal framework with the government and will shortly be signing the final investment plan (around $22 billion) as well.
Jet Airways owes banks nearly Rs 8,000 crore.

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Cash-strapped Jet Airways is in talks with Muscat-based Oman Air to wet-lease three of its Airbus A330s, and some Boeing 737s, reported Financial Express quoting people aware of the development.

A wet lease is a leasing arrangement whereby one airline (lessor) provides an aircraft, complete crew, maintenance, and insurance to another airline (lessee), and gets paid on per hour basis multiplied by the number of hours that aircraft is flown by the lessee airline.

The move comes as the airline seeks to reduce costs and mop up additional revenues amid cash drought. Jet Airways has reported a whopping Rs 1,323 crore of net losses for the June quarter due to higher fuel cost, falling rupee and low fares.

Also read  Airfares at Rs 999, Rs 1399: Airlines offer discounts to woo flyers, strengthen customer loyalty

"Wet lease works brilliantly for Jet under current circumstances of financial strain the airline is going through as the aircraft its leasing out are the owned assets or on financial leases," Mark D Martin, founder and CEO at Martin Consulting, an aviation advisory and consultancy firm told the paper.

Jet has leased its long-range aircraft type, the Boeing777-300ER, to Turkish Airlines. The airline is also in an advanced stage of discussions with TruJet to sublease up to seven of its ATR planes to the regional carrier. TruJet, which started operations in July 2015, has an all ATR fleet.

The deal with Oman Air may fetch the airlines an income of nearly a million dollar per month per aircraft, Martin said.

"For roughly a 240 hour of flying on a month usually an ACMI for an A330 type will be between $4,000 to $5,000 per hour, which will be around $9,60,000 per month that Jet will get for its every aircraft as the cash operating cost is paid by the airline that is leasing it. Similarly, a 737 will fetch $2,800; so for 240 hours of flying it would roughly be $6,72,000 per month, Martin told the paper.

Also read  Jet Airways losing ground among international fliers

Oman Air is currently in an expansion mode. An addition of widebody A330s and narrowbody Boeing-737 will help the airline to expand its capacity for the coming holiday traffic, industry experts told the paper.

The move is in line with the airline's plan to monetise loyalty programme JetPrivilege and wet-lease some of its small aircraft to mobilise urgent working capital, as announced by the airline while declaring their earnings in August. The board had also approved the management plan to wet- lease some of its ATRs, which were deployed on short-haul routes.

Amit Agarwal, deputy CEO and CFO at Jet Airways, had earlier hinted at the high market value of the Boeing 777s and the Airbus A330s.

Also read  Jet Airways staff association flags concerns; seeks clarity on airline problems

Even on a conservative basis the value of these aircraft would not be roughly less than $750 million to $800 million and the debt outstanding is about Rs 1,900 crore or nearly $280 million. So, clearly there is a large equity sitting there. Yes. These aircraft are pledged in favour of the engine-backed and ECA backed banks. And obviously since considering that kind of equity sitting in these aircraft we have clearly identified on our balance sheet that these are the assets held-for-sale. So, we have a clear intent of doing a portion of this fleet on a sale-leaseback, Agarwal had said.

A Jet Airways spokesperson, in response to a query sent by the paper, said that the "information, based on hearsay and speculation, is absolutely baseless and incorrect.
business Editor's Take: Decoding the Singh brothers' split and the Fortis saga Watch Prince Thomas decode the animosity between the warring factions and sums up the happenings at the Fortis Group.
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ICICI Banks board and senior management faced one of their toughest questions from shareholders on the allegations troubling the lender for over five months now.

The countrys largest private bank held its 24th annual general meeting (AGM) on September 12 in Vadodara.

Shareholders expressed disappointment over 'total failure of corporate governance', performance and accountability of the directors, especially the banks Managing Director and CEO Chanda Kochhar, said an analyst present at the AGM.

Interestingly, Kochhar was missing at the AGM. She is on an indefinite leave due to allegations levelled against her for irregularities in sanctioning of loans to few corporate groups, especially the Videocon group.

Kochhar will remain on leave till the probe against her by an external inquiry panel led by former Supreme Court judge BN Srikrishna is complete.

In August end, the banks Chairman Girish Chandra Chaturvedi said the probe report will be out in the next three months.



Corporate governance and accountability





Attempt to raise slogans against the CEO and her husband Deepak Kochhar





Objection to Chanda Kochhar's re-appointment as Director of ICICI Securities





Poor '15 minute' evaluation of Kochhars performance





Low dividend payout of Rs 1.5 per share of face value Rs 2.



Chaturvedi clarified that matters relating to the MD and CEO are currently under investigation and it would be premature for the bank to comment on it.

At the AGM, the analyst said, a shareholder stated that the banks overall growth of 6.5 percent for the past five years has been the slowest for a private sector bank. Yet, the salaries of the top management are comparable to American perks, while the American corporate governance didnt comeThere is a need to find accountability and serious introspection.

Apart from raising corporate governance and performance issues within the bank, shareholders also expressed disappointment at the boards decision to re-appoint Kochhar as Director on the board of ICICI Securities.

Another shareholder raised suspicion on the board's neutral and independent functioning questioning Kochhars clean chit given in '15 minutes, while agencies are taking over 2 months to arrive at a conclusion'.

Sandeep Bakhshi, who was addressing his first AGM as Chief Operating Officer (COO) of ICICI Bank, admitted to previous corporate governance issues, but assured to take the right steps.

"We should wait for the outcome. In the meanwhile, I can assure shareholders that we have ring-fenced the bank functioning from this event. As a bank, we are putting our best foot forward and maximise the opportunity and serve society with the highest standards of governance," Bakhshi said.

He clarified that there was no order or penalty from markets regulator SEBI. "There was a show cause notice and the matter is pending adjudication. The MD and CEO is on leave pending investigation and is not attending office of the bank or its subsidiaries. It would not be appropriate on behalf of the board to pre-judge anything pending investigation against her," he said.

He added that there is no penalty or fine on the bank by US regulator Securities and Exchange Commission.

Arvind Gupta, the activist shareholder who first flagged the issue in October 2016, said, It is only the beginning and I am happy that the shareholders are asking the right questions. The bank must bring out the study, scope and terms of reference of the investigation.

On government nominee Lok Ranjan missing the AGM, Gupta said, It only speaks poorly of corporate governance issues. Even independent directors are prisoners of promoters.

Some shareholders in attendance from different cities were also disheartened given the lower-than-expected dividend declared by the bank at Rs 1.5 per share, another analyst said.
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Shares of Diligent Media Corporation ended 6 percent lower on Wednesday after company executed an agreement for sale of its non-core assets.

The company executed an agreement to assign, for sale/ assignment of company's non-core assets comprising of leasehold land admeasuring approximately 13,803 square meters adjacent to the company's Printing press at Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, along with building and fixtures thereon and rights attached thereto to Pioneer eLabs or any other entity owned or controlled (with majority beneficial interest) by P. Sridhar Reddy at a consideration of Rs 54.44 crore.

The above sale / assignment shall be subject to the approval of the shareholders of the company at the ensuing annual general meeting scheduled on September 21, 2018 and shall require further approval of or no-objection from the lessor viz. Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC).

The said transaction is expected to conclude by second week of December 2018.

The company received part payment of Rs 15 crore out of aggregate consideration of Rs 54.44 crore.

Diligent Media Corporation closed at Rs 6.30, down Rs 0.39, or 5.83 percent on the BSE.

Posted by Rakesh Patil
The Central Information Commission has directed the Reserve Bank of India to disclose the amount deposited in Jan Dhan accounts of various banks in the form of demonetised currency.

Launched in August 2014, Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana is a national mission for financial inclusion to ensure access to financial services  banking or savings and deposit accounts, remittance, credit, insurance, pension in banks.

Jan Dhan accounts had come into focus after demonetisation on November 8, 2016, when the deposits witnessed a meteoric rise, touching an approximate Rs 80,000 crore in April this year.

Information Commissioner Sudhir Bhargava ordered the RBI to disclose details of demonetised currency deposited in Jan Dhan accounts to activist Subhash Agrawal, who has also demanded some other details related to demonetisation.

The Union government demonetised Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes on November 8, 2016.

Bhargava directed the RBI that in case the information was not available with it, the bankers' bank will file "an affidavit with the commission" disposing that no record related to the information sought were available with it.

The commission also directed the respondent to provide information on the total amount of demonetised currency notes exchanged with new notes.

Besides Jan Dhan accounts, the CIC directed the RBI to disclose the total amount deposited in the form of demonetised notes in savings and current accounts of banks.

Agrawal had filed an RTI application with the RBI, seeking to know details related to the demonetisation exercise, complaints against bank officers, money deposited in various accounts, and the total quantum of demonetised currency exchanged by people.

Not getting any information from the RBI, Agrawal approached the commission with his appeal seeking disclosure of the information.

The CIC also ordered disclosure of information on public and private banks and their officers against whom action was initiated for not following RBI guidelines post demonetisation and records related to seizure of bundles of cash of new Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes introduced post-demonetisation.
Delhi High Court

Daily change in fuel prices was a "economic policy decision" of the central government and the courts must remain away from it, the Delhi High Court said Wednesday.

A bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V K Rao made it clear it was not inclined to interfere with the government's decision, saying "there are larger economic issues" involved.

"It is an economic policy matter of the government. There are larger economic issues. The courts must remain away from it. Government may do it (fix a fair price). We cannot issue a mandamus (direction) to them to do it," the court said.

The bench was hearing a PIL by Delhi-based designer, Puja Mahajan, challenging the daily rise in fuel rates and seeking a direction to the Centre to fix a fair price for petrol and diesel by treating them as essential commodities.

The petition, filed through advocate A Maitri, also claimed that Mahajan''s representation to the central government on the issue has not yet been decided.

The court, thereafter, directed the central government to decide the representation within four weeks and listed the matter for hearing on November 16.

The petition has alleged that the government had "indirectly given implied consent" to oil marketing companies (OMCs) to hike petrol and diesel prices at their own "whims and fancies".

It has claimed that the implied consent was evident from the lack of revision in fuel prices for around 22 days in the run-up to the Karnataka Assembly polls.

The petition has also alleged that the government was spreading "misleading information" by connecting the rising fuel prices here with the global increase in the rate of crude oil as the cost of petrol and diesel did not go down when crude was cheaper.

The petitioner has also said that in July, she had moved a similar plea, which the court had disposed of by asking the Centre to treat it as a representation and take a decision.

However, since the government had not taken a decision till date on her representation, she filed the present petition, the plea has said.
The Centre may set-up special courts under the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) by November to deal with the rising number of insolvency cases. Officials from the Ministry of Corporate Affairs told Business Standard that 30 judges might be recruited for this.

The ministry is focusing on hiring as many judicial members as possible because a tribunal can function without a few technical members, but not without judges, a senior ministry official said. Three courts in Mumbai, two in New Delhi and one each in Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad will be set-up.

The number of NCLT courts in each of these cities will be increased once these courts start functioning smoothly.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released its first list of non-performing assets in 2017 to refer to the NCLT. Experts had predicted a burden on tribunals as the number of benches was too few for the number of cases.

RBI had referred 12 cases to NCLT, of which two have been resolved. The NCLT deals with company law cases, mergers and acquisitions along with insolvency and bankruptcy cases.

The government will also set-up e-courts in cases of cross-border insolvency proceedings. A committee is currently discussing the outline of the cross-border insolvency provisions.

The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency, 1997, is the most widely accepted legal structure which deals with insolvency cases overseas. It has been adopted by 44 countries.

In India, the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code became effective in 2016.
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Shares of the state-run oil marketing companies Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) fell more than a percent each on rising crude oil prices and sustained volatility in the Indian rupee against the US dollar.

Aviation companies such as Jet Airways and InterGlobe Aviation also corrected over a percent as oil constitutes bigger portion of their operating expenses.

Crude oil prices have gradually been rising on reports of decline in US crude inventories and likely supply tightening ahead of US sanctions on the Iranian oil which will come into effect from November this year.

The Delhi high court has refused to pass orders on a public interest litigation (PIL) against rising fuel prices, reports CNBC-TV18.

The court said fuel prices is a matter of national policy and any orders will have wide-ranging ramifications. The court has directed the petroleum ministry to consider the suggestions in the PIL within four weeks.

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee fell 14 percent year-to-date to hit record low of 72.91 against the US dollar in morning but managed to recover 80 paise from that low point to trade around 72.03 on hopes of measures from the government to limit the currency fall this week.
The Nifty50 is likely to open on a flat-to-positive note on Wednesday following mixed trend seen in a other Asian markets. The index closed 150 points lower at 11,287 on Tuesday.

Trends on SGX Nifty indicate a positive opening for the broader index in India, a rise of 28 points or 0.25 percent. Nifty futures were trading around 11,349-level on the Singaporean Exchange.

US stocks rose on Tuesday as Apple led a jump in technology shares and a gain of more than 2 percent in oil prices drove up energy shares, said a Reuters report.

Asian stocks were pinned near 14-month lows on Wednesday, as investor confidence was chilled by the latest round of verbal threats in an intensifying US-China trade conflict, it said.

The Indian rupee on September 11, 2018 closed at a record low of 72.69 per US dollar, against a previous close of 72.45 per USD.

Stocks in news:

IT services firm HCL Technologies Tuesday said its Rs 4,000 crore buyback offer will commence on September 18. The company's shareholders had last month approved the buyback proposal.

Syngene International: Biocon and Biocon Research reduced stake by 0.50 percent to 70.24 percent by selling shares of the company through open market on September 11.

Ashish Kacholia raises stake in SME Marshall Machines to 8%. He held 3.2 percent stake in the firm as of September 7, which increased by 4.8 percent to 8 percent now.

Reliance Capital (RCL) reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 272 crore for the April-June quarter of the current fiscal. The company had registered a net loss of Rs 378 crore in the April-June period of 2017-18.

Sadbhav Engineering: Company issued 1,900 unsecured, listed, redeemable non-convertible debentures (NCDs) having face value of Rs 10,00,000 each aggregating to Rs 190.00 crore on private placement basis.

Sadbhav Engineering: CARE revised rating on long term/short term bank facilities.

City Union Bank: ICRA has assigned a long term rating AA- to the bank valid till September 6, 2019.

Technical Recommendations:

We spoke to Guiness Securities Ltd and heres what they have to recommend:

Natco Pharma: Buy| Close: Rs 829.75 | Target: Rs 900 | Stop Loss: Rs 795 | Return: 8.47%

Chennai Petro: Sell| Close: Rs 281.60 | Target: Rs 264 & 255| Stop loss: Rs 301 | Return: 7.37%

Automotive Axles: Buy| Close: Rs 1432.60 | Target: Rs 1800 & 2050 | Stop Loss: Rs 1235 | Return: 25.65%

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
The Left parties held their own separate morcha in New Delhi on the same issues that the Congress had flagged.

Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, former prime minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Rahul Gandhi and others during 'Bharat Bandh' protest against fuel price hike and depreciation of the rupee, in New Delhi. (Photo: AP)

Politics has just manifested an unusual feature. The all-India bandh by the Opposition parties on Monday was to protest against the sharply rising diesel and petrol prices, and to demand these be brought under GST, which the Congress  which took the lead in initiating the coordinated protests  says will help lower fuel prices by 15-18 per cent, and offer immense immediate relief to the people.

Interestingly, the BJPs national executive, which met in the preceding two days, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah playing architects, didnt even bother to refer to the rapidly escalating price of petroleum products which, along with the plunging rupee, is causing a nightmare in policy circles and hardship all around.

The equation is pretty straightforward  hard facts on the ground that can torpedo the macroeconomic essentials in the foreseeable future and sharply pinch nearly every household budget in the country are counter-posed against the post-truth approach of the ruling party. The question here is: can the former be made to challenge the latter?

If the ruling party is relying on friendly media exposure and perception-bending resolutions that skip over core issues and focus exclusively on singing paeans of praise to the PM, those who oppose the government must pool forces to show up the government and the ruling party.

That didnt quite happen on Monday. Its true calls for nationwide protests show their truest potential when the ruling parties in each state give effective backing to the call. Mamata Banerjees Trinamul Congress didnt do so in West Bengal. The SP and BSP did hold sporadic protests in UP, where they command an impressive grassroots presence, but there was no effort on their part to strongly challenge the government.

In New Delhi, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and former PM Manmohan Singh exhorted the Opposition to put up a common front against the BJP in the next parliamentary elections, but that was pretty much it, although leaders of some Opposition parties stood with them. The Left parties held their own separate morcha in New Delhi on the same issues that the Congress had flagged.

On the other hand, the bandhs impact was felt in Karnataka and Kerala (states where the Congress and the Left respectively are in power), as well as in Bihar, Odisha and Assam. It was evident the RJD in Bihar and the Congress in the other two states had mobilised effectively.

It wasnt so much the patchiness of the protest that catches the eye as the fact of leading Opposition parties inability to bend their energies to challenge the Narendra Modi governments politics and ideology with any sense of coordination. This, of course, doesnt mean people are not hurting due to the many policy failures of the present government. The point is whether they can be electorally mobilised.
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Share price of Narayana Hrudayalaya rose 2.5 percent on Wednesday post company entered into agreement with Imperial Hospital in Chittagong, Bangladesh.

NH Health Bangladesh, a step-down subsidiary of company, has entered into definitive agreements to partner with Imperial Hospital in Chittagong, Bangladesh to operate and manage their cardiac sciences department.

This 350 bedded unit of Imperial Hospital being set-up in Chittagong, Bangladesh on a revenue sharing basis.

Improving upon NHs distinguished asset-right framework, this association would not entail any upfront capital outlay from NH while ensuring a reduced time-to-market, company said in release.

This Heart Centre (P&L responsibility lies with NH) is a strategic fit for NH and will act as an extension of the Eastern cluster and will benefit from operational synergies emerging out of the region, it added.

Ashutosh Raghuvanshi, Vice Chairman, Managing Director and Group CEO, Narayana Hrudayalaya said We are very excited about venturing into Bangladesh healthcare market through our flagship specialty, cardiac sciences. We witness a strong patients footfall across the network from Bangladesh signifying a strong brand recall NH enjoys in the region."

Narayana Hrudayalaya ended at Rs 255.50, up Rs 6.35, or 2.55 percent on the BSE.

Posted by Rakesh Patil
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Abhishek Mondal

Bears made a strong come back this week on Dalal Street with Nifty50 ending the Tuesdays session with a cut of around one and a half percent. The index breached its crucial 11,300 mark.

Investor sentiment was largely battered by subdued global cues and sharp fall in Indian rupee. The markets started the session on the pessimistic note and Nifty 50 continued its fall below 20-day moving average and closed at 11,287.50 down by 1.32 percent.

It formed a strong Bearish candle on the daily scale. A negative sequence of lower tops and lower bottoms in Nifty as per hourly scale suggests that the short-term trend has turned in favor of the bears.

On the daily charts, the index is trading near its immediate support level of 11,274 (50-DMA). Any violation of this level will trigger further downside towards 11,170 and 11,075 levels.

On the upside, the 11,400 and 11,480 levels will remain a key resistance. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) on the daily chart is 40, showing negative momentum and the MACD is trading above zero line but with the negative cross of its signal line, which indicates that price may come down further in upcoming trading sessions.

The volatility index ended up by 0.84 percent at 15.33. An increase in VIX suggests limited upside and a consolidated down move in the market.

On the Options front, maximum Call open interest (OI) of 46.87 lakh contracts is seen at strike price 11,800, followed by 11,600 which now holds 43.08 lakh contracts and maximum Put open interest of 42.94 lakh contracts is seen at strike price 11,400, followed by 11,000 which now holds 39.64 lakh contracts.

As per the options data, the support and resistance levels for Nifty is shifted lower compared to last week and the immediate support is seen around 11,400 and 11,000 levels whereas 11,600 and 11,800 will act as a strong hurdle in September expiry.

Here is a list of top three stocks which could give 7-25% return in the next 1 month:

Natco Pharma: BUY | Close: 829.75 | Target: Rs 900 | Stop loss: Rs 795 | Return: 8.47%

After making long consolidation, the stock has given a breakout above Rs 824-825 levels on Tuesday with a strong price momentum along with higher volumes.

The daily Relative Strength Index (RSI) is trading at overbought zone but still showing positive momentum and MACD is trading around zero line with positive crossover whereas (+) DI trading above (-) DI, which indicates that the stock has the potential to move higher.

Based on observations, traders can buy the stock in the range of Rs 825-830 with a stop loss below Rs 795 (closing) for the target of Rs 900.

Chennai Petro: Sell | Close: 281.60 | Target: Rs 264 & 255| Stop loss: Rs 301 | Return: 7.37%

On the daily scale, the stock has given a breakdown from symmetrical triangle pattern around 289-290 levels on Tuesday with higher volumes, which suggest a bearish run for the stock price in coming sessions.

The daily Relative strength index (RSI) is showing negative momentum and MACD is trading around zero line with negative cross whereas (-) DI continuously trading above (+) DI.

Based on the above observations, traders can sell the stock after some technical bounce back around Rs 285-288 with a stop loss above Rs 301 (closing) for a target of Rs 264 & 255

Automotive Axles: Buy | Close: 1,432.60 | Target: Rs 1,800 & 2,050 | Stop loss: Rs 1,235 | Return: 25.65%

On the weekly scale, the stock has given a close above its 38.2 percent retracement levels of (28th January to 3rd June 2018 down move) and trying to make a rounding bottom formation with moderate volumes which suggest a bullish run and we may see a gradual upward movement in the stock price.

The momentum indicators are in bullish mode on the weekly scale whereas (+) DI trading above (-) DI, signaling strength in the stock. Positional traders can buy the stock in the range of Rs 1,425-1,435 with a stop loss below Rs 1,235 (closing) for a target of Rs 1,800 & 2,050.

Disclaimer: The author is Research Analyst, Guiness Securities. The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol are his own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
business Start, Up and Away: Pankit Desai and Anand Naik, the cyber warriors securing Indias digital landscape Moneycontrols Anchal Pathak talks to the founders of Sequretek about what it takes to set up a cyber-security venture in India
Sugar

Sugar stocks saw some buying after Cabinet approved hike in ethanol price by up to 25 percent.

Stocks including Shree Renuka Sugars, Empee Sugars, Gayatri Sugars, Triveni Engineering, Praj Industries gained 3-5 percent.

Cabinet also approved new procurement policy to ensure minimum support price to farmers.

The reported hike in ethanol price by up to 25 percent is an excellent move by the government, ISMA (Indian Sugar Mills Association) told CNBC-TV18.

The move will attract many companies to divert sugar business to ethanol, Abinash Verma of ISMA further told the channel.

It will focus on crossing ethanol blending by 10% in coming years, which have already crossed 5 percent.

Verma also said that companies need to be compensated for loss from sugar business if they are diverted to ethanol. He expect lot of divergence from sugar businesses to ethanol and blending will reach to 10-15 percent in next 3 years.

Atul Chaturvedi, Executive Chairman of Shree Renuka Sugars told CNBC-TV18 that the move to increase prices of ethanol by 25 percent is a welcome one.

With the way crude prices are moving, going the ethanol route makes sense and around 0.7-1 mt of sugar may get used out of the excessive production, he said further.
Moneycontrol News

Shares of Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries dropped about 1.5 percent after the company confirmed that the USFDA is inspecting its Mohali plant in Punjab.

The stock has lost about 5.06 percent in the past seven days.

Media reports on September 11 suggested that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had begun a surprise three-day investigation at Sun Pharma's Mohali facility.

"The USFDA is conducting an inspection of Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.'s Mohali facility (Punjab, India). The inspection started yesterday, September 10, 2018 and is ongoing," the company said in response to a clarification sought by the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

Sun Pharma added that the inspection will not have any material impact.

Media reports also suggest that the FDA lat week issued six observations related to its Halol plant in Gujarat.

The Mohali plant used to belong to Ranbaxy Laboratories and was under an import ban by the FDA in 2013.

At 09:25 hrs, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries was quoting at Rs 621.05, down 1.58 percent from the previous close.
Maruti Suzuki plans to shift its Gurugram facility that rolled out the first Maruti 800 in 1983, reported The Economic Times. The company is reportedly in talks with the Haryana government seeking allocation of a 1,200-1,400-acre plot of land in Sohna, about 25 km south of Gurugram.

"There was a long pending request from residents to decongest the Gurgaon area. The movement of trucks was also an issue and the local administration is also very well aware of it," a person aware of the development told the paper.

The company has reportedly requested the Haryana government to directly allocate the plot in Sohna, which is not too far for the company's vendor belt and employees, at a fair price. The state, however, has a policy of auctioning land and not allotting directly.

Also read  Maruti Suzuki to road-test 50 electric vehicles in India from October

The Haryana government is yet to take a call on the demand.

Maruti India may need an investment of Rs 10,000-15,000 crore to carry out its plan to build three-four assembly lines in the proposed facility. Analysts believe Maruti will be able to fund its new facility through free cash flow on books of Rs 6,600-8,200 crore a year during FY18-21. The firm also has cash and cash equivalent of Rs 34,000 crore.

The facility will help it expand capacity for its existing models while the Japanese parent, Suzuki could also use its resources to develop a new generation of products including electric and hybrid vehicles.

The facility will enable the firm to develop modern and efficient plants as well as recover high real estate value on the Gurugram site once the project is completely executed.

Also read  Maruti Suzuki calls for clear, stable policy framework for future mobility

As of now, Maruti manufactures 6-7 lakh units out of the Gurugram facility, which translates to one in every two passenger vehicles sold in the country today.

It would take 4-5 years for the new facility to be operational and the shifting process would happen in phases, a top Maruti executive told the paper.

Shareholders may consider Maruti's move to invest in a new capacity as a positive development as it would help in a productive use of free cash flow generated by the firm, the report said.
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Power Finance Corporation on Wednesday said it sees no need to make further provisions to account for its stressed loans as the worst was behind it. The companys Chairman and Managing Director Rajeev Sharma said 89 percent of the companys Rs 2,85,000-crore loan book is stress-free and a minimal haircut is envisaged for Rs 5,300 crore lent to the private sector.

The companys total provisioning as on June 30 was Rs 17,238 crore excluding an additional provisioning of Rs 1,793 crore that has to be made as per banking regulators norms.

Comments from Sharma and the rest of the companys top management came during an investor call as well as a press conference after the power sector-focused lender declared its June quarter results on Tuesday.

Sharma said loans to government sector account for 82 percent of the book and as of June 30, none of this was stressed. The company was faced with one stressed state project with a loan of Rs 1,100 crore but the account has since been upgraded, a company press release said. PFC has shifted to reporting its numbers based on Indian accounting standards under which it now needs make provisions based on expected credit loss.

The companys outstanding loans to private sector are at Rs 52,000 crore and the release said Rs 21,000 crore of this or 7 percent of the loan book is being serviced regularly. There is problem with Rs 31,000 crore of private sector loans and even out of this, the company expects revival with minimal haircut for Rs 5,300 crore of such debt.

Revival with minimal haircut is envisaged for Rs 5,300 crore, however still we have already made provision of 15 percent for these projects, the company release said, adding, Against the balance private loan assets of Rs 24,500 crore, 77 percent provision, including reserves are available.

The country's power sector, particularly thermal assets, is in deep distress for various reasons including absence of power purchase agreements, lack of fuel, poor health of distribution companies preventing them from buying power and tariffs of the competing renewable power falling to record lows.

The companys management gave a detailed update on 28 stressed projects.

The company expects minimal haircut on Rs 5,300 crore exposure to five projects. These include GVK Ratle, Dans & Shiga, India Power Haldia and South East UP project. The total provision in these five projects is 15 percent.

There are five other projects including GMR Chhattisgarh, Jhabua Power, KSK Mahanadi, Indiabulls Amravati and Essar Mahan where the resolution process for Rs 8,254 crore in exposure is at an advanced stage. In the first three projects, discussions with the highest bidders are underway to close the deals while in the last two, one-time settlement offers submitted by existing promoters are under finalization. The total provision towards these five projects is 48 percent.

The PFC release said lenders had made significant progress in case of two more projects involving Rs 8,156 crore of loans from the company. These projects are Indiabulls Powers Nasik project where the Maharashtra government could take over and RKM Powergen (stage I and stage II). The total provision for these two projects is 41 percent.

PFC and other lenders are also looking to resolve nine projects through the process at the National Company Law Tribunal. PFCs exposure to the nine projects is Rs 8,100 crore and it has already made 73 percent provision for them.

Four projects with PFCs exposure at Rs 298 crore are being resolved through the SARFAESI mechanism and they already have 100 percent provisioning.

Lastly, three projects where PFCs exposure is Rs 689 crore have a provisioning of 37 percent in the companys books.

Therefore, the 23 projects which are under various stages of resolution amounting to Rs 25,500 crore have already provision coverage of 54 percent. Based on the bids received for stressed assets so far, we do not see any additional provisioning going forward, the release said.

The company said its additional provisioning of Rs 1,793 crore was a cushion that it had provided to comply with Reserve Bank of Indias norms and this amount could be reversed.
We are still in September, but if there is one thing that will stand out from the business and finance worlds of India for 2018, it will be the revelation that the banking sector in the country is one hot mess. We will remember a few terms  Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi (filed under Big Fraud); Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (filed under Big Law); and NPA (filed under Big Number With Too Many Zeros).

The last one  Non-Performing Assets (simply put, a loan thats gone sour or getting there)  has become such a humongous issue that only recently Prof Raghuram Rajan, ex-Governor of RBI and one of the first in India to get all Nostradamus about the problem NPAs would become, was asked to submit his report on the issue by the Parliament Estimates Committee headed by Dr Murli Manohar Joshi (we dug into the report here.)

NPAs in the power sector especially have become huge, and a huge headache. On the 11th of September, a bench headed by Justice RF Nariman (him of 377 fame, among other things) at the Supreme Court has asked banks to maintain status quo and not to initiate insolvency proceedings against loan defaulting power companies in the country.

The judgement, and the larger issue of ever-enlarging NPAs in the power sector constitute the main theme of our Story of the Day today.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked banks to maintain status quo and not to initiate insolvency proceedings against loan defaulting power companies in the country. A bench headed by Justice R F Nariman also asked the banks not to file any insolvency cases till November when the apex court would hear the matter. The apex court also agreed to transfer to itself 12 cases pending before different high courts related to this issue.

The issue pertains to the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) revised framework introduced on February 12 this year which has provisions to declare a company bankrupt even on a one-day overdue. On February 12th of this year, the RBI sent out a circular that tightened norms for settling bad debt.

The circular essentially set timelines for the resolution of NPAs and allowed lenders to initiate insolvency proceedings against defaulting corporates. While banks were given several options to arrive at a resolution plan, they had to do so within 180 days.

The apex bank introduced the concept of a one-day default - banks had to identify incipient stress even when repayments are overdue by a day. As expected, this didnt sit well with power companies. There was even speculation that the government might intervene given the gravity of the situation.

While there was no intervention, the government attempted to resolve the issue by setting up an empowered committee headed by cabinet secretary P K Sinha. He had earlier served as power secretary. The government said this committee would look into the issue with a view to resolve them and maximize the efficiency of investment, including changes required to be made... for revival of stressed assets so as to avoid such investments becoming NPAs.

Meanwhile, power companies went to court over the RBIs circular. And the Allahabad High Court did grant them some relief on the issue in an earlier ruling. It ordered lenders to avoid acting against power producers.

The Supreme Court refused to stop the Allahabad High Court from hearing these petitions. However, on August 27th, the high court denied any further interim relief to power companies. According to CNBC-TV18, the court directed the central government to take action within 15 days under Section 7 of the Reserve Bank of India Act. It asked a high-level empowered committee to decide on resolutions within two months in consultation with the central bank.

[Section 7 of the Reserve Bank of India Act states that the central government can, in public interest, give directions to the Reserve Bank from time to time.]

The RBI's new framework requires lenders to provide for a resolution plan within 180 days in case of large accounts owing upwards of Rs 2,000 crore. In its circular, the RBI has said that if a resolution was not found by August 27, NPA accounts should be sent to bankruptcy courts. This is the background of the situation that was addressed at the Supreme Court today.

Petitioners including GMR Energy Ltd; RattanIndia Power Ltd, a Punjab-based textile company; Association of Power Producers (APP); Independent Power Producers Association of India; Sugar Manufacturing Association from Tamil Nadu and a shipbuilding association from Gujarat, had intervened in the matter in different courts.

The Supreme Court has now directed that all pleas filed by the central bank related to the February circular should be transferred to it and it will hear the matter on 11 November.

Nine of the 34 stressed thermal power assets were nearing a resolution outside the National Company Law Tribunal. These will be the ones which will benefit the most from the apex courts ruling. Companies nearing resolution include Prayagraj Power Generation Co., SKS Power Generation (Chhattisgarh) Ltd, GMR Chhattisgarh Energy Ltd, Videocon Oil Ventures Ltd, GMR Rajahmundry Ltd, Jaiprakash Power Ventures Ltd, Jhabua Power Ltd, Ballarpur Industries Ltd, Bombay Rayon Fashions Ltd, Hindusthan National Glass and Industries Ltd and GTL Infrastructure Ltd.

Resolutions for these accounts include debt recast, sale of assets and one-time settlements. The order has provided a great relief to stressed assets in the power sector. This would provide time for bankers to finalise resolution plans for projects of about 13 GW in their final stages and the High Level Empowered Committee to submit its report on corrective actions, said A K Khurana, director general, Association of Power Producers. The fate of 25 of the 34 assets, which have not initiated resolution so far, hangs in the balance.

Pariwartan scheme, floated by state-owned Rural Electrification Corporation, has been conceived to resolve issues through an Asset Restructuring Company (ARC) Sashakt and Samadhan  similar schemes which have not taken up any projects yet  have also been granted more time.

Under the Samadhan scheme proposed by SBI, a host of power projects were identified for resolution and their sustainable debt levels were determined. These projects with at least partial power purchase agreements and certain fuel linkages included GMR (Chhattisgarh) Energy (1,370 MW), Essar Mahan (1,200 MW), Prayagraj Power (1,980 MW), KSK Mahanadi (2,400 MW) and Jaypee Power Ventures (1,820 MW), said The Financial Express.

34 power assets with a capacity of 40,130 MW remain stressed. Among these the top four stressed assets by capacity are KSK Akaltara (3,600 MW), Adani Tiroda (3,300 MW), Jaypee Bara (1,980 MW) and Rattan Power Nasik-1 (1,350 MW).

GMR Energy has an outstanding debt of Rs 8,173 crores from Axis Bank; Essar Power  Rs 5,951 crores from ICICI Bank; JP Associates  Rs 11,493 crores from SBI; KSK Power  Rs 17,194 crores from PFC; SKS Power  Rs 4,801 crores from SBI.

Advocate Abhishek Singhvi, who argued for GMR Energy, said the RBIs circular was rightly stayed. For highly stressed assets in the power sector, for whom I appeared, even the government of India supported a stay of the circular, he said to the Economic Times. This blanket approach of RBI is very regrettable. It required the robust approach of the Supreme Court to grant status quo.

Even the high court order impugned by us recorded six-seven findings in favour of the writ petitioner but did not grant interim relief so I argued that it was a case of operation successful but the patient must die.

When the RBI transfer petition came up in the Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sep. 11, power companies argued that their very existence was in peril if relief was not forthcoming, reported BloombergQuint.

If the Supreme Court doesn't act today and grant some relief, then the entire power industry will completely go down the drain by virtue of facing insolvency, said Senior Counsel Mukul Rohatgi while recounting the arguments in court. Rohatgi is also representing one of the power companies in the matter.

According to Mr. Rohatgi, the Supreme Courts status quo order yesterday brings to halt any insolvency proceedings against power companies pursuant to the RBI circular. Any insolvency proceedings if filed, there will be a freeze, if not filed there'll again be a freezewhich is to say they cannot be filed, Rohatgi told BloombergQuint in an interview on the phone.

In the absence of a written order (yet) on the Supreme Courts website about the status quo order, lawyer Shardul Shroff of Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas offered a contrasting opinion. Mr Shroff said it only pertained to the transfer petition and pending writ petitions, and not the RBI circular. He went on to tell BloomberQuint that, unless the RBI wants to shoot a self goal, why would it seek an order which is contrary to the very order in its favour by the Allahabad High Court.

To those not quite in the loop, lets do a quick executive summary  power companies (and a few other companies in textile, shipping, and sugar sectors) have tonnes of bad loans. Stressed power projects exposure to lenders is to the tune of Rs 1.75 to 1.8 lakh Rs crore. Some of these stressed power assets have already been referred to the NCLT.

Some of these entities have grumbled that move because they feel it will not fetch the assets the right price. Meanwhile, the RBI took out a circular in February which tightened norms for settling bad debt. The circular essentially set timelines for the resolution of NPAs and allowed lenders to initiate insolvency proceedings against defaulting corporates. While banks were given several options to arrive at a resolution plan, they had to do so within 180 days.

The apex bank introduced the concept of a one-day default - banks had to identify incipient stress even when repayments are overdue by a day. This did not sit well with power companies. Many power companies moved various high courts against this circular screaming blue murder. The Reserve Bank of India had sought to transfer cases filed in various high courts, against its February 12 circular, to the Supreme Court.

The Allahabad High Court, for example, heard this petition and said nope-nothing-doing and had declined to grant the stay of the circular as sought by the petitioning power companies. The high court order also did not inhibit financial creditors to proceed under section 7 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.

And then the matter came up at the SC. Passionate please about the perilous situation of the power companies was made. This interim relief has been granted. For now, remember the eleventh of November, which is when the next hearing is set to take place.

Power out.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked banks to maintain status quo and not to initiate insolvency proceedings against loan defaulting power companies in the country. A bench headed by Justice R F Nariman also asked the banks not to file any insolvency cases till November when the apex court would hear the matter.

It also agreed to transfer to itself 12 cases pending before different high courts related to this issue.

The issue pertains to the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) revised framework introduced on February 12 this year which has provisions to declare a company bankrupt even on a one-day overdue.

The RBI's new framework provides that lenders have to provide for resolution plan within 180 days in case of large account of Rs 2,000 crore and above.

In its circular, the RBI has said that if a resolution was not found by August 27, NPA accounts should be sent to bankruptcy courts.
Concrete equipment manufacturer SCHWING Stetter India has acquired 53 acres in Tamil Nadu for setting up a new manufacturing facility with an investment of Rs 350 crore.

The plant would come up in SIPCOT Industrial area, Cheyyar in Tiruvannamalai district, a company release said.

Top executives of the firm made the payment towards acquiring the land to officials of State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu (SIPCOT) Wednesday.

"The new site aims to focus on new product launches and support the progression of engineered products from the prototype stage to serial production," the release said. The firm would invest the amount in two phases towards installing "the technology-enabled and environmentally-sustainable manufacturing facility," it said.

Company vice-chairman and managing director Anand Sundaresan said, "the new facility is core to the company's long-term strategy to expand and reinforce our position as one of India's leading concrete equipment manufacturers." The facility would cater to the needs of the emerging infrastructure boom in India as well as export requirements of the Asian and African markets, the release added.
iStock/Thinkstock(MANCHESTER, N.H.) -- While New Hampshire voters are traditionally animated and vocal during campaign season, one issue this year leaves many of them virtually speechless: the opioid crisis.



The state is one of the nation's hardest hit by a spiraling American epidemic of narcotic addiction.



In recent ABC News interviews with potential voters in New Hampshire's 1st Congressional District, they appeared to be passionate about wanting candidates who would be aggressive in dealing with the student loan issue, health care and would work to ensure that small business owners benefit from the booming economy.



But while the opioid crisis was not the first -- or second -- topic that many of those interviewed volunteered as being a top priority, each time a potential voter was asked about the pervasive problem, his or her face grew visibly somber, a seeming combination of resignation and heartbreak.



Its a tragic state of affairs in New Hampshire right now, Nick Gray, a small-business worker said. I dont think you can go anywhere in New Hampshire or spend any amount of time here without knowing someone thats been impacted by the opioid crisis.



The opioid crisis is a perfect storm of a number of factors that have made New Hampshire and some of the other New England states really ground zero in a way, said Tym Rourke of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation.



Those interviewed were also largely uniform in the belief that combating the opioid crisis must be a bipartisan effort with one common goal: to save fellow Americans from this often fatal addiction.



Its a real problem and I think it needs to be addressed by both parties, Saint Anselm College senior Karoline Leavitt told ABC News. I think it should absolutely be a bipartisan effort.



Nick Gray has seen three friends he grew up with die from opioid overdoses, all within the last five years. Leavitt said she knew at least six people who overdosed and died. She said her two older brothers knew even more.



They were people you would not necessarily believe to be predisposed to that kind of addiction, Gray added.



Gray believes it is both an immigration and cultural problem. Nevertheless, he said no set amount of money will fix the issue.



The reality is that when we have underprivileged illegal immigrants flowing across our border, theres also going to be drugs coming with them, he said.



Culturally, Gray says it is about having more awareness in the local communities and having a value set in children.



Leavitt said the crisis is far from an immigration problem.



The fact of the matter is, its available, its around, and its cheap, she said. And thats why people are doing it -- because theyre addicted to drugs. They just want to get high, and they are broke because theyre in college.



Dean Lemire has been sober for six years. His addiction began when he was just 14. He struggled with alcohol and later tried to quit by booze by using heroin. Every day for two years, he injected heroin. In his late 20s, he reached out to a relative for help and thought about suicide.



Lemire ended up in a total abstinence treatment center, got clean and sober, and entered the world of advocacy. He and some of his fellow recovering addicts created a peer-driven organization and sought state funds for recovery programs.



There is a dire need, Lemire said, for a multiplicity of harm reduction programs because for many addicts, traditional, 12-step treatment programs that focus on abstinence and a spiritual path to overcoming addiction is no longer enough.



Theres a need for a shift in understanding around how best to care for people who have addictions and how fast do you approach them and what kind of implications that approach has for the services that we have to invest in New Hampshire, he said.



The opportunity right now and the need for those contemplating office is to keep the long game in mind, Rourke told ABC. He was firm in his stance that there has to be an understanding that temporary resources will not solve the long-term problem.



There is an imperative to do better for people who are looking for recovery, he said. The recovery community has a voice that theyve never had before.

Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
The important issue for the IN would be to have safe and secure communications-cum-data links with its other non-American origin units.

Indian diplomacy backed only by soft power is facing many challenges with its neighbours  Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Myanmar and Nepal  increasingly coming under Chinese influence, while Pakistan, which is being courted by Russia and China, seeks to get back into the good books of the United States, whose unpredictable President Donald Trump has to decide if India is a strategic partner when he takes a decision on waiving sanctions due to Countering Americas Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) as India imports arms from Russia and oil from Iran. Hopefully, India has a Plan B to cater for a worst-case scenario, despite the recent signing of Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (Comcasa) in New Delhi.

What does a nation do when confronted by a rising hegemonic power, China, which is adding two blue-water warships to its Navy every month, after successive Indian governments have degraded its military capability and its scientists cannot make even a decent rifle for its troops, and it faces American sanctions like CAATSA for procuring Russian arms or needs to bring its Iranian energy imports to zero by November 4, 2018?

India did what it could do diplomatically: invited the mercurial US President to be the chief guest for the 2019 Republic Day parade (he has not confirmed attendance yet); signed the Helicopter Operations from Ships other Than Aircraft Carriers (HOSTAC); cleared imports of 24 MH-70 multi-role ship-borne helicopters (worth about $2 billion); indicated willingness to import an American missile shield for protecting Delhi against a 9/11-type terror attack (worth $1 billion) and on September 6, 2018 signed the Comcasa during the inaugural 2+2 dialogue in New Delhi. It agreed to have a hotline between the Indian foreign and defence ministers and their American counterparts, conduct the first-ever Indo-US tri-service military exercise in 2019 off the Indian east coast, depute an Indian Navy officer to the United States Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT), which deals with US Navy operations in the Middle East and Afghanistan. The Americans agreed to push for Indias entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group, while both issued a statement against Pakistan-sponsored terror. Also, the US secretary of state has said that the US understands the Indian need for Russian arms and time needed to unwind from Iranian oil imports  the ultimate decision of course rests with President Trump.

India has now signed two of the three foundational agreements (Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement or LEMOA in 2016 and Comcasa in 2018) and is expected to sign Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-spatial Cooperation (BECA) in the future. All these will permit India as a major defence partner to import new American technology, receive the latest tactical pictures in real time from American units to American-origin Indian platforms like warships, naval P8I LRMP aircraft, MH-70 ship-borne helicopters, Sea Guardian armed drones, and IAF aircraft like C17, C130, Chinook heavy-lift helicopters, etc. The US is the global leader in satellite reconnaissance, electronic intelligence (ELINT) gathering, maritime domain awareness (MDA), anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and amphibious warfare. Thus, the Indian Navy would be major beneficiary from these real-time intelligence inputs, which would provide information on the location of Chinese warships, submarines in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and rest of Indo-Pacific Region (IPR), and also the daily location of about 70 supertankers which each carry over 100,000 tonnes of crude oil to China from the Middle East via the Sunda and Lombok straits.

Thus, given the accurate real-time inputs, the limited assets of the Indian Navy could be optimally employed to locate and track Chinese warships, subs, merchant ships in the vast IOR. Of course, the Americans would expect reciprocal inputs from the Indian Navy via the new IN-USN communications data links. The important issue for the IN would be to have safe and secure communications-cum-data links with its other non-American origin units, particularly its largely Russian-origin submarine force of conventional and nuclear subs, while having a data interface between its own units of American origin and non-American origin units. Another likely sticky point which would need to be resisted in the future maybe proposed American agreement to share details of IN submarine patrol areas in the interest of underwater space management, similar to what the Americans have with Japan and the UK, but not France. Further, Russia (which like Japan) also wants a LEMOA agreement with India, may also insist on a Comcasa and BECA-type agreements for strategic reasons, since it supplies 62 per cent of Indian military hardware, and is the only supplier to India of nuclear subs (SSNs), long-range SAMs like SA400, nuclear power plants, oil and gas, and assists in Indian space exploration. Incidentally, India and France also signed a LEMOA-type agreement this year.

The next two months are crucial for India. President Vladimir Putin is expected to arrive in New Delhi in October for a summit meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the two countries are expected to sign a $12 billion deal for S-400, an SSN on lease, four frigates, and light utility Kamov helicopters. The US Senate has authorised President Trump to waive off CAATSA sanctions for India, Indonesia and Vietnam. Its to be seen if President Trump does authorise this waiver. In any case, India, the US and Russia will need to work out long-term agreements to avoid this Damocles sword of CAATSA. India imports over 23 per cent of its energy needs from Iran and is poised to take over management of strategic Chabahar port shortly to get strategic access to Afghanistan and the Central Asian Republics (CAR). A high-level Iranian team was recently in New Delhi to negotiate modalities to continue trade after the November 4, 2018 deadline (when the US will sanction those trading with Iran).

Their is no doubt that India has bargained hard to protect its national interests: LEMOA covers basically fuel transfers in port or at sea in only four conditions viz port calls, joint exercises, training and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. Any other requirements have to be mutually agreed on a case by case basis. The planned 2019 first-ever Indo-US tri-service exercise, off the east coast of India, is being done after India did a similar first ever tri-service exercise with Russia in Vladivostok a few months back.

And herein lies the challenge to Indian diplomacy  how to manage strategic relations with long-term partner Russia (which is still not only the largest military supplier to India, but the only supplier of strategic platforms like nuclear subs and does transfer of technology or ToT) while increasing strategic ties with the US (which has sold over $17 billion worth of arms to India in the last decade, but has done no ToT).

Indias problems are further aggravated by its focus on diplomacy without hard power. Chinas meteoric economic-cum-military rise with border disputes, a bankrupt and unstable nuclear-armed Pakistan, which is being courted by China, Russia and American focus on issues beyond rising China (Russia and Iran are seen as American enemies, while they are important to India).

Indeed, the present situation brings to mind the competition between European sea powers (Portuguese, French and British, etc) in the IOR after Vasco da Gama landed in Calicut, India, in 1498, who fought amongst themselves and against the shortsighted, strategically clueless sea blind leaders of the subcontinent, and finally colonised this land. History repeats itself is an old saying, and hopefully our leaders recognise the triple threats from terror, China and Pakistan, diplomatically manage strategic ties with the US and Russia while urgently focusing on creating an Indian military-industrial complex, carry out military reforms, review our no first use nuclear doctrine and plug the loopholes in our national security apparatus. And yes, have a Plan B, in case President Trump imposes any sanctions on India for its trade with Russia and Iran.
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Here are the stocks that are in news today:

: In its clarification note related to Mohali plant, company said the US FDA is conducting an inspection of Mohali facility (Punjab,

India). The inspection started on September 10 and is ongoing.

Syngene International: Biocon and Biocon Research reduced stake by 0.50 percent to 70.24 percent by selling shares of the company through open market on September 11.

Cipla: The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) has approved Ciplas latest first-line triple-combination antiretroviral (ARV) treatment for HIV.

Rajapalayam Mills: CRISIL Rating Agency has re-affirmed the long term ratings as A-/Positive and short term ratings as A2+.

Adani Green: Company has incorporated a wholly-owned subsidiary company Adani Saur Urja (KA).

Narayana Hrudayalaya: NH Health Bangladesh Private Limited, a step-down subsidiary of company, has entered into definitive agreements to partner with Imperial Hospital Limited in Chittagong, Bangladesh to operate and manage their cardiac sciences department. This 350-capacity bedded hospital is expected to be commissioned within the next six months.

Sadbhav Engineering: Company issued 1,900 unsecured, listed, redeemable non-convertible debentures (NCDs) having face value of Rs 10,00,000 each aggregating to Rs 190.00 crore on private placement basis.

Sadbhav Engineering: CARE revised rating on long term/short term bank facilities.

City Union Bank: ICRA has assigned a long term rating AA- to the bank valid till September 6, 2019.

Satin Creditcare Network: Company in next few months will file application with RBI for NBFC license of Satin Finserv and will transfer entire MSME business to new entity Satin Finserv.

Yes Bank: Its Rs 4,000 crore proposed Basel III Tier 2 bonds receive AAA rating from CARE Ratings and AA+ from India Ratings & Research with a Stable outlook.

Godrej Agrovet: Board, on September 14, to consider scheme of amalgamation of Astec LifeSciences (a subsidiary) with the company and also to discuss on business strategies.

Reliance Industries Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel received demand notices towards penalties totalling to Rs 34 lakh and Rs 11 lakh respectively from the TRAI

NTPC clarified that it had considered investment approval for Talcher Thermal Power Project

Reliance Capital: Q1 profit at Rs 111 crore versus loss of Rs 417 crore; revenue falls to Rs 563 crore versus Rs 790 crore (YoY).

Ind-Ra downgrades IL&FS Financial Services on liquidity pressures

Housing and Urban Development Corporation: HUDCO has achieved the level of loan sanctions of Rs 4,094.91 crore and loan releases of Rs 3,021.66 crore, as on August 31 for the financial year 2018-19.

Alembic: Company accorded in-principle approval to the proposal to demerge the Identified Real Estate Undertaking of the company into Shreno Limited, an unlisted public limited company.

RDB Realty & Infrastructure: Board authorised and empowered Pradeep Kumar Pugalia, Whole-time Director, Ravi Prakash Pincha, Director and Anil Kumar Apat, Chief Financial Officer of the company to discuss, evaluate and identify the various options available to the company for restructuring of its business and operations.

Diligent Media Corporation: Company has today executed an agreement for sale assignment of non-core assets comprising of leasehold land admeasuring approximately 13,803 square meters in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra for Rs 54.44 crore.

Toyam Industries: An agreement has been signed with broadcaster Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) and multiplex major PVR to live telecast the fight night between teams of India and UAE on September 29.

Unitech: Kali Charan Agarwal, an additional non-executive independent director of the company tendered his resignation from the office of directors of the company.

JM Financial: Subsidiary company JM Financial Products transferred 9,70,099 equity shares in Spandana Sphoorty Financial to JM Financial India Fund II (a scheme of JM Financial India Trust II, a SEBI registered Category II Alternate Investment Fund). JM Financial Products' shareholding in Spandana has reduced to 1.60 percent of Spandana's existing outstanding total equity shares and on a fully diluted basis it has reduced to 1.55 percent.

Salzer Electronics: Promoters increased their stake in the company by 2 percent to 36 percent.

Modern India: Company acquired 24,500 equity shares in Modern India Free Trade Warehousing (MIFTWPL), a subsidiary company.

Redington India: The meeting of the board of directors of the company is convened to be held on September 17 to consider a proposal to buy-back the fully paid-up equity shares of the company.

Wipro: Company joins Duck Creek Technologies' Alliance Program.

Kalpataru Power board approves proposal to raise Rs 100 crore via NCDs

Ashish Kacholia raises stake in SME Marshall Machines to 8%

RBL Bank clarified on media report regarding alleged Service tax and GST noncompliance by the bank that this is unsubstantiated, malicious and completely untrue

CARE and ICRA downgraded IL&FS Transportations NCDs and bank facilities term loan

Hero MotoCorp signs up Virat Kohli as brand ambassador
JLR

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Tata Motors-owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) on Tuesday issued a warning to the UK government of massive losses if Britain was to leave the European Union (EU) with no deal over its future trading relationship with the economic bloc.

JLR CEO Ralf Speth, who was speaking at the Zero Emission Vehicle Summit in Birmingham, said that fears of a so-called "no-deal" Brexit and lack of clarity over Britain's post-Brexit plans threatens the UK-based luxury carmaker's entire operational set up.

"Just one part missing could mean stopping production at a cost of 60 million pounds a day. That is a huge risk. We depend on free, frictionless, seamless logistics," he said.

Speth reiterated a previous warning over a hard Brexit scenario hitting the Tata Group-owned company's annual profits by over 1.2 billion pounds, which might even force its exit from the UK.

"At the end of the day we are British. We are an absolutely British company and we want to stay here," he said.

JLR is among a number of companies participating at the Zero Emission Vehicle Summit, during which Prime Minister Theresa May announced a 106-million-pound grant to support research and development in green vehicles, new batteries and low carbon technology.

Speth said electric and autonomous vehicles represented a "huge opportunity" but stressed that the UK government must collaborate more closely with business on the sector.

Back in July, the JLR CEO had issued a similar statement warning the UK government against a "bad Brexit deal". The UK's largest carmaker has witnessed a complete turnaround in its fortunes since Tata Motors acquired the traditional British brands from Ford 10 years ago.

Speth had highlighted that under Indian ownership, the company has spent around 50 billion pounds in the UK in the past five years, with plans for a further 80 billion pounds in the next five. However, all that could be put in "jeopardy" with a bad deal with the EU as Britain prepares to exit the 27-member economic bloc in March next year.

At the beginning of the year, JLR had said it would cut production at its plant in Halewood, Merseyside, where it builds three of its Range Rover models. In April, it said that it would not renew the contracts for 1,000 temporary workers at its operation at Solihull in the West Midlands region of England. But the company had also revealed plans to invest in the Solihull site to allow it to build its new Range Rover models, some of which will be electric-powered, from 2020.

In June, JLR said it would shift production of its Land Rover Discovery SUV to a new plant in Slovakia, potentially leading to some job losses in the UK.

The company's repeated Brexit interventions come in the wake of similar statements by other manufacturing giants like BMW and Airbus, warning against a "no-deal" Brexit.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat - January 2018

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) will soon invite diplomatic missions of around 60 countries for a three-day lecture series in Delhi, except Pakistan, The Indian Express has reported.

The lecture series, which will be addressed by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on the theme 'Future of Bharat: An RSS perspective', is scheduled at Vigyan Bhawan next week. Bhagwat will also take questions from the audience during the event.

Besides representatives from diplomatic missions, the Sangh will also be inviting all national political parties and regional parties with a strong base in states which target RSS on various issues.

Representatives from industries, media and other sectors are also expected to be invited.

An RSS functionary told the newspaper: Invitations will be sent to embassies of most Asian countries, excluding Pakistan. Pakistan will not be invited because that country supports terror, kills Indian soldiers at borders and its relations with India are strained.

The person also said the Embassy of China would be invited because the country has cultural similarities with India.

On day one, Bhagwat will speak about the Sanghs organisation, ideology, vision, activities and programmes. On the second day, Bhagwat will express his views on various contemporary issues of national significance, including reservation, communalism and Hindutva.

The report suggests that the organisers will invite heads of all national political parties with a request to attend the lecture series along with four to five other party members.

Trinamool Congress (TMC), Samajwadi Party (SP) and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) are some of the other parties that could be invited.

In August, reports had suggested that the Indian right-wing organisation was likely to invite Congress President Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders.

Indications that Gandhi could be invited came days after the latter drew parallels between the Sangh and Middle East-based Islamic radical outfit Muslim Brotherhood.

On August 27, however, Congress said it had not received any invite for Gandhi to attend the event and would respond to questions on the matter only after an invitation is received.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury was also likely to be invited for the event.

The RSS conclave comes less than a month after the opposition, especially Congress president Rahul Gandhi, launched a frontal attack on the BJP, hyphenating the policies and decisions of the Narendra Modi government with its ideological moorings in the RSS.

In June, former president Pranab Mukherjee had attended a function of the RSS in Nagpur  a decision which was widely criticised.
Congress

Congress in Karnataka stepped up efforts to quell the internal discontent triggered by a faction of MLAs led by minister Ramesh Jarkiholi, who is locked in a turf war with another minister D K Shivakumar, casting a shadow over its coalition government with the JDS.

Ramesh and his brother Satish Jarkiholi whose dissident activities have caused trouble to the three-month old Congress-JDS coalition, have camped in Bengaluru meeting senior party leaders. The leaders include State Congress President Dinesh Gundu Rao, deputy chief minister G Parameshwara and Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge.

The Jarkiholi brothers are upset over Shivakumar allegedly trying to challenge their supremacy in Belagavi district through MLA Laxmi Hebbalkar.

The siblings were made to accept the candidates of the Hebbalkar camp in the recent Primary Land Development Bank's elections, which has reportedly infuriated them more.

The internal tussle has spilled into the open with the Jarkiholi brothers assertion about the support of eight MLAs and that they were in touch with the BJP fuelling speculation about the stability of the H D Kumaraswamy government.

"We do have our own faction and factionalism is found across all the parties. Our faction is of like-minded people. Factionalism existed before and will continue to remain in future too," Satish Jarkiholi told reporters here.

He also said, "we were always with the party and we are not dissidents. However, our group is of seven-eight MLAs and we will remain together. We have faith that seniors will resolve the issues. I met Dinesh Gundu Rao to discuss how to stop this because such negative coverage in the media damages the party. Rao has sought two days' time to discuss the matter," he said.

He clarified that he had not discussed the issue with Congress general secretary, Karnataka-incharge, K C Venugopal.

Ramesh Jarkiholi, the municipal administration minister, ruled out the possibility of quitting Congress.

Speaking to reporters here, he said, "There is no question of my quitting the party. I am very much in Congress.

I met Mallikarjun Kharge, who is a father figure to me. I explained the situation to him. I have full faith in our seniors who will set things right."

Deputy chief minister G Parameshwara termed reports about government collapsing a speculation.

"The stories that government will collapse is all speculation. Yesterday Ramesh Jarkiholi had contacted me. He had given some suggestions. There were no such things like make me minister or else I will topple the government," he said. Parameshwara did not elaborate what the Jarkiholi brothers had demanded.

The Jarkiholi brothers have reportedly told the state leadership that they would brook no "inteference" from "outsiders" in their district and asked for key post for Satish, who was a ministerial aspirant.

Speculation is also rife in political circles that the Jarkiholi brothers were making the current moves at the behest of former chief minister Siddaramaiah, with whom they are close, to contain Shivakumar's influence.

Sensing trouble for the coalition government, the BJP has been holding meetings with its party MLAs, amid reports that it was in constant touch with the Jarkiholi brothers.

BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa met party MLAs at his residence Tuesday to discuss the future course of action borne out of dissidence in Congress.

BJP MLA from Honnalli seat and a confidant of Yeddyurappa, M P Renukacharya said the government would not survive and would fall soon.

The Congress has accused the BJP of hatching a conspiracy against the coalition government.

Dinesh Gundu Rao warned the BJP "not to stoop low" as it will also face the same consequences.

"We are not ready to stoop to their level. If they try to trouble our MLAs or poach on them, we will be forced to givethem a befitting reply.

I warn the BJP leaders that we are not ready to indulge in such activities (of poaching MLAs) and we don't need it but you give up your dirty politics," he said.
Have a long-term outlook | Timing investment is logically impossible because the best entry and exit opportunities are known only in hindsight. No one can predict market movements with certainty. Therefore, it is important to allow your investments to compound over a long term.

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The Director General of Hydrocarbons Wednesday said the ongoing Discovered Small Filed (DSF) second round bidding, once completed, will entice about $1.2 billion worth of investments by the successful bidders.

"The total investment committed in the DSF-I was $600 million. We expect it to double this time at least double to $1200 million ($1.2 billion). Here the area is also doubled and reserves are also doubled 9 when compared to the round one). The area is 3000 Sq Km and reserves are 190 mmtoe ( million metric tonnes of oil equivalent)," VP Joy, Director General of Directorate of Hydrocarbons told reporters.

He was in the city to participate in the investor meet organised by the DGH for the DSF Bid Round-II. He said under the current round 25 contract areas covering 59 discovered oil and gas fields spread over 3000 Sq Km with prospective resource base of over 190 mmtoe was announced.

The e-bidding portal was open since August 9 and would continue till December 18. The government had in 2016 brought a new DSF policy, offering "idle" small discovered fields of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) and Oil India Ltd (OIL) in an auction on liberalised terms including marketing and pricing freedom and lower taxes.

In the first round of bidding for DSF last year, 134 bids were received for 34 blocks out of 46 on offer. Joy said within this financial year the contracts would be awarded to the successful bidders who were supposed to start production within three years after being awarded the contract.

"The successful bidder will get the Petroleum Mining Lease on their name. They will have to submit the field development plan. Then drill the wells and start the production. As per the terms and conditions they will have to start production within three years after they were awarded," he explained.

Replying to a query on the National Seismic Programme, he said the government has earmarked Rs 3000 crore for the purpose and about Rs 1000 crore was spent on that. Joy said the processed data pertaining to Mahanadi Basin has already been published and about 60 percent of the data has been acquired.

"Rajasthan data we are hoping to display next month," he said. The DGH had identified 26 basins across the country and out of which only seven are witnessing commercial production and another five basins have been identified of having good potential of oil and gas reserves.
U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis pauses as he testifies before the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee hearing on funding for the Department of Defense, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., May 9, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RC12DDE332C0

The "highly successful" first 2+2 Dialogue between India and the United States was a "defining moment" and the defence co-operation between the two countries is on the right track, US Defence Secretary James Mattis said here Tuesday.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held the crucial talks with Mattis and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New Delhi on September 6.

"Last week I did go to India for what could only be considered highly successful consultations between the world's two largest democracies. There was no difficulties that we uncovered there in moving forward on a number of pragmatic steps to draw ourselves closer together in terms of security," Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon here.

"It was a very heartening trip, historic I'd even say, as you look at where we've been over so many years as we've grown closer and closer together," Mattis said.

He specifically pointed to the COMCASA agreement, the communications compatibility and security agreement, which he said opens a lot of doors in "terms of defense cooperation".

"Probably we will look back on the 2+2, where Secretary Pompeo led the two of us in there as our senior diplomat. Probably a defining moment for the relationship between the US and India, and one that we think is absolutely on the right track in terms of defense cooperation, Mattis said.

Mattis was echoed by the US State Department later in the day.

"Last week's 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue was a historic milestone in the US-India relationship and an indication of the deepening strategic partnership between the United States and India, and India's emergence as a global power and net security provider in the region," a State Department spokesperson told PTI.

Asserting that the two countries want to grow their trade relationship in a fair and reciprocal manner, the spokesperson said at the 2+2 dialogue, both sides acknowledged that expanding fair and reciprocal trade was in their shared interests and would contribute to the prosperity of both "of our peoples".
Congress leader and former Mharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan leads in the Karad South Assembly constituency. His nearest rival is BJP's Atul Bhosale.

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Amid the Rafale deal row, senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan has claimed that the government last month floated international tenders to buy around 100 medium multi-role combat aircraft.

Adani Defence Systems and Technologies Limited signed an agreement with Swedish defence giant Saab for the supply of the aircraft, Chavan claimed.

Speaking at a seminar titled 'Is Modi really guilty in Rafale deal?', organised by an NGO, the former Maharashtra chief minister said, "(Prime Minister Narendra) Modi, in order to benefit his friends (industrialists) Anil Ambani and Gautam Adani, has started playing with the defence ministry."

"After Reliance Defence, for the Rafale deal, Adani Defence Systems and Technologies Limited has been formed and it has signed an agreement with Sweden's Saab group for around 100 combat aircraft," Chavan said.

He added that the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government was to purchase 126 Rafale aircraft, but the Modi government signed an agreement to purchase 36 Rafale planes by paying Rs 1,000 crore more per aircraft.

"Considering the need for more Rafale fighter aircraft for the country, why only 36 aircraft are being purchased?" Chavan asked and sought a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the deal.

In 2000, the UPA government invited bids from various countries and then decided to purchase 126 Rafale aircraft 18 to be manufactured in France and the remaining 108 to be manufactured by the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) the Congress leader said.

"However, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to France in 2015, a new agreement for the purchase of 36 aircraft, costing more, was signed," he added.

Anil Ambani's Reliance Group has served legal notices to the spokespersons and leaders of the Congress party, asking them to cease and desist from levelling allegations against the Rafale deal.

Chavan later told mediapersons that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had "misinterpreted" former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan's letter on non-performing assets (NPAs) to the Parliamentary Estimates Committee and said during the UPA regime, the NPAs amounted to only Rs 4 lakh crore, which went up to Rs 11 lakh crore during the present National Democratic Alliance (NDA) regime.
India is among four countries with "no or little enforcement" mechanism to check foreign bribery, according to a report released Wednesday by anti-corruption organisation Transparency International.

Citing cases of alleged bribery by foreign firms including in a deal of 12 helicopters by Italy-based firm AgustaWestland, it asked India to criminalise foreign bribery and introduce effective legislation to protect whistleblowers in the private sector.

"If China, Hong Kong, India and Singapore do not enforce hard-won international standards for conducting business, competitors from countries that do enforce will find themselves disadvantaged. This may lead to a reduction in enforcement, destabilising the global marketplace," said the 2018 edition of the 'Exporting Corruption Report'.

The classification of enforcement is based on the convention countries' enforcement actions in the period 2014-2017.

It said the real losers will be the global economy and people in countries affected by exported corruption, especially grand corruption.

"In this 2018 report, China, Hong Kong, India and Singapore all with 2 percent or more of world exports, but not parties to the OECD (Anti-Bribery) Convention are classified for the first time and all fall into the lowest level (little or no enforcement). This poor performance argues for these countries' accession to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention," the finding said.

They are, however, parties to the UN Convention against Corruption, which also calls for enforcement against foreign bribery. Transparency International urges them to join the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, it said.

The OECD Anti-Bribery Convention was adopted in 1997 to address the supply side of international corruption. There are now 44 parties to the convention, 36 of them members of the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development).

"Despite their obligations under the UN Convention against Corruption, China, India and Hong Kong have not initiated any enforcement against foreign bribery and related offences, undermining the multilateral consensus that action in this area is essential. They should promptly initiate enforcement, and publish data on enforcement results and case resolutions," it said.

The Indian government does not publish statistics on its foreign bribery enforcement and does not disclose such statistics on request, the report said.

"The authorities do not disclose any information about unpublished cases related to bribery of foreign public officials by Indians. It is also not clear whether the governmental enforcement and investigative agencies collect information related to foreign bribery, separately or not," it said.

The report said in July 2018, the Indian Parliament passed a bill amending the present Prevention of Corruption Act, which covers bribe payers for the first time.

"The bill also covers agents, subsidiaries and subcontractors of foreign firms working in India or doing business with Indian entities," it said.

As foreign bribery is not yet criminalised in India, the adequacy of the enforcement system in relation to this specific offence cannot be assessed, said the report, which was released in Berlin.

"However, certain shortcomings in the enforcement system, in particular those evident from current enforcement of domestic corruption, are also a concern for foreign bribery enforcement. In particular, while the Indian Penal Code and Prevention of Corruption Act prescribe criminal and civil liability for domestic corruption, the reality is that actions taken against the perpetrators have been few," it said.

The report cited inadequacies in implementation of Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) Treaty.

"India has signed mutual legal assistance (MLA) treaties with 39 countries. The Ministry of Home Affairs is the central authority for seeking and providing MLA in criminal law matters. The translation of documents into foreign languages is a major factor slowing down the MLA process," it said.

The report cited several cases of alleged bribery or attempts to bribe Indian government officials by foreign firms including France-based Airbus, saying India was among 16 countries targeted by alleged bribery.

"In 2017, the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the 2013 conviction of a Canadian man for conspiring to bribe Indian public officials, including a minister, in a failed bid to win a major contract for Cryptometrics Canada ( a firm) to supply security-screening equipment to Air India," the report said, giving details of Canada which according to it has "limited enforcement".

Briefing about Italy with "active enforcement", it said that in 2016, an Italian appellate court overturned a previous lower court ruling and sentenced a former chief executive of Finmeccanica (now Leonardo S.p.A.) and a former head of AgustaWestland (a subsidiary of Finmeccanica) to four-and-a-half years and four years in prison, respectively, and a fine of Euro 7.5 million, for corruption and falsifying invoices.
Representative image

The Maharashtra cabinet approved the implementation of two Metro rail projects - Dahisar-Mira Bhayander and Andheri-Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International (CSIM) airport- collectively worth Rs 6,607 crore.

An official from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said Metro line 9 will be Dahisar-Mira Bhayander route, while Metro 7 A will be Andheri-CSIM airport route. Both the routes are together 13.5 km long.

The Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA) has been empowered to raise funds for the projects.

According to the official, the Dahisar-Mira Bhayander route will be 10.41 km long elevated corridor and will have 11 stations, while the extension of Metro 7 Andheri-CSMI airport (Metro 7 A) will be 3.17 km long in which 2.11 km will be underground.

To ensure effective implementation of the Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Jan Arogya Yojana, the cabinet also gave a go-ahead to a proposal of providing 20 per cent funds from the scheme as incentive to the doctors and medical staff of the government-run medical and dental colleges and affiliated hospitals for operation and treatment of patients.

"Similarly, 25 per cent funds will be with the government for creating additional infrastructure facilities and 52 per cent funds for development of medical and educational facilities in the institution concerned," the official said.

In another decision, the cabinet also gave its nod to setting up a food technology college in Yavatmal and Walwa taluka in Sangli district.

"The college will be set up at a cost of Rs 102 crore," the CMO official said adding that 130 new posts will be created and the college will have a capacity to enrol 40 students every year.
Voting polling EVM election

More than half of the government officials who are expected to be deployed to conduct the assembly election in Madhya Pradesh later this year, have failed the written test held by the Election Commission (EC), The Indian Express has reported.

According to the report, around 58 percent of the officials, including the ranks of deputy collector, sub-divisional officer and tehsildars, who would be posted as returning officers and assistant officers across the state were asked to take a written test in August.

While 1,000-odd officials would be involved in the election process, 567 officials had taken the test. Out of the 567, only 244 could get 70 percent marks or more, the report suggests.

According to the report, Chief Election Officer VL Kantha Rao has told the officials who failed to clear the test that they would be given another chance. The re-test would happen along with officials who are currently being trained.

If the officials fail again, the Chief Election Officer would ask the government to take action against the officials for poor performance, the report adds.

Also read: Ram Van Gaman Path Yatra, temple runs and gaushalas: Congress' soft Hindutva pitch in Madhya Pradesh

In the 2013 polls, government officials who were deployed for poll duty were given one months salary as an incentive.

A majority of the officials have been exposed to the VVPAT machines for the first time.

The term of the current assembly will end on January 7, 2019. Hence, the assembly election in the state is expected to happen later this year, along with Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram. There are also indications that Telangana could vote to elect a new assembly during the same period.

The Congress is attempting to defeat the incumbent Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led BJP government, which has been in power for almost 15 years.

In 2013, BJP had won 165 seats in the 230-member assembly. Congress had finished distant second with 58 seats.

An ABP-CVoter opinion poll in August suggested that the Congress would win the election with a slim margin. According to the survey, Congress would get 117 seats ahead of BJPs 106. Congress would command a 41.7 percent vote share ahead of BJPs 40.1 percent.
The crucifix, however, normally found inside a church or a building is a Cross having also the image of Jesus on it.

Some readers may or may not be quite aware of the difference between a Cross and crucifix. Most of the churches or buildings have a Cross mounted on it which do not have the crucified figure of Jesus Christ on it. The crucifix, however, normally found inside a church or a building is a Cross having also the image of Jesus on it.

A Cross and/or crucifix is a certain sign to recognise if one is a Christian or if it is a Christian institution. Though it is also true that neither everyone wearing a Cross is Christian nor the other way round, i.e. that every Christian or Christian institution would have it displayed. But no Christian celebration can ever be complete without a Cross being at its centre since Christians believe that Jesus Christs death on the Cross and his resurrection brought salvation to the world.

While the churches celebrate various festive and holy days associated with the salvific Cross of Christ, the feast on September 14 is known as the Exaltation of the Cross. The feast recalls three significant historical events: the finding of the True Cross by Saint Helena, emperor Constantines mother; the dedication of churches built by Constantine on the site of the Holy Sepulchre and Mount Calvary; and the restoration of the Cross to Jerusalem.

According to the tradition, Saint Helena decided, under divine inspiration, to travel to Jerusalem in 326 to look for the True Cross on which Jesus was crucified. Paradoxically a certain Judas led those excavating to the spot where it was hidden. To celebrate the discovery of the Holy Cross, Constantine ordered the construction of churches at the site. Those churches were dedicated on September 13 and 14, in 335. Thereafter the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross began to be celebrated on 14. The feast slowly spread from Jerusalem to other churches, until, by the year 720, the celebration became universal.

In the early Seventh century, Persian king Khosrau II captured this Cross and took it to Persia. But after Khosraus defeat by Emperor Heraclius II in 629, Heraclius restored it to Jerusalem. Tradition says that he carried the Cross on his own back, but a strange force stopped him from entering the church on Mount Calvary. Patriarch Zacharias of Jerusalem, seeing the emperor struggle, advised him to take off his crown and robes and to dress in a penitential robe instead. As soon as Heraclius did that, he was able to carry the Cross into the church.

The Cross of Jesus has been both, a sign of contradiction for nailing the incarnate word of God on it, while at the same time it is the definitive sign of Gods total and unconditional love for humanity shared with us by the same Jesus.
Govt, RBI will do everything to ensure rupee doesn't slide to unreasonable levels, says Subhash Chandra Garg

JUST IN | India's index of industrial production (IIP) rose by 6.6 percent in July, as compared to the 6.9 percent increase it saw in June (MoM).

JUST IN | Food price inflation at stood at 0.29 percent, as compared to 1.37 percent (MoM), while housing inflation stood at 7.59 percent, as compared to 8.3 percent (MoM)

September 12, 2018 / 10:35 PM IST That's all for today, readers. Thanks for staying on with our coverage of the day's action. Your enthusiasm encourages us to better our coverage every day. Do come back tomorrow for more news, views and insights.











September 12, 2018 / 09:50 PM IST











September 12, 2018 / 09:22 PM IST JUST IN | Bapu Asaram has written to the Governor of Rajasthan for the commutation, remission, and suspension of sentence and pardon of his conviction for raping a minor girl, tweets ANI.











September 12, 2018 / 09:01 PM IST Taj Mansingh was leased for 33 years in 1978

JUST IN | The Taj Mansingh was leased to Taj For 33 years in 1978; with the lease to have expired, according to media reports. This was to be followed by the auction of the property, but it faced delays due to the to eligibility norms criteria set by NMDC. The hotel is still run by Tata Groups Indian Hotels. Both ITC & Tata Group declined











September 12, 2018 / 08:56 PM IST











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September 12, 2018 / 07:51 PM IST A UK court reserves its verdict on the extradition of Vijay Mallya till December 10.











September 12, 2018 / 06:59 PM IST JUST IN | Finance Minisiter Arun Jaitley stated that he never gave an appointment to meet Vijay Mallya since 2014. In a Facebook post, Jaitley recalls Mallya, who was also a Rajya Sabha member at the time, was expecting to speak with him in the Upper House. Jaitley said that in this brief encounter, he told Mallya,there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers.













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September 12, 2018 / 05:46 PM IST JUST IN | Manufacturing growth was at seven percent as compared to 6.9 percent MoM










rahul gandhi

Congress president Rahul Gandhi demanded an immediate probe into the "extremely serious" allegations made by fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya and said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley should step down till the investigation is over.

Mallya, facing charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore and fighting an extradition case, told reporters in London that he met the finance minister before leaving India and offered to settle with the banks.

"Given Vijay Mallya's extremely serious allegations in London today, the PM should immediately order an independent probe into the matter. Arun Jaitley should step down as Finance Minister while this probe is underway," Gandhi tweeted.

Jaitley, however, rubbished Mallya's statement, saying he never gave him an appointment since 2014 but the liquor baron misused his position as Rajya Sabha MP to accost him in Parliament.
The Supreme Court Wednesday extended the house arrest of five rights activists who were arrested in connection with the Koregaon-Bhima violence case till September 17.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud adjourned the hearing on the plea filed by historian Romila Thapar and four others to September 17 after it was submitted that senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who is representing the petitioners, was busy in another court.

Earlier, Singhvi appeared before the bench and submitted that the hearing on Thapar's plea be conducted after 12 pm as he has to appear in another matter.

The court was hearing the plea filed against the arrest of the rights activists Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha in the case.

The Maharashtra police had arrested the five activists on August 28 in connection with an FIR lodged following a conclave 'Elgaar Parishad' held on December 31 last year that had later triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village.

On August 29, the apex court ordered the house arrest of the activists, saying "dissent is the safety valve of democracy".
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi being welcomed by BJP president Amit Shah during a day-long meeting of the BJP Chief Ministers' Council in New Delhi on Tuesday. (PTI Photo/Manvender Vashist) (PTI8_28_2018_000039B)

Shekhar Iyer

The just-concluded Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national executive may show that the ruling party is supremely confident about the challenge it faces in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. However, a deeper look indicates that Prime Minister Narendra Modi sees the general elections as a test of his leadership and popularity, and as one thats tougher than what hes faced so far.

In 2014, Modi carried the BJP to victory on the sheer strength of his personal appeal, and on untested promises and pledges. The 2019 battle, however, is more than just a battle of perceptions. And this is why Modi wants his party leaders and workers to do their bit  and a lot more to make the BJPs ride back to power easier.

Modi needs the BJP  more than ever before  to tell the story of what he has done in the past four years, and what he intends to do in the coming years in more convincing ways than hitherto. The party will have to do a lot of explaining on various counts and do it in an effective manner to win the confidence of the people. For this, the role of middle-level BJP leaders and lower-level workers at the constituency level will be crucial.

Since 2014, with a few exceptions, the BJP has won state after state because of the meticulous planning by party chief Amit Shah down to the booth level. His role in strengthening the party and strategizing at the booth level has even had BJPs political rivals admiring him. The party will have to focus on boosting the confidence of this booth-level worker before the coming elections.

The BJP will have to project that the Modi government has lived up to its 2014 slogan of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas regardless of state, caste or religion. If the partys 2019 slogan of Ajay Bharat, Atal BJP (Invincible India, Determined BJP) has to resonate with the common man, the entire BJP rank and file needs to gets down to the task.

Modis appeal to the party cadre gains importance when two aspects are looked into: One, the cadres inability at times to spread the word about the work done by the government. Second, the partys inability to effectively counter the Opposition on some of the charges levelled against the government.

Though not often stated publicly, the prime minister has never concluded an interaction with party leaders  be it Members of Parliament or state-level functionaries  without reminding them to spread the good word about the governments achievements. Despite this, the party leadership has been taken aback at times when its leaders have pleaded ignorance about flagship programmes, or when theyve courted controversies (like bringing outside food to Dalit homes during the Gram Swarajya Abhiyan).

There is some disquiet in the BJP that the Oppositions bid to keep the fire directed at the government  for example, by constantly fuelling a narrative against the Rafale deal  has not been matched by a surefooted counter offensive. Barring the defence by senior ministers Arun Jaitley, Nirmala Sitharaman and Ravi Shankar Prasad, party functionaries do not appear to be armed with facts to counter the Congress claims about the deal. So much so, there is no denial to whispers among sections of hardcore supporters who wonder whether the government has actually done something wrong.

The party leadership, especially Modi, wants the cadre to confidently propagate that the government has kept the best interests of the country in mind and that it has acted in earnest. Even Shahs act of confidently proclaiming that the BJP was here to stay and rule for the next five decades is directed at the cadre which need a shot the arm.

This is why the senior ministers were reminding the public that even four years into power Modis approval ratings were more than 70 percent. This is also why the running theme for the BJP campaign will be to judge 48 months of the Modi government against 48 years of Congress rule.

The BJP can achieve this only if the party is further motivated at the booth level and the Congress is countered using facts and figures.

Invoking Atal Bihari Vajpayee may add to the brand value but the BJP needs to innovate on its appeal and re-work its narrative and connect with the people.

That appears to the central message from the BJP conclave.
Inquiry against Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K Palaniswami has started ...Inquiry against Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K Palaniswami has started, Madras HC informed

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami Wednesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging the Centre again to confer the country's highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna on late J Jayalalithaa and Dravidian icon C N Annadurai.

The Bharat Ratna "would be the most fitting way to recognise the extraordinary public service, phenomenal achievements and the remarkable life of one of the most influential political leaders of independent India," Palaniswami said in the letter to Modi, recalling Jayalalithaa's welfare measures and initiatives.

The chief minister drew Modi's attention to a letter of December 18, 2016 of the state government recommending the award to the former chief minister posthumously.

Jayalalithaa passed away on December 5, 2016.

The Tamil Nadu Cabinet resolved on September 9 to reiterate to the Centre its decision taken in the Cabinet meeting on December 10, 2016, he said.

Hailing former chief minister Annadurai as "the ideological fountainhead of major Dravidian parties," Palaniswami said the late leader stood for a "politics that foregrounded social equality, self-respect and linguistic pride."

Annadurai was a great social reformer, writer, orator, litterateur and a tall Dravidian leader, he said.

Palaniswami highlighted another Cabinet decision taken last week urging the Centre to rename Chennai Central Railway Station after "Puratchi Thalaivar Dr MG Ramachandran," in view of his birth centenary celebrations.

Ramachandran was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna in 1988. On August 24, AIADMK's executive committee meet renewed its demand for conferring the Bharat Ratna on Jayalalithaa.

Also, it sought the highest civilian honour for late Dravidian stalwarts E V Ramasamy 'Periyar' and Annadurai.

AIADMK first made the demand for honouring Jayalalithaa with Bharat Ratna months after her demise in December 2016, and the move to seek the honour for Periyar and Annadurai comes decades after their death.
Embattled liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya said on September 12 that he met the Finance Minister before leaving India in 2016.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss, who arrived to appear before the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, said he had met the minister and offered to settle the issue with banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the Finance Minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks)," Mallya said, without naming the minister. Arun Jaitley was the Finance Minister in 2016 when Mallya left India.

In response to Mallyas statement, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley issued a clarification through a Facebook post. He said, "The statement is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth."

Jaitley added he had never given the absconding liquor baron any appointment since 2014, although he mentions that Mallya did approach him outside Parliament. He said, "Mallya misused his privilege as Member of the Rajya Sabha in order to further his commercial interest."

Mallya, who is currently facing charges of fraud and money laundering to the tune of around Rs. 9,000 crore, had arrived at the Westminster Magistrates Court for an extradition hearing. The court is expected to review a video of the Mumbai jail cell prepared by the Indian authorities for Mallya.



After Mallya reveals his consultation meetings before his smooth escape, with Fiscal Mismanagement Blog Minister Sh Jaitley - one thing is clear - BJP is running tour travels & immigration agency for loot scoot & settle abroad brigade. https://t.co/n39NfDw0rS

 Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) September 12, 2018

Mallyas claims of having met the Finance Minister before he left the country has stirred a controversy within political parties, with the Congress demanding an explanation from the Narendra Modi-led NDA government on 'how and why Vijay Mallya was allowed to leave India'.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also tweeted:
Moneycontrol News

In a tweet, Apple has announced that it would stream its iPhone event live on Twitter on September 12.

The company has asks users to join them at 10.00 am PDT (10.30 pm IST) to watch the Apple event live on the social media platform.

The tweet further said that by tapping on the 'like' button, users would get updates on the event.

According to reports, Apple could run the live stream through its Twitter account, which it does not use to post tweets, but to runs paid advertisements.

Apple is expected to unveil new iPhones, playing up eye-grabbing edge-to-edge screens in a bid to strengthen its position in a largely saturated global smartphone market.

The California-based firm has remained silent about revelations planned for the event at its spaceship campus in Silicon Valley, but the timing fits its pattern of annually introducing iPhone updates.

For Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), the company had opened streaming to reach users on Chrome and Firefox.

Apple has been live-streaming its product announcements for years, but the company has always tried to keep the events on-platform until now.
The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare announced that the HIV AIDS (Prevention and Control) Act 2017 comes into force September 10 onwards this year.

The Act was formed with a motive to check the spread of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and aims at protecting the rights of people who are either tested positive for HIV or are suffering from AIDS.

The Act was formulated in line with India being a signatory to the United Nations Declaration which stated that nations will work in a comprehensive manner to address the problems of HIV and AIDS in all aspects.

Does the Act help in alleviating discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS?

As per the Act, a person with HIV/AIDS can neither be denied occupation nor his/her employment be terminated. Similarly, denial, discontinuation or unfair treatment in healthcare services and educational establishments will be prohibited, according to the Act.

In addition, an HIV-positive person or a person suffering from AIDS cannot be kept in isolation or be denied access to public places. He/she cannot be denied the right to reside, rent or purchase any property.

What about indirect discrimination?

According to the Act, no person shall, by words, either spoken or written, propagate or communicate by signs or by visible representation the feelings of hatred against any person with HIV/AIDS.

On similar grounds, the publishing and broadcast of any information that propagates hatred or exposes people with HIV/AIDS to hatred, discrimination or physical violence will be strictly prohibited under the Act.

Informed consent for undertaking HIV test or treatment

A person cannot be made to take an HIV test and follow-up treatment without his/her informed consent. In addition, such tests can be carried out only by pathological labs that meet the guidelines set by the government.

What about confidentiality?

A person cannot be compelled to disclose his/her HIV positive status under the Act. In fact, a healthcare provider will not be allowed to disclose the HIV positive status to his/her partner, except when the healthcare practitioner feels that the partner is at significant risk of transmission.

Moreover, every establishment keeping the records of HIV-related information of people with HIV/AIDS shall adopt data protection measures in accordance with the guidelines to ensure that such information is protected from disclosure.

How will the government be involved?

The role of the Centre and the state governments will be providing better diagnostic facilities related to HIV or AIDS, anti-retroviral therapy and opportunistic infection management to people living with HIV or AIDS.

A state government will also appoint an ombudsman to inquire into complaints related to the violation of the Act and provision of healthcare services.

What is the legal recourse?

Anyone who is found violating the norms mentioned in the Act can be punished with imprisonment for a term ranging from three months to two years; and a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh.

Similarly, if any healthcare practitioner is found to disclose information regarding the HIV-positive status of an individual, he/she can be charged with a fine of Rs 1 lakh.

The offences under this Act will be cognizable and bailable.

The grievances will be heard in the court of the Judicial Magistrate First Class.

Who will benefit from the implementation of this Act?

The total number of people living with HIV in India is estimated at 21.17 lakh. In 2015, 86,000 new HIV infections were reported. In the same year, an estimated 68,000 people lost their lives to AIDS-related causes across the country.
An Afghan official says the death toll in a suicide bombing among a group of people protesting a local police commander in eastern Afghanistan has risen to 68, up from 32.

Attahullah Khogyani, spokesman for the provincial governor, says Wednesday that 165 others were wounded in the attack a day earlier. The bombing happened when a group from the district of Achin came to Momandara district to block the main highway between the capital Jalalabad and the Torkham border with Pakistan.

The Taliban denied any involvement in the attack. No any other group immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks, but both Taliban insurgents and the Islamic State group are active in eastern Afghanistan, especially in Nangarhar province.
Race and religion are included in the national identity card. The religious choices and practices of Muslims are subject to most restrictions. Other religions are not allowed to proselytise. Mixed couples have three choices: convert, leave the country or live together outside marriage.

Kuala Lumpur (AsiaNews)  The deterioration of religious freedom in Malaysia worries not only the countrys Christians and other minorities, but also Muslims who make up about 62 per cent of the its population, this according to a study published by Eglises d'Asie.

According to the press agency of the Society for Foreign Missions of Paris (MEP), the new governments political inertia is feeding the uncertainty.

In Malaysia, the national identity card of everyone above 12 years of age includes references to race and religion. The notions of Malay supremacy and Muslim supremacy (Ketuanan Melayu and Ketuanan Islam) are closely linked since ethnic Malays are legally required to be Muslim.

However, this means that Muslims religious choices and practices are severely restricted. They cannot practise religion as they see fit. They can be prosecuted for not fasting or for refusing to pray, whilst women are under increasing pressure to wear the Islamic veil.

Shia Islam and other non-Sunni sects are banned. Those who offer alternative interpretations to Sunni Islam can prosecuted. Other religions are not allowed to proselytise.

Muslims cannot convert to other religions and anyone who marries a Muslim must embrace Islam. Mixed couples have three choices: convert, leave the country or live together outside marriage.

Agencies such as the Department for Islamic Advancement of Malaysia (JAKIM) monitor the countrys religious life.

Since Mahathir Mohamad became prime minister with Anwar Ibrahim as Education Minister, things have gotten worse.

The 92-year-old Mahathir is expected to yield the leadership of the ruling coalition to Anwar Ibrahim in the near future; thus, all hope for major reforms in favour of religious freedom is bound to fade.

The appointment of Mujahid Yusof Rawa as minister for Religious Affairs in the Prime Minister's Department had raised some hope.

Rawa was once in charge of inter-faith relations for the Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) and is now a member of the more moderate AMANAH party; however, he recently supported the introduction of new legislation that would punish insulting religion or race with up to seven years in jail or a fine of 100,000 ringgits (almost US$ 25,000). These bills, and the one on religious and racial hatred, will soon go before Parliament.

According to official statistics, 9 per cent of the Malaysian population is Christian. About half of all Christians are Catholic, but the government does not differentiate between Churches.

In theory, the Constitution guarantees religious groups the right to manage their own affairs. However, this right has often been breached; for example, over the use of the word "Allah" by non-Muslims. In 2014, the High Court rejected a Christian request for the right to use the term, which means "God" in the Malay edition of the Bible.

Similarly, the rights of non-Muslims are often subordinated to Islamic law (Sharia), which is enforced by courts in cases involving both Muslims and non-Muslims.

Almost 75 per cent of Malaysian Christians live in eastern Malaysia (Borneo) and 65 per cent of them are Orang Asli (indigenous). Christians are the most organised non-Muslim group. For this reason, they are monitored by the state and subject to its pressures.

In addition to the Christian Federation of Malaysia (which includes the Council of Churches of Malaysia, the National Evangelical Christian Fellowship and the Catholic Bishops Conference of Malaysia), non-Muslims are represented by the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST).
Answer: Donald Trump.

After months of waging a behind-the-scenes war against President Donald Trump's trade tariffs that have escalated far beyond what business groups once imagined, more than 60 US industry groups are launching a coalition on Wednesday to take the fight public.

Emergence of the group, Americans for Free Trade, comes after Trump has warmed to the use of tariffs, implementing billions of dollars worth in an effort to use them as a threat to win concessions or in the belief they will create US jobs.

"A lot of other interest groups thought they wouldn't go this long or go this deep, but the layering effect (of tariffs) has finally gotten everyone to say: 'Enough is enough,'" said Nicole Vasilaros, the top lobbyist for the National Marine Manufacturers Association, whose members are weighing laying off workers after seeing costs rise as much as 35 percent.

Trump has imposed 25 percent tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods, mostly industrial machinery and intermediate electronics parts such as semiconductors.

A pending $200 billion list would extend further into consumer goods, and the threat of an additional $267 billion would basically cover every Chinese export to the United States. China has threatened retaliation, which could include action against US companies operating there.

Washington has demanded that Beijing better protect American intellectual property, cut its US trade surplus, allow US companies greater access to its markets and roll back its high-technology industrial subsidy programs.

The business coalition includes groups representing some of the nation's largest companies. Among them, the American Petroleum Institute, which represents the largest refiners like Exxon Mobil Corp and Chevron Corp, and the Retail Industry Leaders Association, which represents companies like Target Corp and Autozone Inc.

"There has been a lot of work that has been going on over the last eight months to try to persuade the president and the administration that tariffs are not going to work. Our view is that it's not too late," said Dean Garfield, chief executive of the Information Technology Industry Council, whose members include Microsoft Corp, Google owner Alphabet Inc and Apple Inc.

While Trump threatened tariffs on the campaign trail and ended America's participation in the Trans Pacific Partnership, a large multinational trade pact, few observers took his threat seriously.

Trump has since demonstrated he is serious on tariffs, ramping up the attacks on China, threatening car import levies and pushing for a more pro-American North American Free Trade Agreement, even at the risk of killing the three-country pact.

RETAIL LEAD

The coalition grew out of weekly meetings featuring industries organized by the National Retail Federation (NRF), whose members include Amazon.com, Macy's Inc and Walmart Inc.

"This is almost every sector of the American economy involved," said David French, the top lobbyist for the NRF.

The group will target Republican members of Congress in five states - Ohio, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana and Tennessee. While not engaging in electioneering ahead of Nov. 6 elections where control of Congress is at stake, it will urge constituents to discuss the trade issue with lawmakers. The group plans to expand that effort to a dozen states by the end of the year.

Members of Congress have failed to slow Trump's protectionist march and few have been willing to speak publicly for fear of arousing the ire of Trump and the Republican base.

The coalition hopes to push Republican lawmakers to press Trump to abandon tariffs by convincing him that his trade policy could undo his tax and deregulation push.

"The sugar high of the lower taxes and the reduced rules that have fueled the stock market since the president was elected are in jeopardy," said Gary Shapiro, head of the Consumer Technology Association, whose members include IBM Corp and Facebook Inc He warned that some of his members were considering layoffs.

Steve Pasierb, head of the Toy Association, whose members include Mattel Inc, Hasbro Inc and Barnes & Noble Inc said members of Congress were slow to be persuaded they needed to be concerned.

"It's been this kind of slow build that got worse and worse and worse. I don't think anybody in D.C. saw this coming."
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker chairs the Annual Seminar of the European Commission College in Genval, Belgium August 30, 2018. Aris Oikonomou/Pool via REUTERS - RC11A4712280

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker will call for the EU to promote the euro as a global currency to challenge the US dollar as he presents his annual programme to the European Parliament on Wednesday, a senior EU official said.

Among his concerns are the pricing of most EU energy imports in dollars even though only a tiny proportion come from the United States. With "political will", the official said, Juncker believed that more euro pricing was possible.

While Norway prices its substantial supplies to the EU in euros, the official said, other countries use dollars. Among the most important of these are Gulf states and Russia.

With the United States under President Donald Trump seeming to pull back from international engagements, the European Union could find it a favourable moment to spread the euro, the official said ahead of Juncker's State of the Union speech.
Alibaba Group founder Jack Ma's retirement plan has sparked heated discussions in China about the future of the e-commerce giant, with some experts saying that its long-term performance will be determined by China's economic fundamentals, official media reported on Wednesday.

On Monday, Ma named the company's Chief Executive Officer Daniel Zhang as his successor who would take charge in September next year, while he would continue to be company's Director.

Ma's move became one of the hottest discussed topics on China's Sina Weibo, a Twitter-like service, on Monday. Many wished Ma, 54, the best for his new focus, which would be teaching, state-run Global Times reported on Wednesday.

Li Chengdong, an independent analyst, said that when it comes to listed companies, investors will take the departure of a chairman or founder as bad news, and the company's stock performance is a reflection of such sentiment.

"The departure of the face and voice of a company is seen by investors as a blow to the company," Li told the daily. Zheng Chunhui, another independent IT observer, said the concerns over management and the company's development are generally unnecessary.

"The transition should be smooth and the many business fields into which Alibaba has expanded, such as finance, logistics and cloud service, should have time to mature. Asking that they be profitable now is too harsh a demand," Zheng said. Eventually, these sectors will become profitable.

The company's long-term performance will be determined by China's economic fundamentals, Li said.
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK - JULY 10: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during his meeting with Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen at the PM's Office on July 10, 2017 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The two heads of state discussed the situation on the Korean peninsula and how Japan and Denmark could enhance their strategic partnership further. The Japanese PM said during their joint press conference that North Korea undermines the international order seriously. (Photo by Ole Jensen - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, speaking in Vladivostok after meeting Chinese leader Xi Jinping, said on Wednesday they had agreed to work towards an October visit by him to China, the latest sign of warming ties between the Asian rivals.

Abe also said he and Xi shared the view that Japan and China bore responsibility for world peace and prosperity as well as the goal of achieving North Korea's denuclearisation.

His comments, made on the sidelines of a regional forum in the east Russian city, were aired on Japan's NHK public broadcaster.

Abe returned to office for a rare second term in December 2012 promising a hard line towards China in a territorial row over tiny islands in the East China Sea.

But although the dispute simmers, relations have stabilised recently amid intensifying US trade pressure on both China and Japan.

Abe has said he hopes Xi can come to Japan soon, a reciprocal visit that he said would put ties on a "new level".

Japanese media have floated Oct. 23, the date on which a Sino-Japanese friendship treaty took effect in 1978, as the likely timing of Abe's visit to China.

Japanese and Chinese officials have been discussing private sector cooperation in third countries, with China believed eager for Japanese firms to take part in its Belt and Road Initiative of infrastructure and trade links between China and Eurasia.
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK - JULY 10: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during his meeting with Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen at the PM's Office on July 10, 2017 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The two heads of state discussed the situation on the Korean peninsula and how Japan and Denmark could enhance their strategic partnership further. The Japanese PM said during their joint press conference that North Korea undermines the international order seriously. (Photo by Ole Jensen - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, speaking in Vladivostok after meeting Chinese leader Xi Jinping, said on Wednesday they had agreed to work towards an October visit by him to China, the latest sign of warming ties between the Asian rivals.

Abe also said he and Xi shared the view that Japan and China bore responsibility for world peace and prosperity, as well as the goal of achieving North Korea's denuclearisation.

His comments, made on the sidelines of a regional forum in the east Russian city, were aired on Japan's NHK public broadcaster.

Abe returned to office for a rare second term in December 2012, promising a hard line towards China in a territorial row over tiny islands in the East China Sea.

But although the dispute simmers, relations have stabilised recently amid intensifying U.S. trade pressure on both China and Japan.

"In response to China's gracious invitation, I intend to visit China this year, the year in which we commemorate the 40th anniversary of the conclusion of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and China," Abe told the forum later.

"After that, I very much wish to invite President Xi to Japan. Through this exchange of visits at the leaders' level, I hope to raise Japan-China relations to a new stage."

Japanese media have floated Oct. 23, the date on which the treaty took effect, as the likely timing of Abe's visit.

Xi told Abe that Sino-Japanese ties "face an important opportunity for improvement. Under the new circumstances, we should continue to meet each other halfway, maintain the positive momentum and promote the stable development of China-Japan relations to attain even greater expansion (of ties), according to a statement by the Chinese foreign ministry.

Japanese and Chinese officials have been discussing private sector cooperation in third countries, with China believed eager for Japanese firms to take part in its Belt and Road Initiative of infrastructure and trade links between China and Eurasia.

Abe also told the regional forum he hoped North Korea would seize the opportunity to improve ties with the international community but it was "an absolute imperative that we achieve the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula".

The White House is looking at scheduling a second meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un following their first summit in Singapore in June.

Abe reiterated his desire to meet Kim himself to resolve the matter of Japanese citizens kidnapped by Pyongyang's agents decades ago, but said nothing had been decided yet.
An LG Electronics' logo is pictured on a TV displayed at a shop in Seoul, South Korea, April 26, 2016. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji/File Photo GLOBAL BUSINESS WEEK AHEAD PACKAGE - SEARCH 'BUSINESS WEEK AHEAD 24 OCT' FOR ALL IMAGES - RTX2Q56Y

The chief executive of South Korea's LG Display, Han Sang-beom, was determined to deliver a strong message when he appeared before 1,000 employees at the firm's main manufacturing plant last spring.

So he donned a pair of goggles, picked up a hammer, and smashed a liquid-crystal display screen to bits.

The symbolism was impossible to miss: LCD panels, the company's mainstay for years, were being relegated to the industrial dustbin. The company's future would depend on a newer technology, organic light-emitting diode, or OLED.

"I've never seen him do such a thing," said one company official who was present. "His performance showed a grim determination to weather this crisis."

Yet LG Display's predicament was in many ways one of its own making. Less than a year earlier, the company had showered employees with perks and bonuses as profits rolled in, driven by the company's leadership in LCD screens for TVs, computer monitors and smartphones.

But LG Display had misread the market: Chinese competitors were coming on strong, and by early this year prices for LCD screens were plummeting. The fat profits of 2017 turned into big losses in 2018 - and the company abruptly announced in July that it would slash $2.7 billion in capital spending it had planned through 2020.

It did not reveal its total or previous targets but made about $6 billion in capital expenditures in 2017, according to Eikon data.

The company's troubles stand as a stark example of the risks inherent in hotly competitive technology businesses that require massive capital investment.

"It seems that LG Display made a major miscalculation on its LCD business, not accurately judging the timing to pull away when they could see China's rapid catch-up," said Lee Won-sik, an analyst at Shinyoung Securities.

"We knew from last year LCD prices would go down but we did not expect this big and fast fall," acknowledged one LG Display official, who, like others in this article, declined to be identified because he was not authorised to speak to the media. "Customers had been asking for price cuts, but we didn't act until it got too late."

PRICES IN FREE-FALL

LG Display posted five straight years of strong profits after Han took the helm in 2012, riding a tide of LCD screen orders from Apple Inc and strong demand for both phone and TV screens from LG Electronics, which owns more than a third of the display-maker.

LG Display also began to invest in OLED displays, which unlike LCD screens don't require backlighting and can deliver more natural-looking colours. OLED screens also consume less energy and can be bent and folded.

But the technology is expensive, and LG Display was earning the vast majority of its revenue from LCDs. Until its recent cutbacks, it was running eight LCD production lines in South Korea and another in China.

While LG Display hummed along, Chinese companies, led by BOE Technology Group Co Ltd, were pouring huge sums into LCD production.

By January 2017, BOE had become the No. 1 supplier of LCDs larger than 9 inches, according to market tracker IHS Markit, taking 22.3 percent of unit shipments versus 21.6 percent for LG Display. It was the first time a Chinese display maker had taken the top spot.

By early 2018, prices for many types of LCDs were in free-fall. Prices for 50-inch LCD television panels, for example, slid 32 percent in August versus the same month last year, according to IHS Markit.

LG Display's big South Korean rival, the display unit of Samsung Electronics, had begun pulling back from LCD years earlier, shutting down older LCD production lines in South Korea beginning in 2010, according to a Samsung Display official. The company now has just two LCD factories in South Korea and one in China.

But LG Display was caught flat-footed and is now furiously slashing LCD capacity. It has closed three LCD production lines since last year and abandoned plans for a new one.

The company in April also rolled out an "emergency management system," with employees being told to use cheaper flights and cut back on group meals, company sources told Reuters. Cash flow has become a concern: it was negative 838.2 billion won ($743.93 million) in the second quarter, according to Eikon data, and has been negative for three straight quarters.

Three company sources say the company is not planning layoffs for fear of losing talent to China, but some employees are frustrated with cuts in benefits.

"Executives are trying to keep the morale up, telling us media reports about a voluntary redundancy program are false," a company source with knowledge of the matter said.

OLED A GAME CHANGER?

LG Display is now betting the house on OLED, and says it can fund $17.6 billion in OLED investments over the next three years. It expects the newer technology to account for 40 percent of revenue by 2020, up from just 10 percent today.

As OLED becomes more prevalent, LG Display's fortunes could turn, analysts say.

LG Display's OLED panels have helped its sibling, LG Electronics, take the lead in high-end televisions. Some analysts believe LG Display has been pressured to supply those panels cheaply, hurting its profitability, though the company denies that is the case.

But the OLED market promises to be tough. Samsung boasts that it has been investing in OLED since 2005. BOE is getting into OLED too. There are also still technical challenges in making large-panel OLED TV screens that don't wear out too quickly, noted Ross Young, CEO of research provider Display Supply Chain Consultants.

Son Young-jun, LG Display's vice president of public relations, said in a statement that the company is the only producer of large-size OLED displays and had "unmatched technological expertise" in OLED. "The potential and outlook ahead is promising," he said. A

LG Display says its OLED division will turn a profit in the third quarter. It also expects LCD prices to stabilise, enabling it to squeeze profits from the older technology until the newer one matures.

"Given OLED is our answer and solution to the crisis, there's nothing else we can do other than tightening our belts and pushing for OLED," a company official said.
Pope Francis is summoning the presidents of every bishops conference around the world for a February summit to discuss preventing clergy sex abuse and protecting children evidence that he realizes the scandal is global and that inaction threatens to undermine his legacy.

Francis' key cardinal advisers announced the decision on September 12, a day before Francis meets with U.S. church leaders who have been deeply discredited by the latest accusations in the Catholic Church's decades-long sex abuse and cover-up scandal.

The Feb 21-24 meeting at the Vatican is believed to be the first of its kind, and signals a realization at the highest levels of the church that clergy sex abuse is a global problem and not restricted to the Anglo-Saxon world, as many church leaders have long tried to insist.

Earlier this year, Francis faced what was then the worst crisis of his papacy when he repeatedly discredited victims of a notorious Chilean predator priest. He eventually admitted to "grave errors in judgment" and has taken steps to make amends, sanction guilty bishops and remake the Chilean episcopacy.

More recently, Francis' papacy has been jolted by accusations from a retired Vatican ambassador that he rehabilitated a top American cardinal from sanctions imposed by Pope Benedict XVI for having molested and harassed adult seminarians.

The Vatican hasn't responded to the accusations by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, but has promised "clarifications" that presumably will come sometime after Francis' meeting Thursday with the US delegation.

The Vatican said Tuesday the meeting would be headed by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and also include Francis' top sex abuse adviser, Cardinal Sean O'Malley.

Di Nardo has said he wants Francis to authorize a full-fledged Vatican investigation into ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who was removed as cardinal in July after a credible accusation that he groped a teenager.

The Vatican has known since at least 2000 that McCarrick would invite seminarians to his New Jersey beach house and into his bed.

St John Paul II made him archbishop of Washington and a cardinal in 2001, presumably because Vatican officials were impressed by his fundraising prowess and considered his past homosexual activity a mere "moral lapse" and not a gross abuse of power.

DiNardo has also said recent accusations that top Vatican officials - including the current pope - covered up for McCarrick since 2000 deserve answers. AP NSA .
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif Wednesday left for London to bring back the body of his sister-in-law Begum Kulsoom Nawaz who died after a long battle with cancer, according to a media report. Shehbaz, the younger brother of Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, departed from the Allama Iqbal International Airport here.

The funeral prayers of Nawaz Sharif's wife Kulsoom will be offered at the Regent Park mosque on Thursday afternoon and her body will be flown to Lahore after completion of legal formalities, Geo News reported.

The Sharif family has said Kulsoom will be laid to rest on Friday in Jati Umra, residence of the Sharif family.

The former first lady died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68.

She was diagnosed with lymphoma (throat) cancer in August last and had been in London since, where she underwent multiple surgeries and at least five chemotherapy sessions.

She was placed on a ventilator in June following a cardiac arrest.

The former prime minister, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar reached here early Wednesday from Rawalpindi after they were released from Adiala Jail on a 12-hour parole to attend the funeral of Kulsoom.

Nawaz, Maryam and Capt Safdar are currently at their Jati Umra residence where they are meeting family members and party leaders.

Former first daughter Maryam said Tuesday night she was "deeply saddened" by the fact that she was unable to be by the bedside of her ailing mother during her last moments.

"Today was extremely difficult after learning of my mother's death. It was extremely painful to know that I wasn't by my mother's side," she said.

"I am deeply saddened," she told Geo News.
Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump has identified India along with 21 other countries as among the major illicit drug producing or transit nations.

Other Asian countries identified as major drug transit or major illicit drug producing countries are Afghanistan, Pakistan and Myanmar.

The Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela, are other countries listed in the group, as per a presidential determination.

"A country's presence on the foregoing list is not necessarily a reflection of its government's counter narcotics efforts or level of cooperation with the United States," Trump said.

The reasons countries are placed on the list is the combination of geographic, commercial, and economic factors that allow drugs to transit or be produced, even if a government has engaged in robust and diligent narcotics control measures, he said.

Simultaneously, Trump designated Bolivia and Venezuela as countries that have failed demonstrably during the previous 12 months to adhere to their obligations under international counter-narcotic agreements.

He also determined that support for programs to aid the promotion of democracy in Venezuela are vital to the national interests of the United States.

Asserting that combatting the ongoing United States opioid epidemic is one of his Administration's most urgent priorities, Trump said his government has dedicated nearly USD 4 billion in additional funding to confront this national crisis.

The Trump Administration is committed to addressing all factors fueling the drug crisis, which is devastating communities across America, including steps to curb over-prescription, expand access to treatment and recovery programs, improve public education programs to prevent illicit drug use before it begins, and to strengthening domestic drug enforcement at the borders, he said.

"Alongside these massive and historic United States efforts, I expect the governments of countries where illicit drugs originate and through which they transit to similarly strengthen their commitments to reduce dangerous drug production and trafficking, Trump said.

In his presidential determination, Trump expressed his deep concerns that illicit drug crops have expanded over successive years in Colombia, Mexico, and Afghanistan, and are now at record levels.

Drug production and trafficking in these three countries directly affect the US national interests and the health and safety of American citizens, he said.

"Heroin originating from Mexico and cocaine from Colombia are claiming thousands of lives annually in the United States. Afghanistan's illicit opium economy promotes corruption, funds the Taliban, and undermines that country's security, which thousands of United States service men and women help defend," Trump said.

Despite the efforts of law enforcement and security forces, these countries are falling behind in the fight to eradicate illicit crops and reduce drug production and trafficking, he rued.

As such, Trump said that these governments must redouble their efforts to rise to the challenge posed by the criminal organisations producing and trafficking these drugs, and achieve greater progress over the coming year in stopping and reversing illicit drug production and trafficking.
Vijay Mallya

Vijay Mallya will appear before a London court on Wednesday for a hearing in his extradition case, during which the judge is expected to review a video of the Mumbai jail cell prepared by the Indian authorities for the embattled liquor tycoon.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores.

At the previous hearing in July in the Westminster Magistrates' Court in, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), arguing on behalf of the Indian government, had agreed to the request and the video has since been submitted to the court.

Mallya's defence team had demanded an inspection of the jail cell to ensure it meets the UK's human rights obligations related to extradition proceedings.

The CPS stressed that the Indian government had provided adequate material which rendered the need for an inspection unnecessary, leading to the demand for a video recording to be reviewed by the court.

The judge is also expected to hear the final closing arguments in the case, after which a timeline for her ruling is likely to become clearer.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4 last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya.

It also seeks to prove there are no "bars to extradition" and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines' alleged default of over Rs 9,000 crores in loans from a consortium of Indian banks.

The CPS has argued that the evidence they have presented establishes "dishonesty" on the part of the businessman and that there are no bars to him being extradited from the UK to face Indian courts.

Mallya's defence team has deposed a series of expert witnesses to claim he had no "fraudulent" intentions and that he is unlikely to get a fair trial in India.
The inauguration next September 14th. 20 South Koreans and between 15 and 20 North Koreans will work there. The opening was scheduled for August, but the slowdown in the dialogues with Washington made it slip.

Seoul (AsiaNews / Agencies) - A non-stop communications channel between the two Koreas. This is the purpose of the new inter-Korean connection and communications office is slated for inauguration September 14th in Kaesong and was announced today by the South Korean Ministry of Unification.

The office will be inaugurated in the city of Kaesong, on the north side of the border that divides the peninsula. About 50-60 people from both Koreas will participate in the opening ceremony. The office will be operational from the end of the inauguration.

20 South Korean officials and between 15 and 20 North Koreans will work in the office. The purpose of the new body is to encourage cross-border exchanges and contact.

"The liaison office - says the ministry in today's press release - will become a channel of communication and consultation active 24 hours a day to advance inter-Korean relations, ease military tensions and establish peace on the Korean peninsula".

The opening of the liaison office is part of the commitments made by the two Koreas in the Panmunjon Declaration, signed on 27 April by Kim Jong-un and the South Korean president Moon Jae-in.

The office should have become operational in August, but the stalemate in dialogue between Pyongyang and Washington delayed the inauguration.

North Korea recently reaffirmed its commitment to denuclearization in a letter from Kim Jong-un to Trump, in which the leader asked the US president to meet for a second summit.
Vladimir Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said North Korea must be given security guarantees in return for steps towards denuclearisation.

"North Korea, in return for its denuclearisation, was after all promised security guarantees. Clearly it is waiting for some sort of signal in response," he told an economic forum in the far eastern city of Vladivostok.
The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday filed a charge sheet against PACL Ltd (erstwhile Pearls) and its chief Nirmal Singh Bhangoo in connection with a Ponzi scam involving over Rs49,100 crore, which was collected allegedly by two companies from 5.5 crore investors.

Apart from Bhangoo, who is in judicial custody, his three colleagues and other persons have also been named in the ED chargesheet filed in a special court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The ED, which started the probe after lodging an first information report (FIR) in 2015 based on the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)'s case, had in January attached Australia-based assets of the Pearls Group and Bhangoo worth Rs472 crore.

In 2016, a report from The Australian had exposed the Australian connection of PACL and Bhangoo. This was published by Moneylife ( Read: PACL Scam: The Australian connection ). The report said, in Australia, Bhangoo and several of his family members teamed up with Gold Coast property developers Paul Brinsmead and Peter Madrers. The two Australians had operated the company Resort Corp, which developed large tracts of coastal land in the Tweed Shire in northern NSW before its group of 14 companies collapsed in March 2009, owing about $300 million, it said.

The CBI had arrested Bhangoo and his three colleagues in 2016 following allegations that they collected funds from investors in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and other states through ponzi schemes, in the name of real estate projects.

In the same year, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), as part of its recovery proceedings, attached all bank and demat accounts, mutual fund portfolios of PACL and it eight directors and promoters. In a release, SEBI said, the recovery proceedings have been initiated for their failure to comply with its order issued on 22 August 2014 directing, PACL and its directors and promoters to wind up the schemes, and refund Rs49,100 crore to the investors within three months from the date of the order. This amount is excluding further interest and all costs, charges and expenses incurred in the recovery proceedings.

Earlier in July this year, market regulator SEBI had said that PACL had increased its offer to Rs23,000 from Rs20,000 to buy own properties. Due to this, the Justice RM Lodha Committee appointed by the Supreme Court had decided to invite final counter or revised proposals from interested parties.

The Lodha Committee is supervising the Supreme Court ordered process of selling PACL's assets across the country and refunding Rs49,100 crore collected from over 56 crore investors.

Bhangoo, his companies PACL and Pearls Golden Forest Ltd (PGFL), as well as his lakhs of commission agents were accused of cheating 5.5 crore investors on the pretext of sale and development of agriculture land.

The companies made false allotments of land to investors. However, the companies never owned any land in their own name.

Bhangoo and his companies promised the investors that allotment would be done on their investment between 90 and 270 days and if not, handsome returns would be paid.

The mobilisation of funds by PACL goes back prior to 1997. Upon receipt of a complaint, SEBI on 30 November 1999 and 10 December 1999 issued letters asking PACL to comply with the provisions of the collective investment scheme (CIS) Regulations.

PACL challenged these letters before the High Court of Rajasthan in December 1999, claiming that its scheme does not fall under the definition of CIS as defined under the CIS Regulation and SEBI Act. PACL also challenged the constitutional validity of the CIS Regulations.

The Rajasthan High Court on 28 November 2003, held that PACL's schemes were not CIS as defined under Section 11AA of the SEBI Act. The HC also quashed SEBI's letters issued to PACL.

SEBI filed an appeal before the Supreme Court against the order of Rajasthan HC. The SC on 25 February 2013, while allowing the appeal upheld the constitutional validity of CIS Regulations, and directed SEBI to investigate the matter and take appropriate actions.

After conducting an inquiry, SEBI on 22 August 2014, issued an order directing PACL, its promoters and directors to wind up all the existing CIS and refund the monies collected by the company to investors as per the terms of offer within a period of three months from the date of the Order.

PACL filed an appeal before the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT), which was dismissed on 12 August 2015. The SAT directed PACL and its promoters-directors to refund the money within three months. Since the company and its promoters-directors failed to refund the money to the investors as per the directions of SEBI and SAT, the market regulator said it has initiated the recovery proceedings.

Disclaimer: Information, facts or opinions expressed in this news article are presented as sourced from IANS and do not reflect views of Moneylife and hence Moneylife is not responsible or liable for the same. As a source and news provider, IANS is responsible for accuracy, completeness, suitability and validity of any information in this article.
Continuing its downward trend, the Indian rupee hit a new low of Rs 72.91 on Wednesday morning.

The rupee has been on a down slide owing to inflationary pressure and decline among its global peers against the dollar.

On Wednesday, it opened at a low of 72.78 per dollar, against the previous close 72.69 per dollar.

Disclaimer: Information, facts or opinions expressed in this news article are presented as sourced from IANS and do not reflect views of Moneylife and hence Moneylife is not responsible or liable for the same. As a source and news provider, IANS is responsible for accuracy, completeness, suitability and validity of any information in this article.
Lending major State Bank of India (SBI) on Tuesday said that the recent increase in petrol and diesel prices is likely to give state governments a windfall gain of around Rs 22,700 crore "over and above the budget estimates for current fiscal".

According to a SBI Ecowrap report, the windfall gain is due to the VAT (value added tax) levied by the state governments on petrol and diesel.

"This windfall gain will have positive impact on state finances, which might push down the states' fiscal deficit by 15-20 bps, other things remaining unchanged," the report said.

"We also estimate that since the states are having an incremental revenue over the budgeted one, they could cut on an average petrol prices by Rs 3.20 /litre and diesel by Rs 2.30/litre, without affecting their revenue arithmetic."

As per the report, states like Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and Karnataka have the privilege to cut petrol prices by at least Rs 3 from their existing rates and Rs 2.5 on diesel.

"We heartily welcome that Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh have already pared rates," the report said.

Disclaimer: Information, facts or opinions expressed in this news article are presented as sourced from IANS and do not reflect views of Moneylife and hence Moneylife is not responsible or liable for the same. As a source and news provider, IANS is responsible for accuracy, completeness, suitability and validity of any information in this article.
Un proiect asteptat de galateni, dar si de locuitorii din judetele limitrofe, va deveni realitate in curand. Lucrarile la podul peste Dunare care va lega judetele Galati si Braila de judetul Tulcea vor incepe pana la finalul acestui an. Este o investitie majora pentru regiunea noastra care va facilita legatura intre Galati si Dobrogea.

Ma bucur ca un proiect pe care l-am sustinut si la relansarea caruia am participat in perioada in care am facut parte din Guvernul Romaniei, pe parcursul anului 2017, face pasi importanti catre realizare. La inceputul anului 2017 am propus actualizarea proiectului podului peste Dunare premierului de la acea vreme, Sorin Grindeanu, iar acesta a fost de acord sa il aiba in vedere. Unul dintre principalii sustinatori ai proiectului inca de la acel moment a fost vicepresedintele ALDE, ministrul Teodor Melescanu. Pasii care s-au facut de atunci imi dau incredere ca acest proiect va fi dus la indeplinire cu succes. Acest pod va reprezenta unul dintre cele mai complexe proiecte dezvoltate de tara noastra dupa anul 1989. Realizarea podului va duce la un plus economic in zona si, sper, la un nivel de trai mai bun pentru locuitori. Constructia podului de legatura cu Tulcea va crea premise economice foarte bune pentru regiunea noastra, pentru judetul Galati. Realizarea podului reprezinta un obiectiv major, atat din punct de vedere al infrastructurii rutiere, cat si din punctul de vedere al interconectarii regiunilor istorice ale Romaniei. Suntem in an Centenar, iar proiectele care ii leaga pe romani sunt extrem de importante. Sper ca piedicile de care a vorbit ministrul Teodorovici sa dispara, iar podul sa fie construit in timpul prevazut. Interesele personale nu trebuie sa primeze atunci cand vorbim despre realizarea podului peste Dunare, a declarat presedintele ALDE Galati, Cristian Dima.

Acesta s-a referit la declaratiile ministrului finantelor, Eugen Orlando Teodorovici care, intr-o emisiune de la televiziunea nationala, a spus: Pana la sfarsitul anului vor incepe lucrarile la podul de la Tulcea. De ce nu s-a facut pana acum? Sunt tot felul de interese meschine, interese locale, care au intarziat lucrarile, care au anumite interese sa nu nu vedeti ca acest pod nu s-a facut de ani de zile, de peste 20 si ceva de ani se vorbeste in tara aceasta despre acel pod, pentru ca sunt unii care au anumite interese locale acolo: ba ca trec Dunarea cu un bac, ba ca asa mai departe. Si atat de meschine sunt interesele acestor oameni, politicieni din pacate, din zona respectiva si de aceasta fac un anunt daca o sa am dovada certa, probabil ca nu stiu, sper sa stie sa inoate acel cineva care pune astfel de piedici. Partenerul care trebuie sa construiasca chiar a solicitat devansarea lucrarilor, pentru ca poate sa inceapa constructia podului mult mai devreme.
Pink shared a photo of herself with the Sony New Zealand music team on her Instagram. "Yep, Sony New Zealand, run by women." she wrote. "New Zealand, run by a woman. Who runs the world? I like this world." She followed it up by using the hashtag 'I Might Stay Here For Good' - don't get our hopes up!


The Kiwi childrens book Wonky Donkey has had a massive spike in sales thanks to a Scottish grandmother.

A video of Janice Clark hit the Internet recently and the video shows her laughing uncontrollably while trying to read the book to her grandson. The viral video has made sprung the classic book back into the spotlight, with readers around the world scrambling to get their hands on a copy.
by Rebwar Audish Basa*

The relatives of the Chaldean priest massacred by the fundamentalists in 2007 met Francis at the world meeting of families, accompanied by Fr. Rebward Basa. He entrusts the memory of Fr. Ragheed to AsiaNews: "Example of love, forgiveness and reconciliation". The coexistence between Christians and Muslims based on rights, first of all that of worship.

Rome (AsiaNews) - Fr Ragheed Ganni is "the emblem of anti-Christian persecution in the new Iraq". A spiral of violence began with the US invasion in 2003 and culminated in the rise of the Islamic State says Iraqi priest Fr. Rebwar Basa. He was a personal friend of the Mosul parish priest slaughtered along with three deacons - in June 2007 by an Islamic extremist commando. Recently, Fr. Basa, who carries out his priestly mission in Rome, accompanied the relatives of Fr. Ragheed to Dublin, Ireland, where they met Pope Francis on the occasion of the World Meeting of Families.

During the brief interview, the pontiff praised the courageous choice of the family members of Fr. Ragheed (pictured, the grave profaned by the jihadists) to choose "forgiveness and reconciliation, rather than hatred and resentment".

The Pope told them that they have witnessed "that evil can only be opposed with good and hatred can only be overcome by forgiveness. Almost unbelievably, they have been able to find peace in the love of Christ, a love that makes all things new ".

A love that goes as far as martyrdom, recalls Fr. Basa, and which indicates once more that the coexistence between Christians and Muslims must be based on human rights and religious freedom. "This - concludes the priest - is the teaching of the martyrs who lived and gave their lives for their faith, such as the servant of God Fr. Ragheed and his three fellow subdeacons ".

Below, Fr. Basa entrusts his memories of his great friend Fr. Ragheed to AsiaNews:

The figure of Fr. Ragheed Aziz Ganni represents the emblem of anti-Christian persecution in the new Iraq. Following the US invasion of 2003, Fr. Ragheed was the first Catholic priest killed by Muslim terrorists along with three young subdeacons (Waheed, Bassman and Ghassan) in Mosul on 3 June 2007. Before him, on 11 October 2005, a friend of his who was a priest of the Syrian Orthodox Church had been killed: Fr. Paulos Eskander.

With the history of these first martyrs of the third millennium, the ferocious wave of persecution begins, culminating with the invasion of the Islamic State (IS, ex Isis), the protagonist of a true genocide against Iraqi religious minorities. Just as the splendid testimony of the priest Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe in the dark history of Nazism at Auschwitz needs to be known by people, so too the splendid testimony of Fr. Ragheed in the dark history of al Qaeda and Daesh [Arabic acronym for ISIS] in Mosul and in the Plain of Nineveh.

The importance of the testimony of Fr. Ragheed goes beyond the borders of Iraq. Because he and his three fellow martyrs are witnesses of Christ, and therefore an example for all Christians. Today the church recognizes them as servants of God and the process of their beatification has officially begun.

Fr Ragheed lived for five years the daily martyrdom of constant threats and intimidation he received and the repeated attacks against parish and parishioners. And he was killed in a barbaric way by Muslim terrorists, because he had refused to close the doors of the parish. A martyrdom that has become even more dramatic today: in the recent article "Iraqi Christians, confused between survival and migration", the Chaldean patriarch Card. Louis Raphael Sako gave precise numbers and statistics, which reflect this daily martyrdom.

Two things I will never forget about Fr. Ragheed. The first is his teaching. He was my professor of ecumenical theology in Baghdad in 2004. I remember him as a young competent teacher, convinced of what he taught and always smiling. His attitude on ecumenism confirmed it with his blood shed for Christ. Therefore he is a great example of the ecumenism of the blood.

Another important memory for me is his participation in my priestly ordination in Mosul on 10 September 2004. Thinking of how he lived his priesthood with joy, courage, faith and love, in a situation that he himself described as "worse than 'hell', his example is a source of encouragement and consolation.

Today the return of Christians to Mosul, after the tragedy of Isis, represents the return to the biblical and Christian roots, to the land of the prophet Jonah. The continuation of our presence is also an act of fidelity to the Christians who have shed their blood for the faith in that land in these two thousand years. In particular, Fr. Paulos Eskander, Bishop Paulos Faraj Rahho, the three fellow martyrs Faris, Rami and Samir, and Fr. Ragheed Ganni with his three deacons.

Their teaching is basic: the right to live and practice one's faith in complete freedom. It is useless, not to say ridiculous, to talk about interreligious dialogue while there is no religious freedom and the recognition of human rights. If the foundations are not there, everything is destined to collapse with a simple gust of wind. The destruction of Mosul with the invasion of ISIS is a concrete example of this. In the absence of a culture of coexistence based on human rights, religious freedom, honesty and mutual respect, everything collapses and takes everyone with it.

For a true and authentic dialogue we must start from concrete experiences, otherwise the dialogue will only every be theoretical. Therefore slogans and conferences are not enough to guarantee true coexistence between Christians and Muslims. The guarantee is the full recognition of religious freedom. Unfortunately, this freedom is lacking in countries with a Muslim majority, and even among Muslims themselves

I would therefore like to make a final appeal to those involved in the dialogue between Christians and Muslims: please, put religious freedom at the center as a fundamental pillar. And if someone refuses to recognize human rights and freedom in all its forms, he does not believe in dialogue; he is not worthy to enter into dialogue because he is hypocritical. And those who adapt to this kind of ideology that ignores human rights and freedom, helps to create fertile ground for extremism and terrorism.

This, in my opinion, is the teaching of the martyrs who lived and gave their lives for their faith, such as the servant of God Fr. Ragheed and his three companions subdeacons.

* Iraqi Chaldean priest
This column regularly culls investment ideas from Morningstar's proprietary indexes. We've shared undervalued picks from our U.S. stock-focused wide-moat index, dividend growth index, and even our exponential technologies index. The indexes have proven to be fertile ground, providing investors with names to investigate further.

Today, we're going global: We've sifted through the Morningstar Global ex-US Moat Focus Index in search of undervalued foreign stocks.
Francis made the announcement during a meeting this morning with members of the Tensho Kenoho Shisetsu Kenshokai Association. For the pontiff, religion, culture and the economy can work together peacefully to create a more humane world marked by an integral ecology.

Vatican City (AsiaNews)  Pope Francis met this morning with members of the Tensho Kenoho Shisetsu Kenshokai Association saying that he hopes to visit Japan next year.

Availing myself of this occasion, I would like to communicate my intention to visit Japan next year. I hope to be able to fulfil this wish, the pontiff said.

In his greeting, Francis mentioned the origins of the association and invited those present to "convey to your beloved people and your great country the friendship of the Pope of Rome and the esteem of the whole Catholic Church.

More than 400 years ago, in 1585, four young Japanese arrived in Rome, accompanied by some Jesuit missionaries, to visit the Pope, who was then Gregory XIII. It was an extraordinary journey, as it was the first time that a group of representatives of your great country came to Europe.

The four young people received a wonderful welcome, not only from the Pope, but also from all the cities and courts that they passed through: Lisbon, Madrid, Florence, Rome, Venice, Milan, Genoa ... Europeans met Japanese and Japanese experienced Europe and the heart of the Catholic Church.

It was an historic meeting between two great cultures and spiritual traditions, and it is right to preserve the memory, as your Association does.

On their return, the four young men became "ambassadors of friendship and promoters of great human and Christian values. Their leader Mancio Ito [. . .] became a priest, and Julian Nakaura who, like many others, was executed on the famous hill of the martyrs of Nagasaki, was proclaimed blessed."

I know that your Association promotes fine projects of culture and solidarity. I especially encourage your current efforts to set up a fund for the training of young people and orphans, thanks to the contribution of companies that are sensitive to their problems.

You wish to show that religion, culture and the economy can work together peacefully to create a more humane world marked by an integral ecology. This is fully in accordance with what I also wish for our human family today and tomorrow, as I wrote in my Encyclical Letter Laudato si. It is the right path for the future of our common home.
A Florida man has pleaded guilty to his role in laundering the proceeds of an identity theft tax refund scheme and a mortgage fraud scheme, according to the US Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Florida.

Yant Garcia admitted to one count of conspiracy to commit an offense against the US. He is scheduled to be sentenced in November before US District Judge Marcia Cooke.

In a conspiracy, which began around 2012 and continued through around 2015, Garcia agreed with others to launder money by cashing checks in names of persons who were not present at check-cashing stores in Miami.
PeerStreet, a platform for investing in real estate-backed loans, has announced the addition of Cash Offer Loans as an investment option.

Homebuyers who avail of Cash Offer Loans can make an all-cash offer to homesellers. The company said its relationship with innovative real estate technology companies that offer purchase programs for homebuyers allows it to offer the option to investors.

The new option provides investors on the platform a shorter duration compared to typical bridge loans. By investing in these loans, PeerStreet investors allow homebuyers take out a loan without having contingencies on their purchase.
After just three days, Houston real estate broker Bill Baldwin has found a buyer for his historic home in Woodland Heights.

The property, which hit the market late Thursday for just under $3 million and is one of the oldest homes in the Heights, was built by the neighborhood's founding developer, William A. Wilson.

Aside from selling in a remarkably short period of time, the deal is poised to break a price record for the most expensive single-family house to sell in the area.

That record is currently held by a 6,800-square-foot new build on a 10,000-square-foot lot on Harvard Street, according to the Houston Association of Realtors.

ON THE MARKET: Historic Heights Victorian seeks new owner

That house sold last September, just days after Hurricane Harvey. It was listed for $2,650,000.

It can take a year or more to sell a multimillion-dollar house, so Baldwin listed his at $2.995 million, the same as what he priced it at three years ago when it was briefly on the market.

"It's reassuring to know there are people willing to see not only the history of our neighborhood and how great it is today, but that they trust it is going to continue to get better," said Baldwin, owner of Boulevard Realty.

The home at 205 Bayland, a Prairie-style estate filling 6,700 square feet, is on a 20,000-square-foot lot.

HIGH-RISE: Montrose tower to rise 20 stories at former site of Thai restaurant

It's a protected city of Houston landmark, and features wrap around porches, a wine cellar and a three car garage.

Baldwin has hosted hundreds of arts, community and political events there. After getting the offer on Saturday, he hosted a fundraiser for U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke with 200 guests.

Most of the people who toured the house after it went on the market were existing Heights residents, Baldwin said.

For his next home, Baldwin plans to build in the area with his partner of three years, Fady Armanious, creative director for high-fashion retailer Tootsies.

Nancy Sarnoff is a Houston Chronicle real estate and reporter and host of the Looped In podcast. Follow her on Twitter.
Over Memorial Day weekend, Josh Rieder, of Sinton, set a personal goal to catch a shark at least 10 feet long. Over Labor Day weekend, he pulled in a 12-foot tiger shark off Padre Island, accomplishing a goal that he said others have taken 10 years to achieve.

"One three-day weekend to the next, it took us that long to accomplish that. I need a new goal now," Rieder said facetiously. He added that luck was largely to thank for catch, which was his largest to date.

After setting the goal in May, Rieder and his wife, Amber Rieder, spent almost every weekend at the beach fishing, Josh Rieder said. Sometimes, they would bring their five young children, who would "freak out and lose it" every time they had success, Rieder said.

The last weekend of August, the whole family went to the beach and Amber Rieder caught the largest stingray anyone in the family had ever gotten. They kept the stingray, and the next weekend Josh and Amber Rieder took the catch back to the beach to use as bait.

RELATED: Clear water near coastline might be helping Texans hook large sharks this summer

Around 2 p.m. Sept. 1, just minutes after Josh Rieder had set out the bait, he hooked a 7-foot tiger shark. After a 20-minute battle, he pulled the shark in, measured, got a picture, and sent the shark back on its way. It was a nice catch, but it wasn't unprecedented, he said.

A few hours later, using the same stingray as bait, Rieder hooked another shark. It was a tiger shark again, but at 12-feet long, it was substantially stronger than the first one. Rieder fought the shark for about 45 minutes and said the shark made at least 10 solid attempts to escape before succumbing to exhaustion.

Some friends, who had planned to show up around that time anyway, arrived just in time to help the Rieders pull the shark in for measurements and photos. Again, they released the shark back into the ocean. It was the largest shark either Reider had ever been a part of catching, Josh Rieder said.

"We went out there very often and fished, so you play the numbers right and you're going to hit something eventually," Rieder said. "A 7 and then right into the 12 at the same place on the same day in the same afternoon, that's almost a fluke."

He said if he ever hooks a shark that big again, he'll pass it over to his wife or a friend to pull in.

"I would have no problem catching another big one myself, but I'd let somebody else experience it," Rieder said. "Once you do that, (you) want to share that with someone else."

S. M. Chavey is a staff writer for mySA.com. Read more of her stories here. | sarah.chavey@express-news.net | 210-250-3122 | Twitter: @smchavey
A new apartment complex appears to be headed to the intersection of Andrews Highway and Midland Drive.

The Midland City Council, responding to the need for housing, decided to allow for a change of zoning, which will mean Bobby Cox Cos. can proceed with a project that will include more than 100 Class A apartments.

Neighbors voiced their concerns about the project, mainly what the apartments and increased traffic will mean for the area, including Princeton Avenue to the south. Their comments included that more people, especially those living in apartments, will use Princeton Avenue as a reliever route to get to Midland Drive or Andrews Highway. This was not a surprise to city officials, who said they expect Princeton to be used more because of the development.

Even with enough opposition that required a supermajority vote (6 out of 7 council members had to vote for it), the council decided to approve the development and apartment complex. Speaking for Bobby Cox Cos., Lynn Lynch told the council that these apartments will be real Class A apartments, some of the most expensive in Midland and similar to a unit Bobby Cox has developed in Odessa.

Council members said the project already has involved extensive discussion between the developer and residents, including an agreement to build an 8-foot fence on the south side of the development and an agreement to plant trees along that border to help with privacy and environmental concerns. Cox also will donate 30 feet on the north side of the development to allow for Andrews Highway to be expanded.

Council members also expect to see a site plan before a second reading of the zone change to make sure all goes as planned.

Traffic at Andrews Highway and Midland Drive has become more of an issue during the most recent period of economic prosperity. The city earlier this year reported that the intersection of Andrews and Midland Drive was the eighth most dangerous in Midland in 2017 with 32 wrecks. From 2014-17, the number of reported accidents was 155. Also, traffic is backed up, especially during rush hour.

City officials also said they expect a light to be put in west of Midland Drive at Andrews Highway and Woodcrest Drive in the future.

Other Bobby Cox developments in Midland include Rosas Cafe, Taco Villa and Texas Burger.

Billboards on FM 1788 voted down

Councilwoman Sharla Hotchkiss was successful in keeping Farm-to-Market Road 1788 near Midland International Airport billboard-free.

In what appeared to be a surprise to even some on the council, city leaders voted down a pair of items on the agenda that would have allowed for electronic billboards to be placed along side of the road. Hotchkiss has been the most vocal about billboards being a distraction. She reminded her cohorts that billboards exist so a persons eyes leave the road. She also stressed that FM1788s truck traffic and drivers headed to and from the airport is not the place for distracted driving. She said since 2017 there have been 331 wrecks and one death on that stretch of 1788.

Mayor Jerry Morales, Scott Dufford and Spencer Robnett joined Hotchkiss in voting against the billboards.
The nuns belong to the Missionaries of Jesus. The abuses blamed on Mgr Franco Mulakkal, bishop of Jalandar (in Punjab), date back to 2014-2016. The Indian Church is divided between the nuns supporters and her opponents. The accused bishop points the finger at anti-Church groups who want tarnish his name.

Kochi (AsiaNews/Agencies)  For the past few days, a group of nuns from the Missionaries of Jesus have been protesting in Kerala against the rape of one of their members, allegedly by Mgr Franco Mulakkal, bishop of the Diocese of Jalandar (Punjab). The nuns want the prelate arrested.

The case began in July when a nun said that the bishop had repeatedly raped her between 2014 and 2016, when both were staying at a hostel in Kerala. The story sparked a debate within the Indian Church but so far Church leaders have not spoken out on the matter.

For his part, Mgr Mulakkal has rejected the accusations. In an interview with the Times of India, he said that Some damage has been caused to the reputation of the church, and mine, by the allegations and the media trial.

In Kerala, the case has shaken local Catholics, about a million, the largest Catholic community in any Indian state.

In early July, the 44-year-old nun reported Mgr Mulakkal for his behaviour in a hostel owned by the Church in Kuravilangad. Her identity has not been made public to protect her privacy.

The bishop has denied all charges, claiming that the nun's complaint, which were made several years after the alleged incidents, is motivated by personal revenge after he removed her as superior in the congregation. He has also said that the alleged victims brother has been sending him persecutory messages.

For her part, the nun has said that she has received death threats. She has also accused Card George Alencherry, head of the Syro-Malabar Church, of a cover-up. She filed her complaint in the Eparchy of Kottayam, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Syro-Malabar Church, one of the three rites of the Indian Catholic Church.

In addition to the nun's accusations, the cardinal has been caught up in another controversy over the sale of land owned by the Church. For this reason, some observers are wondering whether the accusations are an attempt to discredit Church leaders since both Mgr Mulakkal and his alleged victim belong to the Latin rite.

From a purely local matter, the case went national this week, after the five Missionary Sisters of Jesus began their protest on Saturday, joined by hundreds of people, in front of the High Court in Kochi, Keralas business capital.

Kemal Pasha, a retired judge of the High Court, and the Joint Christian Council have come out in favour of the nuns. The former said that the protest "is not a fight against the Catholic Church but against a grave injustice". Members of the Christian group went on a hunger strike and started a sit-in.

In his defence, Mgr Mulakkal claims that The protest is sponsored by anti-church groups. Only those nuns have ganged up with the complainant who were part of the team she headed here as Superior General of the Missionaries of Jesus Sisters (MJS) in Jalandhar Cantt. It is their last resort as a pressure tactic after a police official gave a statement that there was no sufficient evidence to arrest me, the Bishop said.

The five nuns accompanying the complainant in the protest are supposed to be working in other convents but they are staying in Kerala in disobedience, he added. The complainant is building the pressure as she knows that if my name is cleared in a police probe then she would face questions on how she lost her virginity.
See what the aftermath of Hurricane Carla looked like along Texas coast...

On Sept. 11, 1961 Hurricane Carla hit the Texas Gulf Coast. It was the worst hurricane to hit the coast since the devastating 1900 storm that killed thousands in Galveston.

Carla, and its mighty Category 4 wallop, slammed into the coast near Port Lavaca packing winds of nearly 170 miles per hour, with up to 18 tornadoes spawned by the storm causing additional havoc.

FROM HIGH ABOVE: Satellite images show hurricanes lined up in Atlantic Ocean

Though it entered Texas roughly halfway between Corpus Christi and Galveston, the island still suffered damages. According to the National Weather Service the hurricane's storm surge had a very serious impact, rising ten feet above normal along the coast. The surge was as high as 22 feet at Port O'Connor.

Ahead of the hurricane nearly half a million people in the path of the hurricane were evacuated from the low-lying coastal areas in Texas up to southwestern Louisiana. Those heartier Texans who previously might have been apt to stick around and ride out the storm instead heeded warnings and left their homes.

"People left Corpus Christi who never left before," John Stallings of the Corpus Christi Caller-Times told the Associated Press that week.

The largest evacuation up to that point in history helped keep the death toll down to just 46, according to the National Weather Service's report on Carla.

EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS: We want to see your photos of the storms rolling through Houston

During Hurricane Carla, young newsman and native Texan Dan Rather at KHOU-TV made his mark on the national media scene with his unwavering coverage of the hurricane from Galveston Island.

The station set up inside the weather bureau in Galveston ahead of the storm. When Carla hit just below the island, Rather and his team were able to report directly from the scene while other Houston outlets were sealed off from Galveston. CBS News in New York plugged into Rather's coverage and ran it nationally.

TEXAS AND THE WORLD: Here are the 25 events that helped shape Texas as we know it today

Carla's remnants meandered up to Austin and Dallas and continued into the Midwest United States before finally dissipating on Sept. 17, 1961.

By the time it was done, Carla cost around $408 million in damages to Texas alone. Today, its damages would have easily exceeded more than $2 billion.

In 2017 Hurricane Harvey became the worst hurricane to hit Texas since Carla.

Craig Hlavaty covers Houston history and pop-culture. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com. | craig.hlavaty@chron.com
In the days before the arrival of the saint's heart, Filipino Catholics are "excited and anxious". "He is a model for all Catholics, laity or consecrated. He gives confidence to those who suffer, to those who are sick, lost, confused or in search of God's blessing ". In the Philippines devotion to Padre Pio grows steadily, also thanks to social media".

Santo Tomas (AsiaNews) - The forthcoming arrival in the Philippines of the relic of the heart of Padre Pio is "a sign of hope, which pushes us towards higher values in our relationship with God" says Fr. Joselin Gonda (photo 1), rector of the national sanctuary of Saint Padre Pio in Santo Tomas (Batangas), less than a month from the beginning of the historic pilgrimage (6-26 October) of the remains of the saint. They will be exhibited in several cities in the nation including Manila, Cebu and Davao.

In the press conference for the presentation of the event, Fr. Gonda said that the visit will be "a time of grace for the Filipinos, who are sinking into despair given the uncertainty of these uncertain times in our nations history".

Interviewed by AsiaNews, the priest identifies "the main causes of the suffering of his people" in political tensions, economic difficulties and social problems. Added to these are " human rights violations; the killings of drug dealers and drug addicts that characterize the government's drug war; the kind of language that President Rodrigo Duterte uses in addressing the Catholic Church and in matters concerning God ".

"Drug addiction, suffering, pain, however, represent the trials to be overcome for those who remain faithful to God in spite of difficulties - says the priest - For this reason, the visit of the saint's remains is a time of hope and life'".

Filipino Catholics are "excited and anxious". "Their joy and their expectations are many - continues Fr. Gonda - In these moments, people come to the sanctuary and pray for the consolation and intercession of Padre Pio. The visit will have a huge impact on the faith and awareness of the faithful and the nation".

In the Asian country with the largest number of Catholics (about 83% of the population), devotion to Padre Pio is widespread. In this regard, the rector of the national shrine declares: "It was deep before the canonization, in 2002, but since then it has grown and has become even more rooted. During the nine years I spent here at the sanctuary, I discovered that Padre Pio is truly the saint of our times. He is a saint who offers hope, a model for all Catholics, laity or consecrated. He gives confidence to those who suffer, to those who are sick, lost, confused or in search of God's blessing. Many ask for his intercession and the numerous healings feed the devotion to the saint through social media ".

The growing affection that binds Filipinos to the saint of Pietrelcina also manifests itself in the crowd that every day pours into the national shrine from every province of the country. "When I started working here, the faithful who attended the two Sunday Masses were only about 300. At the moment, on holidays we celebrate eight functions (photo2-3-4), which gather 40 thousand to 60 thousand people, depending on the weather conditions. All over the country, many parishes, shrines and places of prayer are now dedicated to Padre Pio", says Fr. Gonda.

Finally, the priest tells us that the pilgrimage of the relic of the heart of Padre Pio will also include the participation and involvement of Filipinos abroad, especially those who emigrated to Italy. "We would have liked to meet the many Filipinos of Italy in San Giovanni Rotondo, where a delegation will take custody of the relic. However, in agreement with the Order of Capuchins, we preferred to avoid too much confusion. We will wait for them in at home, where many will return for the occasion ". (PF)
A limit of 10 thousand euros imposed on European currency or other foreign currency; US currency is prohibited. Necessary to strengthen the banking system to support trade between the two countries. Iranian vice-president: US sanctions are "very effective, difficult and delicate moment".

Teheran (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Iraqi authorities have decided to officially remove the US dollar as the reference currency in bilateral trade with Iran. At the same time, businessmen and visitors to the Islamic Republic will be required to have a legal limit of 10 thousand Euros - used in place of the US currency - that they can take with them.

The Iranian media reported the move announced in a note issued by the Iraqi Customs Authorities, according to which passengers may carry a maximum of 10 thousand euros or the corresponding value of another foreign currency. Compared to the past, when a maximum limit had been set, the introduction of the green back into Iran is now prohibited.

In addition to shifting from the US dollar to alternative currencies, Iranian and Iraqi traders have pledged to strengthen exchange transactions. However, the banking system needs further improvements because only a small slice of the trade balance between the two nations passes through the banking system. "Solving this problem - says the head of the Iran-Iraq Chamber of Commerce - must be a priority".

Iraq is Iran's second largest trading partner, after Beijing. However, Chinese exports are largely petrochemical products, while Baghdad buys a large variety of goods from Iran, helping to support their employment rate.

The Islamic Republic does not recognize Israel and threatens to attack targets of Israel and the United States in the event of an American offensive against Tehran Last May, Washington decided to impose new sanctions on Iran, the toughest sanctions in history , after pulling out (the JCPOA). Hence the significant decline in the Iranian economy after years of marked growth; at the expense of it, it was primarily the weakest and most vulnerable part of the population.

The confirmation comes from the first Iranian vice-president Es'haq Jahangiri, who admitted yesterday that the US sanctions have turned out to be "very effective". This is why the country, he adds, is going through "a difficult and delicate moment", even if it has not yet reached a "stall". "The United States - concluded the vice-president - declared an economic war against us. Meanwhile, they are triggering a political and media attack to influence public opinion in Iran."
Gov. Bruce Rauner is attending the 50th anniversary of the Midwest US-Japan Association Conference in Omaha, giving the state a chance to showcase its workforce, infrastructure and universities while developing business relations between the state and Japan.

Rauner has attended the conferences the past three years, including last years in Tokyo. He is being joined by seven Midwest governors, four Japanese prefecture governors, the Japanese ambassador to the U.S., H.E. Shinsuke Sugiyama, the Japanese consul general to the U.S., Naoki Ito, and Japan External Trade Organization Chairman Hiroyuki Ishige.
The Vatican recognises the routes in the capital as international pilgrimage sites, a first in Asia. A Mass to mark the event will be held on Friday, with Apostolic Blessing. For Card Yeom, South Korean Catholics are moved by it as descendants of the martyrs and members of the Asian Church.

Seoul (AsiaNews)  The Vatican has decided that Seoul, with its history and martyrs, is an official international pilgrimage site, a first for Asia.

A proclamation ceremony will be held this Friday at the Seosomun Martyrs shrine, the largest monument to the martyrs of Korea. For the occasion, the historical park of Seosomun will be open to the public in advance of the official opening, scheduled for the end of this year. The site is a key place in the history of the Korean Church: 44 saints and 27 blessed were martyred there.

Mgr Rino Fisichella, president of the Pontifical Council for the promotion of the new evangelisation together with Card Andrew Yeom Soo-jung, Archbishop of Seoul and Apostolic Administrator of Pyongyang, will lead the celebration Mass. Mgr Alfred Xuereb, apostolic nuncio to Korea, will deliver the Apostolic Blessing.

As descendants of the martyrs who, through their spontaneous embrace of the faith, were forced to endure horrendous persecution and suffering, and as fellow members of the Asian Church, we eagerly await the Universal Churchs official recognition of Seouls International Pilgrimage Routes, Card Yeom said.

The prelate launched the pilgrimage site initiative in the South Korean capital in September 2013. Following the apostolic visit of Pope Francis in 2014, the Archdiocese of Seoul officially organised Catholic Pilgrimages Routes in Seoul in cooperation with local authorities. The pilgrimage routes are divided in three parts: The Good News Road, The Eternal Life Road, and The Unity Road.

Meanwhile, 30 Asian Catholic leaders from 13 countries, and 30 young Catholics from nine countries are involved in the 2018 Korea Pilgrimage Week, from 10 to 15 September. They will follow the Seoul routes and visit Solmoe and Haemi shrines.
The Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools has given Sen. Andy Manar its Friend of Education Award for his work in bringing a new school funding formula to Illinois.

Manar, D-Bunker Hill, accepted the award during the organizations meeting in Springfield.
If you take a dim view of our political parties, youre in sterling company.

So did George Washington.

In his famous Farewell Address, he warned us against the baneful effects of the spirit of [political] party. A political party, he wrote, agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption.   Its safe to say he was not a fan.

So its with some trepidation that I want to speak up in favor of political parties. For well over 165 years, they have played a key role in our representative government. They are the best stage I know for broad economic, political, and social change. Its hard for me to imagine a democracy without them.

This is in part because we live in a very different country from the one George Washington led. The United States today is not just geographically bigger, but immeasurably larger in both population and diversity.

And thats where our two great parties, for the most part, have excelled: they accommodate different interests, opinions, and views. Our system does not have enough consensus-building mechanisms; the parties are crucial to this. Strong political parties that can unite groups with different interests have been a source of powerful change in our history.

Of course, more than building consensus within a party is needed. Even though the American people prefer bipartisanship, the parties too often prefer to lambaste each other. But legislation passed on a party line vote rarely stands the test of time. To work properly, our system needs a broader consensus  and party-line votes do not provide it. The really effective legislation in our history  Social Security and Medicare, for instance  was passed with solid, bipartisan support.

Our parties also play a lubricating role in the mechanisms of democracy. They get out the vote and educate voters. They teach many thousands of ordinary Americans what the nuts and bolts of democratic participation look like. They choose, train, and promote candidates who are (for the most part) worthy of holding public office. They play an important role in funding elections, financing the system, and giving candidates a platform. In short, theyre a personnel system for government office.

To be sure, Americans divide rather sharply on their support of political parties  not just on which they support, but on whether to support them at all. Many avoid identification with them. Others become ardent loyalists. Still others follow them regularly, but not slavishly. At the moment, more people define themselves as independent than as a member of one or the other party, but the two parties together still command a majority of the electorate.

I am a member of a party, and have certainly been disappointed in its performance on occasion. Yet Ive never felt that my disappointment was grounds for abandoning the party. Nor, on the other hand, have I ever felt that my loyalty was grounds for despising the other party. I cringe when I hear a member of either party express hatred or accuse the other party of disloyalty. Both parties are patriotic, both want the best for their country  even if they have different ideas about what best means. Thats part of the democratic dialogue, after all.

Thats why I also get uncomfortable with unswerving loyalty to any political party. I think political parties have to earn our loyalty by their performance. And in particular, by their ability to move the nation forward legislatively.

George Washington was right, of course, in pointing out some of the risks of people joining together to form organized parties. But he didnt fully recognize their role as consensus-builders  their concern with transcending differences and political factionalism and arriving at stances designed to appeal to political majorities both in elections and in legislatures. The most successful party officials I know have made consensus-building a priority, both within their own parties and across partisan lines.

In a country as diverse and divided as ours, thats not a baneful effect at all.

Lee Hamilton is a senior adviser for the Indiana University Center on Representative Government, a distinguished scholar for the IU School of Global and International Studies and a professor of practice for the IU School of Public and Environmental Affairs. He was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 34 years.
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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 12)  The country's former top cop now wants to be a senator.

Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Director Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa on Wednesday confirmed he will vie for a slot in the 2019 senatorial elections.

He said his decision to run was made final when President Rodrigo Duterte told him so.

"All the while I was thinking na Governor ng Davao (del) Sur dahil yun ang unang sinabi niya. So nagbago lately, sabi niya, senador na. 'Yun na ang takbuhin mo," Dela Rosa told Senate reporters shortly after taking his oath as member of the ruling PDP-Laban party.

[Translation: All the while I was thinking I will run for Governor of Davao del Sur because that's what he said. This changed lately, he said, I should run for senator instead.]

He said the President made this statement in August, during a mass oath-taking event of the Hugpong ng Pagbabago, the regional political party of Davao City Mayor and presidential daughter Sara Duterte-Carpio.

Dela Rosa said he does not know what prompted the change in the President's mind, adding he is willing to follow his orders anyway.

"Ready naman ako anything he says, kung ano, sunod lang ako, kung ano gusto niya (I'm ready to follow anything he says. I'll just follow whatever he wants)," Dela Rosa said.

He said he also considered his position in senatorial surveys. A Pulse Asia survey in April showed he would be one of the 12 winning senators if the 2019 midterm polls were held the day the survey was conducted.

When asked what measure he wants to push for as a senator, Dela Rosa said, "death penalty kaagad (immediately)."

The reinstatement of death penalty was one of President Duterte's campaign promises. It sailed smoothly in the House of Representatives in 2017, leaving its fate to the upper chamber. Death penalty was first abolished in the Philippines in 1986, but reinstated in 1993. It was abolished again in 2006.

Dela Rosa said drug pushers should be sentenced to death "'Pag sabihin mong kasama yung drug users, maraming magrereact diyan (When you say you will include drug users, many will react)," he added.

Dela Rosa was the Philippine National Police chief appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte to implement his war on drugs. Dela Rosa retired in January, but Duterte extended the former's term indefinitely until he chose then Metro Manila police chief Oscar Albayalde as replacement.
The animist religion preceded Tibetan Buddhism by several centuries and is considered one of the oldest religions still practised in the world. Its 34th leader was chosen after almost a year of mystical practices.

Dharamsala (AsiaNews)  After almost a year of mystical practices, Kyabje Menri Trizin Geshe Dawa Dhargye is the new leader of Bon, an ancient Tibetan religious tradition.

The new Menri Trizin was officially enthroned in a solemn two-day ceremony at the Pal Shenten Menriling monastery (northern India) in the presence of exiled Tibetan political leaders, including the President of the Tibetan Central Administration Lobsang Sangay.

The new spiritual leader was identified through the Lha Sung Den Terwa, a process by which the names of candidates are removed in consultation with protectors chosen for the wisdom of their teachings and knowledge of ritual practices. The Lha started on 19 December 2017 and involved some 60 candidates.

The term Bon refers to Tibets pre-Buddhist tradition whose traits were originally shamanic. The main practitioners, the Bonpo, were mainly concerned with healing the fate of the soul after death and the welfare and prosperity of the living through the appropriate propitiatory rites.

This follows the practice of venerating Tibetan kings who, after their death, were accompanied in the otherworld by animal spirits (especially the yak and the horse), sacrificed during the funeral.

These traditions were largely suppressed when Buddhism became ascendant around the 8th and 9th centuries. However, after a period of religious conflict, the two traditions changed each other.

Todays Bon, the so-called Yungdrun Bon or Eternal Bon, developed as Buddhism underwent a revival but has remained separate. It is very similar to Tibetan Buddhism, yet distinct with its own identity.

Today about 10 per cent of Tibetans follow the Bon tradition to some extent. A substantial number of believers can be found even in the West (in countries like Italy), often practising Tibetan Buddhism at the same time.

In Tibet some 264 Bon monasteries, convents or hermitages actively follow the tradition.
By Sherman Chan,

Special to The Post

We had half order of Honey Garlic and Black Yummy, which was still pretty generous. The chicken was fairly tender and moist, but the batter was too thick and dense. It was hard to eat because of too much batter. The honey garlic was sweet, but had too much sauce. We much preferred the black yummy which was sweet garlic and ginger soy. It was a lighter sauce. Moreover, the light saltiness and bright ginger hit made it less heavy.

We were disappointed that the Gib Jip (or stir-fried chicken giblets) which had much more green onion and white onion than actual giblets. But the giblets were on point being tender with a firm chew. There was plenty of pepperiness and brightness from the green onion. It was a bit greasy. The Corn Cheese was very buttery and greasy. But that wasn't a bad thing as the caramelized niblets were super sweet and aromatic. The melted stringy cheese added to the sinful, but tasty concoction. It was a better value than the giblets.

The Yammers were yam fries with a spicy dip. They were fried perfectly where the outside was crispy and easy on the grease. Inside, the tender yam was airy and super light. These ate much easier than the usual dense and soggy yam fries served elsewhere. Overall, we thought Big Chicken Town was mediocre compared to the other KFC options in the GVRD, but a way better option than Big River Brewing.

Big Chicken Town

15-228 Schoolhouse Street, Coquitlam, BC

The Good:

 Fairly friendly service

 Large portions (except for the giblets!)

 Convenient location

The Bad:

 Mediocre

 What happened with the giblets...

Sherman Chan is the #1 ranked food blogger on the Vancouver portal of Urbanspoon.com. Read more of his reviews at www.shermansfoodadventures.com.
Sometimes, selfless decisions are made without fanfare, yet come to light years later. We're running short on noble decisions of late, yet those made decades ago by two prominent Arizonans  both affectionately "adopted"  are noteworthy.

Senator John McCain's recent death resulted in much reflection on his life of service to his country, including his imprisonment in Vietnam for more than five years. When captors realized his prominence, they saw great public relations value in releasing him soon after imprisonment. He immediately balked, indicating that he would wait his turn. And he did, "staying put" as a prisoner for four more years of punishment and degradation.

Late columnist Erma Bombeck  a "favorite daughter" of Arizona during the final 25 years of her life  made a similar decision a quarter-century later, not from a prison cell, but from a hospital bed.

Gravely ill with a kidney disease, she had the opportunity to move "up the list" for a transplant, thanks to her celebrity status.

She'd have no part of it, vowing to wait her turn. When that time came, months later, she was too ill to survive the surgery when a kidney implant was attempted. One of the world's wittiest persons, her columns brightened millions of lives. She died in 1996 at age 69, still meeting column deadlines until shortly before her death.

Erma's death robbed readers of smiles. She could coax more grins from a column of 400 words or so than anyone I've ever read. And those "grins" often erupted into belly laughs that left us making apparel adjustments, wiping away joyful tears, or  in the case of women  "unsmudging" their mascara.

Several million Americans looked forward to her syndicated columns that, at the height of her popularity, appeared in 700 newspapers in the US and Canada. Revealing the "funny side" of down home experiences, she also turned out 15 books, most of them best-sellers, and all of them with clever titles. When her typewriter key strokes ended in 1996, she had written more than 4,000 columns and had an estimated 30 million readers.

Some 50 years ago, I sent a "thank you" letter for the humor she delivered with each column. A couple of weeks later, I was surprised to receive a note that she no doubt had personally written. It was typed on copy paper, and signed "Erma," the signature scribbled with an editor's pencil. The page's jagged edges were proof enough that it was torn from a roll of paper fed into her typewriter (pretty much paper towel quality).

Even her short note produced grins. It read, "I apologize for being so late writing to thank you for your letter," she said. "I'm nearly as far behind with my correspondence as I am with my laundry." Those few words were "Erma to the core."

Upon considering a column topic, I often muse, "How would Erma handle it?" (I know; her garment hem would go untouched if it depended on me to emulate her work.) For example, with Senator John McCain's death following Aretha Franklin's passing just nine days earlier, I think Erma would have found ways to lighten national mourning with touches of humor that in no way denigrated their great lives.

Writers and broadcasters covered both funerals in great detail. Somehow, I think Erma would have had a tongue-in-cheek comment about Aretha's funeral procession that included 120 pink Cadillacs (inspired by her hit song, "Freeway of Love"). "Hmmm," the columnist might have noted. "Maybe that explains the 'CLOSED TODAY' signs on the doors of 120 Mary Kay distributors."

"What-Would-Erma-Have-Written?" topics are at center stage every two years at the Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop. Featuring top writers, it is held at the University of Dayton, honoring the memory of one of the all-time great writers. Her columns and books are chock full of wonderful quotes. A favorite: "When humor goes, there goes civilization."
Photo caption: Council candidate (right) raises the hand of mayoralty candidate Tom Gill (centre) with MLA Mable Elmore. (Facebook)

By Ted Alcuitas

Special to The Post

Longtime community advocate Narima dela Cruz is running for council for the City of Surrey under the Surrey First banner.

The team under the leadership of Tom Gill as mayoralty candidate and eight councilors was launched today (September 5) at Surreys Holland Park. The civic election will be on October 20.

I believe that Surrey residents are looking for individuals who have the experience building community, and who have become engaged volunteer community leaders simply because they want to further improve this great city, she posted on Facebook shortly after the launch.

The mother of two had a number of enthusiastic Filipino supporters at the launch including NDP MLA Mable Elmore of Vancouver, Kensington, the first Filipino to be elected in British Columbia legislative assembly.

This is the second run for the founder of the 10-year old Surrey Philippine Independence Society (SPIDS). She ran unsuccessfully in 2014, garnering 18,075 votes placing 15th out of 35 candidates.

Dela Cruz is a founding director of the Surrey Philippine Independence Day Society and has volunteered with S.U.C.C.E.S.S. and with Options Community Service Society. She has also served on the Johnston Heights PAC for eight years.

Of her volunteer work, she said its something that runs in my blood. Helping people makes me happy. Its as simple as that. Ive been there and I want to give back.

Her eldest son Daryl, is the high-profile leader of the transportation advocacy group Skytrain for Surrey.

It is important for me to give back to this community, which has given me so much and has allowed me many opportunities as a long time community volunteer. I care deeply about this community, as evident in all the years I have been an engaged and active community advocate, and I would like to be part of creating solutions to many of its challenges, she posted on Facebook after the launch.

Our team, Surrey First is a thoughtful reflection of our community, with an incredible diversity of ideas, culture, and experiences to work with people and get things done.

#October20CivicElection #NarimaDelaCruzForCouncillor #TomGillForMayor #SurreyFirstForCityCouncil

A native of Quezon Province, Dela Cruz immigrated to Canada in 1998 with husband Joel and son Daryl. First settling in Winnipeg, Manitoba they moved to B.C. after having another daughter Glisha.

She first worked as an administrative assistant utilizing her education and professional background in the Philippines where she worked around tourism, education, office administration, and law.

She has been a Licensed Realtor in B.C. since 2006.

Dela Cruz was one of Canadas top 25 immigrants in 2012. She was presented the Realtors Care Award from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver in 2011 for her volunteer activity.

Dela Cruz is the second Filipino candidate in the 2018 civic elections.

Jojo Quimpo is running under the Non-Partisan Association (NPA) for the City of Vancouver.

Another aspirant, RJ Aquino, failed to get nominated by OneCity Vancouver.
A toddler died Tuesday after being left for hours in a car in Moraga while outside temperatures hit at least 80 degrees, police said.

Lily Aracic, who was 19 months old, had been accidentally left in the vehicle by a family member, according to Moraga police. The same family member found her there, in a vehicle parked on Hardie Drive, hours later. She wasnt breathing.

The relative called 911 at about 3:50 p.m. Police tried to revive the child with rescue breathing at the scene, but she was pronounced dead after being taken to John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek.

The incident is under investigation. Police have not said which family member left Lily in the car, or what circumstances may have led to her being forgotten there. The Contra Costa County coroners office reported that Lily lived in Oakland.

Officers said the temperature outside when they reached the girl was about 80 degrees. Experts in child deaths from heatstroke in cars say that the temperature inside the vehicle could have reached 130 degrees.

If the car seat was in direct sunlight, it may be even hotter, said Jan Null, an adjunct professor of meteorology at San Jose State University who has studied heat-related car deaths in children and runs a national database on such incidents.

Nationwide, 789 children have died from heatstroke in a vehicle since 1998, according to Null. This year is on track to be one of the worst since such deaths started to be recorded, he said. So far, 46 children have died in the U.S. after being left in hot cars this year. Three were in California: Along with Lily, a 2-year-old boy died in Sacramento in July and an 18-month-old boy died in Willits in June.

In most cases, the outside temperature is already dangerously warm  90 degrees or higher, Null said. But in at least three cases nationwide this year, the temperature was in the 70s. And he knows of cases where children died when the outside temperature was even lower.

It does not have to be a really hot day, Null said. There was a case in El Cerrito, back around 2009, on a 67-degree day at the BART station. The parent was supposed to drop the child off and forgot.

Nearly 90 percent of children who die from heatstroke in a car are age 3 or younger, according to the group KidsAndCars.org, which seeks to end deaths of children accidentally left in cars. Just over half of the children are 12 months or younger.

Thirty-seven kids die in hot cars on average each year, and in about 55 percent of those cases, the children were left there by parents who forgot their child was in the vehicle.

Keep your kids safe KidsAndCars.org has tips to keep children being left in a car: Make it part of your routine to open the back door of the car every time you park. Place something in the backseat - like a cell phone, wallet or work ID - that you need so you'll be forced to look there. Keep a stuffed animal in the car seat. When the baby is in the car seat, move the toy to the front seat of the car as a reminder that the baby is in the back. Ask your child care provider to call immediately if your child is not dropped off on time. See More Collapse

The biggest mistake people make is to think this cant happen to them or someone in their family, said Janette Fennell, founder of KidsAndCars.org. Its not like anybody does this on purpose.

Fennells group is working to pass legislation that would require cars to have an automated system that alerts drivers if a baby is left in a car seat. The group also offers suggestions to parents to help remind themselves they have a child in the car.

Its both impossible to imagine and horrifyingly easy to understand how a child could be left behind, Fennell said. Babies are in rear-facing car seats, not in a parents direct line of sight. Infants dont talk; toddlers may be sleeping. Parents are exhausted, they are distracted. They slip out of a normal routine and forget to drop a baby at day care or a grandparents house. Hours pass.

The death of a child is the worst thing that can ever happen in someones life, Fennell said. Now, take the worst thing in the world, and lets add the fact that youre the parent or family member who did this.

When the family member called 911 for Lily, the dispatcher who answered the call reported there was a person screaming and crying in the background, according to Moraga police.

On Wednesday, a man who answered the phone at Lilys grandparents house in Piedmont said only this: Its the worst thing that could possibly happen.

Erin Allday is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: eallday@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @erinallday
A strong economy and favorable tax policy helped Texas rank as the second-most attractive state for aerospace manufacturing, according to a report released Wednesday by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Seventeen of the world's 20 largest aerospace manufacturers have major operations in Texas, including Lockheed Martin's production of the F-35 fighter jet, and about 9 percent of all U.S. aerospace manufacturing jobs are in the state.
By the tight-lipped standards of Goldman Sachs, the phone call from one of the firms most senior investment bankers was explosive.

James C. Katzman, a Goldman partner and the leader of its West Coast mergers-and-acquisitions practice, dialed the banks whistleblower hotline in 2014 to complain about what he regarded as a range of unethical practices, according to accounts by people close to Katzman, which a Goldman spokesman confirmed. His grievances included an effort by Goldman to hire a customers child and colleagues repeated attempts to obtain and then share confidential client information.

Katzman expected lawyers at the firm Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, which monitored the hotline, to investigate his allegations and share them with independent members of Goldmans board of directors, the people close to Katzman said.

The complaints were an extraordinary example of a senior employee taking on what he perceived to be corporate wrongdoing at an elite Wall Street bank. But they were never independently investigated or fully relayed to the Goldman board.

Instead, Goldmans general counsel took over the inquiry. And senior investment-banking executives at the firm  including David M. Solomon, now Goldmans incoming chief executive  urged Katzman to move past his complaints, according to several people familiar with the interactions.

Katzman refused. In 2015, he left Goldman and was required to sign a confidentiality agreement that he believed prevented him from sharing his concerns with board members or regulators, said the people close to Katzman, who were not bound by the same confidentiality agreement.

Katzman did not respond to requests for comment.

It is not clear whether any of Katzmans colleagues shared his misgivings. He had a reputation within Goldman for being obsessed with following rules literally. Some Goldman officials, including Solomon, considered his complaints overblown and did not understand why Katzman was making such a fuss.

The legal department conducted an exhaustive investigation of the matters Mr. Katzman raised in accordance with our whistleblower policy, Michael DuVally, the Goldman spokesman, said. We did not find that confidential client information was shared with other clients.

Neither David Solomon nor any other member of the investment-banking division or anyone outside of the legal department had a role in conducting the investigation, DuVally continued. Mr. Katzman raised his concerns in an appropriate manner, and neither Mr. Solomon nor anybody else at the firm discouraged him from raising these concerns or any others he might have.

Solomon had tried to persuade Katzman not to leave Goldman, DuVally said. He added that anyone who departed while holding shares of restricted stock was required to sign a confidentiality agreement.

Solomon is to succeed Lloyd C. Blankfein as Goldmans chief executive on Oct. 1. The firm has cultivated an image of its incoming leader as a new breed of banker, playing up Solomons disc-jockey hobby and his focus on work-life balance.

Goldmans board will be briefed on his interactions with Katzman at its scheduled board meeting Thursday, said two people who have been briefed on the plans.

For four years, Solomons role in the episode involving Katzman was known only to a small group of bankers in Solomons inner circle. Some of Goldmans most senior executives, including the firms president and the chief financial officer at the time, were not briefed on the circumstances of Katzmans departure, according to people close to Goldman.

Katzman had expressed various concerns about what he viewed as widespread unethical behavior and a corporate culture gone awry. Of the half-dozen specific issues he raised, the most troubling, from his perspective, were multiple instances when senior Goldman bankers tried to extract confidential client information from him that they intended to share with other Goldman customers or otherwise use for the banks benefit.

Executives at Goldman and other Wall Street firms said the conduct that Katzman described was inappropriate and the type of behavior that had previously ignited intense criticism of the bank for mistreating clients.

Katzmans complaints suggest that, a decade after Goldmans actions during the financial crisis severely tarnished its reputation, the firm continues to struggle with cultural problems. In the past, Goldman has been accused by employees, clients and government authorities of trying to profit at the expense of customers. Goldman, like other big banks, has tried to repair its image by emphasizing employees ethical obligations and setting up new rules to discourage bad behavior.

As a Goldman partner since 2004, Katzman was a member of one of the most exclusive clubs on Wall Street. Partners at the firm earn a base salary of $950,000, and their bonuses often stretch into many millions of dollars. It is an insular group, and acrimony among partners rarely spills into public view.

During his 17 years at Goldman, Katzman earned a reputation as a talented investment banker and a stickler for following rules. Friends and former colleagues, some of whom described him as a boy scout, said he viewed ethical issues in black-and-white terms.

Id rather be defeated in right than succeed in wrong, Katzman said during a 2014 deposition related to a deal he had worked on, attributing the quote to President James Garfield.

Katzman built an impressive roster of clients at Goldman, including Clorox, Hershey and Allergan. In 2006, he moved to the San Francisco area and became the leader of the firms West Coast deals business.

By 2014, Katzman had relocated with his family to Arizona and was commuting to San Francisco.

He had grown upset by what he was seeing at Goldman and felt the bank needed outside scrutiny, according to one of the people close to him.

In one instance, he was dismayed by Goldmans efforts to hire the child of a client, according to people close to Katzman and to the firm. He became especially troubled after, he believed, the candidate had been caught lying during the interview process. Katzman argued that should disqualify him, but some of his colleagues persisted in trying to hire the person. Ultimately, the candidate was rejected.

Katzmans larger concern stemmed from what he was witnessing while working on corporate deals.

In 2014, he was the lead banker working to defend Allergan, the maker of Botox, against a hostile takeover by Valeant Pharmaceuticals and the hedge fund Pershing Square Capital. Katzman had sensitive information about Allergans strategy for fending off the suitors.

As the battle unfolded, a Goldman partner approached Katzman and sought information about Allergan, saying he planned to share it with another Goldman client, the people close to Katzman said. Katzman considered the request a violation of bank rules meant to protect confidential client information and he rebuffed his colleague.

A person close to Goldman said the internal investigation concluded that the request for information from Katzman was the result of a misunderstanding by his colleague.

It was not the first time that Katzman had been unsettled by a Goldman banker asking him for confidential information about a client, but he perceived it as the final straw, the people close to him said.

Katzman decided that he was obligated to lodge a formal complaint about the hiring issue and his colleagues requests for client information.

Goldman had long relied on Fried Frank to screen information provided over a phone line that Goldman employees could call to report allegations of misconduct without fear of retribution. The assignment was part of a large portfolio of Goldman business that Fried Frank, whose chairman was a Goldman alumnus, handled.

Goldman highlighted the whistleblower line on its website, saying that a Fried Frank lawyer, Sheldon Raab, would refer complaints to Goldmans independent board members or to bank employees for further investigation.

Katzman called Raab. Katzman assumed that, based on his seniority and what he considered the seriousness of his grievances, they would be shared with board members, according to the people close to him. Raab instead referred the complaints to Goldmans general counsel, Gregory K. Palm, who asked a deputy to look into them.

DuVally said Katzmans complaints were mentioned in passing in a report that Fried Frank prepared for the Goldman board in 2014, but they were attributed only to an unidentified Goldman employee. Not all board members knew about the issues Katzman raised, according to a person familiar with the matter.

While the internal inquiry was underway, Katzman met on multiple occasions with Solomon, in group and in one-on-one settings, according to the people close to Katzman and at Goldman. At the time, Solomon was one of three executives running the firms investment-banking division.

During the meetings, Solomon repeatedly recommended that Katzman let go of his grievances and focus instead on his job, said the people close to Katzman. Solomon told Katzman that the concerns he had raised simply reflected the way Wall Street worked, these people said.

Katzman perceived Solomon as trying to silence him, the people said. A person at Goldman said that was not Solomons intent.

The interactions with Solomon and other Goldman executives left Katzman so disillusioned that he decided to leave, the people said.

Goldman executives told Katzman that he would have to sign a nondisclosure agreement if he wanted to receive up to $10 million in stock-based compensation, the people said. In public filings, Goldman has said its compensation agreements allow it to recoup funds from employees who do anything which impairs, impugns, denigrates, disparages or negatively reflects upon the name, reputation or business interests of the firm.

Katzman signed the agreement, which he believed prevented him from discussing his concerns with regulators or with the Goldman board.

Since leaving Goldman in early 2015, Katzman, 51, has become a board member at Hershey and Brinker International, which owns restaurant chains. He has not spoken publicly about the circumstances surrounding his departure from Goldman. But he has written about his view of challenging institutions over wrongdoing.

In 2012, Katzman clashed with officials at the private Menlo School in Atherton, California, which his children attended. He raised concerns about cheating and what he regarded as the schools efforts to cover it up. (A Menlo spokesman said the school had investigated and addressed Katzmans contentions at the time.) The next year, he wrote a letter to a large group of Menlo parents to explain why he had pulled his children out of the school.

What should one do when all internal channels are exhausted in a matter like this? he wrote. He answered by quoting Justice Louis Brandeis: Publicity is justly commended as a remedy for social and industrial diseases. Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.
A fallen Pacific Gas & Electric Co. power line caused the 152-acre Irving Fire that ignited in Samuel P. Taylor State Park west of Fairfax on Monday night, Marin County officials said Wednesday.

Marin County spokeswoman Laine Hendricks said the power line fell into the grasslands around the Ridge Trail, on the south side base of Mount Barnabe.

A PG&E spokesman said the company is working with state and Marin County fire officials to understand more about the circumstances of this preliminary finding.

We are monitoring fire conditions from our Wildfire Safety Operations Center in San Francisco 24/7, to determine what, if any additional threats the fire may pose to our lines and facilities, Matt Nauman, a spokesman for PG&E, said in a statement.

At least 19 customers in the area were still without power Wednesday, according to a PG&E outage map. The company estimates that power would be fully restored by evening.

As of Wednesday night, containment was 80 percent, according to the Marin County Fire Department. No homes have been burned.

Residents evacuated from the blaze were allowed to go home Tuesday night, authorities said.

Parts of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard and Arroyo Road that had been closed by the fire are now open.

Gwendolyn Wu is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: gwendolyn.wu@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @gwendolynawu
The cannabis industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the US. According to Marijuana Business Daily, the industry currently employees between 125,000  160,000 full-time employees. Now is a great time to kick off a career in the cannabis industry as the number of full-time employees is expected to triple over the next three years.

There are four verticals in the cannabis industry, that I would like to deep dive into, where people can work: Cultivation, Extraction, Retail, and Ancillary.

Related: 7 Hottest Jobs in the Cannabis Industry Right Now

The Cultivation vertical is responsible for the actual agronomy of cannabis, meaning the people physically growing the plant. The most popular jobs in the cultivation vertical include Director of Cultivation, Grower, and Trimmer.

The Extraction vertical is responsible for extracting oil out of cannabis to create products such as edibles, vapes, and topicals. The most popular jobs in the extraction vertical include Lab Director, Chemists, Research & Development Specialists, and outside sales representatives.

The Retail vertical is responsible for selling cannabis directly to patients and recreational users through dispensaries. The most popular jobs in the retail vertical include dispensary General Mangers, Inventory Managers, and Budtenders (sometimes referred to as patient consultants).

The Ancillary vertical of the cannabis industry is responsible for providing infrastructure to support cannabis businesses, while not actually cultivating, extracting, or selling cannabis. Some examples include technology, service, and training companies. The most popular jobs in the ancillary sector include software engineers, outside sales representatives, and customer service representatives.

Related: Business Ideas for Those Who Don't Want to 'Touch the Plant'

The best part about the cannabis industry is that outside of the some of the industry specific roles mentioned above, there are other opportunities for almost every type of skillset. Each of these businesses, whether cultivation, extraction, retail or ancillary, require finance, human resources, operations, marketing, IT, and more. I always say, keep your career, change your industry; whatever you are currently doing in another industry can likely be transitioned to the cannabis industry. The cannabis space is actively recruiting top talent from all different industries and welcomes diverse backgrounds and skillsets.

Three steps to landing your dream job in the cannabis industry:

1. Identify the Vertical You Want to Pursue

Remember: The key cannabis sectors are cultivation, extraction, retail, or ancillary. As a step to identify which vertical you would like to work in, I suggest attending cannabis industry trade-shows, conferences, and other networking events. I also suggest researching many companies in each vertical to better understand how they contribute to each vertical.

2. Narrow Your Search

Once you identify the vertical you would like to pursue, narrow your search down to companies you would like to pursue. Once you identify the companies that you believe would best suit you, begin applying to positions that your skillsets align with.

3. Network Like Crazy

Lastly, I recommend attending trade-shows, conferences, and networking events where the companies youre pursuing will be attending. It's a clear advantage when you meet your potential employer in person, and an event is a great place to do so.

Related: 10 Ways to Maximize Your Time at the Next Cannabis Conference

Related:

3 Steps to Landing a Job in the Cannabis Industry

Getting Your Resume Right is an Art. #5 Must Dos for Every Job Aspirant

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NORWALK  Councilman Ernie Dumas has asked Norwalk Housing Authority officials to update Washington Village residents on their status in the ongoing reconstruction of the public housing complex off Water Street in South Norwalk.

Dumas Call to Action is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 13, from 6 to 8 p.m., at the Housing Authoritys Choice Neighborhoods Initiative Office, 149 Water St. The office is in the second floor of the building.

Its about the tenants in Washington Village, because we want clarity with whats going on at Washington Village, said Dumas, a District B Democrat. Its about when theyre all going to be moved out and the other part of it is we dont want any other buildings torn down before everybody is out.

Dumas said health concerns exist amid the ongoing construction.

Norwalk Housing Authority Executive Director Adam Bovilsky will attend Thursday evenings meeting to answer questions and provide an update on the Washington Village transformation project, Dumas said.

Information will be provided on the status of current Washington Village residents, who expect to move into the new apartments, the actual number of residents who will move into those apartments and the demolition schedule and projected completion date for the third phase of the project, according to Dumas.

The Norwalk Housing Authority is rebuilding Washington Village under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Developments Choice Neighborhoods Program. The goal of the program is to build high-quality, mixed-income housing, to provide children and families with educational and other services, and to spur public and private investment.

Trinity Financial, the Boston-based developer charged with rebuilding Washington Village, has largely completed the first phase of the project with construction of 80 apartments in two buildings at 13 and 20 Day St. The Housing Authority hopes to start phase two  construction of a new 85-unit building on the south side of Raymond Street, between Day and Water streets  before the end of 2018.
MOSCOW - The men accused by Britain of trying to murder a former Russian spy are not criminals, President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday, reversing his government's previous claims that the names given to it by London were meaningless.

British prosecutors last week charged in absentia two men they identified as Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov with using a military-grade nerve agent in Britain against Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia.

"We know who they are, we found them. There is nothing criminal about them. They are just ordinary civilians," Putin told a session at an economic forum in Vladivostok.

He added with a smirk, "I hope they will soon appear and tell their own story."

Just a few hours later, Petrov spoke to state television, telling the Rossiya 1 channel that he would provide commentary next week.

British Prime Minister Theresa May put the blame for the attack squarely on Russia's military intelligence service on Sept. 5, adding that the upper echelons of the Russian state also could have been involved.

Britain says the two men flew from Moscow to London in early March, and then traveled to Salisbury in England and attempted to kill the Skripals. Police posted detailed surveillance camera images tracking the two men moving through crowded British transport hubs, allegedly carrying the poison.

At a news briefing Wednesday, May's spokesman reiterated Britain's position that Russia has provided no credible explanation for the events in Salisbury and has responded to the incident with "obfuscation and lies."

"I can see nothing to suggest that has changed," he said.

Dawn Sturgess, a 44-year-old British national, died in July from exposure to what police say was the same nerve agent that afflicted the Skripals, in a town just north of Salisbury.

The elder Skripal, who was a Russian intelligence agent who switched sides, as well as his daughter, survived the poisoning and now live in an undisclosed location.

Russia has consistently denied any role in either incident, accusing London of creating "nonsense."

In the hours following Putin's remarks, Russian media featured several people who alleged that the men have been wrongly accused. Skripal's niece Viktoria, who lives in Russia, told the Interfax news agency that "the real Alexander Petrov was not in the U.K. at that time."

Rossiya 1 featured an interview with Alexander Vasiliev, a former KGB officer who said the charged duo were not professionals, as they did not go through a third country on their mission, and were therefore not from Russian intelligence. "They are dressed like a lot of Russian men, but they are definitely not operating officers," he said.

Britain's allies have backed it in the case, with the United States and other European countries expelling hundreds of Russian diplomats suspected of being spies.

Following the latest revelations, Canada, France, Germany and the United States endorsed Britain's assessment that Russian military officers were involved and urged Russia to provide "full disclosure" of its Novichok nerve-agent program.
By Rain Liivoja, Associate Professor, TC Beirne School of Law, The University of Queensland

Flickr/US Pacific Fleet, CC BY-NC

For several years, civil society groups have been calling for a ban on what they call killer robots. Scores of technologists have lent their voice to the cause. Some two dozen governments now support a ban and several others would like to see some kind of international regulation.

Yet the latest talks on lethal autonomous weapons systems wrapped up last month with no agreement on a ban. The Group of Governmental Experts meeting, convened in Geneva under the auspices of the United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, did not even clearly proceed towards one. The outcome was a decision to continue discussions next year.

Those supporting a ban are not impressed. But the reasons for the failure to reach agreement on the way forward are complex.





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What to ban?

The immediate difficulty concerns articulating what technology is objectionable. The related, deeper question is about whether increased autonomy of weapons is always bad.

Many governments, including Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom, have said they do not have, and do not want, weapons wholly uncontrolled by humans. At the same time, militaries already own weapons that, to some degree, function without someone pulling the trigger.

Since the 1970s, navies have used so-called close-in weapon systems (CWIS). Once switched on, these weapons can automatically shoot down incoming rockets and missiles as the warships final line of defence. Phalanx, with its distinctively shaped radar dome, is probably the best-known weapon system of this kind.

Armies now deploy land-based variants of CWIS, generally known as C-RAM (short for counter-rocket, artillery and mortar), for the protection of military bases.

Other types of weapons also have autonomous functionality. For example, sensor-fuzed weapons, fired in the general direction of their targets, rely on sensors and preset targeting parameters to launch themselves at individual targets.

None of these weapons has stirred significant controversy.

The acceptable vs the unacceptable

What exactly is the dreaded fully autonomous weapon system that no-one has much appetite for? Attempts to answer this question over the past few years have not enjoyed success.

The supporters of a ban note  correctly  that the lack of a precise definition has not stopped arms control negotiations before. They point to the Convention on Cluster Munitions, signed in 2008, as an example.

The notion of a cluster munition  a large bomb that disperses small unguided bomblets  was clear enough from the outset. Yet the precise properties of the banned munition were agreed upon later in the process.

Unfortunately, the comparison between cluster munitions and autonomous weapons does not quite work. Though cluster munitions were a loose category to start, it was clear they could be categorised by technical criteria.

In the end, the Convention on Cluster Munitions draws a line between permissible and prohibited munitions by reference to things such as the number, weight and self-destruction capability of submunitions.

With regard to any similar rules on autonomous weapon systems, it is not only unclear where the line should to be drawn between what is and isnt permissible, it is also unclear what criteria to use for drawing it.

How much human control?

One way out of this thicket of definitions is to shift the focus from the weapon itself to the way the human interacts with the weapon. Rather than debate what to ban, governments should agree on the necessary degree of control humans should exercise. Austria, Brazil and Chile have suggested starting treaty negotiations precisely along those lines.

This change of perspective may well prove to be helpful. But the key problem is thereby transformed rather than resolved. The question now becomes: what kind of human involvement is needed and when must it occur?

A strict idea of human control would entail a human making a conscious decision about each individual target in real time. This approach would cast a shadow on the existing weapon systems mentioned earlier.

A strict reading of human control might also require the operator to have the ability to abort a weapon until the moment it hits a target. This would raise questions about even the simplest of weapons  rocks, spears, bullets or gravity bombs  which leave human hands at some point.

An alternative understanding of human control would consider the weapons broader design, testing, acquisition and deployment processes. It would admit, for example, that a weapon preprogrammed by a human is in fact controlled by a human. But some would consider programming to be a poor and unpalatable substitute for a human acting at the critical time.

In short, the furious agreement about the need to maintain human involvement hides a deep disagreement about what that means. This is not a mere semantic dispute. It is an important and substantive disagreement that defies an easy resolution.

The benefits of autonomy

Some governments, such as the United States, argue that autonomous functions in weapons can yield military and humanitarian benefits.





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Three ways robots can save lives in war





They suggest, for example, that reducing the manual control that a human has over a weapon, might increase its accuracy. This, in turn, could help avoid unintended harm to civilians.

Others find even the notion of benefits in this context to be too much. During the last Group of Governmental Experts meeting, several Latin American governments, most prominently Costa Rica and Cuba, opposed any reference to potential benefits. In their view, autonomy in weapon systems only poses risks and challenges, which need to be mitigated through further regulation.

This divide reveals an underlying uncertainty about the aims of international law in armed conflict. For some, desirable outcomes  surgical use of force, reduced collateral damage, and so on  prevail. For others, the instruments of warfare must (sometimes) be restricted no matter the outcomes.

The next step

Supporters of the ban suggest that a handful of powerful states, particularly the US and Russia, are blocking further negotiations.

This does not seem entirely accurate. Disagreements about the most appropriate way forward are much broader and quite fundamental.

Addressing the challenges of autonomous weapons is therefore not just a matter of getting a few recalcitrant governments to fall in line. Much less is it about verbally abusing them into submission.

If there is to be further regulation, and if that regulation is to be effective, the different viewpoints must be taken seriously  even if one disagrees with them. A quick fix is unlikely and, in the long term, probably counterproductive.

Rain Liivoja currently holds a Branco Weiss Fellowship, administered by ETH Zurich. He has served as an expert on the Estonian delegation to the Group of Governmental Experts on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems. This article reflects his personal views.

Originally published in The Conversation.
A large stretch of U.S. 281 remained impassable for hours Wednesday after an 18-wheeler rolled over and caught fire near Hildebrand, closing the portion of highway between downtown and the Quarry for most of the day.

Traffic was blocked for northbound vehicles at St. Mary's Street. Southbound lanes were closed at Jones Maltsberger and officials urged motorists to choose alternate routes.

The Texas Department of Transportation announced just after 10:30 p.m. that all north and southbound lanes were re-opened.

READ ALSO: Flash flooding, up to 5 inches of rain possible this weekend in San Antonio

Crews spent much of the afternoon evaluating the structural integrity of a sign above the highway to determine when the road could be reopened. TxDOT spokesman Hernan Rozemberg said at about 4:30 p.m. crews determined there was sufficient damage to the overhead sign bridge and it needed to be replaced.

The signs in that spot will be missing for a number of weeks until TxDOT officials can contract the job to another company.

"That itself will likely take a matter of weeks, but the roadway will be open." Rozemberg said. "Tonight we're just taking it down to ensure people's safety."

The driver of the big rig was traveling northbound on U.S. 281 near Hildebrand at about 11:30 a.m. when he lost control on a curve in the highway, smashed into a median and struck two light poles, one of which hit a vehicle in the southbound lanes.

READ ALSO: Deputies lock down Bexar County Jail after bomb threat call

Police said the big rig rolled over in the crash. Its contents, believed to be plastic or cotton materials, then caught fire.

Another driver pulled over, broke the 18-wheeler's driver side window, and pulled the truck driver out before the flames spread, according to police.

No one was injured in the crash. The driver was able to walk away and tell police about the moments before he smashed into the median.

"Right now we're still investigating the exact cause [of the crash]," San Antonio Police Officer Doug Greene said, "but we think that the slick conditions and speed may have been factors."

Authorities asked all drivers traveling to or from the downtown area seek alternate routes. Northbound travelers could take Interstate 35 to Loop 410 or Loop 1604, and westbound travelers were advised to take U.S. 90 to get to their destination.

"The long way is probably going to be the quicker way," Greene said.

Text "NEWS" to 77453 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com

Caleb Downs is a crime reporter for mySA.com. Read more of his stories here.| cdowns@mysa.com | Twitter: @calebjdowns
A man is dead after he was struck by a car Tuesday night on the North Side.

San Antonio Police Department Sgt. Marcial Luevano said the incident occurred around 9:13 p.m. in the 9100 block of Perrin Beitel Road.
Kavoucia Davis, a 21-year-old aspiring rapper from San Antonio, gave himself six months to make it in the music industry. Music was his passion and he had been writing songs since he was 14, but the pressures of life were beginning to weigh on him.

Davis, who went by the stage name Party XOX, shot four high-quality music videos in the span of a few weeks. It was work he was proud of, and his family could see he was happy. The videos were his last shot at becoming a rapper. He was confident they would earn him the recognition he deserved.

But on Sept. 4, he was found shot to death inside his girlfriend's car at an apartment complex on San Antonio's Northeast Side. Now, his music videos serve as some of the last testaments to his life.

"I've seen one of them," said Davis' mother, Shamalnic Smith, through tears. "It tore me up yesterday. Even though I'm glad that he had been focusing on his art and getting to do what he loved, it's just hard to know he won't get to continue on with it."

RELATED: 'I just want justice': More than 40 percent of homicides in first half of 2018 remain unsolved

In the week following his killing, police have released few details about the investigation. A preliminary report says only that officers were called to the Avistar at the Parkway apartments at 2:30 a.m. for a gunshot wound victim. Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene.

A sergeant told reporters that night that police had not received any calls for a shooting in the area. They indicated heavy rain might have masked the gunshots.

The Bexar County Medical Examiner ruled his death a homicide from multiple gunshot wounds.

Davis was only discovered at the end of a frantic, three-hour search conducted by his family. After he didn't return home from running errands, Davis' girlfriend notified his parents, Shamalnic and Sean, and they began searching for him. Shamalnic was eventually able to access his iCloud account and track his phone to the apartment complex on Perrin Beitel, where his girlfriend found him.

"The minute I get ready to call the cops, she calls back screaming, just screaming," Shamalnic Smith said. "It was him."

Police have not provided any information on potential suspects, but homicide detectives continue to investigate the shooting. The Smiths are now left hoping their son's killer is captured soon.

In the first half of 2018, more than 40 percent of all homicides in San Antonio went unsolved, including that of another Alamo City rapper, Christopher Polk, who was ambushed and shot to death shortly after leaving a club on the Northeast Side in February.

San Antonio Police Department spokeswoman Michelle Ramos told mySA.com in August that the unsolved homicide rate is not a static figure, and that as investigators collect evidence and follow up with potential witnesses, more arrests could be made, and more homicides solved.

RELATED: Hit team ambushes, kills local rapper after leaving show at a popular San Antonio hip hop club

"What people don't realize is that these are very in depth investigations," she said. "Many of them take several months. We want to build the best case we can before we turn it over to the DA. A lot of people watch 20/20 or CSI and hear about these cases solved in 24 hours, 48 hours. It's not like that."

But for the families of homicide victims, such patience is difficult. Sean and Shamalnic Smith struggled to hold back tears when speaking of their lost son and all the lost potential.

"He was about to blow up," Sean Smith said through tears. "He was on his way."

Davis' younger brothers are also struggling with the loss.

Nor is grief the only emotion Davis' parents are struggling to handle. The Smiths both said they feel a new, and more frightening, responsibility to keep their remaining sons safe, especially with Davis' killer still at large.

"The mama bear instinct is kicking in," Shamalnic Smith said. "I want to keep them safe. I couldn't protect Kavoucia, but I just have to make sure nothing happens to them."

Text "NEWS" to 77453 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com

Caleb Downs is a crime reporter for mySA.com. Read more of his stories here.| cdowns@mysa.com | Twitter: @calebjdowns
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice is looking for a fugitive with ties to San Antonio.

Patricio Ruiz, 59, has previously lived in Del Valle, San Antonio and Mississippi, according to a tweet from the department. He is wanted for failing to comply with his parole requirements.
A San Antonio landlord is facing a criminal charge after he allegedly threatened a police detective more than once.

Marcos Sanchez, 42, was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of retaliation, according to jail records.

On Monday, the detective was called to the 100 block of Woley Street to help a tenant get his belongings, according to Sanchez's arrest affidavit.

RELATED: Man fatally struck by car on North Side road

Sanchez, the landlord, became upset when he saw the police officer, according to the affidavit.

"I'm going to get a gun and f***ing blast you right now," Sanchez allegedly told the officer.

Sanchez locked himself in his home, but later saw the detective again through the window, according to the affidavit.

"Didn't I warn you," Sanchez allegedly yelled at the officer. "Now I'm going to shoot you in the f***ing face!"

The threats were recorded on the detective's body camera, according to the affidavit.

Sanchez, who was also charged with possession of marijuana, had his bail set at $50,800.
Thirty people were arrested or indicted on child sex crime charges in August in Bexar County, according to records obtained by mySA.com.

The charges include indecency with a child, sexual assault of a child and aggravated sexual assault of a child.
WASHINGTON  The House going Republican-to-Democrat in the off-year election is old news  Dog bites man, as we say in journalism. But the Senate also going Democratic? Definitely man bites dog.

Yet the cooler heads of politics in Washington say its entirely possible. Dems would have to run the table  winning all 10 Democratic incumbent re-election contests in states that went for President Trump in 2016. And also they would have to pick off at least two seats from Republicans.

A few months ago, that seemed a tall order. Now? Not a slam dunk, but inside the realm of reasonable.

I hope when the smoke clears, well still have a majority, a downbeat Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Tuesday, according to the Washington Post.

If it happens, the reason why will hardly be a mystery. President Donald Trumps approval rating is low and going lower, while Democratic-voter motivation is gaining altitude.

Connecticuts Senate contest between Sen. Chris Murphy and GOP challenger Matthew Corey isnt exactly a bellwether. But the prospect of Democratic retaking of the Senate does beg the question of whats in it for Murphy, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, and bluish Connecticut?

Whether Republican or Democrat, the move up to chairman often is a game of musical chairs. It all depends not only on how senior the senator is, but the choices those ahead in the pecking order make.

Kind of like being a kid in the candy aisle  if you chose Snickers, its unlikely Mom will also let you have Milky Way.

Murphy, Connecticuts junior senator and a longshot 2020 presidential contender, would love to be chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee or, heck, Senate Appropriations. Hes a relatively junior member, so ascension to No. 1 is not likely in the cards.

But he could become chairman of the Foreign Relations subcommittee with jurisdiction over Europe and regional security cooperation  a good perch for robust resistance to Russia and Vladimir Putin. In the GOP senate, he is the subcommittees senior Democrat.

If Murphy wins musical chairs for the Appropriations military construction subcommittee chairmanship, expect the spigots to open for Electric Boat, Pratt & Whitney, Sikorsky and the multitude of military subcontractors in Connecticut. Its hard to imagine the gush being any greater than it is now under pro-military Trump. But you never know.

For Blumenthal, the states former attorney general and U.S. attorney, chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee likely would be the dream job. But much like Murphy, Blumenthal has a long line of Democrats ahead of him and would have to be exceedingly fortunate in musical chairs to win any committee leadership post.

A more likely scenario for Blumenthal is chairmanship of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation subcommittee on consumer protection and product safety.

Blumenthals interest in these subjects borders on obsession, dating back to his 20 years as Connecticut attorney general. Whether its Takata air bags, faulty GM ignition switches or cracked and crumbling Connecticut home foundations laced with pyrrhotite, Blumenthal is out front in finger-pointing and legislative remedying. And, no surprise, he currently is the top Democrat on the Republican-led subcommittee.

Not all fun and Game

One footnote from the summer: Given whats been going on in Washington these days, you wouldnt think Rep. Jim Himes would be all that interested in a fantasy-land vacation.

But since he doubles as Good Dad to teenage daughters Emma and Linley, he authorized and appropriated a family vacation in Dubrovnik on the coast of Croatia.

Readers who are fans of Game of Thrones will recognize Dubrovnik as the backdrop for the mythic Kings Landing. The historic walled-in port city evidently didnt need much dolling up in order to double as the fortified stronghold of the Lannister family.

For those who have seen the series and are passionate about it, a visit to Dubrovnik will become a beautiful deja vu because of the way in which it was so well integrated into the setting of the series, was the description on the website kingslandingdubrovnik.com.

It was a big hit with the Himes teens, said Dad, noting his daughters over-the-top GOT fandom.

But the trip was not all pleasure and no business. Himes, a House Intel member, split off for a congressional trip to the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Estonia, which sits astride Russia.

(And President Trump, if youre reading this, think you could get that name changed to American English? After all, whos been paying NATOs bills all these years, right?)

dan@hearstdc.com
The embattled Zimbabwe Electoral Commission chairperson Priscilla Chigumba yesterday survived an assasination attempt when an unruly mobs believed to be opposition supporters heckled her at in Harares affluent Western suburbs Sam Levy Village where she had gone for a massage.

Her bodyguards were overpowered by a hostile crowd of thugs wielding weapons and shouting threats of assasination and obscenities at the helpless judge. Her bodyguards had to seek help from ZRP Borrowdale whose Reaction team swiftly arrived and dispersed the mob.

A visibly shaken Chigumba was quickly whisked away in her brand new SUV.

Chigumba reportedly lost a pair of earrings and her handbag during the scuffle.

The mob accused the judge of rigging elections and wrecking homes.

Police spokesperson Charity Charamba couldnt be reached for comment.

There was also database at the National Assembly yesterday as opposition MDC Alliance legislators heckled and booed Chief Justice Luke Malaba, calling him a thief after he entered the House to swear in returning Speaker Jacob Mudenda and other presiding officers.

Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) chairperson Justice Priscilla Chigumba, who was in attendance in the National Assembly, suffered the same fate until she was whisked out of Parliament by deputy Clerk of Parliament, Hellen Dingani.

Malaba led a full Constitutional Court bench that unanimously ruled against a petition brought by MDC Alliance leader and presidential candidate in the July 30 election, Nelson Chamisa, and confirmed President Emmerson Mnangagwas victory.

When he entered the House clad in his full judicial robes for the swearing-in ceremony, MDC Alliance MPs burst into song, attacking the countrys top judge, while Zanu PF MPs hit back by shouting ED Pfee. Malaba was visibly shaken.

Mudenda was retained as Speaker, with Tsitsi Gezi elected as his deputy in elections conducted by Zec.

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One of Nigeria's richest men, Femi Otedola, has reportedly accepted the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) offer to run for the Lagos gubernatorial election in 2019.

According to a tweet by Dele Momodu on Tuesday, September 11, he claimed Otedola personally confirmed it to him.

READ ALSO: APC reacts to purchase of nomination form by convicted Joshua Dariye

Otedola is likely going to square up against Governor Akinwunmi Ambode who has declared intention to run for a second term in office.

Legit.ng had reported that Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos expressed interest to run for a second term as governor of the state on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The governor made the official declaration on Monday, September 10, in Alausa.

Ambode recalled how he was called upon by Lagosians to come and serve the state four years ago and thanked them for their support.

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He said: In the last three and a half years, I have fulfilled my promises to you to make Lagos work for all. With your support, we have made Lagos a better place and changed the face of our State. I did not do it alone; we did it together, because you believed.

Our state has remained steadily prosperous because of your positive outlook. I urge you to always stay positive in your personal and communal lives and continue to aspire to great things."

Should President Buhari seek reelection in 2019? (Nigerian Street Interview) - on Legit.ng TV:

Source: Legit.ng
- A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Perekeme Kpodoh, has alleged political persecution

- Some of his friends said Kpodoh is suffering from being vocal against the administration of Governor Seriake Dickson

- They also said they would be forced to reveal secrets about the Bayelsa state governor

Friends of Perekeme Kpodoh, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Bayelsa state have alleged that his continued detention is an act of political vendetta.

George Fubara, chairman of the committee of friends and its secretary, Chidi Uchena, said hat they would expose a lot of things if Kpodoh, is not freed.

Kpodoh, according to them, is suffering from being vocal against the administration of Governor Seriake Dickson.

READ ALSO: APC reacts to purchase of nomination form by convicted Joshua Dariye

The governor got provoked after Kpodoh released a statement asking the governor to reduce his frequent traveling and face good governance in Bayelsa.

Kpodoh also got the governor angry when he demanded that the governor should respond to an allegation by former governor of the state, Timipre Sylva, on how his administration came about an alleged debt profile hanging on its neck, the group added.

Going further, they claimed that the APC chieftain was robed into a case that had long been trashed.

But because the state government now needed something to pin Kpodoh with, it went to dig up a dead issue and with the help of the police, ensured the detention of the politician.

Let us not even forget that the crime is a bailable if that was truly the underlying issue here. But the level of connivance against the former special adviser on security to the Bayelsa state government calls for concern.

When this same man was attacking perceived enemies of the government, officials clapped for him and hobnobbed with him. Now that he decided to say some things he thinks are not alright about the government, he is being victimised, the group said.

Consequently, they called on President Muhammadu Buhari, the national security adviser, the international community, human rights organizations, the media, the Nigeria police force as well as the national judicial council to intervene on the issue because the life of the APC chieftain is currently being threatened, PM news reports.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng had reported that Tiwei Orunimighe, a former chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa, defected from the ruling party to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) alongside no fewer than 5,000 supporters in the south-south state.

Orunimighe defected to the opposition party alongside a serving lawmaker in the Bayelsa state House of Assembly, Watson Belemote and ex-militant-turned politician, Africanus Ukparasia.

News Nigeria Today: Will Senators, Lawmakers Defection from APC Change Power in 2019?- on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- Unconfirmed reports have filtered in that Governor Ambode is facing impeachment

- The impeachment is allegedly connected with the governors second term bid and the reported rift between him and the APC leader, Tinubu

- Tinubu and local government chairmen loyal to him are said to be backing another aspirant for the states governorship seat in 2019

A day after Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos state officially declared his bid for a second term, reports have filtered in that there is a threat to impeach the governor.

According to The Cable, the impeachment threat is not unconnected to an alleged ongoing rift between Ambode and the All Progressives Congress (APC) national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

Recall that Ambode had on Monday, September 10, obtained his expression of interest and nomination forms at the APC national secretariat in Abuja.

READ ALSO: APC speaks on purchase of nomination form by convicted Joshua Dariye

Quoting anonymous sources, The Cable, on Tuesday, September 11 claimed that 57 council chairmen who are loyal to Tinubu have met and pledged their support to his alleged preferred candidate, Jide Sanwo-Olu.

The sources also allegedly said that the governor may be impeached if he does not drop his second term bid.

Legit.ng gathers that Ambode now faces the task of beating Sanwo-Olu and another APC stalwart, Obafemi Hamzat, in the primary.

According to the newspaper, council chairmen are the most influential grassroots mobilisers under the direct primary system adopted by the APC to pick governorship candidates. Most members of the Lagos House of Assembly are also loyal to Tinubu.

Meeting is over. Ambode is out. Jide Sanwo-Olu is the new governor of Lagos. All 57 local government chairmen have signed his form. Its over, The Cable quoted a source.

The newspaper further quoted an ally of Tinubu, James Odunmbaku, as saying Sanwo-Olu is the incoming governor of Lagos.

Sanwo-Olu, who has been suggested as Tinubus joker, served as a commissioner under Babatunde Fashola. He is the current managing director of Lagos State Development and Property Development Corporation.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng had previously reported that one of Nigeria's richest men, Femi Otedola, had allegedly accepted the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) offer to run for the Lagos gubernatorial election in 2019.

Dele Momodu in a tweet on Tuesday, September 11, claimed Otedola personally confirmed it to him.

Ambode's second term is shaking, says Lagos woman - On Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- The race for party tickets in Lagos state All Progressives Congress (APC) is getting interesting by the day

- This is especially as the party in the state seems to have been split along factions

- One race that is generating excitement is that of the Lagos East senatorial contest

The race for party tickets in the Lagos chapter of the APC is getting interesting by the day, especially as the party in the state seems to have been split along factions.

One race that is generating interest within the party is that of the Lagos East senatorial contest.

This is due to the entrance into the race by a very prominent member of Lagos state House of Assembly, Honourable Adebayo Osinowo aka Pepper.

Legit.ng gathered that Osinowo has commenced a "coast-to-coast" consultations with party stakeholders and opinion leaders in the area.

READ ALSO: Why l defected with Shekarau to APC - Senator Bello

He will, however, battle with the incumbent; Senator Gbenga Ashafa, an APC aspirant to the House of Representatives in the 2015 elections; Olanrewaju Sanusi and a former commissioner of public transportation in the state, Chief Lanre Razak.

The odds however seems to favour Osinowo, as he is said to be a kingmaker in the House and was largely responsible for installing former speaker, Adeyemi Ikuforiji and the sitting speaker, Mudashiru Ajayi Obasa.

The consultation according to the senatorial aspirant, will enable him to seek advice from major stakeholders, in and outside the APC, which could be pivotal to winning the primaries and also cementing a long-term relationship with his constituents.

Osinowo was accompanied on the trip by some serving and past government officials, top party leaders and hundreds of supporters.

The train's first port of call was to meet Alhaji Busura Alebiosu, a member of the Governor Advisory Council, at his Mende residence, Maryland.

The party leader described the visit as timely and pivotal, while offering his prayers for the success of Osinowo's senatorial bid in the APC primary scheduled for October.

The team subsequently moved to meet the senatorial leader of the party in the district, Alhaji Akanni Seriki at his Alapere residence.

Speaking, Seriki eulogized the aspirant for his stabilizing role in the Lagos state House of Assembly, while urging the electorate to support him, being a seasoned and committed politician who could pursue the interest of Lagos with vigour in the National Assembly as a stabilizer.

The train concluded his consultation for the day, with a visit to the Magodo home of Senator Anthony Adefuye, a former senator who represented the district in the Third Republic, where he was well received and commended for his respect for elders and the people.

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Speaking to journalists at end of the visits, the senatorial aspirant asserted that the consultations have imbued him with some fresh ideas that will enhance the provision of effective, visionary and purposeful leadership when he resumes as a senator.

He, therefore, called on the good people of the district to remain supportive of his candidacy, promising to raise the bar of representation beyond the expectations of all and sundry.

Meanwhile, the battle for tickets in the APC, worsened on Monday, September 10, as different factions in the party across the country took battle positions ahead of the partys primaries holding later this month.

The war cries were especially raised in Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Rivers, Cross River, Delta and Yobe states.

Nigeria News Today: No Lawmaker is in the House of Assembly for the People | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- President Muhammadu Buhari received the report on the audit of recovered funds

- The president said the funds will be used to address the country's socio-sconomic problems

- He said his administration will not allow embezzlement of public funds

President Muhammadu Buhari says his administration will ensure judicious utilisation of recovered stolen public funds to address the nations socio-economic problems.

The president, who stated this when he received the report of the 3-man committee set up to audit recovered funds at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Tuesday, September 11, said loopholes for stealing public funds must be blocked.

He said that his administration would not allow the wanton diversion and embezzlement of public funds into private pockets.

READ ALSO: Mass defection looms as 23 PDP reps set to dump party for APC

According to him, the federal government will continue to take all necessary measures to deprive looters of public assets access to the fruits of their crimes.

It is in keeping with the anti-corruption policy of this government, and in line with global best practices that this committee was set-up to review our asset recovery and management practices in order to evolve a proper management, transparency and accountability culture in the management of recovered assets.

Given our history of impunity, much of Nigerias wealth has historically been squandered or stolen; leaving us with inadequate infrastructure for our growing population and economy.

Asset Recovery is thus one of the essential tools for fighting corruption and we must therefore take issues of managing such recovered assets very seriously," he added.

To this end, Buhari assured Nigerians that the findings and recommendations of the committee would be carefully examined and given due consideration with a view to implementing the recommendations.

According to the president, the nations asset recovery and management system will in future be transparently, effectively and efficiently managed; and government will set-out a fresh template of public accountability in the country.

However, a key tool that will revolutionize our asset recovery and management architecture is the Proceeds of Crimes Bill, which is currently awaiting passage by the National Assembly.

Once the Bill is passed and assented, many of the challenges facing our asset recovery and management practice will be adequately taken care of as the Bill addresses most of the challenges facing effective asset recovery and management in Nigeria," he said.

Buhari, therefore, enjoined the National Assembly to take necessary steps to pass the bill.

He reassured Nigerians that his administration would continue to keep faith with its promise, and would remain committed until Nigeria triumphs over the evil of corruption, attain a prosperous economic status and surmounts all her security challenges.

According to the president, corruption constitutes a threat to the well-being, national security, and economy of Nigeria. He thanked members of the committee for performing their duties diligently.

In his remarks at the event, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation Abubakar Malami disclosed that the committee had so far recovered N769 billion within the period under review.

According to him, N13.8 billion was also recovered from tax evaders in May 2018 while government paid N439.2 million to about 14 whistle blowers who gave specific information on tax evasion.

He added that N3.8 million, 378 million dollars 27,800 pounds were equally recovered from public officials in the period under review.

The chairman of the committee, Olufemi Lijadu, expressed optimism that the findings of the committee and its recommendations would assist the government in its efforts toward ensuring that all assets are accounted for and managed in an accurate, transparent and logical manner.

He said the report of the committee was in five volumes, saying Volume I is the Main Report which contains the committees findings and recommendations. Volume II contains the detailed schedule of cash recoveries.

According to him, Volume III contains detailed schedule of non-cash recoveries and Volume IV contains correspondence with auditees while Volume V contains presentations and memoranda from auditees and professional organizations.

Lijadu said the agencies covered by the audit were, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

Others were Pension Transitional Arrangement Department (PTAD), Federal Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Justice, Office of the National Security Adviser and the Department of State Services

Meanwhile, the federal government has warned that states owing their workers salaries and other arrears may have problem having their share from the $2.69 billion Paris Club Refund (PCR), Punch reports.

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This is contained in the statement made by the director of information, federal ministry of finance, Hassan Dodo, on Tuesday, September 11.

Legit.ng gathers that Hassan gave the assurance that another phase payment of the fund will be made available to the states. He also gave the condition that states owing salaries may not easily have their ways in the funds.

Street Gist: What Are You Proud of As a Nigerian? | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit.ng
- A senator and some other politicians have defected to the ruling APC from the PDP

- The politicians officially left the opposition party on Tuesday, September 11

- Also, among those who defected to APC is a former deputy governor of the state and a retired deputy inspector general of police

Senator Eme Ekaette, representing Akwa Ibom South senatorial zone and former state deputy governor, Valerie Ebe, on Tuesday, September 11, defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that others who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC are retired deputy inspector general of police, Udom Ekpoudom, and former chairman of Eka local government, Francis Ikpon.

The state chairman of APC, Ini Okpobodi, received the defectors at a solidarity district rally and reception held for Obong Nsima Ekere at Eket. Okpobodi said at the occasion that the PDP had virtually collapsed in the state.

READ ALSO: I followed Shekarau to APC to add value to the party - Senator Bello

On behalf of Akwa Ibom APC, I stand as chairman to receive the latest members of our party in their hundreds in the state. They are here ably led by former deputy governor of Akwa Ibom, Valerie Ebe and Distinguished Senator Eme Ekaette," he said.

Okpobodi handed over the defectors to the national chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole, represented by the national vice-chairman of APC south south, Hillary Eta.

Eta expressed delight at the defection of the former PDP chieftains into APC fold, describing the defectors as `wonderful Nigerians.

I am the luckiest national vice chairman in APC because I am superintending over the fast growing people in the party," he said.

He explained that APC started with one senator in the south south but today the party has eight senators of Federal Republic of Nigeria in the south south.

Not too long from now, I promise you, we are going to have a majority of senators of South South from the APC in the National Assembly," Eta said.

READ ALSO: 2019: Fayinka joins race for House of Reps ticket as National Assembly aspirants rise in Lagos APC

He said that when President Buhari-led government took over power in 2015, things were difficult but today things are getting better.

It is not yet completely good but it is getting better," he added.

He urged Akwa Ibom people to vote massively for President Buhari during the 2019 general elections in the state, saying that the present administration was not corrupt.

I receive to this party, Her Excellency, Valerie Ebe and Senator Eme Ekaette and others to APC in the state.

Ebe said: "I saw that without changing to APC, we will be doing serious mistakes.

The former deputy governor said that the government of PDP in the state had not performed well.

We turn around and say if we are not members of the ruling party we will lose out at the national level. We have been suffering in the PDP-led government in the state. So we say so long as we have APC government led by President Buhari we are fine," she said.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that a former Senate minority leader, Godswil Akpabio defected from the PDP to the ruling APC.

Akpabio officially defected to the ruling party on Wednesday, August 8, at the Ikot-Ekpene township stadium in Akwa Ibom.

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Some of those present at the defection ceremony were the national chairman of the party, Adams Oshiomhole; Senate majority leader, Ahmed Lawan; national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; and Nigeria's minister of information and culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

The Next President of Nigeria. Who Will Win the 2019 Elections? | on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit Newspaper
- An Ikeja high court has ordered an accelerated hearing of the case against popular kidnapper Evans

- The court also said no further delays would be tolerated in his ongoing trial

- The judge over the matter also ordered a trial within trial on the case

Justice Hakeem Oshodi of an Ikeja high court, Lagos on Tuesday warned counsel to Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike alias Evans that no further delays would be tolerated in his ongoing trial.

Justice Oshodi gave the warning following a 30-minute verbal exchange he had with Chinonye Obiagwu, Evans new defence counsel, who had prayed for an adjournment to study the case file.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Obiagwu is one of the 31 newly-shortlisted Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) for induction on September 24.

READ ALSO: PDP suffers huge blow in Akwa Ibom as Senator, former deputy governor, retired DIG join Akpabio in APC

Justice Oshodi said: I cannot come from home during vacation to be told that the matter will not go on for one excuse or the other.

Counsel should desist from filing applications targeting at stalling trial, parties must get their witnesses ready, so that justice will be served within reasonable time frame."

NAN reported that Evans had on various occasions hired two defence counsel; Olukoya Ogungbeje and Noel Brown to represent him. The changes in defence counsel had caused delays in the trial.

Previous court proceedings held on June 26, had been put on hold due to Brown taking over from Ogungbeje who was Evans first defence counsel at the onset of his trial.

Evans is standing trial alongside Uche Amadi, Ogechi Uchechukwu, Chilaka Ifeanyi, Okwuchukwu Nwachukwu and Victor Aduba.

The six accused were arraigned on August 30, 2017 on two-count charge of conspiracy and kidnapping of the Chief Executive Officer of Maydon Pharm. Limited, Donatus Dunu, from whose family they allegedly collected 223,000 Euro (N100 million) as ransom.

READ ALSO: I followed Shekarau to APC to add value to the party - Senator Bello

Evans and his co-defendants have pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Earlier during proceedings, a witness, Inspector Idowu Haruna of the Intelligence Response Team, that arrested the defendants, had told the court how the accused were arrested.

Haruna who was led in evidence by Adebayo Haroun, the state prosecuting counsel, told the court that the statements of the defendants were not obtained under duress but rather in a conducive environment.

Following Harunas revelation of how the statement were obtained, the prosecuting officer urged the court to admit the statements as evidence.

Obiagwu, however opposed the admissibility of the statements on the premise that they were obtained under duress prompting Justice Oshodi to order a trial-within-trial.

During the trial-within-trial, Haruna told the court that when Dunu, Evans alleged victim escaped from the kidnappers den, he was brought to the Anti-Kidnapping Department, Ikeja and was later taken to the then Lagos state police commissioner, Fatai Owoseni.

Owoseni then ordered a team to move to the defendants hideout at Igando, a suburb of Lagos. On getting to the house, the abductors had fled the scene with their little possessions but the police team found some ammunition in the house which the defendants left behind," he said.

Haruna revealed that during interrogation, Evans had alleged that he enjoyed the services of some officers of the Nigerian Army during their kidnap operations.

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Whenever they were going on their operation, they put on army uniform to camouflage as army officers and disguise in order to deceive their prey.

Two army officers involved were later arrested and taken before their superiors at Abati Barracks for disciplinary actions. They were dismissed and taken back to the police for further disciplinary action," Haruna said.

The case was adjourned until October 26 for continuation of the trial-within-trial.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that Evans had provided valuable information to security operatives that has led to the arrest of more suspected kidnap kingpins.

Investigation also showed that Evans criminal syndicate extended to South Africa and that he had a fake Ghanaian passport.

Moshood Jimoh who is a police spokesperson revealed that Evans confession has led to the arrest of bigger kingpins who are living larger than him.

Should Evans the kidnapper be jailed or employed by the Government instead? - on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- Professor Mahmood Yakubu of INEC hints that the commission may be forced to shift the dates for the 2019 general elections

- Yakubu laments the alleged threats to violence by politicians ahead of the exercise as he cites a part of the electoral act that empowers it

- He also says INEC will partner with security agencies to ensure the exercise is successful across the country

The chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, has reportedly hinted that the body might be forced to suspend the 2019 general election following threats to violence by some politicians in the country.

Leadership reports that Yakubu, a professor, stated this in reaction to some disturbing videos of political campaigns in the social media in which some politicians are seen threatening to shed blood.

Yakubu who reportedly spoke when he received briefing from the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Osun state on the progress and the preparedness of the forthcoming governorship election, noted that recent developments and signs in the countrys political landscape calls for greater vigilance.

READ ALSO: Mass defection looms as 23 PDP reps set to dump party for APC

He asked politicians to conduct themselves in a peaceful manner.

The INEC chairman further observed that election can only hold when there is a secured environment.

In fact, the electoral act, especially section 26, empowers the commission to suspend election on account of violence or threat of violence.

So, we will continue to partner and continue to work with the security agencies as we approach the 2019 general election.

Our meetings are going to become more frequent and regular, he said while explaining that the synergy between the electoral body and security agencies is crucial for the 2019 polls in order to secure the environment for the conduct of the elections.

Elections cannot be conducted in an atmosphere of rancor. So, we share this great responsibility with the security agencies. Good election is good for this country. Bad election is a recipe for disaster; we dont pray for it.

So, let us continue to work together to anticipate the challenges and address the challenges because we have the capacity to do so.

The nation expects we should do so and once we do so, there will be fewer problems during elections.

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We see statements by some of the political actors captured and circulated nationwide via social media platforms. It is something that the security agencies need to put an eye on because if we allow this to pester, it will encourage those who may wish to do some destructive actions or feel encouraged to do so.

But if we take immediate action, I think we may be able to stop them and further secure the environment for us to conduct free, fair and credible elections, he added.

Legit.ng earlier reported that a faction of the All Progressives Congress (APC) led by Senator Magnus Abe in Rivers state on Monday, September 10, officially adopted direct primaries for electing candidates as against the indirect mode adopted by the Ojukaye Flag-Amachree-led faction in the state.

David Mark Is Running For President On Nigeria Election 2019 - Nigeria News Today | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit Nigeria
Outgoing governor of Ekiti state, Ayodele Fayose, has written to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) notifying the agency that he will make himself available on Tuesday, October 16, 2018.

Various reports quoted a letter personally signed by Governor Fayose, in which he said he was notifying the agency of his decision to make himself available to clarify issues or answer questions within my knowledge.

READ ALSO: Mass defection looms as 23 PDP reps set to dump party for APC

In the letter dated September 20, 2018 and addressed to Ibrahim Magu, the chairman of the EFCC, Fayose said his desire to submit to the commission was hinged on several and serial actions of your commission for some time now, including but not limited to freezing of my accounts and attempts to secure temporary forfeiture of my properties.

The Nigerian Tribune reports that the Fayose said these were indicative of the commissions desire to have me clarify some issues or answer some questions but for the immunity I enjoy under Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution as the sitting governor of Ekiti state.

I wish to inform you that my term of office pursuant to which I enjoy immunity against investigation and prosecution under the above provision shall lapse by effluxion of time on Monday, 15th October, 2018.

As a responsible citizen of our great country, who believes in the rule of law, I wish to inform you of my decision to make myself available in your office on Tuesday, 16th October 2018, at 1pm to clarify issues or answer questions within my knowledge.

Kindly confirm the suitability of the above date or indicate by return, the commissions convenient date.

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The report said a stamp on a copy of the letter, entitled notification of my decision to make myself available in your office to clarify issue(s) or answer questions on issues within my knowledge, indicated that it was received in the office of the EFCC chairman on Tuesday, September 11, 2018.

Legit.ng earlier reported that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission said the outgoing governor of Ekiti state, Ayodele Fayose, will face criminal trial at the Federal High Court in Ado Ekiti at the expiration of his tenure.

The anti-graft agency, made the a statement on Monday, July 16, when reacting to condemnation that trailed a tweet on its official Twitter handle that it would resurrect a poultry scandal involving the governor.

Legit.ng also reported that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission was set to arrest Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti state over the Integrated Poultry Project/Biological Concepts Limited N1.3 billion fraud case.

Nigeria Latest News: 2019 Presidency - 'Why Nigerians Must Vote For Atiku' | Legit.ng TV

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- Manpower has been deployed by the Nigeria Police Force to gather intelligence on politicians planning to use money to induce voters during the Osun state guber poll

- Abayomi Shogunle explained that the intelligence gathering would enable the police prevent vote buying

- Shogunle warned officers of the force to refrain from fraternizing with politicians or collecting bribe

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has deployed officers in Osun state to gather intelligence on the strategies politicians are planning to use to induce voters ahead of the governorship election on September 22, The Punch reports.

Legit.ng gathered that Abayomi Shogunle, the head, public complaint rapid response unit of the police, said this in Osogbo on Tuesday, September 11, during his visit to the correspondents chapel of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Osun state.

Shogunle also called on the people of the state to report any policeman engaged in professional misconduct of violation of human rights before, during and after the election, saying the police were determined to root out bad eggs from the force.

READ ALSO: How Mama Taraba lost out on APC leadership

He said: We are aware of the issue of vote-buying and I know that voters do not need to go to polling units with money except the amount they may need to buy snacks because of the period of the election.

Members of the Police Intelligence Unit are already working on vote-buying in the state. Police will go after anyone trying to induce voters during this election. You are not expected to go to polling units with huge money because you are not expected to travel far distance to vote. It is expected that you register close to where you reside and that should be a distance you can trek."

The police boss said the police would be neutral and would not work for any of the political parties or any candidate. He assured the people that the police would do everything to stop inducement.

Shogunle, who is an assistant commissioner of police, said the promise by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to redesign the polling booths in a way that would prevent voters from showing off their ballots to anybody would also assist in curbing vote-buying.

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Legit.ng previously reported that the INEC on Monday, September 3, said it is working on secret balloting to curb vote-buying in the September 22 governorship election in Osun.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Osun, 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.

How Aregbesola broke African records in Osun state - On Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- A Nigerian man identified as Emmanuel Adooh has taken to social media to narrate how he was framed and wrongfully expelled from Covenant University

- He went on to reveal that he sued the school and won the case

- The story has caused major reactions on social media

A young Nigerian man has left social media buzzing after he narrated why he was expelled from Covenant University, one of Nigeria's foremost faith-based schools in the country. According to Adooh, he was wrongfully expelled.

Narrating the story on Twitter, he revealed how he was framed up and used as a scapegoat in a conspiracy that involved several others. He stated that the expulsion happened after he had already written his final exams.

Adooh went on to reveal that after appealing to the school to reconsider their decision, he sued the university and won the case. The story which has since gone viral on the internet has became a thing of debate. Read the full story below:

READ ALSO: Keke napeps that look like mini SUV reportedly made in Nigeria surface online

READ ALSO: Top pastor attempts to fly to heaven in church, goes viral

The story has caused social media outrage as many people have taken the opportunity to share their own terrible experiences in the school, making Covenant University to trend on various social media platforms.

See reactions below:

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Although no official statement has been released by the school, a check on Instagram also shows Adooh has deleted the post and also deleted his account on the social medial platform.

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Ifeanyi Daniel Akanegbu Story 27-Year-Old Graduate Breaks Even With Small Chops Business Legit.ng TV

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- Yemi Osinbajo has said resources acquired from blocking illicit financial flows must be used for the people

- The vice president also noted that illicit financial flow from Africa could not be stopped without global outrage against it

- He applauded the recovery of Nigerias $321 million, noting it as a good example of what could be achieved through international cooperation

Nigeria's Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday, September 11, warned that resources acquired from blocking illicit financial flows must be used for the interest and welfare of the people, The Punch reports.

Legit.ng gathered that Osinbajo, who called for cross-border collaboration to stop illicit financial flow out of Africa applauded the recovery of Nigerias $321m that was stolen and hidden in Switzerland as a good example of what could be achieved through international cooperation.

Osinbajo, who was represented by special adviser to the president on economic matters, Dr Yemi Dipeolu, spoke in Abuja at the Second International Conference on Combating Illicit Financial Flows and Enhancing Asset Recovery for Sustainable Development.

READ ALSO: 2 former Benue PDP gov aspirants join APC

The Second Abuja IFF/AR was organised by the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption in collaboration with the African Union, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Federal Inland Revenue Service, and the Federal Ministry of Justice.

Osinbajo said there should be an outrage against illicit financial flows as much as the anger drug trafficking, human trafficking and terrorist financing were attracting.

He said: I repeat the call I made last year that illicit financial flows should attract the same level of global outrage that the world has for drug trafficking, human trafficking and terrorist financing.

We must recognise that progress in the fight against illicit financial flows requires that we focus on tackling cross-border flows of corrupt and criminal activities as well as the ways and means by which they are facilitated."

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In a previous report by Legit.ng, the federal government is making final preparation to disburse $322 million fund repatriated from the accounts of former Head of State, late General Sani Abacha in Switzerland to Nigerians.

The national coordinator of the Open Government Partnership (OGP), Nigeria and special assistant to the president on justice reforms, Juliet Ibekaku-Nwagwu, disclosed this in an interactive session with newsmen.

Ibekeaku-Nwagwu said under MoU with Switzerland, the funds would be paid directly into the accounts of the poorest Nigerians through their various accounts for two years and identification numbers to be made available on the website being developed by the National Social Investment office and the World Bank.

The EFCC stages a walk against corruption - on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- APC female supporters in Ijaw, Delta state, have lent their support to ex-governor Emmanuel Uduaghan to run for the Senate in the state's south senatorial district at the National Assembly

- The women, who expressed their desire on the platform of the Ijaw Women for Good Governance (IWGG), said that the move was necessary for change and progress

- They claimed that for 15 years the district has suffered neglect and untold backwardness

In a move for change and progress, female supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Delta south local government area have expressed their wish to have ex-governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of the south senatorial district at the National Assembly, Vanguard reports.

READ ALSO: Chinese loans are cheaper sources of finance - DMO

On the platform of the Ijaw Women for Good Governance (IWGG), a vocal political pressure group, the women voiced their desire at a meeting recently convened in Patani, Delta state, stressing that judging by antecedent, Uduaghan has what it takes to man the office.

Janet Waribogu, IWGG's spokesperson, said that there was the urgent need to vote in another experienced politician Uduaghan during the 2019 general polls, adding that this was needed in order to attract development in the area that has reportedly suffered neglect for years.

Waribogu claimed that although the current senator in the district, James Manager, has been there for more than 15 years, not much progress has experienced and recorded.

She said: The time has come for dynamism to be introduced into representation in Delta South Senatorial District to make our people smile for once. We have constantly played a second fiddle to other senatorial districts even though one of our own is representing us. Enough is enough.

It is our belief that His Excellency Dr. Uduaghan who recently defected to the All Progressives Congress, APC, can carry our torch well. We want to try him. What he did for the whole of Delta State, we trust that he will also do for our area.

Of a truth, we are not really interested in which party the best man emerges from. All we are interested is who will bring better life to us. We have suffered neglect long enough and we dont blame our brother, Senator James Manager, for this.

"Time is of essence as our people are getting impatient to witness true change. At the moment, only Dr. Uduaghan can achieve this.

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Meanwhile, Uduaghan had on Tuesday, submitted his senatorial nomination and expression of interest forms to the APC's national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, at the partys secretariat in Abuja.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that a former minister of information, Professor Sam Oyovbaire, had revealed that the former governor of Delta state, Chief James Ibori, was sorry for the defection of his elder cousin and ex-governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, from the PDP to the APC and had asked people to pray for him.

Nigeria Latest News: Buhari Reacts To APC Senators Betrayal | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
All over the world, there have been several complains about how some women take so much pride in flaunting their assets for everyone to see. Some do so to attract the opposite gender while others just love to dress that way.

The Nyege Nyege Festival went down in Jinja, Uganda, where music lovers were treated to a wide range of rhythms and style.

The music event which features music stars from all over Africa was held from Thursday, September 6, to Saturday, September 8, at Nile Discovery Beach in Njeru Municipality.

Booty Shots dominated the event with ladies exposing their things for all to see. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

READ ALSO: Bisi Alimi denounces Nigerian LGBT community, says 'my activism is personal'

It could be recalled that the Museveni's government had banned the festival over allegations that it promoted immorality.

Drinks were supplied in plenty, everybody drunk what their pockets could afford. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

The event was finally allowed to go on for three days after an agreement between the organisers, Talent Africa and the police.

All sorts of dressing codes were shown off with ladies trying as much as possible to show at least some part of their body. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

Those who attended had a rare opportunity to view all types of thighs in broad daylight. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

Those who got tired sat comfortably on the ground as they shared their happiness with friends. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

Had the government not lifted the ban on the event, we couldn't have seen all these. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

The fat and the slim ones were readily available to enjoy the event. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

Seems it was a conference of all Uganda's most beautiful ladies. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

The brown skins were not left behind, they stood out to be counted. Photo: Facebook/ Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

The long haired ones also walked in style to show off what they got. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

She chose not to expose too much of her thighs, but still beautiful and stunning. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

Team mafisi must have enjoyed in this festival, only to be limited by the depth of their pockets. Photo: Facebook / Alf Bakk Omugagga O'womwenda

Osun Osogbo Festival - Behold the 'sacred' Arugba preparing for 2018 | Legit.ng TV - on Legit.ng TV.

Source: Legit
- The Enugu state police command has reacted to the alleged proposed sit-at-home by some pro-Biafra groups

- The police commissioner in the state called on banks and residents to disregard the sit-at-home call

- He assured residents and banks in the state of his commands resolve to continue to ensure a safe and secured state

Enugu state commissioner of police, Mohammed Danmallam, has reportedly called on banks, other financial institutions and residents to ignore the sit at home call by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and go about their lawful businesses without fear of intimidation.

Vanguard reports Danmallam gave the assurance on Tuesday, September 11 in Enugu during a meeting with the Enugu Bankers Forum, an umbrella of banking practitioners comprising all banks in the state.

The meeting was called on the sidelines of the proposed sit-at-home being contemplated by some members of the public under the aegis of pro-Biafra groups on September 14 throughout the southeast.

READ ALSO: Again, defection gale hits PDP as senator, former deputy governor, retired DIG join APC in Akwa Ibom

It was gathered that the sit-at-home as proposed was meant for law-abiding members of the public especially within the southeast not to come out on September 14.

Legit.ng gathers that Danmallam also assured residents and banks in the state of his commands resolve in partnership with other sister security agencies and relevant stakeholders to continue to ensure a safe and secured state, pointing out that the negative move was the handiwork of mischief makers.

He said: There is nothing to worry about before, during and after September 14 concerning the alleged proposed sit-at-home being contemplated by some unpatriotic members of the public masquerading themselves as pro-Biafra groups.

Security operatives of the command in partnership with other sister security agencies have put modalities in place towards fishing out those in this habit.

I assure you that there is no cause for alarm as people are enjoined to go about their normal lawful businesses before, during and after the said date.

The commissioner assured the bankers of adequate security to carry out their banking businesses and other lawful businesses without fear of any molestation by any person or group of persons.

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Legit.ng previously reported that security agents had unmasked the Nigerian suspected to be managing the France account of the Indigenous People Of Biafra (IPOB).

The minister of information, Lai Mohammed, had said that the group which has been proscribed was being sponsored from France.

The Nation reported that a security source confirmed that some Nigerians in diaspora were sending money to an account in Paris, France and that it was disbursed to IPOB members from there.

Acting President Yemi Osinbajo delivers a speech on the Biafra war - On Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
Olukoya Ogungbeje, the lawyer who once represented alleged notorious billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike also known as Evans, was on Wednesday, September 12, arrested at the Federal High Court in Lagos.

The Punch reported that police officers from the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti arrested the lawyer this morning while he was getting ready to appear before Justice Muslim Hassan.

He was reportedly accosted as he parked his car at the Federal High Court in Ikoyi.

Ogungbeje was Evans' lawyer until June 15, 2018 when he withdrew from the case and another lawyer took over.

READ ALSO: Other countries are laying claim to looted funds from Nigeria - FG

The reason for his arrest by the operatives of the Nigeria Police Force is unknown as at press time.

Meanwhile, Justice Hakeem Oshodi of an Ikeja high court, Lagos on Tuesday warned counsel to Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike alias Evans that no further delays would be tolerated in his ongoing trial.

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Justice Oshodi gave the warning following a 30-minute verbal exchange he had with Chinonye Obiagwu, Evans new defence counsel, who had prayed for an adjournment to study the case file.

Should Evans the kidnapper be jailed or employed by the Government instead? - on Legit.ng TV

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- US ambassador to Nigeria, Stuart Symington, has reportedly berated the federal government

- He allegedly said the inability of the government to end subsidy encourages poor social amenities

- He also reportedly berated the government's low commitment to critical public sectors

The United States ambassador to Nigeria, Stuart Symington, has raised criticism berating the sincerity and commitment of the federal government to eliminate fuel subsidy removal and ensure sustainable electricity for the people of the county.

Vanguard reports that Symington knocked the government while speaking at the 10th anniversary colloquium of the Nigerian Development Finance Forum, organised by Financial Nigeria Magazine.

The newspaper added that the US ambassador said the government's incompetence to eliminate subsidy on fuel is a major setback for the provision of social infrastructures and power for effective social service delivery.

Legit.ng gathers that Symington who was represented by the mission director of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), Stephen Haykin, berated government's low investments on social service sector which, according to him, is responsible for low revenue generation from tax.

READ ALSO: Senator, former deputy governor, retired DIG defect to APC in Akwa Ibom

He said: "One proximate cause of poor health, education and nutrition standards is low public expenditures. This in turn is related to very low public revenues due in fact to low tax rates and weak systems for tax collections."

"Low social spending is also as a result of transfers from government to petroleum and power sectors because fuel and electricity tariffs are below cost recovery levels."

Fiscal, trade and other micro-economic policies tend to act as breaks on private sector initiatives on economic growth. Weak governance due to inadequate capacities or lacks of checks and balances also slows social and economic development."

Also speaking at the event was the former minister of state for health, Muhammed Pate. Pate, in his speech, berated the political class of the country and their low interest in encouraging high investment in the critical sectors like the economy.

He further added that the political class's interest is one built around personal gain thus encouraging frivolous spending and misplaced priorities.

He said: After extracting almost a trillion dollars worth of oil since our national independence, we have a situation where poverty is going on. We have effectively squandered an opportunity to utilise the natural resources that we obtain purely by chance, not by hard work."

Instead of investing to uplift our peoples lives, our political elites by commission or omission chose the path of short-term comfort and purchase of loyalty through economically unwise or corruption riddled national expenditure at the expense of economically sound investments in both human and physical aspects to transform our nations.

"Nigerias demographic transition is slow, variable and achieving the dividend from the population is not guaranteed. Childhood development is going in the wrong direction particularly in northern Nigeria. Some areas in the security challenged north east, stunting is more than 60 per cent among children under-five while over more than 40 per cent of Nigerias children under-five are stunted."

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that former US ambassador to Nigeria, John Campbell, had described the former First Lady Patience Jonathan, as an arrogant and flamboyant person who was greatly disliked.

This was contained in a piece he wrote titled Nigerian President Buharis Sisyphean Efforts and published on Council on Foreign Relations website on Friday, October 6.

Campbell also wondered how Mrs Jonathan who spent her career in the public service accumulated $35 million

Street Gist: What Are You Proud of As a Nigerian? | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit Newspaper
- Reports say Governor Akinwunmi Ambode is weighing two options should the leaders of APC in Lagos continue to reject him ahead of 2019

- Ambode is reported to have contacted the presidency as well as Aisha, wife of Muhammadu Buhari

- The governor is believed to have secured a promise from Asiwaju Bola Tinubu before he decided to purchase the nomination form

Following his alleged rejection by the powers that be in Lagos state, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, has reportedly taken new steps that could see him winning and retaining his position during the 2019 election.

This Day reports that Ambode, who recently bought the nomination form of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has reached out to the presidency to intervene in the alleged friction between him and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

The report added that the governor was making the move as he battles to neutralise the Mandate Group, a political machine of his godfather.

Ambode is currently battling for reelection against two powerful aspirants, Obafemi Hamzat, believed to have the support of some politicians from Abuja, and Babajide Sanwo-Olu, one of the appointees of the governor, who is said to have the backing of Tinubu and his Mandate Group.

READ ALSO: Mass defection looms as 23 PDP reps set to dump party for APC

It was learnt that the development surprised Ambode, who is reported to have sought and received a promise from the national leader of the APC before he travelled to Abuja to obtain the form.

On Monday, September 10, it was learnt that the chairmen of the 20 local government areas and 37 local council development areas (LCDAs) had appended their signatures to the nomination form of Sanwo-Olu.

The report quoted multiple sources as saying though Ambode respects Tinubu, he was being prodded by some of his loyalists and friends to fight back.

Ambode says he is not a politician and did not ask to be a governor. He feels, therefore, that if he is no longer wanted by the powers that be, he should simply ease out in peace.

But there are some of us who feel that loyalty should beget loyalty, and that if Tinubu has become disloyal to Ambode, the governor should not go down without a fight, giving that he has goodwill not only among the people of Lagos State, but also with the seat of power in Abuja, a source added.

One of the sources was quoted as saying the governors strategy is a mixture of diplomacy and war.

First he would seek to persuade Tinubu to change his mind and support him. If that fails, he would fight, believing that he has enormous capacity to do maximum damage to the political fortunes of the APC in the state, he said.

The report said Ambode contacted Aisha, the wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, to intervene following the failure of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to intervene.

The report further claimed that Oba Rilwan Akiolu is expected to lead a delegation of the council of traditional rulers in the state to Tinubus Bourdillon residence to plead the case of Ambode.

The governor would be presenting his nomination form to Tinubu for endorsement tomorrow (today). If he refuses to sign, it would be a clear signal that he no longer supports Ambode. At that point, he would have to activate his battle plan, a source said adding that this would be the option should Tinubu fail to soft-pedal.

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The plan, according to the report, is to ensure that his commissioners, political appointees and aides who have been put on notice, would begin to mobilise their constituencies to deliver during the primaries.

The report further says Ambode may have opened communications with Hamzat and his Justice Group, to align with him in the event of a showdown with Tinubu.

Legit.ng earlier reported that a day after Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos state officially declared his bid for a second term, reports filtered in that there is a threat to impeach the governor.

Senator Kwankwaso Rabiu announces his Presidential Bid (Election 2019) | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- The Nigerian Army has relocated it operational headquarters to Gudumbali in Guzamala local government area of Borno state

- This was a decision taken by Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai in response to new waves of attacks by Boko Haram terrorists

- Moreover, Buratai is presently leading an operation against several Boko Haram terrorists in one of their hideouts around Lake Chad

In response to fresh attacks launched on troops bases by Boko Haram insurgents who aim to claim Nigerian territories, Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, has relocated the operational headquarters of Army Headquarters to Gudumbali in Guzamala local government area of Borno state, Vanguard reports.

READ ALSO: Senator, former deputy governor, retired DIG defect to APC in Akwa Ibom

A source said the Army Chief who aims to get first-hand information of happenings in the theater of operations is visiting all formations, units and forward operations bases and holding durbars (meetings) with troops excluding their Commanders to know if there are challenges.

The idea is to get first-hand information from them about their welfare and other matters, a source said. This is a strategy employed by the Buratai described as Rapid Fire Unscheduled Visit which means formations and units are not given prior signals that the COAS is visiting, hence troops in the region are red alert.

The same source said: As part of confidence building measures, Lt. General Buratai is also having series of meetings with the locals and village heads of the several locations he is visiting and it is also aimed at finally breaking the nerve of Boko Haram.

He stopped in every village and assured the inhabitants of their safety. In all the units visited he personally instructed the armorers to open the arms store to enable him physically inspect the weapons including support weapons in their inventories.

This is to ascertain that they were very well equipped. Most of the weapons were also tested for serviceability. The unscheduled visits to the North East is to operational readiness of troops.

In all the units visited he personally instructed the armorers to open the arms store to enable him physically inspect the weapons including support weapons in their inventories.

"This is to ascertain that they were very well equipped. Most of the weapons were also tested for serviceability. He stopped in every village and assured the inhabitants of their safety.

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Meanwhile, according to a source, Buratai is currently leading a fighting force against several Boko Haram terrorists in one of their hideouts around Lake Chad.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that troops of the Nigerian Army had raided a hideout used by Boko Haram terrorists in Amdaga Madachi village, Gwoza local government area, Borno state.

The development was made public in a statement signed by the director of Army public relations, Brigadier General Texas Chukwu.

In the statement released to Legit.ng, Chukwu disclosed that the troops killed 14 terrorists and rescued 21 civilians during the raid.

Boko Haram Kidnappings: Dapchi Protests Abduction of Their Daughters by Boko Haram - On Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- Governor Rochas Okorocha has terminated the appointment of key cabinet staff seeking elections next year

- Top on the list are his chief of staff, Ugwumba Uche Nwosu and secretary to the government of Imo state, Chief George Eche

- The governor in a statement said the sacking was to enable them advance their political chances

Ahead of the 2019 elections, Imo state governor, Rochas Okorocha on Wednesday, September 12, sacked the secretary to the state government, George Eche; his chief of staff, Uche Nwosu, who is also his son-in-law; deputy chief of staff, Kingsley Uju; and his principal secretary, Paschal Obi, The Punch reports.

Legit.ng gathered that a statement issued in Owerri by Sam Onwuemeodo, the chief press secretary to the governor, disclosed that the affected appointees were contesting elective positions on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The sacking was to enable them advance their political chances ahead of the APC primaries.

READ ALSO: INEC threatens to suspend 2019 general election over political tension

Others affected by the development are Emma Ojinero, commissioner for trade, investment and commerce; Prof. Nnamdi Obiaraeri, information commissioner; Ngozi Njoku, commissioner for gender and social development.

Joy Mbawuike, commissioner for market development; Obinna Mbata, commissioner for finance; Dan Nworie, commissioner for tertiary education; Simeon Iwunze, special adviser Urban Renewal; Obinna Amagwula, special assistant general duties and Betty Uzoma, special assistant finance, were affected equally.

All the affected politicians have the backing of the governor except Eche who had in defiance to the governors instruction to contest the Aboh Mbaise/Ngor Okpala House of Representatives seat is vying for the APC governorship ticket.

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Legit.ng had previously reported that Governor Okorocha stated that he won't aspire to be a senator in 2019.

The governor made the comment when about 5,000 members of the Rochas Mandate Movement held a solidarity rally for him in Owerri, on Friday December 15.

The governor's statement is coming at a time most of his colleagues gearing up to leave their respective government houses are preparing to contest for senatorial positions.

Why Governors Steal? Rochas Okorocha of Imo State on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- A student has been apprehended for attempting to steal at airport

- He was charged to court on two charges bordering trespassing and stealing

- He has however been granted bail with two sureties fully employed

Emnanuel Okoyata, a student has been brought before the law at Kuje magistrates court in Abuja to explain why he was attempting to sneak into the Nnamdi Azikiwe international airport, Abuja to steal.

The Punch reports that the 28 year-old student was arraigned to court on two charges of trespassing and attempt stealing which contravene the sections 342 and 95 of the penal code.

According to the prosecuting lawyer, Doris Okoroba, the accused is an habitual criminal in the community and was apprehended by the airport security officers before being handed over to the Kuje prison on September 6.

READ ALSO: Senator, former deputy governor, retired DIG defect to APC in Akwa Ibom

Legit.ng gathers that Okoyata, having pleaded innocence of the offence, has been granted bail by the judge, Taribo Jim, with two sureties who are fully employed.

The case was adjourned till October 30.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) police detectives had arrested one Wale David for stealing the phone of another church member in a popular camp in Ogun state.

This was gathered through a statement on RRS Facebook page that the accused was not just a church member; he was also engaged by the church to help clean up its premises after a special church service.

Nigerian youths reply to President Buhari over 'lazy' comment | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
Medical practitioners, counsellors have always advised couple to opt for family planning, either you have the money to take good care of many children or not. Over the years, this method has helped in the spacing of children as well as unwanted pregnancies among single lovers.

However, the Tanzanian president John Magufili thinks differently and has come out to blast those opting for family planning. According to him, they are too lazy and are afraid to feed their family.

According to Independent.co.uk, President Magufili warned women to stop consuming birth control pills but urged them to drop the use of contraceptives. He said this during a womens right rally which was meant to promote birth control.

Tanzanian's president John Magufili condemns family planning. Source: Independent.co.uk

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: I love Ghanaians, they are real and they do not bleach - Lepacious Bose

He said: Those going for family planning are lazy ... they are afraid they will not be able to feed their children. They do not want to work hard to feed a large family and that is why they opt for birth controls and end up with one or two children only. Women can now give up contraceptive methods and it is important to reproduce. I have traveled to Europe and elsewhere and have seen the harmful effects of birth control. Some countries are now facing declining population growth. They are short on manpower. You have cattle. You are big farmers. You can feed your children. Why then resort to birth control? This is my opinion, I see no reason to control births in Tanzania.

It was also reported that the president was highly criticized on social media as women argued that they have the right to autonomy over their bodies. According to the UN population fund, UNFPA, a third of women in Tanzania use family planning, with access most limited in rural areas.

PAY ATTENTION: Best love tips and relationship advice on Africa Love Aid group!

However, the 58-year-old President Magufili is happily married and blessed with two children.

Amazing!

Election 2019: I represent the future - 36-year old APC presidential aspirant says | Legit.ng TV - on Legit.ng TV.

Source: Legit.ng
- Governor Ayade has lamented how Cameroonians are flooding his state

- He stated this when receiving Senate President, Bukola Saraki

- Saraki visited Ayade to solicit his state's support ahead of the PDP primaries

In a development that followed as an offshoot of struggle for the Ambazonia Republic in Cameroon, Cross River governor, Ayade has raised concern over the increasing numbers of Cameroonians in the state.

Ayade cried out on Wednesday, September 12, when he received the president of the Nigerian Senate, Bukola Saraki, Vanguard reports.

Legit.ng gathers that Saraki paid Ayade a courtesy visit to seek his support ahead of the PDP primaries in October, 6.

READ ALSO: APC adopts Buhari as presidential candidate ahead of primary

Lamenting how non-Nigerians are gaining entry into the state, the governor said: "With the recent Ambazonia crisis, a lot of tension has been created in the state. It is so bad that as of today, Cross River has over 4,000 Cameroonian refugees."

"We have about seven camps where we are keeping these refugees and over 27 illegal routes where these Cameroonians gain access into the state."

It is so bad that the arm struggle has led to a situation where Cross River has become a recruitment ground for mercenary to prosecute the war in Cameroon."

Senator Saraki in his rejoinder gave kudos to the governor. He added that he was in the state to solicit support from the state's delegates ahead of the approaching PDP primaries.

"I am in Cross River to solicit delegates support in the forthcoming presidential primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party."

I have the intellectual ability and capacity to rule Nigeria and that is why I am soliciting the support of all Nigeria to achieve this aim."

Ayade affirmed Senator Saraki's competence, adding that the former governor of Kwara has everything at his disposals to lead the country in terms of fitness and wealth of experience.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that there was a frantic search by some powerful members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to pick a consensus candidate for the 2019 presidential election.

The party chieftains had embarked on the search, in order to prevent a possible implosion of the party after the October 5 primary election to pick a presidential candidate.

Election 2019: Can Saraki be the Next President of Nigeria? | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- Former president Goodluck Jonathan has replied Adams Oshiomhole over vote buying allegations

- Oshiomhole had said that vote buying started under Jonathan's administration

- But Jonathan said that vote buying started in Edo in 2016 one year after he left office in 2015

Former president Goodluck Jonathan has said that the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, is suffering from multiple personality syndrome.

New Telegraph reports that Jonathan who described as misleading Oshiomholes allegation on national television that vote buying in Nigerian started when he was president, said it is disingenuous for anybody to link the former president with the incidence of vote buying.

Legit.ng gathered that Jonathan in a statement by his media adviser, Ikechukwu Eze, said voting buying in Nigeria started in Edo state gubernatorial election in 2016, a year after Jonathan his left office.

READ ALSO: PDP primaries: Governor Ayade receives Saraki, laments influx of Cameroonians

It noted that while in office between 2010 and 2015, the former president conducted many elections adjudged as free and fair by both national and international observers.

According to the statement, there was no incident of vote buying in the two general elections conducted by Jonathan in 2011 and 2015, and off-season gubernatorial and parliamentary elections in Anambra, Ekiti, Ondo and Edo states.

The statement read: It is instructive that in each case, the former president was given a clean bill, with both local and international observers commending him for having supervised a credible and transparent process.

In November 2017, a United Nations delegation led by Ambassador Mohamed Ibn Chambas, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for West Africa and the Sahel, and chairman of the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission (CNMC) commended former president Jonathan for the positive outcome of the electoral reforms he initiated during his tenure, and prayed that the institutions he built and the high standards he set in organizing credible and peaceful elections are maintained and sustained by his successors.

It is instructive that Jonathan also received plaudits from the visiting UN team over his conduct of the same 2015 elections which Oshiomhole had casually singled out for condemnation.

Jonathan recalled that Oshiomhole himself praised him for conducting credible election in 2012 that re-elected him as Edo state government and wonder how he could turn around to blame him for vote buying.

He noted that the former Edo state governor is suffering from multiple personality syndrome, recalling how praised Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue state and Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso only to denounce them the next day.

The former president said it appeared that Oshiomhole psychological strain, as he is in feud with everybody, including members of his party.

According to Jonathan, Oshiomholes false accusations might have stem from his own guilty conscience arising from the unenviable behaviour he exhibited during the September 2016 gubernatorial election in Edo state.

After observing the Edo 2016 gubernatorial election, the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG) a coalition of over 400 civil society organizations spread across the country, said the most frequent reported incidents (of electoral irregularities) are vote buying/voter bribery.

The trend was later to spread to Ondo, Anambra and Ekiti States governorship elections, all taking place after Jonathan had left office as president.

What also changed was that Oshiomholes emergence as the national chairman of APC and the burden of delivering results to his party, has pushed him into exporting and escalating this vote buying dexterity to other states, as recently witnessed in Ekiti governorship poll.

The fact is that inducement as a tool in the hands of politicians is an old malaise that no Nigerian can be proud of.

It is bad enough that this has been allowed to fester and morph into the ugly trend that is today called vote buying.

Given this circumstance, you would expect a statesman of Oshiomholes standing to offer perspectives on how to solve this problem that is already making our country an object of scorn in the eyes of the international community.

That Oshiomhole only resorted to blame game rather than offer any useful suggestions to the election management bodies on how to solve this shameful problem, in the cited television interview, is a sad commentary on the quality and character of todays political leaders.

A government that continues to blame its predecessor rather than show its scorecard, less than one year to the end of its four-year tenure, is only giving the impression that it is already at its wits end.

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We believe that it is high time Mr. Oshiomhole began to put a leash on his unhelpful, ill-conceived comments and tumultuous style of leadership, to enable him offer quality service to the party he currently leads, Jonathan added.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng had previously reported that the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, said the governor-elect of Ekiti state, Kayode Fayemi, does not have the financial capability for vote-buying as alleged in some quarters.

Election 2019: Can Saraki be the Next President of Nigeria? | - on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- The APC has lost 5,000 members in Delta state

- The decampees joined the PDP in the state on Wednesday, September 12

- They were received by the Delta state governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, and other PDP chieftains

The All Progressives Congress (APC) on Wednesday, September 12, lost 5,000 members in Delta state to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Delta governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, and the Delta state chairman of the PDP, Barrister Kingsley Esiso, received the defectors at an event in Ogono-Orogun, Ughelli North local government area of the state.

The decampees led by one Chief Akpoyibo, declared their loyalty to the PDP and the Okowa-led administration.

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They also hailed the governor for his giant strides since he came into power in 2015, stressing that he deserves a second term in office.

Governor Okowa while addressing them promised that their interests would be protected in the party noting that the PDP was the only truly democratic party in Nigeria.

Legit.ng gathered that the rank of PDP faithfuls in Delta has been rising astronomically in the last few weeks as infighting within the APC in the state continues unabated.

READ ALSO: How Mama Taraba lost out on APC leadership

Legit.ng had earlier reported that the battle for tickets in the APC, worsened on Monday, September 10, as different factions in the party across the country took battle positions ahead of the partys primaries holding later this month.

The war cries were especially raised in Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Rivers, Cross River, Delta and Yobe states.

Nigeria Latest News: Here's What Saraki and Tambuwal's Defection Means for the APC | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit Newspaper
Dr. Awele Elumelu, GAVI Champion for Africa and Founder, Avon Medical Practice, joined other global health leaders at a Photo Exhibition organised by GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, for increased vaccine coverage in under-immunised nations. The event tagged Vaccine Heroes was held on September 10, 2018, in Geneva, Switzerland.

Following the announcement made earlier in January 2018 on the sidelines of the global World Economic Forum in Davos, of Dr. Elumelu as GAVI Champion for Immunisation in Africa, the GAVI Photo Exhibition convened GAVI representatives who reiterated their commitment to saving the lives of children around the world.

L-R: Deputy CEO, Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance, Anuradha Gupta; Director, Division of Administration, United Nations, Clemens Adams; Director General, World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus; GAVI Champion for Africa & Founder, Avon Medical, Dr Awele Elumelu and CEO, GAVI, The Vaccine Alliance, Dr Seth Berkley, at the GAVI Vaccine Heroes Exhibition and conference to champion increased vaccine coverage, targeting underimmunised nations, in Geneva

Speaking at the Gavi event, Dr. Awele Elumelu commended the great efforts and achievements by the Vaccine Heroes, Health Workers and the GAVI team in spreading the message and adoption of immunisation globally. In her words: "Immunisation is one sure way to prevent diseases, save our children and advance our economy. It is an honour to champion the importance of immunisation that saves the lives of children around Africa and the world. I am particularly pleased to be doing so with innovative organisations like the ones that make up the Gavi Alliance," she said.

R-L: GAVI Champion for Africa and Founder, Avon Medical, Dr. Awele Elumelu; CEO, GAVI, The Vaccine Alliance, Dr Seth Berkley; and Director General, World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, at the GAVI Vaccine Heroes Exhibition and conference to champion increased vaccine coverage, targeting underimmunised nations, in Geneva

Dr. Elumelu further advocated the urgent and important need for the health of children and committed to working with the global Vaccine Alliance to expand the coverage of immunisation across Africa and in her native country, Nigeria. 

In our own capacity, at Avon Medical and Avon HMO, we are working to provide quality, effective and accessible healthcare and insurance to most citizens in Africa's most populous country, Nigeria. This is our Groups way of contributing to the work of GAVI. I look forward to doing more work and bringing about more private and public partnerships to promote immunisation and better coverage for children in and out of Africa.

In attendance was Director General, World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus who spoke about the importance of vaccines as the backbone of health systems. According to him: "There is no health for all without vaccines for all.

Organised by GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, the event gathered leaders in the global health sector, including Anuradha Gupta, Deputy CEO, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance; Clemens Adams, Director, United Nations; and Seth Berkley, CEO, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

[Sponsored]

Source: Legit.ng
The deputy secretary-general of the United Nation, Amina Mohammed has said that former minister of finance, Ngozi okonjo-Iweala, brought Nigeria out of debt but that the country seems to be back in it now.

The Cable reports that the former minister spoke at the International Monetary Fund and UN working together conversation on Tuesday, September 12.

Mohammed expressed worry over Nigerias and Africa's rising debt. She insisted that the IMF and UN have a better conversation to help growing economies.

READ ALSO: Buhari committed to increasing minimum wage  Presidency

She said: Public resources are always going to be important, and so is ODA and the private sector. But I think we still havent yet got quite the solution and I hope that the work that we do together will open up that space to think more on how to leverage that.

As I was coming up from New York, some of the concerns that came up from the meeting we had in China just recently and reports that we have; the debt issues are really big, I mean, having experienced what it was for Ngozi (Okonjo-Iweala) to get debt relief.

It took her a few years to convince people, and we are now back again in my country, with a level of debt that is worrying, but its happening all over. Africa, is that the way we want to go?

I think we really need to sit down and have a better conversation about all the asks of a growing economy; that needs to be inclusive, it needs to succeed, because stability is needed more than ever today, across our countries and where we are working.

She agreed with Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the IMF that Okonjo-Iweala was very influential in the debt relief Nigeria secured in 2006.

Meanwhile, the federal government through the Debt Management Office (DMO) has explained that Nigeria borrowed from China in order to take advantage of a cheaper source of finance.

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The DMO in a statement sent to the Punch newspaper on Tuesday, September 11, stated that the government also took loans from China in order to diversify the sources of borrowed funds.

The agency dismissed insinuations that China could take over the economy of Nigeria if it fails to repay the borrowed funds, noting that the possibility of failure to repay did not exist.

Laolu Akande Speaks on How Presidency is Tackling Economy | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- Following IPOBs sit-at-home order, the Enugu Police Command has warned parents not to allow their kids be misguided by troublemakers

- The command called on residents of the state to go about their lawful businesses without fear of intimidation

- It warned that anybody found fomenting trouble or creating panic in the minds of the law abiding members of the public would be punished

The Police Command in Enugu state has warned parents and guardians not to allow their children or wards to be misguided by trouble makers and unpatriotic elements under any guise.

The warning was contained in a statement issued on Wednesday, September 12, in Enugu, NAN reports.

Legit.ng gathers that the statement came against the backdrop of the September 14 sit-at-home order in the southeast by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

The statement was signed by the police public relations of the command, SP Ebere Amaraizu.

Amaraizu called on the residents of the state to go about their lawful businesses without fear of intimidation as security agencies are on top of the situation.

READ ALSO: Purchase of N45m nomination form for Buhari is illegal - Murray-Bruce

He said the police and sister security agencies were prepared to protect them and maintain the existing peace and security in the state no matter the cost or sacrifice from personnel of security agencies in the state.

The command is warning parents and guardians not allow their children or wards to be used by any person or group under any guise to disrupt peace, intimidate or harass law abiding members of the public.

The command enjoins members of the public to go about their normal lawful businesses in the state without any fear of molestation in mind.

You should call the following commands distress call numbers: 08032003702, 08075390883, 08086671202 and 08098880172. Also reach us via our social media platforms: @PoliceNg _Enugu (twitter page), Facebook page of nigeriapoliceforceenugustatecommand," he said.

The command warned that anybody found fomenting trouble or creating panic in the minds of the law abiding members of the public would be punished.

The command will bring the full weight of the law on such an individual or group, it said.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that following the sit-at-home order issued by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), heads of security agencies in Imo state on Monday, September 10, vowed to crush members of the proscribed group.

Among those who declared readiness to crush IPOB were the brigadier commander, 34 Artillery Brigade, Obinze-Owerri, HI Bature and the Imo state commissioner of police, Dasuki Galadanchi.

Ojukwu's bunker during Biafra conflict - on Legit.ng TV:

Source: Legit.ng
Deglacial mobilization of pre-aged terrestrial carbon from degrading permafrost Nature

Hurricane, Storm Surge Warnings Up for Carolinas; Florence May Stall Near Coast Weather Underground

SC officials wont evacuate prison ahead of hurricane The State

This is not their first rodeo: How Chincoteagues ponies will ride out Hurricane Florence USA Today

More dead pigs? Hurricane threatens hog farms, sewage plants and people downstream McClatchy

The Catastrophe Bond Business Is Booming Bloomberg

A Top Goldman Banker Raised Ethics Concerns. Then He Was Gone. NYT. In 2014.

Apple Wants To Charge A Subscription Fee For Apps LifeHacker (KW).

Intel to outsource 14nm chipset production due to tight supply Digitimes. Delays in advancing to 10nm, originally slated for 2016.

Mark Carney to stay on at Bank of England until 2020 Financial News

Brexit

NHS vacancies a national emergency BBC

Letter from Britain: The Real Reason for the Anti-Semite Campaign Against Jeremy Corbyn Consortium News

German domestic spy chief Maassen under pressure to resign Handelsblatt

Syraqistan

China?

Californias succulent smugglers: plant poachers seed Asias desire for dudleya South China Morning Post

New Cold War

Brazil race begins in earnest with da Silva off party ticket AP

Latin America says U.S. has itself to blame for Chinese entry into region that it opposes McClatchy

Trump Transition

Its Now Possible To Telepathically Communicate with a Drone Swarm Defense One

Health Care

Midwifery makes a comeback in Alabama Scalawag

The Myth That Crime Rises as Prisons Shrink Governing

The Worst Police Shooting Yet National Review

MGM offers $500 donation to charity for each shooting survivor who waives notice of lawsuit Chicago Tribune

Democrats in Disarray

Obama Urges Young Voters To Ignore How Many Lousy Candidates Democratic Party Runs The Onion

The Crash Ten Years After

Class Warfare

Humans Are Destroying Animals Ancestral Knowledge The Atlantic

Royal Botanic Garden seeks respect for worlds fungus ABC

The divide between mainstream macro and MMT is irreconcilable  Part 1 Bill Mitchell  Modern Monetary Theory. Parts two and three.

Antidote du jour (via):

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.
By Michael Olenick, a research fellow at INSEAD who writes regularly at Olen on Economics

Yves brought to my attention a misleading post, America Ranks 58th  (in mass shootings) based on a flawed study by gun fanatic John Lott.

Heres the study, How a Botched Study Fooled the World About the U.S. Share of Mass Public Shootings: U.S. Rate is Lower than Global Averageby John R. Lott, Jr., President of the Crime Prevention Research Center.

Lotts paper is meant to rebut a more widely cited, better respected, peer-reviewed piece, Public Mass Shooters and Firearms: A Cross-National Study of 171 Countries, by criminologist Adam Lankford of the University of Alabama.

Lankford concludes that a high rate of gun ownership is positively correlated with a high rate of mass shootings. This finding, in any other context, would be about as controversial as asserting that most people, but not everybody, are born with ten fingers and ten toes. But to Lott and other gun fetishists any heresy that insults their guns are fighting words.

Lankfords paper was published in the peer reviewed journal Violence and Victims and indexed by the US National Library of Medicine under the auspices of the National Institutes of Health. Lotts paper was published on his own website and Reddit.

Lott drones on for most of six pages with ad hominem attacks against Lankford, plus a few unnecessary potshots at Obama. Summarizing, Lott is angry at Lankford for not emailing him a copy of the paper in 2015 while it was pending publication and for not sharing his data. Fair enough point about the data though he also surely knows that proprietary data sets are seldom released. Lankford couldve emailed a copy of the paper but its easy to see why hed simply ignore an obvious antagonist.

In any event, after a five-page harangue, Lott finally cites his first mass shooting on page six:

There are lots of other countries around the world that clearly have higher death rates from mass public shootings than does the US. But these cases are very hard to find for countries outside the United States or Europe, especially in earlier years. Take the Solomon Islands, for example. Despite the islands 1999 ban on handguns and virtually all rifles, 21 people died in three mass public shootings from 2000 to 2002. There may have been other mass public shootings, but the islands only had one police report that briefly provides details on the years 1998 to 2003. Repeated requests to the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force for information on other years proved fruitless. The police made it clear that since their nation gets most of its revenue from tourism, they saw little benefit to providing this information. But even if these were the only mass public shootings from 1998 through 2012, the annual death rate would come to 2.98 per million people (given an average population of 470,000 over those 15 years). This is 46 times higher than the US rate.

Lets unpack this.

First theres the standard right-wing meme that Lott couldnt find more information because there must be  wait for it  a conspiracy (bet you didnt see that one coming) to withhold the information.

In reality, a quick check  Googling solomon islands killings 2000  leads to a Wikipedia page non-creatively titled History of the Solomon Islands as the first result. Pressing Control-F and typing 2000 jumps to this:

In early 1999 long-simmering tensions between the local Gwale people on Guadalcanal and more recent migrants from the neighbouring island of Malaita erupted into violence. The Guadalcanal Revolutionary Army, later called Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM), began terrorising Malaitans in the rural areas of the island to make them leave their homes. About 20,000 Malaitans fled to the capital and others returned to their home island; Gwale residents of Honiara fled. The city became a Malaitan enclave. Meanwhile, the Malaita Eagle Force (MEF) was formed to uphold Malaitan interests. The Government appealed to the Commonwealth Secretary General for assistance. The Honiara Peace Accord was agreed on 28 June 1999. Despite this apparent success the underlying problems remained unresolved and had already resulted in the death or serious injury of 30,000 civilians. The accord soon broke down and fighting broke out again in June 2000. Malaitans took over some armouries at their home island and Honiara and helped by that, on 5 June 2000 the MEF seized the parliament by force.

Shorter: There was a civil war. In 2003 the government requested and received international help to stem the violence. This explains Lotts carefully chosen timeframe, 2000 to 2002, the time of the insurrection. Time required for me to find this information: significantly less than it took to copy and paste it.

From this we can conclude that Lott a) co-mingled killings from wars with school shootings to tilt the scales and defend gun mayhem, b) led other gun fanatics to do the same, c) fabricated a conspiracy, and d) given that with his background he must know better almost certainly did this purposefully. Thats lots of lies for one paragraph, the first to cite anything, and his paper is 34 pages long.

Lott does cite the list of countries by his definition of mass shootings per capita towards the end of his paper. First is the Northern Mariana Islands, which is a US Commonwealth and doesnt belong on the list. Then comes Iraq: Ive heard theres been some problems with war and violence there. Next up is the Solomon Islands: already rebutted that one. Rounding out the top-ten comes, in order, Guyana, Afghanistan, Algeria, Somalia, the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Burundi, and Columbia, nine traditional war zones and one drug war zone.

If anything, this list suggests Lankford should release his data because it cant be more ridiculous than Lotts. Besides comparing apples to zebras, Lott also fails to balance with frequency so peaceful Norway is above the US thanks to one mass shooting by right-wing fanatic Anders Breivik. Comparing war zones to school zones is ludicrous.

As if this isnt enough, Lott excludes killings caused by gang and drug violence. So, to Lott, counting deaths from traditional and drug wars in foreign countries is fair game while, at the same time, these figures should be excluded from the US. Uh  sure. The Washington Post highlights that many of Lotts mass shootings were terror related:

Without terrorism cases, Lotts count of shooters fell dramatically. In the Philippines, the number of shooters fell from 120 to 11, in Russia from 65 to 21 and in Yemen from 65 to 3. Only France did not have a significant decline, going from 5 to 4. This is for the 1998-2012 period, and with the exception of Russia, the number of shooters is lower than Lankfords calculations for 1966-2012.

Besides running his Crime Prevention Research Center Lott was, among other things, the chief economist of the US sentencing commission at the end of Reagans term during the time minimum sentences were introduced. Hes one of the key people responsible for mass incarceration with the crippling societal, economic, and fiscal costs.

Between his stance on crime and guns Lott is like an economics version of Thomas Midgley Jr., the legendary scientist who invented both leaded gasoline and CFCs, two of the most destructive polluters in history. Except its unlikely Midgley released his beasts with malice  at the time its unlikely he knew of the harmful effects  whereas Lott knows full-well what hes doing and, as shown above, theres a strong argument hes willing to cook the books to get there. Besides discounting his latest paper, his prison sentencing work should be reexamined; who knows how many people are rotting in prison based on a lotta lies.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 12)  A Bureau of Customs (BOC) officer was ordered detained by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee after Senator Richard Gordon cited him in contempt during hearings on the entry of multi-billion peso drug shipments in the country Tuesday.

Gordon said Jimmy Guban, an officer of the BOC's Intelligence and Investigation Service, was involved in facilitating the entry of the 6.8-billion drug shipment found in a Cavite warehouse in August.

Marina dela Cruz Signapan, the consignee from SMYD Trading, testified receiving a package from a Cavite scrapper named Joel Maritana. She received Maritana's package containing what she knew were scrap lifters, but did not inform the BOC about the shipment.

Maritana later said Jimmy Guban and Signapan made him sign an affidavit, to facilitate the entry of the shipment, which tested positive for drugs according to sniffer dogs.

"Without that operation sir hindi mahuhuli 'yung nasa [we won't catch those in the] Bureau of Customs," Guban said.

Guban also admitted having known about the entry of the shipment, but only after he figured out intel.

"I think the proper charges should be filed against him right now," Gordon said during the hearing.

Guban is now detained at the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms. He is facing criminal charges.

BOC Commissioner Isidro Lapena said they are doing a full blown investigation on the matter.

CNN Philippines' Cecille Lardizabal contributed to this report.
Yves here. Wowsers, I didnt understand why an article like this needed to be written.until I saw that the New York Times is selling a new poverty treatment. Instead of Let them eat training, the latest clever solution is Let them eat hope.

By Dr. Farwa Sial, a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Department of Economics at the School of Oriental and African Studies (@farwasial) and Dr. Carolina Alves, a Joan Robinson Research Fellow in Heterodox Economics (Girton College) Cambridge (@cacrisalves). Originally published at openDemocracy

n a recent article in the New York Times, the development economist Seema Jayachandran discusses three studies that used Randomised Controlled Trials (or RCTs) to understand the benefits of enhancing the self-worth of poor people. Despite wide differences in context, all the cases explore the viability of modest interventions to instill hope in marginalised communities, concluding that remarkable improvements in the quest for poverty reduction are possible.

One of the studies from Uganda, for example, argues that a role model can have significant effects on students educational attainment, so the suggestion for policy-makers might be to place more emphasis on motivation and inspiration through example.Another case study of sex workers in Kolkata Brothels argues that psychological barriers impede such disadvantaged groups from breaking the vicious circle and achieving better outcomes in life, so small but effective changes that address these psychological constraints can alleviate the effects of poverty and social exclusion.

The underlying theme of these studies is that individuals can surmount the structural challenges of poverty through their own efforts using tools like effective role models, the generation of more hope, and the improvement of their mental health. Positive psychology of this kind and an emphasis on behavior change to meet the goals of individuals have been around at least since the 1950s, first in the popular literature of self-help books and now in academia, where they form part of an increasingly fashionable trend to do poverty reduction differently.

The push for rebranding refugees as entrepreneurs follows the same logic. In the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and TEDx hosted an event to showcase the personal narratives of refugees. The resulting talk was designed to highlight the role of positive thinking in overcoming adversity, with the harsh realities of being a refugee and resorting to extreme survival skills portrayed through the lens of individual motivation. The implicit assumption was that positive attitudes could determine better opportunities in life.

This trend relies on RCTs as the key methodological tool to prove its case, a technique born out of an increasing focus in economics on the behaviour of individuals and the use of computing power to process enormous amounts of data in econometric analyses. RCTs are supposed to provide evidence-based answers that form a scientific basis for policy-making. In reality however, they have some serious limitations.

An RCT is an evaluation technique that draws from experimental design in order to measure the impact of a development project. As the name suggests, the process is based on a selection of a random or unspecified distribution of people or communities who are subjected to a trial or an experiment. The proponents of this method suggest that it is possible to measure the impact of an intervention and attribute a causal relationship between the intervention and its outcomes when compared to a control group who are not includeda worrying feature in and of itself because people in that group may be denied the essentials of a decent life if they are only provided to those who participate in the trials.

According to Esther Duflo, the top five journals in economics published 21 articles on development in 2000, none of which represented this methodology; by 2015 there were 32 such articles, of which 10 were RCTs. Researchers Sophie Webber and Carolyn Prouse go so far as to say that RCTs have become the new gold standard in development economics, so it comes as no surprise that poverty has started to be studied in the context of this new framework.

Poverty alleviation, however, is a hugely complex subject that touches on the strengthening of institutions, the health of governance, the structure and dynamics of markets, the workings of social classes, macroeconomic policies, distribution, international integration and many other issues, none of which can be replicated from one context to another. That means that analyses of poverty have to be based on a critical examination of processes and actors that cannot be controlled againstthus violating the principle of RCTs.

Recent developments in economics have failed to account for these fundamental determinants of poverty. Instead, the success of RCTs can be narrowed down to essentially statistical arguments that seek to identify what works and which interventions should therefore be employed to improve the lives of the poor. In such processes, the focus tends towards the individual or the household and (initially at least) to the design of small changes that are supposed to enable them to exit poverty, although eventually the scaling up of interventions might also occur. Akin to the nudge approach that has been popularised by Cass Sunstein and Richard Thaler, the idea is that peoples choices can be shaped to allow them to escape from poverty and dispossession.

As a consequence, this approach individualises the problem of poverty whilst failing to acknowledge, contextualize, highlight or analyse the structures, institutions and actors that actually make and keep some people poor. For example, the idea that role models can be effective in changing peoples behaviour, emotions and self-concepts isnt new; whats new is the belief that these aspirations can lift people out of poverty without broader changes in politics, social structures and institutions. Returning to the brothels of Kolkata, advocating for the removal of psychological barriers may not be effective if the working conditions of sex workers and the structures on which their material deprivation stands continue to go unchallenged.

To be fair, The York Times piece introduces some important caveats to such strategies:

Hope isnt a cure-all and in none of these examples can we be certain that it actually explains the gains in peoples income or educationinstilling hope without skills or financial resources is unlikely to be enough to lift people out of poverty.

Nevertheless, if the caveats are so strong as to question the validity of the experiments then they are not caveats at all, but fundamental inputs on which any successful methodology must be based. Economics distracts itself by reforming symptoms and ignoring the conditions which cause the malaise in the first place. As the development economist Sanjay G. Reddy has written:

The larger questions once asked within the discipline regarding the effect of alternative economic institutions and policies (such as those concerning property arrangements, trade, agricultural, industrial and fiscal policy, and the role of social protection mechanisms), for instance, and the impact of political dynamics and processes of social change, have been pushed to the background in favour of such questions as whether bed-nets dipped in insecticide should be distributed free of charge or not, or whether two schoolteachers in the classroom are much better than one.

Hence, in a recent open letter published in the Guardian, fifteen leading economists argued that relying on RCTs to guide aid spending will lead to short-term, superficial and misplaced policies. Asking relevant questions is the first step towards understanding problems. And understanding why widespread hunger and poverty persist in an era of unprecedented opulence, rapid technological transformation and democratic governance is the most important problem of the day. Inequality is not born in a vacuum; it is a fundamental aspect of the distribution of income and wealth. Unless we understand how extreme wealth accumulation is connected to extreme inequality the question of poverty will go unaddressed.

More than 800 million people live in extreme poverty today. To say that they do not have the adequate hope, aspiration and tenacity to fight for their rights is to deny their agency. The structural odds against them inhibit their ability to leave the vicious cycles of poverty. Without additional resources and much more concerted action on the underlying causes, no amount of positive thinking will enable the great mass of individuals to climb out of poverty. We cannot afford to rely on methods that suggest that poor people are simply failing to make the right choices.

This doesnt mean that we should disregard RCTs or any other ways of empowering communities, but it does mean that we should build on an understanding of poverty alleviation which is concerned with attacking the malaise of unequal distribution as opposed to remediating its symptoms. That means confronting structures and actors that have not only failed to address poverty but may also have reinforced the nature of uneven development across the globe.
Yves here. An example of neoliberalism gone mad from Down Under. Getting hay to Asian buyers is now putting domestic farms at risk.

By David Llewellyn-Smith, founding publisher and former editor-in-chief of The Diplomat magazine, now the Asia Pacifics leading geo-politics website. Cross posted from MacroBusiness

Via the ABC comes another little microcosm of the mismanagement of Australias collapsing borders:

Exporters are hitting back at calls for the Federal Government to seize hay supplies destined for Japan and China, saying it will bring about the end of a $500 million industry.

Many drought-stricken farmers have taken to social media calling for a halt to hay exports as demand on domestic supplies reach unprecedented levels.

CEO of the Australian Fodder Industry Association, John McKew, said there has been an extraordinary turnaround in demand as an oversupply in 2017 turned into a shortage.

Weve hit this situation where demand has just gone unbelievably strong for fodder products, he said.

Theres always going to be hay in the system, but in terms of whats available commercially, were about as low as youd want to go.

Oversimplification that could kill industry

With almost 1.2 million tonnes exported, 2017 was a record year for the industry, but Mr McKew said exports represent 10 to 15 per cent of the total supply.

He said the export industry has taken three decades to build, and that major competitors in north America are ready to step in should Australian exports stumble.

The relationships that have taken this long to build, you cannot just turn export markets on and off, so if we were to turn our export fodder industry off at anytime, its gone  we wont get it back, Mr McKew said.

Mr McKew said a seizure of hay exports now would mean the collapse of the domestic hay market once the drought finally breaks and supplies return to a significant surplus.

We get to the stage where weve got a lot of stock available in the industry, what do we do with that?

If we use the 2017 figures, thats 1.2 metric tonnes extra fodder into the domestic market in a good year  the prices will go down even further and well have fodder growers who are going to be in desperate situations, he said.

Social media and drought stoke fears of shortage

Northern Victorian hay grower, Luke Felmingham, said calls for a seizure of hay exports are short-sighted and farcical.

Its a bit of a storm in a tea cup, people taking a shot at an industry thats been around for a very long time, he said.

Its people forming an opinion before they have the information.

Sentiments about hay exports seen on social media group include comments like it should not be being exported, it should be sent to our farmers! Another example of our government looking after other countries before our own!

But Mr Felmingham said while most farmers he has spoken to understand the need for a strong hay export industry, a minority opposed to it are finding a strong voice on social media.

Its hurting all the east coast which is really exhausting hay supplies, which is making a lot of people nervy and a lot of people upset as well, he said.

Mr Felmingham said hay growers have their own contractual commitments and are being unfairly singled out.

A lot of hay growers and suppliers are farmers too, they have their own stock, they want to be able to meet their market requirements, whether it be domestically supplying the dairy farmer up the road for the next six months, or the exports supplying their contacts.

An idea worth exploring, says hay broker

Managing Director of Haylink Marketing and Logistics in South Australia, Alister Turner, said with new crops of hay still growing, export supplies should be used to help farmers in the short term.

Its something wed have to manage very carefully because to alleviate a short-term domestic crisis, we in no way want to damage our very valuable and established export hay industry, Mr Turner said.

Its a little frustrating to see carryover of contracts of export hay still sitting in sheds with the new crops almost upon us, when we desperately need hay for our drought regions in particular, and our dairy farms.

While Mr Turner said a seizure of export supplies would be a draconian measure, exporters and governments need to come to some sort of an agreement.

The exporters dont seem to be interested and obviously they have their overseas contracts and things theyve got to fill  but if we could work together to redirect some of the supply and help short term crisis that would be an ideal situation, he said.

Hopefully the new season will provide enough tonnage for us all, but I still think at this point we havent had any relief from the drought and it is worsening, so going forward were going to ask the exporters to help out.

The Federal Government would be required to declare a state of emergency in order to seize any export hay supplies.

Minister for Agriculture David Littleproud said the government has no plan for the forced compulsory acquisition of hay.
By Jerri-Lynn Scofield, who has worked as a securities lawyer and a derivatives trader. She is currently writing a book about textile artisans.

The Wall Street Journal published an article Monday, States Loom as a Regulatory Threat to Tech Giants, examining the emerging stance state attorneys general are taking on regulating US companies that dominate the internet:

State officials are raising risks for companies such as Facebook Inc.,Twitter Inc. and Alphabet Inc.s Google as the states begin piecing together a coordinated legal strategy for confronting the firms over alleged antitrust violations and data-privacy abuses, and over what some Republicans say is a suppression of conservative speech. Tensions have been simmering for months, but they surfaced publicly last week when the Justice Department said U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions would meet with several state attorneys general later this month to discuss a growing concern that the companies are hurting competition and stifling the free exchange of ideas on their platforms.

CNBC reported the text of the full statement by Department of Justice (DoJ) spokesman Devin OMalley last week in Sessions getting serious about tech company crackdown, will meet with state attorneys general:

We listened to todays Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on Foreign Influence Operations Use of Social Media Platforms closely. The Attorney General has convened a meeting with a number of state attorneys general this month to discuss a growing concern that these companies may be hurting competition and intentionally stifling the free exchange of ideas on their platforms.

The CNBC account highlighted Trumps calls for the breakup of tech companies:

Last month, Trump said Facebook, Twitter and Google were treading on very, very troubled territory and they have to be careful. Hes also said the companies could be engaging in antitrust behaviors, without offering evidence for the claims.

And the WSj account noted that the Federal Trade Commission has started to investigate the industry.

State AGs Can Drive Independent Enforcement Agendas

AGs in many states have considerable authority to drive independent enforcement agendas. Take the example of the tobacco industry, which I discussed in States Launch New Joint Probe into Company Sales and Marketing Practices for Opioids:

In 1998, following many years of investigation and litigation, 46 state AGs entered into a Master Settlement Agreement with the four largest tobacco companies Brown & Williamson, Lorillard, Philip Morris, and R.J. Reynolds. As part of that settlement, the companies agreed to pay out more than $200 billion over 25 years, as well as to make significant changes in the way they sold and marketed their products. They also agreed to disband their lobbying organizations, to fund anti-smoking efforts, and to make public information provided during the discovery process.

Such separate priorities may also extend to areas in which the federal government regulates extensively, such as securities law (or at least did in the not-so-distant past), as I discussed in this post, Mary Jo White Leaves Behind a Weakened SEC for Trump to Weaken Further:

During the administration of President George W. Bush, state attorneys general used state authority to prosecute securities and financial transgressions. Notably, former New York state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer relied on authority provided by the states 1910 Martin Act, which predates the federal securities law, to take legal action actions against insurance firms for brokerage practices, hedge funds for improper trading practices in mutual fund shares, and investment banks for conflicts of interest that distorted the investment research they provided, to name some of the most significant initiatives. Spitzers successors as attorney general, current New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and current Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, have not had the impact that Spitzer had when he was lauded as the Sheriff of Wall Street.

Another New York regulator, Benjamin Lawsky, superintendent of New Yorks Department of Financial Services used the threat of denying a NY state banking charter to force tougher terms on settlements in which the Eric Holder/Loretta Lynch DoJ and other federal regulators had rolled over (see this post by Yves for a summary: Wall Streets Nemesis, Benjamin Lawsky, to Resign in June.).Other states, such as California, have their own expansive statutes though now-US Senator Kamala Harris demonstrated when she served as Californias AG that she more interested in virtue-signalling than taking scalps.

Crusading state AGs are not just Democrats. As I wrote in New EPA Lawsuit Policy Advances Trumps Deregulatory Agenda, Scott Pruitt who recently stepped down as EPA administrator:

has been a longstanding bugbear of environmentalists. In his previous role as attorney general for the state of Oklahoma a major producer of oil and natural gas he either filed or joined lawsuits that sought to stymie the modest pro-regulatory environmental and climate change agenda the EPA previously espoused.

Like-minded Republicans AGs often joined him in these efforts.

So, Whats On the Agenda for These AGs?

The most immediate threat to the tech industry might arise in the area of antitrust enforcement which, shall we say, has not been a major priority for recent administrations, although the European Union has investigated and fined Google over competition concerns. Yet as recently as the Clinton administration, Microsoft was a target of an major antitrust action instigated by multiple state AGs in conjunction with the DoJ

Over to the WSJ again:

The [Sessions meeting ] announcementreleased amid last weeks congressional hearings into the practices of Facebook and Twittershed little light on who was raising the concerns or what remedies might be under consideration. But recent comments by several of the state attorneys general suggest they are actively exploring an antitrust investigation and hope to enlist Washington. I think the companies are too big, and they need to be broken up, Republican Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry said Thursday in a radio interview.

There is some evidence that party politics are driving this potential enforcement initiative:

Republicans allegations that the tech companies suppress conservative voices has bubbled up for months in conservative media and was amplified by Mr. Trump late last month. Democrats have said that is the issuemore than antitrust policybehind the coming Justice Department meeting, with Republicans hoping to stir their conservative base ahead of November elections All the attorneys general who are expected to attend this months meeting in Washington are Republicans, with Democratic officials saying they have yet to be invited.

Although its too soon to say where these preliminary discussions between the DoJ and the the state AGs may lead, I want to draw attention to another development the weakening of the hold of corporate Democrats on the direction of the party. David Sirota published an interesting piece in Mondays Guardian, Yes, lets wipe out Trump. But take neoliberal Democrats with him, too.

Sirotas piece wasnt especially concerned about Big Tech per se, and focused on a percolating progressive policy agenda. He mentions regulation, but only as it affects financial firms and pharmaceutical companies and where so far, corporate Democrats have successfully insulated their paymasters from any significant increase in legal liability.

But if progressives start to wield greater influence on the Democratic side and Republican AGs follow through with a tougher approach to enforcement the future might shape up to be a less comfortable operating environment for US internet companies. Or at least we might hope.
The new LaGuardia Airport will be one of the biggest American infrastructure projects of recent times. The catch? They must keep the existing airport 100% operational without descending into chaos and delays?

Thursdays from 8:30pm AEDT.
In his State of the Union Address today, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker proposed to end seasonal clock changes in Europe in 2019.

Summertime arrangements in the EU require that the clocks are changed twice per year in order to cater for the changing patterns of daylight and to take advantage of the available daylight in a given period.

Ireland South MEP Deirdre Clune is in favour of scrapping the clocks changing entirely.

MEP Clune said: I have been working with various parties for many years to implement these changes and I am glad to see that they are going one step further today. When asked people in Ireland voted overwhelmingly to stop the clock changes and I think we must all listen to the citizens of Europe on this. Following the recent public consultation on this 80% of European citizens voted to stop the two clock changes each year.

This really is an exercise from a bygone era that no longer serves a useful purpose.

There are many benefits to ending the process of changing the clocks each year such as improved outcomes for road safety and economic benefits. In addition brighter evenings in winter would have a positive benefit for public health, added Ms Clune.

According to a recent public consultation 88% of Irish people voted to stop changing the clocks and almost 80% said they have a negative overall experience with the clock changes each year.

President Jean-Claude Juncker said: "We all say in soap-box speeches that we want to be big on big things and small on small things. But there is no applause when EU law dictates that Europeans have to change the clocks twice a year. The Commission is today proposing to change this. Clock-changing must stop.

Commissioner for Transport, Violeta Bulc said: "We are proposing to put an end to seasonal clock changes as of next year. This very ambitious timetable will allow citizens to reap the benefits without delay. We are now inviting Member States and businesses to make the necessary preparations to ensure a coordinated approach across the EU."

As part of an assessment of the current arrangements, the Commission held a public consultation in summer 2018 which received 4.6 million responses, the highest number ever received in any public consultation organised by the European Commission. 84% of respondents were in favour of ending seasonal clock changes.

In light of these elements, the European Commission has concluded that there is no point for Brussels to keep regulating seasonal time changes and that Member States should be free to decide whether they want to be in summertime or wintertime and handle the matter at national level, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity.
First introduced in 2015, this is the fourth year Met Eireann and the UK Met Office have jointly run the Name our Storms scheme, aimed at raising awareness of severe weather before it hits.

Ali will be first followed by Bronagh.

The full list of storm names for 2018/2019 is: Ali, Bronagh, Callum, Deirdre, Erik, Freya, Gareth, Hannah, Idris, Jane, Kevin, Lily, Max, Niamh, Oliver, Peggy, Ross, Saoirse, Tristan, Violet and Wyn.

Evelyn Cusack, Head of Forecasting at Met Eireann, said: The last 12 months have seen some extreme weather around the Globe as well as here at home.

While it is too early to say whether the coming winter will be a stormy one or a quiet one we are prepared with a new set of 21 names for whatever nature may throw at us. Met Eireann is delighted to continue working with colleagues from the UK Met Office to warn of impending severe weather.

Derrick Ryall, Head of Public Weather Services at the Met Office, said: Naming storms has been proved to raise awareness of severe weather in the UK and Ireland, providing a consistent message to the public and crucially prompting people to take action to prevent harm to themselves or to their property.

This year the first storm will be male and named Ali, while the second storm will be female and named Bronagh, following the alternating male/female pattern established by the US National Hurricane Center in the 1970s.

When do we name storms?

A storm will be named for weather systems which we expect an Orange (Amber) or Red wind warning will be issued by Met Eireann and/or the Met Office.

This seasons names have once again been compiled from a list of suggestions submitted by the public, choosing some of the most popular names but also selecting names that reflect the culture and diversity of Ireland and Britain. As in previous years, Q, U, X, Y and Z will not be used, to comply with the international storm naming conventions.

Heres a reminder of the named storms since last September.

Aileen 12-13th Sept 2018/ Ophelia 16th Oct/ Brian 20th-21st Oct/ Caroline 7th-8th Dec/ Dylan 30th-31st Dec/ Eleanor 2nd-3rd Jan 2019/ Fionn 16th Jan/ Georgina 24th Jan/ Emma 1st-2nd March/ Hector 13th-14th June.

Evelyn is chair of the European group for storm-naming which feeds into a worldwide system of naming storms, hurricanes, typhoons etc. She points out that the names of the two most serious events affecting our shores over the last year, Ophelia and Emma, actually did not come from our 2017-18 list.

Ophelia is from the rotating list used by the National Hurricane Center in Miami and was the farthest-east major hurricane observed in the satellite era. Emma was named by the National Weather Service in Portugal (AEMET) and produced heavy snow as it clashed with the Arctic conditions over Ireland and Britain in early March this year.
(Natural News) Neonicotinoid pesticides are harming more than just honeybees. Research findings have revealed that wild turkeys are inadvertently consuming seeds coated with the pesticides.

Wild turkeys have levels of neonicotinoids in their livers

The study, which involved researchers from the University of Guelph in Guelph, Canada, showed that aside from non-pest creatures like honeybees, other animals are coming into contact with neonicotinoid pesticides.

Neonicotinoid pesticides, or neonics, have a chemical structure similar to nicotine, hence the name. There are different varieties of neonics and the three most common are clothianidin, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam. These pesticides are heavily used in the U.S. The pesticides, which were also used in Europe, were banned in the EU earlier this year.

Neonicotinoid pesticides have been repeatedly associated with honeybee colony collapse disorder, and their harmful effect on honeybee colonies is often stated as the main reason for bans and restrictions.

Despite this display of concern for honeybees, research on the effect of neonicotinoids on other animals isnt as comprehensive. For example, a 2014 study identified a link between the increase in the use of neonicotinoid pesticides and a decrease in insect-eating birds. (Related: Applied insect ecologist says that neonicotinoid insecticides are used far more heavily than necessary, causing huge ecological damage.)

For the study, researchers analyzed the carcasses of wild turkeys from Southern Ontario in Canada. Findings revealed that almost 25 percent of the turkeys had detectable levels of neonicotinoids in their livers.

Wild turkeys are omnivores and they will eat almost anything that they can catch or find. Turkeys also have a tendency to consume seeds. Unfortunately, seeds are often heavily treated with this brightly colored pesticide, and the researchers found corn and soy seeds coated with neonicotinoids in some of the turkeys digestive systems.

The study didnt take into account the effects of neonicotinoid consumption on wild turkeys or other animals.

In a separate study in 2017, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released an assessment report revealing that seed-eating birds can be harmed by the consumption of neonic-coated seeds. Negative side effects of neonics may include reduced reproductive activity and migratory abilities in birds.

Fast facts about neonicotinoid pesticides

Neonicotinoids are commonly used pesticides that are lethal to birds and the insects that birds eat.

Neonics were first introduced in the U.S. in 1994. They can be found in countless products like insect sprays, seed treatments, soil drenches, and even veterinary ointments to get rid of fleas in dogs and cats.

Neonicotinoid pesticides are systemic in plants. This means that compared to other pesticides that remain on the surface of treated foliage, neonics are absorbed by the plant. Neonics are then distributed to all plant tissues such as pollen, roots, and stems.

One seed treated with a neonic pesticide is enough to kill a songbird. Lesser amounts may emaciate other birds, impair reproduction, and disrupt migratory pathways.

Neonicotinoids can also be found in our food supply. Chronic neonic exposure may be associated with autism spectrum disorder and other negative developmental and neurological conditions.

The pesticides are used in high concentrations in the coatings of seeds used to grow crops such as canola, corn, soy, sunflowers, and other vegetables.

You can read more articles about the negative side effects of neonicotinoid pesticides and how to prevent them at Pesticides.news.

Sources include:

EcoWatch.com

ABCBirds.org
(Natural News) People suffering from insomnia after a stroke would do well to ditch their sleeping pills for acupuncture needles, according to experts. In a study, researchers from South Korea confirmed that stroke patients who suffer from insomnia can find relief from acupuncture, a traditional Chinese medicine. In fact, its even more effective than drug treatments. In their study, which was published in the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, they assessed the effectiveness of acupuncture in relieving insomnia after stroke.

One of the most reported complaints of people recovering from a stroke is insomnia. It is primarily caused by anxiety resulting from hyperactivity of the sympathetic nervous system. Meanwhile, acupuncture has been commonly used to treat various clinical conditions, especially those that involve pathological changes in neuroendocrinology such as insomnia. It can regulate the functioning of the heart and brain by stimulating certain acupoints on the body.

Although acupuncture has increasingly been used to manage insomnia, its effectiveness in the treatment of insomnia after stroke has not been studied. Therefore, researchers at the Korea National Rehabilitation Research Institute in Korea assessed whether acupuncture is effective in relieving insomnia.

In conducting the study, they reviewed a total of 13 studies that compared the effects of acupuncture to placebo or other conventional therapy, such as drug usage, for the treatment of insomnia after a stroke.

Based on their meta-analysis, acupuncture was revealed to be more effective than drugs for treating insomnia after stroke, as acupuncture reduced insomnia after stroke. In addition, intradermal acupuncture caused significant improvements in insomnia after stroke compared to sham acupuncture.

Thus, the researchers concluded that the findings of the study suggested acupuncture as an effective natural treatment in managing insomnia after stroke.

Other health benefits of acupuncture

For 3,000 years, acupuncture has been used in traditional Chinese medicine. This traditional healing technique improves the bodys functions and promotes the natural self-healing process by stimulating acupoints through inserting fine, sterile needles into the skin. It has been used to treat a wide variety of conditions. Here are other health benefits that acupuncture offers aside from insomnia relief:

Acupuncture improves mental health: A study on acupuncture revealed that acupuncture can be an effective treatment for anxiety. Its beneficial effects may even be seen after the first session. Thus, people with anxiety can consider it as a natural alternative treatment to pharmaceuticals.

A study on acupuncture revealed that acupuncture can be an effective treatment for anxiety. Its beneficial effects may even be seen after the first session. Thus, people with anxiety can consider it as a natural alternative treatment to pharmaceuticals. Acupuncture relieves premenstrual syndrome (PMS): Acupuncture can relieve and prevent PMS symptoms. Go for an acupuncture session before PMS symptoms actually start in order to lessen symptoms early on. (Related: Acupuncture found highly effective for treating primary dysmenorrhea.)

Acupuncture can relieve and prevent PMS symptoms. Go for an acupuncture session before PMS symptoms actually start in order to lessen symptoms early on. (Related: Acupuncture found highly effective for treating primary dysmenorrhea.) Acupuncture eases text neck and headaches: Spending too much time on your phones or gadgets can result in neck pain and trigger headaches. With acupuncture, tight, overworked muscles can be relaxed. In addition, it can help ease pain. Acupuncture does these by working with the fascial network of the body in order to help release the natural opiates in the body.

Spending too much time on your phones or gadgets can result in neck pain and trigger headaches. With acupuncture, tight, overworked muscles can be relaxed. In addition, it can help ease pain. Acupuncture does these by working with the fascial network of the body in order to help release the natural opiates in the body. Acupuncture enhances skin health: In addition to eating healthy, exercising regularly, and meditating, trying acupuncture can also improve skin health. Acupuncture enthusiasts reported that facial rejuvenation through acupuncture can relax wrinkles, trigger sagging facial muscles, and increase levels of collagen.

During an acupuncture session, you lay comfortably on a treatment table while the acupuncturist stimulates certain acupoints on various areas of the body. Most people undergoing acupuncture feel minimal or no discomfort as the fine needles are gently placed, instead, they report that they feel relaxed. The fine needles are typically retained for five to 30 minutes.

Read more news stories and studies on other traditional Chinese medicine like acupuncture by going to ChineseMedicine.news.

Sources include:

Science.news

CIM.UCSD.edu

MindBodyGreen.com
(Natural News) A recently uncovered chain of emails sent back and forth between executives at Google the day after the 2016 presidential election prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that the search engine giant willfully meddled with the election in an attempt to throw it in favor of failed Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.

In a nutshell, Eliana Murillo, a Hispanic woman who heads Googles Multicultural Marketing department, was caught conversing with other Google employees about how to get more Latino people out to the polls in an attempt to help Clinton win the election. Murillo also used the term silent donation to indicate that her employer had given cash contributions to pro-Hillary causes.

In a primary email sent on November 9, 2016, that contained the subject line Election results and the Latino vote, Murillo claimed that her efforts were non-partisan, only to later reveal that she was actively working alongside other Google influencers to boost Latino voter turnout, which she believed would work against Donald Trump.

This was a major miscalculation, Murillo later admitted in another email in the chain, revealing that Latino voters actually preferred Trump at margins far higher than they did for other Republican candidates in previous elections. As many of our readers already know, Trump garnered nearly 30 percent support among Hispanics on average, which is far and above what any of the experts were predicting.

We worked very hard, Murillo stated openly in one of her emails. Many people did. We pushed to [sic] get out the Latino vote with our features, our partners, and our voices.

There should be a federal investigation into election collusion by Big Tech, suggests Tucker Carlson

The email chain was first obtained by Tucker Carlson from Fox News, who was quick to point out the irony of Democrats and leftists whining and crying about made-up Russian collusion when we now have real evidence showing that it was the anti-Trumpers who were colluding and meddling to try to steal the election.

Google alone could determine the outcome of almost any election just by altering its search selections and we would never know it, Carlson explained during a recent segment of his show.

This statement by Carlson reflects research conducted by Dr. Robert Epstein, a social scientist and expert in all things Google, who published several very detailed reports explaining how Google maintains unthinkable control over the election process. One of these reports showed that Google search manipulation has the potential to swing a large percentage of voters, which remains a credible concern as we approach the upcoming midterm elections.

This wasnt a get-out-the-vote effort or whatever they say, Carlson added during the segment.

It wasnt aimed at all potential voters. It wasnt even aimed at a balanced cross-section of subgroups. Google didnt try to get out the vote among, say, Christian Arabs in Michigan or, say, Persian Jews in Los Angeles  they sometimes vote Republican. It was aimed only at one group, a group that Google cynically assumed would vote exclusively for the Democratic Party.

Since Google hasnt even tried to deny that its employees were engaged in a conspiracy to thwart the democratic process, its obvious that the tech giant simply doesnt care to even pretend to be neutral or not evil, as its former company motto suggested. And should we really be surprised, seeing as how Google and many other tech giants have decided that open censorship is now a-okay?

This mobilization effort targeted not only the entire country but swing states vital to the Hillary campaign, Carlson added. This was not an exercise in civics; this was political consulting. It was in effect an in-kind contribution to the Hillary Clinton campaign.

Sources for this article include:

Breitbart.com

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) Most countries nowadays are doing what they can to reduce the environmental impact of their industries and projects. Malaysia, in particular, is making an effort to become a purveyor of sustainable building. A recent study, published in the Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, evaluated the progress made by the Southeast Asian country and reported that Malaysia is still far from its goal of achieving all requirements of its Green Building Index (GBI).

Set by the Malaysian federal government, the GBI is an industry rating designed for the unique requirements of the countrys climate, culture, development, environment, and society.

The construction industry is one of the most polluting sectors of a countrys economy. Aware of its effect on the environment, the industry has been adopting GBI-compliant green buildings that require fewer resources and energy to build, maintain, and operate.

Green buildings make the best use out of available energy, materials, technology, and water. They are made from renewable resources such as wood and draw power from clean energy sources such as hydroelectric, solar, and wind.

To save on energy, they use natural means of circulating air that require little or no power. The overall effect is to protect the environment by minimizing the ecological footprint of human activities. (Related: Will future buildings be made from vegetables?)

How is the green building concept doing in Malaysia?

Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) researchers investigated the process of developing and implementing GBI-compliant buildings in Malaysian construction companies. For their experiment, they constructed a Likert-type scale questionnaire with the help of a team of academic experts regarding the Green Building Index and sustainable building.

The survey sought to find out if the participants agreed, disagreed, or felt neutral about certain elements of the GBI and green building technology. Its topics covered Awareness of Environment, Green Building Performance, Legislation, Technology, and Social Element.

The survey was given to managers, non-management staff, and professional personnel of the GBI. It served as the primary source of data for the study.

In addition, they drew secondary information from articles, books, papers, studies, and theses available online or in libraries.

Eco-friendly construction is very much a work in progress in Malaysia

The USM study identified the primary obstacles to wider adoption of green building practices and technologies in Malaysia. These problems concern local attitudes towards green building, lack of awareness regarding the matter, education and training, professional training, legal concerns, government support, and financial support.

Of the previously mentioned issues, the ones involving awareness, government support, and population attitude are the most commonly encountered concerns in the construction industry. They are the most critical concerns and require immediate amelioration.

The study recommended that the government come up with ways to promote projects centered on green building practices and technology. In addition, the government must also provide the construction industry with incentives to adopt energy-efficient green technology on a larger scale.

The USM researchers concluded that green building is still taking baby steps in Malaysia. In order for it to make serious headway in reducing ecological damage, it needs to be embraced by a fully-aware community and receive support from the construction industry.

Furthermore, people who are planning to buy houses must have their eyes opened regarding eco-friendly residential buildings. To improve their vague and insufficient understanding of green buildings, various influences from culture, the economy, finances, and society need to be changed.

Last but not least, the Malaysian government must step up when it comes to supporting sustainable buildings and related technology. It should inform the public about the concept of green buildings. It must also acquire and transfer appropriate knowledge from experts on sustainable construction.

Learn more about green building practices in the construction industry at Enviro.news.

Sources include:

Science.news

New.GreenBuildingIndex.org

ICJOnline.com [PDF]

AJBASWeb.com [PDF]
From flat Earthers to climate change and Holocaust deniers, there's a solid chunk of people out there with beliefs that contradict overwhelming evidence.

New research has experts delving into the psyche of people who espouse false beliefs even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

The Study

In the new study published in the journal Open Mind, researchers from the University of California Berkeley suggest that feedback not evidence dictates people's certainty in their knowledge or principles of right and wrong.

According to a press release from UC Berkeley, the team found that other people's reactions  whether positive or negative  are more likely to reinforce someone's opinion, task, or interaction than logic or scientific data.

It's also revealed that people's certainty is more dependent on the most recent results rather than long-term cumulative results.

The study involved over 500 adults who had to look at different combinations of colored shapes on the computer. Without giving the participants any clues, definition, or defining characteristics, the team asked them to identify which of the 24 colored shapes qualified as "Daxxy," which is a made-up term coined just for the experiment. After each guess, the participants were asked to report on their certainty, then told whether their guess was right or wrong.

The results showed that the certainty of the participants depended on whether they correctly named a Daxxy in the previous four or five guesses rather than the total items they got correct.

"What we found interesting is that they could get the first 19 guesses in a row wrong, but if they got the last five right, they felt very confident," Louis Marti, lead study author and a Ph.D. psychology student at UC Berkeley, says in a statement. "It's not that they weren't paying attention, they were learning what a Daxxy was, but they weren't using most of what they learned to inform their certainty."

He adds that an ideal learner would base his or her certainty on observations as well as feedback accumulated through time instead of just the last few guesses.

More Findings Analyze Learning Process

In the study, Marti and the rest of the team found that receiving positive feedback for what they're saying can make people believe that they know more than they actually do. This confidence makes them less likely to seek out and learn more information about the subject, as well as take into account contradicting opinions or facts.

"If you think you know a lot about something, even though you don't, you're less likely to be curious enough to explore the topic further, and will fail to learn how little you know," Marti explains.

Fellow study author Celeste Kidd adds that if a crazy theory is able to make a correct prediction a few times, the person behind the theory could get stuck in the belief and become less open to other information.
Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" is one of the most famous single pieces of art in the world, mostly due to the subject's enigmatic smile.

Millions of tourists flock to the Louvre every day to get a glimpse of the painting, and many experts have come up with theories on Mona Lisa's mysterious appearance. Now, doctors suggest that her unconventional look and allure may lie in a common medical ailment.

A Medical Explanation For 'Mona Lisa'

Da Vinci's iconic painting is widely believed to be of Lisa Gherardini, the wife of a Florentine merchant. In a paper published in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings, physician Dr. Mandeep Mehra suggests that Gherardini shows notable symptoms of hyperthyroidism in the painting, including the famous crooked smile, yellow skin, and thinning hair.

"I'm not an artist. I don't know how to appreciate art," Mehra, the medical director of the Heart & Vascular Center at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, says in a report from Inverse. "But I do sure know how to make a clinical diagnosis."

The symptoms are present in the centuries-old painting, according to Mehra. Between the inner corner of her left eye and the bridge of her nose, there is a small yet distinct bump that's likely a cholesterol deposit called xanthalesma. Her eyes have a yellow tint to them as well as her skin.

Under the light black veil, Gherardini's hair is thin and limp, with her hairline appearing to be receding. Da Vinci did not even paint eyebrows.

Other symptoms include Gherardini's puffy face, a subtle but unmistakable bulge on her neck that's potentially the early stages of a goiter, and a lump on her hand that could be a fatty benign tumor called lipoma or xanthoma.

"So, I'm basically looking at a receding hairline, loss of eyebrows, a swelling in the neck, coarse, thin hair," Mehra notes. "And I'm looking at a slightly edematous, swollen woman with no hair throughout. That, to me is a classic picture of clinical hypothyroidism, or an underactive thyroid gland."

Additionally, her lopsided smile could also be an indication of her possible diagnosis, as depression is another symptom of hyperthyroidism. Facial muscles are also often puffy and weak, so a full smile takes a bit more effort.

Explaining The 'Mona Lisa'

For hundreds of years, historians, art experts, and art enthusiasts have pored over the "Mona Lisa" in an attempt to explain the mystery of woman in the painting. Some say that she is Da Vinci in his feminine form, while others say the painting is his version of the ideal woman.

Bell's Palsy has also been brought up to explain Gherardini's crooked smile, although Mehra points out that there were no other unevenness in her face that would support this condition.

Live Science reports that doctors proposed familial hyperlipidemia in 2004, but Gherardini lived to be 63 years old, which is unlikely had she really suffered from this condition.
A new fix for the tilting and sinking Millennium Tower is on the table at closed door talks this week, NBC Bay Area has learned. The goal is to find a solution that will settle the massive legal fight, and stabilize the troubled building.

The $80 million proposal cant come soon enough for residents of the troubled building. Nerves are already on edge following the cracking of a 36th floor window over Labor Day weekend.

I think the homeowners are waiting, and anxious, said attorney and engineer Jerry Dodson, who lives on the towers 42nd floor. These kind of problems that crop up with the building make that more of an alarming situation that needs to be dealt with.

The idea behind the latest plan is to create a way to stop the building from tilting more, but not straighten it back out. The tower is currently tilting by 18 inches.

The question is whether the fix is sufficient. One expert told NBC Bay Area the current 18-inch leaning may already be putting the towers seismic performance at risk.

Its getting to a point where it conceivably could have an impact, said Joe Maffei, a San Francisco structural engineer who specializes in seismic performance of high rise buildings.

The newly proposed $80 million fix is far cheaper than an earlier concept touted by the Millennium Tower Homeowners Association. That approach  currently estimated to cost between $400 million and $500 million  would rely on inserting 150 piles after drilling through the buildings 10 foot thick concrete foundation slab.

The less expensive alternative, proposed by structural engineer Ron Hamburger on behalf of the towers developer, relies on fewer, larger piles sunk on the outside of the existing foundation and then connected to the foundation.

There would a total of 52 piles, each capable of handling 1 million pounds. There would be 26 set on either side of the buildings northwest corner at Fremont and Mission streets. Thats where the sinking and tilting is most pronounced.

The plan is cheaper in part because using the sidewalk will allow quick and easy access for heavy equipment needed to put piles into the ground.

That seems to make more sense to me; you will be installing the piles in the city owned property, Maffei said. However, he also noted that shoring just one side of the tower has its risks.

You can ask the question, he said, Well, thats hopefully going to stop that side  but what if the other side continues sinking and it starts tilting the other direction?

One option that has been tried in Mexico City is to make the new system adjustable to offset any new shifting forces, Maffei said.

I think theres a little bit of a balancing act with this, he added.

The Millennium Towers developer isnt talking about the latest proposed fix, which is being considered during days of closed door talks this week. But in a recent decision, the judge overseeing the massive legal case involving the tower indicated there was encouraging news on a fix.

Sources told NBC Bay Area the Millennium may even offer some sort of guarantee, and that would be good news for owners who have been stuck waiting for progress.

We need to get on with it, a frustrated Dodson said.
A Northern California paralegal who once worked for a public defender's office in a second-chance program for recently released inmates has been charged with killing someone he thought was a police informant.

William M. Edwards was expected to appear Tuesday on charges of conspiracy and murder in Contra Costa County Superior Court in Martinez.

Prosecutors say the 38-year-old fatally shot a 22-year-old man he wrongly believed was a witness in a gang investigation. Investigators say Edwards is a member of an Oakland, California gang, according to court records.

The public defender's office told the East Bay Times it hired Edwards for a temporary position in 2016 after he served a 15-year prison sentence for manslaughter.
UC Berkeley's law school is one of the West Coasts most prestigious, but after more than 100 years, the university is considering removing the name Boalt Hall.

A committee of students, faculty and staff is recommending the name go because it pays tribute to a known racist. The proposal has launched a heated debate.

Ultimately, if the Boalt name is eliminated, it will be up to the law school's dean to make a recommendation and then up to the university chancellor to make the final decision on a name change.

Berkeley's law school has held the Boalt Hall name since Elizebeth Boalt gifted the university $100,000 in 1911 to build it beyond a single classroom. She donated the money in memory of her late husband John Henry Boalt, a prominent attorney, president of the Bohemian Club and a strong supporter of excluding Chinese immigration because he believed them to be morally and intellectually inferior.

First-year law student Kevin Chen is one of many who wants Boalts name removed but not his impact.

"Im Chinese-American, so I clearly dont agree with what he said. But he did have an impact. Like, his wifes donation did have an impact in the school," Chen said. "He said those things; theyre part of our history. We have to recognize that we cant erase that."

Dean Erwin Chemerinsky is giving students faculty staff and alumni until Oct. 31 to weigh in on what should be done about the name.

"Theres no doubt that what John Boalt said was despicable and racist," Chemerinsky said. "The question is what do we do about it now. There are many alums from the years that believe we should remove the Boalt name because of the racist statements, and there are many alums that believe that tradition matters, and we should continue to use the name Boalt."

Chemerinsky added that its the alumni that are the most passionate in their responses to the proposed change, both for and against. He announced the committee recommendation to remove Boalts name Monday, and by noon Tuesday, hed received more than 300 emails.

Chemerinsky wouldnt say which side was in the majority or even that he would make his recommendation to the chancellor based on the numbers.
The unusual museum and arcade founded in an El Cerrito office building in tribute to San Franciscos long-defunct Playland At The Beach will end its 10-year run this weekend with an everything goes auction that will include pinball machines, miniature cities and an original Laughing Sal.

Playland Not At The Beach, as it was named, closed on Labor Day after the landlords of the office building housing the museum decided to tear it down to make way for apartments. The museum and arcade was founded by late business man Richard Tuck in 2008 as a nostalgic tribute to Playland and arcades of eras past. Tucked died in 2012 of pancreatic cancer leaving the business to several friends who kept it running another seven years.

This is very much who Richard was, said co-owner Frank Biafore, who goes by the moniker Fabulous Frank. He loved bringing people together, he loved teaching. The fact we were able to keep this going seven years after he passed is just wonderful.

The auction to sell all the museums contents was originally scheduled to take place this Saturday at the museum but Michaans Auctions moved the bidding to its Alameda headquarters following a flood of interest. The company is hosting previews at the museum on Thursday and Friday with the auction taking place noon Saturday and going until everything is sold.

A lot of these historic pieces as well you dont see these anymore, said Michaan Auctions spokeswoman Talesa Eugenio. A lot of the new games out there, are on everybodys phones.

The idea germinated after Tuck created a fun room in the back of the building housing his job placement company. But the collection grew and took over the entire building, eventually including a haunted house, a circus sideshow, an arcade and a miniature Santas Village. Visitors paid admission to access the collection and games.

The original Playland at San Franciscos Ocean Beach closed in 1972 and was torn down. Biafore said Tuck visited the park as a kid and the memory stuck with him.

Ironically we followed the same path as Playland, Biafore said. They came down for condos, we came down for apartments. They closed Labor Day 72, we closed Labor Day this year.

This week, Biafore and a team of workers stuffed historic pictures, office items and other mementoes into boxes. Biafore said during its run the museum hosted weddings, birthday parties  even divorce parties. He said he and his business partners made an attempt to find another location for the collection but found prospective sites too expensive.

So instead he prepared to part with colorful articles of yesteryear which he hoped would mostly remain in public view. Just beyond a stack of boxes, Laughing Sal wasnt laughing. An original papier-mache clown from Playland sat in a darkened display case. Biafore described the scene as bittersweet.

So many happy memories were created here, Biafore said, that I cant feel sorry for whats happening at this minute.
Family and friends of Brian Egg gathered outside of his home in San Francisco Tuesday on what would have been his 66th birthday.

Police discovered a headless and handless body in a fish tank inside Eggs home in August, weeks after neighbors and family told police he hadnt been seen for months.

The remains have not been identified but neighbors and loved ones believe it could be that of Eggs.

"This, of course, has been extremely difficult and sad time for our family," said Eggs sister Lynn Egg.

Many in the crowd shared stories of the art collector who gave his finds to friends.

"He would find treasures," Mark Rosenheimer from San Francisco said. "Two of my best chairs came from Brian."

Lance Silva is in custody but not charged in the homicide, police say he was using Eggs debit card before his arrest. Another man was also arrested but later released.

Eggs family thanked the police for their dedication to the case but many in the crowd say police should have done more to check on Egg and are not happy no one is facing charged related to what they think was his death.
Cardinal Blase Cupich has scheduled a closed-door meeting with Chicago priests this week, NBC 5 has learned, to discuss the current crisis facing the church.



The invitation for the meeting, planned for Wednesday evening, was sent to all priests in the Chicago Archdiocese. It will take place a day before Pope Francis plans to sit down Thursday with key American bishops who have requested a meeting on the sex abuse crisis.

Though Cupich's meeting isn't mandatory, a second email was forwarded on Tuesday instructing attendees to print out the invitation and bring it with them, as the meeting is considered a private conversation with the Cardinal.

"One of my major concerns in this moment of suffering for many in the church is you," Cupich's letter to Chicago priests read in part.



Cupich wrote in the letter that he will be available "to discuss any issues or answer any questions you wish to raise with me."

Since it was revealed earlier this summer that Cardinal Theodore McCarrick was removed after allegations of abuse, there have been unanswered questions of who knew what when.

The meeting with priests follows a report detailed by the Chicago Sun-Times of an earlier meeting the Cardinal held with seminarians.

Two weeks ago, Cupich sat down with Chicago media after an explosive letter from Archbishop Carlo Vigano in which Vigano alleged Pope Francis, Pope Benedict and Pope John Paul II were aware of the McCarrick allegations.

Pope Francis' reported Thursday meeting with leaders of the U.S. Bishops Conference will be the first official sit-down with this group of American bishops since McCarrick's removal.



The Vigano letter isn't the only thing creating controversy within the church. A Pennsylvannia grand jury released a 900-page report last month investigating priest abuse, prompting other attorney generals, including in Illinois, to request similar investigations.



Last week, Cardinal Cupich was briefly in Rome to speak at a training for new bishops. It remains unclear if the Cardinal met with Vatican leaders on the crisis, but he has said "I stand ready to do my part."



This past Sunday, Cardinal Cupich spoke at St. Clement Parish in Lincoln Park.



Though NBC 5 was not allowed inside the service, several parishioners said after that he did not say the word "abuse" but did talk about the difficult times the church is facing.
Commuter students at the University of Connecticut say recent changes to the parking system are leaving them in a bad spot.

Before the fall semester began, the university changed Lot B from a commuter lot to an employee lot. Half of Lot Y was also reassigned from commuter to employee. As a result, students say commuter parking is harder to come by.

We'd show up an hour before class and we'd still get late just driving around looking for parking. It's an absolute mess," said senior Gio Peraza.

Peraza said he missed a quiz during the first week of class because it took him so long to find a parking space.

Senior Kodylynn Perkins said the parking situation also made her late for class.

"I had to drive to three different commuter lots before I found a parking space," she said.

Other students told NBC Connecticut Investigates they often arrive to campus more than two hours early in order to secure a spot.

Students pay between $279 and $620 a year to park on campus.

Peraza said if he cant find a spot, his options are to pay more to park in one of the garages on campus, or park illegally and risk getting a ticket.

"I think it's ridiculous that we're paying $300 and we're not even guaranteed a spot," he said.

University spokesperson Stephanie Reitz said some of the changes were made to accommodate graduate assistants under a new contract. Reitz said many of those graduate assistants parked in Lot B last year with commuter passes.

Now they have the right to park on employee passes, which they also pay for. And they're continuing to park in that lot, Reitz said.

The university says they made other adjustments to accommodate the loss of commuter spots.

According to Reitz, the total number of student parking spots has not changed, but the university could not provide exact numbers.

"We don't sell one permit per every space. I mean, that would be unrealistic. Because you don't have 100 percent of your cars here 100 percent of the time. But we don't oversell, said Reitz.

Reitz said the lots closer to campus fill up quickly. But C Lot, which is on the outskirts of campus, usually has plenty of available spaces. It is serviced by a shuttle bus, which runs every 12 to 24 minutes, according to the university.

Reitz said its not unusual for the university to reassess the parking situation at the beginning of the school year. But she does not anticipate any changes to the current system.

I think its more a matter of planning and just being realistic about where can you expect to leave your car at the time that youre arriving, she said.

The Undergraduate Student Government and Transportation Services are holding a public forum to address students concerns on Wednesday at 6 p.m. in McHugh Hall 101.
Several members of the Connecticut Army National Guard are heading to the southeastern United States to be there to help as Hurricane Florence approaches.

As of Wednesday, Hurricane Florence is a potentially catastrophic Category 3 storm and evacuations have been ordered in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.

And the governor of Georgia has issued an emergency declaration as well.

Ten Connecticut Army National Guard soldiers left Wednesday morning in two aircraft, a Chinook and Blackhawk.

They'll be in Knoxville, Tennessee, which is west of storm's path.

Its not clear what their mission will be yet, but the National Guard is prepared to lift people off roofs if needed or transport supplies like water or generators.

Either ferrying workers in, bringing people out, doing search and rescue missions, Sgt. Michael Justo, of the Connecticut Army National Guard said. Were prepared for any eventuality that we need to do that.

NBC Connecticut Chief Meteorologist Ryan Hanrahan is tracking the storm with the Air Force Reserve and the Hurricane Hunter flight, which is providing a low-level reconnaissance of the storm's exact location to gather critical information.

Follow the path of the flight online here.
Wilmington, NC, is right in the crosshairs of Hurricane Florence and Connecticut natives are rushing away from that area or worried about homes there.

From her current home in Waterford, Conn., Dawn Rahillys thoughts are with a community hundreds of miles away.

Were just keeping an eye on things. And theres nothing we can do, just hoping for the best, said Rahilly.

Rahilly and her boyfriend recently bought a new place theyd eventually like to retire to outside of Wilmington.

Its not far from the beach and could get slammed by Hurricane Florence.

It was just built, finished being built in June. So were hoping it withstands this, said Rahilly.

Those in Wilmington are waiting in long lines for gas and stocking up, even on beer.

Danbury-native Alec Barman has lived in North Carolina for two years.

A lot of the people who were born and raised here, who spent decades here, theyre openly admitting theyre scared, said Barman.

Barman just decided he and his dog Gretzky are headed to hotel in Charlotte on Wednesday morning.

Hes concerned about a potentially dangerous mix of strong winds, heavy rain and a powerful storm surge.

Im not expecting to come back into town until next weekend. I dont think it will be safe until then, said Barman.

As for Rahilly, she canceled a planned trip to North Carolina this weekend because of the storm.

Now her thoughts are with her brand new home, the beautiful area and longtime residents racing to escape the storm.

My heart really goes out to them, said Rahilly.

Rahilly plans to travel down to North Carolina in a couple of weeks to check out her home and see what, if any, damage Florence has caused.
Police have arrested one man after an assault at the municipal parking lot in Southington Center last month and they are looking for one other person in connection with the case.

Police responded to the lot at 1:47 a.m. on Aug. 19 to investigate reports of a fight and said 21-year-old Landin Rutledge, of Bristol, got into a dispute with someone, punched the victim in the head and knocked him unconscious, according to the warrant.

While the victim was on the ground, Rutledge allegedly stomped on his head, police said, citing the warrant.

The injured person suffered serious head injuries and was transported from the scene to a local hospital.

Police said they are looking for an acquaintance who is accused of punching an acquaintance of the victim, causing an eye laceration. The victim of that attack was also transported to a local hospital.

Rutledge was charged with assault in the first degree and second-degree assault. He was held on a $100,000 bond.

Police do not know the name of the person who Rutledge was with and they are investigating.
Families living on the Connecticut shoreline know all too well the devastation that can be caused by storms like Hurricane Florence.

Communities along the coast felt the back-to-back punches from Irene in 2011 and Sandy in 2012.

Milford on the beach is even more beautiful, said Victoria Mellah, who moved into a beach home the same year Sandy damaged thousands of homes on the shoreline. It took quite a toll on this community and rehab afterwards took a long time.

Mellah said she made sure to get out before the storm.

Everyone in the community was warned ahead of time, she told NBC Connecticut.

She evacuated before she said there was four feet of flooding in her Cooper Avenue home.

Bed had floated against the door, Mellah said, everything was just black with muck.

A year earlier Hurricane Irene hit the Connecticut coast in August 2011.

Some people decided to ride out the first storm in general because theyve lived along the shoreline their whole lives, never seen things come in so devastating, Milford Fire Battalion Chief Anthony Fabrizi said. Unfortunately some people managed to get trapped and we needed to rescue them.

When Sandy arrived in late October 2012, a lot of residents realized Im not gonna do that again, Fabrizi said.

Obeying evacuation orders can be a matter of life or death for residents and first responders, Fabrizi said.

We will risk a lot to save a lot, Fabrizi said, however, there does become a cutoff point where putting our personnel in almost certain danger of losing their lives becomes unacceptable.

With Hurricane Florence approaching the Carolinas, Mellah has a message for people living in the project path of the powerful storm.

Dont be a hero, she said. Its brick and mortar. Dont have someone else risk their life as first responders to come get you because you wanted to save brick and mortar, take what you can and evacuate is my biggest advice.

The storm surge in Milford during Irene and Sandy was between four and eight feet, Fabrizi said. NBC Connecticut's meteorologists are forecasting the storm surge down south during Hurricane Florence could be up to 20 feet.

As the hurricane gets closer to making landfall, Fabrizi said he is thinking about a former college and his family.

We have a retired firefighter from this department who lives right in the Charleston area as a matter of fact, he said, concerned for their wellbeing.
Storms are bringing heavy rain, thunder and lightning through parts of Connecticut and flash flood warnings have been issued for New London, Middlesex, New Haven and Windham counties.

Several streets in New London are flooding, including the area of Bank and Shaw streets, according to the fire chief, and officials are trying to block roads off.

[CT ONLY STRINGR PHOTOS] Storms Cause Flash Flooding

The fire marshal said children were in a car on Bank Street that was taking on water and firefighters came to the rescue. No one was injured.

In Waterford, there are reports of flash flooding in several areas, including Route 85, Route 156, Route 1 and Niantic River Road.

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Police are urging drivers not to drive through flooded roads. They said they are doing their best to keep up with service calls, but they are piling up.

Track the storms on interactive radar.

Showers are possible tonight and early Thursday morning as well.

You can track storms at any time on the NBC Connecticut app.
A man suspected in a homicide in North Carolina was taken into custody in New Haven.

State police said authorities in North Carolina and the United States Secret Service asked for help to find 46-year-old Jamahn Johnson, of Clinton, North Carolina, who was wanted in connection with an incident in his hometown on Sept. 4.

There was a warrant charging Johnson with first-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon and New Haven Police found him in the area of Sherman Parkway and Willis Street, according to Connecticut State Police.

Johnson was charged as a fugitive for justice and is due to be arraigned today in New Haven Superior Court.
Dallas Mayor Pro Tem Casey Thomas released the following statement Tuesday on the death of 26-year-old resident Botham Jean.

Thomas' statement can be read in it's entirety below.

According to an arrest warrant affidavit released Monday, Jean was fatally shot in his apartment Thursday after an off-duty officer apparently mistook him for an burglar when she mistakenly entered his apartment believing it was her own.

The officer, Amber Guyger, is free on bond after being arrested and charged with manslaughter in the case.

Thomas' statement.

I want to first offer my condolences to the family of Botham Shem Jean. You have suffered a tremendous loss.

I would like to thank our city of Dallas Police Chief Renee Hall for her leadership of the Dallas Police Department and her willingness to take the action she saw necessary to address the tragic situation that has occurred in our city. Contrary to what has been said, Chief Hall asked the Texas Rangers to lead an independent investigation into this situation, and they willingly accepted.

As the nation watches, I want you to know we will ensure this entire process is transparent and we will keep the lines of communication open to the family, community and religious leaders in our city.

In this country, we have seen a number of police shootings of unarmed African American males, and for many mothers and fathers, this has been their worst possible nightmare. From the east coast to the west coast, and everywhere in between, we have seen this scenario played out time and time again.

With this shooting happening on the heels of the verdict and sentencing of former Balch Springs Police officer Roy Oliver in the murder of Jordan Edwards, many people are on edge and are anxious to see something done quickly.

I ask that you have patience as this investigation takes place. Now that there has been an arrest, the investigation will be led by the District Attorneys office. I have confidence that District Attorney Faith Johnson and her team will present all of the evidence to the grand jury in an unbiased manner.

Lets be there for the Jean family, and lets support and encourage one another. Hold your loved ones close and continue to pray for the Jean family and our community.
Flight cancellations ahead of Hurricane Florence began well ahead of the storm's arrival Tuesday with several airlines offering waivers for flight changes and cancellations.

According to flight tracker FlightAware, more than 90 flights have been canceled Wednesday and another 60 or so Thursday. Airlines expect significant disruptions from the storm and and the number of flight impacted will undoubtedly increase.

Several passengers came through Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport Tuesday night who had originally planned to travel in Thursday or Friday.

"I was offered the opportunity whether to change my flight or cancel it, so I was like, 'Yes. Why not?' Especially with people kind of taking this one serious," said Jennifer Balcazar.

Hurricane Florence

Brooks Johnson was returning from boarding up his family's beach house in Oak Island, North Carolina. While another storm hit in the five years he has owned the house, he worried it was nothing compared to Hurricane Florence's strength.

"We just really hope for the best at this point. Whatever's going to happen is going to happen. So as long as we're out and all of our valuables and we're away from it, then the house is going to do what the house is going to do," Johnson said.

He, like others, are watching the situation closely for family staying nearby.

Judi Loven returned home to Dallas Tuesday from Greensboro, North Carolina. Shed been staying with her brother near Asheboro, North Carolina. While it took a couple of hours, she managed to get Friday's flight changed to Tuesday.

"It was full, but it was good to be back home," Loven said.
Dallas leaders Tuesday defended red-light cameras as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and other state leaders promised a new push to get rid of them in the Texas Legislature next year.

Dallas City Council Member Mark Clayton was part of a 9-to-6 city council majority last year that voted to keep the cameras operating for another seven years.

"The city's studies have shown it causes people to slow down when otherwise they would just run the stop light and I think that's good, responsible, government," Clayton said.

Dallas City Council Member Sandy Greyson said she agreed the cameras improve safety at intersections. She has voted several times over the years to support the red-light camera program. She was once the victim of a side impact crash.

"I can tell you, the people who are complaining are not the people who've been run into by somebody running a red light," Clayton said.

Texas Sen. Don Huffines (R-Dallas) said he is pleased to hear a pledge from Abbott to support the measure Huffines has pushed for years.

"It really gives us a lot of momentum  a lot of wind in our sails, to cut the head off the snake," Huffines said.

He disputed city claims of safety benefits from red-light cameras.

"Let's look at the national data, and at best it's mixed on the safety part," Huffines said. "The cameras can increase rear-end accidents."

While some cities have decided to do away with red light cameras, Dallas has reduced the number of intersections to just 30 from around 100 that were equipped about 10 years ago.

"It's not about safety. It's about the money," Huffines said.

Dallas revenue from the cameras was forecast to be around $10 million at the peak. The city of Dallas did not respond to a request Tuesday for the current revenue forecast.

"I think the state should stay out of our business and if the state would provide police officers, then we wouldn't have to rely on red-light cameras," Clayton said. "I think it's good because it gets people to slow down going through intersections instead of running them when they know there's no consequences."

Drivers interviewed by NBC 5 Tuesday had mixed feelings.

Karen Rike said she was recently caught as a yellow light turned red at Buckner Boulevard and Garland Road. She would prefer to be rid of the cameras, but agreed they are a deterrent.

"I have mixed feelings, very mixed feelings about it," she said. "It sort of curbs me, to pay attention that I wouldn't do at a normal intersections."

Other drivers complained the automated cameras send the vehicle owner a $75 ticket regardless of who was driving the car.

"If you run a red light, it should be the driver. And don't have police to pull them over so you can't check a license, so yeah, it's kind of unfair to me," said driver Jerry Wells.

The Texas Legislature meets again in January.
Homicide investigators in Phoenix have charged the boyfriend of a 19-year-old El Cajon woman whose body was found in the Arizona desert, weeks after she was reported missing.

Kiera Bergman, 19, was found dead on September 3 by a bike rider who spotted her remains near State Route 85 and Hazen Road in Maricopa County, about 45 minutes away from her apartment.

Eight days later, homicide investigators announced that they have developed probable cause to recommend charges of first-degree murder against Bergman's boyfriend Jon Christopher Clark.

Bergman was last seen alive on Aug. 4 leaving her home without her money, purse or car. Bergman sent a text message to her roommate at about 12:45 p.m. that day. It was the last time friends or family had heard from her.

Her family said she moved to the Phoenix area Homicide investigators had suspected foul play in Bergman's disappearance.

During a news conference Tuesday just a few hours after Phoenix police announced the charges against Clark, Bergman's parents said they had been wary of Clark since they first met him and had a gut feeling he was involved in her disappearance.

I didnt like him from the beginning. He couldnt shake my hand and wouldnt look me in the eye. So I knew then that this wasnt the person I wanted my daughter with," Bergman's father Chriss Bragg said.

Kiersten Bragg, Bergman's mother, said she knew from the first few times she met Clark that he "wasn't a good person."

They both said they thought he was involved in her death but said it wouldn't have been right to accuse him before Tuesday without knowing any facts.

Bergman's parents described Clark as controlling, saying he'd often answer questions directed at Bergman and not allow her to speak.

The Braggs said Bergman had recently pleaded for her family to give Clark "a second chance," saying that he was trying to change and that she wanted them to "hear his side of things."

Kiersten said she had never seen any instances of physical violence between her daughter and Clark, but recalled a time when the family was out for dinner and they argued about what they were going to order before settling on Clark's choice.

The Braggs said investigators did not tell them what evidence they had to develop probable cause against Clark, and said they were not told of a motive or their daughter's manner of death.

Bergman, who was raised in the unincorporated area of El Cajon, had relocated to Phoenix, following Clark, about four months ago, her family said.

Her mother said she had just turned 19 over the summer. Bergman and Clark met on the dating app Tinder in November 2017, she said.

I pray that this situation opens up a lot of, especially young womens eyes to the dangers that are out there and that you should think twice before you get involved with certain people," Kiersten Bragg said.
The 25 lives lost in Southern California's worst ever communter rail disaster were remembered on its tenth anniversary Wednesday in ceremonies at Union Station and in Chatsworth near where the Metrolink train collided head on with a freight train.

In Chatsworth, the tolling of a bell that had been aboard Metrolink 111 began at 4:22pm, the time the collision occurred, and rang once for every victim. For each, a loved one provided glimpses into lives cut short.

"This is a day we live every day and every year," said Angela Hefter, whose 18 year old son Jacob Hefter was among the train passengers who did not survive.

The force of the collision had pushed the locomotive at the head of the Metrolink train into the passenger car immediately beihind it. A dozen rail cars from the two trains derailed, leaving a scene of devestation.

Emergency responders struggled to locate and extricate those trapped inside crushed and twisted wreckage. It took nearly 24 hours before the last of the deceased was removed.

The repercussions were felt nationwide, and led to Congressional action requiring safety improvements.

"Sept. 12 was a day that for me is seared in my memory," said Antonio Villaraigosa, then Mayor of Los Angeles, who remained at the scene for 26 straight hours.

Twenty-three people were pronounced dead at the scene, and two more died days later. A total of 135 people were injured. The collision remains the deadliest crash in Metrolink history, and one of the deadliest rail disasters in U.S. history.

The Union Station ceremony included about a dozens family members of crash victims and at least three people who were injured. In the probe that ensued, investigators determined that the engineer aboard the Metrolink train, 46-year-old Robert Sanchez, had been actively texting a friend, despite a ban on the use of cell phones while operating the locomotive.

The texting revelation added to the anguish for the Angela Hefter and her husband Alan. Driven to take action, they created the Jacob Hefter Foundation to educate against texting while operating a vehicle, especially teens in cars.

Investigators determined that the distracted Sanchez missed illuminated warning signals about the approaching freight train when he pulled the Metrolink commuter train out of Chatsworth station. Sanchez was among those killed in the resulting crash. As a result of the crash, federal legislation was passed mandating the installation of Positive Train Control safety systems on commuter rail lines by the end of 2015.

The deadline was later extended, but Metrolink moved ahead quickly and now operates the system on more than 500 miles of track. Positive Train Control is a computerized system that tracks the location of locomotives and alerts railroad officials of potential collisions. The system can even take over the operation of a train if an engineer fails to take corrective actions.

"This agency has worked tirelessly night and day to make sure that nothing like this ever happens again," said Kathryn Barger, a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors who also sits on the Metrolink board. "As difficult as it might be, I am proud of Metrolink for ensuring we pause to remember this day and not let it go by without reflection. It's important for us to remember. I know this tragedy weights heavily on this board and on the staff."

Two daughters of one of the crash victims, Doyle Souser, attended the ceremony and rang the bell that was aboard Metrolink train 111 on the day of the tragedy. Souser's wife, Claudia, also spoke at the ceremony.

"We're thankful for those who have worked so hard on train safety so that no one will ever have to go through this again, but we're also thankful to all of our friends and our family who have stood with us through these 10 years so we could heal and begin to learn this new normal that we did never want," Souser said.

At the event, Metrolink also unveiled a Rail Safety Exhibit that details the Chatsworth crash, recognizes the victims and first responders and explains the safety systems that have been installed in the years since. The exhibit will be on display inside Union Station until Sept. 26.
What to Know Florence now expected to hover off the southern North Carolina coast from Thursday night until landfall Saturday morning

States of emergency were declared in North and South Carolina and Virginia by President Trump. Georgia is also threatened

Florence's projected path includes half a dozen nuclear power plants, pits holding coal-ash and other industrial waste, and hog farms

Hurricane Florence put a corridor of more than 10 million people in the crosshairs Wednesday as the storm closed in on the Carolinas, uncertainty over its projected path spreading worry across a widening swath of the Southeast.

Faced with new forecasts that showed a more southerly threat, Georgia's governor joined his counterparts in Virginia and North and South Carolina in declaring a state of emergency, and some residents who had thought they were safely out of range boarded up their homes.

The National Weather Service's best guess was that the hurricane would blow ashore Saturday morning along the North Carolina-South Carolina line, then push its rainy way westward with a potential for catastrophic inland flooding.

At 11 p.m. ET, Florence was downgraded to a Category 2 hurricane, but officials still warned of a powerful storm carrying dangerous amounts of rain.

The National Weather Service said 5.25 million people live in areas under hurricane warnings or watches, and 4.9 million live in places covered by tropical storm warnings or watches.

At the White House, President Donald Trump both touted the government's readiness and urged people to get out of the way of Florence.

"Don't play games with it. It's a big one," he said.

Duke Energy, the nation's No. 2 power company, said Florence could knock out electricity to three-quarters of its 4 million customers in the Carolinas, and outages could last for week. Workers are being brought in from the Midwest and Florida to help in the storm's aftermath, it said.

Boarding up his home in Myrtle Beach, Chris Pennington watched the forecasts and tried to decide when to evacuate.

"In 12 or 18 hours, they may be saying different things all over again," he said.

Computer models of exactly what the storm might do varied, adding to the uncertainty. In contrast to the hurricane center's official track, a highly regarded European model had the storm turning southward off the North Carolina coast and coming ashore near the Georgia-South Carolina line.

Reacting to the possibility of a more southerly track, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal declared an emergency but did not immediately order any evacuations.

"I ask all Georgians to join me in praying for the safety of our people and all those in the path of Hurricane Florence," Deal said.

The shift in the projected track spread concern to areas that once thought they were out of range. In South Carolina, close to the Georgia line, Beaufort County emergency chief Neil Baxley told residents they need to prepare again for the worst just in case.

"We've had our lessons. Now it might be time for the exam," Baxley said late in the morning.

Their entire neighborhood evacuated in Wilmington, North Carolina, David and Janelle Garrigus planned to ride out Florence at their daughter's one-bedroom apartment in Charlotte. Unsure of what they would find when they return home, the couple went shopping for a recreational vehicle.

"We're just trying to plan for the future here, not having a house for an extended period of time," David Garrigus said.

Melody Rawson evacuated her first-floor apartment in Myrtle Beach and arrived at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia, to camp for free with three other adults, her disabled son, two dogs and a pet bird.

"We hope to have something left when we get home," she said.

Forecasters worried the storm's damage will be all the worse if it lingers on the coast. The trend is "exceptionally bad news," said University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy, since it "smears a landfall out over hundreds of miles of coastline, most notably the storm surge."

With South Carolina's beach towns more in the bull's-eye because of the shifting forecast, Ohio vacationers Chris and Nicole Roland put off their departure from North Myrtle Beach to get the maximum amount of time on the sand. Most other beachgoers were long done.

"It's been really nice," Nicole Roland said. "Also, a little creepy. You feel like you should have already left."

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper warned in blunt terms of the looming danger, saying that everyone in the state would feel the storm's effects and needed to take it seriously.

"My message is clear: Disaster is at the doorstep and is coming in," Cooper said during a morning briefing.

As of 11 p.m., the storm was centered 280 miles (455 kilometers) east southeast of Wilmington, North Carolina, and was moving northwest at 17 mph (28 kph). Its maximum sustained winds have dropped slightly to 110 mph (175 kph).

Waves 83 feet high were measured near the eye of Florence, according to a tweet from the National Hurricane Center. But that was out in the open ocean, where deeper water means bigger waves.

"This is not going to be a glancing blow," Jeff Byard, an administrator with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, warned. "This is going to be a Mike Tyson punch to the Carolina coast."

He said that Wednesday was the last day for people under evacuation orders to get out safely. Byard assured people that the agency has all the resources it needs to react to the natural disaster.

As of Tuesday, about 1.7 million people in North and South Carolina and Virginia were under warnings to evacuate the coast, and hurricane watches and warnings extended across an area with about 5.4 million residents. Cars and trucks full of people and belongings streamed inland.

For many of those under evacuation orders, getting out of harm's way has proved difficult, as airlines canceled flights and motorists had a hard time finding gas.

Michelle Stober loaded up valuables at her home on Wrightsville Beach to drive back to her primary residence in Cary, North Carolina.

"This morning I drove around for an hour looking for gas in Cary. Everyone was sold out," she said.

Those who managed to escape are worried about what they left behind and the possibility of floodwaters destroying everything they own.

"I'm just scared cause I want a house to come home to," said Wilmington, North Carolina, resident Joseph LaFontaine, whose family evacuated north to stay will family in New York.

Florence is the most dangerous of three tropical systems in the Atlantic. Tropical Storm Isaac was expected to pass south of Puerto Rico, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Cuba, while Hurricane Helene was moving northward away from land. Forecasters also were tracking two other disturbances, including Subtropical Storm Joyce.

The coastal surge from Florence could leave the eastern tip of North Carolina under more than 9 feet (2.75 meters) of water in spots, projections showed. The Navy, Air Force and Army were moving ships and aircraft out of harm's way. Thousands of Marines and their families evacuated from Camp Lejeune, leaving the rest to dig in ahead of what could be a direct hit.

Florence's projected path includes half a dozen nuclear power plants, pits holding coal-ash and other industrial waste, and numerous hog farms that store manure in huge lagoons.

In Wilmington, resident Michael Wilson fortified his home against the wind and rain, and worried.

"The biggest thing is you're always worried about yourself and friends and family  and whether they'll have a place to come back to," he said.
Two high school students who were brutally beaten on the Biscayne Bay campus of MAST @ FIU are still recovering from the attack as police continue to search for a suspect.

James Critz, 16, and 15-year-old Isabela Perdomo were still at Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood Tuesday, where their mothers spoke about their progress.

"It's just so random, you know you think you have two kids in a nice area and good kids and then they're attacked. This could've happened to anyone, it's scary," said Critz's mother, Tara.

Both teens suffered serious injuries and were taken to the hospital's intensive care unit, but Critz suffered the worst of it. His mother said he's now breathing on his own and responding to some commands but is in and out of consciousness after suffering from skull fractures and a broken bone in his spine.

Perdomo is in a lot of pain but is starting to eat and is able to intermittently recall what happened during the attack on Monday, her mother said. She is also dealing with a cracked skull.

The teens were working on a marine biology project on the campus when they were approached by a suspect, who attacked them with a tree limb, the parents said. He fled without taking anything.

"Certainly this incident came as a shock to all of us," Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said. "I am dismayed, I am saddened, I am disturbed."

FIU has added more police presence to the campus as they work to find the suspect.

"It is crazy, it can happen to anyone," mother Elizabeth Perdomo said. "I want people to be vigilant, I want them to make sure that they know where their kids are at all times and to constantly tell them, even though they don't want to hear it, to not go anywhere without a large group, because as we learned now, you can't even be with a partner."

A GoFundMe account has been set up to help with medical costs.
What to Know Seven members of the NYPD, including officers, detectives and sergeants, have been arrested in connection with a prostitution ring

The prostitution and gambling ring was based in Queens and Brooklyn, sources say, and the Queens district attorney is prosecuting

A spokesman for the NYPD said the arrests send a message "there is no place in the NYPD for criminal or unethical behavior"

UPDATE: Ex-Vice Detective, Wife Allegedly Masterminded Multi-Million-Dollar Sex, Gambling Ring; 49 Arrested, Including 7 Active NYPDers



Seven members of the NYPD, including officers, detectives and sergeants, have been arrested for their involvement in a prostitution and gambling ring in Queens, law enforcement sources said.

The cases were investigated by internal affairs after its detectives received a tip in 2015 from an officer reporting prostitution and gambling problems within the department, the sources said.

The arrested cops were linked to one ring that ran out of Queens and Brooklyn, and allegedly provided protection to the locations, sources said. They'd also allegedly run computer checks and alert the civilian suspects operating the ring if police were looking into them.

The NYPD members arrested came from evidence collection, Transit Bureau investigations, the 109th and 84th precincts, and Brooklyn's South Vice, sources said. They're expected to be arraigned Thursday.

The arrested cops have been identified as sergeants Carlos Cruz, 41; Louis Failla, 49; and Cliff Nieves, 37; detectives Giovanny Rojas-Acosta, 40, and Rene Samaniego, 43; and officers Steven Nieves, 32, and Giancarlo Raspanti, 43.

Two other detectives were also placed on modified duty in connection to the investigation, according to an NYPD spokesman. Forty other civilian suspects involved in the prostitution and gambling ring were also being arrested Wednesday.

The Queens district attorney's office is prosecuting. A spokeswoman for the D.A. did not have immediate comment.

NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill said in a statement provided to News 4 New York,"Today, those who swore an oath and then betrayed it have felt the consequences of that infidelity. The people of this Department are rightly held to the highest standard, and should they fail to meet it, the penalty will be swift and severe."

The internal affairs bureau "initiated this probe and in doing so, has sent a clear message: there is no place in the NYPD for criminal or unethical behavior," said O'Neill.

Officials for the PBA, DEA and SBA unions representing officers, detectives and sergeants, respectively, did not have immediate comment.
What to Know A Cornwall resident was attacked by a black bear in the garage attached to his home off of Mineral Springs Road at around 9:30 p.m. Sunday.

The bear ripped open the mans shirt with its claws, leaving him with a deep scratch.

The victim was able to escape into his home and his injuries were later treated at St. Luke's Hospital.

A man in New York was attacked by a black bear that sneaked into his homes garage on Sunday, police say.

The Orange County man was returning to his house garage on Mineral Springs Road after doing work elsewhere on his property in Cornwall when he heard a bear growl, according to police.

The small black bear, which apparently entered the garage through an open door, struck the man in the chest, then ripped open his shirt with its claws, leaving him with a "very deep scratch" in the chest.

The victim was able to push the bear away and escape into his home.

The Cornwall Volunteer Ambulance Corp treated the mans wound at his home before transporting him to St. Lukes Hospital for further care.

The NYS Department of Environment Conservation is currently following up on the attack.

"Although bear attacks are extremely rare in New York, residents are reminded to remove food sources for wild animals whenever possible and if trash is stored in a garage or outbuilding doors should be kept closed whenever possible," Cornwall police said.
What to Know The new span of the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge is officially open Tuesday night after delays

The bridge opening was postponed over fears that the old Tappan Zee Bridge might collapse

Officials now say that even if the Tappan Zee collapses, it won't danger boat traffic or the new bridge

The Cuomo administration offered enticements to the builders of the new Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge to open the structure's second span in August, ahead of this week's Democratic primary, according to a report published by The New York Times.

The new span of the Mario Cuomo bridge is expected to open after collapse fears over the old Tappan Zee put that on hold. Now there's some new revelations surfacing accusing the Cuomo administration of rushing the bridge opening ahead of the gubernatorial primary. Melissa Russo reports.

The Times reports that a Thruway Authority official wrote to contractors in July directing that work on the eastbound span be completed so the bridge could fully open Aug. 24. The official offered to absolve contractors of responsibility for accidents that might occur while work continued as traffic moved across the span.

The Westchester-bound span was supposed to open last Saturday, but that plan was scratched because of safety concerns over a section of the old Tappan Zee Bridge still to be demolished. Engineers said the old section next to the eastbound span was discovered to be destabilized Friday night while crews were preparing to paint lane lines on the eastbound span ahead of Saturday morning's scheduled opening.

Officials plan to open the second span of the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge after delays caused by concerns over the stability of the old Tappan Zee Bridge. Wale Aliyu reports.

Tappan Zee Constructors, the bridge contractors, said the pre-opening work has been rescheduled for Tuesday evening, with traffic expected to start flowing on the eastbound span Wednesday, weather permitting, but just after 10:30 p.m. Tuesday, Thruway Authority Executive Director Matthew Driscoll released a statement saying the eastbound span is now "officially operational and open to traffic."

Gov. Cuomo announced Sept. 4 the second span would open on Saturday. On Friday, he held a grand opening ceremony on the eastbound span featuring former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The event included Cuomo giving his girlfriend, Sandra Lee, and members of his family rides across the new span in a 1932 Packard convertible owned by Franklin D. Roosevelt when he was New York governor.

According to an internal state document obtained by the Times, Jamey Barbas, the Thruway Authority official overseeing the bridge project, sought to negotiate the timing of the second span's opening. In addition to absolving contractors of accident responsibility, Barbas told the builders the state would absorb "premium additional costs" if the second span was open on Aug. 24.

The second span of the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge wont open until there are no longer concerns about the stability of the Tappan Zee Bridge, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said.

She denied the offers in her letter amounted to incentives, telling the Times the Aug. 24 date was a 10-day extension on a contract deadline agreed to more than a year ago.

Cuomo has said he and his administration had no role in the timing of the bridge's opening, a claim challenged by his political opponents, including fellow Democrat Cynthia Nixon, who's facing him in Thursday's primary, and Marc Molinaro, a Republican who's running for governor.

Nixon said there's "reasonable questions" about whether last Saturday's scheduled span opening was accelerated to boost the governor's campaign, while Molinaro has called for the National Transportation Safety Board to investigate the matter.

The first of the twin spans carrying Interstate 87 over the Hudson River opened last year, with eastbound and westbound traffic sharing the span. When fully opened, each span will have four vehicle lanes and a pedestrian-bicycle path.

Top Tri-State News Photos
A Spain-bound flight from New York made an emergency landing at Logan Airport in Boston after an Iberia Airways plane experienced a technical problem in one of the aircrafts engine.

A spokeswoman for the plane says Flight IB6252 landed with no incident and all 265 passengers were safe and uninjured.

The flight initially departed at 9:15 p.m. from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York and was set for Madrid. An hour and a half after takeoff, crews detected the problem, according to the spokeswoman.

By noon, all passengers were rebooked on other flights to Madrid from Boston. The airline said 30 people had remained stranded at Logan Airport as they waited for either a bus to New York or a flight to Spain from Boston.

The airline offered its passengers to cover their accommodation and meal costs.

"Iberia regrets the inconveniences caused by this flight divertion and by the difficulties in finding accommodation or direct flights for the customers affected by it," the airline said in a statement. "Our teams in the US and Madrid are working to make possible that all the customers on board of IB6252 can fly today to their final destinations."

New images from inside the Iberia Airlines flight after an emergency landing at Logan Airport. (Pics courtesy: @zGuz) @NBC10Boston @NECN pic.twitter.com/VQDFMJOz01  Jeff Saperstone NBC10 Boston (@JeffNBCBoston) September 12, 2018

[NATL] Top News Photos: Pope Visits Japan, and More
What to Know Six members of a violent gang operating in upper Manhattan and the Bronx, dubbed the 200, are in custody on federal racketeering charges.

One of the members currently in custody is the gang's leader, Milton Chardon.

Four other members are being sought out for charges of racketeering, narcotics violations, commercial robberies, and firearms violations.

Six members of a violent gang operating in upper Manhattan and the Bronx, dubbed the 200, are in custody on federal racketeering charges, law enforcement sources say.

A total of ten gang members are named in a federal indictment charging them with racketeering, narcotics violations, commercial robberies, and firearms violations, sources say.

Three of the gang members, including its leader, Milton Chardon, were arrested early today by investigators from the DEA, NYPD, and New York State Police assigned to the New York Drug Enforcement Task Force. Three other gang members were already in custody. Four others are being sought, sources say.

Operating in upper Manhattan and the Bronx, the defendants allegedly committed home invasions, armed robberies of delis and pharmacies, and ripped off drug dealers and then sold the stolen drugs, the sources say.

The gang members arrested today will appear in federal court in Manhattan this afternoon.

Details of the investigation and charges are expected to be released by the US Attorneys office in Manhattan later today.
The Trump administration vowed to help vulnerable Christians around the world, but it is making it more difficult for Christian refugees to enter the United States, NBC News reported.

The number of Christian refugees granted entry into the United States has dropped by more than 40 percent over the past year  a decline of nearly 11,000 refugees. Among those having trouble are a group of Iranian Christians who remain in legal limbo in Austria awaiting a decision on their fate expected as soon as Wednesday. Their plight illustrates how President Donald Trump's tough line on refugees from mostly Muslim countries has also closed the door to Christians and other religious minorities trying to flee to safety in the U.S.

"Ironically, these policies, while clearly aimed at Muslim refugees, ensure that Christians and other religious minorities from many of the countries on Trumps list of suspect travel ban nations are also kept out," said Mary Giovagnoli of Refugees Council USA. "It suggests that the president has no real interest in religious persecution or the tenets of religious freedom."

A Trump administration spokesperson rejected the criticism.

"The administration has made helping persecuted religious minorities in the Middle East a top priority," the official said, citing humanitarian aid delivered to Christians and other vulnerable communities in northern Iraq.
A Pennsylvania prosecutor says a fourth doctor has been arrested for unlawful prescribing and other charges as part of a months-long investigation into area physicians accused of overprescribing drugs.

Montgomery County officials, along with federal Drug Enforcement Agency officers, announced Wednesday that 48-year-old Lansdale physician Lawrence Miller was arrested and arraigned on 51 counts. Officials say nine of his patients died of overdoses that often included a mix of the prescribed medication that was accompanied by little or no medical treatment and street drugs.

Court documents did not indicate whether Miller had an attorney.

Officials say the three other physicians - Joseph Cipriano, Brian Keeley and Joseph Rybicki - were arrested and charged with similar counts earlier this year. One of those physicians was prescribing medication to female patients in exchange for nude photographs or sexual favors while the others were receiving cash payments.
Iran's nuclear chief told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he hopes the atomic deal between Tehran and world powers survives, but warns the program will be in a stronger position than ever if not.

The remarks by Ali Akbar Salehi, who also serves as a vice president to Iran's elected leader Hassan Rouhani, come as Iran tries to salvage an accord now challenged by President Donald Trump.

The American withdrawal from the deal and the return of U.S. sanctions already has badly shaken Iran's anemic economy, crashing its rial currency. Further sanctions coming in November threaten Iran's oil industry, a major source of government funding, and will further pressure the relatively moderate Rouhani.

For his part, Salehi sought to contrast Iran's behavior, which includes abiding by the atomic accord, against "emotional moves and sensational moves."

"I think (Trump) is on the loser's side because he is pursuing the logic of power," Salehi told the AP in an exclusive interview in Tehran. "He thinks that he can, you know, continue for some time but certainly I do not think he will benefit from this withdrawal, certainly not."

Salehi heads the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, whose Tehran campus encompasses a nuclear research reactor donated to the country by the U.S. in 1967 under the rule of the shah. But in the time since, Iran was convulsed by its 1979 Islamic Revolution and the subsequent takeover and hostage crisis at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.

For decades since, Western nations have been concerned about Iran's nuclear program, accusing Tehran of seeking atomic weapons. Iran long has said its program is for peaceful purposes, but it faced years of crippling sanctions.

The 2015 nuclear deal Iran struck with world powers, including the U.S. under President Barack Obama, was aimed at relieving those fears. Under it, Iran agreed to store its excess centrifuges at its underground Natanz enrichment facility under constant surveillance by the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. Iran can use 5,060 older-model IR-1 centrifuges at Natanz, but only to enrich uranium up to 3.67 percent.

That low-level enrichment means the uranium can be used to fuel a civilian reactor but is far below the 90 percent needed to produce a weapon. Iran also can possess no more than 300 kilograms (660 pounds) of that uranium. That's compared to the 100,000 kilograms (220,460 pounds) of higher-enriched uranium it once had.

Salehi spoke about Iran's efforts to build a new facility at Natanz that will produce more-advanced centrifuges, which enrich uranium by rapidly spinning uranium hexafluoride gas.

For now, the nuclear accord limits Iran to using a limited number of an older model, called IR-1s. The new facility will allow it to build advanced versions called the IR-2M, IR-4 and IR-6. The IR-2M and the IR-4 can enrich uranium five times faster than an IR-1, while the IR-6 can do it 10 times faster, Salehi said.

"This does not mean that we are going to produce these centrifuges now. This is just a preparation," he said. "In case Iran decides to start producing in mass production such centrifuges, (we) would be ready for that."

Salehi suggested that if the nuclear deal fell apart, Iran would react in stages. He suggested one step may be uranium enrichment going to "20 percent because this is our need." He also suggested Iran could increase its stockpile of enriched uranium.

In the wake of Trump's decision, Western companies from airplane manufacturers to oil firms have pulled out of Iran. Iran's rial currency, which traded before the decision at 62,000 to $1, now stands at 142,000 to $1.

Despite that, Salehi said Iran could withstand the economic pressure, as well as restart uranium enrichment with far-more sophisticated equipment.

"If we have to go back and withdraw from the nuclear deal, we certainly do not go back to where we were before," Salehi said. "We will be standing on a much, much higher position."

Still, danger could loom for the program. A string of bombings, blamed on Israel, targeted a number of scientists beginning in 2010 at the height of Western concerns over Iran's program. Israel never claimed responsibility for the attacks, though Israeli officials have boasted in the past about the reach of the country's intelligence services.

"I hope that they will not commit a similar mistake again because the consequences would be, I think, harsh," Salehi warned.
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the National Coalition for Men had threatened to sue the City and County of San Diego. The National Coalition for Men only criticized the event in a letter to San Diego City and County officials.

A mens rights organization has criticized the City and County of San Diego for participating in an upcoming job fair event for female military members.

The National Coalition For Men (NCFM) sent a letter on Tuesday asking organizers to postpone the San Diego Military Women Careers Event. The event is planned for Friday, September 14 on Naval Base San Diego.

Military Inclusion, the group that organized the career fair, is promoting the event for women veterans, active duty women and spouses.

But in its letter to San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and other officials, the NCFM argues that the women-only job fair violates the civil rights of male service members and male spouses of women in the military.

I think its disgusting that they have an event strictly for women, NCFM President Harry Crouch told NBC 7 Investigates. Why do we have to target less than ten percent of the military population? It makes no sense to me.

Crouch, an Air National Guard veteran, said he was offended when he read about the career event. In his letter to the city and county, Crouch said the event is immoral and illegal.

The event organizer, Oran Brown, defended the job and education fair. We want to shine the light on women veterans who have served our country, and we all should be galvanized and rally around this opportunity, Brown said.

Brown noted that men, and civilians, are welcome to attend the career event, but said his goal is to shine a light on female vets, who he says are more likely to be unemployed or underemployed.

Mayor Faulconer agreed. This is a terrific event that shouldnt be delayed by a misguided organization (NCFM) that would better serve San Diego by finding ways to support veteran career fairs instead of trying to derail them, Faulconer told NBC 7 Investigates.

NCFM, which is based in San Diego, has accused the city of violating mens and boys civil rights before.

Allan Candelore explains the mission of the nonprofit National Coalition for Men.

In February, city officials postponed a Girls Empowerment Camp after Al Rava, an attorney for the mens rights group, criticized the city for excluding boys from the camp. The city later agreed to open up registration to include boys. The camp program, sponsored by the San Diego Fire Department, was held in April.

Rava told NBC 7 Investigates that he has been involved in about 300 Unruh Civil Rights Act sex discrimination cases, representing both men and women.

California's Unruh Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination based on sex, race, and sexual orientation.

When asked what the harm was in holding a career event for women in the military, Rava replied, What is the harm? You gotta be kidding...do you think there would be no harm in the City, the County, the federal government...holding a Military Men, No-Women-Allowed Career Event? Or a Military Whites, No-Blacks-Allowed Career Event?

NBC 7 Investigates found several lawsuits that members of the mens rights group filed against local restaurants, bars, and a female DJ.

NBC 7 Investigates looks into ladies-only lawsuits.

The lawsuits targeted businesses that hosted or promoted events specifically for women. One of the lawsuits filed was against The Red Door Restaurant for hosting an event by Ladies Get Paid, a New York-based group that fights for equal pay and treatment of women in the workplace. That lawsuit was settled in April for an undisclosed amount.

But Claire Wasserman, the founder of Ladies Get Paid defended that event.

We're fighting for equality, she told NBC 7 Investigates. The majority of people who hold power, those are men. Those are white men. What we're trying to do is equalize the balance, right? We want to see men and women getting paid equally. We want to see diversity in leadership.

As for Fridays military career day, dozens of public agencies, colleges, and private employers, are listed on the promotional flyers. Those agencies include the San Diego Police Department, San Diego County Sheriffs Department, DEA, and the United States Customs and Border Protection.

A spokesperson for the San Diego County Sheriffs Department told NBC 7 Investigates, We take our role as an equal opportunity employer seriously. We regularly work to recruit quality candidates at military events, a wide variety of schools and universities and community events.

Oran Brown, the event organizer, does not plan to postpone the job fair or change the title or any of its promotional materials.

I think that the complaint is baseless, Brown told NBC 7 Investigates. Anyone looking for a job would never be turned away from our [Military Inclusion] events.
An Encanto man was attacked in his driveway Tuesday and his sister said the attacker is a neighbor who has been threatening her family for years.

My brother came running in with his hand over his head, bleeding, Johanna Pascua said. Im talking about bleeding.

Pascua felt helpless Tuesday afternoon when her younger brother ran into her home asking for help just after 12:30 p.m. at the family's home on Bethany Street.

She said her brother was walking down his driveway with a jack to begin working on a car when a man who was crouched behind a truck jumped up and used a knife to slash her brother's skull, leaving a 6-inch gash.

After the emergency personnel arrived and rushed her brother to Scripps Mercy Hospital, Pascua checked the security cameras she has posted around her home.

The guy just slashes him on his head or even tries to stab him, she said, explaining what she saw on the video.

Pascua recognized the attacker as a neighbor who was once a family friend. The man's mother once cared for Pascua and her brother when they were children.

She said the man has been threatening her family for the past two years and the incidents have been escalating.

We have to look over our shoulder every time we walk out of our house," she said. "I dont think thats fair that I have to live looking over my shoulder in a suburban area. I dont think thats right.

When she requested a restraining order, the judge denied her request suggesting the two parties avoid being around each other.

Hes unpredictable, Pascua said. Yes, Im afraid  not for myself  but for my family.

Pascua's brother was released from the hospital Tuesday night.

San Diego police said the suspect is a neighbor who lives across the street from the victim. He's not in custody but is wanted on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon.

Anyone with information on the suspect can call Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.
What to Know A man killed in a fire in Bethesda last year was digging a network of secret tunnels, police say.

A resident of the house put "black-out glasses" on the man and drove him to the house, according to police.

A hole in the basement's floor went down 20 feet and led to "an underground tunnel complex" branching out 200 feet, police say.

The wealthy stock trader took elaborate steps to conceal the network of tunnels beneath his house in a Washington, D.C., suburb. Even the young man helping him dig them didn't know where they were.

A year ago, a deadly fire exposed Daniel Beckwitt's curious campaign to build an underground bunker for protection from a nuclear attack. Neighbors in Bethesda knew nothing about the tunnels before they heard Beckwitt's screams and saw smoke pouring from the house where 21-year-old Askia Khafra died that afternoon.

Maryland prosecutors portray Beckwitt, a 27-year-old millionaire, as a paranoid computer hacker who recklessly endangered Khafra's life. In May, they secured Beckwitt's indictment on charges of second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter.

Beckwitt's lawyer calls Khafra's death a tragic accident, not a crime. Defense attorney Robert Bonsib concedes Beckwitt is an "unusual guy" but says his client risked his own life in a failed attempt to rescue Khafra.

Beckwitt was freed on bond after his May arrest. His trial is scheduled for April 2019.

Monday marked the anniversary of the Sept. 10, 2017, fire. It was a day that Khafra's parents dreaded.

During a recent interview at their Silver Spring, Maryland, home, Dia Khafra, 69, said he and his wife, Claudia, tried to persuade Askia to stay away from Beckwitt's tunnels. Their son met Beckwitt online and agreed to help him dig the tunnels in exchange for Beckwitt's investments in an internet company Askia was launching.

"I always feared something dangerous would happen to him," the elder Khafra said.

Investigators found the younger Khafra's charred body in the basement of Beckwitt's Bethesda home. A hole in the concrete basement floor led to a shaft that dropped down 20 feet into tunnels that branched out roughly 200 feet in length.

A police report says Beckwitt told investigators how he tried to preserve his project's secrecy when he brought Khafra there. Beckwitt said he would rent a car, pick Khafra up and drive him to Manassas, Virginia, where he had the younger man don "blackout glasses" before driving him around for about an hour. Khafra spent days at a time working, eating and sleeping in the tunnels. He had his cellphone with him, but Beckwitt used internet "spoofing" to make it appear he was in Virginia, according to Montgomery County prosecutor Douglas Wink.

"These are the lengths the defendant went through in order to hide the truth from Askia Khafra as to where he was and to maintain the secrecy of these tunnels," Wink said during a May 31 hearing.

Beckwitt lived alone in "extreme hoarder conditions," forcing the men to navigate a maze of junk and trash, Wink said. The tunnels had lights, an air circulation system and a heater powered by a "haphazard daisy chain" of power strips that created a fire risk, the prosecutor said.

Hours before the fire, Khafra texted Beckwitt to warn him it smelled like smoke in the tunnels. Beckwitt flipped a breaker that turned off lights in the tunnels but turned the power back on after Khafra said he couldn't see, Wink said.

Beckwitt ignored those "obvious signs" of danger, the prosecutor told a judge.

Wink said Beckwitt had a "paranoid fixation" on a possible nuclear attack by North Korea. Beckwitt's lawyer compared his client's concern to "the days of the Cuban missile crisis."

Bonsib said Khafra posted photos of himself in the tunnels on social media, suggesting he was proud of the work.

"He kept coming back," Bonsib said.

Beckwitt's lawyer described him as a successful "day trader" who has made millions trading stocks. Dia Khafra said his son was impressed by Beckwitt's wealth.

"I think Askia was very trusting," he said. "He believed in the guy."

Dia Khafra said he only met Beckwitt once, when he dropped off his son at their home. He seemed shy.

"He said he made his money off bitcoins," Khafra recalled.

Beckwitt lived with his parents at the Bethesda house until college. He enrolled at the University of Illinois, where campus police arrested him in 2013 on charges including computer fraud. He was suspected of installing keystroke logging devices on the Urbana school's computers. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years of probation, according to online court records.

The conviction didn't steer Beckwitt away from computers after he moved back to Maryland. In 2016, he spoke at a hacker convention using the alias "3AlarmLampscooter" and wearing a fire-resistant suit and visor that obscured his face.

Wink said Beckwitt was teaching his audience how to make thermite bombs to destroy computer data "in order to get away with hacking."

Bonsib said his client's use of a pseudonym and disguise was harmless, typical of the "weird things" people do on the internet.

County officials sued Beckwitt over his property's condition, calling it unsafe and a "public nuisance." Wooden boards now cover the doors and windows of the house, which is surrounded by a chain-link fence and police tape.

Meanwhile, Khafra's parents haven't touched their son's bedroom. The urn holding his ashes remains inside a cardboard box.

"We haven't had the courage to open that box," Dia Khafra said.
What to Know Prosecutors say an Army staff sergeant killed his wife and then shot at officers, killing one and injuring two.

Officer Ashley Guindon was killed on her first day on the job. She was 28.

Victim Crystal Hamilton's sister said she hoped her family's loss would spark a conversation about domestic violence.

Jurors heard opening statements Tuesday in the death-penalty trial of an Army staff sergeant charged with killing his wife and a police officer who responded to their home on her first day on the job.

Staff Sgt. Ronald Hamilton is charged with capital murder in the shooting deaths of his wife, Crystal Hamilton, 29, and Prince William County Officer Ashley Guindon, 28.

Two other officers were seriously injured in the Feb. 27, 2016, shooting in Woodbridge, Virginia.

During opening statements Tuesday, prosecutors played Hamilton's 911 call, when she pleaded for help before she was shot three times. She said her husband threw her against a wall, hitting her head.

Defense lawyers do not dispute that Ronald Hamilton committed the shootings but deny he acted in a premeditated manner. They said he and his wife argued when he objected to her plans to attend a male dance revue with friends. Their marriage was in trouble and they each were having extramarital affairs, lawyers said.

When Crystal Hamilton threatened to call police, Ronald Hamilton realized he would lose his family and military career. He snapped and opened fire multiple times. But then he confessed, attorneys said.

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God". #RIPAshleyGuindon pic.twitter.com/AyG7NmYDNt  Prince William Co PD (@PWCPoliceDept) February 28, 2016

"Ronnie throws his gun down. He turns himself in. He admits what he did," an attorney said.

Ronald Hamilton wore his dress uniform in court. Prosecutors criticized that choice.

"This man who presents himself to you in the uniform of a protector, he was anything but," an attorney said.

Guindon and Crystal Hamilton were killed on the Hamiltons' son's 11th birthday. He was home during the killings.

Ronald Hamilton cried in court when a statement was read from his son, who is now 13 and living with an aunt in South Carolina. In the statement, he said he heard his parents yelling. His father got a gun, followed his mother into a bedroom and shut the door, he said.

Welcome Officers Steven Kendall & Ashley Guindon who were sworn in today & begin their shifts this weekend.Be safe! pic.twitter.com/92c2YLjcQx  Prince William Co PD (@PWCPoliceDept) February 26, 2016

"I heard three shots," the child said.

Officer David McKeown, then 33, and Officer Jesse Hempen, then 31, were injured in the melee. Investigators found 39 shell casings.

Ronald Hamilton was assigned to the Joint Staff Support Center at the Pentagon, according to Cindy Your, a Defense Information Systems Agency spokeswoman based at Fort Meade, Maryland.

Guindon was sworn in as an officer on Feb. 26, 2016. She was on her first shift when she was shot.

According to a police press release from June 2015, when Guindon graduated from basic recruit school, she was a graduate of Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Fla.

She served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and had family in law enforcement, the release said.

The shooting occurred around 5:30 p.m. in the 13000 block of Lashmere Court in Woodbridge. Neighbors reported hearing several rapid gunshots ring out as young people played outside.

"We heard three to four gunshots, so we started running, and then when we got up here we saw all the cops," said one young witness, who asked not to be identified. "They told us to go inside."

"I can't believe this is my neighborhood," said neighbor Saher Jan. "I was just in front of that house. I just couldn't imagine that it happened right there. They seemed like nice people."

Police said the officers were fired upon after responding to a domestic disturbance call. After other officers arrived, Hamilton surrendered to police.

The three officers who were shot were transported to Inova Hospital. Guindon died during treatment.

Officers found the body of Crystal Hamilton inside the home. The couple's 11-year-old son was not injured.

As Guindon was sworn in, Prince William County police tweeted a message of welcome to her and another new officer. Featuring a photo of the two rookies in uniform, the tweet read, "Be safe!"

Ashley Guindon's grandmother, Dorothy Guindon, said Guindon was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. The family later moved to Merrimack, New Hampshire.

"This is really a shock to us," Dorothy Guindon said. "Ashley was such a nice person."

Crystal Hamilton worked as a counselor to military veterans. She was vivacious, dedicated and hopeful, her sister, Wendy Howard, said.

Wendy Howard said she hoped her sister's death would start a conversation about domestic violence.

"I see this as being an opportunity ... a platform for other women being battered, who are experiencing either mental abuse, physical, verbal emotional to come forward," she said. "This is your opportunity. Don't hide it from your family. Don't hide it from your friends. If you know of people going through the same thing that my sister, I'm sure, was going through and never said anything about it  don't be afraid. This is your opportunity."

"If you don't get out for yourself, get out for your kids, get out for your family," Wendy Howard added.
What to Know Positive train control is hardware on the trains and the tracks that communicates wirelessly to prevent collisions.

The deadline to install PTC is Dec. 31.

The Federal Railroad Administration warned MARC three times it is in danger of missing the deadline.

A Maryland senator wants answers from the governor and the state's MARC train system as a deadline looms for a mandatory safety update.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D) said his letter to the governor isn't just about MARC meeting a deadline; it's a matter of public safety. Congress first directed the railroads to install positive train control (PTC) a decade ago. The deadline has been repeatedly pushed back. Now it's just three-and-a-half months away.

PTC is hardware on the trains and the tracks that communicates wirelessly to prevent collisions. The system can slow or stop a train automatically if it's going too fast for conditions, which the NTSB says could have prevented deadly crashes.

"We need to make sure when a passenger gets on a train, they know they're going to get to their destination safely," Van Hollen said.

Van Hollen took note when the federal government sent three warning letters this year saying MARC is not only in danger of missing the Dec. 31 deadline, it's not even on schedule to meet what's required for an extension.

Amtrak owns the tracks for MARC'S Penn Line and has said it may not let trains without PTC run on its tracks after Jan. 1.

"That would cause a big problem if Amtrak does that," Van Hollen said.

But the Maryland Transit Administration says MARC is on track to have PTC installed, tested, and up and running by the end of the year despite the Federal Railroad Administration thinking otherwise.

"We will certainly do our best to urge MARC to move in the right direction and try to address safety concerns as quickly as possible so that we can avoid inconvenience to passengers," Van Hollen said.
A former MGM National Harbor Casino card dealer admitted in court Tuesday to stealing more than $1 million from the casino in a cheating scheme.

I think it's also probably been the largest incident that we've seen in Maryland since the casino program started back in 2010, Maryland Gaming Commission Director Gordon Medenica said.

Baccarat dealer Ming Zhang was caught cheating by the security system, Medenica said.

The system works, he said. The cameras, the surveillance, the security. We caught this.

For three months in 2017, Zhang cooperated with partners who he'd allow to take pictures of decks of cards he would neglect to shuffle. They'd win large on sure bets, and Zhang got a payoff in return, according to court documents.

Bettors can predict the outcome of baccarat hands with near-perfect accuracy if they know they order of cards in a deck, Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Pulice said.

MGM released a statement saying Zhang is no longer employed by MGM National Harbor and the casino has cooperated with investigators.

Zhang pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transfer stolen funds. In court, he told the judge he feels guilty about it.

He faces five years in prison at sentencing in January, and U.S. prosecutors want him to back the more than $1 million he helped steal.

Zhangs co-conspirators also could be charged.
Airlines have grounded more than a thousand flights in the Carolinas, Georgia and Virginia as Hurricane Florence continued to barrel toward the Atlantic coast, where it is predicted to linger over a swath of the Southeast through the weekend.

According to the flight-tracking site FlightAware, more than 2,000 flights have been canceled between now and Saturday. Some of the region's airports have halted commercial operations.

Charleston International Airport in South Carolina announced in a tweet Tuesday night that it expects runways to close by midnight Wednesday and would not resume operations until at least Saturday. Myrtle Beach International Airport ceased operations Thursday morning after the last flight departed at 5:47 a.m. It was not immediately clear when it expected to reopen.

Southwest Airlines announced it was suspending operations at Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Thursday afternoon and canceled flights in and out of the airport through Friday. Southwest is also grounding flights to and from the Norfolk, Virginia, airport.

American Airlines, which operates its second-biggest hub in Charlotte, has also canceled more than 560 flights through Sunday. The airline also announced it had canceled operations at several airports in North and South Carolina and will cease operations at Newport News/Williamsburg Airport in Virginia.

JetBlue has capped fares at $149 on all flights to and from cities that may be affected by Florence through Sunday to assist area residents who are evacuating and to help facilitate their return.

Delta Airlines announced Wednesday had upsized aircrafts to add extra seats and added additional flights to and from cities in the hurricane's path to help evacuate residents and facilitate their return after Florence has passed. Delta has canceled around 150 flights Thursday and Friday flight in preparation for the storm.

All major airlines have also waived rebooking fees for passengers traveling to the Southeast who want to change flights or cancel their plans altogether.

Florence is also disrupting flight paths for planes heading north and south of the region, causing hundreds of delays for travelers along the busy East Coast corridor. Would-be travelers flying out of the New England area, New York, Philadelphia and South Florida, are warned to brace for delays and possible cancellations due to restricted airspace.

Passengers are urged to check the status of their flight with their airline before heading to the airport.

And it's not just air travel that is being impacted by Florence. Amtrak is modifying schedules and canceling trains south of Washington in response to the hurricane.

The Auto Train, Silver Meteor and Crescent are canceled from Wednesday through Sunday. The Carolinian and Piedmont are canceled from Thursday through Sunday.

The Silver Star will run only between Jacksonville, Florida and Miami from Wednesday to Sunday.

Northeast Regional trains will not operate south of Washington. Amtrak is waiving fees for passengers who change their reservations.

But with forecasters predicting the potential for "unbelievable damage from wind, storm surge, and inland flooding," trains service could be disrupted long after the storm has passed if tracks are damaged.
New Hampshire is set to elect either its first openly gay member of Congress or its first black representative.

Democrat Carol Shea-Porter's decision to step down after four non-consecutive terms in the 1st Congressional District resulted in no fewer than 17 candidates vying for the district's first open seat in 16 years. While it used to be reliably Republican, the district has flipped in each of the last four cycles, becoming a swing district in a swing state.

In the 1st District, Executive Councilor Chris Pappas won Tuesday's 11-way primary race for the Democratic nomination, beating a former Obama administration official who had raised more money than the other 10 candidates combined. Maura Sullivan, a Marine veteran and former Pentagon official, faced criticism for being both new to the state and voting in general, having just moved to New Hampshire last year and acknowledging she failed to vote in several recent elections.

Pappas, who is gay, is a former state lawmaker who is serving his third term on the governor's Executive Council, runs a family restaurant in Manchester and has the backing of key Democrats including the state's two U.S. senators. He told supporters Tuesday evening his campaign will be about decency, unity and progress, and described meeting an LGBTQ student in Manchester who said she was unsure of her place in the community.

"She needs a role model and a champion, too, and I hope this historic victory tonight has some small impact in making her understand this fact: You, too, are welcome here, and regardless of who you are or who you love, the sky's the limit," he said.

Eddie Edwards, who was endorsed by Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, defeated six opponents on the Republican side. A Navy veteran who also served as enforcement chief for the state liquor commission, Edwards is the second African-American to be nominated to a U.S. House seat in New Hampshire.

Edwards had sought to make the race about character, and said he'd refuse to support his main rival, state Sen. Andy Sanborn, as the nominee after Sanborn was accused of sexual harassment at the Statehouse.

"People demand change in Washington," Edwards said. "They yearn for honesty, integrity, and leadership. They want to vote for someone who has served our country and understands the honor that comes with that responsibility."

In the 2nd Congressional District, Stewart Levenson, a whistleblower doctor who flagged abuses at the state's veterans hospital conceded victory early Wednesday to Republican rival Steven Negron, a state lawmaker, in a hard-fought primary to face Democratic U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster.

"I want to congratulate Steve and thank the voters who supported my campaign," Levenson said in a statement. "This campaign proved that outsiders need to answer the call to public service."

Kuster faced no opposition in the primary.

Associated Press writer Holly Ramer contributed.
What to Know Leftover rain from Florence arrived in the D.C. area Monday and is expected to continue into Tuesday

Flood conditions prompted Rappahannock County Public Schools to close Tuesday

Numerous tornados were reported in the Richmond area. News4 obtained video from that area that shows debris swirling through the air.

The remnants of Florence hit areas around I-95 in Virginia hard on Monday, and there's more wet weather to come before the storm clears.

Flash flood watches remain in effect through early Tuesday in D.C. and parts of Maryland and Virginia. Areas along I-81 in Virginia, including Winchester, Frederick County and Rappahannock County, are under a flood watch until the early hours of Tuesday morning. See all regional alerts here.

Rappahannock County Public Schools will be closed on Tuesday due to dangerous road conditions.

A tornado watch has been issued for parts of District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia until 10 PM EDT pic.twitter.com/4CDThHFJfU  NWS DC/Baltimore (@NWS_BaltWash) September 17, 2018

The Tuesday morning commute may be wet, but most of the storms will come through after lunchtime. Some of those storms could be strong with heavy rain, the National Weather Service said.

In the D.C. area, rainfall amounts will be around an inch or less, Storm Team4 says. The Shenandoah Valley could see up to 3 inches of rain, with the heaviest most likely Monday afternoon and possible again later Tuesday. The rain will come to an end Tuesday night.

Tornado watches blanketed the D.C. area for several hours Monday but were canceled around 8 p.m.

One person died in a building collapse after reports that multiple tornadoes touched down near Richmond, Virginia. The National Weather Service said that storm weakened and ended tornado warnings in the area.

Once the storm is out of the area, we'll get what may be our final taste of summer. Wednesday and Thursday will be sunny and warm, with temperatures in the mid-80s. Temperatures could reach 89 degrees Friday.

[NATL]Florence in Photos: Long Recovery Ahead for Carolinas From Record Flooding

Southwest Virginia Bracing for Flooding

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam warned residents in the southwest part of the state to prepare for flooding and possible landslides early this week. Northam said in a news release Saturday that emergency management officials were working to move people and commodities into place to prepare for flooding, including swift water rescue teams.

By Monday, rainfall amounts were not looking to be as heavy as previously expected for southwest Virginia. It's now looking like southwest Virginia may get 1 to 2 inches of rain; however, it could still get as much as 6 inches in some spots.

Hundreds of thousands of people are without power and rescue crews saved hundreds of people from the rising waters after Florence hit the Carolina coast. News4's Jim Handly reports from Greenville, North Carolina.

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is recommending that drivers monitor weather and road conditions as the remnants of Florence move through parts of the commonwealth.

"Drivers should exercise caution as recent rain and ground saturation have resulted in flooded roads and downed trees," VDOT said in a release Monday.

For the latest Virginia road conditions and travel information, you can call 511, go to www.511virginia.org or download the mobile app at the website.

Homes in Kinston, North Carolina, were almost completely under water Sunday after rains from Florence caused a river to overflow. News4's Chris Lawrence spoke to a resident who took his boat out to see the damage.

To report downed trees or hazardous road conditions, go to my.vdot.virginia.gov or call VDOT at 800-FOR-ROAD (800-367-7623).

Emergency officials in Virginia have also deployed 25 high-wheeled vehicles and 50 personnel to help with rescue operations in North Carolina.
Low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines is coming to Vermont's Burlington International Airport with direct flights to Florida.

The South Burlington airport announced Wednesday that Frontier will begin flights between Burlington and Orlando in February.

The low-cost carrier says the flights will run twice a week from February to April.

Frontier hopes to expand its service to and from Vermont.

State officials say the flights will not only be a benefit to Vermonters, but will lead to Florida residents visiting the Green Mountain State.
Bangs Island Mussels are known for their quality: a high shell-to-meat ratio, and fresh from the water taste. Co-owner Matt Moretti has been farming them in Maine for nearly a decade, and while they are on pace to have a record-setting year, his farms had been showing some concerning signs.

"Two years ago, we had a bit of a setback," Moretti said. "We had a mortality event. Probably twenty percent were actually just dying on the line. And we were dumbfounded."

To understand the science behind the situation, Bangs Island Mussels asked the University of New England to do the heavy lifting.

UNE Research Scientist Adam St. Gelais and graduate student Connor Jones have been collecting data on the floating mussel farms. Their environmental monitors measure ocean temperature, salinity, light, and other qualities.

"Mussels are at the whim of the environment," explained St. Gelais.

They collect samples of mussels, crack them open at their lab, take measurements and study them at the cellular level.

While their research is ongoing, St. Gelais has some ideas about the cause of the die-off.

"That summer where he experienced that unusual crop loss was unusually hot and warm and it was dry," said St. Gelais. "Mussels invest their energy for reproduction in the summer time. If they spawn in the summertime [and the temperatures are too high], there's not a lot of food in the water and the warm water causes high metabolisms. They simply don't have the energy to recover... which results in a bunch of mussels dying."

The same conditions  hot, and dry  have been present this summer, and Moretti says he is seeing some 5-10 percent of his mussels dying again.

"Hopefully there are ways we can mitigate this in the future," Moretti said.

UNE will continue to study the mussel farm until 2019.
A sheriff's department in Maine says it may have stopped a plot to carry out a school shooting, only to have their suspect out on bail hours later, paying just $60 bail.

"I initially thought that amount seemed low, based on the seriousness of the incident," said Sagadahoc County Sheriff Joel Merry.

Darren Lilly, 23, of Bowdoinham, was arrested last month and charged with terrorizing with a dangerous weapon. Sheriff Merry said multiple people reported concerns about Lilly's behavior, claiming that he threatened to "shoot up" Central Maine Community College in Auburn. Investigators found he had recently purchased a semi-automatic weapon, concealed in a violin case.

"These kinds of cases must be taken serious," said Sheriff Merry.

They took Lilly into custody and confiscated about one dozen firearms, including a sawed off shotgun.

Hours later, Lilly paid a $60 fine and was released on $1,000 unsecured bail -- conditions determined by a bail commissioner who could not comment on the case.

"We were surprised he was out so quickly," said Sheriff Merry.

Also surprised was the president of Central Maine Community College.

"I don't think $60 was really enough," said President Scott Knapp, who ordered increased police presence on campus after the threat.

But Lilly's defense attorney, Verne Paradie, felt the bail conditions were appropriate.

"He absolutely denies making the threats," said Paradie. "We have a young man with a 40 hour a week job, and has no criminal history."

During Lilly's initial court appearance Tuesday, prosecutors asked Judge Joseph Field to overrule the bail commissioner, and raise the cash amount to $1,000.

"I don't know how his bail was set, but for the charges involved, it's surprisingly low," said Field, ordering Lilly to pay $500 cash and enroll in Maine Pretrial Services.

The felony terrorizing charge is punishable by up to five years in prison. Lilly did not have to enter a plea Tuesday, but his lawyer says they will fight the charges.

Merry said the case highlights questions about how the bail system might be improved.

"I do think we are now at a point in time where we should look at other options," said Merry. "Maybe should consider standardized or valid risk assessments as opposed to straight cash bail, and provide our judicial system with more information before making a decision about what bail should be."
The country's largest Native American organization is calling on the Trump administration to explain its decision not to recognize the reservation of a Massachusetts' tribe.

The National Congress of American Indians said Tuesday it "disagrees strongly" with the U.S. Department of the Interior's decision to reverse an Obama-era ruling placing land in trust for the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe.

The organization wants the agency to explain what the decision signifies for Indian land policy going forward.

The Interior Department took 321 acres into trust for the Mashpee in 2015, but a federal judge ordered the agency to reconsider the decision after local residents sued.

Bureau of Indian Affairs spokeswoman Nedra Darling declined to comment, citing pending litigation. She confirmed the Mashpee land, for now, remains in trust pending a final court order.
The University of Michigan and Harvard University are teaming up to tackle poverty and opioid addiction in Detroit.

The schools announced Wednesday they will work with the city to identify steps to improve low-income residents' livelihoods. The effort pairs Michigan's ongoing Poverty Solutions Initiative with Harvard's statistical and computational research into forces influencing economic success or failure.

The universities also will share what they and other experts know about the opioid epidemic and plan national summits in the Detroit and Boston areas.

University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel says he called Harvard President Lawrence Bacow, who grew up in Pontiac near Detroit, after learning of Bacow's interest in working on national problems. They discussed areas of potential collaboration, and poverty and opioids rose to the top of their lists.
A contentious debate has emerged over prison policies, as the Vermont Department of Corrections readies a plan to send some inmates to a facility in Mississippi run by a for-profit company.

Opponents call the idea immoral, but the governor says it's simply the best option his administration has right now.

"We're anticipating the signing of a contract," Gov. Phil Scott, R-Vermont, said Wednesday of a plan to move more than 200 of Vermont's prison inmates to a facility in Tallahatchie, Mississippi, run by CoreCivic.

CoreCivic is a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange, and was formerly known as the Corrections Corporation of America.

With prison space in Vermont tight, the state has been relying on out-of-state prison contracts for years, but a current deal with the state of Pennsylvania has been sharply criticized, after several inmate deaths.

The planned Mississippi move, though, is already controversial, even before the contract is signed.

The ACLU of Vermont recently criticized the pending deal, saying in a tweet that it's "disgraceful for Vermont taxpayer $$ to be lining the pockets of the private prison industry."

Gov. Scott had proposed investing in expansions to infrastructure here at home, adding a forensic facility, and new prison cells and beds, so out-of-state deals wouldnt be needed.

However, the idea did not gain traction in the legislature.

"My prerogative would be to house everyone here in Vermont," Gov. Scott told necn Wednesday. "But at this point in time, that's not feasible, so we have to make the best deal we can."

Gov. Scott's Democratic opponent in November, Christine Hallquist, said she wants to see Vermont's trend of prison population reductions continue.

Hallquist said in an interview with necn that she would like to see out-of-state prison contracts end through a combination of criminal justice reforms, new construction at home, approaches like non-prison sentences for low-level crimes, and even home confinement for certain offenses.

"America incarcerates its prison population at five times the rest of the world," Hallquist said of her belief that too many Vermonters are currently housed behind bars. "I think the idea of for-profitthe idea of putting people in prison for profitis uncivilized; its not something [corporations] should be making money from."

Gov. Scott argued that working with a for-profit prison company may actually give the Vermont Department of Corrections greater control over handling of its inmates than the state had with the Pennsylvania deal  which Scott said was subject to Pennsylvania corrections policies.

"When you have a for-profit, you're able to make those contractual arrangements, so you make sure you have what you want for those offenders," Scott said. "We have to do what's best for the taxpayers, as well."

Amanda Gilchrist, a spokeswoman for the company Vermont has been negotiating with for the Mississippi move, CoreCivic, said in a written statement that CoreCivic is an experienced provider of quality correctional and reentry services, dedicated to helping keep communities safe, preparing inmates for life after prison, and saving taxpayers money.

Gilchrist said thousands of inmates housed in its facilities are enrolled in re-entry programs.

Meg McCarthy, whose husband is currently serving a lengthy prison sentence in Vermont, but who was previously housed in a corporate-run facility out-of-state, said she is deeply worried about the pending Mississippi dealand not just for her husband's sake.

"The corporations do cut corners," McCarthy claimed.

McCarthy predicted shipping inmates even farther from home than Pennsylvania will hurt their chances at positive reentry back into their communities.

"I feel strongly that a big part of keeping the rehabilitation going is to have people who care for them nearby and able to visit on a regular basis," McCarthy said.

Vermont corrections officials toured the Tallahatchie, Mississippi center run by CoreCivic as part of their research into the pending move.
Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo has won the Democratic nomination for a second term, fending off a challenge from the left by former Secretary of State Matt Brown.

Raimondo has been running on her record of job creation and an improving economy, as well as her work to repair crumbling schools and roads and a free college tuition program she started.

Brown had tried to paint Raimondo as too close to corporate interests and blasted her for her copious fundraising. She has raised $7.6 million for her re-election bid in a state with just 1 million residents and a single media market.

Brown says health care, housing, education and childcare cost too much and he would work to build a different kind of economy that "works for everyone, not just for the few."
As Hurricane Florence threatened the U.S. East Coast with devastating storm surge and damaging winds, documents made public Tuesday showed that the Trump administration had recently moved nearly $10 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to the agency tasked with detaining and deporting undocumented immigrants.

The funds are detailed in a Transfer and Reprogramming Notifications report from the Department of Homeland Security dated Aug. 31. The documents show about $9.8 million dollars being removed from FEMAs 2018 fiscal year budget and given to DHSs Immigration and Customs Enforcement for enforcement and removal operations. The documents said the money would support the agencys detention beds and transportation and removal program.

The U.S. Secret Service was also listed as a recipient of the reallocated funds for protection of persons and facilities," and other agencies had money moved as well.

Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) provided the report to MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show Tuesday night. Merkley, who sits on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said the reallocation happened this summer.

DHS confirmed to The Rachel Maddow Show that the transfers were made, and a department spokesperson claimed the money did not come from any of our disaster response and recovery efforts. DHS said the account supports FEMA headquarters operational expenses and cannot be used for disaster response. It came in under budget for expenses including travel, training and office supplies and money was moved.

However, the documents show that millions of dollars were removed from FEMAs budget for Response and Recovery.

Transferring money between agencies is not out of the ordinary and within the authority for the administration. According to Sen. Patrick Leahy's office, Homeland Security notified Congress on June 30 that it would transfer $200 million from other agencies to ICE, including the funds from FEMA. Leahy, a Democrat who is vice chairman of the Appropriations Committee, said the transfer was approved by the subcommittee chairs and no Democrats signed off on it, the Associated Press reported.

But it is unusual, Merkley said, to see millions of dollars being taken from FEMA at the beginning of the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June through November.

I find it extraordinary, Merkley told Maddow.

DHS spokesperson Tyler Houlton further defended the department's actions on Twitter Wednesday, writing, "Under no circumstances was any disaster relief funding transferred from @fema to immigration enforcement efforts. This is a sorry attempt to push a false agenda at a time when the administration is focused on assisting millions on the East Coast facing a catastrophic disaster. ... DHS/FEMA stand fiscally and operationally ready to support current and future response and recovery needs."

Hurricane Florence was on a path Wednesday morning to slam into the United States. It was expected to blow ashore early Saturday and dump torrential rain onto the Carolinas.

"This storm is going to knock out power days into weeks. It's going to destroy infrastructure. It's going to destroy homes," said Jeff Byard of FEMA.

Byard added that the agency has all the resources it needs to react to the natural disaster.
The first of the upcoming 5G network technologies wont provide significant reliability gains over existing wireless, such as 4G LTE, according to a developer involved in 5G.

Additionally, the millisecond levels of latency that the new 5G wireless will attempt to offerwhen some of it is commercially launched, possibly later this yearisnt going to be enough of an advantage for a society thats now completely data-driven and needs near-instant, microsecond connectivity.

Ultra-reliability will be basically not there, Ari Pouttu, professor for Dependable Wireless at the University of Oulu, told me during a visit to the university in Finland. 5Gs principal benefits over current wireless platforms are touted as latency reduction and improved reliability by marketers who are pitching the still-to-be-released technology.

We think 6G will emerge around 2030 to satisfy the expectation not met with 5G, Pouttu said. It will eventually offer terabits per second, along with microsecond latency.

The school has been a major research partner in millimeter 5G development, alongside Nokia, and is now starting work on 6Genesis, its 6G development program. 6G is also sometimes called 5G Long Term Evolution. The University of Oulu has been promised funding for the program that is the equivalent of U.S. $290 million that will be supplied by the Finnish governments Academy of Finland and other sources, including partners. Collaborators in the eight-year program will include Nokia, BusinessOulu (my host, which paid some of my travel expenses to the UArctic Congress conference last week), and other universities.

Problems with 5G

Millisecond latency [found in 5G] is simply not sufficient, Pouttu said. Its too slow.

One of the problems that will be encountered in 5G overall is related to required scalability, he said. The issue is that the entire network stack is going to be run on non-traditional, software-defined radio. That method inherently introduces network slowdowns. Each orchestration, connection or process decelerates the communication.

Its a problem in part because the thinking is that there will be 1,000 radios per person in the next ten years. Thats going to be because the millimeter frequencies that are being used in 5G, while being copious in bandwidth, are short in travel distance. One will need lots of radioheads and antennasmillionsall needing to be connected. And it is why one needs to think up better ways of doing it at scalehence 6Gs efforts.

Researchers in the University of Oulus 6Genesis program, as well as those in the U.S.s Center for Converged TeraHertz Communications and Sensing (ComSenTer), which I wrote about in June, say frequencies from 100GHz up to terahertz (THz) are the way to go. Frequency bands will be in the tens of gigahertz in that spectrum, Pouttu said. In other words, it will provide never-before-seen levels of bandwidth in conceivably virtually unlimited amounts.

Mobile Edge Computing and Multi-access Edge Computing on the way

Pouttu said we will also begin to observe more of a new form of computing called Mobile Edge or Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) to handle 5G as it transitions to 6G. Thats a network architecture where heavy processing takes place near people on server-cum-base-stations, but most of the final work, such as AI and problem modelling, happens in the mobile device or IoT device somewhere in the vicinity.

Data is going to be the key, Pouttu said. The algorithms connection needs a trusted, low-latency and high-bandwidth application. That is where 6G comes in.

Pouttu and his team intend to start with the theoretical 802.15.3D IEEE standard. It uses low sub-terahertz frequency spectrum between 252GHz and 325GHz, and it currently exists only as a concept on paper. The academics will attempt to apply it to the personal health, eco-energy, and autonomous transport verticals.

Humans are almost connected; what is not connected is objects or machines, said Pouttu. Thats the road for 5G and 6G.
Application and network engineers see the world differently. Unfortunately, these differences often result in resentment, with each party keeping score. Recently, application engineers have encroached on networking in a much bigger way. Sadly, if technical history repeats itself, we will revisit many of the long-ago problems again as application engineers rediscover the wisdom held by networking engineers.

There are many areas of network engineering and application engineering where there is no overlap or contention. However, the number of overlapping areas is increasing as the roles of network and application engineers expand and evolve.

128 Technology

Application engineers will try to do anything they can with code. Ive spoken to many network engineers who struggle to support multi-cast. When I ask them why they are using multi-cast, they nearly always say, The application engineers chose it, because it's in the Unix Network Programming book. The Berkley Socket programming interface permits using multi-cast. The application engineers then provide lost packet recovery techniques to deliver files and real-time media using unicast and multicast. The Berkeley Socket does not easily support VLANs. Thus VLANs have always been the sole property of the network engineer. Linux kernel network programming capabilities in recent years become much more capable, allowing engineers to use Berkeley Packet Filters (BPF) and Openflow (vSwitch) along with the traditional IP Filters to get new layers of network programmability. Open Stack neutron plug-ins are providing dynamic endpoint reachability through APIs. The overlapping areas are increasing. The general programmability and how-to that is being exposed by public clouds is appealing to application engineers.

Application engineers do not have the accumulated wisdom of the network engineers. They are comfortable with IPSEC tunnels that provide point-to-point connections instead of routed network connections. Just look at the mess that many companies are trying to unravel as they are now asking networking engineers to help manage their thousands of VPCs that were haphazardly acquired by application engineers.

With SDN technologies making rapid inroads to the networking space, many claim the primary advantage will be innovation and programmability  both of which will usher in steady improvements. Sadly, the easy path to solving problems is not innovation at the routing layer, but by going over the top of  or around  the current network. Current network standards are guaranteed to change glacially due to being totally controlled by major suppliers. The only viable strategy for innovation has been non-standards based over the top.

However, most traditional network engineers simply do not have the skills to instantly become programmers. However, our industry needs the wisdom and knowledge from the past to avoid the catastrophic events that will likely occur. Examples of increased chaos in networking include:

Over 50 SD-WAN companies and solutions, none of which have any interoperability with each other. All but 128 Technology use tunnels with proprietary structures. The good solutions interoperate with network protocols (BGP, OSPF), but support policies to route packets over tunnels that are inviolate of routing table design (Hub and Spoke SD-WAN).

The concept of virtual networking where overlay networks operate independently of underlay networks. There are calls for standards to connect the overlay and underlay to improve the routing science in the overlay.

The intermixing of IPv6 and IPv4 through the use of Carrier Grade NATs and mixed addressed tunnels.

Dynamic DNS becoming a network load balancer instead of using network routing technology.

Proprietary IP routing technologies being developed by Google, Facebook, AWS that will not interoperate with any standards-based networking.

Hosting public addresses inside data centers at the end of a tunnel that would not be supported by public routing tables, essentially violating the concepts of BGP.

Furthermore, solutions to many of the security and scale problems in the Internet have been standardized, but never implemented. BGP-SEC, DNS-SEC and many other standards have been created, but with poor uptake.

We do need a revolution in the industry. We need to go back to our roots, and ask why did IP win out over SNA, DECNET, Vines, Arcnet, ATM, Framerelay, X.25. As we look back, IP was a networking technique that was open, scalable and could be a superset of all known networking solutions  becoming an internetworking protocol. Now our global networks are fragmented. IPv6 doesnt share routing information with IPv4. Major technology companies are using proprietary systems. Entropy has occurred, and internetworking is on the decline. The new trend in the industry is to use point-to-point tunnels to create connectivity. We need to pray to the gods of technology that we can stop all this anti-networking and get back to performing internetworking. We need to securely internetwork:

Virtual Private Clouds (V4 & V6)

IPv4 Internet

IPv6 Internet

Mobile Networks (V4 & V6)

Corporate Networks (V4 & V6)

Private Data Centers (V4 & V6)

Wide Area Networks

I think the application guys can show us the way, if we but listen. The application guys have long ago left bit-wise solutions and moved to textual big data solutions. Isnt this what Facebook, Google and Amazon have done? Why cant Internet addressing and routing problems be solved by new addressing that is semantic in nature? Addressing that works across all address spaces and scales infinitely. In fact, the Domain Name system controlled by the application guys arguably has already done this. Dynamic DNS is providing real-time routing intelligence. Many public websites use a single physical address for a large number of application websites, and use the application controlled SNI field in a Client Hello of TLS negotiation to enable routing and security associations for a service. Content Distribution Networks also utilize DNS infrastructure to insert themselves into applications. DNS and SNI sniffing are primary means of securing networks, providing the only true application recognition that works. The application guys are already performing semantic-based networking. The networking guys need to embrace these concepts. Why cant network routing tables route to named services?

The networking guys can provide the necessary wisdom to prevent rediscovery of all the problems that have been overcome. Building scalable networks that are loop-free is not easy. Enforcing protocols and standards to prevent networks from failing catastrophically is still necessary. And most of all, demanding interoperability and security that are baked in can only come from a body of professionals that believe networking and interoperability are the pillars of any network. This core principal simply is not part of the application world.

Network engineers are from Mars, application engineers are from Venus. But we need to build a bridge between these groups and rise above the current set of solutions, or we will experience catastrophic infrastructure failures. The bulk of investment must come from networking professionals to change from CCIE CLI jocks to semantic networking leaders. The onus falls on those that have resisted change for so long. Its time for a second internetworking revolution.
Thatcham have added two new players to their squad

THATCHAM Town have announced that former striker Josh Helmore has re-joined the club from Bracknell Town.

Helmore spent two seasons with the Kingfishers before moving to Bracknell and possessed a strong goal scoring record with the club, before he moved.

He collected the golden boot award in the 2015/16 season after firing in 22 goals during 40 games.

Further to this, Helmore scored 13 goals during the 2016/17 campaign and 12 last year year - but he didn't feature in Thatcham's FA Vase campaign.

Speaking to the Thatcham website, Helmore said: "I'm really pleased to be back at Thatcham.

"Most people will know I never really wanted to leave the club last season, it was down to circumstance and living in North London that made it tricky.

"With our games being predominantly on a Saturday this season it means it's much more doable.

I'm really looking forward to getting back with the boys and getting my season going," Helmore concluded.

Danny Robinson has also added George Jeacock to the Kingfishers squad.

Joining from Farnborough, the 20-year-old began his career with Oxford United before spending time with both Banbury United and Didcot Town.

Jeacock - who can play on the wing or through the middle - said: "I'm delighted to have signed for Thatcham, I am so positive about this season after all the success that was here last year.

"I'm hoping to be a big part of the team this year and score some goals and push us right up the table." He added.
NEW HAVEN  Yale New Haven Health named Beth P. Beckman the inaugural chief nursing executive for the health system, according to a release.

Beckman will be responsible for developing and overseeing the system-wide integration plan for key components of nursing, including nursing practice, staffing, education/development and communication. Under her leadership, YNHHS will establish a signature standard of nursing care focused on patient-centered clinical excellence, the release said.

Yale New Haven Health is very excited to add Beth Beckman as our chief nursing executive, said Richard DAquila, president of Yale New Haven Health and Yale New Haven Hospital, also in the release. As a destination health system, her outstanding track record, list of accomplishments and commitment to nursing excellence and patient care will enhance nursing and the patient experience across all of our delivery networks.

Beckman previously served as vice president and chief nursing officer of Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, having joined the BUMC leadership team as CNO in 2016, the release said. She also served at Baylor Scott & White Medical Center - Grapevine since 2008, including in a dual role as CNO and chief operating officer, the release said. Under her skillful leadership, both BUMC and Grapevine achieved major milestones in patient safety, clinical outcomes, patient experience and nursing practice. Beckman led the extensive efforts that resulted in BUMC being re-designated as a Magnet Hospital for the fourth time in May 2018. In her role at Baylor, she was instrumental in working with multidisciplinary teams to drive clinical transformation and coordination, leading to improved patient care outcomes and hospital operations.

Beckman earned her doctor of nursing science degree at Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing, master of science in nursing - family nurse practitioner track at Arizona State University and bachelor of science in nursing from University of Arizona, the release said.

Beckman will work closely with local delivery network presidents, CNOs, Nursing vice presidents and chief medical officers to successfully realize the integrated System nursing vision. She will also be concurrently appointed as the associate dean for partnerships for the Yale School of Nursing.

Beckman will be relocating to New Haven with her husband and has grown children in Arizona and Dallas-Fort Worth.

Yale New Haven Health includes Bridgeport, Greenwich, Lawrence + Memorial, Westerly and Yale New Haven hospitals, specialty networks and Northeast Medical Group, a non-profit medical foundation with community-based and hospital-employed physicians, the release said.
Angevine Farm in Warren is all about family, community and land preservation.

The fourth, fifth and sixth generations of the family operate the farm nestled in the Litchfield hills at 40 Angevine Road, following in the footsteps of their ancestors, John H. Angevine and his wife, Mary C. Marsh, who began farming the land in 1868.

The original 196 acres of farmland  known as the Marsh Homestead until the couple married  are still farmed.

Its rewarding to us to be able to go out on the farm and to think about all the generations whove come through here, said Kathy Angevine, who with her husband, John R. Angevine, oversee the farm with their children and families.

We love it, Kathy said of the farm. It has so many ties to the past that we treasure.

John R. and Kathy Angevine, and their children, Timothy and Carla Angevine, Scot and Jamie Angevine, and Lisa Angevine Bergs and her husband, Ansie, and the latter couples children, Haley and Jordan, all play an active role at the farm.

Timothy, who is a member of the Warren Land Trust and Warren Volunteer Fire Co., is manager.

The farm will celebrate its 150th anniversary with a music festival, featuring music by Auguste & Alden, Wooden Horse and Atlas Gray, food, a game area, and special guests Sept. 29 from 1 to 6:30 p.m. at the farm.

Guests are encouraged to bring chairs and/or blankets. No dogs are permitted.

The farms history includes dairy farming, tobacco, vegetables, apples, poultry and eggs. In more recent years, pumpkins and Christmas trees have become its main focus.

Its picturesque setting also serves as a scenic backdrop for special occasions, such as weddings.

In the fall, pumpkins, squash, gourds, maize corn, maple syrup, honey, jellies and goods crafted by local artisans are available in the Harvest Barn, which was originally built to house poultry, but was transformed into a retail space for autumn and a wreath workshop for winter.

Visitors can pick a wide variety of pumpkins in the field.

After the harvest, visitors can purchase custom-designed wreaths and garland or make their own in the barn.

Ornaments and other holiday goods and products by local artisans are available at another site on the farm, in the Christmas Barn, where John R. Angevine can be found playing Christmas carols on the pipe organ.

Fraser fir, concolor fir, blue spruce, white pine, Canaan fir and white spruce are among the many trees grown on the farm that can be tagged and cut down in the fields, and purchased precut.

Visitors come from near and far to form and build upon their traditions, Lisa Angevine Bergs said.

Some families have been coming to the farm for 30 or more years. Customers who once visited the farm as a child now bring their children and, in some cases, their grandchildren.

We enjoy (customers) being a part of our family, Kathy Angevine said. We consider them a part of our family.

Its the location, the people, the warmth and the friendliness, said Ed Carlson, of Norwalk, about why he returns every year with his wife, Peggy, and a group of about 15 friends to tag and cut a tree, and visit with the Angevines.

We always love to hear John play the organ, said Carlson, who has been a customer since the 1970s.

The farm is also a destination for school groups. Students from Warren School visit the farm throughout the year for farm tours and lessons about the role of agriculture in the community.

During winter months, students walk through the fields of trees and Kathy talks about the animals who live in the trees, and in the fall Tim talks to them about growing pumpkins, said Warren School teacher Kathy Newton.

We love to go there because its local, its our farm in our town, said Newton, praising the Angevines for teaching children about conservation, farms and family farms.

Many Wamogo Regional High School VoAg students have a connection with the farm, having worked there.

Newton described the farm as having a small- town feel where the Angevines know everyone on a first-name basis.

Promoting the benefits of nature and preservation are a priority to the Angevines.

There are more and more people who want that farm experience, Angevine Bergs said. We focus on families making memories. They can come to the same place (year after year) and have the simplicity of the farm. Thats what makes our farm shine. Its where people can be present.

Tickets to the Sept. 29 celebration are $20 for adults, $5 for children and free for children under 3. Tickets purchased by Sept. 15 will include a $5 voucher for a pumpkin and a $5 food voucher. For tickets, visit angevinefarm.com. For information, call the 40 Angevine Road farm at 860-868-7226.
BRIDGEWATER  A young man who was run over by a tractor near the Bridgewater Country Fair last month appears to be on the long road to recovery.

Tim Meeker Jr., 23, was rushed to Danbury Hospital in critical condition last month after he was run over by a tractor. Authorities said at the time that Meeker was asked to assist pulling cars stuck in the mud during the fair.

He was riding along the back of the tractor and was pulled underneath one of the tires, officials said.

Pastor Linda Williams with the Salem Covenant Church said Meeker has been removed from the intensive care unit and he no longer has the fever that had concerned his family and doctors.

There are still a few more barriers to come but they are hoping to transfer him soon to a rehabilitation facility, Williams, who has been posting regular updates on the churchs Facebook page, said Monday.

Meeker has suffered a number of traumatic injuries from the accident, including head injuries.

He has been awake and is aware of his surroundings, Williams said. He knows that he still has a long way to go. The rehabilitation could take months, if not years.

Family members remain cautiously optimistic and have been by his side throughout the ordeal, she said.

Meeker wasnt a fair employee but likely jumped in to help out because thats just the kind of guy he is, relatives have said.

Dozens of cars had to be pulled from the muddy parking lot during the fair 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.

Meeker, an electrician with the family business who has a passion for animals, was excited to attend the fair this year because he wasnt able to attend in previous years due to his work schedule.

His father, Tim Meeker Sr., said they had a conversation about week before the accident about Meeker potentially changing careers or going back to school.

dperrefort@newstimes.com
NEW MILFORD  A couple and their pets escaped serious injuries when a tree crashed down on their house last week, causing it to erupt in flames.

Alex Quinn, who was asleep in the home at the time, said he woke up around 11 p.m. on Sept. 4 after hearing a loud crash. After inspecting the house, he discovered a huge tree had fallen onto the single family home, smashing through the roof.

It brought down the electrical wires that were sitting next to the house and there were a lot of sparks, Quinn said.

Within moments, the exterior of the home caught on fire.

Thats when I knew we had to get out, he said.

Quinn and his girlfriend grabbed what they could before fleeing the structure, including their 18-year-old Jack Russell terrier named Scout and two cats named Simi and Cleo.

The tree, which was nearly two feet in diameter at its base, snapped near the ground and fell on top of the single-story home on Route 7 near the Housatonic River.

There was no storm at the time and no apparent reason why the tree fell, authorities said.

Fire Marshal Brian Ohmen said the tree did significant damage to the homes attic, but didnt penetrate the ceiling.

Ohmen said responding firefighters quickly doused the flames before it spread to the rest of the home. Firefighters from several companies, including Water Witch, Gaylordsville and the Kent Volunteer Fire Department responded.

Quinn praised the work of the volunteer firefighters in knocking down the blaze and offering any assistance they could.

They were really amazing, he said. There were at least 30 firefighters here, all volunteers, doing everything they could to help.

Quinn, who had been renting the riverside home for nearly three years, said he had a small recording studio inside.

The firefighters were able to cover all the equipment with tarps, he said. As a result, none of the equipment was damaged.

They also asked Quinn and his girlfriend if they needed any other assistance.

One guy realized we had a cat and said youre going to need your litter, Quinn said. Next thing I know here is this 6-foot-tall firefighter coming out of the house with a bag of Tidy Cat in one hand and the litter box in the other. I just cant say enough about how great they were.

The animals were staying at a relatives home while Quinn was working Wednesday with the American Red Cross. The home is unlivable.
To the Editor:

This Labor Day weekend the inaugural Kent Carnival was a rousing success.

All the towns nonprofits were invited to participate as a chance to have fun, recruit new members, and share their good works.

We are grateful to Katie Moore and her family for donating the field, and to Heather Strid and Tobias Feeley for providing music.

Booths were offered by the Kent Volunteer Fire Department, Kent Quilters, Kent Land Trust, Boy Scout Troop 11, Kent Affordable Housing, First Congregational Church of Kent, Connecticut Antique Machinery Association, and the hosts, The Kent Memorial Library.

What a lovely day it was! Thanks to all who joined us celebrating all that we love about living in Kent.

Sarah Marshall

Director

Kent Memorial Library
KENT  The buildings at the top of Skiff Mountain were largely untouched for 50 years, even after Marvelwood School moved in about 20 years ago.

But that changed this summer with the completion of a $2 million project that completely renovated the dorms, several common rooms and a science lab. Members of the public can see the work at an open house from 4 to 6 p.m. Friday.

Its been a long time since we had any construction tape up here, said Assistant Head of School Caitlin Lynch.

Marvelwood has 140 students. Of these, 20 are day students, although all students get a dorm room.

That helps build a sense of community, said Michael Gabriel Deveau, the project manager.

The project made the buildings more modern, brighter and ecofriendly. It was paid for with a loan that was incorporated into the schools mortgage.

This whole campaign for the students is going to change the lives of our students because this is their home away from home, he said.

The environmentally friendly renovations in the dorms included adding electric hand dryers in the bathrooms, water fountains to replace plastic bottles and energy-efficient laundry facilities. LED lighting was installed with the new electrical systems, which are expected to save about 40 percent in electricity. The school plans to look at solar power soon.

Its all about the carbon footprint and being ecofriendly going forward, Deveau said.

The dormitories also had new ceilings, doors and carpets added. The two larger common rooms, which have balconies that overlook the fields and lake, changed the fireplaces by adding a new stone around the old red brick to add a cozier, modern feel. The smaller common rooms have special lights added into the wall that can be changed to any color. Privacy stalls were added in the remodeled bathrooms.

Each dorm has its own color scheme that plays off of the schools colors of blue and white.

Kitchenettes were put in, and all of the fire exits and codes were updated.

The landscaping was redone, and flower boxes, donated by the parents group, were added.

The project included adding an imaging and innovation lab off the renovated science lab, which allows for more tools to expand its offerings for science, technology and the arts. These include a 3-D printer, laser engraver, a weather station, photography tools, drones and a bio-acoustical program, which the school is using to identify bird species.

Its designed to be more modern, said Laurie Doss, the science department chairwoman.

The science lab renovation allows for more collaboration with tables that allow for different configurations.

Marvelwood was founded in 1956. It started in the village of Cornwall, using homes as dorms and classrooms and a barn as the dining hall.

It was a really cool atmosphere, but we quickly outgrew it, Lynch said,

In 1995, the school moved to its current campus, which was built by Kent School to house the female students when it went coed. Kent School left the space, and decided to build another dormitory for the female students to eliminate the need for busing the girls to their classes on the main campus at the base of the hill.

The campus sat vacant for about eight years before Marvelwood moved in and spruced it up.

Lynch remembers what the campus looked like when they first moved in, describing it as a dilapidated ghost town. She said they did some work, but not the full renovation that has been done now.

To do everything at once was such a gift, she said, adding the next project will be renovating the performing arts center.

kkoerting@newstimes.com; 203-731-3345
There are two main treatments for stroke caused by a clot in a blood vessel in the brain. One treatment, mechanical thrombectomy, involves pulling the clot out with a specialized catheter that is inserted into the artery in the groin and guided by imaging to the clot. This procedure is only performed at hospitals that specialize in these techniques. The other treatment, which is more widely accessible, involves giving a patient a clot-busting drug that helps the body dissolve the clot.

Quick decision making on which treatment is best for which patient is critical because the clot deprives brain cells of oxygen causing them to die. For physicians, knowing which patients will benefit the most from the clot-buster Alteplase (also known as tPA) just got easier.

University of Calgary scientists with the Hotchkiss Brain Institute at the Cumming School of Medicine (CSM) have discovered that clots have different compositions and depending on where they are located in the brain, administering tPA can be almost as effective as thrombectomy given sufficient time.

"We've known that, when administered quickly, tPA can be effective in stroke, but until now, we didn't realize how effective it can be and we didn't understand the specific reasons why it works better in some cases than others," says Dr. Bijoy Menon, MD, associate professor in the departments of Clinical Neurosciences, Radiology and Community Health Sciences at the CSM. "Our findings show that some clots are permeable, which allows the tPA to penetrate the blockage and dissolve it. We saw that within two hours, greater than 50 per cent of permeable blockages had dissolved."

The UCalgary study led out of the Foothills Medical Centre is the largest of its kind to date, involving nearly 600 patients at 12 medical centres in five countries (Canada, the Czech Republic, South Korea, Spain and Turkey). The findings are published in JAMA.

"Despite earlier research on the benefit of using tPA, we know there is still some reluctance in the medical community to use it. These findings should provide physicians with definitive evidence on the value of giving patients tPA as soon as they've confirmed the stroke is due to a clot," says Dr. Andrew Demchuk, MD, professor in the departments of Clinical Neurosciences and Radiology. "It's critical that anyone showing symptoms of a stroke be given a CT-angiogram as soon as possible to confirm the blockage. The scan will guide whether tPA is likely to dissolve the clot and may inform whether the patient also needs thrombectomy."

A CT-angiogram (computer tomography scan) is a common noninvasive diagnostic tool that allows physicians to see images of the blood vessels in the brain. Researchers found that clots in the carotid artery of the brain do not respond to tPA, and for these patients, thrombectomy is required.

"Strokes happen at anytime, anywhere. Knowing who needs thrombectomy can help physicians make better decisions on how to prioritize patient transfers to specialized centres for this procedure," says Menon. "Data gathered in Europe showed that up to one-third of hospital transfers aren't necessary."

"Stroke is an important health care problem and one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide," says Dr. Brian H. Rowe, scientific director, Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health, which supported this study. "Through continued scientific research, important discoveries like this one will improve our ability to match patients with the most effective treatment for this particular injury. This will help speed up recovery times, reduce the associated impacts such as paralysis, and it will improve patient outcomes and ultimately save lives."
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 12)  One of the regions expected to be the most affected area by the incoming typhoon has made the necessary preparations for its onslaught, its governor assured.

Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba said they have prepared three days prior to the arrival of the typhoon to brace for its effects. He said they have readied relief goods and instructed security forces in vulnerable areas to remain on alert.

"Three days ago we had alerted lahat ng [all of the] stakeholders, agencies in the provinceWe have started pre-deploying, prepositioning some of our assets and relief goods," Mamba told CNN Philippines' New Day.

"Inalert na namin including disaster councils of the barangays and disaster council ng mga towns," he added.

[Translation: We have alerted the disaster councils of the barangays and towns.]

Weather officials said typhoon "Mangkhut" will bring heavy rainfall to Northern Luzon, as it is expected to pass by Cagayan and Batanes. Mangkhut will enter Philippine territory by Wednesday and will be named "Ompong."

READ: Typhoon 'Mangkhut' to enter PH Wednesday noon

Disaster officials have also warned of possible disasters similar to those that occurred when super typhoon Yolanda hit the southern region of the country in 2013.

READ: Officials warn of 'Yolanda-type' disasters as 'Mangkhut' nears PH

Mamba said their sense of urgency comes from their bad experience of super typhoon "Lawin" in 2016, which destroyed thousands of homes in the region.

Lawin hit Northern Luzon, particularly Tuguegarao and Penablanca in Cagayan, destroying 14,000 houses and leaving 50,000 homes partially destroyed, Mamba relayed.

"We have had an experience on this two years ago sa [from] 'Lawin' and we're trying our best to be more prepared this timeWe learned so much from this and that is why we are trying to relay these again, reimplement the systems we have done noon [before], " he said.

Mamba also said they are relieved that the eastern areas of the region, where the Sierra Madre mountain range is located, remains uninhabited.

"Swerte po namin kasi 'yung eastern borders namin, [we're lucky because our eastern borders], we have the Sierra Madre, we don't have populated areas dito [here]," he said.

This is a developing story.
Alivio Therapeutics, an affiliate of PureTech Health plc (LSE: PRTC) developing therapies to treat inflammatory disorders through targeted disease immunomodulation, today announced a $3.3 million U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Technology/Therapeutic Development Award to advance Alivio's product candidate, ALV-107, for the treatment of interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS) with Hunner's lesions. The funds will support Alivio's preclinical research and development activities, including GMP manufacturing, to enable the filing of an investigational new drug (IND) application for ALV-107.

Alivio's inflammation-targeting technology is designed to administer therapeutics to the sites of inflammation, while sparing healthy tissue. The technology is also engineered to respond dynamically to inflammation, releasing the entrapped therapeutics based on the degree of inflammation present. This approach is being evaluated across a variety of diseases, including IC/BPS, pouchitis, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

J. Curtis Nickel, M.D. FRCSC, Professor, CIHR Canada Research Chair in Urologic Pain and Inflammation at Queen's University said, "Interstitial cystitis is one of the most important unmet needs in urology. New therapies that can offer long-lasting relief from the pain associated with the disease would make a major impact in the lives of patients. I am hopeful that this award will accelerate development of this potentially new therapy for interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome and look forward to seeing ALV-107's impact in the clinic."

"Our inflammation-targeting technology approach has the potential to treat a range of chronic and acute inflammatory disorders, such as interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome with Hunner's lesions, that would otherwise be difficult to treat," said Eric Elenko, Ph.D., PureTech's Chief of Strategy and Research and Alivio Co-founder. "ALV-107 could potentially offer a novel therapeutic option to improve the health of patients living with this devastating disease, and this award will help to support our effort to advance ALV-107 towards the clinic."

Alivio's platform technology has demonstrated proof-of-concept in ten different preclinical models of inflammation including a validated preclinical model for the treatment of IC/BPS. ALV-107 showed durable pain control throughout a 24-hour study period in this model of IC/BPS, lasting at least 12 times longer than lidocaine at a comparable dose (ALV-107 16 mg/kg, conventional lidocaine 16 mg/kg). Beyond ALV-107, Alivio is advancing additional product candidates to enable new immunomodulatory therapies and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), including biologics, and nucleic acids for inflammatory conditions of the GI tract and other parts of the body.

Source: http://www.aliviotherapeutics.com/
The future begins now - that is the mantra on medical courses at MedUni Vienna and also at the Society for Medical Education (GMA) conference starting in Vienna this coming Wednesday - the largest event on this topic within the German-speaking area. Nowadays technologies such as Virtual Reality, 3D modeling, Big Data and simulation training are increasingly being incorporated into teaching and degree courses or are already in practical use.

As from 2019, Virtual Reality will be an established part of the curriculum at MedUni Vienna. At the same time, supplementary scientific courses will demonstrate the effectiveness of this accompanying measure. Digital and technical aids are already being used, primarily in the pediatric simulation unit of the Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, where they are used to simulate pediatric emergencies for interdisciplinary training purposes.

The Head of the project, Michael Wagner from MedUni Vienna's Division of Neonatalogy, Intensive Care Medicine and Neuropediatrics explains that the team leader (or another team member) can wear eye-tracking glasses, so that his/her line of gaze and focus of attention can be recorded for subsequent evaluation: "This allows us to improve procedures and even to check what individual team members are really taking in in this type of emergency situation, so that we can gain an accurate picture of where improvements are needed." Digitization also plays an important role in this area, where technical aids (feedback devices) or the very latest simulation dummies make training exercises much more realistic and efficient.

On the other hand, it is also possible to use Virtual Reality glasses - like in gaming - to make emergencies feel real and also to analyze the individual actions of the participants, where several people can also be interlinked. Says Wagner: "The exercises allow for different levels of difficulty. Moreover, stressors such as loud noises from the A+E unit or distressed parents can be added in to ramp up the pressure in keeping with the participants' level of experience and to practice difficult situations, so that students are forearmed and therefore able to provide the best care to their patients in a real emergency."

Virtual Reality and increasing digitization on courses is only the start, beginning in the 3rd year and ending with continuous training and checking the practical application of learned skills, for example during the clinical practice year. Says Wagner: "Medical simulation enables students to gain experience early on in a protected environment as part of a team, so that their first experience of an emergency is not a real one."

"Digitization" for enhanced patient safety

In dentistry and on dentistry courses, conventional dental impressions using an impression tray are already being increasingly replaced by digital techniques. Using CAD/CAM (computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing), teeth are optically scanned in the mouth in a contact-free way and the recorded image data used to produce a 3D model. Once the optical impression and the virtual design have been completed, a computer-aided milling machine (CAM) is used to manufacture the denture. In future, similar 3D models will also be used for respiratory tract or venipuncture models. Like Virtual Reality, Big Data is now being incorporated into dentistry courses.

Apart from teaching new techniques, it is also important to reinforce traditional skills, such as communication skills, in medical training: "The integration of innovative digital techniques into medical courses will hopefully prepare our students for their future profession. However, it takes a lot more than that to turn students into good doctors. Apart from learning and practising applied clinical skills, good social and communication skills are also a key part of a good doctor's repertoire. In classes such as e.g. "Doctor-patient interactions with simulated patients" students are able to practice their practical and communication skills, so that they can master difficult conversations and interactions," explains Anita Holzinger, Professor of Curriculum Development at MedUni Vienna and Chair of the GMA Conference.

Michael Wagner also underscores this point: "Simulation training, Virtual Reality, working on 3D models and even interdisciplinary teamwork and communications cannot be considered in isolation - everything has to come together to bring about an increase in patient safety."

State Prize for outstanding teaching

MedUni Vienna is in good shape for the move to Course 4.0, as was evidenced by a prestigious award presented to Medical University lecturers in early 2018: a MedUni Vienna teaching project was awarded the Ars docendi State Prize for outstanding teaching. Those responsible for the project entitled "Echocardiography/Anatomy - Blended Learning" - Thomas Binder, Anahit Anvari-Pirsch, Wolfgang Weninger and Matthias Schneider - won the prize in the category "Digital teaching and learning elements in combination with traditional forms of teaching". Another MedUni Vienna training course, "Interdisciplinary case conferences - compact", was also nominated for the shortlist. Wagner himself won a recognition award for interdisciplinary team training in education at the Austrian Patient Safety Platform's Austrian Patient Safety Awards.

"At the Medical University of Vienna, we are committed to properly equipping our students for this future, which will be characterised by huge technological advances, but not forgetting all the skills that make a good doctor, such as communication skills, a professional attitude and the ability to work in a team," stresses Anita Rieder, Vice Rector for Education at MedUni Vienna.

GMA Conference 2018 in Vienna

The GMA was set up in 1978 as a charitable association of German-speaking teachers and students with the mission of encouraging and supporting medical education and advanced training. Every year, the GMA conference is held in a different city within the D-A-CH area with around 1,200 participants - in 2018, it will take place in the Lecture Center of MedUni Vienna (19 - 22 September/For information: https://gma2018.de). The main theme is "Unity of Research and Teaching" and the imparting of scientific research skills on medical courses. There will also be a new form of interactive discussion: during the individual lectures, it will be possible to ask questions online. These will be collected and addressed by the respective lecturers in a dedicated session.
There is substantial waste in U.S. healthcare, but little consensus on how to identify or combat it.

New research from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business identifies one specific source of waste: long-term care hospitals.

In the working paper, "Long Term Care Hospitals: A Case Study in Waste," Chicago Booth Professor Neale Mahoney, Stanford University's Liran Einav and MIT's Amy Finkelstein, find that most patients in long-term care hospitals would receive similar or better care at a skilled nursing facility at a lower cost.

The paper, released as a National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper, concludes that Medicare could save about $4.6 billion a year--with no harm to patients--by simply eliminating the concept of long-term care hospitals as an institution with its own reimbursement schedule, and reimbursing the institutions as skilled nursing facilities instead.

The long-term care hospital, which provides an average inpatient stay of at least 25 days, came into being in the early 1980s when Congress carved out this small group of hospitals from a payment reform. The regulations made it possible for these long-term care hospitals to receive substantially higher reimbursements than traditional hospitals.

This loophole, the researchers write, prompted the number of long-term care hospitals to soar from a few dozen in the 1980s to more than 400 today. In 2014, they accounted for $5.4 billion in annual Medicare spending, the study says.

"They are unique to the U.S. health care system, and, to the best of our knowledge, do not exist in any other country," Booth's Mahoney and fellow economists write.

The study focused on new long-term care hospitals entering local hospital markets between 1998 and 2014. The researchers tracked patients leaving a general acute-care hospital for the new long-term care hospital. Moving the patient to the long-term care hospital triggered a significant increase in Medicare spending and out-of-pocket costs for patients, researchers wrote.

Long-term care hospitals cost the federal government three times as much as less expensive facilities, the study finds. In 2014, for example, long-term care hospitals were reimbursed at about $1,400 per day compared to about $450 at skilled nursing facilities that provided medically similar care. Yet, even at the higher cost, the researchers found no evidence that long-term care hospitals increased the probability of patients going home or reduced the chances of the patients dying within the 90 days after being admitted.

The authors conclude with a note of caution about the political impediments to payment reform.

"The $4.6 billion of incremental spending generated by long-term care hospitals every year may look like "waste" to the health economist, but to the (largely for-profit) industry it might more accurately be referred to as "rents." This suggests a large financial incentive on the part of long-term care hospitals to block major regulatory changes, and may help explain their continued survival."
A discovery by a University of Queensland researcher could speed up MRI scanning times and make the scans more affordable.

Dr Shekhar Chandra from UQs School of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering has identified a new class of fractals, a mathematical pattern that could boost the MRI scanning process and allow a full body scan to be completed four times faster.

A variety of fractals have been discovered since the early 70s but none of them has been applicable to MRI until now, he said.

A fractal is a never-ending pattern that repeats itself in different scales.

In technology terms, it becomes a sampling pattern used by the MRI machine to ensure only the necessary information is captured, leaving any redundant imaging data behind.

Weve demonstrated that we can use the repetitive property of the pattern to our advantage to reduce the measurements required for an MRI scan, he said.

Dr Chandra said the find would allow doctors to obtain more imaging information in less time, without compromising the quality of the image.

It also means patients will spend less time in the machine, allowing more scans to be completed and reducing waiting lists.

I believe we can be more intelligent in the way we collect our measurements and data to greatly improve patient outcomes, he said.

My research proves that this sensing methodology can eventually be applied to many areas of science, including astronomy, biomedical engineering and computer science.

In theory, weve shown this discovery will improve MRI technology, but more work and more funding is needed before it can become a reality.

Dr Chandras work is published in the journal IEEE Transactions on Image Processing (DOI: 10.1109/TIP.2018.2864918).

This research is just one example of how UQ continues to lead the way in MRI technology and performance.

More than 70 percent of clinical MRI systems installed worldwide contain patented technology developed at UQ.

Source: https://www.uq.edu.au/news/node/122321
Taking cannabinoids during pregnancy can cause behavioural and neuronal deficits in adult male offspring, while females remain unaffected, says new research published in eLife.

The study in rats, from the Inserm and Aix-Marseille University Mediterranean Institute of Neurobiology, France, and Roma Tre University, Italy, in collaboration with Indiana University, US, suggests that prenatal cannabinoid use can lead to less sociability and increased neuronal excitability in males only. The findings also point towards a potential pharmacological strategy to help reverse these effects in humans.

Senior author Olivier Manzoni, Inserm Research Director at the Mediterranean Institute of Neurobiology, and Director of the CannaLab at the institute, says: "As cannabinoids can cross the placenta, they may interfere with fetal endocannabinoid signaling during neurodevelopment, which is involved in regulating a variety of processes such as pregnancy, appetite, pain sensation, and mediating the pharmacological effects of cannabis. This could in turn lead to some serious long-term deficits. But despite increasing reports of cannabis consumption during pregnancy, the long-term consequences of prenatal cannabinoid exposure remain incompletely understood."

To fill this knowledge gap, the international collaborators examined how prenatal cannabinoid exposure influences the synaptic and behavioral functions of the medial prefrontal cortex - a brain region often implicated in neuropsychiatric disorders - in adult male and female rats.

Their results revealed that males exposed to cannabinoids while in the uterus were less sociable than normal animals, and spent less time interacting with others. Their sniffing and playing behaviors were impaired, while the number of attacks among males remained unchanged. Additionally, the researchers saw that the exposed males had a heightened excitability of pyramidal neurons in the prefrontal cortex. None of these effects were seen in females.

"The deleterious effects of prenatal exposure to cannabinoids on social behavior were specific to male offspring only," explains co-first author Anissa Bara, who was a PhD candidate in Manzoni's lab at the time the study was carried out. "But while social interaction was specifically impaired in males, locomotion, anxiety and cognition remained unaffected in both sexes, suggesting discrete and sex-specific behavioral consequences of cannabinoid exposure during adulthood."

The results also revealed that the mGlu5 gene - an effector of endocannabinoid signaling in the prefrontal cortex - was reduced in the exposed males' prefrontal cortex. The team discovered that amplifying mGlu5 signaling could normalise the synaptic and behavioral deficits induced by prenatal exposure to cannabinoids partly by activating the cannabinoid type 1 receptor (CB1R). Similarly, later tests also revealed that enhancing levels of anandamide (a type of endocannabinoid) in exposed males helped to restore their social deficits via CB1R.

"Altogether, these results provide compelling evidence for sex-specific effects of prenatal cannabinoid exposure," concludes co-first author Antonia Manduca, Inserm Postdoctoral Researcher at the Mediterranean Institute of Neurobiology. "The fact that increasing mGlu5 signaling and enhancing anandamide levels helped to reverse the negative effects of early exposure in rats also hints at a new pharmacological strategy that could one day be trialled in humans."
Representational Image

New Delhi : Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) has released date of RRB Group D exam 2018. The exam will be conducted from 17th September 2018 in computer based test mode. The admit card of RRB Group D exam 2018 is available for download from 13th September 2018 at the official website.

How to download admit card of RRB Group D exam 2018

Go to http://indianrailways.gov.in and click on careers section.

Select download RRB Group D call letter for constable examination

Then enter your Registration Number/Roll Number and Date of Birth/Password

Finally click on the submit button, your RRB Group D admit card 2018 will generated and take a print.

The RRB Group D admit card is issued and available four days prior to the exam

Exam pattern of RRB Group D 2018

The RRB Group D will be computer based exam. The exam will be conducted in three stages: First Stage CBT, Second Stage PET and Document Verification. Let's have a look at these stages of Group D Exam in detail. The question papers will be in 15 languages (Hindi, English, Urdu, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil and Telugu).

First stage of CBT

Minimum percentage of marks for eligibility in various categories : UR -40%, OBC-30%, SC-30%, ST -30%.

Comprises of multiple-choice objective type questions

Negative Marking as applicable. For every wrong answer 1/3 marks will be deducted.

Second Stage of PET

A candidate must qualify the Physical Test in order to be eligible for the final round of the selection procedure of Railway Group D Recruitment 2018.

Male candidate should be able to lift and carry 35 kg of weight for a distance of 100 metres in 2 minutes in one chance without putting the weight down.

Female candidate should be able to lift and carry 20 kg of weight for a distance of 100 metres in 2 minutes in one chance without putting the weight down

Male candidate should be able to run for a distance of 1000 metres in 4 minutes and 15 seconds in 1 chance

Female candidate should be able to run for a distance of 1000 metres in 5 minutes and 40 seconds in 1 chance

Third Stage: Document Verification

Based on the performance of candidates in the CBT subject to their qualifying in PET, candidates will be called for document verification. In case of two or more candidates securing same marks, their merit position shall be determined by age criteria i.e., older person shall be given higher seniority. Appointment of selected candidates is subject to their passing requisite Medical Fitness Test to be conducted by the Railway Administration, final verification of educational and community certificates and verification of antecedents/character of the candidates.
Kabul : At least 19 people were killed and 57 wounded on Tuesday in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province in a suicide attack on protesters who were calling for the dismissal of a police commander.

The incident, the fourth attack to hit the region on Tuesday, took place around 1 p.m, when an insurgent detonated a bomb he was carrying in his vest in the Momand Darah district, said Attaullah Khogyanai, spokesperson for Nangarhar governor.

"So far 19 martyred and 57 injured in suicide attack," Inamullah Myakhil, spokesman for Nangarhar Public Health Department told Efe news.

The incident occurred on the highway that connects Jalalabad with the Torkham border pass between Afghanistan and Pakistan, where a protest against a local police commander from the neighbouring Achin province was being held.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack.

This was the fourth attack of the day, after a 14-year-old died and four civilians were injured in three separate explosions near two girls' schools in Nangarhar. Two other blasts took place in Bihsud district early morning.

Khogyanai said that the third attack took place in the police district 3 of the capital where one civilian sustained injuries.

In the past weeks, Nangarhar, the bastion of the Islamic State terror organization since it became active in the country in 2015, has faced a large number of attacks targeting elections, the government and civilians.

In late August, two people died and four were injured in a suicide attack during a protest near a provincial office of the Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan.
Hangzhou (China) : Hundreds of young Chinese entrepreneurs are revving up to showcase their smart technologies and products at Taobao Maker Festival of e-tailer giant Alibaba from Thursday in this ancient city, 180 km southwest of Shanghai.



"The festival celebrates the creativity of merchants, especially from the younger generation, on our online marketplace Taobao. The four-day event will draw inspiration from this great city's rich heritage and folklore," an Alibaba spokesperson told IANS here.

Taobao, meaning "search for treasure" in Mandarin, is Alibaba Group's digital platform, opened in 2003 for consumers to buy and sell a variety of goods, ranging from electronics, home appliances, furniture, clothing etc.

The third edition of the fest, being held in the provincial capital of Zhejiang and where $40-billion Alibaba is headquartered, will have over 200 Taobao merchants displaying their products and technologies and talking about them to consumers.

Among the products and technologies at the fest are robots, electronic gadgets, fashion accessories with innovations, furniture, three-dimensional (3D) cartoons, inventive takes on traditional Chinese porcelain and bamboo products.

Several hundreds of consumers are expected to attend the annual fest from across China.

Being held near the iconic West Lake in the city's downtown, the fest is aimed at sparking creativity among the Chinese youth, the spokesperson said.

"As the fest is to celebrate innovations, we will have no transaction or promotion of goods during the event. It's a platform for the makers to share their product concepts and tech stories. The fest is to inspire people to become creative in all respects," noted the official.

Several goods sold online on Taobao have unique concepts and stories associated with them. The fest provides a common platform for the sellers to share the stories behind their innovations with the buyers.

Beijing-based data analysis firm Analysys ranks Taobao as China's top mobile commerce platform in terms of sales.

According to data from the company in June, Taobao had a total of 634 million monthly active users, a majority of which are young Chinese aged between 19-38.

Many consumers who attended the previous two editions of the fest have turned merchants, inspired by others.

"The grand event has become not only an annual gathering of entrepreneurs to demonstrate their creativity, but also a window for the world to understand China's aspirational young consumers," the official reiterated.

The 19-year-old Chinese conglomerate has been hosting the fest since 2016, as an offline technology and product expo, offering a forum for hundreds of merchants and consumers to interact with one another.

Around 80 per cent of the Group's e-tail sales are generated from mobile terminals of its portals, including Alibaba.com, Tmall and AliExpress. Taobao is a major contributor to these sales.

Co-founded in 1999 by Chinese teacher-turned-entrepreneur Jack Ma with 17 other partners (investors) as a platform to connect Chinese manufacturers with the world, Alibaba is one of the largest global firms, with 86,833 employees and millions of e-sellers.

Alibaba Group's businesses and affiliates include its e-tail portals Alibaba.com, Taobao, Tmall and AliExpress, film-making firm Alibaba Pictures, cloud computing platform Alibaba Cloud, financial services company Ant Financial, new retail grocery stores Hema among others.

The fest is being held days after the company's co-founder and Executive Chairman Ma announced a succession plan on Monday, appointing the Chief Executive Daniel Zhang as the group's next Chairman from September 2019.

(Bhavana Akella is in Hangzhou at the invitation of Alibaba. She can be contacted at bhavana.a@ians.in)
Kabul : A teenager was killed and four civilians were wounded in three separate explosions on Tuesday near two schools for girls in Afghan province of Nangarhar, officials said.

Two of the blasts occurred in Behsood district in early morning, killing a 14-year old boy and wounding three others, the provincial governor's spokesperson Attaullah Khogyanai was quoted as saying by Efe news.

The spokesperson said that the third explosion took place in police district number three in the provincial capital of Jalalabad, wounding one civilian.

In all three blasts, the attackers targeted schools for girls, said provincial council member Zabihullah Zmarai.

"Two blasts happened just outside Malika Humaira Girl High School in Behsood district and a third was near another girls' school in Jalalabad city," he said.

The Islamic State terror organization sprang up in Afghanistan in 2015 and established a stronghold in the eastern province of Nangarhar, which has witnessed a large number of attacks in recent weeks.

At the end of August, two people died and another four were wounded in a suicide attack during a protest near the office of the electoral commission in the province.
Manila : Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday claimed that there was a conspiracy to remove him from power, masterminded by opposition groups, the banned Communist Party of the Philippines and Magdalo, an organization formed by dissident former soldiers.

He claimed that he had evidence to back up his accusations, including the transcript of a telephone conversation between the alleged conspirators that was provided to him by a foreign ally, Efe news reported.

"You know, (CPC founder Jose Maria) Sison and this Magdalo (group) (...) including those who never liked me, those who have never accepted me since the election, they have combined," Duterte said in a televised chat with his legal counsel.

Duterte said he would ask the document to be declassified, adding that Sison -- who has been living in exile in the Netherlands for the last three decades -- was directly involved in the conspiracy and added that he should be brought back to the Philippines and tried as a terrorist.

The President also dared Magdalo to start a mutiny or revolution against him and warned the armed forces against such influences and infighting.

Magdalo, a group formed more than a decade ago by dissident soldiers, is now a political group with a presence in the Congress and was led by Senator Antonio Trillanes, one of Duterte's fiercest critics, between 2003 and 2008.

Trillanes, 47, has been holed up inside the Senate for a week now, trying to avoid arrest after Duterte revoked an amnesty he was granted by former President Benigno Aquino III in 2010 for his role in three failed coups between 2003 and 2007.
New Delhi : Despite heightened tensions over fresh US sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme, India, Iran and Afghanistan agreed to strengthen economic and counter-terrorism cooperation in their first tripartite meeting held in Kabul on Tuesday.

"The meeting focused on consolidating economic cooperation, including Chabahar, as well as enhancing cooperation on counter-terrorism, counter-narcotics, and continuing support to the peace and reconciliation process that is led and owned by Afghanistan," a short joint statement issued following the meeting said.

"The three sides agreed to hold the next round of consultation at an appropriate time in India in 2019," it stated.

While the meeting was chaired by Afghan Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai, the Indian delegation was led by Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale and the Iranian side by Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

The meeting comes less than a week after the first ever India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue was held here on September 6 which was attended by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary Jim Mattis.

Tuesday's meeting assumes significance given the concerns in New Delhi over Washington's action against Tehran.

While India is heavily dependent on Iran for crude oil imports, the US wants oil exports from the West Asian nation brought down to zero.

According to a senior US State Department official, expert-level discussions are going on between India and the US on issues related to crude oil exports from Iran.

"We are working very hard with our partners so that there are no disruptions in the market and adequate supply is available to substitute for Iranian oil," Principal Deputy Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Affairs Alice Wells said in a media briefing on the 2+2 Dialogue.

The sanctions on Tehran have also put under jeopardy the Chabahar port project in Iran, being jointly developed by India, Iran and Afghanistan.

The port facilitates access to Afghanistan by bypassing Pakistan and is also a vital link in the International North-South Transport Corridor.

Wells said that, during the 2+2 Dialogue, the US side heard the Indian government's rationale for Chabahar as a means of providing access to Afghanistan and its role in connectivity through Central Asia.
Lahore : A senior journalist was shot dead by two unidentified gunmen in Pakistan's Multan, police said on Tuesday, adding three suspects, including a woman, were arrested in this case.

Police said Saeed Butt, 48, was sitting at a shop on Monday evening in the main market of Khanewal district, when two masked men, suspected to be robbers, barged into the shop and demanded money from the deceased, Express News reported.

Police quoting witnesses said, Butt handed over his wallet but dacoits demanded more money and on his refusal opened fire at him. The suspects fled after the killing.

Police said the suspects were arrested from Multan with the help of CCTV footage after an FIR was lodged. They further claimed that weapons used in the murder were also recovered and the suspects have confessed to their crime.
Tripoli : More than 100 migrants drowned when the precarious and overloaded vessel they were using in a bid to cross the Mediterranean from Libya sank last week before help reached them, French NGO Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said in a report on Tuesday.

Eyewitnesses told MSF that two rubber boats, each carrying more than 160 people, left the Libyan coast en route to Europe on September 1. One boat suffered an engine failure but the second, which had 165 adults and 20 children on board, continued its journey before it began to deflate near the coast of Malta, Efe news reported.

"At that time, the mobile satellite phone showed that we were not far from Maltese coast. We called the Italian Coast Guard and sent our coordinates, asking for assistance as people started to fall in the water. We were told they would send someone. But the boat started sinking," a survivor told MSF.

"We couldn't swim and only a few people had life jackets. Those among us who could hold on the boat's floating hood stayed alive," he said.

According to an eyewitness, the boat had already capsized by the time rescuers made it to the scene and only 55 people survived. Survivors were brought to Libya by the Libyan Coast Guard.

Among the nationalities on board the two migrant vessels were Sudanese, Malians, Nigerians, Cameroonians, Ghanaians, Libyans, Algerians and Egyptians.

Over 1,500 migrants have died while attempting to cross the Mediterranean so far this year, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Many more have been rescued, although Italy, a primary destination for migrants travelling from Libya, recently started to refuse entry to migrant ships.
Islamabad : Pakistan's Finance Minister Asad Umer said on Tuesday that the new government will soon introduce changes to the Federal Budget 2018-19 to make it more relevant to the current state of the national economy.

Talking to a delegation of the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Islamabad on Tuesday, Umer said that the amendments would also be in line with the new government's economic vision, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Finance Minister further stated that the government wanted a long-term solution to the budget and trade deficits. The key to the problem lies in promoting manufacturing industry and in creating jobs for the youth, he said, adding that this is the area where the overseas chamber could lead the way and assist the Pakistani government.

Umer also hinted at setting up a Business Advisory Council to stay in touch with the business community. He stated that the government was holding consultations for establishing the Business Advisory Council which would function as a liaison between the government and business community to turn the country into a regional hub for investors.

The minister said that it was his vision to put into place the latest technology in the tax system to cut down hassles and bring in greater transparency to the system.

Asad Umer said that the government was firm on its commitment to solving the crucial structural issues of the Pakistani economy. He assured the delegation of his all-out support in improving the business climate in the country.
Ramallah : Palestinians have raised a new submission against Israel at the International Criminal Court (ICC), Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Secretary General Saeb Erekat said on Tuesday.

The move was in response to the US decision to shut down the PLO delegation office in Washington.

Erekat said the Palestine's submission to the ICC was over the Israeli High Court decision pertaining to the demolition and forcible displacement of the Palestinian community of Al-Khan Al-Ahmar, Xinhua news agency reported.

The submission urged the ICC to speed up the opening of a judicial investigation into "Israeli war crimes" that fall within the court's jurisdiction.

Erekat said that specialized Palestinian teams were looking into Palestine's accession into 18 international organizations, and holding deliberations to approach the International Court of Justice against the US moves towards Jerusalem and the Palestinian refugees.

Erekat accused the US officials of letting the Israeli government go ahead with the demolition of Al-Kahn Al-Ahmar community in order to expand settlement projects east of Jerusalem.

Erekat stressed that the Palestinians were committed to the peace process on the basis of the two-state solution, but will not accept the current US administration team to be the peace mediator.

Ramallah-based political observer Mohammad Daraghmeh told the agency that he viewed the tension as "temporary" and said it will change in the post-Trump era.

"The Palestinians have no other choice. They will stick to the course. They will not shift the paradigm. They will keep submitting complaints to the UN and to the ICC," Daraghmeh added.

Over 200 homes and community structures are slated for demolition in the area, where nearly 1,400 Palestinians reside. It suffers a lack of basic services and infrastructure, such as electricity network, sewage system and proper roads.

The community includes the only school for the Bedouin communities in the area, a mosque and a healthcare unit as well as several homes that are all at risk of demolition by Israel, but residents say they are offered no alternative as to where to go.

The community in Al-Khan Al-Ahmar is one of the 46 Bedouin communities in the central West Bank that the UN considers at risk of forcible transfer.

Forcible transfer is defined as a war crime under international law.

Palestine was officially accepted as a member of the ICC in April 2015. The PLO said it has held nine meetings and submitted around 10 letters and 11 communications to the ICC concerning the Israeli violations of human rights in Palestinian territories.
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BROOKFIELD  The town is adopting a new pension plan that is intended to provide better benefits for employees and protect Brookfield from swings in the market.

This hybrid plan combines the defined benefit plan of old with a defined contribution plan, the type of pension that is becoming increasing popular.

Were trying to more align the towns goals with what happens in the rest of the nation, First Selectman Steve Dunn said.

Over the last 20 years, municipalities, including Danbury, and corporations have moved away from defined benefit plans because they are more expensive, said Marcia Marien, finance director/controller. These plans require employers to cover the full benefit, while defined contribution plans, such as a 401(k), require staff to put some money toward their benefits.

Corporations used to provide defined benefit plans to their employees and its very, very rare now, Marien said. It's the cost because the employer is taking the risk of loss, all the risk.

Other towns across the state and country have struggled to afford their pensions, with a recent study from the Manhattan Institute finding that switching from a defined benefit to defined contribution plan would be key to helping big Connecticut cities meet their pension obligations.

But compared to other towns, Brookfield has done a better job of paying for its pension. Last year, the pension was nearly 95 percent funded.

For a government pension plan, thats excellent, Marien said, adding that pensions in Connecticut towns are 70 percent funded on average.

Still, the town aims to avoid the risk that comes with a big pension plan. The hybrid plan will shrink the pension and lessen the impact of big swings in the market, Dunn said.

The Retirement Benefits Advisory Committee developed the new plan over four years.

Under the old defined benefit plan, employers got 2 percent of their salary each month after their retirement.

With the hybrid plan, employees will be under defined benefit plans for their first 20 years with the town. After that, they would switch to a defined contribution plan, where they contribute a minimum of 5 percent, while the town puts in up to 11 percent of their salaries.

Upon retiring, employees can do whatever they want with the cash from the defined contribution plan, such as setting up an annuity that could rake in more money, Dunn said.

If they want to buy a vacation home, if they want to buy an RV, if they want to help their grandkids with college, theyll have a pot of cash, he said.

Employers who started working for the town before July 1, 2017, are grandfathered into the old plan, but can switch to the new one if they want.

The town expects to pay about the same each year toward its pension as it does under the existing plan, Dunn said. This years budget included $829,000 for the pension.

Dunn said employees are pleased with the new plan. Three unions are already on board.

They're getting more options and no cut in benefits, he said.
French President Emmanuel Macron's government called the European Parliament vote censuring Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban as a first step in the fight against "illiberals" in the region.

Attempting to frame the vote in the context of the May 2019 European parliamentary elections, France said it presented a choice of "values" for the Old Continent's future. Macron has sought to take the lead in fighting nationalists including Hungary's Orban and Italy's Matteo Salvini. He has called himself their "main opponent."

EU lawmakers voted on Wednesday for Orban's government to face possible sanctions for eroding democratic standards. The 448-to-197 vote came after Orban's years of assault on civil liberties, judicial independence, educational freedom and media plurality. In his third consecutive term as Hungary's leader, he has boasted about creating an "illiberal" state, thumbed his nose at the EU and helped thwart deeper European integration.

Macron's Republic On The Move is "delighted that the EU lawmakers heard our call" to fight nationalists, Christophe Castaner, party leader and a close ally of the president, said in statement.

A French presidential aide said Wednesday's vote will contribute to the "regrouping" of European political entities around common values, while not going so far as to say it would bolster the "alliance" that Macron is seeking to build. The 40-year-old leader wants to create a pan-European, trans-party political group of "progressive" politics against nationalists.

The vote to censure Orban is a very "strong signal" against the bloc's rising nationalism, Macron's aide said. EU lawmakers who abstained, including some members of France's opposition Republicans party, showed "complacency" toward Orban's regime, the official said.

The vote showed deep "fractures" within the conservative EPP, the official said. The EPP is the biggest political group in the EU and holds a great deal of sway over the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU.

"EPP tearing itself apart, incapable of adopting a clear position in a debate that is thought essential," Castaner said.

The vote also underlined the strains in Italy's coalition government, with the populist Five Star party voting to censure Orban while the far-right, anti-migrant Lega party of Salvini voting against the measure, the official said. The French leader's aide welcomed Five Star's choice, saying it showed that the fight against nationalism transcends political groups.

Europe's unity behind a "progressive" ideology is "fundamental" in the current global climate, with the rise of Europe's nationalists and in the face of President Donald Trump's policies, the official said.
Sweden's center-right group of parties says it's ready to work with Prime Minister Stefan Lofven's Social Democrats as the establishment seeks to block the nationalist Sweden Democrats from gaining too much political influence.

Stopping short of proposing a grand coalition across political fault lines, the leaders of the opposition Alliance bloc on Wednesday said that they want to form a government that relies on support from Lofven in exchange for broad cooperation on housing, immigration, pensions and defense policy.

"We realize how hard the political situation will be in Sweden in the years to come, Ulf Kristersson, head of the conservative Moderates, said at a press conference with his fellow Alliance leaders on Wednesday. Forming a government will "take time" and will be "complicated," he said.

The offer comes as Swedes await the final outcome of Sunday's so far inconclusive election, with about 200,000 ballots added to a recount. There are roughly 29,000 votes separating the two main political blocs.

The election ended in a virtual dead heat, with Lofven's group of parties getting 144 lawmakers in the 349-seat parliament, compared with Kristersson's 142. The Sweden Democrats appear to have won 63 seats. All sides have declared themselves the winner, with the opposition gaining on the ruling red-green bloc, while Lofven has refused to resign, citing his coalition's higher seat count. The nationalists were the election's biggest gainers.

The Alliance made clear it would try to oust Lofven as soon as the new parliament is seated on Sept. 24. The opposition leaders also said that they won't put down their votes and allow Lofven to continue to rule a minority coalition, as he has over the past four years, and will deny the Left Party any influence. The Alliance won't seek the support of the nationalist Sweden Democrats, but vowed to "respect" its voters, which make up about 17 percent of the electorate.

The party leaders are resurfacing after the inconclusive outcome of Sunday's election left Swedish politics in limbo. On Tuesday, the tabloid newspaper Aftonbladet went so far as to put a "Wanted" poster on its front page, asking readers if they had seen Lofven, Kristersson or any of the other party leaders.

Lofven, who has promised more welfare spending, has already been open to breaking with the traditional political blocs and seek new alliances to stay in power. But he rules out any collaboration with the Sweden Democrats, whose anti-immigration agenda he has criticized.

Sweden Democrat leader Jimmie Akesson said on Monday he would vote against any government that doesn't give his party influence, according to Dagens Nyheter. Mattias Karlsson, the party's parliamentary leader, cast it in more stark terms. He said in a Facebook post on Monday that the only way forward to secure the survival of Swedish culture and nation was "victory or death."

The Liberals and the Center Party have so far also rejected feelers by Lofven on supporting a Social Democratic government.

Annie Loof, who leads the Center Party, said on Wednesday that she doesn't believe in a government that crosses the political blocs. The blocs should stop quibbling over who is the biggest and instead focus on real, effective talks, she said.

For now, markets and business leaders in Sweden are taking the political situation in their stride.

The chief executive at Swedish insurer Folksam, Jens Henriksson, says it seems clear that Lofven will be voted out as soon as parliament meets in two weeks, with Kristersson getting a mandate to try to form a new government.

"Sweden is a stable democracy," Henriksson said. "I don't think it matters that much if the government formation process sways a bit for a few weeks, that won't have a big effect on the economy."

But he also says the outcome shows that Sweden is now "like any other European country, with a weakened Social Democracy and a strong right-wing populist party. Sweden now looks a lot like France, before Macron."

Kerstin Hessius, the head of the AP3 pension fund, says Sweden's strong public finances will allow it to weather any turmoil. "When public finances are in order, the economic system can handle much more," she said in an interview on Tuesday. "This will be solved in a good way, I'm not very worried."
WASHINGTON - The Trump administration on Wednesday formally endorsed the efforts of key Persian Gulf allies to protect civilians in Yemen, signaling its support in a new report to Congress for Arab partners despite widespread criticism of their role in that country's civil war.

In a statement, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he had informed lawmakers that the Trump administration had "certified" that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which have been battling Yemen's Houthi militants with U.S. assistance since 2015, are taking "demonstrable actions" to reduce harm to noncombatants.

Doing so allows the Trump administration, under a new law linking those countries' conduct in Yemen to U.S. military aid, to continue aerial refueling of Saudi and UAE jets as they conduct bombing raids against the Houthis.

"The Trump administration has been clear that ending the conflict in Yemen is a national security priority," Pompeo said. "We will continue to work closely with the Saudi-led coalition to ensure Saudi Arabia and the UAE maintain support for U.N.-led efforts to end the civil war in Yemen," allow aid deliveries and protect civilians, he said.

The announcement culminates an intense debate within the Trump administration about whether to publicly endorse the gulf nations' handling of the war. Opposition to their conduct, and U.S. support for the coalition, has grown in recent weeks amid a series of airstrikes killing dozens of Yemeni children.

Aid officials have continued to sound the alarm meanwhile about the war's impact on Yemen's most vulnerable. The conflict has exacerbated hunger and disease in what was already the Arab world's poorest country, and some critics blame the coalition for contributing to suffering by making it more difficult to import needed food and medicine.

While U.S. officials have called for a negotiated end to the war, there are few signs that a peace settlement is within reach. The Trump administration has consistently expressed support for helping Saudi Arabia defend itself against attacks by the Houthis, who both Washington and Riyadh believe are strengthened by Iranian support.

In a separate statement, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis went even farther than Pompeo in his backing for Saudi Arabia and the UAE, saying the gulf partners were "making every effort to reduce the risk of civilian casualties and collateral damage to civilian infrastructure resulting from their military operations to end the civil war in Yemen."

- - -

The Washington Post's John Hudson and Karen DeYoung contributed to this report.
In his Where I Stand column Sept. 6, Humanitarian aid blocked from reaching Gaza, Gulamhusein Abba pretends the ship Al Awda was about bringing needed humanitarian aid to the oppressed people living in Gaza.

Israel transfers massive amounts of goods to Gaza, including humanitarian aid, every day. As many as 1,000 trucks have crossed into Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing in a single day. Transfers are frequently blocked, unfortunately, because of repeated attacks by the very Arabs for which the humanitarian aid is meant. (Shades of the Menendez brothers.)
Everything is for sale. If capitalism needed a motto that should be it.

However, up until now everything didnt include data.

The gigantic profusion of digital information in the modern world is the price of doing business. It stands to reason then that organizing this data in such a way that it can be mined for patterns and insights to bring efficiencies to bear, will be a major benefit and competitive advantage for those entities agile enough to seize the opportunity.

Theres another problem with commoditizing data so it can be sold in a marketplace like any other asset and thats accessibility.

Why does this really matter? Isnt it just more blue-sky thinking from the techies that over promises and underdelivers?

Well, it matters to companies small and large because without access to their own data or the inability to share its data internally and externally, they will have a flawed view of their business because their intelligence has blind spots that could skew decision-making.

Closed silos of wasted data

It is one thing to know that the data exists but if it is trapped in silos unwittingly created by a company, with each individual departments system walled off from interoperability with others, except those previously deemed to be stakeholders.

So not only do companies not necessarily have an audited overview of all their data, they can often fail to enable the various datasets to interact, or at minimum to at least be aware of each datasets mutual existence.

What are the practical implications of this?

A firm may have an order fulfillment process designed to accept postal addresses in a certain format etc. The company is expanding to China and wants to deliver to Chinese addresses so its system needs to read Mandarin script. If the companys fulfillment software is able to connect with data source of Chinese addresses in Mandarin it can look up the addresses.

This could be solved with a data marketplace where our expanding company can access the Chinese data it needs and open it up to its systems.

Those systems are often a hybrid of technology developed and tweaked over many years, using new and old technology, from spreadsheets to databases to airtight cloud storage.

Data will sometimes be unstructured and therefore unusable by computer code and the custodians of the data may often be using incompatible data models.

Thinking through the isolation of datasets in silos it is easier to see that the solution must come through introducing interoperability and fluidity in order to breakdown those impervious silo structures.

Yet, there can be good reasons why silos exist, both in terms of security of information and the protection of the integrity of records.

The sheer size of the amount of data (2.5 quintrillion bytes a day) being generated is not the end of the problems to be solved.

There is also the contemporary dynamic landscape of data creation to contend with.

Just think about how much data an individual generates just by browsing the web on their smartphone  the geo data, server requests, downloads etc. Now multiply that for the commercial world, where transactions in payments, for example, are measured in the tens of thousands per second, Each transaction its own record. And thats before we even get started with the data Internet of Things devices are generating, which is set to explode.

Data marketplaces: from Google Cloud to the blockchain-fuelled future

Data marketplaces, centralized or decentralized, are the future. For sure, companies such as

Facebook can get their data from you and me for free but for others it is going to require

finding the seller to buy the data from.

Amazon filed a patent this year for a streaming data marketplace for example. One of the most exciting developments comes from Google, in which its recently launched Google Cloud Platforms suite of services, including commercial access to datasets and being able to run queries at Google BigQuery run queries.

Googles data marketplace may be the more advanced on the market at present. Examples of the datasets that can be accessed include the 1000 Cannabis Genome Project, the bitcoin blockchain or City of Chicago Taxi trips from 2013 to the present. Google, as you might expect, entices those considering being customers of its services a generous introductory offer of a $300 credit.

However, all those examples are non-blockchain solutions and as such could perhaps be at a disadvantage to a new breed of platforms from blockchain start-ups.

Distributed ledger technology can be leveraged to track with granular detail every piece of data and its lifecycle history.

Blockchains two key features of immutability and encryption are ideal for protecting data from unapproved changes and unauthorized access.

Scidex Marketplace, a marketplace for scientific data, is the first app being built on the SciDex protocol.

The alpha is up and running on the Rinkeby Testnet  you can use the Metamask Chrome browser extension to test it.

Examples of the data available for purchase, using the native SciDex Token, include Number of infants born in Spain from 1990. The data costs SDX 5,500. Or perhaps Birth rate in Asia in 2017 piques interest for SDX 4,000.

In addition to find Data, users can go provide data to sell.

Describe the nature of the data, select from one of three contract templates (for scientists, small business and enterprises) and then upload, although that last part is not available in the alpha version.

In the third part of the data-selling journey users are asked to specify variations, which is essentially the various ways the dataset could be presented or split up, such as buy age, location, dates, industry and so on. Each variation can be priced separately.

The Call for Actions is the really clever part, where customers set up their interactions with dataset smart contracts.

State of the art protocol for trading data

The foundation of that interaction is the SciDex Protocols adaptable Ricardian smart contracts, which means that smart contracts are human- and machine-readable.

They are also adaptable enough to respond to new parameters and events, as opposed to recurring events such as an oracle feeding in time data so a smart contract so it knows when to pay a dividend, but thats all the contract knows about in the world.

Data marketplace projects built on blockchain are on offer from other vendors, with DataWallet in the personal realm, the likes of the Ocean protocol targeting business and Streamr in the IoT field.

Lets take a closer look at Streamr. It has an Editor in alpha release that those interested can try out to get a peak at the future of data.

The innovative drag-and-drop interface makes it a breeze to get datasets working together and to add programs to process events.

The Streamr provides an example of a person in an electric vehicle selling battery level data, selling route condition data, buying nearby charge point price  all handled in realtime. It provides the reader/viewer with a fascinating insight into the data marketplace possibilities.

No one knows which data marketplace will get traction first, but we do know that data is the business opportunity of the 21 st century.

Geoffrey Moore, the author of Crossing the Chasm, a bestseller on marketing and selling disruptive products, says the data war will take no prisoners:

Without big data analytics, companies are blind and deaf, wandering out onto the Web like deer on a freeway.

Data marketplaces may be the key utility  essential to modern life, like water or electricity  of our connected future worlds.
WASHINGTON  Sen. Richard Blumenthal on Tuesday cited emails that he argued undercut Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaughs statements that as a White House official under President George W. Bush, he did not know intelligence he received on judicial nominations had been stolen.

Blumenthal, D-Conn., a Senate Judiciary Committee member who was among Kavanaughs questioners at confirmation hearings last week, told reporters in Hartford that Kavanaugh had been evasive and apparently misleading in his testimony.

Theres no question stolen documents in fact were provided to Judge Kavanaugh when he worked in the White House, Blumenthal said at a news conference. Despite Kavanaughs denials at the hearings last week, on the face of the documents, seemingly he had to know, Blumetnahl said.

For Blumenthal and other Senate Democrats hoping to derail Kavanaughs nomination, revelations of emails contradicting sworn testimony may be too little, too late. Democrats fear that if confirmed, Kavanaugh would represent a fifth, decisive conservative vote that could overturn cherished liberal precedents such as Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion nationwide.

Kavanaughs fate rests in the hands of a few centrist Republican and Democratic senators, none of whom so far have committed to vote for or against President Donald Trumps second high-court nominee. But none of them have stated that any documents revealed so far on Kavanaughs years in the Bush White House alter their views of the 53-year-old federal appeals court judge.

Seeking documents

Democrats demanded hundreds of thousands of pages of documents on Kavanaughs record as White House associate counsel and staff secretary, but succeeded in getting only a fraction of the total  some turned over just hours before confirmation hearings commenced, and others marked committee confidential, in effect gagging senators from asking questions about them.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, permitted release of numerous emails, including three cited Tuesday by Blumenthal.

The emails harken back to the controversy surrounding Manuel Manny Miranda, a Republican Senate staffer who in 2003 admitted he had stolen sensitive computerized documents on Senate Democrats strategy for fighting Bush judicial nominees.

The emails show direct communication between Kavanaugh, Miranda and others in the Bush administration.

I cannot make it at 12:15, Kavanaugh said in an email released by Sen. Cory Booker, D-NJ.

It was to Miranda and a Justice Department official on July 30, 2002. Can the three of us get on the phone instead? Kavanaugh wrote. I definitely want to talk to both of you.

In three preceding emails, Miranda lays out the talking points of Democratic senators on nominations including that of Priscilla Owen, a controversial Texas Supreme Court judge who in 2005 won confirmation to the U.S. appeals court that covers Texas.

I would ask that no action be taken by any of your offices on this for now except as I request, Miranda said in an email to Kavanaugh and the DOJ official two days earlier. It is important that it be confidential to the recipients of this email and up your chains of authority only.

Miranda then goes on to discuss a confidential memo that the staff of Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., a Judiciary member, planned to distribute to other Democratic staffers.

Calls for disclosure

At the hearings last week, Leahy grilled Kavanaugh on whether he knew the materials he received from Miranda were stolen. Leahy said Mirandas actions had been referred to as a digital Watergate, and compared it to the hacking of the Democratic National Committees computers by Russia  a key factor in the investigation of special counsel Robert Mueller into alleged contacts between Trumps 2016 campaign and Russia.

Kavanaugh repeated past assertions that he didnt know the documents were stolen. And had he known, Kavanaugh said, he would have alerted then-White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales.

Im not here to accuse him of lying, Blumenthal said. But serious concerns have been raised and the only way to resolve them is through the documents that so far have been concealed.

Blumenthal and other Democrats have waged a back-and-forth battle against Grassley and a lawyer representing former President George W. Bush, Bill Burck, who presided over release of Bush-era documents involving Kavanaugh.

Blumenthal on Tuesday renewed his vow to go to court to force disclosure of documents through the Freedom of Information Act.

Grassley has insisted that Democrats were provided with unprecedented numbers of documents, far exceeding those provided in previous confirmations, Democratic or Republican.

But Blumenthal, who labeled many of the documents turned over so far as junk, stuck to his guns.

The full record needs to be disclosed, he said.

He warned that non-disclosure could come back to haunt Republicans if documents eventually prove that Kavanaugh gave false testimony.

Republicans should welcome and insist that documents be made public before a vote, not afterward, Blumenthal said. History will judge them harshly and, in fact, condemn them if they vote to confirm someone who later is found to have serious ethical problems.

dan@hearstdc.com
EAST HAVEN  The town and its attorneys have negotiated a compromise that will pay $175,000 to a former employee who filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Mayor Joseph Maturo Jr., according to a release.

The lawsuit against Maturo stated that Francine Carbone, who went on leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act in May 2014, filed a complaint with the state Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities in July and was fired by the town months later on Oct. 17, 2014, because she opposed its unlawful employment practices and filed a complaint.

Carbone, whose lawsuit states that she was assistant to the towns director of housing and urban renewal when she was fired and who had been employed by the town since 1997, alleged in her complaint that Maturo subjected her to a pattern of continual sexual harassment throughout all the time he was Mayor of East Haven. The lawsuit alleges that Maturo made comments about the weight of Carbones breasts, grabbed his crotch in her presence and exposed his genitals to her. The lawsuit alleges that both the town attorney and police chief witnessed Maturos behavior and that the chief told the mayor he was sexually harassing Carbone.

As a result, Carbone has suffered economic loss and emotional distress and sought both compensatory and punitive damages as well as being reinstated to her former job with back pay and benefits, according to the lawsuit.

The release from East Haven Town Attorney Joseph Zullo said the compromise brings a swift and favorable conclusion to both the federal wage and overtime and state court lawsuits brought by Francine Carbone.

The suit has threatened to drain the towns coffers and rip apart the fiber of our community, he said.

The release from Zullo says the town negotiated a compromise in which, in addition to the payment to Carbone, she will be provided with medical benefits until age 65, along (with) an inexpensive supplement thereafter  benefits Mrs. Carbone would have likely received had her employment not abruptly concluded in 2014. The compromise represents a conclusion to all of Carbones employment and non-employment claims against the Town and which have been pending since 2015.

Carbones attorney, Rachel Baird of Harwinton, said the case resulted in a practical settlement.

The problems and the issues have been going on for well over three years, Baird said. Its taken a toll on Ms. Carbone and her family. Baird said the $175,000 award and extended medical benefits were what she felt like she needed to do for herself and her family ... to being (able) to put her life back together and make sure she had health care in the future.

Zullo also said in the release that, Although we are confident that we would have prevailed in both the federal wage and overtime case and todays state court proceedings, absent this mornings favorable settlement, the Town could have found itself mired in costly, protracted litigation and appeals for years to come as any judgment in favor of the Town and Mayor would have been appealed by Carbone.

Todays global compromise, which will be memorialized in a formal settlement agreement in the coming days, will contain no admission of liability as to any of Mrs. Carbones claims, all of which both the Town and the Mayor vehemently continue to deny.

Baird said Carbones position is, weve uncovered information in this case, theres no confidentiality. Its up to the people of East Haven ... to make a decision about the future of their town. She declined to say whether Carbone has found new employment.
LOS ANGELES  The teenager stared at 16 mug shots, searching for the face of the man had who stabbed her boyfriend to death while they slept in his pickup truck in South L.A.

It was November 1984  a month after the slaying  and Saladena Bishop already had pointed police toward two suspects who were quickly ruled out. Now, Los Angeles police Detective Richard Marks had a new photo lineup, and he drew her attention to No. 7.

What about him? the detective asked, referring to a picture of Andrew Wilson.

Bishop said that was the man  she was nearly certain, according to Marks.

Wilson, who always maintained his innocence, was convicted and sentenced to life in prison in a case that relied almost entirely on the witnesss identification. More than three decades passed before a judge in 2017 threw out the conviction and freed him.

A civil rights lawsuit filed this week by Wilson, 63, accuses Marks of leading the witness to falsely identify him as a killer  and underscores a continuing controversy over the way many police agencies handle eyewitness identifications.

The age-old police method of asking someone to pick a suspect from a lineup has fallen under increasing scrutiny in recent years and shoulders some of the blame for hundreds of wrongful convictions across the country. The straightforward witness direction by Marks has drawn sharp criticism from prosecutors, defense attorneys and eyewitness memory experts.

Wilsons lawsuit against the former detective, as well as the city and county of Los Angeles, alleges that Marks actions were unconstitutional and that the district attorneys office for years failed to protect the rights of criminal suspects.

You took 32 years of my life, Wilson said during a recent interview. You cant give that back to me.

Last year, a record 37 people were exonerated in cases based, at least in part, on bad eyewitness identifications, according to a national database.

To address the problem, a California commission more than a decade ago urged police to stop having lead detectives show witnesses an array of photographs of possible suspects side by side. Instead, the panel recommended adopting a double-blind procedure, in which an officer who doesnt know which picture belongs to the suspect shows the witness a series of photographs one after the other.

Advocates of the method say it prevents officers from even unconsciously steering a witness to a particular photograph. Several law enforcement agencies, including those in North Carolina and New Jersey, as well as the San Francisco Police Department and law enforcement in Santa Clara County, have switched to the method. But others, including the LAPD, have been reluctant to adopt the double-blind method and still allow case investigators to handle lineups.

Earlier this year, labor unions representing prosecutors and the LAPDs rank-and-file opposed a bill that would require the practice.

The police union said it believes the proposed law would lead to fewer solved crimes, arguing that witnesses and victims will be unwilling to freely offer information to anyone they do not know, trust or feel comfortable with, according to state documents.

The way Marks directed the witness to Wilsons photo  a practice he said he used at times throughout his career  is an overt example of how eyewitness identification can go wrong, said Gary L. Wells, an Iowa State University psychology professor who has studied the practice for decades.

The problems here are legion, Wells said. Hes just completely giving out his hypothesis that thats the guy were focused on.

Witnesses, he said, tend to think that police know the answer, and theyre there to help provide confirmation.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Marks defended his handling of Wilsons case, saying he made clear notes in the official record about having directed the witness. The retired detective said he has read literature on eyewitness identification in recent years and agrees it has limitations, but doesnt think his actions led to a false identification.

I certainly have a clear conscience, he said.

After his retirement in 2008, Marks did consulting work for the district attorneys office, reviewing evidence and offering his opinion in at least two high-profile police shootings  which ultimately ended in prosecutors declining to file charges against the officers in either case.

The district attorneys office declined to comment, citing the pending litigation; the LAPD did not respond to a request for comment.

From behind bars, Wilson in 1999 filed an official complaint about Marks with the LAPD, according to the lawsuit.

But the first sign of hope didnt come until August 2014, when he got a letter from a deputy federal public defender. The attorney wrote that he represented another man serving life for murder, and that an eyewitness had recently recanted, saying Marks and his partner had coerced a false identification. Marks denied any wrongdoing in that case.

Not long after, the attorney visited Wilson in prison and alerted Loyola Law Schools innocence project, which championed the case.

Loyola lawyers tracked down the trial prosecutor, Laura Aalto, who in July 2016 signed a declaration saying shed long felt uneasy about the prosecution. Aalto wrote that during Wilsons trial, she wasnt aware Marks had directed the witness during the photo lineup.

I do not know, she wrote, how any detective could have thought that was a legitimate way to conduct an identification procedure, even in 1984.

Five months later, Marks sat down for a recorded interview with Wilsons lawyers and a deputy district attorney.

The detective said he considered Wilson a thug, clarifying he meant someone who committed crimes to support a drug habit. During the interview, the prosecutor asked Marks what he had meant years earlier, when he wrote in an affidavit that he had directed the eyewitness to Wilsons photo.

Just exactly what is says, Marks responded, saying he asked her to look at a picture of Wilson and asked something along the lines of What about him?

Marks said he intentionally made a record of having directed the witness, as he figured it would be an issue requiring litigation before trial. In the affidavit attached to an arrest warrant, Marks wrote that he had included photographs of Wilson and another man, who was initially arrested as a co-defendant. While looking at the photos, Marks wrote, the witness hesitated over a photo of the other man, saying she would need to see a live lineup.

She then eliminated several other photos, Marks wrote, adding that he then directed her attention to Wilsons photo, which she then identified with 80 percent confidence.

During an interview this week, Marks stressed that a judge ultimately signed the arrest warrant and that his affidavit was in the case documents he gave the prosecutor.

This isnt something that was buried, he said.

Wilsons lawsuit contends that the defense never got a copy of Marks affidavit, but the retired detective said he cant conceive of that notion, saying he recalled one of Wilsons attorneys coming to the police station with a portable device to make copies of sections of the case evidence. (The attorney, Jim Barnes, doesnt specifically recall the case, but said neither he nor his office had portable copiers during the 1980s, according to the lawsuit.)

During the 2016 interview with the Loyola lawyers, Marks said that at a subsequent live lineup, Bishop recalled that she knew Wilsons face from before  she had babysat for his daughter, records show.

Was it possible, the prosecutor asked, that the witness identified Wilson because shed recognized him from earlier?

Is it a possibility? Marks said. Yeah.

Were you concerned about that? the prosecutor asked.

I wouldnt say that I was concerned, Marks said.

When Wilson got out of prison, he felt joy but also crushing sadness and fear. He thought about the people hed lost while incarcerated  a sister, his eldest grandson  and decided to move to St. Louis to be near his 98-year-old mother. He applied for jobs, but didnt hear back.

When he finally got work mopping floors at a chemical lab, he often showed up to his shift two hours early. He wanted his co-workers to see him  if anyone came asking, hed have an alibi. But he recently slipped on the job and hurt his lower back, so he has missed a lot of work for doctors appointments, Wilson said.

His adult daughter, who lives in Michigan, calls 10 to 12 times a day to check in.

The hardest part, Wilson says, is the debilitating fear that authorities will target him again. He often wakes up in a panic in the middle of the night.

On a recent afternoon  when it was 85 degrees outside and he had a full tank of gas in his car  he told himself he really should be outside at the park with his girlfriend.

Instead, he holed up inside. He doesnt run errands when its dark outside, and the sight of a patrol car sparks a panic attack  his heart races and his breathing gets short.

That fear will always be in me, he says. I dont want be on the other end of that again. I just cant. I dont have 32 more years to give.

He thinks about Marks every day  and about the other people the detective investigated. During his long career with the LAPD, Marks was listed as a possible witness in at least 40 criminal cases, according to the district attorneys office.

He gets a pension, Wilson said, and the best I could get was a job mopping floors?
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Homeland Security Department is pushing back against a Democratic U.S. senators claim that the Trump administration transferred nearly $10 million from the governments disaster relief agency to immigration enforcement.

Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon said the administration was taking money from FEMAs response and recovery to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency at a time when Hurricane Florence is bearing down on the Southeast U.S. coast.
NEW HAVEN  Mayor Toni Harp, at a Tuesday news conference, discussed the citys credit card protocol in light of the arrest of a now former city worker who allegedly used one of the cards to pay for several months room and board at a local hotel.

Harp said the unauthorized charges of $11,088.15, which were placed on the card of an executive management worker who had been on extended medical leave, were caught in a timely fashion under review procedures that were already in place.

She said the city now has initiated electronic monitoring and an extra layer of scrutiny to ensure that every single credit card charge is appropriate, authorized and accurately audited.

Bianca Bowles, who was a receptionist in the mayors office and more recently promoted to a position in youth services, was escorted from the building by police on Aug. 22 after the unauthorized purchases were discovered. The case remains under investigation.

The bulk of the inappropriate charges were made in July, Budget Manager Michael Gormany said, were caught in August and the card was cancelled. The city expects to recoup all the money from the credit card company.

This was an isolated incident, Gormley said.

Harp explained that New Haven participates in a state sponsored purchase card program in which its purchases and bills, including monthly utility expenses, are paid through J.P. Morgan Chase and Co., a bedrock banking institution, which then qualifies the city for cash rebates.

Comptroller Daryl Jones said in the years that they have used the card, New Haven has earned rebates of $90,000 and expects to earn $20,000 more by the end of this calendar year.

Jones said the P card account, is under the aegis of the state Department of Administrative Services and has been used by New Haven since 2012.

He said the city ramped up participation in 2014 to take better advantage of the rebate component. There are a total of 21 municipalities participating in the program, he said.

In calendar year 2017, Jones said New Haven had the highest anount spent through the program  more than $2.4 million, nearly half of which was for its print management program  copiers. The bulk of the routine bills are for utilities.

Purchasing Agent Michael Fumiati, who has held that position since 1997, said the P card program has created efficiences we could not have anticipted 25 years ago.

The card users now have access 24/7 to the JP Morgan website to review their account status. He said the bills are secure and electronic and arrive in a timely fashion.

Gormany said the program is not an additional charge to taxpayers and the expenses themselves already have been budgeted.

What the procurement card does, is it replaces the invoicing process from a vendor. ... This is a more efficient manner in the way the city does business. When the credit card statements are audited, the charges are properly assigned to each departments budget, he said.

There are between five to seven  P cards issued.

They include the purchasing agent, controller, the mayor, the deputy chief of staff, the human resources and benefits manager, the IT director and the carousel events manger in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Trees.

The card cannot be used for personal purchases.

Gormany said there is a regular audit process that is coordinated with the cardholders.

In this unfortuate event, the charges were unrecognizable on one individuals card and we took appropriate action, he said. Deputy Chief of Staff Patricia Lawlors card was used without her knowledge when she was on sick leave.

Gormley said the cardholders are responsible for reconciling the charges.

He said they caught the problem about a week after the card statement was made available.

Jones said the additional security is real-time access to charges on the cards. So they now can see all the transactions in real time, he said, and quickly take action. He said supervisers oversee the cardholders.

Fumiati said the bills are paid and then it is up to the city to audit those payments.

Once the individual was back and received the bill and questioned it we determined that there were charges that were made erroneously. At that point we initiated an investigation with the credit card company, he said.

He said JP Morgan ia now providing the city with a new improved program that will actually be more robust, Fumiati said.

These purchase cards allow flexibility for comparison shopping to save the city money. Orders are than accelerated by phone and on line, Harp said. She said it streamlines the process by eliminating purchase orders, burdensome for vendors and inefficient for the city.

The procurement rules, she said remain the same, such as getting three bids on purchases.

Harp said the process reduces the number of checks that have to be issued, avoids delayed payment by check, as well as the risk of lost checks.

Residents should know New Haven is increasingly using its P card account for big ticket regular expenses like utility bills to ensure no interruption in service, and to boost its eligibility for rebates, the mayor said.

Fumiati said they never carry a balance as each months bills are paid in full.

Alders Anna Festa, D-10, and Abby Roth, D-7, have asked the Board of Alders to hold a public hearing on the credit card arrangement, including who has them, the amount charged by each holder and the purpose of expenditures going back two years.

mary.oleary@hearstmediact.com; 203-641-2577
The Trump administration on Tuesday proposed relaxing Obama-era mandates meant to block rogue methane leaks from oil and gas wells, part of a broader assault on federal regulations designed to combat climate change.

The Environmental Protection Agency proposal takes aim at requirements forcing energy companies to find and stop methane leaks at new and newly modified oil and gas wells, amid industry concerns the mandates are unnecessary and too expensive.

The proposal would lessen the frequency of required inspections to hunt for methane leaks. remove a requirement that professional engineers certify some equipment designs and make it easier for energy companies to deploy emerging technologies to monitor emissions.

The EPA said its changes would save an estimated $484 million in regulatory costs from 2019 to 2025 -- or $75 million annually.

"These commonsense reforms will alleviate unnecessary and duplicative red tape and give the energy sector the regulatory certainty it needs to continue providing affordable and reliable energy to the American people," EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler said in a statement. "Removing these excessive regulatory burdens will generate roughly $484 million in cost savings and support increased domestic energy production."

The proposal will now be subject to a public comment period, paving the way for final changes next year. The effort dovetails with a separate Interior Department move to ease Obama administration mandates requiring energy companies keep a better lid on natural gas escaping from wells on public land.

Both efforts are part of a broader assault by President Donald Trump on former President Barack Obama's climate legacy. Obama built a three-part strategy for combating climate change, with regulations capping greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, automobiles and oil wells.

Trump's EPA already proposed relaxing carbon dioxide limits for two of those targets in August: power plants and vehicles. Now, with methane, the Trump administration is taking aim at the third and final piece of Obama's 2013 climate action plan.

The oil and gas industry is the leading source of methane, an intense but short-lived greenhouse gas shown to warm the atmosphere 84 times more than carbon dioxide when measured over two decade. That potency increases when measured over a century; methane is estimated to be 25 times more powerful at warming the atmosphere over that 100-year timeline.

Under the EPA's proposal, energy companies would generally have to search for leaks at oil and gas wells annually, instead of twice a year as required under the 2016 rule. Very low-producing sites -- generally known as "marginal" wells -- would have to be inspected once every two years. And the requirements would disappear altogether when major production and processing equipment is removed from any site.

Oil industry leaders have said federal regulations are unnecessary in light of ongoing work to keep methane from escaping. Because methane is the primary ingredient in natural gas, energy companies have a financial incentive to keep it bottled up as it moves from the wellhead to compressor stations and into storage tanks.

"Methane emissions from the oil and natural gas industry are already down 14 percent since 1990 while production has increased by 50 percent, said Howard Feldman, senior director of regulatory and scientific affairs at the American Petroleum Institute. "We welcome EPA's efforts to get this right and the proposed changes could ensure that the rule is based on best engineering practices and cost-effective."

Although some energy companies have worked aggressively and voluntarily to plug methane leaks, environmentalists and some investors worry the industry as a whole is not moving quickly enough to address the issue. Federal mandates provide essential incentive for companies to spend money capturing methane emissions when the investments won't swiftly pay off, environmentalists argue.

"With this methane safeguard rollback, President Trump's EPA just sacrificed public health and climate for oil and gas industry profits," said Lauren Pagel, policy director at Earthworks. "And he did so despite some of the world's largest oil and gas companies endorsing the need for methane rules."

Because methane is such a potent greenhouse gas, cutting it is seen as a way to swiftly make progress in a global fight against climate change.

"Atmospheric methane has been rising rapidly since the start of the shale gas explosion in the United States in 2008," said Robert Howarth, a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at Cornell University. "Now is not the time to relax controls on methane emissions from industry."

The EPA requirements that were imposed under Obama apply to new and newly modified facilities, including oil and gas wells, pumps, compressors and other equipment. Under the mandates, energy companies were required to upgrade pumps and compressors, conduct more frequent inspections of their sites and use "green completion" technology to capture gas surging out of newly fracked wells.

The new EPA proposal to ease those requirements is just the first step in the agency's two-part effort to dramatically scale back federal limits on methane emissions. The agency has already signaled it is working on a separate rulemaking effort to address whether direct rules on methane are even necessary; Trump's EPA is expected to ultimately propose they aren't.

The new EPA proposal represents the agency's second attempt to suspend the Obama-era methane requirements. In July 2017, a federal court rebuked the agency's first try: unilaterally suspending the mandates. The coming effort is designed to be more durable because it tracks legal requirements for altering federal regulations, with the new, formal proposal followed by a public comment period meant to guide the agency's development of a final rule.
After World War II, Americans of the Greatest Generation donated to feed the hungry in countries devastated by the conflict.

As the school year starts, todays generation of students also has an opportunity to fight hunger in war-torn lands. One way is through an online learning game called FreeRice.

To play FreeRice, you answer trivia questions in vocabulary, science, English, social studies, math, languages and other subjects. Once you start playing you get hooked!

For every question you get right, 10 grains of rice are donated to the UN World Food Program. The rice is paid for by advertisers on the FreeRice site.

The WFP is the largest hunger relief organization in the world. They are leading food aid missions as we speak in Syria. Seven years of civil war between the Assad government and rebel groups has displaced millions of Syrians from their homes. The fighting has destroyed agriculture and food production.

Displaced families depend on the WFP for life-saving rations. Getting food to the hungry is extremely difficult because military forces often block aid deliveries. WFP has to use airlifts and complex overland routes to reach different parts of the country with food aid.

Millions of Syrians have also fled to neighboring countries in the Middle East. Many refugees have lost their income and savings. They need the help of WFP and other humanitarian agencies.

These scenes of tragedy and hunger are many miles from our communities and schools. But when students take action playing FreeRice they can raise funds for the WFP.

After World War II, schools helped with the Friendship Train which traveled coast to coast collecting donations to feed the hungry in Europe. Students gathered donations for the Train.

The many episodes of generosity after World War II saved nations from starvation. Food was the foundation for the rebuilding of Europe and Asia. Food from America won the peace after World War II.

Today, the needs are also massive worldwide because of food shortages caused by conflict and natural disasters.

In civil war torn Yemen, WFP is providing food in a country on the brink of famine. Without WFP millions of people would starve to death. South Sudan, Nigeria, Somalia and Yemen have all been on the brink of famine in the last year. In South Sudan WFP air drops food in hard to reach areas, which their partner Catholic Relief Services distributes to hungry and displaced civilians.

WFP depends on voluntary donations to provide food aid to the 70 plus countries they assist. When funding is low, WFP is forced to reduce rations or programs that feed impoverished children like school meals.

Its vital WFP receives enough funding especially with conflict and hunger levels at their worst in decades. The funding comes from governments and the public.

Schools can do their part by playing FreeRice and raising donations for WFP. Students can be food ambassadors by informing others about the hunger emergencies ongoing in the world. Awareness is the key to action.

Schools could even hold FreeRice tournaments with a focus on Syria, Yemen, and South Sudan, Haiti or any of the countries afflicted with hunger.

The WFP has released a new improved version of FreeRice at beta.freerice.com that they want everyone to use.

Students can make this school year special, not only for learning, but for aiding those suffering in hunger overseas.

William Lambers is an author who partnered with the UN World Food Program on the book Ending World Hunger.
Something funny happened this week. Bob Stefanowski, the Republican candidate for governor, asked for money.

Thats not the funny part. The funny part is Stefanowski mocking other Republican candidates, particularly former frontrunner Mark Boughton, for using public financing. Stefanowski made lots of hay from the fact that he poured millions of his own dollars into his outsider campaign.

This is a crucial moment for the campaign, and we just cant afford to be off the airwaves, wrote his wife, Amy, according to Hearst Media Connecticut. That is why Im personally asking you to make a donation to help us with this. Meeting this $10,000 goal means staying on the air and reaching 100,000 voters with our winning message.

I dont mean funny ha-ha, as you can see. I mean funny weird. Isnt it strange that a former executive for big firms like GE and UBS is asking for nickels and dimes? The way he treated Boughton, I would have expected Stefanowski to easily find ten grand between the couch cushions.

You could say this doesnt matter. After all, asking for money is like breathing oxygen in politics, whether you add your own cash to the kitty or not. Id otherwise agree except for one thing: Stefanowski isnt a normal candidate.

Hes a TV candidate.

That means hes not willing, or able, to do what successful politicians normally do to win their partys primary for governor. He didnt knock on doors. He didnt press the flesh. He didnt court donors. He didnt build a base of power. He didnt, during the state GOP convention, stay up all night honing his message and horse trading with delegates. He didnt do much, or any, of these things.

Instead, he bought ads.

Loads of ads, in fact, all purchased long before other Republican candidates started buying air time. And he bought them on TV stations beloved of Republicans, particularly Connecticuts Fox affiliate, WTIC. While they rage-watched the latest self-made scandal coming out of the Donald Trump White House, Stefanowski delivered a message considered gospel truth among Republicans.

The income tax is the problem.

The income tax is not the problem, it has never been the problem, but it has become the problem to many Connecticut Republicans thanks to the upside-down and sealed-off logic of conservative media. (WTIC isnt conservative media but Fox News certainly is.) If only there were a man fearless and strong enough to take out the income tax, a man who knows full well that state government must be run like a business, a man who says what needs to be said, political correctness be damned  then wages would rise, firms would come back, and growth would be explosive.

Thats pretty much Stefanowskis message.

Its nonsense.

To be sure, its been approved by Arthur Laffer himself. But Laffers theories are decades old. They have long been discredited. Few mainstream economists remain who take his Reaganomics seriously. The only people who believe Reaganomics works are people on TV. In this way, Stefanowski  the TV candidate  is completely at home.

None of this is to say that being the TV candidate wont win the governors race. I mean, it could work. To be sure, being a TV candidate worked for President Trump.

But Stefanowski is no Trump, and Connecticuts media is not what you find in Washington and New York. Trump was and is willing to say anything to get attention, and national media was and is willing (though less so these days) to report whatever Trump says to get attention. Correct me if Im wrong but Stefanowski isnt and hasnt been going to those lengths. If he has been, it hasnt been working, because our news media isnt playing along.

So, unlike Trump, Stefanowski cant rely on free media. Hell have to buy it, a ton of it, in order to compete adequately with with Democratic candidate Ned Lamont  who really did do what successful candidates normally do to win their partys primary for governor.

That might not be an obstacle for a millionaire buying ads left and right. Then again, perhaps Stefanowski is telling us something. Why ask for nickels and dimes when youve been paying millions? It could be that Stefanowski doubts he can win. Why spend the money if its not worth it?

John Stoehr is the publisher of the Editorial Board, a newsletter about politics. He lives in Westville.
From 22,000 miles above the Earth's surface, a weather satellite run by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration captured high-resolution imagery of Hurricane Florence's menacing eye.

In the footage, whipping winds, clouds and thunderstorms swirl around a bowl-shaped area of calm.

"Wow, looks totally angry," wrote Carole Dorsey in the comments of a NOAA tweet sharing the clip.

"Mother Nature is both beautiful and terrifying," chimed in Erin Madden.

The imagery was taken by NOAA's GOES-15 satellite at 7 a.m. on Tuesday when the storm was moving 17 mph west-northwest with winds up to 60 mph extending from its center.

Gaining strength and expanding in size, the storm was headed toward the East Coast as "an extremely dangerous" Category 4 hurricane by Tuesday afternoon.

The National Hurricane Center projects the monstrous storm will deliver catastrophic flooding and lashing winds to the eastern parts of Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina when it reaches landfall Thursday and into Friday.

ALSO: 'Big and vicious': Hurricane Florence closes in on Carolinas

The amount of rainfall and destruction depends on the storm's exact path and whether it lingers or moves on and dissipates.

More than 1.5 million people have been ordered to evacuate coastal areas ahead of the storm.
In contrast to the crystal clear skies on the fateful morning of Sept. 11, 2001, dark clouds loomed over Hoboken's Pier A Park as Mayor Ravi Bhalla and Hoboken residents gathered in an interfaith ceremony to honor those who lost their lives in the tragic events that changed our nation forever.

On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, about 3,000 American lives were lost, 700 of them New Jersey residents.

"Hate knows no religion," Bhalla said. "We seek solace in religion in times of difficulty and as we know, religion teaches love."

Members and leaders of different faiths joined together in an evening of unity. The ceremony began with the Hoboken Police and Fire Department Honor Guards marching out with the Hoboken High School Select Chorus leading the national anthem.

"While this day was filled with tragedy, it was also filled with bravery and hope," Bhalla said. "Here in Hoboken, our EMS, volunteer ambulance services, police and fire departments, business owners, and even ordinary citizens answered the call to duty without hesitation."

Alongside Bhalla was U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, who earlier this morning spoke at Essex County's 9/11 Memorial Service at Eagle Rock Reservation.

"We lost husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, daughters, sons, and loved ones," Menendez said. "The memories of those we lost are seared into our hearts. It wasn't the government that responded to the tragedy on that day. It was our local police, our firefighters, and our EMTs."

Fifty-six Hobpken residents lost their lives on 9/11. Their names were announced during the ceremony by April Harris of In Jesus' Name Charities and the Rev. Matthew Lytikainen of Mile Square Church.

Prayers and readings were also shared by the Rev. Sooah Na of the Community Church of Hoboken and Chaplain Marjorie Boyden-Edmonds of Hoboken University Medical Center.

The ceremony closed with a singing of "America the Beautiful" by the Hoboken High School Select Chorus.

More Hudson remembrances:
JERSEY CITY  There will not be a vote this week on Hudson County's new plan to exit its contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, with Freeholder Chair Anthony Vainieri saying he doesn't want to "rush" the matter.

The freeholders' decision, announced at their Tuesday caucus, came five days after County Executive Tom DeGise said the county would ask the freeholders to vote this week on a new contract ending the county's relationship with ICE no later than 2020. Vainieri said the new plan is not ready yet.

"I didn't think it was appropriate to rush on this," he said. "We're not ready to vote on the contract this week."

Activists who had pushed the county to sever the ICE contract sounded skeptical last week when asked to respond to DeGise's decision. Vainieri seemed to refer to that skepticism on Tuesday.

"This is not a scam. This is not a lie," he said.

DeGise and the nine-member freeholder board have faced intense criticism since the board voted on July 12 to renew the county's decades-old agreement to house immigrant detainees at the county jail in Kearny. It's a lucrative contract for the county, which is expected to collect $19 million from ICE this year, but it's one that has led local activists and immigrant advocates to say county officials are betraying the values of Hudson County, where 40 percent of the population is foreign born.

Freeholder Bill O'Dea, who voted against the contract renewal and has criticized the county for the ICE contract, said he agrees with Vainieri that a vote this week would be premature. O'Dea said the county should settle a few matters before drafting a new agreement, like making sure any new contract follows new federal guidelines for how immigrant detainees should be treated.

The Rev. Seth Kaper-Dale is an activist who has urged the county to end the ICE contract entirely and immediately. Kaper-Dale said he's happy the freeholders have delayed the vote on the new agreement because he wants the county to reconsider its decision to phase it out over two years.



"The proposal that was put forth last week, that calls for ending the contract in 2020, basically blesses Donald Trump's zero tolerance/detain-everybody policy," he said. "If the freeholders believe that Donald Trump's policies are immoral the action they take, to end the ICE Contract, should speak truth to power -- rather than speaking collusion with the hate-crime president."

Trump has said those who advocate for the end of ICE are supporting "open borders."

"The brave men and woman of ICE have recently been subjected to a nationwide campaign of smears, insults and attacks by politicians shamelessly catering to the extreme elements in our society that desire lawlessness and anarchy," Trump said in a letter The White House released in August.

The July freeholder vote, which came with no public notice, is the subject of a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey that claims the freeholders violated the state Open Public Meetings Act when they renewed the agreement after telling members of the public the vote would be postponed. Vainieri said Tuesday that when he asked for a vote at that meeting, he did not think the ICE contract issue was "so hot."

Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.
A man was robbed and beaten by a former lover and two accomplices last week in Jersey City, authorities said.

The man suffered a small laceration to his lip and other cuts to his face and arm in the incident Friday on Martin Luther King Drive, Jersey City spokeswoman Kimberly Wallace-Scalcione.

The man was lying on his side when police arrived to the scene near Virginia Avenue just before 11 p.m. The victim told police he was robbed by two males and a woman with whom he had a past dating relationship. The attackers got away with his cellphone and $260 in cash, authorities said.

The victim was taken to Jersey City Medical Center for treatment for his injuries, Wallace-Scalcione said.

No arrests have been made, but the investigation is ongoing, she added.
A Union City man shot himself in the head Wednesday morning when police responded to a 911 call at a Bergenline Avenue home, authorities said.

Police were dispatched to the 2000 block of Bergenline Avenue at around 5:15 a.m. and made contact with an "alleged female victim," who directed the officers to a second-floor apartment. There, they were "confronted" by a 57-year-old man holding a handgun, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said.

The man then delivered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to his head and was pronounced dead at the scene, Suarez said.

During this incident, a Union City police officer deployed his Conducted Energy Device, commonly known as a taser. In accordance with the New Jersey Attorney General directive governing Conducted Energy Devices, the deployment is under investigation, Suarez added.

The HCPO did not specify what was reported in the 911 call or when the taser was deployed.

The Hudson County Prosecutor's Office is actively investigating this case with assistance from the Union City Police Department and the Regional Medical Examiner's Office. Anyone with information is asked to contact the HCPO at 201-915-1345 or to leave an anonymous tip on the agency's official website.

All information will be kept confidential.
JERSEY CITY -- A jitney bus driver who was driving with a suspended license when he struck and killed an 11-year-boy in Jersey City in 2016 has pleaded guilty to a charge that will be dismissed after a period of supervised release.

Raul O. Delatorre-Galarza, 47, of Elizabeth, pleaded guilty Tuesday to having a suspended license when his jitney bus struck George Gonzalez as the boy crossed Kennedy Boulevard at Neptune Avenue on Oct. 14, 2016.

The 11-year-old, who lived nearby, was on his way to catch his school bus that morning when he was hit, officials said. He was pronounced dead a short time later at the Jersey City Medical Center.

According to the plea deal, Delatorre-Galarza will be allowed to enter the Pretrial Intervention Program. That means he must abide by the rules of a period of supervised release before the charge is dismissed.

PTI is reserved for defendants with no prior criminal record who are charged with an offense of a relatively low degree.

The charge Delatorre-Galarza pleaded guilty to is a third-degree offense that carries a possible prison term of three to five years upon conviction, although there is a presumption of non-incarceration for first-time offenders.

"My client is very distressed by having to live the fact that this accident occurred and the death of a small child resulted," said Delatorre-Galarza's attorney, Edgar Navarrete said today.

"With respect to the criminal charge of driving while suspended, based on the fact that the suspension was for an unpaid parking ticket, we believe the resolution we reached on Monday was a fair resolution under the circumstances."

At the time of the fatal crash, Delatorre-Galarza's license had been suspended on four different occasions -- out of courts in Bayonne, Elizabeth and Jersey City, a spokeswoman for the state's Motor Vehicle Commission said at the time.

When he made his first court appearance on the charge, the prosecutor said he had previously been cited for failing to stop for a pedestrian, using a handheld device while driving, and failing to appear at court hearings.

But at that time, Delatorre-Galarza's attorney said the suspensions were for infractions such as failing to pay parking tickets.

Delatorre-Galarza is scheduled to be sentenced by Hudson County Superior Court Judge Mirtha Ospina on Nov. 9 in the Hudson County Administration Building in Jersey City.

He has been out on a $30,000 cash or bond bail since his arrest, an official said.

At the plea hearing, Delatorre-Galarza was represented by defense attorney Edgar Navarrete. The state was represented by Hudson County Assistant Prosecutor Raquel Rivera.
Yellow-jacket wasps were swarming around Abbey Kuhn's father's Honda Accord in the Delaware Valley High School parking lot after school on Aug. 31.

"There were a lot of them, all over the car," said the senior from Alexandria Township, "so I went to ask the janitors for bee spray."

Custodians Ronnie Marinelli and Doug Castaneda were preparing to leave for the day, but they were eager to help. Marinelli estimates there must've been about 30 yellow jackets all over the car. They batted them down with their hands, noting that the car was apparently delicious to the wasps. At home, the Honda is usually parked under a sugar maple tree, which drips sap onto it.

"That's like candy" for the wasps, said Marinelli.

With the blessing of their supervisor, Mattie O'Brien, they had Abbey drive her car from the main parking lot around behind the school, where they hosed it off, rendering it uninteresting to the yellow jackets.

Abbey is grateful to the men who took the time to remediate her wasp problem. "They were super-nice," she said.

Principal Adrienne Olcott praised the custodians' willingness to go above and beyond to help a student. "That's the kind of guys they are, and we love them for it," she said. Consequently she named them Del Val High School's Employees of the Month for September.

Submitted by Delaware Valley High School
A Sayreville strip club employee was arrested Tuesday afternoon after he donned tactical gear, armed himself with a rifle and bolted from the club, Middlesex County authorities said Wednesday.

At about 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Sayreville police received calls that an employee at Visions Gentleman Club was inside the Route 35 club with a gun, police and the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office said in a statement.

Police arrived in time to spot the man - later identified as Kevin Smith, 32, of Keyport - hop in a car and drive away. He was wearing a ballistic vest, military-style helmet and had an AK-47-style firearm.

Police caught up to him a short distance away and he surrendered. Smith had the firearm and a loaded magazine when cops arrested him, the statement said

The gentleman's club is located in Sayreville's Melrose neighborhood and traffic on Route 35 at the Victory Bridge was briefly detoured during the arrest.

"This incident quickly unfolded and the decision not to immediately confront this individual was the right choice," Sayreville Police John J. Zebrowski said in the statement

"The restraint utilized by the responding officers defused a potentially tragic confrontation," he said.

Investigators later found a second tactical vest and several loaded, large capacity magazines inside the manager's office at Visions and at Smith's home in Keyport, prosecutors say they seized a rifle and over 1,000 rounds of ammunition.

Smith, who police say uses the alias Kevin Papalia, was charged with multiple firearms felonies, and unlawful use of a body vest.

The fact that the incident occurred on the 9/11 anniversary led Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew Carey to say in the statement: "On 9/11, a day in America's history where, we show our support for our first responders, we are indebted to the police officers involved in this matter for their extraordinary efforts to preserve life and keep the community safe."

Taylor Tiamoyo Harris may be reached at tharris@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @ladytiamoyo.

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A Howell police sergeant charged with trying to meet a teen girl for sex in Ocean County was released from jail following a court hearing Tuesday. The "girl" was actually an undercover detective.

Richard Conte, 47, was arrested and charged last week with attempted luring or enticing of a child as part of a larger, state-led investigation, and lodged in the Ocean County jail. And he was suspended from his job without pay.

Conte

On Tuesday, an Ocean County Superior Court judge released him on home detention and telephone monitoring, his lawyer, Barry J. Serebnick, said. The officer lives in Howell.

Serebnick said the court's public safety assessment indicated his client should be released, which the judge agreed with.

The state Attorney General's Office, which is prosecuting the case, had argued for Conte's detention.

Serebnick said he's not seen very much of the alleged evidence the state says they have against Conte, but he'll respond when it's presented.

Conte was charged after a detective posed as a 15-year old girl on the website Doublelist, according to the criminal complaint against him.

Conte allegedly responded and sent a photo of himself with it, and investigators recognized the man in the photo as Conte, a Howell police officer.

In chats, Conte said the girl/detective should claim she/he was 18 years old and said they should start another chat on the app Kik, the complaint says.

Another detective eventually took over the chat and asked about meeting in person - on Sept. 5.

The next day, Conte - who called himself "Ray Crusader" and "The Noble Crusader" on the chat app - messaged the girl/detective to say he was 19 years old and had previously had sex with underage girls. He said he would come to meet the detectives and they set up a time.

Conte said he wanted to "get naked" at that meeting, the complaint says.

Conte showed at the meeting in his personal car, but drove away and Toms River police went after him and arrested him in Seaside Heights. Officers found condoms in Conte's pocket, the complaint says.

Investigators later traced the computer's IP address from the Kik chats and found it was created at Conte's home address.

Conte has been a police officer since 1997 and currently makes about $139,900 annually.

Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @kevintshea. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
A 38-year-old Romanian admitted he was part of a crime ring that placed skimmers and pinhole cameras on ATMs at banks in New Jersey and elsewhere to steal more than $868,000 from customers' accounts.

Bogdan Viorel Rusu, who lived in Queens, New York, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud and aggravated identity theft, the U.S. Attorney's Office there said in a statement.

The group used the illegally obtained PIN and account information to transfer the data onto counterfeit cards they created to pilfer money from accounts, officials said.

Rusu and his partner stole $364,419 in Massachusetts, $75,715 in New York and another $428,581 in New Jersey -- a total of $868,715. Several Bank of America and PNC Bank branches were among those hit.

The thefts took place between Aug. 3, 2014 and Nov. 14, 2016, when Rusu was arrested. He has been held in jail since.

Rusu will be sentenced Dec. 11 in Springfield. His attorney told BostonGlobe.com he will ask a judge to sentence his client to 3 to 4 years in prison. The maximum penalty for each fraud charge is 30 years, authorities said.

Most of Rusu's associates have already been convicted and sentenced. A total of 13 people were charged.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
The number of reported school threats in New Jersey more than doubled during the 2017-2018 academic year, according to the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness.

Suspicious Activity Reports filed by local law enforcement "surged" after the Parkland, Florida school shooting in February, NJOHSP said. Almost three-fourths of those threats were directed at high schools and middle schools, the agency said.

"We can attribute part of that increase to greater vigilance on the part of students, educators, and the community as a whole," Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said in a statement.

"We don't want school communities to fall into a sense of complacency as we start a new school year. Rather, we want to continue that heightened sense of vigilance."

New Jersey Advance Media reached out to the NJOHSP and the NJ Department of Education for an exact number of school threats reported over the last two academic years but did not get a response.

"The safety of our children is paramount to our overall mission," said Jared Maples, Director of NJOHSP. "We will continue to prioritize suspicious activity reporting to ensure that there is a clear path to reporting and addressing issues before an incident occurs."

The NJDOE and NJOHSP have been working with local school districts on a variety of safety initiatives, including performing in-depth school security assessments for schools to locate security vulnerabilities, and unannounced school security drill observations by the NJDOE.

In a statement, Education Commissioner Lamont O. Repollet encouraged school districts to reinforce to students and parents that threatening social media posts, "jokes" of a violent nature, and drawings that imply school violence will be taken seriously and reported to local law enforcement.

Olivia Rizzo may be reached at orizzo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @LivRizz. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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By Joe Scarborough

Cataclysmic events often bring with them violent and abrupt endings to settled ages and long- established norms. Those absorbing the impact of these historical aftershocks rarely grasp the epochal changes in real time.

Who could have imagined during their commute home on the night of Nov. 21, 1963, that an event in Dallas the next day would shake the postwar order guaranteed by America's victory in World War II? Even after Lee Harvey Oswald's shots rang out from the Texas School Book Depository, could anyone have foreseen the collapse of such an ordered age soon overtaken by the anarchy of Vietnam, the murders of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Bobby Kennedy, the race riots, Chicago, Kent State, Watergate, postindustrial rot and the cultural chaos set loose across the country by these events?

And could even the most insightful observer have foreseen -- while staring at the billowing smoke set against New York's brilliant September sky -- the avalanche of strategic blunders set in motion by Osama bin Laden's attack on the United States?

Of course not. But two wars, three presidents and 17 years later, the tragic lessons of that time are still lost on our leaders.

On Sept. 10, 2001, the United States dominated the world stage in a way no other country had since the height of the Roman and British empires. NATO's long twilight struggle against the Soviet Union ended with Russia in ruins. The Japanese economic miracle, predicted by some to turn America into little more than a granary for Japan, had flatlined. And a rising China was still struggling with a multitude of internal security concerns and was eclipsed on the world stage by the Pax Americana. The United States deployed a dazzling display of both soft- and hard-power assets across the globe.

On the eve of bin Laden's attacks, America's gross domestic product was nearly 10 times China's and 40 times Russia's. The U.S. military machine was unparalleled, with the Pentagon spending more on national defense than the next 15 countries combined. And despite those staggering outlays, Washington was running a $125 billion surplus.

Seventeen years later, endless wars abroad and reckless policies at home have produced annual deficits approaching $1 trillion. President Donald Trump's Republican Party will create more debt in one year than was generated in the first 200 years of America's existence.

And while the United States has been mired in endless wars and bloody occupations over the past 17 years, China has used that same period to aggressively develop economic partnerships across Asia, Europe, Latin America and Africa. Perhaps that is one reason China will soon overtake the United States as the world's largest economy.

Any discussion of policy failures since 2001 must begin with George W. Bush's decision to invade Iraq even though no evidence linked Saddam Hussein's regime to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Even a majority of Senate Democrats voted for a resolution supporting the Iraq invasion, and more than 70 percent of Americans agreed. But we were wrong. That war cost nearly 5,000 American lives, $2 trillion and inestimable damage to America's credibility across the globe.

The excesses of Bush's military adventurism led to his successor, President Barack Obama, placing the United States in a defensive crouch for the better part of eight years. The commander in chief defined his foreign policy approach this way: "Don't do stupid [stuff]." Even Democratic foreign policy experts would quietly complain that their president's strategic retreat from the world would come at great cost. The ignoring of crossed red lines, the rise of the Islamic State and the deaths of 500,000 Syrians proved Obama's Democratic critics right.

Sixteen years of strategic missteps have been followed by the maniacal moves of a man who has savaged America's vital alliances, provided comfort to hostile foreign powers, attacked our intelligence and military communities, and lent a sympathetic ear to neo-Nazis and white supremacists across the globe.

For those of us still believing that Islamic extremists hate America because of the freedoms we guarantee to all people, the gravest threat Trump poses to our national security is the damage done daily to America's image. As the New York Times' Roger Cohen wrote the month after Trump's election, "America is an idea. Strip freedom, human rights, democracy and the rule of law from what the United States represents to the world and America itself is gutted."

Osama bin Laden was killed by SEAL Team 6 before he accomplished that goal. Other tyrants who tried to do the same were consigned to the ash heap of history.

The question for voters this fall is whether their country will move beyond this troubled chapter in history or whether they will continue supporting a politician who has done more damage to the dream of America than any foreign adversary ever could.

Joe Scarborough, a former Republican congressman from Florida, hosts the MSNBC show "Morning Joe."

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Geoffrey Owens, the "Cosby Show" alum who was job shamed for taking a job at a Trader Joe's store in New Jersey has landed a TV job.

Owens will guest star on "NCIS: New Orleans," the show's executive producer announced Tuesday.

"So excited he'll be joining our extended family. Total class act!" tweeted Christopher Silber.

Owens will play Commander Adams, a longtime friend who Pride (played by Scott Bakula) relies on for medical and spiritual advice, reports Deadline.com.

So excited hell be joining our extended family. Total class act!Geoffrey Owens To Guest Star On NCIS: New Orleans https://t.co/cuonwsTiiH via @deadline  christopher silber (@csilb) September 11, 2018

The 57-year-old, who lives in Montclair, is an experienced actor who taught the craft at Yale. But after the "Cosby Show" ended decades ago, he found lucrative TV and theater work difficult to come by.

Owens took a job at Trader Joe's 15 months ago, he told Robin Roberts during a recent Good Morning America interview.

"People recognized me every day and they were very, very cool about it," he said.

But a customer recently snapped his picture as he worked in the grocery store and the photos ended up in the Daily Mail and on Fox News.

"The Cosby Show star Geoffrey Owens is spotted working as a cashier at Trader Joe's in New Jersey," tweeted Daily Mail.

On GMA, Owens said no one should feel sorry for him.

"I've had a great life and I've had a great career," he said.

GMA on Wednesday reported that Owens is now juggling multiple job offers.

The Cosby Show star Geoffrey Owens is spotted working as a cashier at Trader Joe's in New Jersey https://t.co/cSMYf74DET  Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) August 31, 2018

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
WASHINGTON -- Rep. Chris Smith came under fire Wednesday for remarks he made earlier this year about adoptions by gay couples, and critics charged he suggested orphanages as an alternative.

Smith, R-4th Dist., fought back, saying the tape of the comments made before a group of Colts Neck High School students in May and leaked to the Washington Blade, a gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender newspaper, was distorted.

"The manipulation of the tape, the selective editing, is grossly dishonest, is a cheap political trick, and has no place in public discourse," Smith told NJ Advance Media. "To manipulate a tape and selectively edit a tape is scandalous."

Smith said he did not suggest that children waiting to be adopted would be better off in an orphanage than with gay parents, as was alleged. He also said that he did not oppose adoptions by same-sex couples, an issue he said was made "moot" by the U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage.

He said in the interview that his one objection was that religious groups that oppose same-sex marriage were no longer being allowed to handle adoptions.

"The whole issue revolved around one thing: Whether or not Catholic Charities and other faith-based institutions can continue facilitating adoptions, which they have done magnificently," Smith said.

At the high school forum, Smith appeared not to embrace the idea of same-sex couples adopting children, according to a video that accompanied the Blade report and later was posted on his opponent's YouTube account.

"Somebody mentioned orphanages before," Smith said, according to a tape recording released by the Blade. "I mean, orphanages are still a possibility for some kids."

The questioner was identified by the Blade as Hannah Valdes, a senior, who asked, "My sister is gay and she's talked about like wanting to adopt a child one day with her partner."

She continued, "I just wanted to know if you think that, based on household studies, she would be less of a legitimate parent?"

Smith said it was no longer an issue since the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage.

"Especially with the Supreme Court decision, she's free to adopt."

Valdes pressed on: "Why do you think she shouldn't be able to adopt a child?"

"There are many others who would like to adopt who can acquire a child," Smith said. "As I said, the waiting periods are extremely long."

Valdes then asked, "What makes them more legitimate than my sister, those other people waiting for a child?"

Smith responded, "Somebody mentioned orphanages before, orphanages are still a possibility for some kids."

That first discussion of orphanages came up earlier in the conservation, According to a transcript provided by Smith, a questioner was heard saying: "So you would say that foster care and orphanages would be in the best interest of the child?

"No. Lord no," Smith responded. "We have waiting periods for families to adopt children, often by years."

Smith provided an audio clip of that moment.

His Democratic challenger, Josh Welle, went after what he called Smith's "extreme anti-equality agenda."

"I fought on the front lines to protect this Constitution and the freedoms and liberties it guarantees for all people, not just some," Welle said.

Another Democrat, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-6th Dist., also criticized Smith, saying on Twitter that he was "deeply outraged and offended" by Smith's views.

"Congressman Smith should know that LGBTQ parents are just simply that - parents," Pallone said. "They are parents who provide every bit of love and care as their heterosexual neighbors."

My heart breaks for the young high school student who was told by Congressman Smith that her sister was somehow less deserving or qualified to be a parent. I am inspired by her courage in standing up to him. I know that the overwhelming majority of New Jerseyans stand with her.  Rep. Frank Pallone (@FrankPallone) September 12, 2018

It remains to be seen whether Smith's comments will hurt him the way former Rep. Scott Garrett, R-5th Dist., was after it was reported he would not contribute to the House Republicans' fundraising arm because it backed gay candidates.

After months of silence, Garrett explained said he was not anti-gay but was "a devout man of faith, and therefore I support traditional marriage."

Garrett lost his re-election bid to Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-5th Dist.

Both Garrett and Smith sponsored legislation to allow groups and individuals to cite their religious beliefs and deny service to same-sex couples.

Smith is considered a safe bet for re-election by the two Washington-based publications that track congressional races, Inside Elections and the Cook Political Report.

But Welle announced earlier this week that he had raised $1 million for his campaign.

"People are tired of having an absentee, career politician who no longer represents our values, especially on women's rights and inclusion," he said at the time.

A leading opponent of abortion rights, Smith said in February 2015 that he did not consider same-sex marriage to be a fundamental human right, as defined by the United Nations or various treaties.

"I am a strong believer in traditional marriage and do not construe homosexual rights as human rights," Smith said at a heading of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on Africa, which he chairs. "Others have a different view and I certainly respect them."

Pallone responded to Smith then as well.

"Congressman Smith is welcome to have his own opinions, but when he makes such an inflammatory statement in an effort to push the administration into ignoring the rights of LGBT people as a matter of policy, it crosses the line," Pallone said.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.
Chris Christie told Donald Trump his presidential campaign was doomed after video surfaced that captured the then-candidate using expletives and vulgar terms to brag about groping women, according to Bob Woodward's new book.

Christie told Trump it's "over" after The Washington Post published the Access Hollywood tape where Trump was caught on a hot mic, Woodward reports in "Fear: Trump in the White House."

"New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was sitting in sweatpants and ball cap. 'This is not about the campaign,' Christie said with a note of finality," Woodward wrote.

"'That's over. This is about your brand. You've worked your entire life. These kids,' he pointed to Trump's son Don Jr. and Jared Kushner. 'You need to save the brand for them or the brand's finished." Woodward wrote.

The meeting took place in Trump Tower, where Reince Priebus, who then headed the Republican National Committee, told Trump he had two choices, according to the book, "You either drop out right now or you're going to lose in the biggest landslide in American history."

According to the account, Steve Bannon was the only person in the meeting who insisted Trump's supporters would stick with him.

Before the day's end, after it became clear to the group that Trump wouldn't suspend his race, Christie got into it with Bannon, who at the time was the chief executive of Trump's campaign.

Woodward wrote:

"You're the (expletive) problem," Christie said to Bannon. "You've been the problem since the beginning."

"What are you talking about?"

"You're the enabler. You play to every one of his worst instincts. This thing's over, and you're going to be blamed. Every time he's got terrible instincts for these things, and all you do is get him all worked up. This is going to be humiliating."

Christie was in Bannon's face, looming large. Bannon half-wanted to say, You fat (expletive), let's throw down right here.

"Governor," he replied instead, "the plane leaves tomorrow." They were heading to St. Louis for the second presidential debate. "If you're on the plane, you're on the team."

Christie wasn't on the plane and Bannon would go on to say in 2017 that Christie's unwillingness to vigorously defend then-candidate Trump cost him any cabinet consideration.

Woodward's book also said Trump accused Christie "stealing from (him)" and feared that the transition team Christie headed at the time was "jinxing" his chances of victory.

Christie blasted Woodward in a series of tweets on Tuesday, accusing the journalist of reporting accounts that were "profoundly wrong."

"Unfortunately, it appears Bob Woodward has used perpetual leaker Steve Bannon as a co-author for his book. His non-stop, self-centered leaking is why Steve was fired from the White House in the first place," Christie tweeted.

He continued: "If Mr. Woodward would have performed rudimentary journalistic fact checking with those he was quoting, he would have had a more accurate book rather than just being a stenographer for Mr. Bannon's self-aggrandizing revisionist history."

Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or Facebook.
Gov. Phil Murphy is heading to California for a quick trip to discuss climate change.

Murphy will leave New Jersey on Wednesday to take part in the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco.

The Democratic governor will participate in a Thursday morning panel at the conference about what cities, states, businesses, and society have achieved in the fight against global warming.

Murphy is scheduled to fly back to New Jersey on Thursday evening.

While he's way, Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver will serve as acting governor.

Murphy has long vowed to improve New Jersey's environment and battle climate change.

One of his first actions as governor was to reverse his Republican predecessor, Chris Christie, and return the state to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a program to reduce carbon emissions.

Among other moves, Murphy signed a law requiring New Jersey to join the U.S. Climate Alliance to uphold the Paris Climate Accord that President Donald Trump, a Republican, pulled the country out of.

Murphy's trip comes as Hurricane Florence barrels toward the East Coast. Murphy said Tuesday that the state is making emergency preparations, even though the storm is not expected to directly hit New Jersey.

He said the forecast shows the state should see heavy winds and rain later in the week.

Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.
MINNEAPOLIS -- A third Chance.

The Yankees called up Chance Adams for the third -- and final -- time this season before a game with the Twins at Target Field on Wednesday.

Why he's here: Yankees manager Aaron Boone will use Adams out of the bullpen, though he's not going to be there for good. The team moved him to relief for two reasons: They wanted to watch his innings and because they wanted to see if he'd be a viable September/playoff option there. Now, he'll get an opportunity to prove himself.

Numbers: Since moving to the bullpen for good at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Adams has a 1.42 ERA in four outings, holding hitters to a .227 batting average and a .729 OPS.

Prospect status: MLB.com has him ranked as the team's No. 13 prospect. He's had a rough season, partially due to offseason surgery in which he had bone chips removed from his elbow.

PEN PALS: Yankees relievers have 654K, the third-highest bullpen strikeout total in Major League history... is the second-highest in 2018 to Tampa Bay, which entered Wednesday with 659K in 719.1IP... with 8K, would match the strikeout record of 662K set by Houston relievers in 2017.

>> Have an 11.38 K/9.0IP ratio (654K/517.1IP) this season, and are on pace to break the Major League record of 10.92, set by the 2017 Yankees.



DIDI DOES IT: SS Didi Gregorius tripled and scored in the second inning, then hit a grand slam in the sixth inning, playing a part in all five Yankees runs on Tues. at Minnesota.

>> Marked his third career grand slam (also 4/23/18 vs. Minnesota and 7/1/17 at Houston), tying Frankie Crosetti for the most grand slams by a shortstop in Yankees history... is the first Yankees shortstop to hit multiple grand slams in a single season.

>> Is the second player this season to hit a grand slam and a triple in a game, joining Detroit's Leonys Martin (4/19 vs. Baltimore)... is the first Yankee to do so since Robinson Cano on 9/15/05 at Tampa Bay.

>> Has 51XBH this season, three shy of his career high (54XBH in 2016)... is his third straight season with at least 50XBH, one of just two shortstops in Yankees history to reach the mark in multiple seasons (Jeter, 7x: 1998-2001, '04, '06-07)... all three of his hits since returning from the 10-day D.L. have gone for extra bases (1 double, 1 triple, 1HR).
MINNEAPOLIS -- It's supposed to be 58 degrees with clouds at night in Oakland on Oct. 3, according to AccuWeather, a forecasting service.

The Yankees might want to think about how to dress accordingly.

Their grip on the right to host the American League Wild Card slipped again Tuesday with an embarrassing 10-5 loss to the Twins.

The crowd watched Minnesota, now 11 games under .500 and playing for nothing, blitz starting pitcher Sonny Gray and the Yankees' bullpen -- a day after the Yankees drubbed them.

And manager Aaron Boone's squad's lead over the A's dropped to just two games, with Oakland beating Baltimore earlier in the night.

The Yankees aren't in much danger of missing the playoffs. The Mariners trail Oakland by eight games with the Rays behind them by 8 1/2.

It would take a bafflingYankees collapse for that to happen.

But a one-and-done? Just like in 2015, when the Astros ended the Yankees early?

Why not?

What it means

The Yankees have won just four of their last 10 games, which is inexcusable, considering they're at the end of a three-city road trip that included stops in Oakland and Seattle.

The Yankees were up 5 1/2 games on Oakland on Sept. 1.

What happened?

We're not going to get bogged down in the gory details.

It was bad, though.

In the second inning, Didi Gregorius tripled, lining a ball over the shortstop and racing as it rolled past center fielder Jake Cave, who misplayed it. Gregorius scored on Gary Sanchez's subsequent fly ball to left field.

The Yankees were up, 1-0.

Then Gray reminded the Yankees why they pulled him from the rotation Aug. 2.

He gave up three runs (two earned) in three innings, throwing 63 pitches while walking three, allowing three hits and getting two strikeouts. He wasn't helped by his personal catcher Austin Romine, whose passed ball allowed the Twins' first run to score. With the bases loaded, Romine set up high and Gray threw it even higher, the ball bouncing out of Romine's glove and to the backstop. Joe Mauer scored.

Boone brought rookie Jonathan Loaisiga in at 3-1 Twins in the fourth inning. It was Loaisiga's second career relief appearance and it didn't go swimmingly. He was charged with six earned runs in 1 1/3 innings.

Loaisiga came out with the bases loaded in favor of Tommy Kahnle, who surrendered a booming, center-field grand slam to Joe Mauer that made it 10-1 Minnesota. Mauer got a curtain call from the home crowd.

Didi Gregorius contributed a grand slam in the sixth inning. After getting three hits on Monday, Gary Sanchez started at DH and went hitless.

Oh, and the Twins went with a bullpen day, starting with Tyler Duffey, who entered the night with a 9.00 ERA.

Next

Yankees righty Luis Severino (17-7, 3.52 ERA) vs. Twins righty Jake Odorizzi (5-10, 4.57 ERA) at 8:10 p.m. EST Tuesday at Target Field.

Brendan Kuty may be reached at bkuty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendanKutyNJ. Find NJ.com Yankees on Facebook.
Press Conference held prior at Bristol Borough Wharf along the Delaware River

For Immediate Release

September 11, 2018

(West Trenton, N.J.) -- On Friday, Sept. 7, members of the Pennsylvania Joint Legislative Conservation Committee (JLCC), Pa. House and Senate Appropriations Committees, staffers, and local leadership took part in an educational sail aboard the historic schooner AJ Meerwald to learn more about the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) and its programs. Preceding the sail, the legislators held a press conference at the Bristol Borough Wharf along the Delaware River recognizing the importance of the river to the Commonwealth and to the region.

The JLCC is a bipartisan committee made up of members of the Pa. House and Senate whose mission is to assist the Pa. General Assembly in ensuring the sustainable use and care of Pa.s land, water, and air. Local members of the JLCC who participated on Friday include Rep. Marguerite Quinn (R, PA-143), Rep. Perry Warren (D, PA-31), and Rep. Mary Jo Daley (D, PA-148). Several of the JLCC members, including committee chair Senator Scott E. Hutchinson (R, PA-21) and Senator Scott Martin (R, PA-13), represent districts outside of the basin, but attended this event to learn more about the commission and show their support for the Delaware River.

"On behalf of the JLCC, thank you for this opportunity to discover the Delaware. The river connects past and present and also state to state. We appreciate the work of the DRBC and other stakeholders to address important issues that affect the basin and look for sustainable solutions," said Hutchinson.

The event came to fruition based on a recommendation from JLCC member Representative Donna Bullock (D, PA-195) for DRBC to engage the committee on major DRBC water management programs. Instead of holding the meeting in a traditional conference space, the commission decided on a more experiential approach and reached out to the Bayshore Center at Bivalve to see if they would be willing to host the event aboard the schooner AJ Meerwald. What better way to learn about the Delaware River and DRBC than on an historic sailing vessel, and once on board, participants got right to work helping hoist the sails and then split into three groups for short educational sessions with DRBC staff.

DRBC Manager for Water Quality Assessment John Yagecic, P.E., talked about the commissions programs that assess and protect water quality throughout the basin, for example, DRBCs efforts to reduce PCBs and other toxic pollutants in the Delaware Estuary (the tidal Delaware River and Bay); its Special Protection Waters program that protects the existing high quality waters of the non-tidal Delaware River; and a new, multi-year effort to examine whether criteria for dissolved oxygen can be improved to further support all life stages of resident and migratory fish in the Delaware Estuary and Bay. You cant manage what you dont measure, and monitoring is an important part of the commissions programs to manage and improve water quality for all those that depend on this resource for drinking, agricultural, and industrial use, as well as for aquatic life.

"We all need clean water. The Delaware River is important to protect and safeguard for the millions of people that depend on it for their drinking water," said Bullock.

The lesson by DRBC Manager for Water Resource Operations Amy Shallcross, P.E., focused on flow management in the Delaware River Basin. Even though the Delaware River is undammed, its flow is still highly managed through reservoir releases and flow regimes. This is especially important in times of drought or dry periods to ensure that there is enough fresh water flowing downstream to repel the salty water from the ocean that could impact drinking water and industrial intakes along the tidal portion of the river. During past droughts in the basin, DRBCs drought management programs have proven successful in ensuring drinking water sources were protected and other water uses, for example, industry and power generation, were not curtailed.

DRBC Manager for Water Resource Planning Chad Pindar, P.E., focused his talk on various water uses in the basin and how DRBC manages water supply. Thermoelectric power generation, public water supply, out of basin diversions, and industry are the largest water users in the basin, and DRBC regulatory policies are in place to help balance these needs to ensure there is enough water for all uses, as well as for in-stream flow needs. The commission is also looking at projected demands to ensure a dependable water supply for the basin in the future.

At the end of the sail, participants disembarked the AJ Meerwald with a new appreciation for the complexities of river management and the work of the commission. "We must come together across party lines to support the work of DRBC and unite to protect and preserve our environment," said Sen. Andrew E. Dinniman (D, PA-19).

"Today the Delaware River is cleaner than its been in decades, thanks to water quality improvement programs spearheaded by the DRBC, and people are returning to their local waterfronts to reconnect with the river," said DRBC Executive Director Steve Tambini. "Thank you to all who took part in todays educational sail; we hope you have a greater understanding of the Delawares importance to the region and of the efforts that go into managing and protecting this resource, which provides drinking water for about 15 million people, including nearly 5.5 million Pennsylvanians."

Special thanks also go to event sponsor Pennoni, the Bayshore Center at Bivalve, the AJ Meerwald crew, the Bristol Borough Council, and Rob Strasser of the King George II Inn.

The DRBC is a federal/interstate government agency responsible for managing the water resources within the Delaware River Basin without regard to political boundaries. The five commission members are the governors of the basin states (Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania) and the commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers North Atlantic Division, who represents the federal government.

To learn more about the commission, please visit www.drbc.gov or follow DRBC on Twitter at @DRBC1961.

# # # #

Contacts: Kate Schmidt, Kate.Schmidt@drbc.gov, (609) 883-9500 ext. 205

Peter Eschbach, Peter.Eschbach@drbc.gov, (609) 883-9500 ext. 208

# # # #
The exercise is as old as the Republic, but the first thing you need to understand about redistricting is that hot-water cornbread is as ubiquitous in north Louisiana as etouffee is in the south, says Rick Gallot, the Ruston Democratic representat
North Augusta, SC (29841)

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Considerable cloudiness with occasional rain showers. High 59F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

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Cloudy skies. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 49F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph.
Roseburg, OR (97470)

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A mix of clouds and sun this morning followed by increasing clouds with showers developing this afternoon. High 52F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%..

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Rain showers this evening with clearing overnight. Low 42F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 40%.
Managing Editor

Having lived and worked in Indy on and off since 1977, and currently living in Carmel, I've seen the city change a great deal. I love covering the arts in all its forms, and the places where the arts and broader cultural issues intersect.


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Toshiba Expands Presence in Mexico's Technology Hub

Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico - Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions and Toshiba America Business Solutions celebrated the opening of their collective 38,000 square-foot building in Guadalajara on Monday with a ribbon-cutting attended by government officials, representatives of academic institutions, media and clients.

Toshiba has invested 2-million USD to further modernize the company's products and solutions development center. The move signals Toshiba's increasing presence in Mexico's technology hub.

Jalisco Economic Development Secretary, Jose Palacios Jimenez; Head of the Investment Promotion Unit of the Municipality of Zapopan, Alfredo Aceves Fernandez; Consul-General of the Consulate-General of Japan, Osamu Hokida; joined Toshiba's President and Chief Executive Officer, Scott Maccabe; Chief Operating Officer Gregg Margosian; Senior Vice President of Research and Development Mike Yeung as well as Vice President of Human Resources, and Administration James Fornabaio at the ribbon-cutting. The event also featured Toshiba clients Grupo Alsea, Costco and Kidzania.





"We were pleased to be joined by so many esteemed people today," Maccabe stated. "Toshiba's expansion in Mexico is a central element of our global growth strategy. Toshiba's expert team in Guadalajara produces the products and services we offer worldwide and is instrumental to our company's success."

Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions is the global market share leader in installed retail point of sale technology. Many of the most successful retail brands around the world, from smaller regional retailers to 60 percent of the top 25 global retailers, choose Toshiba products and services.

In Mexico, Grupo Alsea, Costco and Kidzania have definitively improved the shopping experience for their vast array of loyal customers by implementing our electronic point of sale technology.

"The investments in the state of Jalisco have multiplied importantly," said Palacios Jimenez. "Toshiba is a Japanese company that has demonstrated its trust in the state, which is an honor. The state of Jalisco has received 11,500 million dollars in foreign direct investment, a historic data. It's precisely because of the trust of companies in Jalisco. In 2017 Jalisco generated the largest number of employment of any state in the country, also a historic number, 93,000 jobs. Everything is for you, we must only facilitate your investment experience," he added.

"Toshiba is a company that has reiterated its commitment to Mexico by generating jobs and training its people, as well as committing to the care of the environment," Hokida stated. "I am convinced that this extension will be of great benefit for the Bajio region. I would like to reiterate the gratitude to the Mexican government for its support of Japanese companies. Currently there are 633 Japanese persons living in the state of Jalisco. I would like to point out that feel great here thanks to the warmth of the people."

Toshiba Mexico has increased its staff from 48 to 298 employees since beginning operations in the country in 2006. Toshiba's Guadalajara operation has also undergone significant growth by expanding from 36 to 164 employees since that time.

Toshiba repurposed furniture, IT equipment, lighting and even carpeting at the company's new location demonstrating its commitment to maintaining a more sustainable planet.
Get the DealBook newsletter to make sense of major business and policy headlines  and the power-brokers who shape them.

__________

Market leaders never tire of describing the sources of their competitive advantage. Scale, customer loyalty and proprietary know-how are the most often discussed. Much less commented upon are the substantial benefits that established businesses obtain from the government.

This oversight, according to two new books, leads entrepreneurs  particularly in the technology arena  to frequently underestimate the importance of integrating regulatory strategies when starting a business.

Nothing is more likely to get the attention of even the most complacent company with a dominant market position than a new business model seeking to overturn its simple but profitable existence. And as both The Fixer: My Adventures Saving Startups From Death by Politics and Regulatory Hacking: A Playbook for Startups point out, these powerful incumbents have significant regulatory tools at their disposal to shield their commercial vulnerabilities.
The United States long resettled more refugees a year than every other country combined. That gave us global leverage. American leadership helped increase the number of countries formally admitting refugees to a record 37 in 2016, from 14 in 2005. That same year, the Obama administration rallied other nations to double admissions worldwide.

The Trump administrations abdication of responsibility has contributed to a 48 percent drop in global resettlement from 2016 to 2017. Data from the United Nations Refugee Agency forecasts an even steeper decline this year. As Filippo Grandi, the United Nations high commissioner for refugees, put it, if the American share of refugee resettlement diminishes, my humanitarian negotiating power diminishes as well.

Last year, Mr. Trump tried to justify a retreat on refugees by suggesting that American assistance alone is sufficient. But the administration also sought to slash humanitarian aid by 44 percent in its first budget and by 32 percent in its second.

In August, the administration canceled $230 million for Syrian stabilization and all funding for the United Nations agency that assists Palestinian refugees. Diplomacy, resettlement and assistance work together  cutting off one bleeds the effectiveness of the others.

The refugee program also helps us keep faith with key partners, making it more likely they will step up when we need them. In Iraq and Afghanistan, our soldiers, diplomats and aid workers rely on local translators and guides who put their lives on the line to serve by our side. The Trump administration is making a mockery of a special admissions program the Congress established to fast-track their resettlement. So far this fiscal year, between October and August, we have admitted just 48 Iraqi partners, compared with 5,100 in 2016 and 3,000 in 2017.

Some countries of first refuge  like Jordan, Turkey and Kenya  have been counterterrorism partners and hosts to the United States military. These and other countries offering temporary havens are under growing domestic pressure to send back refugees, which risks setting off new humanitarian crises and further destabilizing countries where terrorists find sanctuary.

When we worked at the State Department, we met two young Muslim brothers from Afghanistan who had fled the Taliban. We listened to their story in the California offices of Catholic Charities. They had been resettled by Jewish Family and Community Services, and first found shelter at the San Damiano Friary, a Franciscan retreat.
WASHINGTON  Pressure is intensifying on undecided senators before a vote to confirm President Trumps Supreme Court nominee, with one senator  Susan Collins, Republican of Maine  reporting that she and her staff have been targeted with a barrage of calls, including some using vulgar language and threats to push her to vote against Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh.

With last weeks confirmation hearings behind them, interest groups and advocates are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on advertising to target both Ms. Collins and another undecided Republican who supports abortion rights: Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Also in the cross hairs are three vulnerable Democrats running for re-election in states won by President Trump.

But Ms. Collins, who prizes her reputation for independence, appears to be bearing most of the onslaught. Her decision will probably influence that of Ms. Murkowski, as well as those of the three vulnerable Democrats: Senators Joe Manchin III of West Virginia, Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota and Joe Donnelly of Indiana.

The campaign aimed at Ms. Collins comes largely from progressive groups, abortion rights advocates and other opponents of Judge Kavanaugh. Planned Parenthood has conducted focus groups with independent female voters in Maine. Activists have streamed into Ms. Collinss offices in Portland and elsewhere with stacks of letters and oral testimony of abortions and pre-existing health conditions.
It took a leader like Kenneth Marcus to finally decide the ZOAs appeal and to also make it clear that O.C.R. will finally be using a definition of anti-Semitism that makes sense and that reflects how anti-Semitism is so frequently expressed today, particularly on our college campuses, they wrote. Hate groups like Students for Justice in Palestine try to convince others that their attacks on Zionism and Israel are legitimate political discourse. But as the State Department definition of anti-Semitism recognizes, these attacks are often a mask for Jew-hatred, plain and simple.

Mr. Marcus informed ZOA that he would specifically be reviewing one of the three allegations made in its 2011 complaint, which said that a liberal, pro-Palestinian group, Belief Awareness Knowledge and Action, imposed an admissions fee on Jewish and pro-Israeli students who attended an event called Never Again for Anyone. The Zionist group said an email proved that an organizer wrote that the group began charging only after it observed 150 Zionists who just showed up.

But according to an account from Palestine Legal, fees were charged for the event only after Rutgers Hillel, a local synagogue, and other Jewish groups sent alerts to mobilize their members to protest the event. The group said that pro-Israel protesters physically assaulted event volunteers and called them towel heads and suicide bombers, and that a Jewish volunteer was called a traitor.

The organizers  who were not students  said they were forced to charge a last-minute fee to cover costs mandated by the university, including an increased price to rent the space and to cover security to manage the protests.

In dismissing the case in 2014, the Education Department determined that the host of the event advertised a $5 to $20 donation, and began charging last-minute fees because the event drew more attendees than anticipated, including many nonstudents.

In their findings letter, department investigators wrote that they had discovered no evidence that Jewish and non-Jewish attendees were selectively charged fees. They said the email that said 150 Zionists had shown up  which was presented as evidence of the intended discrimination  was heavily redacted, and they could not verify whether that information was credible. The department said it determined from witness statements that all attendees were required to pay for the event if they were not a volunteer. The department also found that Rutgers promptly investigated complaints of bias filed by students.

Regardless of whether or not it was appropriate to begin charging the admissions fee, O.C.R. did not find sufficient evidence to substantiate that any individuals were treated differently, based on national origin, with respect to imposition of the admissions fee, the findings letter said.
WASHINGTON  The Trump administration is preparing a new executive order to allow sanctions of foreign citizens suspected of interference in the American elections, officials who have reviewed the order said.

The new order is aimed broadly at any potential outside interference in American elections, but is meant to give the government an additional tool to punish, and deter, Russian entities suspected of trying to spread disinformation or otherwise influence the midterm and subsequent balloting.

The new sanctioning powers come as the Trump administration has been criticized for not doing enough to try to prevent Russian interference.

The order could be signed as soon as Wednesday, although officials cautioned that the timing could shift because of the threat of Hurricane Florence or because of further White House review.
WASHINGTON  President Trump, a commander in chief with a well-known bunker mentality, has long doubted the ability of his aides to protect him from outside attacks. But his anxiety about whom he can trust has only increased in the days since anonymous administration members  a number of them in Bob Woodwards book Fear, and one in an opinion piece published in The New York Times  laid out in stark detail concerns about his volatile personality and doubts about his ability to lead.

This is all according to one of the few people who still has the presidents confidence: a family member.

I think there are people in there that he can trust, Donald Trump Jr., the presidents eldest son, said of the Trump White House in an interview on ABCs Good Morning America on Tuesday. I just think its a much smaller group than I would like it to be.

But public denials  however nonspecific  from aides that they were the ones speaking out against him seem to have momentarily buoyed the president.
For the latest updates, read Wednesdays Hurricane Florence live briefing here.

CAROLINA BEACH, N.C.  With Hurricane Florence on course to slam into the Carolinas this week and a mandatory evacuation order in place, Jim Hempfling stood all alone outside the High Tide Lounge in this barrier island town on Tuesday, trying to squeeze out one more vacation day as he cast a fishing line into the rising waves.

Mr. Hempfling, 71, of Silver Spring, Md., said he had rented a beach residence through the weekend, but planned to head home, reluctantly, after one more day of so-far futile fishing.

I love it here, he said, but not enough to stay through whats coming.

Florence, a Category 4 storm, is projected to make landfall late Thursday along the North Carolina or South Carolina coast, and the authorities in both states and Virginia have spared no superlatives in urging people in its path to evacuate.

The storm will affect each and every one of you, Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina said on Tuesday, as he ordered what he believed was the first state-mandated evacuation of the states barrier islands. The waves and the wind this storm may bring is nothing like youve ever seen.
President Trump patted himself on the back Tuesday for an incredibly successful job done in Puerto Rico, where the government estimates that nearly 3,000 people died as a result of Hurricane Maria last year.

Speaking from the White House, Mr. Trump sought to assure the public that the Federal Emergency Management Agency was ready for Hurricane Florence, which is currently heading toward the Carolinas, saying, We are as ready as anybody has ever been.

He boasted that the federal government got excellent grades for its disaster response in Texas and Florida, but he complained that the even better job done in Puerto Rico had been ignored. I think that Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success, Mr. Trump said.

[For the latest updates on Hurricane Florence, read Wednesdays live briefing here.]

He noted that the United States military sent a tremendous military hospital in the form of a ship to the island. That ship, however, was largely underused. Prepared to support 250 hospital beds, it admitted an average of only six patients per day, or 290 in total, over its 53-day deployment.
Geoffrey Owens is on the comeback trail. The former Cosby Show star has landed his second role since The Daily Mail published photographs of him working at a Trader Joes in New Jersey in August: a guest spot on NCIS: New Orleans on CBS.

An executive producer on the show, Christopher Silber, said in a statement that Mr. Owens is an accomplished actor who seemed like the perfect fit to add to our extended repertory company.

Mr. Owens will play Commander Adams, an old friend of Scott Bakulas character, Dwayne Pride, the series lead, in one episode of the coming fifth season. The episode is slated to air in late October. Mr. Owens will also have a recurring role on the Oprah Winfrey Network drama The Haves and the Have Nots next season.
Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous nights highlights that lets you sleep  and lets us get paid to watch comedy. If youre interested in hearing from The Times regularly about great TV, sign up for our Watching newsletter and get recommendations straight to your inbox.

Best-seller for a Day?

Jimmy Fallon said he was excited about the release of Bob Woodwards new White House tell-all  but he doesnt expect the feeling to last long.

Fallon reminded viewers that the book arrived hot on the heels of similar accounts written by the journalist Michael Wolff and the former Trump aide Omarosa Manigault Newman, and he said that more such books are likely to follow.
Kaiser Maximilian Celebrates Las Fiestas Patrias 2018

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - Food is always an important part of Mexican celebrations so, to commemorate Las Fiestas Patrias, Kaiser Maximilian is serving up a special dinner menu featuring traditional Mexican dishes with an elegant and modern spin throughout the patriotic month of September.

Don't miss their special Chiles en Nogada, the Mexican dish that is most emblematic of the holiday. A specialty of Puebla, Chiles en Nogada are not your everyday chiles rellenos. Made from red, white and green ingredients to symbolize the colors of the Mexican flag, they are roasted chiles poblanos stuffed with a sweet-savory pork and fruit picadillo filling and served at room temperature with a delicate fresh walnut cream sauce topped with pomegranate seeds.

Appetizers

 Traditional Chile en Nogada - $148 Pesos

 Vegetarian Chile en Nogada - $139 Pesos

 Tacos with duck confit, mole, red onion - $128 Pesos

Soup

 Chile Poblano Cream Soup with corn and cheese - $108 Pesos

Main Courses

 Stuffed quail with peanut sauce, corn puree - $310 Pesos

 Fish fillet and shrimp, chile sauce, tropical rice, jicama and mango salad - $330 Pesos

Dessert

 Banana Split, served a different way, with banana tartlett - $105 Pesos

In addition to the traditional Mexican favorites being served up at Kaiser Maximilian this month, the restaurant's regular menu, featuring Austrian delights, is available in the restaurant's air conditioned dining room as well as at the "very European" sidewalk tables.
NBC canceled Norm Macdonalds appearance on The Tonight Show Tuesday after he made comments defending several entertainers accused of wrongdoing, including Louis C. K. and Roseanne Barr.

He later apologized, but on Wednesday, while discussing the controversy, he gave it new life by telling Howard Stern, Youd have to have Down syndrome not to feel sorry for the victims of sexual abuse.

The original remarks came in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in which Mr. Macdonald, the former Saturday Night Live cast member who has a Netflix talk show debuting on Friday, said he was happy the #MeToo movement has slowed down a little bit. He criticized a lack of forgiveness for the performers who had all their work in their entire life being wiped out in a single day, a moment.

Louis C. K., a comedian who wrote the foreword for Mr. Macdonalds 2016 book, Based on a True Story, was accused of sexual misconduct by five women. Ms. Barr, who gave Mr. Macdonald one of his earliest writing jobs, on Roseanne, lost her rebooted show on ABC after a racist tweet in May.
DOPESICK NATION 10 p.m. on Viceland. On the subject of drugs, Viceland is perhaps best known for stoner cooking (Bong Appetit) and stoner reporting (Hamiltons Pharmacopeia, Weediquette). But this new documentary series explores a far grimmer side of American drug use: the heroin epidemic. Set in Florida, it follows a pair of recovering addicts working to save users.

CRISIS ON WALL STREET: THE WEEK THAT SHOOK THE WORLD 10 p.m. on CNBC. The Times columnist and CNBC anchor Andrew Ross Sorkin hosts this documentary about the 2008 financial crisis, tracing the fall of Lehman Brothers and interviewing Wall Street executives about the turbulent events. The periods effects still echo in the way we live today  in the attitudes that pervade our economy, our culture and our politics, Mr. Sorkin wrote in The Times this week. The crisis was a moment that cleaved our country.

Whats Streaming
Laurie Halse Anderson, the author of Speak, a 1999 novel about a teenage girl traumatized by rape, did not initially see her book as a piece of activism.

After it was published, Ms. Anderson visited schools to discuss the story and its main character, Melinda, a freshman who struggles to verbalize her pain after she is raped by an upperclassman at her first high school party.

Early on, Ms. Anderson spoke about the book as a piece of literature rather than a lesson on rape culture. But then the students started asking questions, like, Did this happen to you?

It had. She had been 13 when she was raped. She had not spoken about it for 25 years, until she wrote the book. She told them about it.
The trick is to keep everything constitutional, Anderson says, staying within the boundaries of the 14th and 15th Amendments, which promised equal protection and barred discrimination on account of race. As the Virginia politician Carter Glass put it candidly in 1902, Discrimination! Why, that is precisely what we propose. It was, he said, an elected officials duty to discriminate to the very extremity of permissible action under the limitations of the Federal Constitution, with a view to the elimination of every negro voter who can be gotten rid of, legally.

Contemporary rhetoric isnt so frank and incendiary. Anderson describes Georgias Exact Match system and the Interstate Crosscheck as modern incarnations of old efforts to restrict the vote. Cloaked in anodyne phrases like voter roll maintenance, those database-matching programs gave the illusion of being clean, clinical, efficient and fair, Anderson writes, when in fact they had a horrific effect on voter registration, especially for minorities. Tiny typographical errors triggered wrongful purges of eligible voters. According to one team of researchers, the Crosscheck program  which was vastly expanded by Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, a staunch Trump ally currently running to be the states governor  had an astonishing error rate of 99 percent.

From the perspective of federal enforcement, Anderson says, the situation for minority voters is looking even more perilous now than a couple of years ago. The Department of Justice under Attorney General Jeff Sessions  who as a United States attorney in Alabama tried (and failed) to obtain a conviction of three African-American activists for voter fraud and once called the Voting Rights Act an intrusive piece of legislation  has demanded that no fewer than 44 states detail their programs for, yes, voter roll maintenance. The Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity (after reading this book, you wont be able look at the word integrity the same way again) is chaired by two figures who presided over aggressive anti-voter-fraud measures in their home states: Kobach and Vice President Mike Pence.

But at the grass-roots level, Anderson believes that things might be looking up. She offers a surprisingly riveting play-by-play of last years special senate election in Alabama, in which Doug Jones, a Democrat, won a startling upset over the Republican Roy Moore. She concedes that Moore, buffeted by allegations of sexual assault, was an especially unappealing candidate, whatever ones politics. But she also shows how groups like the N.A.A.C.P. mobilized local efforts to help people register to vote and  in a state where poll closures made even getting to the voting booths an issue  to offer crucial transportation.

Behind the tactics deployed by both sides looms a larger question: What kind of future should this country pursue? Should it be a democracy that is, in Andersons words, vibrant, responsive and inclusive? Or should it be a system that maximizes the frustration of millions of citizens to minimize their participation in the electoral process? To that end, this trenchant little book will push you to think not just about the vote count but about who counts, too.
Allan J. Lichtmans important book emphasizes the founders great blunder: They failed to enshrine a right to vote in the Constitution or the Bill of Rights. Instead, the Constitution handed control over elections to state and local governments. Local officials developed thousands of different electoral systems with no uniform standards or regulations and little oversight. Elections were organized and supervised by partisans brazenly angling for advantage. The Embattled Vote in America traces the consequences through American history.

Image

Reforms, when they came, often provoked a backlash. For example, in 1870 the 15th Amendment barred states from abridging the vote on account of race. A stronger version would have finally affirmed voting rights and prohibited restrictions like poll taxes or literacy tests. This version fell short in Congress because Northerners wanted to bar Irish voters and Westerners to ban Chinese-Americans. Even the weaker version of the amendment helped incite a reign of terror in the South and its loopholes eventually enabled the restoration of white supremacy.

Lichtman, a professor of history at American University, uses history to contextualize the fix were in today. Each party gropes for advantage by fiddling with the franchise. In blue states Democrats simplify voting; in red states Republicans suppress it with a long inventory of machinations: purge the rolls, convolute registration procedures, disenfranchise felons and cut back polling times and places. Small wonder turnout is so low. In 2014, 140 million people did not vote (the elections had the lowest turnout since 1942); in 2016, just 25 percent of American adults voted Donald Trump into the Oval Office.

What next? Lichtman ticks through the vital reforms. Abolish the Electoral College, automatically register voters, establish national election standards, draw less partisan voting districts, resist foreign interference and so on. Lichtman sounds dispirited about his own proposals. The odds on passing any are long  and growing longer as the Supreme Court heads rightward. In fact, real democracy would probably require even stronger medicine. Limit the courts power to unilaterally strike down laws (as Abraham Lincoln suggested in his first Inaugural Address); break the iron grip of the two parties by introducing proportional representation for congressional elections (any state could try).

Just beyond the scope of Lichtmans book hovers the great question of our time. Why has partisan conflict grown so fierce? One answer lurks implicit in the history. The parties have never combined racial and nativist tensions the way they do today. White men crowd into the Republican Party, immigrants and African-Americans into the Democratic. Todays parties aggregate and amplify the old tribal antagonisms. Expect the declining white majority to do what endangered partisans have always done: block the ballot box.
Zhivago and Laras conversations, however casual, were as full of meaning as the dialogues of Plato, Pasternak writes. Perhaps. But his own homilies read less like Tolstoy than like the mock-Russian hilarities in Woody Allens Love and Death. At the time, however, astute and august critics were mesmerized. One of them, Edmund Wilson, argued that Pasternak presented a radical criticism of all our supposedly democratic but more and more centralized societies. William F. Buckley Jr., praising Doctor Zhivago from the right, wrote, The elaborate edifice of Marxism-Leninism crumbles before the poets eye of Boris Pasternak. The secret genius of Doctor Zhivago was that it gave comfort to everyone, even the Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev when he finally got around to reading it. We shouldnt have banned it, he conceded. Theres nothing anti-Soviet in it.

Image Boris Pasternak Credit... Getty Images

This was also the opinion of the author of the third post-Sputnik classic, the ferociously anti-Communist Vladimir Nabokov, though he had a personal reason for disliking Doctor Zhivago. It had bumped his novel Lolita off the top rung on the Times best-seller list. He had a second reason too. An important incident early in Pasternaks novel  Laras sexual ravishment, at age 16, by a much older man  pre-empted Nabokovs explicit story of the rape of a 12-year-old by the narrator, Humbert Humbert, who is three times her age. Like the other post-Sputnik novels, Lolita had its own pre-publication tumult, in this case an obscenity scandal. American publishers were afraid to release it, so it had come out in Paris, and it was banned there too, becoming prize contraband. But after a large portion of it was serialized in The Anchor Review, it was at last deemed acceptable for American readers.

They were surprised by what they found. Sexual sin was a familiar subject in the late 1950s. The periods best sellers included Peyton Place, By Love Possessed and Anatomy of a Murder. But these were all conventional middlebrow novels. Nabokov was a highbrow genre-changer, an originator of postmodern techniques: wordplay, stories constructed like puzzles, layers of allusion, tricks of misdirection.

If Rand and Pasternak were fabulists dabbling in realism, Nabokov was the opposite, a literary magician, with a dandys lush prose style, whose story was based on a shockingly thorough knowledge of facts on the ground. In her new book, The Real Lolita, Sarah Weinman maps the parallels between Humberts case and one true-crime episode mentioned in Lolita, the abduction of a fifth grader by a 50-year-old pedophile in Camden, N.J., who fled with her on a cross-country spree. But that was just one story among many in what later came to be called the postwar sex crime panic. Ordinary readers were well-versed in such stories. They were staples of the so-called family magazines. A cover story in The American Magazine in 1947  when much of Lolita takes place  was How Safe Is Your Daughter? Not safe at all, according to the author, the F.B.I. director J. Edgar Hoover. The most rapidly increasing type of crime is that perpetrated by degenerate sex offenders, he wrote, going on to offer a selection, complete with lurid details, of a nationwide binge of rape and pedophilia, a criminal assault every 43 minutes, day and night, across the United States. There was, for instance, the case of the 17-year-old jailed on a sex charge who three weeks after his release lured an 11-year-old girl to an open field, where his brutal attacks ended in the murder of the child. Another family magazine, Colliers, published a series, Terror in Our Cities. And there was more in the daily press  tales of grown men who plied underage girls with sodas and sundaes, teenage sex rings involving girls as young as 13 (all said to be from good families).

What was surprising, in 1958 no less than today, was the indifference of the nations most sophisticated readers, its literary critics, to the connection between Humberts ensnared lover and the real Lolitas who exist in darkness throughout their lives, as The New Republic pointed out in an editorial. It was the familiar story of clueless elites, and it rested on intellectual complicity. Advanced midcentury thinking had all but discarded the categories of normal and abnormal sexual conduct. In his book Sexual Behavior in the Human Female, the sexologist and data-accumulator Alfred C. Kinsey wrote that adult contacts are a source of pleasure to some children, and sometimes may arouse the child erotically (5 percent) and bring it to orgasm (1 percent). And of the 80 percent of the children who had been emotionally upset or frightened by their contact with adults, Kinsey, a trained entomologist, concluded, in most instances the reported fright was nearer the level that children will show when they see insects, spiders or other objects against which they have been adversely conditioned.

Image Vladimir Nabokov Credit... Hulton-Deutsch/Getty Images

Nabokov was an accomplished butterfly collector, well versed in scientific jargon, real and fake. In a mock foreword to Lolita, Humberts story is described, in pitch-perfect Kinsey-ese, as the confession of a White Widowed Male. His story, the author adds, should make all of us  parents, social workers, educators  apply ourselves with still greater vigilance and vision to the task of bringing up a better generation in a safer world. It was easy to feel in on the joke, just as it was easy to share in the snobbery when Nabokov wrote, Nothing is more exhilarating than philistine vulgarity. But you could also miss what he was really saying, that America had mass-produced its own version of Old World decadence. The same consumer culture that infantilized adults  with cute paper napkins and cottage-cheese crested salads and raid-the-icebox midnight snacks  was also sexualizing their children and making them prey to pedophiles. Grown-ups and bobby-soxers alike were in thrall to the luminous globules of gonadal glow that travel up the opalescent sides of jukeboxes, and also huddled together in the dim, impossibly garnet-red light that in Europe years ago went with low haunts, but here meant a bit of atmosphere in a family hotel. Humbert, posing as Lolitas father, is a sinister parody of the overprotective helicopter parent, rebuked by Lolitas teachers for being an old-fashioned Continental father who forbids his daughter to mix with boys her own age. Viktor Komarovsky, the sexual predator in Doctor Zhivago, would have had an easy time of it in Nabokovs America.
2. Hurricane Florence watch:

Three million people in North and South Carolina stand to lose power and could be without it for a very long time, the head of the regions main electric utility said.

The storm is charging toward the Carolinas and is expected to make landfall early Friday. Above, a woman in Myrtle Beach, S.C., preparing for Florence.

Once it is ashore, Florences drenching rains may cause catastrophic flash flooding and significant river flooding over a wide area of the Carolinas and the Mid-Atlantic states, the National Hurricane Center said. Some spots on the coast could receive as much as 40 inches of rain.

Given the dangerous nature of the storm, weve made our Hurricane Florence coverage available to everyone. Go to nytimes.com for the latest on whats happening, whether youre in the path of the storm or elsewhere.
 Dozens of migrants  maybe even more than 100  drowned in the Mediterranean as they attempted to reach Europe. Italy didnt deploy a ship, deferring to Libya, which might have delayed the rescue operation by hours. Above, rescued migrants at a detention center in Libya. [The New York Times]

 Max Zirngast, an Austrian journalist often critical of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, was detained by the Turkish police in Ankara. [CNN]

 In Barcelona, hundreds of thousands of Catalan separatists rallied in their largest show of force since a botched declaration of independence from Spain last October. [The New York Times]

 Hurricane Florence gained momentum as it churned toward Americas southeast coast and is expected to make landfall on Thursday. Evacuations have begun, with more than a million people expected to flee. [The New York Times]

 A caricature of Serena Williams by an Australian newspaper cartoonist has been criticized as echoing a long history in comics of racist depictions of black people. [The New York Times]

 Russias biggest military exercises since the Cold War are underway, involving 300,000 troops and 1,000 aircraft. [BBC]
(Want to get this briefing by email? Heres the sign-up.)

Good morning.

Heres what you need to know:

Florence threatens to deliver a drenching wallop

 Millions of people in the Carolinas and Virginia are either on the move or hunkering down as Hurricane Florence heads for the region, where it is expected to make landfall by Friday with winds of 130 miles per hour.

The Category 4 hurricane could generate a huge storm surge and bring as much as 30 inches of rain, which could cause catastrophic flash flooding, the authorities said. Were tracking the storms path, and providing live updates.

Some misconceptions about hurricanes can be dangerous. Experts clear up three big ones, and we have tips for evacuating your home.
 43 million.

Thats how many people in Southeast Asia could be exposed to Super Typhoon Mangkhut.

The powerful storm  currently packing winds of up to 150 miles per hour (about 240 kilometers per hour)  is on track to hit the northern Philippines on Friday before barreling toward Taiwan. It may threaten Hong Kong and mainland China over the weekend.

Meanwhile, the U.S. is bracing for Hurricane Florence, which is predicted to begin lashing North and South Carolina within hours.
The government pointed to the need for deterrence in pushing for up to a six-month prison sentence for Mr. Papadopoulos. Prosecutors argued that others in a similar position could view a sentence of probation for lying to the government as being akin to a speeding ticket. The special counsels office said his crime was serious and caused damage to the governments investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

The defense, on the other hand, asked for a term of probation that would end at the conclusion of Mr. Papadopouloss sentencing hearing. His lawyers portrayed him as a pawn in a much larger case. They claimed that to say George was out of his depth would be a gross understatement. They argued that he has already served the equivalent of one year of probation because he had been under court supervision since his arrest in 2017, and that the cost of being a felon would be felt for the rest of his life.

In the end, Mr. Papadopoulos received a sentence that will cost him only two weeks behind bars, a $9,500 fine and community service.

Assessing the impact of the misconduct can be difficult when the government, not an individual, is the victim. Prosecutors must act as the reflection of the community, but it can be difficult to articulate the impact of that harm.

The sentencing of Paul Manafort, the former chairman of Mr. Trumps campaign, will highlight how prosecutors often focus on victims other than the government in seeking a prison term.

Mr. Manafort was convicted of five counts of tax fraud, two counts of bank fraud and one count of failing to disclose a foreign bank account. Unlike tax charges, which many slough off as a product of an unfair system, misleading a bank can result in a significant prison term. Bank fraud has the potential to harm a financial system supported by federal deposit insurance, and thus put taxpayers at risk of bearing any losses. Prosecutors will likely point to those convictions as the basis for imposing a substantial punishment.

The defense is likely to counter that Mr. Manafort was unfairly singled out by Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel, and that the court should sentence Mr. Manafort to probation or, at most, a short period of incarceration.
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Dan Loeb needs Campbell Soup to taste more like the Heinz variety.

The activist investor is trying to replace the board at the indebted food group, which has a market value of around $12 billion. Success in turning the company around could bring an investment win, but its a grind more suited to Kraft Heinz backers 3G Capital than Mr. Loebs hedge fund, Third Point.

As Mr. Loeb built a stake in Campbell over the summer, the company was conducting a strategic review under the interim chief executive Keith McLoughlin. To the investors dismay, Campbell wound up its process in August without deciding to put itself up for auction.

Mr. Loeb nominated 12 new directors last week but is no longer pushing for a sale.

Campbells options were limited anyway. Private equity investors might in other circumstances have considered partnering with the founding familys descendants, who own some 40 percent of the stock. But a deal to buy the pretzel company Snyders-Lance left Campbell with nearly $10 billion of debt  more than five times a forecast of its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization for the current financial year, according to analysis by Thomson Reuters.
Jacob Weisberg, the chairman and editor in chief of the Slate Group, announced in a Twitter post on Wednesday that he was leaving the company to start a new audio venture with the author Malcolm Gladwell.

After 22 years, theres no good moment to leave, but you start to feel like its now or never if youre ever going to, Mr. Weisberg, 54, said in an interview.

In recent years at Slate, Mr. Weisberg focused on how to make digital journalism sustainable while leading the online magazine into podcasting. It now offers 25 podcasts, including Slate Political Gabfest, which has been running for 13 years; Trumpcast, which is co-hosted by Mr. Weisberg; and Slow Burn, which received 11 million downloads in its Watergate-focused first season and has recently returned to delve into the impeachment of President Bill Clinton.

Julia Turner, the editor in chief of Slate, credited Mr. Weisberg for developing the publications distinctive voice, which she described as a mix of rigor and playfulness.
CBS entered a new stage of turmoil on Wednesday with the ouster of the longtime executive producer of 60 Minutes, its flagship news brand, amid a cascading scandal over sexual misconduct that days ago ended the career of the networks chief executive, Leslie Moonves.

Jeff Fager, who was only the second person in 50 years to oversee 60 Minutes, was fired for sending a text message that threatened the career of a CBS reporter, Jericka Duncan, who was looking into allegations of sexual harassment leveled against him and Mr. Moonves.

The president of CBS News, David Rhodes, told staff that Mr. Fagers departure was not directly related to those allegations of sexual harassment, which Mr. Fager has denied. But the network said the producer had violated company policy.

It would be hard to overstate Mr. Fagers power inside CBSs news division, where he succeeded the legendary producer Don Hewitt in overseeing 60 Minutes. Some members of the shows staff were livid on Wednesday during a contentious meeting with Mr. Rhodes at the shows Manhattan office.
The hurricane center noted that, while the forecast track of the storm had shifted somewhat to the south by Wednesday morning, The threat to life from storm surge and rainfall will not diminish, and these impacts will cover a large area regardless of exactly where the center of Florence moves.

So what does this have to do with climate change? Plenty. A warming planet doesnt cause individual hurricanes, of course; theyve been with us forever. But the effects of climate change have been linked to higher storm surges and rainier storms, and research suggests that powerful storms will grow even stronger in coming years as ocean waters grow warmer. There is even evidence that climate change causes hurricanes to linger longer, which Florence is expected to do.

Last year, according to one study, Hurricane Harvey got a 38 percent boost in its rainfall capacity from climate change.

For now, its most important if youre in the path of this storm to get out of the way and to urge family and friends threatened by Florence to do the same. Mark Schleifstein, the science writer for NOLA.com and The Times-Picayune, laid out a warning in a stark tweet on Tuesday: Live along areas of the N.C./S.C. coast ordered to evacuate and not going to do it? Keep an ax in your attic. And write your Social Security number on your arm, so officials can identify your body. Brrr.

Now, heres my colleague Lisa Friedman. From here on, she and I will be leading off the newsletter with the biggest climate stories of the week. Well continue to have original reporting and links to other coverage. And each newsletter will also offer a tip: one thing you can do to reduce your personal carbon footprint. So stay tuned for that, below.
The fashion tent has grown bigger and more welcoming, if the slate of after-parties during New York Fashion Week was a reliable indicator.

Venerated luxury brands like Cartier and Prada sought a younger and more diverse crowd, while indie downtown labels cemented their reputations for steamrolling racial and gender boundaries.

This fashion week, more than any other, is more for the people, said Ruth Gruca, the creative director at Cala, a start-up trying to disrupt the fashion industry with 3-D body scanning. The calendar is weak, but the underground culture is thriving.
WASHINGTON  The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday declared that teenage use of electronic cigarettes has reached an epidemic proportion, and it put makers of the most popular devices on notice that they have just 60 days to prove they can keep their devices away from minors.

The order was part of a sweeping government action that targeted both makers and sellers of e-cigarettes. If Juul Labs and four other major manufacturers fail to halt sales to minors, the agency said, it could remove their flavored products from the market. It also raised the possibility of civil or criminal charges if companies are allowing bulk sales through their websites.

The agency said it was sending warning letters to 1,100 retailers  including 7-Eleven stores, Walgreens, Circle K convenience shops and Shell gas stations  and issued another 131 fines, ranging from $279 to $11,182, for selling e-cigarettes to minors.

Federal law prohibits selling e-cigarettes to anyone under 18. In a briefing with reporters, the F.D.A. commissioner, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, said that more than two million middle and high school students were regular users of e-cigarettes last year.
Colleges Grapple with Where  or Whether  to Draw the Line on Free Speech by Alina Tugend (June 5, 2018)

Policy Question: Should colleges be able to prohibit controversial or offensive public speakers from speaking on campus?

Constitutional Question: Does the First Amendment protect the speech rights of controversial or offensive public speakers on college campuses? Does the First Amendment treat government-run colleges (public colleges) differently than private colleges?

After reading their article, groups should also discuss the following question:

Why is it difficult for scholars, judges and lawmakers to balance robust (strong) speech protections with the necessity of maintaining a peaceful society? Provide evidence.

Finally, have them revisit the hypothetical situations a third time, discussing them as a group. On their individual handout, students should circle any answer they want to change from the previous two rounds.

Whole Class Debrief and Closing Activity

Groups should report out on their conversations. What article did they read? What was it about? What policy questions did it raise, and what did students think? What constitutional questions did it raise, and what did students think? In addition, they can share any disagreements or changed opinions they have about the hypothetical situations.

If you want to extend the debrief, you can choose one hypothetical situation to restate as a claim, such as Public school students should be able to criticize school personnel and policies on social media. Have one student take a stand for the statement. Have another student take a stand against the statement. Each student can make a brief speech in support of his or her statement. Then, one at a time, other students can join the two sides, making additional arguments to support or refute the statements until all students are standing. Students are allowed and encouraged to switch sides as they are swayed.
Takeout offers some straightforward utility: The ability to download your photos, for example, lets you upload them elsewhere. And it is genuinely good that Google doesnt hold your contacts hostage. Google also makes it possible for users to browse their recorded location history. This interface is very Google-ish in that it makes a huge amount of information feel approachable; it is less like Google in the way it makes the material feel useless and hardly worth investigating. In Takeout, however, location data can be exported in raw form. In my case, this produced a file containing hundreds of thousands of entries, each encoding time (down to the millisecond), latitude and longitude (with an estimate of their accuracy) and a guess at my activity (ON_BICYCLE, for instance).

Laid out in a vast spreadsheet and isolated from Googles own interfaces, this data becomes both conceptually clear, as quintessential surveillance, and literally incomprehensible. In 2014, a high school student named Theo Patt released a tool, Location History Visualizer, to give shape to this information, placing users entire Google location histories on an intensely color-coded map, like something that might hang on the wall at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It became a minor sensation, and tens of thousands of visits to his site followed. It was a rare chance for Google users to see their own slice of the companys same old data, presented just outside the context in which it was gathered, rendering it utterly new.

When you stare down from on high at the last few years of your life  as recorded by your laptop and phone, and then self-subpoenaed from your Google account  your first impulse is forensic. And whether you assume the role of defense, prosecution, judge or juror, youll have plenty to work with. If you fully opt in to certain Google products (in my case, various Google apps on an iPhone, including Google Maps), years of location history will be rendered as glowing circles, shaded from violet to green to yellow to red and overlaid on a map of the world. To explore this data is to toggle, in seconds, among wildly disparate emotional states: surprise, disorientation, curiosity, disappointment.

I first looked at my map zoomed all the way out and thought, Thats it? A glowing red blast radius surrounded New York City, where I live; fainter orbs floated over towns where I visited family. That time in Nashville, for a conference. A failed reporting trip to Northern California. A few vacations, some layovers at airports, some weekend trips near the city. The full force of Googles apparatus had been summoned here, it seemed, to tell me to travel more. (According to Google, the company does not share users location histories with advertisers, nor does it serve ads to users based on specific places in their location histories.)

Then I zoomed in. Trips to see family were rendered in cold detail. They showed a town where I spent most of the first 18 years of my life reduced to the skeletal routine of a repeat outside visitor. The purple haze over the airport resolved, on a closer look, into dots at Gates C18 and C25, where Ive arrived or departed, and from or to which I walked to use a bathroom near Gate C9, just before Christmas in 2017. Another faint trail led to my mothers home, which glowed red; a few jogs around the neighborhood ringed the house in blue. I could pick out the restaurants in town that we went to together and the bar downtown where I met an old friend. I followed a mysterious series of faint dots down the highway, remembering halfway that they would lead to the regional fast-food place I loved as a kid. I zoomed in on a dot just north of the house and found myself at church, for the yearly family Christmas service. I scrolled in further and saw my annual stations: the parking lot, the chapel, the pews just left of the lectern and finally the columbarium to visit my dads remains.
A memoir like your new book, Every Day Is Extra, often means people are shaping their legacy. Is that something youre thinking about now? No, I dont look at the book as a political book. I really view it as a personal exploration of my life. The things I write about are the things most people have heard about. Its an opportunity for me to set the record straight in a number of cases.

You spent a lot of time with Senator John McCain and worked with him on normalizing relations with Vietnam in the 1990s. What will you miss about him? Just a camaraderie, a respect, a mutual willingness to tackle tough things and speak forcefully about controversial issues. And John was fun. He was quixotic at times and volatile, and that could occasionally be a challenge, but  and the but is capitalized  I think we shared a sense of obligation and a sense of commitment to duty and to live up to a certain ideal.

You write that you considered having McCain as a running mate during your 2004 presidential run. Did you really talk about that with him? We really talked about it. We met in my hideaway in the Senate. We both knew there were some big hurdles getting your own party to accept the idea of dealing with certain issues. In the end, John felt very strongly that he wasnt prepared to make the leap. We flirted, but we never had a date.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 12)  President Rodrigo Duterte is sure no one from the Armed Forces would stand up to the challenge of overthrowing his administration.

This was the explanation issued by Malacanang Wednesday on the President's seeming incitement of soldiers to join forces seeking to oust the President. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said it was actually an "expression of confidence."

"Kampante ang Presidente na wala namang suporta na manggagaling sa hanay ng militar para patalsikin siya sa pwesto," Roque said in a Palace press briefing.

[Translation: "The President is confident there would be no support from the military for efforts to unseat him."]

"Chinallenge niya dahil sigurado naman siya na walang suporta. Pero sinasabi niya na ako'y hindi kapit tuko. Kung gusto niyo, gawin niyo," he added.

[Translation: "He challenged them because he's sure there would be no support (for his overthrow). But he's also saying he is not clinging to his post. If they want to, then do it."]

Duterte, in his televised one-on-one interview with Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Sal Panelo on Tuesday, dared members of the Armed Forces to join Senator Antonio Trillanes IV and his Magdalo group and other critics whom the President accused of plotting his ouster.

"I am challenging Magdalo to start now. Kung sigurado ninyo na inyo ang sundalo, o fine. Kung kayong mga general, gusto eh 'di sige. Ipakita natin sa Pilipino kung ano gusto ninyo," Duterte said.

[Translation: "I am challenging Magdalo to start now. If you are sure that you have the support of the soldiers, fine. If you generals want this, go. Show the Filipinos want you want."]

Trillanes and Magdalo party-list Rep. Gary Alejano both denied communicating with the Armed Forces to overthrow the Duterte government. Trillanes said these were claims from a "paranoid" President, while Alejano said the group will not "resort to any extra constitutional means."

Both lawmakers earlier urged the military not to follow the President's "illegal order" to arrest Trillanes following the voidance of his amnesty.

Duterte has since said there will be no military arrest for Trillanes, as the President defers to the civilian court's decision. The military also gave its word that it will not arrest Trillanes without a warrant from Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branches 148 and 150, where the Department of Justice filed urgent motions for the courts to issue alias warrant and hold departure order against the soldier-turned lawmaker.

Meanwhile, the Communist Party of the Philippines and the Liberal Party also denied Duterte's allegations they were conniving with the Magdalo group to unseat the President.

Duterte, however, said he has evidence to prove his claim. He said he will soon make public his critics' "conversation provided by a foreign country sympathetic to us."
Among other things, 1970 was the year that brought three Mick Jagger movies to American theaters.

Mr. Jagger starred in the acid thriller Performance; the concert film Gimme Shelter; and the less-seen Jean-Luc Godard film, One Plus One, also known as Sympathy for the Devil, which is having a run in a 4K digital restoration at the Museum of Modern Art.

Mr. Godard was at the peak of his counterculture prestige when, having failed to interest John Lennon in playing Leon Trotsky, he made his first English-language film with Mr. Jagger and the Rolling Stones. Soon after the events of May 1968, which included not only a student uprising in Paris but also protests that shut down the Cannes Film Festival, he documented several recording sessions in which the Stones worked out the melody and arrangement of Sympathy for the Devil, the first track of their album Beggars Banquet.

The evolution of the song from folkie ballad to hypnotic samba, preserved in a series of long, choreographed takes, would be illuminating in itself, but Mr. Godard had much more in mind. The rehearsals are interspersed with scenes in which Anne Wiazemsky, then his wife, spray-paints slogans on surfaces ranging from pub facades to parked cars, and, identified as Eve Democracy, gives monosyllabic answers to a television crew whose questions were largely drawn from a Playboy interview with Norman Mailer.
Recriminations over a bridge opening. A false flier with a mysterious author. A cinnamon raisin bagel with cream cheese, lox and capers.

So this is what a contested primary for governor in New York looks like.

The long and often bitter battle between Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and his untested challenger, Cynthia Nixon, staggered toward Thursdays finish line, with each side emptying its arsenal of attack lines amid a fusillade of bad press for the governor.

From the time she declared in March, Ms. Nixon showed a taste and a talent for political invective, questioning the old boys club that runs Albany and whether the governor was a real Democrat, and promising to be a double-barreled trailblazer: the states first female and gay governor.

For his part, Mr. Cuomo, a savvy political centrist seeking a third term, has had numerous institutional and financial advantages, including a war chest that topped $31 million at one point  enabling him to spend nearly $500,000 per day on the race as of late August.
[Update: It was a sweeping and complex criminal enterprise, prosecutors say. Read more.]

A three-year investigation ended Wednesday with the arrest of seven New York City police officers on prostitution, corruption and misconduct charges in connection with an illegal gambling and prostitution ring in Brooklyn and Queens, law enforcement officials said.

Two other officers, including a detective who until five months ago worked in the Internal Affairs Bureau, were stripped of their guns and shields and placed on administrative duty.

The police said that more than 40 civilians were also in custody or being sought in connection with the investigation, which began with an anonymous officers tip to the internal affairs unit in April 2015.

The arrested officers  three sergeants, two detectives and two officers  were indicted before they were taken into custody. They are suspected of providing protection for the rings activities in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, and along Roosevelt Avenue in Queens, the police said. Area residents and public officials have long complained about brothels operating out of local homes, spas and bars, with new establishments popping up as quickly as the police shut the old ones down.
This spring, when Ms. Browns lawyers asked Special Fed if any of the officers had violated Police Department policies by not providing medical attention, lawyers from the unit first claimed the request wasnt relevant. Then they filed an incomplete answer to the question, asked for more time to respond and eventually missed their own extended deadline. When they finally submitted a response  the officers hadnt violated any policy or procedure  they broke court procedure. The document was never formally signed by the defendants.

Last month, losing patience, a Manhattan judge ordered the lawyers to explain the delays in a formal memorandum, adding that they needed to get it personally signed by Ms. Miller to ensure she has approved.

There have been fights about the most unnecessary things, Joshua Moskovitz, one of Ms. Browns lawyers, said. There have been fights about things they know they cant win and fights where it seems like theyre just fighting. It actually feels tactical at times. It happens too often to be coincidental.

Similar problems have plagued other cases. In July, for instance, a Brooklyn magistrate judge said he was considering referring a Special Fed lawyer to the courts grievance committee for a very troubling violation of professional rules. The lawyer had refused to let the plaintiffs lawyer in a police-misconduct lawsuit use the Law Departments phones to call the judge to question a line of inquiry during a deposition.

Last November, another Brooklyn judge excoriated Special Fed lawyers for ignoring their ethical obligations after it emerged that they knew a plaintiff had accidentally sued the wrong detective for malicious prosecution and moved to dismiss the case  instead of promptly telling the man of his mistake.

A few months earlier, a different Brooklyn judge sanctioned the city after one of the units lawyers acted improperly at an officers deposition, objecting nearly 600 times to questions, even though many were deemed to be relevant to the case.

Special Fed itself was born in 1998, when federal civil-rights lawsuits against the police were rising dramatically, spurred in part by Mayor Rudolph W. Giulianis new zero-tolerance law-enforcement strategy. The suits had been traditionally handled by the Law Departments general litigation division.
One of her first assignments was for Seventeen magazine, a spread photographed by Francesco Scavullo, who would become known for his celebrity portraits and for one attention-getting centerfold: of Burt Reynolds, naked on a bearskin rug, for Cosmopolitan. (Mr. Reynolds died on Sept. 6.) She would later work with Richard Avedon, Jerry Schatzberg, Horst P. Horst and other noted fashion photographers.

Shortly after joining Ford, she was sent on assignment to Paris. She appeared on magazine covers and in ad campaigns of all sorts. She was a Breck Girl  one of many models who advertised that brand of shampoo  twice: in 1962 wearing a ball gown, and again in 1975 with a more contemporary look. She graced advertisements for Pepsi, Clairol, Hallmark Cards and others. She said she was also among the runway models for Ralph Laurens first show after he began designing clothes in the late 1960s.

Image Ms. Gould in a 1975 advertisement for Breck shampoo. It was the second of her two appearances as a Breck Girl. Credit... Ralph Williams/Breck, via Barbara Gould archive

Her first TV commercial, Ms. Gould said, was for Helena Rubinstein cosmetics. In the oral history, she recalled doing a live ad for Toni hair products on The Merv Griffin Show in the early 1960s. Around 1980, she was an Ivory Soap mom in a commercial that also included her daughter Alexandra. (Ms. Scott said her job was to run in and give away that Ms. Gould, despite the young-looking hands she had, courtesy of Ivory dish soap, was a mother  a conceit Ivory had been using for years in its ad campaign.)

The Ritz Thrift Shop commercial, though, is the one burned into the minds of countless New Yorkers. In a 1988 interview with The New York Times, Keith Tauber, then the manager of the store, said the spot began running in September 1975. It is still displayed today on the website of the store, which is now on West 29th Street.

The commercial was said to have cost about $20,000 to make. That, apparently, did not include a wardrobe budget for the star; she provided her own clothes, she said, except for the mink she ends up in.

Ms. Goulds first marriage, to Joseph Hannan, ended in divorce. In 1975 she married Harry E. Gould Jr., who was chairman of the Gould Paper company and is now vice chairman of the New York City Housing Development Corporation. Besides Ms. Scott, she is survived by her husband; a son, Trip; and three grandchildren. Another daughter, Katharine Gould, died in 2004.
Was I  quiet, harmless Martha Cnockaert  really about to do this terrible thing? (The book used the English spelling of her first name.)

McKenna said she was caught after she had aided in the explosion of a weapons stockpile. There she lost a wristwatch engraved with her initials, and the Germans, suspecting its owner to be the culprit behind the explosions, put up a notice saying they had found it. She claimed it, falling into their trap.

The Germans then searched her home, found hidden coded messages and arrested her on espionage charges in November 1916. Though the penalty for spying was usually execution, McKenna was imprisoned instead because, she said, of her work as a nurse and the Iron Cross she had received.

She later received honors from France and Belgium and was hailed in dispatches by Field Marshal Douglas Haig of Britain, who included her on a list of Belgians who had provided distinguished and gallant services.

After the war she married John McKenna, a British officer, and they moved to England. Historians believe her husband was probably the ghostwriter for I Was a Spy! though publicly the couple claimed that Marthe McKenna had written it. The book initially sold about 200,000 copies and received rave reviews.

From first page to last it is a thrilling, breathtaking book, The New York Times wrote. The Sunday Dispatch in England printed excerpts, describing the book as the greatest of all war stories and comparing McKenna to Joan of Arc.

But how much of it is true remains a question.

Coghe, the historian, said many parts of the book were fictionalized and that some events combined McKennas experiences with those of her aunt.
Exactly how many more terms do you guys reckon Cuomo is going to need to get started on the job? Because if hes the effective anti-corruption crusader of our dreams, it sure seems like hes slow out of the gate.  A, Capro

To beat Trump, New York needs a player

Love him or hate him, hes whats needed

Mr. Cuomo would be perfectly comfortable standing up to, and staring down, our current president, and any Republican president who follows. So love him or hate him, he is the right choice for governor. And, as someone who is sometimes referred to as a bully, he would be a standout for any office he would consider. Yes, even that office.  Interested Party, New York

An excellent and veracious account of Governor Cuomo. Hes the one we love to hate and the one we hate to love. And this is a good thing. New Yorkers have the same sort of emotional fickleness as the governor, and this is what will be necessary to hold him accountable when, as it appears, he eventually wins next week. This was not as much an endorsement as it was a call for accountability.  Anthony Rogers-Wright, Seattle

Do not pass go till you pay your dues

I am way past tired of seeing arrogant, wealthy celebrities run for high office without passing the big sign that says Pay Your Dues. Run for City Council or school board. Learn a few things, do some good. Because being the governor of New York is serious, and a complete lack of experience or knowledge gets folks hurt. Wed be far, far better off with Cuomo and Zephyr Teachout in there slugging. Shes principled and knowledgeable; hes experienced and a politician who knows he better deliver.  Robert, Out West

Shiny and new, but not accomplished

Todays politics reveal two unfortunate trends: first, attraction to the shiny, new thing, and, second, a tendency to ignore accomplishments and focus only on ones failures. Yes, progressives can get excited about Cynthia Nixon because she speaks well, advocates unabashedly for the left and is a lesbian. But she has zero political or even business experience.

Andrew Cuomo, as this endorsement almost apologetically points out, has accomplished quite a lot in his two terms, including a number of fairly progressive achievements. His worst moments were his failure to forcefully take on Albanys corruption. But blaming him for failing to completely fix a subway problem that has been in the making over many decades and several governors seems unfair. Governance in a democracy is messy and New York is a big state.  Jack Sonville, Florida

The first gay, female governor should not be incompetent

Governor Cuomo is certainly flawed, and I wish there was a better option, but Ms. Nixon is not it. Its become pretty clear that her total lack of governing experience would make her an incompetent governor, and while it would be great to have the first female governor of New York and the first gay one at the same time, it would be extremely destructive to have her be a wipeout. I would think shed have one chaotic term and then get replaced by a Republican.
Regular readers of this newsletter know that I think its important to talk about climate change during extreme weather events. Yes, its true that no individual storm can be blamed solely on climate change. But its also true that climate change has that name for a reason: It is changing the climate  and the weather. Hurricanes are becoming more powerful. Extreme rainstorms (as this chart shows) are becoming more common, as are droughts and heat waves.

Given that data and academic studies dont seem to have persuaded the current United States government  and a significant chunk of the countrys voters  to take climate change seriously, maybe the weather eventually will.

Related: President Donald Trump and his current set of minions, anonymous or on the record, are exceedingly disinterested in lifting a finger to do something about global warming, writes the editorial board of The Baltimore Sun. As the Los Angeles Timess Scott Martelle put it: They just dont care. Theyd rather pursue policies that enrich the energy sector than play a role to, in effect, save Earth from ourselves.

Following Florence: Readers have told me they appreciate it when I point out good coverage from other news organizations, and a big storm is a chance to do so. Among major media, The Washington Post has the best weather coverage, thanks to its Capital Weather Gang team. I'm reading it every day this week.

Storm responses: I think Puerto Rico was incredibly successful, President Trump said yesterday, talking about previous hurricane responses. I actually think it was one of the best jobs thats ever been done  Puerto Rico was an incredible unsung success.
As an insurance professional with over 40 years of experience, I learned quickly that when actuaries warn about risks, you listen. Consider then the Actuaries Climate Index, which tracks the frequency of extreme weather and the extent of sea level change relative to a reference period of 1961 to 1990. The five-year moving average of climate extremes across the United States and Canada reached a record high in the fall 2017, according to the most recent index, released Aug. 1.

Opinion Conversation The climate, and the world, are changing. What challenges will the future bring, and how should we respond to them? What should our leaders be doing?

Al Gore, the 45th vice president of the United States, finds reasons for optimism in the Biden presidency.

Al Gore, the 45th vice president of the United States, finds reasons for optimism in the Biden presidency. What are the worst climate risks in your country?

Select a country, and we'll break down the climate hazards it faces.

Select a country, and we'll break down the climate hazards it faces. Where are Americans suffering most?

Our maps, developed with experts, show where extreme heat is causing the most deaths in the U.S.

Our maps, developed with experts, show where extreme heat is causing the most deaths in the U.S. What does climate devastation look like?

In Sept. 2020, Michael Benson studied detailed satellite imagery. Here's the earth that he saw  and the one he wants to see.

What this reflects, according to the index, is a continued deviation of climate and sea level extremes from historically expected patterns. Increased precipitation and rising sea levels were the leading factors driving the latest result, a fact that should be particularly concerning to coastal states from Texas to Maine.

With history as a guide and with a clear understanding of trend lines, insurance markets can work well and protect consumers efficiently. What the data tells us is that the greater losses we can expect from climate-related events, combined with greater uncertainty about where and when they will take place, will create substantial volatility in insurance payouts. For consumers, this will mean more costly premiums.

While new building standards have reduced losses for owners of new homes in some areas, most homes are older and more vulnerable, and improved building standards can do only so much to protect our housing stock. In the end, while robust building codes can help to mitigate losses, they do not reduce the risk of catastrophes. As sea levels rise, insuring against property losses will become more difficult and more expensive.

We must work to reduce these risks, and one key element of a long-term solution should be a revenue-neutral tax on emissions of carbon dioxide. This approach can spur the same reduction in carbon emissions that regulations can achieve, but without the unintended consequences that regulations inevitably bring.
Thus you get populist shocks like Brexit and the election of Trump, you get figures like Corbyn or Marine Le Pen or the Sweden Democrats as important political actors  but then Le Pen gets clobbered in the runoff, Brexit ends up supervised by its former critics, and Trumps own appointees take to the pages of this newspaper to explain how they arent really letting him run his own show. The center is hated, but whether overtly or covertly it finds some ways to hold.

The question is how long this situation can last. It might be that the current stalemate is just a transitional phase, a necessary step on the path from one order to another, and that at some point a group of politicians will figure out how to channel populist energy into a program or coalition that can make Western countries governable again.

This argument has been advanced frequently and shrewdly throughout the Trump era by the left-wing political theorist Corey Robin, who compares our age to the crackup of New Deal-Great Society liberalism in the 1970s, and argues that a lot of the angst over a supposed crisis of democracy is really just anxiety over the end of a particular consensus, a particular center  neoliberal-neoconservative, Reaganite-Clintonite-Blairite  that held for a couple of generations but cant hold anymore.

And as that happens, he writes, what we see is the founding of a new regime and the creation of new norms. Robin fervently hopes that this regime will be socialist, and it might be  but it might equally well turn out to be some new right-wing form, of the kind suggested by the nationalists of Eastern Europe, the populist grand alliance uneasily ruling Italy (the one Western European country where the extremes have teamed up against the center), and the campaign but not the presidency of Donald Trump.

Or, for that matter, the new political regime might turn out to be more socialist in an increasingly multicultural America and more right-wing-nationalist in a mass-migration-troubled Europe, with the continents drifting apart ideologically instead of imitating each other.

But all this speculation assumes that the stalemate will end relatively quickly, that with a discredited establishment harassed by not-quite-ready populisms, something has to give. No iron law of history requires that to happen, and all kinds of structural factors in Western societies  our aging populations, our costly and complicated welfare states, our hysterical media environment, the veto points of the United States Constitution and the dysfunctional pseudo-federalism of the European Union  converge to make reform and realignment more difficult than in the past.

Moreover there are plenty of historical precedents for a situation in which a system stalemates or stagnates for generations, where revolts and reform programs founder again and again, where a disliked or despised elite holds on to power for a long time against divided and chaotic forms of populism.
Despite a rich history of black firefighting heroes that goes back to the beginnings of a professionalized service in the early 19th century, firefighting in this country is stained by a tradition of exclusion. Post-segregation, discrimination was reinforced through deep-rooted nepotism and cronyism. For those whose great-grandfather, grandfather and father werent firefighters  and especially for applicants with the wrong color, gender or sexuality  training and testing became an impermeable barrier. Notoriously, white male recruits received special mentoring and reduced scrutiny by those in charge of hiring.

So-called bad apples cant be blamed for all the racial problems in fire departments today. The problems are system-deep. To begin to solve them, local fire department leaders must step up their efforts to support and enforce inclusivity. We should prioritize hiring fire chiefs who are fully committed to dismantling nepotism and tackling those professional traditions that degrade opportunity . We need an impartial, standardized and professional process for testing at entry level and on promotional exams to inoculate against the effects of bias and favoritism. Fire departments must enforce workplace rules already in place.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, fewer than 8 percent of our nations firefighters are African-Americans, and an even smaller percentage hold leadership positions. In that way, our nations fire service is like many other industries that are still battling hate and bias, both subtle and in-your-face.

What makes firefighting unusual is that as were rolling out of the firehouse with sirens on  whether responding to a fire, drug overdose or car crash  we know that what we encounter may be the worst moment in someones life. Our hearts are pounding, and were aware that any call could be a one-way trip for us. Smoke inhalation, building collapse and backdraft are known risks and we accept them.
On Thursday  yes, Thursday  voters across New York will make decisions that will substantially affect the future of the state and, possibly, the nation. Registered Democrats and registered Republicans will pick nominees for statewide, legislative and party positions. Even unaffiliated voters can cast ballots in the Reform Party primary.

Polls open at 6 a.m. in New York City and its suburbs, as well as Dutchess and Erie Counties, and at noon in other upstate counties. They close at 9 p.m. throughout the state.

To find your polling station and legislative district, click here.

Below are The Timess Democratic primary endorsements.
Using a microscope, a laser and a scanning electron microscope, they determined that the marks were on top of the rock and that they were made from red ocher, a type of natural pigment that was often used to make prehistoric cave paintings. In fact, ancient humans in the Blombos Cave were making ocher paint as far back as 100,000 years ago.

Then we had to determine how did they make those lines? Dr. van Niekerk said. Were they painted or drawn on?

They recreated ocher paint, then fashioned a wooden stick into a brush and made strokes on stone flakes comparable to the specimen. They also made an ocher crayon and drew lines. They then compared the paint markings and crayon markings with what they had seen on the artifact.

They determined that the ancient crisscross pattern was a drawing, not a painting, made with an ocher crayon tip that most likely measured only about 1 to 3 millimeters in thickness.

That distinction between a painting and drawing is important, according to Dr. Henshilwood, because ocher paint batches can dry. That makes it less useful than an ocher crayon used by an ancient human whenever she or he wanted to make symbols without going to the trouble of mixing up paint.

Dr. Henshilwood and his team also showed that the red lines were drawn onto a smooth surface. That indicated that the flake was once a part of a larger stone that the prehistoric humans may have used to grind ocher. They also showed that the original red lines most likely stretched past what was seen on the stone flake before the grindstone was broken.

They cannot say with certainty what the purpose of the drawing was and whether it was mere doodling or if it held some greater meaning. But they have their conjectures.
If you were a young male in the mid-2000s with a vague interest in Japanese denim or limited-colorway Nike Dunks or whatever it was that Pharrell was wearing that month, you may have found your way to Hypebeast, a fashion blog that was among the first to enthusiastically document trends in sneakers and streetwear.

Kevin Ma, who founded the blog in 2005 when he was a student in Vancouver, didnt know much about fashion then. But 13 years later, the Hong Kong native sits quietly at the top of a publicly traded Hypebeast empire. His dominion includes the website, a quarterly print magazine, an online store, legions of influential fans and now a Hypebeast festival, which will take place the first weekend of October in an undisclosed location in Brooklyn with a breathtaking view of the Manhattan skyline.

It will be called Hypefest.

Mr. Ma, 36, and his team have been reluctant to share too much information in advance of the festival; it might kill the hype. Instead, taking cues from the brands that theyve promoted for years, they are letting news about the festival trickle out slowly, and letting intrigue build. Upward of 10,000 tickets will be available online next week  for free.

But promotional materials promise that Hypefest will be a highly curated and educational experience. There will be booths from global clothing companies like adidas Originals, Diesel and Moncler, as well as streetwear brands like Needles and Girls Dont Cry. There will also be music, food, art and talks with fashion designers, held in a Hypetalks panel discussion area.
Agnes (Guatemala City)

What might a home in Guatemala look like today, wondered the designers Gustavo Quintana and Estefania de Ros, if the country had escaped colonization? The couple, who founded the Guatemala City-based studio Agnes in 2016, spent two years researching pre-Columbian craftsmanship to inform a new line of furnishings that offers a kind of aesthetic revisionist history, one in which Mayan civilization evolved with less European interference. The collection, which launches this fall, is replete with ancient iconography: A polished aluminum table lamp is shaped like a stepped pyramid; a console, carved from pitch-black marble and volcanic rock, references a Mayan altar.

But its not just the symbolism thats ancient; its the materials as well. The studios preferred one is volcanic rock  a near inevitability, says the 35-year-old Quintana, as the small country has more than two dozen mostly dormant volcanoes. The duo recently visited Lake Atitlan, a magnificent water-filled crater four hours west of the city, where Guatemalan stonecutters have worked for generations in the shadow of the areas three volcanoes. We want to really understand how they work so we can create new forms based on the tradition, says de Ros, 28, noting that theyve also collaborated with artisanal wicker makers in the countrys remote western highlands to build a series of round woven screens, as well as an all-female weaving collective in the central mountain town of Momostenango to design Agness color-blocked wall hangings.
Referring to her first scene as Mrs. Heron, Mr. Nicholaw suggested that she warm her up a little bit. But mostly he was full of praise. You have the best musical theater face ever, he said. He ended the rehearsal by punctuating his encouragement: Youre going to be so [clap] good [clap] tonight [clap].

Minutes before going on stage, Ms. Simard was in the wings as fellow cast members hugged her and wished her good luck. I feel ready, she said, staring intently at the stage.

Bernadette Peters  her former Hello, Dolly colleague  was in the audience to see her. And backstage, the crew had laid out boxes of Tic Tacs that were specially labeled Im a Pusher, a reference to one of Ms. Simards lines.

There was one early hiccup. As Ms. Norbury, that equation-writing calculus teacher, Ms. Simard skipped a few lines, throwing off the timing of an entrance for Erika Henningsen, as Cady.

In her dressing room right just afterward Ms. Simard took the blame. It makes for a funny story  later, she said.

Speaking of which, she also had a triumph: Her approach to Mrs. Georges first scene with the puppet dog earned her exit applause as she walked offstage.

She would remember to keep it in. It was time to leave the theater and go to bed. After all, she had two shows the next day.
A play about the Lehman brothers will arrive next year in New York, the city where the financial firm bearing their name collapsed in 2008.

The Lehman Trilogy, written by Stefano Massini and adapted by Ben Power, will run from March 22 to April 20, 2019, at the Park Avenue Armory in the Wade Thompson Drill Hall after a critically-acclaimed stint in London at the National Theater.

Sam Mendes, the filmmaker and theater director, will continue as director.

The Lehman Trilogy is a uniquely American story of an immigrant family who, in building their empire, were active protagonists in two centuries of American history, Rebecca Robertson, the president and executive director of Park Avenue Armory, said in a statement.

The three-part play follows the three Lehman brothers, played by Adam Godley, Ben Miles and Simon Russell Beale, from their arrival in New York in 1844 to the 2008 bankruptcy of the company they founded. The three actors, who will stay on in the New York production, also portray the brothers sons and grandsons.
Download the app

When you get wind of a long delay or cancellation, your first move should be to speak with someone  either in person, at the gate or on the phone. But phone waits can be epic when bad weather strikes an entire geographic region, as can in-person lines. While it isnt foolproof, its never a bad idea to download the app of the carrier youre traveling with. You can check departure statuses and sometimes easily change itineraries within the app itself.

Certain credit cards offer protection

Some credit cards, like Chase Sapphire Reserve and the United Explorer Card, offer a trip-delay benefit for common carrier travel (this would exclude things like taxi, commuter rail, and rental vehicle travel) purchased through the card. The delay threshold, which is 12 hours for some cards and six for others, will provide reimbursement up to $500 for reasonable expenses incurred during a delay. This includes lodging, food, transportation and other necessities. Its worth noting that some high-end travel cards, like American Express Platinum, do not offer this benefit.

If filing a claim, prepare for a slog

For my Newark cancellation, I filed a claim online through Chase Card Benefit Services (you can also begin your claim over the phone), which is administered by Allianz Global Assistance. Youll need a considerable amount of information to collect on your claim, including proof of round-trip travel, your old itinerary, your new itinerary, credit card statements and receipts for expenses incurred. Keep itemized receipts for meals and dont expect to be reimbursed for alcohol or gratuities. Theres no reason not to take yourself out to a nice meal, however: After my flight cancellation, I had a somewhat un-frugal late lunch at Balthazar that ran about $50 before tax and tip.

Sending credit card statements is an annoyance, as they sometimes wont post for weeks after youve made a purchase. Some people put off filing a claim until their statements post and forget to follow through  which is exactly what insurance companies bank on. Dont make that mistake: You can file your claim immediately, even if you dont have all the supporting documents. You can submit them later, provided its in within the required time frame (in Chases case, 100 days).

Youll need a statement from your common carrier stating the reason for the delay  again, not the most convenient thing to obtain. Write the airlines customer service email address to request verification of why your flight was delayed or canceled. It may take one or two follow-up emails, but they should oblige.

Finally, persistence is the key with collecting on insurance claims. Photograph receipts and screenshot boarding passes. My claim, which was filed weeks ago with over a dozen attachments, still shows as pending in their system. Ive called several times to follow up, and if I dont hear back by the end of the week, Ill call again.

Dont be afraid to ask for what you deserve

Think you deserve compensation for something? Ask for it. When a mechanical issue forced an overnight delay on a recent flight to Los Angeles, I went to the podium and requested hotel and food vouchers. I received a $109 hotel voucher as well as three $20 food vouchers, redeemable within the airport and at the Holiday Inn Express where I ended up staying. This wouldnt have happened had I not spoken to a gate agent and asked. The point is: While you may get turned down, you should always (politely) ask for what you think you deserve.
For the latest updates on Hurricane Florence, read our Thursday live briefing here.

Hours before Hurricane Florence is expected to begin its assault on the Carolinas, officials warned of fierce winds, catastrophic flooding, storm surges up to 13 feet and widespread power failures as they urged residents to get out while there was still time.

Florence, now a Category 2 storm packing sustained winds of up to 110 miles per hour, is expected to pummel the region for days, starting with heavy winds along the coast on Thursday morning. The hurricane will then gather strength and spread inland as the center of the storm edges toward the coast on Friday afternoon, bringing torrential rainfall of up to 40 inches that will continue through Saturday and Sunday.

Here are the latest developments:

 The major power supplier for North and South Carolina, Duke Energy, said that the storm could knock out power for up to three million customers across the two states and that it could take several weeks to restore electricity.

 The storm was predicted to slow and the eye could stall just offshore, battering the coast with high waves and dropping as much as 20 to 40 inches of rain in flood-prone coastal areas.
A dozen hurricanes have hit North Carolina since Hurricane Hazel swept ashore as a Category 4 storm in 1954, but none have been as severe.

Early this week, it appeared that Hurricane Florence could be as powerful, until forecasters downgraded it on Wednesday to Category 3, then Category 2. The storm was a Category 1 hurricane by the time its center arrived in North Carolina early Friday, bringing heavy rain and flooding.

The forecasts this week brought to mind Hazel, the last Category 4 storm to strike North Carolina. Arriving in October 1954, it was the deadliest and costliest storm of that years hurricane season.

Those who remember Hazel tell remarkable stories, Jay Barnes, a hurricane researcher, wrote on his website, where he compiles data and historical records of the states hurricanes dating to 1879.
Even though hundreds of children separated from their families after crossing the border have been released under court order, the overall number of detained migrant children has exploded to the highest ever recorded  a significant counternarrative to the Trump administrations efforts to reduce the number of undocumented families coming to the United States.

Population levels at federally contracted shelters for migrant children have quietly shot up more than fivefold since last summer, according to data obtained by The New York Times, reaching a total of 12,800 this month. There were 2,400 such children in custody in May 2017.

The huge increases, which have placed the federal shelter system near capacity, are due not to an influx of children entering the country, but a reduction in the number being released to live with families and other sponsors, the data collected by the Department of Health and Human Services suggests. Some of those who work in the migrant shelter network say the bottleneck is straining both the children and the system that cares for them.

Most of the children crossed the border alone, without their parents. Many are teenagers from Central America, and they are housed in a system of more than 100 shelters across the United States, with the highest concentration near the southwest border.
The final bill was softened a bit, but another factor helped shift policymaking in the same direction: The election of Pat McCrory as governor in 2012 meant that the Republican Party, which already dominated the legislature, now had total control of the state government, including the coastal resources commission, which was soon reshaped to be more friendly to business.

Before the Republicans gained the upper hand, North Carolina was a leader in really thoughtful coastal management, said Geoffrey R. Gisler, a lawyer with the Southern Environmental Law Center.

But the commissions 2010 report about sea level threw a scare into real estate developers, as well as some coastal residents, who worried that the state would respond with new policies that would crimp their profits or their way of life.

A lot of folks who have interests in developing areas that are currently vulnerable, and would become more vulnerable with sea level rise, objected to the public finding out that there was this projected significant sea-level rise, Mr. Gisler said. And so the legislature decided to prohibit looking that far out.

Mr. Gisler said that while its direct effects were limited, the 2012 law went hand in hand with a broader weakening in the state of environmental regulations that developers had opposed.

Under the new governor, the revamped coastal commission produced a report in 2015 that looked forward 30 years  a shorter, more credible time period, according to its chairman, Frank Gorham  and foresaw only six to eight inches of sea-level rise. Everyone looked at the 2100 time period, and the people that hated it dismissed it completely, and we just lost credibility, he said of the earlier report.

Robert S. Young, a coastal geology professor at Western Carolina University who had worked on the original report, responded in a newspaper column that local officials may breathe easier having to look only 30 years down the road, but six to eight inches of sea-level rise are no reason to celebrate.
WASHINGTON  The Department of Homeland Security transferred nearly $10 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to a budget document released by a Democratic senator late Tuesday night, diverting funds from the relief agency at the start of the hurricane season that began in June. The release of the document comes as a major storm barrels toward the East Coast.

The document, which was released by the office of Senator Jeff Merkley, of Oregon, shows that the money would come from FEMAs operations and support budget and was transferred into accounts at ICE to pay for detention and removal operations. The document also shows that the Department of Homeland Security transferred money from accounts at Customs and Border Protection that pays for border fencing and technology.

The transfer was a part of more than $200 million the Department of Homeland Security moved from the budgets of other agencies to ICEs detention and removals.

Mr. Merkley, appearing Tuesday night on The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC, said the Trump administration was taking money from FEMAS response and recovery and working hard to find funds for additional detention camps. Mr. Merkley has been a vocal critic of the administrations immigration policies.
WASHINGTON  They wade across the Rio Grande with inner tubes to reach American shores.

They walk through remote areas where the temperatures reach triple digits to evade immigration officials.

Some will never make it, drowning while crossing the river or perishing while trying to keep up with smugglers who have left them behind.

But despite the dangers, the migrants continue to come. Data released on Wednesday by Customs and Border Protection show that nearly 47,000 people were either apprehended by the Border Patrol or turned themselves in to customs officers last month at ports of entry along the Southwest border after traveling from mostly Central American countries.
The following is an edited and condensed version of the conversation.

Q. Congratulations again on your big win. Were you out late celebrating?

A. It was a great night and an evening with so many friends and supporters and my family. But you know, the most important thing is we are up ready to go this morning.

Where in the state are you this morning?

Weve headed out to Manchester to meet with voters and start campaigning.

No rest for the weary?

No, I dont think we could anyway. Im excited, and this is where we wanted to be this morning. So I am happy to be busy and back campaigning.

This is a state that Senator Bernie Sanders won in the presidential primary by 22 points. But in a year when some Democrats are losing to more progressive candidates, you bucked that trend. Why do you think that was? Is New Hampshire over Bernie-ism?
Hi. Welcome to On Politics, your guide to the day in national politics. Im Lisa Lerer, your host. Were watching hurricane maps and waiting for results in the Rhode Island primaries tonight.



Unless youre a serious political junkie, youve probably never heard of Faith Winter.

But the 38-year-old candidate for the Colorado State Senate is running for a seat that has attracted intense focus  and spending  from both parties. Thats because if she wins, and other seats hold, control of the state legislature flips to the Democrats.

[Get On Politics delivered to your inbox.]

Besides Colorado, there are a half-dozen states where Democrats are a few seats away from winning control of the state senate:

 One seat away in New York, Maine and Minnesota.

 Two seats away in Wisconsin.

 Three away in Arizona and New Hampshire.

For state legislatures, its the number one race in the country, Ms. Winter told me in a phone interview this week. In Colorado, in order to flip the Senate, its just my seat that we have win.
Planned Parenthood, under fire from conservatives in Washington and state capitols, chose Leana Wen, an emergency room doctor whose family fled China when she was a child, as its next president Wednesday, picking a woman who won praise for her steadying hand as Baltimores health commissioner during the citys convulsive protests in 2015.

Dr. Wen, 35, grew up poor in Compton, Calif., after her family left China following the Tiananmen Square massacre just before her eighth birthday. She relied on Medicaid as a child, and in nearly four years in Baltimore has drawn acclaim for working with corporations and churches to close racial disparities in health care and sharply reducing infant mortality.

She has also pushed back aggressively on the Trump administrations cuts to health care. She will take over Planned Parenthoods leadership at a particularly fraught time. While Americans overwhelmingly support the organization, its Republican critics are pushing to cut its funding and eviscerate or overturn Roe v. Wade, and the Supreme Court is poised to tilt further right as critical cases on womens health advance through the courts.

Earlier this year, Baltimore sued the Trump administration for cutting teen pregnancy prevention funds, which resulted in a federal judge ordering $5 million in grant funding to be restored to two of the citys programs. She fought to preserve Title X funding for the citys health clinics for low-income women, and is leading a lawsuit that accuses the administration of intentionally and unlawfully sabotaging the Affordable Care Act.
Good Wednesday morning. Here are some of the stories making news in Washington and politics today.

 The Department of Education has reopened a civil rights case against Rutgers University that the Obama administration had closed. The move injected federal authority into the campus battles over Israel, equating opposition to Zionism with anti-Semitism and defining Judaism as an ethnicity as well as a religion.

 Pressure is intensifying on undecided senators before a vote to confirm President Trumps Supreme Court nominee. Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, said she has been targeted with a barrage of calls, some using vulgar language and threats, to push her to vote against Judge Brett Kavanaugh.

 According to Donald Trump Jr., the presidents anxiety about whom he can trust has only increased in the days since anonymous administration members laid out in stark detail concerns about his ability to lead.

 A broad group of governors, mayors and business executives declared last year that they would uphold the Paris climate deal, making a case to the rest of the world that they, and not the president, spoke for the nation. Now the group is at a critical juncture, the moment when it shows whether or not it can rise to the task.
After pleading guilty to the fraternization charge, Corporal Cruz was reduced in rank from sergeant to corporal and restricted to the base. She may also leave the Marine Corps with an other-than-honorable discharge, meaning she could be stripped of almost all Veterans Affairs benefits and jeopardize future employment in the civilian sector.

Corporal Cruzs lawyer, Capt. Jacob R. Johnston, said the commanding general of the Second Marine Division will decide if she receives an honorable discharge. Her separation from the Marine Corps is still being processed, said Maj. Robert E. Shuford, a spokesman for the Second Marine Expeditionary Force.

Regardless of the outcome of this case, Corporal Cruz has been a courageous pioneer for women in the military and she has earned a place in Marine Corps history, Captain Johnston said in a statement.

Of the roughly 184,000 active-duty Marines, around 15,800 are women. As of July, 24 women were serving in infantry billets in the Marine Corps, according to military documents obtained by The New York Times.

The Army, with roughly 740 women who are serving in previously restricted combat roles, has encountered its own issues with integrating women into the jobs. Last week, the Army Times reported an investigation of a relationship between a senior noncommissioned officer and a junior female infantry soldier in the same unit.

Corporal Cruz, of Fleischmanns, N.Y., joined the Marines as a supply clerk in 2013 and completed infantry training in 2014. Two years later, she requested to transfer to an infantry unit after then-Secretary of Defense Ash Carter ordered that women be allowed in all previously restricted combat roles. The Marine Corps vehemently opposed the change.

I had a taste of what it was like to train to fight, Corporal Cruz said. And I felt like if I was going to say that I served my country, I wanted to be able to just do that  but not on the sidelines.
PARSIPPANY, N.J.  Mikie Sherrill, Democratic candidate for Congress, had finished a radio interview and was heading toward the stage at the local library where a crowd waited for her to begin an event with the mayor and a native-son-turned-astronaut.

But first, there was a smudge of chocolate to be dealt with.

Ms. Sherrill reached down and cleaned the face of her 6-year-old daughter, Marit, who squirmed, pigtails shaking. Im doing it, Ms. Sherrill insisted. Her 8-year-old seized on the distraction to ask if he could have a cookie. One, his mother told him.

She briefly chided her 12-year-old for letting Marit get chocolate on her face, then took her seat on stage, settling in with a broad smile and the perfect posture honed by her days at the United States Naval Academy  apparently immune to the funny faces Marit was making from the front row.

Ms. Sherrill is often introduced as Navy pilot, federal prosecutor and mother of four, as if the descriptions should be hyphenated. But as she campaigns around this suburban battleground House district her role as a mother is the one most on display. Her children march in the front row of parades, tumble out of the familys SUV with lacrosse sticks in a television ad, and milled in the crowd at Ms. Sherrills event with Joe Biden along with the children of her volunteers, many of whom are mothers from her childrens schools.
WASHINGTON  Members of Congress sent a letter on Wednesday to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross pressing him to impose limits on the sale of certain technologies by American companies to Chinese companies or agencies. The lawmakers argued that Chinese security forces might use the technologies for overbearing surveillance and other human rights abuses.

The two signers of the letter, Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida, and Representative Christopher H. Smith, Republican of New Jersey, wrote that their concerns were particularly acute in relation to technologies used by security forces that are maintaining surveillance and mass internment camp systems on Muslim minorities in the northwest region of Xinjiang.

The Chinese government and the Communist Party have been building large internment camps in the vast borderland region to control the population of ethnic Uighurs, Turkic speakers who mostly practice Sunni Islam, and other Muslim groups, including Kazakhs. Western experts who have analyzed the camps say they hold up to one million people. Human rights advocates and legal scholars say that what Chinese officials are doing amounts to the worst human rights abuse in China in decades.

In recent months, China has come under growing international criticism for the system, and prominent news organizations have done investigative reports on the camps, including The New York Times.
HONG KONG  A super typhoon packing winds of up to 150 miles per hour is heading toward the Philippines, picking up speed over the Pacific on a route that also has Taiwan and the heavily populated southeastern coast of China in its sights.

Super Typhoon Mangkhut is on track to hit the northern Philippines with its strongest winds on Friday before striking Taiwan and then possibly veering south toward Hong Kong and mainland China.

As many as 43 million people could be exposed to cyclone-strength winds, according to the Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System. Its winds are expected to intensify Thursday and Friday  reaching speeds as high as 161 m.p.h.  before weakening Saturday, the Hong Kong Observatory said.

It added that the typhoon will pose considerable threat to the coast of Guangdong, a coastal province in China with more than 100 million people.
VATICAN CITY  Pope Francis summoned bishops from around the world to Rome for an unprecedented meeting focused on protecting minors. The order on Wednesday comes as the pope wrestles with a global clerical sexual abuse crisis and explosive accusations of a cover-up that have shaken his papacy and the entire Roman Catholic Church.

The extraordinary meeting marks the first time that presidents of bishops conferences worldwide have been summoned for a meeting on a specific topic  more than 100 will be there  and the choice of topic was telling. Just last month, the Vaticans former ambassador in the United States accused the pope of willfully ignoring a history of sexual misconduct by an American cardinal.

After three decades of denial, the Vatican is being forced to treat the sex abuse problem as a global crisis, and not the failing of a particular country or culture.

News of the popes summons came as a study commissioned by the church in Germany revealed the abuse of thousands of children by more than a thousand clergymen there for decades. The study was due to be published later this month, but was leaked.
MOSCOW  President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia said on Wednesday that his country had found the two Russians that Britain accuses of trying to use a rare nerve agent to kill a former Soviet spy, and identified them as civilians who had done nothing criminal. He also said he would like the men, who Britain says are Russian military intelligence officers, to come forward to tell their story.

Mr. Putins statement, made at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia, was far from an admission of Russias involvement in the poisoning of Sergei V. Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury, England, on March 4. But it does amount to an abrupt shift from Russias previous position that it had no idea who the two suspects named by Britain were, and that they may have been invented to blacken Russias name.

We of course checked who these people are. We know who they are, we found them, Mr. Putin said at the economic forum. They are civilians, of course.

He said that he would like the two to come forward. It would be better for everyone, he said I can assure you that there is nothing special, nothing criminal there. We will see very soon.
BEIRUT, Lebanon  Despite attacks that have killed dozens of civilians at a time, the Trump administration on Wednesday certified that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are doing enough to minimize the deadly impact of their military campaign in Yemen.

The certification, announced by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, was legally required to allow American military aircraft to continue refueling warplanes belonging to the two Gulf nations, the dominant members of an Arab coalition fighting a brutal war in Yemen that has helped create the worlds worst humanitarian crisis.

Mr. Pompeos move came amid rising concern in Washington about the coalitions prosecution of the war and worries among some lawmakers that American weapons were being used to commit war crimes and that American officials could be held liable.

In its efforts to oust Yemens Houthi rebels from the capital, Sana, the coalition has bombed weddings, funerals, factories and other civilian infrastructure, often with munitions acquired from the United States. The aerial assaults have elicited harsh criticisms from United Nations investigators and human rights groups, who have also accused the Houthis of violating the laws of war.
A decade ago this week, Wall Street imploded. Read our special coverage.

The big banks have changed in many ways. Listen to their chief executives. Look at their businesses. Dive into their balance sheets. Much suggests that the largest lenders are no longer the unstable giants that cratered the global economy a decade ago.

But banking is also a powerful industry that knows how to resist change. The Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 was Congresss attempt to make banks stronger and better behaved. While the legislation overhauled much of what banks do, much remains the same.

Banks rebuilt from the wreckage

Heading into 2008, the biggest firms simply werent made to withstand a storm. They didnt have sufficient capital, the financial cushion that absorbs losses. Common equity, the amount shareholders have invested in a company, is a good measure of that cushion.

2017 2007 $630 billion $1.1 trillion 2007 $630 billion 2017 $1.1 trillion

Common equity is now a greater proportion of the top 10 firms assets, or the loans, securities and trading positions on their balance sheets, according to company filings and an analysis by The New York Times.

2007 2017 5.7% 9.6% 2007 5.7% 2017 9.6%

Capital wasnt the only weak point in 2008. The big banks were also dangerously dependent on short-term borrowing like commercial paper and repo loans to finance their lending and trading. That type of borrowing dried up when Lehman Brothers went bankrupt and investors got spooked, crippling the broader financial system. Large banks have cut back on their use of this borrowing, according to figures from the Federal Reserve.

2007 2017 32% 14% 2007 32% 2017 14%

But a few top firms still dominate

The biggest financial institutions have only gotten bigger. This increases the likelihood that taxpayers will be called on again to rescue these behemoths if they get into serious trouble.

The total assets of the five largest U.S. banks as a share of all U.S. bank assets. 40% 30 20 10 12 16 92 96 00 04 08 The total assets of the five largest U.S. banks as a share of all U.S. bank assets. 40% 30 20 10 96 00 04 08 12 16 Source: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

And despite complaints that the new regulations would hamper growth, banks rake in huge profits. Jamie Dimon, the chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, the United States largest bank, suggested this year that a new golden age of banking was underway.

Their top ranks dont look that different

In 2008, none of the 10 largest financial firms had female chief executives; the same is true today.

Mr. Dimon still runs JPMorgan Chase. The incoming chief of Goldman Sachs could be mistaken for the departing one.

Outgoing: Lloyd C. Blankfein Michelle V. Agins/The New York Times Incoming: David M. Solomon Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg

But chief executive pay is down. In 2006, the last year before tremors started to hit the banking system, the chief executives of the top 10 American financial firms earned $36.3 million on average. In 2017, their average compensation was $20.3 million.

They have significant influence in Washington

Under President Trump, deregulation is again de rigueur. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, set up after the crisis to prevent abusive lending practices, has been defanged. Regulators have started to chip away at capital rules. And they have loosened the Volcker Rule, a landmark post-crisis regulation that bars banks from trading for their own profit.

Dodd-Frank is a disaster. Were going to be doing a big number on Dodd-Frank.  President Trump

And banks still do bad things

Since the financial crisis, United States banks have paid out roughly $175 billion in legal settlements, mainly for deceptive mortgage practices before the crisis, according to data compiled by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods.

Bank of America $76 billion JPMorgan Chase 44 Citigroup 19 Wells Fargo 12 Morgan Stanley 9 Bank of America $76 billion JPMorgan Chase 44 Citigroup 19 Wells Fargo 12 Morgan Stanley 9 Source: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

But banks were involved in plenty of other types of wrongdoing, like the manipulation of a key benchmark known as Libor, the rigging of foreign exchange markets, the aiding of tax evasion and the failure to crack down on money laundering. Most of these had little to do with the financial crisis, and some of this misconduct took place after 2008. As Wells Fargos recent scandals show, some bankers are still abusing their customers.

In an affidavit filed last year as part of a shareholder lawsuit, a former manager of a Wells Fargo branch (which the company called stores) described some of that abuse.

I went to John to report this fraudulent activity and asked him if this was what our store was coming to. John told me, You have to decide if you want a job here. You can either run with us or not.  Deposition of former Wells Fargo employee

The branch manager, Ricky M. Hansen Jr. of Scottsdale, Ariz., was fired after contacting the banks ethics hotline about illegal accounts he had seen being opened by his coworkers.
What to watch: Gov. Gina Raimondo faces a challenge in the Democratic primary from Matt Brown, a former Rhode Island secretary of state who has positioned himself to her left. Mr. Brown has collected support from an eclectic mix of activist groups and personal critics of Ms. Raimondo, including Our Revolution, a group aligned with Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Read more

Ms. Raimondo, a former venture-capital executive, is one of just two female Democratic governors, and the only one who originally won the governorship in her own right. (The other, Gov. Kate Brown of Oregon, took office in 2015 when her male predecessor resigned in a scandal.)

Ms. Raimondo is favored to prevail and then face a competitive general election. Republicans are choosing between several candidates, including Allan Fung, the mayor of Cranston who opposed Ms. Raimondo in 2014, and Representative Patricia Morgan, the party leader in the State House, in their primary. A third candidate, Joe Trillo, a Republican-turned-independent who was the state chairman for Donald J. Trumps presidential campaign, is also running.

 ALEXANDER BURNS

Read more about todays most important races.
An Egyptian man working as a hotel receptionist in Saudi Arabia was recently arrested after posting a short video of himself having breakfast with a fully-veiled female co-worker on social media.

The man, known only as Bahaa, was arrested on Sunday after a video of himself having breakfast with a female co-worker at a Jeddah hotel attracted a lot of unwanted attention on social media. The short clip shows only Bahaa and a fully-veiled woman eating breakfast, but that was apparently a clear violations of a Saudi law that states that workplaces and eateries should have separate spaces for men and women. It drew condemnation from the vast majority of Saudis, who saw this behavior as incompatible with Saudi culture.

Photo: video screengrab

The government should prosecute those who dare to disrespect Saudi laws and systems, distort the image of our conservative society, and promote moral degradation with the strictest punishment one Twitter user commented.

Others said that the woman should be punished as well, as she also participated in this farce.

I need to understand why men are constantly punished and not women, a Saudi woman wrote. I am a Saudi and I swear I want them to punish her with him. Laughter, eating at the workplace where are your limits?

After the attack on his first video, Bahaa posted a second one in which he describes peoples reaction as exaggerated, considering that he was only having breakfast with a co-worker. Well, hell be having breakfast in jail for a while, as authorities had him arrested for posting an offensive video on social media. He will most likely get deported for his mistake.

The hotel owner was also summoned for explanations, specifically why he failed to adhere to regulations related to womens behavior in the workplace, and why he had hired an expat to do a job that should have been exclusive to Saudis.

While most Saudis declared themselves outraged by Bahaas video, there were those who considered his arrest and peoples reactions outrageous.

In any normal country this is considered as a personal business, but in Saudi Arabia this will lead you to the prison, and all the society will discuss your story. We are in the deep shit, somebody must help us!

#___   (@h_i_h_i__q) September 9, 2018

If you are a ruler and commit adultery on air, we will pray for your [divine] guidance. But if you are an Egyptian migrant worker, eating fries with your female colleague?? Straight to prison, you infidel! one Twitter user said.

Fake religiosity: when you are aggressive with the weak and lenient with the powerful another person added.

via Middle East Eye
In case you havent kept up with Donald Trumps tweets (39K of them since June 2009), fear not.

Since his White House era tweets are official pronouncements of the president of the US, every one of them will be gathered and made accessible online or at his presidential library, once he leaves office. Bet you can't wait.

That treasure trove of nonsense will include todays doozy, sent ahead of the potential killer hurricane that is barreling down on the Carolinas and Virginia:

We got A Pluses for our recent hurricane work in Texas and Florida (and did an unappreciated great job in Puerto Rico, even though an inaccessible island with very poor electricity and a totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan). We are ready for the big one that is coming!

Our president just cant stop singing his own praises, whether they are earned or exist only in his head.

Michiko Kakutani, former long-time book critic of the New York Times, tries to make sense of Trumps tweets in her recently released book, The Death of Truth. Get a copy. It's well worth the time of any communicator.

She writes that Trumps tweets have consequences, whether they be distractions meant to divert attention from the Russia investigations, the stream-of-consciousness rants of at attention-craving narcissist, or part of a more deliberate strategy to acclimate people to the aberrant.

Kakutani quotes Ruth Ben-Ghiat, professor of history and Italian studies at New York University, who sees parallels between Trumps rise and that of Mussolini.

Ben-Ghiat argues that authoritarians typically test the limits of what the public, press and political class will tolerate" and that Trumps incendiary tweets and remarks are efforts to see how much Americans and the GOP will let him get away withand when, if ever they will say enough.

The Republican partyapparently happy with Trumps tax cuts for the rich, deregulatory push, Supreme Court nominations and evisceration of ObamaCarehas abandoned its responsibility to keep the president in check. The spineless GOP totally caved to Trump, fearing the power of his voting base in potential primary challenges.

Kakutani also writes that like Big Brother in George Orwells 1984, Team Trump exerts control over reality by adjusting the past to conform with their worldview.

She notes that within days of Trumps inauguration, changes were made to the White House websites section on climate change to conform with the presidents denial of a threat from global warming.

The Environmental Protection Agency also did its part, according to Kakutani, when it announced that its website was undergoing changes that reflect the agencys new direction.

Its announcement included the chilling Orwellian phrase updating language to reflect the approach of new leadership. War is peace/freedom is slavery/ignorance is strength, indeed.

The presidents tweet today attempted to re-write the history of the feeble federal response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

You wont find truth-tellers in the Republican party (RIP John McCain) to challenge the presidential re-write. So its left to Democrats like San Juans mayor Carmen Ulin Cruz to speak truth to power in responding to Trumps tweet.

He doesnt understand that this isnt about him and about his ego, she told MSNBC. This is about the inability of his administration, that he directs, to ensure that the appropriate help got to Puerto Rico in time. Cruz tweeted that if Trump thinks losing 3,000 lives in Puerto Rico is a success, Can you imagine what he thinks failure is?

Good luck to all of the people in the path of Hurricane Florence.


William Comcowich

As Hurricane Florence begins to pound the Carolinas, corporate communicators around the country will likely be urgently reviewing their disaster response plans. Some will feel more confident of weathering storms than others, and some may wish they had created detailed crisis communications plans earlier.

With many days still left in this years hurricane season, more severe storms striking the US are a distinct possibility. Other types of catastrophic weather events will become more common, climate experts predict. You only need to note the massive forest fires in California.

That signals that PR teams need to incorporate weather into their crisis plans. The need to plan for weather and other crises isnt limited to major corporations. Smaller companies including retail businesses and PR agencies must also plan and prepare for weather disruptions.

As with other types of crises, preparation for severe weather requires creating a PR crisis plan that covers protocols for communicating with the media, public and internal audiences. A natural disaster plan also includes contingency plans for loss of power, temporary closure of your business, working remotely and interrupted Internet service.

When contingency plans are essential

Adequate plans include back-up communication methods, including lists of cell phone and home phone numbers and alternate email addresses of key players. Plans may also include arrangements for sending key team members to other offices or locations outside the potential disaster zone.

Because many people have trouble getting to work during storms and other types of severe weather, its not just corporate PR departments that need crisis plans. PR service providers who monitor media, distribute news releases and complete other communications services also need contingency plans, experts say.

The need for a plan may seem obvious, but research indicates that many businesses lack written plans for managing weather-related crises, said Lisa Goldsberry at Axia Public Relations. A year after Hurricane Sandy pummeled New York City in 2012, most businesses still didnt have any kind of plan.

If you dont plan ahead, its harder to bounce back, Goldsberry said. Communicating quickly is important, but you must first know what and how to communicate.

Prioritize your team

PR teams often work around the clock to secure accurate storm information, facilitate interviews, monitor traditional and social media and update media and social channels. Staff members may become overworked during a natural disaster and may be preoccupied with their own homes and families.

Prioritize the health, safety and well-being of your team before anything else, recommended Carey Kirkpatrick, CEO and founder of communications firm CKP, in Forbes. Make sure your team members manage their own personal and safety needs during and after a disaster. Feel free to decline a media opportunity, especially if it would negatively affect your client or a team members personal safety or well-being, suggested Kirkpatrick, whose Houston-based PR firm worked through Hurricane Harvey.

During Harvey, my team declined national media opportunities for both these reasons. And you know what? The opportunities waited for our clients, she said.

Media measurement and benchmarking can indicate when its acceptable to pass on a media opportunity, pointed out Katie Paine, CEO of Paine Publishing. Most large organizations have a crisis communications plan, complete with a dark website ready to go live at any time and even a crisis newsroom on standby. Smaller organizations typically lack such resources. But if they have a monitoring and measurement system in place, many valuable resources will already be at their fingertips, Paine said. Outsourced services will usually be outside the disaster area and have backup servers in the cloud, minimizing any downtime.

While PR teams can share helpful information, its critical to avoid spreading fake news reports. Social media hoaxes  like the Photoshopped image of a shark swimming in flooded Houston streets after Hurricane Harvey  tend to proliferate and spread quickly during disasters. Verify before retweeting. Be suspicious of news that seems outrageous or seems too good or too bad to be true. Learn the basic tricks on how to spot false news and doctored photos to verify information before retweeting.

How will your firm contribute to relief efforts?

As the Carolinas begin to recover from floods and severe wind damage, were likely to see an outpouring of both individual and corporate donations. Besides donating funds directly to relief organizations and charities, companies will surely donate their products, waive fees, and provide shelter to storm refugees.

Following Hurricane Harvey last year, corporations that sent free products to storm-damaged areas included Duracell (batteries), Chobani (yogurt) and Walmart (bottled water).

Other corporations helped storm victims in more creative ways. Southwest Airlines and United Continental offered incentives to encourage customers to donate frequent flier points to relief workers. The Anheuser-Busch brewery in Cartersville, GA., traded in hops for helping hands and halted beer production to produce cans of water.

Furniture store owner Jim McIngvale opened his two stores to storm evacuees in the Houston area. People sat on his chairs, rested on sofas and slept on mattresses. McIngvale, known as mattress mack, also provided them three meals a day, earning enormous publicity and good will for his generosity and compassion.

Pause promotions

Unfortunately, some marketers may attempt a crass promotion or clumsy effort at storm-related humor. During the height of Hurricane Harvey, Chick-fil-A, which has a large presence in the Houston area, promoted its hash brown scrambles. Burger King tweeted that The secret to happiness is Chicken Fries. Target, one of the most popular shopping chains in Texas, tweeted: Were pawsitively pumped for #NationalDogDay! Spoil your fur baby with our latest & greatest pet products.

Better advice is to pause social media promotions during natural disasters. Social media posts not ordinarily deemed offensive may seem insensitive during a time of personal and community crisis. Beware of scheduling social media posts in advance with automated tools, a common social media tactic.

The most appropriate action is to express sympathy and, ideally, offer aid to the victims. Promising to donate a portion of sales to relief efforts can enhance the brands image and boost sales. PR and marketing pros need to proceed cautiously or else well-intentioned offers may come across as self-promotional.

PR pros can encourage their companies to help their community with donations of products, services or cash during or after the disaster. Everyone has something to give, loan or share if they wish to do so, said Kirkpatrick.

Bottom Line: Hurricane Florence emphasizes the need for companies to prepare or update their crisis communications plans. As hurricanes and other natural disasters strike with increasing frequency, businesses will need to make sure they include natural disaster in their crisis management plans. Wise corporate communicators will help their own organizations survive the disaster and then help guide their companies through community relief efforts.

***

William J. Comcowich founded CyberAlert LLC and currently serves as Interim CEO of Glean.info, a media monitoring, measurement and analytics service that includes the first Fake News Monitoring solution.


From left: Lana Tkachenko, Jill Hawkins, Matthew Lenig, Casey Ruggiero, Alison Swift

360PR+ has brought on Matthew Lenig in the newly created position of SVP-creative director, Casey Ruggiero as director of digital marketing and Alison Swift as director of consumer insights & brand strategy. Lenig comes to 360PR+ after serving as VP, group creative director at McCann Worldwide. Before that, he was co-founder and creative director at C+C East in Boston. He has worked with such consumer and corporate clients as New Balance, ExxonMobil, Anheuser-Busch and Green Mountain Coffee. Ruggiero, the founder of digital consulting group Trend Spotter Media, has also served as sales director at ad tech company Rubicon Project and digital media supervisor at Allen & Gerritsen. Swift has spent more than a decade in research and media planning roles at agencies including Havas, a&g and Match. In addition, Jill Hawkins has been promoted to SVP-creative director, working with Lenig, and Lana Tkachenko has been elevated from senior digital media manager to director of social media. 360PR+ has offices in Boston, New York and San Francisco.



Robert Udowitz

Gould + Partners has named Robert Udowitz and Don Bates as lead senior counselors for the Washington area. Udowitz has practiced at Fleishman-Hillard, Powell Tate and Rubenstein Associates, as well as holding senior positions at trade associations and publicly traded corporations. His private practice includes consulting as well as an agency search firm, RFP Associates. He has been an officer of the PRSA-National Capital Chapter for more than ten years. Bates, who has worked with G+P for several years, owned and operated The Bates Company for 12 years, before selling it in 1995. He also teaches at New York University and is the founding director of George Washingtons Universitys graduate PR degree program. Udowitz and Bates will contact D.C.-area PR and marketing firms regularly with agency management advice. They will also provide counsel on valuation and succession planning as needed, in collaboration with G+Ps New York City home office.



Crystal Cooper

Signature FD, financial design, advisory firm, has appointed Crystal Cooper as director of marketing and communications. Cooper joins the firm from ad tech company Cardlytics, where she was most recently senior marketing and communications manager. Before that, she was an account supervisor at Porter Novelli and an account exec at Brandware Public Relations. In her new post, Cooper will focus on enhancing SignatureFDs brand and services among current and prospective clients, as well as partners.
Irish Water has provided the Offaly Express with an explanation for a widespread service outage in Edenderry on Wednesday morning, September 12.

Homes across the town woke up to no water with the outage affecting large swathes of the town, including the Carrick Road, Cokery and Rectory Meadows.

Speaking to the Offaly Express, a spokesperson for Irish Water explained the reason for the sudden outage.

"The high lift pumps at Blundell Wood Water Tower tripped out last night due to a fault and did not automatically switch over to the stand-by pump. As a result, water supplies in the reservoir dropped," they said.

That reduced the water supply available across the town but Irish Water have said that "the issue is now being addressed."

"We have manually switched over to the stand-by pump, and the water tower is filling as we speak and normal service should be restored to customers by this afternoon," the spokesperson concluded

A contractor is on his way to site to find and fix the fault.
Tributes have been paid to the 18-year-old Offaly student killed in a tragic road accident outside Athlone IT on Tuesday morning, September 11.

Jordan Murphy was commencing his second year in a business course at the college when he was struck by a car while walking near the campus. He was transferred to Tullamore Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The Tullamore native, who worked in the Brewery Tap pub, was a popular young man, and tributes have flooded in from across the country.

The AIT Students' Union led those tributes and announced a special mass at the college in the Earl of Ross at 1pm on Wednesday afternoon.

Daire Foley wrote, "Rest easy Jordan, one of the happiest people Ive ever known, always trying to make everyone else smile, a gentleman in every way."

PJ Molloy added, "Rest in peace Jordan Murphy, you always had a chat with me in the Brewery Tap. My thoughts and prayers are with your family and friends."

The Offaly Rose Centre said, "the Offaly Rose Centre team along with current Offaly Rose Katie Kehoe wish to extend our deepest condolences to the family, girlfriend and friends of Jordan Murphy. Rest in God's hands."

Adam Tahraoui paid a heartfelt tribute to Jordan. "Ive met a handful of people in my life who always had a smile on their face and Jordan you had the biggest smile of them all, you made going into The Brewery Tap a pleasure, going out of your way to drop pints to the table," he said.

"Its a testament to your positive energy and larger than life personality that Im sitting here drinking a pint in the Tap crying in your memory," Adam wrote on Tuesday evening.

The Irish Pipe Band Association wrote, "It is with great sadness that the pipe band world has been made aware of the passing of Jordan Murphy. Jordan was a much-loved member of the St Colmcille Pipe Band from Tullamore. Our condolences to his family, friends and band members."

Funeral Details

Reposing at O'Reilly's Funeral Home, Harbour Street, Tullamore on Thursday from 4pm until Rosary that night at 8pm. Funeral Mass on Friday morning at 10am in the Church of the Assumption, Tullamore. Burial after Mass in Clonminch Cemetery, Tullamore.
Gardai from The Intellectual Property Crime Unit (IPCU) of the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation have arrested four people during an operation targeting illegal IPTV streaming services.

The operation took place in Dublin and Meath on Tuesday, September 11.

Gardai carried out searches of two houses, in Crumlin and Ashbourne yesterday morning where four people, two women aged 37 and 40 years, and two men aged 42 and 45 years, were arrested.

They were detained under Section 4 -Criminal Justice Act, 1984 in Crumlin and Ashbourne Garda Stations and later released.



They were arrested for offences under the Copyright and Related Rights Act, 2000, and the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) Act, 2010.

This operation is the culmination of an investigation by An Garda Siochana into the illegal streaming of TV content including pay per view products. It has been carried out in conjunction with police forces in England and Scotland.

Europol have provided assistance on this 'Day of Action' and Europol officers are on the ground with Gardai in Ireland. Significant support is being provided by some of the major TV companies and the Motion Picture Association.

The operation yesterday is supported by the Criminal Assets Bureau, the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau and local Gardai in Crumlin and Ashbourne. Six bank accounts and two credit union accounts have been identified and freezing orders pursuant to Money Laundering legislation have been invoked, in total 84,000 has been frozen.

In addition, nine third-party payment accounts have been identified and limited. It has been established that over 700k in total has been paid into these accounts in the last 3 years.

Speaking yesterday, Detective Superintendent George Kyne of the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation said; "This is an organised criminal enterprise where consumers are funding criminality and depriving genuine industry of legitimate revenue."

"Consumers are providing their payment details to unknown individuals and leaving themselves open to being the victims of fraud and/or data theft. The security around these devices and illegal streaming platforms exposes customers and leaves their home systems vulnerable. It is important that the public is aware of the impact of illegal streaming and its consequences.
An Offaly weather forecaster has predicted the arrival of Hurricane Helene over Ireland in the early days of next week.

Cathal Nolan from the Midland Weather Channel, said, "over the past number of days I have been monitoring the projected path of Hurricane Helene, with the latest guidance from the available weather models indicating that the remnants of hurricane Helene will impact Ireland sometime between next Monday and Tuesday."

"Its important to stress that by then Helene will have been downgraded to a post-tropical depression, having lost its hurricane status crossing much cooler waters in the Mid-Atlantic," Cathal added, "however, projected wind speeds across southern and eastern areas of country could still hit 110-130 kph."

"Heavy rain may be an additional threat depending upon the location, track and intensity of Helene," Cathal stated.

He concluded by saying, "this is a developing situation, and one which requires careful monitoring over the coming days. At present it doesnt look as though Helene will be as powerful as Hurricane Ophelia, however, all precautions will be taken when monitoring this storm."
Madhya Pradesh: Students' black scarves seized ahead of CM programme

Bhopal

pti-PTI

Betul, Sep 11: Amid a series of incidents of showing black flags to the political leaders in Madhya Pradesh, police allegedly took away black scarves of a few college students before attending a programme of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in Betul district on Tuesday (September 11).

About half-a-dozen women students of the Mahatma Gandhi Chitrakoot Gramodaya Vishwavidyalaya had reached Multai town -- around 220 km south of Bhopal -- to attend the event. They were in their uniforms. Narrating the incident, one of the women said, "When we reached the venue, a woman police officer told us to remove our black dupattas and keep it in the bag. Later, they took it away, saying that it would be given back after the end of the CM's programme." She said they were told that the scarves would be returned from the Multai police station. "When we reached the police station, the officers there again told us to reach the venue to collect it, but still we are not getting our scarf."

Hitting out at Chouhan over the incident, former Multai MLA and state Congress general secretary Sukhdev Panse said, "The chief minister is afraid. He is afraid even from the uniforms of the girl students. This has never happened in the state's history when the police took away the chunnis of the girls due to fear of protest."

Local BJP MLA Chandrashekhar Deshmukh denied having any knowledge about the incident. "This is serious if such things have happened. I am immediately going to talk to police officers as to why this has happened." On the other hand, Multai police station incharge Ram Snehi Chouhan also expressed ignorance about the incident. "I was on duty at other place to arrest the protesters."

Earlier, the Congress leaders staged a protest with black flags and courted arrest near the venue. Of late, several incidents had taken place in the state in which the people protesting against the recent amendments to the SC/ST Act had shown black flags to the political leaders of all parties.

PTI
7th Pay Commission: Dead end, bad news, it is confirmed, no hike anytime now

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 12: All hopes seemed to have died where the issue relating to the 7th Pay Commission is concerned.

The wait is going to get longer and the government has made no commitment what so ever in this regard. The huge issues regarding the fuel prices and rupee collapse is what the government is busy with.

7th Pay Commission latest news and updates: As hopes die, CG employees to hit the roads

A top official confirmed to OneIndia, " yes the issue is on hold as of now. There is no movement on it as there are other pressing issues such as the soaring fuel prices and rupee fall. We need to get those things in order, before we move over to the issue relating to the 7th Pay Commission."

Further the Union Government has also left it to the wisdom of the states to implement the recommendations of the pay panel. Several states have already announced sops. The government even wants the states to cut the VAT on fuel as it say that if it announces a cut in fuel prices, then the loss would be estimated at Rs 30,000 crore.

While the salary hike as per the recommendations of the pay panel did increase the salaries to Rs 18,000 a large section of CG employees felt that this was not enough. The demand currently is an increase of up to Rs 26,000.

This bad news for the CG employees comes in the wake of protests being planned. The CG employees have decided to up the ante on the issue relating to the 7th Pay Commission and have decided to observe September 19 as 'All India Protest Day."

The resolution states, " as decided by the NJCA, the affiliates are directed to hold mass rallies/demonstrations protesting against Government failure to implement its assurances on revision of minimum wage, improvement of fitment formula and abolition of National Pension System (NPS). Other pending issues related to railway employees may also be highlighted during protest actions. Affiliates may take note that "September 2018" should be treated as PROTEST MONTH by organising different forms of protest actions at all levels i.e. Depots, Establishments, Workshops, Major Stations etc."

ESIC Recruitment 2018 vacancies, how to apply, 7th Pay Commission pay scale

"All India Protest Day" should be observed on 19th September 2018 and on the said date the affiliates should mobilise employees in large number along with those of Central Government Employees Organisations and hold massive rallies/demonstrations. The members of INDWF and FNPO should also be made part of agitation wherever possible."

This is a clear indication that has been no movement on the 7th Pay Commission. The last time discussions to this effect were held, the government said that it would get back after studying the financial implications.

The government official said that for now it does not appear one bit feasible. The officer however confirmed that the issue relating to the 7th Pay Commission is not dead and it could see the light sometime by the end of this year or early next year.
Lawyer without brief is like Tendulkar without his bat on cricket ground: SC

Bhima-Koregaon: Activists to remain under house arrest till Sep 17 says SC

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 12: The Supreme Court has said that the house arrest of the activists allegedly sympathetic towards the naxalites would continue till September 17. Hearing on the matter would continue on September 12.

The Maharashtra Government had filed a counter affidavit on a plea by historian Romila Thapar and four others challenging the arrest of these activists in connection with the Bhima-Koregaon violence case alleged that they were planning to carry out violence in the country and ambush the security forces.

Romila Thapar and Devki Jain, Prabhat Patnaik, Satish Deshpande and Maya Daruwala had challenged the arrest of the activists by Pune Police after raids across five states on August 28.

Also Read | Link denied, but the naxals have now openly supported their urban buddies

The state police said there was sufficient evidence to "dispel" the claim that they were arrested for their dissenting views. It also questioned the locus of the petitioners, Thapar, economists Prabhat Patnaik and Devaki Jain, sociologist Satish Deshpande and legal expert Maja Daruwala, and said they were "strangers" to the investigation in the matter. Sudha Bhardwaj, P Varavara Rao, Gautam Navlakha, and lawyers and activists Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves were arrested and charged with criminal conspiracy.

The government said that the cogent evidence has so far shown that these persons are part of banned terrorist organisation Communist Party of India (Maoist). There has been serious criminal offences made out against them and incriminating material has also emerged, the Maharashtra government said.

Also Read | Arrested activists were part of Maoist fronts says police

The activists were not just involved in planing and preparing for violence, but were in the process of creating large scale violence, destruction of property, the reply further said.
BJP to rake up infiltration issue across the country; ready with its ammunition

India

oi-Vinod Kumar Shukla

New Delhi, Sep 12: Gradually the issue of National Register for Citizenship (NRC), a Supreme Court-monitored exercise being done in Assam, is becoming a national issue for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party that is racking up the issue everywhere in the country.

Not only national president of the BJP Amit Shah but many other Sangh Pariwar affiliates are taking up the matter as for them infiltration is not confined to Assam but has spread across the country.

The issue was discussed in the recently concluded national executive of the BJP where the party resolved to take this issue to the logical end. Now Amit Shah has vowed to deport all Bangladeshi infiltrators from the country while attacking the Congress in poll-bound Rajasthan for the party criticizing the draft National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam.

BJP to reach out SC/ST by Eklavya Khel Utsav before 2019 polls; preparation starts

Meanwhile, the BJP is ready with all ammunitions against the Congress on the issue when its nation general secretary Ram Madhav said that the Congress leadership must learn from their forefather or the history. The Immigrants (Expulsion from Assam) Act, 1950 was brought in by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru when forget about the BJP, Jan Sangh was not in existence. It talked about sending illegal immigrants out of Assam who had come from the erstwhile East Pakistan. But the vote bank politics did not allow the ruling dispensation to take any decisive action to the problem that goes back 1930s. This was the first attempt to start NRC.

Madhav said former Union minister of state for home P M Sayeed told Parliament in 1995 that illegal immigrants are coming from Bangladesh, in 1997 the then Union Home minister Indrajit Gupta told Parliament the number being around one crore, in 1998 Lt General S K Sinha's report on the issue, 1999 PM AB Vajpayee initiated the process regarding the NRC by providing first installment of funds and in 2005 Mamata Banerjee speaking against infiltration in West Bengal but no headway was made.

Now, the BJP leaders say that it is not the problem of Assam. Most of the states are having Bangladeshi infiltrators which are not only social, cultural, linguistic but law and order and security issue for the country besides demographic threat. Right from Assam to other northeastern state, West Bengal, Bihar, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala are the states where they are settled. BJP National vice president Vinay Sahasrabuddhe said that take a south bound train and you will realize the magnitude of the problem.

Tejashwi Yadav accuses BJP govt of dividing Dalits, OBCs

"This is not a problem of Assam but the entire northeastern region and many other parts of the country are facing the problem. There is a settlement in Bhayander in Maharashtra called Bangladeshi Basti. There are small hilltops around Mumbai and these Bangladeshi are getting settled there. Settling down in the forest area is not allowed but when police reached to get that vacated they were attacked. This is just two-three years old story. This is a vote bank politics for political parties," said the Rajya Sabha MP.

On the issue of sending them back, Ram Madhav was categorical and said, Bangladesh does not want to keep around 1 million Rohingya infiltrators. The country is in active negotiation with Myanmar to deport them. Official of Bangladesh visited Rakhine province to send them back. So India too will handle the issue with care but illegal migrants must be deported.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 11:13 [IST]
Congress and BJP to slug it out over creation of NPA; IBC at work

India

oi-Vinod Kumar Shukla

New Delhi, Sep 12: When the election is coming closer neither the Congress nor Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wants to give up on major issues including banking and are slugging it out as far as banking crisis in the country is concerned.

If the Congress accuses the BJP taking non-performing assets (NPA) to the tune of Rs 10 lakh crore then the BJP is saying that the Modi government is cleaning the mess of the Congress. Had the BJP not been around it would have been somewhere Rs 12-15 lakh crore.

Union coal and corporate affairs minister Piyush Goyal said that the burden of NPA on banks started from 2006-07 and had gone up to 2013-14. In this period the loan that was at Rs 18 lakh crore had gone up to Rs 55 lakh crore. During the Congress regime, stressed accounts were shown as evergreen account and they were not included in the NPA so the real figure was hidden deliberately.

Goyal said that the government not only disclosed the entire NPA but with the instruments like Fugitive Offenders Bill and Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) trying to recover the lost money. These laws are being implemented sternly. The Congress claimed that during the United Progressive Alliance there was just Rs 2.86 lakh crore NPA.

Rajan Dogra, independent director, Vijaya Bank, told OneIndia that as far as NPA amount is concerned there should be no controversy on that as they are on record and every bank has it and one club them to get the final NPA figure.

Dogra said, "I think IBC would be the best way for recovery NPA for the simple reason that once the bank has done their part they go for one time settlement but when they failed with everything then the last resort should be IBC. You see what was happening earlier that promoters were never under any kind of pressure but it was lender and banker who were under pressure because promoters always thought this money belonged to them and lenders had to run after them."

But post IBC what has happened that it is other way round now these bankers and lenders are comfortable. Now promoters fear that their property and business that they have developed all these years. All the wealth creation that they have been doing with the collusion with the earlier bankers that has come to stop now. Now what they fear that IBC will take away their businesses. So IBC is the best suited instrument as far as recovery of NPA is concerned, added Dogra.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 22:18 [IST]
Congress getting crowd in its rallies; to continue protest against sealing in Delhi

India

oi-Vinod Kumar Shukla

New Delhi, Sep 12: The Congress seems gaining ground in Delhi for its protest against sealing which is impacting prospects of the Aam Aadmi Party government in the state.

The Congress has already organized two big rallies in Delhi -- one in the east Delhi and the other in north Delhi while the third is planned in central Delhi's Karol Bagh area on September 14.

BJP used Hindus the same way Congress used Muslims: Shiv Sena

Actually sealing on the small scale industry is continuing in Delhi. The Congress is saying that this ceiling is illegal because Supreme Court had ruled that polluting industries must be removed from the city that had already happened. Union ministry for Urban Development (MoUD) released a list of non-polluting household industry which is working on small scale from the residential areas. There is a list of 121 such household industries like making slippers, joss stick and candle making industry were some of the works listed by MoUD but its sealing is continuing. The Congress leaders are saying that this is absolutely illegal and it is damaging for the people Delhi. The Congress will continue its protest against it.

Interestingly the Congress is getting support of people on this issue. The Congress leaders are saying that this sealing is impacting 25 lakh small and big industries causing unemployment to millions. The Congress has been able to draw crowd in both the earlier rallies after a long time as the party was not getting people support since 2013. The third rally in Karol Bagh which is the hub of small industry and cottage industry where the party may get even better crowd.

Ex- Congress MLA held for illegally trafficking 3 people into US

The aggressive posturing of the Congress president Ajay Maken especially against the AAP leadership is working for the party and has been able to mobilize Congress workers and small business owners for whom, this has become the issue of subsistence. This was the reason that even the party was able to draw crowd during the Bharat Bandh.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 13:03 [IST]
Didn't have formal meeting with Jaitley', says Mallya; Blames media for creating controversy

India

oi-Vikas SV

London, Sep 12: Amid uproar over Vijay Mallya's claim that had met Arun Jaitley before leaving India, the fugitive liquor on Wednesday blamed the media for creating a controversy over his remark and said that he did not have a formal meeting with the Finance Minister.

Mallya had earlier said he had met Jaitley and informed him about leaving India, to which the Finance Minister said that liquor baron's statement was "factually false". Jaitley, however, said that once in Parliament Mallya tried to strike a conversation with him over the settling of debts, to which the Finance Minister said that the former Kingfisher chief should talk to banks.

Mallya in a way corroborated with what Jaitley said, and in an interaction with the media later, he said, "I did not have a formal meeting with Mr Jaitley. There was no need to, we both used to attend Parliament." He then blamed "the friends in the media" for having created a controversy over his "innocuous" remark.

He maintained that he did not flee the country but left as he had a meeting to attend in Geneva. Mallya said he had made several offers to the banks to settle the debts.

When asked what was Jaitley response when he approached him in Parliament, Mallya said, "Nothing."

[Jaitley rubbishes Mallya's claim of having met him, calls it "factually false"]

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in UK last April, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs. 9,000 crores. The court has reserved its verdict and would pronounce it on December 10.

Here is what Jaitley wrote in his Facebook post after Mallya's initial claim:

My attention has been drawn to a statement made to the media by Vijay Mallaya on having met me with an offer of settlement.

The statement is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth. Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise. However, since he was a Member of Rajya Sabha and he occasionally attended the House, he misused that privilege on one occasion while I was walking out of the House to go to my room. He paced up to catch up with me and while walking uttered a sentence that "I am making an offer of settlement". Having been fully briefed about his earlier "bluff offers", without allowing him to proceed with the conversation, I curtly told him "there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers." I did not even receive the papers that he was holding in his hand. Besides this one sentence exchange where he misused his privilege as a Rajya Sabha Member, in order to further his commercial interest as a bank debtor, there is no question of my having ever given him an appointment to meet me.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 20:38 [IST]
Fight against LTTE was no 'ethnic war': Rajapaksa

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, Sep 12: Former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa said Wednesday the fight against the LTTE that ended in 2009 cannot be dubbed an "ethnic war", asserting that the military action was not directed against the Tamil community.

Rajapaksa, who was at the helm when the nearly three-decade-long civil war in Sri Lanka ended in 2009 with the defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) by the military, said India's "abiding friendship" was amply demonstrated by its rapid response to Sri Lanka's needs at the time, both material and moral.

"While this was of vital assistance to us, I remained unshaken in my conviction that foreign armies could not successfully banish terrorism from our soil, because the broad mass of popular opinion would not support this," he said in his address at a symposium, titled 'Indo-Sri Lanka Relations: The Way Forward', organised by the Virat Hindustan Sangam led by BJP MP Subramanian Swamy here.

The former Sri Lankan president said he was, however, mindful of India's special concerns at the time, arising principally from the proximity of Tamil Nadu and other relevant circumstances.

"Our policy in this regard was constant consultation with India and other neighbouring countries. For this purpose, we had evolved the TROIKA mechanism involving key officials on both sides, who were in touch with one another at all times," Rajapaksa, who was accompanied by his former foreign minister G L Peiris and son Namal Rajapaksa at the event, said.

He proposed that a similar mechanism could be set up by Sri Lanka and India to resolve economic and social issues. Talking about the last phase of the civil war, which started with his government ordering military action against the LTTE, he said the move was not the first resort, but the last one.

"We did not at any time wage an ethnic war. The military action was certainly not directed against the Tamil community. It must not be forgotten that the reach of this terrorist organisation was not confined to Sri Lanka, but extended to Indian soil where they assassinated (former prime minister) Rajiv Gandhi and many others," Rajapaksa said.

He asserted that the eradication of terrorism was not for the sole benefit of one community, or for one country. Rajapaksa recalled that during the final phase of the war, the foreign secretary of the UK and the foreign minister of France had called for discontinuation of hostilities, but he had replied that acceding to their demands would be nothing short of "betrayal" of coming generations.

Rajapaksa also slammed the current Sri Lankan dispensation led by President Maithripala Sirisena, saying that it undermined the sovereignty of his country by co-sponsoring a resolution at the Human Rights Council in Geneva calling for "internal supervision" of processes that are exclusively the domain of Sri Lanka's Parliament.

The former Sri Lankan president said a crucial feature of his vision was "abiding" friendship with India and asserted that a complete understanding between the two countries would be "one of the pillars of our foreign policy".

Swamy, in his remarks, said it was widely believed that Rajapaksa is the frontrunner for the next government in Sri Lanka which would come to power after polls next year.

Rajapaksa took decisive action against terrorism and cleaned up the country, Swamy said, adding that Sri Lanka had now become a favoured destination of international investment.

"I look forward to close relations as I know that our Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not easily shackled by past views and views expressed by intellectuals or anyone. He makes his own mind...there is a definite indication that we will give top priority to improving relations as soon as the matters in both countries politically get settled," he said.

PTI
Lawyer without brief is like Tendulkar without his bat on cricket ground: SC

Jail for Navjot Singh Sidhu? SC re-opens road rage case

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 12: The Supreme Court has re-opened the road rage case against Punjab minister, Navjot Singh Sidhu. The court agreed to hear a review filed by the family of the victim who sought a review on the quantum of punishment.

Sidhu had been let off in the case with a fine of Rs 1,000. The earlier order was passed by Justice J Chelameshwar, who retired recently.

Sidhu hits out a SAD for boycotting assembly on sacrilege report

On December 27, 1988, Sidhu and his friend Rupinder Singh Sandhu had got into an argument with one Gurnam Singh over parking space in Patiala. The duo allegedly dragged Singh out of his car and hit him. Singh later died. A sessions court acquitted Sidhu and Sandhu in 1999 but the order was quashed by the HC, which convicted them and awarded them a three-year jail term in 2006. The two approached the SC which stayed their conviction.

"I am against this", says Punjab CM on Sidhu hugging Pak Army Chief

The Supreme Court concluded that Sandhu was wrongly convicted in the case and acquitted him. However it convicted Sidhu under Section 323 of the Indian Penal Code for voluntarily causing hurt.
Karnataka: A Congress revolt, a CM in waiting, here is what really D K Shivakumar is upto

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Bengaluru, Sep 12: This time trouble erupted from Belagavi in Karnataka. The Congress- JD(S) coalition in Karnataka appears to be in some amount of trouble, with two leaders warning that they would walk out.

The face-off within the Congress comes just days after Siddaramaiah created a flutter when he said that he could become CM again. The coalition partners however dismissed the view as a personal one.

The Karnataka coalition tussle: Will the boat rock or remain steady until 2019

Now trouble seems to be emanated from the Jharkiholi brothers and the tussle involves Congress MLA Laxmi Hebbalkar. The bone of contention between the brothers and Laxmi is control over Belagavi.

It is a well know fact Energy minister and the Congress's go to man, D K Shivakumar is a staunch supporter of Hebbalkar. In Belagavi the control of the party has largely been in the hands of the Jharkiholis and Hukkeris.

Shivakumar is making that push and backing Hebbalkar so that he has a piece of his pie in the political scenario in Belagavi. Several leaders from this region have told the Congress leadership to advise Shivakumar to stay away.

Karnataka: ED likely to arrest DK Shivakumar

The larger plan:

It is a well known fact that Shivakumar has been a CM aspirant for long. Once nurtured by S M Krishna, he has lost out on the race thrice. The first time when Dharam Singh formed an alliance with the JD(S) and the second time when Siddaramaiah became the CM. The third time was in 2018, when the Congress and JD(S) came together.

Shivakumar is undoubtedly a strong leader and wields a lot of control especially in the Vokkaliga belts of Kanakpura among other areas. However is not seen as a leader who has a control over the entire state. He feels that by gaining control over larger portions of the state, he could become an automatic choice for CM, somewhere down the years.

He began this plan by backing second rung leaders in Dharwad and Ballari. He appears to have gained some foothold over and the kind of control he wielded over the likes of Anand Singh and Nagendra when the BJP was trying to get them to form the government is proof of the clout.

He then planned on executing part 2 of his plan in the Belagavi region, which incidentally has 18 constituencies. Belagavi is a politically significant hub and Shivakumar realises that gaining control in this region would get him a better grip over the political situation in north Karnataka.

Hebbalkar vs Jarakiholi: Congress downplays rift between leaders

The ploy is to project himself as a strong Vokkaliga leader. While that may gain traction in the South Karnataka region, where the community is strong, he also realises that having the backing of the north Karnataka leaders is important for his political prospects. Hence DK as he is popularly called as has set in motion this plan to groom and nurture second rung leaders so that they become his support system, when he stakes a claim to the post of Karnataka Chief Minister.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 15:30 [IST]
Kharge calls Modi an "executor" of the Sangh's agenda

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, Sep 12: Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said on Wednesday all opposition parties are ideologically committed to fighting the RSS and defeating the BJP and Narendra Modi, claiming the saffron party was the "implementing agency" and the prime minister the "executor" of the Sangh's agenda.

As opposition parties work on strategies to forge a front to take on the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Kharge expressed confidence that all like-minded parties will marshal their resources together to oust the ruling party.

Kharge also accused the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) of trying to impose its own agenda on the country. The comments by the leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha came days after the BJP targeted the opposition, saying the ruling party had "no challenge" and described as "opportunistic efforts" of the opposition to form a 'mahagatbandhan'(grand alliance).

Also Read | Mohan Bhagwat calls for unity among Hindus, says wild dogs can destroy lone Lion

At the recent meeting of the BJP national executive, Modi said he saw "no challenge" to his party and described unity efforts among opposition parties "unable to stand each other" as a proof of his government's popularity and his party's big success. BJP chief Amit Shah also expressed confidence about his party coming back to power in 2019 and said his party will rule the country for the next 50 years.

Accusing Modi of being "highly individualistic" and an "autocrat" who does not believe in democracy and the Constitution, Kharge alleged that the prime minister does not carry everyone along. He accused Modi of dividing the country on religious and caste lines, saying it was dangerous for the country and unacceptable to people.

"It is inevitable that to take on fascist forces like the RSS and the BJP, all like minded parties will come together," Kharge told PTI in an interview.

Kharge alleged that the RSS and the BJP do not respect democracy and constitutional procedures, freedom of speech and expression, "It is clear that they want to finish democracy and Constitution and set up their own agenda," he alleged, adding," RSS is pushing its agenda and the BJP is an implementing agency while Modi is the executor." Kharge said he believed that unlike Modi, who, he claimed is not acceptable to all, Congress president Rahul Gandhi is acceptable to people who are getting together to hear him out.

"We want to fight together, first to keep the BJP away from power," he said, alleging that the ruling party is implementing wrong policies, destroying the Constitution and institutions."

"We want a government of all and want cooperation of all. They (opposition parties) are getting together and everything will be fine by elections," he added.

India's contribution to globalisation had been through Vedanta: RSS

Taking on the prime minister, the veteran Congress leader alleged, "Modi ji sold untruth in his poll campaign speeches raising various issues of employment, black money, GST, Demonetisation, putting Rs 15 lakh in every person's bank account. All these turned out to be false promises."

"He never sold the truth to the people, except making false promises to get to power. This does not work for long. You can befool some people for a few days, but not all the people all the time. People understand," Kharge said.

Kharge said Modi talks of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' "but does not take everyone along and does not respect views of others. It emerges from his actions that he does not have the capacity to take everyone along."

People who believe in democratic institutions can only take everyone forward and unite the people of the country and try to carry along people of all ideologies, he said. "This is not there in him(Modi) and that is why people are unhappy.

He has no place for secular values," he claimed. Citing the example of the country's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Kharge said he had the capacity to take everyone along and that is why this democracy continued for 70 years. "Today that democratic principles have no place in Modi's ideology."

PTI
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 12)  President Rodrigo Duterte lost his temper when the Chinese military threatened a Philippine aircraft flying over the South China Sea, Malacanang said Wednesday.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque clarified that Duterte did not quarrel with Chinese President Xi Jinping, as could be gleaned from Duterte's televised tete-a-tete with Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Sal Panelo on Tuesday.

"Hindi naman nag-away kundi 'uminit ang ulo niya' siguro is a better expression," Roque said. "Uminit ang ulo niya doon sa nabalita na warning na binigay doon sa mga piloto natin na lumilipad sa isla na pag-aari natin. Uminit lang ang ulo, nagkainitan."

[Translation: "They did not really fight. 'His temper flared' is probably a better expression. His temper flared over reports of the warning given to our pilots who flew over islands we own. His temper just flared. That's all."]

Duterte on Tuesday admitted he got into a fight with China, without referring to any official of the East Asian giant.

"Kaya nag-away kami. We had a little bit of - hindi naman animosity kasi 'yung Navy palapit doon eh parang sinasigawan nila, "You Filipinos, you get (out of) there you will be causing trouble." Eh samantalang kaibigan tayo," Duterte said.

[Translation: "So we had a fight. We had a little bit of  not really animosity because they shouted at our Navy going there, 'You Filipinos, you get (out of) there you will be causing trouble.' But we are friends."]

BBC reported last month that China threatened U.S. and Filipino aircrafts flying over the Spratly Islands, which is being claimed by the Philippines and China.

In the British broadcasting network's report aboard a U.S. military plane, the Chinese could be heard warning the Filipino aircraft: "Philippine military aircraft, I'm warning you again. Leave immediately or you will bear responsibility for all the consequences."

In response to the incident, Duterte last month said he hopes China would temper its behavior in the disputed waters, saying he does not want to "quarrel with China." He also said China does not need to use "nasty words" against Filipinos.

Malacanang on Wednesday said the incident did not change the Philippines' relations with China.

"Pareho pa rin po. Ang hindi pwedeng mapagkasunduan, isinasantabi, ang pwedeng isulong, isusulong (It stays the same. Whatever we can't agree on will be set aside, those we can pursue we'll pursue)," Roque said.

He said the next step would be forging an agreement on joint exploration for oil and gas in the South China Sea, which the government is eyeing to happen this year.

Duterte has been criticized for pursuing friendly ties with China amid the long-standing dispute on the South China Sea.

China has refused to recognize the July 2016 international arbitral tribunal ruling that invalidated its sweeping claims in the South China Sea and recognized Philippines sovereign rights in areas within the country's 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone. Duterte promised to bring the matter up with China during his term.
Lashkar in damage control mode after its terrorist kills Hurriyat leader

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Srinagar, Sep 12: The unity appears to be in trouble. The police made a startling revelation on Tuesday when it said that the Lashkar-e-Tayiba was behind the killing of a Hurriyat Conference leader.

The killing of Hurriyat leader, Hakeem-ur-Rehman has sent shock waves and the the big question of unity in Kashmir against the Indian administration is now being questioned.

Terrorists killing terrorists: Is Kashmir witnessing a Mumbai underworld like scenario

The J&K police said that the Lashkar-e-Tayiba operative Liyaqat Lone who was killed in an encounter on Tuesday was behind the killing of Rehman. Intelligence Bureau officials tell OneIndia not all is well within the ranks. In recent times we have seen attacks by terrorists on one another. There is a lot of discord and this could be seen in the killing of the Hurriyat leader as well the officer also noted.

The wave of killings among terror groups in Kashmir today appear to be reminiscent of what we witnessed back in 1996. The al-Jihad was pitched against the other terror groups from Kashmir and there were plenty of killings. Terrorism had been on the wane for sometime following those incidents.

This man was too busy with his terrorism skills as his sister got married

It has become a battle for supremacy and there are clashes in ideology as well. This is one of the main reasons why we are witnessing these internal wars within the terror ranks, the officer also explained.

The Lashkar was however quick to deny any such rift. The spokesperson of the outfit Abdullah Ghaznavi said that the police is behind the killing of Rehman. He said that the government has been planning all those. He urged the people to repose faith in the Hurriyat, while adding hat unity is the ultimate power of the people.
Mallya's allegations serious', Jaitley should step down: Rahul Gandhi

India

oi-Vikas SV

New Delhi, Sep 12: Amid the uproar over Vijay Mallya's claim that had met Arun Jaitley before leaving India, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should order an independent probe into the matter.

"Given Vijay Mallya's extremely serious allegations in London today, the PM should immediately order an independent probe into the matter. Arun Jaitley should step down as Finance Minister while this probe is underway," Rahul Gandhi tweeted.

Given Vijay Mallyas extremely serious allegations in London today, the PM should immediately order an independent probe into the matter. Arun Jaitley should step down as FInance Minister while this probe is underway.  Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) September 12, 2018

Mallya had earlier said he had met Jaitley and informed him about leaving India, to which the Finance Minister said that liquor baron's statement was "factually false". Jaitley, however, said that once in Parliament Mallya tried to strike a conversation with him over the settling of debts, to which the Finance Minister said that the former Kingfisher chief should talk to banks.

Mallya in a way corroborated with what Jaitley said, and in an interaction with the media later, he said, "I did not have a formal meeting with Mr Jaitley. There was no need to, we both used to attend Parliament." He then blamed "the friends in the media" for having created a controversy over his "innocuous" remark.

He maintained that he did not flee the country but left as he had a meeting to attend in Geneva. Mallya said he had made several offers to the banks to settle the debts.

[Why didn't Jaitley mention about meeting with Mallya earlier, asks Congress]

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in UK last April, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs. 9,000 crores. The court has reserved its verdict and would pronounce it on December 10.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 23:07 [IST]
Mansarovar Yatra, temple spree and the soft Hindutva risk that Rahul Gandhi is taking

India

oi-Vikas Sv

New Delhi, Sep 12: With less than 10 months to go for the Lok Sabha elections 2019, Congress is desperate to come up with a narrative to counter the BJP. Apart from attacking the ruling government over Rafale deal, fuel price hike and mismanaging the economy, Congress president Rahul Gandhi is also working towards what is being called as 'soft Hindutva'.

The Congress is trying to ensure that the BJP cannot lay sole claim to the Hindu voter. It is known for decades now that Congress sees Muslims as their traditional vote bank. Now, Rahul is trying to send a larger message of being a devout Hindu as part of his strategy of soft Hindutva. Through Gujarat and Karnataka elections, Rahul has been seen in temples and at one time was even seen wearing a rudraksh. The party had said Rahul and his family were Janayeu dhaari.

Rahul reportedly made around 30 visits to temples during his campaign trail for Gujarat Assembly Elections 2017. Earlier this month he went for Kailash Mansarovar Yatra which was in line with his "I am a Shiv bhakt" claims.

Rahul has been attacking the BJP over lynching incidents and trying to portray the Modi-led government as being anti-Dalit and anti-poor.

This strategy may work for Congress provided that the traditional Muslim voters stay with the Congress and if Rahul's antics strike a chord with the section of Hindus who are disenchanted with the Modi rule.

But then, there also a risk that Rahul is taking. What if his so-called Hindu appeasement temple sprees and 'Shiv Bhakt' claims do not go down well with the Muslims. It is not that Rahul has not been trying to woo the Muslims, but there is a possibility that his over-enthusiasm about soft Hindutva may leave the minorities irked.

BJP leaders had hit out at Congress and Rahul Gandhi. The saffron party leaders also called out to Rahul to clarify his religion. Hitting back at BJP, the Congress party had said that Rahul Gandhi is a "Janeu Dhari" (one who wears a sacred thread) and "Shiv Bhakta."

So, Rahul is now aiming at both Hindu and Muslims voters. What he ought to keep in mind is that he cannot take Muslim votes for granted. Recently, at a function of an Urdu Daily, Rahul had reportedly said that Congress is a party for Muslims. A row erupted when this issue made headlines. Congress tried to shirk away from the controversy and did not make it clear if Rahul had said such a thing or not. BJP is too shrewd a party to capitalise on these kinds of issues. So, Rahul must tread the path he has chosen carefully or it will all boomerang so badly that Congress would find itself in a position from where it would be hard to recover.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 6:48 [IST]
Jaitley rubbishes Mallyas claim of having met him, calls it factually false

India

oi-Vikas SV

New Delhi, Sep 12: With Vijay Mallya having claimed that he met Arun Jaitley before leaving the country, the Finance Minister on Wednesday said the fugitive liquor baron's statement "is factually false". Jaitley, however, said that once in Parliament Mallya tried to strike a conversation with him over the settling of debts, to which the Finance Minister said that the former Kingfisher chief should talk to banks.

"My attention has been drawn to a statement made to the media by Vijay Mallaya on having met me with an offer of settlement. The statement is factually false in as much as it does not reflect truth. Since 2014, I have never given him any appointment to meet me and the question of his having met me does not arise," Jaitley wrote in a Facebook post.

Mallya, speaking to the media outside Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, on Wednesday said he met Jaitley before leaving the country and also made an offer of settlement.

"However, since he was a Member of Rajya Sabha and he occasionally attended the House, he misused that privilege on one occasion while I was walking out of the House to go to my room. He paced up to catch up with me and while walking uttered a sentence that "I am making an offer of settlement". Having been fully briefed about his earlier "bluff offers", without allowing him to proceed with the conversation, I curtly told him "there was no point talking to me and he must make offers to his bankers." I did not even receive the papers that he was holding in his hand," Jaitley wrote.

"Besides this one sentence exchange where he misused his privilege as a Rajya Sabha Member, in order to further his commercial interest as a bank debtor, there is no question of my having ever given him an appointment to meet me," the further said.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in UK last April, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs. 9,000 crores.

[Vijay Mallya extradition case: 'Met Jaitley before leaving India', claims fugitive liquor baron]

At the previous hearing in July in the Westminster Magistrates' Court in, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.
Interfaith marriage: Allahabad HC quashes FIR, says adult woman has right to live as she wishes

Home Guard sacked for being gay ordered to be reinstated

Shun my way or no way attitude, welcome suggestions: Allahabad HC

PIL in Allahabad HC against coercive action against those appealing for oxygen on social media

Allahabad HC sets aside detention order against man booked under NSA for FB post on Babri Masjid

No routine arrests even in crimes against Dalits: HC

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

By Indresh Sinha

Lucknow, Sep 12: The Allahabad High Court told police they could not arrest four people booked for assaulting a Dalit woman and her daughter without following the CrPC provisions endorsed by the Supreme Court in an order in 2014.

Though the case was registered under Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act as well as under IPC sections the court prevented the police from making an immediate, routine arrest.

Allahabad High Court to monitor probe into Deora shelter home case

The ruling was given by Justices Ajai Lamba and Sanjay Harkauli of the High Court's Lucknow bench.

In 2014, the SC had endorsed guidelines on arresting the accused in the Arnesh Kumar case.

Sections 41 and 41A of the CrPC stipulate that an accused facing a jail term of up to seven years would not be arrested unless the police record elaborate reasons for the need of an arrest.

The high court ruling comes soon after Parliament passed a Bill overriding a Supreme Court judgment to prevent the misuse of the SC/ST law, particularly on arrests without a preliminary investigation.

Allahabad HC pulls up UP police for Lucknow University vandalism

Tuesday's ruling was on a bail plea by a Gonda resident Rajesh Kumar and three members of his family, who were accused by a Dalit woman of abusing and assaulting her and her daughter.

The family members were booked for various penal offences besides the stringent provisions of the SC/ST Act.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 6:20 [IST]
Austrian priest who was accused of trying to kiss nun cleared by Vatican court

Bishop repeatedly raped nun says police, summon him on Sep 19

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 12: The Kerala police in an affidavit before the Kerala High Court said that the evidence available suggests that Bishop Franco Mulakkal committed rape repeatedly.

The police said that he had raped the nun repeatedly for two years. During the course of investigation so far conducted and the evidence available it is revealed that Bishop Franco committed unnatural offence and committed rape repeatedly.

The affidavit comes in the wake of mounting pressure for the arrest of the Bishop. A call would taken today on whether to go ahead with the arrest or not. However prior to his arrest, he is likely to be summoned by the police for questioning. On the other hand, the nun's brother alleged that he had been offered Rs 5 crore if the complaint is withdrawn.

Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash told reporters that a notice may be issued to Bishop Franco Mulakkal of Jalandhar diocese to appear before the investigating team.

On Monday, the Kerala High Court had directed the state government to inform it of the steps taken by the special investigation team probing the case of alleged rape of the nun by the Bishop.

Also Read | Rape-accused bishop Franco Mulakkal cries foul, says those against the church are using nuns

To appear on September 19:

Meanwhile the Kerala police have asked Bishop Franco Mullakal to appear before the investigating team on September 19, Inspector General of police Vijay Sakhare said on Wednesday.

The decision to summon the clergyman was taken after a meeting chaired by Sakhare, IG (Ernakulam range), which was also attended by Kottayam District Superintendent of Police Harisankar and Vaikom Deputy Superintendent of Police K Subhash amid mounting pressure on police to initiate action against Mullakal.

The nun had recently sought the urgent intervention of the Vatican for justice and demanded the bishop's removal as the head of the Jalandhar diocese, questioning why the church was "closing its eyes to the truth" when she mustered the courage to make public her sufferings.

In a scathing letter to the Vatican that was made available to the media Tuesday, the nun also asked will the Church be able to give back what she has lost. She alleged that Bishop Franco Mulakkal was using "political and money power" to bury the case against him.

She had accused the clergyman of sexually assaulting her repeatedly between 2014 and 2016.
PM Modi may also contest Lok Sabha poll from Surat constituency

India

oi-Vinod Kumar Shukla

New Delhi, Sep 12: It seems Prime Minister Narendra Modi will follow the same format as he followed in 2014 Lok Sabha elections as for as contesting parliamentary polls are concerned. He may go for the two Lok Sabha constituencies - one from his home state Gujarat and another from the seat where he is representing in the Lok Sabha at the moment.

A high placed source said that the Prime Minister might contest Lok Sabha elections from the Surat Lok Sabha constituency in Gujarat. Many reasons are being given for this possible move but the two most important reason for which the PM may go for two seats included that condition of Gujarat BJP is deteriorating by the day so if he contest election from Gujarat message will go in the state that he is around. People of the state will rally behind him quelling the Patidar movement which is becoming a big threat to the BJP in the state. Surat seat was represented by former Prime Minister Morarji Desai for four terms from 1957 to 1977.

Second thing that Varanasi is a difficult constituency and a leader like Murali Manohar Joshi had somehow barely managed to win the seat and in view of anger of upper caste community gradually growing in the state, the PM might want to play safe. But this is not the reason that any political party will accept. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the PM contested Vadodara Lok Sabha seat which he later resigned.

News was also doing round that the PM may go for Puri Lok Sabha seat in Odisha as the stake of the BJP is very high in the state this time round but saving Gujarat is more important as bearing the brunt of upper caste anger also cannot be taken lightly.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 18:47 [IST]
PM's new cleanliness drive to celebrate Gandhi Jayanthi

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, Sep 12: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (Sep 12) announced the launch of the 'Swachhata Hi Seva Movement' from September 15 to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

In a video message, he called upon people to join the movement on Saturday morning. "I look forward to interacting with those who have worked assiduously on the ground to strengthen the Swachh Bharat (Clean India) Mission after which swachhata (cleanliness) activities will begin," he said.

The 'Swachhata Hi Seva Movement' (cleanliness is true service) is a great way to pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi, he said. He pointed out that on October 2 when the country marks the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the Swachh Bharat Mission will complete four years. The prime minister termed the mission as a "historic mass movement aimed at fulfilling Bapu's dream of a clean India."

PTI
SC to hear new plea on alleged Rafale corruption after 2 weeks

Rahul Gandhi slams PM Modi with his witty take on Rafale deal probe

Six member IAF team heads for France for Rafale training

India

oi-Vikas SV

New Delhi, Sep 12: Amid a raging controversy over the purchase of Rafale fighter jets, a six-member team from the Indian Air Force (IAF) has left for France to train on Dassault manufactured fighters.

The team comprises of a fighter pilot, an engineer, and four technicians who will receive instruction on the Rafale fighters over the next few months at the Saint Dizier-Robinson Air Base in eastern France, reported Jane's Defence Weekly.

It was reported last week that three Rafale fighter jets were engaged in a training exercise with the Indian Air Force in Gwalior and Agra.

Also Read | What is the Rafale deal? An explainer and the controversy around it

Around 100 French aviators, one Atlas A-400M military transport aircraft, one C-135 refuelling plane and an Airbus A310 cargo aircraft had also come to India along with the Rafale jets on a four-day visit. A PTI report said a batch of IAF pilots got an opportunity to train on the Rafale jets.

Several IAF personnel have been visiting France regularly over the past few months to assist Dassault and French Air Force pilots in jointly test-flying a Rafale fitted with 'India-specific customisations'

Also Read | Amid procurement controversy IAF pilots train on Rafale jets

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.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 16:58 [IST]
Telangana assembly elections: Congress moots a broader alliance

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

By Indresh Sinha

Hyderabad, Sep 12: The Congress plans to go in for a broad-based alliance in the Telangana assembly polls in line with its efforts to forge opposition unity at the national level, a senior party leader has said.

The party was trying to unite the opposition in the state and was in contact with all parties, including CPI, Kondaram (of TJS) and TDP, AICC in charge of Congress affairs in Telangana R C Khuntia said. "We are not averse to having an alliance with TDP," he told PTI.

Telangana elections: AIMM releases first list of candidates

Citing the example of Karnataka, where Congress allowed JD(S) to take the Chief Minister's post despite having more number of seats, he said the idea in Telangana was in line with it's efforts at the national level to unite the opposition. The proposal was however at a preliminary stage and seat-sharing had not yet been discussed, Khuntia said.

"This is only the preliminary stage. We have not discussed seat sharing. But we are formulating a broad-based alliance, including the TDP also, on the basis of the Common Minimum Programme," he said. Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president N Uttam Kumar Reddy has already urged all political parties, including TDP and non-political forces, to join hands with Congress to 'end the misrule' of TRS in the state.

"There can only be TRS and anti-TRS blocks (other BJP) in the state," Khuntia claimed. On how Congress would justify an alliance with TDP, which has always been opposed to it, he said Congress does not harbour any bitter feelings towards the TDP.

He said the TDP opposed the NDA government, as seen in the no-confidence motion, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman election and the 'Bharat Bandh' against the fuel price hike, he said.

BJP to rely heavily on turncoats in Telengana Assembly elections

The Congress aimed at defeating the 'communal forces' and wanted to take along opposition parties, he said. The party would highlight the 'failure' of TRS to implement its promises, including an increase in reservations for minorities and STs and double bedroom housing for the poor, with emphasis on the door-to-door campaign, he said. It would also focus on what Congress wished to do in the event of coming to power, he said.

The state Congress has already announced certain promises to the people. Congress President Rahul Gandhi would be urged to address a public meeting in at least 10 places in the state. UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi would also be requested to participate in the campaign, he said. The assembly polls in Telangana were originally scheduled to be held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections next year. However, the assembly was dissolved last week as per the recommendation made by the TRS government, necessitating elections ahead of schedule.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 5:53 [IST]
Telangana polls: 2019 in mind, will the Congress give TDP the larger pie

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Hyderabad, Sep 12: The Telangana Telugu Desam Party and the Congress seemed to have agreed in principle to fight the elections together in a bid to defeat the TRS. With the CPI too on board, the big question now is who will be the lead partner in case this alliance does win the Telangana assembly elections 2018.

For now the prime focus of the opposition in the state is to unite the opposition. Rahul Gandhi had spoken about a broad-based alliance and going by the developments in Telangana, it appears as though the planning is going well into 2019.

According to R C Khuntia, who is in-charge of Congress affairs in Telangana, the party was not averse to entering into a tie up with the TDP. He also cited the Karnataka example where the party gave up the chief minister's post despite it being the largest party. He said that this was in line with its efforts in the national level to unite the opposition.

Also Read | Take a call I will back it, Naidu tells TDP leaders on alliance with Congress in Telangana

The statements indicate that the Congress could let go of the CM's post to the TDP in case it comes to power in Telangana. The Congress has been experimenting in various states and has very often let go of the pie despite it being in a better position.

Analysts tell OneIndia that the planning in the state elections must be seen in the context of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The opposition is coming together to take on the BJP and the Congress does not want to play second fiddle in any such coalition.

There would be several key players in the opposition in 2019. Chandrababu Naidu, M K Stalin, Mamata Banerjee, just to name a few. The likes of Sharad Pawar who is also a key player had indirectly hinted that Rahul Gandhi would not be able to steer the ship. The opinion is similar among the other leaders within the opposition as well.

Also Read | Telangana polls: TDP-Cong pact on cards, but seat sharing remains a concern

With the scheme of things being such, the Congress would be ready to give up the pie in the state levels, while demanding a better deal in the national level.

Khuntia goes on to add,"this is only the preliminary stage. We have not discussed seat sharing. But we are formulating a broad-based alliance, including the TDP also, on the basis of the Common Minimum Programme."

Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president N Uttam Kumar Reddy has already urged all political parties, including TDP and non-political forces, to join hands with Congress to 'end the misrule' of TRS in the state. "There can only be TRS and anti-TRS blocks (other BJP) in the state," Khuntia claimed. On how Congress would justify an alliance with TDP, which has always been opposed to it, he said Congress does not harbour any bitter feelings towards the TDP.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 15:10 [IST]
Terror funding: Court gives nod to quiz businessman

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

By Indresh Sinha

New Delhi, Sep 12: A Delhi court today allowed the Enforcement Directorate to quiz an UAE-based businessman arrested by the NIA in a terror-funding case involving Lashkar-e-Taiba chief and 26/11 Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed.

District Judge Poonam A Bamba granted two days to the ED to quiz businessman Naval Kishore Kapoor, who is currently lodged at the Tihar Central Jail.

The court took note of the submissions made by the ED's special public prosecutor, Nitesh Rana,that Kapoor was required for interrogation and recording of his statement in a money laundering case, which is being probed by the agency in connection with the terror-funding matter.

Also Read | Manipur: NIA seizes Rs 48 lakh in terror funding case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had interrogated a Kashmiri businessman, Zahoor Watali, a co-accused in the terror-funding case, during an investigation into the matter under provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) for allegedly receiving funds from abroad.

In its application, moved through advocate A R Aditya, the ED told the court that Watali had "mobilised huge amount of funds in the guise of foreign remittance from unknown sources in India through/in association with one of his old associates Kapoor".

"It is crucial to record the statement of the accused as the money laundering case is being investigated," it said.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had said Kapoor had entered into an agreement with Trison Farms and Constructions through its managing director, Watali, to take land in Budgam on lease.

Also Read | FBI like powers: NIA can soon probe terror cases abroad

Kapoor had remitted a total amount of Rs 5.579 crore in 22 instalments between 2013 and 2016 to Watali, it had said.

The said land did not exist in the name of the company and the agreement lacks legal sanctity, the anti-terror agency said.

The NIA had alleged that it was a 'cover' created by Watali to bring foreign remittance from unknown sources to India.

Watali, LeT chief Saeed, Hizbul Mujahideen head Syed Salahuddin and others have been accused by the NIA of "conspiring to wage a war against the government" and fomenting trouble in the Kashmir valley.

In its charge sheet, the NIA has alleged that officials of the Pakistan High Commission here were passing on money to separatists in Jammu and Kashmir through Watali.

The separatist leaders have been accused of taking a cut of the money.

Saeed has been accused of using Watali's services for passing on the money to the separatists and some individuals, who were actively indulging in stone-pelting in the valley.

Also Read | Army Major who won gallantry award for 26/11 rescue ops denied cash award, moves HC

The NIA has charged Pakistan-based terrorists Saeed and Salahuddin, besides 10 others, with criminal conspiracy, sedition and provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

Besides Saeed, Salahuddin and Watali, it has named hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani's son-in-law Altaf Shah alias Altaf Fantoosh and Bashir Ahmad Bhat in the charge sheet.

Hurriyat Conference leaders Nayeem Ahmad Khan, Farooq Ahmad Dar alias Bitta Karate, Mohammad Akbar Khanday and Raja Mehrajuddin Kalwal have also been charged by the agency in the terror-funding case.

Most of the accused are in judicial custody.

Two of the accused - freelance photo-journalist Kamran Yusuf and Javed Ahmad Bhat - both charged with stone-pelting on security forces, were granted bail by the court.

The ED had registered a case under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act based on an FIR filed by the NIA.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 9:19 [IST]
How the National Investigation Agency is getting the better of terrorists in J&K

Terrorists killing terrorists: Is Kashmir witnessing a Mumbai underworld like scenario

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Srinagar, Sep 12: When the underworld was being cleaned up in Mumbai, the police used an impressive tactic. The dons and gangsters entered into a turf war, killed each and those who remained were shot dead by the police. " Let them kill each other, the rest we will handle," was a famous motto adopted by the Mumbai police.

The situation in Kashmir today appears to be similar in nature. Terrorists are being killed by their own and in this crowded terror market, it appears to be one of the best things that has happened for the security establishment.

Last week, a terrorist of the Islamic State in Jammu and Kashmir (ISJK) was shot dead by unidentified gunmen. He was identified as Asif Nazir Dar, a resident of Panzgam area of Awantipora (in south Kashmir's Pulwama district). He said the Dar was active since January 2017. "Initially he had joined the proscribed terror outfit HM (Hizbul Mujahideen) but later got associated with the Eisa Fazili group of terrorists," the spokesman said.

In a crowded terror market, ISIS looks to set up Global Islamic Council in Kashmir

Rising trend:

The key players in the Valley today are the Hizbul Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Tayiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad. They operate directly under the Pakistan command. However with the likes of Zakir Musa dumping the Hizbul Mujahideen to form an outfit affiliated with the Al-Qaeda, Kashmir has been a crowded place.

To add to this was an announcement by the Islamic State, which has been making slow progress in the Valley. Recently the Delhi police arrested two persons who were trying to carry weapons into Kashmir to support the cause of the ISJK.

Intelligence Bureau officials say while these are the main groups, there are several other sub or smaller groups in the Valley. While the motive of destruction remains common, there is a big fight for supremacy that is on.

ISIS launches Ansar Ghazwat Ul Hind in Kashmir, names media wing Al-Hurr

The Hizbul, Jaish and Lashkar would continue to fight together as they follow the Pakistan command. The ISI and its proxies in the Valley would however not allow groups such as the Al-Qaeda or the ISJK gain control. This is bound to lead to a big turf war and the terrorists would start killing each other to maintain control over their respective zones.

Take the case of Musa, who had spewed venom against the Hurriyat Conference before he dumped the Hizbul. A few months back, the Musa faction had attacked the residence of a Hurriyat leader, Fazal Haq Qureshi at the Bilal Colony in Srinagar. A constable Farooq Ahmed was killed in the incident. While Musa has openly proclaimed his war against the Hurriyat, the intelligence too warns that he would look to target both Hurriyat leaders and terrorists from other groups.

Islamic State terrorist shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Srinagar

It is similar to what one witnessed in Mumbai several years back. The gangsters bayed for each other's blood in a bid to control more turf. The case is similar in Kashmir as well, the IB official also tells OneIndia.

There is also bound to be a lot of resentment among terror groups as each is looking to increase their strength by roping in the youth. This is bound to lead to more problems in future among terror groups and attacks against each other are bound to rise.

Pakistan on the other hand would have its hands full to try and combat this new menace.

For its three proxies, Kashmir had become an exclusive turf. However with the terror market becoming a very crowded one today, it would look to come out with a new strategy and the first would be to eliminate its opponents.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 6:06 [IST]
The Karnataka coalition tussle: Will the boat rock or remain steady until 2019

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Bengaluru, Sep 12: It has been a little over 100 days since the JD(S) formed the government in Karnataka with the Congress. The train has chugged through and amicably sorted out several issues, but problems persist on a day to day basis.

First it was Siddaramaiah with his indirect hints at becoming chief minister again. Now, the threat of a revolt within the Congress by the Jarkiholi brothers of Belagavi.

The problem erupted when the Jarkiholi brothers led by Minister Ramesh Jarkiholi raised the banner of revolt after a faction led by Congress leader Lakshmi Hebbalkar, who owes allegiance to Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, tried to gain control of the Primary Land Development Bank in Belagavi.

The past couple of days witnessed several attempts being made to raise the banner of revolt and the brothers saying that they enjoyed the support of at least 12 MLAs. If this is correct and the brother do decide to pull out, the coalition would collapse as it enjoys a slender majority of 118 MLAs in the 224 member house.

Karnataka: ED likely to arrest DK Shivakumar

Both sides- Congress and JD(S) tried to play down the issue and said that the problems have been sorted out.

Indirect talks:

The Jarkiholi brothers are reportedly in talks with B S Yeddyurappa of the BJP. The BJP expects at least 7 MLAs of the Congress would likely back them. The party is however keeping its cards close to its chest. There is no move to topple the government, but yes there are several disgruntled MLAs especially from North Karnataka and the Lingayat community, a leader in the know of the developments informed OneIndia.

He also said that the BJP would not approach anyone. However we could talk if they approach us first. When asked if another 'Operation Lotus' was on the cards, the leader refused to comment.

Reverse Operation Lotus:

Amidst talk that the BJP would look to poach MLAs from the Congress, there are moves to identify some disgruntled BJP MLAs. Some persons from the Congress are reportedly in talks with BJP leaders and attempts are being made to lure them.

Chief Minister, H D Kumaraswamy had gone on to say that there would be a surprise waiting for the BJP. You will see some from their side will come to us, he had also said.

Earlier Karnataka minister, Sa Ra Mahesh had warned the BJP against poaching. He said that there are 10 MLAs from the BJP who are in touch with the JD(S). He said that they want power and hence could jump the ship.

How stable is the coalition?

The BJP would hope that the boat rocks at least ahead of 2019. However it does not want to be seen as the party, which toppled the government. Hence any move from the BJP would depend on what move the Congress or JD(S) makes.

Several analysts tell OneIndia that the coalition will survive at least until the 2019 elections. The recent statements by Siddaramaiah and even his comments in the past should be seen in the context of both seat sharing in 2019 and his own relevance.

Hebbalkar vs Jarakiholi: Congress downplays rift between leaders

At least until 2019, one would see these skirmishes and it would stop only once both parties decide on who gets how much to battle in 2019.

While some within the state unit of the BJP would be happy if they are able to install the government, the message from Delhi runs contrary to what they are thinking. The party's top leadership do want any adventure in Karnataka as of now.

The brief is, " if the government has to topple, let it topple, but do not be responsible for it." The party is putting in all its resources in the upcoming state elections in November/December. They feel that the Karnataka adventure can wait until that.
Sense of desperation: Why are terrorists choosing soft targets in Jammu and Kashmir

Security review in J&K is message to Pak not to use Taliban win in Kashmir

This man was too busy with his terrorism skills as his sister got married

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Srinagar, Sep 12: He did not attend his sister's wedding as he was too busy furthering his terrorism skills and was engaged in a battle with the security forces in Jammu and Kashmir.

In an encounter at the Kupwara district, Liyaqat Ahmad Lone was killed along with his associate in a fierce encounter with the security forces.

He was killed as his sister was getting married. Liyaqat's sister Rubina Jan was set to receive the groom, when the family heard about his death. Incidentally on Monday, his brother Javaid Lone too had got married and the family was completely unaware that he was caught in an encounter.

Also Read | It is Jihad silly, not unemployment which drew 62 per cent educated Muslims towards terrorism

The police said that Liyaqat along with his associate Gani Khawaja, both part of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba were involved in the murder of Hurriyat Conference leader, Hakim-ur-Rehman.
Lawyer without brief is like Tendulkar without his bat on cricket ground: SC

Time to draw the line on media trial: SC

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

By Indresh Sinha

New Delhi, Sep 12: The press should "draw a line" and strike a balance as media trial of cases cannot be allowed, the Supreme Court said Tuesday while hearing the Muzaffarpur shelter home case in which several women were allegedly raped and abused.

The court, which was dealing with a plea challenging a Patna High Court order restraining the media from reporting on the investigation into the Muzaffarpur shelter home case, said the issue was not "simple".

"It is not such a simple matter. The media goes to one complete extreme at a point. There has to be a balance. You cannot say whatever you feel like saying. You cannot have media trials. Tell us where to draw the line," a bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta said.

Also Read | No media gag on reporting Sohrabuddin trial: Bombay HC

Senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, appearing for the petitioner, told the bench that the high court had imposed a "blanket ban" on the media in the case.

The court issued notices to the Bihar government and the CBI, which is probing the case, on the petition and sought their replies by September 18, the next date of hearing.

The bench was also informed that the high court had on August 29 passed an order appointing a lady advocate as an amicus in the case pending there and asked her to visit the place where the alleged victims were staying and interview them for the purpose of their rehabilitation.

The top court said the direction asking the amicus to interview these alleged victims was "totally in conflict" with its earlier order, by which it had asked the media not to interview these minor girls.

The bench made it clear that the probe agency should take the assistance of professional counsellors and qualified child psychiatrist to question them.

"This direction (asking the amicus to interview the women) is stayed. This is totally in conflict with our earlier order. So it has to be stayed," the bench said.

Also Read | SC restrains media from telecasting images, videos of minor rape victims

During arguments, Naphade said the high court's order restraining the media from reporting on the investigation was in conflict with the court's direction.

The bench told Naphade that he would have to assist the court in the matter.

When the senior lawyer said there should not be any ban on the media, the bench said "we will see it on September 18."

Over 30 girls were allegedly raped at the shelter home run by Brajesh Thakur, the chief of a state-funded NGO. The alleged sexual exploitation of the girls was first highlighted in an audit report submitted by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) to the state's social welfare department.

The petition was filed by a Patna-based journalist through advocate Fauzia Shakil challenging the high court order restraining the media.

The plea, which has sought a stay on the operation of the high court's August 23 order, has alleged that the order was "patently erroneous" as it amounted to imposing a "blanket ban" on the media reporting in the shelter home case.

The Patna High Court, which has been monitoring the probe in the case, had on August 23 expressed displeasure over the leak of details of the investigation and had asked the media to refrain from publishing it as it could be detrimental to the probe.

Also Read | Editors Guild condemns restraining media from reporting on shelter abuse case

The plea in the court has said that because of the media reporting in the Muzaffarpur case, boys at a juvenile home at Arrah in Bihar had gathered courage and complained to their parents about the physical and sexual abuse going on there.

The court had earlier taken cognisance of the incident after a letter was written by Patna resident Ranvijay Kumar highlighting the issue of repeated interviews of the alleged victims of the Muzaffarpur shelter home being published and aired.

An FIR was lodged against 11 people, including Thakur, on May 31. The probe has now been taken over by the CBI. In all, the sexual abuse of 34 of the 42 inmates was confirmed in their medical examination.

The TISS audit report had said that many girls at the shelter home had complained of sexual abuse. A special investigation team was formed to probe the complaints.

The NGO running the shelter home in Muzaffarpur was blacklisted and the girls were shifted to shelter homes in Patna and Madhubani. Women staff members of the shelter home and Thakur were among those who were arrested by the police in connection with the case.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 9:08 [IST]
Watch: Cop dies after being attacked by under-trial prisoner with spade in MP's Bhind

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

New Delhi, Sep 12: In a shocking incident, an undertrial prisoner identified as 25-year-old man, Vishnu Rajawat who was held for violating peace caused mayhem inside a police station in Madhya Pradesh on Sunday.

According to ANI video, the escape was caught on CCTV which shows man, armed with a spade, moving quietly down a corridor and hitting the policemen on the head from behind. The first policeman immediately collapses and the second tries to stave off the blow but fails and crashes to the floor.

#WATCH Dramatic visuals of an undertrial prisoner viciously attacking two prison guards at a police station in Bhind on 9th September. One police personnel has been referred to Delhi for treatment, another is under treatment at a district hospital in Bhind (Source: CCTV footage) pic.twitter.com/eXEQ5eH51y  ANI (@ANI) September 11, 2018

However, one of the police officer who was referred to Delhi for treatment has passed away.

Also Read | Road rage: Cab driver shot dead

The incident was captured in the CCTV camera installed inside the police station. The video released by news agency shows the accused coming from behind and trashing the two guards brutally. Another person seen in the video did not come forward to help.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 12:52 [IST]
Vijay Mallya

Mallya had earlier said he had met Jaitley and informed him about leaving India, to which the Finance Minister said that liquor baron's statement was "factually false". Jaitley, however, said that once in Parliament Mallya tried to strike a conversation with him over the settling of debts, to which the Finance Minister said that the former Kingfisher chief should talk to banks.

Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma

Congress leader Anand Sharma asked as to why the Finance Minister did not mention about the meeting in question in Parliament earlier.

"Vijay Mallya has run away after looting money from banks. Govt had this info. So, when Finance Minister gave statements in Parliament on Vijay Mallya issue,he should have mentioned about this meeting with Mallya. Only the Finance Minister can tell why he didn't tell about it?" Sharma told news agency ANI.

CPI (M)'s Sitaram Yechury

CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechury said that the government should own up to the fact that they allowed this loot to happen.

"It is a fact that all of us had known earlier. Whatever denials govt may issue, it confirms that all those who looted public money by taking loans from banks and absconded, not one of them happened to leave the country without knowledge of the government," he told ANI.

Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi

"Phrase used by Mallya today is that 'he met FM'. But 'met the FM' doesn't suggest a passing, casual, walking meeting inside the House of Rajya Sabha. I think more categorical and detailed response must be had. Question remains how could he have left after everyone knew of debts and NPAs," said Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi.
Kim Jong Un's sister says US 'seeks to comfort itself'

Better Trump-Kim ties: Japans Abe extends support

International

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

By Indresh Sinha

Vladivostok, Sep 12: Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday voiced support for the rapprochement between Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un, a Japanese diplomat said, as Washington considers the possibility of a new summit with North Korea's leader.

In a meeting with South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon on the sidelines of an economic forum in Russia, Abe reiterated his support for "the agreement between President Trump and Chairman Kim, in particular, the commitment of the North Korean leader towards the full denuclearization of the Korean Penninsula," said a Japanese foreign ministry spokesman.

"Our position is that the international community should push North Korea to fully and expeditiously implement the commitment he (Kim) made to President Trump," Japanese ministry spokesman Takeshi Osuga told AFP.

Also Read | Trump thanks Kim Jong Un, says 'we will get it done together'

The meeting took place during an economic forum in the far eastern city of Vladivostok, with the latest round of diplomatic efforts to curb the North Korean nuclear programme high on the agenda.

The White House said Monday that Trump had received a "very positive" letter from Kim seeking a follow-up meeting after they held a historic summit in Singapore in June.

Japan takes a harsh stance towards Pyongyang, which has sent numerous missile tests in the direction of its territory.

"Shinzo Abe expressed his hope that the upcoming North-South summit meeting will lead to concrete actions towards the denuclearization of North Korea," said Osuga.

On Monday, Abe met South Korea's intelligence chief in Tokyo, Suh Hoon, he added.

Abe and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who is also attending the Vladivostok forum, are expected to hold a meeting on Wednesday, said a Japanese diplomatic source.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 10:11 [IST]
Collapse of Kabul will go down as one of the greatest defeats in American history: Donald Trump

Thousands of terrorists might have been airlifted out of Kabul: Trump slams Biden

Never in history has withdrawal from war been handled so badly: Trump

Modi wanted to go to Camp David, not on cards said White House

International

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

By Indresh Sinha

Washington, Sep 12: Prime Minister Narendra Modi wanted to go to Camp David, the picturesque presidential resort, to dine and develop a personal bond with President Donald Trump, well-known American author Bob Woodward has claimed in his latest book that has triggered a storm.

The book, which has been described by the White House as a work of fiction, has a small segment on India and June 26, 2017 visit of Modi to the White House.

President Trump has dismissed the book titled 'Fear: Trump in the White House' as a "joke".

Also Read | White House journalists' body chief takes indirect dig at Trump for skipping event

The 448-page book claims to give an insider's account on the White House working and decision-making process in Trump's presidency.

In the book, the then national security advisor H R McMaster is seen as batting for a strong relationship with India.

Ahead of the June 26 visit of Modi, McMaster met with the then White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus to prepare for the US visit of the Indian prime minister.

"The prime minister of India, Narendra Modi, who had been courted assiduously by (Barack) Obama, was coming for a visit to the United States in June to see Trump. India was the counterweight to Pakistan, which was giving the new administration as much trouble as it had given previous ones by hedging maddeningly on terrorism. Modi wanted to go to Camp David and have dinner, bond with Trump," Woodward writes in the book.

"'It's not in the cards,' Priebus told McMaster. 'We're just going to do dinner here. It's what the president wants.'," Woodward quotes Priebus as saying. This made McMaster angry.

"He (McMaster) understood the strategic importance of India, a sworn enemy of Pakistan. Outreach and strong relations were essential. The later event for Modi was a "no-frills" cocktail reception. The working dinner was at the White House," Woodward, the famed investigative journalist, writes in the book.

There was no immediate comments from the Prime Minister's Office.

Camp David, located about 100-km north-northwest of Washington, D.C., is the country retreat for the President of the United States. The US presidents have hosted several top world leaders at Camp David.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 8:36 [IST]
What happened 17 years ago

This week marks 17 years since four commercial planes were hijacked in the US, with two being flown into New York's World Trade Centre, one into the Pentagon in Washington DC and one crashing in a field in Pennsylvania, killing a total of nearly 3000 people and injuring more than 6000 others.

NASA remembers September 11th

US space agency NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) released some pictures last year that were taken a few hours after the attacks. It was NASA's way of recalling the unfateful day. US astronaut Frank Culbertson was aboard the International Space Station, which coincidentally, happened to fly over the New York City area moments after the Twin Towers came down. (Pic Courtesy: NASA)

New York City as seen from the International Space Station in August 2014

New York City as seen from the International Space Station in August 2014. The International Space Station moved along its path and lost view of the New York City, however other satellites of NASA including Terra satellite caught images of the attack's immediate aftermath. The dreadful incident of the 9/11 attacks can never be forgotten that killed around 3000 people and injured over 6000 people.

After two planes crashed into towers of World Trade Center

Visible from space, a smoke plume rises from the Manhattan area after two planes crashed into the towers of the World Trade Center. This photo was taken of metropolitan New York City (and other parts of New York as well as New Jersey) the morning of September 11, 2001.

Tragedy in New York City

This image from NASA's Terra satellite shows a large plume of smoke streaming southward from the remnants of the burning World Trade Towers in downtown Manhattan yesterday (September 11, 2001). The image was acquired by the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) within a few hours after the terrorist attack. The red pixels in this scene show the location of vegetation. Light blue-white pixels show where there are concrete surfaces.

Aftermath of World Trade Center attack

This true-color image was taken by the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) aboard the Landsat 7 satellite on September 12, 2001, at roughly 11:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Savings Time. Smoke can still be seen at the site.
Nawaz Sharif, his daughter and son-in-law granted parole to attend Kulsoom's funeral

International

pti-PTI

Lahore, Sep 12: Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar reached early on Wednesday from Rawalpindi after they were released from Adiala Jail on a 12-hour parole to attend the funeral of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz.

Kulsoom, the wife of Sharif, died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68. Her body will be brought back here and buried in the Jati Umra Lahore residence of the Sharif family. Sharif and two others were transported to Jati Umra in a special plane from Nur Khan Airbase Rawalpindi in the early hours of Wednesday after the Punjab government's home department issued their release order for a 12-hour parole.

The trio arrived in Lahore at 3.15 am Wednesday. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Maryam Aurangzeb told PTI that Shahbaz Sharif, had filed an application with the Punjab government requesting the release of his elder brother Nawaz, niece Maryam and Safdar for five days on parole so that they could attend the last rituals of Kulsoom who died of cancer in London. The Punjab government did not entertain Shahbaz's request for five days and only granted their release for 12 hours, she said.

"We are hopeful that the government will extend the parole till the funeral of Begum Kulsoom to be held on Friday in Lahore," Aurangzeb said, adding Shahbaz will leave for London on Wednesday to bring Kulsoom's body back. A senior official of the Punjab government also confirmed to PTI that the parole period would be extended till the last rituals of Kulsoom are performed in Lahore. "Since Kulsoom' body is scheduled to arrive here on Friday there is no point of not extending the parole period. The government has allowed Mr Sharif to attend the funeral prayer of his wife purely on humanitarian grounds," the official said.

According to a notification of the home department, "In pursuance of rule 545-B of Pakistan Prison Rules 1978, permission granted to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Capt (retd) Muhammad Safdar, confined at central prison Rawalpindi, to attend the funeral prayer of Kulsoom Nawaz. The duration of permission granted shall not exceed 12 hours. Police will be responsible for their security and safety. They will not leave the place (Jati Umra) specified in the permission order".

Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan had ordered to facilitate the Sharif family regarding the bringing back of body of Kulsoom and matters related to their parole. Heavy contingent of police has been deployed at the Jati Umra to provide security to the Sharif family. Kulsoom, who had been battling with lymphoma (throat cancer) for over a year, breathed her last at the London's Harley Street Clinic. "Begum Kulsoom's condition deteriorated early in the morning on Tuesday. Doctors tried their best but couldn't save her life," Aurangzeb said. To a question whether her sons - Hasan and Hussain - would return to Lahore to attend her funeral prayer, she said, "No decision has been taken as yet". It is likely that both sons may not return to Pakistan as they have been declared absconders by an accountability court in the off-shore properties case.

The former first lady was diagnosed with lymphoma (throat) cancer in August last and had been in London since, where she underwent multiple surgeries and at least five chemotherapy sessions. She was placed on a ventilator in June following a cardiac arrest.

Her family reported a slight improvement in her condition on July 12, a day before her husband Sharif and Maryam were set to return to Pakistan after the accountability court sentenced them to jail. She served as the first lady of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms from 1990-1993, 1997-1999 and 2013-2017. She also served as the president of the PML-N from 1999 to 2002, after her husband's government was toppled by former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf in a bloodless coup. She was also placed under house arrest following Sharif's ouster by Musharraf in 1999. She led defiant, lonely protests against the Musharraf regime to get her husband freed from prison.

Kulsoom was elected to Lahore's NA-120 constituency in a by-poll after her husband was disqualified from the seat by the Supreme Court last year. Due to her illness, she was unable to return and formally take oath for the seat. She was born in 1950 in Lahore to a Kashmiri family.

She graduated from the Forman Christian College in Lahore and received a Master's degree in Urdu from Punjab University in 1970. From her maternal side, she was granddaughter of famous wrestler of the sub-continent Gama Pehlwan. Kulsoom married Sharif in April 1971 and they have four children - Hassan, Hussain, Maryam and Asma.

PTI
Trump's compassion-less 9/11 tweet irks Americans

International

oi-Pushyarag Shetty

Washington DC, Sep 11: September 11, 2001, the entire world watched in disbelief as two out of four air crafts hijacked by Taliban crashed into the famous twin towers of America, killing more than 3000 USA residents. The magnitude of this terrorist attack was such that it completely changed the world's view on terrorism. As America remembered the fateful day on Tuesday, the 17th year anniversary of the blast, the President of USA had very less to say on the occasion.

The previous President of USA, Barack Obama on Sep 11, would send heartfelt messages to the survivors and fellow countrymen and urging them to spread love, whereas, this year, Donald Trump, the reigning President had just to say "17 years since September 11th!".

17 years on: The 9/11 attacks and the Indian connection

Trump is an active user of Twitter, where he has never shy to puts all his thoughts in the form of words. On Tuesday he first posted about Russia collusion and tagged two Fox News personalities, a topic he would return to throughout the morning. Then, for his second post of the day, Trump re-tweeted White House Social Media Director Dan Scavino Jr.'s tweet about Sep 11 and added the hashtags #NeverForget and #September11th. Scavino's post was about the president signing a proclamation on Monday declaring Tuesday "Patriot Day 2018" in honour of the lives lost in the 2001 terrorist attacks.

About 45 minutes after the re-tweet Trump praised Giuliani. "Rudy Giuliani did a GREAT job as Mayor of NYC during the period of September 11th," Trump wrote. "His leadership, bravery and skill must never be forgotten. Rudy is a TRUE WARRIOR!" he wrote.

After that, he posted, "17 years since September 11th!"

17 years since September 11th!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 11, 2018

This caught the ire of US netizens who quickly responded to the tweet in not a very positive manner. One user wrote, "A lot of presidents would use this day to honour the dead, rather than prove they have the ability to count." while another twitter had this to say, "Dude, why? What's the purpose of this tweet? Don't you have anything more meaningful to say?"

While this is not the first time the US President has come under fire for his tweets, his tweets were not as offensive as in 2015, when he without any factual basis, accused 'thousands and thousands' of Muslim Americans in New Jersey of celebrating the attacks.
Vijay Mallya has applied for another route to stay in the UK, says lawyer

Will Mallya be extradited to India? Verdict out on December 10

International

oi-Madhuri Adnal

London, Sep 12: Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya on Wednesday claimed that he had met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving India. What is, however, not clear is how many days before fleeing the country did Mallya meet Jaitley. It is also being debated weather Mallya met Jaitley in India or in Geneva.

Mallya earlier today appeared before a London court for a hearing in his extradition case, during which the judge reviewed a video of the Mumbai jail cell prepared by Indian authorities for the embattled liquor tycoon. The judge has reserved verdict for December 10.

When asked if he has convinced the Court the he has the means to pay what he said he will, Mallya said,''Obviously, that is why a settlement offer has been made. The hearing is on 18th September.''

During the hearing, prosecution lawyer told the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, "What Vijay Mallya's Kingfisher internally knew was totally different from what it was telling the banks. Kingfisher Airlines misrepresented facts about performance when applying for loans."

Outside the court, Mallya, as per news agency ANI, said, "I met the finance minster to settle matters before I left. The banks had filed objections to my settlement letters..I obviously don't agree with what the prosecution is alleging. Let the Court decide."

Mallya also said that he felt like a scapegoat, adding that his conscience is clear.

#WATCH "I met the Finance Minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks", says Vijay Mallya outside London's Westminster Magistrates' Court pic.twitter.com/5wvLYItPQf  ANI (@ANI) September 12, 2018

Also Read | New floor, fresh paint, renovated bathroom at cell where India hopes to lodge Vijay Mallya

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in UK last April, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs. 9,000 crores.

At the previous hearing in July in the Westminster Magistrates' Court in, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a "step by step video" of the Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for "the avoidance of doubt" over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.

The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on 4 December last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya.

Mallya's defence team has deposed a series of expert witnesses to claim he had no "fraudulent" intentions and that he is unlikely to get a fair trial in India.
Why are number of Indian students in UK universities declining?

International

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

By Indresh Sinha

London, Sep 12: Increasing worldwide competition to attract international students has led to a sharp fall in the number of Indian students coming to UK universities, a new report commissioned by the government warned on Tuesday.

The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) had been tasked by the UK Home Office to study the impact of international students in the UK and recommend any changes to the country's visa regime that might be required. But while it acknowledged the sharp drop in Indian student numbers in recent years, it sought to blame that largely on "adverse" media coverage.

"The UK's market of students from India has fallen sharply in recent years, while remaining stable for those students from China the number of students from India fell from a peak of 24,000 in 2010-11 to fewer than 10,000 in 2016-17," the report notes, which it says reflects a fall by 11 percentage points since 2010.

Also Read | UK bats for a new post- study visa to lure international students

"This is probably connected to the ending of some sponsor licences and the change in the post-study work offer. There has also been adverse coverage of the UK as a place to study in the Indian press," it adds.

It recommended an overall easier transition from student to work visas for talented applicants, including extending the limited post-study leave period from the current three to six months for Masters students. But it dismissed the need for an exclusive post-study visa route, seen as central to attracting students from countries like India.

University chiefs have been campaigning for a dedicated post-study visa route, most recently with representative body Universities UK proposing a new 'Global Graduate Talent Visa' to allow qualified international students to work in a skilled job in the UK for a period of two years after graduation.

Prof Janet Beer, President of Universities UK, said the organisation, which represents the country's 136 leading universities, was "disappointed" with the report's main recommendations.

"The ability to work in a skilled job for a limited period after graduation is, for many prospective international students, an important part of the overall package when deciding where to study improved post-study visa would put us on a par with what is offered by countries such as the US, Canada and Australia," she said, warning that growth in student numbers will only be possible if the UK adopts a more encouraging immigration system.

In another controversial move, the MAC report also concluded there was no case for international students to be removed from the government's annual migration targets.

Also Read | Outrage as UK excludes Indian students from new relaxed visa rules

"If there is a problem with students in the target, it is with the target itself rather than the inclusion of students in the target," said MAC Chairman Professor Alan Manning in his Foreword to the report.

Campaigners warn that while the UK continues to count international students as long-term migrants in its net migration target, there is continued pressure to reduce their numbers and adds to the perception that overseas students are not really welcome in the UK.

"The good thing it (MAC) does do is to explicitly call out that the government's net migration target is a political target, and therefore a problem in itself. But it shoots itself in the foot by then recommending that students stay within this target," said Sanam Arora, Chair of the National Indian Students and Alumni Union (NISAU) UK, which has been campaigning for a friendlier visa regime for Indian students.

"The post-study work visa is the key thing required so what is the point of issuing recommendations and reaffirming findings we all already know if you're not going to do anything about it," she questioned.

A British Chambers of Commerce spokesperson added, "Business communities around the UK will be bitterly disappointed not to see support for the removal of overseas students from the immigration statistics".

The MAC report recognises that there will be cross-sector disappointment by its recommendation on post-study work visas, but says that demand for UK education should not be based on work rights.

Its recommendations will now be taken into account by the UK government in any future changes to the immigration policy.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 10:21 [IST]
Rape convict Asaram pleads for mercy as old age takes a toll

Jaipur

oi-Pushyarag Shetty

Jodhpur, Sep 12: The self established 'god- man' Asaram seems to be having a tough time in the jail who is serving a life imprisonment after he was found guilty of raping a 16- year old minor girl. The judgement was given by a Jodhpur court on April 25 for the crime he committed 5 years ago.

Asaram has now requested the Jodhpur governor to dilute his prison term citing the punishment as 'gruelling' given his old age. Asaram wrote to Kalyan Singh, the Governor of Rajasthan to terminate his prison term as his old age is taking a toll on him. Governor Kalyan Singh, who recently received Asaram's mercy plea, sent it to the state home department seeking a detailed report on the plea.

The department then forwarded the plea to the Jodhpur Central Jail administration, which, in turn, has sought a report from the district administration and police. The jail administration will now send the rapists plea to the Director General (Jail) of Rajasthan.

Why Asaram believed rape was not a sin

The victim, the teenager from Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh was studying at one of Asaram's ashram in Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh. She had said in her complaint that Asaram had called her to his ashram in the Manai area near Jodhpur and raped her on the night of August 15, 2013.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 13:15 [IST]
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

Woman killed by father, brother in case of honour killing

Kolkata

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

By Indresh Sinha

Burdwan, Sep 12: In a suspected case of honour killing, the West Bengal Police has arrested the father and brother of a Muslim woman on the charge of murdering her for being in a relationship with a Hindu man.

The duo, residents of Bihar's Jamalpur, were arrested from Kolkata on Monday by Purba Burdwan district police, a senior officer said.

Police had on August 31 recovered the body of a woman whose face was mutilated with a stone, from an agricultural land around 19 km from here, he said.

Also Read | Delhi: Man arrested for killing wife

"During the post-mortem, we found two numbers jotted on her body, following which we got hold of the man with whom she was in a relationship," the officer said.

A police team then reached the man's residence in Mumbai, and he gave details about the woman's place of residence and her family members.

Acting on his inputs, police arrested the woman's father and brother, who worked as drivers in Kolkata.

Also Read | Class 11 boy killed by unidentified men outside school

The two admitted to killing the woman with a rope inside a moving vehicle, while they were taking her back to Jamalpur and then dumped her body in the agricultural land after defacing her face with a stone, the officer said.

Police is also probing whether there were other reasons behind her killing, he said.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 8:44 [IST]
Cruise drugs party organisers took nod from Centre, not Maha govt, says Nawab Malik

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Copper worth Rs 1.81 crore stolen, two held

Mumbai

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By Indresh Sinha

Mumbai, Sep 12: Two kingpins of a gang were arrested by Mumbai Police in a Rs 1.81 crore copper theft case registered in neighbouring Palghar district, an official said Tuesday.

The accused duo are identified as Wasim Ahmed Bashir Ahmed Sheikh (39) and Mohsin Ashraf Baloch (31), both residents of Nallasopara in Palghar district.

They were arrested by the property cell of the Crime Branch, said Dilip Sawant, DCP (Detection).

Also Read | Woman killed by father, brother in case of honour killing

Sheikh was wanted in a vehicle theft case in which his two aides were already arrested, he said.

Police had seized nine vehicles from the accused persons which were used to commit robbery and decoity on the highway in Thane and Palghar districts, he said.

Sheikh, who hails from Pratapgadh in Uttar Pradesh, is the kingpin of the gang involved in theft of vehicles in the northern state, the DCP said.

He was wanted in at least 13 such cases in Mumbai.

Also Read | Class 10 student abducted by friends for money, battered to death in Ghaziabad

Sheikh and Baloch were operating a gang that was involved in stealing copper owned by Copper India Ltd., after it was loaded on container trailers in Taloja unit in Navi Mumbai for transporting it to Rajasthan and Gujarat, the official said.

Sheikh and Baloch, along with their accomplices, used to steal copper in remote areas in Palghar and Thane districts and sell it in open market, he said.

The crime branch officials recovered copper worth Rs 1.81 crore in two cases registered at Valiv and Virar police stations in Palghar, he said.

Further investigation is underway.

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Story first published: Wednesday, September 12, 2018, 8:59 [IST]
Do not remove speed governors from vehicles, NGO appeals to government

New Delhi

pti-PTI

New Delhi, Sep 12: Stating that high speed is the main reason behind most road accidents, a non-profit body has urged the government to not get pressured by automobile lobbies into increasing speed limit of vehicles.

Kamal Soi, chairman of Raahat - the safe community foundation, urged the government to not remove speed governors from vehicles as he said such a move could lead to "road terrorism".

Noting that India does not have homogeneous traffic, Soi, a member of the National Road Safety Council, said increase of speed limit would not improve traffic movement as the number of vehicles in the country are very high. "Developed countries have homogenous traffic due to which they can afford to increase speed limit but even they are adding speed governors to their vehicles. We need to learn from them," he said.

"I request Union Minister Nithin Gadkari to not get influenced by automobile lobbies as speed is the biggest killer in road accidents," the former vice-chairman of Punjab State Road Safety Council said. He was reacting to recent reports of union government planning to revoke the mandatory requirement of speed governors from commercial vehicles, which was imposed last year.

PTI
National Capital District (NCD) Governor Powes Parkop has called on Papua New Guinea Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Rimbink Pato not to shy away from discussing the West Papua issue on the international stage. It is important that we talk about the West Papua issues with the Indonesian Government and at the international forum, he said.We have to address it openly and maturely. And I would like to see an open and mature type of discussion to take place.Parkop was responding to Patos ministerial statement in Parliament Tuesday. We are supposed to have a robust relationship with Indonesia because they are our immediate neighbours, Parkop said.We should have integrated our economy. We should have closer people-to-people relationship. After all we are two countries sharing a land border.But we dont have that relationship. And it is because there is a sore point (West Papua issue) and we must address that sore point. And I want to thank the Prime Minister Peter ONeill for trying his best to address that sore point..He said the leadership of Indonesia under former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was open.But now we have a President Joko Widodo. We are not sure of his leadership on the West Papua issue.He said he had always supported what the West Papuans were fighting for.I have strong points about it, Parkop said.It has been part of my life and I want us to progress it to a point where it has an outcome that is good for Indonesia and us, good for the people of West Papua.Meanwhile, Prime Minister Peter ONeill says Papua New Guinea has been throwing a lifeline to refugees escaping political turmoil in their countries.ONeill said PNG had provided hope for West Papuan refugees from Indonesia, the Middle East and African countries.He was commenting on a ministerial statement made by Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Rimbink Pato.We have been able to save the lives of the border-crossing boat people who were sailing to Australia  all the young children, babies could have been thrown into the sea, he said.Well over 3000 people had faced drowning. We offered a lifeline. That is why we open up the asylum camps in Manus for them. And today many of these families are being resettled in the United States and other parts of the world. That is because PNG has taken a leadership role on refugees in the region. When everybody else in the region didnt want to accept these refugees, PNG went out of its way to accept them.ONeill said PNG also welcomed West Papuan refugees.Many of them have been living in our country for over 30 years without any citizenship. And we, as the Government and country, gave them citizenship by wavering the K10,000 (US$3,000) application fee, he said.SOURCE: THE NATIONAL/PACNEWS
Bailey McCann, Opalesque New York:

On Tuesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission marked its first enforcement action against a hedge fund that trades cryptocurrencies. The regulator also announced a settlement with two men who ran an online store for various digital tokens.

The SEC alleges that Crypto Asset Management LP (CAM) offered a fund that operated as an unregistered investment company while falsely marketing it as the "first regulated crypto asset fund in the United States." The firm's founder Timothy Enneking raised more than $3.6 million over a four-month period in late 2017 while falsely claiming that the fund was regulated by the SEC and had filed a registration statement with the agency. By engaging in an unregistered non-exempt public offering and investing more than 40 percent of the fund's assets in digital asset securities, CAM caused the fund to operate as an unregistered investment company. After being contacted by the SEC staff, CAM ceased its public offering and offered buybacks to affected investors.

CAM and Enneking agreed to the SEC's cease-and-desist order and censure without admitting or denying the findings against them, and agreed to pay a penalty of $200,000.

The other charges were brought against TokenLot LLC, a self-described "ICO Superstore," and its owners. According to the SEC, TokenLot's management team Lenny Kugel and Eli L. ......................

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Erectile Dysfunction(ED) Drug Market Developing Trends, Revenue Analysis and Worldwide Key Manufacturers (Pfizer, Lilly, Bayer, Johnson & Johnson, Cipla) | Global Business Outlook Till 2023

Erectile Dysfunction(ED) Drug Market

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Businessindustryreports have new report on Global Erectile Dysfunction(ED) Drug Market 2018-2023. The report provides the newest industry data and industry future trends. The industry report lists the leading competitors and provides the insights strategic industry Analysis of the key factors influencing the market.This report includes market status and forecast of global and major regions, with introduction of vendors, regions, product types and end industries; and this report counts product types and end industries in global and major regions from 2018-2023.Get Sample Copy of this Report @The growing prevalence of chronic diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, spinal cord injuries, cardiovascular diseases, and blood pressure related problems has increased the uptake of their associated drug treatments. These drugs can cause hormonal imbalance, which can lead to erectile dysfunction (ED) in men, thus contributing to the rise in demand for ED drugs.The drug called Viagra has been in that the marketplace for over seven years now and it's done wonders with lots of patients suffering from the dreaded dysfunction. A broad range of Erectile Dysfunction drugs can be found in the market. Three oral drugs are already in that the marketplace by that the names of Viagra, Cialis and Levitra, that are approved by FDA. Viagra does cure the dysfunction, but there's to be some precautions well in place prior to swallowing the drug.Depression or mental disorder is associated with Erectile Dysfunction. According to a survey, 82% of men experiencing Erectile Dysfunction suffered from depression. Depression can definitely reduce sexual desire, but it's not always clear which condition comes first. Mental disorder is a psychiatric illness that disrupts the thinking of a person. He/she tends to behave on a manner different to others. Their way of thinking is restricted to the domain set by them. The mental illness of a person is related to the past events or circumstances he /she may have undergone. Mental disorder is unique from the legal concept of insanity.Key Players:1 Pfizer2 Lilly3 Bayer4 Johnson & Johnson5 Baiyunshan Pharmaceutical Company6 CiplaPurchase this report online with 110 Pages, List of Tables & Figures and in-depth Table of Contents on Global Erectile Dysfunction(ED) Drug Market Outlook 2018-2023@Erectile Dysfunction is a problem, which affects an individual's life. Lots of men have a propensity to mistake themselves due to their impotence problems when it caused by issues over. The issue can have a wide impact on the self respect and self of an individual. An individual begins to think differently that in turn results in psychological disorder among people. Different types of emotions start to haunt a person's life suffering from the twin disorder. He's shy to discussthe issue with a physician or with his partner. The lack leads to negative thinking among people plus they become circumspect towards their future sex lifestyle.The negative thinking associated with depression may affect the erectile power of an individual. People who're suffering from some type of problem or depressed have an inclination to corner themselves from activities that are normal. Where an individual may suffer from Erectile Dysfunction, the nature of the problem becomes severe with time. That's a kind of impotence which grows rapidly and might be associated with event or a situation. It's been found that most cases the factor is the problem that may affect the self respect and connection of men. Emotion does and may perpetuate the problem of Erectile Dysfunction.Regions:1 North America (U.S., Canada, Mexico)2 Europe (Germany, U.K., France, Italy, Russia, Spain etc)3 South America (Brazil, Argentina etc)4 Middle East & Africa (Saudi Arabia, South Africa etc)Grab Your Report at an Impressive Discount @Table of Content:1 Market Definition2 Global Market by Vendors3 Global Market by Type4 Global Market by End-Use / Application5 Global Market by Regions6 North America Market7 Europe Market8 Asia-Pacific Market9 South America Market10 Middle East & Africa Market11 Market Forecast12 Key ManufacturersAbout us:BusinessindustryReports.com is digital database of comprehensive market reports for global industries. As a market research company, we take pride in equipping our clients with insights and data that holds the power to truly make a difference to their business. Our mission is singular and well-defined  we want to help our clients envisage their business environment so that they are able to make informed, strategic and therefore successful decisions for themselves.Media ContactBusiness Industry ReportsPune  Indiasales@businessindustryreports.com+19376349940
Global Composite Process Materials Market to Reach US$ 1,182.6 million in 2022

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Global Composite Process Materials Market by End-Use Industry Type (Aerospace & Defense, Wind Energy, Marine, Transportation, and Others), by Material Type (Vacuum Bagging Film, Release Liner, Peel Ply, Breathers & Bleeders, and Others), by Application Type (Prepreg Manufacturing, Prepreg Layup Process, Infusion Process, and Others), and by Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World), Trend, Forecast, Competitive Analysis, and Growth Opportunity: 2017-2022This report, from Stratview Research, studies the process materials market in the global composites industry over the period 2017 to 2022. The report provides detailed insights into the market dynamics to enable informed business decision making and growth strategy formulation based on the opportunities present in the market.Click here to read the detailed description and TOC:The Global Composite Process Materials Market: HighlightsThe global process materials market in the composites industry was valued at US$ 774.8 million in 2016 and is projected to grow at a healthy CAGR of 7.2% during the forecast period to reach US$ 1,182.6 million in 2022. Higher usage of composite materials in the next generation aircraft, such as B787, A350XWB and C Series, with an increased penetration of prepreg materials; increasing penetration of composite materials in the automotive industries, mainly in luxury and electric vehicles with an increased demand for infusion and prepreg layup processes; and sustainable growth in the wind energy are rapidly proliferating the demand for process materials in the composites industry.The global composite process materials market is firstly segmented based on end-use industry type as aerospace & defense, wind energy, transportation, marine, and others. Aerospace & defense is expected to remain the largest consumer of process materials in the composites industry during the forecast period. High use of prepreg to manufacture structural composite components is the prime growth driver of the process materials in the aerospace & defense industry. The automotive industry is projected to witness the highest growth during the same period, driven by increasing penetration of composites in automobiles to enhance fuel efficiency for achieving stringent government regulations such as CAFE standards.Request Sample here:The global composite process materials market is secondly segmented based on application type as prepreg manufacturing, VARTM (Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding) process, prepreg layup process, and others. Over the next five years, prepreg manufacturing is expected to remain the most dominant application of process materials in the global composite industry. The penetration of prepreg is increasing in many industries, such as aerospace & defense, wind energy, and transportation. For instance, the next generation aircraft, such as B787, incorporates about 50% composites in the total structural weight in which majority of composite components are made by utilizing prepreg materials. Also, there is expected a healthy growth from VARTM process based applications.The global composite process materials market is thirdly segmented based on material type as vacuum bagging film, release liner, peel ply, breathers & bleeders, and others. Release liners find usage from prepreg manufacturing to composite part manufacturing through prepreg layup and infusion processes and are expected to remain the largest material type in the composite process materials market. This material type is also projected to witness the highes growth during the same period. Paper is the most preferred backing material type for release liners in the composites industry because of its excellent mechanical resistance and good caliper profile. The most widely used papers for composites are super-calendered kraft paper (also known as glassines) and clay coated kraft paper. Also, there is a significant usage of polyolefin-based release liners in prepreg manufacturing due to its excellent compatibility with epoxy resins.Among all the regions, North America is expected to remain the largest market for composite process materials during the forecast period. The region is the worlds manufacturing capital of composites with the presence of many big to small composites part molders. The region is also the hub of prepreg manufacturing with the presence of almost all the major prepreg manufacturers. Asia-Pacific is likely to remain the fastest growing market during the same period. High growth of composites, upcoming indigenous commercial and regional aircraft and shift of prepreg plants to Asia are some of the key whys and wherefores behind the higher growth in the Asia-Pacific's market. China and India are expected to remain the growth engines of the Asia-Pacific market.The supply chain of this market comprises raw material suppliers, film suppliers, process material manufacturers, distributors, prepreg manufacturers, part molders, OEMs, and end-users. The key composite process material manufacturers are Airtech Advanced Materials Group, Cytec Solvay Group, Mondi Plc, Loparex LLC, Wausau Paper, Lintec Corporation, and Gascogne Laminates. New product development, regional expansion, and long-term relation with customers are some of the key strategies adopted by the major players to gain a competitive edge in the market.Report FeaturesThis report provides market intelligence in the most comprehensive way. The report structure has been kept such that it offers maximum business value. It provides critical insights into the market dynamics and will enable strategic decision making for the existing market players as well as those willing to enter the market. The following are the key features of the report:Market structure: Overview, industry life cycle analysis, supply chain analysisMarket environment analysis: Growth drivers and constraints, Porters five forces analysis, SWOT analysisMarket trend and forecast analysisMarket segment trend and forecastCompetitive landscape and dynamics: Market share, product portfolio, product launches, etc.Attractive market segments and associated growth opportunitiesEmerging trendsStrategic growth opportunities for the existing and new playersKey success factorsThe composite process materials market is segmented into the following categories.Global Composite Process Materials Market by End-Use Industry Type: Aerospace & Defense (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Wind Energy (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Marine (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Transportation (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Others (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)Global Composite Process Materials Market by Material Type: Vacuum Bagging Film (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Release Liner (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Peel Ply (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Breathers & Bleeders (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Others (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)Global Composite Process Materials Market by Application Type: Prepreg Manufacturing (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Prepreg Layup Process (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) VARTM Process (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World) Others (Regional Analysis: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World)Global Composite Process Materials Market by Region: North America (Country Analysis: the USA, Canada, and Mexico) Europe (Country Analysis: Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Russia, and Rest of the Europe) Asia  Pacific (Country Analysis: China, Japan, India, and Rest of the Asia-Pacific) Rest of the World (Country Analysis: Middle-East, Latin America, and Others)About Stratview ResearchStratview Research is a global market intelligence firm providing wide range of services including syndicated market reports, custom research and sourcing intelligence across industries, such as Advanced Materials, Aerospace & Defense, Automotive & Mass Transportation, Consumer Goods, Construction & Equipment, Electronics and Semiconductors, Energy & Utility, Healthcare & Life Sciences, and Oil & Gas.We have a strong team of industry veterans and analysts with an extensive experience in executing custom research projects for mid-sized to Fortune 500 companies, in the areas of Market Assessment, Opportunity Screening, Competitive Intelligence, Due Diligence, Target Screening, Market Entry Strategy, Go to Market Strategy, and Voice of Customer studies.Stratview Research is a trusted brand globally, providing high quality research and strategic insights that help companies worldwide in effective decision making.Category: Advanced MaterialStratview Research is a global market intelligence firm providing wide range of services including syndicated market reports, custom research and sourcing intelligence across industries, such as Advanced Materials, Aerospace & Defense, Automotive & Mass Transportation, Consumer Goods, Construction & Equipment, Electronics and Semiconductors, Energy & Utility, Healthcare & LifeStratview ResearchCrystal Tower, Raipur - 492001Phone No. +1-313-307-4176Email :- sales@stratviewresearch.com
Low Temperature Coatings Market Research by Key players, Type and Application, Future Growth to 2025

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Low temperature coatings are two-component epoxy-based coatings. The low temperature coatings have the ability to cure down to 0C. These coatings are used in cool weather conditions, where other coatings require adequate measures for curing purposes. Though the rate of corrosion at lower temperatures is much slower compared to the rate at other temperatures, still corrosion occurs. Some chiller rooms will have high humidity. The high humidity will accelerate corrosion. The low temperature coatings are capable of retaining flexibility and impact resistance to metals at shallow temperatures. They also provide low moisture permeability and maintain excellent dielectric and mechanical properties of the metallic substance.The low temperature coatings are available in two variants, liquid, and powder, and are employed in many applications. These are more likely used to apply coatings to valves, pipes, fittings, welds, and many other components which exposed to lower temperatures. Whenever a metal product is placed in colder environments, there will be a need for low temperature coatings.Request Brochure @Low Temperature Coatings Market: Dynamics and TrendsThe low temperature coatings are more eco-friendly compared to other coatings. They will also reduce the risk of volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions into the atmosphere. The eco-friendly nature of the low temperature coatings is determined to drive the low temperature coatings market. As the demand for environmentally friendly products across the world is increasing, the need for low temperature coatings is also expected to grow significantly.The growing demand for low temperature coatings is driven by the increased employment of low temperature coatings across various industry verticals. These coatings are used in industry verticals like automotive, manufacturing, and others. The growing demand for the protection of components in all the industry verticals is giving an additional boost to the low temperature coatings market growth.Request for Discount @Some of the prominent players in this market include PPG Industries, Inc., DuPont, Bowers Industrial, Axalta Coating Systems, DSM, The Valspar Corporation, Specialty Polymer Coatings Inc., Phygen Coatings, Inc., Michelman, Inc., and Vitracoat America.ABOUT US:Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.TMRs data repository is continuously updated and revised by a team of research experts so that it always reflects the latest trends and information. With extensive research and analysis capabilities, Transparency Market Research employs rigorous primary and secondary research techniques to develop distinctive data sets and research material for business reports.ContactTransparency Market ResearchState Tower,90 State Street,Suite 700,Albany NY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Analysis: Inside 2018 Global Pediatric Vaccines Emerging Industry | Top Manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, Serum Institute, Bavarian Nordic, Astellas Pharma & Sanofi Pasteur SA

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Marketresearchfuture.com presents Global Pediatric Vaccines Market Research Report 2018 new Research to its studies database. The records spread across 128 pages with more than one tables and figures in it.The vaccines administered to prevent children from several non-infectious and infectious diseases are known as pediatric vaccines. These vaccines are heat-killed or inactivated viruses that lose their pathogenicity, i.e., the ability to cause a disease. Moreover, these inactivated antigens can stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies against the infected virus. Thus, they assist the immune system in protecting itself from infectious or non-infectious diseases in the future. Currently, immunization prevents an estimated 2-3 million deaths every year. Furthermore, about 1.5 million deaths can be prevented through improved global coverage for vaccination.There are different pediatric vaccines accessible in the market, for example, pneumococcal immunization, polio antibody, rotavirus immunization, MMR immunization, flu immunization, hepatitis B antibody, meningococcal immunization, and Hib antibody. There has been constant research for the development of novel molecules providing immunity against fatal diseases such as Zika virus and different types of cancers. For instance, in June 2016, Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. stated the commencement of phase I clinical trial for their Zika DNA vaccine named GLS-5700.The increasing collaboration of local manufacturers with key players to deliver high-quality vaccines in remote areas, increasing economic growth, global initiative undertaken by key players in developing innovative vaccines, increasing government support, increasing awareness regarding benefits of vaccination in prevention of diseases, and favorable reimbursement are the major factors expected to fuel the global pediatric vaccines market over the forecast period.However, low accessibility to remote areas, increasing availability of biosimilars at low rates, increasing cost of vaccines, limited or no access to healthcare services in developing and under-developed countries, low healthcare spending, and less medical coverage for pediatric vaccination are some of the challenges which might hamper the growth of the global pediatric vaccines market in future.Global market for pediatric vaccines is expected to grow at a CAGR of approximately 10.6% during 2017 to 2023.Request Sample with Latest Market Insight @Top Players in Pediatric Vaccines Market:GlaxoSmithKline plc (U.K.), Pfizer, Inc. (U.S.), Merck & Co., Inc. (U.S.), Sanofi Pasteur SA (France), Astellas Pharma Inc. (Japan), CSL Limited (Australia), Emergent BioSolutions, Inc. (U.S.), Johnson & Johnson (U.S.), MedImmune, LLC (U.S.), Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd. (India), Bavarian Nordic (Denmark), Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation (Japan), Daiichi Sankyo (Japan), Protein Sciences Corporation (U.S.), Grifols (Spain), Crucell (Netherlands), Bharat Biotech (India), Kaketsuken (U.S.), Panacea Biotec (India), Baxter International (U.S.), Zydus Cadila (India), Nuron (U.S.), S K Chemicals (South Korea), Dynavax Technologies (U.S.), Bharat Immunologicals and Biologicals (India), Lupin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (India), Indian Immunologicals (India), Novartis AG (Switerzland), LG Life Sciences (India), Shenzhen Kangtai Biological Products (China), Sinovac Biotech (China), Bio Med (India), AstraZeneca (UK), bioCSL Inc. (U.S.), Valeant Pharmaceuticals (U.S.), Takeda Pharmaceutical (Japan), and others.Segmentation of Pediatric Vaccines Market:The global pediatric vaccines market has been segmented on the basis of type, technology, disease indication, and route of administration. On the basis of type, the global pediatric vaccines market is segmented into monovalent vaccines, multivalent vaccines, and others. On the basis of technology, the global pediatric vaccines market is segmented into synthetic vaccines, dendritic cells vaccines, conjugate vaccines, inactivated and subunit vaccines, live attenuated vaccines, toxoid vaccines, recombinant vaccines, and others.On the basis of disease indication, the global pediatric vaccines market is segmented into MMR (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella), polio, Haemophilus influenza type B, pneumococcal disease, meningococcal disease, influenza, DTP (Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis), hepatitis, varicella, rotavirus, combination vaccines, and others. On the basis of route of administration, the global pediatric vaccines market is segmented into intramuscular administration, subcutaneous administration, oral administration, and other routes of administrationRegional Analysis of Pediatric Vaccines Market:The global pediatric vaccines market consists of four regions such as the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East and Africa.The Americas region accounted for the largest market share of the global pediatric vaccines market owing to the growing initiatives by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to reduce the occurrence rate of infectious diseases. Such factors along with the growing immunization will fuel the U.S. market.The European pediatric vaccines market is urged due to the superior government spending such as NHS (Nation Healthcare Service) for the development of the pharmaceutical and medical industries. The Asia Pacific region is expected to grow rapidly during the forecast period owing to the growing healthcare sector in leading regions such as China and India.The Middle Eastern region is expected to grow at a steady pace owing to factors such as rising R&D activities in the healthcare sector and extensive development of healthcare infrastructure.Browse Complete Report @Some of Major Table of Content for Pediatric Vaccines Market:Chapter 1. Report PrologueChapter 2. Market Introduction2.1 Definition2.2 Scope Of The Study2.2.1 Research Objective2.2.2 Assumptions2.2.3 LimitationsChapter 3. Research Methodology3.1 Introduction3.2 Primary Research3.3 Secondary Research3.4 Market Size EstimationChapter 4. Market Dynamics4.1 Drivers4.2 Restraints4.3 Opportunities4.4 Challenges4.5 Macroeconomic Indicators4.6 Disease Indication Trends & AssessmentTOC Continued.!Get Discount @About US:Market Research Future (MRFR), enable customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.Market Research FutureContact Us:Office No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, IndiaPhone: +1 646 845 9312Email: sales@marketresearchfuture.com
Nano-devices Market Demand, Industry Share, Top Key Players Analysis (Medtronic, EnvisionTEC, 3M Company, St. Jude Medical, Inc., Stryker Corporation ) | Business Opportunity During 2018 - 2025

Global Nano-devices Market

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The Global Nano-devices Market was valued at USD XX million in 2016, and is expected to grow at a CAGR of XX% by 2025. The market is growing due to increasing prevalence of cardiac, cancer and other chronic diseases across the globe.For Sample Copy of this Report Click here@Nano-devices are majorly used in in-vivo testing and imaging. Further introduction of these devices in cardiac and orthopedic implants has boosted the market growth. Rising awareness amongst consumers and patients regarding prevention measures available in the healthcare market, and rapid development in nanotechnology are augmenting the growth of the market.There is a lack of regulations regarding Nano-devices with regards to examination of nanoparticle based medicines and high cost of the treatments are challenges to the market. However, increasing healthcare expenditure due to the increasing commonality of various life-threatening diseases is an indication of a bright future for Nano-devices.North America dominated the market in 2017, closely followed by Europe. The large share of North America can be attributed to better availability of technology and increased governmental support in the region.The growth in Europe can be attributed to the fact that there is more awareness and advancement in the nanotechnology sector.The Disease indication & treatment segment held the highest market share in 2017 of the global Nano-devices market. This is a rapid increase in diseases such as cancer, cardiac ailments and others, on a global range. Nano-devices help treat such maladies efficiently. They also help in the diagnosis of such diseases as they can be used for imaging and in-vivo testing.Inquire more or asks any questions about this report @Some of the key players operating in this market include Medtronic, EnvisionTEC, 3M Company, St. Jude Medical, Inc., Stryker Corporation and Others.Key Benefits of the Report: Global, Regional, Country, Application, and Power Sources Market Size and Forecast from 2014-2025 Detailed market dynamics, industry outlook with market specific PESTLE, Value Chain, Supply Chain, and SWOT Analysis to better understand the market and build strategies Identification of key companies that can influence this market on a global and regional scale Expert interviews and their insights on market shift, current and future outlook and factors impacting vendors short term and long term strategies Detailed insights on emerging regions, Power Sources & application, and competitive landscape with qualitative and quantitative information and factsTarget Audience:* Nano-devices providers* Traders, Importer and ExporterRaw material suppliers and distributors* Research and consulting firms* Government and research organizations* Associations and industry bodiesPurchase Report @Research MethodologyThe market is derived through extensive use of secondary, primary, in-house research followed by expert validation and third party perspective like analyst report of investment banks. The secondary research forms the base of our study where we conducted extensive data mining, referring to verified data sources such as white papers government and regulatory published materials, technical journals, trade magazines, and paid data sources.For forecasting, regional demand & supply factor, investment, market dynamics including technical scenario, consumer behavior, and end use industry trends and dynamics , capacity production, spending were taken into consideration.We have assigned weights to these parameters and quantified their market impacts using the weighted average analysis to derive the expected market growth rate.The market estimates and forecasts have been verified through exhaustive primary research with the Key Industry Participants (KIPs) which typically include: Original Equipment Manufacturer, Component Supplier, Distributors, Government Body & Associations, and Research InstituteTABLE OF CONTENT1 Executive Summary2 Methodology And Market Scope3 Nano-Devices Market  Industry Outlook4 Nano-Devices Market Applications Outlook5 Nano-Devices Market End-User Outlook6 Nano-Devices Market Regional Outlook7 Competitive LandscapeEnd of the reportDisclaimerAbout UsOrian Research is one of the most comprehensive collections of market intelligence reports on the World Wide Web. Our reports repository boasts of over 500000+ industry and country research reports from over 100 top publishers. We continuously update our repository so as to provide our clients easy access to the world's most complete and current database of expert insights on global industries, companies, and products. We also specialize in custom research in situations where our syndicate research offerings do not meet the specific requirements of our esteemed clients.Contact Us:Ruwin MendezVice President  Global Sales & Partner RelationsOrian Research ConsultantsUS: +1 (415) 830-3727| UK: +44 020 8144-71-27Email: info@orianresearch.comWebsite:Follow Us on LinkedIn:
Erectile Dysfunction Drugs Market to Report a CAGR of 3.2% Between 2018 and 2026

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Transparency Market Research (TMR) has published a new report titled, Erectile Dysfunction Drugs Market  Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast, 20182026. According to the report, the global erectile dysfunction drugs market was valued at US$ 4.35 Bn in 2016 and is projected to decline at a CAGR of 3.2% from 2018 to 2026. The report states that the overall market revenue is expected to decline during the forecast period, owing to loss of patent exclusivity. Bayers Levitra/Staxyn (vardenafil) is scheduled to expire in 2018 and is expected to contribute to the decline in revenue. However, high prevalence of erectile dysfunction, rise in geriatric population across the globe, and patient compliance are expected to boost sales in the erectile dysfunction drugs market during the forecast period from 2018 to 2026.Report Overview @North America held the largest share of the global erectile dysfunction drugs market in 2017. The U.S. is the largest pharmaceutical market in the world, and accounts for about 95% of the market in North America. The erectile dysfunction drugs market in the U.S. is driven by the availability of recognized branded formulations such as Viagra (sildenafil citrate), Cialis (tadalafil), and Levitra/Staxyn (vardenafil). However, the looming patent expiries of these branded drugs in the near future are expected to slightly alter this scenario by the end of the forecast period.Request A Sample Copy @High Prevalence and Rise in Incidence Rate of Erectile Dysfunction to Fuel the Global MarketAccording to research conducted in the U.S, nearly 50 million men suffer from erectile dysfunction in the U.S. The rate of erectile dysfunction has increased from 5% among men 40 years old to 15% among those 70 years old. The number is expected to rise due to increase in geriatric population and rise in incidence of diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and hypercholesterolemia affecting the normal erectile functioning. Eli Lilly and Company and Pfizer are the leading global players in this market, recording the highest sales for erectile dysfunction drugs with blockbuster brands Cialis and Viagra along with other players such as Bayer AG (Staxyn).Viagra (sildenafil citrate) to be an Attractive ProductViagra is a trade name for the drug sildenafil citrate. Within the drug class of selective phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitors, it is generally the first line of treatment for erectile dysfunction. Viagra is one of the most widely sold and distributed products across the world. Viagra is poised to account for the leading share of the global market during the forecast period from 2018 to 2026. In December 2017, Teva started offering wraparound services to support patients. Patients may order their medicine online and have it shipped directly to them.Request Brochure @Retail Pharmacies to Dominate the MarketIn terms of distribution channel, the retail pharmacies segment is projected to dominate the global erectile dysfunction drug market during the forecast period. Easy availability of erectile dysfunction drugs at retail pharmacies, low price of the drugs, and expansion of leading retail pharmaceutical chains across the globe drive the segment. The hospital pharmacies segment held the second largest share of the global market. However, the segment is likely to gain market share by 2026. A percentage of erectile dysfunction sufferers who would not be prescribed any of the PDE5 inhibitors due to contraindications have contributed to the high market share of the hospital pharmacies segment in 2017. The online pharmacies segment is poised to expand at a high CAGR during the forecast period.Significant Incremental Opportunity in Asia Pacific and Middle East & AfricaThe global erectile dysfunction drugs market in Asia Pacific and Middle East & Africa is expected to witness strong growth from 2018 to 2026. Economic prosperity of the region has led to increased disposable incomes and enhanced affordability of expensive branded formulations by the patient base suffering from erectile dysfunction. Moreover, increase in geriatric population and high incidence rates of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, and hypercholesterolemia in the region has led to significant patient base seeking treatment for erectile dysfunction.About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather, and analyze information. Our business offerings represent the latest and the most reliable information indispensable for businesses to sustain a competitive edge.Each TMR syndicated research report covers a different sector  such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals, energy, food & beverages, semiconductors, med-devices, consumer goods and technology. These reports provide in-depth analysis and deep segmentation to possible micro levels. With wider scope and stratified research methodology, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.Contact Us90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA  Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Wireless Monitoring System 2018 Global Market Key Players  Cisco, Comark Instruments(Fluke), Esco, Eltav Wireless Monitoring, PCB Piezotronics, Inc, Philips, Digital Security Controls -Analysis And Forecast To 2023

Wireless Monitoring System Market 2018

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Wireless Monitoring System Market 2018Wiseguyreports.Com Adds Wireless Monitoring System  Global Market Demand, Growth, Opportunities, Manufacturers, Analysis of Top Key Players and Forecast to 2023 To Its Research Database.Description:The Wireless Monitoring System market revenue was xx.xx Million USD in 2013, grew to xx.xx Million USD in 2017, and will reach xx.xx Million USD in 2023, with a CAGR of x.x% during 2018-2023. Based on the Wireless Monitoring System industrial chain, this report mainly elaborate the definition, types, applications and major players of Wireless Monitoring System market in details. Deep analysis about market status (2013-2018), enterprise competition pattern, advantages and disadvantages of enterprise Products, industry development trends (2018-2023), regional industrial layout characteristics and macroeconomic policies, industrial policy has also be included. From raw materials to downstream buyers of this industry will be analyzed scientifically, the feature of product circulation and sales channel will be presented as well. In a word, this report will help you to establish a panorama of industrial development and characteristics of the Wireless Monitoring System market.The Wireless Monitoring System market can be split based on product types, major applications, and important regions.Major Players in Wireless Monitoring System market are:CiscoComark Instruments(Fluke)EscoEltav Wireless MonitoringPCB Piezotronics, IncPhilipsHoneywellADTAckerman SecurityDigital Security ControlsRequest for Sample Report @Major Regions play vital role in Wireless Monitoring System market are:North AmericaEuropeChinaJapanMiddle East & AfricaIndiaSouth AmericaOthersMost important types of Wireless Monitoring System products covered in this report are:3G wireless monitoring equipment4G wireless video transmission equipmentMicrowave wireless monitoring equipmentWIFI wireless monitoring equipmentMost widely used downstream fields of Wireless Monitoring System market covered in this report are:Traffic monitoringIndustrial monitoringIndoor security monitoringOthersEnquiry before Buying @If you have any special requirements, please let us know and we will offer you the report as you want.Table of Content:Global Wireless Monitoring System Industry Market Research Report1 Wireless Monitoring System Introduction and Market Overview1.1 Objectives of the Study1.2 Definition of Wireless Monitoring System1.3 Wireless Monitoring System Market Scope and Market Size Estimation1.3.1 Market Concentration Ratio and Market Maturity Analysis1.3.2 Global Wireless Monitoring System Value ($) and Growth Rate from 2013-20231.4 Market Segmentation1.4.1 Types of Wireless Monitoring System1.4.2 Applications of Wireless Monitoring System1.4.3 Research Regions1.4.3.1 North America Wireless Monitoring System Production Value ($) and Growth Rate (2013-2018)1.4.3.2 Europe Wireless Monitoring System Production Value ($) and Growth Rate (2013-2018)1.4.3.3 China Wireless Monitoring System Production Value ($) and Growth Rate (2013-2018)1.4.3.4 Japan Wireless Monitoring System Production Value ($) and Growth Rate (2013-2018)1.4.3.5 Middle East & Africa Wireless Monitoring System Production Value ($) and Growth Rate (2013-2018)1.4.3.6 India Wireless Monitoring System Production Value ($) and Growth Rate (2013-2018)1.4.3.7 South America Wireless Monitoring System Production Value ($) and Growth Rate (2013-2018)1.5 Market Dynamics1.5.1 Drivers1.5.1.1 Emerging Countries of Wireless Monitoring System1.5.1.2 Growing Market of Wireless Monitoring System1.5.2 Limitations1.5.3 Opportunities1.6 Industry News and Policies by Regions1.6.1 Industry News1.6.2 Industry Policies..8 Competitive Landscape8.1 Competitive Profile8.2 Cisco8.2.1 Company Profiles8.2.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.2.3 Cisco Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.2.4 Cisco Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 20178.3 Comark Instruments(Fluke)8.3.1 Company Profiles8.3.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.3.3 Comark Instruments(Fluke) Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.3.4 Comark Instruments(Fluke) Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 20178.4 Esco8.4.1 Company Profiles8.4.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.4.3 Esco Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.4.4 Esco Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 20178.5 Eltav Wireless Monitoring8.5.1 Company Profiles8.5.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.5.3 Eltav Wireless Monitoring Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.5.4 Eltav Wireless Monitoring Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 20178.6 PCB Piezotronics, Inc8.6.1 Company Profiles8.6.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.6.3 PCB Piezotronics, Inc Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.6.4 PCB Piezotronics, Inc Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 20178.7 Philips8.7.1 Company Profiles8.7.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.7.3 Philips Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.7.4 Philips Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 20178.8 Honeywell8.8.1 Company Profiles8.8.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.8.3 Honeywell Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.8.4 Honeywell Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 20178.9 ADT8.9.1 Company Profiles8.9.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.9.3 ADT Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.9.4 ADT Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 20178.10 Ackerman Security8.10.1 Company Profiles8.10.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.10.3 Ackerman Security Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.10.4 Ackerman Security Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 20178.11 Digital Security Controls8.11.1 Company Profiles8.11.2 Wireless Monitoring System Product Introduction8.11.3 Digital Security Controls Production, Value ($), Price, Gross Margin 2013-2018E8.11.4 Digital Security Controls Market Share of Wireless Monitoring System Segmented by Region in 2017Continued..Contact US:NORAH TRENTPartner Relations & Marketing Managersales@wiseguyreports.comPh: +1-646-845-9349 (US)Ph: +44 208 133 9349 (UK)About Us:Wise Guy Reports Is Part Of The Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. And Offers Premium Progressive Statistical Surveying, Market Research Reports, Analysis & Forecast Data For Industries And Governments Around The Globe. Wise Guy Reports Features An Exhaustive List Of Market Research Reports From Hundreds Of Publishers Worldwide. We Boast A Database Sneakernning Virtually Every Market Category And An Even More Comprehensive Collection Of Market Research Reports Under These Categories And Sub-Categories.Addres:: Wise Guy Research Consultants Pvt Ltd: Pune  411028: Maharashtra,: Ph: +91 841 198 5042
Application Performance Management Market 2018 Global Analysis By Key Players  BMC Software, CA Technologies, Cisco, Dynatrace, IBM, Microsoft

Application Performance Management Market

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WiseGuyReports.Com Publish a New Market Research Report On  Global Application Performance Management Market 2018-2022.Description:-The analysts forecast the Global Application Performance Management Market to grow at a CAGR of 16.4% during the period 2018-2022.Application performance management refers to the monitoring and resolution of performance issues, glitches, irregularities, anomalies, with the business applications. APM solutions aid in understanding customer behaviour and rapidly realign business applications with evolving customer expectations and needs.Covered in this reportThe report covers the present scenario and the growth prospects of the application performance management market. To calculate the market size, the report considers the revenue generated from the sales of APM software solutions consisting of perpetual licensing, fixed, and subscription.Get a Sample Report @For more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.comThe market is divided into the following segments based on geography: Americas APAC EMEAThe report, Global Application Performance Management Market 2018-2022, has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.Key vendors BMC Software CA Technologies Cisco Dynatrace IBM Microsoft OracleMarket driver Maximized ROI by improving customer experience For a full, detailed list, view our reportMarket challenge Issues associated with business applications and data integration For a full, detailed list, view our reportMarket trend Adoption of customer centricity For a full, detailed list, view our reportKey questions answered in this report What will the market size be in 2022 and what will the growth rate be? What are the key market trends? What is driving this market? What are the challenges to market growth? Who are the key vendors in this market space? What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the key vendors? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors?Complete Report Details @Table Of Contents  Major Key PointsPART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARYPART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORTPART 03: RESEARCH METHODOLOGYPART 04: MARKET LANDSCAPE Market ecosystem Market characteristics Market segmentation analysisPART 05: MARKET SIZING Market definition Market sizing 2017 Market size and forecast 2017-2022PART 06: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS Bargaining power of buyers Bargaining power of suppliers Threat of new entrants Threat of substitutes Threat of rivalry Market conditionPART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPEPART 08: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY END-USER End-user segmentation Comparison by end-user BFSI  Market size and forecast 2017-2022 Retail  Market size and forecast 2017-2022 Healthcare  Market size and forecast 2017-2022 Others  Market size and forecast 2017-2022 Market opportunity by end-userPART 09: REGIONAL LANDSCAPE Geographical segmentation Regional comparison Americas  Market size and forecast 2017-2022 EMEA  Market size and forecast 2017-2022 APAC  Market size and forecast 2017-2022 Key leading countries Market opportunityContinuedFor more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.comABOUT US:Wise Guy Reports is part of the Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. and offers premium progressive statistical surveying, market research reports, analysis & forecast data for industries and governments around the globe. Wise Guy Reports features an exhaustive list of market research reports from hundreds of publishers worldwide. We boast a database spanning virtually every market category and an even more comprehensive collection of market research reports under these categories and sub-categories.Office No.528,Amanora Chambers,Magarpatta Road,Hadapsar,Pune-411028.
Global Composite Filling Market to Reach US$ 509.1 million in 2022

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Global Composite Filling Market in Dental Restoration by Material Type (Nanohybrid, Microhybrid, Microfilled, Nanofilled, and Others), by Defect Class Type (Class 1, Class 2, Class 3, Class 4, and Class 5), and by Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World), Trend, Forecast, Competitive Analysis, and Growth Opportunity: 2017-2022This report, from Stratview Research, studies the global composite filling market in dental restoration over the period 2017 to 2022. The report provides detailed insights into the market dynamics to enable informed business decision making and growth strategy formulation based on the opportunities present in the market.Click here to read the detailed description and TOC:The Global Composite Filling Market in Dental Restoration: HighlightsThe global composite filling market in dental restoration is projected to grow at a healthy CAGR of 4.8% over the next five years to reach US$ 509.1 million in 2022. Aging population, increasing awareness for oral hygiene causing worldwide rise in dental check-ups, advantages of composite resin over amalgam in tooth-filling, and increasing demand for dental aesthetics are the major growth drivers of the composite filling market in dental restoration.The global composite filling market in dental restoration is segmented based on material type as nanohybrid, microhybrid, microfilled, nanofilled and other composite fillings. Nanohybrid and microhybrid composites currently dominate the global composite filling market in dental restoration, driven by a wide array of factors including ease of application, reduced sitting period, and easy availability. These materials are also projected to witness high growth rates during the forecast period, driven by increasing demand from the dentists and dental care organizations.Composite Filling Market Trend and Forecast in Dental Restoration by Material TypeBased on defect class type, class 1 type of defect is likely to remain the largest and fastest-growing defect type during the forecast period. The rising index of the population and unhealthy eating habits amongst teenagers and young children have significantly increased the cases of class 1 defect in the population, supporting high growth of class 1 defect type. Class 5 is the second fastest-growing defect type during the same period.Europe is expected to remain the largest market for composite filling for dental restoration during the forecast period owing to the higher preference of composite filling over amalgam and the presence of key dental companies in this region. APAC is projected to witness the highest growth during the same period. This is mainly because of high population growth rate in key countries, such as India and China, and a gradual shift from amalgam to composite filling. Additionally, the rise in demand for regular oral check-ups to have the oral hygiene is further elevating the growth of composite filling in this region.Request Sample here:The supply chain of this market comprises resin suppliers, dental composite filling manufacturers, dentists/dental experts, and patients. The resin suppliers include the chemical/advanced material manufacturing companies, such as 3M and The Dow Company. The dental composite filling manufacturers include Dentsply Sirona, Coltene, The Danaher Corporation, Denmat Holdings, Heraeus Kulzer GmbH, etc. These companies manufacture the dental composite filling materials either in the form of injectable or paste materials along with their accessories as complete dental kits. The dental experts include the qualified practitioners and dental doctors belonging to the recognized dental organizations. The patients include different age group population suffering from dental defects.Report FeaturesThis report provides market intelligence in the most comprehensive way. The report structure has been kept such that it offers maximum business value. It provides critical insights into the market dynamics and will enable strategic decision-making for the existing market players as well as those willing to enter the market. The following are the key features of the report:Market structure: Overview, industry life cycle analysis, supply chain analysisMarket environment analysis: Growth drivers and constraints, Porters five forces analysis, SWOT analysisMarket trend and forecast analysisMarket segment trend and forecastCompetitive landscape and dynamics: Market share, product portfolio, product launches, etc.Attractive market segments and associated growth opportunitiesEmerging trendsStrategic growth opportunities for the existing and new playersKey success factorsThe global composite filling market in dental restoration is segmented into the following categories.Global Composite Filling Market in Dental Restoration by Material Type: Nanohyrbid (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW) Microhybrid (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW) Nanofilled (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW) Microfilled (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW) Others (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW)Global Composite Filling Market in Dental Restoration by Defect Class Type: Class 1 (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW) Class 2 (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW) Class 3 (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW) Class 4 (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW) Class 5 (Regional Analysis: NA, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW)Global Composite Filling Market in Dental Restoration by Region North America (Country Analysis: the USA, Canada, and Mexico) Europe (Country Analysis: Germany, France, the UK, Russia, and Rest of Europe) Asia-Pacific (Country Analysis: China, India, and Rest of Asia-Pacific) Rest of the World (Country Analysis: Middle East, Latin America, and Others)About Stratview ResearchStratview Research is a global market intelligence firm providing wide range of services including syndicated market reports, custom research and sourcing intelligence across industries, such as Advanced Materials, Aerospace & Defense, Automotive & Mass Transportation, Consumer Goods, Construction & Equipment, Electronics and Semiconductors, Energy & Utility, Healthcare & Life Sciences, and Oil & Gas.We have a strong team of industry veterans and analysts with an extensive experience in executing custom research projects for mid-sized to Fortune 500 companies, in the areas of Market Assessment, Opportunity Screening, Competitive Intelligence, Due Diligence, Target Screening, Market Entry Strategy, Go to Market Strategy, and Voice of Customer studies.Stratview Research is a trusted brand globally, providing high quality research and strategic insights that help companies worldwide in effective decision making.Category: Advanced MaterialStratview Research is a global market intelligence firm providing wide range of services including syndicated market reports, custom research and sourcing intelligence across industries, such as Advanced Materials, Aerospace & Defense, Automotive & Mass Transportation, Consumer Goods, Construction & Equipment, Electronics and Semiconductors, Energy & Utility, Healthcare & LifeStratview ResearchCrystal Tower, Raipur - 492001Phone No. +1-313-307-4176Email :- sales@stratviewresearch.com
Metastases Spinal Tumor Market Projected to Reach 1547.8 Million at 3.2% CAGR Till 2023 | Global Key Players  F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd,Amgen Inc.,Novartis AG,Abbott ,Beckman Coulter Inc.

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Market Research Future has declared the expansion of the "Worldwide Metastases Spinal Tumor Market Research Report which gives Market Size, Shares and Forecasts till 2023.Metastases Spinal Tumor Market -HighlightsThe global metastases spinal tumor market is growing moderately, and it is expected to grow at the same pace over the forecast period 2017-2018. Increasing smoking and alcohol consumption is driving the growth of the market.Request Sample with Emerging Trends @Some other major factors such as changing healthcare practices, adoption of new therapies, and advancement in treatment facilities are also leading the market growth.The global market of metastases spinal tumor was around USD 1241.5 million in 2016 and is expected to reach USD 1547.8 million by 2023 at a projected CAGR of 3.2%.Metastases Spinal Tumor Market -Major PlayersF. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd (Switzerland)Amgen Inc. (US)Novartis AG(Switzerland)Abbott (US)Beckman Coulter Inc. (US)Debiopharm Group (Switzerland)AbbVie Inc. (US)Bayer AG (Germany)Metastases Spinal Tumor Market -Regional AnalysisThe global metastases spinal tumor market is consist of four regions: America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East & Africa.The Americas dominate this market, particularly North America due to ongoing oncology research and clinical trials. American pharmaceutical giants such as Amgen Inc., AbbVie Inc., and others are dominating the global healthcare sector, and these companies are investing a large amount of money for research. Upcoming healthcare bill in the US is expected to lead the market growth in this region.Access Report Details with TOC @Increasing prevalence of metastases spinal tumor drives the European market. Moreover, availability of skilled medical professional and advanced healthcare facilities add fuel to the market growth.This region is mainly divided into Eastern Europe and Western Europe. Though Western Europe dominates this market, but it is now a saturated, while Eastern Europe is showing significant growth in this market.Asia Pacific homes more than half of the worlds population. Increasing healthcare expenditure, government support to improve public health and growing awareness are driving this market.Metastases Spinal Tumor Market -SegmentationThe global metastases spinal tumor market is segmented on the basis of type, which comprise extradural, metastatic spinal tumors of the bone, and others.On the basis of diagnosis this market is segmented into laboratory tests, imaging tests, biopsy, and others.On the basis of treatments, the market is segmented into non-operative treatment, surgical treatment, and others. On the basis of end user, it is segmented into hospitals & clinics, ambulatory surgery centers, academic institutes, research centers, and others.Avail Attractive Discount @Major Points form TOC for Metastases Spinal Tumor Market Research Report  Forecast to 2023Chapter 1. Report PrologueChapter 2. Market IntroductionChapter 3. Research MethodologyChapter 4. Market DynamicsChapter 5. Market Factor AnalysisChapter 6. Global Cancer Immunotherapy Market, By TypeChapter 7. Global Cancer Immunotherapy Market, By TreatmentChapter 8 Global Cancer Immunotherapy Market, By End UserChapter 9. Global Cancer Immunotherapy Market, By RegionChapter 10 Company LandscapeChapter 11 Company ProfilesChapter 12 MRFR ConclusionChapter 13 AppendixAbout US:Market Research Future (MRFR), enable customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.Contact Us:Market Research FutureOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, IndiaPhone: +1 646 845 9312Email: sales@marketresearchfuture.com
Colonoscopes Market to Receive Hike in Revenues by 2026

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Colonoscopy is the diagnostic examination of the intestine, including large and small bowels, with the help of a device called colonoscope. Colonoscope insertion tube comprises a fiber optic light bundle that transmits light rays from the source located at the tip of the tube. The distal end of a colonoscope includes a CCD (charge-coupled device), which serves as a small camera and transmits the image to an external video processing unit electronically. The colonoscopes tip is inserted into the anal part of the body and is then advanced slowly into the rectum, under visual control.Read Report Overview:Increase in prevalence of colon cancer and improved diagnostic techniques such as computer tomography and X-ray to detect abnormalities in the colon are the major factors expected to boost the growth of the global colonoscopes market during the forecast period. However, lack of awareness about the technological advancements in the diagnostic tools for the disorders of colon and intestine is likely to restrain the global market during the forecast period.The global colonoscopes market can be segmented based on product, component, and end-user. In terms of product type, the market can be classified into single channel colonoscopes, dual channel colonoscopes, and multi-channel colonoscopes. The dual channel colonoscopes segment accounted for the largest market share in terms of revenue in 2017. The segment is expected to continue to dominate the market during the forecast period, attributed to the emerging local & regional manufacturers of dual channel colonoscopes, and significant treatment and suction capabilities of dual channel colonoscopes. However, green signal by the FDA for the approval of technologically advanced single channel colonoscopes by key companies such as Olympus Corporation is anticipated to fuel the growth of the single channel colonoscopes segment at a relatively significant CAGR during the forecast period.Request Brochure of Report:Based on component, the global colonoscopes market can be categorized into colonoscopes, visual systems, and accessories. The colonoscopes segment held the largest share of the market in terms of revenue in 2017, owing to funding and research grants by public & private players to promote the manufacture of colonoscopes, and increase in awareness in the developing countries. Improved reimbursement policies for colonoscopes is estimated to propel the segment at a high CAGR from 2018 to 2026. In terms of end-user, the global colonoscopes market can be divided into hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, clinics, and others. Hospitals was the leading segment in terms of revenue in 2017, due to availability of trained and well-qualified health care professionals in hospitals and rise in hospital admissions in emerging economies owing to significant incidence rate of colon cancer. However, the clinics segment is expected to expand at a high CAGR during the forecast period, attributed to rise in adoption of innovative diagnostic tools by health care professionals.In terms of region, the global colonoscopes market can be segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. North America accounted for the largest market share in 2017, attributed to increase in strategic presence of key companies in the U.S. and Canada, and rise in investments in health care. The region is anticipated to be the market leader during the forecast period, due to increase in awareness among the population about colon cancer and surge in investments by key players in R&D of technologically advanced colonoscopes. However, Asia Pacific is projected to be the fastest growing market, due to rise in geriatric population and increase in penetration of key companies along with their efficient distribution of the products. The high percentage of geriatric population in developing countries such as China and Japan drives the incidence of colorectal polyps and tumors in the Asia Pacific, which in-turn is expected to propel the colonoscopes market from 2018 to 2026.Request For TOC :Major players in the global colonoscopes market are Stryker Corporation, Absolute Medical Services, Inc., PENTAX Medical, FUJIFILM Holdings America Corporation, Olympus Corporation, Pro Scope Systems, Medical Recovery Company, Inc., Endo Technologies, ESS, Inc., MedWrench, LLC, International Medical Equipment, Inc., and Boston Scientific Corporation, among others.About us:Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a U.S.-based provider of syndicated research, customized research, and consulting services. TMRs global and regional market intelligence coverage includes industries such as pharmaceutical, chemicals and materials, technology and media, food and beverages, and consumer goods, among others. Each TMR research report provides clients with a 360-degree view of the market with statistical forecasts, competitive landscape, detailed segmentation, key trends, and strategic recommendations.Contact us:Transparency Market Research90 State Street,Suite 700,AlbanyNY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Embryo Transfer Devices Market Set to Surge Significantly During 2018 - 2026

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In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) or Assisted Reproductive Treatment (ART) is a rapidly growing field of obstetrics and gynecology. Changing lifestyle and comorbidities are affecting the natural reproduction system of people, leading to the adoption of ART. In ART, controlled ovarian stimulation is achieved to produce eggs in the ovary; these eggs are then extracted and fertilized in the laboratory to create zygotes. The zygotes are then cultured in a controlled environment in the laboratory, and on reaching the blastocyst stage, they are then transferred to the uterus. In certain cases, blastocyst stage embryos are frozen for later transfer. Embryo transfer is a crucial step in ART, which impacts the viability of the embryo in the uterus and the overall IVF result. During embryo transfer, a speculum is placed in the vagina to create an opening after which the catheter or micropipette loaded with the embryo is inserted to deploy the embryo in the uterine cavity.Read Report Overview:It has been found that 80% of the patients undergoing IVF treatment reach till the embryo transfer stage and yet the pregnancy rate has remained low. Embryo transfer step is as crucial as preparing the endometrium for pregnancy. Technical advancement in the embryo transfer system, such as use of precision micropipettes and ultrasound for precise deployment of embryo, is augmenting the success rate of embryo transfer. Improvement in embryo transfer catheter design, such as pre-curved and soft outer sheet, improved bulb design, etc. is projected to fuel the expansion of the global embryo transfer devices market during the forecast period. However, high cost of IVF procedure and low its success rate are the major concern areas likely to inhibit the global embryo transfer devices market. Moreover, there are many small and medium-scale manufacturers of embryo transfer device in the regional markets, resulting in a fragmented market.The global embryo transfer devices market can be segmented based on product type, material, end-user, and region. In terms of the product type, the embryo transfer devices market can be classified into catheters and micromanipulation pipettes. Micromanipulation pipettes are considerably new and expensive devices. They offer better handling and controlled embryo deployment. Based on material, the embryo transfer devices market can be divided into glass devices and medical grade plastic devices. Medical grade plastic devices are comparatively soft, offering less trauma to the patient and are easy to maneuver. Based on end-user, the embryo transfer devices market can be segregated into hospitals, IVF centers, and others. IVF centers, popularly known as fertility clinics, are estimated to be the major end-users for embryo transfer devices, followed by hospitals.Request Brochure of Report:In terms of geography, the global embryo transfer devices market can be categorized into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. North America is projected to account for the lions share of the global embryo transfer devices market during the forecast period due to high adoption rate of IVF and ART techniques in the region. Europe is anticipated to account for a significant share of the global embryo transfer devices market during the forecast period. Well-established health care infrastructure and trend for fertility tourism in Central and East European countries are the key factors driving the embryo transfer devices market in the region. Increase in expenditure for developing health care infrastructure and rise in private health care expenditure in emerging markets such as China and India are anticipated to boost the embryo transfer devices market in Asia Pacific.Request For TOC :Major players operating in the global embryo transfer devices market are CooperSurgical Fertility Company, Vitrolife, Cook Medical, Smiths Medical, Irvine Scientific, Agtech Inc., LABOTECT GMBH, Rocket Medical plc., SOMATEX Medical Technologies GmbH, INTERMEDICS LTD., and Gynetics NV.About us:Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a U.S.-based provider of syndicated research, customized research, and consulting services. TMRs global and regional market intelligence coverage includes industries such as pharmaceutical, chemicals and materials, technology and media, food and beverages, and consumer goods, among others. Each TMR research report provides clients with a 360-degree view of the market with statistical forecasts, competitive landscape, detailed segmentation, key trends, and strategic recommendations.Contact us:Transparency Market Research90 State Street,Suite 700,AlbanyNY - 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Shock Wave Therapy Devices Market Future Growth Forecast 2018-2026 by Global Top Players - C.R. Bard Inc., Boston Scientific Corporation, Lumenis Ltd., Dornier MedTech GmbH, Olympus Corporation, Medtrue Enterprise Co. Ltd.

Shock Wave Therapy Devices Market

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Coherent Market Insights has announced the addition of the Global Shock Wave Therapy Devices Market Size, Status and Forecast 2026, The report classifies the Global Shock Wave Therapy Devices Market in a precise manner to offer detailed insights about the aspects responsible for augmenting as well as restraining market growth.Shock wave therapy also called extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) is a non-invasive treatment that is used in wide areas of medical field that includes physical therapy, orthopedics, cardiology, and urology. Shock wave therapy is an alternative treatment for orthopedic surgeries. The term extracorporeal signifies the external shock generation, and the resultant shock waves are then transmitted to the internal parts of the body via intermediate pads through the skin. Shock wave therapy is undertaken mainly by patients suffering from tendons and joints disorders. This therapy is known to perform very efficient mobility restoration and pain management. The shock wave therapy is carried out with the help of specialized devices called shock wave therapy devices. These devices intend to treat several indications that leads to chronic and acute pain and as well as helps to speed up the process of recovery within patients suffering from chronic and sub-chronic conditions of painful bones, spots, myoskeletal tissues and soft tissues. The shock wave therapy provides faster healing, revascularization and regeneration of the bones, ligaments and tendons.Reauest a Sample Copy:Rise in prevalence of arthritis and musculoskeletal disorders to fuel growth of shock wave therapy devices marketAccording to Health and Safety Executive, the UK, 41% of ill health was encountered among the UK employees due to work related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSD), accounting for around 1,311,000 cases in 2014. Furthermore, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) around 22.7% of adults are reported with some or the other kind of arthritis, accounting for 54.4 million cases during 2013-2015. The high prevalence rate of musculoskeletal disorders creates a highly conducive environment for growth of shock wave therapy devices market.The demand for non-invasive and hassle-free techniques responsible for driving the global shock wave therapy marketThe demand for technologically advanced treatment for pain management and non- invasive nature of this therapy is the prime factor that is responsible to drive the global shock therapy market. The ability of shock waves therapy devices to increase cellular activity of the body and metabolic stimulation is also responsible to attract a large population. Furthermore, increase in the rate of prevalence of bone diseases as well increasing geriatric population are also playing a pivotal role to boost the global shock wave therapy devices market. However, the high cost of the therapy and lack of skillful workers to operate these devices could hinder the market growth up to some extent.The Global Shockwave Therapy Devices Market can be segmented on the basis of product type, technology, end user and geographical regions.On the basis of product type:Mobile Shockwave Therapy DevicesFixed Shockwave Therapy DevicesOn the basis of technology:Electromagnetic TechniqueElectrohydraulic TechniquePiezoelectric TechniqueRadial TechniqueOn the basis of end user:HospitalsPhysiotherapy ClinicsAmbulatory CareRadiology LabsOthersElse place an Inquire before Purchase Global Shock Wave Therapy Devices Market Report 2026":About Coherent Market Insights:Coherent Market Insights is a prominent market research and consulting firm offering action-ready syndicated research reports, custom market analysis, consulting services, and competitive analysis through various recommendations related to emerging market trends, technologies, and potential absolute dollar opportunity.Contact Us:Mr. ShahCoherent Market Insights1001 4th Ave, #3200Seattle, WA 98154Tel: +1-206-701-6702Email: sales@coherentmarketinsights.com
Micro Grid as a Service Market 2018-2022 Global Key Manufacturers Analysis by ABB, General Electric, Siemens AG,Eaton, Schneider Electric SE, Duke Energy, Northern, Exelon Corp, NRG Energy, Spirae

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Micro Grid as a Service Market growing at exponential compound annual growth rate by forecast period of 2018 to 2022. Factors driving the growth of Microgrid as a Service are increasing demand for monitoring, control, and optimization of distributed energy. Also, demand from remote locations for microgrids which supports regular and controllable clean energy is expected to drive the growth of Micro Grid as a Service market.Microgrid as a Service Market by Grid Type (Grid connected, Islanded), by Service Type (Software as a Service, Monitoring & Control Service, Operation & Maintenance Service), Industry (Government, Residential & Commercial, Industrial, Military & Defense) - And Forecast 2016-2022Global Microgrid as a Service Market has been valued at US $772 million in the year 2015 which is expecting to grow at US $~2.2 billion by the end of forecasted period with CAGR of approx. ~16%.Get Sample of Report @Market Highlights:The Microgrids as a Service Market is registering healthy growth due to various benefits offered by Microgrids such highly reliability, economical & efficient energy power , enhancement of renewable energy sources and smart grid integration among others. The autonomous working nature of Microgrid provides great benefits to communities that have no access to electricity.Microgrid as a solution combines solar panels, batteries and controllable load in order to meet the requirements of industrial, residential or consumer loads anywhere in the world. The Solution also provides dynamic monitoring, scalability, and control to improve energy output. Microgrid as a solution offers electricity at affordable rate and helps in reducing the economic losses from electricity outages in emergency situation.In November 2016, American Electric Power (AEP) announced to invest around 52$ million to build utility Microgrids as part of a smart city design for Columbus, Ohio.Key Players:Some of major key players in Microgrid as a Service Market such as ABB Ltd. (Switzerland), General Electric (U.S.), Siemens AG (Germany), Eaton Corp. PLC (Ireland), Schneider Electric SE (France) among others are investing in renewable energy solution such as Microgrid thus supporting the market of Microgrid as a Service.Segments:Global Microgrid as a service Market has been segmented on the Basis of Grid type, Service type, and industry. Grid Type has been identified as Grid connected and remote/Islanded. Services Type are Software as a Service, Monitoring & Control Service, and Operation & Maintenance Service while Industry includes Manufacturing, Residential & Commercial, Military, and Utility.Industry News:June 18, ABB is preparing to set up a multipurpose micro grid in Australia.ABB will supply the Energy Storage for Commercial Renewable Integration with a micro grid solution, this will improve power reliability and enhance the power grid. The power supply provided will be more secure in particular areas and with high renewable penetration in the micro grid.January 18, The Carlyle Group is putting big money into micro grids.The Carlyle Group, an American multinational equity, is spending hundreds of dollars to own and operate micro grids. They are taking this step to tackle the industrial financial challenges as other companies wont have to face this issue to build a micro grid. Dynamic Energy Network (DEN) is deploying Carlyle Group to create the micro grids, this would be a long-term contract.February 16, Siemens launched a new cost-efficient micro grid software service.Siemens launched a remote micro grid software service which is cost-efficient and designed for smaller power operators. These operators have experienced better power quality, sustainable power sources and improved grid resilience. This clears away the need to host an IT infrastructure on-site.Get Complete Report @Intended Audience:Microgrid system and service providersSmart grid software developersSolar photovoltaic companiesGovernment organizationsEducation and research organizationsUtility Service providesTABLE OF CONTENTS1 Market Introduction1.1 Introduction1.2 Scope Of Study1.2.1 Research Objective1.2.2 Assumptions1.2.3 Limitations1.3 Market Structure:1.3.1 Global Microgrid As A Service Market: By Grid Type1.3.2 Global Microgrid As A Service Market: By Service Type1.3.2 Global Microgrid As A Service Market: By IndustryContinuedList Of TablesTable 1 Global Microgrid As A Service Market, By Grid TypeTable 2 Global Microgrid As A Service Market, By Service TypeTable 3 Global Microgrid As A Service Market, By IndustryTable 4 Global Microgrid As A Service Market, By RegionsContinuedList Of FiguresFigure 1 Research TypeFigure 2 Global Microgrid As A Service Market: By Grid Type (%)Figure 3 Global Microgrid As A Service Market: By Service Type (%)Figure 4 Global Microgrid As A Service Market: By Industry (%)ContinuedAbout Market Research Future:At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.Contact:Market Research Future+1 646 845 9312Email: sales@marketresearchfuture.com
Global Life Science Market with Key Players - Genoway, High Throughput Genomics Inc., Illumina Inc., Novozymes, Olympus Corp, and more...

Life Science Tool Market

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Market Aspects of Life Science Tool Industry: The Global Life Science Tool Market report provides information about the Global industry, including valuable facts and figures. This research study explores the Global Market in detail such as industry chain structures, raw material suppliers, with manufacturing and production process and so on. This Life Science Tool Market report is integrated with primary as well as secondary research of the Global industry. The Global Life Science Tool market in detail and presents comprehensive forecasts regarding the markets growth trajectory during the forecast period (2018 - 2025).Get New Sample PDF Pages and 30 min of Free Consultations!The Global Life Science Tool market in detail and presents comprehensive forecasts regarding the markets growth trajectory during the forecast period (2018 - 2025). The Life Science Tool Market report is based on key players, which are combined by market share, history of growth and Industry forecasts, it provides in-detailed information, basic needs of the market, and the report shows the how this market is growing Globally.The Scope of the Report:Some top Key Vendors (Sales Revenue, Price, Gross Margin, and Main Products etc.): Genoway, High Throughput Genomics Inc., Illumina Inc., Novozymes, Olympus Corp., Origene Technologies, Perkin-Elmer, Promega Corp., Aldevron, Beckman Coulter Inc., Cytori Therapeutics Inc., Danaher Corp., Bio-Rad Laboratories, Allele Biotechnology, Benitec, Vitro Diagnostics Inc., Waters Corp., Xenotech Llc etc.Key Players/Vendors have taken on a crucial role in the Life Science Tool market in recent years owing to the development of Global market sector. With respect to various parameters such as production volume, revenue, profit margin, export-import figures, and local consumption the in different regional markets are studied in the report. The Life Science Tool market report gives the key driving factors which are helpful to grow the business in the Global sector.Market segment by Type,Detection Probes, Light Microscopy, Confocal Microscopy, Electron Microscopy, OthersGlobal Life Science Tool Market: Application Segment AnalysisDNA Research, RNA Research, Proteomics, Protein Detection, OthersAvail Discount up to 50% for this report!Reasons for Buying this ReportThis Life Science Tool Market report provides pin-point analysis for changing competitive dynamicsIt provides a forward looking perspective on different factors driving or restraining market growthIt provides a six-year forecast assessed on the basis of how the market is predicted to growIt helps in understanding the key product segments and their futureIt provides pin point analysis of changing competition dynamics and keeps you ahead of competitorsManufacturing cost structureThe Life Science Tool Market report also studies the manufacturing cost structure and presents the various details such as raw material, overall production process, and the industry chain structure.The keyword Market report also studies the manufacturing cost structure and presents the various details such as raw material, overall production process, and the industry chain structure. The keyword market report gives the key driving factors which are helpful to grow the business at Global sector. This keyword Market report uses the advanced technological systems requires which are compatible with this market by every parameter are firmly discussed in this report.View Complete Report of Life Science Tool Market TOC and Market Players:Thanks for reading this article; you can also get individual chapter wise section or region wise report version like Asia, United States, Europe.Reports Monitor is a market research and consulting company that 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 including Healthcare, Technology, Chemicals, Materials, and Energy. With an intrinsic understanding of many business environments, Reports Monitor provides strategic objective insights.Jay MatthewsDirect+1 513 549-5911 (U.S.)+44 203 318 2846 (U.K.)Email: sales@reportsmonitor.com
Smart Waste Management Market Overview and Growth Rate Analysis 2018-2025 by Leading Companies: Covanta Energy, Veolia North America, BRE Smart Waste, Harvest Power, Waste Management, Inc.

Smart Waste Management Market to 2025

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Cities around the world are on the run to become smarter. Some of these have seen an opportunity on deploying dedicated municipal access networks to support all types of city management and maintenance services requiring a data connection. One of the important contribution in smart city formation is waste management. Now a day's government as well as private institution are making huge investment in this application.Request Sample Copy is Available at:By Key Market Players:- Covanta Energy- Republic Services- Veolia North America- BRE Smart Waste- Harvest Power- Recycle Smart Solutions- Waste Management, Inc.- Enevo OY- Smartbin- Bigbelly Solar, Inc.The report aims to provide an overview of global smart waste management market with detailed market segmentation by category, application and geography. The global smart waste management market is expected to witness high growth during the forecast period. Government intervention and rising awareness among people is driving smart waste management globally.The objective of this report is as follows:- To provide overview of the global smart waste management market- To analyze and forecast the global smart waste management market on the basis of solution and application- To provide market size and forecast till 2025 for overall smart waste management market with respect to five major regions, namely; North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC), Middle East and Africa (MEA) and South America (SAM), which is later sub-segmented by respective countries- To evaluate market dynamics effecting the market during the forecast period i.e., drivers, restraints, opportunities, and future trend- To provide exhaustive PEST analysis for all five regions- To profiles key smart waste management players influencing the market along with their SWOT analysis and market strategiesComplete Report is Available at:Reason to Buy- Save and reduce time carrying out entry-level research by identifying the growth, size, leading players and segments in the global Smart Waste Management 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 Smart Waste Management Market, thereby allowing players to develop effective long term strategies.- Develop/modify business expansion plans by using substantial growth offering developed and emerging markets.- Scrutinize in-depth global market trends and outlook coupled with the factors driving the market, as well as those hindering it.- Enhance the decision-making process by understanding the strategies that underpin commercial interest with respect to products, segmentation and industry verticals.Inquire before Buying at:About Us:The Insight Partners is a one stop industry research provider of actionable intelligence. We help our clients in getting solutions to their research requirements through our syndicated and consulting research services. We are a specialist in Technology, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Automotive and Defense.Contact Us:Call: +1-646-491-9876Email: sales@theinsightpartners.com
Drone Services Market Explore Future Growth 2018-2022 by Global Top Players -Sharper Shape Inc, Dronedeploy Inc, Prioria Robotics Holdings Inc, Phoenix Drone Services LLC, Airware, Inc, Aerobo, Cyberhawk Innovations Ltd

Drone Services

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Worldwide Market Reports has announced the addition of the Global Drone Services Market Size Status and Forecast 2022, The report classifies the global Drone Services Market in a precise manner to offer detailed insights about the aspects responsible for augmenting as well as restraining market growth.This report studies the global Drone Services market, analyzes and researches the Drone Services development status and forecast in United States, EU, Japan, China, India and Southeast Asia. This report focuses on the top players in global market, likeSharper Shape Inc, Dronedeploy Inc, Prioria Robotics Holdings Inc, Phoenix Drone Services LLC, Airware, Inc, Aerobo, Cyberhawk Innovations Ltd, Sky-Futures Ltd, Sensefly Ltd, Unmanned Experts IncRequest a Sample Copy:Market segment by Regions/Countries, this report coversUnited StatesEUJapanChinaIndiaSoutheast AsiaMarket segment by Type, the product can be split intoFixed Wing DroneMultirotor DroneMarket segment by Application, Drone Services can be split intoDisaster Risk Management&MitigationInspection & Environmental MonitoringProduct Delivery3D ModelingAerial Photography & Remote SensingData Acquisition & AnalyticsMapping & SurveyingOthersElse place an Inquire before Purchase Global Drone Services Market Size, Status and Forecast 2022:Table of ContentsGlobal Drone Services Market Size, Status and Forecast 20221 Industry Overview of Drone Services2 Global Drone Services Competition Analysis by Players3 Company (Top Players) Profiles3.1 Mobetize Corp.3.1.1 Company Profile3.1.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.1.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.1.4 Drone Services Revenue (Value) (2013-2017)3.1.5 Recent Developments3.2 Remitly3.2.1 Company Profile3.2.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.2.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.2.4 Drone Services Revenue (Value) (2013-2017)3.2.5 Recent Developments3.3 Regalii3.3.1 Company Profile3.3.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.3.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.3.4 Drone Services Revenue (Value) (2013-2017)3.3.5 Recent Developments3.4 peerTransfer3.4.1 Company Profile3.4.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.4.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.4.4 Drone Services Revenue (Value) (2013-2017)3.4.5 Recent Developments3.5 Currency Cloud3.5.1 Company Profile3.5.2 Main Business/Business Overview3.5.3 Products, Services and Solutions3.5.4 Drone Services Revenue (Value) (2013-2017)3.5.5 Recent Developments3.6 Azimo4 Global Drone Services Market Size by Type and Application (2013-2017)5 United States Drone Services Development Status and Outlook6 EU Drone Services Development Status and Outlook7 Japan Drone Services Development Status and Outlook8 China Drone Services Development Status and Outlook9 India Drone Services Development Status and Outlook10 Southeast Asia Drone Services Development Status and Outlook11 Market Forecast by Regions, Type and Application (2017-2022)12 Drone Services Market DynamicsAbout Us:Worldwide Market Reports is your one-stop repository of detailed and in-depth market research reports compiled by an extensive list of publishers from across the globe. We offer reports across virtually all domains and an exhaustive list of sub-domains under the sun. The in-depth market analysis by some of the most vastly experienced analysts provide our diverse range of clients from across all industries with vital decision making insights to plan and align their market strategies in line with current market trends. Worldwide Market Researchs well-researched inputs that encompass domains ranging from IT to healthcare enable our prized clients to capitalize upon keyMr. ShahWorldwide Market ReportsTel: +1 415 871 0703Email: sales@worldwidemarketreports.comVisit our news Website:
Enterprise Application Market Focusing on Top Key Players Analysis - Oracle, Epicor Software, IBM, SAP, Microsoft & More

Enterprise Application Market

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Market Study Report recently introduced new title on 2016-2024 Global Enterprise Application Market Report that provides an in-depth overview of industry and competitive landscape, covering multiple market segments and elaborates market outlook and status to 2024.Enterprise Application Market size is expected to reach USD 287.71 billion by 2024Enterprise application market is expected to witness substantial growth owing to rising need to connect business process. This solution aids in enabling better quality management, supply chain management, and customer engagement. Mounting awareness regarding IT connectivity amongst company management, growing need for better internet infrastructure and swift cloud computing adoption by developed organizations will give a fillip to enterprise application market share over the forecast timeline.Request a Sample of this premium Research Report@BFSI, manufacturing, healthcare, retail, airspace &defense, media, chemicals, telecom &IT, oil &gas and hospitality sector are likley to contribute towards swift industry growth over the forecast period. SCM and business process management aid industries in tracking production and inventory management from procurement to delivery. Avaialbility of open source solutions along with high implementation &maintenance costs associated with the servers and operating systems may hinder growth over the forecast period. Some available open source solutions are ProcessMaker, FriFrans, CitrusBD and Magnolia.ERP and CRM are expected to be the prime product segments over the next seven years. Real time flow of information through various connected departments such as sales, production, technical; quality and HR is expected to fuel enterprise application market size through 2024. Transition in business models from traditional to cloud computing is anticipated to offer potential growth opportunities. Furthermore, remote access for employees and growing mobile penetration in business communication sector will also boost revenue.Swift business scenario with surging number of startups and small companies opting cloud based services is expected to contribute to substantial revenue generation. U.S. enterprise application market size was valued at over USD 30 billion in 2015 and is expected to record considerable growth rate due to customer centric approach and high focus on reducing operational cost. Rising awareness for adopting modern organizational structure is expected to offer new growth opportunities.Request a Discount on standard prices of this premium Market Research Report@Key insights from the report include:Content management system market share will grow at 13.5% CAGR over the forecast timeline. Features such as capability of conveting unstructured data into structured is likely to aid in easy website content management and in turn drive growth. Benefits offerd such as up-selling and cross-selling opportunities, customer behavior insights and improved efficiency is likley to drive the business intelligence market over the forecast period.On-premise enterprise application market size was over USD 100 billion in 2015, cloud based services are set to gain revenue share in the coming years.Healthcare applications occupied more than 10% of the overall industry share in 2015. These applications effectively handle digitized data from multiple sources and in turn enable organizations to gain real-time transparency and process optimization.Asia Pacific enterprise application market will grow at 9.5% CAGR. Rising demand for cloud-based solutions amongst medium and small scale industries are the major growth drivers.Key competitors include Oracle, Epicor Software, IBM, SAP, Microsoft, QAD, Hewlett Packard and IFS. The enterprise application market share is characterized by frequent strategic partnerships and mergers &acquisitions.Global Market Insights has segmented the enterprise application industry on the basis of product, end use, deployment, and region:Enterprise Application Product Analysis (Revenue, USD Billion, 2013 - 2024)CRMERPSCMBIBPMCMSEAMWeb ConferencingOthersEnterprise Application End-Use Analysis (Revenue, USD Billion, 2013 - 2024)ManufacturingBFSIHealthcareRetailGovernmentAerospace &DefenseTelecomOthersEnterprise Application Deployment Analysis (Revenue, USD Billion, 2013 - 2024)CloudOn-PremiseEnterprise Application Regional Analysis (Revenue, USD Billion, 2013 - 2024)North AmericaU.S.CanadaMexicoEuropeGermanyUKAsia PacificChinaIndiaJapanLatin AmericaBrazilMEAReport Table of ContentChapter 1. Methodology and Scope1.1. Research Methodology1.1.1. Initial data exploration1.1.2. Statistical model and forecast1.1.3. Industry insights and validation1.2. Data SourcesChapter 2. Executive Summary2.1. Enterprise Application industry 360 degree synopsis, 2013 - 20242.1.1. Business trends2.1.2. Regional trends2.1.3. Product trendsChapter 3. Enterprise Application Industry Insights3.1. Industry segmentation3.2. Industry Size and forecast, 2013 - 20243.3. Industry ecosystem analysis3.3.1. Vendor matrix3.4. Industry Impact forces3.4.1. Growth drivers3.4.1.1 Cloud computing adoption3.4.1.2 Competitive edge3.4.1.3 Escalating multimedia device demand3.4.2. Industry pitfalls & challenges3.4.2.1 Substantial maintenance and implementation cost3.4.2.2 Open source application availability3.5. Growth potential analysis3.6. Porter's analysis3.7. Key competitor landscape3.8. PESTEL analysisChapter 4. Enterprise Application Product Insights4.1. Enterprise application market share by product, 2015 & 20244.2. CRM4.2.1. Market estimates and forecasts by region, 2013 - 20244.3. ERP4.3.1. Market estimates and forecasts by region, 2013 - 20244.4. SCM4.4.1. Market estimates and forecasts by region, 2013 - 20244.5. Web Conferencing4.5.1. Market estimates and forecasts by region, 2013 - 20244.6. BI4.6.1. Market estimates and forecasts by region, 2013 - 20244.7. BPM4.7.1. Market estimates and forecasts by region, 2013 - 20244.8. CMS4.8.1. Market estimates and forecasts by region, 2013 - 20244.9. EAM4.9.1. Market estimates and forecasts by region, 2013 - 20244.10. Others4.10.1. Market estimates and forecasts by region, 2013 - 2024Complete report titled Enterprise Application Market Size By Product (CRM, ERP, SCM, Web Conferencing, Business Intelligence [BI], BPM, CMS, EAM), By End-Use (Manufacturing, BFSI, Healthcare, Retail, Government, Aerospace & Defense, Telecom & IT), By Deployment (On-Premise, Cloud), Industry Analysis Report, Regional Outlook (U.S., Canada, UK, Germany, Japan, China, India, Mexico, Brazil), Application Potential, Price Trends, Competitive Market Share & Forecast, 2016 - 2024 of 95 pages and published in August,2016 is now available atAbout Us:Marketstudyreport.com allows you to manage and control all corporate research purchases to consolidate billing and vendor management. You can eliminate duplicate purchases and customize your content and license management.Market Study Report4 North Main Street,Selbyville, Delaware 19975USAPhone: 1-302-273-0910US Toll Free: 1-866-764-2150Email:sales@marketstudyreport.comWebsite:Blog:
Application Release Automation Market 2018 Global Analysis By Key Players  CA Technologies, Microsoft, IBM, Red Hat, XebiaLabs, Micro Focus

Application Release Automation Industry

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WiseGuyReports.Com Publish a New Market Research Report On  Application Release Automation Market 2018 Global Analysis By Key Players  CA Technologies, Microsoft, IBM, Red Hat, XebiaLabs, Micro Focus.Description:-The Application Release Automation industry has also suffered a certain impact, but still maintained a relatively optimistic growth, the past four years, Application Release Automation market size to maintain the average annual growth rate of 20% from 1030 million $ in 2014 to 1780 million $ in 2017, The analysts believe that in the next few years, Application Release Automation market size will be further expanded, we expect that by 2022, The market size of the Application Release Automation will reach 4480 million $.Get a Sample Report @For more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.comThis Report covers the manufacturers data, including: shipment, price, revenue, gross profit, interview record, business distribution etc., these data help the consumer know about the competitors better. This report also covers all the regions and countries of the world, which shows a regionaldevelopment status, including market size, volume and value, as well as price data.Besides, the report also covers segment data, including: type segment, industrysegment, channel segment etc. cover different segment market size, both volume and value. Also cover different industries clients information, which is very important for the manufacturers.Sections:-Section 1: FreeDefinitionSection (2 3): 1200 USDManufacturer DetailCA TechnologiesMicrosoftIBMRed HatXebiaLabsMicro FocusBMC SoftwareVMwareFujitsuPuppetChef SoftwareElectric CloudClariveFlexagon LLCCloudBeesCollabNetArcad SoftwareAttunityDaticalNIIT TechnologiesInedoMidVisionOctopus DeployPlutoraRocket SoftwareSection 4: 900 USDRegion SegmentationNorth America Country (United States, Canada)South AmericaAsia Country (China, Japan, India, Korea)Europe Country (Germany, UK, France, Italy)Other Country (Middle East, Africa, GCC)ContinuedComplete Report Details @Table Of Contents  Major Key PointsSection 1 Application Release Automation Product DefinitionSection 2 Global Application Release Automation Market Manufacturer Share and Market Overview2.1 Global Manufacturer Application Release Automation Shipments2.2 Global Manufacturer Application Release Automation Business Revenue2.3 Global Application Release Automation Market OverviewSection 3 Manufacturer Application Release Automation Business Introduction3.1 CA Technologies Application Release Automation Business Introduction3.1.1 CA Technologies Application Release Automation Shipments, Price, Revenue and Grossprofit 2014-20173.1.2 CA Technologies Application Release Automation Business Distribution by Region3.1.3 CA Technologies Interview Record3.1.4 CA Technologies Application Release Automation Business Profile3.1.5 CA Technologies Application Release Automation Product Specification3.2 Microsoft Application Release Automation Business Introduction3.2.1 Microsoft Application Release Automation Shipments, Price, Revenue and Gross profit2014-20173.2.2 Microsoft Application Release Automation Business Distribution by Region3.2.3 Interview Record3.2.4 Microsoft Application Release Automation Business Overview3.2.5 Microsoft Application Release Automation Product Specification3.3 IBM Application Release Automation Business Introduction3.3.1 IBM Application Release Automation Shipments, Price, Revenue and Gross profit2014-20173.3.2 IBM Application Release Automation Business Distribution by Region3.3.3 Interview Record3.3.4 IBM Application Release Automation Business Overview3.3.5 IBM Application Release Automation Product Specification3.4 Red Hat Application Release Automation Business Introduction3.5 XebiaLabs Application Release Automation Business Introduction3.6 Micro Focus Application Release Automation Business IntroductionSection 4 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Region Level)4.1 North America Country4.1.1 United States Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.1.2 Canada Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.2 South America Country4.2.1 South America Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.3 Asia Country4.3.1 China Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.3.2 Japan Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.3.3 India Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.3.4 Korea Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.4 Europe Country4.4.1 Germany Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.4.2 UK Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.4.3 France Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.4.4 Italy Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.4.5 Europe Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.5 Other Country and Region4.5.1 Middle East Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.5.2 Africa Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.5.3 GCC Application Release Automation Market Size and Price Analysis 2014-20174.6 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Region Level) Analysis2014-20174.7 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Region Level) AnalysisSection 5 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Product TypeLevel)5.1 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Product Type Level)Market Size 2014-20175.2 Different Application Release Automation Product Type Price 2014-20175.3 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Product Type Level)AnalysisSection 6 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Industry Level)6.1 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Industry Level) MarketSize 2014-20176.2 Different Industry Price 2014-20176.3 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Industry Level) AnalysisSection 7 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Channel Level)7.1 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Channel Level) SalesVolume and Share 2014-20177.2 Global Application Release Automation Market Segmentation (Channel Level) AnalysisContinuedFor more information or any query mail at sales@wiseguyreports.comABOUT US:Wise Guy Reports is part of the Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. and offers premium progressive statistical surveying, market research reports, analysis & forecast data for industries and governments around the globe. Wise Guy Reports features an exhaustive list of market research reports from hundreds of publishers worldwide. We boast a database spanning virtually every market category and an even more comprehensive collection of market research reports under these categories and sub-categories.Office No.528,Amanora Chambers,Magarpatta Road,Hadapsar,Pune-411028.
Global Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Market 2018 Analysis By Key Players  MERIAL, Merial, Lilly, Bayer, Boehringer, Novartis, Virbac

Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Market

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SummaryWiseGuyReports.com adds Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Market 2018 Global Analysis, Growth, Trends and Opportunities Research Report Forecasting to 2023 reports to its database.This report provides in depth study of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Market using SWOT analysis i.e. Strength, Weakness, Opportunities and Threat to the organization. The Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Market report also provides an in-depth survey of key players in the market which is based on the various objectives of an organization such as profiling, the product outline, the quantity of production, required raw material, and the financial health of the organization.This report studies the global market size of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals in key regions like North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Central & South America and Middle East & Africa, focuses on the consumption of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals in these regions.This research report categorizes the global Veterinary Pharmaceuticals market by players/brands, region, type and application. This report also studies the global market status, competition landscape, market share, growth rate, future trends, market drivers, opportunities and challenges, sales channels, distributors and Porter's Five Forces Analysis.The various contributors involved in the value chain of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals include manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, intermediaries, and customers. The key manufacturers in the Veterinary Pharmaceuticals includeZoetis(Pfizer)MERIALMerialLillyBayerBoehringerNovartisVirbacCevaVetoquinolCAHICRingpuDahuanongTECONBIOKLukang PharmaJINYU GroupChina Animal HealthcareJiangxi YilingJIZHONG PharmaceuticalMarket Size Split by TypeVeterinary Biological DrugsVeterinary PreparationsOthersMarket Size Split by ApplicationPoultryPetsOtherMarket size split by RegionNorth AmericaUnited StatesCanadaMexicoAsia-PacificChinaIndiaJapanSouth KoreaAustraliaIndonesiaSingaporeMalaysiaPhilippinesThailandVietnamEuropeGermanyFranceUKItalySpainRussiaCentral & South AmericaBrazilRest of Central & South AmericaMiddle East & AfricaGCC CountriesTurkeyEgyptSouth AfricaRequest a Sample Report @Major Key Points in Table of Content1 Study Coverage1.1 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product1.2 Key Market Segments1.3 Key Manufacturers Covered1.4 Market by Type1.4.1 Global Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Market Size Growth Rate by Type1.4.2 Veterinary Biological Drugs1.4.3 Veterinary Preparations1.4.4 Others1.5 Market by Application1.5.1 Global Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Market Size Growth Rate by Application1.5.2 Poultry1.5.3 Pets1.5.4 Other1.6 Study Objectives1.7 Years Considered2 Executive Summary2.1 Global Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Market Size2.1.1 Global Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Revenue 2016-20252.1.2 Global Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Sales 2016-20252.2 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Growth Rate by Regions2.2.1 Global Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Sales by Regions2.2.2 Global Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Revenue by Regions.11 Company Profiles11.1 Zoetis(Pfizer)11.1.1 Zoetis(Pfizer) Company Details11.1.2 Company Description11.1.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.1.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.1.5 Recent Development11.2 MERIAL11.2.1 MERIAL Company Details11.2.2 Company Description11.2.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.2.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.2.5 Recent Development11.3 Merial11.3.1 Merial Company Details11.3.2 Company Description11.3.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.3.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.3.5 Recent Development11.4 Lilly11.4.1 Lilly Company Details11.4.2 Company Description11.4.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.4.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.4.5 Recent Development11.5 Bayer11.5.1 Bayer Company Details11.5.2 Company Description11.5.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.5.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.5.5 Recent Development11.6 Boehringer11.6.1 Boehringer Company Details11.6.2 Company Description11.6.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.6.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.6.5 Recent Development11.7 Novartis11.7.1 Novartis Company Details11.7.2 Company Description11.7.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.7.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.7.5 Recent Development11.8 Virbac11.8.1 Virbac Company Details11.8.2 Company Description11.8.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.8.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.8.5 Recent Development11.9 Ceva11.9.1 Ceva Company Details11.9.2 Company Description11.9.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.9.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.9.5 Recent Development11.10 Vetoquinol11.10.1 Vetoquinol Company Details11.10.2 Company Description11.10.3 Sales, Revenue and Gross Margin of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals11.10.4 Veterinary Pharmaceuticals Product Description11.10.5 Recent Development11.11 CAHIC11.12 Ringpu11.13 Dahuanong11.14 TECON11.15 BIOK11.16 Lukang Pharma11.17 JINYU Group11.18 China Animal Healthcare11.19 Jiangxi Yiling11.20 JIZHONG PharmaceuticalAt any Query @Continued....Contact Us: sales@wiseguyreports.comPh: +1-646-845-9349 (US) ; Ph: +44 208 133 9349 (UK)About Us:Wise Guy Reports Is Part Of The Wise Guy Consultants Pvt. Ltd. And Offers Premium Progressive Statistical Surveying, Market Research Reports, Analysis & Forecast Data For Industries And Governments Around The Globe. Wise Guy Reports Features An Exhaustive List Of Market Research Reports From Hundreds Of Publishers Worldwide. We Boast A Database Spanning Virtually Every Market Category And An Even More Comprehensive Collection Of Market Research Reports Under These Categories And Sub-Categories.Address:Wise Guy Research Consultants Pvt LtdPune  411028Maharashtra,+91 841 198 5042
Global SSL Certification Market Is Estimated to Grow at a CAGR of +25% by 2025 Top Vendors Covered Like Comodo, DigiCert, Entrust Datacard, GlobalSign, GoDaddy, Symantec

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This report is an in-depth analysis of the Global SSL Certification Market. Global SSL Certification Market Is Estimated to Grow at a CAGR of +25% during forecast period to 2025.An SSL certificate is a cryptographic technique used to protect communication between end users and Web sites. Certification authorities (CAs) also provide search and inventory tools to help customers manage their SSL certificates. Management tools are one-way CA differentiates in a competitive and growing marketplace.According to the research report, the global market for SSL Certification Market is witnessing a continual rise in its valuation with the advancement in technologies, which is impacting the consumer behavior and, accordingly, their purchasing patterns to a great extent. In addition to this, the rising penetration of internet and the surge in mobile surfing are anticipated to boost the demand for network management software across the world, states the research report.Get sample copy atLeading companies are covered in this market research report: Comodo DigiCert Entrust Datacard GlobalSign GoDaddy Symantec etc.The organizations vivacious and significant procedures will secure the latest and renewed updates on the organizations outline and besides this data and reports of the anticipated products and services in the market. The methodology of the global SSL Certification Market is that the information gathering will confirm a crisp and inventive method of market analysis to help its customers and arise the development of their business. The broad collection of research services will ensure a match with each organization as a business need.Most important data include the key recommendations and predictions by our analysts, intended to steer a strategic business decision. The company profiles section of this research service is a compilation of the growth strategies, financial status, product portfolio, and recent developments of key market participants. The report provides detailed industry analysis of the global SSL Certification Market with the help of proven research methodologies such as Porters five forces. The forces analyzed are bargaining power of the buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of new entrants, threat of substitutes, and the degree of competition.Get discount copy atIn order to give a clear view of SSL Certification market, competitive landscape has been gauged and mentioned along with value chain analysis. Current and introduced research and development projects has been delivered in this particular report.Table of ContentsGlobal SSL Certification Market Research ReportChapter 1 Global SSL Certification Market OverviewChapter 2 Global Economic Impact on IndustryChapter 3 Global Market Competition by ManufacturersChapter 4 Global Production, Revenue (Value) by RegionChapter 5 Global Supply (Production), Consumption, ExportChapter 6 Production, Revenue (Value), Price Trend by TypeChapter 7 Market Analysis by ApplicationChapter 8 Manufacturing Cost AnalysisChapter 9 Industrial Chain, Sourcing Strategy and Downstream BuyersChapter 10 Marketing Strategy Analysis, Distributors/TradersChapter 11 Market Effect Factors AnalysisChapter 12 Market ForecastAbout Research N Reports:Research N Reports is a new age market research firm where we focus on providing information that can be effectively applied. Today being a consumer driven market, companies require information to deal with the complex and dynamic world of choices. Where relying on a sound board firm for your decisions becomes crucial. Research N Reports specializes in industry analysis, market forecasts and as a result getting quality reports covering all verticals, whether be it gaining perspective on current market conditions or being ahead in the cut throat Global competition. Since we excel at business research to help businesses grow, we also offer consulting as an extended arm to our services which only helps us gain more insight into current trends and problems. Consequently, we keep evolving as an all-rounder provider of viable information under one roof.Contact:Sunny Denis(Sales Manager),(Research N Reports)10916, Gold Point Dr,Houston, TX, Pin  77064,+1-8886316977,sales@researchnreports.com,
Global UHT Processing Market 2018 Top Companies are GEA Group, Alfa Laval, SPX FLOW, Inc., Elecster Oyj, Shanghai Triowin Intelligent Machinery Co.,Ltd, MicroThermics Inc, REDA S.P.A., SHANGHAI JIMEI FOOD MACHINERY.,CO. LTD

Global UHT Processing Market? Industry Trends and Forecast to 2025

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UHT Processing Market report is in-depth study on how the status is for the Food and Beverage industry. This report includes a study of marketing and development strategies, along with the product portfolios of the leading companies. It also includes profiles of leading companies and brands that are driving the market with their recent developments, product launches, joint ventures, merges, and accusations.The global UHT Processing Market report also gives a deep knowledge about market definition, classifications, applications, engagements and market trends while also showing the CAGR figures for the Forecast years 2018-2025. SWOT analysis is used to find the market drivers and restrains.The Global UHT Processing Market is expected to reach USD 6.99 billion by 2025, from USD 2.65 billion in 2017, growing at a CAGR of 12.9% during the forecast period of 2018 to 2025. The upcoming market report contains data for historic years 2015 & 2016, the base year of calculation is 2017 and the forecast period is 2018 to 2025.Download PDF sample copy of this research report@Global UHT Processing Market, By Equipment Type (Heaters, Homogenizers, Flash Cooling, Aseptic Packaging, Others), By Mode Of Equipment Operation (Direct UHT Processing, Indirect UHT Processing), By End-Product Form (Liquid, Semi-Liquid), By Application (Milk, Dairy, Desserts, Juices, Soups, Others) By Geography (North America, South America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East And Africa) Industry Trends and Forecast to 2025Top Competitors:Tetra Laval International S.A.,GEA Group,Alfa Laval,SPX FLOW,Elecster Oyj,Shanghai Triowin Intelligent Machinery Co.,Ltd,MicroThermics,REDA S.P.A.,SHANGHAI JIMEI FOOD MACHINERY.,CO. LTD,TESSA I.E.C Group,Stephan Machinery Gmbh,BBnet,B.K Dairy Products (U) Ltd,hollanddairyafrica,vital-capital,Lato Milk and GOMAamong others.To Avail 10% Discount On This Report Mail Us on: - sopan.gedam@databridgemarketresearch.comMarket Definition:This market report defines the market trends and forecast the upcoming opportunities and threats of the UHT processing market in the next 8 years. UHT (ultra-high temperature) treatment is used in removal of micro-organisms and minimizing the chemical changes in the product. UHT is a process of determining combination of optimum temperature and processing time for different kinds of food products. UHT milk is sterilized milk prepared by the thermal treatment. The ultra-high temperature processing helps to kill the germs present in the milk without destroying the essential vitamins and nutrients in it. The processing involves heating of milk for 1 or 2 seconds over the temperature of 135 degrees Celsius (275 degrees Fahrenheit), which helps in increasing the shelf-life of milk without adding any preservatives. UHT milk is aseptically packed and is germfree. This enables it ready for consumption directly from the carton without boiling. It has minimal requirement of refrigeration and can be stored at room temperature.The Times of London, in 2007 published news on their survey of UHT milk, it was observed that 96.7% of total milk consumption in Belgium, 95% of the milk in France, and 95.7% of the milk consumed in Spain. It is also popular across Europe and it accounts 1% of milk sales in Greece, 2.4 % in Finland, and 8.4% in Britain. Executive vice president at North-east dairy foods association estimated that 70% of the milk sold in China is UHT.Major Market Drivers:Rising demand for food & beverage products with an extended shelf life.Marginal nutritional changes in products such as milk.Reduction in logistics and storage costs.High capital investments.High product quality requirement for UHT treatment.Table of Contents:1. Introduction2. Market Segmentation3. Market Overview4. Executive Summary5. Premium Insights6. Global, By Component7. Product/Service Type8. Delivery9. Industry Type10. Geography10.1. Overview10.2. North America10.3. Europe10.4. Asia-Pacific10.5. South America10.6. Middle East & Africa11. Company Landscape12. Company Profiles13. Related ReportsTo Avail 10% Discount On This Report Mail Us on :-sopan.gedam@databridgemarketresearch.comCompetitive Analysis:The global UHT processing market is highly fragmented and the major players have used various strategies such as new product launches, expansions, agreements, joint ventures, partnerships, acquisitions, and others to increase their footprints in this market. The report includes market shares of UHT processing market for global, Europe, North America, Asia Pacific and South America.Market Segmentation:The global UHT processing market is segmented based on equipment type, mode of equipment operation, end-product form, application.Based on equipment type:- Heaters, homogenizers, flash cooling, aseptic packaging, and othersOn the basis of mode of equipment operation:- Direct UHT processing and indirect UHT processing.On the basis of end-product form:- Liquid and semi-liquid.On the basis of application:- Milk, dairy, desserts, juices, soups, and other application.Based on geography:- North America & South America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and, Middle East & Africa.Some of the major countries covered in this report are:-U.S.,Canada,Germany,France,U.K.,Netherlands,Switzerland,Turkey,Russia,China,India,South Korea,Japan,Australia,Singapore,Saudi Arabia,South AfricaBrazilamong others.Inquire before Buy Report @Note: If you have any special requirements, please let us know and we will offer you the report as you want.About Data Bridge Market Research:Data Bridge Market Research set forth itself as an unconventional and neoteric Market research and consulting firm with unparalleled level of resilience and integrated approaches. We are determined to unearth the best market opportunities and foster efficient information for your business to thrive in the market. Data Bridge endeavors to provide appropriate solutions to the complex business challenges and initiates an effortless decision-making process.Contact:Data Bridge Market ResearchTel: +1-888-387-2818Email: sopan.gedam@databridgemarketresearch.com
it-sa 2018 was an unqualified success Frankfurt/Germany, Nov. 11, 2018 - SPECTRAMI envisions itself as a value-added distributor that provides comprehensive solutions in the fields of information security, data center infrastructures and data communication networks all over the EMEA region. SPECTRAMI took advantage of the opportunity as an exhibitor at the it-as 2018 expo to introduce its new partnership program to the specialist public gathered at the event. The launch of 
The Clackamas County Sheriff's Office announced Tuesday that a missing hiker had likely been killed by a cougar in Oregon's Mt. Hood National Forest, and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife released the following tips (See below for a more detailed list from ODFW):

Be aware of your surroundings at all times.

Hike in groups.

Keep your dog close to you or on a leash.

Make noise to alert wildlife of your presence.

Keep children close to you.

Be especially alert at dawn and dusk when cougars are most active.

If you encounter a cougar in the wild, you should:

Stay calm and stand your ground.

Maintain direct eye contact.

Pick up any children, but do so without bending down or turning your back on the cougar.

Back away slowly.

Do not run. Running triggers a chase response in cougars, which could lead to an attack.

Raise your voice and speak firmly.

If the cougar seems aggressive, raise your arms to make yourself look larger and clap your hands.

If in the very unusual event that a cougar attacks you, fight back with rocks, sticks, tools or any other items available.

ODFW has tips for co-existing with various kinds of wildlife on its website. Here is the lowdown on cougars:

If you live in cougar country

Learn your neighborhood. Be aware of any wildlife corridors or places where deer or elk concentrate.

Walk pets during the day and keep them on a leash.

Keep pets indoors at dawn and dusk. Shelter them for the night.

Feed pets indoors.

Don't leave food and garbage outside.

Use animal-proof garbage cans if necessary.

Remove heavy brush from near the house and play areas.

Install motion-activated light outdoors along walkways and driveways.

Be more cautious at dawn and dusk when cougars are most active.

Do not feed any wildlife. By attracting other wildlife, you may attract a cougar.

Keep areas around bird feeders clean.

Deer-proof your garden and yard with nets, lights, fencing.

Fence and shelter livestock. Move them to sheds or barns at night.

If You Recreate in Cougar Country

Be aware of your surroundings at all times.

Leave your dog at home or keep it on a leash. Pets running free may lead a cougar back to you.

Hike in groups. Make noise to alert wildlife of your presence.

Keep children close to you. Teach them about wildlife.

Keep campsites clean. Sleep 100 yards from cooking areas.

Store food in animal-proof containers.

Carry deterrent spray.

Be cautious at dusk and dawn.

Never feed any wildlife. Prey attracts predators.

Do not approach any wildlife; stay at least 100 yards away.

Steer clear of baby wildlife. Mother is likely nearby.

Be alert when sitting quietly or stopping to rest.

Be especially alert at dawn and dusk when cougars are most active.

Be aware that animal calls and animal kills can attract a cougar.

If You Encounter a Cougar

Cougars often will retreat if given the opportunity. Leave the animal a way to escape.

Stay calm and stand your ground.

Maintain direct eye contact.

Pick up children, but do so without bending down or turning your back on the cougar.

Back away slowly.

Do not run. Running triggers a chase response in cougars, which could lead to an attack.

Raise your voice and speak firmly.

If the cougar seems aggressive, raise your arms to make yourself look larger and clap your hands.

If in the very unusual event that a cougar attacks you, fight back with rocks, sticks, bear or pepper spray, tools or any items available.

ODFW also shows how to identify cougar tracks.
The drumbeat continues.

Port of Vancouver commissioners signaled support Tuesday for a new Interstate 5 bridge with "high-capacity transit," better access for bikes and pedestrians and improved safety for freight traffic and the tens of thousands of commuters who cross the Columbia River each day.

Board of Commissioners voted 2-1 in favor of the non-binding resolution, which calls on Gov. Jay Inslee and the Legislature to "provide adequate funding" to "materially advance project development for an Interstate 5 bridge replacement project."

The port's support comes after Vancouver's city council unanimously backed the same resolution at a meeting last month. The Port of Camas-Washougal supported the motion Sept. 4, and the Port of Ridgefield is expected to discuss the motion at a meeting Wednesday.

Clark County ports in February 2017 voted to renew discussions with Oregon on the bridge project, but the latest developments include more specifics.

The Clark County resolutions don't refer to light rail, but rather cite high-capacity transit on a "separated guideway," which officials say leaves the door open for bus rapid transit instead. The 2008 preferred bridge option approved by the 39-member bi-state Columbia River Crossing Task Force indicated light rail would be extended from the Expo Center into Vancouver.

Washington is increasingly pushing to revive talks with Oregon over the disputed I-5 bridge replacement project. Five years ago, a few Washington state legislators successfully prevented that state from paying for its share of the $450 million intended to pay for the Columbia River Crossing bridge replacement.

Oregon tried to go it alone for a year before shuttering its operation in 2014.

The Oregonian/OregonLive highlighted the renewed push from Washington officials in a story published Sunday.

-- Andrew Theen

atheen@oregonian.com

503-294-4026

@andrewtheen
Free agent running back Kenjon Barner has signed with the New England Patriots, the team announced Tuesday.

Barner, 29, had signed with the Carolina Panthers in May, but was released Sept. 1. The former Oregon Ducks star played with the Philadelphia Eagles last season and was a member of the Eagles team that won Super Bowl 52. Barner returned three kicks for 73 yards against the Patriots in Super Bowl 52.

Barner, who worked out for the Patriots earlier, is expected to replace Jeremy Hill, who suffered a season-ending torn ACL during the Patriots win against the Houston Texans in Week 1.

Barner will follow in the footsteps on another former Oregon running back who signed with the Patriots. LeGarrette Blount signed with the Patriots in 2014 and was on the team that reached two Super Bowls (49 and 51), winning both.

-- Geoffrey C. Arnold | @geoffreyCarnold
It seems self-evident that the entire process of making new laws should be open to the public. Legislating is inherently of public interest - actions by government to tax, mandate, restrict or otherwise exert control over its constituents should be something that those constituents can weigh in on from the very start. But for reasons that remain unclear, that's not the tack that Gov. Kate Brown's administration is taking.

Contrary to previous years, the state recently denied a Portland attorney's request for documents showing the 234 proposals for bills that the governor's office is sending on for legislative consideration. As The Portland Tribune's Paris Achen reported, attorney Gregory Chaimov has routinely received copies of the documents - in which state agencies outline the problem they want to solve and their proposed fix - since 2010. Chaimov uses the information to advise and assist clients who may be affected by such proposals.

This time, however, the Oregon Department of Administrative Services refused to release the forms, claiming they were protected by attorney-client privilege - an interpretation backed by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum. The forms will be released only after the Office of Legislative Counsel, which drafts bills for consideration by the Legislature, submits the written proposals to the governor's office for approval - by the end of November, weeks after Brown's tight gubernatorial race with challenger Knute Buehler is decided.

Legally, there are a couple problems with the state's position, according to Chaimov's attorney John DiLorenzo, who is suing to force the state to release the documents. Bill drafting services by the Office of Legislative Counsel aren't legal services protected by attorney-client privilege, DiLorenzo maintains. The Legislative Counsel may only represent the Legislature. Allowing the Legislative Counsel to serve as the attorney for the state agencies that make up the executive branch would violate the Oregon Constitution's separation of powers clause, he told The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board.

Now it's worth pointing out that Chaimov is not just any Portland attorney. He served as the legislative counsel from 1998 until 2004. So, he intimately knows the role of the legislative counsel and whom the office serves. It's also worth noting that the current legislative counsel, Dexter Johnson, declined to comment on whether he believes that drafting bills for executive branch proposals is a service protected by attorney-client privilege.

But there are other aspects that should trouble Oregonians. As Achen wrote, the forms now warn that "Although it is expected that agencies will have discussed legislative concept ideas with stakeholders, agencies are directed to treat this document as confidential and privileged and, accordingly, not to share the text of this form outside of state government before legislation is drafted and finalized."

In other words, some select members of the public - those "stakeholders" deemed relevant by state agencies - have been privy to the legislative ideas that are outlined in the documents that the state refuses to disclose. That suggests those concepts are not in fact confidential, a critical component for attorney-client privilege. And more important, there's the inherent unfairness of allowing favored "stakeholders" to know what's on deck for the coming legislative session while keeping others in the dark as long as possible.

Department of Administrative Services spokeswoman Liz Craig claims there's no change in policy, despite the fact that the state never denied Chaimov access to the documents in the past. She said the state agencies wanted to bring their practices in line with the Legislature, which has the authority to exert privilege over its work with Legislative Counsel - though lawmakers often choose not to. But this is not a compelling reason to hide documents, especially when compared with the benefit of telling the public what state agencies and the governor are teeing up for 2019.

The motivation for the refusal to disclose these forms may or may not be the pending election. It may or may not be a housekeeping move. But one thing is clear: It's another disappointing stand by a governor who pledged transparency from Day One. Brown should direct the Department of Administrative Services to release the documents and accept the scrutiny.

- Helen Jung for The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board

Oregonian editorials

Editorials reflect the collective opinion of The Oregonian/OregonLive editorial board, which operates independently of the newsroom. Members of the editorial board are Laura Gunderson, Helen Jung, Therese Bottomly and John Maher.

Members of the board meet regularly to determine our institutional stance on issues of the day. We publish editorials when we believe our unique perspective can lend clarity and influence an upcoming decision of great public interest. Editorials are opinion pieces and therefore different from news articles. However, editorials are reported and written by either Laura Gunderson or Helen Jung.

To respond to this editorial, post your comment below, submit an OpEd or a letter to the editor.
By Martha Bennett

Whether you were born here or moved here from someplace else, you know that Oregon and the greater Portland area are special. For you, that might mean you have a great job, know your neighbors and get to spend time with friends and family in nature. It could mean you continue to be awed by each view of Mt. Hood, our great performing arts and your local farmers market. Whatever you find special about greater Portland, you want to protect what you love about our place.

And even though we tell everyone that it always rains, our secret has been out for a while. On average, the greater Portland area welcomes about 100 new residents every day, and many of those new folks move here for the same things we love.

At Metro, we're charged with preparing for the changes that are coming: population growth, shifts in the economy, new transportation technology and threats to the environment. We work to protect the things that make our place special at the same time as we welcome new residents, new jobs and more change.

Metro's work manifests in many meaningful ways. From curbside compost to habitat restoration, we're there. When a community is trying to make its downtown a good place to do business, we're there. When groups that support communities of color are working to ensure access to the things we love about this place, we're there.

And, of course, when you drive to the Coast, the Cascades or down the Willamette Valley and you notice that urban development doesn't sprawl into the beautiful farms and forests that surround our city, we're there, too.

On Aug. 28, I released recommendations on how our region should guide growth. Metro is required to ensure we have enough developable land for the next 20 years, and we regularly assess whether we're meeting that target.

We expect the Portland region to add about 280,000 new households over the next 20 years. With that in mind, my recommendations look at how much development will happen inside our existing communities and how much development is likely to take place on the edge of our urbanized area.

As part of planning for this growth, four cities proposed new development beyond the current edge of our urban region. Beaverton, Hillsboro, King City and Wilsonville presented Metro with plans to build as many as 9,200 new homes in expansion areas in the decades to come. Some of these plans contain ambitious efforts to also help provide even more housing throughout their cities for the lower-wage workers who do so much to keep our region running

Our research shows that these four proposals can provide people with more housing choices and meet our state requirements. Even more important, each of these communities is planning for growth in a way that extends our region's successful track record of welcoming new residents while preserving what we love about this place. They will lead to thoughtful development that creates good places to live and capitalizes on the assets our region has been given.

Additionally, these four cities are willing to tackle a key challenge of growth: paying for the infrastructure that makes development possible. Ensuring that new homes have clean water, sewer facilities, streets and sidewalks, parks and schools can cost as much as $50,000 per new home.

As our region continues to grow and evolve, we'll be there, ensuring that we make the most of what we have, protect what we love and improve the quality of life for all of our region's residents. By working together, we create the kind of place we want to live in, one with good paying jobs, parks, performing arts venues and natural areas for us to enjoy, an ongoing commitment to environmental stewardship and waste reduction and a transportation system that keeps our air clean and economy moving.

-- Martha Bennett is the chief operating officer of Metro regional government.

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Editor's note: We published this commentary by the beloved Portland author Brian Doyle in 2015 to commemorate the attacks of Sept. 11. His op-ed was wildly popular, shared by thousands of readers on social media. Unfortunately, Doyle died last year at age 60 from complications related to a brain tumor. As the nation paused this week to acknowledge the passing of another Sept. 11, we felt it was appropriate to leave the writing in Doyle's able hands. Numbers referenced in his piece were updated to reflect the continued reach of this fine program.

-- The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board

By Brian Doyle

On Sept. 11, 2001, 83 employees of the investment banking firm Sandler O'Neill & Partners were in the company's office on the 104th floor of the World Trade Center's south tower. Sixty-six of those people were murdered by terrorists who smashed a hijacked jet into the tower and caused its collapse. Those 66 men and women, among them, had 76 children.

In the harrowing days after Sept. 11, the leaders at Sandler O'Neill made several crucial decisions. Some of those decisions had to do with resurrecting the firm; others had to do with benefits for the families of murdered employees. One decision particularly fascinates me: The firm helped set up a foundation to pay college tuition for all the children of their murdered employees.

I called the Sandler O'Neill Foundation the other day to talk about those children, and here are some things you should know: 62 young men and women have had their college tuitions paid so far, with 14 young men and women still eligible. The 62 who are attending or have attended college have gone to every sort of college imaginable -- from Stanford to Notre Dame to community colleges and technical institutes. Four students have attended Boston College, the alma mater of Welles Crowther, the 24-year-old Sandler O'Neill employee who saved as many as 12 people from death in the south tower before running back upstairs to save more people and never being seen again.

The youngest child eligible is 16. This youngest child was born six weeks after Sept. 11, 2001. When that child graduates from college, the Sandler O'Neill Foundation will cease to exist, except in memory; but what a resounding memory it will be.

Andy Armstrong was one of the founders of the foundation, in the first days after Sept. 11, though he did not work for Sandler O'Neill. He was a friend of Sandler's surviving partner, Jimmy Dunne, and he and others of Dunne's friends and colleagues and competitors helped set up the foundation.

"We were up and running by the end of the first week," Armstrong says. "We wanted the families of the lost to know that we would always remember, that the passing years would never sweep this under the rug. People donated many millions of dollars to set up the foundation. We have no salaries and no expenses except fees to stay extant. Yes, I know most of the children who went to college. You wouldn't believe some of the letters they have written in appreciation. I think they particularly appreciate that we remember their mom or dad this way. Many of them hardly knew their moms and dads."

I called Jimmy Dunne at Sandler O'Neill to ask him why he instantly did so very much the right thing, the extraordinary thing, when it would have been so easy and normal and understandable to just do enough.

"Because there was a moment in time to stand up," Dunne says, bluntly. "Because we believed that what we did would echo for a hundred years in the families of our people, their kids and their grandkids. Because how we conducted ourselves in those first few hours and days would define who we really were and what we were about. Because I knew that if we were not honorable, then we stood for nothing. I remember staring at bin Laden's smirking face on television, on Sept. 11, and concluding immediately that we would not be intimidated, we would not go out of business, we will come back stronger than ever, and be an example of people who worked and lived with honor. And that meant taking care of our people and their children with respect and reverence. So we did that. We figured what we did and how we did it was our way of fighting idiots like bin Laden. You want us to fall apart? Then we will survive and flourish. You want to destroy us? Then we will insist even more on acting with honor. That's what the foundation was for, is for. We want our defiance and reverence to echo for a century, so that the grandchildren of our people will know we stood for something, and acted honorably when it really counted."

-- Brian Doyle was a husband, father and author of numerous books and short stories. He also was the editor of Portland Magazine at the University of Portland.

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Sheryl Bauer of Keizer was standing in her kitchen in June when a bullet blasted through a wall and lodged in the granite backsplash right next to her.

Now she and her husband have filed a $2.7 million lawsuit against a neighboring rock quarry, saying the owner of Salem Mobile Mix is endangering their lives by allowing target shooting on his property.

Sheryl and Thomas Bauer say reckless shooters have fired hundreds of rounds a day several times a week in recent years. The quarry is directly across the Willamette River from their neighborhood -- about a third of a mile away.

They live in fear of another bullet piercing their home, this time missing the granite and striking someone inside, says the lawsuit, filed recently in Marion County Circuit Court.

The shooting has shattered the tranquility of the Bauers dream home on the riverfront and they are now terrified to let their grandchildren visit, the suit says.

Since last year, the target shooters also have narrowly missed people at Sunset Park near the Bauers' home, the suit states. Another neighbor also has reported watching a grove of trees get pelted by rounds fired from several hundred yards across the river in Polk County, the suit says.

The quarrys owner, Lance Davis Jr., told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Tuesday that he has temporarily stopped any target practice on his property. But he hasnt yet decided what hell allow in the future. The Bauers' lawsuit asks a judge to impose a permanent shooting ban on the quarry.

Davis said he's taken measures to fix the problem, including installing a gate to keep trespassers out and signs warning people to avoid shooting in the direction of the neighborhood. In the past, he has allowed family and friends to shoot at the quarry, he said.

Were working with the sheriffs office to ensure Keizer citizens that an incident will never happen again, Davis said. His business is formally known as Northwest Rock, Inc., doing business as Salem Mobile Mix.

Davis believes his quarry has taken the blame for some stray bullets fired by geese or duck hunters and others on nearby rural properties.

People can shoot both upstream and downstream from our property, Davis said. Hunting goes on all around us.

Polk County Commissioner Craig Pope told The Oregonian/OregonLive that he visited Davis and the quarry.

He's very aware of his responsibility as a citizen and a public servant and hes trying to do his best, Pope said. But hes begging please dont take away my rights.

Pope said although hes sympathetic to the Keizer residents, hes unwilling to thrust Polk County into the center of a national gun-rights debate by backing a shooting ban.

What these folks have essentially wanted was a safety bubble around their community, Pope said.

Pope said a ban also wouldnt be practical because county commissioners couldnt prohibit shooting only in Davis quarry -- it would have to apply to rural property countywide.

Polk County Sheriff Mark Garton said he's aware of at least two instances when bullets have been shot into the neighborhood. A deputy confirmed that the bullet that flew into the Bauers' house on June 2 originated from the quarry, he said.

The deputy cited four men for misdemeanor reckless endangerment -- two of them were Davis' adult sons and the other two were friends of the sons. But the Polk County District Attorney's Office ultimately declined to prosecute the men -- in part -- because prosecutors couldn't prove which one fired the bullet.

The Bauers' Salem attorney, Mark Hoyt, said the quarry owner's assurances that he's taken the necessary safety steps arent good enough.

Putting up a fence or a gate to keep out trespassers is not helpful when the people shooting the bullets into your home are the property owners children and friends, he said.

Berms that were erected, Hoyt said, also didn't stop the bullet that pierced the Bauer's home.

-- Aimee Green
A 52-year-old Medford man died Tuesday night on U.S. 26 near Warm Springs after another driver left their lane and the vehicle hit head-on, police say.

According to Oregon State Police troopers, Kyle Estes died after a truck driven by 65-year-old Gresham resident Lanny Hawley "for unknown reasons" crossed the center line into westbound traffic on the two-lane highway.

The crash occurred near milepost 74, where the highway descends from the Mt. Hood National Forest into the Warm Springs Reservation. The crash site is about 29 miles northwest of the town of Warm Springs.

Hawley's red 2000 Ford E-350 truck was headed eastbound on the mountain descent, according to a police account. Just after 5:30 p.m., troopers say Hawley struck Estes' 2016 GMC Terrain, which was headed uphill.

Estes died at the scene.

Hawley was airlifted to a Bend hospital in critical condition.

U.S. 26 was closed for about six hours after the incident.

-- Andrew Theen

atheen@oregonian.com

503-294-4026

@andrewtheen
Jacob Laskey

A man viewed as a fixture in Oregon's white nationalist movement was sentenced in Lane County to more than two years for stabbing an acquaintance.

Jacob Laskey, 38, pleaded guilty Monday to charges of fourth-degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon in the knife attack on Devin Reid Wolfe.

Jailed since January, Laskey's plea  first reported by the Eugene Weekly  came a day before the start of his scheduled trial.

Lane County Circuit Judge Valerie Love handed Laskey a concurrent sentence of six months in county jail and an additional 30 months in state prison, counting time-served, court records show.

Laskey also was sentenced to 24 months of post-prison supervision, the records show.

The Lane County Sheriff's Office arrested Laskey on Jan. 19 after authorities said he stabbed Wolfe at a Creswell RV park. The attack occurred during a birthday party, the Eugene Weekly reported.

Sheriff's officials provided few additional details. Wolfe could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Laskey spent more than a decade in federal prison after he and several other members of Volksfront, a now-defunct neo-Nazi group, threw swastika-etched bricks through Eugene's Temple Beth Israel Synagogue in 2002.

He was released in 2015 and was on federal probation at the time of his arrest.

Laskey had maintained a public presence since he got out of prison. Books that he penned behind bars, including one that claims the Holocaust was a hoax, became available on Amazon.

Laskey also has become a prolific video blogger on YouTube, where he delivered lengthy diatribes against antifascist activists, or antifa, and talked about his doubts that the Earth is round and whether the International Space Station is a Hollywood movie set.

In November, he publicly praised and defended Eugene cannabis entrepreneur Bethany Sherman after she was accused of participating in neo-Nazis activities.

Until his arrest, Laskey helped run Wolfclan Armory, a military surplus store operated by his family. The store recently moved from Creswell to Cottage Grove, south of Eugene.

Laskey told The Oregonian/OregonLive last year that he's no longer involved in the white power movement or affiliated with any white supremacist groups. He added that he didn't renounce his past.

-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh

skavanaugh@oregonian.com

503-294-7632 || @shanedkavanaugh
Days before in-person jury selection is set to begin in his second trial, President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort is in talks with the special counsel's office about a possible plea deal, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions.

The people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the conversations, cautioned that the negotiations may not result in a deal with Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is prosecuting Manafort for alleged money laundering and lobbying violations.

But the discussions indicate a possible shift in strategy for Manafort, who earlier this year chose to go to trial in Virginia, only to be convicted last month in Alexandria, Virginia, federal court on eight counts of bank and tax fraud. He had derided his former business partner, Rick Gates, for striking a deal with prosecutors that provided him leniency in exchange for testimony against Manafort.

"I had hoped and expected my business colleague would have had the strength to continue the battle to prove our innocence," Manafort said in February.

The specifics of Manafort's current negotiations with prosecutors were unclear, including whether he would provide any information about the president.

However, Manafort's willingness to engage in talks could be a setback for Trump, who in the past has praised his former campaign chairman for his unwillingness to cooperate with the special counsel.

Prosecutors "applied tremendous pressure on him and . . . he refused to 'break' - make up stories in order to get a 'deal,' " the president tweeted last month. "Such respect for a brave man!"

Manafort spokesman Jason Maloni and Mueller spokesman Peter Carr declined to comment. Manafort's attorneys, Kevin Downing and Thomas Zehnle, did not immediately return calls for comment.

Jury selection for Manafort's second trial is set to begin Monday, with opening statements scheduled for Sept. 24.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson pushed back a scheduled pretrial hearing in the case from Wednesday to Friday. Court filings did not indicate the reason for the delay.

Manafort, 69, a longtime lobbyist and consultant with deep roots in the GOP, served as Trump's campaign chairman for about six months, resigning in August 2016 amid increasing scrutiny of his work on behalf of a Russia-friendly political party in Ukraine.

Both cases brought against Manafort stem from his work in Ukraine. The jury in Virginia found that Manafort hid the money he made in Ukraine to avoid paying taxes and then lied to get loans when the political party collapsed and his funding dried up. In Washington, he faced charges of conspiring against the United States, money laundering, failing to register as a lobbyist, making false statements and witness tampering.

Manafort had the choice to consolidate both cases into one but declined. He had been jailed since June as a result of the witness tampering charges.

He has yet to be sentenced in Virginia, where he faces up to 10 years in prison under federal guidelines on the eight of 18 counts on which he was convicted. A mistrial was declared on the remaining charges after jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict.

Trump has sought advice from his lawyers on the possibility of pardoning Manafort and other aides accused of crimes, his attorney Rudy Giuliani previously told The Washington Post, and was counseled against pardoning anyone involved in the ongoing probe. The president agreed to wait at least until the investigation concludes, Giuliani has said.

Several defendants have cooperated or pleaded guilty in connection with the special counsel probe, including Gates; former national security adviser Michael Flynn; Alex van der Zwaan, a lawyer who worked with Gates and Manafort; W. Samuel Patten, who admitted arranging for a Ukrainian businessman to illegally donate to Trump's inauguration; and former Trump foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos, who was sentenced to 14 days in jail last week after pleading guilty to lying to the FBI.

The decision by Trump's onetime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, to plead guilty last month in a federal investigation in Manhattan particularly angered the president, who denounced him as a "flipper."

The Washington Post
The Trump administration appears to have diverted nearly $10 million in funding for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency at the forefront of the president's zero-tolerance immigration policy that led to the separation of hundreds of children, some as young as 18 months, from their parents.

The reallocation of public money is documented in a "Transfer and Reprogramming" notification prepared this fiscal year by the Department of Homeland Security, the parent department of ICE, as the agency is known. It was made public by Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon in an appearance Tuesday on "The Rachel Maddow Show," as Hurricane Florence barreled toward the Carolinas.

Merkley's office provided the 39-page budget document independently to The Washington Post. It shows that DHS requested that about $9.8 million going toward FEMA efforts such as "Preparedness and Protection" and "Response and Recovery" be funneled instead into ICE coffers, specifically underwriting "Detention Beds" and the agency's "Transportation and Removal Program." The U.S. Secret Service was also a beneficiary of the reallocation.

"This is a scandal," Merkley said in an emailed statement to the Post. "At the start of hurricane season  when American citizens in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are still suffering from FEMA's inadequate recovery efforts  the administration transferred millions of dollars away from FEMA. And for what? To implement their profoundly misguided 'zero-tolerance' policy. It wasn't enough to rip thousands of children out of the arms of their parents  the administration chose to partly pay for this horrific program by taking away from the ability to respond to damage from this year's upcoming and potentially devastating hurricane season."

The "monster," as Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina labeled the storm gathering strength off the southeastern Atlantic coast, threatens enormous damage and a replay of last year's devastating hurricane season, in which FEMA was woefully unprepared for the catastrophe that befell Puerto Rico, according to an after-action report by the agency. Meanwhile, a year after Hurricane Harvey brought the worst rainstorm in the nation's history to the Houston area, 50 percent of lower-income respondents in a survey conducted this summer said they weren't getting the help they needed.

As Trump pledged Tuesday that "We are sparing no expense" in preparing for Florence, DHS did not dispute the authenticity of the document in a statement posted on Twitter. The department acknowledged that funds had been redirected but said the transfer did not jeopardize relief efforts.

The memorandum sheds light on the immigration-enforcement operations enhanced by the FEMA funds. Without the transfer, the document notes, "ICE will not be able to fulfill its adult detention requirements in FY 2018." Insufficient funding, DHS observes, could prevent the agency from deporting people who stand in violation of the country's immigration laws while requiring ICE to "release any new book-ins and illegal border violators," to "reduce its current interior enforcement operations" and to limit "criminal alien and fugitive arrests."

These new limitations, the department warns, "would pose a significant risk to public safety and national security by permitting known offenders to remain at large."

The precise timing of the reallocation is unclear, as the document, which refers to Fiscal Year 2018, does not include an exact date. The document's file information indicates that it was created in late June, the first month of the Atlantic hurricane season. A Senate aide told the Post that the fiscal notice appears to have been written in June, sent to Congress at the end of the month and approved sometime between July and September.

DHS is required to notify the House and Senate Appropriations Committees of reprogramming of funds in excess of $5 million, according to a 2009 appropriations measure. Merkley, who is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, told Maddow that the document he released was "the notification document that would have come to the Appropriations Committee, specifically to the chair of [the subcommittee on] Homeland Security."

Merkley said he came across the document in the course of his efforts to try "to stop child separations," which included his attempt in early June to visit a detention facility in South Texas. He linked the transfer of funds to the zero-tolerance policy announced by Attorney General Jeff Sessions in May.

"Clearly they were saying, 'if we're going to start arresting, as a criminal matter, and detaining people, we need to have much bigger detention camps, oh well we better get some more money to do that,'" Merkley said Tuesday evening on the MSNBC show. He also suggested that the financial pressure was linked to this month's announcement by the administration of new regulations designed to enable expanded detention of families who cross into the U.S. without legal status.

As for FEMA, the notifying document states that the "Mission impact" will be "minimized," as the agency will scale back training, travel, public engagement sessions and IT security support and infrastructure maintenance.

A spokesman for DHS responded to Merkley's allegations in a series of tweets late Tuesday, acknowledging the budgetary reallocation but arguing that the funds in question came from "FEMA's routine operating expenses" and "could not have been used for hurricane response due to appropriations limitations."

"The money in question  transferred to ICE from FEMA's routine operating expenses  could not have been used for hurricane response due to appropriation limitations. DHS/FEMA stand fiscally and operationally ready to support current and future response and recovery needs," Tyler Q. Houlton wrote on Twitter.

Former DHS and FEMA officials, however, disputed the spokesman's claim that the money in question was distinct from "hurricane response," saying these funds were critical to the agency's overall mission of storm preparedness and response, even if they were not explicitly earmarked for disaster relief.

"Anyone who knows FEMA knows it's parsing words," Moira Whelan, a former chief of staff in the Office of Gulf Coast Rebuilding at Homeland Security's National Joint Information Center, told the Post. The disaster relief funding left untouched by the transfer, Whelan said, covers post-storm assistance and the rebuilding of public structures, while "Response and Recovery" money tapped for the transfer pays for plans, logistics, supply-chain management and after-action reports that seek to improve on previous seasons, said Whelan, who is also a former official with the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The nearly $10 million diverted to ICE comes from a roughly $1 billion operating budget that supports much of FEMA's efforts beyond the immediate response to a declared emergency, said a former FEMA official who asked not to be identified because he still does business with the agency. That includes staff, meetings and exercises, he said  all crucial to readiness for the next hurricane season. One example, the former official said, was the network of warehouses operated by FEMA across the country, which requires staff and supplies.

Trump said on Tuesday that the government was "absolutely, totally prepared" for the hurricane bearing down on the Carolinas. Florence is expected to make landfall in southeast North Carolina on Friday as a Category 3 or 4 hurricane, bringing destructive winds and leaving flooding in its wake.

"We're ready. FEMA is ready. Everybody is ready," Trump said in brief remarks at Joint Base Andrews.

Later in the day, after a briefing on the hurricane, the president affirmed, "The safety of the American people is my absolute highest priority. We are sparing no expense." He also used the occasion to trumpet as an "incredible, unsung success" his administration's response to Hurricane Maria, which caused nearly 3,000 deaths on Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory already badly damaged by Hurricane Irma weeks earlier.

It was "one of the best jobs that's ever been done with respect to what this is all about," Trump said.

The Washington Post
An Army veteran who was drunk and threatened a Transportation Security Administration screener at Portland International Airport was sentenced Wednesday to three years of probation, including three months of home detention, for assaulting two officers.

The prosecutor said the sentencing, following the 17th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorism attacks, is a reminder of the government's continued obligation to secure the nation's airports.

Anthony Wayne Tavoloni Jr.'s case also shines a light on the mental health challenges soldiers face upon returning to the community after combat service, the prosecutor and defense lawyer said.

Tavoloni, 45, served three combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and was drunk when he confronted TSA officers on Aug. 20, 2017.

When he approached the screening line at the airport and a TSA official asked for his boarding pass, Tavoloni said, "No.'' When the officer asked for the pass a second time, Tavoloni dropped his backpack on the floor, took two steps toward the officer and stated, "You really want to do this?'' according to the government.

Tavoloni then tried to wrestle another officer out of his way, before two passengers tried to restrain him and other TSA officers wrestled him to the ground, according to the prosecutor.

"The officers at TSA have a hard enough job doing what they need to do to protect all of us,'' U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon told Tavoloni. "When they encounter the sort of incident you caused, it just makes their job even harder.''

Simon also said he recognized the contributions Tavoloni made to the country and the challenges he faced.

Assistant U.S. Attorney John Brassell requested six months of home detention for Tavoloni as part of his probation. With TSA supervisors attending the hearing, Brassell told the court that one of the victims is still suffering at work from this encounter.

"The damage he caused was real,'' Brassell said.

Defense lawyer Conor Huseby said the home detention wasn't warranted, noting his client is working, attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and hasn't had any violations while awaiting sentencing.

Huseby said Tavoloni has undergone a remarkable transformation since his arrest, when he was "as low as a human being could be ... suicidal, depressed, spiritually bankrupt.''

The judge decided to place Tavoloni on 90 days of home detention.

"You owe a debt to society for the harm that you have caused,'' Simon said. "There has to be some reckoning for that.''

As conditions of his probation, Tavoloni also will be on GPS monitoring for three months and alcohol monitoring for six months. He must participate in treatment for alcohol abuse and mental health.

The prosecutor asked that Tavoloni also be required to get approval from his probation officer before entering the airport again. The judge didn't think that was necessary.

Simon sought to make sure that Tavoloni doesn't intend to cause TSA any further problems.

"If you're traveling or picking up a passenger at the airport, you don't anticipate any problems with TSA?'' Simon asked him.

"Correct, your honor,'' Tavoloni responded.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian
A 32-year-old man who fatally strangled his girlfriend with a belt in a Southeast Portland motel room has been sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Joshua Scott Carlson was charged with murder in the death of 42-year-old Valerie Johnson on April 21, 2017, at the Motel 6 near Powell Boulevard and 31st Avenue. He pleaded guilty last month to first-degree manslaughter and was sentenced last week.

According to court papers filed by the prosecution, a friend of Johnson's said Johnson had been dating Carlson for about a month. During that time, the friend noticed that Johnson had suffered a black eye and Johnson had explained that Carlson had punched her while high on methamphetamine, according to the court papers.

Carlsons attorney didnt reveal the defense Carlson would have used if the case had gone to trial. But prosecutor Amity Girt wrote in court documents that she expected Carlson to argue that he didnt intend to kill Johnson and that she died after some rough sex.

Carlson initially came to police attention in a stolen SUV case before officers found Johnson dead.

Officer Shaun Sahli discovered a stolen Ford Escape in the motels parking lot. A back-up officer watched the SUV for a while, then saw Carlson get in it and drive off. A high-speed chase followed, but officers backed off for safety reasons. They later found the SUV abandoned near Southeast 51st Avenue and Gladstone Street.

Officers found Carlson hiding on the roof of a nearby home.

Meanwhile, officers realized that Carlson had rented a room at the Motel 6. When they went inside, they found Johnsons body.

With time off for good behavior, Carlson could end up serving 14 years. If Carlson had been convicted of murder, he would have been sentenced to a life prison term with the possibility of release after 25 years, as called for by Oregon law.

-- Aimee Green
Joseph W. Green Jr.

A man is accused of sexually assaulting someone in that person's home in an episode that is eerily similar to one that happened Monday.

Joseph W. Green Jr., 30, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of assault, strangulation, rape and burglary after an in-home assault and burglary was reported in the early morning hours. He was booked into the Multnomah County Jail.

Green is suspected of entering a house in the 2700 block of Southeast 15th Avenue through an unlocked door. Two people in the home were asleep when someone entered and began to sexually assault one, according to police. The other resident woke up and helped to fight off the man.

After he left, the two residents of the home called 911. Police responded at 12:52 a.m. and began to search the neighborhood.

They found Green near Southeast 15th Avenue and Clay Street and arrested him.

On Monday, Damascus L. Menefee, 38, was arrested on suspicion of a nearly identical crime. Menefee is accused of entering a home and sexually assaulting a woman.

Portland police are asking anyone with information about Green to contact Detective Michael Bledsoe at 503-823-0836 or michael.bledsoe@portlandoregon.gov; or Detective Ryan Foote at 503-823-0323 or ryan.foote@portlandoregon.gov.

-- Molly Harbarger

mharbarger@oregonian.com

503-294-5923

@MollyHarbarger
Portland's housing bureau will buy, tear down and replace an Old Town apartment building to house low-income renters.

The Westwind apartment building, at 333. N.W. Sixth Ave., would be the fifth acquisition funded by the housing bond the city's voters approved in 2016. The site will cost $3 million, and construction will bring the project cost to about $20 million.

In addition to housing bond funds, the project will also draw from the Downtown Waterfront Urban Renewal Area, and Multnomah County has dedicated $4 million from the sale of the county's Wapato Jail toward the project.

The purchase will go to the Portland City Council for approval this fall.

The Westwind, built in 1903, has long served low-income tenants under private ownership through its below-market rents, even as the property's condition has languished. It's currently owned by a trust controlled by Pennie Narver of Newberg.

Housing Bureau director Shannon Callahan said the building would need renovations in the short interim to bring it up to the city's safety and livability standards, but the 40 to 50 people currently living in the building would likely be able to remain while the work is underway.

Although the building eventually would be torn down, Portland housing officials said its replacement would preserve the low-barrier housing it has provided for single residents and couples. It would also offer on-site mental health and addiction services, part of an effort to help recently homeless residents stay housed.

The city hopes to find alternate housing for Westwind residents during the replacement project.

The city previously paid $47 million in housing bond funds to buy The Ellington, a 263-unit apartment complex near Northeast 66th Avenue and Halsey. That complex, built in the 1940s, also needed millions of dollars in repairs.

It later announced the acquisition of two plots of land to build new affordable housing projects. It paid $3.7 million for the site of a former strip club at Southeast 30th Avenue and Powell Boulevard with plans to build 200 to 300 units. And it paid $500,000 for a 19,000-square-foot lot at 5827 N.E. Prescott St. with plans to build 50 units there. The cost of construction for those two projects hasn't been finalized.

And in June, the city announced it would pay $14.3 million from the housing bond for a newly constructed 51-unit building at 10506 E. Burnside St.

As of July, the city was in talks over at least three other sites, which haven't been identified for fear of upsetting sale negotiations.

When it went before voters, Portland officials said the housing bond would pay for 1,300 new affordable units by 2023. The Westwind project brings the count to 630, but many of those units have yet to be built.

-- Elliot Njus

enjus@oregonian.com

503-294-5034

@enjus
It's not easy to acquire, then sell, an entire town. But the Caswell family pulled it off by slowly buying land as it went up for sale in a declining timber town in southern Oregon.

Without a grand plan and over three decades, they came to own most of tiny Tiller, then, after their parents died, the heirs put their acres up for sale and offers, and worldwide attention, poured in.

On Sept. 10, the family announced that new owners took title to Tiller, from the riverfront houses and dusty downtown with a closed school and store, to forested hilltops with water and timber rights.

The asking price of $3.85 million bundled together 257 contiguous acres and all but a few Tiller tax lots.

Not for sale were the community church and pastor's residence, the volunteer-staffed fire station and a retired school teacher's house.

But pretty much everything else was on the market, including a potential housing subdivision and the land underneath the post office, which opened in 1902.

The new owners hope to create a tree-laden river resort open to the public in the verdant, remote and mostly unoccupied setting on the South Umpqua River, about 225 miles south of Portland.

The buyers say they have no interest in logging, growing or selling cannabis, operating a rehab center or nudist colony or a re-creation of an old town like Knott's Berry Farm amusement park's Calico Ghost Town.

The new owners, who want to remain anonymous for now and have not disclosed the sale price, describe the ambitious plan like a Shangri-La: The forests will be maintained, people will be hired, local products will be sold and forward-thinking experts will work on crucial social issues such as creating "healthy homes" and relying on biofuel public transportation while vacationers hike trails and ride ziplines over the water.

"With pleasure, I'd like to let you know our Tiller transaction recorded and closed," said Richard ("Rick") Caswell, Jr., who represents his family's trust. "I can't believe it finally came together."

The complicated sale was handled in two phases.

The Caswells were asking $3.5 million for the land and the boarded-up Tiller general store, with a deli, commercial kitchen, gas pump and apartment.

In a separate transaction that closed May 22, the Douglas County School District 15 received $350,000 for its 6.58 acres and the expanded Tiller elementary school, which started in the late 1800s as a one-room schoolhouse. The 16,588-square-foot building has been closed for years.

When the new owners visited the school after it sold, they found someone had left flowers near the entrance with a note welcoming them, according to broker Garrett Zoller of Medford-based Land and Wildlife Realty, who agreed to take on the Caswells' attention-getting listing in 2015.

Once the school contract was signed in 2016, making it possible to sell almost the entire town, the story went viral. The dot on the Oregon map become a captivating story for CBS and the BBC, Time and Fortune magazines, tree-hugging Mother Nature Network and the climate-change challenging Drudge Report.

Men and women who had never been to the Pacific Northwest fell in love with the idea and ideal of Tiller. They referred to it by name as if it were their hometown. They offered to volunteer to nurture its rebirth; to reignite the workshops, restock grocery store shelves, reopen the school.

The listing didn't just represent what's there -- ramshackle buildings that you can drive pass in about three minutes on the way to the Seven Feathers casino in Canyonville or Crater Lake National Park in the other direction -- but what could be: The opportunity to purchase a slice of the American dream in Douglas County.

The new owners now have an unincorporated town with sidewalks, fire hydrants and utilities. Different tax lots already zoned for rural commercial, industrial, residential, agricultural, farm forest and timber resource use make it easier to execute the resort plan.

"What happens to the property is going to be determined by what I call the imagination of the buyers and the limitations of the bankroll," said Caswell in 2017, who pointed to a map that shows Umpqua National Forest and Bureau of Land Management acres dwarfing the modest homes and other weather-beaten structures that make up the town.

The new owners "will determine what becomes of Tiller," he said.

Longtime residents have seen jobs move from trapping, mining, logging and a ranching economy to nothing. The land was ignored or underused for years.

"Now it's ready to become something else," said Caswell, a Medford mortgage broker who initiated his family's first Tiller land acquisition.

In the 1970s, Rick Caswell talked his dad, Richard Caswell, Sr., a Medford commercial real estate agent selling ranching properties, into buying a land sale contract secured by 93 acres in Tiller.

The borrower defaulted on the loan and the property reverted to the lender, Caswell Sr.

Rick Caswell felt bad the deal didn't stick and offered to find a new buyer, but his dad liked the area off Oregon Route 227 just past the river-rafting spots around Shady Cove.

The first purchase was part of pioneer Aaron J. Tiller's original homestead. There were fruit trees and an apple orchard. "It was park-like," said Rick Caswell, "beautiful."

The deed also included property across the Tiller Trail Highway, at the east entrance of town.

Here, on three shady acres, zoned for commercial use, were two beat-up barracks and a deck that hung over the river.

Rick's dad decided these could be the family's vacation homes. Looking across the river from his deck, he saw a forest that was prime to be cut. He bought the 100 acres to save the view.

Today, the Caswells' former land has about 2 million board feet of merchantable timber.

When the timber industry collapsed in the early 1990s, the mills closed, much of Tiller's population moved away and the family bought properties that were for sale.

Eventually, 28 lots were knitted together like a giant quilt.

The Caswells acquired the last piece in 2004. In 2014, after 64 years of marriage, Caswell's dad and mom, Barbara, died within months of each other. Their ashes were scattered on the river that flowed by their Tiller home.

Then Caswell and his three sisters, two of whom had lived in Tiller, decided to put the sleepy town up for sale. They worked with the owner of the grocery store and the school district to market the entire package together.

Zoller of Land and Wildlife Realty said the deal was difficult because of the assorted tax lots and other hurdles, but "both the sellers and buyers were extremely cooperative and positive, and we chipped away at it to make it work."

Tiller resident Angela Hunt has had a front-row view of the changes. She and her late husband bought their home near the school more than 40 years ago. She was a teacher there and he worked for the Tiller Ranger District.

She's staying put. "I am very happy in Tiller," she wrote in an email in 2017.

He and other residents hope the new owners will work with them to develop their venture, "whatever that may be."

He added: "Tiller could certainly benefit from some positive energy and fresh thinking."

 Janet Eastman | 503-799-8739

jeastman@oregonian.com

The school district name was corrected in this story.
It's a sure sign things could have gone better on "America's Got Talent" when the judges say they hope viewers at home remember what the act did earlier in the competition. But that was the unfortunate feedback We Three, the sibling trio from McMinnville, Oregon, heard following their performance on the "America's Got Talent" semifinals Tuesday night.

The pressure was on during this final evening of semifinals. Several of the acts displayed obvious nerves, knowing it was up to viewers at home to vote for which acts make it through to the finals.

We Three, featuring Bethany Blanchard and her brothers, Joshua Humlie and Manny Humlie, performed another original song, "Make Up." Though it was more upbeat and poppy than the previous songs performed by the trio, the judges were left generally unimpressed.

Simon Cowell, who had criticized We Three for coming off as too much the same in their quarterfinals performance, began his comments by saying, "You know, I really, really like you."

But then he had more negative reactions. "Cue boos," Cowell said, "I thought that was a mess." The performance was "all over the place," Cowell said. "I just wanted you to come out tonight with a killer song, and I don't think that was a killer song." And then Cowell rubbed more salt into the wound, again saying, "I thought the whole thing was a mess."

Where Cowell's fellow judges Mel B, Heidi Klum and Howie Mandel had previously more positive responses to We Three, this time they were more muted.

"I don't agree it was a mess," Mandel said. "I didn't personally love the song," and he added that he didn't notice the audience in the theater responding much to it, either.

Mel B, who had given We Three a standing ovation at their first audition performance, said she thought Mandel and Cowell were "being a bit harsh." She liked the "feel-good song, and you do speak to the masses," she said. She added, "It was a little bit rocky, but it get better as it went along."

Klum complimented the siblings as "amazing musicians," but said it sounded to her that "the vocals weren't as strong as they have been in the past." Klum added that she hopes viewers will remember what We Three had done in earlier performances, and "I hope that they still vote for you."

We Three made an early, strong impression with their performance in the audition episodes, when they sang the original, "Heaven's Not Too Far Away," which was inspired by their late mother. They again scored with the judges when they performed an original song called "Lifeline," which as they said was about how "it's OK not to be OK." Their third original, performed in the quarterfinals, was called "So They Say."

After that performance, Cowell said they were capable of more, and that, "To me, you looked like the support band, with an OK song."

Despite Cowell's critique, viewers liked We Three enough to vote them forward to the semifinals. In a phone interview prior to their semifinal performance, Blanchard said the trio had already been thinking about changing things up a bit.

"The next song, for sure, is going to show a little bit of a different side of us,"

Blanchard said. "We have a lot of dimensions to our music."

We'll find out in tonight's "America's Got Talent" results show what viewers thought, and whether We Three will progress to the finals, or be eliminated.

The "America's Got Talent" results show airs at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 12 on NBC.

-- Kristi Turnquist



kturnquist@oregonian.com

503-221-8227

@Kristiturnquist
Midland County Habitat for Humanity will host its fifth annual High Heels and Hard Hats Gala celebrating 30 years of serving families in Midland County. Honorary co-chairs for the event will be Christian and Jenee Velasquez and Rev. Dr. Wally and Lindsay Mayton.

"For 30 years Midland County Habitat for Humanity has contributed generously to the caring spirit of our community. We anticipate a celebration worthy of our expressions of gratitude and of hope. Habitat for Humanity builds. Habitat for Humanity turns dreams into reality," said Wally and Lindsay Mayton

The High Heels and Hard Hats Gala will be from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20, at the Great Hall. The red-carpet-themed event will feature dinner, a program, music and live and silent auctions. The goal of the event is to both increase awareness of Habitat's mission and raise enough funds ($90,000) to build another home for a Midland County family.

Habitat provides affordable housing that can help reduce the percent of income a family spends on housing which can change the trajectory of lives, one family at a time. "We are honored to have helped with building a home last year and to join others that want to be part of a world where everyone has a decent place to live," said Christian and Jenee Velasquez.

Jennifer Chappel, executive director of Midland County Habitat for Humanity, said the organization is honored to have the Velasquezes and Maytons on board.

"The need for safe, decent and affordable housing in Midland County is a reality for many of our friends and neighbors. We are looking forward to the gala to celebrate our achievements over the last 30 years and raising funds to continue to serve the need in Midland County."

Tickets are $50 each. Tickets can be reserved online at www.midlandhabitat.org under the events tab or contact Habitat at 989-496-0900. Sponsorship and in-kind donation opportunities are also available.
Dale Moore was recognized for 55 years of membership to Studley Grange at the August meeting.

Studley Grange gives a scholarship yearly to a graduating senior at Bullock Creek High School. This year's recipient was Brennan Mudd. He is the grandson of members Ted and Helen Mudd. Studley Grange has been giving a scholarship to a graduating senior for 17 years.

Twelve birthday kits were donated to the Midland County Emergency Food Pantry Network. Each kit consisted of cake mix, frosting and candles. Six packages of plates were also purchased.

Sixteen yellow, pink and blue baby bonnets were made for babies born during the Easter season at MidMichigan Health in Midland. Fifteen pillowcases were made for Children's Cancer Hospital in Ann Arbor. Forty six breast cancer pillows were made for Midland Cancer Services.

Lap robes and afghans were donated to Camp Fish Tales, Cancer Services of Midland, Michigan School for the Deaf, Project Linus and the VA Hospital in Saginaw.

Donations were made to the Backpack Buddies Program and Aldersgate United Methodist Church Thanksgiving Baskets. Studley Grange participated in Give Local Midland making donations to Chippewa Nature Center, Humane Society of Midland County and Children's Grief Center of the GLBR. Donations were also made to the Michigan State Grange Deaf Awareness Fund and the National Grange Building Fund.

Members of Studley Grange planted flowers for Midland Blooms along a section of Eastman Avenue.

The Grange is a family friendly agriculture organization that is present in 36 states and 2,100 communities. Studley Grange and its members strive to help others in need in the Midland community. Studley Grange meets the fourth Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m. with the next meeting to be Wednesday, Sept. 26. For more information about the grange, call Tricia at 989-631-0079.
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Its frankly incredible how often people put in charge of important ventures within the sphere of craft beer manage to undo themselves by letting their innate misogyny float to the surface. Weve written before about the historical stance of the beer industry against women, and the need for vigilance in standing up to overtly sexualized advertising, but today a story comes to us out of Ohio that pretty much takes the cake. Its an incredible illustration of just how easily an organization can be dismantled by a single thoughtless, pointless, sexist meme in the social media age.

That organization was Northeast Ohios Passport Brew Tour, and I say was because they dont even seem to be on Facebook any morethree days after the controversy began, the tour no longer even exists. The inaugural Passport Brew Tour was meant to partner with 20 breweries that had signed on as a craft beer trail, as organized by Akrons Lunar Cow Publishing. The organization would have facilitated tours to the participating breweries and drummed up good PR for the area as a beer region. At least that was the idea.

Then came Sunday, when Lunar Cow published a meme to the Passport Brew Tour Facebook page, entitled 12 reasons why beer is better than women. The post has since been deleted but you can find it easily online, and it contains such gems as you always know you are the first one to pop a beer, and frigid beer is good beer. Ah yes, those old mens room witticisms.

Unsurprisingly, the response was a swift and unequivocal outpouring of derision for the organizers, to have published something so blatantly sexist in advertisement of a tour where half the participants were likely to be women. Within 24 hours, almost every one of the breweries involved had publicly announced that they wouldnt be participating in the tour, and essentially distanced themselves as far from the Passport Brew Tour as they humanly could. Here are just a few, but the comments from the female owner of Jens Place in Massillon, OH pretty much sum things up with a bow.

Lunar Cow, meanwhile, decided that the best way to deal with the situation would be a middling apology posted Monday morning, followed by the posting of a few women in craft brewing articles on the page, as if that would somehow dilute the previous misogyny. When it became clear this wasnt working, the group then switched tactics and blamed the meme in its entirety on an independent advertising company that they said they had hired to promote the event, and had now fired as a result. Suffice to say, the internet did not take kindly to Lunar Cow attempting to wash their hands of any responsibility in the whole kerfuffle.

Everything has now been deleted, but of course, this being the internet, nothing is ever truly gone, now is it?

Theres nothing else to say, except for the obvious: This was a monumentally stupid chain of events, and it should have been so obvious to everyone involved what was going to happen. But as if it needs to be said: Women are an increasingly large part of the craft beer communityas drinkers, owners, brewers and on every level of the industry. When they complain about the innate sexism that still exists, stories like this one are perfect examples of what theyre talking about. That the advertisers for an event like this one thought that their audience (and their brewery partners) would actually respond positively to a sexist meme like the one above illustrates how ingrained the boys club attitude still is among some corners of the beer worldthey posted that image thinking that it would get likes and LOLs.

Beer has changed. It has become a more egalitarian place, but the only way it can keep moving in the right direction is if people and promoters like the ones seen above are rightly not tolerated when they do something so stupid and sexist.

Lets hope that at least a few people learn a lesson from what happened here.
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WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump said Wednesday the government is ready for massive Hurricane Florence and insisted that his administration's response to the devastation in Puerto Rico last year was an "underappreciated great job."

In a series of morning tweets as Florence bore down on the Southeast U.S. coast, Trump bristled over criticism of the response to Hurricane Maria, in which 3,000 people died in Puerto Rico.

"We got A Pluses for our recent hurricane work in Texas and Florida (and did an unappreciated great job in Puerto Rico, even though an inaccessible island with very poor electricity and a totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan). We are ready for the big one that is coming!" Trump tweeted.

We got A Pluses for our recent hurricane work in Texas and Florida (and did an unappreciated great job in Puerto Rico, even though an inaccessible island with very poor electricity and a totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan). We are ready for the big one that is coming!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 12, 2018

His next dispatch warned people about Florence, predicted to dump massive amounts of rain on the already-soggy Southeast later this week.

"Hurricane Florence is looking even bigger than anticipated. It will be arriving soon. FEMA, First Responders and Law Enforcement are supplied and ready. Be safe!"

Hurricane Florence is looking even bigger than anticipated. It will be arriving soon. FEMA, First Responders and Law Enforcement are supplied and ready. Be safe!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 12, 2018

The administration's efforts in Puerto Rico received widespread criticism, and he battled with Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz. But after visiting the island last September, Trump said that Puerto Ricans were fortunate that the storm did not yield a catastrophe akin to the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Katrina along the Gulf Coast.

All told, about 1,800 people died in that 2005 storm. Puerto Rico's governor last month raised the U.S. territory's official death toll from Hurricane Maria from 64 to 2,975. The storm is also estimated to have caused $100 billion in damage.

A day earlier, the president praised the response to the series of storms. "I think Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success."

The governor of Puerto Rico, Ricardo Rossello, seized on Trump's use of the word "successful" and said in a statement issued later Tuesday: "No relationship between a colony and the federal government can ever be called 'successful' because Puerto Ricans lack certain inalienable rights enjoyed by our fellow Americans in the states."

Rossello called Hurricane Maria "the worst natural disaster in our modern history" and said work still remained before they could move on to other stages of recovery. He also said he was still waiting for Trump to respond to a petition to help Puerto Rico complete work on emergency housing restoration programs and debris removal.

Trump, having long struggled to express empathy at times of national crises, sparked outrage when during his visit to the island he feuded with the mayor of San Juan and passed out paper towels to victims like he was shooting baskets.

While defending the handling of the previous storm, he urged caution in regards to the new one bearing down on North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.

"The safety of American people is my absolute highest priority," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "We are sparing no expense. We are totally prepared. We are ready. We are ready as anybody has ever been."

The president, flanked by maps of the storm and the heads of the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said Florence was unlikely to change course before it is expected to make landfall with 130 mph winds and potentially ruinous rains in the coming days.

"They haven't seen anything like what's coming at us in 25, 30 years, maybe ever," Trump said of the states in the storm's path. "It's tremendously big and tremendously wet. Tremendous amount of water."

Florence was expected to blow ashore late Thursday or early Friday, then slow down and wring itself out for days, unloading 1 to 21/2 feet of rain that could cause flooding well inland and wreak environmental havoc by washing over industrial waste sites and hog farms. North and South Carolina and Virginia ordered mass evacuations along the coast.

Associated Press writer Ken Thomas contributed to this report.
Yes, gas prices are on the rise, just shy of the $3 per gallon mark in Harrisburg.

But with Hurricane Florence on the way, motorists in central Pa. won't see much of an impact the next time they fill up.

"It shouldn't make a big difference this time, compared to Harvey and Irma," said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy.com.

Last year, power outages halted gas production at refineries in the paths of those hurricanes, but that shouldn't be the case with Florence.

"There are no refineries in its path," he said.

The closest is a small refinery on the South Carolina and Georgia border that produces about 28,000 barrels per day, mainly for asphalt.

Hurricanes can change, though, and the slightest shift in Florence's projected path could have an impact at the pump, but as of now, central Pennsylvania motorists probably won't see gas prices rising above $3 per gallon.

And with the approach of fall, gas prices should fall, too.

Harrisburg is averaging $2.97 per gallon and will likely stay under the $3 per gallon mark with the lower fuel demand that comes with the end of summer, he said.

Additionally, refiners are making the switch to cheaper winter gasoline, which is permitted after Sept. 15. This gas meets a lower EPA threshold for emissions, and being cheaper to produce, it often means slightly-lower gas prices.

The region should see a decline in gas prices in the coming months to around $2.75 per gallon by Thanksgiving.

Average gasoline prices for September 10 in Harrisburg have ranged widely over the last five years:

$2.89 per gallon in 2017,

$2.23 per gallon in 2016,

$2.40 per gallon in 2015,

$3.38 per gallon in 2014,

And $3.58 per gallon in 2013.

The sky-high gas prices started to come down in late 2014 when OPEC announced it would increase production and pump as much petroleum as possible, resulting in lower prices.

"In November 2016, OPEC decided after two years of having wildly uncontrolled oil production to really clamp down," DeHaan said. "Now we've slowly seen prices go back up since 2017."

Though things can change with hurricanes and a number of geo-political factors, he doesn't expect prices to increase much above $3 per gallon anytime soon. When it gets to that point, investment in U.S. oil drilling is prompted and consumers buy more energy-efficient cars. OPEC wants Americans to buy gas, he said, which would likely spur another dip in prices.

Nearby gas prices include:
The mother of a man facing involuntary manslaughter charges after driving his boat into the Dock Street Dam, killing his fiancee and daughter, has started a petition to get the criminal case dropped.

Cary Sue Windle started the online campaign last week on behalf of her son, Cody Binkley, who crashed into the dam in Harrisburg in the dark May 7 while headed to a camp site. His fiancee, Mary Bredbenner, 25, their daughter Madelyn Binkley, 3, and a family dog all drowned. Binkley swam to shore.

The online petition, titled "#Justice4CodyBinkley," has collected 472 signatures so far, with a goal of 1,000 signatures.

"My son loved his family," Windle wrote on the petition. "These charges need to be dropped! He lost his whole family! That's enough punishment! The Dock Street Dam killed 30 people and Harrisburg Pa want to keep blaming the people when they were at fault for no up-to-date signs and no buoys out going up stream!"

Binkley told authorities he was unaware of the dam's existence. His attorney Michael Palermo wasn't immediately available for comment.

"Cody Binkley loved his Girls," Windle wrote on the petition. "People who know Cody & knew his family knows this was a ACCIDENT! The DA doesn't want him to be able to sue the city over the dam so he is trying to put Cody away for many many years."

District Attorney Fran Chardo filed criminal charges against Binkley, 26, three weeks ago after a three-month investigation. Chardo said the victims were killed as a direct result of Binkley's drug usage, negligent and reckless behavior, and violations of the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Code and the Pennsylvania Crimes Code.

Chardo said he considered these factors when filing the charges:

Taking a small child on the river late in the evening

Taking his family on this outing while under the influence of marijuana

Failing to properly secure a life jacket on his child

Boating without extensive knowledge of the river

Going home to sleep after the accident and not participating in the multi-day search for his daughter.

Chardo said he has expert testimony that will show Binkley had ingested the marijuana within three hours of a blood draw and within one hour of the crash.

Windle disputes Chardo's claim that Madelyn was not wearing a properly-fitted life jacket. Windle has posted a steady stream of information about the case with criticism of authorities on her Facebook page.

"O LOOK she has a life jacket" Windle wrote as a caption to one photo showing Madelyn on a boat outing with Binkley. "Her Parents ALWAYS had her Life Vest ON! AND WORN PROPERLY STOP saying it wasn't on right officials."

Windle also noted in some of her Facebook posts that medical marijuana is legal in Pennsylvania. But Chardo countered that alcohol is legal also, but "you're not allowed to get in a boat and drive while impaired by alcohol either."

Chardo said he consulted with Bredbenner's family before filing the criminal charges. They did not weigh in one way or the other, Chardo said, saying it wasn't their place to decide.

Bredbenner's relatives weren't immediately available for comment.

People who signed the online petition believed the crash was an accident.

"He didn't intentionally go out to hurt his wife and child," one woman wrote in support of Binkley. "Don't you think he's been through enough? This will be with him for the rest of his life. What good will it do for anyone to put him in prison.....it's not going to change anything. He's not a threat to society."

Chardo said the petition would not influence his office's handling of the case against Binkley.

"We think it's the right thing to do," Chardo said of proceeding with the criminal charges," and we're going to do it."

The charges against Binkley are:

Homicide by Watercraft While Operating Under the Influence (2 Counts)

Involuntary Manslaughter (2 Counts)

Endangering the Welfare of Children

Homicide by Watercraft (2 Counts)

Operating a Watercraft Under the Influence (3 Counts)

Reckless & Negligent Operation of a Watercraft

Possession of a Controlled Substance

Possession of Drug Paraphernalia

Additional Boating Violations (3 summary violations)

Binkley is currently free on $50,000 unsecured bail while awaiting his next court date.
Business and Arts South Africa (BASA) has announced that current CEO, Michelle Constant, has resigned and will leave the organisation at the end of February 2019.

Says Andre le Roux, BASAs chairperson:The board is extremely proud of what BASA, under Michelles excellent leadership, has achieved over the past decade. It is pertinent that the theme for this years BASA awards is Legacy because there is no doubt that Michelle leaves an extraordinary legacy in the ongoing task to bring the creative sector into its rightful place in the mainstream economy. The awards also afford our more than 120 members - and the arts community broadly - a wonderful opportunity to celebrate with Michelle.Citing the need for new energy to take BASA forward and her own desire to explore fresh frontiers, Constant expressed her deep appreciation for her time at the internationally recognised South African development agency.I have had an extraordinary 10 years at BASA and have truly grown to love the organisation, stated Constant. During my decade at BASA, I have witnessed the difference it makes in the arts sector - not just in South Africa but on the continent, something that was gratifyingly apparent at my most recent presentations in Namibia and in Ethiopia at the African Union.I believe that, together with the Department of Arts & Culture, the board, a diverse team and various sectors including business and tourism, we have built up a healthy and vibrant organisation. I look forward to welcoming my successor to what is a truly meaningful and deeply rewarding position within the arts-business landscape.Constant joined BASA in 2008, and, under her stewardship, the agency has grown into an important one on the continent and beyond. Its current suite of integrated programmes, for both businesses and arts practitioners and organisations, as well as research, toolkits and other elements of BASAs growing Knowledge Hub are testament to Constants vision and the robust team she has built. The past decade has seen the implementation of several important partnerships that have helped fulfil BASAs mission to ensure the relevance and sustainability of the arts in South Africa by providing expertise in the development of partnerships between business and the arts.Says le Roux: Having the luxury of such a strong foundation and six months to appoint a successor, is indicative of Michelles leadership. Our HR board committee has already met to start the recruitment process and we are excited for the next BASA chapter.Business and Arts South Africa NPC (BASA) is an internationally recognised South African development agency with a suite of integrated programmes implemented nationally and internationally.BASA encourages mutually beneficial partnerships between business and the arts, securing the future development of the arts sector in South Africa and contributing to corporate success through Shared Value.BASA was founded in 1997 as a joint initiative of the Department of Arts and Culture and the business sector as a public/private partnership.For more information, please visit www.basa.co.za
Five firefighters from Harrisburg are being sent to South Carolina to aid with emergency responses as Hurricane Florence nears the coast.

City officials made the announcement on Tuesday night.

"Even as we expect minimal impact in our region from Hurricane Florence, we are proud to be able to send some of our best people to help the Carolinas battle what looks like a very powerful storm," said Harrisburg fire chief Brian Enterline.

The Susquehanna River is up slightly at 14.76 feet as of 8 a.m. Wednesday, and is expected gradually recede as the week progresses. The chance of rain will persist in the region throughout the week, but any effects from Florence are expected to be minor and won't arrive until the weekend.

While the storm isn't expected to have an impact on central Pennsylvania, officials in Harrisburg continue to monitor conditions.

"Our emergency management staff is on guard and watching the forecast on an hourly basis," said Mayor Eric Papenfuse in a news release. "There is the potential for significant rainfall on ground already saturated from summer rain, and we will keep residents informed of any developments that would impact public safety."
Two mothers sat in a Dauphin County courtroom Wednesday, each mourning the loss of a son who is still alive.

Traci Singly's 21-year-old son, John Robinson, wanted to be in the court room as well, but couldn't. He is paralyzed and bedridden, in constant pain from being shot in the head during what police said was an argument over a cell phone.

Brenda Thompson's son Dante was in the courtroom. The 20-year-old stood before Judge Scott A. Evans in handcuffs, expressing remorse for having shot Robinson.

It was an accident, Dante Thompson said. He told Evans the pistol fired when he hit Robinson with it during the April 2017 altercation on Elm Street in Penbrook.

The judge summed up the tragedy, and its pointlessness, in a single sentence. "This just doesn't make sense," he said.

Then Evans sentenced Thompson to 56 months to 10 years in state prison on Thompson's open guilty pleas to aggravated assault and conspiracy charges, plus 5 years of probation for illegally possessing a firearm.

Evans imposed that punishment after hearing both families express a deep and palpable grief.

Swingly told Evans she was called out of a business meeting to be told her son had been shot at close range, behind the right ear. The bullet fragmented, causing traumatic brain injury. Doctors didn't expect him to survive the night, she said.

Her son's ability to reason has been impaired, she said, but that's not the worst of it. "My son spends his days and nights lying in his bed, relying on other people to do things for him," Swingly said.

She began crying as she told Evans how her 8-year-old son is still trying to grasp the horror inflicted on his big brother. "He just wants to know when his brother will be better," she said.

Thompson's claim that the shooting was an accident doesn't mean a thing, Swingly said. "Maybe he should have thought twice about carrying a gun if he wasn't ready to suffer the consequences," she said.

Robinson's aunt, Tonya Hornung, said her nephew has told her "he wants to die."

"He's probably never going to be better than he is right now," she added.

"I have chosen to forgive him," Hornung said of Thompson. "I'm hoping someday my family will be able to do the same. But it will never be forgotten."

Brenda Thompson turned to Swingly when defense attorney Aaron Holt called upon her to speak to the judge. "I am so sorry," she said. "Please know that I do pray for your family...Please find it in your heart to forgive my son."

"He was a young man, a boy, who made a mistake," she added.

Thompson's father Darrin begged Evans to "please have mercy on my son. Please give him an opportunity to one day come home to his family."

Holt said Thompson, a 2016 Susquehanna Township High School graduate, was studying to be a certified nursing assistant when the shooting occurred. "We believe he's going to spend the rest of his life atoning for this horrible mistake," Holt said.

Thompson told Evans he was prepared to pay for his "reckless behavior."

"I was a boy and I behaved as a boy and acted as a child would," he said. "I made a poor decision, not considering the consequences of my actions...I deeply regret what I have done."

Chief Deputy District Attorney Johnny Baer said he doesn't doubt that Thompson's remorse is genuine. Yet the prosecutor insisted the shooting of Robinson was no mere mistake, but rather the outcome of a deliberate and illegal action.

"This was an intentional act," Baer said. "He struck this young man with a loaded gun with his finger on the trigger. The decision to do so caused irrevocable consequences."

Thompson is one of two men charged with the attack on Robinson. Genaro Rivera, 20, of Harrisburg, is awaiting trial on aggravated assault and conspiracy counts.
Updates with the 8 p.m. advisory, which includes the latest coordinates and map.

Florence's wind may be slowing down, but with sustained winds at 115 mph it remains as dangerous as ever as it's approaches the southern United States.

The current National Hurricane Center projections show the storm shifting south, still heavily impacting the Carolinas but with tropical conditions hitting Georgia, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and parts of Alabama.

Florence is expected to move over the southwestern Atlantic Ocean between Bermuda and the Bahamas Wednesday night, approaching the coasts of the Carolinas on Thursday and Friday.

The storm will move slowly along the coastline through Saturday, the NHC said.

The strength of the storm could fluctuate through Thursday morning, and the NHC said it expects the storm to slowly begin weakening by late Thursday.

With that said, the NHC said "Florence is forecast to be an extremely dangerous major hurricane when it nears the U.S. coast late Thursday and Friday."

Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 70 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend up to 195 miles outward, according to the NHC.

The center continues to warn about storm surges, hurricane and tropical storm conditions in various areas throughout the Carolinas.

Rain, high tides and wind and tornadoes are all possibilities as a result of the storms.

The NHC also warns that swells of surf are affecting Bermuda, portions of the U.S. east ccoast and the northwestern and central Bahamas. The swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.

Earlier:
Millions of people are evacuating or preparing for the worst as Hurricane Florence barrels down on the Carolinas and east coast.

The National Hurricane Center announced Florence's maximum sustained winds are at 140 mph, making the storm a category 4 hurricane with room yet to strengthen.

"While some weakening is expected on Thursday, Florence is forecast to be an extremely dangerous major hurricane through landfall," the NHC said.

The AP reported North Carolina's Governor Roy Cooper urged citizens to take the storm seriously.

"This storm is a monster. It's big and it's vicious. It is an extremely, dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane," Cooper said. "The waves and the wind this storm may bring is nothing like you've ever seen. Even if you've ridden out storms before, this one is different. Don't bet your life on riding out a monster."

1.7 million people are believed to be in evacuation zones, with 5.4 million under hurricane warnings or watches, the AP reported. Another 4 million people are under tropical storm watches.

Reports from Lynchburg, Virginia show that UHaul is offering 30 days of free storage at 94 facilities across the Carolinas and Virginia to residents who may be impacted by the hurricane.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency began listing emergency shelters in their app, with many shelters in South Carolina open as of Tuesday evening.

If you're ordered to evacuate due to #Florence and need a safe place to go, you can find a list of emergency shelters in the FEMA App. Many shelters are now open in South Carolina & the list will update as more open across the affected region. https://t.co/Tsw9BL56io pic.twitter.com/73ROuDenXv  FEMA (@fema) September 11, 2018

Storm Surge warnings are in effect in many areas, and the NHC said people in those areas are in danger of "life-threatening inundation from rising water moving inland from the coastline."

President Donald Trump declared states of emergency for North and South Carolina and Virginia. All three states began issuing mandatory evacuations in the last 36 hours.

Airlines began cancelling flights to the region by Tuesday, with the Charleston International Airport in South Carolina announcing on social media that they expect to close runways by midnight Wednesday.

We anticipate the airport runways may have to close by midnight Wednesday: Please go to our website https://t.co/JeeQyFfyXL for the most comprehensive update today. Note we are still monitoring Hurricane Florence and operations are subject to change.  CharlestonSC Airport (@iflyCHS) September 11, 2018

The NHC states that people located within the storm surge areas should take "all necessary actions to protect life and property from rising water and the potential for other dangerous conditions."

Storm Surge warnings are in effect for:

South Santee River, South Carolina to Duck, North Carolina

Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds, including Neuse and Pamlico Rivers

Storm Surge Warnings are in effect for:

Edisto Beach, South Carolina to South Santee River, South Carolina

North of Duck, North Carolina to the North Carolina/Virginia border

Hurricane Warnings are in effect for:

South Santee River, South Carolina to Duck North Carolina

Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds

Hurricane Watch is in effect for:

Edisto Beach, South Carolina to South Santee River South Carolina

North of Duck North Carolina to the North Carolina/Virginia border.

Tropical Storm watch is in effect for:

North of the North Carolina/Virginia Border to Cape Charles Light Virginia

Chesapeake Bay south of New Point. Comfort

In addition to these areas, the NHC projects water peaking at several feet if the storm surge hits at high tide.

Examples given are:

Cape Fear to Cape Lookout, including Neuse and Pamlico Rivers: 9-13 feet

North Myrtle Beach to Cape Fear: 6-9 feet

Cape Lookout to Ocracoke InletL 6-9 feet

South Santee River to North Myrtle Beach: 4-6 feet

Edisto Beach to South Santee River: 2-4 feet.

Areas in Florence's path are expected to see total rainfall accumulations of 15-25 inches, with isolated maximum amounts of rain at 35 inches near the storm's track over portions of the Carolinas and the Mid-Atlantic states, according to the NHC.

The flooding will occur late this week and early next week, and could cause rainfall that would produce catastrophic flash flooding and significant river flooding.

The NHC's most recent projections show the storm moving from the Carolinas slightly north before turning west by Saturday and Sunday afternoons, with the majority of the storm hitting Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia.

Storm projections show Florence is no longer expected to hit as high as Pennsylvania, even as a tropical depression, which is where it is projected to be by the time it moves that far inland on Sunday.

.@NWSWPC is forecasting a high to moderate risk of flash flooding starting Thursday across most of eastern North Carolina from #Florence. 15-25" with isolated maximum amounts of 35" are possible over portions of North Carolina and Virginia. https://t.co/f4Czb6sTOg pic.twitter.com/kNpMvPfXuj  National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) September 11, 2018

Still, the NHC warns that rainfall of up to four inches could be seen in southcentral and western Pennsylvania, while the rest of the state could see up to two inches of rain.

There is still a marginal risk of flash flooding through central Pennsylvania and a majority of the state.
LOCK HAVEN - A newspaper article is not a reason to dismiss charges in a 27-year-old Clinton County homicide case, but a judge has reserved his decision on whether it has tainted the jury pool.

Lycoming County Senior Judge Kenneth D. Brown on Tuesday, after hearing testimony and arguments, said a remedy of dismissing the charges does not apply.

Loyd Groves

But, he deferred a decision on whether a June 28 article in the Lock Haven Express should result in the murder trial of Loyd W. Groves being moved to another county or a jury imported.

Groves is accused of killing Katherine Dolan Heckel who was last seen leaving for lunch from the former International Paper Co. mill in Lock Haven on July 15, 1991.

According to testimony at previous court proceedings Heckel was trying to end an extramarital affair she was having with Groves who was an industrial hygienist at the mill.

The newspaper article at issue described a search conducted June 26 by representatives of the state attorney general's office, FBI and state police.

The Express' editor, Lana Muthler, testified she was told investigators were going to a property outside Lock Haven formerly owned by Groves to "look around" and gave her the address.

The information was provided by retired state Trooper Michael Hutson after a court proceeding during which testimony was taken from a cancer-stricken prosecution witness so it could be preserved for trial, she said.

She and a reporter went to the scene and for a time followed investigators through a field and took pictures, she said.

It was not until the search was moving to a nearby property also formerly owned by Groves that they were told they could not follow, she said.

Muthler testified she overheard investigators say something about "retrieve it." Neither she nor the reporter was shown anything if something was found, she said.

What the prosecution team did was an intentional and reckless act to taint the jury pool, defense attorney David Lindsey charged, pointing out Brown on June 18 ordered the attorneys not to speak with the media about the case.

It goes beyond prosecutorial misconduct, he said, claiming it is highly unusual for the media to be granted access to a location labeled on yellow tape as a crime scene.

Suggesting this was an intentional effort to taint the jury pool is "mind boggling," Senior Deputy Attorney General Daniel J. Dye said.

READ MORE: New evidence delays trial in 1991 murder case in which body has never been found

While in hindsight Hutson should not have made the comments to Muthler in the courtroom, the media has a right to cover crime investigations, he said.

The article does not say if anything was found or include an opinion on whether Groves is guilty, the prosecutor said.

The search followed the revelation Groves' former wife Katherine for the first time had met with investigators.

It is premature to decide whether an impartial jury can be selected in Clinton County, Dye said.

The time for that will be Nov. 13 when prospective jurors are questioned individually, he said.

Brown, who is specially assigned to the case, gave Lindsey 10 days in which to submit court decisions supporting his position a jury should be imported or the trial moved to another county. Dye will have 10 days to respond.

Groves became a suspect immediately after Heckel disappeared but was not arrested until January 2015 in Beaver where he was living.

He is charged with first- and third-degree murder and has been in jail without bail since his arrest.

Although Heckel's body has never been found, a statewide grand jury presentment states DNA evidence established to a mathematical certainty that blood found in the area where carpet was removed from Groves' van belonged to Heckel.

He gave different accounts to the grand jury on why he discarded the carpet sections, the document states.

That report also states witnesses observed Groves' hostile behavior toward Heckel prior to her disappearance and a lack of dismay or concern after she went missing.

At the time of her disappearance, Heckel's husband John was on duty with the National Guard at Fort Drum, N.Y. The couple was married in 1973.

He told the grand jury he suspected his wife was having an extramarital affair but was unable to confirm it.
By Mark Scolforo and Marc Levy, Associated Press

HARRISBURG -- The Republican speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives said Wednesday his chamber is about to again take up proposed changes to the state's limits on child sexual-abuse lawsuits, predicting enough support to pass a two-year window to allow victims with older claims to sue.

Speaker Mike Turzai called the two-year window "a compromise" compared with a competing proposal to retroactively eliminate all limits on lawsuits for victims of all ages.

Last month's sweeping grand jury report on child sexual abuse in six of the state's eight Roman Catholic dioceses also recommended a two-year window. The report found that 300 "predator priests" had abused more than 1,000 children over 70 years, and alleged church officials acted to cover up the attacks.

"Everybody empathizes with the victims of child sexual abuse. These victims have to live with these consequences the rest of their lives," Turzai, of Allegheny County, told The Associated Press. "It's important legislation, and I think the key is that the Senate and House have to find some agreement to get the bill to the governor's desk."

READ MORE: Will clergy sex abuse report jump-start stalled Pa. statute of limitations bill?

Pennsylvania law currently requires victims to sue before they turn 30 and limits criminal prosecutions to before the victims turn 50. State prosecutors said nearly all the abuse they identified during the lengthy grand jury occurred too long ago to produce new charges.

There is wide support in the General Assembly to eliminate the statute of limitations entirely for criminal matters going forward, but disputes over retroactively changing the restrictions on civil claims have previously stalled efforts to revise the law.

"I know in the speaker's heart, he knows what the right thing to do here is, and that is to pass the window," said Rep. Mark Rozzi of Berks County, a leader among House Democrats on clergy abuse issues.

The Senate's top-ranking Republican, President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati, said late last month that retroactive changes would violate the state constitution. Scarnati, of Jefferson County, said he supports a church-endowed victims' compensation fund that would be run by a neutral third party.

The chambers begin short fall sessions Sept. 24.

The Senate in February 2017 voted 48-0 for a bill that would give victims until age 50 to sue and eliminate the statute of limitations for related criminal offenses, but it contains no retroactivity.

Turzai said that bill, which the House has not acted on, will likely be amended by his chamber in the near future. Asked if he has spoken in recent weeks about retroactivity with Senate leaders, Turzai replied: "I'm going to pass on that."

READ MORE: Clergy abuse victim-turned-lawmaker calls for reforms in and out of Catholic Church

He was not dismissive of constitutionality concerns.

"It is certainly a legitimate issue to raise," he said, noting he voted for "an open-ended look back" during a previous session. "I voted in favor of it. Do I think somebody will challenge it in court? I honestly don't know."

Bishops and insurers have successfully fought proposed retroactivity in Pennsylvania in recent years, but a handful of other states have allowed it, letting older victims sue the church.
A U.S. Army Ranger and an alum of Penn State was killed in a single tactical vehicle crash on Sept. 7.

1st Lt. Connor Bednarzyk, 25, was an infantry officer assigned as a platoon leader in the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, according to a news release. He was stationed at Fort Benning, Ga.

No details about the crashed were released, but it remains under investigation.

Bednarzyk served three years in the Army, first as a Platoon Leader in 1st Battalion, 41st Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colo.

Penn State spokeswoman Lisa Powers told Centre Daily News that Bednarzyk graduated from the school in 2015 with a degree in information sciences and technology.

"This is sad news for the Penn State community," Powers told the news agency. "Our thoughts are with his family and friends as they mourn the tragic death of Connor, who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our country. He was respected and admired, and his loss is deeply felt. We offer our heartfelt sympathy."

Bednarzyk's awards and decoration include the coveted Ranger Tab, Air Assault Badge, the Army Parachutist Badge, and the Expert Infantryman's Badge.

Bednarzyk was also been awarded the Army Achievement Medal with one Oak Leaf Custer, the National Defense Service Medal, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, and the NATO Medal.

Bednarzyk is survived by his parents and siblings.
In these days of tuition increases and at times, tuition freezes, having a college announce a tuition decrease seems rather extraordinary - especially when it's dropping its price by nearly one-third.

Elizabethtown College announced on Wednesday it is moving to a new tuition model to avoid the sticker shock that can discourage prospective students from even applying to this 1,735-student Lancaster County private college.

Instead of charging a high tuition that gets discounted by aid provided by the college, Elizabethtown is moving to more of a real-cost model, which it calls tuition transparency. Under that model, it is setting tuition for the 2019-20 academic year at $32,000, down from the $46,940 this year.

READ MORE: Which Pa. universities made U.S. News' Top 100 rankings

College officials say while students and families appreciate the large financial awards that the current model allows Elizabethtown to offer, many find it confusing and don't know that aid is available to help offset the sticker price.

This was confirmed in the 2017 Sallie Mae/Ipsos survey, "How America Pays for College," which indicated nearly 7 in 10 families surveyed said they eliminated a college during the selection process because they thought the tuition price was the bottom-line cost to attend a school.

Elizabethtown is hoping this change will increase the number of applications it receives and the number of admission. Its goal is to grow its future entering freshman classes by 15 to 20 percent over this year's 390 students, said George Walter, interim vice president for enrollment management.

A smattering of private colleges and universities in the Mid-Atlantic region have switched to this tuition model but those that have achieved the kind of sustained results Elizabethtown is hoping for also added a few more features to attract prospective students, he said.

With the introduction of several new business and engineering programs and master's degrees, the college's four-year graduation guarantee, the Bowers Center for Sports, Fitness and Well-being now under construction, and new housing options, "now is the time to focus on making tuition at Elizabethtown more transparent," said President Carl Strikwerda.

"There is great momentum at the college," he said. "Addressing college tuition is central to ensuring that the momentum continues."

Student financial aid packages will vary based on their individual family circumstances. Although those packages may be smaller than in the past, ideally the students' out-of-pocket costs will remain the same or will smaller, said college spokeswoman Elizabeth Braungard.

For this year's entering freshman class, the average net tuition price after Elizabethtown's grants and scholarships are factored in, was approximately $29,000, Walter said.

Outside of tuition and room and board, the only additional fee that Elizabethtown students pay is a $100 parking fee. Its current sticker tuition price falls in the middle of what other Pennsylvania private colleges charge; the change in model will push it closer to the lower-cost schools.
By Edwin Tichenor

Harrisburg is a special place.

Over the years, having been born and raised in the Harrisburg area I have learned to appreciate it even more so.

Edwin Tichenor

As citizens of the mid-state we can help the state capital regain its former stature and protect our local economy by supporting a very important piece of legislation that will guarantee that future.

Does the city still have its issues? No question about it. There is a surplus of blighted properties throughout the city that have been abandoned, neglected, and all but ignored.

These properties are a burden to the continued revitalization of the city and its return to prosperity. Their very presence increase crime, deter home values from increasing, and are a tax burden.

The city has aging infrastructure, an antiquated real estate sales process, and the list goes on.

But the most concerning issue that the city of Harrisburg is experiencing is the impending exit from Act 47.

To say that this is a critical moment for the city is anything but hyperbolic. Through Act 47 the city was allowed the taxing authority for an enhanced EIT (earned income tax) and LST (local services tax).

After Harrisburg voluntarily stripped almost all of its assets, state law changed capping at five years the same fiscal tools Pittsburgh and Scranton enjoyed fifteen or more years.

The incinerator was sold, the parking authority leased, and Capital Region Water was all but given the keys to a valuable commodity. Without a penny of new money from the Commonwealth, Harrisburg seeks to maintain their current tax structure until it has eliminated its legacy structural deficit.

Harrisburg only asks for the passage of a soon-to-be introduced bill, sponsored by Rep. Greg Rothman, R-Cumberland, that responsibly extends the city's taxing authority, even as it pays off its debt and funds its pension obligations.

After that, the increased LST on area workers, and the doubled EIT on city residents, will be slashed back down to pre-recession levels.

The capital city is willing to build its tax base organically by bringing in new residents and new employers to create sustainable development.

The Greater Harrisburg Association of Realtors has, for over 100 years, supported the rights of property and fair regulation while being committed to making the dream of home ownership a reality and promoting economic growth in the capital area.

Our association supports the mayor and council's plans to help themselves by maintaining the current tax structure and strongly oppose the alternative revenue generating tax hikes including a 2 percent commuter tax and a 100 percent increase in the property tax.

Harrisburg may be lagging some of the urban redevelopment success stories from around Pennsylvania, but with the right mix of community leadership, legislative oversight and municipal stewardship the city can maintain and improve its position in the region.

Failure to take this action would leave the city with a roughly 12 million dollar budget shortfall each and every year. One does not need to be a Nobel Laureate economist to extrapolate the math in this scenario.

Homeownership is typically measured by prospective buyers on two metrics that will dictate affordability. The first one would be downpayment; or how much money is needed out of pocket to essentially acquire the home. Number two is monthly payment, or the PITI (principal, interest, taxes, and insurance). Harrisburg already has one of the highest tax millage rates in the entire central Pennsylvania area.

Were the exit strategy to be followed and taxes more than doubled, the results could and would be catastrophic for the city of Harrisburg's residents, businesses, and yes, even renters as affordability would become a major concern.

You do not need a crystal ball to see that home values would plummet, foreclosures would increase, industry would be forced to leave, rental rates would go up, and crime would go up. The revitalization of Harrisburg would end and the city would, invariably and predictably, be forced back into Act 47.

I have witnessed a cultural renaissance of epic proportions in specific areas throughout the city with the advent of Millworks, the resurgence of the Central Market, and countless other attractive establishments.

From a professional perspective I have witnessed a revitalization of home values and an increased attraction to the city equivalent to a smaller Pittsburgh or the Fishtown section of Philadelphia.

It is the cultural epicenter of central Pennsylvania. It is the state capital with over 50 percent of the properties being exempt from taxing due to Commonwealth ownership.

It is literally the bridge between both east and west shores with City Island.

There is a massive amount of proposed development in the upcoming years which will continue to help the city move in the right direction. (ie the federal courthouse, Harrisburg University, etc.)

When weighing the upside with the downside, Harrisburg's potential ROI is definitely worth a second look.

The health and prosperity of the city transcends into the surrounding counties, boroughs, and townships. The vitality of the city attracts business, it attracts young professionals, it helps the area deter 'brain drain', and it increases the overall composition of the community by adding arts and culture to the greater Harrisburg Area.

It would be detrimental to the entire area should the city not be allowed to keep these two taxes.

This is why the Greater Harrisburg Association of Realtors is supporting Rothman's proposal, due to be formally introduced next week as HB2557, that responsibly extends the city's current revenue structure, while it pays off its debt and funds its pension obligations.

Edwin Tichenor is the president of the Greater Harrisburg Association of Realtors, a former assistant deputy treasurer for the city of Harrisburg, and an urban revitalization advocate.
A new startup accelerator is being launched by IBM South Africa, through its Equity Equivalence Investment Programme (EEIP), in partnership with the Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct. The Startup Accelerator is designed to enable the development of Growth Stage Tech and Digital Startups, using a bootcamp format that will run over six weeks, from 8 October - 16 November 2018.

Pitching process

The bootcamp will focus on enablement and development through a series of short, intensive modules, specifically selected to address skills, resources, infrastructure and technology growth within the startup. The bootcamp culminates in an investment proposal and pitch whereby the winning participants stand in line to win up to R500k in required products and services.The Startup Accelerator is an initiative of the Enterprise Development Programme (EDP), one of three streams of the IBM SA EEIP. The EDP is focused on the enablement of entrepreneurs and businesses with a highly specialised ICT focus in globally relevant areas of technology such as Big Data Analytics, Cloud Computing, Internet of Things and Cybersecurity, amongst other things.To win the investment, the tech startups need to demonstrate how the investment will be used to accelerate the business. The growth trajectory the investment will yield must be based on tangible outcomes simulating financials and thus demonstrating an increase in revenue or job creation. The investment must include their technology requirements for both internal operations and product scaling.The startup will pitch its reasons why IBM should invest in the development of the business at an awards evening at Tshimologong Precinct taking place during Global Entrepreneurship Week 2018. The evening will be attended by a panel of industry thought leaders and influencers.Interested participants need to ensure the business has a minimum of one-year trading as a CIPC registered business. The Growth Stage Tech Startup should be Black South African owned and managed. Turnover needs to be between R120k to R50 million per annum and the owner must be actively involved in the business.For more information and the full list of eligibility criteria, visit www.tshimologong.joburg/programs/ibm-bootcamp/
Music community steps up to help one of their own battling cancer
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Brett Kavanaughs nomination to the Supreme Court is the most unpopular with American voters since the nomination of Robert Bork, according to a new poll.

In the meantime, supposedly pro-choice Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine is indicating she is likely to vote for confirmation of the anti-abortion rights Kavanaugh. As a result, many pro-choice activists and other progressives have already started funding a campaign to defeat her when she is up for re-election in 2020.

A new CNN poll released yesterday shows that barely one-third  or just 38 percent  of American voters believe Kavanaugh should be confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court. The poll also said that 39 percent do not want him confirmed while 23 percent of respondents do not have an opinion.

Kavanaughs support represents the lowest for a Supreme Court nominee since Bork in 1987, whose nomination the Senate ultimately rejected.

Support for the confirmation of Trumps second nominee to the Supreme Court differs greatly between the two parties. Surprisingly, just 74 percent of Republicans say they want to see put on the Supreme Court, which is lower than might be expected. But only 33 percent of Independents and just 15 percent of Democrats want to see him confirmed.

Meanwhile, progressive groups are greatly increasing the pressure on Senator Collins. They have sent over 3,000 coat hangers to her offices and have been organizing rallies along with campaigns against her on social media, telephone and email.

And on top of that, these anti-Collins groups have already raised over $1.1 million for a future opponent if she does ultimately vote to confirm Kavanaugh.

These groups set up a crowdfunding page at the CrowdPac website. On this page they wrote:

We, the People of Maine are joining Ady Barkan and thousands of others to demand that Senator Collins votes no on Trumps Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh  Marie Follayttar, Co-Director of MFAL said, Were excited to once again join with Ady to promote and amplify Maine voices.

There are two scenarios:

Senator Collins votes NO on Kavanaugh and you will not be charged, and no money will go to fund her future opponent. Senator Collins votes YES on Kavanaugh and your pledge will go to her opponents campaign, once that opponent has been identified.

The pending nomination of Brett Kavanaugh for Supreme Court Justice is a threat to everyday Mainers like us. Kavanaugh is committed to ending healthcare for people with pre-existing conditions. He is committed to overturning Roe v. Wade. Kavanaugh cannot be nominated  he would mean bankruptcy and danger for millions of families in Maine and America.

Desperate times require desperate measures, and that is what we are seeing right now in the fight against Kavanaughs confirmation. Donald Trump has already been allowed to appoint one right-wing justice to the Supreme Court, and he should not be allowed to appoint another one.

There are too many problems and red flags that have come up concerning Kavanaughs background, prior rulings, and his lying under oath. The new poll shows that this nominee is extremely unpopular, and this is being confirmed with the actions against Collins.

Apparently Susan Collins, like many other GOP senators, is not following the wishes of her constituents, but is doing what her big-money bosses tell her to do. She has been given the warning, which applies to many other members of Congress who think their seats are secure: If you go against the wishes of the people in 2018, that will not be forgotten in 2020,and ultimately you will pay the price.
Is convicted felon Paul Manafort finally ready to give Bob Mueller the evidence he needs to bring down Donald Trump?

According to the Washington Post, Manafort is again having serious discussions with the special counsels office about a possible plea deal.

Ever since Mueller indicted Manafort on multiple criminal counts nearly one year ago that has been the biggest unanswered question.

There have been rumors of plea deals before, but nothing ever happened, presumably because the two parties couldnt reach agreement on the details.

The really big question is this: Is Manafort going to give Bob Mueller the information he really wants, which is proof of his involvement with Russia in helping Donald Trump become president?

The Posts sources said that the negotiations may not result in a deal which is not surprising, because theyve done this dance before.

Mueller is now prosecuting Manafort for alleged money laundering and lobbying violations and his second trial is scheduled to start later this month.

This new reporting shows a possible shift in strategy for Manafort, and that could be significant. He already had a trial in Virginia and was convicted last month on eight counts of bank and tax fraud.

Manafort had heavily criticized his former business partner, Rick Gates, for reaching a plea deal with Mueller that provided him leniency in exchange for his testimony against Manafort.

I had hoped and expected my business colleague would have had the strength to continue the battle to prove our innocence, Manafort said in February.

No details about Manaforts current negotiations with prosecutors have been released, and so nobody knows right now whether he is willing to give Mueller any new incriminating information about the president that he doesnt already have.

If Manafort cant come up with valuable testimony to help Mueller, then there will be no deal.

Several weeks ago Kevin M. Downing, an attorney for Manafort, said there was no chance Trumps former campaign manager would flip and start working with the prosecutors.

There has also been speculation that Manafort is more afraid of Vladimir Putin than he is of Bob Mueller. He may serve many years in federal prison but at least he will be alive.

Manaforts apparent willingness now to talk to Mueller may upset Trump, who last month praised the convicted felon for not cooperating with the special counsel.

Prosecutors applied tremendous pressure on him and . . . he refused to break  make up stories in order to get a deal,  the president tweeted last month. Such respect for a brave man!

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson pushed back the date of a scheduled pretrial hearing in Manaforts case from Wednesday to Friday. Court filings did not indicate the reason for the delay leading to speculation that the parties were hammering out the details of a plea deal.
On Tuesday, September 11, Viktor Zolotov, director of Russias National Guard (Rosgvardiya), posted a video statement on his agencys YouTube channel. In his seven minute-long monologue, which included false and previously debunked claims, Zolotov spoke directly to Alexei Navalny, the head of the Anti-Corruption Foundation and leading Russian opposition figure.

In a bizarre linguistic mixture, including references to the officers code of honor and the use of blatnoy or vorovskoy [thieves] jargon  Russian criminal slang -- Zolotov accused Navalny of slander and challenged him to a duel, demanding satisfaction and promising to make a good juicy chop of him in a "matter of minutes.

Mr. Navalny, I promise you, before I step over you and wipe my feet on you, I will stage a show for the entire Rosgvardiya staff, and I assure you, after that you will be ashamed to go outside. And I know how to keep my word, Zolotov said.

Zolotov was responding to a recent investigation by Navalnys Anti-Corruption Foundation accusing Rosgvardiyas leadership of stealing at least $29 million in Russian government budget funds.

The Kremlin does not regard Zolotovs statement as a physical threat, said Dmitry Peskov, President Vladimir Putins press secretary. He added: Sometimes unscrupulous slander can be fought by any means  And of course its better to nip such slander in the bud.

Peskovs claim is false: Zolotov made it clear that his video message was a warning to Navalny not to take his words lightly. Zolotov also promised to physically harm Navalny and assured the opposition leader he knows how to keep his promises.

Apart from Zolotovs own words, Article 119 of Russias criminal code states such threats are unlawful:

Threat of Murder or Infliction of Grave Injury to Health

1.Threat of murder or infliction of grave injury to health, if there were grounds to fear the realization of this threat, shall be punishable by obligatory labor for a term of up to 480 hours, or by restraint of liberty for a term of up to two years, or by compulsory labor for a term of up two years, or by arrest for a term of up to six months, or by deprivation of liberty for a term of up to two years.

2.The same deed committed by reason of political, ideological, racial, national or religious hatred or enmity, or by reason of hatred or enmity with respect to some social group - shall be punishable by compulsory labor for a term of up to five years accompanied by deprivation of the right to  engage in specified activities for a term up to three years, or by deprivation of liberty for a term of up to five years accompanied by deprivation of the right to hold specified offices or engage in specified activities for a term up to three years...

Note that Article 119 states: if there were grounds to fear the realization of this threat. As noted above, Zolotov made it clear that his threat was real and that Navalny has grounds to fear him.

Viktor Zolotov was Vladimir Putins martial arts sparring partner starting in the early 1990s, then his chief of security during Putins first two terms as president and then his term as prime minister. In 2016, Rosgvardiya, an independent militarized police force reporting directly and exclusively to Russias president, was created and Zolotov was appointed as its director. Experts described Rosgvardiya was Putins praetorian guard. Zolotov is also a member of the Kremlins Security Council.

The United States sanctioned Viktor Zolotov, along with 23 other close Putins associates, this past April.

Since 2016, Rosgvardiya has played a key role in dealing with mass protests in Russia. Thousands of video and pictures have been posted online of Zolotovs guards suppressing protests with unnecessary force and brutality.
Charleston, SC (29403)

Today

Rain. Becoming windy for the afternoon. High around 55F. Winds N at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 90%. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph..

Tonight

Windy at times with rain likely. Low 51F. Winds N at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 90%. Rainfall around a half an inch. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph.
South Carolina and North Carolina are about to be thrashed by a hurricane bigger than the two states combined.

Amid predictions of disastrous damage and widespread flooding to come, Hurricane Florence is expected to stall off the coast of North Carolina into Friday  near the states' border  but still throwing out a wide circle of powerful winds and pummeling rain.

But there was some good news late Wednesday night. Florence continued to weaken but was still considered a dangerous Category 2 storm with winds at 110 mph, down from 140 mph, as it approached the coast a few hundred miles off Myrtle Beach.

More than 10 million people were under hurricane warnings or watches in the Carolinas and Virginia, while Georgia declared a state of emergency as well.

The storm, the first major hurricane of the 2018 season, is expected to drift south to make landfall below Myrtle Beach by Saturday, maybe still as a hurricane, before rapidly weakening as it moves across the state.

Forecasters stressed the danger associated with Florence, comparing it to Hurricane Hugo in 1989.

"The threat to life from storm surge and rainfall will not diminish, and these impacts will cover a large area regardless of exactly where the center of Florence moves," National Hurricane Center specialist Stacy Stewart said Wednesday.

"This one really scares me," Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham said.

Late Wednesday, Florence's tropical storm force winds extended nearly 200 miles. Its hurricane force winds extended 70 miles.

Rain predictions varied. The official Hurricane Center outlook called for anywhere from 5 to 20 inches of rain across South Carolina and anywhere from 20 to 40 inches across North Carolina.

The storm surge could be as high as 4 feet near Charleston, as much as 6 feet in Myrtle Beach and as much as 13 feet in North Carolina.

No coastal city, including Charleston, is considered out of the woods for possible landfall.

In Charleston, the Interstate 26 lane reversal for evacuations is scheduled to end Thursday night when tropical storm-force winds arrive.

Across both states, most stores and businesses had closed while gasoline and other supplies were getting scarce. Residents and vacationers were taking South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster's advice to leave the coast and low-lying areas.

David Williams, who lives in the Charlotte area, spent the week securing vacation homes and boats on the Grand Strand. Two years ago, Williams, 60, rode out Hurricane Matthew on his 72-foot vessel. But the powerful Florence wasnt worth wrangling with, he said.

Williams docked the boat at a marina off the Intracoastal Waterway, which separates Grand Strand beach communities from the mainland.

Everythings deserted anyway, he said. And its going to get a little hairy. ... Im going inland."

The National Hurricane Center and S.C. Climate Office forecasters continued to indicate the storm might well stall "near the coast" of North Carolina or northern South Carolina until Saturday. Under that scenario it would drift toward Orangeburg by Sunday morning, weakening to a tropical storm before falling apart.

At least some computer model runs appeared to be falling into that consensus.

But one of the main computer model runs continued to suggest that after stalling near landfall, the storm will drift down along the South Carolina coastline as far as Charleston or Savannah over the weekend  maybe as still a hurricane.

Such a southward drift has never happened before in recorded hurricanes on the Southeast coast.

Meteorologist Bob Henson, with the private company Weather Underground, and Charleston-based meteorologist Shea Gibson, of the private company WeatherFlow, said the storm's winds would be expected to ease as it drifted but couldn't say yet how much.

"It would be a huge mistake to consider Florence less of a threat on such a track. Unusual tracks with big storms often produce unusual outcomes," Henson said.

Either way, "Its gonna be a lousy weekend here," Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg said Wednesday. He urged people to get out of the city.

In South Carolina, hurricane warnings extended as far south as the Santee River near McClellanville and hurricane watches as far south as Edisto Beach.

A warning means hurricane conditions are expected within 36 hours; a watch means they could occur within 48 hours.

Officials stressed common sense was the best route in the face of an unpredictable, possibly fatal event.

"You can take control of your destiny by getting out of the way of this storm," Mount Pleasant Mayor Will Haynie said.

Charleston Police Chief Luther Reynolds said the more people out of the city, the safer emergency responders will be.

"We are a resilient community. We are going to recover from whatever comes ... but, the safest thing to protect human life is to evacuate now," Reynolds said.

Henson, of Weather Underground, said that Florence should be considered a historic storm.

"Its strength, size, and potentially unorthodox track all point to outcomes that may lie outside historical experience," he said.

The winds and worst of the surge are most likely to arrive Thursday evening in Charleston, but the first of it could be felt as early as Thursday morning.

Andrew Knapp and Hannah Alani contributed to this report.
Hurricane Florence continues to creep toward landfall Friday somewhere in the Carolinas. Nobody is sure yet where.

How close the potentially devastating storm gets to Charleston will mean the difference between a hurricane and a gale in terms of how strong the winds get, how much rain falls and how far the storm surge rises.

A hurricane and storm surge warning was issued late Tuesday for an area from the Santee River near McClellanville, to Duck, N.C., just south of the Virginia border. Warning means those conditions can be expected within 36 hours.

An 11 p.m. update by the National Hurricane Center saw Florence's path shift slightly to the south.

Speaking from the Oval Office on Tuesday afternoon, President Donald Trump said the Carolinas and Virginia have not seen a storm as powerful as Florence in "25, 30 years, maybe ever. It's tremendously big and tremendously wet."

"We're as ready as anyone has ever been," Trump said. "Things can change but we doubt they will at this pretty late stage. We doubt they're going to be very, very far off course."

Forecasters continued to expect landfall along the North Carolina coast, despite some computer model runs that suggested the storm could turn toward South Carolina. What happens after that is still up in the air.

"What is noticeable is that all of the global and regional models are indicating that the steering currents will collapse when Florence is approaching the southeast U.S. coast," National Hurricane Center specialist Stacy Stewart said.

"The weak steering currents are expected to continue through the weekend, which makes the forecast track on days three to five quite uncertain," he said.

If the storm stalls or meanders along the coast, it would bring stronger winds, higher waves and more rain to the Charleston tri-county area for a longer period of time.

Forecasters suggested Florence could drop flooding rains similar to the Hurricane Harvey disaster drenching of last year, bringing far more than 2 inches that had been forecast for the Lowcountry hours earlier.

"Florence is expected to stall and wander near or over the coast for as many as four days, dumping prodigious amounts of rain," said meteorologist Jeff Masters with the private company Weather Underground.

"If a significant portion of the storms circulation remains over water, as occurred last year with Hurricane Harveys stall over Southeast Texas  or even if Florence were to move into the higher terrain of western North Carolina and then stall  the rain may break all-time state records for rainfall from a hurricane or tropical storm," Masters said.

The computer predictions, though, were far from certain. Forecasters have warned they could shift from run to run.

"It's really a dicey forecast right now," said meteorologist Mike Emlaw, with the National Weather Service office in Charleston.

"The model guidance is throwing some very interesting scenarios out there near landfall, which is continuing to create a high degree of uncertainty as to exacts near landfall and just after," said Charleston-based meteorologist Shea Gibson with the private company WeatherFlow.

"There is some inclination that this storm could make its way to the south, but we'll be watching for consistency and error adjustment in the next few runs," he said. "There's just so much uncertainty where it will make landfall and even more uncertainty after that."

Two days before Florence's expected landfall, the average error for a hurricane direction prediction is more than 60 miles.

We are not out of the cone of uncertainty. Do not let your guard down. Its perfectly reasonable to expect a shift in the forecast track of Florence, added meteorologist Neil Dixon with the National Weather Service office in Charleston.

Storm surge could be 2 to 4 feet on the Charleston-area beaches, in the estuaries and downtown, according to the National Hurricane Center. But it could be as much as 9 feet in Myrtle Beach.

The winds and worst of the surge are most likely to arrive Thursday evening but could start to be felt as early as Thursday morning, Dixon said. High tide would be about midnight.

Rain was a little more problematic. The call is for 2 inches or less in the Charleston area, but that rises to 5 to 10 inches in the Myrtle Beach area along the North Carolina border, where the hurricane will be much closer in making landfall, according to the most recent path.

Our nearest concern is going to be for flash floods, Dixon said.

In other words, just where the hurricane goes will make a big difference.

On Tuesday, Florence was a powerful Category 4 storm, with 140 mph winds and expected to strengthen nearly to Category 5, becoming a monster with winds of 150 mph or more by Wednesday. Hurricane winds of at least 74 mph extended 60 miles from its center. Tropical storm force winds of at least 39 mph extended 175 miles.

"Florence is still expected to remain a dangerous hurricane through landfall," Stewart said.

The National Weather Service office in Charleston continued to alert of the high risk of dangerous rip currents and coastal flooding through the week, including the effects of the storm.

Gov. Henry McMaster on Monday ordered an evacuation of storm surge and flood-prone coastal areas and ordered the lanes reversed for it on Interstate 26 out of Charleston and U.S. Highway 501 out of Myrtle Beach. Eastbound lanes were closed Tuesday.

McMaster on Tuesday removed the order from the lower part of the coast south of the Charleston area, except for Edisto Beach.

On Monday, cars were lining up at gas stations and stores were seeing runs on storm supplies.

By Tuesday midday, a storm in the far north Atlantic had begun to take on the traits of a tropical system and became one of five storms in the ocean basin that hurricane specialists were watching. The others were Tropical Storm Isaac and Hurricane Helene in the tropical Atlantic and a tropical depression, a weak tropical storm, in the Caribbean Sea.

None of the other four posed any immediate threat to the Southeast coast.

There she is! You can see the relative size of Florence compared to the Carolinas. We'll have an update for everyone with 11am advisory from NHC. pic.twitter.com/dB07RvjKhr  NWS Wilmington NC (@NWSWilmingtonNC) September 11, 2018

Andy Shain contributed to this report.
The Glenn Miller Orchestra , bearing the name of the one of the greats of the Big Band era, will perform at 7 p.m. Sept. 20 at Lourdes High School, 2800 19th St. NW.

During the late-1930s and into World War II, the orchestra, named for leader Glenn Miller, was the most popular band in the land. Hit songs included "In the Mood," "Tuxedo Junction," "Chattanooga Choo Choo," "Pennsylvania 6-5000" and "(Ive Got a Gal in) Kalamazoo."

Miller, a native of Iowa and a popular trombonist, was at the height of his popularity when he disbanded the orchestra in 1942 and joined the Army. He entertained troops at bases in the U.S.and Great Britain. Miller was on a flight to Paris on Dec. 15, 1944, when the plane in which he was a passenger disappeared over the English Channel.

The Glenn Miller Orchestra started up again the 1950s, and has performed around the world since then, playing the hits made famous by the original orchestra. Vocalists are Hannah Truckenbrod and Nick Hilscher.

Tickets for the Lourdes concert range from $19 to $39, and are available through brownpapertickets.com.
Looking for a unique travel adventure? Try a safari in the Great Rift Valley of Kenya.

That is what my husband and I did in February 2018. Our adventures far surpassed anything we had imagined.

Yes, we saw the big five  elephant, leopard, lion, cape buffalo, and rhinoceros in their natural settings. But we saw so much more.

We saw a baby giraffe and her mother crossing the road in front of us. (Our guide pointed out they were being stalked by a lioness.) We saw two giraffes fighting by swinging their necks.

We saw a family of five cheetahs chase a warthog into the bushes. Soon the cheetahs ran out of the bushes being chased by the warthog!

We saw the elusive leopard walking along the side of a rocky hill and settling on a rock to inspect the area.

We saw endangered rhinos  five black rhinos and eight Southern white rhinos. We were fortunate to see the last male Northern white rhino one month before he died.

We saw herds of elephants and a baby elephant suckling.

We saw three lions having lunch behind a bush, and a pride of 14 lions lazing on the savannah at sunset.

We saw three kinds of giraffes (reticulated, Rothschilds, and Maasi), two kinds of zebras (Grevys and common), two kinds of ostriches (Somali and Maasi), and several kinds of gazelles (Thompsons, Grants, long-necked gerenuks and others) and antelope (impalas, elands, wildebeests, etc.).

In all, we saw 35 different kinds of animals. That doesnt include the beautiful birds.

We walked among breakfast-eating giraffes on lodge grounds to go see hippos in a lake. An old cape buffalo charged our Land Rover. We carabined our tent zippers together so the vervet monkeys couldnt trash our room.

We floated for an hour in a hot-air balloon over the Maasi Mara National Park (connected to the Serengeti in Tanzania). Upon landing, we had a champagne breakfast on the grasslands.

But animals were not our only experiences. We visited two traditional, nomadic villages  the Samburu in the north of Kenya and the Maasi in the southwest. They are tribal cousins. Both speak Maa. Both sang and danced for us, wore elaborate beadwork, and showed us their mud and branch homes.

Both bring their goats, sheep and cows into their circular villages at night for safety from the wild animals.

What was Kenya to us? It was beautiful, varied scenery in the Great Rift Valley. It was the more than 35 different kinds of animals. It was the people walking along the road or herding their animals. It was seeing Mt. Kenya. It was having our picture taken at the equator.

Every day was filled with new adventures  experiences to be remembered a lifetime.
Lou Leon Guerrero and her running mate Joshua Tenorio now have the Guam Election Commission certification to show they won their party's gubernatorial primary election.

The election commission last night certified the primary's election results, affirming Leon Guerrero-Tenorio received 8,267 votes, over the closest competing team of Sen. Frank Aguon Jr. and former Attorney General Alicia Limtiaco's 7,995 votes  a difference of 272. The new numbers include absentee and provisional ballots.

Aguon-Limtiaco had twice requested a hand recount.

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Commission member Pat Civille said the commission doesn't need to conduct another recount, even if the certified results show a difference of less than 2 percent in the Democratic gubernatorial race.

Following the certification of results, the Leon Guerrero-Tenorio team announced its new focus moving forward.

"Now that the Guam Election Commission has certified the results of the primary election as required by law, we are focused on one thing: change. Good people will always have honest differences, but we believe our community wants to restore faith in our future and trust in our government," the campaign stated. "And, we won't be distracted by those who want to ensure the status quo. Change is coming."

They will face off against the Republican gubernatorial team of Lt. Gov. Ray Tenorio and Tony Ada, who went uncontested this year.

Other races

Fifteen Democratic and Republican legislative hopefuls also will be squaring off Nov. 6, during the general election.

The certification places Speaker Benjamin Cruz one step closer to taking up the office of public auditor. He garnered the most votes during a special election held at the same time as the primary.

The top two contenders for attorney general  attorney Leevin Camacho and former Attorney General Douglas Moylan  now move on to the general election.

The GEC began the night by processing absentee and provisional ballots before putting them through machine tabulation.

There were 144 absentee and provisional votes left to be counted.

Voters' names were called out, and whether they were absentee or qualified provisional voters. Absentee ballots that were electronically submitted were replicated at a reconciliation table before being tabulated.

The table was overseen by a Republican, Democratic and independent member of the commission. GEC legal counsel also was present at the table.

Lawsuit hearing

Ken Leon-Guerrero, of Guam Citizens for Public Accountability, filed a lawsuit Sept. 4 in the Superior Court of Guam seeking a hand recount and consideration of 907 crossover ballots, which are usually not counted.

A hearing will be held at 4 p.m. today. Leon-Guerrero will represent himself.

If the suit prevails, the certification may need to be redone, he said.
Last September, when the first terrible surge started, we mourned the 21 people who COVID-19 had killed since landing on our island in March 2 Read more
The United States Chamber of Commerce, the nations largest, most-influential business lobby is the immigration elephant in congressional Republicans caucus rooms.

Claiming that Americas job market is too hot to lose them, Chamber lobbyists have been urging Congress to grant legal status to a million or more illegally-employed illegal immigrants.

More defensibly, perhaps, the Chamber also resists proposals to reduce future levels of legal immigration, characterizing reductions as devastating to our economy, even though tighter labor markets would force businesses to compete for American workers by raising wages and benefits. But the Chamber generally advocates easier, cheaper amnesty/legalization to address its members manpower requirements.

Fortunately, Republicans are on the case, sort of

Republicans campaign against sanctuary cities and criminal illegal aliens, but they seldom cross the Chamber of Commerce. M-13 gangbangers and drug cartels are genuine problems, but the primary driver of illegal immigration is illegals desire to find work. Having broken the law to come or stay here, illegal aliens have no rights to employment. In fact, Americans who employ illegal aliens have also broken immigration laws.

Enforcing American immigration laws requires more than controlling and securing the border, deporting criminals and dismantling the lawless policies of sanctuary cities/states. Criminal deportations must continue, of course, and protecting criminal illegals in sanctuary cities must stop, but so must the common abuse of asylum, exploiting children to gain entry and using anchor babies to admit extended families.

As, perhaps more importantly, disrupting access to Americas jobs honeypot is essential to effective enforcement of immigration statutes, so enforcement must include an equally or potentially even more powerful tool already on the books. Theres another legal resource the Chamber dislikes that receives little or, usually, no Republican attention:

Enforcing E-Verify would control illegal immigration by nullifying a major incentive for illegals to come here.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, E-Verify is a web-based system that allowsemployers to confirm the eligibility of their employees to work in the United States. E-Verify employers verify the identity and employment eligibility of newly hired employees by electronically matching information provided by employeesagainst records available to the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Federal contractors are required to use E-Verify, and some states mandate its use as a condition of business licensing, but, otherwise, using E-Verify is voluntary. DHS, again: E-Verifyis available in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands [It] is currently the best means available to electronically confirm employment eligibility.

Incentives  both positive and negative  work. Enhancing and making E-Verify mandatory nationwide, strictly enforcing its provisions, deporting illegals and prosecuting employer violators would put an end to casual illegality by making entry and employment violations unproductive or costly. Illegal border entries would dry up along with the jobs illegals seek.

To control the border, improve security and public safety and benefit its workers, America must deal with all immigration lawbreakers, including employers.

Contact Jerry Shenk: jshenk2010@gmail.com
With a little help from the publisher of RealClearPolitics, I would like to note Lee Smiths analysis of the trail of evidence in the media of the campaign from within the government using illegal leaks of classified information to undermine President Trump  and then to thwart congressional investigators investigating the disclosures. Lees new RCP column is How Anti-Trump Leakers Moved From Offense to Defense. In it Lee reports:

 The anti-Trump leaks fall into two broad categories, or phases. Initially the leaking was an offensive operation aimed at disrupting Trumps agenda, especially through leaks alleging connections between his campaign and the Russians. The second phase  which began roughly a year into the Trump administration  has been more defensive, pushing back against congressional oversight committees that had uncovered irregularities in the FBIs investigation of Trump.

 Notable in the second phase is the surfacing of a dubious episode involving George Papadopoulos as the new starting point of the FBIs Trump-Russia probe  after the so-called Steele dossier funded by the Hillary Clinton campaign was discredited.

 This second phase has also included articles and opinion pieces  some written by journalists who have published illegal leaks  dismissing suspicions of an orchestrated echo chamber campaign mounted by Obama partisans against Trump as a conspiracy theory, to use the phrase invoked in a recent New Yorker article.

 The template for the leak campaign can be traced back to the Obama administrations efforts to sell the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. Obama adviser Ben Rhodes told the New York Times in 2016 that we created an echo chamber of compliant media that helped retail the administrations narrative. Lee quotes former Bush administration official Michael Doran: That same configuration, the press, political operatives, newly minted experts, social media validatorswas repurposed to target Trump, his campaign, transition team, then presidency.

Closely related: Anatomy of a Fusion smear: Restatement and finale.
The Washington Posts board of editors attacks John Bolton for a speech in which he harshly criticized the International Criminal Court (ICC). The Post doesnt defend the ICC. In an understatement, the Post agrees that the court has its defects. However, the editorial board castigates Bolton for using his first significant public address to talk about what the editors deem an irrelevancy.

The editors think Bolton should have discussed Syria, Venezuela, China, or Russia. They neglect to inform us that Boltons speech was to the Federalist Society. Its neither shocking nor scandalous that Bolton would speak to this group of lawyers and others interested in law about international law, rather than about various world hotspots having nothing much to do with law.

Moreover, the Post fails to show that the ICC is irrelevant. It deems merely theoretical the possibility that Americans will be tried by this body. But, as the editors admit, investigators have begun an inquiry into possible war crimes in Afghanistan.

As the editors fail to note, the ICC prosecutor (a Gambian) requested authorization to investigate alleged war crimes committed by U.S. personnel in Afghanistan. She did so despite the fact that neither Afghanistan nor any nation that signed the Rome Agreement establishing the ICC requested such an investigation.

According to Bolton, the ICC prosecutor is looking into alleged abuse of detainees by Americans. She apparently also has the authority to investigate other matters including, presumably, cases in which the U.S. has inadvertently killed innocent civilians in Afghanistan.

Thus, in the face of the ICCs investigation, it is well worth Boltons time to warn the ICC, as he did in his speech, that it will face major consequences if it decides to charge Americans with war crimes. And it was particularly appropriate for him to do so on the eve of the anniversary of 9-11, when the attack on the U.S. that triggered our engagement in Afghanistan occurred.

Bolton also warned the ICC of the consequences that charging Israel with war crimes would bring. The Post does not pretend that such charges are theoretical only. Nor could it. Earlier this summer, the ICC announced it will commence the pretrial phase of a war crimes case brought by the Palestinian Authority against our staunch ally.

The Post dismisses Boltons view of the ICC as a pet peeve. With this label, the Post begs the question of whether Boltons criticisms are substantial and meritorious.

They are both, as Bolton showed.

I have personal experience with the ICC. In the late 1990s, I was part of a team of lawyers that defended a war crimes case before that body.

Of the three judges who heard the case, only one was from a well-functioning democracy. In fact, if memory serves, one of the judges was from China.

Aspects of the proceedings were quite alien to our justice system. The main piece of evidence against our client was hearsay that was subject to no exception recognized in American law. It was admitted, in the interests of justice. The interests of justice as perceived by foreign judges, including one from China.

Looking over the current roster of ICC judges, my impression is that fewer of them come from undemocratic nations. On the other hand, Europe is now more anti-Israel and, indeed, more anti-U.S. than it was twenty years ago.

Check out the roster and decide for yourself whether Israeli and/or American warriors, intelligence officers, and senior officials would get a fair trial before the ICC. Consider, too, whether the U.S. should ever consent to having such personnel tried by foreigners, whichever countries they come from, for actions taken in the course of pursuing American policy.

These are questions the Post ducks by calling Boltons disdain for the ICC a personal bugaboo. Its more accurate to say that John Bolton is among the Posts personal bugaboos.
Ive written several times about the fact that the Left has outsourced censorship to the giant tech firms of Silicon Valley. Given that much political debate now takes place on social media, generally thought of as a public space, it is a handy way around the First Amendment. But the role of the giant tech companies goes beyond suppressing conservative voices, to include promoting liberalism and the Democratic Party.

The tech companies all take the same position as the Democratic Party press: sure, were all liberals here, but it doesnt affect what we do! In our business lives, we are scrupulously neutral.

No one has bought that line with regard to the liberal media in a long time, and there is no reason to believe it with regard to Silicon Valley, either. The latest evidence comes from a leaked Google email that found its way onto the Tucker Carlson show last night:

A Google executives leaked email reveals efforts to increase Latino turnout prior to the 2016 U.S. presidential election and the executives surprise at Donald Trumps performance among Latino voters. The 675-word email, first obtained exclusively by Fox News Channels Tucker Carlson Tonight, was written by the tech giants former head of multicultural marketing and details a range of efforts to increase Latino turnout, including the support of a partner organization that helped to drive voters to the polls.

The full text of the email may be online somewhere, but I havent seen it, so I have to rely on the Fox summary.

We worked very hard. Many people did. We pushed to get out the Latino vote with our features, our partners, and our voices. We kept our Googley efforts non-partisan and followed our companys protocols for the elections strategy, the email begins. We emphasized our mission to give Latinos access to information so they can make an informed decision at the polls, and we feel very grateful for all the support to do this important work. At the end of the email, the author wrote that Latino Googlers are probably hurting right now and that the election results are tough to handle now that we know not all of us were against this. The Google executive acknowledges that Latinos, long considered the sleeping giant of American politics thanks to the countrys rapidly shifting demographics, did vote in record-breaking numbers and turned out earlybut a significant percentage supported Trump instead of Hillary Clinton. Ultimately, after all was said and one [sic], the Latino community did come out to vote, and completely surprised us. We never anticipated that 29% of Latinos would vote for Trump. No one did, the executive wrote.

The only reasonable interpretation is that Google tried to help Hillary win the election, in part through this initiative, but fell short.

Google distanced itself from the memo with the usual rationale:

A Google spokesperson previously told Fox News: The views expressed in this email are the employees personal political views and are not representative of any official stance from the company. Googles elections effortsboth in 2016 and leading up to this years midtermshave been entirely nonpartisan.

Right. What to do about the liberal (often, far-left) bent of the tech giants, several of which are monopoly platforms, is a big question. Break them up under the antitrust laws? Turn them into regulated utilities like the water company? Found competing conservative/moderate platforms? That is a big topic to which we will return many times in the months and years to come.
Yesterday, the Trump administration ordered the closure of the Palestine Liberation Organization office in Washington, saying that the PLO has not taken steps to advance the start of direct and meaningful negotiations with Israel. Thats for sure.

The Washington Posts account of the story is here. You can almost see the tears Karen DeYoung shed writing it.

In the paper edition, the storys subtitle is another blow to Palentinians. Perhaps. But the office has been in D.C. since the early 1990s. Im not sure what good it did Palestinians.

I applaud the closing of the office. I also like the fact that the administration ordered the closure one day before the anniversary of 9-11. That was the day Palestinians took to the street to celebrate the successful attack by al Qaeda on the American homeland.

The Trump administration has recently taken other steps in response to the unwillingness of Palestinians to advance negotiations with Israel. It canceled most U.S. aid funding to the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In addition, it called for a redefinition of Palestinian refugee status and said it would no longer fund the U.N. refugee aid program. It thus dismissed the notion of any Palestinian right of return, a demand that effectively precludes a peace agreement.

According to the Post, the Palestinians say those measures are designed to lay the groundwork for a yet-to-be-revealed U.S. peace proposal by pressuring the PLO into a more accommodating posture. If so, its about time. For too long, all of our real pressure has been exerted on Israel, either because the U.S. government favored the Palestinians (as President Obama did) or because it viewed the Israelis as more susceptible to our pressure.

The Israelis are more susceptible, just not susceptible enough to forfeit their security, as the Palestinians demand.

So far, the PLO seems unmoved by the Trump administrations pressure. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat declared that the U.S. is not part of the peace process and does not even have the right to sit in the room during any negotiations.

What peace process? What negotiating room?
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-12 06:13:33

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According to Goldstein Research, Africa pharmaceutical market is expected to reach USD 160.7 billion by 2024, growing at a CAGR of 20.4% over the forecast period 2016-2024. major driving factor for Africa pharmaceutical market is the expansion of healthcare capacity which according to the World Bank Africa acquired 70,000 new hospital beds, 16,000 doctors, and 60,000 nurses, adding up to a total of 1,050,000 beds, 498,370 doctors, and 1,250,000 nurses between 2005 and 2012. Further, based on geography, Africa pharmaceutical market is impacted by the factors such as healthcare challenges in Ghana, Senegal, Tanzania, Kenya, Benin and Malawi among others in Africa, which thus hold the opportunities in future. South Africa has the largest market in pharmaceuticals among other African countries. Also, the health care system in Uganda is in a mess due to lack of government incentives while Zambia is the ideal country when it comes to how a democracy should work.Browse Full Report:Market SegmentationOn the basis of our in-depth analysis, Africa Pharmaceutical Market can be segmented as follows:By Type Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) Branded Generics Contract Research and Manufacturing Services Formulations (CRAMS)o Chronico Cardiovascularo Anti-Diabeteso Gastro Intestinalo Neurologicalo Acuteo Anti-infectiveso Respiratoryo Paino Gynecology BiosimilarsBy Geography Nigeria Pharmaceutical Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Egypt Pharmaceutical Market Analysis, 2016-2024 South Africa Pharmaceutical Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Algeria Pharmaceutical Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Morocco Pharmaceutical Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Ethiopia Pharmaceutical Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Kenya Pharmaceutical Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Rest of the Africa Pharmaceutical Market Analysis, 2016-2024Download Exclusive Sample Report:Africa Pharmaceutical Market Outlook 2024 contains a detailed overview of the Africa pharmaceutical market. On the basis of our in-depth analysis, the market can be segmented in terms of market segmentation by type and geography.The Africa Pharmaceutical Market Report highlights the competitive outlook of major Africa players that includes the business strategies, product portfolio, revenue distribution, financial analysis, R&D activities, and investments. The in-depth analysis of pharmaceutical market report will help the clients to assess their business strategies as per the competitive environment in the market space.Major players of the Africa pharmaceutical market discussed in the report are: Sun Pharma, Cipla, Candila. Glenmark, Glaxo SmithKline, Abbott Africa, Biocon, Jubilant life, Sanofi Africa, Elys, Pfizer, Cosmos, Bayer, Emzor, Fidson, Dawa, Regal, Lab and Allied, Roche, AstraZeneca, Merck, etc.Further, Africa Pharmaceutical Market Report encompasses the major trends & growth opportunities, market dynamics, and other growth factors. The Pharmaceutical Market outlook also comprises of key challenges for the market players, risk analysis, SWOT Analysis, USP 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: 2018-09-12 13:00:19

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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for American Manganese Inc.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Surrey, British Columbia (FSCWire) - American Manganese Inc. (TSX Venture:AMY). has issued a press release with the following headline:American Manganese Inc. to Present at the Cambridge House Extraordinary Future - September 19-20, 2018 at the Vancouver Convention CentreTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on American Manganese Inc., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/American Manganese Inc.Source: American Manganese Inc. (TSX Venture: AMY, OTC Pink: AMYZF, FWB: 2AM, WKN: A0YJSR, ISIN: CA02735A1057)Date: September 12, 2018Time: 7:00 AM EDT--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of American Manganese Inc. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2018 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-12 12:53:01

BIOCAD and SPH Agree to Build a Drug Substance Manufacturing Facility in China

BIOCAD

Irina Kenyukhova, PR Director

Tel.: +7 (812) 380 49 33 (ext.. 632)

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E-mail:kenyukhova@biocad.ru

This year at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, BIOCAD and Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to create two joint ventures for production, clinical development, registration, and marketing of several high-cost medicines based on monoclonal antibodies in the People's Republic of China.

The signing ceremony took place on September 12, 2018 at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF). The MoU was signed by Mr. Dmitry Morozov, BIOCADs founder and CEO, and Mr. Jun Zhou, Board Chairman at Shanghai Pharmaceuticals Holding Co.Ltd. The ceremony was attended by Denis Manturov, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation.

These Russian-Chinese joint ventures will be established with the main purpose of development, manufacturing, authorization, and marketing of at least six BIOCAD products used in advanced therapy of cancer and autoimmune diseases (chronic lymphpatic leukemia, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, psoriasis, ankylosing spondylitis, etc.).

"We believe that transferring BIOCADs technologies to a jointly-owned manufacturing facility in China will boost our pharmaceutical exports,'' said Dmitry Morozov commenting the Memorandum, "It will also allow our Chinese partners to acquire the platform and valuable experience that is necessary manufacturing other mAb-based biological therapeutics. This will provide a new venue for cooperation between Russia and China." Dmitry Morozov added that these joint ventures are unique and that this is the first massive Russian-Chinese cooperation project in pharmaceutical industry. Construction of jointly-owned production facilities for monoclonal antibody APIs in China start as early as 2019.

The development of international economic activities is an essential area of BIOCAD's focus. The overall value of export contracts signed in the last few years is over $850 million, and currently BIOCAD supplies its medications to 14 countries.

According to Evaluate Pharma, a global analytical company, the $165 billion pharmaceutical market in China is the second-largest in the world. At the same time, the share of foreign suppliers does not exceed 25%. Since drug coverage expences are drastically increasing, the Chinese government is interested in cutting the costs of high-tech medicines, which gives promising opportunities to international biotech companies.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180912005

BIOCAD and SPH entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to create two joint ventures for production, clinical development, registration, and marketing of several high-cost medicines based on monoclonal antibodies
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-12 08:02:01

Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP) Capital Markets Day 12 September 2018

Coca-Cola European Partners plc

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This release contains inside information.

CCEP is hosting a capital markets day for institutional investors and analysts in Wiesbaden, Germany, today and tomorrow. The meeting is hosted by Chairman Sol Daurella, Chief Executive Officer Damian Gammell and Chief Financial Officer Nik Jhangiani.

CCEP announces a new share buyback programme of 1.5 billion alongside an intent to increase the Q4 2018 interim dividend payout ratio from 45% to 50%. CCEP is also announcing mid-term financial objectives and revising full year 2018 outlook guidance, as detailed below.

Damian Gammell, Chief Executive Officer, said:

Two years ago we created CCEP, now the worlds largest independent Coca-Cola bottler by net revenue. During this time, we have reset the base for profitable growth, delivered on our merger synergy commitments while building for the future. CCEP was always about a bigger and bolder vision beyond the merger. We have the scale, the right operating model and the right talent. We have a realistic and exciting long-term view of the growth opportunity in our markets, having mapped out a vision for the next ten years. We know that winning today allows us to win tomorrow for all of our stakeholders. So we are investing now in core capabilities that will support our growth and set us apart to win.

Shorter term, I am particularly pleased with how our teams across Great Britain, Germany and Northern Europe have embraced the positive challenges brought by great weather. The strong performance allows us to slightly improve our full year outlook, despite softer summer trading in Spain and France.

This is further endorsement of the creation of CCEP, which alongside today announcing annual growth objectives over the mid-term and our first share buyback programme, collectively demonstrate our ability to consistently deliver shareholder value as we manage a rich portfolio of markets.

CAPITAL MARKETS DAY HIGHLIGHTS

SHARE BUYBACK PROGRAMME AND INTENT TO INCREASE DIVIDEND PAYOUT RATIO

The company has approved a 1.5 billion(1) share buyback programme to reduce the share capital of the company. The buyback programme will begin as soon as possible with up to 500 million of shares repurchased in 2018 subject to trading volumes. The value of the programme may be adjusted depending on economic, operating, or other factors, including acquisition opportunities.

The buyback programme will be carried out on the New York Stock Exchange and Euronext Amsterdam and will be effected within certain pre-set parameters and in accordance with the general authority to repurchase shares granted by shareholders at the companys Annual General Meeting on 31 May 2018. CCEP intends to effect the buyback programme in accordance with the EU Market Abuse Regulation 596/2014. The maximum number of ordinary shares authorised for repurchase at the companys 2018 Annual General Meeting is 48,507,819. All shares repurchased as part of the buyback programme will be cancelled.

Subject to Board approval, the company is also announcing its intention to increase the Q4 2018 interim dividend payout ratio from 45% to 50%.

(1) Existing shareholder authority to buy back shares expires at the end of the 2019 Annual General Meeting or, if earlier, the close of business on 28 June 2019. The company expects to seek further approval from shareholders to buy back shares at subsequent Annual General Meetings.

REVISED 2018 OUTLOOK

CCEP now expects revenue growth of approximately 2% to 2.5% and operating profit growth at the top end of the previously stated range of 6% to 7%. Each of these growth figures is on a comparable and FX-neutral basis when compared to 2017 comparable results. This excludes the impact of incremental soft drinks industry taxes, which are expected to add approximately 2% to 2.5% to revenue growth and approximately 3.5% to 4% to cost of goods growth.

CCEP now expects diluted earnings per share (EPS) growth to be in the range of 7% to 8%, on a comparable and FX-neutral basis. At recent rates, currency translation is expected to have a slightly negative impact on 2018 full-year diluted EPS.

The comparable effective tax rate for 2018 is expected to be approximately 25%. Weighted average cost of debt is expected to be approximately 2%.

CCEP remains on track to achieve pre-tax run rate merger synergies of 315 million to 340 million by mid-2019. Further, CCEP expects to have realised at least 80% of the target by year-end 2018 and a run rate of approximately 100%.

CCEP now expects 2018 free cash flow of approximately 1 billion, including the expected benefit from improved working capital of approximately 200 million, offset by the impact of restructuring and integration costs. Capital expenditures are expected to be at the top end of the previously stated range of 525 million to 575 million, including approximately 75 million of capital expenditures related to synergies.

Restructuring cash costs to achieve the aforementioned merger synergies are expected to be approximately 2.25 times expected savings and include cash costs associated with pre-transaction close accruals. Given these factors, currency exchange rates, our outlook for 2018 and the buyback of up to 500 million in 2018, CCEP expects year end net debt to adjusted EBITDA for 2018 to be towards the low-end of our target range of 2.5 to 3 times. Further, CCEP expects Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) to improve by approximately 80 basis points.

CCEP ANNOUNCES MID-TERM ANNUAL FINANCIAL OBJECTIVES

Low single digit revenue growth

Mid-single digit operating profit growth implying c.20 basis points operating profit margin improvement

Mid-single digit diluted EPS growth, excluding share buyback

Return on invested capital improvement of c.40 basis points

Free cash flow of at least 1 billion (after c.4.5% capital expenditure as a % of revenue)

CCEP also confirms the long-term capital structure target of 2.5 to 3.0 times net debt to adjusted EBITDA.

Growth and improvement measures are each comparable and FX-neutral. The revised 2018 outlook and mid-term annual financial objectives should be read in conjunction with the note regarding the presentation of alternative performance measures.

WEBCAST

CCEP will webcast the main presentation live through its website, www.ccep.com, beginning at 13:30 CEST, 12:30 BST, and 07:30 EDT. This main presentation is expected to last approximately two hours.

CCEP will also webcast a Chairmans address from Sol Daurella, and a panel Q&A session, beginning at 17:15 CEST, 16:15 BST, and 11:15 EDT. This is expected to last approximately one hour.

A replay and transcript of both sessions will be available at www.ccep.com as soon as possible. A copy of the main presentation will be available through the website on the home page and under the Investors section.

ABOUT CCEP

Coca-Cola European Partners plc (CCEP) is a leading consumer packaged goods company in Europe, producing, distributing and marketing an extensive range of non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages and is the worlds largest independent Coca-Cola bottler based on revenue. Coca-Cola European Partners serves a consumer population of over 300 million across Western Europe, including Andorra, Belgium, continental France, Germany, Great Britain, Iceland, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden. The company is listed on Euronext Amsterdam, the New York Stock Exchange, Euronext London, and on the Spanish stock exchanges, and trades under the symbol CCE. For more information about CCEP, please visit www.ccep.com and follow CCEP on Twitter at @CocaColaEP.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This document may contain statements, estimates or projections that constitute forward-looking statements concerning the financial condition, performance, results, strategy and objectives of Coca-Cola European Partners plc and its subsidiaries (together CCEP or the Group). Generally, the words believe, expect, intend, estimate, anticipate, project, plan, seek, may, could, would, should, might, will, forecast, outlook, guidance, possible, potential, predict and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which generally are not historical in nature.

Forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from CCEPs historical experience and present expectations or projections. As a result, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to those set forth in the Risk Factors section of the 2017 Annual Report on Form 20-F, including the statements under the following headings: Risks Relating to Consumer Preferences and the Health Impact of Soft Drinks; Risks Relating to Legal and Regulatory Intervention (such as the impact of sugar taxes being implemented in a number of countries in 2018 and the development of regulations regarding packaging); Risks Relating to Business Integration and Synergy Savings; Risks Relating to Cyber and Social Engineering Attacks; Risks Relating to the Market (such as customer consolidation); Risks Relating to Economic and Political Conditions (such as continuing developments in relation to the UKs exit from the EU); Risks Relating to the Relationship with TCCC and Other Franchisors; Risks Relating to Product Quality (such as shortages of raw materials); and Other Risks.

Due to these risks and uncertainties, CCEPs actual future results, dividend payments, and capital and leverage ratios may differ materially from the plans, goals, expectations and guidance set out in CCEPs forward-looking statements. Additional risks and uncertainties that may impact CCEPs future financial condition and performance are identified in filings with the SEC which are available on the SECs website at www.sec.gov. CCEP does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required under applicable rules, laws and regulations. CCEP assumes no responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of any forward-looking statements. Any or all of the forward-looking statements contained in this filing and in any other of CCEPs respective public statements may prove to be incorrect.

NOTE REGARDING THE PRESENTATION OF ALTERNATIVE PERFORMANCE MEASURES

We use certain alternative performance measures (non-GAAP performance measures) to make financial, operating and planning decisions and to evaluate and report performance. We believe these measures provide useful information to investors and this document contains forward looking alternative performance measures to allow investors to better analyse our business performance and allow for greater comparability. We are not able to reconcile forward looking non-GAAP information to reported measures without unreasonable efforts because it is not possible to predict with a reasonable degree of certainty the actual impact or exact timing of items that may impact comparability during future periods.

The alternative performance measures included herein do not replace the directly reconcilable GAAP measure. Refer to pages 14 21 of our 2017 Annual Report issued on 15 March 2018, which detail our non-GAAP performance measures and reconciles, where applicable, our 2017 and 2016 results as reported under IFRS to the non-GAAP performance measures included in this presentation.

For purposes of this document, the following non-GAAP performance measures are defined:

Comparable represents results excluding items impacting comparability. Items impacting comparability include restructuring charges, merger and integration related costs, out of period mark-to-market impact of hedges, litigation provisions and net tax items relating to rate and law changes. Such items are excluded from our comparable results in order to provide a better understanding of business performance and allow for greater comparability. For 2017 periods, comparable includes final acquisition accounting related adjustments in connection with the Merger. Comparable volume is also adjusted for selling days.

Fx-neutral represents the comparable results excluding the impact of foreign exchange rate changes. Foreign exchange impact is calculated by recasting current year results at prior year exchange rates.

Free cash flow is defined as net cash flows from operations, less capital expenditures and interest paid, plus proceeds from capital disposals. Management utilises free cash flow as a measure of the Groups cash generation from operating activities, taking into account investments in property, plant and equipment and non-discretionary interest payments.

Adjusted EBITDA is defined as profit after tax plus taxes, net finance costs, non-operating items, depreciation, amortisation and adjusted for items impacting comparability.

Return on invested capital or ROIC is defined as comparable operating profit after tax divided by the average of opening and closing invested capital for the year. Invested capital is calculated as the addition of borrowings and equity less cash and cash equivalents.

Dividend payout ratio is defined as dividend per share divided by comparable diluted earnings per share (a non GAAP performance measure).

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180911005
MRRSE

PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-12 12:27:02

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State Tower90, State StreetSuite 700Albany, NY - 12207United StatesMarketing Manager+1-518-730-0559

Smartphones have gained widespread popularity worldwide from being a luxury to a necessity. Comprehensibility, portability, and facilitated communication, data storage, and accessibility to large amount of data has further resulted in demand and sales proliferation of smartphones in recent years. Relative affordability of smartphones has led them to replace prominent technologies that include desktop computers, landline phones and expensive cameras among individuals of all income groups.Aforementioned insights have been obtained from the report, titled Smartphone Market  Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast, 2018  2026, which has been recently incorporated into the exhaustive repository of Market Research Reports Search Engine (MRRSE). As the smartphone market is closing in on maturity in some countries, a sharp decline in shipment and revenues from smartphone sales is being witnessed. Consumer tendency toward using their smartphones for longer duration, without replacing them, and repairing & refurbishing their devices has further impacted growth of the smartphone market.For More Information Request Free Sample on Smartphone Market Report @ https://www.mrrse.com/sample/16728 Smartphone Market: Report SynopsisThe report on the smartphone market provides forecast and analysis for the period between 2018 and 2026. Indispensable market dynamics, including trends, opportunities, drivers and restraints, have been covered in key weighted sections of the report. Comprehensive analysis on growth prospects of the smartphone market has been offered, and the market size has been evaluated in terms of volume (Million Units) and value (US$ Mn). Porters Five Forces analysis adhered has helped analysts in identifying the bargaining power of suppliers, threats from substitutes and new entrants, and intensity of competition in smartphone market.Value chain analysis offered in the report delivers analysis on the flow of operation in the smartphone market, and helps in identifying the raw material suppliers, distribution channels, and service providers in the industry. The report also covers a segmentation-wise comparison matrix, market share and positioning analysis, and incremental opportunity analysis on key players operating in the smartphone market. The incremental opportunity analysis further aids in identifying and comparing the segment attractiveness based on the market share index and CAGR across all regional segmented incorporated in the report.Browse Complete Detail on Big Data in Oil and Gas Market Research Report with TOC @ https://www.mrrse.com/smartphone-market Smartphone Market: In-depth Assessment on Competitive LandscapeA detailed assessment has been provided on the smartphone markets competition landscape, which engulfs the competition matrix, the market share analysis on prominent players. The competition matrix benchmarks the leading stakeholders in the smartphone market based on their capabilities as well as growth potential. Intelligence on the market positions, R&D focus, key offerings, segmental growth, topline growth, future outlook, and infrastructure facilities of the market players has also been offered in the report. The competitive landscape section of the report also includes and scrutinizes the regional presence and their foothold in the smartphone market with the help of an intensity map.Key players in the smartphone market have been profiled and analyzed on the basis of their company overview, key developments, major business strategies adopted, and SWOT analysis. Key companies profiled by the report, which significantly contribute to growth of the smartphone market, include Apple, Inc., One Plus Corporation, Xiaomi Corporation, OPPO Co Ltd., Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., Nokia Corporation, and Sony Corporation.Enquire about this Report @ https://www.mrrse.com/enquiry/16728 About (MRRSE)Market Research Reports Search Engine (MRRSE) is an industry-leading database of Market Research Reports. MRRSE is driven by a stellar team of research experts and advisors trained to offer objective advice. Our sophisticated search algorithm returns results based on the report title, geographical region, publisher, or other keywords. MRRSE partners exclusively with leading global publishers to provide clients single-point access to top-of-the-line market research. MRRSEs repository is updated every day to keep its clients ahead of the next new trend in market research, be it competitive intelligence, product or service trends or strategic consulting.
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-12 19:35:17

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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Vangold Mining Corp.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Vancouver, British Colimbia (FSCWire) - Vangold Mining Corp. (TSX Venture:VAN). has issued a press release with the following headline:Vangold Mining withdraws submission to acquire San Carlos Property in Guanajuato, MexicoTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Vangold Mining Corp., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Vangold Mining Corp.Source: Vangold Mining Corp. (TSX Venture: VAN, OTC Pink: VGLDF)Date: September 12, 2018Time: 1:35 PM EDT--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Vangold Mining Corp. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2018 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
Lourdes Leon, the daughter of pop icon Madonna, has made her debut on the runway for the Gypsy Sport Spring Summer 2019 showcase at the New York Fashion Week (NYFW).

The model walked the runway wearing a beaded shell body chain bra, ripped jeans, a headpiece made from bright green leaves and a chunky sneakers.

Leons look was accessorised with a Miniscule sunglasses placed at the tip of her nose.

Although this was her first time walking the runway, she recently modeled for the` Converse Made Me collaboration and starred in an ad campaign for Stella McCartneys Pop fragrance.

While this may be her catwalk debut, this is not the first time Leon attended the NYFW.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the model sat front row alongside her mother at the Alexande Wangs Spring 2017 show and later attended the Wang Fest after party.

Leon is Madonnas eldest child whom she shares with Carlos Leon.

She recently graduated from her mothers alma mater, the University of Michigan.

Lourdes Leon, the daughter of pop icon Madonna

Leon is one of the six children of Madonna; 18 year old son, Rocco Ritchie and four other children she adopted from Malawi, David, Mercy, James and 6 years old twins Estere and Stella.

(NAN)
Malaysias opposition-led Senate blocked an effort to repeal a law against fake news on Wednesday, presenting the first major challenge for the new government of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.

Mahathir, 93, secured a stunning election win in May, ending the decade-long rule of former premier Najib Razak and changing Malaysias government for the first time in six decades.

But the Senate, or upper house of parliament, is still dominated by an opposition led by the defeated Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which can block bills and delay government initiatives.

Malaysia was among the first few countries to introduce an anti-fake news law although other countries in the region, including Singapore and the Philippines, have said they are considering how to tackle fake news.

Critics accused Najib using the law to curb free speech ahead of the May general election as his government tried to fend off criticism over accusations of graft and mismanagement.

In August, the lower house of parliament voted out the Anti-Fake News 2018 bill, which set out fines of up to 500,000 ringgit (123,000 dollars) and jail of up to six years for reporting wholly or partly false news.

But BN Senate leaders and members of the right-wing Islamist party, Parti Islam se-Malaysia on Wednesday blocked its repeal.

The bill will go back to the lower house of parliament for another vote.

Co-opted by U.S. President Donald Trump, the term fake news has become part of the standard repertoire of leaders in authoritarian countries to describe media reports and organisations critical of them.

Just days ahead of the elections, Mahathir himself was accused of spreading fake news after authorities said they were investigating him over what they said were false claims that his plane was sabotaged.

Other leaders opposed to Najib were also charged under the act. (Reuters/NAN)
Russian authorities have identified the two people suspected by London of poisoning Russian ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury, President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.

We know who they are, we have found them, Putin told the plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok.

The Russian president noted that the suspects were civilians.

I hope that they will show up and tell everything themselves. There is nothing particularly criminal there, I assure you, he said.

Putin also urged the two individuals to talk to media.

NAN reports that on September 6, the UK charged two Russian men for the Novichok nerve agent attack on the former spy and his daughter in the English city of Salsibury, accusing them of being Russian military intelligence officers.

British prosecutors issued arrest warrants for Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, charging them with conspiracy to murder and attempted murder of former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia.

Both were poisoned with the military-grade nerve agent  developed by the former Soviet Union in the 1970s and 1980s  in March but survived after spending weeks in hospital.

The failed attack sparked an international diplomactic crisis with Russia being accused by several countries  allegations Moscow has repeatedly denied.

Britain said it will present its evidence at a UN Security Council meeting on Thursday.

British officials demanded at a meeting with Russias charge daffaires that those responsible for the poisoning of the Skripals were brought to justice.

(Sputnik/NAN)
Burundis government has banned three United Nations human rights experts from entering the East African state, according to a letter released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Wednesday.

It is the latest missive in a row between Burundi and the UN after the UN Commission of Inquiry on Burundi said last week it had uncovered evidence of crimes against humanity.

In a report for the UN Human Rights Council, the inquiry found proof of summary executions, arbitrary detentions, torture, sexual violence and forced disappearances in 2017 and 2018.

Burundis government said in a letter addressed to three of the reports authors  Doudou Diene, Lucy Asuagbor and Francoise Hampson  that they have been declared persona non grata due to their defamatory and false report.

Burundi has been seized by civil unrest since early 2015, when President Pierre Nkurunziza announced he would seek a third term in office despite a two-term limit.

Nkurunzizas election victory in July 2015 unleashed a crisis that led to hundreds of killings and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of others.

NAN reports that deputy Human Rights Commissioner Kate Gilmore told the Council that her office could not deliver a promised report on human rights in Burundi because the government had not cooperated with the expert team, who were deployed in March and told their visas were cancelled in April.

It is a matter of concern that through its lack of cooperation Burundi has prevented implementation of this Councils resolution and the mandated work of the group of experts, she said.

Burundi has been gripped by violence since early 2015 when President Pierre Nkurunziza said he would seek a third term, widely seen as a breach of the constitution.

Subsequent clashes between security forces and rebels left hundreds dead and forced about half a million to flee, reviving memories of the 1994 genocide in neighbouring Rwanda, which has a similar ethnic mix.

Gilmore welcomed criticism of Burundi by European diplomats at the council, which she said showed the inappropriateness, the unacceptability of this paralysis.

Burundian Ambassador to the UN Renovat Tabu said the departure of the UN team had been spun to cast his government in a bad light.

Burundi regrets the way in which events have been twisted in order to imply there has not been full cooperation, he said.

Burundi is concerned by an unfair accusation which further entrenches the hostility which has been commonplace against Burundi for some time.

He said former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Al-Hussein had changed the U.N. teams mission, an irregularity which surprised Burundis migration services, who declined to extend the teams visas.

The agreement to send the experts to Burundi, based on a resolution submitted by the African group of countries at the Council in 2017, was widely seen as a diplomatic ploy to derail a more heavyweight Commission of Inquiry.(dpa/NAN)
South Sudans President Salva Kiir and rebel leader, Riek Machar, signed a peace agreement on Wednesday in the margins of a regional summit in Ethiopia.

South Sudan plunged into warfare two years after gaining independence from Sudan in 2011 when a political dispute between Messrs Kiir and Machar exploded into military confrontation.

A previous peace deal signed in 2015 fell apart a year later after clashes broke out between government forces and rebels, forcing Mr Machar to leave Juba.

The new agreement, mediated by Sudan, reinstates Mr Machar, a former vice-president, to his former role.

The U.S., Britain and Norway, known as the Troika which oversees peace efforts, welcomed the signature of the deal by Messrs Kiir, Machar and other groups.

We hope discussions will remain open to those, who are not yet convinced of the sustainability of this agreement, they said in a statement.

We must seize this broader regional momentum to secure peace for the people of South Sudan.

South Sudans civil war erupted in 2013, less than two years after it had gained independence from Sudan.

The war has uprooted a quarter of South Sudans 12 million population, ruined the countrys agriculture and battered its economy.

(Reuters/NAN)
The Nigerian government says it is cooperating with authorities in the United Kingdom (UK) to investigate outbreak of monkeypox, after two cases were discovered in the UK from patients with recent travel history from Nigeria.

In a statement on Wednesday by its Chief Executive Officer, Chikwe Ihekweazu, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said it is working with the UKs public health agency; Public Health England (PHE), and other partners in Nigeria in the investigation.

PHE reported that two people were diagnosed with monkeypox in Britain in apparently unrelated cases.

According to the report published on its website, PHE said both patients are believed to have contracted the disease in Nigeria before travelling to England, and were diagnosed days apart.

The first patients who is said to be a Nigerian national was diagnosed with the disease in Cornwall last week while the second case was first presented at Blackpool Victoria Hospital.

Both patients are however said to be receiving appropriate care at Royal Infectious University, an expert respiratory infectious disease centre.

The deputy director of the National Infection Service at PHE, Nick Phin, said We know that in September 2017 Nigeria experienced a large sustained outbreak of monkeypox and since then sporadic cases have continued to be reported.

It is likely that monkeypox continues to circulate in Nigeria and could, therefore, affect travellers who are returning from this part of the world.

However, it is very unusual to see two cases in such a relatively short space of time. We are working hard to contact individuals, including healthcare workers, that might have come into contact with the individual to provide information and health advice, he said.

Monkeypox is a virus that is spread primarily from animals to humans, with symptoms such as fever, headache, body pain, malaise, lymphadenopathy (enlargement of glands), sore throat and the typical generalized vesicular rash.

Since the re-emergence of disease in Nigeria in September 2017 till end of August this year, 262 suspected cases were reported from 26 states, with the highest number coming from states in the South-south region.

Of this figure, 113 have been confirmed in 16 states with seven deaths.

Mr Ihekweazu, however, said the NCDC has been working closely with states across the country to strengthen surveillance, detection and response to cases of Monkeypox.

He noted that a Technical Working Group coordinated by NCDC and comprising partners from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, World Health Organisation (WHO), UNICEF, US Centers for Disease Control (US CDC) and other agencies, meet weekly to ensure coordination.

He re-assured Nigerians of the agencys capacity to effectively diagnose and respond to cases of Monkeypox.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 12)  The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) chief is looking into requiring buildings in the province of Palawan to have solarized roofs.

"Bumaba na 'yung cost eh [The cost has gone down]. I'd rather require 'yung mga buildings in the future na may solar roof na lang," DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu said in the Senate budget deliberations of their department Wednesday.

Cimatu was responding to a question from Senator Sherwin Gatchalian asking if DMCI Power will be granted an environmental compliance certificate (ECC) for a 15-megawatt coal-fired power plant. DMCI Power has a power supply agreement with Palawan Electric Cooperative (PALECO), the island's electricity distributor.

The Palawan Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD) approved DMCI's clearance for the coal-power plant in 2014.

But the DENR chief said the ECC has not yet gone past the level of the DENR's Regional Director.

"Dini-discourage ko lang muna 'yung coal power plant doon [I am discouraging coal-power plants there], we can use other ways like wind and solar," he said.

Called the "Last Ecological Frontier of the Philippines," Palawan is also home to two UNESCO World Heritage Sites, namely Tubbataha Reefs Natural Marine Park and the Puerto Princesa Underground River.

"I support them for that. They should seek renewable energy, ang daming hangin diyan sa Palawan [there's so much air in Palawan]," said Senate Majority Floor Leader Migz Zubiri. "Maawa tayo sa Palawan. Last frontier na lang natin 'yun [Let's take care of Palawan, it's the last frontier']."

Senator JV Ejercito also called for the shift, but he added that government must address Palawan's power supply first.

"They have a very unstable supply," Ejercito said.

July 2018 data from the National Electrification Administration said that PALECO has energized 56 percent of the 1,380 sitios in Palawan.
It took three strenuous years for Kenny Black to finish his home in Ibeju Lekki, Lagos, but in a matter of hours, the bungalow was reduced to rubble.

On July 25, Skye Trustees Ltd, a subsidiary of Skye Bank Plc, led bulldozers and backhoes and scores of armed police officers into Glorious Villa Estate in Awoyaya, and tore down every building on the land measuring 200.184 hectares which housed over 200 homes.

Mr Black, a visually-impaired home-owner, said he bought a land in the estate in 2014 and moved in last February after completing his bungalow.

They demolished my house on Wednesday and beat me up despite being a blind man and didnt let me take anything out of my house neither did they let anybody take anything out of their house, Mr Black said.

My bungalow was a disabled friendly bungalow which I spent N28 million to build and my properties in that house cost over N6 million.

During a press conference in Lagos last week, Ike Nzetah, a lawyer to one of the homeowners in the estate, said though the land on which the buildings were erected had been earmarked for public use earlier by the administration of Buba Marwa, a former military governor of the state, it was never fully converted.

When Brigadier General Buba Marwa was the military governor of Lagos State, he took over the land for public use and he had apportioned about N2.5 million as compensation to pay to the owners but didnt use the land before he left, said Mr Nzetah.

When Bola Tinubu became governor of Lagos State, the land was given to EIB which is Skye Bank Trustee and the owners went to court to challenge the gift of land to Skye Bank Trustees by government. The matter went before Justice Abiru and some Omo onile went with EIB into a consent judgement with the understanding that N40 million will be paid to the original owners.

Omo onile is a popular Yoruba terminology used to describe persons who claim to be original owners of land.

Mr Nzetah said 52 families owned the land but six of them entered into the consent judgment without the consent of the other 46. And after they did not receive the agreed N40 million, they decided to sell the lands.

The matter was before Justice Mrs A. A Oyebanji and the Omo oniles won in 2014 with the judgement stating that the land belongs to them, the lawyer said.

The judge said due process was not followed and nullified Skye Banks Certificate of Ownership and till date Skye Bank did not appeal that judgement. The judge said they did not satisfy the provisions of section 286 of the land use act 1978 and nullified the C of O. The judgment was published in the Guardian when it was delivered.

A tale of agony

Mr Black said he bought his land from the Omo oniles after they had showed him a copy of the 2014 court judgement of 2014.

I bought my land June 2nd 2016, I built my house for three years, nobody disturbed me, said Mr Black.

I moved into my house February 2018 and lived there until June 13 when some people came with hundreds of policemen to the community that they are from Skye Bank, that they are the original owners of this land and they have come to take possession.

Mr Black said they were asked to get a lawyer and come to Lekki to regularise their house papers.

We were still in negotiations with them, he said.

Our lawyer even wrote them July 3rd and their posture was that we are still on the same page not until they came July 21 when we saw a removal order with notice of 72 hours written with marker.

Removal notice pasted round the estate

It was on a Saturday so we couldnt do anything until Monday when we went to the office of the Lagos State land grabbers and we were assured that such demolition was not possible as the notice was not issued by a court and we should relax which we did.

The bank returned on July 25, Mr Black said, with hundreds of Lagos State Task Force officials and six bulldozers and began to demolish their homes.

They did not allow anybody to leave the estate, about 50 policemen are at the estate gate, nobody goes out nobody goes (in) and the demolition lasted for four days, over 800 houses. As I speak to you, about six landlords in the estate are dead, one died Monday morning.

According to Mr Black, when they marched to Governor Akinwunmi Ambodes office at Alausa to protest the demolition of their homes, they did not get a favourable response.

The senior special adviser to the governor on civic engagement told us that none of us is up to 60 yet so we should go and start all over again because there is no court we will take it to and win.

Where will a blind man like myself start from? Since over a month after the demolition now, I have been struggling to get even a room apartment to put my family but I have been unable to achieve this, we are now living as refugees, hanging around houses of families and friends after the demolition.

The chairman of the estates community development association, Ika Willy, said he had to ask his two daughters to stay behind at their boarding school because they no longer have a home.

My wife and I are living like refugees after the demolition so coming home will add to my problems so I had to force them to spend the holiday in school.

Skyes position

When contacted, a member of the legal department of Skye Trustee Ltd, Akin Oni, told PREMIUM TIMES that they only asked their lawyers to repossess the land with a valid court order.

Mr Oni added that their position on the matter had been uploaded on the firms website for the public.

The statement on the website reads, STL Trustees has explained that the July 24 and 25, 2018 execution of the judgment on the property measuring 200.184 hectares situated at Awoyaya Area, along the Lekki-Epe Expressway, Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Area of Lagos State, was in compliance with the Judgments of the Courts obtained in Suit Nos. LD/1911/04 and LD/420LMW/2015.

Building prior to demolition

The firm said prior to the demolition, it gave a one month notice to the trespassers to vacate the property whilst also giving an opportunity to those who had purchased from some fraudulent indigenes to enter into negotiations with its solicitors for ratification and regularization of their purchase.

This notice period regrettably elapsed without STL or its solicitors receiving any offers for regularization from any of the illegal occupants further to which it commenced execution on the said property, the statement added.
The minister of transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, who is accused of manipulating foreign scholarships offered by a government contractor, has defended the selection process that benefited only people nominated by him and other senior officials.

In his first public comments on the matter since PREMIUM TIMES exposed the scandal in July, Mr Amaechi dismissed widespread criticisms that trailed the process, saying what mattered was that Nigerians were given the opportunity to be trained in China, not how they were selected.

The scholarships were offered by a Chinese construction firm, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation. The government has been criticised for accepting favours from a contractor.

The scholarship involved the sponsorship of over 40 Nigerian undergraduate students in Chinese universities to study railway engineering. The company said it was part of its social corporate responsibilities.

Rather than make the scholarship available to all eligible Nigerian youth, the scholarship slots were shared among wards of select government ministers and other top public officials.

The top officials, who benefitted were identified in a document used by the construction firm, CCECC, to permit selected candidates to participate in the scholarship interview.

At a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday, Mr Amaechi said Nigerians should not question the selection of candidates, but should be happy to have people trained to take over from CCECC.

The minister initially declined to comment on the controversy, but after answering other questions journalists asked him, he said the answer to this thing is simple, CCECC has granted us scholarship, how they got their candidates, ask them. Ive seen the first batch in China. Instead of asking how we chose the candidates, they should ask us about the policy.

The policy is that when they come they build roads. Rivers state government house is still being maintained by Julius Berger, is that good? Its something that any Nigerian should be able to maintain.

To maintain that place, Julius Berger comes every day and they are paid every month. The month you dont pay them, you wont see them.

If you allow the railway people go without them providing scholarship, when they finish and they go, when the train breaks down you will see that the workers would be sweating but we are very sure that at the end of the day before the Chinese leaves they must have trained our men to take over this thing and that is what is critical not how we chose the candidates, he said.

President Muhammadu Buhari in China with transport minister Rotimi Amaechi alongside scholarship students of the Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC). [PHOTO CREDIT: Official twitter handle of the presidency]

I think the CCECC complied with the law, they did not break any law.

Protest

On June 21, scores of young Nigerians, who travelled long distances from all over the country, stormed the CCECC headquarters to participate in the scholarship interview after being told the previous day at the Ministry of Transport that no such opportunities exist.

The Chinese firm was conducting interviews for about 42 shortlisted applicants in the scholarship scheme that would see successful candidates train as railway engineers in China.

On getting there, the applicants found that without a signed letter by a minister or permanent secretary, they were not be allowed to participate in the interview.

Only candidates who had been nominated by top officials were allowed for the interview.

In July, PREMIUM TIMES learnt that Independent Corruption Practices Commission (ICPC) commenced investigations into the allegations.

The CCECC also told the investigators that the names of students finally selected had been submitted to the Chinese Embassy for processing, sources in the ICPC told PREMIUM TIMES.

They also told the investigators they had concluded the selection process from the list which they claimed they got from the transport ministry.

Last week, PREMIUM TIMES reported how President Muhammadu Buhari visited the first batch of the railway scholarship recipients in China in the course of the 7th Summit of the Forum on China  Africa Cooperation (FOCAC 2018).

Although this newspaper could not establish that the youth currently on scholarship in China were the same connected youth who got their scholarships through the controversial process, the ICPC was told by CCECC officials that only the candidates nominated by ministers and other top officials of the Buhari administration were allowed to take part in the selection interview and made the final list.

Applicants for the CCECC scholarship.

The controversial railway scholarship is, however, not the only one being provided by the CCECC.

Shortly after the scandal, the CCECC and Chinese government offered more scholarships on railway transportation to university students in the country.

One of such was the award of scholarships to 30 students from the Ahmadu Bello University.
President Muhammadu Buhari has submitted his nomination form to the All Progressives Congress (APC) to seek reelection in the 2019 general elections.

The president who arrived the national secretariat of the party on Wednesday at about 3:45p.m, said he is seeking re-election to continue serving the people to the best of his ability.

I am here in person among friends and colleagues to put my name forward to my party the All Progressive Congress, seeking nomination to contest the presidential election next year.

Fellow party members I am taking this step with all humility , sense of responsibility and I am the unquestionable desire to serve the interest of all Nigerians Im really grateful to dozens of organsiations who came together and contributed funds to purchase these forms. I assure them and the rest of Nigerians that if nominated and if elected I shall continue to serve you to the best of my ability.

The president appealed to party members to continue to work towards the success of the party in the general election and not allow those who he said brought the country to its knee to get back there.

Let me today appeal to party members not to be complacent; but to prepare, strategise and win 2019 election. We must not allow those who brought the country to its knees from 1999 to 2015 to come and take us back.
The Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, on Wednesday said reports of a rift between him and national leader of All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, were untrue.

Mr Ambode made the clarification in a statement signed by his chief press secretary, Habib Aruna, in Lagos.

Both the social and traditional media have been awash with news of a major rift between Messrs Tinubu and Ambode over alleged disagreement on the second term bid of the governor.

Mr Aruna quoted Mr Ambode as telling party faithful in Epe during the election of delegates for the presidential primary election and national convention of the party that the reports indicating a fight between him and Mr Tinubu were out of place, and there was no fight anywhere.

I want you to know that there is no fight anywhere. The national leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and my good self we are not in any fight, we are not in any controversy.

We are praying to God that the best is yet to come and the best will be what Lagos State deserves and I want you to just continue with your prayers that at this time, God will show His hand and make sure that everything that is of blessing to Lagos State and also blessing of Epe will come to pass, Mr Ambode was quoted as saying.

The governor commended leaders and party faithful who contributed to the success of the delegates election in Epe, saying APC remained the party to beat in Lagos and Nigeria.

We have just concluded our delegates election in Epe local government and by consensus, we have picked our three delegates that will be going to the national convention come October 6 for the presidential direct primaries and the convention for all other people.

I want to say a very big thank you to all our delegates that are present here; I want to say a big thank you to all our leaders that have also supported us to make sure that this event has come and is done very successfully.

I want to reiterate once again that our party, All Progressives Congress (APC) remains the party to beat; we are the party at the national level and we are going to remain the party in the state, the governor said.

According to the statement, the event was held at APCs secretariat in Aiyetoro, Epe, with three national delegates from Epe Division  Shakiru Seriki (Bamu), Bode Alausa and Olayinka Oladunjoye, the state commissioner for commerce, industry and cooperatives, elected.

The division comprises one local government area (Epe) and two local council development areas (Eredo and Ikosi-Ejirin).

The party leaders and faithful in the division, according to the statement, also took turn to affirm their support for the second term bid of the governor.

Those listed include the chairman of Epe local government, Adedoyin Adesanya; chairman of Eredo LCDA, Saliu Adeniyi; chairman of Ikosi-Ejirin LCDA, Samson Onanuga and party chairman in Epe local government, Kehinde Adeniyi.

Also included are the state welfare officer, Abiodun Bankole; former member of House of Representatives representing Epe, Bola Gbabijo and member of Lagos State House of Assembly representing Epe Constituency II, Segun Olulade.

The APC women leader in Epe, Iyabo Adegboyega; LGA party secretary, S.A Owolomose; youth leader, Abdul Ibrahim; Bode Alausa, Akin Oladipupo, among others, were also listed among the party faithful at the event.
Soldiers on Wednesday evening battled Boko Haram fighters who attacked a military location, an official has said.

The battle occurred in Damasak, Borno State and was on at about 7:00 p.m.

The spokesperson of the Nigerian Army, Texas Chukwu, confirmed the battle in a short message circulated by other officials including former army spokesperson Sani Usman, on his Facebook page.

Troops of 145 Bn in Damasak, Borno State are engaging Boko Haram Terrorists who came to attack their location at about 6 p.m. this evening. Fierce battle on going right now. The troops are dealing with the terrorists, Mr Chukwu, a brigadier general, said.

More details later
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Plateau state has said that former Gov. Joshua Dariyes purchase of senatorial nomination form from the prison is not exceptional and that he is not the first to do so.

A former governor of Plateau State and current senator representing Plateau Central, Mr Dariye, is set to submit his purchased senatorial nomination form, the party said.

Mr Dariye was sentenced to 16 years imprisonment earlier this year by Justice Adebukola Banjoko of the Federal High Court Abuja after being found guilty of diverting N1.162 billion state ecological founds when he was governor between 1999 and 2007.

Bashir Sati, the state secretary of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), confirmed to PREMIUM TIMES on Wednesday that the convict has already bought his senatorial nomination form and is submitting it on Thursday this week being the deadline for submission of nomination forms under the APC.

He said Mr Dariyes case is (not) new, citing that a former deputy governor of Osun State, Iyiola Omisore, who won senatorial election in 2003 while in jail for alleged murder.

The true position here is that, senator Dariye has bought the form and I have every course to believe that he has bought the form. Dariye is not the only person that was behind the bar and purchased electoral form to seek elective position, he said.

I could remember vividly well that Omisore, was in prison, contested and won senatorial election. I dont see Dariyes case as an exceptional one. He has purchased the form and will submit it on Thursday, Mr Sati said.

The confirmation of the purchase and submission of Mr Dariyes nomination form came one day after the acting national secretary of APC, Yekini Nabena, said that the Nigerian and APC laws do not permit people to contest from prison.

Both Nigerian law and APC law prohibited election of person found guilty of criminal offences. Somebody who has been convicted does not has right to contest on our platform.

I have gone to the list of Plateau State. I did not see his name but if somebody has managed to collect the form for him, he will be screened out, Mr Nabena said.

Mr Dariye was elected in 2015 under the platform of opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) but decamped to the ruling APC in 2017.
The governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, has written to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), offering himself for probe on October 16.

Mr Fayose had in 2016 told the commission to keep their gun powder dry and wait

till the end of his tenure.

Several actions like the freezing of Mr Fayoses bank accounts indicate the commissions desire to probe the governor.

Mr Fayose is an outspoke critic of President Muhammad Buhari.

The immunity which he enjoyed under Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution as sitting governor of Ekiti State will elapse in October, after which he says the commission can now probe him.

I wish to inform you that my term of office pursuant to which I enjoy immunity against investigation and prosecution under the above provision shall lapse by effusion of time on Monday, October 15, 2018, the governor wrote.

As a responsible citizen of our great country, who believes in the rule of law, I wish to inform you of my decision to make myself available on your office on Tuesday, 16th October 2018 at 1pm to clarify issues or answer questions on issues within his knowledge.

The letter dated September 10, 2018, was titled Notification of my decision to make myself available in your office to clarify issue(s) or answer questions on issues within my knowledge.

The governors special assistant on public communications and new media, Lere Olayinka, in a statement on Wednesday said the letter was received at the EFCC office in Abuja on Tuesday.

The governor noted that the EFCC was at liberty to pick another convenient date if October 16 was not suitable.

Kindly confirm the suitability of the above date or indicate by return, the Commissions convenient date.

Just last week, the Ekiti State governor-elect, Kayode Fayemi, said he has left Mr Fayose to God to judge after leaving office.

He said he would accept whatever liability and assets left behind by the outgoing government, saying he believed government is a continuum, and that he was coming to office to simply make a difference.

The News Agency of Nigeria, (NAN) reports that Mr Fayemi spoke while receiving the report of the transition committee constituted to interface with the outgoing administration to facilitate smooth change of government.

He said he was leaving the outgoing governor and his regime to God over the alleged mismanagement of state funds and resources.

NAN reported that the governor-elect was reacting to the latest debt figure released by the Debt Management Office (DMO) which revealed that the debt profile increased from N18 billion during Fayemis era to N117 billion, under Mr Fayoses watch.

The committee had told Mr Fayemi that the humongous debt was outside arrears of salaries, pensions, gratuities and money owed retirees and contractors by the Fayose administration.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has warned politicians against reckless spending and bribery as the 2019 general elections draw close.

Acting chairman of the commission, Ibrahim Magu, who spoke at an interaction with journalists on Wednesday, said the commission will monitor banks for suspicious transactions in the build up to the elections.

The EFFC, he said, is very seriously pursuing this issue, adding that the commission will partner with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to address the rising cases of vote-buying.

Mr Magu said investigation of election financing, which started with the investigation of the 2015 election funding, was aimed at disinfecting the electoral process.

He said excessive use of money during elections leads to gross financial abuse and perversion of the electoral process and enthrone bad leadership which in turn creates corruption and bad governance.

The EFCC boss said the commission will henceforth bring banks and other collaborators to book.

We will monitor how monies are withdrawn from the banks. We will start this from a month or two from the general elections, for unusual withdrawal of cash he said.

He said movement of large amount of cash contravenes provisions of the Money Laundering Act.

Mr Magu revealed techniques bankers use to hide huge withdrawals by splitting transactions into bits of N10 Million threshold.

They will do it in one day but they will put different dates ti make it three to four days but they actually do it in one day he said.

The EFCCs investigation of election financing after the 2015, he said, was a pioneering effort that will now make politicians more circumspect.

He said investigation into election spending was one of the areas touched by the commission that were otherwise thought impossible.

Mr Magu mentioned the other areas as investigation of military expenditure and probing of some senior lawyers and judges.

On the security probe, the EFCC chairman said before now, military budgets were no-go areas that unfortunately had hemorrhaged our country badly.

He said with the $2.1 billion Dasukigate investigation, numerous senior military officers and their civilian accomplices were investigated and tried.

Mr Magu added that investigation of corruption in the Judiciary by the EFCC has helped in building public confidence again in our Judiciary.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have expressed divergent views on separate reports of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and global firm, HSBC, on the 2019 elections..

The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the research unit of The Economist Magazine, in its report, predicted that the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the upcoming 2019 presidential election as a second term for President Muhammadu Buhari would greatly stunt the economic development of the country, among other issues noted.

The APC, in a statement by its publicity secretary, Yekini Nabena, said the content of the reports are nothing but the usual doomsday prophesies about the Nigerian nation, which have proven to be false.

The party therefore urged Nigerians to disregard these expert analysis, seeing several analysis and projections had failed.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) urge Nigerians to once again regard these expert analysis and prophesies for what they are and dismiss them accordingly. We should remember similar prophesies and analysis about the political situation in Nigeria made some years back by similar Western institutions.

It was prophesied that the Nigerian federation would collapse in 2015, resulting in some ethnic nationalities going their separate ways. Here we are, nearly four years after the doomsday prophesy but the Nigerian federation rather than collapse is waxing stronger, with the President Buhari administration striving to unite the country and consolidate positively on the strength of our diversity.

The party, questioning why only negative analysis is being given about the nation, said, Are they blind to all the gains and positive impact the APC administration is making in relation to ongoing economic reforms, fight against corruption, infrastructure drive, counter-insurgency and the campaign to repair of our badly-eroded value system in the country?

Compared to past administrations when public revenue was stolen, the quantum leap in terms of revenue accrual to the Nigerian treasury by institutions like Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Nigeria Customs Service mean nothing to these experts.

All the cash and property recoveries from corrupt public officials of the immediate-past administration by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) are equally of no significance to these experts.

The party said it believes Nigerians can see the difference between the two administration and know which is rebuilding and repositioning the country.

In any case, if the economy, security and social life of Nigerians will not improve in the so-called emerging post-Buhari administration in 2019, what is the import of this prophesy? Compared to past administrations which left the country in ruins, Nigerians are acutely aware of which administration is rebuilding and repositioning the country.

The party called on the organisations and experts to focus on the issues of their own countries and economy said physician heal thyself.

We advise these economic experts to focus on their pressing domestic issues and ponder for example on the important question of the role Britain will play in the world, post Brexit. We advise the economic physicians to heal themselves first before looking out for other patients who have not come to them for consultation.

In its reaction, the main opposition party, PDP, praised the contents of the reports.

The PDP said the independent reports by The Economist, as well as that of the renowned multinational body, HSBC that the PDP will defeat President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2019 general elections confirms our position that Nigerians across board have rejected President Buhari ahead of the 2019 presidential election.

The party said the findings by the two organisations that President Buhari stands no chance in the general elections and that his winning portends grave danger for our nation, is completely in tandem with the stand of majority of Nigerians, irrespective of their current political party affiliations, ethnicity or creed.

The party notes that in line with the reports, Nigerians are fed up with President Buhari mainly due to the incompetence and unprecedented corruption in his presidency, resulting in the ruining of our once robust economy, with attendant mass job loss, ravaging hunger, starvation and disease, as well as escalated insecurity, with documented mass killings, violation of human rights and daily bloodletting in various parts of our country, a development that has put the unity of our great country at risk.

Moreover, the finding by the two bodies that a second term for President Buhari will worsen our nations economic and security woes is a position also held by Nigerians across board, hence their determination to rally on the platform of the repositioned PDP, with our array of very popular Presidential aspirants, to vote him out in 2019.

The world now knows the major reason the Buhari-led APC administration has resorted to harassment and vicious attacks on the opposition, using trumped-up charges; the various assaults on the institution of the Judiciary and the National Assembly, as well as unrelenting machination to compromise the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to rig the elections.

This is the reason President Buhari rejected the amendment to the Electoral Act passed by the National Assembly, which practically checks all APCs rigging strategies ahead of the 2019 general elections and for which Nigerians have approved that the legislators should override his veto.

The fear of imminent defeat is the reason President Buhari is against the amendment that checked the use of underage voters, provided for online publication of voter register in addition to instant transmission of results from the polling to collation center, thus eliminating interferences and planned alteration of results by the APC.

Nigerians are already aware that this is why APC and INEC have been conniving to secretly create 30,000 illegal polling units in remote non-descript areas, as well as registration of compromised observers to validate their machinations.

Now that Mr. President is aware that his approval rating among Nigerians and across the world has hit the rocks despite the many choreographed endorsement stunts by his handlers, the PDP urges him to rein in his lackeys, bury the idea of rigging the elections and get ready to accept an inevitable defeat as Nigerians are not ready to be dragged into an unnecessary political crisis for any persons selfish ambition.
A 34-year-old man, Mayowa Olabiyi, was on Wednesday brought before an Ebute Meta Chief Magistrates Court in Lagos for allegedly hacking a man to death over N200.

Mr Olabiyi had appeared before the Chief Magistrate, O.O. Olatunji, on a two-count charge of conspiracy and murder.

His plea was not taken and was remanded at the Ikoyi Prison, Lagos for the next 30 days.

Mr Olatunji directed that the case file should be sent to the State Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for advice.

Earlier, police prosecutor, Oladele Adebayo, told the court that the accused committed the offences on August 26, at 6.30 p.m., at No. 23, Irepodun St., Shangisha, Magodo.

He alleged that the accused and two others now at large, had hacked Akeem Ajilogba, 23, with a matchet during a brawl over N200.

The offences, Adebayo noted, contravened Sections 223 and 233 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015 which stipulates death sentence for offenders.

The case has been adjourned to October 11 for the DPPs advice. (NAN)
The assistant commissioner of police in charge of Public Complaint Rapid Response Unit (PCRRU), Abayomi Shogunle, has revealed how the police retrieved N11.1 million as bribes collected within the last two years by police officers across the country

Mr Shogunle stated this in Osogbo during a sensitisation for police officers towards the states gubernatorial election scheduled for September 22.

He said the monies had been given back to the owners and that over 10 officers were dismissed based on bribery and other unprofessional conducts.

As a result of unprofessional conduct of officers, police authority had dismissed over 10 police officers within the last two years.

PREMIUM TIMES has exclusively reported cases of extortion perpetrated by the security operatives with some caught on video collecting bribes from motorists.

He also urged police officers to shun corruption as they would be sanctioned for such acts.

Speaking on the forthcoming elections, Mr Shogunle assured that efforts will be made to ensure that the process is free, fair and credible.

Police will arrest anyone who goes to polling unit with money on election day.

He said the police will ensure there is level playground for all aspirants.

The Nigerian Police is not supporting any political party, it is left for the people of Osun to choose who will be their (next) governor. The force will ensure that there is level clean ground for everybody to protect their votes, materials and (we will) ensure that there is no violence before, during and after the election.
A judge, Nnamdi Dimgba, in Abuja has rejected an appeal by Multichoice Nigeria against an interim order prohibiting any increase in its DStv or GOtv subscription rates.

Multichoice Nigeria had on August 24 filed an appeal against the order of the Federal High Court, Abuja stopping it from increasing the subscription rates to its cable television services. The order was given on August 20.

The restraining order was issued in respect of Suit No FHC/ABJ/CS/894/18 brought before the court by the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) in the light of the public outcry raised.

In his order, Mr Dimgba said the interim injunction restrains Multichoice Nigeria or its agents and representatives from continuing the implementation of any increase in subscription rates or price review policy imposing increased charges and costs on the consumers pending the determination of the motion on notice.

Besides, the court also restrained DSTV from further carrying on or continuing any conduct or activity which interferes with or has effect of circumventing the outcome of ongoing investigations by the CPC into the companys compliance or non-compliance with the February 16, 2016 order pending the determination of the motion on notice.

When the appeal was made, the CPC explained that the order stopping implementation of the new tariffs will subsist till the appeal has been heard and ruling given by the court.

This means that the subscription tariffs for Dstv and Gotv ought not to have increased but consumers have been paying the increased tariffs since August.

Under the new price regime, the company said the Premium package subscribers pay about 7.5 per cent more (about N15,800) from about N14,700 every month.

Also, their Compact Plus customers still pay N10,650, from N9,900; Compact bouquets, N6,800, from N6,300, while the family package was increased from N3,800 to N4,000, with Access from N1,900 to N2,000

On Monday, during the court hearing, the judge also refused the application by MultiChoice to adjourn the matter indefinitely.

When asked of the measures taken to ensure Multichoices compliance, CPC Director General Babatunde Irukera said CPC still holds the position that consumers should be paying the old tariff.

However, the councils understanding is that Multichoice is not complying with that order of court so thats why it was important for the court to agree to clarify the situation, he said.
A detachment of the police, army, navy and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps on Wednesday drove round the major streets of Umuahia in a show-of-force, ahead of the September 14 sit-at-home order issued by the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB).

The long motorcade which took off from Umuahia Central Police Station (CPS), drove through Garki to Ossah Road-Michael Okpara Square to Abia Tower (Expressway) and back to CPS through Bank Road-Afara-Umuahia (Nnamdi Kanus village) and Aba Road.

Addressing journalists at the end of the exercise, the commissioner of police in the state, Anthony Ogbizi, said that the security agencies would invoke the anti-terrorism law to deal with any attempt by IPOB to cause a breach of public peace in the state before, during and after September 14.

Mr Ogbizi said that the show-of-force was to demonstrate the collective resolve by the different security agencies to contain any attempt by the group to put the anti-terrorism law to test.

Our coming together is a signal of our resolve to confront any event that may rear its ugly head before, during and after Sept. 14.

IPOB has been proscribed by the Federal Government and there are many laws in place. The group should not dare the law because we shall apply the rule of engagement in dealing with it, he said. Mr Ogbizi said that the activities of the group in Abia in 2017 could have plunged the nation into a serious security crisis.

He said that it took the combined intervention of all the security agencies in the state to put the tension brought by the operations of the group under control.

The police boss said that the police command had recorded an incident in Aba where an improvised explosive device was used to attack some people.

He said that the incident was still being investigated and that the command was on the trail of those that produced the device.

He said that the security agencies were poised to ensure adequate security for lives and property and urged members of the public to go about their lawful businesses without fear of molestation. He advised parents, religious and community leaders to assist security agencies in discouraging their people from engaging in acts capable of threatening the prevailing peace in Abia.

The commander of the Nigerian Army, 14 Brigade Ohafia, Abubakar Ibrahim, said that Abia remained one of the safest states in the country.

Mr Ibrahim admonished residents to remain law-abiding.

Also, the two top security chiefs urged the security operatives deployed to maintain the peace to relate harmoniously with one another in the course of duty.
The main opposition party, PDP, has accused the presidency of round-tripping in the purchase of President Muhammadu Buharis nomination form.

Mr Buharis presidential nomination form of the governing party, APC, was bought by a relatively unknown group last week while the president was in China.

The group, NCAN, said its members contributed the N45 million used to purchase the form.

The form has been handed over to Mr Buhari who has filled it and submitted to the APC headquarters on Wednesday.

In its statement on Wednesday, however, the PDP said Mr Buharis failure to explain the registration status, membership and source of funding of the shadowy group exposes the charade in the latest failed endorsement stunt.

The opposition party was, however, silent on the fact that a separate group also bought one of its presidential aspirants, Atiku Abubakar, his own N12 million nomination form.

Read the PDPs full statement below.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the Buhari Presidency of round-tripping the N45 million claimed to have been contributed by a shadowy group to buy the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential nomination form for President Muhammadu Buhari.

The party said President Buharis inability, as Mr. Integrity, to explain the registration status, membership and source of funding of the shadowy group exposes the charade in the latest failed endorsement stunt.

The PDP notes as laughable, that the Buhari Presidency does not realize that such stunts have become out-worn and cannot sway opinion in a country with citizens as enlightened as Nigerians.

Most Nigerians already know how some officials at the Buhari presidency, made up of corrupt individuals, racketeers and certificate forgers, hurriedly assembled the group and mobilised them with N45 million for the APC presidential nomination form, which was hiked to scare away other contestants.

How members of the group were settled for the stunt as well the issues and disagreements that arose from the deal are also known to many Nigerians.

What Mr. Presidents handlers are hiding from him is the fact that Nigerians do not believe the falsehood that a set of individuals, facing the challenges of abysmally low purchasing power, put together a wholesome N45m to buy him a form.

Nigerians are still waiting for him to make public the proof of registration, membership, list of individual contributors and amount contributed by these shadowy individual members.

We also challenge President Buhari to make public the official correspondences of the 12 million members of the Rice Farmers Association, members of the Fertilizer Producers Association and the members of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association who, he claimed, offered to buy nomination form for him.

Moreover, the PDP described as unpresidential, the outbursts credited to President Buhari against those who left the APC noting that such was an unwarranted attack on innocent Nigerians whose only offence is that they chose to abandon his derelict sinking ship, APC.

Finally, the PDP counsels President Buhari to forget the idea of painting himself as a lover of youths and asking for funds from them, as his lazy youth comment and talking down on young persons not to contest against him in the 2019 election, amply convey his disdain for the Nigerian youths.
A former president, Goodluck Jonathan, has questioned the psychological state of the national chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole.

Mr Jonathan was reacting to an allegation by Mr Oshiomhole that vote-buying was started by the former president.

Vote-buying is the practice of paying voters to compel them to vote for particular candidates during an election. This has become a hot-button issue ahead of the 2019 general elections.

PREMIUM TIMES reported cases of vote buying in the Ekiti election. The two major parties in the election, APC and PDP, were culpable in it with videos showing how money was given the electorate to influence their votes.

Already, a civic group. SERAP has dragged the electoral commission, INEC to court over the commissions failure to do something about the allegations.

In a bid to absolve his party from the allegations, Mr Oshomole in an interview on Channels Television on Monday blamed Jonathan, for introducing vote-buying into Nigerian politics during the 2015 general elections where he churned out naira and dollars.

In Edo State where I participated, I was still governor at the time, they churned out not just naira, they churned out dollars. President Jonathan started this massive vote-buying in Nigeria and the media must playback and do proper interview and investigation to discover the origin of vote-buying, the party leader said in the interview reported by several other media.

But in a statement Wednesday by his media aide, Ikechukwu Eze, the former president described the former Edo State Governors remark as misleading falsehood.

He rather accused him (Oshomole) of introducing the vote buying trend during his stint as Edo governor in 2016.

He described the APC chairman as someone suffering from multiple personality syndrome and has a Jekyll and Hyde Schizophrenia citing Oshiomholes recent flip-flops which he said may not be unconnected with the pressure he is going through in his new office.

It appears that Mr Oshiomholes psychological strain may have reached boiling point.

His recent flip-flops where he praised Governor Samuel Ortom and Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso one day only to denounce them the very next day, is enough evidence of his fragile psychological state. Not only is he content on squabbling with members of the opposition, we note the self-destructive tendencies of Oshiomhole who is locked in a feud with members of his own party including the minister of labour, Chris Ngige, and a host of APC Governors.

He said vote-buying phenomenon became prominent during the 2016 Edo State governorship election, one year after he (Jonathan) left office as president.

The former president also noted that Mr Oshiomhole was one of those who praised him over the numerous credible elections his government conducted including the 2011 and 2015 general elections as well as Anambra, Ekiti, Ondo and Edo gubernatorial elections.

On the vexatious issue of vote-buying, which has unfortunately found its way into our election lexicon, this is what we know: It is obvious that the shameful development in our democratic experience became very glaring during the 2016 gubernatorial elections in Edo State; an exercise that took place more than one year after President Jonathan had left office.

It is therefore disingenuous for any politician or group to link the former President with the anomaly, no matter how they want to stretch the now-failing blame game.

While in office as president between 2010 and 2015, Jonathan conducted many elections including the 2011 and 2015 general elections, and many off-season gubernatorial and parliamentary elections in some States like Anambra, Ekiti, Ondo and Edo; and not for once did the issue of vote buying come up in the assessment of those elections.

It is instructive that in each case, the former president was given a clean bill, with both local and international observers commending him for having supervised a credible and transparent process.

One of those who gave the former president a clean bill of health, was Mr Oshiomhole himself who on July 16, 2012, said: What the Edo election has confirmed is that when the President and Commander-in-Chief puts the country first and he conducts himself as a statesman not just as a party leader, credible elections are possible.

When you juxtapose the above statement with Mr Oshiomholes current statement, it becomes obvious that the APC Chairman is suffering from multiple personality syndrome and has a Jekyll and Hyde schizophrenia, Mr Jonathan said.

It may be that Mr. Oshiomholes false accusations against Dr. Jonathan stem from his own guilty conscience arising from the unenviable behaviour he exhibited during the September 2016 gubernatorial election in his state, when his bid to anoint his successor pushed him into desperate measures and a win-at-all-cost mentality that introduced flagrant vote merchandising in our polity, thereby making Edo State the clear starting point of that cankerworm.

After observing the Edo 2016 gubernatorial election, the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG) a coalition of over 400 civil society organisations spread across the country, said the following about the exercise: The most frequent reported incidents (of electoral irregularities) are vote buying/voter bribery. The trend was later to spread to Ondo, Anambra and Ekiti States governorship elections, all taking place after Jonathan had left office as President.

What also changed was that Oshiomholes emergence as the national chairman of APC and the burden of delivering results to his party, has pushed him into exporting and escalating this vote buying dexterity to other states, as recently witnessed in Ekiti governorship poll.

The fact is that inducement as a tool in the hands of politicians is an old malaise that no Nigerian can be proud of. It is bad enough that this has been allowed to fester and morph into the ugly trend that is today called vote buying. Given this circumstance, you would expect a statesman of Oshiomholes standing to offer perspectives on how to solve this problem that is already making our country an object of scorn in the eyes of the international community.

The ex-president while urging Mr Oshiomhole to shun the blame game, also chided the APC-led government.

That Oshiomhole only resorted to blame game rather than offer any useful suggestions to the election management bodies on how to solve this shameful problem, in the cited television interview, is a sad commentary on the quality and character of todays political leaders. A government that continues to blame its predecessor rather than show its scorecard, less than one year to the end of its four-year tenure, is only giving the impression that it is already at its wits end, he added.
Suspected robbers have burgled the home of Leah Sharibu, the schoolgirl abducted by Boko Haram in February, her father said.

Leah was abducted alongside over a hundred others, but while her peers were later released following the governments intervention, she was denied freedom for refusing to renounce her Christian faith.

Her father, Sharibu Nathan, told PREMIUM TIMES the familys home in Dapchi, Yobe state, was attacked by robbers. But he said the attack was not a big deal.

Of course, our house was invaded on Monday by robbers who looted some of our belongings, but it was not a big deal, he said.

If I was the one first contacted, I wouldnt have made any issue out of it.

No one was hurt during the invasion. They only grabbed our food supply and our small power generator, he said.

Earlier reports said Mrs Sharibu, Leahs mother, was not at home on Monday morning when their house was attacked.

She however raised the alarm when she returned after dropping her son in school and found out that her house had been burgled.

Mr. Shuaibu said their loss was nothing compared to what troubles them, apparently referring to her daughters continued captivity.

But he pointed out that it was only their house that was burgled in the neighbourhood.

We were the only one whose house was burgled in our street, he said.

In August, Leahs photograph and her recorded voice was released by her captors in which she was heard calling on the Nigerian government to come to her rescue.

It is 207 days today since Leah and her other released schoolmates were taken to captivity.
A former Sokoto State governor, Attahiru Bafarawa, has criticised the recent trend by some groups who purchase nomination and expression of interest forms for political aspirants.

President Muhammadu Buhari; Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai; Kano State Governor, Umar Ganduje and an ex-vice president, Atiku Abubakar are some of the aspirants who have had their forms bought for them by groups across the nation.

According to the PUNCH Newspaper, Mr Bafarawa flayed this trend in Benin on Wednesday during his meet-the-delegates tour ahead of the partys primaries.

Mr Bafarawa is among about a dozen other aspirants running for the Peoples Democratic Party presidential ticket.

Those running with Mr Bafarawa include Mr Abubakar; former governor of Kano, Rabiu Kwankwaso; former Senate President David Mark; a senator for Plateau North Senatorial District, Jonah Jang and governors Aminu Tambual and Ibrahim Dankwambo of Sokoto and Gombe states respectively.

Mr Bafarawa also cautioned leaders to stop using government offices to misguide and manipulate Nigerians, particularly the electorate.

According to the report, Mr Bafarawa said that it was misleading for such leaders to misinform Nigerians about their financial status, with respect to the purchase of party nomination forms.

The aspirant further said such deceit was wrong as it puts the burden of purchasing such forms on the ordinary Nigerians.

Mr Bafarawa also pointed out that the large number of aspirants jostling for the ticket of the party showed that the party was growing.

He said the PDP was committed to rescuing Nigeria from the APC adding that the party was united and committed to the common goal of the ordinary man.

If I did not clinch the PDP presidential ticket, as a democrat with a vision and mission, I would offer my services to whoever gets the ticket, Mr Bafarawa added.
Another flood has ravaged some FCT communities including Kuruduma and Kobi, killing three persons and destroying houses.

The flood, which followed the heavy downpour that started around 1 p.m. on Monday, inflicted pains and sorrow on residents of the communities who lived along the water channels.

Addressing journalists at Kurudu community on Tuesday in Abuja, a witness, Ezekiel Kacha, said that two children were swept away in Kuruduma community.

Mr Kacha said that a young man in his late 20s and one Uche were carried away by the flood when they were struggling to save properties at Kobi village.

One of the victims who preferred anonymity, narated how Uche struggled for survival but was overpowered by the flood.

He also said he escaped death by the whisker, because his own house was already flooded, adding that he was rescued by good spirited youth who braved the flood.

The source further explained that the youth came through the back of the house, broke the windows to pull him out.

I saw Uche, because his three bedroom flat, completely erased by the flood is opposite my own.

Another victim, Sarah Zakka, who was struggling to scoop water out of her medicine store, said the flood took them unaware, but, however, expressed gratitude that she survived it.

According to her, her poultry was completely washed away with all the birds, goats and pigs.

Confirming the incident, the FCT Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) spokesperson, Emeka Iwuagwu, said that the agency had recovered one corpse after several hours of search through the water channels.

Mr Iwuagwu also added that about three persons were rescued alive, immediately they received distressed calls and rushed to the communities.

(NAN)
The Comptroller-General, Federal Fire Service (FFS), Joseph Anebi, on Wednesday inaugurated the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Fire Station in the FCT.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the new fire station was equipped with a 10,000-litre capacity dual purpose water tanker with firefighting capability, consumables and firefighters to man the station.

The ceremony took place at the NIS Headquarters in Sauka.

Mr Anebi in his remarks noted that the collaboration between the FFS and NIS had yielded a lot of positive results.

Todays event is quite unique as it epitomises the high point of collaboration between the Fire Service and fire sector stakeholders.

FFSs collaboration with NIS has yielded a fire post equipped with 10,000 litre capacity dual purpose water tender, 10,000 litre capacity water tanker with firefighting capability, firefighting consumables and a full complement of firefighters to man the stations.

Let it be known that firefighting is everybodys business.

All levels of government, private organisations, traditional and religious institutions and individuals respectively have roles to play in ensuring that fire outbreak and the mitigation of its effect in the event of its occurrence are reduced to the barest minimum, he said.

The FFS helmsman also expressed gratitude to President Muhammadu Buhari for his support.

The president amply demonstrated this role when he approved the budget for procurement of over 40 high calibre modern firefighting vehicles for the FFS in the 2016 budgetary allocation.

The firefighting trucks you are seeing here today came from the batch of equipment the FFS procured through the 2016 budgetary allocation.

Also, some of the procured equipment were deployed to the six geo-political zones to complement the State Governments firefighting efforts.

It is pertinent to state that provisions were made in 2017 and 2018 budgetary allocations for the procurement of more firefighting trucks, he said.

He also commended the Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, saying that his uncommon determination to transform the services had not gone unnoticed.

The NIS Controller-General, Muhammad Babandede, expressed gratitude to the FFS for the gesture, adding that he would ensure that the equipment was well utilised.

We look forward to greater collaboration with the FFS and assure you that when there is fire outbreak anywhere in Sauka or its environs, we will respond to the situation promptly, Mr Babandede said.
Speaker Yakubu Dogara has picked the nomination form to return to the House of Representatives on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, multiple sources familiar with the development have told PREMIUM TIMES.

The speaker picked the form on Wednesday, a day after dozens of his constituents travelled to Abuja from his home state of Bauchi.

Mr Dogara told his constituents during the rally, which held at his residence in Abuja Tuesday, that he all but threw in the towel on partisan politics  having served 12 years at the House, four out of which he spent as Speaker  but their overwhelming demand forced his hands to continue his lawmaking career.

Some people said they will retire us from politics, but we want to inform them that only God and the electorate can retire us, Mr Dogara said in an apparent reference to his state governor Mohammed Abubakar, with whom he had been locked in a fierce battle of wits over 2019 electioneering.

Mr Dogaras dispute with his APC state governor typifies similar patterns in many APC governed states including Kano, Ogun, Kaduna, Jigawa, Oyo and so on. In many of such states, the lawmakers defected from the governing party with the belief the governors would eventually have their way in the party. Only in few instances like in Kaduna did the federal lawmakers choose to remain in the APC and battle it out with the governor.

Mr Dogara has apparently now chosen to leave the APC.

The Bauchi politician was first elected to the parliament in 2007 as a member of the PDP, Nigerias ruling party from 1999-2015. He defected to the APC in 2014 as part of the new-PDP bloc that revolted ahead of the 2015 elections.

The loss of the new-PDP bloc to the APC was considered a major factor responsible for the defeat of President Goodluck Jonathan and the emergence of Muhammadu Buhari as the first opposition flag-bearer to defeat an incumbent in the countrys post-independence history.

Mr Dogara did not say through which political party he would run when he addressed his loyalists Tuesday, a development that tormented top APC politicians, according to one of them who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES Wednesday night.

He has picked up a PDP nomination form, a source close to the Speaker told PREMIUM TIMES Wednesday night. They are filling it now and should be submitting it by tomorrow (Thursday).

The disclosure was corroborated by another top PDP official at the Wadata House Wednesday night.

I can confirm it, he picked up the form already, the official said under anonymity to avoid offending Mr Dogara, whom they described as a new bride.

The low-key affair under which Mr Dogara obtained his nomination form from the PDP follows a consistent pattern of his political style.

The Speaker has long been identified as amongst those expected to leave the APC, but he declined to make this public unlike Senate President Bukola Saraki and a host of other top APC politicians who abandoned the ruling party in recent months.

Mr Dogara was amongst APC chieftains who moved to polarise the party in early July, alleging unbridled marginalisation and frustrated by a reconciliation effort that was characterised by distrust between all parties.

Although Mr Dogara did not formally announce his defection to the PDP, his acquisition of the partys form to run in his Bogoro/Dass/Tafawa Balewa Federal Constituency next February has effectively made him a chieftain of the opposition party.

The loss appears the biggest since the ruling party lost Mr Saraki to the PDP late July. The senate president is now in the race for the opposition partys presidential ticket in primaries scheduled for next month.

Kola Ologbondiyan, a spokesperson for the PDP, declined comments Wednesday night. A spokesperson for Mr Dogara did not immediately return calls for comments.
A senator, Jeremiah Useni, alongside nine others are seeking to govern Plateau State under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Mr Useni, representing Plateau South, was a lieutenant general in the Nigerian Army and minister of the Federal Capital Territory under the Sani Abacha military regime.

He was the deputy chairman of the All Nigeria Peoples Party in 2003 and was elected senator under the PDP in 2015.

The PDP has produced two governors in the state: between 1999 and 2015. Joshua Dariye, representing Plateau central was elected under the party in 1999 to 2007 after which Jonah Jang took over under the same party and served from 2007 to 2015.

Both Messrs Dariye and Jang were elected senators under the PDP in 2015 but Mr Dariye has since decamped to the ruling APC. Mr Dariye was sentenced to prison in June this year for syphoning the states ecological fund while he was governor.

Mr Jang, representing Plateau North, is also facing allegations of diverting N6 billion Plateau funds.

The PDP lost to the then opposition APC in 2015 general elections. Simon Lalong was then elected governor.

Meanwhile, Gwott Chocho, the state PDP organising secretary, disclosed that about 10 aspirants are jostling for the PDP governorship slot in the state.

Mr Chocho said this at the state party secretariat. He said all the aspirants have bought and submitted their nomination forms.

We have ten aspirants who will contest for the PDP governorship ticket. All of them have bought and returned their nomination forms to the party secretariat, he said.

The official said the party would not impose any candidate on the electorate. He assured there would be a level playing ground for all aspirants.

In 2015, Mr Jang was accused of imposing his tribesman, Edward Pwajok as PDP candidate. Mr Pwajok lost to Mr Lalong of the APC.

PDP will not impose candidates on the people of Plateau State. All candidates will have an equal chance of being selected as candidate because there would be internal democracy, Mr Chocho said.

He said the partys executive and aspirants would have an extensive meeting before the stipulated date for the primary.

Apart from Mr Useni, others interested in getting the partys ticket include Godfrey Bawa, Johnbull Shekarau, and Victor Lar.
The Depot Nigerian Army says it will conduct a final bush exercise tagged: Exercise Kungama for 77 Regular Recruits Intake from September 17 and September 30.

Adekunle Adeyemi-Akinyele, Acting Assistant Director, Army Public Relations of the Depot Nigerian Army, made the announcement in a statement on Wednesday in Zaria, Kaduna State.

The recruits of 77 Regular Intake would be having their final bush exercise, nick-named Exercise Kungama from Monday, 17 to Sunday 30, September, 2018 at Falgore Forest Base Camp along Tudun Wada-Falgore-Saminaka Road.

The exercise will involve firing of live ammunition using small arms and artillery guns. The authority has put in place safety precautions to ensure a safe and hitch-free exercise.

Residents around Tudun-Wada, Falgore village, Kwanar Dan Gora and Dakatsalle in both Kaduna and Kano States are advised to go about their daily activities without panic.

Mr Adeyemi-Akinyele, said however, that residents of the affected villages should stay away from the exercise areas. (NAN)
The leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom State have urged Nsima Ekere, the Managing Director, Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), to contest for the 2019 governorship election in the state.

The APC leaders, led by Don Etiebet, a former minister of petroleum, during a rally on Tuesday in Eket presented Mr Ekere with the party governorship form which he said was bought by him (Etiebet) and other leaders of the party in the state.

The rally was organised by the APC in Eket senatorial district to show solidarity with President Muhammadu Buharis ambition to run for a second term in office. It was also to officially receive Mr Ekere by the party in the district.

The party leaders who witnessed the presentation of the form to Mr Ekere were Godswill Akpabio, a senator; Umana Umana, the Managing Director, Oil and Gas Free Zones Authority; and Nelson Effiong, a senator.

All of us from the three senatorial districts in Akwa Ibom state bought the form for Nsima Ekere, and we are asking him to run for governor in 2019, said Mr Etiebet who is the chairman of the APC caucus in the state.

Mr Akpabio, a former governor of the state, said his senatorial district, Akwa Ibom North West, has already endorsed Mr Ekere for governor.

Mr Ekere, while receiving the form, said he was surprised by the decision of the party leaders.

I was told that this was going to be a reception, I am surprised that the elders of the party ambushed me, he said.

He thanked the party leaders and the people of the Eket Senatorial District for the love they have shown him.

The NDDC chief attacked Governor Udom Emmanuel, who is running for a second term in office under the platform of his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He told the crowd at the rally, When they want to run, get them to run on the basis of performance. We are here in this primary school because the (Eket) stadium has been under renovation. Do you need three years to renovate a stadium?

The Akwa Ibom state government is currently renovating the mini-stadium in Eket.

Here in Eket, there is no road, except the NDDC roads. This governor must stop deceiving Akwa Ibom people.

Weep no more. Go and get your PVC. Thats your power, thats your strength, Mr Ekere said.

Mr Ekere said he would stay for only one term in office as governor if elected.

Eme Ekaette, a former senator and wife of a former secretary to the Government of the Federation, Ufot Ekaette, spoke at the rally.

Mrs Ekaette, who is from Onna, where Governor Emmanuel comes from, formally announced her defection from the PDP to the APC.

The former deputy governor of the state, Valerie Ebe, also formally announced her defection from the PDP to the APC.
A former senator, Eme Ekaette, who represented Akwa Ibom South Senatorial District, and a former deputy governor of the state, Valerie Ebe, on Tuesday defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Others that defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC are retired Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Udom Ekpoudom and former Chairman of Eka Local Government, Mr Francis Ikpon.

The state Chairman of APC, Ini Okpobodi, received the defectors at a solidarity district rally and reception held for Obong Nsima Ekere at Eket.

Mr Okpobodi said at the occasion that the PDP had virtually collapsed in the state.

On behalf of Akwa Ibom APC, I stand as Chairman to receive the latest members of our party in their hundreds in the state.

They are here ably led by former Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom, Mrs Valerie Ebe and Distinguished Sen. Eme Ekaette.

Okpobodi handed over the defectors to the National Chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole, represented by the National Vice-Chairman of APC South-South, Mr Hillary Eta.

Mr Eta expressed delight at the defection of the former PDP chieftains into APC fold, describing the defectors as `wonderful Nigerians.

I am the luckiest National Vice Chairman in APC because I am superintending over the fast growing people in the party, he said.

He explained that APC started with one senator in the South-south but today the party has eight senators of Federal Republic of Nigeria in the South-south.

Not too long from now, I promise you, we are going to have a majority of senators of South-south from the APC in the National Assembly, Eta said.

He said that when President Buhari-led government took over power in 2015, things were difficult but today things are getting better.

It is not yet completely good but it is getting better, he added.

He urged Akwa Ibom people to vote massively for President Buhari during the 2019 general elections in the state, saying that the present administration was not corrupt.

I receive to this party, Her Excellency, Valerie Ebe and Sen. Eme Ekaette and others to APC in the state.

Mr Bee said, I saw that without changing to APC, we will be doing serious mistakes.

The former deputy governor said that the government of PDP in the state had not performed well.

We turn around and say if we are not members of the ruling party we will lose out at the national level.

We have been suffering in the PDP-led government in the state. So we say so long as we have APC government led by President Buhari we are fine, she said. (NAN)
The Bayelsa State Deputy Governor, John Jonah, on Wednesday expressed displeasure over the non-payment of the states share of the N1.6 billion approved by the federak government for states ravaged by flood disaster.

Mr Jonah, a retired rear admiral, stated this when a delegation of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), led by Umar Mohammed paid him a courtesy visit in Government House, Yenagoa.

He said Bayelsa is yet to receive its share of the fund, which was approved during one of the National Economic Council meetings in Abuja after the 2012 flood incident that affected most states in the country.

According to him, if Bayelsa State had access to the fund, it would have assisted the state government in putting certain measures in place to mitigate the effects of the perennial flood.

The deputy governor also advocated the need to decentralise flood intervention efforts to the local government headquarters as well as construct structures to accommodate displaced persons, rather than build official quarters in an emergency situation, which he noted, was one of the recommendations of the state governments committee on flood management.

The deputy governor, who bemoaned the 2012 flood, recalled the collaborative efforts of the state government, NEMA and military agencies and expressed the hope that the level of this years flood would not be as ravaging as that of the 2012.

Mr Jonah also stressed the need for the team to come up with a report that reflects the situation, particularly about the twin problems of flooding and erosion that have been devastating the state over the years.

Earlier, the team leader, Mr Muhammed, had said they were in Bayelsa to assess the level of preparedness of the state government in the impending flood.

Mr Mohammed also noted that they planned to take a tour of Bayelsa with the assistance of the officials of the State Emergency Management Agency to assess flood prone areas.
Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River has raised alarm over the increasing number of Cameroonian refugees in the state following the arm struggle and demand of Ambazonia Republic in Cameroon.

Mr Ayade said this when the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, paid him a courtesy visit in Calabar on Wednesday.

The Senate President was in Cross River to solicit delegates support for his presidential aspiration.

Mr Ayade told Mr Saraki that Cross River was currently facing security challenges with the discovery of 27 illegal routes used by the Cameroonians to gain access into the state.

With the recent Ambazonia crisis, a lot of tension has been created in the state. It is so bad that as of today, Cross River has over 4,000 Cameroonian refugees.

We have about seven camps where we are keeping these refugees and over 27 illegal routes where these Cameroonians gain access into the state.

It is so bad that the arm struggle has led to a situation where Cross River has become a recruitment ground for mercenary to prosecute the war in Cameroon, he said.

He commended Mr Saraki for coming out to seek for the office of the president, adding that he had the capacity to lead Nigeria to a greater height.

Earlier, Mr Saraki said that Nigeria needed a digital president abreast with the new world social order.

According to him, Nigeria desires a government that is private sector inclusive, and the time for Nigeria to witness a dynamic leadership is now.

I am in Cross River to solicit delegates support in the forthcoming presidential primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party.

I have the intellectual ability and capacity to rule Nigeria and that is why I am soliciting the support of all Nigeria to achieve this aim, he said.

(NAN)
Several politicians on Wednesday decamped from the All Progressive Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Delta State Government has said.

The exact number of defectors is unknown but Delta State officials said they were up to 5000.

Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and the PDP in the state, Kingsley Esiso, while receiving the defectors, said the PDP would have a smooth sail to victory in the 2019 general elections.

The decampees, who were from different local government areas that made up Delta Central Senatorial District peopled largely by the Urhobos, were received at a mega political rally held at the Ughelli Township Stadium, Ughelli North local government area of the state.

Notable politicians, including Morrison Ideh, Edward Ofomona, Ochuko Johnson, Reuben Oteri, and Samuel Umunedi, were among those who led their followers to join the PDP.

According to Governor Okowa, It is a thing of joy that those who we described as big fish in the opposition have come to join us in the PDP.

With these persons that have joined us today, it is a smooth victory for PDP in 2019, the governor continued, adding, we are with God, we are with the people, we are not deceiving people, we tell our people the truth, we are working with our people.

For the 2019 elections, we will hold on to our units and wards, we will not allow anybody to intimidate us, we will win the next election clearly with the massive support we have.

Governor Okowa commended the defectors, saying with the work his administration was doing in the state, those remaining in opposition political parties would join the PDP before the 2019 general elections.

The Chairman of the PDP, Mr. Esiso, said, Governor Okowa is working, we believe in the principle of rotation of the governorship seat, Governor Okowa will complete his eight years, we cannot be intimidated.

Nigerians are tired of APC government, they are tired of hunger, we must have a President of PDP extraction in Aso Rock in 2019, today is to tell the world that the people of Delta Central are fully in support of Governor Okowa in 2019, he said, emphasising, we cannot follow a political rascal that will come to us every four years to deceive us, we will never accept those who will go to Abuja to disgrace us.

Messrs Ideh, Ofomona, Johnson, Oteri, and Umunedi, in their separate speeches, disclosed that they were attracted to the PDP by the leadership style of Governor Okowas administration, especially in the delivery of democratic dividends across the state.

They said their movement to the PDP signaled the death of opposition political parties in the state.

They also pleaded with Deltans to rally round Governor Okowa to give him 100 per cent votes in the 2019 governorship election, in appreciation of good his leadership.
Some candidates in the forthcoming governorship election in Osun State have protested a recent comment by the All Progressive Congress national leader, Bola Tinubu, that he was richer than Osun.

The candidate of the Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) in the polls scheduled to hold on September 22, Alfred Adegoke, condemned the statement made by Mr Tinubu at the Ata Oja of Osogbo palace on Saturday.

Mr Adegoke in a statement signed by his campaign secretary, Wole Olubanji, said Mr Tinubus statement is clearly sickening, from the widely circulated video of his remarks at the Ata-Oja of Osogbo palace.

He also said the statement is a warning to the common people concerning the threat that big money-bags and godfathers pose to our democracy.

We are interested in how Tinubu, being a former public servant and a prominent member of the ruling party became richer than a state of the federation, considering his many business transactions with the governments of the ruling APC. We dare Tinubu to open his books to public scrutiny, or the EFCC to probe such declaration of outrageous wealth.

Mr Adegoke said Mr Tinubus claim that he did the state a favour by bringing Ghoyega Oyetola to liberate them is embarrassing.

Is Tinubu saying that over 4.2 million people of Osun State cannot govern themselves without the benevolence of the mighty moneybag?

Tinubu was economical with the truth in his assessment of Aregbesolas eight years of con-artistry in Osun. To say that Aregbesola has not disappointed Osun people (as Tinubu claimed), despite the phenomenon of unpaid salaries and mindless looting of Osuns funds, is a grotesque attempt at revising recent history. Osun people should, therefore, hold with a pinch of salt the vague promises Tinubu made on behalf of Gboyega Oyetola, the candidate of the APC in the forthcoming election. The APC is an open ditch in daylight that must be avoided with vigilance.

Also, reacting, the spokesman of Moshood Adeoti Campaign Organisation, Kayode Agbaje said: all eyes are currently on the state in view of the states strategic position in the political landscape of the South-west corner geopolitical zone of the country. The statement of Asiwaju has been noted and we wish he does not influence INEC with his acclaimed riches.

In his reaction, the spokesman of the Ademola Adeleke Campaign Organisation, Olawale Rasheed, said Mr Tinubu goofed.

He goofed. He is expected to say so after he had looted Lagos dry. The statement is not just an embarrassment to the king or to Osogbo but to the entire state. He trained Rauf (Aregbesola) and the state remains this way, so Aregbesola will be worse?

PREMIUM TIMES published a video where Mr Tinubu made the statement and a subsequent report on how residents in Osogbo protested over the comments.

But in a statement on Tuesday, to clarify his statement, Tunde Rahman, Mr Tinubus spokesman, said the APC chieftains comment was twisted.

This was intended to create bad blood among (between) Asiwaju Tinubu, the highly respected Ataoja and the good people of Osogbo whom the APC leader holds in very high esteem, Mr Rahman said.
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.




The Alzheimer's Association & AARP Community Resource Finder ( communityresourcefinder.org ) is a database of dementia and aging-related resources powered by Carelike  . The online tool makes it easy for people living with Alzheimer's and other dementias, caregivers and those involved in making care-related decisions to find local programs and services.

The updated database expands the previously available Alzheimer's Association Community Resource Finder which launched in 2011 and today receives 37,000 monthly visits. The new platform will extend the reach to even more people with care and support needs. It features additional resources from AARP, including webinars, programs and events. It also offers a new advanced search tool to help people find local resources based on specific needs, such as payment options and specialized services. In addition, users are now able to share search results with family and other care team members to help facilitate caregiving decisions, keeping everyone informed.

"The Alzheimer's Association is committed to family caregivers across the country and knows that access to local care and support services is critical," said Beth Kallmyer, Vice President, Care and Support, Alzheimer's Association. "Caregiving can be enormously stressful and even more so when you don't know where to turn to for help. The Alzheimer's Association & AARP Community Resource Finder will help connect caregivers to the information and support services they need."

"AARP has a long history of advocating for and supporting our nation's 40 million family caregivers by providing resources and services to help them. Every community offers different services, and caregivers often don't have the information or time to track down different options," said Nancy LeaMond, AARP Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy & Engagement Officer. "By working together, our organizations can help more people find the resources that they need right in their own communities."

The Alzheimer's Association & AARP Community Resource Finder allows caregivers to search available resources in their area by simply entering their zip code. The database includes listings for a wide range of services, including:

Housing options.

Care at home.

Medical services.

Legal services, including elder law attorneys.

Community services, such as adult day centers and transportation.

Alzheimer's Association information, programs and services.

AARP information, programs and services.

The Alzheimer's Association & AARP Community Resource Finder offers additional features to assist family caregivers, including tip sheets to help guide decisions regarding various providers and services, links to online communities, a glossary of terms for caregivers and state-by-state licensing information for residential, assisted living facilities and nursing homes.

About the Alzheimer's Association

The Alzheimer's Association is the leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer's care, support and research. Our mission is to eliminate Alzheimer's disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's disease. Visit www.alz.org or call 800.272.3900.

About AARP

AARP is the nation's largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With a nationwide presence and nearly 38 million members, AARP strengthens communities and advocates for what matters most to families: health security, financial stability and personal fulfillment. AARP also produces the nation's largest circulation publications: AARP The Magazine and AARP Bulletin. To learn more, visit www.aarp.org or follow @AARP and @AARPadvocates on social media.

About Carelike

Carelike is an information and technology company specializing in the collection and distribution of high-quality and current data about licensed professionals and senior-serving organizations (those that serve older individuals and their caregivers and families) in the United States .

. Carelike aggregates and maintains basic information about licensed senior-service providers from several hundred sources at the federal, state and local levels as well as through senior service membership organizations.

Basic information about non-licensed providers is collected from private sources.



Detailed information is collected when senior-service providers complete a free Provider Profile, outlining the care and services that they offer. To learn more, visit www.carelike.com/providers

SOURCE Alzheimer's Association; AARP

Related Links

http://www.alz.org


RIDGEFIELD, Conn., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Boehringer Ingelheim today announced results from a phase III study, confirming that Cyltezo is equivalent to Humira*, with no clinically meaningful differences in efficacy, safety and immunogenicity in people with moderate-to-severe chronic plaque psoriasis.1 The 16-week data was presented at the European Association of Dermatology and Venereology Annual Meeting (EADV 2018) in Paris.

"This phase III study builds on recent evidence that demonstrates Cyltezo is equivalent to Humira for the treatment of moderately-to-severely active rheumatoid arthritis," said Kay Tetzlaff, Vice President and Medical Head of Therapeutic Area Biosimilars at Boehringer Ingelheim. "These data reinforce the robust body of evidence that Boehringer Ingelheim is collecting to provide safe and effective treatment options that will contribute to the quality and sustainability of healthcare systems."

In the phase III study ( NCT 02850965 ), 318 patients between 18 and 78 years of age with moderate-to-severe chronic plaque psoriasis, who had not previously received treatment with one or more biologic, were randomized to receive Cyltezo or Humira at 80 mg on day 1, 40 mg on day 7 and 40 mg every other week thereafter.

The primary endpoint, which measured the proportion of patients achieving a 75 percent reduction in PASI (Psoriasis Area and Severity Index) at week 16, was met. The 24-week data from this study are expected to be presented next year.

These clinical data in the psoriasis population continue to build on the strong existing analytical, pharmacological, non-clinical similarity data as well as the clinically similar data in the rheumatoid arthritis population, which were used to support the approval of Cyltezo by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In addition, Boehringer Ingelheim is conducting a clinical trial to demonstrate the interchangeability between Cyltezo and Humira. This is the first study in the U.S. to investigate an interchangeability designation for an adalimumab biosimilar.

Citrate-free Cyltezo is not commercially available in the U.S. at this time. Boehringer Ingelheim is currently engaged in patent litigation with AbbVie in the U.S.

About Plaque Psoriasis

Plaque psoriasis is an autoimmune disease characterised by dry, red skin lesions which are covered in silver scales.2 Plaque psoriasis is the most common form of psoriasis, accounting for approximately 80 percent of all reported cases.3 Worldwide, plaque psoriasis affects approximately 125 million people.4 Common sites of the disease include elbows, knees, scalp and lower back, but affected areas can appear anywhere on the body.5

About Boehringer Ingelheim in Biologics and Biosimilars

Boehringer Ingelheim is one of the largest producers of biologic medicines in the world. As a pioneer in biologics with more than 35 years of experience, the company has manufactured more than 25 biologic medicines for global markets. This includes monoclonal antibodies in immunology and oncology, interferons, and other targeted medicines that are routinely used to treat many patients across a broad range of therapeutic areas. For more information about Boehringer Ingelheim's Biopharma and manufacturing capabilities, please click here https://www.boehringer-ingelheim.us/biopharma/biosimilars .

Boehringer Ingelheim further builds on its commitment to immunology to develop biosimilars as high quality, safe, and effective treatment options to patients with autoimmune diseases.

Boehringer Ingelheim has ongoing clinical trials for Cyltezo including VOLTAIRE-X ( NCT 03210259 ), an interchangeability study with the U.S.-marketed formulation of Humira, 40mg/0.8mL.

All public information on our clinical trials is available on: http://clinicaltrials.gov/ .

*Humira is a registered trademark of AbbVie Biotechnology Ltd.

About Cyltezo

Cyltezo is the first approved biosimilar for Boehringer Ingelheim in the U.S. and Europe for the treatment of multiple chronic inflammatory diseases including Rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and Crohn's disease. Cyltezo was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of multiple chronic inflammatory diseases in August 20176, and in Europe for the treatment of multiple chronic inflammatory diseases in adults and children in November 2017.7

Rheumatoid Arthritis: CYLTEZO is indicated, alone or in combination with methotrexate or other non-biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), for reducing signs and symptoms, inducing major clinical response, inhibiting the progression of structural damage, and improving physical function in adult patients with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis.

Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: CYLTEZO is indicated, alone or in combination with methotrexate, for reducing signs and symptoms of moderately to severely active polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis in patients 4 years of age and older.

Psoriatic Arthritis: CYLTEZO is indicated, alone or in combination with non-biologic DMARDs, for reducing signs and symptoms, inhibiting the progression of structural damage, and improving physical function in adult patients with active psoriatic arthritis.

Ankylosing Spondylitis: CYLTEZO is indicated for reducing signs and symptoms in adult patients with active ankylosing spondylitis.

Adult Crohn's Disease: CYLTEZO is indicated for reducing signs and symptoms and inducing and maintaining clinical remission in adult patients with moderately to severely active Crohn's disease who have had an inadequate response to conventional therapy, and reducing signs and symptoms and inducing clinical remission in these patients if they have also lost response to or are intolerant to infliximab.

Ulcerative Colitis: CYLTEZO is indicated for inducing and sustaining clinical remission in adult patients with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis who have had an inadequate response to immunosuppressants such as corticosteroids, azathioprine or 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP). The effectiveness of CYLTEZO has not been established in patients who have lost response to or were intolerant to TNF blockers.

Plaque Psoriasis: CYLTEZO is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis who are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy, and when other systemic therapies are medically less appropriate. CYLTEZO should only be administered to patients who will be closely monitored and have regular follow-up visits with a physician.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION FOR CYLTEZO

WARNING: SERIOUS INFECTIONS and MALIGNANCY

SERIOUS INFECTIONS

Patients treated with adalimumab products, including CYLTEZO, are at increased risk for developing serious infections that may lead to hospitalization or death. Most patients who developed these infections were taking concomitant immunosuppressants such as methotrexate or corticosteroids.

Discontinue CYLTEZO if a patient develops a serious infection or sepsis.

Reported infections include:

Active tuberculosis (TB), including reactivation of latent TB. Patients with TB have frequently presented with disseminated or extrapulmonary disease. Test patients for latent TB before CYLTEZO use and during therapy. Initiate treatment for latent TB prior to CYLTEZO use.

Invasive fungal infections, including histoplasmosis, coccidioidomycosis, candidiasis, aspergillosis, blastomycosis, and pneumocystosis. Patients with histoplasmosis or other invasive fungal infections may present with disseminated, rather than localized, disease. Antigen and antibody testing for histoplasmosis may be negative in some patients with active infection. Consider empiric anti-fungal therapy in patients at risk for invasive fungal infections who develop severe systemic illness.

Bacterial, viral and other infections due to opportunistic pathogens, including Legionella and Listeria.

Carefully consider the risks and benefits of treatment with CYLTEZO prior to initiating therapy in patients: 1. with chronic or recurrent infection, 2. who have been exposed to TB, 3. with a history of opportunistic infection, 4. who resided in or traveled in regions where mycoses are endemic, 5. with underlying conditions that may predispose them to infection. Monitor patients closely for the development of signs and symptoms of infection during and after treatment with CYLTEZO, including the possible development of TB in patients who tested negative for latent TB infection prior to initiating therapy.

Do not start CYLTEZO during an active infection, including localized infections.

Patients older than 65 years, patients with co-morbid conditions, and/or patients taking concomitant immunosuppressants may be at greater risk of infection.

If an infection develops, monitor carefully and initiate appropriate therapy.

Drug interactions with biologic products: A higher rate of serious infections has been observed in RA patients treated with rituximab who received subsequent treatment with a TNF blocker. An increased risk of serious infections has been seen with the combination of TNF blockers with anakinra or abatacept, with no demonstrated added benefit in patients with RA. Concomitant administration of CYLTEZO with other biologic DMARDS (e.g., anakinra or abatacept) or other TNF blockers is not recommended based on the possible increased risk for infections and other potential pharmacological interactions.

MALIGNANCY

Lymphoma and other malignancies, some fatal, have been reported in children and adolescent patients treated with TNF blockers including adalimumab products. Post-marketing cases of hepatosplenic T-cell lymphoma (HSTCL), a rare type of T-cell lymphoma, have been reported in patients treated with TNF blockers including adalimumab products. These cases have had a very aggressive disease course and have been fatal. The majority of reported TNF blocker cases have occurred in patients with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis and the majority were in adolescent and young adult males. Almost all these patients had received treatment with azathioprine or 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP) concomitantly with a TNF blocker at or prior to diagnosis. It is uncertain whether the occurrence of HSTCL is related to use of a TNF blocker or a TNF blocker in combination with these other immunosuppressants.

Consider the risks and benefits of TNF-blocker treatment prior to initiating or continuing therapy in a patient with known malignancy.

In clinical trials of some TNF-blockers, including adalimumab products, more cases of malignancies were observed among TNF-blocker-treated patients compared to control patients.

Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) was reported during clinical trials for adalimumab-treated patients. Examine all patients, particularly those with a history of prolonged immunosuppressant or PUVA therapy, for the presence of NMSC prior to and during treatment with CYLTEZO.

In adalimumab clinical trials, there was an approximate 3-fold higher rate of lymphoma than expected in the general U.S. population. Patients with chronic inflammatory diseases, particularly those with highly active disease and/or chronic exposure to immunosuppressant therapies, may be at higher risk of lymphoma than the general population, even in the absence of TNF blockers.

Postmarketing cases of acute and chronic leukemia were reported with TNF blocker use. Approximately half of the postmarketing cases of malignancies in children, adolescents, and young adults receiving TNF blockers were lymphomas; other cases included rare malignancies associated with immunosuppression and malignancies not usually observed in children and adolescents.

Hypersensitivity Reactions

Anaphylaxis and angioneurotic edema have been reported following administration of adalimumab products. If a serious allergic reaction occurs, stop CYLTEZO and institute appropriate therapy.

Hepatitis B Virus Reactivation

Use of TNF blockers, including CYLTEZO, may increase the risk of reactivation of hepatitis B virus (HBV) in patients who are chronic carriers. Some cases have been fatal. Evaluate patients at risk for HBV infection for prior evidence of HBV infection before initiating TNF blocker therapy. Exercise caution in patients who are carriers of HBV and monitor them during and after CYLTEZO treatment. Discontinue CYLTEZO and begin antiviral therapy in patients who develop HBV reactivation. Exercise caution when resuming CYLTEZO after HBV treatment.

Neurologic Reactions

TNF blockers, including adalimumab products, have been associated with rare cases of new onset or exacerbation of central nervous system and peripheral demyelinating diseases, including multiple sclerosis, optic neuritis, and Guillain-Barre syndrome. Exercise caution when considering CYLTEZO for patients with these disorders; discontinuation of CYLTEZO should be considered if any of these disorders develop.

Hematological Reactions

Rare reports of pancytopenia, including aplastic anemia, have been reported with TNF blockers. Medically significant cytopenia has been infrequently reported with adalimumab products. Consider stopping CYLTEZO if significant hematologic abnormalities occur.

Congestive Heart Failure

Cases of worsening congestive heart failure (CHF) and new onset CHF have been reported with TNF blockers. Cases of worsening CHF have also been observed with adalimumab. Exercise caution when using CYLTEZO in patients who have heart failure and monitor them carefully.

Autoimmunity

Treatment with adalimumab products may result in the formation of autoantibodies and, rarely, in development of a lupus-like syndrome. Discontinue treatment if symptoms of a lupus-like syndrome develop.

Immunizations

Patients on CYLTEZO should not receive live vaccines. Pediatric patients, if possible, should be brought up to date with all immunizations before initiating CYLTEZO therapy. The safety of administering live or live-attenuated vaccines in infants exposed to adalimumab products in utero is unknown. Risks and benefits should be considered prior to vaccinating (live or live-attenuated) exposed infants.

ADVERSE REACTIONS

The most common adverse reactions in adalimumab clinical trials (>10%) were: infections (e.g., upper respiratory, sinusitis), injection site reactions, headache, and rash.

Please see full Prescribing Information , including Medication Guide .

About Boehringer Ingelheim

Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc., based in Ridgefield, CT, is the largest U.S. subsidiary of Boehringer Ingelheim Corporation.

Boehringer Ingelheim is one of the world's top 20 pharmaceutical companies. Headquartered in Ingelheim, Germany, the company operates globally with approximately 50,000 employees. Since its founding in 1885, the company has remained family-owned and today creates value through innovation for three business areas including human pharmaceuticals, animal health and biopharmaceutical contract manufacturing.



Boehringer Ingelheim is committed to improving lives and providing valuable services and support to patients and their families. Our employees create and engage in programs that strengthen our communities. Please visit www.boehringer-ingelheim.us/csr to learn more about how we make more health for more people through our Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives.



In 2017, Boehringer Ingelheim achieved net sales of about $20.4 billion (18.1 billion euros). R&D expenditure corresponds to approximately $3.4 billion (three billion euros), or 17.0 percent of its net sales.

For more information please visit www.boehringer-ingelheim.us , or follow us on Twitter @BoehringerUS.

Contact:

Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Name: Susan Holz

Public Relations

Phone: 203-798-4265

Email: [email protected]



1 Menter A, et al. Biosimilar BI 695501 and Adalimumab Reference Product have Similar Efficacy and Safety in Patients with Moderate-to-Severe Chronic Plaque Psoriasis: 16-week Results from a Phase III Study. Abstract presented at European Association of Dermatology and Venereology Annual Meeting (EADV 2018), Paris, September 12-16 2018.

2 National Psoriasis Foundation, 'About Psoriasis'. Available at: https://www.psoriasis.org/about-psoriasis. Accessed August 2018.

3 American Academy of Dermatology, 'Psoriasis'. Available at: https://www.aad.org/media/stats/conditions/psoriasis. Accessed August 2018.

4 International Federation of Psoriasis Associations. World Psoriasis Day. Available at: https://ifpa-pso.com/our-actions/world-psoriasis-day/. Accessed August 2018.

5 NHS Choices, 'Psoriasis'. Available at: http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Psoriasis/Pages/Introduction.aspx. Accessed August 2018.

6 U.S. Food & Drug Administration. 2017. [email protected]: FDA Approved Drug Products. Available at: http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cder/daf/index.cfm?event=overview.process&varApplNo=761058. [Accessed February 2018]

7 European Medicines Agency. Cyltezo. Authorisation details. Available at: http://www.ema.europa.eu/ema/index.jsp?curl=pages/medicines/human/medicines/004319/human_med_002181.jsp&mid=WC0b01ac058001d124. [Accessed February 2018]

MPR-US-100546

SOURCE Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
RYE BROOK, N.Y., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- For 16 years, Burlington Stores has partnered with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), funding research and lifesaving treatments. Together, they have saved lives and helped bring smiles to those touched by blood cancers, with more than $32 million raised to date. However, with nearly 1.3 million people in the U.S. living with or in remission from blood cancers, there is still more work to be done and, hopefully, there are many more smiles ahead. That's why for the 17th consecutive year, Burlington and LLS are joining forces in the fight against blood cancers by raising money for lifesaving research and treatments, as well as helping child survivors get ready for the milestone of returning to school after undergoing treatment.

Timed to Blood Cancer Awareness Month, the campaign kicked off on Sunday, September 9 in more than 640 Burlington stores nationwide. Now through December 1, customers are encouraged to donate $1 or more at checkout to support LLS's goal to create a world without blood cancer by advancing research to find new treatments and cures. Last year alone, this campaign raised more than $3.3 million to support the cause.

Nearly 6,000 school-age children are diagnosed with blood cancers each year. To help ease their transition back to school after treatment, Burlington and LLS are working with the 56 LLS chapters nationwide to surprise young survivors across the country with a shopping spree at their local Burlington store, so they can return to school feeling excited and confident while showcasing their own personal style. With Burlington stores located near most of LLS's 56 chapters nationwide, this campaign will bring smiles to many children this fall.

"Fighting cancer is in our DNA, and Burlington is the number one National Corporate Partner and Honored Friend of LLS, raising more than $32 million to fight blood cancer to date," says LLS President and Chief Executive Officer Louis J. DeGennaro, Ph.D. "We are honored to have Burlington once again support our goal to find blood cancer cures and help patients access lifesaving treatments and cures. With Burlington's support, we are able to focus on children with cancer who face obstacles in dealing with challenging treatments while they strive to adjust to returning to school. LLS is committed to doing more for children with cancer; in fact, we are more than doubling our investment in pediatric cancer research over the next five years with a total commitment of approximately $20 million over that time."

"At Burlington, we are proud of our long-term commitment to fighting blood cancers and to supporting survivors," says Tom Kingsbury, CEO and Chairman of Burlington Stores. "We are committed to LLS's mission to create a world without blood cancers, and we are honored to be able to outfit these young survivors as they head back to school in style."

Customers shopping at any Burlington store now through December 1 can donate at checkout to benefit LLS, helping to find cures for blood cancers. For more information visit Burlington.com or LLS.org.

About Burlington Stores

Burlington is a national off-price retailer offering style for less with up to 65 percent off other retailers' prices every day. Departments include ladies' dresses, suits, sportswear, juniors, accessories, beauty, menswear, family footwear and children's clothing. It also includes an assortment of furniture and accessories for baby at Baby Depot, home decor and gifts, along with the largest selection of coats in the nation for the entire family. Burlington has more than 640 stores in 45 States and Puerto Rico. For more information, and to view its Pricing Policy, visit www.Burlington.com.

About the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) is the world's largest voluntary health agency dedicated to blood cancer. The LLS mission: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. LLS funds lifesaving blood cancer research around the world, provides free information and support services, and is the voice for all blood cancer patients seeking access to quality, affordable, coordinated care.

Founded in 1949 and headquartered in Rye Brook, NY, LLS has chapters throughout the United States and Canada. To learn more, visit www.LLS.org. Patients should contact the Information Resource Center at (800) 955-4572, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET.

Media Contacts:

Kristin Hoose

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

914-821-8973

[email protected]

Brianna Wise

M Booth

212-358-4402

[email protected]

SOURCE The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

Related Links

http://www.LLS.org


NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Cornerstone Capital Group, a registered investment advisor that pursues financial returns alongside social impact by incorporating environmental, social and governance (ESG) analysis into portfolio design, today announced the release of a new research report, "Investing to Advance Racial Equity." The report analyzes how wealth inequality in the United States has resulted from structural racism dating back to the beginning of the republic  and provides solutions for addressing economic inequality through targeted investments.

The report assesses how investors can contribute to solutions for three of the main current components of wealth inequality: income inequality, home ownership and affordable housing, and access to capital. Investors cannot, on their own, undo centuries of inequalities caused by structural racism, but they can help build a fairer and more just economy.

"As experts in impact investing, we have written this report as an attempt to provide tangible and practical options for those who wish to use their capital to help mitigate the ongoing effects of racial injustice in the United States," said John Wilson, Head of Research and Corporate Governance at Cornerstone Capital Group. "If the current income and wealth gaps remain static, the overall pool of investment capital for entrepreneurship and home equity will be concentrated in fewer hands and sectors of the economy, which could cause social instability and major headwinds for future US economic growth."

In the report, Cornerstone Capital Group evaluated how investments can help break the cycle of racial and ethnic wealth inequality. A few possible solutions include:

Investing in deposits at Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) will help those institutions invest in underserved communities through affordable commercial, consumer, and mortgage loans.

Fixed income or alternative funds focused on impact in underserved communities can provide reasonably priced loans for businesses or commercial properties in neighborhoods of color

Through crowdfunding, investors can help repair household balance sheets of overleveraged individuals by swapping high-cost consumer, educational or mortgage loans for restructured, affordable, lower-cost loans.

To download the report, visit: Investing to Advance Racial Equity.

About Cornerstone Capital Group

Cornerstone Capital Group is a financial services firm based in New York. The firm's mission is to optimize financial performance and social impact through rigorous research and the systematic integration of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors into portfolio design. In offering investment advisory and strategic consulting services, Cornerstone works with asset owners, corporations and financial institutions, promoting new research in the field of ESG analysis, and facilitating capital introductions for organizations around the world engaged in sustainable business practices. More information is available at https://cornerstonecapinc.com/

Contact:

Betsy Emerson

646-930-4257

[email protected]

Or

Jesse Tron

M Group Strategic Communications

[email protected]

646-427-8516

SOURCE Cornerstone Capital Group

Related Links

https://cornerstonecapinc.com


LAS VEGAS, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) today announced two key additions to the SAP SuccessFactors HCM Suite that redefine how people engage and interact with the technology they use at work. These SAP SuccessFactors innovations aim to simplify everyday work life and improve workforce productivity. The announcement was made at the SuccessConnect event in Las Vegas taking place September 1113 at the ARIA Resort & Casino.

The new digital assistant for SAP SuccessFactors solutions, currently in beta with a select group of customers, provides the entire workforce with a personalized, engaging experience by applying machine learning to guide and recommend actions based on verbal or written questions or commands.

The digital assistant leverages the SAP CoPilot Web application bot framework and SAP Leonardo Machine Learning capabilities to deliver a conversational, interactive experience for employees using SAP SuccessFactors solutions from the desktop and on mobile devices. It is also integrated with collaboration platforms such as Slack and Microsoft Teams, connecting seamlessly to the tools employees are already using every day.

The digital assistant learns and understands what an employee is looking for, enabling them to find information and take action from the conversational interface without the intervention of a human being.

Not only does this help engage the workforce, it significantly simplifies and redefines what is possible for improving HR service delivery. HR leaders can now provide an intelligent, automated way for the entire workforce to get answers and complete HR-related tasks. For example: HR can provide faster answers more easily to new hire questions, managers can easily award spot bonuses and employees can quickly enter time worked. This frees employees' time for more important tasks, thus helping to create a more effective and engaged workforce with higher productivity.

"Providing consumer-grade technology to help people take control of their careers and perform a higher level of work is at the heart of our vision for SAP SuccessFactors solutions," said SAP SuccessFactors President Greg Tomb. "The future of HR applications is mobile and intelligent, and it leverages all the ways we can interact with tools  both verbal and written. By bridging the gap between how employees engage with technology at home and how they leverage technology to get things done at work, our new digital assistant makes interacting with HR easy, timely and productive."

To further improve usability across the spectrum of popular mobile devices, SAP is also announcing a fully redesigned Android app in partnership with Google. Leveraging native Android interaction patterns, the new app offers a powerful yet simple experience for Android device users. With the new SAP SuccessFactors Mobile app for Android, employees and managers are now able to more easily engage with things such as continuous performance management, act on key learning activities and complete critical people-related tasks like time entry from the comfort and familiarity of their Android device.

"Mobile technology is foundational to success in the digital economy," said Sean Ginevan, head of global strategy for Android Enterprise at Google. "Employees use Android, along with apps from Google Play, to be productive anywhere in the world without compromising security. We're delighted SAP has launched a redesigned experience for SAP SuccessFactors solutions on Android so enterprises can better recruit, retain and develop top talent utilizing the world's most used mobile platform."

To learn more about the digital assistant, visit here. For more on the SAP SuccessFactors Mobile app for Android, visit here.

For more information, visit the SAP SuccessFactors solutions website or the SAP News Center. Follow SAP SuccessFactors solutions on Twitter at @SuccessFactors and SAP at @sapnews.

About SAP

As market leader in enterprise application software, SAP (NYSE: SAP) helps companies of all sizes and industries run better. From back office to boardroom, warehouse to storefront, desktop to mobile device  SAP empowers people and organizations to work together more efficiently and use business insight more effectively to stay ahead of the competition. SAP applications and services enable more than 404,000 business and public sector customers to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and grow sustainably. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "intend," "may," "plan," "project," "predict," "should" and "will" and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. The factors that could affect SAP's future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including SAP's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.

 2018 SAP SE. All rights reserved.

SAP and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP SE in Germany and other countries. Please see http://www.sap.com/corporate-en/legal/copyright/index.epx#trademark for additional trademark information and notices.

For customers interested in learning more about SAP products:

Global Customer Center: +49 180 534-34-24

United States Only: 1 (800) 872-1SAP (1-800-872-1727)

For more information, press only:

Geraldine Lim, SAP, +1 (415) 418-0945, [email protected], PDT

SAP News Center press room; [email protected]

Kate Lavoie-Mayer, PAN Communications, +1 (617) 502-4338, [email protected], EDT

SOURCE SAP SE

Related Links

http://www.sap.com


NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- This month marks a decade since the beginning of the Great Recession. In the wake of the crippling financial crisis, Congress and the Federal Reserve moved swiftly to take corrective action  from the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform, to the Volcker Rule and stress tests, to the Consumer Protection Act.

But the rush to pass and enforce regulations has not only proved ineffective, but counterproductive according to recent research from Columbia Business School Professor Charles Calomiris. The new article  Has Financial Regulation Been a Flop? (or How to Reform Dodd-Frank)  details numerous flaws in post-crisis financial regulations and proposes modifying or eliminating a number of recently approved financial reforms, including pieces of Dodd-Frank and the Volcker Rule.

"The Great Recession created a rush in Washington to establish guardrails for the financial industry," Calomiris said. "But good intentions, expanded powers, and new mandates do not necessarily lead to smart policy decisions. Ten years later, it's clear that the Dodd-Frank Act and further regulations are failing to curb risky behavior while obstructing economic growth. We can do much better than these costly, unsustainable regulations that will do little to prevent a repeat of the financial crisis."

In the article, Calomiris broadly examines a number of Congressional regulations and Federal Reserve actions, explaining how the combination of capital requirements and lending rules have created a host of new costs and risks for large banks stemming from constantly changing prudential standards, actions by the newly-established Financial Stability Oversight Council, and the Federal Reserve administered stress tests. At the same time, small banks face a "morass of new rules and compliance burdens" that put them at a severe disadvantage. The combination of these two effects is limiting economic growth. Calomiris details the numerous shortcomings of key financial regulations, including the Fed's misaligned incentives on mortgage-backed securities, Dodd-Frank's failure to set meaningful capital standards for banks, the lack of clearly defined standards for stress tests, the Volcker Rule's negative impact on banks' market-making ability, and the unintended consequences of both the CARD Act and the Durbin Amendment.

Calomiris highlights 10 principles, grounded in economic and legal values that a prudential financial regulation should consider, along with 22 proposed reforms to the current regulations. His proposed reforms include:

Link financial regulation directly to the performance of the financial sector and demonstrate that regulatory costs are justified by measurable benefits.

Restore the role of laws and formal rule-making in financial regulation and end the discretionary authority of politicized actors like the FSOC and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Hold regulators accountable to the public by requiring transparent regulatory standards.

In addition to the proposed phasing out the use of guidance in financial regulation and replacing it with formal rule-making, the article also proposes reforms, including:

Delay the further use of stress tests as a regulatory tool until realistic scenario forecasts can be constructed.

Wind down the Federal Housing Authority, Government-Sponsored Enterprises like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and Federal Home Loan Banks and replace mortgage risk subsidies with means-tested down payment matching subsidies.

Create tax-favored housing savings accounts to further promote affordability of housing and phase in limits constraining banks to < 25% of loans for commercial or residential real estate.

Replace the morass of capital ratio requirements on banks with a single leverage limit and a single minimum ratio of book equity to risk-based assets.

The article, Has Financial Regulations Been a Flop? (or How to Reform Dodd-Frank), published in the Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, is available online at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jacf.12258

To learn more about the cutting-edge research taking place at Columbia Business School, please visit www.gsb.columbia.edu.

About Columbia Business School

Columbia Business School is the only world-class, Ivy League business school that delivers a learning experience where academic excellence meets with real-time exposure to the pulse of global business. Led by Dean Glenn Hubbard, the School's transformative curriculum bridges academic theory with unparalleled exposure to real-world business practice, equipping students with an entrepreneurial mindset that allows them to recognize, capture, and create opportunity in any business environment. The thought leadership of the School's faculty and staff members, combined with the accomplishments of its distinguished alumni and position in the center of global business, means that the School's efforts have an immediate, measurable impact on the forces shaping business every day. To learn more about Columbia Business School's position at the very center of business, please visit www.gsb.columbia.edu.

SOURCE Columbia Business School

Related Links

http://www.gsb.columbia.edu


SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Sixty-six-year-old U.S. Army veteran Gary "Lou" Dehnert will be taking a Stars & Stripes Honor Flight on September 15th 2018 to Washington, D.C. where he will visit memorials dedicated to honoring his fellow veterans' service and sacrifices. This journey is Dehnert's final Dream, fulfilled by Dream Foundation, the only national dream-granting organization for terminally-ill adults, and Honor Flight, which transports America's veterans to Washington.

Dehnert served in Motor Pool Operations in the 528th unit during Vietnam and dreamed of visiting the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington with his son and caretaker, Daniel, to pay respect to the close friends he lost in the war.

"I really want to share everything I can with my son while we are there," says Dehnert. "I see pictures of the memorials all the time in my VFW magazine, but to be there would give me closure, finally."

Thanks to Dream Foundation's Dreams for Veterans program who covered Daniel's trip costs and Honor Flight who covered Dehnert's, the two will travel from Watertown, Wis. to Washington, where they will visit the Lincoln Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, World War II Memorial, Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, Marine Corps War Memorial, and the Air Force Memorial.

"Dream Foundation's Dreams for Veterans program is honored to recognize Gary "Lou" Dehnert for his strength and sacrifice during all his years of service and beyond," says Dream Foundation's Chief Executive Officer Kisa Heyer. "We are particularly thankful to Stars & Stripes Honor Flight. Their generosity and commitment to our veterans is truly extraordinary."

While at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Rep. Glenn Grothman's (WI-06) Legislative Director, Ryan J. Croft will graciously present Dehnert with a Vietnam War Commemoration Pin* to recognize his courage and service to the nation, a long overdue honor.

About Dream Foundation:

Dream Foundation, the only national dream-granting organization for terminally-ill adults, fulfills final Dreams that provide inspiration, comfort and closure at the end of life. They have given life to more than 30,000 final Dreams over the past two decades and receive no state or federal fundingrelying solely on private donations. DreamFoundation.org/donate.

*Please note that Dream Foundation is not part of, or endorsed by, the Department of Defense.

SOURCE Dream Foundation

Related Links

http://www.dreamfoundation.org


CENTREVILLE, Va., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- EdgeMicro is launching a first-of-its-kind Proof of Concept Program that will enable companies to dramatically accelerate their timeline for proving the viability, scalability and performance of their edge computing pilot projects. Companies seeking to test low-latency applications that take advantage of edge-located data cache and compute services can apply to utilize a no-cost testing environment in an EdgeMicro data center that is dedicated to these pilot projects.

"All companies seeking success at the edge recognize near-zero latency can only be achieved by placing their IT hardware and services closer to the consumer. These companies include content providers, wireless companies, IoT and other service providers. While each company delivers unique value, they all have a common challenge: the hurdles of cost and speed to market are too high," said Mike Hagan, CEO of EdgeMicro. "Our company's mission is to solve problems for and deliver benefit to all organizations seeking success at the edge. We believe our no-cost Proof of Concept Program is the solution."

Hagan added: "Edge computing is poised for major growth, and our goal is to help companies deploy to the edge as easily as possible. Our Proof of Concept Program will give participants the platform they need to win at the edge."

The testing environment is in a secure, fully-redundant 48 kW EdgeMicro data center in Denver and is supported by key partners including Megaport, Fiber Mountain and BitBox. Customer testing will commence November 1, 2018 with a target end date of February 2019.

"This program gives companies much more than a testing environment," said Josh Snowhorn, Chief Strategy Officer. "Selected participants will be among the first to leverage EdgeMicro's patented ETX (Edge Traffic Exchange), a distributed micro internet exchange program designed for mobile interconnectivity. Last, but not least, they will receive strategic and technical support of experts like our CTO Anton Kapela, VP of Operations Loren Zweig and EVP of Business Development Greg Pettine."

Get more information about this no-cost Proof of Concept Program. Applications are being accepted now.

About EdgeMicro

EdgeMicro is an edge colocation company launched in 2017 dedicated to delivering on the promise of edge computing. Founded by an elite team with peering, wireless and data center expertise with a simple yet innovative solution, EdgeMicro is deploying hundreds of network-neutral, modular data centers at towers and other locations that deliver the scale and flexibility required at the edge. With EdgeMicro, content providers, MNOs, ISPs and IoT providers can provide an enhanced, lower latency customer experience while reducing backhaul costs. For more information on edge colocation and software exchange solutions, visit www.edgemicro.com.

Media Contact

Rich Miller

Miller Strategic Communications, Inc.

Phone: 303-877-3966

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE EdgeMicro

Related Links

http://www.edgemicro.com


WASHINGTON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Evolent Health, Inc. (NYSE: EVH)  Evolent Health, Inc. ("Evolent") and NCIS Holdings, Inc. and New Century Investment, LLC ("New Century Health") announced today that they have entered into a definitive agreement for Evolent to acquire New Century Health's business for up to $217 million.

The combination of Evolent and New Century Health brings together two innovative companies that support provider organizations and health plans with clinical management and operational capabilities. Evolent was founded in 2011 to support providers in moving to a population health model of care delivery and to successfully manage performance-based payment arrangements. Founded in 2002 and headquartered in Massachusetts, New Century Health is a technology-enabled, specialty care management company focused primarily on cancer and cardiac care. Utilizing its proprietary technology platform, New Century Health brings together clinical capabilities, pharmacy management and physician engagement to assist its customers in managing the large and complex specialties of cancer and cardiac care. New Century Health manages approximately 462,000 Medicare Advantage lives under performance-based arrangements and provides administrative services (ASO) to several partner organizations. New Century Health serves 12 long-term operating partners across multiple states; these partners include at-risk provider organizations, as well as national and regional health plans.

"Since day one, Evolent has been focused on delivering improved and differentiated clinical outcomes for its provider partners; the addition of New Century Health will enhance our clinical capabilities and enable us to offer a more integrated set of MSO services to our current provider partners," said Evolent Health President Seth Blackley. "The acquisition will also expand access to the payer market directly and allow us to facilitate collaboration between payers and providers. New Century Health has a proven, 15-year track record of delivering significant cost savings through its specialty care management model, deep clinical expertise and technology-driven approach. We look forward to welcoming New Century Health employees and clients to the Evolent family."

"We have consistently focused on aligning with organizations that can help us enhance our capabilities and grow our clinical impact and footprint, so I'm excited for New Century Health to take this next step with Evolent Health and have the opportunity to serve even more patients across the U.S.," said New Century Health Chief Executive Officer Dr. Atul Dhir. "We look forward to combining our proven specialty care management methodologies and technology with Evolent's market-leading value-based care platform to help our clients effectively manage the high-cost specialties of oncology and cardiology through a provider-led, best-in-class approach."

Strategic Rationale

Together, the organizations will be able to offer comprehensive specialty care management services and technology across Medicare Advantage, Medicaid and commercial populations in support of both New Century Health and Evolent's clients. Upon closing this transaction, the organizations together will serve more than 3.5 million lives across more than 40 long-term operating partners.

"The addition of the New Century Health business is a strong strategic fit for Evolent, as we work to deliver demonstrable improvements in clinical and financial outcomes for providers and payers," said Evolent Health Chief Executive Officer Frank Williams. "We believe this transaction furthers our differentiation and position as the leader in a high-growth market well into the future."

Transaction Details

The purchase price is up to $217 million, and consists of 3.1 million shares of Evolent Class B common stock and $120 million in cash at closing. The purchase price includes an earn-out of up to $20 million, payable in cash and Evolent Class B common stock, tied to future new business activity. Shares to be issued in relation to the earn-out are limited to 1.0 million shares with full payment expected to be made in the first quarter of 2020. The shares at closing and in the earn-out will be issued in transactions exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Evolent expects the acquired business, on a standalone basis, to generate adjusted revenues and adjusted EBITDA of approximately $177 million and $20 million, respectively for the Latest Twelve Months ended June 30, 2018; however, Evolent will consolidate the results of the acquired business only for the period subsequent to the close of the transaction. The companies expect the transaction to close within the next 120 days, subject to regulatory approvals and certain closing conditions set forth in the agreement.

Advisors

New Century Health was advised by Leerink Partners and legal counsel was provided by Winston & Strawn LLP. Bass, Berry & Sims PLC is acting as legal counsel to Evolent.

Conference Call and Webcast Details

Evolent will hold a conference call to discuss details of the transaction today, September 12, 2018, at 8:00 a.m., Eastern Time. The conference call will be available via live webcast on the company's Investor Relations website at http://ir.evolenthealth.com. To participate by telephone, dial 1.855.940.9467 and ask to join to the Evolent call. Participants are advised to dial in at least 15 minutes prior to the call to register. The call will be archived on the company's website for 90 days and will be available beginning later this evening. Evolent invites all interested parties to attend the conference call.

About Evolent Health

Evolent Health, Inc.'s Services segment focuses on partnering with leading provider organizations to achieve superior clinical and financial results in value-based care. With a provider heritage and over 20 years of health plan administration experience, Evolent operates in more than 30 U.S. health care markets, actively managing care across Medicare, Medicaid, commercial and self-funded adult and pediatric populations. With the experience to drive change, Evolent confidently stands by a commitment to achieve results. Our True Health segment consists of a commercial health plan we operate in New Mexico that focuses on small and large businesses. For more information, visit www.evolenthealth.com.

About New Century Health

New Century Health is the nation's leading specialty care management company, with special focus on Cancer and Cardiology patients. New Century Health partners with specialist providers and health plans to provide them with the clinical decision and population health management tools to ensure that cancer and cardiology patients receive the highest quality, most affordable care. To learn more about New Century Health, please visit newcenturyhealth.com.

Forward Looking Statements: Cautionary Language

Certain statements made in this release and in other written or oral statements made by us or on our behalf are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 ("PSLRA"). A forward-looking statement is a statement that is not a historical fact and, without limitation, includes any statement that may predict, forecast, indicate or imply future results, performance or achievements, and may contain words like: "believe", "anticipate", "expect", "estimate", "aim", "predict", "potential", "continue", "plan", "project", "will", "should", "shall", "may", "might" and other words or phrases with similar meaning in connection with a discussion of future operating or financial performance. In particular, these include statements relating to future actions, trends in our businesses, prospective services, future performance or financial results and the outcome of contingencies, such as legal proceedings. We claim the protection afforded by the safe harbor for forward-looking statements provided by the PSLRA. These statements are only predictions based on our current expectations and projections about future events. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results contained in the forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to vary materially, some of which are described within the forward-looking statements, include, among others:

Uncertainties related to the timing of the receipt of required regulatory approvals for the merger;

The ability of Evolent and New Century Health to satisfy the closing conditions of the merger;

The occurrence of any change that could give rise to the termination of the merger agreement;

Our ability to implement integration plans for the merger and to recognize the anticipated growth and benefits of the merger;

The risks that the merger and the other transactions contemplated by the merger agreement disrupt current plans and operations and the potential difficulties in retention of any members of senior management of New Century Health and any other key employees that Evolent is interested in retaining after the closing of the merger;

The limitations placed on the ability of Evolent and New Century Health to operate their respective businesses by the merger agreement;

The effect of the announcement of the merger on Evolent's and New Century Health's business relationships, clients, suppliers, other partners, standing with regulators, operating results and businesses generally;

The amount of any costs, fees, expenses, impairments and charges related to the merger;

The market price for Evolent common stock potentially being affected, following the merger, by factors that historically have not affected the market price for Evolent common stock;

The structural change in the market for healthcare in the United States ;

; Consolidation in the healthcare industry;

Competition which could limit our ability to maintain or expand market share within our industry; and

Uncertainty in the healthcare regulatory framework.

The risks included here are not exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties that affect the business of Evolent described in the "Risk Factors" section of its Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other documents filed by either of them from time to time with the SEC. Although we believe the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance or achievements. Moreover, we operate in a rapidly changing and competitive environment. New risk factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for management to predict all such risk factors. Further, it is not possible to assess the effect of all risk factors on our businesses or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. In addition, we disclaim any obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date of this release.

SOURCE Evolent Health, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.evolenthealth.com


"Hailey and Rosie demonstrate that our passion for the power of our products and the power of our message is shared by some of the world's most influential women," said Jill Scalamandre, President, bareMinerals. "We chose Letitia earlier in the year because of her personal and impactful message about the world of clean beauty. When looking at what unites our ambassadors, it was clear that they all live their lives with humanity, meaning, and strive to positively affect the people they touch. We are excited to watch these partnerships grow."

bareMinerals launched its Power of Good campaign starring Letitia Wright in July 2018 to celebrate the brand's dedication to creating good-for-skin formulas that make consumers look and feel beautiful from the inside out. Hailey and Rosie now join Letitia in spreading this core message around the world.

Hailey Baldwin, Clean Beauty Ambassador: "Becoming a bareMinerals ambassador is a natural fit because it aligns perfectly with how I choose to live my life. Clean beauty in all its forms is important to me and I love the fact that bareMinerals can deliver on this promise and still create products that are amazing for skin. I was raised to embrace a healthy lifestyle, which involved everything from eating organic food to treating people around me with compassion. I'm excited that my partnership with bareMinerals allows me to celebrate a world I already embrace every day. My Power of Good message is to be full of kindness and free of cruelty."

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Beauty Ambassador: "I love brands that celebrate beauty in a positive way and I'm proud to be a part of bareMinerals. As a working mother, I need reliable products that are impactful and are also good for my skin, and bareMinerals delivers. The Power of Good campaign not only values products that make a difference, but also shows how feeling good and doing good can impact people around you."

Letitia Wright, Power of Good Ambassador: "To me, the Power of Good represents positivity, love, and honesty. I try to live my life not just for myself, but in a way that's also beneficial to others. The Power of Good means sharing your talents and the best side of yourself to the world. Clean beauty offers peace of mind because you can trust the ingredients that you're putting on your skin. My Power of Good message is to be full of confidence and free of fear."

Hailey, Rosie & Letitia will also be joined by Hollywood makeup artist Nikki DeRoest. By sharing her expert tips and showing consumers how to use the range to bring out their best selves, the pro will continue to underscore the fact that bareMinerals products are full of what's good and free of what's fake.

Nikki DeRoest, Clean Beauty Makeup Artist, "As a makeup artist, I won't risk using products that don't provide efficacious results every time. I also won't risk the quality of people's skin in order to create a red carpet-worthy look. With bareMinerals, I don't have to compromise. The incredible textures and mineral-rich ingredients are clean and good for skin without sacrificing performance. My Power of Good message is to be full of freedom and free of boundaries."

Clean minerals are at the heart and soul of every bareMinerals product. Free of chemical sunscreens, coal tar, formaldehyde, mineral oil, microbeads, parabens, phthalates, propylene glycol, triclosan, and triclocarban since the brand's inception, bareMinerals remains committed to keeping potentially questionable ingredients off your skin and out of the environment. After two decades in the beauty industry, the brand continues to deliver high performance formulas and extraordinary sensorial experiences.

bareMinerals clean mineral makeup and skincare is tested and proven. The brand's exceptional customer testimonials, five-star ratings, rave reviews, and clinical results speak for themselves. Good for everyone. Good for the world.

@bareMinerals #CleanBeauty #powerofgood

FOR MORE INFORMATION, IMAGES OR SAMPLES:

Alice Hampton

Vice President, Global Communications bareMinerals

[email protected]

SOURCE bareMinerals
WASHINGTON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- In the newest rounds of grants marking its 20th anniversary, Hyundai Hope On Wheels 501(c)(3) celebrates National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month by awarding the $200,000 Hyundai Young Investigator Grant to Dr. Amy Houghtelin of Children's National Health System. This September, 38 new doctor-researchers will receive a combined $14.1 million in grants to support novel therapeutic approaches and innovative research options in pediatric cancer. The award will be officially presented to Dr. Houghtelin at Children's National on Wednesday, September 12th at 10 a.m.

Childhood cancer researchers depend largely on private funding for groundbreaking therapies to get off the ground and to advance treatment approaches to the next phase of testing, ultimately, bringing better therapies and cures to kids with cancer. With this latest award, Children's National has received more than $1.6 million in grants from Hope On Wheels, contributing to the organization's $145 million in the organization's total lifetime giving.

"Throughout the country, talented doctors are working tirelessly to help kids fight cancer by conducting research or providing bedside care," said Scott Fink, chairman, Hyundai Hope On Wheels Board of Directors. "Our goal at Hope On Wheels is to provide these doctors with the grant funds they need to perform their lifesaving work."

During the event, children being treated for cancer at Children's National will participate in the program's signature Handprint Ceremony, in which they will dip their hands in paint and place their handprints on a white canvas. As "Every Handprint Tells a Story," the colorful handprints of brave pediatric cancer fighters represent their individual and collective hopes, dreams and journeys. From now through the end of September, the Hope Vehicle will travel nationwide to honor kids battling cancer, raise awareness of the disease, and to inspire hope toward a cure.

"Hyundai Hope On Wheels has fueled some of the most promising cancer research projects underway at Children's National," said Jeffrey Dome, M.D., Ph.D., Vice President of the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children's National. "We are grateful to Hyundai Hope on Wheels  and all of the dealerships here and around the country  for their partnership and generous support for research in pediatric oncology."

Supporters are encouraged to visit the HHOW website (www.HyundaiHopeOnWheels.org) to view this year's grant winners along with stories of brave cancer survivors and passionate doctor-researchers. Once there, supporters may add their handprint to a wall of hope to show their support for the cause. They will also find information on additional ways to support HHOW through social media efforts and events throughout the month. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram at facebook.com/HyundaiHopeOnWheels, twitter.com/HopeOnWheels or instagram.com/HyundaiHopeOnWheels.

HYUNDAI HOPE ON WHEELS

Hyundai Hope On Wheels is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that is committed to finding a cure for childhood cancer. Launched in 1998, Hyundai Hope On Wheels provides grants to eligible institutions nationwide that are pursuing life-saving research and innovative treatments for the disease. HHOW is one of the largest non-profit funders of pediatric cancer research in the country, and primary funding for Hyundai Hope On Wheels comes from Hyundai Motor America and its more than 835 U.S. dealers. Since its inception, Hyundai Hope On Wheels has awarded more than $145 million towards childhood cancer research in pursuit of a cure.

HYUNDAI MOTOR AMERICA

Hyundai Motor America, headquartered in Fountain Valley, Calif., is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company of Korea. Hyundai vehicles are distributed throughout the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through 835 dealerships nationwide. All new Hyundai vehicles sold in the U.S. are covered by the Hyundai Assurance program, which includes a 5-year/60,000-mile fully-transferable new vehicle limited warranty, Hyundai's 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty and five years of complimentary Roadside Assistance.

For more details on Hyundai Assurance, please visit www.HyundaiAssurance.com

Please visit our media website at www.hyundainews.com

Hyundai Motor America on Twitter | YouTube | Facebook

CHILDREN'S NATIONAL HEALTH SYSTEM

Children's National Health System, based in Washington, D.C., has served the nation's children since 1870. Children's National is one of the nation's Top 5 pediatric hospitals and, for a second straight year, is ranked No. 1 in newborn care, as well as ranked in all specialties evaluated by U.S. News & World Report. It has been designated two times as a Magnet hospital, a designation given to hospitals that demonstrate the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty outpatient centers in the D.C. Metropolitan area, including the Maryland suburbs and Northern Virginia. Home to the Children's Research Institute and the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation, Children's National is the seventh-highest NIH-funded pediatric institution in the nation. Children's National is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels.

For more information, follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

SOURCE Hyundai Hope On Wheels

Related Links

http://www.HyundaiHopeOnWheels.org


KNOXVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- PageNearMe, Inc. announces the official pre-launch of KnoxvillePage.com to Knoxville-area businesses today. The new website is a powerful content marketing and local advertising platform built to help Knoxville businesses reach and influence local online consumers with engaging content, exclusive local deals, and things to do in Knoxville.

Anthony M. Ragland is the founder of the company. He is a resident of Downtown Knoxville and a 20-year marketing practitioner.

Exclusive Local Deals and Things to Do

"I got the idea for KnoxvillePage 9 months ago on a whim," said Anthony. "And I've been working on the idea ever since. 'I' has evolved to 'we' ... we are now a team of web developers, designers, marketers and copywriters who all have belief in an idea and our company mission."

KnoxvillePage is on a mission to enrich the Knoxville community and economy. The company is donating 10% of its gross advertising revenue to four local non-profit organizations.

KnoxvillePage has a unique approach to local marketing and advertising. The homepage has 106 popular key-words arranged in an artistic and one-of-a-kind word cloud. The homepage also features a local search box in the middle of the page. Online visitors can easily browse the key-words or conduct a local search to find exclusive local deals and things to do in Knoxville.

Each key-word on the KnoxvillePage homepage is exclusive, which means only one local business can register a key-word at a time. Instead of traditional pay-per-click and pay-per-impression advertising models, KnoxvillePage keyword owners receive unlimited impressions, clicks, engagement and leads for a flat fee starting at just $69 per month.

"One of my favorite books is 'The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding', by Al and Laura Ries," said Anthony, who has assumed the role of Chief Marketing Officer at KnoxvillePage. "They wrote, 'A brand should strive to own a word in the mind of the consumer. Once a word is precisely associated with a brand, it is almost impossible for a competitor to create a stronger association.'"

Anthony added, "Al and Laura Ries are right. Words are powerful. I've used key-words to grow businesses my entire marketing career. So, I wanted key-words to be at the core of KnoxvillePage. Key-words are proven to produce online branding and advertising results."

In addition to key-word advertising, KnoxvillePage.com uses mobile-first landing pages in its search results, which the company claims to be a better browsing experience for online and mobile visitors. Knoxville businesses can add a BASIC landing page to KnoxvillePage.com for free, and they can upgrade from a BASIC to a PRO landing page for only $49 per month.

"The secret to converting online visitors into customers is the landing page ... the copywriting, the design, and the promotional offers are critical," said Anthony, who also designed the KnoxvillePage.com UX/UI. "In my career, I've used landing pages to produce thousands of leads and millions of dollars in online revenue for clients. For KnoxvillePage, I spent a lot of time thinking about and creating the landing page templates. And I believe they communicate value and will produce good results for local businesses."

The third unique quality about KnoxvillePage is its content strategy. The company has a team of local copywriters and storytellers who publish useful content about Knoxville and East Tennessee. The blog features a collection of local articles written in an easy-to-read, conversational and informative tone of voice.

About PageNearMe, Inc. and KnoxvillePage.com

PageNearMe, Inc., (DBA) KnoxvillePage.com, is a local platform for Knoxville residents, students, and tourists to find exclusive deals and things to do. The company will expand their network of local platforms later this year by launching NashvillePage.com, MemphisPage.com, NoogaPage.com, ClarksvillePage.com, and TriCitiesPage.com in Tennessee. The company will continue to expand and launch 100 local platforms in college towns over the next 24-months. The KnoxvillePage office is located at 800 S. Gay Street, Suite 700, Knoxville, Tennessee 37929.

Media Contact:

Anthony Ragland

Founder and CMO

(865) 766-4039

[email protected]

Related Images

knoxvillepage-com.jpg

KnoxvillePage.com

Exclusive Local Deals and Things to Do

announcing-knoxvillepage-com.jpg

Announcing KnoxvillePage.com

The KnoxvillePage Logo

knoxvillepage.jpg

KnoxvillePage

The official KnoxvillePage made with love in Knoxville t-shirt. We're giving away free t-shirts starting in October.

knoxvillepage-homepage.jpg

KnoxvillePage Homepage

KnoxvillePage features a one-of-a-kind homepage for people to find exclusive local deals and things to do in the area.

Related Links

KnoxvillePage Key-Word Advertising Overview:

KnoxvillePage PRO Landing Page Overview:

SOURCE KnoxvillePage.com

Related Links

http://KnoxvillePage.com


WOBURN, Massachusetts, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- EarlySense, the market leader in contact-free continuous monitoring solutions across the care continuum, announced today a comprehensive implementation by Franciscus Gasthuis & Vlietland (Rotterdam), a leading hospital in the Netherlands. The hospital installed EarlySense's continuous monitors in its 28-bed pulmonology ward following a successful evaluation of EarlySense's sensors by the hospital's nursing department.

Franciscus Hospital Selects EarlySense to Prevent Patient Deterioration and Reduce Falls

Leveraging big data analytics, the EarlySense system will enable hospital staff to continuously and accurately monitor patient heart rate, respiratory rate and movement. This consistent stream of patient data will aid the nursing staff with early detection of patient deterioration, helping in preventing adverse events including patient falls.

"We are dedicated to providing our patients with the highest level of care, and equipping our nursing staff with advanced technology to help them succeed in their roles," said Lex Kahlman, Care Manager Pulmonology at Franciscus Gasthuis & Vlietland. "Preventing patient deterioration and falls is one of our key patient health objectives, as many of our patients are elderly and prone to falls. The EarlySense continuous monitoring system is a powerful tool that will help us mitigate this risk, and we are excited to add it to our ward as part of our total safety initiative."

Used worldwide in hospitals, rehab and skilled nursing facilities, the EarlySense continuous monitoring system leverages advanced algorithms to notify nurses of potentially adverse changes in patient vital signs, sending alerts to their pagers and to the central display station. The FDA-cleared and CE-approved solution has been clinically proven to help prevent adverse events, including code blues which are a result of cardiac or respiratory arrest, preventable ICU transfers, patient falls, pressure ulcers, and hospital readmissions.

"Franciscus Gasthuis & Vlietland is the latest hospital to join our growing list of global customers and we are proud to be included in their vision for patient safety," said Yfat Scilaom, VP of International Sales and Marketing at EarlySense. "Continuous monitoring solutions are coming closer to becoming a standard of care across the health continuum, and we are proud to see EarlySense technology continue to help patients and healthcare teams across the world."

View a video about this implementation here: https://youtu.be/sbfmZaExQyo.

About Franciscus Gasthuis & Vlietland

Franciscus Gasthuis & Vlietland is part of the group of Top Clinical Hospitals in the Netherlands. With focus on providing high quality care, the hospital is a recognized Medical Training and Research facility. Professional and motivated staff are the spill of the institution with 5 locations, 4,600 employees and more than 350 medical specialists. https://www.franciscus.nl/

About EarlySense

EarlySense is the global leader in contact-free, continuous monitoring solutions for the healthcare continuum. Used worldwide in hospitals, post-acute care facilities, and homes, EarlySense assists clinicians in early detection of patient deterioration. The solution has been proven to help prevent adverse events, including code blue events which are a result of cardiac or respiratory arrest, preventable ICU transfers, patient falls, pressure ulcers, and hospital readmissions. EarlySense's FDA-cleared solutions leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) and big data analytics to provide actionable health insights and improve clinical outcomes. The company has partnered with leading global technology companies including Samsung, Welch Allyn, iFit and Beurer. EarlySense is based in Ramat Gan, Israel and Woburn, Massachusetts. For more information, visit www.earlysense.com.





Follow EarlySense on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

Media Contact:

Ellie Hanson

Finn Partners

+1-929-222-8006

[email protected]

Company Contact:

Hila Peleg

+972-54-527-3117

[email protected]

SOURCE EarlySense; Franciscus Gasthuis & Vlietland

Related Links

https://www.earlysense.com


"We are beyond thrilled to be partnering with Octapharma to provide the Leading X experience to the bleeding disorder community," said Pat Torrey, Founder & CEO of GutMonkey. "As outdoor enthusiasts and professionals, all of us working at GutMonkey have personally witnessed the deep positive impact that outdoor adventure programs have on those who get to share in such a unique experience and are certain that this endeavor will dramatically enhance participants' lives. We are not only grateful for Octapharma's support, but we also truly believe that Octapharma is the best collaborative partner for bringing the Leading X expedition program to the bleeding disorder community."

Torrey pointed to Octapharma's recent sponsorship of Chris Bombardier in his successful quest earlier this year to become the first Hemophiliac to climb the Seven Summits, the highest peak on each continent, including Mount Everest and Mount Vinson. Octapharma's partnership with the mountain climber also includes sponsorship of Bombardier Blood, a documentary that will tell his inspirational story.

"Octapharma's vision to expand what is possible for the bleeding disorders community is apparent and admirable," said Bombardier, a Program Facilitator with GutMonkey. "Not only did they see and believe that climbing Mount Everest with a bleeding disorder is possible, they have now committed to helping others expand their vision of what is possible as well. By partnering with GutMonkey on Leading X, Octapharma is continuing their commitment to changing how the bleeding disorder community thinks about their conditions and expanding peoples' mindset around what is possible."

Octapharma USA President Flemming Nielsen noted that the company's support of outdoor adventure, patient education and amazing achievements such as Bombardier's fits well with its corporate mission.

"Octapharma is determined to help people in the bleeding disorder community enjoy lives that are not limited by Hemophilia and Von Willebrand Disease," Nielsen said. "Octapharma believes that if patients receive the medical therapies and services they need, the words 'I can't' may just be eliminated from their vocabulary. We are constantly looking for innovative ways to inspire patients to achieve their personal Everest and are thankful for this exciting opportunity to partner with GutMonkey on Leading X."

Participants in Leading X San Juan Islands, Washington, to be held September 16  22, 2018, will learn the fundamentals of traveling by boat, navigation, and camping while gaining leadership skills, developing personal responsibility, and forming community bonds that may last a lifetime. The 200 rocky, forested San Juan Islands are nestled between the cities of Seattle, Vancouver, and Victoria, British Columbia, in the waterways of Puget Sound, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and Rasario Strait. These pristine waters host more than 85 resident orca whales, the second-largest bald eagle breeding population in the continental United States and countless treasured wildlife. For more information and registration, please visit www.gutmonkey.com/leadingx.

About GutMonkey

GutMonkey is an experiential education company whose mission is to design and deliver engaging, relevant, and emotionally-centered programs that psychosocially support, and navigate people towards better adherence to a wide range of healthcare behaviors. The company has a 15-year history in bleeding disorders that began at summer camps and has evolved to encompass programs that focus on the diverse needs and demographics of the entire bleeding disorders community. For more information, please visit www.gutmonkey.com.

About the Octapharma Group

Headquartered in Lachen, Switzerland, Octapharma is one of the largest human protein products manufacturers in the world and has been committed to patient care and medical innovation since 1983. Its core business is the development and production of human proteins from human plasma and human cell lines. Octapharma employs approximately 7,600 people worldwide to support the treatment of patients in over 113 countries with products across the following therapeutic areas: Hematology (coagulation disorders), Immunotherapy (immune disorders) and Critical Care. The company's American subsidiary, Octapharma USA, is located in Hoboken, N.J. Octapharma operates two state-of-the-art production sites licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), providing a high level of production flexibility. For more information, please visit www.octapharmausa.com.

OCTA-0215

SOURCE Octapharma

Related Links

http://www.octapharmausa.com


SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Panoply, the smart cloud data warehouse built for business intelligence, is thrilled to announce that the company has been named a finalist in the 2018 VentureClash competition. VentureClash, managed by Connecticut Innovations, is a $5 million global venture challenge for early-stage companies in various industries.

In stiff competition, this year's VentureClash attracted hundreds of applications from more than 20 countries around the world. After advancing to the semifinal round along with 33 other companies, Panoply will now compete in the final pitch event as one of nine startups vying for a share of the $5 million prize.

"We're very excited to add Panoply to our finalist round of VentureClash," said Matt McCooe, CEO of Connecticut Innovations. "Yaniv and his team have built the next generation of data warehousing and created a business intelligence solution anyone can use. With Panoply's focus on recruiting talent to support the growth of the company, we think Connecticut would be a great place to access incredible talent."

Panoply's CEO and Co-Founder Yaniv Leven said, "We're proud to be announced as a finalist in the VentureClash competition. We met some great companies and people along the way and are psyched to be pitching at the finals. We're a team of fighters, we set incredible goals and conquer massive hills just to prove to ourselves how bad we want them. If we didn't plan to go all the way, we would have never gone at all. I'm proud of each and every one of our team members."

VentureClash 2018 finalists will compete in front of a panel of expert judges at a one-day pitch event to be held on October 18, 2018, at the Yale School of Management in New Haven, Connecticut.

About Panoply

Panoply is the world's only smart data warehouse for business intelligence (BI). Built for the cloud, Panoply utilizes machine learning and NLP to automate highly diverse data integration, query optimization and elastic data management making it fast and simple to gain actionable insights without the need of IT engineers. The company, based in San Francisco and Tel Aviv, is privately held and funded by investors such as Intel Capital, 500 Startups, Blumberg Capital, and C5 Capital.

About VentureClash

Managed by Connecticut Innovations, VentureClash is Connecticut's global venture challenge focused on early-stage companies. The challenge identifies high-potential companies in digital health, fintech, insurtech and the Internet of Things that will receive investments from a $5 million investment award pool. Learn more at www.ventureclash.com.

SOURCE Panoply

Related Links

https://panoply.io


LOS ANGELES, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Rivetz, a leader in decentralized cybersecurity, today announced it will demonstrate its latest innovation in blockchain-based mobile security at Mobile World Congress Americas. The solution, entitled Dual Roots of Trust, leverages protections from both the Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) and mobile carrier SIMs. The project is the result of a collaboration between Rivetz and Telefonica, which was announced earlier this year.

The Rivetz solution implements robust protection for private keys and the creation of secure messages for IoT, Blockchain and cloud services. The Dual Roots of Trust solution assures protection of the private keys even if one of the systems is compromised. The Rivetz-enabled apps generate and cryptographically distribute the private key between the two roots  the TEE and the SIM.

By combining the power of the mobile carrier global infrastructure and the advanced security of the TEE already built into millions of devices, Dual Roots of Trust delivers built-in security both from mobile carriers and device manufacturers, assuring that users are in control of their private keys. Decentralized protection of keys puts the owner in control. The technology protects consumers, mobile carriers, manufacturers and enterprises alike.

For consumers, Dual Roots of Trust ensures users' digital assets are securely protected in the handset, while providing an additional point of security control through the carrier SIM. In addition, the value of mobile carriers' service offerings is greatly enhanced by the ability to deny access to protected apps if a user's mobile device is compromised or lost  and quickly and easily restore service if the mobile device is found.

Finally, as employees increasingly use their own devices for use at work, enterprises can exercise greater control over sensitive corporate information accessed from personal devices. Employees may use company apps and access data, but Dual Roots of Trust gives enterprises the power to revoke access if an employee is no longer associated with the company.

"One of the most critical issues we face today is finding a balance between security and usability," said Steven Sprague, CEO of Rivetz. "In partnership with Telefonica, we are proud to provide a seamless, built-in solution for decentralized mobile security."

Rivetz and representatives from Telefonica's cybersecurity unit, Eleven Paths, will be on hand to answer questions about and demonstrate the Dual Roots of Trust technology at Mobile World Congress Americas, Booth W.119.

About Rivetz

Rivetz technology and services aim to provide a safer and easier-to-use model for all users to protect their digital assets using hardware-based trusted execution technology. The device plays a critical role in automating security and enabling the controls that users need to produce high assurance data and benefit from modern services. Rivetz leverages state-of-the-art cybersecurity tools to develop a modern model for users and their devices to interact with services on the Internet. They were selected for Telecom Council's prestigious Innovation Showcase Class of 2018. Find out more at www.rivetz.com and follow Rivetz on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Telegram.

All trademarks and product names are the property of their respective companies.

Rivetz Media Contact

Nikki Dance

FortyThree, Inc.

[email protected]

831.401.3175

SOURCE Rivetz

Related Links

http://www.rivetz.com


MALVERN, Pa., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Scala announced today that Anixter International's Central America/Latin America (CALA) division will be an official distributor of Scala's digital signage software and hardware throughout the Latin America (LATAM) region. Anixter CALA's extensive local presence throughout the region will allow Scala to offer bundled Scala-branded hardware and content management and design software to their customers in Central America, South America and the Caribbean. Through this new partnership, Scala, part of the STRATACACHE family of marketing technology companies, will streamline service to the LATAM region, increasing market reach and overall brand influence.

"Introducing Anixter to our distribution process will vastly impact ease of doing business for our customers throughout the region," said Ken Boyle, Senior Vice-President of Strategic Operations for STRATACACHE LATAM. "We've found that their extensive expertise and local presence backs up their dedication to growing the business in the region and helping Scala better serve our customers."

Anixter CALA has a dedicated team, located in Miami, FL, that specializes in hardware distribution throughout LATAM, and has prolific experience in trading, customs and nationalization for each country within the region. Scala's customers will now be able to purchase hardware in their local currency and within their own county, a smoother customer experience.

"The addition of Scala to our CALA Professional AV portfolio expands our digital signage retail capabilities, helping partners create enhanced customer experiences. This further aligns our Latin America portfolio to Anixter's global reach which constitutes a local advantage in the region," said Felice Tinelli, Vice President for AV and UC at Anixter CALA.

The renewed focus in the region follows the announcement of the STRATACACHE LATAM division, an expansion announced November 2017. STRATACACHE LATAM has a direct-client management engagement strategy while leveraging Scala's long standing regional partner channel to further empower product delivery and localized service fulfillment to the LATAM and Caribbean markets.

About Scala

Scala solutions deliver engaging retail experiences by connecting networks of digital signs, kiosks, mobile devices, websites and Internet-connected devices. Scala, a STRATACACHE company, provides the platform for marketers, retailers and innovators to easily create and centrally manage deployment of shopping experiences while retaining the flexibility to rapidly adapt to local business conditions and preferences of customers in the store. With 30 years of experience entertaining, informing and educating audiences, Scala is well-known for its innovation and leveraging best-of-breed technologies, such as mobile and predictive analytics, to create award-winning solutions that are easy-to-use, yet infinitely customizable. Headquartered near Philadelphia, PA, Scala's network of partners and developers located in more than 90 countries drives more than 500,000 screens worldwide.

About STRATACACHE

STRATACACHE provides scalable customer experiences, empowering retailers to learn deeply about their customers' shopping preferences and behaviors, allowing for personalized shopper interaction. Our solutions deliver consumer activation at the point-of-decision, generating new sales opportunities and enhanced retail profitability. With 2 million+ software activations globally, we power the biggest digital networks for the world's largest brands. Across the STRATACACHE family of complementary digital media/ad tech solution companies, we have the technology, expertise and track record to bring retail innovation that delivers results. Learn more about the STRATACACHE family at www.stratacache.com, on Twitter @STRATACACHE or on Facebook.

About Anixter

Anixter is a leading global distributor of Network & Security Solutions, Electrical & Electronic Solutions and Utility Power Solutions. We help build, connect, protect and power valuable assets and critical infrastructures. From enterprise networks to industrial MRO supply to video surveillance applications to electric power distribution, we offer full-line solutions, and intelligence, that create reliable, resilient systems that sustain businesses and communities. Through our unmatched global distribution network along with our supply chain and technical expertise, we help lower the cost, risk and complexity of our customers' supply chains.

Contact: Andrea Poley [email protected]

SOURCE Scala

Related Links

http://www.scala.com


CAYCE, S.C., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- SCANA Corporation (NYSE: SCG) announced that the Company's 2018 Annual Meeting of Shareholders was held today in Columbia, South Carolina, with Chairman of the Board of Directors Maybank Hagood, and Chief Executive Officer Jimmy Addison, presiding.

During the meeting, shareholders re-elected the following Class I Directors to SCANA's Board  James A. Bennett, Lynne M. Miller, James W. Roquemore, and Maceo K. Sloan. Terms of the Class I Directors will expire at the Annual Meeting in 2021, with the exception of Maceo K. Sloan whose term will expire at the Annual Meeting in 2019, as a result of his reaching the mandatory retirement age. Additionally, shareholders elected the following Class II Directors to SCANA's Board  John E. Bachman and Patricia D. Galloway. Their terms will expire at the Annual Meeting in 2019.

In other business, shareholders approved the following - the appointment of Deloitte & Touche LLP as SCANA's independent registered public accounting firm to audit the Company's 2018 financial statements. Shareholders also approved a non-binding advisory proposal on executive compensation. Board-proposed amendments to declassify the Board of Directors and provide for the annual election of all directors did not receive the votes required to amend the Articles of Incorporation. Additionally, the shareholder proposal regarding an assessment of the impact of public policies and technological advances consistent with limiting global warming was withdrawn prior to the meeting.

PROFILE

SCANA Corporation, headquartered in Cayce, SC, is an energy-based holding company principally engaged, through subsidiaries, in electric and natural gas utility operations and other energy-related businesses. Information about SCANA and its businesses is available on the company's website at www.scana.com.

Media Contact: Analyst Contact: Eric Boomhower Bryant Potter (800) 562-9308 (803) 217-6916

SOURCE SCANA Corporation

Related Links

http://www.scana.com


SAN FRANCISCO, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

The global systemic lupus erythematosus market size is expected to reach USD 3.08 billion by 2025, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc., exhibiting a CAGR of 7.0% during the forecast period. Introduction of new biological therapies, which will add to treatment alternatives and medication costs, in the development pipeline is estimated to fuel revenue generation of the market. Certain new promising drugs that are currently in Phase III trials are anticipated to augment the market as these drugs may target the lupus nephritis patient subset with few effective alternatives and significant unmet needs to be met. This factor is likely to have a strong impact on the market as nearly 50.0% of SLE patients suffer with lupus nephritis.

(Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/661327/Grand_View_Research_Logo.jpg )



Use of approved biologic, Benlysta, through clinical studies, has revealed drastic improvements and substantial decrease in consumption of anti-inflammatory glucocorticoids in moderate SLE cases. GSK's current initiatives center on further increasing opportunities for Benlysta. The company is conducting indication expansion clinical trials, combination therapy studies with rituximab, and new product development, to widen opportunities for its therapy. In this direction, recent launch of Benlysta's subcutaneous formulation in several countries is expected to boost the SLE market over the forecast period.

Browse full research report with TOC on "Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report by Drug Class (Immunosuppressants, Biologics, Antimalarials, NSAIDs, Corticosteroids), By Route of Administration, and Segment Forecasts 2018 - 2025" at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/systemic-lupus-erythematosus-sle-market

Further Key Findings From the Report Suggest:

North America was the major contributor for the SLE market revenue in 2017 and is anticipated to rise at a CAGR of 8.1% during the forecast period. This is due to availability of reimbursement and better healthcare infrastructure and accessibility to biologics.

was the major contributor for the SLE market revenue in 2017 and is anticipated to rise at a CAGR of 8.1% during the forecast period. This is due to availability of reimbursement and better healthcare infrastructure and accessibility to biologics. Europe was ranked as the second largest regional market in the SLE market in 2017 and is expected to register a CAGR of 5.5% over the forecast period

was ranked as the second largest regional market in the SLE market in 2017 and is expected to register a CAGR of 5.5% over the forecast period Immunosuppressants held the largest share in the market in 2017 due to their low cost and high accessibility, whereas the biologics segment is projected to post the highest CAGR during the same period

In 2017, the oral segment held the dominant share of over 54.0% in the market, followed by the intravenous segment that requires trained medical personnel for administration. Over the forecast years, the latter is poised to expand at a CAGR of 10.4%

Key players in this space include GlaxoSmithKline, Roche, Pfizer, Novartis, Bayer, and Sanofi. By 2025, other companies such as ImmuPharma, Aurinia Pharmaceuticals, and Astra Zeneca are anticipated to enter the SLE market.

Browse related reports by Grand View Research:

Prostate Cancer Therapeutics Market - The global prostate cancer therapeutics market size was valued at USD 7.9 billion in 2016 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.8% over the forecast period.



The global prostate cancer therapeutics market size was valued at in 2016 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.8% over the forecast period. Radiodermatitis Market - The global radiodermatitis market size was estimated at USD 310.9 million in 2016 and is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 4.0% throughout the forecast period.



The global radiodermatitis market size was estimated at in 2016 and is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 4.0% throughout the forecast period. Oncology Based In-vivo CRO Market - The global oncology based in-vivo CRO market size was valued at USD 725.0 million in 2016 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 8.0% over the forecast period.



- The global oncology based in-vivo CRO market size was valued at in 2016 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 8.0% over the forecast period. Erythropoietin (EPO) Drugs Market - The global erythropoietin (EPO) drugs market size was valued at USD 7.4 billion in 2016 and is expected to witness CAGR of 11.5% during the forecast period.

Grand View Research has segmented the global systemic lupus erythematosus market by drug class, route of administration, and region:

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Drug Classes Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) NSAIDs Corticosteroids Antimalarials Immunosuppressants Biologics

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Route of Administration Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) Oral Intravenous Subcutaneous

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) North America U.S. Canada Europe U.K. Germany France Italy Spain Greece Sweden Norway Poland RoE Asia Pacific Japan China Hong Kong Taiwan South Korea New Zealand Australia India Malaysia Singapore Latin America Brazil Mexico Argentina MEA Turkey Saudi Arabia Kuwait Israel South Africa



Explore the BI enabled intuitive market research database, Grand View Compass, 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.
DALLAS, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) (the "Company") today reported its August and year-to-date 2018 preliminary traffic statistics.

The Company flew 11.4 billion revenue passenger miles (RPMs) in August 2018, an increase of 1.3 percent from the 11.3 billion RPMs flown in August 2017. Available seat miles (ASMs) increased 2.0 percent to 13.5 billion in August 2018, compared with August 2017 ASMs of 13.3 billion. The August 2018 load factor was 84.3 percent, compared with 84.9 percent in August 2017.

This release, as well as past news releases about Southwest Airlines Co., is available online at Southwest.com.

Southwest Airlines Co. Preliminary Comparative Traffic Statistics













AUGUST

2018

2017

Change Revenue passengers carried 11,391,457

11,208,623

1.6% Enplaned passengers 13,966,584

13,656,895

2.3% Revenue passenger miles (000s) 11,418,568

11,276,636

1.3% Available seat miles (000s) 13,547,581

13,281,164

2.0% Load factor 84.3%

84.9%

(0.6) pts. Average length of haul 1,002

1,006

(0.4)% Trips flown 116,872

115,837

0.9%













YEAR-TO-DATE

2018

2017

Change Revenue passengers carried 90,185,081

86,668,224

4.1% Enplaned passengers 109,401,967

105,323,230

3.9% Revenue passenger miles (000s) 89,617,365

87,361,958

2.6% Available seat miles (000s) 107,022,911

104,313,463

2.6% Load factor 83.7%

83.7%

 Average length of haul 994

1,008

(1.4)% Trips flown 919,046

906,324

1.4%

SW-T

SOURCE Southwest Airlines Co.

Related Links

http://www.southwest.com


SAN MATEO, Calif. and NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Zoomdata, the company reinventing BI, today announced that it has launched ZAP! - the Zoomdata Application Partner program. Over the past year, Zoomdata has witnessed 3X growth in sales via channel partners. Much of this growth has been international, with an emphasis in Europe and the Asia Pacific regions. As customers across the globe increasingly seek the help of Systems Integrators (SI) with specific use case or domain expertise, Zoomdata is also expanding its partnerships in the U.S. market.

The company currently has more than ten core partners worldwide, including global SI's such as Deloitte, Atos, Hitachi INS, and Infosys, and 30 regional SI's representing specific territories and vertical markets including pharma and life sciences, telecom, and financial services. Most recently, Zoomdata signed a partnership agreement with RCG Global Services in the U.S. Other recent reseller partnerships include Datalytyx in the UK, Semantix in South America, Moviri in Italy, Zeal Corporation in Japan, and ICT Intelligence in South Africa.

"Performing analytics in a world of rapidly moving data has been a challenge for our customers that need to develop, implement, and (most importantly) visualize real-time insights. Using Zoomdata's unparalleled features and flexibility, our customers can finally harness big data and gain actionable insights they weren't able to access previously," said Rick Skriletz, Global Managing Principal, Data & Analytics, RCG Global Services. "We are excited to partner with Zoomdata because their solution enables our customers to make all data, regardless of type, quantity or location, available to users, so they can make timely, informed, and data-driven decisions."

Enterprise customers often seek the help of SIs with specific use case or domain expertise to develop custom interfaces, configure big data environments, and provide managed services. New and existing partners - both international and domestic - will enjoy other benefits of the company's reseller and partner program, including:

Dedicated, in-house support representatives and integrated support systems, to better provide seamless joint technical support

Advanced training and timely updates as new features and functionalities roll out, so they are informed and well-equipped to support their customers

Direct access to Zoomdata marketing, sales, and master class resources to ensure they are able to maximize their impact and reach

Deal registration and tracking through the Zoomdata partner portal

"Big data is still a major issue for organizations across all industries. Zoomdata built ZAP! to connect our customers with SIs who have the necessary deep domain expertise to implement and manage big data ecosystems," said Russ Cosentino, Co-founder and VP of Channel Sales. "We work with the best and most innovative SIs in the industry to ensure our customers can address real-time industry specific challenges by unlocking the true power of big data."

Customers can work with their Zoomdata Application Partner on a QuickStart Implementation package. Over the course of a QuickStart Implementation, a team of experienced ZAP! consultants will optimize data models, security protocols, setup users, configure Smart Connectors and build initial dashboards and analytics. Upon completion of a QuickStart, customers will have a fully configured Zoomdata implementation that not only meets the customer's initial requirements, but a platform that is scalable and ready to expand to support additional projects.

Zoomdata will be at Strata NYC this week discussing the new program, along with other company news. Visit Zoomdata at booth #1326.

For more information on ZAP!, please visit:

https://www.zoomdata.com/partners/?field_paty_tid=74#partners

About Zoomdata

Zoomdata is reinventing business intelligence (BI) from the ground up. The company's high-performance BI engine and visualizations allow users to discover new opportunities and solve problems that are too big or too hard to solve using conventional BI tools. Zoomdata's interactive dashboards, native modern data connectors, scalable microservices architecture, and innovations such as Data Sharpening make it the ideal front-end for big data, live streaming data, and multi-source analysis. Founded in 2012, Zoomdata holds multiple patents related to streaming data delivery and interactivity. Zoomdata is venture-backed by Accel, Comcast Ventures, Goldman Sachs, NEA and Razor's Edge and its forward-looking global customers include Automation Anywhere, Cielo, and GlaxoSmithKline. For more information, visit www.zoomdata.com.

Media Contacts:

Michelle Van Jura

Intersect Communications for Zoomdata

C: 310-420-4062

[email protected]

Kira Perdue

Intersect Communications for Zoomdata

C:404-556-0062

[email protected]

SOURCE Zoomdata

Related Links

http://www.zoomdata.com


SAN ANTONIO, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- BICSI, the association advancing the information and communications technology (ICT) community, hosted its annual Fall Conference in the historical and welcoming city of San Antonio, Texas. ICT professionals from all over the world began gathering at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center on Sunday and Monday for Pre-Conference seminars and exhibits.

The Exhibit Hall officially opened Monday evening with a Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony, which included a performance from the Bret Mullins Band, a top country music band. The Exhibit Hall was full of activity as 120 exhibitors spoke to excited attendees about the latest products and solutions that will help them in their careers.

Also featured in the Exhibit Hall is the First-Time Exhibitor Pavilion, where exhibitors brand new to BICSI Conferences were available to speak with attendees about their latest industry advancements. Also, of note was the BICSI Theater, where exhibitors shared brief presentations on their latest products in "What's New? What's It Do?" demonstrations.

BICSI President Jeff Beavers, RCDD, OSP, CFHP, officially opened the conference Tuesday morning, highlighting conference activities and noting some of BICSI's latest educational releases, including the recently updated ANSI/BICSI 004-2018, Information Communication Technology Systems Design and Implementation Best Practices for Healthcare Institutions and Facilities and the revamped Outside Plant Design credentialing program.

"Education has always been BICSI's number one priority," said Beavers. "The release of new and relevant manuals and curriculum ensure that BICSI and its members and credential holders remain at the forefront of the ICT industry. It is essential that we keep up with the ever-changing technologies that impact telecommunications systems."

Following Beaver's opening remarks, Jack Uldrich delivered an enlightening Opening Keynote presentation. As a world-renowned speaker on technology, change management and leadership, Uldrich spoke to attendees about emerging and future trends in the industry. During his presentation, he shared his insights on how to create a successful future and the transformational principles of unlearning or freeing yourself from obsolete knowledge and assumptions.

Tuesday's General Session continued with educational presentations on Internet of Things (IoT) and 5G; enterprise fiber networks; the convergence of wireless and wireline; Ethernet standardization and PoE.

The 2018 BICSI Fall Conference offers more educational sessions, networking opportunities and exhibit hours through Thursday afternoon.

About BICSI

BICSI is a professional association supporting advancing the information and communications technology (ICT) community. ICT covers the spectrum of voice, data, electronic safety & security, project management and audio & video technologies. It encompasses the design, integration and installation of pathways, spaces, optical fiber- and copper-based distribution systems, wireless-based systems and infrastructure that supports the transportation of information and associated signaling between and among communications and information gathering devices.

BICSI provides information, education and knowledge assessment for individuals and companies in the ITS industry. We serve more than 23,000 ICT professionals, including designers, installers and technicians. These individuals provide the fundamental infrastructure for telecommunications, audio/video, life safety and automation systems. Through courses, conferences, publications and professional registration programs, BICSI staff and volunteers assist ICT professionals in delivering critical products and services and offer opportunities for continual improvement and enhanced professional stature. Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, USA, BICSI membership spans nearly 100 countries.

SOURCE BICSI

Related Links

http://www.bicsi.org


NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Marketers, agencies, publishers and technologists will benefit from maximized educational offerings, information sharing and networking opportunities at this year's PROGRAMMATIC I/O New York, the world's largest programmatic media and marketing conference. Kicking off its most comprehensive advertising and marketing technology experience to date, AdExchanger, an award-winning integrated media company devoted to data-driven digital marketing, is hosting the event on October 15-16, 2018, at a new venue, New York Hilton Midtown, with an expected audience of more than 1,500 attendees.

The all-encompassing educational program includes six tailored agenda options over the course of two days, with 55 compelling presentations from more than 90 thought leaders and industry experts. Attendees will have the chance to kick-start networking with peers and partners, and engage in discussions on how programmatic media is evolving using the official conference app.

"This year, more than ever before, we are providing attendees with multiple touch-points to learn and engage with colleagues in the advertising and marketing technology community, as well as individualized programs that are suited to meet a variety of different programmatic needs," said John Ebbert, Publisher & CEO of AdExchanger. "Programmatic fundamentally unites all channels within the marketing and media ecosystem, and this event offers the greatest networking and informational opportunities in the programmatic space."

On Day One, attendees will have open access to all educational track sessions, including Programmatic 101, Programmatic Ops Talks, Programmatic Essentials Buy-Side and Programmatic Essentials Sell-Side. In addition, there is going to be a fifth spotlight session on TV and video advertising, that details the latest data on consumer behaviors, as well as best practices for smarter planning, execution and measurement of TV media.

Day Two of PROGRAMMATIC I/O includes the plenary program, which will feature brand marketer and publisher case studies, as well as panel sessions with industry luminaries. Top presenters at the conference include Volkswagen AG, Land O' Lakes, IBM, T-Mobile USA, Nestle, Overstock and AirBnB. There will also be a special fireside chat with Google's Director of Product Management Jonathan Bellack who will discuss the company's latest moves in the programmatic space, and Amazon's Vice President of Multichannel Advertising Tim Craycroft.

PROGRAMMATIC I/O New York is expected to attract more than 700 companies, including marketers, agencies, publishers, technologists and service providers. For more information, visit http://programmatic.io/ny/.

About AdExchanger

Founded in 2008, AdExchanger is an award-winning integrated media company  which includes publishing and three large industry conferences devoted to the data-driven, digital marketing space. The company produces Industry Preview, which provides an exclusive look at the year ahead in digital marketing technology, as well as two bi-coastal, leading conferences in programmatic media, known as PROGRAMMATIC I/O. In 2017, AdExchanger was acquired by Access Intelligence, a business-to-business media and information company serving the media, PR, broadcasting & cable, healthcare management, defense, chemical engineering, satellite and aviation markets. For more information, visit www.adexchanger.com.

SOURCE AdExchanger

Related Links

http://www.adexchanger.com


NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Payless ShoeSource is excited to continue our partnership with CFDA Fashion Designer, Christian Siriano, to bring high-fashion, affordable footwear to customers straight from New York Fashion Week. Siriano's Spring 2019 runway show on Saturday featured two limited-edition styles from his Payless collection that were immediately available for purchase on Payless.com. The event was attended by an amazing group of women including Whoopi Goldberg, Tiffany Haddish, Cynthia Nixon, Carmen Electra, Danielle Brooks, Sarah Hyland and many others.

Christian Siriano and Jackie Miranne at Siriano's show on Saturday. Candice Huffine makes a dramatic entrance at the Christian Siriano show wearing limited-edition, direct from runway platforms from the Payless collection.

Several of the guests were wearing Christian Siriano for Payless  shoes including Jackie Miranne, a TV host and style expert who focuses on affordable fashion. "I am obsessed with a white boot this season," commented Jackie, "and I think Payless nailed it with these I'm wearing today. I love how Christian has partnered with a global brand like Payless to make high-fashion styles affordable and accessible to all types of women."

The show's inclusive casting featured a range of models of all backgrounds and body types. Model Candice Huffine rocked the Christian Siriano for Payless  Direct from Runway platform heel during her dramatic entrance to the show.

"Like Payless, Christian believes in designing for all women," said Wendy Wolther, Fashion Director for Payless. "Our shared mission of celebrating inclusivity has made for a fantastic collaboration over the past several years. Our customers continue to love the Christian Siriano for Payless  collections season after season to deliver the wow factor they want."

The exclusive runway styles, a bright colorful platform heel and a polka dot ruffle slip-on sneaker, are priced under $40 and available for a limited time on Payless.com. Visit payless.com for more details about the Christian Siriano for Payless  runway collaboration here.

About Payless

Payless ShoeSource is the largest specialty footwear retailer in the Western Hemisphere, offering a vast array of style, brand and size selections at affordable prices for every member of the family. Founded in Topeka, Kansas in 1956, today Payless serves millions of customers through our extensive global network of over 3,500 stores and an increasing eCommerce presence. We employ nearly 18,000 associates in over 40 countries worldwide and are committed to providing an inclusive work culture for all members of the Payless team. While our footprint has expanded over the past six decades, the Payless mission of providing high-quality, accessible style and excellent customer service remains unchanged. To learn more, visit www.paylesscorporate.com and connect with us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Media Contact:

Lauren Jeffords

785.430.8581

[email protected]

SOURCE Payless ShoeSource

Related Links

http://Payless.com


DUBLIN, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Allergan plc (NYSE: AGN) today announced the launch of Spotlyte  an innovative digital hub of curated content that helps consumers discover how medical aesthetic treatments may fit into their routines. Through well-researched content, product reviews and insider profiles, together with the latest beauty news and trends, the site functions as a holistic and informative lens into these worlds. Beyond the editorial, Spotlyte will provide access to a team of trained specialists ready to offer real-time support and chat directly with anyone considering medical aesthetic treatments, as well as help connect readers to local licensed providers.

Led by Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, co-founder of Gilt Groupe and Glamsquad, and appointed senior vice president of Consumer Strategy and Innovation at Allergan, Spotlyte is the first venture from the new Allergan-owned digital ventures unit, Project Moonwalker. Dedicated to creating consumer facing businesses that unlock opportunities in the medical aesthetics category, Project Moonwalker will serve as a launchpad for new innovations that capitalize on a growing market.

"We have a unique position as industry leaders to identify emerging trends in real time and change the way that consumers engage with medical aesthetics," said Alexandra Wilkis Wilson. "I have spent most of my career focused on the consumer while creating powerful brands at the intersection of technology and lifestyle. The core goal of Project Moonwalker is to enable information flow and access. Spotlyte is the first step in changing how consumers can become better educated on medical aesthetics."

Consumers seek more information and don't always know where to go or who to trust. There are over 65 million Americans considering a variety of medical aesthetic treatments (from facial injectables to body contouring and breast implants) with approximately 30% citing lack of information as the top barrier to conversion. Allergan sees a huge opportunity to propel the aesthetics market forward by going direct to consumers.

"As the market leader in medical aesthetics, we have the opportunity and the responsibility to properly educate consumers and mainstream the conversation around aesthetic treatments. We want to create an open dialogue by incorporating medical aesthetics into the overall aesthetics conversation," said Brent Saunders, CEO of Allergan. "We believe the medical aesthetics market will double in 5-7 years."

The site is brand agnostic, with the goal of educating consumers and providing well researched and accurate information on medical aesthetics. For those who are curious or want to learn more, the on-site chat feature connects consumers to a specialist who will offer information and help make connections to local licensed providers.

For the latest news or more information, visit www.thespotlyte.com or follow the site on Instagram @Spotlyte.

All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

About Allergan plc

Allergan plc (NYSE: AGN), headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is a bold, global pharmaceutical leader. Allergan is focused on developing, manufacturing and commercializing branded pharmaceutical, device, biologic, surgical and regenerative medicine products for patients around the world.

Allergan markets a portfolio of leading brands and best-in-class products for the central nervous system, eye care, medical aesthetics and dermatology, gastroenterology, women's health, urology and anti-infective therapeutic categories.

Allergan is an industry leader in Open Science, a model of research and development, which defines our approach to identifying and developing game-changing ideas and innovation for better patient care. With this approach, Allergan has built one of the broadest development pipelines in the pharmaceutical industry.

Allergan's success is powered by our global colleagues' commitment to being Bold for Life. Together, we build bridges, power ideas, act fast and drive results for our customers and patients around the world by always doing what is right.

With commercial operations in approximately 100 countries, Allergan is committed to working with physicians, healthcare providers and patients to deliver innovative and meaningful treatments that help people around the world live longer, healthier lives every day.

For more information, visit Allergan's website at www.Allergan.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

Statements contained in this press release that refer to future events or other non-historical facts are forward-looking statements that reflect Allergan's current perspective on existing trends and information as of the date of this release. Actual results may differ materially from Allergan's current expectations depending upon a number of factors affecting Allergan's business. These factors include, among others, the difficulty of predicting the timing or outcome of FDA approvals or actions, if any; the impact of competitive products and pricing; market acceptance of and continued demand for Allergan's products; the impact of uncertainty around timing of generic entry related to key products, including RESTASIS, on our financial results; risks associated with divestitures, acquisitions, mergers and joint ventures; uncertainty associated with financial projections, projected cost reductions, projected debt reduction, projected synergies, restructurings, increased costs, and adverse tax consequences; difficulties or delays in manufacturing; and other risks and uncertainties detailed in Allergan's periodic public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including but not limited to Allergan's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 and Allergan's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2018. Except as expressly required by law, Allergan disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

CONTACTS:

Allergan:

Investors:

Daphne Karydas

(862) 261-8006

Karina Calzadilla

(862) 261-7328

Media:

Amy Rose

(862) 289-3072

Amanda Rosenberg

(917) 415-2726

SOURCE Allergan plc

Related Links

http://www.allergan.com


Chairman of Alliance for Progressives (AP) Maj. Gen. Pius Mokgware says his party will call for a commission of enquiry into the controversial procurement of Land Rovers from the United Kingdom by Botswana Defence Force (BDF). The BDF spent around P161 million for procurement of 500 second-hand Land Rover 110 Defenders.

The procurement of the obsolete vehicles was allegedly spearheaded by Office of the President early last year and BDP played no major role save for viewing and collection at Witham (Specialist Vehicles) Ltd - a UK secondhand seller. The OP has been at the centre of the controversial procurement although it refuted playing part in the agreement to purchase units of the Defender LR110 44 SUV for the BDF, at a cost of P161.9 million.

Major Gen Mokgware stated this week that they would seek through a motion in Parliament for an enquiry to be undertaken to establish why the BDF decided to buy such vehicles which are already experiencing breakdowns hardly a year later. We demand that the recent procurement of very old military equipment be investigated.

We strongly believe that the procurement was not transparent. There are allegations that certain high ranking officers were given similar vehicles by the supplier. This was a waste of government funds, said the AP chairman who is also Member of Parliament for Gabane-Mankgodi. Maj Gen Mokgware pointed out that should the motion be defeated as they foresee such from Botswana Democratic Party MPs they would seek other avenues.

We will ask for Parliamentary Committee on Defence and International Relations to intervene and call the Commander or Minister of Defence Justice and Security to explain this mess. BDF Director, Directorate of Protocol and Public Affairs Colonel Tebo Dikole has stated that BDF procured last year what is called EXCESS DEFENCE EQUIPMENT from the United Kingdom (UK) Military. He explained that Excess Defence Equipment is equipment disposed of by an army, in this case the UK Army as a result of downsizing.

This equipment ranges from never used to hardly used. Some of the Land Rovers were never used and others had mileages that read between 7000km to 50 000km. It is common knowledge that sometimes equipment, whether military or not that has not been in use for a while will likely display some form of minor mechanical faults that require minimal repairs, said Colonel Dikole in an interview recently with this publication adding that any fleet - new or used - remains susceptible to mechanical failures as well as wear and tear.

Maj Gen Mokgware, a former army man himself, believes it was ill-advised to procure such equipment. He explained that the BDF should be moving with the times and buying appropriate equipment. What is even painful is that we are wasting such funds while our security officers are disgruntled.

They are no longer promoted and stay in one rank for a long time, their conditions of service are very poor and they do not have accommodation. It is very dangerous to have such people disgruntled because it puts our security as a country at risk, he explained.
AGOURA HILLS, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- American Homes 4 Rent (NYSE: AMH) (the "Company") today announced that it has priced an underwritten public offering of 4,000,000 of its 6.25% Series H Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Preferred Shares (the "Series H Preferred Shares") raising gross proceeds of approximately $100 million, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses. The Series H Preferred Shares have an initial liquidation preference of $25 per share. The offering is expected to close on September 19, 2018, subject to customary closing conditions. The Company has also granted to the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 600,000 Series H Preferred Shares at the public offering price, less the underwriting discount. The Company intends to apply to list the Series H Preferred Shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "AMHPRH." If the application is approved, the Company expects trading to commence within 30 days after initial delivery of the Series H Preferred Shares.

The Company will contribute the net proceeds from the offering to its operating partnership in exchange for Series H operating partnership units. The operating partnership intends to use the net proceeds from the contribution along with available cash to fund the exchange for cash of the $115.0 million face value of outstanding 3.25% exchangeable senior notes due November 15, 2018.

Wells Fargo Securities, Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering. J.P. Morgan and Raymond James are acting as lead managers for the offering, and Jefferies, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, US Bancorp and Ramirez & Co., Inc. are acting as co-managers for the offering.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such an offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful before registration or qualification thereof under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

The offering is being made pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") and only by means of a prospectus and prospectus supplement. Copies of the prospectus and final prospectus supplement relating to the offering may be obtained, when available, by visiting EDGAR on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov or from Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, Attention: WFS Customer Service, 608 2nd Avenue South, Suite 1000, Minneapolis, MN 55402, or via telephone (800) 645-3751, or via email [email protected]; Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Attention: Prospectus Department, NC1-004-03-43, 200 North College Street, 3rd Floor, Charlotte, North Carolina 28255-0001, or via telephone (800) 294-1322, or via email [email protected]; and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 180 Varick Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10014, or via telephone (866) 718-1649.

About American Homes 4 Rent

American Homes 4 Rent (NYSE: AMH) is a leader in the single-family home rental industry and "American Homes 4 Rent" is fast becoming a nationally recognized brand for rental homes, known for high quality, good value and tenant satisfaction. We are an internally managed Maryland real estate investment trust, or REIT, focused on acquiring, renovating, leasing, and operating single-family homes as rental properties. As of June 30, 2018, we owned approximately 52,049 single-family properties, in selected submarkets in 22 states.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements relate to beliefs, expectations or intentions and similar statements concerning matters that are not of historical fact and are generally accompanied by words such as "estimate," "project," "predict," "believe," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "potential," "plan," "goal" or other words that convey the uncertainty of future events or outcomes. These forward-looking statements may include, but are not limited to, the Company's ability to complete the offering and the intended use of net proceeds. The Company has based these forward-looking statements on its current expectations and assumptions about future events. While the Company's management considers these expectations to be reasonable, they are inherently subject to risks, contingencies and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the Company's control. These and other important factors, including "Risk Factors" disclosed in, or incorporated by reference into, the prospectus from the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 and in the Company's subsequent filings with the SEC, may cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from anticipated results expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Investors should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

Contact:

American Homes 4 Rent

Investor Relations

Phone: (855) 794-2447

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE American Homes 4 Rent

Related Links

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BOSTON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The majority of Americans (62%) say they believe climate change is a problem, according to the 2018 Cone/Porter Novelli Climate Change Snapshot. The research finds that although many Americans feel unempowered to address climate change, they are hopeful companies will take the lead.

In fact, less than four-in-10 (38%) Americans feel their actions can make a real difference in addressing climate change. Yet, even as individuals may feel personally powerless, they do see companies as critical players in progress. Fifty-eight percent say that in the absence of government progress, companies should take the lead.

When it comes to how companies should address climate change, many Americans believe companies should first look within  by reducing energy usage and developing new products  then look to engage partners in the corporate, government and nonprofit sectors.

Reduce energy use or emissions (64%)

Create new products that are better for the environment (57%)

Work with other companies that are also committed to the issue (44%)

Lobby for government policies that address climate change (33%)

Donate to nonprofits that address climate change (27%)

Provide consumers with information about how climate change impacts individuals (17%)

Provide consumers with tools to take action (16%)

"Although the United States is currently the only country globally that is not committed to the Paris Climate Accord, U.S. citizens are not turning their attention away from the effects of climate change," says Alison DaSilva, EVP, CSR and Purpose, Cone. "Americans are looking to companies to make large-scale change in addressing climate change and feel business has the size, acumen and resources to make a meaningful impact."

Political Affiliation and Gender Play a Role in Climate Change Opinions

The study confirmed that differences exist when it comes to viewpoints on climate change. Political affiliation and gender are two of the strongest indicators of climate change stances.

Democrats are the most likely group to say climate change is a problem (84%), followed by Independents (62%) and finally Republicans (37%). More than three-quarters (76%) of Democrats also see companies as the leading stakeholder to addressing climate change in the absence of government progress (vs. Independent 57%; Republican 38%).

Differences exist among gender as well. Women are more likely than men to believe climate change is a problem (66% female vs. 59% of men) and while male and females are equal in believing companies should lead (59% female vs. 58% male), their perspectives on how companies should address climate change differ. Although both genders agree reducing energy or emissions is a primary method (63% female vs. 64% male), women are more likely to believe companies should innovate products to be better for the environment (60% female vs. 55% male) and that donations can be an important way to drive change (31% female vs. 23% male).

"With the midterm elections less than two months away, topics like climate change will be foremost in the minds of many American constituents  not just in terms of the candidates they vote for, but also the businesses they support," says Aaron Pickering, SVP, CSR and Purpose, Cone. "Today more than ever, it's critical for companies to proactively communicate with stakeholders the ways in which they are working to address climate change."

Interested in learning more about the intersection of climate change and consumer engagement?

Talk with the experts: Alison DaSilva and Aaron Pickering are available for interviews. Please contact Whitney Dailey ( [email protected] / 617.939.8376) to coordinate.

and are available for interviews. Please contact ( / 617.939.8376) to coordinate. Read the 2018 Cone/Porter Novelli Climate Change Snapshot fact sheet. Available by request.

About the Research

The 2018 Cone/Porter Novelli Climate Change Snapshot presents results based on Porter Novelli's online Styles survey of 2,292 U.S. adults (1095 males and 1197 females) conducted from March 21  April 11, 2018. Data are weighted to be demographically representative of the U.S. population. The margin of error is  2% at a 95% level of confidence for the overall sample and higher among subgroups.

About Cone

Cone is a public relations and marketing agency that is Always Making a Difference for business, brands and society. We help organizations define their authentic Purpose, weaving it into the brand DNA to both grow the business and positively impact the world. Our deep subject matter expertise in Purpose Brand Strategy, CSR, Social Marketing, Social Impact and Brand Communications creates breakthrough work and unforgettable experiences to ignite action around issues that matter. Cone is a Porter Novelli company and part of the Omnicom Public Relations Group.

About Porter Novelli

Porter Novelli is a global public relations agency born from the idea that the art of communication can advance society. Over 45 years ago, we opened our doors  and people's eyes and minds  for brands driven to make a positive impact. Today, we are a global agency with the entrepreneurial spirit of boutique specialists. We continue to build that bridge between purpose and business imperatives, and believe that a healthy bottom line can also make a remarkable impact. For additional information, please visit www.porternovelli.com. Porter Novelli is a part of the Omnicom Public Relations Group.

About Omnicom Public Relations Group

Omnicom Public Relations Group is a global collective of three of the top global public relations agencies worldwide and specialist agencies in areas including public affairs, marketing to women, fashion, global health strategy and corporate social responsibility. It encompasses more than 6,000 public relations professionals in more than 330 offices worldwide who provide their expertise to companies, government agencies, NGOs and nonprofits across a wide range of industries. Omnicom Public Relations Group is part of the DAS Group of Companies, a division of Omnicom Group Inc. that includes more than 200 companies in a wide range of marketing disciplines including advertising, public relations, healthcare, customer relationship management, events, promotional marketing, branding and research.

SOURCE Cone

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ROHNERT PARK, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Though national political shifts impact borrowers, for many, the challenge is much more personal. For those who have struggled with student loan debt, the standard student loan repayment plan isn't flexible enough to help a borrower deal with realities of life after higher education. Many borrowers end up accepting low-paying or entry-level jobs and then have trouble managing household expenses and student loan repayment. These borrowers need advocates. One of them, Seth Frotman, the government's highest official responsible for oversight of the nation's student loan debt, has left his post at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Despite governmental shake-ups, Ameritech Financial, a document preparation company, continues to advocate for its clients by guiding them through the sometimes difficult process of applying for and maintaining enrollment in federal programs, such as income-driven repayment plans (IDRs).

"Student loan borrowers need trusted advocates," said Tom Knickerbocker, executive vice president at Ameritech Financial. "Borrowers need to know their options and we provide that expertise. As our clients know, getting an IDR after being overwhelmed with student loan debt can offer hope and light for those who have struggled."

Frotman, the student loan ombudsman, resigned after Mick Mulvaney, acting director of the CFPB, downgraded his office from an enforcement unit to consumer education.

In his letter of resignation, Frotman said that, after 10 months under Mulvaney's leadership, "it has become clear that consumers no longer have a strong, independent Consumer Bureau on their side." Frotman cited his staff's return of more than $750 million to harmed student loan borrowers since 2011, but stated the CFPB was now serving "the wishes of the most powerful financial companies in America."

Representatives of the CFPB say the move was a minor organizational shake-up, not a threat to the CFPB's mission in regard to student loans. For their part, the CFPB's reductions in enforcement and revision of rules are part of a larger White House mandate to reduce regulations and increase free market forces. Though they would not directly comment on the specifics of Frotman's resignation, they issued a statement saying, "we hope that all of our departing employees find fulfillment in other pursuits and we thank them for their service."

Though these larger forces and political struggles affect student loan borrowers, for most, student loan debt is a more personal struggle. For those overwhelmed by student loan debt, IDRs might help reduce a qualifying borrower's payments to 10 to 15 percent of their discretionary monthly income, possibly even ending in forgiveness after 20 to 25 years of enrollment in the program.

"No matter which way the political wind is blowing, we can act as a trusted guide, helping borrowers through the IDR process, in an effort to give them some breathing room so they don't have to scramble every month," said Knickerbocker. "With IDRs, borrowers can more easily stay current on their payments and begin to regain financial control of their lives."

About Ameritech Financial

Ameritech Financial is a private company located in Rohnert Park, California. Ameritech Financial has already helped thousands of consumers with financial analysis and student loan document preparation to apply for federal student loan repayment programs offered through the Department of Education.

Each Ameritech Financial telephone representative has received the Certified Student Loan Professional certification through the International Association of Professional Debt Arbitrators (IAPDA).

Ameritech Financial prides itself on its exceptional customer service.

Ameritech Financial Newsroom

Contact

To learn more about Ameritech Financial, please contact:

Ameritech Financial

5789 State Farm Drive #265

Rohnert Park, CA 94928

1-800-792-8621

[email protected]

Related Images

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CFPB Student Loan Ombudsman Resigns

Credit: jgroup/Bigstock

image2.png

Related Links

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Related Video

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SOURCE Ameritech Financial

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ATLANTA, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- With rents increasing across the country, from Los Angeles at 3% in to Atlanta at 4.7%, renters are taking savvy approaches to save money around their homes. Apartments.com  the most trafficked apartment-listing site  reveals the top 10 tips to save money using little time and effort. From setting a budget to finding the perfect neighborhood, everyone can take advantage of these easy tips on a dime while searching for the perfect rental.

Set Limits: Housing costs are dependent on location as rent varies by city and neighborhood. Relocating from the city to a suburb could save you hundreds of dollars in rent. In Chicago , moving from the city to Grundy County saves $458 a month and in Houston moving from the city to Austin County saves $332 a month! Most importantly, set a budget ahead of time. Going over budget by even $100 a month can set you back by $1,200 a year. Be a Savvy Commuter: Finding the right location can help cut on costs, especially if it is closer to work or public transportation. With hundreds of thousands of apartment listings, Apartments.com offers the largest inventory available with the most advanced search tools renters want, including commute-based search designed to show properties nearby where a renter works and plays most, whether it be car, bike, public transit or walking. Go Green to Save Green: While switching light bulbs to LED, washing clothes in cold water and turning off lights when leaving the room help save money, look for energy saving features around the apartment when touring potential homes. Does the apartment have energy saving appliances, ceiling fans and a programmable smart thermostat? Be A Neighborhood Trendsetter: Consider moving to an up-and-coming neighborhood to help lower rent like Fishtown in Philadelphia , Northside Village in Houston , Bushwick in Brooklyn , Eckington in Washington DC and Lawrenceville in Pittsburgh . The Apartments.com Neighborhood Guides feature not only gives background on a selected area, but also provides a detailed description of restaurants and nightlife, history and culture, transportation, cost of living, shopping and nearby parks. Insure and Protect: Imagine having to replace clothing, food, personal items, furniture and memorabilia. Disaster is sometimes inevitable and renters insurance will provide protection in the event of emergencies. Renters insurance is affordable and a small price to pay for peace of mind in case of fires, flooding, electrical issues, stolen belongings and more. However, keep in mind every policy is different, so be sure to understand what is and is not covered. Damage Control: A security deposit is a fixed amount of money paid to the landlord, or management company, to cover any damage caused to the property, which must be returned if no damages occur. Document the apartment upon move in by taking pictures of each room and notify the landlord of any preexisting damages to ensure receipt of the security deposit back in full upon move out. By documenting the apartment's condition at move in and keeping the place clean and undamaged, no additional money will be lost throughout the lease. A New Home for the Holidays: During the second half of the year, a slow down in apartment demand leaves landlords with less of an ability to push rents toward the end of the year. If possible, wait until Black Friday to sign a leasewhen rents average 10 percent lower! Don't Be Late: Make sure to be aware of when rent is due and all potential late fees. Mark the day on a calendar, set a reminder and always remember to pay on time. If in a tough bind, be upfront with your landlord about the situation and see if they will provide an extension  it never hurts to ask! Consider a Roommate: Having a roommate might not be ideal, but the amount of money saved could make it worthwhile. For example, a two-bedroom apartment in Atlanta averages at $1,270 whereas a one bedroom is $1,093 . Sharing a two bedroom would cost you around $635 , saving you almost 42%. Splitting other expenses such as cable, utilities, kitchen supplies, decorations and groceries can also help cut back! Take Advantage of Amenities: The search process is now significantly easier. Apartments.com simplifies the experience by allowing for the selection of specific interior and community amenities desired, only delivering results based on those selections. Whether looking to explore rentals a four-legged friend can call home too, have a dire need for an elevator, or simply want fitness center and pool access, the site can narrow down the options without having to sift through the good, the bad, and the ugly.

To search for your next apartment and stay on budget, visit Apartments.com.

About Apartments.com

Apartments.com is the leading online apartment listing website, offering renters access to information on more than 1,000,000 available units for rent. Powered by CoStar, the Apartments.com network of sites includes Apartments.com, ApartmentFinder.com, ApartmentHomeLiving.com, Apartamentos.com, WestsideRentals.com, ForRent.com, ForRentUniversity.com, After55.com and CorporateHousing.com. Apartments.com is supported by the industry's largest professional research team, which has visited and photographed over 400,000 properties nationwide. The team makes over one million calls each month to apartment owners and property managers, collecting and verifying current availabilities, rental rates, pet policies, fees, leasing incentives, concessions, and more. Apartments.com offers more rental listings than any other apartments website, and innovative features including a Polygon tool that allows users to define their own search areas on a map, and a "Plan Commute" feature that lets users search for rentals in proximity to a specific address. Apartments.com creates easy access to its listings through a responsive website and iOS and Android apps, and provides unmatched exposure for its advertisers through an intuitive name, strategic search engine placements and innovative emerging media. The Apartments.com network reaches millions of renters nationwide, driving both qualified traffic and highly engaged renters to leasing offices. For more information: www.apartments.com

SOURCE Apartments.com

Related Links

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DENVER, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Atlas Real Estate Group, a full-service realty group specializing in real estate investments, brokerage and property management, has been named the Top Company in the real estate category for 2018 awards by ColoradoBiz Magazine.

Read the full article feature here: http://www.cobizmag.com/Companies/Top-Company-Positioned-to-Use-Real-Estate-to-Unriddle-Savings/.

This recognition is the latest from ColoradoBiz Magazine, as Atlas Real Estate Group was named Best of Colorado Property Management for the second consecutive year by the publication in March of 2018.

The Top Company awards are determined by notable achievements, challenges surmounted, financial performance and community engagement. Along with Atlas, ColoradoBiz Magazine interviewed top real estate firms from across Colorado in contention for this award.

Founded in 2013 by Jason Shepherd and Ryan Boykin, a 2017 Denver Business Journal 40 Under 40 honoree, Atlas Real Estate Group manages more than 2,400 residential and commercial properties across Denver and its surrounding areas.

"Atlas' unique company culture and team dynamic has played a significant part in our success. It is present in all aspects of our company; our values, our products, our identity and our personality," said Boykin. "The stellar team we've built and the culture we've created have enabled us to help our clients and communities through a myriad of services."

The Atlas Real Estate Group team is dedicated to working with families and individuals in Colorado to utilize real estate as a platform for passive income and long-term wealth building. Since its founding in 2013, Atlas has bought and sold more than 4,000 properties.

"At Atlas, we're dedicated to providing second-to-none real estate investment, brokerage and property management services and committed to creating a more vibrant, connected and equitable community," said Shepherd.

For media inquiries please contact Binh Nguyen at 866-225-0920 ext. 106 or [email protected].

About Atlas Real Estate Group: Atlas is a full-service real estate group specializing in investments, brokerage and property management in Denver. The group's internal real estate holdings exceed $50 million and it has bought and sold 4,000+ properties totaling over $750 million worth of transactions. Atlas manages more than 2,400 residential and commercial properties across Denver and surrounding areas. To learn more about Atlas, visit www.RealAtlas.com.

Binh Nguyen

Flackable

866-225-0920 ext. 106

[email protected]

SOURCE Atlas Real Estate Group

Related Links

http://www.RealAtlas.com


SAN FRANCISCO, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

The global automotive interior leather market size is projected to reach USD 46.84 billion by 2025, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc., progressing at a CAGR of 6.5% during the forecast period. Boom in automotive manufacturing industry, particularly in emerging economies of Asia Pacific, coupled with rise in demand for artificial leather is poised to propel the market over the forecast period.

(Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/661327/Grand_View_Research_Logo.jpg )



Considerable shift in consumer preference towards artificial leather for applications in the automotive industry is likely to drive the market over the forecast period. Development of bio-based leather is further anticipated to unfold ample growth opportunities for the market. Renewable biobased sources used for manufacturing of biobased variants include cellulose and vegetable oil. Petroleum-based and other toxic chemicals are not incorporated into its production process.

Upholstery dominated the global automotive interior leather market in 2017 and is expected to maintain its position over the forecast period. Massive adoption of the product in interiors as an upholstery material is driven by various merits offered by it such as softer feel, premium finish, and durability. Market players are engaged in supplying kits that contain pre-sewn upholstery covers designed as per each vehicle need.

Leather is among the most preferred materials for manufacturing automotive carpet. It is a naturally-derived material, which is durable and delivers a premium finish to the vehicle. They are easy to maintain and easy to clean. Several unique properties imparted by it such as softness and ability to repel stain are estimated to augment the demand for automotive interior leather in carpet application.

Browse full research report with TOC on "Automotive Interior Leather Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Vehicle (Passenger Cars, LCVs, Trucks & Buses), By Material (Genuine, Synthetic), By Application, By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2018 - 2025" at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/automotive-interior-leather-market

Further Key Findings From the Report Suggest:

China is the largest producer as well as largest consumer in the global market in 2017. It is projected to rise at a CAGR of 6.8% over the forecast period. China is also among the largest luxury markets, globally. Consumers in the country prefer genuine leather to synthetic leather in automotive interior

is the largest producer as well as largest consumer in the global market in 2017. It is projected to rise at a CAGR of 6.8% over the forecast period. is also among the largest luxury markets, globally. Consumers in the country prefer genuine leather to synthetic leather in automotive interior India is among the fastest growing economies in Asia Pacific . Favorable government policies, availability of cheap labor, and rising disposable income are attracting investments in the automotive manufacturing industry

is among the fastest growing economies in . Favorable government policies, availability of cheap labor, and rising disposable income are attracting investments in the automotive manufacturing industry Genuine leather held considerable revenue share on account of its massive demand in manufacturing upholstery for high-end luxury vehicles. Its ability to impart premium finish to vehicle leads to improved aesthetics

Key players include Eagle Ottawa, LLC, Alphaline Auto, DK Leather Corporation Berhad, and Wollsdorf Leder Schmidt & Co Ges.m.b.H.

In January 2014 , GST Autoleather Inc. and Tata International Limited signed an agreement to enter into a joint venture company named JV Automotive Leather Company, which has its registered headquarters at Mumbai . The company has its operations office situated at Dewas, India to cater to surging demand for the product across domestic as well as international original equipment market.

Browse related reports by Grand View Research:

Polypropylene (PP) Absorbent Hygiene Market - The global polypropylene (PP) absorbent hygiene market was valued over USD 9.00 billion in 2014.



The global polypropylene (PP) absorbent hygiene market was valued over in 2014. N-Methyl-2-Pyrrolidone (NMP) Market - The global N-Methyl-2-Pyrrolidone (NMP) Market size was estimated at USD 1.07 billion in 2015 and is expected to witness a significant growth over the forecast period.



The global N-Methyl-2-Pyrrolidone (NMP) Market size was estimated at in 2015 and is expected to witness a significant growth over the forecast period. Industrial Pumps Market - The industrial pumps market size was valued at USD 50.14 billion in 2015 and is expected to witness a growth at a CAGR of 5.9% over the forecast period.



The industrial pumps market size was valued at in 2015 and is expected to witness a growth at a CAGR of 5.9% over the forecast period. Bentonite Market - The global bentonite market size was valued at USD 1.27 billion in 2015 and is expected to witness growth at a CAGR of 4.8% over the forecast period.

Grand View Research has segmented the global automotive interior leather market on the basis of vehicle, material, application and region:

Automotive Interior Leather Vehicle Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) Passenger Cars Light Commercial Vehicles Trucks & Buses

Automotive Interior Leather Material Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) Genuine Synthetic

Automotive Interior Leather Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) Upholstery Headliners Carpet Seat Belt Other

Automotive Interior Leather Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) North America U.S. Canada Mexico Europe Germany France U.K. Spain Asia Pacific China India Japan South Korea Central & South America Brazil Argentina Middle East & Africa



Explore the BI enabled intuitive market research database, Grand View Compass, 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.
LONDON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Distributed Ledger Technology for Payments, Processing & Settlement, Microtransactions, Asset Management, Identity & Access Management, Automated Compliance, and Prediction Markets: Global Market Analysis & Forecasts



Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/4483583



In the past year, blockchain has become a controversial global phenomenon, with the technology perceived as either a solution for whatever ails society or "rat poison squared" as Warren Buffet describes Bitcoin. In 2018, we are witnessing the launch of blockchains carrying commercial traffic and moving beyond proof-of-concept (PoC) demonstrations, though the selected applications have yet to demonstrate the capacity and scale of credit card networks. Blockchain-powered international trade finance coming online is just one example. The blockchain ecosystem is replete with innovating startups prompted by amazing cryptocurrency valuations. Blockchain entrepreneurs find a reason to tokenize anything and everything and move quickly toward an initial coin offering (ICO), the largest of which recently exceeded $4 billion, though funds were denominated in another cryptocurrency, Ethereum.

The explosion in the blockchain ecosystem is typical during the early stages of general-purpose technology (GPT) development and explains the degree of fragmentation present in the market. This fragmentation leads to cautious investment as the industry works through the inevitable industry rationalization and resulting consolidation. Driving this rationalization are the large internet companies moving to establish market dominance as blockchain platforms and reap the resulting rewards. The large company blockchain development encourages other large companies to move beyond PoCs to commercial traffic. Tractica has identified six broad enterprise blockchain use case categories that are further segmented into 29 individual use cases. These use cases offer cost savings, efficiency improvements, security enhancement, and regulatory compliance compared to legacy processes.

This Tractica report examines market trends, technology issues, key use cases, and industry players analyzing the evolution of enterprise blockchain from one-off projects to a general-purpose technology. The study includes granular market sizing and revenue forecasts for 29 use cases spanning 19 industries, segmented by implementation category and world region through 2025. The report also includes in-depth profiles of 39 key industry innovators.

Key Questions Addressed:

What are the key use cases for distributed ledger technologies within various industry sectors?

What is the current state of the blockchain market and what drivers and barriers will shape its development over the next 5-10 years?

What are the key business benefits for organizations implementing distributed ledger technologies?

What are some of the key barriers to adoption and growth of blockchain in enterprise markets?

Who are the key players in the enterprise blockchain market, what is their competitive positioning, and which ones are poised for greatest success?

What is the size of the blockchain market opportunity and how does it vary by industry and use case?

Who Needs This Report?

Enterprise end-user organizations

Enterprise software companies

Blockchain/distributed ledger technology companies

Semiconductor and component vendors

Service providers and systems integrators

Government agencies and regulators

Investor community

Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/4483583



About Reportbuyer

Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers



For more information:

Sarah Smith

Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com

Email: [email protected]

Tel: +1 (718) 213 4904

Website: www.reportbuyer.com

SOURCE ReportBuyer

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HOUSTON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Bristow Group Inc. (NYSE:BRS) today announced organizational changes as part of continuous improvements to the company's support services model. The changes build off the company's success over the past 15 months to reduce costs and align the company's structure with the market environment for offshore services.

"We have been pursuing increases in revenue and more efficient management of our portfolio of assets and businesses and reducing our costs as we continue to create the world's premier industrial aviation services company," said President and CEO Jonathan Baliff. "Market demands have changed, which means we must continue to look for opportunities to improve our support services model and enable our geographical hubs to operate more effectively and efficiently."

As part of the efforts to reduce costs, the company is taking actions to restructure several functions within the organization; all designed to create a more effective and efficient, regionally-focused company while further reducing corporate general and administrative (G&A) costs to approximately 11.5% of revenues.

Bristow has removed a layer of management within its global Safety function, increasing alignment and focus at its two primary geographical hubs  Europe and the Americas. This will help create more integrated global oversight of processes, structure and metrics and ensure key learnings and best practices are shared across the hubs by pushing safety management and accountability closer to its business. As a result, the position of Vice President and Chief Safety Officer has been eliminated and Steve Predmore has departed the company.

"Steve has played a pivotal role building on our strong foundation and further developing the unmatched safety culture we see today at Bristow," said Jonathan. "Steve helped us take our Target Zero safety culture to the next level and develop an outstanding bench of professionals and capabilities in our safety group. We are confident Bristow will remain at the forefront of safety leadership in the aviation industry as we move forward."

Bristow will also integrate Global Supply Chain, Maintenance Operations, Asset and Fleet Management, Global Fleet Support and Global Maintenance Planning under a single Global Fleet and Maintenance Services group. This will result in a more efficient and complete life-cycle view of how the company manages and maintains its global fleet. The company will also consolidate several other corporate positions.

In addition, Tim Knapp, Bristow's Senior Vice President and General Counsel has also departed the company. Deputy General Counsel Bo Underwood will assume the role of acting General Counsel following Tim's departure.

"I thank Tim for the capabilities and leadership he brought to Bristow at a challenging time," added Jonathan. "I also thank Steve and our other departing employees for their service to Bristow and wish them well in their future endeavors."

"Bristow has made effective changes these past several years to stay ahead of the offshore logistics downturn and evolve the industrial aviation industry," added Jonathan. "Today's announced changes will enable Bristow to continue to improve  not just in today's oil and gas market, but in any markets it serves for the short and long term."

About Bristow Group

Bristow Group Inc. is the world's leading industrial aviation service provider offering helicopter transportation, search and rescue (SAR) and aircraft support services to government and civil organizations worldwide. Bristow's strategically located global fleet supports operations in the North Sea, Nigeria and the U.S. Gulf of Mexico; as well as in most of the other major offshore oil and gas producing regions of the world, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Russia and Trinidad. Bristow provides SAR services to the private sector worldwide and to the public sector for all of the U.K. on behalf of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. To learn more, visit Bristow's website at www.bristowgroup.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS DISCLOSURE

Statements contained in this news release that state the company's or management's intentions, hopes, beliefs, expectations or predictions of the future are forward-looking statements. These forward looking statements include statements regarding expected cost reductions and the anticipated benefits of such reductions. It is important to note that the company's actual results could differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking statements. Risk and uncertainties include without limitation: fluctuations in the demand for our services; fluctuations in worldwide prices of and supply and demand for oil and natural gas; fluctuations in levels of oil and natural gas production, exploration and development activities; the impact of competition; actions by clients and suppliers; the risk of reductions in spending on industrial aviation services by governmental agencies; changes in tax and other laws and regulations; changes in foreign exchange rates and controls; risks associated with international operations; operating risks inherent in our business, including the possibility of declining safety performance; general economic conditions including the capital and credit markets; our ability to obtain financing; the risk of grounding of segments of our fleet for extended period of time of indefinitely; our ability to re-deploy our aircraft to regions with greater demand; our ability to acquire additional aircraft and dispose of older aircraft through sales into the aftermarket; the possibility that we do not achieve the anticipated benefit of our fleet investment program; availability of employees; and political instability, war or acts of terrorism in any of the countries where we operate. Additional information concerning factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements is contained from time to time in the company's SEC filings, including but not limited to the company's annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2018 and its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2018. Bristow Group Inc. disclaims any intention or obligation to revise any forward-looking statements, including financial estimates, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Bristow Group Inc.

Global Media Relations

Adam Morgan

Director, Global Communications

+1 281.253.9005

[email protected]

Investor Relations

Linda McNeill

Director, Investor Relations

+1 713.267.7622

[email protected]

SOURCE Bristow Group Inc.

Related Links

http://www.bristowgroup.com


GAINESVILLE, Fla., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Caduceus International Publishing (CIP), a leading provider of interactive health science curriculum for higher education, has partnered with industry-leader ProctorU to integrate online proctoring into all of CIP's online courses. With the combination of live proctors and artificial intelligence, student identity and conduct during exams can now be fully validated.

"Our partnership and integration with ProctorU adds significant value to our existing products. Offering online proctoring during exams ensures security and learning integrity, which our faculty customers have been asking for," said CIP President Ryan Fagerberg. "What's more, CIP goes beyond traditional publishers, offering 'concierge' level personal support to both students and faculty. We will continue in this tradition by fully managing the proctoring process, from student scheduling to managing incident reports."

All of CIP's accredited courses, including its medical terminology course, now offer online proctoring for finals, mid-terms and other exams. Students are able to schedule and begin their proctor sessions directly from their course modules. CIP staff will manage and respond to any incidents reported by the proctors and involve school faculty and staff as appropriate.

ProctorU Live+ is the first live proctoring solution to combine human proctoring and machine learning in one solution, resulting in the most secure online proctoring on the market. A live proctor authenticates student identity, then launches and monitors the exam. Artificial intelligence supports the proctor by flagging potential cheating behaviors. Trained intervention specialists can then intervene when suspicious behaviors occur.

"ProctorU Live+ is the new industry standard for identity authentication and academic integrity. We are proud to partner with Caduceus International Publishing to bring the latest innovation in online proctoring to their higher education curriculum, making a college education more accessible and affordable for everyone," said Scott McFarland, ProctorU CEO.

The new proctoring service is available immediately to any of the hundreds of institutions that already use CIP curriculum. New customer institutions looking for high-quality health science curriculum can adopt and rollout any of CIP's six courses, with online-proctoring, in a matter of days. To learn more, visit www.cipcourses.com.

About Caduceus International Publishing

CIP designs, publishes and markets innovative health science curriculum and online course materials to universities, professional schools, and health science centers worldwide. Our award winning, fully accredited and cost-effective materials maximize comprehension and retention, improve language skills, and increase communication efficiencies between professionals, all of which produces better health outcomes. We deliver customized meaningful content empowering learning for future health professionals. To learn more visit www.cipcourses.com.

About ProctorU

ProctorU provides a full suite of online proctoring and identity management solutions for education, professional development and certification organizations. With patented, 24/7 on-demand live proctoring and an automated platform utilizing artificial intelligence, ProctorU is a powerful, convenient and cost-effective alternative to traditional test centers. ProctorU increases access to online learning while ensuring exam integrity and accountability for any test-taker with internet access using only a computer and a webcam. To learn more, visit ProctorU.com.

SOURCE Caduceus International Publishing

Related Links

http://www.cipcourses.com


PARIS, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Capgemini today launched Capgemini Invent, a new global business line1 that will focus on helping business leaders plot a path to the future and provide the right vehicle for getting there. Capgemini Invent combines, under one brand, the multi-disciplinary strengths of Capgemini Consulting and key expertise in technology and data science from the rest of the Group, with recent acquisitions of customer engagement firm LiquidHub, innovation consultancy Fahrenheit 212, and its three creative design agencies Idean, Adaptive Lab and Backelite.

The global business line comprises a 6,000+ strong team located in over 30 offices and 10 creative studios around the world. Capgemini Invent's specialist capabilities provide clients with the ability to operate at the speed of digital; to ideate and design digital transformation strategy, tangible digital solution prototypes and transformation plans, while assessing the path for scaling and monitoring them by leveraging the full expertise of the Group. Capgemini Invent helps its clients to stay relevant and be ahead of the competition.

"We have built Capgemini Invent to meet increasing client demand for our advanced digital services," comments Paul Hermelin, Chairman and CEO, Capgemini Group. "This integrated global business line combines perfectly our specialist capabilities and expertise that are needed to design, create and trial new digital solutions and business models of the future, all supported by the recognized strengths of the Group to implement them at speed and scale."

The introduction of Capgemini Invent is in response to a critical need for businesses to answer the complex question of "what's next?" when it comes to their digital transformation strategy. Whether it's CEOs assessing the viability of adjacent markets or CMOs looking at new ways to engage customers, Capgemini Invent aims to provide clients with solutions to business problems, accelerating the development of ideas into prototypes and then progressing prototypes into scalable products and services by leveraging the rest of the Group, in order to drive new revenue streams, new ways to engage with customers and sustainable growth.

"For businesses today, determining what's next is a question that's getting harder to answer and even harder to realize. Leading companies must be open to invention  a radical rethinking and redesign of their core business models  to find new sources of value and ensure survival," said Cyril Garcia, CEO Capgemini Invent. "Capgemini Invent offers a new model for digital transformation delivery, bringing key sector expertise together with a broad cross-section of disciplines, from strategy and technology to data science and creative design. It also engages with its growing innovation eco-system of partners and start-ups to benefit digital projects. Working in close collaboration with our clients, Capgemini Invent applies a spirit of innovation to bring to life 'what's next'; orchestrating meaningful change across every facet of their business in an agile way to drive continuous growth."

Capgemini Invent encapsulates the new ways that the Group is working with clients worldwide. Today, it is not only advising clients on digital innovation and transformation, but is also designing, building, operating and transferring expertise to help them reinvent their core businesses, along with inventing and implementing truly new processes, products and services. One example in the data space is the Group's recent work with Airbus on the 'skywise' digital aviation data platform, which will be the single platform of reference used by all major aviation players in Airbus' ecosystem to improve operational performance and business results.

Stephane Bronoff, Connectivity Enterprise Architect at Airbus said, "Throughout our journey to design and implement our innovative global skywise.connect platform, Capgemini has been a trusted partner, providing robust telecom expertise to shape our connectivity vision and supporting us in the operational phases of minimum viable product (MVP) and implementation leading to the commercial entry in service."

Capgemini Invent combines key digital capabilities with deep sector expertise to help organizations to prototype, test and scale new products, services and business models, quickly and effectively. To do this, the new global business line comprises six integrated practices:

Innovation and Strategy to help envision change across organizations, helping to imagine, design and build the products, services, and business models of the future.

to help envision change across organizations, helping to imagine, design and build the products, services, and business models of the future. Customer Engagement to help businesses deliver value at every interaction, transforming the relationships they have with customers to drive business transformation.

to help businesses deliver value at every interaction, transforming the relationships they have with customers to drive business transformation. Future of Technology to help businesses capture the possibilities of emerging technology by creating tailored solutions for every type of business and sector.

to help businesses capture the possibilities of emerging technology by creating tailored solutions for every type of business and sector. Insight Driven Enterprise to utilize advanced data analytics, AI and automation technologies to drive financial excellence and enable strategic and real-time business decision-making.

to utilize advanced data analytics, AI and automation technologies to drive financial excellence and enable strategic and real-time business decision-making. Operations Transformation to help create smarter businesses by reinventing their supply chain, asset management and operational processes, to ultimately increase productivity and reduce time to market.

to help create smarter businesses by reinventing their supply chain, asset management and operational processes, to ultimately increase productivity and reduce time to market. People and Organization to help businesses master transformation, and prepare for the future of work, by developing the culture, workforce and skills they need for holistic business success in the digital age.

Organizations struggle to make progress with their digital transformation investments

The launch of Capgemini Invent comes at a critical time for businesses, many of whom feel they do not have the digital and leadership capabilities needed to make their digital transformation journey a success. This, according to the Capgemini Research Institute, which recently released the results of a report entitled "Understanding Digital Mastery Today: Why companies are struggling with their digital transformations." The report showed that despite huge investments in digital transformation initiatives, set to exceed $2 trillion by 20212, organizations today feel less equipped with the right leadership capabilities than they were six years ago (45 percent in 2012 compared to 35 percent in 2018), while less than half still feel they have the right digital capabilities to advance their transformations (39 percent in both 2012 and 2018.)

For more information on Capgemini Invent, visit www.capgemini.com/invent.

About Capgemini

A global leader in consulting, technology services and digital transformation, Capgemini is at the forefront of innovation to address the entire breadth of clients' opportunities in the evolving world of cloud, digital and platforms. Building on its strong 50-year heritage and deep industry-specific expertise, Capgemini enables organizations to realize their business ambitions through an array of services from strategy to operations. Capgemini is driven by the conviction that the business value of technology comes from and through people. It is a multicultural company of 200,000 team members in over 40 countries. The Group reported 2017 global revenues of EUR 12.8 billion.

Visit us at www.capgemini.com. People matter, results count.

1 Capgemini's Global Business Lines (GBLs) manage key offerings; taking care of pre-sales, solutioning, client focused delivery, and developing talents and expertise in key domains for the Group including high-growth and emerging markets.

2 IDC, "IDC Forecasts Worldwide Spending on Digital Transformation Technologies to Reach $1.3 Trillion in 2018", December 2017

SOURCE Capgemini

Related Links

http://www.capgemini.com


Like the original Vac-Matic vacuum, the Vac-Matic II features a compact footprint and a 14-horsepower Kohler engine. It is equipped with a redesigned, heavy-duty impeller, producing a suction rate 29 percent greater than the original Vac-Matic. Both the Vac-Matic and the Vac-Matic II are easily portable and available with interchangeable 4" or 6" inlets and outlets.

The Vac-Matic 19 and Vac-Matic 23 feature a 19- or 23.5-horsepower Kohler engine, electric starter, indirect belt-driven impeller, and 6" inlets and outlets. Their greater horsepower delivers impressive flow rates of 8,325 and 9,250 pounds per hour, respectively, which means contractors can complete even the biggest jobs quickly and efficiently. The new Vac Drop Box works with all of the Vac-Matic machines to filter out foreign objects and debris that can damage an impeller.

"Contractors have long relied on the original Vac-Matic vacuum for its quality, performance and portability," said General Manager Blair Gaida. "With these new members of the Vac-Matic family of machines, they can get the same industry-leading performance to complete smaller jobs more quickly and increase their capacity to tackle even the biggest insulation removal projects."

All of the Vac-Matic machines come with heavy-duty housings, low oil shutdown, removable front covers and a long-lasting powder-coated finish. The equipment will be on display in Booth 413 at the ICAA show in Orlando, September 13-14, 2018. More information is available at www.ctmachineworks.com.

About CertainTeed Machine Works

CertainTeed Machine Works offers a comprehensive line of commercial and residential insulation and fireproofing application equipment, including blowing machines, ductboard grooving machines, vacuums and accessories, as well as provide equipment installation, troubleshooting and repair, custom machine design services, and same-day shipping of spare parts.

About CertainTeed

Through the responsible development of innovative and sustainable building products, CertainTeed, headquartered in Malvern, Pennsylvania, has helped shape the building products industry for more than 110 years. Founded in 1904 as General Roofing Manufacturing Company, the firm's slogan, "Quality Made Certain, Satisfaction Guaranteed," inspired the name CertainTeed. Today, CertainTeed is a leading North American brand of exterior and interior building products, including roofing, siding, fence, decking, railing, trim, insulation, drywall, and ceilings. A subsidiary of Saint-Gobain, one of the world's largest and oldest building products companies, CertainTeed has more than 6,300 employees and more than 60 manufacturing facilities throughout the United States and Canada. The company had total sales of approximately $3.7 billion in 2017. www.certainteed.com.

SOURCE CertainTeed

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Deep institutional resistance was the context against which McKillen, who counts herself as " a shy person, not necessarily wanting to stand out ," formulated the immersive installation work that comprises the premiere of these works in her stunning debut exhibit , Confess, at Lisa Sette Gallery this September. Starting out with a vivid idea but minimal experience in the building trades, McKillen spent several years constructing her exquisitely confrontational transparent confessional booth, a transportable structure fabricated entirely of glass, metal, marble, and wood. Accompanying it is a ghostly cohort of embroidered antique vestments titled The Children once worn by children in the Catholic Church, and a series of illuminated linen "poultices" titled Stations of Hope .

Early in the confessional's production, a glass technician and a draftsperson both left abruptly upon comprehending the content of the piece. One of them, recalls McKillen, "Saw the chair in the booth, saw what I was doing with this piece, said 'Oh my god, I grew up with this shit,' and ran down the stairs from my studio and never came back again."

McKillen realized that it was necessary to conceal the intent of her project. When subcontractors came to her studio she removed the confessional's delicate, child-sized upholstered chair, and, on the other side of the booth's intersecting panel of glass, the corresponding priest-sized confessional kneeler, with its steely cushion of nails. "Most of the people who worked on the components for this, they do not know to this day what they helped me build."

McKillen possesses a unique awareness of the denial and secrecy built into society's proscriptive power structures: growing up in a traditional Irish Catholic family in the sectarian Belfast of the 60's and 70's, her father, a respected businessman, clandestinely engaged in peace negotiations with the British. In response, McKillen's childhood home was ransacked; bombs exploded outside her front door. When her family moved to Dublin to avoid further retaliation, McKillen sensed an unwillingness to confront the realities of Northern Ireland's troubles and the not always beneficent role of the Catholic Church.

As she entered young adulthood, McKillen found herself visiting a friend in the psychiatric ward of a Dublin Hospital; the once-spirited and talkative girl was curled into a fetal position, nearly comatose at the foot of her bed. It was only then that McKillen was informed that her friend had been habitually raped in childhood by an uncle, a respected Catholic priest.

As the child-abuse within the Catholic Church was uncovered in revelations of increasing horror and magnitude, and as the Church continued to evade culpability and transparency, McKillen's subject matter came into stark focus. "I had the idea in my head, of what would God do if he came down and saw this And then the glass confessional just came to me. I thought, 'I'm going to make the Church kneel in front of the child.'"

McKillen's immersive exhibit at Lisa Sette Gallery  a meticulously constructed installation that ranges across the gallery, required that the artist reconcile not only with problems of construction and engineering, but of her own internalized fear of standing out. Now, however, she says, "I'm mainly just very excited about this confessional, this gigantic piece of work, finally making its maiden voyage."

An opening reception with the Artist will be held on Saturday, September 15, 2018 from 7:00 - 9:00pm

To read more about the complete exhibition, please visit: https://lisasettegallery.com/artist/trina-mckillen/

For over three trailblazing decades, Lisa Sette has remained committed to discovering and exposing original, intriguing forms of expression. Lisa Sette Gallery exhibits painting, sculpture, photography, video, installation and performance pieces from an impressive roster of emerging and established artists, as well as maintaining a clientele of local and international collectors devoted to its founder's adventurous curatorial vision.

SOURCE Lisa Sette Gallery
SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The nonprofit consumer group responsible for the most effective regulation of the insurance industry in America said today it would be challenging America's insurance companies to join their European counterparts in refusing to underwrite coal and fossil fuel projects.

"With hurricanes hitting the East coast and fires terrorizing the West, American insurance companies must stop underwriting the fossil fuel projects that are creating warmer ocean waters and drier brush that are feeding greater and greater catastrophes," said Jamie Court, president of Consumer Watchdog. "Insurance companies cannot claim they are the victims of climate change if they are also insuring the perpetrators. American companies must join their European counterparts in refusing to underwrite coal and fossil fuels."

AXA, a French insurance company, has pioneered the movement to eliminate all financial connections with the fossil fuel industry and has promoted a transition to clean power. Munich Re, Swiss Re, and Allianz are also at the forefront of the movement.

Consumer Watchdog has been the force behind and caretaker of the strongest regulation of the insurance industry in America, California Proposition 103 passed in 1988. The reform has resulted in more than $150 billion in savings for drivers alone, according to the Consumer Federation of America. Insurance companies have been foiled at every attempt to weaken the popular law over the last thirty years.

The group said it was bringing its expertise with insurance regulation and markets to the Insure the Future campaign, launched last night at a panel in San Francisco. The campaign is a coalition of environmental and consumer groups committed to stopping US insurance companies from underwriting coal and fossil fuels. Learn more at the campaign's website: https://www.insureourfuture.us/

The first American insurance company, Lemonade, announced it would not underwrite fossil fuels yesterday. Learn more at https://www.insureourfuture.us/updates/launch

Michael Mattoch, Counsel and Advocate for Consumer Watchdog, spoke at the San Francisco panel and pointed to a recent California Department of Insurance Report: Trial by Fire, prepared by UC Berkeley School of Law Center for Law, Energy & the Environment. The report found that climate change threatens the basic functioning of insurance markets.

Read the report here: https://www.law.berkeley.edu/research/clee/research/climate/insurance/

"Extreme weather events caused by climate change are ranked as the number-one global concern by the World Economic Forum -- ahead of weapons of mass destruction," Mattoch said. "The insurance industry is the canary in the coal mine. It has the tangible, provable data to issue critical and unassailable warnings of the effects of climate change; and should be the primary force in shaping societies' ability to mitigate, adapt and overcome the adverse impacts of climate change."

Mattoch said that it is important to underscore that while the industry is highly vulnerable to the losses that result from heightened climate-related events and to market dislocation caused by a changing economy, it is also perfectly placed to play a key role in supporting innovative responses.

Mattoch said that while insurance companies asset management practices have focused on traditional underwriting, the most innovative and successful insurer climate risk-reduction strategies will center on the financial side of an insurer's business operations.

The availability of insurance is part of society's capacity to adapt to climate change, said Mattoch.

Among the important findings directly from the Berkeley report:

Insurers operating in California have about $528 billion in fossil-fuel-related investments in various sectors and asset classes. Adverse impacts on the climate and resultant competitive risks from clean energy technologies in combination with an adverse economic and regulatory environment can present financial uncertainties for these investments.

The acts of those responsible for greenhouse-gas pollution are increasingly leading to litigation, which, in turn, can involve insurers. The significance of this latter trend is reinforced by the increasing ability to probabilistically attribute climate events to human activity (Marjanac and Patton 2018).

California represents about 7% of the global insurance market.

The physical risks of climate and weather extremes to insurance customers impact the built environment as well as health. Beyond these considerations are more complex systems-level risks such as those arising when power grids or supply chains are disrupted leading to business interruption insurance claims. Ecosystem disruptions such as fishery collapse or abrupt reductions in crop yields can rapidly manifest in systemic socioeconomic impacts.

Climate changes also precipitate a diversity of litigation risks, including claims for damages against producers of fossil fuels, other business interests found to be inadequately prepared to avert the impacts of climate change, or insurers themselves over disputed contractual obligations.

Global total and insured losses from weather- related catastrophes broke all records for total and insured losses in 2017: $330 billion and $136 billion, respectively (Munich Re).

Further layers of risk that experts consider even less often include wide-ranging impacts such as ecosystem collapse, food-borne disease correlated with higher temperatures, or kidney disease correlated with dehydration.

A wide range of health risks occur in parallel with the better-known property risks. These risks range from extreme heat stress to a host of cardio-respiratory concerns and vector-borne diseases, which have been largely unassessed and unaddressed by the insurance community. The implications extend to disruptions in the delivery of healthcare following catastrophes.

While litigation against emitters of pollutants contributing to climate change has as yet been unsuccessful, a recent wave of challenges in California courts based primarily on tort and nuisance claims and the costs that climate change impacts are imposing on municipalities may result in extremely large insurance liabilities or settlements.

On the asset side, insurers' divestment of coal has been coupled with strong growth in investment in clean energy technologies and other climate change mitigation strategies. Over $60 billion in such investments have been identified globally.

Read more about Consumer Watchdog at www.ConsumerWatchdog.org

SOURCE Consumer Watchdog
SINGAPORE, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Singapore is an international fintech hub with over 200 banks and innovation labs from international financial institutions and has become a premier destination for Chinese startup SMEs to enter into the international market. In its first cooperation with Singapore Week of Innovation & Technology (known as SWITCH), Cyzone will hold the "2018 DEMO ASIA Summit" at Marina Bay Sands Exhibition and Convention Center in Singapore on September 18th.

This year's theme, "Innovation without Boundary", is aimed at providing extensive communication and discussion about Fintech, E-commerce logistics, overseas entrepreneurship, and various other hot topics in both the Chinese and Asian Pacific venture capital industry.

Supported by Zhongguancun Science Park, DEMO ASIA is one of the brand activities of CYZone, which is devoted to promoting open innovative changes and cooperations among enterprises and startup teams in the Asia Pacific Region. The summit will feature keynote speeches, panel discussions and demo show sessions gathering well-known scholars, scientists, investors from QF Capital, FengHe Fund Management, Facebook, GSR Ventures, Credit Ease YiQiFin, DL Capital, Jubilee Capital Management, Samsung Ventures China, Gobi Partners, Yixue, BUBI.CN, Bizkey, as well as 16 outstanding demo teams from China, Singapore, Indonesia, and Poland.

For more information please visit: http://www.cyzone.cn/2018demoasia/en.html

For event registration please visit: http://www.switchsg.org/

SOURCE CYZone

Related Links

http://www.cyzone.cn/2018demoasia/en.html


PADUCAH, Ky., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- America's leading flash frozen beaded ice cream company, Dippin' Dots, wants to celebrate inspiring schools and people making a difference in their communities. The brand recently launched its Change Your World contest, which invites students, teachers and community members to nominate a school they think is making a positive impact.

The Change Your World contest is now accepting applications through September 28, 2018. Any school or school group making a difference can be nominated, whether through fundraisers, support programs or activities that encourage kids to achieve their best. Dippin' Dots will choose one lucky winner to receive a Dippin' Dots party for their entire school.

The grand prize features enough Dippin' Dots to serve each enrolled student at the winning school. Entries must be in by September 28, 2018 at noon Central Time. To nominate your local school or school group, visit www.dippindots.com/changeyourworld.

"At Dippin' Dots, we're thrilled to be able to celebrate the students, educators and volunteers who are making our world a better place," said Dippin' Dots Chief Marketing & Sales Officer Michael Barrette. "Education is the cornerstone of our society and we recognize the time and effort that goes into creating a positive change. We hope this contest encourages students and teachers to continue their good work."

About Dippin' Dots, L.L.C.

Dippin' Dots has produced and distributed its flash frozen tiny beads of ice cream, yogurt, sherbet and flavored ice products since 1988. Made at the company's production facility in Paducah, Kentucky, Dippin' Dots distributes its unique frozen products in all 50 states and 11 countries through its franchised and direct distribution network. For more information, including franchise opportunities, please visit www.dippindots.com .

SOURCE Dippin' Dots

Related Links

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MILFORD, Ohio, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Healthcare workers face significant risks of job-related violence. In fact, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, nearly three-quarters of all workplace assaults occur in healthcare settings. DNV GL Healthcare, the nation's fastest-growing hospital accrediting body, addressed this very issue in a well-attended webinar June 2018. It will also spotlight this topic at its 2018 Healthcare Symposium: The Future of Accreditation in Denver Oct 2-4, 2018.

Jim Sawyer, Director of Security Services for Seattle Children's Hospital, will be one of the presenters at the 2018 Healthcare Symposium to discuss what hospitals can do to protect staff who are the victims of domestic violence, stalking or similar situations. He notes that the most vulnerable place for a victim of domestic violence to be is their workplace parking lot. He will make a separate presentation on how hospitals can conduct a successful risk vulnerability assessment.

DNV GL Healthcare has pioneered a roadmap for hospitals to improve the delivery of healthcare services at every level, based on its adaptation of the ISO 9001 quality management system for the healthcare sector. Using ISO 9001 in conjunction with requirements to meet the CMS Conditions of Participation allows hospitals to improve quality and enhance patient safety at the highest possible level.

As part of its hospital accrediting process, DNV GL Healthcare conducts a thorough Security Vulnerability Analysis (SVA), establishing and implementing a comprehensive Workplace Violence Program that is revisited annually

"People in hospitals are dealing with a lot of emotions, from all levels of staff to the stressed family members. As a result, we definitely see a rise in violence within the hospital setting which needs to be continuously addressed throughout all hospital departments across the board. It's our job to help hospital teams instill a safe environment for their staff and patients," says Patrick Horine, President of DNV GL Healthcare.

To address the increased risk of workplace violence in healthcare, DNV GL Healthcare held the webinar 'Workplace Violence, Security Vulnerability Analysis and Ensuring Sound Security Management,' where experts in hospital environment, operations and auditing shared relevant and rather grim statistics. More than half of the nurses who work in hospital emergency departments have experienced some form of physical violence while doing their jobs, with one in four experiencing such violence more than 20 times in the prior three years. Additionally, while media attention tends to focus on reports of workplace homicides, the majority of non-fatal and serious injuries of workplace violence incidents often go unreported.

During DNV GL's surveys with its hospital partners, close attention is paid to Section 99, Chapter 13 of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) guidelines, which focus on security at hospitals and other healthcare structures. DNV GL surveyors first determine which types of healthcare setting that is more likely to lead to violent acts. When working with its hospital partners, a code of conduct is put in place for employees, patients and their families. As part of the process, hospitals need to decide what kind of culture of security and enforcement works best for their institution.

DNV GL's 2018 Healthcare Symposium: The future of Accreditation will take place at the Renaissance Denver Stapleton Hotel in Denver, CO, October 2-4, 2018. Attendees can also have the opportunity to obtain up to 20 continuing education credits.

To register for DNV GL's 2018 Healthcare Symposium: The Future of Accreditation please click here.

To view the webinar, click here: Workplace Violence, Security Vulnerability Analysis and Ensuring Sound Security Management

As the nation's second-largest healthcare accreditation body, Gary Davis, Regional Manager for North America at DNV GL-Business Assurance, cites its "kinder and gentler" approach and its year-round partnership strategy as some of the keys to successfully accrediting hospitals and boosting quality improvement at a rate of 20% growth year over year. The majority of hospitals choose accreditation in order to be certified by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to receive federal funds and reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid programs.

Hundreds of hospitals across the United States have switched to DNV GL Healthcare over the past decade. The organization accredits more than 500 hospitals in 49 states.

About DNV GL Healthcare

DNV GL Business Assurance is one of the world's leading certification bodies. We help businesses manage risk and assure the performance of their organizations, products, people, facilities and supply chains through certification, verification, assessment and training services. We combine technical, digital and industry expertise to empower companies' decisions and actions. Within healthcare we help our customers achieve excellence by improving quality and patient safety through hospital accreditation, managing infection risk, management system certification and training.

The DNV GL Group operates in more than 100 countries. Our 12,500 professionals are dedicated to helping our customers make the world safer, smarter and greener. www.dnvglcert.com/healthcare

Media Contact:

Faith Beaty

281-685-0908

[email protected]

SOURCE DNV GL Healthcare
SHORT HILLS, N.J., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Energy Capital Partners ("ECP" or "the Firm") today announced that Trent Kososki and Matt DeNichilo, longstanding members of the Firm who lead its credit investing effort, have been promoted to Partners of the Firm.

Doug Kimmelman, Senior Partner of ECP, said, "We are pleased to recognize the accomplishments of Trent Kososki and Matt DeNichilo with these well-deserved promotions. They have each made exceptional contributions to the Firm's investment program and our portfolio companies over the years and more recently as co-portfolio managers and voting members on our credit investment committee. Going forward as part of the next generation of ECP's leaders, both Trent and Matt will focus on expanding our investment activities by originating energy credit opportunities and managing our credit investment effort to help our Limited Partners achieve their investment goals."

Mr. Kososki has been with ECP for 13 years, since joining at the Firm's founding in 2005, and has spent the last eight years helping to launch and lead the Firm's credit investing activities. He was a senior member of the team that sourced and was integrally involved in structuring, executing and overseeing seven of the nine deals in ECP's first credit fund, totaling more than $500 million in credit investments across a diverse array of sub-sectors including midstream oil & gas, power generation, and renewables. Mr. Kososki currently serves on the Firm's valuation committee and credit investment committee as well as on the boards of Ramaco Resources Inc., Cornucopia Oil & Gas LLC, ADA Carbon Solutions, and prior to realization, the boards of Rimrock Midstream LLC, Chieftain Sand and Proppant LLC and Sungevity Inc.

Prior to joining ECP, Mr. Kososki was with the Financial Sponsors Investment Banking Group at Credit Suisse First Boston. He received a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Duke University.

With a decade of tenure at ECP since joining in 2008, Mr. DeNichilo has been an integral team member of ECP's private equity funds and involved in many of the firm's most significant deals, particularly in the power generation and renewable sectors. He was a member of certain deal teams responsible for executing over $4.2 billion in financing transactions, has had board-level responsibility for another $1.7 billion of inherited financings, and has stressed credit experience including critical amendments affecting over $1 billion of loans for power, services and renewable companies. Mr. DeNichilo currently serves on the Firm's credit investment committee and on the boards of Terra-Gen, LLC and Sunnova Energy Corp. Previously, he served on the boards of PLH Group, Inc., Broad River Holdings, LLC, Empire Gen Holdings, Inc., Brayton Point Power, LLC and EquiPower Resources Corp.

Prior to ECP, Mr. DeNichilo was with the Energy Investment Banking Group at JP Morgan. He received a B.S.E. in Operations, Research and Financial Engineering from Princeton University.

About Energy Capital Partners

Energy Capital Partners is a private equity and credit investment firm with ~$19 billion in capital commitments. With offices in Short Hills, NJ, New York, NY, Houston, TX and San Diego, CA, Energy Capital Partners leverages its team's decades of energy industry experience and expertise in investing and managing energy infrastructure assets and businesses to serve its investors and portfolio companies. The firm focuses on investing in the traditional and renewable power generation, midstream oil and gas, environmental infrastructure and related energy services sectors of North America's energy infrastructure. For more information, visit www.ecpartners.com.

Contacts:

Paul Parshley

Energy Capital Partners

(973) 671-6106

[email protected]

Kimberly Kriger

KEKST

(212) 521-4800

[email protected]

SOURCE Energy Capital Partners

Related Links

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The 4th largest funded exosome startup in the world

largest funded exosome startup in the world To help advance its exosome pharmaceutical R&D and cosmeceutical business

SEOUL, South Korea, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- ExoCoBio Inc. announced that it recently raised about $27 million in its series B funding. Top tier Korean investors participated in this round, including Seven Tree Equity Partners, CSQUARED Global Asset Management, TS Investment Partners, K2 Investment, Intervest, KDB Capital, Atinum Investment, GU Equity Partners, QUANTUM Ventures Korea, Platinum technology Investment.

Since it was established in January 2017, ExoCoBio has raised about $46 million accumulatively including series A round in April 2017 of $11 million.

Series B money will be used to set up GMP-compliant exosome manufacturing facilities to produce exosome pharmaceuticals, to attract high quality talents, and to secure additional business opportunities for commercialization in cosmetics industry.

"We are very delighted by the level of enthusiasm and financial support from our investors," said Byong Cho, CEO of ExoCoBio, "and we are going to step up our R&D and business so that ExoCoBio will be one of the leaders in the global exosome industry."

Recently, ExoCoBio published a scientific paper in the journal of Stem Cell Research and Therapy that stem cell-derived exosomes can dramatically improve atopic dermatitis and inhibit a variety of inflammatory targets, which is the world's first.

In cosmeceutical business, ExoCoBio has been launching its own exosome-based brands and products, such as EXOMAGE, Celltweet and ASCE+.

Mr. Hwa Seop Jin, CEO of Seven Tree Equity Partners, said, "ExoCoBio is a globally promising company targeting various unmet medical & cosmeceutical needs in skin regeneration, tissue repair, inflammatory diseases, and anti-aging, with its own strategy to seize both R&D and commercialization."

Mr. Jong Hyeok Choi, CEO of CSQUARED Global Asset Management, said, "Since ExoCoBio has brilliant business strategy and is competent in management in the exosome industry, it's exciting to participate this financing."

Exosomes are nano-vesicles between 30 and 200 nm, secreted by cells for intercellular signaling. They contain a variety of physiologically active substances and play key roles in important cellular processes. In particular, exosomes secreted by stem cells have been found to stimulate cellular or tissue regeneration and can be used for a wide range of applications such as skin and hair.

SOURCE ExoCoBio Inc.
PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Exude, Inc., an insurance and human capital consulting firm, expands its employee benefit offerings through a new program, Exude Solution Builder. The launch of this program demonstrates Exude's ongoing commitment to provide best in class solutions and cost savings to its clients.

Exude is committed to building ongoing innovative solutions to solve our clients' most challenging business problems. Through deep market knowledge and product analysis we design and build solutions that will impact organizations' bottom-line for the long-term. As a result, we are proud to introduce Exude Solution Builder, a self-funded healthcare program that takes a unique approach to managing rising healthcare costs.

This exclusive benefits program gives employers greater control, more transparency, and increased cost savings. Middle market employers (50-1000 employees) can elevate their benefit plans through collective purchasing power that drives down costs and spreads risk.

"We pride ourselves on bringing the most innovative and cost effective benefit plans to the market. With Exude Solution Builder, we're able to help our clients minimize risk, save money, and protect themselves from excessive increases in the future," stated Marcos Lopez Founder & CEO.

In addition to the increased transparency and costs savings, this program provides complimentary services that improve your healthcare experience including: nurse navigation, workplace wellness consulting, compliance support, benefit administration technology and Exude's standard benefits offering including 24/7 employee advocacy and support.

About Exude:

At Exude, we work diligently with our clients to achieve optimal organizational health by ensuring strategy, culture, and employee experience are aligned. We provide consulting services in Employee Benefits, Human Capital Management, Total Well-Being, Property Casualty Insurance & Risk Management and Retirement Planning.

For more information, please visit www.exudeinc.com or contact us at [email protected].

Contact: Morgan Festa

Marketing Manager

www.exudeinc.com

215-875-8732

SOURCE Exude, Inc.

Related Links

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 12)  Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Wednesday said the Palace finds nothing wrong with receiving foreign intelligence information on the administration's biggest critics.

This came after critics blasted President Rodrigo Duterte for letting outside services provide wiretapped information from the opposition.

The President on Tuesday pronounced there was a plot to "assassinate" and remove him from office. Duterte said he got the information from a "foreign country sympathetic to us."

In a media briefing, Roque said foreign intel is part of the "nature of diplomatic relations" these days.

"Intel is precisely intended to provide new information to avoid eventualities," Roque told reporters.

"Even as early as the time we developed inter-state relations, the gathering of intel has always been recognized as the function of diplomatic missions."

"We have been beneficiaries of shared information from the United States about terrorist groups. Nothing wrong with that," he added.

READ: Duterte talks about Trillanes, ouster plot, rice supply woes, third telco player in interview

The spokesperson also addressed criticisms that the alleged wiretapping can result into an impeachable offense for the country's chief executive.

"Ultimately, whether or not it is impeachable will be a decision of the House of Representatives," Roque said.

Wiretapping is considered illegal under Philippine law. Republic Act No. 4200 or the Anti Wire-Tapping Law says it is "unlawful for any person to tap any wire or cable, or by using any other device or arrangement, to secretly overhear, intercept, or record such communication or spoken word."

Meanwhile, Communist leader Joma Sison also challenged Duterte to release proof of the opposition ouster plot. He said the supposed conspiracy was a "complete lie."
Botswana Editors Forum (BEF) has welcomed as a positive development a decision by prosecution to drop charges of sedition against Editor of Sunday Standard Outsa Mokone.

Early this week when the case came for argument before Broadhurst Magistrate Court, the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) revealed that it is no longer continuing with the case. DPP , represented by Wessen Manchwe, withdrew its opposition to the application that the case be dismissed. Mokone appeared in court to face a charge of sedition arising from an article published by Sunday Standard in September 2014.

Mokone is represented by Carlos Salbany of Bayford and Associates. Mokone faces the single count of sedition jointly with Tsodilo Services (Pty) Ltd the parent company of the Sunday Standard, arising from an article published on September 1st, 2014, titled President hit in car Accident while driving alone at night. The article revealed how former president Khama had been involved in a motor vehicle accident on the night of August 23rd, 2014.

In an interview with this publication this week, BEF Chairman Spencer Mogapi said they are naturally happy and welcome that the case has been dropped. He however stated that the case could have long been dropped or not been registered in the first place. He explained that the BEF recently met with President Mokgweetsi Masisi and expressed dissatisfaction about some of the laws sedition included which they believe infringes on the right of journalists to freely perform their work.

According to Mogapi, they remain hopeful that the current administration will work with the media, to address some of the key issues that affect the media including some of the laws they feel have been overtaken by events. There are many of the laws among them Sedition, Media Practioners Act and National Security Law which make it difficult for journalists to do their work.

We would continue to engage the president and his government but we will give them chance to govern the country and we would continue to be available to assist where we best can, he said. Mogapi explained that they are worried that the Media Practitioners' Law even though it has not been into use, maybe one day or in years to come, fall into wrong hands and those people would use it against the media.

BEF and other media rights groups have been calling for the repeal of the Media Practitioners' Act. Mogapi also warned journalist not to trust political parties saying they support the media when it best suits them. Once you have a story that is negative about them they start attacking you. Of recent we had a senior opposition politician indicating that the Media Practitioners Act has to be put into use to punish some of the journalists.

This is just because some of the reports have not been favourable to them but in the past we know the opposition to have been sympathetic to the media and advocating for free press. Right now we see that they are in their comfort zone. So journalists should be mindful of these politicians across the political divide, said Mogapi who also cautioned journalists to always support each other in trying times because no one knows when their time will come.

According to Journalists Without Borders 2018 Report on Media Freedom, Botswanas international rankings have steadily declined under former president Ian Khama. In 2013, the first year Botswana was ranked, Botswana came in at 40th out of 180 countries.

Due to Khamas persistent attacks on the media, calling it unpatriotic, alleging that the media and its opposition lawyers sought to undermine the constitution, the Report found, coupled with raids and arrests of media practitioners and media houses by state security agencies for exposing corruption, that Botswanas media freedom ratings progressively dropped to 48th by 2017.
LONDON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- EY today announces combined global revenues of US$34.8 billion for the financial year ended June 2018. Overall, financial year (FY) 2018 revenues grew by 7.4% in local currency and 11% in US dollars (versus FY17). All EY service lines delivered strong growth in FY18: in local currency Assurance grew 4.4%; Advisory 10.1%; Tax 6.4% and Transaction Advisory Services (TAS) 13.9%. Over the five years since the launch of its Vision 2020 plan in 2013, EY has recorded strong 8.5% compound annual growth.

Mark Weinberger, EY Global Chairman and CEO, says:

"This year more clients turned to EY for support in their digital and transformation strategies, and for our bedrock services across audit and tax. Our significant and innovative investments are driving growth and supporting the delivery of high-quality services. Most of all, our success is driven by the contributions of 260,000 EY people around the world."

Innovation and technology transforming traditional EY services and driving growth

EY has been redefining how it uses technology to transform and strengthen its traditional and new service offerings across all businesses, including labor-intensive manual processes and innovations using blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI) and robotic process automation (RPA). EY is using over 2,000 bots across its businesses and client services. Of these, the 700 bots supporting EY internally have saved more than 2.1 million people hours and brought higher accuracy to manual processes.

In FY18, EY doubled the number of blockchain projects it undertook and launched a number of groundbreaking solutions and pilots. EY Assurance is running a pilot of blockchain audit technologies known as EY Blockchain Analyzer that enhances the ability to perform in-depth reviews of cryptocurrency business transactions. This will also lay the foundation for automated audit tests of smart contracts and blockchain assets.

Additionally, EY teamed up with Microsoft to launch the first blockchain solution for content rights and royalties management. Ubisoft, one of the world's leading game publishers, is testing the solution, which will be extended from gaming to other industries like music and publishing. EY and Guardtime also announced that their blockchain platform for the marine insurance sector is now in commercial use  a world-first. EY is also working with the City of Vienna using blockchain to validate and secure its data, from voting results to transport schedules and routes.

Targeted strategic acquisitions and alliances also supported EY's innovation efforts. In FY18, there were 21 acquisitions in EY, which expanded the organization's professional skills and capabilities in areas like digital, data, analytics, strategy and cyber. New alliance agreements, such as those with BlackLine Systems and JDA Software, are expanding the range of services and skills EY can bring to clients in areas like cloud-technology, supply chain and fintech.

As part of its innovation drive, EY will invest US$1b in new technology solutions and capabilities over the next two financial years in areas like financial services, cyber, risk management, managed services, software, digital tax and digital audit. In FY18, two additional EY wavespace flagship locations opened in Milan and Tel Aviv, bringing the number of globally connected flagship innovation centers to 18. EY plans to launch a further six locations in FY19 to continue its aim to help clients conceive and launch solutions in mobility, customer experience, data analytics and more.

Carmine Di Sibio, EY Global Managing Partner  Client Service, says:

"Our commitment to deploying the best use cases for new technologies helps clients not just keep pace, but stay ahead of the vast disruption in today's business world. Significant investments in people, technology and alliances over the past few years are transforming traditional and emerging EY services alike. We are proud that we are empowering clients to succeed and grow in this complex environment."

Commitment to audit quality

As a multidisciplinary professional services organization, audit quality is  and will always be  the highest focus at EY and is the key measure of its reputation. To stay relevant and to deliver long-term value through EY services, the Assurance business is evolving its thinking and judgments around the execution of the audit process to help ensure audit quality. The EY Sustainable Audit Quality program, in its fourth year, continues to improve quality by holding EY people accountable on a specific set of metrics that are executed globally. This is complemented by the multi-year US$500m investment in digital audit capabilities, people and global audit methodologies.

The future of work

EY continues to transform its approach to talent, providing meaningful career opportunities and enabling EY people to develop "hot" skills. Last year, it introduced digital credentials known as EY Badges to help EY people cultivate skills related to emerging technology, innovation and sectors. Today, more than 15,000 EY Badges have been initiated and more than 2,800 EY Badges have been earned, with data visualization and RPA being the most earned badges to date. In FY19, EY aims to have 50,000 badges initiated.

EY strives to be a leader in the recruitment and development of people around the world. In FY18, nearly two million people applied to work in the organization. More than 65,000 people with core audit and tax skills as well as STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and technology backgrounds joined. Today there are more than 20,000 data and analytics practitioners and more than 2,000 data scientists in EY. Approximately US$500m has been invested and more than 13 million formal hours in learning have been conducted annually, on top of experiential development and systemized mentoring.

Overall, headcount increased by 5.7%, to over 260,000 people globally. In FY18, 747 people were promoted to partner and more than 400 new external partners were admitted. Partner promotions reflected key priorities: 29% of the promoted partners are within the Assurance business, 32% of new partners are from emerging markets and women represent nearly 30%. This year the gender diversity on the Global Executive, the highest governing body in EY, increased to more than 26%.

The EY global talent marketplace, called GigNow, is currently available in 10 countries, expanding from the US, the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand to Canada, China, India, the Netherlands and Singapore. At the end of FY18, GigNow had 16,000 contractors registered for short-term "gigs" and filled more than 1,300 positions for EY projects around the world.

EY continues to be recognized on prestigious lists for its outstanding people culture. It continues to be the world's most attractive professional services employer for business students in Universum's annual "World's Most Attractive Employer" ranking, and fourth overall behind Apple, Google and Goldman Sachs. In the US, EY was recognized in Fortune's "100 Best Companies to Work For" annual list for a record 20-consecutive years. EY was also inducted into DiversityInc's first-ever "Top 50 Hall of Fame" recognizing EY's corporate values, culture and its longstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion.

Growth across geographies, key industries and markets

Revenue increased across all four of the EY geographic areas: the Americas 7.4%; Europe, Middle East, India and Africa (EMEIA) 6.9%; Asia-Pacific 10.5% and Japan 3.1%.

Across the developed markets, the US has had another impressive year, achieving US$14b in revenue, a 7.3% increase over FY17. The Transactions business led the growth in the US buoyed by a strong M&A market and increased demand for strategic consulting, integration, diligence and other services. Its double-digit Advisory growth was driven by areas including cyber services, digital, analytics and technology transformation, while Assurance continued a steady flow of new audit engagements, including two Fortune 500 corporations. Elsewhere, Germany achieved strong growth, led by double-digit growth in TAS and Advisory. EY also saw strong growth in Australia, Canada, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain.

The emerging markets continue their strong growth trend and are up by 10% (vs. 8.9% growth in FY17). Greater China, one of EY's top five markets by revenue overall, recorded its third year of double-digit growth, up by 11.6%, driven by strong growth across all EY service lines. India continues its eighth consecutive year of double-digit growth, up by 16.3%. Mexico also achieved double-digit growth at 15.3%.

EY recorded strong revenues across various industry sectors with Wealth & Asset Management and Insurance both achieving double-digit growth. Growth in Wealth & Asset Management was driven by strong demand for technology and business transformation, customer experience and operational efficiency initiatives. Insurance achieved double-digit growth from demand for technology and business transformation services across Advisory and Tax, as well as providing clients with IFRS 17-related services including finance, risk and regulatory advice.

Investments and growth in the business

Assurance: Audit quality remains an unrelenting focus. Through long-term and continued investments in digital technology, EY people and its global methodologies, the business achieved increased growth of 4.4% (vs. 4% in FY17). Its EY Canvas and EY Helix audit platform and tools are enhancing quality and confidence to meet the evolving needs of business, regulators and investors. Further innovations to support audit quality in FY18 include: EY Lease Reviewer, which uses AI to support transitions to new accounting standards; EY Canvas mobile applications, which are radically transforming the support of an audit, providing more connectivity and streamlined communication. Its market-leading audit technology is a major factor in new audit clients. New engagements include: BHP Billiton, General Motors, Grupo Bimbo, Jiangxi Copper, Standard Chartered Bank and Tate & Lyle. Financial Accounting Advisory Services once again delivered impressive double-digit growth, by supporting clients with the adoption of numerous accounting standard changes and providing accounting support to clients with transactions (IPOs, divestitures and more). EY also continues to build a broader set of Forensic & Integrity Services offerings that help organizations protect and restore enterprise and financial reputation.

Audit quality remains an unrelenting focus. Through long-term and continued investments in digital technology, EY people and its global methodologies, the business achieved increased growth of 4.4% (vs. 4% in FY17). Its EY Canvas and EY Helix audit platform and tools are enhancing quality and confidence to meet the evolving needs of business, regulators and investors. Further innovations to support audit quality in FY18 include: EY Lease Reviewer, which uses AI to support transitions to new accounting standards; EY Canvas mobile applications, which are radically transforming the support of an audit, providing more connectivity and streamlined communication. Its market-leading audit technology is a major factor in new audit clients. New engagements include: BHP Billiton, General Motors, Grupo Bimbo, Jiangxi Copper, Standard Chartered Bank and Tate & Lyle. Financial Accounting Advisory Services once again delivered impressive double-digit growth, by supporting clients with the adoption of numerous accounting standard changes and providing accounting support to clients with transactions (IPOs, divestitures and more). EY also continues to build a broader set of Forensic & Integrity Services offerings that help organizations protect and restore enterprise and financial reputation. Advisory: Strong client demand for services for technologies  including intelligent automation, blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT), data analytics and cybersecurity  contributed largely to Advisory's eighth consecutive year of double-digit growth. New and existing global strategic alliances continue to support revenue growth. In FY18, EY announced four new joint solutions with Microsoft and it teamed up with JDA Software to transform EY clients' supply chains by delivering the latest digitalization advances. It also formed an alliance with BlackLine to expand EY services to clients to improve finance and accounting operations. Strategic acquisitions  like Melbourne -based Open Windows and Aspect Security  continue to support high- growth areas like cybersecurity.

Strong client demand for services for technologies  including intelligent automation, blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT), data analytics and cybersecurity  contributed largely to Advisory's eighth consecutive year of double-digit growth. New and existing global strategic alliances continue to support revenue growth. In FY18, EY announced four new joint solutions with Microsoft and it teamed up with JDA Software to transform EY clients' supply chains by delivering the latest digitalization advances. It also formed an alliance with BlackLine to expand EY services to clients to improve finance and accounting operations. Strategic acquisitions  like -based Open Windows and Aspect Security  continue to support high- growth areas like cybersecurity. Tax: Global and US tax reform and legislative-driven demand for transfer pricing and indirect tax services led the growth of the Tax business. Digital technology is changing how organizations and authorities manage tax reporting and obligations. This also boosted revenue growth as clients sought digital tax administration services and support with the application of blockchain, robotics and AI in tax operations to manage tax "big data." To complement its digital portfolio, in FY18 EY acquired the technology assets and related patents for a Crypto-Asset Accounting and Tax (CAAT) tool to support tax liability calculations for cryptocurrencies and crypto-assets. Additionally, demand for EY legal services fueled its expansion to more than 2,200 law practitioners in more than 80 countries around the world. EY People Advisory Services continued to grow and announced a collaboration with Concur on the first fully integrated tax and immigration solution for business travelers.

Global and US tax reform and legislative-driven demand for transfer pricing and indirect tax services led the growth of the Tax business. Digital technology is changing how organizations and authorities manage tax reporting and obligations. This also boosted revenue growth as clients sought digital tax administration services and support with the application of blockchain, robotics and AI in tax operations to manage tax "big data." To complement its digital portfolio, in FY18 EY acquired the technology assets and related patents for a Crypto-Asset Accounting and Tax (CAAT) tool to support tax liability calculations for cryptocurrencies and crypto-assets. Additionally, demand for EY legal services fueled its expansion to more than 2,200 law practitioners in more than 80 countries around the world. EY People Advisory Services continued to grow and announced a collaboration with Concur on the first fully integrated tax and immigration solution for business travelers. Transaction Advisory Services: The fourth consecutive year of double-digit growth in TAS was led by an across-the-board increase in all its services including capital strategy, corporate finance and divestments. In FY18, it advised on 8 of the top 10 global M&A deals. As clients pursue digital transformations, they are increasingly turning to EY TAS to advise on capital allocation strategies, as well as to access to leading-edge analytical tools applied to M&A, divestments and capital infrastructure investment programs.

Building a better working world

EY is a purpose-driven organization, committed to its purpose of building a better working world. This is fulfilled by helping governments, businesses and communities globally solve their toughest challenges. Its purpose inspires EY people to use their knowledge, skills and experiences to support the communities in which they live and work around the world. In FY18, EY invested nearly US$125m in projects dedicated to strengthening its communities and its people contributed 740k hours of time to a variety of initiatives and value-in-kind projects. For example:

As part of its commitment to inclusive and long-term growth, EY has been working with the Coalition for Inclusive Capitalism and more than 30 companies representing nearly US$30t of assets under management on a framework to reflect the full value companies create. This follows calls for businesses around the globe to demonstrate their contribution to long-term value creation for all of society. EY and the Coalition will share their progress and commitments in November this year.

EY NextGen is helping young girls in South Africa pursue degrees in fields such as medicine, engineering and accounting.

pursue degrees in fields such as medicine, engineering and accounting. In the US, EY is helping students, unemployed people and startups in local communities to develop their public speaking, networking and presentation skills so they have the confidence to lead and grow professionally.

Through its neurodiversity program in the US, EY is hiring people on the autism spectrum and sharing program leading practices with other leading organizations around the world to help address the broader unemployment challenges people with autism face.

In Kenya , EY is working with Sanergy to help scale a business that is helping to make basic sanitation affordable and accessible in some of the poorest areas of Nairobi .

Investments in people and new technologies not only help EY succeed in the market, but sustains its role in building a better working world.

Commitment to long-term value creation

As part of the EY purpose to build a better working world, it is focused on creating long-term value for all its stakeholders, including the capital markets, EY people and the communities in which it operates. For the first time this year, EY is reporting a broader range of financial and non-financial metrics to demonstrate how it is creating long-term value for its stakeholders. The metrics, available in its Global Review, cover a range of areas, including:

Commitment to EY people: measures on career progression, investment in new skills, people engagement scores, attrition rates and diversity and inclusiveness.

measures on career progression, investment in new skills, people engagement scores, attrition rates and diversity and inclusiveness. Service quality, environmental and stakeholder relationships: measures on sustainable audit quality, greenhouse gas emissions and community impact, and commentary on relationships with regulators and alumni.

measures on sustainable audit quality, greenhouse gas emissions and community impact, and commentary on relationships with regulators and alumni. Growth: traditional growth metrics and relative brand strength.

- ends -

Notes to editors

About EY

EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.

EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com.

This news release has been issued by EYGM Limited, a member of the global EY organization that also does not provide any services to clients.

B-roll footage

To watch EY Global Chairman and CEO Mark Weinberger discuss its FY18 results, please visit here. For broadcast quality, downloadable b-roll video, please contact [email protected].

EY FY18 global revenues

EY revenues by service line  US$ millions



FY18 FY17 % change in local currency FY18 v. FY17 5-year CAGR

(FY13 - FY18) Assurance 12,534 11,632 4.4% 5.0% Tax 8,995 8,179 6.4% 7.8% Advisory 9,621 8,526 10.1% 13.0% Transaction Advisory Services 3,622 3,067 13.9% 13.3% Total 34,772 31,404 7.4% 8.5% EY revenues by geographic area  US$ millions

FY18 FY17 % change in local currency FY18 v. FY17 5-year CAGR

(FY13 - FY18) Americas 15,606 14,506 7.4% 9.0% EMEIA 13,914 12,175 6.9% 7.9% Asia-Pacific 4,119 3,617 10.5% 10.2% Japan 1,133 1,106 3.1% 3.4% Total 34,772 31,404 7.4% 8.5% EY people by service line



FY18 FY17 FY18 v. FY17

% change

Assurance 88,849 86,562 2.6%

Tax 53,008 49,386 7.3%

Advisory 59,794 53,525 11.7%

Transaction Advisory Services 15,246 13,654 11.7%

Practice support 44,662 44,443 0.5%

Total 261,559 247,570 5.7%











EY people by geographic area



FY18 FY17 FY18 v. FY17

% change

Americas 70,341 67,075 4.9%

EMEIA 106,775 100,792 5.9%

Asia-Pacific 43,722 41,898 4.4%

Japan 7,824 7,880 (0.7%)

Global Delivery Services [1]  Client Service 18,793 16,248 15.7%

Global Delivery Services  Enablement 7,397 7,200 2.7%

Executive services and functions [2] 6,707 6,477 3.6%

Total 261,559 247,570 5.7%



Basis of presentation: Revenues are aggregated revenues of the individual EY member firms that have been combined for presentation purposes and include expenses billed to clients. For purposes of reporting combined global revenues, revenues between member firms have been eliminated. Headcount numbers reflect personnel as at the end of June of each financial year.

[1] Global Delivery Services (GDS) are the EY internal shared services organization, consisting of legal entities ultimately owned by a number of EY member firms. GDS entities support EY member firms across the world by providing support capabilities to their client-serving account teams as well as internal enablement support services.

[2] Includes EY internal support services such as: Global and Area leadership; Technology; Talent; Finance; Brand, Marketing and Communications; Knowledge; Markets and Risk Management.

Yvonne Diaz

EY Global Media Relations

+44 20 7980 0612

[email protected]

SOURCE EY

Related Links

http://www.ey.com


WASHINGTON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- We are encouraged by U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb's acknowledgment today that e-cigarette use among youth has hit epidemic proportions. The FDA has taken to heart what public health advocates, parents, educators and youth have been saying for months about this crisis. This epidemic is particularly troubling given the high addiction potential that products like JUUL present to youth. However, an epidemic requires urgent and serious action, and the FDA must not cede its authority to the industry. Asking the tobacco industry to come up with solutions is the proverbial case of asking the fox to guard the hen house.

After decades, there is no evidence that the tobacco industry is able to regulate itself. We have learned the hard way from many years of experience that the tobacco companies should not be the ones to decide solutions. Instead, the FDA should act quickly to use its pre-market review authority to ensure products like JUUL are properly reviewed and regulated before they ever get to market. The JUUL phenomenon is, in part, a result of continuing delays on this front. The time for action is before a product is in every high school in the United States, not after. If the FDA is serious about addressing the youth e-cigarette epidemic, it would simply enforce the law and immediately begin review of e-cigarettes, especially those products that are already on the market. The FDA should also be moving to remove all flavored tobacco products from the market  unless a manufacturer shows that they help adults switch completely from cigarettes and do not attract youth  which is clearly not the case for the most popular products currently on the market.

About Truth Initiative

Truth Initiative is a national public health organization that is inspiring tobacco-free lives and building a culture where all youth and young adults reject tobacco. The truth about tobacco and the tobacco industry are at the heart of our proven-effective and nationally recognized truth public-education campaign, our rigorous and scientific research and policy studies, and our innovative community and youth engagement programs supporting populations at high risk of using tobacco. The Washington, D.C.,-based organization, formerly known as Legacy, was established and funded through the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement between attorneys general from 46 states, five U.S. territories and the tobacco industry. To learn more about how Truth Initiative speaks, seeks and spreads the truth about tobacco, visit truthinitiative.org.

SOURCE Truth Initiative

Related Links

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LOS ALTOS HILLS, Calif., Sept. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Federico Faggin is recognized by Continental Who's Who as a Pinnacle Professional in the field of Non-Profit in recognition of his role as Founder, Director, & Physicist of Federico and Elvia Faggin Foundation.

Established since 2011, Federico and Elvia Faggin Foundation is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the scientific study of consciousness.



With over 53 years of experience in the field as a Physicist, Dr. Federico Faggin founded and directed several startup companies since he was 32 years old. In 1974, Dr. Faggin started and directed his first company, Zilog, Inc., dedicated to the emergent microprocessor and microcontroller market. Thereafter, Dr. Faggin founded and directed Cygnet Technologies, Inc. in 1982 and Synaptics Inc. in 1986 which initially focused on developing artificial neural network and later developed the touchpads and the touchscreens that have changed the ways we interface with mobile devices.

When asked his advice to newcomers in the industry, Dr. Faggin states, "Do what you feel passionate about. That's where you can give your best." Dr. Faggin believes that consciousness is an irreducible property of nature and that purpose and meaning exist in the universe, instead of just randomness. With a strong interest in semiconductors, throughout his career, Dr. Faggin has established himself as an acclaimed Physicist specialized in the areas of technology and invention.

Early in his career, Dr. Faggin attended the University of Padua where he attained his Physics degree. Thereafter, Dr. Faggin would receive two honorary PhDs: a PhD in Electronic Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Armenia, and a PhD in Science from Chapman University.

In recognition of his professional accolades, Dr. Faggin was the recipient of the Marconi Prize (1988), the Kyoto Prize for Advanced Technology (1997), the Lifetime Achievement Award from the European Patent Organization (2006), and the 2009 National Medal of Technology and Innovation, from President Barack Obama. Inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for the co-invention of the microprocessor, Dr. Faggin designed the world's first microprocessor, the Intel 4004, in 1971 in addition to developing the design methodology and directing the design of all early Intel's microprocessors from 1970 to 1974.

Dr. Faggin dedicates this recognition to his wonderful wife Elvia, for her continuing love, support, and belief in him.

For more information, please visit http://www.fagginfoundation.org/.

CONTACT: Katherine Green, 516-825-5634, [email protected]

SOURCE Continental Who's Who

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A beautifully balanced blend of specially sourced citrus, including Mexican limes, tangerines and bitter orange, this tonic has been carefully crafted to pair perfectly with Patron Tequila. Fever-Tree Citrus Tonic has been designed to create a range of simple, long, premium mixed drinks aimed at revolutionizing consumer thinkingand drinkingwhen it comes to a tequila and tonic.

"We are most excited about this collaboration. Fever-Tree and Patron share the values of providing consumers authenticity, flavor and substance," says Charles Gibb, Fever-Tree North American CEO. "In addition, sourcing absolute top quality ingredients drives both brands. When we developed our Citrus Tonic, we scoured Mexico to identify the most dedicated producers of exceptional citrus fruits. This enabled us to create a mixer that complements and enhances Patron Tequila's stellar flavor profile."

The ingredient hunting took the Fever-Tree team to Colima and Michoacan to source the ideal Key limes and Tahitian limes, before heading to Veracruz to find the best tangerines. Then it was on to Yucatan, where they discovered the perfect bitter orange to sit with Fever-Tree's signature quinine.

The goal was to create a balance for the sweet citrus, peppery notes of Patron Tequila and, with the expertise of the world's number one ultra-premium tequila and the world's leading mixer, they have excelled.

"It's the perfect pairing between two pioneering brands," says Lee Applbaum, Global CMO, Patron. "Together we are recruiting new customers and changing preconceptions. It showcases the versatility of Patron and mixability of Fever-Tree Tonic."

"We are seeing a massive revival of simple, long mixed drinks, both among professional bartenders and home enthusiasts. Like Patron Tequila, Fever-Tree offers limitless versatility," says Amanda Stackman, Fever-Tree Marketing Director, USA. "Naturally, gin is the most popular pairing for our tonic. That said, our premium mixers can be enjoyed across many categories of spirits. What is brand new and unprecedented here is this highly-customized collaboration."

"Tequila and tonic," adds Applbaum, "is the new, refreshing long, tequila serve."

Tequila and tonic  Patron and Fever-Tree: introducing a new range of drinks guaranteed to mix things up.

About Fever-Tree:

Founded in 2005, Fever-Tree is the leading premium line of carbonated mixers. It procures the world's finest ingredients from natural sources, including quinine from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, ginger from Ivory Coast, India and Nigeria, and lemons from the slopes of Mount Etna, Sicily.

The Fever-Tree range is designed to complement and enhance a wide array of premium spirits and with its high quality and naturally sourced ingredients is the perfect accompaniment to any drinking occasion. Unlike most mixers on the market today, which contain high fructose corn syrup, saccharin or aspartame, Fever-Tree products contain no artificial sweeteners, preservatives or flavorings, restoring taste and quality to the category. Since its launch, Fever-Tree has collected a vast number of awards, including the Best Selling & Top Trending Tonic Water for four consecutive years by the World's 50 Best Bars.

In the U.S., Fever-Tree's portfolio includes 12 mixers, comprising tonics, ginger ales and ginger beers that are available at leading retailers, bars and restaurants across the country.

For more information, please visit www.fever-tree.com, email us at [email protected], like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/fevertreemixers/ and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @FeverTreeMixers.

About Patron Tequila:

From hand-harvesting the highest-quality 100 percent Weber Blue Agave, to the traditional, time-honored distillation process and individual labelling, numbering, and inspection of each bottle, Patron tequila is crafted with meticulous precision and care. Though Patron has grown to become one of the most-recognized and respected luxury spirits brands in the world, it is still exclusively produced in the Highlands of Jalisco, Mexico, in the same small batches and with the same commitment to quality and craftsmanship. For more information about Patron tequilas and liqueurs, please visit www.patrontequila.com.

Media Contacts:

Hanna Lee or Jen Neugeboren

Hanna Lee Communications, Inc.

[email protected]

[email protected]

SOURCE Fever-Tree

Related Links

http://www.fever-tree.com


SAN DIEGO, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Flowmon Networks (www.flowmon.com), a leader in advanced network monitoring and security solutions, announced today its US expansion with the opening of its office in downtown San Diego, Calif., and the appointment of industry veteran Tim Hays as Sales Director for North America. The office will provide more localized assistance with sales, support and business partnerships as the company continues its steady growth. Flowmon enables enterprises and service providers to manage the performance of their network resources and services and secure them against modern cyber threats.

"Demand in the US marketplace for high-performance network monitoring has seen tremendous growth over the last few years, driven largely by changing infrastructure and adoption of hybrid data center architectures and cloud-based services," said Mirek Kren, Flowmon Network's Chief Revenue Officer. "We are excited about the opportunities in the US market, and we look forward to better serving organizations through our West Coast office under the expert direction of Tim and an experienced sales and support organization."

Hays brings a wealth of experience ranging from technical to managerial. He formerly served in the US and Canada channel management for GE Digital, responsible for go-to-market strategy, channel planning, delivery, and technical training. Prior to GE Digital, he was the sales/architect lead for the West at Ixia where he was responsible for executing solution architecture plans and developing sales strategies. He also served previously as a senior sales engineer for the US for Gigamon.

"Organizations must be able to see into network traffic to actively understand performance issues and security events," said Hays, Director of Sales for North America. "Flowmon Networks has a proven ability to cure network blindness and bring deep levels of understanding."

Flowmon is a network monitoring and security solution utilizing analysis of Enriched Flow Data, a unique combination of flow data, application visibility and performance metrics in one solution. It is a high-performance tool suitable for monitoring of physical, virtual and hybrid environments, supporting even 100G networks. With Flowmon, customers all around the world ensure business continuity via fast troubleshooting of operational issues and detect cyber threats bypassing traditional security.

About Flowmon Networks

Flowmon Networks empowers businesses to manage and secure their computer networks confidently. Through high-performance network monitoring technology and lean-forward behavior analytics, IT pros worldwide benefit from absolute network traffic visibility to enhance network and application performance and deal with modern cyber threats. The world's largest businesses, internet service providers, government entities and small and midsize companies have come to rely on Flowmon solutions to take control over their networks, keep order and overcome uncertainty. With solutions recognized by Gartner, Flowmon Networks is one of the fastest-growing companies in its industry. For more information: 866-750-FLOW (3569).

SOURCE Flowmon Networks

Related Links

http://www.flowmon.com


MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. and NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Strata Data Conference -- H2O.ai, the open source leader in AI, today announced a new release of its award-winning automatic machine learning platform H2O Driverless AI, which includes advanced Natural Language Processing (NLP) capabilities. The latest innovations were spearheaded by the #1 Kaggle Kernels Grandmaster, Sudalai Rajkumar "SRK", in Chennai, India, alongside H2O.ai teams around the world. These additional NLP capabilities and integrations will enable organizations to expand their current AI strategies, directly address key machine learning use cases, improve the accuracy of many predictive models like fraud detection and churn, and expands the use to sentiment analysis, document classification and other text-centric applications.

With the addition of NLP recipes, Driverless AI can now handle even more types of data right out of the box, saving organizations time and money by making it easy to create machine learning models that using data that contains blocks of text, numeric and categorical data. In the latest version, larger volumes of text data, such as description fields, are used directly by the platform, saving data scientists time traditionally required to convert that text into predictive features. H2O.ai has further integrated NLP with TensorFlow which provides a deep learning approach which is helpful for a variety of problems and enhances Driverless AI's NLP capabilities to process larger volumes of text automatically.

"Text is a uniquely human expression  making natural language processing the ultimate AI challenge. Our new NLP for text recipes in Driverless AI using TensorFlow and machine learning expands the class of problems and use cases that autoML can solve for enterprises in several domains," said Sri Ambati, CEO and founder at H2O.ai. "Text is naturally intertwined in enterprise data, and data scientists are being increasingly expected to train learning architectures for semi-supervised and unsupervised challenges. Driverless AI provides faster, cheaper and easier way to train and reuse deep learning text models. It's like having an NLP expert on your team."

With new NLP recipes, H2O Driverless AI customers can now:

Better predict buying patterns for retail based on customer reviews

Do higher quality equity research on reports for securities

Classify documents based on their text content alone

Determine customer sentiment from the transcript of a customer service call to determine the likelihood of customer churn

Enhance existing models for fraud, pricing, marketing and more by including textual data like product descriptions and customer reviews

Save lives with domain-specific NLP for healthcare

H2O Driverless AI empowers data scientists or data analysts to work on projects faster and more efficiently by using automation and state-of-the-art computing power to accomplish tasks that can take humans months in just minutes or hours by delivering automatic feature engineering, model validation, model tuning, model selection and deployment, machine learning interpretability, time-series, NLP and automatic pipeline generation for model scoring.

The latest version of H2O Driverless AI is available for download immediately.

Connect with H2O.ai

Meet H2O.ai at Strata Data Conference: Visit Booth 1235

Visit Booth 1235 Download Driverless AI for a free 21-day trial: https://www.h2o.ai/try-driverless-ai/

https://www.h2o.ai/try-driverless-ai/ Visit us to learn more: www.h2o.ai

www.h2o.ai Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/H2Oai

www.twitter.com/H2Oai Connect with us on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/0xdata/

About H2O.ai

H2O.ai is the open source leader in AI. Its mission is to democratize AI for all. H2O.ai is transforming the use of AI with software with its category-creating visionary open source machine learning platform, H2O. More than 14,000 companies use open-source H2O in mission-critical use cases for Finance, Insurance, Healthcare, Retail, Telco, Sales, and Marketing. H2O.ai recently launched Driverless AI that uses AI to do AI in order to provide an easier, faster and effective means of implementing data science. In February 2018, Gartner named H2O.ai, as a Leader in the 2018 Magic Quadrant for Data Science and Machine Learning Platforms. H2O.ai partners with leading technology companies such as NVIDIA, IBM, AWS, Azure and Google and is proud of its growing customer base which includes Capital One, Progressive Insurance, Comcast, Walgreens and PayPal. For more information and to learn more about how H2O.ai is transforming business processes with intelligence, visit www.h2o.ai.

Media Contact:

Erika Kamholz

[email protected]

949-282-8560

SOURCE H2O.ai

Related Links

https://www.h2o.ai


SEATTLE, Sept. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Health Management Concepts, Inc. ("HMC") announced that it is addressing a security incident involving personal information of the members of one of its clients. As authorized by the client, HMC proactively notified the potentially affected individuals to explain the incident, the responsive measures HMC has taken and steps the individuals can take to protect themselves. HMC also is offering complimentary identity protection services to potentially affected individuals.

On July 16, 2018, HMC learned that a server it used to share files with its clients was infected with ransomware. HMC took immediate steps to decrypt the files, provision a new server, begin an investigation, and engage a leading forensic firm to assist it. On July 19, 2018, HMC determined that a file obtained by the attackers contained personal information, including Social Security numbers and health insurance plan information. The file did not contain any health care claims or treatment information.

As a result, HMC notified the potentially affected individuals to provide guidance on how they can protect themselves. As part of this protection, the company is offering eligible individuals a complimentary one-year membership in credit monitoring and identity theft protection services through Experian. Individuals with questions should call (888) 579-1194, Monday-Friday between 5:00 am to 5:00 pm Pacific Time.

HMC understands the importance of protecting the security and confidentiality of personal information, sincerely regrets that this incident occurred, and apologizes for any inconvenience or concern the incident may cause. To help prevent something like this from happening in the future, HMC is adding enhanced security protocols to its current server, including removing access to the server through Remote Desktop Protocol. It also is migrating its server to another cloud computing service, which will provide additional security. Finally, it has reviewed and, where necessary, enhanced its security protocols to provide a more secure environment.

About HMC

HMC is a healthcare management company located in Jupiter, Florida.

SOURCE Health Management Concepts, Inc.
DENVER, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Despite state data showing that cannabis use for youth under 18 has not increased in Colorado since recreational/retail marijuana was legalized, a survey collected from five Colorado campuses using the American College Health Association national survey indicates that the trend may shift once those students leave for college.

"Our survey data show the number of college students in Colorado engaging in frequent cannabis use is higher than in other states," said David Arnold, Program Administrator for the Coalition of Colorado Campus Alcohol and Drug Educators (CADE). "However, research shows that adolescents, even college-attending and college-bound students, listen to their parents and care what they think about subjects like alcohol and drug use."

Data regarding rates of cannabis consumption among college students was collected through CADE using the American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment, with funding from the Colorado Department of Human Services, Office of Behavioral Health. The 2017 national reference sample is 63,497 respondents at 92 institutions. The CADE 2017 data set is from a survey of 4,180 participants at five colleges and universities in Colorado.

As a spokesperson for the Speak Now! Colorado campaign, Arnold recommends parents talk with their college-age young adults about the potential negative effects of cannabis use, such as damage to the lungs and impaired brain development for adults under 25.

"Preparing your child to go off to college presents an ideal opportunity to talk about how using cannabis, alcohol, or prescription drugs can impact their success, and the resources on the Speak Now website are really helpful," Arnold said. "Even if your child is legally a young adult, you're not done parenting yet."

Speak Now's website, available in English and Spanish, has current information on alcohol, marijuana, prescription medications and other drugs, as well as suggestions for parents on how to start an open and fact-based conversation about these subjects. A section of the website targeted at parents of young adults contains tips on how to get out of situations when they might feel pressured to use alcohol, cannabis or other drugs. To learn more, visit speaknowcolorado.org.

According to the statewide Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, there has not been a statistically significant increase in rates of use among young adults age 18-25 from pre- to post-legalization. However, adult use of retail marijuana remains highest among young adults age 18-25 with nearly 1 in 3 respondents using marijuana in the last 30 days, and approximately 15 percent of young adults using marijuana daily or near daily.

Contact:

Tom Skelley

Evolution Communications Agency

303.356.6926

[email protected]

SOURCE Speak Now Colorado

Related Links

http://www.speaknowcolorado.org


MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Hiretual (https://www.hiretual.com/), the AI-driven technology company and a recruiter's best friend, today announced a $5 million Series A funding round led by Northern Light Venture Capital, bringing the company's total funding to date to $6.5 million. Founded in April 2015, Hiretual has been quietly building and scaling its technology, which is already in use by more than 80K recruiters from more than 200 companies, including globally recognized Fortune 500 brands. Hiretual will leverage the new funding to accelerate growth and scale its operations and AI-powered HR technology.



"Since the birth of the World Wide Web in 1991, a new hiring tool has emerged every few years: Monster.com, a searchable professional directory appeared in the market in 1994, and was followed in 2002 by LinkedIn, a professional network that helped find people you already know. Hiretual is an AI-first company that prioritizes making data more intelligent and 'recruitable', creating an entirely different and highly targeted recruitment tool," said Steven Jiang,CEO and co-founder of Hiretual. "Searching on a traditional sourcing platform might list 6,000 software engineers in response to a search. Hiretual drills deeper and identifies candidates with the most relevant skills and experience saving recruiters dozens of sourcing and recruiting work hours on every new hire."

Glassdoor reports the number one obstacle in the hiring process is a shortage of candidates, while GetAppLab's 2017 survey revealed that more than 40 percent of recruiters report the biggest challenge they face is a shortage of candidates. Hiretual addresses this challenge by unleashing the power of the unstructured internet to create a candidate sourcing base that is much larger (700M) than current sourcing platforms such as LinkedIn (562M) or Indeed (200M).Hiretual's AI-powered search functionality goes beyond Boolean and keyword search to tap into the 'dark matter' of undiscovered talent and professional data on the web  turning the internet into a recruiter's database. Hiretual also seamlessly integrates with a recruiter's existing ATS (Applicant TrackingSystem) and CRM (Candidate Relationship Management), to refresh, enrich and re-discover candidate data.

How Hiretual Works

Hiretual's AI-powered platform converts unstructured data from more than 700M profiles across 30+ platforms and the open web into rich, holistic professional profiles. Using this data, Hiretual ranks candidates by how well they match the requirements of a job, and automatically adjusts rankings for the next round of candidates based on user interactions  creating a Proactive Talent Pipeline that grows more precise over time. As a result, recruiters engage the strongest candidates first, improve hiring conversion rates, and save dozens of hours on every hire. Hiretual also provides candidate contact information, email automation, and tracking to make the next step instant and measurable. Recruiters can easily keep track of their talent pipeline using projects, hiring stages, and also invite team members or hiring managers to participate in candidate selection.

"We see Hiretual as the next innovative leap for recruiters, an enterprise-grade, professional, AI-driven tool that proactively matches the best candidates to the right position up to 10 times faster than the status quo," said Lei Yang, Managing Director, Northern Light Venture Capital and new Hiretual board member. "The tremendous growth experienced by Hiretual over the course of less than a year very clearly validates the market demand for AI-powered HR technology."

AboutHiretual

AI-driven technology company, Hiretual is a Proactive Talent Pipeline and a recruiter's best friend. Powered by a proprietary AI-matching engine, Hiretual enables recruiters to source and engage the strongest and most relevant candidates with the right skill sets up to 10 times faster, significantly reducing time to hire. Hiretual's AI-powered platform converts unstructured data from more than 700M profiles across 30+ platforms and the open web into rich, holistic professional profiles. Using this data, Hiretual ranks candidates by how well they match the requirements of a job, and automatically adjusts rankings for the next round of candidates based on user input  creating a Proactive Talent Pipeline that grows more precise over time.

Currently trusted and used by more than 80K recruiters from more than 200 companies including Fortune 500 and globally recognized brands, Hiretual is a privately held company headquartered in Mountain View, California and backed by Northern Light Venture Capital. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, or learn more at https://www.hiretual.com.

All trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE Hiretual

Related Links

http://www.hiretual.com


DALLAS and MELVILLE, N.Y., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Hitachi Consulting Corporation ("Hitachi Consulting"), a subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd (TSE: 6501), and a leading provider of digital and IoT business solutions, together with Canon Information and Imaging Solutions, Inc. ("CIIS"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Canon U.S.A., Inc., today announced a new strategic alliance to deliver digital solutions to customers throughout the Americas.

Working together, Hitachi Consulting and CIIS will leverage their respective strengths to integrate imaging into digital solutions that will help clients reduce costs, accelerate innovation and create new revenue streams.

The alliance strengthens the delivery capabilities of both companies and builds a go-to-market partnership for the collaborative creation of client solutions. For example, CIIS imaging technology can be applied in Hitachi Consulting video analytics for security in smart city projects and manufacturing clients' video and image analytics for predictive failure and maintenance.

"Our alliance with CIIS will improve Hitachi Consulting's suite of digital solutions and provide our clients with the opportunity to efficiently and reliably deploy imaging capabilities," said Hicham Abdessamad, president and CEO of Hitachi Consulting. "With the new CIIS alliance, Hitachi Consulting further strengthens its capabilities to help clients work toward innovating faster, increasing operational efficiency and realizing measurable, sustainable business and societal value."

Hitachi Consulting has pioneered innovative methods by capitalizing on video data to provide real-time analytics that work toward improving a business's bottom line and operational effectiveness. For example, by tracking and analyzing employee movements, a video system can identify quality issues at the source, which can help increase the overall productivity of the line and improve employee health and welfare.

A variety of CIIS solutions can support business process optimization efforts across multiple industries. For example, healthcare delivery can be improved by using imaging at remote points of care. Imaging can also help increase energy and environmental efficiency and streamline manufacturing operations.

The two companies will collaborate to create innovative offerings around data mining and business intelligence of Accounts Payable (AP) automation process flows, statistical monitoring and other high-value business functions.

"We are excited to bring together Hitachi Consulting's leadership in leveraging data as a strategic asset with CIIS's advanced image-related technology," said Kevin Sato, President and Chief Executive Officer of CIIS. "With our new alliance, Hitachi Consulting and CIIS will bring valued services designed to aide our mutual customers in digitally transforming their most critical business processes."

Hitachi Consulting is collaborating with CIIS on its AP Invoice Automation solution, which enables digital imaging capture of travel and expense receipts for improved and automated expense reporting and processing. Hitachi Consulting will also become an American reseller of CIIS's AP Automation solution, to bring customers more efficient processes for AP invoicing and travel and expense orchestration.

About Canon Information and Imaging Solutions, Inc.

Canon Information and Imaging Solutions, Inc. (CIIS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Canon U.S.A., Inc., brings together Canon's world-class imaging technologies and information management expertise to assist organizations in achieving their digital transformation objectives. With a focus on innovation, CIIS's software development and solutions delivery capabilities scale across several practice areas: Business Process Automation - including Procure-to-Pay invoice input automation, Document Solutions, Information Management Services with a focus on content capture, management and collaboration, and Security and Infrastructure Management. CIIS deploys its solutions in partnership with leading technology providers and offers comprehensive consulting and professional services that are trusted by organizations of all sizes. Additional information about the company, its programs and mission can be found at www.ciis.canon.com

About Hitachi Consulting

Hitachi Consulting is the global solutions and professional services organization within Hitachi Ltd., a global innovation leader in industrial and information technology solutions and an early pioneer of the Internet of Things. Hitachi Consulting is a business integrator for the IoT era and a catalyst for digital transformation. Using our deep domain knowledge, we collaborate with clients to help them innovate faster, maximize operational efficiency and realize measurable, sustainable business and societal value. As a consulting-led solutions company, we can help you leverage data as a strategic asset to drive competitive differentiation, customer loyalty and growth. Visit hitachiconsulting.com.

About Hitachi, Ltd

Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, delivers innovations that answer society's challenges, combining its operational technology, information technology, and products/systems. The company's consolidated revenues for fiscal 2017 (ended March 31, 2018) totaled 9,368.6 billion yen ($88.4 billion). The Hitachi Group is an innovation partner for the IoT era, and it has approximately 307,000 employees worldwide. Through collaborative creation with customers, Hitachi is deploying Social Innovation Business using digital technologies in a broad range of sectors, including Power/Energy, Industry/Distribution/Water, Urban Development, and Finance/Social Infrastructure/Healthcare. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company's website at http://www.hitachi.com.

Contact:

Mary Welder

Hitachi Consulting

[email protected]

507-250-2037

SOURCE Hitachi Consulting

Related Links

http://www.hitachiconsulting.com


A dark cloud hangs over Botswana Public Employees Union (BOPEU) former President Andrew Motsamai over a P43 million counter-claim by his former employer Babereki Investment after he failed to file opposing papers.Motsamai, who is also a former Executive Chairman of Babereki Investment, had slapped his former employer with a demand letter for more than P2.1million payment and interest at the rate of 10 percent. Babereki Investment would later issue a more than P43million counter-claim.

Motsamai has so far been paid more than P1, 2 million by his former employer following the termination of his contract last year. Motsamai has been accused of contravening Section 127 of the Companies Act during the period of December 2016 and before by overriding the decisions of Babereki Investment as he allegedly acted without the approval of the Board in respect of various transactions that Babereki Investment engaged in with third parties.

It emerged this Wednesday before Justice Abednego Tafa of Lobatse High Court that Motsamai through his lawyer Gabriel Kanjabanga of Kanjabanga and Associates, has not filed papers opposing the counter- claim by Babereki Investment. Dutch Leburu of Monthe Marumo and Company representing Babereki Investment indicated that when the court considers their counter-claim it should take into consideration that Motsamai had failed to file opposition of the counter-claim.

Kanjabanga told the court that there are valid reasons for not filing the opposition of counter-claim. He revealed that the papers were not filed because they have filed an application before court citing the counter-claim by Babereki Investment as irregular and improper. In the application Motsamai wants the counter claim to be set aside.

I seek an order setting aside the respondents (Babereki Investment) counter claim on the basis that it constitutes an irregular and improper step contrary to the peremptory requirements of Section 75, 79 and 81 of the Employment Act. The respondent does not dispute my main claim. In terms of their plea, they have only taken issue with the quantum thereof.

If the dispute narrows down to quantum, it would be a proper matter in which the Registrar of the High Court can make a determination on, Motsamai states in court papers seen by Botswana Guardian. He added that in terms of a counter claim filed with the plea, Babereki Investment seeks to set off his claim with its counter-claim. Motsamai explains that, he is advised and verily believes that withholding his terminal benefits in an attempt to recoup alleged unliquidated damages the merits of which are yet to be determined, is against the dictates of the law.

On Wednesday when the parties appeared for arguments in the suit brought by Motsamai against his former employer, Leburu indicated that the counter-claim should be decided differently from the claim brought by Motsamai and the court should in its determination take into consideration that Motsamai had not filed opposing papers.

The defendants indicate that I should say the counter-claim is not opposed. They say there has to be a ruling on that because there has been no opposition, said Justice Tafa to Kanjabanga representing Motsamai who responded, We have not filed opposing papers yet because of the application of irregularities. At this point things nearly got out of hand as Justice Tafa and Kanjabanga argued on what should be done. Justice Tafa indicated to the lawyer that he heard his point and there is no need to elaborate it because he has been listening to him for two (2) hours.

He stated that the decision of the court does not come from the intelligence of an attorney but from facts before court and what the law says. Kanjabanga indicated that he was only trying to elaborate so that the court would appreciate the point he is trying to put across.

In arguments for Motsamais claim Kanjabanga stated that there is no material fact placed before court indicating that his client made decisions unilaterally. He said withholding the money owed to Motsamai is in contravention of the Employment Act. Leburu has however argued that the total amount of terminal benefits which include leave pay, gratuity and salary for September 2017 have been paid in full. The total amount for the salary for September 2017 is P62 722. 25, Leave pay P45 730. 22, gratuity at P25 444.50.

The total is P133 896. 97. These would be the amounts covered under section 75, 79 and 81 of the Employment Act. The payment of the balance of the contract period is a damages claim and consequently not covered under the aforesaid provisions, said Leburu. He told the court that such payment does not constitute wages and/or salary and/or emoluments as contemplated by the Employment Act.

In 2017, Babereki Board resolved to fire Motsamai allegedly over millions of pulas gone down the drain via multi-million investments at its subsidiaries - Future Sustain International and Fly Mission Services. Babereki Investment states that Motsamai entered into agreements with various companies and made payments to those companies without authorisation. As a result, Babereki Investment is claiming P4 919 769.88 from Motsamai.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Hyundai Hope On Wheels (HHOW), a 501c(3) non-profit organization, launches its annual "DC Days" program in Washington D.C. to celebrate its 20th anniversary in the fight against pediatric cancer. This event is part of the organization's month-long campaign during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. The theme of the organization's September campaign is "Every Handprint Tells A Story." The DC Days will include a series of events, including local grant awards to Children's National Hospital (Washington, D.C.) and John Hopkins (Baltimore, MD); Capitol Hill Reception; National Press Conference; Thought Leaders' Symposium, and a Gala Dinner and Awards Ceremony. Attendees will include childhood cancer survivors, grant winners, Hyundai executives, Hyundai dealers, childhood cancer advocates, and others. Confirmed VIP attendees include: Ambassador to the United States from the Republic of Korea, Cho Yoon-je; Senator Michael Bennett (CO); Members of the House of Representatives including, Rep. Joaquin Castro (TX), Rep. Mike McCaul (TX), Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX), Rep. Mike Kelly (PA); and others. Hyundai Motor America President and CEO, Kenny Lee, The HHOW board of directors and Hyundai global executives will also be in attendance.

"September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. It is a time when we gather to raise awareness about the issue of pediatric cancer," said Scott Fink, board chairman, Hyundai Hope On Wheels. "Amongst all the things we do as dealers and a company, our involvement with Hyundai Hope On Wheels is one of the best and most rewarding. The program is not about selling cars, it's about kids. We know that children are our future and we want them to achieve their potential free of pediatric cancer. This is the mission of Hope On Wheels."

On Friday, September 14th, the public is invited to participate in a pop-up handprint ceremony, to be held in the Woodrow Wilson Complex at the Ronald Reagan Building. At this event, individuals are encouraged to place a paper-handprint on a white 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe. These handprints signify the community's support to the issue of childhood cancer awareness.

Now in its 20th year, HHOW has emerged as a leader in pediatric cancer research. This September alone, the organization will announce that 38 new doctor-researchers will receive a combined $14.1 million to support novel therapeutic approaches and innovative research options in pediatric cancer. This is in addition to 21 grants totaling $2.1 million that were awarded to hospitals earlier this year. HHOW has surpassed $145 million in pediatric cancer research support since 1998. Childhood cancer researchers depend largely on private funding for groundbreaking therapies to get off the ground and to advance treatment approaches to the next phase of testing, ultimately, bringing better therapies and cures to kids with cancer.

"Our aim is to focus on funding research with the best potential of giving kids the healthy childhoods they deserve," says Brian Smith, Chief Operating Officer, Hyundai Motor America. "We're humbled to say that we've now funded more than $145 million dollars since 1998 to support lifesaving childhood cancer research towards finding a cure. This achievement is made possible by the collective efforts of our amazing dealers, volunteers, and supporters across the nation. Together, we are leading the charge to end childhood cancer."

Every 36 minutes a child is diagnosed with cancer in the U.S. While nearly 80 percent of cancer in children can be cured, pediatric cancer remains the leading disease related cause of death for children. This year's pediatric cancer research grants from HHOW deliver on its decades-long commitment to support the most promising childhood cancer research throughout the nation.

DC Days Event Schedule

*All Events Open to Media

Wednesday, September 12th

10:00 am - Official Grant Presentation Ceremony at Children's National Hospital ( Washington, DC )

- Official Grant Presentation Ceremony at Children's National Hospital ( ) 10:00 am - Official Grant Presentation Ceremony at Johns Hopkins Hospital ( Baltimore, MD )

Thursday, September 13th

8:00 am - Press Conference with Members of Congress, HHOW Board, and Hyundai Global Executives at Rayburn House Building, Room #2020

Friday, September 14th

11:00am - Pop-up Handprint Ceremony at the Woodrow Wilson Plaza (Open to Public)

The public is invited to show their support for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month by wearing a gold ribbon all month long. You may also join HHOW online and in social media, by visiting our website (www.HyundaiHopeOnWheels.org/national-childhood-cancer-awareness-month) to view stories of brave cancer survivors and passionate doctor-researchers. Once there, supporters may add their handprint to a wall of hope to show their support for the cause. They will also find information on additional ways to support HHOW through social media efforts and events throughout the month.

For more information about Hyundai Hope On Wheels and to view a list of our 2018 Hope On Wheels grant winners, please visit www.hyundaihopeonwheels.org/research. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram at facebook.com/HyundaiHopeOnWheels, twitter.com/HopeOnWheels or Instagram.com/HyundaiHopeOnWheels.

ABOUT HYUNDAI HOPE ON WHEELS

Hyundai Hope On Wheels is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to finding a cure for childhood cancer. Launched in 1998, Hyundai Hope On Wheels provides grants to eligible institutions nationwide that are pursuing life-saving research and innovative treatments for the disease. HHOW is one of the largest non-profit funders of pediatric cancer research in the country, and primary funding for Hyundai Hope On Wheels comes from Hyundai Motor America and its more than 835 U.S. dealers. Since its inception, Hyundai Hope On Wheels has awarded more than $145 million toward childhood cancer research in pursuit of a cure.

HYUNDAI MOTOR AMERICA

Hyundai Motor America, headquartered in Fountain Valley, Calif., is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company of Korea. Hyundai vehicles are distributed throughout the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through 835 dealerships nationwide. All new Hyundai vehicles sold in the U.S. are covered by the Hyundai Assurance program, which includes a 5-year/60,000-mile fully-transferable new vehicle limited warranty, Hyundai's 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty and five years of complimentary Roadside Assistance.

For more details on Hyundai Assurance, please visit www.HyundaiAssurance.com

Please visit our media website at www.hyundainews.com

Hyundai Motor America on Twitter | YouTube | Facebook

SOURCE Hyundai Hope On Wheels

Related Links

http://www.hyundaihopeonwheels.org


LONDON, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

Point of Care, Clinical Chemistry, Immunochemistry, Haematology, Microbiology, Molecular Diagnostics, Flow Cytometry, Infectious Diseases, Diabetes, Cardiology, Autoimmune Diseases, Renal Diseases, Pharmacogenomics, HIV/AIDS, Reagent & Kits, Instruments, Data Management Software & Services, Hospitals, Laboratories, Home Care Testing, Research Institutes, Blood Glucose Testing, Infectious Disease Testing, Rapid Coagulation Testing,Cholesterol Testing, Pregnancy Testing, Basic Metabolic Panel, Electrolyte Panel, Liver Profile, Lipid Profile, Thyroid Function Test, ELISA, Immuno-PCR, Rapid Test, Western Blot, Enzyme linked Immunospot Assay

(Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/523989/Visiongain_Logo.jpg )



The revenue of the in-vitro diagnostics market in 2017 was estimated at $63bn and was dominated by the Point of Care Testing Segment. The Molecular Diagnostics segment will be the fastest growing segment in the first-half of the forecast period.

How this report will benefit you

Read on to discover how you can exploit the future business opportunities emerging in this sector.

In this brand new 263-page report you will receive 107 tables and 81 figures- all unavailable elsewhere.

The 263-page report provides clear detailed insight into the in-vitro diagnostics market. Discover the key drivers and challenges affecting the market.

By ordering and reading our brand-new report today you stay better informed and ready to act.

Report Scope

 In-Vitro Diagnostics market forecasts from 2018-2028

 This report breaks down the revenue forecast for the main submarkets by Type:

 Point of care

 Clinical chemistry

 Immunochemistry

 Haematology

 Microbiology

 Molecular Diagnostics

 Flow Cytometry

 Others

 The Point of Care Diagnostic submarket is further segmented into:

 Blood Glucose Testing

 Infectious Disease Testing

 Rapid Coagulation Testing

 Cholesterol Testing

 Pregnancy Testing

 The Clinical Chemistry submarket is further segmented into:

 Basic Metabolic Panel

 Electrolyte Panel

 Liver Profile

 Lipid Profile

 Thyroid Function Test

 The Immunochemistry submarket is further segmented into:

 ELISA

 Immuno-PCR

 Rapid Test

 Western Blot

 Enzyme linked Immunospot Assay

 This report breaks down the revenue forecast for the main submarkets by Application:

 Infectious Diseases

 Diabetes

 Cardiology

 Autoimmune Diseases

 Renal Diseases

 Pharmacogenomics

 HIV/AIDS

 Other Applications

 This report breaks down the revenue forecast for the main submarkets by Products & Services:

 Analyzers

 Reagents

 Software & Services

 This report breaks down the revenue forecast for the main submarkets by End-User:

 Lab Testing

 Hospital Testing

 University Testing

 Home Care Testing

 This report provides individual revenue forecasts to 2028 for these regional and national markets:

 Americas: US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Rest of Americas

 Europe: UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Russia, Rest of Europe

 Asia: India, China, Japan, Rest of Asia

 RoW

Each regional and national market is further segmented by type.

 Our study includes SWOT analysis and STEP analysis of the in-vitro diagnostics market.

 Our study discusses the selected leading companies that are the major players in the in-vitro diagnostics market:

 Abbott Diagnostics

 Agilent Technologies

 Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD)

 BioMerieux

 Bio-Rad

 Danaher Corporation

 DiaSorin Diagnostics s.p.a

 Roche Diagnostics

 Siemens Diagnostics

 Sysmex Corporation

Visiongain's study is intended for anyone requiring commercial analyses for the in-vitro diagnostics market. You find data, trends and predictions.

Buy our report today In-Vitro Diagnostics World Market 2018-2028: Point of Care, Clinical Chemistry, Immunochemistry, Haematology, Microbiology, Molecular Diagnostics, Flow Cytometry, Infectious Diseases, Diabetes, Cardiology, Autoimmune Diseases, Renal Diseases, Pharmacogenomics, HIV/AIDS, Reagent & Kits, Instruments, Data Management Software & Services, Hospitals, Laboratories, Home Care Testing, Research Institutes, Blood Glucose Testing, Infectious Disease Testing, Rapid Coagulation Testing, Cholesterol Testing, Pregnancy Testing, Basic Metabolic Panel, Electrolyte Panel, Liver Profile, Lipid Profile, Thyroid Function Test, ELISA, Immuno-PCR, Rapid Test, Western Blot, Enzyme linked Immunospot Assay

To request a report overview of this report please contact Sara Peerun at [email protected] or refer to our website : https://www.visiongain.com/report/in-vitro-diagnostics-world-market-2018-2028/

3M

Abbott Laboratories

AbbVie

AccuQuik

ACON Laboratories

Adaltis

AdnaGen AG

Affymetrix

Agendia

Agilent

Akonni Biosystems

Alere

Amgen

Apogee Flow Systems Ltd.

Arkay

AssuraGen

Assurex Health, Inc.

Astute Medical

Atlas Genetics

B.Braun

Bayer

Beckman Coulter

Binding Site

Biohit HealthCare

Biokit S.A

bioMerieux

Bio-Rad

BioStar

BioSystems

Bio-Techne

bioTheranostics

Bristol Myers-Squibb

CardioGenics

Caribou Biosciences

Celerus Diagnostics

Cepheid

Claros Diagnostics

Compendia Bioscience

Corgenix

Crescendo Bioscience

Dako

Danaher

Daxor Corporation

Dexcom

DiaGenic

Diagnostics for Real World

DiaSorin

Diaxonhit

Diazyme Laboratories

Editas Medicine

Exosome Diagnostics

Expedeon

Expression Diagnostics

Focus Diagnostics

Fujirebio Diagnostics Inc.

GE Healthcare

Gene Chip Research Centre, Tianjin, China

Genentech

GenMark Diagnostics

Genomic Health

Gen-Probe

Glycominds

Haemonetics Corporation

Hai Kang Life Corporation

Helena Laboratories

HemoCue

Hologic

Human Genetics Commission

Immucell

Immucor

Innogenetics

Innova Biosciences

Innova Biotechnology Co.

Instrumentation Laboratory

Intec

Intellia Therapeutics, Inc.

Ipsogen

Janssen Biotech

Janssen Pharmaceuticals

Johnson & Johnson

Kreatech Diagnostics

Lab-21

LabIndia

Launch Diagnostics

Leica Microsystems

Life Technologies

LifeScan

Luminex

Med BioGene

Melanoma Diagnostics

Meridian Bioscience

Milagen

Miltenyi Biotec

Mindray

Miraca Life Sciences

Myriad Genetics

mySugr GmbH

Nanosphere

Neo New Oncology

Nova Biomedical

Novartis

Novatein Biosciences

Onconome

OraQuick

Orion Genomics

Ortho Clinical Diagnostics

PathWorks Diagnostics

PerkinElmer

Phillips

Polymedco

Polymer Technology Systems, Inc.

Precipio

Qiagen

Quest Diagnostics

Quidel

Radiometer Medical

Randox Laboratories

Recombinetics, Inc.

Response Biomedical

Roche

Rules-Based Medicine

Saladax Biomedical

Sangamo

Sanofi

SDIX

Sekisui Diagnostics

Sera Prognostics

SeraCare Life Sciences

Siemens

Siemens Healthineers

Sigma Aldrich Corporation

Span Diagnostics

Stago

STARLIMS Technologies

SterilMed

Stratedigm, Inc.

Suzhou Ribo Life Sciences

Synthes

Sysmex

Target Discovery

Targeted Diagnostics & Therapeutics

Tem International GmbH

Tethys Bioscience

Thermo Fisher Scientific

Tocagen

Tosoh Bioscience

Transasia Bio Medicals

Trinity Biotech

UroSens

VentriPoint

Verax Biomedical

Vermillion

Viewics, Inc.

ViiV Healthcare

Ypsomed

To see a report overview please e-mail Sara Peerun on [email protected]

SOURCE Visiongain
LAUSANNE, Switzerland, September 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

iWedia, a leading provider of software components and solutions for TV devices to service operators and Consumer Electronics manufacturers, today announced the release of an Adaptive Bitrate (ABR) media player optimized for live TV use cases.

(Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/739633/iWedia_logo.jpg )



Developed and maintained in-house, Teatro ABR Media Player gives support to the latest versions of HLS and DASH. It is pre-integrated with a number of DRM, analytics, and ad insertion systems. Designed to be light and low resources demanding (CPU, memory), it allows for fast zapping and implements advanced bitrate adaptation algorithms. It is available for Android TV and AOSP as well as for Linux.

"Mastering the ABR player is key for a service operator deploying live TV services OTT," says Krsto Lazic, Product Manager at iWedia. "And this may prove to be complicated with the open source solutions which come along with the OS. As Teatro ABR Media Player is our own product, we are in a position to integrate it rapidly and efficiently within any end-to-end network configuration."

Teatro ABR Media Player has already been chosen by several major operators which are preparing the launch of their services that are expected to happen before the end of the year or beginning of next year.

Teatro ABR Media Player has already been chosen by several major operators. Some of them have deployed the product and others are preparing the launch of their services that are expected to happen before the end of the year or beginning of next year.

Teatro ABR Media Player has already been chosen by several major operators. In the field deployments are either on-going or scheduled for the end of the year or the beginning of next year.

iWedia will demonstrate the product at IBC 2018, which is being held in RAI Amsterdam from Friday, September 14th through to Tuesday, September 18th. iWedia exhibits in hall 5, stand B40.

About iWedia

iWedia provides software components and solutions for TV devices to service operators and consumer electronics manufacturers. Its mission is to deliver the software products and services needed by its customers to adapt constantly to the ever-changing requirements of the digital TV markets. In addition to stand-alone components giving support to DVB, ATSC, ARIB, ISDB-T, HLS, DASH, VidiPath, DVB>IP, MHEG-5, HbbTV, CI Plus, DTCP-IP, TR-069, etc., iWedia offers a range of complete solutions for zappers, connected receivers, Smart TVs, as well as for OTT and IPTV boxes. Dubbed Teatro, these solutions are available for RTOS, Linux/HTML, and Android/Java and are pre-integrated with leading service and delivery platforms, CA/DRM systems, and chipsets. Alongside its products, iWedia delivers efficient and scalable software integration services performed by an experienced team used to enable rapid deployments of high volume consumer electronics devices. iWedia is headquartered in Switzerland with development labs in Belgrade and Novi Sad, Serbia, and sales and support offices in Brazil, France, Germany, and Thailand.

Please visit www.iwedia.com for more information.

Media contact:

Herve Creff

VP Marketing, iWedia

[email protected]

SOURCE iWedia
Reflecting on that morning, Marisol feels fortunate to have survived and determined to make a positive difference. She strongly believes that creativity is a gift meant to be shared and is grateful for the opportunities to do so. In addition to her continued design work, she chairs the Marisol Deluna Foundation, which is dedicated to creative education and inclusion. She chose to present her colorful collection on this date to bring brightness to an otherwise somber day.

Marisol's focus on strength, resilience and rebirth produced 20 looks shown in this presentation in the spirit of renewal and community. Deluna's new collection of apparel and accessories showcases her vibrant and intricate signature prints which are designed by hand. Her contemporary lifestyle brand embodies the spirit of preppy boho chic and highlights her "New York Designed. Texas Made." initiative.

When asked about her New York show this season, Deluna commented, "While 9/11 will always be part of us, I chose to honor the day with beauty. We embraced creativity as part of our healing together. How lovely is that? Every new collection is like springtime for me and I wanted to share that renewal with the city I love."

About Marisol Deluna:

Marisol Deluna began her fashion career in 1989 while working in New York's Garment District. In 1997, she established her eponymous label, Marisol Deluna New York, which promotes her "New York Designed. Texas Made." initiative. Alongside her lifestyle collections, Deluna designs and licenses to a variety of organizations including the City of New York and official uniform items for the Girl Scouts of the USA. She chairs the Marisol Deluna Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports a "Fashion Initiative" for mentoring those interested in design arts in her childhood home state of Texas. Honoring her sister, the foundation's "Linda Luna Duffy Creative Hope Initiative" provides an inclusive artistic environment for those with special needs. Deluna resides in Lower Manhattan.

https://www.gettyimages.com/photos/marisol-deluna-nyfw-september-11

www.gettyimages.com/photos/marisol-deluna

www.marisoldeluna.com

www.marisoldelunafoundation.org

www.facebook.com/MarisolDelunaNewYork

www.facebook.com/MarisolDelunaFoundation

Media contact: [email protected]

SOURCE Marisol Deluna New York

Related Links

http://www.marisoldeluna.com

SOURCE Marisol Deluna New York

Related Links

https://www.marisoldeluna.com


IRVINE, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- McDermott & Bull, a premier executive search firm and trusted advisor to leading corporations and private equity groups is opening offices in Vancouver. Paul Gibbons, a 20-year search and talent acquisition executive, joins McDermott & Bull as Managing Partner and will lead the firm's expansion throughout Canada.

"I'm excited to be part of an organization that is known for being efficient, responsive and nimble. The firm is led by a very entrepreneurial management team and their mindset and industry bench strength, coupled with their ability to fill searches with top talent quickly, is what attracted me to join," says Paul Gibbons, Managing Partner of McDermott & Bull Canada.

"The #1 complaint I hear from businesses who deal with search firms is the time it takes to complete a search. We've spent 18 years refining our high touch process and can have interim executives placed within a week and permanent positions filled inside of 3 months, where the industry average is between 120 to 150 days. After doing diligence on the Canadian market, we believe there is a strong demand for our approach and are thrilled to have Paul leading the charge for us," says Rod McDermott, CEO of McDermott & Bull.

Gibbons, an innovative industry leader has been a driving force in identifying, attracting and placing hundreds of top performers from various industries, markets and functional disciplines throughout North America and Asia. Most recently with WMC, Gibbons plans to recruit like-minded search consultants to support US based clients who are expanding into Canada and Canadian-based companies who require high value permanent and interim executives to strengthen their organizations. The Canadian team has expertise in financial services, real estate, manufacturing, engineering, construction and private equity, serving clients throughout the country.

"In addition to being a best-in-class permanent and interim executive search firm, McDermott & Bull's Executive Network ("EN"), which serves executives in transition, is unlike anything I've ever seen. We intend to take the playbook the US team has thoughtfully created and infuse that same energy into the Canadian market. I truly believe we have the right recipe for success and am very excited to be leading this effort," adds Gibbons.

About McDermott & Bull

Founded in Irvine by two entrepreneurial search consultants in 2001, McDermott & Bull now has more than 50 employees serving ten offices across the US and abroad including: Irvine, Los Angeles, San Diego, Denver, Sun Valley, Nashville, New York, Amsterdam, Madrid and Vancouver. The Firm partners with leading companies to identify and recruit key executives for permanent and interim roles. All of the practice leaders have deep executive experience and are uniquely positioned to address the dynamic leadership demands of public and private companies across a variety of industries. McDermott & Bull's Executive Network provides valuable resources and networking opportunities for thousands of senior level executives throughout North America each year. The Firm has been recognized for its expertise, client-centric approach, efficiency, value, and responsiveness and has received industry designations from Hunt Scanlon and Forbes.

Media contact:

Samantha McDermott

714-745-5055

SOURCE McDermott & Bull

Related Links

http://www.mbexec.com


SAN DIEGO, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Medical Marijuana, Inc. (OTC: MJNA), the first-ever publicly traded cannabis company in the United States, announced today that it has signed a contract with Canadian extraction and formulation company Salvation Botanicals, Ltd. ("Salvation") to manufacture products in Canada.

According to a recent report by Deloitte, Canadians are expected to spend up to $7 billion on cannabis products in 2019, exceeding Canadian liquor sales projected to be $5 billion. Deloitte also projects that overall cannabis consumption is set to increase by up to 35 percent.



"We're thrilled to sign this agreement and bring our expertise into the Canadian market, especially with a respected partner such as Salvation Botanicals," said Medical Marijuana, Inc. CEO Dr. Stuart Titus. "The Canadian cannabis market is projected to skyrocket over the next year and we are looking forward to providing the Canadian market with the best products available."

Medical Marijuana, Inc. produces industry-leading cannabidiol (CBD) brands including Real Scientific Hemp Oil (RSHO), Dixie Botanicals and Cannabis Beauty Defined. With this latest entry into the Canadian market, Medical Marijuana, Inc. through Salvation Botanicals will be introducing several new THC-based products in Canada as well, utilizing the entire cannabis plant and its many beneficial cannabinoids, something the company is excited about and a new first for the company.

"We are delighted to celebrate this new international opportunity and be at the forefront of Canada's new recreational market," said Medical Marijuana, Inc. Director of Canadian Operations Kenneth Smith. "Salvation Botanicals is a highly reputable company in Canada and we believe that together we can become leaders in cannabis education during this time of historic transition."

Salvation Botanicals was founded on a commitment to the science of standardization and consumer protection through analytical testing and the development of stringent production processes. Salvation has developed high-volume production methods based on their understanding of high-quality, standardized cannabinoid products. The Company operates a fully Licensed Analytics Laboratory to test cannabis and derivative products for LP's, ACMPR Growers and Canadian Cannabis Patients. Salvation holds a Narcotics Dealer's license as well as hemp import/export license from Health Canada.

"Recognizing the commitment that Medical Marijuana, Inc. has to our shared goals, we have the opportunity to produce innovative cannabis-based products, including CBD that will positively impact the Canadian market," said Salvation Botanicals CEO Cliff Wiltshire. "The alignment of Salvation Botanicals and Medical Marijuana Inc. in the cannabis industry will provide a real win for consumers."

About Medical Marijuana, Inc.

We are a company of firsts. Our mission is to be the premier cannabis and hemp industry innovators, leveraging our team of professionals to source, evaluate and purchase value-added companies and products, while allowing them to keep their integrity and entrepreneurial spirit. We strive to create awareness within our industry, develop environmentally-friendly, economically sustainable businesses, while increasing shareholder value. For details on Medical Marijuana, Inc.'s portfolio and investment companies, visit www.medicalmarijuanainc.com.

To see Medical Marijuana, Inc.'s corporate video, click here.

Shareholders and consumers are also encouraged to buy CBD oil and other products at Medical Marijuana, Inc.'s shop .

About Salvation Botanicals, Ltd.

Salvation Botanicals is a private company based in Vancouver Island, British Columbia, that is dedicated to the testing and production of high quality standardized cannabinoid products for the international cannabis market. Salvation operates one of the first analytics laboratories in Canada, accredited by Health Canada to test cannabis and derivatives.

Salvation Botanicals holds a Dealer's License under the Controlled Substances Act, with authority to extract and produce oil within Health Canada guidelines. In 2016 Health Canada granted Salvation a Hemp Processing License (HPL) permitting production and sale and export of seed & grain and its derivatives.

FORWARD-LOOKING DISCLAIMER

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and information, as defined within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and is subject to the Safe Harbor created by those sections. This material contains statements about expected future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Medical Marijuana, Inc. to be materially different from the statements made herein.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION:

This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: the terms and conditions of the proposed transaction; the terms and conditions of the proposed private placement; use of funds; and the business and operations of the Company after the proposed change of business. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to: general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; delay or failure to receive board, shareholder or regulatory approvals; and the uncertainties surrounding the cannabis industry in North America. There can be no assurance that such statements 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 statements. Salvation disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA) DISCLOSURE

These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any disease.

LEGAL DISCLOSURE

Medical Marijuana, Inc. does not sell or distribute any products that are in violation of the United States Controlled Substances Act (US.CSA). These companies do grow, sell, and distribute hemp-based products and are involved with the federally legal distribution of medical marijuana-based products within certain international markets. Cannabidiol is a natural constituent of hemp oil.

CONTACT:

Public Relations Contact:

Andrew Hard

Chief Executive Officer

CMW Media

P. 858-264-6600

[email protected]

www.cmwmedia.com

SOURCE Medical Marijuana, Inc.

Related Links

https://www.medicalmarijuanainc.com/


HERNDON, Va., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- EclecticIQ, which empowers cyber defenses with Threat Intelligence, today announced recruitment of Michael Seguinot as North American Channel Manager to further strengthen the company's position in the region. Having worked at a wide range of vendors and organizations, Michael has accumulated more than 20 years of dedicated cyber security experience.

The new North American Channel Manager joins EclecticIQ from Exabeam Federal, where he held a similar position, in which he successfully built the US Federal business from the ground up. Michael has further invested 15 years with SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) and Next Generation SIEM solutions, during which time he learned about the importance of Threat Intelligence as a key part of any effective cyber defense strategy.

"We have very ambitious goals for the North American market, which is why we are happy to welcome Michael, with his wealth of experience, on board," said Dane Coyer, General Manager of EclecticIQ North America. "Michael's expertise in the government and healthcare verticals will be of great benefit toward achieving our strategic goals."

"I am looking forward to the opportunity to introduce so many of the partners and customers I have worked with in the past to EclecticIQ," said Michael Seguinot, North American Channel Manager at EclecticIQ. "The Threat Intelligence space is wide open. The market has only seen the tip of the iceberg. EclecticIQ's analyst-centric approach is uniquely positioned to empower enterprises and take them to the next level in intelligence-led security immediately."

The EclecticIQ team is actively expanding its business into the North American market. The early focal point has been on selecting key business partners in strategic regions and verticals, then moving on to training and enabling them to be successful in this highly competitive market. Michael is focused on empowering the top cyber security trusted advisors who are currently delivering 'intelligence-led' solutions. He will further focus on accelerating market adoption of EclecticIQ Fusion Center intelligence services in North America. Our unique Fusion Center offering enables organizations of any size to maximize the business value of their Cyber Threat Intelligence investments.

About EclecticIQ

EclecticIQ enables intelligence-powered cyber security for government organizations and commercial enterprise. We develop analyst-centric products and services that align our clients' cyber security focus with their threat reality. The result is intelligence-led security, improved detection and prevention, and cost-efficient security investments.

Our solutions are built specifically for analysts across all intelligence-led security practices such as threat investigation, and threat hunting, as well as incident response efforts. And we tightly integrated our solutions with our customers' IT security controls and systems.

EclecticIQ operates globally with offices in Europe, United Kingdom, and North-America, and via certified value-add partners.

Learn more at www.eclecticiq.com

Photo(s):

https://www.prlog.org/12728970

Press release distributed by PRLog

SOURCE EclecticIQ

Related Links

http://www.eclecticiq.com


CUPERTINO, CA, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - (TSXV:BWLK)  Boardwalktech Software Corp. ("Boardwalktech"), a leading enterprise blockchain software company, announced that long-time director and investor, Michael Braun, 68, has announced his resignation from the Board of Directors effective September 11, 2018, for personal reasons. Mr. Braun had already resigned from all of his other private and public company boards, with Boardwalktech being his last position. Mr. Braun has been a Director of Boardwalktech since 2005.

"The entire Boardwalktech organization, and myself personally, would like to thank Mike for all of his numerous contributions and service as a board member over the past fourteen years. I also want to thank Mike for continuing his service though our going public process this June before making his decision to retire," said Andrew T. Duncan, President and CEO of Boardwalktech Software Corp. "Mike remains excited about the future of Boardwalktech and will remain an active supporter and advisor to me and the Company."

"Since my retirement from the CEO job at Intacct in 2009, I have steadily reduced my participation and commitments in the information technology industry," said Mike Braun. "I have continued on the Boardwalktech board as my sole remaining commitment because of my belief in the Company and its team. With the company now public, it's the right time for me to step aside and focus on my health, grandchildren and philanthropy, and for the Company to bring aboard new directors."

The Board has commenced a search for a new independent Director to fill Mr. Braun's position in the near future, with an anticipated submission for shareholder approval at the Company's next Annual and General Meeting.

About Boardwalktech Software Corp.

Founded in 2004, Boardwalktech has developed a patented digital ledger technology that allows for multi-party collaboration and verification on a trusted, shared, secure, and private information cloud. Our Boardwalk Enterprise Blockchain data management platform allows rapid blockchain application development on many platforms using any user interface, supporting "smart contract" business logic, integration with legacy systems and an easy method of connecting all participants (through Boardwalk virtual machines) enabling the exchange of secure and validated digital business information.

Boardwalktech is headquartered in Cupertino, California with offices in India and operations in North America. For more information on Boardwalktech, visit our website at www.boardwalktech.com.

Forward-Looking Information and Statements

This press release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and may also contain statements that may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking information and statements are not representative of historical facts or information or current condition, but instead represent only the Company's beliefs regarding future events, plans or objectives, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of the Company's control. Generally, such forward-looking information or statements 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 may contain statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "will continue", "will occur" or "will be achieved".

By identifying such information and statements in this manner, the Company is alerting the reader that such information and statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such information and statements.

An investment in securities of the Company is speculative and subject to several risks including, without limitation, the risks discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's filing statement dated May 30, 2018. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information and forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended.

In connection with the forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained in this press release, the Company has made certain assumptions. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing, and the expectations contained in, the forward-looking information and statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information and statements, and no assurance or guarantee can be given that such forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information and statements. The forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information and/or forward-looking statements that are contained or referenced herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. All subsequent written and oral forward- looking information and statements attributable to the Company or persons acting on its behalf is expressly qualified in its entirety by this notice.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE BoardwalkTech
BOSTON and LA CHAUX-DE-FONDS, Switzerland, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Mitra Biotech today announced a partnership with Glenmark Pharmaceuticals focused on advancing Glenmark's proprietary immuno-oncology drug pipeline utilizing Mitra's CANscriptTM platform.

CANscript is a human, immune-relevant ex vivo platform that allows drug developers to understand drug performance in human tissue, which in turn allows for an informed approach to clinical development and patient response. CANscript recreates the in vivo tumor microenvironment, maintaining the heterogeneity of the tumor while preserving its immune compartment. This uniquely positions the platform to provide drug developers with answers to mechanistic questions about their immuno-oncology drug candidates and prioritize the most promising candidates for advancement into clinical trials.

"Glenmark recognizes the value of Mitra's unique CANscript platform to support translational and clinical studies, especially in immuno-oncology and with newer modalities like bispecific antibodies," said Venkat Reddy, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Translational Sciences at Glenmark Pharmaceuticals. "We are pleased to have access to proprietary technology from Mitra to assist us in accelerating understanding of the clinical relevance and potential utility of our T cell engagers (GBR1302 and GBR1342) in human biopsies. We are confident that this partnership will benefit our clinical programs."

The CANscript platform delivers powerful treatment response predictions with exceptionally high correlation to clinical outcomes for a more effective and efficient cancer drug development approach. CANscript has been validated using thousands of cancer patient cases, with a published 90% overall correlation1 between the platform's treatment predictions and actual clinical outcomes.

"We are very pleased that Glenmark has selected us as a trusted partner to advance their immuno-oncology pipeline," said Andrea Jackson, Vice President, Biopharma at Mitra. "CANscript is already enabling Glenmark improve their decision-making around their portfolio as they move these molecules into the clinic."

Glenmark's immuno-oncology pipeline currently includes three bispecific monoclonal antibody (bsAb) candidates being studied in a wide range of tumor types. GBR 1302, a HER2xCD3 bsAb and GBR 1342, a CD38XCD3 bsAb are currently in Phase 1; and GBR 1372, an EGFRxCD3 bsAb, is in preclinical development.

About Mitra Biotech:

Mitra Biotech is a global leader in advancing personalized oncology treatment and supporting more effective and efficient drug development.

Founded in 2010, Mitra is headquartered in Woburn, MA and maintains a significant research and laboratory presence in Bangalore, India. Mitra operates with a dedicated focus on enhancing the personalization of cancer treatment and care worldwide.

About Glenmark Pharmaceuticals

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (GPL) is a global innovative pharmaceutical company with operations in more than 50 countries. Glenmark has a diverse pipeline with several compounds in various stages of clinical development, primarily focused in the areas of oncology, respiratory disease and dermatology. Glenmark has improved the lives of millions of patients by offering safe, affordable medications for nearly 40 years. For more information, visit glenmarkpharma.com.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals S.A., established in Switzerland in 2004, is a research and development centre focused on biologics. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd. of India. Glenmark's biologics research centre has a robust pipeline of monoclonal antibodies in various stages of development, including bispecific antibodies. The focus of the biologics research and development centre is to develop novel biologic entities in the therapeutic areas of immunology, oncology and inflammation.

1. Majumder, Biswanath et al, "Predicting clinical response to anticancer drugs using an ex vivo platform that captures tumour heterogeneity" Nature Communications, Issue 6, 2015

Contacts

Andrea Jackson

Vice President, Biopharma

Mitra Biotech

[email protected]

An Phan

Global Communications

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals

[email protected]

SOURCE Mitra Biotech
LAS VEGAS, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Montage, the single solution to engage, interview and hire better candidates faster, today announced the addition of the Unbiased Candidate Review, enabled by the Montage Intelligent Recruiting Assistant, (Mira). This solution provides organizations with the capability to reduce the inherent unconscious bias and discrimination they may unintentionally exhibit when vetting and interviewing candidates during the hiring process.

Montage's interviewing technology platform is configured to extend candidate reach, reduce bias and mitigate risk. Its newest advancement uses AI to help hiring managers, recruiters or any interview reviewer drive even more consistency into their candidate review and selection process. Each second, an individual receives approximately 11 million pieces of information, but the human brain can only consciously process about 40 pieces per second. To cope with this information overload during the interview process, hiring managers make decisions without even consciously thinking about them. These quick judgments are influenced by background, culture, environment and personal experiences. During interviews and hiring, individuals have the potential to make decisions based on opinions they've formed about different groups or sets of people, often without realizing it. This introduces unconscious bias into the hiring process. Montage's Unbiased Candidate Review aims to alleviate this industry-wide challenge by adding new capabilities to its on-demand voice and video interviewing solutions.

Today's modern candidate expects a fast, transparent and easy hiring experience. The Unbiased Candidate Review solution provides even greater candidate transparency. Candidates will be informed of how the hiring experience works, and the solution allows them to submit their on-demand interviews when it's most convenient for them. When the interviews are completed, a notification will be sent. The candidate's identity and voice is concealed until after the hiring manager enters feedback and a yes or no decision to advance the candidate is recorded in the platform.

"By leveraging the Unbiased Candidate Review, our clients are better equipped to prioritize improving diversity within their organizations," said Andy Bonk, Founder and Senior Product Manager at Montage. "There are things that you can infer from a zip code, from an area code, from a name. Our solution provides the flexibility to remove all of the identifiable information that could elicit unconscious bias."

Montage developed the Unbiased Candidate Review solution in response to how organizations are prioritizing not only diversity and inclusion, but also the candidate experience in the workplace. According to recent research from Montage, increasing diversity is the second most important initiative for talent acquisition leaders this year, with candidate experience taking the top priority.

"Montage has always been focused not only on delivering the better candidate experience, but also on forever transforming the hiring experience. Our approach to innovation reflects our vision and focus. The ability for organizations to use our Unbiased Candidate Review solution to further reduce bias in the interview experience is transformative," said Kurt Heikkinen, President and CEO of Montage.

Montage accelerates hiring decisions and caters to the needs and expectations of the modern candidate. Montage has introduced several artificial intelligence-enabled solutions in recent years, and Mira represents the company's collective approach to AI. To learn more about Mira, visit https://engage.montagetalent.com/mira. If you're at the HR Technology Conference and Exposition this week, be sure to check out Montage at Booth #1339 to learn more about how Montage's platform and partnerships deliver measurable results and a superior candidate experience.

About Montage

Montage is the single solution to engage, interview and hire better candidates, faster. We partner with many of the world's most well-respected brands, including 100 of the Fortune 500, to create the high-tech, high-touch hiring experience the modern candidate expects. As the pioneer of purpose-built video interviewing, our proprietary technology integrates seamlessly with enterprise needs for reliability, scalability, compliance and security. We are committed to market driven-innovation, incorporating applicable science and data in our solutions to speed the process and improve the predictability of talent acquisition. Our commitment to superior client service and support is unique in the industry. We help each and every client at every stage of our partnership because we sincerely want them to succeed  and believe in building relationships for the long term. A privately held company, Montage is headquartered in Wisconsin and located on the web at www.montagetalent.com.

We deploy a speech to text technology to transcribe the interview answers and a text to speech technology to provide a consistent voice for every on-demand video and voice interview.

CONTACT:

Kellie Flaherty

Walker Sands Communications

312-561-2487

SOURCE Montage

Related Links

http://www.montagetalent.com


SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- CODA Biotherapeutics, Inc., a preclinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a chemogenetic gene therapy platform for the treatment of intractable diseases, today debuted with a $19 million Series A financing. Lead investors MPM Capital and Versant Ventures were joined by Astellas Venture Management and Novartis. To lead the advancement of this powerful platform with an initial focus on neurological diseases, industry veteran Michael Narachi, M.S., MBA, joined the company as president and chief executive officer (CEO) and will serve on CODA's Board of Directors.

"Tremendous potential exists in CODA's platform to provide relief to the millions of people living with intractable diseases like chronic neuropathic pain through the use of innovative techniques in gene therapy," said CODA Board member Mitchell Finer, Ph.D., executive partner at MPM Capital, and CODA's co-founder and initial CEO. "The Board and I look forward to working with Mike and this stellar team to discover and produce transformative therapies that will help patients and the physicians who treat them."

"The CODA team has made impressive progress in showing proof of concept of an approach that is tunable and should have better efficacy with fewer off-target side effects that limit the utility of current treatments," added Tom Woiwode, Ph.D., managing director at Versant Ventures and CODA Board member. "This financing will enable the company to advance its gene therapy platform toward the clinic."

CODA's chemogenetic platform aims to control the activity of neurons and other cells to treat diseases. With chemogenetics, the goal is to modify a target cell population using gene therapy to express a tunable "switch" protein. Cells modified with the "switch" can be activated or inactivated in a dose-dependent manner by a subsequently administered small molecule therapeutic, an effect that should only occur in the modified cells.

Mr. Narachi stated, "CODA's novel gene therapy platform holds great promise to overcome limitations faced by existing approaches. I look forward to partnering with this outstanding group of investors, Board and impressive team with world-class scientific and corporate expertise to advance what we believe will be a broadly applicable new platform that could be used to more effectively treat many diseases, including severe neurological disorders."

CODA's Board of Directors includes Mr. Narachi, Drs. Finer and Woiwode, and Todd Foley, MBA, managing director, MPM Capital. Board observers include Ricardo Dolmetsch, Ph.D., global head of neuroscience, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research; Shinichiro Fuse, Ph.D., principal, MPM Capital; Shunichiro Matsumoto, Ph.D., MBA, president, Astellas Venture Management; and Graham Walmsley, M.D., Ph.D., principal, Versant Ventures.

Prior to joining CODA, Mr. Narachi served as CEO and director at Orexigen Therapeutics. Previously, he was at Amgen for more than 20 years where he held key leadership roles of increasing responsibility in preclinical and clinical development and clinical operations in the U.K., Japan and U.S., and business development, strategic planning, product strategy and commercial businesses in the U.S. Mr. Narachi is currently a member of the Board of Directors for Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical and for the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO). Previously, he served on the Boards of Directors for PhRMA, Celladon (Chairman), Naryx (Executive Chairman), REN Pharma (CEO and Chairman) and AMAG (Chairman). He received a B.S. and M.S. in genetics from the University of California (UC), Davis, and an MBA from the Anderson School of Management, UC, Los Angeles.

First Application of the CODA Platform: Neurological Disorders

CODA's first clinical application is aimed at the management of chronic neuropathic pain. More than 19 million Americans live with this condition. Current pharmacological therapies such as opioids, anticonvulsants, tricyclic anti-depressants and channel inhibitors provide little relief while having significant side effects and a potential for addiction. Nerve stimulation therapies require batteries and wires that need maintenance and carry a risk of infections. Surgeries that destroy pathological neurons are a last resort and can have permanent adverse effects on peripheral nervous system function.

CODA is developing engineered neurotransmitter receptors that are activated exclusively by orally bioavailable drugs to control the activity of hyperexcitable neurons responsible for chronic neuropathic pain. The gene encoding the receptor is delivered to dysfunctional neurons by proprietary viral vectors that are optimized for robust and targeted gene transfer. Standard neurosurgical procedures are used to administer these viral vectors directly to the neurons to be controlled. Once expressed, the engineered receptor can be activated by the drug to modulate neuronal activity. This enables the selective, tunable and reversible regulation of the receptor  and hence cellular activity  based on the dosing regimen of the drug. CODA's technology uses receptors that have been engineered to have exquisite sensitivity for the pharmacological activator, and therefore should dramatically limit off-target side effects that plague many pharmaceutical treatments.

About CODA Biotherapeutics

CODA Biotherapeutics, Inc., is a preclinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing an innovative gene therapy platform for the treatment of many disorders and diseases. The company is using a revolutionary chemogenetics-based technology to modulate the activity of pathological cells. CODA Biotherapeutics is a resident company at JLABS @ SSF in South San Francisco, CA. For more information, please visit www.codabiotherapeutics.com.

About MPM Capital

MPM Capital is a healthcare investment firm founding and investing in life sciences companies that seek to cure major diseases by translating scientific innovations into positive clinical outcomes. With its experienced and dedicated team of investment professionals, executive partners, entrepreneurs and scientific advisory board members, MPM is powering novel medical breakthroughs that transform patients' lives. The firm's innovative approach to investing includes a crossover strategy (both public and private equities), where a portion of profits and royalties are donated to cancer care and research. The firm has partnerships with the American Association for Cancer Research and the UBS Optimus Foundation. It also has a philanthropy-investment opportunity involving Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. For further information, please visit www.mpmcapital.com.

About Versant Ventures

Versant Ventures is a leading healthcare investment firm committed to helping exceptional entrepreneurs build the next generation of great companies. The firm's emphasis is on biotechnology companies that are discovering and developing novel therapeutics. With $2.4 billion under management and offices in the U.S., Canada and Europe, Versant has built a team with deep investment, operating and clinical expertise that enables a hands-on approach to company building. Since the firm's founding in 1999, 70 Versant companies have achieved successful acquisitions or IPOs. For more information, please visit www.versantventures.com.

SOURCE CODA Biotherapeutics, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.codabiotherapeutics.com


WHAT: After a successful inaugural fundraiser in 2017, the 26 New York-area Chick-fil-A Restaurants in New York City, Southern Connecticut, Long Island, Northern New Jersey and Jersey Shore will host a second annual Lemonade Fundraiser on Friday, Sept. 14 in support of Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation. Last year, this initiative raised more than $28,000, an amount that the company is hopeful to exceed in 2018 with the help of local communities. Once again, the restaurants will donate 100 percent of regular lemonade sales during the event to the nonprofit, a national foundation dedicated to raising funds and awareness for childhood cancer.









"We are thrilled to continue our partnership with Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation to support a great cause," said Michael Thornton, franchise Operator of Chick-fil-A Paramus Park Mall. "The overwhelmingly positive response from our first fundraiser has inspired us to once again invite the community to come out and enjoy a lemonade in support of this amazing organization. Every cup of lemonade sold will help fund research in the effort to end childhood cancer."









Liz and Jay Scott founded Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation  with a mission to find a cure for all children battling cancer  after their daughter Alex fought cancer as a young girl. Diagnosed with a rare form of cancer on her first birthday, Alex held her first lemonade stand at four-years-old with her older brother to help raise money for doctors treating children with cancer. Together, they raised $2,000 for the hospital that provided her treatment, and Alex continued to hold lemonade stand fundraisers annually, attracting national media attention and raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for cancer research. Alex passed away at the age of eight, one week after she raised more than $1 million to help find a cure for the disease that would take her life.









"We couldn't be more excited that Chick-fil-A is once again raising funds and awareness for Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation during Childhood Cancer Awareness month," said Liz Scott, the mother of Alex and co-CEO of Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation. "The generosity of Chick-fil-A customers is phenomenal, and the reason that we are moving closer to achieving the dream of my daughter Alex, a cure for all kids with cancer."









Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation has funded 800 grants at 135 institutions  from early stage innovative research all the way through to lifesaving clinical trials for kids with cancer. Countless families have benefited from the services made possible by the organization. For more information about Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, visit alexslemonade.org.







WHEN: Friday, Sept. 14



Restaurant open to close. Hours vary by restaurant.






HOBGOOD, N.C., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Criticality, a North Carolina agricultural industrial hemp company, announced that CEO Brian Moyer will appear today at Pyxus International, Inc.'s Investor and Analyst Day in New York City. Pyxus owns a minority equity position in Criticality through an indirect subsidiary.

Criticality takes a science-based approach to the extraction, refinement and formulation of high-quality cannabidiol (CBD) products. Moyer will speak to attendees about Criticality's business and its relationship with Pyxus. He will also showcase Korent, the Company's upcoming line of high-quality, responsibly-produced CBD products.

"As interest in the industrial hemp and CBD space continues to grow, we appreciate Pyxus giving us the opportunity to introduce Criticality and share our perspective on the industry to a broader audience," said Moyer.

Among the products offered in Criticality's initial Korent product line will be four THC-free CBD vape oils and full spectrum CBD oil drops, including premium flavors resulting from Criticality's relationship with Purilum, LLC, a leading E-Liquid flavor manufacturer and Pyxus affiliated company. Korent products will feature track and trace technology, providing data such as where the product was grown, agricultural practices, harvest and extraction information, and product quality and release testing.

Korent will be available online and at select retail and vape stores this fall.

About Criticality LLC

Criticality LLC is an integrated North Carolina-based industrial hemp company that takes a science-based approach to the extraction, refinement and formulation of high-quality, transparent industrial hemp derived products. Criticality partners with Pyxus International, Inc. (NYSE: PYX), a provider of responsibly produced, independently verified, sustainable and traceable agricultural products, ingredients and services, to source, process and produce industrial hemp and hemp products under North Carolina's Industrial Hemp Pilot Program.

About Pyxus International, Inc.

Pyxus International (NYSE: PYX) is a global agricultural company with 145 years' experience delivering value-added products and services to businesses and customers, and is a trusted provider of responsibly-sourced, independently-verified, sustainable and traceable products and ingredients. Driven by a united purpose  to transform people's lives, so that together we can grow a better world  Pyxus International, its subsidiaries and affiliates, offers high-quality, distinct brands and products in the leaf tobacco, E-Liquids, industrial hemp and legal cannabis industries. For more information visit pyxusintl.com.

About Purilum

Purilum was founded on the principles of using the purest ingredients to create the highest quality of e-liquids. Its state-of-the-art facility, located in Greenville, N.C., offers bottle, cartomizer and pod filling and assembly services that are capable of providing a precisely filled, consistent product at the capacity to meet current industry demands. All inbound raw materials are rigorously tested to ensure they are free from contaminants and impurities and liquids are tested throughout the development and production processes. These flavors are created from the molecular level, specifically for e-liquid and heat-not-burn products. Through this commitment to purity, along with a combined 60 years of experience, Purilum strives to stand at the forefront of quality, capacity and taste in the e-cigarette and e-liquid industry, truly embracing its role as "The Future of Flavor." Purilum is a joint venture that is owned equally by Pyxus International's (NYSE: PYX) subsidiary, AOSP Investments, LLC, and IOTO USA. For more information, visit www.purilum.com.

SOURCE Criticality LLC

Related Links

https://www.criticalitync.com


EAST HANOVER, N.J., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Novartis today announced that The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) has published full results from the landmark Phase III Gilenya (fingolimod) PARADIGMS study, the first-ever global, completed, controlled, randomized study specifically designed for children and adolescents (aged 10 to 17) with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (RMS). Children and adolescents with MS experience more frequent and often more severe relapses than those seen in adults with MS2.

PARADIGMS met the primary endpoint of significantly reducing the rate of relapses when compared to interferon beta-1a intramuscular injections over a period of up to two years3. The study also met several secondary clinical and imaging endpoints3. While adverse events (AEs) were more common in the interferon beta-1a group, severe AEs were more frequent in Gilenya-treated patients3.

Results from PARADIGMS show that, compared to interferon beta-1a, Gilenya3:

Significantly reduced annualized relapse rates by 82% (p<0.001) over a period of up to two years compared to interferon beta-1a intramuscular injections

Significantly reduced the number of new or newly enlarged T2 lesions up to 24 months by 53% (p<0.001). Also, it significantly reduced the average number of gadolinium-enhancing T1 (Gd+) lesions per scan at 24 months by 66.0% (p<0.001). The number and volume of lesions are associated with increased relapse rates

The safety profile of Gilenya in this study was overall consistent with that seen in previous adult patients

While more adverse events (AEs) were reported in the interferon beta-1a group, severe AEs were reported at a higher frequency in Gilenya-treated patients

Cases of seizures were reported in 5.6% of Gilenya-treated patients and 0.9% of interferon beta-1a-treated patients

"I'd like to thank all the children who participated in the PARADIGMS study, and their families, who have helped transform the outlook for pediatric patients living with relapsing MS," said Dr. Tanuja Chitnis, Principal Investigator for PARADIGMS and Director of the Partners Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, US, and Scientist, Ann Romney Center, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, US. "These data, published today, will go a long way in helping to advance knowledge and understanding amongst the MS community of how to evaluate and treat pediatric patients with MS."

"We are proud of this landmark study and appreciate the dedication of the young patients and their families who participated," said Fabrice Chouraqui, President of Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation. "This progress was made possible through collaboration with the community, and reflects our steadfast commitment to advancing MS treatment, which has spanned the last two decades."

Gilenya is a well-established treatment for MS in the adult population, having been used to treat more than 255,000 patients globally, in both clinical trials and the post-marketing setting, with approximately 566,000 years of patient experience4.

About the Phase III PARADIGMS Study

The Phase III PARADIGMS study (NCT01892722) is a flexible duration (up to two years), double-blind, randomized, multi-center study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of oral Gilenya compared to interferon beta-1a in children and adolescents with a confirmed diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS), followed by a five-year open label extension phase3. The study enrolled 215 children and adolescents with MS, 10 to less than 18 years of age with an Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) score between 0 and 5.53. Patients were randomized to receive once-daily oral Gilenya (n=107, 0.5 mg or 0.25 mg, dependent on patients' body weight) or intramuscular interferon beta-1a (n=108) once weekly3.

The primary endpoint of the study was the frequency of relapses in patients treated up to 24 months (annualized relapse rate)3. Secondary endpoints include the number of new or newly enlarged T2 lesions, gadolinium-enhancing T1 lesions, safety and the pharmacokinetic properties of Gilenya, all measured throughout the treatment period3.

The Phase III PARADIGMS study was conducted in 80 centers in 25 countries, and was designed in partnership with the US Food and Drug Administration, the European Medicines Agency and the International Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Study Group3.

About Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disorder of the central nervous system (CNS) that disrupts the normal functioning of the brain, optic nerves and spinal cord through inflammation and tissue loss5. In adults, there are three types of MS: relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS), secondary progressive MS (SPMS) and primary progressive MS (PPMS)6. Approximately 85% of people with MS have RRMS, where the immune system attacks healthy tissue7. In children and adolescents, RRMS accounts for nearly all cases (approximately 98 percent)2.

In the US, MS affects around 400,000 people8.

About GILENYA (fingolimod)

Gilenya was the first once-a-day pill approved to treat adult relapsing multiple sclerosis (RMS). Approved for first-line use, Gilenya is a disease-modifying therapy (DMT) that offers freedom from injections, which may fit many patients' lifestyles. In this population, Gilenya decreases the frequency of MS flare-ups (relapses) caused by relapsing forms of MS1.

Gilenya was also the first DMT approved to treat children and adolescents (ages 10 to less than 18) with relapsing forms of MS. Gilenya reduces the rate of relapses for these patients1.

Worldwide, Gilenya has been used to treat approximately 255,000 patients in both clinical trials and the post-marketing setting, with approximately 566,000 years of patient experience4.

Indication

GILENYA is a prescription medicine used to treat relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) in adults and children 10 years of age and older.

Important Safety Information

You should not take GILENYA if in the last 6 months you experienced heart attack, unstable angina, stroke or mini-stroke (transient ischemic attack or TIA), or certain types of heart failure. Do not take GILENYA if you have an irregular or abnormal heartbeat (arrhythmia), including a heart finding called prolonged QT as seen on an ECG, or if you take medicines that change your heart rhythm. Do not take GILENYA if you are allergic to fingolimod or any of the other ingredients.

GILENYA may cause serious side effects such as:

Slow heart rate, especially after first dose. Adults and children will be monitored by a health care professional for at least 6 hours after the first dose or after a child takes the first dose of 0.5mg of GILENYA when switching from 0.25mg daily dose. Your pulse and blood pressure will be checked hourly. You'll get an ECG before and 6 hours after your first dose. If any heart problems arise or your heart rate is still low, you'll continue to be monitored. If you have any serious side effects, especially those that require treatment with other medicines, or if you have certain types of heart problems, or if you're taking medicines that can affect your heart, you'll be watched overnight. If you experience slow heart rate, it will usually return to normal within 1 month. Call your doctor, or seek immediate medical attention if you have any symptoms of slow heart rate, such as dizziness, tiredness, feeling like your heart is beating slowly or skipping beats, or chest pain. Symptoms can happen up to 24 hours after the first dose. Do not stop taking GILENYA without consulting with your doctor. Call your doctor if you miss 1 or more doses of GILENYAyou may need to repeat the 6-hour monitoring.

Increased risk of serious infections, some of which could be life threatening and cause death. You should not receive live vaccines during treatment with GILENYA and for 2 months after you stop taking GILENYA. Vaccines may not work as well when given during treatment with GILENYA. GILENYA lowers the number of white blood cells (lymphocytes) in your blood. This will usually go back to normal within 2 months of stopping GILENYA. Your doctor may do a blood test to check your white blood cells before you start GILENYA. Call your doctor right away if, while taking GILENYA or for 2 months after your last dose, you have fever, tiredness, body aches, chills, nausea, vomiting, or headache accompanied by fever, neck stiffness, sensitivity to light, nausea, and/or confusion. These may be symptoms of meningitis.

Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). PML is a rare brain infection that usually leads to death or severe disability. If PML happens, it usually happens in people with weakened immune systems but has happened in people who do not have weakened immune systems. Call your doctor right away if you have any new or worsening symptoms of PML that have lasted several days, including changes in your thinking or memory, changes in your vision, decreased strength, problems with balance, weakness on 1 side of your body, loss of coordination in your arms and legs, confusion or changes in your personality.

Macular edema, a vision problem that can cause some of the same vision symptoms as an MS attack (optic neuritis), or no symptoms. If it happens, macular edema usually starts in the first 3 to 4 months after starting GILENYA. Your doctor should test your vision before you start GILENYA; 3 to 4 months after you start GILENYA; and any time you notice vision changes. Vision problems may continue after macular edema has gone away. Your risk of macular edema is higher if you have diabetes or have had an inflammation of your eye (uveitis). Call your doctor right away if you have blurriness, shadows, or a blind spot in the center of your vision; sensitivity to light; or unusually colored vision.

Swelling and narrowing of the blood vessels in your brain. A condition called PRES (posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome) has happened rarely in adults taking GILENYA. Symptoms of PRES usually get better when you stop taking GILENYA. However, if left untreated, it may lead to a stroke. Call your doctor right away if you experience any symptoms, such as sudden severe headache, sudden confusion, seizures, or sudden loss of vision.

Breathing problems. Some patients have shortness of breath. Call your doctor right away if you have trouble breathing.

Liver problems. Your doctor should do blood tests to check your liver before you start GILENYA. Call your doctor right away if you have nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, loss of appetite, tiredness, dark urine, or if your skin or the whites of your eyes turn yellow.

Increases in blood pressure (BP). BP should be monitored during treatment.

Skin cancers including basal and Merkel cell carcinoma and melanoma. Tell your doctor if you have any changes in the appearance of your skin, including changes in a mole, new darkened area in your skin, a sore that does not heal, or growths on your skin such as a bump that may be shiny, pearly white, skin colored, or pink. While taking GILENYA, limit the amount of time you spend in sunlight and ultraviolet (UV) light as well as use sunscreen with a high sun protection factor and wear protective clothing.

GILENYA may harm your unborn baby. Talk to your doctor if you are pregnant or planning to become pregnant. Women who can become pregnant should use effective birth control while on GILENYA, and for at least 2 months after stopping. If you become pregnant while taking GILENYA, or within 2 months after stopping, tell your doctor right away. It is not known if GILENYA passes into breast milk. Talk to your doctor about the best way to feed your baby if you take GILENYA. A pregnancy registry is available for women who become pregnant during GILENYA treatment. For more information, contact the GILENYA Pregnancy Registry by calling Quintiles at 1-877-598-7237, by e-mailing [email protected], or by going to www.gilenyapregnancyregistry.com.

Tell your doctor about all your medical conditions, including if you had or now have an irregular or abnormal heartbeat; stroke or mini-stroke; heart problems; a history of repeated fainting; a fever or infection, or if you are unable to fight infections due to a disease or are taking medicines that lower your immune system, including corticosteroids, or have taken them in the past; eye problems; diabetes; breathing or liver problems; or uncontrolled high blood pressure. Also tell your doctor if you have had chicken pox or have received the chicken pox vaccine. Your doctor may test for the chicken pox virus, and you may need to get the full course of the chicken pox vaccine and wait 1 month before starting GILENYA. Children 10 years and older should complete their vaccination schedule before starting GILENYA.

If you take too much GILENYA, call your doctor or go to the nearest hospital emergency room right away.

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take or have recently taken, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.

The most common side effects with GILENYA were headache, abnormal liver tests, diarrhea, cough, flu, sinusitis, back pain, abdominal pain, and pain in arms or legs.

In the pediatric study:

The safety in children 10 years and older receiving GILENYA was similar to that seen in adults.

The rate of seizures was higher in GILENYA-treated patients compared to that of a leading injectable.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

Please see full Prescribing Information and Medication Guide at www.Gilenya.com .

Disclaimer

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can generally be identified by words such as "potential," "can," "will," "plan," "expect," "anticipate," "look forward," "believe," "committed," "investigational," "pipeline," "launch," or similar terms, or by express or implied discussions regarding potential marketing approvals, new indications or labeling for the investigational or approved products described in this press release, or regarding potential future revenues from such products. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on our current beliefs and expectations regarding future events, and are subject to significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. There can be no guarantee that the investigational or approved products described in this press release will be submitted or approved for sale or for any additional indications or labeling in any market, or at any particular time. Nor can there be any guarantee that such products will be commercially successful in the future. In particular, our expectations regarding such products could be affected by, among other things, the uncertainties inherent in research and development, including clinical trial results and additional analysis of existing clinical data; regulatory actions or delays or government regulation generally; global trends toward health care cost containment, including government, payor and general public pricing and reimbursement pressures; our ability to obtain or maintain proprietary intellectual property protection; the particular prescribing preferences of physicians and patients; general political and economic conditions; safety, quality or manufacturing issues; potential or actual data security and data privacy breaches, or disruptions of our information technology systems, and other risks and factors referred to in Novartis AG's current Form 20-F on file with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Novartis is providing the information in this press release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

About Novartis

Located in East Hanover, NJ Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation is an affiliate of Novartis which provides innovative healthcare solutions that address the evolving needs of patients and societies. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs: innovative medicines, cost-saving generic and biosimilar pharmaceuticals and eye care. Novartis has leading positions globally in each of these areas. In 2017, the Group achieved net sales of USD 49.1 billion, while R&D throughout the Group amounted to approximately USD 9.0 billion. Novartis Group companies employ approximately 125,000 full-time-equivalent associates. Novartis products are sold in approximately 155 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.novartis.com.

Novartis is on Twitter. Sign up to follow @Novartis at http://twitter.com/novartis

For Novartis multimedia content, please visit www.novartis.com/news/media-library

For questions about the site or required registration, please contact [email protected]

References

Gilenya (fingolimod) Full Prescribing Information. East Hanover, New Jersey , USA: Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation; May 11, 2018 . Waldman A et al. Pediatric multiple sclerosis: Clinical features and outcome. Neurology 2016;87 (Suppl 2):S74-S81. Chitnis T et al. Trial of Fingolimod versus Interferon Beta-1a in Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis. NEJM 2018; 379(11): 1017-1027. Novartis Pharmaceuticals. Data on file. PubMed Health. Multiple Sclerosis (MS). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMHT0024311/. Accessed April 2018 . Multiple Sclerosis Society. Types of MS. https://www.mssociety.org.uk/what-is-ms/types-of-ms. Accessed April 2018 . Multiple Sclerosis International Federation. Atlas of MS 2013. https://www.msif.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Atlas-of-MS.pdf. Accessed April 2018 . Tullman M. Overview of the epidemiology, diagnosis and disease progression associated with multiple sclerosis. Am J Managed Care. 2013 Feb;19(2 Suppl):S15-20.

SOURCE Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation

Related Links

https://www.novartis.com


"We are honored to carry on the tradition set forth by Royal Oaks and commit our time and resources to partner with Operation: Coming Home to build an exceptional home for such an extremely deserving American hero," said Rich Van Tassel, Raleigh division president for Mattamy Homes. "It is our hope that this home will provide a place for the Rodgers family to make cherished memories for years to come."

Cpl. Rodgers served in the US Marine Corps for four years, most of which was spent in the communications division as a radio operator with his twin brother Matt Rodgers. During his second tour in Fallujah with Combat Logistics Battalion 8, Cpl. Rodgers sustained traumatic brain injury, hearing loss, a back injury, and shrapnel wounds when his vehicle ran over an improvised explosive device.

The project is a result of Operation Coming Home, a joint volunteer project led by the Home Builders Association of Raleigh-Wake County (HBA), the United States Veterans Corps (USVC) and companies such as Mattamy Homes that build and donate homes for disabled combat veterans.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Operation: Coming Home, and Cpl. Rodgers' home will be the ninth home donated to wounded veterans.

The Rodgers family will be presented with keys to their brand-new home during a large, military-style celebration on Nov. 8.

About Mattamy Homes

Mattamy Homes is the largest privately owned homebuilder in North America, with a 40-year history of operations across the United States and Canada. Every year, Mattamy helps 7,000 families realize their dream of home ownership. In the United States, the company is represented in 10 markets  Charlotte, Raleigh, Phoenix, Tucson, Jacksonville, Orlando (where its US head office is located), Tampa, Sarasota, Naples and Southeast Florida  and in Canada, those communities stretch across the Greater Toronto Area, as well as in Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton. For more information, visit www.mattamyhomes.com.

About Operation: Coming Home

Operation: Coming Home is a joint volunteer project by the Home Builders Association of Raleigh-Wake County (HBA), and various area nonprofits and businesses. The project builds and donates homes for disabled combat veterans who have served in the Middle East, after a selection committee interviews candidates to determine the best fit. Royal Oaks Homes has worked with Operation: Coming Home for 10 years and donated nine homes. Mattamy Homes, the new parent company of Royal Oaks, will continue the longstanding partnership helping to build homes for wounded veterans. For more information, visit www.operationcominghome.com.

About the HBA

The Home Builders Association of Raleigh-Wake County (HBA) is the voice of the home building industry throughout Wake County, and provides members opportunities for business development, education, professional growth, networking and community involvement. The membership, comprised of builders, remodelers, developers, and sales & marketing professionals, is affiliated with the National Association of Home Builders, which represents over 160,000-member companies nationwide. Currently the HBA is the second largest home builders association in the country. The members of the HBA are building excellence together for the neighborhoods and communities of tomorrow. For more information, visit www.hbawake.com.

SOURCE Mattamy Homes Limited

Related Links

http://www.mattamyhomes.com/


PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Pall Corporation, a global leader in filtration, separation and purification, has announced a strategic partnership between its Pall Biotech business unit and Aetos Biologics, a biosimilar cell line development company.

The companies will collaborate to offer biosimilar manufacturing solutions to the global biosimilars market. Pall Biotech will provide access to next generation bioprocess equipment, such as the Allegro STR Single-use Stirred Tank Bioreactor for good manufacturing practices (GMP) manufacturing, and consumables to enable efficient biosimilar production. Aetos Biologics will provide high-quality/high-titer cell lines, and scalable manufacturing processes.



"Biosimilars are a replication of a successful biopharmaceutical product. While they are much less expensive than innovator molecules, the complexities in their development make it critical to work with the right equipment and service providers," said Mario Philips, VP & General Manager at Pall Biotech. "We are excited to partner with the Aetos Biologics team to advance the market impact of biosimilars and deliver lower priced, high-quality options to end users."

"Our team is constantly working to optimize a growing pipeline of high-yield biosimilars with outstanding quality," said Amita Goel, founder and CEO of Aetos Biologics. "Through this strategic partnership with Pall Biotech, we can ensure that the exceptional quality we achieve in scaled-up processes is efficiently transferred and reproduced by the client."

By aligning Pall Biotech equipment, including bioreactors, mixing and storage, and downstream technologies with Aetos Biologics' cell lines and manufacturing processes, customers benefit from access to integrated solutions for expedited biosimilars development.

About Pall Corporation

Pall Corporation is a filtration, separation and purification leader providing solutions to meet the critical fluid management needs of customers across the broad spectrum of life sciences and industry. Pall works with customers to advance health, safety and environmentally responsible technologies. The company's engineered products enable process and product innovation and minimize emissions and waste. Pall Corporation serves customers worldwide.

For more information visit www.pall.com.

Or follow us on social media: Google+ - YouTube - LinkedIn - Twitter - Facebook

About Aetos Biologics

Located in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area in California, Aetos Biologics has assembled a formidable gene to product team comprised of seasoned industry veterans experienced in biosimilar development, manufacturing, clinical trials, global regulatory requirements and successful commercialization. Aetos Biologics serves partners engaged in commercialization of biosimilars for the global market.

For more information visit: www.aetosbio.com or email [email protected].

Pall Corporate Media Contact

Pall Corporation

Mariann Kourafas

Director of Communications

+1-508-871-5469

Pall Media Contact

White Matter Communications

Beth Willers

[email protected]

+1-415-905-0324

SOURCE Pall Corporation

Related Links

http://www.pall.com


LOS ANGELES, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Digital identity authentication leader Payfone announced that it will be joined by partners Early Warning Services, LLC and the GSMA, and client, higi, for a panel discussion at Mobile World Congress Americas 2018 today in Los Angeles. Entitled #BetterTogether: Breaking Down Digital Identity Barriers to Solve Real World Problems, the conversation will focus on how Payfone is facilitating the collaboration of companies from the mobile and banking sectors to solve today's most challenging fraud problems and unlock solutions that improve consumer experience and enhance security while reducing operating expense and barriers to engagement. Payfone will also be making an important announcement around its proprietary Payfone ID, a unique tokenized identifier that allows for private, persistent, portable and protected digital identity, at the event.

The panel will take place at 1:20pm Pacific Time in the West Hall of the Los Angeles Convention Center and will be part of a larger Mobile Connect seminar organized by the GSMA entitled Reducing Fraud through Secure Authentication and ID Verification Services. The conversation will be moderated by Marie Austenaa, VP and Head of Identity Business Development at the GSMA, and panelists include Rodger Desai, CEO of Payfone; Eric Woodward, Group President of Risk Solutions, Early Warning; and Dr. Khan Siddiqui, Founder and CTO of higi.

Payfone will also be demonstrating how clients are already using its patented digital identity authentication technology to enable use cases such as instant issuance, SIM swap and porting fraud prevention, and passwordless login with enhanced security at GSMA Innovation City, which will run from September 12-14 during Mobile World Congress Americas 2018.

For live updates from the panel discussion and GSMA Innovation City, follow Payfone on Twitter and LinkedIn.

About Payfone

Payfone is the leading digital identity authentication provider for the connected world. The world's largest banks, insurers, brokerages and technology companies trust Payfone to accelerate revenue by thwarting digital identity theft with real-time, passive identity authentication and predictive identity confidence through our proprietary Trust Score. Our solutions enable consumers and businesses to transact with trust. Learn more at www.payfone.com and www.linkedin.com/company/payfone.

Press Contact:

Yuka Yoneda

[email protected]

212.614.6927

SOURCE Payfone

Related Links

http://www.payfone.com


GLASGOW, England, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Hilco Streambank is soliciting offers for the intellectual property assets of Poundworld Retail Limited (in Administration) ("Poundworld" or the "Company"), including the Poundworld brand.

Clare Boardman and Daniel Butters of Deloitte LLP were appointed as Joint Administrators of the Company on 11 June 2018 and have instructed Hilco Streambank to market the intellectual property assets of the Company for sale on behalf of the Joint Administrators.

Poundworld was one of the UK's leading discount retailers, and specialised in selling a variety of items primarily for a fixed price of 1. The Company was founded in 1974 when it began as a market stall under the name "Bargain Centre". From there Poundworld grew significantly, operating over 300 stores in the UK and generating over 485m ($624m) in revenue at its peak. The Company developed a number of well-known brands in addition to Poundworld, including multi-price discount retailer Bargain Buys, and popular discount wholesaler Discount Wholesale.

Hilco Streambank Director Nat Baldwin explained, "Poundworld is one of the most recognisable retail brands in the UK, and historically held a strong presence in the UK high street with over 300 stores at its peak, and 280,000 social media followers. The Company also possesses a number of digital assets and organisational knowledge. Not only has Poundworld become a household name on the high street, it also featured regularly on television screens after becoming the centre of the popular UK reality show, Pound Shop Wars." Pound Shop Wars was a phenomenon in the UK when it first appeared on BBC One in 2012. The show ran until 2015 and amassed over 5.5 million concurrent viewers at its peak, widely expanding the market reach of Poundworld and similar discount stores.

Poundworld is the latest in a string of retail closures in 2018, including Toys"R"Us, and Mothercare's plan to close 60 stores by June 2019. Baldwin, however, believes there is value to be realised in the Poundworld brand, "The discount store market has often seen significant growth during periods of distress, such as the 2008 financial crisis. With uncertainties in the UK surrounding Brexit and its planned departure from the EU, consumers are likely to once again rely on discount stores to meet their retail demands. Poundworld not only has an established brand to leverage in this sector, but a number of well-developed web platforms and domain names that can be used to tap into the ecommerce market."

Parties interested in learning more about the Poundworld intellectual property assets should contact Hilco Streambank directly using the contact information provided below. Visit the Hilco Streambank website for more information regarding the Poundworld intellectual property assets.

About Hilco Streambank

Poundworld is the latest in a long line of high profile sales managed by Hilco Streambank's European division, including the sale of Monarch Airlines' intellectual property assets earlier this year. Poundworld further strengthens Hilco Streambank as the leading provider of intellectual property asset valuations and dispositions in the UK. Internationally, Hilco Streambank is a market leading advisory firm specialising in intellectual property disposition and valuation. Having completed numerous transactions including sales in publicly reported Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases, private transactions, online premium domain sales and IPv4 transactions through IPv4Auctions.com, Hilco Streambank has established itself as the premier intermediary in the consumer brand, internet and telecom communities. Hilco Streambank is part of Northbrook, Illinois-based Hilco Global, a worldwide financial services company and leader in helping companies maximize the value of their assets.

About the Administration of Poundworld Retail Limited

Clare Boardman and Daniel Butters of Deloitte LLP were appointed as Joint Administrators of Poundworld Retail Limited on 11 June 2018. Despite an extensive marketing process being undertaken prior to, and immediately following, the appointment of Administrators it was not possible to achieve a full or piecemeal going concern sale of the business.

Further details on the Administration and sale of business process can be found in the Joint Administrators' Statement of Proposals dated 6 August 2018:-

http://www.deloitte-insolvencies.co.uk/k-r/poundworld-retail-limited/uk-insolvencies-poundworld-proposals.pdf

SOURCE Hilco Streambank

Related Links

http://www.hilcostreambank.com


SALT LAKE CITY, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Steven C. Eror, the Co-Founder and Former President, CEO and member of the Board of Directors (the "Board") of ProLung, Inc. ("ProLung" or, the "Company"), together with a group of stockholders (the "Group") collectively owning approximately 16.3% of the outstanding common stock of ProLung, issued the following statements today on behalf of the Group regarding its consent solicitation to enlarge and enhance the Board.

We urge you to fill out and return the WHITE consent card today to restore accountability and oversight to the ProLung Board. Please destroy and discard any GOLD consent revocation card you may receive from the Company to ensure that your consent is not revoked. If you have already responded by returning a GOLD consent revocation card, you may fill out and return the WHITE consent card to change your vote.

In our discussions with ProLung shareholders we have been asked about the consent solicitation process and why we are seeking to enlarge and enhance the Board. We have provided answers to some of the most frequently asked questions below.

Should I support the proposal to enlarge and enhance ProLung's Board of Directors?

We believe that our proposals to enlarge and enhance the Board are the only way to preserve our investment in ProLung. Beginning in April 2018, Board members Bob Raybould and Scott Nixon started a surreptitious and self-serving sham investigation founded on baseless allegations to take control of ProLung. This led to the eventual break up and resignation of a majority of the Board in late June 2018. With a disregard of shareholder interests, Messrs. Raybould and Nixon turned tone deaf to shareholders and literally locked the doors of ProLung's offices. By installing two employees and a junior executive that they could easily control, they sacrificed the independence oversight responsibilities of the Board. Now their efforts are focused on these same unsubstantiated, disparaging allegations to distract shareholders from what we view to be the Board's woeful lack of experience and the Company's weak management. Almost inconceivably, they appear to be draining ProLung's dwindling cash to sue former directors, shareholders and the Company's investment bankers in an apparent attempt to silence shareholders and prevent them from consenting to the addition of new, much-needed and experienced senior leadership at ProLung. With a staggering lack of transparency, and a continuing pattern of inadequate disclosure to investors and shareholders, Messrs. Raybould and Nixon have repeatedly insisted that ProLung was "better than ever." Not only do we disagree, we believe this statement to be disingenuous and inconsistent with the Company's recently announced departures of BOTH its CEO and CFO. Such an exodus of senior management is hardly confidence inspiring, let alone "better than ever." We believe ProLung is on the brink of organizational failure and facing imminent insolvency. The Company announced yesterday that Mark Anderson resigned as the CFO of ProLung last week. In addition, ProLung announced that Michael Garff resigned from his role as interim CEO and named yet another interim CEO to replace him: Jared Bauer, a recently appointed director with virtually no experience in cancer. Yet Mr. Garff is set to head back to the FDA again, even as the current Board curtailed his responsibilities. Our nominees for election to the Board are experienced subject matter experts. Our slate of eight director candidates convey broad knowledge and experience across industries including finance, medicine, pharmacy, law and ethics. The addition of these individuals to the Board would both safeguard shareholders' agenda and provide the experience necessary to oversee its execution.

Should I be concerned that the current Board has not announced a business plan?

We believe that Messrs. Raybould and Nixon want to control the Board to serve their private agenda. Without any medical technology background, education or experience, Mr. Raybould has repeatedly worked alone and collaborated with others to obtain control of the Company. Recently, Mr. Raybould stated that he wanted to come out of retirement to manage ProLung. We believe that Mr. Nixon is motivated to maintain control of the Board to cover up a Board investigation into the fraudulent use of former CEO Steve Eror's signature to file SEC certifications in May 2018. Informed shareholders are also deeply concerned that NO PLANS have been announced to provide the additional funding required to operate ProLung beyond October 2018 . Worse yet, the Board severed a valuable relationship with ProLung's only investment bank, an institution that raised the last $14 million of investment capital. Understandably, the bank has stated that it will not participate in further fund raising without a new Board . WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT AND A PLAN BACKED BY COMPETENT BOARD OVERSIGHT, WE BELIEVE THAT PROLUNG WILL NOT BE ABLE TO STAY AFLOAT FOR LONG ENOUGH TO OBTAIN FDA APPROVAL AND SEEK AN EVENTUAL SALE OF THE COMPANY. We believe that without a professional banking relationship, management with fundraising experience, and a competent Board that attracts investors, the door is open for Messrs. Raybould and Nixon to sell shares of the Company at highly distressed prices.

Who is currently serving as ProLung's CEO?

The Company announced yesterday that it replaced interim CEO Michael Garff with yet another interim CEO, Jared Bauer. We are alarmed by such abrupt and temporary changes to senior leadership that lack the continuity needed to successfully operate a company such as ProLung. By the Board's account, Mr. Garff, ProLung's recently appointed and now former interim CEO, had overseen the Company performing as never before; so well, in fact, that the Board has already stepped in to replace him. We were incredulous when the Board stated on one hand that ProLung is performing better than ever, while on the other hand the Board has replaced members of ProLung's senior management every few weeks. We believe that Mr. Bauer, a recently appointed Board member who joined ProLung only after we publicly announced our efforts to seek Board representation, has a very steep learning curve coming from the food safety industry and entering the lung cancer industry. In addition, we do not know if Mr. Bauer will relinquish his responsibilities managing ApolloDx, LLC. We believe that because of this, combined with Mr. Garff's tenuous leadership, ProLung will likely experience additional delays in obtaining FDA approval for the ProLung Test that could span months or years. In two more months, it will be one full year since ProLung stopped recruiting patients for its clinical trial. Without even meeting with the FDA, Mr. Garff led the decision to postpone ProLung's engagement with the FDA by a month. Before ProLung's clinical data turns stale, and before the Company loses relationships with leading clinics, we must restore the experienced leadership to ProLung's Board and management necessary to move the Company forward. Despite his responsibilities as Board member and COO, Mr. Garff continues as Principal Broker & Realtor of Garff Group Realty, https://garffhomes.com/about.

Why not abstain?

Only your latest dated consent or revocation card will count. Shareholders who return a valid GOLD revocation card after having delivered a WHITE consent card will automatically revoke their earlier consent vote on the WHITE card. WE THEREFORE URGE YOU TO COMPLETELY DISREGARD AND TOSS OUT ANY GOLD CARD YOU MAY RECEIVE FROM THE COMPANY BECAUSE SUBMITTING A GOLD REVOCATION CARD WOULD NEGATE YOUR EARLIER CONSENT, EVEN IF YOU ABSTAIN.

What happens if I do nothing?

If you do nothing, the Board will remain unchanged until the directors stand for election at the Company's next annual meeting of shareholders. ProLung has a legal obligation to hold an annual meeting of shareholders to elect directors within 13 months from the date of its last shareholder meeting. In our opinion, without additional funds raised, it is unlikely that the Company will have sufficient cash to operate until such a meeting is held. WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT AND A PLAN BACKED BY A COMPETENT BOARD, WE DO NOT BELIEVE PROLUNG WILL BE ABLE TO STAY AFLOAT. That is why a group of your fellow shareholder urges you VOTE FOR ALL FIVE PROPOSALS IN THE WHITE CARD and return it as follows:

PRINT, SIGN, DATE & RETURN THE CONSENT CARD BY ANY OF THE FOLLOWING MEANS:

EMAIL: [email protected]

FAX: (435) 578-2300

MAIL: Enlarge and Enhance the Board

PO Box 58027

Salt Lake City, Utah 84158

Call if you have any questions at 801.631-7288 or by email at [email protected].

Is the Company out of cash?

This is a key question that the Company has not addressed. Based upon recently filed financial statements, an estimate of the attorney's fees spent preventing the shareholder from making changes to the Board, other legal fees associated with filing and supporting litigation against former directors, 250 shareholders and the Company's investment bank, and hiring a new CEO, we believe the Company will be out of cash by October 2018.

Why are Company funds being used to prevent the shareholders from voting to enlarge and enhance the Board?

We believe it is irresponsible for the Board to seek to disenfranchise shareholders by spending excessively to oppose our consent solicitation in an attempt to further entrench directors, especially during this challenging financial period in which the Company is struggling to remain solvent. In our view, a larger Board is an intelligent solution. Our proposals DO NOT remove the directors currently in place. It is unusual that Vice Chairman Raybould packed the Board with two current employees and a former employee and that, even with all these additions, Messrs. Nixon and Raybould remain the ONLY INDEPENDENT DIRECTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR MAKING KEY accounting, compensation and governance decisions as rules of board oversight require independent directors acting in the interests of all shareholders.

Mr. Eror has stepped forward at a critical moment in ProLung's progress, at the request of a group of shareholders, to champion the efforts required to enlarge and enhance the Board by written shareholder consent. As it is clear from the biographic information provided, the nominees presented for your consideration in the WHITE CARD consent are diverse yet unified by common shareholder interests. We view the Board's attempts to disparage, humiliate and embarrass Steve Eror as a desperate act of retribution against him for seeking to hold the current Board accountable for its controlling, self-serving agenda. We do not believe that you, the shareholders, will be so easily fooled by the Company's malicious and vitriolic tactics.

Which approach puts my investment at risk?

Without the funds necessary to operate ProLung, it does not matter who is on the Board. Without funds, it does not matter who is talking to the FDA. We believe that the only pathway that maximizes the opportunity to raise funds and succeed with the FDA is through enhancing and enlarging the Board. In our opinion, the financial risk is greatly diminished with the larger and enhanced Board that we are seeking to elect through our proposals. WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT AND A PLAN BACKED BY A COMPETENT BOARD, PROLUNG WILL NOT BE ABLE TO STAY AFLOAT UNTIL FDA APPROVAL OR THE SALE OF THE COMPANY.

Why don't we just leave the Board alone until we see data?

Data is the beginning, not the end. Just as picking a winning horse is not a job for the untrained eye, to understand and exploit the opportunities presented by the clinical data requires a fully staffed and competent Board combined with strong, knowledgeable management. For example, if ineffective Company leadership fails to convince the FDA on the sufficiency of data it has, the FDA may require ProLung to conduct additional clinical research thereby increasing the cost and extending delays by months or even years. ProLung's last clinical trial involved leading cancer clinics around the country, it cost millions of dollars and it required more than five years to complete.

In addition, it should also be noted that data, without strategic relationships, cash and know-how is not sufficient to generate a successful exit for investors. It is essential to negotiate with companies with whom ProLung already has a relationship, from financial strength and with the oversight from a Board that has all investors in mind. In our opinion, the current Board and Company management are disconnected from the industry, unprepared and unqualified to determine the utility of the data to support brilliant products and to introduce a product.

What are your plans for the Company, if elected?

Restore effective leadership, accountability, continuity, experienced oversight and subject matter expertise to the Board.

Immediately cut costly and unnecessary legal expenses.

Address finances, human resources, regulatory progress and product development.

Evaluate funding options and perform damage control with financial resources.

Communicate openly and transparently with all stakeholders.

Adopt, approve, and execute an accelerated plan to evaluate clinical data.

Adjust overhead to match business plan.

Revisit regulatory approval plan.

Pursue short-term funding.

Obtain clinical results, engage strategic partners and regulatory authorities.

If necessary, re-brand and repackage ProLung.

Exit the investment.

Disclaimer: the above is subject to the condition of the Company, the timing of consent approval and favorable data results.

We urge you to vote to enlarge and enhance the ProLung Board.

About Steven C. Eror

Mr. Eror has 26 years of executive experience in medical device, drug development, drug delivery, molecular modeling, artificial intelligence, biopharmaceuticals, diagnostics, information technology and manufacturing in public, private and emerging companies. He is ProLung's founder, and became Chief Executive Officer, President and Director of ProLung, Inc. in February 2005.

Investor Contact

Steven C. Eror

801-631-7288

[email protected]

CERTAIN INFORMATION CONCERNING THE PARTICIPANTS

Steven C. Eror, together with the other participants named herein, has filed a definitive consent statement and an accompanying WHITE consent card with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") to solicit proxies and consents for the amendment of the Bylaws and the election of a slate of eight (8) director nominees to the Board.

WE STRONGLY ADVISE ALL STOCKHOLDERS OF THE COMPANY TO READ THE DEFINITIVE CONSENT SOLICITATION STATEMENT AND ANY OTHER SOLICITATION MATERIALS AS THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. SUCH CONSENT STATEMENT IS AVAILABLE AT NO CHARGE ON THE SEC'S WEBSITE AT HTTP://WWW.SEC.GOV. IN ADDITION, THE PARTICIPANTS IN THE SOLICITATION WILL PROVIDE COPIES OF THE CONSENT STATEMENT WITHOUT CHARGE UPON REQUEST.

The participants in the solicitation are Michael Christiansen, Ron Dunford, Steven Eror, Brian Loveridge, Todd Morgan, Don Patterson, Richard Serbin and Eric Sokol (collectively, the "Participants").

Information regarding the Participants, including their direct or indirect interests in the Company, by security holdings or otherwise, is contained in the Schedule 13D, as may be amended from time to time (the "Schedule 13D"), filed by Mr. Eror with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). The Schedule 13D is available at no charge on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov. As of the date hereof, the Participants collectively beneficially own an aggregate of 644,252 shares of common stock of the Company, $0.001 par value per share (the "Common Stock"), consisting of (i) 87,125 shares of Common Stock directly beneficially owned by Steven C. Eror, (ii) 8,900 shares of Common Stock directly beneficially owned by Brian Loveridge, (iii) 172,188 shares of Common Stock beneficially owned by Todd Morgan, including (a) 32,500 shares of Common Stock held by an irrevocable trust of which Mr. Morgan is the trustee, (b) 33,750 shares of Common Stock held by a trust of which Mr. Morgan is the manager, (c) 3,750 shares of Common Stock held by a trust of which Mr. Morgan is the manager, (d) 50,000 shares of Common Stock held by a trust of which Mr. Morgan is the manager, and (e) 25,000 shares of Common Stock held by a trust of which Mr. Morgan is the manager, (iv) 58,735 shares of Common Stock directly beneficially owned by Don Patterson (v) 277,621 shares of Common Stock directly beneficially owned by Eric Sokol and (iv) 39,683 shares of Common Stock directly beneficially owned by Ron Dunford. As of the date hereof, none of Messrs. Christiansen or Serbin beneficially own any shares of Common Stock.

WARNING REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

THIS PRESS RELEASE CONTAINS FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS. FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS CAN BE IDENTIFIED BY USE OF WORDS SUCH AS "OUTLOOK", "BELIEVE", "INTEND", "EXPECT", "POTENTIAL", "WILL", "MAY", "SHOULD", "ESTIMATE", "ANTICIPATE", AND DERIVATIVES OR NEGATIVES OF SUCH WORDS OR SIMILAR WORDS. FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS IN THIS PRESS RELEASE ARE BASED UPON PRESENT BELIEFS OR EXPECTATIONS. HOWEVER, FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS ARE NOT GUARANTEED TO OCCUR AND MAY NOT OCCUR AS A RESULT OF VARIOUS RISKS, REASONS AND UNCERTAINTIES. EXCEPT AS REQUIRED BY LAW, MR. EROR AND THE PARTICIPANTS UNDERTAKE NO OBLIGATION TO UPDATE ANY FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENT, WHETHER AS A RESULT OF NEW INFORMATION, FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS OR OTHERWISE.

SOURCE Steven C. Eror
LONDON, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Publons, a Clarivate Analytics company and the peer review platform for researchers, today announced the winners of the Publons Peer Review Awards - highlighting global researchers for both the quality and quantity of their peer reviews.

The awards honor the best in class for peer review over the past year and are broken down into the following categories: top 1% of reviewers in their field; top quality reviewers; top reviewers for top journals; top-handling editors.

In addition, this year a new community-choice award has been added for early-career researchers' exceptional contribution to peer review with a prize of US$1,500. This peer-nominated and voted award recognizes an individual who has been influential in the realm of peer review, or has significantly contributed to improving the system.

Andrew Preston, Managing Director at Publons, said: "Congratulations to all of this year's winners. Peer review is the cornerstone of science and raising the profiles of the experts defending the quality and integrity of our research is vital. This week is Peer Review Week, a global event celebrating the essential roles all peer reviewers play in maintaining scientific quality - so what better week to announce our winners."

The theme for this year's Peer Review Week focuses on helping the world to understand and foster diversity and inclusion in peer review. By focusing on both the quality and quantity of researchers' efforts, the Publons Peer Review Awards are not bound by geographical or educational borders, but rather honor the rich dimensions of diversity within the peer reviewing community.

Details on the winners

- More than 6,000 reviewers have been awarded this year

- Reviewers come from more than 2,000 Institutions* in 100 different countries

- Around 230,000 reviews for nearly 10,000 different journals

- Reviewers covering subject fields as diverse as astrophysics to tourism

Publons has also garnered support for the awards from key industry players, which include Sage, Wiley and Cambridge University Press.

Tessa Picknett, Executive Director, STM, SAGE added: "To retain a sustainable scholarly publishing industry we need greater recognition of the value of robust peer review. It's great to see that Sage's reviewers are getting due recognition for their review efforts via the Publons Peer Review Awards."

*For more details on the awards and to see if you have any winners at your institution, visit (https://publons.com/).

Follow #SentinelsofScience online to follow the discussions.

Award Methodology

Publons Award methodology can be found here.

Early-Career Researcher (ECR) award: Award nominations closed on 1 August 2018; Publons staff reviewed and vetted all submissions. Together with Publons' staff, Managing Director, Andrew Preston selected the top six reviewers put forward for the Award. The peer review community voted for the researcher most deserving of the award. The ultimate winner was hand-picked by a panel at Clarivate Analytics, taking into consideration the community votes, and the nominees' contribution to the peer review system.

Winner: Xinyan Huang, for being an "active, careful, enthusiastic, constructive and responsible reviewer," (as described in his nomination) with a long list of peer review awards to prove it. He's won Publons Peer Review Awards for his field in the past two years, as well as Springer's Jack Watts award in 2015 for the quality, depth, number, and timeliness of his reviews. Huang was also recognized for the Outstanding Contribution in Reviewing by eight different Elsevier Journals. Huang received his Ph.D. at Imperial College London in 2016 and is now an Assistant Professor at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

Celebrate your institution's standing as a global leader in peer review

Visit our press toolkit

Webinar - learn how to peer review with confidence

Register today for Publon's free one-hour webinar.

About Publons

Publons works with researchers, publishers and research institutions to speed up science and research by harnessing the power of peer review. Publons Reviewer Recognition Service integrates with journals' review submission systems to offer researchers evidence of their previously-hidden review contributions. Publons, founded in 2013 and now part of Clarivate Analytics, has offices in Wellington, New Zealand and London, UK. For more information, please visit www.publons.com.

Follow Publons on Facebook and Twitter.

About Clarivate Analytics

Clarivate Analytics is the global leader in providing trusted insights and analytics to accelerate the pace of innovation. Building on a heritage going back more than a century and a half, we have built some of the most trusted brands across the innovation lifecycle, including Web of Science, Cortellis, Derwent, CompuMark, MarkMonitor and Techstreet. Today, Clarivate Analytics is a new and independent company on a bold entrepreneurial mission to help our clients radically reduce the time from new ideas to life-changing innovations. For more information, please visit clarivate.com.

SOURCE Publons

Related Links

https://publons.com


STAMFORD, Conn., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Rain Carbon Inc., a leading global producer of carbon-based products, today unveiled its upcoming line of hydrogenated resins  "NOVARES pure"  at the FEICA European Adhesive and Sealant Conference in Riga, Latvia. The new "water-white" resins will be available in the third quarter of 2019, following completion of the company's resin polymerization and hydrogenation facility in Castrop-Rauxel, Germany.

"The development of NOVARES pure is a reflection of our increased emphasis on the Advanced Materials portion of our business, and it expands our portfolio of premium products such as CARBORES and PETRORES, which offer significant environmental advantages over competing products and serve a growing market for specialty applications," said Rain Carbon President Gerry Sweeney.

"NOVARES pure will enable our customers to meet evolving regulatory requirements and growing demand by end-users for cleaner and safer raw materials in consumer products such as food packaging and sanitary products, such as diapers," said Rain Carbon Chief Commercial Officer Kris Vanherbergen.

While technical data will not be available until 2019, customers can expect a number of important benefits from NOVARES pure, including:

Superior thermal stability

Excellent compatibility

Storage quality

Low emissions

Fit for food contact

"Beyond the technical advantages of hydrogenated resins, the fact that NOVARES pure will be produced at our new Advanced Materials facility in Germany means that European customers will have a local source for hydrogenated resins, significantly shortening their supply chain," Vanherbergen said. European manufacturers currently rely heavily on imported volumes of hydrogenated resins, mostly from China.

For more information about NOVARES pure, please contact Director of Marketing/Sales Thomas Reisenauer at [email protected].

About Rain Carbon Inc.

Rain Carbon Inc. is a leading vertically integrated global producer of carbon-based and advanced material products that are essential raw materials for staples of everyday life. We operate in two business segments: Carbon and Advanced Materials. Our Carbon business segment converts the by-products of oil refining and steel production into high-value, carbon-based products that are critical raw materials for the aluminum, graphite electrode, carbon black, wood preservation, titanium dioxide, refractory and several other global industries. Our Advanced Materials business segment extends the value chain of our carbon processing through the innovative downstream transformation of a portion of our carbon output, petrochemicals and other raw materials into high-value, eco-friendly and advanced-material products that are critical raw materials for the specialty chemicals, coatings, construction, automotive, petroleum and several other global industries. For more information, visit www.raincarbon.com.

SOURCE Rain Carbon Inc.

Related Links

http://www.raincarbon.com


Sutton expressed his commitment to Honda and the city of Minneapolis by advising that the dealership will employ over 100 people at the all-new $10 million facility. Set to open in the Spring of 2019 the facility will have 61,000 square feet of interior space and just over 800 parking spots. He notes that his team will bring new Honda products and customer service to Anoka County like never before.

Roy Lacey, General Manager of the store said, "I am thrilled that we are expanding our Chicago roots further into the Midwest. Our formula for success ensures that we will take good care of our employees and our customers while representing our Honda products and services at the highest levels."

"We have plans to make Rapids Honda one of the top dealerships in Minneapolis, if not Minnesota, by taking incredibly good care of each customer on each sales visit and each service visit," Lacey said.

The customer experience will be highlighted via free wi-fi throughout the facility and will include advanced digital integrations. Rapids Honda will keep employees and customers up to speed via social media on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. Given his history of success, Sutton promises to keep his team connected to the Minneapolis community.

Sutton noted, "We believe in wonderful and exciting customer experiences. Whether that involves test drive experiences for our Honda products or technological innovations, our plan is to give customers the best experiences possible."

Customer convenience was built into the architectural designs that allow for service vehicles to be viewed while they are being repaired. Additionally, today's on-the-go consumer can move quickly through one of many Express Service lanes designed to help expedite fast and reliable service experiences.

Scott Hill, Architect, developed the facility designs and Custom Facilities will serve as the general contractor on the dealership located in the Gateway Commerce Center at Highway 10 and Hanson Boulevard.

About Rapids Honda

Rapids Honda will be located at 1950 Gateway Drive in Coon Rapids, Minnesota. The dealership will serve the greater Anoka-Hennepin School District and proudly supports Anoka, Champlin and Coon Rapids, as well as the cities of Andover, Blaine, Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Dayton, Fridley, Ham Lake, Nowthen, Oak Grove and Ramsey

About Scott Hill, Architect

Scott Hill has worked with the Sutton Auto Team on the development of the two previous dealerships. Hill is located in Northern Illinois and provides architectural services in Illinois and the upper Midwest. An honors graduate with a degree in architecture from the University of Illinois, Hill is licensed in Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

About Custom Facilities

Custom Facilities, established in 1973, is a premier automotive facility design and construction authority. Building exclusively for the automotive industry for 46 years and with over 450 projects completed nationwide, they pride ourselves on being the experts in all OEM image and compliance programs. Their mission is to get the Dealer the design they want, to get it through the approval process quickly, and to keep projects on time and on budget.

SOURCE Rapids Honda
A newly released report from Capital Impact Partners and ICA Group, with support from Citi Community Development , identifies key sectors, regions and strategies for converting business ownership to employees using a cooperative model helps transform the lives of economically vulnerable communities, especially those in urban areas. "Co-op Conversions at Scale: A Market Assessment for Expanding Worker Co-op Conversions in Key Regions & Sectors" illustrates how conversions can anchor successful businesses, build assets for employees, retain quality jobs, and drive local prosperity.

The study finds that childcare, home care, food manufacturing, grocery, and residential care businesses provide higher wage, sustainable jobs and are primary industries to focus on for employee conversions. Nearly half (42 percent) target companies are valued over $800,000, demonstrating market opportunity for lenders who are eager to invest and achieve tangible impact.

In a cooperative conversion, owners sell their businesses to their employees. The employee-owners share an economic stake in and control of the venture and are thus guided by a concern for the common welfare of that business.

"As a mission driven organization focused on social and economic justice issues, the market for converting small businesses into employee-owned enterprises is incredibly promising," said Ellis Carr, president and CEO of Capital Impact Partners. "This has the potential to be a transformative model for communities of color, and I am thrilled this report lays out the pathways to take it to scale."

To date, there has been very little quantitative analysis examining the market opportunity. This report is meant to be the first step in bridging this gap. It examines the market potential for converting firms with 20-100 employees by looking at the actual transfers and closings of businesses that are high-potential targets for successful transactions.

"Industries like food manufacturing, child care and home care are cornerstone services for many vibrant neighborhoods," said Natalie Abatemarco, Managing Director of Citi Community Development and Inclusive Finance. "These findings reveal industries where employee ownership can provide an economically viable alternative for retiring entrepreneurs, enabling businesses to stay open and build wealth for employees and the neighborhoods where they operate."

Using a proprietary longitudinal database, the ICA Group examined the strongest market potential for conversions in five industry sectors across five geographical regions, namely New England, New York Metropolitan Area, Mid-Atlantic Cities (Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D.C.), Chicago Metropolitan Area, Los Angeles and the Bay Area. The five industries identified include: Child day care services, home health care services, nursing care facilities, grocery stores, and food manufacturing. The key findings of the survey  which can be read in full online  are below.

KEY FINDINGS

The ratio of small business closures to business sales among independent firms operating for more than 25 years was 9 to 1, creating huge gaps in those communities they serve. When you consider that these firms employ 17 percent of all workers in the United States, the impact of business closure is profound for communities and their local economies.

Industry Opportunities:

The child-care industry is growing rapidly while older firms continue to close.

In 2017, the child-care industry had 755,457 businesses in the United States , earning an annual total of $4.7 billion in profits on $47.8 billion in sales revenue. From 2012-2017, the industry experienced a growth rate of 1.3 percent and is projected to grow at 2.1 percent over the next five years. Between 2009 and 2013, however, 211 older target firms closedan average of 42 per year.

In 2017, the child-care industry had 755,457 businesses in , earning an annual total of in profits on in sales revenue. From 2012-2017, the industry experienced a growth rate of 1.3 percent and is projected to grow at 2.1 percent over the next five years. Between 2009 and 2013, however, 211 older target firms closedan average of 42 per year. The home-care industry experienced growth but sales are limited.

The home-care industry experienced significant growth from 2011 to 2016, growing at an annualized rate of 4.5 percent and is expected to experience increased growth over the next five years with an annualized growth rate of 6.7 percent. As a service industry, wages are the largest segment of the home-care industry's costs at 47.1 percent of revenue. Since 2004, the total number across the five regions has not exceeded five sales per year.

The home-care industry experienced significant growth from 2011 to 2016, growing at an annualized rate of 4.5 percent and is expected to experience increased growth over the next five years with an annualized growth rate of 6.7 percent. As a service industry, wages are the largest segment of the home-care industry's costs at 47.1 percent of revenue. Since 2004, the total number across the five regions has not exceeded five sales per year. In the food manufacturing industry independent firms make up the majority of firms but are underrepresented in sales. As of 2017, the food manufacturing industry earned $37.4 billion in profit on $797.3 billion of revenue per year. Like other sectors, independent firms make up a larger portion of all firms but a smaller percentage of sales. In food manufacturing overall, independent firms make up 80 percent of all firms but only 34 percent of the total sales that occurred between 1991 and 2013.

Conversions:

There is an estimated market of 159 potential conversions (representing 5,724 jobs) per year for the industries and regions examined.

74 target companies are sold each year and 85 companies that have been in business for more than 25 years close each year for the industries and regions examined.

Business closings:

The percentage of firms that close as a result of retirement is rising. Between 2000 and 2010 the proportion of firms that closed that were likely the result of a retirement hovered between 15 percent and 25 percent, between 2011 and 2013, the percentage was between 29 percent and 33 percent. Between 2000 and 2014, across the five regions, of the 842 target company businesses sold, only 133 business (16 percent) had been in operation for more than 25 years. In contrast, 1,195 target businesses that had been operating for 25 years or more closed  42 percent more older businesses closed than the total number of target businesses sold. Based upon census data, ICA estimates that fully 83 percent of businesses that closed due to an owner's retirement.

Transaction opportunity:

Firms across the five regions range from $600,000 to $1.1million in value. Across the five regions the median estimated value ranges from a low of $600,000 in the New York Metro region to a high of $1.1 million in Chicago . Food manufacturing businesses have the highest estimated value, while child care businesses have the lowest estimated value. Firms with an estimated enterprise value of more than $800,000 (excluding real estate) represent 42 percent of all target firms and 53 percent of the target firms that were sold.

Across the five regions the median estimated value ranges from a low of in the Metro region to a high of in . Food manufacturing businesses have the highest estimated value, while child care businesses have the lowest estimated value. Firms with an estimated enterprise value of more than (excluding real estate) represent 42 percent of all target firms and 53 percent of the target firms that were sold. There is enormous opportunity to increase transaction activity with independent business market. Corporate firms  those that are part of a business with 10 or more affiliates  are much more likely to be sold than independent firms. Independent firms, which are most likely to seek out employee ownership, make up the vast majority of all firms with 20 to 100 employees, yet only 16 percent of the businesses that are sold each year. So, 67 percent of the business transactions occur within only 16 percent of the market.

About Capital Impact Partners:

Through capital and commitment, Capital Impact Partners helps people build communities of opportunity that break barriers to success. We champion social and economic justice for underserved communities to foster good health, economic opportunity, and interconnectedness. Through mission-driven lending, incubating social impact programs, impact investing, and policy reform we partner with local communities to create equitable access to health care and education, healthy foods, affordable housing, and dignified aging for those most in need. We have disbursed more than $2.5 billion to revitalize communities over the past 35 years. Our leadership in delivering financial and social impact has resulted in Capital Impact earning a "AA-" rating from S&P Global and being recognized by Aeris since 2005 for our performance. Headquartered in Arlington, VA, Capital Impact Partners operates nationally, with local offices in Detroit, MI, and Oakland, CA. Learn more at www.capitalimpact.org.

About Citi Community Development

Citi Community Development leads Citi's commitment to financial inclusion and economic empowerment for underserved individuals, families and communities across the U.S. Through innovative collaborations with municipalities, community groups and leading nonprofit organizations, we harness the institution's expertise, products and services to help expand opportunity for all.

Additional information may be found at http://citicommunitydevelopment.com | Twitter: @Citi | YouTube: www.youtube.com/citi | Blog: http://blog.citi.com | Facebook: www.facebook.com/citi | LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/citi

SOURCE Capital Impact Partners

Related Links

http://www.capitalimpact.org


COLUMBIA, Md., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- As the platform of choice for testing mobile devices supporting 3GPP releases 8 through 15, the R&S CMWflexx provides the most flexible mobile device test solution in terms of technologies and test applications supported leading to the lowest total cost of ownership. Leveraging R&S CMW500s, the R&S CMWflexx helps design and validation engineers meet the diverse needs placed on today's mobile devices as the market readies itself for 5G. Supporting carrier aggregation (8CC), higher orders of MIMO (4x4, 8x4), complex modulation (256QAM), unlicensed spectrum (LAA), and more, the R&S CMWflexx is the tool of choice when it comes to flexibility in addressing today's quickly evolving mobile applications and wireless standards.

R&S CMWflexx test platform

The R&S CMWflexx solution typically consists of two, three or four R&S CMW500 and a R&S CMW controller unit (R&S CMWC) to enable MIMO/carrier aggregation configurations with up to 32 individual streams, far beyond what is being commercially deployed today. And by leveraging the R&S CMW500, the upgrade path to a R&S CMWflexx is very easy and affordable given the huge number of R&S CMW500 radio communication testers in use today.

Anton Messmer, Vice President Mobile Radio Testers at Rohde & Schwarz, said: "The highly flexible and configurable R&S CMWflexx solution can support virtually any commercial wireless technology and nearly all test applications. Not only does the R&S CMWflexx allow customers to take advantage of hardware they may already own, but it also helps future-proof their investment with a clear strategy in place to support 3GPP release 15 LTE features and an upgrade path to 5G NR NSA."

Rohde & Schwarz will feature the R&S CMWflexx at Mobile World Congress Americas 2018 in Los Angeles from September 12 to 14, 2018, hall South, stand S.2814.

Press contacts:

Europe (headquarters): Christian Mokry, Phone: +49 89 4129 0, E-mail: [email protected]

North America: Keith Cobler, Phone: +1 214 663 6394, E-mail: [email protected]

Asia Pacific: Wen Shi Tong, Phone: +65 6 307-0029, E-mail: [email protected]

Contacts for readers:

Customer Support Europe, Africa, Middle East: +49 89 4129 12345

[email protected]

Customer Support North America: +1 888 TEST RSA (+1 888 837 87 72)

[email protected]

Customer Support Latin America: +1 410 910 79 88

[email protected]

Customer Support Asia Pacific: +65 65 13 04 88

[email protected]

Customer Support China: +86 800 810 8228 or +86 400 650 5896

[email protected]

Rohde & Schwarz

The Rohde & Schwarz electronics group offers innovative solutions in all fields of wireless communications as well as in IT security. Founded more than 80 years ago, the independent company has an extensive sales and service network with subsidiaries and representatives in more than 70 countries. On June 30, 2016, Rohde & Schwarz had approximately 10,000 employees. The group achieved a net revenue of approximately EUR 1.92 billion in the 2015/2016 fiscal year (July to June). The company is headquartered in Munich, Germany, and also has strong regional hubs in Asia and the USA.

R&S  is a registered trademark of Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Co. KG.

SOURCE Rohde & Schwarz
"We have all the pieces in place to deliver value to clients that they can't get from any other research company," explained Zain Raj, Chairman and CEO of Shapiro+Raj. "Not only can we deliver insights, but we can bring those insights to life with validated ideas. Whether it's a new product, new positioning or new customer cohort, we can show what's possible and demonstrate a clear pathway to execution. This has been a huge advantage for our clients."

Shapiro+Raj's unique model was created in response to the market research industry's pervasive usability problem. Today's marketers struggle with one or more of the following challenges:

Smart strategies that aren't actionable

Deep data that aren't tied to consumer insights

Clever insights that stop short of ideas

Creative ideas loosely connected with data

These problems are a result of a broken value chain that hasn't caught up to the demands of the Insight Economy. There is a disconnect between buyers (researchers), users (marketers) and creators (vendors) of market research.

"We have a unique point of view because our team comprises all the disciplines required to conduct, analyze and interpret research as well as make it actionable," said Michael Czuba, Senior Vice President of Strategic Insights. "We know what researchers need because we're researchers, we know what strategists need because we're strategists and we know how creatives think because we're creatives. This translates to a deliverable that everyone in the research process can use."

In addition to partnering with Shapiro+Raj on key engagements, Wygant & Co. and its Principal, Jeffrey Wygant, have helped organizations by combining consumer insight, strategic consulting, and creative execution to drive revenue and build brands. Their clients include Black+Decker, Kaiser Permanente, Citibank, Saab USA, Bermuda Department of Tourism, Time-Life, US Airways, Hyatt Hotels and Resorts among others. Jeffrey will lead Shapiro+Raj's efforts to bring the creative mindset throughout the research and planning process.

"What Zain and his team are building is something different," explains Wygant & Co. Principal Jeffrey Wygant. "I'm excited to bring the creative process upstream and play a more integrated role in helping brands find new pathways to growth."

About Shapiro+Raj

Shapiro+Raj is a strategic research consultancy built for the Insight Economy. By connecting Shapiro's 60-year leadership in research, insights and analytics with new-world brand strategy capabilities, Shapiro+Raj delivers powerful insights that move people to action. We help Fortune 500 clients improve the value of their brands while driving profitable growth of their business. Headquartered in Chicago, the independent firm also has offices in New York, Los Angeles, Baltimore and Pune, India. For more information, visit www.shapiroraj.com.

SOURCE Shapiro+Raj

Related Links

http://www.shapiroraj.com


Spoetzl Marzen is a true labor of love, handcrafted with the utmost care, attention and patience. Using imported Munich Malt, Spoetzl Marzen is hopped with prized Hallertau and Hersbrucker varietals and krausened twice to round out the lightly toasted, spicy malt flavors. The brew then rests in barrels that formerly housed the award-winning single malt whisky, resulting in a bold, full-bodied brew.

The coppery-orange hued, hop-forward brew has notes of caramel and oak from the whisky-imbued barrels offering a smooth, lingering finish that adds depth and character. With an ABV of 11% and 32 IBU, Spoetzl Marzen is a vibrant yet well-balanced lager perfect for any fall occasion.

"For 109 years, Spoetzl Brewery has delivered best in class craft beer. We are excited to get back to our roots with the second release of our small batch brewing program. Barrel-aging is wildly popular from beer to coffee, not to mention the original way to make a Marzen-style lager. For this reason, it was great to work with our friends over at Balcones Distilling, the most awarded Texas whisky, as the tannins from whisky-soaked barrels naturally increase the clarity of the beer while also imparting a unique roundness and incredible color to the beer," said Tom Fiorenzi, Director of Brewing at Spoetzl Brewery.

The brew will be available for a limited-time throughout Texas starting on October 1, 2018 at specialty retailers for $14.99 SRP in 750ml bottles and poured at local cultural and epicurean events throughout the state.

"We are thrilled to be working with the Spoetzl Brewery team on this collaboration as it's not every day that you find another brand that shares your dedication to quality, craftsmanship and flavor complexity," said Jared Himstedt, Head Distiller at Balcones Distilling. "This is a great opportunity to work closely with the team at Spoetzl Brewery and we look forward to continued collaboration with them in the future."

More About the Spoetzl Brewery:

The Spoetzl Brewery  named after brewmaster Kosmos Spoetzl - was founded in Shiner, Texas (population 2,069), in 1909, brewing beer with old-world traditions and recipes for the many German and Czech settlers in the state. Since then, the brewery has grown to be one of the leading independent craft brewers in the country. But every drop of the award-winning beer is still brewed right where it all started 109 years ago.

More About the Gambrinus Company:

The Gambrinus Company is a privately held craft beer company located in San Antonio, Texas. Gambrinus is best known as the owner and brewer of Shiner Beers, which are brewed at the Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner, Texas. Gambrinus also owns the BridgePort Brewery in Portland, Oregon, and the Trumer Brewery in Berkeley, California.

More About Balcones Distilling

Driven by a passion to create something original and authentic, Balcones Distilling marries centuries of tradition with the bold flavors of Texas. Balcones is synonymous with quality and innovation in the whisky industry, known for emphasizing high quality ingredients and drawing influences from all over Texas. To date, the distillery has earned over 300 international tasting awards and accolades for their whiskies and spirits.

Balcones distills all of their beloved whiskies inside the historic Texas Fireproof Storage Company building in Waco, Texas. At its heart are four copper pot stills built by the best artisans in Scotland. You can now visit and tour the facility, with tastings and events held regularly, and see why Balcones is always Distilled to Appreciate. Visit www.balconesdistilling.com for more information.

SOURCE The Gambrinus Company
ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Sterling Emmal was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. She is a self-branded Shock Value Author who grew up with bipolar disorder and an abusive father. Her writing has always been her pathway to escape reality for a few moments and enter into a plot line that she controls. Emmal's tagline is: "By reading my work you will enter the twisted catacombs of my mind, so tread with caution, embrace the darkness, and enjoy if you dare." Emmal published her first book using the iBooks Author app back in 2015. Now, three years later, she has self-published 11 paperback books, as well as 11 ebooks, that have been sold on an international level. This October, Sterling Emmal will be attending Digital Book World 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee as an exhibitor and a finalist in the Digital Book World Awards.

What To Expect at The Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author Exhibit:

Sterling Emmal's exhibit will be located at Table Top D in the Exhibitor Hall at Digital Book World 2018and she herself will be there. Emmal will be selling paperback copies of her books including her award-winning novella Xenon Phobia and her novel Candidates, Cartel, and Chaosthe book that is currently a finalist in the Digital Book World Awards 2018 "Best Book: Science Fiction" Category. Emmal will also have her business cards ready to hand out along with signed Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author pens. Staying true to her Shock Value brand, Emmal states her fashion will make her look like "the Lady Gaga of the literary community."

Learn more about Sterling Emmal's work on her website: http://www.sterlingemmalbooks.com

About Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author:

Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author is located in Anchorage, Alaska.

SOURCE Sterling Emmal: Shock Value Author
TYSONS, Va., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Casepoint LLC, a leader in enterprise eDiscovery technology, announced today it has been selected by Stoel Rives, a leading U.S. corporate and litigation law firm with more than 350 attorneys, to replace the firm's on-premise Relativity solution with Casepoint's advanced, cloud-based eDiscovery platform. Casepoint will provide comprehensive eDiscovery products and services across the firm's ten offices in seven states. The selection was the result of an extensive, one-year evaluation process involving assessments by the firm's information security, litigation support, and litigation practice teams.

Stoel Rives will begin migrating its Relativity databases to Casepoint within the next two weeks, utilizing Casepoint's migration technology. The firm will decommission its substantial Relativity environment, since it can now rely on Casepoint's cloud-based platform for all of its eDiscovery needs. Casepoint will also provide training and support across the firm to provide a smooth transition and ensure the platform is utilized to its fullest potential. Along with the migration of existing matters, new eDiscovery matters are already being added to Casepoint on a daily basis.

"The choice to switch to Casepoint from Relativity was clear to us," said Kelly Roberts, Director of Practice Support. "Casepoint's functionality, ease-of-use, and advanced technology allows our attorneys to be more effective and efficient. This in turn, allows us to improve our end result to clients, while also providing them with a lower total cost of eDiscovery. In addition, moving to Casepoint provided the firm with a significant reduction in total cost of ownership, and allowed us to immediately provide our clients the benefit of lower eDiscovery costs, making it the clear choice for our eDiscovery needs."

"The award of this contract from Stoel Rives is significant as it continues to demonstrate that clients trust Casepoint to provide a robust, highly scalable platform to meet their holistic eDiscovery needs," said Haresh Bhungalia, CEO of Casepoint. "We have over a decade of experience providing organizations with secure, cutting-edge litigation solutions, from the earliest stages of discovery through trial. We look forward to partnering with Stoel Rives to deliver the latest eDiscovery technology and services in a cost efficient manner."

As a company who focuses on continuous innovation, the Casepoint platform has introduced a number of industry "firsts" over the years. It was the first comprehensive platform to seamlessly integrate every phase of discovery. It was also the first with analytics, AI, and TAR capabilities seamlessly built into its advanced cloud-based architecture. Already the fastest platform in the industry, Casepoint has doubled its speed and is leaping ahead of its own innovation with features like native cloud architecture, built-in AI for early case assessment and review, auto-provisioning, auto-scaling, and web API architecture.

For more information about switching to Casepoint from Relativity, click here.

About Casepoint

Casepoint is a technology company focused on the digital transformation of litigation discovery. Casepoint's cloud-based eDiscovery platform removes significant barriers from the discovery process, enabling legal teams to focus on the art of litigation. Features of Casepoint include a full-strength review platform with artificial intelligence pre-installed, cloud analytics and collections, and robust data processing capabilities all in a single technology platform. Based in the United States and with offices in three continents, Casepoint is repeatedly chosen by leading law firms, multinational corporations, and public sector clients for their largest, end-to-end discovery needs. Casepoint is smarter eDiscovery.

About Stoel Rives

Stoel Rives is a leading U.S. corporate and litigation law firm. One of the largest national firms focused on energy, natural resources, climate change and the environment, Stoel Rives also serves the agribusiness, food and beverage, healthcare, life sciences, and technology industries. With more than 350 attorneys operating out of ten offices in seven states and the District of Columbia, Stoel Rives is a leader in regulatory and compliance matters, and business, labor and employment, intellectual property, land use, and real estate development and construction law.

Media Contact:

Shana Graham

[email protected]

SOURCE Casepoint, LLC

Related Links

http://www.casepoint.com


CATONSVILLE, Md., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Stormwater Capture Co is proud to announce and welcome Rodney Chaney as the vegetated roofing company's new Technical Sales Manager. Chaney is the company's first point of contact for clients across the North Eastern and Mid-Atlantic US helping deliver full life cycle vegetated roofing solutions.

Rodney Chaney, Technical Sales Manager at Stormwater Capture Co., says he is drawn to the opportunity to work with partners to research, design, and apply common sense solutions for increasing stormwater concerns. The StormCap green roof is Stormwater Capture Co's signature system that helps achieve superior results. Stormwater Capture Co serves the North Eastern and Mid-Atlantic States, providing specialized technical and design consulting services, as well as a high level of support to clients for everything from estimating, bid package preparation to on-going maintenance. For more, please see www.stormwatercaptureco.com.

"We are very excited that Rodney has joined our team and convinced that he will add another layer of success to our efforts in delivering much needed stormwater solutions," said Richard Aronson, General Manager. "Rodney comes to us with a wealth of experience, knowledge and is respected throughout the industry for his honesty, integrity and accomplishments. He shares our vision, passion and above all, our commitment to satisfying our clients' needs."

Upon earning his Bachelor's degree from St. Mary's College of Maryland, Chaney embarked on a career in the construction industry with a focus on sustainable building systems.

"Finding real world, economic, sustainable solutions with a dedicated team of owners, roofers, GCs, engineers, architects drives my interest," said Chaney. "I was drawn to the opportunity with Stormwater Capture Co. because of the team approach with other partners to research, design, and apply common sense solutions for increasing storm water concerns."

During his successful 10-year career, Chaney has gained vast experience at several companies that serve the roofing and vegetated roofing industries. Chaney has been involved in estimating and delivering full life cycle new construction, retrofit, and rehabilitation green roof solution on over a half million square feet of structures.

"I've seen the growing environmental impact made by our built environment. This has led me to focus on sustainable low impact development as a career where I work closely with contractors, engineering firms and owners to incorporate vegetated roofing systems to ensure project success. I look forward to continuing this tradition as I begin this new chapter," Chaney said.

Chaney's notable green roof projects include:

Montgomery County Multi-Agency Service Park

McCormick Spice Headquarters

MLK Memorial Library

Meet Rodney and the rest of the team at CitiesAlive 2018, September 24-28, 2018 Brooklyn, NY. Alternatively, you may contact Rodney at 855.786.7626 ext 6, [email protected].

About Stormwater Capture Co

Whether it's a leading edge award-winning design or best value-for-money, the Stormwater Capture Co team delivers breakthrough vegetated roofing systems that help achieve results. The "go-to-single-source-solution" for the complete system package. For more go to www.stormwatercaptureco.com.

Media Contact:

Cristina Senjug

[email protected]

855-786-7626

SOURCE Stormwater Capture Co
Embodying the sophisticated life made famous by one of America's most iconic brands, Playboy Club New York celebrates all things provocative, playful, and exclusive. Located steps north of Hudson Yards, and designed by the globally renowned boutique design studio, Cenk Fikri, Playboy Club New York features four distinct environments that reveal exciting one-of-a-kind experiences as guests access the passages within. Unlike anything else in Manhattan, Playboy Club New York offers a luxuriant cocktail and culinary destination for after-work drinks, dinner, and late-night entertaining alike that caters to a new generation of guests who appreciate a refined culinary experience and highly curated and sophisticated nightlife.

"Our guest experience will set a new benchmark and resonate with our discerning members and guests," says the Playboy Club's Creative Director and legendary 'Master of Ceremonies,' Richie Notar, of Nobu fame. "From the moment our guests arrive, they will experience an unprecedented level of service, environment, food and exclusivity."

"Having the Playboy Club return to New York City, in partnership with Merchants Hospitality as best-in-class operators, is another great opportunity for people to experience the sophistication and playful side of our brand," said Ben Kohn, CEO of Playboy Enterprises. "The environment we create at Playboy Club New York, our other Playboy Clubs and events, along with our media content and global consumer products business continue to expand the world-wide touchpoints of our brand."

Guests arrive through an ornate entrance into the Playboy Gallery, passing walls lined with never-before-seen Playboy images before stepping into the Playboy Bar. Serving as the room's focal point, a large opulent oval bar is set around an array of spirits, and glows under a collection of artwork from the Playboy archives that spans more than 65 years. Lighting is low and moody, and black wooden panels with gold accents serve as the backdrop for the room. A gold, embroidered wall draws eyes towards an elaborate DJ booth, surrounded by multiple lounge tables furnished with plush sofas and velvet seating.

From there, guests pass a glass champagne display case before venturing further into the Club to discover the Playboy Lounge, inspired by the heritage of the world-renowned Playboy Mansion. Nothing here is minimal, with four distinct lounges, aptly named the Mansion Lounge, Grotto Lounge, Bunny Lounge and Royal Salute Lounge, that all harken back to the celebrated Mansion's quintessential design elements. Baroque ceilings, large leather couches and acclaimed Playboy artwork fills the room, enhanced by luscious textiles, bold color palates and whispering patterns throughout. Guests will find a curated collection of literature that pays homage to past Playboy magazine writers, as well as a custom built 600-gallon exotic aquarium boasting a hand-sculpted, bunny head reef at the tank's center. A one-of-a-kind masterpiece backgammon table has been installed into one of the Lounges for Playboy's monthly member tournaments.

At the center of the Playboy Club experience, the beloved Playboy Bunnies are dressed in their iconic costume and outfitted with accessories designed by Roberto Cavalli. Famed Playboy events previously held at the Playboy Mansion, such as Playboy's Midsummer Night's Dream, and other iconic Playboy Events will now take place at Playboy Club New York. Other special occasions planned for the club include Playboy's Masquerade Night as well as Oscar, Grammy and Super Bowl celebrations.

A limited number of privileged guests will be able to continue deeper into the Playboy Black Box, by following the bottom lit marble runway, into a vast space that will host the iconic Playboy-themed events. The state-of-art lighting and sound system amplifies the spirit of Black Box to an incomparable level optimal for unrivaled nightlife affairs perfect for private and corporate events.

Hidden to all, save those who know where to look, is the Rabbit Hole, a highly exclusive speakeasy lounge, accessible only to select VIP Playboy Club Members. A secret leather-tufted door slides open to a hidden walkway surrounded by alternating walls of pearl-covered gold and black beveled glass, leading to three subterranean levels that provide the ideal backdrop for the ultimate elite entertaining and imbibing. Throughout the three levels, guests will find multiple secluded tables to enjoy a night in the extravagant and playful world of Playboy, surrounded by a level of sophistication unseen anywhere.

"We are excited to enter the new era of the Playboy brand and introduce the new Playboy Club to New York City and the rest of the world," says Merchants Hospitality's Abraham Merchant. "We have created an electric and epic atmosphere at the Playboy Club. From the music to the luxurious interior, the design to the savory menu, it will be an experience our guests will never forget."

Playboy Club New York's epicurean offering was created by Nobu Veteran Richie Notar. Notar has developed a menu with "gastronomic attitude" for the Playboy Club with carefully curated dishes that use the absolute best ingredients possible and apply crafted skills to mirror the luxurious and exclusive nature of Playboy Club New York. From indulging in light lounge bites to a full course meal, guests are able to enjoy highlight dishes as Yellowfin Tuna with crispy rice, spicy mayo, roasted sesame, Spanish Turbot Meuniere with capers, brown butter and Wagyu Miyazaki Steak with toast, tomato jam, butter. The menu culminates with a series of tempting desserts including the Playboy Gold Bar with crispies, hazelnut, and cherries.

The Playboy Club also features a phenomenal sushi menu created by Tabitha Yeh, Playboy Club's Executive Chef. Yeh's Playboy House Roll filled with Toro, Salmon, Caviar, and Crispy Shallots wrapped in cucumber is just one of several creations she has put forth. Yeh is considered a new rising star in the Chef's world with recent openings in San Francisco and Shanghai.

Accompanying the culinary journey, Playboy Club New York's beverage program is led by seasoned Mixologist Fred Dex. Dex is one of only 236 Master Sommeliers in the World as well as one of the United States' leading wine, cocktail & beverage consultants and education experts. With a career that spans two decades, Dex has spearheaded the Mixology programs for BLT Restaurant Group, Tao Group, Motorino Pizzeria, Max Brenner Chocolate, The Grand Hyatt NYC, and many more. Dex's innovative, artful menu is highlighted by signature cocktails such as Careless Whisper, a take on the classic cosmopolitan with Grey Goose Vodka, Combier Pamplemousse, St. Germain, Cranberry and the Q, named after the debonair James Bond character, inspired by the classic martini, with Belvedere Single Estate Rye Vodka, Dolin Dry, Lillet, Sea Salt and Orange Bitters. The cocktail menu is accompanied by an impressive selection of high-end spirits, plus a prominent wine and champagne collection curated by Wine Director and Sommelier, Andrew Bell, one of the foremost Sommeliers in the country and Co-Founder and President of American Sommelier.

Playboy Club New York has also launched a premier, ultra-luxurious private membership program inclusive of customized and curated experiences, as well as granting the exclusive access and VIP treatment synonymous with the Playboy brand. The Playboy Club Membership is organized in membership tiers that include varied access to private areas of the club, invitations to members-only events, access to signature Playboy worldwide events, and much more. All members receive a personalized titanium membership card and modernized version of the iconic Playboy key.

Playboy Club New York is located at 512 West 42nd Street between Tenth and Eleventh Avenue in New York City. The club is open daily from 5:00 P.M. - 4:00 A.M. To learn more about Playboy Club New York, visit playboyclubnyc.com and follow on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @playboyclubnyc.

PRESS CONTACT:

Erin Brunner | Jocelyn Scanlon, LFB Media Group

646-455-0042 | [email protected]

About Merchants Hospitality

Founded 31 years ago, Merchants Hospitality and its Principals have owned, operated, and developed some of the most luxurious destinations in the country and Caribbean. Properties have included Hotels, Residential Condominiums, Office Buildings and Restaurants including 485 Fifth Avenue, currently home to the Hyatt Andaz, the Beekman Hotel at UN Plaza, 237 Park Avenue, 260 Park Avenue South Luxury Condominium, Aruba Starwood Hotel, Resort & Time Share, Z NYC Hotel, NYC's famous Pier 15 at South Street Seaport, and 350 Madison Avenue to name a few. Merchants also owns 21 premier restaurants in NYC including Treadwell Park, Industry Kitchen, and the world-famous Philippe Chow on 60th and Madison Avenue. www.MerchantsHospitality.com

About Playboy Enterprises, Inc.

Playboy, one of the most iconic brands in history, reaches its global audience across three verticals: Content, Events & Experiences and Consumer Products. Within those verticals, Playboy has an impressive breadth of consumer touch-points ranging from digital content, print, film and television, location-based events and an unparalleled global retail presence. Six decades later, what began as a smart, sophisticated and playful men's magazine has evolved into a global media and lifestyle brand with a media presence in more than 27 countries, food, beverage and gaming experiences, and more than $1.5 billion in annual retail sales of Playboy consumer products in 180 countries.

SOURCE Merchants Hospitality

Related Links

http://www.MerchantsHospitality.com


SOMERSET, N.J., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Star Micronics, a leading global manufacturer of mobile, point of sale (POS) and customer engagement technologies is all set to showcase its newest innovations at BlueStar's VARTECH 2018.

Star Micronics will be exhibiting the new, innovative mCollection and PromoPRNT.

mCollection

The mC-Print2 and mC-Print3 are the mCollection's newest additions to the product line. These 2 and 3-inch frontloading, thermal printers, are designed for easy paper loading and maintenance.

The mCollection includes all mPOP compatible accessories that work with the mCollection printers, mC-Print2, and mC-Print3.

1D Scanner

2D Imager

Customer Display

mG-Scales

PromoPRNT

PromoPRNT empowers merchants to create printed promotions that are automatically printed with the customer receipt, delivering incentives and bonuses directly to shoppers' hands.

Additionally, Star Micronics will be participating in three thought leadership panels during VARTECH 2018, including:

Increase Profits TODAY! Media, the Unsung Bottom Line Hero: Discover how including a cost estimate for the appropriate media with your solution quote can maximize profitability, improve the overall customer experience, and generate a recurring source of revenue.





Discover how including a cost estimate for the appropriate media with your solution quote can maximize profitability, improve the overall customer experience, and generate a recurring source of revenue. Future Trends of POS/mPOS: What is driving merchants towards mPOS solutions? Technological innovation and mobility have the potential to disrupt a variety of industries within the near future.





What is driving merchants towards mPOS solutions? Technological innovation and mobility have the potential to disrupt a variety of industries within the near future. Marketing  A VARs Guide to Best Practices: This year's marketing session will explore free (and affordable) digital marketing tools, straightforward advice on building subscriber lists and executing email marketing, proven targeting techniques for paid for digital advertising and more.

Make sure to visit our booth to take a look at everything Star Micronics has to offer.

You can also spend time with Star at the Star/Elo co-sponsored event at Torro Terrace on Sunday night, or you stop by the Star cabana during the Tuesday night pool party to participate in the ice luge. If you can't make it to those events, don't miss Star at the Afterglow Party.

The VARTECH conference is the prime opportunity for value-added resellers to cultivate successful and rewarding business relationships with hardware manufacturers and software solution providers. VARTECH 2018 will be held in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, September 17-18, at the all-inclusive Hard Rock Resort.

About Star Micronics

Star Micronics, one of the world's largest POS providers, has designated a portfolio of printing, secure cash management, and customer engagement solutions for any retail or hospitality establishment in POS and mPOS environments. Embracing the mobility wave, Star's complementary SKDs allow users to utilize Star printers in tandem with Android, iOS iPad, and iPhone devices to generate receipts for all of its printers. Always leading, and always innovating, Star Micronics enables web-based printing solutions including remote cloud printing, wireless cash drawer solutions, proximity-based printing, and secure cash management. For more information, visit www.starmicronics.com or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, or LinkedIn.

Media Contact:

Brianna Moriarty

Star Micronics America, Inc.

[email protected]

848-216-3292

Melissa McGaughey

SkyRocket Group

[email protected]

814-833-5026 x106

SOURCE Star Micronics

Related Links

http://starmicronics.com


LAS VEGAS, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Toast, the first and only luxury Cannabis pre-roll brand, is now available in Las Vegas, Nevada at Zen Leaf Las Vegas.

Toast luxury pre-rolls bring a uniquely sophisticated concept to recreational cannabis; in addition to an elegant design complete with gold foil detailing, every pre-roll of Toast, called a Slice, is professionally manufactured and carefully dosed to mirror the equivalent potency of one bar-measured cocktail.

Each Slice of Toast offers an all-natural, tobacco-free 100% Cannabis blend composed of curated strains that are low in THC (euphoria) and high in CBD (active calm). They offer predictable taste and precise levels of CBD and THC in every puff, making them unlike any other cannabis brand available today.

Slices of Toast are available in 2-packs, 5-packs, and 10-packs, where a single Slice of Toast is designed to be consumed in its entirety by one person and a pack of Slices is meant to be shared with friends or family, similar to the social practices sharing a bottle of wine or bottle service in a nightclub or bar.

Toast Holdings, Inc., Toast's New York-based parent company, is proud to announce their market expansion to Nevada, with a particular focus on Las Vegas.

"Toast epitomizes luxury Cannabis," said Toast Holdings, Inc., CEO Punit Seth. "We have been looking forward to launching Toast in Las Vegas since the brand's inception in Aspen in 2017. Not only does Toast mirror the strength of one cocktail, which naturally aligns with the experiential qualities of enjoying Las Vegas, but the ornate details on both the packaging and the pre-roll itself were designed with luxury connoisseurs in mind, whether or not they may be familiar with Cannabis."

Seth continued, "The intent with Toast is to lead the luxury Cannabis market in a way that blends with the culture, fashion and panache of Las Vegas nightlife. We know that when you're in Las Vegas and dressed up for a special night on the town with your friends, family or loved ones, you want to imbibe in a stylish, fashionable and discreet way, which is not possible with other pre-roll or flower brands currently on the market."

With its continued national expansion and official launch in Nevada at Zen Leaf Las Vegas, Toast Holdings, Inc., remains committed to responsible sourcing, product quality, consumer transparency and mindful consumption.

For more information about Toast, please visit www.WeToast.com. Must be 21 years of age or older.

Media Inquiries: [email protected].

About Toast

Toast is the only lifestyle Cannabis brand that provides a sophisticated, consumer-controlled experience by offering the first professionally manufactured Cannabis pre-roll, called a Slice. Because Toast is professionally manufactured and tested against the highest quality assurance standards, every Slice allows for a predictability of potency and intake that can be regulated, ultimately enabling the consumer to monitor and control their experience unlike any other Cannabis product on the market. For more information about Toast, please visit www.WeToast.com. Must be 21 years of age or older.

SOURCE Toast Holdings, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.WeToast.com


LA JOLLA, Calif., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Tonogold Resources Inc. (OTC:TNGL) ("Tonogold" or "the Company") advises that it will be holding its Annual Meeting of Shareholders on Monday, September 24th at 11.30am at the Gold Hill Hotel, Virginia City, Nevada.

The Notice of Meeting and Proxy Statement (with details on how to vote) have been mailed to shareholders on record as at August 9th, 2018. The Notice of Meeting and Proxy Statement can be found on-line at http://tonogold.com/en/investors/legal-notices/

This year, we have arranged for shareholders to be able to vote on-line by going to website www.proxyvote.com. You will need your Control Number (shown in the box appearing on your Proxy Voting Card).

The purposes of the meeting are to:

Approve and ratify the minutes of the prior meeting of the Stockholders; Elect the nominees to the Company's Board of Directors to serve until the Company's 2019 Annual Meeting of Stockholders; the nominees for election as Directors: Mark Ashley, Gustavo Mazon , Travis Miller , Jordan Moelis , Robert Kopple and Brian Zamudio ; Approve an increase in the number of authorized shares from two hundred million (200,000,000) to seven hundred million (700,000,000) shares; and Any other business that may properly come before the meeting.

Following the meeting, Tonogold's CEO will make a presentation on the Company's short, medium and longer-term outlook and will take questions from shareholders.

Following the formal meeting and management presentation, there will be a tour of the Comstock site and infrastructure for shareholders and investors. We will attempt to accommodate all those who wish to participate in the site tour, but as numbers are restricted, it is recommended that you complete the on-line site tour request found at http://tonogold.com/en/2018-annual-meeting-of-shareholders/shareholders/ as soon as possible or contacting the Company by email at [email protected] or by telephone (+1 858 456 1273).

For those shareholders who won't be able to attend the meeting in person, you will be able to view the presentations and follow the meeting in real time and ask questions via a Virtual Shareholder Meeting facility by going on-line to www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/TNGL2018. In order to ask questions, you will need to sign-in using the unique Control Number appearing on you Proxy Voting Card.

Mark Ashley (President and CEO)

SOURCE Tonogold Resources Inc.

Related Links

http://tonogold.com


WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Trascent Management Consulting, LLC ("Trascent"), a leading global management consulting firm driving performance improvements in corporate real estate and facilities management (CRE/FM), obtains fraud victory against former Time Warner Inc. senior executive and Trascent managing principal, George F. Bouri ("Bouri"), following a 5-day trial in the Delaware Chancery Court.

In a 75-page opinion issued on September 10, 2018, Vice Chancellor Montgomery-Reeves concluded: "I find that [Bouri] not only fraudulently induced the formation of the limited liability company and his employment agreement but also, unable to let go of the fraud, made numerous false statements during the litigation." Bouri, who was terminated by Trascent "for cause", alleged that there was no cause for his termination and asserted claims against Trascent for wrongful termination. The Court denied all Bouri's claims against Trascent. The Court found that Bouri lied in order to induce Trascent to hire him and to give him an equity position in the company. The Court found that Bouri lied about many things, including his prior employment experience at Time Warner, his title, salary, bonus structure, and the fact that he was fired following a Time Warner HR investigation into allegations of mismanagement and sexual harassment against Bouri. Bouri had falsely claimed that he voluntarily resigned from Time Warner. As a result of Bouri's fraud, the Court rescinded Bouri's employment agreement and declared the Trascent operating agreement unenforceable by Bouri.

"We are very pleased with the Court's decision. It completely vindicates our actions and brings to a close a long but important battle with Bouri," said Rakesh Kishan, founder of Trascent and managing principal of its European and US-based operations.

In an uncommon move, the Court also found that Bouri engaged in bad faith litigation conduct, lying throughout the discovery process and perjuring himself repeatedly at trial. The Court wrote, "Bouri had a duty to tell the truth in his discovery responses and before this Court. He failed in that duty. Trascent has carried its burden of showing by clear evidence that Bouri took part in bad faith litigation tactics by misleading Trascent and the Court in sworn statements" As a sanction for Bouri's bad faith litigation conduct, the Court awarded Trascent its attorneys' fees and costs incurred in bringing the motion for sanctions and 40% of all fees Trascent incurred throughout this litigation, an amount expected to top half a million dollars. "We are pleased with the sanctions award not only because of the substantial monetary award to our client, but also because it sends a strong message designed to protect the legitimacy of the litigation process itself," said Michael Gardner of the law firm Gardner Haas PLLC, lead trial counsel for Trascent.

The case is Trascent Management Consulting, LLC v. George Bouri, C.A. No. 10915-VCMR, in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware.

Trascent was represented at trial by lead counsel Michael Gardner and Jeremy Wilson of business litigation firm Gardner Haas PLLC (gardnerhaas.com) and Michael Arrington of Parkowski, Guerke & Swayze, P.A. (pgslegal.com)

Trascent, a global management consulting firm, drives measurable performance improvements, develops breakthrough solutions and generates quantifiable results in corporate real estate and facilities management (CRE/FM). Serving clients across the globe, Trascent helps implement CRE/FM strategies, creating shareholder value through a broad range of consulting services. (trascent.com)

CONTACT: Yvonne Liu, Global Marketing Director, Trascent Management Consulting, LLC, [email protected], +1 (646) 295-4299

SOURCE Trascent Management Consulting, LLC
PITTSBURGH, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- LandMarc Products recently created a Kickstarter to help galvanize production of its Tree Nanny 2.0. The Tree Nanny 2.0 is a water monitoring device for live Christmas trees that plays a Christmas jingle, or a personalized message whenever the tree's water levels drop too low and require refilling.

The Kickstarter is ending September 23, 2018, and is available at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1425658814/tree-nanny-20-a-fun-christmas-tree-watering-system?ref=user_menu.

The Tree Nanny 2.0, A Christmas tree watering system. It makes have a Real Tree Fun, Easy and Safe. Play Jingle bells or custom message when water is low. Chime when full and will not wake you up at night.

The Tree Nanny 2.0 system comes with:

An ornamental funnel and tube

A strap

The sensor pack

The Tree Nanny 2.0 is easy to install: simply place the tube and funnel in the tree to a height that is convenient for you to water the tree. Then attach the sensor pack to trunk. The recording system is included within the sensor pack, and the strap ensures that the brass sensors remain in the watering stand.

The Tree Nanny's 2.0 sensor pack has an easy-to-read LED light system that indicates battery life, and also comes with a light sensor and the voice recording functions. The sensor pack constantly monitors the water levels of the tree, playing a jingle or a prerecorded message whenever water levels require refilling. Pouring water into the funnel is all that is required to water the tree whenever the alarm sounds, and the Tree Nanny chimes as soon as water levels have reached safe levels again.

The Tree Nanny 2.0 is a completely updated system designed to build upon the success of the first version. The improved Tree Nanny experience includes:

Custom Messages : Gather the family to sing a quick Christmas carol or simply say "Hey! It's time to water me!" The personalized message can be changed as often as desired for holiday fun.

: Gather the family to sing a quick Christmas carol or simply say "Hey! It's time to water me!" The personalized message can be changed as often as desired for holiday fun. Upgraded speaker : Improved sound quality means a clearer sound, but is also designed with a light sensor to shut off as soon as the Christmas lights are dimmed, assuring not to wake you.

: Improved sound quality means a clearer sound, but is also designed with a light sensor to shut off as soon as the Christmas lights are dimmed, assuring not to wake you. Easy-to-use strap : The recording device and speaker system hooks to the tree with ease, is securely attached and leaves plenty of room for ornaments and decorations.

: The recording device and speaker system hooks to the tree with ease, is securely attached and leaves plenty of room for ornaments and decorations. Sensor probes : The solid brass probes are of the highest quality, always detecting water levels with proven accuracy.

: The solid brass probes are of the highest quality, always detecting water levels with proven accuracy. Overall battery improvements: The batteries are designed to last for more than just one holiday season, and a new LED warning light flashes when batteries are running low.

Overly dry trees can present a host of problems that include constant messy shedding of needles as well as fire dangers from limbs that become increasingly dry. Inventor Marc Rasschaert believes that watering a Christmas tree should be just as fun as the rest of the holiday season. Now it is possible to keep live Christmas trees from drying out while also eliminating the hassle of having to crawl under a tree each time it needs to be watered.

"We are the original producers of the Tree Nanny watering system  and we are so excited and determined to get the Tree Nanny 2.0 out there for everyone to enjoy! We originally sold tens of thousands of Tree Nanny units, so I know people are going to love the 2.0. I wanted to make it personalized and more fun, and I figured out a way to do so. I just know families are going to love this new customizable message function," said Marc Rasschaert.

About LandMarc Products

LandMarc Products is a family owned Pennsylvania company which is proud to have battled through recent personal adversity and won. Producers of the original Tree Nanny watering system, LandMarc has redesigned Tree Nanny 2.0 with all-new features designed to augment the joy and fun of the Christmas season.

Contact:

Marc Rasschaert, Inventor & President

Phone: 412.334.1220

[email protected]

SOURCE LandMarc Products
WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- VantagePoint, the first artificial intelligence trading software available to retail investors and traders, presented a $10,000 check to Shriners Hospitals for Children Tampa at the company's semi-annual Power Trader Seminar this past weekend.

In addition to regular, ongoing financial contributions, VantagePoint presented a giant check representing a lump sum of over $10,000 to Shriners Hospitals for Children  Tampa at their Fall Power Trader Seminar held over the weekend in Tampa, FL. This now marks the second time that they presented a giant check to Shriners at a customer seminar, the first time being the Spring Power Trader Seminar earlier this year.

VantagePoint first formed its partnership with Shriners Hospitals for Children  Tampa in July of 2017. Since then, the family owned, and operated trading software company has been donating a percentage of its software sales to Shriners on a regular basis.

"It's hard to believe that it has been over a year since we first formed our partnership with Shriners Hospitals for Children. This has been such a rewarding partnership for everyone involved, from the patients, to the employees of VantagePoint and the customers who help make this possible," said President Lane Mendelsohn.

The partnership between VantagePoint and Shriners Hospitals for Children has been an overall success, and both organizations plan to continue to work together to make a positive difference in the lives of the children. VantagePoint and the Mendelsohn family have invested over $629,634 back into the community since 2007.

Learn more at https://www.vantagepointsoftware.com/ or by calling 800-732-5407.

About Market Technologies

Headquartered in Wesley Chapel, Fla., Market Technologies, creator of VantagePoint Software, is a pioneer and leader in trading software research and software development. VantagePoint forecasts Stocks, Futures, Forex, ETFs and cryptocurrencies with proven forecasting accuracy of up to 86%. Using artificial intelligence, VantagePoint's patented Neural Network processes predicts changes in market trend direction up to three days in advance, enabling traders to get in and out of trades at optimal times with greater confidence.

MEDIA CONTACT

Jen Aquilino

Communications Specialist

[email protected]

813-973-0496

SOURCE Market Technologies
NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- VNUE, Inc. (OTCQB: VNUE) will hit the road with The Music of Cream 50th Anniversary World Tour, as the exclusive tour merchandiser, and will be recording all shows starting Oct. 2 for immediate release as Limited Edition, individually numbered CD sets, and instant digital download via VNUE's set.fm proprietary web and mobile (iOS & Android) platform, leveraging the 14 years of experience with "instant live" pioneer and exclusive licensee DiscLive Network.

Following their successful inaugural tour across Australia and New Zealand in 2017, the pedigree of hallowed '60s trio Cream - Ginger Baker's son KOFI BAKER, Jack Bruce's son MALCOLM BRUCE and Eric Clapton's nephew WILL JOHNS have come together for the first time in North America to pay homage to the band's extraordinary legacy with The Music of Cream 50th Anniversary World Tour. Spanning 34 cities throughout North America, this tour marks 50 years since the original lineup's farewell U.S. tour of 1968.

For these North American dates, VNUE and The Music of Cream 50th Anniversary World Tour have forged a unique collaboration leveraging VNUE's world class touring services, and instant live recording platforms.

"I'm really very excited to join forces with VNUE," stated Malcolm Bruce. "To seamlessly deliver pristine quality recordings on the fly into the hands of our fans is such a great addition to our touring strategy. This allows us to focus fully on the performance. These guys have worked with some stellar artists and it's an honour to hit the road with them," Bruce stated further.

"VNUE are at the cutting edge of live recording today with their set.fm app, it is a wonderful thing to be working with them on our tour," commented Will Johns. "Providing an all-encompassing merchandise model that gets results is golden and we are delighted with this exciting alliance," Johns added.

"Cream were all about playing live and being in the moment. No two nights were the same. With VNUE recording each of our shows, fans will have their very own unique memento to take home with them. It will also keep us on our toes, so that we deliver! We're really looking forward to it," noted Kofi Baker.

Fans can expect personal stories and songs such as "Sunshine of Your Love," "Crossroads," "Spoonful" and "White Room" performed by Baker (drums), Bruce (bass, vocals) and Johns (guitar, vocals) across a comprehensive set of favorites and deep cuts.

Zach Bair, CEO and Chairman of VNUE, said, "With this partnership, we are thrilled to bring to the table a wider scope of our artist and touring services with merchandising combined with best-in-class instant live recording."

Music fans across the globe can pre-order shows now by downloading the set.fm app from either the Apple App Store or Google Play, or by visiting http://bit.ly/musicofcream for digital downloads. For Limited Edition CD Sets, fans can visit http://bit.ly/MusicofCreamCD. CD sets will be manufactured and available at merchandise booths at all tour dates, or ordered online with either "ship home", or "pick up" at the show option.

For more information about The Music of Cream 50th Anniversary World Tour, please visit www.musicofcream.com.

About VNUE, Inc. (www.vnue.com)

VNUE, Inc. (OTC: VNUE) is the exclusive licensee of DiscLive Network (www.disclive.net), and the owner and operator of Set.fm (www.set.fm) and Soundstr (www.soundstr.com). VNUE is a music technology company dedicated to further monetizing the live music experience for artists, writers, labels, publishers, and all stakeholders by creating new and exciting fan experiences. VNUE is also tackling the issues faced by countless writers and publishers across the world by implementing its proprietary Soundstr MRT technology in live music venues, radio stations, and other businesses, to create a fully transparent ecosystem. The VNUE team, led by "instant live" pioneer and entrepreneur Zach Bair, CEO & Chairman, is the most experienced in the space. We are a group of technologists, artists, songwriters, performing musicians, and music and touring executives who are passionate about the future of the music industry, and ensuring the value of the rights holders are never lost in the ever-evolving cycle of new technology.

SOURCE VNUE, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.vnue.com


VPT was founded in 1993 when CEO Dr. Dan Sable joined two other engineers - Fred Lee, former director of the Virginia Tech Center for Power Electronics, and Gary Hua to form the company. In the 25 years since it first began as a three-engineer start-up known as Virginia Power Technologies, Inc., VPT has seen significant and consistent growth in size and sales, regularly expanding product lines, as well as the 2013 addition of VPT Rad, a 5000 square-foot comprehensive radiation laboratory and test services facility. Dr. Sable stated, "Watching VPT grow over the last 25 years from a small start-up to a global leader in the Hi-Rel DC-DC Converter Market has been incredibly exciting. The key to our success has been the amazing group of people that make up the VPT family at our facilities in Virginia, Washington state, Massachusetts, and Taiwan."

Acquired by HEICO Corporation in 2009, VPT currently operates as part of the HEICO Electronics Technology Group. VPT has more than 300 employees among its Blacksburg, VA headquarters, Seattle-area sales and marketing office, Boston-area radiation test facility, and a MIL-certified manufacturing facility in Taiwan. In addition, VPT offers sales representation in over 30 countries and has parts on board many of the world's most advanced programs. VPT employs some of the most inventive engineers in the industry and as a result, holds multiple patents in power technology, as well as numerous awards and certifications. John Hodock, President commented, "We are proud to support many of the world's most advanced space, aerospace, and military programs. Superior products, unequaled service, and a total commitment to quality are the defining characteristics of VPT."

Throughout the years, VPT has earned the trust of many world-class organizations that lead in military, avionics, and space industries because of the proven reliability of VPT's products. VPT's products and services meet the highest industry standards and are made for demanding environments. Because of this, their products have recently been used on many ground-breaking space programs, which includes having parts on a number of reusable systems and equipment, a testament to VPT's high reliability power conversion solutions and the longstanding and ongoing commitment to provide such solutions.

About VPT and HEICO

VPT, Inc., part of the HEICO Electronic Technologies Group, is a global provider of innovative DC-DC power converters, EMI filters, and custom engineering services for avionics, military, space, and industrial applications. Every day, organizations like NASA, ESA, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, BAE Systems, Thales and many more depend on high-reliability solutions from VPT to power critical systems. For more information about VPT, please visit www.vptpower.com.

HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI.A) (NYSE:HEI) is engaged primarily in niche segments of the aviation, defense, space and electronics industries through its Hollywood, FL based HEICO Aerospace Holdings Corp. subsidiary and its Miami, FL-based HEICO Electronic Technologies Corp. subsidiary. For more information about HEICO, please visit www.heico.com.

Products described in this communication are subject to all export license restrictions and regulations, which may include but are not limited to ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) and the Export Administration and Foreign Assets Control Regulations. Further restrictions may apply. The information provided is considered accurate at time of publication, errors or omissions excepted. VPT, Inc. reserves the right to make changes to products or services without prior notification and advises customers to obtain the latest version of all relevant technical information from VPT to verify data prior to placing orders. VPT, its logo and tagline are registered trademarks in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. All other names, product names and trade names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

Contact: Katie Bouchard

Marketing Communications Specialist

425-353-3010 x 8511

[email protected]

VPT, Inc. www.vptpower.com

SOURCE VPT, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.vptpower.com


A soft and mild new logo can be seen now on ZAFUL's official website. Instead of the original simple version, the updated logo has a softer touch on the letter "Z" to highlight the femininity and representation of all ZAFUL's girls.

"Before, ZAFUL did not show much of its personality in the visual identity. In the design, we are trying to represent our consumers and fans by speaking directly to them. A much more vibrant colour palette in the product display and the website design is our attempt to get closer to the younger generation." Graphic designer Tianyu Xia explained the concept behind the whole VI design, which was accomplished by the in-house designers of ZAFUL.

"The VI exemplifies our ambitions, including what ZAFUL is trying to become and to achieve. Updating the logo and VI shows how ZAFUL is entering its new era and heading to a more personalized brand," Tianyu said.

"What do you want" from ZAFUL?

As London Fashion Week gets closer, ZAFUL released its first ever official TV commercial on its YouTube channel, which will also be displayed during the ZAFUL x Victor Wong SS19 show on 16th September.

The 49 second film raised the most-asked question among 18 year olds "what do you want?" To be famous? Rich? Or realize the dream you had when you were a little girl? ZAFUL is playing a crucial role in every girls' life and will lead them towards maturity and the person they dream to be.

In the video, ZAFUL is no longer just a fashion brand, but a close companion who is deeply involved in daily life and relates to the values of the younger generation.

Editing director Apollo Jiang commented: "We are on a journey to build brand affinity. By physically changing and personalizing brand values, we are trying to present that you can be 18 on ZAFUL and stay the eighteen-state-of-mind as well."

About ZAFUL

Founded in 2014, ZAFUL is devoted to providing trendy and cost-efficient fashion products for all the young women worldwide. In 2017, ZAFUL was ranked 34th in Top 50 China Export Brands by BrandZ, the world's largest brand equity database and KPMG & Facebook Top 50 China's Export Brands. So far, ZAFUL has provided fast fashion products for the consumers in 180 countries. ZAFUL's vision is to become the global leader in online fast fashion.

SOURCE ZAFUL

Related Links

http://www.zaful.com


Washington, Sep 12 : US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump have attended an observance in Pennsylvania -- the site of where a fourth plane crash had crashed on September 11, 2001.

On the 17th anniversary of the attacks the Trumps attended the ceremony in Shanksville "where a new Tower of Voices memorialises the victims of Flight 93, which crashed there 17 years ago, the White House said.

Trump marked the anniversary by paying tribute to his lawyer and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani before heading to the memorial service "Rudy Giuliani did a great job as Mayor of New York City during the period ... His leadership, bravery and skill must never be forgotten. Rudy is a TRUE WARRIOR!" Trump tweeted on Tuesday.

The First Lady took to Twitter with an image from the moment of silence held last year at the White House. "#NeverForget 9.11.01," she tweeted.

US Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted:"We received a terrible reminder of the evil in our world. In the midst of horrific tragedy America stood strong.

"We will never be the same, but we will always resilient. Today we honour the memory of those who died, and those who keep us safe."

On September 11, 2001, 19 militants associated with the Al Qaeda hijacked four airplanes and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the US.

Two of the planes were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Centre in New York City, a third plane hit the Pentagon just outside Washington, D.C., and the fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.

Almost 3,000 people were killed during the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which triggered major US initiatives to combat terrorism and defined the presidency of George W. Bush.
Mumbai, Sep 12 : The 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) on Wednesday opened on a positive note during the morning session of the trade.

The Sensex of the BSE after opening at 37,546.42 points touched a high of 37,638.16 points and a low of 37,432.66 points.

The Sensex is trading at 37,499.11 points up by 85.98 points or 0.23 per cent from its Tuesday's close at 37,413.13 points.

On the other hand, the broader 51-scrip Nifty at National Stock Exchange (NSE) opened at 11,476.85 points after closing at 11,438.10 points on Tuesday.

The Nifty is trading at 11,287.50 points in the morning.
Canberra, Sep 12 : International human rights bodies urged Australia on Wednesday to end its military ties with Myanmar and impose sanctions on those responsible for "atrocities" committed against the Rohingyas.

Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International (AI), the Human Rights Law Center and the Australian Council for International Development made a joint statement calling on Canberra to assist in further prosecutions of those responsible for the crimes on the Muslim minority community.

"Those with blood on their hands, for the explosion of violence perpetrated by Myanmar's security forces against Rohingya villagers across northern Rakhine State, must be held to account," Diana Sayed, Crisis Campaigns Coordinator at Amnesty International Australia, said in the statement.

The four organisations urged Australia, a member of the UN Human Rights Council, to support the international call to refer the Rohingya case to the International Criminal Court as well as promote mechanisms to preserve evidence and assist in investigations for future prosecution.

A Rohingya insurgent group carried out a coordinated assault on border security posts in 2016, unleashing a violent response from the Myanmar army which led to an exodus of over 700,000 Rohingyas to Bangladesh.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) estimates that at least 6,700 Rohingyas, including 730 children, have died in the military crackdown.

The Myanmar military has been accused of committing murders, rapes and arson against the Rohingyas in what a group of UN experts saw as evidence of "intentional genocide" and crimes against humanity "perpetrated on a massive scale", as indicated in its report.

The document, presented on August 27, will be delivered to the UN Human Rights Council at the end of the week, Efe news reported.

"Faced with such a damning report, there is no excuse for inaction," according to Elaine Pearson, Australia Director at Human Rights Watch.

Myanmar does not grant citizenship to the Rohingyas, considering them to be illegal Bengali immigrants, and for years has subjected them to all kinds of discrimination, including restrictions on freedom of movement.
Washington, Sep 12 : Defence Secretary James Mattis has revealed that the US has identified two sets of Korean War remains among those that had been returned by Pyongyang over a month ago.

Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon on Tuesday that experts chose to focus on these two sets of remains as they thought "they had a better chance", considering reasons including where the remains had been found and the background Washington had.

"So there's been, already, some closure for a couple of families that have waited many, many years for this," Xinhua quoted the Pentagon chief as saying.

Mattis did not publicly identify the remains. He also said that consultations are going on about the repatriation of more Korean War remains.

Fifty-five boxes of human remains from the 1950-53 Korean War were handed over by North Korea in late July, that has been seen as a sign of progress after the historic Singapore meeting between US President Donald Trump and the North Korean top leader Kim Jong-un.
Hangzhou (China), Sep 12 : Hundreds of young Chinese entrepreneurs are revving up to showcase their smart technologies and products at Taobao Maker Festival of e-tailer giant Alibaba from Thursday in this ancient city, 180 km southwest of Shanghai.

"The festival celebrates the creativity of merchants, especially from the younger generation, on our online marketplace Taobao. The four-day event will draw inspiration from this great city's rich heritage and folklore," an Alibaba spokesperson told IANS here.

Taobao, meaning "search for treasure" in Mandarin, is Alibaba Group's digital platform, opened in 2003 for consumers to buy and sell a variety of goods, ranging from electronics, home appliances, furniture, clothing etc.

The third edition of the fest, being held in the provincial capital of Zhejiang and where $40-billion Alibaba is headquartered, will have over 200 Taobao merchants displaying their products and technologies and talking about them to consumers.

Among the products and technologies at the fest are robots, electronic gadgets, fashion accessories with innovations, furniture, three-dimensional (3D) cartoons, inventive takes on traditional Chinese porcelain and bamboo products.

Several hundreds of consumers are expected to attend the annual fest from across China.

Being held near the iconic West Lake in the city's downtown, the fest is aimed at sparking creativity among the Chinese youth, the spokesperson said.

"As the fest is to celebrate innovations, we will have no transaction or promotion of goods during the event. It's a platform for the makers to share their product concepts and tech stories. The fest is to inspire people to become creative in all respects," noted the official.

Several goods sold online on Taobao have unique concepts and stories associated with them. The fest provides a common platform for the sellers to share the stories behind their innovations with the buyers.

Beijing-based data analysis firm Analysys ranks Taobao as China's top mobile commerce platform in terms of sales.

According to data from the company in June, Taobao had a total of 634 million monthly active users, a majority of which are young Chinese aged between 19-38.

Many consumers who attended the previous two editions of the fest have turned merchants, inspired by others.

"The grand event has become not only an annual gathering of entrepreneurs to demonstrate their creativity, but also a window for the world to understand China's aspirational young consumers," the official reiterated.

The 19-year-old Chinese conglomerate has been hosting the fest since 2016, as an offline technology and product expo, offering a forum for hundreds of merchants and consumers to interact with one another.

Around 80 per cent of the Group's e-tail sales are generated from mobile terminals of its portals, including Alibaba.com, Tmall and AliExpress. Taobao is a major contributor to these sales.

Co-founded in 1999 by Chinese teacher-turned-entrepreneur Jack Ma with 17 other partners (investors) as a platform to connect Chinese manufacturers with the world, Alibaba is one of the largest global firms, with 86,833 employees and millions of e-sellers.

Alibaba Group's businesses and affiliates include its e-tail portals Alibaba.com, Taobao, Tmall and AliExpress, film-making firm Alibaba Pictures, cloud computing platform Alibaba Cloud, financial services company Ant Financial, new retail grocery stores Hema among others.

The fest is being held days after the company's co-founder and Executive Chairman Ma announced a succession plan on Monday, appointing the Chief Executive Daniel Zhang as the group's next Chairman from September 2019.

(Bhavana Akella is in Hangzhou at the invitation of Alibaba. She can be contacted at bhavana.a@ians.in)
New Delhi : Book: The Beauty of All My Days; Author: Ruskin Bond; Publisher: Penguin; Pages: 183; Price: Rs 499 Life is one epic story and the experiences that each individual has is varied and distinct. Author Ruskin Bond has been penning his life experiences -- in both fiction and nonfiction -- for well over six decades now and is back with a fresh memoir.

Jacketed in a surreal cover, with colourful flowers calming the reader's impatient eyes, "The Beauty of All My Days" is dedicated to "all the kind readers and well-wishers who wait patiently outside Mussoorie's Cambridge Book Depot on Saturday afternoons". As is customary, India's grand old author visits the book shop to interact with his readers. "It is a special time for me when I meet and sign their books," he notes in the dedication section of the just-released book.

The book has 10 chapters and numerous photographs of the writer's private life, or as Bond describes it, writerly life. But Rusty, as his fans lovingly call him, has penned several similar volumes in the past such as "Lone Fox Dancing" and "Looking For the Rainbow". Every time you think you know enough about the writer, adored so dearly across the country, there is something new that he throws at you.

And he does it again in "The Beauty of All My Days".

In the memoir, Bond wonders if his life would have been very different had his parents "not committed the mistakes and indiscretions that shaped their lives and mine and lives of my brother and sister". Here, those who have read his previous works would recall the not-so-successful marriage of Bond's parents -- Aubrey Bond and Edith Clarke.

So is Bond being repetitive? Perhaps yes, but he adds layers of reflections and shows to the reader that there are different interpretations of human memory, and the human mind sees them differently at different stages of their lives. "Memory improves with age," he had asserted in a previous book, and the offering at hand shows that the improvement in memory is perhaps a more mature view of the past.

"...had they (his parents) not met, I would not have come into this world, and that would have been a pity because, on the whole, I have had a happy and fulfilling life and have given enjoyment to a few readers, young and old. I'm a person without many regrets...

"I inherited nothing of a material value -- not a penny, not a room that I could call my own," recalls the author who began his literary venture with "A Room on the Roof", whose protagonist "Rusty" became the life-long synonym for the writer.

"... but I did inherit my father's intellect and my mother's sensuality, and possibly the two combined to turn me into a writer," Bond quips.

Contained in the memoir are tales of finding his own space, of his writing room, picnics and the little things that often go ignored in our fast-paced lives. But perhaps the most significant revelation the book carries is why Bond never writes about politics.

Bond notes that since "everybody else does" he thought he should be the exception and "concentrate instead on birth and death and the interval between".

"The trouble with political issues is that they come and go very quickly, and if you make them a part of your story it is apt to date the writing. A short story I wrote 60 years ago, about meeting a blind girl on a train (The Eyes Have It / The Eyes Are Not Here / The Girl on the Train), is still read with pleasure by young people today; but if the story had been about meeting a politician who was about to open an eye camp in his constituency, would it have the same impact today?

"The topical is for the day's news media. The loves of... Romeo and Juliet, or Laila and Majnu, are timeless storytelling," he writes.

But he also asserts that he hasn't ignored politics or political issues. "Different governments, different parties in power, different eras. I am fortunate to have witnessed a little history; political history," he notes, before writing at length on India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

He ends the memoir by answering a question he is often asked: "Haven't you ever thought of living in another country -- of settling down somewhere else?"

This is where the tragedies of our time creep into his pages.

"As a boy I had romantic visions of Burma and the road to Mandalay. But it's a harsh, intolerant land today. And I don't see myself penning poems in a poppy field in Afghanistan, my intentions would be misunderstood. Further West, into Arabia and the Middle East, there is only death and disaster: Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya... When does the suffering end?

"America? I'm no Hemingway, I'm afraid of guns. And he shot himself, didn't he? South America, up the Amazon? But they've cut all the forests away," laments the 84-year-old writer.

Bond reflects that "Destiny, or the Great Librarian" brought him to Landour's humble Ivy Cottage where he has lived since 1981.

"Mother Hill near Mother Ganga, and here I have spent my best days and done my best work. And here I stay, until I have written the last word."

(Saket Suman can be contacted at saket.s@ians.in)
San Francisco, Sep 12 : The planet is sending a clear message -- to act and that too within a short time-frame or lose the ability to turn things around, says United Nations Environment Executive Director Erik Solheim.

"Typhoons and floods are not new, but we are seeing a broader pattern of more severe and more frequent extreme weather events," Solheim told IANS in an interview here.

His concerns came ahead of the three-day Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS) that began on Wednesday with the participation of 4,000 plus business and political leaders, investors, citizens and government representatives from all over the world in this California city.

"That's (natural calamities) what the scientists predicted, and it's what we're seeing play out now right in front of our eyes. Our planet is sending us a clear message. We have to act, and we're a short time-frame to do so before we lose the ability to turn things around."

He was replying to a question on his thoughts for the people of Kerala in India and Osaka in Japan that have been recently affected by floods and a typhoon.

Solheim, who is also attending the summit, which aims to "take ambition to the next level" and persuade the world's Presidents and Prime Ministers to go further and faster to reduce emissions, said: "The bottom line is that we need to step up the ambition and create a momentum."

On India playing a leading role in driving down global emissions, he said "absolutely".

"I think Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi has shown incredible leadership in driving the shift to renewables and steering India towards being a greener, cleaner economy. The innovation that we're seeing, not just in terms of renewables deployment but also the wider shift to a more circular economic model, is really encouraging."

From India, Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra is one of the Global Climate Action Summit's Co-Chairs.

In a plenary on September 13, he will provide an update on how many companies that have adopted Science-Based Targets -- aligning their pollution reduction plans with the Paris agreement.

Solheim saw business value in companies adopting science-based climate targets.

"We're seeing more and more examples of businesses wanting to do this, and dozens of global giants on that path.

"For me it's important for two reasons: Firstly, companies are showing how sustainability can be a core part of business, rather than an on-the-side CSR (corporate social responsibility) exercise. They're moving beyond PR (public relations)," he said.

"Secondly, the companies doing this are seeing strong support from shareholders and investors. They're seeing that these targets are also about efficiency and innovation. That makes a business less exposed to environmental risk, which is good for business."

One recent example he has seen is the company IKEA, which is aiming to be climate positive by 2030 and this requires an 80 per cent cut in emissions, the UN Environment head said: "It's a sound move as the company will have a head start in making the transition to a low carbon economy."

"In India I was also really impressed when I visited the Infosys campus in Hyderabad. They have clear targets on waste, cooling, power consumption and overall efficiency, which make them not only commendable from the environmental perspective, but also a compelling investment."

Favouring electric vehicles that will play a role in decarbonising of the economy, Solheim said: "We have to see the introduction of electric vehicles as part of the wider change we need to see in transport. That includes more public transport or transport-sharing solutions."

He said the developed countries need to look at the shift not as a constraint or an obligation, but as an opportunity for greater energy security, a more inclusive economy and the lower healthcare burden that comes from tackling the causes of pollution.

"India isn't making the change because it wants to shoulder the burden of climate action, but because it makes perfect sense from an economic perspective. That's how more countries need to see it," he said.

(Vishal Gulati is in San Francisco at the invitation of the Climate Trends to cover the Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS). He can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)
Srinagar, Sep 12 : The Jammu and Kashmir government is likely to defer the municipal elections scheduled in October to January 2019, sources said.

This comes after two major political parties -- the National Conference (NC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) announced they were boycotting the polls.

A decision announcing deferment of the municipal polls is likely to be taken at the State Administrative Council (SAC) meeting chaired by Governor Satya Pal Malik on Wednesday.

The panchayat polls were scheduled for November-December. "The schedule already announced for the panchayat polls will remain unchanged," an official in the know of things said.

After the NC announced boycott of the municipal and panchayat polls, the PDP made a similar announcement on Monday.

The Congress will announce its decision on participation in these elections at a press conference here later.
New Delhi : Industrial Design (better known as ID) is a creative process of designing products that are aesthetically pleasing to create brand perception, while solving user-related problems.

In today's context, ID leads to user-experience. Design Thinking, a much talked-about management tool, is an offshoot of an industrial designer's thinking process. In the late 1990s, as the economy opened up and with the advent of MNCs in India, it was imperative to design the product to compete in the growing and crowded market. But ID was in a very nascent stage in India.

With growing awareness and stiff competition, each manufacturer seeks to differentiate their product through looks and features. Both these attributes in a product lead to user-experience and brand loyalties.

The design of the product is a single significant factor which helps in the "Wow" factor at the point of sale and during usage. Over the years, manufacturers have recognised the importance of design for business success. ID helps in understanding the user's needs through the process of design research, which, in a nutshell, is nothing but empathising with users/consumers.

It leads to insights into the consumers' minds and helps in solving their overt or covert problems. The findings from user research help in creating user-centric features. While the reflection of ID comes from stunning aesthetics which create a brand language and perception, the core of ID is to give the user an experience through smart features that add convenience and surprise (an emotion that comes while unwrapping a gift). ID is user-centric; hence any touch-point (sensorial or emotional) forms a palette for industrial designers.

But the role of ID is evolving. With the euphoria that Design Thinking has created, the acceptance of ID is spreading. As it makes inroads into the emotional and aspirational space of the consumers, it is moving towards the fusion of technologies with design. New technologies are redundant until they are humanised. So, the future of ID is to incorporate technologies in the product to make them humane. It is fast evolving from a physical object-based design to user-experience and can be used for designing user-interfaces.

Most of the popular apps/websites are designed by industrial designers for ease of navigation and aesthetic composition. We see a tremendous amount of convergence taking place with product solutions that have been able to assimilate aesthetics and technologies to give an unprecedented user-experience. ID is also playing a significant role in service design, business design and social innovation.

The possibilities are enormous and infinite. New age start-ups firmly believe in ID and there are many unicorn start-ups that either have industrial designers as their co-founders or have competent designers in their core teams. Airbnb is one such example where the co-founders are industrial designers and they have designed a service by unearthing the latent need of the people

(Anuj Prasad is Founder & CEO of Desmania, an industrial design studio)
Kabul, Sep 12 : At least 58 Taliban militants were killed and several others wounded following separate air and ground operations in Uruzgan and Kandahar provinces, officials said on Wednesday.

More than 100 Talibans attacked two security posts on Uruzgan province's main roadway on Tuesday evening. However, they had to flee as the security forces retaliated appropriately.

It left 40 militants dead, provincial police chief Abdul Qawi Omari told Xinhua news agency.

In Talayee area of the provincial capital Tirin Kot, at least seven armed Taliban fighters were killed when the army shelled artillery on their hideouts, said Omari.

In neighbouring Kandahar province, late on Tuesday, a joint Afghan and US-led NATO coalition air operation killed another 11 militants and injured an equal number, provincial police chief Abdul Razeq said.

The sources did not give details if Afghan security forces or civilians suffered casualties.

Ground and air offensives against militants in the past few months have increased as the country prepares for parliamentary and district council elections slated for October 20.

The Talibans have not commented.
Hanoi, Sep 12 : Leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) on Wednesday stressed on the need to strengthen ties between countries in the region to survive the "Fourth Industrial Revolution" and warned against growing trade protectionism during a session at the regional World Economic Forum (WEF) summit.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo said trade wars had been a reality through the ages and the region was capable of combating another -- an indirect reference to the ongoing tariff disputes between China and the US, Efe news reported.

"Not since the great depression of the 1930s have trade wars erupted with the intensity that they have today, but rest assured, I and my fellow avengers stand ready to defend Thanos from wiping out half of the population," Widodo said, referencing an Avengers film.

However, he warned that trade wars should not become the plot of "Avengers: Infinity War" and stressed that it was a misguided belief that "the rise of some means the decline of others".

Other Asean leaders who spoke also stressed regional cooperation and openness.

Hu Chunhua, Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China, condemned an increasingly protectionist climate and called for a more open global economy.

"China's resolve to open its doors even wider will not change. We will pursue opening up at (our) own pace. This will offer opportunities for Asean countries and beyond," he added.

Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi challenged the concept of "leapfrogging" or rapid progress in developing economies. "What we have been engaged with is not mere amphibian hops but quantum leaps," she said.

Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc called for a common Asean code on data sharing and further cooperation across the region to benefit from the digital era.

"In the Fourth Industrial Revolution and with the rapid march of science and technology, Asean is known as the cradle of many new and innovative ideas in the world," he said.

Singapore's Prime Minister Hsien Loong said Asean was committed to further economic integration and added there was a need to boost the rules-based multilateral trading system.

"It has underpinned our growth and stability, but is under pressure and under threat," he warned.

The WEC Foum on Asean will run till Thursday.
Washington, Sep 12 : Indian-American Congressman Ro Khanna has said that he wants to revoke Myanmar State Counsellor Suu Kyi's Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honour in the US, which was bestowed on her with much fanfare six years ago.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi has been silent as military rulers of Myanmar ravaged the Rohingyas, an ethnic minority group on the country's western border, in a brutal campaign the UN deemed "genocide".

"For Aung San Suu Kyi to not speak out and to talk about a proportionate response to terrorism is a total abdication of any morality," Khanna, a Democrat from California, was quoted as saying by the Hill newspaper.

"We should revoke the congressional medal, and beyond that she should be investigated as part of the UN's (war crimes) tribunal," he said.

While there is a growing appetite on Capitol Hill for concrete steps to press Suu Kyi to rediscover the voice of moral clarity that made her a celebrated human rights symbol, many are out of patience.

"Her leadership is unacceptable - she's turned a deaf ear - and who the hell is she kidding?" said Representative Bill Pascrell. "She came in like the Blessed Mary and she's wound up like Jezebel."

But Representative Gerry Connolly said that revoking the medal may effectively harm their cause and send "a really strong burn-your-bridge kind of message".

"If our object here is to engage her and to incentivize and encourage her to speak out, even though we understand the delicacy of the balance with the military, I'm not sure that's the best way to do it," he said.

To make their case, bipartisan coalitions in both chambers of the Congress have sent a flurry of letters to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging tougher sanctions on the repressive Myanmar government.

One notable exception to the condemnations was Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a close friend to Suu Kyi, who says that she "simply lacks the power to rein in the violence in a country where the military elite still yield outsized authority over public policy - and could potentially knock her from power".
New Delhi, Sep 12 : The Union Cabinet on Wednesday gave ex post facto approval for transfer of land of Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Ltd. (RCF) to Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA).

It also approved transfer of RCF land to Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) and selling of Transferable Development Right (TDR) Certificate received against the transfer of land to MMRDA/MCGM.

An official release said MMRDA acquired 48,849.74 sq m (8265 sq. m unencumbered/free land and 40584.74 sq. m. encumbered land) of RCF and completed the construction of Eastern Free Way-Anik Panjrapol Link Road (APLR).

It said RCF received TDR certificate of 16530 sq. m in Novemer 2017 issued by MMRDA against 8265 sq. m of unencumbered/free land as an interim relief.

The release said claim of RCF for TDR/compensation against encumbered land measuring 40584.74 sq. m is being decided by an arbitrator.
New Delhi, Sep 12 : The government will bring an amendment Bill to declare the new NIDs 'Institutions of National Importance' (INIs) on a par with the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad.

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved the introduction of a Bill in Parliament for amending the NID Act, 2014 to include NID, Amaravati/Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh; NID, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh; NID, Jorhat, Assam; and NID, Kurukshetra, Haryana and declare them INIs.

"Some minor amendments to the Act, including consequential amendments considered necessary namely, to re-name NID Vijayawada as NID Amaravati and nomenclature of Principal Designer as equivalent to Professor are also proposed in the Bill," Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.

"Establishing new NIDs as Institutions of National Importance in different geographical regions of the country will help produce highly skilled manpower in design which, in turn, will create job opportunities, both direct and indirect, by providing sustainable design interventions for crafts, handloom, rural technology, small, medium and large scale enterprises; and outreach programmes for capacity, capability and institution building," it added.
New Delhi, Sep 12 : ArcelorMittal on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that it was ready to pay Rs 7,000 crore - a liability which one of its sister concerns is burdened with for having 29 per cent stakes in now beleaguered Uttam Galva and KSS Petron - as it wanted to have its presence in India's steel sector and also live harmoniously with the banks.

Telling the bench of Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman and Justice Indu Malhotra that it would pay Rs 7000 crore, ArcelorMittal said: "I don't want to fight with Committee of Creditors. I find the (Essar Steel) plant worthy. I don't have a steel plant in India, It is worth it."

The Committee of Creditors comprises 16 lender banks that have financed the Essar Steel.

However, senior lawyer Harish Salve, appearing for ArcelorMittal, said that the company is willing to pay Rs 7,000 crore dues if it emerged as the successful bidder, but not as a precondition to become eligible to bid.

Telling the court to consider the bid of Rs 42,000 crore plus Rs 7,000 crore, Salve said: "If I am not the highest bidder, I go home. If you apply law, apply the law and see where we end up."

He said that Rs 7,000 crore, was already lying in its escrow account.

Salve said this as the court asked him if they could jack up their offer noting that if they clear their liabilities then they are at par with the NuMetal.

Salve said that they had acquired a little over 29 per cent stakes in the Uttam Galva but their's was a passive presence and at no stage they were promoters of the company now with sagging fortunes.

Even as Salve dwelt on the passive role of steel baron Mittal's company in Uttam Galva, senior counsel Mukul Rohatgi appearing for NuMetal said that they were co-promoters of the company.

On Rohatgi's intervention, Salve said: "Of course we had that right. We never exercised them. I never stepped into the shoes of promoters. I was never on the board or exercised voting rights."

Salve took exception to NCLAT holding that the stigma of NPA attached to KSS Patron cannot be cleared by KSS Global' by divesting its shares in 'KSS Petron' on 9th February, 2018.

The paragraph of NCLAT's September 7, 2018 judgment that troubled petitioner ArcelorMittal said: " Therefore, we hold that L.N. Mittal Group, a connected person of 'AM India Ltd.' being the promoter and in the control and management of 'KSS Petron' since 2011 and 'KSS Petron' having classified as 'NPA' by multiple banks, the stigma attached to it cannot be cleared by 'KSS Global' by divesting its shares in 'KSS Petron' on 9th February, 2018..."

It further said that ace... the stigma will continue for the purpose of ineligibility under clause (c) Section 29A, till the payment of all overdue amount with interest thereon and charges relating to NPA account of 'KSS Petron'.

Justice Nariman said "it is upsetting and is not correct at all".

In a counter attack on rival NuMetal, Salve described it as a Shell Company that was set up just seven days before it entered the field to bid for financially beleaguered Essar Steel facing insolvency.

Pointing to the holes in NCLAT judgment, he said that the Russia's VTB Bank backed Numetal's Rs 37,000 crore bid was accepted by the appellate tribunal without any riders.

He described as "highly unusual" the Russian bank's backing for the takeover of a sick Indian company.

He said on account of sanctions by the EU in the wake of Russia's annexation of Crimea, the Russian bank was barred from advancing any credits or trading or raising any capital from the market.

He said that the EU directives are enforceable here in India.

Meanwhile, NuMetal too has moved the court challenging three days time given by NCLAT to ArcelorMittal to deposit Rs 7000 crore to become eligible to bid.

Hearing on ArcelorMittal's appeal will continue on Thursday.
New Delhi, Sep 12 : The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) signed a deal with Shri Kshetra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project (SKDRDP) to enhance credit delivery, the Finance Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

The MoU, signed in the presence of SIDBI CMD Mohammad Mustafa on Tuesday, with Karnataka-based SKDRDP aims to facilitate the flow of credit to micro enterprises promoted by the poor at affordable rates.

Though micro credit, which has emerged as a tool for empowerment of the poor, has grown in terms of volume over the years, the cost of credit has not come down.

"It is observed that microfinance institutions (MFIs) are still lending at a rate of around 20 to 24 per cent per annum to micro enterprises," the statement said.

Another problem is micro enterprises aspiring to scale up their operations are finding it difficult to access finance as MFIs generally do not lend beyond Rs 50,000 and banks are also largely staying away from lending big loans, it said.

"Thus, there is a critical gap in the market for the aspiring entrepreneurs to take it to the enterprise level," it said.

SIDBI's arrangement with the not-for-profit trust will facilitate flow of affordable credit to micro enterprises needing credit up to Rs 3 lakh and help in enterprise promotion.

SKDRDP has a client base of more than 4.2 million micro entrepreneurs and plans to deploy about Rs 500 crore under the present arrangement over the next two years.
New Delhi, Sep 12 : With Turkey's currency in a free fall amid a trade war with the US, the Ambassador of Turkey to India, Sakir Azkan Torunlar on Wednesday said he hopes the fall in the lira and the Indian rupee would soon be retrieved.

He was speaking at an informal meeting with the media at his residence here with a focus on current tourism statistics and trends between India and Turkey.

On the fall in Turkey's lira and India's rupee, the Ambassador said: "I hope the track will reverse for both the currencies. I think this is a temporary phase which our countries will gradually get over."

Since the start of the year, Turkey's currency has fallen over 45 per cent against the US dollars. As a result, all imported goods became more expensive practically overnight.

The catalyst for the current crisis was US sanctions, which the Trump administration imposed on August 1 after the Turkey government refused to hand over an American pastor it has detained for almost two years. Turkey responded by doubling tariffs on US cars, alcohol and other goods.

When asked about the conflict with the US, Ambassador Torunlar said the international community should follow the rules and regulations laid down by the WTO or "in (case of a)a conflict, raise their opinion with organizations in Geneva."

The Ambassador also talked about the warm relation between India and Turkey saying the number of Indian tourists has doubled in just a year.

"In 2017, Turkey hosted more than 32 million international tourists among them 87,000 were from India. This year, from January to July, we recorded a 25% increase in the number of overall tourists. That means we will be hosting 40 million international tourists by the end of 2018.

"When we look at figures from India, we see a 95% increase for the same period. If this trend continues we will be hosting almost 2 lakhs Indian tourists by the year-end," he said.

Deniz ErsAz, Culture and Tourism Counsellor, Turkish Embassy, talked about what all his country has to offer to Indian tourists.

"Istanbul, Antalya, Cappadocia, Troy and Izmir are extremely popular with Indian travellers. However, Bodrum and Marmaris have also emerged as major tourist attractions in recent past. In addition to that, Konya where Celaleddin Rumi spent his last 45 years, the sacred site where he was buried is also among the popular destinations for Indians, " he said.

He added that Istanbul will be getting a new airport by the end of October this year.

"It will be one of the largest airports in the world with a capacity of 200 million passengers per year," he said.

On the occasion, Arjun Kapoor, Sales Manager-North and East India, Turkish airlines, said that to promote tourism in the country, the airlines also offer a pre-city tour for all the transit passengers.

"The airlines will take the transit passengers to visit all the Istanbul's historical and cultural areas and then take the passengers back to airport to catch their flight," Kapoor said.
EXPERT OBSERVER

It all feels a little 'contagious'. Among emerging markets, that is. For a while, one could point to specific challenges in specific economies. But in recent weeks, the sell-off has spread, and not always with good justification. Indonesia is a case in point: fundamentals look sound - certainly no less so than, say, a couple of years ago - yet the currency has slid to a 20-year low.

Contagions come in different guises: economic, financial, psychological -- though in reality, they combine elements of all three. Even if more insulated than others, emerging Asia is still exposed on all these fronts. The best prophylactic is usually swift tightening, both monetary and financial. If the current turmoil lingers, the region will have to deliver more of it. And that'll dent growth.

Your economist has been making the rounds of late, in Asia and Europe, gauging investor sentiment. It's been a rough summer for many, no doubt. But one hardly registers a sense of panic. Views remain differentiated, and Asia on the whole is still seen as relatively robust.

The headlines, though, remain challenging. And as veteran emerging market investors well know, pressures can swiftly spread, exacerbated by markets that are thinner and less liquid than those in the developed world.

So it's worth revisiting, in principle, what can cause 'contagion'. Three dimensions matter - overlapping and reinforcing each other, of course, but nonetheless conceptually distinct.

Economic contagion occurs when real sector linkages between markets prompt stress to spread. Here, Asia is less exposed to potential turmoil in other emerging markets. But common themes are on investor minds nonetheless: a slowing China, foremost, would hurt emerging markets everywhere. Evidence of strengthening Mainland demand would thus do a lot to stabilize EM sentiment.

Broadly, trade tensions between the US and China are also frequently cited - both in terms of cooling Chinese demand, and in terms of the broader threat the dispute presents to global trade. Here, Asia is especially exposed, via supply chains that tie into China and the broader dependence on global trade.

Financial contagion refers to investor positioning. In the simplest case, should an EM investor face redemptions, but difficulties of getting out of positions in the most hard-pressed markets, he or she could be forced to liquidate positions elsewhere, including in economies with sound fundamentals.

For the moment, this doesn't appear to be the case. But the point is that emerging Asia could be affected by this even if the fundamentals of many economies in the region appear comparatively robust.

Psychological contagion is perhaps a little harder to define, but material nonetheless: a given market sells off even if there are no obvious economic or financial linkages to others. Apart from simply frayed nerves, this can be caused by a 'paradigm shift', where, say, investors suddenly question to wisdom of investing in emerging markets at all.

Contagion, of any form, is best prevented with swift and early action. In emerging markets, this usually entails tighter macroeconomic policy (and, if needed, structural reforms).

If the current market jitters persist, more may be needed across emerging Asia as well. Less so, of course, in countries with robust current account surpluses than in others. But even a strong balance of payments position, if the stock of non-resident liabilities is sufficiently large, doesn't obviate the need for some tightening.

Here's to the headlines turning a little more soothing soon.

Frederic Neumann is the Co-head of Asia Economics Research at HSBC
EXPERT OBSERVER

They say, money makes the world go round and although it may seem crass and crude, its quite true. Take a drive through any of WAs industrial estates  Henderson, Kewdale, Malaga, Wangara -and youll see the wheels of commerce turning. Look closer and youll see the workers that work hard all day to give precious economic security to their families.

In Australias biggest industry, property (bigger than mining and manufacturing combined), youll see people engaged in materials supply. Factories and warehouses producing tiles, beams, trusses, cabinetry and furnishings. Logistics workers get these components to site for construction which requires skilled plumbers, electricians, plasterers and a team of supervisory and administrative staff. Once a property is complete, more workers are needed, like accountants, lawyers, real-estate and leasing agents.

Every single one of these workers spends money in WA shops, buys food from our supermarkets and restaurants and pays for their kids education. Money indeed keeps WA moving.

For WA to grow and compete with the rest of the world we need more than just our own money circulating.

Foreign investment and exports are key factors in our success. Many of our West Australian jobs depend on an external injection of money, and the property industry is no different.

The Upper House is due to debate the Labor Governments proposed foreign owner duty surcharge very soon  a proposed 7% surcharge on foreign purchasers of residential property in WA.

This tax is not just for rich, overseas investors, its for regular migrant mums and dads who want to build a home and a life in WA. Just like the many migrants from all over the world that have come to WA since its foundation and have made Perth the great City it is today.

An additional 7% impost will deter these migrants from choosing Perth. The greatest number of Asian migrants are from Singapore (China is in fifth position). With kids studying at Uni, they could just as easily choose another Australian or international city to settle.

We dont have the issues of Sydney or Melbourne where the surcharge originated as a way to dampen demand. Our tentatively recovering property market needs support, especially in an environment of slowing demand due to tightening bank finance.

Understandably, the McGowan Government is looking for new sources of revenue for budget repair. But with Building Approvals currently tracking at 19.4% [Source: ABS/Property Council July 2018] the timing is terrible. Also, key data indicators point to little revenue being raised in reality.

The WA budget has forecast $123million over 3  years yet all industry bodies including the Property Council, REIWA and the UDIA warn that the number of transactions will fall. In fact, thats exactly whats happened in South Australia.

The SA budget was released last week and it demonstrates exactly what could happen if this surcharge were introduced here. The SA Government have reduced forecast tax receipts by 50%, stating Conveyance duty forecasts also incorporate downward revisions to the Foreign Owner Surcharge in all years reflecting lower than expected collection in 2017-18 and projected lower demand from foreign buyers from 2018-19 compared to original estimates.

Simply put, fewer property transactions equates directly to fewer jobs. This affects all workers that help make money move around the WA economy.

The Property Council calls on the Members of the Upper House to vote against this tax  for now at least. It may be needed one day in the future but now is not the time to risk West Australian jobs for little gain.

Sandra Brewer is the Executive Director of the Property Council of Australia WA
EXPERT OBSERVER

Anyone directly or indirectly associated with housing finance has likely felt the pinch of heightened regulation and tighter credit policies.

Mortgage brokers and lenders are the first industry participants that come to mind, however the slowdown in lending activity has broader implications for a wide range of peripheral industries and revenue streams.

Less lending implies fewer home sales for real estate agents and developers, a reduction in building and pest inspections, less conveyancing for lawyers and a slump in stamp duty revenue for state governments.

Generally, when people buy a home, they also splurge on household items such as appliances, white goods and home furnishings, so there is strong relationship with household consumption.

Less spending from households has direct implications for Australias economic prosperity, considering consumption comprises close to 60% of our gross domestic product.

The latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows the overall value of housing finance commitments was down 5.1% between July 2017 and July 2018.

Since the peak in the value of housing finance in August last year, the value of commitments has reduced by 7.0%; a reduction of about $2.35 billion.

The decline has been most visible for investment loans where the value of lending is down 15.7% over the twelve months ending July 18 and almost 31% lower since peaking in April 2015.

Owner occupier lending has held much firmer, actually rising 1.1% over the past twelve months (including refinanced loans) and only 1.0% lower than record highs.

Clearly those industry participants who are more exposed to investment channels have borne the brunt of the credit downturn.

Investors now comprise only 41% of overall mortgage demand, down from a record high of nearly 55% in May 2015.

On average, over the past ten years, investors have comprised approximately 45% of mortgage demand, highlighting that investment concentration has been tracking below the decade average since November last year.

Over a longer period, say the last 30 years, investment levels have averaged much lower, averaging just 37% of the overall value of housing finance; a reminder that the past decade is a high benchmark for investment activity.

The value of investment lending has trended lower across every state and territory over the past year, except Tasmania where the value of investment lending was up 16.3% between July 2017 and July 2018.

Despite the trend towards less investment, the states where investment has been the most concentrated, NSW and Vic, continue to show the highest share of investment lending based on value. Investors still comprise almost 49% of lending in NSW and almost 41% in Vic, well above the long term average.

Considering the short to medium term prospects for capital gains in these states is relatively low and rental yields remain close to the record lows, the concentration of investment activity in these states doesnt make much sense.

In all likelihood, we will continue to see investment activity trending lower, especially in NSW and Vic due to mortgage rate premiums for investors, tighter lending criteria, low rental yields and soft prospects for capital gains.

Additionally, with a federal election around the corner, potential changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions could be weighing on investor sentiment.

Tim Lawless is the head of research at CoreLogic
EXPERT OBSERVER

Property prices across Australian capital cities fell in the June quarter 2018 with the weighted average median prices decreasing by 0.8 per cent for houses and 0.3 per cent for other dwellings, according to the latest report from the Real Estate Institute of Australia.

The Real Estate Market Facts report shows the weighted average median price for houses for the eight capital cities slid to $765,098 over the quarter, with prices dropping in all capital cities except for Brisbane, Adelaide and Hobart.

The weighted average median price for other dwellings decreased to $590,935 over the quarter, with prices falling in all capital cities except for Melbourne, Brisbane, Hobart and Darwin.

Canberra had the largest fall in house prices and Adelaide had the largest decline in other dwellings. Adelaide has both the lowest median price for houses at $471,000 and the lowest median price for other dwellings at $354,167.

Over the quarter, the median rent for three-bedroom houses increased in Canberra and Darwin, remained steady in Perth and, decreased in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Hobart. The median rent for two-bedroom other dwellings increased in Canberra and Hobart, remained steady in Perth and decreased in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Darwin. Hobart had the largest increase while Brisbane had the largest decrease.

The weighted average vacancy rate for the eight capital cities fell to 2.5 per cent during the June quarter indicating a tighter rental market. Canberra has the tightest market with a vacancy rate of 0.8 per cent.

Over the past 12 months, loan numbers have decreased by 3.8 per cent across the country with declines in all states and territories except Tasmania. The largest decrease of 13.6 per cent was in Western Australia.In Sydney and Melbourne  the two cities which have had the largest price increases over the past few years  the drop in loans is attributable to APRA restrictions on investment loans and more stringent home lending criteria.

The June quarter figures reflect reports of a changing dynamic in the market, particularly in the nations major cities.

Malcolm Gunning is the REIA President
The founding directors of Ray White Double Bay, Craig Pontey and Michael Finger have sold their shareholdings to Elliott Placks, but are not going far.

The property veterans are staying on at the estate agency as sales agents and mentors to the 30-strong sales force.

The Ray White Double Bay office sold more than $930 million in property last year, being the number one office in Ray Whites Australian network for the last seven years.

(Pictured above Craig Pontey, Elliott Placks and Michael Finger.)

Pontey said this was a very natural succession plan which the trio had all been working towards for some time.

This is a very stylish transition and the time is right.

"We both know Elliott will take the business that we started in 1988 to new levels," Pontey said.

Source: Sydney Morning Herald - 1988

Finger said its business as usual for their clients.

Craig and I are just stepping back from the day to day management of the business and Im looking forward to helping mentor the agents."

Elliott Placks is now the managing director of Ray White Double Bay.

Placks has been at Ray White Double Bay for the last 15 years and as a director for the last seven years.

Im proud of the achievements this incredible team has received and their continuous drive for high performance and Im thrilled to be at the helm, Placks said.

The 37-year-old ambitious leader said his team was unified through collaboration, authenticity, elite habits and immovable ethics and values.

Michael Krimotat is its director of property management and Daniel Pym, the director of its loan division.

Pontey and Finger joined ERA Ray White from AH Taylor Nationwide in April 1988, with it reported in the local paper, The Eastern Herald's Hobnobbing column.

Their first listing at the new agency was the 1885 Randwick home Peckham on Cowper Street for the furniture retailers Graham and Helen Bailey from Bailey & McBride.

It hasn't sold since its mid-1988 sale at $1.31 million.

The veteran pair started together at AH Taylor Real Estate in 1978 as property managers when Finger hired Pontey.

Their Ray White Double Bay co-founder Trevor Leach sold out of the partnership around six year ago.

AH Taylor, which briefly held the Century 21 franchise, dates back to 1926.
Investors come in all age ranges, which is why many people wonder if there are specific age requirements to contribute to a Self-Directed IRA. Those who are interested in investing for retirement often turn to vehicles like the Self-Directed IRA to ensure their assets stay protected, even as they invest in a diversified group of assets or asset classes.

But do the age limits of the Self-Directed IRA make it prohibitive to try these accounts past a certain age? Recently, American IRA used its blog at http://www.AmericanIRA.com to shed light on the issue. The post What is the Age Requirement to Contribute to a Self-Directed IRAaddressed both minimum and maximum age limits for contributing to a Self-Directed IRA.

For instance, minors cannot use money earned from household chores as earned income when contributing to an IRA, according to the post. But because there is no minimum age for a Self-Directed Roth IRA or Self-Directed Traditional IRA, an investor can technically be a minor and put money away for retirement, so long as they have earned income from an employer.

On the flip side, the post also addressed the maximum age limits. These are a little more complicated, according to the postwhile an individual can keep contributing to a Self-Directed Roth IRA throughout their lifetime with no maximum age limit, an individual who turns 701/2 can no longer make Traditional IRA contributions. A Roth IRA allows investors to continue contributing money towards retirement even after they have officially passed retirement age, which gives these investors a better chance at retirement, even if they are catching up on investments later in life.

Age limits are not really a factor when it comes to investing in a Self-Directed IRA, said Jim Hitt of American IRA. But there are some key milestones when it comes to ages that people need to know aboutparticularly with Traditional IRAs and the age at which people have to start taking distributions from their retirement accounts.

For more information on these age limits, visit the blog at http://www.AmericanIRA.com or call 866-7500-IRA.

"About:

American IRA, LLC was established in 2004 by Jim Hitt, CEO in Asheville, NC.

The mission of American IRA is to provide the highest level of customer service in the self-directed retirement industry. Jim Hitt and his team have grown the company to over $400 million in assets under administration by educating the public that their Self-Directed IRA account can invest in a variety of assets such as real estate, private lending, limited liability companies, precious metals and much more.

As a Self-Directed IRA administrator, they are a neutral third party. They do not make any recommendations to any person or entity associated with investments of any type (including financial representatives, investment promoters or companies, or employees, agents or representatives associated with these firms). They are not responsible for and are not bound by any statements, representations, warranties or agreements made by any such person or entity and do not provide any recommendation on the quality profitability or reputability of any investment, individual or company. The term "they" refers to American IRA, located in Asheville and Charlotte, NC."
Lone Star Analysis Logo As one of the 14 small businesses selected by the U.S. Army, AOCPS will work on orders including project, program and portfolio management, education and training, life cycle logistics, systems engineering, information technology, business analytics and financial management services.

Contract Won Through Joint Venture Formed by Lone Star Analysis and American Operations Corporation

AOC Program Solutions (AOCPS), a joint venture between Lone-Star Analysis and American Operations Corporation (AOC), has won a spot on a five-year, $499 million Army support services contract, called PASS-SB. The contract calls for AOCPS to compete for a variety of task orders to support the Army, Navy and other federal agencies.

Lone Star has a history of working with the Navy and the Naval Air Systems Command, and understands these organizations needs well, said Steve Roemerman, CEO, Lone Star Analysis. That experience and our ability to work in tandem with AOC was vital in landing the largest potential contract win in Lone Stars history.

As one of the 14 small businesses selected by the U.S. Army, AOCPS will work on orders including project, program and portfolio management, education and training, life cycle logistics, systems engineering, information technology, business analytics and financial management services.

AOC Program Solutions provides the government an industry partner with extensive technical, staffing and corporate capabilities, said L. Frank Field, chairman of AOCPS and founder and chairman of AOC. We are honored to have been selected for PASS-SB, and we look forward to competing at the task order level. Winning a place on this contract is a huge step forward for AOC Program Solutions and is representative of the strong work we can deliver.

Lone Star Analysis is a Dallas-based specialist in leading-edge predictive and prescriptive analytics solutions. AOC is a small company with a 30-year track record of successfully delivering business, information technology and operations and maintenance services to the federal government.

To learn more about AOCPS, visit: http://www.aocwins.com/companies/aoc-program-solutions/.

About Lone Star Analysis

Lone Star Analysis is a Dallas-based predictive and prescriptive analytics specialist enabling customers to make smarter decisions faster by leveraging data and insights to provide foresight and enhance the decision-making of its customers. Lone Stars TruNavigator and AnalyticsOSTM software programs provide transparent, auditable and explainable solutions for clients. Additionally, Lone Star applies the right combination of data, people and processes to get results with its 15 years of experience and more than 800 subject matter experts, across several industries, including aerospace, defense, energy, logistics, manufacturing and transportation.

For more information on Lone Star, visit http://www.Lone-Star.com.

About American Operations Corporation, LLC (AOC)

AOC is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) delivering innovative solutions to the government and industry since 1983. AOCs core competencies include IT, telecommunications, and cyber; advisory and program management; intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR); and logistics and facilities management. AOC is ISO 9001:2015 certified and has structured its operations to provide its clients and markets a competitive cost structure, appropriate technical and management resources, and a singular focus to our clients mission objectives.

To learn more about AOC, visit: http://www.aocwins.com/.

Media Contact:

Sarah Ward

MCC for Lone Star

972-480-8383 ext. 271

sarah_ward (at) mccom (dot) com
The Phoenix community values quality food as much as we do. The ingredients we use at zpizza are not only better for you, they taste better too. We're thrilled to bring these delicious pizzas and other offerings back to Phoenix."

zpizza, the first artisan-inspired pizza chain, today announced the reopen of the zpizza on West Thomas Road in Phoenix, AZ. The restaurant, which closed earlier in the year, reopened under new management on September 3rd.

Ideal for families who want convenient, tasty and nutritious choices, the midtown Phoenix eatery serves zpizzas signature artisan brick oven baked pizzas made with premium ingredients, including fresh produce, award-winning skim mozzarella, certified organic tomato sauce and non-GMO flour. Customers appreciate the variety of gluten-free and vegan options available. Other trademark menu items include wings, shareable appetizers, salads, and build-your-own Jr. Chef pizzas for kids.

The Phoenix community values quality food as much as we do. The ingredients we use at zpizza are not only better for you, they taste better too, explains Rob Curcio, owner of the reopened zpizza and the zpizza Tap Room in Oro Valley. We're thrilled to bring these delicious pizzas and other offerings back to Phoenix.

The zpizza is located at 53 West Thomas Road in midtown Phoenix near St. Josephs Hospital. The restaurant seats 40 people with additional seating on the pet-friendly outdoor patio. Hours of operation are 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM seven days a week.

Like all zpizza locations, Phoenix offers the choice of dine-in, take-out and catering in addition to online ordering, so patrons can customize orders with ease from the comfort of their home or office. For more information, please call (602) 583-7002. Customers can join zTribe to receive alerts of new menu items as well as special discounts and offers all year long.

zpizza restaurants are located across the globe, with locations in the United States, South Korea, Vietnam and the UAE. For more information, please visit http://www.zpizza.com and connect on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

ABOUT ZPIZZA

Founded in 1986 in the heart of an art colony in Laguna Beach, California, zpizza is the first artisan-inspired pizza chain that appeals to traditional pizza lovers, health-conscious consumers and gourmet palates alike. For more information on zpizza, Tap Rooms, and store locations, visit http://www.zpizza.com
Dickinson Wright PLLC is pleased to announce that Attorney Carolyn Johnsen will be honored at the 2018 Turnaround and Transaction of the Year Awards on September 27, 2018 in Colorado Springs, Colo. Ms. Johnsen is part of the team that is being recognized for Turnaround of the Year: Small Company  Phoenix Manufacturing Partners, LLC.

Ms. Johnsen represented the unsecured creditors committee in the PMP case after appearing in court speaking about the treatment of creditors in the reorganization plan. As Committee counsel, she nearly quadrupled creditor recovery and collaborated on a new plan that was confirmed by the judge. This is the second year in a row Ms. Johnsen has been recognized for her work. Last year, she was part of the team that received the Turnaround of the Year: Mid-Size Company  Gilbert Hospital, LLC and Florence Hospital at Anthem, LLC.

Ms. Johnsen is a Member in the firms Phoenix office. Her experience includes creating complex plans of reorganization for multi-million dollar companies in a wide-range of industries, including mortgage lending, real estate, manufacturing, retail, refining, hospitality, aviation and energy-related. She has advised private and public corporations in formulating and implementing managerial, personnel and operational structures. She has also guided numerous boards and senior managers in developing strategies and solutions for revising operations and restructuring debt to effectuate the emergence of a stronger business through bankruptcy, or to take advantage of acquisition and sales opportunities, including the application of bankruptcy procedures favorable to corporate securities regulation compliance. In addition, Ms. Johnsen has negotiated multiple multi-million dollar transactions with lenders, investment bankers and brokers, asset purchasers and sellers, and governmental agencies.

Since 1993, the Turnaround Management Association has honored excellence through its annual awards program, which recognizes the most successful turnarounds and impactful transactions. The winners will be honored during a special awards celebration at The 2018 TMA Annual, taking place September 26-28 at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colo. To learn more, please click here.

About Dickinson Wright PLLC

Dickinson Wright PLLC is a general practice business law firm with more than 475 attorneys among more than 40 practice areas and 16 industry groups. Headquartered in Detroit and founded in 1878, the firm has 18 offices, including six in Michigan (Detroit, Troy, Ann Arbor, Lansing, Grand Rapids, and Saginaw) and 11 other domestic offices in Austin and El Paso, Texas; Columbus, Ohio; Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.; Lexington, Ky.; Nashville and Music Row, Tenn.; Las Vegas and Reno, Nev.; Phoenix, Ariz.; Silicon Valley, Calif.; and Washington, D.C. The firms Canadian office is located in Toronto.

Dickinson Wright offers our clients a distinctive combination of superb client service, exceptional quality, value for fees, industry expertise and business acumen. As one of the few law firms with ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certification, Dickinson Wright has built state-of-the-art, independently-verified risk management controls and security processes for our commercial transactions. Dickinson Wright lawyers are known for delivering commercially-oriented advice on sophisticated transactions and have a remarkable record of wins in high-stakes litigation. Dickinson Wright lawyers are regularly cited for their expertise and experience by Chambers, Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, and other leading independent law firm evaluating organizations.
BrightWave, the leading email and eCRM agency, was recognized as one of The Best Places to Work in Atlanta by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. The highly coveted award was announced September 6 at a gala highlighting the top 100 companies in Atlanta. BrightWave was named a Top 10 Best Place to Work in the Medium Sized Business category. Additionally, Quinn Giardina, Director of Talent Management at BrightWave, was cited as one of four HR Heroes at the award ceremony.

Being recognized as one of the top workplaces in Atlanta is one of the most significant external accomplishments in our 15-year history, stated Simms Jenkins, BrightWave Founder and CEO. One of our major goals during the last few years has been to become one of the best employers in Atlanta and our industry and this is major validation of the progress we have made on this important front. I am very proud of our team for this recognition as well as Quinns impressive honor.

BrightWave has received a wide range of prestigious awards in 2018 ranging from email program awards from The Email Experience Council, the industrys leading trade group, to President Raj Choudhury taking home two Marketer of the Year awards from the American Marketing Association (AMA) and Atlanta Interactive Marketing Association (AIMA).

BrightWave Continues Strong Growth

BrightWave continues to demonstrate industry leading growth. Year-over-year revenue has increased by more than 30% while BrightWave has added over twenty new employees to the team of specialized email and eCRM experts to better serve BrightWaves roster of world class brands.

According to the Relevancy Group, email marketing continues to be the most widely utilized marketing channel because of the significant ROI of email marketing that has been established for decades growing on average from 17 percent to 21 percent. As the value of email marketing and the complexity of the channel continues to increase, the need for email marketing agency expertise to enhance marketer capabilities is further underscored. BrightWave is continuing to seize on this surge of demand for sophisticated email services in conjunction with large scale digital transformations rapidly reshaping the marketplace.

Email Spotlight, The Rising Tide and EiQ Showcase Education, Community and Innovation

The Relevancy Group cites BrightWave as offering a superior level of counsel and industry resources to clients, stating in its 2017 Email Agency Buyers Guide that BrightWave blew the doors off their competition in the area of Educational Resources. BrightWave maintains and enhances its thought leader, disruptor and industry educator status by hosting a wide range of events that offer insight to those seeking additional resources and points of view in the fast-changing email, eCRM and cross-channel industries

BrightWave's next Email Spotlight will be on October 10 at its new headquarters in Atlanta. The Email Spotlight brings together digital leaders and practitioners in the email capital of the world showcasing the thriving and diverse email ecosystem. More than 15 leading vendors will attend to differentiate their offerings and explain where they add value in the customer journey. More information can be found at http://www.emailspotlight.com.

The company has also rolled out a new invite-only partner series called The Rising Tide for its team and clients to hear from relevant partners in an intimate setting.

Lastly, BrightWave will host its third annual EiQ on March 14, 2019. EiQ, the intelligent email gathering, will be at the Grand Hyatt Buckhead in Atlanta. In 2018, the wildly popular event brought over 400 marketers to Atlanta to learn and showcase emails performance and continued innovation. More information about the event can be found at http://www.EiQGathering.com.

About BrightWave

BrightWave is the leading email marketing agency. With over 15 years of experience managing the best email programs in the country, BrightWave elevates eCRM and cross-channel programs through industry-leading innovation, relationship orchestration and pioneering inbox experiences. Learn more at http://www.BrightWave.com.

BrightWave also is the creator of EiQ, the intelligent email gathering. This one-day event on March 14, 2019 is where the industry community convenes and focuses on innovation and business impact. For more information on the event, please visit http://www.eiqgathering.com.
Catapult Learning, a leading provider of special education and instructional intervention solutions, today announced the acquisition of the Leeway School for Educational Therapy in Alhambra, California. The Leeway School will join Catapult Learnings growing family of special education programs in California and across the country.

Catapult Learnings special education programs are specifically designed for students classified with learning exceptionalities, such as autism spectrum disorder, and those with emotional and behavioral challenges. With over 60 locations, Catapult Learning is one of the largest providers of special education services nationwide.

As we expand our services nationwide, we specifically look for partners with a track record of delivering positive student outcomes, said Jeffrey Cohen, CEO of Catapult Learning. The Leeway School has demonstrated a unique blend of emotional support and academic success for students with special needs. We will continue Leeways tradition of excellence ensuring that all students are able to thrive in and out of the classroom.

For 40 years, the Leeway School has served the Los Angeles Unified School District and other districts in the nearby San Gabriel Valley. Under Catapult Learning leadership, the special education therapeutic day school will continue educating students with behavioral difficulties and social/emotional issues.

Local school administrators and families have trusted the Leeway School and its staff to provide a nurturing learning environment for students with special needs, said Lee Sion, Ph.D., who founded the school in 1978. We looked for a partner that would carry this tradition forward and we found it in Catapult Learning. I am confident our long legacy of providing a supportive campus will continue with the Catapult Learning teams support and dedication.

The addition of the Leeway School marks Catapult Learnings tenth location in California. Other locations include the Sierra Schools in Sacramento (Sacramento County), Antioch (Contra Costa County), Oroville (Butte County), Elmira (Solano County) and Sebastopol (Sonoma County), as well as Sierra Academy and Springall Academy in San Diego (San Diego County).

Each of Catapult Learnings special education schools are designed to meet the academic, behavioral, and emotional needs of K12+ students facing intensive learning, language and social challenges. Implementing its signature academic and language acquisition models that incorporate supportive therapies and life skills training, Catapult Learning emphasizes guiding students to success and optimally preparing them for life beyond the classroom.

About Catapult Learning

Catapult Learning, Inc. provides education solutions that generate demonstrable academic achievement and better life outcomes for students, regardless of the learning barriers and other challenges they may face. The companys team of over 5,000 educators works to achieve sustained academic gains and build teacher and leadership capacity through evidence-based programs that include special education, intervention services, alternative education programs, and professional development solutions. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Camden, New Jersey, Catapult Learning partners with more than 500 school districts nationwide. Catapult Learning is accredited by AdvancED. http://www.catapultlearning.com
Attorney Brian W. Freeman, of Workers Compensation Lawyer, Inc. There is nothing more important in life than maintaining one's health. I hope to be the best advocate possible to guide my clients to the best possible cure and to the best professionals available.

Medical treatment can be challenging for anyone. Even attorneys for injured workers, said attorney Brian W. Freeman, founder of Workers Compensation Lawyer, Inc., a law firm dedicated to helping workers injured on the job.

Normally, Freeman is fighting insurance companies to get the necessary treatment for his clients to help cure or relieve the effects of their work-related injury. But in August of 2018, Freeman found himself right in his clients shoes with his own disabling back injury.

I wasnt doing anything crazy, but one day I bent over to lift a jug of water and my back popped and sent searing pain through my back and down my leg, Freeman recounts. I hoped I could sleep it off but the pain was so intense I spent that first night not sleeping at all. The pain got worse and worse until one day I could not get myself up off the floor and I had to call 911.

Freeman has private health insurance through a major provider and he was able to get an emergency MRI, which revealed he had suffered a 9 mm disc herniation at L4-L5. However, after he was discharged from the emergency room there was no follow-up plan and only a bottle of pain medication provided.

I was still in so much pain, I could not walk. My left leg stopped working. I could not get out of bed to even use the toilet. It was the scariest, most painful and depressing thing I had ever felt in my life, Freeman noted.

After two weeks of being confined to bed, Freeman took matters into his own hands and starting researching his condition and medical solutions. He found Doctor David Ditsworth, a neurosurgeon, of the Back Institute, who performs nano discectomies for this medical condition. His unique approach and procedure involve no cutting, no bleeding, and no scarring, unlike most other microdiscectomies. There is no removal of bone, only removal of the parts of the herniated disc which is causing the pain.

Since my insurance wasnt going to do anything for months, I decided it was worth paying out of pocket to try for this cure. I was able to secure a surgery date for the following week with Dr. Ditsworth, Freeman explained.

On August 22, 2018, Dr. Ditsworth performed the surgery at his surgical center in Beverly Hills, California, where he has operated on many other doctors, lawyers, and even judges. Freeman went from wheelchair bound that day to waking up and able to walk and feeling no more pain. A two weeks later, he still had no need for any pain pills of any kind.

It felt surreal like a miracle had just happened. I could not believe that an hour ago I was in 10/10 pain and now I feel no pain and am mobile again, Freeman exclaimed. I can only hope to use this knowledge and experience to help my clients through their injuries and guide them to the best doctors possible. There is nothing more important in life than maintaining one's health. I hope to be the best advocate possible to guide my clients to the best possible cure and to the best professionals available.

About Brian W. Freeman, Workers Compensation Lawyer, Inc.

Brian W. Freeman handles all kinds of work-related injury cases, from catastrophic loss of limb to psychological-stress injuries. With a background in civil litigation, Brian is passionate about fighting for the rights of Californias injured workers in the complex workers compensation system. He seeks to receive maximum value for his clients and there is no fee to the injured worker unless they win a recovery. CA Lic. # 256439. For more information, please call (844) 428-4563, or visit http://www.workerscompensationlawyerinc.com. The law office is located at 11762 De Palma Road, Suite 1C PMB 301, Corona, CA, 92883.

About the NALA

The NALA offers small and medium-sized businesses effective ways to reach customers through new media. As a single-agency source, the NALA helps businesses flourish in their local community. The NALAs mission is to promote a business relevant and newsworthy events and achievements, both online and through traditional media. The information and content in this article are not in conjunction with the views of the NALA. For media inquiries, please call 805.650.6121, ext. 361.
ChinaLove

Action-packed dating service ChinaLove, a website and smartphone app dedicated to bringing Asian members together around the world, has launched the ChinaLove Cupid Selfie Challenge to encourage members to use photo swap online and share their experiences in themed selfies during the Mid-Autumn Festival on September 24 and Chinas National Golden Week from October 1-7. The community challenge offers members an exciting chance to boost their dating profile activity, receive more attention and share precious moments with new matches using photo exchange.

The festive period spanning the Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinas National Golden Week is one of the most important Chinese celebrations each year, and a good time for singles to meet new friends and make fresh connections. ChinaLove has a large and growing membership and works hard to boost chat, romance and relationships among Asian singles looking to date and celebrate their culture.

The first photo swap opportunity during the ChinaLove Cupid Selfie Challenge is the romantic Mid-Autumn Festival on September 24, which is a harvest festival celebrated in China and Vietnam to mark the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. The Mid-Autumn Festival is famous for its devotion to the moon and the consumption of delicious mooncakes. With romance in the air and mooncakes on the table, it presents the perfect excuse to take and exchange photos. Chinas National Golden Week is another great occasion for members to take selfies, being a seven-day holiday packed with parties, travel, and celebrations starting with Chinas National Day on October 1.

Sharing selfie photos on ChinaLove is an exciting and instant way to show potential matches exactly whats happening right now and is especially interesting during the holidays. The ChinaLove Cupid Selfie Challenge is set to tap into the party spirit and take advantage of the many opportunities to take fascinating selfies that reveal a members best side and their engaging personality. Seeing real selfies taken by a member is a thrilling window into their life and a wonderful way to get closer and make dating progress.

The ChinaLove Cupid Selfie challenge is aiming to spread happiness and increase dating activity on ChinaLove, which offers the very latest interactive chat features delivering real-time communication. In addition to the popular photo swap tool, features include in-depth profiles, instant messaging and email all in one place, advanced matches search, and the helpful Lets Mingle message invite service. The ChinaLove smartphone dating app is available for iPhone and Android devices.

With high expectations for member photo swapping activity, the ChinaLove Cupid Selfie Challenge will run from September 23 to October 8.

For more information, visit http://www.chinalove.com

About ChinaLove

ChinaLove.com is a state-of-the-art dating service connecting Chinese singles online. Backed by a social networking investor with over 25 years of knowhow, ChinaLove is an advanced dating platform that delivers features including instant messaging, photo swap, and many other interactive dating tools. The ambitious dating service is aiming to reach all Chinese singles and become the ultimate solution for its members. With a real insight into what people want from dating, ChinaLove offers the most direct and successful approach to meeting Chinese singles. Online dating has now changed and people want to achieve better success in their search for their special someone. ChinaLoves Customer Service Team is on hand 24/7 to assist with any enquiries.

Media Contact:

Company Name: ChinaLove

Contact: ChinaLove PR

Email: pr@chinalove.com

Phone: +1 (212) 609-0533

Country: United States

Website: http://www.chinalove.com
Cindy Eckert, founder and CEO of Sprout Pharmaceuticals and The Pink Ceiling, today has launched The PinkCast, a podcast that shares unfiltered access to some of the most colorful friends in her little pink book. In a series of intimate one-on-one interviews with Eckert, these impressive guests will examine overcoming obstacles, both personal and professional.

Listeners will be able to hear in-depth and illuminating interviews with American fashion model Ashley Graham, Shark Tanks Robert Herjavec and financial feminist Sallie Krawcheck to name a few. Similar to her guests, Eckert has proven it, time and time again  both financially with the sales of two pharmaceutical companies and personally by remaining a champion for the underdog  understanding that the road to success isnt always easy. The guests on Eckerts show discuss the struggles they had to go through to get where they are today. The PinkCast is a show in three acts, discussing how guests got started, what theyre doing now, and what they have planned for the future, sharing their inspiration and insights about breaking through in business and in life.

Episodes will feature a cast of characters that are proven, innovative, nonconformists, and kickass. Or PINK as Eckert would say. She will release three episodes today and one episode monthly thereafter.

Eckerts 22-year career exemplifies resilience and the power of women owning their success and advocating for themselves and others. A self-made entrepreneur and vocal advocate for women, Eckert defies convention in both the pharmaceutical industry and the companies she invests in and rolls up her sleeves for. She has started and sold two businesses for more than $1.5B. First Slate Pharmaceuticals, which redefined long acting testosterone treatment for men and then Sprout Pharmaceuticals, which broke through with the first ever FDA-approved drug for low sexual desire in women. After selling the company for $1B in 2015, she successfully fought to get the drug back and launch it on her own terms. Her work in The Pink Ceiling, an investment firm, incubator and consulting enterprise with a mission to mentor, invest in, launch and build other women-focused businesses continues to break barriers and helps other women achieve the same outcome.

Listeners can find the podcast on any device, and Apple listeners can subscribe to the podcast here.

About Cindy Eckert

A self-made serial entrepreneur and vocal advocate for women, Cindy defies convention. In her industry, in her companies, in her outcomes. Her work today in The Pink Ceiling/Pinkubator continues to break barriers by investing in and mentoring other women to get to her same outcomes. Shes on a mission to make women really rich. You cannot miss Cindy. Everything she touches turns to pink. Over a distinguished 24-year career in healthcare, in only the last 10 she has started and sold two businesses for more than $1.5B. First Slate Pharmaceuticals, which redefined long acting testosterone treatment for men then Sprout Pharmaceuticals which broke through with the first ever FDA-approved drug for low sexual desire in women  dubbed female Viagra by the media. After selling the company for $1B in 2015, she successfully fought to get the drug back and launch it on her own terms. Cindy has made waves, and made her own success, creating mission driven companies that deliver big. Her results have become a widely covered business success story featured in major media outlets. She is most proud of helping others take command. The profoundly positive impact those companies have made in peoples lives is what keeps her coming back for more.
Cleopatra Enterprise - Leading Project Cost Management Software Projects have truly become more complex, increasing the need for the right project control tool. By leveraging the digital technologies, companies now can increase data usability, improve their project cost management processes and move towards a situation of continuous improvement.

One of the worlds largest oil field services companies has selected Cleopatra Enterprise as their Project Cost Management Software. With Cleopatra, the fullstream oil and gas company will be able to prepare solid and trustworthy cost estimates for their projects from Subsea Production Systems to Renewable Energy. The combination of powerful tools and cloud-based technology will also allow the company to apply the anywhere anytime approach.

The enterprise site license obtained by the organization will provide an unlimited number of users with access to Cleopatra. This will allow the business units in different regions to implement Cleopatra and meet the requirements of the cost estimates ranging from the very first conceptual estimate up to a definitive estimate.

As an integrated project controls solution, Cleopatra offers cost estimating, scheduling, cost management, and benchmarking in one system. It helps companies make reliable cost estimates, as well as better monitor and control their projects in the entire project life cycle. As the next step, the fullstream oil and gas company will be exploring the new Benchmark module of Cleopatra Enterprise.

The big data analytics capabilities of Cleopatra Benchmark let organizations capture the project data to find meaningful cost relations in large datasets. This paves the way for improvements in cost estimations and also serves as a corporate memory for high-level decision making.

Projects have truly become more complex, increasing the need for the right project control tool. said Stefan Bakker, VP Business US of Cleopatra Enterprise. By leveraging the digital technologies, companies now can increase data usability, improve their project cost management processes and move towards a situation of continuous improvement. We are excited to work with organizations who embrace new technologies and who are focused on improving their project performances.

About Cleopatra Enterprise

Cleopatra Enterprise is the innovative Project Cost Management Software for the industry. With a mission to help companies complete projects within time and budget, Cleopatra integrates cost estimating, scheduling, cost management and benchmarking.

For more than 20 years, Cleopatra Enterprise has been used by more than 500 industry-leading companies in 75 countries to control technical projects and improve the project performance. Visit the website: http://www.costmanagement.eu
Our Crisis Line service has been used to provide a coordinated, dynamic response to a #Me Too incident at a major university and to assist a long term care provider help families locate and confirm the safety of their loved ones during the California wildfires , said Co-CEO Giovanni Gallo.

On-Demand Service Provides Quick Response to Address Special Situations Such as #MeToo Allegations, Hurricane Level Disasters While Meeting Regulatory Needs

ComplianceLine, the industry-leading ethics and compliance solutions provider, announced today it has recently launched a dedicated Crisis Line Service as a quick response to address emergency requests from clients managing organizational and reputational challenges. The Crisis Line Service, which has already been adopted by leading universities, medical providers and multi-location corporations, provides an active response to unexpected incidents to safeguard people and clients.

The Crisis Line gives us the ability to manage any level of call volume on extremely short notice for our clients, said Co-CEO and Chief Development Officer Giovanni Gallo. Our Crisis Line service has been used to provide a coordinated, dynamic response to a #MeToo incident at a major university and to assist a national long term care provider in helping families locate and confirm the safety of their loved ones during the California wildfires when police and fire departments were overwhelmed and unable to field inquiries.

A good example might well be this weeks Hurricane Florence," Giovanni added. "Our Crisis Line service can provide an elevated and focused multi-media communications response to deal with a disaster like this, in addition to ComplianceLines standard hotline and transparency solutions.

The Crisis Line service offers clients:

 On-demand flexible reporting and transparency solutions integrated into one platform to better comply with regulatory requirements;

 Crucial public-facing and company-directed crisis response and engagement;

 Rapid deployment of specialized intake strategies and customized issue- and location-based issue routing;

 Crucial protection of data privacy and (where needed) the anonymity of potentially-affected people or those involved in a crisis issue.

A major national long-term care provider used the ComplianceLine Crisis Line Service during the 2017 California Wildfires when their team was fully engaged in managing and communicating about resident safety. ComplianceLine was there to quickly get a Crisis Line service up and running to handle a flood of inquiries with a multi-media intake strategy. With a proper response, the client was able to publicly show their commitment to affected parties while putting family members at ease and triaging any safety concerns reported on the line.

It is challenging and rewarding to see the Crisis Line and our other Third Party Hotline services help guide companies through ethics and compliance issues like sexual harassment where such behavior is not only deplorable but puts an organization at risk, said Co-CEO and Chief Servant Nick Gallo, then added, More importantly services like the Crisis Line give a voice and outlet for those who have had really terrible, scarring experiences at the hands of someone else with 'power'. My brother Gio and I have a strong sense of justice because of the way we were raised and where our family came from, and it is really satisfying to make a difference and be part of an industry that fights for whats right.

We have the resources to handle virtually any level of need for our clients, Nick Gallo continued. Depending on the circumstance we can provide the resources for additional call volumes, as well as develop intake strategies and specialized issue routing, help design and execute a social media response, create custom web-based intake portals, and a myriad other ways to mitigate a spectrum of client concerns.

About ComplianceLine

For over 20 years ComplianceLine has been the premier provider of ethics and compliance solutions by putting clients first and prioritizing their needs through selfless service. ComplianceLines continuous improvement culture and pursuit of quality over short term profit affords clients the industrys best tools in assisting the identification of unethical, illegal and questionable behavior. The ComplianceLine team provides helpline and sanction screening services in 50,000 locations worldwide through highly trained, tenured, and caring compliance-minded professionals focused on improving the lives of our clients through excellent service. ComplianceLine clients include many of the largest healthcare and higher education organizations in the world.

http://www.complianceline.com

Contact: David Thoreau, PR Consultant (dcthoreau@aol.com)

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Atlanta-based Cumberland Group announced today it has been named one of Atlantas Best Places to Work by the Atlanta Business Chronicle in its 15th annual competition that assesses the most hospitable professional environments for employees in the metro area. The distinction marks the second workplace honor for the IT consultancy, which in March was named a top 5 business in the Atlanta Journal-Constitutions 2018 Top Workplaces report.

Honored at a Sept. 6 ceremony hosted by the Chronicle and sponsors, Cumberland Group ranked third of 20 finalists in the medium category, which acknowledges companies with 50-99 employees. Launched in 2014, Cumberland Group will celebrate its fourth anniversary in October.

"Cultivating a workplace that's professionally empowering and enjoyable has been a priority from the beginning, said president and co-founder Ken Snuggs. Happy, satisfied employees share their enthusiasm in numerous ways that benefit clients, bringing that positive energy to conversations and challenges that help turn good ideas into great solutions.

The distinction is the result of a monthslong evaluation led by the Atlanta Business Chronicle and its partner in the endeavor, Omaha, Neb.-based Quantum Workplace. The Chronicle first asked readers for nominations via its website, then Quantum surveyed employees based on topics such as overall work satisfaction, growth opportunities, level of engagement, and training.

About Cumberland Group

Based in Atlanta, Ga., Cumberland Group is the advisory and services firm companies turn to when their technology cant keep up with todays demands. We sit at the intersection of management consulting firms, technology manufacturers, VARS, and system integratorsa vantage that provides a broad perspective as we guide organizations making critical decisions for immediate improvement and long-term business goals. Our advice is tailored to our clients goals; our integration, customized to their needs; and our solutions are developed specifically for their challenges. From strategic planning to precision execution, we do whatever it takes to help them prepare for whatevers next. Our combination of fresh perspective, deep resources, and turn-on-a-dime flexibility is why leading companies partner with Cumberland Group for their most challenging IT initiatives.

For more information, visit http://www.cumberlandgroupIT.com, and follow us on Twitter @cumberlandGRP.
6th International Pediatric Feeding Disorders Conference Endorsed by the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, the 6th International Pediatric Feeding Disorders Conference features intermediate and advanced level sessions with over 20 internationally renowned feeding experts.

Time is running out to take advantage of early bird registration for the 6th International Pediatric Feeding Conference held January 17-19, 2019 at the Renaissance Phoenix Glendale Hotel & Spa in Glendale, Arizona. After September 30, in-person registration will increase by US$100 and virtual registration will increase by US$50.

Endorsed by the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, the two-day 6th International Pediatric Feeding Disorders Conference features intermediate and advanced level sessions with over 20 internationally renowned feeding experts, as well as a lightning talk and poster session.

With in-person and virtual registration options, professionals near and far can gain access to the latest developments and research in the evaluation and treatment of pediatric feeding disorders.

Register today at pediatricfeedingconference.com.

KEYNOTE PRESENTATIONS

Friday, January 18, 2019

Pediatric Feeding Disorder: 2019 Update Framework

Dr. Jaime Phalen, MD, FAAP

Pediatric feeding disorders lack a universally accepted definition. Our consensus paper proposes a unifying diagnostic term, pediatric feeding disorder encompassing medical, nutrition, feeding skill, and psychosocial domains.

Saturday, January 19, 2019

What Is New In Motility Disorders?

Dr. Carlo di Lorenzo, MD

Motility problems are highly prevalent and may present with many different symptoms, including vomiting, food refusal, and abdominal distension. There will be a discussion of advantages and limitations of different testing modalities for motility problems. The final part of the lecture will focus on treatment strategies.

About Feeding Matters

For kids with pediatric feeding disorders, every bite of food can be painful, scary, or impossible, potentially impeding nutrition, development, growth, and overall well-being. Thats why Feeding Matters is dedicated to creating a world where children with pediatric feeding disorders will thrive. Founded in 2006, Feeding Matters is the first organization in the world devoted to accelerating identification, igniting research, promoting collaborative care, and encouraging awareness and understanding for pediatric feeding disorders. In 2017, Feeding Matters reached more than 129,000 families and medical professionals from all 50 states and 112 countries.

To learn more about pediatric feeding disorders, visit feedingmatters.org or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube at @FeedingMatters.
Dropsuite is a great value-added service

Dropsuite Limited (ASX:DSE), a leading cloud data backup platform for businesses, announced that Giacom, one of the largest Hosted Exchange Distributors in the UK, will now offer Dropsuite Hosted Exchange Backup in its Cloud Market to IT professionals across the UK. The partnership will help meet the rising demand for affordable, easy-to-use cloud backup solutions that Dropsuite offers, including robust GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) compliance features plus next generation email intelligence tools.

Giacom resellers are now able to offer their customers an easy, cost effective way to protect their Hosted Exchange data using Dropsuites Hosted Exchange Backup, with key features such as automated incremental backup, one-click email restore, the ability to download recovered data, unlimited email storage and retention, military-grade security and encryption, and universal search and discover.

Now that GDPR has become law, the compliance stakes are high, which is why Dropsuite takes great pride in making sure users of our products can effortlessly manage their organizations critical email infrastructure to safeguard user information, ensure data availability and maintain business email continuity. For example, with our Advanced Search tool, users can choose from 20 different attributes such as senders name, date, keyword, header and so on to filter and find the right files fast. Users can also view, modify and delete search queries with just a click. This greatly simplifies file recovery or discovery -- an important GDPR requirement.

Being GDPR compliant is a must have for all businesses," said Mike Wardell, CEO at Giacom. "Emails and attachments often contain personal data -- and that means you must be able to access and search within our Hosted Exchange environment -- both current records and historical -- quickly. Dropsuite Hosted Exchange Backup not only protects data, but its searchable email archives enable our customers to quickly fulfill time-sensitive GDPR requests. Dropsuite is a great value-added service for our Hosted Exchange resellers, enabling them to benefit from stronger margins, as well as sophisticated security and compliance for their customers."

Dropsuite's evidentiary-quality email archiving solution focuses on preservation, maintenance and the ability to apply advanced search to backed up and archived emails, attachments and related data, said Ridley Ruth, COO of Dropsuite. "We're proud to help Giacom's resellers and their customers adhere to GDPR regulations and avoid non-compliance penalties."

Dropsuite simplifies data protection so business organizations can focus on delivering what they do best; providing value and growth. Besides backing up and archiving Microsoft Exchange, the company protects Office 365, G Suite Gmail, IMAP/POP email systems as well as websites and their databases.

For more information about Giacom Cloud Market, please visit: http://www.cloudmarket.com. For more information about Dropsuite, please visit: https://dropsuite.com.

About Giacom

Founded in 1999, Giacom World Networks Ltd was originally rooted in ISP technology. Today, with more than 4,000 SMB partners, Giacom is the largest Office 365 Indirect CSP Distributor in the UK. Its dedicated partner channel, the Giacom Cloud Market, is customer-driven to reflect its easy on, easy off approach to all cloud services. The Giacom Cloud Market is Europes largest reseller-only network for IT professionals, providing a wide range of cloud services. https://giacom.com/

About Dropsuite

Dropsuite (ASX:DSE) is a global cloud software platform enabling business organizations in over 100 countries to easily backup, recover and protect their important company information. Dropsuites network of preferred reseller partners has a combined customer reach of millions of businesses worldwide. Dropsuites products include G Suite Gmail Backup, Email Archiving, Website Backup and Cloud Backup of Office 365  which effortlessly backs up Exchange Online, OneDrive, SharePoint and Teams. Dropsuite has partnered with some of the biggest names in the web hosting and IT service provider markets such as UOL, GoDaddy, Ingram Micro and Crazy Domains to safeguard businesses from the threat of unexpected data loss. Dropsuite was launched in 2012 and is headquartered in Singapore with a sales presence in the US, Europe, Japan, Brazil and Australia. https://dropsuite.com
Hippo is now able to leverage computer vision technology and property attributes zesty.ai offers into its data-driven underwriting processes, further enhancing its customers onboarding and claims experience.

Hippo, the California-based insurtech company that is transforming home insurance for savvy homeowners, and zesty.ai, a leading Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled risk analytics platform for Property and Casualty insurance, have announced a multi-year partnership. Hippo is now able to leverage computer vision technology and property attributes zesty.ai offers into its data-driven underwriting processes, further enhancing its customers onboarding and claims experience.

At the heart of everything we do, from partnerships to new products is the customer experience, said Assaf Wand, Co-Founder and CEO, Hippo. The integration of zesty.ais AI technology and data will bring our customers real-time insights on their properties, which expedites the application process upfront and helps us identify potential issues on their properties in the future - like brush encroaching on their property fireline, or necessary roof repairs. Were reshaping home insurance into a proactive product by alerting our clients to property issues before they become accidents and were proud to have partnered with zesty.ai who feels the same way.

Zesty.ai leverages the latest advancements in Artificial Intelligence and deep learning on billions of data points on residential and commercial properties and their inhabitants to better assess the risk of catastrophic events, such as hurricanes, wildfires and floods and non-catastrophic events at the individual property level.

We are excited to join forces with Hippo to help pioneer the digital transformation of the trillion dollar property insurance industry, stated Attila Toth, Co-Founder & CEO of zesty.ai. Through this partnership, millions of homeowners across America will enjoy more transparency and rapid savings when shopping for insurance and maintaining their homes.

About zesty.ai

Zesty.ai leverages Artificial Intelligence to change the way the trillion-dollar global property insurance industry has been assessing risk for decades. We use the latest advancements in computer vision and deep learning on 115+Bn data points on residential and commercial properties to extract key building features (e.g., roof geometry, material, quality; distance to inflammable vegetation and more) to accurately model the potential impact of both non-catastrophic and catastrophic loss events, such as hurricanes, floods, wildfires and earthquakes.

Leading insurance carriers and reinsurers have partnered with zesty.ai to underwrite risk more accurately, provide their customers a smoother purchasing experience and manage inspections more cost-effectively. For more info please visit https://zesty.ai and watch our 100-second video.

About Hippo

Hippo is on a mission to transform home insurance for the modern household. Among its many innovations, Hippo allows homeowners to get a quote and purchase home insurance online in 60 seconds or less, save up to 25 percent compared with traditional insurers, and obtain smarter coverage for modern households. This includes protection for possessions like appliances, consumer electronics and home offices. Founded in 2015 by Assaf Wand and Eyal Navon, Hippo made its debut in the insurance marketplace in April 2017, and has raised $39 million to reinvent home insurance through its initial funding rounds. The company is headquartered in Mountain View, California. For more information, visit http://www.myhippo.com.
Its our goal to provide best-in-class education on the topic and offer a forum for meaningful, actionable dialogue to combat the crisis.

Amid calls for action from clinical professionals, law enforcement officials, and other stakeholders to address the growing national stimulant epidemic, HMP, a leading healthcare event and education company, today announced the Institute for the Advancement of Behavioral Healthcare, a wholly owned subsidiary, will hold its inaugural National Cocaine, Meth, & Stimulant Summit November 12-14, 2018 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

In addition to the opioid crisis, abuse of stimulants such as methamphetamine, cocaine, and even prescription drugs such as Adderall and Ritalin is surging across the country, fed by cheap, potent, and plentiful supplies. The twin epidemics continue to overwhelm law enforcement and treatment providers. The 2018 Summit will bring together more than 200 stakeholders comprising treatment providers and public health, law enforcement, and government officials to develop practical, real-world solutions to address the ongoing crisis.

Everyone is focused on opioids, but the U.S. is now facing a very significant stimulant epidemic, said Doug Edwards, Director, Institute for the Advancement of Behavioral Healthcare (IABHC). The launch of the National Cocaine, Meth, & Stimulant Summit aims to bring the conversation on stimulants to the forefront by convening stakeholders from many different areas who are engaged in finding solutions. Its our goal to provide best-in-class education on the topic and offer a forum for meaningful, actionable dialogue to combat the crisis.

Comprised of leaders with demonstrated experience in the field, the Advisory Board most notably includes Hugo J. Barrera, Director of the South Florida High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA). Barrera brings a wealth of knowledge and real-world experience to the board, including valuable perspective from serving on the front lines of the stimulant epidemic. A native of Cuba, Barrera became a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent in 1983 after nearly seven years as a homicide detective for the Miami Police Department. In March 2016, Barrera became director of the South Florida HIDTA. Over the past three years, the South Florida HIDTA has seized an average of $713 million worth of illicit drugs per year from regional and international drug trafficking organizations.

Other members of the board are: John Dyben, HHSc, MCAP, CMHP, ICAD, Chief Clinical Officer, Origins Behavioral Healthcare; John Eadie, MPA, Coordinator, Public Health and Prescription Drug Monitoring Program and National Emerging Threat Initiative, A National HIDTA Initiative; and Jim Hall, PhD, Senior Epidemiologist, Center for Applied Research on Substance Use and Health Disparities Nova Southeastern University.

Attendees of the 2018 National Cocaine, Meth, & Stimulant Summit will be able to earn up to 20 CE credits including 3 Ethics/Domestic Violence credits.

For more information about the Summit visit stimulantsummit.com. For media inquiries or press registration contact Kelly McCurdy at pr@hmpglobal.com.

About HMP

HMP is the force behind Healthcare Made Practical  and is a multichannel leader in healthcare events and education, with a mission to improve patient care. The company produces accredited medical education events and clinically relevant, evidence-based content for the global healthcare community across a range of therapeutic areas. Its brands include Consultant360, the year-round, award-winning platform relied upon by primary care providers and other specialists; Psych Congress, the largest independent mental health meeting in the U.S.; EMS World Expo, North Americas largest EMT and paramedic event; and the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC), the largest wound care meeting in the world. For more information, visit hmpglobal.com.

About the Institute for Behavioral Healthcare

The Institute is the leading provider of education for front-line clinicians, mental health and substance use treatment center executives, public health professionals, and law enforcement officials. Its portfolio includes three well-respected events: the National Rx Drug Abuse & Heroin Summit, the largest gathering of federal, state and local professionals focused on addressing prescription drug abuse; the National Conference on Alcohol & Addiction Disorders; and the National Cocaine, Meth & Stimulant Summit, as well as award-winning print and digital brands Addiction Professional and Behavioral Healthcare Executive. The Institute also leads discussion among policy makers, prevention and public health officials, law enforcement personnel, and community advocates. For more information visit iadvancebehavioralhealthcare.com.
Igloo Software, the leading provider of digital workplace solutions, announced today a new partnership with California-based Lucidworks that will see Igloos Digital Workplace platform leverage the latest in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing technology to improve search speed and relevancy.

Bringing AI and Machine Learning to the Digital Workplace

The new partnership with Lucidworks will see Igloo augment its search capabilities with artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing to deliver personalized and more relevant search results for Igloos customers. Lucidworks, based in San Francisco, is a leader in AI-powered search and discovery. Its technology will power sophisticated employee experiences for Igloo customers by finding correlations across human, machine, and application generated data in real-time and at scale. Lucidworks was recently named a leader in Gartners 2018 Magic Quadrant for Insight Engines.

According to IDC, total worldwide data will swell to 163 zettabytes by 2025, 10 times the amount today and the majority of this will be created and managed by enterprises1. Another study by McKinsey cites knowledge workers spend a day a week looking for internal information or tracking down colleagues who can help with specific tasks2. This exponential growth in the creation, capture, and storage of digital information is placing huge limitations on enterprises today and the ability of employees to find relevant content quickly through traditional search technology. With Lucidworks, Igloo will offer intelligent enterprise search that greatly enhances information discoverability with faster, relevant search results.

Were building the future of search right here at Igloo today, and our partnership with Lucidworks will allow us to deliver a new standard for an intelligent search experience for our customers  one suited to exceed the requirements of today and beyond, said Dan Latendre, Founder and CEO of Igloo Software. By integrating Lucidworks technology into our digital workplace platform, customers will have access to a powerful search engine for the discovery of both corporate knowledge assets as well as people.

Its refreshing to partner with a company like Igloo who takes search as serious as we do, said Grant Ingersoll, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Lucidworks. Igloos vision for its next-generation search  moving from keyword, to AI, to unified search  has been well planned and once fully implemented will be a real game changer. Were honored to partner with Igloo at every step of the way and be part of this journey.

This announcement was made by Dan Latendre, Founder & CEO, Igloo Software; Stephen Rahal, VP, Product Strategy, Igloo Software; and Grant Ingersoll, Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Lucidworks at the definitive digital workplace event of the year, ICE'18, in San Antonio, Texas.

For more information, please visit http://icebyigloo.com

About Igloo Software

Igloo is the leading next-generation intranet platform. Through its portfolio of digital workplace solutions, Igloo partners with customers to address challenges related to communication, collaboration, knowledge management, employee engagement, and culture. Igloo integrates with the apps and systems your business relies on and centralizes information for a single source-of-truth and a more productive and engaged workforce. For more information, please visit http://www.igloosoftware.com.

Follow Igloo Software on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
Igloo Software, a leading provider of digital workplace solutions, announced today that it will soon be offering its customers the option to have their Igloo Digital Workplace solutions hosted on Microsoft Azure regions in Canada and Europe, building upon its current Canadian data center, and Azure hosting options in the US.

Igloos growing base of multinational enterprise customers will soon be able to use Azure for local data residency options in US, Canada and Europe, taking full advantage of Azures enterprise-grade performance, security, privacy, compliance, and transparency. Igloo will be communicating specific timelines with its customers when these changes will take place.

As the digital workplace becomes mission critical, and our customer base shifts toward large, multinational enterprises, we need to provide them with the flexibility to meet their local data residency requirements, said Stephen Rahal, Vice President, Product Strategy, Igloo Software. Microsoft Azure provides us with the ultimate flexibility to meet the needs of this diverse, and expanding customer base.

Additionally, Igloo and Microsoft have been working towards greater alignment of their go-to-market approach, and Igloo today announced enhanced business intelligence and improved Microsoft Office 365 integrations built into the Igloo platform, including Microsoft OneNote, Microsoft Outlook Calendar, and Microsoft SharePoint. These new capabilities help enterprises address productivity challenges in the modern workplace and better support digital transformation initiatives across the globe.

Igloo understands the need to constantly evolve to better meet the dynamic needs of its customers, said Stephen Tanaka, CTO of One Commercial Partner at Microsoft Canada. Igloos focus on communication, collaboration, knowledge management and employee engagement is a complement to the capabilities of Microsoft Office 365 and Microsoft Azure. Were continuously looking for ways to innovate our services and provide a better digital experience, so working with Igloo is a natural fit.

Rahal added, Our time collaborating with Microsoft allows us to build a better digital workplace experience for our customers, and their support has been crucial as we develop new solutions and reach new markets. Our goal is to enable employees to be more productive, engaged, and inspired in their organizations by providing a digital destination that streamlines and improves communication, collaboration and knowledge management across the business.

This announcement was made by Dan Latendre, Founder & CEO, Igloo Software, and Stephen Rahal at the definitive digital workplace event of the year, ICE'18, in San Antonio, Texas. Stephen Tanaka, CTO of One Commercial Partner at Microsoft Canada will be delivering his keynote address at ICE18 on Sept 13th on the Modern Workplace.

For more information, please visit http://icebyigloo.com

About Igloo Software

Igloo is the leading next-generation intranet platform. Through its portfolio of digital workplace solutions, Igloo partners with customers to address challenges related to communication, collaboration, knowledge management, employee engagement, and culture. Igloo integrates with the apps and systems your business relies on and centralizes information for a single source-of-truth and a more productive and engaged workforce. For more information, please visit http://www.igloosoftware.com.

Follow Igloo Software on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

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Clay Hughes will lead the Industrial Scientific legal team and be responsible for all compliance activities within the company. We believe Clay's skills and leadership will greatly benefit our internal and external stakeholders.

Industrial Scientific, the global leader in gas detection, is pleased to announce that Clay Hughes has joined the company in the role of general counsel. Clay will lead the legal team and be responsible for all compliance activities within the company.

Clay worked most recently at UPMC Enterprises where he supported commercialization efforts of new software and technology health care products. Prior to UPMC, Clay worked in the Pittsburgh offices of Jones Day and Reed Smith.

Before earning his J.D. at the University of Pittsburgh, Clay worked as a consultant with PriceWaterhouseCoopers and as a product manager at FreeMarkets. Clay holds a B.S. in chemical engineering from Penn State University and is a registered U.S. patent attorney.

We are pleased to welcome Clay to the team, said Justin McElhattan, president of Industrial Scientific. We believe his skills and leadership will greatly benefit our internal and external stakeholders.

About Industrial Scientific Corporation

As the global leader in gas detection, Industrial Scientific provides gas detection products and services that keep workers safe in hazardous environments. The companys 800 employees in 21 countries are committed to preserving human life and have dedicated their careers to eliminating death on the job by the year 2050. Established in 1985 and headquartered in Pittsburgh (USA), Industrial Scientific also has operations based in Arras, France and Shanghai, China, and provides technical services to customers from local service centers around the world. Industrial Scientific is the parent company to Predictive Solutions Corporation (http://www.predictivesolutions.com). For more information, visit http://www.indsci.com.
Monica Lewinsky's "The Price of Shame" TedTalk The San Diego National Conference will hold the empathy experts, the compassion scientists, and the cyberbullying investigators all in the same unified space...

The International Bullying Prevention Association (IBPA) is setting out to "put the pieces together" in the puzzle that is bullying in today's world. Its 15th annual conference, "Putting the Pieces Together for Healthy Schools," is rooted in groundbreaking, evidence-based research to inform interdisciplinary practices of all kinds. With over 40 unique workshops empowering attendees to build their most effective "tool-kit" of knowledge and strategies yet, IBPA captures its belief that a diversity of perspectives is necessary in tackling bullying response and prevention.

At the forefront of this year's conference are world-renowned keynote speakers, Monica Lewinsky and Dr. Eddie Moore Jr.. Tackling critical, engaging topics such as cyberbullying and cultural competency, their impact at the conference is sure to be memorable.

"The San Diego National Conference will hold the empathy experts, the compassion scientists, and the cyberbullying investigators all in the same unified space...Monica Lewinsky and Dr. Eddie Moore Jr.'s' messages are just what we need to ignite this immense wealth of knowledge towards new, undiscovered solutions," says Nicolette Granata, IBPA's Communications Coordinator.

A wealth of additional information about the conference can be found at https://ibpaworld.org/events/conferences/. $100 off registration prices is an offer active until September 14th, 2018. Join the International Bullying Prevention Association in our vision of A World Without Bullying today!
Ladys New World: the heartwarming story of a beagles new friends. Ladys New World is the creation of published author Jerry Steele, a fiction and nonfiction writer since the age of 7, who has written for several publications. A native of Omaha, Nebraska, Steele enjoys photography, sketching, woodwork, and traveling with his wife.

Steele writes, Ladys Beagle nose picked up sweet scents everywhere. Above, the sky was an ocean blue. A slight breeze blew through the grass. Her tail wagged with delight.

She followed the brown wooden rail fence around the yard. This was where her master had walked her as a puppy. Just then, her floppy ears began picking up a strange sound. It went Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!

Hey, kid, where do you think youre going? Lady stopped.

Im up here.

Looking up, Lady saw a bird. It sat on the fencepost.

Who are you?

The bird looked down chirping,

Im Rocky Robin,

Im here every spring,

Once I catch my worms,

I sit here and sing.

My name is Lady, she said, and I live here.

Okay, said Rocky the Robin. Pleased to meet you. Heres some advice: watch out for Tomcat Teddy. He likes to give the new critters like you trouble. Ill see you around.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Jerry Steeles new book is a lively, beautifully illustrated book that teaches young children not only about the different animals they can find close to home, but how unique each one is.

The lovable beagles story will also show children that it is these individual differences that can powerfully unite rather than divide us.

View a synopsis of Ladys New World on YouTube.

Consumers can purchaseLadys New World at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about Ladys New World, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
Laureate Digital has been building out its business by working with those who share the Laureate vision that blockchain will completely disrupt the asset management industry

Laureate Digital Securities Ltd. (Laureate Digital), a fintech company which integrates blockchain technologies with the asset management industry, announced today the establishment of its global headquarters in Bermuda. Laureate Digital chose Bermuda because the country has instituted the worlds most robust legislation to govern the creation and trading of digital securities and sets high regulatory standards for companies operating in the financial technology industry.

Laureate Digital also announced today the acquisition of MESH OTC, a decentralized over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives exchange initiative powered by blockchain. As part of the acquisition, MESH OTCs CEO and co-Founder, Martin Worner, is joining Laureate Digitals leadership team as Chief Technology Officer.

Laureate Digital has been building out its business by working with those who share the Laureate vision that blockchain will completely disrupt the asset management industry, said Nicole Biernat, President and Chief Operating Officer of Laureate Digital. We are enabling this shift and Bermuda is the leading jurisdiction for this confluence. The acquisition of MESH OTC made it possible for us to bring their CEO on board. Martins work has been at the forefront of the marriage of capital markets and blockchain, and we are beyond pleased to have him.

In his new role, Worner is responsible for all facets of the companys technology infrastructure and will lead the firms efforts on employing blockchain and other cutting-edge technologies to disrupt the capital markets industry. In addition to his work in blockchain, Worner brings more than three decades of experience in capital markets technology, with tenures at some of Europes leading financial institutions.

At Laureate Digital, we strongly believe that the days of paper-based subscription forms and confirmation letters from administrators will come to an end, and secondary market trading in blockchain-based securitized funds will be the norm, said Worner. Im delighted to join the company and help to position Laureate Digital on the vanguard of this transformation.

We are pleased to welcome Laureate Digital to Bermuda, said Sean Moran, Interim CEO of the Bermuda Business Development Agency (BDA). Our agencys concierge service has assisted the Laureate Digital team with its due diligence, providing information on our jurisdictions laws and regulations, as well as introductions to law firms, administrators, directors, and other service providers with whom they have partnered in this venture. Were particularly excited that such an innovative company has chosen Bermuda as its global headquarters at a time when we are building a world-class platform for digital asset businesses. Laureate Digital is the first start-up to merge asset management and blockchain technology in this way, and it signals an evolution for the funds industry.

About Laureate Digital Securities

Laureate Digital Securities was founded to address the lack of institutional-quality service providers prepared to support the advent of digital securities. The company facilitates the securitization of investment funds on a blockchain, enabling them to become tradeable on digital security exchanges. In addition to creating these securities, Laureate Digital is developing a platform to provide the requisite services for the administration of regulatory-compliant digital security offerings and the trading of them in the secondary market. For more information or to inquire about career opportunities with Laureate Digital Securities, please visit laureate.io or email info@laureate.io.
The kit, in a human serum matrix, is the only linearity and calibration verification material specifically targeting Roches Troponin T Gen 5 STAT (TnTG5) assay range.

LGC Maine Standards releases VALIDATE hsTnT, linearity and calibration verification kit, for Roche cobas, Order Number 405ro. The kit, in a human serum matrix, is the only linearity and calibration verification material specifically targeting Roches Troponin T Gen 5 STAT (TnTG5) assay range.

Each VALIDATE hsTnT kit, liquid, ready-to-use, and prepared using the CLSI EP06-A equal delta sample preparation, offers five distinct concentrations specifically covering the reportable range. Simply dispense the solution from each dropper bottle, directly into five sample cups, and run in replicates.

Release of VALIDATE hsTnT for Roche cobas users, allows clinical laboratories to complete their required high-sensitive Troponin linearity and calibration verification and maximize the reportable range while minimizing manual dilutions. Use of this product, while augmenting daily QC, assists with fulfilling various quality control requirements  such as Reportable Range and Analytical Measurement Range (AMR)  for linearity and calibration verification under CLIA 88, CAP, COLA, JCAHO, JCI and ISO 15189.

The addition of VALIDATE hsTnT, for Roche cobas analyzers, to the LGC Maine Standards expanding portfolio of products demonstrates a continued commitment to manufacture high-quality linearity and calibration verification products that meet industry needs.

LGC Maine Standards is located in Cumberland Foreside, Maine and manufactures VALIDATE linearity and calibration verification kits for 137 analytes, including General Chemistries, Urine Chemistries, Body Fluid Chemistries, Enzymes, Lipids, HbA1c, Therapeutic Drugs, Cardiac Markers, Thyroids, Serum Proteins, Vitamin D, Tumor Markers, Anemia, Fertility, Hemostasis and Whole Blood Glucose.

LGC Maine Standards MSDRx data reduction software is available at no charge for real-time data analysis or a laboratory can send their data to LGC Maine Standards where a technical specialist will complete the data analysis and return a report within five business days. Peer group comparison is also available upon request.

Contact:

Maine Standards Company, LLC

221 US Route 1, Cumberland Foreside, ME 04110

1-207-892-1300 x1473

Adriano.Ciccomancini(at)LGCGroup.com

http://www.mainestandards.com

About LGC

LGC is an international life sciences measurement and testing company with leading positions in growing markets. LGC provides a range of measurement products and services which underpin the safety, health and security of the public, including reference materials and proficiency testing, calibration verification / linearity testing, genomics reagents and instrumentation, and expert sample analysis and interpretation. LGC serves customers across a number of end markets including Pharmaceuticals, Agricultural Biotechnology, Food, Environment, Government and Academia.

LGCs headquarters are in London and the company employs over 2,000 people, operating out of 22 countries worldwide. Its operations are extensively accredited to international quality standards such as ISO/IEC 17025, GMP, GLP, ISO Guide 34, ISO/IEC 17043 and ISO 13485:2016.

With a history dating back to 1842, LGC has been home to the UK Government Chemist for more than 100 years and is the UK National Measurement Laboratory and Designated Institute for chemical and bio measurement. LGC was privatized in 1996 and is now owned by funds affiliated with KKR. For more information, please visit http://www.lgcgroup.com.
IRR Calculation Our IRR API and the other tools in our univeris.io, offer a set of micro-services designed to enable any financial services firm to meet and/or exceed their performance reporting requirements for both regulatory and ad-hoc needs.

Univeris Corporation is excited to welcome Mackie Research Capital to the growing community of wealth managers leveraging its catalog of WealthTech APIs. With regulatory demands and client service-level expectations on the rise, the ability to report a series of calculated return values for multiple time periods -- month, quarter, year, calendar year, multiple years and from inception  leveraging this technology will enhance the firm's ability to be both compliant and client-focused today and for years to come.

According to Richard Binnendyk, Executive Vice President, Enterprise Wealth Management: "Our IRR API and the other tools in our univeris.io, offer a set of micro-services designed to enable any financial services firm to meet and/or exceed their performance reporting requirements for both regulatory and ad-hoc needs."

The Univeris IRR API enables real-time calculations for individual investments as well as the ability to aggregate by investment, by account, by investment types, or just about any given attributes. It provides a fast and accurate means of applying consistent and accurate IRR calculations across lines of business to reduce complexity and mitigate the inconsistencies caused by varying approaches and business rules. Using the generally accepted methodology of IRR to provide a money-weighted rate of return that reflects the investor experience, the IRR API accepts opening and closing values and cash flows to produce return values for any combination of positions and time periods.

It is important to our advisors and portfolio managers that the IRR methodology adopted by our regulators for annual performance reports be available throughout the year. Now with the Univeris IRR API, we can easily and confidently give personalized rate of return calculations to our over 30,000 investors for any time period, said Geoff Whitlam, President of Mackie Research Capital.

A diverse range of financial services firms have realized significant value from the Univeris IRR API, including eliminating the need for a complex IRR calculation engine and its associated development, maintenance and infrastructure costs. Since it's launch in 2016, the Univeris IRR API has been implemented by over 30 financial institutions who together manage more than $165B in assets for over 1.3 million investors. Today the API enables approximately 25 million calculations per year-end statement run and millions more ad-hoc calculations.

About Univeris

Univeris is a leading provider of enterprise retail wealth management software. Univeris offers comprehensive solutions that automate processes, compliance, reporting and many other key aspects required for delivering superior investor services. The unified, digital platform enables investors to manage many types of investment products on one system. You can learn more about Univeris at http://www.univeris.io and http://www.univeris.com

About Mackie Research Capital

Mackie Research Capital Corporation is one of Canadas largest independent full-service investment firms and traces its roots back to 1921. As a fully integrated national investment dealer it offers a wide complement of wealth management and capital markets services to private clients, institutions and growth companies. Visit them at http://www.mackieresearch.com
- The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) Unveils 2017 Findings Crowning Norwegian Air as the Undefeated Leader -

The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) today released its white paper analyzing the fuel efficiency of the 20 leading airlines on routes between the U.S. to Europe in 2017. Following rigorous scientific assessments, Norwegian once again rose to the top as the most fuel-efficient airline on transatlantic routes for a second time in history, also receiving this honor in 2015 when the ICCT released its first study. Findings showed Norwegian, on average, achieved 44 passenger kilometers per liter (pax-km/L), which is 33% higher than the industry average - soaring past 19 of its competitors. As the Worlds Best Low-Cost Long-Haul Airline for the fourth consecutive year, Norwegian, flies one of the youngest fleets in the world, comprised of Boeing 787 Dreamliners, 737-800s and 737-MAXes.

According to the study, Norwegian eclipsed its competition as the most-fuel efficient on sample routes from New York to London, Los Angeles to London and New York to Paris. In fact, on the New York to London route, Norwegians competition including Virgin Atlantic, American, Delta, United and British Airways burned 33% to 78% more fuel per passenger-km. Overall, there is dramatic gap of 63% between the fuel intensity of frontrunner Norwegian and bottom-ranked British Airways on transatlantic operations, a marked increase since the last assessment in 2014. Additionally, Norwegian has reduced its per passenger emissions by 30 percent since 2008, thanks to its investment in new aircraft.

The most important thing an airline can do for the environment is to invest in new fleet of aircraft. Our strategy to have a modern fleet is paying dividends not only for our business and customers, but also our planet. This recognition from ICCT is truly the highest form of industry praise and is validation that were moving in the right direction with more environmentally friendly planes. For customers, this offers yet another reason to fly with us, to help reduce their carbon footprint. said CEO Bjrn Kjos of Norwegian.

One of the biggest changes in the transatlantic market between 2014 and 2017 was an increase in operations from European low-cost carriers and the further utilization of newer, fuel-efficient aircraft, said ICCTs Brandon Graver, lead author of the study.

The International Council on Clean Transportation is an independent nonprofit organization founded to provide first-rate, unbiased research and technical and scientific analysis to environmental regulators. Its mission is to improve the environmental performance and energy efficiency of road, marine, and air transportation, to benefit public health and mitigate climate change.

To download the entire white paper, visit: https://www.theicct.org/publications/transatlantic-airline-fuel-efficiency-ranking-2017

Media Contact:

Min Kim

min.kim(at)norwegian(dot)com or PressUSA(at)norwegian(dot)com

954-647-4390

About Norwegian

Norwegian is the worlds fifth largest low-cost airline and carried 33 million passengers in 2017. The airline operates more than 500 routes to over 150 destinations in Europe, North Africa, Middle East, Thailand, Caribbean, North and South America. Norwegian has a fleet of more than 150 aircraft, with an average age of 3.7 years, making it one of the worlds youngest and greenest fleets.

Norwegian has been named the Most Fuel-Efficient Airline on Transatlantic Routes by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) twice. Norwegian has been voted Europes Best Low-Cost Airline by passengers for six consecutive years at the SkyTrax World Airline Wards 2013-2018, along with being named the Worlds Best Low-Cost Long-Haul Airline for the past four years. Norwegian employs more than 9,000 people worldwide.

Follow @FlyNorwegian on Twitter, join the discussion on Facebook and keep up with our adventures on Instagram. For more information on Norwegian and its network, visit norwegian.com/us.
Those who dream of becoming trailblazing entrepreneurs and philanthropists now have a brand-new online resource to guide them on their journeys thanks to Mulkiteo aerospace entrepreneur Peter Zieve.

Zieve recently launched his new blog site, located at http://www.peterzieveblog.com/, and many users have already been raving about it. The website covers anything and everything related to business, entrepreneurship, and giving back to the community and is based on his own experiences as the founder and chief executive officer of Electroimpact. Zieve, who started Electroimpact not long after earning his PhD from the University of Washington, built the company as a haven for engineers.

On his website, visitors can find the encouragement they need to move forward with their business plans. They can additionally discover advice and tips for growing their companies, as Zieve said he believes that everybody deserves the chance to pursue his or her passion and to experience success in doing what he or she enjoys doing. Zieve also believes that giving back to the community is paramount, as it is a responsibility that all members of society have. According to Zieve, not everybody has access to basic necessities, such as clothing, food, and shelter, so people have a duty to look out for these individuals.

In line with this career field, Zieve also provides tips about science activities for children on his new blog site. He also explains in detail science internships and their benefits. He furthermore explains the important role that engineers play in modern society and their influence on the future.

Website visitors can expect to see new blogs and website updates every month. Peter Zieves ultimate goal for the website is for it to become a premier source of information as well as inspiration for those interested in entering the exciting fields of science and entrepreneurship.
Our collaboration with Integron is a significant step towards simplifying solution deployment and enabling healthcare providers to leverage the value of data to improve the patient experience whilst reducing costs- Dale Wiggins, General Manager Philips HealthSuite Digital Platform at Philips

Royal Philips, a global leader in health technology, and Integron, a leading provider of managed IoT services for connected health, today announced a collaboration that brings together the Philips HealthSuite Digital Platform with Integrons robust solution deployment services. This joint offering will enable healthcare providers to build and deploy connected health solutions aimed at helping to improve patient outcomes whilst reducing costs.

The addition of Philips cloud platform will enable customers of Integrons connected health offering to access and process data in compliance with US HIPAA requirements for a variety of healthcare applications. Based upon a set of open APIs, HealthSuite simplifies the integration of data from disparate sources  including electronic medical records, diagnostic and imaging equipment, and personal mobile devices. In combination with Integrons suite of device procurement, management, and deployment services, this provides a comprehensive foundation for the deployment of connected health solutions.

Our collaboration with Integron is a significant step towards simplifying solution deployment and enabling healthcare providers to leverage the value of data to improve the patient experience whilst reducing costs, said Dale Wiggins, General Manager Philips HealthSuite Digital Platform at Philips. Integron is an expert in managed services and this relationship will not only allow us to help our customers get to market more quickly, but also help them reach scale in meaningful ways.

As healthcare technologies continue to mature and evolve, the demand for integrated solutions has increased significantly, said Bryan Lubel, President of Integron. Working with Philips, were able to provide advanced data integration and analysis capabilities, giving our healthcare customers a foundational option from which to build long-term technology strategies.

The Philips HealthSuite Digital Platform is an open, secure platform of services, capabilities, and tools designed to enable the development of next-generation connected health and wellness innovations. It provides a range of digital tools for application developers and solution providers enabling universal Big Data management, predictive analytics, and Artificial Intelligence in support of health management by consumers and care professionals. HealthSuite provides a secure environment that can simplify and accelerate the development of cloud services. It can also save providers the cost of hardware and software, compliance, and staff by providing shared, fully-managed Cloud services and platform.

Integron and Philips will be showcasing their collaboration at Mobile World Congress Americas 2018, September 12-14 in Los Angeles. Visit booth 3136 to learn more.

For further information, please contact:

Mark Groves

Philips Group Press Office

Tel.: +31 631 639 916

E-mail: mark.groves@philips.com

Allison McClary-Corbin

Marketing Coordinator, Integron

Tel.: +1 585 426 6200

E-mail: info@integron.com

About Royal Philips

Royal Philips is a leading health technology company focused on improving people's health and enabling better outcomes across the health continuum from healthy living and prevention, to diagnosis, treatment and home care. Philips leverages advanced technology and deep clinical and consumer insights to deliver integrated solutions. Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company is a leader in diagnostic imaging, image-guided therapy, patient monitoring and health informatics, as well as in consumer health and home care. Philips generated 2017 sales of EUR 17.8 billion and employs approximately 75,000 employees with sales and services in more than 100 countries. News about Philips can be found at Philips' website.

About Integron

Integron is an Internet of Things (IoT) Managed Services company that serves the connected health, telehealth, life sciences and remote patient monitoring sectors of the healthcare industry. Integron manages the complexities of enterprise IoT solutions by offering a comprehensive set of services, technology, and strong vendor relationships across the entire IoT landscape. Our managed IoT services include wireless connectivity, provisioning, mobile device management, support, and security. To learn more, visit Integron's website
"The Dallas Cosmetic Surgery and Medicine Meeting offers unprecedented opportunities for surgeons to enhance their skills and understanding of cosmetic surgery."

Dallas plastic surgeon and Meeting Chair, Dr. Rod J. Rohrich, is pleased to announce that registration is now open for the 2019 Dallas Cosmetic Surgery and Medicine Meeting, to be held March 20th and 21st, 2019.

This meeting, along with the Dallas Rhinoplasty Meeting taking place immediately afterwards, includes panel discussions, video feeds with expert commentary, live demonstrations, and a unique cosmetic anatomy lab which gives participants direct, hands on experience. Presentations are prepared by highly experienced surgeons and providers and will cover the latest trends and offer expert guidance on controversial applications of cosmetic treatments with a special emphasis on evidence-based medicine. Both meetings are attended by surgeons from around the world.

"The movement toward evidence-based plastic surgery doesnt have a concrete end," explains meeting chairman, Dr. Rohrich. "This is truly a change in the way we practice our profession - a change that sets the stage for continual advances and improvements, always with an awareness of our perpetual duty to assure the safety and satisfaction of our patients."

The first day of the annual meeting, which is open to board certified plastic surgeons, facial plastic surgeons, otolaryngologists, oculoplastic surgeons, dermatologists, residents, and aestheticians and other non-physician providers, will focus on advances in topics such as non-invasive cosmetic procedures, fat removal, skin tightening, cellulite treatment, dermal fillers, lasers, and the latest advances in skin care.

The second day of the meeting will highlight advances in cosmetic surgery including facelifts, body contouring procedures, and breast surgery and marks a unique feature of the meeting, the Cosmetic Cadaver Lab, which allows attendees to have hands on participation and expert observation. This portion will be open to plastic surgeons, otolaryngologists, oculoplastic surgeons, and residents studying those medical specialties.

"The Dallas Cosmetic Surgery and Medicine Meeting offers unprecedented opportunities for surgeons to enhance their skills and understanding of cosmetic surgery, "says Dr. Rohrich.

Those wishing to attend can register at http://dallasrhinoplastyandcosmeticmeeting.com/

About Rod J. Rohrich, M.D., F.A.C.S.

Dr. Rod Rohrich is a Dallas, Texas board certified plastic surgeon, Distinguished Teaching Professor and was the Founding Chair of the Department of Plastic Surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas. Dr. Rohrich graduated from Baylor College of Medicine with high honors, and completed residencies at the University of Michigan Medical Center and fellowships at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard (hand/microsurgery) and Oxford University (pediatric plastic surgery). He has served as president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the largest organization of board certified plastic surgeons in the world. He repeatedly has been selected by his peers as one of America's best doctors, and is the only plastic surgeon to receive one of his profession's highest honors three times in his career-the Plastic Surgery Educational Foundation Distinguished Service Award, which recognizes his contributions to education in plastic surgery. Dr. Rohrich participates in and has led numerous associations and councils for the advancement of plastic and reconstructive surgery.
Matt Baron/ShutterstockAfter starring in a recent commercial for Snickers, it looks like Elton John plans to make appearing TV ads one of his side gigs. British newspaper The Daily Mail reports that the pop-rock legend is set to earn $6.5 million to star in one of the U.K.'s most highly anticipated Christmas commercials.

Since 2007, the U.K. department store John Lewis has produced a series of splashy Christmas TV commercials, usually featuring cover versions of popular songs. But this year, instead of having someone cover an Elton song -- which the store did in 2010 when the store hired Ellie Goulding to sing "Tiny Dancer" -- they're getting the man himself to do the honors.

According to The Daily Mail, John recently spent four days filming the Christmas commercial, which will be soundtracked by his classic tune, "Your Song." The ad will have actors playing Elton as a young boy, opening presents with his family, and will end with present-day Elton playing the piano.

A source tells the paper, "It's a tear-jerker but also very sweet, and follows Elton from a child, through his teenage years, into how he is today. It is all very, very charming and the exciting crescendo at the end will be Elton playing his famous piano."

The annual John Lewis ad campaign is a huge deal in the U.K., and is considered by many to signal the official kickoff of the Christmas season. ABC Radio has reached out to Elton's rep regarding the report.

Meanwhile, the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer launched his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour over the weekend in Allentown, Pennsylvania. During the show, he told the crowd, "I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you've given to me these past 50 years."

Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Robin noted, I have been welcomed at the west Michigan events and had such nice compliments about my work. I look forward to my time at the new studio in North Muskegon.

Artist Robin Nidelcheff announced this week that she will host a Grand Opening celebration at her newest studio location, 413 Center Street in North Muskegon, Michigan. The event is planned for the afternoon of Sunday, September 16, 2018 from 1 to 6.

There will be clay demonstrations centered around some of Robins popular works. Sidewalk chalk is a clay product and Robin has developed some of her own chalks and custom colors. She looks forward to seeing the young talents at work outside her studio during the event using the custom chalk. For the studio opening, Robin will have a drawing for a piece of her art. The public is welcome to enjoy demonstrations, browse her pottery displays, view class schedules and have a light snack while they visit the studio.

Mrs. Nidelcheff has had a residence on Lake Michigan for over thirty years and has participated in several West Michigan art shows over the last two summer seasons. To support her customers interest in the Great Lake state, Robin decided to add the North Muskegon studio.

Visit the website, http://www.RobinNidelcheffStudio.com, for a schedule of future shows in Michigan, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Florida.

About Robin Nidelcheff-

Robin Nidelcheff has been producing works of art from nature for over twenty years, in Hand Built and Wheel thrown Pottery.

Her training in Southern California in the early 1990s exposed Robin to artistic forms of pottery from throughout the world. Some favorites vary from beach pit firing and Raku techniques to the hand built and wheel thrown methods that she favors today. Robin creates clay reflections of nature, to love and live with you in your home or office.

Robin creates her pieces in studios located in Eastern Pennsylvania and along the Lake Michigan shoreline in the new Robin Nidelcheff Studio, Northside Clay and Canvas.
Secretary Shulkin is one of the most talented health care leaders in the country.

David Shulkin, M.D., former secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, is joining Sanford Health as chief innovation officer.

Shulkin will serve Sanford Health as its top administrator in the innovation space, leading initiatives to advance work in research, Imagenetics, the Sanford Chip, Profile and World Clinic. His experience will help drive the systems continued clinical development as well as serving as a strategic advisor on Sanfords national growth strategy and overall public policy efforts.

Shulkin will be a director on the Sanford International Board and serve as an ambassador for Sanford Health on many of the systems domestic and international projects. In addition to his strategic role for Sanford, he will continue to work with others in academia and the health care industry, providing strategic direction and advice on national healthcare issues.

Secretary Shulkin is one of the most talented health care leaders in the country, and he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to Sanford Health, said Kelby Krabbenhoft, president and CEO of Sanford Health. His unique perspective, clinical expertise and powerful voice will further Sanford Healths continued development and diversification, which is so critical to our ability to bring new treatments and cures to the patients we serve.

Before serving as secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Shulkin was leader of the largest integrated health care system in the United States as the VAs undersecretary of Health. He served in chief executive roles for Beth Israel Medical Center and Morristown Medical Center and as chief medical officer for the University of Pennsylvania Health System, Temple University Hospital and the Medical College of Pennsylvania Hospital.

After completing my work in the public sector, Sanford Health was an obvious choice to continue my health care career, Shulkin said. Sanfords unique brand of innovation and clinical integration is bringing precision medicine to the bedside which is rapidly improving patient care in unprecedented ways. I look forward to joining the Sanford team and bringing my background and skills to help drive these advancements in medical practice.

Shulkin received his medical degree from the Medical College of Pennsylvania and is a board-certified internist. He completed an internship at Yale University School of Medicine and a residency and fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh Presbyterian Medical Center.

About Sanford Health

Sanford Health is one of the largest health care systems in the nation, with 44 hospitals and nearly 300 clinics in nine states and nine countries. Headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and serving the Upper Midwest, with nearly 1,400 physicians, Sanford Health is dedicated to several initiatives, including global childrens clinics, genomic medicine and specialized centers researching cures for type 1 diabetes, breast cancer and other diseases. Sanford Health has 28,000 employees, making it the largest employer in the Dakotas. Nearly $1 billion in gifts from philanthropist Denny Sanford over the past decade have transformed how Sanford Health can improve the human condition. For information, visit sanfordhealth.org.
Our governing board is an elected group of leaders, from an already selective group, who have the passion and drive to transform poverty studies by expanding and improving educational opportunities for college students with an eye toward the long view.

The Shepherd Higher Education Consortium on Poverty (SHECP) is pleased to announce the election of two new members to its governing board, Dr. Brian Doyle, director of Marymount Universitys Center for Ethical Concerns, and Richard Duke Cancelmo, head of trading and portfolio manager at Bridgeway Capital Management.

Doyle and Cancelmo were elected by the SHECP Council, which is composed of leaders representing member institutions and at-large members who bring a combination of experience and or expertise to the consortium. SHECP is a collaboration among 25 colleges and universities that integrates classroom study of poverty with summer internships and co-curricular activities.

Our governing board is an elected group of leaders, from an already selective group, who have the passion and drive to transform poverty studies by expanding and improving educational opportunities for college students with an eye toward the long view, said Dr. Brett Morash, SHECP executive director. Brian and Duke have already demonstrated their deep commitment as council members and I look forward to working even more closely with them to enhance our mission and to drive toward our long-term objectives.

Doyle is professor and chair of the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Marymount University, as well as the director of the Center for Ethical Concerns. His publications examine the Christian doctrine of God and its practical relevance for the believing community. He is active in the College Theology Society, having given several papers and convening the History of Christian Life and Thought Session. He obtained his bachelors degree from Xavier University, his masters in theological studies from the Weston Jesuit School of Theology, and his doctorate from the Catholic University of America.

It's important to tie the Christian call to social justice and the dignity of every person to real life struggles and solutions, Doyle said. Marymount has a culture of engagement that fosters intellectual curiosity and service to others that is very much in line with SHECPs aims, and I look forward to our continued collaboration.

Cancelmo has more than 30 years of investment industry experience, including five years with Cancelmo Capital Management and The West University Fund. He previously worked for Paine Webber, Rotan Mosle, and Casella Securities on the options floor at the Philadelphia Stock Exchange. Cancelmo holds a bachelors degree in history from Washington and Lee University, one of SHECPs founding institutions. He serves on the advisory board of Washington and Lees Shepherd Poverty Program and is an active member of the West U Rotary Club in Houston, Texas.

Can you think of a greater social issue than poverty? It is pervasive in our country and SHECP offers students an opportunity to learn through rigorous academic studies in poverty with co-curricular summer internships, said Cancelmo. Picture a pre-med student with a poverty minor who does a summer internship at an emergency room at a Bronx hospital, or an aspiring lawyer serving the disadvantaged at a free legal clinic in West Virginia. They will go into their careers with a very unique perspective on how they can help diminish poverty in their future, professional lives.

In addition to the new appointments, the SHECP Council elected Dr. Alan Tinkler, University of Vermont, to serve as vice chair; and Dr. Howard Pickett, Washington and Lee University, as secretary. Outgoing chair, Dr. Rebecca Todd Peters of Elon University, will remain in her role until Dr. Louwanda Evans, Millsaps College, returns from maternity leave.

SHECP would like to thank departing governing board members, Dr. Jay Barth of Hendrix College, and Dr. James Calvin Davis of Middlebury College, for their leadership and commitment during their three-year, elected tenures.

To learn more about SHECP and how you can support its mission to transform poverty studies, visit shepherdconsortium.org.

About the Shepherd Higher Education Consortium on Poverty: The Shepherd Higher Education Consortium on Poverty (SHECP), is a consortium of colleges and universities that are committed to the study of poverty as a complex social problem, by expanding and improving educational opportunities for college students in a wide range of disciplines and career trajectories. SHECP institutions support undergraduates toward a lifetime of professional and civil efforts to diminish poverty and enhance human capability. For more information, please visit ShepherdConsortium.org, or follow us on Twitter at @TheSHECP.
Ensuring the safety of our students and staff is our undisputed priority, and we recognized opportunities to build upon our existing lockdown and evacuation processes with more capable and responsive technology.

Shooter Detection Systems (SDS), the leading K-12 school gunshot detection solutions provider, and CentralSquare Technologies, a leading public sector software and information technology solutions provider, today announced plans to develop and install the first gunshot detection sensor system with integrated 911 call automation designed specifically for a school campus at Phoenix Academy, a charter school located in High Point, N.C. Programmed to reduce response time and save lives in the event of an active shooter incident, the advanced platform is expected to be fully installed and activated in early 2019, with the support of integration partner Johnson Controls.

The first-of-its-kind scholastic detection and response system aligns SDS Guardian Indoor Active Shooter Detection System with CentralSquares Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) System, offering Phoenix Academy a comprehensive and streamlined security upgrade that notifies both individuals inside the school and local police and responders of an active shooter. Initially, Phoenix Academy plans to integrate the SDS and CentralSquare joint technology across three campus buildings, with additional installations possible at a later date.

Together, with our partners CentralSquare and Johnson Controls, we applaud the Phoenix Academys commitment to introducing state-of-the-art technology as a part of its evolving safety plans, said Christian Connors, CEO of Shooter Detection Systems. As the first public venue in North Carolina and first school in the nation to combine the Guardian and CentralSquare CAD Systems, Phoenix Academy places itself and the city of High Point on the cutting edge of readiness to respond faster and more effectively to an active shooter incident.

Should gunfire occur on school property, the SDS Guardian Systems sensors use acoustic and infrared technologies to detect and distinguish the shot. Upon receiving a shooter alert, CentralSquares interface automatically posts the incident to the CAD open-call queue and requests immediate dispatch without requiring human intervention. By directly contacting the High Point 911 Center, the automated gunshot detection technology system empowers an immediate response and saves valuable minutes that otherwise might be lost through manual alert and dispatching processes.

The SDS Guardian Systems sensors and CentralSquares CAD technology also synchronize to provide real-time situational information to police and first responders mobile computer terminals and pagers. In the event of an active shooter at the Phoenix Academy, emergency teams will instantly be alerted to the location and frequency of gunshots and note the areas on campus that require the most immediate attention.

Every second makes a difference during an active shooter incident, and both school officials and local responders cannot afford to lose time waiting for notification and estimating the scope of the situation, said Simon Angove, CEO of CentralSquare. By combining our best-in-class CAD technology with SDS Guardian detection sensors, we can automate the alert and dispatch processes and get needed personnel to affected individuals faster and more efficiently. We look forward to working with our partners to set the new standard for school safety and protect lives during these devastating occurrences.

The SDS and CentralSquare joint installation is part of a grand-scale overhaul of the Phoenix Academys security protocols and technologies following several prominent nationwide school shootings during the 2017-18 academic year. In addition to becoming the first school in North Carolina to implement an active shooter detection system, the Phoenix Academy will install new surveillance cameras, safe-egress door locks and an access control entry system for its staff as part of a coordinated effort with the city of High Points government, police department, first responders and 911 call center.

Ensuring the safety of our students and staff is our undisputed priority, and we recognized opportunities to build upon our existing lockdown and evacuation processes with more capable and responsive technology, said Kim Norcross, Superintendent of the Phoenix Academy. While we hope that we never have to use this system at its fullest capacity, we are honored to be the first school to work with SDS and CentralSquare to bring this landmark installation to life.

To learn more about SDS Guardian technology, visit http://www.shooterdetectionsysems.com. For more information about CentralSquares CAD System and complete public safety technologies lineup, visit http://www.CentralSqr.com.

About Shooter Detection Systems, LLC

As the world leader in gunshot detection technology, Shooter Detection Systems is focused on saving lives through the use of proven, military-grade technology designed by the worlds foremost scientists. Developed in conjunction with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and a major defense contractor, SDS gunshot detection systems utilize the most advanced and proven shooter detection technologies available in the commercial market. The Guardian Indoor Active Shooter Detection System is SAFETY Act Certified by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Approved for U.K. Government Use by the Centre for the Protection of Critical Infrastructure (CPNI). SDS has national and international customers with gunshot detection product installations in airports, retail, schools, healthcare facilities, Fortune 500 corporations, municipal buildings, court systems, major utilities, manufacturing plants, high-rise office buildings, and government and private buildings. For more information, visit their website at http://www.shooterdetectionsystems.com or call 1-844-SHOT911. Follow Shooter Detection Systems on Twitter @shooterdetect.

About CentralSquare Technologies

Formed by the merger of Superion, TriTech along with Zuercher, and the public sector and healthcare business of Aptean, CentralSquare Technologies is an industry leader in public safety and public administration software, serving over 7,500 organizations from the largest metropolitan city to counties and towns of every size across North America. Its technology platform provides solutions for public safety, including 911, computer aided dispatch, records management, mobile, citations, evidence management, and corrections. For public administration agencies, CentralSquare provides software for finance, human capital management, payroll, utility billing, citizen engagement, asset management, regulatory compliance, and community development. For hospitals and clinicians, it provides patient information, compliance, and analytics software. CentralSquares broad, unified and agile software suite serves 3 in 4 citizens across North America. More information is available at http://www.CentralSqr.com

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Our focus today is on connecting all of the exciting forms of content and live experiences we currently offer, reimagining the member journey, and extending our capabilities into new categories.

SourceMedia, a digital business information and performance media company serving senior decision-makers in finance, technology and healthcare, today announced the hiring of two new members of its leadership team in two newly created roles. Jeff Mancini has joined the company as Chief Strategy Officer and Christian Ward as Chief Data Officer.

Mancini and Ward are charged with executing key aspects of the companys growth plan by unlocking opportunities across business lines and business models, brands and products, and data and technology platforms.

Our focus today is on connecting all of the exciting forms of content and live experiences we currently offer, reimagining the member journey, and extending our capabilities into new categories, said Gemma Postlethwaite, CEO of SourceMedia. Working with Jeff, Christian and the rest of our leadership team, I look forward to bringing this strategy to life and opening the next phase of SourceMedias transformation.

Jeff Mancini is a marketing leader with over 20 years experience running business, brand and product strategy for major global companies. He was most recently Chief Marketing Officer for Related Companies. This is a rare opportunity to bring together a network of leaders and decision-makers across all channels, delivering an entirely new content experience for our professional members, Mancini said. He previously held executive roles at PIRA, R/GA and Interbrand. At R/GA, Mancini developed and scaled the companys global innovation practice. At Interbrand, he helped transform the world's largest branding consultancy into a digital thought leader.

Christian Ward has been driving data innovation for 20 years, across financial services, digital marketing and media companies. SourceMedias unique combination of content and experience creates a powerful opportunity to leverage cross-platform data and drive deeper engagement, discovery and dialogue, said Ward. He joins SourceMedia from Yext, where he was most recently EVP of global data partnerships. Prior to this, Ward served as Chief Data Officer at Infogroup and as Global Head of Content Innovation at Thomson Reuters.

SourceMedia has a strong, engaged base of over 2 million members, Postlethwaite said. We are focused on enabling these professionals to derive more value from us and from each other, by keeping them engaged in relevant conversations.

About SourceMedia

SourceMedia is an innovative, growing digital business information and performance media company serving senior-level professionals in the financial, technology and healthcare sectors. Brands include American Banker, PaymentsSource, The Bond Buyer, Financial Planning, Accounting Today, Mergers & Acquisitions, National Mortgage News, Employee Benefit News and Health Data Management.
"Nothing is more important to the growth and health of a startup community than the people who work tirelessly to identify, connect and positively promote the key players,"

DV Partners, led by SMS Assist Founder and Chairman Mike Rothman, today announced a seven figure investment in Chicago's largest and most active startup platform, Technori. The funds will be used to expand its successful podcast show and event series, and to launch Technori Co-op, an entirely new startup incubator and investment platform.

Technori helps startups gain traction by engaging with thousands of would-be investors, customers, and commercial partners such as, MB Real Estate, Bank of America, and Salesforce, through highly curated events and media. The Startup Showcase is one of the largest quarterly tech events in the U.S, and the first ever to allow attendees to invest directly in the presenting startups, via an exclusive partnership with Title III equity crowdfunding platform, Republic. Technori is also the creator of Chicago's most popular tech podcast and live radio show, hosted by its CEO Scott Kitun on WGN Radio.

To date, Technori has helped hundreds of companies raise more than $1 billion in venture capital and connect with thousands of first employees and customers by featuring founders on-stage at Showcase events, and in-studio at WGN Radio.

"Nothing is more important to the growth and health of a startup community than the people who work tirelessly to identify, connect and positively promote the key players," former 1871 CEO and current Illinois Tech Kaplan Institute Executive Director Howard Tullman said. "Scott has been one of the most important, consistent and valuable contributors to the tech scene in more ways and for more years than he's willing to admit and it's a big part of Chicago's success."

Rothman's investment in Technori is about accelerating and supporting Technori's mission of building the largest and most diverse tech community in the world, but it's also about helping startups gain access to strategic capital and connections - something Rothman has plenty of experience with.

As former CEO of SMS Assist, Mike Rothman raised several hundred million dollars for the company - at over a billion dollar valuation - from the likes of Goldman Sachs and Chicago-based Pritzker Group, among others.

"Technori has done an incredible job of providing founders like myself with exposure. But, there's a huge opportunity to make an even bigger impact on the startup community," Rothman said. "That's why I've partnered with Scott to extend the Technori services model to introduce the most innovative early stage incubation tool, called Technori Co-op."

Technori Co-op is an investment model that provides early-stage companies access to capital, board support and strategic advisory while enabling the founders to own a stake in the portfolio.

"We work to democratize how startups are launched and funded by allowing founders to use our exposure to equity crowdfund," says Technori CEO Scott Kitun. "The Co-op takes the best of those founders and gives them access to some of the most successful entrepreneurs and investors our tech community has to offer."

Initial Co-op advisors include, Lightbank Managing Partner Vic Pascucci, Blue1647 founder Emile Cambry, and Fanatics VP of Engineering Nate Lyman, among other influential tech leaders.

"Scott and Mike are visionaries. How this democratizes the startup process is incredible and I'm excited to be a part of it," said Pascucci.

"DV Partners has already made significant investments in tech startups, such as Dumbstruck, Residential Homes Group (RHG), and Theron Technology Solutions(TTS). And I'm sure whether we invest through DVP or launch a Technori Fund; we plan to deploy a lot more capital into disruptive technology companies," said Rothman. "But, speaking as a founder, the most valuable commodity is information - and we plan to use that to grow the value of our Co-op companies immediately."

TTS builds enterprise technology solutions that identify and improve operational efficiencies; founded by former SMS Assist Chief Product Officer Alex Rothman, Theron will also be participating in the Technori Co-op to provide portfolio companies with tech support.

"I learned very early on at SMS, it's not how fast you can build something, but how accurately you align it with a Go-To-Market strategy," said Alex Rothman. "Theron is here to share our industry expertise and offer founders what they'll need to build at scale."

According to Kitun, "this investment not only enables us to enter new markets and introduce the Technori Co-op, but also significantly grow our team, and develop the technology necessary to better reach our growing target audience."

For more information about applying for Technori Co-op, visit Technori.com, or follow and message directly through Facebook.

OTHER TECHNORI NEWS

Technori will now host its premier Startup Showcase events quarterly, with monthly lunch and learn workshops and founder's dinners - with an eye on expanding into new markets with pop-up events in 2019.
Plastics are becoming more prevalent in the food industry, which is why it is crucial to have materials that are detectable with a variety of systems, says Paul Canacas, Quadrant EPP Global Market Segment Manager.

Quadrant Engineering Plastic Products (Quadrant EPP), the leading global supplier of high-performance thermoplastic materials, will be exhibiting at PACK EXPO International 2018 this October. Quadrants experts will be at the show to showcase their innovative thermoplastic solutions for the Food Processing, Packaging, and Conveyance Industries.

PACK EXPO 2018 attracts professionals from all segments of the global food and beverage industry who are in search of processing and packaging solutions. This includes individuals in engineering, operations, maintenance, production, R&D, quality assurance, marketing, sales, and corporate management.

Environmentally sensitive and highly regulated, the food production and packaging sectors require specific solutions. Quadrants portfolio of materials developed for food contact, including a comprehensive Food Grade family, aim to reduce maintenance costs and increase productivity while keeping consumer and employee safety at the forefront.

Quadrants food compliant materialsFDA, CFIA, NSF, USDA, 3A-SSI, and EU STD certifiedprovide improved productivity and product lifetime through reduced friction and wear. Self-lubricating formulations lower maintenance costs and lower the risk of lubrication contamination.

Quadrants 3-WAY detectable plastics portfolio includes a core group of compliant materials designed to increase up-time and throughput in todays food handling, manipulation, and processing environments. These materials are blue in color, X-ray detectable, metal detectable, and visually detectable. Durable and stable, field tests prove Quadrant materials have superior performance in extreme environments.

As food safety regulations and stringent government guidelines continue to increase in importance, so does keeping foreign material out of food ingredients," says Paul Canacas, Quadrant EPP Global Market Segment Manager. Plastics are becoming more prevalent in the food industry, which is why it is crucial to have materials that are detectable with a variety of systems. As manufacturing environments and detection technologies vary from company to company, we must adjust accordingly with even more material detectability capabilities."

Learn more about Quadrant EPPs innovative family of food compliant thermoplastics at PACK EXPO 2018 (booth #9437  Lower Lakeside Center) at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois from October 14-17, 2018. Application specialists and technical experts will be available on-site to answer questions and provide guidance.

About Quadrant Engineering Plastic Products:

For over 70 years, Quadrant Engineering Plastic Products (Quadrant EPP) has been proving there is simply no substitute for quality and innovation. Quadrant EPP is the global leader in research, development, and manufacture of machinable, high-performance engineering polymer materials. Quadrant EPP materials are specified for use in food processing and packaging, semiconductor manufacturing, aerospace, electronics, chemical processing, life sciences, power generation, and diverse industrial equipment. Quadrant EPP products range from UHMW polyethylene, nylon, and acetal to ultra-high performance polymers that resist temperatures to over 800F (425C).

Quadrant EPP technology is backed by a global team of application development and technical service engineers, specializing in evaluating designs and fabrication techniques. Quadrant EPP materials expertise is available through a worldwide network of branch offices, technical support centers, and authorized dealers. Learn more about Quadrant EPP at http://www.quadrantplastics.com or connect with Quadrant EPP on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter ("quadrantepp).

Registered trademarks of the Quadrant group of companies: Acetron, CleanStat, Duraspin, Duratron, Erta, Ertalyte, Ertalene, Ertalon, Extreme Materials, Fluorosint, Ketron, MC, Monocast, Nylatron, Nylasteel, Polypenco, Proteus, Sanalite, Semitron, Techtron, TIVAR and Vibratuf.
Sterling athletes, Jim Ewing and Maureen Beck are the first to attempt an unassisted adaptive climb of the Lotus Flower Tower in Canada's Cirque of the Unclimbables I should have gone down when I started feeling sick, but didnt want to pass up the opportunity to get the top.

Today, Sterling, a rope and life-safety equipment company, announced two of their athletes, Jim Ewing and Maureen Beck, attempted the first unassisted adaptive climb of the Lotus Flower Tower in Canadas Cirque of the Unclimbables. Although Jim was hit with an unexpected illness, which made it difficult for him to lead, the duo decided to persevere and with some assistance from rigger Pat Goodman and cinematographer Taylor Zann, they were able to safely summit.

Jim and Maureen have a few things in common; they are both from Maine, climb hard, and are missing a limb. Maureen was born without her left hand and Jim had his left leg amputated after a devastating fall while climbing Cayman Brac in 2015. Strangers who met last December, the unlikely duo (nearly 20 years apart in age) decided to attempt this climb and began training three months ago. For two very experienced climbers, this attempt quickly proved that even with a lot of training and preparation nothing is ever guaranteed when it comes to alpine climbing.

It was the first time that working harder and training did not necessarily equal success, said Maureen Beck, a Paraclimbing World Champion and Sterling Team Athlete. I went in feeling prepared, but I definitely learned a lot on my first expedition.

Even the journey through the Yukon to arrive at the Cirque of the Unclimbables was a feat. Faced with logistical obstacles and being asked at one point if they could trailer their own plane engine for the float plane, the team faced each challenge head on, took their time and figured out a solution.

For me, as an amputee, I developed the philosophy just keep moving and you can accomplish some amazing things, said Jim Ewing longtime New England rock and ice climber and Sterling Product Engineer. I should have gone down when I started feeling sick, but didnt want to pass up the opportunity to get the top.

Their incredible journey to the top will be featured in a short film premiering in 2019 by Rainier Films. For more information follow @theadaptivefilm.

To hear more about Jim and Maureens personal background and a description of their attempt at the first unassisted adaptive climb of the Lotus Flower Tower in their own words, check out their two-part interview with climber, Kevin Jorgeson on the Freedom to Focus Podcast. Part Two will air September 25, 2018.

About Sterling

Sterling is a premier rope and life-safety company dedicated to bringing climbing, rescue and utility safety products into the 21st century. For the past 25 years, Sterling has been developing and manufacturing the worlds finest ropes, hardware and related gear, giving climbers, arborists, firefighters and utility workers the ability to focus on the task at hand. From its headquarters in Biddeford, Maine, Sterling engineers, technologists and craftsmen build on advanced R&D, customer needs analysis, innovative manufacturing and stringent testing to perfect every aspect of production and create the industrys most versatile and highly-rated equipment. Sterling ropes and cords fit seamlessly into any pack and enable the Freedom to Focus.
Its great to see the continued high marks these outstanding engineering programs are receiving. We are proud of our students, faculty and staff for making these programs among the best in the world, said Dr. P. Barry Butler, president of EmbryRiddle.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical Universitys undergraduate engineering programs at the schools residential campuses in Prescott, Ariz., and Daytona Beach, Fla., have once again received superior marks in U.S. News & World Reports 2019 Best Colleges guidebook, an annual listing of more than 1,800 accredited four-year schools in the United States.

Its great to see the continued high marks these outstanding engineering programs are receiving, given the excellent public and private institutions across the country that offer these degrees. We are proud of our students, faculty and staff for making these programs among the best in the world, said Dr. P. Barry Butler, president of EmbryRiddle.

Prescott, Arizona Campus Rankings

This years rankings once again highlight a distinctive accomplishment by EmbryRiddles Prescott Campus. In the category of Best Undergraduate Aerospace / Aeronautical / Astronautical Engineering Programs at schools where a doctorate is not offered, Prescott is the No. 1 ranked school in the country.

In the category of Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs at schools where a doctorate is not offered, the Prescott Campus tied at No. 15 nationally and excelled as the highest-rated Arizona school in the category. This years ranking is also Prescotts 13th appearance in the top 20 nationwide.

Were proud to be recognized as the top undergraduate aerospace engineering program in the country, said Dr. Ron Madler, Dean of the College of Engineering at the Prescott Campus. Our students are well prepared when they graduate because theyre fully engaged in a hands-on curriculum with state-of-the-art labs and facilities and are mentored by faculty with significant industry experience.

Daytona Beach, Florida Campus Rankings

At the Daytona Beach Campus, in Best Undergraduate Aerospace/Aeronautical/Astronautical Engineering Programs at schools whose highest degree is a doctorate, the university move up two spots in the rankings, to No. 11, out of 22 schools nationally that made the list and the No. 1 ranked school in Florida. In previous years, when the campus was ranked among non-doctorate schools, it was No. 1 in this category for 16 consecutive years.

For the ranking of Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs at schools whose highest degree is a doctorate, the Daytona Beach Campus is once again is ranked as one of the best programs in the state of Florida, along with the University of Florida and University of Central Florida. In previous years, when the campus was ranked among non-doctorate schools, it was in the top 12 in this category for 14 consecutive years.

Our engineering programs are based on experiential learning, incorporating discovery into the teaching process, promoting innovation and the entrepreneurial mindset, and instilling the values of ethics, professionalism and service. Its gratifying to see that our continued high rankings reflect the quality of our programs, said Dr. Maj Mirmirani, Dean of the College of Engineering at the Daytona Beach Campus.

The universitys engineering degree programs at the Daytona Beach Campus encompass the fields of aerospace, civil, computer, cybersecurity, electrical, mechanical, software, systems, and unmanned and autonomous systems, in addition to other engineering-related programs. Embry-Riddles aerospace engineering program, the largest in the nation, offers bachelors, masters, now including an online option, and Ph.D. degrees.

In additional rankings, the 2019 Best Colleges guidebook once again lists Embry-Riddles Daytona Beach Campus among the Best Regional Universities in the South, tied at No. 15.

Within the Southern regional category of 148 schools, Embry-Riddle also attained the following rankings:



Most Innovative Schools: No. 8 and the only school in Florida in the top 10.

Best for Veterans: Tied at No. 9 and among the top ten for the sixth year in a row.

Best Value Schools in the South: No. 46 among only 66 schools to make the list.

The Daytona Beach Campus was also recognized as a stellar example of schools that work with students to land internships, practicums or cooperative education opportunities.

Worldwide Campus Rankings

Earlier this year EmbryRiddles Worldwide Campus was ranked No. 2 in Best Online Bachelor's Programs, the only private, not-for-profit institute out of 346 universities nationwide ranked in the Top 5. Since 2014, Embry-Riddle Worldwide has ranked in the top five of the annual list, including being named No. 1 for the past two years.

The Worldwide Campus was once again named the top school in the country in U.S. News & World Reports Best Online Bachelors Programs for Veterans and its online graduate business program (excluding MBA) was also named one of the top programs in the nation.

While we know how engaged and dedicated our faculty and staff are on all our campuses, it is the passion and imagination that students bring to classes, labs and campus life that sets EmbryRiddle apart, said Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Lon D. Moeller. Its also an important part of why our graduates are soughtafter and excel in highachieving, rewarding careers in the fields of aviation, aerospace and beyond.

Highlights of U.S. News & World Reports 2019 Best Colleges guidebook are posted at http://www.usnews.com/colleges, where the e-book is available for purchase. The 2018 e-book will automatically convert to Best Colleges 2019 e-book in late October. A printed copy of the 2019 guidebook will be available in early October.

About Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is the worlds largest, oldest and most comprehensive institution specializing in aviation, aerospace, engineering and related degree programs. A fully accredited university, Embry-Riddle is also a major research center, seeking solutions to real-world problems in partnership with the aerospace industry, other universities and government agencies. A nonprofit, independent institution, Embry-Riddle offers more than 80 baccalaureate, masters and Ph.D. degree programs in its colleges of Arts & Sciences, Aviation, Business, Engineering and Security & Intelligence. The university educates students at residential campuses in Daytona Beach, Fla., and Prescott, Ariz., through its Worldwide Campus with more than 125 locations in the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, and through online programs. For more information, visit http://www.embryriddle.edu, follow us on Twitter (@EmbryRiddle) and facebook.com/EmbryRiddleUniversity, and find expert videos at YouTube.com/EmbryRiddleUniv.
Village people of Haiti help to unload the donated food and supplies. (Whitewater Crossing photo) This was really an inspired philanthropic effort, with more than 350 of our church members coming together, on short notice, to pack food to send, said Joe Porter, communications director at Whitewater Crossing Christian Church in Cleves, Ohio.

Hundreds of children in Haiti will now have at least one highly nutritious meal at school each day, thanks to 16,675 pounds of food being delivered to their village in late summer.

"The contribution equates to 110,818 meals," said Joe Porter, communications director at Whitewater Crossing Christian Church in Cleves, Ohio.

Five organizations and hundreds of individuals partnered in the volunteer-based initiative: hundreds of Whitewater Crossing Church members and Whitewaters Mission Teams; Living Water Christian Mission; the United States Air Forces Denton program; Children's Lifeline; and A Childs Hope International/Hands Against Hunger.

This was really an inspired philanthropic effort, with more than 350 of our church members coming together, on short notice, to pack food to send, said Porter. We give credit to all of the leaders and groups who were involved and fully on-board with our vision to help the children of Haiti.

100 pounds of bilingual educational materials, 360 pairs of new shoes, and 10 clean water bucket kits were also a part of the delivery.

These items will primarily be for students and caretakers at the newly-built Living Water school located in Highland, a remote village located approximately three hours north of Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

The school is a project of Living Water Christian Mission, a nonprofit that has helped the people of Haiti since 2003. (Whitewater Crossing is a partner Church of Living Water.) The efforts will also benefit other cities and villages in the region including Gonaives and Marmelade, said Porter, who also are in great need of assistance.

Highland children will now be able to eat a balanced mealmaybe for the first time in their lives, said Salonique Adolphe, Founder and Executive Director of Living Water.

The school year starts this month. Without that food, these childrenabout 400 of themwould be going without both breakfast and lunch most days, said Bill Wagner, a Whitewater Crossing Church member who helped coordinate the food pack relief effort.

Wagner first learned about the Haitian schools food shortage late last year. He then introduced Living Water to A Childs Hope International - Hands Against Hunger, a nonprofit located in Sharonville, Ohio. Hands Against Hunger has delivered food to vulnerable children throughout the world utilizing the Denton Humanitarian Assistance Program, a Department of Defense transportation program. The program allows voluntary organizations to take advantage of extra space on military cargo planes to transport humanitarian goods. In this case, it was the solution to securely and affordably deliver the food and supplies to Haiti.

Because the cargo planes were leaving soon at that point, we had to rush to get the food packed and ready in time, recalled Wagner.

After hearing about the relief campaign, more than 350 Whitewater Crossing church members quickly came together in early January to pack the meals, ensuring they would be ready in time. Through a giving campaign in 2017, Whitewaters generous attendees covered the cost of every meal that was packaged. This fell under two of the seven focus areas of Whitewater Crossings Solve 7 initiativespecifically, Feed the Hungry and Teach the Uneducated. A Childs Hope Internationals facility was also utilized for the large-scale food pack.

Once in Haiti, the challenge was getting the food distributed. Children's Lifeline helped to move the 16,675 pounds of food and supplies from the tarmac in Port-au-Prince, to multiple vehicles, to storageand finally, to its destination. The shipment of food was first delivered to Living Water in Gonaives, located in Western Haiti in June. In July, the meals were taken to Highland and are now being given to children at the school. Students range from preschool to ninth grade.

If you look at all the groups that came together, and if you look at what we did in total, its a God-sized undertaking. Its amazing to see how these organizations are connected, the resources and capabilities that are there, and how we came together to deliver aid to the people of Haiti, said Wagner.

Thats why I say its a God-sized problem that was solved through His people.

For more information at Whitewater Crossing, visit http://www.whitewatercrossing.org or visit https://whitewatercrossing.org/leaders to contact any leader directly.

To learn more about Whitewater Crossings Solve 7 and how you can get involved, visit http://solve7.org/
What stops applicants from accepting a job? What once may have seemed like an enticing offer may now appear average, so employers should not be afraid to rethink their practices. Its a job seekers market, and they have to adapt. - Bill Stoller, Express CEO

Thanks to a tight labor market and low unemployment rate, employers in America are facing yet another challenge: an increasing number of applicants who are turning down job offers.

Daniel Morgan, an Express Employment Professionals franchise owner in Birmingham, Alabama, reports a significant increase in the number of people saying no to jobs, compared to just one year ago. The reason, he says, is the abundance of choice.

If you really like a candidate, dont try to see what you can get them for, he counsels employers. Go ahead and commit by offering your best from the start. Employees are not just considering one opportunity. They are usually comparing two or three opportunities against each other.

Janis Petrini, an Express franchise owner in Grand Rapids, Michigan, sees the same trend. The labor market is so tight, she says that companies are in an all-out bidding war. Her advice to employers who have job offers turned down? Move quickly!

For employers trying to fill jobs, timing can indeed be everything. According to Express franchise owner Yvonne Rockwell of Santa Clarita, California, todays job seekers are often looking for quick start dates. Most applicants are looking for long-term immediate start opportunities, Rockwell explains. Offering easier and faster onboarding, she added, is one way to prevent applicants from turning down job offers.

In a survey of businesses from Express, 40 percent of respondents said applicants choose not to accept a job offer because the company was not the perfect fit. Twenty-eight (28) percent said low pay was a factor, while 16 percent said both lack of transportation and lack of advancement were key factors.

What can employers do to avoid being turned down?

Morgan emphasizes employers should focus on their reputation in their local community.

If you are a great place to work, people will come to you wanting to work there, he said.

Petrini agrees, saying businesses should focus on the companys rating in the community.

Reid Bates, an Express franchise owner with offices in Olympia, Aberdeen and Centralia, Washington, says applicants will turn down job offers if it is not considered a big enough improvement over their current situation. Confidence is high among job seekers, he says, so they do not feel pressured to accept a job that doesnt meet their expectations.

Employers may be frustrated now, but as long as the economy stays on its course, they will continue to see applicants turn down job offers, believing they can easily find something better, said Bill Stoller, CEO of Express. What once may have seemed like an enticing offer may now appear average, so employers should not be afraid to rethink their practices. Its a job seekers market, and they have to adapt.

The survey of 439 businesses, which are current and former clients of Express Employment Professionals, was conducted in May 2018 to gauge respondents' expectations for the third quarter of 2018.

***

If you would like to arrange for an interview with Bill Stoller to discuss this topic, please contact Sheena Karami, Director of Corporate Communications and PR, at (405) 717-5966.

About Bill Stoller

William H. "Bill" Stoller is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment Professionals. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the international staffing company has more than 800 franchises in the U.S., Canada and South Africa. Since its inception, Express has put more than 6 million people to work worldwide.

About Express Employment Professionals

Express Employment Professionals puts people to work. It generated $3.4 billion in sales and employed a record 540,000 people in 2017. Its long-term goal is to put a million people to work annually. For more information, visit ExpressPros.com.
Across the capital and around the country, booksellers reported brisk sales of Bob Woodwards Fear on its first day on the shelves. The title now has 1 million copies in print, according to its publisher, Simon & Schuster, which added that a total of 750,000 copies were sold through the day of publication alone. (The combined sales figure includes pre-orders and first day sales of print books, e-books, and audiobooks in all formats.)

Barnes & Noble reported that the title was its fastest-growing adult title since Go Set a Watchman was released in July 2014. Fear had amazing first-day sales and is in high demand across our stores and online, said Liz Harwell, senior director of merchandising, Trade Books at B&N said in a statement. We havent seen an adult title sell this quickly in over three years, and are working with Simon & Schuster to keep our shelves stocked to meet what we expect will be continued demand.

Based on pre-orders, Fear was #1 last week in the Apple iBooks store.

Among independent booksellers, Fear was a hot item as well. Jake Cumsky-Whitlock, co-owner of Solid State Books on the northern edge of Capitol Hill said sales were strong in the first hours after opening on Tuesday; it had ordered 120 copies of the book and sold 53 by the end of Tuesday.

The store stayed open until midnight to release the book, as did Kramerbooks & Afterwords Cafe in Dupont Circle. Cumsky-Whitlock said he expects sales of the book to outpace earlier bestsellers with incendiary details about the Trump administration, including James Comeys A Higher Loyalty, Michael Wolffs Fire and Fury, and Omarosa Manigault Newmans Unhinged.

Woodward has the pedigree, said Cumsky-Whitlock, referring to the authors reputation as a reporter and one of the journalists who exposed the Watergate scandal. Fire & Fury traded on gossipy business. Fear has some really explosive, damaging revelations by serious names and high-ranking members of the administration.

At Politics & Proses locations across the capital, co-owner Bradley Graham said there was a surge in early sales. Sixty copies had sold in the opening two hours of the day, and 300 were on hold for customers who had pre-ordered the title. Among the largest bulk purchases, according to Graham, were officials from foreign embassies. One purchased 13 copies, said Graham. Another asked for four.

Outside of Washington, booksellers reported similarly strong first day sales for the book. Michael Hermann, owner of Gibsons Books in Concord, N.H., echoed Cumsky-Whitlock's sentiments about Fear, saying he also expects it out to outsell both Comey's memoir and Fire & Fury. To date Fire & Fury has sold nearly 1 million copies according to NPD BookScan, while A Higher Loyalty sold almost 600,000 copies.

Some booksellers did report delays in their orders, though not on the scale seen with Fire & Fury. As of Tuesday evening, they had not determined why the orders were delayed and declined to comment on the record.

Of course, not all booksellers reported the title a slam dunk. Those with seasonal customers or less liberal readers, said there was a lack of interest in the title. At Bobs Beach Books in Lincoln City, Ore., the peak season is summer vacation. With the crowds headed home for the fall, owner Diana Portwood said she placed a later order from distributors and was awaiting copies late this week or next.

Back in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, D.C., East City Bookshop owner Laurie Gillman struck an optimistic, but balanced tone at the end of the day. "We had good pre-orders and plenty of interest," said Gillman, "but not a crazy frenzy."

The day after publication, S&S reported that pre-order sales for Fear were the largest for any title in Simon & Schuster company history, and, as a result of the demand for the book, the publisher ordered a ninth printing that will bring the total number of hardcover copies in print to more than 1,150,000.

Bob Woodwards Fear is selling with the force of a cultural phenomenon, in extraordinary numbers across the board, in hardcover, e-book, and audio editions," S&S president and publisher Jonathan Karp said in a statement. "Based on immense pre-publication and ongoing interest, the reading public clearly has an enormous appetite for what we believe, as Woodward says, is 'a pivot point in history.' "

This article has been updated with further information.
British philosopher and former professor of European Thought, John Gray is the author of nearly a dozen books, but is perhaps best known for 2007s Straw Dogs: Thoughts on Humans and Other Animals (FSG), in which he argued that humans ought to strip ourselves of the dangerous illusion that we are different from other animals.

Grays new book, Seven Types of Atheism (FSG, Oct.), takes that argument a step further by maintaining that many strands of atheism replace traditional religion with a worship of the human being. Though godless, much of what is called "atheist" is actually religious, says Gray. He asserts that the only difference between traditional atheism and religion is that instead of the worship of a monotheistic God, atheists find faith in humanity and its ability to improve as a species, and uses uprisings of the working class and technology as examples. But first, Gray establishes the different schools of thought among atheists in the book.

As a historian in the academics, I knew that there were many different types of atheism, and of course we all know that there are many different types of religion, he told PW. There are many varieties within that broad understanding of people who dont believe in a creator god, all with different philosophies, different histories, and different views of the world.

The author says the seven types of atheism can sometimes meld into each otherbut he contends that only two are true forms of an absence of belief in the existence of deities.

Truer forms of atheism are ones that shed monotheistic thinking, not just monotheistic beliefs, said Gray. Modern atheists are constantly trying to find surrogates for the god they rejectscience for example, political surrogates, belief in human progress, or whatever. I think to be a true atheist, you would dispense with those, and live in a world that was truly godless.

Instead, Grays said, the true types of atheism are an atheism without any belief in the human progress of civilization, and an atheism of silence, which he compares to religious traditions that talk about God as being indefinable. It is these last two types of atheism that he embraces.

I am myself an atheist because I simply dont need the idea of a creator god that fashioned the world and fashioned the human animal, he said.

Eric Chinski, editor-in-chief at FSG who has worked on several of Grays past titles, tells PW, I'm especially excited about this new book and think it has the potential to be a break-out in the U.S. Chinski described Seven Types of Atheism as, a provocative, polemical book, but also subtle and moving, a deep reflection on what it means to live in the world without illusions.
Women within the Christian writing and publishing industry are coming forward with allegations and complaints of sexual misconduct ranging from accidental touching to being pinned against walls and fondled, from invasive mentoring relationships to requests for sexual favors at writers conferences.

These accusations follow the #MeToo movement that brought widespread sexual misconduct allegations to light over the past year, as well as the more recent #ChurchToo movement, in which several church leaders sexual indiscretions surfaced.

The list of men in Christian publishing circles who have recently been accused of sexual misconduct, ranging from inappropriate comments to unwanted touching, include publishing professional Dennis Hensley, literary agent Chip MacGregor, magazine editor Ben Wolf, and writing mentor Jeff Gerke.

Numerous allegations surfaced in late 2017 as Christian writers conference directors began talking to one another via a private Facebook group about attendees reports of unwanted sexual advances. By January 2018, patterns of inappropriate and abusive behavior, as well as names, emergedand directors are taking action.

The tipping point for many accusers was the resignation of Dennis Hensley from Taylor University in Upland, Ind., in July amid allegations of sexual impropriety. Hensley, who was a familiar face at Christian writers conferences and directed Taylors Professional Writing program, stepped down prior to the conclusion of an investigation into what the university called significant and credible allegations of serious misconduct.

Jim Watkins, a friend of Hensley and former director of the St. Davids Christian Writers Conference, investigated sexual harassment claims against Hensley with help from others and took those findings to Taylor University, prompting the school to take action.

I have... personally talked with many of his victims including a student and many at writers conferences. My heart breaks for these women and the serious sexual misconduct they have endured, Watkins wrote in a statement posted on his website.

In an article in Fort Waynes Journal Gazette on July 13, Hensley is quoted as saying, I thought I should take the high road and retire... and just call it quits and let this thing die its own death.

One of Hensleys early accusers, former Taylor University student Rachel Custer, described to PW a 2004 event involving inappropriate hugging and attempts by Hensley to kiss her, saying they would be special friends and this would be their little secret. She immediately reported the incident to the Taylor dean of students. To her knowledge, a letter was placed in his file regarding the incident. In response, according to an article in the Chronicle Tribune, Hensley said, When she reported it, the way she remembered it was totally exaggerated.

Also among the accusers willing to go on record is Brenda Wilbee, author of 10 books including the Seattle Sweetbriar Series (Revell), who recalled an incident in 1983 at the Seattle Pacific University Writers Conference. She picked Hensley up at the airport, and he invited her to his room to continue their conversation about the Christian publishing business. He sprawled on the couch, according to Wilbee, promising to get her on the conference circuit if she agreed to a rendezvous with him, she said. Without him, I had no hope of succeeding. It was all about who you knew and he knew everybody. The threat was clear. I said no.

Wilbee said Hensley begged her for sex, tried to block her escape, and followed her to her car, where he tried again to kiss her. The attack ended when she honked the horn, and then he blamed her for wearing a pretty dress.

Hensley was contacted by PW and, on the advice of counsel, chose not to respond to any questions.

Writers conferences and email exchanges were the venue for several womens allegations of harassment by literary agent Chip MacGregor. However, out of fear for their careers, many of PWs sources refused to go on record with their accounts, which included inappropriate touching, lewd comments, and suggestive emails.

Lorilee Craker, a former client of MacGregors and author of 15 books, including Money Secrets of the Amish (Thomas Nelson), ran into a wall when she brought up sexual misconduct stories to other industry professionals regarding inappropriate behavior and comments that occurred over the course of many years, starting in the mid-2000s. On the rare occasions when I would tell people in the industry about my experience with Chip, they would invariably shut me down, she said.  Oh, I dont want you to get a reputation for talking out of turna silencing line if there ever was one. The message was that gossip was a worse crime than anything else.

MacGregor, who lives in Oregon, spoke to PW about the allegations: I had acted like a jerk and been inappropriate on numerous occasions Ive never attacked or harassed anyone, but my behavior was inexcusable, and Im sorry. He said that any sexual activity was, in fact, consensualbut looking back on that time, Im ashamed of who I was and how I acted.

Ben Wolf, editor-in-chief of Splickety Publishing Group (SPG), who has made the rounds of Christian writers conferences, has also come under scrutiny for allegations of sexual impropriety that include inappropriate emails and conversations as well as requests for sex.

Wolf responded to the allegations in a statement to PW: In the summer of 2017, I made inappropriate comments to a female peer in the publishing industry who had routinely exchanged similar inappropriate jokes back and forth with me for several years prior.

I immediately apologized to all affected parties as soon as concerns regarding my words were brought to my attention, and I regret that any of it ever happened. This incident is the only one of its kind, and I will never repeat this mistake.

Any other allegations leveled against me regarding supposed misconduct, harassment, bullying, and/or manipulation and the like are blatantly false, and I categorically deny them.

Writing mentor and teacher Jeff Gerke has been removed from speaker lists amid allegations of sexually inappropriate behavior. Gerke, who started Marcher Lord Press, a Christian sci-fi/fantasy publisher (it has since changed hands and become Enclave Publishing), faces allegations of inappropriate emails, requests for sex, and sending suggestive photos.

When asked by PW about allegations of inappropriate behavior at certain faith-based writers conferences, Gerke admitted to one emotional affair.: Because the emotional affair was consensual (and initiated by the other woman), Im surprised to see it depicted as sexual harassment. She was as fully engaged in it and as culpable as I am.

Nevertheless, he added, Over the past few years, I have sought out and received intensive Christian therapy, deep retraining of my thinking and behaving, and excellent marital counseling with my wife. I am deeply sorrowful for my actions.

Due to the rising number of sexual harassment accounts, conference directors are taking steps to safeguard attendees. Many conference directors, including those at the Florida CWC, SoCal Christian Writers Conference, and Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference, have created a code of conduct for faculty members, spelling out appropriate behaviors at conferences. While it is often impossible to definitively prove allegations of sexual harassment, the accusations are being taken seriously by conference directors. Some directors encourage or require speakers to have roommates to allow for accountability. Faculty members are encouraged or required to eat conference meals with the group rather than leaving the grounds. Directors are also encouraging conferees and speakers to come to them if anything happens that makes them feel uncomfortable.

Were not turning a blind eye anymore, Florida Christian Writers Conference director Eva Marie Everson said.

Kathy Ide, director of the SoCal CWC and Mount Hermon CWC, is encouraging male and female speakers and attendees to schedule one-on-one meetings in public settings rather than alone in a separate rooms, to never accept rides with anyone they dont know well, and to stay on conference grounds except during conference-planned group activities.

Ide and other directors have started talking directly to conferees and speakers about appropriate behavior, as well as emailing the code of conduct to faculty.

According to directors interviewed by PW, sexual harassment at Christian writing conferences is generally considered uncommon, but more stories are coming to light and better responsiveness is needed.

The most important thing for directors now is to just be aware, Everson of the Florida CWC said. Keep your eyes open, and dont think that it cant happen at your conference. Because it can, and it could be the last person you expect.

Correction: A previous version of this article stated that Watkins investigated Hensley on behalf of Taylor University. He did not.
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Conversations focused on the need to take stock of where Africas agricultural revolution is headed, examining the steps that have been taken so far to see what is and isnt working.

Business Insider Sub-Saharan Africa was present at the event and we caught up with key figures to discuss topics ranging from the meaning of this years theme to youth participation in agriculture and many others.

In this interview, we sit down with Jennifer Blanke, Vice-President Agriculture, Human and Social Development at the African Development Bank (AfDB).

The interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

Business Insider Sub-Saharan Africa (BI SSA): What are your thoughts on the theme of this years AGRF?

Jennifer Blanke (JB): This year is really about leadership and taking what we know and doing something with it. The big issue with agriculture in Africa right now is that everybody knows what needs to be done and yet, not enough of that is getting done.

For example, we know that we need to get the right kinds of technologies to farmers in order to massively increase productivity. Productivity in agriculture in Africa has lagged behind all other regions and has even lagged behind growth. And when you think about the fact that 60-70% of Africans work in agriculture, thats really worrisome for poverty reduction, for an increase in income, and things of that nature.

So, we know what the problem is. We even have the technology to fix it and yet, that is not happening at scale. A lot of the conversations that will be going on over the next few days will involve the actors who really can make a difference, think about AGRA, which is really at the core of this event.

You have the African Development Bank, we lend and provide grants for a lot of these activities and ideas. Others like the Rockefeller Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, also provide support and we all recognise that if we all work together, especially with the governments to usher in all the investments needed, then a lot can happen.

BI SSA: A lot has been said about political will and how it is needed to transform agriculture on the continent. How do you think we can improve this?

JB: To be honest with you, I dont think theres a lack of political will, policymakers are just in a tricky situation because, we live in a world of limited resources and in many African countries, they are particularly limited. So, how do you decide how youre going to spend? Are you going to put into agriculture, education, roads?

I think the main point that we're discussing here (at AGRF) is to make it clear to policymakers and others that developing agriculture, first of all, is not just about developing agriculture. It really does require a lot of other things -- the infrastructure that we know is important, and education.

But also that agriculture, for me as a development economist, is not an end-game, in and of itself. It is a vehicle via which every other region in the world has developed. You cant find any region in the world that has developed without seeing an increase in productivity in its agriculture and also an increase in processing for the most part. Why is that so important? Because it increases revenue, it moves people into higher value-added jobs, and it means that you have to import less food.

ALSO READ: An expert shares the simple reasons why young people are not interested in agriculture and how to change that

I think if Africans just look at the situation, they will see it is a challenge and an opportunity. Right now, African economies are importing net about $35 billion per year of food and thats going to go up to over $100 billion in the next decade if nothing changes. Thats a challenge and an opportunity.

Why is it going up so much? Because youre seeing a rising middle class, increasing urbanisation with demand for higher quality foods, more processed foods, etc.

Added to that, if you look at what Africa is exporting, its mostly raw materials -- corn, wheat, and then its importing back those things that have been transformed into foods that Africans consume and that means that Africa is exporting jobs. What does Africa need more than anything? Jobs.

So, investing in agriculture is pretty much a win-win and its a question of making it clear that this is the vehicle via which all other things that African governments want will happen.

We always have to remember agriculture because it is a fundamental way of moving into an industrialised society.

BI SSA: Lets talk a bit about what the AfDB is doing to promote the growth of agriculture in Africa.

JB: So, we (at AfDB) take a value-chain approach and we go all the way from the basic production up to the processing and exporting. What we want to do is boost productivity, but what we really want to do is usher in a green revolution in Africa.

Other regions have had their green revolution. Youve had one in Mexico, very famous. One in India, very famous. And those happened decades ago. We know that the technologies that exist today are even better than the ones they had at their disposal.

We have an effort called Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) and there, we are working with all of the top research institutes working on all the different crops in order to decide on what are the ideal technologies to get to farmers, and get it to them at scale. So, we are working together with AGRA, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation IFAD, and many others. Thats at the basic level.

We also have initiatives around mechanisation and making sure we get the right machinery to the farmers, which is part of the piece. So then, what do you do once you have produced a lot more? Well, a big issue in Africa is things like warehousing. What do you do with post-harvest? So we have a whole effort around post-harvest loss and making sure that once you produce a lot of crops, you are able to store it properly and not lose much.

Then if you go beyond that, you get to the exciting part of processing. Our biggest effort there is called Staple Crops Processing Zones (SCPZ), which is all about taking the hard and soft infrastructure into the rural areas, addressing one of the biggest challenges of the day in Africa which is that young talented people are leaving rural areas in droves either to urban areas where they may not have as nice a life but maybe job opportunities. Or, unfortunately, maybe migrating abroad.

So, how do you keep them in the rural areas because you have a thriving economic activity going on? The idea is to bring in the hard and soft infrastructure into zones where you already have a lot of agricultural productivity and then bring the transformation and processing right there using some anchor investors.

We wont be able to do it everywhere, but the idea is that it will have a demonstration effect. If you do it in key countries and key places in those countries, it will be an idea that will catch on and will work elsewhere. This is the sort of thing that drove the agro-industrial revolution in the United States and many other places.

BI SSA: Lastly, how do you incentivise young people to be more interested in agribusiness?

JB: Its good that you raised that. So, we have a bank-wide effort called ENABLE Youth. Thats all about creating 25 million jobs and training 50 million people with better skills in 10 years. What we do is take young graduates from any field and train them on everything they need to know on how to start and run a successful agribusiness.

We are working with other institutions to give the ones with the best ideas seed funding. One of the biggest challenges facing young people who want to start businesses is not only that they have no collateral, they have no business track records. So, how do you get them that basic seed funding? And then if they do well, we can move them up the staircase and give them smaller loans and bring them into the financial markets in a more normal way. But at least you have to give them a leg up in the beginning.

All of this is about how we describe agriculture. Because young people, they dont want to be farmers. I mean, some of them want to, but mostly not. So, we need to start talking about agriculture as a business, not as a way of life. The young people want to be agropreneurs. Not farmers, but agropreneurs.

If you go to Nigeria, youll see young people whove had good careers as lawyers, doctors, they did what mum and dad wanted, but deep down they want to do agribusiness. So, they leave their jobs and they start successful agribusinesses.

The way agriculture is talked about makes an impact on how young people see it. Its all about agribusiness. Agribusiness is going to be a very exciting outlet for more lucrative jobs and jobs where people can express themselves more.
"Everything is about him and political posturing," Cruz added. "The man has no idea, he has no solidarity, no sympathy, and no empathy for anything that does not make him look good."

Earlier on Tuesday, Trump boasted about his administration's efforts following Hurricane Maria, which devastated the region and left an estimated 3,000 people dead in its aftermath. A government-funded study indicated that Maria was the second deadliest storm in the US, while a separate study conducted by Harvard University researchers estimated around $90 billion worth of damage.

"Puerto Rico was incredibly successful," Trump said, adding that the US territory was fraught with issues prior to the hurricane. "It was one of the best jobs that's ever been done with respect to what this is all about."

Cruz, who has criticized the administration's hurricane-relief effort in the past, took notice of Trump's glowing remarks.

"Well, I'm sorry sir, shame on you," she said. "You did not do a good job in Puerto Rico. If he thinks that 3,000 people dying on his watch is a good news story or is an 'unsung success,' nobody is going to be singing his praises. Because this was a despicable act of neglect on the part of his administration."

Sixty-four people were killed as a result of the hurricane, according to initial official estimates. But that number was highly disputed and the Puerto Rican government withheld its data, forcing news organizations like CNN to take legal action over the data's release.

"Unfortunately, most of the political class in Puerto Rico, when the president says 'jump,' they say 'how high,'" Cruz said. "In a humanitarian crisis ... you should not be just having a parade of self-accolades. You should never be content with everything we did."

"I'm not content with everything," Cruz added. "I did I should have done more. We all should have done more."

Cruz said she's been in contact with officials in North Carolina ahead of Hurricane Florence, which is expected to be the first Category 4 storm to hit the state. Florence's 130 mph winds are expected to make landfall late Thursday night or early Friday morning.

"We know how it feels. We know how much they're going to have ahead of them. And not only our prayers, but it's time to pay it forward."
A US Marine Corps aircraft carrier full of F-35B stealth jets showed up in the Middle East after Russia threatened US forces in Syria in the latest military buildup between the world's two greatest nuclear powers.

Russia sailed a small armada to the Mediterranean sea in August as its prepares with its ally, Syria, an offensive against the last rebel stronghold in the country after predicting a chemical weapons attack that it prematurely blamed on US-aligned forces.

President Donald Trump has warned Syria against its offensive against its own people, and the White House said it

The US has a small presence of a couple dozen troops advising rebel forces in Southern Syria, which Russia threatened to attack, CNN reported.

The Essex steps up

Until recently, the US had no capital ships and just one or two destroyers in the Mediterranean, but the USS Essex, a small, flat-deck aircraft carrier used to launch US Marine Corps F-35B stealth jets that can take off almost vertically, just arrived off the horn of Africa, USNI News reports.

Though the Essex remains on the opposite side of the Suez Canal from Russia's ships in the Mediterranean, it's a quick-moving ship. Additionally, the F-35Bs can fly about 550 miles out from the ship in stealth configurations that make them hard to detect for enemy defenses.

Direct combat between Russia and the US remains unlikely, as both sides work together to avoid accidental conflict and neither side seems willing to escalate a fight over Syria into a massive war.

But Syria has hosted the world's liveliest air defense and battle space for years. Missile fires have taken down Israeli, Syrian, and Russian jets over the course of the war. Syria has seen the combat debut of the F-35 and the first US air-to-air kill between manned aircraft since 1999.

"Our primary mission is crisis response being current and absolutely ready for anything the geographic combatant commander needs us to do while we are here," Col. Chandler Nelms, commander of the military expeditionary unit aboard the Essex told USNI.

How the US responds to crisis  even when Russia brings it

Russia has a larger ground presence in Syria and also operates large groups of mercenaries, but has not fared well in fights against the US so far.

Russia has since established a stronger naval position in the Mediterranean with ships capable of firing cruise missiles at targets deep inland, and possibly at the US without risking ground forces.
Nairobi City also plays host to several key government institutions like Parliament, Statehouse and even the Central Bank of Kenya etc. not to mention that it is located just a few kilometers away from two of Africas busiest airports, Wilson Airport, and Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Nairobi without a doubt is the most connected county in the whole country.

A quality that has seen numerous companies set up their bases in the city.

However, despite playing host to key government institutions and a majority of the countrys tech hubs and tech communities, Nairobi is not the best place to start a company especially a Startup company.

According to a new study by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), the best place to set up a business is not Nairobi but Mombasa and Eldoret.

In the IEA study, dubbed the Kenya Urban Areas Performance Index 2017, the city of Mombasa and Eldoret were ranked ahead of Nairobi in providing an enabling environment for doing business.

Mombasa County, which was ranked first when it comes to investment and trade, especially stood out because the County provides information to investors in Kenyas two official languages, English and Kiswahili, effectively making it easier for Investors to make decisions.

The city also had the highest number of building permits issued at 0.83 per 1,000 people, and saw relatively high growth (10 per cent) in the number of business licences issued per person.

Out of six urban areas covered in the IEA report  Mombasa, Nairobi, Kisumu, Machakos, Eldoret and Nakuru, it takes the shortest time at 41 days to register property in Mombasa city.

Nakuru, Kisumu and Machakos didnt do too well in the ranking over non-disclosure on the number of business permits issued.

However, the study found Nakuru to have the most tax-friendly environment of the six urban areas.

It provides sufficient information on local taxes and levies like most of the other urban areas, but has the lowest parking fees at Sh100, said IEA Programme Coordinator John Mutua.

The study also found out that Nakuru is cheapest place to obtain a single business permit for a general merchant shop at a cost of Sh4,000, against a mean cost of Sh5,367 while Mombasa with Sh7,000 fee for a general merchants shop is the most expensive.

The Kenya Urban Areas Performance Index 2017 ranking largely coincides with the findings of a 2016 World Bank study, where the Mombasa and Eldoret cities were once again found to have an impressive investment environment.

Within Kenya, (starting a business) varies from 20 days in Mombasa and Uasin Gishu (Eldoret) to 27 days in Narok and Nyeri. Start-up costs range from 18.1 per cent of income per capita in Nyeri to 26.9 per cent in Mombasa found the World Bank.

The 2016 World Bank report, which looked at things from the perspective of small and medium-sized firms, found that it was easier to start a business in Uasin Gishu (Eldoret), deal with construction permits in Kisumu, register a property in Nairobi and enforce a contract in Busia (Malaba).

It also found out that the process of obtaining a business permit is relatively inexpensive and takes just two days in Kiambu (Thika) and Uasin Gishu (Eldoret), making the two counties among the best to start a business in.

The study focused on whether a county economy had in place rules and processes that lead to good outcomes for entrepreneurs, in turn increasing economic activity.
Nigerias telecommunications regulator said it is working to end the $10 billion dispute between MTN Group Ltd and the government.

Prof. Umar Danbatta, the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) stated this on the sideline of the ITU Telecom Conference in Durban, South Africa on Tuesday, September 11, 2018.

He said the commission is working to solve the issue among both parties.

The Nigerian Communications Commission is doing what it can to facilitate an amicable resolution of MTNs standoff with the tax and finance regulators, Bloomberg quoted Danbatta as saying.

Two weeks ago, Nigeria's central bank (CBN) ordered Africa's telecoms giant, MTN and four other banks to refund a total of $8.134 billion moved out of the country" for breaching the country's forex regulations.

The central bank also slammed a huge N5.8 billion fine on the banks for allegedly aiding MTN in the illegal capital repatriation. The apex bank had since redeemed the fine from the four banks.

Five days after, the attorney-general of the federation also requested MTN to pay $2 billion in taxes relating to the importation of foreign equipment and payments to foreign suppliers since 2008.

The telecoms firm denied wrongdoings and promised to defend its position vigorously.

On Monday, September 10, 2018, it filed a legal suit concerning demands from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the office of the Attorney General of the Federation on foreign exchange repatriation and taxes.

The company said the case is a complex one and requires judicial interpretation.
As part of the preparations for the African Union Summit, the African Union Commission will hold the 6th Retreat of the Executive Council from 12-13 September 2018. The central part of the retreat will focus on identifying effective implementation strategies for the reform of the Commission.

The Reform of the AU is a central element of the AU Institutional Reform process that is underway within the framework of Assembly Decision 635. The objective of the reforms is to establish a high performing efficient and effective AU Commission that is able to deliver on agreed continental priorities, attract and retain the best quality staff that are motivated and committed to delivering to the highest standards.

While in Addis Ababa, Deputy Minister Landers will also attend the 9th Extraordinary Session of the African Union (AU) Executive Council (including Ministers in charge of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) and/or Ministers in charge of Negotiations with the European Union (EU). The Ministers will meet to consolidate consensus on the AUs African Common Position for Negotiations for a New Cooperation Agreement with the European Union.

African Ministers are expected to finalise fundamentals of an AU-EU Post-2020 Agreement that sees Africa as a united Continent that speaks with one voice, whilst preserving common interests, specificities, diversities and obligations of each African country and region.

The legal basis for relations between the ACP and EU, the Cotonou Partnership Agreement (CPA), will expire on 29 February 2020. In preparation for 2020, the ACP has undertaken a two-pronged process. Firstly, the Group is reviewing its performance over the last forty years and reflecting on how the ACP could respond to the current global environment. Secondly, the Group is developing its negotiating memoranda for a new successor framework agreement to the CPA.

Through ACP processes, all three regions (Africa; the Caribbean; and the Pacific) have embarked on regional/continental discussions aimed at formulating their positions in preparation for the negotiations on the finalisation of a successor agreement to the CPA.

South Africa became a qualified member of the Cotonou Partnership Agreement (CPA) between ACP member countries and the European Union (EU) on 4 November 1995, and consequently also became a Member of the ACP Group through this action. The reason for qualified membership is that South Africa has never been a party to the trade chapter of the CPA, which makes provision for duty-free, quota-free (DFQF) trade from other ACP Member States into the EU. South Africas trade with the EU has taken place in accordance with the provisions of the bilateral Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) between South Africa and the EU and more recently in accordance with the Southern African Development Community-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (SADC-EU EPA).
Living heritage is the foundation of all communities and an essential source of identity and continuity. Aspects of living heritage include: cultural tradition, oral history, performance, ritual, popular memory, skills and techniques, indigenous knowledge system and the holistic approach to nature, society and social relationships. In South Africa the term intangible cultural heritage is used interchangeably with the term living heritage.

Living heritage plays an important role in promoting cultural diversity, social cohesion, reconciliation, peace and economic development. In every community there are living human treasures who possess a high degree of knowledge, skills and history pertaining to different aspects of diverse living heritage. It is therefore important for South Africans to reclaim, restore and preserve these various aspects of living heritage to accelerate the use of living heritage to address challenges communities are facing today.

The Department of Arts and Culture developed a draft policy on the South African living heritage.

Heritage Day is a public holiday in South Africa.
Nassim Abdi, a fundamentalist preacher in Sydney, Australia is heard in a video preaching to fellow Muslims at Auburn mosque when he stated categorically that if a woman has no reasonable excuse to decline her husbands demand for sex, then she must always be ready.

If the husband calls the wife to be intimate and theres no legitimate reason for the woman to say no, then she must answer the call of her husband.

She must answer the call of her husband and if not she has committed a major sin.

If the man calls the wife to bed and she refuses, the angels curse this woman and he sleeps with her whilst hes angry, the angels curse her until she wakes up.

Though the preacher has not said anything new, some feminists have descended heavily on him.

Eva Cox, a popular feminist for instance said: Somebody needs to inform the preacher that hes preaching something which is illegal, she told Daily Mail Australia.

Preaching something which is illegal maybe should be banned. Im sorry weve got these nutters.

As if that was not enough, a research professor with Macquarie University, Catharine Lumby who doubles as a gender adviser with the National Rugby League has called for the man to be investigated.

A woman who denies husband sex commits a major sin - Preacher

She said: That kind of speech should be investigated. I believe in freedom of speech but I believe in limits to freedom of speech where violence is being advocated.

It is absolutely against the law in this country what hes advocating. Its a form of hate speech.

The gender adviser went to the extent of claiming: its incitement to commit a criminal offence: if your wife doesnt submit, then you still have the right to take her. That is a crime under Australian law.
For the rich folks, they rely on their travel agents to get them better deals for an enjoyable vacation or business trip.

Life is too short. Just because you dont earn thousands of Ghana cedis monthly doesnt mean you cant go on a vacation outside our motherland Ghana.

This article is basically for those who are hoping to travel next year December to Sao Tome.

In this article, we will highlight on 2 main things: flight and accommodation. It will also include the others things that will make your stay memorable and adventurous.

Flight

If you are certain about the date for the trip, it is better to book the flight in advance for a discount price.

It is not advisable to fly during festive seasons if you are sticking to your budget as the prices go high. There are chances that you wont find any seat available because all the flights are jam-packed.

Booking flights through travel and tour agencies has its pros and cons and if you are hoping to save some money, book online and pay with your credit card. Based on our research a round trip from Accra to Sao Tome ranges between $200 to $ 350 if you book now.

Accommodation

They are two options when you are looking for accommodation that is Tripadvisor and Airbnb but we will stick to the latter since we are running on a budget.

Airbnb offers hospitality; quality vacation rentals, hostel boutique and more online at an affordable price. You can get a fully furnished room from $ 12 to $40 per night.

Food and drink

The food on most of their menu are Ghanaian friendly although the taste might be slightly different. It is a sign of relief because you wont sleep on an empty stomach after touring the city. They have specialties like grilled fish and chicken, fried fish, snails, rice and beans, rice and spinach stew, cocoa biscuit among others. If you can afford beer which is around $1, you can opt for palm wine.

Tourist sites

National Museum

Explore local history at National Museum, housed inside a Portuguese colonial fort from the 16th century. The museum collections include contemporary art, biological exhibits, and voodoo and Catholic artifacts. Built in 1575 during Portuguese rule, the fort once served as a maritime defense center.

Pico Cao Grande

Part of a national park, Pico Cao Grande is a volcanic peak remarkably reminiscent of a needle. Due to its unusual shape and thick fog, the peak remains a challenging hiking opportunity suitable only for experienced climbers. In spite of the obvious risks, the volcano attracts many brave hikers intent on conquering the summit, 668 m (2,175 ft) above sea level.

Bombaim Waterfalls

Two waterfalls in close proximity of each other, surrounded by the lush greenery of the rainforest and a chance to take a refreshing bath as the pools are deep enough for swimming.

Se Catedral de Nossa Senhora da Graca de Sao Tome

Although a modest and simple religious site, Se Catedral de Nossa Senhora da Graca de Sao Tome nevertheless represents one of the most prominent landmarks in the capital. Dating back to the 15th century, the building underwent several restorations over the years, the last one in 1956. Join the locals and the visitors who flock here to pray or enjoy the peaceful, serene atmosphere inside.

Obo National Park
This comes after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ordered Menzgold to stop operations with immediate effect.

In a letter dated September 7, 2018, the Deputy Director of the SEC said that after a meeting with some officials of Menzgold they have demanded further documentation to make decisions.

Until that time, they have asked the company to stop business operations.

Information reaching out to customers about the order by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has sparked some panic from people who have invested with the company.

READ MORE: Ghana Uber drivers on strike for 2 weeks

Pulse.com.ghs visit to Menzgold saw a number of cars parked along both sides of the road at the Lagos Avenue branch at East Legon with hundreds of people there to get clarifications.

"I'm worried. I want to terminate my account. But that will cost me 25% of my money," one person told Pulse.com.gh in an interview.

"I just want my money. That is why I am here. All I need is my money," another added.

Others, however, did not seem perturbed. They accused the Akufo-Addo-led government of deliberately closing the firm.
In a letter dated September 7, 2018, which was signed by the Deputy Director General of SEC, Paul Ababio said that the SEC hereby directs Menzgold Company Ltd to shut down immediately the business of trading in gold collectibles with guaranteed returns to clients which constitutes, in essence, dealing in securities with neither the necessary license nor disclosure authorised by the SEC.

The letter added that no new contracts should be created and all advertising of the investment business halted with immediate effect.

Mr Ababio in the letter said that they visited the head office of Menzgold Ghana on August 23, 2018, to further understand the operations of the company.

After the meeting between SEC and Menzgold officials, it was confirmed to SEC that the aspect of Menzgolds business which involves the purchase/deposit of gold collectibles from the public and contracts issued with guaranteed returns with clients is a capital market activity under Act 929 without a valid license issued by SEC contrary to section 109 of Act 929 with consequences under section 206 (1) of the same Act."

In August this year, the Bank of Ghana issued a public notice cautioning the general public to desist from depositing cash at Menzgold.

It said the company has no authority to engage in what it says are the solicitation, receipt of money or investment and the payment of dividends or returns to its clients.

The central bank maintained that Menzgold is in breach of section 6(1) of the Banks and Specialised Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).

Meanwhile, the BoG said that it will not be held responsible if there is any loss of investment.

Menzgolds response

But the SEC has now asked the company to stop business immediately.
He was a true African. His behaviour meant he was a consummate diplomat. We have lost an illustrious son. He is an honourable person and it will remain history that we buried an illustrious son in the continent she said.

He has made his name. People will come to Ghana to look at his tomb. These are the things that will enhance and boost the transportation of our export

He joined the UN system in 1962 as an administrative and budget officer with the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Geneva.

On his initiative, UN peacekeeping was strengthened in ways that enabled the UN to cope with a rapid rise in the number of operations and personnel. It was also at his urging that in 2005, member states established two new inter-governmental bodies: the Peacebuilding Commission and the Human Rights Council.

Mr Annan also played a central role in the creation of the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria; the adoption of the UNs first-ever counter-terrorism strategy and the acceptance by member states of the responsibility to protect people from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.
The Crops Research Institute of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is spearheading the move in honour of the late statesman.

Kofi Annan died over three weeks ago at age 80 whiles staying in Switzerland with his family.

However, the former UN General Secretary is set to be immortalised by the naming a potato after him.

According to a Senior Research Scientist, Dr Ernest Baafi, the move is in recognition of Mr. Annans contribution towards sweet potato production through the founding of the Alliance for Green Revolution for Africa (AGRA).

The renaming will, however, need to be approved first by the National Varietal Release Committee of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

When approved, the new breed of potato will be known as AGRA SP-19 or CRI-Kofi Annan.

The CSIR has so far released thirteen (13) high yielding and early maturing varieties of potatoes in the last six years.
This comes after an Accra Magistrate Court issued a warrant for her immediate arrest.

The suspect, Marabel Darko, 56, who is a trader and self-employed is alleged to have issued the fake cheque to the complainant, which was dishonoured at the bank. She has since gone into hiding.

She is dark in complexion and stands at five feet, four inches (5,4") tall. The suspect, Darko was last seen in a black top and jeans at Tuba and Kaneshie on November 10, 2017.

She is believed to be hiding in Accra, Tuba, Kaneshie or La.
The funeral will be under the auspices of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

A release signed by Joseph Emmanuel Allotey-Pappoe, the PAWA Public Affairs Advisor, said the pre-burial service would commence at 0900 hours after a file-past between 0600 hours and 0830 hours at the Accra International Conference Centre.

The burial will take place at the new Military Cemetery, Burma Camp and will be followed by the final funeral rites at the Forecourt of the State House. The prescribed dress code is all white.

The Secretary-General of the Pan African Writers Association of Ghana died at the Korle Bu Teaching hospital, Friday, July 13, after a short illness.

Prof Okai, 77, is noted for his excellent poetry recitation and is believed to be one of the first real poetry performers to have emerged in Africa.

His performances on radio and television include an acclaimed 1975 appearance at poetry international at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London where he shared the stage with US poets Stanley Kunitz and Robert Lowell, and Nicolas Guillen of Cuba.
Construction work on the Sofoline interchange in Kumasi in March, 2007 has stopped.

The project which started from the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital roundabout in Kumasi to Abuakwa in the Atwima-Nwabiagya district, stalled for several years due to lack of funding.

The project which gave hope to residents of Kumasi that the traffic congestion in one of the busiest roundabouts in the metropolis  Sofoline  would be a thing of the past has not come to fruition.

The $150-million Sofoline project financed by the government of Ghana is falling apart.

The project has been left to rot with all the millions of money put into it.

Lack of supervision and monitoring has left the gigantic structure in a state of worry, as the pedestrian subway is now filled with solid and liquid waste coming in from the surrounding environment and heavy rain downpour.

Motorists have been advised to use alternative routes as their safety could not be guaranteed.

In August 2018, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has reaffirmed government's commitment to complete the project.

He said the bidding process for auxiliary roads such as the IPT-Bokankye road had also begun, disclosing that it had already been advertised in the dailies.
They have burned every communication gadget the party procured for them for communication purposes.

According to them, they sacrificed their resources to campaign for the party to win in the 2016 elections.

READ MORE: Nana Addo condemns unlawful seizure by NPP supporters

They have also warned their members region-wide to desist from further calling or texting into local radio stations to defend the government of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

Spokesperson for the serial callers, Wofa Anokye said "This afternoon, we have gathered our mobile phones the party bought for us and burn them to register our displeasure to party leadership."

He stated that the serial callers fought for the party to win but they are still using their own resources to run the party.

He said over sixty-two of their members are struggling to make ends meet while their regional executives and government appointees in the region are living in comfort.

The aggrieved NPP callers burnt their sim cards and recharge cards they claim they bought with their own money.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) boycotted the first meeting of the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) of the Electoral Commission (EC) which was chaired by newly appointed Electoral Commissioner, Jean Mensa.

According to the party, they received the invitation very late and could not attend the meeting today, Wednesday, August 22, 2018.

READ ALSO: Angry NDC youth reveal why Ekumfi MP was nearly lynched

"We had a message informing us of the impending meeting around 12:00 pm, which is not appropriate," a source said.

However, a letter that has surfaced online offers an apology to the NDC. The Jean Mensa-led commission appears to be seeking reconciliation with the NDC.

We offer our sincere apologies for the delay in dispatching the letter to your office which regrettably led to your absence from the IPAC meeting, portions of the letter read.
She said plans are far advanced to introduce two more groups that will be called "The Eagles", and "The Pythons".

The NDC introduced a vigilante goup "The Hawks" during their regional elections two weeks ago. Spotted in black t-shirts, the over 30 stoutly built men clashed with some Police officers who were at the venue to provide security for defeated Ashanti Regional Chairman aspirant, Joseph Yamin.

General Mosquito as he is popularly called opined that the emergence of groups like Hawks is an appropriate natural response to the failure of the Akufo-Addo government to rein in its party vigilante groups.

She said the intimidation and political vendetta will be history as the NDC prepares to wrestle power from the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
The brand, which targets open-minded and audacious explorers, has partnered with Bata Shoe Company to leverage on their strong marketing and distribution network.

Bata currently has over 150 stores in Kenya, plus wholesalers and dealers in the smaller towns.

We are pleased to be partnering with Palladium, as the brand makes its entry in the Kenyan market. Palladiums brand essence goes hand in hand with our global brand manifesto Me & Comfortable withit in which as Bata, we pay tribute to healthy self-confidence to our customers through footwear. Said Alberto Errico, Bata Africa President .

With over 90 years of authenticity and heritage, Palladium is the original equipment brand to support people on the move through any terrain and weather conditions, making the brand well suited for the Kenyan market. The adaptability and agility of the footwear gives city explorers the freedom to embrace unexpected journeys everyday.

With exploration at the heart of the brand, Palladium develops its collections to reflect the diversity of modern daily life, with each function-first style crafted to stay one step ahead of city exploration and beyond. We are excited to launch in Kenya and grow the brand in the country together with Bata Said Zoe Cunningham, Brand Manager of Palladium,
The Nigerian government has dismissed insinuations of the possible takeover of the economy by the Chinese government if it defaults on loan terms.

The country's debt management office explained the issues surrounding the advantage of sourcing for finance from China in a statement issued on Tuesday, September 11, 2018, in Abuja, the nation's capital.

The government said Chinese loans are cheaper compared to other international bodies and agencies. It added that loans from China Exim constituted just one of the sources of multilateral and bilateral loans accessed by Nigeria and represented only about 8.5% of the countrys external debt as of June 30, 2018.

The statement reads, The DMO has observed that there have been various comments in recent times about borrowing by developing countries from China. The DMO has therefore considered it necessary to inform Nigerians about the governments borrowing from China.

Firstly, it should be noted that based on need, and subject to the receipt of requisite approvals, the government may raise capital from several domestic and external sources to finance capital projects in order to promote economic growth and development as well as job creation.

Regarding external borrowing, the Nigerian government accesses capital from several sources such as the World Bank and the African Development Bank, as well as bilateral loans from various countries such as France (through the Agence Francaise de Development), Germany (KfW), Japan (Japan International Cooperation Agency), India (India Development Bank) and China (China Export-Import Bank).

Borrowing from China Exim is one of such means of ensuring that Nigeria has access to more long-term concessional loans. Given the countrys infrastructure deficit, which needs to be urgently addressed, the loans from China Exim, which provide financing for critical infrastructure in road and rail transport, aviation, water, agriculture and power at concessional terms, are appropriate for Nigerias financing needs and align properly with the countrys Debt Management Strategy.

The debt office assured that Nigerias public debt was being managed under statutory provisions and international best practices, adding that there was no risk of default on any loan, including the Chinese loans.
According to Punch, the Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministry (MFM) founder and the Incorporated Trustees of Mountain of Fire & Miracles Ministries have filed a libel suit against the Nigerian national newspaper.

Why Pastor Olukoya is suing ThisDay for 500 billion

In the suit filed on their behalf by their lawyer, Ime Nya Asanga of Ime Asanga & Company, the church cleric and his church claimed that the newspaper published a libelous story against them that caused them severe injury.

Hence, they want the court to order the newspaper "to pull down and erase the offending story from the Internet forthwith."

ALSO READ: 7 intriguing things about Mountain Of Fire

They also want the court to order the defendant "to tender a written apology and a retraction published prominently on its website and for three consecutive days on the front page of ThisDay Newspaper and in at least three other nationally circulating newspapers and two international magazines, including TIME International."

Apart from demanding N500bn in damages from the newspaper, the claimants are seeking an order of perpetual injunction "restraining the defendant by itself, its agents, servants, privies or other persons howsoever called or described from further publishing and/or disseminating libelous stories and statements against the claimants."

The suit marked PHC/2257/2018 was filed before the Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt on July 30, 2018.

Pastor Olukoya sues another newspaper

ThisDay is not the only publication that is facing charges from the cleric and his church.

A little over a week ago, Pulse reported that Pastor Olukoya is suing Sahara reporters and its owner, Mr. Omoyele Sowore for 10 billion.

Like ThisDay, the online news agency was sued for publishing false and malicious articles against him and MFM since 2013.
Getting a divorce seems of great importance to Idowu so as to prevent her from committing suicide. Punch News gathered THIS in a report.

I was in 300-level at the Lagos State University Distance Learning Programme when I met Michael Idowu in 2012.

He was a teacher and I was teaching with my National Certificate in Education then; he proposed to me but I rejected because he was older than me.

Michael told me that his wife divorced him with two sons and out of pity, I fell in love with him.

Few months after, he took me to meet his family. When I got pregnant in 2013, we got married and he paid my dowry.

But when I was seven months pregnant, I discovered that my husband had two wives and six children which he hid from me during our courtship.

He lied to me, my world broke down but I survived the trauma.

"Michael kept me in a two-room apartment in a bushy area, but I still managed to have my baby," the complainant told the court in a Punch News report.

ALSO READ: Woman plans to poison abusive husband if not separated on time

The defendant Michael Idowu was reportedly not present at the court when it sat over the matter.
Partnering with Google, NOTE 5 Stylus is yet another Android One smartphone with intelligent software experience and will be available for pre-order from September 10  15, 2018, and available in-store across all our exclusive stores from September 17.

At Infinix, our mission is to keep innovating and integrate the most advanced technology and trends into our products. Thats why we partnered with Google once again to launch NOTE 5 Stylus. With the NOTE 5 Stylus, consumers will experience the latest technologies, such as capturing stunning photos with the 16MP AI low-light selfie camera and 16MP AI rear camera, showing their creativity with the amazing XPen, interacting with the world with the Google Assistant and many others. We are confident that the NOTE 5 Stylus will bring consumers intelligent smartphone experience to a whole new level and allow them to stay ahead of the crowd, said Benjamin Jiang, Managing Director of Infinix Mobility Limited.

About the NOTE 5 Stylus

The NOTE 5 Stylus is designed for consumers that seek self-expression, featuring AI cameras for stunning images. The device is equipped with an upgraded 16MP AI low-light selfie camera with f2.0 aperture.

Pulse Nigeria

With its intelligent pixel technology, the device always supports high quality selfie images whether night or day.

Its 16MP rear camera also captures more light with its larger pixels and bigger f1.8 aperture at a speed that is up to three times faster with multiple scene recognition ability.

This new feature enables consumers to capture amazing pictures in all occasions.

The XPen is another highlight of this device and creates new and innovative ways for consumers to express themselves.

It is an awesome digital pen that allows consumers to showcase their creativity. With the versatile XPen, consumers can edit screenshot images instantly, sketch doodles or even jot down notes during meetings.

Pulse Nigeria

The NOTE 5 Stylus comes with a 6.0"FHD+ infinity display, giving consumers a larger screen for an immersive experience and allowing them to enhance their smartphone experience to new heights. With its trendy and convenient design, consumers will be able to handle complexity and work seamlessly with the XPen.

Infinix NOTE 5 Stylus also supports Google Lens  a new way to search what youre seeing and interact with the world around you. You can act on text, identify distinct plant and animal breeds, learn about popular landmarks and discover products like them. The feature will be available right in the NOTE 5 Stylus camera and through Google Assistant.

Were pleased to add Infinix NOTE 5 Stylus to the Android One program following the successful launch of NOTE 5. Powered by Googles software and latest AI innovations, the NOTE 5 Stylus will offer smart, secure and simply amazing experience to users, said Mahir Sahin, Director Android Partnerships for Africa.

Infinix Mobilitys dedication in bringing consumers stylish devices with cutting-edge features perfectly aligns with MediaTeks commitment to making great technology accessible to everyone. Powered by the MediaTek Helio P23, the NOTE 5 Stylus enables consumers to bring their photography to the next level, enjoy the latest connectivity features and take advantage of AI-powered innovations like Google Assistant and Google Lens, said Rami Osman, Director MEA for Sales and Marketing at MediaTek. Designed for an ideal mix of high performance and extreme power-efficiency, the Helio P23 provides New Premium Android devices with an incredible user experience.

Pulse Nigeria

Powered by a 4000mAh large battery with an ultra-dynamic X-charge for quick charge, this device is designed to keep you functional throughout the day. Adopting the Helio P23 as its processor, NOTE 5 Stylus is engineered for high peak performance at a low power consumption, providing an incredible high-tech performance packed in a tiny machine.

Infinix NOTE 5 Stylus is set to launch in more than 30 countries including Nigeria, Egypt, India, Kenya and Morocco. Infinix Mobility Limited joining the Android One program means Infinix NOTE 5 Stylus will enable younger consumers to experience a seamless creative and self-expression lifestyle that empowers them to become trendsetters.
According to reports, the soldier was apprehended alongside, Kanchana Thetsawang, reportedly the mother of the child whose husband died six months before the incident.

The police gathered that she left the 6-month-old child at home with Jitthanopajai who is described as an army private.

More reports confirm that the baby's corpse was taken to its grand mother's residence in the Huay Kwang district.

It was found in a basket on Sunday, September 9, 2018.
Our brand

Our dream is to empower the aspirational Nigerian woman's style by providing her "all she needs" to make a statement in every day life! Everything we stock is informed by our customer base and global influences from social media, street style and pop culture.

Our products

We stock local and international brands in different categories (such as Fashion and style, body and hair care etc) with products made to deliver great quality to the savvy woman for any and every occasion. We are constantly working to bring new great affordable products in quick succession for our beautiful queens alongside great style advices and outfit inspirations!

Who runs this show

Coco Olorunfemi is the brains behind All She needs. She is a fashion designer for Nigerian women's wear brand, Eman Zazar, as well as an art director in graphics design and photography. Coco is a firm believer in everything affordable chic fashion, with a burning passion to provide savvy women with as many style options as they require to take their style to the next level. Follow Coco Olorunfemi here.

The women who inspire ASN

At All She Needs, we believe in the Magic of the young Nigerian woman. She is a go-getter, the driven woman who is on a constant path to better herself and achieve her goals. She is brave, bold and Iconic, A woman who truly represents power and resilience. We are committed to giving her all the options she needs to make the best style decision possible. SHE is the reason why we are.

Instagram: @shopallsheneeds

Facebook: @shopallsheneeds
On the deadly night of August 21, 1986, a strange and mysterious natural disaster took place at one of the most interesting lakes in Africa  Lake Nyos.

Lake Nyos is not an ordinary lake. It is a crater lake  a lake formed atop a volcanic crater in northwest Cameroon. Though it is one of the most unforgettable tourist attractions in Cameroon, the areas surrounding the lake are deserted as settlers were moved far away from it.

What exactly happened?

Before the 21st, Lake Nyos was a beautiful blue lake with picturesque surroundings.

What the villagers settled around it did not know was that CO2 leaks deep below the lake. On that unfateful day, the water became saturated with the gas and a frothy spray shot hundreds of feet out of the lake, and a white cloud of carbondioxide collected over the water and flowed across the land. The cloud grew to 100 meters tall and moved up to 25 kilometres away from the lake, into the villages of Cha, Nyos and Subum.

The gas cloud displaced all the air, quietly suffocating an estimated 1,746 people and 3,500 livestock.

This disaster lasted for two days, leaving everywhere dead silent, and by Aug. 23, most of the cloud had blown away. After being unconscious for up to 36 hours, few people revived to find, horrifically, that their family members, neighbours and livestock were dead. They found no disturbances, no violence - just corpses. Even the flies had dropped dead. The lake had even lost its signature blue hue and all that was left was a brown rust colour.

One survivor, Joseph Nkwain from Subum, described himself when he awoke after the gases had struck:

"I could not speak. I became unconscious. I could not open my mouth because then I smelled something terrible ... I heard my daughter snoring in a terrible way, very abnormal ... When crossing to my daughter's bed ... I collapsed and fell. I was there till nine o'clock in the (Friday) morning ... until a friend of mine came and knocked at my door ... I was surprised to see that my trousers were red, had some stains like honey. I saw some ... starchy mess on my body. My arms had some wounds ... I didn't really know how I got these wounds ... I opened the door ... I wanted to speak, my breath would not come out ... My daughter was already dead ... I went into my daughter's bed, thinking that she was still sleeping. I slept till it was 4:30 p.m. in the afternoon ... on Friday. (Then) I managed to go over to my neighbours' houses. They were all dead ... I decided to leave ... (because) most of my family was in Wum ... I got my motorcycle ... A friend whose father had died left with me (for) Wum ... As I rode ... through Nyos I didn't see any sign of any living thing ... (When I got to Wum), I was unable to walk, even to talk ... my body was completely weak."
Speaking at a meeting with church leaders and pastors on in Calabar on Tuesday, September 11, 2018, Osinbajo said the killings could be traced to as far back as 1999 till date.

We as a government have a responsibility to protect the lives of our people but we also understand clearly, what is happening precedes this administration, Osinbajo said.

In Plateau State for a start, there were several killings since 1999 and in 2001, there was a state of emergency there where a civilian governor was sacked and replaced with a military administrator yet the killings continued until 2015.

The Vice President said the killings are not a Muslim/Christian conflict but a struggle for scarce resources such as land, pasture and water.

It is convenient for some people to conclude that because the President is a Muslim and a Fulani that is why the killings are taking place but why would a leader want to kill the people who elected him and if you recall, the President won in Benue State; the conflict is strictly a herders /farmers crisis.

Osinbajo said the federal government is advocating for ranching to address the situation due to the number of cattle is increasing in the country.

Why Leah Sharibu isnt home, yet

Asked on governments inability to secure the release of Leah Sharibu, Osinbajo said: Under the circumstances Boko Haram has been split into two and function independent of each other so we have to do go through it painstakingly."
According to Ameachi, completing the Ibadan to Kano corridor among others in the country will help to boost the nations economy.

We are currently in negotiation with the China EXIM bank to get nearly about six billion dollars to do from Ibadan to Kano.

It is a difficult decision because the money required is about 8 billion dollars to do the double track but the Chinese are insisting that they cannot fund double track so they are asking us to do a single track.

They are asking us to do a single track and they want it at Minna so that instead of going from Minna to Kaduna, we should go from Minna to Abuja and then join it from Abuja to Kaduna.

But there are those who argue that we should not accept that, rather we should tell them (Chinese) to fund it in segments. This, however, does not make economic sense.

We are compelled to adjust just to have movement of goods, personnel and services from Lagos to Kano.

What makes economic sense is the ability to get the track to a seaport so that we can move goods.

 What makes economic sense to rail services is the movement of goods, Amaech said

Amaechi said that the ministry was also in talk with some companies in America to fund the Lagos to Calabar rail corridor and another Chinese company to fund Port Harcourt to Maiduguri corridor.

He explained that this was in line with the directives of President Muhammadu Buhari that the rail lines must reach all state capitals.

The minister of transportation said that there was also a huge improvement in the water transportation sector.

Amaechi said that on the approval for waterways security, 195 million dollars had been approved as he expressed confidence that it would help reduce crime in the maritime sector.

According to him, the Federal Government has approved l 195 million dollars to hire an Israeli company to help train security personnel to man the waterways.

He said under the watch of the current administration, the Nigerian Maritime and Safety Agency (NIMASA) had moved from contract awarding to a proper regulatory agency.

Amaechi said that the aviation sector had also experienced a great overhaul which improved safety without incidence of plane crash during the current administration.
The warning is contained in a statement by Dr Mohammed Umar, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior.

Umar said that the warning became necessary in view of the need to ensure free and fair election process in the country.

He quoted retired Lt.-Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau, the Minister of Interior, as saying that government would not fold its arms and watch politicians throw the country into chaos and unrest simply because they want to win elections.

Security agencies have been directed to ensure adequate security of lives and property during and even before the general elections in line with the policy direction of s administration.

According to him, President Buhari is committed to free and fair elections in 2019 and this can only be possible if politicians give peace a chance by avoiding all forms of political thuggery and violence in their struggle to get elected.

The minister warned that anyone caught in the possession of any type of weapons during the elections or rallies may attract arrest and prosecution.
He made the remark on Tuesday at a meeting with the Bankers Forum in Enugu, saying that banks, financial institutions, markets and the residents should feel safe to open for business.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting came against the backdrop of the Sept. 14 sit-at-home order in the South-East by IPOB.

The commissioner said that security agencies in the state had made adequate arrangements, in collaboration with major stakeholders, to ensure effective surveillance and security of lives and property before, during and after Sept. 14.

I can assure you that there is no cause for alarm. People are urged to go about their lawful businesses before, during and after Sept. 14, without fear of molestation and intimidation, he said.

He said that failure to open for business on that day would provide unpatriotic elements the opportunity to actualise the aim of the contemplated sit-at-home.

He described the order as the handiwork of mischief makers intended to cause a breach of the prevailing peace in the state.

There is nothing to worry about the proposed sit-at-home by some unpatriotic members of the public masquarading under the aegis of Biafra group.

Operatives of the command, in partnership with sister-agencies, have put modalities in place to fish out those behind the order, he said.

He warned that anyone caught trying to foment crisis in the state under any guise would be made to face the full weight of the law.

He provided the commands distress call numbers as follows: 08032003702, 08075390883, 08086671202 and 08098880172.

He said that the command could also be reached on its social media platforms: @PoliceNg _Enugu (twitter page), Facebook page of nigeriapoliceforceenugustatecommand.

You can contact us and report any perceived threat to your businesses, Danmallam said.

In their separate responses, the representatives of United Bank for Africa and Access Bank, Mr Messrs Martins Saiki, and Patrick Madueke, thanked the police commissioner for convening the meeting and described it as re-assuring.
Mr Ayuba Wabba, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) President, said that the committee was not pleased with the comments alleged to have been made by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige.

According to him, Ngige had last week allegedly said that the committee should adjourn indefinitely to enable him do further consultations with the government.

We view his supposed pronouncement with great concern, suspicion and outrage.

This new antic certainly is not acceptable to Nigerian workers, who had expected a New National Minimum Wage since 2016, he said.

The NLC president said that in the course of the meeting, the committee members had time to consult and received memoranda and inputs from 21 state governments, specialized Agencies of the Federal Government, the Organized Private Sector, Organised Labour and the general public.

Mr Joe Ajaero, President of the United Labour Congress, (ULC) said that issues concerning the minimum wage has been concluded and that the committee was expecting government representative to pronounce their own figure.

Ajaero, however, refused to give a likely figure that could be approved as minimum wage and also did not give a clear answer on whether government was sincere on paying the new wage.

He said that the call for a new minimum wage became necessary because it was already overdue, and in view of the increasing cost of goods and services.
According to a report by The Punch, officers of the Nigeria Police Force arrested the lawyer at the Federal High Court in Lagos on Wednesday, September 12, 2018.

The officers, reportedly attached to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, arrested Ogungbeje as soon as he parked his car on the court premises on Wednesday morning with the reason for his arrest yet to be made public.

He was reported to have been in court on Wednesday to appear before the vacation judge, Justice Muslim Hassan.

Ogungbeje withdrew as the legal respresentative of Evans in June 2018, disclosing that he had suffered repeated and sustained threats to his life.

Evans arrest and prosecution

Evans was arrested by a combined team of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) and the Anti-Kidnap Unit of the Lagos State Police Command at one of his Magodo Phase II GRA, Lagos, home on June 10, 2017.
Described by the Deputy Governor Silas Agara as the worst disaster since the creation of the state in 1996, scores of people could be seen at the site lamenting over the incident as they inspected the charred remains of trucks, tricycles, motorcycles, buses, private cars and other properties that littered the gas depot, road and other adjoining surroundings. Some of them can still be seen taking pictures.

The Nasarawa specialist hospital was jam packed with relatives, friends and well wishers who arrived to sympathise with the injured.

Agara hinted that some of the critically injured will be transferred to the Federal Medical Centre Keffi and the University Teaching Hospital, Makurdi, Benue State.

Hot topic of discussion

The incident continued to be a hot topic of discussion in homes, institutions and organizations in Lafia with some sharing horrific pictures of the tragedy across mobile devices. Meanwhile condolences and sympathy messages are pouring in from all walks of life.

The State Commissioner of Information, Jamil Zakari remarked that the explosion was as devastating as it was painful and prayed for the souls of those who lost their lives while wishing the injured quick recovery.

Governorship candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) and former Information Minister, Hon. Labaran Maku also condoled with the bereaved, injured and those who lost property in the inferno.

An APC gubernatorial aspirant Dauda Kigbu and a former Justice commissioner, Yusuf, Shehu Usman were also among those who arrived to condole with the bereaved families.

The state chapter of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) while commiserating with the victims, blamed the state government for the tragedy.

Speaking through its publicity secretary, Idris Jibrin Ibrahim, the party said that the government should bear the responsibility for approving the siting of a gas depot in a residential area.

Facebook crisis app

A UNDP consultant and former Nasarawa State coordinator of NEPAD, Idris Maiwada prayed God to protect the state from a future re-occurrence, urging those affected to see it as an act of God and praying God to give the families left behind the fortitude to bear the loss.

Vice chancellor of the Federal University, Lafia, Professor Muhammad Sanusi Liman who described the incident as unfortunate, prayed God to grant the survivors speedy recovery, the dead eternal rest and their families the fortitude to bear the loss.

In the meantime Facebook has activated a crisis app which those in Lafia and its environs can use to let their friends and relatives know that they are not affected by the explosion by marking themselves safe on the viral app while also soliciting material help for the victims.
According to a report by The Punch, the President of the Arewa Christians and Indigenous Pastors Association (ACIPA), Luke Shehu, disclosed that he spoke to Leah's mother, Rebecca, who said the theft happened on Monday, September 10, 2018.

Rebecca said that the thieves, who were unarmed, gained access into the family's home through a makeshift fence, entered through a window and stole their generator and also carted away foodstuffs inside the house.

"The thieves climbed the fence, entered through the window, stole their foodstuffs and a generator. They were not robbers but thieves and the family members were not in the house when the thieves visited," he said.

How Leah Sharibu was abducted

When terrorists raided Government Girls Science and Technical College in Dapchi, Yobe, on February 19, 2018, Leah was abducted alongside 112 other hostages. After weeks of negotiations with the government, the terrorists released 107 of the 113 originally abducted on March 21.

While it was reported by some of the released hostages that five of them that were taken had died of heart attack and stress and buried in the bush, Leah Sharibu was kept in captivity by the terrorists because she refused to renounce her Christian faith.

In an audio message published on August 27, 2018, Leah appealed to President Buhari to secure her freedom, six months after she was abducted.

She said, "I am Leah Sharibu, the girl that was abducted in GGSS Dapchi. I am calling on the government and people of goodwill to intervene to get me out of my current situation.

"I also plead to the members of the public to help my mother, my father, my younger brother and relatives. Kindly help me out of my predicament. I am begging you to treat me with compassion, I am calling on the government, particularly, the president to pity me and get me out of this serious situation. Thank you."

Leah's parents confirm audio is authentic

Even though President Muhammadu Buhari's Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, disclosed that the government was working on verifying the audio message, Leah's parents have confirmed it's indeed her voice in the clip.

"I can confirm to you that the voice that spoke is that of my daughter, Leah. It is her voice, no doubt. I am happy that I can hear my daughter speak. This has given me hope that she is alive. I am also happy to see her recent picture displayed.
According to Premium Times, the spokesperson of the Nigerian Army, Texas Chukwu said the incident took place around 7:00 pm.

Chukwu said Troops of 145 Bn in Damasak, Borno State are engaging Boko Haram Terrorists who came to attack their location at about 6 p.m. this evening. Fierce battle on going right now. The troops are dealing with the terrorists.

Buharis govt has reduced killings

Meanwhile, the minister of information and culture, Lai Mohammed has said that President Buharis administration has reduced the killings arising from the Fulani herdsmen crisis in Nigeria.

Mohammed also told Nigerians that the situation of things will improve, adding that the killings have nothing to do with ethnicity or religion.
Abdulmajeed Olanrewaju Oba, convener of the youth forum, described the Senate President as a competent leader who can take Nigeria to greater heights.

We are thrilled by the prospect of having a leader like Senate President, Bukola Saraki as Nigerias President, he announced.

He [Saraki] has all the qualities and we had thought having him will be something to be proud of. We know that with him, Nigeria has a great future.

Nigeria currently needs a competent and capable personality like Saraki to lead this country forward for saving the nations Democracy through his actions and deeds during the National Assembly chambers siege among others.

The March became necessary owing to the immense contributions of the state when Saraki was Governor of the state and senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

It is going to be an unprecedented gathering for the celebration of Senator Bukola Sarakis years of enviable leadership when we host the one-million-mass march around the state, he added.

ALSO READ: Senate President explains why he should be next president

While encouraging other Nigerian politicians to emulate the leadership style of the Senate President, the convener said Kwara youths are "solidly" behind his ideas and ideals.

Senator Bukola Saraki has distinguished himself as a leader of the masses and as a man we can trust. We are so sure of his capabilities and he is the best candidate for the job. This is basically why we are organizing the 1million mass march for him.

The manner in which Saraki has been running the affairs of the upper chamber of the National Assembly was a pointer to his maturity and his ability to rule the country with a focus, Oba said.
Ambode said this while speaking to members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Epe, Lagos state.

There have been several reports in the media of a rift between the Lagos Governor and Tinubu.

Ambode said I want you to know that there is no fight anywhere. The National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and my good self, we are not in any fight, we are not in any controversy.

We are praying to God that the best is yet to come and the best will be what Lagos State deserves and I want you to just continue with your prayers that at this time, God will show His hand and make sure that everything that is of blessing to Lagos State and also blessing of Epe will come to pass."

APC is the party to beat

Governor Ambode also told his supporters that APC is the party to beat in Lagos state.

We have just concluded our Delegates Election in Epe Local Government and by consensus, we have picked our three delegates that will be going to the National Convention come October 6 for the Presidential direct primaries and the convention for all other people.

I want to say a very big thank you to all our delegates that are present here; I want to say a big thank you to all our leaders that have also supported us to make sure that this event has come and is done very successfully.

I want to reiterate once again that our party, All Progressives Congress (APC) remains the party to beat; we are the party at the national level and we are going to remain the party in the State," he added.
President Buhari had remarked on Tuesday, September 11, 2018, that politicians that have dumped his All Progressives' Congress (APC)for opposition parties are the weakest "whose sense of expectation do not align with our vision". Atiku left the party to return to the People's Democratic Party (PDP) in 2017.

In July and August, the APC was hit with a wave of defections that saw three state governors and dozens of lawmakers, including Senate President, Bukola Saraki, dump the party with many joining the ranks of the PDP.

In response to Buhari's remarks, the Atiku Campaign Organisation spokesperson, Segun Sowunmi, said the defection of top officials from the APC to the PDP signals Buhari's inability to keep Nigerians united.

Sowunmi said Atiku will take the presidency from Buhari to clean up his mess which has resulted in job loss, poor economy and ranking of the country as one of the poorest.

He said, "Never in the history of Nigeria has a more incompetent person served in the chambers of the exalted office of the President. No President of Nigeria, politics apart, will speak in such manner. The fact is that freedom of association is guaranteed by all the United Nations' conventions and the constitution of our country.

"That Buhari has not been able to provide leadership and keep high-network individuals in the APC is to his own weakness and a question of his lack of capacity to keep Nigerians together. We are in the campaign and we are on the ballot. Atiku is attempting to become the President to clean the mess that Buhari caused in our country.

"Buhari has made many Nigerians lose their jobs and our country has become one of the poorest countries in the world. He has divided the country and people cannot move freely. He has made a mess of the economy.

"Therefore, we take his comment as not possibly referring to us. He should speak to issues, development, job creation, restructuring and so on. Obviously, these things he cannot do."

Atiku to battle long list of aspirants for PDP's ticket

While he's one of the favourites to win the presidential ticket of the People's Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku will have to defeat a lot of influential politicians who have also set their eyes on the prize.

He faces competition in Senate President, Bukola Saraki, Sokoto State governor, Aminu Tambuwal, Gombe State governor, Ibrahim Dankwambo, and former governors, Sule Lamido, Attahiru Bafarawa, Jonah Jang, Ahmed Makarfi, as well as Rabiu Kwankwaso.
Dogara said this on Twitter on Tuesday, September 11, 2018 while speaking to some of his supporters in Abuja.

The Speaker said It was a heartwarming moment today when I received hundreds of constituents who visited my Abuja home, imploring me to recontest in 2019.

Representing the people of Bogoro/Dass/Tafawa Balewa federal constituency has been a great honour and today, I saw many people who began this journey with me in 2007.

The voice of the people is the voice of God; even though I had been considering not running this time around, now that my people have called upon me to do so, I feel compelled to heed their call.

To those who have said that they will retire us from active politics, it is imperative to know that all power belongs to God and it is up to the electorate to decide, not them. The people have always spoken through the ballot and 2019 won't be any different.
Mr Rotimi Oyekanmi, the Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, made the clarification in a statement he issued in Abuja on Wednesday.

Oyekanmi said the clarification became necessary following a story with the headline, We may shift 2019 polls over threat of violence  INEC.

The publication, according to Oyekanmi, does not portray the correct reflection of what INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said at the Inter-agency Consultative Committee on Election Security meeting in Abuja on Tuesday.

Oyekanmi said what Yakubu told the security chiefs at the meeting was that as the 2019 general elections drew close; the committee would need to meet more frequently.

This, according to him, is to constantly assess the security situation across the country and take proactive actions to forestall any unpleasant event before, during and after the elections.

He underscored the fact that elections cannot be conducted under a rancorous atmosphere.

He referred to Section 26 of the Electoral Act which, among others, gives the commission the power to postpone an election if there is reason to believe that a serious breach of peace is likely to occur if the election is proceeded with on (the fixed date), or as a result of natural disasters or other emergencies, Oyekanmi.

He said Yakubu made the reference to the Electoral Act only to underscore the importance of having peace and order in place before, during and after elections.

Oyekanmi also said that the INEC chairmans reference was to emphasise the significance of the synergy between the commission and security agencies.

He added that Yakubu also noted that the most important assignment before the commission was the Osun governorship election.

INEC boss added that the Osun Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr Segun Agbaje and Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Fimihan Adeoye, would brief the committee on the current situation in the state.

The Chief Press Secretary said that Yakubu said the two officers would also brief the committee on the readiness for the governorship poll, which he said that they did.

Besides, Yakubu spoke on the rising phenomenon of vote buying and selling and harped on the need for collaborative effort to decisively tackle the menace and prevent it during the Osun governorship election.

He said a Code of Conduct for security agents would be enforced during the elections and warned that any activity outside the confines of legality/ legitimacy will be viewed seriously.

Oyekanmi said that the INEC chairman also seized the opportunity to draw the committees attention to a certain video clip.

According to him, in the video, some political actors were seen making inciteful statements that could lead to serious security breaches before, during and after the 2019 general elections.

He added that Yakubu also called on the relevant security agencies to be vigilant, just as he urged them to take immediate action on the development.

It is thus clear that at no point during his remarks did the INEC chairman allude to the notion that the commission may shift 2019 polls over threat of violence as reported by the national newspaper.
The group purchased the form for Mr. President on Wednesday, September 5, 2018, to show its belief in his ability to lead Nigeria.

According to the spokesman of the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, Most Nigerians already know how some officials at the Buhari presidency, made up of corrupt individuals, racketeers and certificate forgers, hurriedly assembled the group and mobilised them with N45 million for the APC presidential nomination form, which was hiked to scare away other contestants.

How members of the group were settled for the stunt as well the issues and disagreements that arose from the deal are also known to many Nigerians.

What Mr. Presidents handlers are hiding from him is the fact that Nigerians do not believe the falsehood that a set of individuals, facing the challenges of abysmally low purchasing power, put together a wholesome N45m to buy him a form.

Nigerians are still waiting for him to make public the proof of registration, membership, list of individual contributors and amount contributed by these shadowy individual members.

We also challenge President Buhari to make public the official correspondences of the 12 million members of the Rice Farmers Association, members of the Fertilizer Producers Association and the members of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association who, he claimed, offered to buy nomination form for him.

Moreover, the PDP described as unpresidential, the outbursts credited to President Buhari against those who left the APC noting that such was an unwarranted attack on innocent Nigerians whose only offence is that they chose to abandon his derelict sinking ship, APC.

Finally, the PDP counsels President Buhari to forget the idea of painting himself as a lover of youths and asking for funds from them, as his lazy youth comment and talking down on young persons not to contest against him in the 2019 election, amply convey his disdain for the Nigerian youths.
We present three of those soundbites worth remembering:

1. Buhari calls defectors weak and selfish

Look away now, Saraki, Tambuwal, Ortom, Ahmed, Kwankwaso, Atiku, because the nations president just called you weak and selfish.

In Buharis words: Today, I am pleased to say the weakest amongst us, whose selfish expectations did not align with our selfless vision, have exited our party.

Oh blimey!

2. Buhari says no one else should purchase nomination form for him

Buhari says all the other groups who want to purchase nomination forms for him should channel their resources elsewhere.

In accepting this nomination form from the NCAN today, I have asked all the other groups who have offered to buy my nomination form to reassign their contributions to the Not Too Young To Run wing of the APC.

Nigeria is blessed with many talented and visionary youth who have a lot to contribute. Many of them may not be able to afford the nomination fees set by our party. The contributions of willing individuals and groups will go a long way in supporting the next generation of leaders.

So, here was the president basically saying young people need more help than he does.

3. Corruption continues to fight back

It wont be a Buhari speech if the word corruption doesnt make it into the final draft.
Others that defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC are retired Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Udom Ekpoudom and former Chairman of Eka Local Government, Mr Francis Ikpon.

The state Chairman of APC, Mr Ini Okpobodi, received the defectors at a solidarity district rally and reception held for Obong Nsima Ekere at Eket.

Okpobodi said at the occasion that the PDP had virtually collapsed in the state.

On behalf of Akwa Ibom APC, I stand as Chairman to receive the latest members of our party in their hundreds in the state.

They are here ably led by former Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom, Mrs and Distinguished Sen.

Okpobodi handed over the defectors to the National Chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole, represented by the National Vice-Chairman of APC South-South, Mr Hillary Eta.

Eta expressed delight at the defection of the former PDP chieftains into APC fold, describing the defectors as `wonderful Nigerians.

I am the luckiest National Vice Chairman in APC because I am superintending over the fast growing people in the party, he said.

He explained that APC started with one Senator in the South-South but today the party has eight senators of Federal Republic of Nigeria in the South-South.

Not too long from now, I promise you, we are going to have a majority of senators of South South from the APC in the National Assembly, Eta said.

He said that when President Buhari-led government took over power in 2015, things were difficult but today things are getting better.

It is not yet completely good but it is getting better, he added.

He urged Akwa Ibom people to vote massively for President Buhari during the 2019 general elections in the state, saying that the present administration was not corrupt.

I receive to this party, Her Excellency, Valerie Ebe and Sen. Eme Ekaette and others to APC in the state."

Bee said, I saw that without changing to APC, we will be doing serious mistakes.

The former deputy governor said that the government of PDP in the state had not performed well.

We turn around and say if we are not members of the ruling party we will lose out at the national level.
Two weeks ago, it was rumoured that Ambode was on the cusp of dumping the APC for the PDP after he was told he wasnt going to get an automatic ticket by Tinubu. Pulse has learnt that those rumours were not wide off the mark after all.

At the moment, Tinubu is not backing Ambode for a second term. You can take that to the bank, a top ranking APC chieftain in Lagos told Pulse on condition of anonymity.

Formidable contestants for Ambode's job

On the day Ambode stormed the National Headquarters of the APC to pick up his N22.5million governorship nomination form, two other formidable governorship aspirants from Lagos APC were also picking up theirs.

Sources have confirmed to Pulse that Ambode fell out with Tinubu after the Asiwaju made it clear to him that Lagos will adopt the direct primary system to settle for its governorship flag bearer, instead of the indirect primary route.

In a direct primary, registered party members are allowed to freely vote on convention day. In an indirect primary system, only handpicked party delegates are allowed to vote.

Ambode feels that the direct primary system will leave him at a disadvantage, especially since he's lost plenty of grassroot support.

Mr. Jide Sanwo-olu, who served as commissioner for Establishment, Training and Pensions under former Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola, has emerged Tinubus preferred candidate in the Lagos governorship race, one source confided in Pulse.

Sanwo-olu is currently the Managing Director, Lagos State Property Development Corporation (LSPDC).

This week, members of the Mandate Movement, a grassroot group in Lagos that answers to Tinubu, held clandestine meetings where they settled for Sanwo-olu as their candidate for the governorship race.

On the night of Monday, September 10, 2018, 57 local government chairmen in Lagos converged on the Watercress Hotel, Ikeja, to pay for, fill Sanwo-olus nomination forms and endorse him as their consensus candidate.

Pulse has been told that these local government chairmen were only carrying out Tinubu's orders.

Former APC Deputy Chairman, Cardinal James Odumbaku, who attended the meeting, said: "Sanwo-Olu is Asiwaju's anointed candidate for 2019. We gathered here on the instruction of our leader.The meeting is over. The era of Ambode is gone. This is a new era. Jide Sanwo-olu is the next governor of Lagos. All 57 local government chairmen have signed his form. Its over. In 2019, Sanwo-olu will be the one to occupy the State House".

Another contestant for Ambode to deal with

Besides Sanwo-olu, Ambode also has Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, a former Works/Infrastructure Commissioner in Lagos, to contend with.

Hamzat contested the 2015 governorship primary in the APC alongside Ambode and Olasupo Sasore. He currently serves as special adviser to Works and Housing minister, Babatunde Fashola.

Pulse has however been told that Hamzat doesnt enjoy the backing of Tinubu and is seen as a man not to be trusted in Lagos APC circles.

Hes not a Tinubu loyalist and has challenged Asiwaju in the past, one source said of Hamzat who is considered too close to Fashola to be entrusted with power in Lagos State. The rift between Fashola on one hand and Tinubu/ Ambode on the other,

Another source said of Hamzat: "His dad is a very influential Oba and a direct threat to Asiwaju's hold on Lagos politics. He is seen as one of the Abuja-Lagos Fashola guys. His aspiration is not likely to fly in Bourdillon".

Tinubu's men react

However, Tinubus media aide, Tunde Rahman, told that the Asiwaju isnt backing anyone in the Lagos governorship race.

Can you ask the aspirants to tell you when Tinubu endorsed them? Let them tell you when he endorsed them, Rahman told the newspaper.

Joe Igbokwe, publicity secretary of Lagos APC, was quoted by TheCable as saying: Do you know that Ambode picked his nomination form yesterday? That puts to rest the speculations youve been hearing for years. Ambode is the man. Take it.
Here are four questions and answers about The Hague-based ICC:

What does the ICC do?

To date 123 countries have signed up to the court, which has a mandate to investigate and prosecute the world's worst crimes including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. It is the world's first permanent war crimes court.

An independent legal institution, the ICC is a court of last resort and can only get involved when states are unwilling or unable to investigate the crimes themselves.

The United States is one of the few Western countries that has not joined. Although it did sign the Rome Statute, it was never ratified under the administration of former president George W. Bush.

China, Israel and Russia have also not ratified the statute.

Can the ICC probe US citizens?

In Afghanistan it can. The Rome Statute says the ICC can exercise its jurisdiction to probe crimes where "one or more" states have signed up to the treaty and the alleged crimes were committed on the territory of such a state.

Afghanistan joined the Rome Statute in February 2003, therefore the ICC's prosecutors argue they have jurisdiction to investigate any crimes committed in the war-ravaged country.

Following a preliminary probe, the ICC's chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda in November last year asked the court's judges to authorise her to open a full-blown investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Afghanistan, including by US forces and members of the CIA.

It is believed that a decision by the court's judges on the matter is imminent.

What crimes?

In 2007 the ICC said it was opening a preliminary investigation in Afghanistan reaching back to 2002, shortly after the United States launched Operation "Enduring Freedom" in the wake of the September 11 attacks.

The probe is also looking at war crimes committed by the Taliban and its affiliated Haqqani network as well as the Afghan National Security Forces.

But the ICC has particularly targeted CIA operations, saying information "provides a reasonable basis to believe members of the CIA committed war crimes of torture and cruel treatment, outrages on personal dignity and rape and other forms of sexual violence."

Euphemistically called "enhanced interrogation" these alleged crimes "appear to have been committed with particular cruelty, involving the infliction of serious physical and psychological injury... leaving victims deeply traumatised," Bensouda said.

Can the US hit back?

Inside US circles there have been different strands of thought as to how to engage with the ICC, said Carsten Stahn, international criminal law professor at Leiden University.

Under former president Barack Obama, the adminstration unofficially supported the ICC where it served US interests.

But "the pendulum has now shifted to a more aggressive policy," Stahn told AFP.

National Security Advisor John Bolton said on Monday the US was prepared to slap financial sanctions and criminal charges on ICC officials if they proceeded against any Americans.

But Stahn said such a move would be unprecedented, adding that "experts dispute whether such a claim has a basis in US law."

The US Congress in 2002 passed the American Service Members Protection Act which contained a number of provisions should a US citizen ever be dragged before the world war crimes court.

Also known as the "Hague Invasion Act," one provision within the federal law allows for the US president to authorise military force to free any US personnel held by the ICC.
"I would like to communicate my intention to visit Japan next year," the pope told a group of Japanese visitors at the Vatican. "I hope to be able to fulfil this wish."

The Argentine pontiff has repeatedly voiced a desire to visit Japan, home to some 450,000 Roman Catholics.

Another 510,000 Protestants live in the largely Shinto Buddhist country, according to Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs.

Francis had wanted to work as a missionary there in his youth but abandoned the plan after a lung operation.

The pope noted that the 1585 journey to visit pope Gregory XIII was the first Japanese diplomatic mission to Europe and took more than eight years.

"Yours is shorter and less tiring," the pope joked. "But I hope you feel welcomed by the pope as they were."

The pope hailed the association's work to fund training for the young and orphans.

"You wish to show that religion, culture and the economy can work together peacefully to create a more humane world marked by an integral ecology."

The pope has made two trips to Asia since his election five years ago, visiting the Philippines and Sri Lanka in 2014, followed by Myanmar and Bangladesh last year.
Morales, a former television comedian, said in late August that he would not ask the United Nations to renew the mandate of its anti-corruption office, known as the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala, or CICIG.

The office, which works with Guatemalan state prosecutors, has twice asked for Morales' presidential impunity to be lifted so that it can investigate corruption allegations surrounding his 2015 election campaign.

Just days after he cancelled the anti-graft investigators' mandate, Morales banned the head of the commission, Colombian Ivan Velasquez, from entering the country.

Demonstrators on Wednesday carried placards reading "Ivan Velasquez, the people need you," "We demand the resignation of Jimmy Morales and 158 lawmakers," and "No more corruption, CICIG stays."

The march coincided with a ceremony presided by Morales in the nearby congress building marking 197 years since the country's independence from Spain. Dozens of police officers and soldiers lined the streets near congress to prevent the marchers from trying to enter the building.

CICIG and state prosecutors have presented evidence that Morales' FCN-Nacion party failed to report nearly one million dollars in financing to electoral authorities during his successful 2015 presidential campaign.

Set up in 2006, the mission is an independent body with investigative and prosecutorial powers. Its success in tackling corruption has inspired calls for similar bodies to be set up in other Central American countries.
The CBK announced also announced the fines that would be instituted against the five banks that handled the largest transactions.

The names banks include Standard Chartered Bank Kenya Ltd, Equity Bank Kenya Ltd, KCB Bank Kenya Ltd, Co-operative Bank of Kenya Ltd, and Diamond Trust Bank Kenya Ltd.

The regulatory authority said its investigations were mainly to examine the operations of the NYS-related bank accounts and transactions, and in each instance assess the banks compliance with the requirements of Kenyas Anti-Money Laundering/Combating Financing of Terrorism.

Standard Chartered Bank received Sh1.6 billion from NYS  they were fined Sh77.5 million.

Equity Bank transacted Sh886 million of NYS loot and was handed a Sh89.5 million while KCB received a Sh 149.5 million penalty for the the Sh639 it received from NYS.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.  After more than five decades of hostility that cost hundreds of thousands of lives, Colombia has embarked on a new era of peace. But the peace brings its own risks: a chaotic transition could leave the countrys richly diverse forests unprotected and, ultimately, lead to a loss of resources and species that would harm rural populations.

Scientists are urging the Colombian government to plan for the future of its forests as soon as possible.

Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) implemented a peace treaty in 2017, putting an end to more than a half century of fighting. Now, scientists are worried about the effects on the countrys important ecosystems as people pushed to urban areas by violence return to their rural homes and government and private interests look to the forests as prime opportunities to expand mining and agricultural interests.

During its existence, FARC unintentionally staved off deforestation and protected significant ecosystems, said Jeff Dukes, a Purdue professor in the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources and the Department of Biological Sciences, and co-author of a paper that addresses the issues facing Colombias environment.

Fighters were growing drugs there but in general keeping out large-scale conversion of land, Dukes said. When you have a major political change like this, theres the possibility that youll get much more pressure for development on the land. Having peace is a good thing, but if there isnt a lot of thought and protection for forests given up front, there could be massive biodiversity loss and loss of resources throughout Colombia.

A paper published in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment lays out the concerns about the forests, which cover about 460,000 square kilometers, or 30 percent of the country. The findings are based on a 2016 meeting in Medellin, Colombia, organized by Purdue biological sciences graduate student Alejandro Salazar, that brought together climate and environmental scientists from Purdue, several Colombian universities  Universidad de Antioquia, Universidad EIA, EAFIT University and Universidad Nacional de Colombia  as well as Columbia University, the University of Exeter, the University of Miami and the Max Planck Institute.

Colombia  like the rest of the world  is also experiencing changes to its climate, including rising temperatures and reductions in precipitation. Deforestation could further dry out the climate and threaten the habitats of many vulnerable animal species.

If the peace agreement makes access to forest resources more feasible, deforestation rates and habitat fragmentation could spike, the authors said. As natural habitat is fragmented or lost, species will face elevated risks of population decline and extinction.

Forest clearing has already increased since the peace agreement was signed. In 2016, deforestation jumped 44 percent in Colombia. The authors said it will be up to the government to balance ecosystem needs with the desire to utilize land that had been occupied by rebels for so long. They suggest increasing environmental monitoring to understand how ecosystems are changing and using that information to develop strategies for protecting the countrys natural resources.

Based on other examples of political transitions, Colombia would benefit from thinking very carefully about what it wants its environmental future to look like and what sort of environmental stewardship needs to take place, Dukes said.

Purdues Qianlai Zhuang, professor of agronomy and earth, atmospheric, and planetary sciences, and Maria Uribe, a graduate student in ecological sciences and engineering, were also authors on the paper and contributed to the organization of the 2016 meeting in Colombia. Funding for the project came from Universidad de Antioquia, Universidad Eafit, the Purdue Research Foundation, ICETEX, the Purdue Climate Change Research Center, the Colombia-Purdue Initiative and the Colombian Student Association at Purdue. Other partial funding was from Colciencias, the Ayudar Foundation from the University of Exeters College Benefactors and the U.S. Department of Agricultures National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Writer: Brian Wallheimer, 765-532-0233, bwallhei@purdue.edu

Source: Jeff Dukes, 765-496-3662, jsdukes@purdue.edu

ABSTRACT

The ecology of peace: preparing Colombia for new political and planetary climates Alejandro Salazar1,2, Adriana Sanchez3, Juan Camilo Villegas4, Juan F Salazar4, Daniel Ruiz Carrascal5,6, Stephen Sitch7, Juan Dario Restrepo8, German Poveda9, Kenneth J Feeley10, Lina M Mercado7,11, Paola A Arias4, Carlos A Sierra12, Maria del Rosario Uribe2,13, Angela M Rendon4, Juan Carlos Perez14, Guillermo Murray Tortarolo7, Daniel Mercado-Bettin4, Jose A Posada4, Qianlai Zhuang2,13, and Jeffrey S Dukes1,2,15 Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN Purdue Climate Change Research Center, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN Programa de Biologia, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Matematicas, Universidad del Rosario, Bogota, Colombia Grupo GIGA, Escuela Ambiental, Facultad de Ingenieria, Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia Programa en Ingenieria Ambiental, Universidad EIA, Envigado, Colombia International Research Institute for Climate and Society, Columbia University, New York, NY College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK School of Sciences, Department of Earth Sciences, EAFIT University, Medellin, Colombia Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Sede Medellin, Department of Geosciences and Environment, Facultad de Minas, Medellin, Colombia Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Wallingford, UK Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Jena, Germany Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN Faculty of Sciences, National University of Colombia, Medellin, Colombia Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN Colombia, one of the worlds most species-rich nations, is currently undergoing a profound social transition: the end of a decades-long conflict with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as FARC. The peace agreement process will likely transform the countrys physical and socioeconomic landscapes at a time when humans are altering Earths atmosphere and climate in unprecedented ways. We discuss ways in which these transformative events will act in combination to shape the ecological and environmental future of Colombia. We also highlight the risks of creating perverse development incentives in these critical times, along with the potential benefits  for the country and the world  if Colombia can navigate through the peace process in a way that protects its own environment and ecosystems.

Agricultural Communications: (765) 494-8415;

Maureen Manier, Department Head, mmanier@purdue.edu

Agriculture News Page
Sexuality education is inconsistently delivered across New Zealand high schools, according to a new report.

An Education Review Office (ERO) review of sexuality education has found that many schools are not delivering an appropriate curriculum for todays tech-savvy teens.

As the first review since 2007, it found that fewer than half of secondary schools were covering porn and sexual violence.

I think its a really difficult conversation for teachers to have.

"To meet the needs of young people in our current context, sexuality education needs to be more comprehensive and the variability across schools needs to be reduced," the report reads.

Dr Deirdre Shaw from the ERO told RadioLIVE that while the curriculum is clear, many teachers struggle to teach such sensitive topics.

I think its a really difficult conversation for teachers to have, said Dr Shaw.

Teachers are just not getting the support they need to teach the curriculum comfortably and confidently, says Dr Shaw.

High school students should be learning more about consent, gender identity, pornography and sexual violence, according to the report.

Both teachers and students agreed that pornography needs to be taught more in-depth in order to teach students about fantasy versus reality.

One in ten students found that their sexuality education was tailored to their needs, suggesting that schools should listen to their students to make their curriculum all the more valuable.

The ERO report was based on visits to 116 schools around New Zealand.

Listen to the full interview with Deirdre Shaw above.

The Long Lunch with Wendyl Nissen, 12pm - 3pm on RadioLIVE and streaming live to the rova app on Android and iPhone.

RadioLIVE.
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GERMANY: A prototype Talent 3 EMU equipped for battery operation was formally unveiled at Bombardiers Hennigsdorf plant on September 12, at a ceremony attended by State Secretary of Transport & Digital Infrastructure Enak Ferlemann and Brandenburg Transport Minister Kathrin Schneider.
A trail of evidence appearing in major news outlets suggests a campaign to undermine President Trump from within the government through illegal leaks of classified information, and then thwart congressional investigators probing the disclosures.

On Monday the Justice Department released a handful of texts and other documents that included two former officials known for their anti-Trump bias  Peter Strzok and Lisa Page of the FBI  discussing the DOJs media leak strategy. Strzok now says, through his lawyer, that that strategy was aimed at preventing leaks. Nevertheless, days later he and Page approvingly mention forthcoming news articles critical of Trump associates.

The leaks that have been coming out of the FBI and DOJ since 2016 are unconscionable, said retired FBI supervisory special agent James Gagliano. Theres a difference between whistleblowing and leaking for self-serving or partisan purposes.

Obama adviser Ben Rhodes: "We created an echo chamber."

Past and present U.S. officials say the template for the leak campaign can be traced back to the Obama administrations efforts to sell the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which made the press reliant on background conversations and favorable leaks from government officials. Obama adviser Ben Rhodes told the New York Times in 2016 that we created an echo chamber that helped retail the administrations narrative.

That same configuration, said Michael Doran, a senior official in the George W. Bush White House, the press, political operatives, newly minted experts, social media validatorswas repurposed to target Trump, his campaign, transition team, then presidency. The echo chambers primary instrument in attacking the current White House, said Doran, is the Russia collusion narrative.

RCI has found that the anti-Trump leaks fall into two broad categories, or phases. Initially the leaking was an offensive operation aimed at disrupting Trumps agenda, especially through leaks alleging connections between his campaign and the Russians. Its early successes included leaks of highly classified material that led to the firing of National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and the recusal of Attorney General Jeff Sessions from overseeing that probe.

Bruce Ohr, center: Fusion GPS go-between.

The second phase  which began roughly a year into the Trump administration  has been more defensive, pushing back against congressional oversight committees that had uncovered irregularities in the FBIs investigation of Trump. This phase has been marked by the willingness of press outlets to run stories backing off earlier reported leaks that proved to be deeply misleading  including the roots of the FBIs investigation of the Trump campaign and the relationship between Deputy Attorney General Bruce Ohr and the opposition research firm that produced a central document of that probe, the largely discredited Steele dossier.

This second phase has also included articles and opinion pieces  some written by journalists who have published classified information  dismissing suspicions of an orchestrated campaign against Trump as a "conspiracy theory," to use the phrase invoked in a recent New Yorker article.

Former Obama officials and their press allies can call it a conspiracy theory or whatever they want, a senior U.S. official -- familiar with how Obama holdovers and the media jointly targeted Trump figures -- told RCI. But they cant say its not true that former Obama officials were furiously leaking to keep people close to Trump out of the White House.

The focus of the ongoing anti-Trump campaign became clear in March 2016 when the candidate identified Carter Page and George Papadopoulos as foreign policy advisers. For reasons that remain unclear, FBI officials decided that Page, in particular, was a Russian asset and that others on the team might be as well. Instead of alerting Trump to this possibility, law enforcement set up a sting operation.

As RCI has previously reported, FBI informants and figures associated with Western intelligence approached the Trump team with offers of Russian-sourced dirt on Clinton. Among the seven mysterious approaches, the most significant, as RCI recently reported, was a Russian lawyers June 9 meeting at Trump Tower in Manhattan with Donald Trump Jr. and others.

That meeting now appears especially suspicious, but not for reasons cited by Trump critics: it was revealed that the Russian lawyer, Natalia V. Veselnitskaya, met the day before and the day after the tower meeting with Glenn Simpson, whose opposition research firm Fusion GPS was being retained by her as well as the Clinton campaign.

Christopher Steele: briefed journalists.

At the same time, Simpson, a former Wall Street Journal reporter, was working with a former British spy, Christopher Steele, and Nellie Ohr, Bruce Ohrs wife, to assemble a series of reports alleging Trumps ties to the Kremlin.

In late summer the Steele dossier -- portrayed by media outlets as the work of a conscientious foreign analyst frightened by Trumps unsavory connections -- was circulated to Washington newsrooms. Yahoo News and Mother Jones published articles based on Steeles briefings. High-profile columnists at other publications  the Atlantic, the Washington Post, Slate, the New Yorker, Newsweek, and the Weekly Standard  rehashed dossier talking points.

The collusion narrative became fully operational at the end of October when the anti-Trump efforts of the Clinton campaign, the media and the FBI intersected. Even though then-Director James B. Comey considered the dossier salacious and unverified, the FBI used it, and a Yahoo News article based on Steeles reports, to obtain a warrant to spy on Page weeks before the election.

Book: Clinton's team hatched the Russian narrative soon after her loss.

Those efforts might have been lost to history but for a stunning event: Trumps victory. As Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes reported in their book, Shattered: Inside Hillary Clintons Doomed Campaign: Within 24 hours of her concession speech, [campaign chairman John Podesta and manager Robby Mook] assembled her communications team at the Brooklyn headquarters to engineer the case that the election wasnt entirely on the up-and-up.  Already, Russian hacking was the centerpiece of the argument.

Still in power in the lame-duck period, members of the Obama administration started to play offense, illegally leaking highly classified information aimed undermining the new administrations agenda by raising concerns about Russian interference.

A week before inauguration, a January 12, 2017 article by Washington Post columnist David Ignatius revealed that incoming National Security Adviser Michael Flynn  whom President Obama had fired and warned Trump against hiring  had a phone conversation with the Russian ambassador. That information came from a highly classified NSA intercept.

A Feb. 9 news story in the Post drew on more illegally leaked material to provide a fuller account of Flynns conversations with the Russian ambassador. They discussed sanctions that had been imposed by the Obama administration before leaving office.

Adam Entous: Accepted numerous leaks, yet dismissed "echo chamber."

Other news outlets  especially CNN, BuzzFeed and the New York Times  published such material. But the Feb. 9 Post story is especially telling because one of its reporters was Adam Entous  who was also a co-author of the recent New Yorker article dismissing the idea of a leak campaign coordinated between Obama-era officials and the press as a conspiracy theory.

Before leaving the Post, Entous co-wrote a series of 2017 pieces regarding Trump associates based on leaks of classified intelligence. A March 1 article about Jeff Sessions meetings with the Russian ambassador was sourced to intercepts of the diplomats communications. An April 11 article that has now caught the attention of House oversight committees revealed the active FBI investigation on Page.

Entous recent New Yorker article dismissing concerns about leaks, co-written with Ronan Farrow, does not mention these stories. When reached by RealClearInvestigations, Entous said he had no immediate comment.

The first phase of the leak campaign was largely successful in raising doubts about whether the Trump administration really did put America first. It normalized charges of treason lodged against the president by Democrats and former Obama officials now working for the media, including former CIA Director John Brennan.

But the landscape began to change near end of Trumps first year in the office, forcing his opponents to shift from playing offense to defense. By then, the White House had replaced many Obama-era holdovers and Never Trump Republicans. A number of senior officials at the DOJ and FBI, for instance, resigned, were fired or reassigned and no longer in position to feed the news cycle with a steady stream of classified intelligence.

More important, the leakers presumably knew they were being watched. As congressional oversight committees found evidence of irregularities regarding the FBIs 2016 investigation, anti-Trump operatives inside and outside the government used new leaks in an apparent effort to cover their tracks.

Alexander Downer: Papadopoulos disputes his probe origin story.

For instance, after pressure from congressional Republicans showed that the Steele dossier was funded by the Democrats, a new origin story for the FBIs probe was leaked. In December 2017, the New York Times reported that the investigation actually began with a tip from another presumably apolitical foreign national, Australian diplomat Alexander Downer. According to the Times, he reported that Trump campaign adviser Papadopoulos had informed him that the Russians had political dirt on Hillary Clinton during what the Times characterized as a night of heavy drinking. Downer never mentioned emails but the Times states that the dirt he referred to was almost certainly the emails stolen from Democrats and published by Wikileaks in 2016.

That version is now in doubt as Papadopoulos  who was just sentenced to 14 days in prison for lying about other matters in the Russia probe  says he doesnt remember saying anything to Downer about Russia; while standing firm on his central allegation about Russian dirt, Downer says they only had a single drink and a brief discussion.

Favored media outlets also began running stories aimed at discrediting congressional oversight committees that challenged their reporting. In the spring, congressional Republicans asked the DOJ for information regarding any FBI informants ordered to follow the Trump campaign. The press quoted anonymous officials warning that oversight committees were endangering national security  but it was they who leaked to the press personal details of an informants identity. A May 21 Washington Post article produced the informants name  Stefan Halper, a 74-year-old academic researcher with longstanding ties to American and British intelligence.

The leaks were intended to paint Republicans as reckless partisans willing to risk the safety of constituents, a congressional investigator said. The purpose, explained the source, is to warn Trump against declassifying, and to shape public reception against him if he does.

Now congressional Republicans are urging the president to declassify three sets of documents  20 pages of the final renewal of the warrant to spy on Carter Page in June 2017; records of the FBIs 12 interviews with Bruce Ohr; and exculpatory material related to the warrant on Page. And anti-Trump officials continue to dig in, pre-emptively leaking information about CIA and FBI Russia-related operations that appears to combine classified intelligence with some degree of fiction intended to obscure wrongdoings.

Halpers name popped up again last month in the New York Times. A veteran GOP operative, Halper collected intelligence on Trump associates. But according to unnamed officials quoted in the story, uncovering his identity has had a chilling effect on intelligence collection against Russian targets.

Informants close to President Vladimir V. Putin and in the Kremlin who provided crucial details to U.S. intelligence about the 2016 race have gone silent, the Times reported.

A Washington Post article last year, co-written by Entous, made similar claims about U.S. intelligence sources close to Putin. According to the story, the Obama White House knew of Putins direct involvement in a cyber campaign to disrupt and discredit the U.S. presidential race based on a report drawn from sourcing deep inside the Russian government.

If the 2017 Post story is true, that would explain why U.S. intelligence is blind on Russia going into the 2018 midterm elections. After American spies leaked classified intelligence regarding informants in Putins inner circles, Moscow would have moved quickly to shut down those channels.

But present and former intelligence officials doubt the veracity of both the Times and the Post stories. Our sources and methods are sacred, and what we do regarding Russia is extraordinarily secret, former CIA Moscow station chief Daniel Hoffman told RCI.

The stuff we do on Russia is so highly compartmentalized that only a handful of people in the CIA know anything about it, never mind the intelligence community as a whole, said Hoffman. Journalists wouldnt get to speak with anyone who does know. I guarantee the authors of these stories dont know anyone who runs our Russian operations.

U.S. intelligence officials in the know, say former and current officials, are unlikely to inform Putin via the American press that the U.S. previously infiltrated his inner circles. The apparent purpose of the article, say sources, is to deter Trump from declassifying documents damaging to law enforcement and intelligence agencies.

Oleg Deripaska: FBI recruitment target?

Another recent Times story that has raised eybrows is its Sept. 1 account of the FBIs efforts to recruit Russian businessman Oleg Deripaska, an oligarch close to Putin, as an informant. Published just days after the release of documents showing that the DOJs Bruce Ohr was in close contact with Christopher Steele, who was employed by Deripaskas London lawyer, the Times story reports that the FBI operation included Ohr and Steele. According to the Times, Deripaska was one among half a dozen Putin associates that the FBI attempted to recruit for the purpose of reporting on Moscows efforts to interfere in the 2016 election.

A congressional Republican source who spoke to RCI on the condition of anonymity is skeptical of the Times account. The takeaway is that in trying to flip a Putin-allied oligarch, the FBI told Putin that theyre investigating his interference in the 2016 elections. That is not a good look. It looks like the story theyre trying to bury is that in the period leading up to the FBIs using the dossier to get a warrant to spy on the Trump campaign, a senior DOJ official whose wife [Nellie Ohr] worked on the dossier is meeting with the author of the dossier, who works for a Putin ally.

Sources say the Ohr story is evidence that the leak campaign is continuing, even as it is being exposed.

And a precedent has been established with this joining together of political operatives, law enforcement and intelligence officials to prosecute a campaign based on illegal leaks of classified intelligence. It's not hard to imagine it happening again, regardless of who the next president is, and regardless of party.
Recently the New York Times reported that there are 3,400 Starbucks stores in China. Though Starbucks is a Seattle-based company, demand for all things American in China is endless. Thats why the coffee chain isnt stopping at 3,400. It plans to double the number of China locations to over 7,000.

Starbucks expansion came to mind recently while reading in the Wall Street Journal about how the U.S. is finalizing plans to double funding for big infrastructure projects around the world, seeking to counter Chinas growing influence. Notable here is that a Republican-controlled Congress represents the Washington muscle behind this attempt to boost the U.S.s role in international development. Its all a reminder that the association of Republicans with limited government and austerity budgets is one of the more successful media-driven con jobs of modern times.

If only Republicans were careful with our money. In truth, theyre just as wasteful as the Democrats. They simply have different priorities. In this case they intend to go toe-to-toe with China in offering countries financing options for major infrastructure and development projects. As Republican congressman Ted Yoho explained it to the Journal, People are waking up to what China is doing and see that we have to counter that. As a consequence of Yoho and other Republicans eagerness to speak for every American with the money of others, Congress will back prodigal government creations like the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) with $60 billion so that they can mimic the Chinese governments global waste.

How we know the Chinese government is wasting money overseas is simple: governments cannot be successful capital allocators. They couldnt be even if it were Warren Buffett and Jeff Bezos putting the money to work. Stating what should be obvious, investment is only investment when failure informs the investment equation.

Buffett and Bezos have overseen countless investment mistakes over the years that cost billions of dollars, and theyve acknowledged as much. That they have vivifies why they would be lousy investors if allocating federal dollars. Since politicians rarely allow bad ideas to die, the inevitable mistakes committed by Buffett and Bezos would never be mothballed. This would be true even if they wanted them to. You see, in government all bad ideas develop employed constituencies that rely on the perpetuation of what the markets have rejected. Governments theoretically have unlimited funds to waste on what makes no sense, thus perpetuating what investors would sunset rather quickly in the private sector.

Implicit in the comically delusional notion of Congress boosting the U.S.s role in international development is that profitable investment is easy. Except that it isnt. Ask Buffett and Bezos. Their immense wealth is a reminder of how supremely difficult it is to consistently invest successfully, yet Republicans who should know better are ready to breezily hand OPIC and other entities tens of billions to mis-allocate. It would be funny if it werent so sad, and if it werent our money.

To all this, some will respond that Congress is not directing $60 billion toward the corporations of tomorrow as much as it will copy Chinas One Belt, One Road initiative with an eye on infrastructure investment. Except that any attempts to differentiate infrastructure and corporate investment amount to vainly drawing a distinction without revealing any real difference. If anyone doubts this, please e-mail me with your certain predictions about what U.S. cities and states will grow the most in the next fifteen yearsBefore answering, you might stop and think for a bit. And think some more.

Lest you forget, early in the 21st century the Internet was essentially dead. So bad had the vast majority of once high-flying Internet investments turned out that the halfwits populating Congress were aggressively interrogating Wall Street for allegedly foisting these companies on hapless investors. Investment and human capital rapidly exited Silicon Valley at the same time that it departed Seattle. Amazons shares had plummeted from over $100 to the single digits, while Microsoft sat somewhat immobile after the Department of Justice attempted to wreck it for being too successful. Goldman Sachs went so far as to close its Menlo Park office.

Fast forward to the present, and the five most valuable companies in the world are based in either Silicon Valley or Seattle. This is important mainly because if Congress had attempted to fund infrastructure projects in 2001, northern California and the Pacific Northwest would have been among the last places they would have thought to invest. And this was in the United States where our legislators might have a reasonable understanding of trends. Does anyone think that a government logically incapable of investing stateside would have a good sense of the global locales in which to put money to work?

Republicans who claim an interest in fiscal responsibility should keep all of this in mind as they reverse what would have been a wise decision to shut down OPIC altogether. With the latter revived, we face a scenario whereby political appointees working free of crucial market boundaries are set to mis-allocate enormous wealth on the faulty assumption that doing so will boost U.S. influence. More realistically, what will most certainly fail will make a great country look stupid.

As opposed to something that can be bought by politicians shielded from market realities, influence is earned through the marketplace. Starbucks and other U.S. companies have global heft not thanks to federal waste, but because theyre meeting customer needs in ways that the feds could never hope to.

Good ideas quite simply dont need government support. At the same time, bad ones will ultimately be revealed as bad no matter how much of your money is wasted on them. The feds are set to waste $60 billion on what is a rather blind speculation.
Hurricane Florence is approaching the Atlantic Coast, and officials are scrambling to keep people safe and avoid loss of life. In North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia, coastal residents have been told to seek safer ground away from flooding; in several counties, the evacuations are mandatory. Officials expect more than a million people to heed their warnings and leave their homes before the storm makes landfall Thursday.
WASHINGTON -- Only a man who is deeply worried about his own strength would talk as much as Donald Trump does about the danger of appearing weak.

That's my biggest takeaway from reading "Fear," Bob Woodward's new book about the Trump presidency. The scoops were mostly revealed last week. What's fresh is Trump's repeated, obsessive talk about weakness during his first year in office.

Woodward's recounting of Trump's conversations is a study in character, or lack of it. The president's vanity, pettiness and meanness of spirit were evident already in his tweets and public statements. But here is the annotated version, as told to Woodward by Trump's aides, replete with enough "F-bombs" to stock an arsenal of profanity.

When Trump is on the verge of doing something conciliatory -- apologizing for a racist or sexist comment, for example -- he stops himself for fear that it will show weakness. Trump (prodded by his Iago-like deputy macho-man, Steve Bannon) keeps insisting that he must stay strong, regardless of how unprincipled it may seem.

Woodward's narrative of the weakness phobia begins at the low point of the campaign, with the revelation of the "Access Hollywood" tape in which Trump boasts about grabbing women's genitals. His aides have written a statement in which Trump would concede, "My language was inappropriate, not acceptable for a president." But Trump protests: "I can't do this. This is bull----. This is weak. You guys are weak."

Trump often expresses a peculiar concern about looking like a baby. He blasts campaign manager Paul Manafort after a critical New York Times story, saying, "Paul, am I a baby? Is that what you're saying, I'm a baby?"

Later in the campaign, after Rudy Giuliani defends Trump from the "Access Hollywood" flap on the Sunday talk shows, Trump still isn't satisfied: "Rudy, you're a baby. ... They took your diaper off right there. You're like a little baby that needed to be changed. When are you going to be a man?"

Anxiety about weakness mounts when Trump is in the White House. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has many faults in Trump's eyes. He's too friendly to Europe, too willing to accommodate Iran, too independent in his views. But Trump sums up the problem at a July 2017 meeting: "Rex, you're weak."

The most appalling instance of placing image above principle comes after Trump's waffling comments about the August 2017 clash between white nationalists and counter-protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia. Rob Porter, Trump's staff secretary, encourages the president to give a conciliatory statement.

Despite fears that it "looked weak," Trump follows Porter's advice and, using a teleprompter, tells the nation: "We must love each other, show affection for each other and unite together in condemnation of hatred, bigotry and violence."

When Fox News reports a "course correction" on Charlottesville, the president panics. "That was the biggest f---ing mistake I've made," he tells Porter. "You never make those concessions. You never apologize. I didn't do anything wrong in the first place. Why look weak?"

It's a Darwinian worldview. Never retreat; eat or be eaten. Woodward quotes former chief of staff Reince Priebus explaining that Trump didn't assemble a "team of political rivals," he put "natural predators at the table." Priebus notes the inevitable result: "When you put a snake and a rat and a falcon and a rabbit and a shark and a seal in a zoo without walls, things start getting nasty and bloody."

Bannon shamelessly feeds Trump's weakness fixation. Woodward's book gives Bannon a podium to explain how right he was about nearly everything involving Trump. Bannon comes across in these doubtless tape-recorded soliloquies as Trump's match as a self-promoting egomaniac.

"I'm the director, he's the actor," Bannon says of his relationship with the president. And in the end, after he had been fired, says Woodward, "Bannon believed Trump had largely failed as a change agent." Not tough enough for Steve, evidently.

In my own conversations with top White House aides, I've seen a similar obsession with shows of strength. Reversing long-standing positions on the Israeli-Palestinian dispute is a "strong position." Preserving the Iran nuclear agreement is a "weak position." Perception is policy.

And what about Trump's ruinous legal problems with special counsel Robert Mueller? They're the fault of Trump's chicken-hearted lawyers, of course. Woodward quotes the tough-guy-in-chief. "I don't have any good lawyers. ... I've got a bunch of lawyers who are not aggressive, who are weak, who don't have my best interests in mind, who aren't loyal. It's just a disaster."

What a baby.

(c) 2018, Washington Post Writers Group
MADISON, Wis. (AP)  Leah Vukmir is used to being the underdog.

Few gave the Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Wisconsin much of a chance of defeating her better-funded primary challenger last month, but she prevailed thanks largely to support from the party establishment.

Now Vukmir faces another opponent with deeper pockets  Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin  in one of the most expensive Senate races in the country. The contest could determine control of the Senate and will be closely watched as an indicator of whether Wisconsin might return to its traditional status as a Democratic state during the 2020 presidential election.

Vukmir is taking a big risk by tying herself to President Donald Trump, who won Wisconsin by less than 23,000 votes in 2016, and Republican Gov. Scott Walker, who faces a tough re-election contest in November.

I dont think any of that intimidates her, said former Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Scott Jensen, Vukmirs mentor when she was first elected to the Assembly in 2002. She is the underdog, but she likes that position.

Vukmir, 60, is the daughter of Greek immigrants, a lifelong resident of the Milwaukee area and a registered nurse. Until the Senate campaign, she worked as a nursing instructor.

Vukmir is pitching herself as the clear conservative. Shes known as tough and uncompromising, a trait seen early in this years campaign when she confronted Baldwin with a question about why the senator didnt support tax cuts. Vukmirs primary campaign included an edgy TV ad playing up death threats she got as a state senator  while showing Vukmir sitting at a table with a holstered gun at hand.

Vukmir first made a splash locally when, as a mom with no political experience, she complained that her suburban Milwaukee public school wasnt teaching her daughter how to read. She eventually formed a group called Parents Raising Educational Standards in Schools, and became a familiar face at the Legislature.

Jensen recalled meeting Vukmir in the 1990s as she lobbied him as Assembly speaker to remove a testing requirement proposed by then-Gov. Tommy Thompson, a Republican. Jensen described Vukmir as politically naive. He said he told her that she would have to convince a majority of Republican lawmakers for him to back killing the proposal.

It didnt take her but a week to do just that, Jensen said. She did it all on her own.

When Walker left the Legislature in 2002 to become Milwaukee County executive, Vukmir ran to replace him and won. Eight years later, she was the underdog again when she challenged a Democratic incumbent for the state Senate  and won again. The victory helped flip the chamber to Republicans, paving the way for Walker, who was elected governor that year, to pass his conservative overhaul of Wisconsin.

Shes not afraid to take on a challenge, even when the experts tell her not to, said Bill McCoshen, a lobbyist who first met Vukmir about 20 years ago when he was a member of Thompsons administration. I think it fuels her.

But taking on Baldwin is Vukmirs biggest fight yet.

Democrats have already captured several races in Wisconsin this year that were seen as barometers of the electorate, and the party is confident that enthusiasm will help carry Baldwin.

Still, Baldwin is one of the more liberal members of the Senate and has long been a target of conservative outside groups and GOP billionaire megadonors . They see a chance to deny her re-election in a purple state that Trump barely won in 2016.

Trump didnt endorse in the primary, but came out full throttle for Vukmir the day after her win. Vice President Mike Pence came to Wisconsin to raise money for her two weeks later.

On the issues, Vukmir and Baldwin could barely be more different.

Vukmir would build a border wall, pursue federal changes to unions similar to what she voted for in Wisconsin, and drain the swamp by relocating federal offices and workers to the states. She has consistently supported Walkers agenda, including voting to effectively end collective bargaining for most public workers and enacting the states 20-week abortion ban.

Baldwin is trying to make the race largely about health care. Baldwin is a staunch supporter of the federal health care law, and supports Sen. Bernie Sanders Medicare-for-all single-payer health care proposal.

Vukmir opposes the national health care law. She supports a market-driven approach and largely returning to what was in place before the enactment of the Affordable Care Act. Pence said during his Wisconsin visit that Vukmir could be the deciding vote in striking down the law.

Health care was named the top issue of the Senate race in a poll last month by Suffolk University done for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. That poll showed Baldwin at 50 percent and Vukmir at 42 percent. Another poll by Marquette University Law School conducted the week after the primary showed the race to be a dead heat.

Baldwin has been focusing on issues that typically generate bipartisan support, such as her Buy America proposal and fighting the opioid crisis. She has also dinged Vukmir for being a leader with the American Legislative Exchange Council, a group that offers conservative-minded legislation to legislatures across the country.

Baldwin and her supporters argue that Vukmir is emphasizing her work as a nurse and her early activism as a concerned mom to cover up her conservatism.

Leah Vukmir cannot hide the fact that shes spent her past 16 years in Wisconsins state Legislature working for corporate special interests to enrich them at the expense of hardworking Wisconsinites, said Wisconsin Democratic Party spokesman Brad Bainum.
The Quinn home in Philadelphia is quiet for the first time in 30 years. No kids playing; no healthy cries of babies. The silence came after the City of Philadelphia stopped referring children for foster care with families like the Quinns, who are certified by Catholic Social Services (CSS). The Quinn home in Philadelphia is quiet now, and the silence is deafening.

Earlier this year, the city demanded CSS agree to endorse same-sex couples as foster parents. Citing centuries-old Catholic teaching on marriage and the family, CSS refused, but said it would instead refer same-sex couples to one of the other 29 foster-care agencies partnering with the city. For the city, however, retaining a long-standing partner in the care of needy kids was apparently less important than scoring political points. The city refused to refer children in need of foster care to CSS for placement and has threatened to terminate its contract with CSS entirely. Tolerance, it seems, is a one-way street in Philadelphia.

Karen Quinn has been a CSS-certified foster mother for 30 years. Her Catholic faith has played a large role in her work fostering children. When people ask me Why do you do it? I respond that my faith teaches me to respond, Why not?, she says. I cant help the whole world, but I can help one baby at a time.

Quinn is among the foster mothers and former foster-care children who have joined the Catholic Association in supporting CSSs legal challenge to the Philadelphia dictate. In an amicus brief submitted last week to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, they shared their experiences working with CSS or growing up in CSS-certified foster homes and their opposition to the citys attempt to effectively shut down CSS century-old foster-care program.

Karen lost count of how many foster children she and her husband have cared for over three decades. She said she thinks the number is well over 30. Of these, the Quinns have adopted 5 and are legal guardians of another.

Karen started caring for foster children after reading a request in her parish bulletin for long-term foster-care providers for a needy child named Jamie. Jamie is now 34 years old and knows very little about the reasons for being placed into foster care. But Jamies recollection of her life at the Quinns could not be clearer: lots of one-on-one time playing cards or memory games and lots of great memories.

Like many foster children, Jamie struggled as a child. The early years of abuse had taken their toll. Being a foster kid was hard, she says. Growing up in the Quinns home I always knew that I was loved, but it took me a long time to accept that. The Quinns adopted Jamie, and when she talks about them she calls them Mom and Dad.

As the oldest child in the Quinn home, Jamie saw first-hand the damage that unhealthy homes had inflicted on the new children placed with the Quinns. You can tell right off the bat what kind of home a child came from, she says. Lots of [these] kids were not held. That changed once these children arrived at the Quinns: They were spoiled with affection. Any child that comes into my parents home is receiving a good home, Jamie says. My parents were very accepting of everyone.

Jamie cannot understand the CSS-intake freeze. It is not like this issue suddenly came up. This has been part of what the Catholic Church has taught forever. Even more distressing is the freezes impact on the Quinn house. My mom is waiting for that call at 3 a.m. in the morning, on the off chance that someone is going to need her for 3 hours or 3 years.

Like many CSS-certified foster parents, Karen Quinn is ready to receive more children. This is very frustrating to me, she says. I would like to continue service, but I dont want to do it without the support of Catholic Social Services.

Of course, Karen will survive the new silence at her Philadelphia home. But what about the little boys and girls who need safe shelter at three in the morning or a loving foster-care family for a year or more? Has the City of Philadelphia forgotten their needs? This is why Jamie is ready to fight the good fight to keep CSS open. I gotta keep fighting for all these other kids, she says, so that they can have the life I had.

Andrea Picciotti-Bayer is Legal Advisor for The Catholic Association Foundation.
The province of Idlib is in the northwestern part of Syria, near the Mediterranean Sea and the border with Turkey. Ordinarily, the world ought to have little interest in who controls it. But in geopolitics, sometimes the smallest and most obscure places generate the most concern among major powers  and Idlib is doing just that. The future of the province may itself not be a global issue, but it has become the site of a showdown among Russia, Turkey, Iran, the United States and Syria, with the Kurds thrown in for good measure, forcing them to reconsider who their allies and enemies are. This is a story of great power politics and thus the global balance of power. Idlib is just backdrop.

Right now, Idlib is controlled by forces hostile to the Syrian government. Its increasingly clear that the government has all but won the civil war that has been raging since the Arab Spring. At the time, President Bashar Assad seemed destined to fall. Of course, he did not fall, his survival owed in part to the inability of his enemies to form a united front. They hated and distrusted Assad, but they equally hated and distrusted each other. This was the bedrock of the governments power for nearly 50 years. Idlib is one of the last remaining rebel holdouts, a piece of territory standing in Assads path to victory. The forces arrayed there face nothing less than destruction.

This would pose a problem for Turkey, which supports some of the groups there now. Losing the province would open a route into Turkey that Syrian forces could exploit. To be clear, Assads retaking Idlib is not an existential threat to the Turkish state. But the Turks are generally hostile to the Syrian government, and though they could tolerate Assads undisputed power, they see no reason to make his life any easier by surrendering Idlib.

There is, of course, always another explanation. Turkeys military boasts nearly a million soldiers, but only some of them are well trained and well equipped. Had these soldiers been deployed to Idlib, the situation might look different. But they werent. In 2016, the military staged a failed coup against the Turkish government, which has spent the intervening years tightening its control over the armed forces. Committing main forces to a foreign conflict, then, was not an ideal course of action. It was better for Ankara to regain control of the military while deploying a limited contingent to Syria and trying to figure out its foreign policy. This explains why Turkey aided the Syrians and fought some Syrian Kurdish groups but recused itself from the broader conflict.

Pure Geopolitical Terms

Russia intervened in Syria, too, following the debacle in Ukraine, where an anti-Russian government emerged in a crucial buffer state. Russia had no obvious strategic interest in Syria, and the attempts to divine some were dubious at best. Baffled onlookers posited that Russia wanted to control oil pipelines and place a major naval force in Syria. But Russia has plenty of oil of its own; what it needs are higher oil prices. Russias dream is to have a naval force in the Mediterranean, but that dream could easily become a nightmare, since any force it placed in the Mediterranean would have to be supplied through the Bosporus, which the Turks could block at will.

The real reason Russia intervened in Syria was to show its own public that it could act like a great power. Saving Assad, a staunch Russian ally, was secondary but still important, hence why Russia was compelled to support the attack on Idlib. The obvious problem is that it would bring Russia into conflict with Turkey, with which it is only sometimes allied.

In pure geopolitical terms, a Russian alliance with Turkey would benefit Russia, which could place a fleet in the Mediterranean, stabilize the Caucasus and put the United States into a worse position than it once was. Supporting an assault on Idlib, then, would appear to be irrational for the Russians. The Turks have been increasingly hostile to the United States, which has just placed tariffs on Turkey, partly over the detention of an American, partly over Turkeys purchase of Russian S-400 missile systems and partly to signal to Ankara that the U.S. has run out of patience. This was the perfect moment to block the Syrians and pick up major points from the Turks.

Part of the problem was Iran. Iranian power has expanded into Yemen, Lebanon and Syria. In Syria, Iranian and Hezbollah troops helped organize Assads forces and even participated in the fighting. As the Syrian army improved, fighting as it was alongside seasoned soldiers from Iran and Hezbollah, Russian ground forces that had never been all that plentiful anyway became moot. Russian air power was always a welcome addition to Assads arsenal, but Russian participation in a ground offensive on Idlib is unnecessary. The Iranians, wanting to play the role of dominant ally, would be happy to lend a hand. This would leave Russia isolated in a place it really didnt want to be  stuck between Iran and Israel, which had become increasingly hostile to Iranian expansion and attacked its positions in Syria accordingly.

All this was in the backs of the minds of the leaders of Russia, Iran and Turkey, who met Friday to discuss the situation in Idlib. Iran and Russia supported an attack. Turkey did not. This immediately tested the limits of Russia-Turkey relations. Russia was proposing to put Assads forces on the Turkish border  not just a threat to Turkey but an embarrassing threat. With this move, Russia set back hopes for a long-lasting alliance with Turkey.

Russia probably thought that an alliance was a pipe dream anyway, one that the Turks might block at any moment. In any case, its control over the outcome in Syria, once considerable, is now negligible. The Syrian government really wants Idlib. The Iranian government really wants to be Assads best and most reliable ally. Opposing the attack would not necessarily have stopped it. It would have only isolated Russia. So it sided with Syria.

More Like Before

Then there is the United States, which has been relatively quiet until now, save for small detachments to the Syrian opposition and Kurdish militias. The U.S. has since moved more but still minor forces to the area. This raises the stakes for Russia, which would be careful to avoid American casualties, the U.S. response to which would be inevitable and would likely come in the air, given Washingtons air superiority. Russian President Vladimir Putin is still playing to his domestic audience and cant afford a defeat. Iran is in no position to challenge U.S. air power a thousand miles away, and in any case has to worry about Israel. The United States decision to throw itself into the mix  implicitly with airstrikes, explicitly to counter chemical attacks  changes the entire dynamic.

If I am right in assuming Russia is losing control over the situation, engaging the U.S. on any level in Idlib is not something it wants. Nor is it something Iran wants. Assad may want it, and he may be able to do it by himself, but he also understands that the U.S. is bad at counterinsurgency but good at blowing things up. The Iranians and Russians need to think this through.

In the meantime, just as Russia moves from being an ally of Turkey to a threat, the U.S. shifts back to its old role as guarantor of Turkeys national security. Turkey did not want to send its own forces into combat with an attack on Idlib. Given its air force, the U.S. has the option of engaging without massive forces on the ground. So suddenly the possibility of a realignment with Turkey opens up. Russia didnt want to attack Idlib but seemed to be forced into it, and now really doesnt want to do it, which hurts its credibility, especially with Assad. And Iran is considering whether to advise Syrian troops it controls to be heroic and go into the potential cauldron.

All this for one province most people have never heard of, let alone cared about, before. Its not clear what will happen. I suspect the Russians will exert just enough influence to postpone or cancel the assault. Turkey will bargain as it does so well, forestalling any entente with the U.S. The Iranians will try to use this to turn Syria from Russia, but Assad is too shrewd to give himself to anyone irrevocably. Of course, I could be surprised to see the Russians lead the charge in Idlib and even more surprised to leave troops they have put in harms way wide open to a massive enemy assault. But the strategic realignment is most interesting because it leaves the world looking more like it did before anyone mentioned Idlib.
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By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 09/12/2018



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Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.

star Jordan Kimball is apparently sick to his stomach and disgusted by leaked text messages appearing to prove his fiancee, Jenna Cooper , is faking their relationship for fame and money and she's actually been dating another man all summer long.Reality Steve spoiler blogger Steve Carbone posted screenshots of text messages on Tuesday apparently between Jenna and a man with whom she had been romantically involved while dating Jordan on , and during one conversation, Jenna allegedly insisted she's faking her relationship with Jordan in order to get ahead in her fitness and blogging career.Not only did the woman appearing to be Jenna bash Jordan in the messages by saying she's better than him and she doesn't even like Jordan -- nevermind love him -- but she also wrote some graphic sexual things to this man."It felt like a body drop," Jordan told People after learning about the allegations. "I got taken down. I'm weak in the knees and I feel like I have rocks in my stomach."Jenna, however, denied the claims, telling the magazine, "I am aware of the allegations being made against me and they are simply untrue. I am choosing to focus on my relationship right now. Thank you for respecting my privacy at this time."But Jordan is struggling to believe his fiancee, whom he proposed to during Tuesday night's Season 5 finale of . After all, Jordan said she was acting guilty before the news even surfaced."On Monday, I saw something someone posted on Twitter -- that somebody was going to be roasted the next night. Jenna called me and said she was very anxious about this Twitter post. I talked to her in the middle of the night last night -- I said, 'Don't hype yourself up, don't worry, you have nothing to worry about.' I tried to calm her. I went back to bed for a few hours, woke up, had my coffee and she called me again and said she was anxious and felt sick to her stomach," Jordan recalled."She's in New York. I told her to keep calm. I thought she was just being nervous for no reason. Then I was driving back to Central Florida from Miami and I started getting calls from castmates like Chris Randone . I started getting screenshots sent to me. I didn't know what to think. I sank in my seat."The male model added, "I would never have expected this. I feel sick about it. I just don't understand why someone would say that they're better than me and have ill intentions."In the screenshots obtained by Carbone, the woman appearing to be Jenna wrote to the unidentified man that she was "so excited" to see him and couldn't wait to "put you in my mouth." She said the night was going to get "real kinky" with a belt, whips and costumes potentially coming into play. She also told the man that she loved him.The following morning, Jenna allegedly wrote to the man: "Good morning, handsome! I wanted to say sorry. Don't be mad at me or anything crazy. I know you're upset about this week's episodes but I told you yesterday and I keep telling you that this is all for my business. You know how much I need the money. Me and Jordan aren't together for real. I don't even like him let alone love him.""I'm better than him and once I'm able to, I'll break it off for good and make up some story to make him look bad if it'll make you feel better. He means nothing to me and never has," she continued."None of the other guys I go out with mean anything. All for work and networking. You're the only one I need in my life. The only guy who interests me. I need you to love me and always be there for me. I'm gonna call you. You still love me?!!!"Jordan admitted to People that after reading the screenshots, he believes the allegations against Jenna are true."I know my Jenna, and I read those texts and in my heart, I know it's her," Jordan confessed. "She was saying she didn't do it, but hinting towards the fact that there's a possibility that it happened. In all reality, I don't expect her to own it."The man who leaked the screenshots told Carbone that he sold Jenna out because she's "a manipulator" who "uses men for money and business and loves the attention along the way." The man added that she likes to rub in men's faces how she's pretty and "can easily move onto the next."The man -- whom Carbone says is from North Carolina, where Jenna lives -- noted he was "tired of the bulls-hit" and thought it was time to call her out on her games.Carbone also said he verified that the text messages derived from Jenna's phone number."If this whole thing sticks, and it's true, I will be hurt much more than the depths of romance. I will be hurt as a person and as a friend. There are so many layers to a relationship and right now I feel all of them peeling back," Jordan told People.Jordan was getting ready to marry Jenna on June 9, 2019, and in the meantime, he was apparently planning an engagement party for next month."I was going to bring my parents to North Carolina. I really feel like I'm going to start dry heaving. I don't know how to handle this. It really kills me," Jordan vented.Jordan insisted his romance with Jenna has definitely been real for him -- and it was from the start."There is not even a question about that. This was not a TV romance. This was real. And whether you like me or not, I deserve love. I found it, and this is what happened. So for the sake of anyone who's ever been in love, be understanding," Jordan requested.Jordan noted he definitely doesn't have an answer yet on whether he's still engaged to Jenna or not."I don't know how to handle this. All I know is I obviously only knew a limited amount of information about Jenna. This is embarrassing and it hurts my pride. And our friendship is just tarnished. I don't even know what piece to pick up or how to put it back," he said.Carbone wrote in his blog this is "a horrible look" for Jenna and "she's a complete fraud.""Anything we've seen this season on the show has basically been acting," Carbone claims."She knew what she was doing the second she signed up for Paradise and she got exactly what she wanted out of it. Unfortunately for her, when you treat people like that, eventually it's gonna come back to bite you in the ass."Prior to appearing on this summer, Jordan competed for Becca Kufrin 's heart on The Bachelorette's fourteenth season and Jenna vied for Arie Luyendyk Jr. 's attention and affection on The Bachelor's 22nd season.Interested in more news? Join our Bachelor in Paradise Facebook Group
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Global oil demand will peak sooner than expected in 2023 as renewable energy expands and the adoption of electric vehicles grows more quickly, and yet the world will still fall short of the temperature goals adopted in the recent Paris climate agreement, according to a new report released Monday.

The new Energy Transition Outlook report from Norway-based energy consulting and services firm DNV GL sees natural gas surpassing oil as the world's largest energy source in 2026. Gas and renewables like wind and solar will keep growing, while oil will plateau and then steadily fall. Global coal use already is on the downswing.


A file photo.

DEHRADUN (PTI): Armies of India and the US will carry out a military training exercise in the foothills of the Himalayas at Chaubattia from September 16.



Yudh Abhyas 2018 is one of the longest running joint military training exercises and a major bilateral defence cooperation endeavour between India and the US, a defence press release here said.



This will be the 14th edition of the joint military exercise hosted alternately by both countries which will conclude on September 29.



The combined exercise will simulate a scenario where both nations are working together in counter insurgency and counter terrorism environment in mountainous terrain, the release said.



The two-week exercise will witness participation of about 350 personnel of the US Army and similar strength of Garud Division of the Indian Army.



The exercise curriculum is progressively planned where the participants are initially made to get familiar with each other's organisational structure, weapons, equipment, confidence training and tactical drills.



Subsequently, the training advances to joint tactical exercises wherein the battle drills of both the armies are coherently unleashed.



The training will culminate with a final validation exercise in which troops of both countries will jointly carry out an operation against terrorists in a fictitious but realistic setting, the release said.


Contributed photo

Flanders Nature Center invites young children with a caregiver to be a farmer for the day visiting, learning and helping feed the animals that make their home at the Flanders North Barn. Starting in September and continuing one Friday each month through November, the focus will be on different farm animals. Farm School kicks off Sept. 28 with the theme Rabbits and their Habits! when they will be learning some interesting facts about these soft, long-eared creatures. Activities will be based at the Flanders North Barn located at 644 Flanders Road in Woodbury from 9:30 to 10:30. Pre-registration is required. The cost is $5 for child and caregiver for those who are Flanders members and $10 for non-members. Register online at www.flandersnaturecenter.org or call 203-263-3711, ext. 10, for more information.
WINSTED  The first gallery show of the school year at Northwest Connecticut Community College offered students an insight into the art of found objects.

The sculptures and wall pieces by artist Peter Brown of Pine Meadow pair whimsy with precision. The show, Rust Forms, contains a number of pieces that appear to have rusted with age.

Brown makes a rust paint which he applies to objects used in his still-life sculptures. The process makes plastic, household items appear to be part of an ancient still-life tableau. The still-life (genre) is from the Renaissance, Brown said, but it was never done with rust.

Students from art and English classes attended the recent opening reception to meet Brown and learn about his rust paint technique. The still-life pieces were a key attraction.

They remind me of Pompeii, said Kyle Versari, a general students student from Torrington.

One sculpture, called Mermaids and Unicorns, stood out from the other artwork. The mermaid is different, why? asked Clinton Sosna, a fine arts major from Winsted.

It goes from one direction to another, Brown answered. The mermaid was damaged. I brought it back to life. Then I found three unicorns. They belong together.

Asked by a student which was his favorite artwork in the show, Brown said its a wall piece called Split Trunk. The sculpture is designed with end cuts of burl wood fitted with saltwater rusted iron. The base is an old metal appliance cover that was discarded and found by the artist.

Found art comes to me, said Brown. He locates usable objects along the side of roads and in landfills. The point is to put materials together that mean something to me. Some fall into place, Brown added.

Sculpting is a fairly new pursuit for the artist. Brown worked as an architectural photographer for about two decades. In his artists statement for the gallery show, he noted that during that time he also built furniture. Several of his handcrafted tables are included in his show.

NCCC art professor and gallery director Sue Berg said the gallery presents about six professional artist shows a year. The department also holds an alumni show and a year-end student exhibit.

The colleges art department offers graphic design, digital media, video and fine arts classes. Enrollment is about 40 to 50 students a year, Berg said. Were small but mighty, she noted.
LITCHFIELD  White Memorials Family Nature Day is an annual celebration of Mother Nature, and the 37th edition is chock full of presenters. This years event is set for Saturday, Sept. 22 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The day is filled with live animals, guided nature walks, information booths, horse drawn wagon rides, with food provided by the Litchfield Lions Club, Hardcore Cupcake Truck, and Cups and Cones Ice Cream.
Students from Beijings Capital Normal University to perform at UB

BUFFALO, N.Y.  Students from the Colleges of Music and Fine Arts at Capital Normal University (CNU) in Beijing, China, will present Dance of Youth: Charm of China, a showcase of Chinese arts and culture, on Sept. 17 at 7 p.m. in the Drama Theater at the University at Buffalo Center for the Arts (CFA).

The program features music and dance pieces in a variety of traditional and contemporary styles, including selections from the Peking Operas The Battle of Mount Dingjun.

Dance of Youth: Charm of China is presented in partnership with UBs Confucius Institute. The event is free and open to the public.

Capital Normal University has sent many touring groups to UB throughout the years of our partnership, says Zhiqiang Liu, an associate professor of economics at UB and director of the institute. The talented CNU students always present a fantastic performance for our Buffalo audience. It is one of the highlights of the Confucius Institutes cultural programming.

In addition to their performance at the CFA, the touring students will present two abbreviated programs of their show on Sept. 18 at City Honors School and Elmwood Franklin School.

Both schools have been designated as Confucius Classrooms affiliated with UBs Confucius Institute, which makes them eligible for annual grant funding provided by Confucius Institute Headquarters in China.

The performance by Capital Normal University is the first in a two-week series of events sponsored by the Confucius Institute leading up to Confucius Institute Day on Sept. 30.

Now in its ninth year, the UB Confucius Institute supports China-related teaching, research and artistic production at UB, Chinese language instruction at UB and in local schools, and cultural events that foster a better understanding of Chinese traditions and contemporary culture in the community.
Authorities in China are still holding 15 people following mass detentions of workers in the southern province of Guangdong, along with Maoist campaigners supporting their campaign for an independent trade union.



Peking University graduate and former #MeToo campaigner Yue Xin remains incommunicado after being detained along with around 50 other supporters of the workers' movement at the Jasic Technology factory in Guangdong's Shenzhen city, the support campaign said in a statement posted to Github.



Shang Kai, editor of the leftist website Red Reference, is currently under criminal detention in Zengcheng Detention Center in Guangdong's provincial capital Guangzhou alongside Maoist youth campaigner Yang Shaoqiang, while fellow Maoist activist Gu Jiarui is being held under "residential surveillance" in the same district.



Migrant workers' rights campaigner Fu Changguo and former Jasic employees Hu Pingping and Wu Haiyu have been in the Shenzhen No. 2 Detention Center since Aug. 24, the group said, while labor rights activist Huang Qingnan has been released on "bail."



Meanwhile, former Jasic workers Yu Lingcong, Mi Jiuping, Liu Penghua, and Li Zhan were all placed under formal arrest by police in the city on Sept. 3, following their initial detention at the factory on July 27, it said.



Maoist campaigner Shen Mengyu, who briefly emerged as the leader of the Jasic supporters' group, has been under house arrest at her home in Yongzhou city, in the central province of Hunan.



Home surrounded



Police on Tuesday surrounded Yu Lingcong's home and tried to detain his wife Huang Lanfeng, she said in a "distress call" that was posted to Twitter by the Jasic Supporters' Group.



"My husband is still in the detention center; he didn't get out yet," Huang says in a video message. "There are police everywhere ... and right outside the door. They just called the landlord to get them to unlock the door."



"I think they're going to force their way in through the door in a minute; I will resist them all the way," said Huang, who is also a former Jasic employee.



Calls to Huang's cell phone went unconnected on Wednesday, and there were no more updates from her on social media. She was briefly detained in July on suspicion of "picking quarrels and stirring up trouble" after protesting her husband's detention outside her local police station.



Repeated calls to the police department in Dongguan city, where the couple were living, rang unanswered during office hours on Wednesday.



A number of sources close to the Jasic campaign declined to comment when contacted by RFA on Wednesday, saying it was "inconvenient," a term often used by dissidents and rights activists to suggest they are under surveillance and monitoring.



Among them was veteran Guangdong labor activist Zhang Zhiru.



"I'm not allowed to give interviews about the Jasic situation," Zhang said, before hanging up the phone.



Widespread support



Shenzhen-based migrant worker Xie Liusheng told RFA that the Jasic campaign garnered widespread support across China, and that he and many others had been called in by police or officials and warned not to take part or "pay attention" to it.



"This is the first time we have seen such a large movement in a number of years," Xie said. "But as soon as the workers kick up a fuss, the authorities start detaining them."



"As soon as they start detaining people, the workers start to get frightened, and are forced to make concessions," he said. "They have no way to follow up."



Xie, a veteran workers' rights campaigner, said the Shenzhen police had sought him out and warned him not to take part.



In neighboring Hong Kong, the Confederation of Trade Unions has launched a solidarity campaign with the Jasic workers and their supporters, calling on unions around the world, including the ruling Chinese Communist Party's All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) to support the workers and students.



HKCTU organizing secretary Lam Cho-ming said the group had had difficulty getting hold of the right documentary evidence to back up a formal complaint to the International Labor Organization (ILO).



"In 2015, when they were arresting workers in Guangdong, we successfully filed a complaint with the International Labor Organization to complain that the Chinese government had violated their freedom of association," Lam told RFA.

"I had hoped we could follow the same plan this time, but most of the key workers representatives have been arrested this time," he said."We have experienced some difficulty in collecting evidence and collecting information."



Reported by Wen Yuqing for RFA's Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Yang Chong, husband of Chinese activist and political refugee Ai Wu, stands shackled in a cell at an immigration detention center in Bangkok, Thailand, Sept. 11, 2018.

A Chinese political refugee detained last month by police in Thailand has begun a hunger strike in an immigration detention center in the hope of staving off her forced repatriation.

Wu Yuhua, who is also known by her nickname Ai Wu, was detained by police in Bangkok alongside her husband Yang Chong on Aug. 29 and locked up in an immigration detention center.

"There is no way to resist; no dignity," Ai Wu said in a video statement smuggled out of the detention center. "That's why I have decided to go on hunger strike to protest my detention and the decisions by the police, I who am an innocent refugee."

The couple had been registered as genuine political refugees by the United Nations and were awaiting resettlement in a third country.

Fellow Thailand-based refugee Yu Yanhua said Ai Wu had begun refusing food after the couple's third appeal was rejected by a court in Bangkok.

"She is in total despair and she is very angry, so she is going on a hunger strike in protest," Yu told RFA. "She isn't in good health, and she requested via her lawyer and an interpreter to be allowed to see a doctor appointed by the court, but in the end they didn't let her."

"I don't think she will be able to stand [being on hunger strike]," she said.

Meanwhile, the Thai authorities have changed conditions attached to bail arrangements for the couple on a number of occasions.

"They said it would cost 24,000 baht [U.S. $731] for one person and 48,000 baht [U.S. 1,461] for both of them to bail them out, but then there was also an issue with their address," Yu said.

"Then they wanted the U.N. to guarantee they wouldn't abscond, so I came here to the UN today, and they won't guarantee that Ai Wu and Yang Chong won't abscond," she said.

Wu also said efforts were under way to prevent the couple from being repatriated to China where they would likely face official reprisals for their activism.

Yang and Ai Wu were initially targeted by Chinese police after taking part in the press freedom protests in the southern city of Guangzhou in January 2013.

They fled the country in February 2015, and made their way to Thailand after Ai Wu started a support group for disappeared rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng.

Since then, they have been eking an existence without papers in the country's Pattaya region.

They were approved as political refugees by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Bangkok in 2017, but had yet to be accepted for resettlement in a third country amid a global tightening of national immigration policies.

The hand of the CCP

Another Thailand-based refugee Wang Xili said he believes Beijing is behind the couple's detention.

"I think we have seen the hand of the Chinese Communist Party in all of this," Wang said. "It is entirely possible that China doesn't want them to get out [of immigration detention]."

Wu and Yang were detained along with He Weiyi outside the New Zealand Embassy in Bangkok, where they had intended to deliver a petition along with Duan Jinggang and other Chinese exiles.

Eyewitnesses said He Weiyi, a missionary with legal immigration status in Thailand, was released soon after, but Wu and Yang couldn't produce any legal documents proving their right to be in Thailand, and were taken to an immigration detention center.

In July, authorities in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing jailed two rights activists sent home from Thailand as they were awaiting resettlement as political refugees, prompting an international outcry.

Dong Guangping and Jiang Yefei fled with their families to Thailand in 2015, and were granted refugee status by the UNHCR office in Bangkok.

But as they awaited resettlement in a third country, they were handed over to China by the Thai police, in a move that drew strong criticism from the U.N.

Dong and Jiang were both found guilty of "incitement to subvert state power" and "illegally crossing a national border" by a court in Chongqing.

Jiang received a six-and-a-half-year jail term, while Dong was sentenced to three-and-a-half years, their relatives said, citing phone calls with police and online reports.

Reported by Gao Feng for RFA's Mandarin Service and by Wong Lok-to for the Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
North Korean families who met last month with South Korean relatives from whom they had been separated for years were made by authorities in the North to hand over money they had received in the meetings as gifts, North Korean sources say.



The money, described by sources as loyalty funds, was given by family members as expressions of gratitude to Pyongyang for allowing the meetings with long-lost relatives to take place, a source in North Hamgyong province, bordering China, told RFAs Korean Service.



People who participated in the reunion of separated families at [North Koreas] Mount Kumgang in August have donated most of the money that they received from South Korean families to North Korea as a loyalty fund, RFAs source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.



Following the meetings, which took place from Aug. 20 to 26, the North Korean families taking part were subjected by authorities to political meetings aimed at cleansing them from unwanted ideological influences picked up from their relatives in the capitalist South, RFAs source said.



And the very first meetings began with them having to report any gifts, including cash, they might have received from their South Korean relatives, he said.



They could have gotten in trouble by failing to report even a piece of candy, he said.



At the end of each meeting, a participant prompted earlier by authorities would stand and suggest that all money received from relatives as gifts be donated to thank the North Korean state for its help in facilitating the reunions, he said.



Everyone else would then say Yes or show their approval by clapping their hands, and no one would dare to refuse, he said.



Most would donate only half the amount they had received, though, RFAs source said.



'They had little money left'



Also speaking to RFA, a source from North Pyongan province, also bordering China, said that remaining funds would then be spent to reimburse the costs of their accommodations during group training sessions held in preparation for the family meetings, or for pre-arranged clothing and other gifts for their South Korean relatives.



And when they went home, they would also spend money on drinks for their neighbors or for officials who had been involved in the family reunion event, he said.



Thus, they had little money left after the reunions, and they sometimes ended up owing money because they spent more than they had received.



Writing in a Sept. 11 article, The Dark Side of Korean Family Reunions, the Washington, D.C.-based Committee for Human Rights in North Korea noted that as many as 57,000 South Koreans, most over 70 years of age, were still waiting as of May to meet family members in the North from whom they have been separated.



Allowing just 89 senior citizens to participate in a single reunion event is a far cry from the reunion scale needed to grant all of the separated Koreans even one visit with their family members from the other side of the [Demilitarized Zone] prior to their passing, the rights group said.



Reported by Joonho Kim for RFAs Korean Service. Translated by Leejin Jun. Written in English by Richard Finney.
Myanmars ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) has faced a number of crises and setbacks since taking power in March 2016. Many people inside and outside the country had high expectations for the pro-democracy party of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi after it won national elections by a landslide in November 2015, believing that the countrys first fully civilian government in a half-century would achieve further social, political, and economic reform. But ongoing hostilities between the national military and ethnic armed groups, a slow-moving peace process, a crackdown on the media, and the militarys brutal suppression of Rohingya Muslims during counteroffensives in northern Rakhine state have drawn condemnation from the international community and tarnished the once stellar reputation of the NLD and Aung San Suu Kyi.



Pressure continues to mount with the release of a report by an independent United Nations team of investigators in late August calling for the prosecution of military leaders for the genocide of the Rohingya and a decision by the International Criminal Court on Sept. 6 that it has jurisdiction over the alleged crime of deportation of hundreds of thousands of Muslims to Bangladesh.



On Monday, U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet called for a new "mechanism" to prepare criminal indictments for atrocities, including murder, torture, and rape, committed against the Rohingya. Ye Htut, a former lieutenant colonel in the Myanmar army who served as minister for information from 2014 to 2016 and spokesman for the president from 2013 to 2016, discussed the Rohingya issue, media freedom, the military, and Myanmars current government with reporter Kyaw Min Htun of RFA's Myanmar Service. The following is an edited version of their conversation.

RFA: Whats your assessment of the ICCs recent decision and the involvement of U.N. organizations and international pressure on Myanmar regarding the Rohingya issue?

Ye Htut: I feel sorry for my country. I expected that our country could step forward to reform after we got a new government in 2015, but we have had a lot of pressure, although we have fewer sanctions than we did before. I think this is the worse time during which our countrys image has been hurt since after 1988 [the year during which a bloody crackdown by soldiers ended a nationwide democracy uprising against the then military regime]. It impacts all social, economic, and political reforms, as well as slows down the reform process.

RFA: Should the Muslims in northern Rakhine state be called Rohingya or Bengali, and should they be granted Myanmar citizenship?



Ye Htut: Granting them citizenship is not a huge issue. We gave some of them white cards [temporary identification cards], and we have maintained annual lists of the members of each household. We can check them against these lists to determine who has lived in the region. Then we can move forward to the citizenship process. For the [Rohingya] refugees who are in Bangladesh right now, I dont think they will come back unless Myanmar gives them an exact time frame and lays out a process for their return. I didnt accept the term Rohingya in the past, but the situation has changed. We should not recognize them as an ethnic group because they are not one, but I now accept that a person should be called whatever he wants to be called in keeping with the international communitys concept. If they are called Rohingya on documents, then the citizenship process would be easier. But if the government does this, then it must have support from the ethnic Rakhine [community].

RFA: People say that Myanmar is backpedaling on media freedom. Whats your take?

Ye Htut: The current governments machinery is more like that of the [former] military junta administration, but unlike that of the government of [former president] Thein Sein. What I mean is that the leaders of previous military governments had doubts about institutions that they couldnt directly control very well, such as the media and civil society organizations. The NLD party has had a hard time, and it has power now. The NLD doesnt believe that criticism from others is democratic, but rather believes that such actions hurt its power and its opportunities to win the next election. Thats why the current governments relationship with the media and CSOs [civil society organizations] is getting worse.

RFA: Do you mean to say that Aung San Suu Kyis leadership style is similar to that of former Senior General Than Shwe, who ruled Myanmar from 1992 to 2011 as chairman of the military-led State Peace and Development Council?

Ye Htut: I mean her way of thinking is similar to his. We can see all sectors are increasingly coming under central government control. She is concerned about the work of her colleagues and is worried about mistakes being made if she gives them permission or assigns them duties on sensitive issues. She is also inexperienced in governance and administration. I believe that Aung San Suu Kyi uses more central control than did Senior General Than Shwe. For example, Senior General Than Shwe didnt serve as the leader of any committee, but Aung San Suu Kyi is state counselor, she holds two ministerial positions, and she chairs about 16 state-level committees. I dont think she should hold that many positions. No leaders from other countries do that. It makes running the government difficult.

RFA: Going back to media freedom, people say we have fewer rights to information, and that only the government spokesperson talks to the media for all sectors. Thats why media professionals are calling for the passage of a law guaranteeing the right to information. What do you say?

Ye Htut: [In the past,] we were working under a strong central control system so that we dont have a good relationship with media. Former president Thein Sein developed a good relationship with the media. We have to be media friendly if we want to create a democratic country, even if we dont like it. But we discovered something while we were building a good relationship with the media, and that was that its beneficial for the government to allow freedom of the media for the people. Government officials, departments, and ministries exercise self-control because they know the media are watching them. At first, the media didnt trust us [in previous governments], so we had to build trust with them. But the media have been supporting Aung San Suu Kyi since 1988. No media outlet has gone against her. So, Aung San Suu Kyi and lawmakers from her party may be obsessed about the media supporting them at all times. They dont believe that asking questions is the medias job. This is why they may believe that the media do not support them, although they did in the past, and that the media can be bought [by other organizations]. Media freedom has been stymied by this kind of thinking.

RFA: When the government is trying to respond to pressure and complaints, it must deal with the military, but it appears that the current governments control is not as effective as that of previous governments. Do you agree?

Ye Htut: The NLD has been opposed to the military since it was formed, and the military has taken actions against it and barred its activities. So, the NLD has been suspicious of the military, and it cannot view it as a collegial institution but rather as an obstacle. This damages the trust between the NLD and the military. Though three ministers [home affairs, border affairs, and defense] are nominated by the military chief, the president can decide whether he approves of them or not. If not, the president can ask the military chief for another nominee. And then, all laws must be written by [national and state] parliaments and voted on. If there are many votes in favor of a law, military lawmakers, who constitute 25 percent of the bodies, cant reject the legislation. What I mean is that I dont accept people saying that the government cant work because of the way that the parliamentary system is constructed. It is because the government doesnt adhere to a way that can work and cant build trust with military so that it can work for the country. I think the Rakhine issue is getting worse because of these problems [between the government and the military]. Aung San Suu Kyi spoke out about human rights violations and other issues even when she was an opposition leader. But now that she is a state leader, she must speak out [on the Rakhine issue] if she thinks she should. If she does, the military will not stop her. It will be her decision. I dont know what is she thinking, but she no longer has the courage to speak out when she should as she did in the past when she was the opposition leader.

Reported by Kyaw Min Htun for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
Vietnamese activist Nguyen Trung Truc, a member of the online Brotherhood for Democracy advocacy group, was sentenced by a court in northern Vietnams Quang Binh province on Wednesday to a 12-year prison term in a decision that drew harsh rebukes from human rights groups and the U.S. embassy in Hanoi.



Truc, 44, had been charged under Article 79 of Vietnams penal code with carrying out activities aimed at overthrowing the peoples administration, and his Aug. 4, 2017 arrest followed the round-up of other members of the group, most of whom were also handed long prison terms after trials widely condemned as unfair.



Speaking to RFAs Vietnamese Service following Trucs Sept. 12 trial, defense attorney Nguyen Van Mieng said that Truc had denied all the accusations made by state prosecutors against him, and that prosecutors had failed to present any evidence supporting their charges.



Truc is innocent, Mieng said. Everything that he did was protected by the law, by our constitution, and by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.



Trucs last words at his trial were that as a citizen of Vietnam, he has never worked to overthrow anyone, and that he will continue his struggle for democracy, human rights, and environmental protections until those goals are achieved in our country, Mieng said.



In a Sept. 12 statement, the U.S. embassy in Hanoi slammed the courts decision and voiced deep concern over Trucs conviction on what the embassy called vague charges of attempting to overthrow the peoples administration.



The trend of increased arrests and harsh sentences for peaceful activists in Vietnam is troubling, the U.S. statement said, adding that at least 25 peaceful activists have been arrested so far in Vietnam in this year alone.



The United States calls on Vietnam to release all prisoners of conscience immediately and to allow all individuals in Vietnam to express their views freely and assemble peacefully without fear of retribution.



Meanwhile, rights group Amnesty International (AI) in a statement following Wednesdays trial said that all Truc has been guilty of is his advocacy for democracy and human rights in Vietnam.



He has been deliberately targeted simply because he has expressed views and taken up causes that the countrys authorities disapprove of, AI Director of Global Operations Minar Pimple said in a Sept. 12 statement.



Nguyen Trung Truc must be immediately and unconditionally released and Vietnams government must stop dealing with dissent by throwing its critics in jail, Pimple said.



Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Translated by Viet Ha. Written in English by Richard Finney.
A 27-year-old Afghan refugee has won the Democratic primary for a seat in the legislature of the U.S. state of New Hampshire, defeating a fellow Democrat who held the seat for four terms.

Safiya Wazir defeated District 17 State Representative Dick Patten, who said during the campaign that Wazir's lack of political experience and background as a refugee would hurt her chances of election.

Wazir won the primary on September 11 after a campaign in which she highlighted her years of community activism and dedication to education and family issues.

She said that record, as well as her efforts to communicate with voters by knocking on doors and sending thank-you notes, among other things, helped her win.

Supporters "were very excited there was someone new running for the State House, Wazir said.

Wazir's family left Afghanistan in 2007 and she arrived in Concord, the capital of the northeastern state, that same year.

New Hampshire officials say that if Wazir beats Republican Dennis Soucy in the November election, she will be the first refugee to hold public office in the state.

Based on reporting by AP and the Concord Monitor
Amnesty International has urged Russia to immediately free a lawyer who was detained during a recent rally against pension reform and later jailed on "politically motivated" charges.

Mikhail Benyash was among dozens of people "arbitrarily" detained during a peaceful protest in the southwestern city of Krasnodar on September 9, the London-based human rights watchdog said on September 12.

Benyash was pushed and shoved into a car by police officers wearing civilian clothes, a statement said.

It quoted the lawyer as saying the officers "beat and violently choked" him both in the vehicle and at the police station where he was taken, causing injuries and bruises.

On September 11, a local court convicted Benyash of "resisting the police's legitimate orders" and sentenced him to 14 days in jail.

Amnesty said it believed Benyash was targeted in connection with his human rights work to provide legal assistance to victims of police abuse during the rally.

"He is a prisoner of conscience and must be immediately and unconditionally released," the group said.

More than 1,000 people were detained across Russia on September 9 as anti-Kremlin demonstrators took to the streets to protests against the government's plan to raise the retirement age.
The climate for press freedom in Pakistan is deteriorating as the country's powerful army quietly, but effectively restricts reporting through "intimidation" and other means, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) says in a new report.

The report, released on September 12, says the military is preventing journalists from doing their work by barring access, encouraging self-censorship through direct and indirect acts of intimidation, and even allegedly instigating violence against reporters.

Journalists who push back or are overly critical of authorities are attacked, threatened, or arrested, according to the report, which is based on interviews with journalists during a mission to Pakistan this year.

The deterioration in the climate for press freedom in Pakistan comes as fewer journalists have been killed in recent years, but the organization says impunity remained entrenched, with the military, intelligence, and military-affiliated political groups suspected in the killings of 22 reporters in the past decade.

While the decline in the killing of journalists is encouraging, the government needs to counteract pressures that have resulted in rampant self-censorship and threats to the media, said Steven Butler, the Asia program coordinator at the New York-based watchdog.

Pakistan must address the disturbing trend of impunity and attacks on journalists to shore up this faltering pillar of democracy, he added.

According to the report, the military, which plays an unusually prominent role in the South Asian nations domestic and foreign affairs, has used its battle against terrorism as a pretext to pressure the media..

The CPJ said it was told by the journalists that the media has been under siege since 2014, when the attempted murder of Geo TV anchor Hamid Mir led to a fallout among media groups and with the military.

That year, the Pakistani Taliban also carried out an attack in the northwestern city of Peshawar that left 150 people dead, prompting a military crackdown on militancy. With high-profile attacks on reporters, the CPJ quoted journalists as saying that they are often forced to play it safe by toning down or avoiding controversial but newsworthy stories.

Privately, senior editors and journalists say that conditions for the free press are as bad as when the country was under military dictatorship, and journalists were flogged and newspapers forced to close, says the CPJ report.

Pakistan's military has ruled for approximately half the period since the countrys independence in 1947, staging coups three times.

The Pakistani media have come under unprecedented pressure in recent months from the all-powerful army but also hard-line religious groups and militant organizations.

In May, the distribution of Pakistan's oldest newspaper, Dawn, was disrupted across most of the country. The disruption came days after Dawn published an interview with ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in which he criticized the army and alleged it was backing militants who carried out the deadly attacks in the Indian city of Mumbai in 2008.

In April, Geo TV, part of Pakistan's largest commercial media group, Jang, was taken off the air in many parts of the country. The ban ended a month later after talks between the military and the network's chiefs.

Meanwhile, prominent Pakistani columnists have had their writing on sensitive topics rejected by news outlets, without explanation.

Prominent Pakistani journalist Taha Siddiqui left Pakistan in January, shortly after armed men beat, threatened, and attempted to kidnap him in broad daylight in the capital, Islamabad.

Siddiqui is known in his homeland for his critical reporting on the military.

Cyril Almeida, a leading columnist and assistant editor at Dawn, was barred from leaving the country in 2016 shortly after he wrote an article about a rift between the government and the military. He left for New York when the government order was lifted weeks later.

The media watchdog Reporters Without Borders ranked Pakistan 139th out of 180 countries in its 2018 press freedom index.
BRUSSELS -- The European Parliament has voted in favor of launching disciplinary proceedings against Hungary for allegedly undermining the European Union's democratic values and the rule of law.

The September 12 vote marks the first time that the European Parliament has invoked the so-called Article 7 procedure against an EU member state, a process that can lead to a country losing its voting rights in the bloc's council.

Hungary condemned the decision to set a punitive procedure in motion, dismissing it as the "petty revenge" of pro-immigration politicians and vowing a challenge.

A two-thirds majority of those present was required for a European Parliament vote in favor of disciplinary proceedings, and legislators cleared this threshold with a 448 to 197 vote.

The outcome of the vote depended substantially on the center-right European People's Party (EPP), the dominant group in the legislature, of which Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's Fidesz party is a member.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said his country would seek legal ways to challenge the ruling, suggesting it was unfair that abstaining votes were not counted.

"Today's European Parliament decision was nothing but the petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians against Hungary," Szijjarto said. "The decision was made in a fraudulent way, and contrary to relevant rules in European treaties."

The basis of the vote was a report by Dutch lawmaker Judith Sargentini, which said the Hungarian government's actions involving the media, minorities, and the rule of law presented a "clear risk of a serious breach" of EU values.

In a debate on the report on September 11, Orban accused the European Parliament of attempting to "blackmail" Budapest and added that it "insults Hungary and insults the honor of the Hungarian nation."

The European Commission launched similar infringement procedures against Poland in December 2017.

But the measures are unlikely to result in the punishment of Poland or Hungary, as unanimity is required among the blocs 28 member states to strip a country of its voting rights and Budapest and Warsaw are pledging to support each other.

Poland said it would not impose any sanctions imposed by the bloc on fellow member Hungary.

"Every country has its sovereign right to make internal reforms it deems appropriate," Poland's Foreign Ministry said in a statement issued later on September 12.

"Actions aimed against member states serve only deepening divides in the EU, increasing citizens' current lack of confidence to European institutions," the statement added.

Joanna Kopcinska, a spokeswoman for Poland's right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) government, told AFP that the move "threatens" EU unity and "sows unnecessary divisions."

"We are in solidarity with the Hungarian people, who gave the Viktor Orban government a very clear democratic mandate in recent elections," she added.

With reporting by Rikard Jozwiak in Brussels, dpa, Reuters, and AP
Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, a vice president, chief of staff, and senior aide under former Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad, has been sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison after being convicted on charges including threatening national security, Iranian media report.

A top press aide to Ahmadinejad, Ali Akbar Javanfekr, received a four-year prison sentence in the same case, the official government news agency IRNA reported on September 12. IRNA cited the chief justice of Tehran Province, who said the sentences can be appealed within 20 days.

Ahmadinejad, a hard-line conservative who was president from 2005 to 2013, has in the past criticized Iran's powerful judiciary over the arrests of his aides and supporters including Mashaei, who was arrested in March.

Hamid Baghaei, a former vice president and close Ahmadinejad aide, was sentenced to 15 years in prison in December following a conviction on corruption charges. Baghaei was jailed in March.

The Guardians Council -- which vets presidential candidates -- prevented Ahmadinejad and Baghaei from running in the 2017 presidential election that returned President Hassan Rohani to office for a second term.

Based on reporting by IRNA, Fars, and Reuters
Iran's Foreign Ministry has described accusations by the United States that Tehran's allies were responsible for recent attacks on U.S. diplomatic missions in Iraq as "astonishing, provocative, and irresponsible," Iranian media report.

The semiofficial ISNA news agency quoted ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi as making the remarks on September 12, the day after the United States warned it would hold Iran accountable for any attack by its proxies and allies that results in injury to its personnel or damage to U.S. government facilities.

"America will respond swiftly and decisively in defense of American lives," the White House said in a statement on September 11.

The warning came after the U.S. Consulate in the southern Iraqi city of Basra was hit by rocket fire on September 8.

A day prior to that, three mortars landed inside Baghdad's Green Zone, where the U.S. Embassy is located.

No casualties or damage was reported in either case, but the mortar attack was the first in several years on the Green Zone.

Qasemi blamed the attacks on U.S. support for "groups that have spread and promoted violence and extremism," ISNA reported.

Basra has seen a surge in deadly protests in the past week, with demonstrators -- angry over corruption and the lack of basic services and jobs in a province that generates much of Iraq's oil wealth -- setting alight government buildings as well as the offices of political parties and militias backed by Iran.

The unrest also saw the Iranian Consulate in the city burnt down, and Iran's ambassador to Iraq on September 11 inaugurated the premises of the new mission.

With reporting by AFP and Reuters
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter and son-in-law have been temporarily released on parole for the funeral of Sharifs wife, reports said.



They were released on September 12 for 12 hours, according to Pakistans prison rules, but the duration was likely to be extended.



Begum Kulsoom Nawaz died at a clinic in London on September 11 after battling cancer for more than a year. She was 68.



Sharif, a three-time prime minister, is serving a 10-year prison term in Pakistan following his conviction on corruption charges in early July.

The couple's daughter Maryam Nawaz is also in prison, serving a seven-year sentence. Her husband, Muhammad Safdar, is serving a yearlong sentence on related charges.

Nawaz Sharif and his family contend that the cases, convictions, and sentences against them are politically motivated.



Pakistani media reported that Kulsoom Nawazs funeral would be held on September 14 in Lahore.

Based on reporting by AP, dpa, and Geo TV
Material prices are rising in all sectors of construction, and plywood is the material with the biggest price increase.

This is according to The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategys Monthly Statistics of Building Materials and Components report.

Construction material price index changes from June 2018 to July 2018 were:

 New housing +0.2%

 Other & new work +0.5%

 Repair & maintenance +0.2%

 All work +0.1%

Looking at longer term change, the material price of All work increased by 5.8% in July 2018 compared to the same month last year.

The materials with the greatest price increases in the last 12 months were:

 Plywood +23.8%

 Concrete reinforcing bars +13.8%

 Kitchen furniture +13.5%

The materials with the greatest price decreases in the last 12 months were:

 Electric heating apparatus -2.4%

 Other building ironmongery -0.6%

 Sand and gravel -0.7%

Read the full report here.
European lawmakers have nominated Ukrainian film director Oleh Sentsov, who has been on hunger strike in a Russian prison for nearly four months, for this year's Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.

The center-right European People's Party (EPP), the biggest political group in the European Parliament, tweeted on September 12 it had selected Sentsov, saying the filmmaker was "illegaly imprisoned" in Russia.

Other nominees for the prestigious prize include Syrian photographer Caesar and Seyran Ates, a female imam in Berlin.

The members of the European Parliament will present their nominees to the chamber's committees on foreign affairs and development on September 27, which will then shortlist three of them.

The laureate is to be announced on October 25.

Sentsov, a Crimean native who opposed Russia's 2014 takeover of the Ukrainian peninsula, is serving a 20-year prison term after being convicted of terrorism in a trial that he, human rights groups, and Western governments contend was politically motivated.

Imprisoned in the far northern Yamalo-Nenets region of Russia, Sentsov started a hunger strike on May 14, demanding that Russia release 64 fellow Ukrainians he considers political prisoners.

In a Facebook post on September 11, his cousin Natalya Kaplan quoted the filmmaker as saying his "limbs are going numb" and that he no longer believes his ordeal in a Russian prison will have a "happy ending."

The annual Sakharov Prize was established in 1988 by the EU's parliament to honor individuals and organizations defending human rights and fundamental freedoms.

The prize, named in honor of the Soviet physicist and dissident Andrei Sakharov, is worth 50,000 euros ($58,000) and will be presented to the winners at a ceremony on December 12.

Previous laureates include Nelson Mandela and Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani girl who has championed the rights of Pakistani girls to receive schooling.
BRUSSELS -- European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has urged EU member states to abandon the requirement of unanimity for decisions on some foreign policy matters, including human rights issues, and play a greater role on the world stage.

Juncker made the call on September 12 in his state-of-the-EU speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, saying that EU states should rein in divisions over budgets, immigration, and other issues.

"We must improve our ability to speak with one voice when it comes to our foreign policy," Juncker, who is entering his last year in office, told EU lawmakers.

He said that "whenever Europe speaks as one, we can impose our position on others."

Juncker cited as an example the EU's failure to condemn human rights abuses by China at the United Nation's Human Rights Council, referring to an incident in June when Greece stopped Brussels from voicing concern about Beijing's crackdown on journalists and dissidents.

Although not mentioned during his speech, the written text of his comments published by the commission afterward also stated that "it is not right that one member state was able to hold the renewal of our arms embargo on Belarus to ransom, or that sanctions on Venezuela were delayed for months when unanimity could not be reached."

EU foreign policy is one of the areas where decisions are made by unanimity, but the commission has highlighted three areas where a so-called qualified majority vote (QMV) should be introduced: to respond collectively to attacks on human rights, to apply effective sanctions, and to launch and manage civilian security and defense missions.

QMV means that a decision is passed if 55 percent of the member states, representing at least 65 percent of the EU population, agree.

The commission hopes that EU leaders will agree to the change at an EU summit in the Romanian city of Sibiu on May 9, 2019, which takes place less than two months after Britain is expected to leave the EU and two weeks ahead of the European Parliamentary elections.

In his September 12 speech, Juncker also called for more solidarity and less last-minute scrambling to address the issue of migrants.

"We cannot continue to squabble [in an effort] to find ad hoc solutions each time a new ship arrives. Temporary solidarity is not good enough," he said. "We need a lot more. We need more solidarity, and solidarity must be lasting and organized."

He also stressed that EU needed legal routes for migration and "skilled migrants."

"The commission is today proposing to further strengthen the European Border and Coast Guard to better protect our external borders with an additional 10,000 European border guards by 2020," he said.

Juncker also said the EU needed more solidarity and a "forthright attitude" on the future inclusion of more countries in the Western Balkans, where Russia, Turkey, and other countries are vying for influence.

"We must find unity when it comes to the Western Balkans -- once and for all," he said. "Should we not, our immediate neighborhood will be shaped by others."

With reporting by dpa, Reuters, and the BBC
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said he would travel to Macedonia ahead of a crucial referendum on changing the country's name, and he voiced concern about possible Russian "mischief" in the run-up to the vote.



Mattis told reporters on September 11 that the visit will occur this weekend and is aimed at supporting the Macedonian voters in the September 30 referendum. If the referendum passes, it would help pave the way for membership in NATO and the European Union.



"I am concerned about...the kind of mischief that Russia has practiced from Estonia to the United States, from Ukraine and now to Macedonia," Mattis said, according to a Pentagon transcript.

This visit, Mattis said, "is in support of their decision -- their own sovereign decision to make sure that they know that we believe it should be our Macedonian friends charting their country's future, and not outsiders."



The referendum is aimed at getting voters' approval for a deal Macedonia signed with Greece in June. The deal changes Macedonia's name to the Republic of North Macedonia, ending a dispute with Greece that has lasted for decades.



Nationalists in both countries have opposed the deal.



If the deal is approved, and Macedonia's constitution is changed, it will open the door for Macedonia to join the EU, and also NATO, something that Russia has publicly opposed.



Russia's ambassador to Skopje has warned that Macedonia could become "a legitimate target" if relations between NATO and Russia deteriorate further.



Greece has seen nationalist demonstrations in opposition of the deal. But in June, Athens expelled two Russian diplomats, accusing them of having helped encourage the protests and also bribing unidentified officials to undermine the deal.

Macedonia has seen a steady stream of U.S. and European officials traveling to the country, encouraging voters to turn out and cast their ballots -- and in support of the name change.



U.S. Senator Ron Johnson, who sits on a Senate subcommittee overseeing European and regional security, traveled to Skopje on September 9, where he urged Macedonians to "get out and vote."

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have also visited.

With reporting by Reuters




Macedonia's conservative opposition leader has told supporters to vote "with their conscience" in the upcoming referendum on changing the country's name.

The vote was up to "each individual, with their conscience and morals" to "decide what's best for their family and our beloved Macedonia," VMRO-DPMNE leader Hristijan Mickoski said in comments published on the party's website on September 12.

Mickoski, whose party opposes a deal Macedonia signed with Greece in June to change the name of the former Yugoslav republic, did not call for a boycott of the referendum set for September 30.

The deal changes Macedonia's name to the Republic of North Macedonia, ending a dispute with Greece that has lasted for decades.

Macedonia's center-left government of Prime Minister Zoran Zaev launched its referendum campaign earlier this week, urging people to support the name change.

The campaign has been supported by EU leaders and the United States.

If the name change is approved in the referendum, and Macedonia's constitution is changed, it will open the door for Macedonia to join the EU and NATO.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis will embark on September 16 on a trip to Skopje to "show U.S. support for Macedonia during NATO accession and continued U.S. commitment to peace and security in the region," the Defense Department said in a September 12 statement.

Mattis announced he would travel to Macedonia this weekend and he voiced concern about possible acts of "mischief" by Russia to try and block Macedonia's path to NATO membership.

U.S. Senator Ron Johnson, who sits on a Senate subcommittee overseeing European and regional security, traveled to the Macedonian capital on September 9.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have also visited.

With reporting by AP
There were violent scenes on the sidelines of an OSCE rights conference in Warsaw on September 11 after a scuffle broke out between Tajik opposition activists and government officials. The altercation started after one of the activists gave a poster reading "Free Political Prisoners" to Ayomiddin Sattorov, a former member of the banned Islamic Renaissance Party turned pro-government cleric, who was attending the event. When one of Sattorov's entourage snatched the paper away, words were exchanged before another Tajik official threw a punch at the activist, sparking a confrontation that had to be broken up by security staff. Polish police are investigating the incident.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that North Korea should be given security guarantees in exchange for steps toward denuclearization, and suggested that Washington is not reciprocating adequately in its dealings with Pyongyang.

Speaking at an economic forum in the Russian port city of Vladivostok on September 12, Putin said that North Korea had taken positive steps and was now waiting for a response.

"If North Korea does something towards denuclearization, it expects reciprocal steps and not endless demands for full disarmament," Putin said.

Putin, who has met this week with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon, said that "international" guarantees would be appropriate in addition to what Washington can offer.

U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un signed a vaguely worded document on denuclearization at their June 12 summit in Singapore, after which the U.S. president said that he had "largely solved" the crisis over Pyongyang's nuclear program and that the North was no longer a nuclear threat.

But negotiations have stalled since and Washington has expressed disappointment with Pyongyang's lack of progress toward denuclearization, though Trump praised North Korea for not displaying its intercontinental ballistic missiles at a military parade it staged on September 9.

Putin, who has repeatedly accused Trump's domestic opponents and others in the U.S. political establishment of seeking to undermine the president, praised Trump for meeting with Kim. "I would not be skeptical or ironic if I say I truly believe that President Trump's approach is innovative. He has demonstrated political courage and boldness," he said.

He also said Kim was welcome to visit Russia at any time convenient for him.

Putin's comments came days after the Kremlin said it had sent Kim a letter of invitation to visit Russia.

Meanwhile, the White House said on September 10 that Trump had recently received a "warm, very positive letter" letter from the North Korean leader asking for a second meeting.

With reporting by AFP, Reuters, and The Washington Post
President Vladimir Putin says Russia has identified the men Britain suspects of poisoning former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter with a military-grade nerve agent, contradicting U.K. authorities by claiming they are civilians.

"We know who they are. We have found them," Putin said at an economic forum in the Far Eastern city of Vladivostok on September 12.

"They are civilians, of course," Putin said, contradicting the British government's assertion that they are officers of Russia's military intelligence agency, known as the GRU.

He said that there was "nothing criminal" about the two men and that he hoped they would come forward and tell their own story, adding: "That would be better for everybody."

Putin gave no indication that Russia would help Britain pursue the suspects, and his poker-faced remarks appeared to indicate that it would not.

Russia adamantly denies involvement in the poisoning, which had added to severe strains in ties between Russia and the West.

Following Putin's declaration, British Prime Minister Theresa May's spokesman said that Britain's attempts to get an explanation from Moscow over the poisoning had always been met with "obfuscation and lies."

The two suspects are GRU officers, the spokesman reiterated, adding, "The government has exposed the role of the GRU, its operatives, and its methods, this position is supported by our international allies."

Last week, British authorities announced that they had charged two Russian men, identified as Aleksandr Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, with carrying out the poisoning on March 4.

They accused the pair of smuggling the Soviet-designed nerve agent Novichok into Britain in a fake perfume flask and smearing some of the substance on the front door of Sergei Skripal's home in the English city of Salisbury, where the former GRU officer settled after being sent to the West in a Cold War-style spy swap in 2010.

The attack left Sergei Skripal, 67, and Yulia Skripal, 34, in critical condition, but both have recovered after weeks in the hospital.

A couple who authorities said found the perfume bottle after it was discarded by the attackers fared worse: Charlie Rowley recovered after treatment in the hospital but his partner, Dawn Sturgess, 44, died on July 8.

British authorities have said that a European arrest warrant has been issued for the two Russians, who they suspect were using aliases.

Putin made no comment about whether the names they used were real.

On September 12, Russian state television channel Rossia-24 quoted Petrov, one of the Russian suspects, as declining to comment on the case for now, saying only that he worked for a pharmaceutical company in the Siberian city of Tomsk.

British Home Secretary Sajid Javid said on September 9 that Britain will catch the two men and bring them to prosecution if they ever step out of Russia.

Calling the poisoning a "sickening and despicable" attack, Javid said it was "unequivocally, crystal-clear this was the act of the Russian state -- two Russian nationals sent to Britain with the sole purpose of carrying out a reckless assassination attempt."

Javid described the GRU as a "very well-disciplined organization" that would "only act with orders from the highest level of the Russian government."

Britain's security minister, Ben Wallace, said on September 6 that Putin "ultimately" bears responsibility for the poisoning because "it is his government that controls, funds, and directs the military intelligence."

The poisoning led Britain, the United States, the European Union, and others to carry out a series of diplomatic expulsions and financial sanctions against Moscow.

It has further damaged already severely strained relations between Russia and the West and has been a cause for solidarity at a time when Western officials accuse Moscow of seeking to cause rifts in relations between Western countries.

With reporting by AFP, AP, Reuters, RIA Novosti, Interfax, Dozhd, and Meduza
U.S. President Donald Trump has issued a new executive order aimed at punishing foreigners who interfere in U.S. elections, although Democrats and some Republicans immediately said the action did not go far enough.

The order, signed on September 12 behind closed doors with no press coverage, came amid continuing criticism of Trump and his administration for downplaying threats to the U.S. elections, particularly from Russia, after allegations of meddling in the 2016 presidential vote that Trump won.

Military and law enforcement agencies have warned that the upcoming November 6 congressional elections could also be at risk from foreign meddling. That vote will determine control of Congress.

National-security adviser John Bolton said the order gave the State and Treasury departments the authority to decide on appropriate sanctions, which would include freezing assets, limiting access to U.S. financial institutions, and travel restrictions.

"The president has said repeatedly that he is determined that there not be foreign interference in our political process," Bolton said. "I think his actions speak for themselves."

The order would nevertheless leave the president the decision-making authority on whether to impose the harshest of the measures.

Dan Coats, the director of national intelligence, said the United States was not yet seeing the intensity of Russian interference that was seen in 2016. He also said the order was not specifically aimed at Russia, and he cited China, North Korea, and Iran as other possible threats.

"It's more than Russia here," he told reporters.

Trump has repeatedly downplayed the U.S. intelligence findings about alleged Russian interference, even as Congress has moved to impose strict penalties against Russia and others for things that include election meddling.

"There has been no evidence of a foreign power altering the outcome or vote tabulation in any United States election," Trump said in making the latest announcement.

However, U.S. lawmakers said Trump's executive order did not do enough to protect the U.S. electoral system.

"Today's announcement by the administration recognizes the threat, but does not go far enough to address it," Republican Senator Marco Rubio and Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen said in a joint statement that advocated further legislation.

"We must make sure Vladimir Putin's Russia, or any other foreign actor, understands that we will respond decisively and impose punishing consequences against those who interfere in our democracy," they added.

Senator Mark Warner, a Democrat who is vice chairman of the Intelligence Committee, said, "While the administration has yet to share the full text, an executive order that inevitably leaves the president broad discretion to decide whether to impose tough sanctions against those who attack our democracy is insufficient."

The Democratic National Committee said that Trump's executive order "does nothing to hold Russia accountable" for 2016.

Separately, new legislation currently making its way through Congress would impose even harsher punishment against Russia, including things like cutting Moscow off from sovereign-debt markets.

Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown said the executive order should not take the place of "mandatory sanctions required by law" and should not slow Congress's efforts to approve new legislation.

With reporting by Reuters, AFP, and The Washington Post
A Russian man considered to be one of the world's most notorious spammers has pleaded guilty to U.S. charges stemming from his operation of the Kelihos botnet, the Justice Department says.

Pyotr Levashov, 38, used the Kelihos botnet to "facilitate malicious activities including harvesting login credentials, distributing bulk spam e-mails, and installing ransomware and other malicious software," the department said in a September 12 statement.

"Today's guilty plea should serve as an unequivocal reminder to all those who use the Internet for illicit purposes, said Brian Turner, the FBI special agent in New Haven, Connecticut.

"The FBI will pursue you regardless of what country you live in and the length of time it might take to secure your eventual arrest. As we move forward, no cybercriminal should rest easy," he added.

A botnet is a network of computers infected with malicious software that allows a third party to control the entire computer network without the knowledge or consent of the computer owners, according to court documents and statements made in court.

Since the late 1990s until his arrest in April 2017, Levashov controlled and operated "multiple" botnets, including the Storm, Waledac, and Kelihos botnets, the Justice Department said.

Kelihos alone infected at least 50,000 computers.

Spanish authorities arrested Levashov while he was vacationing with his family in Barcelona, and sent him to the United States in February as Russian authorities unsuccessfully fought his extradition.

The Justice Department said Levashov pleaded guilty in federal court in Hartford, Connecticut, to one count of causing intentional damage to a protected computer, one count of conspiracy, one count of wire fraud, and one count of aggravated identity theft.

Sentencing is scheduled for September 2019. Justice Department did not explain the long time period between his guilty plea and sentencing.

He is being detained until his sentencing and could face years in prison.

With reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP
U.S. and Russian space officials have tried to downplay rumors of sabotage on the International Space Station (ISS) after a Russian newspaper suggested that U.S. astronauts may have purposely drilled a tiny hole into the station.

The September 12 report by the Kommersant newspaper followed a series of unusual reports about the hole, which was discovered last month.

Crew members, who include three Americans, two Russians, and a German, discovered it after recording a slight dip in air pressure within the station.

Initial suspicion focused on a small meteorite, but last week, Dmitry Rogozin, the head of the Russian space agency Roskosmos, said the hole may have been caused by a drill, used by someone either during manufacturing on Earth or while in orbit.

He also suggested the hole may have been sabotage.

The Kommersant report said that a technical commission was looking into the possibility that American astronauts deliberately drilled the hole in order to get a colleague who had an unspecified medical problem sent back to Earth for treatment.

Kommersant quoted unnamed sources as saying that possibility was being looked at "as a priority."

The unconfirmed report raised eyebrows both in Washington and in Moscow.

NASA spokeswoman Stephanie Schierholz said the agency was waiting for the Russians to complete their investigation, which a Roskosmos spokesman said would happen by mid-September.

"We work closely with our Russian partners to identify the source and the solution," she told RFE/RL.

Schierholz said the incident shouldn't be considered indicative that Russian-U.S. space cooperation was in danger of fraying.

The two countries have worked together to man the orbiting station for 18 years, she said, adding, "We've been able to maintain a successful relationship through all sorts of things."

In Moscow, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov told the RIA Novosti news agency that it was "shortsighted and dangerous" to speculate on the cause of the hole until the investigation was completed.

Borisov also tried to downplay suggestions that bilateral space cooperation was in jeopardy. "It is absolutely unacceptable to cast a shadow either on our cosmonauts or on American astronauts," he was quoted as saying.

The crew on the space station is "a unified group where there are no political disagreements," he told RIA Novosti.

Even before the publication of the Kommersant story, the insinuations of sabotage had struck a nerve with the current commander of the station, NASA astronaut Drew Feustel.

"I can unequivocally say that the crew had nothing to do with this on orbit, without a doubt, and I think it's actually a shame and somewhat embarrassing that anybody is wasting any time talking about something that the crew was involved in," Feustel said in an interview with ABC News on September 11.

"The only thing the crew did was react appropriately, follow our emergency procedures, eventually locate that leak and plugged the hole," he said. "In doing so, we assured the continued operation of the space station."

Rogozin was quoted in the Kommersant story, speaking on the sidelines of a major economic forum in Vladivostok. "The situation appears to be more complicated than we originally thought," he said.

And then he weighed in further in a Facebook post on September 12. "Spreading speculation and rumors about the incident on the ISS doesn't help the experts at Roskosmos and is aimed at undermining the comradely relations among the crew of the space station," he wrote.
Video has emerged of a scuffle that broke out this week between Tajik government officials and opposition activists outside one of Europe's biggest annual human rights and democracy conferences.

A member of the government delegation to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)'s Human Dimension Implementation Meeting punched and kicked at activists as they confronted officials outside the Warsaw venue during a lunch break on September 11.

It appears to have started after the opposition activists handed a flyer that read "Free political prisoners" to government delegate Ayomiddin Sattorov, who used to belong to the opposition within the now-banned Islamic Renaissance Party (IRPT) but recently renounced those ties.

Another member of the government delegation took the flyer from Sattorov and tossed it aside as one of the activists appeared to be trying to photograph Sattorov. The activist then seemingly touched the side of the second official's face before another government delegate struck him and kicked at the other activist.

Other delegation members and event organizers appeared to intervene and called for calm before any further violence.

The IRPT was banned after it lost the last of its parliamentary seats in widely criticized elections in 2015, and Tajik authorities have declared it a "terrorist organization" and jailed many of its former leaders and members on charges that have been questioned by rights groups.

The activists in the Warsaw scuffle accuse the Tajik officials of having "forced us out of Tajikistan" and "coming to Europe to beat us" before the activists try to hail police.

Event organizers say Warsaw police are investigating the incident.

A government delegation member called the incident a "provocation" by IRPT activists.

The activist who tried to take the picture before the scuffle, Sulaimoni Orzu, told RFE/RL that he was only after a photo.

Protested Invitation

Ahead of the Warsaw meeting, official Tajik news agency Khovar reprinted text criticizing the OSCE's invitation to IRPT figures and saying it risked a shutdown of the OSCE office in Dushanbe. http://khovar.tj/2018/08/to-ikiston-omeai-a-on-tte-ni-ro-tashkiloti-terrorist-etirof-kardaast-ammo/

Government supporters organized a rally in front of the OSCE offices in the Tajik capital on September 7 demanding that the OSCE not allow the opposition group to the Warsaw event.

Dozens of IRPT officials and supporters have been jailed in the past several years, and some have been convicted of attempting to overthrow the government.

The exiled leader of the party, Muhiddin Kabiri, attended the Warsaw meeting but he was not present during the scuffle.

Long Central Asia's lone registered Islamic political party, the IRPT signed the peace deal that ended Tajikistan's five-year civil war in the 1990s before entering a de facto power-sharing agreement with the government.

It twice won two parliamentary seats in general elections and boasted a membership of tens of thousands.

None of Tajikistan's elections has been endorsed as free and fair by Western election observers, and longtime President Emomali Rahmon has kept a tight lid on dissent amid dissatisfaction over nepotism and other forms of corruption and high unemployment.
U.S. President Donald Trump has issued a new executive order aimed at punishing foreigners who interfere in U.S. elections.

The order, signed on September 12, comes amid continuing criticism of Trump and his administration for downplaying threats to the U.S. elections, including the 2016 presidential vote that he won.

Dan Coats, the director of national intelligence, said the United States was not yet seeing the intensity of Russian interference that was seen in 2016. He also said the order was not specifically aimed at Russia, and he cited China, North Korea, and Iran as other possible threats.

"It's more than Russia here," he told reporters.

National-security adviser John Bolton said the order gave the State and Treasury departments the authority to decide on appropriate sanctions, which would include freezing assets, limiting access to U.S. financial institutions, and travel restrictions.

Military and law enforcement agencies have warned that the upcoming November 6 congressional elections could be at risk from foreign meddling. That vote will determine control of Congress.

Trump has repeatedly downplayed the U.S. intelligence findings about alleged Russian interference, even as Congress has moved to impose strict penalties against Russia and others for things that include election meddling.

New legislation currently making its way through Congress would impose even harsher punishment against Russia, including things like cutting Moscow off from sovereign-debt markets.

Trump has also derided Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian election meddling.

In July, Mueller's team announced an indictment against 12 Russian military intelligence officers, who prosecutors said were behind the hacking of the servers belonging to the Democratic Party in 2016.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic might well have offered up a gift last weekend to critics who believe the aphorism about history not repeating itself but often rhyming.

His speech to a crowd of mostly ethnic Serbs in the divided city of Mitrovica, in northern Kosovo, on September 9 sparked comparisons with a nationalist outpouring by former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic in that same location almost 30 years ago, at least among those old enough to remember it.

The resulting storm suggests that even decades later, Kosovo can still make or break a Serbian politician.

Vucic had been expected in Mitrovica for weeks. The town was festooned with his photograph and Serbian flags in eager anticipation of his visit. September 9 was hotly anticipated as the day when Vucic would finally announce his plan to resolve major outstanding issues with Kosovo's majority ethnic Albanians and to turn the corner in relations with the former Serbian province, which declared independence in 2008.

It didn't happen. Instead, Vucic appeared to take almost everyone by surprise with one brief passage of his remarks, in particular: "Milosevic was a great Serbian leader who undoubtedly had the best intentions, but the outcome [of his actions] was very poor. Not because he wanted it that way, but because our wishes were unrealistic, while we neglected and underestimated the interests and aspirations of other nations. Because of that, we paid a greater price [than others in the region]. We haven't expanded."

His praise in defense of Milosevic set off alarm bells across the region, as some interpreted it as a nod to the notion of "Greater Serbia." Like many nationalists in Serbia, some observers complained, Vucic blames Milosevic for having lost the wars in the 1990s as opposed to having played a role in starting them.

Kosovo's deputy prime minister, Enver Hoxhaj, expressed outrage at the speech in a tweet, drawing explicit parallels between Vucic's words in Gazivoda and Milosevic's performance in Gazimestan three decades ago. The two were "the same," he fumed.

But the apparent defense of Milosevic raised eyebrows -- and attracted arguably harsher comparisons -- farther afield in the Balkans, too.

"I have to admit that I was very surprised," Croatian historian Tvrtko Jakovina told RFE/RL's Balkan Service. "I feel that Vucic could have chosen his words much better. To say that 'Milosevic had good intentions' after the series of wars that destroyed Yugoslavia and that also cost Serbia dearly, which he referred to, is like saying that Hitler had great ideas for all Germans but, well, because they [the Germans] forgot to take into account that others also exist and may have had their own ideas, it didn't turn out so well."

Asked whether such a collation was fair, Jakovina said he "genuinely can't think of a better comparison."

"Because the man [Milosevic] was in charge of Serbia for years, and during that time was quite literally responsible for 1,001 terrible things that were done and a sequence of destructive wars," he added. "Finally, not content with that, Milosevic was responsible for taking Serbia into war with NATO."

Amid criticism from abroad, in particular, Vucic appeared to walk back some of his language from Mitrovica.

"Everyone who heard my speech in Kosovska Mitrovica could have no doubt that my invocation of Slobodan Milosevic was not glorification but, on the contrary, a serious and responsible critique of [Serbian] policies of that time," Vucic said, adding that some media failed to report his speech in full.

"I said that Milosevic had the biggest support, that he was a great leader, but that the outcome of his policies had been very, very poor."

Serbian essayist and writer Filip David, who founded what was arguably the first Serbian antiwar group at the outset of the Balkan wars, condemned Vucic's Kosovo speech and suggested it risked overshadowing more positive developments in Belgrade's relations with Pristina.

"Frankly, I only remember one sentence of that long-advertised 'historic speech' -- the one about Slobodan Milosevic being a 'great leader.' To say something like that in Kosovo, after everything that happened, totally unmasks this government and casts serious doubt on its commitment to do something important with regard to relations with Kosovo. A lot of demagoguery and very little genuine desire [to achieve progress]," David told the magazine Danas.

The former Yugoslav then Serbian president, Milosevic was accused of numerous war crimes and crimes against humanity but died in a Hague prison cell in 2006, before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) could reach a verdict in his case.

Milosevic's template, well understood in hindsight, was to act in parallel yet seemingly contradictory ways: signing peace agreements while waging war, remaining acceptable to the generals of the Yugoslav Army and the unruly paramilitary units at the same time, and bringing together communists and anticommunists in his nationalist front.

Now, by employing potentially inflammatory language seemingly crafted to stir Serbian nationalists and using subsequent clarifications to reassure critics, Vucic seems to be trying to walk a similarly fine line.

Of course, Milosevic was able to call on the support of an army that advertised itself as the fourth-largest in Europe.

And in other ways the circumstances are vastly different, including the fact that Vucic is no Milosevic.

But U.S. Congressman Eliot Engel warned the Serbian president this week to "stop speaking out of both sides of his mouth" by invoking "peace and reconciliation" while "praising Slobodan Milosevic who was responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands."

The views expressed in this blog post do not necessarily reflect those of RFE/RL.
| BY Ricki Green |

Brand and digital creative agency ED. has expanded into Melbourne, to offer website development, UX, branding and design.

Says Eric Di Cuollo, director, ED.: Our Sydney and Canberra outposts have been going from strength-to-strength over the past couple of years, which has given us the opportunity to expand into Melbourne.

Along with website development we bring into play innovative ideas that are at the forefront of technological development and creative thinking.

The starting point for a lot of the non-traditional thinking ED. provides their clients is the internal initiative called Made.

Made, is where the team proactively develop their skills, creating everything from art projects to written word, coding, crafted objects, 3D printed gadgets, and games.

Some of these projects can be found by following a hidden Easter egg on the ED. website, which is revealed by clicking the company logo in the top left corner of the homepage.

Says Di Cuollo: Our process is collaborative and fun but most importantly, it delivers tangible results. We share our clients successes and were committed to long-term relationships.

Some of the clients ED. has collaborated with include, Sydney Film Festival, Transport Canberra, Miele, Invictus Games, Meet the Greek and Country Road Group.

Says Michael Bradley, CEO, The Australian Automobile Association: ED. are a team of listeners that consistently meet the brief. They dont just build fantastic looking websites, they deliver very smart campaigns that go above and beyond.

Says Christopher Ireland, photographer/director: ED. understood the market that awaited me, and better still, gave me the vehicle to tap into it.

Says Charlie Murray, here. wellbeing: ED. is more than just a design studio. Theyve been a partner in the growth of our business.
| BY Ricki Green |

Sydney creative agency, Disciple and Sweetshop director Campbell Hooper, have launched new work evolving Subaru Australias do positioning. In partnership with Starcom, the new work is centred around the call to action: every moment is a chance to do.

Says Pete Buckley, creative partner, Disciple: This represents the beginnings of a new brand journey for Subaru and further cements their commitment to the Subaru do customer promise. To truly connect with Australian families we need to bring to life the emotional benefits of what the Subaru brand offers. Our launch piece features a powerful story of father and son. Its a relatable story with all of us so busy its easy to overlook the small things that make life special with dad realising just what hes missing out on.

Says Campbell: This script very much touches and delivers upon both enhancing our material lives, as well as resonating with our emotional lives. It asks us to slow down and to see the world from the point of view of another. I love the pivotal moment where our father sees his childs enchantment with the train. He sees with his sons eyes. Its an emotional transition where he moves from a fixed rigid position to an attitude of openness and possibility.

Says Amanda Leaney, general manager marketing: Our goal is to connect with families and inspire them enjoy the magic that surrounds them in their everyday. Its these simple moments of joy that keep us grounded and make us all human.

The launch of the all-new Forester was the perfect platform to introduce our new brand direction and will be delivering a series of brand commercials, highlighting the Subaru range and the everyday moments that pass us by.

The campaign will run in broadcast media, and be shared through Facebook and Instagram using #OneLittleMoment

Agency: Disciple

Creative Partners: Pete Buckley, Tim Brown

Creative Team: Pete Buckley, Tim Brown, Scott Huebscher

Head of Client Service: Libby Weston-Webb

Account Executive: Lydia Caldwell

Planning Director: Kathy OConnor

TV Producer: Wendy Gillies

Client: Subaru

Managing Director: Colin Christie

GM, Marketing: Amanda Leaney

Brand Communications Manager: Lisa Packwood

Consumer Planning and Insights Manager: Jonathon Quirk 

Production Company: Sweetshop

Director: Campbell Hooper

Executive Producer: Loren Bradley

Managing Director & Executive Producer: Edward Pontifex

DOP: Andrew Stroud

Edit & Post: The Editors
Apartment development for Holbox denied construction permits

Holbox, Q.R.  The application for the construction of an apartment development for Holbox has been denied by the Ministry of Natural Resources.

An application for the tourist project, Mayan Sunset, was rejected by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) after an evaluation of the Environmental Impact Statement. The project was rejected for noncompliance with regulations on several levels.

Promoters for the Mayan Sunset project were requesting permission to construct four two-room apartment buildings across a total area of 381,000 square meters. They began the application process in June of 2017 but had made adjustments to the original plan.

After a second review by state officials, the project was denied.
Sheffield Crown Court

POLICE have praised the bravery of a young victim who was raped and assaulted by a man she trusted.

Kenneth Plant (59), of High Greave Place in East Herringthorpe, was jailed for 14 years over a string of sexual offences after a trial at Sheffield Crown Court.

The victim  12 at the time of the first offence in 2014  alerted her school about the abuse, prompting a police investigation.

Det Con Scott Walker said: The young victim has shown great bravery, strength and courage to recall what happened to her and for this, I commend her.

Plant was someone that the victim trusted implicitly. He has shown no remorse for his actions and has quite rightly been given a substantial prison sentence.

Report concerns for a child to police on 101, or call or text national helpline Say Something on 116 000.

You can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Tuesday, September 11, 2018 at 2:24PM

Microsoft Canada announced it will move its Canadian headquarters to a new space in the heart of downtonw Toronto in 2020. The new facility on Bay Street will be located at the new CIBC Square and will span four floors in the 132,000 square-foot space.

The future home will also include a new state-of-the-art Microsoft Technology Centre that will serve partners, customers as well as a learning centre for school-aged youth. The move is just one of a series of significant investments Microsoft is making. These investments will enable an expansion of Microsoft's Canadian operations, including increasing staff, modernizing its real estate, and growing its research lab in Montreal that is focused on artificial intelligence.

"This announcement by Microsoft offers yet more evidence of the strength of Toronto as a global technology centre, and as a desirable home for major corporations. By choosing South Core as its new home, Microsoft is embracing one of the hottest new areas of downtown and Toronto welcomes them with open arms, said Toronto Mayor John Tory, in a released statement this morning.

Currently Microsoft employs more than 2,300 employees across Canada, and supports an extended network of more than 14,000 partners who sell, service or deploy Microsoft products. The company expects that given the pace of technology and the investments its making that this could account for more than 60,000 new jobs by the time its headquarters opens.

Microsoft has had a headquarters in Canada since 1985 and has injected billions of dollars into the Canadian economy. Most recently, the company opened two datacentres (Toronto and Quebec), an innovation hub in Vancouver, and an artificial intelligence lab in Montreal.

In addition other major investments the company has made includes...

$111M in Azure Credits into the startup ecosystem by supporting 5,700 start ups.

donating more than $178 million in cash, software, and technology services to Canadian non-profits

enabling employees to contribute up to 100,000 person-hours annually of volunteer time in support of causes representing an equivalent dollar value of $10 million.

In addition to the latest announcements, Microsoft Canada says it intends to:
Artificial intelligence is invading many fields, most recently astronomy and the search for intelligent life in the universe, or SETI.

Researchers at Breakthrough Listen, a SETI project led by the University of California, Berkeley, have now used machine learning to discover 72 new fast radio bursts from a mysterious source some 3 billion light years from Earth.

Fast radio bursts are bright pulses of radio emission mere milliseconds in duration, thought to originate from distant galaxies. The source of these emissions is still unclear, however. Theories range from highly magnetized neutron stars blasted by gas streams from a nearby supermassive black hole, to suggestions that the burst properties are consistent with signatures of technology developed by an advanced civilization.

"This work is exciting not just because it helps us understand the dynamic behavior of fast radio bursts in more detail, but also because of the promise it shows for using machine learning to detect signals missed by classical algorithms," said Andrew Siemion, director of the Berkeley SETI Research Center and principal investigator for Breakthrough Listen, the initiative to find signs of intelligent life in the universe.

Breakthrough Listen is also applying the successful machine-learning algorithm to find new kinds of signals that could be coming from extraterrestrial civilizations.

While most fast radio bursts are one-offs, the source here, FRB 121102, is unique in emitting repeated bursts. This behavior has drawn the attention of many astronomers hoping to pin down the cause and the extreme physics involved in fast radio bursts.

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The AI algorithms dredged up the radio signals from data were recorded over a five-hour period on Aug. 26, 2017, by the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia. An earlier analysis of the 400 terabytes of data employed standard computer algorithms to identify 21 bursts during that period. All were seen within one hour, suggesting that the source alternates between periods of quiescence and frenzied activity, said Berkeley SETI postdoctoral researcher Vishal Gajjar.

UC Berkeley Ph.D. student Gerry Zhang and collaborators subsequently developed a new, powerful machine-learning algorithm and reanalyzed the 2017 data, finding an additional 72 bursts not detected originally. This brings the total number of detected bursts from FRB 121102 to around 300 since it was discovered in 2012.

"This work is only the beginning of using these powerful methods to find radio transients," said Zhang. "We hope our success may inspire other serious endeavors in applying machine learning to radio astronomy."

Zhang's team used some of the same techniques that internet technology companies use to optimize search results and classify images. They trained an algorithm known as a convolutional neural network to recognize bursts found by the classical search method used by Gajjar and collaborators, and then set it loose on the dataset to find bursts that the classical approach missed.

The results have helped put new constraints on the periodicity of the pulses from FRB 121102, suggesting that the pulses are not received with a regular pattern, at least if the period of that pattern is longer than about 10 milliseconds. Just as the patterns of pulses from pulsars have helped astronomers constrain computer models of the extreme physical conditions in such objects, the new measurements of FRBs will help figure out what powers these enigmatic sources, Siemion said.

"Whether or not FRBs themselves eventually turn out to be signatures of extraterrestrial technology, Breakthrough Listen is helping to push the frontiers of a new and rapidly growing area of our understanding of the Universe around us," he added.

The new results are described in an article accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal and available for download from the Breakthrough Listen website (http://breakthroughinitiatives.org/initiative/1).
Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in the United States, striking 1 out of 8 women. About 80 percent of all breast cancers are estrogen receptor-positive, in which cancer growth is fueled by estrogen.

A discovery that could have implications for developing more precise treatments for ER-positive breast cancer has been made by Marco Padilla-Rodriguez, PhD, a recent graduate of the UA College of Medicine -- Tucson's Graduate Program in Molecular Medicine. Dr. Padilla-Rodriguez untangled some of the mysteries of a protein called EVL -- pronounced "evil" -- which is thought to reduce the ability of ER-positive breast cancer to spread to other parts of the body.

As a graduate student, Dr. Padilla-Rodriguez collaborated with UA Cancer Center member Ghassan Mouneimne, PhD, assistant professor of cellular and molecular medicine, and a team of UA and international researchers who used epidemiological data to compare breast cancer patients taking hormone replacement therapy at the time of diagnosis with those who were not. They analyzed genetic data to identify EVL as an important regulator of cancer cells' ability to spread, and conducted follow-up experiments in breast cancer cells.

The study results recently were published online in the open-access journal Nature Communications. Study contributors included investigators from the UA, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Institut de Recherche sur les Maladies Virales et Hepatiques in Strasbourg, France.

ER-positive breast tumors are studded with estrogen receptors, which are like gas tanks that can be filled with estrogen, fueling cancer's growth. Patients now are treated with surgery and chemotherapy, typically followed with anti-estrogenic drugs, such as tamoxifen, which reduce cancer recurrence by cutting off breast cancer cells' fuel supply.

The estrogen story is not "black and white," however. Cancer is most dangerous when cells break free from the original tumor and travel to other areas of the body, a process called metastasis. But tumor cells can replicate without metastasizing, remaining contained in their original site. Although estrogen does increase risk for the initiation of breast cancer and fuel its growth, it does not seem to promote metastasis.

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"In breast cancer, estrogen is connected to the growth of the tumor, but it also seems to suppress the ability of cancer to spread," Dr. Padilla-Rodriguez said. "The growth of the tumor and the tumor's ability to spread aren't always linked. You might have a large tumor, but it stays contained. You might have a small tumor that spreads throughout the body."

The Mouneimne Lab analyzed genetic datasets to identify EVL as a factor in taming estrogen's cancerous effects. They found that estrogen enhances the production of EVL, which seems to keep cancer cells contained to the original tumor site. As estrogen levels fall, so do levels of EVL, freeing cancer cells to invade neighboring tissues -- the first step in metastasis. EVL's role in regulating a cell's actin cytoskeleton could be the key to its ability to suppress cell movement.

"Cells have skeletons, just like we have a skeleton," Dr. Padilla-Rodriguez explained. "Actin is one type of skeleton. Unlike our skeleton, actin can be remodeled, like Lego pieces being shaped into different structures."

Depending on how a cell rearranges its actin cytoskeleton, it might be more likely to stay in one place, adhering to adjacent cells, or it could have the ability to migrate, crawling away from other cells like a microscopic caterpillar. "Generally, cells like to cluster together," Dr. Padilla-Rodriguez said. "When we treat them with anti-estrogenic drugs, actin allows the cell to break away and pull itself forward."

One of the next steps is to learn how to leverage EVL's interaction with estrogen to develop combination treatments for patients with ER-positive tumors. While anti-estrogenic drugs such as tamoxifen rein in tumor growth, they also might indirectly reduce EVL levels, accelerating remaining cancer cells' invasion of neighboring tissues.

"With tamoxifen, you're inhibiting the brakes," Dr. Mouneimne said. "Now we want to go after the gas pedal to halt the cancer from progressing. Then we will be inhibiting both growth and invasion."

Dr. Mouneimne is working with Tech Launch Arizona to commercialize a method to measure EVL levels in ER-positive breast tumors, with the hope that someday such a diagnostic could be used to expand personalized medicine options for breast cancer patients.

This research was supported by National Cancer Institute (NCI) grant R01 CA196885-01, NCI diversity supplemental grant R01 CA196885-01, NCI University of Arizona Cancer Center Support Grant P30CA023074 and a Science Foundation Arizona Bisgrove Scholars Postdoctoral Fellowship.
Cancer cells often have mutations in their DNA that can give scientists clues about how the cancer started or which treatment may be most effective. Finding these mutations can be difficult, but a new method may offer more complete, comprehensive results.

A team of researchers has developed a new framework that can combine three existing methods of finding these large mutations -- called structural variants -- into a single, more complete picture. The new method -- published in Nature Genetics on September 10, 2018 -- could help researchers find new structural variations within cancer cell DNA and learn more about how those cancers begin.

"We were able to design and use this computational framework to connect the three methods together, to get the most comprehensive view of the genome," says Feng Yue, assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the Pennsylvania State University and one of the paper's corresponding authors. "Each method by itself can only review a portion of the structural variations, but when you integrate the results of the three different methods, you can get the most comprehensive view of the cancer genome."

Structural variants are large mutations in DNA that can result in cancer-causing genes to be turned on. For example, certain types of brain cancer, such as the types that afflicted U.S. Senators John McCain and Edward Kennedy, can be caused by structural variants that amplify certain cancer-causing genes. In some cancers, knowing a patient has this abnormality helps doctors decide on the best treatment plan.

The researchers say finding these structural variants is important for several reasons.

"Many of the structural variants that are found in human cancers do not appear to directly impact a gene," says Jesse Dixon, a Helmsley-Salk Fellow at the Salk Institute and one of the paper's first and corresponding authors. "Instead, many structural variants appear in noncoding portions of the genome, what people have historically referred to as junk DNA, and it can be a bit of a mystery as to why these may be contributing to cancer."

Adds Yue, "If you are a cancer patient, knowing about the structural variants that lead to the cancer can help us understand why you got sick and possibly which treatment could be best."

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The researchers used three existing methods for finding structural variants: optical mapping, high-throughput chromosome conformation capture (known as Hi-C), and whole genome sequencing, which has been used to discover the majority of structural variants that are already known.

Using their new method, the researchers were able to find structural variations for over 30 types of cancer cells. The team of scientists also used the same methods to begin to learn why certain classes of structural variants may be contributing to cancers.

What the researchers observed is that some structural variants appear to affect regulatory gene "switches" in noncoding sequences of DNA. Defective switches prevent appropriate turning on or off specific genes and this can contribute to cancer. They also used the Hi-C method to explore how structural variations can affect 3D genome structure -- how DNA folds itself within the cell.

"Cells are small, but their DNA is very long -- laid out in a line, all the DNA from one cell would be more than two meters long," says Job Dekker, professor and co-director of the program in Systems Biology at University of Massachusetts, investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and a corresponding author of the paper. "That's why DNA needs to fold in intricate ways. We have found that genomic alterations in cancer cells can lead to differences in how the genome folds and this can lead to cases where genes become turned on or off by the wrong regulatory switches."

The team of scientists was able to discover that structural variants impact genome folding in cancer cells, and that these changes may be contributing to the cancer.

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"One of discoveries we had made in the past is that our genome is folded up into distinct structures, almost like little neighborhoods," Dixon says. "It appears as though some structural variants cause changes to these neighborhoods, such that a cancer causing gene is moved from a neighborhood where the gene is kept quiet into one where the gene becomes activated."

The scientists suggest that this work could lead to a better ability to predict which structural variants may contribute to cancer, and which genes they may be targeting.

The National Institute of Health, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, European Research Council, Cancer Research UK, Wellcome Trust helped support this work.

Other authors included: Jie Xu, Fan Song, Yanli Wang, Lijun Zhang, Hongbo Yang, Tingting Liu, Sriranga Iyyanki, Lin An, James R. Broach and Ross C. Hardison of Pennsylvania State University; Vishnu Dileep, Takayo Sasaki, Juan Carlos Rivera-Mulia and David M. Gilbert of Florida State University; Ye Zhan, Hakan Ozadam, Bryan R. Lajoie and Job Dekker of University of Massachusetts; Victoria T. Le of Salk; Galip Gurkan Yardimci and William Stafford Noble of University of Washington; Abhijit Chakraborty and Ferhat Ay of La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology; Darrin V. Bann and Christopher Pool of Milton S. Hershey Medical Center; Royden Clark of Penn State College of Medicine; Rajinder Kaul, Michael Buckley, Kristen Lee, Morgan Diegel and John A. Stamatoyannopoulos of Altius Institute for Biomedical Sciences; Dubravka Pezic and Suzana Hadjur of University College London; and Christina Ernst and Duncan T. Odom of Cambridge University.
Clouds may be wispy puffs of water vapor drifting through the sky, but they're heavy lifting computationally for scientists wanting to factor them into climate simulations. Researchers from the University of California, Irvine, the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and Columbia University have turned to data science to achieve better cumulus calculating results.

Their work is detailed in a study published online recently by Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"Clouds play a major role in the Earth's climate by transporting heat and moisture, reflecting and absorbing the sun's rays, trapping infrared heat rays and producing precipitation," said co-author Michael Pritchard, UCI assistant professor of Earth system science. "But they can be as small as a few hundred meters, much tinier than a standard climate model grid resolution of 50 to 100 kilometers, so simulating them appropriately takes an enormous amount of computer power and time."

Standard climate prediction models approximate cloud physics using simple numerical algorithms that rely on imperfect assumptions about the processes involved. Pritchard said that while they can help produce simulations extending out as much as a century, there are some imperfections limiting their usefulness, such as indicating drizzle instead of more realistic rainfall and entirely missing other common weather patterns.

According to Pritchard, the climate community agrees on the benefits of high-fidelity simulations supporting a rich diversity of cloud systems in nature.

"But a lack of supercomputer power, or the wrong type, means that this is still a long way off," he said. "Meanwhile, the field has to cope with huge margins of error on issues related to changes in future rainfall and how cloud changes will amplify or counteract global warming from greenhouse gas emissions."

The team wanted to explore whether deep machine learning could provide an efficient, objective and data-driven alternative that could be rapidly implemented into mainstream climate predictions. The method is based on computer algorithms that mimic the thinking and learning abilities of the human mind.

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They started by training a deep neural network to predict the results of thousands of tiny, two-dimensional, cloud-resolving models as they interacted with planetary-scale weather patterns in a fictitious ocean world.

The newly taught program, dubbed "The Cloud Brain," functioned freely in the climate model, according to the researchers, leading to stable and accurate multiyear simulations that included realistic precipitation extremes and tropical waves.

"The neural network learned to approximately represent the fundamental physical constraints on the way clouds move heat and vapor around without being explicitly told to do so, and the work was done with a fraction of the processing power and time needed by the original cloud-modeling approach," said lead author Stephan Rasp, an LMU doctoral student in meteorology who began collaborating with Pritchard on this project as a visiting scholar at UCI.

"I'm super excited that it only took three simulated months of model output to train this neural network," Pritchard said. "You can do a lot more justice to cloud physics if you only need to simulate a hundred days of global atmosphere. Now that we know it's possible, it'll be interesting to see how this approach fares when deployed on some really rich training data."

The researchers intend to conduct follow-on studies to extend their methodology to trickier model setups, including realistic geography, and to understand the limitations of machine learning for interpolation versus extrapolation beyond its training data set -- a key question for some climate change applications that is addressed in the paper.

"Our study shows a clear potential for data-driven climate and weather models," Pritchard said. "We've seen computer vision and natural language processing beginning to transform other fields of science, such as physics, biology and chemistry. It makes sense to apply some of these new principles to climate science, which, after all, is heavily centered on large data sets, especially these days as new types of global models are beginning to resolve actual clouds and turbulence."

Pierre Gentine, associate professor of Earth & environmental engineering at Columbia University, also participated in this study, which was funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, NASA, the National Science Foundation and the German Research Foundation.
What is a symbol? This is a tough question to answer when tasked with analyzing the earliest graphic productions. What we might today interpret as figurative representations might just be an ancient doodle that had no special purpose. For a long time, archaeologists were convinced the first symbols appeared when Homo sapiens colonized areas of Europe about 40,000 years ago. However, recent archaeological discoveries in Africa, Europe, and Asia suggest the creation and use of symbols emerged much earlier.

For example, the oldest known engraving is a zigzag carved into the shell of a freshwater mussel found in Trinil (Java) within 540,000-year-old archaeological strata. And objects for personal adornment have been unearthed at several archaeological sites in Africa dating back to 70,000 to 120,000 years before the present.

In the new article, the international team that includes scientists from the PACEA (CNRS / University of Bordeaux / French Ministry of Culture) and TRACES (CNRS / University of Toulouse-Jean Jaures / French Ministry of Culture) research units describe the oldest known abstract drawing made with a piece of ocher used as a pencil. It was identified on the surface of a small piece of siliceous rock (silcrete) while analyzing stone tools collected during an excavation at Blombos Cave in South Africa*. The silcrete fragment came from a 73,000-year-old archaeological stratum and bears a crosshatched pattern made up of nine fine lines.

A major methodological challenge was to prove these lines were deliberately drawn by humans. It was primarily tackled by the team's French members, experts in these matters and specialized in the chemical analysis of pigments. First they reproduced the same lines using various techniques: They tried fragments of ocher with a point or an edge and also applied different aqueous dilutions of ocher powder using brushes. Using techniques of microscopic, chemical, and tribological** analysis, they then compared their drawings to the ancient original. Their findings confirm the lines were intentionally drawn with a pointed ocher implement on a surface first smoothed by rubbing. The pattern thus constitutes the earliest known drawing, preceding the oldest previously discovered works by at least 30,000 years.

The archaeological stratum in which the silcrete flake lay had already yielded many other objects with symbolic markings, including ocher fragments that feature very similar crosshatched engraving. These finds demonstrate that the first Homo sapiens in this region of Africa used different techniques to produce similar signs on different materials, which supports the hypothesis that these markings served a symbolic function.

* Blombos Cave is the site of an ongoing excavation by teams from the University of Bergen (Norway) and the University of Witwatersrand (South Africa) that begun in 1991.

**. Tribology is the science of friction and wear.
Quantum particles can be difficult to characterize, and almost impossible to control if they strongly interact with each other -- until now.

An international team of researchers led by Princeton physicist Zahid Hasan has discovered a quantum state of matter that can be "tuned" at will -- and it's 10 times more tuneable than existing theories can explain. This level of manipulability opens enormous possibilities for next-generation nanotechnologies and quantum computing.

"We found a new control knob for the quantum topological world," said Hasan, the Eugene Higgins Professor of Physics. "We expect this is tip of the iceberg. There will be a new subfield of materials or physics grown out of this. ... This would be a fantastic playground for nanoscale engineering."

Hasan and his colleagues, whose research appears in the current issue of Nature, are calling their discovery a "novel" quantum state of matter because it is not explained by existing theories of material properties.

Hasan's interest in operating beyond the edges of known physics is what attracted Jiaxin Yin, a postdoctoral research associate and one of three co-first-authors on the paper, to his lab. Other researchers had encouraged him to tackle one of the defined questions in modern physics, Yin said.

"But when I talked to Professor Hasan, he told me something very interesting," Yin said. "He's searching for new phases of matter. The question is undefined. What we need to do is search for the question rather than the answer."

The classical phases of matter -- solids, liquids and gases -- arise from interactions between atoms or molecules. In a quantum phase of matter, the interactions take place between electrons, and are much more complex.

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"This could indeed be evidence of a new quantum phase of matter -- and that's, for me, exciting," said David Hsieh, a professor of physics at the California Institute of Technology and a 2009 Ph.D. graduate of Princeton, who was not involved in this research. "They've given a few clues that something interesting may be going on, but a lot of follow-up work needs to be done, not to mention some theoretical backing to see what really is causing what they're seeing."

Hasan has been working in the groundbreaking subfield of topological materials, an area of condensed matter physics, where his team discovered topological quantum magnets a few years ago. In the current research, he and his colleagues "found a strange quantum effect on the new type of topological magnet that we can control at the quantum level," Hasan said.

The key was looking not at individual particles but at the ways they interact with each other in the presence of a magnetic field. Some quantum particles, like humans, act differently alone than in a community, Hasan said. "You can study all the details of the fundamentals of the particles, but there's no way to predict the culture, or the art, or the society, that will emerge when you put them together and they start to interact strongly with each other," he said.

To study this quantum "culture," he and his colleagues arranged atoms on the surface of crystals in many different patterns and watched what happened. They used various materials prepared by collaborating groups in China, Taiwan and Princeton. One particular arrangement, a six-fold honeycomb shape called a "kagome lattice" for its resemblance to a Japanese basket-weaving pattern, led to something startling -- but only when examined under a spectromicroscope in the presence of a strong magnetic field, equipment found in Hasan's Laboratory for Topological Quantum Matter and Advanced Spectroscopy, located in the basement of Princeton's Jadwin Hall.

All the known theories of physics predicted that the electrons would adhere to the six-fold underlying pattern, but instead, the electrons hovering above their atoms decided to march to their own drummer -- in a straight line, with two-fold symmetry.

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"The electrons decided to reorient themselves," Hasan said. "They ignored the lattice symmetry. They decided that to hop this way and that way, in one line, is easier than sideways. So this is the new frontier. ... Electrons can ignore the lattice and form their own society."

This is a very rare effect, noted Caltech's Hsieh. "I can count on one hand" the number of quantum materials showing this behavior, he said.

The researchers were shocked to discover this two-fold arrangement, said Songtian Sonia Zhang, a graduate student in Hasan's lab and another co-first-author on the paper. "We had expected to find something six-fold, as in other topological materials, but we found something completely unexpected," she said. "We kept investigating -- Why is this happening? -- and we found more unexpected things. It's interesting because the theorists didn't predict it at all. We just found something new."

The decoupling between the electrons and the arrangement of atoms was surprising enough, but then the researchers applied a magnetic field and discovered that they could turn that one line in any direction they chose. Without moving the crystal lattice, Zhang could rotate the line of electrons just by controlling the magnetic field around them.

"Sonia noticed that when you apply the magnetic field, you can reorient their culture," Hasan said. "With human beings, you cannot change their culture so easily, but here it looks like she can control how to reorient the electrons' many-body culture."

The researchers can't yet explain why.

"It is rare that a magnetic field has such a dramatic effect on electronic properties of a material," said Subir Sachdev, the Herchel Smith Professor of Physics at Harvard University and chair of the physics department, who was not involved in this study.

Even more surprising than this decoupling -- called anisotropy -- is the scale of the effect, which is 100 times more than what theory predicts. Physicists characterize quantum-level magnetism with a term called the "g factor," which has no units. The g factor of an electron in a vacuum has been precisely calculated as very slightly more than two, but in this novel material, the researchers found an effective g factor of 210, when the electrons strongly interact with each other.

"Nobody predicted that in topological materials," said Hasan.

"There are many things we can calculate based on the existing theory of quantum materials, but this paper is exciting because it's showing an effect that was not known," he said. This has implications for nanotechnology research especially in developing sensors. At the scale of quantum technology, efforts to combine topology, magnetism and superconductivity have been stymied by the low effective g factors of the tiny materials.

"The fact that we found a material with such a large effective g factor, meaning that a modest magnetic field can bring a significant effect in the system -- this is highly desirable," said Hasan. "This gigantic and tunable quantum effect opens up the possibilities for new types of quantum technologies and nanotechnologies."

The discovery was made using a two-story, multi-component instrument known as a scanning tunneling spectromicroscope, operating in conjunction with a rotatable vector magnetic field capability, in the sub-basement of Jadwin Hall. The spectromicroscope has a resolution less than half the size of an atom, allowing it to scan individual atoms and detect details of their electrons while measuring the electrons' energy and spin distribution. The instrument is cooled to near absolute zero and decoupled from the floor and the ceiling to prevent even atom-sized vibrations.

"We're going down to 0.4 Kelvin. It's colder than intergalactic space, which is 2.7 Kelvin," said Hasan. "And not only that, the tube where the sample is -- inside that tube we create a vacuum condition that's more than a trillion times thinner than Earth's upper atmosphere. It took about five years to achieve these finely tuned operating conditions of the multi-component instrument necessary for the current experiment," he said.

"All of us, when we do physics, we're looking to find how exactly things are working," said Zhang. "This discovery gives us more insight into that because it's so unexpected."

By finding a new type of quantum organization, Zhang and her colleagues are making "a direct contribution to advancing the knowledge frontier -- and in this case, without any theoretical prediction," said Hasan. "Our experiments are advancing the knowledge frontier."
Republican candidate for Florida governor, Ron DeSantis, once again took a tour of Southwest Florida waters, this time along side running mate Jeanette Nunez.

DeSantis and Nunez boarded a boat out of Cape Coral Yacht Club Tuesday afternoon among a group of people wanting to know what the gubernatorial candidate will do to help remedy the waters if elected.

We just want to make sure that the community knows this is a priority (water quality), said DeSantis. I think the things that Ive stressed throughout the campaign have been, obviously economic growth, higher paying jobs; weve stressed education, improving education, through choice and civics and vocational training; public safety, making sure were fighting crime, fighting illegal immigration. But the environment, to me, is something that has the most urgency in Florida because weve seen the problems that have happened not just on this coast, but on the Treasure Coast. So this is going to be a top priority for me. We want to act very quickly to do what we can in the short term. But obviously we need the infrastructure in the long term so were not discharging water from Lake Okeechobee into the Caloosahatchee River.

DeSantis went on to say that he believes that cleaning up Florida waters is the number one issue we have to address.

For Nunez, this was the first time she paid a visit to Southwest Florida alongside DeSantis, getting an up-close-and-personal look at exactly what local rivers, lakes and estuaries are experiencing.

I look forward to standing alongside Congressman DeSantis and really taking a birds eye view to make sure we are seeing what the impact is. We know it has tremendous impact here in this community and we look forward to making some real progress in that area, said Nunez.

Before boarding, DeSantis fielded a few questions from people who came out to hear what he had to say, wanting to know how he plans on fixing the issue at hand.

Building a reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee was DeSantis calling card, stating that he doesnt want to wait, that we need to be urgent and work needs to start now.

I think Im the only guy who can actually bring this to fruition (a reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee). And Im going to be hell bent on doing that for sure, he said.

The former congressman, who resigned recently to focus on his campaign, also said that he would work to acquire whatever land may be necessary to ensure the reservoir is built.

He stated that the project would help the Everglades-as well as Florida Bay, which are starving for clean water.

I think the Army Corps-the way theyve handled it has been problematic, said DeSantis, who brought up that he has been a critic of what the ACOE has been doing for a long time.

Big Sugar was also a topic of discussion, with DeSantis again noting his voting record, saying that he was one of three, out of 27, to vote against the Farm Bill in 2018, and that he also voted against sugar subsidies in prior years.

Our environment here, is kind of the bedrock of our vitality as a state, DeSantis said in closing.

Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad_cj
The Greater Pine Island Civic Association invited Calusa Waterkeeper John Cassani to its meeting last week to discuss the water quality issues Southwest Florida has recently been facing. Beaches in Charlotte, Lee and Collier counties have seen record levels of dead sea life for the last several months due to red tide and blue-green algae blooms.

Cassani is a career scientist and director/officer committee chair of the Calusa Waterkeeper. The group was previously known as CRCA-Riverwatch.

The Calusa River Watch was started in 1997 and after getting our full licensing in 2016 became the Calusa Waterkeeper, Inc., Cassani said. A lot of what I do is policy development and the Waterkeepers in Florida are trying to get the Harmful Algae Bloom (HAB) task force reinstated.

The state Legislature created the HAB task force for the purpose of determining research, monitoring, control, and mitigation strategies for red tide and other harmful algal blooms in Florida waters.

In 2018, Southwest Florida has been faced with the worst cyanobacteria and red tide exposures in many years.

When we talk about a bloom, were talking about a population explosion, Cassani said. I did a flyover on June 22 and flew about 40 miles of river and Ill never forget what I saw  it was staggering.

The extent and intensity of this cyanobacteria bloom is unbelievable thats why cyanobacteria is called the cells from hell, Cassani said. These are harmful algae blooms that can have severe impacts on human health, and aquatic life.

These blooms are not to be taken lightly, Cassani said. There are many scientists that now think that harmful algae blooms are the greatest threat to the water quality.

Both the cyanobacteria and the red tide produce toxins.

These are some of the most toxic compounds on the planet, Cassani said. Unfortunately, they are unregulated and can affect liver function. Were seeing communities in Florida where these toxins are in the public water supply and were seeing statistically higher incidence of liver cancer.

Public notification is another big problem in Florida, Cassani said. The one-day recreational exposure guideline is 4 mg/l thats 4 parts per billion. We did some sampling on June 25 and we were getting levels at 40,000 parts per billion. Thats how toxic this can be.

Florida Fish and Wildlife recommends: The best way to prevent exposure to blue-green algae toxins is to avoid water where scum, foam or algae mats are present or where water is a greenish color.

The Florida Department of Health offers these additional precautions:

Do not drink, cook or shower with untreated water from lakes, ponds or streams.

Do not allow pets or livestock to swim in or drink scummy water.

If you or your animals accidentally get into a blue-green algae bloom, wash with fresh water and soap after skin contact, and avoid swallowing or inhaling water. Wash animals fur thoroughly before they start to groom themselves.

Avoid exposure to irrigation water drawn from untreated sources.

Notify your local water quality officials if you notice unusual changes in the taste or smell of your tap water.

You dont want to get it on you, you dont want to inhale it, and you dont want to ingest it, Cassani said. Calusa Waterkeepers is all about drinkable, fishable, swimmable water.

Cassani doesnt recommend eating fish from local waters.

The $64,000 question becomes: Is it here? Is it in our fish, is it in our water? It absolutely is!

Cassani believes the economic effects Southwest Florida is experiencing today wont reach full impact until some time next year.

Calusa Waterkeepers is having an Economic Town Hall meeting at the Royal Palms Dinner Theater Monday, Oct. 15, starting at 6:30 p.m. The public is invited. For additional information, visit the Calusa Waterkeeper website: www.calusawaterkeeper.org/
ORLEANS  Consultants have answered a key question by opining that the current Cape Cod Five Operations Center on West Road can probably be re-purposed as affordable apartments. But in answering that question, theyve opened up countless others.

CBI Consulting, LLC, of Boston and Bennett Environmental Associates, Inc., of Brewster submitted their findings to town officials late last month, Town Administrator John Kelly told selectmen last week. The report is a very preliminary assessment, which at the end of the day, said, yes, the building was feasible to convert. But they qualify that in a number of areas, he said.

Architect Andrea Willett of CBI Consulting opined that the 20-year-old, two-story office building could accommodate 17 one-bedroom apartments in the current building envelope on the 3.6-acre site next to Skaket Corners. The bank will vacate the building upon completion of its new operations center in Barnstable, expected to be in late 2019, and bank officials have signaled a willingness to consider a purchase proposal from the town.

Kelly said if the town pursued creating affordable apartments on the site, it would be unlike any previous affordable housing project the town has undertaken. While the town has experience building home-ownership units on undeveloped land, it has never redeveloped an existing property for rental housing.

To that end, the town has retained a housing consultant to develop a pro forma evaluation of the financial feasibility of having a third-party developer convert the building to an apartment complex and then operate and manage that complex as affordable housing. Once that evaluation is complete, the town could issue a request for proposals from housing firms, requiring them to provide financial assurances that the project will be completed.

In 2006, the town of Chatham hired one such company, The Community Builders, Inc., to build and operate the 47-unit Lake Street Terrace apartments. That firm continues to manage the property today.

Kelly said if the town is going to ask voters to authorize the purchase of the operations center property, we need to know whether theres a viable project here.

Provided that the town could negotiate an agreeable purchase price, and provided that town meeting authorized the purchase, town officials would review proposals from housing firms and select the best one. The town would then arrange to convey the property to the company, which would pledge to rent units at an affordable rate in perpetuity.

Kelly suggested that the town open conversations with the Housing Assistance Corporation of Hyannis or the Lower Cape Community Development Corporation to discuss potential ways forward.

Should the project move ahead, the town could seek funds through the Massachusetts Housing Partnership, but there is a three-year waiting list for applications, Kelly said.

Selectmen Chairman Alan McClennen, Jr., said the board should schedule a meeting with the towns affordable housing committee. We should make sure that we take advantage of our committee which is focused on this issue before we charge off and hire somebody ourselves, he said. That meeting should happen in executive session, McClennen added.

All of this ends up in a very sensitive negotiation with the current owner of that property, he said.

The CBI review proposed a certain number of one-bedroom apartments, but that might not be the best approach, Selectman Mark Mathison said.

Im not sure thats what were looking for, he said. If the town is seeking to attract young families, two- or three-bedroom apartments might be better, Mathison said. Thats what we have an affordable housing committee for.

Questions remain about the financial feasibility of such a project, Kelly said.

Rehabilitation is not always the least expensive option, he said, and new construction is often easier. The operations center property is seen as an attractive option because of its closeness to retailers and public transportation.

While the preliminary assessment indicates that the operations center is likely in good shape structurally, lets not just look at that building, Selectman Kevin Galligan said. The building sits on around 3.75 acres of land, he noted, and its a great location for housing. It might be possible to build a larger, new building with a renewable energy component such that we can minimize the operating cost, he said. I think its got great potential.

Board member David Currier warned that the project wont be inexpensive. Citing the maximum number of units that can be permitted without Cape Cod Commission review, its going to be real expensive to get 30 bedrooms out of that property, Currier said. Real expensive.

Selectman Mefford Runyon said one benefit of the site is that it lies along the route of the proposed sewer expansion.

That really changes a lot of what that property is capable of doing, he said. Runyon, a retired Cape Cod Five executive, said hes optimistic that a deal might be possible. The seller, he said, is as interested in creating affordable housing as we are.

Kelly said that Planning and Community Development Director George Meservey would be reaching out to housing groups for more information. He said he would also schedule a future meeting between selectmen and the affordable housing committee to consider the proposal.
The Stars and Stripes and the French Tricolour waved in celebration Sept. 6 as the French Cable Station Museum in Orleans received a Milestone Achievement Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. Plaques in French and English tell the story. ED MARONEY PHOTO

ORLEANS  An international assemblage gathered at the French Cable Station Museum Sept. 6 to hail Le Direct, the first direct transatlantic telegraph connection.

It was a vital communication link, said James Jefferies, president of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), before presenting the Milestone Achievement Award. In 1898, the cable was the best available technology (and used) the best operating (principles).

IEEE, which has nearly 420,000 members in 160 countries, traces its origins back to Benjamin Franklin's experiments with electricity and has given 191 Milestone awards. Previous salutes have been rendered to the first wearable pacemaker and first compact disc. The connecting theme, Jefferies said, is to foster technological innovation and excellence for the benefit of humanity.

Rene Garello, past president of IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society, brought greetings from France, where his house is a mile from the cable's European terminal in Brest. The link, which stretched for 3,174 nautical miles under the sea, was in service until 1940, and back in operation after the war and recovery from the early 1950s until 1959. It's thought that the German U-boat attack in Orleans 100 years ago during World War I was prompted by orders to destroy the cable, which carried military information to and from the European battlefield; the cable survived.

Garello gave a history of earlier transatlantic telegraph attempts, including an indirect route from Best to St. Pierre (near Newfoundland) to Duxbury. He noted that news by ship had taken two weeks to pass between the continents. The cable made communication a matter of words per minute, and the world started to shrink.

Today's digital world is still using cable, Garello said, estimating there are as many as 300 below-surface cables carrying messages and data around the world. There are one million kilometers of cables, he said with a smile. That's more impressive than saying 600,000 miles. Le Direct was a pioneer.

Another speaker was a descendant of an Orleans station worker. Ron Brown, IEEE's Region 1 historian, said his great uncle Raymond Nickerson was an operator, and that his grandmother was another kind of operator (telephone) in Orleans as well.

Rob Munier, vice president for marine facilities and operations at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, surveyed the contemporary undersea cable scene, which includes service to offshore oil drilling mega-platforms and ocean life observation systems.

Standing beneath the Stars and Stripes and the French Tricolour, Jefferies and French Cable Station Museum President Joseph Manas unveiled French and English plaques detailing the remarkable feat of oceanic engineering. The plaques were separated not by a vast sea but just the door to the museum, where tours are given of preserved equipment and other artifacts.
The formal events at this weeks Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco are closed to the public, but anyone can visit a related pop-up that occupies a storefront at the foot of Rincon Hill.

Thats where youll find nine detailed visions showing how the likelihood of sea level rise can be seen as not a threat, but a catalyst. The Bay Area, the display demonstrates, can prepare for the future with an eye to a healthier region, where cities and nature overlap in beguiling, sustainable and equitable ways.

At their best, the concepts demonstrate the power of design to stir the imagination. The question now is whether any of them will be powerful enough to leave a mark on the physical landscape  to put down roots, not just dazzle the eye.

Were in this transition phase right now, said Amanda Brown-Stevens, managing director of Resilient by Design Bay Area Challenge, which managed the year-long competition. A lot of people invested time and energy over the year, and we want to make sure were maximizing the benefit.

The nine teams were selected last September from 51 international entrants. Each was assigned to a different site along the bay that could be endangered by rising tides in coming decades. Their responses were unveiled in May.

The teams blended landscape architects with structural engineers, hydrologists with urban designers. The unusual challenge was funded largely by New Yorks Rockefeller Foundation. Each team received $250,000 for its efforts.

Some concepts blur into others, such as the watery utopias conjured up by separate teams for the shores of Richmond, Alameda and San Rafael. When you consider the scientific projections that daily tides here could climb by 5 feet or more by 2100, there are only so many ways to create higher ground without building stark levees.

But the best of the design visions nudge us to look at the familiar in fresh ways.

One tackles State Route 37 in the North Bay, a roadway from Vallejo to Highway 101 in Novato that slices through an understated mosaic of marshes and former farmland, which stretches between San Pablo Bay and Wine Country. On a quiet day, the drive almost feels as if youre in the Louisiana bayou  but the daily commute can be arduous, and the low roadway can flood easily.

Various agencies since 2015 have been studying ways to upgrade Route 37, not just to keep cars moving but also to improve the wetlands ecological health.

Enter the team Common Ground and its scheme Grand Bayway, which lifts Route 37 a full 25 feet above the earth  and then pulls apart the proposed causeway so that each direction follows its own scenic path. Thered also be a weave of elevated trails and bike paths to offer tantalizing glimpses of what lies below.

See the proposals All nine Resilient by Design proposals for Bay Area shorelines are on display from noon to 7 p.m. through Friday at 302 Folsom St. The exhibition is co-sponsored by the East Cut Community Benefits District. For more on the competition, go to www.resilientbayarea.org. See More Collapse

Being up in the air makes all the difference in the world  you start to understand the place and feel the different layers of things, said Tom Leader, a Berkeley landscape architect who helped organize the team. Get peoples views shooting off in all directions, not just down the narrow asphalt. Let people spin toward the bay or into the marshes.

Other Common Ground members included Los Angeles architect Michael Maltzan, who conceived of a 4-mile circular loop above the marshes for bicycles and pedestrians. A 300-foot tower would provide viewing platforms and serve as an orientation point on the flat terrain.

Some flourishes are meant to be provocative: You shouldnt take them too literally, Leader admitted. But we mean what were talking about  this area could be thought of as an ecological Central Park. You could use the (transportation) corridor to help the public get inside.

Bureaucratic alternatives for Route 37 already include full or partial causeways, but theyre accompanied by images that look heavy and grim. With Grand Bayway, causeways become a way to unlock a portion of the region that most of us barely know.

Focusing on the design aspect really made people think about the beauty of the area  how it could be appreciated and how design could heighten that appreciation, said Jessica Davenport of the California State Coastal Conservancy. The conservancy is providing assistance to the official Route 37 studies; Common Ground made a presentation to the working group.

Theres a similar spark in a much different Resilient by Design entry: Unlocking Alameda Creek.

The starting point is one that only a hydrologist could love: The region needs to get more sediment into the bay, so marshes and wetlands in years ahead can grow in pace with the rising tides.

Dull but important, right?

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Not the way its presented by Public Sediment, the team organized by SCAPE Landscape Architecture of New York.

Unlocking Alameda Creek is a meticulously researched vision for tapping the potential of the waterway that wends from Niles Canyon down through Fremont, Newark and Union City. Passages now channeled in concrete could be freed to allow fine grains of dirt and sand to be carried once again toward the bay. The new banks could be softened with trees and plants, and there could be seasonal trails and parks within them.

The proposal also would dredge mud from upstream reservoirs to restore portions of the South Bay salt ponds in a way that would enhance shorebird protection.

There are a lot of very realistic elements to it, said Amy Hutzel, a deputy executive officer at the Coastal Conservancy. And the images are beautiful, which is helpful.

Best of all? Unlike some of the Resilient by Design entries, the work from Common Ground and Public Sediment has value in the eyes of government planners.

The Coastal Conservancy has applied for a federal grant to add Public Sediment as a consultant on a portion of the South Bay Salt Ponds restoration effort. Similarly, a $200,000 state grant will be used to integrate members of the Common Ground team into aspects of the Route 37 planning.

What bears fruit wont look like the more fantastical images. But the infusion of creativity can only benefit the process.

Even in the best of times, long-term environmental concerns must compete with breaking news and short-term pressures. And these arent the best of times: We have a president who craves attention as well as power. Many Bay Area residents are more concerned about next months rent than high tides someday.

These realities make it all the more important that we plan for the future in such a way that everyday people can see why its worth the effort. Design aesthetics arent frills. Theyre fundamental to showing us whats at stake.

John King is The San Francisco Chronicles urban design critic. Email: jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @johnkingsfchron
San Franciscos district attorney is pressing three commonsense tips for people who use ride-hail services, which he hopes will reduce assaults on passengers.

Most of these services are safe, and most of the time everything is going to be OK  but we also know that when things go wrong, they can go very wrong, very quickly, District Attorney George Gascon told reporters at the Hall of Justice on Tuesday.

The most obvious example is the high-profile case of Orlando Vilchez Lazo, an alleged Rideshare Rapist who was arrested in July, accused of preying on women by posing as a driver for hire. Lazo is a former Lyft driver, but he was not using the platform when he committed four rapes over a five-year span, police said, luring women outside bars in the South of Market neighborhood.

Though that case and others rattled residents in San Francisco, Gascon avoided discussing them during the news conference. Instead, he focused on a public information campaign that he said did not stem from any particular incident.

Called Rideshare With Care, the campaign offers pointers for people purchasing a ride from a stranger. First: Match the license plate number and car to the one on your app. Then: Ask the drivers name before getting in the car, and make sure his or her picture matches the one on the app. And finally: Share your location and destination with a trusted family member or friend.

Uber spokesman Andrew Hasbun and San Francisco Police Commander Greg McEachern joined Gascon at the news conference, in a show of comradery between the tech company and a government agency that battled for years in court. In 2014, Gasconand Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey sued Uber for making misleading statements about the quality of its background checks. Uber agreed to pay up to $25 million to settle the case two years later.

But on Tuesday, Hasbun praised the district attorneys effort and said that Uber has also made safety a priority. The tech company recently added emergency buttons for riders and drivers that dial 911 with one click. Uber also offers a trusted contacts feature that allows customers to automatically share a trip itinerary with friends and relatives.

Those features wont work if a passenger climbs into the wrong car, Hasbun warned.

Ubers current background check system includes screenings of driving and criminal histories. Applicants are disqualified if they have convictions for felonies, sexual offenses, violent crimes, child abuse, driving under the influence, speeding at greater than 100 mph, hit-and-run offenses or reckless driving in the past seven years.

Gascon is running for re-election next year in what could be a tough field of candidates, including former Police Commission President Suzy Loftus, Deputy Attorney General Leif Dautch and Fire Commissioner Joe Alioto Veronese.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

This public safety campaign could be a smart strategy, one political observer said, because it taps into a timely discourse on sexual assault, and will likely appeal to young women  an important demographic in San Francisco.

Gascon might even be ahead of the curve, said Jason McDaniel, an associate professor of political science at San Francisco State University. He noted that public safety messaging is important not only for the district attorney, but also for Uber, which has weathered criticism for the behavior of its past CEO.

Beyond the news conference, Gascon said he would spread the campaign via social media, outreach on school campuses and flyers posted in bars and nightclubs, where many people use ride-hail apps.

Lyft was also invited to the news conference, but company representatives had scheduling conflicts, according to a spokesman for the district attorney.

Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan
New polling shows a majority of San Francisco voters favor taxing corporations to pay for new homeless services, but they may balk at the costs.

At issue is Proposition C, which would tax large businesses and corporations to raise $300 million a year to house the homeless.

The money would be on top of the $300 million the city already spends.

A No on Prop. C campaign poll of 800 likely November voters by EMC Research showed the measure winning 56 percent to 42 percent. Only 3 percent of those surveyed were undecided.

But when voters were told that Prop. C would be the single largest tax increase in San Francisco history and that it would house about 4,000 people over five years at a cost of nearly a half-million dollars per homeless person, support dropped 10 points  to 47 percent.

Prop. C was placed on the ballot by a coalition of homeless and housing advocates  among them the Coalition on Homelessness, the Affordable Housing Alliance, the Glide Foundation and the San Francisco Tenants Union.

The groups see the measure as a chance to finally solve the citys homeless problem by essentially doubling the current spending.

San Francisco Tenants Union Executive Director Deepa Varma said while the price may be high, cities around the world are finding that providing housing is cheaper and a better solution.

The San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and the San Francisco Committee on Jobs are opposed. They argue that the affected businesses already pay about 40 percent of the citys taxes and that sticking them with another $300 million a year would drive many out of the city.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Prop. C opponents have signed on a small army of consultants, including Whitehurst Mosher Campaigns, 50+1 Strategies and Riff City. They plan to spend upward of $2 million over the next six weeks to try and hammer home the message that the city needs greater accountability for the more than $300 million a year it already spends on homeless-related services.

San Francisco Chronicle columnists Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross appear Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays. Matier can be seen on the KPIX TV morning and evening news. He can also be heard on KCBS radio Monday through Friday at 7:50 a.m. and 5:50 p.m. Got a tip? Call 415-777-8815, or email matierandross@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @matierandross
As the self-driving car navigated the narrow, winding streets leading to San Franciscos Coit Tower, Jesse Levinson narrated from the back seat like a proud parent.

Isnt that cool, how we slowed down for that person and then nudged around him? said the chief technology officer of self-driving startup Zoox. See how steep this street is? We cover all the most challenging terrain.

Of the dozens of Bay Area companies racing to make robot cars, Foster Citys Zoox may be the most secretive.

This week it revealed plans to provide free autonomous rides (with a safety driver, as required by California law, and another engineer in the navigators seat) between the Fairmont San Francisco hotel and Moscone Center for select attendees of the Global Climate Action Summit. The point: show off its cars agility in complex urban environments and underscore the social and environmental benefits of its forthcoming all-electric robot rides  although this weeks rides will be in retrofitted hybrid Toyota Highlanders.

Brian Feulner / Special to The Chronicle

Founded by two relative unknowns, Zoox isnt backed by a major auto company like General Motors Cruise, or by a major tech company like Waymo, Baidu, Apple, Uber or Lyft.

But it has raised $800 million, has a private-market valuation of $3.2 billion, has attracted almost 600 employees and says its on track to offer a robot taxi service in 2020 in San Francisco.

Zoox sprang up in 2014 as the brainchild of Australian artist-designer Tim Kentley-Klay, who had no tech background but was excited about self-driving cars potential, and Levinson, then a postdoc in computer science at Stanford.

The brash salesman and brainy engineer combo sounds like another well-known Silicon Valley pair, but Levinson deflects comparison to two Apple co-founders, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak: We havent created a trillion-dollar company yet.

Zoox has echoed Apple in at least one way, though. Just as Jobs was forced out of Apple in 1985, last month Zoox abruptly axed Kentley-Klay as CEO.

Brian Feulner/Special to The Chronicle

Levinson, who has added president to his chief technology officer role, is temporarily running the company alongside board member Carl Bass, the former CEO of Autodesk, who is serving as executive chairman. Zoox is seeking a new CEO.

Were tremendously grateful for Tims vision and insight, and everything we accomplished over the past four years, Levinson said, adding that none of Zooxs employees left.

We are continuing on the same mission as before, Bass said. Theres been some fake news about the company changing direction or being sold; none of thats true.

Kentley-Klay did not respond to an email requesting comment. In a since-deleted August tweet, he wrote that the ouster showed Silicon Valley up to its worst tricks. His Twitter feed remains filled with unattributed quotes, seemingly from Zoox employees, expressing shock at his departure and offering support.

Zooxs outsize ambitions  it plans to build its own radically reimagined cars from the wheels up, rather than retrofit existing ones  have fueled rumors of a sale to a deep-pocketed company such as Apple, or one with manufacturing expertise, such as an automaker.

As Tesla has shown, manufacturing cars is difficult, said Jim McPherson, a Benicia attorney and new-mobility analyst. Zoox may have grand plans, but to manufacture at scale without defects, its probably better off partnering with a company thats already building cars.

Photos by Brian Feulner / Special to The Chronicle

The industry views Zoox as a dark horse, McPherson said, compared with companies like Waymo that are on twin tracks of development and public relations as a way of building confidence.

Zooxs demo rides this week in the retrofitted Highlanders may draw some attention, but it wont take the wraps off its car design. A prototype at its San Francisco office is inside a giant locked crate.

Dont feel bad; we havent let any other press see it either, Levinson said. Only investors get a peek. We figured people might not want to give us hundreds of millions of dollars without seeing what our vehicle looks like.

Weve created a new type of vehicle unlike anything anyone has experienced before, he said.

The front and back will be symmetrical, and the car will be able to drive in either direction with ease. Each wheel will have its own motor, with sensors and cameras integrated. The four passengers will experience social seating in which they face one another as if around a dining table. A battery will power the all-electric vehicle all day.

Custom lights and sounds will communicate with pedestrians and other cars, such as notifying someone who is in the way. It will be inclusive and multicultural so as not to shout English words at them, Levinson said.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Kentley-Klay and Levinson were introduced by Anthony Levandowski, former star Google engineer who became infamous as the center of a bitter trade-secret lawsuit with Uber involving self-driving technology. (Levandowski has never been involved in Zoox, Levinson said.)

Tim and I started off with essentially nothing other than a vision, Levinson said. That quickly changed.

Levinson had gone to Stanford to work with Sebastian Thrun, considered the father of self-driving cars.

Stanford granted Zoox an exclusive license to technology Levinson and his team developed, including some that was part of the 2007 DARPA urban challenge, in which self-driving vehicles competed to safely navigate city streets.

The company, founded in 2014, raised $40 million within a year; within two years, another $250 million.

Other than in biotech or pharma, its unusual to start a company where the first product will be six years out, Levinson said. Because the scope of what we are trying to accomplish is so exciting, we were able to find top-tier investors who saw the size of the opportunity and were willing to place money on something not without a degree of risk.

Levinson, the son of legendary Silicon Valley figure Arthur Levinson, the chairman of Apple and former head of Genentech, said his fathers connections played no role.

The only introduction I ever had through him was to one investor who didnt even want to meet with us in 2014, he said, declining to name that investor.

Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid
Another week, another real estate merger. But this time its two Bay Area brokerage firms  both serving the luxury market  getting hitched.

Alain Pinel Realtors, based in Saratoga, has acquired Hill & Co., a boutique brokerage with three offices and 81 agents in San Francisco.

Pinel, which has almost 1,300 agents in 30 offices, was the nations seventh largest residential real estate brokerage in terms of sales volume last year, handling about $12.2 billion worth of deals. But it ranked only 73rd in terms of transactions, according to Real Trends, a real estate data and consulting firm.

Its average sales price was $1.6 million, highest in the nation. Thats because it caters to the high end of a wealthy market, said Scott Wright, director of mergers and acquisitions with Real Trends.

Hill & Co. did not show up on the Real Trends ranking of the nations top 500 companies because it did not do at least 500 transactions. However, its agents handled $545 million worth of deals for clients, and its average sales price was $2 million, said Jay Costello, president of Hill & Co.

Alain Pinel President Michael Hulme said he was talking with Costello about subleasing a Hill office and it turned into a discussion on what if we got together.

Since early July, the venture-funded New York firm Compass has acquired two of the Bay Areas largest firms, Pacific Union and Paragon Real Estate Group.

Its just so competitive now, you have these big companies that are well-funded, they can come in and almost decimate a brokerage, specifically a small one, by raiding its agents, Hulme said. There is so much staff, tools, technology you need to be competitive. I think a lot of them are looking for ways to cash out before their business isnt worth anything.

Compass reached out to us maybe a month ago, Hulme said. We told them no. In the past month, Hulme said he has been called by a couple of attorneys representing other brokerage firms, and its possible Alain Pinel could be making more acquisitions.

Costello said Compass hired away 10 or 12 Hill agents. It was clear to us that unless we aligned ourselves with a stronger brand, a larger company, the potential for success for our agents would be limited.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Pinel was co-founded 28 years ago by Hulmes father, Paul Hulme, and two partners who are no longer with the firm including Alain Pinel.

Costellos father, Joe Costello, founded Hill in 1956.

Its one family company selling out to a stronger family company, just what we wanted, Costello said.

Costello said he plans to stay on with the company. Hill offices will take on the Alain Pinel name.

Kathleen Pender is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: kpender@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kathpender
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A former employee of the Contra Costa County public defenders office has been charged with murder, court records show.

William Melvin Edwards Jr. is due in court on Sept. 18 on counts of murder and conspiracy to commit a crime. He did not enter a plea in his initial court appearance Tuesday.
The worlds beleaguered climate takes center stage in San Francisco on Wednesday as thousands of activists, scientists, business leaders, entertainers and politicians from more than 100 nations gather for a three-day summit on global warming.

Heres what you need to know:

How did it come about?

The Global Climate Action Summit, at Moscone Center South, was organized by Gov. Jerry Brown as a public rebuke of President Trump, who decided last year to drop out of the Paris climate agreement, a landmark deal ratified by 170 nations, including the United States under President Barack Obama. The United Nations was seeking to hold an international event to maintain momentum on climate action.

It is the first time a state has sponsored an event in support of the Paris Agreement, which Trump bashed as a bad deal for the United States.

What is the history between Brown and Trump on this issue?

Brown has served as a leading foil to Trump on climate change. The bad blood between the two men boiled to the surface Tuesday when Brown blasted a White House proposal to weaken regulations of the heat-trapping gas methane.

That is insane, Brown said at a climate discussion at the Palace Hotel in downtown San Francisco in advance of the summit. It borders on criminality.

Is it personal?

Not necessarily. Brown has advanced policies on global warming during his nearly eight years in office, well before Trump  who has called climate change a hoax  became president in January 2017.

What is the summits main goal?

To inspire a global commitment on regional and local levels to cut carbon emissions. The bottom-up effort is an attempt to fill the vacuum in climate action left by national governments, including the United States, that are coming up short on the emissions-reduction targets pledged in Paris.

The progress of local and regional governments, as well as national governments, will continue to be assessed at future climate summits. The next is Dec. 3-14 in Katowice, Poland.

Who will be there?

Roughly 4,500 people. Among the biggest names are former Vice President Al Gore former U.S. Secretaries of State George Shultz and John Kerry and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Also, musician Dave Matthews, actor Harrison Ford, astronaut Mae Jemison, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and mayors and governors from across the nation, and policymakers from countries around the world, including China, Brazil and Germany.

Meteorologists, hurricane and storm specialists, sustainable investment brokers, health care executives and business leaders will participate in panel discussions.

No one from the Trump administration is expected to attend.

What will summit attendees be doing?

Representatives from cities, states and regional governments as well as businesses will share ideas on what can be done to reduce carbon emissions and setting goals for local action.

Discussion will include construction of energy-efficient buildings, reduction of greenhouse-gas producing waste, investments in climate-friendly businesses, greening transportation infrastructure, and sequestration of carbon in forests and on farms.

Can I go?

Most of the panels during the summit, which ends Friday, are by invitation only and require accreditation. The public can view the panel discussions live on:

YouTube at https://bit.ly/2wJFQRe

Facebook at facebook.com/GlobalClimateActionSummit/

Twitter at https://twitter.com/gcas2018

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

But is there anything I can attend?

Hundreds of affiliate panels, workshops, art exhibits and other special events sponsored by environmental groups, and academic and public agencies are scheduled in the Bay Area this week. The events open to the public include:

Coal + Ice Photography Exhibition. More than 40 photographers and videographers highlight the consequences of fossil fuel use. Open daily through Sept. 23 at the Festival Pavilion, Fort Mason Center, 2 Marina Blvd., San Francisco.

San Francisco Green Film Festival. Includes films about wildfires in California, vanishing islands in the Pacific, melting Arctic tundra and the receding forests of the Amazon. Showings are at various times through Sept. 14 at the Castro Theatre, 429 Castro St., San Francisco.

California Carbon Fest 2018. The Carbon Institute has brought together an international team of specialists to discuss forest carbon sequestration and other climate change issues. Open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Sept. 13 at UC Berkeleys Blue Oak Ranch Reserve, 16070 Mount Hamilton Road, San Jose.

Find a calendar of affiliate events at https://bit.ly/2OczmBQ .

How about protests?

Thousands marched Saturday along Market Street , and hundreds of protesters on Monday demanded that local and indigenous protest representatives be heard.

Others are planned. For example, Rise Against Climate Capitalism: Peaceful March & Mass Action is scheduled for 7 a.m., Thursday, Jessie Square, 736 Mission St.

Why would someone protest the fight against climate change?

Some environmentalists and justice groups are angry that Brown and others have not done enough to fight climate change in the face of increasing numbers of heat waves, drought and raging wildfires and other manifestations of global warming.

 Peter Fimrite and

Kurtis Alexander
PORTSMOUTH, N.H.  Democratic voters in New Hampshire on Tuesday selected Molly Kelly, a former state senator, as their nominee for governor, as female candidates for governorships continue to show their strength in primary elections this year.

Kellys victory brings to 15 the number of women who have won governors nominations in this primary season, a record.

Backed by the local political establishment  she was endorsed by both of the states U.S. senators  Kelly, 68, defeated Steve Marchand, a former mayor of Portsmouth who ran to her left, according to results compiled by The Associated Press. She held about 66 percent of the vote with 28 percent of the ballots counted.

But Democrats rejected the bid of another female candidate, Maura Sullivan, a military veteran who had only moved to the state last year. She fell to Chris Pappas, a local party favorite, the AP reported, in a key House district that Republicans hope to target in November.

Sullivan, an ex-Marine and former official in the Obama administration, was besieged by criticism during the campaign that she was carpetbagging, and was running in second place Tuesday in a field of 11 candidates, well behind Pappas. Her failure to gain traction reaffirmed New Hampshires reputation as an insular state that is skeptical of outsiders.

The group of candidates running for the seat included Levi Sanders, son of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who was running well behind Pappas with 27 percent of the vote counted.

In the governors race, Kellys path to victory is a challenging one: In the general election, she will face the Republican incumbent, Chris Sununu, who is one of the most popular governors in the country.

Democrats have rallied around female candidates this year, but Kellys immediate status as an underdog makes it unclear how much support she will receive from the national party heading into the general election.

A reliable Democratic vote during her 10 years at the state House, Kelly during her campaign has advocated for womens reproductive rights and vowed to freeze tuition and lower it as well at the states public colleges and universities. And she has championed renewable energy, a hot-button issue given the states high energy rates.

She has also said she would work with the White House if she were elected governor.

Pappas calls himself a progressive, but he does not lean as far left as the label has come to imply during this election cycle. He has said he supports universal health care, but not Medicare for All, now one of the hallmarks of left-wing progressivism.

Sydney Ember is a New York Times writer.
A 95-year-old California law prohibiting gun shops from displaying handguns or handgun ads in shop windows violates freedom of speech, a federal judge has ruled.

State lawyers contended the law removes an inducement for people with suicidal impulses, or impulses to commit crimes, from buying lethal weapons. But U.S. District Judge Troy Nunley of Sacramento noted on Tuesday that the shops were selling a legal product and said the state had failed to show that the ban was either effective or necessary to promote public safety.

The Supreme Court has rejected this highly paternalistic approach to limiting speech, Nunley said. He said the state cannot restrict commercial speech that persuades adults, who are neither criminals nor mentally ill, to buy a legal product merely because it distrusts their personality trait and the decisions that personality trait may lead them to make later down the road.

He also said California has other laws that serve the goals of reducing suicides and gun crimes without restricting speech, particularly a 10-day waiting period to buy a gun, a time that allows the state to perform background checks and gives the buyer a chance for second thoughts. The state also allows only one handgun purchase every 30 days and requires the buyer to pass a test on gun safety.

The Calguns Foundation, which opposes gun restrictions, praised the ruling and noted that Nunley had been appointed to the bench by President Barack Obama.

People have a fundamental, individual right to buy handguns and licensed dealers have a right to tell people where they can lawfully acquire those handguns, the foundation said. Todays ruling means the government cannot prevent people, or gun dealers, from talking about constitutionally protected instruments and conduct.

Attorney General Xavier Becerras office, which defended the law in court, said it was reviewing the ruling.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The law, enacted in 1923, prohibits displaying a handgun, a picture of a handgun, or a placard advertising the sale or other transfer of a handgun, in any part of a store that can be seen from the outside. It was challenged by several Central Valley gun dealers who were cited for displaying handgun-shaped signs in their windows or on their buildings and faced possible loss of their licenses.

In Tuesdays ruling, Nunley noted that the law would not prohibit gun dealers from displaying neon signs reading GUNS GUNS GUNS or a 15-foot picture of a rifle  evidence, he said, that the ban on handgun displays would have little effect. He also said the states expert witnesses had failed to present evidence that a ban on handgun displays reduces either impulsive handgun purchases or gun violence.

The state could try to promote its goals through an educational campaign focused on the dangers of handguns or the consequences of impulsive decision-making, Nunley said. But California may not accomplish its goals by violating the First Amendment.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko
Eric Baradat / AFP / Getty Images

Which president deserves more credit for the nations longest economic recovery: Barack Obama, who presided over the beginning and the bulk of the turnaround after supporting extraordinary measures to pull the country out of the Great Recession? Or Donald Trump, who boasted about it more?

However one comes down on this absurd argument  which has consumed the current administration ever since Obama was uncharitable enough to note that the present economic and employment trends started more than seven years before his successors inauguration  such an expansion would be impossible without international trade. In the first five years of the recovery, trade accounted for about a third of economic growth.
The hardest question I hear as a longtime activist working in Sacramento to elevate the power of average voters over wealthy special interests isnt the question you might expect.

The question thats hardest to answer isnt how to find out who funds campaigns in California. It isnt about whether the system can be improved.

No, the hardest question is: Where is the website that tells me who all my elected officials are and how to contact them?

And the surprising answer I find myself giving over and over is: There isnt one. Theres no website where you can enter your address and see all your elected officials, soup to nuts, from president to Assembly member to water or school board member.

Its hard to believe that such a website doesnt exist in 2018. But, in the state that birthed personal computing, the internet and genetic engineering, and is home to companies creating everything from artificial intelligence to spacecraft, our state government has not taken this simple step to better equip its own citizens to participate in self-governing.

As a computer scientist, I promise you: This is easy. In fact, six California counties already have such websites and they are among the most popular websites in those counties. The counties pay a vendor who used college students to create the site from publicly available data. Counties pay less than $1,000 annually. The site works on laptops. It works on phones. It works in English and in Spanish.

In the state that is the world headquarters for high technology, there is simply no excuse for not doing on a state level what Inyo County does on a local level.

Thankfully, theres a bipartisan bill in California, AB2707, that would fix this embarrassing state government omission. Because the secretary of state, based on simply incorrect assumptions, forecast the website would cost a whopping $2.5 million to establish, the bills author, Assembly Speaker pro tem Kevin Mullin, D-San Mateo, did something novel. He included a cap on the cost of establishing the website in his legislation. If no qualified bidder comes in under the cost cap, the secretary isnt required to establish the site.

Whats the cost cap in the bill? $2.5 million? Nope. $1.5 million? Sorry; lower. $1 million? Not even close.

The Assembly member capped the cost of establishing the site at a mere $250,000, an amount so small that it is barely visible in a state budget topping $100 billion.

Yet, the secretary of state has yet to publicly endorse the bill. Respectfully, he should.

And, Gov. Jerry Brown should sign when it arrives at his desk.

Knowing who your elected officials are is a key part of governing at the local level, one of the governors basic philosophies. Plus, every time a voter used the site they would be reminded that their secretary of state can deliver basic information to them efficiently and competently.

Of course, it is understandable that the governor and the secretary spend vast sums on their own priorities. We elected them to do just that. But, our foundational priority must be the health of our democracy. Given the billions of dollars we spend on other programs, and given that Silicon Valley is here in California, the governor and the secretary should support paying this absurdly small price for making it easier for Californians to find out who governs them.

Trent Lange is the president and executive director of the California Clean Money Campaign. http://www.YesFairElections.org Email: TLange@CAclean.org
WEDNESDAY

Katie Hill: Indivisible Marin hosts a postcarding event for Katie Hill, Democratic candidate for the House in Californias 25th District. 7-8:30 p.m., Zinz Wine Bar, 207 Corte Madera Ave., Corte Madera. More information is here.

Robert Kennedy Jr.: Environmental attorney and president of Waterkeeper Alliance talks with journalist David Talbot about his new book, American Values: Lessons I Learned from My Family. Free. 4:30-6:30 p.m., McRoskey Mattress Factory, third floor, 1687 Market St., San Francisco. More information is here.

Trump disorientation: UC Berkeley philosophy Professor Hans Sluga gives a lecture on political disorientation under President Trump. Sponsored by the university Humanities and Social Sciences Association. Free. 4:30-6:30 p.m., Womens Faculty Club, UC Berkeley. More information is here.

THURSDAY

Climate protest: Rise against climate capitalism: March and mass action. 7 a.m., Jessie Square, 736 Mission St., San Francisco. More information is here.

Climate damage: How countries, states and companies are using climate damage estimates to inform their decision-making. Panel discussion hosted by Institute for Policy Integrity. 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Impact Hub, first floor, 1885 Mission St., San Francisco. More information is here.

Latin America and climate: An interactive session to discuss how networks of Latin American and Caribbean non-state actors are helping to raise raise climate ambition. 8:30-11:30 a.m. Tenderloin Museum, 398 Eddy St., San Francisco. More information is here.

Climate change and socialism: A discussion on socialist solutions to climate change issues, sponsored by the San Francisco Party for Socialism and Liberation. 7 p.m., 2969 Mission St., San Francisco. More information is here.

Tales of the City: University of Wisconsin English Professor Ramzi Fawaz discusses his oral history project on how Armistead Maupins Tales of the City serial in The Chronicle affected gay politics. $5. GLBT History Museum, 4127 18th St., San Francisco. More information is here.

Across the divide: A short group presentation followed by smaller living room conversations designed to give participants experience in building relationships with people who may have different political views. With Citizens Climate Lobby and Joan Blades, co-founder of Moveon.org and Living Room Conversations. Free. Google Community Space, 188 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

SATURDAY

Schools chief candidates forum: Candidates for state superintendent of public instruction, Tony Thurmond and Marshall Tuck, take part in a forum sponsored by Sistallect, California Black Media and Black Women Organized for Political Action. 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Holy Names University, 3500 Mountain Blvd., Oakland. More information is here.

Climate summit outcome: Climate framework experts discuss the outcome of the Global Climate Action Summit. Free. 10 a.m.-noon, War Memorial Veterans Building, Room 210, 401 Van Ness Ave., San Francisco. More information is here.

SUNDAY

Blue recruiting: Volunteer recruitment fair for NorCalBlueWave Alliance, Indivisible Sausalito, Indivisible Marin, Swing Left Marin, Sister District Marin and Novato Stands United. Sign-ups for actions in Marin and nearby red areas. 3-5:30 p.m., San Rafael Community Center, 1618 B St. RSVP and more information here.

MONDAY

BART candidates forum: Brian Larkin, Janice Li, Jonathan Lyens and Melanie Nutter, candidates for the BART District Eight seat in San Francisco, take part in a forum sponsored by San Francisco Transit Riders. 6-8 p.m., 795 Folsom St., San Francisco. More information is here.

SEPT. 17-18

Constitution conference: Two-day conference on the 231st anniversary of the U.S. Constitution, focusing on the past, present and future of constitutional rights, freedoms, citizenship, democracy, equality and justice. Free. 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. both days at the Paul Leonard Library and Cesar Chavez Student Center at San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave. More information is here.

SEPT. 18

DeRay Mckesson: Black Lives Matter activist and Pod Save the People podcast host talks about his new book, On the Other Side of Freedom: The Case for Hope. $35 for non-Commonwealth Club members, $10 for students. 6:30-7:45 p.m., Marines Memorial Theater, 609 Sutter St., San Francisco. More information is here.

Berkeley City Council candidates: The League of Women voters hosts a forum for the candidates for Berkeley City Council in District One, Mary Behm-Steinberg, Rashi Kesarwani, Igor Tregub and Margot Schueler. 7-8 p.m., Berkeley City College, 2050 Center St. More information is here.

SEPT. 19

Berkeley City Council candidates: The League of Women Voters hosts a forum for candidates for Berkeley City Council in Districts Four, Seven and Eight. 6:30-9 p.m., Berkeley City College, 2050 Center St. More information is here.

SEPT. 20

Albany candidates: League of Women Voters hosts a forum for Albany candidates for public office. 7-9 p.m., 1000 San Pablo Ave., Albany. More information is here.

Midterm run: Run 4 All Women sponsors a 4K run/walk to raise money and awareness for candidates trying to flip Congress. 6-8 p.m. at the Assembly, 449 14th St., San Francisco. More information is here.

SEPT. 21

Changing Georgia: Nse Ufot, executive director of the New Georgia Project, talks about strategies to get more people of color, young people and unmarried women to the polls. Free. 6-8 p.m. at Hustle, 343 Sansome St., Suite 600, San Francisco. More information is here.

SEPT. 22

Race and medicine: Panel discussion on the impact of race in medicine. Sponsored by the African American Community Health Advisory Committee and the African American Library Advisory Committee. 2-4 p.m., San Mateo Public Library, 55 West Third Ave. More information is here.

SEPT. 25

Berkeley school board candidates: The League of Women Voters holds a forum for Berkeley school board candidates Ka'Dijah Brown, Julie Sinai, Ty Alper, Abdur Sikder, Dru Howard and Norma Harrison. 7:30-8:45 p.m., Berkeley City College, 2050 Center St. More information is here.

Lieutenant governor candidates: Eleni Kounalakis and Ed Hernandez, candidates for lieutenant governor, take part in a forum on higher education issues. The lieutenant governor is a University of California regent and California State University trustee. Free. 4:30-7 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

Oakland D4 candidates: Forum for City Council and school board candidates in Oaklands District Four. 6:30-8:30 p.m., Allendale Recreation Center, 3711 Suter St. More information is here.

Get out the vote: Register to vote, learn about legislation affecting local communities and network with social justice advocates. Sponsored by Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency. 11 a.m.-2 p.m., Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza. More information is here.

Progressive take on midterms: A look at midterm candidates and state ballot measures from the progressive perspective, with 48 Hills founder Tim Redmond and Bill Honigman, organizer for Progressive Democrats of America. 7-9 p.m., San Francisco Unitarian-Universalist Center chapel, 1187 Franklin St. More information is here.

Truth decay: RAND Corp. CEO Michael Rich discusses truth decay  the diminishing role of facts and analysis in American public life, at the Commonwealth Club. $35 nonmembers, $10 students. 6:30-7:30 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

SEPT. 26

Berkeley rent board candidates: Candidates for Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board take part in a forum, sponsored by the League of Women Voters. 7-9 p.m., Berkeley City College, 2050 Center St. More information is here.

D6 supervisor candidates: Matt Haney, Christine Johnson and Sonja Trauss, candidates for San Francisco supervisor in District Six, take part in a forum in the race to lead the innovation district. Sponsored by sf.citi. 6-8:30 p.m. at Lyft, 185 Berry St. fifth floor. More information is here.

SEPT. 27

Iran and Trump: Covering Iran in the age of Trump: a conversation with reporter Melissa Etehad of the Los Angeles Times, moderated by San Francisco State journalism Professor Venise Wagner. 12:30-2 p.m., Room 587 of the Humanities Building, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave. More information is here.

SEPT. 28

Speaker training: Non-Profit Housing Association sponsors speakers training for people who want to advocate for state Proposition 1, a $4 billion affordable housing bond measure, and Proposition 2, to increase allowable spending on housing homeless people. 2-4 p.m., San Francisco location to be announced. More information is here.

Federalism issues: Ed DuMont, solicitor general of California, and Lawrence VanDyke, solicitor general of Nevada, discuss cases before the Supreme Court and the federal courts that center on state vs. federal rights. Sponsored by Federalist Society. $15 for nonmembers, free for students. 6-7 p.m., Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher law firm, 555 Mission St., Suite 3000, San Francisco. More information is here.

SEPT. 29

Tech politics: Candidates for statewide and Bay Area offices invited to discuss issues of importance to Silicon Valley and the technology industry. Sponsored by Royce Law LLC. Noon-4 p.m., Mission Bay Conference Center at UCSF, 1675 Owens St., San Francisco. More information is here.

D6 supervisor candidates: Matt Haney, Christine Johnson and Sonja Trauss, candidates for San Francisco supervisor in District Six, take part in a forum moderated by Chronicle columnist Heather Knight. 9:30-11:30 a.m., Childrens Creativity Museum Theater, 221 Fourth St., San Francisco. More information is here.

SEPT. 30

Preventing nuclear war: Free forum marking 50th anniversary of Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty features ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern and anti-nuclear activists Jacqueline Cabasso and Marylia Kelley. Sponsored by San Francisco Public Library and Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament. 1 p.m., Main Public Librarys Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin St., San Francisco. More information is here.

OCT. 2

Assembly candidates forum: Jovanka Beckles and Buffy Wicks, candidates in Assembly District 15 in the East Bay, participate in a League of Women Voters forum. 7-8:30 p.m., Berkeley City College, 2050 Center St. More information is here.

The Browns and California: Journalist Miriam Pawel, author of The Browns of California: The Family Dynasty That Transformed a State and Shaped a Nation, discusses Pat Brown, Jerry Brown and the modern history of the state, at the Commonwealth Club. $20 for nonmembers, $7 for students. 6-7:15 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

OCT. 4

State ballot measures: League of Women Voters hosts a pros-and-cons session on the measures on Californias November ballot. 6:30-9 p.m., Berkeley City College, 2050 Center St. More information is here.

Francis Fukuyama: Political scientist and author Francis Fukuyama discusses identity politics. Sponsored by the Commonwealth Club. $25 for nonmembers, $10 for students. 6:30-7:30 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

OCT. 5

Oakland mayoral forum: Ten candidates for Oakland mayor take part in a forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters. 7-8:30 p.m. in the City Council chambers, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland. More information is here.

Barbara Lee: Forum with Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, celebrating her 20th anniversary in Congress. Sponsored by the Commonwealth Club. $30 for nonmembers, $10 for students. 6:30-7:30 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

OCT. 5-6

Women and Spirit of the New Deal: Authors, scholars, historians and activists gather at UC Berkeley to examine womens contributions to the New Deal and their growing role in political leadership today. Full conference schedule is here. Registration and more information is here.

OCT. 9

Emeryville candidates: League of Women Voters hosts a forum for Emeryville City Council and school board candidates. 7-9 p.m., City Council chambers, 1333 Park Ave. More information is here.

OCT. 11

Danica Roem: Virginia House of Delegates member Danica Roem, the first openly transgender member of a state legislature, discusses her career and life story. Sponsored by Jewish Community Center of San Francisco. $10. 7 p.m., 3200 California St., San Francisco. More information is here.

Left, Right and Center: A rollicking examination of national issues, with panelists Ana Marie Cox, host of With Friends Like These; Washington Post columnist Megan McArdle; and Business Insider senior editor Josh Barro. Sponsored by Inforum and NPR member station KCRW. $35, $10 for students. 7-8 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

OCT. 14

D4 supervisor forum: Candidates for supervisor in San Francisco District Four take part in a forum sponsored by the Outer Sunset/Parkside Residents Association. 6-8:30 p.m., Lawton Alternative School, Lawton Street between 30th and 31st avenues, San Francisco. More information is here.

OCT. 16

D4 supervisor forum: Candidates for San Francisco supervisorial District Four participate in a forum sponsored by the Outer Sunset/Parkside Residents Association. 6-8:30 p.m., Ortega Branch Library, 3223 Ortega St., San Francisco. More information is here.

OCT. 18

Hacking politics: Keynote address for weekend conference on how the political system is being hacked. Sponsored by UC Berkeley Center for New Media, SFMOMAs Public Knowledge Initiative, the UC Berkeley School of Journalism and Boalt School of Law. Free. 6 p.m., Phyllis Wattis Theater, SFMOMA, 151 Third St., San Francisco. More information is here. Symposium runs from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Oct. 19 at 310 Banatao Auditorium, Sutardja Dai Hall, UC Berkeley. More information is here.

Berkeley voter information: UC Berkeleys Science Policy Group hosts a voter information night, focuses on state ballot initiatives. 5:30-8:30 p.m., Anthony Hall, UC Berkeley. More information is here.

OCT. 20

Race and politics: Panel discussion on the impact of race in politics. Sponsored by the African American Community Health Advisory Committee and the African American Library Advisory Committee. 2-4 p.m., San Mateo Public Library, 55 West Third Ave. More information is here.

OCT. 23

Rick Wilson: Republican strategist and Daily Beast columnist discusses dark politics in the age of Trump. Sponsored by the Commonwealth Club. $30 for nonmembers, $10 for students. Noon-1 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

OCT. 25

Max Boot: Council on Foreign Relations senior fellow and Washington Post columnist discusses his book The Corrosion of Conservatism: Why I Left the Right at the Commonwealth Club. $25 for nonmembers, $10 for students. Noon-1 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

OCT. 26

Julian Castro: Former Housing and Urban Development secretary and former mayor of San Antonio, Texas, speaks at the Commonwealth Club. $30 for nonmembers, $10 for students. Noon-1 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

NOV. 7

Jeffrey Rosen: Scholar and author examines constitutional questions and the post-Anthony Kennedy Supreme Court. Sponsored by Commonwealth Club. $25 for nonmembers, $10 for students. 6:30-7:30 p.m., 110 Embarcadero, San Francisco. More information is here.

NOV. 8

Susan Rice: Former President Barack Obamas national security adviser and U.N. ambassador discusses U.S. foreign policy priorities and national security interests. Sponsored by the World Affairs Council. $40 for nonmembers, $10 for students. 6:30-7:30 p.m., Marines Memorial Theater, 609 Sutter St., San Francisco. More information is here.

To list an event, email Politics Editor Trapper Byrne at tbyrne@sfchronicle
SACRAMENTO  Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill inspired by a drama-filled tweetstorm over a stolen rental car.

AB2620 by Assemblyman Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, shortens the time a rental company must wait before turning on a cars GPS location feature. Ting proposed the bill in response to a series of tweets in February by Sharky Laguana that quickly went viral.

Laguana, owner of the San Francisco rental van company Bandago, described in 37 tweets how one of his vans had been stolen, but that he had been barred from turning on its GPS until it had been overdue for a week.

OK, the saga began, a little thread about crime in SF and why its so incredibly frustrating for the people who live here.

To report the van stolen, Laguana had to wait until it was five days overdue, and he had to send a certified letter to the address on the rental contract. Allowing that much time to pass significantly reduces the chances of ever getting a car back, Laguana said.

Under AB2620, which Brown signed Tuesday, the wait period for turning on the GPS locator will be three days instead of seven. The five-day period before alerting police remains in place.

California has the highest number of rental car thefts in the nation, and the problem has become especially rampant in San Francisco, Ting said. The current one-week waiting period is far too long, allowing cars to sometimes end up in another country before a rental car company can turn on GPS tracking.

In Laguanas case, he happened upon his stolen van and persuaded the people living in it to give it back by falsely telling them he had filed a stolen vehicle report and that their arrest was imminent.

I was extremely lucky to come across my stolen van by chance a few days after it wasnt returned, but its not feasible to always rely on luck, Laguana said in a statement provided by Tings office. By being able to activate GPS tracking earlier, companies can at least keep tabs on where their vehicle is until help can be obtained.

On Tuesday, Laguana issued another tweet: I have an article Im planning on How To Turn Your Tweets Into Law. 

The new law takes effect Jan. 1.

Melody Gutierrez is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mgutierrez@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @MelodyGutierrez
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved Mayor London Breeds two appointments to the Police Commission on Tuesday, despite a number of them saying they were disappointed by the nominees imprecise response to a question about a federal terrorism task force.

The two appointments are Dion-Jay Brookter, the deputy director of Young Community Developers, which provides employment and educational services to Bayview residents, and Damali Taylor, a partner at the OMelveny & Myers law firm.

During the meeting, Supervisor Jane Kim asked if the nominees would support rejoining the Joint Terrorism Task Force, a partnership in which the FBI can direct local police officers to gather intelligence on people during activities such as religious services, protests and political assemblies.

The San Francisco Police Department suspended this collaboration last year amid growing concerns about how the Trump administration would use the task force.

Both Brookter and Taylor said they wouldnt support racial profiling, but would need more time to sit down with community members before making a decision about rejoining the task force.

In response, Kim said the task force has been a major topic of discussion in the city, and is something I would expect our nominees to have engaged in and have a response.

Supervisor Hillary Ronen said she was similarly troubled by the lack of clarity in their answers.

The board ultimately approved both of the appointments and praised the nominees for their apparent willingness to engage with the community. The only dissenting vote was from Supervisor Sandra Lee Fewer, who said she couldnt support Taylor because she felt Taylor failed to engage with the Chinese community.

These nominations come five months after the board rejected then-Mayor Mark Farrells renominations of Joe Marshall and Sonia Melara to the commission.

After Tuesdays vote, Breed commended the board for approving her nominations.

Both will bring important perspectives to the commission, rooted in their extensive experience with San Franciscos diverse communities, as they work to strengthen our police department and institute important reforms, she said in a statement.

Trisha Thadani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TrishaThadani
Getty Images

An 8-year-old girl who nearly drowned on Sunday in a Pleasanton community pool has died of her injuries, authorities said.

Shortly before 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, Alameda County sheriffs deputies arrived at Castlewood Country Club community pool to reports of girl found in unresponsive in the water by a lifeguard. She was taken to UCSF Benioff Childrens Hospital in Oakland in critical condition.
Two vehicles crashed into a big rig early Wednesday on Highway 101 in San Francisco causing major traffic delays for early morning commuters, authorities said.

A Toyota Prius and sedan collided with a big rig about 5 a.m. near the eastbound Interstate 80 connector and shut down two southbound lanes on Highway 101, according to the California Highway Patrol.
A toddler died Tuesday after being left for hours in a car in Moraga while outside temperatures hit at least 80 degrees, police said.

Lily Aracic, who was 19 months old, had been accidentally left in the vehicle by a family member, according to Moraga police. The same family member found her there, in a vehicle parked on Hardie Drive, hours later. She wasnt breathing.

The relative called 911 at about 3:50 p.m. Police tried to revive the child with rescue breathing at the scene, but she was pronounced dead after being taken to John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek.

The incident is under investigation. Police have not said which family member left Lily in the car, or what circumstances may have led to her being forgotten there. The Contra Costa County coroners office reported that Lily lived in Oakland.

Officers said the temperature outside when they reached the girl was about 80 degrees. Experts in child deaths from heatstroke in cars say that the temperature inside the vehicle could have reached 130 degrees.

If the car seat was in direct sunlight, it may be even hotter, said Jan Null, an adjunct professor of meteorology at San Jose State University who has studied heat-related car deaths in children and runs a national database on such incidents.

Nationwide, 789 children have died from heatstroke in a vehicle since 1998, according to Null. This year is on track to be one of the worst since such deaths started to be recorded, he said. So far, 46 children have died in the U.S. after being left in hot cars this year. Three were in California: Along with Lily, a 2-year-old boy died in Sacramento in July and an 18-month-old boy died in Willits in June.

In most cases, the outside temperature is already dangerously warm  90 degrees or higher, Null said. But in at least three cases nationwide this year, the temperature was in the 70s. And he knows of cases where children died when the outside temperature was even lower.

It does not have to be a really hot day, Null said. There was a case in El Cerrito, back around 2009, on a 67-degree day at the BART station. The parent was supposed to drop the child off and forgot.

Nearly 90 percent of children who die from heatstroke in a car are age 3 or younger, according to the group KidsAndCars.org, which seeks to end deaths of children accidentally left in cars. Just over half of the children are 12 months or younger.

Thirty-seven kids die in hot cars on average each year, and in about 55 percent of those cases, the children were left there by parents who forgot their child was in the vehicle.

The biggest mistake people make is to think this cant happen to them or someone in their family, said Janette Fennell, founder of KidsAndCars.org. Its not like anybody does this on purpose.

Keep your kids safe KidsAndCars.org has tips to keep children being left in a car: Make it part of your routine to open the back door of the car every time you park. Place something in the backseat - like a cell phone, wallet or work ID - that you need so you'll be forced to look there. Keep a stuffed animal in the car seat. When the baby is in the car seat, move the toy to the front seat of the car as a reminder that the baby is in the back. Ask your child care provider to call immediately if your child is not dropped off on time. See More Collapse

Fennells group is working to pass legislation that would require cars to have an automated system that alerts drivers if a baby is left in a car seat. The group also offers suggestions to parents to help remind themselves they have a child in the car.

Its both impossible to imagine and horrifyingly easy to understand how a child could be left behind, Fennell said. Babies are in rear-facing car seats, not in a parents direct line of sight. Infants dont talk; toddlers may be sleeping. Parents are exhausted, they are distracted. They slip out of a normal routine and forget to drop a baby at day care or a grandparents house. Hours pass.

The death of a child is the worst thing that can ever happen in someones life, Fennell said. Now, take the worst thing in the world, and lets add the fact that youre the parent or family member who did this.

When the family member called 911 for Lily, the dispatcher who answered the call reported there was a person screaming and crying in the background, according to Moraga police.

On Wednesday, a man who answered the phone at Lilys grandparents house in Piedmont said only this: Its the worst thing that could possibly happen.

Erin Allday is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: eallday@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @erinallday
A pharmaceutical company executive defended his decision to raise the price of an essential drug by 400 percent, proclaiming the price hike "a moral requirement to make money."

Nirmal Mulye, founder and president of Nostrum Laboratories in Missouri, spoke on the decision to raise the price of a bottle of antibiotic nitrofurantoin from $474.75 to $2,932, in an interview with the Financial Times released Tuesday. The drug treats bladder infections and is considered by the World Health Organization to be an "essential medicine" for a basic health-care system.

"I think it is a moral requirement to make money when you can ... to sell the product for the highest price," Mulye told the Financial Times.

If this all sounds familiar, you may be getting flashbacks to the moment when Martin Shkreli became part of the public consciousness as "Pharma Bro." Shkreli was famously publicly maligned in 2015 for his decision to raise the price of the drug Daraprim from $13.50 to $750  per pill.

And it should come as no surprise that Mulye referenced and defended Shkreli's decision to raise the price of Daraprim, saying Shkreli was "within his rights because he had to reward his shareholders."

"If he's the only one selling it then he can make as much money as he can," Mulye said. "This is a capitalist economy and if you can't make money, you can't stay in business."

(Shkreli, it should be mentioned, is currently in prison for securities fraud unrelated to the Daraprim price increase.)

Mulye's further defense of his own company's price hike was to say it was in keeping with the market  competitor Casper Pharma raised its own prices on the same drug over the course of three years, eventually raising it to $2,800, according to Financial Times' reporting.

In Mulye's mind, his version of the drug "is still a saving" in comparison to Casper, whether "it is a big [savings] or not."

Unsurprisingly, the Federal Drug Administration was not a fan of Mulye's comments, and in tweets following the publishing of Mulye's interview, FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb wrote, "...there's no moral imperative to price gouge and take advantage of patients. FDA will continue to promote competition so speculators and those with no regard to public health consequences can't take advantage of patients who need medicine."

Gottlieb affirmed that the drug in question was not in shortage, underlining the point that Nostrum's liquid version of the drug was not being actively marketed  a fact that was confirmed by Mulye in a follow-up, and the CEO stating that the price could change again, according to the market.

Mulye, in that follow-up, went on to call the FDA "incompetent and corrupt."

Read Dianne de Guzman's latest stories and send her news tips at ddeguzman@sfchronicle.com.

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Ben Silbermann does not enjoy being interviewed. He is not a fan of speaking at tech industry conferences. Nor does he like sitting for glossy magazine portraits. He does not think he should have to explain Pinterest, the web service that allows people to save images to virtual pinboards, to anyone other than those who want to use it.

That is the case even in the past couple of years, when Pinterest and Silbermann, its co-founder and CEO, could have been shouting the companys virtues from the rooftops.

Its peers, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, have been drowning in toxic harassment, fake news and Russian disinformation campaigns. Critics have denounced social-media-induced anxiety and addiction.

Pinterest, by Silbermanns design, is the opposite: the webs last bastion of quaint innocence. Having de-emphasized its social media elements years ago, the San Francisco company wants to be a safe and happy place for inspiration, self-improvement and salted caramel cookie recipes. It also rejects Silicon Valleys typical unicorn formula of moving fast, breaking things, chasing growth at all costs and bragging about every victory.

But the reserved, slow and steady approach has long frustrated some investors and employees, who believe that it has neutered growth, according to interviews with more than a dozen people who have worked with or for the company. Many of those people spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the companys private affairs.

Matt Novak, a partner at All Blue Capital, said his firm is trying to sell its stake in Pinterest, which the firm acquired on the secondary market, because it had not lived up to its potential.

If they dont keep up, they very quickly become prehistoric, said Novak, who would not disclose the size of his firms stake in Pinterest.

And yet despite Silbermanns approach  or maybe because of it  the company is worth $12.3 billion and growth is accelerating. The company recently crossed a milestone  250 million monthly active users. Those users have pinned 175 billion items on 3 billion virtual pinboards. The company is on track to top $700 million in revenue this year, a 50 percent increase over last year, according to a person familiar with the company. There is wide speculation that it will go public next year.

If Pinterest continues its trajectory, it could change the narrative of what it takes to build a successful tech company, a meaningful feat at a time that the startup world is seeking new templates for leaders. If it does not, it will serve as another example of wasted potential, or worse, a cautionary tale.

I tell them, You have to tell your story, especially now, said Scott Belsky, an entrepreneur who was an early investor in Pinterest.

Tech companies usually reflect the personalities of their founders. Mark Zuckerberg infused Facebook with a move fast and break things hacker mentality. Ubers founder, Travis Kalanick, pushed a toe-steppin and hustling culture at Uber.

Silbermann, 36, grew up in Des Moines, Iowa, in a family of doctors and assumed he would also go to medical school. But his first encounter with high-speed internet, at Yale University in 1999, changed his mind. You could find your people there and really explore inside yourself, he said.

He has tried to instill that same thinking at the company. Pinterest values knitting, a term its employees use to describe collaboration among groups. We believe innovation happens when disciplines knit, the companys website says.

In the beginning, when Pinterest was desperate to hire engineers as quickly as possible, Silbermann screened potential hires for their values before even considering their technical skills.

Silbermann is someone who measures twice, cuts once, said Rick Heitzmann, a managing director at FirstMark Capital and early investor in Pinterest.

Perfectionist doesnt overstate it, said Jeff Jordan, a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz who serves on the Pinterest board.

Pinterests offices display the sort of cutesy, self-referential bric-a-brac that is common at startups  a giant statue of a pushpin made of Legos, a Pinterest surfboard. But Silbermanns demeanor is serious and reserved. In conversation, he listens carefully and responds with earnest sincerity, qualifying statements as his own opinion, rather than declaring them as facts.

He also does not focus on Pinterests image in the business world. Instead, he dedicates an outsize amount of time to meeting with Pinterest users, going on six tours a year and holding weekly lunches at Pinterests offices. That is a meaningful time commitment for the CEO of a 1,500-person organization.

If Pinterest addresses the needs and desires of its users, he said, the business will take care of itself.

Pinterest has always confounded tech insiders. Its first users were not teenagers  the typical early adopters of digital services  but Midwestern women. And Silbermann and his co-founder, Evan Sharp, were not engineers, a prerequisite for many venture capital investors.

From the beginning, this company did things differently from how most storybook Silicon Valley companies have operated, said Jeremy Levine, a partner at Bessemer Venture Partners, Pinterests largest shareholder.

The companys growth exploded by 2011, just a year after its service went live, spawning countless copycats  for families, for music, for pornography, for Lady Gaga fans  and clones in every major country. It seemed possible that Pinterest could be as successful as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or YouTube  maybe even Google. The market for social media advertising was still young and up for grabs. A Forbes cover story about Pinterest declared, Move over, Zuck.

The business case was simple and powerful: It was a shopping mall disguised as a mood board that held its users aspirations, unearthing pure and unfiltered commercial desire. You can draw a direct line from those interests to a commercial opportunity or retail category, said Andrew Lipsman, an analyst at eMarketer.

But just as the company began selling ads in 2014, user growth stalled and it was not clear why, according to people familiar with the company. The company disagreed that growth had stalled, arguing that it had slightly slowed.

Executives on Pinterests growth team proposed spending $50 million a year to acquire users through marketing, a common tactic for web companies. Other executives argued that the company should court celebrities and pay influencers to share content on Pinterest, similar to YouTubes premium content program.

Silbermann opposed both, according to people familiar with the decision. He preferred what he called quality growth.

Theres a natural rate at which you can scale a company thats healthy, Silbermann said. So Pinterest stuck to its knitting.

Investors and former executives say Pinterest has rallied in the past year under a new chief operating officer, Francoise Brougher, and a new head of sales, Jon Kaplan, both formerly of Google.

Pinterests founders have this look in their eye like this is working now, said Belsky, the early investor.

Brougher said she, like Silbermann, prefers to under-promise and over-deliver. But that doesnt always work well in the tech world, she said.

In technology, people are very, very fast to declare something a winner or loser, like, Thatll never work, or Thatll take over the world. The truth is always somewhere in between.

Erin Griffith is a New York Times writer.
Bay Area residents have gotten used to the sight and the smell of wildfire smoke. According to a study published by published by GeoHealth, that smoke could be almost as deadly as the fires themselves.

The study suggests that U.S. deaths from chronic inhalation of wildfire smoke could double  from 15,000 per year to 42,000  within the next 100 years.

According to KQED, the increasing wildfire emissions could offset human-related efforts at decreasing air pollution, and then some. Electric cars and ride-to-work days? Only small dents in the larger impact of wildfires like Northern Californias Carr Fire.

The rise in smoke-related deaths is connected to the drastic increase in wildfires themselves. Already the annual acreage burned in California wildfires has more than doubled over the past 70 years.

Wildfire smoke is dangerous because it is composed of something called particulate matter, which can worsen heart and lung diseases, cause eye and skin irritation and contribute to premature death, according to the Environmental Protection Association.

In order to calculate the impact of wildfire smoke on public health, scientists used a model to simulate the concentration of particulate matter over different periods of the 21st Century. In response to their findings, researchers recommend an increase in public health campaigns, which involve air filters and clean air shelters.

But seeing as it is the only simulation of its kind, climate scientists also emphasize the importance of more studies that inspect wildfire smoke and its health impacts, KQED reports.

The study comes just in time for the Global Climate Action Summit  another thing for attendees to consider.

Emma Heath is an SFGATE staff writer. Email her with comments or questions at Emma.Heath@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @emmabheath.
This article, San Francisco warns Uber, Lyft riders to get in the right car, originally appeared on CNET.com.

Watch out, ride-share riders. In cities around the country, people posing as Uber and Lyft drivers to assault unsuspecting passengers.

San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon is partnering with Uber and the city's police department to warn people to get the word out.

Gascon on Tuesday launched a public education campaign called "Rideshare with Care" to spell out what passengers should do before getting into a car. He said riders should verify the license plate of the Uber or Lyft car, ask the driver for their name, and share the ride location and destination with a friend or family member.

"Over 170,000 rideshare trips are taken on a typical weekday and mostly the services are safe," Gascon said at a press conference in San Francisco's Hall of Justice on Tuesday. "We also know that when things go wrong, they can go terribly wrong."

Getting into a car with a stranger would've been unheard of just five years ago, but it's become the norm as ride-hailing companies like Uber and Lyft have gained popularity. But predators have taken advantage of this situation. A report made public on Tuesday detailed how one woman flung herself from a moving car in Las Vegas after being abducted by a fake Uber driver, according to ABC.

In San Francisco, headlines were made by a man who's been labeled the "rideshare rapist." Orlando Vilchez Lazo is accused of raping four women in separate incidents over the past five years. He was arrested in July and pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Lazo allegedly picked up his victims late at night from bars and clubs, held them against their will, and then drove them to unknown locations. Lazo was a Lyft driver, but because of ongoing litigation, it's unclear if he was posing as a driver during these incidents or using the app.

"You see the stories in the news and so do we," Uber spokesman Andrew Hasbun said. "This is a situation that is totally preventable."

To make sure riders get in the right car, Hasbun said people should verify not only the license plate number but also the color, make and model of the car. Passengers should also ask drivers for their name before getting in the car and make sure it matches what it says in the app.

"The safety features that are built in to the Uber app don't work unless you get into the right car," Hasbun said.

Lyft didn't attend the press conference on Tuesday, but in an email a company spokeswoman said, "We applaud the district attorney's efforts to educate the rideshare community about simple steps everyone can take to stay safe."

First published Sept. 11 at 3:03 p.m. PT.

Update at 4:44 p.m. PT: Added comment from Lyft.

CNET Magazine: Check out a sampling of the stories you'll find in CNET's newsstand edition.

Follow the Money: This is how digital cash is changing the way we save, shop and work.
In-N-Out Burger holds more secrets than its signature "secret sauce" (which we all know is just re-vamped Thousand Island dressing).

Since its founding in 1948, In-N-Out has been a trailblazer in the fast-food industry, all the while maintaining only 335 restaurants in mostly the western U.S and a largely unchanging menu. Hot cocoa, added to the menu in December, was the first such addition in over a decade.
This story originally appeared on The Wayward Home

When we think of nomads and full-time travelers, we usually think of people living in camper vans, RVs, or sailboats.

But Rich Brand of Captured Heartbeats is taking a different type of journey  traveling in his kayak across North America. Hes paddling down rivers, through Great Lakes, and along the coastline, from Quebec City, Canada to Jacksonville, Florida.

This expedition was introduced to me by a harbormaster in Prescott, Wisconsin, while on the Mississippi River adventure, Brand wrote on his website. I was told of a route that was about 5,000 miles, but mainly powerboats and sailboats accomplished it. I thought about it for a second and thought, Why could I not do it in a kayak?'

Brand left for this kayaking adventure in May of 2018, and he plans on the trip taking him one year.

One day, I spoke on the phone with Brand, to ask him why he gave up his home to travel full-time in a kayak.

WHY BRAND DECIDED TO TRAVEL IN A 19-FOOT KAYAK

Brand is a seasoned kayaker; hes ocean kayaked from Seattle to San Diego and the entire length of the Mississippi River, which is 2,500 miles. Then he paddled from New Orleans to Portland, Maine, 3,100 miles. Then Portland up to Quebec, which was 1,500 miles.

I feel I am just settling into kayaking. The gift I have found is I am able to reach, communicate, and engage with people in a way that I dont believe I could with other means of transportation. I have been hosted by so many and brought right into their personal lives in a way I just could not do with a Jeep, motorcycle, or a boat, said Brand.

With his 5,000 mile trip, Brand is hoping to inspire a younger generation to see whats possible when you follow your passion.

I believe in leading by example, he said. There is a big world out there with unlimited possibilities. You can be your strongest asset or your greatest defeat. You cannot inspire anyone from a couch. You have to move and do, he said.

He wants to meet people, see everything, go everywhere.

You have but this one shot to do amazing with your life. Why would you want to do anything less? Brand asked.

HOW BRAND SLEEPS AND EATS WHILE KAYAKING FULL TIME

Brand seems to do a pretty good job finding places to sleep when kayaking. His one main goal is this: to set up his tent at least one foot above the high tide.

I dont have a home but Im good with that, said Brand. Home is where you make it and where you pitch your tent. Ive had water come up to the base of my tent, said Brand. I stay on beaches, docks, marinas, in backyards. If I land near someones backyard, I request permission to stay.

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As for food, he carries around freeze-dried food for camping. He saves over the wintertime so he can eat out along the waterways. Hes often hosted, and people give him dinner.

People often let me use their bedroom, shower, give me a meal in exchange for my stories. Thats happened well over 100 times so far on this trip, he said. If people have kids, I make sure to spend time with them and get them excited about the great outdoors.

THE JOYS AND STRUGGLES OF BEING A FULL-TIME KAYAKER

Living on the water and paddling around all the time isn't always easy. Brand has had a couple of close calls during his kayaking adventure.

"I've been way too close to drowning on the Pacific ocean," said Brand. "I've been through two lightning storms where I didn't think I'd make it to shore. Solo adventuring, while fun and inspiring, is not always the easiest. It can be hard explaining to people why I do this."

But by far, the joys way outnumber the challenges. Brand has paddled among whales and dolphins, has eaten seafood fresh from the waters. He loves the sense of freedom and personal growth, the fresh air and open seas.

"I love waking up to a different horizon every day," said Brand. "I love the stars, listening to the wind and the silence, making new friends, seeing new cultures. I love seeing things for the first time. When we are kids, everything is new and for the first time, but as we get older, those opportunities are few and far between. I like that each day/person/experience is a first."

BRAND'S HOPES FOR THE FUTURE

When Brand ends his current 5,000 miles kayaking trip in March of 2019, he'll set the paddles aside for awhile. His next goal is to hop on a motorcycle and travel all over, meeting people along the way.

"I wish people would get outside more and realize life is short," Brand said. "If you work a 9-5 and you drop dead tomorrow and they replace you in a week, what kind of job is that?"

He's met so many people while paddling around in his kayak, and hopes he's captured some heartbeats with his journey and lifestyle.

"People live in these comfort bubbles and I run at them in a tracksuit with nails," he said. "I try to get people out of their bubble."

You can follow his adventures on Facebook and Instagram.

This story originally appeared on The Wayward Home
Cities4Climate

Find out what cities like San Francisco are doing to take action on climate change: Watch this live discussion from City Hall, hosted by C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, and moderated by The Chronicle's Editor in Chief Audrey Cooper. The event starts Wednesday at 1 p.m.

The conference, "Cities4Climate: The Future is Us," kicks off the Global Climate Action Summit, and highlights the leading role cities are playing in taking action on climate around the world. Hosted by C40 and the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (GCoM), the event will emphasize the work of cities to improve air quality and build healthier, more resilient communities.
Mill Valley has yet to receive a single proposal to deploy small-cell 5G wireless towers within town limits. That has not stopped officials from blocking the antennae in residential areas altogether. The future is 5G, most telecommunications companies say, but that future will not be coming to this upscale town in Marin County.

Members of the Mill Valley city council voted unanimously last week to block deployments of 5G towers in the city's residential areas by activating an urgency ordinance. The legislation, which is active immediately, allows authorities to enact regulations affecting the health and safety of residents. San Anselmo and Ross have already adopted similar ordinances.

"The urgency ordinance has standards to limit and prohibit the installations of devices in residential neighborhoods, but there is more that we can do," Mill Valley Mayor Stephanie Moulton-Peters told the Marin Independent Journal.

The paper said residents from all over Marin "packed the council chambers" to urge officials to prevent cell phone companies from building 5G towers in the county.

Their opposition to the towers was stoked by fears they could increase cancer risks and other health problems associated with exposure to electromagnetic fields, including fatigue, headaches, anxiety, learning and memory disorders, heart and sleep problems, and increased cancer risk, according to the EMF Safety Network. The group seeks to keep communities free of electromagnetic fields and wireless radiation.

The 5G towers would enable faster and higher-capacity streaming. The 5G towers are actually smaller than 4G towers, easier and cheaper to install, and emit less radiation, according to TechCrunch.

Though the telecommunications industry has vehemently denied links between health effects and antennae, scientists continue to debate the matter.

"I don't think it's clear that there are health risks, but it's also not clear that there are no health risks," Leeka Kheifets, an epidemiology professor at UCLA's Fielding School of Public Health, told the LA Times.

In December, the California Department of Health issued guidelines recommending reducing exposure to radio frequency energy from cell phones.

"Although the science is still evolving, there are concerns among some public health professionals and members of the public regarding long-term, high use exposure to the energy emitted by cell phones," said CDPH Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Karen Smith in a statement. "We know that simple steps, such as not keeping your phone in your pocket and moving it away from your bed at night, can help reduce exposure for both children and adults."

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and his Republican commissioners do not seem to share such fears. In March, the FCC enacted a new policy to make it easier for operators to deploy 5G infrastructure. The new rule removes federal oversight of some small cell deployments, removing obstacles outlined in the National Historic Preservation Act and National Environmental Policy Act.

State and local regulations still apply, hence the efficacy of the Mill Valley ordinance, which is designed to thwart the FCC's new rule.

Mill Valley will look into crafting a permanent ordinance later in the year.

Read Michelle Robertson's latest stories and send her news tips at mrobertson@sfchronicle.com.

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On a crowded film festival landscape  especially in the Bay Area  its a real achievement to hit the magical 10-year mark. So congratulations to the folks at Cine+Mas SF for the 10th San Francisco Latino Film Festival, now expanded to 17 days and nine venues  seven in San Franciscos Mission District.

The official opening night is 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 14, at the Alamo Drafthouses New Mission Theater (2550 Mission St.) with a screening of Abner Benaims documentary of musician, actor and activist Ruben Blades. Spanning his 50-year career, the documentary takes us from the center of New Yorks salsa revolution of the 1970s to a failed attempt to become president in his native Panama.

This is a pulse-pounding portrait that won the Audience Award at the prestigious South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, this year  and the perfect segue into the opening-night party that follows.

The festival closes with only the fifth feature-length film directed by a woman in Cuba. Day Garcias crowd-pleasing Lucas Como Sara, which makes its U.S. debut at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 30 at the Roxie theater (3117 16th St.), is a wacky comedy that takes place in 1980s Cuba.

In between are 35 programs of feature-length fiction and documentary films and a vast array of shorts, including many directed by Bay Area filmmakers (the Close to Home shorts program is all Bay Area; it screens at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 14, at the Roxie). Films come from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Peru, Spain, Uruguay and the U.S., with many filmmakers in attendance.

In addition to the seven Mission District venues, headed by the Alamo and Roxie, programs also will screen in the East Bay at BrasArte (1901 San Pablo Ave., Berkeley) and EastSide Cultural Center (2277 International Blvd., Oakland).

Tickets and information: 415-754-9580, www.sflatinofilmfestival.org, @SFLatinoFilm.

Luchino Visconti: Cinema of Struggle and Splendor: A major retrospective of the Italian master at the Berkeley Art Museums Pacific Film Archive begins with his poke at the movie business, 1951s Bellissima (7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 14), with the great Anna Magnani as a former actress trying to stage-manage her 7-year-old to stardom; and ends with his last work  among his greatest  the opulent and ambitious 1976 film The Innocent (Nov. 30), a tragedy about a Sicilian aristocrat (Giancarlo Giannini) and his neglected wife (Laura Antonelli).

Visconti (1906-76), from a wealthy Italian family that stretched back centuries (he was a count), began as a Neorealist filmmaker  along with Roberto Rossellini and Vittorio De Sica  but soon forged his own path. In the 1940s he made Neorealist classics, most notably La Terra Trema (7 p.m. Sept. 21, about the struggles of fishing families in a small seaside village) but soon decided, counterintuitively, that the way to the truth was not through realism, but operatic artifice.

That dichotomy existed in his own life. Visconti was a wealthy aristocrat, but also a lifelong member of the Communist Party. He got into filmmaking out of boredom, when one of his celebrity friends  the fashion designer Coco Chanel  introduced him to French director Jean Renoir. Perhaps they forged a quick friendship because Renoir also came from a wealthy and famous family  his father being, of course, the painter Auguste Renoir.

Visconti assisted Renoir on two films from the 1930s, and from that experience his path was set. Renoir suggested to Visconti that he adapt James M. Cains noir novel The Postman Always Rings Twice as his first film, and that he did  without bothering to procure the rights. Thus Ossessione (7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 16)  the first adaptation of the Cain novel, years before the Lana Turner-John Garfield classic  was long unavailable in the U.S.

But the works with which Visconti became identified were those grand-scale films with striking color palettes, an aristocratic setting and the underpinnings of class warfare. He drew upon his experiences as a theater and opera director in films such as Senso (Nov. 1, Nov. 10), about the tragic love affair between an Austrian officer (the American actor Farley Granger, with voice dubbed) and an Italian countess (Alida Valli) during the Austrian occupation of Italy in the mid-1800s; A Godfather-like family crime saga from 1960, Rocco and His Brothers (Oct. 4, Oct. 7) and most movingly, The Leopard (Oct. 13, Oct. 21).

Set in the 1860s, when a revolution would unite the Italian provinces into one country, The Leopard is about a Sicilian count (Burt Lancaster) who realizes his way of life is doomed and begins planning for his familys survival. A three-hour film, it culminates with one of the greatest set pieces in cinema history, a nearly hour-long ballroom sequence that says everything about the passing of an era and the total reorganization of Italian society through a series of looks, expressions and movement that is deep, rich and emotional.

The end of this masterpiece is a profound meditation on mortality, so pitch-perfect and conveying so many complexities at a very simple level. It elevates The Leopard into one of the greatest of all epics.

BAMPFA, 2155 Center St., Berkeley. 510-642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu

G. Allen Johnson is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: ajohnson@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BRfilmsAllen
This story originally appeared on KQED.org

Oakland City Councilman Abel Guillen is temporarily moving into a tiny home Tuesday to highlight a potential solution to student homelessness.

Guillen, who represents District 2, said he plans to spend two days occupying one of two 10-foot-long dwellings built by Laney College students with an $80,000 grant from Oakland.

He said Laney College students, selected by application, will move into the homes later this week, probably for the duration of the academic year, after he moves out.

"Before the students move into those homes, I thought if I'm going to be asking other people for live in these homes, I should try it out myself first to make sure it is a comfortable experience," Guillen said in a phone interview Monday.

RELATED VIDEO: These Tiny Luxury Homes Have The Best Storage

The two tiny homes are located on the parking lot of West Side Missionary Baptist Church in West Oakland. Guillen said each structure contains many of the features of a regular home, including a bed, shower, sink, toilet and hot plate for cooking. There's even a small patio.

Guillen said the project is just a starting point for what he hopes will be a feasible, large-scale solution. He hopes to scale up this model for affordable student housing by attracting funders interested in mass production.

"We're hoping that this will raise awareness, particularly amongst the private sector and philanthropy to help fund these solutions," Guillen said. "We've received interest from potential funders. And so we're hoping to figure out how to scale up this program so that it really serves the needs of our students."

Guillen said Oakland's community organizations, including its many churches, can also help.

"If every church opened up their parking lots to one of these tiny homes, I think it would go a long way in supporting our homeless students," Guillen said.

He said 14 percent of Laneys student body report being homeless. Meanwhile, a December 2016 study reveals that one out of three community college students in California grapples with some form of housing insecurity, up to and including homelessness.

Despite support from the city, Guillen's plan to house students in tiny homes may encounter difficulties. For one thing, Oakland's housing code currently does not allow mobile homes (under which tiny homes are categorized) to be primary residences. For another, some other attempts to build tiny home enclaves in Bay Area neighborhoods -- e.g., in San Jose, have been met with resistance.

This story originally appeared on KQED.org
The Trump administration appears to have diverted nearly $10 million in funding for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency at the forefront of the president's zero-tolerance immigration policy that led to the separation of hundreds of children, some as young as 18 months, from their parents.

The reallocation of public money is documented in a "Transfer and Reprogramming" notification prepared this fiscal year by the Department of Homeland Security, the parent department of ICE, as the agency is known. It was made public by Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon in an appearance Tuesday on "The Rachel Maddow Show," as Hurricane Florence barreled toward the Carolinas.

More for you Hurricane Florence's churns eastward in satellite images

Merkley's office provided the 39-page budget document independently to The Washington Post. It shows that DHS requested that about $9.8 million going toward FEMA efforts such as "Preparedness and Protection" and "Response and Recovery" be funneled instead into ICE coffers, specifically underwriting "Detention Beds" and the agency's "Transportation and Removal Program." The U.S. Secret Service was also a beneficiary of the reallocation.

"This is a scandal," Merkley said in an emailed statement to the Post. "At the start of hurricane season - when American citizens in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are still suffering from FEMA's inadequate recovery efforts - the administration transferred millions of dollars away from FEMA. And for what? To implement their profoundly misguided 'zero-tolerance' policy. It wasn't enough to rip thousands of children out of the arms of their parents - the administration chose to partly pay for this horrific program by taking away from the ability to respond to damage from this year's upcoming and potentially devastating hurricane season."

The "monster," as Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina labeled the storm gathering strength off the southeastern Atlantic coast, threatens enormous damage and a replay of last year's devastating hurricane season, in which FEMA was woefully unprepared for the catastrophe that befell Puerto Rico, according to an after-action report by the agency. Meanwhile, a year after Hurricane Harvey brought the worst rainstorm in the nation's history to the Houston area, 50 percent of lower-income respondents in a survey conducted this summer said they weren't getting the help they needed.

As Trump pledged Tuesday that "We are sparing no expense" in preparing for Florence, DHS did not dispute the authenticity of the document in a statement posted on Twitter. The department acknowledged that funds had been redirected but said the transfer did not jeopardize relief efforts.

The memorandum sheds light on the immigration-enforcement operations enhanced by the FEMA funds. Without the transfer, the document notes, "ICE will not be able to fulfill its adult detention requirements in FY 2018." Insufficient funding, DHS observes, could prevent the agency from deporting people who stand in violation of the country's immigration laws while requiring ICE to "release any new book-ins and illegal border violators," to "reduce its current interior enforcement operations" and to limit "criminal alien and fugitive arrests."

These new limitations, the department warns, "would pose a significant risk to public safety and national security by permitting known offenders to remain at large."

The precise timing of the reallocation is unclear, as the document, which refers to Fiscal Year 2018, does not include an exact date. The document's file information indicates that it was created in late June, the first month of the Atlantic hurricane season. A Senate aide told the Post that the fiscal notice appears to have been written in June, sent to Congress at the end of the month and approved sometime between July and September.

DHS is required to notify the House and Senate Appropriations Committees of reprogramming of funds in excess of $5 million, according to a 2009 appropriations measure. Merkley, who is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, told Maddow that the document he released was "the notification document that would have come to the Appropriations Committee, specifically to the chair of [the subcommittee on] Homeland Security."

Merkley said he came across the document in the course of his efforts to try "to stop child separations," which included his attempt in early June to visit a detention facility in South Texas. He linked the transfer of funds to the zero-tolerance policy announced by Attorney General Jeff Sessions in May.

"Clearly they were saying, 'if we're going to start arresting, as a criminal matter, and detaining people, we need to have much bigger detention camps, oh well we better get some more money to do that,'" Merkley said Tuesday evening on the MSNBC show. He also suggested that the financial pressure was linked to this month's announcement by the administration of new regulations designed to enable expanded detention of families who cross into the U.S. without legal status.

As for FEMA, the notifying document states that the "Mission impact" will be "minimized," as the agency will scale back training, travel, public engagement sessions and IT security support and infrastructure maintenance.

A spokesman for DHS responded to Merkley's allegations in a series of tweets late Tuesday, acknowledging the budgetary reallocation but arguing that the funds in question came from "FEMA's routine operating expenses" and "could not have been used for hurricane response due to appropriations limitations."

"The money in question - transferred to ICE from FEMA's routine operating expenses - could not have been used for hurricane response due to appropriation limitations. DHS/FEMA stand fiscally and operationally ready to support current and future response and recovery needs," Tyler Q. Houlton wrote on Twitter.

Former DHS and FEMA officials, however, disputed the spokesman's claim that the money in question was distinct from "hurricane response," saying these funds were critical to the agency's overall mission of storm preparedness and response, even if they were not explicitly earmarked for disaster relief.

"Anyone who knows FEMA knows it's parsing words," Moira Whelan, a former chief of staff in the Office of Gulf Coast Rebuilding at Homeland Security's National Joint Information Center, told the Post. The disaster relief funding left untouched by the transfer, Whelan said, covers post-storm assistance and the rebuilding of public structures, while "Response and Recovery" money tapped for the transfer pays for plans, logistics, supply-chain management and after-action reports that seek to improve on previous seasons, said Whelan, who is also a former official with the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The nearly $10 million diverted to ICE comes from a roughly $1 billion operating budget that supports much of FEMA's efforts beyond the immediate response to a declared emergency, said a former FEMA official who asked not to be identified because he still does business with the agency. That includes staff, meetings and exercises, he said - all crucial to readiness for the next hurricane season. One example, the former official said, was the network of warehouses operated by FEMA across the country, which requires staff and supplies.

Trump said on Tuesday that the government was "absolutely, totally prepared" for the hurricane bearing down on the Carolinas. Florence is expected to make landfall in southeast North Carolina on Friday as a Category 3 or 4 hurricane, bringing destructive winds and leaving flooding in its wake.

"We're ready. FEMA is ready. Everybody is ready," Trump said in brief remarks at Joint Base Andrews.

Later in the day, after a briefing on the hurricane, the president affirmed, "The safety of the American people is my absolute highest priority. We are sparing no expense." He also used the occasion to trumpet as an "incredible, unsung success" his administration's response to Hurricane Maria, which caused nearly 3,000 deaths on Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory already badly damaged by Hurricane Irma weeks earlier.

It was "one of the best jobs that's ever been done with respect to what this is all about," Trump said.
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SAUSALITO (BCN)



The Marin County coroner's office has identified a woman who died in a solo vehicle crash in Sausalito on Monday night as 49-year-old Ginger Elizabeth Flath.



Flath, a Sausalito resident, was speeding in a 1999 Honda Accord north on Bridgeway around 11:40 p.m. when she failed to stop at a red light, Sausalito police said.



Flath nearly struck a Sausalito police officer's patrol car as the officer attempted to turn north on Bridgeway from Nevada Street, police said.



The officer tried to catch up to the Honda but it crashed into a light pole and banner pole, police said.



According to the coroner's office, Flath drove onto the center divider and struck two large metal overhead light poles, causing catastrophic exterior and interior damage to the Honda.



Flath suffered extensive traumatic injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene at 11:50 p.m.



Sausalito police Lt. William Fraass said investigators do not know if Flath was aware of the patrol car behind her but she did not take any evasive action before the crash.





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SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)



The San Francisco District Attorney's Office has launched a citywide campaign to encourage users of ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft to take extra safety precautions.



District Attorney George Gascon announced the campaign this afternoon, alongside police Cmdr. Greg McEachern and an Uber spokesman.



"Mostly the services are safe," Gascon said. "But we also know that when things go wrong, they can go wrong very quickly. We know there have been individuals locally that have manipulated the services to hurt others and for their own purposes. That is why it is important that we be vigilant, that we all work together and that we help one another," he said.



In July, San Francisco police arrested a former Lyft driver dubbed as the "Rideshare Rapist."



Orlando Vilchez Lazo, 37, is accused of assaulting four women after pretending to be their ride-hailing driver. The crimes allegedly occurred in downtown San Francisco in 2013 and this year.



The new "Rideshare with Care" campaign announced today is encouraging riders to take three steps when using ride-hailing services to ensure their safety.



Before stepping into a ride-hailing car, Gascon said, riders should use the mobile app to verify the vehicle's license plate number, color, make and model. Riders should also confirm that the driver's name and photo match what's on the app.



Finally, riders are encouraged to share their location and destination with a partner, friend or family member.



"I applaud the D.A., we all do, for launching this campaign," said Uber spokesman Andrew Hasbun. "We are putting safety at the heart of everything that we do."



In recent months, Uber has rolled out new safety features for riders, as well as drivers, Hasbun said.



Both riders and drivers now have emergency buttons via their mobile app, which, when pushed, automatically makes a 911 phone call.



In addition, riders can now automatically share their locations and information about their driver with their chosen contacts, using a feature called "trusted contacts."



"These are all features that are designed to put safety in the palm of your hands," he said, adding that the features only work once the passenger is in the designated ride-hailing vehicle.



McEachern said other tips ride-hailing users can follow, is to try to travel in groups when possible and, if calling a ride-hailing service car for a friend, to make sure that the friend gets to their destination using the mobile app.



In an email, Lyft said, "We applaud the District Attorney's effort to educate the rideshare community about simple steps everyone can take to stay safe."



The statement said, "Lyft provides in-app photos of the driver and vehicle, real-time ride tracking, digital receipts, two-way rating systems, and professionally administered background checks. We also have a Trust and Safety Team available 24/7 for emergencies and a dedicated Critical Response Line to reach specially trained experts on the phone."



Lyft also said that it uses a device called Amp, which sits on the driver's dashboard and illuminates in a color that corresponds to what the passenger sees on their mobile app.



The District Attorney's Office estimates that about 170,000 ride-hailing trips are taken during a typical weekday in San Francisco.



In addition to the safety features provided by Lyft and Uber, prosecutors recommend that in the event of a crime during a ride-hailing service trip, that users, or drivers, call 911 immediately. Riders should also follow up with the company the driver works for, as well as their local police.





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A team of first responders from the East Bay traveled to Raleigh, North Carolina Monday night in preparation for Hurricane Florence.



The Category 4 storm is forecast to hit the East Coast along portions of the South Carolina and North Carolina coastlines Friday.



CA-Task Force 4 is made up of 16 team members from 18 different East Bay fire agencies. The team, which is expected to stay the maximum 21 days of deployment in Raleigh, was sent to aid in any necessary water rescue and flooding emergencies.



"It's impossible to tell what will happen," said Oakland Fire Battalion Chief Robert Lipp who serves as the urban search and rescue coordinator for the task force.



He said they're expecting significant rainfall and flooding which will require search and rescue missions, medical care and more.



This is the second time the task force has been deployed. They are part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency Mission Ready Packages, teams that are organized, developed and trained for emergency and disaster relief.



"It makes us more nimble and flexible," Lipp said of the task force deployment.



Last year, the task force traveled to help in recovery efforts after Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria.



State and local officials have declared states of emergency in Virginia, North and South Carolina. Federal aid is being made available to North Carolina and South Carolina.





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SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)



An eight-year-old lawsuit filed against PG&E Co. for alleged releases of dioxin from stored utility poles into San Francisco Bay and Humboldt Bay has been settled, according to the environmental group that filed the lawsuit.



The Ecological Rights Foundation, based in Garberville (Humboldt County), alleged in its 2010 lawsuit that dioxin, a chemical that causes cancer and birth defects, was carried by storm water runoff from treated wooden utility poles, sawdust and wood waste into the two bays.



The settlement was signed by U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg in San Francisco on Friday and announced by the foundation on Monday.



Under the agreement, which will remain in effect through 2026, PG&E will identify storage yards containing treated poles and will test and implement technologies for reducing dioxin runoff to levels that pose lower risk to human health and wildlife.



The technologies could include storage improvements, such as covering poles or keeping them indoors; improvements in storm water treatment; and possibly the use of different materials, such as cement or steel, for utility poles, according to foundation attorney Fredric Evenson.



Evenson said, "Dioxins are among the most toxic chemicals known to science.



"This has been a hard-fought legal battle, but in the end PG&E now appears to understand that dioxin has no business in our bay, and will now take meaningful action to benefit San Francisco Bay's wildlife and residents who eat locally caught seafood," he said.



The settlement specifies that PG&E does not admit to any wrongdoing.



"Because environmental stewardship is a guiding principle at PG&E, we are pleased to have reached an agreement with the Ecological Rights Foundation to perform environmental testing on new storm water treatment methods of PG&E's treated wood pole storage areas," the utility said in a statement.



"Northern California waterways may benefit from any enhancements to existing power pole storage practices and storm water treatment technologies PG&E adopts as a result of the testing," PG&E said.



The wooden poles are treated with pentachlorophenol, a preservative that creates dioxin when it is manufactured. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has banned the preservative for all uses except on utility poles, and its website says it "is extremely toxic when ingested by humans."



The foundation's lawsuit alleged PG&E stored its utility poles in up to 31 locations in the Bay Area and northern coastal California, including two sites each in Oakland, Hayward, and San Jose and one each in Daly City, San Carlos, Milpitas, Cupertino, Concord, Livermore and Vacaville.



The lawsuit also alleged the dioxin pollution ran into rivers and creeks as well as the two bays.



At the time of the settlement, the foundation had been allowed to do preliminary fact gathering at two storage yards in Hayward and Oakland near San Francisco Bay and two Eureka sites near Humboldt Bay and found treated poles at those locations, Evenson said.



Under the agreement, PG&E will identify which of the other sites also contain poles and debris treated with the preservative. The agreement will also apply to any other waterways affected, Evenson said.



Seeborg dismissed the lawsuit in 2015, but it was reinstated in 2017 by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which said the Ecological Rights Foundation had the right to sue under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.



The 1976 law allows citizens' lawsuits against entities that handle hazardous waste in a way that endangers human health or the environment.





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SANTA ROSA (BCN)



Santa Rosa police arrested two teens Tuesday on suspicion of vandalizing a fence with gang-related graffiti in the South Park area of the city.



Detectives saw the two known gang members get out of a vehicle near Pressley Street and Temple Avenue around 3:40 p.m. and spray their gang name, erase a rival gang's name and threaten to kill their rival gang members, police said.



Detectives and officers stopped the car occupied by Mateo Kuprian-Costa, 19, of Santa Rosa, and a 17-year-old juvenile. Costa was out of jail on bail for felony possession of a dirk or dagger and vandalism and was arrested and booked in the Sonoma County Jail.



He was booked on suspicion of felony vandalism, a gang enhancement, possession of a billy club and committing a felony while released on bail, police said.



The juvenile also was arrested and booked into the Juvenile Justice Center on suspicion of vandalism, a gang enhancement, and violation of probation, police said.



The juvenile previously admitted being a member of a gang, and both teens have prior weapons and gang contacts with police in Santa Rosa.



Skylar Storm Sachse, 22, of Santa Rosa, got into the vehicle after the vandalism Tuesday, police said. He was on probation for a DUI-related hit-and-run and possession of a dirk or dagger while out on bail.



Sachse was arrested and booked into Sonoma County Jail for allegedly violating his probation by associating with known gang members, police said.





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BERKELEY (BCN)



Berkeley police say they are still trying to find the suspects who fatally shot a 35-year-old Chilean native in Berkeley eight years ago today.



Adolfo Ignacio Celedon Bravo, nicknamed "Fito," was shot and killed at the corner of Adeline and Emerson streets at 3:41 a.m. on Sept. 12, 2010, which was his 35th birthday.



Celedon's fiancee Amber Nelson said in an interview two years after his death that they had met in Chile, where he was from, in February 2008 when she was vacationing there and they were planning to get married.



Nelson said Celedon moved to Berkeley a short time after they met because she was completing her dual master's degrees in architecture and landscape architecture.



Nelson said that on the day of the shooting, they had planned to get up early to visit places in the Bay Area that he had never seen because they didn't own a car. She explained that they normally got around by bicycle but she had rented a hybrid car for their sightseeing venture.



But police said that early that morning, Celedon and Nelson were walking home from a party when two male robbers attacked them at the corner of Adeline and Emerson streets, a block away from the Ashby BART station and several blocks from their home.



Police said that during the robbery, one of the suspects shot Celedon and one of them punched Nelson. Paramedics transported Celedon to a trauma center, where he was pronounced dead.



Police said the two suspects fled in what was described as a dark older model SUV.



There is a $15,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect or suspects responsible for Celedon's murder.



According to Celedon's sister, he had worked as an engineer in Chile but then got involved in the theater when he moved to Berkeley.



In a news release today, Berkeley police said, "Detectives remain hopeful that a member of the community will come forward with information. Even the smallest detail could prove critical in solving this case."



Police ask anyone with information about Celedon's death to call their homicide unit at (510) 981-5741 or their non-emergency line at (510) 981-5900.





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San Mateo County sheriff's deputies are conducting an investigation this evening in Half Moon Bay and residents are asked to avoid the area around the investigation.



As of 5:39 p.m., an investigation was underway in the area of 196 San Mateo Road.





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SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)



San Francisco supervisors today voted to approve two people nominated by Mayor London Breed to serve on the city's Police Commission.



During their regular meeting, the Board of Supervisors voted 10-1 for Damali Taylor, with Supervisor Sandra Lee Fewer voting against the nomination. Supervisors unanimously approved the nomination of Dion-Jay Brookter.



Before the voting, Fewer said she wouldn't be able to support Taylor's nomination to the Police Commission, citing a lack of representation of the Chinese community.



Fewer, who is of Chinese descent, questioned Taylor's connections and outreach efforts to the Chinese community, adding that during Taylor's interview by the Rules Committee last week, "I felt that her answers did not meet the standards of my community."



Also ahead of the voting, Supervisors Jane Kim asked the two nominees whether they would support the Police Department entering a Joint Terrorism Task Force Memoranda of Understanding that would allow for the surveillance of members of the community based on race or religion, without probable cause.



Taylor said, "I don't think I can nor would I prejudge without having any of the facts before me."



Brookter said he would want to "take a look at MOU with the community to see if that's the route where we want to go."



An unsatisfied Kim said, "I'm a little disheartened because this is a major issue impacting our community."



In 2017, the San Francisco Police Department announced it had suspended its participation with the FBI's controversial Joint Terrorism Task Force, which it had initially entered into in 2007.



Following the suspension, the department said it would update its guideline for First Amendment activities and "seek clarification" from the Police Commission as to this guideline's application to JTTF investigations. If the new guideline was adopted, the department said it would consider renegotiating the JTTF memoranda with the FBI.



Supervisors Ahsha Safai and Hillary Ronen also expressed concerns about reentering a JTTF MOU because of alleged rights violations by the administration of President Donald Trump.



"Rejoining the task force would be huge mistake," Ronen said.



After Kim rephrased her original question more than once, the two nominees eventually conceded that they would not support entering an MOU that would allow for use of city resources for the surveillance of residents based on race or religion, without probable cause.



In support of the two nominees, who are both African-American, President of the Board, Supervisor Malia Cohen, said, "We do need African-American representation... I'm excited to see these two candidates today who are stepping up to serve a city that they love."



Also during today's meeting, supervisors paid their respects to a former employee with the city's Street Violence Intervention Program who died in an unsolved shooting last month.



Joseph Taeotui, 43, died on Aug. 22 after suffering life-threatening injuries in a shooting in the city's Bayview neighborhood on Aug. 13.



Taeotui worked to prevent gun violence among youth and was reportedly leaving a neighborhood meeting regarding gun violence when he was shot.



Cohen today described Taeotui as a San Francisco native who was dedicated to improving the Bayview and Hunters Point communities.



"After years of witnessing violence in the Bayview community, Joe, also known as Jungle, was inspired by the youth to help them make a change," she said, appearing to hold back tears.



Taeotui was laid to rest over the weekend, Cohen said.



He's survived by his wife and his 2-year-old daughter.



"Jungle will be truly missed," Cohen said. "He was an angel that walked among us on this earth."





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An 8-year-old girl has died after being found unresponsive in a pool at Castlewood Country Club near Pleasanton on Sunday, Alameda County sheriff's officials said today.



Deputies responded at 2:25 p.m. Sunday to 707 Country Club Circle on a report of a girl who was found unresponsive in the pool by a lifeguard, according to the sheriff's office.



She was taken to UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland in critical condition.



The Alameda County coroner's bureau said the girl, identified as Ann Cai, died this morning.







The Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office is asking for the public's help in identifying a man who allegedly tried to kidnap a young girl in El Sobrante on Tuesday.



Sheriff's officials said the attempted kidnapping occurred shortly after 9 a.m. Tuesday in the 3600 block of San Pablo Dam Road. A 12-year-old girl was sitting on a bench when an older man sat next to her and allegedly offered her money to leave with him.



According to the sheriff's office, the girl walked away and a bystander called authorities.



The suspect is described as a black man between 45-55 years old with a medium build. He was wearing a hooded Gap sweatshirt and gray sweatpants. He was seen driving a white sedan.







A man who reportedly threatened to kill a Republican congressional candidate at the Castro Valley Fall Festival on Sunday has been charged with felony making criminal threats and misdemeanor exhibiting a deadly weapon and carrying a switchblade.



Farzad Fazeli, 35, of Castro Valley, was arraigned in Alameda County Superior Court on those charges Tuesday and is scheduled to return to court next Monday to enter a plea. He's free on $55,000 bail.



Alameda County sheriff's Deputy Christopher Hamblin wrote in a probable cause statement that witnesses reported that Fazeli brandished a pink switchblade knife and threatened to use it against candidate Rudy Peters at the festival at Castro Valley Boulevard and Redwood Road shortly before 3:45 p.m. Sunday but couldn't open the knife.



Peters also identified the item in Fazeli's hand to be a switchblade and said he believed he would have been stabbed if it would have opened, Hamblin wrote.



Peters wasn't injured in the incident, sheriff's officials said.



Afterward, deputies located and arrested Fazeli, who lives nearby, on the north side of the Chase Bank on Castro Valley Boulevard, close to the festival site, according to Hamblin.







The 152-acre Irving Fire burning at Samuel P. Taylor State Park northwest of Lagunitas in Marin County was caused by a downed power line, Marin County fire officials said this morning.



The fire is 65 percent contained as of this morning, fire officials said.



The power line fell on the Ridge Trail on the south side of Mount Barnabe, Marin County fire spokeswoman Laine Hendricks said this morning.



The first smoke from the fire was reported between 7 and 7:30 p.m. Monday, Hendricks said.



Residents who lost electric power should have it restored today, county fire officials said.







Family members are ramping up search efforts and offering a $25,000 reward to help find a 66-year-old woman who went missing almost one month ago in East Palo Alto.



Wamaitha Kaboga-Miller was last seen driving east on University Avenue after leaving Country Time Market on Aug. 17, according to Palo Alto police. She is considered to be at-risk because she was using numerous prescription medications, which she left at home.



Police said she was reported missing the next day but they have no leads and are asking the public for help. They do not suspect any criminal involvement in the case.



Family members have set up a website at https://www.findwamaitha.com to share information about her disappearance. The website includes a large photo album of Kaboga-Miller with friends and loved ones.







A Contra Costa County hazardous materials team responded this morning to the Orinda Country Club because of the inadvertent mixing of chemicals that resulted in a strong bleach-like odor in the area, county health officials said.



Officials with Contra Costa Health Services wrote on Twitter at 7:19 a.m. about the incident, which they say did not prompt the issuance of a health advisory for residents in the area.



The country club is located at 315 Camino Sobrante in Orinda.







The Rio Vista Bridge that links Solano and Sacramento counties reopened today, Caltrans officials said this morning.



The span has closed and reopened intermittently since Aug. 9 due to a damaged mechanism that raises the drawbridge for marine traffic below.



The broken mechanism caused major delays for motorists on state Highway 12 in Rio Vista, as well as commercial shipping and recreational boaters. Caltrans sent the damaged motor gearbox to a manufacturer to expedite the repairs.



Testing of the bridge is now complete. Some repairs and refurbishing of bridge components are ongoing but will not affect traffic on and below the bridge, Caltrans officials said.







Santa Rosa police arrested two teens Tuesday on suspicion of vandalizing a fence with gang-related graffiti in the South Park area of the city.



Detectives saw the two known gang members get out of a vehicle near Pressley Street and Temple Avenue around 3:40 p.m. and spray their gang name, erase a rival gang's name and threaten to kill their rival gang members, police said.



Detectives and officers stopped the car occupied by Mateo Kuprian-Costa, 19, of Santa Rosa, and a 17-year-old juvenile. Costa was out of jail on bail for felony possession of a dirk or dagger and vandalism and was arrested and booked in the Sonoma County Jail.



He was booked on suspicion of felony vandalism, a gang enhancement, possession of a billy club and committing a felony while released on bail, police said.



The juvenile also was arrested and booked into the Juvenile Justice Center on suspicion of vandalism, a gang enhancement, and violation of probation, police said.







The Concord Police Department is asking residents to register for parking or block party permits through the department's website, where they can also add their private security system to the city's video camera registry.



Most of the services available at https://pdpermits.ci.concord.ca.us are free, except for the residential parking permit program, and that $11.30 fee can now be paid online.



City officials said today they're looking to reduce the time spent on tasks related to these permits while also making them accessible to the public in a streamlined process. Residents are still welcome to apply for these permits in person.



Parking permits have been handled by the city's finance department in the past, but now they will be processed by the Police Department's parking services program. City officials say they will notify current permit holders of the change by mail.





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A man has been arrested on suspicion of felony assault and other charges for allegedly trying to stab a Republican congressional candidate at the Castro Valley Fall Festival, according to an Alameda County sheriff's spokesman.



The alleged assault occurred Sunday.



Witnesses said Farzad Fazeli, 35, of Castro Valley, approached candidate Rudy Peters at his campaign booth at the festival at Castro Valley Boulevard and Redwood Road shortly before 3:45 p.m. Sunday "in an aggressive manner and made disparaging remarks about his political party and elected officials," Sgt. Ray Kelly wrote in a news release.



Fazeli is suspected of pulling out a switchblade knife and attempting to stab Peters, but the knife malfunctioned and Peters became involved in a physical struggle with Fazeli, Kelly said.







A former Hollister police officer who was shot at by police Sunday after allegedly stealing a car and driving it onto a field in Gilroy has been charged with two felonies and a misdemeanor, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office.



Chad Browning, 42, of Fresno, was arrested and booked into Santa Clara County Jail with bail of $250,000 on Sunday evening, according to Gilroy police. He was charged Tuesday with felonies of assaulting a police officer with a deadly weapon and vehicle theft, in addition to misdemeanors of petty theft and methamphetamine possession.



Hollister police spokesman Sgt. Don Pershall confirmed Tuesday that Browning was an officer in the department from 2002 to 2007. He said he can't discuss the reason for Browning's departure because it is a private personnel matter.



Gilroy police first learned of a stolen vehicle out of Fresno on Sunday morning. The theft bulletin said the suspect was a former police officer who had stolen a car and recently tried to get a gun from a family member, according to police.



Browning called Gilroy police at about 1 p.m. Sunday and said the woman who had reported the stolen vehicle had been kidnapped. He also told officers the stolen vehicle belonged to him, according to police.







The San Francisco District Attorney's Office has launched a citywide campaign to encourage users of ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft to take extra safety precautions.



District Attorney George Gascon announced the campaign Tuesday afternoon, alongside police Cmdr. Greg McEachern and an Uber spokesman.



"Mostly the services are safe," Gascon said. "But we also know that when things go wrong, they can go wrong very quickly. We know there have been individuals locally that have manipulated the services to hurt others and for their own purposes. That is why it is important that we be vigilant, that we all work together and that we help one another," he said.



In July, San Francisco police arrested a former Lyft driver dubbed as the "Rideshare Rapist."



Orlando Vilchez Lazo, 37, is accused of assaulting four women after pretending to be their ride-hailing driver. The crimes allegedly occurred in downtown San Francisco in 2013 and this year.







Officials with the city of Oakland and the American Red Cross are scrambling to try to make shelter arrangements for 37 people who were displaced by a fire at a homeless camp near Interstate Highway 880 in Oakland, a city official said.



The fire occurred Tuesday morning.



Joe DeVries, an assistant to City Administrator Sabrina Landreth who works on homeless issues, said the Red Cross typically provides replacement tents for homeless people who lose their tents in fires but he said that might not happen in this case.



DeVries said, "We're looking into what shelter beds are available" but said there may not be many available.



Oakland Fire Battalion Chief Demond Simmons said about 15 or 16 tents were destroyed in the blaze in the 2200 block of East 12th Street that was reported at 2:41 a.m. and was contained shortly after 4 a.m.



The cause of the fire is still under investigation, according to Simmons.







A team of first responders from the East Bay traveled to Raleigh, North Carolina in preparation for Hurricane Florence.



The first responders left Monday night.



The Category 4 storm is forecast to hit the East Coast along portions of the South Carolina and North Carolina coastlines Friday.



CA-Task Force 4 is made up of 16 team members from 18 different East Bay fire agencies. The team, which is expected to stay the maximum 21 days of deployment in Raleigh, was sent to aid in any necessary water rescue and flooding emergencies.







A 49-year-old woman failed to stop her speeding car at a red light before she crashed into a light pole in Sausalito and died, a police lieutenant said.



The crash happened late Monday night.



A police officer was almost struck by the 1999 Honda Accord around 11:40 p.m. as he attempted to turn north onto Bridgeway from Nevada Street, Sausalito police Lt. Bill Fraass said.



The Honda driver went north on Bridgeway as the officer tried to catch up to it, but then it then struck a light pole and a banner pole in the 3000 block of Bridgeway, Fraass said.



Marin County Fire Department crews responded to the crash and pronounced the woman dead at the scene. Her identification has not been released by the county coroner.





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LEON, Nicaragua  Two days after protests began in Nicaragua in April, a foreign auto components company was meeting at a hotel in the city of Leon when smoke from a burning university building just a block away billowed above the hotels colonnaded courtyard.

The visitors quickly cut short their event and began changing their travel plans to exit Nicaragua. Within three months, the El Convento hotel itself was forced to close for lack of business, as a sister hotel in the same city had in June.

Nicaraguas economy has been devastated by the nearly five months of unrest sparked by cuts to social security benefits that quickly evolved into calls for President Daniel Ortega to step down.

In June, the countrys economic activity was down 12.1 percent compared to a year earlier, according to the central bank. Economists estimate 200,000 jobs have been shed, including as many as 70,000 in the tourism sector, which has become Nicaraguas top source of foreign currency in the past two years.

Revenue at hotels and restaurants plunged 45 percent in June compared to 2017, according to Nicaraguas central bank. Similarly, construction suffered a 35 percent drop and retail 27 percent. Some $900 million in deposits fled Nicaraguas banks. They responded by tightening their lending to preserve liquidity, thus also contributed to the economic slowdown.

Nicaraguan Union of Agricultural Producers says more than 12,000 acres of private land have been occupied by government supporters in what business leaders have called confiscations in revenge for their support of the protesters.

The producers say 91 percent of the land occupied by squatters was used for farming and livestock.

More than 300 people have been killed in the unrest, according to human rights groups. The government calls the protesters terrorists and says it defeated an attempt to drive Ortega from office that was sponsored by the U.S. government and domestic opposition.

Christopher Sherman and Alfredo Zuniga are Associated Press writers.
Page Content

On Aug. 29, Delaware Governor John Carney signed into law a bill (SB 360) addressing sexual harassment in the workplace. The new law broadly defines and prohibits sexual harassment and retaliation.

The statute obligates employers with four or more employees to issue an information sheet on sexual harassment. It also requires larger employers with 50 or more employees to provide sexual-harassment training for all employees and supervisors, making Delaware the fifth state to statutorily mandate sexual-harassment training. The Delaware law will become effective on Jan. 1, 2019.

Basic Principles and Definitions

The new law clarifies that sexual harassment involves "conduct that includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature." Such behavior rises to the level of an unlawful employment practice if submission to the conduct is a condition of employment (either explicitly or implicitly), is the basis of employment decisions, unreasonably interferes with an employee's work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment.

The statute makes an employer liable for acts of sexual harassment when:

The employer knew or should have known of the harassment and failed to take corrective measures.



Harassment by a supervisor results in a "negative employment action" against an employee.



A negative employment action is taken against an employee in retaliation for filing a discrimination charge, participating in an investigation or testifying in any proceeding about sexual harassment.



"Negative employment action" is expansively defined to mean any "action taken by a supervisor that negatively impacts the employment status of an employee." Depending on how this term is interpreted by agencies and courts, this definition could theoretically cover a wide range of employer decisions, perhaps wider than currently encompassed by the federal framework.

Notably, the definition of "employee" is also quite expansive. Under the Delaware law, an "employee" is "an individual employed by an employer and includes state employees, unpaid interns, applicants, joint employees and apprentices." The Delaware statute's inclusion of unpaid interns, applicants and apprentices in the definition of employee sets it apart from the sexual-harassment laws of other states.

Training Requirement

While many states have laws encouraging employers to provide anti-harassment training to their employees, Delaware now joins the short list of states that require sexual-harassment training.

Under the new law, employers in the First State with 50 or more employees must provide all employees with interactive training and education on the prevention of sexual harassment. For purposes of this subsection, the statute explicitly excludes applicants and independent contractors from the numerosity requirement. In other words, employers do not count these individuals when determining if they have 50 employees, sufficient to trigger the training obligation.

Additionally, employers need not provide training to applicants, independent contractors or employees who are employed less than six months continuously. The law also clarifies that only employment agencies must "count and provide training to employees placed by" such agencies.

Employers covered by the training requirement must meet the following requirements:

They must provide employees with interactive training and education on the prevention of sexual harassment.



Training must be conducted for new employees within one year of the commencement of their employment. Existing employees must receive sexual-harassment training within one year of the effective date of the statute (that is, by Jan. 1, 2020).



The training topics must:



Address the illegality of sexual harassment.



Define sexual harassment with examples.



Describe the legal remedies and complaint process available to the employee.



Direct employees on how to contact the Delaware Department of Labor.



Instruct employees that retaliation is prohibited.

New supervisors must receive additional interactive training within one year of the commencement of their employment in a supervisory role. Existing supervisors must receive training by Jan. 1, 2020.



This supplemental training must cover the specific responsibilities of a supervisor in preventing and correcting sexual harassment as well as the legal prohibition against retaliation.



These employee and supervisor training programs must be repeated every two years.



Notice Requirement

Under the new law, covered Delaware employers must give notice to employees of their right to be free from harassment at work, via an information sheet to be created by the state Department of Labor. The notice will address the same five topics to be covered in the mandatory employee training described above. Employers must distribute the information sheeteither physically or electronicallyto new hires at the commencement of employment. Employers must provide the notice to existing employees by July 1, 2019.

Takeaways

As the new law takes effect in a few short months, Delaware employers should take steps promptly to prepare for compliance. All covered employers should review their anti-harassment policies and procedures and should keep an eye out for the Delaware Department of Labor's information sheet. Employers subject to the interactive training requirements additionally should consider revisiting and updating any existing training protocols, or otherwise identifying a training program that satisfies all of the statute's requirements.

Marissa L. Dragoo is an attorney with Littler in Sacramento, Calif. Kevin P. O'Neill is an attorney with Littler in San Francisco.  Littler. All rights reserved. Reposted with permission.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Elissa Montanti, the Staten Island native who founded the Global Medical Relief Fund, has been declared a "CNN Hero."

To date, the Arrochar resident has brought 300-plus children from 46 war-torn countries to the United States for medical treatment.

In recognition of her work over the last 20 years, Elissa is being featured in the network's 2018 "CNN Heroes" series. Check out the videos below:

"On a thread and a prayer I founded the Global Medical Relief Fund," Elissa said. "And thanks to Tyler Perry, the doors opened to the 'Dare to Dream House' in Arrochar, a home that provides lodging and housing for children receiving care and treatment."

And to this day, the Advance Woman of Achievement in the Class of 2011 continues with her mission: Providing vital medical care, prosthetics and rehabilitation to children from war-torn or natural disaster countries.

"During the end of October and early November CNN will announce the Top 10 finalists with coverage aired all over the world with each top ten winner receiving $10,000," she said. "There's some 10,000 nominees per year and I'm honored and humbled to be chosen among the Top 25."

A LITTLE ABOUT CHILDREN HELPED BY GMRF

-- Jannet Silva, was a shy 12-year-old when she was brought to the United States from her native Gambia to receive life-saving, pro-bono surgery.



Jannet's facial tumor -- that was growing inside her mouth -- grew to such proportions that she couldn't breathe or eat without extreme difficulty. The six-pound tumor wasn't cancerous -- but it was deadly.

Dr. David Hoffman, director of the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at SIUH, assembled a team to treat the child here. After further research, they opted to perform the surgery at Cohen's Children's Medical Center on Long Island.



Dr. Hoffman then reached out to Elissa Montanti, president of the Global Medical Relief Fund, to arrange for transportation, housing and travel visas for Jannet and her mom.



"This was a girl who was literally trapped in her own body. Had this tumor been left untreated, Jannet would certainly have starved to death. The size and location of the tumor were affecting her ability to breathe and eat."

-- Ahmed Shareff lost his eyes and arm protecting a childhood friend from an explosion during the Iraq War. Nearly 16 years later, he rocks "Blind Ambition."



Montanti came to Ahmed's assistance who was blinded and maimed at 5 years-old on his way home from school.



"I learned about Ahmed from the military -- and Ahmed is only one of the dozens of requests I got from them during the war in Iraq," said Elissa.



"During one of my three trips to the war zone in Iraq, I got Ahmed in 2005. He was only 7 years old ... He tried to protect his friend when an explosion went off and was set ablaze himself. I exhausted all possibilities for him to regain sight by seeing 20 different specialists. So, he was given prosthetic eyes as well as an arm."

-- And how could we ever forget Kenan Malkic, Elissa's adopted son and a triple amputee from Bosnia, who was the impetus for her mission of mercy and the reason she founded her charity two decades ago.

Kenan, who received two arms, a new leg and a new life, is now an assistant vice president of Credit Suisse.
CITY HALL -- The City Council voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to allow those who do not identify exclusively as male or female to identify as a gender "X" on their birth certificates.

The bill spearheaded by Speaker Corey Johnson, passed 41 to 6. Island Councilman Joe Borelli (R-South Shore) and Minority Leader Steve Matteo (R-Mid Island) voted against the bill.

Matteo's office said in a joint statement with Borelli: "Matteo and Borelli both felt this bill goes beyond any standard that has been set to allow individuals to change a sex designation on a birth certificate."

North Shore Councilwoman Debi Rose, a Democrat, who voted in favor of the bill said: "I support an individual's right to self-identify."

The bill comes as the city has taken major steps in recent years to protect transgender and gender non-conforming individuals from discrimination.

In 2016, Mayor Bill de Blasio signed an executive order requiring city agencies to ensure transgender and gender non-conforming individuals were given access to single-sex bathrooms without being required to show a form of identification.

"Today is a historic day for New York in its role as a worldwide champion for inclusivity and equality. New Yorkers will no longer need a doctor's note to change their gender on their birth certificates, and will no longer be treated as if their identify was a medical issue," Johnson said.

The city's Health Department was also quick to applaud the legislation.

"This is truly a momentous occasion and testament to the work of Board Members, Council Members, but most of all the members of the transgender community whose dedication, work and perseverance made this possible," Acting Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot, said. "The Health Department and the Board of Health will continue to work toward a more equitable city, one that reduces stigma, eliminates barriers, and promotes the health of all transgender, gender nonconforming, and non-binary New Yorkers."

De Blasio is expected to sign the bill into law.

FOLLOW SYDNEY KASHIWAGI ON
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The large fish tanks located in the St. George ferry terminal have now been covered with large-scale temporary designs about the Billion Oyster Project and Living Breakwaters Project as the tanks undergo a makeover.

The Billion Oyster Project -- which is working to restore live oysters in New York Harbor -- partnered with the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Division of Ferries to re-design the aquariums.

"Tens of thousands of people come through here, and for everyone who does is getting a brief glimpse of what goes on below the water, seeing the animals that live there, and then also learning about the efforts going on and the young people working to restore New York Harbor," said Pete Malinowski, co-founder and executive director of the Billion Oyster Project. "I think it's going to be really impactful and really beautiful."

The tanks previously displayed fish, and acted as a welcoming exhibit at the terminal. The new designs -- created by SCAPE Landscape Architecture, the original developers of the Breakwaters Project -- include graphics and information about the work the Billion Oyster Project is doing to restore live oysters in New York Harbor, including along Staten Island's South Shore.

The aquariums will re-open with educational content in 2019.

It is unclear what will replace the fish tanks, but some possibilities include reintroducing fish and other creatures, or bringing an interactive element to the tanks.

"Rather than thinking of the [New York] Harbor simply as a system of transportation, or waste conveyance, think of the harbor as our most important natural resource, our biggest park, a place for recreation, education, teaching and learning," said Malinowski. "I think that these panels are going to be a really important aspect of that work."

Deputy Borough President Ed Burke explained the Billion Oyster Project does more than restore live oysters to the harbor, but also aims to educate youth in schools across the five boroughs.

There are 13 schools on Staten Island that operate as "satellite campuses" for oyster research for the Billion Oyster Project.

"Not only are they doing a good deed environmentally, they're doing a great deed in terms of mentoring young people," Burke said.

The live oysters will also serve as storm protection on Staten Island, as part of the Living Breakwaters Project -- which was selected by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to reduce waves in hopes of preventing erosion and storm damage.

Last month, the first oyster reef on Staten Island was installed in a lagoon in Lemon Creek Park, Prince's Bay.

The Billion Oyster Project is a non-profit organization with a goal of restoring 1 billion live oysters to New York Harbor over the next 20 years, while training thousands of young people in New York City to care for their marine environment.

This first phase of the transformation of the aquariums is being funded through a grant from the Northfield Bank Foundation. The aquariums have also been sponsored by Empire Outlets, New York City's first outlet mall being built next to the St. George Ferry Terminal.

FOLLOW ANNALISE KNUDSON ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER.
Shira Stoll, a Multimedia Specialist for the Advance/SILive.com, is the filmmaker behind the "Where Life Leads You" documentary and the Staten Island Holocaust Survivor series.



STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- "I went out where the ghetto was closed; people used to come from work. And I was waiting for my mother, my mother didn't come. I saw a lady with the same coat. I ran her way: Mommy Mommy!"



But it wasn't her mother. It was a stranger with the same coat.

And in that moment, Rachel Roth knew that her mother had been killed.

That was almost 80 years ago, but Rachel still tells the story as if it happened yesterday, with tears streaming down her face.

The image of her crying during the interview and recalling the last memory she had with her mother is something I will never forget.

She sat down, took a sip of water, and continued with her story. "It was very bad, very bad," she said.

Rachel spoke of losing her two sisters and brother, smuggling a gun into the Warsaw ghetto for the uprising and passing Mengele's selections at Auschwitz, to name just a few parts of her terrifying journey.

She also told the story of a woman who tried to escape from Majdanek. When the Nazis caught this woman, they hung her and forced the prisoners to watch her body hanging from the gallows. Rachel recalled the words of the officer, "If anyone tries to escape, this is what will happen to you."

To take the prisoners' minds away from the hanging, she told stories about Shabbat dinner with her family. She described the smell of the warm, tasty chicken soup coming from the kitchen and the delicious challah bread set on her table, with a white table cloth.



One prisoner thanked Rachel for bringing her to the imaginary Shabbat dinner table. She told Rachel that she had to survive, in order to tell the world what they did to them, and Rachel promised that she would.

Although Rachel is hard of hearing, she projects her story loudly, to keep this promise that she made to the woman at Majdanek.



Not only did she write her memoir, "Here There is No Why," she still continues to speak at schools in New York to keep her story alive.

Rachel tells her gut-wrenching story of losing most of her family, but leaves the viewer with a clear message: "We built a new generation!"

We invite you to watch the above video to hear Rachel's riveting story.
(This is the latest edition of Island Government, a news round-up about Staten Island politics.)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Rep. Dan Donovan and Republican U.S. Senate candidate Chele Farley unveiled a plan to secure funding for North Shore Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and West Shore Light Rail on Monday.

Donovan (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) says he outlined his case to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation's chairman with a three part strategy to obtain funding for both projects: Including language in a mandated committee report that acknowledges light rail and BRT would help alleviate the national transportation crisis; adding language to the transportation appropriations bill text that mandated at least some of the transportation infrastructure money be spent on high-population areas with extreme commute times; and lastly, increasing funding for the Urbanized Area Formula Grant and the Bus and Bus Facilities Grant that could be applied toward the two projects.

"I am fighting hard to finally make these projects a reality and we have a clear plan to get it done, but having a real partner in the Senate like Chele Farley to help advocate for Staten Island will go a long way," said Donovan. "As an engineer, Chele has a firsthand understanding of infrastructure and transportation issues. She knows how important relieving our traffic crisis is to Staten Island, and will fight with me to make sure we get our fair share of funding."

Farley, who is challenging potential 2020 presidential contender U.S. Sen. Kirstin Gillibrand (D-New York), said "Staten Islanders are fortunate to have a leader like Dan Donovan fighting for them in Washington."

"As a longtime City resident, I know Staten Island has been getting the short shrift for years when it comes to transportation options, and I vow to finally change that in Congress," Farley continued. "Staten Islanders deserve a Senator who is focused on their issues rather than running for President. I fully support these projects and will work closely with Dan and the White House to make them a top priority."

SURROGATE COURT CANDIDATE CATALANO RELEASES REFORM PLAN

Staten Island public administrator Anthony Catalano -- a Democrat running against Assemblyman Matt Titone (D-North Shore) in a primary for the Staten Island Surrogate's Court -- released a report on how he would reform the court, entitled "The Future of the Practice in Surrogate's Court, Richmond County."

His reform plan includes:

Improving uniformity and publishing Surrogate Court rules as well as training personnel to follow the rules.

Implementing e-filing and promoting access to information while protecting the privacy of vulnerable populations served be the court, including infants, adoptive families, and the disabled.

Collaborate with other courts to streamline communication.

Reform the court's calendar to reduce the amount of time attorneys and litigants spend waiting in court.

Improve access by opening the courthouse during off-hours.

Work with community groups to provide education on care for disabled persons.

Increase availability of language translators, and

Support legislative changes to enhance accessibility to the Surrogate's Court.

The Surrogate Judge decides cases involving the money and property of Staten Island residents who have died. This includes the probate of wills, the administration of estates, the appointment and oversight of guardians for infants (those under eighteen years of age) and developmentally or intellectually disabled persons. The Surrogate Judge also adjudicates adoptions.

YOST'S PLAN TO FIGHT OPIOIDS

Glenn Yost, one of three Republicans running for the South Shore Assembly seat, released a five-point plan to combat the Island's opioid epidemic.

Yost, an attorney and former NYPD detective, dubbed the agenda C.O.R.E.E.:

Improving coordination among city, state, and federal elected officials to adopt a comprehensive agenda to reduce access to certain drugs.

Improving oversight by the FDA to require pharmaceutical companies to educate doctors and the public about the addictive nature of certain drugs, via pamphlets.

Improving rehabilitation by fast tracking intensive outpatient treatment facilities. While New York requires a one-year review for an application, New Jersey requires six months and Florida only requires six weeks. He is also pushing for rehabilitation to include post rehabilitation stays at sober living facilities.

Educating children with literature, films, activities and community speakers.

Improving enforcement by "understanding the difference between drug addicts and drug dealers who are predators and should be jailed."

Yost is running against Michael Reilly, president of Staten Island's Community Education Council, and Ashley Zanatta, a public health advocate, in the Sept. 13 Republican primary election. There are no Democrats running in the race.

ZANATTA TALKS SCHOOLS

(Photo/Courtesy Ashley Zanatta)

Ashley Zanatta handed school supplies, ranging from notebooks and crayons to backpacks, outside of a Great Kills supermarket on Aug. 26.

Zanatta said that if elected she would push to increase the number of available school seats for special needs children, ensure that educators and administrators are carefully vetted and monitored.

"My commitment is to ensuring that every child has an ample opportunity for their success by providing a quality education for all," said Zanatta. "In particular, I am strongly focused on guaranteeing that our most vulnerable populations are well provided."

Zanatta is running against Michael Reilly, president of Staten Island's Community Education Council, and Glenn Yost, an attorney, in the Sept. 13 Republican primary election. There are no Democrats running in the race.

STATEN ISLAND GOP CHAIR ON MCCAIN'S DEATH

"The Staten Island Republican family joins with Americans around the country in mourning the loss of patriot and statesman, Senator John McCain," said Brendan T. Lantry, chairman of the Staten Island Republican Party. "Staten Island had the fortune of hosting Senator McCain on several occasions over the years. His courage, leadership and love of country will be missed."

FALL'S HEALTH CARE PLAN, RACKS UP ENDORSEMENT FROM FORMER BP

Democrat Charles Fall, one of three Democrats vying for the open North Shore state Assembly seat, released a five-point health care policy plan on Aug. 29.

Fall, an ex-City Hall aide and chief of staff to the Staten Island Parks commissioner, said, "Access to affordable, quality health care means not only having adequate medical facilities that provide it, but a public transportation system that can get people there, safe and supportive housing for those at-risk."

Fall said that he would support a single-payer health care system, a statewide individual mandate, state-based public option, and the banning of short-term association health plans.

Fall also pledged to support the next attorney general in prosecuting certain drug companies as well as passing the Reproductive Health Act, Comprehensive Contraception Act, and a revamped sexual education curriculum.

To fight the borough's opioid epidemic, Fall said he would seek to improve coordination between local hospitals and outpatient recovery and detox centers. Fall also said he would "[empower] local prosecutors."

The Mariners Harbor Democrat also said he would support local hospital through increasing capitol funds from the state, advocating for loan forgiveness for doctors, investing in primary and preventative care, and increasing funds for community-based healthcare.

Fall is running against Patricia Kane, an open-heart surgery nurse and union leader, and Bobby Digi Olisa, a community activist and small business owner.

DONOVAN ANNOUNCES APP CHALLENGE

Rep. Dan Donovan (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) announced Aug. 27 that his office is accepting submissions for the 2018 Congressional App Challenge.

The competition, which is open to Staten Island and South Brooklyn students, aims to develop an interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education. A panel of local judges from the technology and computer science sectors will review apps created by participants and select a winning submission.

This is the fourth year that Donovan's office has hosted the Congressional App Challenge. Last year's winner was Kathleen Coen, a senior at Notre Dame Academy. She created an app entitled "Steer Clear," which focused on preventing drunk driving by helping users find free and safe rides home from events. Other winning projects include an app that created a marketplace for students to buy and sell college textbooks and the development of a computer operating system.

For additional information about the Congressional App Challenge, students may visit https://Donovan.House.Gov/Challenge or contact Donovan's Staten Island District Office at (718) 351-1062.

Students must register online by Sept. 10 and app submissions will be accepted until Oct. 15.

Register here and learn more about rules, eligibility and deadlines here.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. appeared in court Wednesday to dismiss 3,000 marijuana cases that date back 40 years.

Vance said in court that vacating the warrants would prevent unnecessary future interactions with the criminal justice system, and eliminate the collateral consequences associated with an open Criminal Court case.

Consequences that could include a person's job prospects, school attendance, housing applications and immigration status, according to a press release Wednesday on the D.A.'s website.

A spokesman for Richmond County District Attorney Michael E. McMahon said Wednesday the office declined to comment on the decision and whether they were considering doing the same.

Of the cases dismissed in Manhattan, 46 percent of the people were 25 or younger at the time of their arrest, and nearly 80 percent were people of color. The move counteracts statistics over the years that have shown a disproportionate number of minorities arrested for low-level marijuana charges.

One activist on Staten Island has argued for the removal of marijuana charges from criminal records. Earlier this year, Deacon John McBeth, co-organizer of Occupy the Block on the borough's North Shore, shared his opinion with the Advance.

"Justice is you do your time and then you're free," said McBeth. "But in certain cases, [the convict] is never free ... that person remains marginalized for the rest of their life, and the only doors that remain open tend to be illegal."

Last week, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced a new plan to erase tens of thousands of low-level marijuana cases, according to a PIX11 report.

District Attorneys in Queens and the Bronx have not announced whether or not they have plans to dismiss cases, according to the report.

In terms of state law, an open forum will be held Sept. 26 at an undetermined location on Staten Island, where residents and business owners can share their thoughts on the proposed legalization of recreational marijuana.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo rolled out a series of 15 listening sessions across the state, where staff for the state's Regulated Marijuana Workgroup will take comments from key stakeholders in the borough and community members.

Specific venues have yet to be determined.

In New Jersey, the prosecution of marijuana possession at the municipal level will resume, after state Attorney General Gurbir Grewal called off a temporary adjournment, according to an nj.com report.

Meanwhile, some members of the New Jersey state Legislature in support of legalizing have said a bill could pass by October.
Sen. Ben Sasse is the latest Republican to opine the loss of traditional GOP values. Many so-called "Never Trump" Republicans, remnants of the old guard within the party, have discussed leaving the party since Donald Trump took power. They say the party has left them, moving dramatically to the right. Some have resigned Congressional seats in protest, while others are considering changing party affiliation. Many within the party say the GOP platform reflects the feelings of the country and dissidents should fall in line. What do you think?

PERSPECTIVES

Sasse tweeted about his feelings on the state of the GOP before expanding upon them to Jake Tapper on CNN's "State of the Union." Per Politico:

Many traditionalist Republicans are arguing that changing party affiliation is the only option in today's political climate. Per Politico:

Ned Ryun, a former presidential writer for President George W. Bush, argues in an opinion piece for The Hill, that "Never Trump" Republicans are out of touch with the American people.

Steve Schmidt, a Republican political strategist, took to Twitter in June to formally renounce the GOP.

29 years and nine months ago I registered to vote and became a member of The Republican Party which was founded in 1854 to oppose slavery and stand for the dignity of human life. Today I renounce my membership in the Republican Party. It is fully the party of Trump.  Steve Schmidt (@SteveSchmidtSES) June 20, 2018

New York Times opinion columnist David Brooks stated Trump clearly tapped into the nation's fears and anxieties, and completely leaving the party would mean ignoring the needs of this constituency.

Some feel the only solution is to completely destroy the party and start a new, more centrist political affiliation.

Even people who once considered themselves Never Trumpers have been forced to recognize his legitimacy within the party. Rich Lowry, the editor of the conservative National Review, argued as much in an op-ed for Politico:

The Tylt is focused on debates and conversations around news, current events and pop culture. We provide our community with the opportunity to share their opinions and vote on topics that matter most to them. We actively engage the community and present meaningful data on the debates and conversations as they progress. The Tylt is a place where your opinion counts, literally. The Tylt is an Advance Local Media, LLC property. Join us on Twitter @TheTylt, on Instagram @TheTylt or on Facebook, we'd love to hear what you have to say.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Seventeen years after the deadliest terrorist attack in U.S. history, hundreds of Staten Islanders gathered at the 9/11 Postcards Memorial in St. George Tuesday to honor those borough residents who lost their lives in the tragedy.

For Louise and Shannon Yaskulka, Sept. 11 gets harder every year.

On Sept. 11, 2001 Louise Yaskulka said she was driving into Manhattan from her home in Port Richmond when she saw the second plane hit the World Trade Center.

Her daughter, Shannon Yaskulka, was just three years old when it happened, but she recalls knowing that the burning building she saw on TV was where "grandma worked."

Louise's mother in law, Shannon's grandmother, Myrna Yaskulka, never made it out of her office at the World Trade Center, where she worked as an executive secretary at Fred Alger Management.

They said that day was one of the first days she left home early, at 8 a.m., to get to work.

"For me, personally, it gets harder every year . . . I still don't believe she's gone," Louise Yaskulka said.

They said every year since that fateful day, they go every year to one of the 9/11 memorials in the city to honor the late Yaskulka's memory and many other friends they lost that day, too.

Ruth Henri, of West Brighton, said she also comes to the Island's Postcard Memorial every year. Henri's husband is a firefighter who worked at Ground Zero immediately after the attacks.

She said they lost dozens of friends, many of them Island firefighters.

"[I come] out of respect and to pray for families," Henri said.

The annual event at the Island's Postcards Memorial honors the 275 people with ties to Staten Island who lost their lives in the Sept. 11, 2001, World Trade Center attacks.

Tuesday's memorial was joined by politicians from around the borough, city, and state.

And dozens of loved ones and first responders read the names of the family, friends and colleagues they lost because of the attacks.

"Tonight, we remember their goodness and their virtue, tonight we honor their generosity and courage and mercy, in reading out their names tonight, we acknowledge and thank all of those who, throughout their lives, and on that day and at that site for weeks and months after, took care of people," Borough President James Oddo said. "We honor the stories of heroism told, and the untold, and we take a moment to express gratitude for the talents they brought into this world."

With the Sept. 11th Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) set to expire in 2020, despite many survivors still suffering from health-related issues as a result of the time they spent at Ground Zero following the attacks, Mayor Bill de Blasio called on the federal government to provide funding for surviving 9/11 victims.

"We've lost so many people since 9/11 and so many are sickened now and facing such deep challenges," the mayor said. "I want to remind everybody, and I know we all feel this, that we have to be there for them and we have to say with one voice, regardless of what our philosophies are, or where we live, or our background, with one voice, that so long as there are people suffering from 9/11 illnesses, our federal government should provide every penny they need so they can be well."

Postcards was designed by artist Masayuki Sono and built in 2004. By 2017, the names of 66 first responders who lost their lives due to illnesses related to 9/11 were inscribed into the memorial, maintained by the NYCEDC.

By the end of 2018, at least seven more will be added.

Over the summer, the de Blasio administration announced it would add $250,000 in funding from the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) to improve lighting and preservation for the memorial.

FOLLOW SYDNEY KASHIWAGI ON TWITTER.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Police are searching for a New Brighton woman last seen Aug. 31 -- less than a month after a previous disappearance.

Kimberly Flagg was seen that Friday around 12 p.m. inside her apartment at the Richmond Terrace housing complex, according to a written statement from the NYPD.

Cops previously said the 48-year-old woman suffers from mental illness, and has run away in the past with the most recent incident occurring Aug. 17. She was found three days later.

Cops described Flagg as a black female approximately 5 feet 8 inches tall, and 140 pounds. She was seen wearing pants, a maroon shirt and black shoes before her disappearance.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime stoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

All calls are strictly confidential.
By Christopher DeSanctis

Each year during one of America's favorite holidays, Thanksgiving, we anticipate the chance to gather with family and friends to reflect on the blessings we enjoy in this country. But frankly, another holiday should rank equally as high for its significance to our great land of opportunity and freedom: Constitution Day, on Sept. 17.

On this day, we commemorate the signing of the U.S. Constitution in 1787 in Philadelphia. After months of deliberation and debates, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed this landmark document that remains the oldest written national constitution still in use today.

Yet, ask many Americans what happened on Sept. 17, and they return blank stares. Even fewer will know that since 2004, Constitution Day has been an official national observance.

Yet to us -- and to each succeeding generation -- belongs the duty to preserve our system of free and limited government. How can we fulfill this charge if we fail to recognize, understand, and appreciate the foundational legal document of this system? Indeed, we cannot.

Therefore, teaching the principles of our democratic republic -- both its structure and the reasons behind it -- should be an important goal for all levels of American education. But American education has failed in this respect. Too many people who proudly call America home do not understand the reasons for that pride. What are the benefits of rule of law, enumerated powers, federalism, checks and balances, and due process? What truly is a "right"?

Consider these findings of a 2017 survey of adults by the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania:

More than one in three people (37 percent) could not name a single right protected by the First Amendment.

Only one in four (26 percent) can name all three branches of the government. (In 2011, 38 percent could name all three branches.)

One in three (33 percent) can't name any branch of government.

Coming to the same conclusion was the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, which surveyed adults to determine their understanding of basic American principles: 71 percent of Americans failed the survey, with an overall average score of 49 percent. Lack of understanding reached across the ideological spectrum, with liberals scoring 49 percent and conservatives 48 percent.

In our Constitution's preamble, our founders declared liberty for future generations when they wrote their intent to "secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity." But a nation will never secure what it does not teach -- and therefore, does not understand. It is up to us to fulfill this charge.

Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, a moderate on the bench, described the crisis in pointed terms: "Knowledge about the ideas embodied in the Constitution and the ways in which it shapes our lives is not passed down from generation to generation through the gene pool ..."

Justice O'Connor is right. We must deliberately pass on these ideas -- through education, both at home and in school -- or else we lose the very things we hold dear: Freedom and opportunity.

Currently, fifteen states require high school students to pass a citizenship test to graduate. This means graduating seniors must have the same basic civics knowledge as those applying to become naturalized U.S. citizens. It's encouraging that more than a dozen states have implemented this threshold. But why not all 50?

Young people must be taught the principles of liberty, the importance of understanding it, the reasons for loving it, and the necessity -- and means -- of preserving it. Schoolhouses across the country should embrace Constitution Day as an opportunity to deliberate on the original meaning behind the preamble's words of "union," "justice," "tranquility," "common defense," "general welfare," and "liberty."

President Ronald Reagan summed up the matter accurately when he said: "Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it once was like in the United States when men were free."

For only by understanding our freedoms -- and the constitutional, limited government that protects them -- can we defend them. And only by defending them can we preserve them and pass them on to future generations. Let's not forget Sept. 17.

(Chris DeSanctis is the head of School at Gateway Academy, Richmond Valley. He occasionally teaches government at the College of Staten Island and has been teaching government at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn., for the last 13 years.)
With Democratic Assemblyman Matthew Titone running for judge of the Surrogate's Court and not running for re-election, the North Shore Assembly seat will be open for the first time since 2007.

Three candidates of varied backgrounds and experience are running in a Democratic primary to replace Titone in Albany: Nurse and union leader Patricia Kane, businessman and community activist Bobby Digi Olisa, and former City Hall aide Charles Fall.

Because there is no Republican candidate in the race, winning the primary on Thursday will be tantamount to winning the seat on the Democratic-heavy North Shore. So it's a crucial election coming up on Thursday.

In meeting with the Advance Editorial Board, all three candidates spoke knowledgably about key Staten Island issues, including how to attack our opioid crisis, transportation and the need for a Community Justice Center on the North Shore.

All three are opposed to the building of two new hotels in Port Richmond. Area residents are deeply concerned that the hotels could end up as housing for the homeless, and Fall, Kane and Olisa share their concerns.

All three candidates are open to legalizing marijuana for recreational use, even though they attach significant caveats to their stances.

But after looking at their records, the Advance believes that Kane would be the best person to represent the district. We urge Democrats to give her their votes on Thursday.

With her background, it's no surprise that Kane has a deep knowledge and abiding interest in health care issues. If elected, we would expect that to be a central focus.

As Kane points out, Staten Island is the only borough without a public health hospital. That lack of service is sometimes most acutely felt by North Shore residents, many of whom are poor. We believe she will be a powerful advocate for improving services.

But Kane also displayed admirable knowledge about other issues. She zeroed in on one of the main concerns with regard to the planned Bay Street rezoning: How will an already stressed area infrastructure be affected?

On the New York Wheel, Kane was on-point in saying that if the project fails, there needs to be something "exciting" put in its place to bolster the ongoing North Shore renaissance.

We believe that she will be able to widen her palate beyond health care if elected.

One caveat is that Kane has run a relatively low-key campaign. She was not the same presence on the campaign trail that Olisa and Fall were. We expect and urge Kane to maintain a high profile if the voters send her to Albany.

Olisa has an enviable track record of service to the community.

He is co-founder of the anti-violence group Occupy the Block and created Island Voice, which focuses on youth empowerment and on economic development. He has served on the boards of numerous community groups. He has impressive boots-on-the-ground experience battling issues like gun violence. He is a familiar and reliable face to many in the district that he seeks to serve.

He spoke with passion to the Editorial Board about how the Bay Street rezoning could help businesses and the community, and is a strong advocate for the proposed Community Justice Center.

But disturbing questions about Olisa's business dealings, including repeated violations lodged by the Buildings Department against Staten Island properties he's owned; bankruptcies, and improper actions as a landlord preclude us from recommending him in this race.

In speaking to the Editorial Board, Olisa said that his service to the community out-weighs these other concerns. We can't agree.

Fall has been an earnest and energetic candidate, and is the pick of the Democratic Party's county committee. In addition to his work in City Hall, he was also chief of staff to the borough Parks Department commissioner.

It's an admirable resume. During our Editorial Board meeting, smartly spoke about how a Bus Rapid Line for the North Shore is the best, most affordable transit improvement that Islanders can get right now.

But we believe that some of Fall's proposals were not quite fully formed, and that Fall overall needs some more seasoning before taking on a top legislative job. If not successful on Thursday, we hope that Fall would remain in civic life. We frankly hope the same for Olisa if things don't go his way on Primary Night.

But for us, the choice is clear: Patricia Kane is the best pick for the North Shore Assembly.
As with the North Shore race for the New York State Assembly, Thursday's primary is the de facto general election on the South Shore since there is no Democratic challenger, although one Republican candidate has been cross endorsed by the Democrats.

Thus, the winner Thursday will be the next South Shore Assembly representative.

The race presents three viable candidates - Michael Reilly, Ashley Zanatta and Glenn Yost.

We think one stands out because of his deep knowledge of not only the South Shore but of all Staten Island through his vigorous community service.

For that reason we endorse Michael Reilly to serve the South Shore in the state Assembly.

Reilly is the choice of the Island's Republican Party and is backed by Borough President James Oddo, Councilmen Joseph Borelli and Steve Matteo, Congressman Dan Donovan and former Republican Party chair John Antoniello, among others.

That has led some, especially in the Zanatta camp, to accuse the party of dabbling in the "Old Boys' Club" again. We will not deny we often have felt the same in watching the progression of mostly male candidates move thorough Assembly, Congress and Council races in the South Shore and Mid-Island.

But it also cannot be denied that the party has developed a lineup of strong "pre-ordained" candidates to run.

That is not the case with Mike Reilly. Although he does have party backing, Reilly established himself over the years as a strong community activist after retiring from the New York City Police Department. If anything, he forced the party to take a look at him.

He is most well-known for his tireless work with the schools' Community Education Council, where he has served as president since 2014, joining as a member in 2009.

Whether at public meetings or through his strong social media presence, Reilly has tackled education issues like battling Common Core, pushing school safety and fighting cyber-bullying.

Glenn Yost, also retired from the NYPD, is an attorney in private practice and works as an assistant counsel in Sen. Andrew Lanza's office. Yost says that gives him a leg up on his opponents because he has first-hand experience in how Albany works.

Ashley Zanatta is a community engagement manager at the Jewish Community Center's Tobacco Free Staten Island. "I'm 27 years old...I don't have this 20 years' worth of experience, but I'm not sure you need that," she said. "I don't know that being a lawyer or a cop puts you ahead of anything else when it comes to representing your community."

As expected, the issues candidates discuss are issues their constituents discuss during the backyard BBQ: Transportation, property taxes, the drug crisis, deer and Lyme Disease and these days, flooding due to storms.

None of the candidates had much unique to offer on any of the issues, and that isn't a bad thing given the seemingly impossible path of getting unique things done in New York City. At least they recognize the reality of the position and won't be tilting at windmills.

They all support a South Shore fast ferry. We liked Reilly's approach that much study has to be done to see if it's feasible and it's "not-a-ferry-at-any-cost."

They support property tax reform.

Yost spoke at length about the opioid and heroin epidemic and the need to educate doctors and pharmaceutical companies about addiction. He wants to ship deer off Staten Island to places upstate.

Zanatta is against killing deer and suggests building fences so deer will be contained in certain areas.

Reilly wants more express buses for the South Shore and suggests "looking at" culling and bow hunting to bring down the deer population.

Admittedly, any one of these candidates would make an interesting representative in Albany. Yost has a wealth of Staten Island experience. And we are in total agreement with Zanatta that youth should not be a deterrent - especially in today's atmosphere. In fact, we are encouraged by her entry in the race, her passion to serve the public and hope she continues on that path.

But it is Mike Reilly's decade-plus tireless service to Staten Island through his work with schools, students and parents that puts him at the top of our list. He has learned much and his passion there is evident. We think it will translate well in the halls of the State Capitol.
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Fintech lenders say they're moving quickly to review and amend any unfair contract terms before the watchdog comes knocking, but there are still questions about best lending practice.

Last week, alternative lender Prospa confirmed it had changed a number of contract clauses after receiving a query letter from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) back in June that arrived just days before the startup put the brakes on its planned ASX listing.

Spotcaps Lachlan Heussler. Spotcap has signed up to the code of lending practice for small business lenders.

Fintechs lending to small businesses must ensure their loan terms align with unfair contracts legislation, meaning the lender can't have complete power to change the terms of the loan without the say of the borrower.

ASIC is currently asking a range of fintech lenders to show how they are abiding with these laws.
With the appointment of Scott Morrison  Sharks supporter, MP for Australias birthplace  one great wrong has been righted. At last the leading position of heaven on earth  I refer of course to the Shire  has been recognised within our political system.

But another great wrong remains. Have we the guts and the gumption to wrestle this one to the floor? I believe there is a way. As readers will be aware, members of the milquetoast left have been falling over themselves to drag Western civilisation into the dirt. The excellent plans Tony Abbott and John Howard have dreamed up for our civilisation with the Ramsay Centre are inspirational, and should have students across the nation salivating.

The Sutherland Shire is the perfect home for a new centre of education. Credit:Jonathan Chancellor

Instead, we have the spectacle of Sydney University treating the Ramsay Centre as if it has trodden something unmentionable into the Vice-Chancellors carpet simply for suggesting ways the curriculum could be improved. The cheek!

Ramsay operatives should be given free rein, and not face carping and whinging from a petty, ill-educated rabble of povo-school Trots. If Sydneys not interested, let me suggest another way to build the Ramsay vision.
Of the tempests, Florence and Mangkhut are the only ones looking "nasty" at this point, he said. Add in tropical depression Paul in the central Pacific, there are six named storms, just shy of the record of seven, according to Phil Klotzbach, a research scientist with Colorado State University. Apart from Florence, two other storms were spinning in the Atlantic. Credit:NHC Florence nightmare US authorities have warned residents along the North and South Carolina and Virginian coasts to prepare for severe winds and a storm surge of as much as four metres. Heavy rains could also trigger flooding if predictions of localised falls approaching one metre are realised.

"This storm is a monster," North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper told a news conference on Tuesday. "It's an extremely dangerous, life-threatening, historic hurricane ... the forecast shows Florence stalling over North Carolina, bringing days and days of rain." The head of the leading US disaster agency forecast extended periods of blackouts and other damage from the storm. "This will be a storm that creates and causes massive damage to our country," Jeff Byard, Federal Emergency Management Agency associate administrator, said on Tuesday, as reported by CNN. "It is going to be ... a long-term recovery," Byard said. "This is not going to be a storm that we recover from in days."

A quiet start to the hurricane season in the Atlantic has jumped to above-average activity in a matter of days. Florence is notable not just for its strength but also the likelihood that it will cross the US coast further north than usual for such storms. Mangkhut threat Typhoon Mangkhut entered the Philippines area of monitoring responsibility on Wednesday, with authorities dubbing the storm "Ompong" for local audiences. All units of the Philippine National Police will be placed on full alert from Thursday morning, local time, on the northern island of Luzon, GMA News reported on Wednesday.

We are calling on our people in affected areas to stay safe, alert and informed, and heed the orders of authorities particularly for pr-emptive evacuation that may be enforced, Oscar Albayalde, the police chief, said. The typhoon may generate storm surges in Cagayan and waves at least six meters high along Cagayan and the eastern and northern coastal areas, including Aparri, the country's atmospheric agency, Pagasa, said. The Philippines is regularly hammered by typhoons, and Mangkhut/Ompong will be the 15th to strike the island nation this year, GMA said. Queenie Lam, a senior scientific officer at the Hong Kong Observatory, told CNN Mangkhut was "expected to pose a considerable threat to the coast of Guangdong" in southern China. Hong Kong was likely to lift its T8 warning signal as the storm nears the city, the second highest in severity.

Climate trends Professor Nott said that while debate continues among scientists about what if any climate change signal can be seen in cyclone trends (also called typhoons or hurricanes), the area that they can form in is widening in both the northern and southern hemispheres. "Those sorts of trends have been detected" in the observations, he said, with warming waters key to the genesis of cyclones. Cyclones typically need sea-surface temperatures of more than 26 degrees to get going. Tropical cyclones have been likened to engines that are fuelled by warm, moist air. As the air rises, the moisture condenses into water droplets, releasing the heat that further energises the storm.

Scientists have noted Hurricane Florence will cross over some of the warmest waters in the Atlantic as it approaches the coast, helping to maintain if not increase its intensity. Others have pointed out the "necessary condition" of unusually warm sea-surface temperatures for extremely powerful hurricanes to form. More intense if not more storms

'Professor Nott said the evidence for the South Pacific - typically the source of the cyclones that strike north-eastern Australia - is that there is not yet a detectable signal of intensifying tropical storms with global warming. Climate models, though, suggest in the future the region will see a greater proportion of intense cyclones even if the numbers of storm do not increase. The north-west Pacific is one basin that is expected to see both more typhoons and more intense ones, he said. According to the US National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration, "it is likely that greenhouse warming will cause hurricanes in the coming century to be more intense globally and have higher rainfall rates than present-day hurricanes". Dr Klotzbach said we haven't observed massive increases in storm intensity even with the approximately 1 degree warming of sea-surface temperatures so far because cyclones respond to more than just warmer water temperatures.

"With climate change, upper-atmospheric temperatures warm as well," he said, adding that instability in the atmosphere is a function of the temperature gradient between the surface and the upper atmosphere. "Since upper-atmospheric temperatures warm at a greater rate than the [sea-surface temperatures], the instability of the atmosphere is not that much higher, he said. Even so, each degree of warming allows the atmosphere to hold about 7 per cent more water, worsening deluges in storms - tropical or otherwise. Rising sea levels too mean that storm surges accompanying cyclones will also increase their impact on coastal areas, Professor Nott said. "There's every good reason to expect the intensity of these events to increase," Professor Nott said.
New York Fashion Week is like the Sizzler buffet for stylists and celebrities, a veritable all-you-can-eat snack bar of red carpet looks they can pilfer throughout the next six months before they go on sale to the public.

Fashion lovers are eagerly awaiting the duchess' arrival. Credit:PA

But what if you're a duchess  or, say, a royal who used to be an actress  and you now have to buy all of your clothes?

Well, you can indulge in a little fantasy. And so, based on the recently released itinerary of Meghan and Harry's Australian tour next month, here are the fashion week outfits we'd love to see in Meghan's Samsonite (but, alas, probably won't).

Day 1: Sydney
Imagine asking urban planners and city councillors to build and run a city without having visited and experienced any other cities? Unfortunately, this analogy fits well into the situation for health care in Canberra. Many health practitioners here have had limited experience outside the ACT. This leaves our health system lagging behind some major hospitals in other capital cities. And the silo effect contributes to the tremendous challenges in improving the culture of medicine in Canberra.

Many of our doctors train through medical school at Australian National University where their teaching is predominantly at The Canberra Hospital. When they graduate most of them work in Canberra as junior doctors, and many stay on as practitioners in the ACT. This is a good thing for Canberra as it has improved the reliability of our workforce, a workforce that is enthusiastic to live and work in Canberra.

However, in so many areas of professional life there are great lessons to learn from comparative experience in different locations. How does a junior doctor know if their medical system offers the best care unless they have experienced other models of care and different systems? How do we know what new advances in health care have been adopted without exposure to other systems? In NSW and Victoria all junior doctors will work through a variety of different hospitals through their training. It is impossible to train at one hospital alone. In the ACT this happens more routinely. Unfortunately, there are many examples of where contemporary health management practice have not been adopted in Canberra because our local system fails to appreciate the advantage of adaptation and change, in part due to inadequate local experience.

In early 2000 the NSW government recognised serious systemic problems at several hospitals in Sydney. Their solution was to integrate hospital training networks across Sydney and regional NSW, allowing skills, and different perspectives to be shared across hospitals with different strengths. This has been successful in improving quality of healthcare and working environments in many places. In the ACT we are at a significant disadvantage not having these established relationships with quaternary level hospitals to ensure we are doing our best locally, and appropriately referring our patients on when they need skills outside our area of expertise.

Having worked for years outside the ACT, in Victoria and NSW, I see serious systemic problems within ACT health. I also see many of my wonderful colleagues working hard to address this. I call on the government to crack open the silo that has been created in ACT Health, allow perspectives from other health system to formally help with training and patient care. We are a small region, and we should not assume we can provide all health care locally; this assumption detracts from the quality of our medical practice. Making this structural change to training and networks could revolutionise healthcare in ACT, improving the work environment, and the quality of medicine we deliver. By breaking the silo effect we can create a wonderful health care city for all Canberrans.
Former speaker Greg Cornwell has published his sixth novella in his fictional series about John Order, a simple, crime-fighting backbencher from the national capital.

Former speaker of the ACT Legislative Assembly, Greg Cornwell, has released his sixth crime novel. Credit:Graham Tidy

The latest book, Order and the Parliamentary Conference, has a tantalising set-up: "Criticism of meetings of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association is hardly surprising. Apart from the expense with delegates from all over the world of varied races, religions and repute, personal differences are to be expected. But murder?''

Dun, dun, dahhh....

Cornwell says his 12 years in the assembly as a Liberal Party MLA for Molonglo did inform his writing.
The group of children were just having a bit of fun in the playground of their Bankstown primary school on Tuesday morning, when it all went horribly wrong.

A shove in the back knocked "happy and popular" Nedal Chemaisse to the ground, and he did not get up.

Nedal Chemaisse suffered a medical episode after being knocked over in a schoolyard game at Wattawa Heights Public School in Bankstown. Credit:Nine News

A mother from the school said her son saw the 10-year-old go blue in the face after the mock schoolyard fight.

"He told me he give him 'box' and another boy he's got on the floor and he see the face blue," she told reporters outside Wattawa Heights Public School.
About 200 drought-affected farmers in the Goulburn area are set to benefit from a special delivery of hay on Friday.

The 200 tonnes of hay was grown and bundled in Tasmania and transported across Bass Strait via a barge to Victoria.

The Rapid Relief Team at an earlier hay delivery, this time in Gunnedah.

Thirteen semi-trailers collected the hay in Victoria, delivering it to Goulburn.

The hay drop is the work of the Rapid Relief Team, a group established in line with the care and compassion principles of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, ready to react quickly to any crisis, from homelessness to bushfires.
The daughter of millionaire property developer and convicted killer Ron Medich has walked from court with a $200 fine for ice possession after police found stashes of the drug, drug paraphernalia and weapons during a search of her hire car.

The boyfriend of Denise Allison Medich, Dean Roger DaSilva, has also pleaded guilty to using a stolen credit card to check the pair into a lavish Circular Quay hotel suite in 2017.

Medich, whose father was jailed over the murder of businessman Michael McGurk, was pulled over while driving the South Australian-registered hire car through Lewisham with her baby boy in the back seat at about 1am on November 11 last year.

Denise Allison Medich (right), daughter of Ron Medich, and her partner Dean Roger DaSilva leave the Downing Centre Courthouse on Wednesday. Credit:AAP

"Police could see the vehicle was in a dishevelled state, with bags and rubbish strewn throughout," police said in court documents seen by the Herald.
Radio broadcaster Ray Hadleys police officer son has resigned from the NSW Police Force a month after he was charged with cocaine possession.

Daniel Hadley, 28, was arrested on the night of August 3 for allegedly possessing .79 of a gram of the drug, with a street value of $200, while off duty at a hotel in Rouse Hill, in Sydneys north-west.

The former senior constables arrest followed an investigation by officers from the Professional Standards Command.

Daniel Hadley was arrested after he was allegedly caught with a quantity of cocaine.

The matter went briefly before a registrar at Parramatta Local Court on Wednesday morning and was adjourned for three weeks for Mr Hadleys lawyer to take instructions from him. Mr Hadley did not appear in court.
A motorway extension to Sydney Airport at Mascot costing up to $2.6 billion will not be tolled, Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced on Wednesday, after securing an agreement with the Sydney Airport Corporation.

The so-called Sydney Gateway project will run from the WestConnex interchange at St Peters, which is currently under construction, to Sydney Airport and closer to Port Botany.

But the project, slated for completion in 2023, will also require major work to existing roads in the area, including the relocation of Airport Drive, and upgrades to Qantas Drive and the road intersection at the Domestic Terminal.

The Sydney Gateway road upgrades Credit:Sydney Airport

With Sydney Gateway completed, drivers will be able to travel between Penrith or Parramatta and the Domestic Airport terminal without stopping at a single traffic light, the Premier, Gladys Berejiklian, said.
Alan Jones has been silenced by a Brisbane court over a $3.7 million defamation payout he and his employers, radio stations 2GB and 4BC, must now make to a prominent Queensland family.

Across 30 broadcasts between October 2014 and August 2015, Mr Jones made defamatory claims about John, Neill, Denis and Joe Wagner, implying they were responsible for the deaths of 12 people in the 2011 Grantham floods in south-east Queensland.

Justice Peter Flanagan handed down a 350-page verdict on Wednesday to a packed courthouse, awarding $938,746 to each of the Wagner brothers and describing Mr Jones words as vicious and spiteful.

Mr Jones did not attend the verdict, but issued a statement saying he needed to "read the entire judgment very carefully".
Victorias maritime safety regulator is investigating a potentially disastrous near miss in which two large commercial ships came close to colliding in Port Phillip Bay.

A 200-metre vessel laden with cars is believed to have veered off course and into the path of a 42,000-tonne container ship offshore from Rosebud in the early hours of August 12.

Maritime Safety Victoria is probing how the two ships came to be on a collision course.

Following the incident, Ports Minister Luke Donnellan asked the watchdog to investigate whether any regulatory changes ought to be made to improve safety in Victorias shipping channels.
An overnight tip to Crime Stoppers has revived the search for a couple that attacked a man with a shovel at an isolated campsite along the Great Ocean Road on Easter Sunday.

Five months after the assault that left the injured man driving frantically through the Glenaire forest at night for help, police are hoping the public will come forward with new information that could lead to an arrest.

The camping victim, Malcolm Woodford. Credit:Channel Nine

Ferntree Gully father Malcolm Woodford was found blacked out in his car after crashing into an embankment about eight kilometres from the Holy Water Track.

He received eight stitches in the back of his head, for what he described outside hospital as "a dog act".
Firefighters are battling a blaze inside a hotel in Flinders Street in Melbourne's CBD.

It's understood the fire started on the 20th floor of the Adina Apartment Hotel Melbourne just after 5.30pm, with some guests evacuated from the complex.

Firefighters were called after flames and smoke were seen billowing from the building.

The fire was brought under control just after 6pm, but seven trucks remain at the scene.

The cause of the fire is yet to be determined.
Fire takes hold of a teepee at a playground at Nepean School in Seaford. Credit:Victoria Police

A teepee at a school for students with disabilities has been destroyed after it was set alight, causing $12,000 worth of damage.

Police are searching for a number of youths who are believed to have entered the school grounds at the Nepean School in Seaford and set fire to the teepee, which was located in the playground.

The burnt teepee. Credit:Claire Toohey

Emergency services were called to put out the fire at the Klauer Street school about 10pm on September 3.
The Demons have had a record this season of beating up on weak teams but struggling against top sides. But in their final against Geelong, Melbourne showed just how much they can tighten up behind the ball.

Their first final in 12 years brought up plenty of positives for the Dees, but there's one question mark going into their do-or-die semi-final with Hawthorn.

This week on The Age Real Footy Podcast, Michael Gleeson, Caroline Wilson, Jake Niall and Jimmy Bartel ask: can Melbourne fix their disorganised forward line?

We also discuss what the Hawks should do at the selection table to give themselves the best chance to beat Melbourne, the importance of returning players - and the ones who might miss - for the semi-finalists, and where the Pies can improve as they get set to face the Giants.
The Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, has made it clear to the NSW Liberals that Wentworth is to have a female candidate, leaving one-time deputy mayor Katherine O'Regan as the frontrunner.

Ms O'Regan, a former NSW government staffer and deputy mayor of Woollahra, looks almost certain to win Liberal preselection for the blue ribbon seat on Thursday night.

Katherine O'Regan is now the frontrunner for the seat of Wentworth. Credit:Tamara Dean

It is understood Social Services Minister Paul Fletcher has called key factional players on behalf of Mr Morrison to urge them to back Ms O'Regan.

Ms O'Regan only had an outside chance of winning preselection until former Business Council of Australia executive Andrew Bragg pulled out, saying the seat should be contested by a female.
Germany's reticence "speaks a lot about the stance that German society, or European society, takes vis-a-vis the colonial history," said Nadja Ofuatey-Alazard, a cultural activist who is from Germany and whose father is Ghanaian. "They still adhere to the myth of the civilising mission. They do not frame colonialism as a regime of violence and domination." Those attitudes appear to be slowly changing. Pedestrians at the entrance of the subway station at Mohrenstrasse, or Mohren Street, Berlin. Activists are calling to rename the street, as Mohren is generally considered a racist insult referring to dark-skinned people. Credit:New York Times Berlin officials agreed a couple of months ago to rename Petersallee and two other streets honouring German colonisers, much to the delight of activists who have spent years lobbying for the changes. The streets will be named after African resistance fighters. Aikins, a long-time proponent of renaming, said the name changes were a start.

"We need a citywide concept of commemoration that actually enacts this shift of perspective," he said. "Moving away from remembering through the colonial lens to remembering through the perspective of remembering anti-colonial resistance." This year, Germany's federal governing coalition for the first time called for an examination of the country's colonial history, which includes researching whether African artefacts housed at cultural institutions were illegally acquired during the colonial era. Former German colonies in Africa: Ghana, Togo, Cameroon, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania and Namibia (red markers). Credit:Google Maps The German government is in its third year of negotiations with Namibia over how to make up for crimes against the former colony, where tens of thousands died under German occupation. Ruprecht Polenz, a former member of Parliament who is representing Germany in the negotiations, said the two sides were closing in on an agreement that could lay the groundwork for an official apology. The agreement would call the German killings a genocide; outline the creation of a foundation to increase social and cultural engagement between the countries; and call for extra support for Namibian communities particularly affected by the genocide with programs that, for example, provide job training, housing and access to electricity.

"Germany learnt from the first half of the 20th century, and we could only learn because we confronted the past and dealt with it," Polenz said. "And the colonial history also belongs to this past, and we want to take responsibility for it." Protesters light fireworks during a far-right demonstration in Chemnitz, Germany, in August. Credit:AP Still, the violent anti-immigrant protests that broke out recently in the eastern city of Chemnitz have sowed some doubts over how much the nation has actually learnt from its past. To many activists, the racism formed during the colonial era laid the foundation for the racism that the country is still struggling with today. "The French, the English and the Germans were all together in their racist thinking," said Christian Kopp, a historian with Berlin Postcolonial, an activist organisation. "In that sense, the history of National Socialism needs a global explanation." Colonial-era Germans set a brutal example for the Nazis to follow.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a German general, Lothar von Trotha, issued an extermination order for the Herero, a native people of what is now Namibia, using a tactic that resurfaced decades later: concentration camps. Within 3 years, four-fifths of the Herero people, and half of the Nama, another ethnic group, were dead, according to David Olusoga, a historian and co-author of The Kaiser's Holocaust. Lothar von Trotha, German military commander widely condemned for his brutality in Africa. Credit:Wikimedia/Commons In addition to the tens of thousands of deaths in Namibia, at least 100,000 East African resistance fighters known as the Maji-Maji died in a war to defend their territory against German forces. German colonisers took skulls and human remains from Africa back to Germany for research, using a junk science that claimed to be able to judge personality, intelligence and other characteristics by the shape of one's skull. That also became part of the racist Nazi ideology.

The Nazi vision of global expansion and domination was inspired in part by the efforts of German colonisers, historians said. A flyer from 1935 advertises a "grand colonial exhibit." There is a picture of a Nazi flag waving over Africa with the message, "This is also our living space." In 1939, the National Socialists named a part of Berlin's African Quarter "The Permanent Colony of Togo." Arguments over eradicating old relics fall on questions of history and racial meaning. Black-led activist groups have been lobbying for years for the renaming of Mohrenstrasse, or Mohren Street, in Berlin. Mohren, generally considered a racist insult, is an old German word that refers to dark-skinned people. Those for and against the renaming dispute how the street got its name  either to honour visiting Africans or to belittle those brought as servants to territory that is now Germany.

But those who want to keep the name argue that removing it would be akin to erasing history. The name, they say, could be used as a tool to teach about the nation's colonial past. When the street got its name, in either the late-17th or early-18th century, Brandenburg-Prussia, which was in present day Germany, was profiting from the trans-Atlantic slave trade. a delegation of Ovaherero and Nama from Namibia, Esther Utjiua Muinjangue, left, chairwoman of the Ovaherero Genocide Foundation, Ida Hoffmann, second from left, member of parliament and chairwoman of the Nama Genocide Technical Committee in Namibia in Berlin in August. Credit:DPA/AP But, activists argue, preserving and teaching history can be accomplished without keeping a racist insult in a public space. "People of African descent, African people, were and to an extent are still being considered as less human," Ofuatey-Alazard said.
Beijing: The mystery disappearance of China's highest paid actress, Fan Bingbing, has embroiled Australian vitamin brand Swisse, which has suspended use of the star's image in its marketing.

A year ago Swisse had trumpeted its coup in signing Fan as its brand ambassador for Australia and China. But the celebrity endorsement is now turning into a cautionary tale of doing business in China.

Speculation is growing that Fan has been secretly arrested by Chinese authorities for tax evasion. Swisse told Fairfax Media that plans for its biggest marketing event of the year, the Chinese Singles Day online sale, are in disarray.

A co-star with Hugh Jackman in the movie X-Men: Days of Future Past, Fan also won multiple awards for her lead role in the 2016 Chinese film, I am not Madam Bovary.
US sheriffs say two Australian firefighters patrolling a fire in remote Washington state with two local officers were confused and not being shot at, despite detailing the lengthy ordeal in a debriefing note and being airlifted out of the area after scrambling to an evacuation point.

The Yakima County Sheriff office said the incident, which occurred on August 23 when Australian firefighters were working to control a fire near the popular White Pass ski destination, was "a misunderstanding".

NSW firefighters Daniel Barwick, left and Phillip Eberle, right, are the two Australians identified as being involved in the incident.

"If they [the firefighters] felt they were in danger then that's how they felt, but the evidence does not show they were in danger in any way other than them being completely surprised by people and gunshots," the Yakima County Sheriff's office spokesman Casey Schilperoort said.

"I completely understand how the firefighters were surprised to see people and having five or six shots fired off in an area where they are at," he said.
~ SMHDF says they are awaiting World Bank funds.~



PHILIPSBURG:--- Homeowners in Belvedere that filed a court case against the St. Maarten Housing Development Foundation (SMHDF) after the foundation failed to conduct repairs since the passing of hurricane Irma managed to show Judge Alexander van Rijen the conditions under which they are living even though paying their monthly rent.

The walkthrough of the homes took place on Tuesday afternoon in the presence of the St. Maarten Housing Development (SMHDF) lawyer, the lawyer representing the homeowners and a representative of SMHDF, SMN News was the only media house that had access to the homes during the walkthrough.

The homeowners appeared before the Court of First Instance on August 31st, 2018 while the Judge is expected to hand down his decision on September 28th, 2018.

At least one day before Tropical Storm Isaac hit St. Maarten the 15 homeowners managed to display their leaking roofs, cracked walls, flooded bathroom, moldy homes to the judge and the other legal representatives as well as the representative of SMHDF.

Clearly, some of the tenants in Belvedere are living in deplorable conditions, besides dealing with leaky roofs some of them have to deal with rats, birds, and iguana feces.

Many of the homeowners told the judge that they have been living in their homes for years and the foundation does not conduct any maintenance. They said that they visited the SMHDF several times and their complaints and pleas have fallen on deaf ears.

Maria Richardson representative of SMHDF told the judge that the foundation was waiting on the World Bank Funds, she said just two months ago the foundation received funding and they ordered materials such as windows. When SMN News asked Richardson how much materials were ordered and when they expect to receive the material Richardson said that she has no idea when the materials will arrive on St. Maarten, the only thing she knew was that the materials were ordered probably in Puerto Rico.

Another excuse SMHDF gave was that the foundation did not have the funds for the repairs and the money they received from their insurer was insufficient. Richardson acknowledged that Nagico insurances paid out their claim but again said the money they received was not enough for the repairs. The technical assistant for SMHDF told the judge that the homes were built by contractors in the Netherlands and they were all faulty homes that cannot be easily fixed.

Attorney at Law Geert Hatzsmann told SMN News that the foundation is claiming that they do not have the funds to conduct the repairs but also stated that the homeowners rented the homes to own and most of them have paid double the amount for owning the homes but so far SMHDF do not want to respect the agreement and hand over the homes to the tenants whom he said paid off for their homes. Hatzmann said if the homes are turned over to the tenants then the homeowners will do their own repairs. He felt that is a win-win situation for everyone especially since SMHDF has been saying that they do not have the funds while they were underinsured.

SMHDF representatives are claiming that when the homes were transferred to the foundation they were no agreement to sell. They said local politicians played with the tenants by telling them they were renting to own while there is nothing in writing. The homeowners managed to produce a booklet from 2009 that clearly states SMHDF was granted the permission to initiate the selling of 156 duplex homes.

SMHDF also said that the tenants are not paying their rent and that there is NAF1.8M in outstanding rent.

The two flat homes that house children have non-functioning windows, cracked walls, broken doors, while at least two of them have no ceiling. The handrail in one of the homes broke off and the tenant said that ever since she moved in the home 15 years ago the railings were broken and to date, they have not been repaired. Besides the cracks there also broken light fixtures that the tenants say get water whenever it's raining.

The tenants said that SMHDF accuse them of not paying their rent, yet they are not able to produce evidence of such. One civil servant said her rent is deducted from her salary every month yet SMHDF accuses her of not paying her rent. She said recently SMHDF said because the family has dogs they are not able to visit the home to conduct repairs. Another tenant told the judge that he had an appointment with the technical assistant and that person never showed.

The homes without ceiling the owners do not have dogs, however, they are hardly any space for the tenants to move around yet the elderly woman and her young son are living in the home that has no ceiling and water is leaking through in all the rooms.

Click here to see more photos of the deplorable condition of Belvedere homes.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The Sint Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association (SHTA) and Carib Beer call on companies and NGOs to send in events they are planning for 2019 for their National Event Calendar.

The 2018 calendar, published only three months after Devastating Hurricane Irma, served as a symbol to our partners and visitors that Sint Maarten remains vibrant. By launching the third calendar, partners seek to promote events to show again that Sint Maarten is a dynamic place and recovering from the devastation after Irma.

In 2016, SHTA launched its first national events calendar experiment. Inspiring design by local artist Loic Bryan encouraged showcasing of the poster in many public spaces. Next, to a distribution campaign, the calendars were part of the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta and the Sint Maarten / Saint-Martin Annual Regional Tradeshow (SMART) goodie bags. Next, to deliberate dispersion, the poster was downloaded hundreds of times in the past years and was even requested to be sent to other countries, such as Aruba, the United States, and the Netherlands. For the first time, this edition will be published in SHTAs in-room hotel magazine VISIT (stock 25.000). Last but not least, all events were spread by digital calendars, apps, newsletters, and social media of the SHTA.

Carib Beer partnered with SHTA in all previous editions and is on board again as the main sponsor for the 2019 edition. The beer, popular with locals and tourists is happy to be a part of the initiative that should send a positive message that St. Maarten is getting fun and excitement again.

Because of its functionality for both locals and visitors looking for upcoming events, as well as its benefits for managerial planning, the project will increase in scope this year. As of last year, SHTA started to provide room for NGOs that have been so active in Irmas wake, as well as contribute so much to Sint Maarten society, to send in activities. In the wake of hurricane Irma, it is exactly those organizations that have meant the most for the Sint Maarten people, having the greatest difficulty of continuing their efforts due to lack of funding. Whereas member and non-member companies pay a small printing fee for having their event publicized, for its 2019 edition NGO's and foundations are again offered free publication for calendar events.

For NGOs, even more, exposure is possible. Last year SHTA newsletter began publishing the NGO of the week column, which is specifically aimed to highlight the NGOs of Sint Maarten to SHTA members. If deemed desirable, societal organizations can have their profile distributed freely in SHTAs newsletter.

Event submissions for the 2019 Events Calendar qualify as long as they are (1) interesting for visitors and are (2) publicly accessible for anyone. The offer of early bird placement will be in place until September 20th. Event submissions can be forwarded This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ; please ensure that the following information is included: date, time, location, and any other crucial information pertaining to the event.
PHILIPSBURG:--- At the request of the St. Maarten Chamber of Commerce & Industry (COCI), a meeting took place earlier this week with Nicole Echobardo and Quincy Lont, who presented the brand-new Tax Application of Meijburg & Co Caribbean to the board of COCI.

COCI was represented by Exec Dir Anastacio Baker, Board President Stanley Lint, Vice President Benjamin Ortega, Board members Edsel Gumbs, Curtis Thomas, and IT officer Venecia Herbert.

The Tax App which is in the Dutch language, allows business owners to quickly access various tax laws via their smartphone.

This is one-way companies can easily access information in regard to Tax laws and protect against Tax related challenges such as assessments and fines. But also, legal steps to increase their bottom line said President Lint.

COCI Executive Director Anastacio Baker said that COCI will have further discussions with Meijburg & Co Caribbean with respect to promoting the App.

A translation of the content should be seriously explored and also factored in by other entities when it comes to the Sint Maarten predominantly English-speaking community. Information provided in English would be more beneficial and useful for the business community who always request information in English as well as the community overall. The App is beneficial where it also provides information about international tax treaties.

The App provides an all-inclusive tax framework and is in line with transparency. We at COCI will provide an FAQ about taxes on the COCI Website with a link to the App, Baker said on Thursday.

During the meeting, a number of recent international tax developments which may impact the business industry of Sint Maarten in the near future were also discussed.

One of the key developments that would be interesting to the business community is the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) action plan, which is an initiative of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and approved by the G20.

The COCI Board and representatives from Meijburg also exchanged their concerns and aspirations regarding practical ways to keep the Sint Maarten business community abreast of eventual changes to the countrys tax legislation.

Meijburg and the COCI Board agreed to monitor the emerging trends related to international taxation in order to facilitate a proactive approach to this matter where it concerns Sint Maarten.

Nicole Echobardo is Tax Assistant at Meijburg & Co Caribbean and Quincy Lont is a Senior Tax Manager and the Practice Leader of the Sint Maarten office. Meijburg & Co Caribbean is a KPMG member firm with offices in Aruba, Caribbean Netherlands, Curacao, Rotterdam (Dutch Caribbean and Suriname desk) and Sint Maarten.
PHILIPSBURG:--- Schools, Government offices and the private sector can continue to operate as normal on Wednesday.

The Emergency Operations Center (EOC) met on Tuesday to get an update with respect to Tropical Storm Isaac.

Prime Minister Leona Romeo Marlin chaired the EOC meeting and the following decisions were taken as precautionary measures for public safety and security.

A decision about school closure, government services, private sector operations for Thursday, will be made during an EOC meeting on Wednesday morning and will be communicated via the live Council of Minister's press briefing at 10.00AM.

The Chairlady of the EOC, Prime Minister Leona Romeo Marlin, would like to address misinformation that started to circulate on Monday and throughout Tuesday that schools would be closed on Wednesday.

The EOC Chairlady states that this is not true and the public and all concerned should always consult with Government communication mediums for official information or information that has been attributed to the Government of Sint Maarten.

The MDS along with the EOC will keep the community of Sint Maarten informed with respect to the approach of the weather system to the Lesser Antilles via the Government Radio station 107.9 FM.

For official local weather and Government related disaster/hurricane information please visit (www.meteosxm.com); the Government of Sint Maarten website (www.sintmaartengov.org) or the Government of Sint Maarten social media Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/SXMGOV).

Emergency Support Function (ESF-1) NV GEBE, informed the EOC on Tuesday that there will be no interruption in water services to the companies customers in Point Blanche and Pelican residential areas in connection with the passing of the storm. Utility services for the remainder of the country will continue as normal.

ESF-3 Ministry of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment & Infrastructure (Ministry VROMI): the public is advised that final pick-up for all garbage will be 12.00PM on Wednesday, September 12.

Ministry VROMI would like to alert residents and motorists driving in and out of the Beacon Hill area, that there may be some street flooding from sea wave action in the Maho area on Thursday. This may also be the case at Kimsha Beach as well. The Philipsburg boardwalk may also experience some sea swells which could wash sand up on the promenade.

Ministry VROMI has been busy on Monday and Tuesday removing loose discarded zink from areas in Cole Bay, Cay Bay and St. Peters. These removal activities will continue on Wednesday.

ESF-5 Police: On Wednesday and Thursday, officers of the Sint Maarten Police Force will establish various check points throughout the country. Motorists and visitors are advised to be mindful of the checkpoints which are for the purpose of safety and security.

ESF-7 Ministry Public Health, Social Development & Labour (Ministry VSA): three shelters have been identified to be open in connection with the passing of Tropical Storm Isaac as a precautionary measure, especially taken into consideration the personal experiences of persons in connection with Hurricane Irma last September.

A decision will be taken during the Wednesday morning EOC meeting whether it is still necessary to open the shelters. However, shelters should be used as a last resort.

Individuals should first seek shelter with family or friends if they need to do so. If going to stay at a shelter, walk with a go-bag that has personal items.

The shelters identified to be open are: Dutch Quarter Community Center, the Cole Bay Christian Fellowship Church, and the Milton Peters College.

Persons staying in a shelter will be responsible for their own personal belongings. Government is not liable for lost, stolen or broken personal belongings.

Residents of Sint Maarten are requested to continue to closely monitor the progress of Tropical Storm Isaac.
Bridgetown, Barbados:--- CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank today announced that it has taken a decision to close its Anguilla office early in the new year.

Managing Director of Barbados and the EC Islands, under which the Anguilla business falls, Donna Wellington, noted, We conducted a strategic review of our business across the region and given the growth path we have identified we have made the difficult decision to close our operations in Anguilla.

Our operation in Anguilla is a small one accounting for just 5 percent of overall market share there. Since the economic downturn, our business in Anguilla has been experiencing operational losses. Given the continuing economic climate, we have therefore taken the difficult decision to close our office there.

CIBC FirstCaribbean has held discussions with the Government of Anguilla and the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, as the regulator, and all parties have agreed to work in close coordination to ensure that the transition can take place in an orderly manner and that all are committed to ensuring continued financial stability in Anguilla.

The banks employees in Anguilla will be offered separation packages consistent with the banks policy.

Ms. Wellington added that branch operations will cease on Thursday, 31st January 2019 and the bank was requesting all account holders to close their accounts and transfer their business to another commercial bank in Anguilla. As it prepares for the closure of its Anguilla branch the bank will not be transacting any new business with immediate effect.

The regional bank is also making arrangements with National Commercial Bank of Anguilla Ltd, to allow clients with loan facilities and credit cards to service their debts to completion.

Ms. Wellington asserted, We have met with our staff in Anguilla to apprise them of our decision and we are fully committed to supporting our employees and customers through this process.

She noted: Additionally, we will be communicating with our clients to offer them the support they need in winding up their business with us.
Crime is preventable and safeguarding your businesses through the use of technology is essential. Whether you want to avoid burglaries or common vandalism, you need to comply with the General Data Protection Regulations to protect your brands identity.

Security should be one of your main focuses and with the help of 2020 Vision, providers of access control systems, we look at some of the most efficient items that you need in place to protect your property.

1) Deploy CCTV effectively across your business

A shocking statistic that you might be unaware of is that for every 100 crimes, an average of 16 are prevented using CCTV. If a business hasnt already installed a CCTV system, it is already at risk and criminals who want to commit horrendous crimes against that business can instantly spot vulnerabilities.

It is also known for crime rates (burglaries and vehicle crimes) to reduce in areas that have active CCTV systems.

The benefit of CCTV is that any footage recorded can be used by a police force. For example, if there was no CCTV in place, it could take longer to catch the criminal as detectives would have to search for CCTV in the local area, obtain that footage and then look through it.

If a business has been victim to a crime, but has CCTV, it can be a much quicker process; although active CCTV can deter criminals completely from attacking a business.

2) Use CCTV across perimeters

It is vital to think on your feet when it comes to placing CCTV around your perimeter. It is important to be able to identify people who come and go from the business daily.

From this, you can use the high-quality footage to identify an individual and this will allow police to pick up on certain characteristics that may lead them to the culprits. It may also be necessary to capture vulnerable points to make sure all areas of a business are covered.

3) Hire guards for empty buildings

Businesses that handle money should be aware that they could be at risk. These types of companies should create a procedure that is tested and carried out regularly regarding transferring money from one location to another. A security prospect that businesses should be looking into is hiring guards when a commercial building is empty. Its also worth looking at hardware security systems that can help prevent any cyber threats.

4) Seek out neighbourhood watch groups in your area

There are a few ways that local communities can help prevent crime in their local area  and this is something that most residents want to achieve to reduce risk and worries. Neighbourhood watch schemes are common methods to prevent crime in the home but can also be beneficial to businesses in the same area. Another surprising statistic is that an average of 26 crimes out of every 100 is prevented through schemes like these.

Neighbourhood watch programmes work by ultimately getting the local community involved and promoting a safer area to live. Usually, those who have enrolled onto a scheme usually help by assisting people who are detecting crime in that area, although there are some things that businesses can do to encourage more action.

5) Engage with staff and neighbours

It is important to engage with and encourage your staff and neighbouring businesses to report any suspicious behaviour on their premises. Communication is key, and this is something that could have a great impact and prevent any type of potential crime.

Becoming familiar with other businesses and their staff is important. Organise regular social events that all can participate in to further develop relationships between the companies whilst also allowing your staff to become more familiar with who they could potentially be communicating with when it comes to reporting any type of suspicious behaviour.

6) Engage with local police force

Create a stronger relationship with the police force that operates within your area. This will encourage a greater flow of information and intelligence between your employees and the police.

7) Improve street lighting

If your business operates in a dark area with little light, whether this is due to no streetlights or blocked by trees  you need to improve on this. If your building is lit, it can be easier to identify people who have been captured on CCTV  but it could also put people off committing that act completely as there is a greater chance they could be caught in action.

It is beneficial to know that when it comes to violent and property damage, crime dropped by 21% in areas that were properly illuminated compared to areas that were not.
How AI and security guards work together using video analytics

How AI and humans can work together is a longstanding debate. As society progresses technologically, theres always the worry of robots taking over jobs. Self-checkout tills, automated factory machines, and video analytics are all improving efficiency and productivity, but they can still work in tandem with humans, and in most cases, they need to. Video analytics in particular is one impressively intelligent piece of technology that security guards can utilise. How can video analytics help with certain security scenarios? Video analytics tools Before video analytics or even CCTV in general, if a child went missing in a shopping centre, we could only rely on humans. Take a crowded Saturday shopping centre, a complex one with a multitude of shops and eateries, youd have to alert the security personnel, rely on a tannoy and search party, and hope for a lockdown to find a lost or kidnapped child. With video analytics, how would this scenario play out? Its pretty mind-blowing. As soon as security is alerted, they can work with the video analytics tools to instruct it precisely With the same scenario, you now have the help of many different cameras, but then theres the task of searching through all the CCTV resources and footage. Thats where complex search functions come in. As soon as security is alerted, they can work with the video analytics tools to instruct it precisely on what footage to narrow down, and theres a lot of filters and functions to use. Expected movement direction For instance, they can tick a human field, so the AI can track and filter out vehicles, objects etc., and then they can input height, clothing colours, time the child went missing, and last known location. Theres a complex event to check too, under child kidnap. For a more accurate search, security guards can then add in a searching criterion by drawing the childs expected movement direction using a visual query function. A unique function like this enables visual criteria-based searches rather than text-based ones. The tech will then narrow down to the images/videos showing the criteria theyve inputted, showing the object/child that matches the data and filter input. Detecting facial data There are illegal demonstrations and troublesome interferences that police have to deal with A white-list face recognition function is then used to track the childs route which means the AI can detect facial data that has not been previously saved in the database, allowing it to track the route of a target entity, all in real time. Then, security guards can confirm the childs route and current location. All up-to-date info can then be transferred to an onsite guards mobile phone for them to confirm the missing childs movement route, face, and current location, helping to find them as quickly as possible. Often, there are illegal demonstrations and troublesome interferences that police have to deal with. Video analytics and surveillance can not only capture these, but they can be used to predict when they may happen, providing a more efficient process in dealing with these types of situations and gathering resources. Event processing functions Picture a public square with a number of entries into the main area, and at each entry point or path, there is CCTV. Those in the control room can set two events for each camera: a grouping event and a path-passing event. These are pretty self-explanatory. A grouping event covers images of seeing people gathering in close proximity and a path-passing event will show when people are passing through or entering. The video analytics tool can look out for large gatherings and increased footfall to alert security By setting these two events, the video analytics tool can look out for large gatherings and increased footfall to alert security or whoever is monitoring to be cautious of protests, demonstrations or any commotion. Using complex event processing functions, over-detection of alarms can also be prevented, especially if theres a busy day with many passing through. Reducing false alarms By combining the two events, that filters down the triggers for alarms for better accuracy to predict certain situations, like a demonstration. The AI can also be set to only trigger an alarm when the two events are happening simultaneously on all the cameras of each entry to reduce false alarms. There are so many situations and events that video analytics can be programmed to monitor. You can tick fields to monitor any objects that have appeared, disappeared, or been abandoned. You can also check events like path-passing to monitor traffic, as well as loitering, fighting, grouping, a sudden scene change, smoke, flames, falling, unsafe crossing, traffic jams and car accidents etc. Preventing unsafe situations Complex events can include violations of one-way systems, blacklist-detected vehicles Complex events can include violations of one-way systems, blacklist-detected vehicles, person and vehicle tracking, child kidnaps, waste collection, over-speed vehicles, and demonstration detections. The use of video analytics expands our capabilities tremendously, working in real time to detect and help predict security-related situations. Together with security agents, guards and operatives, AI in CCTV means resources can be better prepared, and that the likelihood of preventing unsafe situations can be greatly improved. Its a winning team, as AI wont always get it right but its there to be the advanced eyes we need to help keep businesses, premises and areas safer.
Georgetown, SC (29440)

Today

Steady light rain this morning. Showers continuing this afternoon. High near 55F. Winds N at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph..

Tonight

Rain. Low around 50F. Winds N at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 90%. Rainfall possibly over one inch. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph.
Photo: File photo The Vernon-based organizer of a Lower Mainland rodeo wants to talk with the group opposed to rodeos.

The Vernon-based organizer of a Lower Mainland rodeo wants to talk with the group opposed to rodeos.

And that's no bull.

Jamie Gilowski of Bigg Rigg Productions is inviting the board of directors of the Vancouver Humane Society to not only meet some of the stars of the show, but he will give them free tickets and listen to their concerns in person if they connect with us ahead for the Abbotsford Extreme Rodeo this Saturday.

"It's unfortunate an automatic emailing campaign has been set up by The Vancouver Humane Society - and those who write these letters not only don't live in the area, they've never been to a rodeo event and likely won't attend one. And these letters are not even sent to any rodeo event organizer"

Gilowski said it's time people were better educated on what a rodeo is all about.

And I am open to hear what the humane society disagrees with, he said. In this age of political divide, it's high time we build bridges and at the very least agree to disagree and I am happy to extend an olive branch to have the conversation in person so we can be educated on both sides of the debate."

The Abbotsford event is not the first to incur the wrath of the VHS, which launched a similar campaign last year when Lumby held the Bull Bash event.

In Lumby's case last year, two out of the three local letters that were written, those folks ended up volunteering for the event - as that organizer reached out to hear the concerns due to the misinformation and that is what I would like to do as well, he said.

Gilowski is extending an invitation to the board of The Vancouver Humane Society to meet with organizers before the event to have a respectful discussion or at the very least send personal concerns to him directly rather than an automatic email campaign to area politicians.

"Those who have concerns with the stress and how the animals are treated read up on The University of Calgary's study on the bull's emotional state - and he says it is his opinion that the bulls and the cowboys are athletes and they both are in it to win, said Gilowski.
Spirit is one of the two Mars rovers that NASA launched in 2003 as part of the agency's $800 million Mars Exploration Rover (MER) mission. Spirit arrived at the Red Planet in January 2004, tasked with figuring out if life could ever have existed on Mars, learning about the Red Planet's current and past climate, and characterizing Martian geology.

The promised warranty on Spirit was 90 Martian days, or sols, but the rover ended up lasting more than 2,200 sols, or 2,266 Earth days. Spirit stopped communicating with Earth on March 22, 2010, after it got stuck in a sand trap. (Spirit's twin rover, Opportunity, operated until June 2018, until it was unable to charge its batteries due to a dust storm. NASA declared Oppy dead in February 2019.)

Spirit's explorations provided scientists a remarkable glimpse into Mars' early and wet history.

Very soon after its landing, Spirit found extensive evidence of carbonate and hematite, minerals that are associated with water environments. The rover overcame numerous technical difficulties (including a faulty wheel) and delivered scientific data back to Earth for six years.

But there was one obstacle Spirit couldn't overcome: an unexpected sand trap. NASA spent weeks trying to help the robot get to safer ground but made little headway. Trapped, the rover eventually stopped transmitting information back to Earth on March 22, 2010.

The rover left behind a trove of scientific information about Mars' history. It also paved the way for a more robust rover to follow: Curiosity, a rover focused on looking for habitable environments on the Red Planet. Curiosity is the pathfinder for the new Mars 2020 rover, which will search for signs of ancient life.

Following the water

Spirit is one of a suite of spacecraft in NASA's second wave of Mars exploration. The agency sent several missions to Mars in the 1960s and 1970s but paused after the Viking 1 and Viking 2 landers did not bring back definitive evidence of current or past life.

According to the agency, interest in Mars was rekindled in the 1980s and 1990sas researchers on Earth uncovered microbes not only surviving, but also thriving, in the extreme environments of underwater volcanic vents. This discovery was exciting because Viking pictures showed possible evidence that the area had water in the past.

NASA sent the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) to the planet in 1996 to map out possible water sites, and the agency also sent the Mars Pathfinder and Sojourner rover mission to the Martian surface in 1997 with great scientific success, as it found round rocks that were likely shaped by water in the ancient past.

The finding sparked interest for more Mars rovers, and in January 2004, NASA launched Spirit and Opportunity. More formally known as the Mars Exploration Rovers, the machines received their names from 9-year-old Sofi Collis, who was the winner of a naming contest.

Spirit and Opportunity carried a large collection of scientific equipment. The instruments on each rover included a panoramic camera, a microscopic imager, engineering cameras, three spectrometers, a rock abrasion tool and a magnet array. The rovers also had a small arm that allowed them to obtain close-up pictures and data about interesting scientific targets.

Going for Gusev

It took two years of negotiating for scientists and engineers to agree on landing sites for Opportunity and Spirit. "The places most appealing to scientists (the side of a cliff, for example, on which the planet's history is recorded in layers of sedimentary rock) are often the most frightening to engineers charged with the robot's safety," NASA wrote of the process.

Opportunity targeted a plain called Meridiani Planum based on a layer of hematite that MGS spotted from above. Hematite is an iron oxide that often forms in water. And, as it turned out, Opportunity found lots of hematite on the surface.

Spirit's destination was Gusev Crater, which spans an area bigger than Connecticut. From MGS pictures, scientists suspected the crater held water in the ancient past. Gusev was dug out by an asteroid or comet that impacted the planet as early as 4 billion years ago.

Spirit was the first of the two rovers to leave Earth. It blasted off on a Delta II 7925 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on June 10, 2003, and made its final descent to Mars seven months later, on Jan. 4, 2004.

After snapping open a parachute, the rover careened to the surface in a cocoon of airbags, rolling safely to a stop on the surface  right on target in Gusev. Opportunity also landed safely and at the right spot, on Jan. 25.

Reboots, water and wheels

Spirit was still sitting in its landing shell when it spotted the first possible sign of water in the distance: carbonate, which often forms in wet environments. "We came looking for carbonates," Phil Christensen, one of the scientists for the mission, said in a statement. "We have them. We're going to chase them."

But within a week, Spirit was in trouble. It temporarily stopped sending data from the surface on Jan. 21, 2004. Days later, NASA determined that the rover's computer was perpetually rebooting due to a software error; it restarted more than 60 times in three days.

The agency stabilized the rover in February 2004. Then, in March, Spirit hit a jackpot: a volcanic rock whose composition hinted at a watery past.

Three months later, NASA was surprised when Spirit stumbled across hematite, adding evidence to the possibility of water in the environment. Opportunity also found hematite at its landing site halfway across Mars.

By late 2005, Spirit had driven up a nearby landmark, Husband Hill, to take a look at the landscape around it. It was the first time a rover had climbed a hill on another planet.

The area was a testament to Mars' early violent history, NASA said. "We've got this dramatic topography covered with sand and loose boulders; then, every so often, a little window into the bedrock underneath," Steve Squyres, a planetary scientist at Cornell University and the principal investigator for the rover's science instruments, said in a statement.

One of Spirit's wheels quit working in March 2006 as the rover was racing to a slope to get enough sunlight to last the winter. NASA operators back on Earth remotely dragged the wheel behind the rover, slowly moving Spirit an hour a day as the sun's strength allowed. Spirit safely arrived at its destination in April 2006.

The location proved to be a good spot to stop, as the rover found water-altered minerals nearby when it resumed operations in late 2006.

Later years on Mars

Despite mechanical and Martian challenges, Spirit journeyed 4.8 miles (7.7 kilometers) during its years on Mars  more than a dozen times the distance that NASA planned for the rover to travel.

In fact, the malfunctioning wheel ended up being useful to the mission: In March 2007, NASA announced that the rover had churned up soil with sulfur and water traces in it, suggesting that there could be evaporated springs or volcanic vents.

As the year passed, Spirit uncovered the site of a possible volcanic outburst and survived an extensive dust storm . Another storm in late 2008 reduced Spirit's power to concerning levels, but the rover pulled through.

Martian winds cleared some of the dust in February 2009. In April, Spirit's computer began to have rebooting trouble again, with periods of what NASA described as "amnesia." The rover began driving again as NASA worked to fix the problem but then ran into an even worse problem: sinking sand. On April 23, 2009, the rover unexpectedly broke through a crust into softer sand and couldn't get out again.

NASA spent months running simulations and sending commands to the stranded rover, but the agency also collected data while the rover was standing in place. NASA officials were delighted to see sand with basalt, sulfate and silica in it  data revealed to the rover as it tried to get out of its trap. One NASA statement called the location, called Troy, "one of the most interesting places Spirit has been."

On Dec. 31, 2009, NASA calculated that there might not be enough power for the rover to last the winter. Spirit's last communication came on March 22, 2010, and the rover remained silent as NASA spent months hailing it.

"Engineers' assessments in recent months have shown a very low probability for recovering communications with Spirit," NASA officials said in a statement on May 24, 2011. In any case, the space assets being used to look for Spirit would soon be needed for NASA's upcoming Mars rover, Curiosity. That month, NASA concluded its efforts to reach Spirit.

Spirit's legacy

While Spirit stopped communications with Earth in 2010, its twin rover, Opportunity, went far beyond that. Opportunity continued operating well into 2018  roughly 14.5 years after its landing date  but was stalled on the surface due to a dust storm in June 2018.

Both Opportunity and Spirit loom large in NASA lore. Both rovers showed the world how good engineering and science can uncover incredible and valuable information, such as the extensive evidence of water on the Red Planet.

NASA's experience with rovers came in handy with the newer Curiosity rover, which arrived on the surface of Mars in 2012 and has been studying the history of habitable environments and water in Gale Crater and Mount Sharp (Aeolis Mons). Operators use Spirit's and Opportunity's scientific work to inform Curiosity's traverses. For example, Curiosity can sense when it is in a sandy zone and is programmed to stop and ask its operators on Earth for help.

NASA's Mars 2020 rover will search for organics and other evidence of ancient life on the Martian surface. One of its potential landing sites was Gusev Crater, where the Spirit rover met its demise.

"The discovery that hot springs flowed here [Gusev Crater] was a major achievement of the Mars Exploration Rover, Spirit," NASA officials said when describing the potential landing sites. (The 2020 team ended up choosing a different site for the mission  Jezero Crater, which hosted a river delta in the ancient past.)

Spirit remains an important mission for NASA, because the rover showed the presence of water on Mars and helped lay the groundwork for future Mars missions.
LONGUEUIL, Quebec  It's been five long years since Canada had an astronaut in space, so there was a gaggle of journalists here at the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) headquarters eager to talk to the next Canadian space flyer.

Last Thursday (Sept. 6), astronaut David Saint-Jacques was on a big screen in front of Canadian reporters who were participating by teleconference as he spoke to an audience in Houston about his upcoming spaceflight in December, when he will join Expedition 58/59. A half dozen Canadian journalists lined up at the mic to ask him questions, ranging from how he plans to record his memories to what his thoughts were on a recent leak on a Russian spacecraft docked to the space station.

It's the biggest space party for Canada since the landing of Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, who became world-famous practically overnight during his 2012-2013 mission. He was equally as comfortable playing (and singing) David Bowie's "Space Oddity" as he was commanding the space station. [15 Space Travel Tips from Astronaut Chris Hadfield]

While running the most scientifically productive mission of his time, Hadfield invested massive amounts of personal time in social media and quickly had celebrities chatting with him, including several "Star Trek" stars.

But Hadfield retired from spaceflight just weeks after his return to Earth, leaving astronaut public engagement in the hands of four newer Canadian astronauts in the corps today. So, can the CSA expect an encore with Saint-Jacques?

Following in Hadfield's wake

In an interview with Space.com, Saint-Jacques acknowledged Hadfield's talent at engaging the public and said he would do his best to bring spaceflight to the masses  but with his own experiences and perspectives.

"I intend to do the same thing he did, to share my perceptions on spaceflight and what it means to me," Saint-Jacques said after the news conference.

Saint-Jacques said his focus will be to show what it's like to live on the space station; it will be his home for about half a year. So his social media posts will focus on the human experience and showing the beauty of our home planet.

There is a groundswell of support for Saint-Jacques in his home province of Quebec, and he has received extensive coverage by French journalists there in recent weeks. When Saint-Jacques served as a backup astronaut for the Expedition 56 launch in June, four Canadian journalists traveled to Kazakhstan to see him. [Editor's note: One of those journalists was Space.com contributor Elizabeth Howell, who wrote this story.]

The CSA also hosted a media day in Moscow in August to let reporters observe Saint-Jacques' training. The event received such high demand that several journalists never made it off the waiting list.

Saint-Jacques said he was humbled by the attention and glad that Canadians are paying attention to him and the space agency's work. "When you're training, you're in your own bubble, and you really just see your fellow crewmembers and family," Saint-Jacques said. But in Kazakhstan, for example, the backup crew temporarily had fewer responsibilities and had a chance to appreciate the attention. Saint-Jacques said it meant a lot to him to see the journalists and to answer questions on-site about his mission. [What It's Like to Snag a Spacecraft with the International Space Station's Robotic Arm]

Canadian astronaut David Saint-Jacques will be the next Canadian astronaut to fly in space, in December 2018. (Image credit: Canadian Space Agency)

Wit and competence

But how will Saint-Jacques measure up to Hadfield in popularity and engaging the public?

To be sure, Saint-Jacques stands out on his own. His technical competence is unquestionable, as he will fly the tricky co-pilot seat on the Soyuz spacecraft on his very first flight. His work history prior to being an astronaut includes roles in medicine, astronomy and engineering  all demanding fields. Saint-Jacques speaks five languages and even has a comedian's knack for wit in at least two (English and French). (When Hadfield first emerged from the tight quarters of his spacecraft during landing in 2013, Saint-Jacques quickly quipped to a crowd at the CSA watching the video, "It's a boy!")

But several CSA officials said Hadfield's extraordinary popularity was probably unique. Hadfield knew how to not only run a space station but also entertain as a showman. However, officials asked space fans to be patient, because Saint-Jacques is charming on his own.

Canadian ISS Director Ken Podwalski has closely watched the careers of several Canadian astronauts, including Saint-Jacques. "David seems to be more of the studious, mindful type," Podwalski said, pointing to the various academic degrees that Saint-Jacques possesses. So, Podwalski said, Saint-Jacques will likely focus more on the technical aspects of spaceflight, although Saint-Jacques does have Facebook and Twitter presences of his own and will use social media.

The CSA communications team is also planning education campaigns about Canadian work in space in general, because Saint-Jacques' flight represents an opportunity to promote the country's role in the International Space Station and (possibly) in the upcoming Deep Space Gateway moon-orbiting space station. Journalists on Thursday were given a quick tour of the Canadarm2 robotic-arm simulator and several rovers that are being tested for future expeditions on the moon and Mars, which represent some of the other contributions Canada makes to space.

Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen shows off a model of the International Space Station during a tour at the Canadian Space Agency headquarters near Montreal. (Image credit: Elizabeth Howell)

Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen pointed out at the same press event that Saint-Jacques had nine years to build up relationships with journalists ahead of his first mission, and those relationships will benefit him in spaceflight. Hadfield had help in his public outreach; the CSA communications team and journalists' reports of Hadfield's exploits also contributed.

"For all of us here at the Canadian Space Agency, that [public engagement] is actually near and dear to our hearts," Hansen told Space.com "We believe we are part of something very special, and we believe the benefits to the community are significant."

Hansen added that a large part of public engagement is also luck, because sometimes, the public is distracted by other news. And it also depends on the person transmitting the message. Hansen said Hadfield had several skills that made him a good spokesperson.

"He's an excellent communicator," Hansen said. "He's good at connecting with people. He's an entertainer. These were all things that were leveraged to help inspire Canadians and share an important message."

Canada is one of the smaller contributors to the space station program; because spaceflights are based on contributions to the station, the agency's astronauts fly only occasionally. Besides Saint-Jacques and Hansen (both of whom were selected in 2009), Canada has two newer astronauts selected in 2017 who are in basic training right now: Jenni Sidey-Gibbons and Joshua Kutryk. They are expected to wrap up that astronaut candidate training in roughly a year and fly sometime in the 2020s.

Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
WASHINGTON  The Pentagon should create a U.S. Space Command, it should do more to protect satellites from attacks and it should change how it buys space technology, a panel of former defense officials said. They are not convinced that a separate military branch dedicated to space is needed, however. And they warned that rushing to set up a Space Force could create more problems than it solves.

"Whether we get to a separate space force I think is an open question," former Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert Work said on Monday at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

"It might ultimately be the right answer," said Work. But there are still many unanswered questions. "Can we do better, go faster? Yes, by all means we should do so. Will creating a separate space force guarantee that we will? Not necessarily." A lesson Work learned from years at the Pentagon: "There's never been a thing that Congress doesn't feel can be solved by reorganizing." [Trump's Space Force Plan Revealed by VP Mike Pence]

Former deputy defense secretary Bob Work speaks at the Center for Strategic and international Studies. (Image credit: CSIS/YouTube)

The Pentagon is obligated to follow President Trump's order to begin the process of standing up a new service, and if the White House and Congress agree on a way forward, there is nothing the Defense Department can do to stop that, Work noted. "That's civilian control of the military."

But Work suggested a separate service might be a solution in search of a problem. The reorganization the Pentagon proposed  creating a U.S. Space Command, a Space Operations Force and a Space Development Agency  are good first steps, he said. "We never should have gotten rid of the Space command in the first place. We made a mistake."

Work said he could not comment on the Space Development Agency because the Pentagon has not explained what exactly it would do beyond the broad mission of speeding up innovation. "That's one those things where I'm from the Missouri school of thought, 'Show me,'" he said. "If it pushes capabilities fast, does not become a tinker house for space, but really focuses on capabilities, it's a good idea."

"I very much applaud Shanahan," Work said referring to Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan, who has led the reorganization. "The steps that he took are not all that disruptive," he said. The Air Force Space Command would be the foundation for U.S. Space Command. The Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center would be the basis for the Space Development Agency. "All those steps are good steps but are not as disruptive as going immediately to a Title 10 service with a secretary and its own staff."

Air and space 'complementary'

Former commander of U.S. Strategic Command, retired Gen. Robert Kehler, cautioned that separating space from the Air Force could backfire as it could break up a valuable link between air and space. "People say the Space Force is like the Air Force separating from the Army. I don't believe that's true."

Air and ground warfare concepts are incompatible so there was a "strategic reason" for separating the Air Force from the Army. "There is no such theory on space power today. Will there be one? Maybe. Is there a foundational necessity for a separate force? I think you have to address this issue" before moving ahead with a reorganization, Kehler said.

"You need to ask yourself whether space is so fundamentally different from air that they have to be separate," he said. "Are they incompatible? I think they are complementary."

A Space Force should be not assumed to be synonymous with a separate military department," said Kehler. Standing up a new service right now would be "premature."

Former director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Letitia Long agreed. There are about 13,000 people across the Defense Department today focused on space, she said. "I'm not sure that's enough to warrant a military department."

Another former deputy defense secretary, John Hamre, who is president and CEO of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said he worries that creating a new service will set off internal power grabs that will distract from the space mission.

"When you want to create something in DoD, it brings out the darker impulses in people," he said. Securing stature and status will take precedence over other priorities, he said.

The Pentagon has not yet provided a cost estimate for a new Space Force. Work said the budget is going to be one the most contentious aspects of the reorganization. DoD will add up all the resources allocated today to the space mission, and "if you created a separate space force that would be the initial budget share," he said. "Is that the right budget share? You would have to debate that." Budget shares between departments cause ugly fights, he said.

There would also be a struggle on Capitol Hill as different factions compete for a limited pool of funding. "There are as many congressional proponents for spending more money on cyber as there are in space," said Work. Other groups like the shipbuilding caucus want more money for the navy. "You would get into a very interesting intramural firefight on exactly on how much resources to be devoted to the new service."

Space is one of four areas of military spending that "cause a lot of problems" because they are owned by multiple departments, said Work. The other three are nuclear, electronic warfare and cyber forces. "They go across all departments," he noted. The largest expenditure in military space are terrestrial terminals. Each military service that uses the terminals is responsible to buy them. DoD has had trouble and continues to have trouble managing programs in these four areas because of the budget authorities. "You have to be careful about thinking that creating a separate Title 10 service will solve that issue," said Work. "It could create other problems."

Pentagon cared about space before Trump

Work seemed frustrated by the conventional wisdom in Washington that past administrations did not pay attention to the national security implications of space. When they talk about the Space Force, Trump and Vice President Mike Pence criticize the Obama White House for neglecting this issue.

That is a huge misconception, said Work. What was different during the Obama administration was that the White House did not want the Pentagon openly talking about war in space. "They did not want to hasten further the militarization of space." The administration "believed that if we openly talked about space war fighting, that we would essentially make that a reality," said Work. "And they were very very cautious about approving any space control capabilities in the budget."

Eventually DoD pushed back as officials learned that threats against U.S. space assets were "becoming more dire," said Work. In June 2013, then Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter gave a presentation to the president and the National Security Council about potential attacks to U.S. constellations. "From that point on, even though the department was not authorized to speak in unclassified forums about space war fighting, we were given a green light to start to pursue in earnest space superiority."

A number of space control, space surveillance and battle management programs were started. "We received terrific support from the White House," said Work. But budget sequestration starting in 2013 devastated many military projects. "We had competing requirements," said Work. "In space, we were moving at the fastest speed possible given available resources."

When he became deputy defense secretary in June 2014, Work concluded his predecessors "had gotten the cyber problem on the right path. So I spent most of my time as deputy focused on the space problem." The Obama administration "never once received as many resources as it requested in the defense budget. Congress could have easily said, 'Hey we'll give you a bit more money for space. But they didn't."

This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry.
Liftoff of the OneSpace OS-X1 suborbital rocket from Jiuquan on September 7, 2018.

HELSINKI  Chinese launch startup OneSpace successfully performed its first launch from a national launch site Sept.7, following a similar feat by competitor iSpace days earlier.

The 9-meter tall, 0.85-meter-diameter OS-X1 solid rocket lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center at 12:10 a.m. Eastern Sept. 7 (04:10 UTC), reaching an altitude of around 35 kilometers and traveling 169 kilometers during its 200-second flight.

The company claims the OS-X1, also known as Chongqing Liangjiang Star, can reach an altitude of 500 kilometers, but the flight met requirements of an unnamed customer with the payload also remaining undisclosed.

OneSpace's launch followed a suborbital launch two days earlier by iSpace's Hypebrola-1Z rocke, which is t roughly the same size as the OS-X1. Hyperbola-1Z lifted off 01:00 a.m. Eastern (05:00 UTC) Sept. 5 from the same site at Jiuquan, marking iSpace's second suborbital flight.

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The 9-meter-tall, 1-meter-diameter rocket carried three small payloads developed by commercial companies. One of the payloads parachuted to Earth.

Both OneSpace and iSpace were founded following a 2014 Chinese government decision to open the space sector to private capital and encourage investment in areas including commercial launch vehicles and remote sensing satellites.

These and other actors will have gained approval and some level of backing from SASTIND, the state administration overseeing Chinese space activities, while a military-civilian integration strategy has promoted access to required technologies for space startups from defense contractors.

Lan Tianyi, founder of Ultimate Blue Nebula Co., Ltd., a Beijing-based space consulting company, told SpaceNews that the launches from Jiuquan, a national site, show support from the traditional space industry, allaying concerns from investors that the traditional space industry might close the door on startups.

The launches were also a big boost to the companies, as the flights, "showed that their supply chain and the development capacity were better than expected. The suborbital rockets cannot prove that they had the ability to send satellites into Earth orbit. But in first stage of China launch vehicle startup companies, it still a thing that can be praised," Lan said.

The big test for China's emerging space startups will now be orbital spaceflight, an achievement that would mark a major breakthrough.

Private race to orbit

OneSpace, founded in 2015, said its Sept. 7 flight has helped pave the way  by verifying key technologies including navigation, guidance, control, materials and transport for a much greater challenge: an orbital flight of a larger, 19-meter-tall, four-stage OS-M1 rocket.

The OS-M1 will be able to carry a 205-kilogram payload to 300-kilometer low Earth orbit (LEO), and 73 kilograms to 800-kilometer Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO). On Aug. 24, second and third stage separation and third-stage engine tests for the were successfully performed.

Beijing-based iSpace, established in 2016, says its first launch of an orbital Hyperbola-1 rocket is expected in the first half of 2019. While OneSpace is focused on solid rockets, iSpace says it plans to build larger, liquid propellant launch vehicles in the future.

Both, however, appear likely to be beaten into orbit by Landspace, which is based in Beijing and has facilities in both Xi'an in the north, and a manufacturing base under construction in Huzhou, east China.

Landspace in late August completed assembly and testing at its Xi'an facility of the Zhuque-1 launch vehicle, a 19-meter-tall, 1.35-meter-diameter rocket with a takeoff mass of 27 metric tons and thrust of 45 tons, able to carry 200 kilograms to 500-kilometer SSO and 300 kilograms to a 300-kilometer low Earth orbit.

Launch is now expected to take place in Octoberfrom the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, carrying a small remote sensing satellite for China Central Television (CCTV) into SSO.

Orbital launch of Haiyang-1C satellite

Earlier at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, north China, the country's 24thlaunch of 2018 was carried out, seeing a Long March 2C place the Haiyang-1C marine-observation satellite into a 770 by 786-kilometer altitude SSO.

Launch occurred at 23:15 EDT Sept. 6 (03:15 UTC Friday), just ahead of the opening of a launch window declared by an airspace closure notice issued Thursday.

The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the main space program contractor, confirmed success of the launch within the hour.

Haiyang-1C is the country's third marine-observation satellite and will help monitor ocean color and water temperatures and contribute to research on the global oceanic environment, according to state media.

According to Chinese sources, the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), tested use of a parafoil on one-half of the Long March 2C payload fairing, resulting in a more accurate, controlled landing.

CALT, which belongs to CASC, has, in recent years, initiated work on soft-landings reusability of launch vehicles. Three of China's four launch sites are inland, with launches resulting in stages, boosters and payload fairings landing downrange, requiring evacuations ahead of time and other measures. CALT is aiming to test fly the Long March 8 with a reusable first stage in 2021.

This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry.
A size comparison of the Earth, Wolf 503b and Neptune. The color blue for Wolf 503b is imaginary; nothing is yet known about the atmosphere or surface of the planet.

A student who began her master's degree in May partnered with an international team of researchers to discover a special cosmic neighbor twice the size of Earth.

Graduate student Merrin Peterson and a team of Canadian, German and American scientists used data from NASA's Kepler telescope to study Wolf 503b, a planet located 145 light-years away in the patch of sky where the constellation Virgo is visible.

Peterson, a student at the Institute for Research on Exoplanets (iREx) at the University of Montreal, said in a Sept. 6 statement released by the university that the discovery of this world happened rather quickly. The find occurred after she and her adviser, Bjorn Benneke, ran a program in May 2018 to find "interesting exoplanet candidates'' from a recent release of Kepler data, she said. [10 Expoplanets That Could Host Alien Life]

Merrin Peterson, an Institute for Research on Exoplanets (iREx) graduate student who started her masters degree at the University of Montreal in May 2018. (Image credit: University of Montreal)

According to the statement, exoplanet Wolf 503b orbits an old "orange dwarf" star slightly dimmer than the sun, and goes around it quite closely and quickly  every six days. Wolf 503b is also fascinating because there's nothing in our solar system quite like it for comparison, according to university officials. Its size puts the exoplanet in a scientific sweet spot  Wolf 503b is in the zone where it might be a rocky "super-Earth," or gaseous like a "sub-Neptune."

Kepler has studied the radii of thousands of exoplanets strewn across the universe, but because of a yet-to-be-well-understood phenomenon that researchers call the Fulton gap, there aren't many exoplanets 1.5 to 2 times the size of Earth. This is what makes additional observations of Wolf 503b  with a radius 2.03 times that of Earth  brimming with discovery potential.

Typically, these Fulton-gap planets observed by Kepler are challenging to study. They orbit distant, dim stars, according to the statement, making it hard for researchers to figure out their density, measure the wavelengths of light coming from them or investigate their atmospheres.

But this star is relatively close to Earth, making it appear brighter and riper for study.

"Wolf 503b is one of the only planets with a radius near the gap that has a star that is bright enough to be amenable to more detailed study," Benneke, also at University of Montreal, said in the statement.

An artist's concept shows the size of super-Earth 55 Cancri e compared with Earth. A ground-based telescope in Spain was able to identify 55 Cancri e, which suggests that telescopes on the ground help in the search for habitable planets around other stars. (Image credit: NASA/JPL)

According to Peterson, this star's proximity and brightness will help support several tests, like measuring the star's movement when tugged by the planet to determine Wolf 503b's mass. Knowing the mass will help scientists learn about the composition of our celestial neighbor. ''At its radius, if the planet has a composition similar to Earth, it would have to be about 14 times its mass," university officials said. ''If, like Neptune, it has an atmosphere rich in gas or volatiles, it would be approximately half as massive.''

And once the Jame Webb Space Telescope takes flight, scientists will be able to observe Wolf 503b for the presence of water in its atmosphere, or other chemical content. According to the research team, characterizing Wolf 503b's atmosphere will inform astronomers about what other Fulton-gap-size planets might be like.

"Wolf 503b offers a key opportunity to better understand the origin of this radius gap as well as the nature of the intriguing populations of 'super-Earths' and 'sub-Neptunes' as a whole," the study authors wrote in their paper.

The paper detailing Peterson's findings was accepted Aug. 30 for publication in The Astronomical Journal.

Follow Doris Elin Salazar on Twitter @salazar_elin. Follow us@Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
The planet-enveloping dust storm on Mars has settled enough for NASA to start a 45-day active-listening period in which the agency hopes to make contact with the rover Opportunity after three months of silence, NASA announced yesterday (Sept. 11).

So, for the next 45 days, NASA engineers will nudge the spacecraft several times a day, rather than the three times a week that had been the procedure. That schedule is based on the hope that the rover is now harvesting enough solar power to receive and respond to commands. In this "active-listening" procedure, NASA will send instructions that force the rover to create a signal at a specific frequency if it is powered up and not seriously damaged.

If the rover has not yet made contact when those 45 days have ended, NASA will have to determine how to proceed. In a statement released Aug. 30, the agency said it would continue to listen passively for the rover until the end of January. [Mars Dust Storm 2018: What It Means for Opportunity Rover]

The new stage of the recovery plan was triggered when NASA made two consecutive measurements of atmospheric opacity, called tau, of less than 1.5. When Opportunity first lost contact with Earth, that measurement was above 10. The agency hopes that now that the dust is settling out of the Martian skies, the rover's solar panels will be able to successfully charge so the can robot re-establish contact with Earth.

Tracks from NASA's Opportunity rover on Mars are visible on the Martian surface in this image taken in June 2017. After months of silence from Opportunity due to a dust storm on Mars, NASA has begun a 45-day campaign to reestablish contact with the rover. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell/Arizona State Univ.)

When the plan was announced, some scientists affiliated with the mission expressed concern that pegging this active-listening period to the atmospheric opacity would start the clock on Opportunity too soon.

That's because all that dust simply falls down, which means there's nothing to stop it from falling onto the rover's solar panels. And if the problem is dust blocking the solar panels from charging, it doesn't matter whether the dust is floating in the air or resting on the panels. Mars has seasonal weather patterns called dust devils that could clear that dust away, but those won't begin until November  by which point, the 45 days of active outreach will have ended.

The rover has been exploring the surface of Mars since 2004, far outlasting its original mission timeline of 90 Martian days (a Martian day is about 40 minutes longer than a terrestrial one). But the engineers and scientists who control the rover haven't heard a peep from Opportunity since June 10.

They hope the robot is merely hibernating, waiting for the dust to settle. Either way, the next 45 days may be the best chance Opportunity has left.

Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels@space.com or follow her @meghanbartels. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
We're back into the weird science of black holes in this week's installment of "Ask a Spaceman." In this episode, astrophysicist and Space.com columnist Paul Sutter explains why a black hole is doomed to die from the moment that it is born.

This week's episode (which you can watch here ) is the second entry in a two-part series about black holes and Episode 5 of an ongoing series on Facebook Watch that is produced in partnership with Space.com. To make sure you understand what's going on in Episode 5, we recommend you catch up on Episode 4 first, which covered the theory of black holes more generally.

While we think of the vacuum of space as empty, on the quantum scale  the scale of subatomic particles  that vacuum is actually vibrating with energy, Sutter said. Or as he put it, "Basically, space-time itself is buzzing a little bit." Sutter explained a little more about this energy in a past Space.com column about black holes, which you can read here.

Sutter then gave his interpretation of physicist Stephen Hawking's theories about how black holes die. As a black hole is forming from a massive gravitational collapse in space, such as through a star's dying supernova explosion, the black hole's gravity drags some of the quantum "fuzz" with it, Sutter explained.

When this happens, some of the quantum particles from the vacuum get trapped at the boundary of the black hole. They are close enough to orbit the black hole but not close enough to be trapped forever  which, yes, seems to shatter our illusion that nothing escapes from black holes. Eventually, the particles escape and, over time, sap enough energy that the black hole disintegrates.

"Ask a Spaceman" episodes are released weekly on Wednesdays at 12 p.m. EDT (1600 GMT), so "like" the Facebook page or check back later to see more. Sutter also responds to reader questions in every episode. Check the page to learn more about past topics covered in the show, such as the Big Bang and Pluto.

Sutter is a cosmologist at The Ohio State University and chief scientist at Columbus Ohio's Center of Science and Industry. He has a long-running podcast, also called "Ask a Spaceman." You can catch all past episodes here.

Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
A test version of NASA's Orion spacecraft safely touched down today (Sept. 12) under three parachutes, completing the final parachute test to get the vehicle ready for a journey around the moon and back.

While it will take several weeks to go through the data, early indications are that the test was a success. In this test, which wrapped up around 11 a.m. EDT (8 a.m. PDT, or 1500 GMT), Orion safely deployed all its parachutes in sequence after being released from a C-17 aircraft about 6 miles (9.5 kilometers) up.

Orion then touched down at the U.S. Army's Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona near a group of spectators and NASA officials. Among them was Orion program manager Mark Kirasich, who spoke briefly on NASA Television before the test.

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"Orion is our new human exploration spacecraft, and this is a spacecraft that will take people farther in space than we've ever gone before," Kirasich said. The spacecraft has to endure searing heat upon coming back to Earth, because it will return at high speeds from far away; in 2019 or 2020, for example, an uncrewed Orion, launched with NASA's new Space Launch System rocket, is expected to loop around the moon on a mission that will take several weeks.

"After today if all goes to plan, we are ready for flight. That is just astounding," added astronaut Randy Bresnik on NASA Television. He joked that he was looking forward to counting to 11, representing the number of parachutes Orion had to deploy before reaching the ground.

Orion has four sets of parachutes that, working together, will bring the spacecraft home safely from trips to the moon or from deep space. The first set is three forward bay cover parachutes, which are supposed to release a cover that protects Orion during the fiery re-entry at 32 times the speed of sound.

Next, Orion deploys two drogue parachutes to stabilize the spacecraft and slow it down. Following that, three pilot parachutes are released to help deploy the three main parachutes. The main chutes then remain deployed all the way until Orion touches down.

This parachute test is the last one for Orion after a decade of development, Kirasich said. The spacecraft is expected to form the backbone of NASA's deep-space exploration plans, which include a Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway space station around the moon in the next decade.

Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
The leader of the current mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS) is hitting back against the suggestion that he or one of his crewmates might have caused the orbiting lab's recent air leak.

"I can unequivocally say that the crew had nothing do with this," NASA astronaut Drew Feustel, commander of the ISS' Expedition 56, said during a space-to-ground interview with ABC News, Florida Today reported yesterday (Sept. 11). "I think it's absolutely a shame and somewhat embarrassing that anybody is wasting any time talking about something that the crew was involved in."

The leak story has taken quite a few twists and turns over the past few weeks, so let's start at the beginning. [Russia's Crewed Soyuz Space Capsule Explained (Infographic)]

On the night of Aug. 29, ISS controllers on the ground noticed a slight pressure drop aboard the orbiting outpost. They notified the crew the next day, and the space flyers quickly traced the problem to a small hole in a Russian Soyuz spacecraft docked to the orbiting lab.

Space station astronauts patched a small hole in the upper orbital module of the Soyuz MS-09 spacecraft (left) on Aug. 30, 2018. Russian space officials have said that hole was likely caused by a drill; investigators are currently trying to figure out exactly what happened. (Image credit: NASA/Space.com)

Cosmonaut Sergey Prokopyev, the commander of the Soyuz, patched the 2-millimeter (0.08 inches) hole using epoxy and gauze on Aug. 30, apparently solving the problem. The Expedition 56 crew was never in any danger, NASA officials have stressed.

Russian space officials soon formed a commission to investigate the leak and its cause. And last week, Dmitry Rogozin  the head of Russia's federal space agency, Roscosmos  announced that the breach in the Soyuz wall was a drill hole. The person who made the hole apparently had "a faltering hand," Rogozin added, citing nearby scuff marks that likely resulted when the drill slipped.

Rogozin further vowed that officials would determine whether the hole was drilled intentionally or by accident, "either on Earth or in space."

It's this last bit  the implication that Expedition 56 crewmembers might be responsible  that apparently raised Feustel's ire.

In his interview with ABC News, Feustel urged ISS managers on the ground to figure out exactly what happened, saying that "the implications are enormous to the whole space program." And he praised the Expedition 56 crew for its handling of a tough situation.

"I can't say enough about the performance of the crew, how we reacted, how we responded, how we stayed together and continued to work as a team, just as we always have, to ensure the safety of ourselves, the safety of the spacecraft, and the assurance of the mission priorities," Feustel said, according to Florida Today.

The hole was in the upper "orbital module" of the Soyuz, which arrived at the ISS in June. The spacecraft is scheduled to depart the ISS in December, carrying Prokopyev, NASA astronaut Serena Aunon-Chancellor and European Space Agency astronaut Alexander Gerst back down to Earth. The hole shouldn't be a problem on this return trip, NASA officials have said. (Soyuz orbital modules are designed to burn up in Earth's atmosphere.)

Soyuz spacecraft have been ISS crewmembers' only ride to and from orbit since NASA retired its space shuttle fleet in 2011. However, private space taxis being developed by SpaceX and Boeing should be ready to start taking on some of that responsibility soon; both vehicles are scheduled to begin crewed test flights next year.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
Curtain Call / Contributed Photo

Kicking off its new season in the Dressing Room Theatre in Stamford, Curtain Call is staging Larry Shues Obie Award-winning comedy The Foreigner.

In The Foreigner, Charlie, shy and seeking solitude, is on vacation at a Georgia bed and breakfast, where he pretends he is a foreigner, understanding no English. However, he soon witnesses bizarre schemes by people (including some Klan members) who think he cant understand a word they say, leading to confusion and non-stop hilarity that set up a funny ending.




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.
Photo: Contributed

More than 600 students across the country have given him their suicide notes.



Hundreds of youth who self-harm gave him their razor blades.



Countless more have relinquished bottles of pills and other drugs.



Award-winning Canadian musician Robb Nash has reached more than one million young people through story, song and picture. Touring from coast to coast for the past 10 years, The Robb Nash Project explores sensitive topics such as suicide, addiction, self-harm and other mental-health related subjects.



When we heard of Robbs powerful message and impact on youth, it was important to bring him here, said Julia Payson, executive director of the Vernon & District branch of Canadian Mental Health Association, which is hosting the event.



"With our communities suffering from an opioid crisis and suicide being the second leading cause of death for Canadian youth, Robb has a life-changing message for teens, teachers, parents and all community members.



Following a life-threatening car accident, Nash found himself dealing with unimaginable mental and physical pain, enduring years of anger, self-doubt, and depression. He discovered his purpose and passion and began reaching out to young people through rock music and lyrics, encouraging them to explore their own meaning and purpose in a language they understood.



Through personal stories, humour, songs and videos, Nash sensitively deals with serious issues, focusing on examples of victory and hope. He and his band tour the country performing in schools, detention centres, reserves and other youth venues as part of a 150-date-per-year tour.



We are very excited to be part of The Robb Nash Project this year, said Payson. Because of support from local organizations who help fund our suicide prevention programs, we are able to bring this powerful message to our youth free of charge.



Current supporters of CMHAs suicide prevention programs include 100 Women Who Care, BC Gaming, Community Foundation of the North Okanagan, and the United Way, North Okanagan - Columbia Shuswap.



Audience feedback from the shows consistently includes stories of remarkable personal breakthrough, the realization of self-worth and personal growth. Many who were self-harming have kept in touch with Robb long after the show, sending him pictures and notes about how theyve managed to stop, citing his presentation as the catalyst.



The Robb Nash Project will take place Oct. 2 and 3 at the Vernon & District Performing Arts Centre, including free concerts for North Okanagan youth grades 7 to 10 on Oct. 2 and 3, and an evening community fundraising performance on Oct. 3 at 7:00 p.m.



Event proceeds from the Oct. 3 Community Performance will support the Robb Nash Project and CMHA Vernon & District.

 contributed by the Canadian Mental Health Association, Vernon & District Branch
NEW LONDON  The name-calling started less than three minutes in to the first debate between the candidates for governor, Republican Bob Stefanowski and Democrat Ned Lamont.

While Lamont used his opening statement to profess his love for Connecticut and call the states fiscal crisis a bipartisan problem, Stefanowski used his 30 seconds to reiterate an attack that has been his go-to thus far on the campaign trail: comparing Lamont with Gov. Dannel P. Malloy.

Dan Malloy has absolutely ruined this state and the economy, Stefanowski said. Ned Lamont is going to be worse.

The debate at the Garde Arts Center in New London was the first head-to-head matchup between the candidates, drawing a rowdy crowd and a lot of back-and-forth banter between the two.

The first half of the debate focused primarily on the states economic woes, tolls, crumbling foundations and prison reform. While panelists attempted to draw out specifics from Stefanowski about his plan to eliminate the state income tax, the details he offered were few and far between, though he answered nearly every question by referencing his plan and comparing Lamont with Malloy.

Lamont took only one direct shot at Stefanowskis relationship with President Donald Trump, drawn into it after a question about the states crumbling foundation crisis prompted Stefanowski to say the state needs a better relationship with Washington.

Theres no question you have a very close relationship with Donald Trump, Lamont shot back, before saying he would bring insurance companies, banks, the state and maybe even Washington to the table to address the problem.

Maybe Id send Bob Stefanowski down to talk to the Trump administration, Lamont quipped.

Stefanowski, who has little debate experience, having skipped most of the pre-primary forums as well as the first debate on Sept. 5 following the Aug. 14 primary, was relatively unflappable during the hourlong contest Wednesday.

On questions regarding the legalization of marijuana, immigration, prison reform and the opioid crisis, he repeatedly turned his answer back to the state income tax, and praised the Trump administrations economic policy.

Under my administration, were going to make it like it was when I graduated from high school in 1980, Stefanowski said. He later took a line from the playbook of his pre-primary rival, Tim Herbst, who has been helping Stefanowski prepare for the debate, saying hes going to declare a fiscal state of emergency.

On the legalization of recreational marijuana, Lamont said he would absolutely legalize, citing Connecticuts neighboring states and a potential revenue stream for the state. Stefanowski said he is not opposed to the idea  and he favors medical marijuana  though he would like to see an impairment test put in place first.

Lamont said he would continue Malloys policy of sanctuary cities, while Stefanowski said he doesnt think the state can pick and choose which laws it enforces. He argued that as governor of Connecticut, he wont need to focus on social issues.

We need to stop talking about things other than the economy and what were going to do about it, Stefanowski said, before launching into a story about a meeting Malloy had with General Electric prior to the companys departure from the state.

By the way, the question was about immigration, Lamont said when it was his turn to answer.

When it comes to immigration, America is much stronger for the diversity we have here, he said.

Still, Lamont and the panelists continued to press the Republican candidate for further details on his economic plan  specifically what he would cut to make up for the roughly $10 billion in revenue the state would lose from his plan to eliminate the state income tax.

Stefanowskis response never became more specific, relying instead on his pledge to introduce zero-based budgeting.

Its just poppycock, Lamont said. And look, Im OK with zero-based budgeting, but this is not GE. If you have a losing division, you cant just sell it or get rid of it. This is social services.

Tensions between the camps of Stefanowski and Lamont reached a head before the gubernatorial candidates ever made it to the stage.

Dozens of members from the states public employee unions rallied in front of the Garde Arts Center for two hours in support of Lamont, while Stefanowskis supporters rallied across the street.

By 6 p.m., at least one fight had broken out, drawing state Republican chairman J.R. Romano and Lori Pelletier, president of the Connecticut AFL-CIO, into the scrum as they attempted to de-escalate the situation.

When one side shouted, B.S. Bob, the other responded with, Retread Ned, ultimately summing up the discourse between Stefanowski and Lamont, who just days after the primary dubbed each other, Trumpanowski and Ned Malloy.

The New London debate is known for attracting a lively crowd ahead of divisive political debates.

Sponsored by the New London-based newspaper The Day and WTNH Channel 8, the Wednesday debate marks the first head-to-head match-up between Stefanowski and Lamont, who have been trading insults online and in advertising since the Aug. 14 primary.

Stefanowski and Lamont are slated to participate in four more debates prior to the November election.

Independent candidate Oz Griebel was not invited to participate in Wednesdays debate despite a plea to the Texas-based parent company of WTNH-TV, which set the parameters for participation.

kkrasselt@hearstmediact.com; 203-842-2563; @kaitlynkrasselt
Cannabis connoisseurs, this bud's for you.

Adolphus A. Busch V, great-great-grandson of the late founder of Anheuser-Busch announced today the launch of his eponymous cannabis brand, ABV Cannabis Company.

The company has just released a line of disposable vaporizer pens, filled with CO2-extracted cannabis oil derived from "environment-friendly, greenhouse-grown cannabis." ABV also plans to launch cannabis flower products in the near future.

Related: Researchers Believe Legal Marijuana Could Hurt Beer Sales

Says Busch, 27, Growing up I always knew I wanted to work in the family business, creating quality and affordable products that appealed to a variety of consumers."

But cannabis products were not exactly what he envisioned.

After graduating from Colorado State University, Mr. Busch returned home to St. Louis and applied for an entry-level job at Anheuser-Busch. After being turned away by the company, he headed back west to Colorado and worked in various positions within the cannabis industry. It was there that he took various positions in sales, technology, compliance, marketing, and product development.

The crash course in all things cannabis caused him to alter his vision for his future. "Once I saw all the incredible benefits that cannabis could bring to people and the immense opportunity presented by the cannabis industry, I knew I could take all I learned from my pioneering family heritage and create a new legacy for myself in the cannabis space, he says.

No word yet on whether he plans to take the family business in the same direction as Constellation Brands, the beer giant that recently invested $4 billion in Canadian cannabis company Canopy Growth. But it does make one wonder if Anheuser-Busch is getting closer to being Anheuser-Kush.

Related: One of the World's Biggest Wine-and-Beer Makers Has Made a Huge Move Into Cannabis

Related:

These 2 Major Trends Are Altering the Media Landscape. Here's How You Can Be Prepared.

A Plea to Our Elders: Consider Medical Marijuana Before Opioids

These Are 3 Little-Known Metrics That May Tell Us if a Recession Is Coming



Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
Everyone wipes, right? Besides, who wouldnt want to get free toilet paper while saving our planet?

Thats what founder and CEO Scott Kufus says about the potential of his new paper product-based company, Better Planet Paper. He believes his eco-friendly mission to plant a tree for every purchase of his product can help save the planet.

In the United States alone, more than 68 million trees are killed annually to manufacture paper products, with the average American consuming well over 1,000 pounds of paper and boxes annually.

Helping save the environment is just one of the many reasons that inspired Kufus, a former Boy Scout, to launch a startup that offers toilet paper on a recurring subscription-based model, similar to other businesses like Dollar Shave Club and BirchBox.

Related: The Complete, 12-Step Guide to Starting a Business

However, the genesis of the concept came from a movie script.

I wrote a comedic screenplay called Get Rich Quick - The Movie, Kufus said. It was about a proctologist and a hair salon owner that sold toilet paper to their friends to wipe away their debt. I thought it would be funny to weave that into a film... because everybody wipes!

While pitching a Hollywood studio, a top executive quipped, Somebody should build that someday, referencing the movies toilet paper business model.

Suddenly, Kufus had an epiphany.

So I researched online and realized it was a legitimate opportunity. With modern technology, its now possible to give people a chance to get toilet paper for free and deliver it directly to their homes. So instead of doing my film, I decided to build this company. That's how I launched Better Planet Paper .

Kufus believes Better Planet Paper can profitably save millions of trees and even reverse the damage caused by deforestation if he can persuade consumers to merely switch brands.

Related: 15 Ways to Grow Your Business Fast

Kufus plans to grow his company in several unique ways that other startups might learn from if everything goes according to plan.

Here are five strategies that can help transform a startup sapling into a monstrous redwood:

1) Create a social mission.

Every time a Better Planet Paper customer places an order, a new tree will be planted to reduce deforestation and support the environment in the long run.

Kufus knows the US National Park system is underfunded and wants to help. Thats why Kufus developed the Taller Tree Foundation.

Each quarter, a portion of sales will be donated to major tree planting organizations like the American Forest Foundation and 1% for the Planet. Kufus plans to encourage Better Planet Paper members to help them plant trees as well.

2) Incentive customers using co-op or referral marketing.

Another unique feature of the Better Planet Paper business model is their referral system and how they reward customers for their referrals.

Discounts are offered for the first two referrals. When a customer refers three people, then they get their paper products for free. Depending on the total number of people a customer refers, they can also receive other financial rewards, including member dividends from a collective pool of the companys revenue.

3) Leverage user-generated content (UGC).

Better Planet Paper is counting on their community to creatively spread their mission. What we're doing is inviting people to create music, stories, poems, art, and photos. Each month, well choose the best ideas and let everybody share the content from their mobile devices on social media sites worldwide, Kufus explained.

To date, one of their members already has a song listed on iTunes and iHeartRadio.

4) Develop community partnerships.

Better Planet Paper has already started to partner with community organizations to help spread the word about their environmentally-conscious goals. One of their initial partners is Keep Seminole Beautiful in Florida, which plans to promote Better Planet Papers mission of Paper with a Purpose! to their audience.

In exchange, they will receive funds from any purchases made. Regardless of niche, this kind of setup makes for a unique fundraising opportunity, especially for non-profit organizations.

5) Implement gamification.

Better Planet Paper will be producing a mobile app in 2018 designed to encourage environmental conservation. The app shows how many trees have been saved by company membership and even the total number of trees saved by the users collective referrals.



They also plan to run recurring contests to increase customer engagement and social sharing via the app. Recently, another company, BrandMentions, launched their SaaS startup using a social media contest which generated over 12,000 new leads in a matter of weeks.

Social media contests can be an inexpensive way to build an interested audience quickly if done properly.

Related: 8 Powerful Ways to Market Your Business on a Limited Budget

Seeing startup success.

After starting to ship their paper products just a few months ago, Kufus is excited to have raised nearly $1 million of seed capital, helping launch Better Planet Paper under budget and already experiencing 250 percent growth.

I have a sincere desire to make a change. I am much more interested in being significant than successful. I know well make money, but the end goal isn't to make the most money. The end goal is to make the biggest difference, Kufus revealed.

If Better Planet Paper can grow into a redwood of sorts, then they might be able to achieve their mission to plant 100 million sustainable trees over the next 10 years and help wipe away deforestation.

Related:

7 Factors That Influence Startup Valuations

Ask Yourself These Questions Before Setting a Start-Up

It Started As a Joke and Turned Into a Startup That Raised $1 Million in Funding



Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
NEW CANAAN  Jeff Fager, longtime executive producer of 60 Minutes, saw his contract with CBS terminated after 36 years with the company amid allegations of inappropriate conduct.

According to various reports, CBS News president David Rhodes stated Fager, a New Canaan resident, would be leaving the company effective immediately in a memo sent Wednesday.

The memo notes that Fagers termination is not directly related to the reported allegations in a The New Yorker article but because he violated company policy.

In a statement, Fager said his termination was unrelated to what he called false allegations printed in The New Yorker but rather because of a text message he sent to a CBS reporter demanding that she be fair in covering the story.

According to tax records, Fager bought his New Canaan home in 1999 for $1.3 million.

Fager regularly spoke at events in New Canaan and the surrounding area. Fager spoke at a Salant Lecture  named for the late president of CBS news who also lived in New Canaan  held at New Canaan Country School last October and the New Covenant Center Celebrity Breakfast held at the Woodway Country Club in Darien in March.

In his speech, Fager seemed to make reference to the cultural shift in the country.

This is a crazy year, its a crazy season in so many ways. Its hard to keep up with the amount of change thats happening in the Trump era, Fager had said at the March 4 Celebrity Breakfast.

Fager released a defensive statement regarding his departure.

My language was harsh and, despite the fact that journalists receive harsh demands for fairness all the time, CBS did not like it. One such note should not result in termination after 36 years, but it did, Fager wrote.

Fagers termination comes in the wake of Les Moonves departure, former CEO and chairman of CBS, from the company after he was accused of sexual harassment by various women in a Sept. 9 New Yorker article.

humberto.juarez@hearstmediact.com
The Palestinian Authority vowed to reconsider its cooperation with Israel as it again accused the U.S. of taking sides in the stalled Middle East peace process.

Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat told reporters in Ramallah that the full range of political, economic and security ties would be reassessed in the wake of the Trump administration's decision on Monday to shut the Palestinian mission in Washington, D.C.

President Donald Trump's national security adviser, John Bolton, said the move was triggered by the Palestinian leadership's refusal to participate in talks with Israel. But Erekat denounced it as an act of blackmail, saying the U.S. could no longer be a mediator in the conflict.

The closure of the office was the latest step in a U.S. pressure campaign on Palestinian officials as Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is expected to release a peace plan in the coming weeks.

The move was, not surprisingly, praised in Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the U.S. took "the correct decision" in closing the mission.

"Israel supports the American actions that are intended to make clear to the Palestinians that a refusal to negotiate and the attempts to attack Israel in international forums won't advance peace," according to a statement from the Israeli prime minister.

While Bolton was the first administration official to publicly discuss the U.S. move, he spent the bulk of his speech on Monday criticizing the International Criminal Court, which he said is too harsh on Israel. He warned the ICC, which the U.S. hasn't joined, that it could face penalties if it "comes after us, Israel or other U.S. allies."

Palestinian leaders have urged the ICC to consider action against Israel over its treatment of Palestinians, and Erekat said on Tuesday that wouldn't stop.

"We will continue to pursue Israel in the International Criminal Court, International Court of Justice and United Nations General Assembly," he said.

The U.S. administration has said it's trying a new approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict after decades of failed peace talks, chipping away at the Palestinians' key issues as it reshapes U.S. policy. Yet Palestinian officials view the new administration as biased in Israel's favor - and have cut contact with it.

Earlier this month, the U.S. halted funding of the United Nations agency that supports Palestinian refugees. UN ambassador Nikki Haley said the Palestinians' major demand - for millions of their refugees and descendants to return to lost homes in Israel - should be ruled out, and called for increased pressure on Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

The U.S. has also moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. That was a victory for Israel and a blow to the Palestinians, who say it undermines their own claim to east Jerusalem as capital of a future Palestinian state.

Palestinian-Israeli security cooperation under the 1993 Oslo peace agreement helps prevent militant attacks against Israel in the West Bank. The Palestinians have repeatedly threatened to stop such cooperation, accusing Israel of intransigence in the peace process.

---

Bloomberg's Michael S. Arnold contributed to this report.
S upermodel Linda Evangelista, one of the Nineties catwalk queens, once boasted that she didnt get out of bed for less than $10,000 a day. Bean counters at clothing labels may like to think costs are less excessive these days, but ahead of London Fashion Week (LFW), starting tomorrow, new alarms have been sounded. Overheads could be about to get a lot fatter and models in thin supply.

Forgive the puns, because John Horner, chairman of the British Fashion Model Agents Association, says the problems are no joke. Hes fretting over Brexit-induced problems in hiring models. Horner, also the boss of Models 1, which represents Twiggy, Sophie Dahl and Yasmin Le Bon, predicts that from next year there could be a dearth of new faces in an industry which relies on them.

Horner is one of a number of runway experts who told this paper there is a wave of fresh concerns from businesses about how the 32 billion UK fashion industry could be affected once Britain leaves the EU in March.

Initially the fall in sterling gave brands, including Burberry and Mulberry, a boost from an influx of tourists; now the headwinds are beginning to bite.

If the commentators are to be believed, then this months LFW six-day extravaganza of shows, new collections and parties should be relished, because in a years time it could be a lot harder, and more expensive, for businesses to take part.

Horner explains that preparations for LFW are tough enough as it is. A typical LFW includes around 700 models. Of those roughly 40% are from the UK, 30% are EU nationals, and 30% from the rest of the world. Agencies typically upload images of the models on their books about a week before the event starts, and designers then pick ones they want to meet and cast. Says Horner: That means the week ahead of the show can be frantic as agencies try to help models sort visas. It can be a headache and expensive.

However, Horner, who is actively discussing the matter with the Home Office, warns: The headache could be about to become a full-blown migraine because of Brexit. If there is a hard Brexit and the free movement of people from Europe is curtailed, I am seriously concerned. Designers rely on getting models that nobody else has seen. We need the Continent to help with that. If there are suddenly more passport and visa costs, as well as much more paperwork to get European models into Britain, then the runways could suffer a dearth of new faces.

Caroline Rush, chief executive of the British Fashion Council, says: We need to ensure that the 60% of EU and international models taking part at LFW are able to travel easily. Promising conversations between the British Fashion Council and the Home Office have us working together to explore how we can ensure the modelling industry remains compliant with the UK immigration system.

Visa woes could also make it more difficult for freelancers in the UK, warns Tamara Cincik at consultancy Fashion Roundtable. She says LFW is not enough of an income for stylists and photographers, and they also have to work on the Continent throughout the year. All creatives travel continuously by necessity. If Brits in the industry suddenly cant work freely in Europe, then they may look to try to leave Britain altogether.

Companies showcasing new goods at LFW have also voiced concerns about potential rising costs if the UK is unable to secure a favourable free-trade agreement with the EU.

Hackney-based designer Sadie Williams says: Rising material costs are definitely a concern of mine, since we buy many of our fabrics from the EU.

Iain Burton, the founder of luxury handbags-maker Aspinal of London, adds: Clearly the most obvious potential complex problems would be uncertainty around import and export tariffs. As a company that uses huge quantities of the finest quality Italian leathers and other European components, this could be very challenging.

While the City frets over the fate of larger brands, there are growing concerns over Londons army of nimble, creative small labels.

Helen Brocklebank, the boss of luxury goods trade body Walpole, which counts London-headquartered giants Burberry and Mulberry as members, thinks big brands are all working up ways to cope with any headwinds. But she is concerned for smaller and emerging labels who dont have the resources to do that kind of planning.

Brocklebank continues: A hard  no-deal  Brexit would deliver a fatal blow to the smaller, entrepreneurial luxury fashion houses whose margins are typically too narrow to survive the financial impact of WTO tariffs when importing raw materials or finished product from Europe and then exporting it out again.

The Walpole boss is trying to remain upbeat though, and says British brands have the benefit of wider international appeal. Next month Brocklebank will take a number of members to the US for a trade mission to meet retailers and press there.

But not all brands taking part in LFW are feeling gloomy. Womenswear designer Minki Cheng, who heads his brand, Minki, says: London has always been the central hub for the creative industry, and as long as the Government and the creative council are committed to protecting the industry and its talents, we believe London will remain top.

The capital will probably remain a key target for designers, but their accountants and shareholders might have to be prepared to pay supermodel-style wages if they want the UKs fashion industry to thrive.

Are designers still opening London shops?

Demand by retailers looking to open their first London shop has slipped because of Brexit, high rents and rising business rates, according to Peter Mace, head of central London retail at property agent Cushman & Wakefield.

He notes that eight luxury international fashion firms agreed to open shops in the first half, down from 10 a year earlier.

Brands which signed leases included Japans Tasaki in New Bond Street.
Photo: The Canadian Press Jon Peters and Barbra Streisand hold their awards at the Golden Globe Awards in Los Angeles.

Just as film festival audiences are swooning over Bradley Cooper's celebrated romance "A Star Is Born," the film's studio is distancing itself from a producer of the project.

Jon Peters is a credited producer of the new "A Star Is Born," the third remake of the Hollywood fable. Peters was instrumental in the making of the 1976 version of "A Star Is Born," which starred his then-girlfriend Barbra Streisand.

But with the new film in the spotlight, Peters' history has come under scrutiny. A report Tuesday by Jezebel took issue with Peters, in the #MeToo era, being a producer on one of the fall's biggest releases.

In August 2011, a Los Angeles jury awarded one of Peters' former employees, Shelly Morita, more than $3.3 million in a harassment case she filed against the producer. The jury determined Peters subjected Morita to "severe and pervasive" harassment and a "hostile or abusive" work environment.

Peters and Morita entered into a later agreement overturning the judgment in the case. The terms were not disclosed.

Warner Bros., which produced and will release "A Star Is Born" next month, said Tuesday it was contractually bound to credit Peters.

"Jon Peters' attachment to this property goes as far back as 1976," said the studio in a statement. "Legally, we had to honour the contractual obligation in order to make this film."

The Producers Guild of America also confirmed Tuesday that it has ruled that Peters did not work enough on the film to receive a "producers mark." In the film's credits, Peters' name doesn't include the "p.g.a." label of a producers mark.

That has potential ramifications for "A Star Is Born" in awards season, where it is expected to be a heavyweight contender. Peters wouldn't likely be among the listed producers, for example, should the film be nominated for best picture. He would not get an Oscar, if the film were to win.
M ARK Carney joined the voices warning about high levels of Chinese debt today in an interview to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers.

The Bank of England Governor, who has just agreed to extend his term into 2020, says four big issues could cause another crisis.

He cited high levels of consumer debt, a Brexit no deal, the risks of cyber attack on a big bank and the Chinese debt issue.

China is top of the list he told the BBC. Could something like this happen again? Carney said. Could there be a trigger for a crisis? if were complacent, of course it could.

History teaches us that there are financial crises from time to time around the world. We can come up with 60 or 70 examples over the course of the last century.
T he Brexiteer chairman of JD Wetherspoon on Wednesday revealed his pubs chain will stop selling Jagermeister and French brandies ahead of Britain leaving the EU.

Tim Martin said Germanys Jagermeister, which is Wetherspoons third-biggest selling spirit and is used for Jagerbombs, will no longer be served from September 26.

Courvoisier VS and LVMH-owned Hennessy Fine de Cognac will also be pulled.

Jagermeister will be replaced by English herbal liqueur Strika and new American and Australian brandies will also be introduced.

Martin told the Evening Standard the move would reduce prices by 10p per drink. He thinks the UK will trade on a global basis rather than with a European bias after Brexit.

The move is part of a product review which saw the firm stop serving champagne in July.

Martin added: We will continue to review all products over the next 24 months, with the object of making the business more competitive and offering the best choice and value for customers."
The company, which listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange, with a market cap of just over 425 million, is aiming to use the cash to pay down its revolving credit facility, so it can further invest in a raft of projects that it has already locked down.
I dealogues should always be careful what they wish for. Brexiteers used to complain that Britain wasnt doing enough to prepare for leaving the EU without a deal.

To be fair, they were taking their cue from a Prime Minister who had spent the first year of her premiership intoning that no deal was better than a bad deal, until her civil servants brought to her attention the foolish implications of what she was saying.

For no deal means no continuing legal arrangements for everything from British airlines landing at continental airports to British pharmaceutical products being licensed in Europe, to the enforceability of trillions of pounds of financial derivative contracts entered into with European counterparts.

It is the global view  reflected by the daily decisions of real investors making bets with real money in currency markets  that exiting the EU without an orderly transition would deliver a huge negative economic shock to the British people.

But by the time Mrs May tried to take no deal off the table by offering the EU an unconditional Irish backstop last December, the genie was out of the bottle.

So the Brexiteers bullied a weak Downing Street into wasting billions of pounds on contingency plans and then appointing a minister solely to examine the option.

At Chequers, even as they were preparing to shirk responsibility for their mess by resigning, leading Brexiteers secured a promise that preparations would be stepped up for no deal. Indeed, tomorrow the Cabinet will meet solely and specifically to run through the planning for a scenario that almost every member must know is total lunacy  and which it is entirely in Britains gift to avoid.

Ask yourself: when was the last time a British Cabinet devoted exclusive hours to discussing a real challenge we face, like the insecurity of work in the robot age or the opportunity of technology to transform ailing public services?

Orderly withdrawal

If all the Brexiteers were doing was wasting the time of Cabinet ministers, and holding weird seances in draughty rooms around Westminster, none of this would matter very much. But the mere possibility that the Government could be so stupid as to crash out of the EU has, understandably, forced the rest of the country to plan for the option.

Stories that Cadbury is storing ingredients to prevent a shortage of chocolate raises a smile and conjures up images of Dads Army. But theres nothing funny about the fact that the NHS, in the year 2018, is literally stockpiling medicines. Real and damaging decisions that will be hard to reverse are being taken. Car manufacturers are switching from British to continental suppliers.

The boss of Jaguar Land Rover, the employer of 44,000 people here, told the Prime Minister to her face yesterday that currently, I do not even know if any of our manufacturing facilities in the UK will be able to function on March 30  the day after we leave the EU.

In the City, banks and other institutions are putting into action their contingency plans to relocate headquarters to the Continent. Today we learn that London lost its top slot on the global financial centres index to New York, with Hong Kong not far behind it  a reminder that the beneficiaries of Britains mistakes do not lie only on the Continent.

This morning, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told the European Parliament in his state-of-the-union address that Britain had to understand that  if you leave the Union you are, of course, no longer part of our single market, and certainly not only in parts of it.

Since the Chequers proposal was to keep the UK in the part of the single market that covers goods but not services, it means the death-knell for the plan that Mrs May ruptured her Cabinet over.

But Mr Juncker did promise, in the same speech, that the EU owed it to its citizens and business to ensure an orderly withdrawal. That is an offer that the Cabinet should, tomorrow, seize. The contingencies for crashing out should end.
L ondon is a great city but under the current occupant of City Hall it has developed a serious problem. Pick virtually any major crime and there have been significant increases over the past few years. Londoners deserve better than a Mayor such as Sadiq Khan, who is more interested in blaming central government. If elected Mayor in May 2020, I would apply lessons learnt from elsewhere.

There are 44 other police services in the UK, five of which  Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent, Surrey and Thames Valley  share a boundary with the Met Police Service. There are huge opportunities to learn from those services and to increase collaboration with them. Too often the Met is failing to do that.

For example, the Mets Specialist Training Centre provides its officers with firearms and public-order training. Its in Gravesend, Kent. This kind of training would be invaluable to other police forces, and it would be straightforward to arrange for Essex and Kent police to pay a financial contribution and use the facility. This just doesnt happen.

In London, the Mayors Office of Policing and Crime (MOPAC) sets the direction and budget for the Met Police. While Kent Police does the same thing with 15 staff and a budget of 1.2 million, MOPAC employs more than 100 people. I would cut MOPAC spending, saving London 32 million, and divert this money into frontline policing.

I strongly believe proactive community policing is the route to safer, more optimistic local communities. Over the past few years we have seen the use of stop-and-search cut from 700,000 instances a year to 100,000. It would be wrong to pretend that this is a panacea, or to ignore the genuine concerns of some Londoners about how it is targeted. However, the use of body-worn cameras has helped to restore confidence in stop-and-search, a vital tool in the fight against knife crime. London should learn from the Glasgow approach, in which targeted stop-and- search, combined with specific interventions to reduce gang violence, have turned the tide against knife crime.

Under my mayoralty, I would invest in a youth outreach programme. Family breakdowns and inner-city pressures are part of our way of life. Young people are often left without hope, guidance or pastoral care. They know that gang members and drug-dealers carry weapons, so they feel the need to carry knives for self-defence. We must break the circle. This is why I support the use of knife arches and why I would fund grassroots charities such as Gangs Unite and Cracked It that work with gangs and ex-offenders.

With the right leadership we can turn Londons crime epidemic around. As Mayor I would get the police back on the front foot in the fight against crime.
I often get told to eff off and join the Tories, so last Saturday thats exactly what I did. I went to a field in Cambridge to speak at something called the Big Tent Ideas festival. It was organised by people from Labour and the Lib-Dems but the figurehead was Conservative MP George Freeman, so it was nicknamed Tory Glastonbury.

I rather enjoyed it. It was nice to be at a political gathering and not be verbally abused. It was very Midsomer Murders minus the jeopardy. Sedate with a series of themed tents with no mud and nice loos  whats not to like? Like the show, it wasnt the most diverse gathering. You could pretty much count us ethnics on one hand, including the Indian food stall, which did a roaring trade  theres a post-Brexit metaphor there somewhere.

I was the only Labour person there as, apparently, the leadership banned MPs from attending. This was a shame, although Brighton MP Peter Kyle was on fine form, robustly debating against Brexit with MEP Daniel Hannan. I talked about politics in the Hopes and Fears tent (which felt appropriate), took part in panels on education and arts policy and sat in on many other discussions from the economy to clean air.

I was struck by how refreshing it felt to be at a serious political event, debating policies with honesty and good faith and not just yelling mindlessly about tribe or culture.

Since the general election, British politics has been an ideas-free zone. Brexit has dominated the news cycle and taken up energy, bandwidth and space. The deep divisions that run across both Labour and the Conservative Party have been based on big emotional feelings, not evidence.

Civil servants and Tory special advisers will privately admit that the business of government and the usual quest for eye-catching policies has been paralysed for a long time because of Brexit. And the Corbynites and the Blairites have been too busy trying to kill each other to speak to voters.

But things may be about to change, and not before time. Yesterday, addressing the TUC in Manchester, we saw shadow chancellor John McDonnell outline plans to give workers more rights in the increasingly insecure gig economy, while last week the Institute for Public Policy Research came out with a substantial report, launched by the Archbishop of Canterbury, with a raft of ideas to rethink economic policy for post-Brexit Britain, including taxing wealth more.

Of course, there was criticism from business to some of these ideas but at least we finally have some to discuss instead of squalid, petty in-fighting or the never-ending Brexistential crisis.

My take away from the festival  apart from a cracking paneer wrap  was that ideas still matter in politics and that despite all this talk of a centrist party, there are still fundamental differences between what the two big parties believe in.

But thats OK. In fact its very healthy to have diversity of thought and debate it without hysteria or howls of betrayal. Especially in a field with nice loos.

Dont play politics with maternity leave

This week, MPs will debate proxy voting in Parliament that would allow new mothers and fathers to nominate a colleague to vote on their behalf. There will be some who argue that the well-established gentlemans agreement of pairing is sufficient but that ship sailed earlier this year.

During key Brexit votes in July, Lib-Dem MP Jo Swinson, who had recently given birth, relied on Tory chairman Brandon Lewis not to vote as her pair and, whoops  there was some kind of mix up and he trotted through the division lobby while she was left holding the baby.

This is a real problem for new MP parents  particularly the mothers. If she cant vote, not only is she denied her right to represent constituents but shes often unfairly branded lazy by the press because her voting record looks poor but doesnt mention the fact that she was off on maternity leave.

With more young women entering Parliament, its becoming a necessity. There are currently four opposition MPs on maternity leave and the Government has knife-edge Brexit votes coming down the track. It would be craven if they played politics with this. Almost every other workplace has a proper policy when it comes to maternity and shared parental leave  surely its time for the mother of parliaments to modernise?

* I have nothing but respect for anyone who goes on Strictly. With my comedians hat on, I can make people laugh, but the idea of dancing in front of the nation puts the fear of God in me  and Im so unfit I get a stitch just watching.
W ell played, Ben Elton. The writer and comedian has used Upstart Crow , his BBC sitcom about Shakespeare, to have a dig at Sir Mark Rylance for his belief that there is not enough evidence to say the Bards plays were written by him.

Tonights episode introduces a character played by Ben Miller called Wolf Hall, who is the greatest actor of his age but also rather pretentious. He is tricked into claiming that Shakespeare  played by David Mitchell  did not write his own plays. Its as wonderfully unsubtle as Id hope for from the co-writer of Blackadder.

Does Sir Mark warrant such a lampooning? He is one of our finest Shakespearean actors (and a former director of Shakespeares Globe). His conspiratorial beliefs dont have a negative effect on delivery of the lines, so what does it matter?

Lots of celebrities believe all sorts of batty things, many far more dangerous than anything Rylance has ever said: Marion Cotillard once flirted with the idea that 9/11 was an inside job, Rob Schneider spoke out against vaccines, and then theres that crazy thing Kanye West said (take your pick).

Yet Im with Elton that the normalisation of fact denial in our post-truth world is always something to worry about.

There is also a facet of anti-Stratfordian theories that is especially troublesome. One of the major areas of doubt, they argue, hinges on the fact that Shakespeare was a glovers son, raised in a rural household and did not, as far as we know, attend university or leave England.

How then  they ask  could Shakespeares plays possibly feature such rich knowledge of history, law, philosophy, literature, foreign languages, astronomy, art, music, medicine and courtly pursuits?

This is intellectual snobbery pure and simple. It falls to more than academics alone to stand up to it. Again: well played, Ben Elton.

Theatre by another name sounds as sweet

A banquet of bollocks. That was Private Eyes cutting description of the reasoning behind the decision to relaunch Kilburns Tricycle Theatre as the Kiln. The new name comes with the venues 7 million redevelopment and has faced a chorus of grumbles from some.

Former Tricycle artistic directors and board members wrote an open letter claiming that the change throws away a valuable legacy, and a petition to revert to the old name now has 1,500 signatures. On Monday, at the opening night of its first show, a small group of protesters gathered with placards that read: Its our Tricycle, not your Kiln.

I can in part empathise with the sentiment but this hoo-ha distracts from what matters to most theatregoers: that the plays are good and the tickets are affordable.

The theatres brilliant artistic director, Indhu Rubasingham, left, has drawn up a very promising season and held ticket prices. Now that the theatres first season as the Kiln is under way, I hope people will remember what really makes a theatre great.

Great cartoonists draw on London

Thanks to Tintin, Lucky Luke, and Blake and Mortimer, as well as many others, Brussels is revered by cartoon-lovers as the comic capital of the world. Maybe so, but London surely has a strong case for being the home of the political cartoon.

Londoners can see HM Bateman classics at The Cartoon Museum in Little Russell Street, or work by todays leading national newspaper cartoonists at Putneys Political Cartoon Gallery. And right now at the British Museum, Ian Hislops show, I Object, displays pioneering, subversive Georgian caricatures by the likes of James Gillray and Richard Newton. Wonderful, all of it.

Time to enter for the ES art prize

The end of this month is the deadline for submissions to this years Evening Standard Art Prize , in association with Hiscox.

If there are artists reading this column, I urge you to consider entering. Painter Chantal Joffe and best-selling writer Olivia Laing have signed up to the judging panel this year, joining the Standards art critic, Matthew Collings.
O n the night of Sunday August 26, senior BBC executives were pleasantly surprised by a surge of opinion and acclamation that quickly became little short of a phenomenon.

The response on social media to the first episode of Bodyguard astonished even the most experienced hands at new Broadcasting House  as did the consolidated total of 10.4 million viewers, the largest launch audience for a new UK television drama on any channel since 2006.

Naturally, the bosses had been quietly confident that they had a winning team: Keeley Hawes as Julia Montague, a tough Home Secretary itching to move into Number 10; Richard Madden as David Budd, her brooding, lantern-jawed protection officer; and Jed

Mercurio, a showrunner and writer of the highest calibre. But the scale and intensity of the audience reaction  and the water-cooler chatter that followed  caught everyone off guard (Needless to say, what follows includes weapons-grade spoilers: you have been warned).

As Tony Hall, the BBCs director-general, embarks upon a review of the licence fees structure, Bodyguard is a well-timed reminder to the usual sceptics that the BBC is still the best television service in the world, and an institution that must adapt but also be treasured. In an age of streaming and playback, this particular series has reinstated appointment television  programmes you make sure you watch at the allotted hour.

I think the series secret is a cunning blend of the unabashedly traditional and the ultra-modern. The narrative spine is the familiar tale of a macho-yet-troubled man falling for a demure, older and more powerful woman: a bodice-ripper for the 21st century that, in its steamier moments, has seemed closer to Lady Chatterleys Bodyguard than, say, Spooks or House of Cards.

It would be idle to deny that the series has taken full, unapologetic advantage of its lead performers glamour and sex appeal.

Gripping: Richard Madden in the BBC's Bodyguard / BBC

Yet Bodyguard is so much more than a bonkbuster with explosions. Woven into all the smouldering expressions  and, it must be said, smouldering debris  is a vividly contemporary palette of dramatic themes.

The gripping opening scenes of the first episode showed Budd  off-duty with his children on a train  apprehending a Muslim suicide bomber and persuading her dexterously not to detonate the device. His new principal protectee  and future lover  is pressing for tougher measures to deal with the threat of fundamentalist terrorism (against the instincts of her rival, the Prime Minister). Mercurio captures well the debate that has raged since 9/11 between the champions of security and the defenders of liberty: in the week of the 17th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, this controversy remains depressingly topical.

More subtle, perhaps, is Bodyguards exploration of Budds PTSD and the psychic scars he bears after fighting in Afghanistan. Though much of the coverage of Maddens performance has presented him as the nations new heartthrob  and, inevitably, its next candidate to play James Bond  his acting is also exceptionally good.

Veering between glassy-eyed impermeability and crushed vulnerability, he captures impressively the human cost of a relentless dedication to mission. He loves Julia as a woman but despises her glib bellicosity  the frosty soundbites of an armchair general  with every cell of his being. The authentic heart of Bodyguard is the tragic aphasia of the neglected veteran.

Lurking beneath this primary political plotline is the shadowy presence of what we have learnt in the Trump era to call the deep state. You know that characters from the secret world with names such as Stephen Hunter-Dunn and Richard Longcross cannot possibly be up to any good  not least when they short-circuit the police hierarchy to provide the Home Secretary with eyes-only intelligence on a tablet. This appears to be the dirt that will enable her to blackmail the Prime Minister into capitulation or resignation. If, that is, she can survive the almost daily attempts on her life.

The pleasure of Bodyguard is that it addresses serious issues without ever forgetting to entertain its audience. In this respect, Mercurio is a post-modernist and a punk writer. As fans of his police procedural series Line of Duty will know, he has a splendid disdain for traditional screenplay structure and the conventions of the episodic story arc.

So killing off Keeley Hawess character in Sundays episode was both shocking and entirely consistent with Mercurios established methods. Indeed, no sooner had the Home Secretary been pronounced dead and her forlorn bodyguard tried (and failed) to kill himself than speculation began to fizz on social media that Julia might not, after all, be dead.

Where, after all, was the body? What exactly had the doctors said to her relatives in the corridor? Might ministerial Juliet be reunited with tough-guy Romeo after all?

I somehow doubt that Bodyguard will have a conventionally happy ending. But that is scarcely its purpose. Mercurio loves to gaslight his characters and his audience, making them wonder if they are losing touch with reality. His dramatic sensibility meshes with the spirit of the age: our sense of uncertainty, fear of volatility, and suspicion that nothing is predictable.
L ondoners can bag themselves a beer without spending a penny today, after BrewDog announced the return of their Bad Beer Amnesty giveaway.

The brewery, which first ran the campaign back in 2011, are offering pub fans the chance to swap mainstream beers for their recently launched Lost Lager.

Today, London BrewDog bars will be fitted with Bad Beer Bins. Participants will be able to bring their own cans and exchange them for a pint of the brewerys latest beer.

Lost Lager is our best lager to date; a crisp, clean pilsner with hints of spice and a zesty lime marmalade character, BrewDog co-founder James Watt said.

To mark its launch, we wanted to give beer drinkers a chance to taste a lager made with soul and passion, rather than the mass-produced fizzy yellow swill that the big breweries have been peddling for years.

Best London beers - in pictures 1 /6 Best London beers - in pictures Scroll to see our pick of the best London beers... Shutterstock / Dean Drobot Fullers London Porter From Londons most historic brewery comes this world classic style. Chocolate malt and coffee flavours mix with just the right amount of hop bitterness to deliver a smooth and creamy mouth feel. Its well-balanced aromas deliver a great lingering finish. Not overwhelming, but a highly-satisfying porter. Goes well with rich meats and chocolate desserts. 1.89, Ocado, Buy it now Redemption Trinity A light ale crafted with 3 types of malts and 3 different hops, the award-winning Trinity comes from Tottenham craft brewery, Redemption Brewing Company. The low strength beer packs an impressive punch for its 3 per cent abv, with great layers of flavour until a nice dry finish. The sweet malty aroma is rounded off to notes of citrus fruit. Bright and extremely drinkable. 2.40, Beer Merchants, Buy it now Brixton Reliance Pale Ale Bright citrus aromas and a hoppy hit to boot make this the perfect tipple for long summer days. Named after Brixtons iconic Reliance Arcade, its pairing of zesty fruit and delicate floral notes lead to a dry finish. Malted barley provides a crisp background for the generous hop flavours. A true artisan ale. 2.45, The Whisky Exchange, Buy it now Pressure Drop Pale Fire A local favourite, Pressure Drop is a microbrewery located in Hackney  which is known as one of Londons major beer destinations. Pale Fire is a full-bodied pale ale with tropical fruit notes and plenty of new world hops to give a bold flavour. The best part? Its made with different hops each time. An ever-changing crowd pleaser. 2.39, Honest Brew, Buy it now Beavertown Gamma Ray This American pale ale from Londons Beavertown Brewery is a superstar in the craft beer world. The beer is dry hopped for days to give it the huge aromas and flavours that you can smell immediately and taste from the first mouthful. New world hops shine through a sweet malt backdrop, leading to a long dry finish. Praise all round. 2.49, Honest Brew, Buy it now

Lost Lager is available in the nine BrewDog bars in the capital, including Soho, Camden and Shoreditch. For more information head to the brewery's website.

It's not the first time the independent chain has made headlines this year, after it came under fire earlier for launching a 'tonedeaf' Pink IPA for International Womens Day.

'Bad Beer Amnesty is the latest free beer handout to be announced in London, after Youngs pubs announced a new giveaway to celebrating its 187th birthday.
M ovie heroes are only ever as good as their adversaries.

Great villains have stolen the show so many times with some of the most compelling screen presence in cinema.

The characters come in many forms, from terrifying and monstrous to psychopathic and deeply calculating, but the best are always utterly unforgettable.

From the anti-heroes of horror to those at the heart of insidious thrillers and gripping dramas, these are the greatest movie villains of all time.

10. Count Orlok

Count Orlok became one of the most abiding characters in horror when he appeared in 1922 silent classic Nosferatu. An incredible performance from German actor Max Schreck brought the demonic character to life, looming over his Transylvanian surroundings with long, curled fingers. The character borrows from the tropes of gothic literature and traditional vampire stories, while the scratchy, black and white footage adds to the eeriness. The presence of Orlock helps make the film just as unnerving nearly 100 years on.

9. The Predator

One of the great 1980s action movie monsters, the Predator was as utterly terrifying as it was unstoppable. The super-advanced extra terrestrial gradually picks off Arnold Schwarzeneggers military team, showing no signs of weakness or mercy. Interestingly, the viewer was given a chance to see from the monsters point of view. While the thermal-vision effect is pretty dated by todays standards, it was one of the most inventive use of POV since horror master John Carpenter used it to devastating effect in 1978's Halloween. In the words of Schwarzeneggers army commender, the Predator might be one ugly mother*******, but its still one of the most ruthless movie villains ever. It only remains to be seen whether the 2018 reboot will do the original movie justice.

8. Hans Gruber

Hans Gruber proved the perfect, conniving adversary to Bruce Williss all-action, all-American everyman John McClane in 1988s Die Hard. Alan Rickmans sinister performance is perfectly pitched, bringing an unlikely charm to the role of the ruthless German terrorist. Incredibly, the part marked Rickmans first ever movie appearance too. The moment he fakes an American accent to keep his identity hidden from McClane is in equal parts pathetic and terrifying  one of many highlights in a flawless performance.

7. Patrick Bateman

Vacuous investment banker and self-confessed insane serial killer, Patrick Bateman welcomed in a new generation of movie villian in 2000s thrilling blacker-than-black comedy American Psycho, set in 1987 New York.

For all the gruesome violence and manic episodes, its the meticulous nature of Bateman that makes him so unnerving  whether it be it the excessive morning exercise and skincare routine, his obsession over business cards and inane pop music, or the way he lays down newspaper and carefully pulls on a raincoat before murdering colleague Paul Allen in his apartment.

The film is constructed in such a way that the viewers grasp on reality deteriorates along with Batemans mental state during the movie, making us doubt everything weve just seen. However, theres no doubt that Christian Bales Bateman is one of the most troubling and insidious screen presence of all time. At one point he confesses to a killing-spree on the phone to his lawyer, saying: I guess Im a pretty sick guy  no kidding.

6. Ernst Stavro Blofeld

Legendary British thespian Donald Pleasence brought Ian Flemings villainous creation to life in 1967s You Only Live Twice, leaving an indelible mark in British film. The shaved head, distinctive facial scar, lapel-less suit and Persian cat made him instantly recognisable, providing the inspiration for hundreds of spoofs down the years  not least Mike Myers Dr Evil in the Austin Powers movies. The ham-fisted attempt to revive the character in 2015 film Spectre notwithstanding, Blofeld is Bond's greatest ever adversary.

5. The Terminator (Model 101 and T-1000)

The Terminator series has welcomed not one, but two timeless villians in the form of the time-travelling, cyborg assassins Model 101 and T-1000. While Schwarzeneggers incarnation of the Terminator in the original movie was ominous in its ruthless pursuit of its target, the shape-shifting T-1000 played by Robert Patrick in the excellent sequel offered a less predictable threat.

Theyre both two of cinema's ultimate robot killing machines and two of the most relentless  only when the red lights of its eyes fade in the final scenes of the first movie are audiences able to breathe a sigh of relief.

4. Freddy Krueger

New Line

Krueger's ability to haunt the dreams of his victims makes him the single most inescapable and utterly terrifying horror creation of the 1980s. Robert Englund provided one of the finest physical performances the genre has ever seen in 1984's unforgettable A Nightmare on Elm Street, fleshing out this shape-shifting boogeyman with devastating effect. Both the tongue-through-the-telephone scene and the sequence with the long, dangling arms are some of the simplest, but most surreal and terrifying moments in horror cinema  truly the stuff of nightmares.

3. The Joker

Different generations of film fans will have their preferred depictions of the Joker, whether it be Jack Nicholsons frenetic and irreverent take on the role or Heath Ledgers chilling portrayal in the Dark Knight. However, the compelling DC villain has stolen the show in many a big-screen adaptation, and always proves the perfect counterpoint to the incorruptible Batman. The character is consistently creepy and sadistic, yet charming, while also being utterly devoid of empathy or morality - something that makes him a pretty terrifying prospect.

The less said about Jared Letos Joker in Suicide Squad the better, perhaps, but Joaquin Phoenix has the opportunity to do the classic DC villain justice in the upcoming 2019 movie Joker.

2. Darth Vader

The ultimate, undisputed villain of sci-fi cinema has to be Darth Vader, the malevolent heart of the Star Wars franchise. Vader, the uncompromising figurehead of all evil in the galaxy, helped make the original trilogy so compelling and viewers were delighted to see the character make a reappearance in 2016s Rogue One.

It was nearly so different though  hilariously, the original dialogue recorded for the role by Bristol-born actor David Prowse makes Vader sound less like the leader of the Galactic Empire and more like a substitute Geography teacher. However, once James Earl Jones stepped in to provide the voice, the character was fully realised and the iconic villain was born.

1. Dr Hannibal Lecter
Photo: The Canadian Press

Former President Jimmy Carter sees little hope for the U.S. to change its human rights and environmental policies as long as Donald Trump is in the White House, but he has a warning for his fellow Democrats looking to oust the current administration: Don't go too far to the left.

"Independents need to know they can invest their vote in the Democratic Party," Carter said Tuesday during his annual report at his post-presidential centre and library in Atlanta, where he offered caution about the political consequences should Democrats "move to a very liberal program, like universal health care."

That's delicate  and, Carter acknowledged, even contradictory  advice coming from the 93-year-old former president, and it underscores the complicated political calculations for Democrats as they prepare for the November midterms and look ahead to the 2020 presidential election.

"Rosie and I voted for Bernie Sanders in the past," Carter noted.

He was referring to his wife, Rosalynn, and their support for the Vermont senator, an independent who identifies as a democratic socialist, over establishment favourite Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary. At another point, he pointed to California's environmental policies  limits on carbon emissions, stiffer fuel-efficiency standards  as the model for combating climate change.

Still, Carter stressed, Democrats nationally must "appeal to independents" who are souring on the current administration.

Trump's job approval rating, according to Gallup, has dipped to 40 per cent, mostly because of declining support among independents.

Carter alluded to arguments from self-identified progressives that Democrats will sacrifice votes on the left if they don't embrace the liberal base: "I don't think any Democrat is going to vote against a Democratic nominee," and he insisted that he's not asking the left to sacrifice its goals, only to see that winning elections is necessary to accomplish any of them.

There is some historical irony in Carter's analysis. He came to the White House in 1976 from the moderate wing of the Democratic Party, and he clashed with party liberals, drawing a spirited primary challenge in 1980 from Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy. Carter prevailed, but he was wounded, abandoned by Kennedy's most liberal supporters and unable to win over independents who helped deliver a landslide for Republican Ronald Reagan.

Carter's latest handicapping comes near the conclusion of a midterm primary season that has seen Democratic primary voters move the party to the left.
A n artist today told of the heartbreak she felt after her beloved Siberian Forest cat was snatched from outside her front door.

Police have released a CCTV image of the suspected thief at a train station after Izabela Mnichs pet, Mr Muk, was carried away from her home in Canonbury, north London.

Ms Mnich, 34, from Poland, said she was devastated on returning home to be told by neighbours that her cat had been stolen by a man who had torn a pink wristband off the animals collar.

My lovely cat has been ripped away from me, she said. I do not know what to say to the person that took him, only that I want Muk to come back to me where he is safe and happy.

Mr Muk being carried by the suspect / PA

Ms Mnich said her 10-year-old ginger cat was well known to neighbours in Petherton Road, and had an Instagram account dedicated to him with hundreds of followers.

Ms Mnich said he could be worth as much as 1,600. The breed is known for its luxurious coat.
A group of teenagers celebrated after knifing a 19-year-old man to death because he gatecrashed a girl's 16th birthday party, a court heard.

Lewis Blackman was stabbed 14 times after being chased from the Airbnb-rented flat in Kensington having arrived uninvited.

Six boys, including four 17-year-olds and two 16-year-olds, are on trial at the Old Bailey accused of his murder and causing violent disorder in the early hours of February 18.

The court heard on Wednesday that the birthday girl hoped about 50 boys and girls her own age would be at her party.

She was careful to only invite guests from Hackney, and particularly keen to avoid inviting any boys from Camden, as she knew there was a "history" between young men from the two areas, jurors were told.

A police officer outside a house in Earl's Court Road after Mr Blackman was stabbed to death / Ryan Hooper/PA

Despite her best efforts, Mr Blackman turned up as part of a group of ten young men from Camden after the invitations were circulated on Snapchat.

He was armed with a knife while his friend had a firearm when they tried to force their way into the party, causing damage and forcing some guests to flee "in terror", the court heard.

CCTV cameras caught a larger group of party-goers, some also armed with knives, chasing Mr Blackman along the residential streets of Earl's Court.

Prosecutor Oliver Glasgow said: "He was stabbed, he fell to the floor and he was then set upon. The brutality of the attack, which saw him stabbed a total of 14 times as he lay defenceless on the ground, is truly shocking.

"What is perhaps even more disturbing is the apparent celebration that his killers enjoyed after he had been fatally wounded and the calm and carefree manner in which they walked away." Mr Blackman died at the scene.

A police officer outside a house in Earl's Court Road after Mr Blackman was stabbed to death / Ryan Hooper/PA

Mr Glasgow added: "It is the Crown's case that, no matter what may have been said or done by Lewis Blackman or any of his friends to offend or frighten the guests at the party, there is nothing that any of these six defendants can say to excuse the murderous attack upon him.

All of the teenagers deny the charges and the trial continues.
V ladimir Putin today escalated a war of words over the Salisbury nerve agent attack by claiming there was nothing criminal about Britains prime suspects.

In comments expected to be greeted with derision in the West, the Russian president flatly dismissed claims the pair were members of the Kremlins secret intelligence service.

Police and prosecutors in the UK last week named Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov as the agents who smeared Novichok on a door handle at the home of retired double-agent Sergei Skripal, leaving him and his daughter Yulia critically ill. Mr Putin said they now knew the genuine identities of the men, but insisted that they had done nothing wrong.

In an address to an economic forum in Vladivostok, he said: Of course, we looked who these people are. We know who they are, we have found them already. He added: There is nothing special and nothing criminal about it, Im telling you. Asked whether the pair were civilians, he replied: Of course they are civilians.

Mr Putin said Russia had found the two men and that they were civilians / REUTERS

The president also made the unusual move of asking Petrov and Boshirov to appear in public to dispel any doubts about their true identity. I hope that they will emerge [in public] themselves and tell about themselves."

"It will be better for everyone, he said. Mr Putins intervention risks widening the gulf between Russia and the UK over the attempted assassination, which triggered a wave of diplomatic expulsions on both sides.

Theresa May has told MPs the attack was almost certainly approved at the top level of the Russian state.

Novichok suspects Alexander Petrov (left) and Ruslan Boshirov / PA

Mr Putins hint that the men could soon break their cover recalls the assassination of former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko in London, when suspects Andrey Lugovoy and Dmitry Kovtun publicly denied from Russia the allegations.

Detectives believe the two Salisbury suspects, thought to be aged around 40, travelled to London from Moscow on March 2 on Russian passports. Prosecutors think it is futile to apply for the extradition of the pair as Russia does not extradite its own nationals. A European Arrest Warrant has been obtained in case they travel to the EU and the authorities are also seeking the assistance of Interpol.

Officers also linked the attack to events in nearby Amesbury when Dawn Sturgess, 44, and her partner Charlie Rowley, 45, were exposed to the same nerve agent in a perfume bottle. Ms Sturgess died in hospital in July, just over a week after the pair fell ill. There were further revelations today that the Salisbury suspects may have stolen the identities of civilians for their mission. State media claimed that Alexander Petrov previously ran a lingerie company near the Ukrainian city of Odessa.

Work has started to decontaminate the home of poisoning victim Mr Skripal. He and his daughter recovered after hospital treatment.

Two Russian nationals named as suspects in Salisbury Novichok poisoning

The presidents intervention came after Russia paraded missiles capable of reaching London at a week-long war games exercise involving 300,000 troops and China that has rattled the West. It emerged today that Britain has put in place a number of protective measures to guard against Russian cyber activity in the wake of the Salisbury attack. Ciaran Martin, chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre, said Russia poses a serious and sustained threat.

Russian spy 'poisoning': Sergei and Yulia Skripal / PA

He told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: Weve been on heightened alert since the horrors of Salisbury and have put in place various protective measures... Russia has been a serious threat to our cyber security interests for a considerable period of time and continues to be so.

The Crown Prosecution Service said last week that Petrov and Boshirov had been charged with carrying out the Salisbury Novichok poisonings.

Theresa May accuses Novichok suspects of being officers of Russian military intelligence

Police said they believe the pair flew into Gatwick two days before the attack, when they checked into the City Stay Hotel in Bow, east London. They then travelled to Salisbury to carry out a reconnaissance mission, and the attack itself the following day.

They used a specially adapted counterfeit Nina Ricci perfume bottle to smear the nerve agent on the door of Mr Skripals home, officers said. Police believe they flew back to Russia that night.

No charges have been brought over the death of Ms Sturgess or the poisoning of Mr Rowley.

Dawn Sturgess died after being exposed to the nerve agent Novichok / AFP/Getty Images

This is because police still have to establish how the perfume bottle reached the charity bin where Mr Rowley believes he found it.

Russian Spy Sergei Skripal: Salisbury Nerve Agent Incident 1 /14 Russian Spy Sergei Skripal: Salisbury Nerve Agent Incident Investigators in protective gear pursue the probe into the nerve agent attack on Sergei Skripal Getty Russian spy 'poisoning': Sergei Skripal and Yulia Skripal are fighting for life in hospital PA Personnel in hazmat suits work to secure a tent covering a bench in the Maltings shopping centre in Salisbury, where former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found critically ill by exposure to a nerve agent Andrew Matthews/PA ilitary personnel are deployed to help remove vehicles from the scene after former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter were found critically ill after exposure to a nerve agent in Salisbury Getty Images Military in protective clothing remove vehicles from a car park in Salisbury EPA Police cordon: Military personnel in Salisbury PA Traces of the nerve agent used to poison Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found at Zizzi in Salisbury PA Amber Rudd: she visited the scene where Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found after having been poisoned by a nerve agent REUTERS Personnel are helped from their hazmat suits (right), after securing a tent covering a bench in the Maltings shopping centre in Salisbury, where former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found critically ill by exposure to a nerve agent Andrew Matthews/PA Personnel in hazmat suits walk away after securing a tent covering a bench in the Maltings shopping centre in Salisbury, where former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found critically ill by exposure to a nerve agent Andrew Matthews/PA Police put a red bag inside a police evidence bag immediately after the nerve agent attack on a Russian spy. Officers previously issued CCTV of a woman clutching a red bag Solent news Snap Fitness 24/7 Police activity in the cul-de-sac in Salisbury that contains the home of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal who was poisoned along with daughter Yulia with a nerve agent PA Sergei Skripal shops at Bargain Stop in a CCTV image from five days before his apparent poisoning
A novelist who once wrote an essay called How To Murder Your Husband has been arrested on suspicion of fatally shooting her spouse.

Nancy Crampton-Brophy, 68, from Oregon in the US, is accused of gunning down her husband, 63-year-old chef Daniel Brophy, at a catering school in Portland.

She is due to appear in court on Thursday.

In her 700-word essay, which appeared on a website in 2011, she explained possible motives for murder, including infidelity, an abusive relationship and greed.

Under the section on financial motives she wrote: Divorce is expensive, and do you really want to split your possessions?

Daniel, husband of Nancy Crampton-Brophy

The author, whose self-published works include one titled The Wrong Husband, also reportedly offered a list of ways to carry out a killing, including guns, knives, poison and hitmen. She added: As a romantic suspense writer, I spend a lot of time thinking about murder and, consequently, about police procedure. After all, if the murder is supposed to set me free, I certainly dont want to spend any time in jail.

After her husbands death Crampton-Brophy spoke at a candlelit vigil expressing her shock and sadness. But three months later, Portland police arrested her on suspicion of murder. They have refused to speculate on a possible motive for the killing.
A ground-breaking trial for multiple sclerosis will begin today using cholesterol-busting drugs.

Experts hope the 6 million project, led by University College London, will transform the lives of thousands with the debilitating disease.

The MS-STAT2 study is the biggest in the UK for secondary progressive MS.

This form of the condition affects around half of 100,000 people in the UK with MS, a disease that damages the coating protecting nerves. No licensed treatments currently exist that can slow or halt its advancement. Those already diagnosed with MS often go on to develop secondary progressive.

Man with multiple sclerosis gets to walk again

Their disability increases until everyday activities such as walking or getting dressed become a major challenge. The trial is co-funded by the MS Society and will involve 1,180 people. It is hoped the treatment will slow or stop disability progression,

Researchers at 30 centres across the country will use a statin drug that is already used for lowering cholesterol. Simvastatin costs just a few pence a day and has already been shown in an earlier smaller trial to increase mobility. This is after two years using the medication. Jeremy Chataway from UCL told the Standard that simvastatin could change lives.

The consultant neurologist, who is leading the six-year study, said: People with this form of the condition have been waiting decades for a drug that works. This is why theres such excitement around being able to start the trial. While its still early days, we believe simvastatin could change lives.

Sudarshna Shana from Ilford is one of the first to be enrolled for the trial. The 58-year-old learned she had secondary progressive in 2016 around 20 years after her initial MS diagnosis. The mother-of-two now has to use a wheelchair to leave the house and her husband Arvind, 63, is her carer. The former Post Office clerk hopes the drug could give her a normal life again.

She said: Its like always having a piece missing from a puzzle. Every day I have to start over again which is so frustrating. I have lots of falls and can only go short distances. It would be so great to have my independence back.

This week, the NHS rationing body NICE rejected ocrelizumab. This is the first ever drug shown to effectively treat primary progressive MS, another form of the disease.

The MS Society said that finding drugs that protect nerves from damage will be an important breakthrough for treating all forms of the condition.
L ondon's biggest NHS trust today sparked anger after revealing plans to ask all patients to prove they are entitled to free treatment.

Barts Health, which runs five hospitals in east London, will order identity checks on anyone unable to assure staff that they have lived in the UK for the past 12 months.

It is already making about 100 enquiries a week to the Home Office to establish the immigration status of patients.

Hospital chiefs say they have no option but to implement new national rules cracking down on health tourism.

They insist anyone needing urgent care will be treated. But campaigners claim the dangerous approach is scaring off many people, especially in east Londons deprived communities who are entitled to free care but may not be able to produce documents.

Last year, Barts invoiced more than 1,900 patients a total of 13 million for care they were not entitled to receive free of charge.

Campaigners from the North-East London Save Our NHS group will this evening protest outside the trusts annual meeting by erecting a mock immigration checkpoint.

A letter signed by more than 600 activists and organisations will call for the immigration checks to be suspended.

Dr Jackie Applebee, a GP in Tower Hamlets, said: This approach is dangerous and putting peoples lives at risk.

It is deterring people from seeking healthcare altogether, or making them delay seeking help until their health problem escalates into a full-blown emergency.

Barts said that for many years it had asked A&E or maternity department patients where they had lived for the previous 12 months.

However, this risked being inequitable as staff might interpret the rules differently in querying the right to free care.

Under the new system, staff will ask all patients for residency details.

Any suspected of being liable to pay will have to fill in a form that asks for passport data and immigration status.

The details will be checked against the NHS patient database and with the Home Office.

People ordinarily resident in the UK, and migrants with indefinite leave to remain, qualify for free care. Patients whose need for treatment is deemed non-urgent will be asked to pay up-front.
A doctoral student who fled war-torn Syria to study in the UK has spoken of the importance of education in giving young people hope in conflict zones.

Yara Issa, 28, is doing a PhD in cancer research at the University of East Anglia in Norwich. She hopes to help develop medicines that will reduce or even prevent the disease.

When she was 22, Ms Issa was sitting a pharmacy exam at university in Aleppo, in her home country, when the building she was in was hit by a bomb.

She decided to continue with the assessment, despite the chaos unravelling nearby, because she did not want to delay getting her degree.

I finished it but it was a nightmare, she said. When I left the building, the scene was terrible. There was a river of blood going down the street. There were ambulances and a lot of screaming.

Ambition: Yara Issa hopes to use her PhD in cancer research to find treatments to prevent the disease / Archant

After that incident, she persevered with her work despite losing friends and her home to the war.

For a year after securing her degree, every week Ms Issa would apply for multiple scholarships abroad despite having no electricity at home. But she kept being rejected. It was so depressing, she said. When she eventually got an interview, she had to set up a generator in the house to get the lights and internet working.

She left Syria when The Asfari Foundation charity offered her a grant for a masters degree in the UK.

Ms Issa is determined to do more to help other young refugees and is now a youth advocate for War Child, the charity working with us on our Learn to Live campaign.

The initiative, with our sister title The Independent, wants to forge links between students in the UK and their peers who are living in war zones and refugee camps across the world. It is hoped the campaign will increase empathy and understanding of the issues facing young people in war zones.

We are linking schools in the UK with schools in countries such as Jordan, Iraq and the Central African Republic to let children whose lives have been devastated by war know that neither they nor their educations have been forgotten.

Ms Issa said: Providing Syrian children with safety, education, mental and psychosocial support could prevent detrimental long-term effects both in countries hosting Syrians and Syria itself.

The transition was not easy when she first came to the UK three and a half years ago. It was a different universe, Ms Issa said. At the beginning, I didnt feel like people had empathy or understanding. But I dont blame them  I was a shy person.

It was the shock because I came from a different place, from a war zone. But once I interacted and learned more about what they like to eat and where they like to dine, it went really well.

On the importance of her education, she said: In order to do anything in the future I had to survive that time. It was merely the fact that I am going to finish my degree that kept me going.
T he Bakerloo line extension to Lewisham could be completed by 2029, Transport for London revealed today.

The long-awaited extension has been confirmed by Transport for London following public consultation and includes two new underground stations on Old Kent Road.

It comes just days after Southwark and Lewisham councils revitalised efforts to extend the line arguing that the new stations would boost plans to regenerate Old Kent Road.

Under the new plans released on Wednesday, the Bakerloo line would be extended from Elephant and Castle to Lewisham.

How long it takes to become a 'master' of the London Underground

The Bakerloo service would also have two stops on Old Kent Road along with a stop at New Cross Gate.

Proposals have been mooted for years but Mayor Sadiq Khan admitted that there was a substantial gap remaining between the 3.1bn cost and what Transport for London can afford to pay.

The plans include two stations on Old Kent Road / Shutterstock / littleny

The mayor hopes that construction can start during 2023, subject to funding.

The new plans reveal that the line extension could be completed by 2029.

According to TfL, the extension would support at least 25,000 new homes and 5,000 new jobs.

TfL Tube worker reveals secrets of the London Underground that will improve your journeys

It would also add extra capacity on the London Underground network for 65,000 journeys in the morning and evening peak hours.

Heidi Alexander, deputy mayor for London transport said: Im delighted that plans for the Bakerloo line extension are continuing to progress.
M other-of-two Aysha Frade was looking at her phone and was completely unaware that terrorist Khalid Masoods hire car was about to mow her down during the Westminster attack , an inquest heard today.

Mrs Frade, 44, who worked at a nearby sixth-form college, was on her way to collect her children from school on March 22 last year. She had her back to the Hyundai Tucson when she was hit and thrown under the rear side of a bus on Westminster Bridge.

Today the inquest heard Mrs Frade had no idea what was about to happen, even though Masood had already hit five people, killing two of them.

Detective Constable Simon Osland took the Old Bailey through a video compilation of CCTV clips of Mrs Frades final moments. Members of her family sat looking down in Court One as the footage was shown.

Aysha Frade, 43, was killed during Khalid Masood's rampage / Facebook

Gareth Patterson QC, representing her family, asked Dc Osland: Having been focused on her phone its clear, isnt it, that at no stage do you see Aysha turning round or doing anything else, any movement to suggest that she heard the car or was aware of what was going to happen?

The officer replied: She seemed completely unaware. Masood was driving at an average of 31mph when he deliberately knocked down Kurt Cochran, 54, Leslie Rhodes, 75, Mrs Frade and Andreea Cristea, 31, on Westminster Bridge before stabbing Pc Keith Palmer to death at the gates to the Palace of Westminster.

Westminster Bridge Terror Attack: One Year On 1 /20 Westminster Bridge Terror Attack: One Year On 6 people including the killer died in the attack Jeremy Selwyn Theresa May laying a wreath at Parliament Square Jeremy Selwyn Message from Theresa May on her floral tribute at Parliament Square Jeremy Selwyn #Londonunited one year on from the Westminster attack Nigel Howard People paid tribute to the victims who were killed in the Westminster terror attack last year Jeremy Selwyn Emergency services workers lay flowers and pay their respects at Parliament Square in Westminster on the anniversary of the Westminster Bridge attack in London Reuters Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, poses with the #LondonUnited memorial at City Hall, marking the anniversaries of the four terror attacks in London Reuters A message is beamed onto a map at the #LondonUnited memorial at City Hall, marking the anniversaries of the four terror attacks in London Reuters A desolate Westminster bridge where the attack took place Jeremy Selwyn Londoners left messages and tributes for the victims Jeremy Selwyn Londoners leave messages and tributes for the victims Jeremy Selwyn People lay flowers for the victims Jeremy Selwyn Police walk past truibute at Westminster today Jeremy Selwyn The attack occurred on Westminster bridge near the houses of Parliament Jeremy Selwyn Woman and child look out over the River Thames on Westminster bridge Jeremy Selwyn Man carries memorial flowers across Westminster bridge Jeremy Selwyn Theresa May laying a wreath at Parliament Square Jeremy Selwyn Theresa May stands by her floral tribute at Parliament Square Jeremy Selwyn Londoners leave messages and tributes for the victims Jeremy Selwyn Londoners leave messages and tributes for the victims Jeremy Selwyn

Mr Patterson said there was hair on Masoods car, suggesting that Mrs Frade hit her head on the windscreen. She was then thrown into the road, with the number 53 bus braking, coming to a halt in five seconds. He said a pathologist had told him that she would have died instantly.
A s Theresa Mays handling of Brexit continues to be contentious, signs of disenchantment towards the Conservative leader are emerging throughout her own ranks.

These negative rumblings, along with definitive acts such as the resignations of David Davis and Boris Johnson, have prompted discussions surrounding the possibility of a contest for party leadership.

That pair leaving previously set off rumours of a battle for the top spot, in the wake of the so-called Chequers deal.

Though, thus far, none such action has materialised.

Theresa May held a cabinet meeting after David Davis and Boris Johnson resigned from their posts / AP

If there was a leadership contest, possibly in the wake of a no-confidence vote in Mrs May, numerous formal actions would need to be undertaken.

Here's what could happen:

What would happen in the event of a leadership contest? Candidates are nominated  it takes two MPs to put one potential person forward

If only one is put forward  they become leader

If multiple proposals are made the list would be narrowed down to two by a ballot between MPs

Once two are presented there is a postal ballot of the party members

The victor of this becomes leader of the party

The whole process would be expected to last around 12 weeks  during which time Theresa May would remain leader

Academic outlook

Alistair Jones, associate professor in politics at De Montfort University, believes that if a leadership contest is called, Brexit and Boris Johnson will be two key points of consideration.

He said: There are going to be two concurrent fights. One will be over Brexit, the other will be over Boris. So there will be hard Brexiteers wanting one of their's to become leader, while the soft Brexiteers and Remainers will oppose any such candidate.

At the same time there is likely to be a Boris versus stop-Boris fight. Thus there will be Hard Brexiteers who dislike and distrust Boris, working with Remainers to prevent a Boris victory.

Mr Jones believes if Mr Johnson ends up in the top two who go to the vote, he will win the contest.

Boris Johnson could potentially want to run in a leadership contestn / Reuters

He said: Despite the Max Hastings story I wouldn't trust Boris with my wallet or my wife, the stock excuse is, well, that's Boris, and people accept it. He is, by far, the most charismatic potential candidate.

If this were to happen then Mr Jones believes a general election would be almost inevitable.

Will there be a general election? If Boris wins, his personal support will go through the roof, and his ego is such that he would call one. Anybody else would not until Brexit has been completed, he said.

Other candidates he sees as potentially standing in the event of a contest are Michael Gove, David Davis and Sajid Javid.

Mr Jones feels the latter would be the most likely second candidate alongside Mr Johnson but does not think Mr Javid would win against him.

Dr Adrian Hilton, a lecturer in politics, in comparison, said the make-up of the Conservative party does not favour Mr Johnson being in a final two for a leadership contest.

Dr Hilton, who is chairman of the academic council at the Margaret Thatcher centre, said he thinks MPs would choose a pairing where a large amount of them would be content with either as leader.

Theresa May would remain in charge throughout the process of a leadership contest if there were one / Stefan Rousseau/PA

On Mr Johnson, he said: Hes a favourite with the grassroots, who may well be up in arms if he wasnt in the final two.

There is no way the Conservatives are going to go down that route.

In regards to an election he said he believes it would be difficult for a new leader to wait too long to hold one.

Although democratically they would have a remit to do so, he said he sees the position as fairly untenable.

In his opinion the public would not be pleased with it and it would be an easy point of contention for the opposition to pick up on.

It would give Corbyn the democratic edge, he said.

He sees Sajid David and Michael Gove as a most likely pairing to run for the position of leader if it were to come down to it.

Sajid Javid is another politician who could go for the leadership / PA

Dr Elodie Fabre, a politics lecturer at Queen's University Belfast, does not see Mr Johnson as an option that would unify the part, however, and believes it is hard to see who MPs would rally behind in a leadership contest.

Then, if there was a new leader, she does not believe this would lead to a general election.

She said: "Johnson is often mentioned, but hes not someone who will unify the party, in particular the parliamentary party.

"I cant quite see how a leadership contest would lead to a general election. The Conservatives are not doing sufficiently well in the polls to trigger a general election. Unlikely that a new leader would lead to a boost in the polls either."

The affect on Brexit negotiations is more pertinent and she feels a leadership campaign could interfere adversely with negotiations.

A new leader could in theory choose to call a general election / PA Wire/PA Images

Dr Simon Lee, a senior lecturer in politics at the University of Hull, also sees Brexit as being a pertinent issue to any leadership contest.

He feels negotiations might affect the timing, with some wary to have a contest in a sensitive stage of negotiations and perhaps such action more likely if the Chequers deal, proposed by Mrs May, were to fail.

In his opinion David Davis could be a "stalking horse", meaning he would enter a leadership contest early, then perhaps drop out for Boris Johnson to then enter the fray.

David Davis resigned as Brexit Secretary after two years in the post / Getty Images

Insight from Think Tanks

Ben Harris-Quinney is chairman of The Bow Group, a UK-based conservative think tank, founded in 1951.

He described the Conservative party as "the least democratic major political party in Britain".

He stated that rules on membership and leadership are unclear and members of the party are "rarely consulted on anything".

"The general accepted practice for leadership elections in recent years has been for the Parliamentary Conservative Party to hold a series of run-off elections until a final two candidates are chosen, who are then put before the Party members.

"There is no guarantee this will happen however, the last race effectively being a coronation of Theresa May.

"In the event the 1922 Committee receive the required 48 letters from MPs triggering a leadership election then at a minimum the Parliamentary Conservative Party will hold elections among themselves.

"Due to the disruption this would cause and given the tight schedule regarding the Brexit negotiations it is unlikely there would be a general election immediately after a leadership election, and there is no requirement to do so, but one would likely follow before the end of this Parliament as the new leader attempts to gain authority," he said.

Experts believe the plans for Brexit are likely to impact any potential leadership contest / PA Archive/PA Images

Matt Kilcoyne is head of communications for the Adam Smith Institute, which describes itself as the UKs leading neoliberal think tank.

In regards to a potential contest, he said: Im guessing that it would be a Brexiteer induced leadership contest. In that case you'd see probably just the minimum number of letters in, although that seems unlikely right now, the triggering of the ballot.

I don't think there will be one. I think all sides have too much to lose.

In a contest, he has marked Sajid Javid as a potential successor to Mrs May and as competition to Mr Johnson.

How might a leadership contest be prompted?

The first potential step to a leadership contest could be a vote in no-confidence in the PM.

Triggering such a motion would take letters from 48 Tory MPs to the chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee

If the vote were to take place Mrs May would need more than half the Conservative MPs, 159, to support her.

Should they not, a leadership vote would take place, which Mrs May would not be able to stand in.

Theresa May would need the support of more than half her MPs in the instance of a no-confidence vote / Getty Images

If she were to gain more than 50 per cent, but only by a narrow margin, this might seriously impede her standing as leader.

In the instance of her stepping down, a leadership contest would go ahead.

According to Press Association sources, 50 of the 316 sitting in the House of Commons met to discuss ways to ditch the former Health Secretary as their figurehead at a gathering of the European Research Group on Tuesday.
Photo: The Canadian Press Colin and Louilyn Richards and their newborn daughter prepare to leave Norfolk, Va. on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018, as Hurricane Florence approaches the East Coast.

The Navy is moving people and ships ahead of Hurricane Florence , and the Air Force and Army are both flying advanced aircraft elsewhere as a safeguard. Some remaining Marines, meanwhile, are digging in their heels.

Florence is headed for a region with some of the most well-known military bases in the country, including Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia and the Marine Corps Recruit Depot on Parris Island in South Carolina.

While thousands of Marines and their families have already left Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina, there was no mandatory evacuation. The commanding general said Tuesday that anyone remaining at the base would have food, water and protection despite being in the projected path of the storm.

"Since 1941, this base and its Marines have been postured to deal with crises at home and abroad and Hurricane Florence is no exception," said a message from Brig. Gen. Julian D. Alford.

Some military families and others took to Camp Lejeune's Facebook page, venting fears and questioning the base's plans.

Nonessential personnel were released from duty at Lejeune and told they were free to relocate with their families to a site within a 500-mile (800-kilometre) radius of Jacksonville.

Nat Fahy, a spokesman for the command, said the base was the safest place for anyone who had not evacuated already. Shelters on the base are expected to open early Wednesday, he said, and there will be a full complement of resources for those sheltering in place.

Of the roughly 40,000 active duty troops at Lejeune, about three-quarters live off the base. Fahy did not know yet how many remained at the base.

Evacuations were also under way at other bases across the region.

Colin Richards, a Navy diver based at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia Beach, was among the military personnel leaving ahead of Hurricane Florence. The 28-year-old was mostly concerned for his daughter who is one month old.

"It's very simple," he said Wednesday morning. "We don't want to live without power with a newborn."

Recruits were set to leave the Marine Corps' largest training installation on the East Coast Tuesday, but those plans changed after South Carolina's governor rescinded an evacuation order as the storm's projected path shifted northward.

Some nonessential personnel and families evacuated, but the bulk of the more than 8,000 Marines and support staff at Parris Island remain on the base.

At Fort Bragg, an inland Army base in North Carolina, officials told The Fayetteville Observer the majority of the 82nd Airborne Division's helicopter fleet was being evacuated to one of two sites in Georgia.

In Virginia, Navy officials on Tuesday issued an emergency evacuation order for active duty and civilian personnel, their families and reservists living in certain coastal areas for which the state had also ordered an evacuation.
T heresa May was warned today she faces a revolt by ministers if she bows to Brussels and accepts a poisoned cup Brexit deal.

With Tory MPs openly plotting to oust her, the embattled Prime Minister was told to avoid further concessions on her Chequers Brexit plan.

Earlier European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker dealt a fresh hammer blow to her blueprint and made clear the Government would have to yield more ground to get a trade agreement. He used a major speech today to reject a key part of the proposals which says Britain should stay close to the EU in trading goods but go its own way on services.

With Mrs May appearing to be increasingly cornered, one Brexiteer source told the Evening Standard: Juncker is offering her a poisoned cup of Chequers-minus, which she needs to turn away. It would depend what the minus is, but a Chequers-minus proposal would probably be very hard for Brexiteers in Government to accept, so you could then see resignations in the autumn.

A senior Tory MP branded Chequers a dead dog, adding: The Government is in the bunker. There is only one thing that will go through the Commons  a free trade deal. However, a No 10 official insisted Mrs May, pictured, was still confident of getting a deal based on Chequers. The source pointed to multiple signals from figures in Brussels that an agreement specific to the UK would be agreed. He added: The direction of travel is with us.

Under pressure on Brexit: Theresa May / REUTERS

In what could be interpreted in Whitehall as a possible sign of this, Mr Juncker said the Commission would not stand in the way of a Brexit deal. Mrs May this afternoon threatened to cancel the 39 billion divorce bill unless a deal on future trade was struck. Speaking at Prime Ministers Questions, she promised Tory MPs: The specific offer was made in the spirit of our desire to reach a deal with the EU. As the EU themselves have said, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. Without a deal the position changes. She also welcomed Mr Junckers promise that Britain would never be an ordinary third party for us.

But the political heat was increasing on the Prime Minister after revelations that Tory MPs let off steam in a meeting of about 50 backbenchers at Westminster last night, when they openly discussed ways of replacing her.

Brexiteers today published plans which they claimed would solve the dispute over the post-Brexit border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. However, the proposals were immediately condemned as dangerous and not serious.

The European Research Group of Tory backbenchers, led by Jacob Rees-Mogg, proposed equivalence of UK and EU regulations for the safety of agricultural products.

For other goods, the ERG said existing simplified customs procedures could continue to be used to avoid the need for checks at the border.

Marcus Fysh, Owen Paterson, Theresa Villiers and David Davis arrives to Royal United Services Institute on September 12, 2018 in London, England. Leaders are meeting in debates as the European Parliament maintains Northern Ireland after Brexit should be able to keep millions in EU funding to support maintaining the peace in the area / Getty Images

Larger companies would use trusted trader schemes to clear their goods for export and import, and other declarations would be incorporated into the existing system used for VAT returns.

Former Northern Ireland Secretaries Owen Paterson and Theresa Villiers claimed the proposals would rule out the need for new physical infrastructure on the border.

But Labour MP Alison McGovern said: Their [ERG] proposals on Northern Ireland are not comical but profoundly dangerous to the stability and security of Northern Ireland.

Amid turmoil in Westminster, Environment Secretary and Leave campaigner Michael Gove dismissed rumours of an imminent move to topple Mrs May as loose talk.

Asked if he would agree to serve in a Boris Johnson government, Mr Gove rejected the premise of the question, saying: At the moment the Prime Minister is Theresa May.

Jacob Rees-Mogg arrives at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in Whitehall, London, to discuss Brexit proposals / PA

Other Tory MPs echoed his sentiments. A senior Brexiteer said none of the big-beast Eurosceptics, such as Mr Johnson or Mr Rees-Mogg, had taken part in last nights meeting.

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis said Brussels was clearly rejecting Chequers, which prompted his resignation in the summer, and advised Mrs May to accept a good free trade deal that would win the backing of Tory MPs.

It was precisely for this response that I instructed the [Brexit Department] to prepare the alternative free trade-plus deal to be ready to go if Chequers does not fly, he told the Standard. The Cabinet will meet tomorrow morning to discuss the latest tranche of technical papers spelling out official government assessments of the risks of no deal and the preparations required.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker reacts before a debate on The State of the European Union at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France / REUTERS

In his state of the union address, Mr Juncker told the European Parliament: If you leave the union, you are of course no longer part of our single market, and certainly not only in parts of it, making clear that the Commission was standing firm with Mr Barnier that the Chequers plan for separate deals on goods and services was not acceptable.
B usiness leaders today called for a capable and committed Mayor of London to get Crossrail 2 back on track.

In a hard-hitting speech, Jasmine Whitbread warned of siren calls urging Treasury ministers to suspend the scheme to save money.

Ms Whitbread, the chief executive of business group London First, said Sadiq Khan or any successor as Mayor needed to lead the fight to defend the plan for a north-south rail link to relieve overcrowding on central Tubes and trains.

Crossrail 1 would never have been given the go-ahead without a committed and capable leader in City Hall, she said, in a reference to ex-mayor Ken Livingstone.

We now need a Mayor who is equally effective, if Crossrail 2 is to get on track and power ahead.

New Crossrail station at Farringdon 1 /5 New Crossrail station at Farringdon A view of the eastbound platform at the new Farringdon station Crossrail A new Elizabeth line roundel Crossrail Members of the public were given a sneak peek of the station Crossrail The new station features a futuristic design Crossrail Crossrail held an open day to celebrate the Year of Engineering Crossrail

Businesses are calling for support in the autumn Budget, which could shape future development and financing.

Crossrail 1, to be named the Elizabeth line, is the east-west scheme. A large section of this line, between Paddington and Abbey Wood, had been due to open in December but this has now been postponed until autumn next year.

Speaking at the London Infrastructure Summit, Ms Whitbread warned against falling into the trap of using a temporary setback to Crossrail 1 as an excuse for a permanent delay to Crossrail 2.

She called on any candidate for Mayor of London in 2020 to put Crossrail 2 front and centre in their campaign.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan ( Stefan Rousseau/PA) / Stefan Rousseau/PA

Business chiefs fear the scheme will be sidelined to save money and to appease Northern cities demanding that their public transport be improved before London gets another major scheme. Ms Whitbread urged Chancellor Philip Hammond to use the Budget to press ahead with Crossrail 2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail together.

Every year we wait for a decision represents a waste  a waste in terms of costs borne by everyone who pays taxes, everyone who uses public transport, and everyone who wants a new home in London, she said.

Delay means condemning travellers to congested trains, to less reliable journeys, and to dangerously overcrowded stations.

It also leaves us facing the absurd situation of passengers gliding off new high-speed trains at Euston  only to start moving at a snails pace as they queue to get on Tube trains.
T heresa Mays leadership is under increasing pressure after dozens of Conservative MPs have met privately to plot ways to oust her.

About 50 MPs discussed ways and means of getting rid of the Prime Minister at a gathering of the European Research Group (ERG), according to reports on Tuesday night.

A number of them are believed to have told how they had already submitted letters of no confidence, while others discussed plans to follow suit.

It comes after former foreign secretary Boris Johnson launched a fresh attack on Mrs Mays Brexit plan, claiming it would be "substantially worse than the status quo" for British businesses.

At a separate meeting with the Prime Ministers senior aides, MPs raised "leadership issues".

It comes after Boris Johnson, centre, launched a fresh attack on Mrs May's Brexit plan / Getty Images

Backbenchers told the Prime Minister's chief of staff, Gavin Barwell, his boss must "chuck Chequers" over the dinner at No 10.

Speaking after the dinner, Tory MP Andrew Bridgen did not deny suggestions the Prime Minister would face a coup.

He told ITV News: "I've been told that she will get a full appraisal of comments that were made over the dinner."

Asked if there would be a coup, he replied: "I think we will just have to wait and see.

"I hope that the Prime Minister will take on board what she's heard and chuck Chequers."

Brexit campaigner Jacob Rees-Mogg MP, chair of the Tory-backed European Research Group / REUTERS

Conservative Brexiteer John Baron told ITV: "We were discussing leadership issues."

ITV also quoted an anonymous source from the meeting as saying: "We've just had an ERG mass meeting, 50 odd MPs present, where virtually the only topic of conversation for 40/50 mins was: how best do we get rid of her? What's the best way to use our letters?

"Comments included: Everyone I know says she has to go, she's a disaster, and this can't go on."

Downing Street on Tuesday reiterated that Chequers was "the only serious, credible and negotiable plan which is on the table which both delivers on the will of the British people and which prevents the imposition of a hard border in Northern Ireland".

Mrs May's government has repeatedly said that there will be no second referendum on the final deal, and that Chequers would be the "only deal" put forward to Brussels.

Mr Johnson spoke at an Economists for Free Trade (EFT) event on Tuesday attended by a battalion of Tory Brexit big-hitters including Jacob-Rees Mogg, former Brexit secretary David Davis and his ex-deputy Steve Baker, former party leader Iain Duncan Smith and ex-Defra Secretary Owen Paterson.

The ex-minister declined to answer questions from journalists but used a Q&A session at the end of the report launch to make a statement himself.

He said leaving the EU while continuing to accept the single market legislation would expose businesses to rules that may go against their interests.

"That seems to me to be a particular economic risk in Chequers and makes it substantially worse than the status quo," he said.

Mr Johnson, who has this week been at the centre of gossip about his divorce from wife Marina Wheeler and alleged relationship with former Tory communications director Carrie Symonds, resigned from his post as Foreign Secretary over the Chequers deal and rumours resurfaced on Friday that he was planning a leadership bid.

Critics in the House warned on Tuesday that the Chequers deal will have the opposite affect on British sovereignty than desired.

Tory MP Sir William Cash said: "The implementation of EU law will continue after the implementation period he warned, such as in relation to pending cases, by maintaining parts of the European Communities Act, and with continuing participation of EU agencies.

The member for Stone Staffordshire added: "We're not actually going to be in a position to do anything about it at all. In effect, we're not merely buying a pig in a poke, we are being bound and shackled by European law."

A 200,000-signature e-petition to scrap Brexit over Vote Leave's breaching of electoral rules was discussed in Whitehall yesterday, where Daniel Zeichner, Labour MP said: "said: "Cheating in elections or allegations of such are not new and not rare."

"Of course we were cheated, the whole thing has been a nonsense and we should stay in the European Union," he added.
H ard-line Tory brexiteers have denied they are planning to topple Theresa May in a party coup - but did not address the claims they were present at a meeting to discuss "how to get rid of her".

Reports made last night suggested that up to 50 Tory MPs attended a meeting of the European Research Group (ERG), chaired by Jacob Rees-Mogg, and "openly discussed" how they would "get rid" of the Prime Minister.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove said today that speculation about a leadership challenge is just "loose talk", while former Brexit secretary David Davis said Mrs May is a "very good" prime minister who "should stay in place because we need stability."

But none of the key opponents to the government's Brexit plan, known to be supporters of the "parliamentary support group" have directly denied their attendance at the meeting, or the contents of reports.

Members of the European Research Group took question s at a meeting today, following a discussion yesterday where members "openly discussed" a coup against Theresa May. / AFP/Getty/Daniel Leal-Olivas

The ERG is partly funding by public money, and registered with the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) as a staff "pooling" and "professional support" entity, which members can subscribe to and charge membership on their expenses.

The secretive organisation has no website and has never been forthright about its membership, but an IPSA report last year revealed that members included a number of cabinet members and top Tory frontbenchers.

Key Tories support ERG The European Support Group's membership includes the following prominent MPs, according to IPSA data: Michael Gove, environment secretary David Gauk, former work and pensions secretary David Davis, former Brexit secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg Sajid David, home secretary Suella Breaverman, junior Brexit minister

Attendees are believed to have discussed handing in letters of no confidence and making statements including: "She has to go", "she's a disaster", and "this can't go on".

An anonymous source from the meeting told ITV: "We've just had an ERG mass meeting, 50 odd MPs present, where virtually the only topic of conversation for 40/50 mins was: how best do we get rid of her? What's the best way to use our letters?

"You might think that this is usual far for us, but it's not! Not in the mass weekly meeting, never in what's basically a public forum. The truly amazing thing was they spoke about it so openly, in such an unabashed way."

Conservative brexiteer John Baron responded to a request for comment after the meeting, saying: "We were discussing leadership issues."

The Standard asked Jacob Rees-Mogg, Suella Braverman, Steve Baker Iain Duncan Smith and Chris Grayling if they could confirm or deny their attendance at the meeting, and if they contributed to the comments reported. None has responded.

Mr Rees Mogg, also a member of the Economists for Free Trade, said in a statement to the press today: "I have long said and repeated again and again that I think the policy needs to be changed but I am supporting the person. Theresa May has enormous virtues. She is a fantastically dutiful prime minister, she has my support. I just want her to change one item of policy."

Brexiters Jacob Rees-Mogg, Boris Johnson and Peter Bone, pictured at a Economics for Free Trade event yesterday

Downing Street on Tuesday reiterated that Chequers was "the only serious, credible and negotiable plan which is on the table which both delivers on the will of the British people and which prevents the imposition of a hard border in Northern Ireland".

Mrs May's government has repeatedly said that there will be no second referendum on the final deal, and that Chequers would be the "only deal" put forward to Brussels.

Now, she faces a new crisis as the Northern Irish DUP has backed an ERG released today, recommending the UK leave the EU's single market and customs union without a hard border in Ireland.

The increased threat of a coup spells volatility for the Conservatives with even a minor rebellion having the potential to throw Mrs May's minority government, and the EU divorce proceedings into chaos.

European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker on Wednesday renewed a pledge of close trade and security ties with Britain after Brexit, but said the EU would not compromise on key withdrawal terms.

The EU's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, said on Monday that a Brexit deal was possible "within six or eight weeks" if negotiators were realistic in their demands.

But a deal is far from done, and the UK has stepped up planning for a "no-deal" Brexit, which could disrupt trade, transport and other sectors of the economy. The chief executive of automaker Jaguar Land Rover called a no-deal Brexit a "horrifying" scenario that could cost tens of thousands of jobs.

And some of Britain's biggest banks warned in a parliamentary committee that they were "preparing for the worst".

Mark Garvin, Vice Chairman of JP Morgan told the Committee: "Our assumption has been a "no-deal scenario", a disorderly exit. We are planning for a worst-case scenario. As far as JP Morgan is concerned we are budgeted for this and the amount is significant but we will spend whatever it takes to secure a solid outcome."

"We're planning on basis of the worst case outcome while arguing very hard and lobbying very hard for an implementation period," added James Bardrick, CEO of Citigroup.
M eghan Markle has sent a postcard to well-wishers following her 37th birthday, opting for a candid picture of her laughing with Royals fans.

Kensington Palace sent out the notes, which feature a shot from Harry and Meghans royal walkabout in Dublin, with the Duchess of Sussex beaming with delight as she accepts a bunch of flowers from a fan outside Trinity College.

The laid-back picture breaks tradition from typical royal postcards, which usually feature a posed photograph of the Royals on their own or as a group, and not with members of the public.

One fan, known as loopycrown3, shared an image of the postcard on Instagram with the caption: "Thank you postcard from HRH the Duchess of Sussex thanking me for sending my birthday wishes."

The note from Meghan read: "The Duchess of Sussex is so touched you took the trouble to write as you did on the occasion of her 37th birthday.

"It really was most thoughtful of you and Her Royal Highness sends you her heartfelt thanks and best wishes."

One person said that Meghan is a class act for sending out the thank you notes in the comments.

Another said: That's really lovely! What a great choice by The Duchess - spending time with the people.

The note is nearly identical to the message issued by the Duchess of Cambridge in previous years, although Meghan switched the word heartfelt for warmest.

Meanwhile, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been sending out thank you notes after their first-born, Prince George, turned five on July 22.

The royal couple chose the youngsters official birthday portrait for the postcard, shot by Matt Porteus on the day of his little brother Prince Louis christening.

They also sent their thanks to all those who send their regards on Prince Louis' christening on July 9.

Their message read: The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were touched that you took the trouble to write on the occasion of the Baptism of their son, Prince Louis.

Their Royal Highnesses are so grateful for all the wonderful, messages they have received and send you their warmest thanks and best wishes.

It was revealed last year that Kate and William send the same note to well-wishers, which send their warmest thanks and best wishes, almost every time they send a thank you card.
O ne of the men accused of poisoning former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with Novichok nerve agent has said he may comment publicly on the case next week, according to Russian state television.

Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov were accused of carrying out the attack in Salisbury in March.

British prosecutors claim the men are spies who were operating under aliases, and attempted to murder the Skripals using the military-grade nerve agent.

State television channel Rossiya-24 said it had spoken to Petrov, and that he declined to comment on the case for now.

Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov, the two men who carried out the Novichok attack, captured by CCTV on Fisherton Road, Salisbury at 1.05pm on March 4, 2018. / PA/Met Police

He added that he worked for a pharmaceutical company in the Siberian city of Tomsk and that he would maybe speak next week, reporters said.

"No comment for the moment, Petrov was quoted as saying, before adding: Maybe later. Next week, I think.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced today that the two suspects are civilians and not criminals, and that Russia knows their real identities.

Dawn Sturgess died in July / PA

He also invited them to speak to the media.

Speaking in the eastern city of Vladivostok, Mr Putin said: "We know who they are, we have found them.

"I hope they will turn up themselves and tell everything. This would be best for everyone.

President Vladimir Putin says Russia knows the real identities of the suspects / REUTERS

"There is nothing special there, nothing criminal, I assure you. We'll see in the near future," he added.

After identifying the suspects, Scotland Yard released a detailed track of the individuals 48 hours in the UK, which included their arrival in the UK at Gatwick Airport and trip to Salisbury the day before the attack.

Officials alleged that the men were active officers in Russian military intelligence.

Mr Skripal, a former double agent for the UKs intelligence services, and his daughter Yulia were found unconscious on a bench in Salisbury after being poisoned with Novichok.

Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia both survived the nerve agent poisoning

Yulia regained consciousness and was able to speak after three weeks in a critical condition. Mr Skripal woke up one month after the attack.

A police officer was also taken into intensive care after being contaminated when he went to Mr Skripals house  but later recovered.

Later in March, the British government accused Russia of the attacks, with the UKs official assessment of the incident supported by 28 countries and resulting in 153 Russian diplomats being expelled.

In June, a similar poisoning of two British nationals in Amesbury, just seven miles from Salisbury, also involved Novichok. Dawn Sturgess fell ill 15 minutes after coming in contact with the nerve agent, and died on July 8.

Her partner Charlie Rowley, who is believed to have pulled a perfume bottle contaminated with the nerve agent out of a bin, survived but has been suffering from health issues ever since, including meningitis and sight problems.

Russia have repeatedly denied involvement in the nerve agent attacks and undermined Britains affirmations.

The Russian foreign ministry has said the accusations were a "grotesque provocation rudely staged by the British and U.S. intelligence agencies" in a bid to damage Russia.

Last week, its spokeswoman Maria Zakharova strongly denied Russia's involvement in the attacks after Theresa May confirmed the suspects were Russian spies.

"The prime minister of Britain said that Russia has technical resources, experience and motives for such an attack," she said.

Theresa May confirmed the suspects were Russian spies in a statement / Getty Images

"We have a feeling that the British government is living in an information vacuum.

"Maybe she [Theresa May] is not informed... maybe she is not told about many statements of the Russian leadership. It seems that she doesn't even read the press."
A ustralian police have started digging at the former home of a mother-of-two who has been missing for more than three decades after a podcast on her unsolved disappearance brought global attention to the case.

Lynette Dawson, who disappeared in 1982, has been the focus of The Teachers Pet podcast by the Australian newspaper, which has become popular with listeners around the world.

After she disappeared in 1982, husband Chris Dawson suggested the registered nurse left the family and said one explanation for the disappearance was she could have joined a religious cult.

He denied murdering her after two inquests found a known person had killed her, the BBC reports.

An inquest held in 2003 found high school teacher Mr Dawson, also a former rugby league player, had sexual relationships with teenage students.

Mr Dawson moved his own 16-year-old school-girl lover into the family home days after his wifes disappearance. She later became his wife before their marriage ended in divorce.

On Wednesday, New South Wales Police launched a five-day forensic search of Mr and Mrs Dawsons former home in Bayview suggesting its all about getting justice for Lyn.

It has been reported that police in Australia would pursue charges against Mr Dawson regardless of the outcome of the search being conducted in the Bayview suburb. He denies any wrongdoing.

After police began re-investigating the case in 2015, a summary of recently-uncovered evidence was given to the states Director of Prosecutions.
A t least nine people have been killed and dozens more were injured when a car ploughed into crowds on a busy square in China, officials have said.

Police arrested the suspected driver of the red SUV that smashed into the large group of people gathered in Hengyang on Wednesday night.

The suspect, a 54-year-old man from the same region, has several previous convictions for crimes including arson and assault, local media reported.

Shocking images posted on social media showed the aftermath of the horrifying crash which unfolded shortly before 8pm (local time).

Nine people were confirmed dead and about 46 people were injured, the city government said in statement as an investigation was launched.

A motive was not immediately clear.
D onald Trump has said his administration got "A pluses" in their response to Hurricane Maria - which killed thousands in Puerto Rico - as he said the United States is "ready for the big one".

It came as Hurricane Florence is set to approach the East Coast by Thursday or Friday.

Mr Trump used a press briefing on the Category 4 major hurricane to boast of his response to storms in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico last year, which he called the "hardest by far" because it happened on an island.

He said last year's emergency response was an "underappreciated great job" in a series of morning tweets, touting the "amazing success" of the response efforts, while also taking a pot shot at the mayor of the Puerto Rican capital.

"We got A Pluses for our recent hurricane work in Texas and Florida (and did an unappreciated great job in Puerto Rico, even though an inaccessible island with very poor electricity and a totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan). We are ready for the big one that is coming!" he tweeted.

His next dispatch warned people about Florence, which is predicted to dump massive amounts of rain, possibly as much as a 20-30 inches over the next week.

A man walks past a boarded up shop in Wilmington, North Carolina / AFP/Getty/Andrew Caballero-Reynolds

"Hurricane Florence is looking even bigger than anticipated. It will be arriving soon. FEMA, First Responders and Law Enforcement are supplied and ready. Be safe!"

Infrastructure in Puerto Rico is still in dismal condition as the federal government continues to avoid requests for more help. / AFP/Getty Images/Ricardo Arduengo

The administration's efforts in Puerto Rico received widespread criticism and he argued with Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz.

Mr Trump had previously praised the response: "I think Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success."

Hurricane Florence - In pictures 1 /70 Hurricane Florence - In pictures Lt. Keith Ramsey with the Pender County Sheriff's Office walks out to a boat while taking part in rescue operations in Burgaw, North Carolina AP U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media prior to a Marine One departure at the South Lawn of the White House September 19, 2018 in Washington Getty Images Local residents walk along the edge of a collapsed road that ran atop Patricia Lake's dam after it collapsed in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence, in Boiling Spring Lakes, North Carolina Reuters Teresa Nance is licked by her dog as she returns to dry land after checking on her home flooded by Hurricane Florence Getty Images US President Donald Trump greets residents with prepared meals in New Bern, North Carolina AFP/Getty Images Flood waters from Hurricane Florence surrounds two hog houses and it's lagoon near Kinston, N.C AP Jovani Quintano and Carlos Gomez (L-R) walk through a flooded neighborhoom after heavy rains brought on by Hurricane Florence on September 19, 2018 in Lumberton, North Carolina. Getty Images US President Donald Trump walks with officials in Conway, South Carolina AFP/Getty Images Old tree stumps that used to be at the bottom of Patricia Lake are revealed after it emptied when its dam collapsed in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence, in Boiling Spring Lakes, North Carolina, U.S Reuters Water from the flooded Waccamaw River surrounds a house in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence now downgraded to a tropical depression in Conway, South Carolina, U.S. Reuters Dustin Mock navigates a flooded street as flood waters rise in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence now downgraded to a tropical depression in Conway, South Carolina, U.S. Reuters Jose Perez-Santiago, left, and Rosemary Acevedo-Gonzalez, walk with their daughter Jordalis, 2, after retrieving her clothing upon returning to their home for the first time since it was flooded in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence in Spring Lake, North Carolina AP Flood waters from hurricane Florence inundate the town of Engelhard, N.C. AP A downed tree rests on a house during the passing of Hurricane Florence in the town of Wilson, North Carolina REUTERS A member of the US Army walks in water while rescuing people during the passing of Hurricane Florence in the town of New Bern REUTERS A downed tree is pictured as Hurricane Florence comes ashore on Wilmington, North Carolina REUTERS Volunteers from the Civilian Crisis Response Team help rescue three children from their flooded home in James City, Getty Images A downed tree blocks a local street during the passing of Hurricane Florence the town of New Bern, North Carolina REUTERS Waves slam the Oceana Pier & Pier House Restaurant in Atlantic Beach AP Shianne Coleman (L) gets a hand from friend Austin Gremmel as they walk in flooded streets as the Neuse River begins to flood its banks during Hurricane Florence Getty Images High winds and storm surge from Hurricane Florence hits Swansboro North Carolina. AP Russ Lewis looks for shells along the beach as Hurricane Florence approaches Myrtle Beach, South Carolina AP Michael Nelson floats in a boat made from a metal tub and fishing floats after the Neuse River went over its banks and flooded his street during Hurricane Florence in New Bern, North Carolina Getty Images Volunteers from the Civilian Crisis Response Team help rescue three children from their flooded home in James City, Getty Images Jamie Thompson walks through flooded sections of East Front Street near Union Point Park in New Bern, North Carolina AP Portions of a boat dock and boardwalk are destroyed by powerful wind and waves as Hurricane Florence Getty Images People walk on a local street as water from Neuse River starts flooding houses upon Hurricane Florence coming ashore in New Bern, North Carolina Reuters Newlyweds Kathryn and Anthony Palmisano stand on the steps of the Charleston City Market in a deserted downtown in Charleston, South Carolina. Getty Images Doug Lewis and Chris Williams use plywood with the words 'Looters will be shot' to cover the windows of Knuckleheads bar as they try to protect the business ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Florence Getty Images Body surfer Andrew Vanotteren crashes into waves from Hurricane Florence AP Members of law enforcement work with the National Guard to direct traffic onto U.S. Highway 501 as Hurricane Florence approaches the East Coast AP A message is posted on a boarded up building before the arrival of Hurricane Florence on Oak Island, North Carolina Reuters People and pets evacuate ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence and seek shelter at Burgaw Middle School in Burgaw, North Carolina EPA Lisa Evers of Oak Island carries clothing to her car while evacuating her house ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Florence in Oak Island, North Carolina Reuters Brady Osborne ties freshly filled sandbags, in Virginia Beach, Va., as Hurricane Florence moves towards the eastern shore. AP Sand bags surround homes on North Topsail Beach, North Carolina. as Hurricane Florence threatens the coast AP This US Navy photo shows a Sailor as he heaves line during a heavy weather mooring evolution in preparation for Hurricane Florence AFP/Getty Images Sam Bedford, left, and Miller Richey move trash bins from the Isle of Palms Marina on the Isle of Palms, South Carolina. AP People wait before departure on an evacuation bus ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Florence in Wilmington, North Carolina Reuters The bread shelves are bare in a grocery store as people stock up on food ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Florence Getty Images Mark Lewis, left, conservator, and Alisa Reynolds, associate registrar, secure the painting "The Shoppers" by William James Glackens at the Chrysler Museum of Art AP A boat is docked partially in the road as workers pull boats from the water in Wanchese Harbor in Wanchese, N.C. as Hurricane Florence approaches the coast of the Carolina AP Marge Brown, 65, says goodbye to her father, George Brown, 90, before he is evacuated from a healthcare home in Morehead City, N.C., as Hurricane Florence approaches the east coast. "I'd like to stay and see what happens. I'm 90 plus," said Brown, a WWII veteran who says he's survived a plane crash and severe burns from a laboratory fire where he once worked. AP U.S. Marine recruits at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island prepare to evacuate ahead of Hurricane Florence at Parris Island, South Carolina Reuters People evacuate ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence as they seek shelter at Emma B. Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North Carolina EPA People queue for shelters during the night ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence EPA People line up to enter a hurricane shelter at Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North Carolina AFP/Getty Images People evacuate ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence as they seek shelter at Emma B. Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North Carolina, USA EPA Up to a million people have been ordered to evacuate ahead of Hurricane Florence AFP/Getty Images People look on as water floods King Street in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, September 11, 2018, where sandbags are being distributed to businesses and residents in preparation before more rain arrives from Hurricane Florence AFP/Getty Images Chuck Ledford (L), watches Looney-Tunes with his daughter Misty as they evacuate ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence as they seek shelter at Emma B. Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North Carolina EPA People line up to enter a hurricane shelter at Trask Middle School in North Carolina on September 11, 2018 AFP/Getty Images A woman holds her dog as she waits to enter a hurricane shelter at Trask Middle School in Wilmington, North Carolina AFP/Getty Images Two women sit with their dogs as they wait to enter a hurricane shelter at Trask Middle School in wilmington, North Carolina AFP/Getty Images South Carolina state troopers work with D.O.T. employees at an access ramp to I-26 Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018, in Columbia AP Families seek shelter during the night ahead of the forecasted landfall of Hurricane Florence EPA A woman closes her eyes in reaction to the line at the shelter EPA Kevin Orth loads sandbags into cars on Milford Street as he helps residents prepare for Hurricane Florence AP Hurricane Florence is seen from the International Space Station as it churns in the Atlantic Ocean towards the east coast of the US Reuters A beachfront home is boarded up ahead of Hurricane Florence, at Holden Beach, North Carolina Reuters An NOAA chart shows the predicted path of Tropical Storm Florence as she develops into a Major Hurricane over the coming seven days. NOAA Jim Craig, David Burke and Chris Rayner load generators as people buy supplies at The Home Depot on Monday. AP Customers line up to buy propane at Socastee Hardware store, ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Florence in Myrtle. Reuters Larry Pierson, from the Isle of Palms, S.C., purchases bottled water from the Harris Teeter grocery store on the Isle of Palms. AP Residents of the Isle of Palms, S.C., fill sand bags at the Isle of Palms municipal lot where the city was giving away free sand in preparation for Hurricane Florence. AP People shop at the Harris Teeter, filling up on water and supplies. AP Brian Franklin prepares more generators for sale as people buy supplies at The Home Depo. AP U.S. Airmen from the South Carolina Air National Guard and 169th Fighter Wing prepare to deploy to support rescue efforts. Reuters Chris Rayner helps customers load their cars as they buy supplies at The Home Depot. AP Walker Townsend, at left, from the Isle of Palms, S.C., fills a sand bag while Dalton Trout. AP

After visiting the island last September, he said that Puerto Ricans were fortunate the storm did not yield a catastrophe on the level of Hurricane Katrina, which killed 1,800 in 2005.

The governor of Puerto Rico raised the US territory's official death toll to 2,975 in the year since Hurricane Maria hit - up a staggering amount form the initial figure of 65. Some 300,000 people have fled the island and an estimated $100bn of damage was caused to towns and infrastructure.

Seizing on the president's use of the word "successful", Governor Ricardo Rossello, said in a statement: "No relationship between a colony and the federal government can ever be called 'successful' because Puerto Ricans lack certain inalienable rights enjoyed by our fellow Americans in the states."

Hurricane Maria was "the worst natural disaster in our modern history", he added, and stressed that Puerto Rico is still waiting for Mr Trump to act on is calls to help with emergency housing restoration.
D onald Trump has signed an executive order to help protect US elections from foreign interference by imposing sanctions on countries who seek to meddle, officials said.

Sanctions would include freezing assets, limiting access to U.S. financial institutions, and prohibiting U.S. citizens from investing in companies involved.

The US Director of National Intelligence, Dan Coats added the order would direct intelligence agencies to assess whether any individual or entities interfered in a US election.

A special counsel has been investigating possible Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and whether Mr Trumps campaign colluded with Moscow.

Russia denies meddling and Mr Trump has dismissed the probe as a witch hunt.

Mr Coats told reporters on a call that the intelligence community would have 45 days to make its assessment and then the two departments would have 45 days to determine whether or not action is required.

The State and Treasury departments would decide on appropriate additional sanctions to recommend and impose, he said.

White House national security adviser John Bolton explained that sanctions could be imposed during or after an election, based on evidence gathered.

He said: We think ... that this is an important step for the president to take as the leader of the executive branch, but were perfectly prepared to speak with members of Congress who have proposed legislation.
Photo: Contributed

South Okanagan police are working together on two large-scale fraud and identity theft investigations.

On Aug. 12, Osoyoos RCMP were alerted about a man who had accidentally gone to the U.S. Port of Entry in town, and was found to be in possession of a number of fraudulent identifications and credit cards, as well as equipment to make credit cards.

The suspect, 37-year-old Kuch Hengleap Khun, was turned over to Osoyoos RCMP for investigation, which led to a trail of sophisticated fraud and identity thefts committed across Canada. Khun is believed to be primarily from Alberta and appears to live off of the funds obtained by his frauds.

He has been charged with identity theft, with more charges expected, and remains in custody. So far, it does not appear that any victims of his crimes are from the Okanagan.

On Aug. 20, two men were arrested by Osoyoos and Keremeos RCMP after fleeing police. They were stopped by a spike belt deployed in Keremeos, at which time the driver provided police with a false name and was found to be in possession of fake identification.

A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed hundreds of pieces of stolen mail, IDs, fraudulent credit cards and equipment to make fake cards. The vehicle was also shown to have been purchased using stolen ID.

The investigation into the incident revealed the driver was 27-year-old Nathaniel Dacles, who has no fixed address but is believed to primarily spend his time in the Lower Mainland. Dacles had several warrants for his arrest in the Lower Mainland, mostly related to involvement in identity theft.

The vehicle's passenger, Michael White of Surrey, was on probation with conditions not to possess mail of any person other than himself.

Dacles has been charged with possession of identification documents, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, flight from police, obstruction and driving while prohibited. He remains in custody.

White has been charged with possession of identification documents and breach of probation. He was released on recognizance after an appearance in court in Penticton.
A US school has asked parents for permission to spank children with wooden paddles as a form of punishment, according to local media.

The school, in Georgia, sent a letter to parents asking for their consent to paddle students if they break behaviour rules three times.

The Georgia School for Innovation and the Classics said that students whose parents do not consent to paddling will instead face a suspension.

Superintendent Jody Boulineau told WRDW-TV: In this school we take discipline very seriously.

"There was a time where corporal punishment was kind of the norm in school and you didn't have the problems that you have," he added.

"It's just one more tool that we have in our disciplinary toolbox that we can use."

Georgia is one of 20 US states that allow corporal punishment, defined as using physical force to discipline students.

The guidelines on the letter stated: A student will be taken into an office behind closed doors.

"The student will place their hands on their knees or piece of furniture and will be struck on the buttocks with a paddle."
H urricane Florence has made landfall in North Carolina threatening 10 million people living in a so-called "disaster zone".

The huge storm was hovering near Cape Fear just after 4pm BST on Friday and is expected to lash the area with eight months worth of rain in just three days.

More than 180,000 people have been left without electricity as the life-threatening storm barrelled into the US.

Some 1.7 million have been ordered to evacuate homes in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia with a further eight million warned they could be affected, officials said.

Follow our live blog below for the latest updates on Hurricane Florence:
H urricane Dorian has devastated the Caribbean islands of the Bahamas, with hundreds of residents being forced to flee their homes.

Viral footage shows boats capsizing, roofs being torn off buildings and water flooding the homes of locals.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has described the category 5 hurricane as life threatening, with winds reaching more than 220mph.

For anyone named Dorian  or Katrina, Florence or Sandy  the association with a devastating storm can be strange.

So how does one go about naming hurricanes and who is in charge of choosing them? Here, the Standard digs deeper into the process of naming hurricanes:

Who names hurricanes?

The Atlantic storm lists were originally created by the NHC in the 1950s and are now managed by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), which decides when names are struck off and replaced.

A NASA satellite image shows Hurricane Dorian making its way towards Florida. / EPA

There are different storm name lists for different parts of the world. These lists are managed by the WMO but separate regions meteorological organisations may compile the names.

For Atlantic storms, there are six lists which are rotated every six years.

Why are hurricanes named?

Storms are given names for a number of reasons.

According to the WMO, names are easier to remember than numbers or technical terms which means they can be easily identified in warning messages and the media.

There is also less likelihood of making an error if you name storms, rather than using latitude-longitude identification methods. Naming helps ships, coastal bases and monitoring stations easily exchange information.

Some experts suggest naming storms even helps the community prepare better and heightens interest in warnings.

How are hurricanes given names?

Names are chosen from an alphabetical list which is worked through chronologically each hurricane season.

For storms in the Atlantic and Eastern North Pacific regions, there are six lists which are rotated every six years.

Traditionally, just female names were used before alternate mens names were introduced in 1979.

There are 21 names on the Atlantic season list  with the letters Q, U, X, Y and Z never used.

Hurricane Dorian - In pictures 1 /76 Hurricane Dorian - In pictures The destruction caused by Hurricane Dorian is seen from the air, in Marsh Harbor, Abaco Island, Bahamas, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2019 AP A U.S. Coast Guards helicopter lands close to a hospital to evacuate people to Nassau, in Marsh Harbor, Abaco Island, Bahamas AP Volunteers wade through a flooded road against wind and rain caused by Hurricane Dorian to rescue families near the Causarina bridge in Freeport, Grand Bahama AP The ruins of homes is seen on September 6, 2019 in Elbow Key Island, Bahamas. Hurricane Dorian Getty Images The ruins of homes is seen on September 6, 2019 in Elbow Key Island, Bahamas Getty Images The eye of #HurricaneDorain. You can feel the power of the storm when you stare into its eye from above. Stay safe everyone! Nick Hague @AstroHague Shelves are emptied seen as people buy supplies at a Walmart in Fort Lauderdale AFP/Getty Images Empty shelves are seen as people buy supplies at a Walmart in Fort Lauderdale AFP/Getty Images Passengers wait to talk to counter officals at Delta airlines at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Fort Lauderdale AFP/Getty Images The Humane Society of the Treasure Coast boards animals, who's owner's are under evacuation and are unable to bring them along with them, are pictured in cages in Fort Pierce AFP/Getty Images Leonard Baker, left, looks on as his dog Chick is loaded on a bus as they and other locals board buses at Lanier Plaza to leave the area AP Gloria Van Cleave embraces her cat Midnight as hundreds of local residents board buses at Lanier Plaza to leave the area under mandatory evacuation AP REUTERS A woman walks in a flooded street after the effects of Hurricane Doria REUTERS A woman seeks cover from wind, blowing sand and rain whipped up by Hurricane Dorian Getty Images A woman takes a picture as the effects of Hurricane Dorian Getty Images Glynn County school resource officer Mark Hooper, left, and school support staff member Sheree Armstrong, right, help Elizabeth Scales board a special needs bus at Lanier Plaza as hundreds of local residents evacuate the area AP Residents hang on to the railing as a wave generated by Hurricane Dorian crashes into the jetty AP Strong winds move the palms of the palm trees at the first moment of the arrival of Hurricane Dorian in Freeport, Grand Bahama AP Sea conditions are seen in Marsh Harbour MARK HALL/ CHRISTOPHER HALL Uprooted trees, fallen power lines and debris scatter on a road as Hurricane Dorian sweeps through Marsh Harbou RAMOND A KING via REUTERS Uprooted trees, fallen power lines and the debris from damaged houses scatter on a road RAMOND A KING via REUTERS Satellite image obtained from NOAA/RAMMB, shows Tropical Storm Dorian as it approaches the Bahamas AFP/Getty Images Boats are tied up in preparation for the approach of Hurricane Dorian AFP/Getty Images The track of Hurricane Dorian and Tropical Storm EPA An evacuee lies on a cot at an evacuation shelter for people with special needs AP A man enters a boarded up grocery store in Cocoa Beach AFP/Getty Images Members of Martin County Fire and Rescue assist evacuees as they arrive at an evacuation shelter for people with special needs AP Langdon Bryant (R) and Marcus McClain (C) prepare to hang plywood over a window as they protect their home just in case Hurricane Dorian Getty Images Marcus McClain (L) and Langdon Bryant secure plywood over a window as they protect the home just in case Hurricane Dorian hits the area Getty Images Riverside Mobile Home Park residents Joe Lewis (L) and Rob Chambers work to secure Joe's air conditioner before leaving the park AFP/Getty Images The beach is viewed during the approach of Hurricane Dorian AFP/Getty Images Tree branches are seen in the road during the approach of Hurricane Dorian AFP/Getty Images Workers place shutters over the windows of a Food Mart store Getty Images People stand outside a shelter at Dr. Mary McLeod Buthune Elementary School while there are a mandatory evacuation orders for parts of Palm Beach County AFP/Getty Images Torrie Bryant, 5, Langdon Bryant and Marcus McClain hang plywood over window as they prepare to protect their home just in case Hurricane Dorian Getty Images A beachgoer runs under the rain at the Hollywood Beach Broadwalk on Saturday. AP An image taken with a drown shows people fishing off a pier in high surf in Sebastian Inlet State Park in Melbourne Beach, EPA Radar from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA-42 WP-3D Orion aircraft shows the eye of Hurricane Dorian. NOAA via REUTERS A man constructs storm shutters before the arrival of Hurricane Dorian on the Great Abaco island town of Marsh Harbour, Bahamas. REUTERS Landscapers work to remove dead branches, coconuts and any other objects that have the potential to become debris as they prepare for Hurricane Dorian in Palm Beach, Florida. AFP/Getty Images Sandbags are placed at a business in Hollywood Beach, Florid. AFP/Getty Images Hurricane Dorian, a powerful Category four storm that was expected to strike the state, is now expected to pass to the east of Florida and hit Georiga and the Carolinas. AP Hubert Minnis, Prime Minister of the Bahamas, speaks to the press in Nassau. - Minnis urged residents of the Atlantic Ocean archipelago in the path of Hurricane Dorian to seek safety. "The price you may pay for not evacuating is your life or other serious physical harm," Minnis said. AFP/Getty Images Shoppers walk out a Walmart store ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Dorian in Titusville, Florida. REUTERS Stores with boarded up windows are seen ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Dorian in Cocoa Beach, Florida. REUTERS People prepare sand bags ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Dorian in Titusville, Florida. REUTERS People prepare sand bags ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Dorian in Titusville. REUTERS An employee at a rest stop in Vero Beach, Florida watches the news tracking Hurricane in the rest stops game room. AFP/Getty Images Locals and tourists enjoy the beach before the arrival of Hurricane Dorian in St. Augustine REUTERS Eye of Hurricane Dorian is seen from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA WP-3D Orion aircraft during a reconnaissance mission. NOAA via REUTERS A message that reads 'Hurricane Dorian, Nope!' written on The Surfing Turtle Ice Cream Shoppe marquee in Sebastian Inlet State Park in Satellite Beach, Florida. EPA Locals and tourist watch updates on the Weather Channel in a local bar before the arrival of Hurricane Dorian in St. Augustine, Florida. REUTERS Rain clouds move toward shore as as Hurricane Dorian churns off the coast near Fort Pierce, Florida. Dorian. Getty Images A Wal-Mart employee stocks Gatorade on an empty shelf on August 29, 2019 in Orlando, Florida Getty Images This still images taken from NASA TV, show Hurricane Dorian as viewed from the International Space Station on August 30, 2019 AFP/Getty Images Shoppers wait in line for a Sam's Club store to open before sunrise REUTERS Workers place plywood over windows as they prepare a business for the possible arrival of Hurricane Dorian Getty Images Workers place plywood over windows as they prepare a business for the possible arrival of Hurricane Dorian Getty Images People line up to buy water at a store before the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, in Freeport, Bahamas AP People shop for supplies before the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, in Freeport, Bahamas AP Shoppers preparing for the arrival of Tropical Storm Dorian load a vehicle with bottled water outside a supermarket in Bridgetown, Barbados REUTERS Tropical Storm Dorian is pictured off the coast of Venezuela in this August 26 REUTERS A group of people walk on the beach in the tourist zone of Boqueron as Dorian approached REUTERS REUTERS REUTERS AP Reuters Reuters AP Reuters Reuters Reuters Reuters AP Reuters

The WMO makes it clear that hurricane or cyclones are not named after particular people, but are names selected which are familiar to people in each region.

In some areas - like the central north pacific  a new list is not started on at the beginning of each year. There are four lists and names are worked through sequentially until they reach the bottom.

When are names struck off the list?

Names are removed from the rotating lists, or retired, if a hurricane is so devastating it would be insensitive to use the name again.

In that case, an annual WMO committee meeting will decide to strike off the name and another name is selected.

Examples of names which will never be used again include Katrina (2005), Sandy (2012) and Matthew from 2016.

Hurricane Dorian from space as it reaches the Bahamas

Can I have a tropical storm named for me?

Not really; the WMO committee does not take applications for new hurricane or cyclone names.

The best chance is Australia where the Bureau of Meteorology  which submits new names to the WMO  receives many requests from the public to name storms after people.

The Bureau accepts requests received in writing and the name will be added to a supplementary list.
A nine-year-old girl has been punished after refusing to stand for the national anthem during assembly at her school in Australia.

Harper Nielsen, who is in Year 4, carried out the peaceful protest at her Queensland primary school after deciding the anthem is wrong.

She said she does not sing the anthem, Advance Australia Fair, as it is not inclusive of the countrys indigenous people.

The reasons why I don't sing it or stand is because Advance Australia Fair means advance White Australia, Miss Nielsen told the Australian Daily Telegraph.

When it says we are young, it completely ignores the fact that indigenous culture was here for over 50,000 years before colonisation.

The student was handed a detention by Kenmore South State School but faces the threat of further punishment if she continues the protest.

The girl was handed a detention for her protest at Kenmore State South School in Queensland / Google

She said she took the decision to make a stand by herself but has the support of both her parents.

Her father Mark Nielsen, an associate professor at the School of Psychology at the University of Queensland, said she was trying to get people thinking about institutional racism.

He told ABC Brisbane: She's shown incredible bravery in wanting to stick to what she believes in and make a stance for something she believes right and I couldn't be more proud of her for wanting to do this.

One of the things she was really hoping to do with this is to raise awareness and get people thinking about institutionalised racism and how that looks and how that might feel to people who these kinds of things affect.

The saga has sparked both outrage and inspiration across Australia as thousands join in the debate over her protest.

Queenslands Department of Education said in a statement: "The school has been respectful of the student's wishes and has provided other alternatives to singing the national anthem.
T he London-based former wife of Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich has spoken of how they work together to teach their five children kindness and compassion after the ideal divorce.

In her first interview since their marriage ended 11 years ago, Irina Abramovich says she still has a jet-set lifestyle travelling the world while also guarding her privacy. The terms of the divorce have never been revealed.

The former Aeroflot stewardess, 51, who was the tycoons second wife, spoke to Russian Tatler, which said the ex-couple have not said a single bad word about each other in public. According to the article: If an ideal divorce exists, this is the one of Roman and Irina Abramovich.

Ms Abramovich said she and her ex-husband, 51, were united in the way they have raised their children: We are trying to teach our children kindness, compassion, a hard-working habit.

The couple divorced in 2007 / AP

The article also reveals the Russian tycoons five older children are on close terms with his youngest, Aaron and Leah, from his third marriage to Dasha Zhukova. The couple split last year.

Russian Tatler reported: All Romans children are friends and often spend time together and with their father. If we do not see it, it is because Irina does not need to demonstrate this ideal life to the whole of Instagram.

Ms Abramovich said it was a pleasure to speak about her children, largely brought up in London. She said: The eldest, Anna, 26, is graduating from Columbia University as a philosopher. Arkady, 25, works  he has a successful business.
A grocery store worker has been charged with eating roughly 7,000 worth of ham during her eight year employment.

The shop worker is accused of helping herself to the deli ham while on shift in regional grocery store chain, Giant Eagle, in Ohio.

Tuscarawas County Sheriffs Deputy Brian Hale told the Columbus Dispatch that an employee was charged with felony theft on Friday and she has been accused of stealing food estimated to be worth $9,200.

The stores loss prevention manager reportedly received a tip that an employee had been eating three to five slices of ham nearly every day over eight years. Authorities said she also sometimes ate salami.
T oxic farm-strength insecticide was sprayed in the room next to where a British couple were found dead in an Egyptian hotel, according to reports.

John Cooper, 69, and his wife Susan, 64, died after being taken ill while staying in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada during a Thomas Cook holiday.

An investigation was launched after the pair died while staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in late August.

And it has now been revealed that the room next to where the couple were staying was fumigated with the powerful insecticide "lambda-Cyhalothrin 5 per cent" just hours before they fell ill, the Times reported.

Susan Cooper, 64, and her husband John Cooper, 69, who both died during a holiday in Egypt

It comes after the Coopers daughter Kelly Ormerod, who was on holiday the couple, said there was a strange smell in their room and that their deaths are suspicious.

Thomas Cook said last week that e.coli had been found at the hotel where the couple were staying, but that this does not establish the cause of their deaths.

But neither the independent specialists who carried out the investigation nor a medical expert "believe that these results shed any light on the still unexplained cause of death of Mr and Mrs Cooper", the company said.

Mrs Ormerod, who had been on a break with the pair, from Burnley, Lancashire, has since questioned the Egyptian authorities' investigation efforts, saying the hotel room was not taped off until 24 hours after the deaths.

Speaking to ITV News last week, she said: "When we went into the room on the Wednesday, I noticed that the cleaners had been in.

"All the floors had been mopped, all the bedding had been changed and for those 24 hours maintenance were in and out quite often.

"If it happened over here it would have been taped off but the room wasn't taped off until I believe the Thursday so everybody and anybody could go in that room on that Wednesday."

She said she feared there could have been "crucial" evidence in the room which would now be lost.

"There was obviously evidence left over from my Mum and Dad in that room which I think was quite crucial as to why they possibly died," she said.

Mrs Ormerod said she now felt "disappointed" and "disheartened", adding: "I thought I'd have the results today and that Mum and Dad could come home."

She added: "Once they're home, I can start the next fight as to what the actual answers are."

Thomas Cook said in a statement: We await the results of the Egyptian authorities investigation into the tragic deaths.
T wo powerful vertical beams of light lit up the Manhattan skyline where the Twin Towers once stood on the 17th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.

Striking pictures show the Tribute in Light installations solemn commemoration to those who died during the attack on the World Trade Center in 2001.

The series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by Islamic terror group Al-Qaeda against the US killed 2,996 people and injured over 6,000 others.

The lights reached up to four miles in height and were made up of 887,000-watt xenon light bulbs.

One onlooker takes a snap of the light beams designed to symbolise the Twin Towers / Reuters

The beams were visible from as far as 60 miles (97km) away, meaning the powerful tribute could be seen across New York City.

They are positioned in two 48ft squares in a bid to resemble the structure of the Twin Towers  and are sponsored by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

The memorial plaza was open to the public until midnight and the beams faded away at dawn on Wednesday.

Trump fist pumps on arrival at 9/11 memorial service

The Tribute in Light made its debut in March 2002 and became an annual commemoration.

It cost around $1,626 (1,249) to run for 24 hours and could also be seen in Fairfield County, Connecticut and Westchester, Orange, and Rockland counties in New York.

Those working on the project came up with the concept in the week following the attack.

As a result of the light pollution from Tribute in Light, thousands of migrating birds became trapped in the beams.

Due to this, the lights were switched off for 20-minute periods to allow the birds to escape.

People have shared images of the beams on social media from various spots across New York.

One person tweeted: The 9/11 lights tonight from my street. Two beams into an ethereal glowing cloud.
H enry Cavill is reportedly no longer Superman as a result of a DC Universe shake-up by Warner Bros.

The 35-year-old could have played his final role as the much-loved superhero.

Warner Bros was supposedly hoping to enlist the Mission Impossible actor for a cameo in upcoming release Shazam!, which is supposedly expected to star Zachary Levi.

However, talks reportedly broke down due to a scheduling conflict between Cavill and the production studio, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Supergirl Takeover: Cavill's character would be an infant in the new series / Dave Benett

Another source told the publication that the change instead came after Warner Bros decided to shift its focus to a Supergirl movie which will be an origin story featuring a teen superheroine.

This would remove Cavill from the timeline given that he would be an infant according to DC lore.

The source said: Superman is like James Bond, and after a certain run you have to look at new actors.

There's a recognition that some parts of the previous movies didn't work

Two minutes with Henry Cavill, Rebecca Ferguson and Simon Pegg

Standard Online has contacted representatives of Cavill and Warner Bros for comment.

Cavill first played the comic book hero in 2013s Man of Steel, he then went on to reprise his role in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and 2017s Justice League.

The Superman lead came under fire from fans after his interview with GQ Australia was published where he talks about the Hollywood sexual abuse scandal and subsequent #MeToo movement.

Asked whether it has made him reflect on his own behaviour, Cavill told the publication: Im someone in the public eye, and if I go and flirt with someone, then who knows whats going to happen?

Now you really cant pursue someone further than, No. Its like, OK, cool. But then theres the, Oh whyd you give up? And its like, Well, because I didnt want to go to jail?
C ountdown star Rachel Riley has revealed she was branded Tory, brainwashed and thick after she criticised Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn over the ongoing anti-Semitism row.

The TV presenter, who is Jewish, tweeted two screenshots, one showing London mayor Sadiq Khan wishing Jews a happy Rosh Hashanah, and another of an article alleging Mr Corbyn praised an activist who called for Israeli MPs to be assassinated.

Riley, 32, captioned the post: Another game of spot the difference between Labour leaders... @MayorofLondon vs Jeremy Corbyn.

The maths genius, who also shared a string of articles discussing alleged anti-Semitism in the Labour party, was met with a backlash online.

Criticial: Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn, pictured arriving at the National Executive of Britain's Labour Party / Getty/Dan Kitwood

She tweeted: Much as I appreciate being called Tory, brainwashed and thick, I dont have any party loyalties, I form my opinions based on available evidence.

Religion wise, I choose Man United. Life wise I choose the options without intolerance, hatred and fear. #AntiSemitism.

Mr Corbyn has denied allegations of anti-Semitism but promised to tackle issues within his party.

He posted a statement for Rosh Hashanah in which he acknowledged it was a difficult time for British communities.

He said: I would like to reiterate that the Labour Party stands in solidarity with the Jewish community in the fight against antisemitism.

We will work to eradicate the social cancer of anti-Semitism wherever is surfaces, including in our own party.
Photo: SilverStar Mountain Resort

SilverStar Mountain Resort has itself a new marketing guru.

Ian Jenkins will take on the mantle of sales and marketing director, effective Wednesday, September 19.

Jenkins is the former director of international sales and marketing for Vail Resorts in Colorado.

With vast experience in the ski industry, Jenkins has also held a number of different positions at Whistler/Blackcomb, predominantly in sales and marketing  leading high performing teams with great connections within the industry.

"It is my great pleasure to be joining the team at Silverstar Mountain Resort to help promote the fantastic resort and community," says Jenkins. "With a new gondola, year-round activities, as well as an abundance of light dry snow, it has everything needed for a great mountain holiday."

"We are excited to welcome Ian to be a part of our organization," says Ken Derpak, Managing Director at Silverstar Mountain Resort. "Ian's experience, knowledge and leadership will help strengthen our future as we head into our 61st year of operations."

The upcoming winter season is expected to begin between mid and late November 2018.
The Hollywood actress finished second in the summer series, losing only to former Coronation Street star Thomas with whom she became good friends.

Alley admitted that she urged Thomas to talk to bosses after learning about Palletts accusation that he punched her.

Speaking on Wednesday's This Morning Alley said: I had no idea what was going on out here. When I found out what her actual accusation was, I realised that was a career breaker. An actual career destroyer so it became serious business.

Pals: Kirstie Alley has revealed her advice to Ryan Thomas following Roxanne Pallett's accusations / Channel 5

"I felt like it was out of my realm to handle and my only advice to Ryan was to get to the producers.

At the time, I had heard that she had gone to the producers and gone to her manager and taken it further.

I went run, youve got to go in there and handle this.

Accusing: Roxanne Pallett's allegations were a 'career breaker' according to Kirstie Alley / Channel 5

Alley added that Nick Leeson was a big help in the situation, and told Thomas that the situation was beyond the scope of just having a chat.

After seeing the footage of the alleged punch, Alley reacted by saying that was it? and admitted that she didnt even realise she was in the room.

Ryan Thomas says Roxanne Pallett 'has been through a lot'

She also explained that when she spoke to Pallett about the incident, the actress told her that Thomas hadnt apologised to her.

Alley said: That looks like he didnt even make contact. But if he did, when I talked to Roxanne, I said when that happened  I didnt realise it was this point because that was so playing - what did you do and asked if he apologised. She said no and you can see from that he does. I dont know how that turned into what it turned into.

The actor came close to tears as he was shown footage of himself breaking down in the Diary Room on learning of Pallett's accusations.
I f youre still depending on websites and CVs when youre hiring for new roles then youre doing it all wrong, according to JobTodays co-founder and COO, Polina Montano.

Since its launch in 2015, JobToday has been transforming the job search market, particularly where millennials are concerned.

Instead of posting an ad on a website, or asking prospective candidates for CVs, the job search app connects employers with future staff, allowing them to message back and forth to discuss roles and speed up the hiring process.

With an emphasis on casual work, such as hospitality and retail, JobToday has matched over 100 million candidates to over 400,000 businesses, across the UK and Spain.

It counts the likes of Costa Coffee, Pret A Manger and EAT among its regular clients.

All this work is expensive though. Today, the platform is announcing it has raised an extra $16 million in funding, an extension of its Series B round, from investors such as 14W and Accel, to continue to improve its offering and get more young people into careers.

For Montano, the success of the platform is down to how it is connecting millennials and Generation Z to employers in the way theyre used to: through apps and messaging.

With the platforms biggest audience being those aged 25-35, JobToday is helping small businesses make their roles visible to this age group.

JobToday's co-founders Eugene Mizin and Polina Montano / JobToday

People are still hiring offline, with cards in windows, Montano tells the Standard. It means these jobs are invisible to these audiences.

As well as connecting employers and future staff, the platform is also making the hiring process more transparent she says. Business are able to create a profile on the app, so prospective employees can learn about the company, the other staff that work there and things like salary.

Recent integration with Googles new job search platform has also seen business increase. After just one month working with Google Jobs, JobToday saw a 101 per cent growth in users.

In addition, the app focuses on the particular behaviours of millennial job seekers. They want to build new skills and add more sectors to their experience, says Montano. Its important for companies to be aware of information like this, particularly with the looming threat of Brexit around the corner and the loss of European workers. JobTodays insight can contribute to their hiring processes.

Brexit is a catalyst for a lot of companies, who are seeing the shortage of candidates. Its important to be in front of Britains youth, Montana adds.

Speaking about the funding announcement, 14Ws managing partner Alex Zubilaga said JobToday isnt just another job board: Its revolutionising the employment sector with a mobile-first approach that will fundamentally change how people connect and hire.
Students, donors in awe of Abdul-Jabbar at Ogden Fall Author Event

OGDEN  In a different life, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar would have been a history teacher. The acclaimed author, athlete and activist used those instincts to discuss everything from current affairs to jazz  and the Jazz  this week for the annual Ogden Fall Author Event. While the conversations were different Thursday evening and Friday morning, Abdul-Jabbar sought to provide a glimpse into his life and experiences to both groups. Thursday was the Ogden School Foundations gala for donors  a group of 940 in the Ogden Eccles Conference Center's main ballroom and another 110 ...
Photo: The Canadian Press

Stained with mud, the eight-year-old traces her fingers over the infected wound on her elbow. "It's hard work digging and the shovel is heavy. I just want to be in school," Losika Losepio said.

Standing in a gold mine outside the South Sudan town of Kapoeta, the girl says she digs pits and sifts through soil daily so that her family can sell gold to buy food. Sometimes she works so late that she sleeps in the mines overnight, she said.

South Sudan's five-year civil war has devastated the economy, fueling child labour in some of the country's most impoverished regions.

Mineral-rich yet exceptionally poor, Kapoeta state has been plagued by severe hunger during the conflict. Losepio's father can't afford to educate all nine of his kids so he sends four to school and keeps the others back to work in the mines. The youngest is five years old.

On a visit last month, the AP saw dozens of haggard children working in an artisanal mine 20 kilometres (12 miles) outside Kapoeta town as well as children doing other hard labour throughout the city. Small boys pushed wheelbarrows stacked with jerry cans of water along uneven dirt roads, while others sold secondhand clothes in a makeshift market under the scorching sun.

More than 600 children, mostly between eight and 12, are estimated to be working in a range of industries in Kapoeta including mining, retail and hospitality, according to the government, which has called the situation "urgent" and compounded by general ignorance and neglect in the community.

"The number of children working is increasing day by day ... People don't care how old or young a child is," Jennifer Edward, minister for humanitarian and gender in Kapoeta state, told The Associated Press.

"Local businessmen use kids to sell commodities for them in exchange for food," said Josephine Modong, a local aid worker.

According to the International Labor Organization, a U.N. agency focused on setting labour standards and policies, a child is not allowed to work below a country's minimum legal age, which is 15 in most nations. Some less developed countries such as South Sudan have a minimum working age of 14 or younger.

Hazardous work such as mining, however, which falls under the category of "worst forms of child labour," can't be carried out until a person turns 18, the ILO says.

While South Sudan's government doesn't have countrywide statistics on child workers, it maintains that the problem isn't "catastrophic" and that employers abide by international laws, said Mary Hillary Wani, undersecretary for the ministry of labour.

She wasn't aware, however, that children were working in mines anywhere in the country.

Kapoeta's government said it is trying to crack down on the issue by raising awareness and advocating for children to stay in school, but that changing mindsets will take time.

At least one local organization is attempting to get children out of the workforce and into classrooms.

Ten years ago, the U.S.-born Gregory McClerkin helped found Hope4Sudan , a primary school supported by a Pentecostal church back home that provides free education for children as well as room and board for those in need. More than 200 children are registered including street kids and former child labourers.

"I wanted to help by bringing education and knowledge to a dark place," McClerkin told the AP.
The Pakistan government released former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz from Adiala Jail on parole late Wednesday night to attend the funeral of his wife, Begum Kulsoom Nawaz, reported Geo News.

Kulsoom Nawaz passed way in London on Tuesday after a period of prolonged illness. She was 68.

On Tuesday, Pakistan Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry had informed that the Pakistan government has decided to release Sharif and his daughter for Begum Kulsoom's funeral.

"We have just received a request from the family, and, Inshallah, we will be granting parole," Dawn News quoted Chaudhry as saying,

The father and daughter will be granted parole according to rule 545 of the Punjab Prison Rules of 1978, Dawn News reported.

According to Dawn News, both Nawaz and Maryam boarded a special plane after being released from Adiala Jail. The other family members of the Sharif family were also reportedly on the plane bound for Lahore.

Soon after her death, tributes poured in from all corners as newly appointed Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan and India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj played glowing tributes.

Khan took to Twitter and said, "Sad to learn of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz's death. She was a courageous woman of great dignity and confronted her disease with fortitude. My condolences and prayers go to the Sharif family."

"I am sorry to know about the sad demise of Mrs.Kulsoom Nawaz. My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family. May her soul rest in peace," Swaraj wrote on Twitter.

(ANI)
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Romania's Ambassador to the US George Maior believes that his possible recall to the country would be a mistake in terms of the Romanian - US relationship because he did his duty as ambassador "in Romania's national interest, in an exemplary manner." He says that there is a political interest in this regard.

"I and not only me, but many colleagues of the Foreign Affairs Ministry believe that I have done my duty in Romania's national interest and professionally, in an exemplary manner. The Romanian - US partnership is at the highest level in terms of quality and this is also due to the performance of the embassy and the ambassador. There is a political interest for my recall. This interest should be explained. I cannot explain it, professionally speaking I have nothing to reproach. It would be, in my view, a political mistake in respect to the Romanian - US relation, but this is obviously at the discretion of the political factor. I am the only person who tries to do his job, they are a Coalition ... (...) If it's a political battle, I'm not part of any coalition," George Maior stated on Wednesday, at the end of his hearing in the Senate's Foreign Affairs Committee.

The diplomat also mentioned that his statement regarding the letter sent to the authorities in Bucharest by former mayor of New-York, Rudolf Giulianni, was a correct one.

"My statement was correctly covered by the reality, it also was opportune, because, without that statement, the Romanian public opinion could have considered a mistake a certain US standpoint in relation to some issues connected to our country. And it was my duty as ambassador to speak out," Maior added.

He mentioned that upon his return from holiday, he was very well welcomed in the US and the bilateral agenda continues at the foreseen pace.

"I didn't have any discussion regarding this letter, on the contrary, I was very well welcomed upon my return from vacation, and we continue the bilateral agenda at the foreseen pace.
The Constitutional Court of Romania ruled on Wednesday that there was no legal conflict of a constitutional nature between President Klaus Iohannis and Prime Minister Viorica Dancila in a recent case of Dancila's leave of absence.

On August 3, President Iohannis filed with CCR a request for the resolution of a legal conflict of a constitutional nature in his relation with the prime minister, arguing that Dancila did not inform him that she took a leave of absence and deputised another member of the government.
Mihaela Hunca deputy who announced last Wednesday her resignation from the Social Democratic Party (PSD), maintains that she will not resign from her position as MP, despite requests from country Social-Democrat leaders.

Hunca affirms that the members of PSD's Botosani county organisation who requested her resignation "refuse to accept that the path they are being led on by transient leaders is not the way to Romania's development assumed in the election campaign that needs to define social-democracy."

"My fellow, you have requested an act of dignity on my part. I consider I have already acted accordingly, by choosing not to serve an authoritarian structure, with no interest in Romanians, inebriated with power and its own interests," Mihaela Hunca affirmed.The PSD County Executive Committee unanimously adopted on Monday evening a resolution according to which the Social-Democrat MP from Botosani must support the governing programme and further adopt in Parliament all legislative drafts necessary to meet its objectives.Moreover, still unanimously, the same political structure requested deputy Hunca who resigned last week from the party to carry out an act of dignity and renounce the deputy mandate that she obtained on PSD's lists as she no longer represents the electors who voted this party.Deputy Mihaela Hunca announced on 5 September her resignation from PSD. In a Facebook post, Hunca was writing that she cannot agree with the vision of PSD's leadership, whose political demarche "is now an absurd fight, without arguments and useless to the citizens, with everybody standing up against it."
Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte stated on Wednesday that the Summit in Sibiu of 2019 could have "a transforming nature," with an impact over the next five years of the European Union.

"I believe that a series of the biggest problems which the European Union is confronted with will definitely be discussed in the first half of the next year and it will be very much up to Romania's leadership ability. We will have all kind of things to discuss, for instance in Salzburg. They will also play a very important role in Romania's Presidency and, for instance, the matter of the agreements that we can have with Africa, how to manage the issue of migration pressure over Europe, as a whole, but we focused especially on the fact that we will meet on 9 May in your hometown, in the context of an informal meeting of the Council, that could have a transforming nature, an impact over the next five years of the EU," Dutch Prime Minister told a joint conference with President Klaus Iohannis

He brought to mind that the meeting will take pace a couple of weeks prior to the European elections."Together we should build the agenda for the next five years and I believe that Romania and the Netherlands think very similar. There has to be a European Union of values, founded on a strong economy that, working closely together, creates security in an increasingly insecure world. The fact that this meeting takes place three weeks prior to the European elections is an extraordinary opportunity to further build this agenda," Rutte added.He offered his support so that the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the EU be successful."It's for the first time when you are holding this rotating Presidency, I know how you prepare for this thing, I know what ambitions you have from this capacity, but Brexit, migration and the next five years of European agenda represent for you Mr President, under your leadership, the first half of the next year, an extraordinary opportunity. I assure you of my entire support, categorically, in the direction of these events. Conferences will take place in your hometown, in Sibiu, which is even more beautiful," Rutte stated.The Dutch high official stressed that the bilateral relationships with Romania are very powerful."We work together, collaborate at European level. We have a very powerful economic relation. Romania's companies are investing in the Netherlands and those of the Netherlands are investing in Romania. Thus, they can create a growth and, among others, jobs for the people who live in Romania and those who live in the Netherlands. We both collaborated within the European Council. I cherish our relationship and the manner in which we collaborated in this context," Rutte also mentioned.
Informal settlements are not legally recognised in Romania, and a first step would be to get the concept of informal settlements in legislation, Habitat for Humanity National Director Roberto Patrascoiu said at the International Housing Forum 2018 - Talks That Build conference on Wednesday.

"Informal settlements are a problem that cannot be ignored, but in Romania, unfortunately, it is ignored even at its base. Informal settlements are not legally recognised in Romania. They exist as thus (...) The mayors say that if they want to do something for them they do not have the legal levers, because those settlements do not exist, there is no way to make investments there. The first step is to get the concept of informal settlement into the legislation (...) Once they exist, not only in reality, but also in legislation, we can talk about subsidies, social integration of those people, housing construction. We have a problem because it is very difficult to get building permits as long as these people do not exist," Patrascoiu told AGERPRES.

Most of the informal settlements in Romania appeared in the 1950s, they continued to develop during periods of economic crisis, and they had the size and sometimes the appearance of 'ordinary' neighborhoods. Unrecognized and unregulated, the phenomenon of informal housing is on the rise, say representatives of Habitat for Humanity."Unfortunately, there is a reality in Romania. Figures say there are over 60,000, other figures that there are over 100,000 people living in such informal settlements in Romania," said the director of Habitat for Humanity.Patrascoiu said that another important aspect for Habitat for Humanity is to improve the social housing legislation."In Romania, there is the lowest percentage of social housing in the EU, it is 0.7 percent of the total housing stock, as against Western or Northern Europe, where this percentage is over 20 percent and even more than 30 percent of the population. As well as being few, they are awarded on certain criteria that do not favor the poor. We ar talking about 20 percent of the more wealthy people who get social housing to the detriment of the very poor. (...) Legislation is very inconsistent and we believe that the brick and mortar doctrines, or the construction of social housing, are no longer the only solutions. We can consider subsidising rents for owners who can, because of public subsidies, make their dwelling available as a social dwelling so that the stock of social housing grows. There is a full bevy of measures to improve the housing sector in Romania standing before us and something must be done," Patrascoiu pointed out.
Minister of Interior Carmen Dan declared on Tuesday evening that she will continue her mandate as a minister and the only structure that could request her to give up this position would be the Executive Committee (CEx) of the Social Democratic Party (PSD).

Carmen Dan said that in the event in which the Executive Committee of PSD would request it, she would give up "without a second thought" to the position of Minister of Interior.

"I say that everyone has their own responsibility. I believe that I assumed this responsibility and it is my job to go all the way. As long as I know that I did nothing wrong, as long as I know perfectly well the limits of the mandate, I think that it's a debt of honor to continue what I have started. After all, the Interior minister was placed with the vote of my colleagues of the Executive Committee. The way I see it, the only statutory structure that could ask me to leave my mandate as minister and believe me that I would do this without a second thought, should there be such a situation," Minister Carmen Dan said at private TV broadcaster RTV.Asked if she was pressured into "giving up", Carmen Dan denied."No, nobody put any pressure on me to give up in this story, apart from the request made by the mayor during CEx, there was no other request, nothing, I am not aware of any other point of view expressed by another colleague of mine from PSD in this sense," the Ministry of Interior said.Bucharest General Mayor Gabriela Firea on September 1 requested during the meeting of the National Executive Committee of the Social Democratic Party in Neptun, the removal from office of Carmen Dan, as a result of the events that took place on August 10 in Bucharest.
Morocco appreciates Romania's role on the regional and international stage, which is why it has expressed its support for Romania's candidacy for the Security Council, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Kingdom of Morocco, Nasser Bourita, said on Wednesday in a joint press statement with his Romanian counterpart, Teodor Melescanu.

"Morocco appreciates Romania's role on the regional and international stage, which is why Morocco has expressed its support for Romania's candidacy for the Security Council. We consider and have repeated to Mr. Minister today that receiving Romania within the Security Council will add value to the Council's efforts, will bring more serenity, more experience to the works of the Security Council and we are sure that Romania will make a very useful contribution to the preservation of peace, stability in regions very close to Morocco, in Africa and in the Near East," said the Moroccan diplomat.

He stressed that this is the first visit of a foreign minister from Morocco to Bucharest in the past 15 years, but that the relationship between the two countries "has always been one of friendship, mutual respect and fruitful cooperation.""We decided to give a more strategic content to this bilateral relationship. We have decided to strengthen our political dialogue," he said. In the context in which Morocco is the first economic partner of Romania in Africa and in the Arab world, the next Joint Commission Romania-Morocco should be the result of the efforts to bring together economic operators, to have bilateral actions.The head of the Romanian diplomacy reiterated the support that our country will grant to Morocco in the context of the presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of next year. "We want the topic of the Maghreb and especially the topic of Sub-Saharan Africa, the Union's support for the development of these areas to be a priority for us in the policy on the southern part of the European Union," he said.
Prime Minister Viorica Dancila welcomed on Wednesday at the Victoria Palace Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, who is paying a visit to Romania.

The two high officials' meeting will be followed by a joint press statement.

Afterwards, an official dinner is scheduled, organised by the Romanian Prime Minister in honor of her Dutch counterpart.

The schedule of Prime Minister Mark Rutte's visit to Romania also included a meeting with President Klaus Iohannis.
The simple motion submitted by the National Liberal Party (PNL) against Interior Minister Carmen Dan, titled "PSD truncheons hitting Romanian democracy in the face" was rejected on Wednesday in the plenary sitting of the Chamber of Deputies, 149 votes "against", 99 "in favour" and 3 abstentions.

The PNL parliamentary group in the Chamber of Deputies called for the resignation of the Interior Minister, mentioning that "she coordinated the law enforcement intervention on August 10."

"From the perspective of the National Liberal Party, the resignation of Minister Carmen Dan, who has de facto coordinated the law enforcement intervention on August 10, and of the entire Gendarmerie management, is a national security priority: these people have proven that they are unwilling and unable to secure order and observe the law, including a series of key documents such as the Country's National Defense Strategy - which stresses that ensuring the citizens' safety is a national security interest. Tens of thousands of peaceful protesters have been hit and attacked with tear gas because of a group of provocateurs who couldn't be identified and isolated for hours. And we can also think of premeditation, if we remember that recently Liviu Dragnea and Carmen Dan wanted to vest the Gendarmerie with criminal investigation powers as well as with the guard and protection of the dignitaries. Esteemed colleagues, we cannot allow that our generation too accepts yet another miners' crackdown without holding those to blame responsible. We must never again condone the image of innocent, peaceful Romanians being hit on the heads with rubber truncheons. This is not the country we chose to build at the 1989 Revolution. Each illegal blow dealt on August 10 was actually a blow in the face of Romanian democracy, and the guilty must pay. Carmen Dan must quit today as head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs," the motion reads.The simple motion was debated on Tuesday in the plenary sitting of the Chamber of Deputies.During the debates, Interior Minister Carmen Dan reminded that she publicly presented explanations concerning what happened on August 10, the first explanations being given the very next day, when the preliminary data on the actions of the law enforcement were presented. She also said that she provided all requested documents to the Prosecutor's Office, and also sent them to the Defence Committees of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.
President Klaus Iohannis signed on Wednesday the decree designating Deputy Prime Minister Viorel Stefan as interim Minister for Research and Innovation.

The head of state also signed the decree finding the vacation of the government member position through the resignation of Nicolae Burnete from the Ministry of Research and Innovation, the Presidential Administration specifies.

On August 31, Nicolae Burnete resigned from the position of Minister of Research and Innovation."Minister of Research and Innovation, Professor PhD Nicolae Burnete, (...) by this communique announce the public opinion that this very morning I have tabled my resignation with the Prime Minister's Chancellery. My resignation is irrevocable and at least at this moment makes the subject of no press conference," Burnete was saying at the moment.Prime Minister Viorica Dancila announced on September 7 that Deputy Prime Minister Viorel Stefan was proposed for the office of interim-minister of Research and Innovation.
President Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday stated that the external partners signaling problems related to how the rule of law state is observed in Romania should be taken very seriously, while pointing out that the conclusion drawn by some Romanian politicians that the foreign partners are getting involved in Romania's internal affairs is fundamentally wrong.

"These signals coming from our foreign partners should be taken very seriously. (...) I know that in Romanian politics there are some who accuse our partners of getting involved in our domestic affairs. This conclusion of theirs is fundamentally wrong. (..) We cannot be a part of a community of values while remaining isolated at the same time," said the head of the state, at the joint conference with the PM of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, who is currently paying an official visit to Romania.
President Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday stated that the external partners signaling problems related to how the rule of law state is observed in Romania should be taken very seriously, while pointing out that the conclusion drawn by some Romanian politicians that the foreign partners are getting involved in Romania's internal affairs is fundamentally wrong.

"These signals coming from our foreign partners should be taken very, very seriously. We are all together in the European Union and together we want to build a stronger Union, which is why, if problems appear somewhere, they are noticed, and it is a good thing that everybody reacts to improve the whole approach. I know that in Romanian politics there are some who accuse our partners of getting involved in our domestic affairs. This approach is fundamentally wrong, precisely because we are all together in the EU and when certain things aren't going so well there must be a reaction. These signals should be taken very, very seriously, the same as the opinion of certain external actors should be taken very seriously, such as, for instance, the Venice Commission, which in the next days will come to Romania not to criticize us. This is a very wrong populist discourse. They are coming to help us build better laws, more modern. I strongly reject such populist approaches saying that some foreigners are coming to teach us how to rule our country. We are together in a Union of values. We want to consult with our partners who have good intentions, who are coming to help. We must understand these things very, very well, for they are important for all of us. We cannot be a part of a community of values while remaining isolated at the same time," said the head of the state, at the joint conference with the PM of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, who is currently paying an official visit to Romania.

The head of the state underscored, on the same occasion, the importance of the summit in Sibiu, where "our future guidelines will be set."

"This future of the Union includes Romania and this is why our interest is to show that us, the Romanians, understood that this is about values, values that we also respect," said Iohannis.

Asked about the ruling coalition claiming that the August 10 protest were financed from abroad, he answered: "I don't know anything about such a thing."

"It is true that we also watched what happened in Romania recently. That there are certain things that worry us with respect to the rule of law. The European Commission also voiced concern recently with respect to the reform efforts that seem to slow down. What we do is to look first at the European Commission to see what they will do next. For us all, for the entire Union, the rule of law is a key aspect, it's essential for the European partnership, and the juridical stability is also very important for the companies and private individuals. Let's see what the Commission has to say and then we will see, everyone of us, independently, if there were progresses made and to what extent," said Rutte, in his turn.
The September 11 terror incidents in 2001 are said to be the biggest-ever deadly attack on US soil. Shamefully, exactly 17 years later, the US president and Pentagon military chiefs are threatening to go to war in Syria  to defend the same ilk of terrorists.

Shamefully is perhaps not the most fitting word here. Consistently would be more appropriate.

Officially, the spectacular plane-crashing mayhem 17 years ago in New York City was due to 19 Arab hijackers affiliated with the Al Qaeda terror network.

That account of the world-changing event has been hotly disputed, with many respected authors and organizations claiming that evidence shows the US intelligence agencies are implicated in an inside job. The death of some 3,000 American citizens was hence exploited as a pretext for launching a series of US overseas wars, whose hidden agenda was for promoting imperialist objectives.

In any case, the official story is that Al Qaeda operatives hijacked four airliners on the morning of September 11, 2001, and flew them into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York, as well as into the Pentagon building near Washington. The fourth plane crashed in a rural area in Pennsylvania, allegedly after passengers challenged

the terrorist pilots.

The Al Qaeda terror network, with its ideological links to Saudi-sponsored Wahhabism, was declared enemy number one by then President George W Bush, who proceeded to launch wars on Afghanistan and Iraq, supposedly to avenge the 911 atrocity perpetrated against

American civilians.

The so-called war on terror has since become a much-overused blank check for successive US governments and their NATO allies to launch wars anywhere in the world to defeat terrorists. It has been used to justify increasing Western state surveillance powers against its own citizens in the name of counter-terrorism.

To be sure, the official story on 911 and subsequent US and NATO military rampaging around the globe has been challenged by skeptics and critics.

One of the key lines of contesting the official narrative is the documented evolution of the Al Qaeda terror franchise, which grew out of US sponsorship of motley radical Islamist groups in Afghanistan during the 1980s. That covert ploy was to give then occupying Soviet troops their Vietnam. American and British military intelligence along with lavish Saudi funding created the Frankenstein Monster of Islamic terrorism that mutated and spread across the Middle East and beyond.

So, the very notion that, post-911, the American creators of the terrorist monster would serve to protect the civilized world from their own creation was always a deeply suspect proposition.

The truth is that the US never stopped colluding with these terror groups since the days of the putative Afghan Vietnam for the Soviet Union.

The 911 incidents may have been some form of blowback or, plausibly, it was American intelligence handlers contriving a plot which would give imperialist planners their much-desired new Pearl Harbor  a blank check to declare war on the planet for the benefit of advancing US strategic interests.

Granted, the success of that nefarious covert scheme is questionable given the unforeseen huge financial and social costs to American society, as well as from general bedlam undermining global security.

For observers willing to see, it seems indisputable that there is something of a symbiotic relationship between Islamist terror proxies and the US imperialist state. The official enemy is a boon for justifying oppressive state powers against citizens; it serves as a pump for bloated budgets to the military-industrial complex at the heart of the American capitalist economy; and this enemy can also serve as target practice for illegal military intervention in foreign countries  US interventions that would otherwise be seen for what they are, as criminal aggression.

Further, the terror proxies continue to serve as a cats paws for US imperialism, as in the earlier formation in Afghanistan against the Soviet Union. Rather than direct large-scale American military involvement, the Al Qaeda brigades are deployed to do Washingtons dirty work. Syria is emerging as the new Afghanistan.

Officially, the Pentagon and US corporate news media scoff at these claims of collusion with terrorists. We are bombing Syria to defeat terrorists, so goes the mantra. Substitute any number of countries for Syria, as required.

Well, if thats the case why have senior US military people like Michael Flynn admitted that the former Obama administration deliberately cultivated the terror brigades in Syria? Why have hundreds of millions of dollars gone into forming a non-existent moderate rebel army in Syria only for the American weaponry to end up in the hands of terror groups like Nusra Front?

What about credible reports of US military helicopters airlifting Nusra commanders out of harms way to other, safer parts of Syria? Similar reports of airlifting, or airdropping weapons, have come out of Afghanistan, where the Pentagon is still fighting terrorists  17 years after 911.

It has taken a painfully long time over the eight years of war in Syria to uncover the full and real extent of criminality by the US and its British and French allies, along with the Saudis, Turks and Israelis.

But now we are coming full circle. President Donald Trump and his officials are warning that they will launch military strikes on Syria if the Syrian army and its Russian and Iranian allies proceed with the offensive to retake Idlib province. The northwest province is the last-remaining stronghold of anti-government militants. These militants are not the illusory moderate rebels the Western media have long bamboozled the public with. The militants comprise Nusra Front, Ahrar al Sham, Islamic State, and other self-professed Wahhabi jihadists of the Al Qaeda franchise. The myriad, mercurial names are merely part of the US cynical cover.

Trump  the supposed non-interventionist president  has even discarded the earlier ruse of invoking chemical weapons as a pretext for a US military attack on Syria. He and his officials are simply saying that any offensive by the Syrian army to retake all of its territory is an unacceptable escalation that will be met with a US military response.

There is no other credible rationale for such military deployment by Washington in Syria. The Western media are as usual riding shotgun with the mendacity, claiming that the Syrian army offensive will trigger a humanitarian crisis, rather than reporting the salient fact that the offensive is aimed at eradicating the most vile terror groups from that country.

In Syria, today, 17 years after 911, the real relationship between US authorities and terrorism is on display. The United States of Anarchy.
Washington did not ratify the Rome Treaty that established the ICC in 2002 and has always viewed this international institution with apprehension and mistrust. Now it has taken an openly hostile stance toward it and made its position known in order to stave off any attempts to bring Americans to justice. Why now? Has anything specific happened to cause this?

The United States wants to protect itself and its allies from unjust prosecution by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, which is illegitimate. No investigations will be allowed into any alleged war crimes committed by US personnel in Afghanistan. This stance was presented by National Security Adviser John Bolton on Sept. 10 in his Federalist Society address, titled: "Protecting American Constitutionalism and Sovereignty from International Threats."

The ICC is considering an official probe into the crimes committed against civilians in Afghanistan by the US-led coalition after receiving over a million complaints. A 2016 report prepared by ICC prosecutors stated that the US military and the CIA may have committed war crimes by torturing detainees in Afghanistan between 2003 and 2014.

Washington will fight back against any attempts to investigate and may seek more bilateral agreements to prohibit individual nations from turning over any US citizens to the ICC. It will consider blocking the courts judges and prosecutors from entering the country, imposing sanctions on any funds they have in the US financial system, and prosecuting them in American courts. The State Department has just announced the closure of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) office in Washington, citing concern about Palestinian efforts to press for an ICC investigation into Israels activities. The move came after Washington slashed humanitarian assistance to Palestine.

So, the US believes the ICC is an evil to eliminate. Interestingly, Washington backed the idea of referring Syria to the ICC. It claimed Russia was obstructing justice by vetoing that decision! The US supported France when it wanted Russia referred to the ICC for alleged crimes in Syria. So, its all right as long as other countries are investigated, but the international body should not forget that the US is exceptional and exempt from the rules applied to others.

The US position is understandable. One thing leads to another. The court could start with an Afghanistan probe that would trigger other investigations into US operations in other places, such as Syria or Yemen. On Sept. 9, Russia accused the US of using phosphorus bombs in Syria. Human-rights watchdogs have frequently accused the American military of using that weapon in the conflict. The substance is not exactly a chemical agent, but it is an incendiary one. Protocol III of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons prohibits the use of said incendiary weapons against civilians (already forbidden by the Geneva Conventions) or in civilian areas.

The American military has used white phosphorous shells in Iraq. In 2015, it used depleted uranium (DU) in Syria. DU is not prohibited by any international agreement, but its use runs counter to International Humanitarian Law (IHW), which prohibits weapons and means of warfare that cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering, have indiscriminate effects, or cause widespread, long-term, and severe damage to the natural environment.

US cluster bombs are being used against civilians in Yemen. The weapon is prohibited by the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM). More than a hundred states have ratified or acceded to it, including the UK. The US is not a party to the CCM. In 2011, police used tear gas and other chemical agents against US citizens  the Occupy protesters in Oakland. The legality of using armed drones has been questioned by the international community. Its one of the reasons the US has damaged its relationship with Pakistan.

To avoid criticism, the US left the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in June  a step in keeping with the trend of the US pulling out of multilateral accords, international bodies, and forums, such as the Paris climate accords, the UN educational, scientific, and cultural organization (UNESCO), and the Iran nuclear deal. Washington has not ratified various international human-rights-related agreements. The idea to withdraw from the United Nations Organization altogether has been floating around in the US for quite some time.

The US is pursuing its own agenda. It has reversed its policy aimed at withdrawal from Syria and is preparing a military action to force a rollback of Iran. It wont reduce its presence in the region in view of the ongoing unrest in Iraq. A short, victorious operation is one way to boost the GOPs chances in the midterm elections in November. Thats how Boltons speech should be construed  as a building block of war preparations. The US military should not have its hands tied. Any way to make the operation more effective should be pursued, with no political complications to follow. Nothing should stand in the way of putting the America First concept into action.
Champions who can help in a time of crisis are the pieces of gold being sought in Western Bay communities by newly appointed Emergency Management and Community Resilience Advisor, Theo Ursum.

Theo will be canvassing communities in the Western Bay to find community champions - people keen to take the lead in helping develop community response plans for use in the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster or emergency.

Theo joined Emergency Management Bay of Plenty in August, having been general manager of Volunteering Bay of Plenty for almost five years.

He is keen to put his organisational skills to work to create a response framework in each community that would enable people to be self-sustaining in the immediate aftermath (up to three days) of an emergency event.

Response teams led and made up of local people are the best strategy in the immediate aftermath of an emergency or disaster because of their local knowledge and social networks, says Theo.

I am looking for community champions  individuals who are prepared to take the lead and help pull volunteers together  so that we have these community response teams ready to help others in times of need.

This community-driven response plan is owned and developed by the community; it is not imposed by the local council or civil defence, says Theo.

With my guidance, these plans will be developed by people  stakeholders and organisations - from within the community. But ownership of the plan stays with each community, represented by the stakeholder group.

The final draft of the community plan will be presented at a public meeting. Once finalised, the document will be signed off by the Western Bay mayor and reviewed annually.

Theos work in Western Bay builds on emergency management preparation already in place, such as groups of civil defence volunteers and Community Response Plans.

Theo will be reviewing existing plans, updating them and helping put new plans in place to create a district-wide framework for community emergency response.

Anyone interested in putting up their hands for community response involvement can contact Theo Ursum by email: theo.ursum@embop.govt.nz

For more information on Emergency Management Bay of Plenty visit bopcivildefence.govt.nz of check out facebook.com/bopcivildefence or twitter.com/bopcivildefence
Protesters have biffed fake 1080 pallets all over Parliament's steps and scattered dead birds, as their campaign to ban the poison continues.

A large and loud protest on the weekend has continued this week in Wellington with chalk drawings all over Parliament's entranceways today.

It escalated this afternoon with men in HAZMAT outfits having to pick up the 1080 look-alike pallets, which were strewn over the steps on the forecourt.

Alan Gurdon and his fellow protester ate some of the pallets to prove they were fake.

"We wouldn't throw 1080 around and endanger the public like our Government does. So we put fake 1080 on the steps, and dead bodies that have been killed, dead birds and mice that have been killed by 1080, brought here from the West Coast to present to these politicians," he said.

Mr Gurdon said he had lost three dogs to the 1080 poison, he had been poisoned twice, his wife had been poisoned and his son was poisoned in the womb because 1080 got into the water they drank as a result of a Government-ordered 1080 drop.

He wanted 1080 banned for good.

The Environment Minister David Parker went out to see what was going on, running into the protesters.

He tried to explain himself and the uses and benefits of 1080 poisons, before acknowledging it was unlikely he'd have any luck convincing them of anything today.

"There is a disagreement between you and other people who have a different view of the science..." he began.

"Everyone's entitled to their view, but what's wrong with hearing the truth?" retorted Mr Gurdon.

"If what you do is so morally, ethically and legally right, what are you people scared of? Come on!"

This was happening at the same time the rest of Parliament's politicians were running the media gauntlet ahead of Question Time.

The Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson told reporters the ban-1080 protesters have valid concerns.

"They're concerned about water and they're concerned about aerial drops. We need to keep having considered conversations about saving our forests, our birds and our native species.

"It's not the strategy or tactics I'd use, but they are trying to be heard and we need to keep listening."

National Party leader Simon Bridges said protesting is incredibly important, but it needs to be done lawfully.

"I think things that involve acts of throwing, of possible violence, leaving things that have to be cleaned up... that probably over-steps the mark."

Mr Parker said he will now be getting the poisoned animals - including a kereru - tested, to see if they did die from ingesting 1080 on the West Coast.

"I think people should comply with the law, we've had to have people out here in protective gear because they weren't sure whether it was fake or not," he said.
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WEST MONROE, N.Y. -- A blood-covered man was in the doorway of a West Monroe trailer when the woman drove by Monday morning.

The man was hunched over with his right eye swollen shut, the passerby told deputies in a witness statement filed in court and obtained by Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.

The man was covered in so much blood, the woman said, that it was impossible to tell what clothing the wounded man was wearing.

Disturbed, the woman said she rolled down her vehicle's window and yelled repeatedly, asking if the man was OK. The man didn't reply.

"The male did not answer and seemed like a deer in the headlights," the woman said. "I was unsure of exactly what was happening. I knew the male appeared to need immediate medical attention."

That's when the woman called 911.

The bloodied man was one of the two men assaulted Monday morning inside the mobile home at 347 Brecheimer Road.

Robert "Bobby" Diffin, 42, of West Monroe, died hours after the attack. Michael P. Shane, 59, of West Monroe, remains in critical condition Wednesday at Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse.

Mathew R. LeBoeuf, 33, of Central Square, has been charged by the Oswego County Sheriff's Office with murdering Diffin and assaulting Shane. He is accused of beating both men with a blunt object inside Diffin's home.

Robert "Bobby" Diffin

Diffin died after being repeatedly hit in his head and torso, deputies said in a felony complaint filed in West Monroe Town Court. Shane suffered "massive" trauma after he was repeatedly struck in the head, deputies said.

Victoria LeBoeuf, the suspect's mother, told deputies she dropped her son off at Diffin's trailer around 9:30 a.m. Monday.

"Mathew has argued with Robert Diffin before," Victoria LeBoeuf said in a witness statement filed in court, "but it's always been an on-and-off friendship."

Victoria LeBoeuf said her son was calm but not in a great mood when she brought him to his friend's home. Her son suffers from intermittent explosive disorder, she told deputies, and has brain damage.

Her son also has a drug problem, Victoria LeBoeuf said.

"Mathew will use any drug he can touch," she told deputies. "Mathew gets messed up on drugs and then flips out, destroying items, and is very violent."

Victoria LeBoeuf said she wasn't sure if her son was on drugs Monday morning. He did not mention wanting to harm anyone, she said.

LeBoeuf was still at his friend's mobile home when the 911 caller drove by shortly before 11:30 a.m. He caught the woman's attention, she said.

The woman was pulling up to the County Route 84 intersection when she saw a shirtless, shoeless man pacing in front of Diffin's tan mobile home.

The man's lack of clothing struck the woman as "weird," she told deputies: It was rainy and unseasonably chilly Monday in Oswego County. It was in the mid to high 40s, according to the National Weather Service.

The shirtless man's behavior was also "odd," she said.

The bald, tattooed man -- later identified as LeBoeuf -- was clenching his fists and spitting in the grass as he paced in front of the trailer, the woman said. He didn't appear to have any blood on him, she said, and wasn't holding anything in his hands.

"The male did pace around my vehicle and made me uncomfortable," the woman said, "so I locked my doors and had all my windows up."

Then, the woman said she spotted the dazed, injured man in the trailer's doorway. She called 911 and turned her car around so she could keep an eye on the two men.

The wounded man standing in the trailer's entrance collapsed onto the floor, the woman said. The door swung shut.

Meanwhile, the woman said LeBoeuf had wandered away from the trailer to neighboring homes. A man who lives at a nearby County Route 37 home looked out his window around 11:30 a.m. and saw a bald, shirtless, tattooed man pacing in front of his mailbox, the man told troopers in a witness statement.

The homeowner went outside to see what the pacing stranger was doing.

"The male was talking very slowly and appeared to be on some type of drug," the man told troopers.

Undersheriff Gene Sullivan said LeBoeuf appeared to be under the influence of either drugs or alcohol when he was found by deputies.

Mathew R. LeBoeuf

LeBoeuf told the man he needed a ride to Pennellville, the man told police. When the homeowner declined to give him a lift and asked him to step off his property, the man said LeBoeuf walked behind his home and into a patch of trees "as if he was hiding."

"At that time, I realized that something had happened," the man told troopers.

The man followed an ambulance onto Brecheimer Road and spoke to a deputy who was looking for the shirtless man. He told the deputy the man was behind his home.

A deputy pulled up to the scene and saw LeBoeuf running, Sullivan said. The deputy gave chase and took the fleeing man into custody.

LeBoeuf has been charged with second-degree murder and first-degree assault. He was arraigned Tuesday in West Monroe Town Court and remanded to the Oswego County Correctional Facility without bail.

The attack remains under investigation.

"We are continuing to follow up leads and we are monitoring the status of the second victim, Mr. Shane," Sullivan said. "Any change in his condition could have an impact on the charges."

Deputies have asked anyone with information about the homicide and assault to call (315) 349-3411.
Join Light Work for an opening reception with photographer Eric Gottesman on Thursday, September 20, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m and 6:00 p.m. gallery talk and Q&A with For Freedoms co-founder Eric Gottesman. Gottesman will share back-story about the inception of For Freedoms and use their curatorial selections from the Be Strong and Do Not Betray Your Soul exhibition as talking points to ignite a dialogue about various socially relevant topics.



The opening reception will be held at Light Work in the Robert B. Menschel Media Center located on the Syracuse University campus at 316 Waverly Ave, Syracuse NY 13244. This event is FREE and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.





Our hope was to spark dialogue about our collective civic responsibility to push for freedom and justice today, as those before us pushed for freedom and justice in their time through peaceful protest and political participation. -- Eric Gottesman, co-founder of For Freedoms

Be Strong and Do Not Betray Your Soul: Selections from the Light Work Collection

, an exhibition guest-curated by

, a platform for civic engagement, discourse, and direct action for artists in the United States, co-founded in 2016 by former Light Work artists-in-residence Eric Gottesman and Hank Willis Thomas. Since then, For Freedoms has produced exhibitions, town hall meetings, and public art to spur greater participation in civic life. Borrowing its title from the Charles Biasiny-Rivera piece of the same name,

Be Strong and Do Not Betray Your Soul

features more than forty photographs from the Light Work Collection that explore topics of politics, social justice, identity, and visibility--subjects that, over our forty-five-year history, have remained significant to many artists. The exhibition catalog,

is available for purchase in the Light Work shop.

RELATED PROGRAMS

Gallery Talk: Eric Gottesman

Thursday, September 20, 2018, 6 p.m.

For Freedoms co-founder Eric Gottesman will share back-story about the inception of the For Freedoms and use his curatorial selections from the Be Strong and Do Not Betray Your Soul exhibition as talking points to ignite a dialogue about various socially relevant topics.

Light Work in Partnership with For Freedoms: Billboard Campaign

Six of the billboard installations are within the city of Syracuse, New York, and will be in various locations between August 13 - October 7, 2018. The images and text that comprise these billboards aim to provoke conversations in our community that lead to civic engagement.

Exhibition Catalogue

Accompanying the exhibition, Contact Sheet 198includes an essay by Eric Gottesman. Purchase the catalog online in the Light Work shop at www.lightwork.org/shop

Exhibition Support

Be Strong and Do Not Betray Your Soul: Selections from the Light Work Collection exhibition and related programming are partially supported by a grant from The Central New York Community Foundation (CNYCF).

Gallery Hours, Admission & General Information

Find Light Work's galleries in the Robert B. Menschel Media Center, 316 Wa0verly Ave., Syracuse, New York. Gallery hours are: Monday-Thursday 10 a.m.-9 p.m., Friday 10 a.m.- 6 p.m., Saturday-Sunday 1 p.m.-9 p.m. Light Work closes on all major holidays. Contact Light Work to schedule a guided tour of the galleries or the Light Work Lab. Follow Light Work on Twitter, Instagramand Facebook. For general information, please visit www.lightwork.org, call (315)443-1300, or email info@lightwork.org.

About Light Work

Light Work is a nonprofit, artist-run organization dedicated to the support of artists working in photography and electronic media, located in the Robert B. Menschel Media Center. Light Work invites groups and individuals to schedule tours of the exhibitions and facility and to attend gallery talks. Limited free public parking is available on Waverly Avenue and paid parking is available in Booth Parking Garage. Light Work thanks Syracuse University, Robert B. Menschel and Vital Projects, JGS (Joy of Giving Something Inc.), the New York State Council on the Arts, the Andy Warhol Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, CNY Arts, the Central New York Community Foundation, and the subscribers to Contact Sheet for their dedicated and ongoing support of our programs. Light Work is a member of CMAC, the Coalition of Museum and Art Centers at Syracuse University.

EXHIBITION TOUR

Light Work offers guided tours to engage community groups with its exhibitions. Led by gallery staff, tours provide visitors with a range of ways to look at, engage with and enjoy works in the photographic medium. Groups are also welcome to plan self-guided visits.

LOCATION:

316 Waverly Ave

Syracuse, NY 13244

315-443-1300

info@lightwork.org

www.lightwork.org

PARKING

Limited free public parking is available on Waverly Avenue and paid parking is available in Booth Parking Garage adjacent to Light Work.

SUMMER GALLERY HOURS:

Monday: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Tuesday: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Wednesday: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Thursday: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Friday: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Saturday: 1:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Sunday: 1:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Sangabo Samow has been living in a refugee camp in Kenya for more than 20 years. Her son, Salat Ali, plans to visit her next month for the first time in 13 years.

Syracuse, N.Y. - Before Salat Ali left a massive refugee camp in Kenya, he'd never seen his face in a mirror. He'd never worn shoes, only flip-flops.

Ali, whose parents had escaped Somalia before he was born, didn't speak English when he landed in Syracuse. He was 11. But he'd heard about the United States. It was a place, he thought, where cars flew. He imagined remote controls that zapped food into mouths. In Ali's America, there would be no dirt.

He left Kenya in September 2005, with his father and brother. His mother stayed behind. Thirteen years later, Ali is a college graduate who works two jobs. His mother still lives in the camp.

Now, a small team of filmmakers are working with Ali to make a documentary of his life. Part of the story will include Ali's trip this fall back to the camp in Dadaab to see his mother for the first time in 13 years.

"I am a refugee," said Ali, who said he feels grateful and privileged about the life he's built in Syracuse. "I'm the 1 percent of the refugee community. I wanted to show people what it's like to be a refugee. And a success story."

Ali, the filmmakers and Habiba Boru - who runs Habiba's Ethiopian Kitchen in Syracuse - are holding a fundraiser for the project on Saturday. Boru is cooking injera bread, Ethiopian wats and a Somali dessert. It will be at 6 p.m. at With Love, Restaurant on North Salina Street. Any cash donations are welcome, Ali said.

The money will go toward the reunion trip, according to filmmakers Linda Herbert and Tim Brachocki. The two teach at Onondaga Community College and have made several films, including documentaries about Pete Seeger and midwives and nurses in Yemen through the Syracuse Alternative Media Network.

They've hired Ellen Blalock, a Syracuse photographer, videographer and artist who formerly worked at The Post-Standard and syracuse.com. Blalock will make the trip with Ali and his father.

They need about $10,000 to $12,000 to pay for the trip and the initial work on the project, the filmmakers said. Some of that will go toward paying for equipment and security for Blalock, who will spend a week at the camp and capture the reunion of Ali and his mother next month.

The entire project will cost about $35,000, Brachocki said. The working title for Ali's film is called "Leaving Home...But Left Behind." They hope to finish the documentary by the end of 2019.

Ali and his father, Ibrahim Ahmed, are returning to Dagahaley, one of four refugee camps in Dadaab, where more than 200,000 people live. Ali's parents divorced when he was young, he said. He and a brother stayed with his father. Another brother stayed with his mom, and he's still in the camp.

Ali said he doesn't quite understand how his father got permission to come to the United States, and how his mother did not. He does, though, remember how hard his father worked in the camp to keep the boys safe. During the day, Ahmed would labor for pay that added up to a few pennies. At night, he would stay awake to fend off wild animals from coming into their home, Ali said.

By the time Ahmed made it to Syracuse, he was exhausted, Ali said. His dad had been wounded in Somalia, and the injuries and language barrier made it hard to adjust to a new life in Syracuse.

Over the years, Ali has had contact with his mother, Sangabo Samow. At one point, she had access to a smart phone and they Skyped. More recently, that phone was lost, Ali said. Sometimes Samow cuts grass for money, he said. He sends $50 each month to his mother, he said.

The story of Ali's parents, Brachocki said, is also a part of the film.

"He hasn't learned how to speak English," Brachocki said of Ahmed. "He lives a relatively isolated life. His main activity is going to the mosque. And his mother's been in the refugee camp for 26 years. His family's life is a microcosm of the refugee story."

Ali has worked for years to help his mother get permission to come to the United States, Herbert said. That effort stalled, the filmmakers said, when the U.S. Supreme Court this summer upheld President Donald Trump's travel ban. The order severely restricts immigration to the U.S. from seven countries, including Somalia.

Though Samow is in Kenya, she's a Somali in a refugee camp. "I can't imagine you would be in a refugee camp for your whole life," Herbert said.

In Syracuse, Ali has thrived. He went to Dr. Weeks Elementary School, then to H.W Smith, where he said he finally started to learn to read. He and his father are U.S. citizens. He graduated from Cazenovia College in 2017 and now works a job at Upstate University Hospital. He also is a substitute teacher.

Others are helping in the film effort. Refugee & Immigrant Self-Empowerment, a Syracuse-area group that helps incoming people, is helping with grant applications, Herbert said. RISE also is helping with fundraising for the project. Eventually, the filmmakers hope they can get more local refugees involved, including helping students learn about film editing and production.

Ali's mother knows he is coming for a visit. She knows he's bringing a friend to take photos, he said. Ali said he has no experience in filmmaking. That has not dissuaded him. He's taking a phone and tripod with him, to record video diaries of his trip.

"I decided to be that voice," Ali said. "And to be a face of refugees."
Syracuse, N.Y. - The Stoop Kitchen opens today with a new chef, Mike Sweetman, and a new dinner menu that will include more breads and desserts made by its master baker, Yemen Tounsi.

The Stoop Kitchen closed last week after the departure of Sarah Hassler, a chef who oversaw the lunch and dinner menu during its first year. Lunch and dinner service restarts today, said Eric Alderman, the Stoop's owner.

Hassler and Alderman offered few details about the change.

"He wanted to take it in a different direction," Hassler said. "It was too far away from what I wanted to do."

"She made a decision to leave," Alderman said, adding he was supporting her search for a new kitchen or project.

The Stoop opened in October and has operated, in a sense, as two different restaurants. During the morning, the Stoop Bakery Cafe serves Tounsi's pastries and breads on the first floor. The bakery remained open last week.

The small lunch menu and much larger dinner menu comes from the upstairs Stoop Kitchen. The second floor also includes a bar featuring dozens and dozens of types of tequila.

Under Hassler, the Stoop Kitchen's dinner menu changed every few weeks and relied on local, seasonal foods, from meats to vegan options.

Sweetman is a Syracuse-area chef who worked for years at the Dark Horse Tavern in DeWitt. The new menu will remain more fixed, with daily and weekly specials, Alderman said. It also highlights more of Tounsi's creations. Some starters include Stoop bread; entrees now come with bread, herbed butter and arrabiata, a spicy tomato sauce.

Sweetman's menu also includes more seafood - mussels and fries, tuna and scallops. There's a burger, New York strip steak and short rib grinder. Salads and tacos are available. Entrees include a vegan tagine made with butternut squash, parsnips, carrot and chick peas simmered with Moroccan spices and Roma tomatoes.

Alderman said the new menu will include more vegan dishes in coming weeks.

"We're really excited," Alderman said. "We think that we've found the best of both worlds."

The Stoop is also expanding its bakery operations to a second location at 629 W. Fayette St., about four blocks west from Armory Square, Alderman said.

The Stoop Bakery already has some commercial customers, and Alderman wants to expand production. The change also means Tounsi will be able to work days rather than nights. The bakery will have a small retail area for customers who want to pick up a pastry, loaf of bread or coffee.

"We'll do a lunch there, too," Alderman said. He expects it to open later this fall.

Hassler said she hopes to stay in the Syracuse area for the near future. As of Tuesday, she said she'd had a couple of offers but was considering what to do next.

"I would like to stay," she said. "I moved my whole life here. I would like some time to settle. And I still want to help change the scene."

The Stoop is at 311 W. Fayette St., Syracuse. The bakery opens at 7 a.m. Wednesdays to Fridays and 9 a.m. on the weekends. Lunch is served from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays to Saturdays. Dinner service starts at 4:45 p.m. Wednesdays to Saturdays. Sunday brunch is 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Stoop's two bars have different hours.

Starting tonight, The Stoop will have live music each Wednesday. Mark Nanni plays at 9:30 p.m. today.
TULLY, NY - A former Tully school bus dispatcher is suing the district, alleging she was discriminated against at work because she is disabled and transgender, according to a lawsuit filed in state Supreme Court.

Ika Klapan, who worked for Tully schools as a dispatcher in 2015 and 2016, said she was isolated and mistreated at work once she made her employer aware she has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) and is transgender.

According to the lawsuit, Klapan's supervisor refused to present her to the Board of Education for a permanent position, and compelled her to resign and reapply for a new position. She was not qualified for the new position, and her previous job duties were given to non-disabled male employees.

She is seeking monetary damages, according to the court papers. She is represented by Jim Barna.

Robert Hughes, superintendent of Tully schools, said Klapan's allegations "have absolutely no merit."

Hughes said the district denies Klapan's allegations, and plans to "vigorously defend" its position in court.

Klapan, 54, of DeWitt, said she worked as a bus driver and dispatcher for Fayetteville-Manlius schools for 15 years before being recruited by Tully schools.

"They were mean to me shortly after I started working there,'' she said.

Klapan said she believes it was due to her disabilities and being transgender.

According to Klapan and the lawsuit, Klapan felt "bullied, isolated and threatened" by her her supervisor. In June 2015, she told her supervisor and co-workers she was transgender. Her boss looked at her and said "I prefer to call you a guy's girl."

Klapan also alleges in the court papers that another employee wouldn't walk with her after her boss told her it wasn't a good idea to be seen with Klapan. She also alleges her boss swore at her and called her insubordinate when she wanted time off for a doctor's appointment.

The district, in their official response to the lawsuit, said Klapan was told she had to find coverage if she was absent from work. Klapan's supervisor did swear during the verbal exchange, the papers said.

Klapan was never given any negative performance reviews, the district said in its response, but was "verbally counseled" about "unprofessional conduct on several occasions."

Klapan said she was asked about why she wore a pink wig during a Breast Cancer Awareness period.

According to Klapan, she was told she wouldn't be recommended for a permanent position as dispatcher, so she could either resign or apply for the bus garage supervisor position. When she realized she didn't have the required qualifications for the job, she said she resigned.
MOSCOW (AP) -- President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Russian authorities know the identities of the two men accused by Britain of carrying out a nerve agent attack on a former spy, but he added that they are civilians and there is "nothing criminal" about them.

The statement by Putin marked an abrupt shift from Russia's earlier position on the poisoning case that has damaged relations between Moscow and the West. Initially, Russian officials said they had no idea who the men were and questioned the authenticity of some of security-camera photos and video released by Scotland Yard showing them in London and Salisbury, where the poisoning took place.

Britain last week charged two men in absentia, identifying them as Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov. Authorities alleged they were agents of Russia's military intelligence agency known as the GRU and accused them of poisoning former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury on March 4.

Britain blamed the Russian government for the attack, an allegation that Moscow has vehemently denied.

Putin on Wednesday did not try to dispute the British evidence, but he insisted the men were innocent.

"We know who these people are, we have found them," Putin said in response to question at panel for an economic conference in Vladivostok in Russia's Far East. "There is nothing special or criminal about it, I can assure you."

Asked by the panel's moderator if the men work for the military, Putin replied that they are "civilians" and called on the men to come forward and speak to the media.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov later told reporters that Putin never met the suspects in the poisoning and that Russia did not investigate them but merely "checked the reports."

The Skripals' poisoning by the deadly nerve agent Novichok triggered a tense diplomatic showdown. Britain and more than two dozen other countries expelled a total of 150 Russian diplomats, and Russia kicked out a similar number of those countries' envoys.

The attack left the Skripals hospitalized for weeks, and two other area residents became seriously ill months later. One of them, a 44-year-old woman, later died.

British Prime Minister Theresa May said the attack was carried out by officers of the GRU and almost certainly approved "at a senior level of the Russian state."

Her spokesman, James Slack, rejected the claim the men were civilians, saying they were GRU officers "who used a devastatingly toxic illegal chemical weapon on the streets of our country."

"We have repeatedly asked Russia to account for what happened in Salisbury in March and they have replied with obfuscation and lies," Slack said. "I have seen nothing to suggest that has changed."

Putin's abrupt shift from earlier official statements on the case fits a pattern by the Russian leader.

When troops in uniforms without insignia first appeared on the streets of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 prior to its annexation, Putin insisted that they were not members of the Russian military, but merely local volunteers. Weeks later, Putin said there were Russian troops present there under a treaty with Ukraine that allowed Russia to leave a naval base in Crimea.

Similarly, Putin initially dismissed accusations of Russian state-sponsored hacking in the U.S. election system, but he later admitted the possibility that it was the work of some "patriotic-minded" Russians, although he denied that any of them had been directed by the Kremlin.

Ever since British authorities made their initial accusations of Russian government involvement in the poisoning, Russian officials and media sought to discredit them, either deriding their statements or offering alternative explanations.

After British authorities released photos and video of the men, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova alleged that two of the photos in a London airport had been doctored. She later walked back that statement, expressing frustration that British authorities had not shared the files with their Russian counterparts, leaving Moscow "guessing" about what really happened in Salisbury.

Moscow also questioned the origins of the nerve agent involved in the attack, saying it was not proven that the substance was developed by Russia and arguing that other countries, including Britain, had the capacity. Although Novichok is said to be extremely lethal, the Skripals survived, and Russian authorities even questioned why British officials put down the Skripals' pets.

When charges were brought against Petrov and Boshirov last week, Russian media reports appeared to tacitly accept that they were Russians but rejected the possibility that they were sent by the GRU, saying the operation was too clumsy to have been done by well-trained agents. That argument centered on how they made themselves overly visible to surveillance by taking the train to Salisbury and walking through the city, rather than going by private car.

"There have never been and never will be such stupid people in Russian intelligence," journalist Nikolai Dolgopolov, who has written widely about spies, said on Vesti Nedeli.

Skripal's niece Viktoria, who lives in Russia and often voices pro-Kremlin arguments on Russian television talk shows, told the Interfax news agency Wednesday that she knows "through her own sources" that the men identified as Petrov and Boshirov are "ordinary men" who are "shocked" by the accusations.

She claimed that Petrov was not in Britain around the time of the poisoning but did not elaborate on how she knew that.

The case, with its chilling details, echoes the 2006 murder of Alexander Litvinenko, a former Russian agent who died after drinking tea laced with radioactive polonium-210 at a London hotel. Britain spent years trying in vain to prosecute the prime suspects, Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun.

A British inquiry concluded that Litvinenko had been killed at the behest of the Russian state, probably with the president's knowledge.

The Russian government rejected the accusations and was quick to throw its support behind the men. Lugovoi ended up in the Kremlin-friendly Liberal Democrat Party and since 2011 has been a member of the lower house of parliament, enjoying immunity from any prosecution.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- With a powerful hurricane bearing down on the southeast coast, President Donald Trump on Tuesday turned attention back to the federal government's response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico a year ago, deeming it "incredibly successful" even though a recent federal report found that nearly 3,000 people died.

The administration's efforts in Puerto Rico received widespread criticism. But after visiting the island last September, Trump said that Puerto Ricans were fortunate that the storm did not yield a catastrophe akin to the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Katrina along the Gulf Coast.

All told, about 1,800 people died in that 2005 storm. Puerto Rico's governor last month raised the U.S. territory's official death toll from Hurricane Maria from 64 to 2,975. The storm is also estimated to have caused $100 billion in damage.

"I actually think it was one of the best jobs that's ever been done with respect to what this is all about," Trump said Tuesday of the response in Puerto Rico, suggesting that it was made more difficult by the "island nature" of the storm site.

The president praised the response to the series of storms that battered the United States last year, saying "I think Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success. Texas we've been given A-pluses for. Florida we've been given A-pluses for."

Having long struggled to express empathy at times of national crises, Trump sparked outrage when during his visit to the island he feuded with the mayor of San Juan and passed out paper towels to victims like he was shooting baskets.

Success? Federal response according to Trump in Puerto Rico a success? If he thinks the death of 3,000 people os a success God help us all.  Carmen Yulin Cruz (@CarmenYulinCruz) September 11, 2018

While defending the handling of the previous storm, he urged caution in regards to the new one bearing down on North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.

"The safety of American people is my absolute highest priority," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "We are sparing no expense. We are totally prepared. We are ready. We are ready as anybody has ever been."

The president, flanked by maps of the storm and the heads of the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said Florence was unlikely to change course before it is expected to make landfall with 130 mph winds and potentially ruinous rains in the coming days.

"They haven't seen anything like what's coming at us in 25, 30 years, maybe ever," Trump said of the states in the storm's path. "It's tremendously big and tremendously wet. Tremendous amount of water."

Florence was expected to blow ashore late Thursday or early Friday, then slow down and wring itself out for days, unloading 1 to 21/2 feet of rain that could cause flooding well inland and wreak environmental havoc by washing over industrial waste sites and hog farms. North and South Carolina and Virginia ordered mass evacuations along the coast.
If one smart plug is good, five must be better, right? That's the philosophy behind Amped Wireless' Wireless Smart Strip ($79.99), which has three independently controlled smart AC outlets, as well as two USB charging ports. Once added to your Wi-Fi network, an app controls all five of the surge protectors outlets. These can also be controlled via Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.

The value of smart plugs has largely been to integrate them into scenes, or collections of devices you want to work together. A scene might allow you to walk into the bedroom and have a ceiling fan start up and a bedside table lamp turn on. Or you could utter a voice command that results in a video projector, A/V receiver, subwoofer powering up in your home theater while a screen descends from the ceiling.

Amped Wireless, however, doesn't offer scene-based configuration of the Wireless Smart Strip in the app required for its use. (More on that app below.) The app only lets you control each AC outlet and USB port individually, as well as set recurring timer schedules, which can useful for making a home seem occupied while youre traveling.

For scene support, you must rely on Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. Without the technology to handle Apple HomeKit, that leaves users of the Apple smart home ecosystem with a product that doesn't provide much advantage at all compared to a simple vacation timer.

Glen Fleishman The Wireless Smart Strip's outlets are widely spaced, enabling all three to be used at once.

The Amped Wireless timer feature should be robust, but it's not. It allows the entry of multiple timed events for turning an outlet or USB charging port on or off, but these can't be entered in pairs. Each event can be set to recur by the day of the week, but you must tap each day individually for each event you create, and there's no more sophisticated calendar feature. Some vacation timers offer a bit of randomness to throw off potential thieves scouting a house, but that's not available, either.

The hardware design, on the other hand, is top notch. It has an excellent, solid feel with small anti-skid pads placed underneath. The outlets are widely spaced, allowing easy use with a variety of plugs. Two LEDs help with configuration: one shows when the device can receive a connection for set up and then, after that, that it's actively connected to a Wi-Fi network. The other lights up blue if any outlet or port has power flowing.

Glen Fleishman The Wireless Smart Strip's two USB charging ports can be controlled independently, as can its three AC power outlets.

There's a silly flaw in the user interface in the app that controls the Wireless Smart Strip: The app shows the strip's power button at the top, allowing correct visualization of the three AC outlets. The USB ports, however, are shown in the app as one on top of the other instead of side-by-side as they are in the real world. The USB ports are labeled Switch 7 and Switch 8 by default in the app, and I determined that 7 is on the left and 8 is on the right when viewing the strip in the same orientation as depicted in the app, with the power button at top. It's a sloppy error.

The company has a confusing situation with its iOS smartphone app, too. The app that's mentioned in documentation that comes with the product, and the link in the QR Code printed in the manual, isn't current, although it works. If you visit the product page on the manufacturers website, you'll see the message "If using this power strip with an Apple Product please use the SmartLife app from the Apple App store while we work on improving our original app."

Amped Wireless Amped Wireless recommends Apple users download a third-party app because the company's own is apparently not up to par.

I downloaded that app, which seemed nearly identical, although it's the only app offered by someone named Yu Xiang, with no link to a website. A link for Support takes you to a Weibo page that's entirely in Chinese. There's also no information about this developer in the app--nor is there any privacy policy linked in the App Store or in the app itself.

This is problematic, because the app requires that you register using your phone number. It also requires your network's Wi-Fi password to send to the switch for it to join the network, another information disclosure that should be at least described in a privacy policy.

Should you buy one?

While the product design, ease of use of the app, and the general utility of the strip paired with Alexa or Google Assistant are all in its favor, the Wireless Smart Strip only works for a narrow slice of people, and I can't recommend it at all for Apple HomeKit adherents. Amped Wireless also needs to solve the app privacy and disclosure issues to offer confidence to buyers.
Highly anticipated: Rich messaging is finally going to become a usable part of Android as both Google and Samsung work to add support and cross-app compatibility to their messaging apps.

Samsung Electronics has shared that it is now working with Google to update Samsung Messages with Rich Communication Services (RCS) support. This update will allow Android Messages and Samsung Messages to seamlessly work together with RCS messaging on supported carriers.

Much like Apple's iMessage, WhatsApp, GroupMe, and other third-party messaging apps, RCS allows for many of the extra features not supported by regular SMS. Typing indicators, read receipts, sharing of larger images and files, and rich group chats will all become standard features.

Samsung is planning to bring RCS support to several of its existing phones. The Galaxy S8, S8+, S9, S9+, Note8, and Note9 as well as certain A-series and J-series devices will be receiving updates for Android 9.0 and above. Carrier support is still required to make use of RCS.

It is expected that future flagship phones from Samsung will also be receiving RCS support. Lower end models may eventually receive support, but Samsung's official stance is that only select future devices will be supported.

Arguably, the messaging experience on Android has not been the greatest. As different OEMs install different messaging apps, there is anything but consistency. Even carriers such as Verizon like to force their own messaging apps onto consumers. A more unified experience without eliminating choices should be welcomed in.

Since Samsung still holds a major share of the market and Google's Android Messages arrives as the default option for stock Android, this collaboration could finally put up real competition to iMessage and third-party apps.
Investors for a Lafayette-based helicopter firm are asking the company to sell a part of itself to reduce its $600 million debt.

An investment firm and a private investor in PHI, Inc. released a statement requesting the company sell its air medical division to reduce its debt after it bought another helicopter company earlier this year. Selling the Phoenix-based Air Medical Group could reduce its debt significantly, according to letter filed with the Securities Exchange Commission on Monday.

California-based Alesia Asset Management LLC and Indiana private investor Tim Stabosz, who make up nearly 5 percent of the companys nonvoting stock, filed a Form 13D with the SEC recommending the company act to reduce its debt and improve communications with investors. The filing also contained a letter to the companys board of directors and board chair and CEO Al Gonsoulin.

Selling the air medical division, he said, could net $500 million, based on the recent sale of a competitor.

From a local perspective, if PHI reduces its debt, the employees would sleep better at night knowing PHI just shrank its debt balance by selling off its air medical unit, Stabosz said. Its almost a game of chicken going on. Its been 2  months now, and theyre still hemming and hawing. Now its gotten  I wouldnt say ugly, but they havent come to terms in 2  months.

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Attempts to reach officials at PHI on Wednesday were unsuccessful.

PHI, providing offshore helicopter support to companies operating in the Gulf of Mexico as well as across the globe, acquired much of its debt when it bought HNZ Groups offshore business in New Zealand, Australia, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea, in January. The deal, first announced in October, was valued at $187.9 million.

The company's board of directors, Stabosz noted, opted not to refinance the debt when it was offered a chance to refinance at 11.5 percent instead of the originally anticipated rate of around 8 percent.

We believe PHI is deeply undervalued and that there are opportunities for management and the board of directors to unlock significant value for shareholders, the letter read. However, time is running short because of the need to refinance the companys senior notes due March 2019.

PHI, 2001 SE Evangeline Thruway, employs 2,477 companywide, according to its company profile.
The National Weather Service says more than 5.4 million people live in areas now under hurricane warnings or watches on the U.S. East Coast.

Another 4 million people are under a tropical storm watch. Assorted bad weather advisories stretched from Florida to Maine on Tuesday evening.

Those facing the most serious threat are in the Carolinas, as Category 4 Hurricane Florence barrels toward the coast, with an expected landfall Friday.

HURRICANE FLORENCE Map shows probable path of Hurricane Florence as of Tuesday evening

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Tuesday that a hurricane warning had been issued from South Santee River, South Carolina, to Duck, North Carolina, and the Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds.

A Tropical Storm Watch has been issued from north of the North Carolina-Virginia border to Cape Charles Light, Virginia, and for the Chesapeake Bay south of New Point Comfort.

Forecasters at the University of Michigan predict that 2.4 million people will lose power from Hurricane Florence and some outages could be prolonged.

Louisiana sends emergency units ahead of Hurricane Florence to 'return the favor' in Carolinas Nearly a hundred Louisiana emergency personnel are headed north to the Carolinas as Hurricane Florence bears down on the coastline.

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That's about one-fourth the number who suffered outages from Hurricane Sandy, which hit a more populated area around New Jersey in 2012.

Seth Guikema is an associate professor of engineering at Michigan. He says outages could be more widespread if Florence veers north or stalls, leading to flooding.

The estimate is based on the National Hurricane Center's forecast for Florence's path and wind speeds.

Duke Energy spokeswoman Grace Rountree says the utility doesn't forecast outages, but is "anticipating significant widespread outages from a storm of this magnitude."

She says the company is bringing in up to 2,000 workers from Florida and the Midwest to augment its 4,600 workers in North Carolina and South Carolina.

Duke has 4 million customers in the Carolinas.
As Hurricane Florence barreled toward the East Coast with the potential to cause catastrophic damage, the Baton Rouge branch of the Cajun Navy was preparing Wednesday morning to send an estimated 100 volunteers to South Carolina equipped with boats and emergency supplies.

The group has received national recognition  including a commendation during President Donald Trump's 2018 State of the Union address  as a heartening example of everyday heroism: Americans helping each other out during tough times.

Though Florence poses the most immediate threat to American lives, responders are also monitoring two other tropical systems that could hit closer to home over the next several days  Tropical Storm Isaac in the Caribbean and a disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico that could develop later this week.

"We may have to ricochet right back, depending on what happens with these other storms," said volunteer Brien McGlynn. "We go where the weather goes, wherever the most help is needed."

McGlynn served for 22 years in the U.S. Navy as a nurse. He was stationed in North Carolina when Hurricane Hugo made landfall just north of Charleston in September 1989 and helped with rescue efforts then.

McGlynn and other United Cajun Navy volunteers planned to leave Baton Rouge sometime Wednesday, driving northeast in the group's new mobile command unit, a repurposed ambulance that will serve as an office and dispatch center.

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The vehicle was purchased earlier this week using funds raised by family and friends of Sadie Thibodeaux, a Baton Rouge woman who was killed in a possible boating accident in Lake Pontchartrain last month. United Cajun Navy volunteers including McGlynn helped recover her body.

Some of her relatives were helping collect supplies for the trip as volunteers gathered outside the Walmart on O'Neal Lane starting at 7 a.m. Wednesday. They watched as decals were placed on the new mobile command unit, which they've dubbed "Sadie's Search" and which arrived just in time for response efforts ahead of Florence.

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"We did this in Sadie's honor," said her mother, Deborah Thibodeaux. "We wanted to help because that's what Sadie did  she helped people."

United Cajun Navy founder and president Todd Terrell said the mobile command unit will house equipment needed to process background checks and issue ID cards for volunteers  part of recent efforts backed by state legislation to better organize and coordinate Cajun Navy activities as the group has drawn national attention in the wake of the 2016 floods in southeast Louisiana and Hurricane Harvey, which struck Houston last summer.

"So many people want to volunteer now," Terrell said. "We need to organize so we can make the best use of all this support."

Louisiana sends emergency units ahead of Hurricane Florence to 'return the favor' in Carolinas Nearly a hundred Louisiana emergency personnel are headed north to the Carolinas as Hurricane Florence bears down on the coastline.

Walmart shoppers also dropped off emergency supplies Wednesday morning, handing bags of merchandise to volunteers who had set up shop under a tent outside the store.

Two pickup trucks arrived with supplies from the Baton Rouge Police Department, dozens of plastic storage bins filled with leftover donations collected in the aftermath of Harvey.

"The community stepped up and overloaded us for sure," said Sgt. Rendy Richard, a Baton Rouge police officer and president of the nonprofit Behind the Line BR. "We had a lot of supplies that weren't able to fit into trucks so we stored them in case there was another emergency.  Then we got a call from the Cajun Navy and realized this was a good time to kind of pay it forward."

United Cajun Navy volunteers are planning to set up shop in Columbia, South Carolina.

They're hoping to coordinate with emergency response agencies from the Baton Rouge area also sending crews to the East Coast this week. Baton Rouge Fire Department spokesman Curt Monte said a task force made up of 32 local fire and EMS personnel left on Tuesday.

Entergy also announced Wednesday its plans to send 200 employees and contractors to help restore power following "anticipated widespread damage" from the storm.
More than six decades after her own high school graduation, Sister Helen Prejean returned to her alma mater on Tuesday and told current students about lessons she's learned and the tenets of her Catholic faith that have propelled her to advocate on behalf of an often forgotten population  inmates sitting on death row.

Prejean grew up in Baton Rouge and graduated from St. Joseph's Academy in 1957. She spent years teaching in Catholic schools but now devotes her life to social justice issues, becoming a leading advocate for the abolition of the death penalty both in Louisiana and across the nation.

That devotion and expertise is something that anyone  man or woman  can achieve, Prejean told the roughly 1,100 students of St. Joseph's who gathered Tuesday afternoon to hear her speak. The all girls Catholic high school is celebrating its 150th anniversary in Baton Rouge with a series of speakers throughout this school year.

"When I was in high school, even when I went to college, it wasn't really awakened in me. It hadn't come alive  the spark in me about social justice as an integral part of believing in Jesus," Prejean told her audience. "I guess I thought it was up to God to solve the real big problems of the world."

She said her awakening came when she realized that "it wasn't God's will for people to be poor  that they had a right to strive for what was justly their's and seek to resist the poverty."

That's when she stepped outside of her affluent upbringing and comfortable career and moved into a New Orleans housing project. Then one day she accepted an invitation to exchange letters with a man on death row in Angola, which ultimately led her to attend his execution on April 5, 1984.

"What I saw set my soul on fire  a fire that burns in me now," she said. "Where is the dignity in rendering a human being completely defenseless and taking them out and killing them? Where is the dignity in that?"

She said her experience led her on a spiritual journey that allows her to reconcile outrage at the crimes for which death row inmates are convicted with "standing up for the human dignity even of those who have committed murder."

Prejean is best known for her book "Dead Man Walking" about her experiences as a spiritual adviser in Angola, which became a movie in 1995. She has written a memoir that is set to be released in coming months.

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In sharing her story with students, Prejean encouraged them to seek out knowledge in forgotten places and face injustice head on. She talked about cases of people wrongfully convicted because they can't afford a good lawyer  and about what it's like for them living in a society "where you can't get a fair shake."

"Only poor people in this country are selected for death," she said. "Did y'all know that? You must know that."

The students responded with questions of their own.

One asked about the last words of inmates headed for execution. "I love you," Prejean said. "Most want their last words to be words of love."

When another asked about Prejean's biggest challenges, she replied with a smile and pointed to her "sheltered" childhood in Baton Rouge.

"What do you say to politicians who use scripture and religion to justify poor policy?" asked senior Rebecca Herin. The student said growing up Catholic has caused her to question the difference between people who "just go to church" and others who seem to live their religious beliefs.

Herin brought a copy of "Dead Man Walking" and asked Prejean to sign it after the presentation.

Prejean thanked the students for their questions and said later that she hopes the hundreds of young women at St. Joseph's will step into their futures with confidence and conviction.

"First I want them to trust their instincts and conscience," she said after her presentation. "Then know that they have good minds, and be moved to take action  to stand up as a woman and be a leader."
After less than two years at the helm of the new Knock Knock Children's Museum, Executive Director Peter Olson has resigned.

Museum officials announced on Wednesday afternoon that Olson's resignation becomes effective Sept. 30, saying they were surprised by the news but grateful for his service. Board Chairwoman Cate Heroman said Olson is leaving the museum to start his own consulting company in Minneapolis for people trying to open museums.

Its bittersweet; were really happy for him, that he can take what hes learned at Knock Knock and bring it to national level with his consulting," Heroman said. "There were lots of tears shed this morning when we announced it to the staff.

Heroman said Olson has left Knock Knock in a strong position, and the museum's director of finance and administration, Genny Nadler Thomas, will take over Olson's role on an interim basis. Olson oversaw the culmination of 14 years' worth of planning and fundraising to open the museum, and a successful first year with more than 218,000 visitors.

The visitor counts shattered the museums expectations for 189,000 visitors in year one. That made it among Baton Rouges most visited attractions; the Baton Rouge Zoo, for example, had 218,000 visitors in 2016.

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Heroman likened their partnership to a twin engine plane, working together and helping each other. She said the Knock Knock board is creating a search committee for a permanent replacement and they will hire the same search firm, Chicago-based Kittleman, that helped them find Olson. She also encouraged locals to apply for the executive director position.

Olson could not immediately be reached Wednesday afternoon.

It has been an honor for me to impact the children and families of Louisiana as Knock Knocks inaugural executive director, he said in a news release announcing his departure. As I transition my career to the role of museum planning consultant, its a great feeling knowing that Knock Knock is poised for growth thanks to the amazing staff, volunteers, board of directors, community partners, and passionate donors.
Southeast Louisiana has known Donna Britt for her television news career. On Wednesday, she was recognized for everything she has done off-camera.

Britt, 60, was named winner of the 77th annual Golden Deeds Award for her lifetime of service to a wide array of charities, schools and community organizations. The announcement comes almost three months after a neurological disease brought an early end to her 37-year broadcast career at WAFB-TV.

Im awestruck because of the people Ive loved who have already won it  the Reginald Browns, the Farrow Behrenses, the Donna Saurages, Britt said when told of her selection. Its just incredible. I mean, the list goes on.  To see this land in my lap, I feel humble to stand among such giants, because they are wonderful people.

The list of Britts involvement is extensive. She has been on the boards of organizations such as Salvation Army, Volunteers in Public Schools, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, the Baranco-Clark YMCA, Girl Scouts, the Baton Rouge Ballet Theater and Louisiana Association for Arts in Education.

Britts position as a TV news personality provided invitations to many boards, but Britt said she had an epiphany late one night while driving home from work. She saw a woman walking alone and being followed by a man who appeared to be menacing her. Britt pulled up and offered a ride.

The woman, named Sheila, worked at a 24-hour restaurant, and the bicycle she used to commute had been stolen. Britt dropped her off at work, and the next day brought her a used bicycle and two bike locks.

I saw myself as a socially conscious and compassionate person, but why didnt I know about the working poor like Sheila fighting desperately to keep her job and having so many hurdles to cross for what is a measly salary? Britt said. So, I decided to quit all the boards and find a way to see the  poor eye to eye.

That led Britt to involvement with organizations at a hands-on level.

She would come down and help in the soup kitchen. She would ring bells for us one or two days a week for the entire season, said Brett Meredith, commander of the Baton Rouge Salvation Army from 2014-18. Some things that she did were pretty incredible for somebody who was as busy and important as she was within our community.

She was always ready to help us, said Dot Thibodeaux, co-founder of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren. "She referred grandparents to us. She always did our conference, our emcee. I think she really, really, truly cared about our mission.

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At Progress Elementary in Scotlandville, Britt became what she called the library elf. She began by reading to students in the school office because the library was crowded with equipment transferred from a school that had closed. So, Britt helped the librarians get rid of materials to make the library more accessible to students, which was a massive undertaking in terms of red tape and elbow grease.

I broke two vacuum cleaners getting the dust out, Britt said.

Then, Britt began monthly programs with varying reading themes. She made large cardboard decorations to hide the scratched walls. She hosted Christmas events, dog parades and monthly ice cream parties for the class that read the most library books. Britt said the principal credited the competition for improving the schools reading comprehension scores on standardized tests.

I was decorating one September, and two boys walked into the library, and I heard one say, Well, do you think well have a dog parade this year? Britt said. The other boy, said, Yes. If Donna Britt said its going to happen, its going to happen. It just made me feel so good.

Britt credits her father, the Rev. Dan Britt, for instilling her with a philanthropic spirit. Her father, a Southern Baptist pastor who worked full-time secular jobs on weekdays, used his handyman skills to help others, she said.

Britt worked at WAFB from 1981 until retiring in June after an 11-month battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis robbed her of her ability to deliver the news. An incurable neurological disease, ALS affects nerve cells from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body, causing the loss of muscle control and paralysis.

The Golden Deeds banquet will be held Tuesday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. at the Baton Rouge Marriott. Tickets are $50 each and available from Richard Flicker at (225) 931-1626 or by emailing flicker@premier.net.

The award winner is chosen annually by the Inter-Civic Council of Baton Rouge, which is made up of members of various civic organizations throughout the area such as the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank, Cortana Kiwanis Club and East Baton Rouge Lions Club.

The award is open to nominees from East and West Baton Rouge, Ascension, East and West Feliciana, Iberville, Livingston, Pointe Coupee and St. Helena parishes. The Advocate has presented the award along with the council since 1942.

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Virginia College is closing both of its Louisiana locations next year, part of a plan by the parent company of the for-profit college to shut down 26 campuses across the nation.

Along with the previously reported Cortana Mall location, which is set to shut down on July 1, the Shreveport-Bossier City campus will close a month earlier on June 1, said Meg Sunstrom, a spokeswoman for the Louisiana Board of Regents.

Virginia College shutting down Cortana campus Virginia College, one of two anchor tenants remaining at Cortana Mall, said it is no longer accepting new students and will shut down on July 1.

There were 268 students enrolled at the Cortana campus and 232 in the Shreveport school, she said. Because both campuses wont close for a few months, that will provide a chance for most of the students enrolled to complete their degree or certificate programs.

Education Corporation of America, based in Birmingham, Alabama, said it will close a third of its campuses by 2020. This includes Virginia College campuses in Southern cities such as Biloxi and Jackson, Mississippi; Mobile and Montgomery, Alabama; and Pensacola, Florida.

Inside Higher Ed, an online news site, noted that ECA has faced accreditation issues. The chain is overseen by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools, a group that the Obama administration sought to eliminate. That move would have caused for-profit schools to lose access to federal financial aid unless they were approved by another accreditation group. The Trump administration is considering if it should continue recognition of the ACICS.

Attempts by Virginia College to get accreditation from other organizations has been unsuccessful, with the groups citing poor graduation and job placement rates, along with high faculty turnover rates.
Our Lady of the Lake Children's Hospital, being built off Interstate 10 between Essen Lane and Bluebonnet Boulevard, is about a year away from opening. The $230 million, six-story hospital will have 80 patient beds and the capacity to expand to 130.
This April 22, 2009 photo shows a view of the front entrance of the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, La. (AP file photo/Judi Bottoni)
Landowners fighting Bayou Bridge have fired back at the pipeline builders and challenged whether oil companies may seize private land generally, and whether Bayou Bridge in particular followed the law.

Bayou Bridge is designed to carry crude oil 163 miles from Lake Charles to St. James. Energy Transfer Partners, the project's majority shareholder, says construction will conclude next month.

Property owners filed new documents in St. Martin Parish on Wednesday that question whether oil companies may take land at all. The Louisiana constitution allows gas pipeline builders to seize property under eminent domain, but only after a public hearing and upon receiving clearance from the state Department of Natural Resources, attorney Pam Spees, of the Center for Constitutional Rights, said in an interview.

However, there aren't any rules on the books for how oil pipelines are regulated when oil companies want to take land under eminent domain, she said. Part of the lawsuit challenges what Spees described as a void in the state statute.

"Oil pipelines can just go ahead and start (construction activity on private land).  They don't have to have any certification before they start expropriating, she said. "Unless a landowner holds out and takes it to court, there's no check on this anywhere."

Because the landowners have challenged the constitutionality of the state law, the Louisiana Attorney Generals office has now been named in the suit. The AGs office did not return messages seeking comment Wednesday.

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In the St. Martin case, some of the property owners have argued that Bayou Bridge construction crews entered their 38-acre plot without permission and before the eminent domain suit could be settled. The undeveloped property has hundreds of heirs, and the litigants said that while many consented to allowing Bayou Bridge to run through their land, others did not, and the company should not have proceeded without unanimous agreement or a judges blessing.

Energy Transfer Partners did not respond to a request for comment.

Bayou Bridges attempt to expropriate this land is not only a violation of the rights of the hundreds of property owners who share a stake in these precious wetlands, but its a grave environmental threat to this vital ecosystem, landowner Theda Larson Wright said in a statement.

Earlier this week, the pipeline company agreed to stay off the land until an expropriation hearing scheduled for Nov. 27. However, a Bayou Bridge spokeswoman said the decision would not push back their planned October completion date. The company has argued in court that Louisiana law permits common carriers of petroleum products to expropriate private land if they are acting as a public utility, a status the company say applies to Bayou Bridge.

If the court finds that oil companies may lay pipes on private land as a common carrier, the St. Martin landowners are still asserting that Bayou Bridge behaved inappropriately. It began construction on the land in question before completing the legal expropriation process, Spees said. The landowners have asked the court to find that Bayou Bridge trespassed, damaged their property and infringed on their constitutional rights and have asked for compensation, though no specific amount has been requested.
Gov. John Bel Edwards has accused Attorney General Jeff Landry of threatening health care for thousands of Louisiana residents with pre-existing conditions by signing onto the latest lawsuit that is attempting to upend Obamacare.

"Everyone acknowledges the Affordable Care Act has flaws, and we should be working together to fix whats broken," Edwards said in a statement. "Protecting coverage for people with pre-existing conditions is one area where there is broad, bipartisan support.

"If successful, this lawsuit would cause chaos within the health care system, and the people of Louisiana would be left to pick up the pieces," he added.

Landry, meanwhile, argues that he would work with the Louisiana Legislature to protect people with pre-existing conditions from losing coverage if the latest ACA challenge is successful.

"I think that would be a debate we would have at the Capitol in the Legislature," Landry said, appearing on CNN Monday morning to discuss the lawsuit.

Louisiana could get $172M reimbursement from Obamacare Medicaid fees, following court ruling Louisiana could get more than $172 million back from the IRS, if this week's federal ruling against a fee tied to the federal Affordable Care 

And now House Speaker Taylor Barras has entered the fray, backing up the attorney general with a pledge to solve the issue on a state level if the need arises.

Our desire is to help Louisianans get better health care," Barras, R-New Iberia, said in a statement. "We stand ready to work on maintaining coverage for pre-existing conditions.

The newest Landry versus Edwards spat hinges on the latest conservative effort to put an end to Barack Obama's signature health care law after a decade of unsuccessful challenges and deliberate efforts to chip away at the ACA.

Landry and 19 other Republicans attorneys general involved argue that after Congress eliminated the tax penalty for people who do not have insurance, other consumer-driven components of the law, including coverage for non-elderly people with pre-existing conditions, should also be struck down.

Louisiana's political lawmakers eye U.S. Supreme Court nominee to gauge his possible impact on state While many high-profile national issues have taken the spotlight since President Donald Trump announced Brett Kavanaugh as his pick to be the 

"Once the heart of the ACA  the individual mandate  is declared unconstitutional, the remainder of the ACA must also fall," the suit argues.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled much of the law constitutional in 2012, though it made it optional for states to expand Medicaid eligibility to cover more adults.

The latest lawsuit was heard in a federal court in Texas last week. If successful, the decision is likely to be appealed to a more conservative high court than the one that upheld the law in 2012.

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The Trump administration, which has long sought an end to Obamacare, has said it doesn't plan to defend the ACA against the latest challenge.

About 850,000 people in Louisiana with pre-existing conditions could be affected if the lawsuit is successful. Additionally, Louisiana expanded Medicaid though executive order shortly after Edwards took office in 2016. About 477,000 Louisiana residents, mostly the working poor, are covered under Medicaid expansion and would also lose coverage if the ACA is repealed without further legislative action.

Edwards said Landry didn't reach out to the governor's administration or health care leaders before signing joining the Texas suit.

"Its deeply disturbing that he has committed the state to this effort without consulting anyone and even worse, without having a plan in place to ensure these individuals do not lose their health care."

Edwards, a Democrat, and Republican Landry are often at odds, and Landry is openly mulling mounting a challenge to Edwards in next year's gubernatorial race.

During the CNN interview, Landry was repeatedly pressed for specifics on what the GOP alternative would be in Louisiana to ensure that people with pre-existing conditions do not lose health care access.

"I'm not the Legislature  I'm the attorney general making sure we abide by the rule of the law," he said.

Hours later, Barras released a rare public comment in support of Landry's television interview and decision.

Like Attorney General Jeff Landry said earlier this morning on CNN, Republicans have long believed people with pre-existing health conditions should be protected, Barras said. We are a party interested in expanding choices, increasing coverage and reducing premiums.

Edwards is now asking Barras to commit to using one of his five non-fiscal bills allowed during next year's legislative session to the issue.

"This strong, public show of support from both you and the attorney general would ensure its passage and provide peace of mind to the 849,000 individuals who will await the court's decision," Edwards wrote in a letter to Barras that was also sent to Landry.

Barras, who has often been at odds with Edwards during state budget negotiations but has rarely stepped into battles with the governor outside of the State Capitol, didn't respond to The Advocate's request for comment on Edwards' proposal Tuesday.

According to his initial statement, Barras has had conversations with Landry about the lawsuit and its potential outcomes, though he did not elaborate on when those conversations took place.

I greatly appreciate the Attorney Generals respect of the separation of powers and his reverence of legislation being initiated by the House and Senate," Barras said.
Julia Kaufman, Jill Cannon and Shelly Culbertson are policy researchers at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation, which is based in Santa Monica, California and has an office in New Orleans. Kaufman and Culbertson are based in Pittsburgh. Cannon is based in Santa Monica.
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The two developers pitching plans to redevelop the former Charity Hospital building on Tulane Avenue both envision creating lots of housing units  both market-rate and affordable  in the long-shuttered site.

But when it comes to what else would go in the historic Art Deco building, and who would pay for it, the plans sharply diverge.

One plan, proposed by the local firm HRI Properties, calls for Charity to house City Hall and apartments or condos and would be paid for almost entirely with tax credits, payments from the city and other public funds.

The other proposal, by 1532 Tulane Partners, envisions a mix of housing, retail and research or educational facilities, with only about a third of the money coming from public coffers.

Summaries of the proposals from the two groups were released Tuesday by the LSU Real Estate Facilities Foundation, the fundraising organization overseeing the redevelopment effort.

The foundation, which has not released the full plans submitted by the developers, is planning on hearing oral presentations from the firms this week and then giving them time to adjust their plans.

A recommendation by a committee put together by the foundation is expected in the coming weeks, and the LSU Board of Supervisors is expected to vote on that plan at a meeting next month.

With the full proposals still secret, some of the fine points of the plans remain murky. But both envision developments that would encompass not only the massive Charity building itself  vacant since its basement flooded during Hurricane Katrina  but also surrounding properties.

The proposal from 1532 Tulane, a partnership between local developer CCNO and the Israel-based El Ad Group, would divide up the building between office space for Tulane University; 465,100 square feet of housing  about a third of which would be set aside as affordable or subsidized units; an innovation center; community spaces; retail space; and educational facilities.

The plan also envisions future expansions to put Tulane research facilities and other developments in nearby buildings that were part of the Charity complex when the hospital was in operation.

HRIs primary plan would see City Hall moving into about 440,000 square feet of the building, with most of the rest to be used for housing.

But the prospect of putting government offices in the space appears dim and would carry what appears from the summaries to be a $92 million upfront price tag for the city.

Moving City Hall to Charity was first proposed by former Mayor Mitch Landrieu during an earlier attempt to redevelop the Charity property. That plan never materialized, and Mayor LaToya Cantrells administration is skeptical of the idea.

As we have discussed with both the potential developers and with those evaluating the proposal, we have several serious concerns with the possibility of putting City Hall in Charity Hospital but remain open to dialogue, Cantrell spokesman Beau Tidwell said in an email Tuesday.

Should the City Hall plan fall through, HRI is pitching bringing in Tulane or the United Way as the former hospital's primary tenant, with more space devoted to housing. And if that doesnt work out, a third plan would fill 533,000 square feet of the building with housing units.

None of the proposals specified how many units would be created in the square footage set aside for housing.

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The involvement of Tulane in both proposals  each developer said they have a letter of commitment from the university  could portend an extension of the universitys footprint in the downtown area.

In an emailed statement, Tulane Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Patrick Norton said possible uses for the space could include offices, research labs, academic space and student or faculty housing.

We agree that this building is a key component in transforming the center of New Orleans, Norton said. There are many details to be figured out in restoring this building in order to enhance the quality of our home, New Orleans. We continue to value the role that both our uptown and downtown campuses can play in making the city even more vibrant.

Both developers said they would start their due diligence immediately if they are selected and estimated that construction would wrap up sometime in 2021.

A key difference between the two developers is how they would pay for the project.

The plan by 1532 Tulane would cost an estimated $245 million, while HRI said the three possible scenarios it put forward would cost between $349 million and $380 million.

The 1532 Tulane plan calls for using about $80 million in state and federal tax credits and also applying for a payment in lieu of taxes, a program that allows developments to negotiate the amount they would pay instead of property taxes for major projects. Its not clear how much that payment would amount to, but the direct tax credits would make up about 32 percent of the total cost of the project.

Joseph Stebbins, CEO of 1532 Tulane, said he could not comment on the details of the project because the selection process is still ongoing. However, he argued that his firms approach of using mostly private funding would be a better deal for the city and state.

The moneys coming from New York, among other places, Stebbins said. Its not coming from the coffers of the state or the city. If you bring money from outside in, it recirculates and adds to the economy.

A spokeswoman for HRI said company representatives could not comment on the proposal because the selection process is still underway.

HRI envisions having most of the project funded one way or another by public money. A combination of state and federal tax credits would provide between $211 million and $224 million.

Another $40 million is projected to come from a tax increment financing district centered around a major retail development HRI proposes for the building across the street from Charity. A tax increment financing district allows some of the tax revenue generated within specific boundaries to be redirected to projects, infrastructure or other needs in that area.

That funding plan would see the public paying for about 76 percent of the project. If the idea of moving City Hall, and its $92 million price tag for the city, were to go through, that would jump to 90 percent.

Both developers also pledged to meet city goals for hiring minority- and women-owned businesses.

The Greater New Orleans Foundation is currently working on a plan for a large tax increment financing district centered on the Charity site, which would be known as the Spirit of Charity Innovation District, though its exact contours have not been defined.

In a news release, Greater New Orleans Foundation President and CEO Andy Kopplin said the two plans require significant vetting but that it was encouraging to see that both development teams proposed meeting the citys DBE participation goals and also included the production of much-needed affordable housing in their proposals.
Federal authorities in New Orleans have arrested a man suspected of robbing a total of $11,000 from Walmart stores in Harvey and the state of Iowa earlier this year. The man is also accused of trying to hold up two other stores in Algiers, according to recently filed court records.

Darryl Henry, 27, allegedly stole $6,000 on Aug. 24 after handing a note demanding cash and showing a gun to a clerk at a Walmart Money Center in the 3200 block of Manhattan Boulevard, in Harvey.

Earlier that same day, he tried the same method at a Winn-Dixie grocery store in the 3000 block of Holiday Drive and a Walmart Money Center in the 4000 block of Behrman Place, both in Algiers, but with no success, authorities said.

Henry landed on law enforcement's radar largely because agents matched fingerprints lifted from the attempted Winn-Dixie robbery to him, according to a complaint written by FBI agent Holden Neff.

Surveillance footage from the Algiers Walmart showed that the getaway car used by the foiled robber was a gray Nissan Quest minivan missing its front bumper, Neff wrote. Investigators later determined that a gray Nissan Quest had been bought in Iowa in June under the name of the mother of Henrys daughter, though Henry handled all payment-related business on the vehicle.

Investigators also reviewed footage from a body camera worn by a New Orleans police officer responding to a domestic disturbance call at the home of Henrys daughters maternal grandmother. Henry is seen in the clip opening one of the vans doors, and the vehicle is missing its bumper, Neff said.

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Henry also drew scrutiny because of his close relationship with his younger half-brother, Terry Madison III, who is suspected of several robberies or attempted stick-ups of stores himself, Neffs complaint said.

Madison was jailed in June on federal charges of robbing a Walmart Money Center in Hammond on April 14. The half-brothers have been arrested together in the past, and since his incarceration Madison has had numerous telephone conversations with Henry, Neff wrote.

On May 17, one month before his arrest in the Hammond hold-up, Madison robbed a Walmart Money Center in Anamosa, Iowa, authorities believe.

That same day, a man matching Henrys description approached an employee at a Walmart Money Center at Davenport, Iowa, and handed over a note demanding money. The man, thought to be Henry, left with $5,000, Neff said, citing surveillance camera footage.

Neff on Aug. 29 obtained a warrant to arrest Henry on counts of robbery and attempted robbery of stores conducting interstate commerce.

Henry was in custody within two days. On Sept. 6, U.S. Magistrate Judge Daniel Knowles ordered him held without bail until the case is resolved, court records show.

An attorney for Henry couldnt immediately be reached for comment.
Metairies Haynes Academy for Advanced Studies provided the highest number of National Merit Scholarship semifinalists out of any public school in Louisiana, with 24 students earning the distinction, officials announced Wednesday.

To qualify, the students  now seniors  took the Preliminary SAT last fall, when they were juniors. They are now eligible to become finalists in the National Merit Scholarship competition, which awards more than $30 million in financial aid for college studies.

The number of semifinalists Haynes announced Wednesday is a first for an A-rated magnet school that is the pride of the Jefferson Parish Public School System, the largest public school system in Louisiana.

Jesuit High School, the private Catholic school in Mid-City New Orleans, registered three more semifinalists than Haynes. Jesuit, therefore, had the highest number of semifinalists in the state among schools, regardless of whether they were private or public.

But Haynes had a smaller pool of students to take the test, officials said. More than 20 percent of this years senior class at the Metairie magnet earned the semifinalist distinction, a percentage that officials said also topped the state.

You guys make us look good  we appreciate that, the superintendent for Jeffersons public schools, Cade Brumley, said during a brief ceremony Wednesday. In all that you do, you are excellent. Congratulations.

Haynes Principal Karla Russo said many of the students balance their studies with part-time jobs, volunteer service and other extracurricular activities.

Haynes National Merit semifinalists this year are Zoe Bradley, Guilherme Campos, Lucy He, Omer Israeli, Haseeb Chaudhry, Amy Jiang, Swathi Katakam, Meagan Kelly, Greer Kenney, Cecilia LaFosse, Patrick Lyell, Hassan Malik, Manal Malik, Zunair Mohiuddin, Neelambal Mondal, Erin Murphy, Celia Parker, Bennett Rine, Taylor Tarleton, Julia Vedros, Luke Vedros, Tia Williams, Jacob Zanca and Suraj Zaveri.
Heath Ledger's father has revealed he found out about his son's death from a television news report.

Kim Ledger says in January 2008 he received a phone call from a business partner asking how his family was going. Confused by the call, he turned on the television only to be confronted by footage of his son's body being loaded into the back of an ambulance.

"We kinda felt like we were the last to know," he says of Ledger's death in the latest episode of Nova's Addicted podcast. "We literally turned on the television on [and] the first thing I saw was them carting the stretcher out. That's the vision that will always stay with me. I couldn't believe it."

Ledger said he was also hurt by "innuendo" and "all sorts of crazy stories" printed in magazines in the wake of his son's death.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size After a fortnight of around-the clock protection, Peter Larcombes bodyguard bade him farewell as he dropped him at Los Angeles International Airport for his flight to Dubai on August 19, 2016. But Larcombe never made the Emirates flight and within hours the 38-year-old mastermind allegedly behind Australias biggest tax frauds was dead. It was late Saturday afternoon, Sydney time, and phones were running hot. Larcombes former business buddies Adam Cranston, the son of a deputy commissioner of the Australian Tax Office, and Jay Onley, a former snowboard champion, were convinced Larcombe had faked his own death to avoid paying them back the $17 million he had stolen from their enterprise. Some were convinced Peter Larcombe (right) had faked his own death to avoid paying them back the $17 million he had stolen from their enterprise. Feared standover man Little Al Taouil, who sources say had been engaged to protect Larcombes Sydney associates, was also texting people about Larcombes demise. In Dubai, where Larcombe had fled at the end of 2015, his close associate, Tristan Waters, who has since been arrested over one of the largest cocaine shipments to ever hit Australian soil, was comforting Larcombes mother, Judith Reed, who was staying at her sons waterside apartment. Feared standover man Little Al Taouil, who sources say had been engaged to protect Larcombes Sydney associates, also told people about went down in Los Angeles. Canberra nightclub boss Maurizio Rao, who had been acquitted of murder and cocaine charges in the past, was wondering about the $500,000 he owed Larcombe.

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Another close associate Simon McIntyre, who would later be jailed for weapons, drugs and dealing with the proceeds of Larcombes crimes, was also concerned about the death of the brains behind several major criminal plays in which McIntyre was involved. Simon McIntyre and Daniel Hausman on Christmas Day 2016. Everything has a finality So how had it come to this? Peter Leslie George Larcombe came from a privileged family. His father Peter snr was a partner at law firm Barker Gosling and chairman of major building contractor Concrete Constructions. Educated at The Kings School, Parramatta, Larcombe was brilliant with numbers and was making waves in the property world. In 2008, property group Valad issued a media release about Larcombes appointment as a fund manager. Peter has a Bachelor of Commerce (Property Economics) and Master of Applied Finance, is a Commercial Property Valuer and has worked as an Investment Manager in the listed property sector, it read. Peter Larcombe (right) in 2009. The son of a lawyer, he came from a privileged family, went to private school and made waves in the property world. Credit:Facebook But Larcombe also had a huge drug habit to feed and his week-long benders were not conducive to business in the slow lane. He turned his copious talents to white-collar crime to support his flamboyant and expensive lifestyle. He made connections with two major drug syndicates and was making millions laundering their dirty money though property deals in the ACT and Sydney.

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He teamed up in 2011 with Onley and Cranston, who had expertise in insolvent companies. Police claim the trio later found there was a fortune to be made by collapsing payroll or labour hire companies that had huge debts to the Australian Tax Office. Dummy directors, including Larcombes mother, unknowingly took the blame and they took the money. It was onwards and upwards. But Larcombe could see the alleged ATO scheme was going to blow up. Peter knew the end was coming," a friend said. "He would say, Everything has a finality. Moving overseas ... with $17 million At the end of 2015, Larcombe fled to the Czech Republic, then to London before realising that Dubai was the centre of the new international crime scene. He had also fled with the $17 million he stole from Cranston and Onley. Police listened as they talked about wanting it back. Former Olympian Jay Onley was convinced Peter Larcombe had faked his own death to avoid paying him back. Sources say that Larcombe was worried about a Lebanese organised crime family, one of whom had a murder conviction, for whom Larcombe had been doing real estate deals. By mid-2016 Larcombe's concerns were mounting. It was mid-afternoon on August 19, 2016 when Larcombe, his partner Catriona Smith, and their two young sons, arrived at the Emirates check-in desk for their 4.40pm flight back to Dubai. Before their bags were put through Larcombe became agitated and said he couldnt go back.

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The family left the airport and checked into the nearby Holiday Inn. The last time Larcombe was seen alive was sometime after 8pm when CCTV footage showed him entering the dingy ValuePark car park across the road from the hotel. There were no cameras on the car parks seventh floor to show Larcombes last moments but a car park attendant called 911 after seeing him fall. Paramedics pronounced him dead at 8.50pm. He had leapt to his death. Loading According to the Los Angeles coroners report, which found that he had committed suicide, Larcombe had reportedly been despondent recently due to some dissension between himself and his business partner. He also expressed fear that the business partner was going to kill him when once he returned to Australia, the coroner's report said. Sources close to Larcombe claim that the Los Angeles police passed his phone to the Australian Federal Police. It is not known what the police made of the contents of Larcombes phone, but that same month the AFP launched their highly-covert investigation into the alleged misappropriation of $150 million owed to the Australian Tax Office. He also expressed fear that the business partner was going to kill him when once he returned to Australia. Los Angeles coroner's report on Peter Larcombe Back in Australia, Larcombe's death was seized on as a unique opportunity for the alleged ATO conspirators. If the authorities should ever catch up with them, Larcombe was to be blamed for everything. Police were listening in February 2017 as Adam Cranstons solicitor Dev Menon, who has been charged over the alleged fraud, was heard saying: "So I need to put down ... the list of directors for everyone's coverage ... but obviously Peter Larcombe was running this," Menon told Daniel Big D Rostankovski.

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Rostankovski, who was later charged with blackmailing Cranston and Onley, suggested to Menon they could also put in "the other bloke, Tristan [Waters]," according to a federal police affidavit tendered in court in a proceeds of crime application. Menon told Adam Cranston's sister Lauren that if they were ever questioned, they should say that Peter ran the whole thing". Dev Menon, seen here holding wads of $100 notes like a phone, is accused of providing legal advice on how to run the alleged scam. Larcombes death was to be the beginning of the end. First to fall was Larcombes associate Simon McIntyre, one of the straw directors in the Plutus Payroll scam. In February 2017, McIntyre was arrested and charged after police found some extraordinary items in his car which he had parked at Sydney Airport while he flew to Armidale for a few days with his young daughter. In his car was a loaded black Ruger pistol, $5000 in cash, a large machete-like knife, a smaller military knife and three UHF two-way radios.

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Taxpayers are likely to bear only a small portion of the cost of a new $378 million metro rail station underneath Sydneys existing Martin Place station, after the government completed a deal to sell the air rights above the station to Macquarie Group.

The investment bank will pay $355 million for the right to build towers to the north and south of Martin Place, Transport Minister Andrew Constance announced on Wednesday.

Once the new buildings are complete in about 2024, Macquarie is likely to make another payment to the government to reflect the increased value of the land.
A nine-year-old girl has become the subject of right-wing backlash after it was revealed she had been punished by her school for refusing to stand for the national anthem.

Kenmore South State School grade four student Harper Nielsen was given detention and threatened with suspension for not standing when Advance Australia Fair was played in assembly.

Pauline Hanson said she'd "kick" the nine-year-old girl "up the backside" for her actions. Credit:AAP

She said she believes the lyrics of the anthem marginalise Indigenous people.

"The reason why I don't sing it or stand is because Advance Australia Fair means advance White Australia," she told News Corp.
Taxi fares in Victoria will not rise, but messy cab users have been put on notice after the state's pricing regulator ruled that grubby passengers could be slugged with a cleaning fee.

The Essential Services Commission has ruled that taxi operators cannot increase their maximum fares for passengers who hail a ride from a taxi rank or the street. Taxi operators had been pushing for an increase for "unbooked" fares.

Taxi drivers have protested against Victorian government measures in the past. The fare freeze is likely to anger them too. Credit:Jason South

Marcus Crudden, the commission's director of price monitoring and regulation, said a fare increase could make people think twice about using taxis.

In the context of all the changes underway in the industry, and noting taxis can already lower their fares as a way of attracting more passengers, the commission decided to leave maximum fares unchanged for now, Mr Crudden said.
The remarkable connecting power of phone boxes, for those of us old enough to remember a time before mobiles, was enough to build them a cherished place in modern legend, from the TARDIS to the entrance to Harry Potters Ministry of Magic.

The only magic now is their transfiguration of public space into $8000 a week per phone in advertising revenue for Telstra.

> Credit:Matt Davidson

As The Age's David Estcourt reported earlier this month, Telstra has already converted 40 old payphones into video billboards and is planning to transform another 80. Under the federal Telecommunications Act, Telstra is allowed to build payphones without having to seek planning approval. And as long as the attached billboard passes the "low impact facility" test in the legislation, Telstra can build a new payphone or upgrade an old one, attach a digital billboard, and sell the space to advertisers.

The sad irony about Telstras new enormous payphones/advertising billboards, which Melbourne City Council, to its credit, is taking on, is that phones are fundamentally about connecting people, whereas advertising disconnects us.
Perth Zoo has said goodbye to old friend and visitor favourite Cuddles, the 50kg reticulated python.

The elderly five-metre snake was estimated to be between 25 and 35 years old when he died from health complications on Wednesday morning.

Perth Zoo has bid farewell to its scaly resident Cuddles the reticulated python, who died on Wednesday morning. He was estimated to be between 25 and 35 years old. Credit:Perth Zoo/Twitter

He was confiscated in NSW after being illegally kept as a pet, being moved to Taronga Zoo Sydney before eventually finding a home at Perth Zoo.

The snake made headlines in 2015 when he went to Murdoch Uni Vet Hospital for a CT scan, with the tricky situation seeing staff double up his body to fit inside the scanner.
Travellers could face fines of up to $4200 or imprisonment if they do not comply with new police powers to request identification at Australian airports, eject people from the premises and ban them from flights.

Under legislation introduced to Parliament by the Morrison government on Tuesday, police will be able to carry out identity checks when they suspect people are involved in criminal activity that poses a threat to the public.

Police will be able to issue a "move on" direction if someone refuses to cooperate or if they believe it will disrupt an imminent security threat. The person can also be banned from entering airports for 24 hours.

There will be boosted security at Australian airports. Credit:Justin McManus

Police at our airports are highly trained in behavioural analysis and threat assessments. However, they dont currently have the power to check ID unless they can link behaviour to a specific offence, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said in a statement.
Harare: Zimbabwe declared a cholera outbreak in the capital Harare after 20 people died from the disease and more than 2000 were infected by drinking contaminated water, new Health Minister Obadiah Moyo said.

Harare city council has struggled to supply water to some suburbs for more than a decade, forcing residents to rely on water from open wells and community boreholes.

Health workers offer food to a father and son suffering from cholera symptoms at a local hospital in Harare on Tuesday. Credit:AP

The latest cholera outbreak happened after burst sewers in Budiriro and Glenview suburbs contaminated water in boreholes and open wells, which are used by residents, said Moyo.

"We are declaring an emergency for Harare. This will enable us to contain cholera, typhoid and whatever is going on. We dont want any further deaths," Moyo said after touring a hospital treating patients in the capital.
Rome: Alarmed by sexual abuse scandals in a number of countries, Pope Francis is summoning senior bishops to a meeting early next year to discuss the prevention of abuse by Roman Catholic clerics and the protection of children, the Vatican has announced.

The meeting of the heads of national bishops' conferences from around the world is scheduled for February 21-24 at the Vatican, a spokeswoman said.

The extraordinary meeting marks the most concrete step the pontiff has yet taken in response to a series of abuse cases that have roiled the church and thrown Francis' papacy into crisis.

The latest cases have increasingly revealed failures among higher-ups in reporting potential crimes and in punishing alleged abusers, causing anger among some Catholics who say the church has been too slow to build safeguards after decades of dealing with clerical abuse.
For more than half a decade of workshops, rehearsals, and performances, Ethan Slater has been immersed in the underwater world of Bikini Bottom. In the Broadway musical SpongeBob SquarePants, Slater plays the titular absorbent hero, and as the production heads toward its final performance on September 16, he's getting ready to reacclimate to life on dry land.

But first, Slater is taking a few minutes to soak in the highlights of his time creating the onstage SpongeBob and the "best seven minutes ever" to celebrate a buoyant Broadway experience.

Ethan Slater plays the title character in SpongeBob SquarePants on Broadway.

( David Gordon)

1) What is your favorite line that you get to say?

I'm always touched by the moment when I say, "It doesn't have to be like this. We might only have seven minutes left, but we could make them the best seven minutes ever." I look into the eyes of the people right around me, and I can feel that that line hits home every night as we near the end of that particular show, and we realize that we're nearing the end of this run that has meant so much to us.

2) What is the best inside joke from among the company?

It doesn't really make much sense, but we had this one celebratory bit we would do when something happened: We would start doing yoga poses like tree pose or downward dog or trying to do crow and failing. When we closed in Chicago we all did that bit onstage after the bow.

3) What was the worst technical difficulty you experienced during the run?

By far one of my favorite moments  and Danny [Skinner, who plays Patrick] is going to kill me for saying this  is at one point he is supposed to fly in and we had one show where for some reason he could not fly. So I look up and he's not there, and so I say my line and I look down and Danny is running in, in slow motion, doing everything he's supposed to do in the air but on the ground instead. I've never had to stifle a laugh so hard in my life. It was magic.

4) What is the most interesting present you received at the stage door?

One of my absolute favorite pieces of fan art is this fanzine that we got with illustrations by different artists of each scene throughout the show in chronological order.

5) Who is the coolest person to come see the show?

Recently they called a guest for me at the stage door, and I went to see who it was, and it was Christian Slater. He came back and we were talking and he was like, "I saw articles about the show, it looked amazing, and then I saw your last name and I thought 'I've got to go find out if we're related.'" My entire life people have been saying like, "Are you related to Christian Slater?" and I would say, "I don't think so but I wish." So for him to come back and say, "Do you think we're related?" is a pretty good culmination of that.

Danny Skinner as Patrick Star and Ethan Slater as SpongeBob in SpongeBob SquarePants.

( Joan Marcus)

6) Which of the artists who wrote music for SpongeBob were you most fanboying over?

It would have to be John Legend. When I found out that he was writing a song for the show, that was a true freak-out moment. And then when we finally got the song, [director] Tina [Landau] came in, she had a CD in her hand, she said, "We have the demo. Everyone sit on the floor, close your eyes." And she turned off the lights, put on the demo. It was just like a collective little cry because it was perfect.

7) What is your favorite Tina Landau-in-rehearsal moment?

When we were early in the workshops, she would say, "All right guys, you have 10 minutes, find a partner, go off and create a visual scene that is the end of the world in Bikini Bottom, whatever that means." People started coming up with these little ideas and then they became bigger ideas and then we would do a presentation after those 10 minutes and she would just applaud all of us. It was this incredibly creative collaborative process.

8) What was the toughest SpongeBob mannerism to get right?

It was all pretty hard in some ways. In the early workshops I was working with a number of amazingly talented creative people, including this guy David Newman. I would bring my lunch into the auxiliary rehearsal room, and he and I would work through lunch on how does SpongeBob make a right turn, how does SpongeBob walk backwards or do a pirouette? It's how I imagine you make a statue out of marble. It starts as this big block, you get the general shape, and then it really comes down to those intimate little details.

9) What's your favorite SpongeBob episode?

It has to be "Bubble Buddy." SpongeBob's friends aren't around to play on this day so he blows a bubble and it becomes his friend and everybody in the town is like getting a little frustrated because he's acting as though this bubble is a person and then this whole mob ends up forming and they're saying pop the bubble. It's real sad and then all of a sudden out of nowhere Bubble Buddy puts on a bubble top hat, hails a bubble cab, and floats away and off into the sun, it's just like Grease. That's always been my favorite moment, when one thing becomes something totally different. It's so SpongeBob and it's so great.

10) What is the most memorable moment of audience interaction that you've had?

During one show SpongeBob decided to take the risk of climbing the last leg of the mountain to save the day, and a little kid in the audience just screamed, "I believe in you SpongeBob, you can do it SpongeBob!" And it was just this perfect moment.
Trump headed to visit a 9/11 memorial site in Pennsylvania. Photo: Evan Vucci/AP/REX/Shutterstock

Tuesday marks the 17th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, during which approximately 3,000 people were killed after airplanes flew into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. And to the surprise of absolutely no one, President Donald Trump sure seems to be having a tough time appropriately honoring the occasion.

Trump started out the somber day in his usual fashion: tweeting about Hillary Clinton and special counsel Robert Mullers investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Of course.

We have found nothing to show collusion between President Trump & Russia, absolutely zero, but every day we get more documentation showing collusion between the FBI & DOJ, the Hillary campaign, foreign spies & Russians, incredible. @SaraCarterDC @LouDobbs  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 11, 2018

The president then briefly went back and forth between tweeting about #September11th and live tweeting the rest of Lou Dobbss Fox News program, before posting about his attorney Rudy Giuliani, whom he once reportedly referred to as a little baby who needs his diaper changed:

Rudy Giuliani did a GREAT job as Mayor of NYC during the period of September 11th. His leadership, bravery and skill must never be forgotten. Rudy is a TRUE WARRIOR!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 11, 2018

Trump, of course, then continued to tweet  and excitedly reminded us just how long its been since the attack:

17 years since September 11th!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 11, 2018

Shortly after, Trump and his wife, First Lady Melania Trump, arrived at an airport in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. They were en route to visit the Shanksville memorial site of United Flight 93. But upon arrival, the president had a rather  odd  reaction: he was photographed emphatically pumping both of his fists.

.@realDonaldTrump First Lady Melania Trump greet supporters as they arrive in Johnstown, PA to attend the Flight 93 September 11 Memorial Service in Shanksville, PA pic.twitter.com/SRMBvlDLKJ  Doug Mills (@dougmillsnyt) September 11, 2018

Immediately after the fist pump, Trump and the First Lady appeared to be having a great time greeting supporters at the airport.

Donald Trump and supporters on 9/11. Photo: Evan Vucci/AP/REX/Shutterstock

Later, when it was time for Trump to give a speech at the Shanksville memorial site, the president walked up to the podium  while pointing at people in the crowd and mouthing the words thank you as they clapped for him. That moment occurs around the 56:50 mark in the longer video here, but a shorter clip of his speech, during which he slowly read aloud from a teleprompter, is below.

"On September 11, 2001, a band of brave patriots turned the tide on our Nation's enemies and joined the immortal ranks of American heroes."  President @realDonaldTrump at the Flight 93 September 11 Memorial Service pic.twitter.com/uP6rcSnyUj  The White House (@WhiteHouse) September 11, 2018

The president and first lady also walked around the Flight 93 National Memorial with the parks superintendent. Naturally, Trump couldnt resist giving photographers a big thumbs up as he enjoyed himself on the tour.

Trump giving a thumbs up at a 9/11 memorial. Photo: Kevin Lamarque/REUTERS

Then it was back to Twitter, so he could share a Breitbart link about small business optimism.

We will continue to update this post throughout the day as Trump attempts to mourn a national tragedy.

This post has been updated.
The bar has responded, saying it was full and staff "didn't see Pink at all".

"Yesterday afternoon someone from the crew came back in and asked if they could book a private space for 30 people," a spokesperson for Deadshot told Newshub.

"Bryan, Deadshot's manager explained we can't accommodate private parties or big groups due to the size of venue and style of service and recommended some bars that do private events.

"However 30 people showed up at 11 anyway for 'a party for the musicians' and we couldn't let them in due to being full already. We didn't see Pink at all."

Pink also raved about another Ponsonby bar - Revelry, describing it as the "perfect place".
10-Year-Old Survives Impaling Himself Face-First on Skewer

A 10-year-old boy who impaled himself after falling face-first onto a 12-inch meat skewer survived, thanks to one in a million luck.

Xavier Cunningham was playing in a tree house with friends on Sept. 8, when yellow jacket wasps bombarded them, causing him to fall 4 feet off the ladder, landing on a metal meat skewer sticking straight up.

But despite the spike penetrating 5-6 inches, surgeons were able to remove it safely with no major damage to any vital tissues.

The boys mother, Gabrielle Miller, said she first knew something was wrong when she heard screaming outside their home in Harrisonville, Missouri.

She ran down the stairs.

He came in and he had this thing just sticking out, she told the Kansas City Star.

His father, Shannon Miller, told Fox that the wasps had terrified him.

He was more upset about the yellow jackets than he was about the metal piece sticking out of his face,

But as they rushed to the hospital, Xavier became more worried, repeatedly telling his mother that he was dying.

He wasnt.

It missed everything

Despite the skewer penetrating all the way to the back of his head, it hadnt hit anything vital.

It missed his brain. It missed his brain stem. It missed the nerves, everything thats valuable in your head. It missed everything, his father said.

Xavier was transferred to Childrens Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, before then being moved on again to the University of Kansas hospital in Kansas City, Kansas.

Koji Ebersole, director of Endovascular Neurosurgery at The University of Kansas Health System said it was miraculous that no more damage had been done.

This thing had spared the eye, spared the brain, spared the spinal cord, Ebersole told Kansas City.

You couldnt draw it up any better, Ebersole said. It was one in a million for it to pass 5 or 6 inches through the front of the face to the back and not have hit these things.

I have not seen anything passed to that depth in a situation that was survivable, let alone one where we think the recovery will be near complete if not complete.

Playing X-Box in His Hospital Bed

Doctors were still concerned that the blade could have hit blood vessels. But when scans showed there was no active bleeding, they decided it best to wait until Sunday morning before attempting to remove the skewer, when more staff were on hand.

It required Xavier being on board with that plan, Ebersole said. Because if he was going to get anxious or nervous and start moving around, he could move the device and cause significant injury that he had not yet incurred.

Meanwhile, his waiting family turned to their faith and to prayer.

I said, Lord I dont care. I know you have a plan,' Miller said.

The operation lasted hours but was a success, and by the following day Xavier was playing X-Box in his hospital bed and joking with his family, reported Fox.

He could make a full recovery.

For Miller, Xaviers brush with death has only strengthened his belief.

Only God could have directed things to happen in a way that would save him like this, he said. It really was a miracle.

Did you enjoy this article? Continue to read more stories here.
32 Arrests in Gang-Related Scheme Targeting Credit Card Terminals

The hacking of credit card terminals and merchant accounts at Northern California businesses has led to the arrest and indictment of 32 people associated with Contra Costa County-area street gangs, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced on September 11.

The 240-count indictment was the result of an investigation that started in February 2016 and looked at burglaries and credit card schemes taking place across 13 counties.

Investigators discovered the crimes were tied to two gangs in the Antioch, Pittsburg and Bay Point areas of Contra Costa County, according to the attorney generals office.

The gang members broke into the businesses and stole credit card terminals, then used them to process returns that went to a debit card owned by them rather than going to the business or customer, prosecutors said.

The indictment includes 63 counts of conspiracy to commit grand theft, 54 counts of hacking, computer access and fraud, 56 counts of grand theft, 59 counts of burglary, and eight counts of identity theft.

About 40 stolen credit card terminals were recovered along with other stolen property such as laptop computers and files containing Social Security numbers or bank information, prosecutors said.

Street gangs target and intimidate our families and businesses to feed their criminal enterprise, Becerra said in a statement. It takes the collaborative effort of multiple law enforcement agencies to take down criminal gangs.

According to Becerras office, police from Walnut Creek, Concord, Antioch, Pittsburg, Vacaville, Napa, Sacramento, and other law enforcement agencies across Northern California assisted in the investigation.

By Dan McMenamin.
9/11 First Responder Recalls Moment When North Tower Fell

NEW YORKFirefighter Kevin Kelly was rushing to the North Tower just before it started to tumble. His chief had not realized the South Tower had already collapsed.

We dropped everything we had [and] took off, Kelly said. First I got behind a car and somebody running behind me said, Brother, you better run further than that.

Kelly eventually took cover behind an emergency service unit truck and had enough time to put his oxygen mask on.

The whole world turned black and silent. You dont hear downtown Manhattan. You dont hear anything, Kelly recalled.

The first responder stayed at Ground Zero until about 2:30 a.m., putting out fires and helping with the rescue. He didnt get home until 5 a.m. but was quickly called back into the field to help with rescue operations.

Kelly, who had more than 20 years experience working in the NYFD, lost 343 colleagues that day.

Some were friends, some were really close friends. I lost my few best friends on that day, he said.

The now former firefighter said he attends the memorial service at Ground Zero every year with his closest friends widow and a group of his former co-workers to remember those who were lost.

Kelly said the traumatic event changed his outlook on life.

You know what. One thing I learnt, never sweat the small stuff anymore. Its not that important. Stuff is just stuff  If somebody makes a stupid mistake and breaks something  it doesnt really matter, he explained.

The only thing that matters is people matter. You matter. I matter. We all matter.

I dont care about stuff. I dont care about money. I dont care about anything. I just want everybody to say  live their lives the best they can and be healthy doing it.

Daughter of 9/11 Victim: They say God picks his flowers when they are ready

Jimenez says she is still coping with the death of her mother, and although it is still really hard, she is able to pull through with the help of her family.

She described her mother Iline as a strong-hearted, kind, caring person who always put others first.

During the 9/11 attack Jimenez was waiting for the first bell to ring at her high school, when she heard a loud Boom! As she turned to see what was happening she saw birds flying away and the tower that her mother worked in was hit.

I just started running downtown while everyone was running uptown. I was there when the South Tower fell so I actually got covered in dust, said Jimenez. I was looking for her in the crowd. I had hope that she was still going to be alive.

While visiting the World Trade Center memorial on the anniversary of the tragedy Jimenez said she feels at peace and that her mother is not forgotten.

When I do come over its a peaceful place. The sound of the waterfall it gives me some rest, but just knowing that Im here where she was, when she passed away, it makes me feel a little closer to her, said Jimenez.

Jimenez named her daughter Iline in loving memory of her mom.
Sun Yi, whose story is told in the documentary "Letter From Masanjia." (Flying Cloud Productions)

A Firm and Resolute Chinese Hero

The award-winning documentary film Letter from Masanjia tells the true story of the extraordinary courage and hope of a man named Sun Yi, despite the unimaginable horrors he endured as a prisoner of conscience in a forced labor camp.

The film, by Vancouver-based director Leon Lee, also exposes the human suffering behind products made by forced Chinese prison labor that end up on store shelves in countries such as the United States and Canada.

Because of previous films he has made, Lee is denied entry to China. However, he was able to communicate with Sun Yi through Skype, and was struck by Suns courage and his determination, both of which made the documentary possible.

Sun, an engineer, practiced the spiritual discipline of Falun Gong, which made him the target of the violent persecution and hate propaganda the regime has unleashed across China since July, 1999. Millions of Falun Gong adherents have suffered arrests, imprisonment, and torture. Sun Yi was detained at brainwashing centers and labor camps a total of eight times.

He spent 2.5 years in the Masanjia labor camp in the northern city of Shenyang from 2008 to 2010. Deemed the most notorious labor camp in China, it forced inmates to work 15-hour days seven days a week and subjected them to torture and abuse.

Sun was handcuffed to a hospital bed for hours in agonizing positions. Guards used a medical tool to pry open his mouth, and would then spit and throw cigarette butts in.

He was also forced to stand in an unbearable position, with his legs and arms tied to the frames of a bed. Once, he was strapped in such a position for 168 hours straight.

Suns task was making little plastic ghosts and foam headstones for Halloween decoration kits. At some point, Sun, using a secretly obtained pen, wrote SOS letters and stuffed them into kits destined for Western countries.

In mid-2010, he was released from Masanjia. In 2012, an American woman, Julie Keith, found his letter after buying a Halloween kit at Kmart. His letter had travelled 5,600 miles from China to a small town in Oregon.

After Keith publicized Suns letter, headlines drew worldwide attention to the gross rights violations within Chinas re-education through labor system, consisting of over 300 camps where people could be held for up to four years without trial. Pressured, the regime announced that the system would be abolished by the end of 2013.

Read More A Hero for the 21st Century?

Sun subsequently became the regimes target. His home was repeatedly ransacked. He fled and lived on the run. In November 2016, he was abducted by police.

After a three-year search, Lee was able to track down Sun, who realized that this would be an opportunity to expose the evil of Masanjia Labor Camp.

Over Skype, Lee trained Sun to use a video camera in order to shoot live-action footage secretly in China. Lee also used Suns very skilled sketches as a basis for recreating his experience inside Masanjia, developing them into illustrations and then animation.

Despite telling a harrowing story, Lees documentary portrays Sun Yis calm strength and peaceful determination, as well as his kindness toward others, even his former torturers.

Jiang Tianyong, Suns lawyer, was arrested in November 2016 and sentenced to two years in prison. Reports indicate he was forced to take an unknown medication which caused him to suffer great memory loss.

This is a known tactic used by the Chinese authority, so that the lawyers  when they leave  prison  would be no longer able to continue their work, said Lee.

On Dec. 6, 2016, Sun, whose Chinese name means firm and resolute was finally able to escape from his homeland and flee to Indonesia, where he eventually met Julie Keith.

However, while Sun was awaiting a visa to Canada, he was approached by Chinese regime agents. Just days before his 51st birthday, on October 1, 2017, he died at a hospital in Bali, Indonesia. His death was attributed to kidney failure.

However, his family reported that he had not previously had kidney problems. They suspected foul play and claimed that the hospital had rushed to have his body cremated. We can all infer what happened.

The perseverance of Sun Yi aided by Julie Keith helped to bring about the next step in what the regime asserts was ending the labor camp system in China. Sun never gave up trying to make sure that his story was widely told.

The true Chinese spirit is what we see in Sun Yi, says Lee. He was indeed an ordinary man who recognized his own potential for heroic behavior.

David Kilgour, a lawyer by profession, served in Canadas House of Commons for almost 27 years. In Jean Chretiens Cabinet, he was secretary of state (Latin America and Africa) and secretary of state (Asia-Pacific). He is the author of several books and co-author with David Matas of Bloody Harvest: The Killing of Falun Gong for Their Organs.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
President Barack Obama (R) applauds after presenting the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry to Clinton Romesha (L), a former Army Staff Sergeant, at the White House in Washington on Feb. 11, 2013. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

A Hero for the 21st Century?

Hero: A person noted for courageous acts or nobility of character, or (traditional) a warrior-chieftain of special strength, courage, or ability.

If you are a reader of history, heroes play prominent roles:

Leonidas and the 600 Spartans holding the Thermopylae pass against the Persians (thereby saving Greece and ultimately Western civilization);

Horatio, at the bridge, successfully defending it against an invading army that otherwise would have sacked Rome;

Roland, an 11th-century Frankish knight under Charlemagne, who died defending Roncevaux Pass against Islamic attackers.

But these heroes are as much myth as reality. And as centuries have passed, historians have wanted their heroes less blood-stained and more nuanced.

Thus, Joan dArc becomes perhaps the first female hero, sacrificing herself for an unworthy king but creating France in the process.

Read More A Firm and Resolute Chinese Hero

And questions still roil history: Is Benedict Arnold unalterably a traitor, despite heroic action that essentially won the Battle of Saratoga in 1777, prompting greater French support for the struggling, embryonic U.S. Revolution?

Is Robert E. Lee both a hero for the Confederacy and the greatest traitor the United States has ever birthed? Had Lee accepted Lincolns reported offer to lead the Union army instead of breaking his oath of allegiance to the United States, the war might have quickly concluded with far less human/economic costand with Lee possibly becoming president after Lincoln.

Is Joshua Chamberlain, a college professor and not a professional soldier, the only genuine Civil War hero by leading the 20th Maine regiment in defense of Little Round Top at Gettysburg? Losing Little Round Top would have resulted in Union defeat and perhaps ended the war. Chamberlain, a Medal of Honor winner, was largely forgotten until Michael Shaaras Killer Angels revived interest. Little Round Top today has no vainglorious statue of Chamberlain and a simple block of granite commemorates the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment.

It has been noteworthy as societies move toward modern times and modern wars, our heroes become less categoric. Thus, while Sgt. Alvin York was initially a conscientious objector, he ultimately demonstrated Medal of Honor courage in killing and capturing German troops during World War I fighting.

But who was the defining hero at Verdun, when Germans did not pass with combined French-German casualties over a million (commemorated in an ossuary of 100,000 unknown dead)?

In World War II, Audie Murphy, born in a sharecroppers family and abandoned by his father, entered the Army while underage and won the Medal of Honor for single-handedly holding off a German company during fighting in northeastern France. He is prominently interred in Arlington National Cemetery.

But what about the recently lionized Desmond Doss, a Seventh Day Adventist pacifist, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for saving 75 lives as an unarmed medic during fighting at Okinawa? A greater hero than Murphy?

Were the Marines who raised the flag at Iwo Jima our last iconic heroesdespite now being virtually nameless to Americans, albeit massively immortalized in bronze overlooking Washington?

Or is now the preferred World War II hero Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish diplomat who saved thousands of Jews from the Holocaust with adroit bureaucratic maneuversand subsequently died in a Soviet prison?

So, was John McCain a hero for being shot down over Vietnam and systematically tortured for five years? Or was he a hero for refusing repatriation, despite his famous family name, until all those captured before him were released?

Our most courageous combatants are still awarded Medals of Honor. Sixteen MOH awarded for heroic action in Iraq and Afghanistan, include the following: Jason Dunham (Iraq); Dakota Meyer (Afghanistan); Clinton Romesha (Afghanistan). But who recognizes their names?

Today, we seem to want our heroes to be drawn from everyday life: the child who rescues a sibling from fire/drowning/whatever; the armed citizen who confronts and kills a demented shooter; the women (and men) who denounce the economically, politically, and religiously powerful for abusing them; the metoo assembly of the afflicted demanding social justice; the livesmatter protestors denouncing police brutality; the anonymous resistance to political figures.

One notices 9/11 commemorative events are receding into ritualized background as images of burning twin towers fade at the 17-year mark. And who knows the name of a single firefighter who perished, other than a family member?

Are you a hero in this work-a-day world just by doing your job, raising your family, loving your country? Or more so if you kneel in protest when the national anthem is played?

Perhaps, we have outsourced traditional heroism to history books. Today, everyone is a hero (but maybe nobody is).

David T. Jones is a retired U.S. State Department senior foreign service career officer who has published several hundred books, articles, columns, and reviews on U.S.Canadian bilateral issues and general foreign policy. During a career that spanned more than 30 years, he concentrated on politico-military issues, serving as an adviser for two Army chiefs of staff. Among his books is Alternative North Americas: What Canada and the United States Can Learn from Each Other.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Bald Eagle Lands on Fire Trucks 9/11 Tribute Display

A wild bald eagle, the national symbol of the United States, landed on the ladder of a fire truck in Minnesota that was taking part in a commemoration of the 17th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.

The incident was captured in a video on Sept. 11 by fire chief Jerry Streich that quickly went viral, garnering over a million views.

Streich can be heard repeatedly exclaiming that what he is seeing is unbelievable.

Theres no better symbol to represent America today than a flag but then for an eagle to land on a fire truck holding a flag, I mean, it doesnt get much more symbolic than that, Streich said, according to KARE-TV.

The bird can be seen perched on top of a fire trucks extended ladder, then flying off.

The truck was parked alongside another fire truck, with an American flag suspended between their ladders as members of the fire department gathered to pay tribute to the 3,000 people who died in the 9/11 attacks.

We Will Never Forget

Several firefighters had set up vehicles on an overpass and draped a banner over the railing that read, We will never forget.

On Sept. 11 there were many tributes held across the country to remember the terrible events of 9/11.

President Donald Trump and the first lady were in Pennsylvania to observe the anniversary, while at the Pentagon a group including Pentagon employees, service members, Prince Charles, members of Congress and the Cabinet, and friends and family of those who died that day gathered underneath a flag.

Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Paul Selva spoke of the ideals of freedom and liberty that were the target of the al-Qaeda terrorists who hijacked four planes that day.

They volunteered during a time of war to defend our country because they believe in what we stand for as a nation, he said. We will ensure that future generations of Americans enjoy the same freedoms and liberties.
Brazils Workers Party to Swap Lula for Running Mate Haddad

CURITIBA, BrazilJailed former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will step aside on Sept. 11 so his running mate can stand for the presidency in next months election, a top party official said, as leftist candidates solid showing in opinion polls dragged markets lower.

The Workers Party (PT) national executive committee had decided that Fernando Haddad will be its presidential candidate in the Oct. 7 vote, said committee member and Minas Gerais state Governor Fernando Pimentel. Lula has been barred by a corruption conviction.

Lula, Brazils first working-class president and by far its most popular politician despite facing several graft trials, had hoped the Supreme Court would agree to an appeal for more time after the top electoral court last week gave the party until Sept. 11 to decide on its candidate.

But Lula has finally decided it was time to pass the baton to Haddad on the deadline set by the court and not run the risk of votes for his partys ticket being annulled by the electoral court.

Two sources with knowledge of Lulas decision said it would be announced on Sept. 11 in the southern city of Curitiba, where Lula has been jailed since April, serving a 12-year sentence for receiving bribes. The sources asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

Lula, who controls the PT he founded and determines its election strategy from his jail cell, has kept his candidacy alive for as long as possible, hoping to maximize the transfer of votes to Haddad, a former Sao Paulo mayor who is barely known in many parts of Brazil.

A Datafolha poll conducted on Sept. 10 showed that transfer has begun. While still in the single digits, support for Haddad increased from 4 percent to 9 percent, the biggest gain among the 13 candidates running for president.

The same poll also showed strengthening support for another leftist, Ciro Gomes, a former governor, and finance minister, whose support rose to 13 percent from 10 percent.

Market favorites who say they will continue President Michel Temers economic reforms had few gains.

The Datafolha survey showed far-right law-and-order candidate Jair Bolsonaro increasing by 2 percentage points to 24 percent, less than many expected after he survived a near-fatal stabbing last week.

Former Sao Paulo Mayor Geraldo Alckmin, a center-right candidate, ticked up just 1 percentage point to 10 percent.

The poll Sept. 10 confirmed previous surveys showing Bolsonaro would lose to every major candidate in a probable run-off votewith the exception of Haddad, with whom he was in a technical tie.

The potential for a leftist run-off victory spooked financial markets on Sept. 11, with the real currency slumping nearly 2 percent against the U.S. dollar and the Bovespa benchmark stock index losing 2.4 percent in afternoon trading.

Bottom line: one space in the run-off looks guaranteed for Bolsonaro, Juliano Ferreira, a strategist at brokerage BGC Liquidez, said in a research note. Once hes there, his chances of losing look stronger, to whomever it might be.

One of the party officials said Lulas letter anointing Haddad will be read to supporters who have camped outside the police building for five months to protest his jailing, which they consider a plot to keep him from returning to power.

Lula served as president from 2003-2010. He is ineligible for office under Brazils Clean Slate law, which prohibits candidates from running if they have convictions that have been upheld on appeal.

By Lisandra Paraguassu
California Adopted More Restrictive Policies to Limit New Offshore Oil Drilling

Policies prohibiting any new offshore oil drilling and affiliated infrastructure construction within California state waters were adopted as Gov. Jerry Brown signed two bills on Sept. 8, which symbolize an effort against the recent oil drilling expansion plan proposed by the federal government.

SB 834 requires that the State Lands Commision and a local trustee will not enter into any new lease, lease renewal, or extension, as well as modification if it involves new construction of oil-and-gas-related infrastructure within states waters and is related to Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) leases issued after Jan. 1, 2018. And AB 1775 prohibits any new lease, lease renewal, extension, or modification in the Sanctuary that leads to an increase of oil or natural gas production from federal waters.

According to the law, state waters are defined as areas starting from the states coastline and extend 3 miles toward the ocean, while federal waters are areas beyond that 3-mile boundary. Since the bills prohibit new leases within state waters for new construction of oil- and gas-related infrastructure, such as pipelines, which is the most common method to transport crude oil, supporters of the bills believe it will make it more difficult for the federal government to implement new offshore oil drilling along the California coast.

Currently, there are 38 active leases in the Pacific OCS Region and all of them are along the California coast. And there has been no new lease in federal waters since 1984. In January, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke announced a draft National OCS Program that makes over 90 percent of the total OCS acreage available for future exploration and development. Proposing the largest number of lease sales in U.S. history, the program has a total of 47 potential leases including six leases off California coast.

By proposing to open up nearly the entire OCS for potential oil and gas exploration, the United States can advance the goal of moving from aspiring for energy independence to attaining energy dominance, Counselor for Energy Policy at Interior Vincent DeVito said in a statement. This decision could bring unprecedented access to Americas extensive offshore oil and gas resources and allows us to better compete with other oil-rich nations.

In 2016, California ranked No. 3 in crude oil production with annual production of around 186 million barrels. But oil produced from California offshore drilling only accounts for less than 10 percent with around 11.5 million barrels from state waters plus 6.1 million barrels from federal waters. According to the California State Lands Commission, California has total 27 offshore oil platforms, among which only four are located within state waters and 23 within federal waters.

The California State Lands Commission (SLC) was granted jurisdiction to oversee and manage the leasing of oil and gas from offshore state lands in 1938. And no new offshore oil and gas leases have been approved by SLC since 1969the year a major offshore oil spill happened near Santa Barbara. The incident was caused by an inadequate protective wellpipe casing, which led to more than 80,000 barrels of crude oil released into the ocean resulting in 35 miles of coastline oiled and killed thousands of animals. Worrying about potential environmental impacts and consequences of new drilling, many California lawmakers oppose the federal governments expansion plan.

Additional offshore oil and gas development in California poses a serious risk of oil spills, jeopardizing our air and water quality, as well as our marine resources and wildlife, including threatened species, said Sen. Hannah Beth Jackson (D-19th District), who authored SB 834. Expanded offshore oil and gas production also directly threatens the health of Californias ocean-based economy, which produces approximately $44.5 billion in GDP each year, and employs almost half a million people in the state.

In addition, even though California has made many efforts in shifting from traditional fossil fuels to renewable energy, the demand for crude oil has hardly been reduced over the last decade. Based on statistics showed by the California Energy Commission, in 2009, 605 million barrels of crude oil were supplied to California refineries with nearly 40 percent from California itself and 45 percent from foreign countries. In 2017, the total crude oil supply grew to about 625 million barrels with around 31 percent from California and 57 percent from foreign countries.
China to Restrict Online Activities of Religious Groups

SHANGHAIThe Chinese regime has drawn up new draft guidelines to stop what it deems to be chaotic and illegal online promotion of religion, Chinas state-run newspaper Global Times said on Sept. 11, as part of a tough state campaign to bring religious worship into line.

All organizations engaged in the dissemination of religious information online will be obliged to apply for licenses from provincial religious affairs departments, the paper said, citing a policy document issued on Sept. 10.

While the license will enable them to preach and offer religious training, they will not be allowed to live-stream or broadcast religious activities. The dissemination of religious information anywhere other than their own internet platforms is also forbidden.

The guidelines also specifically prohibit online religious services from inciting subversiona catch-all charge for virtually anything the Chinese Communist Party disapproves of, opposing the leadership of the Party, and promoting extremism and separatism.

Chinese citizens are only allowed to practice a religion that is officially recognized by the government. It has repeatedly cracked down on unauthorized religious activity, with authorities in Beijing shutting down a large Protestant church on Sept. 10.

China has also been under heavy international scrutiny. U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet called out China for its treatment of the mostly Muslim Uyghur ethnic group in the northwestern region of Xinjiang.

Human rights groups have accused the Chinese authorities of conducting a punitive crackdown that has seen the detention of as many as 1 million ethnic Uyghurs in concentration camp-like facilities known as re-education centers.

By David Stanway
Employees working in the Chang'an automobile factory in Beijing on August 16, 2012. (AFP/GettyImages)

Chinese Auto Sales Fall for Second Month in August

BEIJINGChinese auto sales fell for a second month in August, an industry group reported on Sept. 11, adding to signs of economic malaise amid a worsening tariff battle with Washington.

Sales of SUVs, sedans, and minivans in the biggest global auto market contracted by 4.6 percent from a year earlier to 1.8 million units, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. Total vehicle sales, including trucks and buses, sank 2.1 percent to 2 million units.

Chinese auto demand has cooled as economic growth has slowed after Beijing tightened controls on bank lending to cool surging debt.

Sales of SUVs, usually the industrys brightest spot, shrank 4.7 percent to 737,000 units. Sedan sales were down 3.4 percent at 901,000.

Total auto sales for the first eight months of the year gained 2.6 percent to 15.2 million.

Sales growth has declined steadily, tumbling from Mays 7.9 percent to 2.3 percent in June. Full-year 2017 sales growth was 1.4 percent.

Chinas mounting tariff fight with the U.S. administration over Beijings intellectual property theft has added to anxiety.

Weak demand is a setback for global automakers that look to China to drive revenue and are spending heavily to develop models for local tastes.

Beijing imposed 25 percent import duties on U.S.-made autos as part of its retaliation for a similar American tariffs. But that falls most heavily on BMW AGs imports of SUVs from a South Carolina factory. American brands produce most of their vehicles in Chinese factories.

As part of industrial plans to develop high-tech sectors and eventually supplant global tech supply chains, Beijing is promoting electric car development. Automakers are rolling out dozens of electrics but still rely on sales of gasoline-powered models for their profits.

In August, Nissan Motor Co. began production of its first electric sedan designed for China. The Sylphy Zero Emission, based on Nissans Leaf, is the first of a dozen of lower-cost electrics being developed for China by General Motors, Volkswagen, and other global automakers.
Christians pray during a mass at a village church in the outskirts of Yanshi City, Henan Province, on Oct. 6, 2006. (China Photos/Getty Images)

Chinese Regime Intensifies Suppression of Churches in Henan Province

Beijing has intensified its suppression of religious groups, especially in central Chinas Henan Province, where authorities have continued to tear down Christian crosses.

The Chinese regime has removed about 7,000 crosses from churches across Henan recently, according to Jonathan Liu, a priest and founder of the San Francisco-based Chinese Christian Fellowship of Righteousness, in a Sept. 10 interview with Taiwans international radio station Radio Taiwan International (RTI). Liu said a pastor for a Three-Self Church located in Henan told him the number of crosses while the two communicated through Chinas popular social messaging app WeChat.

The Three-Self Church, a Protestant church, is one of several congregations that have received official approval from Chinese authorities, as Chinese law stipulates that religious believers can only worship at government-sanctioned churches. However, millions of Chinese have defied such restrictions to attend congregations at so-called underground or house churches.

Liu added that the cross removal in Henan targeted both government-sanctioned and house churches.

As for why Henan is being targeted by the Chinese regime, Liu explained that Henan is a place of significance for Chinese Christianity since it is nicknamed Chinas Galileea reference to the site where Jesus is said to have walked on water. In some villages of Henan, more than 95 percent of the local population are Christians, Liu said.

Even though [Chinese authorities] have never publicly acknowledged this, the reason behind [the Henan suppression] is that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) wants to secure its rule in the area, said Liu.

The mass removal of church crosses in Henan is similar to what happened in eastern Chinas Zhejiang Province in 2016, according to Liu. Then, crosses from more than 1,700 churches were taken down by Chinese authorities.

They also targeted Wenzhou, a city in Zhejiang thats known for a large number of churches and practicing Christians, Liu said. That was one of the first areas of China visited by foreign missionaries during the 1800s.

On Sept. 10, the Chinese regime toughened its controls on religious groups in China with new draft guidelines. According to Chinas state-run newspaper Global Times, the guidelines require that all organizations engaged in the dissemination of religious information online will need to apply for licenses from provincial religious affairs departments.

The new guidelines also specifically prohibit online religious services from inciting subversiona catch-all charge for virtually anything the CCP disapproves of, such as opposing the leadership of the Party.

The recent suppression of Christians isnt limited to Henan. In Beijing, the Zion church, the largest house church in the capital, was shut down by local authorities on Sept. 9, after declaring gatherings at the church illegal.

According to a Sept. 8 report by Association for the Defense of Human Rights and Religious Freedom, an independent nonprofit, restrictions on churches also are occurring in southern Chinas Guangdong Province and in Heilongjiang Province in the north.

Liu told RTI that Christianity has become very different under the CCP, because the core of the religion has become toeing the Party line. Christians must be obedient under the regimes leadership, he said.

For example, during church services, churchgoers are required to sing Chinas national anthem or other songs that praise the Party, and pastors are required to read out a set of Party regulations on religious affairs before giving sermons.

Ultimately, the Chinese regime turns local Christians into Pink Christians, said Liu. Pink in China has the underlying meaning of being very patriotic to the CCP, a play on the significance of the color red in symbolizing communism. The term Little Pink, or Xiaofenhong in Chinese, for example, means Chinese youth who are nationalistic trolls on the internet who defend the Party against any criticism.
People line up outside of the Social Security Administration office in San Francisco, Calif., on Feb. 2, 2005. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Concern Over 39 Million Social Security Number Mismatches Under Obama

WASHINGTONData obtained from the Social Security Administration revealed 39 million instances where names and Social Security numbers on W-2 forms didnt match corresponding Social Security records, according to a report by the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) published on Sept. 11.

The IRLI said the cases occurred between 2012 and 2016, after former President Barack Obama stopped the practice of sending no match letters to employers, in cases where the name and number dont match up on W-2 forms.

The IRLI points to illegal immigrants as the main culprits.

Importantly, the Obama administration decided to discontinue the decades-old practice of no-match letters within eight days after it implemented the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) amnesty for illegal aliens, the IRLI said. Some have said that Obama did this because he didnt want DACA applicants scared off from the program for fear of identity-theft prosecution.

The Social Security Administration cited a number of reasons for mismatches, including typos, unreported name changes, and inaccurate or incomplete employer records. It didnt mention identity theft.

Jessica Vaughan, policy director at Center for Immigration Studies, said illegal immigrants are one of the very common groups involved in identity theft, but its not very widely reported on.

For a long time, particularly under the Obama administration, the attitude was that people in the country illegally were forced into this criminal activity because they had no other way to work here, Vaughan said in a June 27 interview. The crime itself is really swept under the rug. It was considered victimless, harmless, just something that they had to do to support their families, and the victims were largely ignored.

Victims of social security number theft often dont find out for many years afterwards because it may not show up in a consumers credit report, and the Social Security Administration doesnt notify people if it detects that a number has been compromised.

Victims may apply for a mortgage and get turned down and have no idea why, Vaughan said. In Utah, young children who had social security numbers were being denied social services such as Head Start or a nutrition program because someone stole their number and was earning money under it.

The Trump administration has announced that beginning in spring 2019, it will resume sending notifications to employers if a mismatch on a W-2 form is discovered.
Sun Qian, a Falun Dafa adherent and Canadian citizen detained in China since February 2017, in an undated photo. (The Epoch Times/Handout)

Court Procedure for Canadian Citizen Detained in China a Show Trial, Says Sister

The trial of Canadian citizen Sun Qian, who has been detained in China since last February because she practises Falun Gong, took place in Beijing on Sept. 12 but ended with no ruling by the judge.

The one-day court procedure for the Vancouver resident and businesswoman was a sham, said Suns sister by phone from Beijing.

It was a show trial, said Sun Zan. In addition, though it was claimed to be a public trial, it was virtually a secret trial.

Only four of Suns immediate family members and three representatives from the Canadian embassy in Beijing were allowed to attend the trial, Sun Zan said. Everyone else, including Suns aunt, her former legal counsels, her friends, a Western journalist, and diplomats from the U.K. and Netherlands were refused entry, she said.

Sun spoke up in court asserting her innocence and her right to practise Falun Gong, her sister said.

Sun was the vice president of the multi-billion-dollar company Beijing Leadman Biochemistry Co. Ltd. and often travelled to China on business. On Feb. 19, 2017, over two dozen police broke into her home in Beijing and took her away because she is an adherent of Falun Gong, also called Falun Dafa, a traditional Chinese spiritual discipline that has been subjected to persecution by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Sun, 52, has since been held in the No. 1 Detention Centre in Beijing where she has faced abuse, torture, and intense brainwashing sessions with the aim of having her renounce her faith.

Xie Yanyi, one of Suns former lawyers, describes her case as political persecution.

This case was a frame-up right from the beginning. It was wrongful arrest and detention. It is completely against the principle of burden of proof in criminal law, Xie said.

It is all illegal, from arresting her, ransacking her home, torture, and depriving her of her right to counsel.

Xie and another former legal counsel of Sun were blocked from attending the court proceedings.

Former justice minister Irwin Cotler, who acts as Suns counsel in Canada, said her imprisonment is a dramatic case study in the criminalization of innocencethe persecution and prosecution of an innocent woman, not for anything she has done, but for whom she is: the bearer of truth, compassion, and tolerance.

The persecution and prosecution of the Falun Gong for affirming ancient Chinese values of truth, compassion, and tolerance constitute a cruel and relentless state-sanctioned assault on human rights and the rule of law in China,  he said in a statement.

Cotler listed 10 ways in which Suns rights have been violated, including arbitrary and illegal arrest, prolonged and illegal detention, torture in detention threatening both her physical and mental well-being, and a pattern of harassment and intimidation of over 11 lawyers who have sought to take up her case.

As counsel to Sun Qian, I join her lawyers in China in calling on Chinese authorities to honour their own values and rule of law, to seize and desist from their persecution and prosecution of Sun Qian, to respect international treaties and covenants to which China is a state party, and to release Sun Qian unconditionally and permit her to return and to rejoin her family in Canada, he wrote.

Xie said Suns case, like the case of any typical Falun Gong practitioner, violates Chinese laws against prosecuting people for their beliefs.
That greasy, often gross, buildup occurs more often in older ears ... and when it goes untreated, it can pose serious problems. (Shutterstock)

Earwax, of All Things, Poses Unrecognized Risk In Long-Term Care

Medicare recipients logged more than $51 million in impaction-removal costs in 2016

Of all the indignities that come with aging, excessive earwax may be the most insidious.

Dont laugh.

That greasy, often gross, buildup occurs more often in older ears than those of the young, experts say. And when it goes untreated, it can pose serious problems, especially for the 2.2 million people who live in U.S. nursing homes and assisted-living centers.

An excessive amount [of earwax] can cause hearing loss or ringing in your ears. Some people experience vertigo, which increases the risk of falling, said Jackie Clark, a board-certified audiologist who is president of the American Academy of Audiology. Right now, we see some correlation between hearing loss and cognitive decline.

Earwaxwhich is not really wax at all, but a substance called cerumen that binds with dirt, dust, and debrisis normally produced by the body as a way to clean and protect the ears. In most people, the self-cleaning process works fine.

But in othersincluding about 10 percent of young children, 20 percent of adults, and more than 30 percent of elderly and developmentally disabled peoplethe wax collects to the point where it can completely block the ear canal.

As many as two-thirds of people in nursing homes may suffer from that condition, known as impaction, according to 2017 guidelines for removal of impacted earwax issued by the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation.

In 2016, federal Medicare recipients logged nearly 1.7 million earwax-removal procedures, at a cost of more than $51 million, according to payment records analyzed by Kaiser Health News.

In elderly patients, its fairly common, said Dr. Seth Schwartz, a Seattle otolaryngologist who led the most recent update of the guidelines. It seems like such a basic thing, but its one of the most common reasons people present with hearing-related problems.

Its so bad that Janie York, of Omaha, Nebraska, started Hear Now mobile hearing solutions, one of a growing number of businesses devoted to cleaning hearing aids and checking the ears of elderly people living in residential-care settings.

Its epidemic, said York, whose clients now include 10 local centers. About three in five people I see have some degree of impaction and most are completely impacted.

Julie Brown, assistant director of nursing in the memory-support unit at SilverRidge Assisted Living in Gretna, Nebraska, said impacted earwax can be a particular problem for patients with dementia. It exacerbates hearing loss, which can impede communication and worsen aggression and other difficult behaviors.

As soon as the earwax is cleared up, even their behavior has calmed down, Brown said.

Excessive earwax sends about 12 million people to see health workers every year, including about eight million who require wax removal, according to the otolaryngology association.

Thats not counting the people who try DIY treatments to get rid of earwax, nearly all of which are frowned on by the professionals.

People put everything in their ears: Q-tips, bobby pins, pencils, fingernails, Schwartz said.

Usually, the best way to control earwax is to leave it alone, Schwartz said. But that advice can backfire when families or caregivers neglect to check the ears of elderly people in residential care.

Hearing-aid users should have regular ear checks every three to six months, the guidelines suggest. People with dementia also should have earwax removed regularly.

It can take a professional with an otoscopea device that can look deep inside the earto tell if cerumen is blocking the ear canal. Usually, earwax can be safely removed by softening it with water, saline or commercial ear drops and then through gentle syringing or manual extraction with a device called a curette.

The effects in the elderly can be immediate. A small 2014 study by Japanese researchers found significant improvements in hearing and cognitive performance in elderly patients with memory disorders when impacted cerumen was removed.

Too often, though, earwax in the elderly goes unnoticed.

Im seeing 15 people here, but what about the other hundred? York said. Nobodys looking. I dont know why its been neglected for so long.

Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a national health policy news service. It is an editorially independent program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, which is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.
East Coast Military Bases Brace for Hurricane Florence

The Navy is moving people and ships ahead of Hurricane Florence, and the Air Force and Army are both flying advanced aircraft elsewhere as a safeguard.

Some remaining Marines, meanwhile, are digging in their heels.

Florence is headed for a region with some of the most well-known military bases in the country, including Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia and the Marine Corps Recruit Depot on Parris Island in South Carolina.

While thousands of Marines and their families have already left Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina, the commanding general said on Tuesday, Sept. 11, that anyone remaining at the base would have food, water and protection despite being in the projected path of the storm.

Since 1941, this base and its Marines have been postured to deal with crises at home and abroad and Hurricane Florence is no exception, said a message from Brig. Gen. Julian D. Alford.

Nonessential personnel were released from duty at Lejeune and told they were free to relocate with their families to a site within a 500-mile (800-kilometer) radius of Jacksonville.

Nat Fahy, a spokesman for the command, said the base was the safest place for anyone who had not evacuated already. Shelters on the base are expected to open early Wednesday, he said, and there will be a full complement of resources for those sheltering in place.

Of the roughly 40,000 active duty troops at Lejeune, about three-quarters live off the base. Fahy did not know yet how many remained at the base.

Recruits were set to leave the Marine Corps largest training installation on the East Coast Tuesday, but those plans changed after South Carolinas governor rescinded an evacuation order as the storms projected path shifted northward.

Some non-essential personnel and families evacuated, but the bulk of the more than 8,000 Marines and support staff at Parris Island remain on the base.

At Fort Bragg, an inland Army base in North Carolina, officials told The Fayetteville Observer the majority of the 82nd Airborne Divisions helicopter fleet was being evacuated to one of two sites in Georgia.

In Virginia, Navy officials on Tuesday issued an emergency evacuation order for active duty and civilian personnel, their families and reservists living in certain coastal areas for which the state had also ordered an evacuation.

The move came after the Navy began sending dozens of its Virginia-based ships out to sea a day earlier. According to the Navy, the final two ships  the hospital ship USNS Comfort and the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln  sailed out of Naval Station Norfolk on Tuesday. More than 30 ships have now moved to safer waters in the Atlantic Ocean.

The U.S. Air Force and the Air National Guard also moved jets from Virginias coast to Ohio.

Officials from Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Hampton said the bases F-22 Raptors and T-38 Talon training jets would begin flying out Tuesday for Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in central Ohio.

About 100 personnel were to travel to Ohio to support the jets.
Members of the European Parliament take part in a vote on modifications to EU copyright reforms during a voting session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on Sept. 12, 2018. (Reuters/Vincent Kessler)

Europe Approves Controversial Copyright Law Opposed by Web Giants

BRUSSELSEuropean lawmakers voted to significantly strengthen copyright laws on the continent after a battle that pitched big tech companies against publishers and artists.

Members of the EU Parliament backed a series fiercely contested proposals, which have been designed to help struggling creative industries survive the internet era, by a significant margin. They voted 438-226 on Sept. 12 to approve a new Copyright Directive, overcoming fierce opposition from web giants, including Google and Facebook.

The new law contains two controversial measures that regulators hope will help creators, like journalists and musicians, claim back a bigger slice of the revenue websites generate from using their content.

However, representatives for large tech companies have argued the current wording of the regulation is heavy-handed and will impinge on free speech on the internet, even amounting to a ban on memes.

Internet personalities including web pioneer Sir Tim Berners-Lee and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales have complained that, if implemented, the measures will significantly restrict online creativity.

However, most artists, including former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney and French DJ David Guetta, have come out in favor of European efforts to increasingly regulate online space.

Controversy has particularly centered around Article 13 of the regulation, which will make websites take appropriate measures to prevent user-generated content that infringes copyright. Arguments also focused on Article 11, which grants news outlets a claim to copyright over the sharing of their content online and is aimed at aggregating sites such as Google News and Facebook.

The result of the vote was immediately welcomed by the industry group News Media Europe, which said the measures will help secure a more sustainable and digital future for Europes news media industry.

We need a publishers right to protect the hundreds of thousands of jobs in Europes news media sector and, in particular, to protect the future of professional journalism and its role in facilitating the democratic debate. News Media Europe Executive Director Wout van Wijk said.

Meanwhile, EDiMA, the trade association representing online platforms, condemned the vote and vowed to keep lobbying individual European governments to oppose the proposals.

EDiMA Director General Siada El Ramly said, Today, MEPs have decided to support the filtering of the internet to the benefit of big businesses in the music and publishing industries, despite huge public outcry. We hope that governments of the EU will hear their citizens concerns in the next stage of negotiations.

The landmark vote heralded the end of a bitter campaign that has deeply divided MEPs not only along national lines but also within their respective parties.

Representative Sajjad Karim, who is legal affairs spokesman for the British Conservative in the EU Parliament, said it showed that copyright law is at last catching up with the digital age.

However Daniel Dalton, a lawmaker from the same party, was dismayed by the result.

This is not good for the future of tech in Europe. I dont believe it will help creators either but it will introduce filtering. Much more legal content will get taken down, he said.

Having been passed by the Parliament, the law will now be considered during technical talks with the EUs other two institutionsits executive arm, the Commission, and the Council, which represents national governments.

Officials said the result of the discussions, known as trilogue, during which the text could be amended, is expected to be announced by the end of this year.
E-cigarettes are displayed at Gone With the Smoke Vapor Lounge on May 5, 2016 in S.F., Calif. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

FDA Considering Ban on Flavored E-cigarettes

WASH/LAThe Food and Drug Administration said on Sept. 12they are considering a ban on flavored e-cigarettes in response to an epidemic of young people using e-cigarettes, the agencys leader said.

In a speech at FDA headquarters, Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said the agency would also revisit its compliance policy that extended the dates for manufacturers of flavored e-cigarettes to submit applications for premarket authorization.

We see clear signs that youth use of electronic cigarettes has reached an epidemic proportion, Gottlieb said.

Gottlieb announced a number of steps the agency planned to take as part of a broader crackdown on the sale and marketing of e-cigarettes to kids. The agency issued 12 warning letters to companies that it says have deceptive marketing labels on e-liquids. We cannot allow a whole new generation to become addicted to nicotine, he said.

Shares of British American Tobacco were up nearly 6 percent and shares of cigarette-maker Imperial Brands PLC were up more than 3 percent. Shares of cigarette and e-cigarette maker Altria Group also rose more than 6 percent, while Philip Morris International shares were up 4 percent.

Traders said proposed FDA action was less harsh than feared.

Manufacturers offer and market e-cigarette flavors that appeal to minors, including candy, bubble gum, and fruit flavors. The FDA said more than 2 million middle school and high school students used e-cigarettes in 2017.

The FDA is giving the five top-selling e-cigarette brands  Juul Labs Inc., Vuse, MarkTen XL, Blu, and Logic  60 days to provide plans for how they will mitigate sales to minors.

Juul Labs said it would work with the FDA on its request and is committed to preventing underage use of its product. But it added that appropriate flavors play an important role in helping adult smokers switch, spokeswoman Victoria Davis said.

The owners of Vuse, MarkTen XL, Blu and Logic did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

While we remain committed to advancing policies that promote the potential of e-cigarettes to help adult smokers move away from combustible cigarettes, that work cant come at the expense of kids, Gottlieb said.

As part of its broader enforcement efforts, the FDA said it issued more than 1,300 warning letters and fines to retailers who illegally sold e-cigarette products to minors.

By Yasmeen Abutaleb
Americans Have Dismissed Idea That Trump Broke Any Law With Russia, Gallups Newport Says

The vast majority of Americans have dismissed the idea that President Donald Trump acted illegally with Russia during the 2016 election, according to Frank Newport, the editor-in-chief of Gallup.

Less than 3 in 10 Americans believe that Trump acted illegally in relation to alleged coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia, according to a Gallup poll (pdf) released on Sept. 6.

A lot of Americans have kind of dismissed the idea that he [Trump] colluded to the extent that he did something illegal, Newport told Hill.TV. A lot more Americans would say he did something wrong, but it wasnt illegal.

The number of Americans who believe that Trump broke the law went up 4 percent since last year. Meanwhile, the percentage of those who have no opinion rose to 9 percent this year compared to 3 percent in 2017.

The poll was conducted one week after former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and the presidents former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, were convicted of charges unrelated to the Russia-collusion narrative.

Manafort and Cohen were both prosecuted as a result of special counsel Robert Muellers investigation of alleged coordination between the Trump campaign with Russia and related matters. Mueller, who began investigating the allegations more than a year ago, has not produced any evidence or indictments related to collusion.

Days after the poll was conducted, former Trump-campaign adviser George Papadopoulos, the man whose alleged actions triggered the FBI probe of the Trump campaign in July 2016, was given a two-week prison sentence. Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI, a charge also unrelated to Russia collusion.

Trump has repeatedly criticized the Mueller probe as rigged and a witch hunt.

The Rigged Russian Witch Hunt goes on and on as the originators and founders of this scam continue to be fired and demoted for their corrupt and illegal activity, Trump wrote on Twitter on Aug. 15. All credibility is gone from this terrible Hoax, and much more will be lost as it proceeds. No Collusion!

Newport pointed out that while Americans have largely dismissed the idea that Trump acted illegally, they are consistently concerned with the failings of the U.S. government.

Americans are really disgusted with government and how it operates here in Washington DC, Newport said. And thats bipartisan.

While on the campaign trail and after taking office, Trump promised to drain the swamp in Washington. Im draining the Swamp, and the Swamp is trying to fight back. Dont worry, we will win! he wrote on Twitter on Sept. 5.

We have a crisis right here in our own nations capital according to the American public.

Democrats are overwhelmingly more likely to think that Trump acted illegally in 2016. Fifty-nine percent of Democrats surveyed believed Trump broke the law, compared to just three percent of Republicans.
Georgia Declares State of Emergency Over Hurricane Florence

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal has declared a state of emergency for all Georgia counties ahead of Hurricane Florences landfall.

A state of emergency has been declared for all 159 counties in Georgia in advance of Hurricane Florence impacts. Finalize your ready kits and follow [the] advice of local officials and news sources, said the Georgia Emergency Management Agency on Twitter at 1 p.m. ET on Sept. 12.

Deal also tweeted that he has issued an emergency declaration for all 159 counties in Georgia.

Based on the latest 11 a.m. forecast for the southward track of Hurricane Florence after making landfall and acting on a recommendation from @GeorgiaEMA officials, I have issued an emergency declaration for all 159 counties in Georgia. Read more here: https://t.co/FmO4iELdYq  Governor Nathan Deal (@GovernorDeal) September 12, 2018

The state is mobilizing all available resources to ensure public safety ahead of Hurricane Florence, said Deal on the state governments website.

He added: In light of the storms forecasted southward track after making landfall, I encourage Georgians to be prepared for the inland effects of the storm as well as the ensuing storm surge in coastal areas. GEMA/HS continues to lead our preparedness efforts as we coordinate with federal, state and local officials to provide public shelter and accommodate those evacuating from other states. Finally, I ask all Georgians to join me in praying for the safety of our people and all those in the path of Hurricane Florence.

It comes as the National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecast that the storm would potentially take a southern turn after hitting North and South Carolina. It could potentially bring very heavy rain to Georgia as well as parts of the Mid-Atlantic.

At 2 p.m. on Sept. 12, the NHC had storm surge and hurricane warnings in place for most of the North Carolina and South Carolina coast. Hurricane watches are in place around most of the South Carolina coast, and tropical storm warnings were in effect in southern Virginia.

There are no storm surge or hurricane warnings or watches for Georgia.

The forecast for a Florence impact in Georgia prompted President Donald Trump to issue a warning to Georgia residents: Hurricane Florence may now be dipping a bit south and hitting a portion of the Great State of Georgia. Be ready, be prepared!

South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland have also declared states of emergency for the storm.
A fishing boat navigates past icebergs that broke off from the Jakobshavn Glacier in Ilulissat, Greenland on July 23, 2013. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Greenland Picks Denmark Over China as Airport Project Partner

COPENHAGENGreenland on Sept. 10 picked Denmark as a partner in a planned upgrade of two airports as it sought to defuse a diplomatic row over how the infrastructure projects, of strategic interest to both Washington and Beijing, should be financed.

The Arctic island is a self-ruling part of Denmark, which is concerned that Chinese investmenton the agenda since Greenlands Prime Minister Kim Kielsen visited Beijing last yearcould upset the United States.

Kielsen on Sept. 10 agreed to let Denmark pay 700 million Danish crowns ($109 million) for a 33 percent stake in Kalaallit Airports, a state-owned company set up to build, own, and operate the airports in the capital of Nuuk and the tourist hub in Ilulissat.

At a meeting with Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen in Nuuk on Sept. 10, Kielsen also agreed to let Denmark provide credit worth 450 million crowns ($70 million) for the projects and provide state guarantee for another 450 million crowns ($70 million) loan from the Nordic Investment Bank.

In January, Beijing laid out ambitions to form a Polar Silk Road, an extension to its One Belt One Road initiative, by developing shipping lanes through the Arctic and encouraging Chinese enterprises to build infrastructure in the Arctic.

A Chinese construction company later appeared on a list of six firms that have shown interest in the Greenland projects, whose costs are estimated at 3.6 billion Danish crowns ($559 billion).

Greenland, itself also eager to benefit from growing activity in the Arctic, plans to expand the airports to accommodate direct flights from Europe and North America.

Greenland is strategically important for the U.S. military and its ballistic missile early warning system, as the shortest route from Europe to North America goes via the Arctic island.

By Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen
Hurricane Florence Path Could Impact Georgia After Making Landfall in Carolinas

Hurricane Florences forecasted path may dip and hit Georgia, and President Trump tweeted a warning to residents in the area.

The National Hurricane Center said at 8 a.m. Sept. 12 that the storm is Category 4 in strength. Earlier forecasts showed that the storm was slated to directly hit around North and South Carolina.

However, according to the latest projections, the storm might shift slightly to the south and affect Georgia with heavy rain and possible flooding.

Hurricane Florence may now be dipping a bit south and hitting a portion of the Great State of Georgia. Be ready, be prepared! President Donald Trump warned on Sept. 12. Hurricane Florence is looking even bigger than anticipated. It will be arriving soon. FEMA, First Responders and Law Enforcement are supplied and ready. Be safe! he also wrote.

Hurricane Florence may now be dipping a bit south and hitting a portion of the Great State of Georgia. Be ready, be prepared!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 12, 2018

In its 8 a.m. update, the NHC has yet to issue warnings for Georgia. Hurricane and storm surge warnings and watches are in effect for much of the North Carolina and South Carolina coastlines.

The problem is the models are starting to differ a little bit and trying to stall it along the North Carolina-South Carolina coast, and possibly curve it back across South Carolina toward Georgia, Channel 2 meteorologist Karen Minton told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Sept. 12. But also theres another scenario where it brings it down through the Savannah River valley and then back up toward the north.

WSB reporter Brad Nitz also tweeted: Please stay with us for updates. The Georgia impacts may increase. He added that the forecast landfall position is nudged slightly left. By Sunday-Monday it may drift toward Georgia. That will bring rain, but by that time wind will be light.

Wednesday AM hurricane Florence track update. The forecast landfall position is nudged slightly left. By Sunday  Monday it may drift toward Georgia. That will bring rain, but by that time wind will be light. Download the @wsbtv Weather App at https://t.co/w0yuZ75pJz pic.twitter.com/w3w0vlSWGR  Brad Nitz (@BradNitzWSB) September 12, 2018

Some forecasters say that the storm will dump potentially several feet of rain in some places.

Its still early in the hurricane forecast, but current data indicates as much as 15-25 with isolated 35 of rain possible with Hurricane Florence. Even Georgia looks to get rain from this system. Still much uncertainty. Stay tuned, Minton tweeted.

RAINFALL POTENTIAL: It's still early in the hurricane forecast, but current data indicates as much as 15"-25" with isolated 35" of rain possible with Hurricane Florence. Even Georgia looks to get rain from this system. Still much uncertainty. Stay tuned. pic.twitter.com/Zuvp0VU9ao  Karen Minton (@KarenMintonWSB) September 12, 2018

South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland have declared states of emergency. Georgia has not.

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deals chief of staff, Chris Riley, told the Journal-Constitution that the Georgia Emergency Management Agency is now tracking and monitoring the storm.

East Coast Bases Brace for Florence

Florence is headed for a region with some of the most well-known military bases in the country, including Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia and the Marine Corps Recruit Depot on Parris Island in South Carolina, The Associated Press noted.

Since 1941, this base and its Marines have been postured to deal with crises at home and abroad and Hurricane Florence is no exception, said a message from Brig. Gen. Julian D. Alford.

Nonessential personnel were released from duty at Lejeune and told they were free to relocate with their families to a site within a 500-mile (800-kilometer) radius of Jacksonville.

The Associated Press contributed to this report
Then-Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Robert Mueller testifies during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 19, 2013. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Its Time to Fire Mueller

Special counsel Robert Mueller just won a splendid victory. On Sept. 7, ex-foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign, George Papadopoulos, was sentenced to 14 days in prison for lying to the FBI.

President Donald Trump commented in a tweet: 14 days for $28 MILLION  $2 MILLION a day, No Collusion.

After burning through $28 million in taxpayers money, Mueller and his witch-hunt team have little to show for it. So far, Mueller has charged three Americans for lying to the FBI: George Papadopoulos, Rick Gates, and Michael Flynn. All pleaded guilty. Paul Manafort, the former Trump campaign chairman, was convicted on tax evasion and bank fraud on Aug. 21.

None of these people, not a single one, has been accused by Mueller of colluding with Russia to help Trump win the 2016 election. Manafort had been bugged for a couple of months in 2016 and 2017. Yet Mueller found absolutely nothing related to Russia that could incriminate him.

Additionally, not one of those Mueller has convicted has squealed on Trumps alleged connection with Russia, including Manafort, the most likely person to have access to Trumps secrets. Is this due to blind loyalty to Trump?

After Papadopouloss sentencing, his lawyer claimed the president of the United States hindered this investigation more than George Papadopoulos ever could. Doesnt sound particularly loyal to me. If Papadopoulos had anything on Trump, he would have spilled the beans long ago. There is only one possibility: These people didnt rat on Trump because theres nothing to rat about.

Finally, their lives were turned upside down only because they were associated with Trump at various times. If they never joined the Trump campaign, they would have lived their lives happily as free men. They have to be put under Muellers microscope because the deep state and Democrats want Trump to be humiliated.

Show me the man, and Ill show you the crime. The quote was attributed to Lavrentiy Beria, the infamous head of Soviet Russias secret police. Is Muellers tenet any different?

The zealotry of Rosenstein and Mueller has turned the Russia probe into a farce. Remember Mueller indicting 25 Russian nationals and three businesses for election meddling? Mueller probably thought he scored a big publicity win at the time. He betted that he never needed to do any work to prove the alleged crimes. He never thought one of the companies, Concord Management & Consulting, would choose to fight the charges and plead not guilty, in May 2018.

Concords defense counsel also hit Mueller with a bombshell revelation: One of businesses Mueller charged, Concord Catering, didnt exist during 2016. The company also filed discovery requests on Muellers evidence against it. Mueller seemed to be caught off guard and resorted to delay tactics in the name of national security. The Concord case definitely has the potential to blow up in Muellers face.

Theres no guarantee that Mueller would wind down his witch hunt to avoid impacting the 2018 midterm elections. Despite numerous failures and little gain, Muellers clown car continues to burn taxpayers money. The existence of Mueller and his fellow clowns is an affront to justice, due process, and human decency. Perhaps its time Trump puts Muellers circus out of business. Fire them all.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Hurricane Helene, Tropical Storm Isaac Update: Latest Path of Storms

Hurricane Helene is forecast to weaken over the eastern Atlantic Ocean, and interests in the Azores islands should monitor the storms progress.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said Helene has 90 mph winds, meaning it is a Category 1 storm.

The storm is located about 1,350 miles south-southwest of the Azores, and it is moving north-northwest at 14 mph.

There are no coastal watches or warnings in effect, said the NHC in its 11 a.m. Sept. 12 update.

A turn toward the north and northeast with an increase in forward speed is expected during the next few days, according to the agency. Maximum sustained winds remain near 90 mph (150 km/h) with higher gusts. Gradual weakening is forecast over the next couple of days, and Helene is expected to become a tropical storm on Thursday.

The NHC at 11 a.m. on Sept. 12 has issued warnings for Tropical Storm Isaac, which is still moving west about 420 miles east of the island of Martinique.

Tropical storm warnings were issued for Martinique, Dominica, and Guadeloupe. A tropical storm watch was issued for Antigua, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Saba and St. Eustatius.

The storm is moving at 17 mph to the west and has 60 mph winds.

The NHC said, A Tropical Storm Warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area within 24 to 36 hours. A Tropical Storm Watch means that tropical storm conditions are possible within the watch area, in this case within 24 to 36 hours. Interests elsewhere in the Leeward Islands should monitor the progress of Isaac.

Its not clear if the storm is expected to strengthen back into a hurricane after it hits the eastern Caribbean.

Update on Florence

Florence is currently 485 miles from Wilmington, North Carolina. It is moving northwest at 15 mph, according to the NHCs update at 11 a.m. Sept 12.

The National Hurricane Center said that the storm is Category 4 in strength. Earlier forecasts showed that the storm was slated to directly hit around North and South Carolina.

However, according to the latest projections, the storm might shift slightly to the south and affect Georgia with heavy rain and possible flooding.

The NHC is estimating that as many as 20 inches of rain could fall in some places along the southern North Carolina coast while bringing in excess of 10 inches of rain in parts of South Carolina. Some forecasting models say that the storm could dump as many as 35 inches of rain in some areas.

The storm is currently around 530 miles southeast of Cape Fear, North Carolina, and is moving west-northwest at 17 mph. Florence has 130 mph winds, enough to make it a dangerous Category 4 hurricane.

Interests elsewhere in the southeastern and mid-Atlantic states should monitor the progress of Florence, said the NHC.

Tropical Disturbance in Gulf

The agency is also monitoring a tropical disturbance that has a 60 percent chance of forming a tropical storm.

Cloudiness and showers associated with a trough of low pressure over the south-central Gulf of Mexico have decreased since yesterday and the Air Force reconnaissance plane scheduled to investigate the system for today will likely be canceled, said the NHC on Sept. 12. However, upper-level winds are forecast to become a little more conducive for development, and a tropical depression could still form Thursday or Friday before the system reaches the western Gulf Coast.

Regardless of development, heavy rainfall and gusty winds are expected across portions of northeastern Mexico, Texas, and Louisiana late this week, and interests there should monitor the progress of this system, it added.
Mac Miller Cause of Death Still a Mystery: Report

The cause of death for rapper Mac Miller is still unknown, according to his death certificate.

The certificate, filed with Los Angeles County, notes the cause of death as deferred, reported TMZ. That means the county coroner is awaiting toxicology results.

The reason such a certificate is filed without the cause of death being known is so the family can move on with a funeral.

Toxicology results typically take four to six weeks to be returned.

Responders Rush to Millers House

A 911 call placed on the afternoon of Sept. 7 alerted first responders, who rushed to Millers house but found him dead.

Police officers searched Millers home in a quest to determine how he died, but law enforcement sources told TMZ that they only found a small amount of white powder at the scene.

Law enforcement officers believe, based on witness interviews and other evidence, that Millers friends swept the house clean before calling the police.

Cops believe Mac overdosed on drugs, and our law enforcement sources say it makes no sense to them that someone who consumed a fatal dose would have the foresight to scrub the house of pill bottles, illegal drugs, as well as drug paraphernalia on the off chance they might die, the outlet reported.

A source told People magazine that Miller went into cardiac arrest after suffering a drug overdose.

Los Angeles County coroners spokeswoman Sarah Ardalani told the magazine, The autopsy was completed and a cause of death has been deferred pending additional tests. His body has been released.

Previous Problems

Miller was just 26 years old when he died, and had dealt with alcohol and drug problems in recent years.

He crashed a car into a light pole earlier this year and was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. He admitted being drunk in an interview in July.

What you dont understand is that I lived a certain life for 10 years and faced almost no real consequence at all, he said.

I had no version of the story that didnt end up with me being fine. Yeah, I made a stupid mistake. Im a human being. Like, I drove home drunk. But it was the best thing that could have happened  I needed that. I needed to run into that light pole and literally, like, have the whole thing stop, he said.

Wasnt Healthy

Friends said that the way Miller partied was not healthy, but indicated he was trying to clean himself up.

Shane Powers said on his podcast following Millers death that his friend wasnt living a healthy life, when discussing how Millers ex-girlfriend Ariana Grande was trying to help Miller get sober.

This little girl was unbelievably involved and helpful to him being healthy. Because whether hes an addict or not, the way that Mac partied was not healthy, Powers said, reported W magazine.

There was no one in his life more ready to go to the wall for him when it came to him being sober. And she was an unbelievably stabilizing force in his life, and she was deeply helpful and effective in keeping Mac sober and helping him get sober, Powers said.

From NTD.tv

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Man Gets 7 Years Jail for Fatal Stabbing Last Year

A man who fatally stabbed a neighbor during a fight after a night of drinking in East Oakland last year has been sentenced to seven years in state prison.

Antwan Robinson, 44, was charged with murder for the stabbing death of Alexander Christopher Hayes, 38, in the 7700 block of MacArthur Boulevard at about 12:15 a.m. on June 16, 2017. Hayes died at a hospital a short time later.

But in a trial that ended on May 17, Robinson was convicted of the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter.

Robinson faced up to 12 years in state prison but at a hearing on September 7, Alameda County Superior Court Judge C. Don Clay only sentenced him to seven years, giving him the middle term instead of the maximum term for his manslaughter conviction.

Alameda County prosecutor Butch Ford alleged in his closing argument in the case that Robinson was the aggressor in the fight and taunted Hayes by saying in front of a large group of their mutual acquaintances, You just want this booty, implying that Hayes wanted to have sex with him.

Ford said, If you accuse a heterosexual man of being gay in that neighborhood (in East Oakland) it usually leads to violence.

Ford said Robinson should be convicted of first-degree murder for killing Hayes and said a second defendant, 32-year-old Ebony Lewis, should be convicted of second-degree murder for aiding and abetting by giving Robinson the knife he used to stab Hayes.

He alleged that Robinson and Lewis worked together to murder Hayes.

But jurors found Robinson not guilty of both first- and second-degree murder and only convicted him of the lesser-included charge of voluntary manslaughter. Jurors also acquitted Lewis of the murder charge she faced.

Robinsons lawyer Richard Foxall admitted to jurors during the trial that Robinson fatally stabbed Lewis, but said Robinson did so in self-defense after Hayes attacked him several times and came at him with a 3-foot-long wooden object that was similar to an ax handle.

Ford said Robinson and Hayes engaged in mutual combat but alleged that Robinson was never in fear for his life and continued to stab Hayes even after Hayes had backed up 50 feet and was lying helplessly on the ground.

The prosecutor said Robinson stabbed Hayes eight times, including once when he was on the ground.

After Lewis was acquitted, her lawyer Alex Harper said she had no reason whatsoever to want to have Hayes killed because he was a friend of hers.

Robinson was arrested but never charged for the fatal stabbing of Reibu Washington, his 24-year old half-brother, at the home where they lived in the 1300 block of 81st Avenue in Oakland in September 1998.

Oakland police Sgt. Jeff Loman said at the time that Robinson told authorities that he stabbed Washington because Washington was violent and drunk and was harming their 4-year-old niece.

Loman said Robinson was cooperative with police and waited for officers to arrive after he killed Washington.

Loman said Robinson told police he was trying to get Washington to leave the house when the fatal fight occurred.

By Jeff Shuttleworth.
Retired NYPD officer and 9/11 first responder Kieran Breen at Ground Zero on Sept. 11, 2018. (David Vives/The Epoch Times)

NYPD First Responder Worries People Are Forgetting

NEW YORKRetired New York police officer Kieran Breen is still full of emotion when he talks about the tragedy of 9/11the deadliest attack on American soil since Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in World War II.

Nearly 3,000 people died when hijacked planes hit the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The vast majority perished when the Twin Towers in Lower

Manhattan collapsed as rescue workers rushed to the scene. Over 400 first responders were among the victims.

On that day, Breen was part of what he originally thought were going to be rescue and recovery efforts.

Unfortunately, there werent too many to rescue. There was almost no recovery from the beginning, he said, standing at Ground Zero for this years memorial service.

Im angry. And hopefulas I was in 2001. I was here that day.

Every year, memorial services held at Ground Zero are a time of high emotion for many, as they remember lost friends, family members, and colleagues.

Breen worries, however, that as time goes by, some people are starting to forget.

I think over 17 years, people have forgotten. Its sad. But luckily, I come down here and remind myself that [other] people dont forget also, he said.

They should remember every day that people sacrificed down here. That there are some people that [were] just going about their daily business, they were taken away from us.  They were vaporized, and people forget what that is.

Ive come down here to pray, and remember those souls. Somebody I was with that day, I will never see again.

We all act differently. This year I was able to come down. Some years Im just not able to do itjust emotional. I figured, Ill come down this year if Im up to it. Just pray for them.

Serviceman Who Lost Brother Wants 9/11 to Be Holiday

Retired serviceman Douglas Hersch has visited Ground Zero every year on the anniversary of the terror attacks.

Ive been here for 17 years. The feeling is the same always. I miss my brother, I miss the people taken away from everybody. I come to awakening of this terrible tragedy that took place. And hope that people will always remember.

I lost my brother, he was everything to me and now I can only think of him.

On that day, Hersch was up on 98th Street when he heard that a plane hit one of the towers.

I thought it was just a small plane. And then the second radio information I got, a second plane hit the second building.

Its terrorists ! It has to be terrorists, he recalls thinking.

I never expected the buildings to come down. Its hard to believe how they came down. I see it. I have it on tape. It just doesnt make sense, he said.

I hope [people] will remember. This day should be considered a holiday. More people would come and see what happened.

A lot of people would like to be here. Family members would like to be here, but they have to work. It just should be a federal holiday.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo waves to the media before his meeting with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry at the State Department in Washington, U.S., August 8, 2018. (Yuri Gripas/Reuters)

Pompeo Says Saudi, UAE Trying to Avoid Civilian Harm in Yemen

WASHINGTONU.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sept. 12 that he certified to Congress that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were working to reduce civilian casualties in Yemen, avoiding a limitation on U.S. help for its ally Saudi Arabia.

Without the certification, U.S. tanker aircraft would have been restricted in the refueling of Saudi-led coalition aircraft conducting strikes against Houthi rebels backed by Iran.

The three-year-old war in Yemen, widely seen as a proxy battle between regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran, has killed more than 10,000 people.

Pompeo said in a statement he advised Congress on Sept. 11 that the governments of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are undertaking demonstrable actions to reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure resulting from military operations of these governments.

A number of factors underpinned Pompeos decision, including the Saudi-led coalitions admission of blame and agreement to compensate the victims of an Aug. 9 air strike on a bus that killed dozens of people, including 40 children, a State Department official said.

The coalition also has pledged to hold accountable those responsible for the air strike, while Saudi Arabia and the UAE have continued supporting U.N. efforts to find a political settlement to the conflict, said the official, who requested anonymity.

U.S. lawmakers, concerned about a growing humanitarian disaster in Yemen, required Pompeo to certify by Sept. 12 that the Saudis and the UAE were taking meaningful measures to reduce civilian casualties and allow humanitarian aid deliveries.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said he backed Pompeos finding.

Saudi Arabia is leading a Western-backed alliance of Sunni Muslim Arab states to try to restore the internationally recognized government of Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, ousted from the capital Sanaa by the Iran-aligned Houthis in 2015.

An attempt to convene U.N.-mediated peace talks in Geneva collapsed last weekend after the Houthi delegation failed to show up for three days.

The Pentagon believes that its assistance, which includes refueling coalition jets and training in targeting, helps reduce civilian casualties.

By Jonathan Landay
President Donald Trump speaks at the Republican National Committee (RNC) winter meeting in Washington meeting on Feb. 1, 2018. The RNC has a substantial fund raising advantage over the Democrat National Committee, which may be cancelled out by other fundraising advantages enjoyed by the Democrats. (Olivier Douliery-Pool/Getty Images)

Republican Committees and Democratic Candidates Both Lead in Fundraising

Republicans have a significant monetary advantage over Democrats in the midterm congressional elections scheduled for Nov. 6or do they?

It depends how you slice up the financial data.

The stakes are high this year. The composition of Congress will determine whether Americans will hear about President Donald Trumps ambitious reform agenda in the lead-up to what promises to be a bitterly contested presidential election in 2020, or be bombarded day and night with news of endless congressional investigations of the administration and calls for the 45th presidents impeachment and removal from office.

Of course, it is an uphill battle for Republicans to hang onto the House of Representatives. Historically, the party that holds the presidency generally loses seats in off-year elections. Based on current standings, Democrats would need to pick up 23 seats to take control of the 435-seat House. Since World War II, the party occupying the White House has on average lost 26 House seats in the midterm contests.

At the time of writing, the Real Clear Politics polling average for the so-called generic congressional ballot question gave Democrats an 8.2 percentage point lead over Republicans. Democrats weighed in at 47.6 percent versus 39.4 percent for Republicans. The Democrats high water mark during the Trump era so far was on Dec. 17, 2017, when Democrats polled 18 percentage points over Republicans, garnering 56 percent support, compared to Republicans 38 percent.

According to the statistics website FiveThirtyEight, Democrats are favored to win a majority of seats if they win the popular vote by at least 5.5 points. With Democrats seemingly on-track to exceed that 5.5-point threshold, FiveThirtyEight gives that party an 81.8 percent chance of wresting control of the House of Representatives from Republicans, who are given a mere 18.2 percent chance of maintaining control of the chamber.

Republicans maintaining control of the Senate seems a safer bet but by no means a sure thing. Republicans currently have 51 seats in the 100-seat chamber, compared to the Democrats 49 seats (which includes the independents Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine who caucus with the Democrats). Democrats are defending 26 Senate seats, compared to the nine Republicans are defending.

Committees

In the 2018 electoral cycle, the Republican National Committee (RNC) has outraised its counterpart, the Democratic National Committee (DNC), by a ratio of nearly 2 to 1, according to Center for Responsive Politics data.

At the time of writing, the RNC, which is the primary fundraising entity of the Republican Party, had raised $227.2 million, which is significantly more than the $117.3 million generated by the DNC. The RNC has $41.9 million in cash on hand, or five times the just over $8 million the DNC has in cash on hand. The RNC has zero debt, while the DNC is $6.7 million in debt.

Republicans are still ahead in the money race when the RNC and its affiliated committees are compared to the DNC and its affiliated committees, but the advantage is much less pronounced. Democrats have almost as much money in the bank as Republicans.

In the 2018 cycle, Republicans collectively have raised $670.7 million and spent $467.7 million. They have $149.3 million in cash on hand and are $1.6 million in debt.

In the same period, Democrats have generated $552.2 million and spent $442.8 million. They have $144.3 million in cash on hand and are $9.3 million in debt.

Candidates

But narrowly focusing on the money fight between the RNC and DNC only reveals part of the story.

Democratic candidates are outraising Republican candidates by a significant margin, especially among individual donors, which may indicate greater intensity of popular support among the Democratic segment of the electorate.

The latest data indicate throughout the whole 2018 cycle so far, Democrats have raised $625.1 million for 1,502 House candidates (including candidates in the primaries; there are a total of 435 House seats) and have $304.3 million in cash on hand. Political action committees (PACs) were the source of $117.3 million, while $431.6 million came from individuals.

Republicans have raised $471.2 million for 1,207 candidates and have $280.9 million on hand. PACs donated $161.6 million, while individuals gave $230.3 million.

On the Senate side, Democrats have raised $368.6 million for 155 candidates and have $237.5 million on hand. PACs came up with $42 million and individuals gave $289.8 million.

Republicans have raised $258.4 million for 251 candidates and have $173.4 million on hand. PACs gave $37.4 million, while individuals donated $141.6 million.

Take out those candidates who are no longer in the running, and Democrats still have an advantage, especially in Senate races.

But first, on the House side, Democrats raised $445.6 million for 496 current candidates and have $272 million on hand. PACs donated $109 million, while individuals gave $294.2 million.

Republicans raised $373.6 million for 404 candidates and have $231 million on hand. PACs gave $145.9 million compared to individuals who donated $182.6 million.

On the Senate side, Democrats raised $305.4 million for 37 current candidates and have $181.6 million on hand. PACs donated $37.8 million while individuals gave $236.6 million.

Republicans raised $163.9 million for 42 candidates and have $68.1 million on hand. PACs donated $16.5 million while individuals gave $84.2 million.

Kochs Missing?

Why is Republican fundraising going so badly?

Trumps ongoing feud with libertarian billionaire donor Charles Koch may be straining GOP candidates treasuries.

Koch is a staunch advocate of free trade, while Trump is using tariffs to help negotiate new trade deals more favorable to the United States. Trump famously wants a wall on the southern border and to enforce immigration laws, while Koch supports open borders. These differences broke into an open quarrel this summer.

Koch and his brother, David, who is ailing and less active in politics, have been major financial backers of Republicans for the last decade and a half. But the Kochs barely register on the Center for Responsive Politics list of top Republican top donors in the 2018 cycle.

Charles Koch ranks 99th on the list of 100 individual donors, having donated $1 million to conservative or Republican causes.

On the list of top organizations making contributions, Koch Industries ranks 15th, having donated a total of $7.5 millionalmost all of which went to Republicansin the current electoral cycle. The figure includes any donations made by the company, its employees, and its PAC. It does not include any donations made to 501(c)(4) lobbying organizations, which are not required to disclose donations they receive.

Wealthy left-wing donors have given significant amounts to liberals and Democrats, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Energy entrepreneur Tom Steyer, who regularly calls for the impeachment of Trump, has donated $30.1 million, and radical philanthropist George Soros has given $12 million so far.
Europe to Crack Down on Golden Visas Amidst Growing Concern Over Russian Interference

BRUSSELSGolden visas, which allow wealthy businessman to effectively buy EU citizenship, are increasingly losing their shine amid growing concerns over Russian interference in European politics.

As relations with Moscow continue to sour, most recently in the wake of the Salisbury novichok attack, the net is tightening on oligarchs as countries rethink policies which allow the oligarchs a free pass into Europe, few questions asked.

EU officials are promising a crackdown on such schemes by the end of the year, but many European states have already been stung into action by a series of controversies over who is benefitting from them.

Currently just under half of all EU countries offer some form of cash for citizenship program, with the the terms entailed and checks carried out on individuals varying widely across the continent.

In many cases applicants for golden visas do not have to fulfil basic criteria required of those less well off, including passing language tests and committing to long-term residency.

Some of the schemes, such as the one operated in Portugal, were set up largely to help bolster flagging European economies which struggled to emerge from the gloom of the 2008 financial crisis.

They allow wealthy foreigners to make an investment in a European countryeither by setting up a business or buying expensive propertyin return for receiving a visa or citizenship that gives them access to the whole EU.

But a significant number of the beneficiaries have been Russians with close ties to Vladimir Putin, something that has sparked growing concern amongst European officials and lawmakers.

An especially popular destination is the tiny Mediterranean island of Malta, where for an investment of 1.15 million euros ($1.3 million dollars), businessmen can obtain citizenship. Conveniently, family members can be added for a further 25,000-50,000 euros ($29,000-$58,000) each.

At least three billionaires named on the U.S. Treasurys Kremlin list of oligarchs linked personally to Putin now have Maltese passportsArkady Volozh, Boris Mints, and Alexander Nesis.

Cyprus, another sun-soaked island, is also a well known haven for Russians fleeing the harsh Moscow winter and has raked in an estimated 4.8 billion euros ($5.6 billion) from selling hundreds of such visas, according to an AFP report.

Trojan Horses

A new area of concern for EU countries, meanwhile, is not just the ultra wealthy but also how people who are apparently members of Russias middle classes are suddenly finding the huge sums of money needed to buy such visas.

The EUs Justice Commissioner Vera Jourova, who comes from the former Soviet state of the Czech Republic, is at the vanguard of attempts to close loopholes in the system that she fears allow criminals the freedom of Europe.

It is a big concern when a Russian citizen who has worked his whole life in middle or senior managementwhere salaries arent very highsuddenly has the money to buy citizenship in Malta, she said.

European states should do more due diligence, Jourova added, and not enable criminals have an easy entry to Europe and have the same rights as those who work hard and pay taxes.

The EU must not become a safe haven for criminals, corruption, and dirty money. We dont want any trojan horses in the EU.

Recently it has not just been Russians, but also increasingly Chinese businessmen who have taken advantage of such residency schemes to secure a foothold in Europe.

In Portugal, which offers visas in return for a substantial investment in property, they have made 3,890 applications since 2012 according to real estate company Knight Frank.

Meanwhile in Hungary, which scrapped its controversial program in 2017 after four years in operation, 15,754 Chinese citizens were handed permanent residence permits at a cost of 1.6 billion euros (US$1.8 billion).

The EU Commission, which acts as the executive arm of the project, does not have the power to outlaw golden visas completely but can take legislative action to toughen up conditions attached to them on security grounds.

Dutch lawmaker Sophie in t Veld, who is deputy leader of the Liberal grouping in the European Parliament, is amongst those going further still and calling for an outright ban on such schemes.

Saying that this is national competence is not good enough anymore. We need harmonized laws and we need more transparency, she said.

We need to stop double standards. Those who come here to work are treated like criminals but those coming here to park their money are treated like kings.

Anti-corruption campaigners have also warned that the schemes leave Europe wide open to criminals such as money launderers, who get unimpeded travel across the continent, second passports, and a safe haven to escape to.

The Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project has said that golden visa programs represent a potential threat to the fight against cross-border corruption and should be restricted.

Investigators at the not for profit organization added that without sufficient integrity checks in place, they constitute an easy back door for the corrupt to run riot in Europe.

A European Commission spokesman said officials would present a report on appropriate actions in this area and guidance for Member States, including on the necessary background checks for applicants by the end of the year.
Members of the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra at the Taoyuan International Airport in Taoyuan, Taiwan, on Sept. 12, 2018. (Chen Po-chou/The Epoch Times)

Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra Receives a Rousing Welcome to Taiwan

TAOYUAN, TaiwanCarrying banners, colorful heart-shaped postcards, and Ferrero Rocher bouquets, around 100 fans gathered for the arrival of Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra at the Taoyuan International Airport in the early morning on Sept. 12.

This is a rare opportunity.  Fans usually dont get the chance to talk to these performers. This is the only opportunity that I can get very close to them, said Chung Kai-tse, 40, a business retailer who was among those who came to welcome the orchestra.

Based in New York, the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra is comprised of musicians from Shen Yun Performing Arts, which has expanded to five touring groups since its debut in 2006. This year marks the third year that the orchestra has toured Taiwan.

Chung explained that he has become a fan because Shen Yuns music brings him happiness on a spiritual level.

Lin Hsiang-tsen, a Chinese-language high school teacher who also came to the airport, said she is a superfan, and her daughter also enjoys going to the orchestras performances.

Lin added that another reason she decided to come was because she felt that the companys missionto revive traditional Chinese cultureis a positive influence for Taiwanese society. The old culture and traditions have largely been lost in modern-day China.

Shen Yun has enjoyed enormous success in the island country. Last year, the company put on 15 concerts in two weeks. This year, it is set to grace the stage at 10 cities for a total of 12 concerts.

A Unique Orchestra



Conductor Milen Nachev explained that Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra is one-of-a-kind in America, for it successfully blends a full-sized symphony orchestra with traditional Chinese instruments.

According to Shen Yuns official website, Chinese instruments such as the two-stringed erhu, and the pipa, a type of guitar, have their own character, each differing greatly from the other. And it is not an easy thing to blend Chinese instruments with a Western orchestra, the website says.

Nachev provided a glimpse of what audiences in Taiwan could expect from the performance this year. He said the orchestra will debut two new original compositions, in addition to well-known classics such as Carmen Fantasy by Pablo de Sarasate, Waltz from Sleeping Beauty by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and Imperial March by Richard Wagner.

Nachev said one of the things that has been admired about Shen Yun as it endeavors to bring classical music to audiences around the world is the fact that it features a great variety musical pieces.

We prefer to have not too long pieces, but a lot of contrast [between musical pieces], and a lot of emotional impact to the audience, he said.

He added that the orchestra has prepared a surprise for Taiwan audiences. I dont want to describe in any detail right now. You will have to see during the [performance], he said.

Musicians

Violin virtuoso Fiona Zheng has earned high accolades for her solo performances with the orchestra.

In 2015, audience members in various venues during that years tour said they were brought to tears by Zhengs performance of Sarasates acclaimed Gypsy Airs, a notoriously difficult piece to play.

Zheng said she is looking forward to how audiences react this year, noting that the key to her performance relates to how deeply she can touch people, while at the same time bringing them happiness through her playing.

Trumpet player Eric Robins spoke of his experience playing alongside traditional Chinese instruments.

You have to be flexible as a musician  and [all of the musicians working ] as one body80 people being flexible together, he said.

When asked if the tight performing schedule in Taiwan might be physically demanding, Robin said he has learned to slow down with everything in his daily routineeven his breathingwhich helps him cope with the pace with ease.

The experience of traveling to Taiwan is very different for violinist Li Chia-Chi because it is a return to her home; she was born in Kaohsiung, a city in southern Taiwan.

I am ecstatic whenever the company comes to Taiwan, Li said, adding that she is always pleased when she hears feedback from audience members saying the performance brings them peace.

Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra will kick off its tour in Taiwan with a performance in Taipei on Sept. 13. After the tour ends on Sept. 27, the orchestra will travel to South Korea to perform in the Korean cities of Daegu and Daejeon.

On Oct. 5, Shen Yun will begin its tour of North America, starting with a performance in Toronto, before returning to the United States for concerts in New York City, North Bethesda in Maryland, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Chicago.

Reporting by NTD Television, Nico Chen, and Frank Fang

New York-based Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra comprises musicians from the five Shen Yun Performing Arts touring companies.

The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time and has covered audience reactions since the companys inception in 2006.
The towers of an Eskom power plant in the Hendrina settlement, South Africa, on Feb. 22, 2018. (Marco Longari/AFP/Getty Images)

South African Lawmakers Latest to Call Out China for Debt-Trap Diplomacy

A $2.5 billion loan from China to South Africas largest utility company has come under scrutiny as local lawmakers accuse the Chinese regime of engaging in debt-trap diplomacy.

China has aggressively courted African nations for investments seen as advantageous to its national agenda.

In the Congo, China has provided billions in aid, allowing it to secure rights to mine for cobalt, a material thats a key component to making lithium-ion batteries used to power electric vehiclesan industry targeted by Beijing for development. In Kenya, China has financed big-budget infrastructure projects, which has left the African country unable to pay its loans to Chinese entities.

At a recent cooperation forum in Beijing, China pledged $60 million to African nations, promising that government debt from Chinese interest-free loans due by year-end would be written off for the poorest African nations.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping embarked on a tour of African nations in July, striking business deals. Among them was a $2.5 billion loan from China Development Bank to help the scandal- and debt-ridden South African utility giant, Eskom, stay afloat. The company supplies more than 90 percent of the countrys power and has 220 billion rand ($17 billion) of state-guaranteed debt, according to Reuters. As of the end of March, Eskom had debt of 399 billion rand ($30 billion), according to Bloomberg.

South Africas Democratic Alliance party has raised concerns about the nature of the loan, and the possibility that the debt would burden the country.

Chinas debt-trap diplomacy has already trapped the Zambian power utility and will no doubt be as ruthless on South Africas power utility if Eskom defaults on the R33 billion loan from the CDB [China Development Bank], the partys official Twitter account noted on Sept. 9. The Zambian utility company in question is Zesco, which African media outlets reported is currently in talks with a Chinese firm to hand over control, after Zambia was unable to service the debt.

In South Africa, Democratic Alliance leader Mmusi Maimane threatened litigation against South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa if the latter didnt disclose terms and conditions of the loan from China, according to a Sept. 9 report by EWN Eyewitness News, a South African news outlet.

Previously, Eskom Chief Executive Phakamani Radebe had said Eskom will fund the repayment of the loan itself, which represents 62 percent of the funding Eskom needed for this financial year, he said.

On Sept. 11, Ramaphosa provided more detail about the loan while answering questions from South Africas upper house of parliament, the National Council of Provinces. The loan will be used for the construction of a coal-fired power station, which Eskom must repay beginning in 2020, through 20 installments in 10 years, according to an EWN report.

The president rejected the idea of becoming trapped by debt to China. We are very jealous of our assets and will not hand over South Africa to any other country or any other entitythat I can assure you of, EWN cited Ramaphosa as saying.

Ramaphosa added that the China Development Bank doesnt have direct or indirect ownership of Eskom assets.

But the worry expressed by some South African lawmakers are understandable, given the track record in countries such as Djibouti and Kenya, where projects with China have led to Beijing becoming those countries largest creditor and allowed the Chinese regime to exert influence in the bargain.
Supervisors Vote to Approve Mayor Breeds Police Commission Picks

San Francisco supervisors on Sept. 11, voted to approve two people nominated by Mayor London Breed to serve on the citys Police Commission.

During their regular meeting, the board of supervisors voted 10-1 for Damali Taylor, with Supervisor Sandra Lee Fewer voting against the nomination. Supervisors unanimously approved the nomination of Dion-Jay Brookter.

Before the voting, Fewer said she wouldnt be able to support Taylors nomination to the Police Commission, citing a lack of representation of the Chinese community.

Fewer, who is of Chinese descent, questioned Taylors connections and outreach efforts to the Chinese community, adding during Taylors interview by the Rules Committee last week, I felt that her answers did not meet the standards of my community.

Also ahead of the voting, Supervisor Jane Kim asked the two nominees whether they would support the Police Department entering a Joint Terrorism Task Force Memoranda of Understanding that would allow for the surveillance of members of the community based on race or religion, without probable cause.

Taylor said, I dont think I can nor would I prejudge without having any of the facts before me.

Brookter said he would want to take a look at MOU with the community to see if thats the route where we want to go.

An unsatisfied Kim said, Im a little disheartened because this is a major issue impacting our community.

In 2017, the San Francisco Police Department announced it had suspended its participation with the FBIs controversial Joint Terrorism Task Force that it had initially entered into in 2007.

Following the suspension, the department said it would update its guideline for First Amendment activities and seek clarification from the Police Commission as to this guidelines application to JTTF investigations.

If the new guideline was adopted, the department said it would consider renegotiating the JTTF memoranda with the FBI.

Supervisors Ahsha Safai and Hillary Ronen also expressed concerns about re-entering a JTTF MOU because of alleged rights violations by the administration of President Donald Trump.

Rejoining the task force would be a huge mistake, Ronen said.

After Kim rephrased her original question more than once, the two nominees eventually conceded that they would not support entering an MOU that would allow for use of city resources for the surveillance of residents based on race or religion, without probable cause.

In support of the two nominees, who are both African-American, president of the board, Supervisor Malia Cohen, said, We do need African-American representation  Im excited to see these two candidates today who are stepping up to serve a city that they love.

Also during the meeting on Sept. 11, supervisors paid their respects to a former employee with the citys Street Violence Intervention Program who died in an unsolved shooting last month.

Joseph Taeotui, 43, died on Aug. 22 after suffering life-threatening injuries in a shooting in the citys Bayview neighborhood on Aug. 13.

Taeotui worked to prevent gun violence among youth and was reportedly leaving a neighborhood meeting regarding gun violence when he was shot.

On Sept. 11, Cohen described Taeotui as a San Francisco native who was dedicated to improving the Bayview and Hunters Point communities.

After years of witnessing violence in the Bayview community, Joe, also known as Jungle, was inspired by the youth to help them make a change, she said, appearing to hold back tears.

Taeotui was laid to rest over the weekend, Cohen said.

Hes survived by his wife and his 2-year-old daughter.

Jungle will be truly missed, Cohen said. He was an angel that walked among us on this earth.

By Daniel Montes
Suspect Collapses and Cries, Fight Breaks out in Connecticut Court

A man accused of fatally stabbing a student to death in Enfield, Connecticut, appeared to collapse in court and court officials were forced to throw out disrupters.

Shyhiem Adams, 18, was charged with manslaughter in the death of Justin Brady, a 16-year-old Enfield High School student, the Hartford Courant reported.

Some 40 people attended the court hearing where Adams collapsed, appeared to cry, and trembled. Judge Sheila Prats was forced to throw out disruptive onlookers after outbursts, the report said.

The tension escalated into a fight outside the courtroom, the Courant reported. Ten people were thrown out of the room while they shouted obscenities. When Adams collapsed, he said, Im a good soul, Jesus please.

In the stabbing incident, police said they responded to an area in Enfield after getting a call on Sept. 10, from someone who saw a group of kids standing near a person on the ground. Officers then discovered Brady, who was stabbed, NBC Connecticut reported.

He bled to death in front of me and I just cant believe it that nobody did anything except me for calling 911, a witness said.

Brady and Adams met in the area to fight. Adams stabbed Brady several times, it was reported.

Officials said Adams and Brady were acquainted with one another, the NBC report stated.

Police spokesman James Laurino told the Courant in another report that Adams was arrested on Sept. 11.

Really just unacceptable. Say he didnt do anything that people would just walk up and stab the poor kid, said James Christensen, a classmate of Brady in high school, Fox61 reported.
As Idlib Offensive Looms, Syrians Flee to Border Villages

Idlib, SyriaSyrians escaping violence in Idlib have arrived in villages near the Turkish border in droves, fearing Damascus will launch a full-blown assault on the rebel stronghold.

More than 30,000 people have fled their homes in northwest Syria since the army and allied forces resumed bombardment last week, the U.N. humanitarian affairs office (OCHA) said on Sept. 10, that a military offensive could trigger the worst humanitarian catastrophe of the 21st century.

What happened was destruction all over, burning, something you cant describe, said Ali al-Mheymid, 50, who escaped the village of Sarjah in Idlib province with his family last week.

They did not differentiate between civilians and others, he told Reuters from a village near the Bab al-Hawa crossing with Turkey. He has moved into a tent there with 13 relatives in a makeshift settlement after paying the landowner rent.

Mheymid, who has five children, said people fled in the hundreds, some bringing only blankets and kitchen supplies. People are hoping that right now, here is safer than there, but God knows whats coming.

If government forces advance further toward them, they would have no choice but to move to the Turkish frontier, he added. There is no escape.

Damascus and Moscow say they only target armed factions and seek to end the rule of al Qaeda-linked militants over the Idlib region. Idlib makes up a major chunk of Syrias northwest corner, the last bastion of opposition to President Bashar al-Assad.

The presidents of Turkey, Iran, and Russia met in Tehran last week but did not agree on a ceasefire that would prevent an expected offensive.

Ankara, which hosts some 3.5 million refugees, has said it could not take any more if an attack on Idlib drove a new surge of people toward its border. On Sept. 11President Tayyip Erdogan wrote that an offensive would spark humanitarian and security risks for Turkey, Europe and beyond.

The Turkish military, which is deployed across an arc of northwest Syria near Idlib with its rebel allies, has also set up 12 observation posts around Idlib this year.

OCHA spokesman David Swanson said on Sept. 10that about half of those displaced so far have moved to camps, while others went to informal settlements, stayed with families or rented housing.

Mamdouh Abu al-Saoud, who fled with his wife and three daughters, said he worried the fighting would only get worse.

What will we do? Every time it follows us, we escape a meter to the north and leave it up to God, where will we go? he said. His family, along with brothers and cousins, arrived in the informal camp near Bab al-Hawa three days ago.

Saoud said years of war had already forced them to flee many times before, first from their hometown in Hama province, then to live as refugees in neighboring Jordan. They later went to southern Syria, only to move again in a withdrawal deal when government forces defeated rebels there around two months ago.

We had come (to Idlib) without anything, he said.

An influx of displaced people has roughly doubled the Idlib regions population to around 2.9 million people in recent years. Civilians and fighters have poured in, shuttled out of towns and cities where Assads military crushed rebels with the help of Russia and Iran.

The first day of the bombing, we said it might dwindle down. The next day, there was more, said Hussein al-Okab, 43, who came to the informal settlement with his wife and seven kids. A warplane struck my uncles sheep.

He said entire villages were emptied.

by William Maclean
The Epoch Times is Our Real-World Daily Planet From Superman

While peoples trust in news media in the United States and around the world continues to fall to record lows, The Epoch Times stands out as a superhero for journalism.

The Daily Planet has long been considered one of the most iconic fictional newspapers in the world of movies and television. Its a place where hard-working journalists such as Supermans alias Clark Kent work for a publisher that may act stern, but has integrity, and who wont back down from printing the truth even when the paper is threatened.

The fictional newspaper first appeared in 1940 in the Superman radio show. In those times, it was clear who the good guys were and who the bad guys were: those who upheld traditional laws, and those who broke those laws. But now, its not so easy anymore.

Thats why The Epoch Times was founded. Like Superman and the Daily Planet, the founders of The Epoch Times wanted to fight evil, expose crimes against humanity across the globe, and tell the truth. Its journalists work hard to uncover all the pieces of the puzzle before they present the public with uncensored and unbiased news.

The old adage the pen is mightier than the sword duly applies here.

Decades ago, the United States faced grave threats from the oppression of communism spread with the help of the Soviet Union. The Cuban Missile Crisis was the crescendo of this battle. Needless to say, good won out.

But freedom does not come free. It comes at a price. And the media must help the public understand that price if nations such as the United States are to keep their freedoms of speech, religion, and the press. Its citizens will then become more hopeful and have peace of mind, because they can accurately understand how their country and their lives relate to the state of affairs in the world at large.

President John F. Kennedy gave a speech in 1961 following the Bay of Pigs episode, one year before the Cuban Missile Crisis. At that time all Americans stood tall together against the tyranny of this crisis, knowing full well what a bad outcome would mean for the country, themselves and their children.

The President of a great democracy such as ours, and the editors of great newspapers such as yours, owe a common obligation to the people: an obligation to present the facts, to present them with candor, and to present them in perspective. It is with that obligation in mind that I have decided in the last 24 hours to discuss briefly at this time the recent events in Cuba, said Kennedy.

This same obligation and great responsibility is now being upheld by The Epoch Times. One of the greatest examples is the newspapers dedication to expose the lies and criminal deeds that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has committed over the last several decades and which continues today.

Although the CCCP of the Soviet Union has fallen, Chinas CCP still remains, and its brand of tyranny is not always easy to see. The mainstream media does occasionally report on political or religious dissident persecution in China, and the State Department has listed China as one of the worst human rights abusers in the world. The U.S. government has also passed resolutions such H. Res. 343, which exposes and condemns the CCPs state-sanctioned illegal organ harvesting of live Falun Gong practitioners.

However, when asked, most Americans and many people around the world have little knowledge of any of these crimes against humanity. Why? Because major media groups have not performed their obligation and responsibility to report them in a timely, comprehensive and truthful manner to the public.

We must ask ourselves: Is Chinas communist regime our friend or our foe in the fight against evil? This is not so easy to differentiate. One reason for this is that many media groups and companies around the globe have their hands deep in Chinese pockets. In addition, the CCP coerces and threatens many governments and corporations to not expose their lies and crimes to the world, or they will drop all business relationships and capital investments.

But one media that shines brightly through all of this has been The Epoch Times. The Epoch Times started exposing the Chinese regimes crimes and clandestine operations 17 years ago, and it hasnt stopped since.

As a result, the Chinese edition of The Epoch Times has become the most trusted Chinese paper in the world, and the English version is growing exponentially.

Because of The Epoch Times tenacious objective journalism, we have finally been able to see how the Chinese government and other communist influences have been able to affect and shape the worlds politics, economy, and society. Although its methods have been difficult to identify, The Epoch Times has been working relentlessly on this since its inception.

A truly upright and positive media group needs to have the philosophy of helping people, bringing people closer together, and helping people to have more faith in decent countries governments. This uplifts them and gives them hope, instead of dissension, confusion and chaos.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Susette Kelo stands outside her home, in the Fort Trumbull area of New London, Connecticut in this file photo. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2005 that the stimulation of economic development is a suitable use of the government's power to seize private property. The 2018 movie Little Pink House tells Kelo's story. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

The Soul of America in a Movie

'Little Pink House' shows why property rights matter

What legalese conceals, a heart-wrenching film reveals. Not only does the 2017 film Little Pink House show why June 23, 2005, was a grave day in U.S. legal history, it humanizes the victims of this tragedy for the American dream.

The Supreme Courts famous Kelo decision, which narrowly rejected an eminent-domain appeal, went against the deepest values of the American republic. As written by Ilya Somin of George Mason University in his book The Grasping Hand, this case often cut across conventional ideological divisions, since private property is a central part of the American constitutional tradition and of our political culture.

Susette Kelo and her neighbors in the Fort Trumbull neighborhood of New London, Connecticut, resisted an encroachment on their homes by politicians and economic development cronies. Their valiant fight was to no avail, and their properties were seized. The fact that the development project never came to be, with feral cats now living in the area, rubs salt into the wound of injustice. The nonexistent development also underlines why purported economic benefits, imagined from on high, are insufficient grounds for violating ones right to property.

The story was begging to be turned into a feature film.

Spirit on the Big Screen

Thanks to a 2009 book by Jeff Benedict, also called Little Pink House, and subsequent directing by Courtney Balaker, the wait is over. After an extended showing in mostly independent theaters, the 99-minute film based on a true story is now available to a wider audience.

I had the good fortune of watching this David-versus-Goliath film in a San Diego theater, and it pulled at ones heartstrings, to say the least. Why this film did not garner media attention over the past year isnt clear. Like fine wine, though, it will age well and become a cult classic.

It touched me and other viewers because it gives a voice to the America so many of us love: the overlooked salt-of-the-earth people who care about and help each other. For example, Kelo (played by Catherine Keener) was an emergency medical technician, and Little Pink House showed this kind, humble woman fighting in a peaceful manner for what she believed in: the right to keep ones own home.

Not only did she and her fellow community members support one another through roughly six years of intimidation and harassment, they received pro bono legal representation from the Institute for Justice. Countless generous Americans, through this self-described national law firm for liberty, contributed $1 million toward the case of Kelo and the six other plaintiffsa sum beyond the means of any of the victims.

Why This Film Works

Many filmmakers attempt to dramatize true-story underdog battles and make them understandable and appealing to a wider audience; few do so successfully. Little Pink House does that and more, and with a message that resonates with the American entrepreneurial spirit.

What makes this film stand out, ironically, is its lack of spectacle. Instead of big Hollywood names and theatrics, the cast and production team deliver a gritty, tight film that conveys the story with warts-and-all honesty and precision. The story speaks for itself, without a need for partisan tweaking or hidden agendas.

Many Americans will relate to the early-2000s plot and the themes; you could find similar stories throughout the country. What made this one stand out was that the Supreme Court gave it a hearing. For example, Jeanne Tripplehorn plays the academic go-between for a criminal politician and Pfizer Inc. This story isnt only true, it is painfully familiar to all of us. Tripplehorn acts it out precisely, repeating the political buzzwords we have heard too many times before.

A Moral Victory

In the aftermath, polling showed that more than 80 percent of Americans opposed the Kelo decision. They get it: The poor and politically weak shouldnt be subject to takings when the explicit motive is simply higher tax revenues.

Anyone can see that these revenues dont constitute public use, as stipulated by the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The economic development argument also leads to the awkward conclusion, admitted by the City of New Londons attorney in the case, that a Motel 6 could be taken from its rightful owner merely to be turned into a Ritz-Carlton.

The widespread opposition to eminent domain is instinctive and foundational to Americans, on a level with free speech. The instinctive reaction is one reason why two-thirds of states passed their own protections against eminent domain, although voters were rarely informed enough to ensure the protections had teeth.

The filmmakers must have been wary of this, since they didnt get lost in the weeds. Kelo, in the film, must explain herself, and she readily admits that she is no legal scholar. She is appealing to the morality of the American people and their constitutional tradition.

Fortunately, that noble spirit and tradition coincides with economic reality. Whether in the United States, Canada, or China, property rights are foundational to a free and prosperous society. Despite rhetoric to the contrary, the Kelo story makes the case that these rights not only bring prosperity, they are a protection for the most vulnerable among us who lack political influence.

The few clips drawn from the Kelo herself, as opposed to dramatization, drive home that point: There are real victims of eminent domain, and they are those who most deserve our protection and support.

Fergus Hodgson is the founder and executive editor of Latin American intelligence publication Antigua Report.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Rachel Donelson, 33, and her son at Ground Zero for the seventeenth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, on Sept. 11, 2018. (Margaret Wollensak/The Epoch Times)

Weight of 9/11 Felt Near and Far

NEW YORKRachel Donelson from Charleston, South Carolina visited Ground Zero for the first time on the seventeenth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The 33-year-old mother of two says she remembers the attacks like it was yesterday.

When it happened, I was in school, she said. They just dismissed us, no one knew why.

Returning home, she found out about the tragedy on TV.

It floored me. For here, of all places, to be attacked.

Seventeen years later, carrying a bouquet of white flowers, she was at the Ground Zero memorial site to pay her respects.

When asked how the tragedy has influenced her life, she said: It made me more cautious, more aware, more grateful.

They Came From Ecuador

The Damians from Santa Ana de los Rios de Cuenca, Ecuador came to New York with their son to join this years 9/11 anniversary events. Although their son had been working in the city at the time of the terror attack, but was safe. But the tragedy left a deep and lasting impression on them all.

They said they came to the memorial to honor those who were lost in the tragedya cataclysm that shook the entire world.

New Yorker Honors Those Close to Home

William Watson, a personal trainer from Brooklyn, told the story of his cousin, one of the first responding police officers.

His cousin had served overseas in Beirut, Lebanon during the 1980s. He said he knows what its like to see an explosion, or a bomb site said Watson.

Yet when it was on his own soil, he said he was devastated, said Watson.

He also paid respects to the fire department first-responders he grew up near. On Sept. 10, he left flowers at FDNY Rescue 2 in Crown Heights. Some of the first-responders from that department did not return from ground zero.

The police department is doing an excellent job, said Watson, as are counter-terror organizations in his estimation.

Along with acknowledging the police and firefighters, Watson also made sure to honor one group that is not mentioned as often: nurses and medical staff.

Watson plans to keep coming in future years. He hopes interest does not decrease in the memorial, and thinks people will continue remembering it, just like they remember Pearl Harbor.

It affected us all, said Watson. Were still strong; this is the best city in the world.

Principal Felt Shockwaves of 9/11 in Chicago

Seventeen years ago, the shockwaves of the 9/11 attack rocked the world of Charles Roza as far away as Chicago. Roza, now retired school principal, said the morning of Sept. 11, 2001 is indelibly marked in his mind.

I remember the teachers running down the halls. Somehow, someway they had heard about the attack, and I did not hear it because I was with the children. So, I was trying to calm them down, he said.

It was Rozas first year principal and it was the start of the school year. Being his first time in a position to lead teachers and students, and calm them down amid a catastrophe, 9/11 has always held a special significance for him.

He recalled visiting New York with his wife two months after the attack and the cloud of dust from the debris surrounding Ground Zero was still visible from the Empire State Building.

Roza has made a point of annually commemorating 9/11 at the Chicago, Jacqueline B. Kennedy School which he oversaw.

As was said, If you dont study the past, youll be forced to relive the past.

Its important to him that children know why 9/11 should be remembered.

I want those children to remember  what happened today, also why its patriots daywhy we show our patriotism on this particular day, he said.
Trump Signs Order That Would Authorize Sanctions for Election Interference

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Sept. 12 directing the government to impose automatic sanctions on foreign individuals, entities, and nations in retaliation for attempts to interfere in U.S. elections.

The president declared a national emergency to deal with election meddling. The order states that foreign interference poses an unusual and extraordinary threat to Americas national security and foreign policy.

Although there has been no evidence of a foreign power altering the outcome or vote tabulation in any United States election, foreign powers have historically sought to exploit Americas free and open political system, Trump wrote in the order.

In recent years, the proliferation of digital devices and internet-based communications has created significant vulnerabilities and magnified the scope and intensity of the threat of foreign interference, as illustrated in the 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment.

National security adviser John Bolton and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats announced the details of the order shortly before it was made public. With less than two months before the crucial 2018 midterm elections in November, Bolton described the order as an additional layer of defense against election meddling.

We felt it was important to demonstrate that the president has taken command of this issue, that its something he cares deeply about, that the integrity of our elections and our constitutional process are a high priority to him, Bolton said. And so this order, I think, is a further demonstration of that.

U.S. officials say the intensity of foreign influence is lower this year than in 2016, when Russia attempted to interfere in the presidential election. But the threat isnt limited to Moscow, according to Coats, who said China, Iran, and North Korea have shown they have the capability to interfere.

The order counts the distribution of propaganda and disinformation as attempts at interference. Russia used both tools in 2016 to sow division among Americans online.

Weve learned lessons from this obviously. Our focus now is on the midterms and 2020 going forward, Coats said. What do we need to have in place to deal with this, to ensure the American public that their elections have not been manipulated; their vote has not been changed?

The order gives the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) a 45-day window after an election to assess whether influence attempts took place. Once complete, the ODNI would deliver the assessment to the to the president, attorney general, and the secretaries of treasury, state, defense, and homeland security.

Within 45 days of receiving the intelligence assessment, the attorney general and the secretary of homeland security have 45 days to make a determination based on the intelligence assessment. If the departments of justice and homeland security concur with the intelligence assessment, the executive order provides for automatic sanctions, which would block all property of the affected parties within the United States.

After the automatic sanctions are enacted, the Department of State and the Department of the Treasury would be required to determine if additional sanctions are in order based on the scale and intensity of interference.

The sanctions authorized by todays Executive Order are an important tool to deter and punish any foreign interference in our elections, including the upcoming midterm elections, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) wrote on Twitter. This is not a panacea for our foreign adversaries unprecedented efforts to undermine our democratic institutions, but I applaud the Administrations continued efforts to protect the integrity of our elections.

The drafting and signing of the executive order had zero to do with the media narrative that Trump is deferential to Russia, according to Bolton. Democrats in Congress have continued to push the narrative that the president is lax with Moscow despite tough steps from the White House to punish Russia for destabilizing activity in the United States and around the world.

Its a fantasy to think that this president hasnt held the Moscow accountable for its maligned activities, said Alex Titus, a policy advisor for America First Policies. Sanctions have been placed on key Russian firms and oligarchs, dozens of Russian spies have been expelled from the US, and Trump upended the Obama-era decision to withhold military support from Ukraine.

Defending Election Integrity

In May last year, Trump signed an executive order directing the government to strengthen and modernize cybersecurity in critical infrastructure. During the 2017 elections, the administration provided states with on-site cybersecurity support. In March, Congress authorized $380 million in grants for election assistance.

The DHS is already working with all 50 states, local governments, and private companies to enhance election security, according to the White House. The department is planning to conduct election vulnerability assessments in every state that requests help. As of mid-July, the department completed assessments in 16 states. In August, DHS conducted the first-of-its-kind National Election Cybersecurity Table Top Exercise.

I fully support [the presidents] executive order to impose stronger sanctions on those who meddle in our elections, Secretary of State Kjirsten Nielsen wrote on Twitter. Complacency will be replaced [with] consequences. Fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy & securing our election infrastructure is a top priority for the Federal [government].

I fully support @POTUS executive order to impose stronger sanctions on those who meddle in our elections. Complacency will be replaced w consequences. Fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy & securing our election infrastructure is a top priority for the Federal gov  Sec. Kirstjen Nielsen (@SecNielsen) September 12, 2018

The FBI and Department of Justice (DOJ) are actively working to disrupt meddling attempts and notify the victims and targets. During the midterm elections, the FBI and DOJ will host a live Election Day watch to monitor and coordinate election-day work.

Confronting Russia

The Trump administration has ordered successive waves of sanctions and expulsions against Russia in response to Moscows malign activity in the United States and abroad.

In March, the White House expelled 48 Russian intelligence officers and ordered the closure of the Russian consulate in Seattle, in response to Russias alleged use of a chemical agent in the United Kingdom. The administration expelled an additional 12 Russian intelligence officers the same month.

In April, the Trump administration sanctioned seven Russian oligarchs and 12 of their companies as well as 17 senior Russian government officials in response to Moscows destabilizing activity around the world. In June, the administration sanctioned three Russians and five Russian entities for aiding Moscows offensive cybersecurity capabilities.
Widow of Fallen Marine Challenges Nike: Meet Me and My Son at Arlington

The wife of a fallen Marine, Brittany Jacobs, recently shared her opinion on Nike choosing Colin Kaepernick as the face of its new ad campaign.

To see someone who knelt before the flag  be able to say that he sacrificed everything? Its hard and its sad. Its not right, she said during an interview with Fox and Friends on Sept. 9.

The Gold Star Wife said her husband sacrificed absolutely everything for the flag, for the country, and for that all it stood for. She felt that Nike could have chosen someone else for the ad campaign.

Brittany Jacobs: Theres so many great men and women in this country that have sacrificed everything and Colin Kaepernick, hes not one of them. pic.twitter.com/JrbAssTNeO  Fox News (@FoxNews) September 9, 2018

Jacobs husband was Marine Corps Sergeant Christopher Jacobs, who lost his life during a training accident in 2011.

On Memorial Day in 2017, Jacobs and her 6-year-old son Christian were photographed with President Donald Trump, as the President was walking through Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery.

Jacobs added that shed like to meet with Nike representatives and Colin Kaepernick at Arlington National Cemetery.

They can personally look in the eyes of my son and see what a dear sacrifice was made, Jacob continued, they can look around and see thousands and thousands of people who sacrificed also everything for something that they believed in.

Although she said its a good thing to be able to protest and people to stand up for what they believe in, she thinks, it doesnt mean we all have to agree on how people do it, adding that her husband would be disappointed in Kaepernick.
Athena Real Estate, a Danbury-based real estate investment company, has acquired the Saratoga RV park, company officials announced this week.

Athena Real Estate specializes in RV parks, self-storage facilities, resorts and manufactured home communities. It operates the RV parks under the name Applebrook RV Parks. The latest acquisition is the companys first in New York.

Saratoga RV Park, located in Gansevoort, N.Y., has 154 sites and amenities such as heated swimming pool, playground, camp store, hiking and biking trails, and video arcade. It is minutes away from Lake George and Saratoga Springs and offers service for seasonal and transient guests.

The property will be repositioned through capital improvements and additional activities, Athena officials said. The park may also be expanded.

We are extremely pleased to acquire Saratoga RV Park, which is in a wonderful location for us. We are expanding our RV park and resort portfolio as well as our footprint, Richard J. OBrien, CEO and founder of Athena Real Estate, said. We are continually on the hunt for high quality RV parks and resorts to purchase across the United States.

More Business Danbury real estate firm lands another RV park in Florida

The majority of the properties owned by Athena are in Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina. OBrien said the firm targets the Southeast because of its growing population, especially with baby boomers, and affordable cost of living.

Saratoga RV Park provides significant synergies with our other outdoor hospitality assets falling under the Applebrook RV Parks brand, OBrien said.

OBrien founded Athena Real Estate in 2004 after a career as an executive of a mid-cap public REIT, or real estate investment trust, and a large real estate financial services and investment company.

Athena targets RV parks because it is a growing trend that he expects to continue with baby boomers retiring and younger professionals purchasing large RVs and demanding quality amenities and services at the parks, OBrien said.

Our philosophy is to obtain premium returns for value-added opportunities where focused and experienced management provide a competitive advantage, he said in a previous interview with Hearst Connecticut Media.

The writer may be reached at cbosak@hearstmediact.com; 203-731-3338
As Hurricane Florence barreled Thursday into the Carolinas with storm surges predicted at up to 13 feet, some 600 miles to the northeast in Connecticut a half-dozen Norwalk property owners were wrapping up claims for flood damage after a June deluge that had inundated basements.

If still considered a necessity in many coastal cities and towns, fewer Connecticut residents are getting coverage today through the National Flood Insurance Program  with the future of the program still an open debate in Congress as it wrestles with how to deal with storms of catastrophic magnitude like Florence.

As of July, about 37,750 Connecticut property owners had secured coverage under the National Flood Insurance Program, as tracked by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, paying premiums of $52.4 million to protect $9.6 billion in real estate.

Sold through private-sector insurance agents and administered by more than 60 insurance carriers, the NFIP has represented an important financial levee for the state  over the past three decades through this past July, Connecticut property owners had received $503 million under the NFIP claims across more than 27,400 losses, averaging about $18,300 per claim.

Congress has authorized monthly extensions of NFIP this year as debate proceeds on a proposed 21st Century Flood Reform Act that would limit premium increases, but among other changes also restrict coverage for properties that have proven susceptible to repeat flooding.

Post-Sandy

Milford led all municipalities with 3,150 claims for $75 million in recompense over those 30 years, with the city tops statewide today with more than 2,900 NFIP policies in force covering $694 million in property, with Stamford No. 2 at 2,600 policies on $662 million in real estate. Fairfield and Norwalk were the only two other Connecticut municipalities with in excess of 2,000 policies in effect, protecting properties valued at $633 million and $583 million respectively.

In a number of neighborhoods along Long Island Sound, homes have been raised or rebuilt on stilts and embankments to lift them above historic flood stages.

In the 22,000 communities that participate in the program, any new construction is at the minimum federal standard or higher in the high-risk flood area, which results in a little under $2 billion of avoided losses every year, said David Maurstad, FEMAs chief executive leading NFIP, in an August podcast reviewing the status of the program. Communities and individuals ... can then take actions to minimize their risk and become more resilient if a disaster were to strike for their particular area.

In the year after the October 2012 storm Sandy, Connecticut saw a 6 percent increase in flood insurance policies, second highest in the nation after New Yorks 15 percent spike in coverage. But policy counts dropped over the following three years through the fall of 2016, with FEMA expected to publish 2017 policy data next February.

Sandy would become the second most costly storm for flood claims over the past three decades, at $8.75 billion slightly ahead of Hurricane Harvey a year ago; while far behind the $16.3 billion in claims generated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

John Weiss, co-owner of the furniture and design chain Lillian August, said flooding has been a persistent issue at the companys South Norwalk store the company is in the process of closing for unrelated reasons, including in October 2012 Sandy when Connecticut suffered widespread flooding.

They call it Water Street for a reason, Weiss told Hearst Connecticut Media. I remember (going) down there and I thought, OK, were all right  and then I saw a boat coming down Elizabeth Street and I thought, OK, thats not good.

Includes prior reporting by Thane Grauel and Robert Koch.

Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-842-2545; @casoulman
NORWALK - Audiotronics owner Michael Burton has watched the Leonard Street Parking Lot outside his doors evolve from a municipal lot with meters and later largely free parking to most recently a private lot for which hes been handed a monthly lease.

Burton, who runs the high-end audio/visual technology store and owns the building from which it and two other businesses operate from at 18 Isaacs St., doesnt fault local commercial real-estate developer Jason Milligan for asking him to pay. But he considers the $2,250 per month sought by him a little steep for 25 spaces.

More broadly, he views the lease as the latest fallout of the stalled Wall Street Place redevelopment project.

The real problem lays, in my opinion, when the project stalled as long as it had and the city knew POKO wasnt a legitimate developer, it should have stopped then, Burton said. They (the city) should have taken control of the lots then. Now we have this position where Jason bought the lot and he wants to make money.

More than a decade ago, the city chose POKO Partners as its selected developer for Wall Street Place and sold the Isaacs and Leonard streets municipal parking lots, each for $1, to the Port Chester, N.Y.-based developer.

Citing the recession, POKO didnt break ground on the first phase  101 apartments in the former Isaacs Street Lot  until 2015. Work halted in summer 2016 amid financing issues between POKO and lender Citibank. The bank since took ownership of that parcel as the city and Norwalk Redevelopment Agency work to bring aboard a new developer to finish the project.

Milligan, owner of Milligan Real Estate on nearby Belden Avenue and a critic of the Wall Street Place project as handled by the city, at the end of May bought properties within the footprint of the second phase of Wall Street Place. Among them is the former Leonard Street Lot at 23 Isaacs St.

He immediately cleaned up and reopened to the public closed portions of the lot, winning praise from Burton and other business owners. Asked Wednesday about the future of the parking lot, he said he wasnt ready to share his exact plans but indicated he must start charging for use of the roughly 120-space lot.

Sooner rather than later, I have to charge for parking, Milligan said. I paid $3.2 million for the lot. For now, as a good will gesture to the neighborhood, we have cleaned up the lot and not charged anyone to use it, but very soon, well have to start charging for the lot.

Milligan blames the city, which sued him and POKO over the transfer of the properties at 83 and 97 Wall St., and 21, 23 and 31 Isaacs. The city and Redevelopment Agency, co-plaintiffs in the lawsuit, say Milligan and POKO needed agency approval to transfer the properties. The lawsuit cites the Land Disposition Agreement between POKO, the city and Redevelopment Agency.

Milligan labeled the lawsuit, which is scheduled to go to a hearing in Stamford Superior Court later this month, as bogus and frivolous.

Unfortunately, the city has taken the worst possible stance. They started a lawsuit and stopped talking, Milligan said. Here I am jumping up and down ready to talk to them about any possible solution.

Since being sued, Milligan has asked for approval to take over Wall Street Place. In response, the Redevelopment Agency asked him to provide a financial disclosure, including the names of members and/or investors, of Wall Street Opportunity Fund, LLC, under which Milligan bought the properties. He has refused to provide the information, according to Norwalk Corporation Counsel Mario Coppola.

For Burton, whose father bought the audio technology business in 1971, the lawsuit, stalled redevelopment project and parking lot lease put in front of him by Milligan are part of a broader problem affecting him, his two tenants - Factory Underground and AutoPlus Autoparts  and other local businesses.

This whole project has literally destroyed my retail. The area has been crippled, Burton said. In the long-term goal, Id like to see the city take the lot back and provide parking for the residents of Norwalk. I would just like reasonable-priced parking and I wouldnt like my tenants to have to worry about it.
The Port of Rotterdam, Europe's biggest shipping port, warned companies on both sides of the Channel that they aren't doing enough to prepare for Britain's exit from the European Union, as it plans a test of its facilities to make sure it's ready for the worst.

"If the companies don't prepare, then we will be in deep trouble," Mark Dijk, the Port of Rotterdam's external affairs manager, said on a vessel trip through the facility on Tuesday. The port itself, which handles more than 465 million tons of shipments a year, is ramping up with additional digital infrastructure and more customs officials, but business needs to do more to get ready for the additional administrative burdens that Brexit will bring, he said.

While a transition agreement would keep the current customs rules in place until the end of 2020, when the U.K. leaves the EU for good, it will become a so-called third country as far as trade is concerned, meaning customs clearance will be required for all EU-U.K. trade. There also will be additional inspections of food, plants and live animals, as well as other paperwork and delays.

Brexit also will change the types of merchandise that Rotterdam can handle. Horses, for example, will have to find a new route as there is no facilities for the inspections that will probably become necessary.

The Dutch Foreign Ministry said last week that only 18 percent of companies in the Netherlands are doing enough to get ready for Brexit. For more than 40 percent of Dutch firms that do business with the U.K., filling out import and export forms, and other customs regulations, will be a new thing, according to Rotterdam Port Chief Executive Officer Allard Castelein.

Britain is one of the Netherlands' biggest trading partners, and the Rotterdam port is also important for the rest of Europe with its market of more than 500 million people. The port handles about 40 million tons of shipments between the Netherlands and Britain a year, about 8 percent of its total annual throughput, including fresh flowers and food bound for U.K. supermarkets.

The U.K. and the EU are struggling to secure a divorce deal, leaving companies and government bodies in limbo on how the future relationship will look. While the outlines of an agreement on the future EU-U.K. relationship may be included along with the divorce deal expected in November, a formal trade accord won't be hammered out until after Britain leaves the bloc.

The Rotterdam port aims to address capacity problems brought on by Brexit with the help of digital infrastructure, and is exploring its limited options for gaining additional space. It plans a dry-run around November to check its Brexit preparations.

The customs authority is recruiting for more than 900 new positions to help handle the extra paperwork that will be required. It expects 10,500 more ships to have extra customs requirements, based on current U.K.-Dutch trade.

For companies, these customs formalities will require time and manpower.

With the U.K. a so-called third country after Brexit, companies will need customs declarations for every shipment, said Roel van 't Veld, Brexit coordinator of the Dutch customs authority. About 35,000 of the more than 80,000 Dutch companies that do business with the U.K. have never dealt with the paperwork involved in trading outside the EU, he said.

"Probably the biggest worry at this stage is that those 35,000 companies need to be aware that you have to do customs declarations for each and every shipment," Van 't Veld said. "If you just drive to the ferry, you will not be allowed on the ferry."

In most cases, the post-Brexit customs regime will mean nine documents are needed for shipments to or from the U.K., compared with the current two, Van 't Veld said. "Politically, there is a lot of uncertainty; for us, professionally, there is a lot of certainty," he said, referring to the increased paperwork.

British consumers might lose out on the freshest food, as required food inspections delay shipments.

"That there will be congestion, no doubt," said Annika Hult, North Sea trade director for Stena Line, one of the world's leading ferry operators, which transports trucks carrying fruit, plants and vegetables for British supermarkets. "To what extent? Very difficult to say," she said.

Liesbeth Kooijman, head of import inspection at the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority, said her department is recruiting additional staff to handle the increased inspections because of Brexit, including for live animals. But some might have to change course, such as horse owners.

While the authority is responsible for supplying enough inspectors, the inspection facilities are out of its hands. Once the U.K. exits the EU, horses would need to be flown in via one of the Netherlands' airports, Kooijman said.
NORWALK  After months of input from the community and committees, the Norwalk Common Council this week approved the bulk of Mayor Harry Rillings proposed reorganization of city government.

Were excited about it because we think its time, Rilling said Wednesday. Norwalks government has been operating in the same fashion for decades, and communications and transparencies and efficiencies havent been explored and now weve done that. Weve taken about year, or a little bit more, to put together what we believe is an efficient table of organization.

The council approved the reorganization Tuesday evening.

Councilman Nick Sacchinelli, chairman of the councils Personnel Committee, thanked his committee, the Ordinance Committee, Finance/Claims Committee and an ad-hoc review committee for studying the proposal.

We did a great deal of due diligence and there was a consensus that there will be enhanced interdepartmental communication, which will allow for improved responsiveness as well as accountability through this realignment, said Sacchinelli, an at-large Democrat. This is an internal personnel alignment so theres going to be some additional steps to come.

Sacchinello cited Rillings plan to create a performance dashboard where residents can access online, real-time information on street paving, plowing and other services, which will be arranged thematically on the citys website.

Approved Tuesday evening were position descriptions, ordinances and financial impacts of the reorganization. Under the plan, nine senior managers will serve under the mayor. The include the citys corporation counsel and a newly created position of chief of staff.

Assistant to the Mayor Laoise King will fill the chief-of-staff position and take on additional responsibilities with a boost in her pay. Her salary will increase from $103,964 to $140,000.

Among the seven other manager positions, four are in place and filled: chief financial officer, chief of police, fire chief and chief of human resources and personnel.

The director of public works position, from which Bruce Chimento is retiring shortly, will become chief of public works and operations and oversee public works as well as maintenance of city parks. Within that umbrella, a superintendent of parks will be hired to oversee all recreational activities.

Tuesdays action approved creation of the position of chief of economic and community development but not that of chief of community services. A decision on whether to create the latter position remains on hold.

According to the Rilling administration, the reorganization will tighten the mayors span of control from 18 to nine direct reports, create highly responsible senior staff to assist the mayor in coordinating departments, offices and agencies, and give those staff a better understanding of the needs and challenges facing each department, and how to assure that services to residents are being delivered well and cost-effectively.

The net annual cost of the reorganization is $181,140, according to the citys finance director.

The council approved the reorganization on a 10-3 vote with District D Republican Douglas Hempstead, District B Democrat Ernie Dumas and At-Large Democrat Michael Corsello voting No.

Corsello praised the effort that went into the reorganization but expressed concern that the changes would be implemented simultaneously rather than incrementally.

Hempstead prefaced his comments by saying hes not opposed to change. Rather, he said the reorganization doesnt identify measurable results.

Most companies or business schools, etc., try to at least put forward first identifiable areas that either youre going to increase productivity, increase your availability to the public, (create) more efficient deliverable services and also identify what youre not doing efficiently, Hempstead said.

Councilman Gregory Burnett Sr., an at-large Democrat who chairs the councils Finance/Claims Committee, said the reorganization provides for a more effective, efficient and streamlined approach to managing the operations and business of our city.

However, the accountability of this structure ultimately rests at this table, which is the council, Burnett said. And we must stay engaged with the mayor and the HR (Human Relations) director as we progress through the various phases of the reorganization and be prepared to make the necessary changes. It does not have all the answers, but this is just the beginning. Tonight is the beginning, it is not the end.

King, speaking outside the council chambers after the approval, elaborated on whats ahead.

Now is when the really exciting work starts, King told Hearst Connecticut Media. We will be posting the new job descriptions later this week.

Three residents weighed in on the reorganization during the public participation portion of Tuesdays council meeting at City Hall.

Nancy Rosett, chairwoman of the Norwalk Bike/Walk Commission, said the commission supports the creation of an Economic and Community Development Department and the position of Transportation Planner. She said one of the purposes of the commission is to promote Complete Streets programs and facilities for bicycles and pedestrians in Norwalk.

Having a single department responsible for transportation and mobility as well as business development and tourism will bring Complete Streets improvements to Norwalk more efficiently and economically, Rosett said. The Transportation Planner would also plan and develop projects with an emphasis on Complete Streets and work toward long-term transportation solutions and improvements.

Jim Clark acknowledged that critics of the reorganization have asked elected officials to do it right or not at all, but he added that rule doesnt apply well to government and other consensus-building organizations.

We most often make progress a step at a time, usually slower than any of us would like, and for us to move forward involves a lot of thought and conversation and, yes, compromise, Clark said. I believe that the mayors proposed reorganization of city department will move us forward, serving our citizenry better.

Clark said the reorganization moves the citys neighborhood improvement coordinator to the code enforcement department and adds a part-time blight officer.

So this effectively now gives us a neighborhood improvement team, which shares resources and information, Clark said.

Former Republican Councilman Richard Bonenfant, however, reiterated his concern that the reorganization will diminish the power of the council.

Be careful you dont give away any of your own powers through this, because Mr. Hempstead and I have been through this many times where youre going to ask yourselves something like, How come I didnt know about that? Bonenfant said. And somebody else is going to say, Well, you voted for that on that night. You cut yourself out of some of the decision-making process.

Sacchinelli said later the reorganization addresses internal personnel alignment but does not at all touch upon the powers and authorities held by the existing council, commissions and committees.
EDWARDSVILLE  On Monday, the Edwardsville District 7 Board of Education approved the addition of $7,500 of services to the original $9,900 contract with the Illinois Association of School Boards Professional Services, which has been contracted to conduct a superintendent executive search to replace the retiring Lynda Andre in June.

These additional services will not exceed the $17,400 approved in the original board action taken at the Aug. 27 board meeting.

Before beginning the discussion about the IASB, Monica Laurent, Board President, offered her opinion of the role of the board.

This is the most important job that any board of education will do is to choose a superintendent that leads the district, she said. Also Id like to stress that everything we do in a superintendent search in terms of determining timelines  the process  is all debated in public. So all of this is done tonight . it all has to be done at our board meeting in the public. So thats why were staring our discussion tonight, and then well have board comments that will go out to everyone so that we make sure the correct information goes out to these stakeholders.

The board, with the exception of Board Member Paul Pitts who also voted against hiring the IASB in the original Aug. 27 action, voted to approve the additional $7,500.

Jim Helton, the IASB representative that will be working with District 7, explained that this additional cost would include staff and community and district interviews, two IASB consultants to interview candidates and to facilitate in-district stakeholder group interviews with the semi-finalists.

Those would be the three components that would be added to the $9,900 to get to your $17,400, he said.

As part of the extra $7,500 fees approved, Helton will be seeking input from the District 7 staff through large group district interviews.

I would be the only one doing that, he said. Were looking at two days. It takes about 45 minutes to an hour to do a large group. We listen. Thats what we do. We dont come in with preconceived ideas of what everybody is going to tell us. We act as an unbiased interviewer, facilitator to gather perceptions of key members of district administration, representatives of the staff and/or members of the school community regarding the characteristics and the skills to be sought in the new superintendent - both certified and non-certified staff.

We ask basically four key questions about the uniqueness of the district, the strengths of the district, what traits the superintendent youre looking for and what will be an ideal candidate and then we record those things. And that data comes back to us and we report that to the board, Helton added.

The board scheduled two open community forums to gather community input. Dates scheduled are Sept. 27 and Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. The location had not yet been determined, but Laurent noted it would be at a District 7 building. Helton suggested the board conduct these meetings themselves but with his guidance to avoid further costs.

The board also scheduled an input forum for the CAC Advisory members on Sept. 17, which is the date of the next CAC Advisory meeting.

John McDole, a CAC Advisory Member who was present at the board meeting, suggested that they could reach out to any Prop E Referendum committee members not already on the CAC and invite them to be attend this meeting to provide their input.

As the board discussed how the superintendent search process would work, Helton noted that they needed to still talk about how the board of education wanted to handle the internal candidates.

Do you want them processed just like the other candidates? Do you want to hold them in different regard where they make the final six or they make the final 12? he inquired. We dont have to have that decision today, but it is something that we will have to discuss. And probably the timing of that happens when I come back with the ideal candidate components  all of the data we have collected  we talk in an open meeting and then at that time the board tells me then how you want IASB to do it. 

I know that were going to talk about this and make a decision, but Im really hopeful that at least two or three of the candidates for internal will be a part of the six, Board Member Debra Pitts stressed.

I agree. I think thats reasonable, Board Member Terri Dalla Riva said.

That two or three of the six be internal candidates so that well have something to compare our outside candidates. I would hate that all of them be external candidates, Pitts added.

Helton will be attending future board meetings to provide updates and discuss next steps in the process.

The next board meeting is scheduled for Sept. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in Woodland Elementary Schools cafeteria.
GLEN CARBON  The Glen Carbon Fire Protection District will soon be breaking ground on its new fire station.

A ground-breaking ceremony for will take place at 4 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 18 at 199 S. Main St.

Chris Otto, secretary of the Glen Carbon Fire Protection District, said officials from the fire department, the Village of Glen Carbon and staff from Holland Construction and WBA Architects will be in attendance.

For the past several years the fire protection district has been planning the construction of the estimated $6 million project.

The design of the building incorporates anticipated vehicle and equipment storage and berthing needs for the future as needs increase.

The proposed 19,000-squre-foot building will have 10 bays for equipment storage, a three-story training tower, living quarters for up to eight people, staff training rooms and administrative offices.

GCFPD officials said the building will be financed with revenues the taxing district currently receives and there will not be a need for a special tax referendum.

The Glen Carbon Fire Protection District was formed as a taxing body in 1956 and soon after the Station 1 was built on Main Street.

In 1981, as the village continued to grow, the GCFPD purchased property and built Fire Station 2 at 430 Glen Carbon Road.

In 2016, the Village of Glen Carbon agreed to sell the 3.4-acre Citizens Park to the GCFPD as the future site of the new fire station.
System improvements, director retirements and a core cooperative principle thriving in todays rural communities headlined Southwestern Electrics 80th Annual Meeting of Members, held Saturday, Sept. 8, at Greenville Junior High School in Greenville, Ill. More than 1,600 people from Southwestern Illinois attended the meeting, which included breakfast, health screenings, activities for kids, and the co-ops business meeting and election of directors.

Bobby Williams, CEO of Southwestern Electric, outlined a number of system improvements that will benefit members across the co-ops service area. Right now, you own 3,500 miles of power line and 23 substations. A year from now youll own more, Williams said, addressing a packed gym.

Near the Effingham-Fayette County Line, Southwestern crews installed a new transformer and support structures at the co-ops Altamont Substation to meet the power requirements of Pinnacle Foods, in St. Elmo. Pinnacle is a significant contributor to our area economy, Williams said. The Altamont Substation expansion ensures quality power for Pinnacles Fayette County facility, which is growing, as well as co-op members in Fayette and Effingham counties.

In Fayette County, the co-op is building a new substation north of the I-70 interchange at Vandalia. By building Vandalia Substation near the citys commercial district, were making local businesses and residential members less vulnerable to lightning and other environmental intrusions that affect reliability, Williams said, adding that construction will begin later this year.

In Bond County, the co-op plans to build a new substation outside Smithboro. It will be larger than the co-ops existing Smithboro Substation, accommodate member growth, and enable co-op crews to reduce outage times during significant weather events. Williams said his team expects to have the new facility online by 2023.

In Madison County, Southwestern purchased ground to build a new substation near the interchange at I-270 and I-55/70. Maple Grove Substation will provide power to thousands of members in the I-55 corridor from Troy to Edwardsville, said Williams. The new substation will allow us to reroute power and restore service quickly during transmission line outages or damage from severe storms. Maple Grove Substation will come online in 2020.

Renewable Energy

Williams said as of September 2018, Southwestern Electric members had connected 67 private solar projects to the co-ops distribution system. Thats more than a megawatt of independently generated, renewable energy. If plans for additional private projects move forward, well be approaching two megawatts of renewable energy interconnections by the end of 2019. Our approach to renewable energy considers the contributions of each of you individually, and the needs of our membership as a whole, he explained.

As a not-for-profit cooperative, were responsible for looking after the interests of 24,000 members. The pieces were adding to our system ensure reliability, reduce the duration of outages, and position us to meet your energy needs today and in the future, Williams said. Southwestern is a service organization. Our work says more than our words. Be mindful of our work in the weeks and months to come. Then share your impressions with us. Whatever you have to say, we can use it to improve.

A Spirit of Service

Ann Schwarm, president of Southwestern Electric, said the cooperative had taken significant strides, solidifying power contracts and a new management team since the members last met. Last year at this time, we had just signed a new energy deal, we were in the process of negotiating a capacity contract, and we announced changes in managementa new CEO and new CFO, she said.

Schwarm characterized Southwestern CFO Becky Jacobson as a highly skilled accountant, chief financial officer and leader. Bobby Williams, Southwesterns CEO, has a rare mix of professional experience, education and leadership traits. He is a data-driven decision maker and we, as the board of directors, appreciate that when he brings a recommendation to the board it is backed up with the information we need to make an informed decision, she said.

Of the 24 co-ops in this state, your rates rank among the lowest five, Schwarm told members. It was true last year. Its true this year. And to the best of my knowledge, it will be true next year as well. We are committed to doing what it takes to keep the lights on. Our track record of exceptional reliability also is a plus for our economic development efforts.

Schwarm noted that while the co-op was firmly grounded in the present, the organizations 80th anniversary was an appropriate occasion to recognize the rural electric pioneers who stepped forward to serve as Southwesterns first board of directors. They provided us with an enduring legacy that allows us to live here, work here and build our businesses here. They were neighbors helping neighbors. To them we owe a debt of gratitude.

Schwarm said gratitude and neighbors helping neighbors were two concepts that developed deeper meaning this year when she and her husband survived a tornado that destroyed their home. Within an hour, more than 50 people flooded our home to offer support with both words and actions, she said. They returned for days and weeks following that fateful night to help with the cleanup. Among them were many fellow Southwestern members. Gratitude and an overwhelming sense of euphoria at being alive were what we experienced. Gratitude to the friends and neighbors who put into action what our founders did 80 years agoneighbors helping neighbors, she said.

Im here to personally testify that service is the heart of our communities and that service is still the core of this cooperative. To do for and with each other, that which we cannot do aloneits that resolve which built this co-op, kept it going for 80 years and which will carry it into the future.

Directors Retire

Southwestern Electric members honored two longtime directors who retired from the board this year. Ron Schaufelberger brought a steadfast, member-first focus to Southwesterns board meetings for 42 years, Schwarm said. Deliberate discussion and a commitment to building consensus have been the hallmarks of his service since he was first elected in 1976. While his presence will be sorely missed, his influence will be felt for years to come, she said.

Alan Libbra ends his Southwestern board service after 36 years, 30 of which he served as president. Alans commitment to improving the quality of life for the people of Southwestern Illinois was a driving force behind his leadership efforts. His mission set the stage for three decades of cooperative accomplishment. It was Alans fire-in-the-belly commitment that moved Southwestern forward through some of the most challenging, formative and fruitful years of the co-ops history.

Schaufelberger said he initially ran for a seat on the board when he felt called to contribute to the cooperative. There were things I thought needed to be done, and I thought I could contribute to getting those things done. We had a lot of tough times. I spent a lot of sleepless nights deliberating over the decisions we had to make. Its something that you dont take lightly, he said. Im really pleased with the employees that we have now, and with the board of directors that we have. I think weve got a lot of good things that are going to happen in the future. He closed by thanking directors past and present, and the membership that had entrusted him with acting as their voice for four decades.

Alan Libbra told the crowd that he came to the board 36 years ago without having the foggiest notion about what it took to run an electric co-op. The one thing I did know was that the idea of what a cooperative could and should be appealed to me, he said. One of my favorite quotes was from Lincoln. He said government is people doing together what they cannot do for themselves. Electric co-ops, because of their history and mission seemed to epitomize the essence of that thoughtand I loved that thought, he said.

By the end of my first term the Clinton power plant came on line, and by the end of my second term, our wholesale rates had almost tripled. Our rates jumped 60 percent and our financial situation was precarious. On behalf of the board, I asked you for time to fix this. You gave us the time, and we did find the solution, Libbra recalled.

Fast forward 30 years. Our finances are strong. Our reliability is good and getting better. Our rates are very near the bottom of Illinois co-ops and will remain stable. The only thing that hasnt changed is my love affair with the idea of a cooperative. If all of us maintain our commitment to the common good, if we believe we can help ourselves by helping each other, if we never quit trying to reach that ideal, we may never quite grab the brass ringbut we can come awfully close.

Election Results

Following the presidents address, members received election results. Southwestern Electric members elected one member from each of the cooperatives three voting districts to serve on the co-ops board of directors.

From District I, William Bill Jennings of Alhambra defeated Marvin Warner of Pocahontas and Paul Falbe of Maryville. Jennings received 480 votes, Warner received 442 votes, and Falbe received 207 votes.

From District II, Jerry Gaffner defeated Rodney Reavis, with Gaffner receiving 548 votes and Reavis 489 votes. Both candidates were from Greenville.

From District III, incumbent Randy Wolf of St. Elmo defeated challenger Stanley Kuhns of Mason. Wolf received 796 votes and Kuhns received 291 votes.

Each director will serve a three-year term on the board.

Based in Greenville, Ill., Southwestern Electric is a not-for-profit, member-owned cooperative serving 24,000 residential, commercial, agricultural and industrial members in 11 counties along the I-70 corridor between St. Louis, Mo., and Effingham, Ill.
The 37-year-old defender says on Instagram that "after assessing this move with my family, we've decided this is not the right move for ourselves at this time."
Hilcos plan, which also would require City Council approval, is to demolish the shuttered power plant and complete environmental remediation of the 70-acre site along Interstate 55, Pulaski Road and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal by mid-2019. In its place, Hilco wants to construct what it says would become the largest available warehouse space in the city, which the developer wants to open by early 2020.
Carriage owners acknowledge theyve been cited by the city frequently in recent years, and in many cases they have settled with the city, finding it cheaper than defending themselves. But the operators also said many of the violations were over rules that are outdated or werent previously enforced and that they were reported by animal rights activists trying to put them out of business.
Clare Police Chief Brian Gregory did not commit a crime when he used the Law Enforcement Information Network to check the background of an unnamed man whose family feared potential violence, Clare County Prosecutor Michelle Ambrozaitis ruled in an opinion released late Wednesday.

Gregory was placed on paid administrative leave Aug. 1 by City Manager Ken Hibl amid allegations and complaints filed by some of his officers.

A state police detective investigated the allegations and Ambrozaitis said in an 11-page opinion that no crime was committed by checking the mans background.

Chief Gregory met with a citizen of his community who wanted to discuss threats to harm and kill made by a relative through marriage, Ambrozaitis said.

Even though Gregory determined that he did not have jurisdiction to investigate the matter, he took steps that any prudent law enforcement officer would take.

Misusing the LEIN system  which provides background and criminal history and law enforcement contact information to police  is a misdemeanor the first time, punishable by 93 days in jail, and a four-year felony for additional instances.

Gregory provided domestic violence services information to the citizen.

In having an officer run the LEIN check, Gregory tried to determine if there anything in that information that would warrant more immediate action than a referral to the appropriate neighboring county law enforcement agency, she said.

Officer Jeremy McGraw ran the LEIN check and made the complaint as part of other concerns leveled by four members of the Clare police force, Ambrozaitis said in the report.

Complaints were dated between August 2015 and 2017 but were not brought to the city managers attention until this summer.

Ambrozaitis released her opinion late Wednesday afternoon.

Gregory said he will be back to work on Monday.

Besides McGraw, complainants included Sgt. Gregory Kolhoff and Officers John Lake, and Tom Brandon.

Hibl met with those four  who were alleging a hostile work environment  along with Dan Coon of the Police Officers Association of Michigan on Aug. 1, the same day Gregory was suspended.

Ambrozaitis said in her report that Hibl believes the other complaints were handled in the discussions last month.
The America of John McCain is generous and welcoming and bold. She is resourceful and confident and secure. She meets her responsibilities, she speaks quietly because she is strong. America does not boast because she has no need to. The America of John McCain has no need to be made great again because America was always great.

 Meghan McCain at her fathers funeral.

On Sept. 4, Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey appointed a replacement for Senator John McCain. Ironically, former U.S. Senator Jon Kyl, who led Brett Kavanaugh through the confirmation for the Supreme Court process, took the seat on Sept. 5. So much for a lasting legacy.

The same day, the Senate Judiciary Committees hearing on Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh began. He was added as a candidate when it became clear that Donald Trump was in legal jeopardy. The session soon descended into chaos. As Republican committee chair Chuck Grassley began his remarks, demonstrators interrupted against the hearing and were removed, one by one. Democratic Senator Kamala Harris from California pointed out that they had not had time to review 42,000 pages of documents delivered the night before. Only 10 percent of the requested documents had been provided. Many with Committee Confidential markings contained no classified information, or were heavily redacted and missing pages. Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal from Connecticut called the hearing a charade and a mockery of our norms. Senator Cory Booker, Democrat from New Jersey added I appeal to be recognized on your sense of decency and integrity. What is the rush? What are we trying to hide by not having documents out front?

The next day Kavanaugh reaffirmed his view is on Roe v Wade is settled precedent of the Supreme Court and it has been reaffirmed many times over the past 45 years. He neglected, however, to say where he stands on the issue. His background strongly suggests that he does not support a womans right to abortion. In a 2003 email, he wrote, I am not sure that all legal scholars refer to Roe as the settled law of the land at the Supreme Court level since Court can always overrule its precedent, and three current Justices on the Court would do so. In an immigration case involving a pregnant 17-year-old who was set to have an abortion, he delayed the case hoping to run out the clock in Texas where she was being held. He was over-ruled.

In 2015, as a judge, Kavanaugh and his colleagues heard a case involving the Affordable Care Act. Some employers opposing contraception objected the requirement to cover contraception. The appeals court rejected their argument  over Kavanaughs objections. In another document he equated birth control to inducing abortion. There is no connection between preventing conception and removing a fetus.

On Aug. 6, Democratic senators Booker and Mazie Hirono (Hawaii) released emails marked Committee Confidential revealing Kavanaughs position on racial profiling and Roe v. Wade while he worked for President Bush. Both faced the threat of expulsion. Booker said he took the action as an act of civil disobedience.

The next day, John Dean, testified that confirming Kavanaugh as associate justice will lead to the most pro-presidential powers Supreme Court in the modern era. Opinion polls show only 37 percent favor this nominee. We can only hope that two or three Republicans in the Senate see that this nominee is inappropriate.

Last Friday, former President Barack Obama gave a sterling speech at the University of Illinois. Enthusiastic students heard an eloquent plea to turn our democracy from darkness. I urge  no, I dare you listen to it or read a transcript. You must!

Ed Fisher writes a weekly column for The Morning Sun.
United and Delta also said they would eliminate fees for checked bags and in-cabin pets on flights to or from certain cities, and American is waiving those fees on flights departing certain airports expected to be affected by the hurricane. American, United and Delta all said they would offer fares below typical rates for last-minute bookings in certain cities likely to be affected by the storm.
Workers with titles such as threat hunter and ethical hacker scour screens as wide as their desks, seeking out potential cyberthreats or simulating attacks. CNN and The Weather Channel stream next to the dark web feed, alerting the employees to any news or weather events that could trigger attacks. Theres a map of the world with orange and green lights firing across the Atlantic, tracking global data flow. Nearby, a geolocator zooms in on city streets in Germany, Sweden and Russia, zeroing in on the location of computers that could pose a threat.
I must have drawn on this matriarchal lineage when I learned how to make this dish my own, not at home with their guiding hands, but on the fiery wok line at my aunt and uncles now-closed restaurant. Im sure it was hot, but the deafening exhaust fan overhead also always made it feel like cooking in the eye of a tropical storm. The ingredients, while carefully prepped into bite-size pieces by a great-aunt who worked in back, were far from farm-to-table.
19 years later, missing man returns to village full of scars

SURIN: Much to his familys surprise, a man returned home to a village in Sangkha district after having disappeared for 19 years  enough time to convince the family he was long dead.

deathdrugsmarinepoliceconstructionviolencehealth

By Bangkok Post

Wednesday 12 September 2018, 09:10AM

Somsak Somying with his mother Iat, who cried tears of joy when her son returned from the dead. Photo: Nopparat Kingkaeo

Disfigured ears and scars all over his body were evidence of what Somsak Somying, 50, went through while working on a fishing trawler for two years before he was arrested in the Malaysian seas and imprisoned there for several months.

His mother, 72-year-old Iat Somying, cried tears of joy as she recounted the unexpected return of her son last Thursday (Sept 6) after she and everyone else in the village had lost hope of ever seeing him again.

I always missed him and thought he was dead. I regularly performed a merit-making rite for him and prayed he was resting in peace, said Ms Iat. I dont wish for anything else now hes home with me again.

A northeastern wrist-binding rite known as bai si su khwan was performed yesterday (Sept 11) as a way for his family and other villagers to welcome him home.

In 1999, Mr Somsak, who was 31 at the time, left home with a friend from his village to work at a construction site in Bangkok. The friend later quit the job and left. Mr Somsak did not have any money and couldnt read or write, so he struggled to find his way home.

He moved from one construction site to another in search of work until 2015, when he was transferred to a construction site in Phuket. There he met a new friend who convinced him to pursue a well-paid fishing job.

A job placement company in Samut Prakan promised to give him B9,000 a month if he agreed to give up his ID card, he said.

Working on a fishing trawler turned out to be an endless nightmare, said Mr Somsak.

He rarely had a chance to leave the boat, drug use was rife, and he suffered violent attacks from people armed with spades, he said.

He finally got out when he was arrested by Malaysian authorities and jailed for several months before an organisation helped him return to Thailand.

The same job broker in Samut Prakan then sent him to work at a factory for another two months until he was detained in a police raid, he said.

In lieu of any identifying documents the police struggled to reunite him with his family.

They were finally able to locate his sister who lives in another district of Surin who helped to bring him home.

Read original story here.
CSD charges traitorous T-shirt seller

BANGKOK: The government is hunting down a group of Thai separatists fleeing prosecution for sedition and lese majeste to a neighbouring country, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon says.

politicscrimepolicemilitary

By Bangkok Post

Wednesday 12 September 2018, 08:57AM

Police presented Wannapa (right) as the woman arrested last week on charges of selling T-shirts bearing a symbol linked to a separatist or federation movement. She is seen at the Crime Suppression Division with National Human Rights Commissioner Angkhana Neelapaijit. Photo: Wichan Charoenkiatpakul

Gen Prawit, who also serves as defence minister, said the group comprises of those who have fled prosecution for sedition under Section 116 of the Criminal Code and for lese majeste under Section 112.

The group is now holed up in Laos, Gen Prawit said. He identified a person behind the separatist movement as Chucheep Cheewasut.

The government would ask authorities in Laos to help stifle any support for the movement.

Gen Prawit, who is in charge of national security enforcement, claimed yesterday (Sept 11) that those arrested are part of a network of outlaws that had fled to Laos to evade charges of sedition and lese majeste.

They come from one source, which is from the Laos side, and they also have a network in Thailand, Gen Prawit said to reporters.

They sell shirts and flags. Weve arrested three or four of them now. Whoever we can get to, we will arrest them all, he said, adding They are traitors.

Gen Prawit responded to questions about the detention of a woman who allegedly sold T-shirts with the logo of the Thai Federation on them.

He said the group has a network in Thailand and its activities include selling T-shirts and flags bearing the symbol of the separatist movement.

Three or four people suspected of having links with the group had been arrested, and anyone else involved with the movement would also be detained.

They are rebels, Gen Prawit said.

The movement used social media to propagate the idea of separatism and a new federal state, he said.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said that the constitution stipulates Thailand is an indivisible kingdom.

He said their arrests were necessary.

Thailand is not a federation, he said. We are a democratic constitutional monarchy and it is stipulated in the constitution that we are one indivisible kingdom.

But a federation divides into many states, which Thailand does not. And the Thai flag is the tricolour flag. So can their actions be considered treacherous? he asked reporters rhetorically.

Any effort to establish a Thai Federation goes against the charter and will be punished severely under the law, the prime minister added.

Col Burin Thongpraphai, a legal official of the National Council for Peace and Order, handed the woman identified only as Wannapa, who allegedly sold the T-shirts, over to the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) yesterday for legal action.

She was charged with ang-yee (running an illegal secret organisation).

She will be taken to the Criminal Court today where police will request to extend her detention.

National Human Rights Commissioner, Angkhana Neelapaijit, and a lawyer from the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights Centre also went to the CSD to give legal advice to Ms Wannapa. Ms Angkhana said she wanted to ensure that Ms Wannapa is properly treated in compliance with human rights principles. Ms Wannapa insisted that she did not know that the T-shirts were illegal.

She was arrested at a house in Samut Prakan last Thursday (Sept 6). She was taken to the 11th Military Circle in Bangkoks Dusit district where she was then detained for questioning before being handed over to the CSD.

According to her husband, the 30-year-old is a motorcycle taxi driver from the northeastern province of Maha Sarakham, and has two sons aged 9 and 14.

Her husband said she intended to sell the T-shirts to supplement their income, and she was not aware of the logos significance and had never attended any political gatherings.

Under NCPO Order No.3/2015, officers are granted the authority to detain people for questioning for up to seven days.

Read original story here.
Fire drill held at century-old Phuket Provincial Hall

PHUKET: Smoke pouring out from Phuket Provincial Hall this afternoon (Sept 12) was no cause for alarm as a major fire drill was held at the building, which has served as the provincial seat of power for 108 years.



By The Phuket News

Wednesday 12 September 2018, 07:09PM

Smoke pouring out of the 108-year-old Phuket Provincial Hall today was only a fire drill. Photo: PR Dept

Phuket Vice Governor Snith Sriwihok led the excise, which was also overseen by Mongkol Temrat, a Senior Policy and Planning Analyst at the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office Phuket Provincial Office (DDPM-Phuket).

Scores of officials and other government employees took part in the drill, which was held to train emergency-response teams and teach those working ni the building how to react in such situations.

V/Gov Snith explained that the exercise was held to improve response times, to ensure that firefighters were adequately trained in using the appropriate firefighting equipment and to train fire marshals how to make sure all people evacuated from the building had been accounted for.

The activity helped to make officers and emergency-response crews understand the primary causes of fire and how it can spread, and the damage it ca cause, V/Gov Snith said.

It also taucht them how to help themselves and others, he added.

Failure to understand these things always leads to unnecessary loss of property, and can lead to loss of life, he said.

Meanwhile, the new Provincial Hall comissioned with a government budget of B450 million remains incomplete on the south side of Phuket Town, casting a large shadow near Suan Luang, also known as Rama IX Park, as the main contractor has run out of funds to complete its part of the project.

No progress on the new building has been made since June last year, despite about B280 million already spent on the project. (See story here.)

New contractors are being sought to complete the project, which passed the 50% complete milestone in June 2016. (See stories here and here.)
Maya Bay to re-open to tourists, but closed to boats

PHUKET: Maya Bay will re-open tourists on Nov 1, but only to tourists arriving from Loh Samah Bay on the far side of the island. Maya Bay will remain closed to boats, Worapoj Lomlim, Chief of the Hat Nopparat- Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, confirmed to The Phuket News this morning (Sept 12).

environmenttourismmarinenatural-resources

By Tanyaluk Sakoot

Wednesday 12 September 2018, 12:55PM

Maya Bay will remain closed to boats after Nov 1. Photo: DNP

The news comes as marine experts confirm that corals transplanted into the bay are showing positive signs of growth, with high hopes of a full recovery of the reefs in the bay which have suffered heavy damage from years of overtourism and tourists trampling on the corals. (See story here.)

The world-famous bay was closed to all visitors from June 1 to allow coral reefs and the local marine ecoystem to recover, and on May 11 this year it was announced that boats taking tourists to visit Phi Phi Islands renowned Maya Bay would no longer to be able to land or drop anchor at Loh Samah Bay, on the far side of the island.

Instead, a floating pier would be installed so that tourists can disembark tour boats and arrive on the island without causing further harm to the popular island, announced Thanya Nethithammakul, chief of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP).

At the time a re-opening date of Oct 1 had been set, but last week Chief Worapoj confirmed to The Phuket News that even that was under review.

We are considering asking to defer the re-opening of Maya Bay to visitors for another month, Chief Worapoj said.

Today, he confirmed that Nov 1 had been set as the date for re-opening the bay to tourists.

Chief Worapoj made it clear to The Phuket News today, The bay itself will remain closed to boats, but tourists will be allowed to visit the bay from Loh Samah Bay.

However, Chief Worapoj did not elaborate on how tour boats will be allowed to bring tourists to shore, as currently they are not allowed to drop anchor or make landfall at Loh Samah Bay.

Also not mentioned was any restriction on the number of tourists that will be allowed to visit Loh Samah Bay or Maya Bay, though at last report the number was expected to be 2,000 visitors per day. (See story here.)
Phuket Town thief nabbed after stealing B30k in lottery tickets

PHUKET: Phuket City Police yesterday confirmed that they had arrested a suspect for stealing more than B30,000 of lottery tickets for the draw to be held this Sunday (Sept 16).

crimepolice

By Chutharat Plerin

Wednesday 12 September 2018, 11:46AM

Exactly which tickets were stolen were not revealed. Photo: Post Today

Lt Wipawan Watnangentanong of the Phuket City Police told The Phuket News Thai-language sister newspaper Khao Phuket yesterday (Sept 11) that police had apprehended the suspect, but was reticent to release details about the case.

Lt Wipawan said police were first notified of the stolen lottery tickets last Tuesday (Sept 4), when registered lottery ticket vendor Keattisak Tirajamorn 70, who operates a small shop in front of his house on Bangkok Rd in Phuket Town, reported the theft to police at 5:20pm that day.

Mr Keattisak said that he noticed at about 3:20pm that day that many lottery tickets had disappeared from his store.

In all, 390 tickets were stolen, all featuring the numbers 1467, 6312, 3899, 8744 and 9985.

Lt Wipawan said that police had finally managed to arrest the suspect yesterday (Sept 11) after tracking down the woman through CCTV, but declined to identify the woman by name, age or province of origin.

However, Lt Wipawan said, Following our investigation we have filed more charges against the suspect as this person has done this several times before.

All the missing tickets have been recovered, Lt Wipawan added.

If people need to know exactly which numbers were involved, please come to Phuket City Police Station and confirm by yourself, Lt Wipawan said.
Vachira Phuket Hospital to review lack of attention explosive rant by elderly man

PHUKET: Senior officials at Vachira Phuket Hospital in Phuket Town are reviewing an incident last night during which an elderly man verbally abused staff at the hospital for what appears to have been lack of attention.

healthculturepolice

By The Phuket News

Wednesday 12 September 2018, 12:27PM

Police were called to Vachira Phuket Hospital last night to intervene in the incident. Screengrab: Chef Saeng Singkwandam (Smoking dark lion) / Facebook

Police were called to Vachira Phuket Hospital last night to intervene in the incident. Screengrab: Chef Saeng Singkwandam (Smoking dark lion) / Facebook

Police were called to Vachira Phuket Hospital last night to intervene in the incident. Screengrab: Chef Saeng Singkwandam (Smoking dark lion) / Facebook

Vachira Phuket Hospital is the leading government hospital on the island.

Police were called to intervene in the incident, which occurred in front of the hospitals Accident & Emergency Unit between 10pm and 11pm.

The incident was recorded on video and posted online, quickly gaining more than 200,000 views overnight.

In the video the man can be heard verbally abusing hospital staff with a barrage of expletives, while staff were trying to calm him down by saying, The staff are taking care of other patients, sir."

Eventually, the elderly man walked off without receiving medical care.

Hospital Deputy Director Weerasak Lorthongkham is paying attention to this issue to figure out this problem today, a staffer close to the issue told The Phuket News this morning (Sept 12).

The hospital management board will review this issue today, the source added.

Phuket City Police confirmed to The Phuket News this morning that the incident has not been recorded in the stations log.

Seemingly unaware of the entire incident, police at the station told The Phuket News this morning, It is possible patrol police attended there last night. We will check it out.

A patrol police officer is plainly seen in the video.
Another stellar defensive effort sends Milbank Area into state Class 11A championship

VERMILLION  Milbank Area waited 12 years to play another football game in the DakotaDome. The Bulldogs wont have to wait near as long for another one.
I recently tasted through a selection of wines from Texas and found many of them to be a lot like Texas itself big and bold. A few of the bigger reds would certainly stand up well to some nice, juicy cuts of Texas beef, no surprises there. But as I was tasting through the whites I could imagine some of them matching well with Thai cuisine and seafood  two things I dont really associate with Texas. After tasting through those whites, some of those old, universal Texas images began to fade, or at least blur, and I looked at that proud and sunbaked place in a slightly different way.
OTTAWACanadas government is planning targeted measures to boost competitiveness rather than a broad, across-the-board cut to the nations benchmark corporate tax rate, according to an official familiar with the plans.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau intends to address business concerns around competitiveness in his fall economic update. He downplayed the likelihood of a tax cut earlier this summer, before saying Tuesday he hasnt ruled anything in or anything out.

His comment comes as pressure mounts on Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus government to respond to the Trump administrations cut to U.S. corporate taxes, which a major business group argues could take a greater toll on Canadas economy than the potential termination of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Major economies around the world have been cutting corporate taxes in a bid to spur investment.

The government is eyeing more targeted measures instead of a cut to the federal corporate tax rate of 15 per cent, the official said Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity as preparations continue for the fall economic statement, expected in coming weeks. The official cited previous comments from Morneau saying changes to capital cost allowances are among the measures being considered.

A spokesman for Morneau didnt immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Business Council of Canada warned Wednesday that economic losses from U.S. tax reform could be 10 times greater than from the termination of NAFTA. The group, which represents the chief executives of some of Canadas biggest companies, released a study by PwC Canada that said lower American taxes threaten to reduce Canadian output by C$85 billion ($65 billion) a year, or 4.9 per cent of gross domestic product, and put about 635,000 jobs at risk.

Canadas combined federal and provincial corporate tax rate remains about 27 per cent while in the U.S. it fell to 21 per cent from 35 per cent, according to the study. The government should consider cutting corporate taxes to 20 per cent and mirroring an American move allowing companies to immediately take a full tax deduction for spending on capital projects, PwC said in the report.

Industries with large capital budgets are the most at risk, including makers of chemicals, machinery and plastic. Failing to respond to U.S. tax reform puts Canadian jobs and prosperity at risk at a time when Canada is already wrestling with rising protectionism, John Manley, president of the Business Council, said in a statement.

The head of Canadas fifth-largest lender also spoke out on the issue this week. Victor Dodig, chief executive officer of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, told a business luncheon Tuesday that the government needs to address competitiveness  but he stopped short in the speech of calling for a cut to the corporate tax rate.

Allowing for the expensing of capital investments within a one-year period would spur immediate capital investment and help ensure that our businesses keep pace with their international competitors, Dodig said at the Empire Club in Toronto. Given the current climate south of the border, its difficult to compete with them on corporate taxes. Changing the rules around the capital cost allowance would help level the playing field.

In a July interview in Buenos Aires, Morneau downplayed the likelihood of any rate cut. The government will make sure that our approach to taxation in the business sector remains competitive, he said. Weve been pretty clear in elaborating on that goal and from the starting point of recognizing that from a rate standpoint, from a pure rate standpoint, we are competitive.

The minister said business leaders have been asking for changes such as accelerating how quickly people can write off a capital investment, the deductibility of interest payments and other more targeted measures. Thats a much more common refrain than someone coming in and saying, You know, I really think you should really cut rates,  Morneau said in July.
CALGARYAlbertas largest high school upgrading centre has experienced a bit of tweaking.

Calgarys first week of school saw the formal implementation of multiple Calgary Board of Education initiatives, including updates to Chinook Learning Services.

Chinook Learning offers high school upgrading to almost 10,000 students, making it the largest upgrading centre in the province. In March, CBE announced its decision to move the program from the Viscount Bennett Centre to Lord Beaverbrook High School and James Fowler High School.

There has been no infrastructure money for Viscount Bennett and the condition of the building is starting to deteriorate, said Joanne Anderson, a CBE spokesperson.

Wed rather have kids in better spaces, so weve moved (Chinook) out.

Anderson said each school will have eight classrooms dedicated for Chinook students during the day.

Some students may be there for one class only, while others have a full course load, she said.

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The new locations are on opposite ends of the city, with James Fowler sitting near Queens Park Cemetery on the citys northwest side and Lord Beaverbrook sitting in the southeast, just north of Southland Drive.

Anderson said the move has improved accessibility for many students, particularly those living on the north side of Calgary.

Now kids in the north wont have to travel as far, she said. Theres kind of a north campus and a south campus for that.

One Chinook Learning model change that sparked outcries last year is still in effect.

In the past, mature students could take advantage of upgrading services offered by the CBE. Now, daytime courses are restricted to students under 20.

We used to have a wide scope; anyone who wanted to upgrade their high school education could go through this, Anderson said. Weve narrowed the scope, so that its those who are under 20 as of Sept. 1.

Students 20 years and older have access to upgrading courses in the evenings only, she added, noting that Albertas School Act only requires school boards to provide educational programs for students from the ages of six to 19.

Chinook Learning will also offer adult English language instruction for new Canadians at Forest Lawn High School, CBEs chief superintendent David Stevenson said during the first public trustee meeting for the 2018-2019 school year.

Calgarians seeking continuing education, non-credit courses and professional development will be able to find programs through Chinook at Lord Shaughnessy High School.

We hope this new Chinook model will continue to serve our students and our community well, said Stevenson.

In addition to updating the Chinook Learning framework this year, the CBE introduced a new online information system for parents and students, opened the Nelson Mandela High School and updated school bus routes.

CBE is also gearing up to transform K-12 lesson plans for all subjects once the province rolls out its anticipated curriculum changes, Anderson said.

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CROWSNEST PASS, ALTA. RCMP say a man has been charged with arson for allegedly starting a wildfire in southern Alberta.

The fire covered four hectares in the Crowsnest Pass, near the British Columbia boundary, after it started on Aug. 9

The RCMP Forestry Crimes Unit say it burned near the community of Blairmore and the Crowsnest Pass Hospital.

No buildings were damaged and no one was hurt.

Mark Daniel Foucault of Blairmore, who is 30, was remanded into custody.

He is to appear in Pincher Creek court Sept. 25.

Read more:

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EDMONTONThe notwithstanding clause went from legal curiosity to front page news this week after being invoked by Ontario Premier Doug Ford  but while the move has been heralded as unprecedented, it has been tried before, and failed, in Alberta.

But experts arent sure if Fords controversial move will inspire Alberta politicians to try again, as the results here  much like the reasons for using it  werent pretty.

The controversy started Monday, when Superior Court Justice Edward Belobaba decided to strike down a piece of legislation, proposed by Ford, that would slash the number of wards in Toronto to 25. Ford responded to the court ruling by saying hed invoke Section 33 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms  known as the notwithstanding clause.

The notwithstanding clause became part of the Constitution in 1982 and essentially gives provincial and federal governments the power to override parts of the charter.

Media and constitutional lawyer Tess Layton says the clause has been deployed twice in Alberta  failing both times, and sparking major public outcry.

The clause was first used by Ralph Kleins Progressive Conservative government in the mid-1990s, after Leilani Muir filed a successful lawsuit against the Alberta government saying shed been wrongfully sterilized as part of a government eugenics project. The government introduced Bill 26, which included the notwithstanding clause, to try to cap how much money a person could be awarded in damages, Layton said.

There was a significant public outcry, so much so that the bill actually failed  well, it passed, but after only one day, it was revoked, she said.

Then, in 2000, Albertas legislature, under Kleins government again, included the clause in Bill 202, which amended the Marriage Act to only allow unions between a man and a woman  effectively blocking same-sex marriage. However, the Supreme Court of Canada found that only the federal government could legislate around marriage, and Klein backed down.

It was a divisive political move with support and outcry on all sides of the political spectrum, said Layton.

Read more:

What we know and dont know about Fords planned use of the notwithstanding clause

Ford plans to invoke notwithstanding clause for first time in provinces history and will call back legislature on Bill 5

Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi says its dangerous for Doug Ford to use notwithstanding clause after Ontario judges ruling

Layton said its why future instances of an Alberta government attempting to invoke the clause would fail again.

I definitely dont think theres a precedent set, she said of Fords move in Ontario. I think that the Alberta cases clearly establish a precedent that if the notwithstanding clause is going to be invoked, or included in legislation, theres definitely going to be some political debate on that issue.

She also said that both Klein and Ford could have been using it as a way to posture politically and not to actually get their legislation through. For example, said Layton, Ford could appeal the courts decision, but by choosing to invoke the clause, hes inviting public discourse. This could potentially serve a political end, she said.

Eric Adams, a law professor at the University of Alberta, said part of the reason invoking the clause in the province could happen again is because Albertas ties to the clause go back to the beginning. In 1981, former Alberta premier Peter Lougheed, a Progressive Conservative, was part of a group of western premiers who negotiated the clause into the charter.

There arent many politicians who claim that they will never use the notwithstanding clause, said Adams. There are some, but in particular, the trend in conservative political circles is to see the notwithstanding clause as a legitimate political tool.

He also said he could see labour law being a contentious issue in the future where Albertans might see the clause invoked since the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that the right to strike is a fundamental freedom.

You could imagine some political parties legislating in a way that a court finds violates freedom of association rights in a labour context, said Adams.

He added that a conservative government in Alberta could consider invoking the clause in that case, effectively overriding the courts ruling on striking.

Its possible that the use by the Ford government will be a turning point when we see the frequent discussion (about invoking the clause) turn to more frequent actions, he said.

With files from May Warren

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Every reader knows two things about books: if a book does well there will eventually be a movie made; and the book is always better than the film.

Of course, that never stops filmmakers from trying their hands at adaptations and this years Toronto International Film Festival has more than 15 movies based on books, including First Man, Through Black Spruce, A Million Little Pieces and more.

I dropped in on three news conferences in one day and all three  The Sisters Brothers, The Hate U Give and The Front Runner  were for films based on books. The creative teams provided some insight into the process of adaptation.

Young adult novel The Hate U Give has been a fixture on the bestseller list since shortly after it debuted in 2017 and it tells the story of Starr Carter, a teenager who witnesses a police shooting that engulfs her community. Touching on police violence, racial inequality, code switching and other hot button topics, author Angie Thomas said she initially had concerns about how the film would get made.

One thing as a young adult author you always worry about is the readers going, This wasnt in the book. This wasnt in the book. That was always in the back of my head. But the big thing was, I never wanted this story to be sanitized, said Thomas. We wanted it to be raw and authentic. And at first, you have that (question), are they going to make this real Hollywood? They didnt. They kept it 100 per cent authentic.

Director George Tillman Jr. talked about his job being to make the books story visible; one change he made was creating an important new scene with Starrs brother, Sekani.

As the director you have to put it in behaviour and visualization, he said. Thats what happens when you go from book to script to shooting  Can I just change it from the book, just a little bit? Can we deviate slightly and make that behaviour, because that wasnt completely in the scene. And that conversation was, You good with that, Angie? 

I wish I wrote it in the book, responded Thomas.

While The Hate U Gives modern political tale couldnt be more different than the western drama The Sisters Brothers, one thing they share is source material written from a first-person perspective, which required some changes in the transition.

The latter film stars John C. Reilly, Joaquin Phoenix, Riz Ahmed and Jake Gyllenhaal. Thomas Bidegain and director Jacques Audiard wrote the screenplay, based on Canadian author Patrick deWitts Governor Generals Award-winning 2011 novel, which Reilly described as a great piece of Canadian literature. It tells the story of two assassins chasing a prospector and, just as the book subverts its genre, the film can be described as a funny Western.

It is more like a fairy tale than a Western, said Audiard. There was a long process to the adaptation, because the charm of the book is really a literary one. You have to stand away from the book.

Bidegain explained that the big changes in going from book to film were around beefing up two characters and, in particular, giving Riz Ahmeds prospector character, Hermann Kermit Warm, a utopian motivation.

The book is told in the first person. Its really about Eli (played by Reilly in the film) and we had to find the situation (so) we as an audience can see his inner life coming and his approach to the world, explained Bidegain. There are actually two couples in the film. There are the Sisters brothers and Morris (Gyllenhaals character) and Warm. So in the novel Warm and Maurice are out there, but they are not really as present as they are in the film.

Bidegain said he met with deWitt early in the process and discussed some of the changes, which also included changing one character from male to female, and he was amicable to them.

At least with both of those stories, the characters are all fictional. Those types of things are a little harder to do when your subject actually exists. The Front Runner is about the true story of Gary Hart, a strong contender to be the U.S. Democratic Partys presidential candidate in 1988 before his campaign was upended by infidelity.

The movie was based on political journalist Matt Bais book, All the Truth Is Out: The Week Politics Went Tabloid, written in 2014. Bai said he first became interested in Hart (played by Hugh Jackman in the film) for an article he wrote but afterward felt that he had repeated some misconceptions about him. He realized there was more to the story and decided to expand it in a book.

While the film is about politics, its also about journalism. Director Jason Reitman wants to examine the media but said hes happy he doesnt have to hold himself to the same rigorous standards. Its about the story and the audiences reaction to it.

It is a movie. You do need to create dialogue for characters and you do need to take them through an emotional arc. But the facts are the facts in the film. What is important is that we give people different points of view, said Reitman.

Because the film is always asking, What should we know? What do we need to know? What do we want to know? And for screenwriters that becomes a very tricky question, because we want to leave that in your hands. We want this movie to be one that as an audience, one person is going to have a completely different experience from the next person.

Correction  Sept. 13, 2018: This article was edited from a previous version that misstated the surname of The Hate U Give author Angie Thomas.
This was the only real burlesque venue, said Brittany Meyer, producer of Strip Joker, a sex-positive variety and burlesque show that also called Uptown Underground home. They valued quality, and booked fairly. They allowed outside shows to be produced, and provided a level of quality that no other location in Chicago has for burlesque performers. There are other shows, many are great in odd and end locations, but UU was a pillar of professionalism and in a space fit for burlesque, it was made for burlesque.
HALIFAXHalifax Regional Police are investigating after a school bus carrying students left a road and crashed into a power pole.

The incident happened around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday on Old Sambro Rd. between Club and White Head roads.

Police said in a media release that no other vehicles were involved in the crash. Halifax Regional Police spokesperson Cst. John McLeod said officers on the scene didnt observe any injuries, but there was one passenger who did go with EHS as a precautionary measure.

In a Twitter post, the Halifax Regional Centre for Education said students were on a bus going to Herring Cove Junior High School.

The post went on to say the students were being put onto another bus and that the school would be contacting parents directly.

No other information was provided.

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Province ponies up for Halifax transportation projects

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The pond-side trees appeared to be turning red as flocks of scarlet ibises flew in to roost, brilliant from their bills to their toes. They dueled with egrets over the best perches, squawking raucously. A squadron of chubby capybaras  the worlds largest rodents  idled in the muddy shallows before suddenly charging off, churning the water, lunging and splashing. As darkness fell, the birds settled in, the wind died and the place became tranquil. A caiman slipped quietly into the muddy water. The first stars appeared low in the eastern sky, and night fell over the Colombian llanos.

This vast region  extending from the Andes to the Orinoco River, and Venezuela beyond, is known as the Llanos Orientales  or eastern plains. It is a broad, flat savannah split by slow, muddy rivers lined with gallery forests. In the rainy season, from May to October, tropical downpours turn muddy trickles into rivers, plains to lakes, and dry ground to mud. In the dry season, lakes shrink, rivers drop and the land becomes parched and sun-baked. It all combines to create an otherworldly landscape, teeming with wildlife.

The plains surrounding us seemed to reach the sky, and looked to us like an ocean covered with seaweed, wrote Prussian naturalist Alexander von Humboldt, who crossed the llanos in 1800. Sky and land merged.

The landscape and wildlife are increasingly attracting tourists to places like Juan Solito, an eco-lodge founded in 1999 by Nelson Barragan. It is just across the silty Ariporo River from Hato La Aurora, a 37,000-acre ranch that belongs to the extended Barragan family.

Tourists stay at Juan Solito and spend their days exploring the ranch, which is managed as a wildlife reserve through Colombias Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development.

The ranch serves as a refuge for species at risk and teaches visitors about the culture of the llanos, Barragan told me. The idea is to support the natural ecosystem and maintain them in their wild state so people can see the wild animals and the wild lands as they were before.

Elsewhere, the llanos environment is threatened by oil drilling, intensive agriculture and overgrazing.

Barragan is a pure llanero, as natives of the region are known. He sometimes plays the lively yet plaintive llanero music for guests, on the harp or the four-stringed cuatro. During the wet season, he rides alongside the other vaqueros to round up the cattle.

On my first morning, Barragan outlined the options for exploring the area. Over several cups of tinto, the strong black coffee that keeps Colombia caffeinated, we came up with a three-day plan  a wildlife safari, a fishing expedition and a search for snakes.

Later that morning, Giovanni Castilla, my guide, and I ferried across the river in a large, wood-planked canoe. Along the riverbank, leaf-cutter ants rambled industriously, looking like a fleet of tiny rusty boats with oversized green sails. A roadside hawk perched in a riverside tree. Parked in the shade was a Toyota pickup, tricked out safari-style with padded bench seats in the stake-side bed. I hopped in back and we rolled out onto the open plains on a rutted dirt road.

Wildlife was abundant and conspicuous. A barefaced ibis foraged through the grass as a crested caracara hunted for turtle eggs along the mud bank of a small creek. Deer grazed in the near distance, and beyond, next to a small muddy pond, a pair of jabirus  large, ridiculous-looking storks with red, pelican-like pouches.

At a larger pond just down the road, a dozen spectacled caimans lounged in the shallows, and a long-toed bird called a wattled jacana waded alongside a roseate spoonbill. A pair of Orinoco geese tended goslings, and two dozen capybaras sat half-submerged, looking docile, some with mud caked across their backs. Profiled on a sandy bench a few feet above the rest of the plain, four pairs of burrowing owls stood by their dens.

It was a lot to take in, and there was more. Off in the distance, I noticed what first looked like clouds to the west. Looking closer, it was the white glaciers of the 17,000-foot peaks of the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy, resting atop the bluish Andes.

All the while we travelled among livestock  the Barragans run 5,000 head of cattle, along with horses and a small herd of water buffalo. Stopping for lunch at Hato Agua Verde, one of several haciendas on the ranch, we saw a lasso stretched along a fence, freshly made from pure leather. One of the cowboys gave us an introduction to the llanero art of making these rejos. The process involves wetting a cowhide, slicing it into a long, slender strip, then twisting, stretching and drying the rope.

Returning late to Juan Solito, we crossed the river in the dark. Fruit bats flew about, and a yellowish snake, an Amazon tree boa, hunted them from the thatched roof of an outbuilding. The sky was a brilliant bowlful of stars accented by a crescent moon, utterly undiminished by light pollution.

The days started early in the llanos, with a crazy dawn chorus. First came the chachalacas  pheasant-like birds whose calls echoed from the mud banks of the river. Then the improbably loud calls of the horned screamers, goose-like birds with slender bony points on their heads. And, just after sunrise, a deep, eerie sound  howler monkeys calling from tall palms along the river. All of this, right by the hotel, before breakfast.

On the second morning, Castilla and I travelled to a far corner of the ranch to do some fishing. As we drove over the plains, a lesser yellow-headed vulture soared overhead, and a great black hawk flew by, one talon clutching a large iguana by the neck. Another big lizard darted shrub-to-shrub over the plain. It was darker and stockier than an iguana  a golden tegu.

We left the truck at an impassable creek crossing and set off walking through a patch of jungle. This corner of the ranch felt wilder. It was easy to imagine jaguars roaming the land, and they do.

In April 2017, Nelsons brother Jorge Barragan and Brigitte Baptiste, the director of Colombias Humboldt Institute, saw two large jaguars resting in a swamp in the middle of the day. Using wildlife cameras, Jorge and a team of wildlife biologists have identified 31 jaguars on the ranch, including residents and migrants.

Emerging from the jungle, we came to a small river where a weathered johnboat was tethered to a tree. Castilla poled us up to a confluence, and we tied off in the shade. It is best not to wade these waters  there are freshwater stingrays swim here, and electric eels (which were objects of von Humboldts fascination and study).

A hoatzin, a primitive bird like a living archaeopteryx, called in the distance as we baited handlines with  what else?  gristly chunks of local beef. Drifting the bait in the slow current, we quickly started catching fish. First, a couple of small catfish nibbled, then toothy piranhas hit the bait savagely. A couple of hours later, we hiked out with a fine stringer of plump piranhas, which we ate that night  scored, fried and delicious.

Meals are served in an open-air dining area with a palm-thatched roof, on a table that is a solid plank from a ceiba tree  three feet wide, 24 feet long, and 5 inches thick. On one wall is a large map of the ranch, and on a railing, a hint of the surrounding wildness: the paw of a puma torn asunder by a jaguar. The food is fresh, simple and hearty  soups, arepas, avocados, fruit and fruit juice, and beef, pork and fish. Theres also tasty homemade cheese  queso fresco, or farmers cheese  from a small herd of dairy cows.

The main building has eight rooms and a patio strung with hammocks. Another building has six more rustic rooms and a set of bookshelves overflowing with well-worn field guides (handy for identifying endemic birds like the pale-headed jacamars that hang around the buildings).

It is clean, comfortable and basic, but its not for everyone. There is not an infinity pool, nor a hint of a yoga mat. You will not get cellphone service or Wi-Fi, and English words are in short supply. The showers are not cold, per se, nor is the water heated. The nearly equatorial sun, on the other hand, is relentless at midday. And there are chiggers, ticks and mosquitoes, and venomous fer-de-lance snakes. An English-speaking tourist who arrived just before I left was unimpressed. If this is the way ecotourism is developing in this country, he told his wife, I dont think its going to be very successful.

Jaguars are not the only charismatic megafauna on the llanos. There are also anacondas so huge they are the subjects of this folk tale: A llanero is walking through a riverside jungle and stops to rest, sitting on a downed tree ... which soon begins to slither off. The tale seemed hyperbolic until I was drinking beer in a roadhouse one day and noticed a snakeskin hanging from the palm fronds of the roof. It appeared to be six metres long.

A week before I arrived, a large anaconda had eaten a caiman in a small pond near Juan Solito, then spent the day digesting on the bank. So on my third day, Castilla and I walked over to look for it, distracted along the way by dozens of birds. Small, medium and large parrots flew by  brown-throated parakeets, yellow-headed parrots, and chestnut-fronted macaws.

Castilla spied an anaconda track in a ditch beside the road and began wading barefoot through the muddy, calf-deep water, searching for the snake. Soon, he stepped on something soft that moved slightly beneath his feet. Taking a step back, he gestured to me to come closer. Then he used a stick to gently probe the mud, which suddenly exploded, as a caiman emerged thrashing, jaws snapping, then hastily departed.

Nearby, a refined-looking raptor, a savannah hawk, perched in a low tree. Arriving at the pond, we saw a similar hawk scanning the water, but this one had a paler head. It was a black collared hawk, which preys on fish. But the anacondas stayed hidden.

Later that day, I set off with another guide, Jeremias Tumay, to search for anacondas in another corner of the ranch, this time on horseback. Although motorcycles, jeeps and pickups are popular on the plains, horses are better for fording rivers and creeks.

Llaneros have earned reputations as excellent horsemen, and Simon Bolivar relied on them in his fight for independence. In Bolivar: American Liberator, Marie Arana wrote: The llaneros were accomplished horsemen, well trained in the art of warfare. ... They made tents from hides, slept on earth, revelled in hardship. They lived on the open prairie, which was parched by heat, impassable in the rains.

On the sure-footed horses, we descended the steep muddy bank and crossed the Ariporo River, stirrup-deep in the opaque flow. Then we rode an hour over the llanos to a small lake, where hundreds of ducks dabbled amid a large herd of capybaras and dozens of shorebirds.

We found no snakes, but skirting another pond on the ride back, we came upon a reptile rarer still. Tumay spotted what first looked like a caiman, but without a knobby nose. It was an Orinoco crocodile, a critically endangered species that can grow to lengths of six metres. The sighting was a surprise but not entirely unexpected  Barragan has been co-operating with several wildlife agencies on a crocodile reintroduction project.

After a brief glimpse, the crocodile disappeared into the water, in a corner of the llanos still big and wild enough to keep a few secrets.
The morning my guide, Juliana Chavez, met me in Popayan, at the southern point of Colombias verdant Valle de Cauca, she warned me that the drive ahead of us that day would be rough and long. Our destination was San Agustin, home to some of South Americas most compelling archeological finds that during the more than five decades of war here had been difficult if not impossible to visit  yet only 128 kilometres from Popayan, the nearest city.

But we planned to drive via the Parque National Natural Purace, and the road bisecting this jungle and rain forest landscape is mostly unpaved, so we would be at a crawl much of the day. And then, as we headed out of town, Chavez offered details more concerning than a bumpy ride. Like about guerrilla ambushes and kidnappings.

In the 1990s, as war swept across Colombia, FARC guerrillas set up base camps in Purace. The remote highlands and the road we would be on was especially notorious for kidnappings. Entering the park, which lies at the crux of a V-shape formed by two branches of the Colombian Andes, the Cordilleras Occidental and Oriental, I recalled how in 2002, government forces had defeated guerrillas in the region, making Purace, which was established in 1961, safe. Nevertheless, Chavez later told me, her uncle had been kidnapped in the region in 2004.

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Chavez, originally from San Agustin, had studied international business in Ibague, in central Colombia, and attended a winter camp, too, in Denver, and later travelled around the United States for a month. By her mid-20s  she is now 28  she recognized that her education, fluency in English and overseas experience could make for a more fulfilling profession in tourism than in office work. She said she believes that her countrys natural resources (sun, coffee, beach, mountains) attract tourists, but that Colombias dramatic history of war  and now peace  offer even more to the curious traveller.

When I was growing up here, she told me, I didnt see the violence. The guerrillas lived in the countryside. They kidnapped stock breeders and merchants, and they had what we called vaccines, whereby people would pay them a monthly amount of money to just stay away.

There was also the guerrilla fighter who once showed up at her grandfathers doorstep with a rifle  which, it turned out, he wanted to sell.

We later knew that he was back living with his family, working on a farm, she said. Until the guerrillas found him, took him to the back of his house and shot him in the head. That was how it was: You could become a guerrilla easily enough. But you couldnt leave that life.

The FARC rebels signed a peace accord with the Colombian government in 2016, but many Colombians remain skeptical and dissatisfied with the agreement.

As it turns out, Purace, like much of Colombia today, is safe to travel and eager for tourists. Earlier in the week, I had visited Medellin, once the murder capital of the world, with one of Pablo Escobars cousins as my guide; he offers a tour of the cocaine emperors haunts and legacy, including the slums he had tried to rehabilitate. I had also spent a lazy afternoon pleasantly blinded by Cartagenas kaleidoscopic facades.

But I would spend most of my time in the countrys southwest pocket, a region largely overlooked by tourists. In fact, I was Chavezs second American charge ever, a fact she mentioned several times with bewilderment, if not some dismay. (I paid $450 a day, including hotels, breakfast and transportation  double occupancy would reduce that by about half.)

Travellers to the southwestern states of Huila and Cauca, I had read, could pass through desert, jungle and alpine conditions within a day, albeit on some rugged roads like through Purace, which ranges across 829 square kilometres. They could also do what I was now doing: romancing the stone, if you will, as we made our way to San Agustin to see some of South Americas most compelling archeological finds, once forbidden treasures during five decades of war.

Moreover, some small towns, such as Popayan, whose elegant whitewashed colonial facades have earned it the moniker La Ciudad Blanca, were miraculously left alone during the fighting, revered for their historical significance and sheer beauty, Chavez said. I stayed one night in a grand former Franciscan monastery, where my room overlooked a tranquil arcaded courtyard. And at dusk one day, Chavez led me across Popayans refined plaza. There, we stepped into the massive cathedral, which underwent nearly 50 years of reconstruction following an earthquake in 1859.

Other area towns, such as Silvia, were spared carnage because of their large Indigenous community, the Guambiano, who had declared their territory a peace reservation and had prohibited the establishment of police stations or guerrilla bases.

Silvia lies in a small valley, and as we approached, it appeared almost like a Swiss hamlet. Arriving at the main square, colours flooded my eyes: finely woven purple skirts and jackets worn by both men and women; open-aired Dodge commuter buses painted every colour of the psychedelic spectrum. Chavez, though, cautioned me that the Guambiano, who number about 12,000 and still hew to their own language and traditional farming practices, do not like to be photographed.

They believe in the spirits, she explained. They try to live in harmony with them, to avoid disrespect, knowing the spirits can take your soul, make you ill, even kill you. Taking their pictures can irritate the spirits.

It was Tuesday, and the weekly market was in full swing. We circled the plaza, admiring the handmade purses, scarves and jewelry and then headed for the enclosed market. There, Chavez pointed to bags of marijuana (it is not legal but decriminalized) alongside a cornucopia of potatoes, dozens of varieties, including neon pink miniatures that looked like candied jawbreakers. We passed through corridors lined with burlap sacks overflowing with rosemary, quinoa and large bricks of panela, or raw cane sugar, along with those Colombian staples, coffee and coca leaves.

It was also possible to buy frailejones, a plant in the sunflower family that is processed as a tea and is said to possess medicinal qualities, particularly for lung ailments. Like the coca leaves I saw for sale, frailejon is generally illegal for consumption. The Guambiano have their own laws, Chavez explained, and are exempt from the prohibition. (She later conceded that she also keeps a coca plant at home.)

As it happened, our drive into Purace would take us higher into the Andes until we reached a vast moor carpeted in frailejones and stretching to the Purace volcano, which rose to over 15,000 feet and was shrouded in mist. It is the most active volcano in Colombia and the powerhouse behind dozens of hot springs in the area that we had driven past.

The road for dozens of miles then ascended through pockets of rain forest that included colonies of wax palms  Colombias national tree and the worlds tallest palms  and jungle passes, and across bridges spanning the Cauca and Mazamorras rivers. We also lumbered across kilometres of unpaved, potholed passages  precisely what Chavez had warned me about. And while we did not encounter any guerrillas, we did face another hazard  semitrucks hauling both passengers and goods, slowly navigating turns and nudging us to the shoulders until we finally pulled off the road in the village of Paletara.

As we climbed higher in the park, the temperature dropped considerably, and so at a small restaurant, Chavez ordered bowls of hot and sweet agua panela (sugar cane juice) for us, and curded cheese that she immersed in her own. She talked with me about kidnappings in the region, including that of her uncle, whose captors took him hostage for his motorcycle, which they eventually returned to him, she said.

By early evening, I stood on the wraparound balcony at the sprawling and rustic Akawanka Lodge, which affords an indulgent view of the lush hills surrounding San Agustin. A formerly abandoned livestock pasture, the hacienda abode is today like a modern-day Garden of Eden, with sculptured hedges enclosing beds of impatiens, a hillside lawn, and bougainvillea and hibiscus draped everywhere. My whitewashed room was painstakingly decorated with Indigenous art, as was each room, with a distinct flourish.

Carolina Guilleztegui Ibeth, the Akawanka owners daughter in-law, later guided me around the hotel and its open-aired passageways enshrined with mosaics made by Eliza, her mother-in-law. Her family had sought out local artisans to contribute woodwork and murals to the decor. Each room, she told me, is named for native flora and fauna. Mine was called Zariqueya, or opossum, exemplified by a painting of one and her babies dangling from a tree branch.

This same creative spirit was on display later as Chavez and our guide, Alirio Semanate, led me among the mysterious stone sculptures at San Agustins Parque Arqueologico, which was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995. According to historians, two Indigenous tribes settled in the Magdalena and Cauca river valleys some 5,000 years ago. They mysteriously vanished but left behind hundreds of solemn anthropomorphic sculptures, most of them tombstones. Walking among the figures at the park, some with fierce expressions, others conveying delight, Semanate carried a notebook to sketch galactic movements that seem to have guided the ancient stonemasons understanding of how to position their works in supplication for fertility, or to protect one in the afterlife.

We saw more later on, after riding horseback from San Agustin through the muddy hills to La Chaquira, where three figures carved into stone face the sun at different times of the year, likely reflecting solstice or equinox rituals. But the view there was just as mesmerizing as the figures, which look out onto a misty, magnificent gorge spliced by the Magdalena River.

Along the four-hour drive north from San Agustin and halfway to Bogota, the soaring Andes gradually flatten, and the contours morphed as we arrived at the Desierto de la Tatacoa, a disorienting badland of prickly pear cactuses and wild goats, trenches, crags and bluffs. It was late afternoon and still hot as we navigated gullies and, at one point, watched amusedly as a flock of goats galloped along a ridge.

As darkness fell, we headed to an observatory adjacent to Tatacoas entrance. Through a powerful telescope there, I looked up at a moon you could practically reach out and touch, and at the stars that remained constants across civilizations, colonization, war and violence, and now hung still in an eternal, pacific sky.
OTTAWAPrime Minister Justin Trudeau says its disappointing that Ontario Premier Doug Ford has invoked the notwithstanding clause of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to push ahead with his plan to shrink Toronto council but suggests that Ottawa will remain on the sidelines in the bitter debate.

Ford announced his governments move Monday, just hours after a Superior Court judge ruled that Ontario legislation to cut the size of council to 25 from 47 councillors was unconstitutional.

Speaking in Winnipeg Tuesday, Trudeau said that Canadians value the charter and its protections against governments that overreach.

So anytime a government chooses to invoke the notwithstanding clause to override the charters protections, it has to be done deliberately, carefully and with the utmost forethought and reflection, the prime minister said.

But Trudeau suggested that his government wont get involved.

Were disappointed by the provincial government in Ontarios choice to invoke the notwithstanding clause, but I wont be weighing in on the debate on how big Toronto municipal council should be, he said.

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I will trust that Ontarians will reflect whether or not the provincial government made the right decision on overriding the Charter of Rights and Freedoms on this issue, said Trudeau, who met with Toronto Mayor John Tory on the topic Monday.

The clause was intended to give Ottawa or the provinces a mechanism to overrule Charter rights that conflict with their legislative agenda.

Trudeaus comments follow a statement Monday by Dominic LeBlanc, the federal intergovernmental affairs minister, who said the notwithstanding clause is an extraordinary part of the Constitution and should only be used in the most exceptional of cases.

Liberal MP Adam Vaughan, who served on Toronto council before moving to federal politics, said it was too soon to say whether Ottawa would get involved in the case but said his government would be watching the situation carefully to ensure cities are protected.

The vulnerability of cities and our relationship with cities, which weve worked very hard to elevate, is clearly at risk. Cities are at risk, Vaughan told the Star in an interview from Saskatoon, where he is attending a Liberal caucus meeting.

We have to be respectful of provincial jurisdiction but at the same time we have to be responsible to the Canadians who live in cities, he said.

So were looking at it very carefully around what we can and should do, Vaughan said.

But the MP for Spadina-Fort York was wary too about setting precedents if Ottawa moved on legal action around Ontarios use of the notwithstanding clause.

It sets the federal government up as a court of appeal on all provincial legislation across the entire country, he said.

That being said, until we see the legislation  its very hard to say what should or shouldnt be the response, he said.

Michael Pal, director of the public law group at the University of Ottawas faculty of common law, said that the Trudeau government is taking the right approach to voice caution about the use of the notwithstanding clause but avoid direct intervention.

Is there a really immediate legal mechanism that the federal government has to stop this? The answer is no, Pal said in an interview Tuesday.

And as a general matter, you dont want the federal government necessarily intervening in municipal, City of Toronto elections, he said.

Pal said the government is right to signal that the clause should be reserved for the rarest and clearest and most important of cases.

To normalize the use of the notwithstanding clause, in relation to political expression, that is very likely to have bad consequences down the road, he said.

In theory, the federal government could respond with its own rarely employed constitutional weapon  under the Constitution, it can disallow a provincial statute.

But Pal said suggestions that Ottawa should use this to thwart Fords plan is a non-starter saying that disallowance provision is virtually defunct

No one seriously thinks it could be used today, he said. Its not a door we want to open in a healthy federation.

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HALIFAXAfter considering the idea of excluding tobacco and medical cannabis from the citys smoking bylaw, Halifax regional council voted Tuesday to revert to a full ban on smoking or vaping any substance on municipal property.

During the meeting, council considered amendments to the nuisance bylaw originally passed in July. The bylaw bans smoking on all municipal property except for designated smoking areas, which have yet to be announced.

The item made it back to city hall because Councillor Sam Austin had a change of heart. After originally voting in favour of the ban, Austin decided tobacco shouldnt be included.

I think what weve signed up for here is the worst of all worlds, Austin said on Tuesday. Its a ban thats not a ban thats going to require a lot of time, effort and resources, and then at the end of the day, its not going to be particularly effective.

Austin said he did some research and found only one other jurisdiction in Canada was taking the approach of banning all smoking on municipal property: Hampstead, a Montreal suburb.

Sometimes when youre the first, its because youre leading the way. Sometimes when youre the first, its because youve had a boneheaded idea, Austin said.

The majority of Austins colleagues disagreed.

I dont think this is boneheaded at all. I think its bold, said Councillor Lisa Blackburn. I have no buyers remorse whatsoever on the decision we made earlier this summer.

Have your say:

Since council passed the bylaw in July, critics have accused it of being heavy-handed with respect to both tobacco and cannabis. Advocates have argued the tobacco portion could criminalize low-income smokers.

The bylaw comes with a fine of between $25 and $2,000, with up to 30 days in jail if the fine goes unpaid. The municipality has said the upper end of the fines would be reserved for repeat offenders, and most would get off with a warning.

But legal staff also pointed to enforcement as the central reason for including tobacco in the ban, arguing that if bylaw officers had to differentiate between tobacco and cannabis, the charges wouldnt hold up in court.

Investigators will need to get close enough to the offender to see what they are smoking and to smell the smoke, a staff report to council said.

Courts may also require some level of scientific analysis that the substance being smoked was in fact cannabis. If council limits the smoking ban to cannabis, staff are recommending adding a provision in the bylaw that a judge may infer the offender smoked cannabis when a witness describes the substance as cannabis.

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Its unclear whether that wouldve worked, given that the municipality has no authority over judges, but the point is now moot.

To enforce the new rules, the municipality is hiring eight new bylaw officers  part of the $3 million in estimated annual costs to the municipality brought on by cannabis legalization.

The municipality says enforcement will be complaint-driven, so there wont be bylaw officers out patrolling for smokers. That means those officers will have to get to the scene of the smoking in time to enforce the bylaw.

And Councillor Tim Outhit again brought up the fact that bylaw officers are off duty at 8 p.m., meaning police will end up dealing with nighttime complaints.

Do we want police  when we have people (getting) drugs put into their drinks downtown, alleged assaults in cabs, fights, stabbings, swarmings, all the sorts of things were trying to prevent  do we want police worried about if somebody is smoking outside of the designated smoking area? Outhit asked.

Im sorry. Its not logical. Its not rational. Its not fair to the people who have to enforce it.

The staff report to council on Tuesday provided two alternatives to the status quo: exempt tobacco from the ban or exempt tobacco and medical cannabis.

Austin put forward an amendment to take the second option, but the motion was defeated by a vote of eight to six.

Council eventually voted in favour of the motion as a whole, changing the name of the original bylaw from the Nuisance Bylaw to the Nuisance and Smoking Bylaw and making some minor housekeeping tweaks to the language.

The bylaw comes into effect Oct. 1. HRM has ordered 1,000 signs to mark its designated smoking areas.

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WINNIPEGPrime Minister Justin Trudeau is sounding a cautionary note about the recreational use of marijuana, saying that consuming it could have consequences for Canadians crossing the border into the United States.

Trudeau made the comment during an interview on CBC Manitoba hours before a visit to Winnipeg.

He was posed a question from a listener, who wanted to know what he would say to a U.S. border guard if he was asked if he had ever tried cannabis.

Trudeau replied that while hes never told a fib while crossing the border, Canadians who have used marijuana will have to consider how they would respond.

The recreational use of marijuana in Canada officially becomes legal on Oct. 17, and the prime minister says his government is working with the American officials to ensure that travel to the U.S. does not become a problem as a result of the change.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection office said in a statement earlier this year that medical and recreational marijuana may be legal in some U.S. states, but it remains illegal under U.S. federal law.

Ive never lied to a border guard, Trudeau told the CBC on Tuesday, while also noting that every country has the right to decide who crosses their borders.

I certainly wont work to assume or impress upon the U.S. who they have to let in or not. They have legalized marijuana in a number of their states and were trying to make sure that travel between our two countries is not disrupted.

But Trudeau also said its important to remember that marijuana is a controlled substance thats being legalized to protect children and communities.

Its not a health food supplement. Choosing to partake of marijuana has consequences for individuals, for lives in different ways, and were not encouraging that.

The legalization issue is expected to be on the agenda when Trudeau meets with Progressive Conservative Premier Brian Pallister during his visit to the Manitoba capital.

The meeting will come one day after the Pallister cabinet announced hefty fines for people who break Manitobas rules on cannabis consumption, including a $2,542 penalty for those who grow cannabis plants at home, supply it to an underage person or sell it without a licence.

The federal government has pushed to have homegrown pot allowed, but Manitoba and Quebec have fought the move and insisted the provinces have the right to restrict it.

We truly believe that allowing people to grow a small quantity at home for personal consumption is a part of removing the black market and keeping our communities safe, Trudeau said.

The province has picked a different path and were going to see how we work that out.

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When Natasha Carew and Sean Ritchie got married last summer, they decided it was better to give than to receive.

The Toronto couple chose to forgo wedding gifts, and instead encouraged their guests to help raise $26,000 to sponsor a refugee family and give them a new life in Canada.

After forming a core volunteer group of eight people, including the couple, Carews mother, co-workers and friends, they were matched with a Sudanese family who had been stuck in limbo in Jordan for almost five years.

Mohammed Abd Elnour, his wife Assgad Ali, and their two daughters, Rafaa, 9, and Ruba, 5, arrived in Toronto from Amman on June 4, just three months after they were matched with Carews group.

Whats most rewarding is seeing the (familys) two girls getting the opportunity we are afforded in Canada, said Carew, a litigation lawyer with Gowling WLG, who, along with her husband, asked guests at their August 2017 wedding to help with the humanitarian endeavour. We could have been the ones sitting in a refugee camp looking to get an opportunity for a new life from somebody.

The quick arrival of a sponsored family is usually rare, but thats not the case under the Blended Visa Office Referred (BVOR) program, which matches travel-ready refugees with sponsors. The program, which started in 2012, splits the cost of settlement between private sponsors and the federal government.

Its helpful the costs are shared, said Carew. You cannot sponsor specific people, but this is quick and your (pre-screened) family can be here in a few months.

As of last month, the blended programs annual 1,500 targeted spots had not been filled. Meanwhile, private groups solely supporting their own selected refugees have already claimed the 18,000 spaces allocated this year by Ottawa and must now wait until next year for new spots. Ottawa does not allow unused capacity to carry over to the following year.

In an attempt to maximize Canadas annual quota for the blended sponsorship program, the University of Ottawa Refugee Hub, the Shapiro Foundation and Jewish Family Services Ottawa created a special fund to fully subsidize the financial commitment of private sponsors participating in the blended resettlement program. Refugees sponsored with the support of this fund will arrive before Dec. 31.

More than 1,000 BVOR cases are at risk in 2018 if we do not mobilize Canadian sponsors, said Jennifer Bond of the University of Ottawa. The Refugee Hub is working with sponsors and other partners across Canada to bring as many vulnerable people to safety as we can before resettlement capacity is lost.

With a Sept. 17 application deadline looming, organizers have so far received more than 700 inquiries but only about 100 formal expressions of interest involving fewer than 500 sponsored refugees  half of the target.

At a time of record high global needs and diminishing resettlement opportunities for refugees, these thousand spaces are more precious than ever, said Ed Shapiro, trustee of the Shapiro Foundation. It is critical to support sponsor groups who have served as a model for welcoming refugees and by unbundling their required financial obligations, we hope they will be able to increase their 2018 resettlement commitments.

Since the launch of Canadas Syrian resettlement project in 2015, the blended program has had a tough time meeting its yearly targets because private groups are more keen on sponsoring family members of Syrian newcomers still stuck overseas, said Yosief Araya of the Refugee Sponsorship Training Program.

The one-time subsidy offers practical financial support and is good for those groups who have good will and human resources but not the money to support sponsored refugees, said Araya, whose organization is tasked by Ottawa with matching private groups with refugees ready for resettlement who have been referred by Canadian visa posts.

While sole private sponsors must raise at least $13,500 for start-up costs such as furniture, phones and clothes, as well as a year of financial support for a single refugee, groups participating in the blended program need only $9,900 as Ottawa will shoulder six months of the newcomers income support.

Although the special subsidy wasnt available when Carew, 34, and Ritchie, 37, decided to sponsor a family, they jumped at the chance to help others.

Sick and tired of wedding consumerism, the couple decided to dedicate their big day to a fundraising and refugee sponsorship event. Not only did they ask their guests to donate, they also created an email network for support and raised additional cash through social media and work.

Although supporting a family of four under a blended program would only require $20,000 from a private group, the couple set a target of $26,000 because it costs more to live in Toronto.

Carew, who typically works 12-hour days, said the commitment to a sponsored family is not as daunting as many people would think. Volunteers need to spend time to make housing arrangements and guide the family through the initial settlement, including helping them apply for Canadian ID, enrolling the kids in school, using public transit and supporting them in day-to-day challenges.

Some people were so negative about this process and thought it (would be) a massive undertaking that required full-time level commitment, said Carew. I work crazy hours but everyone could do it.
The sleek, sexy curves of Torontos 205-metre L Tower have been marred since its early days by an ugly crane that was awkwardly perched on its top.

Now the crane has finally been removed.

And replaced by  well, another crane.

Technically, the new piece of machinery is called a building maintenance unit, or BMU for short. It will be used for window washing and exterior repairs.

And although the swap may appear to have merely traded one eyesore for another, the removal of the first crane signals the beginning of a new era for the condo tower  its windows can be washed for the first time.

The reason the crane was up there for so long is because the BMU had to be made in Europe, said Mark Allen, a realtor and L Tower resident, in a phone interview.

Its a crane that will position the window washing utility and, because of the shape of the building, it took so long to have one engineered and specially made.

The L Tower  which was once unfavourably compared to a boot  has glimmered bright and blue over the downtown area from the corner of Yonge St. and the Esplanade for a few years now, but its journey to completion remained blemished by the ugly crane on its top.

Could one piece of rust-coloured machinery really cause so much trouble?

In this case, yes.

The building was supposed to be completed in mid-2015, but safety concerns about the crane prompted one operator to walk off the job, saying it could fall down the side of the building.

According to the union of crane operators in Ontario at the time, it was a monstrosity akin to an incomplete Lego set put together by an eight-year-old.

And when it should have been the time for ribbon-cutting ceremonies, the Ministry of Labour delivered a stop-work order, calling for engineering reports that could prove that the crane was safe.

The deadline for that proof was July 2015. And it was never provided. Instead, the ministry was told that other methods and equipment were being looked into, and the crane would not be used.

So there it sat.

Allen bought his unit in the L Tower about three years ago. They were saying it was going to come down then, he said. And I thought, yeah, OK. Sure.

It couldnt be taken away, not even by high winds or thunderstorms. It sat still and serene as drama raged inside the building below it during a 2017 flood so intense that staircases turned to rivers.

Despite the crane, the Daniel Libeskind-designed building placed eighth on a list of 2017s best new skyscrapers from real estate data company Emporis, which evidently viewed it as more of a beauty spot.

He does a lot of deconstructivism, so there are odd circumstances, Allen said of Libeskind.

And besides, how are you going to clean windows on his buildings?

Despite anticipation more than a year ago that the crane was finally ready to come down, it did not end its long vigil until this week.

Its final act was to bring the BMU to the top of the tower. Then, after the two of them sat side by side for a couple of months, the crane was finally dismantled and the BMU lowered its broken body to the ground.

Now the BMU overlooks the city alone, ready to start its work.

The new crane, said University of Toronto architecture professor David Lieberman, is a really interesting piece of design that should add to the safety of window washers and other workers and signals that the architects are interested in not only designing the building, but the system by which to maintain it.

I do think its important that were a little more imaginative and innovative in the buildings that we construct for the future of the city, Lieberman said. We should build for long-term futures.

Sam Crignano, president of L Tower developer Cityzen Development Group, did not immediately return requests for comment from the Star. Daniel Libeskind and the property management at the L Tower were not available for comment.

To the casual passerby, it will seem like nothing has changed  after all, a crane is still poised atop the tower.

But something has changed. Even though it did nothing except infuriate crane operators, Ministry of Labour staff and anyone hoping to get a clean Instagram photo of the tower, it was a part of our skyline for years.

So long, small derrick. We salute you.

Jack Hauen is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Follow him on Twitter: @jackhauen

Alexandra Jones is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @AlexandraMaeJ
In the wake of Premier Doug Fords announcement that hed be invoking the rarely used notwithstanding clause in his quest to drastically downsize Toronto city council, we wanted to know where MPPs stood on the issue.

The Star reached out to all 25 MPPs from the Toronto area, as well as all Progressive Conservative MPPs across the province. Two identical questions were asked to each:

The premier has said that there will be a free vote on the retabled Bill 5, including whether to use Section 33 of the Constitution. He has asked members of his caucus to vote their conscience. What does your conscience say about the decision to invoke the notwithstanding clause to override a charter right or freedom  in this case, freedom of expression  for the first time in the provinces history?

How do you plan to vote?

The legislature convened Wednesday to discuss Bill 31, the retabled Bill 5 with the notwithstanding clause, where it passed first reading 63-17 after many MPPs from the opposition were thrown out of the chamber for being disruptive.

The majority of PC MPPs, both in Toronto and across the province, did not respond to repeated attempts to reach them by 5 p.m. Wednesday. Fords spokesperson Simon Jefferies said there had been no directive issued to PC MPPs about the issue, and the vote would be free as the premier said.

Read more:

Fords legislation to cut Toronto council passes first reading as protests rock the Ontario legislature

Province appeals judges ruling on Toronto council cut

Former premier Bill Davis speaks out against Doug Fords use of the notwithstanding clause

A spokesperson for the NDP said all their MPPs had voted against Bill 5 when it was first introduced, and they would do the same this time around.

Here are those who responded to the questions:

Rima Berns-McGown, NDP, Beaches-East York

Doug Fords willingness to trample Ontarians Charter rights for the sake of getting his own way is an unprecedented attack on our fundamental freedoms and downright terrifying. If he will do it to get revenge on Toronto City Council, Im deeply concerned about what other Charter rights he will trample in future should the courts disagree with him again.

Ill be voting against.

Marit Stiles, NDP, Davenport

Doug Ford trampled on peoples rights with Bill 5. And when the Courts told him he couldnt do that, he didnt find a way forward that respected those rights. He just decided to take them away. This action is unprecedented and deeply undemocratic.

Ill be voting against.

Kathleen Wynne, Liberal, Don Valley West

A staffer emailed a link to Wynnes tweet, in which she wrote: Using the notwithstanding clause in a context where there is no national emergency, and where there will be no proper debate on the balancing of rights at stake is wrong.

Christine Hogarth, PC, Etobicoke-Lakeshore

Section 33 is part of our constitution; it does not overrule the constitution. Section 33 exists because almost 40 years ago, Premiers across Canada foresaw this very situation occurring and wanted something in our constitution that made sure that it is ultimately the MPPs who were elected are the ones who decide the laws. Today, were using Section 33, because we believe that the will of the elected legislature should be respected.

I am pleased to stand with Ontarios Government for the People and vote in favour of the Efficient Local Government Act.

Tom Rakocevic, NDP, Humber River-Black Creek

Fords decision is an appalling abuse of power over the fundamental human rights of Torontonians. He is using the notwithstanding clause as a weapon to punish those he disagrees with.

I wholeheartedly oppose this and will be voting against it.

Bhutila Karpoche, NDP, Parkdale-High Park

People from around the world have to come to Canada because of our human rights protections. Ford cannot be allowed to suspend our right to freedom of expression on a whim.

Ill be voting against.

Mitzie Hunter, Liberal, Scarborough-Guildwood

Ford and his Conservatives are attempting to divide our great city  this move is deeply damaging for the City of Toronto and I will not stand silent on this issue. Any erosion of peoples rights is a slippery slope; we should all shudder to think of what could happen next.

I will again be voting against Bill 5. I will support the challenge against this undemocratic piece of legislation that was deemed unconstitutional by the courts.

Doly Begum, NDP, Scarborough Southwest

I am deeply troubled by Premier Fords disrespect for the judicial system and the rule of law, which is one of the pillars of our society. His decision to throw the Charter Rights under the bus in order to lash out against his political foes is vindictive and wrong. It shows his a lack of care and disrespect for the people of Ontario.

Ill be voting against.

Chris Glover, NDP, Spadina-Fort York

Doug Ford has decided to become the very first Premier in Ontarios history to take the outrageous step of invoking the notwithstanding clause and suspending peoples Charter rights. Hes showing the people of Ontario that he thinks getting his way is more important than everything else  including their constitutionally protected rights.

Ill be voting against.

Suze Morrison, NDP, Toronto Centre

Its an unprecedented abuse of the premiers office and is a clear indication of Fords backward priorities.

Ill be voting against.

Peter Tabuns, NDP, Toronto-Danforth

My conscience says this is an attack on our democratic rights and I am duty bound to oppose it. Democracy is more fragile than most people think, we need to be prepared to defend it.

I will vote against the Premiers plan to override the constitution.

Jill Andrew, NDP, Toronto-St. Pauls

Doug Ford is abusing his power and will not take no for an answer. Torontonians have not given him consent to meddle in Toronto City Council elections  something he never campaigned on. Mr. Ford and his government clearly have no respect for the Charter rights of Ontarians. People are counting on us to stand up for their rights, and we will fight tooth and nail to do just that.

I will be voting against Doug Fords reintroduced Bill 5 and its overriding of Charter Rights.

Jessica Bell, NDP, University-Rosedale

This is a complete over-reach of Fords power and an attack on local democracy. Ontarians are counting on us to stand up for their rights.

Ill be voting against.

Roman Barber, PC, York Centre

I support the Premier in his decision to exercise Ontarios Constitutional right to invoke s.33 of the Charter. The drafters of the Charter purposely inserted s.33 to enable a Provincial Legislature to override Court decisions when the matter is of significance to a provincial government. The governance of the City of Toronto is one of our governments top priorities. Use of s. 33 will save the Better Local Government Act, which was passed in August by Ontarios democratically elected Legislature.

The Bill will end the gridlock and delay on City Council, allowing us to build transit, fix housing and reduce crime. We believe that it is time to get Toronto back on track.

Faisal Hassan, NDP, York South-Weston

When the court says Ford has violated peoples Charter rights, he just removes those rights. This is not leadership  its an abuse of power and its completely unacceptable. Its time to come together to stop Doug Ford from trampling over our rights and freedoms and give Torontos election back to Torontonians.

Ill be voting against.

Stan Cho, PC, Willowdale

A staffer said the MPP is consulting with his constituents on the issue, and will not be commenting on it.

Read more about:
About 250 residents of 650 Parliament St., who remain out of their apartments after a fire last month, met with lawyers at a downtown church Tuesday night to hear about a proposed lawsuit seeking compensation for them.

Weve done these cases before and were hoping to represent all of you in this proposed class action, lawyer Ted Charney told the town hall meeting at Saint Lukes United Church on Sherbourne St.

About 1,500 residents were forced to flee the highrise building on Aug. 21 during an electrical fire. None have been able to return, except to briefly collect belongings and pets, and Fire Chief Matthew Pegg has estimated that it could take several months for repairs to be completed.

The displaced residents were told at Tuesdays meeting that they may be entitled to financial compensation for what lawyers call loss of use and enjoyment of their homes, physical injury including smoke inhalation, emotional injuries, damage to property, costs of repair and cleanup of their property, expenses for mileage, food, and the costs of purchasing new clothing and essentials, costs of obtaining alternative accommodations and lost income.

The defendants in the case would include the landlord, the building owner and anyone else implicated in this electrical fire, Charney said.

Read more:

After the 650 Parliament fire, this is the peak of resilience

Its not home, but return to school a welcome change for kids displaced by Parliament St. fire

City says it learned from 2010 apartment fire, but displaced Parliament St. residents still frustrated

Were never going to be able to make you whole, Charney said. Everyones been displaced  We may have some compensation available for you for everything youve gone through.

Charney told them they dont have to pay any money upfront and that the lawyers fees  which could come to 30 per cent of an eventual settlement  would be taken from the final settlement and court-ordered costs paid by the defendants.

There is nothing that you have to pay upfront, and if we dont win, you dont pay anything at the end either, Charney said.

Lawyer Sharon Strosberg urged residents to save receipts for expenses, and to record things like mileage for extra driving and days missed from work in order to estimate their losses.

We very much want your information, Strosberg said. We want to understand how youve been affected.

It doesnt matter if youre employed or unemployed, Charney said.

None of this matters. You are all displaced.

Charney and Strosberg described themselves in a written statement as experienced class action litigators with particular expertise in residential tenancy class actions.

We did very well in our previous class actions, Charney told the displaced residents, who were driven from their homes at Parliament and Bloor Sts. when a six-alarm blaze sent heavy smoke throughout the building.

It took about eight hours for 100 firefighters to extinguish the blaze.

The residents have been told they wont be allowed back into their units until the building is cleared by the Toronto Fire Service and an Ontario Fire Marshals investigation is finished.

They spoke of the difficulties they face living in hotels and short term rental units. Some have been forced to move in with relatives or friends, and others said they had moved as far away as Guelph.

Residents also spoke of expenses for damaged food, time lost from work, medical expenses and even pet misbehaviour.
But the political times have changed since my first viewing of this piece, and that also inevitably  and crucially  adds a new (and grimmer) lens on Red Tapes staging. Seeing it in spring of 2010, before the Tea Party eviscerated President Barack Obamas congressional majority in the midterms, is very different from seeing it under the current administration and after the rise of Black Lives Matter. In fact, the day before the opening of Red Tapes production, Botham Jean, a black man, was shot and killed in his own Dallas home by white police Officer Amber Guyger  another reminder of how vulnerable black people in America are, no matter where they are.
A school bus driver has been charged after a collision with a pickup truck seriously injured three students Wednesday morning, with one airlifted to hospital, police said.

South Simcoe police said the collision happened at 7:45 a.m. while the bus, which had 15 students on board, was on its way to Nantyr Shores Secondary School. The collision happened at the intersection of 5th side road and 4th line in Innisfil, south of Barrie.

Police said three students suffered serious but non-life threatening injuries, with one of them being airlifted to a Toronto hospital. All of the students were sent to hospital as a precautionary measure along with the drivers of the bus and pickup truck.

Student injuries range from tissue injuries to a very serious laceration to an occupants face, said Sgt. Dave Phillips said.

The 73-year-old bus driver, a Barrie man, was charged Wednesday afternoon. Police say the bus failed to stop at a stop sign, resulting in the northbound pickup truck colliding with the bus.

He will face appear in court in November.

Simcoe Country District School Board tweeted that along with emergency services, school administrators were on site to help the students immediately following the collision.

Simcoe police are appealing to witnesses to contact them with information about the crash.

With files from simcoe.com and Alexandra Jones
A Toronto doctor was formally reprimanded Wednesday for sexually abusing four female patients, marking the end of one of the longest-running cases of sexual abuse ever handled by Ontarios medical regulator.

Dr. Javad Peirovy stood in the middle of the hearing room at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario as discipline committee member Dr. Marc Gabel castigated him for his misconduct.

Your patients expressed that they felt sexually violated, and we agreed, and found that you did violate their physical and emotional space by the way you examined them, Gabel said.

Your actions were totally unacceptable and we condemn them without reservation. This was a gross failure on your part and we express our and the publics disappointment in your behaviour.

Disappointment is also the word that the college itself used in a rare public rebuke in 2016 for the four-member discipline panel chaired by Gabel, which had imposed a six-month suspension on Peirovy rather than revoke his licence.

In finding him guilty of sexual abuse, the discipline panel said that in 2009 and 2010, Peirovy placed his stethoscope on the nipples of two patients and cupped their breasts. Regarding two others, it concluded that he touched their nipples when there was no clinical reason to examine the women in that way.

Instead of siding with the college prosecutor at the time, who was pushing for Peirovys licence to be revoked, the panel imposed a suspension, finding there was evidence he could improve through counselling.

That led to a lengthy legal battle, in which the college challenged its own discipline committee in court. The regulator was initially successful in Divisional Court, where a three-judge panel ordered a new penalty hearing for Peirovy and criticized the discipline committee for imposing what it called a litany of clearly unfit penalties in a number of sexual abuse cases.

The facts of these cases are base. It is depressing to review them, the court said. They do little to encourage confidence in the committees approach to eradicating sexual abuse in the profession.

But Peirovy appealed to the Court of Appeal, which found in his favour last May in a 2-1 decision. That meant the suspension, which Peirovy had already served, was upheld and the case against him was over, clearing the way for Wednesdays reprimand to be delivered.

In 2017, after Peirovy had already been suspended, the provincial government passed Bill 87, which now makes revocation of a health care professionals licence mandatory for groping.

Peirovy still has one outstanding case at the college. A different discipline panel found him guilty in February of professional misconduct for using his medical office to initiate a social relationship with a young female patient by giving her his personal cellphone number at her medical appointment with him.

The college is pushing for a five-month suspension and another reprimand, among other things.

The penalty hearing for that case continues Sept. 18.
Human rights organization Amnesty International has condemned Premier Doug Fords move to invoke the notwithstanding clause in his quest to slash Toronto city council.

No government in Canada should take the contemptuous step of disregard for the Charter of Rights that the notwithstanding clause offers them, said Alex Neve, Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada, in a statement released Wednesday.

To do so in a case involving the fundamental freedom of expression in a context in which core principles around elections and the underpinnings of our democracy are at stake is particularly disgraceful, Neve said. This invocation of section 33 by Premier Fords government should be withdrawn immediately. Questions about the interpretation and application of the Charter should be pursued through appeals and left to judges to determine.

Neve said the group, which usually speaks out against grave violations of human rights by rogue governments in various parts of the world, had never had to condemn any level of government in Canada.

It is disappointing to us that we have to make this statement in Canada, he said, adding Amnesty International has on occasion criticized western governments who enact national security laws and counter-terrorism measures that intentionally infringe on peoples rights.

Read more:

Fords legislation to cut Toronto council passes first reading as protests rock the Ontario legislature

Doug Ford says hell invoke the notwithstanding clause. Heres what you need to know about it

An embarrassingly Canadian device: Why does the notwithstanding clause even exist?

We certainly dont have a situation here where national security is at stake, said Neve. Theres no state of emergency at play in Ontario which threatens public security, with regards to how many councillors will be on Toronto city council.

Amnesty released its statement shortly after Fords reintroduced bill passed first reading amid a tumultuous day of protest at Queens Park in which protesters  including a woman in her 70s  were handcuffed and led from the legislature and several New Democratic representatives were kicked out for banging on their desks.

After the NDP protest, the bill, named the Efficient Local Government Act, passed first reading 63-17. Only the remaining New Democrats, the Liberals, and the lone Green MPP voted against it.

Premier Ford hastily recalled the Legislature to invoke the notwithstanding clause after Justice Edward Belobaba ruled on Monday that an earlier version of the bill violated the freedom of expression for voters and candidates.

There is no need and should be no place for such a crude provision as the notwithstanding clause, Amnesty said in its statement, referring to the provision as a a blatant human rights escape clause.

Amnesty International calls on all governments in Canada to refrain from invoking it.

The notwithstanding clause is a rarely used provision of the charter that allows federal and provincial government to pass laws that violate certain rights and freedoms.

Read more about:
Candidates will have two more days to register for Torontos 25-ward municipal election if Premier Doug Fords new bill passes at Queens Park.

After 48 hours of confusion, which left some council and school board hopefuls wondering if they would be left off the ballot entirely, legislation introduced Wednesday afternoon will give them a chance to register once it becomes law. Any previous candidate who had not yet registered in a 25-ward election and any new candidates will have those two days to sign up.

That means incumbent councillors, many of them downtown progressive voices, and others who worried they would be barred from registering if the election process was changed to reflect 25 wards, will have the opportunity to be council candidates in the Oct. 22 election.

With the revised bill, now named the Efficient Local Government Act, not expected to pass before Sept. 24, there would be just 13 days between the close of nominations and the start of previously scheduled advance voting on Oct. 10.

Fords legislation to cut Toronto council passes first reading as protests rock the Ontario legislature

Protesters say Doug Ford is violating their rights notwiththinking

Sarah Doucette wont seek re-election in 25-ward council

It remained unclear Wednesday if the bills timelines allow for advance voting, or even to hold the election as scheduled. The bill gives the city clerk discretion to not hold advance polling days  for people out of town on Oct. 22, or otherwise unable to vote then  if she so chooses.

In the last election, a record 161,147 Torontonians voted in advance polls over five days. That turnout was more than double the number of people who voted early in 2010.

Before this falls vote, the city clerk will have to get ballots printed, and ensure they are correctly tested on vote tabulators. The alternative is elections staff counting ballots by hand.

Those challenges are expected to be discussed at an emergency meeting of city council on Thursday.

If the bill passes as expected, a Toronto election campaign of less than one month would be the shortest by far since amalgamation in 1998.

Torontos 2014 election started Jan. 2 and the vote was held Oct. 27, making it a 299-day campaign or almost 10 months. Candidates had from Jan. 2 until Sept. 12 to register, or 254 days, and advance voting ran from Oct. 14 to Oct. 19.

Two years ago, the Liberal provincial government introduced reforms that included moving the start of election periods to May 1. If Torontos 2018 election had proceeded as planned with 47 wards, it would have lasted a total of 175 days and allowed 74 days between nominations closing July 27 and the opening of advance polls.

The new Bill 31 is largely the same as Bill 5, which Fords government introduced July 30 to cut the size of city council to 25 wards from 47.

Bill 5s sudden change to Torontos election was struck down as unconstitutional by a Superior Court judge on Sept. 10.

Ford announced the same day he would invoke the Constitutions notwithstanding clause to override the ruling that changing boundaries and dates mid-election infringed candidates and voters Charter rights. The new bill includes the notwithstanding clause.

The province is also appealing Justice Edward Belobabas ruling in court and asking to stay effects of that ruling, which would make a 25-ward election officially the law of the land at least until the outcome of the appeal.

Parkdale-High Park-area Councillor Gord Perks was one of at least eight incumbent councillors who had been at risk of being frozen out of the election by changing registration deadlines. He said the Ontario governments move to re-open nominations saves me some legal fees.

In my four years of serving on council with Doug Ford, I learned to always expect the unexpected, Perks added.

The new bill also provides that anyone who signed up for the previous 25-ward election on or after Aug. 20, and before the new bill receives royal assent, is automatically registered in the new 25-ward race.

Councillor Mike Layton, who was also at risk of being frozen out of the race, was out knocking on voters doors and didnt know about the new nomination period when the Star reached him by phone.

Layton said he never had a doubt that he would be able to run for re-election.

The (city) clerks have to run a fair election, he said.

With files from Samantha Beattie and David Rider

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BERLINGerman Chancellor Angela Merkel assured parliament Wednesday that she takes seriously Germans concerns about crimes committed by migrants and pledged a strong response, but condemned recent demonstrations as hateful, saying there is no excuse for expressions of hate, Nazi sympathies or violence in response.

The comments come after the killing of a German man for which an Iraqi and a Syrian have been arrested prompted days of anti-migrant protests in the eastern German city of Chemnitz that at times turned violent.

Neo-Nazis were seen giving the stiff-armed Hitler salute in the largest demonstration, the day after the killing, which attracted some 6,000 people, and on the sidelines of the protest masked men threw stones and bottles at a kosher restaurant yelling Jewish pig, get out of Germany.

The day before, in spontaneous protests by hundreds immediately after the killing, several foreigners were attacked and injured in the streets.

Merkel assured lawmakers that her government was equally aware of its responsibility to take the wider concerns of the public seriously, and that it was working hard on the issue.

We are especially troubled by the severe crimes in which the alleged perpetrators were asylum-seekers, she said. This shocks us  (and) such crimes must be investigated, the perpetrators have to be taken to court and punished with the severity of the law.

But she said the concerns were no excuse for the demonstrations that followed the killing in Chemnitz.

Merkel dismissed as semantics an argument over whether the foreigners were hunted in the streets by the protesters  a reference to her domestic spy chiefs comments last week questioning the characterization used by her spokesman in describing the events  and condemned the demonstrations as hateful.

There is no excuse or justification for hate, for the use of violence by some, Nazi symbols, hostility against people who look different, who own a Jewish restaurant, attacks on police  and heated debates about whether its hate or a hunt dont help, Merkel said to applause.

German domestic intelligence chief Hans-Georg Maassen faced two parliamentary committees later Wednesday to explain his much-criticized comments to mass-circulation daily Bild, in which he questioned the authenticity of a video showing protesters chasing down and attacking a foreigner.

Interior Minister Horst Seehofer also made a home affairs committee appearance, saying he sees no need for any consequences for Maassen, German news agency dpa reported, citing participants.

But Eva Hoegl, a senior lawmaker with the centre-left junior party in Merkels governing coalition, the Social Democrats, said her party has strong doubts Maassen remains right for the job.

Alexander Gauland, a leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, spoke to parliament before Merkel. He defended the Alternative for Germany members who marched alongside the neo-Nazis in Chemnitz, noting they exercised their democratic right to freedom of assembly.

There were a couple of aggressive idiots among the demonstrators who were yelling Foreigners out and who gave the Hitler salute, nobody disputes that, Gauland said. That is distasteful and criminal, but it was a minority who were neither representative of the demonstration as a whole, nor able to delegitimize the majority of the protesters.

He accused political mainstream parties of making too much of the neo-Nazis involved for their own purposes.

If it werent for these idiots and dunderheads, if only the normal citizens were demonstrating, it would be a catastrophe for you, Gauland said.

Social Democrat lawmaker Martin Schulz slammed Gaulands comments as harking back to the Nazi era, saying similar rhetoric has been heard in this house before.

I think its time for democrats in this country to defend themselves against this kind of rhetorical escalation, which will result in the abandonment of inhibitions in the end and lead to violence on the streets, Schulz said to a standing ovation.

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ROMEAlarmed by sexual abuse scandals in a number of countries, Pope Francis is summoning senior bishops to a meeting early next year to discuss the prevention of abuse by Roman Catholic clerics and the protection of children, the Vatican announced Wednesday.

The meeting of the heads of national bishops conferences from around the world is scheduled for Feb. 21-24 at the Vatican, a spokeswoman said.

The extraordinary meeting marks the most concrete step the pontiff has yet taken in response to a series of abuse cases that have roiled the church and thrown Francis papacy into crisis. The latest cases have increasingly revealed failures among higher-ups in reporting potential crimes and in punishing alleged abusers  causing anger among some Catholics who say the church has been too slow to build safeguards after decades of dealing with clerical abuse.

The meeting was announced a day before the pope is to meet with leaders of the U.S. Catholic Church to discuss some of the latest scandals. The Americans have called on Francis to launch a Vatican-led investigation into how Theodore McCarrick, a former U.S. cardinal, climbed the ranks, even as rumours swirled about his behaviour. McCarrick, 88, became a cardinal in 2001 and served as archbishop of Washington from 2001 to 2006. He resigned from the College of Cardinals in July.

In addition, the Vatican has been rocked by an archbishops accusations that the pope knew for years about alleged sexual misconduct by a top American cardinal but took no action.

Abuse scandals have also shaken the Catholic Church in Chile, Australia and Ireland, among other countries. In the United States, a grand jury report released last month from Pennsylvania found that more than 300 priests had sexually abused minors in the state over seven decades.

Read more:

Pope Francis condemns reported sex abuse by priests in Pennsylvania

Pope Francis scraps abuse tribunal for bishops

Vatican convicts ex-Guam archbishop accused of sexual abuse

The planned Vatican meeting is believed to be unprecedented, indicating that the church recognizes that clergy sex abuse is a global problem  potentially even in non-Western countries where the church maintains strong social power and cases have not come to light in great number.

The Vatican announced the event after Francis met with his Council of Cardinals, his de facto cabinet. The meeting in February will bring together the heads of all national bishops conferences.

Francis faces pressure on many fronts  particularly in how he handles the McCarrick investigation, which could point fingers back to members of the Vatican hierarchy. Francis has not responded directly to the accusations that he was told of McCarricks misconduct in 2013, but the Vatican said Monday that clarifications would be forthcoming.

(Francis) credibility is under threat, said Marco Politi, a veteran Vatican watcher. And thus he needs a strong action.

The Vaticans statement Wednesday did not set out what the agenda might look like in February. Victims groups have long said that the Vatican needs to better address how to deal with prelates who cover up abuse, and how to ensure that abuse victims have a clear way to report what happens to them. Protocols for dealing with abuse in the church vary wildly from country to country.

Last month, in a letter to the worlds Catholics, Francis said the church must prevent sexual abuse from being covered up and perpetuated. But within the divided church, Franciss stance on the underlying reasons for abuse have been contested.

While Francis has often talked about sexual crimes as an abuse of power, some conservatives say the pope has downplayed the role of homosexuality among priests while instead signalling a slightly more inclusive stance about gays within the church.
Health Canada assembled leaders from across the country last week to discuss strategies to tackle the largest public health issue of our time: the opioid crisis. Along with officials including John Tory and Bill Blair, federal health minister Ginette Petipas Taylor announced a $34 million contribution to an addiction treatment program in British Columbia. She also committed to working with Ontarios health minister to keep supervised drug-use sites open in the province, encouraging Christine Elliott to halt its freeze on the program.

While this collaborative spirit is certainly welcome at a time of federal and provincial friction, Elliott was conspicuously absent from the event. It is unknown whether she was extended an invitation, however, it is inconceivable that a symposium of this importance would refuse the participation of the ministry responsible for provincial health care administration.

Her absence, and her ministrys reticence on the opioid issue, is deafening. For a minister who was lauded during the campaign for her willingness to engage with the health care community, and who was also celebrated for her role as the patients ombudsman, her recent change in posture is curious. It also raises the question of whether she is being muzzled by party superiors, and reignites the debate about whos calling the shots at the ministry.

Interestingly, Elliott chose to give a keynote address to the Ontario Hospital Association in lieu of her attendance at the opioid conference. Her remarks included the insinuation that a system transformation was needed to improve the health care system, and that it would be up to hospitals to find efficiencies.

Her boilerplate comments also signal the attitude with which this ministry may function moving forward. In a climate of fiscal austerity, it is likely that cost reduction will be downloaded to individual health care institutions, who may suffer financial penalties if they dont get their acts together. This may coincide with whispers of dissolving the Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs) to encourage streamlining.

This is all to say that the ministrys retreat from public discourse is part of a pattern of restrictively controlled communications from the Ford administration. This includes the farcical Ontario News Now channel and the decision to keep minister mandate letters a secret. All this from a government claiming to be a champion of free speech.

Its still too early in Elliotts tenure to pass full judgment. To her credit, the decision to eliminate OHIP+ was a shrewd political move that endeared her to many who saw the program as emblematic of the Wynne governments hubris. However, its also vastly easier to cancel an initiative than to propose a better alternative, which has yet to happen.

Christine Elliott was seen as the natural successor in the wake of Patrick Browns resignation. Many argued that a poised, intelligent and experienced woman was exactly what the party needed. She may not be premier, but she might have an even more important job. Her first task, however, is to show up.

Adam Kassam (@AdamKassamMD) is a senior resident physician at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University.

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When I was a bureaucrat working for the Harris government and, later, a Liberal staffer working in the McGuinty government, there were lines you didnt cross.

In government news releases you never called it the Harris government or the Ontario Liberal government. Releases are handled by Ontario Public Service employees  paid by the taxpayer. Both the Harris/Eves Conservatives and the McGuinty/Wynne Liberals knew it was unacceptable to get political in a government news release.

Occasionally, some overzealous junior political staffer tried to push the envelope. The public service would politely tell them to pound sand. The government  as bureaucrats and staffers all agreed  belongs to the people. An Ontario government news release is owned by the taxpayers who paid for it, not a political party. If you had a partisan axe to grind, you did it on party letterhead on party time using party resources.

Period.

That rule  for longer than the 20 years that Ive been working around Ontario politics  also extended to the web and social media. Premiers Office videos, the Twitter handles owned by premiers and ministers, the premiers website were kept clear of political language, criticism of the opposition or anything else with a partisan whiff.

Thats because politicians respected taxpayer dollars.

But thats changed.

Now, the premiers Twitter handle isnt Premier Ford or Doug Ford, its Fordnation. A handle like that wouldnt have flown before because  not only is it political branding  it diminishes the office of premier. The premier represents all Ontarians, of all backgrounds and beliefs  something he should be prouder of than representing the narrow, made-up political constituency of Fordnation.

The Ford government also created a faux news network called Ontario News Now, where, a former broadcaster turned Ford staffer spins political stories. The videos are produced and uploaded using taxpayer dollars and posted by MPPs offices to Facebook.

This is unprecedented. Governments from Harris to Wynne relied on private enterprise  the media  to broadcast the news. And while they took their lumps doing it, it would have never occurred to them to do an end-run around the media on the public dime.

And finally  at the top of every government-issued and taxpayer-funded news release theres the campaign tag line Ontarios Government for the People. Not only is that ham-fisted line redundant (every government is the government of the people) its also dripping with irony.

Ontario bureaucrats and their political bosses didnt politicize news releases because they all believed government belongs to the people, not to a political partys partisan agenda.

Another irony is that a government elected to protect taxpayer dollars is spending millions of those dollars selling itself back to the people.

But its whats going on behind the scenes that should concern everyone  especially Tories.

Bureaucrats, lawyers, and possibly the auditor, would have advised the Ford government that these practices contravene convention, and probably the Government Advertising Act of 2004, too.

But theyve done it anyway.

Which means that the system is broken. The checks and balances  where public servants warn political staff when they cross a line  are being ignored.

Thats scary.

Ignoring the advice of the public service leads to things like Walkerton, or Ipperwash, or gas plants. Its already led to lawsuits and expensive court battles.

Public servants no doubt advised the Ford government that it would lose in court on the cap-and-trade cancellation  and it did, to Tesla. They would have also warned the government about using the notwithstanding clause.

Again, ignored.

But this reckless politicization isnt just bad government  its also bad politics.

Public servants arent the enemy of the government  theyre there to protect governments from themselves. Theyre your friend at the bar warning you when youve had one too many. You need friends like that, even if you dont want to hear what they have to say.

As a government, its easy to get drunk on power, and you need people around you with sober second thoughts. Because  ultimately  if you crash the province, the voters will make you pay.

Lloyd Rang is a communications consultant and worked at Queens Park from 1999-2018

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A Sept. 3 article about the beginning of the trial of British sailors accused of sexual assault mistakenly included a photo and photo caption that should not have been published with the article. The photo, showed Joshua Finbow of the British navy and stated wrongly that he was one of four men facing charges of sexual assault. In fact all charges against Finbow were withdrawn by the Crown in December, 2017. The Star apologizes to Joshua Finbow for this mistake.
Ford tramples on our rights, Sept. 11

Not only is Premier Ford determined to sabotage the democratic process of Torontos municipal election, he persists in throwing taxpayer money at this and other legal actions stemming from his hasty, poorly thought-out legislation.

Now, he plans the grandstanding stunt of invoking the Section 33 notwithstanding clause of Canadas Constitution over something that could be achieved simply by waiting for the next municipal election. That is like calling in military tanks to quell a peaceful, legitimate protest demonstration. Such is the stuff of dictators, not leaders of democracies.

Will any of Fords cabinet and caucus have the integrity to protect and respect our Constitution by voting against his upcoming stunt in the Ontario legislature? Or will they be complicit in abandoning democracy in favour of dictatorship? Will they continue to blindly support this bully who, after stating he would govern for all Ontarians, has done just the opposite?

Don Hughes, Lindsay

Doug Ford is confused about which election he won. He has a mandate from the people of Ontario to govern the province. The people of Toronto made it quite clear that they did not want him running the city of Toronto. They roundly rejected him in the last mayoral election.

Invoking the notwithstanding clause causes one to wonder how deep the resentment goes. What is next? Troops?

Jackie Chartier, Toronto

Well, fellow Ontarians, we have a premier who is hell-bent on overriding our constitutional rights whenever he does not like a court ruling. Whether you agree with him on reducing Toronto city council or not, invoking the notwithstanding clause in this situation is a gross overreach. That clause is in no way intended to satisfy the premiers pet projects, nor is the clause even for anything far more serious than that  and he has pledged to do it again.

Are we going to hear the voices of responsible MPPs, such as Christine Elliott, Caroline Mulroney, Vic Fedeli, Lisa MacLeod, Lorne Coe and others? Surely they know better. Please MPPs, nip it in the bud now.

Bill Hoogeveen, Whitby

As a Canadian, Im highly disturbed that Mr. Ford would use the notwithstanding clause to shove this down the throats of Torontonians who may have voted differently had he been transparent about this.

Toronto deserves better, Ontario deserves better and democracy deserves better.

Trish McEachern, Ottawa

Ive been a PC voter since I moved to Ontario over 25 years ago. I voted for Doug Ford this past election and have been mostly supportive of his policies to date but do have serious concerns about his suggestion of invoking the notwithstanding clause over the courts decision on retaining the size of Toronto city council.

The judiciary is the ultimate check and balance to politics, and invoking the notwithstanding clause in this instance is simply an abuse of political power. If Premier Ford disagrees with the courts decision, he should consider filing an appeal.

Andrew Shapiro, Richmond Hill

Ford clearly doesnt understand how serious it is to trample charter rights  or worse, he does understand and does not care. He even threatens to use it again whenever he does not get his way.

I believe Ford is motivated by a petty vendetta but I refuse to believe all Conservative members are like him. Email or call your local MPP to voice your concern if you care about charter rights and ask them to vote against invoking the notwithstanding clause.

Wendy Shaw, Toronto

Your editorial is right that Doug Ford is trampling on our rights, and, as Edward Keenan notes, the use of the notwithstanding clause is unprecedented. And Ford admits he is prepared to use it again.

We need another unprecedented move. The lieutenant-governor must protect our rights and refuse to sign the act into law.

Harry Shannon, Dundas

Why is the premier turning the Toronto election into an emergency that requires the notwithstanding clause, and calling back the legislature to do this? What about the 80,000 jobs lost in August, including jobs in renewable energy fleeing the province? What about dealing with climate change? Turning Torontos election into chaos  how is that a priority?

I hope most MPPs will ignore Doug Ford, respect the court ruling, and leave Torontos election to Torontonians.

Lyn Adamson, Toronto

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Lacey: This is from the books middle section. I had the first part and the last part but I realized after I turned it in that the middle was a disaster. It made no sense. I was making a lot of strange life choices that year, and I was treating the book like it was work, not responding to it emotionally. It was a weird year. Then I had to throw out a lot (of the book) and redo it quickly. I kind of freaked out, and in the middle of all this I met Jesse. I started thinking about why you choose one person over another  why was it necessary for me to leave my life in New York and move to Chicago to be with this person? I had never felt that before. I felt love was something that was grounded in an individual first, then you share it with someone. But its really something personal that you hold, versus a quality you only access if you are with a specific person. I dont know ... I feel a book should be a side effect of your life and what you were trying to resolve, and I was trying to resolve what it meant to be in a relationship.
The City of Toronto Act is supposed to be a sort of city charter, defining the powers of the municipal government and how they work. It is still on the books, for now. Officially.

But it would appear obvious, after the past two months and especially the past week, that the act has been effectively replaced. Instead we get the City of Toronto Actor: Premier Doug Ford. Hes gonna say how its gonna be. Period.

Thats an obvious enough conclusion after his snap decision to rewrite the rules of city government and election law in the middle of a Toronto election campaign, then haul out the notwithstanding clause to enforce that decision after a judge ruled it unconstitutional.

Its an obvious enough conclusion from his promise that he wont be shy about using that power to set aside the Charter of Rights and Freedoms again  and his further comments making it clear he doesnt believe in constitutional democracy as it exists in Canada, demonizing not just a judge but the entire role of judges in reviewing legislation as illegitimate.

Its obvious from his rhetoric about the downtown NDP councillors and Mayor John Tory, and Fords clear focus not on provincial issues but on Toronto  so much so that, when NDP leader Andrea Horwath accused him during Question Period of being obsessed with his enemies on Toronto council, he responded, We were elected on making sure we fix this city.

This city, huh? Huh.

Ford announced he was running for mayor of Toronto four years ago, on Sept. 12, 2014. He lost in that campaign. But one term of council later, hes done better: As premier of Ontario, he appears ready to see himself as essentially All Powerful Boss of Toronto. And at this point, nothing in law or politics seems likely to disabuse him of that notion.

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By now were past observing that his meddling with the size of council has thrown the election itself into chaos.

Whats coming into focus is just how much of the election debate we might otherwise have had  the one we might mostly still have  is now kind of irrelevant.

Not that the issues are irrelevant. Quite the opposite. People in this city cannot afford housing. We have more people trying to get into homeless shelters than we have beds for. People are being shot and killed by criminals. Transit and traffic concerns remain as pressing as ever. This is the stuff of our lives.

Yet how can any mayor or city council plan credibly deal with that with Premier Boss Hogtown up the street ready and apparently eager to just impose his own will? For example, a candidate might want to raise property taxes, or implement a new revenue tool from among the menu of those included in the City of Toronto Act. Will Ford allow it? Or will he just fire up the legislature to set Torontos local tax rates?

City council might vote to make the King St. transit pilot project permanent, as both leading mayoral candidates seem likely to do. But Ford could  and conceivably would  respond by just making streetcars illegal.

Hes already begun planning to take over the TTC subway system. What else will he take over  either officially, or by legislatively handcuffing Torontos government?

I expect a lot of people think this sounds like scaremongering, or overreacting. But I think its clear Ford has a keen interest in very local Toronto affairs, that he has shown he isnt shy about using his provincial powers to get involved and, as my colleague Robert Benzie has reported, that he and his advisers see straight-up power plays like hitting the constitutional override button as political victories that make him look strong.

How does a mayor respond to that? How does a city council? It seems to me that is the most pressing question in this election.

Alongside the other pressing questions, clearly. But as a necessary precondition to addressing any of the others. Not just figuring what we should do about housing or transit or whatever else, but figuring how we can do those things with Ford there.

Its not a question with an obvious answer. On the specific topic of cutting the size of council, we already see two contrasting workarounds. Torys suggestion of a referendum sometime next year, to show Ford how Toronto feels, seems a little like asking the public to weigh in on whether the barn door should have been closed a full year after the horses have galloped off. Challenger Jennifer Keesmaats suggestion to implement new, stronger community councils (as current laws would allow the city to do) in order to strengthen the city under a smaller council seems like a very promising lemonade recipe for a lemon of a situation, but the question again becomes if Ford would ever allow it.

Tory often complained about feeling like a boy in short pants under Premier Kathleen Wynne, because he had to plead with the province to get anything accomplished. Under a stronger, more intrusive premier, is the plan to keep those shorts cleaned and pressed to facilitate all the more begging?

Keesmaat has struck a self-consciously more adversarial tone from the outset, jumping into the race because she thought Torys response was too weak and positioning herself as leader of the resistance. But is there a way to effectively resist through direct confrontation with a vastly more powerful opponent?

How can the city government work with or around Ford, given that he seems inclined to just dictate his preferences for the city and then impose them? I dont know. But it sure feels like that is the ballot box question in this election.

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VANCOUVERAn animal-rights organization is asking Canadas highest court to rule on peace officers authority to kill wildlife, in a case that stemmed from a B.C. conservation officers decision to kill an orphaned bear cub.

The Association for the Protection of Fur-Bearing Animals has filed for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, following a ruling from B.C.s supreme and appeal courts that conservation officers in the province have the authority to kill wildlife while on the job.

Conservation officers kill, on average, more than 25 Black bears every year in the Lower Mainland, according to 2014-2018 data provided by the Ministry of the Environment.

Killing a bear may be justified if it poses a threat to people or property, but animals should not be killed for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, said Lesley Fox, executive director of Fur-Bearers.

We just want to make sure that any time were at a point where an animal needs to be destroyed, that we have exhausted all other options and that it truly needs to be a situation where people or property are at imminent risk, she said.

Its hard to accept when an animal that is simply malnourished or orphaned, that it needs to be destroyed.

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Fox said thats what happened in Dawson Creek two years ago, when a resident found an orphaned black bear cub on the side of a road and called the B.C. Conservation Officer Service. The officer tranquilized the cub and later killed it, according to court documents. The resident, Tiana Jackson, is the other applicant listed in the petition.

In a written statement, the Ministry of the Environment emphasized that euthanization of wildlife is a last resort.

Not a single conservation officer relishes the thought of having to put down an animal, it said.

The ministry also said conservation officers make decisions in the field based on provincial wildlife policy as well as experience and expertise.

In a petition to the Supreme Court of Canada dated Sept. 5, 2018, the Fur-Bearers and Jackson argued that wildlife should only be killed if it is at large and is likely to harm persons, property, wildlife or wildlife habitat.

Under the B.C. Wildlife Act, it is illegal for members of the public to kill wildlife unless it is by accident, if they have a hunting permit, or if the animal is a threat. However, the B.C. Wildlife Act also states conservation officers may kill wildlife if the animal is likely to harm persons, property, or wildlife habitat.

B.C.s supreme and appeal courts ruled that even if an officer kills an animal that is not a threat, the officer is not committing an offence as long as they killed the animal while engaged in the performance of their duties, according to court documents.

Arden Beddoes, a lawyer with Arvay Finlay who is representing the Fur-Bearers, said the public deserves a clear answer from the Supreme Court of Canada on how much authority conservation officers have when it comes to killing animals.

This could affect how authorities manage wildlife across the country, he said.

Were not fighting just legal pedantics, he said.

In our view, this case has the potential to significantly impact the way officers and conservation officers treat and address wildlife.

If the Supreme Court of Canada declines this case, Fox said the Fur-Bearers will call on the provincial government to create an independent board that reviews complaints made against the B.C. Conservation Officer Service.

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VANCOUVERPolice are asking the public for information about the theft of more than 150 wigs, some of which were destined for patients at BC Childrens Hospital.

The wigs, made from real human hair and valued at about $2,500 each, were stolen just after 3:30 a.m. on Sept. 7 from Eva & Co. Wigs on West Broadway, say Vancouver police.

Cindy Yip, co-owner of the shop that has been in business for 47 years, said that as a result of the break-in, about 15 kids with illnesses wont be getting their back-to-school wigs, which are provided free of charge.

Its terrible. Theyre all ready to come in and pick it up, and now they have to wait months, Yip said, adding that she and her staff have had to call all of the families to break the news.

The parents, she said, have been very understanding, but the kids are not as happy.

What can we do? Well have to do our best to get them wigs as soon as possible, Yip said.

Because the wigs are made in store, Yip said she has been working around the clock to make up for the lost inventory.

We have lots of custom-made orders, whether its for kids or other adult customers going through chemo, she said.

Police say the suspect was last seen walking away from the shop while carrying a large black garbage bag and wearing a denim or blue jacket. They describe him as dark-skinned, with noticeably curly long, black hair.

Its possible that someone is in possession of one or more of these wigs, and that they dont know theyre stolen or that they were meant for sick children, said media spokesperson Sgt. Jason Robillard in a release Tuesday afternoon.

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VANCOUVERA new study showing fetal growth may be improved by the use of portable air purifiers inside the home reinforces the urgent need for countries to reduce airborne pollutants, according to a Simon Fraser University researcher.

Ryan Allen, associate professor with SFUs faculty of health sciences and one of the studys lead researchers, said that while this new research focused on how household air purifiers affect the health of pregnant women and the growth of their babies, the studys conclusions demonstrate air pollution needs to be addressed at its source rather than in the home.

At best, air cleaners are sort of a Band-Aid solution, Allen said in an interview. What we need to be trying to do is reducing pollution at its source. We need to try to emit less air pollution in the first place. Because once the air pollution is emitted, the options for mitigating the risk become very limited.

The study, published Monday in Environmental International, showed that babies born to women who had air purifiers installed in their homes during the second and third trimester of pregnancy weighed an average of 85 grams more at term than those babies born to women who had no access to household air purifiers.

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Allen said the research team is not yet entirely certain why poor air quality affects the size of babies carried to term. But two decades of research have shown air pollution can affect characteristics of the blood and blood vessel function, he said, and an idea has been floated that when a pregnant woman is exposed to air pollution, it may affect the development and function of the placenta.

(This) would affect the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to the fetus, Allen said, adding the hypotheses fits with what is known about how air pollution affects other systems in the body.

The study was conducted in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia  a city considered to be one of the worlds worst polluted during winter months, because of its reliance on coal combustion for its energy needs. The concentration of fine particulate matter in Ulaanbaatars air is more than seven times safe annual average levels as defined by the World Health Organization.

Women in one group were given high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter cleaners to use in their homes from early pregnancy through to childbirth. The second group (or control group) was given none. HEPA filters have been shown to reduce fine particulate matter in homes by roughly 30 per cent, according to data cited in the study.

While the study acknowledges that poor air quality is largely an issue in low-income countries, air quality in higher-income countries like Canada is by no means risk-free. Data from Berkeley Earths real-time air quality map shows B.C. had the worst air quality in the world in mid-August 2018, ranging from a moderate health risk to hazardous.

And preliminary data from the B.C. governments air data archive shows numerous measuring stations around the province reported the presence of fine particulate matter well in excess of the daily safe level of 28 micrograms per square metre (as defined by the Canadian Ambient Air Quality Index or CAAQI) in B.C. communities over the summer of 2017.

One B.C. resident posted a screen capture of the air quality index for Kamloops on Aug. 3 of last year showing it had gone orbital with a score of 49 out of 10. Anything above 6 is considered a high health risk.

On the plus side, wrote the Twitter user, its not the forecast 37 degrees C in Kamloops (because) the smoke completely blocks out the sun.

B.C.s governmental data archive confirms air quality that day  at its worst  exceeded CAAQI safe levels by more than 20 times.

More recently, climate researchers have said record wildfire seasons and attendant smoky skies  a direct result of climate change  are to be expected every summer in the province.

The B.C. government likewise advises pregnant women to stay indoors as much as possible when air quality advisories are in effect.

The SFU-led study also points to two other research papers which suggest late-term gestation might be a critical exposure window for fetal growth.

The first shows that the effects of air pollution on fetal growth may be most detrimental in later pregnancy.

The second reported that infants born to women in Beijing who had their eighth month of pregnancy during the 2008 Olympics, when outdoor pollution levels were substantially reduced (gave birth to babies who, on average, were heavier than) infants whose eighth month fell in the same time period in the year before or after the Olympics.

Allen said the research team will be following the children born into the study as they grow to determine whether the development of those born to women who had access to HEPA filters differs from the development of those in the control group.

He was also quick to point out that while a difference of 85 grams in a babys birth weight is not, on its own, a huge effect, air pollution is not the only thing women are exposed to during pregnancy.

Air pollution might affect fetal growth a little bit, and something else might affect fetal growth a little bit, and so on, he said. Individually, the effects of these things may be small, but collectively they might be substantial.

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COQUITLAM, B.C.The British Columbia Review Board has again found Gabriel Klein unfit to stand trial on account of a mental disorder for the murder of an Abbotsford, B.C., high school student.

The board released its decision saying Klein will continue to be detained at the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital in Coquitlam, B.C.

Kleins lawyer Martin Peters says its expected his client will receive a new medication and could make further court appearances if his mental state improves, but its uncertain if or when that could happen.

The boards disposition says Kleins detention could be reviewed by Jan. 15, 2019.

Klein is charged with the second-degree murder of a 13-year-old girl and the aggravated assault of a second girl following a stabbing at Abbotsford Secondary School in November 2016.

A B.C. Supreme Court justice ruled in April that Klein was unfit for trial but at a hearing held last week in Coquitlam, Klein told the B.C. Review Board that he wants to go to court as soon as possible.

The 22-year-old has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and told the board panel that he remains plagued by voices every hour of the day.

The Crown, defence and hospital all agreed during the hearing that Klein is currently unfit to stand trial and needs more treatment.

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We know that if someone has made an attempt, and even if they are correctly determined not to need hospitalization, they are at risk for at least the next three to six months for another attempt, she said. And we are not doing anything for them except giving them a referral.
Jeff Fager, the executive producer of the flagship CBS news program "60 Minutes," has left the network.

His exit follows articles by Ronan Farrow in the New Yorker that included accusations that Fager inappropriately touched employees, and a report by The Washington Post's Erik Wemple that Fager tolerated years of alleged abusive conduct by a senior producer.

"This action today is not directly related to the allegations surfaced in press reports, which continue to be investigated independently," CBS News President David Rhodes said in a memo. "However, he violated company policy and it is our commitment to uphold those policies at every level."

It is unclear what specific company policy the memo refers to.

Fager said in a separate statement that the allegations in the New Yorker are "false" and that the decision by CBS was unrelated.

"They terminated my contract early because I sent a text message to one of our own CBS reporters demanding that she be fair in covering the story. My language was harsh and, despite the fact that journalists receive harsh demands for fairness all the time, CBS did not like it," Fager said." One such note should not result in termination after 36 years, but it did."

Jericka Duncan, the reporter to whom Fager sent the message, revealed the contents of the text during Wednesday's edition of "CBS Evening News."

"If you repeat these false accusations without any of your own reporting to back them up, you will be responsible for harming me. Be careful," Fager wrote, according to Duncan. "There are people who lost their jobs trying to harm me and if you pass on these damaging claims without your own reporting to back them up that will become a serious problem."

Fager, a former CBS News chairman, has also been accused of dissuading employees from reporting incidents to human resources. He told Wemple at The Post, "I have never discouraged anyone from going to HR."

The departure comes at a time of intense public scrutiny of CBS, including the recent resignation of its CEO, Leslie Moonves, once among the most powerful and well-compensated media executives.

Several weeks ago, CBS brought in outside law firms to conduct investigations following an initial New Yorker article largely focused on misconduct allegations against Moonves. The report also included anonymous accounts from former employees that Fager inappropriately touched employees at company parties.

A second New Yorker article published Sunday included more allegations against Moonves of sexual assault, harassment and intimidation. A former CBS intern, Sarah Johansen, also told Farrow that Fager groped her at a work party. "I really felt like this was one of the most sexist places I've ever worked," she said.

Moonves said in a statement that "untrue allegations from decades ago are now being made against me that are not consistent with who I am."

Fager became a decorated journalist during his 36 years at CBS News, and just last year wrote a book chronicling the history of the venerated program "60 Minutes" to mark its 50th anniversary.

An executive producer of "CBS Evening News with Dan Rather" in the late 1990s, Fager took over the same role at "60 Minutes" before becoming chairman of CBS News in 2011. He returned as full-time executive producer at "60 Minutes" in 2015, and this fall would have marked his 15th as chief of the news magazine program.

Quinnipiac University has rescinded Fager's Fred Friendly First Amendment Award, which he received in June, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Bill Owens will manage "60 Minutes" as the company searches for a replacement, Rhodes said in his memo, adding the interim CEO of CBS, Joe Ianniello, "is in full support of the decision and the transition to come."

Moonves is expected to receive millions from a settlement with the CBS board. According to a company statement, Moonves and the company would be making a $20 million donation, taken from Moonves' severance, "to one or more organizations that support the #MeToo movement and equality for women in the workplace."

In November 2017, CBS News dropped Charlie Rose following a Post investigation detailing allegations of unwanted sexual advances toward women. Rose had been a co-anchor since 2012 on "CBS This Morning" and a contributing correspondent on "60 Minutes."

"Despite Charlie's important journalistic contribution to our news division, there is absolutely nothing more important, in this or any organization, than ensuring a safe, professional workplace - a supportive environment where people feel they can do their best work," Rhodes said in a memo last year. "We need to be such a place."
The Washington Post's media columnist Margaret Sullivan recently opined that there is "nothing more to learn from the die-hard Trump voters," in what she called the media's Endless Diner Series: "recidivistic journeys to the supposed heartland to hear what we've heard a thousand times before."

The new documentary "American Chaos" is one such journey, stretched out to an unnecessary 90 minutes. Directed by James D. Stern, the film amounts to little more than a series of interviews with prospective Trump voters, filmed during the buildup to the 2016 election, with shots of Stern looking increasingly exasperated. Even if his effort had come out earlier, it would still have been an utterly inessential exercise.

Stern is primarily a producer, with a diverse resume that includes "Looper" and "I'm Not There." With "American Chaos," he demonstrates no qualifications as a documentarian beyond the fact that he can afford to hire a camera crew. Among those he talks to: Republican fundraisers in Florida, unemployed miners in West Virginia, and ranchers who live along the Mexican border. In every interview, Stern takes what he is told at face value, expecting the audience to do the same for his running commentary. A careless analyst, Stern presents the election as a horse race, nothing more.

None of his subjects have anything of interest to say.

He interviews a Cuban immigrant - a die-hard Trump supporter - seemingly unaware that many Cuban immigrants are conservative. Sometimes, there's a reactionary tone to his subjects' remarks: One man calls for Hillary Clinton's execution; another implies that a vote for Trump is "revenge" for Obama. Stern merely ogles these people, like an outsider, evoking a twist on Sacha Baron Cohen on "Who Is America?" - minus the satire.

Who's the audience for this film? Certainly not Trump voters, who will smell its liberal bias a mile away. As for Trump's critics, they are likely to gnash their teeth as they're forced to relive a tense, unpleasant election cycle.

Although he includes some perfunctory commentary from some academics, Stern sees himself as the ultimate authority. In that sense, he's no different from a Michael Moore, or any number of other opinionated filmmakers. The only problem? Stern's film is no more incisive than the #resistance memes your uncle posts on Facebook. There's no difference between his off-the-cuff comments and the film's written narration.

"Chaos" might have been better had the filmmaker revisited his interview subjects now that we are deep into Trump's presidency. But that would have required additional work. If the film is a testament to anything, it's Stern's laziness.

Throughout "Chaos," Stern presents himself as the voice of reason, one that deserves to be listened to with respect, although he never really examines his own assumptions. Did Trump succeed by tapping into the anxieties and resentments of white voters? Maybe. But if such a theory has occurred to Stern, it isn't apparent.

There is nothing thought-provoking or even entertaining in "American Chaos," an irrelevant time capsule that will be forgotten as soon as Moore's "Fahrenheit 11/9" hits theaters.

---

One-half star. Rated R. At area theatres. Contains some strong language, including sexual references. 90 minutes.

Ratings Guide: Four stars masterpiece, three stars very good, two stars OK, one star poor, no stars waste of time.
The titular villains from 1987's "Predator" - dreadlocked alien manhunters with the power of invisibility - are back on Earth in the new sequel "The Predator," only this time they have dogs.

As the writer of "Lethal Weapon" and the writer-director of such films as "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" and "Iron Man 3," Shane Black has a gift for smart-alecky dialogue. But in his effort to inject fresh blood into this gory franchise, which has already seen four sequels (including two "Alien" crossovers), the filmmaker can't seem to summon up that old Black magic.

Set in the present day, some 30 years after the action of the first film, the new film immediately beats you over the head with leaden spectacle, opening with a battle between alien spaceships. In a departure from "Predator," which took its sweet time introducing its extraterrestrial visitors, you see the monsters here almost immediately.

That generic opening sequence could have been plucked from any number of other science-fiction movies. Fortunately, the film's human characters do begin to gradually come into focus. Chief among them is Quinn (Boyd Holbrook), a mercenary who has discovered an alien spaceship that crash-landed in rural Georgia. Quinn sends some of the wreckage back home, where his 6-year old son (Jacob Tremblay), who longs to reconnect with his mostly absent father, tries to figure out how the alien technology works.

Into this broken-family dynamic, Black introduces group of veterans suffering from PTSD. These characters, who include the snarky Coyle (Keegan-Michael Key) and tough guy Nebraska (Trevante Rhodes), are there for a little comic relief - a little too much, in fact - and never seem to come together as a team.

Humor is Black's signature. One scene involves an argument about whether it's appropriate to call the aliens "predators." However cool the moniker, they hunt less for survival than for sport - "like a bass fisherman," explains Olivia Munn's Casey, an evolutionary scientist recruited to evaluate a captured specimen of the alien race.

Such jokiness is well within the bounds of the series' formula, as are the buckets of blood. Still, "The Predator" lacks the electric charge that made its predecessors pulpy fun.

Black, who appeared on-screen in the original "Predator," was reportedly cast in that movie because producers were hoping that the "Lethal Weapon" writer would help fix the screenplay. (He refused, so his character was the first to be killed off.) How ironic, then, that Black's new screenplay is short on two things: the tantalizing distance that lent the creatures a sense of mystery in the first film, and the mood of delirious mayhem that made "Predator 2" an enjoyable, if over-the-top popcorn flick.

In a recent interview, Black opined that "You always feel yourself to be roughly 25" (his approximate age when he wrote "Lethal Weapon" and appeared in "Predator"). It's a strange comment, coming from someone whose filmmaking chops have shown real maturity, especially in "The Nice Guys," Black's 2016 return to his buddy-movie roots.

With "The Predator," something's different. The alien invaders may have evolved, but Black's writing has taken a step backward.

---

Two stars Rated R. Contains strong bloody violence, crude language throughout and crude sexual references. 107 minutes.

Ratings Guide: Four stars masterpiece, three stars very good, two stars OK, one star poor, no stars waste of time.

Advance for thurs. sept. 13
But sacking a bad plan is not the same as replacing it with a good one. And the rest of the proposal, which calls for a 50-story office building and a 1.5-acre plaza on the block south of the station, is not ready for architecture tours, at least not yet.
EDWARDSVILLE  Third Circuit Chief Judge David Hylla announced Wednesday that Madison County has been awarded a Court Improvement Program grant by the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts to improve its juvenile court programs under the guidance of Judge Martin Mengarelli, the presiding juvenile court judge.

The grant was awarded for fiscal year 2018-2019 and will allow for the court to hire two part-time attorneys to enhance the representation of children who are victims of abuse and neglect.

Madison County will be able to assign guardians-ad-litem to exclusively represent the children thanks to this grant, Judge Mengarelli said.

The goal is to improve the courts response to issues that affect the well-being of abused and neglected children in areas of physical and mental health as well as their educational achievement, he added.

The Madison County Court Improvement Program qualified for the funding by focusing on the legal representation team to provide more advocacy for each child. The goal is to assign the two newly-hired guardians ad litem to the children in all new cases and to transfer some children from existing cases to improve the quality of the legal representation. Madison County currently has approximately 850 open cases of abuse and neglect of juveniles. This years caseload increased 25 percent over the prior year.

One of the most important things our courts and our society can do is to protect children from abuse and neglect. Too many of our children are subjected to a variety of forms of mistreatment, Chief Judge David Hylla said. I commend Judge Mengarelli for proactively seeking out this grant and being innovative in his approach to tackling the issues of child abuse and neglect.

The attorneys will be part-time independent contractors who will work at the direction of the chief judge. They will be required to provide timely, knowledgeable, and effective representation in every juvenile abuse and neglect case. For more information, contact the office of the chief judge at 618-296-4576.
Illinois trails the rest of the nation in terms of wage growth since the Great Recession.

Tied with Mississippi, Illinois employees had the second slowest wage growth in the country. One analyst says its because the cost of state government regulations limit what companies can offer.

The Pew Charitable Trusts released data on all 50 states to show the growth or decline of personal income since the end of the Great Recession.

The measure sums up residents paychecks, Social Security benefits, employers contributions to retirement plans and health insurance, income from rent and other property, and benefits from public assistance programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, among other items, the report said. The latest data indicate Illinois was one of the slowest-growing states.

While the national wage growth from late 2007 to the first quarter of this year was 1.6 percent, Illinois income growth was 0.7 percent. Only Connecticut had slower growth at 0.6 percent.

Analyst Mark Glennon of Wirepoints said the high cost of doing business in Illinois limits what employers can offer employees.

Its no wonder that theyre starting to move to other places, he said. Were really out of sync with whats happening with the rest of the country.

Things like labor rules and workers compensation costs in Illinois make hiring workers more expensive here, he said.

All those costs and headaches that make life difficult for employers put a black mark on the hiring process and its a long list of them and theyre significantly higher in Illinois, Glennon said.

Illinois employees wage growth at the near bottom is because state level policies in Illinois are not friendly to business, he added.

A lot of it is really just the atmospherics, Glennon said. Other states welcome business. Were constantly putting up not wanted signs, get lost signs.

Only two states growth since the start of the recession beat the 30-year U.S. pace: North Dakota (3.6 percent) and Utah (2.7 percent), according to the Pew report.

Most states saw more than 1 percent wage growth, the report found.

Even when Pew narrowed down wage growth for the year, Illinois still lagged the rest of the country at 0.9 percent.

Its not just employees who dont benefit from slow wage growth. State coffers are also affected.

Trends in personal income matter to state governments because tax revenue and spending demands may rise or fall along with residents incomes, the Pew report said.

Greg Bishop reports on Illinois government and other statewide issues for INN. Bishop has years of award winning broadcast experience, and previously hosted The Council Roundup, as well as Bishop On Air, a morning-drive current events talk show.
SIUE photo

The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) will host a Science Showcase on Friday, Sept. 21 from 6-8 p.m. as it celebrates the $70-million renovation of the Science Building East. The renovation focused on teaching and research facilities in the Departments of Physics, Mathematics and Statistics, and the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) Resource Center

We are proud of the investment in science and math-related education that has been made through these construction and facility upgrades, and we look forward to sharing our facilities, said CAS Dean Greg Budzban, PhD. SIUE is a remarkable educational resource for students in the region and is sometimes overlooked. Our world class faculty wants to change that.
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.
Ending cynicism shouldnt be all that difficult for a man who, in claiming the Democratic nomination for president in 2008  after eviscerating Hillary Clinton with the race card in the primaries  that his ascent was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow, and our planet began to heal.
As an academic in creative writing, I attend a lot of literary events. One question I can always count on being asked is, can I write characters of other backgrounds? This has been a growing concern since Lionel Shriver at the 2016 Brisbane Writers Festival unleashed a tirade against what she called censorship in writing  referring to criticism of her book The Mandibles.

The recent ABC Q&A episode, Stranger Than Fiction, in conjunction with the Melbourne Writers Festival, showed the many sides of the write what you know debate. Dr Michael Mohammed Ahmad and Sofie Laguna argued that space should be given for marginalised groups to represent themselves. Maxine Beneba Clarke pointedly discussed when appropriation can be harmful, as was the case with Shrivers representation of Latino and African American characters. Meanwhile, Trent Dalton argued that appropriation leads to a good story, which also takes empathy and care.

But is taking a walk in other peoples shoes as effective a writing method as many authors believe? To find out, I wrote a novel manuscript about four people from refugee backgrounds. I did it in three drafts, each using a different method. I wrote the first draft while observing and empathising as a volunteer working with asylum seekers, and refugees. I wrote the second after interviews with 15 people from refugee backgrounds (some of whom I had observed) and the third after getting feedback from three of the interviewees about the manuscript. Then I compared the drafts. The findings were very interesting.

Even before I had begun my interviews I had an interesting instance regarding the fallibility of my own memory. I had kept a journal while I was volunteering. As I sat down to write the novel manuscript, I remembered an instance when a young girl, who happened to be in the same public place, approached the group with an origami boat she had made. She offered it to one of the volunteers. It was beautiful  with crayon scribbles on the outside and three different sized paper cranes lined up in a row inside. In my memory, the attendees recoiled and anxiously said, we hate boats!

I began to write this into the manuscript, when I remembered the journal. I opened it to the day of the event, and found Id recorded that the attendees were not anxious at all, nor did they recoil. They were joking and laughing about how they hated boats.

One criticism of stories about refugees is that they tend to show refugees as helpless victims. Was I drawing on existing stereotypes when I remembered this instance? Another possibility is that my feelings about the highly emotional issue of asylum were influencing how I interpreted the conversation.

In another instance, I wrote a character that was verbally and racially attacked on public transport. White Australians came to her rescue. I was thinking that was what I would have done. But after interviews with refugees, I discovered the instances of racial abuse were much more violent and common than I imagined.

One interviewee related a story about an apple being thrown at her head; another described how her foot was stomped on. Contrary to what I had written, they expressed resilience and stood up for themselves.

I once watched author Claire G. Coleman in a debate by ABC RN on the topic of writing what you know. She said that cultural appropriation is dangerous because authors can only contextualise that character as a version of themselves. That certainly seemed to be the case. I was just writing what I thought would happen, from my perspective  not theirs.

So how can we get it right? Its difficult to tell unless we ask someone from the background we are writing about. In getting feedback, I found that there were parts of my manuscript that resonated with interviewees experiences, such as an instance where an Iranian man was told that he was lucky to be here by a white Australian. The character didnt feel that he was lucky. One interviewee said that he felt the same, that he had everything in Iran, including education and a job, and now he had to start over.

But even gaining feedback from interviewees did not mean they were going to tell me everything I got wrong. Those giving feedback wanted to give advice, not to criticise.

Walking in someones shoes is useful as a method, but it is far from perfect. As writers, we need to ask ourselves whether we are contributing to the oppression of a group of people by speaking for them, and reinforcing racist stereotypes as we do so.

This is not to say that we should never write characters from other backgrounds, just that we need to accept criticism by people who identify from that group rather than dismissing it as censorship (as Beneba Clarke also pointed out on Q&A), and to be more realistic about our own limitations as empathetic writers.

Tresa LeClerc, Sessional teacher, RMIT University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
The Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) came out in support of the nuns who have been protesting in Kerala against Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mulakkal, accused of sexual assault. WCC stands with every woman who is raising their voice and fighting a lone battle against powerful patriarchal structures in society, they wrote in a Facebook post on Wednesday.

We strongly urge the government and the womens commission to immediately support the women who have shown courage to speak up and fight against those who have misused their power and position to a level of exploitation and abuse. We strongly condemn P.C.George who has slandered victims time and again and demand swift action against him.

At a time when Kerala has shown indomitable spirit during the devastating floods, and at a time when we have seen our nation take extremely progressive steps towards equality by striking off #377, giving our dear brothers and sisters from the LGBTQ community the freedom to be, we firmly believe that the true rebuilding of the state should also be the demolition of patriarchal structures & notions that hold us back from being a truly progressive and evolving state.

WCC joins the historical protest by the nuns against injustice and misogyny. This is a time when we are witnessing more women who are fearless, invincible and are determined to rise. The time of silence is over!

The police had, earlier this week, completed a second round of investigation, which found inconsistencies in the statements of both the bishop and the nun who accused him. The police has asked Franco Mulakkal to appear before the investigating team on September 19, Inspector General of Police Vijay Sakhare said, reports PTI.

The initial round of the probe under Vaikom DySP K. Subhash had recorded statements of the bishop, nun and a cardinal among a total of 12 people. Besides, the investigators will examine the register book at the nunnery and relevant medical records. The court had recently sought to know the action taken on the basis of the nuns complaint. A reply to this is expected on Thursday when the court resumes hearing in the case. The nun in question had accused Bishop Franco of rape and having unnatural sex with her multiple times between 2014 and 2016.
The early polls in Telangana has turned out to be a god-sent opportunity for the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), which is in power in Andhra Pradesh. After snapping ties with the BJP a few months back over the Special Category Status issue, the party was looking for new friends in the region.

A tacit alliance with Congress is on the cards ahead of the state and general elections in mid-2019. It maybe recalled that TDP supremo and Andhra Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu recently met Congress president Rahul Gandhi at the swearing-in ceremony of Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.

However, the TDP was still not ready to be associated with the Congress till Telangana CM K. Chandrashekar Rao decided to dissolve the assembly and go for early elections.

According to local politicians, people have not forgotten the way the united Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated by the Congress party. Voters are still angry with the party though it is close to five years since the state was divided.

Naidu and his party members tried hard to project BJP as a bigger enemy than Congress and were successful to an extent. But they still refrained from rubbing shoulders with the Congress to prevent providing ammunition to the opposition party YSR Congress, which is leveraging the anti-incumbency wave.

As the stage set for an election season in neighbouring Telangana, Naidu decided to play it safe. After holding discussions with Telangana TDP leaders, the impression given to the media was that Naidu had left the final decision on poll alliance to the local leaders. Chandrababu Naidu is the national president of TDP and has a great command over the party so much so that it is even difficult to spot second-in-command of the party. Anyone who is aware of his style of functioning will find it hard to believe that he left such an important decision to local leaders. After giving a silent nod to the TDP-Congress alliance, Naidu made sure that he was nowhere in the picture as Telangana TDP president L. Ramana participated in the talks with Congress and CPI leaders.

The TDPs strategy is very simple. If the alliance performs well in Telangana and that changes the mood in Andhra Pradesh, the TDP may openly embrace Congress and convince voters that only Congress can get them special category status. If the TDP-Congress combine fails to live upto the expectations or if Andhra Pradesh public resents the alliance, the Congress may be dumped. Whatever is the outcome, Naidu has made sure that he is in the safe zone as far his political image in Andhra Pradesh is concerned.
It's no secret that former prime minister Indira Gandhi acquired her surname from her husband Feroze Gandhi. Even though the Congress has been led by persons with a 'Gandhi' surname for most of the past 50 years, Feroze was a name largely forgotten and sidelined by the party.

However, on Wednesday, the Congress paid a Twitter tribute to the former freedom fighter on the occasion of his 106th birth anniversary. "We remember Feroze Gandhi. During the independence movement he was arrested and jailed several times and was later elected as a Member of Parliament from Raebareli," the Congress tweeted. The rare show of remembrance raised at least a few eyebrows on social media.

We remember Feroze Gandhi. During the independence movement he was arrested and jailed several times and was later elected as a Member of Parliament from Raebareli. pic.twitter.com/gY43zq2gT7  Congress (@INCIndia) September 12, 2018

Compared with the other members from the Nehru-Gandhi family, there's very little known about Feroze. There are many theories about his Gandhi surname. The most popular one says that Feroze was born to Faredoon Jehangir Ghandy and Ratimai, who lived in Mumbai. In his prime, Feroze was drawn to India's independence movement. He soon got inspired by Mahatma Gandhi and changed the spelling of his surname from Ghandy to Gandhi. Apparently, Feroze considered himself a Parsi. At the same time, he was not religious.

Indira and Feroze, who knew each other since their younger days, got married in 1942. However, their relationship was a complicated one, says Swedish author Bertil Falk who wrote the biography Feroze, The Forgotten Gandhi. He says that love for nature was the only thing that was in common between the them.

Feroze started his career as a journalist and became the managing director of The National Herald, founded by his father-in-law Jawaharlal Nehru. Much to the ignorance of the public, then and now, Feroze Gandhi was an efficient legislator, too. Elected to Parliament on a Congress ticket in 1952 from Rae Bareli in the first general election of independent India, Feroze was a sane and sensible debater, whose passionate interventions against a government of his own party were coveted by the opposition. Feroze played a key role in uncovering a scam in the newly nationalised LIC, earning a reputation as an anti-corruption crusader.

In 1956, four years after he was first elected to Parliament from Uttar Pradesh's Rae Bareli, Feroze Gandhi introduced a private members bill advocating press freedom. That was a period when a reporter could have been jailed for reporting the Rajya Sabha debates. The bill was passed and became a law as the Parliamentary Proceedings (Protection of Publication) Act, 1956.

Ironically, about two decades later, his wife Indira Gandhi's tenure was one of the darkest periods for press freedom in India.

While there are plenty of roads, hospitals, airports and bridges named after Nehru, Indira and Rajiv Gandhi, the only institution bearing Feroze's name worth mentioning is the Feroze Gandhi Memorial College in Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh. He started it as Rae Bareli Degree College a few months before his death on September 8,1960.

Currently, his daughter-in-law Sonia Gandhi represents the Rae Bareli constituency. If not overshadowed by others in the Nehru-Gandhi, especially his wife Indira, Feroze had the potential to become a game-changer in the law-making process of post-independence India. "It was Indiras faultshe did not want him to come to the forefront," notes Falk.
The adage that failures can teach many lessons seems quite...
Jammu and Kashmir chief secretary B.V.R. Subrahmanyam on Wednesday refuted reports that the municipal and panchayat polls in the state will be deferred.

There are multiple views going on. We have decided the elections are going on as per schedule,'' Subrahmanyam said at a function in Srinagar, and added that there will be no change in dates.

''Three weeks from now, we will have urban body elections. In the first week of November, we will have panchayat elections,'' he said.

Earlier, there were media reports that the civic polls in the strife-torn state will be deferred due to the boycott call by two main political partiesthe National Conference and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Sources said the Centre is going ahead with the polls because the additional security forces deployed in the state will be required for the upcoming Parliament polls. These troops came to the state for the security of Amarnath Yatra and were retained for civic polls.

The J&K government intends to deploy more than 4,000 paramilitary and police personnel for the multi-phase municipal and panchayat elections in October and November.

The NC and the PDP have decided to stay away from polls over the row erupting over the challenge to Article 35 A in the Supreme Court.

The NC was the first to announce it would boycott the civic polls if the Centre does not clear its stand on Article 35 A of the Constitution that protects the J&K state subject law which bars outsiders from settling in the state.

The article has been challenged in the top court by a right-wing NGO 'We the Citizens' and others on the grounds that it was a mere Presidential Order and not an Act of Parliament and that it violates the fundamental rights of citizens of India from settling in Jammu and Kashmir.

The separatist and the mainstream parties argue that the attempts to scrap the Article are aimed at changing the demography of the Muslim majority state.
It could mean cutting service, it could mean less stations, it could mean less service during the day, it could be a period of time during the day. It could mean a whole line, Derwinski said, speaking to reporters. Derwinski also said he was going to Washington, D.C., on Thursday, despite the approach of Hurricane Florence, to talk to legislators about the importance of federal funding for transit.
With the National Commission for Women (NCW) tightening its noose around P.C. George, the independent MLA from Kerala has withdrawn his obscene comments against the nun who has accused the Jalandhar Bishop Franco Mulakkal of raping her. "I inadvertently used a term against the victim. I'm apologising for the same. Such a term should never be used against a woman. It was an emotional outburst," said P.C. George, the MLA from Poonjar in Kottayam.

George, however, said that he stood by his other statements. He even went on to say that he doesn't consider the rape-victim a nun any more.



On Saturday, George had called the nun a prositute. "No one has doubt that the nun is a prostitute. 12 times she enjoyed it and the 13th time it is rape? Why didn't she complain the first time?" George had asked at a press meet. This had drawn flak from various quarters of the society. He had also triggered a social media campaign #VaaymooduPCGeorge (Shut up, PC George).

Lashing out at the Kerala MLA for using 'abusive language' against the rape victim, NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma had said that such incidents were shameful. The NCW had even summoned George to Delhi to explain his stance. He had retorted to the summons saying he was ready to appear, provided the NCW arranged for his travel. To this, the panel had said that it was willing to pay for the journey but demanded that the MLA gave it in writing that he did not have the economic means to finance the travel.



This was not the first instance where the P.C. George had taken a stand against a victim of a sexual assault case. In the famous actor assault case, too, the MLA had courted controversy by backing actor Dileep, the accused.

(With inputs from Onmanorama)
The Supreme Court has quashed a Kerala government ordinance that was issued to accommodate 180 students in Kannur Medical College and Karuna Medical College in Palakkad.

The government had passed the Kerala Professional Colleges (Regularisation of Admission in Medical Colleges) Bill 2018 to regularise the admissions to the self-nancing medical colleges in 2016-17. The SC on Wednesday observed that the ordinance interfered with judicial authority.

A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra also termed it as unconstitutional. Kerala's health minister KK Shylaja said she welcomed the order. The ordinance was promulgated to safeguard the students' future, she added.

On March 22 last year, the apex court had cancelled the admission of 180 students in Kannur and Karuna medical colleges due to irregularities in the procedure. Kerala government then promulgated the ordinance in April but the apex court found it unconstitutional.
Former Union minister Arun Shourie met NCP chief Sharad Pawar here on Wednesday and discussed the political situation in the country, the party said.

Shourie, a former minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee's NDA government and a bitter critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, met Pawar at the latter's residence in south Mumbai for over an hour, said Nationalist Congress Party spokesperson Nawab Malik.

"Met Arun Shourie along with my colleagues to discuss the dismal state of the Indian economy," Pawar tweeted.

"Shourie told Pawar to take the lead in uniting all the Opposition parties ahead of the general elections," a party source said.

"Pawar told Shourie that he was trying to unite all Opposition parties," the source added.

NCP MPs Supriya Sule and Majeed Memon and a former judge of the Bombay and Allahabad high courts, Abhay Thipsay, who joined the Congress in June, were present at the meeting.

Pawar recently suggested that the Opposition parties should not project anyone as the prime ministerial candidate before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. He also claimed that Congress president Rahul Gandhi had echoed his suggestion.

While advocating a grand alliance of Opposition parties, Pawar had suggested that national parties should go with a strong party at the regional level.
A proposed federal consent decree calls for the Police Department to provide more resources for officers seeking counseling. For example, the department has three licensed mental health professionals, but the decree would compel the department to raise that number to 10 by 2020.
Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has pulled out of next month's presidential election despite being one of the leading candidates.

The 72-year-old leader is serving a 12-year sentence for a corruption conviction but had gone ahead to file his nomination for the race. Two weeks ago, Lula was barred from the presidential race by the electoral court due to his conviction.

A few days ago, Jair Bolsonaro, another leading presidential candidate, was stabbed at a rally. He is still recovering from the attack.

Lula's decision to withdraw from the election was announced by the Workers' Party leader Gleisi Hoffman. A letter written by Lula in his prison cell was read out to his supporters who were camping outside the jail for five months demanding his freedom.

In the letter, the former president, who governed from January 2003 until December 2010, said he would not run in the election scheduled for 7 October. He also named Fernando Haddad as the man to step into the breach, the BBC said.

The decision to withdraw from the election was taken after a lengthy battle with the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) which on August 31 ruled that he was "ineligible" to run for the presidency. Though the decision has been appealed the Supreme Court is yet to rule on it.
US President Donald Trump described Prime Minister Narendra Modi as his friend who told him that the US has got nothing out of Afghanistan, according to Bob Woodward's latest book that hit stores on Tuesday.

"Prime Minister Modi of India is a friend of mine, he (Trump) said. I like him very much," Trump is quoted as saying by renowned journalist Woodward in his book Fear: Trump in the White House, which has portrayed a dysfunctional Trump administration.

According to Woodward, Trump made this comment about Modi during a Situation Room meeting in the White House on July 19 last year, nearly three weeks after he had a very successful meeting with Modi at the White House on June 26.

"He (Modi) told me the US has gotten nothing out of Afghanistan. Nothing. Afghanistan has massive mineral wealth. We don't take it like otherslike China," Trump is quoted as saying during the July 19 situation room meeting.

"The US needed to get some of Afghanistan's valuable minerals in exchange for any support. I'm not making a deal on anything until we get minerals. And the US 'must stop payments to Pakistan until they cooperate'," Trump said.

Six months later, Trump in a New Year tweet on January 1 announced an end to all military aid to Pakistan, arguing that it is not taking action against terrorist groups operating from its soil.

Trump told his national security aide that the US is losing in Afghanistan.

"'We're losing big in Afghanistan. It's a disaster. Our allies aren't helping. Ghost soldiersthose paid but not servingare ripping us off. NATO is a disaster and a waste,' he said. The soldiers had told him that NATO staff were totally dysfunctional," the book says.

"'Pakistan isn't helping us. They're not really a friend, despite the $1.3 billion a year in aid the US gave them,' Trump said.

Trump refused to send any additional aid. The Afghan leaders were corrupt and making money off the US, Woodward writes in the book.

The book has caused controversy as it reportedly portrays Trump as chaotic, mercurial and uninformed.

The White House has described the book as "reckless" and a work of fiction, with Trump calling it a "joke".

-PTI
Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter Maryam Nawaz and her husband Mohammad Safdar were granted parole hours after the death of the leader's wife Begum Kulsoom Nawaz on Tuesday. The trio were serving a jail sentence in Adiala jail in Rawalpindi since July in connection with a corruption case.

Kulsoom died in London after a battle with cancer. Nawaz, Maryam and Safdar were granted 12-hour parole to go to Lahore in connection with the funeral of Kulsoom. They were taken to the Sharifs' Jati Umra residence in Lahore by a special aircraft in the wee hours of Wednesday. Nawaz's PML(N) had applied for five-days parole as Kulsoom's body is yet to be brought back from London for the funeral, which is planned to be held on Friday.

A PML(N) spokesperson said the party was hopeful that the Punjab provincial government would extend the parole of Nawaz and the others till Friday.

Prime Minister Imran Khan, for long a bitter critic of Nawaz, seemingly left aside political rivalries and ordered facilitation of parole procedures for the trio. Khan also condoled the death of Kulsoom, tweeting, she was a courageous woman of great dignity and confronted her disease with fortitude.

The PML(N) said no decision has been taken on whether the two sons of Nawaz and KulsoomHasan and Hussainmay return to Lahore as they have been declared absconders by a court in an offshore properties case.

Kulsoom was a prominent figure on Pakistan's political scene when Nawaz was prime minister in 1990-1993, 1997-1999 and 2013-2017. She also briefly led the PML(N) from 1999 to 2002 when Nawaz had been imprisoned by then dictator Pervez Musharraf. She won the bypoll to the National Assembly seat held by Nawaz in Lahore after he was forced to step down last year, but was unable to take oath on account of her illness.

(With PTI inputs)
Pancake making seems to be a way of bonding for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese premier Xi Jinping. The pair were spotted wearing blue aprons, pouring out batter and turning the pancakes over before eating them with cavier and a shot of vodka on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum.

As new agency AFP reported, this was the second time that Putin and Xi were foraying into batter-based cooking. When Xi visited China in June, Putin made a Chinese pancake which Xi tried.

On Tuesday, both leaders were tight lipped about the pancakes they had made for each other, but there were plenty of comments about US President Donald Trump and his policy on trade protectionism. During the event the leaders also pledged to form deeper economic and military ties.

Amid the quickly changing international situation and the factors of instability and unpredictability, the cooperation of Russia and China takes on greater and greater importance, Xi told reporters during the event, which experts noted took place as Washingtons relationship with both countries deteriorated. Together with our Russian colleagues, we will increase fruitful co-operation in international affairs and intensify co-ordination...to oppose the policy of unilateral actions and trade protectionism, Xi said.

Putin informed that the two countries plan to use their own national currencies more often in trade deals as their relation with the West deteriorates. The Russian and Chinese sides confirmed their interest in using national currencies more actively in reciprocal payments, Putin told journalists. He added this would increase the stability of banks servicing of export and import operations while there are ongoing risks on global markets.

Xi is one of the big names at the event in the Russian far eastern city of Vladivostok, where the focus has been on economic ties and North Korea.
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The Central Information Commission has directed the Reserve Bank of India to disclose the amount deposited in Jan Dhan accounts of various banks in the form of demonetised currency.

Launched in August 2014, Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana is a national mission for financial inclusion to ensure access to financial services  banking or savings and deposit accounts, remittance, credit, insurance, pension in banks.

Jan Dhan accounts had come into focus after demonetisation on November 8, 2016, when the deposits witnessed a meteoric rise, touching an approximate Rs 80,000 crore in April this year.

Information Commissioner Sudhir Bhargava ordered the RBI to disclose details of demonetised currency deposited in Jan Dhan accounts to activist Subhash Agrawal, who has also demanded some other details related to demonetisation.

The Union government demonetised Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes on November 8, 2016.

Bhargava directed the RBI that in case the information was not available with it, the bankers' bank will file "an affidavit with the commission" disposing that no record related to the information sought were available with it.

The commission also directed the respondent to provide information on the total amount of demonetised currency notes exchanged with new notes.

Besides Jan Dhan accounts, the CIC directed the RBI to disclose the total amount deposited in the form of demonetised notes in savings and current accounts of banks.

Agrawal had filed an RTI application with the RBI, seeking to know details related to the demonetisation exercise, complaints against bank officers, money deposited in various accounts, and the total quantum of demonetised currency exchanged by people.

Not getting any information from the RBI, Agrawal approached the commission with his appeal seeking disclosure of the information.

The CIC also ordered disclosure of information on public and private banks and their officers against whom action was initiated for not following RBI guidelines post demonetisation and records related to seizure of bundles of cash of new Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes introduced post-demonetisation. PTI ABS ABS ABH

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Most recently, in the Northwest Sides Peterson Industrial Corridor, a 24-year-old man standing on the sidewalk in the 5200 block of North Tripp Avenue heard gunshots and felt pain around 2:40 a.m. Thursday, police said. He had been shot in the right foot. The man got himself to Swedish Covenant Hospital, where he was stable.
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved signing of a memorandum of understanding between India and Malta to strengthen cooperation in tourism sector, an official release said Wednesday.

The MoU will be signed during the upcoming visit of the vice president to Malta.

The main objectives of the MoU is to encourage the promotion of quality destinations for the tourism industry in both countries, to increase tourist arrivals in both countries from the entire world through the territories of India and Malta and to promote human resource development in tourism and travel-related industries in both countries.

"This MoU will help the two parties in creating an institutional mechanism for enhancing cooperation in the tourism sector. It will also help India in increasing foreign tourist arrivals from Malta. This, in turn, will result in economic development and employment generation," the release said.

The MoU will create favourable conditions for long-term tourism cooperation for mutual benefits of all stakeholders within the broader framework and areas of cooperation. It will also explore to incorporate the best practices in order to implement the measures that will realize its objectives, it said. PTI ASG ASG ABH

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New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) Mexican-American actor Demian Bichir, best known for his performances in "A Better Life" and "The Hateful Eight", believes there is a lot to be done to achieve real diversity in cinema.

In the last two years, debate around representation and gender equality has intensified and Bichir feels it was much needed.

"We still have to work towards diversity in every sense. I don't think we are there when it comes to equality, protecting and representing minorities.

"The world is a very vast place with so many nationalities and cultures. We have to make more films that represent women, Latins, African-Americans and other communities. It is the time for that. We need more Chinese films, more Indian and Latin-American films," he told PTI in an interview over phone.

The 55-year-old actor was last seen in the Corin Hardy-directed horror film "The Nun", which is a part of "The Conjuring" universe, a franchise that is very popular in India.

Asked whether he had ever visited the country, Bichir said he is keeping his fingers crossed.

"I would love to go to India. A dear friend has invited me to make that trip together. I hope that I have that chance sooner rather than later," he said. PTI BK RDS

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Mumbai, Sep 12 (PTI) Shahid Kapoor has clarified his stand on staying away from the promotions of "Batti Gul Meter Chalu", saying he devoted last few days to his children's care as "being a parents is above all else".

The37-year-old actor, who welcomed son Zain with wife Mira Rajput last week, said their daughter Misha, two, has not been keeping well.

"The last few days have been tough. Misha (is) running very high fever and Zain just came home. Have had to miss some promotions. Just 9 days to go for 'Batti Gul Meter Chalu' to release but being a parent is above all else," Shahid wrote on Twitter.

The "Padmaavat" star hopes to resume promotions soon.

Also starring Shraddha Kapoor, Divyendu Sharma and Yami Gautam, "Batti Gul..." releases September 21. PTI RDS BK

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Islamabad, Sep 12 (PTI) For the first time, Pakistan's Supreme Court will hire two transgenders to give them their rights in the Muslim-majority country, the Chief Justice said.

Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar on Tuesday said two transgenders would be provided jobs in the Supreme Court.

The remarks came as he chaired a bench to hear a case regarding transgenders' rights.

"In our society transgenders are subjected to ridicule. It is our top most priority to give them their rights," he was quoted as saying by Geo News.

The chief justice said the court would issue notice to NGOs and the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa while it hears the case related to basic rights of transgenders.

"Court wants to bring them into mainstream. It wants to resolve their issues," he said. National Database and Registration Authority Chairman Usman Mobin who appeared during the hearing, informed the court upon being asked whether identity cards to all transgender applicants have been issued, that his organisation is issuing cards and also initiated a facilitation campaign.

The Chief Justice lamented that the community was facing threats and ridicule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The court also took exception to a website that he was told is involved in spreading misleading materials against transgenders.

The court was told that an NGO named Blue Van had established the website which claims as many as 500 transgenders have been murdered in the country.

In 2009, Pakistan became one of the first countries in the world to legally recognise a third sex, allowing transgenders to obtain identity cards. They number at least half a million people in the country, according to several studies, but their representation in politics and many other spheres of life remains negligible

The transgender community was counted in the national census for the first time last year.

Pakistan is a deeply conservative country where homosexuality is illegal. However, the country has approved laws giving transgender people better rights than in many other nations, media reports said. PTI AMS AKJ AMS

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Colombo, Sep 12 (PTI) Sri Lanka's Tamil northern provincial council adopted a resolution on Wednesday calling for a UN-monitored referendum in the north and east to "determine the aspirations of the Tamil people".

"The people can vote at the referendum to express their view on the Tamil political aspirations," provincial council member M K Shivajilingam of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said.

The resolution says that Sri Lanka had failed to implement its commitments under the UN Human Rights Council resolutions "which called for investigations into credible allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity".

The five-point resolution urges the UNHRC to refer Sri Lanka to the International Criminal Court, to appoint a special UN rapporteur on Tamil people, impose military sanctions on Sri Lanka, impose a travel ban on Sri Lankan military personnel accused of war crimes and to hold the referendum which should lead to finding a permanent political solution for Tamils.

The resolution came after President Maithripala Sirisena's public statement last week that he would make a special appeal during his address at the UN General Assembly later this month to urge dropping of war crime accusations against government troops.

Sirisena's government in 2017 co-sponsored the US moved UNHRC resolution against Sri Lanka pledging to set up credible mechanisms for reconciliation with the Tamil minority.

But he has rejected the idea to set up international courts to probe war crime charges blamed both on the government troops and the LTTE militants. PTI CORR KUN

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Islamabad, Sep 12 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi has condoled the death of Begum Kulsoom Nawaz, saying he would always cherish the memories of his interaction with the wife of Pakistan's former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, according to a media report.

Kulsoom died Tuesday in London after a long battle with cancer. She was 68.

"It is with profound grief that I learnt of the sad demise of Begum Sahiba," Modi wrote in a letter to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Sharif, a copy of which was displayed by Geo News.

Modi on Tuesday conveyed his deepest condolences to the Sharif family.

"I pray to the Almighty to grant eternal peace to Begum Sahiba and strength to you and the bereaved family to bear this irreparable loss," the letter read further.

"I would always cherish memories of my interaction with her," Modi said in the condolence message, apparently referring to his unannounced visit to Lahore in 2015 on Sharif's birthday and his granddaughter's wedding.

Kulsoom was diagnosed with lymphoma last year, barely a month after Nawaz was removed from office by the Supreme Court, which ordered him to face trial in an anti-corruption court.

She will be laid to rest on Friday. The funeral prayers will be offered at the Regent Park mosque in London on Thursday and her body will be flown to Lahore after completion of legal formalities. PTI AMS AKJ AMS

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Yangon, Sept 12 (AFP) The UN began work Wednesday inside Myanmar's violence-torn northern Rakhine state, the first time its agencies have been granted permission to operate there since more than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims fled the area last year.

The UN has been waiting for access to the epicentre of the military's "clearance operations" against the Rohingya minority since June when its refugee and development agencies signed a deal with the government.

Its work is highly sensitive inside Rakhine, a state cut deep with ethnic and religious hatred and where Buddhist locals stand accused of helping the army chase out their Muslim neighbours.

Many Rakhine accuse international aid groups, including the UN, of a pro-Rohingya bias and foreign aid groups have been granted very limited access to the state.

The task is complicated further as the UN's rights arm is expected to heavily censure Myanmar again in the coming days when it publishes in full the findings of its investigation into atrocities against the Rohingya.

On Friday, specialists from the UNHCR and UNDP agencies were finally given permission to enter northern Rakhine before work began on Wednesday to assess local conditions.

"The team is on the ground and commenced with the first assessments today," UNHCR spokeswoman Aoife McDonnell told AFP.

This first step of the UN's "confidence-building measures" is expected to take two weeks and will cover 23 villages and three additional clusters of hamlets.

It was not immediately clear which villages they will visit or which communities the UN teams will consult.

The expectation is this "very initial and small step in terms of access will be expanded rapidly to all areas covered" by the agreement, McDonnell said.

The stateless Rohingya are widely seen as illegal immigrants by Myanmar's majority-Buddhist population, complicating the repatriation of those who fled to Bangladesh.

Last August's crackdown by Myanmar's army pushed hundreds of thousands of Rohingya across the border.

Refugees have carried accounts of rape, murder, arson and torture perpetrated by the military and buttressed by Rakhine mobs.

The northern part of Rakhine has been locked down since then, with journalists and observers only allowed to visit on short, chaperoned trips.

The deployment of the two UN agencies comes as Myanmar faces growing demands for accountability over its treatment of the Rohingya.

A UN-led report last week two weeks ago called for the prosecution of army chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing and five other top-ranking generals for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

That was swiftly followed by a ruling by the International Criminal Court (ICC) that it has jurisdiction to open a probe into "deportations" of the Rohingya, saying it was a cross-border crime. AFP

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Colombo, Sep 12 (PTI) Animal sacrifices in Hindu temples in Sri Lanka could be banned after the Cabinet approved a proposal Wednesday to enact laws banning the "primitive" methods of worship, amid calls from the Hindu community to make the ritual a "punishable offence" in the Buddhist-majority country.

The Cabinet headed by President Maithripala Sirisena approved the proposal submitted by Resettlement, Rehabilitation, Northern Development and Hindu Religious Affairs Minister D M Swaminathan.

Hindu Cultural Affairs Director Uma Maheswaran was quoted as saying by the government-owned newspaper 'Daily News' that the slaughter of animals such as goats and fowls in Hindu temples would be banned by this legislation.

He said the Cabinet-approved draft legislation would be sent to the Legal Draftsman's Department for final consent.

It will then be sent to the Attorney General's Department and published in the gazette. He said the law would come into effect once passed by Parliament.

According to the Cabinet Memorandum, animal and bird sacrifices in Hindu Temples or its precincts will be prohibited.

"One of the primitive methods of worship is animal and bird sacrifices, while the majority of Hindus do not accept the practice. Slaughtering of animals is carried out in public in open courtyard of the temple without considering health and mental harm of the devotees.

"Legislation to ban animal sacrifice in Hindu temples is operative in India. The members of Parliament representing the Hindu Community and Hindu Association in Sri Lanka are of unanimous view that sacrifices of any living being in the name of Hindu Religion should be banned and made a punishable offence," the memorandum stated.

Jaffna High Court Judge M Ilancheliyan, delivering a ruling in a case filed by the All Ceylon Hindu Maha Sabha against the killings of animals at the Kavunawatte Narasimmar Kovil festival in October last year, prohibited the slaughter of animals in Hindu temples.

"Fundamental characteristics of most of the religions are 'Ahimsa' and non-cruelty towards all living being. Hindu Religion practised by a substantial section of the Sri Lankan population is vigorously preaching this concept and declares it as sinful and advocates the prevention of killing of any living being," the memorandum noted.

"There is no institutionalised structure for the regulation of activities carried out in the name of Hindu Religion. Almost all Hindu temples and religious institutions in the country are managed by individuals or management committees elected by people.

"There is no regulatory mechanism to impose or guide line or instruction unified practice in these temples and left in the hands of these individuals or Management Committees," it added.

Sri Lanka is a Buddhist-majority country with Buddhist Sinhalese making up nearly 75 per cent. Muslims account for 10 per cent of the 21 million population another 13 per cent of the population are Hindus. PTI CORR MRJ AKJ MRJ

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London, Sept 12 (AFP) Britain accused Russia on Wednesday of "obfuscation and lies" after President Vladimir Putin denied that the two men Britain suspects of poisoning former spy Sergei Skripal with a nerve agent were military intelligence officers.

"We have repeatedly asked Russia to account for what happened in Salisbury in March, and they have replied with obfuscation and lies," Prime Minister Theresa May's spokesman told reporters.

Britain last week issued European arrest warrants for Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov on suspicion of trying to kill Skripal and his daughter Yulia with the Novichok nerve agent in the English city of Salisbury on March 4.

The British government has said it believes the attack was sanctioned by the Kremlin -- a charge that has been strongly denied by the Russian government.

"These men are officers of the Russian military intelligence service, the GRU, who used a devastatingly toxic illegal chemical weapon on the streets of our country," May's spokesman said. AFP

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The second Batson challenge of the day came after the defense used a strike on a 22-year-old black man who had not fully completed a jury questionnaire and said he recalled a couple of posts from acquaintances on Facebook that mentioned Van Dyke had "murdered" somebody. He said he did not respond to the posts and that it did not affect his opinion. The man also said he had not seen the video.
Agartala, Sep 12 (PTI) CPI(M) politburo member Manik Sarkar on Wednesday hit out at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Tripura ahead of the panchayat bypolls, saying it was "slaughtering democracy" in the state and the people in its rural areas were suffering from a food crisis.

The former Tripura chief minister accused the saffron party of trying to choke the voice of the Opposition and not allowing it to work democratically.

"The BJP is just slaughtering democracy in the state. Individual rights, civil liberties and human rights are persecuted under the BJP rule," Sarkar told a press conference at the CPI(M) state committee office here.

He alleged that there were no employment opportunities in the villages and the rural people were suffering from a severe food crisis. Many of them had to cross the international border and go to Bangladesh to collect forest products and sell them for a living, he claimed.

"The new (BJP) government has to make its position clear on the issue," Sarkar said.

He alleged that the BJP had grabbed power in Tripura by hatching conspiracies and added that the people of the state were gradually understanding it.

"I am sure the common people will not remain silent for long," Sarkar said.

On the series of clashes between the BJP and other political parties on Tuesday, the last date for filing nominations for the three-tier rural bypolls in the state, he claimed that elected public representatives were forced to resign from their positions.

Over 50 per cent of seats in the three-tier panchayat bodies fell vacant within five months of the BJP-led government coming to power.

"The bypoll was announced but the opposition parties were barred from submitting nomination papers. Those who collected the nomination forms were attacked and their houses ransacked," Sarkar said.

Of the 6,111 seats in the gram panchayat bodies across the 58 blocks of Tripura, 3,207 fell vacant due to mass resignations.

Sarkar claimed that 3,148 of these seats were vacated due to forced resignation. The case was similar in 161 of the 168 vacant panchayat samiti seats and 16 of the 18 vacant zilla parishad seats, he claimed.

Earlier in the day, state CPI(M) spokesperson Goutam Das alleged that the supporters of the Left party were attacked and not allowed to file nominations for the panchayat bypolls.

The Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT), an ally of the BJP, also alleged that its activists and supporters were attacked over filing of nominations in different parts of the state and demanded rescheduling of the bypoll. PTI JOY KK RC
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The government must explain how and why Vijay Mallya was allowed to leave India, the Congress said Wednesday after the liquor baron claimed in London that he met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley before leaving the country.

The government, the party said, was fully complicit in the flight of people like Mallya and others from the country.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said the country wants to know what transpired during the meetings between Mallya and Jaitley.

"The government should now explain how and why he was allowed to leave and what transpired at those meetings. The nation wants to know," he said.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss told reporters in London that he met the minister and offered to settle with the banks.

"I left India because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. Before leaving I met the finance minister and offered to settle (the issue with the banks), Mallya said, without naming the minister. PTI SKC SKC MIN

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New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa Wednesday stoutly defended the government's decision to procure only two squadrons of Rafale jets against the original proposal of 126 aircraft, saying there have been similar "emergency" acquisitions in the past.

The Air Force is reeling under a severe shortage of fighter aircraft at a time India faces security challenges from two nuclear-powered neighbours, he said, adding that the purchase of 36 Rafale jets (two squadrons) will help the force deal with the situation.

One squadron of fighter jets comprises 16-18 aircraft.

"Whenever the government felt the airpower element of the defence forces is likely to be in a disadvantageous position, it has gone in for emergency purchases of the aircraft under the umbrella of the inter-governmental agreement," Dhanoa said, addressing a seminar on IAF's force restructuring.

"The history is that the government had undertaken emergency purchase of fighter aircraft on several occasions in the past," he said.

The IAF chief said, "By providing the Rafale and S-400, the government is strengthening the IAF to counter the shortfalls of our depleting numbers."

Asked at the seminar whether IAF has a plan to procure two more squadrons of Rafale jets, Deputy Chief of Air Staff R Nambiar said the force wanted 126 Rafale jets. He said IAF is in the process of 114 fighter jets and Rafale would be one of the contenders for it.

Sources said Nambiar is flying to France on Sunday to review various technical tests on the Rafale jets being readied for supply to India.

The previous UPA government was negotiating a deal with French aerospace giant Dassault Aviation, the makers of Rafale, for procurement of 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA). However the deal could not be sealed.

According to the proposal, Dassault Aviation was to supply 18 Rafale jets in fly-away condition while 108 aircraft was to be manufactured in India by the company along with Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL).

Speaking at the seminar, Air Officer Commanding (AOC) in Chief of Central Command SBP Sinha said deal under the UPA government could not go through because of "irresolvable differences" between HAL and Dassault Aviation on transfer of technology and who will be responsible for manufacturing of 108 aircraft in India.

He said the cost of 18 "fly-away" Rafale was "firmly" known while the cost of 108 Rafale, which was to be manufactured in India, was not known. Sinha was part of the cost negotiation committee for procurement of Rafale under the UPA regime.

The Modi government signed a government-to-government deal with France for purchase of 36 Rafale jets at a cost of Rs 58,000 crore on September 23, 2016. The delivery of the aircraft will start from September 2019.

Sinha said 36 Rafale jets will come with "best in class" weapons and avionics which will "exponentially enhance" combat potential of the IAF.

Congress has been alleging massive irregularities in the deal and attacking the government for procuring just 36 jets when IAF required 126 jets.

Justifying the decision to go for only two Rafale squadrons, Air Chief Marshal Dhanoa said India procured two squadrons of MiG 23 MF jets after Pakistan received first lot of F-16 aircraft in 1983.

He said, in 1985, two squadrons of Mirage 2000 were procured from France, and later two squadrons of MiG 29 were purchased from the then Soviet Union.

"All these procurements were under the umbrella of inter-governmental agreement (IGA)," he said.

He said acquisitions under IGA are "faster" and quickest means of achieving operational capability of the IAF.

The government is also procuring a batch of S-400 air defence missile system from Russia.

The IAF chief said IAF currently has 31 squadrons of fighter jets against the sanctioned strength of 42.

Asked whether the political slugfest relating to Rafale has affected morale of the IAF personnel, he said "no". PTI MPB ZMN
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The top brass of the Army Wednesday gave an in-principle approval to carry out extensive reforms in the second largest standing Army in the world with an aim to enhance its war-fighting capabilities, official sources said.

The decision was taken at a two-day brainstorming meeting of top commanders of the Army which was chaired by Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat.

The sources said the reform may include making various formations as well as divisions "leaner and meaner", transforming the procurement process into a seamless exercise, restructuring of various establishments of the force and possible downsizing of the troops if required.

"The detailed reform initiative will be deliberated upon extensively at the next month's commanders' conference," said a source.

The sources said operations, logistics and procurement wings will witness significant reforms.

They said the Directorate General of Rashtriya Rifles (DGRR), located in the Army headquarters in Delhi, may be moved out.

Similarly, the Directorate General of Military Training may be integrated with the Shimla-based Army Training Command (ARTRAC).

The sources said the top brass of the Army examined separate reports of two committees on reforming the force.

There have been indications that the Army may cut over 1,00,000 troops over the next five years as part of restructuring process. The current strength of the force is around 1.3 million personnel.

The commanders also reviewed the modernisation process of the Army and emphasised on the need to equip the force with new platforms and weapons, the sources said.

The Defence Ministry has already announced a series of reform measures for the Army which included redeployment of nearly 57,000 officers and other ranks as well as ensuring better utilisation of resources.

Under the cadre review, the Army is also looking at abolishing the rank of brigadier, they said.

The sources said the aim of the reform initiative is to ready a larger talent pool for crucial tasks and bringing down the age of those commanding key formations. PTI MPB ZMN
Noida (UP), Sep 12 (PTI) Three persons have been arrested for allegedly impersonating as RBI officials and duping a senior citizen here of Rs 6 lakh on the pretext of renewing his insurance policy, police said Wednesday.

The accused have been identified as Brajesh Kumar (26),

Awadhesh Kumar (31) and Praveen Kumar (30), they said.

They were held Tuesday night from Khoda area.

Robin Majumder, a retired NTPC official, a resident of Sector 62 of the city, had informed the cyber cell of the Noida Police that some "Reserve Bank of India officials" had called him up to say that his insurance policy has lapsed and needs to be renewed, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ajay Pal Sharma said.

"He said the accused told Majumder if he wanted to save the money spent in insurance and also get an additional Rs 2 lakh in return, he must remit Rs 6 lakh," Sharma told reporters here.

Sharma said the accused had asked 70-year-old Majumder to deposit the money in a private bank account number in three to four installments.

In May, when the senior citizen called up on the phone number to check for the status of his policy, nobody received the call.

Majumder filed a complaint to the cyber cell, which probed the matter and tracked down the culprits, the SSP said.

During interrogation, Brajesh Kumar, the main accused, who belongs to Kannauj, said he worked in a placement agency in Noida which shut down last year.

"Awadhesh worked with Brajesh in the same placement agency, while Praveen was known to Awadhesh outside work. When the agency shut down, a mobile phone and a SIM card of it remained with Brajesh. Together they used the date collected by the agency to call up random people with the same insurance policy plot to dupe them," Sharma said.

"They used to call up people and tell them that their insurance policy has lapsed. They would then ask them to pay some amount to get it renewed and also assure them of doubling the money," he said.

The police said Brajesh Kumar is a science graduate from the Kanpur University, while Praveen did his master's in zoology from Deshbandhu College of Delhi University and Awadhesh dropped out of school after Class 10.

After getting the money, the trio would distribute it among themselves, with Brajesh keeping half of the amount and Awadhesh getting 30 per cent and Praveen getting 20 per cent of it, the police said.

They said they have frozen the bank account of Praveen, which had Rs 3 lakh of the duped amount, while search was on to recover the remaining money.

The mobile phone and the SIM card used by them have also been seized, the police said.

A case against the trio has been registered at the Sector 58 police station under the Indian Penal Code Section 420 for cheating and Section 66 of the Information Technology Act for online fraud, which may draw a punishment for up to three years in jail and a fine up to Rs 5 lakh. PTI KIS KJ
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) A Delhi Police head constable was shot dead by unidentified men in southeast Delhi's Jaitpur area, police said Wednesday.

The deceased was identified as Ram Avtar . He was posted as head constable at south Delhi's Ambedkar Nagar Police Station, they said.

The incident took place Tuesday night when he was going to a shop near his house in southeast Delhi's Jaitpur area, Chinmoy Biswal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (southeast), said.

He said Avtar had returned home at around 9:30 pm after completing his duty and was attacked between 10:30 pm and 10:45 pm. Police were informed about the incident at 11:30 pm.

Ram Avtar was rushed to Dev Medical Centre and was later shifted to Apollo Hospital where he was declared brought dead, the DCP said.

He had sustained a bullet injury below the ribs on right side, he said.

"As part of investigation, teams of crime branch and Forensic Science Laboratory examined the spot. Several people are being questioned in connection with the incident," the officer said.

After the post-mortem, the body was handed over to his family members.The official said police are probing all angles including that of personal enmity and a search is underway to nab the perpetrators. PTI AMP RT
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The Delhi Institute of Hotel Management (DIHM) will soon be converted into a full-fledged university which shall provide world-class courses in hospitality and tourism management, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia announced Wednesday.

Sisodia made the announcement during his visit to the institute.

"The institute will be converted into a university that shall provide high quality world-class courses in hospitality and tourism to ensure the institution has autonomy," he said.

"I have asked the principal to draw a proposal and directed the tourism secretary to ensure this is done on top priority," he added. PTI GJS GJS SNE

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Noida (UP), Sep 12 (PTI) Two police officials in Noida were suspended for alleged indiscipline after they apparently failed to recognise a vehicle of the Uttar Pradesh police chief on Wednesday, officials said.

Director General of Police (DGP) O P Singh was on his way to attend a meeting in New Delhi when he happened to cross the city, according to a senior Gautam Budh Nagar police official.

The officials -- a sub-inspector and a constable -- were from the Sector 39 police station and deployed at the Amrapali police check post when the incident took place around 2.30 pm, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ajay Pal Sharma said.

"The SI and the constable were not wearing their caps, which were kept in their gypsy, while they were on duty. They had failed to recognise the vehicle of the DGP and their approach was very casual during the episode. So they have been suspended for indiscipline," the SSP told PTI.

Quashing reports that the SI and the constable had argued with the DGP, Sharma clarified that the two had recognised the police chief after reaching near the vehicle.

Singh, who has previously served in various organisations including the SPG (PM Security) and headed the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and Central Industrial Security force (CISF), was appointed as the UP DGP on January 1 this year. PTI KIS HMB
Muzaffarpur (Bihar), Sep 12 (PTI) A court here on Wednesday directed the police to lodge an FIR against actor Salman Khan and the cast and crew of upcoming Bollywood film "Loveratri" on the basis of a complaint that the title and contents of the movie had hurt the Hindu sentiments.

Sub Divisional Judicial Magistrate (East) Shailendra Rai directed the Mithanpura police station in the town to lodge an FIR, based on a complaint filed in the court by advocate Sudhir Kumar Ojha.

Ojha has taken exception to the title of the film, alleging that it is meant to make fun of the holy festival of Navaratri. He has also claimed that he film's scheduled release on October 5 is likely to hurt the Hindu sentiments.

In his complaint, in which Khan, who is the producer of the film, its director and actors have been made parties, Ojha has claimed that he has watched the promos of the film and they contained a lot of vulgarity.

The complaint was lodged before the court last week under IPC sections 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class), 298 (uttering words etc. with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person), 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) 153B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integrity) and 120B (criminal conspiracy). PTI CORR NAC SNS RC
We think thats the beginning of really establishing Chicago, believe it or not, as an American capital of street art and as a destination for people who want to experience that and see it for themselves, Hopkins said. So thats a side benefit of this ordinance that we are very excited about and we know that is going to come to fruition.
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The National Green Tribunal has directed an oversight committee headed by a former high court judge to monitor the issue of restoration and revival of wetlands in Dwarka sub-city here after an environment activist sought the green panel's intervention in the matter.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel said revival and restoration of the water bodies is necessary for recharge of ground water.

"We direct that while all the existing efforts by the authorities in terms of the directions of this tribunal may continue, the committee appointed by this tribunal in 'tribunal on its own Motion Vs. Govt of NCT of Delhi & Ors' will also act as an oversight body for execution of order in the present matter.

"It will be open to the parties to put forward their viewpoint to the said committee for consideration. The committee will be at liberty to issue any further direction in the matter for execution of order of this tribunal," the bench said.

The NGT expressed dissatisfaction over an affidavit that has been filed on behalf of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), indicating the status of the water bodies in the form of table and said "the action taken as projected therein can hardly be held to be enough".

Besides the former judge, the panel also comprises one epresentative each from the Delhi Jal Board, Central Pollution Control Board, Central Ground Water Authority and the sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) concerned.

The tribunal was hearing a plea filed by city resident Diwan Singh, who claimed that enormous amounts of rainwater goes waste due to the dilapidated condition of water bodies in Dwarka and urgent action was needed for effective utilisation of such water bodies to store the rainwater which this area received annually.

Earlier, the tribunal had directed the city government to clean and restore all natural water bodies after a plea expressed concern over alarming depletion of the water table in the national capital.

It had also directed the government and agencies concerned to ensure that these water bodies receive rainwater in good quantity before the onset of the monsoon. PTI PKS KJ
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The National Green Tribunal has directed the closure of five Kanpur-based tanneries for discharging effluents in river Ganga after the Central Pollution Control Board informed it that the units lacked NOC from the Central Ground Water Authority.

A bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel passed the order after perusing a joint inspection team of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the state pollution control board.

"The CPCB has filed a joint inspection report. Apart from other observations, common observation in all the joint inspections is that there is no No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA). It is doubtful that CGWA can grant NOC in critical area of basin/catchment area of river Ganga and its tributaries where extraction of ground water adversely affects the flow of the river.

"Even without going into this question, the fact remains that the CGWA has not granted any such permission and in absence thereof, no industrial unit can be allowed to function without such permission in view of the concluded judgment of this Tribunal... In view of the above, we are unable to permit the tanneries in question to operate," the bench, also comprising Justice Jawad Rahim, said.

The green panel said the CPCB report was "far from satisfactory" as the directions of the tribunal in the Ganga case have not been kept in mind during the inspection.

"We hope in future the Central Pollution Control Board

will look into this aspect of the matter while conducting any joint inspection of this nature," the bench said.

The tribunal ordered closure of Minaar Industries, Kazi Leather (Huda Hide Agency), N R Tanners, Nusrat Tannery Pvt Ltd and New Universal Tannery

The five units had applied to the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) for permission to operate. However, the board found certain deficiencies in their units and closed them.

Earlier, the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government favoured the shifting of the British-era tanneries which were releasing toxic wastes into the river Ganga at Kanpur.

Regarding the shifting of tanneries located in Jajmau cluster in Kanpur, the NGT had last year sought an action plan from the leather units, failing which it said "the UP government shall be duty bound to close the tanneries and shift the same to Banthar, Unnao or any other developed site which it considers appropriate".

PTI PKS SRY
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The Delhi government informed the Supreme Court Wednesday that it has cleared 148 acres of encroached forest land in the national capital.

The counsel appearing for Delhi government told a bench of justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta that it would file an affidavit giving full details of the actions taken to re-claim the encroached land and also about the water bodies.

On the point of issuing advance notice of sealing to defaulters, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) A N S Nadkarni, appearing for the Centre, said they have discussed the matter with senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, assisting the court as an amicus curiae, and they would finalise an agreed plan.

"We had a discussion and some agreed procedure will be finalised," the ASG said.

The bench said it would hear the issue on September 20.

It also granted two weeks' time to the Delhi government to file their affidavit in the matter.

The apex court had earlier taken serious note of the encroachments in Delhi and had said it was a "matter of great distress" that 2,280.43 kilometres of roads, streets and footpaths were encroached upon in the national capital.

The observation by the bench had come after it was informed that 844.33 kms, 811.01 kms and 601.2 kms of encroached roads and streets were cleared by the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) and those in South and East Delhi respectively as on August 31.

The bench had made it clear that once the special task force (STF), constituted on April 25 following the court's order to oversee enforcement of laws on illegal constructions here, clears the encroachments, the statutory authority would have to ensure that there was no more encroachment in the area.

The court had also dealt with issues relating to encroachment of forest land and water bodies here which was raised by the court-appointed monitoring committee in its report.

The committee had told the court that several water bodies in Delhi had dried up and were encroached upon, which was a matter of grave concern.

The apex court had in July directed that there would be "no stopping of sealing or demolition" of unauthorised constructions in Delhi after the Centre had said it had not given any instructions to the civic bodies to go slow or stop the sealing drive against offending structures.

The top court is dealing with the issue related to validity of the Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Act, 2006 and subsequent legislations which protect unauthorised construction from being sealed. PTI LLP ABA MNL SJK RKS ABA RT

RT
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The Delhi government Wednesday told the Supreme Court that it would issue within three days the notification regarding constitution of the town vending committees (TVC) for which elections were held on July 15 this year.

A bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta heard the government's submission and asked them to come out with the notification in accordance with the Delhi Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Rules, 2017.

The bench has posted the matter for hearing on September 17.

The apex court had on September 5 directed the Delhi government to issue within a week the notification under the 2017 rules.

It had pulled up the government and asked as to why no TVC was constituted as per the rules even after the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014 had come into force four years ago.

The counsel, appearing for the three municipal corporations in Delhi, had told the bench that elections for 26 TVCs had taken place on July 15, but the notification constituting the committees was not issued by the Delhi government.

The counsel appearing for the street vendors had told the bench that vendors who had applied under the 2007 scheme were being evicted by the authorities and this must be stopped immediately.

The bench had said that its concern was that TVCs should be in place and the government had to come out with the notification in this regard.

The issue of encroachment had also cropped in the Delhi sealing matter in which the apex court is dealing with the issue of validity of the Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Act, 2006 and subsequent legislations which protect unauthorised constructions from being sealed. PTI LLP ABA MNL SJK RKS KJ

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Chennai, Sep 12 (PTI) A charge sheet was filed on Wednesday against 17 people in the alleged rape of an 11-year old hearing-impaired girl, arraigning the accused under the new law which provides for death penalty for child rapists.

The charge sheet was filed by Special Public Prosecutor N Ramesh before a Mahila court here for cases under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, nearly two months after the incident came to the fore.

The accused include a liftman, security guards, plumbers, electricians and other maintenance staff working at an apartment complex in Ayanavaram locality where the girl lived. She was allegedly sexually assaulted several times over seven months.

Apart from the POCSO Act, the charge sheet invokes various sections of the IPC, including under the newly added sections 376AB and 376DB that provide for a minimum 20 year rigorous imprisonment and maximum death penalty for raping girls under 12 years.

The new provisions have come into force after Parliament on August 6 last passed the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill which replaced an earlier ordinance promulgated in the wake of Kathua rape case.

This is the first time that the amended provisions have been invoked by the prosecution in the state.

The horrific incident had led to shock and outrage and the arrested had been attacked by some lawyers in the court where they were produced on July 17.

According to police, the girl was sedated with injections, drug-laced soft drinks and made to sniff a powder by the accused before sexually assaulting her repeatedly.

The incident had come to light after the victim, a class seven student, narrated her ordeal to her elder sister, who then informed their parents. Following this a police complaint was lodged on July 15. PTI CORR VS NSD

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New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) Come September 15, fans of the 'Caped Crusader' can immerse themselves into all things Batman, as Comic Con India gears up to celebrate Batman Day at Monkey Bar here.

From recreating memorable scenes from the Batman film series, and a healthy dose of Batman theme music composed for movies, to scoring limited edition Batman comics, the celebrations aim to take the fandom of the Dark Knight a notch higher.

"Batman Day is one of those occasions when comic book and pop culture aficionados come together across different platforms to express their love for one of the most popular and loved comic book characters of all time  Batman.

"This special event organized by Comic Con India is our way of giving fans of the Dark Knight in India a platform so that they can engage, and interact with other fans and share unique collective experiences," Jatin Varma, Founder, Comic Con India, said.

Fans will also get an opportunity to sample a variety of drinks inspired by characters from the Batman comics and DC Universe such as Poison Ivy, Joker, Harley Quinn, Riddler, and Penguin, among others.

Also featured will be a Comic Con Express, a travelling pop culture event, which moves from city to city to expand the reach of comic books-based events to other locations across the country.

Batman Day will be celebrated on September 15 in four cities -- Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. PTI TRS TRS MAH

MAH
Ferozepur, Sep 12 (PTI) Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Wednesday paid rich tributes to the soldiers of the historic Saragarhi battle on its 121st anniversary, and said the state-of-the-art memorial would be built before its next anniversary.

After paying obeisance in Gurdwara Saragarhi during the state-level martyrdom day function, the chief minister went to 'Barki Square' to pay floral tributes to the soldiers who laid down their lives in the 1965 Indo-Pak war.

Addressing the gathering at Saragarhi gurdwara complex, Amarinder Singh spoke about the exemplary valour of the 22 soldiers of the 36 Sikh Regiment of the British Indian Army stationed near Samana ridge (now in Pakistan), who laid down their lives after a fierce battle following an attack by nearly 10,000 Afghans on September 12, 1897.

A model depicting the architectural and layout of the state of the art memorial has been finalised, the chief minister said, adding the Saragarhi Memorial Management Committee under its Chairman Maj Gen J S Sandhu, GOC, 7 Inf Div would oversee the entire construction.

He assured the management committee that his government would extend full support in the execution of the

iconic project as a befitting tribute to the Saragarhi martyrs.

Responding to the demand raised by local MLA Parminder Singh Pinky for establishing Saragarhi Memorial Institute for Competitive Exams in Ferozepur, the chief minister said the state government would take necessary steps after getting the matter thoroughly examined.

He also assured fulfilment of the other demand for

setting up Saragarhi Club here. PTI CORR CHS NSD

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New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) Management services provider JLL Wednesday said it was cooperating with the authorities probing the death of five labourers in west Delhi due to inhalation of toxic gas in a sewer.

The company's statement comes after an engineer of JLL was arrested on charges of negligence after five labourers died in DLF Green Apartments in Moti Nagar area.

The company was contracted to provide services in the residential colony where the incident occurred.

"We are cooperating with all the relevant authorities and government agencies as they investigate this tragic case and have also launched our own comprehensive incident review," JLL said in a statement.

The company said it is cooperating with the authorities to ensure a thorough investigation and would update further on the matter when more details are available.

Sarfaraz, Pankaj, Raja, Umesh and Vishal were suffocated to death after they entered the sewer in one of the residential towers at Capital Green-DLF. PTI UZM KJ
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) A 36-year-old man allegedly committed suicide by jumping into Agra Canal in southeast Delhi, despite his wife's effort to save him, police said Wednesday.

The police were informed about the incident at 5 pm on Tuesday following which they rushed to the spot, they said.

The deceased has been identified as Pramod, a daily wage worker. However, his body has not been recovered yet, said a police official.

The officials from the Disaster management and the Fire department were also rushed to the spot for rescue operations, he said.

Police, however, managed to recuse his wife Balesh (32), who allegedly jumped into the canal to rescue her husband, said Chinmoy Biswal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (southeast).

Search operation is still underway, but his body has not be recovered yet, he added.

On enquiry, no foul play has been suspected by anyone, including his wife, Biswal said, adding that further investigation is underway. PTI AMP KJ
Another 16-year-old boy was shot in the leg, a 21-year-old woman was shot in the hip and a 19-year-old man was shot in the elbow. All three were stabilized at area hospitals.
Mumbai, Sep 12 (PTI) Triggering a controversy, Mumbai Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam on Wednesday called Narendra Modi "illiterate", while criticising the state government's decision to screen a short film on the prime minister's life at schools in Maharashtra.

His comment drew sharp reaction from BJP leaders with the party's Maharashtra unit spokesperson Shaina NC calling Nirupam "mentally deranged."

"The decision to screen the film forcibly is wrong. Children should be kept away from politics. What will students learn from watching a film on an uneducated and illiterate person like Modi," the Congress leader told a news channel.

"Children and people do not know how many degrees the

prime minister holds," he said.

Later, asked by reporters about his choice of words, Nirupam said the ruling party need not object to each and

every word, and "in democracy the prime minister is not god".

Reacting to Nirupam's remarks, Shaina NC tweeted, "Yet another abnoxious comment by a mentally deranged @sanjaynirupam . May be he forgets that @narendramodi is elected by 125 cr Indians who aren't "unpad or gavar".@INCIndia is devoid of ideology and relevant questions. Sure citizens will give a befitting reply in 2019 (sic).

Anil Shirole, a BJP MP from Maharashtra tweeted, "PM is not a representative of one party, he is the Prime Minister of the Country and it's people. @sanjaynirupam by insulting our PM you have insulted and disrespected the office, the country and the constitution drafted by Dr.Babasaheb Ambedkar ji (sic).

The Zilla Parishad (ZP) schools in Maharashtra have

been asked to screen a short film on Modi next week, a

directive which has drawn criticism from Opposition.

A government official said that ZP schools were asked

to screen the short film "Chalo Jeete Hai" on September 18 as

it has a "social message" and would inspire students.

The 32-minute film -- "Chalo Jeete Hai" -- directed by Mangesh Hadawale and presented by Aanand L Rai and Mahaveer Jain, is based on the early life of Modi.

Opposition Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party

(NCP) have slammed the BJP-led dispensation over the decision. PTI MR KRK NSD
New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI) The External Affairs Ministry Wednesday dismissed reports that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was denied permission to visit Chicago to attend the world Hindu conference.

Spokesperson of the ministry Raveesh Kumar said the government did not receive any request for clearance for her visit.

"We did not receive any request for clearance regarding the visit of Ms Mamata Banerjee to Chicago for the event. The reports about the denial of permission are, therefore, not true," he said in response to a question on the reports.

The West Bengal chief minister had yesterday said, "I wanted to go to Chicago... I could not go there because of an unholy conspiracy hatched by certain people. This incident has given me a lot of pain."

She had made the comment at a gathering in Belur Math, the global headquarters of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission, to mark 125th anniversary of Swami Vivekananda's historic speech at the Parliament of the World's Religions held in Chicago. PTI MPB NSD

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Dutch lender ING's chief finance officer has been forced to quit

BANK SCANDAL Dutch lender ING's chief finance officer has been forced to quit because of a money laundering scandal.

Koos Timmermans is standing down after the Dutch lender agreed to pay a record 689million fine to the Netherlands' prosecutors.

The failings emerged after investigators looked into four illicit companies which held accounts at the bank.

In one case a lingerie firm in Curacao handled 133million of dirty money. Hans Wijers, chairman of ING, said: 'We deeply regret the shortcomings.'

SHARE OFFER Wealth manager and trading platform AJ Bell has promised to ringfence some shares for 182,000 retail investors in its upcoming listing.

PIZZA EARNINGS Profits at DP Eurasia, which runs Domino's Pizza in Turkey and Russia, rose 8 per cent to 4.8million in the first half of 2018.

CUT ABOVE Meat packing and abattoir firm Hilton Food Group posted a 13.9 per cent profits boost to 21million in the 28 weeks to July 15 as sales grew 25 per cent to 863.6million.

ISRAEL TIE-UP British and Israeli finance lobby groups The City UK and City TLV have agreed to deepen their links over technology and cyber-security.

FLOAT COST Retail investors who want to back the float of online lender Funding Circle will have to stump up at least 1,000 each, the firm revealed in documents ahead of its 1.5billion float next month.

LEGAL AID Wealthy investors have raised 9million for litigation funder Therium, which provides the cash for companies and individuals to pursue legal claims.

FUND RAISING Small-business health insurer Equipsme has raised 2.5million from investors to expand.

PRICE CUT Speciality chemicals company Elementis has struck a deal to buy Mondo Minerals from private equity firm Advent for 384million  77million less than initially agreed following criticism from shareholders.

PENSION WOES UK pension schemes have a black hole of 65.3billion, up from a deficit of 62.8bn in July, according to the latest update from the Pension Protection Fund.

DIAMOND DAYS Miner Anglo-American sold 390million worth of diamonds in the seventh cycle of 2018.

GREEN DEAL Irish-based renewable energy company Greencoat Renewables is buying four windfarms in Ireland for 120million from forestry business Coillte.